Very, very gently, it prods her with its snout.

Pat pat.

The intercom comes on.

"SCP-682.  I have been impressed with your cooperativeness.  Please move into the acid tank now.  If you comply at this time it shows us that we can negotiate with you."

The noise in its throat rises almost to a growl.  But it rises to its feet, and turns around, at length, and moves toward and into the open tank.

She stands by it as it begins to fill.

The liquid bubbles violently and turns black almost as soon as it touches its flesh.  It hurts.  But it is better to be bone than to be meat.

It takes less than a minute to fill fully.

"Researcher Fiftythree, please move to the testing foyer so the blast doors can be sealed."

She spins around and walks.  It's only a few steps.

The blast doors begin to seal.  That takes less than a minute too.

"Thank you.  You may take the hazardous materials service elevator to the roof whenever you're ready.  There are signs posted that will lead you from there to your temporary suite at this site."

She stares at the wall.  She breathes.

She gets into the elevator.

Her suite here at Site-40 is smaller and more utilitarian than her home suite, which she thinks reflects more that Site-40 is a smaller and more utilitarian site than Site-19 more than anything else.

She sets up her computer and gets on a video conference with Dr. Hijazi.

"Hello, Researcher Fiftythree."

"Hello, Doctor.  I spoke to SCP-682 further after our exchange, and - well first of all we established that it prefers to be referred to as it rather than he."

She blinks.  " - all right."

"I watched the footage of you interviewing it.  I think you were right in guessing that your secondary anomaly would be helpful in communicating with it, and I think your ability to be patient with it is - commendable."

"Thank you.  We spoke on some - minor quality-of-life interventions that would make 682's time in the acid bath more bearable without compromising security on it.  My impression of it so far is that it's very willing to talk to me and work with me in order for us to better understand each other, and that the main barrier is the things about its containment and its - existence in the universe - that negatively affect its mental state."

She nods, slowly, consideringly, and steeples her fingers.

"Honestly, after reviewing the footage I'm less concerned than I was.  It seems - I don't mean to be insulting, but the word that kept coming to mind watching you talk to it was guileless."

The word that had come into her own mind was innocent.  She doesn't say this.

"You were concerned that I might have been compromised?"

"Yes.  With respect, Researcher Fiftythree, if you contact an anomaly's HCML Director in the middle of a conversation with that anomaly, and start pressuring them to make extemporaneous changes to its containment procedures before even putting it properly back into containment, you will unavoidably give that impression."

She's suddenly very thankful to have long since been transferred to the alternative humanoid containment-hospitality model, she can't imagine trying to get this project underway while also fighting her own HCML Director to be allowed to leave the Site.  Maybe if it had been Dr. Eschenheimer.

"...When you put it that way I can see what you mean.  I'm sorry to have alarmed you or put pressure on you, but - with all due respect I think if it's possible to reduce 682's suffering it is kind of a moral imperative to do so and to do so quickly."

"I'm - not completely unsympathetic to your point of view, Researcher Fiftythree.  I'd like to hear your suggestions now."

" - alright," she says.  "My assessment is that in addition to being in pain in the acid bath SCP-682 is severely understimulated.  That might be as bad or worse for it as the pain caused by the acid immersion itself - it said as much near the end of our conversation, that being in a static environment with few distinguishing features sometimes felt worse than the pain did.  I think the two easiest interventions to improve 682's mental state without compromising security would be comforting background stimulation and helping it be oriented to time.  I mentioned in our first conversation the idea that we could dim the lights in its enclosure at night - not enough to make it difficult to see or navigate the chamber, if that becomes necessary, but just enough to provide a visual signal of the passage of time.  Being able to count the days since my last visit could help ground it, I think, which would in turn make it easier for it to talk to me."

"All right.  What's your second suggestion?"