Chapter Two
1: 20PM; OCTOBER 15
GOTHAM UNIVERSITY
"It was insane! The guy was pointing his gun at Claire and then his whole hand was just covered in metal that came out of nowhere. He kept going on about there being a meta in the coffee shop." Isaac rambled on as Ana and Claire sat down at the table. The boy he was talking to, Ben, looked at the girls skeptically.
"That didn't actually happen, did it?" He asked them. Ana pursed her lips in annoyance. Of course Isaac would be telling everyone who would listen about the incident the other night. He never could learn to keep his mouth shut about anything.
Claire nodded in response, still too shaken by the events of that night to talk about it. She had taken off work for the rest of the week to recuperate a bit with Ana's help. Unlike the fearless Isaac, Claire had taken quite a mental toll from the attempted robbery. Ana supposed it was the difference between a witness and a person who was actually used as a hostage. She herself was only shaken up by the fact that her powers had been used in front of so many people. It was risky to just do something small and have one person see it. It was even worse when it was obvious in front of a roomful. There were only so many people someone could narrow it down to until they figured out her secret.
A loud cough brought Ana out of her reverie. She glared at Isaac who was looking at her oddly. Had she accidentally done something? Did he see something out of place?
"You know, Ana, you haven't said anything since taking Claire home last night. You okay?" His genuine concern shocked her. Isaac was the kind to make jokes about everything. If he was concerned about Ana it meant she was looking almost as bad as Claire.
Throwing a casual half smile on she responded, "Don't worry about it. I'm pretty sure you're the only one that isn't somehow out of it. Between the robbery, meta, Nightwing showing up, and not to mention midterms coming up I'm surprised I'm even functioning like a human being."
Ben chuckled and leaned forward in his seat. "So there really was a meta there?"
Ana cursed herself for being so stupid as to mention her little display of power even indirectly. She reminded herself that Isaac had already brought up the subject and Claire had confirmed it for him. She wasn't saying anything the all-too-interested boy across from her didn't know already. Casually she shrugged. "Yeah, everyone saw it. The robber's hand got completely covered in metal. One guy's gun even disappeared into the floor."
Ben looked between her and Isaac, his eyes wide in disbelief. Ana couldn't really blame him. Metas rarely let themselves be known, let alone use their powers in public. She knew if she didn't do anything quickly he would start guessing at who it may have been and Isaac would only be too happy to join in on the speculation. Just as long as they keep it away from me.
"Personally, I think it was the girls by the window. Didn't you see that guy's hand get torn apart by nothing? I think they were both metas working together." Ana declared, leaning back in her seat and crossing her arms. Place the blame on someone else, then watch them fall into the trap. It was a tactic she had been using for the past ten months. Ever since she had gotten out of that place.
"Nah, I'm sure it was the guy in the corner. That spot is way too dark to see what exactly someone is doing back there. Maybe he was saying some spells or something. Like Doctor Fate." Isaac took the bait exactly as she had planned.
Fifteen minutes later and the boys had determined that it was likely the girls as Ana had suggested. They had dubbed the pair "the Iron Maiden and Skin Ripper." I'd hate to see what they'd come up with for me. Ana mused as she stood and excused herself before heading off to class. She breathed a sigh of relief as she walked out of earshot from her friends. No doubt the next few days would be spent trying to spot "metas" around the university and coming up with ridiculous names for them. Ana remembered how they had did that very game the last time the boys had heard about a meta being found in Gotham. If she remembered correctly the last one found had been a boy with the ability to manipulate fire. "Pyro" Ben had dubbed him. Two days after his arrest it was announced that he had committed suicide while in Star Labs. Ana didn't believe it.
Who knows, maybe they'd call me 'God' or something like that. She smirked to herself. It was an interesting notion for if she ever decided to give up her freedom for the only kind of job a meta could have that wouldn't drag her to a lab for "rehabilitation."
Her phone vibrated in her pocket. Pulling it out she nearly rolled her eyes when she saw Isaac's name flash across her screen. /What about 'Metal Man' if it was the guy in the corner?/ She sighed and shook her head at the atrocious sounding name. "Iron Maiden" was a far far better name than that. At least it held an intimidation factor due to its association with the ancient torturing device.
She was about to text back when Ana bumped head first into something – or rather someone's back. She stumbled backwards and looked up at the impenetrable wall of flesh and muscle and nearly stumbled when she was met with an all too familiar pair of bright blue eyes set in an equally familiar and handsome face. I guess if everything is going to start going downhill it might as all go at once, huh.
"I am so, so sorry. I wasn't looking where I was going." She mumbled, unsure if the man in front of her could really understand what she was saying. Of all the people in the university she could run into it had to be him. It had to be Dick Grayson, adoptive son of the man that had been responsible for her own ability to attend the school. The one person everyone within the university knew.
Dick looked down at the blushing red head and smiled. "Don't worry about it, I was in the way." The girl looked up at him as he spoke and he mentally swore. It was the girl from the coffee shop robbery, the one that had taken the barista home. She seemed more familiar than that though, as if he had seen her before but he couldn't quite place where. He didn't know if this was fate or just a lucky coincidence that it had been her of all people to run into him. Even now he could see the undercurrent of fear that sat behind her dark grey eyes, nearly swallowed up by the embarrassment of having run into an unmoving person. Why is she still afraid?
"I, um, I should get going. I'm so sorry about walking into you." She stammered out while Dick contemplated what his next move would be. The detective side of him said that she needed to be investigated, that she was the most likely to be the meta that had suddenly become big news in the city. A plan began to form in his mind as he discretely slipped a hand into his pocket only to bring it out a moment later.
"Aren't you in one of my classes?" He asked casually, suddenly recalling the red headed girl sitting in the back corner of his anatomy lab. That was where he had seen her before.
Ana stilled her attempt to leave. She had been sure no one had paid attention to her in her non-art classes. Usually she was invisible to people, her most noticeable feature being her red hair. It wasn't that she wasn't attractive or anything; more along the lines of there were usually more physically beautiful people around her to draw other's attention away. She considered herself to be at least average in the looks department with her loose curls and fairly slender frame with curves that she usually hid beneath button up shirts and tank tops. She hadn't wanted to be noticed, least of all by some billionaire's son.
Dick waited for her to respond, confused as to her sudden stillness and the myriad of emotions in her eyes. Fear, confusion, awkwardness, embarrassment. Had she thought no one would remember her?
"I…uh, maybe. Anatomy?" She reached a hand up to rub at the back of her neck subconsciously.
Then again, a lot of girls act like this. Dick found this to be a far more reasonable explanation as to her behavior. It made more sense for this girl – he really did need to find out her name – was more embarrassed by running into and being remembered by Bruce Wayne's ward than by actually being remembered by anyone in particular. "The one with Ashley as the TA, right?" At the girl's nod he flashed her an easy smile and stuck out his hand. "I'm Dick Grayson by the way."
Gingerly she accepted the handshake. "Anastasia. Anastasia Markovitch." Pulling her hand back she seemed to shrink into herself. "I have to go to class. I uh, I'll see you around." She darted off before Dick could stop her or remind her that they both had the same class next.
Pulling out his phone he typed in a message to a number he had barely used in the last year and a half. Not since he had left the team.
GOTHAM CITY
7:15 PM OCTOBER 15
Ana didn't know why she was feeling so restless. She should have been happy that class had let out early today. She should have been enjoying the evening free of homework and responsibilities. But instead she just felt like something wasn't right, like something was going to happen or that someone was watching her. She fidgeted in her seat, her stomach suddenly disagreeing with the pizza that was her dinner. She glanced around nervously, making sure there was no one there to see her. As far as she could see she was alone.
With a sigh she flicked her hand beside her as if loosely gesturing towards her left. She felt a tingle run down her spine as a bottle of water appeared where nothing had been before. As she drank from it she wondered if she should be using her powers for such a simple task. It wasn't like she was unable to go and buy a water bottle from a vending machine, let alone any of the other stuff she tended to just make. She almost felt guilty for the feeling that she needed to use her powers, as if there was too much energy within her and she needed to let it out even if it was just to make food or water out of nothing.
When she first started experimenting with her abilities she had assumed that it was merely teleportation of whatever she desired that made the objects appear in front of her. She had tried it with several things: a piece of paper, a steak, bottle of wine, a pair of boots. Simple things. But when she had attempted to make a computer appear in front of her she had failed miserably. It seemed it was only basic items she could summon. Then she had tried to make the blue scarf that she was looking at appear before her. Instead of the scarf disappearing and reappearing in front of her she found herself with a duplicate. That was when she knew what it was she was actually doing. Compared to the potential she had a bottle of water was nothing.
Ana started as she heard footsteps make their way toward her bench. Whipping her head up she found a tall blonde girl walking her way clad in tight jeans and a brown leather jacket. She glanced at Ana, then at the empty three quarters of the bench and ambled over. Ana felt a tightness in her stomach at the girl's approach.
"Mind if I sit here?" The blonde girl's voice was slightly rough, though not in a mean way. Ana shook her head and gestured toward the seat, muttering a "go ahead" to her. There was no reason for her to decline the girl the empty seat. Chances were she wasn't going to even pay attention to her.
Ana pulled out her sketchbook, keeping an eye on the girl beside her who seemed to be looking at her phone rather intently. Deciding that the girl beside her wasn't suspicious she flipped to an empty page and focused on the flowers across the sidewalk from her and began sketching. If there was one thing that calmed her down it was drawing. And she certainly needed to calm down. Ana wondered vaguely if she was going through another bout of paranoia. It wouldn't be the first time it had happened. Ever since a year and a half ago she had been subject to fairly random episodes of paranoia. It had been that way since her powers had appeared. The drawing seemed to be the only way she could get her mind off things, almost as if it was a meditation. It was the one time she could create something naturally.
She was nearly halfway done with the drawing when the girl beside her spoke up, her voice interrupting Ana's peaceful focus. "You're Anastasia, right? My friend was talking about you earlier."
"Ah-nastasia." She automatically corrected quietly. She knew it was a common error and one she should have been used to by now, but Ana was rather particular about the pronunciation of her name. Most people read it as Annastasia much as this girl had just now, but truth be told the sound of her name pronounced that way irritated her. She much preferred the softer "Ah" in both her full name and nickname.
"Oh, sorry. I've only seen it typed out." The girl went on in that gentle but gravelly voice of hers.
Ana glanced at her in confusion. She wasn't sure who this friend of hers was that had mentioned her, but she was beginning to feel rather suspicious of the easy recognition by a stranger. Knowledge of her identity was a red flag in Ana's mind. "Who was it, that told you about me?"
Tact may not have been her best quality, but it seemed the girl beside her didn't mind too much. "Isabelle Grant. She said you were in her photo class."
That explained it. Isabelle was one of those people that had a tendency to tell people about every little aspect of her life. She was an excellent photographer even by professional standards, but she name dropped people no one knew about rather frequently. Lately she had been watching what Ana did like a hawk in class, seeming to believe that she could learn a thing or two from her simply because Ana's father was a professional photographer. Of course she would tell her friend about her.
Ana tried to repress the groan that automatically came up at the mention of the borderline fangirl. "Did she ask you to try to get some tips or something out of me?" The words unwittingly came out as a groan anyway.
The girl just chuckled at Ana's reaction. "No, but she did say that if I ever got the chance to meet you she wanted me to ask if you would hang out with her." Ana couldn't tell if the girl was joking or not. "I'm Artemis."
Ana suddenly had a flashback to a similar encounter earlier in the day. It seemed it was the day of meeting people that seemed just a tad too eager to introduce themselves to her. "I'd introduce myself as well, but it seems you already know who I am." Ana said awkwardly.
"Don't worry about it." Artemis waved her hand nonchalantly. "What are you drawing?" She leaned closer to look at the drawing. Ana instinctively half closed the book protectively.
"It's just a flower. One of the pansies over there." She pointed at the little flower bed illuminated by lamp light with her pencil.
"Can I see it?"
Ana frowned. As an artist she often was on the receiving end of this question, and she was never too fond of it. Most people assumed that all art was worthy of their viewing and that they could just look at whatever the person was drawing at any point in the process. Ana, however, hated people seeing her unfinished work (sans Claire, solely due to her being a fellow artist and thus able to appropriately give advice).
"No," Ana responded. "It's not ready to show anyone yet. I'll show you when I'm finished." She added before she could seem rude. So far Artemis seemed like a decent person and Ana was hesitant to make the wrong impression on her.
Artemis nodded in understanding, returning to her phone to let Ana finish her drawing in piece. Some part of Ana was happy to have the company. The blonde girl was certainly less invasive than Isaac and at the moment far better company than Claire (she felt bad for saying such a thing, but she had been taking care of her friend for the better part of the last two days and was in need of a break from the silent and morbid girl. Besides, it was Isaac's turn to help her out). She often forgot that Artemis was even there as she sketched away.
Her phone buzzed in her pocket and Ana paused her work to pick it up and read the text.
/We're coming/
She sat there completely frozen, not knowing how to respond. There was no number attached to the ominous text, no way to track where it had come from or who had sent it. Dread pooled in her stomach as she reread the words. Did they find me? Did they know that it was me that was the meta that night? This was it. She was going to be brought to Star Labs and poked around like a guinea pig until they decided to inject her with the repressing serum, turning her back into a normal person.
In her distress she didn't notice the trickle of power that ran out of her hand onto her sketchbook.
"Um, Anastasia?" Artemis's voice brought her back to her surroundings. She followed the other girl's gaze and nearly had a heart attack at the sight before her. As clear as day and as real as her own body, a flower bloomed from the very spot she had drawn it.
A/N: Originally I had planned for this last scene to be with M'gann, but as I was writing I decided that Artemis would actually get along with Ana the best. Besides that, after Wally disappeared (I refuse to believe that he died) I feel like Artemis and Dick would have the closest relationship considering Wally was Artemis's boyfriend as well as Dick's best friend. They both lost one of the most important people in their lives and I feel that would have made them closer as friends. Also, I just love Artemis's character.
I swear the next chapter will be more action packed. These last two chapters have just been laying the groundwork for everything. And before anyone says that Ana is overpowered she does have limitations to make up for her having the power of freaking creation. Actually, her power was inspired by a conversation I had a few weeks ago over Frozen and Elsa's confusing powers (ice/snow/dresses/life). He suggested that her power is actually creation and that it primarily manifests as ice and snow due to that being the thing she feels connected with the most.
In case anyone is wondering, Ana is pronounced as Ah-nah, like the Ana from Frozen. It's a huge pet peeve of hers whenever someone calls her "Anna"
