The Cave 8:37 a.m.
"In a few minutes, you will." Everyone in the room jumped and looked around. The hair was standing up on the back of Cassandra's neck. No one was there. It was dead quiet.
Just then, Nora walked back into the room. She gave one look at everyone and frowned. "Something wrong?"
"Did you just hear that?" asked Cassandra, her voice hushed. Nora glanced around the room. "Um, no?" Cassandra noticed that Braydon had his hand on his pocket knife, but she didn't say anything. "It sounded like… someone spoke?"
Nora shrugged. "Are you guys sure? I didn't hear anything. It probably because we're all exhausted." This brought Adam back to life. "Hey, how's your friend?" Nora's eye widened for a moment, like she had forgotten about her. "Myra? She'll be fine. Zatanna did some voodoo spell on her to get the poison out. She needs to sleep it off for a few days."
"Well, that's good. Um, I'm gonna go and call my family." Cassandra gripped the phone and walked out of the room. Adam faced Braydon. "Dude, did you steal that phone?"
Braydon shrugged innocently. "More like borrowed without permission." Adam smacked him on the back of his head. "Braydon, stealing is not okay!" Braydon didn't agree to it, but he didn't deny it either. Nora ran a tired hand through her hair. "C'mon. I'll show you to your room. We're short on space, so you're gonna be roommates." She walked out of the room. Braydon shrugged and followed her, with Adam lagging behind.
The Cave 8:39 a.m.
They were walking through the middle of the Mission Room. It hadn't changed much, but there was an odd assortment of pillows and mattresses on the floor. Cassandra didn't think much of it, until Nora told Cassandra she would be sharing a room with her.
"But where does Myra sleep?" Cassandra asked. Nora pointed up. The trio looked up at the ceiling. There was a hatch, and that was it.
"What's up there?" asked Adam.
"An apartment, it's accessible through a hatch."
"Aw, what? Why does she get an apartment? And what's with the pillows?" Cassandra complained.
"Several reasons. First, she's a legal adult, so that entitles her to more privacy. Second, she has a little issue with beds."
"What do you mean?"
"She phases through whatever she sleeps on. That's why the pillows are there. She goes through the bed, then the floor of her apartment, then the ceiling and drops 50 feet or so onto the pillows. Figured that out about ten minutes ago. I just dragged those out there. I think she broke her wrist falling."
"What makes you think it won't hurt any less falling 50 feet onto pillows?"
"Oh, I don't know. I just hope she won't break anything."
"Oh."
The Cave, 5:15 p.m. Braydon POV
Its dark, it's late. Too late for him to be "stuck at work." I sit there, playing with my wooden toys as my mother packs her bags.
"Are we going on a trip, mommy?"
"No sweetie. It's just mommy's trip."
"Where are you going?"
"Somewhere far away, sweetie."
"Are you coming back?"
"I don't know, honey. Go back to playing, alright? Everything is going to be fine." Hearing her words makes feel better, and I go back to the stacks of blocks. Suddenly, he comes home, through the front door. He stinks of liquor.
"I'm home." He calls out. I grin excitedly. "Daddy! Daddy!" I run up to him. He gives me a little smile, but it's oddly tight. "Where's mommy, Braydon?" he asks. I give a little shrug and look down at the block I'm holding. "She's packing. She's going away, she said. Somewhere far away."
His face contorts into anger, and rage. "Stay here, Braydon."
"But-."
"Stay. Here." He says to me, his voice dangerously quiet. I nod and slowly back away from him. I hear the arguing, the shouting, and the screaming. I get scared, and hide in the closest. I put my hands over my ears, and wait. It seems like hours later, when my father comes and opens the door. I wince in the light. His shirt has blood on it, so do his hands.
"C'mon, Braydon. It's time to go to bed."
"What's wrong, Daddy?"
"Nothing, son. Mommy just went away. She'll be gone for a long time."
"Will I ever see her again?" I asked him, my eyes widening.
"If you're lucky, you won't ever go where she went just now."
It's years later, and I walk into the small, cluttered apartment. "I'm home!" I yell. My father's girlfriend comes up to me and slaps me across the face.
"You've been in another fight? How many times have I told you, not to make trouble with the others kids?" she shouts at me, waving a letter containing my suspension notice.
"Like you care." I mutter. She glares at me, and crosses her arms. "That's it. Harold! HAROLD!" she screeches. My father comes out of his room, holding a beer bottle in his hand. "What do you want, Diane?!" he yells back at her. She points at me. "Your little brat go suspended from school again! For fighting!"
He manages to focus his crossed eyes on me, still hazy from the hard stuff. "Again? C'mere you little bastard!" When I don't move, he smirks at me, and orders his girlfriend out of the room, when she leaves; he faces me. He's still gripping that beer bottle.
"You think you're so smart, huh? Getting into fights?" I don't say anything again. He stalks over and grabs my neck. He forces my head down. "You think you're smart, huh?" I do the worst decision I've ever made in my life.
"F*** You!" I curse at him. He smashes the bottle over my head. My sight gets dizzy, and I feel a warm liquid on my head. I'm not sure if it was my blood or the vodka. I cough up the liquid that dripped into my mouth. He slams my head on the corner of the table, the chair, and even the door. When I can't see because of the blood in my eyes, he slams me into the wall, with my back facing him.
I feel his hand on the waistband of my school uniform, and fear washes over me like a wave.
"I think I need to teach you a lesson." He says, snakelike. I'm helpless, I can't do anything, and I'm not strong enough. I want to scream, fight back, do anything and everything that is can, but I'm helpless.
I can't run, I can't run, I can't run...
"Braydon!"
I'm too weak. I can't run. I can't do anything.
"Braydon!"
I'm scared… I'm so scared….
"Braydon! Wake up!"
I gasp and sit up, slamming my head into something hard. "Ow!" Cassandra cries out, grabbing her head. I grab my head as well. "What the hell are you doing!?" I exclaim, rubbing the sore spot where our heads met.
"You were having a nightmare, smartass. I could hear you thrashing in bed from my room."
I put a hand on my chest. "Jesus Christ, you scared the crap out of me! Don't do that!" I take deep breath. It was a dream, all a dream. I didn't have to relive that again. She gives a little frustrated sigh. "Fine! God, why are you so closed off? I was just trying to help you!"
"I don't need help!" I exclaim at her. She rolls her eyes. "God, why are guys so stupid?!" I blink and look around.
"Where's Adam?" I notice the empty bed. Cassandra shrugs. "I don't know. I think he said something about training with Robin or something. He's the only one still up." I notice she's wearing this long nightgown with these frilly pink things on the sleeves and end. "Wow, girly, girl much?"
She snorts indifferently. "I grew up with 4 of you in my house. I think I deserve to be a girly girl, thank you very much." I suddenly hear something the sound very familiar.
"Um… is that Indian music?" She tilts her head. "What?" she frowns. "Um, yeah. It is, isn't it?" I toss the covers off of me. I walk out the room and into the hall, with Cassandra at my heels. The music gets louder and louder. You can make it pretty clearly.
"Roop hai tera sona, soni teri paayal
Hoye, roop hai tera sona sona, soni teri paayal
Chhan chhana chhan aise chhanke, kar de sabko ghaayal
Keh raha aankhon ka kaajal, ishq mein jeena marna, yay
Say shava shava maahiya, say shava shava maahiya
Say shava shava maahiya, say shava shava, yea."
We both end up in front of a door. We look at each other, and I push the door open. In the middle of the room stands a girl with super long, almost dark, brown hair and the skin like mocha. She's wearing black yoga pants and a blue blouse. She has one leg on a bar in front of her, and is stretching it. She's wearing black ballet slippers. She turns towards us, revealing her eyes, which are an ice blue. She gives a sheepish smile at us and pulls a remote from her pocket and shuts off the music.
"Sorry! Did I wake you up?" she asks. We're too busy staring at her most shocking feature, a long, winding scar covering half her face. Cassandra snaps out of it first. "Oh! Um, no. Right, Braydon?" she elbows me hard in and the stomach and I nod.
"Right! She woke me up." I point to Cassandra. The girl smiles at us. "Oh, good. I was just practicing some stuff. I didn't know people were still asleep?"
"Um, who are you?" Cassandra asked her. The girl's eyes widen. "Oh, I'm sorry I didn't introduce myself! My real name is Anaji, but most people call me Blaze."
I glance over at Cassandra. Oh yeah, this was gonna be fun.
Yay! I updated after a cliff! Anyways, thank you SpunkyGirl6487 for being a huge help for ideas and such. Please go check out her story The Targets! I'm still accepting Villains, PM only! What else? Oh yeah…
DO NOT say you can't wait for your character to show up, cameo or not. I will make them wear a bra and panties in public, regardless of gender.
I'm serious.
Thanks to again SpunkyGirl6487 for all of her help! You rock, chica!
REVIEW OR DIE!
Peace and Mist,
Rlb190