Chapter 6-Sparks

(Raven's PoV)

The next morning I woke up early, but, by the smells emanating from the kitchen, not early enough. I had made a commendable attempt to have fun the night before. And I decided I deserved something better than burnt mustard porridge; something WAY better.

I slipped into jeans and a midnight blue tee. An illusion spell hid the meditation jewel on my forehead. Finally, sunglasses and a black shoulder purse completed the disguise.

I managed to slip unseen into Jump. There was a small coffee shop nearby that I liked. It was a nice little hole-in-wall kind of place. I ordered a latte and a croissant and sat down to think.

Still puzzling about X, I didn't notice a young man walking up to my table. So when he spoke, I nearly jumped out of my skin. I glared at him as he talked.

"Hi, mind if I sit with you? You looked kin of lonely over here by yourself."

I stopped glaring long enough to actually study the speaker. He looked about seventeen. His hair was black and pulled into a ponytail. Loose it might reach his shoulders. His eyes were hidden by dark sunglasses.

"Well?"

"No. Do I look like the kind of girl who would sit and chat with a strange guy?"

"Not really. But you did look the least likely to bite my head off if I asked to sit with you. The other tables are full."

I looked around. He was right. The occupants of the other tables didn't look too friendly. I sighed.

"Fine; But don't expect me to talk to you."

"Now why would I do that?"

"Because you would; I can tell."

"Are you sure? What if I want silence as much as you do?"

"If you did you'd stop talking."

"You talked first. I was merely being polite."

I looked at the teen. He was laughing at me. Boy, I must have sounded stupid, telling him I didn't want to talk then arguing with him. Unexpectedly I found his mood catching and laughed with him. When we stopped laughing I smiled at him before I spoke.

"I don't think I ever got your name."

"It's Rick."

"Nice to meet you, I'm Rachel."

"It's nice to meet you too."

Rick reached out to take my hand. When our fingers touched a jolt like an electric shock ran through me. I looked at Rick to see if he'd felt it too. Judging by the slightly surprised look on his face he had. He jerked his hand back. I all but sat on mine.

We talked for several minutes about the weather and the news. We also talked about our likes and hobbies. I soon discovered that Rick liked to read the same kinds of books I did. Then I finished my coffee and stood up to leave.

"Hey, um, Rachel, wait." Rick sounded nervous and I walked faster. "Rachel, do you want to go out for dinner or a movie or something?"

"Yes, I would like that. When?"

"Tomorrow work for you?"

"Sounds good."

"Dinner or a movie?"

"I don't know? Why don't you pick?"

"Okay. How about Italian?"

"Sounds good. What if I meet you here at six?"

"Sounds good. See you then."

"See you, bye."

I all but ran from the shop. I'd barely walked three feet out the door before Reason started lecturing. She was livid.

"You IDIOT! What was that? You ARE NOT supposed to listen to Impulse and her cronies."

"Just shut up reason. I know. Okay?" I dropped heavily onto a park bench and buried my face in my hands. "Leave me alone."

"You should know better."

"I thought I told you to shut up."

"And I thought you learned your lesson with Melchior."

"I did. Sometimes even half-demon superheroes need a diversion. On earth going out means practically nothing. So leave me in peace. I can't think with you guys lecturing me. So buzz off and give impulse a nice hard smack for me."

I returned to the tower via my window. Collapsing onto the bed, I stared at the ceiling. After about five minutes I sensed Robin's presence at my door.

"What do you need Robin?"

"I just wanted to make sure you were okay. You're normally out of your room by now. Everything alright?"

"Everything's fine. I just need some time to think."

"Alright, see ya around."

I rolled over and pressed my face into the pillow. The light coming through my window did little to alleviate the darkness in my room. Outside, Robin's footsteps trailed off into silence.

"You would think," Spite's voice contained a hint of malice. "You'd think that if someone got burned they wouldn't stick their hands in a fire."

"Shut up!"

I knew I'd spoken out loud but I really could have cared less. Then I did something I hadn't done in a long time. I pulled my cloak tighter around my body and cried.