Whoa! Thanks to all the people who enjoyed my last fic, Candy Coated Nightmare! It was a blast reading your comments and I'm humbled by them!
Due to popular demand, I decided to write another story. Not a sequel to CCN, though. I do have an idea in mind for such, but it needs to cook more.
In the meantime, enjoy this new story. I hope you all like! Rated due to dark themes.
Harbinger
Chapter 1: Museum Meeting
Beast Boy looked around the cavernous room uncomfortably. The plastic dioramas surrounded him on all sides, depicting cavemen in various stages of life; killing a mammoth, gnawing on bones around a fire, skinning animals to make primitive clothing. The mannequins always seem to leer at him hungrily. Massive constructs of fossilized bone, plaster, and metal loomed above him oppressively, relics of creatures past. He never liked the Museum.
"What a glorious portrait of human history!" exclaimed his companion, the crimson haired Starfire as she looked around the hall with wide eyes, "On my planet, all prehistory knowledge is stored in the Vorton Cubes which would project holographic images of the requisite data. This is much more... visceral!"
"Yeah," Beast Boy replied without a trace of enthusiasm, "Visceral." How did he ever get roped into doing this? Of course he knew the answer to that question; Starfire had suddenly come up with an intense desire to visit an earth museum, but refused to go alone. Unfortunately, the most obvious choice to accompany her had gone back to Gotham for a short trip. Raven had simply flatly refused. Cyborg was too busy tinkering on the T-Car. That left only Beast Boy to go with the alien teen.
"Friend Beast Boy?" Starfire asked with concern in her voice, "Are you feeling well? You do not seem to be enjoying yourself."
"Oh no," Beast Boy stated with mild sarcasm, "This is a wonderful room of death. I'm having a blast."
For a moment, Starfire looked confused before her green eyes gazed around the room once more. Suddenly, she gasped, placing a hand over her mouth, "Oh dear! I am very sorry, Beast Boy! I had not considered how the subject matter of this outing would affect you. I do apologize!"
Beast Boy forced a smile and shook his head, "Hey, don't worry about it. You wanted to see the museum, everyone else was busy. What are friends for?"
Starfire still looked rather crestfallen, "But... if this place is disturbing you, we should leave. I was hoping to see more, but your feelings are more important. I can see the exhibits some other day."
"Nah, don't worry," Beast Boy repeated with a wave of his hand, "Look, let's compromise. You can continue to look around and I'll just go downstairs where they have the food court. You can meet me there when you're finished. You only needed someone to show you to the building, right? You'll be fine on your own."
Starfire's face betrayed her dismay, "Are you certain, Beast Boy? I certainly do not wish to abandon a friend."
The green teen cracked a wide grin and winked, "Yeah, I'm fine. I'll be downstairs. Take your time, Star. There's no rush." With that, Beast Boy quickly turned and weaved through the crowds before the alien girl could protest further.
He was happy to be out of the room, already feeling more comfortable. Beast Boy felt a twinge of guilt for possibly ruining Starfire's trip to the museum, but he just couldn't stand to be in that room any longer. As he walked past an Ancient Civilizations exhibit, her suddenly bumped into something and fell backwards.
"YEEEAA!" came a surprised cry that was not from Beast Boy. The sound of clattering books smacking into the tile floor caused the green teen to blink and look towards the source of the collision.
She was a young teen, perhaps sixteen, with long brown hair tied back into a tight braid. On her face perched gold-rimmed glasses, knocked slightly askew by the impact, which thick lenses magnified her steel gray eyes. She had overly pale skin and a cherubic face dotted with freckles on the cheeks, her body rail thin and gangly. She wore a simple if slightly wrinkled button-up white blouse with long sleeves tucked in neatly to a knee-length wrap around slate gray skirt.
"Oh I'm really sorry, I wasn't watching were I was going and --" they both said at the same time, cutting off at the same moment. They stared at each other for a moment before both breaking up into nervous laughter, both blushing.
Beast Boy was first to pick himself up and gathered up the fallen books. They were on a variety of subjects, but mostly on linguistics. He arched an eyebrow at the titles before extending a hand to help the fallen girl to her feet.
"Thanks," she said, gratefully taking the hand and pulling herself to her feet. Standing, she was surprisingly short; almost a head shorter than Beast Boy himself. He grinned broadly and offered the books back to her. With a cascade of nervous titters erupting from her mouth, the girl took the books.
"No problem," Beast Boy stated in his best smooth voice, "I always like to help a lady in distress! I'm good like that."
Again, a set of nervous laughter bubbled up from the brown haired girl, "Um, t-thanks. I, uh... that's really n-nice of you." She stared at him for a moment then asked curiously, "You're... Beast Boy, right? The... t-the Teen Titan?"
"That's right!" Beast Boy stated proudly, puffing out his chest, "The changeling hero of Jump City in the flesh. And you are?"
"Oh! Right. S-sorry. I'm, um... Vivian. Vivian Starr," the girl replied, adjusting her thick glasses, "A p-pleasure to meet you, Beast Boy. Wow! To think I met someone famous!"
Beast Boy flashed a roguish grin, leaning a shoulder against a door frame in an approximation of cool, "Well, Vivian, I was just about to go downstairs and get something to eat. Care to join me?"
Vivian's eyes brightened immediately, glittering with wonder, "Oh, wow! Sure! I n-never get invited to eat with anyone! That would be wonderful."
"Really?!" the green titan exclaimed a bit too excitedly before clearing his throat and forcing his delight down, "I mean... good. That's kinda hard to believe. That you never get invited, I mean." Inwardly he winced at his ham fisted attempt. Fortunately for Beast Boy, Vivian didn't seem to notice.
Down in the food court attached to the museum, Beast Boy sat across from Vivian at one of the tables. A green vegan salad sat in front of him while Vivian had a large burger and fries along with a milkshake. She attacked it viciously, gobbling the burger down in seconds. Beast Boy stared in wonderment. "Wow. I've only seen Cyborg eat like that!"
Vivian paused in her attack of the accompanying fries and blushed vividly, the red setting off the freckles that dotted her cheeks. "S... sorry. I, um... didn't mean to... be so rude."
"Oh, don't worry about it," Beast Boy stated with a wave of his hand, "I'm just impressed that's all. Not many can stand up to the metal man's appetite."
Vivian smiled weakly and began to eat her fries in a bit more relaxed method. She was silent.
Beast Boy squirmed in his seat at the uncomfortable silence before nodding towards the books that rested beside Vivian, "So, uh... interesting reading there."
Gray eyes swiveled over to regard the pile of books for a moment before turning back to the green teen. "Um, yeah. I, um... I have a... a talent with languages. Always have. I was here to, uh... look at some of the Babylonian exhibits. See what I could see, y'know. So... um... what brings a great hero like yourself here?"
Beast Boy grinned from ear to ear. Hero! She called him a Great Hero! "Oh, I was just here, y'know. Hanging out with a friend."
"A girlfriend?" Vivian asked probingly, tilting her head to one side.
Uproarious laughter erupted from Beast Boy as she shook his head. "Oh, dude, no! Starfire's just a friend. No way we have any interest in her or she me." He grinned broadly and leaned forward, whispering conspiratorially, "If it was anyone, it'd be Robin and her. I mean, I'm not the brightest bulb, but even I can... see... that..." His voice faded off as a perplexed look rose on his features.
Vivian had her head bowed and was nearly trembling, her hand grasped so tightly around the plastic cup that held her shake that it dented. He couldn't see her eyes, but he was sure she was crying.
"Vivian? What's wrong?" he asked, completely confused.
"Don't... d-don't laugh... at me," came her voice, deathly quiet and strained, "I don't like it... when people laugh at me." Her voice shrunk to a whisper, but one filled with such acute bitterness that it took the green titan back a bit. "Everyone laughs at me."
"Oh, hey... I'm sorry," Beast Boy said softly, frowning slightly, "I didn't mean... I wasn't laughing at you, Vivian. I was laughing at the idea. I'm really sorry. I can be such an idiot some times." Silence reigned for a few uncomfortable moments before Beast Boy did the only thing he could think of. "Hey! Wanna hear a joke?
Two hunters are out in the woods when one is mauled by a bear. Not knowing what to do, the unhurt hunter calls 911 for help.
'My friend was just attacked by a bear!' he told the dispatcher, 'I think he's dead!'
'Okay,' the dispatcher said, 'The first thing I need you to do is make sure he's dead.'
There was a gunshot over the line.
'Okay, now what?' the hunter asked."
Beast Boy waited for what seemed like an eternity before he heard the unmistakable sound of giggling from the brown haired girl.
"That was... horrible!" Vivian exclaimed, finally looking up to reveal her eyes swollen and puffy, freckled cheeks stained with tears. But she was smiling. "I'm... I'm s-sorry. I just... I get laughed at all the time. I guess I'm just oversensitive." She sniffed and took a napkin to dry her tears.
Beast Boy couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief and offered a sympathetic smile. "Hey," he said gently, "Don't worry about it. You might not believe this, being as I'm the big hero and all, but I get laughed at a lot too."
Gray eyes widened in surprise, "You do?"
"Yeah," Beast Boy said with a sincere nod, "So what I try to do is make it a joke. It doesn't hurt as much when it's all a joke, y'know?"
Vivian paused, considering this advice before smiling, "Wow, thanks. No one ever... cared enough to give advice before. Maybe I'll try that. Making it all a joke. Thanks."
"No problem."
"Beast Boy!" Starfire exclaimed, smiling brightly as she walked up to the table, "I have found you! I believe we should return to the tower now."
The green titan looked at Starfire and smiled wryly, "Had enough of the museum, eh?"
"No," admitted the alien, "But I decided that I would like to share this experience with someone and that it wasn't fair to make you wait. I will simply return once Robin is back from the city of Gotham." Her green eyes turned to Vivian curiously.
"Oh! This is Vivian," Beast Boy said by way of introduction, motioning to the brown haired girl opposite him, "I, uh... just ran into her. Vivian, meet Starfire."
Vivian's still tear stained face lit up as she smiled broadly, "Oh, wow! Two of the titans in one day! This must be my lucky day! Too bad I can't legally buy a lottery ticket."
Beast Boy smiled then stood, leaving his half-eaten salad at the table, "Well, I guess we better go now. See ya around, Vivian."
Vivian's face fell, a sad expression crossing her features, "Yeah. I guess. It was nice meeting you."
A pang of pity welled up inside Starfire as she looked at Vivian's deflated state. Suddenly, she smiled broadly, "I have the most glorious idea! Why don't we take Vivian back to the T-Tower? She may meet the others and partake in some gaming of the video."
Vivian sprang to life once more, her eyes widening and sparkling like stars, "Oh, wow, really?! Oh wow, that'd be... that'd be GREAT!"
For his own part, Beast Boy looked at Starfire with a note of surprise but grinned lopsidedly, "Hey, that's a great idea, Star. Well, as long as she's up for it. Are you, Vivian?" He passed a sidelong look over to the bespeckled girl.
"I wouldn't miss it for the world!" Vivian exclaimed, practically jumping out of her seat, "I must be the luckiest girl in the world!"
As the three exited the museum, the discarded shake that Vivian left on the table began to tremble lightly. Suddenly, it tipped and spilled it's contents all over the floor a split second before a man carrying a tray loaded with food crossed the area. With a cry of surprise and a crash, the man slipped on the spilled beverage, sending a cascade of food everywhere and landing hard on his back.
