Chapter II: Emergence


After the school bell rung, it was all but a quick walk to "home". In fact, "home" stretched such a distance away from school that by the time I reached "home", I shivered in the severity of the cascading rain. But how was "home" defined? In my previous life, "home" used to be the Titans Tower. And now, "home" was a foster shelter for the "home"-less. It doesn't matter now, though, I don't even know the Titans.

"Good afternoon, Dara." Martha, my familiar caretaker, greeted.

Dara was my name in the foster household and at school. Though I knew what I established, I always grimaced at the sound of my falsified identity.

"You pronounced it wrong. It's Dara. Rhymes with Terra."

Martha stood speechless, just squinting at me as if in deep thought and deliberation.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Dara….but..I" was all I heard before I walked out on Martha. I threw my backpack upon the floor blowing away multiples of my paper cut-outs of Beast Boy from the local newspapers. It proved a curious habit that grew on me and needless to say : it definitely surmounted high on the abnormality level. Quite a few eyebrows rose as rumors spread about my supposed hobby. My paper cut-outs incorporated all the little and subtle information about Beast Boy's heroic acts and I kept them furtively away from view as a memorabilia. So far, nobody could confirm their existence but me. However, my obsessions were full of bipolarity – I wanted to disregard my past and yet I continued to accumulate occurring news on the Titans. It was a fact that this fascination proved my insecurities about my decisions but I paid no regard. I knew the prudent and sensible caretakers whispered behind my back debating about my sanity if these rumors were true, but it simply didn't matter to me anymore. That had always been cut and dry since my arrival at the foster's home. I've always been the odd one out. I remember.

"Say, don't you look like that superhero chic, uhhh, Farah?" one would say to me on the first day I arrived.

"Don't you look like that statue girl who was in the cave" another would question.

"That blonde girl sure looks familiar. And by familiar, I mean creepy" I heard others comment to their friends.

I knew the apprehensive teachers of the school watched me in the corner of their eye. Some even progressed to the point that they would scout for me in order to discern my acquaintances. I was also familiar with the fact that the wary principal of Murakami School had tabs on me waiting for any abnormal behavior so that I could be expulsed.

I lied down staring at the ceiling, reminiscing about my previous incidence with Beast Boy and the caretaker. It would take a while, but people would accept me for who I now am.

Thump. Thump. Thump

I glanced sideward at the closed door. Apparently, leaving me alone without bombarding me with questions wasn't adequate.

"Come in" I replied reluctantly knowing I would regret my decision.

"Dara, here's the daily newspaper that I know you love to read."

"Thanks, Martha"

"I folded the page about the Titans for you" my caretaker replied deliberately to see my reaction

"Thanks."

But as she opened the door, her eyes caught the messy cut-outs and clips of Beast Boy that I so foolishly made conspicuous when I glanced at.

"Oh, that, um, I can explain, Martha."

"You needn't. I understand."

With that, she backed out from my room and silently closed the door as if she were frightened by the assumption or the prospect that I would pounce on her like a wild beast any second.

I skimmed the briefings of occurrences and miscellaneous happenings until I came across the tabbed page that headlined "Titans Back and Better".

Recently, the Titans have been spotted at their Tower once more. It's safe to say that they have come to honor their promise of protecting the city. When, asked upon the reasons of their abandonment of Jump City, their team leader, Robin, replied:

"No matter what the cost, we will always defend Jump City. We've been there when Slade attacked, we've been by your side fighting Brother Blood, we were here battling Trigon and we never ran out when Terra took over. There's absolutely no reason that we would run out on Jump City now."

With the Tower once more active, we can be sure to thank Robin and his team for securing us a safe sleep in the streets of Jump City.

My heart stopped at the mention of my name. Not only was my name stated by the Titans in quotes but with slander accompanied. I fell back onto my mattress depressingly not knowing why. Though my new life was adapted, the Titans always ripped a part of my heart from me.

Thump!

I looked sideway at the door again. I prepared to tell my caretaker to leave me alone.

Thump!

Ignoring the second attempt to catch my attention, I laid motionless on the mattress staring at the ceiling. I gasped. A man in an iron mask glared at me through the ceiling window.

It was Slade. The man had come back – for me. A panicked emotion struck me. The moment before I closed the door in my geometry class flashed back to me. Though I realized the mistake I made when I walked back home, there was nothing I could do to stop Slade from staring at me through the ceiling window. His crouched position resembled one of a beasts' preparing to strike.

CLAANGGGG

The ceiling window shattered as Slade struck it with his bo-staff and landed feet-first in my room. Swiftly and unaccommodatingly, one hand pressed me by the neck and pinned me to the wall. In a futile endeavor, I placed both my hands on his arm attempting to remove it from my neck.

"Stupid girl, if you thought for one moment that you could escape me by pretending I didn't exist, you're sadly mistaken." Slade's voice hissed in an all-too-familiar voice.

"Who…are…you? I think you've got the wrong girl." I breathed out with the same expression I used on Beast Boy as I began to feel faint.

"Don't try to play that game with me, my dear. As an apprentice, you need to learn your place. You know damn well who I am. And I'm here for retribution …. for vengeance! And now that you've made the mistake of telling the Titans to stay away, you're defenseless and weak! And I made sure he won't see you ever again.

My eyes turned furious yellow and my hand started glowing with power. I gasped and covered my eyes with my hands. I could not risk my place in the foster home if I attacked Slade.

"Beast Boy? No, you didn't kill him..beast boy, no." I felt fainter and I knew I couldn't last any longer. Slade, enjoying my psychological torment, increased his grip. My brain wasn't thinking clearly.

"You can't run from who you are. Don't you realize that, dear apprentice?"

"Stop…calling..me…that. I'm..not…your…apprentice.."

"And you're not a Titan either."

"Why..can't...you..let me…forget..?"

"Because, my dear, you did unforgivable things. To be more exact, you betrayed me. And betrayal, earns a definite spot in my book of retribution."

Upon hearing that, I knew I could last no more. And Slade knew it too. His eyes narrowed with malevolent intent as he tightened his grip on my life as well as my throat.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

"Dara, I came to tell you something, dear."

Taken by surprise at the intrusion, Slade released his hand. He obviously didn't want to be caught in a murder scene and he knew as well as I that I would not squeal for it would relinquish my normal life. Jumping through the ceiling window, Slade managed to vanish silently but not before retelling his intentions.

"We'll meet again and soon, Dara."

"Come in" I choked. It felt that Slade had effortlessly drained the life out of me with his cruel and calculating hand. And the worst part, I couldn't even tell anything to my caretakers or they would expulse me from their home in fear that Slade would harm them for being in relations with me.

"Dara, dear, I think it's time for you to go." my caretaker said with downcast eyes. Behind her was the police with guns ready and aimed toward me.

"We know who you are. Hands up. We're taking you to jail." one of the armed policeman commanded.

"You don't understand!"

"You are Terra. End of discussion."

"No, I can explain! I'm Terra but not what I'm not who I used to be!"

"I'll give you a minute."

His hands were firm on the gun that pointed to my face.

"Please, I just want a normal life. I don't want to be a hero or a villain. I just want to go to school and have a home. I just want to live my life normally as possible. You can't do this!"

His finger tensed on the trigger of the gun.

"I can and I will. Time's up."

"No!"

"Hands up! You have the right to remain silent and refuse to answer question. Do you understand?" another policeman commanded.

"Yes…." I knew where this was going and I could not do anything but accept. I would accept but not conciliate.

"Anything you do or say.."

But then, something surprised me.

"No, please, she's only a little girl. She hasn't caused any trouble yet. Please just let the girl go." my caretaker interrupted, "I have no quarry with her at all."

………

…….

I was thrown out into the pouring rain and landed face first in a pile of mud with only my luggage beside me. Where would I go from here? My school clothes were soaking in the curtain of rain. I realized this was it. My ideal outcome of a normal life had just been shattered. The pieces of my falsifications were eradicated and trashed. Though I tried to relive with a new slate, my old life had to revisit and haunt me.

I trudged on the muddy road for some time not caring about the wetness and frigid temperature of the rain nor the pain in my throat. Then, I stopped. I had to give up my normal life because I'll never have one no matter how much I try to forget nor how much I try to change.

Right then and there, I knew where I had and could only go. I continued onward by a muddy path, each step pacing backwards into my old life – the life that was filled with insecurities and improbabilities and no direction. It was also the muddy path to the Tower, to Beast Boy.