A/N; First of all, I just wanted to say thank you to the people that have reached out to me and had a chat! I've really enjoyed speaking to you it's been nice :)

Secondly, after this villain has been defeated that we're dealing with right now I'm gonna introduce more. This will probably become a big collage of different stories if that makes any sense at all. If you have any ideas, feedback, questions, or just want to say hi then don't be afraid to message me at all! I promise I don't mind and I don't think you're annoying for doing so :).

I'm also probably gonna change Rena and Tadashi's suits up a bit because the ideas I came up with are either confusing or a little boring to be honest. But I will make it work within the story so don't worry haha.

Anyways, enough from me. Sorry about leaving you on that cliffhanger, so I'll just let you get into the story now :D


Rena stared at the phone screen in shock, the words swimming and her heart racing. A million thoughts flashed through her head all at once; who got injured? Was her family okay? Why would someone want to rob a cafe? Was the cafe destroyed? Was Aunt Cass dead? Was Tadashi dead? Was Hiro dead?

'Rena! RENA!'

Caine waved his hand in front of her face and she realised he was talking to her. 'Wh... what did you say?'

'That's where you live, isn't it?'

She nodded, tears welling in her eyes. 'Yeah... I... Oh god...'

He lent over and wrapped his arms around her tightly. She hugged him back, embarrassed she was crying in front of him. They pulled apart and she grabbed her phone, unlocking it and calling her Aunt Cass. The phone rang, and rang, and rang. Eventually it reached Cass's voicemail and Rena dropped it onto the bed. She knew that would probably happen yet the disappointment was still crushing.

Adrenaline was coursing through her body and in an instant she made up her mind. 'Give me your hoodie.'

'What?' Caine replied, surprised at Rena's sudden change in demeanour.

'I have to get there. I can't.. I can't just sit here not knowing what's happened. Please, help me.' She pleaded.

Caine hesitated. 'Rena... no. It's dangerous, you're still here for a reason. They'll notice you're gone, you'll get in trouble-'

'I know. I know, and I don't care. They're my family Caine, the only family I have left. Please.'

He paused, thinking. Then, he pulled his hoodie off and tossed it onto the bed. 'Fine. But only because I know there will be doctors at the scene.'

Rena grinned at him despite her fear. 'Thank you, I owe you one.'

'Too right you do! What else do you need me to do?'

'I need a distraction.'

Caine blanched at her words, but before Rena could decipher the meaning of his sudden dark expression his face was full of determination and he nodded. 'Okay. I can do that.'

Rena flung her arms around him and kissed him on the cheek. 'You have no idea how much this means to me.'

Caine stood and stumbled slightly, grinning stupidly. Red was slowly creeping up his face towards his ears but he turned and left before Rena noticed. As soon as he left, the magnitude of the situation hit her properly. Here she was messing around when someone she loved could be dead.

'Hold yourself together.' She muttered to herself, trying her best to steady the tremble in her hands. She glanced at the wires hooking her up to the machines and felt her first feeling of doubt. She knew full well that she shouldn't do it; that it was dangerous. This still didn't stop her from hooking her pinkie around the thin wire and yanking. She gasped quietly as the cannula was pulled out of her hand before dropping it onto the bed and wiping away the tiny spot of blood. She pulled the others out in quick succession, her heart picking up the pace as she began to fully comprehend the magnitude of what she was doing. Rena kept her nerve though, the adrenaline was enough to keep her from backing out straight away.

It took her a few minutes to be able to stand. She hadn't technically gotten permission to be up and walking yet, and she understood why when she stood up and received a wave of dizziness so intense she had to sit back down again. After it passed, she slowly got to her feet and tried her best to ignore the black spots in her vision and the trembling across her entire body. She seized Caine's hoodie and pulled it over her head, trying her best to disguise the hospital gown. Tadashi had brought her a small bag of clothes, and after a couple of minutes of clumsily fumbling with the buttons she had pulled on a pair of jeans and stuffed her feet into a pair of slightly too small trainers. Yanking the hood down over her curls, she slipped out into the corridor and made her way to the lift, leaning on the wall for support.

Rena punched the button and slunk into the elevator, breathing a sigh of relief as she slid down the wall. Thankfully, the corridor had been empty and she made a mental note to thank Caine profusely for whatever distraction he'd created. She ran a hand through her hair and tried not to think about what scene awaited her at home.


Half an hour earlier

'Hey honey!' Cass wrapped her oldest nephew in a bone crushing hug, 'how are things? You okay? Need anything at all?'

Tadashi smiled and brushed off his blazer. 'Easy on the flour Aunt Cass! And yeah, I'm good. We're all good.'

'Sorry! I'm making cookies! Would you like to take some? Rena mentioned how much she was missing my cooking.' She tried to disguise it, but Tadashi could easily hear the shake in her voice as she said it.

'Yeah, I think she'd love that.' He said, smiling down on his Aunt's shorter frame. She nodded before returning back to her baking, humming to herself as she mixed the dry ingredients.

'Where's Hiro?' She asked with her back to him.

'He's in the front, talking to Iris about fall out boy or something.'

'Ah, I see. You going back to the hospital

later?'

'Mhmm, Fred and everyone are stopping by for pizza and stuff. They're just outside waiting. You should come, Rena missed you.'

Cass's shoulders slumped. 'I know! I will try, I miss her too. I've just been so busy! Ever since I started the two for one deal customers have almost doubled and I've got book club to organise and poetry night to reschedule and-'

'Hey.' Tadashi placed a hand on her shoulder, realising just how tired his Aunt was looking recently. 'You should give yourself a break.'

Cass softened. 'I will honey. Soon, I promise. Can you do me a favour and take that tray of cookies over there out front? Iris told me a bit ago that we needed some more and I've just been waiting for them to cool.'

'Sure!' He walked over to the tray of chocolate chip cookies and picked it up, careful not to drop any. He'd dropped an entire tray once, and definitely wasn't eager to re-live the terrible experience.

He kicked the kitchen door open and made his way carefully over to the counter. The cafe wasn't particularly busy, a few customers were dotted about but it was pretty quiet. Iris was leaning on the counter, her chin propped up with her hand as she was chatting animatedly to Hiro. The latter was sitting on a bar stool with a glass of water in hand, kicking his legs back and fourth. Honey Lemon was sat next to him, immersed in her phone. Gogo was sat on the counter. Wasabi and Fred were talking a little off to the side, Fred had a stack of pizza boxes in his arms and looked very excited about it.

'... So yeah, that's why I think folie is the superior fall out boy album. It's literally the best one! No debate at all.'

'Okay, you make a fair point.' Hiro rebutted confidently, 'but infinity on high has thnks fr th mmrs and that is an iconic tune, name one song on folie that has a song HALF as good!'

Gogo gave a cry of outrage. 'Everything you just said is wildly incorrect.'

'It's about the whole album as a whole! Besides, headfirst slide into cooperstown on a bad bet is way better! You're just lacking taste!' Iris added.

'What are we talking about?' Tadashi asked, setting the cookies down on the counter.

'Hey Tadashi!' Iris had been working at the cafe for a year, she was a little older than Tadashi but she didn't act like it. The young woman was covered head to toe in tattoos and her face was covered in a hundred different piercings. Tadashi had thought she was pretty intimidating when he first met her but after a while realised she was one of the nicest people he'd ever met. 'We're having a very important debate on the best fall out boy album. Your brother here has no taste and believes it's infinity on high, whilst I'm a firm believer in folie a duex supremacy. Gogo is correct and believes in the better album, but Fred said he liked infinity more. You're the deciding vote.'

'...errrr...' Tadashi didn't have the heart to tell her that he hadn't listened to either album for a very long time. 'I uh... which is the album with sugar we're goin' down? I like that one.'

Hiro buried his head in his hands and groaned. 'Bro, that's not... never mind.'

Gogo rolled her eyes. 'Why are we surprised? Mate, what's your favourite genre? Country or something?'

Iris laughed. 'Okay, looks like you don't get a say. Guess we'll have to ask Rena or something another time.'

Hiro nodded. 'Yeah! Rena has good taste in music.' He shot Tadashi a glare. Tadashi rolled his eyes at him.

'Whatever. Hey, there's a customer coming in.'

Iris stepped past the eldest Hamada to serve the man that had just walked in. He was tall and scary looking. He had a big scar running down his face, a huge black coat on and a massive, black bowler hat that concealed most of his face.

'What's his deal?' Hiro sniggered quietly, making sure that the man didn't overhear.

Tadashi shrugged. 'I don't know. It's weird though. It's boiling outside!'

'What you tryna say? Too hot for black?' Gogo said, 'rude.'

Hiro laughed. 'No! But... he's wearing a trench coat!'

As he said this, two other men entered the cafe. All eyes turned to stare at them as they silently made their way past the metal tables, flanking the first guy that walked in.

Iris seemed to be the only person in the building that didn't seem phased. 'Hi! Good afternoon, and welcome to The Lucky Cat Cafe. How can I help?'

Then, a lot of things happened at once.

The man at the front lifted his bowler hat slightly. Hiro craned his neck to get a glimpse and dropped his glass of water on the floor. It smashed, sending water and glass cascading all over the freshly mopped cafe floor. Honey Lemon jumped dropped her phone onto the counter. A customer yelped at the noise, someone else shouted a loud 'woah!' and Hiro jumped out of his seat, hands shaking uncontrollably.

Before Tadashi could even move, the two men whipped something out of their coats in one synchronised, fluid motion.

'Hey... hold on...' Iris gasped, stepping backwards as she caught a glimpse of what they were holding.

A customer screamed. Someone else dropped another glass. Tadashi vaulted over the counter and gripped Hiro's wrist. Gogo and Honey Lemon scrambled out the way and Tadashi moved in front, trying his best to look intimidating and protect his friends. The man in front looked over at them and grinned wickedly before drawing out an elegant looking, scarily sharp blade. 'Everyone quiet. No one move, no one speak. Do exactly as I say.'

Tadashi froze, his heart leaping in his throat. Those two men... they were holding guns. And they were looking right at him.

'What do you want?' He asked boldly. The adrenaline was making him sound a hell of a lot more confident then he actually felt. He squeezed Hiro's wrist tighter, but Hiro didn't seem to notice. He was gazing at the man with a mingled look of shock, utter despair and fear.

The man turned to stare at him and Tadashi swallowed nervously, suddenly regretting his outburst.

'What do I want? Wouldn't you like to know, boyo?' He slammed his fist into Tadashi's face, sending him staggering backwards with a cry of pain. He let go of Hiro's wrist and pulled himself up using the counter beside him, trying his best to wipe away the blood as he did so. Iris moved towards him at the same time Hiro did, which was a mistake. The man on the right aimed his gun and shot at the glass counters displaying the cookies, sending shards of glass flying everywhere. The guy on the left aimed at the lights above, shooting and plunging them into semi-darkness. Glass rained down and screams shattered the air.

Tadashi yelled and fell to the floor, clamping his hands over his ringing ears. Hiro dived beside him, cursing and pulling shards of glass out of his hands. Honey Lemon squeezed in next to Tadashi and Gogo knelt next to her. Most of the customers had managed to dive under their tables, the only people still standing were the criminals. Fred had dropped the pizzas, him and Wasabi had joined the friends in cowering behind the bar stools.

'What's going on out here?'

Cass had burst through the door at the sound of the gunshots. Tadashi felt a jolt of pure terror when he realised it was her. 'Aunt Cass NO-'

He was silenced by a knife whizzing through the air, embedding itself deep into the wood next to his head. Gingerly, he reached up to touch his earlobe and his finger came away slick with blood. Honey Lemon whimpered as she caught a sight of his new injury. The rest of them stayed silent.

'As I said before, nobody move. This is your final warning before I order my boys here to start shooting at everything and anyone.'

He turned away from them and looked at Cass. Tadashi couldn't see her from where he was crouched, nor could he see Iris hiding on the other side of the counter. He felt around for Hiro's hand and gripped it tightly, not daring to do much else for fear of getting shot.

'You okay?' He murmured, so softly that he wouldn't had been surprised if his brother had never even heard him.

'Never been better.' Hiro replied shakily, 'how we getting out of this one?'

'Open the cash register! Do it or you know what will happen!'

'I'll be honest, I've no idea.' Tadashi whispered. 'Anyone else got any ideas?'

Gogo lent over and pulled the knife out of the wood. 'No, but if any of you get shot and die I will kill you.'

'Noted.' Tadashi breathed. 'Fred, Wasabi? You guys alright?'

'My fucking pizzas!' Fred hissed angrily.

'Yeah,' Wasabi whispered back, 'cause that's our biggest problem right now!'

Yet another gunshot broke the quiet and Tadashi clamped his hands over his ears in an attempt to block out the noise as they fired a line of shots around the perimeter of the room, smashing all the windows.

'THE CASH!' One of the men yelled. Tadashi heard the sound of a fist meeting someone's teeth and cringed. 'I'm getting impatient!'

'Whatever we're doing we need to do it NOW!' Gogo hissed urgently.

'Oh do we have to?!' Honey Lemon whimpered quietly, holding her hands to her ears.

'You're forgetting we're superheroes!' Fred said, eyes shining. 'This is our time!'

'We are not superheroes!'

'No but we need to do SOMETHING!'

'Shush! Jesus christ.' Tadashi muttered nervously, fearful for his Aunt and coworker at the mercy of these people standing above them.

'I've a plan.' Hiro whispered, 'I'm gonna distract them, you guys sneak around to the other side of the counter. I'll give you a signal, jump over and tackle them.'

'No? That's the worst plan I've ever heard.'

'It's better than nothing!'

Hiro twisted his arm and was out of Tadashi's grip before he could pull him back. He felt a jolt of fear so severe he almost vomited onto the freshly mopped floor.

'Hey BONEHEADS!' Hiro yelled at the criminals. His entire body was shaking like a leaf but he stood his ground, determination and fear shining in his eyes. Slowly, they turned to face him.

Then all hell broke loose.


Rena's breathing was getting more laboured by the second, and she wasn't even out of the hospital yet.

'Excuse me dearie!' A nurse said cheerfully, brushing past Rena as she scurried past. The teen didn't dare look at anyone for fear that she'd be recognised and sent back up to her room. She was moving so quickly through the entrance hall she might as well have been running.

The automatic doors slid open and she was hit with a blast of chilly autumn air. She took a deep breath, glad to be rid of the stale hospital air she'd grown to get used to. Her head was spinning and it took a second for her to gather her thoughts. She began to walk away from the doors as nonchalantly as possible, stopping to rest on a bench by a kids play park near the back doors.

Rena took a steadying breath, being without medication was beginning to affect her already. She knew it would come but she didn't realise just how much she depended on all the drugs. Her head was throbbing nastily and she felt exhausted despite not having walked very far.

'How the fuck am I gonna get home without a car.' She muttered to herself, kicking at a stone angrily and sending it flying through the air.

She cursed loudly. Every minute she wasted was a minute someone could be dying. She pulled her phone out her pocket and quickly dialed Tadashi's number. It went straight to answerphone so she went for the person that came to mind next.

'This is Cass Hamada. Leave a message!'

Rena had to force down the urge to throw her phone as hard and as far away from her as she could. She took a deep breath and ran an unsteady hand between her curls. 'Shit.'

The panic was beginning to properly set in. She was still at the hospital, with no way of getting home to her family and no way of seeing if they were all right. Of course, she could just go back in the hospital and remain safely there and await the dreaded news. However, the idea of waiting that long made her feel sick. There was no way she could wait that long; it could be hours before she even received a shred of news. She wrapped her arms around her body and blinked back the tears that were forming. She began to walk briskly away from the hospital, a plan forming in her head. If she could get away from the hospital then they wouldn't drag her back inside. From there, she'd run to the car park, find an kind looking woman and beg her for a lift. Or she could just run to the cafe, but could she make it? Her pulse was accelerating rapidly and she'd barely even gone anywhere. Could she sneak onto a bus? Or maybe-

'Where are you GOING?!'

Rena whipped around too fast. Her head spun and she stumbled forwards. Caine ran towards her and caught her arm before she fell. 'Woah! Careful Hamada, jesus.'

'I'm fine! Just fine!' Although as she said this she had to swallow down a mouthful of vomit. 'How did you make a distraction?'

He shrugged. 'Just knocked a medical cart over and the couple of nurses around went to clean it up. Really, it wasn't that hard. Although by the time I left they had already caught onto the fact you were gone. We need to get out of here. Now.' He grabbed her wrist and began to pull her towards the multistorey.

'We?!' Rena asked, jogging alongside him despite the fact that every step was causing her pain.

'Well you're bloody mental if you think I'm leaving you in the city on your own. My car is just on the second floor; traffic is clear, we'll be there in no time.'

Rena couldn't muster the strength to ask him anything else, she simply nodded and followed him, gasping for breath. They reached the elevator and she slid down the wall, hugging her chest and desperately gulping in oxygen.

Caine looked at her in concern. 'Are you sure this is a good idea? I can just go and call you when I get there?'

'No... no.' Rena stood with some difficulty and faced him. 'They're... they're my family. I'm okay, I'm not gonna die.'

Caine didn't look convinced, but he said nothing until he was behind the driver's seat. 'You might wanna pull the hood up again, just in case.'

Rena nodded and pulled it down to cover most of her face. She pulled her phone out of her pocket and wasn't surprised about the lack of text messages displayed on the screen. She went to the news app and refreshed the article but nothing else came up, simply the same information about four injuries, officers only just arrived on the scene and that the gunmen were still armed and on the loose. Her stomach twisted.

'I know a shortcut to the street behind yours. You can get through the back alley without being seen. We'll literally be five minutes, okay?'

Rena pulled the hood back and nodded, her face set and determined. 'Okay. Are you coming?'

He shook his head. 'I can't get the car down there, and there's no way I'll get past the police tape. Just... stay safe. Don't do anything stupid and call me as soon as you can, alright?'

Rena didn't point out that she probably couldn't do anything much more stupid than what she'd already done. 'Yeah. I... alright. Why are you helping me?'

She didn't mean to blurt out this last bit, but the thought had been plaguing the back of her mind. If this were the other way around, she wasn't sure that she would go to such lengths to help Caine. Or would she?

Caine looked surprised. 'Because... because you're my friend. Maybe what you've done is dumb but you were probably gonna do it without my help anyway; the least I can do is help you be a little bit safer.'

'I.. thank you. Seriously, I can't thank you enough.'

'You're welcome. We're almost there.'

They continued in silence for a couple of minutes. Then, he turned a sharp left and pulled into the side of the street. 'We're here.'

Rena unbuckled her seatbelt, terrified yet determined. 'Seriously, I can't thank you enough.'

'Yeah well, that's what friends are for. To make sure you don't die.'

Rena laughed, but it was empty. Neither of them seemed to want to point out that there was a chance her own family could be dead. 'Well... I'll see you later I guess.'

Caine looked at her with pity. 'I hope they're all okay. Really, I do.'

'Yeah. So do I.'

She hesitated, unsure of whether or not to say anything else. Then, before she could change her mind, she threw the door open and headed towards the alleyway without a look back.