Author's Note: City of Heroes still belongs to Paragon Studios.

Catherine carefully shifted her groceries to her other arm as she fished the keys to her apartment out of her pants pocket. As she struggled to fit the right key into the old lock the door two apartments down creaked open and a blonde poked her head out. "Hey there neighbor! Need some help?"

Catherine smiled and handed the fabric bag over, then turned back to the door and its recalcitrant lock. "Thanks. You think by now I'd be able to figure this out."

The other woman smiled in return. "Let me try. There's a trick to these old doors." She set Catherine's groceries on the floor at her feet and held out her hand.

Catherine stepped aside and handed over the key. "Go ahead."

"All you need to do," the blonde said, "is lean against the door like this, and turn the key like this, and voila. The door unlocks. It's too bad the landlord won't just replace them, but I guess beggars can't be choosers."

"Thanks, I really appreciate it. I would have been here all day messing with that lock otherwise." She paused as something occurred to her. "Y'know, I don't think we've met. I'm Catherine."

"Noel. How long have you been living here? I don't think I've seen you around."

"Only a few weeks."

"Oh really? Where were you before that?"

"I... uh, not from around here."

Noel raised an eyebrow, but Catherine's tone of voice and the look on her face stopped her from prying any farther. "So. Where do you want these?" she asked, picking up Catherine's groceries.

"Thanks, but I'll take them."

Noel looked hurt for a moment, but rallied magnificently. "Hey, some friends and I are going out bowling tonight. You should come."

Catherine hesitated. Since she'd arrived in Paragon City she'd kept to herself, but Harrison's advice to try to live as normal a life as possible lurked in the back of her mind. Also in the back of her mind though was the hope that Ophelia and Harrison would one day knock on her apartment door and tell her she could go home. There wasn't any point in getting comfortable only to leave it all behind.

It slowly dawned on her that she'd hesitated too long, and was now getting an odd look from Noel. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to intrude. I just thought I'd offer."

"No! No, I'm the one who should be sorry. My mind wandered for a bit there."

"So... are we on for tonight? I mean, if you have other things planned..."

Catherine smiled. "We're on."

"Great! Six o'clock, right here."

The two parted ways and Catherine backed into her apartment. She set her groceries down on the rickety card table that served as the kitchen table, surveyed the living room with dismay for not the first time, and sighed. It was times like this when the differences between now and before were more obvious than usual. She'd had a good job as manager of the day shift at a local department store. Night classes for a degree in Computer Science. A nice apartment and a nice car. And now she had a bag of groceries, a card table, and a bed that had seen better days. Her only possessions, besides the clothes she had been kidnapped in, were in a cardboard box of clothes and other essentials that had been donated to her as part of the EUPTF.

She sighed again and put her groceries up, then picked up the newspaper from the counter where she'd left it and opened to the classifieds. There was, she decided, no harm in looking. After a few minutes of circling everything from data entry to secretarial work to car repair, it occurred to her she'd seen 'Help Wanted' signs in the windows of a few local businesses.

First things were first though. A stop to the local thrift shop for something nicer than the jeans and a t-shirt she was wearing was in order. Then job hunting. And then, of course, a night out making new friends. Things were finally beginning to look up.

Back in her apartment, Catherine threw on the same jeans she had worn earlier and a newly bought light blue blouse to put over her white undershirt. A look at the small alarm clock that had come with the apartment told her that Noel would be there in the next few minutes, so she stuck the pile of applications she had gathered into a drawer and pulled her still slightly damp hair up into a high ponytail. She was just about to pull a light jacket from the closet when there was a knock at the door.

She unlocked the door and opened it only far enough to see who it was, a habit she'd gotten into since realizing the sort of neighborhood she now lived in. Once she saw Noel on the other side she threw on her jacket and slipped out into the hall, locking it again behind her.

"Everyone is outside waiting. Come on!"

The blonde led the way down the hall past the broken elevator and down the stairs to the main floor, where three other girls were waiting, talking amongst themselves animatedly. Two of the girls were brunettes, the other a redhead, and each were dressed for a night on the town, either in capris or tight jeans and spaghetti strap shirts.

The redhead noticed the duo first and waved. "So this is the new girl you mentioned!"

Catherine laughed and stuck her hands in her jacket pockets. "Catherine."

"I'm Elizabeth, but everyone calls me Liz," said the redhead.

"Amelia," said the woman wearing a tight pair of black jeans and a red top. "And she's Sara," Amelia supplied, pointing to the tallest of the group.

The thin, dainty woman smiled. "Birdie."

"So, I figured we'd just go to Paragon Lanes tonight because it's closest," said Noel.

Liz raised her eyebrows at that. "Ladies' Night doesn't have anything to do with it?"

Noel laughed. "Of course not. You know me."

Catherine grinned. "Riiight."

"Oh, not you too."

Birdie checked her watch. "We should go before it gets too busy and we can't get a lane."

The five set out down the street, the conversation ranging from the newest pop idol to the latest and greatest heroic deeds of the day. Catherine saw her chance and took it. "So, what happened with Manticore and Crey? I saw the article in the paper, but that's it."

"What, you mean you haven't heard? Where have you been? It's been all over the news," Amelia said.

Catherine shrugged nonchalantly. "I just moved into town."

"Well, Manticore was investigating Crey like usual, and somehow he found out that CreyComp, the new computer system that's been in the news so much? It was apparently going to brainwash us all into buying their stuff and a bunch of other things. So now Countess Crey is jail because of it, but she says that one of the guys that used to work on it sabotaged it, gave the info to Manticore, and then quit so that she would get all the blame."

"Good grief," Catherine said, shaking her head in disbelief. "That's insane."

"Yeah," Amelia said. "It's a good thing Manticore is here."

"Don't forget the rest of the Freedom Phalanx," Birdie put in.

Amelia snorted. "What about the rest of the Freedom Phalanx?"

The girls laughed. "I think we've got a fangirl on our hands," said Noel.

"Mmhmm," agreed Catherine.

Amelia facepalmed. "Don't you start in too."

This time Catherine laughed. Just like old times...

At the bowling alley the banter continued as they got their lanes, put on the proper shoes and split into teams. There was a moment of confusion as they realized there were an odd number of people, but that ended with a lively round of Rock, Paper, Scissors between Noel and Liz. In the end, Catherine was quickly welcomed onto Liz and Birdie's team.

After three frames they had quite a lead, and Amelia accused Noel of having brought a ringer. Then the alcohol began to flow, and after that, no one quite cared anymore. By the end of the night they'd played five games, and Amelia was pressing Noel to do something Catherine was rather interested in seeing.

"C'mon, you said you'd got a new trick. And Catherine hasn't seen you at all."

"A new trick. That's what you're calling my magic now?"

"She's a magician," Liz told Catherine

"A good magician." Noel added. "Watch."

With that she grabbed her purse and pulled out a small fabric pouch. Inside was what looked like a string of gems attached to something silver, but with careful manipulation turned out to a very delicate diadem. "Never perform magic without the proper headwear," she said, and Catherine laughed as the others rolled their eyes.

"She does this every time," Amelia said quietly.

"Shush," Noel said, and set the diadem in place, a cat's eye held in the center of her forehead. From a different fabric pouch she pulled an amethyst out and held it cupped in her hands. Catherine watched avidly as her new-found friend began to chant so quietly that even sitting a few a few feet away she couldn't make out what was being said, while the others watched with an air of comfortable patience.

Suddenly, she realized the air around them had turned a faint purple, which grew deeper and deeper until it was like the quintet were actually inside the gemstone. Catherine gasped, and the others looked around them with awe.

"Only we can see it," Noel said, sounding quite pleased with herself, but more than a little tired. She put both the diadem and the amethyst back into their respective pouches and put those back into her purse. "The barrier will fade on its own," she said by way of explanation. Sure enough a minute or so later the sphere lightened until it was barely visible, then disappeared entirely.

"Okay, that was amazing." Catherine said. "How did you do that?"

Noel grinned. "Magic."

"But that doesn't explain anything! I mean, okay, yes, physics doesn't really seem to apply around here, but there still ought to be reasons for things."

Liz raised an eyebrow and looked Noel, then Catherine. "You aren't from around here, are you?"

Catherine grimaced and looked away, then back again. "No, no I'm not." Her voice was tight as she tried to avoid breaking into tears yet again. She'd had enough of that over the past few weeks.

Liz's eyes widened as she realized what Catherine meant. "Oh, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean-" She hugged Catherine, who smiled in appreciation. After a moment Liz pulled away, and Catherine sniffled. Birdie produced a tissue from her purse, which was accepted when Catherine was sure she wasn't going to cry did the quintet turned in their shoes and leave.

It took a block and a half for the night to become even more interesting.

Birdie, observant as always and also the least drunk, saw them first. She tapped Noel on the shoulder to point them out, but it was too late. Their group had been noticed, and the four gangers dressed primarily in red and black began to saunter down the street. Two carried baseball bats, one wore a half-skull mask, and all of them wore bandanas and an air of menace. The one with the mask stopped ten feet from them, the others close behind.

"Now look what we have here. Isn't it a bit late for you young ladies to be out alone?"

"Hellions," Amelia muttered.

Catherine nodded and wished fervently she had stayed home. She'd heard of them, and read about them in the newspaper, but coming face to face with them was another story completely. They were supposed to be relatively incompetent, but they certainly didn't look that way in the limited light from the streetlamps.

Noel rolled her eyes. "Isn't it a bit late to be making fools of yourselves?"

The other girls gasped. Birdie leaned forward to hiss in Noel's ear. "What are you doing?"

Noel waved off her friend's concern. "It's just the Hellions. Nothing to worry about."

The lead Hellion- Catherine recognized him as one of the Damned- laughed. "You've got everything to worry about right now, lady. Especially if you don't do as I say. Hand over your valuables, or else."

"No," said Noel.

The Damned looked over his shoulder at the others behind him. "Sounds like-"

Whatever he was about to say next was cut off as an inch thick layer of ice suddenly encased him.

Everything stopped as everyone stared at Noel, who was holding something in her right hand and looking smug. The silence broke when one of the bat-wielding lowlifes hefted his weapon. "Get them!"

Catherine and Birdie screamed and fled down the block, Liz and Amelia close behind. In their panic they hid around the nearest corner; none remembered the safety of the bowling alley less than two blocks away. It was immediately obvious that they were missing one, and so Catherine stuck her head cautiously around the corner to see where Noel was.

She was relieved to find that none of the Hellions had followed them, but this was only because the three remaining Hellions had surrounded Noel, who appeared to be deep in thought, as if she wasn't about to be beaten to a bloody pulp or worse.

This seemed to have the Hellions confused because none of them had attacked, and in fact they seemed to be waiting to see what Noel did next.

They didn't have to wait long. A cold wind rushed down the street, making Catherine shiver. It passed Noel, leaving her unscathed, but turned things upside down for her opponents. The three remaining free Hellions found themselves covered in a patchwork of ice.

Noel swayed, then a second later seemed to realize the position she was in. While the Hellions were busy breaking themselves and their leader free she shoved the gem she had used to create the ice back into her purse and ran.

Catherine stepped out onto the sidewalk to show Noel where they were only to have the other woman practially collapse in her arms. With Amelia's help she dragged the half-unconscious woman around the corner.

"What are we going to do now?" Liz asked.

"I don't know!" Catherine muttered.

"We can't stay here," Amelia pointed out.

"If we keep quiet, maybe they won't know we're here," suggested Liz.

Catherine looked at Noel, who was leaning against a wall while sitting on a conveniently placed crate. "Somehow I don't think that's going to work."

Silence reigned as the three tried to think of something. Finally Birdie peered around the corner cautiously, then jerked her head back. "They're gone!"

"That solves that, then," said Amelia, sounding relieved.

The next morning found Catherine seated at the card table, newspaper in one hand and forkful of omelet in the other. She was just about to turn the page when there was a knock at the door. She took a deep breath to steady her nerves and stared at the door suspiciously for a second before getting up and unlocking the door only far enough to see who was on the other side. Noel smiled and waved. "I wanted to apologize for last night."

Catherine opened the door wide and waved her friend in. "Do you want an omelet? I've got the supplies for one more."

"Oh, no thank you. I ate earlier."

Noel eyed the other woman. "You didn't sleep last night, did you?"

Catherine flashed a strained smile. "No, not really."

Noel put her face in her hands. "I am never drinking ever again. I am so sorry."

Catherine shrugged noncommittally. "Everything turned out for the best."

She watched for a second as Noel rummaged in her purse for something. "Was that part of your magic last night? You should be a hero."

"Too dangerous. Last night should have landed me in the hospital." Noel shook her head as she found what she was looking for. "Here. I brought this for you. One of my clients is a member. She wants me to join, but I don't have the time. I thought maybe you would be interested." In her outstretched hand was a neatly folded orange piece of paper.

Catherine took the orange flier curiously and opened it. It turned out to be an advertisement for a place called Ace Karate. ""They have all sorts of self-defense classes there," Noel explained. "It's not a bad idea to be able to protect yourself. There are too many gangs around here, even with the heroes keeping them in check."

"That's not a bad idea after last night. I'll have to check it out." She turned to put it in the drawer along with her applications, then turned back. "Are you sure you don't want something to eat?"

Noel's stomach rumbled and the two laughed. "Sorry, but I've got to take a rain check. I've got a gig to go in an hour, and I'm running late as it is."

Catherine nodded. "Rain check it is. Break a leg!"

Noel grinned. "Thanks."

Catherine finished her omelet, rinsed the plate, set it in the rack to dry, and opened the drawer that both the flier and applications in it. She pulled out the applications and set them aside, then took a look at the flier once again. She made a mental note to find out how close the intersection of 13th and Taylor was, and saw that the first class, whichever she chose, was free. Nodding to herself, she put the flier back in the drawer. It was definitely something to look into.