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"Text me when you get home!" Addy called out as she split off from the group of girls she had been walking with. She watched as they disappeared around a corner, their voices fading into the night. She didn't actually know them, but through the magical power of a women's restroom in a bar at 11:00 at night, they had bonded in an instant and were inseparable... Until now.

Despite the heat of the day, the temperature had dropped and she rubbed her arms as she walked down the deserted street. Crop tops and mini skirts didn't do much in the way of thermoregulation.Goose bumps rose on her flesh as she studied her surroundings a little more carefully than before. Listened a little more intently. 3:00 AM was a lonely time to be walking by yourself in Destiny City. Out of reflex, she quickly patted down her bra, feeling the reassurance of the knife tucked safely away on one side and the small can of bear mace in the other. Easier to sneak them through bar security that way.

CRASH

The noise rang out, cutting through the silence. Addy jumped back, stumbling in her heels as she caught herself on a wall. What was that?

She took a moment to reorient herself as she looked around. That sound had come from up head. Was that an alley?

Of course it was.

It was probably just a cat knocking over a trash can in the alley. She was being silly.

Addy stood straight up as if rigid posture would help fend off the fear, and she began to cross the alley. That was when the sound of a desperate whimper drifted from the darkness. <********," she muttered under her breath as she looked up at the sky in annoyance and disbelief. "Fine."

Slowly, she peeked her head around the corner into the alley. The moon was illuminating the area fairly well and that was when she saw what looked like a man in...was that military dress? He crouched over a young woman who seemed to be fighting to hang on to consciousness, but his body language didn't seem all too concerned for her.

Addy froze for a moment, not quite believing what she was seeing. She knew these things happened in Destiny, but to come across it herself? This girl couldn't become another statistic. Well. That or they both would.

Quietly, Addy slipped out of her high heels and picked one up by the heel. If she was going to do this, she wasn't going to break her ankles. The woman stepped more fully into the opening of the alley way and chucked the spiked black platform stiletto as hard as she could at the pink-haired man's back.

"HEY! Bubblegum b***h! Get away from her!"

Ako wasn't fond of babysitting. Even less so when it was the man who loudly barged his way into her new life, claiming he was her brother, except not really, and that he had been searching for her blah blah blah. He got on her nerves and riled her up in ways no one else did, and she admittedly had some memory of him, enough to remember she had been fond of him and been close with him, having spent time with him as Ako. But someone, she figured, needed to be responsible for the reckless idiot who now called himself Villiaumite. Someone needed to help keep him flying under the radar with his ******** ups until he could stand on his own properly. So there she found herself, sitting on the edge of a roof, watching in not so mild amusement as her brother found himself with a very pissed off civilian lobbing a spiked shoe at him.

Ako covered her mouth to muffle a strangled laugh as she watched the shoe connect with Villiaumite's face. Bubblegum b***h? Oh. Oh she was so using that. This girl had fire in her. Maybe Ako could use that. It was best, she figured, to watch carefully as the events would unfold, readying herself to step in should it be needed.

"The hell do you mean creeping?" Villiaumite looked genuinely disgusted at the thought. Exactly what part of him screamed 'interested in women' anyway? "She fainted and I was making sure she didnt bash her freaking head in when she fell!!" Because it was true, at least partly. He didn't mean to drain her til she passed out, and he definitely didn't want her to end up with a concussion on her way to the ground.

The shoe flew through the air and he yelped, diving out of the way this time. Gritting his teeth, he glared at the girl and moved quickly towards her, fully intending on draining her as well in retribution for all of this nonsense. "Look, you could have just walked away. This isn't going to be my fault and I'm not going to be sorry for it." As he got closer, he looked for a good opening to grab her somehow. Even just a little bit of contact should be enough, he figured.

As Villiaumite drained the girl, a smirk curved her lips. She wasn't so mouthy when her energy was being siphoned off, it seemed. He wondered, idly, if he should try and pluck that pretty little starseed out of her chest. Maybe it would make a good gift to present Fafnir with, he mused.

And then she was moving. s**t.

Villiaumite yelped as his arm was twisted, wincing as his nose was bashed. His free arm moved just in time to catch her knee with his hand to avoid an incredibly distressing injury, and he shoved her away hard, watching her stumble back. Who the hell was this girl to fight back like that? He glared at her, rolling his shoulder as he rubbed his now bleeding nose. That starseed was going to make a very nice little trinket, he decided.

Addy stumbled back as he shoved her, thankful the heels had become projectiles and not foot wear. He was strong for being so scrawny looking. Weirdly so. It made no sense. Nothing about any of this made sense. Her wrist still tickled from his vice grip. She was absurdly tired, but she and that poor girl were still in danger. There was no stopping now.

Watchful eyes picked apart his body language. The hate in his eyes made a chill run down her spine. He wasn't going to let this go.

Fine. Then she would put him down.

Addy exhaled and took on a more stable stance, raising her hands to rest near the front of her face, ready to strike. Her heart pounded in her ears, threatening to deafen the rest of the world. This wasn't like practice or a spar. She squashed the tiny voice in the back of her head that said she might not walk away from this. If she thought like that, she definitely wouldn't.

A taunting smirk curved on her lips and she motioned for him to come at her. Part bravado, part invitation.

"Come on then, Birdo. Give it your best shot."

In the blink of an eye, the man was on the ground playing human foot rest for...what was she wearing? What was even happening?

And what a nightmare it would be to handle all that hair.

She spoke, but Addy kept her stance, eyes zeroing on a forehead tattoo. No. There was depth to it that an all black tattoo couldn't achieve. It was like she was breaking. Like she was a haunted porcelain doll in an antique shop. That couldn't be right. Maybe her head was still full of static.

"I'm fine," she replied slowly, not quite trusting the woman in front of her. She seemed to be helping...for now...but her eyes looked a lot like his. They both lacked something.

"That girl though. I need to get her to the hospital. God only knows what Jigglypuff down there did to her. I found him creeping over her. If he's a budding serial killer, he's bad at it." Addy relaxed her stance just a little. A calculated show of good faith. "You hold him down and I'll get her out here...Deal?"

Addy watched carefully as the woman talked. She couldn't tell if the tone denoted familiarity or not and she certainly didn't like that she was letting him leave. He was hurting this girl. He meant to hurt her. Why would she let him escape when she seemingly so handily took him down? It made no sense to turn a dangerous man loose. It would be two against one, though, if she fought against it...and the way this woman had landed from where ever she'd come from was like a cat. Like a cartoon superhero. None of this was normal or right or even remotely okay. There had been flames licking at her feet just a moment ago. That had happened, right?

As the man scurried by, Addy focused on his face. His piercings. The shape of his eyes. The curve of his lips. She guessed at his height and made a series of mental notes. The police would want them. Once he got close, she whipped out the bear mace and held it between them, a threat and a promise. If she ever saw this man again, she might go to jail, and she wanted him to know that she was ready to fight even now after this woman saved her...Or did she save him? The jury was still out on that.

Suspicious pink eyes followed him until he was out of sight and even then, for a while after he had left, she kept her eyes on the alleyway, listening for the sound of footsteps in case he simply waited for her around the corner.

When she was satisfied he had gone, she slowly turned to the woman to study her more closely. Discerning eyes lingered on the mark on her forehead and the matching mark on her chest. Her outfit vaguely reminded her of that cosplayer she saw in the park a while ago...sort of. Similar collars. Maybe they were fans of the same series...but that didn't explain the emptiness on her forehead and chest and certainly didn't explain the flames or the superhero landing or the ease with which she yanked a full grown man to the ground.

Nothing was truly adding up and it brought her relief with a healthy dose of fear. Maybe she wasn't crazy after all. Oh no. Maybe she wasn't crazy after all.

After a long moment of silence, she offered the faintest smile to the woman and turned down the water that seemed to appear from thin air. She wasn't sure she could drink anything right now even if the water DID have any right existing from nothingness.

"I'm fine." Rattled, but not comfortable admitting it. "He was stronger than I thought he'd be but people usually like their elbows and wrists to stay in their places, so," Addy shrugged and moved toward the girl on the ground, passing by her hero as if unconcerned, but she was on high alert. "I'm more worried about her. She looks like she's still breathing."

Noticing a purse, she opened it and pulled out a wallet, glancing at the ID before replacing it exactly where she'd found it. "Her name is Mariah," she informed the other woman. "Hey, Mariah, can you hear me? We're gonna get you help, okay? Stay with us, now."

She knelt down beside the girl and gestured for the other woman to come to her other side to help lift her.

"Hey, thank you, by the way. I don't mean to seem ungrateful. This has just been...a lot...And what did you mean by energy drained?"

"Addy," the girl offered her name in return with perhaps the first real smile she'd given Ako.

After a few moments of trying to prop up Mariah, and the swift realization that her help was firmly not needed, she let Ako take the girl, inwardly relieved. Now that the adrenaline was starting to fade, she was left with nothing but exhaustion, a pit in her stomach, and the distinct urge to cry. She had to stay strong though. At least until Mariah was safe. Then she could break down. In the mean time, Ako seemed willing to chat at least. That could keep her mind off of things.

The rest of the walk went by blessedly safely with Addy pelting Ako with as many questions as she could think of. What was she? Who was she? Who was that guy? Why drain energy? Would Mariah be okay? What was a senshi? Why had her toes been on fire?

On an on until they made it to safety.