12/12/15

Cursed

Chapter 7: Darkway Prep

Legal disclaimer: I do not own Teen Titans, Alice in Wonderland, Frozen, or anything else I may mention

A special disclaimer for the fandom: In life, it is highly unrealistic to stay with your first love your entire life. This is the case with Jinx. While my endgame is for her to end up with Kid Flash like she did in the series, she will have other romantic relationships before this can happen- such as her flirting with Cyborg when we get to Deception, and her relationship with Kid Kold (as seen in the show's spinoff comics- while I don't use most of those as cannon in my stories, I do use some of the concepts). For the record, just because I have to write about those relationships for the story to be cannon does not mean I ship them nor does it mean it will last forever (well, Flinx probably will, but still, you know what I mean). Just thought I'd remind you guys before you start wondering if I've replaced Wally.

….

A giant building towers in front of us, casting a shadow in our direction. Almost mockingly, it dares us to enter into its trap. If our plan is to succeed, we must obey it no matter how scary that task may be.

Darkway Prep. The prissiest boarding school in all of America, although few dare to send their children. Unlike the HIVE Academy, this place is upfront about their villainous intentions. The two schools have a rivalry that has been going on for as long as anyone can remember. And that's why it means so much to our plan to meet Madame Rouge. If we can break in and steal the Headmaster's prized possession (his cane, because he's as old as dirt), maybe Headmistress will take us seriously. It may sound like a long shot, but do we really have another choice? Jade and Roy both seem pretty set on meeting this "Madame Rouge", even though I personally can't care less.

I turn to my trembling friends and give them a thumbs us. Jade weakly returns it, and Roy takes a break from bandaging her burned hand to copy her. He finishes it up and puts the first aid kit back in his bag, along with the map. I feel a thrill inside of me. This is my first mission. Just like the ones The Flash goes on. I smile at the thought. Being his sidekick has always been a dream of mine, even though I only got my powers recently. A lot of kids at school used to tease me about it, but I never cared. They could love Batman all they wanted to, but it wasn't going to change my mind. Besides, if 100 kids want to meet Wonder Woman but only 1 kid wants to meet Hawkgirl, who do you think is gonna get their wish?

I pull myself out of my thoughts. I can daydream all I want after we're done, but I can't be distracted right now.

"You guys ready to go?" I whisper. Roy nods his head. "Okay, me too. Jade? Can you cloak us?"

Jade frowns. "I don't have very much control over my powers, but I'll try."

The next thing I know, I can't see my own hand in front of me. I try to clap my hands together, but instead of feeling my own skin I feel a cool air like substance.

Roy must sense my confusion, so he says, "Jade's powers are more of evaporation than normal invisibility. While it does mean it's even harder to be spotted, it can be a little confusing."

"Oh," I whisper, touching my arm only to once again be greeted by air. "I guess that makes a little sense. Come on, let's get inside."

We sneak around to the back entrance, our shoes crunching on the leaves that lay scattered on the ground. I wiggle the doorknob and find it to be unlocked. How stupid are these people, anyways? After scanning the area for any sign of more people, we tip toe through the door. A gust of hot air from the heater reminds me of how cold it was outside. I didn't even notice earlier. Weird. Motioning for the others to follow me, I walk down the hallways decorated with newspaper clippings of their past students crimes. Again, how dumb are these people? I mean, I get that the location of the school is classified information and all, but what happens when a member of the Justice League accidently stumbles in here? Does the Headmaster just think he won't get arrested or something?

In yet another instance of his stupidity, I find a map of the school printed clearly on one of the walls that even includes the location of the Headmaster's office. Not only that, but the map is conveniently located right next to a fire alarm. Oh no, I wonder how we will ever sneak into his office… not!

Without another thought, I pull the fire alarm and we duck into a nearby bathroom. The bell rings, and shrieks of panic fill the air. I can't help but laugh at how unprepared everyone seems to be. Footsteps echo in the hallways as a teacher yells out emergency protocol, but I doubt anyone's listening. Jade pulls our shield down and leans against the wall. I guess invisibility takes more energy than I thought it did. It makes sense I guess. My energy zaps (or hexes, as Barron and Selinda like to call them- in a way I like it better) drain my energy too, but I always assumed it was because my powers were so new and I wasn't used to them yet. Maybe all powers are like this? I can't really imagine Superman having to take a nap, though.

"I love bathroom graffiti," Roy whispers, gesturing to the scribbles on the walls. "Kate loves ice cream. Headmaster Mod sucks. Jimmy and Monica forever. Forever is like two weeks because Monica is a backstabbing... what's this word mean?"

I look at the word and try to figure out what it says. "Isn't that a type of tree?"

"No, that's birch. This has a t in it," Roy says.

Jade chokes back a laugh. "Guys, that's a bad word."

"How do you know?" Roy asks.

Jade smirks. "Cuz Lian called Talia that and then she remembered I was there and told me not to say it until I'm at least 15."

I don't know who Talia is, but I nod my head anyways. Roy, on the other hand, doesn't even try to stop laughing. "Oooh, so she said a bad word!"

Jade slaps a hand over his mouth and shushes him. I hear high heels clicking on floor outside of the bathroom and hold my breath. It stops and I sigh in relief. "Hey guys? What bathroom did we go in?"

"Does it really matter?" Roy asks, pulling Jade's hand off his mouth. "Life or death situation, remember?"

Jade smirks. "You just don't wanna admit you went into the ladies room!"

"Did not!"

"Come on, let's go!" I whisper, the bathroom problem all but forgotten. Roy was right, this really isn't the time to be worried about stupid things like that. This doesn't, however, stop me from smirking at the pink sign on the door on my way out. Ha, victory!

Jade takes the lead, shielding us with her superpowers every time she spots a security camera. We take the stairs instead of the elevator to avoid suspicion, but I guess it won't really matter because we'll have to open doors later anyways.

As I'm walking up the stairs I have to remind myself to keep moving instead of looking at the pictures of students hanging on the walls. Although I'd never admit it out of my head, this place looks really cool. It looks much more like a normal school than the HIVE does. I almost forget how much I miss it.

I shake my head, forcing my attention away from both the picture of a blonde girl standing next to Killer Moth and all thoughts of my old school. My normal school would never accept me, not with the way I look now, and I doubt they'd help me with my powers the way the Headmistress has. I keep walking and try not to think about it anymore, but it's not as easy as it sounds.

We get to the top of the steps and walk through the maze of hallways that greets us. The Headmaster's office is easy enough to find, which is pretty funny to me considering that our Headmistress's office is hidden so well. Roy looks around the corner to make sure no one's coming before he opens the door. We step inside, but I can't help but feel like it shouldn't be this easy. The feeling only gets worse when I see the cane lying abandoned on the ground, begging to be taken. It's almost as though this is a trap, and they want us to know it.

As though he's reading my mind, Roy looks around nervously before asking, "Guys? Are we sure it's safe?"

"I… don't know," I say, carefully taking a step towards the cane.

It's weird how much you can tell about the elderly from what kind of cane they carry. For example, the Headmaster of Darkway Prep owns a cane fit for a king. The bottom of it is made of gold, and on top is a shining red ruby. How did he get this? Did he steal it? Or is his school just that successful? With these questions in mind, I step forwards and take the cane. Luckily, it's a lot lighter than I thought it would be. My teacher in 1st grade had a cane, and it was really heavy. The metal feels warm in my hands, as if someone has touched it recently. The reality of the situation hits me. Are we really about to steal something?

The sound of a door opening freezes me in my tracks. We are officially dead.

I spin around and see two boys standing in the doorway. One who has silvery, metal looking skin, and a redhead who would've looked normal if it weren't for the snowflakes shooting from his wrists. For a reason I can't explain, the snow absolutely captures my attention. Despite the blast being aimed at us, there's just something so beautiful about it. The first grade teacher once again comes to mind, teaching us about how no two snowflakes are exactly alike. Maybe that's why I'm so mesmerized- this boy can create works of art in the blink of an eye, without so much as thinking about it.

"Who are you?" he asks, glaring at us.

Despite the situation, Jade giggles. "You know who you remind me of? That caterpillar on Alice in Wonderland. Oh, and Elsa."

The stone boy crosses his arms. "Leo asked you a question, punk. Answer it or you'll be talking to my fists!"

"Wow, someone needs to let it go," Roy snickers.

My voice returns to me before my idiot friends can do more damage. "Look, Leo, right? No hard feelings, but we're here to take something that doesn't belong to us. Please leave or we'll be forced to call the cops."

For some reason, this seems to shock stone boy long enough for me to toss the cane to Jade. Maybe he's never had anyone talk back to him? Who knows, he looks too angry for me to ask him. He lunges at Jade, but before he can attack her she grabs Roy's hand with her burnt one and jumps out of the open window leading to the fire escape. With a smirk, I spin around and run towards my freedom. That is, until I slip on the covering of ice now coating the floor.

Fortunately, I'm smart enough to remember my powers. What else is there to do in times like this than hex the crap out of these guys? They both scream in pain as the pink energy zaps hit them. Hexing them again just to be sure, I slide on my butt to the window, using the ledge to pull myself up. Without another word to them, I backflip into the fire escape.

I laugh, grabbing onto the railing and running down the steps. Piece of cake, right? It surprises me, how natural this feels. Running, fighting… whatever this was. I just feel so… free. As if no one can stop me. Like no one can control me. The exact opposite of what I felt with the witch- and what I felt at home, with my parents. I review these feelings as I run away with my friends. Maybe this is the kind of life I was meant to live. Sure, it goes against what my parents and heroes always taught me, but who am I to argue with destiny?

Turning around, I catch a glance at Leo. "You just got lucky, that's all!" He yells.

I laugh again, the feeling of freedom still there. "Lucky's just what I am! Deal with it!"

Adding a wink, I turn back around and keep running. A weird feeling stirs through me. I can't help but wonder if I'll ever see that kid again. It wasn't like he was nice to me or anything, but there was just something about him…

Whatever it was, there was certainly a connection of some kind. And while I'll survive if we never meet again, I'm definitely looking forward to the possibility of our paths crossing in the future. Besides, I have a feeling this isn't the last I'll see of him, whether that's a good thing or a bad.

…

Don't get mad at me for putting Kid Kold in here. It's like I said, Jinx belongs with Kid Flash. She just doesn't realize it yet.

Thank you SecretCodeLyokan for following and favoriting, AmayaSarana for favoriting, and greenluvr14 for favoriting.

Review Responses-

Opinionated Shipper- Thanks, it was kind of a rough day for me, but at the same time updating kind of helped me cheer up a little. I'm feeling a lot better about it now :)

SecretCodeLyokan- Thank you! You'll be proud to know that I've started going on Tumblr about half as much as I used to… but you'll be not-so-proud to know that I did it so I can spend more time on Facebook. Oops.

Ratcoon- Yeah :(

Quote of the day!

"This really is a great long-term plan. It has all the wit and wisdom of a Kardashian tweet." –the "Adopt a Sarcastic Line" forum on the NaNoWriMo forums.

Titans Go!

~Spectrobes Princess