Chapter 3: A Midnight Stroll
Rating: T
Date: Monday, December 24, 2018
A/N: This is an extremely short chapter, but I will compensate by posting another one soon (hopefully). Enjoy!
This chapter includes
Danny Street - Danny the Street
Rita Farr - Elasti-Girl/Elasti-Woman
Steve Dayton - Mento
A Midnight Stroll
Garfield slid his hands inside his pockets as he strolled down Danny Street. It had been an exhausting day what with the incident with Raven during gym class, the party after school at Karen's place, and his dinner with Rita and Steve. He grimaced, attempting to dismiss the dinner or at least force it to the back of his mind.
It was nearly midnight and after having a nasty fight with his adoptive father Steve, he sought to clear his mind. It was another meaningless fight dealing with Garfield's future. While he desired to attend a small university on the outskirts of town to study for a career in Zoology, Steve wanted him to attend some prestigious academy in Gotham (there was no way he would study there) with a business major.
As usual, what was supposed to be a normal family dinner ended up a disaster. Rita had attempted to calm them both, but Steve was a stubborn man. He never backed down. As the head of the household, he expected everything to go his way. He expected Garfield to one day take over his successful business. Garfield simply didn't work that way. He refused to follow Steve's orders, as he believed was old enough to make his own decisions. Two stubborn alpha males in one household didn't mix very well together. Things escalated a bit further when Steve ordered Rita to be a "nice wife" and keep quiet. This, of course, had enraged Garfield to no end. He didn't agree with anyone treating a lady in such a way, much less his mother. Then, the worst of it ensued, essentially causing Garfield to abruptly stand up and storm out of the house.
"If Rita and I had been able to birth a child, there would be no use for you!"
The statement inevitably struck a nerve in Garfield. His mother had been speechless, and by the time she had recovered, Garfield was already out of the house. Though Steve and Garfield argued often, he had never gone as far as to say such a thing. He didn't want to admit it—but the statement reopened a buried wound inside his heart.
From a young age, he had blamed himself for his parents' deaths. After all, as a five-year-old child, he had watched helplessly as his parents plunged to their deaths in a horrific boating accident. If Garfield hadn't gotten infected with an incurable disease from a rare species of ape, they would've left Africa sooner. They would've made it home for the holidays that year. They would be here with him right now—supporting his aspirations for his future. Instead, they were buried six feet deep underground. Forever gone. And he was stuck with an adoptive father he constantly fought with and an adoptive mother who could only watch their arguments from the sidelines. He loved Rita, he really did, but sometimes he wished she could be more confronting with Steve. Garfield knew she sided with him, as proved by her customary visits following a particularly nasty fight. She always consoled Garfield: telling him she agreed with him, that she only wanted what was best for his future and his happiness, but she never proved it. She never stood up for him. She remained quiet, only attempting to calm both Steve and him during their brawls.
He plopped down on a bench in the nearby park he liked to visit whenever he wanted to clear his mind. He placed his hands over his face, taking deep breaths and attempting to calm down.
The night was quiet. The only distinct sounds came from the crickets chirping and the owls hooting. The full moon illuminated his surroundings better than the dim lighting from the streetlamps. He closed his eyes, letting the serene environment pacify his turbulent thoughts. He loved nature for that reason. It neither agreed nor disagreed with him. It didn't seek conflict. It just was.
He only opened them when he heard the sound of a trash can falling over. He glanced around the park but couldn't pinpoint the source of the sound. When he focused his hearing, he heard voices coming from an alleyway between two businesses facing the park.
Garfield was naturally a curious guy, and though it was probably a terrible idea considering he was alone in a deserted, mostly dark street during the middle of the night unarmed and without a cell phone, he decided to investigate. Garfield wasn't the smartest.
He peered around the corner and caught sight of two figures. The first thing he noted was that one of the figures was nearly three times the size of the other. The second thing he noted was that the larger figure had the smaller figure pinned up against a wall. And finally, the third thing he noted was their voices. The first voice was clearly a man's voice judging by how deep and gruff it sounded. The second voice was contained and raspy. It was most notably a girl, and she sounded extremely familiar.
"Well? How are you going to call your daddy now to protect his precious little gem?"
"I don't require protection from scum like you. I fight my own battles."
"Do you now?"
Just as Garfield was about to interfere, he heard a loud grunt followed by a resounding thump. His eyes widened when he noticed just how the tables had turned. The petite figure now towered over the man who lied on the ground groaning. Her hood had fallen in the process of whatever it was that happened (too fast for even Garfield to witness), and her dark locks obscured her face. However, the dull lightning from the alley lamp allowed Garfield to notice the purple highlights in her hair.
Raven.
"I wouldn't advise whoever sent you to do it again. Or at least send someone more threatening."
Raven raised her hood, placed her hands inside her pockets, and headed straight towards Garfield, who quickly hid behind a trash can to avoid being caught. He waited for her to walk a considerable distance before following behind. He failed to notice how suspicious he looked stalking a petite girl in the middle of the night. He also failed to notice the fact that she knew she was being followed and was leading him astray into another blind alley.
By the time he noticed, he was already pinned up against a wall (ironically in the exact same position she had been only a few minutes before). Her indigo eyes almost looked black in the darkness of the alley. They stared straight into the trenches of Garfield's soul—as if she could get inside his head and read his most private secrets.
"What do you want?" she spat out before realizing who it was.
"Eh… Hi Raven…" he chuckled nervously, slightly afraid that she would pull one of her ninja moves and knock him to the ground as she did with the man.
"What the hell are you doing following me in the middle of the night?" she posed, though she didn't release him.
"Uh, I'm not very sure myself…" he answered weakly.
Raven scowled, "You do realize how creepy it is to follow a defenseless girl in an empty street at twelve in the morning?"
"Well, yeah, but you're not a defenseless girl…" he pointed out, referring to the scene he had watched unfold. However, he then realized the grave mistake he had made pointing out how he was essentially spying on her.
Raven gritted her teeth, and she hesitantly pulled away. "The next time I see you following me, I won't be as merciful," she muttered. Then, she turned on her heel and walked towards the alley exit.
"Wait!" he quickly exclaimed.
She stopped, but she didn't turn to look at him.
"Who… Who was that man?" he stammered. "And why are you walking outside alone so late at night?"
"One, that's none of your concern. Two, I could ask you the same."
After a second of silence, he realized she was waiting for a reasonable answer.
"I just wanted to clear my head…" he replied quietly, recalling his fight with Steve.
"Same," she murmured before disappearing around the corner.
When Garfield exited the alleyway, she was gone, unsurprisingly. He sighed before making his way back home. During his whole walk back, the mysterious girl invaded his thoughts. Dozens of questions about her stormed his head. Why was she out so late? How did she act so calmly during her confrontation with whoever that man was? Where had she learned those fighting tactics? What was she hiding behind those ominous, detached, and beautiful indigo eyes?
But the most intriguing question of them all—who was Raven Roth?
A/N: I was going to keep going, but I actually like ending it there. Anyways, remember to post your challenges in the reviews! And please, those who follow and favorite, reviewing doesn't take a lot of effort. I really enjoy reading them!
Rachxel - You'll find out soon enough! I have a lot of ideas for her background. They're all currently jumbled up, so I'll see where it takes me. And thank you!