(Continued from Revolving Doors.)

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What had started as a simple shopping trip to pick up some cloth to was turning into more of an adventure than Sebastian had anticipated. The unicorn never would have guessed that he would get dragged into a fight started by mutant protesters attacking a book store, or that he would end up crammed into the backseat of a car with a mortally injured girl on his hands while a random assortment of mutants and shop clerks fled sirens that were bearing down on their location. His cloth had been abandoned on the sidewalk, and rather than making any new articles of clothing, he managed only to destroy one shirt, not even one of his own. He was at negative one shirts.

>>>"W-wait."

The injured girl's voice was a barely audible whisper, and it came too late to save her blood stained shirt.

“There is no time. I am terribly sorry. I will make you a new shirt to replace this one,” his voice was soft and soothing. If she could hear him, hopefully his tone of voice would at least be comforting.

Someone else got into the front seat, and they started moving, fleeing the scene of the bookstore battle. Sebastian payed little attention to what was happening in the front. His focus was on the girl and her gunshot wounds

>>>"GRAAAH!"

which she apparently didn't appreciate him touching. It was necessary for the fastest healing, though, and that was his arm she was death gripping. He winced as her nails dug into his forearm, but kept his hands in place. No matter what she did to him, he'd heal. And he'd make darn well sure that she healed too.

“It will only hurt for a few seconds.”

Sebastian closed his eyes and focused his attention on the wounds beneath his hands. His hands tingled like there were ice cold pins sticking into them from every direction. Healing was a little different each time, but the unicorn man had come to expect the somewhat uncomfortable cold sparks that seemed to be the embodiment of the healing energy he possessed. As the energy flooded into the injured sylph, the unicorn man gained a slight awareness that extended beyond his own body through his hands and into hers. It was almost as if her flesh were an extension of his own body and his innate sense of where his own limbs were located in relation to himself was extended through her as well.

He could feel her pain, not as an echo in his own body but coming from her. He could feel her numerous wounds and, if he focused, he could feel what the healing icefire sparks were doing to repair tham. Beneath his right hand, the hole that had ripped through her shoulder was weaving back together one strand of muscle at a time. Beneath his left hand (the one she was trying to squeeze off below the elbow) the healing sparks were clustered around a hard round bullet that was still lodged in her abdomen. It would have to stay in there for now. There was no way to get it out that wouldn't be both messy and extremely painful at this point.

No matter how much he wished he could heal the wound from the inside out and pushing the bullet back out the way it came, healing didn't seem to work that way. He didn't choose the order that things healed. It happened the same way a body would heal naturally, but at an accelerated pace. First the blood would clot and scab over. Then by new cells would be produced to replace the damaged ones. In this case, new cells would grow around the foreign object, each part retaining its functionality only slightly displaced from its original location.

Moving on, the cold energy spread through the rest of Ghost's body, stimulating production of blood, healing the small cuts from the glass, and banishing bacteria and viruses from her system. She might still be a little dehydrated, but they were pulling up in front of the golden doors of the Sanctuary where they would be able to get some more fluids into her.

“There now, you are almost as good as new,” he addressed the formerly injured girl. “The bullet is still in there,” he indicated the spot on her abdomen where the gunshot wound had been, “but if it starts to bother you it can be removed easily enough later.” The unicorn man removed his long wool coat and handed it to the girl. “Here, you can wear this until we can find you another shirt.”

Then he addressed everyone in the car, “Now that we're here, let's get everyone inside. Head to the infirmary and we can see if anyone else has injuries that need to be taken care of. If the police really do follow us here, I'm sure our receptionist Lisa can explain things to them.”

He opened his car door and held out his hand to help the white haired book store clerk find her feet.

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(For an interactive look at how healing works in real life, check out National Geographic's online article on skin, and click on “stresses on skin”. It's educational and very cool.)

Pulling to a stop, Shin locked parked the car and locked down the emergency brake. In the heat of the moment, he’d figured out how to drive the beast. Now it was parallel parked snugly on the side of the street just outside the Sanctuary. He grabbed the keys, and shifted a shoulder to glance back at the people in the back seat.

“All ashore that’s going ashore,” He exclaimed. His door swung open and he shot out, locking it. Footfall found its echoing way to the other car, stopping right before the door opened. Shin stood a few feet away, watching the unicorn man help Ghost to her feet.

Aura was glad Shin had figured out how to drive the car, apparently it was different for him and Aura considerd for the first time that cars could differ significantly from one another. Aura was about to question what shin meant about going ashore but decided it was not important and proceeded to get out of the car. This wa sher home now and she loved it even more that she could use it to help other mutants.

Aura stood looking around just in case some stupid humam's had decided to follow them. It seemed they had not a fact that brought Aura relief for her friend but also a sliver of disappointment, as she would have like to cut through another human or two in revenge. She stretched a bit as she walked out onto the sidewalk and glanced at the other car periodically, trying to make sure Ghost was ok without getting in the way. Aura satisfied they ahd not been followed walked over to the other car keeping almost six yards between them as she did, styill afraid of getting in the ay, not quite realizeing what Sabastion could do.

The man seemed to have no mercy. He crooned to her, but they weren't words. At least she didn't understand. Runnels of tears were surging down the sides of her face. It was burning. Coldness sparked through her veins that froze so much that it burned and bit and worried at her insides. She wasn't supposed to get shot. She was supposed to be able to change into air and be safe. Bullets were supposed to go right through her.

She was first aware of skin. Her hands were holding onto skin-- an arm. Her eyes followed the line down to his fingers that poked inside of her. Her chest was heaving with a fish out of water like need for air. Hypoxia. Every major wound after her mutation manifested had been like this. She needed more oxygen to maintain what she was and what she could do.

Wild eyes went to Megan's face, Benny's face, and the face above hers-- the man shooting ice in her veins. His eyes remained closed in concentration, but what caught her attention was his hair. White. Like hers. The longer she looked, the more she was able to focus and calm herself. In fact, it wasn't even really hurting anymore.

Ghost looked down, her chest still fluttering with each wheeze. There was so much blood it made her head spin to see it all drying into tacky brownish pools. Her paranoid wriggling probably didn't help the process, but she had to see. Was he just plugging the holes or making it better?

It was really hard to tell from this angle. Her swimming head didn't help.

“There now, you are almost as good as new,” Ah. He was making some kind of sense now. Ghost realized she was still gripping his arm and she worked very hard to make her fingers let go. “The bullet is still in there,” He poked gently at a place on her side just below her ribs. “but if it starts to bother you it can be removed easily enough later.” Later. Right. Later was good.

Weight shifted behind her and the man with white hair offered her a long coat. Ghost gripped it with the same force she had been clutching at his arm and took a long slow moment processing why he had given it to her. “Here, you can wear this until we can find you another shirt.”

Another... shirt. There was so much grime she hadn't felt nearly as naked as she was. She felt her cheeks flush and her head taught her a whole new meaning to nausea. Ghost pulled the scratchy wool up to her face and tucked it under her nose, not feeling dexterous enough to thread her arms through the coat. Could she crawl into a hole and disappear yet?

The man with white hair addressed the car before stepping out onto the street. Ghost shifted to let his leave and ended sitting up. He offered his hand to her and without hesitation she took it. It never crossed her mind that she had been in a car with 3 complete strangers and one acquaintance, shirtless, crying, and in pain until she took hold of that hand. Suddenly she didn't want to leave the safety of the car. There could be guns out there. What if she wasn't really okay? What if the coat slipped and everyone outside got a full show?

Fresh tears cleaned tracks through the grime on her cheeks. She shook her head even as she put her feet on the concrete. Did she have to? Maybe it wouldn't be that long a walk. Wild eyes spotted the pink girl and... Shin. When did... wait... where were they? Honey brown eyes locked onto golden doors and cringed. Sanctuary.

OOC: Sorry for the lateness of my post.

IC: Alex watched out of his mirror as the group unoaded from his car. Sighing, he rested his head against the steering wheel, feeling the headache of extended, continuous use of his powers coming on. The light wound on his head wasn't helping matters, though the bleeding had slowed.

Alex turned to regard the man sitting in the passenger seat, Benny.

"So you want me to get out here, or is there somewhere I can drop you off." Alex wasn't planning on waiting around here. If the police were looking for his car, it would be best if they didn't track it to these people, though...Alex made a note to return to find out more about this place with the golden doors.

"I, uh, I should be fine here. My, um, I can catch a bus, I think..." Benny hurriedly opened his door, got out, and hurried down the street, still looking a bit shocked by what had occured.

Alex turned to call out of the door to the man who had performed the back-seat healing. "I am going to head to my apartment, or I won't be driving home tonight." Alex reached out with his powers and shut the door behind the store clerk. He believed she would be in good hands. The pink-auraed girl would likely tear into anyone who tried to harm her, so she should be alright.

Alex turned to look forward and slowly pulled out and away. He was going to need some Asprin.

OOC: And Alex is gone. Sorry, but for my personal time-line, I can't have entered the Sanctuary yet. I am going to assume that Megan got out of the car. Contact me if I need to change details of my post.

(OOC: sorry for me being late, got ghosts pm a bit late. Ow and i dont know in which car )

Cailyn was sitting tucked away in the car as they drove off. She didn't know anybody by far but she knew certain things about certain people. She didn't know what to expect but seemingly it was one free ride to the sanctuary. Hurrah for her seeing as she got lost most of the time and now she got a freebe home.

She stumbled out of the car and stayed far behind the other people. She didn't know if they where nice, though they where mutants and they fought together.... well sort of fought. She wanted to go inside as fast as possible but seeing as that was safe from well anybody. She quickly skittered to the doors and opened them. She was inside now and she felt safe. If anybody else was going inside they could do that but atleast she felt safer from everyone here.

The other three members of their escape party pulled up in Sebastian's car pulled up shortly after their own, and the Asian boy, the pink aura girl, and the floating white haired mystic appeared. The mystic scampered up the steps and through the gold doors like she lived there, which Sebastian realized, she probably did. The unicorn man made a mental note to spend more time in the common areas and less time in the infirmary so he could meet more of his fellow Sanctuary residents without them being wounded or ill. The asian boy and the pink aura girl hovered nearby, looking worried.

Sebastian tried to give the injured girl a reassuring smile. She would be alright, but the white haired girl seemed to be unaware of the fact herself. She blushed, and hid behind Sebastian's coat like it could shield her from all danger. Fresh tears streaked down her dirty, yet pretty cheeks. She may not have wanted to leave the car and face the world just yet, but the car left her, so she had no choice. The only sanctuary she would find close by was the one behind the golden doors, no matter how much apprehension she showed at entering through those shining portals.

The unicorn man gently grasped the collar of the coat she was clutching and held it aloft in front of her, so she could easily slip her arms through the sleeves while remaining modestly hidden from the small group of mutants.

“Come on inside,” the unicorn man put a gentle hand around her shoulder, “You will be perfectly safe here.” With the other hand he waved everyone towards the doors. Being inside would be best, if there were still angry mobs about. Inside in the infirmary would be even better. The others might have wounds that needed tending to as well.

Relief bubbled up inside Shin’s chest like Mentos in a cola product. They’d made it to their destination, and she was standing again. A more brash individual might say they were ‘safe’. He took the momentary lull in stomach-churning worries to lock up Sebastian’s vehicle and hand off the keys to him.

He kept his modest eyes tuned away from the dressing girl real casually. Any more casually, and he’d bust into a low whistle with his hands in his pockets, and really… that wasn’t casual at all. If anything, a wolfish whistle here would be the exact opposite of casual. Thank goodness he didn’t lapse into one of those!

Turning to stare at the golden doors of the sanctuary, he felt a tinge of apprehension.

“Come on inside.”

The unicorn man waved the others on into the sanctuary’s depths. Stomaching his apprehension, Shin took that invitation. He glanced back at Ghost, finally finding the words to say ‘hello’.

They were “Hey.”

Yeah. They weren’t the most poetic words in town. Deal with it. He had a lot on his mind.

Aura was happy ghost was standing, that meant she was much better then she had been when they started. His powers must have worked quickly but she also noticed the condition of Ghost's shirt but she was coverd up by another garment so that was all right. Aura headed into the building feeling good to be back home, still she was just happy ghost was all right. Ghost looked all right physically, still she seemed like she was not exactly wanting to go into the sanctuary for one reason or another, and Aura was confused as to why. Looking over to shin she smiled as they moved on. In the Sanctuary Aura closed her eyes for a moment trying to figure out how best to control her power so that this situation did not happen again.

All she could do now was wait and see what happoned. Aura did consider it strange that for once she had not caused the chaos which had began the chain events but she supposed you could not be responceable for them all. She made her way toward the informery she had never actually been in it but she had made sure to keep the location memorized, Aura could not help but think ghost looked pretty in a strange way, like a warrior returning from combat, though in a way they all were. Thinking back she wonderd if she should have said something to the others before coming in but it was to late now and she would just have to wait to see what transpired as she awaited the rest of the team to catch up.

If her eyes weren't leaking a steady stream, no one would realize something was off. At least that's what she liked to think. Her jaw was set. Her balance steady. Even her gasping for air had settled into an every once in a while hiccuping sob. She was hurt. Not physically, not anymore.

Her feet didn't move yet.

The man helped her into the coat turned backwards. It was much like a hospital gown would have been worn except much scratchier. He beckoned them inside and Ghost wiped at her face smearing the grime and tear mixture. It didn't stop the flow, but the tears did slow somewhat. At least no one hugged her. If someone had hugged her and said it was going to be okay she wouldn't have been able to pack it up inside and shove it away for later.

Her feet wouldn't move yet.

Shin was there with the best words she'd heard in some time. A simple 'hi.' It would have earned him a smile under normal circumstances. Instead she caught his sleeve near his hand as the man in charge wrapped his arm around her shoulder. Her last free hand wiped at her face again before crossing to hold onto the tight, newly repaired tissue at her neck.

Finally secure, she took a step and then another.

She let them take her inside to the infirmary. Honestly they could have taken her anywhere. It didn't really matter. The doors. The mansion. A rivalry between ideals. A runaway boyfriend. For now it was enough to be safe and surrounded by allies and protectors. Her heart squeezed betrayed, but this day would not kill her in the end.

The linked trio made their way through the infamous doors, across the entrance hall, and down to the infirmary. As they passed Lisa's desk, the receptionist gave him a look of mild concern for the strangely disheveled group he was bringing home.

“There was an anti-mutant demonstration this morning. A couple of cops got involved too.” The unicorn man's simple explanation seemed to satisfy her, for she nodded curtly and paged someone to let them know company might be coming.

The first thing Sebastian did once they reached the infirmary was to steer everyone toward the waiting room chairs. “Please rest for a few minutes. If you need water, there is a faucet with filtered water right over there. We can get food shortly if anyone is hungry, after we see to the injuries.”

The second thing he did was to wash the blood off of his hands and put on his lab coat. If he was going to be doctoring everyone, he should be both sanitary and professional about things.

“Dear,” Sebastian looked to the white haired girl, “there are extra lab jackets if you would prefer that rather than that big heavy wool coat. They are here in the closet if you'd like one. There is also a restroom just outside the infirmary door should anyone need that.” If she wanted to keep the heavy wool one, that was fine with him as well. She probably needed a little while to compose herself before she would be ready to do much of anything.

The healer turned to the Asian boy and the pink aura girl next. “Please allow me to heal you both as well. Even if you have only small bumps and bruises, I would be ashamed if you left my infirmary in less than perfect health. What is the extent of both of your injuries?”

It seemed a simple ‘hi’ was enough. With a tug and a wiped tear, she’d braved the first step. The pull on his sleeve drew him along with her and the unicorn man, like the final link on a chain. Through the arches and across the cold entrance hall, he bobbed along.

The chain finally snapped when they hit the infirmary. Sebastian broke away like the crack of metal links, letting them tumble through the air into comfortable waiting chairs that felt out of place. Shin landed next to Ghost, leading her to a seat and taking his own. He sat next to her, feeling like a voyeur outside his own head. The weight in his stomach hung there like a sinker without a hook. Fish swam by. His head turned like the bobber, floating above the water thanks only to the air trapped inside its core. The sound of rushing water fell around his ears, and a question jerked his attention like the pull of the line.

“What is the extent of both of your injuries?” Shin stared at Sebastian for a moment, then looked at his hands. They were pale.

“I... I think I’m fine. Just nerves, er, nervous. I didn’t get to the scene until things were nearly wrapped up. How’s—” He glanced over at Ghost, then to Aura. “She?”

"By Mutation makes a solid barrier around me so my only injuries are to my pride, for failing to protect a fellow mutant, again" the rush of everything wearing of of her and the realization of what she interpreted to be failure. The reason was not important, and had Sabastion not come to their aide, ghost which be in far worse shape when they arrived. Her emotions were conflicting, she was happy ghost was ok but mad at herself for letting ghost get in that condition. She prevented most of her brooding from reaching the surface, but her Aura flowed into view for brief second almost looking like pink sparkles as her mind wandered.

SHe did not answer shin assuming the question was aimed at the Doc, still her eyes looked at Shin, she agreed, things had been close, but had she been stronger, she could have prevented it, she would need to increase the time she spent training. Taking a deep breath another saying of her old mentor came to her, they were all alive and that was the best thing. She was curious on if this Doctors power was the same as Miracles. A Question for another time she figured, scratching the back of her neck. One thing was certain, she would take revenge on the humans, they would understand their error.

This was what walking on air would feel like. If one could walk on air while solid, of course. Or maybe it was her head floating off without her body. That would be nice too...

Ghost kept a death grip on Shin's arm and let someone place her in a seat. She brought her legs up into the chair with her and pulled the coat around all of her. A small and deliberately slow shake of her head answered the question or... suggestion. She wanted the wool coat. It was warm. And the scratchiness was nice in its own way. It was real. It didn't lie to her about the way the world worked, it simply was.

While the man attended the others, Ghost settled her chin against the crevasse created between her knees and let her eyes droop as she tried to process just what exactly had happened here. She was holding it together alright only because her mind was being quite slippery. The question of why the humans had betrayed was covered in smooth soap and her mind's fingers made of glass.

She could not seem to get a grip on the problem at hand and though it should have bothered her, for now it did not. There was no doubt that Ghost probably would have crumpled into hysterical crying had she been forced to consider why the humans had turned on her without reason. Even after she helped them too!

Because why would they do that? The more she tried to focus on the question, the more it slipped away from her. She shivered slightly, staring a hole in the side of the medical examination table that no one was sitting on. So when would it be okay again?

Garrett sat at a small desk in his room. He had been on the computer changing ads for the Sanctuary, removing any trace of welcome for humans. The internet was the new word of mouth and even the homeless managed to make it to web kiosks. He was making sure that it was widely known that only mutants were now welcome there. The new job kept his mind occupied. Taking a break from the routine, he decided to look at the latest local news stories. Anything beat running down every last little mention of the Sanctuary and doing this 'doctoring.'

A simple click to the bookmarked page and Garrett's heart nearly stumbled out of his chest. Pictures of the Full Circle Bookstore and an angry mob. The story was just breaking, but the pictures did not look good. Garrett's door stood wide open and his footfalls could be heard down the hall. The door and the web page remained open. The mention of an injured store clerk was all he needed. In his frantic pace, he ran past the Infirmary, the thought of it being occupied by much else than Sebastian fleeting. He ran straight up to Lisa, his mind trying to catch up with his body.

Lisa looked at him in a curious manner. "I'm not done with that list yet. You know, calling me at the desk would have prob--" Garrett waved the banter away with a dismissive gesture. " Have you heard anything about this attack at the Full Circle?" Lisa raised her eyebrows. "The demonstration? Sebastian just brought some people in from that. I was---" Garrett had turned on his heel as his stomach shrank and twisted. His feet couldn't move fast enough at first but as he neared the door he slowed and froze. Multiple images flashed through his mind as he steeled himself to enter.

He took a deep breath and stepped through the threshold. Before him were two people, whose faces and names were blank spots. Sebastian was tending to them. Time was slow and his heartbeat was throbbing in his throat and inner ear. He saw the small huddled form , half naked and shivering beneath a wool coat. No speech or rhetoric could save him now. He walked to the small table she was on, ignoring the others. They didn't exist. Time nor the world that spun beneath him existed. He had only one question that had to be answered. "Maya, are you okay?" His hand rested on her shoulder.