Prologue: December 31st, 2009

Ever wonder why people are afraid of the dark?

Clarissa ‘Claire’ Lee knew. It was because there was an absence of light.

And when there was no light, it was impossible to see.

She didn’t need to see anything to know what was going to happen next.

-

She dived between the two guys, causing them to hit each other. The last one lunged at her like a torpedo, or more like a dead duck. She raised her elbow just enough to allow his face to collide against it.

Fighting was never something she had been particularly fond of. After all, she was born and raised in a foster family because her own one had been fighting so much. But there were just some days when she felt the adrenaline rush of kicking and punching overwhelm her, and it just felt damn good, especially on punks like these.

“You guys try too hard!” she laughed cruelly, as she watched what was originally half a dozen boys struggle to pick up their bruised and broken bones off the floor and out of the alley way. “Owned by a girl, no less. You can tell your princess Josephine,” –she said the drama queen of Home Island High’s name with much spite, “to leave me alone. Two years of secondary school has been enough already.”

“Bitch!” swore Jason, the last one standing. Oh, this was a live one. Claire knew Jason from her school well enough-the boy who had the biggest crush on Josephine since he had seen her…and well, like everything else, it had been pathetic. He had been rejected again and again, and eventually conformed to being one her of her loyal servants.

As he charged towards her, the female judo expert felt a tinge of pity-Jason wasn’t the handsomest guy at Home Island High but for what seemed like a long time ago, he had actually been a decent guy.

Of course, all thoughts of that vanished when the fist narrowly missed her face.

Jason must have been overly motivated by her taunting, because he was moving far faster than she had ever expected from the plump boy. His reckless actions caught her so off guard-you’d think one would be slightly more tired after being beaten to a pulp-that she was careless, and slipped.

Landing on the sidewalk with a heavy thud, Claire could hardly make out the stars she was seeing in her daze against the darkness of the alleyway. She struggled to her feet, but Jason pressed his weight against her-literally as she squirmed at the feel of his heavy butt against her stomach as he whipped out a knife.

A knife?!

Aww shit. Another case of infatuated nice guy turned psychopath.

“Jason, you do not wanna do that,” said Clarissa softly, trying to calm him down. “You know the criminal charges for murder, right?” The girl was sweating profusely now; a wrong move and she would be dead in a split second. Well isn’t this comfortable, she thought cynically.

And then he came. The Night Phantom.

Striking faster than lighting in a storm, the shadowy figure lashed out at the plump boy with a rolling punch that knocked Jason into the air. Claire was clearly taken aback-not just by his entrance but also by the strength that he had-Jason looked twice as heavy as him.

As he leaned closer, the well built vigilante appeared to have a frown on his face-a look so strikingly familiar that she felt like she had seen it before, but the thought dissipated. This was the first time she had been in such close proximity with the local hero, and upon close inspection she realized that he was still quite young.

He brushed aside his messy auburn hair with one hand as he pulled her to her feet with the other.

“You alright?” His voice was soft, but it reeked with authority and responsibility, a surge of regret even? Claire was unaware why she suddenly felt so open to his thoughts.

“Yeah. Thanks.”

BOOM

The skies opened and rain fell like hail. As the cold water brushed against her skin, she shivered-she never liked rain. It brought back painful memories.

“I’ll get you home,” offered Night, extending a hand. She frowned.

“It’s okay. I can make it back myself.” She could tell that he smirked under his mask.

“Alright,” he turned and walked away, waving his hand in the air. Claire groaned.

He doesn’t believe me, does he? Cocky punk.

Suddenly, she felt a stab of pain shoot through her-Jason had stabbed her shoulder, his eyes clouded with rage. She screamed, and this got Night’s attention.

“Claire!”

One moment he was so far away, and he moved so fast that he was just a blur which struck down Jason into the floor. Jason cursed, and Night broke his nose, making him curse again.

“Fuck!”

“You deserve it, you back stabbing piece of crap.” Night picked him with one hand and smashed him into the fragile wall, debri spilling all over. With the darkest glare he could muster, he began to pummel the plump boy into submission.

Punch after punch rained down on the boy. Each time Clarissa really thought that the night vigilante had enough; there would always be a renewed fire in his eyes, like he would remember another reason to strike him…and he would. It was shocking, almost cruel, because the boy was slowly turning into a groveling bleeding mess begging for mercy.

Taking the katana from his back, Night Phantom looked pretty ready to deliver a finish blow, even if the consequences were probably fatal.

She had kept her mouth silent until now, but she couldn’t stand it anymore.

She screamed.

And that was enough for the pair of silver eyes to dart towards her, instead of becoming splattered with another’s blood the next second.

Maybe it was from the sheer shock of it or just from the loss of blood in her shoulder, but she felt herself fall into darkness, and she embraced it.

She had enough of tonight.

-

The next day, Claire woke up to an uncomfortable sharp pain in her bandaged shoulder.

Where am I anyway? Shucks. I slept through yesterday’s celebration…A sharp glance around told her she was in her room, and she shrugged.

How did I get here?

She smirked internally as she walked down the steps of her house. He must have brought her back, then. A small surge of pity blazed through her.

I didn’t get to thank him for saving my life.

It was only then she realized something crucial, something that really made her dumbfounded.

He had called her name.

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