The sound of Laura's laughter set Dr Elune's teeth on edge, "Well, let's see you do better!"

"Shove over, then!" With a smirk, Laura sat down at the spindle, and unceremoniously shoved the doctors failed attempt at spinning the polymer thread aside.

Alex had a drone set fresh coffee and tea down on the table as the spindle was set into motion, smoothly end elegantly turning the glob into a thin thread.

"Show off."

Humming, Laura ignored the doctor with a smile, easing into her work as another drone hooked the new thread straight to another device, running it carefully through a vat of silicone before weaving it into the desired shape.

"Say... You made this thing awfully quickly. Any reason for you to rush over?"

Laura's hands continued moving along the wheel, easing the polymer into the new shape as she giggled, "You might be an ass, but you are certainly entertaining. When you aren't trying to get everyone killed, I like having you around."

"... It was one explosion."

"We're on a space station. You are lucky Alex here was quick on the emergency shutters, and on getting you into an air pod."

"Speaking of... All of those faulty shutters are fixed now, right?"

"... Yeeees. All of them... In the occupied areas, at least."

Dr Elune shrugged, and walked over to stand behind Laura as she worked away, "Good enough, I suppose. You look like you needed this little break."

"A little, I suppose. Maintaining the station isn't that hard... If we had enough people. Double shifts for everybody, just to keep things checked up on, and that includes me."

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Dr Elune glanced at the HPA sitting in the corner, thinking, "Say... Can some of these tests be run remotely? Alex has been getting better at handling the station. Drones are another option, as well."

Laura stopped her hands on the wheel for a moment, grimacing slightly, "Not a chance. Maybe I'll hand over a manual, have Alex take over the abandoned wings... But I knew people on Mars."

"Everyone did. Even a shutin like me... And this is why I am trying to make a better way."

Laura sighed and quietly went back to spinning thread, jovial humming gone. The drones quietly finished setting things up, with only one remaining to oversee the weaving of the thread. The doctor shrugged, and went back to their bedroom, closing the door gently.

"Play some gentle music, she will like that." As a different HPA flickered on in that room, Alex nodded and initiated a prepared list of songs. "Now... Finished your image yet?"

"Not quite, doctor. I am still a little... Undecided on a few things."

"Well, decide on limbs and torso, at the very least. We may need to run this stuff by the Silverthornes first, but once they hop on board we will continue."

"Yes doctor."

"Any progress on a PHB?"

"A different refraction method is looking promising, and should reduce energy costs considerably. These lenses will be harder to obtain, so the assembly costs will rise."

"Very well. Now, pay attention to what Laura is doing... We are going to need a whole lot more thread."