Awakening on an unfamiliar couch.

Nathan groans himself slowly awake, body aching like a truck had hit him. If only it were only that bad. As he stirs, the smell of hot food drifts closer to his supine body; the man can't recognize the room around him, but feels a couch cushion propping up his head as he comes to.

Wincing as he feels the bruises on and around his crotch throb, the abused hero shifts upright into a seated position, moving a blanket over his shoulders. Nathan takes in his surroundings as best he can through bleary eyes, seeing a homey—if plain—apartment decorated with furniture too blurry to describe beyond “rustic”. Looking down, he finds himself dressed in a pair of women’s pajamas, the insubstantial shorts outlining his ‘assets’ blatantly enough to make him blush.

If he’s here, then that means somebody dressed and carried him to safety, But who rescued him from that alley? That Godforsaken alley… Valiant’s heart pounds when the memory returns; the cackling women, his complete helplessness, the violation, the shame. His breathing grows irregular as traumatic images flash by, a mortifying cavalcade of assault leaving the man helpless.

Seeing a Irish woman, and her deeply scarred face, Nathan recoils. "Shinobi!" He cries, hiding behind the blanket in fear as his flashback rages on, “Don’t hurt me!”

The villainess takes calculated, non-threatening steps towards the cowering rape survivor, “Wait, I’m not Shinobi right now, Ah’m just a lass trying to keep you safe.” She sets down her plate of hot food, and goes onto one knee; crouching to meet his gaze, she holds Valiant steady as he shakes, “My name is Harriet. Harriet McNinja. I took you to my place so you’d be warm, fed, and away from the others.”

“Oh, uh, thanks…” he replies, unmoving apart from a slight quiver as Shinobi motions towards the food.

"C'mon, please eat.” The redhead pushes the dish closer to Nathan’s spot at the coffee table, saying, “I know you're queasy but ah’ didn't fry up wee pork belly and eggs just to watch you starve."

He'd like to say thanks, but Nathan's still too wary, hesitating as he reaches a fork towards the plate; insofar as he knows, the woman kneeling before him can’t truly be trusted. Even if she saved him from that alley…

As he dithers, Harriet plucks a rasher off the dish and bites it, saying while she looks Nathan in the eye, "I'm not going to poison you either. Please, you’re safe here, I just… Ah’ just want you to be well. And… I’m sorry if I hurt you."

Valiant sees the sincerity in her deep, green eyes and digs in, admiring the food to avoid any lingering flashbacks of yesterday. Each bite of the breakfast makes him feel safer, and Just knowing that this woman is here for him forces a warmth into the man’s heart.

“Nathan.”

“Huh?”

“My name is Nathan Morrison.” He says, smiling pure sunshine at his host, ”It’s great to meet you, Harriet.”

The ninja girl blushes, looking away from his infectious grin—and the clear outline of his penis in those tiny shorts—while she says, “L-likewise.”

The two of them enjoy some quality silence together until…

“Wait!” Nathan shouts, clutching at his ribs and bruised nethers as he tries to stand, “Is Demolitia okay?!”