13. True Colours

He was sitting on the bed. So it was here he was going live for the next couple of moths. It was much like home in Gotham, since the school was very western inspired due to the high number of foreign students. Almost the only Japanese about this school was its name. Well, there were also many of the servants who only spoke Japanese.

He had been lucky. The room he had got was normally only for teachers, but due to very high number of resident students had they had the need to use this for students also. It therefore had some luxury that the students' rooms normally didn't have. One of those was a small balcony. If he stood on his tiptoe he could see the ocean from there. Just a little.

Her heard steps coming up at the long marble staircase. It was the others coming back from their lessons.

"Hey man, the new one has arrived. Should we say hello?"

Terry could feel the boy's nervousness even from the other side of the door. He was afraid of something or someone.

"Nope, ain't that interested."

There was the answer. The voice was cold as ice. Terry could almost feel the chilliness. The boys walked passed his door and went into their own rooms. Shortly after did the dinner-bell ring. Terry took a deep breath. It was now or never, so he went down to the dining hall.

As he came into the dining hall it went quiet. Everybody was starring at the new boy. Anna went over to Terry and found a seat for him beside two fair-haired boys. Nobody talked for the rest of the dinner. It was only around a half hour, but for Terry it felt like it was hours not minutes. They were all just looking down on their own plates with the exception of one. One boy was starring at Terry. He was different that the others. He seemed older and stronger.

A bell rang, and Anna stood up.

"You have maybe already discovered that we today got a new student. I hope you are going to make him feel at home here. His name is Terry McGinnis, and he comes for at city in the States called Gotham. Martin?"

One of the boys next to Terry raised his head.

"Yes, Miss Lee."

"Can you show Terry our school after dinner?"

"Yes, Miss Lee."

o-

"We have the library and some of the classrooms in this end of the building."

Martin pointed at a big two-storey building. He had for the last hour shown Terry around in the maze of the school. The school was much bigger that Terry had thought at the start. He had just thought, that the big mansion, that is first had seen, was the whole school, but he couldn't have taken more flaw. The big mansion was just the font of the school.

"So you come from Gotham?"

"Yeah."

"So have you ever see Batman?"

Terry smiled at little. Martin had through the whole presentation of the school been boring, but now, as he mentioned Batman, was it like there were sparks in his eyes.

"Yeah, a couple of times."

"It's the true that he is…"

Martin stopped in the middle of the sentence and stared at something behind Terry. Terry turned around and recognized the boy from dinner. The one, there had been starring at him the whole time. He and his group of followers came over to them.

"Oh, little Martian, run back to your comics."

Terry cast a sidelong glance at Martin, who had begun to shake.

"Marco, my name is…"

Marco lunged out at Martin, who ran away. He began to laugh.

"It looks like our little Martian has begun to get some backbone."

The whole group of followers laughed, but stopped by a sign from Marco. Marco turned his attention to Terry.

"So, new boy, what was your name?"

"Terry."

"Hem, it's that kin of girlish."

Terry didn't say anything. He knew the type.

"What about Tex as in Texas? Wasn't that were you came from?"

One of the followers stood forward.

"No, Marco, he comes from Gotham. You know the city where that Batman that Martin ...oh, Martian always talks about comes from."

Marco turned against the boy. For a couple of moments did he just look at him and then he began to laugh. The school bell rang as a saviour for the boy.

"That's right, your name should be Batman. Our own little Batman."

Marco began to laugh even higher of his own joke and walked into the building. The group followed their leader laughing.

Terry had been told that the bell meant it was time to do their homework, so he went up to his room. He began to unpack his stuff.

He sat the portrait of the family on the table with a deep sigh. It had been taken on a picnic. Shortly after had his parents divorced, but on this portrait they were happy or at least they looked like it. Back at home had he always kept it in a drawer, but here he didn't have to hide it.

He continued unpacking and soon was only the bag, that Bruce hat given him in the airport, left. He opened the bag.

o-

He put the book down with a deep sigh. He just couldn't find the error, but he knew it was there. There was no way that this arithmetical problem could give that. After a quick look at the notes did he pushed it to the back of the table. He needed a break.

His eyes wandered out in the courtyard. It surprised him how quick he had got so used to being here. He had only been there for around a week and already he felt like home. It was all so easy here. It was all so simple.

A group down in the courtyard caught his attention. Even for up there could he recognized Marco due to his heavyweight building and red winter coat. When it was Marco, then the others must been his gang. Terry was wisely enough to stay away form them all, but it was hard. Marco controlled the school with an iron grip. He was older and stronger that the others because he had been forced to repeat a year or two. Terry didn't know the precise circumstances.

He was about to go back to him homework, when he saw it. In the centre of the group was there a boy. Terry knew it had to be Martin. Marco was always after him, but this time it was different. The gang throw something, that Terry couldn't recognize, around between them. It must have been Martin's, because he jumped around after it. If he came to close in getting it, then one from the gang hit him.

The anger grew in Terry. He took his coat and walked down of the stairs. Just as he came out in the courtyard landed something in front of him. He picked it up. It was a comic. He read the title. It was a comic about Batman. He felt like he had burned his fingers and was about to drop it, when he heard a voice.

"Hey Batman, give it to me!"

Marco was standing in front of him, with his hand outstretched towards Terry. Terry looked at him. Marco looked so strong and determined that Terry had to look away. His eyes dropped on Martin, who was standing alone in the background with pleading eyes. It made Terry look at Marco again - right into his eyes. Then he saw it. With strong and resolute steps did he walk over to Martin and gave him back the comic. For a brief moment a small sunbeam lighted the comic's metallic front up, and Terry saw his own reflection.

o-

He tightened the belt one more time and went into the dojo. All the others were already there including Marco, who ever since the comic book incident had done everything he could to make Terry life a hell.

A woman in a white gi and a black belt came into the dojo. The group of students quickly form a line with the highest belt in front. Terry, who only had the white belt, ended the line. The students bowed for her.

"Oss"

She returned the greeting.

"Unfortunately, I have some bad news. Miss Lee has been in a minor car accident this morning, so she have ask me to take over this class."

Terry had only shortly met Carissa Lee, Anna's sister, but he knew she was very different to her sister. She had in a very young age begun to train karate and had got the fair for it. Most of her life had she used to travel around to the best schools in the world, but now she had ended up here, where she was teaching the karate class.

They warmed up and got divided into small groups of two. Somehow Terry ended up with Marco as a partner.

Outside the dojo came an old man walking by. From time to time did he stopped and fiddled shortly with a plant. As he came to the dojo-door he stopped like he had done so many times before. He enjoyed looking at the young men's training. Many just saw karate as a sport, but for him it was art. His eyes wandered around on the well-known faces. Then he saw the newcomer. He felt the whole world whirling around him. It could not be him! A hand on his shoulder called him back. He turned around and saw his granddaughter. She smiled to him.

"So what do you think about our new student?"

She nodded in the direction of the newcomer.

"I have just come. Where was it you say he came from?"

"Gotham. It is Bruce, who sent him."

"Bruce Wayne?"

"Yes."

They stood in a long time and saw the boys training. The old man's eyes were fixed on the newcomer. The new boy had a hard time with Marco. Marco was the best one of them without doubt, but the newcomer wasn't without talent. Then it happened. Marco hit the newcomer in the face with his fist and sent him to the ground. The old man shook his head slightly. Well, then the boy couldn't be the one. The old man was about to walk away, when he saw the newcomer stand up and continue. It was first, when the blood began to flow down from the newcomer's nostrils, that the boy showed a slightly discomfort. Anna stopped the class and took care of the boy. Back in the door stood the old man. He was now sure. That boy was the one!