Gwen directs Lex to the roof as she relocks her door and then heads downstairs with Matt and Brooklyn behind her. They wave to Lars as they pass by his apartment door and just as she reaches the bottom of the staircase, apartment 1A's door opens. Welker stands there with a smug look on her over makeuped face another lipstick stained cigarette dangling from her lips.
"Knight, you're evicted," Welker sneers, looking like she's just won the lottery.
"Oh, really?" Gwen asks, coming to a stop at the foot of the stairs. "On what grounds?"
"Having pets," Welker smirks, taking a long drag off of her cigarette and blowing the smoke in Gwen's face. "Your lease agreement clearly states that you can't have pets."
"Funny, having a pet means ownership and the last thing in the world I would ever do is insult a gargoyle by telling him that I owned him," Gwen calmly replies and she can hear Brooklyn softly growling behind her. "They were my guests and my lease agreement says I can have up to two guests for up to three nights. If you wish to pursue this matter further, I'm sure Mr. David would be very interested in the ways you're supplementing your pay."
"Your rent's due," Welker snaps, spittle flying from her mouth.
"And you will have it on Friday, as per the lease agreement," Gwen smiles and then continues her journey out as Welker slams her door shut.
"How do you stand that woman?" Matt asks once they're outside. "And who's Mr. David?"
"I think of her as training for when I have kids someday," she replies as they start to head towards Matt's car. "Mr. David owns the building."
"So, you want to have kids someday, huh?" Matt chuckles as he casually drapes an arm over her shoulders.
"Yes, but that wasn't an invitation," she says with her eyes narrowed at him as she pushes off the arm. "How are you doing back there, Brooklyn?"
"Fine," he answers with a shrug as she looks over her shoulder at him. "Sick of walking everywhere."
"I can see that," she replies as she drops back to walk with him. "But just think about tomorrow night and all the great things you'll be able to do again."
"Thanks to you," Brooklyn replies and then tilts his head. "I'd like to know why though."
"I'm a doctor and it's what I do," she states.
"But what's in it for you?" Brooklyn inquires, his eyes narrowing a bit.
"You haven't been paying attention, have you?" she smiles. "I've been fascinated with you guys since Xanatos brought that castle over here. And when the rumors started about these strange beings roaming around in the night, I have to say my curiosity about drove me nuts. Then it was confirmed that the lot of you are real and heck, I would have paid Xanatos to meet you guys."
"You wanted to meet us?" Brooklyn asks in shock, standing up to his full height.
"Does that surprise you?" she asks.
"Yeah, it does," Brooklyn replies.
"That's a shame," she sighs sadly as they reach Matt's car.
"You've got to be kidding me," Brooklyn scoffs as Matt unlocks the doors with the remote. "There's no way we're going to all fit in there."
"I'm small, I'll sit in the back and you can have the front," Gwen states as she moves towards the car.
"But I need you to give me directions to the clinic," Matt tells her as he stops her from getting in.
"I can give directions from the back," she replies with a sly smile as she slips past him. "Besides, I've always wanted to be a backseat driver."
Before Matt can protest, she's in the car and Brooklyn is cramming himself into the front seat. With a disappointed sigh, Matt shuts the passenger door once the gargoyle's in and then heads to the other side of the car. Soon, they're on their way and with Gwen's directions they find themselves in the back alley behind the clinic a few minutes later.
"What are we doing back here?" Brooklyn asks, turning to look at the diminutive woman behind him.
"Do you want a repeat of what happened the other night?" she counters.
"Not particularly, no," he grumbles.
"Well, then, there you go," she smiles. "Now let's get out of the car and then Matt can go around the front and let them know we're here."
"When did I become the chauffer?" Matt asks as Brooklyn starts to get out.
"When you dragged me into your car," she answers as she follows the gargoyle out. "Just drive around the block, you'll see the front without any problems. When you go in, just tell the receptionist that Dr. Knight is waiting by the back door."
"Is there anything else madam would like?" Matt jokes as he puts the car into gear.
"World peace would be nice," she responds.
"Anything madam would like, madam will get," he laughs as she shuts the car door and he goes roaring away.
"Klugscheißer," she mumbles under her breath before heading towards the back of the clinic.
"What did you just say?" Lexington asks as he lands next to them.
"Probably nothing that needs repeatin'," Hudson states as he comes in for a landing as well.
"You must be Hudson," Gwen smiles up at the oldest member of the clan.
"Aye, that I would be, lass," Hudson nods as he gives the doctor the once over with his good eye.
"It's nice to meet you," she says. "Not that I'm not thrilled, but where's Goliath?"
"Goliath is keeping an eye on the other two," Hudson states as he folds his wings over his shoulders.
"Oh, right, the rising thing," she responds and then starts to head for the back door of the hospital. "Well, come on, it's not getting any warmer out here."
She walks off with Lex and Brooklyn right behind her, but Hudson watches her for a few moments and Lex turns to look at him.
"Is something wrong?" Lex asks.
"She's a curious one, she is," Hudson muses quietly.
"She is a bit weird even for a human, but she's nice," Lex assures him. "Come on."
Hudson reluctantly relents and follows the others. They stand outside for several minutes and Gwen is back to mentally kicking herself for not grabbing a sweater or something. Before she can decide whether or not to start doing jumping jacks or jogging in place to stay warm, Karen sticks her head out the back door.
"Hey, guys, come on in," the tech smiles as she holds the door open for them.
"Hi, Karen thanks," Gwen replies as she quickly does just that.
A moment later they're filing into the treatment area where Dr. Kevin Fitzgerald, Elisa and Matt are already waiting for them.
"Hey, Gwen, I hear you've been a busy little girl lately," Kevin smiles as he hands her a Styrofoam cup of coffee.
"How do people survive having a life outside of work?" she asks before taking a sip of the nectar of the gods. "It's exhausting."
"We manage somehow," he snickers before turning to the red gargoyle. "You must be Brooklyn. I'm Dr. Fitzgerald. I might be the one removing that rig off of your wing tonight."
"Might?" Brooklyn asks suspiciously.
"Well, we need to take another x-ray first," the doctor tells him. "Once we're sure everything is healed up, then we can go ahead with the operation."
"You said that we could get this thing off tonight," Brooklyn snarls, turning on Gwen.
"I said I think we can remove it," she reminds him and gets growled at in return. "Come on, you know x-rays don't hurt, you just have to hold still for a minute. Sheesh, you're acting like I'm going to leave that thing on you forever."
"But you felt it…," Brooklyn starts to argue, lifting the wing in question.
"And I didn't feel a major gap," she interrupts. "If there's a hairline fracture, I'm not going to feel it. I doubt that there is one, but it's better to be safe than sorry. Don't you agree?"
"Fine," Brooklyn grumbles. "Let's get this over with."
"I wish all of my patients were this agreeable," Kevin muses as he signals Brooklyn to follow him. "The rest of you can hang out here; we'll be back in a few minutes."
With that, Kevin and Gwen exit the room as Brooklyn trails behind them, sulking all the way.
"You certain you want to take her out on a date?" Elisa asks Matt, staring at the door that the doctors just went through.
"Yeah, why not?" he replies with a shrug. "She's cute, she's smart and she wants to have kids some day."
"Excuse me?" she inquires, her eyebrows threatening to become one with her hairline.
"She said so herself," he smirks, a mischievous glint in his eyes. "You're just mad because she yelled at you this morning."
"I'm mad because she was right," she mumbles, crossing her arms over her chest. "I saw the doctor this afternoon and he yelled at me too. In fact, I now have to get him a supply of gargoyle saliva so they can test to see if I'm allergic or not."
"You're kidding?" he laughs but lowers his voice when she hisses at him to be quiet. "What are you going to do? Hold a cup up to Goliath and tell him to spit?"
"I don't know what I'm going to do," she softly growls, eyeing the gargoyles to make sure they're not paying attention. "But just keep this to yourself for now, ok?"
"Sure thing, partner," he assures her, still trying not to snicker over the mental image of Goliath spitting into a little cup.
She gives him one last glare before turning her attention back to Hudson and Lexington. Hudson has wandered over to a cage with a Rottweiler in it and has a talon through the bars that the dog is gladly licking. Lex is following Karen around asking about all of the equipment that's used. Fortunately, she patiently explains which one is and what it does, but she doesn't talk down to him as if he's a child. A moment later, Brooklyn returns with a slight scowl on his face.
"What's the matter?" Elisa asks.
"That table is really, really cold," Brooklyn gripes. "Plus they expect me to bend over backwards and hold still. What am I, a contorturist?"
"A what?" Matt laughs.
"You know, those people that twist themselves in all sorts of odd ways," Brooklyn explains.
"I think you mean contortionist," Elisa chuckles.
"Yeah, them," Brooklyn grumbles.
Before anymore can be said, the doors burst open as a tech comes charging in with an owl wrapped in a towel. A second later Gwen and Kevin come into the room and they immediately head for the new patient. They spend a couple minutes examining the complacent animal before they give each other worried looks.
Kevin orders x-rays for the bird as another tech comes in with a couple x-rays for Gwen. Gwen and Kevin exit the area again without a word to the others waiting there. About a minute later a tech sticks his head in the treatment area and calls for the others to follow him. A short time later they're filing into the darkened examination room that they had been in only a couple nights before and there is a pair of x-rays hanging from the light box.
"Are those Brooklyn's x-rays?" Matt asks as he takes a closer look at the films.
"Yup," Gwen confirms and Matt lets out a long low whistle.
"Wow, that must have been some doozey of a cage that fell on you, Brooklyn," Matt states as he finally turns to look at the gargoyle.
"It was the approximate size and weight of the Brooklyn Bridge," Brooklyn grumbles and the others smile at his joke.
"Well, even if it was as big as a bridge, it doesn't matter now," Gwen says, a smile pulling at the corner of her mouth.
"I'm healed?" Brooklyn asks, worry and hope evident in his voice.
"You're healed," she answers, a smile stretching her lips now. "The rigging can come off and you can go home."
"Thanks, doc," Brooklyn sighs in relief.
"My pleasure," she replies and for the first time since she's met him, she actually sees Brooklyn smile.
"The OR is being prepped now," Kevin says from his spot near the door. "In a few minutes, Brooklyn, one of the techs will come and get you so you can be prepped for surgery."
"Dr. Fitzgerald?" a tech hesitantly calls as he sticks his head in the door.
"Yes, Mike, what is it?" Kevin replies.
"Here's the x-ray for the owl," Mike says as he hands over the film.
"Thanks," Kevin says as he takes the sheet of celluloid.
Kevin goes over to the light box, pulls Brooklyn's x-rays out of the clips and stuffs the new film in their place. Gwen joins him and they look at it for a few moments.
"What do you think, doctor?" Kevin asks Gwen, not bothering to look at her.
"The neck's broken," Gwen softly answers, sadness tingeing her voice.
"Yeah, that's my assessment too," Kevin sighs. "Ok, I'll go deal with the owl; you guys hang out here for a bit."
"What happened to the owl?" Lex quietly asks after Kevin leaves.
"It was hit by a Hummer," Gwen replies in disgust as she turns on the room lights. "They didn't even stop to see if it was alright. They just kept going. The driver in the car behind the Hummer brought the owl in."
"Aren't Hummers those really big cars that can hold like a dozen people?" Lex inquires, trying to keep the excitement out of his voice and not completely succeeding.
"Yeah and a bigger waste of space and resources you'll be hard pressed to find," Gwen answers, displeasure very evident in her voice. "Listen, I need to hit the bathroom. I'll be back in a bit."
"What does she have against Hummers?" Lex wonders out loud.
"She's right," Matt states. "Hummers are a menace. I'm sure the Illuminati is involved with their popularity somehow."
"Oh, please, not the Illuminati again," Elisa groans. "I'm too tired to listen to any conspiracy theories tonight, ok?"
"Fine," Matt huffs as he heads for the door. "I think I need the bathroom too."
With that, Matt marches out the room and heads down the hall. He gets about half way down the corridor before he realizes he has no idea where the bathroom is. He wanders into the treatment area just as Kevin is taking his stethoscope out of his ears and draping it back around his neck.
"Ok, that's it," Kevin sighs sadly as he looks down at the limp form of the owl. "Have animal control come and get him in the morning."
"Yes, doctor," one of techs replies as he carefully wraps the bird up and removes it from the table, carrying into another room.
"Hey, what's up?" Kevin asks, startling Matt from watching the tech.
"Oh, I was looking for the bathroom," Matt replies.
"It's down the hall to your right," Kevin instructs.
"Thanks," Matt says before heading down the hallway.
Just before he reaches his destination, the sound of someone sniffing as if they're crying comes from one of examination rooms. Matt glances through the partially opened door and is brought up short when he sees it's Gwen in there. He gently pushes the door open and she gives a little jump, startled to be found.
Her face is splotchy and her cheeks are wet with tears. He says nothing but steps into the room, shutting the door behind him and then pulls her into his arms. She doesn't fight him, but clings to his shirt and quietly cries into his chest.
"This about the owl?" he asks her some time later, when the tears have finally run dry.
"Yeah," she sighs, not bothering to look up. "It's the one thing I hate about this job."
"There was no other choice?" he inquires.
"Once the neck's broken, the only thing left to do is give the animal one last shot," she replies into his rather damp shirt.
"But when a person breaks their neck…," he starts.
"You can explain to a person why he or she is going to spend the rest of his or her life in a wheelchair," she interrupts, finally looking up at him. "How do you explain that to an animal? Besides, it was kinder to put a wild animal out of its misery than to put it through all of the medical procedures they put people through."
"I guess you're right," he replies, giving her a small smile.
Before she can make a smart ass comeback, Kevin sticks his head in the door.
"So this is where you were hiding," Kevin states, not bothering to comment on the fact that Matt still has his arms around Gwen. "They're almost done prepping Brooklyn. You care to join us?"
"No, that's ok," she replies with a small shake of her head. "You don't need me getting underfoot in there. The sooner you get the rigging off, the sooner Brooklyn can go home."
"You sure?" Kevin asks.
"Yeah, I'm sure," she answers.
"Ok then," Kevin responds as he starts to back up. "I'll see you when I come out of OR."
"Sounds good," she replies and the door shuts a second later.
"We should probably get back before the others start wondering where we got off to," she states as she starts to push away from him.
"Do we have to?" he asks, still holding her to him despite her efforts.
"Yes, we have to," she answers, a frown wrinkling her forehead.
"I suppose you're right," he sighs as he finally relinquishes his hold on her.
She heads for the door and starts to go through it only to stop and turn around.
"Thank you, for being here with me," she says quietly.
"Any time," he replies.
She gives him a shy smile and then disappears through the door. He stands there staring at the empty doorway for some time. Even with her eyes and nose red and puffy from crying, he still thinks she's cute.
Author's notes: My sincerest apologies, dear readers. A combination of writer's block and the general insanity that comes from having the kids out of school for the summer was putting all of my stories on hold. But I'm back and I'm hoping to do better, but if not, please forgive me and keep in mind that if I'm not writing it's because my kids have finally driven me insane. Please make the muse happy and leave a review.
PS - This would have been up Thursday morning if the site didn't feel like frustrating the dickens out of me.