A/N: Hey guys! So after these two parts, this story is going on hold (or until the co-author tells me what he's doing for the villain's side). If I do not get in contact w/ the other author, I think I might just plan my own story for this. I liked where I was going with it. Anyways, these next two parts are introducing our next and final team member. And the person who created, I know, has been waiting for soooo long to see her in action (please forgive me, I know you've been waiting patiently!).

By the way, I have an idea for a kind of filler chapter for this. Maybe I'll write it next before part two of Talia's arc. Or maybe as a one-shot. Idk. We'll see.

Without further ado, enjoy~!

She was never allowed in the basement. Every time she tried, she would be scolded immediately, saying that it was dangerous and she could get hurt. Not like it matters now, her parents weren't here to scold her anymore.

Her uncle now takes their place, and still refuses to let her see what's beyond the basement's door. Luckily, he was called to work and had left her with Millicent, the kind old lady who lives down the street and babysits her from time to time. When Millicent had passed out on the couch of the living room, she decided to find out what was the big secret hiding in the basement.

She slowly crept down the stairs, careful not to make to much noise and wake Millicent (then again, not even a barking dog with a blow horn could wake her). She tightened her grip on her stuffed bunny, not liking how dark it was becoming, the flash light held in her other hand was her only source of light.

After what seemed like forever, she got to her last step. She released a breath she did not know she was holding. She looked up at the dark hallway, flashing her light to the end of it, where a lone door stood.

She swallowed the lump in her throat. Now for the scary part.

All she had to do was go through this dark hallway and to that door, then she was home-free. No problem... She took a deep breath and puffed out her chest. This is no time to be scared! She's made it this far, might as well see through it to the end. Shakily, she took her first step in the dark hallway. The path seemed to get longer with each step. Her breathing became louder and louder. She tried not to think about the monsters lurking in the shadows around her.

And finally, the door was in front of her, and she could not open it fast enough. Or at least tried to. The door would not open; it was locked. She could already feel the tears prickling at her eyes. Her breathing became shallow and labored as her eyes darted around each shadow and she could have sworn faces were beginning to appear amongst them...

She took short breaths, trying not to have an asthma attack. She'd rather not die down here... She shook her head. Don't panic, think. What can she do to open the door...? The grip on her bunny tightened.

Wait, bunny...!

She felt around the ears of her stuffed bunny, trying to locate the bobby pin she had stuck on there. At last, she found two and turned to pick the lock. She grinned victoriously when she head that click on the other side, signifying her success. 'Thank you, Daddy, for your trick to open the locked cookie pantry.' She thought silently to herself.

With a newfound hope, she twisted the doorknob and pushed it open, swinging with ease. "Lights on," she said, waiting for the lights to turn on. But it didn't. She blinked. Her whole house was operated with a voice activation system. She shined her light towards the walls. Maybe there was an ID scanner or something that she needed to hack into in order to turn on the lights.

As she searched around, she found only a small switch beside the door's frame. Praying that it was harmless, she flipped it up and watched as the room lit up around her.

'Huh, weird.' She thought to herself. You would think that with all the advancements in technology in the past two decades, these little guys would be extinct. But here they are, still well and operating.

She turned off her flashlight and connected it the loop of her belt. Her gaze swept across the room searching for something big and mysterious. But there was only boxes stack on and against each other, an old 2000's computer in the corner, a dusty couch, and a huge, towering book shelf.

She began her search with the boxes, but all she found were her old clothes that no longer fit her, her mother's old china plates that were used only for special occasions, her mother's old wedding dress, photo albums, a few worn out pairs of shoes, and old microscopes and glass beakers. She checked under the couch. Maybe the secret was hiding?

She didn't even try with the computer, knowing that it looked barely functional, what with the cracked screen and it's power cord missing. She came up with nothing after an hour of searching. Her shoulders slumped in disappointment. She could feel the tears prickle at her eyes, threatening to pour down her cheeks.

She turned to stare at the towering book case, one framed photo of her parents and her at the beach three summers ago. She was only five, and one of her front teeth was missing. She remembered the salty sea air and the warm sand between her toes. She remembered being excited to put on her new green bathing suit since this was her first time at the beach. She remembered her mom carrying her into the water and building a sandcastle with her dad.

Her chest tightened with grief as the memory overwhelmed her with sadness. Without her consent, a stray tear made its way down her cheek, and she quickly wiped it away. She grabbed onto the photo to remove it from its place on the shelf, but it would not come off the shelf. Instead, it was pulled out slightly, and she stepped back just as the book case swung open. Her eyes widened. The big secret!

She took a step towards the open door, excitement bubbling up in her stomach as she thought of the endless possibilities of what was hiding behind it. Maybe it was a present they had left for her upcoming birthday that they wanted to hide from her! Or maybe it was that swing set her dad promised to build.

But the room she stepped into did not have a present nor a swing set waiting for her. Her stomach dropped as the room lit up around her as she flipped the light switch.

No, not a room.

A laboratory.

She was startled awake, sitting up in bed. The creme walls and light carpeted floors were an unfamiliar sight. She lifted a hand to her head, feeling the oncoming headache approach. Where was she?

"Are you okay?" She jumped and spun her head to Portal, which did not help her headache. She gripped the sides of her head and groaned in pain. "Don't move around so much." He told her gently, reaching out for her.

Noticing this, she tried to subtly move away from him and keep her distance. He saw this and brought his hands back to his side, disappointment evident in his eyes. The look he gave her made her heart clench in guilt, but she could not come up with a reason as to why that happened.

They stared at each other, the tension in the room becoming thick and uncomfortable. Portal rubbed the back of his neck. "Did you- uh- remember anything, Apparition?"

She frowned slightly. Her name wasn't Apparition (is that meant to be a nickname or something? It sounds more like a gang nickname...), but she couldn't help but respond to it. Like it was her name.

Slowly, she shook her head and watched his shoulders slump. For some reason, she didn't like seeing him so upset. "I-I'm s-sorry." She said quietly. He straightened up and shook his head vigorously.

"No! Don't be sorry. Things like this take time," he reassured her and made a move to grab her hand unconsciously like he usually did to comfort her, only to pull back. He knew she wouldn't like that, it was pretty obvious in the way she cowered away from him when she woke up.

All the while, she was trying to figure out what she was doing here. Oh god, was she in one of those human trafficking rings? The ones where people are sold off to people and treated as slaves. The thought makes her throat dry up in fear.

But this guy, Portal (seriously what kind of name was that? Did his parents hate him or something?), seemed to look at her with such gentleness, as if she were someone close to him. But that's impossible. She would have remembered meeting a guy named Portal...

Then again, this group didn't really seem like bad people. If anything, they were just a group of misfit teenagers. She's pretty sure they were only about sixteen years old.

She let out a soft whimper. All she wants to do is go home to her Uncle and mourn in peace. After all, the incident was only two weeks ago... Wasn't it? Or was it last month? Who was she even mourning for? What's today's date? Somehow, she couldn't even recall how old she was. Was she drugged and the drugs made her have memory loss? Is that why she couldn't remember anything? She sighed in frustration.

Why couldn't she remember? What was she forgetting?

"Is she awake? I brought food," the other girl, Hawk (seriously, what are with these names?), asked, bringing in a lap table with a plate of food. The smell of melted cheese and bacon made her stomach growl out loud. She felt her cheeks redden in embarrassment. Hawk gave her a small smile before passing the food to her. She wasted no time digging in, picking up the piece of bacon and shoving it into her mouth.

The other guy, Brawler, stepped into the room, leaning on the doorway. "So, amnesiac, do you mind telling us what you do remember?"

She swallowed the piece of bacon in her mouth, taking a moment to ponder what she did remember. "I-I have an U-uncle." She stuttered. Though she said that, she could not even conjure up an image of how he looked like in her mind. "H-he's waiting for me... I think..." But where?

The three shared a look. Portal asked, "how old do you think you are?"

"Nine," she paused, squinting a little before shaking her head. "No, wait, eight. No, no. Ten... No, I change my mind again, I'm nine. Final answer." She answered honestly, as she began playing with her food with her fork. Portal just blinked in surprise.

"She's lost that many years?" Portal mumbled to himself, which she caught. She quirked her head to the side.

"W-what year is it? H-have I been in some kind of coma?" She shrunk back in her seat. "O-or h-have you guys really k-kidnapped and d-drugged me?"

They all vigorously shook their heads. "No! God, no! You're with us willingly!" Portal cringed inwardly at his own words.

"When you put it like that, it sounds like we did kidnap her and that she just gave us her permission!" Hawk scolded Portal. She turned back to her and gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder. "We didn't drug you either. You were in some kind of... Accident that seemed to have caused memory loss. We're your friends."

Her eyes widened with hope. "Then you must know my Uncle! Is he here? Where is he?"

Hawk frowned, immediately bringing her hand back to her side. "Sorry, but when we met you were already separated from your Uncle. We can't possibly know." Her shoulders slumped with disappointment, though, she was not as sad as she thought she would be.

"How about your name? Do you remember it?" Brawler asked, taking a seat beside Hawk. She rolled her eyes.

"Of course I know my name! It's-" She paused, racking her brain for the answer. It should have been the first thing to know. Why couldn't she remember her own name? "It's..." She trailed off, unable to answer. Frustrated tears stung at her eyes as she wracked her brain for the answers only to come up empty. She hated not remembering who she was.

"Hey, it's ok. You don't remember, it's not your fault." Hawk told her gently. She took a deep breath. "What's the last thing you remember?

Losing her appetite, she put the plate of food onto the desk beside her as she thought. She recalled her dream from before. "... Mommy and daddy had a secret laboratory in our basement," she stated quietly. The three raised an eyebrow in confusion. "I wasn't allowed down there. Oh no, did Uncle not want me because I disobeyed him? Is that why I'm here? To be punished?!" She panicked slightly.

"Woah, woah. Calm down. You're not in trouble. We already told you, we don't know your Uncle. You're not being punished." Brawler stated, just as she being to cry.

"I-I-I didn't mean to go d-down there. I-I only w-wanted to k-know why they w-wouldn't let me g-go there..." She sobbed, her fear and anxiety getting the best of her. She was scared and felt more alone than usual. She couldn't help but burst out crying when under such pressures. The three began to panic as well, seeing as they tried to comfort her the best they could.

"It's okay-"

"We're not going to punish you-"

"Calm down, we'll get through this-"

"I j-just want t-to go h-home," she cried, curling into herself. She brought her knees to her chest and rested her head on top of them as she cried silently.

"She lost approximately six to seven years of memories worth," Portal stated, taking a seat on the couch downstairs. Hawk decided that the three had overwhelmed Apparition too much and told the two boys to wait downstairs so she could settle her down.

"Maybe we should go find that O'Malley person. Who's to say they can't help us?" Brawler said with a shrug. "It can't hurt to try."

"But it will cost us. Whether it be money or the risk of our mission being revealed to a bunch of civilians. Or worst, our identities being revealed." Portal said, as he leaned his head back onto the back of the couch. He covered his eyes with one arm.

Soft footsteps were heard going down the steps. The two turned to look at Hawk, descending down the stairs. "I got her to settle down. She wanted to be alone for a little."

Portal opened his mouth to say something when the doorbell echoed through the house. They each looked at each other, the distressed look on Hawk's face notified that she was not expecting anyone. Silently, she gestured toward the stairs and to Apparition's room. They nodded, and Portal quickly opened a black hole to the room.

Not waiting to watch them leave, Hawk removed her mask, hiding it inside her jacket, which was quickly placed into the closet. She looked down at her attire and cringed slightly at her skin tight pants and bandeau top. 'This will have to do. Let's hope it's not an old woman.' She thought to herself as she opened the door.

Fortunately, it was not an old woman. Unfortunately, it was a young policeman. He was pretty lanky and looked about 21 years old. The vibe around him basically screamed he was new to the police squad.

Inwardly letting out a sigh of relief, she gave him a small embarrassed smile. "Something I can do for you, officer?" She asked, her voice taking on an innocent yet husky tone. The young policeman gave a noticeable gulp when he saw who had opened the door. Hawk couldn't help but smirk in her head. Got him.

The young policeman cleared his throat. "Um, yes. Are you Kathryn Blaze?" Hawk blinked at him innocently.

"Yes, I am. Is there a problem?" She asked, thinking over her mind of anything that would cause the cops to turn their attentions to her.

"Actually, yesterday, we found a motorcycle in an abandoned warehouse, which was where an explosion seemed to have happened. We ran the license plate numbers in the database, and it was tracked to you Ms. Blaze. I was sent here to take you in for questioning."

"Questioning? No need, officer. To tell you the truth, my bike was stolen two days ago. I've been searching for it ever since. You know how it is here in Gotham City." She explained as she fluttered her eyelashes. "I was just on my way to call it in with the cops, but since you're here, you can take me to her?"

She applauded herself and her great acting.

She was just about to lie back down and take another nap when a black hole appeared in front of her bed. She watched as the two guys, Brawler and Portal, stepped out of it casually. Naturally, she opened her mouth to scream, but Portal was too quick for her. His hand quickly covered her oncoming screams, his eyes frantically darting to the door before landing back on her.

"App, please don't scream," her eyes widened in terror as she felt herself freeze in fear. She could feel her heart pound against her chest- whether it be in fear or panic, she wasn't sure- as a million thoughts flooded through her mind. What was going on? Are they going to take her to some other place? Was she about to be sold off to some perverted rich guy? She could feel the fear-stricken tears well up in her eyes.

Portal seemed to also notice the tears because he released the hand covering her mouth. She brought her hands to her mouth to cover up her sobs. Portal grabbed her face, wiping away the tears from her eyes. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you. I'm sorry," he whispered to her gently, trying to soothe her anxiety.

She looked up at him, her fear evaporating and a sense of security overwhelming her. Why is it that she felt so safe with him when she knew nothing about him?

He continued to stroke her face with his thumbs even when the tears stopped flowing down her face. "I need you to calm down, okay?" When she nodded, he continued, "there's a cop downstairs. If he sees me and Brawler, he'll bring us to jail and you too. I'm not going to let that happen. Since you don't look like your normal self, you can't be caught as easily. I need you to just act like a sick person who's bedridden. Can you do that for me?" He asked her gently, peering into her eyes with desperation and worry.

Her mind was telling her that this was the perfect chance to get away from these three freaks who kidnapped her. But for some reason, her heart was telling her to trust Portal and try to avoid getting caught by the cop.

Before she could respond to him, the three in the room heard voices that were coming up the stairs...

"Is it really necessary to search my house? Don't you need a warrant for this?" Hawk asked, inwardly panicking as they approached the second floor.

Officer Jones removed a piece of paper from his back pocket. "Here's the search warrant." He tells her, grinning as if to show off how prepared he was.

Hawk cursed in her head. Amateur policemen always wanted to show off to their bosses, so, of course, he's prepared. "Oh, that's great!" She exclaimed with a faux-cheerful voice. She tried to make sure that her lip did twitch in agitation.

One by one, Officer Jones inspected each room, opening closets, looking under the beds, checking the walls. There were only four rooms on the second floor, one being a bathroom and another being a closet for towels and bed sheets. They finally approached the final room, the room where Apparition was currently resting in. Officer Jones reached out to twist the doorknob, but Hawk interfered.

"Um, wait!" Officer Jones paused to look at her, eyeing her suspiciously. Hawk bit her lip, trying to think of an excuse. "My- uh- cousin is sleeping in there! She has the flu, so..." She explained, hoping he would buy it.

And for a second, it looked like he did buy it. His hand pulled away a little before he grabbed the doorknob again. "I'll just peek in for a few seconds."

With that said, he twisted the knob and opened the door and put his head in...

Only to find it was exactly like Kathryn said it would be. There in the single bed was a teenage girl laying in bed with her back turned to them. The girl coughed hard, sounding like she was about to cough up a lung. She grabbed a tissue from the box sitting on the table beside her before proceeding to blow her nose loudly.

"Cuz, a policeman is here to just check around the place for some criminals. Hopefully, we're not bothering you," Hawk glanced at the officer in question, giving him an accusing look. Her said "cousin" just waved them away with a tissued hand.

Kathryn expected him to shut the door and leave but was disappointed when he took a step forward. "I'll just check around the room-"

The body on the bed sat up right and grabbed the nearby trash can while proceeding in gagging and making puke noises. Kathryn inwardly sighed in relief. Who knew an amnesiac could be a good actress?

She glanced at the officer, who paled, scrunching his nose in disgust. He quickly took a step back and closing the door shut. Kathryn gave him a nervous chuckle. "Sorry you had to see that, Officer Jones. I'm pretty sure it's from the restaurant we ate at last night. She's been in bed all morning, and I've been her slave since then." Hawk tells him.

She waited for their footsteps to disappear from the hallway before putting down the trash can, letting out a small sigh of relief. She swung her legs to the side of the bed, making her way to the window. She gently knocked on the glass before lifting it up. She put her head through and saw Brawler and Portal, just barely hanging on the window pane. She giggled down at them, resting her head on one of her palms. "You do know you could have hid in the closet or under the bed?" Portal scowled at her, while Brawler glared at her teasing tone. "Or maybe use your black hole-thingy to teleport out of the house."

"Yeah, yeah. We'll joke about my well-thought out plan later. Just help us up before someone sees us," Portal explained as she reached for his hand and began pulling him up. She pulled, straining to pull him inside.

"I'm a girl! I can't be doing all the work on my own!" She grunted, continuing to pull him in, his body half way through the window. Unfortunately for her, she tripped on the carpet, causing her to fall backwards, pulling Portal inside as well.

"Ow..." She winced, opening her eyes, only to meet with black eyes. She felt her cheeks heat up with embarrassment, but could not turn away from his stare. "I- s-sorry..."

"It's okay," his voice sounding as gentle as a whisper. "Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere?"

"N-no, I'm alright." She whispered, feeling her heart beat erratically against her chest. It felt as if it were about to burst any second.

He made no move of getting off her. He just continued to stare into her eyes, a serious expression forming on his face. "App-"

"Excuse me, lovebirds, there are other people waiting to get out from hanging out the window." Brawler says, lifting himself onto the window pane. Portal shot up off of her, his cheeks lightly tinted. He stretched out a hand, offering help to her. Without any hesitation, she grabbed onto his hand and let him pull her up. When she realized what she had done, she immediately pulled back her hand as if his touch burned her. Her cheeks flamed up again.

'It was an unconscious action.' She reasoned in her mind, watching Portal help Brawler out of the window. 'There's no way I trust these guys...' She looked down at her hand, still feeling the lingering warmth of his large hand over her small one. She blushed and shook away those thoughts. 'There's no way...'

"My apologies for intruding, Miss Blaze." Officer Jones tells her as they make their way down the stairs. "You can never be too careful, especially here in Gotham." Hawk offered him a small reassuring smile.

"No problem, Officer. You were just doing your job; I completely understand." She smiled at him before ushering him to the front door. "I'll come by the station later to pick up my bike and pretend this misunderstanding never happened."

Officer Jones smiles back, tipping his hat down. "Have a nice evening, ma'am. I hope your cousin feels better." With that, he turns and walks back to his police car. She waves goodbye until his car turns the corner. She closes the door and lets out a sigh of relief.

Hawk turns around to see Portal and Brawler on the top of the steps. "Before we leave, I need to get my bike at the police station."

Portal gave her a questioning look. "Do you really think that's a good idea? The police could have put a tracker on it or something."

Hawk brushes her blonde hair over her shoulder. "Please, I basically had that officer wrapped around my finger. He'll explain that this was all a misunderstanding, and I'll pick it up later. We can check for a tracker before we leave," she gives them a look, "how's my sick cousin?"

"She's confused and slightly worried." Brawler tells her truthfully. Hawk rolls her eyes.

"Of course she is. Anyone would when people you don't know lie to the cops," Hawk says, dropping down on the couch.

"We should think of leaving soon." Portal tells them, turning to go back upstairs. "I'll let Apparition know."

She scowled down at the source of her problem. She continued to pick around it. She was never good at this. Her eyes narrowed, she concentrated at the knot at hand.

No, seriously a knot. The source of her problem was a knot. She was currently trying to untie the knot in her cape. Why did she need a cape anyways? Did she suddenly turn into a cosplayer in the three years that she has lost? Why was she trusting these people? Was her Uncle okay?

All these questions swirl around her head, and, yet, she still had no answers to any of them. The only answers she's gotten from these people are that they're her friends and that she should trust them. Like she was that stupid. Her parents always taught her to never trust strangers. These people were strangers.

And metahumans. Can't forget that. Her parents always told her about them. How, back in the day, there were good metas and bad metas. Then the law was created that basically made them all go extinct.

"It was a shame," her father used to say, "the Teen Titans were made up of metas, and they did nothing but save the world on a daily basis."

Her mother would nod her head and add, "Let's not forget their humans too. It's implied in the name. They just have really special talents."

"But my teacher said they're dangerous," she herself mentioned.

"Sure, there were some bad seeds, but that doesn't mean the whole apple is rotten." Her mother would state.

'Mother, how I wish I could hear more of your tacky metaphors...' She thought to herself before continuing to untie the knot.

"Here," the cape in her hands was taken from her, and she looked up to see Portal untie the knot. He then wrapped it around her shoulders, tying it the way Apparition would tie it. She couldn't stop the blush from flooding into her cheeks. 'T-too close…'

He adjusted it on her shoulders before noticing their close proximity. He took a stepped back and rubbed the back of his neck.

"T-thank you…" She said, softly. She fidgets uncomfortably, tracing a finger over her cape. She would have thought she would feel silly wearing a cape, but it brought her a sense of comfort. She looked around in search of the other two. "Where's Brawler and Hawk?"

Portal was in the kitchen, packing some canned foods from Hawk's cabinets for the trip. "Hawk went to get her bike, and Brawler went to accompany her just in case something happens."

She glanced over at him, the other source of her worries.

Portal. He was a mystery to her. He gave her a sense of security and paranoia each time he was near. He was always worrying whether she was alright or not. Always hovering over her. Unlike with the other two, who he treated like strangers rather than friends. In fact, they all seem as though they just recently met. But Portal was constantly with her, so that must have meant she was the closest one to him.

Were they maybe related somehow? A distant cousin? Or maybe a childhood friend that she had reconnected in the missing years?

... Wait, no. What was she thinking? He probably is the one who planned this whole kidnapping. Of course he would want to keep an eye on his captive. That's only natural for a kidnapper to do... Then again, he's a little young to be a kidnapper. Maybe a year older than her. Can't judge just by appearance though...

"-ey, are you alright? Do you feel dizzy? Nauseous?" And there he goes again, asking if she was okay.

"I-I'm okay..." She mumbled softly in embarrassment, lifting the hood of her cloak up in hopes of covering her red face. She peeks up at him, and the words spill out from her mouth before she could stop them. "So you guys are metas?"

He stops in his packing and looks back at her. "...Yes, we are."

The questions flow out of her without any thought. "Are you guys evil?"

He shakes his head before turning back to his packing. "Far from it, we're the good guys. Superheroes-in-training if you will."

"You could just be saying that to trick me..." Portal let a small smile curl on his lips that made her heart skip a beat. For some reason, seeing him smile made her extremely happy. Something tells her that he doesn't do that often...

She jumps slightly when she feels his hand on top of her head, stroking her hair softly. "It's good to know that you were a cautious kid." His smile falters and his face darkens as if remembering something sad, releasing his hand from her head. It took everything in her to not grab his hand. "You are a responsible person." He mutters softly.

Not knowing how to reply to that, she continues her rapid fire of questions. "Did you guys kidnap me?"

"No, we didn't." He rummages through the pantry, putting chips and other foods in the nearly full duffel bag.

"Then why am I here and not with my uncle?"

He pauses again before quietly answering, "You never even told me you had an uncle."

"When and where did we meet then if you didn't even know I had an uncle?"

"You were thirteen when I found you in an abandoned warehouse."

"What was I doing there?"

"You were living there." It was her turn to pause and process this. Living there? In an abandoned warehouse? Why? Why was she living in a place like that? Where was her uncle?

But she didn't ask those questions. Instead she asked, "how old am I?"

"Fifteen. You're turning sixteen in August." How well does he exactly know her?

"My favorite color?"

"Electric blue."

"Favorite food?"

"Pasta."

"Do I like chocolate?"

"Occasionally, you're more of a gummy bear lover."

"Favorite ice cream flavor?"

"Oreo."

"Top three places I've always wanted to visit?"

"London, Greece, and Tokyo."

"How many birthmarks do I have and where?"

"One, and it's on your right shoulder."

"And scars?"

"One on your thigh from a biking accident."

Time for the ultimate question. "When did my parents die?" Even she was caught off guard. That's right. Her parents passed away...

Portal froze at the mention of this question. He ran a hand through his hair, slumping his shoulders a bit. "You never told me that either." He muttered to himself, which she caught.

She was bewildered. How is it that he knows so much about her and yet nothing at all? Obviously, they were close for him to even know where her birthmark and scar was...

"Do I not trust you?" Portal slumps against the kitchen counter, unable to look her in the eye.

"I thought you did." He, too, must of realize how little he knew of her personal life.

"Did you trust me?"

"With my life," he stated with conviction. He eyes suddenly darkened in realization. "But I guess we all have our secrets."

The room became tense as a silence hushed over them. Swiftly, she changed the subject. "Favorite fruit?"

He chuckled softly but glad for the subject change. "Strawberries."

"Any allergies?"

"You're allergic to pears."

"Am I clumsy?"

"Very."

"Still shy?"

"You've come out of your shell. More outspoken and talkative. Not to mention bubbly."

She scoffed. "Me? Bubbly?"

"Bubbliest person I know. Could make any rainy day full of sunshines." He glanced at her up and down. "I'm surprised that you're surprised. Are you not usually a bubbly kid?"

She scratched her head. "Talking to people terrifies me. I preferred to stay in the shadows in school."

"It's nice to know you were able to conquer that fear, Apparition."

"Can you please stop calling me that?" Portal was taken aback by her question.

He blinked in surprise. "What?"

"That name, Apparition. What am I, a ghost? I'm alive and human!" She stated with her hands on her hips. Portal stared at her incredulously before rubbing the back of his neck.

"But what else can I call you by?" It was her turn to be befuddled.

"By my name, of course!" She exclaimed as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. In which, in this case, it was. Seriously, he's acting as if he doesn't even-

"I don't know that either." Portal mumbles, feeling slightly ashamed.

She was aghast. How could he not know her name? Did she not tell him her name on purpose? What if she was actually a criminal? No, no. That couldn't be possible. Portal would have known by now. He would have treated her with malice not care. He would have taken her to the police immediately. Because that's just how he is... But how does she know that?

"When we met, you just called yourself Apparition. You refused to tell me your actual name, and, I don't know, the name just stuck, so I stopped bothering you about it-"

Unlike before, her name came to her almost immediately. "Auralie." He stopped his ranting and turned to look at her.

"What?" She felt just as surprised as he was. Earlier she had a hard time remembering her name and now suddenly she remembers.

"M-my name. It's Auralie, or Aura i-if you like..." She said with red-tinted cheeks. For some reason, she felt flustered, uttering her name for the first time in what seemed like years (which it probably has).

Portal was silent for a bit before the corner of his lips tilted upward in a small smile. "Aura it is then." She gave him a bright smile, somehow, very happy to hear her name escape his lips.

Portal frowned, staring at her with a serious expression that made her own smile falter. He reached out to touch her face when suddenly the front door opened. "We're back! Unfortunately, we couldn't beat the rain." Hawk announces as she walks through the front door with Brawler trailing behind. Hawk begins to strain her hair of the water as Brawler does the same with his clothes.

Portal turns away from Aura, organizing the cans in the duffel bag once again. "Good, the sooner we leave the better." He states, zipping up the bag and slinging it over his shoulder. Just before he passes her, Portal grabs Aura's hood and puts it over her head. "Try not to get sick." Her cheeks flush, and she casts her eyes to the ground, mumbling a small 'thanks'.

He offers another lip tilt (her guess is that that's a smile) before turning to the rest of the group. "Let's go find this O'Malley person."

"Achoo!" Talia sniffles. What a random time to sneeze.

"Bless you," her best friend, Alexandra "Lexie" Winter, says. "Coming down with something?" Talia O'Malley shakes her head, pushing the shopping cart down the aisle.

"No, probably just some dust in the air." Talia reassures her, grabbing a box of cereal and putting it in the pile in her cart. She glances to see if Lexie is still talking, which she caught just as Lexie begins to open her mouth and words out her sentences.

"Feeding your gigantic family must suck for your wallet. Every time you go grocery shopping, your wallet is nearly empty by the end of it." Talia chuckles at this.

"Well, having nine brothers and sisters is like having nine hungry lions. They're never satisfied with just one raw piece of meat, they want the whole antelope." Her nose crinkles in disgust. "Okay, that was a terrible analogy for my vegan mind. Let's proceed to speak about Skittles and how we are too far from the candy aisle."

"A whole pack for yourself, right?" Lexie giggles.

"Two whole packs. It's like you don't know me at all!" Talia teases with a smile. Lexie mirrors a grin of her.

"If you eat too much, you'll get diabetes." Talia scoffs.

"What are you, my doctor?" She smiles as she watches Lexi let out a giggle.

"Tease me all you want, but when you start wondering why you can't see your feet any more, don't say I didn't warn you." Lexi comments, making the smile on Talia's face brighter.

"I wouldn't mind you nursing me back to my nutritious self again." At this, Lexi blushes, enlarging the sneer on Talia's face. They head for the cashier, where they pay for the groceries and exit out the front.

"But seriously, I highly doubt that-" She didn't get to finish her sentence as she was interrupted by a loud bang when the automatic doors swung open and hit the girl standing beside it. Talia quickly rushes to the girl's aid, putting down the groceries bags on the floor. "Oh my god! Are you okay?"

The girl sat up, rubbing her head which now nursed a red spot on her forehead. "Maybe I should look up when I'm walking next time... Silly me..." The girl stated a bit drowsily. She opened her eyes, revealing a pale blue color as she blinked away the stars that covered her eyesight.

"Can you stand? Do you need to go to the hospital?" Talia asked, but the girl just shook her head, her dark brown hair swishing back and forth.

"I'm fine... I just need to..." The girl tries to stand, only for the world to spin around her, causing her to tilt backwards. Talia was able to catch her in time before she hit the ground.

"Hey, hang in there-!" Talia stops in mid-sentence, a tingly sensation running up her arm. She could hear the beat of her heart accelerating as the blood pounded against her ears. A chill runs down her spine as a feeling of both dread and anguish flows through her. What in the world-?

Lexi shakes Talia out of her reverie, grabbing onto her shoulder. "Talia, maybe we should take her to the hospital-"

"No!" Talia immediately declines, taking both Lexi and herself by surprise. For some reason, something was telling her that she shouldn't bring this girl to the hospital. Otherwise, something bad will happen... Whatever that means... "I think I'll take her home, it's quicker."

"But she could be an axe murderer for all we know!" Lexi states, reluctantly, glancing at the dizzy girl in her best friend's arms.

"Look how tiny her body is! I'm pretty sure the axe is bigger than her! Besides, we can take her if we tag team." Talia states, helping the girl up to her feet again.

"No, I can't intrude on you like that. I have to-"

"You, missy, might have a concussion. And seeing as I'm the perpetrator and a witness, I insist you come home with me."

The girl pauses before opening her mouth. "You could be evil..."

Lexi grins maliciously. "Yes, we're kidnappers who steal dizzy girls and lock them up in the basement for torture. Definitely evil." The girl's eyes well up with tears, making Lexi's grin falter and panic. "It was a joke! A joke! We're just good samaritans!"

"I-I'm s-sorry. I- I just realized how l-lost I am..." The girl says softly, looking like a sad, drenched puppy. Lexi and Talia tried to ignore their huge urge to 'awww' at the girl. She was like a little kid lost in a shopping mall.

"Don't worry, you can use the phone at my house to call your parents or something." Talia suggests, but the girl just shakes her head.

"I don't know their numbers..." The girl says, looking down at the ground bashfully. Talia gives her a comforting smile.

"Hey, don't beat yourself up over it. We'll figure something out." Talia helps the girl up, while picking up the other grocery bags. She puts the girl's arm around her shoulders and lets her lean her weight on her a little. "I'm Talia, and that's Lexi." Lexi waves politely as they walk across the parking lot. Lexi puts the groceries in the trunk of her car, while Talia helps the girl into the back seat.

"My name is..." The girl pauses, before uttering her name for the second time that day. "...Aura."

Talia offers her a kind smile. "Well, okay, Aura. Just sit down and relax. We'll get some ice for that red splotch forming on your forehead in no time!" Talia teases, shutting the door and heading to the passenger's seat. Lexi starts the car and heads to the O'Malley household. Talia glances at Aura in the rearview mirror, who stared out the window at the passing scenery. She takes her eyes away from Aura and glances down at her hand, which was losing the tingle from catching Aura.

What was that?