The museum was mostly empty, which made it easier to find the first aid kit without anyone asking too many questions. Her arms were stinging from the cuts she'd received during her confrontation with the mutants earlier, and after getting dropped back off at work she had been instructed to stay here and out of trouble until someone could come back for her. Sam had seemed...different, but it wasn't the time nor the place to sort out what had happened to him since their last encounter. She mused on it while she slipped to the back room and started hunting through the first aid kit for some sort of bandage. There were a few pieces of gauze but as she started trying to match them up with her cuts she realized she would look like a mummy if she bandaged them all.

"A mummy in a museum...." She laughed bitterly at the irony.

Setting the bandages down, she got a few disinfecting wipes out instead then sat gingerly on a chair in the corner. She opened the package and carefully tried cleaning off her arms, starting at the small cuts near her hands and working her way up. It stung, several of the scratches deep enough that blood puddle back to the surface once the cloth had moved on past. Without the dried blood in the way she got a better idea of how cut up she was.

She was definitely going to look like a mummy... She considered just grabbing the ace bandage and wrapping it around her arm for the time being. With her hair and clothing flecked with red, she could only imagine what someone would think if they walked it. Jensen would throw a fit if he were here.

A thought that made her sad when she realized he wouldn't walk in the door.

However, little did she know her bodyguard hadn't made the drive to his new job yet. Somewhere outside of the main city, the radio had come on and announced the eruption of violence in Manhattan. Mutants were attacking humans, the tension had finally snapped; he had hit the breaks in a moment of concerned panic as he realized Evelyn was in the middle of the area. Evelyn, who wasn't quite human, and not quite a mutant. There had to be something he could do though. He realized he was close to a familiar building, and had turned and made the short drive to the mansion, thankfully before the lockdown finished commencing. In the end, he got a hold of a familiar mutant, and made his request.

Evelyn was at work at the museum. She was probably going to be heading home soon, but the city was having an eruption of violence. After her kidnapping, they had gotten in a fight, and had taken a new job to give her the freedom she had been begging for. She was on her own, against her parents wishes, but he was still worried. Hopefully, the mutant would listen and find some way to check on her and make sure she was ok.

He probably wouldn't have asked so nicely if he realized she was sitting in the museum contemplating how best to bandage her bloody arms.

Sleep? What's that?... Must be something normal people do.

Gawain barely stopped by at his room to change into his X-men uniform after Jensen left. He offered to give him a ride, but traffic downtown was a special kind of hell a peaceful day, and this day had been anything but peaceful. Mirrorhopping would be a lot quicker, not to mention safer in many ways.
Gawain glanced at himself in the mirror as he strapped on the archery gear, just in case. The X-men uniform, some would have argued, was not the best choice for walking into a mutant-human riot. Still, many people had seen those uniforms on many kinds of news footage, and those who had knew what the X-men were capable of. Psychological warfare. Gotta count for something.

Gawain muttered under his breath as he walked into the reflective surface and started hopping from mirror to mirror towards downtown, taking extra care to avoid TV screens (last thing he needed was to get stuck in the Lord of the Rings director's cut or some s***). He knew the general direction of the museum. He just hoped he would get there in time before Eve left.

When he finally made it into the building, it looked surprisingly empty. They probably closed it from the public because of the riots, and the only people still inside were the once who could not find a safe way to go home... or wanted to keep the museum safe. Gawain spied a few security guards patrolling the main entrance hall before he moved on to other surfaces, trying to find Eve...

Bandages...bandages... there had to be some somewhere. Well, some that weren't hundreds of years old. Evelyn wandered as she held a towel to her arm where one of the deepest cuts were, and decided to check and make sure the staff had cleaned up well for the night while she tried to think of something to wrap her arm in. The problem with getting injured was it made her echoes slower; she could probably have thought up a solution for anyone else. She contemplated this as she wandered through the arms and armor exhibit.

Then she froze because she could have sworn something else was wandering through as well.

She was in Gallery 371, which had a full line of knights on horseback, their armor shined recently and giving off a nice reflective sheen. It was in one of these pieces she saw the reflection, and as she looked closer, the figure in the reflection stepped out.

After the day she had, Evelyn's first reaction was to scream and scramble backwards, seconds before her echoes noted who the figure was. "Gawain! You scared the hell out of me!" She accused.

Armor reflections were hard to navigate. Not all of them were flat, or big enough to walk through. After Gawain spied Evelyn walking around he slipped from one into the other, trying to find a way to step out of the mirror world.

When he finally did, there was a lot of screaming.

>>"Gawain! You scared the hell out of me!"

"Shhh" the young knight held a finger to his lips as he walked up to her "You don't wanna bring security down here, they are twitchy as they are. Have ya seen what's going on outside?..."

His eyes wandered to the towel over her arm, and the red spots all over her face and clothes. His eyes widened.

"What the hell happened to you?!"

Evelyn managed to muffle the tail end of the scream, and the noise reverberated a tiny bit before fading. Luckily, there weren't any sounds of running footsteps or signs security had jumped to respond. She wasn't entirely surprised though. With the chaos outside, most of them were watching the perimeter; the Arms and Armor exhibit was far enough inside for them not to be watching as close. Her heart was still stuck somewhere up by her throat, however, and her arms were shaking slightly as she took a deep breathe to calm down. She grimaced at Mirror's question, and turned her injured cheek away from him.

"It's nothing. Just... tried to walk home, didn't exactly go as planned. Sam and another mutant named Sara found me and got me back here at least." She sighed slightly, and moved her hair back in front of her face. The white locks still had red littering their ends. After her attempt at cleaning the cuts, the claw marks were far more identifiable. "What are you doing here anyway?" She questioned, trying to change the subject.

>>"It's nothing. Just... tried to walk home, didn't exactly go as planned. Sam and another mutant named Sara found me and got me back here at least."

Well, that was NOT one of Sam's brightest ideas. The Met was not the safets place for young and untrained mutants - the Mansion was. Then again, he probably had his hands full for the insanity outside. Gawain frowned and made a mental note to call him out on it later.

>>"What are you doing here anyway?"

Okay, so she still did not like to be rescued. Gawain looked over hr injuries and the fact that she tried to cover them up.

"What do you think?" he huffed "That handler of yours showed up at the Mansion all worried about your safety or whatever. Told us you were still at work. I'm here for you."

His response took her by surprise, and she turned to face the mirror-walker fully. Her echoes focused on him, sucking some of the color from her eyes. "Jensen asked you to come check on me?" She expected her handler to be long gone, and while she was relieved he was out of harms way, the idea he'd stopped to see if someone could make sure she was ok made the lump in her throat feel like a baseball. Mirror seemed less than enthusiastic about being put on rescue duty, but this time, Evelyn didn't have much fight left in her to feel insulted by it. Just relieved.

"I didn't think...We... haven't exactly been getting along. He was heading out of town on a job. I...I'm glad you came though. And as for being at the museum, it was my idea." The echoes had picked up on Gawain's disapproval that Sam had left her here. "I know the museum, and if nothing else I could at least borrow one of the swords from this exhibit. Better than just being unarmed out there..." She reflexively tightened her grip on the towel on her arm. It stung but she couldn't help it.

"He's different. Sam is. Something happened while I was gone." She remarked in a matter of fact tone. Distantly, the echoes picked up on another rumble outside the museum. She wondered if her museum would still be standing when this was over...

>>"Jensen asked you to come check on me?... I didn't think...We... haven't exactly been getting along. He was heading out of town on a job. I...I'm glad you came though."

She looked about ready to cry, and her eyes went strangely pale. Gawain had seen that happen before. Still, the X-men training program did not cover dealing with weeping. Gawain scratched the back of his neck.

"Yeah, whatever."

>>"And as for being at the museum, it was my idea. I know the museum, and if nothing else I could at least borrow one of the swords from this exhibit. Better than just being unarmed out there..."

The corner of his lips curled up as he glanced at the exhibition. The girl had a spirit. Even though the swords were blunt, and probably way too heavy for her to handle.

>>"He's different. Sam is. Something happened while I was gone."

His attention snapped back to her, and he sighed. Different was an understatement.

"You have no idea..." and a long story "All right, first things first. Let's patch you up. You can't keep running around dripping blood. You don't wanna damage the floor or whatever. Do you have a first aid kit?"

Evelyn didn't need the echoes to tell her the situation with CS was bigger than she picked up on, but it wasn't something to sort out now. She nodded her head when Mirror asked about a first aid kit, and pointed back towards the lobby from the direction she'd come.

"There was one back in the lobby. I used it to clean the cuts at least but I don't think there is enough gauze to really bandage everything... I'd look like a mummy." Mummy in a museum. It still had a comical ring to it, but maybe that was the stress kicking in. She lifted the towel on her arm so he could see the lines of claw marks that went up towards her shoulder. The right arm had deeper cuts than the left; a few on the left were at least starting to clot which kept blood off her clothes, but the larger one on the right started to trickle again as soon as she lifted the towel. She put it back down. "I thought we might have a better one in the back, and then you decided to try on some armor and be Sir Gawain...." It was a lame joke but the best she could come up with in the current situation.

She was still speaking when there was the sound of glass shattering from somewhere towards the lobby. She didn't want to know what busted the front door, she just knew it was probably advisable to go the other direction. Her eyes quickly skimmed the room for something to defend herself with. There was a sword [Italian, 4 pounds 7 ounces, 44 inches long. Too tall.], a few glaives, amour, a pistol [30 inches, 3 pounds. No ammunition.]... There were probably more usable weapons in the next exhibit. "They may be blunt but some of the swords could still hurt if you used them right..." She started for the next room, trying to stay calm.

>>"There was one back in the lobby. I used it to clean the cuts at least but I don't think there is enough gauze to really bandage everything... I'd look like a mummy... I thought we might have a better one in the back, and then you decided to try on some armor and be Sir Gawain...."

Gawain arched an eyebrow in mock hurt.

"But m'lady, with all due respect, I am Sir Gawain..."

He turned his shoulder to her. She might not have noticed before, but while the right shoulder of his jacket had the X on it, the left had the same sigil - golden lion on a purple field - as the flag above their head. She could Sherlock that out for herself.

In the meantime, someone was breaking stuff in the hallway.

Gawain grabbed hold of Evelyn above her elbow where she was not hurt and pulled her into the darkened Japanese Weaponry room. He could see her scanning the weapons.

>>"They may be blunt but some of the swords could still hurt if you used them right..."

"Yeah well I've got my own" he whispered, reaching for his belt and pulling out a small roll of bandages. "Emergency supplies. Now hold still so we can get outta here."

He only needed to bandage the deeper cuts that were still bleeding - they could take care of the rest later. He had to lean in close to see her arm in the dark. He never liked that part of the exhibition.

"Keep an eye out, Sherlock."

Evelyn let out a light chuckle at his remark, and her eyes skimmed the insignia on his left shoulder. The mark of Sir Gawain. She had read a few of the old tales, and even under the circumstances she found herself remarking on it with the sounds of a scuffle down the hall and Gawain pulling her towards the next exhibit.

"At least Sir Gawain was known for being the most courteous of the knights. He was complimented in a round about way by the Green Knight in the story. After he broke a vow and lied he was guilty over it. When he lamented over it, the Green Knight said 'Which is no more than to say, you have been a man, and with only these failings, are better than most.' He was noteworthy as a knight because he strived to be something more, even if he sometime failed. Seems fitting for your current lifestyle." It was easy to see why she worked at a museum. She spoke like she was reading from her own private encyclopedia at times.

Evelyn flinched slightly as he moved to bandage her arm. The skin felt raw and stinging still, and she obediently let the echoes wander and listen for trouble. She could hear noises traveling through the first floor toward---

"The European Exhibit! We just stopped a robbery there, are you kidding me?!" She hissed under her breathe. Thankfully, the noises seemed to move though, heading towards the Arms and Armory. "Well, good news and bad news, the paintings may be out of harms way for now, but someone is coming this way-oweeee careful!" A nerve sent her a small little sting of discomfort as the bandages were secured.

>>"At least Sir Gawain was known for being the most courteous of the knights. He was complimented in a round about way by the Green Knight in the story. After he broke a vow and lied he was guilty over it. When he lamented over it, the Green Knight said 'Which is no more than to say, you have been a man, and with only these failings, are better than most.' He was noteworthy as a knight because he strived to be something more, even if he sometime failed. Seems fitting for your current lifestyle."

Gawain momentarily stopped bandaging the arm to look up at Eve with surprise. Seriously, was there anything in the world this girl did not know about? Even in the shadows of the exhibit he could see her eyes, and he realized that they were almost nose to nose in the dark.

"You humble me, my lady" he chuckled, turning his attention back to the bandages. He found in amusing that she did not mention the cause of Sir Gawain failing: namely, kissing another man's wife. Oops.
Then again, that was also quite fitting for his current lifestyle...

Something else crashed.

>>"The European Exhibit! We just stopped a robbery there, are you kidding me?! Well, good news and bad news, the paintings may be out of harms way for now, but someone is coming this way-oweeee careful!"

"Sorry!" Gawain muttered, finishing the bandage and tucking the ends of it away. "All right, let's get outta here. Sorry about the paintings, but people are more important." he looked around, holding her by the hand on her less injured side "Find me a reflection..."

The sounds moved through the halls of the the museum and made it difficult for Evelyn to pinpoint the actual location of the intruders. There were distorted grumblings of argument with the security guards, and she hoped they would be able to handle matters; just in case, staying around while injured was probably not advisable. She did a quick mental scan of where they were and where they could go. This was room 370, right next door was where the Renaissance art began in 503.

Gawain seemed startled by reiteration of Arthurian literature, but he hadn't been around her long enough to grow used to her ramblings yet. Jensen had a habit of just tuning them out after dealing with her for over a decade. She did get a good look at Gawain's eyes though when he looked up bringing them face to face; the hazel color hard to pinpoint in the darkness, but suddenly close enough to notice. She made a note to figure out if the colors changed at all depending on lighting; hazel eyes could have a uniqueness to them.

A crashing sound made her cringe, luckily it sounded like armor more than anything breakable. She lamented for the china plates that were next door should the intruders reach them. Evelyn let her brain find a memory of the closest reflective surface.

"Room 507, this way. The Sagredo Palace Bedroom has a desk with big mirrors on the front." It only took two doorways to get to the room. The ceiling was covered it fat cherubs happily waving around pieces of drapery. Their naked forms seemed far to chubby to be held up by their tiny little wings, and the walls had a mixture of green and gold in lace-like patterns. The secretary desk in question was an off gold color tucked against the wall, and the grand doors picked up their reflections as they ducked into the exhibit.

One would think a museum was full of reflective surfaces... But turn out when it came to dragging someone else along, it was more difficult than one would think. Good thing Eve had the entire layout of the Metropolitan in her head.

>>"Room 507, this way. The Sagredo Palace Bedroom has a desk with big mirrors on the front."

"Straight to the bedroom?" Gawain smirked as they ran from room to room "Sure, whatever you say..."

The bedroom did have mirrors. Gawain did not stop to think about their purpose. They were big and clear enough for their purpose, anyway.

"All right, hold on to my hand" he said, pulling Eve to the mirror "If ya let go you get left in a mirror and I'll have to come back and get you. Let's go."

Evelyn tried hard not to roll her eyes at Gawain's reply; in fact, she tried very hard to ignore it entirely. The last thing she needed in the middle of this day was to drag Gawain's mind out of the gutter it had slipped into.

Regardless, her cheeks still got the slightest tint of pink. Perhaps she could have led them a few more exhibits down to avoid the awkward remarks...

As they approached the mirror felt a small bit of hesitation set in. The concept of traveling through it didn't frighten her, but the mirror itself did. Ironically, she had a small distaste for the reflective surface. She didn't want to see her reflection. She never liked what happened when she looked at it. For the hyper-aware mutant, a mirror gave her an image of herself, and created the only time she could hear her own echoes. The smug attitude, fear, curiosity; whatever she felt was painfully laid bare.

So as she approached her hand tightened slightly and she tried to glance away. The echoes still remarked on her injuries as they passed through.

On the other side of the mirror the trepidation vanished and she followed calmly, the world strange from this side. Her echoes were a bit confused but she tuned them out and focused on keeping pace with the mirror-walker. "I swear, if you leave me in a mirror..." She grumbled unhappily at the thought.