A/N: I know I have other things that I should be doing. Studying for my test on Wednesday...writing that essay for Human Development II...finishing my project on death rituals in Israel for Psychology of Death and Dying... Yeah, there's a lot of other things I should be doing... Yet, I can't resist posting another chapter. Let's see what's in store for Damiana today! Her life is definitely about to get more complicated than singing at a cafe and paying rent for her motel room, and it's mostly because of Speedy. Poor Damiana, or is she secretly lucky? Let's find out! :)
P.S. Thanks to everyone who has commented and followed. I'm really glad that you're enjoying the story! I've been putting a lot of work into "Firelight", so it makes me happy to see that people are enjoying it! :D
Disclaimer: I do not own Teen Titans. I only own the Dabnodians and my other OCs.
Part I: Inception: Chapter Four
The Next Day
The sky has been gray all day. From her job walking an elderly lady's Pomeranian at seven-thirty in the morning, to her babysitting job from six pm to eleven pm, the sky has been filled with ominous clouds. Even now, as Damiana takes a shortcut through a dark alleyway at fifteen minutes to midnight, the weather is as cold and gusty as ever. Of course, the chilly midnight breeze and the clouds that block out the moon don't bother Damiana too much. Shivering slightly against the cool air, the girl pulls the drawstrings of her hood tighter and tucks her bony hands inside of her jeans pockets.
"Why is it so cold?" She complains under her breath. "It's late March. It should be getting warmer by now."
Knowing that her question really doesn't have an answer, and not truly caring either way, the sixteen-year-old pushes onward. Her motel room is only twenty minutes away. With this shortcut, she should be sleeping soundly in her room with the door bolted shut in no time. Getting closer to the end of the alleyway with each step, the girl gives a smile of relief. A good night's rest is exactly what she needs; especially after what happened at the café last night. If the previous night's insomnia didn't help her forget, then maybe being dead to the world for eight straight hours will do the trick. The thought of Titan Speedy entering her mind once more, Damiana's smile shifts to a frown. When her fingers brush against the slip of paper that hasn't left her pocket, the frown deepens.
Damiana is beginning to wish that her job at Lola's Cafe never would have happened. If she hadn't started singing at the cafe in the first place, then she wouldn't have been there when Speedy stumbled in last night. Had she not been there, then he never would have asked for her help. If he hadn't asked her for help, or if they'd never met at all, then Damiana is certain that she would be feeling much more confident about life right now. She knew from the start that living in the same city as the Titans East was a bad idea. If only curiosity hadn't gotten the best of her, and if only she'd listed to her brain rather than her instincts.
"Don't worry, Damiana. Steel City is huge," she told herself eight short months ago on the bus to the city. "What are the odds of you personally meeting one of the Titans?"
This argument, which seemed so reasonable at the time, has now come back to haunt Damiana. She had a gut feeling that she'd come into contact with the Titans at some point if she were to settle in one of their cities. She has no idea how she knew this would happen, nor can she give a logical reason as to why she came to Steel City. All she knows is that she felt Steel City calling to her, she obeyed the call, and somehow she ended up running into one of the Titans. It's exactly what she thought might happen, but tried so hard to deny.
Sighing, Damiana exits the alleyway and saunters down a deserted road scattered by abandoned buildings. If she could, she would pack her bags, leave Steel City behind, and forget that it exists. With the Titans East occupying the area, and with her "special" background, she never should have come here. Damiana is not of this Earth. She is an alien with fire powers from Planet Dabnod. They may be the Titans East and not the Titans West, but they're in league with Princess Starfire of Tamaran. It's hard enough hiding herself while keeping everyone on this planet at a distance. How much harder will it be if she gets too close to the Titans?
It's bluntly obvious that each and every one of them is sharp. Even if they weren't, her hair dye is going to wear off at some point, and her brightly-colored tresses are going to start peeking through the brown. There's also the fact that one of them could spot her without her contact lenses. Having them find out that she wears colored contacts at all could be dangerous! If they find out about these things and if they put their heads together, they could easily figure out that she's a survivor from Dabnod. As soon as they figure that out, they would learn about the war with Tamaran, too, and the news might get back to Starfire. If the Tamaraneans find out that there are Dabnodian survivors spread out across the galaxy, what might they do? Or, worse yet, what might she do to Starfire if they met? Would the temptation to try killing her be too great?
Hugging herself tightly, Damiana releases a shudder. For the first time since stepping outside, her shivers don't come from the cold. A flurry of confused and frightened emotions flowing through her veins, the girl whispers aloud in Dabnodian. "Well, Damiana, you have to live with your stupidity, now. You came to this city knowing that something like this might happen, it did happen, and now you're going to have to follow through on your agreement with Speedy."
With that being said, the girl continues walking, eager to get back to her motel room and drown her concerns in marvelous slumber. Before she can, however, a large raindrop lands directly on the tip of her nose. First it's one, then it's ten, and after that, it's fifty. Knowing that it's about to downpour, Damiana sprints down the street in attempt to escape the coming storm. Of course, it isn't any use. Less than a minute later, the rain is falling so heavily that she can barely see three feet in front of her. Damiana pushes her way through the precipitation for several minutes, but eventually she gives up. Soaked to the bone, tired, and half frozen, the girl finally settles for taking shelter in one of this street's abandoned buildings. It may not be her motel room, but it's dark, musty, and she's all by herself. So in a way, the old building and her motel room aren't too different.
This building isn't large, but it also isn't small. Damiana's best guess is that this dark, dusty, structure used to be an office complex. Of course, based on the broken windows that are covered in grime, the cob webs hanging from the ceilings, and the dust that coats the few pieces of remaining furniture, the once attractive building is nothing of the sort anymore. Then again, it doesn't truly matter whether this place is nice. There is a roof, the roof doesn't have many holes, and it is keeping Damiana dry. After spending twenty minutes drying off by breathing fire over her sopping wet body, the last thing she wants is to get wet again.
Happy that she is dry and no longer freezing to death, Damiana snuggles more deeply into her over-sized black sweatshirt. More than anything, she wants to get back to her motel room where her bed is at. Not necessarily due to fatigue, but because under the covers is a place where the lightning and thunder don't seem so frightening. Not only that, but the shadows in her motel room aren't nearly as creepy. Sure there could be rats or roaches in those shadows, but the shadows here could contain people. They could contain murders, gangsters, or rapists. After a moment of consideration, however, Damiana chuckles at the thought. The more she thinks about it, the more she realizes that these are exactly the kind of people that rent out the motel rooms around her.
"Geesh, Damiana, don't get so freaked out," says the girl internally. "The only things here are spiders, and if there really is something dangerous, you have your fire. You're not a helpless little girl."
Damiana gives another chuckle, remembering how she wasn't helpless even when she was a little girl. How old was she when her father and the Fire Phoenix Clan Elders taught her to use her fire? Four or five? By reading books and getting advice from those in her Clan, Damiana is certain that she was at Master's Level by the age of ten. In all her life, the word "helpless" has never described her.
The girl scoffs aloud. "Look at me, cowering in fear over shadows and lightning. How pathetic. Mama and Saeran would be embarrassed to know me."
Straightening her posture, Damiana turns away from the cracked window she's facing. The room behind her is pitch black, the enclosure's single desk is tipped oddly on its side, and the door against the back wall is coming off of its hinges. Yet, it doesn't seem nearly as frightening as before. Knowing that the rain most likely won't let up for a while, and not wanting to stare outside in boredom the whole time, Damiana walks deeper into the room. She highly doubts that there is anything interesting here, but she decides to look around anyway. Even if she finds nothing, it must be better than staring out the broken windows at the downpour.
Hood up and arms folded over her chest, the girl crosses the floor silently. She doesn't bother examining the area around her. With only cobwebs and the single desk to look at, there is no reason for her to stay here. It is because of this that she goes through the broken door at the back of the room without a second thought. For a moment, Damiana wonders if it could be a supply closet or a back room that she's entering. After igniting a small flame in the palm of her hand and looking around, however, she realizes that the assumption was false. The door is actually an exit that leads to a long narrow hallway. Peering to her left, Damiana instantly notices that this direction is a dead end. Therefore, she turns to the right and begins journeying that way.
As she travels down the hallway, Damiana comes across several more doors. Much to her disappointment, they lead to nothing more than supply closets, bathrooms, and dusty office spaces containing dismantled desks and broken chairs. Every few minutes, the girl finds a window and peeks outside to see if the rain is letting up. Much like the rooms she has entered, she is disappointed every time. Whenever she looks outdoors, it is raining just as hard as it was earlier. It's almost as if the clouds are conspiring with each other to flood Steel City. This is where she stands now is in front of another window, feeling entirely dismayed.
"Well, this sucks," whispers Damiana as she watches rain streak down the glass in a puddle of firelight. "At this rate, I'm going to be stuck here all night."
Sighing sadly, the girl turns away from the window and exits this room like all the others. Once in the corridor, Damiana extinguishes the flames dancing in her palm. After walking down so many hallways for such a lengthy amount of time, her eyes must have adjusted to the darkness. Her vision isn't nearly as sharp in the dark, but she can still make out shapes and objects. Twirling a dyed brown strand around an index finger, the girl comes to the end of the hallway and makes a random turn.
By now, she isn't paying any attention to where she is going, neither is she walking through any other doors. The only thing that she does is wander aimlessly. Damiana would have looked for a window in order to peek outside again, but it isn't any use. Apparently it has started pouring double-time, because the sound of rain echoing against the roof can be heard loud and clear. In fact, this is part of the reason she doesn't go inside any more rooms or look for any more windows. Damiana has a feeling that if she looks outside right now, it will only make her depressed. Having no idea what to do for the time being, the girl releases an aggravated groan.
"It's a good thing that my jobs start at nine tomorrow instead of at seven. With as late as I'm going to be getting back, there's no way that I'd be able to wake up that early."
Several more minutes pass, and Damiana makes countless turns. She can't help wondering how much longer she is going to be stuck here. However, it's only as she makes one final turn that the alien spots something incredibly surprising. Upon exiting this corridor, she doesn't enter another corridor, but instead stumbles across a large main room. Like every other room in this place, there isn't much of anything in the way of furniture. There are only a few scant chairs shoved haphazardly against the walls, a table containing some torn magazines, and a receptionist desk placed at the room's center. Of course, it isn't the area's decor that surprises Damiana. What truly catches her off guard are the duo of men that stand congregated near the receptionist desk.
From what Damiana can see, the two vary greatly in build. One is tall and scrawny while the other is short with an incredibly muscular build. Their costumes, however, don't differ in the slightest. Each man wears a solid black unitard with a dark blue stripe running down the middle. If the suits didn't seem familiar enough on their own, then the black and blue masks that they wear make them even more recognizable. Damiana may have never seen them in person, but as an avid viewer of the evening News, she is completely able to guess who it is they work with. The only thing that she can't believe is that she'd run into them here, and at one o'clock in the morning during a storm, no less.
Then again, this shouldn't surprise her. The only home she has ever known exploded into tiny pieces of intergalactic dust. She has had to wander homeless for years on an alien planet. She met one of the Titans like she'd partially expected, but got stuck with the arrogant playboy archer instead of Aqualad or Bumblebee. Really, Damiana is starting to believe that rotten luck is a part of her unchangeable fate. The fact that she managed to pick the abandoned building with the criminals out of all the other abandoned buildings on the block only helps reinforce this notion.
Not wanting to go further into the room for fear of being seen, but also not wanting to retreat down the hallway for fear of making noise, the alien decides to stay where she's at. Making sure her that face is concealed by the thick black hood, Damiana crouches down so that she is out of sight. Though she can't make them out too clearly from her current position behind the hall's corner, she is able to see their outlines just enough to tell where they're at. As strange as it is, Damiana isn't thinking about getting out of here alive as much as reporting this to Speedy and the Titans East. Really, she has no idea why her brain is working this way. She knows that she should stay away from the Titans. She knows that she can hardly stand the sight of Speedy. Yet, there is this itching need to get whatever valuable information she is about to learn to the Titans East all the same.
Their voices echo clearly through the nearly empty room. Damiana listens carefully without making a sound. Although, she is certain that both of her hearts can be heard rapidly beating in sync as she tries to quench her apprehension.
"What do you mean there still isn't enough money?! You've robbed every bank and jewelry store in the shopping district!" exclaims the short one.
The tall one crosses his arms, clearly irritated with his companion. "Don't be such a nag. I'm doing the best I can. The parts to the boss' new invention aren't cheap, you know. Heck, I could rob the National Treasury and still be a few bucks short with how expensive this thing is going to be!"
Huffing, the short man points an accusatory finger. "Stop making excuses! You know the boss needs the proper resources to start working on his machine this month! At the rate you're going, he's going to be approximately five months behind schedule!"
The tall man gives a nonchalant shrug. "So what if we get behind schedule? Big deal. It's not like the Titans are going anywhere anytime soon. It could take us the next three years to make this machine, and they'll probably still be right where they are. We have plenty of time to destroy them."
His little companion gives a sarcastic laugh. "Try telling the boss that. I'm sure he'll use some of the money you stole to pay for a nice tropical vacation somewhere. He might even put off his plans for the next six months. Who knows? He might take us with him."
"Don't get like this. You know I'm working hard to get the money he needs. It's just, with the Titans East and Steel City's police force, I have to use some caution. Any day now, I'm afraid that the Titans East are going to find a way to capture me. They're smarter than people give them credit for."
Damiana can't help feeling shocked at the criminal's words. "The evil robber has more faith in the Titans East than Steel City's citizens. Unbelievable."
Meanwhile, the other man replies almost mockingly, "Oh, so is that why you decided not to do another robbery today? You're scared of pigtail girl, fish boy, the tiny twins, and the powerless brat with the arrows?"
"Yes, and I have plenty of reasons to be. They're very capable superheroes. Whether they call on the Titans West or not, I believe that they could easily stop the boss' plan if they make the right moves."
The short man gives another laugh. "You honestly think that they could defeat us with the technology at our disposal? No offense, but you're overestimating them. Where Slade and The Brotherhood of Evil failed, we will succeed. Not only that, but if we play our cards right, we can do it much more secretively and with less force."
The tall man gives a sigh of defeat. "Fine. You win. Believe whatever you want." After a moment of hesitation, he continues, "Well, we should get moving. We need to find that secret underground room in the west corridor and make sure everything is still there. With the number of thugs in this city, I wouldn't be surprised if someone stumbled across it and stole half of our loot by now."
"You're right. We need to get this done with. I almost forgot that I have work in the morning."
With that being said, the duo turns away from the receptionist desk and saunters in the direction of the back hallway. Or more specifically, they go toward Damiana's hallway. If her hearts weren't beating fast before, then they certainly are now. Damiana doesn't even hear what they're saying anymore. All her hearing picks up is the pounding of rain on the roof, the rapid thudding of her hearts beating in sync, and the sound of loud male footsteps. Raising a prayer to the Fates, the girl rapidly searches her brain for a way to get out of this unscathed.
Should she leap to her feet and run past them out the front doors? Should she run back into the labyrinth of hallways and hide in one of the rooms? Or maybe she should try staying put in hope that they won't notice her. Even if they do notice her, she could pretend to be asleep. They might think she's a homeless person escaping the rain and leave her alone. Or better yet, they might think she's dead. A few months ago when Damiana was homeless for real, she fell asleep on a park bench. A jogger saw her and thought she was dead because she looked frail and sickly, so that might actually work… Luckily, just when Damiana is about to play dead, that is when a different idea strikes. This new idea is a bit risky, but it will probably work all the same. Praying again to the Fates, the alien decides to go for it.
Holding both arms out in front of her, Damiana focuses intently on the floor directly in front of the corridor. With the room's lack of light and with how fast she has to accomplish this, she hopes that her aim will be precise. If she misses, not only could they see her, but they could see her bright Dabnodian hair and colorful Dabnodian eyes. With the intensity of this move, there is no doubt that her hair is going to set on fire and that her eyes are going to light up like embers, thus, ridding her of the hair dye and contact lenses. She learned very quickly during her time on Earth that hair dye and contact lenses never hold up if she uses Master's Level techniques… Not to mention that it has been five years since last performing this technique and that she is probably rusty. That doesn't add to her confidence any either…
Damiana bites down on her lower lip, the footsteps now being only five feet away from the end of the corridor. Checking to see that her aim is right one final time, the girl takes a deep breath and activates her fire. Less than a second later, a burning orange wall appears in front of the hall's entrance. It reaches from wall to wall and from the ceiling to the ground, making getting around it impossible. Three seconds later, more walls appear. Damiana can't see them, but she is well aware that the walls are encasing the entire main room from the walls to the ceiling. The only place that the fire isn't covering is the floor. Considering how Damiana's fire is meant to trap rather than harm, it's not going to move to the floor, either. However, based on the screams of the men from the wall's other side, they're completely unaware of that insignificant detail.
"Ah! Holy Batman! We're going to die! Help me, Mommy!"
"No! Please! I'm not ready to die yet! Whatever ghost that's in here, please don't hurt me!"
Damiana doesn't waste a single moment. Knowing that her fire wall won't stay up for any longer than five minutes, she sprints down the hallway with long tresses set aflame. Because of the extreme amount of energy she released while using her fire, she is running much faster than usual. Before Damiana knows it, she is inside one of the building's remote rooms, crawling out a broken window, and running down the street. She doesn't even care that she can't see due to the intense rainstorm. All that matters is getting away from the building as quickly as possible. Of course, despite her escape, Damiana doesn't plan on going to bed. Not yet. There is something incredibly important that the alien has to do before re-dying her hair and going to sleep.
According to the digital clock that is connected to the Tower's main console, the time is exactly one twenty-seven AM. The rest of the Tower is asleep, Bumblebee in her room, Mas y Menos in their shared room, and Aqualad in his pool of water. Speedy was trying to sleep, but for some reason, he simply couldn't. He lay awake in his bed for two hours before finally giving up and trekking through the dark corridors to the common room. The seventeen-year-old archer is currently sprawled out on the sofa and staring out the massive windows, watching as rain mercilessly pelts the glass. For twenty minutes he has been sitting here doing nothing but watching the rain, the only thing lighting the room being the glow of the digital clock and the console's buttons.
Several minutes pass, and eventually Speedy becomes bored with his spot on the sofa. Shirtless and barefoot, wearing nothing but his mask and maroon pants, he gets to his feet and saunters over to the windows. He stares blankly at the downpour exactly as he has been doing for the past half hour. Running a hand over his head of neat red hair, the archer releases a lengthy sigh.
"I feel bad for the person who's outside in this. Hopefully they find somewhere dry," he says to the empty space around him.
Speedy has no idea how he misses the splash of someone emerging from the pool surrounding the common room. Neither can he guess how the footsteps approaching him from behind pass him by. All Speedy knows is that when he hears someone speak, he is surprised that he is no longer alone.
"It's one thirty in the morning. Nobody should be outside; especially not during a rainstorm."
Jumping, Speedy turns around startled. Three feet behind him, eyeing him in a fashion that is both curious and fatigued, is none other than Aqualad. The archer gives a small frown and turns back around to face the windows.
"Go back to sleep. All I'm doing is thinking. Don't let me keep you awake."
As tired as the Atlantian seems, Speedy partially expects Aqualad to take his suggestion and return to his slumber. However, instead of leaving the common room, he paces over to stand beside the redhead. "You do know that she isn't going to help us, right? Based on your story and on what Brittney told me, Leila doesn't seem to like you."
It takes a small eternity, but eventually Speedy replies. "True. Leila doesn't like me. In fact, I'm probably her least favorite member of the Titans East. But even if she doesn't like me, that doesn't mean she has something against the team as a whole. She doesn't seem like the type to hold that kind of a grudge. Leila will help us. I'm sure of it."
Speedy doesn't look at his teammate, yet he can still tell that Aqualad doesn't believe a word. Sadly, this doesn't surprise him. It was about this time last night when he told the rest of the Titans what he knows about Leila and about everything that happened at the cafe. By that, it means that he told them "everything" everything. He didn't leave out a single detail. By the time he was done, Bee was staring at him in disbelief, Aqualad appeared skeptical, and Mas y Menos just seemed surprised.
While giving Speedy feedback, they admitted that they thought he was right. After hearing what he shared about Leila, it sounded like she could've been a marvelous asset to the Titans East. Yet, it couldn't have been clearer that they also believed that Leila would never help them in a million years. Due to the fact that she is very independent, not to mention that she called Speedy a pimp during their conversation, it didn't seem like the girl would be too willing to help them. Even so, this problem hasn't bothered the Titans too much. If they can't get help from the source that Speedy found, then they will find another way to capture the villain. Or at least that's the way Bumblebee put it, anyway.
Of course, Speedy doesn't want to find another way to capture the villain. He can't put his finger on it, but something about Leila is very different from the other civilians he has met. It isn't just her singing voice or the blunt way she speaks to him, either. There's something else. It's most likely something that nobody else but Leila knows about. Whatever that something is, it somehow separates her from other humans. If only Aqualad, or Bee, or Mas y Menos could have met her, then maybe they would understand why he is so determined to get Leila on their side. She could be an irreplaceable asset.
At last, Aqualad speaks, breaking Speedy away from his inner musings. "What makes you so sure that Leila's going to help us? She might not find anything. Even if she does, do you honestly think that she'll let us know? Be honest with yourself, Speedy. You barely know her."
Speedy furrows his brow in uncertainty. "This might sound weird, but I don't need to know her. Leila's different. I don't know what it is that makes her different, but there's definitely something there. Trust me. If you meet her, you'll see what I mean."
He still doesn't look at his teammate. The archer stays glued to his spot in front of the windows, staring outside without emotion.
At last, Aqualad manages a response. "What exactly do you mean by 'different'? Are you saying that she has powers, or a high level of intelligence, or is this some kind of love at first sight thing?"
Surprised by that last part, Speedy burst into chuckles. For the first time since entering the room, he actually turns to face the aquatic man. "Love at first sight?! Are you kidding me?! Leila hates my guts, and quite frankly, I don't think that I'm too fond of her, either. When I say that something is different about her, I mean that she might have qualities that could be helpful to the Titans East." With hesitation, he clarifies, "There's something about her that separates her from the rest of us; like a higher level of intelligence, or the way she carries herself, or something. It's hard to put into words."
Speedy's comment earns a response. However, the response doesn't come from Aqualad. It comes from one of the three people that entered through the common room doors less than two minutes ago.
"Maybe it'd be easier to put into words if you'd just calm down and go to sleep. Or better yet, why don't you forget Leila? Aqualad's right. There's no way she's going to help us."
The two men spin around at the sound of their leader's voice. Descending the stairs from the double doors to the common room's center is Bumblebee. Based on how she wears a black short-sleeved pajama shirt along with loose-fitting black and yellow pants, she just rolled out of bed. On either side of her are Mas y Menos. Mas is wearing a cozy-looking pair of Batman pajamas while Menos is adorned by Superman pajamas. They, too, appear as though they had to force themselves awake.
Speedy sighs. "Look. When I came out here, I just wanted to spend some time alone. I wasn't looking to throw a late night slumber party. Why doesn't everyone go back to sleep?"
Stretching her arms, Bumblebee releases a yawn. "Because if you're awake, then something must be bugging you. As a person who loves to sleep, I'd never expect you to be up wandering around in the middle of the night like an old man with dementia." Giving another yawn, she continues, "Please tell me that this isn't about Leila. I thought for sure that you'd be over her by now."
Mas y Menos give their input as well, appearing equally annoyed.
"Estás siendo ridículo. Esta chica nunca va a recoger toda la información,"complains Mas in aggravation.
Menos immediately agrees. "Eso es verdad. ¡Sólo la conociste ayer, por lo superarás! ¡Sé un hombre!"
Unable to understand a word out of Mas y Menos mouths, Speedy directs his attention to Bumblebee. "This isn't about getting over her or not getting over her. I'm genuinely convinced that Leila's going to help us. It's like I told Aqualad just now. She might not like me personally, but that doesn't mean that she's holding a grudge against the Titans East as a whole. If it's for the good of Steel City, then I think she'll come around."
Rolling his eyes, Mas leans in and whispers something to his brother. "Él está bien en la negación o él está volviendo loco. El gel para el cabello debe estar destruyendo su mente."
Meanwhile, Aqualad and Bumblebee sigh in unison.
"I'm sorry, Speedy, but I think you're way off on this one," says the fish boy.
"I do too," adds Bee. "It doesn't matter what kind of excuses you try to make on her behalf, and it doesn't matter what kind of reasoning you use. Leila isn't going to do anything to help the Titans East, and she's never going to use that number you gave her."
Once the words are spoken, the room lapses into silence. Speedy is prepared to protest once more, but that is when the silence is broken. To everybody's absolute shock, it isn't broken by someone speaking or by a clap of thunder. Instead, a loud ringing is heard echoing through the otherwise silent Tower. It isn't the ringing of the crime alert or of an alarm. Rather, the ringing comes from the Tower's main console on the other side of the common room. A small red light is steadily blinking on the console's control panel as the ringing continues, letting the Titans know that someone has just connected to the Tower's private extension.
Thoroughly surprised by this event, they shift their gazes to the digital clock. What person would be crazy enough to call Titans Tower at one forty-nine in the morning? However, when the ringing stops and when the answering machine picks up the call, they learn exactly who their caller is. By no means is this a prank call. Feeling shocked times ten, their gazes stay firmly locked on the red blinking light as the person speaks from the line's other end. The harsh pounding of rain against glass can be heard in the background, suggesting that she's calling from a phone booth of some sort. She is also panting heavily as if she'd just finished running a long distance. Nonetheless, they're still able to make out the girl's words.
"Speedy, this is Leila. I'm sorry that I'm calling so late. I don't mean to wake everybody up, but this is kind of important," says a strong yet feminine female voice. "You remember when I told you that trusting me for leads was a dumb idea and that you were wasting your time by depending on me? Well, I was wrong and you were right. Congratulations. I ran across something on my way back from my babysitting job tonight; something big."
Everybody's eyes widen at Leila's words. This includes Speedy's. He was expecting to hear back from Leila, but definitely not this soon or at two o'clock in the morning. Meanwhile, everyone else in the room turns to gawk at Speedy. They're obviously every bit as surprised as he is. However, they don't have too much time to process their shock. Before they know it, Leila resumes speaking.
"I would love to take the time to tell you about it, but this is really something that you should hear in person. There's too much to explain. If you want to learn about the information I have, then meet me at Lola's Cafe tomorrow night at six-thirty. Bring the other Titans. The lead I have is a huge one, and they can't miss out." A sardonic smirk heard in her voice, she continues, "Also, I highly suggest that you show up in civilian clothing. We can't have your harem attacking Aqualad, now can we? Besides, I'll be able to recognize you no matter what you wear. With your bad boy stride and your pimp-like smirk, there's no way I won't be able to see you."
Speedy crosses his arms and blushes in indignation at her sarcastic remark. Bumblebee and Aqualad, on the other hand, chuckle lightly from beside him. Mas y Menos laugh as well, but their laughter is more similar to mocking guffaws than chuckles.
"You weren't exaggerating, Speedy! She really sounds like she hates you!" teases Aqualad.
"Bad boy stride and pimp-like smirk? Is that really what you look like when you're trying to impress girls?" asks Bee between giggles.
Opening his mouth, Speedy is ready to jump to his defense. Before he can, however, Leila speaks again. Sadly for the archer, it only works to aggravate him more.
"And, Speedy, please leave the ladies at the door when you walk in. I know there's 'enough of Titan Speedy to go around' just like you said, but I'd prefer not to have a bunch of whores in miniskirts clinging onto you while we're talking. You can impress them with your bow and strong muscles outside once our conversation is over. I'm sure they'll be impressed." By now Leila's voice doesn't just sound sarcastic, but also amused. "Well, I'm out of quarters and almost out of time, so I need to go. Again, Lola's Cafe tomorrow at six-thirty, and civilian clothing if you feel it's necessary. Goodbye."
With that, the girl hangs up. Normally Speedy would be thanking God that she ran out of quarters, but there's really no reason to. It's already far too late. The Atlantian and the Titan leader are in full-blown guffaws just like the twins.
"'There's enough of Titan Speedy to go around'? You didn't actually say that, did you?!" asks Bumblebee as she keels over in laughter.
"Yes! Yes he did!" Aqualad exclaims. "Brittney told me that he did! I just didn't think that she was actually serious!"
Speedy scowls as he stomps over to the sofa and flops down. All of the sudden, he wishes that he hadn't asked Leila for help and that he hadn't given her that forty bucks. This is absolutely humiliating! Was he really acting that dumb in front of those girls?! A second later, Bee makes another comment, making Speedy wish that he could find Leila and give her a piece of his mind.
"You'd better go to bed and get some rest, Speedy. You should wake up early tomorrow so you have time to go through your book of pickup lines! Don't leave the ladies disappointed!"
Speedy groans. "Come on, stop it. It's not that funny. All I was doing was talking to some girls. Nothing I did was that dumb."
Unfortunately, the other four Titans ignore him. Feeling embarrassed beyond measure, Speedy gets up from the sofa and exits the common room. If he wasn't able to get to sleep before, then he'll probably be able to now. When he wakes up, maybe they'll have forgotten everything Leila said. Yet, for some reason, the archer can't help but smile at the same time. Sure she doesn't like him, but she still found something, and she still called to let them know. Not only that, but she contacted them at two in the morning in the pouring rain to make sure that they got the message. If the other Titans didn't believe him about Leila before, then they have to now.
For the second time in the past two days, Damiana stands in the motel room's bathroom preparing to dye her hair. It's after two and she has to be awake by eight o'clock AM. Because of this, she should really hurry up with the dye job so she can get some rest. Yet, at the same time, Damiana doesn't want to dye her hair. All the young alien wants to do is stare at her reflection in the mirror so that she can see her full Dabnodian image for the first time in years. Until this very moment, she had no idea how much she missed the colors. In the span of fifteen minutes, the girl has watched her hair shift from greenish-yellow, to a vibrant shade of neon orange, and then to rose-red. Her eyes have been changing color right along with her hair, first to a brownish-yellow color, then to bright gold, and finally to the color her eyes are right now, soft pink. Her hair, however, is shifting from rose-red to a lovely shade of sapphire mingled with sky blue.
Smiling, Damiana runs a hand through her thick curled tresses. Her hair is thicker and even more beautiful than she remembers. "Do I really have to put the hair dye back in? Can't I look like myself for just one day?"
Shifting her gaze to the bathroom vanity, Damiana sees the bottle of brown dye and a container that holds one of her three spare pairs of green colored contact lenses. They glare up at her, giving the alien her answer. Sighing, the girl looks back at the mirror to see her hair. Surprisingly, even with the change in her emotions, her hair is still as blue as ever. Giving a small forlorn smile, she speaks to her reflection.
"No. I guess I can't let my hair stay like this, can I? I've worked too hard to blend in with the humans. I can't throw it all away because I miss being a Dabnodian. That would be stupid. Besides, I have a meeting with the Titans tomorrow. Meeting with them as Leila Johnson is risky enough. I can't let them know that I'm a survivor from Planet Dabnod on top of it."
With that, Damiana picks up the bottle and reads the directions on the back. Not because she needs to, but because reading the directions enables her to be a Dabnodian for just a little bit longer. As she reads, however, a wave of guilt washes over her. This time it has nothing to do with whether or not she should color her hair. Eyes looking at the container of brown dye but no longer reading the words, she speaks aloud once more.
"If there's time tomorrow, I should really thank Speedy for the forty dollars he gave me. I couldn't have gotten this hair dye or the bread and peanut butter in the cupboard without it."
For the first time since entering her motel room, Damiana feels bad about the message she left. As much as she dislikes Speedy, mocking him that badly over the Titans' answering machine was a cruel and low thing to do. Then again, he did bring it on himself by waltzing into the cafe with girls in miniskirts swarming him. So, now that she's thinking about it, why does she feel bad about the message she left at all?
Deciding that she is over-thinking the matter, Damiana sets the bottle back on the vanity, turns on the water, and begins washing her hair. It has been a long day. Maybe all she needs is to get her hair colored so she can go to sleep. By the time she wakes up, the Dabnodian will probably be back in her proper state of mind. If she feels any type of remorse about potentially embarrassing a pimp like Speedy, then the fatigue and the rain must have gotten to her head.
A/N: Okay, that's it for now. Now that this chapter is posted, I should really get some of my college work done. Over these past few weeks, I've been the worst procrastinator ever! Of course, once my work is done, another chapter will be coming! Just so you know, "Part One: Chapter Five" is an entire chapter dedicated to the Titans West. Hopefully you're looking forward to it!
Again, thanks to all of you who have been favoriting, following, and reviewing. I appreciate it! Until next time! :)
Forever and always,
~OCQ
