A/n: This chapter features something that I find very important when creating a character. It's a writing tool I like to call it The character playlist. Whenever I create any kind of an OC, I automatically start searching for music that they would listen to. Music, in my opinion, is very important when trying to decipher a person, and when I say this, I am not talking about things like the music genre or anything of that sort. I look at what the character unconsciously looks for in the music they listen to: the lyrics, the tempo, the instruments used, the vocals. It is a tool that helps me build the characters mentality, flaws and perks more intimately. That is why The character playlist is something I always make.

If you want, you can listen to Hannah's playlist. Just go to youtube, and after the original url of the website paste this: /playlist?list=PLknKCJKMSmneWWO4d3EHTtohjNIeHHDfh

"The Covenant"

Chapter 15: Shalott

MOUNT JUSTICE

AUGUST 24, 20:00 EDT

A very annoyed yell echoed through the halls of the grotto, alerting the three teens who were currently having a small chat between themselves. Kaldur, Superboy and Megan heard the outraged cry, followed by heavy, obviously angered, steps, slowly drawing closer to the living lounge.

In mere moments, they were met with a fuming Hannah, clad in pajamas which consisted of black shorts and a white blouse that was a few sizes too big for her. The girl didn't say anything, her jaw tense as she clenched her teeth together. The three had no idea what to make of her current state, so they stayed silent, waiting for her to speak up and say what was it that troubled her. But, the girl let out a small growl, stomping her feet as she made her way to the couch, where she took a seat between Kaldur and Superboy. She crossed her arms and sunk in to the cushions, a pout evident on her lips.

Megan and Kaldur shared a look, unsure what to make of her actions "…Hannah?" Megan spoke up first "Is everything…okay?"

"I can't find my mp3 player!" the girl announced, anger coming off her in waves.

"Your mp3 player?" Superboy looked at her, bemused "That's why you're throwing a tantrum?"

Hannah looked up at the boy seated on her right, her glare showing no mercy "It's not just an mp3 player!" she scoffed "It had sentiment value! It was a gift from Batman I got for my 15th birthday!" the girl threw her arms up in to the air, exaggerating her point "Do you know how rare gifts from Batman are? It was custom-made, too! One of a kind!" she brought her arms down, her palms smacking over her forehead slightly "I can't believe I lost it!"

While the music player did hold sentimental value to her, the more reserved reason why Hannah was so outraged by its loss was the fact that she needed it to fall asleep. The silence bothered her. It made her fill with panic that would slowly turn in to fear, leaving her shivering in her bed, unable to breathe. At night, even Grigor's constant presence in her head and soothing words only she could understand turned mute when the crow fell in to a deep sleep. Therefore, she would listen to music, letting the melodies lull her in to a blessed sleep.

Her mind, she concluded, was slowly starting to recover from the shock of Kent Nelson's death, because the thoughts that buzzed through her head ever since he died were slowly turning mute, leaving her in silence. And when she wanted to kill the silence that was slowly creeping upon her, she realized that her beloved mp3 player was nowhere to be found. Hence the current events.

A warm, reassuring hand was placed over hers, pulling it away from her face and awaking her from her thoughts. "I am sure your mp3 player will turn up soon." Kaldur offered comfort, smiling at her. Hannah had trouble forcing her face not to flush crimson red "Retrace your steps. Where have you last seen it?"

Hannah's eyes couldn't help but glance down at the hand holding hers, even if it were only in a comforting notion. But she managed to make herself look at Kaldur's face "I can't remember. I haven't even listened to it much since…well, since I was held captive." she tried thinking back "I always have it on me though, I'm pretty sure I even had it with me when I went to look for Mr. Kent…"

She stopped abruptly, realization dawning upon her. A gasp escaped Hannah's lips and she put a hand over her lips in shock. Though, the shock soon turned back in to anger as her eyebrows furrowed in a nasty look "That son of a-"

SHADOW WORLD

AUGUST 24; 20:04 EDT

Klarion would have completely forgotten about the little gadget that was in his pocket if it weren't for Teekl who, as she was having a little nap in his lap, suddenly nudged her head against said pocket, meowing in distaste when she felt something lumpy there.

Simply put, Klarion nicked it. Quite a while ago, actually. When he first encountered Hannah and knocked her lights out, he searched her for anything harmful. He maybe a Lord of Chaos, but he sure as hell did not want a girl with a very sensitive berserk-button wielding anything that could be considered a weapon. What he found, the only thing hefound at all, was the little music player. It fit in to the palm of his hand, headphones wrapped around it to keep them from tangling. He didn't pay much attention to it and stashed it in to his pocket quickly, completely forgetting about it.

He tossed the device in to the air, before catching it again. Unwrapping the headphones from around it, he observed it with care, taking in every detail.

The music player was shaped like an older model of an USB stick, a bit bulky, but it fit in to his palm perfectly. It was black, with a silver engraving of the Batman symbol on the front and an engraved message on the back. "Happy Birthday." he scoffed. So it was a birthday present. That made sense, as it was in very good condition; obviously Hannah took great care of it, even though some signs of age were starting to show, like little dents and scratches.

Curiosity getting the better of him, Klarion turned it around in his grip a little bit more before switching it on. The screen on the front instantly lit up with the words "WELCOME HANNAH" Klarion wrinkled his nose in distaste and pressed random buttons, trying to make the welcome screen to pass faster.

In his impatience, he turned on the music unknowingly, the music suddenly blasting at full volume through the headphones that were carelessly hanging in to his lap. The loud and sudden sound startled Teekl, who let out a threatening hiss, only to jump out of her masters' lap quickly when the music didn't stop at her threats.

"Teekl, you big baby!" Klarion chuckled and picked up the earbuds, and while the tune was calm and soothing enough, the headphones were still loud enough for him to hear perfectly even without putting them in his ears. If this is how loud Hannah would usually listen to music, he had to wonder how she wasn't deaf by now.

Lowering the volume, Klarion put the little buds in his ears, not really bothering to play the song from the beginning.

But still I've got to get out of this place
'Cause I don't think I can face another night

The boy looked at the small screen, wondering what the name of the song was. Letters scrolled over the screen in a slow pace, spelling out "Shalott"

Where I'm half sick of shadows
And I can't see the sky
Everyone else can watch as the tide comes in
So why can't I

"Half sick of shadows." Klarion let out a laugh at the familiar verse, recognizing what the song was based upon. Being as old as he was, he had read many books and poems, if only for the entertainment value. He knew of the ballad under the name of The Lady of Shalott, he remembered it well. The lady of extraordinary beauty, locked away in her tower and unable to see the world because of a curse placed upon her. She was, instead, forced to see the world only through the mirror placed inside her room, where she spent all her time weaving the reflected images she would see. The Lady fell in love one day as she saw knight Lancelot pass through the village, her obsession with him so strong that she looked away from the mirror, looking at the world with her own eyes and bringing upon the curse. Realizing death is upon her, The Lady fled the tower and found a boat, upon which she wrote her name, floating down the river to Camelot.

So I'll meet my death
But with my last breath I'll sing to him my love
And he'll see my face in another place

He could not contain the laugh as he remembered the ending. The Lady of Shalott died before she reached Camelot and the man she fell in love with, the only memory of her name and being existing written on the boat.

Ah, Klarion always did enjoy a tragic ending.

He chuckled, drawing the parallels in his mind. A girl, locked in her tower, unable to see the world freely. It was almost ironic that Hannah would be fond of this song, he realized. Though, leaving the tower did not bring upon her own death, but the death of someone close to her. She brought it upon herself when she tried to break away from the curse Nabu placed on her, trying to escape the little world she had known inside the tower. She brought a curse that could rival the one that Nabu had placed upon her.

She brought upon her the attention of the Witch Boy.

Klarion's raspy laugh echoed through his little dimension. The Lady of Shalott died, her blood freezing, her eyes darkening, the curse stopping her breath as she sang. His little girl from the tower would not suffer the same fate; if he were the curse that she brought upon her, being the bringer of her death would be much too boring.

He would take the role of both her curse and her savior.

It was all a matter of perspective really.

MOUNT JUSTICE

AUGUST 25, 00:40 EDT

It was already past midnight.

Hannah tossed and turned, her mind definitely not at ease. She realized that the accursed Witch Boy probably had her prized possession in his mitts, so the chances of ever getting it back were slim to none. She let out a groan and buried her head in to her pillow, annoyed. The silence was deafening to her ears, and she had no comfort but her buzzing thoughts.

With an exhorted grunt, Hannah got up, running a hand through her hair. While she was incredibly worn out, she could not go to sleep at all. "How annoying…" she mussed, holding her head in her hands.

There she weaves by night and day

A magic web with colors gay.

A soft mutter, barely audible, reached her ears. Hannah's head snapped up in alarm, not sure if she imagined it or not.

She has heard a whisper say,

A curse is on her if she stay

Swiftly standing up from her bed, Hannah looked around. She knew she didn't imagine it! The voice grew more and more clear in her head as it continued. "Who is there?" her voice came out meeker than she wanted it to. But there was no answer, only a raspy laughter that sounded vaguely familiar. "The hallway!" Hannah quickly made her way out of her room, following the voice.

She knows not what the curse may be,

And so she weaveth steadily,

And little other care hath she,

The Lady of Shalott.

Hannah frowned, the poem familiar to her ears. "The Lady of Shalott…" she thought, the only thing that could be heard in the dark cave were her footsteps and the disembodied voice "Who are you? Show yourself!" the girl demanded, trying to pinpoint where the voice was coming from.

She left the web, she left the loom,

She made three paces thro' the room,

Following the voice, Hannah found herself in the main living area, the voice now clearer than before. But still she could not find who it belonged to. Pacing around, her lips moved on her own as the vague memory of the ballad came to her, now reciting along with the voice.

She saw the water-lily bloom,

She saw the helmet and the plume,

"She look'd down to Camelot…" Hannah finished by herself, the voice drowning out. The silence was back, much to her dismay. Her eyes looked over the darkened living area, dim lights throwing shadows everywhere. The voice was silent.

As she was about to turn around and head back to her room, a violent gust of wind licked at her back, the girl barely keeping her footing. She let out a yelp and turned around, her arms in front of her face as a shield. In the middle of the area, a vortex seemed to have formed, the winds so strong that she could barely stand straight. "What is happening!?" she gasped. The voice came back, now even louder than before

Out flew the web and floated wide;

The mirror crack'd from side to side;

The vortex of wind turned in to flames, raising up to the ceiling and forming shapes. Hannah's eyes opened wide and she took a step back, her breath quickening. Her heel hit a step and she toppled to her back, letting out a huff when she landed on her elbows and lower back quite painfully. As the flames seemed to grow closer to her, Hannah could not move, her entire being felt numb, unable to run. She gazed in to the vortex of flames, the shapes now forming something more familiar to her. A boy with a malicious grin, eyes burning red.

"The curse is come upon me," cried

The Lady of Shalott

As the flames grew bigger, Hannah let out a blood curling scream, covering her eyes. The voice was laughing, amused by her fear. The fire spread over her, yet it wasn't painful, just incredibly hot, like waves of heat washing over her. But she continued crying out, her mind flashing images of her past that the fire triggered. Images she could swear of as a bad dream, images of fire devouring houses, villages.

The heat suddenly stopped as abruptly as it appeared. Hannah remained cowering down on the floor, not even reacting to the sudden crash.

"Hannah!" an urgent voice reached her ears "What happened?" a pair of strong hands gripped her arms, bringing her up in to a sitting position. Hannah was met with a pair of panic-stricken blue eyes. "Why were you screaming? Did someone attack the base?"

The girl had trouble finding her voice as she looked around the room in panic. There was…nothing. The room was in perfect order, as if nothing ever occurred. There were no flames, no winds, no disembodied voice chanting in her ear. "…w…where…the fire…" forming words proved to be quite a challenge to her.

Superboy raised his eyebrows, confused. Thanks to his super hearing, he heard the girl scream first, instantly awaking from sleep and blindly running to where he pinpointed the scream was coming from. Stricken in panic, he crashed through a wall, leaving a huge gaping hall in it (even though the wall was but a few meters away, but for Superboy, that was a few meters too far) and as soon as he saw the girl collapsed on the floor rushed to her aid. Her eyes were bewildered, looking around in alarm, as if trying to comprehend what happened herself.

"What." he started once more, his patience wearing thin "Happened?"

The girl slowly got to her feet, her eyes still glued to where the fire was. Her heart felt like it might burst out of her chest. "T…the fire!" she turned around to face Superboy "The fire! Did you not see the fire?!"

"What fire?" Superboy got to his feet "There was no fire! What are you talking about!?" Behind him, he heard the running footsteps of Kaldur and Megan.

"What happened!?" Megan asked in alarm.

"Are we under attack!?" Kaldur already had his weapons out, ready for a fight.

Hannah barely took notice of the two, her mind still going haywire "There was a fire right there!" she pointed at the middle of the room "There, there was a voice, and it was coming from here, and then there was a huge vortex of flames!" she explained hysterically, her voice cracking.

The three before her remained silent, their faces twisting in confusion. Kaldur and Megan exchanged a look, both unsure of what to say. Hannah took note of their expressions "Y…you didn't hear the voice?"

The Atlantean took a few steps forward, passing Superboy and coming closer to the bewildered girl "Hannah, there was no voice." he explained in a calming voice "And there was no fire. If there were, the alarms would have gone off. The entire cave has a very sophisticated security system."

As he reached out to take her hand, Hannah pulled away sharply. Kaldur's eyes widened at her action, not expecting it at all. Behind them, Megan bit her lip, looking around the room. There was no trace of anything happening, nothing scorched, nothing was out of place. The room looked exactly as it did when they all left for bed "Hannah, maybe you had a night terror?" she suggested.

"No!" Hannah let out desperately "It felt real! I felt the fire!" she turned around to where the fire was once more, looking around in desperation as she tried to find any proof of what took place "I felt it Megan! I felt it!"

M'gann took it upon herself to calm her, reaching out to soothe the girl. This time, Hannah didn't pull away and the Martian let out a relived sigh "Night terrors seem like they're real. It's okay Hannah, its okay." She spoke in a soft voice, as if she were speaking a child.

Hannah on the other hand, didn't reply, she stood there as M'gann calmed her, even if her words did fall on deaf ears. Hannah could not chase the image of the fire and the voice out of her head.

The shapes in the flame as they formed a maleficent smile and a mischievous pair of eyes.

She bit down on her tongue in order to stop curses from leaving her lips. Hannah's mind finally cleared enough to put two and two together. She was this close to cursing herself out for not figuring out who the voice belonged sooner. This was no night terror, Hannah had concluded, it was something far, far worse.

That little imp!

A/n: I love The Lady of Shalott! We covered that ballad in english whist I still had that class in high school! And I also have a fondness for Emilie Autumn as well, whose song, Shalott, is featured at the beginning. The parallels between Hannah and The Lady of Shalott actually came to me only recently, and I was caught completly off guard when I realized it myself; therefore, I knew instantly that I had to put it in to the story as well.