Hey everyone, Ubu here. I've yet to try a one-shot, but my muse has fed me an idea that just won't seem to go away.
My great aunt (who knows of my love for old literature and poetry) was kind enough to give me a large portion of her library when she moved into a smaller home and a great many of these books were compilations of sixteenth to nineteenth century poetry. A lot of poems stood out as something that I could use in a story but this one just struck me as fitting.
Now please, I didn't just pick this poem because of the name in the title, but because the imagery I got from this just seemed so right. The poem I chose is titled "The Harp That Once Through Tara's Halls" by Thomas Moore 1779-1852 (Please note that I will not be altering the poem in any way except for the sections I broke it into). If you've read either of my other stories, you know I'm a BBxRae shipper, but we can't ignore the Terra character all together. She was there and played a very important part in the story. This is just my take on how Beast Boy views his relationship with Terra.
Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titan's or any poems written by Thomas Moore. Any characters contained within this story belong to their respective owners with whom I have no affiliation.
Through Terra's Halls
Beast Boy clutched the tightly cloth-wrapped bundle to his chest, careful not to damage it during the arduous descent into the cavern. The raw power of the earth had filled the path down with many obstructions that were difficult to pass while carrying something.
He climbed past another pile of rocks and found himself in The Cavern; The Cavern that all the Titans had come to a week before to lay the plaque and now withered bouquet, The Cavern that they had fought and he nearly died in a day before that. In the end, it had become alive with moving rock and molten lava, making noises the likes of which he hoped to never hear again.
But now, now it was quiet. The sharp contrast made it look like the incident took place years ago. The dust had settled and made it look as if the place had been undisturbed for a long time and the darkness that held everything so perfectly seemed to block out all sound.
The harp that once through Tara's hall
The soul of music shed,
Now hangs as mute on Tara's walls
As if that soul were fled.
He took a few more steps forward, gazing at what he once called a friend. No. This wasn't the girl he thought he knew this was a statue marking her grave, this cavern her tomb. What the Titans said didn't matter; they all knew in their hearts that they could do nothing to change her back. This geomancer would never again try to impress her 'friends' with some elaborate trick.
So many emotions stirred within him, anger, sadness, loss, and hurt to name those apparent. She had been someone he opened up to, someone he dropped the act for, someone he trusted. Maybe someone he loved. He had been used though, like a tool to do a job and nothing else.
He looked to the bronze plaque that he himself had placed at the base of her grave, "Terra, A Teen Titan, A True Friend," and felt a new wave of anger rise in him.
So sleeps the pride of former days,
So glory's thrill is o'er,
And hearts that once beat high for praise,
Now feel that pulse no more.
Could they call her a friend? Did she really deserve the title after all she had put them through?
"Why Terra?" Came his voice with a hint of the anger and hurt she had caused him.
The statue gave no reply, simply standing exactly as it had a week before.
"We trusted you, we took you in and this is how you repay us?"
It didn't matter that she saved the city from the volcano; there never would have been a volcano were it not for her. This girl was prepared to kill him and most probably would have if the others hadn't shown up when they did. She was even uncertain of what to do then.
Was that why it hurt? Was it because she was willing to kill him, or was it because she lied to him?
No more to chiefs and ladies brightThe harp of Tara swells:
The cord alone, that breaks at night,
Its tale of ruin tells.
Her last words to him still rang in his ears, "You were the best friend I've ever had," words meant to atone for what she had done. He took no solace in them though, the only proved to drive the point home that she never felt anything for him in the romantic sense. Not as he did for her.
"Was I not good enough for you? Was the green skinned FREAK just someone for you to manipulate?" His angry voice was echoing throughout the small cavern and made his words sound harsher. "We were you friends but you turned to Slade!"
He didn't even know why he was down here anymore, what had seemed so important that morning had been forgotten despite its being in his own two hands.
"You could have told us, told me, but you decided going along with Slade was a better choice. You stood to gain more by doing his dirty work!" His voice was rising and his grip on the package tightening, a sharp crack distinct to breaking glass, reverberated off of the stonewalls.
The sound reminded him of his original intent, to rid himself of the memories, the keepsakes. His angry demeanor relaxed as he propped the package bound in cloth against her base and gave a final look to the slight figure before him.
"We really could have been friends Terra."
Thus Freedom now so seldom wakes,
The only throb she gives,
Is when some heart indignant breaks,
To show that still she lives.
As Beast Boy exited, the cloth that concealed what he was carrying succumbed to gravity and slid away. A heart-shaped box lay in the darkness, the mirror lid broken into several pieces.
And that was my first short one-shot. What did you guys think? I may or may not attempt this again depending on peoples thought.
I have named the road trip story "Something Like Normal" and you can expect it by Friday (27th of January 2006).
Thanks for taking the time to read my story.
P.S. Was it Beast Boy who placed the plaque? My memory of that episode is a little fuzzy.