"Probably for the best if one of my inventions goes haywire," Tycho joked. As it was, they had yet to be scared off though he didn't think the occasional explosions from his abode had endeared him to any of them.

"I love you too, I always will," Tycho responded in kind. He knew himself well enough to know that even after years passed, if he moved on to someone else, maybe even loved this hypothetical new person - a piece of his heart and soul would forever have Ford etched onto them.