Agnes sighed as she sat back and waited for both the headmistress and Gina’s mother to return from their trip down into the cafeteria. It was obvious that there was something that needed to be discussed but Agnes had no idea what it was. Maybe Gina’s mother just wanted someone to yell at because Gina had gotten shot while she was supposed to be under the protection of the school. But she knew her sister very well, Gina never liked to be cooped up for too long. Her flying into the city was not something new, especially because it was something that she could easily do. After all, it was not as if the mansion had flying patrols or something. It was a just a huge, open space just begging for any cooped up gargoyle to want to take flight.

But this is what happens when one breaks the rules? She gets shot and nearly killed? Agnes’ heart still felt like a stone at the bottom of her belly. She felt so bad for Gina. Even though she knew her sister was going to get healed and would eventually be well enough to fly again, what mental strain would this have on her? After all, Gina has never really faced this kind of harm before. This had to be a new one for her.

How was she going to cope with the aftermath of this? She sighed as the questions just seemed too numerous for her human brain to handle. She just prayed that Gina would be okay. She loved the little gargoyle too much to let this change her forever.

But as she mused about this, making sure that Gina was okay and that Emerald was doing fine too, she blinked when she suddenly noticed the reappearance for both the Headmistress and Gina’s mother, both looking determined at Gina. Agnes blinked and held her breath. What was going on? What was it that they had discussed that they needed to step out?

>> “So? What’s the verdict? Do I get to stay?”

Agnes blinked. What? They were actually discussing that? Agnes felt a cold terror sweep over her as she glanced between her bedridden sister and her mother and the headmistress. They were discussing whether or not her sister got to stay at the mansion? While that was not such a farfetched idea, after all Gina was shot while in the care of the school, she immediately felt how truly unfair it was. She did not want her sister to go anywhere!

Thankfully that wouldn’t be the case.

Detention, punishment, restrictions, but in the end Gina would get to stay. Unable to really hide her relief at this statement, Agnes suddenly leaned down and hugged her little sister, for a moment forgetting about her injuries and squeezed her tightly. Quickly she remembered and loosened her grasp, uttering apologies as she gently patted her head, small tears springing up from the corners of her eyes. Suddenly, though, she looked stern as she nodded to the Headmistress and Pamela.

“I’m keeping you on a tight leash, young lady,” Agnes said firmly, though trying to mask her happiness at her sister staying with a stern attitude. “Literally. I’m tying a rope around your waist and attaching it to me! You’re not going anywhere without me.”

The silence that followed the verdict was stiff and uncomfortable. Gina sat there, speechless upon the stiff, hospital matress, her hands knotted in the loose-knit blanket upon her lap as she stared down at her legs. To think, that she was so close to dying last night, and yet she survived, and that she was even closer to being sent home, and yet was being permitted to stay. Such fortune she was having, in amidst all of this misfortune. Gina was just in disbelief and wordless wonder. Emerald broke the silence first.

>> “Well, at least Gina will have one hell of a story to tell to the other students. Unless she’s not allowed to brag that she is now the indestructible gargoyle.”

Gina didn't particularly feel like talking about it, so whether or not she was allowed to brag was a moot point. She didn't feel like bragging about anything in the least. In her mind, there was nothing to brag about. Gina managed a hollow laugh and a slightly-more convincing, "No kidding. Next thing I know, all the tough guys are going to be picking fights with me."

Pamela seemed disapproving, yet wisely said nothing. Maxwell smiled quietly. Before much more could be said, Agnes literally spilled onto Gina and cocooned her in another hug. The pain was a little less severe now that DocProf had healed her, but boy, did it still hurt. As horrible as Gina felt for wincing away from her own sister, she did, hissing Agnes's name warningly. Agnes realized her folly and apologized, patting her and getting all teary-eyed again. Gina sighed faintly. It was going to be like this for a while...

>> “I’m keeping you on a tight leash, young lady. Literally. I’m tying a rope around your waist and attaching it to me! You’re not going anywhere without me.”

"Agnes," Gina chuckled pleadingly, pouting faintly. It wasn't worth arguing. Agnes had every right to be protective, but... tethering Gina down with a rope? What was she, a balloon? Sure, it was nothing short of expected, but she was going to go simply stir-crazy if she was going to be under constant surveilance, and confined to the indoors whilst her shoulder healed. Talk about cruel and unusual punishment.

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

The day trickled on slowly. With all of the official business handled, the DocProf and the Headmistress returned to Xavier's, for even when a student was shot, life still went-on in the outside world. Pamela and Maxwell expressed the need to get out of the hospital for a short time, so they took Agnes along with them for some lunch. The offer had been proposed to Emerald, but the werewolf had politely delined, and insisted on the fact that someone should keep an eye on Gina while they were out. Emerald elected herself for the position, and all-but shooed the others off for lunch.

Thus, Gina and Emerald were left hanging-out in the hospital room. Nurses of various sorts would drop in occasionally, for various reasons-- once, to change the bandages, at which point they were amazed to find that Gina's collarbone was no longer broken, and her wound was in an advanced state of healing. When as ked how such a thing was possible, for the DocProf's sake, Gina quickly replied that she had some form of regenerative capacity, but it could only work so far. She would still have to stay in the hospital, the nurses insisted, in spite of the miraculous recovery. For, though she had been healed of a good portion of her wounds, Gina was still massively dehydrated from all of the blood loss, and it was better to safely determine that she was in a stable condition, than to assume that she was was only to find that she was not later.

A few hours more trickled on slowly when a phone call was recieved in the hospital room, which Emerald answered. A representative-- a detective-- from Mutant-Related Crimes was downstairs and wanted to speak with Gina about the events preceding her arrival at the hospital. If she was in the shape to see him, they would send him up to speak with her. Gina's heart hammered heavily at the notion of retelling her hellacious night, and she blanched, but she gave Emerald the go-ahead.

"Send him up."

Emerald relayed the message, a short farewell was exchanged, and then the phone was hung up.

48 hours—that was the frame of time in which Jorge Cervantes had to get moving on this case. It has always been said that the first 48 are the most important because it is during this time and recollections are the most precise, that forensic evidence it the most viable, that the criminals are still within grasp. That was why Jorge had arrived now, only hours after the girl, identified as Regina Schuyler, was taken off the critical list. He needed to question her and though he did not want to stress her out with bad memories, it needed to be done.

Standing at the front desk of the hospital, he waited until he had confirmation that she was strong enough to see him. He did not want to force her, but he was secretly praying that she would agree. That faster they got moving, the better.

“Detective?”

“Hm? What? Sorry.” he said as he took his eyes off the television screen that could be seen in the Waiting Room.

“You’ve been granted permission,” the kindly nurse said as she informed Jorge of the floor and the room number, as well as the usual rundown of observing all signs about smoking, cell phone usage, etc.

The detective nodded his thanks as he made his way to the nearest elevator. A short wait and he was already on, riding up to the gargoyle mutant’s floor. All the way up, though, he could not help his mind as it constantly fluttered back to his finding the girl. She was a bloodied mess but she was alive and she was begging for help. He was only thankful that he was there when he was. Especially because she came into contact with “The Lion Man”.

The Lion Man. He sounded suspiciously like the man who had attacked Andrea months ago and in his interview with Regina he would be able to confirm that identity. If it was the same man, and he had little doubt that it wasn’t, the detective was going to pull out all the stops. The Lion Man was a dangerous individual that needed to be brought down at all costs and he was not going to rest in bringing him to justice.

Bing!

The detective tilted his head up and saw that he had arrived on her floor. He adjusted his coat to not appear as rough and grizzly (After all the girl had been through enough of an ordeal) and stepped off the elevator. His badge gleaming from his coat pocket, he ignored the looks of passing nurses and patients who were conscious enough to notice him. He kept his eyes on door numbers until he finally arrived at the young girl. He was thankful she was alive.

He knocked gently on the door and waited to be admitted…

It wasn't uncommon for Emerald to take a sentry position, when it came to watching over a fallen friend. Quite honestly, she was still worried about Gina and the threat of the girl's attempted assassin was still very possible. For someone who knew a lot about those who were hired to kill, it was common knowledge that if an Assassin's prey got away and told the police about what was going on, the prey would be in far greater danger than they would be before. As and X-Man and an Alpha female Emerald refused to let that happen to Gina, even if she had to be there all night.

The girls didn't converse all that much when the nurses were going in and out of the room, checking on Gina's vitals and the like. She couldn't help but smirk a little when they were so surprised that the Gargoyle had healed so quickly.

Luckily though, Gina didn't mention anything to them about Doc, no doubt saving the old man from having to decline the Hospital's quick Job offer. The poor guys power was able to help so many people, but it honestly wore him out the more extensively he used it. This was why Emerald tried to avoid seeing his as much as she could, she hated wearing someone out who had been helping her so much throughout her time here in New York..

Once the officer from the MRC called up the room though, Emerald felt as if she was going to get all the answers she was going to need. She wanted to be able to protect Gina and the faster she payed this nut ball a visit, the faster Gina would be able to sleep easier.

Sure, her back was all bruised up and she had a few bandages from that Lion headed guy, but that didn't mean she couldn't help in some way. She could always leave it to the officers at the MRC but judging by what Emerald had heard on the streets from some of the criminals she "talked" to. They needed all the help they could get.

Once the knock at the door was heard, Emerald would answer it to a slightly unexpected face.

"Oh, Hey Detective Cervantes, long time no see eh," Emerald would grin sheepishly at him, her tail puffed out nervously. The last time she had really talked to the goo Detective was several months ago, apparently the protective detail he had set up on her had lost site of her and he wondered what was the matter. She had told him that she was fine and that he didn't need to worry but she had a feeling she would be seeing him again soon. "Come on in, now that you're here we have two guards."

Leading him into room, Emerald promptly shifted into her wolf form, her body itching to shift all day and she was barely able to hold it back. The massive Black Lupine with thick red fur around her head area, had a few bandages wrapped around her side, that looked a tiny bit loose while she was in wolf form but she tried her best to pay no mind to them. Once the detective reached Gina's bed, The wolf would trot over to the spot she was at before the Detective had called and sat promptly on the floor keep those blue eyes of hers locked straight ahead.

It would seem Gina was under the watch of a very determined guard wolf.

It was odd to have Emerald hang about in the way that she did, but it was also oddly comforting. Emerald was a tough girl who through of that "Don't Cross Me" vibe, and Gina was still shaken from the events of the night prior. She didn't want to be left alone, for fear that the lion-headed man would, at any moment, come charging through the door of her hospital room.

Not that he knew who she was or where she'd been taken. Gina was just paranoid to the point of having a hollowness settle in her stomach. Every time a nurse came in through the door, Gina's heart would sink, and her stomach would flounder like a fish out of water momentarily, until her gaze took a hold of their face. Then, relief would settle when she saw that it wasn't the man with the lion-face, and she'd swallow her fear in silence.

Of course, when Emerald hung up the phone and it was made known that the detective was on his way up, reality hit Gina like a sack of bricks. She would've started feeling sick to her stomach, but there wasn't much in there to get sick with, in the first place. She gathered her knees up closer to her body, and waited anxiously. To talk about it would be to acknowledge it, and to acknowledge it would mean that it truly happened. To cope with the events, Gina had been in a dissociation with the whole thing. It felt like a dream, though an awful one. Such a thing couldn't happen to her- it was her own personal fable, but Gina knew that it'd been real. There was a faint knock at the door, and Gina sat up a little straighter. Perhaps, had she not been tied down by IV's and other such things, she would have crossed the room and answered the door herself. Emerald obviously beat her to it.

>> "Oh, Hey Detective Cervantes, long time no see, eh. Come on in, now that you're here we have two guards."

So, it was a guy named Cervantes and Emerald knew him. Gina relaxed only marginally. If Emerald knew him, he was safe. But, her anxiety wasn't fully dissipated. Emerald fluidly adopted a canine form, and the enormous Emerald-wolf assumed a bedside position. Gina followed Emerald with a quizzical gaze, before turning her attention to the door.

The young gargoyle caught sight of the detective, and a glimmer of recognition flickered across her face. Gina's breath caught faintly as a confusion of expressions battled for dominance in the forefront of her mind and upon her face. A faint smile of relief, tears of both joy and fear, surprise, and God-knew-what-else. It was him, that one guy who Gina had run into on the streets, the one who'd called the ambulance for her and defended her. And he was a detective! Fancy that!

"Oh my gosh," was all that Gina said for a moment, her brain stuttering, "You. It's you. Oh my gosh," She seemed to notice that she was crying and smiling all at once, and tried to mop the tears up. Even with the ordeal that Gina had faced, she still tried to save face to some degree. But no amount of mopping seemed to do the trick, so Gina settled for trying to talk through it. She should probably explain things to Emerald, too, "Em, this is the guy that found me last night. Oh my gosh," she looked to the detective again, "-It's good to see you. I don't know how I could ever thank you enough. Thank you."

To say that Gina was overwhelmed was an understatement. She just wanted to hug the detective, to do something in return, but what could anybody do in return for having their life saved? What could you say? Gina stuck to murmured sentiments of "Oh my gosh" and other sentiments to that persuasion.

Just by the fear that had been settling within her, and her astounding lucidity, it was obvious that there were less drugs in her system than there had been hours earlier, but what could be potentially interpreted as a residual effects showed through in her emotional reaction to seeing the Detective.

The detective waited outside the door. He did not know who was in there except for the girl, Regina. If doctors were checking her, nurses, whatever, it was only politely to stand and wait for them to open the door. As he waited though, he tried to steel himself up. He did not know exactly in what shape the young mutant was going to be in. when he found her, she was half alive, rambling about a man trying to kill her, and she had lost a lot of blood. So far he had heard that she was doing well, so he hoped that would stay that way.

He sighed sadly though. She was so young. Nobody should have had to go through an experience like that at that age. But before he could delve any deeper into these thoughts, he blinked at the sound of the door opening.

He turned a friendly face to whoever was opening it and immediately caught sight of the red hair, strong physique, and in instantly remembered who this was.

“You,” he said. Not in an acquistory way, but more in way that denoted that they REALLY needed to talk. He had met her, what was her name, Emerald(?), when she was wanted for questioning about some brutal, savage deaths. It finally came down that the culprit was an old acquaintance of her’s that was trying to get her attention. Needless to say, he feared for her life and put a police detail on her. She managed to lose them though. He arched a brow as he looked at her.

>> "Oh, Hey Detective Cervantes, long time no see eh…Come on in, now that you're here we have two guards."

“Right,” he said as he walked in. They were SOOO going to talk later. But before he knew it, Emerald had shifted, becoming a massive wolf and standing guard near the bed. Well, he had to admit that the sight of her at least made him feel better. She was apparently friend with Regina and wanted to keep guard. The more the merrier.

>> "Oh my gosh…You. It's you. Oh my gosh,"[/i]

He tilted his head as he turned and spied the young woman in the hospital bed. Bandaged up, an IV dripping into her arm, Jorge felt a momentary rise in his rage. She definitely did not deserve this. But he managed to keep his expression calm and serene as he looked over to her. A small smile on his face he walked up to the side of her bed, his notepad and pen already cupped in his hand at his side.

>. "Em, this is the guy that found me last night. Oh my gosh-It's good to see you. I don't know how I could ever thank you enough. Thank you."

She looked on the verge of tears, as if she were unsure was to what she should do next. He merely smiled warmed as he grabbed a chair nearby and pulled it up to the side of her bed. Reaching over he gentle took her hand and squeezed it. There was no way that he was going to allow her to get out of abed for a hug, not after she had just been shot and nearly killed. But he would allow her to squeeze his hand if she needed it.

“No need to thank me, hunny, was my pleasure to help. I’m only glad I got there in time,” he said with a nod. Once she was done with his hand, he reached into his coat pocket and pulled out his wallet and showed her his identification. Standard procedures, and sometimes the sight of the shield put victims in her circumstances at greater ease. “As you heard, my name is Detective Jorge Cervantes. I requested to come see you as soon as you were well enough. How are you feeling?”

He listened intently for her answer. Only when she gave it did he note that she did look a lot better than she did last night. Not nearly on death’s doorstep as she was. The medical team around here apparently could work wonders.

He flashed another gentle smile because he knew it was time they touched on more…unpleasant issues.

“Regina, if I may call you that,” he said. “I know you’ve been through a horrible experience. But…if you can, I need you tell me everything you can from last night. I want to catch the person that did this to you and bring him to justice so that no one else is put through what you were. Do you think you can talk about it?”

The wolf kept guard At Gina's bed when teh good dective walked in, knowing that if anything she could be there as some sort of support for Gina. Emerald knew she sometimes wasn't the most reassuring person in the world, but she knew as a wolf, at least she knew how to comfort other wolves, that was something right?

It also helped that she felt a little more normal in her wolf form than she did her two legged counterpart. When Gina started getting choked up when the officer walked in, Emerald admitadly perked up, looking at the good officer accusing eyes. The classic "What did you do?" look, baring her teeth a little at him, fur puffing out protectively, ears flattening.

This was right around the time when Gina said that Jorge was the one that saved her and the demeanor of the wolf immiedatly changed from looking protective/growly to looking fairly neutral again. Her teeth were no longer bared and her fur was smoothed down.

Her eyes though, gave him a look, showing him that she would be watching him just in case. Emerald would give a woof of recognition to him, before laying her large wolf head on the bed, listening to what came next.

He better be easy on her with the whole questioning her thing, the girl's been through way too much tonight. Emerald thought, looking up at Gina with sympathetic blue eyes.

Very gently, the wolf nudged Gina's hand with that massive head of hers weaseling her way under it so now the hand was on top of her head, over her ears. She knew recalling the shooting would be hard for Gina, so she figured she would somehow make her feel better. Most people felt better when they pet some sort of animal and if need be Emerald could be just as reassuring if not more so as a wolf than she could be as a human.

Gina's gaze flicked to Emerald as she reacted to Gina's tearful greeting, her eyes had gone wide and she had shaken her head as she had murmured her reassurance, to which Emerald went quiet once again. Thankfully, she calmed down, and returned to quietly watching the two of them. The detective drew a chair to the bedside and took Gina's hand, squeezing it reassuringly. Gina returned his smile, though with an air of tiredness.

>> “No need to thank me, hunny, was my pleasure to help. I’m only glad I got there in time. As you heard, my name is Detective Jorge Cervantes. I requested to come see you as soon as you were well enough. How are you feeling?”

Her smile faltered faintly as the Detective politely declined the thanks, and said that he was only glad that he had turned up at the time that he had. The gargoyle nodded her head in agreement, though. Yes, she was glad that he had turned up when he had, too. He gave his name and flashed his badge, just like they did in those crime dramas on the television. Then, the topic of conversation turned towards Gina. Her stomach dropped with anticipation, yet the inquiries began with something simple enough- how was she?

All facts considering, Gina trailed mentally. She nodded again, and replied, "Good-" Okay, maybe good wasn't the right word... she'd been shot, and was only keeping her cool by virtue of some of the medicine that was floating within her system. She'd nearly gotten pulled out of school and had only been healed by virtue of the DocProf. And yet, here she was, still laying on a hospital bed, plugged into IV's. She revised this statement with a, "Better." That was much more concise.

>> “Regina, if I may call you that--”

"Please, call me Gina," Gina interjected, nerves leading her to interrupt Detective Cervantes unwittingly. She paused, dropping her hand, before offering an apologetic, "I only get called Regina when I'm in trouble." At this, the gargoyle gave a half-smile, and let the detective continue.

>> “I know you’ve been through a horrible experience. But…if you can, I need you tell me everything you can from last night. I want to catch the person that did this to you and bring him to justice so that no one else is put through what you were. Do you think you can talk about it?”

Gina nodded hesitantly. It was a necessary evil, but she couldn't help the simmering sickness that was churning in her stomach. She took a moment to breath, forcing her mind to return to the events of the night before. She'd been avoiding thinking about it throughout the entire day, and even now, she had to force herself to return to those fateful events. Perhaps, if she led into them from something less... terrifying... Gina would gain enough momentum to continue onto those less favorable events. Emerald seemed to pick up on Gina's fear, and carefully wormed her head under Gina's hand, until the gargoyle's hand was resting atop Emerald's head. As if Gina were about to give her a blessing, or something. That gave her enough courage to start talking.

"Y-yeah," she said, in response to Detective Cervantes. Really, what choice did she have? If she wanted the lion-headed man to be brought to to justice, she had no other choice than to talk about what had happened. She'd start with... how she wound-up there in the first place, "I found the garden-- Aphrodite's Garden-- on one of my midnight flights. I used to sneak off-campus at night, just to fly, and I'd find places that looked cool, and would walk around... and come back before most people got up. Aphrodite's Garden was my most recent haunt. I'd been there a couple of times before-" Gina paused, swallowing hard, "-before last night."

She paused, her mouth puckering into a frown. Gina couldn't "build momentum" to propel herself into the meat of the problem forever. eventually, she'd have to start talking about last night.

"I was going to go into the hedge maze, last night," Gina mumbled, "I had scoped out the rest of the garden over the course of two visits prior, last night being my third, but...I landed in the main courtyard over by... the gift shop and the information kiosk, because it's one of few places that isn't choked-up by trees. I turned, and stretched-" Her face paled. Though she'd been working to surpress the memories, but now that Gina was addressing them, she found that they were startling vivid, "And then, there was a sound like thunder, in the distance. I think it was the gun getting fired, because that's when... that's when the bullet hit my shoulder."

Gina shifted her gaze, which had been on her lap, to Detective Cervantes, then back to her lap again.She could feel the tears pooling up in her eyes, but God help her, she wasn't going to cry. Gina didn't even blink. She just sat there and trembled all over, and tried to swallow her sobs. It was over now, but... she just couldn't shake her fear.

"I w-went down," Gina explained, "But I don't know... how long I sat there. I looked at my shoulder, and saw that ugly, dark gash in my coat, and the blood, and... I didn't want to get shot again, so I got up and ran. I took shelter behind the information kiosk, but... the shooter shot again, twice, and I lost my nerve. I bolted and hid on the roof of the gift shoppe, instead. I was afraid that they'd shoot me if I took to the skies, and I didn't know how far I would make it, beyond that... so I figured that if I waited it out, they'd... they'd forget about me and just go away."

Gina looked at the Detective and shook her head, lips tightening against the feeling of rising sickness. Gina held her breath against it, and admitted, "It had been a couple minutes... when... that man... the lion-headed man... turned-up."

If it were possible for a girl with grey skin to drift into a deathly pallor, Gina had at the mere thought of the man, and she paused, her brown eyes drifting to Detective Cervantes for either inquiries or the encouragement to continue onward. Subconsciously, her hand began to scratch Emerald-wolf behind the ears, and it didn't dawn on her that she was petting another mutant-- Gina was freaked-out, that was the least of her problems.

Emerald was a little accusatory towards him when he first walked into the room but now she was glancing at him in indifference. Was she just that concerned about Regina? If so then the gargoyle girl could do worse in the way of bedside protectors. But once the girl had explained who he was, she began to calm and just rested her head under the patient’s hand. She was being sweet and showing that she was there for the girl. Good. Jorge normally liked to speak to victims alone so that they did not have anyone impeding their recollections, but it seemed as if in this case, Regina was going to need all the help she could get to actually talk about her experience.

This was especially true because she told him she was “better”. It was going to take a lot of healing for her to get past what she went through. Not just physical healing, but mental and spiritual as well. Gina, as she told him to refer to her, had gone through something that few people ever had to go through; and even fewer walked away from without issues. He had no doubt in his mind that she could pull through, but it was going to be hard.

She confirmed though, that she did want to talk about it. That was at least another step in the right direction. He opened his notepad up, clicked his pen and just smiled encouragingly at her.

>> "Y-yeah…I found the garden-- Aphrodite's Garden-- on one of my midnight flights. I used to sneak off-campus at night, just to fly, and I'd find places that looked cool, and would walk around... and come back before most people got up. Aphrodite's Garden was my most recent haunt. I'd been there a couple of times before--before last night."

He remembered the garden well. Not just from that night but from various other mentions of it while he was at the precinct. Apparently the place was inside the territory of one of the Falcone family members, the whole block and beyond. Yet, even though Falcone was one of the worst crime families in the city, the police could do little to touch them. But they all knew, the cops all knew exactly how brutal that family could be.

Could that somehow be connected with Gina? The idea was ludicrous because Gina was just a kid. A kid from the mansion no less, so there’s no reason for her to be involved with anything to do with them or rival families. Still though, he jotted down “Falcone” just in case…

>> "I was going to go into the hedge maze, last night, I had scoped out the rest of the garden over the course of two visits prior, last night being my third, but...I landed in the main courtyard over by... the gift shop and the information kiosk, because it's one of few places that isn't choked-up by trees. I turned, and stretched--And then, there was a sound like thunder, in the distance. I think it was the gun getting fired, because that's when... that's when the bullet hit my shoulder."[/color]

Jorge was diligent about the notes that he took. He had little experience with Aphrodite’s Garden’s layout. Just in case those, he noted Gina’s locations and listened closely. There did not seem to be any sort of fabricating going on. If Gina was telling him the truth, and he figured that she was, then where was the motive in this crime? Who would have cause to shoot her?

>> "I w-went down…But I don't know... how long I sat there. I looked at my shoulder, and saw that ugly, dark gash in my coat, and the blood, and... I didn't want to get shot again, so I got up and ran. I took shelter behind the information kiosk, but... the shooter shot again, twice, and I lost my nerve. I bolted and hid on the roof of the gift shoppe, instead. I was afraid that they'd shoot me if I took to the skies, and I didn't know how far I would make it, beyond that... so I figured that if I waited it out, they'd... they'd forget about me and just go away…It had been a couple minutes... when... that man... the lion-headed man... turned-up."[/color]

She was getting upset. He frowned a little. Not at the fact that she was getting upset but simply because of what she had to live through. He did not know who this lion-headed psycho was but he seemed pretty intent to cause Gina harm. But…was he the same man who had attacked Andrea those many months back? He knew he was on the lookout for a shape-shifting mutant, but he had no idea what the actual man looked like. He frowned at that thought.

He hoped that Gina had at least gotten some look at his face.

Reaching over, he squeezes her hand once again and just gives her a look of complete and utter sympathy. It was a horrible thing, and he wouldn’t blame her if she needed to stop, but he really hoped she could continue. Instead of voicing that, though, Jorge simply gave her hand a reassuring pat.

“Gina, if you need to, we can stop,” he said with an understanding nod. He wanted to get this guy, to stop the Lion Man. But not at the risk of mentally scarring a victim who was not ready to talk. “But you’re doing great, though. Okay?” his smile was warm and inviting. “Can you continue?”

Gina's hand went still on Emerald's head, and she paused, her unfocused eyes staring down at her lap, hesitating to speak once again, and clenching her fists against the rising tremors in her arms. Just the thought of him... of that man... that... monster... made her stomach churn. She never wanted to go outside ever again, if it meant facing the streets and the possibility of running into that man again. Detective Cervantes took her hand reassuringly, and Gina shifted her gaze as he gave it a squeeze. He patted her hand, and spoke in understanding tones.

>> “Gina, if you need to, we can stop. But you’re doing great, though. Okay? Can you continue?”

Gina nodded her head and swallowed hard, a grimace tugging at her lips.

"At first, I thought he was a security guard," Gina murmured, "Like, maybe he was investigating the gunfire, or something- I started to go back down the roof, and looked back to see where he was headed, and saw... what has to be the biggest knife I've ever seen in his hand. Like, almost as big as a sword. At that point, I figured out that he wasn't a security guard."

Gina shifted, heaving a sigh, making sure that what little food was in her stomach was going to remain there, and she closed her eyes.

"He was a big guy, heavily built, but not in a fat way- more of a bodybuilder way. Six-foot-tall, easily," Gina swallowed again, pressing her lips together, "He had long, dark hair past his shoulders, and a grim-looking face. Older. With wrinkles. But not elderly. He looked mean. Scary as sin."

She opened her eyes. That was all she had.

"He went into the kiosk, then," Gina mumbled, "And I wasn't there. He yelled, and then... there was a rustling... and... a roar. And he stalked out of the booth, and he wasn't wearing a normal head anymore, but the head of a lion. I think he knew where I was after that, because he went straight to the gift shop... and then he saw me."

Gina rubbed her head, combing back her hair with her hand.

"It got a little fuzzy after that," Gina admitted, "But I remember getting off of the roof, and running... and he was taunting me, and saying awful things, and I think I talked back... I don't remember what either of us said. I somehow... got out of the garden and found you... somehow managed to outrun him..."

Gina paused, wracking her brain.

"That's right," she recalled, smiling uneasily, "I... I hit him with a shovel. In the knee." She gave a hollow laugh, but it did nothing to hide her unease. In fact, the gesture seemed to set her stomach wobbling again, and urged the sickness into her throat. Gina shuddered. The rising sickness, the retelling of the night prior, seemed to make it seem that much more real. Gina held a hand to her mouth. She didn't want to get sick in front of Emerald and the detective, but, "Could I please have a waste basket?"

Gina looked as if she were going to be sick but she nodded that she was okay to go on. Jorge really did not want to push the young woman but he did not want to stop her either. He knew that this would have a cathartic effect on her, talking about traumatic experiences like this usually do, but she was still a victim here. He did not to force someone as young as her to relive something as horrible as this over and over again. Who knows how many times the school staff, the medical staff, and even her parents had done it.

But, he did not want to stifle her either. If she wanted to talk, he’d let her talk.

Gina continued on, retelling her tale. As she did, the detective jotted note important notes and watched the young girl carefully. The second he saw look at all on the verge, he was going to make her stop and take a rest. There was not need to push her through this. But so far she seemed to be doing well…

…until she started talking about…Him.

>> "He was a big guy, heavily built, but not in a fat way- more of a bodybuilder way. Six-foot-tall, easily, He had long, dark hair past his shoulders, and a grim-looking face. Older. With wrinkles. But not elderly. He looked mean. Scary as sin."[/color]

Jorge nodded and quickly wrote down every descriptor that Gina gave him. So far all of it seemed to match exactly with the vague description that Andrea had given him months ago. It was the same guy. The Lion-Man was the same guy who had attacked Andrea and had turned his attention onto Gina. He attacked Andrea because she stumbled across him making a kill. She was a secondary thought. Gina, on the other hand, it seemed as if she were the intended target all around.

He shook his head. He did not like any of this at all. Who would target a 15 year old flying mutant who was simply out for a night fly? It didn’t make sense.

Gina was reaching the end of her tale. The man pursued her, taunted her, yet she managed to escape. If the man were a trained killer, then it was damn lucky that Gina escaped with her life. Otherwise…well…he would have hated to imagine that scenario.

>> "That's right, I... I hit him with a shovel. In the knee."[/i]

He smirked a little. She was a feisty little firecracker. And a good thing too, otherwise she wouldn’t be alive today. The detective nodded as he jotted down his notes, description, everything. Jorge was going to comment on how well Gina did when suddenly, he looked at her and he could have sworn that she was turning green. His head tilted, he was stood, about to call the doctor, when Gina through the hand she clamped over her mouth.

>> "Could I please have a waste basket?"

Jorge was quick to act, having handled similar situations with other interviewed victims. In a matter of milliseconds, Jorge had leaned down, plucked up a small, nearby trashcan and moved next to Gina’s bed. He placed it front of her, trying to sound reassuring as he very gently and reassuringly patted her shoulder.

“Shh, it’s okay Gina. You did absolutely great,” he said with a nod. “Very proud of you.”

Like any normal guard dog, Emerald stayed quiet and let Gina and Jorge talk. She knew she wouldn’t be any help if she was in her human form. Emerald never tended to say the right things when it came to this sort of thing, so the best thing she could be right now is someone for Gina to pet and keep her comfortable as she relived this horrible night.

Emerald was all too familiar with this sort of thing, so she listened in carefully, trying to pick up any details she could. Silently, she hoped she didn’t know whoever did this to Gina, because she really didn’t want to visit any old “friends” of hers from the past. The last thing anyone needed was a trained assassin from a top secret laboratory getting loose and starting to hunt down other mutants. That wouldn’t end well at all, that’s was for sure.

As Emerald listened, she occasionally let out some sort of noise a grow, a reassuring woof, anything she could really interject without interrupting completely. It seemed to be a targeted hit from what she was hearing; no one had that sort of firepower if they didn’t have experience. It looked to be one hell of a trained killer targeted the young gargoyle and Emerald didn’t like that one bit. Not only was a potential, no a pack mate getting hurt but it was by someone who knew what they were doing.

However, if they knew what they were doing, then why didn’t they hit Gina in the head? That was the million dollar question. Any trained assassin worth their salt would want to take out the target completely, not just nick them in the wing and hope they fell to their death. That just didn’t make any sense to Emerald.

This was before she heard about who the man was and while she didn’t know him by name, she sure as hell knew him by appearance. The Lion headed man was the same man who hunted her down at the Warf, the one that called her a demon wolf. Yes, that had to be him; he was the only mutant she had ever seen that was able to turn his head into a lion like that. He was the one that had thrown her into the fork lift and had because the injuries a several days ago that still plagued her today.

Once Gina had finished her story, retelling the horrible events that traumatized her possibly for life, Emerald’s mind confirmed that the Lion man Gina spoke of and the one she encountered were one in the same, judging by his normal form’s description. The poor girl looked as if she was going to be sick and Emerald almost rushed to retrieve a waste basket if it wasn’t for the slightly quicker detective. The wolf would slide her head out from beneath Gina’s hand and shifted back into human form just in case anything got out of hand. Emerald had barfed all over the hospital bed before and it wasn’t the most pleasant of experiences.

Emerald would let out a low groan when she fully shifted to human, even if it was quick; it still hurt like a son of a gun in this condition.

“You did good Gina, do you need me to get you anything before you hurl,” Emerald asked quietly just before she turned to Detective Cervantes speaking surprisingly quietly to him. “Oh by the way, that Lion-headed guy, I think he missed any vitals on Gina was maybe because I tore a chunk of his arm off when he chased me down at the old Warf Last Saturday. After which he threw me into a forklift, just in case if you wanted to know. ”


(OOC: Tell me if there is any editing needed for this, just tell me.)

The comment about taking out the killer's knee with a shovel earned a smirk from the detective. He bore that look-- that been-there, done-that grizzled expression-- that rugged look that insinuated he might smirk at such a thing. Gina wasn't as desensitized as Detective Cervantes, though-- it was that thought that ultimately set Gina's stomach churning. A wastebasket was passed in her direction, to which Gina was about to utter thanks--

And then her body seized.

Luckily, there wasn't any food in her stomach--

Thank God for small favors.

Gina heaved, and spit little out, her arms twisting around the waste bin. If the night prior had been a your worst nightmare incarnate, this had to be somewhere in the ranks of runner-up-- throwing up after. Gina waited, arms constricting the basket in a vice grip. Detective Cervantes planted a reassuring hand on Gina's good shoulder, at which the gargoyle girl shuddered. God, please don't touch me while I'm tossing my cookies--

>> “Shh, it’s okay Gina. You did absolutely great. Very proud of you.”

Emerald stood, and quickly turned back into a human, just like that. Gina couldn't help but gawk, but her fascination was short-lived. Another wave of sickness arose, trying to empty an already void stomach, and Gina's attention was once again relegated to the bottom of the miniature trashcan. She closed her eyes against the tears that still simmered there-- you'd think that, after a while, tears would dry up, just like stomachs could be emptied.

>> “You did good Gina, do you need me to get you anything before you hurl?”

Gina did not hear what Emerald mentioned to the Detective, only the inquiry of if Gina wanted anything. Gina looked up from the garbage can, edging it away from her face when she was certain that her stomach wasn't going to send more sickness churning.

"I would love a Sprite or 7-Up, please," Gina replied, tone quivering, "I'll pay you back."

She looked toward Detective Cervantes inquiringly, pausing once more to make sure her stomach was steady before posing the question, "So I did well? Do you need me to clarify anything?"

For her stomach's sake, Gina certainly hoped not.

The detective rested back against the chair as he looked over the notes he had taken so far. It did look very much like this was the exact same person who attacked Andrea, but why? That was the thing he was having a problem with. The only thing that he could conceive of was it was a hit, but why Gina? What kind of enemies could she possibly have who would have put a hitman on her tail? That was probably the most confusing of this whole situation. Then again, whoever this Lion Man was, he seemed like an absolute nutjob so there was probably little reason behind his madness.

Judging by the look of Gina as she hugged that trashcan, this was going to be an incident that would affect her for a long time. The knowledge of such just irritated Jorge. She should have never gone through it.

>> “You did good Gina, do you need me to get you anything before you hurl,”[/color]

He blinked as Emerald suddenly shifted back into her human form before his very eyes. Though Jorge was not normally surprised by the different kinds of powers that mutants could display, he did gawk for a moment because he was not expecting it.

>> "I would love a Sprite or 7-Up, please…I'll pay you back."[/color]

Jorge turned back to his notes. Maybe he could get a police sketch artist to come and work with Gina so that he had at least had a solid face he could look at…

>> “Oh by the way, that Lion-headed guy, I think he missed any vitals on Gina was maybe because I tore a chunk of his arm off when he chased me down at the old Warf Last Saturday. After which he threw me into a forklift, just in case if you wanted to know. ”[/color]

Pause. Slowly Jorge tilted his head towards Emerald? She too ran into this guy and she didn’t report it? He wasn’t going to get mad, how could he get mad? Though it would have helped to have another eyewitness report this guy, Emerald decided to wait until now to bring it up. Well, he was definitely going to have a private discussion with her about what she knew about this guy. After all, you learn a lot when you fight someone.

He jotted down a large note to contact Emerald before he nodded to her.

“You and me are talking privately after this,” was all he said before he turned his attentions back to Gina. His facial features softened a bit as he watched her.

>> "So I did well? Do you need me to clarify anything?"[/color]

He gently shook his head.

“No, honey. You did very well,” he said as he clicked his pen and slipped his notepad into his coat pocket. “Listen, I would like very much for you to work with a sketch artist. If I can put a face to his man, it will give us an even better chance for us to catch him. But I don’t want to make you if you’re not up to it, okay? Won’t be right this minute, but maybe tonight so I can get word out about how dangerous this man is as soon as possible. How do you feel about that?”

Yep, Emerald was in trouble with the good detective, well maybe not trouble but she might as well have been in trouble. Without a word, she nodded and left the room, fishing a crumpled up dollar from her pocket as she did so.

It wasn't that she wasn't expecting to be in trouble after that, after all she did technically not report a crime and that wasn't good. Especially since she kind of committed a crime too by trespassing on private grounds and destroying private property. That Forklift would never be the same now that it has a wolf sized dent in it. That was neither here not there though,the fact that the lion headed jerk had managed to attack Gina really made Emerald angry.

As she made her way to the soda machine, she didn't realize the angry face she was making, but it was enough to scare a few people away from her. In fact, it only got worse when she tried to put her dollar in the soda machine and it ended up coming out a crumbled mess.

The same thing kept repeating in the wolf girl's head over and over again as she attempted to shove the dollar in. Even if Gina wasn't a close friend of hers, she was still a friend of Agnes' and practically the girls sister so by her getting hurt it was like that idiotic animal impersonator hurt Agnes. Not only that but he hurt an innocent as well, someone who didn't deserve to be hurt in the first place. With a low snarl, Emerald slammed her fist as hard as she could in the front of the soda machine, bursting through the thick plastic and hitting the metal inside.

With a low curse, Emerald withdrew her hand from the machine, thanking everything she had ever asked for help from that her hand wasn't broken and the fact she was alone in the hallway. Her hand did hurt like a son of a gun however, making her shake it furiously in pain. The girl could already see the formation of a bruise and the fact that her right fist was now bloody at the knuckles but she was briefly distracted by the distinctive sound of a clanking and a 7-up popping out of the machine.

Retrieving the bottle with her non-bruised hand she made her way back to Gina's room, quickly making her way back in order to avoid the inevitable, "What happened to the soda machine and why does it have a huge hole in the front" question.

Once back Emerald checked the bottle for any fizzing and opened it up carefully, letting all the carbonation that could explode out before she gave it over to Gina with her bruised hand. Not that she intended to hand it over with the hand she just rocked the crap out of a Soda Machine with, she just was sorta used to using that hand.

"Here you go, fresh from the machine and don't worry about paying me back for it." Emerald would say not wanting to admit the fact that she just annihilated the machine because she was worried about Gina and worried about the fact that the guy that did this was still out there. Emerald would sit back at the side of the bed, using a chair this time and waited for the Gargoyle girl to need her or for the Detective to ask her questions.