From my Randomness book on the collab account, KatEmm2001, that I share with CaliKat000.

"Good morning!" Ashley Prince bubbled cheerily with a wide grin as she walked into the kitchen on Saturday morning. Her best friend and roommate, Erika Stewart, was sipping a cup of steaming coffee with both hands wrapped around it for warmth. Her long, black hair sat in a tangled mess on top of her head, a stark contrast to Ashley's meticulously styled, shoulder-length blond hair.

Erika's deep-brown eyes peered over the top of her cup as she took another drink before grumbling, "Hmph. 'Morning. I see the assassins have failed."

Ashley rolled her eyes, not fazed by the snide remark. She was used to Erika's morning grumpiness, which would soon go away after she ate breakfast. Nothing was going to ruin her day today. Continuing her morning routine, she got her breakfast ready, a bowl of cereal and milk, and started to eat. Erika sat down across from her and stared her down until Ashley finally asked what she wanted, a bit annoyed at being interrupted.

"I found an article in the newspaper today," she announced.

"Yeah, that's kind of the point of a newspaper. And no one reads the paper anymore, E," Ashley deadpanned.

"I do. And there was a pretty interesting article in it this morning."

"Mmhm. I bet."

"Don't you want to know what it was about?"

"Nope. Not really. I kind of just want to finish eating before my cereal gets soggy, ya know?"

"It was about that new vigilante," Erika declared, ignoring the death-glare being shot her way by a very annoyed Ashley. "You know, the one working with Nightquake. What was her name again? Black Fighter, or Dark Soldier, or something like that..."

"It's Ebony Warrior," Ashley corrected before taking another bite of her cereal.

"Right, right. Yeah, what does she do again?" Erika questioned, her index finger tapping her chin while she looked past Ashley.

"She does combat stuff. Like, hand-to-hand fighting, knife skills, et cetera," Ashley droned.

"Ah, right. And, um, where did she come from?"

"Nobody really knows. She just sort of showed up one day, working with Nightquake."

"Uh-huh... And-- uh-- How do you know so much about Ebony Warrior?" Erika's eyes were back on Ashley now, and she could feel it.

Ashley looked up at the tone of her friend's voice. It sounded off, and the look she was giving her confirmed it. There was suspicion in Erika's eyes, which was a strange thing for one best friend to have of the other. Ashley narrowed her eyes when she noticed, knowing Erika was thinking about her. And that was something she couldn't show.

It was bad enough when she came home to their shared apartment covered in bruises and cuts and blood, both her own and not, when she was just "going to the gym." That was enough to make her friend suspicious, but she had been careful to hide it. She usually cleaned herself up as best as she could before she got back, which was sometimes very early in the morning. Now there was an article in the paper, which Erika most definitely never read. So what was she looking for?

"I keep up with the news. And you know I have a very good memory," Ashley answered, trying to sound less tense than she felt.

"Oh. Right. Of course," conceded Erika, drawing her gaze away from her friend and staring off into the distance. "But..."

"But what?" coaxed Ashley curiously.

"Are you sure you don't know her?"

Ashley laughed. Oh, how good it felt to be wrong! Erika wasn't suspicious that she was Ebony Warrior, just that she knew her! "That's what you think? Oh, man!" She stopped to laugh again, still giddy that she wasn't given away. "No, E, I don't know Ebony Warrior. Gosh, I thought that you thought that I was her!" Another laugh erupted from her mouth, and this time she was joined by the barking laugh of Erika.

"You?" She interrupted herself with more laughter. "You, Ebony Warrior? Oh, that's rich!" Erika kept laughing at the thought.

Ashley's gaze hardened and she sat up straighter. "What, you don't think I could be Ebony Warrior?" she demanded.

Erika was still laughing, and her words were interrupted by spurts of laughter, "No! You're-- too-- clumsy!"

"I could totally be Ebony Warrior!" Ashley argued.

Erika rolled her eyes. "You wish!"

"No, seriously!"

"Uh-huh. Sure."

Ashley glared at her, annoyed that her best friend - of all people - would doubt that she could be Ebony Warrior. "Whatever. I'm going out. Don't know when I'll be back," she snapped, quickly standing up and putting her dishes in the sink. She grabbed her purse from her room, her jacket from the hanger by the door, and walked out, jumping in her gold Toyota Corolla.

She started her car and drove off, just going where her instincts led her. When she finally got to where she was going, she knew immediately where she was: Silver Rock Park; her get-away place. There was almost never anyone there, except one young couple who came every once in a while to walk. Getting out of her car, Ashley walked along the path that went through the park, already feeling much better than when she left.

A scream came from behind her, and she whipped around, ready to fight if needed. She looked around, but the only people she saw were that couple. The sound of laughter floated to her ears from where they chased each other. Another shriek came from their direction as the guy caught the girl and they tumbled to the ground in a heap. Ashley watched as they wrestled for a few seconds, then realized that they probably didn't even know she was there and that she was technically eavesdropping.

Turning around, she was caught by surprise as she came face-to-face with a young man about her age. His short, brown hair and hazel eyes that glittered with mischief were a familiar sight, and so was the grin spreading across his face that matched his eyes. Ashley's hand clutched her chest over her heart, before she realized who it was.

"Ohmygosh, Tyler!" She swung a punch at his arm, and he grasped the place where she hit him. "You can't do that to me!"

***

To be continued...

A/N* Let me know what you guys think in the comments below! I really like reading all of your comments, some of them get pretty funny, so don't hesitate!

<3 Emma