7008/Dollhouse: Genetic Drift

Dollhouse: Genetic Drift
Date of Scene:	19 July 2021
Location:	The Lab - Playground
Synopsis:	Bobbi, Jemma, and Sarah go straight to work when they get back from the Triskelion raid. This is the second time they've done something like this. It goes far smoother than they expected with an astonishing result the next morning. Peggy is saved.
Cast of Characters:	Bobbi Morse, Peggy Carter, Daniel Sousa, Ava Starr, Jemma Simmons, Melinda May, Lois Lane

---

Bobbi Morse has posed:
    Returning triumphant but only because of the good will of Colonel Talbot, or perhaps the ill will of HYDRA, Bobbi meets up with Jemma and Collingwood. "We have the sample and the machine. Collingwood can you prep Peggy, let Sousa know. We will need a fresh blood sample Jemma we need to calculate the Endotoxin load for Jemma's machine. I'll begin mapping out the biomorphics and hope I don't embarrass myself in front of Jemma's superior skills."

    Bobbi is all motion. Her military fatigues are being stripped off and her lab coat is donned. An elegant script on the pocket lapel 'Doctor Morse' in blue embroidery. She pauses and points to an Agent nearby, "Khan, tell Hunter I love him. Give him a kiss on the cheek."

    Bobbi picks up the specialised machine once more and walks brisky to the labs. "I'll fill you in on the mission particulars a little later Jemma. Suffice to say Talbot is in the process of flipping to our point of view."

Peggy Carter has posed:
Peg is awake. Somewhat. Just as Bobbi predicted, she had a week at best, and they are on the very edge of that. Her few hours a day of sitting up on tablets, talking to Daniel and visitors, they stopped sometime over the weekend. Now, sitting up is simply beyond exhausting. It's painful. She's bruises and raw skin everywhere and there's little to be done to spot bits of her hair falling out already. It's like the very worst, last days before they stuck her in cryo the last time.

But still she's trying. She's had Daniel reading her the most important reports of the day, quietly dictating what decisions she can make before sleep takes her again. This includes a quiet updating of her will, which wasn't something either of them wanted to do, but Peggy Carter was nothing if not practical. She's fallen mostly quiet now, half asleep, her one hand free of an IV loosely in Daniel's palm.

Daniel Sousa has posed:
Daniel much preferred the reading of reports and submitting orders than updating the will, but then the talk with Michael had highlighted the importance of that, and when it came down to it, besides a couple of keepsakes he recommended the bulk of Peggy's goods go to their son. That spoke volumes as to his own plans, but regardless of what she decides he writes it all down as dictated.

Then as things quiet down he holds her hand, gripping it firmly so even half asleep she can feel that he's there, right beside her.

Ava Starr has posed:
Collingwood, in blue USAF BDUs, tosses her jacket on the back of a chair, revealing a black tee underneath, and gives Morse a quick nod. "On it," she says, glancing briefly to Jemma. She doesn't linger, however, but heads off to find the room she knows the Chief has been confined to. Likely to find Sousa and Carter both together.

"Good news," she says as she enters, giving them both a smile. "Mission was a success. Talbot's on to Hale and we got what we needed from the lab." She comes up to the side of the bed, starting to prep IVs for moving and giving Peggy a quick visual inspection. She glances to Daniel, since he seems to be the more cognizant one. "I've been sent to prep Chief Carter for whatever procedure it is Morse and Simmons have cooked up." A beat. She offers a hopeful smile. "They seem pretty optimistic..."

Jemma Simmons has posed:
"Well, that is certainly good news."

Jemma Simmons is already in her own lab coat. Nothing fancy on the pocket or anything of the sort. Just a regular lab coat with extra big pockets. For holding lots of things, because pockets are extremely useful.

And...as far as saying anything more...well, Bobbi is a blur of motion. So talking is fallen to the wayside as Jemma follows in to the combination laboratory and medbay. Jemma's voice drifts, overheard by both Peg and Daniel as one of the reasons for those overtly large pockets, Jemma's personal tablet, is withdrawn, with Jemma calling out what she is reviewing. "Last time, we isolated the damaged segments and used the hybrid CRISPr/TA..." A pause as Jemma catches herself. "...err, the hybrid sequencing protocol solution to insert our contributions. This time, we are actually going to effectively erase any genetic tampering." There isn't much more that Jemma intones, as her fingers flutter over the tablet once more, effectively crunching the numbers for the 3rd, 4th, and possibly 5th time. There is one more comment, though.

"I am cautiously optimistic that this will be successful. At least as optimistic as the first time."

Bobbi Morse has posed:
    Bobbi twists her lips a moment as she walks in to the lab and moves to the surgical area. She sets down the machine and plugs it in, then pulls up a chair and connects the computer to it. A few taptaptap and she has it booting up. As Jemma asserts her optimism, Bobbi thinks to herself... this had better work. It's beyond state of the art genetic engineering in motion and if it fails the only other people on the planet more advanced than this might be Wakanda. Might. And that's a long flight.

    She walks over to Daniel and Peggy as Collingwood is already underway prepping. "Jemma's right, but .. it's still a long shot. And Peggy, if it works - your extremely classified 'helper' in your blood? it'll be gone. We can talk about that in more detail after. I'm sorry, there's no other way we know of."

    The end of an era, a legacy. The prototype Infinity Formula made SHIELD possible, by keeping Peggy young and alive for such a very long time. But a lot can happy in another half a life time even if she does become a perfectly regular human once more.

    "We can't rule out one of the root causes of the problem is a cytogenetic disorder," she says. In other words.. the prototype and/or the infinity formula may have simply been incompatible with her genetics. "You're awake... we need your consent to proceed." She would place a hand on Sousa's shoulder - but she isn't so sure a gently touch from the ex-sky commander would be all that soothing.

Peggy Carter has posed:
The news that's pouring over her, somewhat quickly, is a little too fast for Peggy's mind to immediately keep up. She forces in a deeper breath, pressing her eyes open a bit more to focus on Daniel and Collingwood above her for just a moment, then over towards Bobbi. She blinks tiredly again, really trying to focus. She's still technically in charge, while she's breathing and conscious. They needed it from her.

"Y-yes, yes... of course. Proceed. Daniel knows what is to happen if... If things do not work." Peggy rasps out quietly, giving her husband's hand the faintest of squeezes. This was good news, yes? They'd gotten through so much else. She even gives him a pale, reassuring smile as Collingwood starts to prep her.

Daniel Sousa has posed:
Simmons' remark gets a bit of a wry look, "Wasn't the last time, pardon my French, an ass pull?" he asks, before giving her a proper smile. "Point taken though, optimistic, I trust you'll get this done," he assures them before he turns to Peggy as she mentions him knowing what to do if things go sideways and he nods and squeezes her hand, meeting her reassuring smile with his own. "Just going to file all of it under prepare for the worst and hope for the best," he tells his wife softly.

Melinda May has posed:
It's not a bad idea, Daniel's filing. Collingwood finishes prepping the Chief as well as she can, and then starts rolling the bed down to where it needs to be, closer to that machine. Really, she's just here as an extra set of hands. And maybe a witness if things go sideways.

She really hopes they don't go sideways. The hit to morale this place would take, should the Grande Dame pass, would be fairly heavy.

Jemma Simmons has posed:
Jemma turns to offer Daniel a gentle smile. And, at least to Jemma's credit, she doesn't skirt around the issue, nor the charming colloquialism that he uses. "Well, to be perfectly honest, we were trying a completely untested procedure, using a combination of cutting edge technologies both known and extremely classified, under an enormous time crunch. All with the knowledge that we had literally no room for error."

As the bed reaches the machine, Jemma then turns her attention away from Daniel, to check the machine once more...while still speaking to him. "This time is different, though." Tablet is lifted as Jemma performs some minor adjustments before she finally finishes her thought.

"This time, we know the procedure is feasible."

Basically....everything is the same. Only the procedure has been tested. And now they are going to do it again.

"With all due respect, we cannot afford to fail. So, we will not."

Bobbi Morse has posed:
    Bobbi brings up the genetic profile from the last few times and inserts the newest blood sample. It takes a moment without the supercomputers to sequence it. She blinks a few times and stares. With a small sigh she nods to Jemma, "We really are running out of time."

    "This is going to be a radical regression. If it works, it'll be like she drank from the fountain of youth...." she says and starts to type out a program to map from A to B. There's no way she can do it all manually - but thankfully they wrote most of this the first time around. Then they had days to work on it. Not so this time.

    Bobbi lets the computer run. This time they don't need to find donors to match up the missing DNA. They have it all, a perfect pristine 1949 sample of Peggy Carter before the infinity formula ever touched her genome. The simulation runs and comes back with 100%. She looks to the machine Jemma designed and then to Jemma, "It's ready doctor."

    This next part is not for Bobbi. She's just a biochemist not a medical doctor. "Please please tell me I got this right," she whispers to her colleague. Not because Jemma is better at biochemistry - though she is - she's just a lot more practiced. It is her day to day job after all.

Peggy Carter has posed:
Peg's hand gently comes up, pulling what last bits of strength she has to bring Daniel's palm to her lips and give the back of his knuckles a soft kiss. "I love you. I'll... see you soon. I promise. I'm in good hands." Peg whispers to him, but then her dark eyes flicker back up towards Collingwood, Simmons, and Morse above her. She truly believed it, no fear or doubt in her eyes now. Either this would work, or it would all be over. But she wouldn't trust anyone else with this more, so she lets herself be rolled towards teh back, near that machine.

Her eyes sink shut, perhaps in exhaustion or just fearful hope, as Bobbi mentions how radical a regression this might be. Even in her serumed gifted state, she looked somewhere in her late 30s, maybe 40. The prime of her life, work wise. This blood? From when she was 29 years old. There will be wrinkles that are gone. Perhaps even the old burn scars along the left side hairline and cheek will be fainter than before. How she looked before they were even wed. It will be a strange change.

As she hears Bobbi's plead that she got it right, Peggy gives the faintest shake of her head to the woman. "None of you blame yourselves... No matter *what*... what happens, you have gone above and beyond the call of duty. Remember that. I trust every last one of you. I know you did... all you could. SHIELD is in good hands with you, Morse... Simmons. Collingwood. Please, do remember that." If that's the last thing Peggy ever says, it will have been worth those shallow last breaths of hers. She meant every word.

Daniel Sousa has posed:
"Love you too, Peg," Daniel tells her, managing a smile. "And I'll see you after you're done," he promises her before leaning over the bed to give his wife a proper kiss. "Good luck," he whispers briefly before repeating. "I love you," just in case these were his final words to her.

As she's wheeled towards the machine he stays standing watching safely out of the way of the experts who have Peggy's life in their hands.

Melinda May has posed:
Collingwood gives Peggy a small smile at those encouraging words. But, aside from monitoring what she's asked to monitor, this show is out of her hands. She trusts Morse and Simmons. They know a whole lot more about this stuff than she does.

How she went from S&R field medic to this, she'll never really know. But if it works... she'll be happy.

Jemma Simmons has posed:
There isn't a verbal acknowledgement from Jemma for Bobbi's question. However, Jemma has looked over the calculations before...and she has looked at them again, now, after the computer has done the calculations. And...as Jemma levels her eyes towards Bobbi, all Simmons does is nod. A simple nod. She knows it is right. She knows that it should work.

Now...it is just up to Jemma to deliver.

The lab coat is removed, as Jemma dons more appropriate medical attire. "Well now, Peggy, this is the section in which we administer the gene therapy. If you would recall, the last time we did this, we performed this manually. However, given the accelerated degeneration caused by the extreme stress the infinity formula was placed under, performing this manually, as we did previously, would simply be too long of a procedure." Jemma shifts to the machine...and the injection system that came along with it. "This is considerably less taxing on your system, at least for the delivery method. It still involves injections....and I fear that there might be a bit of discomfort. However, we will be able to provide you more comfort than the previous time."

As Jemma talks, she proceeds to attach the delivery system to her idol. Simmons did this once before...but the fact that she did might as well not matter. Because this is, again, so experimental that the only real notations are either so classified that no one will be able to uncover them...or they are in Jemma's head. "There will be a series of injections. The first is simply a mild pain blocker. The others will be the genetic compound. As I stated, it should be more efficient...and, hopefully, less painful."

That pain blocker is administered. Then...a few seconds later, Jemma asks a single word question.

"Ready?"

Bobbi Morse has posed:
    Bobbi nods her head in return to Jemma and presses the GO button on the computer. Their complex adaptive CRISPr virus begins to print straight in to the delivery needle that Jemma is wielding. And true to her word, this time it's not going to take them all night to save her. Nor does Peggy need to go to sleep.

    The anti-dote, though, will take time to work on Peggy. By tomorrow she'll be a new woman, but for now she is the only patient to have ever received this treatment.

    Bobbi watches as the machine progresses through it's algorithm and Jemma tends to her patient. She's silent through it though, her toes curled in her boots. The tension in her is great because this one little thing - saving Peggy's life - is a big step toward feeling like her old self again.

Peggy Carter has posed:
The first time, Peggy was so out of it, so sick, that she had no coaching through the process. She also didn't know these women from Adam then. Now, a faint, proud smile crosses her blue-gray lips as she stares up at Jemma. No fear. Just quiet reassurance and the certainty that the woman above her has it in hand. "Ready. Jemma... You needn't even ask. I trust you with my life. And all these people's lives." Which is, over all, more of a compliment than just her own life. She then looks back up to Bobbi, giving Morse a reassuring, quiet nod as well. The Director is fully at peace with whatever happens now. Even Collingwood gets a calm, bolstering smile.

She takes in a deep, slow breath as the next part of the process starts. Her vitals quicken, just a bit, then only sign of nerves. But there's no alarms. No abrupt crashing, nothing to indicate any sort of failure. For a moment, she even breathes a bit easier. "Well, I do not feel like dying, for what it's worth." She quips quietly to the women above her.

Melinda May has posed:
Both Daniel and Collingwood are silent now. Encouraging smiles or not, this is still a waiting game. And neither of them have a great role to play in the main action.

Still, Sarah watches Daniel rub his wife's hand reassuringly. Then she turns her eyes back to her monitors, keeping her attention on Peggy's vitals -- standing by, just in case.

Jemma Simmons has posed:
"Of course, Peggy."

It is a vast improvement over the last time this was done, to be sure. From both Peggy and Jemma. Previously, it would have been 'Director Carter' and perhaps as little talking as possible. Now, both are in a better position. "Here we go."

A finger reaches out, tapping a button and starting the cycle. True to Jemma's word, there might have been a slight pinch, but not much more. And...while the results are not instant...the fact that there is no immediate drop in vitals is a very positive sign. "Sarah, please keep an eye on Peggy's vitals. This is going to be just like we did in the Sphere. We monitor...and we react if anything less than nominal occurs." Of course, Jemma could monitor Peggy's stats just as easily, but Sarah and her were pretty good when dealing with the Framework...and Jemma trusts Sarah to keep up.

The medical doctor steals a moment to shoot a glance over towards Bobbi. The eyes flicker, first to the medical readouts, then back to Bobbi, with a gradual smile slowly making itself known. It might be too early to call it, yet, but Jemma does seem pretty optimistic.

Even moreso than usual.

Bobbi Morse has posed:
    Bobbi lets out a long slow sigh of relief. She slumps in her chair and watches the injections taking place by Jemma. The TAHITI project might have failed but the processes were given new life in an emergency when Peggy returned. If only they had a DNA backup of everyone on the planet, they could cure all kinds of degenerative diseases. This could become a new era of medical treatment.

    Bobbi allows herself to smile and then she slips off the chair. "Well. There's not much more I can do here." She swipes her card and locks away the files once more in to the SPOT archives. Bobbi is officially too tired now and says. "I'll be in my quarters. If something... changes... wake me up." She pats a hand gently to Simmons's shoulder, gives Collingwood a nod and then says to Peggy, "Try and fall asleep. It'll be easier."

    The next day...

Peggy Carter has posed:
No emergency alarms over night. Eventually, Peggy really does her best to convince them to take shifts, so everyone can get a little bit of sleep. Daniel included. And, of course, herself. She listens to Bobbi's words and eventually does drop off, either to wake up a changed woman tomorrow. Or to not wake up at all.

However, when she does, it's with an easier breath than she's taken in ages. If there's still an oxygen line across her nose, it's certainly not needed. She looks a transformed woman. Her dark hair has filled out a bit again, though that which was lost will need to grow back. The scarring along her left cheek is fainter with the bounce-back of youthful skin. All those faint wrinkle lines of someone approaching 40 are gone. She's even filling out her robe far nicer than the gaunt mess she was before. Any red lines left from the Framework are gone. The burns on her chest will still take some time to heal and the places where her skin turned to raw legions aren't quite healed either, but most of the bruises are faded. It's like Snow White after the Prince kissed her.

"...Well, I'm certainly not dead. Will someone start yelling at me if I sit up?" She clips into the room gently, not quite certain who is there.

Melinda May has posed:
Collingwood *did* get some sleep at some point. But she's alert and back around by the time Peggy awakens the next morning. The transformation of the woman is remarkable. And the medic finds herself subtly re-energized by that fact.

"Mornin', Chief," she says, giving the Englishwoman a friendly greeting. "Need a hand?" It's possible, since Daniel has stepped out very briefly to attend to necessary business. (Too much coffee, no doubt.)

She doesn't think Simmons or Morse will yell at her for helping the woman sit up. "Daniel was here with you all night. He'll be back in just a minute, I'm sure. May checked in on you overnight, too. Let me call Jemma and Morse to let them know you're awake."

All of which means the medlab is about to become busy, again.

Jemma Simmons has posed:
No, Jemma would not chastise for helping Peggy to a more comfortable position. She herself got some sleep, but really not that much. Which...is to be expected, considering how the scientist was the first time around. But, at least she did sleep. And she didn't need Peggy to order her to do so.

The alert from Collingwood received, Simmons relayed the message that she would be along shortly. It was a short distance from the living quarters to the laboratory...and this time Jemma arrives without her usual lab coat. The look is a bit more casual, but still very much Jemma.

"And how are we feeling this morning?" Jemma may not be dressed as a doctor (yet), but that question...and the way it was asked...just screams at how much medical training the young woman truly has. It doesn't really matter if Peggy answers, for Jemma can see at a glance that her patient, her role model, is doing better. A second glance towards the monitors confirms what the doctor could see via her quick passive inspection.

"Much better, I see." A beat. "There may be a need to do one more blood sample, to gauge the effectiveness of the gene therapy, but I am sure Bobbi will want to see...and I just might wait to let her see the results first." A wink. Jemma is being coy.

Bobbi Morse has posed:
    Bobbi wakes up as she feels the buzz of her comms on the bed side table. She carefully detangles herself from Lance and checks. Labs. Peggy Carter update. Thumbs up. She smiles and slips out of bed. A lazy workout top and workout pants, shoes, glasses, and she is good to go. She enters the lab with her hands in her hair tying it up in to a quick pony tail and stops dead in her steps as she sees Peggy.

    She stares in wonder at the picturesque Agent Peggy Carter in the medical bed. Like out of a photo from the 40s. An eyebrows raised she walks over and says, "Chief." She nods to Jemma and Collingwood. "Well I suppose we should do an analysis... has someone drawn blood already?"

    She keeps peeking over at Peggy even as she sits down at the computer console. Eerie and strange. She's so used to the slightly more battle worn Peggy that this is like they just hired Sharon's sister for the job of Chief.

Peggy Carter has posed:
As Collingwood gives her the update, Peggy smiles a little more and reaches her non IV marked hand forward to accept some help up. She doesn't really *need* it, but she also doesn't want to panic the medical staff by leaping up and out of bed all on her own already. So, she takes things slow. One step at a time. "Yes, please, a hand would be lovely." She echoes as they manage to easily get her up sitting. Peggy can fluff and adjust her own pillows. Even turning like that didn't hurt near so much, though those burn wounds still slightly stung, it was nothing compared to before.

Then Jemma and Bobbi are spilling in. She gives them both a wider smile. "It... it worked, didn't it? It certainly *feels* like it work. And no, no one has vampired me yet, but if it mwans I can get out of this bed and walk around soon, take as much as you need." Peggy offers her arm, even her poor, abused veins in better shape than they have been in ages. "But yes, I'm feeling... remarkably better. Impossibly so. Stiry crazy and restless already. A touch terrified to ask for a mirror." She admits, the way Bobbi keeps looking at her.

Melinda May has posed:
Collingwood sets about drawing that blood. It makes her feel useful. Once she's got the vial, she passes it off to Bobbi and Jemma. "I could probably find a mirror," she notes, given the Chief's request.

Again, it's something for the woman to do that will be useful while the big brains do their work and prove with science what the eye can already see. Thus, she pauses a moment and considers, before realizing the lockers will probably have one. There's always someone with a magnetic thing stuck to the inside of a metal door.

So, a few moments later, as the others are doing the science stuff and Peggy is trying oh-so-hard to be good, Collingwood returns, a small mirror in hand.

Jemma Simmons has posed:
Science stuff.

If there was ever a phrase that would describe what the two biochemists would be up to....that wouldn't necessarily be it. At least, not for Jemma. But, for the others? It works. The mysterious nature none withstanding...there is really little for Jemma to do at this point but merely confirm.

However, it is Jemma that answers the question posed by the Chief. Even without the comparison, which she allows Bobbi to do, Jemma can see that their little rejuvenation plan seems to have been successful. "Well, long term effects are still under research and is too soon to tell. However, if I was to give a professional opinion...." Jemma just cannot help but smile for this. "...I would say that it is indeed successful. A faster, more stable result than even the last time we did this, over a year ago."

Bobbi Morse has posed:
    Bobbi accepts the blood sample and quietly starts typing away. What catches her attention first though, once the computer is done sequencing, is that the CLASSIFIED marker is not there on the blood. She blinks a few times and runs it a second time just to make sure.

    She shakes her head and looks over to Jemma, then to Peggy. "Your blood is no longer classified Peggy. Sorry and Happy to say you're just a regular human once again." The plan to freeze Peggy until there was a cure was a bold one; and yet somehow it had finally paid off. A few very close calls but modern medicine has just done the impossible.

    She frowns and presses her lips together. She presses the button she hates to press. They just cured ageing without any crazy radiation or alien blood or wild genetic code rewrites. She presses the the LEVEL 10 CLASSIFIED button on their work.

    here's a time and a place to talk about what they just did. It's not here. Collingwood and Jemma both receive a ~ding~ on their devices to indicate that they have been read in to a Level 10 CLASSIFIED project. It's now in the Directors hands. Fury might even breath a sigh of relief.

    "Jemma is going to have to give you a checkup every now and then to make sure, but I think we might have cured you Chief." She can't quite bring herself to say Peggy again yet. But, visible relief. Finally something has gone right. Talbot seemingly changing his tune on SHIELD and Peggy alive and soon to be kicking.

Daniel Sousa has posed:
Daniel had held off on his pit stop for as long as he could and hurried back just as quick as he could manage, he's still drying his hands of soapy water as he steps back into the lab. Though seeing Peggy moving it's quickly discarded and he rushes to her bedside, eyes wide along with his smile. "Hey," he greets his wife reaching for her hand. "Welcome back," he breathes not taking his eyes off of her until he looks to the others. "It went okay, right?" having entered after Peggy was announced to be a normal human.

Peggy Carter has posed:
As that news comes about her blood, a breath of absolute relief escapes her lips. Peggy looks between the three women, definitely more elated than one might expect being told they no longer have any sort of superpower. "Being a perfect normal, regular human sounds about the nicest thing I've heard in a long time. Even if I suspect this is all classified for... entirely different reasons now." Peggy admits, her lips pressing into a momentary grim line as she realizes just what the implications here are, and how they probably can never release them to the world.

Then Daniel is back at her side, and Peggy's smiling. Beaming, practically. She looks like the young woman who first walked through the doors of the SSR when he started there, years younger than his wife. it's in small, subtle details, but he knows her well enough to have seen the changes. She reaches for the mirror from Collingwood as the other woman returns, looking between it and her husband's face. "...Oh hell. It... did work." She suddenly admits. She was not expecting *that* reflection staring back at her. Not quiet.

Melinda May has posed:
Sarah smiles as Peggy sees her reflection. She backs out of Daniel's way so he can approach. Her job, really, is done, now. She moves casually over to where Bobbi and Jemma are, but keeps out of their way, too. Again... she knows when to fade into the background.

Bobbi Morse has posed:
    Bobbi raises an eyebrow and nods her head, "It actually worked..." She shouldn't be so surprised. She's doing it with Jemma Simmons. Between the two of them they've done some incredible genetics work. Enough to write papers for a life time at this point.

    "Happy 28th Birthday... Peggy... Again." She catches sight of Lance walking by the Labs and smiles. "Ah. I will catch you all later." She nods to Jemma, "All yours." And a nod to Collingwood, "Thanks for saving my life several times. See you around." She pats Daniel on the shoulder and heads out of the labs.

Lois Lane has posed:
The sight in the mirror is going to take a *lot* of getting used to. Peggy's accustomed to scars, injuries, the wrinkles and bit of gray that had come with age. Even the changes of pregnancy, half of her body still not used to being not as soft as she was in that other place. But going back to looking and feeling like she did in 1949? It feels like a wild impossibility.

"As... as long as we know I'm not falling apart, maybe I could have a few minutes alone with my husband? I'm sure some monitor will scream if something goes wrong." Peggy reassures them all, but she has processing to do. As much celebrating as she must do adjusting. She squeezes Daniel's hand tightly, giving him a reassuring smile. She's alive. She's better than she's been in ages.

Maybe they really do have a second chance.