Disclaimer: I don't own the Teen Titans.
Nightwing was horrified. More than horrfied, he didn't have a word for it. He'd met a murderer. He'd met a murderer and hadn't done a thing about it. He may well have been one himself.
He jumped across the roofs of the city buildings, desperate to find that girl, desperate to hand her over. How could she? She was a girl! A girl that didn't look any older than him! She murdered a man!
"You," he hissed vehemently, spotting her as a dark shadow against a building. She was wearing the same things as the last two nights he'd seen her: a dark hoodie and equally dark jeans, with a mask like his covering her eyes. Probably a little girl that wanted to do some exploring to get away from her overprotective parents, and ended up thieving for the thrill. He would have believed that, if it had not been for the fact that she could shoot lasers out of her hands, or something like them.
She turned, and he prepared to defend himself. She might try and kill him, too. "Murderer," he spat.
Starfire tensed. "What did you call me?" she asked, her voice low and threatening.
"You heard me. You're a murderer. That poor guy, Chang. You..." Nightwing couldn't even bring himself to say it. "You sick, twisted--" She grabbed him by his collar, and his air supply was immediately cut off.
"I would never take a life. Ever. I don't know what you're talking about, but you'd better become ten times as articulate in the next three minutes, or you're going to wake up in a hospital tomorrow morning." She let go roughly.
Nightwing coughed and massaged his neck, glaring at her through his mask. Apparently, hurting people was not quite the same as taking a life, if she could deny the latter and threaten the former in the same sentence. "You...or whoever...burned...burned everything..." The news reporter's accounts of Chang's corpse were too gruesome for him to repeat. "They said everyone could hear him screaming, and his whole house burned for hours, and it wouldn't go out. I wouldn't be surprised if it was those things"--he sent a mistrustful glance at her hands--"that did it."
She actually looked hurt. Not mock-regretful, but ashamed that he'd tried to pinpoint this murder on her. "I can't help what happened to me. I don't deserve to be labeled a freak because of this. And I don't need you accusing me of crimes I did not commit." She turned away and climbed down into the alley.
"Yeah? Well, sorry for accusing a criminal of a crime!" Nightwing yelled after her, not ready to let go just yet. He would bring this girl to the police, if it took him until four o'clock in the morning. He jumped down and blocked her path.
Big mistake.
She lit up that green light in her hand, and her eyes turned a neon green as well. "Move."
"No. I'm not going to let you go into that house and steal anything. You're coming with me, and we're going straight to the authorities." He grabbed her unlit arm, but she shoved him away with unbelievable strength. He let go immediately, not really feeling like getting the beating he'd gotten last night.
"Get out of my way, and don't ever touch me again," she snarled, lighting up her other arm.
"I already said, no." He sounded a lot braver than he felt. She looked ready to obliterate him. "Look, take it easy. It's not hard to live without commiting an offense, millions of people manage that every day. Just stop walking around town at night, that's all I'm asking."
She smirked. "Easy for you to say. Richie Rich, I bet you are. I don't know why I'm bothering to talk to you." She jumped up and flew--actually flew--over his head. He watched in a stunned silence as she made her escape. Before she was completely out of earshot, though, she turned back. For the second time that night, Nightwing was given the impression that there was a very different girl under the cold, distrustful exterior. "This is my living. I have no choice. If you can't understand that, it's not my problem." And she was gone.
"Good morning, Dick," Kory said, smiling uncertainly as she sat beside him in his homeroom.
Dick grinned back. "Hey, Kory. I didn't know you'd be in here. How's it going?"
She frowned confusedly. "How is what going? Do we have a project I am unaware of? Or is it common to use pronouns when no noun was previously mentioned?" Her questions were spoken slowly and uncertainly, as if she was unsure that she was making a mistake.
"Nah, it just means 'how are you.' So, what country are you from?"
Kory froze, unsure of how to answer. "It is not really a country, more of a small, tropical island," she lied, describing the dream home she'd been thinking about for the past few weeks. "It is called Tamaran."
"Ah. Sounds like the Bahamas. Why'd you leave?" Kory turned scarlet, and searched desperately for an answer, but Dick interrupted. "I'm sorry. If it's personal, you don't have to tell me. I shouldn't have been interrogating you like that." Kory forced a laugh.
"Not at all. But...it is rather personal." Dick left it at that.
The millionaire had never quite seen anyone like Kory before. The tropical island thing made sense, and maybe people from whatever culture she was from had beautiful, all-green eyes like that. When he's first met her, though, by the taxi, or even yesterday, when Karen introduced her, he hadn't seen a speck of pink anywhere. That was what made him like her the most, ridiculous as it was. All the purple she wore, he could get used to, as long as it wasn't pink.
It must have been uncomfortable, he observed, to try and fit her tall, willowy frame into that little desk and chair, but she obviously had noticed. Kory was busy staring at the desk like she'd never seen one before. She almost didn't hear her name called.
"Kory Anders?" the teacher asked again.
"Yes, Mrs. Hive?" she answered a little late, blushing embarrassedly.
"Come up and introduce yourself to the class." Kory did as she was told, walking up to the front of the room and facing her classmates. A couple of blonde girls sitting together started whispering to each other behind they're hands, glaring at her. But what was worse, a few of the boys were giving her looks she didn't even understand, but didn't like at all. Her eyes met Dick's, under his sunglasses, and he gave her a lopsided smile. She breathed a sigh of relief.
"Hello. My name is Kory Anders, and I am a foreign student from an island near...France. It is a pleasure to meet you." She made most of that up, but Dick, at least, bought it. She nodded at Mrs. Hive, and rushed back to her seat.
"Thank you. I'm sure everyone will make you feel welcome," Mrs. Hive said indifferently as she wrote on the whiteboard. "Now, I want everyone to turn to page one-sixty..."
Dick nudged her. "Nervous?"
Kory bit her lip and nodded. "Very much."
"Miss Anders! Mr. Grayson! Would you like to share your conversation with the class?" The boys who Kory had been afraid of earlier turned to glare at Dick, and the girls that had been talking about her seemed even more angry. Kory thought she probably should share the conversation, but Mrs. Hive had already turned around. Rhetorical questions were still rather confusing.
A note landed on her desk.
Hey. Don't worry, there's nothing to be afraid of, except maybe a detention. If you have a question, don't hesitate to ask it. Find me right before lunch and we'll go get Gar and Vic and Karen and sit together, okay?
-Dick
By the way, don't pass this back, just put it in a folder or something. We might get in trouble again.
Kory nodded gratefully to him and slipped it into one of her books.
"Chang is dead, Mr. Roth," Slade Wilson said in his quiet, haunting voice. Tristan nodded.
"Good. Though, that was a bit extravagant, wasn't it, burning the place down? Couldn't you have made it look like suicide?" he asked irritably.
Slade smiled slowly. "It looked like the furnace blew. And even if no one checked that, there is a certain arsonist on the loose, a new one I haven't met or employed. She goes by the name of Starfire or something of that sort. Very skilled."
"So you framed her?"
"Yes."
"Good. I don't need anymore bad publicity." Slade almost always had that placid smile on his face, and it irked Tristan to no end. That's why Slade was rarely in Tristan's office for more than five minutes. It was already starting to drive him crazy. Yet, the CEO was one of the few people who knew Slade and did not fear him. Tristan could have him dead in a second, and Slade knew that. Roth Industries was quite possibly the most powerful organization in the underground, and it still managed to look legal. "Your money." Slade took the packet from him and left immediately, knowing Tristan's temper sparked easily and not wanting to make a mistake and get himself murdered. It was actually quite common, with people who visited Tristan Roth's office.
"So, Kory, how was your first day?" Karen asked the new girl at lunch. Kory was examining her slop with fascination, but looked up quickly to answer Karen's question.
"Wonderful. I know one person in almost all of my classes, and it is very relieving." Although, the class where she'd followed Gar's instructions hadn't gone so well...
Dick grinned. "And she almost got her first detention in Jump in homeroom today." Kory blushed and giggled, but was getting used to it, now. She almost always turned red when Dick was around. But he'd explained that detentions, though bad, were somewhat of a joke among students, because teachers would threaten to give them out until their faces were blue but never actually did it. "She would've beaten me to it."
"Truly? Are you new here as well?" Kory questioned.
He shrugged. "Yeah. I used to live in Gotham." Kory had never heard of such a place, but nodded.
"Why did you leave?" Dick paused, and Kory added quickly, "If it is 'personal,' you need not reveal it."
"How is getting hounded by girls, papparazzi, and Bruce personal, Dick?" Rachel commented dryly.
Poor Kory was far too confused by this. "Girls are not dogs, yes? Although to call someone a female dog is apparently an insult. Is that what Rachel meant? And why on Earth would a pizza topping wish to 'hound' Dick?" Kory asked. Gar and Vic burst into laughter, but Karen shut them up.
"Gar, quiet it or I'll have Rachel deal with you. And you," Karen's eyes glinted dangerously at her boyfriend. "I still need to get you back for giving me lip on our anniversary. Don't make me add this to the list." Both were quiet immediately. Dick launched into an explanation on whaat Rachel really meant, which lasted half the lunch period. Dick seemed to have taken this job upon himself, though, to explain things she didn't understand.
"...And Bruce is my guardian. That's all." He washed down his pizza with milk and stood up. "I've gotta go make up a test for Mrs. Rouge. See you guys later. Bye, Kory."
"Good-bye," Kory answered shyly.
Karen and Rachel exchanged identical looks. It's been one day and these two are already this pathetic.
"Hey, Kory. Ride home with me?" Dick asked after school let out. This time, Kory accepted.
Gar's house was not too far from the school, so there really was no reason to take Dick's motorbike. It was the first thing he'd purchased in Jump, and he loved riding it, and even that mile or so was enjoyable. Everyone had decided to meet at Vic's house after school, though, so it was a good thing he brought it. Vic did not live quite as close. Kory, though, had walked, and Dick was definitely not going to let her walk all the way to Vic's.
"Dick, I believe I have a debt to you," Kory said.
"You mean from the taxi? Don't worry about it, Kory."
"But--"
"We're friends now. That's what friends do for each other." She was silenced.
When she saw the bike, Kory seemed more than a little scared. "I do not believe we will fit," she pointed out.
"Don't worry, we will. Trust me, it's completely safe. You take the helmet, I'll be fine." Kory nodded apprehensively, and Dick swung his foot over the side. "Now get on behind me." Kory was not quite as graceful getting on, but managed it in the end.
She gasped as the bike wobbled, and Dick put his feet down for support. "It's okay. Just grab on to me, it'll be alright," Dick assured her. She held on to his shoulders and he chuckled, ignoring the butterflies having a party in his stomach. He grabbed her hands and fastened them around his waist. The party just grew a whole lot wilder. "Hold on tight." Kory squeezed as hard as she could, and Dick heard a crack that could have been one of his ribs. This girl was strong. "Not that tight!" he gasped, and Kory loosened her hold.
He could feel Kori's head nestling itself in his back. "I apologize," she squeaked. "I was just afraid I would fall..."
He grinned as he massaged his chest, though she couldn't see him. "It's okay, most people are afraid of that at first. I've just never met anyone as strong as you before." Well, one person, but...His hand brushed against hers on accident, and felt his face flush. "Ready?"
"I believe so." They were off.
"You again," she muttered as Nightwing approached her. "What do you want?"
"To say sorry. I shouldn't have accused you of something you hadn't done," he said.
She still didn't buy it. "Really? And what made you change your mind?"
Nightwing shrugged, sitting on the rooftop and dangling his legs off the building. "I don't know. I've had a day to think about it, I guess. I was just wondering about you."
"Wanted to get information to turn over to the police?" she sneered.
"No. Not everyone's out to get you, you know. I was wondering what you meant when you said you didn't have a choice but to steal." He looked up at her hopefully, and noticed for the first time that her costume had changed. Only the mask stayed the same. Her hair--though he'd never seen it, covered up by the hood as it had been, he assumed it was there, she was a girl-- was stuffed underneath a cap. She'd traded in the baggy street clothes for a suit of sleek, black, skin-tight spandex that made his mouth water, and then suddenly feel very dry.
"AHHH! HELP ME, SOMEONE, PLEASE!" The cry rang out through the night, interrupting his perverted observations. Nightwing got up and ran towards the sound, unaware of Starfire following him.
"Shut up, lady, one word and I'll shoot--" Muffled cursing was heard, and Nightwing sped up until he discovered the source of the noise: the same mugger who'd attacked Starfire not so long ago. Jumping down from the rooftop, he was barely noticed by the guy until he delivered a swift punch to his temple. The man stumbled, letting go of the woman who had been screaming. "You again, I'll shoot this time, I really will--" He rose the gun, only to have Starfire shoot it out of his hand with her laser-things. "What the hell?"
She landed crouched beside Nightwing, straightening at once to knock the man out, and stared down at her work. "Nice aim," Nightwing joked. "Timing was pretty good, too."
The woman stepped forward shakily. She was old, maybe fifty, and stared at Starfire like she was an angel. She'd probably blinked when the star bolt was fired. "Th-thank you. I d-dont' know what I w-would've done if you hadn't c-come." Starfire took a step backwards. "Wait, don't leave, please! Who are you?"
"No one. You saw nothing," Starfire hissed, finding a ladder and making her way back to the rooftop.
Nightwing shrugged, grinning. "Sorry. She's a little moody today." He followed Starfire up the ladder, reaching her at the top before she could run. "Wait! Why did you...help?"
She glared at him. "Why wouldn't I?"
"I thought you hated me."
"Doesn't mean I'd leave you to die," she shot back.
Nightwing smiled. "Well, thanks." Starfire jerked her arm away and prepared to jump. "Hold on! You didn't answer my question from earlier."
"I don't have to."
"Yeah, but...please?" Still glaring, Starfire crossed her arms and waited. "Why don't you have a choice but to steal?"
Starfire didn't answer him at first. She sat down on the rooftop, a good sign, to him. He joined her, patiently waiting. "I...There are certain circumstances..." She was trying to be vague, and it wasn't working. He worked his hand into hers.
"You can trust me, you know. I owe you my life. The guy probably would've shot me, back there." Truthfully, the guy probably couldn't aim, and Nightwing could easily have dodged it, but Starfire looked as if she believed him. Sort of.
"Tell me, then, Nightwing, how many jobs are there for a seventeen-year-old girl that pays enough for her to support herself? She has no parents, no money of her own, she starts from nothing. Not only that, she knows what it's like to have nothing at all, and she doesn't want to go back to it. Anything is a better option than starving in the streets." Starfire hugged her knees to her chest as she stared blankly ahead.
"Maybe I don't want to do this. Maybe I do want to live like those millions of people who don't have to steal to survive. But I can't. In case you haven't noticed, I'm a mutant. If anyone found out..." She shook her head.
"And when you're out at night, things change you. A lot. I'm not as threatening as I mean to be. I'm not this tough, or mean, but at night, you have to be, or you become the victim. I'm a normal girl who just can't...I just don't know any other way to get along. I'm scared all the time, that someone like you will come and try to take me away, and then the whole world will find out about what I can do. I'll be put on display like an animal. I don't even think it's worth it sometimes, there's no...nothing to live for right now. Night is a world of danger." She punched at the cement of the roof, leaving a small hole, before she felt Nightwing's arm encircle her shoulders.
"It's not, not always. And I..." He took a deep breath, unable to believe he was about to say this. "...I won't turn you in. I promise. When you put it like this..."
She nodded solemnly. "That's mostly why I told you." She stood up. "I need to go..."
"I understand," Nightwing answered sadly. He smiled a little. "Nice costume."
She smiled back, just a little, but it was the first time he'd seen her do so. "Thanks for the idea."
He laughed. "I should've known. It's copyrighted, you know."
"I'm a criminal, remember? It's what I do, steal things," she mumbled, sober again. Nightwing stood up, desperate to make her smile again, but she glanced at him. "Thank you, though." She jumped down into the alley and disappeared.
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