(Knock, knock, knock.) Hey!! Hello out there! Isn't anyone reading my fics? Aren't I on someone's Author Alert list? (sniff, teardrop) This makes me sad! But I'll write anyway, to keep persistant. You can't ignore me forever!!!! (ahem) Anyway, here we go!! (By the way, you'll probably figure something out in this chapter, but just keep reading!!!!!)

Chapter 3: The Meditative Realm (the second night)
Merlina went through all the next day thinking about the dream she had and the girl she met. Her curiosity had been begging her to ask Daniel or Raven about it, but her heart of hearts told her this was something she needed to figure out by herself. She remembered what the girl had promised her: "I PROMISE MY NEXT VISIT WILL BE LONGER!"

Merlina hoped it would be; she still had questions for her. That being said, you'd want to know that Lina fidgeted all day playing her music, cleaning, cooking, training, watering her flowers, swimming playing her keyboard on the roof, anything to pass the time and make the day be over already!

Finally, it was 9:30, and Lina had just finished the blueprints for a super-boo-yah-bling-bling boat she was going to ask Cyborg to help her build. Then Robin brought back a new movie, and they all gathered to watch it. Halfway through, Lina fell into a grateful sleep on her big brother's shoulder. Jackie Chan faded, Dan Ackroyd was a blur, and Halle Berry didn't even exist. Merlina let go of any memory except herself as she slipped away into oblivion of reality.

She was back in the rose garden, in the very center. There, sitting on the rock in the middle of the floor, was her visitor, the girl with blonde hair and blue eyes. This time, she was holding two yellow roses. She looked up when Lina got to her, and stood up, smiling.
"Hi," she greeted her.
"Hey!" said Lina.
"Here," the girl said, offering her a rose. Remembering what happened last night, she asked, "Um, if I take that from you, are we going to disappear again?"
"Probably," answered the girl. Merlina got an idea.
"This is a dream," she said, "Can I control where we go?"
"I don't know," responded the girl, "I've never done this before."
"Hmm..." said Lina thoughtfully, "Let's see if we can go to my Meditative Realm."

As she took the flower, a light flashed, and the two girls appeared back in the rolling green valley with the willow tree, stream, and full-mooned purple sky. Lina and her friend sat on one of the hills dotted with wild flowers in random spots. The wind blew through their hair and lifted the hems of their dresses, revealing their ankles. The blonde spoke first.

"I suppose you're wondering who I am, huh?" she asked.
"Not just that," Lina blurted out, "I want to know how you're able to come to me in dreams, 'cause you're certainly no one I've ever dreamed up. You're a real person. Why are you here, and what's up with you and my roses?"

The girl smiled at the rose she was holding, sighed sadly, and asked, "Did your friends ever tell you about a girl who used to be a Titan?"

Lina answered, "First of all, let me tell you my name: Merlina Rose. And yes, my friends told me they once had a Titan named Terra. She was fun and out-going and happy and could control the earth, and she actually dated Beast Boy. (Girl blushed) But after a few weeks, something went wrong. She'd been the wolf in the fold all along. She sold out the Titans' secrets to Slade, joined him on the dark side, and broke Beast Boy's little heart. Since then, then Titans wanted nothing to do with her. But in the end, she turned out to truly be their friend when she sacrificed herself to defeat Slade, once and for all. (Don't flame me for this, okay?!)

Robin told me they were looking for a way to free her...but I have yet to find her, wherever she is." Merlina looked sadly at her flower, and was about to say something else, but she saw the girl, who looked extremely troubled. Lina sensed guilt from her aura and asked, "Friend?"

The girl closed her eyes, and a tear fell on her rose like a pearl on a silk pillow. The minute it fell, guess what happened? No, not another flashing light. Once the tear fell, the scenery and the blonde girl became a watery blur all around Merlina.
"Friend?" she reached out to her, but couldn't feel her.
"I'll be back tomorrow night, Lina," the girl promised, "then I'll tell you everything." Then everything faded to white, and Merlina woke up with the sun streaming in through the pink curtains on her canopy bed. Everything looked watery when she opened her eyes. When she rubbed them, she found they were wet. Either she'd been crying, or her new friend's tear had affected her somehow.

A/N: Okay, so y'all have pretty much figured out who this girl is. You're not idiots; either that, or I'm not a very good mystery writer. But just go along in the questioning, because Lina doesn't have a clue as to who she is YET. L8R!!!

Kindest Regards,

samuraistar