The whole trip to the hospital, Agnes was in a mute silence. Her mind reeled because she really didn’t know what to wrap her mind around: the fact that Gina was in the hospital, the fact that she had been shot, or the fact that she was in a car with both the headmistress and DocProf. All these ideas scared her because she did not know how to respond to any of them. Agnes had never been as close to someone as Gina, and therefore did not know how to react when someone she was that close to had been injured that grievously. Agnes herself had always been the one who was harmed that much, but Gina? That sweet little ray of sunshine? Who would shoot her?

Silently tears fell as she hugged the tiger closer to her chest. Even when DocProf asked if she were okay, Agnes could only quietly nod. She was far from okay, but the worry shouldn’t be on her. Not right now. It needed to be on Gina and making sure that she was okay.

Once in the hospital, Agnes shivered. She didn’t know if it was because it was cold in the hospital or if it were simply her nerves but she felt cold. She tugged her sweater closer to her body (if that were possible) and hugged the tiger tighter.

In waiting area she waited for Ms. Tipper as she went to check in with the nurse. It was not long before the Headmistress nodded and made her way back towards herself and DocProf…

>> “She has to call upstairs first to make sure they’re taking visitors, before letting us go up there.”

Agnes nodded. It was understandable. They had to make sure that Gina was not being seen by a doctor and that she was not too busy or too tired for visitors. God how Agnes hoped that her little sister was okay. She didn’t care if she had to wait there all day, she was not leaving the hospital until she got to see her. But as she stood there, musing silently to herself, she suddenly looked up when she recognized as massive familiar red hair…

>> "Hey Big T, whats the status on Gina are they gonna let us back there?"[/i]

>> " She's stable and awake, she wasn't injured as badly as she could have been. Probably, if you don't scare they off by looking like some sort of member of a biker gang then yes,"

>> "Well that's good.Nah, don't worry they won't think that, a friend of mine works here and some of them know me. They are used to the whole wolf in biker clothing or surfer clothing or whatever.”[/i]

The she-wolf then turned her attention onto Agnes and smiled a bit sadly. Agnes herself frowned but was increasingly thankful for her friend and packmate’s arrival.

“Emerald!” she hugged back as tight as she was given.

>> "You holding up alright? I bet we will get back to see her real soon and she will be happy to see you and that giant stuffed Tiger you're holding."[/i]

Agnes nodded as she sniffled. She then reached up and brushed away the tears that threatened to roll down her cheeks.

“I’m fine, I…I just want to make sure she’s okay. She’s my sister. This shouldn’t have happened to her…”

Room 327, Lennox Hill Hospital

“You what?” Gina demanded, her face falling in disbelief.

“I think it would be better if you came home,” Pamela reiterated curtly, her blue-eyed gaze going hard like ice.

“But I love Xavier’s,” Gina protested, “I’m happy there! You can’t pull me out of Xavier’s! Not just because I had one accident.”

“You were shot, Regina.”

“Yeah, Mom, I am well aware of that.”

“And I think that, for your well-being, I should take you back to Mendocino, where it's safe, don't you?”

Gina’s jaw clenched, “No.”

Maxwell folded into the unoccupied chair, looking as if he wanted to sink into the chair itself and disappear. This was the last place he wanted to be—wedged between to bull-headed women in the middle of a face-off. Pamela and Gina glowered at one another.

“I admit, it was stupid for me to break curfew, and even worse of me to go beyond Xavier’s,” Gina breathed, “Okay? Lesson learned. But I'm not leaving Xavier's just because of a single misfortune. I can't live in-hiding my whole life just because my God-given body is that of a demon.”

Pamela sighed. Gina was winning.

“Don’t take me out of Xavier’s, please,” Gina pleaded, “It's not just the city, or Xavier's. Everywhere, there will be hate. Momma, please, I'll do anything, just let me stay.”

“Not Mendocino--”

“Yes, Mendo. Please, Mom. I'll do anything.”

The phone rang before Gina could get an answer out of Pamela. Gina shifted, glancing towards the phone on the bedside table. She was wiser than to torgue her injured shoulder, so reached with the arm that was hooked-up to the I.V., turning her body stiffly—God, everything ached. She felt like she was seventy-years-olds.

“Hey, hey,” Maxwell interjected, propelling himself from the chair, “Gina, no—I’ll get it. Don’t strain yourself.”

“Answering a phone?” Gina countered, “Max, please-“

“You’ll pop the I.V. out of your arm, now, shhh—“ Maxwell countered, picking up the phone and holding it to his ear, “Hello?”

There was a pause as someone spoke on the other end of the line. It sounded like a woman. Max replied, “Yes, this is the right room—umm, hold on a sec, okay?-“ he placed his hand over the receiver, and addressed his mother, “The Xavier’s entourage is here. Shall they send them up?”

“Tell ‘em that I’ll be down to retrieve them,” Pamela said, rising quickly and sliding into her sweater. Maxwell relayed this information to the person on the other end of the line, and Gina watched her mother closely, eyes still imploring her. They met gazes.

“I’ll speak to your headmistress, then we’ll talk,” Pamela said simply, tying the belt around her waist. Max finished up with his phone call, and hung up, “Deal, Gina?”

“Make wise choices,” Gina sighed heavily.

Pamela smiled faintly at the irony or Ginas' words, “Max, keep your sister company. I’ll be right back.”

And Pamela left.

The secretary hung up the phone, and waved her hand at the Headmistress to snag her attention. The Headmistress nodded her head in acknowledgement, to which the secretary announced, “Mrs. Schuyler will be down to retrieve you momentarily.”

“Thank you,” the Headmistress replied simply. Her gaze flickered over the three people that now accompanied her. Agnes still seemed to be a bit numb with shock, and Emerald was being… Emerald. It would make things easier for Gina with friends here, but this was, in the Headmistress’s head, too many people. While Emerald and Agnes were having their exchanged, the Headmistress and the DocProf waited in relative silence.

“How are you holding up, Delilah?” the DocProf inquired.

“I can only imagine how painfully terrifying it must be for a mother to hear that her child was shot… and how much worse it must be when you’re on two separate sides of the country.”

The DocProf sighed and nodded slowly. Delilah may have looked like an ice-queen, but she was still a motherly heart on the interior. A few minutes passed by slowly, people lazily streaming in towards the front desk from either the parking garage-elevator or off of the streets, there was a muted hum of noise in the waiting room. The Headmistress kept her gaze on the elevator behind the front desk, which went to the other floors of the hospital. Mrs. Schuyler would be coming out of there, so she kept an eye out for a woman who would strike her as a Mrs. Schuyler.

An elegant blonde-haired woman emerged from the elevator and went to the front desk. She had a fierceness about her, and yet her face had been softened by motherhood and middle age, and slightly worn by fatigue. That looked like a Mrs. Schuyler.

The blonde stopped at the front desk, spoke briefly to the secretary, and the secretary directed her towards the Xavier’s gang with a casual gesture. The blonde thanked her, and walked over to them.

“Mrs. Schuyler?” the Headmistress greeted, “Delilah Tipper, Headmistress at Xavier’s. Thank you for coming down to meet us.”

“No problem, these halls are an absolute maze,” Pamela agreed, shaking the Headmistress’s hand firmly. Her voice was a sweet soprano timbre, and rich with Californian tones, “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Headmistress.”

She turned to the DocProf next, who warmly shook her hand in both of his, “I’m the DocProf, Xavier’s head doctor within the infirmary, and the resident healer. Pleased to meet you.”

“Thank you for doing this,” Pamela murmured, “I don’t know how I can possibly express my gratitude.”

The DocProf chuckled, “There’s no need, my dear. Gina’s a delight. It’d be my pleasure to do whatever I can to help her.”

Pamela kissed the DocProf on the cheek, “You’re a Godsend.”

The DocProf smiled paternally and released Pamela from the handshake. Thus, Pamela turned her attention to the two tagalongs, two people who she hadn’t expected. She presumed them to be friends of Gina’s, though, which was perfectly alright.

One was brunette, the other was a redhead. She looked towards the first one, who was taller and sported the red hair, to see if she knew the girl’s face. The lady was too old to be a high-school student. And she didn’t seem familiar. So, Pamela opted for a more casual introduction.

“Pamela Schuyler,” she introduced herself, extending a hand to Emerald, “I’m Gina’s foster mom. You can call me Pamela, Pam or Mom.”

Once those introductions were exchanged, she moved to the second girl. She was shorter, looking rather shaken, and held a stuffed tiger in a vice-grip against her chest. Pamela took one look at her and knew her in a heartbeat.

“Agnes,” she presumed, before the girl had an opportunity to say anything. And, rather than shake her hand, Pamela constricted the girl into a warm hug.

Of course, Gina and Pamela talked regularly over the phone, so of course, Pamela knew everything about Agnes and how much Gina cared for her. While Pamela didn’t look even remotely similar to Gina, there were certain undeniable similarities between the two of them. One of them was their hugs.

“It’s nice to finally meet you,” Pamela inquired, her voice gentle and yet resolute as she released Agnes. A pity that they had to meet in such a context, “How are you holding up, honey?”

She waited for a reply before turning her attention to the rest of the group. Pamela motioned for them to follow her, “We’re up on the third floor. Gina’s awake and… well, being Gina. They gave her some pretty strong meds, so she’s groggy and a little stiff. Still her spunky little self, though. Kid shouldn't even be awake right now, those meds should've knocked her out flat.”

But that was Gina for you. Stubborn as ever even in a hospital bed. The elevator arrived, and a few people sauntered out. Pamela sauntered in first, holding the door open for the four Xavier's people. Once the door slid shut, the DocProf spoke up.

"What sort of condition is she in, healthwise?" he inquired placidly, his tone professional yet soft.

"She was really dehydrated and had lost a lot of blood when they brought her in," Pamela trailed, her face puckering into a grim frown, "Her collarbone was fractured and she had severe tissue damage... according to the doctor, the bullet barely glanced her shoulder before tearing her wing, so Gina was... very fortunate, to say the least."

"They managed to stitch up her shoulder," Pamela continued shakily, "And are still trying to figure out the best course of action for her collarbone. The nature of the fracture usually calls for a brace, but... they've been contemplating a surgery, since there aren't any braces that accommodate wings... the torn wing heals like a minor cut, so they glued her wing, no problem... and she's hooked up to IV's for the dehydration and the blood loss."

The elevator arrived at the third floor, and the doors slid open with another *bing*. The news was all very heavy, but Pamela optimistically added on, as she stepped out, "But, Gina's stable, and well enough to be acting like herself, so... we're just taking things as they come."

Pamela smiled tiredly, and motioned for the group to follow her down the hall. It still felt totally surreal for her, but she was coping the best that she possibly could.

Agnes and Emerald conversed quietly as they stood around the hospital, trying to figure out just what to do next. They had to wait until they got the okay that they could go upstairs and it was the waiting that was the most maddening to Agnes. As much as she was assured that Gina would be okay, she could not be 100% sure until they were actually allowed to see her. She wanted to see her. This was her sister after all. But she had to respect the rules of this hospital, despite the numerous mental images of pain and suffering that she was sure Gina was experiencing.

Taking a breath, she denied the fear inlaid within those images and shook it off. She needed to focus. Gina was okay…she had to be…

It was during one of these sessions that she cast a glance back up to the nurse’s station and saw a very elegant and beautiful blonde woman walk up to the desk. Agnes was about to disregard and turn away when she noticed that the nurse was motioning towards them.

She blinked as the older woman moved towards them and immediately directed her conversation to Ms. Tipper as well as DocProf. This was Gina’s mother? She was a very beautiful woman but surprisingly enough she was nothing of what Agnes had expected. Not that she had expected Agnes to have been born from a gargoyle mother, it was just a little jarring. Quickly though she regained her composure as the woman turned to addressed Emerald…and then rested her eyes upon herself.

Agnes gulped…

>> “Agnes…It’s nice to finally meet you,”

For a moment Agnes felt like climbing into a hole to hide, but only for a second. Before she knew it the woman had wrapped her arms around her and pulled her into a tight hug. It took Agnes a second before she returned the hug, suddenly feeling as if she were hugging her little sister again. So this was the fount of all the hugs that Gina had stored up within her. It felt exactly the same to her…

>> “How are you holding up, honey?”

Agnes blinked as she looked up at the woman. She was asking how she was doing when Gina was the one in the hospital? Gina and her were definitely cut from the same mold. She only meekly nodded that she was fine. She didn’t want to bore the woman when her daughter was injured.

The group was then finally led towards the elevators. Agnes strayed behind with Emerald and walked with her friend while following the adults. She caught snippets here and there that Gina was awake and about what the doctors needed to do in order to help fix Gina. She hoped that DocProf was going to be able to handle all of it. She had a feeling that he could, but one never knew these days.

When they finally arrived to the appropriate floor, Agnes still kept her lips sealed as her heart rushed just a little faster. Gently she squeezed the tiger as she followed down the hall. She knew Gina was okay…she had to be okay…right?

The response that Emerald got from Agnes was one she expected, everyone wanted to make sure their family members, blood or not were fine especially after they got shot or something terrible like that. It was eerie in a way for Emerald to be back at this hospital for a sister related incident because the last time she was here, was almost five years ago when Ruby was in the hospital. So she had a pretty good idea of how terrifying it could be to know that someone you love and care about was in such danger.

"Don't worry; Gina should be fine, besides Doc will heal her up right away so there won't be any problems." The wolf girl would say confidently, reassuring Agnes the best she could.

Even though Emerald had only met Gina once, the gargoyle girl was important to Agnes, and that was really all that mattered to her. That and Gina seemed like a really sweet girl that Emerald wouldn't mind becoming friends with, in fact she wouldn't mind introducing her to Ruby when Ruby got back from training with their mother.

Speaking of mothers judging by how Big T addressed the frazzled blonde woman that appeared before them, Emerald assumed that was Gina's mother. She talked to Doc for a bit, allowing Emerald to have a chance to scan her up and down for any similarities to the young Gargoyle she had met at the Dinner not too long ago. When she didn't see any she became a little confused, perhaps that wasn't her mother by blood or something like that or maybe Gina took more after her father’s side of the family. After all, Sapphire, Emerald's oldest sister, looked far more human than the rest of the Lupin females did and it was possible Gina did as well.

This was when the wolf girl was addressed directly, the blonde sticking out a friendly hand to the redheaded werewolf. The way she introduced herself made it clear for Emerald that she was indeed Gina's mother though not by blood, but once again, blood didn't mean a whole lot to Emerald. Anyone could be a family, or pack as she liked to call it as long as they acted like it and it was easily noted that Ms. Pamela Schuyler took on the stance of the Alpha female, or at least that’s how Emerald saw it.

"Emerald Lupin, Nice to meet ya Pamela," Emerald replied, returning the handshake with one of her own, it wasn't her normal firm one because that required too much movement on her arms part. Sure she was able to go out and kick a little bit of tail as Shred that night but that was because she actually "kicked" some tail. Her arms and her side were still messed up from her encounter that hunter guy from a few days ago and she hadn't sought proper treatment yet besides a quick visit to Shift. "Don't you worry about a thing because Doc's the best healer around and if anyone can fix Gina up, he can,"

Whether or not that reassured Pamela, Emerald didn't know but it made Doc smile at Emerald knowingly. Emerald tended to be Doc's best returning customer so she knew very well of his healing abilities and besides if it wasn't for him; she probably would have died the last time she had been here.

Once introductions from the group were finished, Emerald began to make her way down the hallway with the group from Xavier’s, sticking Agnes under her watchful eye. Emerald wanted to make sure Agnes was okay as much as she wanted to make sure Gina was okay, mainly because that’s what pack leaders did. She listened to Gina's condition and was glad that the younger girl was better than she could have been. Tucking a stray strand of red hair behind her pointed right ear the wolf girl walked with the group, blue eyes scanning the surroundings. She began to get an eerie sense of deja vu filled her and she would let out a sigh before they reached the elevator.

"I haven't been here in almost five years now and nothing has really changed. At least the electrical burn marks Ruby left on the wall are long gone now." Emerald murmured, remembering the last time she was there very clearly.

As they rode up in the elevator Emerald shifted uneasily, she hated elevators and the confined spaces they had, the sooner they got to the Floor Gina was on the better. Emerald's pre full moon wolf attitude hated enclosed spaces and uncertainty about her pack/possible pack member’s status. A quick glance to the side rewarded Emerald the sight of Agnes clutching onto that stuffed toy a little harder than she had before.

With a small grunt of pain that she quickly attempted to hide she wrapped her right arm around Agnes in a reassuring half hug as they walked down the hallway. She was bound, dammed and determined to make sure the people she cared about were okay and Gina had made a bit of an impression on Emerald the last time they met to make her feel that way about her as well. Besides...nothing hurt Emerald's pack and got away with it, nothing.

Pamela led the group down the quiet halls-- up on the third floor, there wasn't so much hustle and bustle. These were mostly just rooms where people were essentially on stand-by, recovering or waiting for surgery. Therefore, it was much calmer than, say, the first floor. Whether or not the girls or the DocProf spoke amongst each other was beyond Pamela, but the Headmistress and Mrs. Schuyler walked in silence. It seemed like sacrelige to disrupt such a stillness.

After following a few turns down the hall almost mechanically, Pamela finally came to a halt in front of the securely shut door of Gina's room. There was a tall, slender window on the door, but you couldn't see much except for the brief entry hall, and a small portion of the wall opposite the door. Pamela faced the group, clearing her throat.

"If you could wait out here for a moment?" Pamela requested, "We weren't expecting this many people, so I'm going to check and see if Gina's up to it. Is that alright?"

Once given the go-ahead, Pamela breathed a brief thanks, and slipped into the room.

The two siblings were conversing quietly about some t.v. show, Gina still in the bed, and Maxwell having moved a chair closer to the bedside. Gina and Maxwell looked up as the door slid open, slid shut, and Pamela came striding in unaccompanied.

"Did you lose the Xavier's people?" Maxwell inquired, leaning back in his chair.

"They're outside," Pamela replied.

"Why are they out there?" Gina asked.

"Well, Agnes and Emerald tagged along," Pamela replied flatly, "I just wanted to know if you were up to seeing them?"

Ginas' eyes widened a fraction, her mouth gaping, "Agnes and Em?"

What were they doing here? Okay, she knew what they were doing there, but... why? Agnes couldn't see her like this. She'd totally flip out on her. And if Agnes started crying, Gina was going to start crying, too. And what of Emerald? They didn't know each other that well. Not well enough to be visiting each other in a hospital. Unless she was here to make sure that Agnes was okay. Gina ran her hand through her hair.

"It'd be rude to send them off after they came over to see me," Gina murmured noncommitally.

"Baby, they'll understand if you can't handle seeing them, right now," Pamela assured her daughter, walking over to the bedside and placing a hand on Gina's arm, "I can tell them you're not up to it, they'll understand."

"They'll see me sooner or later anyways," Gina countered, shaking her head, "Let'm in. I could do with some friend-time anyways."

And, just to show that she meant what she'd said, Gina began combing through her hair with her good hand, because if Agnes and Emerald were going to see her, the least that she could do is look put-together for them. Hopefully they'd just ignore those freaking bandages, the IV's and all that jazz. Pamela waited and watched.

"'kay," Gina said, nodding her head, "I'm ready."

Pamela didn't argue. She turned around, walked back towards the door, and popped it open, stepping out into the hall so as to usher everyone in. Gina kept her gaze trained on the hallway, where she knew there was a door that she couldn't see, a door at which her friends, the Headmistress, and the DocProf were waiting.

"Gina's ready for you," Gina heard her mother say warmly. Gina sighed and sat up straight, wincing as her shoulder managed to twinge through the pain medication. She was as ready as she'd ever be.

Agnes strolled quietly along with Emerald, the Headmistress, DocProf, and Gina’s foster mother. She sighed as she tried to keep her mind calm. She knew Gina was okay. She just knew it but there was that part nagging at the back of her head. That part that would not be convinced until she saw Gina in the flesh and could talk to her, hug her, made sure she could see for herself that she was alright. That was the hardest part of all this, the not know for sure.

But even as she walked through the halls, led by Gina’s mother, she could feel an anxiety take over her. She didn’t want to lose composure but she still could not wrap her mind around it. Why the hell would someone want to shoot Gina? Her sweet little sister. Granted, she did have an appearance that most people would probably be scared of, but still, this was taking it too far.

Slowly she found herself getting upset again, but she was quickly shaken out of it when she looked up to see that Pamela had stopped the procession in front of one of the rooms. She paused and clung to the tiger closely. What was she going to find in there?

>> "If you could wait out here for a moment? We weren't expecting this many people, so I'm going to check and see if Gina's up to it. Is that alright?"

Everyone nodded, so did Agnes. She paused as she clung onto the tiger a little tighter.

DocProf seemed to catch onto this as he glanced at her and then reached over to gently pat her shoulder. She smiled weakly back at him, but she just wanted to get this over with. She had to see that Gina was okay.

It seemed like an eon before that door finally opening again and Pamela peeked out holding it open for them all.

>> "Gina's ready for you,"

She sighed in relief. She waited for the Headmistress and DocProf to walk in first before she slowly stalked in as well. The second that she saw Gina, sitting up in the hospital bed, bandaged up, Agnes’ eyes began to mist over. She didn’t want to cry, so only a couple of tears managed to roll down her cheeks. Once she locked eyes with her sister Agnes stepped forward, meekly and holding her stuffed tiger.

“Oh my god, Gina…” she whispered as she calmly came up to her bed side. “Are you okay, honey?” she asked as she stroked her sister’s hair. She wanted to hug the life out of her but judging from the wires and bandages, she doubted that was a good idea.

Being lead around in the Hospital was still a nerve racking thing for Emerald, even after many years away from a negative hospital like environment. Normally, she would fight tooth and nail, rather than go into a hospital, the difference now though as the fact she wasn’t the one technically in the hospital.

She wasn’t as freaked out by them when she wasn’t the one being treated for anything, she would of course panic if she woke up in one considering her experiences with the places, but otherwise she could handle them semi competently.

Once they were told to wait outside, the she-wolf got a little antsy, wondering if they were going to see Gina at all today or not. Maybe the girl wasn’t stable enough to see them yet which caused Emerald to worry a little bit more. Being unstable was not good, especially when it involved bullets; she herself had been unstable a few times when her wounds involved bullets so she knew how bad it could potentially be.

Once they were allowed inside, she took this chance to take up the rear since technically; she sort of just dropped in instead of being invited. The redhead watched Agnes’ reaction asking Gina if she was okay in a very big sister like way, playing out the big sister role very well. A small wolfish smile crept across the werewolf’s face when she saw that Gina was fine, well besides the whole being shot thing but otherwise she was fine.


“You look good for someone whose been shot, ” Emerald would chip in a little awkwardly. Leave it to her to say something like that in this situation. Problem was from her background she was sort of used to the whole, getting shot at or shot thing so this was a normal sort of thing for her.

It took her a second to realize how it sounded and she winced a little when she face palmed on her own bad wording. Stupid bruises.

“Erm, what I mean to say is, I’m glad you are mostly alright. We both were worried about you when we heard, well Agnes heard, I eavesdropped, but still I’m glad you are alright. “ She would add in, blue eyes softening with worry. At least Gina looked better than she did when she got shot the first time. Hopefully, the younger girl wouldn't make a habbit out of getting shot so she wouldn't get used to it.

Perhaps it was for the better that the DocProf and the Headmistress brought up the head of the line, but perhaps it wasn't-- Gina had steeled herself in preparation for Agnes, but when the two people who were actually supposed to be in here walked in, she decompressed. The Headmistress fixed her with a look that Gina would swear had been stolen from her mother, but she said nothing. Shaming her for her poor decisions could come later. Even DocProf looked very worried, but he still wore that same, paternal smile upon his face as he surveyed her.

"Gina, my dear," he greeted, "What a fine mess you've gotten yourself into-- my condolences. I'll fix you up the best I can."

"Good to see you, DocProf," Gina replied, smiling tiredly in reply, "Thank you, so much."

"It's nothing."

Then, the real challenge arose as Agnes sauntered in behind him-- she had the eyes of one who was threatening to cry, and she was holding onto Gina's stuffed tiger. Yeah, that tiger-- the one that Gina had bought when she had taken herself to the zoo, got lost, and found her way back to the hotel by virtue of Agnes's helping hand. And just the look on Agnes's face--? Damn it, now Gina felt herself tearing up.

>> “Oh my god, Gina… Are you okay, honey?”

Agnes only she a few tears, and Gina was so relieved to see her, but... no, she couldn't cry... the drugs in her system didn't really help with keeping her composure as Agnes patted her hair in concern.

"I'm fine," Gina assured her. Agnes had gone to the side of the bed on which her good arm was, so Gina stiffly wrapped it around Agnes in a half-hug. It wasn't a very good one, but hey, Gina needed her hugs. She revised her first statement by murmuring, "I'm fantastic. Good to see ya, sis."

And, before things could get too emotionally-intense, Emerald came into the room, followed by Pamela. Pamela went to Maxwell's side, and mumbled something to him to the persuasion of the fact that they were going to go elsewhere to speak with the Headmistress.

>> “You look good for someone whose been shot. ”

Gina couldn't help herself. As Emerald face-palmed at the poor word choice, Gina let out a short, hoarse chuckle. Leave it to Emerald to put things the exact way that they were. Leave it to Emerald to say something like that. The DocProf and Maxwell wore matching looks of shock, the Headmistress was blatantly unphased, and Pamela looked a tad offended. But, Gina was grinning-- at least Emerald wasn't treating her like she was already dead.

Once through with her chuckling, Gina sighed, "Thanks, Em."

>> “Erm, what I mean to say is, I’m glad you are mostly alright. We both were worried about you when we heard, well Agnes heard, I eavesdropped, but still I’m glad you are alright. "

"Thanks, Em," Gina repeated, adding no revision to her previous statement. So she'd eavesdropped and then tagged along-- that was so cool, "It's good to see you, too."

Now that the greetings and formalities were exchanged, Pamela spoke up on her son's behalf, while Maxwell stood rooted silently beside her. His face was flushed, and his eyes seemed owlish from behind his glasses-- as if he had gone into shock with the introduction of two, attractive girls.

"Everyone, this Maxwell," Pamela announced, "Maxwell, these people are Headmistress Tipper, the DocProf, Agnes and Emerald," as she said each name, she gestured to each person in-turn as she did so, "--Maxwell will be hanging out in here while the Headmistress and I go elsewhere to talk. Girls, have mercy on him. He's a shy one."

Which only made Maxwell flush deeper. Pamela gestured lightly to the Headmistress, and the two of them walked, side-by-side, out of the room. They had business to attend to. They left a silence in their wake. Gina shifted her gaze towards each of the other four people with mild discomfort. She still didn't like how her mother had said the word "talk". It was that ominous "talk" that mothers had when their children were in serious trouble.

Agnes sniffled.

The majority of the conversation that was going on around them she completely missed. All she could do was stand there, looking down at Gina, her sister. The sweetest girl she ever met, laying in a hospital bed after being shot. It was utterly ridiculous. Who would do something like that to her? What was the point of it? Gina would have never hurt and fly and yet someone found it necessary that she needed to die? That was just…unheard of…

She sighed as she listened to the rest of the conversations going on and handed over the stuffed tiger to Gina. Gina recognized it immediately she got a little teary eyed. Then Agnes got teary eyed, and the first thing that they both wanted to do was cry. But Agnes managed to hold back. After all, she did not want to appear as utterly hysterical.

After words were exchanged, she looked up as Gina’s stepmother addressed them all…

>> "Everyone, this Maxwell…Maxwell, these people are Headmistress Tipper, the DocProf, Agnes and Emerald--Maxwell will be hanging out in here while the Headmistress and I go elsewhere to talk. Girls, have mercy on him. He's a shy one."

Agnes smirked as she reached up and dabbed the tears away. It was only when Gina’s mother and both the headmistress and DocProf were gone that she waved a little shyly to Maxwell. Gina had spoke of him before and he definitely looked how she had described him. Kind of hard to miss with the glasses…

“Hi, Maxwell. It’s nice to finally meet you,” she said with a smile. She then turned her attention back to Gina “Do you need anything, honey? Ice chips? Water?”

Emerald would listen to Ms. Tipper’s orders and stay put in the room she was told to be in. The girl s were left alone with Gina’s step brother Emerald would assume and Emerald couldn’t help but briefly stare at the shy young man. If the circumstances were different, she may have attempted to hit on him in some sort of way, however, with her past history of boyfriends the muscular wolf girl didn’t think it was a good idea. Even if she did sort of like guys that were shy and easily flustered.

Emerald would rise from the wall she had been leaning against in order to greet Maxwell in a semi-formal way.


“Hi Max, It’s nice to meet you, I’m sorry we had to meet under these circumstances,” Emerald would greet calmly, trying to be a nice and formal as possible. It was nice to meet some normal older siblings for once. All the ones she had met thus far were absolutely nutty, or maybe that was just the effect of knowing her older sister. That and Maxwell seemed to have a good scent, so he was okay in the werewolf’s book until he proved her otherwise.

Blue eyes would glance over at Agnes and Gina, Agnes seemed like she wanted to dote upon the younger girl who had just been injured in such a traumatizing way. Speaking of that, Emerald couldn’t help but wonder if Gina had any idea of who shot her. If she did, maybe that might help the police find out who did it or maybe someone who may or may not work to help the police.

Nope, not an X-man.

A Vigilante like Emerald would love to know that sort of information, just so she could exact justice on the poor fool’s head that decide to mess with someone from Xavier’s. Even if Gina was someone she wasn’t too close to yet, Agnes was close to her, which meant that Gina may end up becoming part of Emerald’s pack. This meant that whoever did this was messing with her pack, which wasn’t a good idea, especially this close to the full moon.

By the wound on Gina’s wing, Emerald figured the girl was shot from the ground, by someone who was a fairly good shot, not good enough though if they missed her vitals. This was a hit, that much was certain but this young girl didn’t seem like she would do anything wrong, though sometimes, people will put hits on mutants for just existing in this world, something that burned Emerald to the very core.

Agnes seemed to have the whole, “do you need anything?” question covered so Emerald would just sit back and wait, pondering what they were going to do next. It was easy to see she was thinking about something, and most of it involved the possible suspects for this crime, the only good thing about this was that Emerald was able to narrow some mutants down off the list since they didn’t use guns. Otherwise though, it could be anyone.

Maxwell's mind seemed to drift into a hum as both of the girls addressed him, an embarassed smile flitting over his face, before it was rapidly overtaken by a deep blush.

"Nice to meet you, too," Maxwell quickly murmured to the two girls. Gina smiled at her brother's sudden awkwardness. He was always like that around girls who weren't related to him-- stumbling over his words, incapable of looking them in the eye-- he was just one, adorable awkward turtle.

>> “Do you need anything, honey? Ice chips? Water?”

"I'm fine, Agnes," Gina smiled faintly, holding the tiger lightly in her lap as she spoke, "Thank you."

As the formalities were exchanged amongst the younger people of the group, DocProf was getting to work... he shed his coat and draped it over the open chair, and casually began to roll his sleeves up from his hands.

"Which shoulder's the hurt one?" the DocProf inquired, cutting the small-talk short. He obviously wanted to get down to business, "The left one?"

"Yeah, the left," Gina confirmed quietly. She shifted stiffly, into more of a sitting position. The DocProf came to her bedside, on the left, and Gina watched him closely, "Do you want to look at it?"

"I'm going to leave the bandages be," the DocProf trailed, "It looks as though they've braced and bandaged your shoulder with gauze, and I don't want to disturb it... probably do more harm than good. I can still use my powers without touching the wound itself."

"Okay," Gina breathed. DocProf brought his hands slowly towards Gina's shoulder before settling them on the bandages. Gina winced faintly at the contact, for there was a twinge despite the drugs, and DocProf murmured a faint apology, before closing his eyes. Maxwell watched, holding his breath. The telltale golden glow grew around the DocProfs' hands, a warmth exuding from the area on Gina's shoulder over which the DocProfs' hands lingered. It was a shortlived thing, for the injury had been quick, and was centralized around her shoulder. DocProf kept a calm front, but his breath caught faintly.

"How much did you see?" Gina asked in low tones.

"Just the injuries," the DocProf explained, lowering his hands and rubbing his jaw, "That bullet really did do a number on you, my dear-- the tissue damage on your shoulder is pretty nasty, and you fractured your collarbone as well... the tear in the wing is nothing in proportion to the other two injuries."

"What's the plan?" Gina pressed on.

"I won't be able to heal it all in one-sitting, without overexerting myself," the DocProf continued, "Obviously the most pressing injuries are the fracture and your shoulder--" this earned a faint 'yeah' from Gina, "--I believe that I'd be able to... safely heal one wound wholly, and the other halfway. Once you're out of the hospital, I could heal you the rest of the way--" This time, Gina responded with an "okay" to the DocProf, and the DocProf gave her an apologetic smile, "--So, which thing first, darling?"

Gina paused, absently rubbing her arm.

"The fracture, I should think," Gina mumbled, "I mean... that's what's been causing the most trouble for the doctors, since my shoulder won't fit a normal brace... would that be alright?"

The DocProf nodded, and smiled faintly, "Precisely my thought, my dear."

Gina flicked her gaze towards Emerald, Agnes, and Maxwell. Maxwell was still absolutely enrapt by what was going on, and dead-silent as he watched. The DocProf carefully replaced his hands on Gina's shoulder, and the warmth returned, swimming out from the site of the wound and spiraling downward, filling Gina's form from head-to-toe. DocProf closed his eyes in concentration, the brightness of his glowing hands intensifying. Gina slipped into a reverent silence, her head feeling lighter, perhaps from the drugs, the healing, or a marriage of the two.

Then, the feeling began to fade, before vanishing altogether. DocProf waited a few moments longer, then slowly removed his hands, wearing that mellow "DocProf" smile that he always seemed to wear. Just as he'd seemed tired when he'd healed Shane, he seemed even more tired now. DocProf went to readjusting his sleeves, rolling them back down, as he simply announced, "I took care of the collarbone, and some of the tissue damage... I do believe that I will have a seat now."

"Thank you so much, DocProf," Gina said with a smile, "I mean it. Thanks."

"No problem, my dear," DocProf smiled, lifting his coat up off of the open chair and sinking into it placidly. A spell of silence fell, and Gina looked to each of the others within the room, uncertain how what to say next. There was a tension that seemed to be the sort that would quelch small-talk the moment that it arose, for it would seem too forced. Anything was better than the stiff silence, though. Shock of all shocks, Maxwell intiated the small-talk.

"S-so, are you guys students at Xavier's, too?" Maxwell trailed hesitantly.

Agnes still misty eyed, nodded. Gina didn’t want anything at the moment. In a way, Agnes really wished that she did because it would help the feelings of helplessness that she was currently having. Not that it was Gina’s fault, or anything. Agnes just did not like to feel like there was nothing she could do to help her little sister at the moment. She wanted to help her and it sucked that all she could do was sit back and watch as she lay there with a bullet hole in her shoulder!

But the runaway took a calming breath as she stepped back to let DocProf get to work. She sincerely loved the old man. Not just because he could heal but he just had this aura about him that made people feel comforted, like they were going to be okay no matter what. Too many times Agnes found herself in that position and each time she was thankful that DocProf was there.

Today was just another example of that.

She sniffled as she stepped away and let the good doctor and Gina had their time together. She did not want to hear all the gory details but from what she could gather from the conversation, it was pretty bad. Gina would be okay, though. That was all Agnes really needed to hear to help her calm some. Still though, she really wished that she could do more. Maybe it’ll help with her just being around.

Gina would surely need something eventually, right? And she would jump on the opportunity.

Before long she watched as that familiar, golden hue escaped from the good doctor’s hands and began to fill Gina with their healing glow. Soon after water, a tired look came across DocProf’s face and she shuffled away, muttered that he needed to sit for a bit. No one would stop him. Instead she smiled thankfully at the kindly man before she returned to Gina’s side.

So many questions burned through her mind. Who could have done this? Why? What did Gina see? But Agnes wouldn’t bother her with questions now. No. She needed to rest. She will tell her if she wants to.

>> "S-so, are you guys students at Xavier's, too?"

She turned to the meek voice that had just spoken. It was Maxwell trying to start some awkward smallt talk to pull the attention from Gina. She smirked, thankful for the change in conversation. Once she found a seat she nodded as she turned to Max.

“Over a year now, for me,” she said with a smile. She was thankful that at least someone was trying to steer conversation away from the obvious.

Cafeteria of Lennox Hill Hospital

Two, identical Styrofoam cups of scalding, black coffee sat opposite of one another, as if the gauntlet had been dropped upon the small café table, and a duel was about to ensue. Behind the cups, sat their owners—Pamela Schuyler and Headmistress Delilah Tipper who, up until now, had been sharing in strained, polite conversation. The Headmistress had maintained a businesslike and apologetic tone, whilst Pamela had bore a tired yet tense demeanor. Yet there was only so much small talk to be had. Eventually, the two women would have to speak about business. The shift in tones occurred when a strained silence settled between the two of them, the ominous sort of silence that typically preceded a touchy subject.

The Headmistress asked Pamela if she was ready to begin with delicately arched eyebrows, to which Pamela replied with a resolute, stern frown. Now was as good of a time as ever.

“Miss Schuyler,” the Headmistress began quickly, “There are no words to describe how sorry we are- how sorry I am- that this happened to Regina. I assure you, had we been aware that she had snuck out like that-“

“Miss Tipper,” Pamela interjected, raising a hand to silence the Headmistress, “Please. There is nothing that you or I could have done. I mean, I don’t see the future. Do you?”

“No ma’am,” the Headmistress agreed, cracking a small smile.

“As you can well imagine, when I got the call last night that Gina had been shot, I was both mortified and devastated all at once,” Pamela explained, “And, like any mother would, my first instinct was to remove her from the situation in the best way that I saw possible. Do you understand where I’m coming from?”

“Yes.”

Pamela rested her hands on the table, crossing them at the wrists, “I must confide in you, Ms. Tipper- I do not like the city. I hesitated to let Gina come here, yet on a strike of confidence, and because Gina was so adamant, I let her come to New York. To Xavier’s.”

Pamela paused, rolling her lips as if struggling to contain words that were better left unsaid. The mother steadied herself, and then continued on. The Headmistress didn’t dare interrupt.

“I do not blame Xavier’s for Ginas’ actions,” Pamela confessed, “And, though I’d like to remove her from your school… and from this city… but, knowing Gina, she wouldn’t go along without a fight. She’s happy here.”

A frown flickered over her expression, the gazes of the two women locking.

“I would like to be able to leave Gina at Xavier’s,” Pamela explained, “With the good faith that this will not happen again. If I can be assured of this, then we’ll have no problems here.”

“We cannot confine students to the campus, and there is always a danger present on the streets,” the Headmistress replied with diplomacy, carefully considering her words so as not to offend Pamela, “Particularly for mutants. I cannot assure you that Gina will never again be in such a situation, but we will do what we can to protect her, otherwise.”

Pamela huffed, but didn’t reply.

“What we can do,” the Headmistress continued, “Is address the issue of breaking curfew, and limit how much time she spends meandering about the city unaccompanied.”

“I would appreciate that,” Pamela replied, “Although, I do have one question- what I would like to know is, how did she get off-campus? I was informed that there were security cameras at Xavier’s, to protect the students and prevent such things.”

“Well,” the Headmistress trailed, “We don’t have video surveillance on the roof. My guess would be that Gina went up there, and then took-off and flew off-campus from there. Now, in regards to our solution-”

From an outsider’s perspective, the women were conversing matter-of-factly yet calmly over their coffee. Their body language was relaxed, as was their expressions. There was nothing to allude to the gravity of what they were discussing. To a passerby, they were simply two women, conversing over hot cups of coffee.

===//////===

Nearly a fourty-five minutes later, Pamela and Miss Tipper made the trek back to Gina’s room, walking close together, yet without touching and in silence. They arrived with only a knock of warning upon the door, before letting themselves in. Within the room, quiet conversation had unfolded. Quiet, normal conversation that didn’t hold as much gravity as your daughter’s enrollment at a mutant school—Maxwell had opted to stand, abandoning his chair by the window, perhaps having offered it to one of the girls, whilst the DocProf occupied the other chair, looking rather tired but well-pleased, and he seemed in good humor.

The presence of the two women was enough to silence the chatter. Gina and Max looked towards their mother, gazes expectant, and neither smiling. Pamela initially ignored her childrens’ inquiring gazes, glancing towards the DocProf and politely asking, “How did it go?”

“I was able to heal her collarbone, and handle about… half of the tissue damage,” the DocProf summarized, “After a second session, Gina should be as good as new.”

“You are an angel,” Pamela answered graciously, bowing her head, “Thank you, DocProf.”

“Anytime, dear,” the DocProf replied, smiling paternally.

Pamela now looked towards her children, ready to address their searching gazes.

“So?” Gina inquired, her expression grave, “What’s the verdict? Do I get to stay?”

She had failed to mention this to Agnes or Emerald, largely because Gina was still really peeved that her mom had even proposed such a thing. If Gina was ticked-off, she could only surmise that her friends would be as well. Her gaze flickered over to her two friends apologetically, before flickering back to her mom. Pamela shifted, hefting a sigh.

“Your Headmistress and I discussed what we believed would be best for you,” Pamela trailed. Gina looked toward the Headmistress. Miss Tipper would be on her side, right? Advocating for Xavier’s, trying to keep Gina there, right? Gina looked back towards her mother, “And it was decided that we will keep you at Xavier’s. But, there are a few conditions-”

“You will serve detention for breaking curfew,” Miss Tipper began, “Though such a misfortune is punishment enough, that does not change the fact that you indeed broke curfew.”

“Understood,” Gina replied.

“Beyond that,” Pamela cut-in sternly, “You are not to be sneaking off of campus, and you are not to be wandering about on your own. You will go off-campus via the front gates, and you will not be cavorting around New York City unaccompanied. Do I make myself perfectly clear?”

“Crystal,” Gina agreed, a look of relief touching her face. She could stay—with those as her only conditions, she could stay.

“5 years at Xavier’s as of a few months from now. Though, it’s not as much of my home now as it is a place to crash on and off,“ Emerald shrugged a little to the small talk more interested in what was going to happen to Gina now that Doc was with her.

It looked to Emerald like Gina was doing far better than she had originally thought and with Doc there, she was no doubt going to be healed to somewhat of a full capacity. The wolf girl had been shot way more than once and she knew the strain that it put on the older male to heal such a grievous wound.

That said, the gun shot looked awfully painful and considering that it managed to pierce through the gargoyle girls wing was something to take note of. There was no doubt in the werewolf’s mind that the younger girl would be grounded for quite some time.

Then again she shouldn’t have been wandering about in the city at night anyways. While Emerald really didn’t have any room to talk, at least she was able to take care of herself. Gina didn’t have any sort of training or anything that Emerald gone through growing up, so her wandering around in the city by herself as dangerous. Hell, Emerald didn’t even Ruby out of her sight when they were in the city even though she knew Ruby had a way of escaping trouble.

Speaking of trouble, right after Gina as healed Emerald noticed Pamela and Ms. Tipper walk back into the room with something akin to grim determination on their faces. Once they started talking the wolf girl almost could almost predict what they were going to say. She had heard a similar conversation way back when she had first started going to the institute with some other kid’s parents.

It was a common thing among those who went to Xavier’s. Parents didn’t seem to realize that despite the fact that Xavier’s was a safe place that it was still in the New York area and New York could be far from safe from those who didn’t know how to defend themselves. The good thing was that Gina got to stay with punishment dealt by Tricity of course.

“Well, at least Gina will have one hell of a story to tell to the other students,” Emerald mentioned, shrugging her shoulders a little. Sure Gina was in trouble, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t going to be practically a celebrity to the other students. Besides, Gina was well liked by what the werewolf had observed so she will most definitely get some attention from all of this. “Unless she’s not allowed to brag that she is now the indestructible gargoyle.”

The playful tone of Emerald’s voice was showing the werewolf was trying her best to light up this situation, figuring that since she was going to be here for a while that she might as well.

While Emerald knew this probably wasn’t the best time to do this, it was so damn tense in this room that she figured she should make some sort of joke. What she said could have been far worse but she managed to filter herself…a little.