Endangered [Doc & Fae]

[CirindeFae]

The sun was high beating down upon her black hair, not that it bothered her. On the contrary Charlie loved the feeling; made her want to stretch out and take a cat nap. Smiling, her slender fingers found the eagle feathers bound in her hair, those lovely feathers that reminded her of back home with her tribe. A smile graced her tanned skin at the thought of being back home. Her father would be proud of her, making her way in a world that seemed to be against her people.

As if reading her thoughts, Charlette felt strong hands grab a hold of her and throw her into an alley way. Distinctive yellow eyes went wide with fear. She didn't need to see behind her to know this was an attack against her kind. Being her kind of different put many members of her tribe in danger, a kind of danger that was extremely difficult to get out of. It was because of such terror that had caused many different tribesmen to gather and form their own community.

"Damn abomination," She heard growled over her shoulder, but further back so it wasn't the man holding her. Great, if had just been her and the human attacking her escape would be easy. Hell, even killing this attacker would be possible if they were alone but as it stood Charlie was screwed and her own death seemed inevitable.

"What do you want with me?" She whimpered out, hoping she could talk her way out of this. Although, considering they seemed to know what she was diplomacy was out of the question.

"Shut your trap!" The words issued loudly right next to her ear, causing her to flinch. "You shouldn't even exist." Hearing those hateful words made her want to growl, however that would be counterproductive. She had to show these men that she wasn't the beast they thought she was.

"Please, let me go. I don't want to regret this." She was trying so hard not to break out into tears...Or worse, fur. Just then the sound of a gun loading a round filled the alley, signalling the start of all her regrets. She shouldn't have taken the quick way to her apartment. It was too empty of a street; it was asking for this to happen. Even better, she shouldn't have left the reservation. If she hadn't have done that she wouldn't have put herself in any position for hunters to find her.

Her fear for her life started taking over causing fur started to ripple over her voluptuous figure transforming the human frame into that of a panther. The sudden contortions of her body put Charlette's attackers on the offensive. The male holding her pushed her away, lest her claws attach themselves to his arm, allowing her still forming forelegs to meet the solid ground. A long black tail started whipping about, attacking the human's legs. He jumped back just as all traces of Charlie's false hide wardrobe vanished under deceptive fur leaving just her silver and turquoise jewelry visible.

The gun went off, the sound of it firing reverberating off the walls causing her ears to fold back. The vibrations hurt her ears, but that wasn't what hurt the most. The round that went off had lodged itself in her shoulder. A growl rushed out into the alley, overlapping the gunshot. It hurt having a bullet embedded in her shoulder, but she couldn't worry about that right now. She had to get away from these men. Turning her yellow eyes to the man with the gun, she watched him to see if he intended to fire at her again. Indeed he did, she noticed, for he was aiming at her again. She released another growl and launched her full one hundred thirty pound body at him just as he tried to fire. The shot grazed her side as she forced the human to the ground. Charlie was in injured and bleeding but she still wasn't safe. Her other attacker was going for his own gun. Taking the opportunity she bolted, her near black fur mottled with her own blood which was leaving a small trail in her wake.

Charlette ran for her life. She ran for what seemed like miles thanks to the bullet that was pressed against her shoulder blade, but it didn't matter at the moment. If she could just get away from these attackers she could rest and possibly remove the bullet. So she continued to run, she ran until her vision started to go black. Unfortunately that put her right in the middle of a street. Releasing a sad sound, Charlie attempted to use her remaining senses to get her off the road and hopefully  into some bushes to hide her exotic form. Once found, she allowed herself to collapse and pass out. By the time she woke up, her side should have healed at least so long as those bullets weren't made of iridium. Fortunately for a shifter of her kind, silver was not her weakness. Unfortunately, if her hunters any where near intelligent they would know that. She could only hope they weren't as the darkness closed in and she lost consciousness, barely covered by the greenery she'd found.

[DoctorRed]

There was something just not right about the night. A tilted fedora clung to the flesh of his scalp where he'd perched it, and he glared at the world as the winds blew. Hard. Too hard for a city that was so far away from water. The detective made a face and drew in breath, sucking it in and then blew out through his mouth, laughing aloud, hoping to scare off whatever feeling had come over him. He almost dropped the bottle, and fumbled it a bit as he got it back in his fist. Tight again, as he stood out under the lights. The sounds of the city were suddenly roiling around him and he shuddered.

The detective that stood, feeling a chill in the air despite his coat was reminded abruptly that his life was long since discarded from the hand of card-players who clung to 'normal' and 'sane'. His world was a world of darkness and wonder, of terror and oddities. The Detective was officially known as an Occult Expert in town, and a Private Eye second. His work usually was centered around cases where the answers didn't seem rooted in the realm of human scope. At least not living ones.

The man was a large one, and had spent most of his life on his feet. He stood taller than average, and heavier than most too. His body was one that spent too much time on it's feet to really earn itself any real girth to speak of, but not for the working out. Too many creatures of the night spent plenty of time making him run to keep up, sprinting for long distances. He'd never taken it up in school when he was such an outcast delinquent, but now he respected the ability to run from one end of town to another. He shuddered again as the chill worked up his spine and he whirled, his coat flaring out as he sought the strings that tugged at him.

He was plagued from birth with strange senses, the power to feel things coming and happening before they came to pass. To see ghosts, and notice the disguises that the Others wore in his world. He could see a Were for what they were, or at least get a good idea at a glance. It made him handy, but it had brought pain into his life at an early age. His six sense had grown, but it was no less slippery than a ghost itself, coming and going at it's leisure, dragging him along on a whim. It had decimated his social life and family.

Green eyes glittered as they searched up and down the street as he set off at a fast trot, looking carefully lookng down allies or side streets as he made his way, his heavy boots slapping the pavement, free hand holding the hat down over his unshaven face. The bottle swung at his side, and he kept his movements curt and quick. One thing he'd learned in his time chasing the Feeling was that to ignore it was much worse than to just do as it wanted. He wasn't sure if it was something sentient or if it was just how it worked, but when you ignored it, it fucked your day up. Or your week. Or your month. Many a car had broken down after turning his back on it. He loathed that kind of mess, so he didn't even consider ignoring it most of the time.

He was a large man but it didn't keep him from stopping as he saw the men come trotting out after what had appeared as a fleeing black shadow. The Detective ground his teeth hard as he felt his energy run low, acid pouring into his veins as he moved to keep after them, before he noticed they'd stopped to see what huge oaf was making all the ruckus behind them. They turned and he squinted at them, tilting his head and dodging as the pistol came swinging at his head. He made a face and moved to dodge, blearily managing to duck under as he shifted to the side and glared up at the man before leaping free of him to one side.

"Hey, this isn't really my kind of party, so why don't we... just..." He trailed off as the guns were trained on him, crouched a few feet to the side and he made a face, grimacing a bit. So much for trying to talk his way out of hit. They cocked their guns and he laughed, in a disarming way, holding up the bottle. "Hey, Hey hey..."

"Shut up, you damned drunk." One said.

"Ah, That fucking whore of a Pantera got away," The second growled, looking about. "Drop him,"

"But he's human, boss." The first said, frowning and leering at the detective who had his free hand on his hat still sheilding his eyes. His nose had begun bleeding, though he hadn't been struck. He shook his head a bit as it spilled down his face in a torrent suddenly, and he twitched his right hand up, tossing the bottle between them.  A spark seemed to erupt in the bottle and it exploded, scattering glass and alcohol in burning splashes all about between them as the detective stumbled then sped off, ignoring the cries of protest from behind him. He'd have to deal with that later. It seemed involved, but he had other things to  deal with for now. Like this trail of strange blood. Paw prints too.

He stumbled. The bottle was a loss, but he wasn't any less drunk as he tottered about, walking patiently along and following as he could, his eyes sweeping as the Feel dragged him a long a bit, tugging at his senses and drawing him to her. He stood over the blacked-out beast and prodded it with a toe of his heavy boot at first, his palm at his hip, holding the handle of his own gun gingerly. No sense getting carried away. Another prod. Definitely not just asleep. At at least not mauling him. That was always the worst kind of giant cat in the city. The maul-y kind.

He stood over the beast for a moment, still half-prodding with  his boot before he stooped and prodded a bit with a fingertip, finding the messy wound easy enough. He wrinkled his nose at it and sighed, the clogged feeling of a bloody nose reminding him that he was bleeding a bit too. He fumbled a bit with a cell phone and dialed, calling a cab as he tugged the beast over to her side and dragged her up into his arms. What a monstrosity this thing was, it weighed about the amount a human male might. There was just no way he was going to get it to the road from even the short distance in from it that he was.

He settled against it a bit, taking off his coat and wiping at his nose with his sleeve before he tore the sleeve off, making it strips of cloth before wrapping it around the beast, working hard to do that and breathing hard. He heard noises, but they seemed a ways off when he noticed them. Probably the still-injured humans from a bit ago. He sighed. Probably no chance of them carrying the thing to the cab when it got here. What would the cabbie say? 'Oh, hey mister, that's a big cat you got there, you know I don't take pets, right?'

He laughed at the thought and shuddered, shaking his head. He blew air out of his nose, spattering a tree nearby with some left over blood that was half-congealed as he reached down and patted the panther on the head. He could tell she was a Were, but he had little experience in dealing with it. He frowned and drew out his flask, holding the open bottle under her nose, letting her get a good sniff the fiery whiskey he'd been holding on to. Maybe it would wake her up. Maybe she was thirsty. Maybe she'd maul him. Oh well, he hated paying rent anyways.

[CirindeFae]

Sharp pains and a strange smell pulled her from her state of unconsciousness only to put her in a near blind and extremely weakened state. The pressure on her shoulder and her side had her coughing, not that it sounded like a cough through feline teeth. Slowly, she began to pick up on the sounds around her like the breathing so near her ear, the voices in the distance that overlapped hurried but injured footsteps, and was that a....car? Panic began fill her, making it difficult to willingly return to her human form so she struggled against whatever had her cockeyed.

Gradually things started to come in clearer. Was it because of that strong scent wafting up? Oh wait, that must have been what really woke her. Quickly she picked up on the sickening scent of blood that was overpowering the blatant alcohol smell. She hated that smell; always made her gag. Quickly she pushed herself away from the source of that terrible smell unaware of whether or not her claws cut into it. Unfortunately her actions sent a sharp pain through her shoulder making it so she couldn't get too far and to make matters worse she couldn't lick her wounds each conflicting with the other. A whimper escaped her as she sank down to the ground, unable to move any further away from the smell of blood. Things were just piling up to make her day worse.

There's a car coming Charlie, you gotta turn back... She said trying to convince herself to turn back. After a while, it appeared as though she was too hurt to change back but as the car turned the corner, it's headlights staring down the road in her direction, her black fur started to return to her tanned flesh. Thankfully, she didn't need her vision to turn back to her human form however it would have been useful to be able to see the car or the creature that had awoken her.

A groan escaped her as she reverted to her human shape. She hurt a lot, more than she could have ever imagine. With her uninjured hand, she stabilized herself and tried to see through the fog of her blood loss. All she could see was the foggy shape of a person and the bright lights of the on coming car. Great. She couldn't really tell if the person was an enemy or not or what type of car was coming towards them. "Oh gods, Charlie, what the hell did you get yourself into?" She muttered to herself.

[DoctorRed]

The detective laughed lightly and shook his head, laying his hat down on her head as he watched her with muted amusement.  With a frown at his dumb luck, he scooped her against him and lifted her into the air coarsely, cradling her limp body as he moved them to the car. With a sigh, he deposited her in the backseat and arranged her before sliding behind her.

After a few gruff comments and a quick word, the car lurched off, moving back onto the road and taking them to the city, and away from where he'd found her. Despite some protests, he got the cab driver to leave them at his office, making his way up to the door and manging to get her into the office, dropping her down onto the couch near the window.

Situating her, he put her where he felt she wouldn't fall off, moving about the room and turning a lamp or two on, returning to her side with the case full of things for patching up wounds. He'd brought his sewing kit, too. A light palm and soft words probed tl see if she was awake as his free hand dug about for his best bullet-digging-out tools. The oversized tweezers and some alcohol, that he dumped upon the torn flesh.

After a bit of crude work and deft sewing, she had shed the bullet, desecrated his once-classy couch and been stitched. He admitted he was a better tailor than a nurse, but he wasn't really much of a tailor. To be honest, he was only a very little bit better at sewing than digging out bullets.

After a few moments admiring his work, the detective reached for his hat and then changed his mind. As an afterthought, he turned the lights down and sat down at his desk with a drink. He decided he'd earned it, good samaratin that he was. Perhaps not. Either way, he was going to have it. It wasn't really up for debate, so there wasn't that much cause to feel guilty about it. With a look at the form of the girl, he sighed, pondering it. Well, what were the chances of her turning into a panther or something and mauling him? He made a face at the thought, idle hands brushing the knife on his hip in the semi-darkness of his office.

[CirindeFae]

Charlie couldn't stay conscious, her lack of blood making her thoughts and will almost non-existent. She lasted just long enough to hear the oncoming car come to a stop before everything faded back to black.

Pain pulled her from her unconsciousness once more before the sheer agony knocked her back out. She woke several more times only to pass back out. Something was happening to cause her great pain, if only she could have stopped it she might have gained some peaceful slumber.

After a while, Charlette's golden eyes opened. She still hurt but this time the pain was significantly less and she didn't feel so sick. Thankfully her surroundings didn't smell so strongly of blood. With a soft groan, she forced herself into a seated position, the action sending pain through her abdomen. "Ugh, where am I?" She didn't actually expect an answer, at least not right away since her ears hadn't quite picked up on the faint sound of breathing. As soon as the sound registered, her gaze turned toward it and despite the dim lighting saw the figure reclined at the desk. Unfortunately, she couldn't tell if he was awake or asleep. Tempted to get up and check, Charlie checked over herself. She couldn't feel the bullets that had buried themselves in her body, but there was still pain radiating through her.

"Did you patch me up?"

[DoctorRed]

The detective regarded the once-feline panther carefully from his desk. The sizable four or five strides worth of distance suddely did not seem so very far away; dealing with unnaturalbeings made two things out of men. The Wary and the Dead.

"You're awake," he commented, mustering all of his cool emotions and fixing her with his more dangerous look. "I found you in the park, wounded, and patched you up. Dug a bullet or two out before you changed back. If you're thinking to thank me with teeth in my neck, you can figure out a way to muster up the energy to leave...Other than that, a professional curiousity makes me want to know. Know a great many things." He said, rising slowly and moving around the desk to sit on it and fold his arms as he watched her, his head tilted slightly in the shadows.

"But the root of it all... is this." He gestured at her lazily, encompassing her body. "Who are you?" He asked. "You're a panther, but you were alone. You're a were but not a wolf, like most. Are you looking to make my precious city cry, like so many others? You don't look like that, but I have scars that line of thinking won me."

[CirindeFae]

Charlie's mind was slow to take in all he was saying. She could recall the men from the park hunting her, but after that things were a blur. The sudden pain, the stench of blood, and broken sleep was all she could remember afterwards. Slowly she shifted to lay back down, the pain in her side becoming more than she wished to bear, but her golden hues never left him. She was vulnerable and unable to defend herself. If she was to be attacked, now was the best time to do so and humans were not to be trusted so easily.

"My people keep to themselves. We were once as populous as the Wolves, but they are better at appearing human. We Panthers prefer our heritage so we stand out." She was referring to the clothes she'd chosen to wear this day. "It is rare that we leave our homeland." Charlette shifted to make herself more comfortable and to check for a reopened wound. "I left to prove your kind wrong. We don't wish to harm Humans. The Panthera Pardus want to live in piece with the same normality of Humans." She didn't know if she could trust this man, but the only way to gain his was to tell him the truth. It was up to him to believe her.

Slowly she closed her eyes, silently praying he wouldn't harm her. "Besides, I have no intention to harm you. I don't like meat."

[DoctorRed]

"I'm not sure what's more troublesome, that you say you're part of a larger tribe, that you told a strange you're here alone, or that you said you don't like meat. Are you telling me you don't like a good burger? I'm almost so appalled I'd throw you out of here." he said, waving a hand as he sighed and rose. He dug around in a box and pulled out a slightly musty blanket and walked over to her.

"Not to be inhospitable, but I will prove to be very annoyed if you bite or scratch me." He warned before shaking it out and laying the blanket flat on her, spreading it over her body and smoothing it gently. "Panther or no, you're really hurt. You should rest here a while. You can stay as long as you have to, so long as you're not here to make trouble or bring it." he murmured, glancing away. "But I'll have questions, and want answers," he said, rising and turning away, moving back to his desk and leaning against it. "Like... Even though I haven't promised yet that you and I weren't enemies, what is your name?"

[CirindeFae]

Charlie opened her eyes as he started to speak. "You misunderstand. We once were a large group. There are only 2 prides of us left with a maximum of four hundred. There are some scattered throughout towns, but they have been disowned." Her voice trailed off. She was among those considered disowned, even though her father still kept in contact with her. He was the only Panthera Pardus she was in contact with and it saddened her.

"And no I do not like burgers. The smell of blood makes me sick and the sight of it..." A shudder traveled down her spine causing her pain even though she'd been covered by the blanket. She had an extreme case of hemophobia, an embarrassing detail about her.

Quickly the musty scent of the blanket rose to her nose and for some reason it relaxed her causing her eyes to slowly close. "I thank you for taking me in and taking care of my injuries." She was already starting to fall asleep. "In return I'll answer any questions you have so long as they don't violate the privacy of my tribe. Starting with my name which is Charlette." Her voice was trailing off again as sleep came at her in small gentle waves.

[DoctorRed]

The detective watched her silently, his eyes riveted to her as she spoke and got carefully still as he fixated her with his steady gaze. At least for now, she didn't seem too intent on ripping out his organs with her teeth and claws. As she drifted off, he waved a hand and decided it would be better to let it go and he could just mull this over. He sagged into his chair and fingered the half-glass of alcohol that stood on the desk while he wrinkled his nose, debating what was more trouble... Getting another or not having it? He made a gruff harrumph and leaned back, his eyes on the slow ceiling fan and he ginned idly. Well, he'd brought a girl home for the first time in a long time.

"Oh, hey mom. No, don't mind the fur, her people are purrfectly peaceful," Haha, 'purrfect.'

Ah well. He drew his hat up from the desk as well, and made his way to the tiny kitchen that his 'apartment' had in it. He wrinkled his nose at the grimy coat that hung on his chair and turned off the desk light. Standing in the kitchen he pondered what her answers had been, what she'd told him. He wondered idly if he would be better off scooping her up and depositing her wherever it was the Panthers were from. Maybe then she'd be out of trouble and be less trouble to him. Maybe. It wasn't the worst idea he'd ever had. Who were the people who shot her? Maybe it was just a mugging and nothing more. Surely. He yawned, finished a drink and made his way to the back room, a small bed and sagged into it, after hanging up his vest shirt and tie. Dawn would be here soon, and then it would bring truth. Mysteries, too. Probably less truth than mystery.

[CirindeFae]

She didn't sleep well by any means. She awoke many times after her dreams placed her back in the alley with gunshots echoing and the stench of her own blood making her queasy. After each time the nightmare repeated, Charlie took almost an hour to get back to sleep only to revisit the horror once more. Eventually Charlette gave up on sleep and sat up on the couch with a groan of repressed pain. She was exhausted and wanted more sleep, however her mind simply would not let her. So instead, she pulled the borrowed blanket about her shoulders and moved off the couch to find a place with some hint of moonlight. Hell even sunlight would have been appreciated.

After a bit of painful and slow wandering, Charlette finally found a small sliver of light in which to bathe herself. She pulled the blanket tighter around her shoulders and settled on the floor, her long black hair pooling around her as she rested her head against the wall and cast her gaze out into the light. There was something about bathing in light that was relaxing and having the option to do so right now...Well she was thankful. All she had to do now was wait for the man to find her and pelt her with questions. Silently she hoped that would be sooner than later.

[DoctorRed]

He rose in a jerk, sitting upright with a start, his hands moving quickly, sweaty palms bringing up the noisy jangle of the amulet chain and the heavy weight of his revolver. The detective had trouble sleeping long. On the one hand, work was easier since he onlu ever managed  or so hours a night. Fear had flooded him for an instant and he itched idly at the scars on his side. A demons last reward before being banished had been a dark wound on his side. Years ago it had healed, but even now he woke to find it burning his skin, fear pooling in his heart. Terror. He wiped at his face, gun laying on the bed, the cool chain of amulets a balm to his agitated state. He had chained together a set of wards years ago. A go-to for lower level problems. He probably used them more than his keys.

Rising, he felt the fear ooze from him,  a second annoyed wipe at the sweat on his forehead before rising and pocketing the amulet,holstering the gun on his slacks before showering.

Clean, and calm, he gathered himself before shaving and dressing. Once again in the suit, he strode back to the small area between the office (most of his 'apartment') and the small utility areas. He stopped a few feet from her, his brow tightened and he tilted his head. A few moments of silence before he knelt, rocking on his heels.

"What... are you doing out here?" He asked, tilting his head, frowning. "I didn't wake you, did I?"

[CirindeFae]

Despite her lack of sleep, Charlie heard everything that went on around her. She heard the man wake and heard him bathe. How she longed to do the same. Still, she never left her little sliver of light. If only for a moment, it was possible for her to forget where she was and pretend she was back home living out her days as a humble native instead of passing her days in fear while living in town. Pushing all thoughts aside that weren't of home, Charlette returned her gaze to the little bit of light she had to bathe in.

Finally footsteps approaching her tugged her from her memories and her yellow gaze slid to her rescuer. "No sir, you didn't wake me." She allowed her gaze to leave the man before she spoke again. "I woke awhile ago and wanted to sun bathe. This was all the light I could find." She added, her hand rising from its place in her lap to gently caress the wall where the light was coming in. Even after this long in the light, it still had a warm feeling. It made her happy, to a degree. Being happy after an attack like that from the alley would be very difficult to achieve but with time she just might get there.

[DoctorRed]

"If you wanted to, you could have gone outside, or... Well, there is a roof to this building, and a ladder to get up there. I could show you up there, if you were... inclined. Have you slept and rested at all?" He asked, tilting his head as he watched her with muted curiosity. I was about to make something to eat... I have some salad things in there," The Detective murmured, offering his hand to her, then frowned and shook his head, leaning down and lifting her in his arms. "How about, we eat, and then we can go upstairs and talk on the roof a bit. Does... sunlight... help you?" he asked, setting her down at the kitchen table, straightening his clothes and then her blanket in an awkward manner before he made his way to the fridge and worked on preparing some light food to share with her.

Setting down a pair of salads, he hung his coat up and sat across from her, his eyes upon her as he relaxed a bit, worrying. "I should have told you my name," he said to her, leaning back a bit. "I'm Detective R. Dolores." he told her,  settling a bit more, offering his palm to her. "A detective for the supernatural in this city." he explained. "And I hunt evil."

[CirindeFae]

Her cheeks turned a faint shade of pink. "I was afraid to go outside...One close call with Hunters is more than I would wish for." She replied, fingers finding her feathers to caress much in the way a child would a safety blanket or comfort toy. "I did get some sleep, though. It wasn't much, nor was it restful, but I got some." She added after he asked about her night. It made perfect sense to her that her night wasn't so good, considering the previous day's events. Still she wished for better.

The mention of food made her realize how weak she felt. The combination of blood loss and poor sleep had done a number on her system. Food was certainly a good idea about now so she allowed him to pick her up, even though she did not appreciate the lack of asking, and carry her to the kitchen table. "And to answer your question about sunlight, the answer is no. It's more of a comfort thing. It relaxes me."

Soon enough food was before her and her stomach gave a grumble of appreciation as she started to eat, almost forgetting about the other's presence, his chatter being the only thing keeping her from doing so. Blinking she looked up from her salad as he introduced himself and gave a sheepish smile. She'd been scarfing down the salad and had only just now noticed. Seeing his hand extended, she shifted to clasp it with her uninjured side. "Thanks Detective R. Dolores." She was half tempted to warn him of the danger of hunting evil within the city but decided against doing so having the feeling he already had an inkling of it.

[DoctorRed]

"I'm glad to have met you, so far." he told her, and nibbled at his salad and leaned back, his eyes on her as he wondered what she might say next. "I see. Well.. sorry, it was cheaper not to have a ton of windows, after all. I do live in the city, no real reason to have them, when I'm not here as much. What do you mean, Hunters?" He asked, frowning. "All of the hunters I know hunt Vampires and Weres, but I've never once heard of a Panther tribe." he told her, tilting his head to the side. "Or are they different, like a different kind of hunter?" he asked. "I understand not wanting to be out and about when you were just attacked. If you want, I can drive you to another city." he told her. "Or I can buy you a bus ride out of here. Wherever you want." he said, his eyes serious and on hers as he watched her. "No one should be afraid to be out in the light."

[CirindeFae]

Quickly she returned her attention to the meal before her. "It's quite alright. It's your preference. I'm not one to pass judgment." She took several more bites only to notice the waning amount of food. She was eating far too fast and if she didn't slow down she'd end up sick. "Hunters: average people, like yourself, who seek out and kill anything different than themselves. Your vampire hunters and were hunters are the same as my Hunters." Indeed there was little difference between those that hunted her kind and those that hunted any other form of extraordinary beings.

Finally setting her utensil down, she shifted back in the seat some allowing herself to get a bit more comfortable. "I appreciate the offer R. Dolores, but I live here in town. There is no place else for me to go. My tribe won't take me back and I have no friends." They were sad words, at least to any one else, but they fell from Charlette's lips with such ease and factuality. Her yellow eyes then focused intently on the detective's face. "You mentioned questions for me. Shall we handle those now or are you in a hurry to dispose of me?"

[DoctorRed]

I see." he nodded at the talk of hunters and watched her patiently, folding his arms and then rising and moving to get a glass of water, setting it down and offering his hand. "If you can walk, let's go to the roof . No reason to sit inside. Otherwise, I can carry you again." He told her, sipping his own water and putting his hat back on his head as he watched her with curiousity.

"You think I'm trying to get rid of you? Hah, no." he chuckled, shaking his head and watching her. "It's not often I get anyone so very attractive in my apartment, much less someone so as you," he shook his head. "No, I don't care if you stay, so long as you're not in the business of hurting anyone. Maybe that sounds silly, but it's how I feel," he said, offering a smile. "I'm in no hurry to do anything but help you, I guess. How is your side?"

[CirindeFae]

Charlie gave a slight smile when water was placed before her and almost eagerly wrapped her fingers around the cup before putting it to her lips and drinking it all at once. The liquid easily quenched her thirst and she felt several times better than when she had awoke. His words prompted her to test her feet, preferring not to be carrying again. She found herself easily holding up her own weight, but a vague sense of pain radiated from her side. Fortunately it wasn't too much to deal with. "I think I can walk on my own." She replied, pleased to be leaving the stuffy environment that was this poorly lit apartment.

"I can't blame you for trying to get rid of me. After all, who would want to care for a wounded beast?" It made perfect sense to her for him to be in a hurry to have her out of his home. She could easily be viewed as dangerous and unpredictable not that she had a habit of shifting and attacking innocents. However, his complement had her blushing a pretty shade of red. Attractive? Her? Not by a long shot. She was average among her people at least in appearance. She was less than average when it came to physical prowess but that was something else entirely. Slowly she moved from the table, her thoughts getting distracted by the male's next words. "I've explained that already. I don't hurt people if I can help it. I've got a serious case of hemophobia. And my side will be fine in a few weeks." Perhaps she was being a bit curt with him, but repeating herself wasn't something she enjoyed doing.

[DoctorRed]

The man laughed softly at her blush, shaking his head and making his way to the door and waiting for her, pulling it open and revealing a ladder in one of the closet doors. He waved his way up it , going ahead. Not that she was wearing a skirt, but it seemed appropriate. He wasn't sure he could not stare at her while she climbed, and he supposed it was better not to, anyways. He stood at the top, on the gravel on his rooftop, striding to the edge and glancing back.

"Do you really think you're a beast?" he asked, frowning and tilting his head, watching her. He frowned at that. "I've killed men with my bare hands, and hunted down monsters. It doesn't make me a beast. Teeth and claws don't make you a beast. No one who is afraid of blood like you are, could ever be a monster like I think you're talking about. I want to help you, really. But you should know, that it's not to shoo you away. You're welcome to this place as long as you need- I'm not throwing you out. You're braver than I am, to stay." he said. "Charlie... you shouldn't feel like an animal."