Kendra laughed.  "Honey, I"m always tired.  Now, tomorrow, don't make no nevermind, but if you can do it now.... I wouldn't mind the grand tour of thangs."    Honestly what else did she have to do tonight?  She didn't have a place to go back too.  She would probably stash her body some place warm and go back to sleep.  Only to project and wander around.  Either way being tired wasn't a factor.  She'd still be consciously active anyways.  Standing up Kendra flipped her hair over her shoulder and headed for the door.  She held it open for her new partner and followed her out.  

The idea of combining their powers had never occured to Kendra.  Though what a combination that would be.  They could hit up a thrift store as gal pals and when it came time to kick a little ass, Kendra could fall asleep with a trash bag full of garments in her slumbering embrace.  It was the equivalent to bringing a box of ammo for your army buddy in the foxhole.  If she could sense clothes, and Kendra had already made the assumption that she could; then she could probably sense invisible clothes.  In Kendra's mind she was already embelishing what Amelia could do.  SHe was thinking about the possibilities.  

She stopped mid stride as she suddenly turned very red in the face.  If she COULD sense clothes, could she sense that Kendra hadn't put on any underwear today?  Her cheeks were bright red, but she did her best to turn her face away from Amelia and look down the street until it subsided.  "Doing right by the world would be a hella'va thang.  Making it safer and what not."  She liked the idea of that.  "So this person, Nightmare.  Would i have to go by her codename to pull this thang off?  Or could i put in a name change form somewhere at HR and have it changed to Daydream?"  She did think that Nightmare was a pretty good name.  It had a certain badass factor too it, though it didn't really fit her in the slightest.  Kendra wanted to remain as true to herself as she could.  It was already hard to do simple things like focus on a task for long stretches.  Having to live up to some badass persona nickname seemed like a recipe to get herself or someone else hurt. 

Grand tour of thangs. Somehow, Amelia liked the way the woman spoke.

She nodded. Moved through the door.

She kept walking a few moments after Kendra stopped. Didn’t see her pause, as the woman had been behind her. Amelia only noticed it when she turned to look back at the woman after she had said something.

What was with that body language? Forcibly looking away from her, at the end of the street.

Amelia turned and stared in the same direction, she saw nothing unusual. Maybe if she moved to where Kendra was standing…?

Amelia ignored the question for the moment, as she stepped up beside Kendra, and staaared where she was staring. Long and hard, she squinted even. Then, she squinted at Kendra’s face, up close. Eyes.

“What were you staring at so intently you stopped walking and locked on a position down the street? I was worried you saw armed robbers, or terrorists, or Timmy fell down the well. Hm? Oh. And we’re telling them who you are, so you can choose whatever name you want and don’t have to pretend. Now. What was so interesting? Hm?”

She tilted her head, still kind of close. It had been a long day. She was tired. And this minor bit of confusion had really hit her. As far as she saw, she saw a New York street at around 11:00 at night. Did Kendra want a hot dog from the vendor or something?

Kendra had already felt foolish.  She felt like a total rookie when she realized that Amelia was right next to her looking off into the distance.  Like they were sharing in some secret that only them in the world could see.  "Thought I saw someone I knew, i reckon i was wrong."  Kendra lied.  There were a few people here and there but no one close enough for Kendra to have 'recognized' them.  It was a flimsy excuse but she changed the subject quickly.  "So, I'm thankin, I'll stick with Daydream.  No need changing up the brand now."  She didn't know what she was talking about.  It sounded good in her head.  Unfortunately it spilled out of her mouth like alphabet soup.  

Smiling a little Kendra walked.  She allowed the weird tension to fade away and went back to business.  "So, does this make you my partner?"  Kendra had a hopeful smile on her face.  She wasn't sure if the agents who worked there even used the buddy cop system.  It was shot in the dark, but maybe right?  Especially for someone new they should have training wheels.  Kendra thought they should have training wheels.  Kendra had been in a few fights in her time.  Robert had been surprisingly easy to take down.  She had taken royal shit kickings from some of the punks and muggers she fought back when she was scared and confused about her powers and trying to figure out how to put them to use.  

Kendra had done the vigilante thing in her troubled past.  Didn't make her a good guy.  Didn't make her a bad guy either.  She was just a guy.  Well, a girl.  She was lost and confused and had the most incredible crap luck.  Though all this was happening for a reason.  Being on the train, running into Amelia, being mistaken for an agent.  Kendra knew about these things.  This was following the plot of a sitcom.  How many late nights had Kendra astral projected only to sit in front of the tv and watch infomercials and sitcom reruns?  Too many to count.  This was the classic set up to a underdog story.  Or maybe it was a combeack story?  It definitely wasn't a horror movie.  Even though Dracula... Well, Was it a horror movie?  Oh god! Is this a horror movie?!? Kendra thought.  Okay.  She was walking in the general same direction as Amelia.  She had no idea if she was following her or if she had been talking.  Lost in her thoughts Daydream dfited in an out of the conversation.  

If this was a horror movie she was definitely the final girl.  You couldn't be offscreen death number 4 in your own life's movie could you?  She needed to talk to the casting directior.  WAIT! Daydream thought.  Shut the hell up and listen!  AMELIA IS TALKING!!!!! She snapped her eyes  back at Ameila who was in fact talking.  Probably this entire time.  It was a long rough night and the coffee was not strong.  Can't blame a girl for getting a little drowsy in the head and start thinking gibberish now could you?  "You know.  I thank if'n we were in a buddy cop movie.  You would be the bad cop.  And I would be the good cop."  She said wondering how far they were going and how long it would take them to get there.

Oh, a person she had known. Nothing super interesting. And probably a mistake. Amelia’s curiosity deflated like— a pricked balloon was a boring and overused phrase. An overripe melon? Pumpkin? No, those took time to deflate, and her interest had escaped her rapidly, like the gas that escaped the Hindenburg. Wait, no, too much. Oh well, maybe there wasn’t a phrase to describe her loss of interest, but she was also a little disappointed.

Would have been a lot cooler if it had been armed robbers or Timmy. Or if Kendra had just been covering for inexplicable embarrassment. Yeah. Or that. Kendra was talking a lot, though. Like to cover. Amelia knew how that worked, from experience.

Daydream wanted to stay Daydream. “No need,” she agreed. “Don’t even need a code name. I’ve never had one.”

They went back to walking.

After a minute, Kendra said
>> "So, does this make you my partner?" 

Amelia talked for a while, about company history or her own history or about all the partners she had once had or about the fact she had never had a partner in her life or about Kendra’s super status, or lack thereof. But none of it mattered, because Kendra was daydreaming. Gotta maintain the brand. Amelia absolutely had not gone pointedly silent once she realized Kendra was not focusing, only to start talking incessantly once she realized Kendra had tuned back in. To make it seem as if she was in fact talking.  Probably this entire time. She had not done that, noooo. Nobody could ever prove such a thing.

“… and after your probationary ‘trial’ period, an agent may be assigned to you, or you may request-“

>> "You know.  I thank if'n we were in a buddy cop movie.  You would be the bad cop.  And I would be the good cop." 

She thrust out her thumb. “Taxi!!”

My god, it actually worked. A yellow cab stopped at the curb. Amelia gestured to get in. Once situated, she gave an address and they were off. She turned back to Kendra.

She smiled. “Horse goes before cart. You can talk partners with your hiring officer. Usually, my only partner is myself.” An in-joke. She smirked at it. She could be her own good cop bad cop. It wasn’t a funny joke. Not a funny situation. She had her moments. She couldn’t always account for every moment of the day. Sometimes, she even woke to find a mug of coffee clutched in her right hand. And she was left-handed. She paled, and covered it by looking out the window.

“I would make a good bad cop though, wouldn’t I? Make peoples’ clothes feel too tight, make them tense, do something menacing. Completely out-of-character.”
She talked low. Then her voice brightened. “So tell me about you! Home life? You have somewhere you’re staying?”

The cab rolled along.

Agents needed somewhere to stay, stability of sorts. She had been a cop, and knew what lack of job often meant. Ride to assume, but the thought had struck her and she felt obligated to ask.

Were there barracks at HQ? Apartments they supplied? All good questions to ask, in general, alongside required time to unlock dental and health care coverage, vision, etc. She had never hired on. This was all going to be new territory for her.

Kendra had a few nervous habits she was guilty of.  She fiddled with the hem of her shirt.  Sometimes when she was annoyed or confused she would crinkle her nose and scrunch her face.  It was silly, but it was characteristially Daydream.  She looked out the window.  The street, the world beyond it; passed by in a multicolored blur of people and sound.  The city was loud.  There was always noise here.  It was wonder a girl could sleep at all in a city that never slept.  Though she wasn't looking she was listening.  Intentionally applying all of her powers of concentration on the task of taking in information.

Her head whirled around to meet Amelia's gaze.  Her eyes were questioning, curious.  Happiness, sadness, and fear waged war on her face.  They battled for dominate control of her emotional register.  She did have a home.  Back in Georgia.  Her parents were a couple of rich snobby blue bloods who did everything for the sake of appearance.  Including sending their daughter away to a boarding school when they discovered she was 'different'.  Home was a touchy subject.  "Haven't seen home in years, but Georgia.  Augusta actually.  Just a peach pit in a whole orchard."  Kendra liked Amelia.  She had a calming, precense on her sometimes tattered mind.  And when Kendra looked at Amelia's face, it suddenly became way easier to focus.  Usually her mind was in a million different directions.  Sleep, hunger, boredom, naivety.  These were the constant states of flux that bound her.  "Actually.  I'm uh.... Kinda between domiciles at the moment."  She blushed.  

How many times has this woman made her cheeks burn red.  She was in awe of Amelia really.  She seemed so, so.... Together.  Maintained. She had her ducks in a row and they all swam circles around Kendra's orgainized chaos.  Or her life if you want to be technical about it.  "Ya know.  I thought when you found me out i had really stepped in it.  I was like, great going girl.  You done picked a whole Boquete of oopsie daisies.  But'chur not like that.  You're a good person.  I can tell.  Got a knack for these sorta thangs.  You would definitely be good cop.  No doubt about it."  Kendra knew, or at least she had an inkling that Amelia was asking if she was homeless.  For once she didn't feel the pungent sting of embarrassment.  So she came right out and told her.  In all actuality.  Kendra probably would have spent the night on the subway hoping her body didn't get felt up as she slept.  Of course, had that happened whoever was doing to touching was going to feel some awful pain from an unseen vengeful southern bitch a few moments later.  Still didn't make it fun.  

Kendra always felt exposed.  Unprotected.  Amelia seemed to be taking her under her wing and that made Kendra feel cared about.  She was grateful to matter to someone.  It was easy to wander the streets of New York and get lost amongst the noise.  Kendra had thought about the various mutants she had met.  Some were good.  Others had been very bad.  But few had tried to be a mentor of sorts.  The cab continued to ride along.  "I don't suppose you got a couch I can sleep on a night or two?"  Kendra raised an eyebrow.  It wouldn't have hurt to ask.  It was cold out tonight and they were moving away from the subway.  Looking out the window Kendra caught glimpse of something peculiar.  A man walking up the side of a building with his hands in his pockets.  As he walked he left green glowing footprints trailing up the side.  Shattering glass sprinkled down to the street below as the wave crashed through a window on the 27th floor.

Kendra watched all this with passive interest that was growing by the moment.  The driver's GPS said they were 4 minutes from their destination.  Ugh.  A detour now?  "Hey uh.... Do we stop mutant break ins?"  Kendra asked as the driver kept on driving.  She only had a few moments to tell the man to stop here if they were going to do something about this.  "I thank that guy just broke into that building."

>> "Haven't seen home in years, but Georgia.  Augusta actually.  Just a peach pit in a whole orchard."

Amelia nodded. It was not really an answer, because it spoke of her past and not her present. Amelia let the woman get there. She did not rush.

She was between residences presently. Hmm. Blushing about it, it embarrassed her. Amelia didn’t say anything. She didn’t want to embarrass the woman more. She started talking, to fill the space.

>> "Ya know.  I thought when you found me out i had really stepped in it.  I was like, great going girl.  You done picked a whole Boquete of oopsie daisies.  But'chur not like that.  You're a good person.  I can tell.  Got a knack for these sorta thangs.  You would definitely be good cop.  No doubt about it.”

“Thank you,” Amelia said. Cool, calm, collected. That was what the woman took from her. It wasn’t her, through. She just had learned some restraint… and in her day to day life, she rarely showed it. She must have showed it that day, if someone thought she was anything other than trouble. But she supposed she could be a good cop, even though she had been fired from the actual police force for being a bad, absentee, cop… she could at least be a good person. “I try.” She added.

A voice in the back of her mind spoke, and yes, it was Yoda from Star Wars. He had a lot to say on trying.

>> "I don't suppose you got a couch I can sleep on a night or two?"

O-ohh… oh, no. If she was trying to be a good person, that was absolutely something she ought not to do. She had restraint. She could be proper. But her first thought with this woman had basically been “she’s kind of cute, I should get her number.” On no planet did that mean “offer her your couch.” It just lead to too many bad places.

“I can find you somewhere to stay,” she said. “But I don’t think it will be my couch. I think SUPER has crash rooms, similar to hospital ‘on-call’ rooms. And we can find an apartment or something, probably…” she said.

She wasn’t really sure. There were options, but the woman was an unknown and she did not want to promise too much. Her place would have been a good place, if she knew the woman more and was not being Proper. The important thing was, they would find something that worked for them, and she would have… something. If only the mansion has not been destroyed.

They did not dwell too long on the subject because they got distracted.

>>  "Hey uh.... Do we stop mutant break ins?" 

Amelia turned to look at her. “H-huh?”

>> "I thank that guy just broke into that building.”

SUPER Was not the police. They usually did not respond to burglaries. They responded to violent mutant attacks, violent mystic attacks, sometimes humans doing bad things… but generally, the police handled stuff like breaking and entering.

It was late. She did not want to take longer getting this recruit to the office so she could be recruited. Amelia did not like letting her down like this, she probably wanted adventures. But seeking adventures wholeheartedly seemed like a nightmare to her.

Plus, where was the person breaking into? Looked like a fairly high floor. She did not want to climb that many flights of stairs, and could not fly. Stopping, getting inside the building (which probably had security), finding and riding an elevator… when things like this happened, they usually happened fast. And there was also the risk that either she, or Kendra, might get injured doing an unassigned mission. And then Amelia would be in trouble.

The driver glanced back at them. Amelia told him “Keep going.”

She tuned to Kendra. “Sorry. I’ll call the police now. That’s usually their job: we respond to violent mutant attacks and that sort of thing. And—“ A scream from several stories up caught her attention, a falling body.

Before she could react, the car had slowed to a stop, and a black and yellow blur had passed above them to catch the woman and stop, feet and one hand pressed to the side of the building.

It was a figure around 6’ tall, in jeans and a black leather jacket, with some sort of weird shoes on his feet. They looked almost like boots, except they seemed at this moment to look half-finished. Like they were all toe and no sole. He (they) wore a yellow smiley face motorcycle helmet, and the woman who had just been caught had her arms wrapped around their shoulders in a death grip. She was crying.

That changed things.

Amelia put down a bunch of cash, which should cover fare and tip, then stepped out of the cab. She did not wait to see if Kendra would follow.

This was a nightmare, an absolute nightmare. This night just kept going on and on. She was bound to get in trouble for this. Super did kind of act when things got violent and they saw.

She saw the mutant hero several stories above them. They were walking down the side of the building like it was regular ground. Amelia had heard of this hero. Cheshire was his name… because he wore helmets with smiles on them. He seemed like the jumping, acrobatics type. Lots of kicks and stuff.

Amelia rushed to the building entrance, and flashed her badge, then turned and directed a hopefully following Kendra to follow. She got them an elevator.

“What floor was it again? I guess they’re violent now. Maybe we will have backup from Cheshire…”

The elevator would take them wherever Kendra said.

((oOc Cheshire is one of my characters so I’ll move him if he moves, take us where you want and set the scene please!))

Kendra was wide awake.  That wasn't the best thing for her rushing head long into danger.  But those were the facts.  She waited impatiently, nervously, for the elevator doors to open.  She didn't reply to Amelia's question she simply pressed the button for the twenty seventh floor.  As the doors closed Kendra shuffled over to the right side of the elevator.  She gave Amelia plenty of room.  She did not know how the other woman did being in close spaces with people she had just met.  Kendra had a little touch of claustrophobia.  She tried not to let it show, but she kept her eyes low and focused on her breathing.  Looking up, with her head pointed down she was watching the numbers on the elevator rise out of the top of her periphery.

That song we're no stranger to love, you know the rick roll song was playing.  Whatever this building was, they had horrendous taste in elevator music.  Kendra never understood why the couldn't play music people actually liked in these stupid death boxes.  Still, she found herself mumbling the lyrics if only to give herself something to focus on rather than the confined space.  "Never gonna give you up.  Never gonna let you down.  Never gonna turn around.  Without you!"  She would have even settled for some nice movie climax danger music.  Something to really cut the tension and build the suspense.  Kendra blinked her eyes a few times.  Damn.  That nap on the train wasn't much, but she didn't think she was going back to sleep.  Not unless she was somehow knocked unconscious.  If it were not for the fact that Kendra healed most of the time when she slept, the constant concussions could have shortened her life.  

Still, she was no doctor.  She hated going to the hospital.  She was terrified that if she ever got a cat scan it would show the brain of an 89 year old woman with dementia.  She felt that way sometimes.  LIke her grasp on sanity and reality was a dubious proposition at best.  The doors opened and Kendra stepped out first.  She had no real powers here.  She was just Kendra Dillenger.  The clumsiest gun in the west.  Kendra pulled her tranq gun out. She was hoping to end this one early.  It was late, but she wasn't tired.  She had watched Amelia through subtle glances in the elevator.  She couldn't tell how tired the woman was.  For Kendra being tired was a state of flux.

"Pretty sure this is where I saw'em come in."  Kendra say moving slowly off the elevator.  She already had her gun raised.  Like one of those buddy cops in the cheesy action movies.  She wasn't sure though.  Now that she thought about it.  She counted the windows vertically, but she had done that hastily.  "Split up and look for the asshole?" She asked turning back to the elevator to get Amelia's imput on the situation.  She was a little out of her depth, but she was eager to impress.

Ugh. There should be a law against elevator music and using this song. There should also be a law against people singing along to the song. In confined spaces, where one could not avoid them. It was almost enough to make her a bit punchy.

Amelia took a breath, and calmed herself so she could focus on the fact she was taking herself and another into a fight against an unknown person who may or may not be an enemy. It is possible the falling woman had been an accident. It is also possible it was not, which was what assumption she was operating under.

The doors finally opened once the elevator stopped, and she followed Kendra out.

Kendra drew her tranq gun.

>> "Pretty sure this is where I saw'em come in." She had her gun up like some sort of police officer. Amelia arched one eyebrow. "Split up and look for the asshole?" Kendra asked.

“Absolutely not,” Amelia replied. “Hey, can I—“

Another scream cut through the air of the apartments, and Amelia muttered a quick “Never mind” as she ran towards the sound of the voice, taking lead. Whatever she had been about to say, it did not matter any more.

They reached the place because someone was still screaming. Amelia spun to face Kendra.

“Tranq yourself and unlock the door from the other side. It’s locked and they need help.” She suggested. “How many shots are left in that anyway?”

Kendra smiled weakly.  It wouldn't have been a problem if they hadn't just had coffee together.  It was crappy coffee, but it wasn't decaf.  This would work, but it would take a little longer.  The stimulant coursing through her body would be counterproductive to the effects of Thorazine.  She shrugged.  Looking around, her hair whpped back and forth over her slender shoulders.  Kendra saw a fire stairwell, and a janitorial closet.  This place had house keeping?  Fancy place she thought.  Thinking a moment back to her last apartment and you were lucky if the sinks worked.  At least the cockrocaches were good cuddlers, and they didn't steal your blankets in the middle of the night.  

With a nod and a sigh Kendra moved over to the closet.  Of course, it was locked.  She cast a sympathetic glance at Ameila.  Reaching into her back pocket she pulled out a lockpick set.  It wasn't something she was particularly proud to show off, but she knew she had it.  Dream did like to get into mischief when Kendra's brain let that pixie take the wheel.  Unzipping it quickly she pulled her tools out.  Dream had learned how to do it, so Kendra's brain knew how it worked.  It was kind of funny how a rogue personality could teach you things while you slept.  She wondered if one day she might wake up and just 'know' how to cook a risotto, or drive stick shift.  Biting her lower lip she fumbled with the tumbler.  It was only a few moments and she turned the tools in the locking mechanism and the door clicked open.  Kendra shoved her tools into it's case and back into her pocket hastily.  

She stepped inside and closeed the door.  It smelled like rat piss in the closet.  Not so fancy place after all.  Something hit her in the face in the dark.  It was the pull string for a light.  She grabbed it.  Yanked it, and the small room was filled with soft yellow light.  The shadows bounced around her head in the tiny closet.  She looked around unimpressed.  The sense of urgency seemed to be ebbing and flowing in her like a wave.  One moment desperation to help crashed against her conscious thought.  The next moment she was rick rolling a co-worker in an elevator and thinking about her old apartment down in Queens.  She was certainly the distractable type.  She didn't even realize she had spent a whole six minutes looking at things in the closet.  She picked up a bottle of clearner.  There was a layer of dust on it.  There was a layer of dust on everything in the closet.  Kendra inspected it with mild curiosity and absentminded interest.  There was a calander on the wall that had a date circled on it.  The calander was opened to three months ago.

She was taking in details.  Not mindfully.  Really she was just daydreaming, woolgathering.  But her mind worked this way.  She had to hold onto even the smallest bits of information to remember what she was doing.  It was hard not to nod off mid sentence sometimes.  The line between awake and asleep was always very thin.  But jumping between consciousness and astral projection made her brain foggy.  So did the Thorazine tranquilizers.  Oh!  The Thorazine!  She remembered.  Kendra reached in her jacket to retrieve her gun.  Then she realized it was already in her hand.  When did i pull this out she thought for a moment.  She was still biting her lip.  Anxious energy flowed through her again and she remembered the scream.  Mostly because it cut through the silence like a banshee.  It spured her into action.  "Okay.  The apartment has employees, Maintenace, security.  But the security desk when we came in was empty.  This clean up closet's not  been touched for at least three months.  The building is in disrepair.  Mean's maintenance ain't likely around.  It's up'ta us.  The closet ain't been touched.  All these cleaning supplies ain't worth a spit of good.  But the door was still locked.  What does that mean?" Speaking to herself Kendra worked it out in her head.  The complexities of the little details.  "Building with no security, no maintenance, that's a good place for trouble and making trouble.  Probably a serious threat.  You're invisible.  Be aware of reflections, don't get sloppy."   Kendra reviewed what she knew and nodded to no one but herself in the empty little closet.  She pushed the gun against her hip and pulled the trigger. 

There was a bite, stinging pain burning in her side then numbness there.  The skin there was already turning red, though she felt something.  It would take a little longer with the coffee in her system, but it didn't take long.  A few extra minutes.  Shit!  Forgot to lock myself in!  She thought.  Kendra spun and turned.  She was wobbly on her legs and hit her head on the closet door frame.  Ok.  That hurt.  Her right knee buckled and she fell back into the wall making another thud.  She reached for the door handle and it slipped just out of her fingertips.  The sweat on her fingers caused her to loose her grasp.  Kendra slumped to the floor.  Rolling her eyes and forgetting why locking the door was so important.  Scatterbrained.  She closed her eyes.

Astral Daydream looked down.  She was laying there, legs spread; arms by their side.  Her legs were in a wide V pattern.  Her chin was resting on her chest and her red hair spilled into her face.  Daydream opened the door, locked it, and then closed it.  Could have just done that.  She reached up and pressed on the corner of her head.  It was tender there.  It stung to the touch.  She hissed at it audibly in the hallway.   Kendra moved over to the door where the screaming was and looked at it.  A crocked 6 rested in the center of the door.  She took a breath and BLINKED to the other side of the door.  The room was dark.  She reached behind her and unlocked the door.  With a gentle turn of her wrist and a light pull the door came open.  

Light from the hallway spilled into the darkness but Daydream could not be seen.  Not only because she was invisible but also because as soon as she opened the door she went off to explore the silence of the pitch black apartment.  It was suddenly very silent and Daydream got a bad feeling.  She could still feel the wobbliness in her legs.  The Thorazine didn't quite affect her as strong in astral form, her senses were dampened here.  They were covered up by a layer of sleep and the brain churning through REM cycles.  But she couldn't rely heavily on her teleport.  Not after a dart.  Her vision was a little blurry.  Her head ached and her blood pressure was rising.  Mild or not she had still shot herself with a sedative.  Her muscles felt weaker than they should and her brain was having trouble focusing on particular tasks.  She reminded herself of the facts she reviewed in the closet.  YOU ARE ON YOUR OWN. Came to mind.  She heard shuffling in the dark and wondered if it was Amelia.  She could not see anything and she didn't want to give away the element of surprise by turning on a light.

This was… far more complicated than previously thought. She needed… a closet, for which she needed a lock pick to pick locks.

People were potentially in danger, could be dying, and she had to pick locks. Couldn’t she just tranq herself, and they’d put the body by the door and just be okay with that…? Was that a big ask? Was that wrong?

And also, if she could pick locks, why hadn’t she just picked the locked door they needed to get past?

“Hrm…”

Amelia turned, and tried the locked door again. Time, essence. Nope.

A whole six minutes passed during which Amelia knocked frantically on the apartment door, tried to break it down with her shoulder, and used her cellphone to alert the police. She shared that she was with SUPER, but they needed someone to enter the apartment, and—

Cops can be real jerks, laughing like that.

She would have bothered Kendra in her closet, if she had retained the patience. What she needed, for the future, was her own set of lock picks, and laxer standards.

By the time Kendra had actually done something, Amelia had all but forgotten her. One. More! Shove!!

She rammed it with her shoulder, the very moment the door swung inwards. Amelia came tumbling through. She caught herself, rather than fall on the floor.

It was dark within the apartment, with the only light from windows and from the hall outside. It was quiet, though, which was a very bad sign. There had been screwsmung up until there wasn’t.

Cautiously, she shuffled into the next room.

There were two shapes in the dark. One was on the floor, not moving. The other was kneeling over the first. They seemed to be doing to the persons wrists, as they pressed a knee into their back. They had a rounded head shape to their form.

Amelia shouted “Freeze!”

By time Kendra had gotten inside the apartment, after all the time she wasted zoning out; the bad guy was on the floor.  She didn't know who was the bad guy in this scenario.  All she knew was that someone was screaming and now someone was on the floor being restrained.  She reached out an invisible hand and picked up a desk lamp.  She held it above her head and swung it downward with a hard blow.  It connected solidly on the would be assailants head.  BONK!  Kendra clicked on the lamp and set it down.  She didn't really hit the guy hard enough to knock him out.  When she saw the room flood with light she questioned her choices.  

She went off of sound and instinct.  Never mind the fact that she was invisible.  It was really dark in the room.  She thought she had hit the right person.  But now she wasn't so sure.  The guy who had already been on the floor looked a lot more nefarious than the one she had bonked.  "What in tarn-nations is going on here?"  She should have protested more.  She didn't like using the tranquilizer.  It made everything all fuzzy.  She couldn't remember how she had gotten to this room, or this point.  She honestly couldn't remember where she had stashed her body with the drug coursing through her system.  But it was important to hide her body before a dose of the stuff.  Is she couldn't remember where it was she couldn't protect it in case someone messed with her body.  That's why it was good policy to always hide before knocking herself out.  Repetition and routine had made simple math of her problems.  "I got him right?" 

Kendra had gone along with the plan because on some level she was still trying to impress the other agent.  She wanted to be the shinning pupil that got brought into the fold.  Maybe Amelia would get a promotion for bringing in such an excellent new agent.  She was always so self-doubting.  Unsure of her own choices.  Kendra bit her lip.  She looked over at Amelia.  "What do we do now?"  She assumed this was just another day on the job for Amelia.  She wanted to seem confident and sure, but honestly she wished she had never seen or heard the crime in progress.  She wanted a hot shower and cookie dough ice cream, and late night reruns.  She wanted a boring night.  There was way to much excitment for her first day on the job.  She didn't even officially have the job yet! Her legs felt wobbly and she sat on the edge of the bed.  The cushion compressed under and invisible weight, as she waited for the senior agent to handle the scene.

First, someone shouted Freeze. And then, someone hit him! Hit HIM. Him, who was helping. Who had helped take down the bad guy. The one who had thrown one woman out of a building, and had raced up the side to try and hurt another? Yeah, that him.

Cheshire, Nee Elliott, was pissed. This was why he wore a helmet. The blow with the lamp had connected with the motorcycle helmet he wore, the one with the big smile? And he wasn’t smiling about it, but he was conscious.

The lights came on, and Cheshire fumed.

>> "What in tarn-nations is going on here?" A female voice asked. There was one visible woman present, and she had not been the one to say that. She had been the ‘freeze’ girl. Whoever had hit him, it had not been her. Invisible? .

“Yosemite Sam called,” Cheshire drawled. “He wants his bit back.”



He could be loopy with the invisible woman. His eyes were still focused on the one who had shouted freeze. He was not even looking for someone who was not there.


>> "I got him right?" The same woman asked her friend, little miss Shouts freeze at the hero. Again, still invisible. But deferring. The freeze girl stood there, processing, and did not immediately reply.

“I think you got the right idea and the wrong person,” Cheshire sighed.

He recovered his mentality, and turned back to what he had been doing before he had been clocked. He kneeled on the bad guys back, and proceeded to zip tie his hands behind him. He tried to ignore the two women, it wasn’t as if either had a gun drawn? That he could see… And he had made no moves towards them that they could construe as threatening. Which didn’t always count for cops. But oh well.

The guy was zip tied.

>>  "What do we do now?" 

He glanced towards the woman who had not said that. She was looking to her friend for advice, but he still could not see her. Sensed the general direction of her voice, yes, but… he stared at the one seemingly calling the shots.

“I’m Cheshire.” He said. “Hello. This guy is tied up, the second woman is hiding in the next room over. I told her to get inside a closet.”

In a closet. The other woman was in the closet.

There were sounds of a few sets of feet outside the apartment. It seemed as if the police she had called were working their ways to the room. Not there yet, though.

It was Cheshire. Amelia was tired enough not to care that she had known he was around, and STILL shouted at him to freeze and acted as if he were the criminal.

Kendra was asking what to do, and Amelia just said: “Okay. Go check on the woman in the closet. Make sure that she is alright.” Left unsaid were the words ‘and he is telling the truth.’ She could be paranoid. It was a free country.

The man in the biker helmet was turned towards her, the one seemingly in charge. The one who had talked less, but been asked more. He had never really stopped watching her. Makes sense, she had shouted freeze. She could have a concealed weapon.

To Cheshire, she said: “You stay here until police arrive. They’re going to want a statement.”

The man suddenly sprang up from his position, to cling to the ceiling. No matter how much training one takes, it never really prepares you for that. He skittered towards the nearest exit, a doorway in the room that lead to a window. He was going to run away without giving a statement…

She could have drawn a gun, could have used her power to do a great many things, but— she was tired, and what was the point. She let the man go. As far as she was concerned, he was never there (until it became relevant).

He escaped moments before the police arrived. She turned to them. “The guy who tossed a woman out a window is on the ground. My invisible partner is checking on the second woman in the next room. Should be right back—“ Amelia said.

So their exciting rescue turned out a bit more mundane.  She was completely fine with that.  Kendra walked through the apartment actually turning on a few lights as she moved through the dark.  She had her hands out feeling for the switches on the wall until she found the next room.  She heard a soft muffled thudding from the closet and she opened the door.  The woman was bound and gagged but overall unhurt.  She was surprised as all hell when the door opened and there was no one there.  Only to have the gag pulled from your mouth by invisible hands.  "It's okay sugar.  You're safe."  The woman sobbed, confused, exhausted but relieved and unsure what to make of it all.  "The police are on their way."  Kendra helped her get untied.  

When she confirmed that the woman was alright she nodded and stood up.  "My partner is in the other room.  Do you want me to stay with you?"  The woman nodded vigorously.  She couldn't see Kendra but she felt safer with her there.  She thought of Kendra as her guardian angel.  "Would you feel less scared if you could see me honey?"   Kendra was trying to put conscious effort into speaking clearly.  She tried to keep her country twang out of it for once.  The woman nodded again and sobbed a little more.  Reaching into her pocket Kendra brought out a few smelling salts.  She used them and held them under her nose.

Her eyes snapped open and she found herself lying on the floor in the closet.  It wasn't the most useful power for sure.  It was dogshit on a scale of 1 to useful, but it was her own unique quirk.  It was hers to own and to work with.  She pushed herself to her feet on wobbly legs and stumbled out of the closet.  More than once she had to lean on something to keep from falling over.  She entered the apartment in her physical body only a few moments before the cops arrived.  Kendra walked right into the room with the victim and knelt before her and gave her a hug.  Nevermind what Amelia was doing.  Kendra was sure she had that covered.  Consoling people?  Being there for them? 

Kendra was good at that.  She was very sweet and loving by nature, and if it was a big part of the job then she was no longer nervous.  Connecting with people was easy, when you genuinely cared.  It was one long night.  She wasnt sure if they were still going to S.U.P.E.R. HQ or not, but after the long, long night they had...... Putting it off until the morning might not be such a bad idea.  "Im going to go check on my partner, would you like to come with me?"  The woman clung to her hand like a child going through the grocery store with her mother.  She was lost and scared and all alone in this threatning new version of reality.  A reality where she had almost died if it hadn't been for these two heros.  "What's your name?"  She asked quietly just before they got into the doorway.  

Kedra stopped and looked at her a moment.  Her face and her features were quite and serene.  She smiled lightly.  "Daydream.  My name is Daydream."  She smiled back at Kendra.  "Thank you Daydream."  She said and squeezed Kendra's hand just a little bit tighter.  As if to say thank you in a tactile way as well.  Kendra felt her heart exploding.  It had been worth it.  The whole night.  Everyone they had protected tonight had been worth it.  She was going to like this job she thought quietly.  Helping people wasn't even a question.  She was shy, and timid and small but if she could do some good wasn't it her duty to do it?

All the important things got taken care of. Victim, consoled. Statements, given. Police, handled. Super, contacted, dealt with. Cab driver waited, and was paid well for their time.

Amelia took the woman to the office where they could sort out the processes of dealing with paperwork and eventually getting them into super ranks. There would be vetting, probationary times probably, lots of stuff, but… the process had begun. They even arranged a place for Kendra to stay.

Amelia went home. She made herself tea drink. The kind that calms you down and helps you rest. She read a book, and digested the evening. Got her mind in that mood. Decompressed. It had been a long, sleepless night.
End