You ace it

Demetra bombards you with questions, barely giving you time between answering them.

With each and every right answer you give, you can see something in Demetra's eye - you're not sure what it is, but her cold countenance seems to be cracking just a bit.

Next to you, Nightwing is frowning slightly. Her brows are starting to crease as the questions keep coming.

Just as you finish answering one particularly complex question, Demetra immediately follows up with a similarly complex question.

"What role does telomerase reverse transcriptase play in the cell, and how does it affect the aging process?"

You shoot back the answer immediately.

"Telomerase reverse transcriptase lengthens telomeres at the end of chromosomes. Doing so delays cell aging, and while it doesn’t stop the overall aging process, it can delay cell senescence and age-related diseases like cancer."

Demetra stares at you, her expression inscrutable. She seems to fidget a bit, her legs rubbing against each other subtly.

"Fine. Let's get out of molecular biology and kick it up a notch." A small smirk forms on her face. You cock an eyebrow - she seems to be taking this much more seriously than you are.

"Cool," is your response, and your invitation for her to ask her next question.

"What does iPSC stand for, and why is it significant?"

Ohhhh - that's why she smirked. This isn't exactly public knowledge.

Before you can answer, Nightwing scoffs loudly. "I have never heard of such a thing, so you are clearly making something up to confuse him. Pathetic."

You frown at Nightwing. She looks so proud of herself - this is going to really suck for her.

"An iPSC is an induced pluripotent stem cell. It's significant because you can take a sample of something as innocuous as skin cells, and revert them into stem cells that have the same pluripotent property as embryonic stem cells, without the ethical concerns or availability issues inherent to embryonic stem cells."

Demetra stares at you blankly, her eyebrows hiking in surprise. "Wait... how do you know that?" It's barely perceptible, but you can swear that she bites her lip for a split second.

"I-I assumed he wouldn't know what it was, so I said that to make him feel better!" Nightwing is blushing brightly, and you decide that it would just be best to go along with it.

"You're not the first elf that has quizzed me with the promise of knowledge," you explain.

Demetra leans back, crossing her arms with a small pout. Her cheeks are taking on a rosey hue - she's probably embarassed that you proved her wrong.

"That was fun," you tease her as you stretch, really working to rub it in her face. "We should do trivia again sometime."

Demetra looks at you in surprise, her blush deepening slightly. "Uh... yeah, okay."

Now it's your turn to be surprised - did Demetra actually enjoy that? Huh. You suppose that's one way to make friends with someone.

Unbeknownst to you, Demetra is grappling with a sensation that she hasn't felt in quite a long time. It would seem as though she's developing a small crush on you.

"I, for one, am not in the least surprised," Nightwing boasts, having apparently forgotten her blunder from earlier. "I knew what I was doing when I chose to make you my ****."

You almost give yourself whiplash when you turn to glare at her. She frowns at you, confused for a moment, before she realizes what she just said.

"Oh, uh, I mean -"

"Ah, that explains a lot about the two of you," Demetra muses. "Interesting."

You look at Demetra in surprise. "Wait... you don't care that-"

"Should I?" She interrupts you, apparently no longer flustered as she jots down some notes.

You glance at the front of the cart - thankfully, either Roberta didn't hear you, or she, similarly, doesn't care.

"I mean...I'd prefer you not, honestly."

"Then I don't."

You and Nightwing exchange a glance. Neither of you can really get a consistent read on her.

At least you don't have to worry about her ratting you out or anything...

The three of you fall into an uncomfortable silence, but given how Demetra returns to her books, she's not very uncomfortable.

This is going to be a long ride...