Elena stirred in her sleep, unbeknownst to whoever was around her that her body would attempt to engage in some form of auto defense mode whenever anything came into contact with her wounds. But she was unconscious, and therefore her abilities were extremely limited, if not totally useless at that point.

"...you were always so weak, nothing like your mother. Maybe that's why she passed away before her time, the thought of having you as a daughter--"

With a loud gasp, the young villain sat up. She winced in pain as a sharp sensation seemed to stab her side. Elena slowly came to her senses as the nightmarish voice in her head faded and she was able to take in her surroundings. Clutching the wound, she addressed the man whose presence didn't alarm her, yet it didn't help her feel any safer either.

"W-where am I?" she asked, her voice a low whisper as it was almost unrecognizable, even to her. Recent memories slowly started to flood in. The last thing she remembered was being betrayed by one of her own...but why? Her death wouldn't mean much, so what did they have to gain from it?

"Are you here to help me?"

Elena tried to stand up on her own, but such move proved itself to be a terrible mistake rather quickly. Yet when she looked down, the wound from earlier was almost completely gone. The pain though, that was a different story.

"I know who you are. I think it best you leave as soon as you're able." I say.

I stand and disappear for a moment. Since Elena passed out I moved her from the kitchen into the living room.

I return with a tray of soft foods. I set these beside you with a large jug of water and a cup.

"I would appreciate not being killed, if that's what you've got planned for me. I promise I wont tell anyone about this."

It hits me the potential this meeting offers for me as a journalist, but I ignore the temptation for now.

Off to the other side of the room is her costume, which I removed whilst she was unconscious; somehow it was the only thing not to have caught fire and torn to shreds.

"Well, you're honest, I'll give you that much," Elena said in a matter-of-fact tone as she tightened her grip on the sheet covering her body. With her free hand, she leaned forward to reach for one of the bite-sized snacks laid out on the tray. "I may not be one of the heroes in town, but that doesn't mean I go walking around without manners. You may have very well saved my life therefore it's only fair I spare yours. But don't think that you'll meet the same fate if we just so happen to cross paths again in the future, because next time you may not be so lucky."

After downing the snack, Elena reached for the empty glass to pour herself some water. She studied the man closely, wondering what had prompted him to bypass calling the cops to instead nurse her back to health. But that didn't really matter too much at the moment. She was alive and well, and soon she would be on her way.

"Mind handing me my clothes?"

I take your costume and hold it up, the fabric at once silky soft, but with a surprising resilience to being stretched. As I admire the costume there is a sudden clacking sound from the front door down the hall.

"Fuck. My neighbor!" I say, looking to the super-villain.

"He's a private detective and he hates the Night Legion. You gotta hide!"

Its evident however that, whilst superficially healed, internally there is still a great deal of damage.

We have a matter of moments before the private detective enters! How am I going to explain a naked super-villain draped in bed sheets on my couch?!

"If this is a fucking set up, you're as good as dead!" Elena threatened, her expression suddenly turning serious as she rushed up off of the couch despite the discomfort and mild pain that were present. Without so much as a warning, she snatched her clothing from her host's hands and hurried off into what appeared to be the kitchen, the white sheet dragging along behind her. If this detective person somehow found out she was there, then she would have to play it off as one of the guy's hook-ups. Hopefully he wasn't taken.

Where to hide... Elena thought to herself, going for a door yet finding out it was a small pantry. But it didn't matter, the voices behind her only meant that those two weren't going anywhere. As quietly as possible, Elena stepped inside the pantry and closed the door, suddenly finding herself engulfed in complete darkness. She hoped she wouldn't be there long. Although she wasn't claustrophobic, she wasn't a big fan of the darkness.

Was I really hiding a known criminal? This question screamed in my mind as I reached the hallway just as Phil entered my home.

His quick visits were not uncommon, whilst we weren't quite friends we did have an unspoken agreement that if either should need anything, we both have a key to the others place.

Phil was a large man, paunchy, with a head of black curly hair.

"Jake."
"Phil."
"Why didn't you call me, Jake?"
"what do you mean?"

Phil passed me briskly, entering the living room, I followed.

"I'm talking about that." Said Phil, gesturing to the huge crater in my back yard.

"Oh, well, I think it was a meteorite, I was going to call the police about it--"

"Do you have company, Jake?"

Phil gestured to the pillow on the couch.

Was the game up already?

"Well. I. Er. Well...."

Carefully listening in on the conversation, Elena knew she had to act fast. Jake...why was he such an idiot? Just letting his neighbor come inside his own home and question him?

But she didn't have time to mentally chastise Jake, not when she was on the verge of being discovered. She tucked in her costume behind some bread and cereal boxes before quietly opening the door, seeing Phil's back was to her and she was in the clear, Elena tiptoed to the other hall away from the two men before she leaned against the wall.

"Jake, darling, can you come over here, please? I can't seem to find my shoes and you don't want your favorite cousin to be late, do you? My mother would kill you."

That ought to work, she thought to herself, waiting for a response. To Phil, she was now just a relative who had stayed the night, which would explain the blanket and pillow on the couch. And if he had any matters, he would leave Jake and his "cousin" alone to figure out just where the hell her damn shoes were.