Chapter One

Starfire's POV

After it happened I never hallucinated snakes or bugs anymore, but I still was a little freaked about them, no doubt.

Dad and I, along with his ex-wife, Jenny, moved to LA after the entire incident had been far apart from us. Looking out the window, driving to out new house, I swear I saw a large boa constrictor wrapping around a real skinny tree. I backed away from the window and looked down at my hands that were nestled in my lap.

We got out of the car when we arrived and went in to check out our new house. It was very leaky, either a pipe had burst or it was raining just too hard and the roof was very weak against the water. Dad and Jenny went upstairs to go pick out the room they were going to share together. I stood downstairs to unpack some of the things for the lobby.

Let's see...there was large chairs, dad would bring them in, small chairs. What the heck? I picked up the small chairs and arranged them along the walls. I placed a small table next to a group of chairs.

After a time, I noticed a shadow crawl across the wall in front of me. Curious, I turned around and saw the front door was open. But that wasn't what freaked me. It was the man dressed it old clothes holding a snake in his hands. I gasped and fell to my knees.

"I found this outside," the man said, holding out the snake in front of me. I tried to scoot away, but all I could manage to do was lean against the boxes behind me, "You want it?"

I started crying, "No, please."

"Relax," he said, "What's the matter with you?"

I closed my eyes, trying to avoid the snake's sickening gaze, "Dad!" I screamed. In a flash I heard dad running down the stairs.

"What the hell?" he yelled. He grabbed a large strip of metal and chased the man outside. He shook his head and walked back inside, "I'm sorry, Star. You okay?"

I rolled my eyes, relieved, "I'm fine. He just scared me is all," I took a deep breath and closed my eyes, "I'll be fine."

He nodded his head, "Don't go crazy on me here, now."

I smiled and opened my eyes. Not again. A small snake was right by dad's foot, "Uh, dad."

"Hmm?" he looked down at his foot, "Whoa!" he raised the metal strip and stabbed the snake. Dead. Thank goodness. This house was probably filled with tons of them. I would have a hard time sleeping tonight.

Starfire's POV

Dad pulled up to the front of my new school. Gothem City Academy for High School Students. Everyone was wearing uniforms. I looked down at my own clothes, nothing but the usual purple skirt and top. School was already going to be a problem for me, I could tell. I sat there in the car.

"You don't have to go, Starfire," dad said, "You can wait until you get your uniform."

"I can't spend the rest of my life watching daytime television, it gets old," I don't know where that came from, but it seems logical.

"I could."

I laughed a little and opened the door. I stepped out, "I'll walk home, k?"

He nodded, "Anything," and drove off.

Terra's POV

I'm walking down the hall with Raven and Jinx, towards our lockers. I'm looking in my almanac for readings about what today would bring and at the same time, trying to hide the scars covering my back and shoulders. Damn these scars!

I look around and see Cyborg and Robin, looking back at us. Cyborg turns away immediately, "Oh, no! It's them! It's the devil from hell!" he puts on a fake look of horror, "Find a happy place...nice, warm, happy place..."

I saw Raven roll her dark eyes and she reached her locker. She swung it open and pulled out some of her books.

I turn the page in the almanac, "Readings say today will bring the arrival of something."

Raven laughed that hideous laugh of her, "Yes, I know," she said, "I'm getting my rag."

I rolled my eyes, "I mean something important. Could be the fourth. We can finally call up the four corners."

"We don't really need a fourth, Terra," she said, taking a large noose out of her locker. She held it between her hands and pointed towards one of the hall security guards, "How about she can be our fourth."

I went back to my readings as I heard Jinx laugh along with Raven, "Yeah, she's so big, she can call up the four corners herself," she said.

Raven snickered again, "I love a woman in uniform," she teased. The bell rang, second period. Raven dropped the noose back into her locker and closed it. She and Jinx would be going the opposite direction, they had gym first. I had French. I walked towards the room and took my seat in the third row.

French was the same as always. Didn't know a thing Mr. Dubois was saying. I slouched the coat higher over my shoulders to cover my scars and began doodling on my notebook, pretending to take notes.

"Cyborg," Mr. Dubois said, indicating a finger towards him. He spook to him a sentence in French. Cyborg chuckled and answered back. Well, really not answering back, more like just mumbling phrases, trying to make it seem like he was answering in French. But I can tell Mr. Dubois was calling the game and asked him another thing in French. I heard a mumble in the back and everyone looked over to see a girl, not dressed in a uniform, answering back in French.

The girl smiled, "I took French in San Francisco. Everything here is just a review for me."

I looked at Cyborg, who was looking at his friend, Robin, who was suspiciously admiring the girl. I rolled my eyes, there he goes again with liking girls.

Mr. Dubois nodded, "Very good. Your name?"

"Starfire," the girl said, nodding. She looked down at her notebook.

Cyborg laughed and pointed to Starfire, "What is that snail trail saying about me?"

Mr. Dubois answered in French and got back to the lesson. I got back to doodling. I have always been known to do great sketches with pencils. I started sketching out a picture of Raven in her full power. Her arms outstretched, psi balls blooming from both hands. It looked perfect.

I, for some reason, looked over at Starfire, who was now twiddling with her pencil. She stood the pencil on the desk upright on its point and held it there for a minute. Weird, she wasn't taking her eyes off the pencil, like she was doing a...

She slowly let go of the pencil, leaving it standing there on its sharp point. She mumbled a few words and I saw the pencil actually start spinning on its point. I mean it! What was she doing? I gasped a little, shocked.

She heard me gasp and turned her head to me. The pencil fell from its point and rolled off the desk. She looked away from me and tapped her notebook, trying to avoid my gaze. That was...surprisingly weird.

Raven's POV

Jinx and I sat down at the table in chemistry. We've decided to go shopping at that store we usually go to after school. We heard there was some new stuff there, we'll buy it. Maybe this time we can get to see what is behind that curtain way in the back.

Terra runs in the room, with her blonde hair all in her face again as she rushes towards us. "She's here," she says.

"Who's here?" I ask.

"The girl who will be our fourth," she says, "Her name's Starfire. You'll see her, she's coming now, the one without a uniform. That one, the one's that's talking to sister."

I look over and see a tall girl, very skinny, talking to the nun. She does not look like the type that would be the fourth of anything. The girl nodded at sister and started over towards us. She stopped right at the front of our table.

"I'm sorry to interrupt," she said, "But the nun told me I had to find a lab group to work with."

I crossed my arms and glared at her, not saying anything. She nervously stared back at me and smiled nicely.

"Okay...I'll go sit somewhere else," she walked away.

Terra nodded, "No, go ahead, you can sit here," she said. Starfire took a glance back at us and sat down next to two guys and a younger girl. I rolled my eyes.

"Chill, Terra," I said, "We'll talk to her later. I wanted to see what she would act like," I saw her open her notebook and I caught a glance at a page and saw a sketch of a girl who looked vaguely familiar. Looks like the girl I see in the mirror a lot.