Rejection weighted heavily on her mind.

Among other things. Ashley didn't go home after Agnes had fled her, and instead decided that riding her bike around was the best way to clear her mind. It helped, if only to alleviate the pounding migraine she was experiencing. Her whole body was still hot and she felt like she was drowning in emotion. Her mouth was dry and, even as she sat there, leaning on her bike (which was pretty damn sturdy, she'd give it that) the guitarist felt like screaming. Something inside of her begged for release and she didn't know what to give it go make it go away.

Knees pulled up and elbows resting on them, Ashley could do nothing but wait for the feeling to pass. Sweat beaded up on her forehead and rolled down her neck and nose, dripping onto the concrete she was sitting on. Her racing heart eventually slowed, her pulse calmed and her breathing evened out...hours after Agnes left. She wasn't an expert on the body of human or otherwise, but she was fairly certain that her body taking it's sweet ass time to calm down after her encounter with Agnes wasn't normal.

It was the eventual sound of a couple of coins hitting the concrete that made Ashley perk up a bit, breaking her concentration on her own pity. She saw more then several coins sitting there, along with a few dollar bills and even a ten, just laying there. She looked up, seeing the sympathetic look some of the passing people were giving her, and gave a small frown. It was like her homeless days all over again. Everyone just assumed she was a streetrat. Great. Well, whatever. She wasn't one to look a gift horse in the mouth, whatever that meant, and she scooped up the money into a hand and clutched it hard.

She stood up then and looked around for her helmet, only to realize that Agnes had taken it...probably on accident, as even Ashley didn't notice it was gone. A shrug and a huge stretch later, the guitarist was scratching the side of her neck and she saw that she was parked in front of a ice cream store. She cocked her head before looking at her surroundings again, realizing that she was in the vicinity of The Sanctuary. Well...that was odd. She didn't think she'd end up here, but the tomboy really wasn't paying any attention.

She stepped inside the rather busy shop and waited her turn, keeping the ten someone had dropped (probably accidentally) for her in her hand tightly. She ordered just plain vanilla, the redhead knowing that anything fancier would probably just make her wanna throw the ice cream out. She didn't know how or why shew knew that, but she did. The cup they handed her was huge, but the cost was cheap and, flashing a bright smile to the teenager behind the counter, Ashley left the store and went outside, sitting on her Ducati and pondering what to do.

“Hey, you shouldn't sit on other people's shit.” came a rough voice, and Ashley looked up to see a group of teenagers, about the same age of the kid behind the counter, all staring at her. Ashley knitted her eyebrows, shooting her patented 'Death Glare' in their direction, daring them to say more. Unfortunately, one of them had the cajones to stand up and point at the bike. “That's a Ducati, you know. Can't just sit on it like you own it.”

The redhead stared for a moment before reaching into her pocket and pulling put the key to the bike. She turned it on, the bike purring to life before Ashley looked back expectantly. The little boy's eyes widened before taking a step forward, bending down to a single knee as he examined the motorcycle like it was the greatest thing he'd ever seen in his life. All the time he was spewing facts and numbers about the bike, and Ashley could only look on in amusement before looking to the kid's friends, all whom were rolling their eyes.

“Wow...sorry chick.” The boy stood up and held out a hand, which Ashley shook firmly and briefly before she returned to her huge bowl of ice cream. “I mean...wow. I never thought I'd see such a sweet ride. Name's Ryder. Ryder Lee.”

“Thanks.” Ashley returned, her eyes never leaving her mound of ice cream. “I like it. I'm Rhythm.”

“Like it? You should LOVE it!!” Ryder exclaimed, hearts in his eyes as he ogled he bike. “And Rhythm, huh? Racing name? No, wait...you're the chick that plays at The Closet!!”

Instantly the group of people he had parted from stopped their conversation before all getting up and rushing to Ashley, complimenting her and...well, Ashley held up her ice cream to prevent it from falling over. The only thing that stopped them was Ryder's roar, which made them all look at him like he was a crazy person, and the boy just crossed his arms.

“Seriously? Act right guy, geez.” He frowned, and his friends immediately backed off, but still stayed close. Ryder gave Ashley an apologetic look. “We dig your music. It's cool. And the bike...man!! You sign a deal or something? Musta cost a fortune!!'

“Deal?” Ashley repeated, a confused look on her face that made one of the females in the crowd of Ryder's friends squeal. “No deals. Just...got it. Present.”

“You got some generous friends then.” Ryder nodded. “Well...don't wanna crowd you. But listen; you ever need someone to take a look at that bike, I'm your guy. Here, I'll write down my number.”

A moment later and the redhead took Ryder's number, looking it then at him before nodding. A brief wave later and the crowd was gone, and Ashley could breath again. For one, there were a few girls in that crowd that were...appealing to Ashley, and their presence was making it hard for Ashley to concentrate on NOT thinking about Agnes. Not that they looked like her or anything, but the overwhelming sexiness they were displaying was making Ashley hot all over again, and such a state made her think of Agnes all over.

The thoughts sent Ashley back into her depressed state, and the eating of her ice cream slowed. She was taking her time, though, so it didn't matter. In fact, she was thinking of going back in and getting another bowl, this time strawberry. That didn't make her eat any faster though, so when she was done with her current bowl she tossed it into the wastebasket and crossed her arms, still leaning on her Ducat, arms crossed. Bentley had told her that eating slowly was fine now, since she wasn't homeless and no one was going to take her food.

Not homeless. Ashley hoped it would remain that way, one way or another.

A half hour later and a whirlwind of thoughts (and a half empty strawberry ice cream bowl) later, red redhead reminded herself that yeah, life sucks and for her would probably continue to suck. But this situation wasn't the worst, and although her body still felt hot, still wanted something Ashley didn't know what to give and she was panting at the sight of anything wearing a short skirt or tight pants, life was about as good as it was going to get. So, another strawberry ice cream it was!! Well...a refill maybe...

She stood, stretched, and took a step forward, not noticing the woman she crashed into. But the guitarist was a solid person in her stance and barley flinched, merely taking a step back as she looked at the person she crashed into.

And her body got hot all over again. Hotter even.

“You.” she breathed, eyes wide. “I...uhhh...”

And all Ashley could do was stare.

Spring! Finally! No more hiding indoors all the time. No more wearing huge coats that a supermodel couldn't flatter when going outside. No more having to trudge through slush and snow just to stab someone. That snow had its upsides, namely in hiding bodies until it melted and surprising whoever happened upon it, but there was nothing like a fresh corpse left out for the police to deal with.

She'd planned to do something along those lines to celebrate the turn of seasons. Not like those cops did anything when she wasn't up to her usual antics. Sitting around eating donuts, sipping coffee, reading the newspaper and such. And really, how boring was that? She was doing them a favor by dropping a body here and there for them to investigate. Cops loved cases that involved criminals they couldn't catch. It made sure they always had something on the back burner that they could fall back on during those donut down times.

At least, that had been her intention until someone decided to run into her and interrupt her plans.

"What the hell?!" she spat, not bothering to look at who is was as she took a step back and made a show of brushing herself off with very quick, grumpy movements. "Good job, ya jackass. First day on your new legs? I'd get a refund if I were yo-"

Oh. It was her. Isabel stopped brushing at her outfit and crossed her arms, still playing the part of the grump. That girl, Rhythm if she remembered the moniker correctly, wasn't very high up on her list of people she liked or could tolerate. Bring her into the Sanctuary, offer her food and a room, and even some booze and the thanks she gets is the girl trying to shove her tongue down her throat.

No, thank you.

With a huff she fixed the girl with another glare and moved to brush past her and continue on with her day. There were people out there waiting to be toyed with, and she wouldn't let this girl get in her way.

“H-hey...”

Well...this was odd. In truth Ashley didn't know what to do. After Agnes her mind was filled with morbid thoughts, the least being what she was going to tell Bentley about her encounter with her fellow mutant. Now she was being thrown for a loop because, by fate or whatever force decided it had to play more jokes in Ashley's life, she was now faced with the woman that hard started it all for the redhead. Isabel was just within arm's reach, and Ashley would be damned if she was going to let it go.

She lanced out her hand, grabbing Isabel by the arm to pull her back. It wasn't the smartest thing to do, considering how they first met and Ashley knew all to well how well the woman fought...well, how well she used her mutant power anyways. But Ashley was bordering desperation for some form of acceptance. In the back of her mind she knew that seeing Agnes again would be a disaster, and she wasn't looking forward to seeing Bentley either. And Isabel...well, maybe this would be the final straw? A trio of rejections. Agnes, Bentley, Isabel...how the hell did she get into this mess anyways?!

“Ummm...ice cream?” Upon turning the busty bonemancer around, Ashley held up her ice cream, her mind devising the plan and basing the outcome on that no on could resist a treat as tasty as ice cream. “I mean...uhhh...” Ashley blinked a moment, noticing that the flaw in her plan would be that maybe Isabel wouldn't want some of the ice cream she was already eating. “Get some? With me?”

Ashley then did something she didn't normally do; she pouted. Her eyes grew wide and her lip jutted out a bit, quivering. She didn't mean to do it, not really, and it's one of the reasons Bentley pushed her buttons and teased her a lot – just to see the Puppy Dog Pout. She said that if Ashley ever mastered it, there wasn't a persona live that could resist her request. But at the moment, all Ashley wanted was Isabel's company, maybe someone to talk to. She knew she wasn't all that skilled in the art of conversation, and she really didn't know what to say...but what choice did she have?

“Please?”

Isabel had to very quickly repress the knee-jerk reaction to put a hole in Rhythm's palm when her arm was grabbed. How stupid could this girl really be? If her past actions and the ones committed thus far were any indication, the answer was very. Very stupid.

And on top of grabbing at her, the girl actually went to the trouble of trying to turn her around. She allowed it, but only because she had every intention of clocking the girl right in the nose for daring to try and handle her in such a manner. She's mauled people for something as little as looking at her the wrong way on past occasions. This girl wasn't on her good side and was damn lucky to still be in one piece. For now.

Of course, as usual, Rhythm threw a wrench in her plans. She was just about to bring her arm back in order to plant her fist in the girl's face and the only thing that was said was 'ice cream'. Isabel just kind of blinked at her, then at the cup of ice cream, not entirely understanding where the comment had come from.

Go to get ice cream. That certainly hadn't been on her agenda for the day. She stayed quiet for a moment, contemplating the offer. She supposed the girl did owe her one after the incident the first time they met. And out in public without booze involved probably meant she wouldn't try the same nonsense again.

"Alright fine," she said with a bit of a sigh. Stupid pouty pain in the arse. "But that's it. Ice cream and then I'm gone."

>>"Alright fine. But that's it. Ice cream and then I'm gone."

Ashley blinked, quickly letting go of Isabel before taking an absent minded bite of her ice cream. It worked!! She really didn't believe it would. The bonemancer looked angry, after all, but upon reflection she looked angry the entire time she had last seen her too. Even when they were making out she looked a bit peeved, but in suck a way that it made her all that more appealing. Still, Ashley shook her head and walked to the door of the ice cream joint and held it open for Isabel as they both walked in.

The redhead then spotted the dilemma of the moment; her current ice cream bowl. Sure if was half gone and a tad melted, but she'd look like an idiot if she went up with Isabel and ordered more ice cream while still having the one she had ordered a half hour ago. She looked from Isabel, to the counter where the people waiting to take their orders were, and back to her ice cream before her brilliant mind came up with a plan; eat it all really fast!!

And she did.

In record time Ashley was tossing the bowl into a wast basket and holding her head at the same time as the brain freeze anyone else could have seen coming (but not Ashley) decided to hammer home. The redhead closed and squeezed her eyes shut in pain and held her palms to her temples, gritting her teeth. Okay. This sucked. And now not only did she manage to get Isabel to swear at her after bumping into the bonemancer, now the brunette could see what an idiot she was by her current actions. The moments ticked by and Ashley could feel the amused stares of the people around her and wished they wouldn't do so. But, it was her own fault, really.

So, just to prove she was tough enough to overcome a brain freeze headache, Ashley stood up straight and crossed her arms in a serious manner. Her head pounded but that didn't matter. As long as she didn't continue to make a fool of herself, she was happy. It wasn't until she looked around the ice cream parlor that she realized just how many people were looking at her, and situation just made Ashley's face turn beet red.

“WHAT?!” she barked, her voice loud and stern. Instantly, all heads turned back to their ice cream or drinks, only taking tentative looks at Ashley now as opposed to the all out staring like before. The redhead grumbled a bit, her face still flushed. “Stupid...”

With another small sigh Isabel followed after Rhythm and into the ice cream shop with only a little reluctance. Like she said, a cup of ice cream and then she was gone. It shouldn't take any more than twenty minutes or so to eat, and probably get dragged into some small talk. Her whole day didn't have to be derailed just for this.

Arms crossed and a somewhat irritable look on her face, she busied herself looking at the board with the available flavors posted onto it. It took a minute before she realized that Rhythm was causing a bit of a scene.

Had that idiot really just downed that whole cup of ice cream that fast just to turn around and buy more? How did that make any sense? If the girl really wanted her to stick around for a bit, she could have just saved the cup she already had and bought only one more. Then again, she didn't really seem like the kind of person that had a whole lot of common sense about her.

Isabel would admit to herself that all the faces the girl was making were fairly amusing, as well as the attention she was drawing to herself. Hah. Served her right. This time she was the one flustered and embarrassed. That little outburst got a small grin, too.

"Stupid is right. Admitting it is the first step to recovery," she quipped, letting her attention slide back to the board and away from Rhythm and the people that seemed almost embarrassed as well.

Once they made it to the counter, she put in her order for a simple cup of vanilla ice cream and left Rhythm place her own order if and when she was able.

Ashley was beginning to wonder if there was anything she could do to make herself look like a not idiot while in front of Isabel.

She didn't usually try this hard. Certainly it had been easier with Bentley. In that case she merely had acted like herself. Bentley had found the way she spoke and acted amusing and cute, and the rest pretty much took care of itself. She imagined that saving Bentley from being mugged was a good way to get on the ballerina's good side, but the redhead liked to think that maybe it was a bit more then that. Like...her looks? Charms? Something, right? So maybe she was a bit self conscience about it, sure. But things had went to smoothly with her girlfriend that she imagined it would be like that all the time.

And then came Agnes. There was an attraction there that Ashley couldn't explain and, at the moment, didn't want to think about. But so soon after her rejection came Isabel, the woman who had started her whole emotional floodgates opening in the first place...she really didn't know how to act. Around this woman, who had now insulted her on several occasions, she felt small and tiny, like a minnow compared to a shark and Ashley didn't like it. Not one bit. She changed her posture, crossing her arms across her ample chest and cocking a hip. Yeah, she didn't have to feel inferior!! In fact, Isabel had done her wrong too!!

She was just about to inform Isabel of this fact, in heated whispers so as to not draw attention to herself or her busty companion, when she noticed that the current situation was a lot more...heated then it was just a few minutes prior. So caught up in her own thoughts that Ashley didn't notice the people outside, or some of the people inside, using some cell phones or whatever other recording objects they had to document what was going on, right under Ashley's nose.

Mainly, Isabel refusing to pay for the ice cream she was given.

It was Ashley's turn to order anyways, but no one was paying attention to the redhead as Isabel seemed to be hell bent on ignoring the people behind the counter, and the people behind the counter refusing to pay attention to Ashley as they (well, one of the women who appeared to be the manager of her name tag meant anything) seemed to be getting a little red faced at Isabel's insolence. In her defense, Isabel was being quite amusing about the whole ordeal, and Ashley really wanted to laugh at the situation.

Until the officers of the law decided to come in.

"Isabel. Resident cop killer." The thought rang through Ashley’s head from the first time she'd ever met Isabel. It was how she introduced herself, even, and the guitarist knew that couldn't be a good thing. Especially at how these particular officers looked. No warning was given, just the look of two people who's faces were contorted with fury and the need to dispense justice that was beyond their station. One pulled a gun, the other a tazer. Neither seemed to particularly care that a dozen or so cameras was pointed in their direction. Their target was the bonemancer, and that was who they were going to get.

Well. This was irritating.

And by irritating she meant painful. For the second time in her life Ashley found herself the recipient of a bullet, though this time it was her left shoulder that was hit. Oh, and the tazer. She'd never been tazed before, but she could honestly say that she never wanted to experience it again. She probably looked like even more of an idiot to Isabel...an odd thought, but she had just fallen back against the brunette and to the floor, convulsing for a moment as the two officers seemed to be too shocked to do much else. It was a few seconds later that the officer stopped tazing Ashley, and her body finally lay still, and the tomboy groaned in pain.

Yeah. She was defiantly filing a complaint this time.

Isabel said she'd stop and have an ice cream with Rhythm. She never said she'd pay for it.

The people behind the counter, however, seemed to think otherwise. Apparently they didn't want to hand over the cup she'd ordered until they saw someone produce a wallet. If they thought someone like her would be persuaded by a few part time workers, they were in for a rude awakening. She didn't care if one of them was the manager of the little shop. No one would get in her way once she decided she wanted something, so long as she had a say in the matter.

She wasn't going to argue for very long. She was getting ready to climb over the counter and help herself, workers and nosy bystanders be damned, when someone else decided to show up to the party. Luckily for them, they were the kind of people that she just loved to see.

What she didn't like was people jumping in and ruining her potential fun. She'd barely had enough time to turn around and fold her arms with a grin before she was scrambling to try and catch the body that was falling backward into her. Good god, was this girl trying to break a record for most stupid things done in a short amount of time?

'Resident cop killer' should have given Rhythm a hint that Isabel knew how to handle herself around the boys in blue. They were always doing their best to put her behind bars and she always managed to wriggle away. And here was this pair of officers determined to be the big heroes, the ones that finally put away one of the biggest terrors in their city. Just like every other cop that had crossed her path.

And then there was Rhythm and the writhing pile of limbs she'd been reduced to for the time being. If there was any sense in that girl's head, Isabel had yet to see it. However, she supposed she did have to give the girl credit for taking a bullet for her, however unnecessary it had been.

With an air of irritation about her, she stepped back away from Rhythm once the twitching had stopped and looked back to the cops, both of which had a comically aghast expression on their faces after realizing their mistakes. They had to be rookies. What kind of cop fired any sort of weapon in an enclosed, crowded area? They had responded to the wrong call.

She stepped over Rhythm and toward the pair. One dropped his tazer and was fumbling for his gun while the other still had his gun raised, but seemed hesitant to fire it again after his mistake. She just smiled, grabbed for the gun that was already drawn and cut through the first man, not even phased by the bang that had sounded in the process. The second man was dispatched just as quickly and with little fuss.

"Come on, Sparky. No ice cream today," she said, ignoring the people who were rapidly filing out of the shop and crouching down next to Rhythm to see if she seemed like she'd be aright to get moving. Picking the bullet out of her abdomen, where it had lodged itself between her skin and the layer of bone beneath it, she then focused back on Rhythm. She snipped the cords leading to the two barbs that had hooked into the girl's skin and moved to hoist her back to her feet. She'd let her remove the barbs and potentially her own bullet herself.

"No ice cream, but I suppose you've earned a drink."

Ashley didn't notice much after she stopped convulsing, but she did see how easily and efficiently Isabel had cut through the officers of the law and found herself slightly disgusted. It was like her companion was on auto pilot and killing those cops was just something else she had to do on her grocery list of things to do for the day. She could have sworn she even saw her sigh and roll her eyes, though that could have been the blood loss talking.

>>"Come on, Sparky. No ice cream today."

Sparky? A nickname! Her tone was light, easy and conversational and Ashley couldn’t even fathom why. The woman had just killed two people, and while it wasn't in cold blood and more in self defense, inside Ashley knew that Isabel probably wouldn't care if it was self defense or not. And even while repulsed by all of this, she still felt warm and gooey on the inside when Isabel picked her up, helping the bleeding musician to her feet.

>>"No ice cream, but I suppose you've earned a drink."

“Drink...sound good...” Ashley responded stupidly, blinking rapidly as her vision hazed a bit. “Ummm...need to stop. Bleeding, I mean. Can you...?”

Well, she didn't really know what she was asking, because she knew that Isabel was a bonemancer,not a healer. But maybe she could do something about the bullet that was tearing up her insides? Ashley gritted her teeth as they moved away from the scene of the crime, taking note that the officer's that Isabel had torn apart sure bled a lot before they cleared the scene completely. All thoughts about her own safety cleared her mind as she saw the chaos outside, and the tomboy inwardly groaned as several more squads of cops appeared, each cop taking refuge behind their car doors before pointing very lethal looking guns in their direction.

“Ugh.” was the only thing she could say. “Sorry...not being useful...”

Images past her mind, of Bentley, Agnes and Andrew...the people she cared about. She found herself not worrying about any of them, not now, and she wondered why. She looked to her side and saw the look on Isabel's face, saw how fierce and determined (and somewhat scary) she looked and smiled. She wasn't worried because she knew that Isabel, despite her bluster and generally bad attitude, was going to get her through this. So she knew that she was going to see her friends (or in Andrew's case, her family) again because Isabel wouldn't let her die.

“Gonna...kill them? All?”

Well, it looked like she'd be picking bullets and barbs out of someone else after all. So much for letting Rhythm do it herself. Oh well. It wasn't like she didn't know how to go about doing that kind of thing, she'd just never done it for another person before. She could do it, it just wouldn't be a very pleasant experience for her companion.

"I'll dig it out once we can sit down and relax for a minute," she replied, snatching and pocketing a badge from both of the officers she'd downed before stepping outside with Rhythm and surveying the situation.

Huh. Figured those two idiots would come with backup. Send the stupid ones in first to poke the bear and get ready for the roar. The cops were wither getting smarter, or dumber. She liked to opt for the second option.

Hiding behind doors and car hoods and brandishing their pistols. Same old junk, different day. Except for the girl in tow. Isabel could deal with gunfire with minimal damage. Rhythm, apparently, could not. That could be a bit of a problem, especially since she was seen being dragged out of the shop along with the bonemancer. To the cops, that would likely make her either a victim or an accomplice. With Isabel's reputation of not taking hostages, the latter of the two seemed more likely.

Was she going to kill them all? Not likely. "Easier said then done when I don't have someone else tagging along with me," she commented, looking around and debating an escape route. "Better to punch a hole in their line and make a break for it." Of course, she could probably opt to go back through the shop and disappear out a back door or something, probably with less trouble from the police, but where was the fun in that?

All she had to do was raise an arm before someone opened fire, and it always only took one trigger happy kid to set everyone off. With a grunt of irritation, she released her support for Rhythm and gripped her shoulder before shoving downward, aiming to make the girl drop at least to her knees and make herself a smaller target.

From her raised arm, after pushing her sleeve up, a ridge of bone protruded from her skin from wrist to elbow before sprouting out on either side into a smooth semi-circle. Detaching it from her skin she dropped it in front of the other girl to use as a makeshift shield of sorts. She'd left a ridge on the inside that could be gripped, and when held would reach about knee level if the head was hidden.

She paid little mind to the bullets zinging by her. They couldn't harm her all that much, save for shallow wounds thanks to the armor she could call up under her skin. Most of the cops weren't very good shots anyhow, likely due to their positioning or nerves. Perhaps a mix of both.

For herself, she fell back on the four spindly legs she'd grown to love. She quickly undid a few of the lower buttons on her shit to give the bony limbs some more freedom of movement without the risk of having to run around the city in a torn up shirt. She'd had to do that before, and she didn't look forward to if and when she'd have to do it again.

"Up and over," she said, more to herself than anyone else. For now the best course of action seemed to be getting away from these fools, perhaps by heading for the rooftops when she got the chance, and ducking into one of the more mutant friendly bars in the area to hide out for a few hours.

Instructing Rhythm to use the shield to cover her back instead of her front, she then grabbed her up with the intention of carrying her out of the fray. Piggybacking would have been easier, but it would have severely hindered the movements of he chosen legs, and that would have ruined the whole point of using them. What did make it a bit less troublesome was the makeshift shield. With that she was able to create extensions on either side of it and connect them to her ribs like some kind of straps. That way there was less strain on her arms.

Once her clinger had gotten settled and she felt stable enough to begin moving, Isabel hoisted them up and skittered her way toward the police. She made a point of grinning and making faces at them as she passed as well as spearing a few officers with her spidery limbs as she moved.

Whenever she was able to find an alleyway to duck into, she'd scramble to some rooftop and let Rhythm back onto her own feet. Then they'd find that bar and settle in.

Isabel certainly was a fast worker.

Then again, she didn't seem the type to dilly dally. If there was anything about the woman that Ashley knew for certain is was that she was efficient and effective at what she did. And while she didn't have the air if a trained professional, she had the bored and slightly exasperated sight and stance of someone who's been through all this before and was simply going through the motions. Those motions were not any less terrifying then the last time Ashley was on the receiving end of them, though.

And now that she witnessed it, she could never say Isabel didn't have an imagination. The shield, the little spindly legs that had once confused Ashley into thinking that Isabel was a spider-woman type thing...it was all very comical in a out of this world kinda way. It was almost like all of this was happening to someone else. But riding The Isabel Express was no dream, and the screams of the officers she stabbed and mauled with those long bone legs was all too real. The sounds made Ashley close her eyes, and coupled with her wound and the dinging of the bullets that were bounding off the shield and thudding into Isabel (a thought that made the gorge rise to the back of her throat) she knew she wasn't going to be feeling all that good for several hours after this whole ordeal was over.

Thankfully, for Ashley anyways, it was over sooner rather then later. The redhead had first hand experience on how fast Isabel could move on those legs, and the busty bonemancer really didn't care who saw her doing her spindly walk anyways. But now, ducking into an alley and spider walking to the rooftop, the tomboy was surprised to find that Isabel had taken them to a secluded spot where they could rest. Given the brunette’s attitude in the past, the guitarist figured Isabel would have said something along the lines of 'Tough shit Sparky!' and moved on. Ashley just hoped that Isabel would help her with her wounds, because in truth she had no idea what she was doing...and those little tazer hook things hurt like a bitch...

“Heh...” Ashley let out a small bark of a laugh as she collapsed on the rooftop. “Least you keep them. In business, I mean. Kill cops, hire more...a cycle.”

It was a morbid thought, to be sure, but Ashley couldn't think of anything else and everything seemed more funny at the moment. Maybe it was because she was feeling numb from the tazer or cold because of the blood loss, but things were a tad more clear to her then ever before. Bentley, Agnes, Isabel...whatever. If she lived through this, she'd do what was right and if that didn't work...well, it wasn't like she didn't know how to live on the streets. Bentley was going to dump her and god only knew what Agnes would do.

Maybe Isabel would slit her throat before then. Given their past, it was a possibility given how ornery the bonemancer was.

“Sorry, again.” Ashley sputtered out, coughing a bit. Isabel saved her, yeah, but she wasn't to gentle about it. “Being useless. Not bulletproof. Can you...fix me? Then drink?”

Lord knows she needed one.

"They'd have more people in the business if they'd leave me alone and let me have my fun. But whatever floats their boats. I don't mind adding badges to my collection," Isabel replied, settling herself down on her own two legs and retracting the four she'd created. She didn't need them until they needed to get back down the the ground, and even then they could probably find a fire escape to use instead.

As for removing bullets and patching Rhythm up, "I guess so. It's not gonna feel very good, though." The bone beneath her own skin was already at work pushing whatever bullets had hit her back out and onto the rooftop. They stung like hell, but it wasn't the worst pain she'd ever endured.

Producing a pair of curved tweezers from her fingers, she went to work locating and removing whatever bullets she could find. The spots of blood on the girl's clothing were pretty good indicators as to where she needed to look. She let the bits of warped metal drop to the ground and closed the wounds up with little staples made from bone to stop the bleeding. The barbs were a little trickier because of they way they stuck to the skin, but eventually she got those out, too, and patched the holes up in the same manner.

"You're gonna have to find someone to patch you up more properly after this, but those things should hold well enough for now," she said, letting the tweezers dissolve back into her hand before taking a look at their surroundings to try and determine where exactly they needed to go.

"C'mon, drink time. There's some mutant friendly bars in the area where we should be able to hide out for a while without any trouble." She gave a little 'follow me' signal and headed for the edge of the building. They could reach the bar by heading through back alleys and side streets. The roof might have been a safer bet, but traveling on the ground would be easier.

Isabel was right. It didn't feel very good.

But with practiced ease, the brunette managed to get the tazer hooks and bullets that had hit her out of body, the suction feeling of Isabel pulling the lead out of her making Ashley nauseous. Still, she hoped that the fact that she didn't cry out would make Isabel impressed...though she didn't know why. The little staples she put over the wounds were just as painful but numbed after about a minute or two, and after she could only feel the dull hum of pain as she stood up.

>>"C'mon, drink time. There's some mutant friendly bars in the area where we should be able to hide out for a while without any trouble."

Drinking...well, at least they were out in public this time and not in the confines of a mostly empty Sanctuary kitchen where Ashley could attempt to make Isabel hers again...not that she intended to now. As far as women she had Bentley and Agnes (mostly Agnes), so doing anything of that nature with Isabel was simply out of the question...and if her body would stop being as hot as it was not she could simply focus on something more preferable, like the throbbing pain her body was in. Ashley growled inwardly. Stupid body.

Ashley's thoughts turned darker as she followed Isabel to the bar they were going to. In Ashley's mind they stuck out because of their battered, tattered and bloody clothing. The redhead was even still bleeding from her shoulder wound, the blood forming a small trickle that ended in her fingers. The amazing thing was that not many people looked their way, or if they did it was simple a passing curious look. The redhead was a bit surprised, but at the same time not. Last time she saw a crowd gathered she was taking on a giant spiky metal mutant with Andrew. A couple of girls walking down the streets and back alleys was nothing special.

They reached the bar (Genetically Superior) and Isabel led the way in like she owned the place. Ashley wasn't too certain but she was pretty sure Isabel walked everywhere like that so she paid it no mind. The bar was...average, really. It was set in a fairly bad part of town but that didn't bother Ashley, and she couldn't even perceive as to why that would bother Isabel. They both took seats at the bar stools as the bartender passed, barley looking at them before putting to huge glasses in front of them.

“Ya both look like shit run ova twice.” he said, pouring some hard liquor on both glasses. “These are on da house. Yer payin' fer everything after.”

He walked away after that and, without even knowing what it was, Ashley pulled up her glass and downed a good amount of it before slamming it down back on the bar. Her vision dimmed greatly at this point, but she fought it and came back. The pain in her body dulled and she now felt pleasantly...pleasant. A silly grin found it's way to her face and she let out a huge sigh.

“Mrrr.” she purred out. “Good stuff.”

Hiccup.

Isabel barely acknowledged the bartender, other than giving a slight nod when the glasses were set in front of them at no cost. It helped to go to bars that were run by mutants or mutant sympathizers. The clientele could get away with being a little bit rowdier and more open about themselves without worrying about getting themselves into too much trouble. Plus things like free drinks happened every so often.

She cast a sidelong glance at Rhythm as she picked up her own glass, giving a little bit of a grin with her comment. "Nothing in your stomach but a cup of ice cream on top of some blood loss will do that to you if you start drinking. Gets to you all that much quicker," she said, tipping back her own glass, though not quite so far as the other girl had with hers. She wasn't planning on getting very drunk very fast.

Turning around in her seat so she could lean her back against the bar top, she casually looked around the bar and the people that were in it. It was still fairly early, so it wasn't very busy just yet. Once night fell there's be more people filing in to meet friends, grab a drink, and play a few games.

She didn't bother re-buttoning the last few buttons on her top just yet, though she pulled the fabric over her stomach for some coverage. A little extra air on her injuries made them feel a little better, but she wasn't going to be showing off a lot of her skin. She'd get back around to the buttons once she got to relax for a bit.

She could see a few people glancing her way and sometimes commenting to their companions, but it didn't bother her any. She was used to people looking at her funny thanks to all the press she attracted for herself. She wasn't causing any trouble for them and the cops shouldn't be going out of their way to harass mutant hangouts to find her, so there was no reason to kick her out of the bar.

"I can pay for more booze when you finish that, if you want anything else," she commented, glancing back at Rhythm again and downing a bit more of the contents of her own glass. Being part of the Order had its perks, and money was one of them.

>> "Nothing in your stomach but a cup of ice cream on top of some blood loss will do that to you if you start drinking. Gets to you all that much quicker.”

Ashley grunted in response, the next drink she took being a mere sip. Okay, maybe she had started off a bit fast but her entire body felt like a ball of pain. Now...not so much. She felt her worries about Bentley and Agnes slip away, and the more pressing matter of Isabel come to the forefront of her mind. She was here, now, with the person that had started the emotional torrent she was now in. Before her, Ashley merely felt attraction to other women, attraction she could easily brush off. Sure, she knew she liked them but...whatever. She could ignore that. Now? Now her body got hot whenever someone in a short skirt passed by and Ashley hated it.

The loss of control was something she wasn't used to, not even now. She still panted at Bentley, and she had molested Agnes to the point of the little mutant running away. The redhead sighed deeply, taking a larger sip before resting her chin on the bar, trying to forget that it probably had all kinds of germs on it. In the end, like Isabel the first time and Bentley the second, it was her dumb ass fault Agnes had run away. Her Ladybug...gone. She was cute, innocent and merely curious, that much the guitarist was sure of. And Ashley had ruined it.

What a bummer.

>> "I can pay for more booze when you finish that, if you want anything else.”

A nod and a sigh escaped her lips as she sat up again, downing the drink and signaling the bartender for some more. Maybe whatever answers she sought, like what to do next, would be at the bottom of the next glass.

---

Samuel Jackson (no relation) sat at the back of the bar with a smile on his face. In his hands was a drug that would give him what he had been searching for for so long, and today....today was a GREAT day to celebrate his victory. For too long he had worked the streets, pimping out the hoes he had, barley gaining any new recruits, barley making any profit...barley gaining any respect a pimp of his stature deserved.

Well no more.

“My Congregation.” he let out, gaining the attention of the dozen women he had gathered around him, all ready and rearing to get back out on the streets to make that money. He sat up on a cushioned seat, putting a foot on the table and striking a rather impressive and dramatic pose, raising his cane high into the air. “Today is a glorious day. For you see, Samuel Jackson, no relation, will be the only pimp on the block with a way make bitches come to HIM, and not be sought out by his flock or be...persuaded to join...for their own sake, of course.”

A resounded murmur of agreement passed the dozen ladies.

“With the gift that has been brought upon me I will change the very nature of this game!!” he cried out, slamming the cane upon the table, making some people startle while others cheered. “I will shake the foundation of the game and I will reap the rewards and benefits and I will make sure that the name of Samuel Jackson will be on the lips of ALL those mo' fockas out on the field, DO YOU FEEL MEH?!”

There was a moment of silence before a particularly attractive Asian woman to his left piped up. “No relation.”

Samuel Jackson, still stuck in is pose, blinked before he looked down to the woman, his eyebrows furrowed. “What!?”

“Samuel Jackson, no relation.” she said, the people around her nodding in agreement. “That's how you always say your name.”

“Shut up!!” Samuel Jackson (no relation), yelled, bringing his hand back and slapping the woman hard. “I'll say my name how I wanna, and ain't no hoe gonna tell me otherwise!!” He stopped for a moment before looking out at the rest of his Congregation with a curious look on his face. “Is...is that how you all really know me as? Samuel Jackson, no relation?”

More nods.

“Well then, Samuel Jackson, no relation, will continue on with the tradition of that name, if it will please The Congregation!!” he yelled out, his followers all cheering and pounding the large table they sat at, even the woman Samuel Jackson had slapped. He felt bad, actually, anytime he hit a women, but as his father had taught him; pimps don't apologize. “NOW[/i]!! Back to the game, my sheep, and the very next time you see Samuel Jackson, no relation, he will be a whole. New. Man!!”

With a final cheer, The Congregation of Samuel Jackson (no relation) left the mutant bar they were at and went back out into the streets. Once he was finally by himself, Samuel Jackson took the syringe of the drug he had paid so much for, The Mutant Maker they had called it, and stuck himself with it. They had told him to inject himself in a controlled environment, because god only knows what would happen. But Samuel Jackson was a hard ass pimp who didn't play by the rules, and even if his genetic material was going to be overridden, he did his thang HIS way, and everyone else be damned.

It wasn't until maybe an hour later when a very, very attractive mutant (despite the scaly tail, though some people were into that kinda thing, and Samuel Jackson didn't judge) came to him with a offer so ludicrous and sexy that he thought the word had fallen into his lap.

And then her boyfriend came along, fully intent on stabbing Samuel Jackson for his girlfriend's crimes.

And then the entire bar started to go...well, the only way Samuel Jackson could describe it was absolutely apeshit.

He barley escaped with his life, the scaly tailed woman in tow and her boyfriend right on their heels. Outside he was met with more women, more followers (who simply wanted to touch him) and more angry significant others, and for the life of him he couldn't figure out why. But if this was the drug at work...hallelujah!! The game was his!!

---

“This is dispatch calling all cars. We have multiple reports of looting and vandalism at 8th and Manhattan. Request all cars to report to the scene. Repeat, we have multiple reports of looting and vandalism at 8th and Manhattan...reports coming of of rioting, requesting all cars...