A/N: OK, so I told myself I wasn't gonna start another fic until The Tragic Paradise was done…but unfortunately as well as fortunately, my writing style is centered heavily on inspiration, and thus my writing comes in sparatic bursts. So, on one hand, I've broken yet another writing-related oath to myself…but on the other hand, this promises to be the beginning of a beautiful new story! For anyone who is concerned, you have no need to fret-The Tragic Paradise is not finished and it will be continued, but as I pointed out before, I have to wait for the inspiration to hit me before I can continue.

Soooo…this one. Wow. I was reading the script to Catwoman and suddenly got this awesome idea and there was so much inspiration behind it that this fic just demanded to be written. So I'm all kinds of excited and I really hope you guys enjoy this one as much as you've enjoyed the Tragic Paradise!

Prologue

"Owwww!" I groaned as I ran into the lockers…again. I was so sick of this; every day it was the exact same thing. I got up in the morning, got ready for school, slouched my way through the bus ride to campus, literally fought my way through the school day, slouched my way through the bus ride home, did my homework, ate dinner, then laid in bed full of self-loathing until I fell asleep. Why this self-destructive routine, you ask? Several reasons. One, I'm what most teenagers would call "unpopular". I don't dress in bedazzled clothes or streak into panic mode if my lipstick smudges. For crying out loud, I don't even wear makeup. I don't care what I look like naturally, which invokes quite a lot of glares and mocking. Two, I'm not skinnier than a football goalpost. Around here, you're fat if you don't have a twelve-inch waistline or smaller. So I'm not anorexic or bulimic…and that matters. I'm not overweight at all, actually, but I'm not skinny enough either. And three? I'm the only blind student at Queen Victoria High School. That's right; I'm blind. Have been from birth, and it makes me the constant victim for all to prey upon.

"Hey-Lisa, are you okay?"

All of course, except for my tiny gang of two loyal friends and my boyfriend. I actually managed to force a tiny smile. "Yeah, I'm okay…should be used to it by now, huh?" It was Darius, one of the only three around here who cared enough about me and had enough of a soul to endure constant mocking along with me without getting so sick of it he leaves my side. I felt his arm brush mine as he helped me reclaim my books and papers. "Thanks," I murmured.

"No problem," he assured, and I could hear the smile on his face. "Sorry I was late. I tried to get here as soon as I could, but hallway traffic is ridiculous at this time of afternoon."

"Not telling me anything I don't know," I grumbled, wrestling my way back to my feet. "At least I managed to hold onto my cane this time."

"See? Now that's the bright side." He handed me my books and kissed my cheek. "You sure you still want to go tomorrow?"

I blinked, surprised. "Of course I am! Senior prom is huge, and I actually have you to go with this time. I never want to relive last year again…" I trailed off, lost in the wretched memory. The year before, I had been stupid enough to attempt Junior prom without a date. Naturally, Gina had gone with Zack, but I hadn't gotten with Darius yet, so I was alone, but I still wanted to go. I had no one to dance with, save for Zack in a couple of songs, but other than that, I spent most of the night sitting at the table, singing along to the music under my breath and answering the occasional question from a waitor or teacher. It actually went pretty harmlessly until the cheerleading captain decided I would look better in slop green than red and dumped a huge bowl of spinach dip all over me. Naturally, I tried to leave, but being blind in an unfamiliar environment makes for a very tragic combination. By the time I actually managed to get out the door, I'm pretty sure everyone but Gina, Zack, and a few teachers were laughing their prissy little butts off at me. The only good thing about that night was that I knew the way home from the dance hall and nobody was home to see my humiliation. I was actually rather dreading this year's prom, but part of me hoped and believed it would be much better now that I had Darius to look after me.

"I still wish I could have already been here last year…nobody would have been laughing at you if I had been there," Darius murmured.

I laughed a tiny bit. "Are you kidding? They laugh at you for being with me…you think you could have kept them from laughing at me?"

"They can laugh at me," he informed, "it's when they laugh at my friends that makes me really scary."

I laughed. "Right. So where are Gina and Zack? Aren't they still coming with us tonight?"

"Yeah, they are. Zack said they were gonna leave campus a bit early cuz he has to pick up his little cousin from preschool and they'd meet us at the little café at four thirty."

"Oh, okay." I gathered up my things from my locker, stuffing my books into my backpack and slung it over my shoulder, the halls considerably more open now that most everyone had cleared out. "Okay…I think I'm ready now."

He chuckled and wrapped an arm around my shoulders. "C'mon. We'll go grab a bite to eat and wait for them at the café."

"Sounds good to me," I agreed. "I could really use a sandwich. Didn't eat much at lunch today. I can't stand fish."

"Aren't you allergic anyway?"

I grinned and stretched up to whisper in his ear. "Noooo…that's just my excuse." He laughed, and my smile grew. I just loved his laugh. Actually, I loved his voice period. It was the most soothing and handsome sound I knew of, and his laugh was simply addictive. He was actually from America, so he even came with an exotic accent to compliment that cute tone of his. His father had gotten a job transfer from America to London, so he and his parents had made one big move across the Atlantic. I had met him just before summer break, about a month or so before the end of school. He saw me get slammed to the grass outside and told off the guy who had done it. The fact that he stood up for me without even knowing my name got my attention straight away, but then when he began to stick close to me and look out for me, that really stole my heart. Evidently something about my imperfect self won him over too, because about two months into senior year, he asked me out. He could have been really popular around here…he could have been the king of campus but he turned a blind eye to that to keep it on me. Heh, no pun intended. Next to Gina and Zack, he was the best thing ever to happen to me, and I would be forever loyal to him for that.

We hung out and talked at the café for about a half hour before Gina and Zack arrived. We were still eating our sandwiches when the little bell on the entrance door rang and I heard Zack's loud and boisterous singing fill the building. I couldn't help but laugh as I could almost see Gina's mortified expression as she shouted, "I told you not to dare!"

Without even breaking the rhythm, Zack sang his response. "Which is exactly why I did it! Duu-uuhh!"

I grinned. "Hit him, Gina! Hit him, let me hear it!"

She laughed and waited until they were right at the table before I heard an audible smack against what I presumed was his shoulder. "Why can't you see, what you're doin' to-owwww!" Zack yelped in midsong, and we all got a good laugh out of that one.

"Nice timing on that one, Gina," I complimented, and she snickered.

"Thanks. That's my favorite thing to do when he's singing. Wait for the proper cue, then hit him and see where the ow lands."

"Were you actually singing Elvis Presley?" Darius asked, plainly surprised.

"Yeah, why?"

Darius paused. "Hmm…Elvis with a British accent…I just don't see that working out." We laughed again. "So, guys. Where are we going first?"

"I've been wanting to check out that new store they built a few blocks away from here," Gina chimed. "Looks like they'll have all sorts of cool prom stuff. That okay with you, Lisa?"

I shrugged. "I don't know much about where stuff is, so I'll go wherever you guys want to go. I know one thing though; I'm never wearing a red prom dress again."

They all paused grimly, all knowing the story. "I think you'd look gorgeous in midnight blue or black. You're definitely a dark colors person," Gina said after a minute.

I blinked. "Why? What makes you say that?"

Gina hmmmed softly. "Well, you've got black hair and your eyes are sort of a sky blue. You just look better in darks than lights to me. Darius?"

"She looks great in anything to me, you know that," Darius said with a chuckle. "But I can certainly see you in dark blue or black."

I thought about it, then glanced in Zack's direction. "What do you think?"

"Either way the majority rules, but I agree," he joked.

I laughed a little. "Okay, okay. I'll try for something dark…I kind of like black better than blue though."

"Fantastic!" Gina nearly squeaked. "C'mon, hurry and finish your food! I'm ready to go!"

I laughed and ate the last few bites of my sandwich and gathered up my things. "Long as you don't rush out without us," I teased.

"Never!" she gasped, feigning insult. "If I ran out in a hurry, who would help you make sure you get the right color?"

She was right near me, so I playfully jabbed her arm. "Not funny," I snorted, and she just laughed more.

We left the café and headed for the store. When we got there, I folded up my cane and put it away, choosing instead to use Gina as my guide. It was a lot easier this way inside places so that I wouldn't get lost or, knowing my clumsy nature, break some ancient fifty thousand pound antique. To my amazement, I actually found a beautiful black dress that was quite similar to the one I had imagined. It wasn't too revealing, but it did have that lovely, almost tempting sort of prom beauty. I chose it the moment I saw it, and to my utter delight, it fit me perfectly. I kept it in the plastic cover though, to hide it from Darius until tomorrow night.

Gina ended up purchasing a golden yellow dress, so she told me. It was a silky sort of material, and it looked splendid on her. It had sequens around the boddess that were tiny pearls, and it even had a decorative shawl that hung over her shoulders. She was going to knock Zack dead with it. "Good thing you've got these sequens," I told her with a grin.

"Oh? Why's that?" she asked, an audible grin on her face.

"You're going to need all these sparkles if you're going with Elvis," I teased, and we both cracked up.

"Excellent point. Do you think I should find a golden cape to go along with it?" she asked, still giggling.

"Ugh, never," I groaned, also still laughing. It was times like this that I lived for; times when I was actually having heaps of fun and my life seemed worth it. Looking back now, I should have paid more heed to my feeling of dread surrounding prom night. I couldn't have known it, but the feeling was much more justified than I could have imagined, and something would happen that would change my life-and the lives of my friends-for eternity.

A/N: Ooooo…I dunno about you guys, but this looks pretty ominous to me. ;)

So, as always, tell me what you think so far. What do you make of the four friends, and do you think they really are in true danger, or will Lisa's feeling be all twisted around?

Oh, and just a note…I really couldn't decide on a set point of view for this to be written from, so I will actually be switching it around from time to time. Sometimes it will be from one character's point of view, and sometimes it may be in third person surrounding all of them. But don't worry about any possible confusion, because whenever I switch, I'll put the new P.O.V. identifier in braces to let you know when it switches. If in the future, I decide to settle on one P.O.V., I'll let you know in an author note, but for now, it's going to switch around. So buckle your seat belts, ladies and gentlemen, it's gonna be a bumpy ride! Oh, and please review! ^^