Forgotten Bonds – Chapter Twenty-Six

Chapter Twenty-Six
The Snow White Lead

February 3rd, 2009. Tuesday, 4:22 pm.

“All right, guys,” whispered Cyborg, peeking around the corner to inspect the apartment building. He looked back at the other three team members. “We have to go about this carefully.”

Raven folded her arms and rolled her eyes.

“It’s the middle of the day. Just go up there and knock.”

“No way!” protested Beast Boy. “We’ve gotta take her by surprise.”

“This is ridiculous,” muttered Raven with a shake of her head.

Starfire looked between Raven and Cyborg; her bright green eyes searching for answers. She truly hoped they wouldn’t fight over this right now. She had her own opinion on how they should deal with this, but she didn’t want to cause any arguments. That would just not be helpful at all.

“I am afraid I must agree with Raven,” said Starfire, looking apologetic to Cyborg. “I think it would be best if we announce our presence.”

“Look, guys,” started Cyborg. “I just have this feeling; you know, like guy instinct. We need to tread carefully here.”

Raven lifted her eyebrow as if to question this new type of feeling of instinct. Starfire was confused and was about to ask about it, when Raven put a hand on her arm.

“Don’t. You’ll just get a long winded explanation that’ll make no sense at all.”

Cyborg shot her an offended look, but said nothing.

Starfire looked between the group, feeling the tense emotions that were emanating from her friends. With their dear friend Robin missing now for almost five months, the emotions of each of her friends had intensified. She herself was extremely worried. No doubt everyone thought they’d be able to find something about Robin’s whereabouts; perhaps a clue. But there had been nothing, as if their friend had ceased to exist.

And now this was the only clue they had.

It had been a terrible many weeks. Starfire never truly realized just how big Jump City was; just how many people lived inside the city. But it most certainly was a very large city with over two million residents. It had taken them a long time – too long in Starfire’s opinion – to find this girl. No one ever had answers when they asked. Finding this girl had been the only thing that drove each and every one of the group; it was the driving force that pushed their souls, that kept them going.

But with every passing day with no luck, the emotions began to build negatively.

Thus, Starfire did her best to lift her friends and try to bring a little cheerfulness to each one. But in doing so, she buried her own emotions in her heart. It was something she never imagined she’d ever do. On her home planet, Tamaran, one never buried their emotions. But Starfire knew that if she let herself wallow in the deep despair that threatened to overpower her daily, she’d never be able to use her powers again.

Remaining emotionally strong was the only glue that held her friends together. She could see it completely. She knew Raven was having difficulty controlling her emotions and because of it, her powers. Cyborg always seemed burdened, as if there were a terrible weight on his shoulders. Beast Boy was determined to prove himself and sometimes was a bit overbearing in his resolve.

With such conflicting and raging emotions, explosions were teetering on the edges of all of them. So, Starfire did all she could to become the balance between them. She did not want her friends to experience Rekma, The Drifting, where friends were no longer friends. They were a family now and they needed each other more than anything, especially during this terrible trial.

But deep inside Starfire’s heart there was an agonizing longing for Robin. Oh, how she missed him! Robin was her best friend. There wasn’t a moment where she didn’t think of him or worry for his safety. Was Slade being cruel to him? Was Slade hurting him, depriving him of things? Her heart couldn’t bear the thought of Robin suffering. Oh, how at any moment would she gladly trade places with him. Anything, anything to save her precious friend.

How long would it be before she could see his face once again? How long would it be before she could hear his voice once more? How long would it be before she could wrap her arms around him and never let go? How much longer did she have to wait?

How much longer did Robin have to suffer alone?

But Starfire couldn’t allow herself to dwell on such feelings and emotions for long. She had to bury it so that she could remain a strength to the others. The one thing she did allow herself to feel was righteous fury – all directed at Slade. When she got her hands on that terrible man, she would rip him limb from limb. She would make him pay for hurting her dear friend, Robin. Once she was through with him, he would never again wish to harm any of her friends – ever again.

But she truly prayed to X’hal that Robin was just alive; if he was just alive, then there was hope – nothing else mattered.

“Come on, guys,” said Cyborg, beginning to creep forward. Beast Boy followed suit. The two of them hid behind any object they could as they sneaked up to the apartment building. Raven let out a long sigh and simply walked forward, not bothering to hide herself. Hesitantly, Starfire followed her example. She just didn’t think they should burst into this girl’s home. Surely knocking at her door would make her more receptive towards their need.

Cyborg wound his way at the right of the building while Beast Boy did the same at the other side. Raven groaned irritably.

“Those two idiots are going to do something stupid and ruin the whole thing,” said Raven, putting a hand to her forehead and shaking her head. “Boys… Always have to do things the hard way.”

Starfire watched her two friends from a distance and suddenly had a wave of the bad feeling flow over her. Raven was right; this wasn’t a good idea.

But boys will be boys.

Cyborg burst through the side window, while Beast Boy went through the other. There was the sound of shattering glass and a small gasp of fright. Raven groaned deeply and muttered something about ‘boys’ again before she used her black magic to surround Starfire and herself. Starfire felt the darkness of her friend’s magic lead her through the wall of the apartment. Then, she was released from the magic.

Cyborg was standing at the right, his arm cannon prepped for action, while Beast Boy was on the left in a fighting stance. In between them stood a tall girl with a half full bowl of popcorn. Starfire noticed that the rest of the popcorn was scattered across the floor surrounding her feet. Her friends must’ve frightened the girl. Starfire was further worried about the situation now. This girl seemed innocent enough. Why couldn’t they have just knocked at the door?

“You peeps know there’s a front door, right?” asked the girl dryly with a raised eyebrow, motioning a hand to the door. She was unaffected by the shattered glass that laid on both sides of her. She did, however, look a bit annoyed by them.

“Brilliant guy instinct there, Cyborg,” drawled Raven with a roll of her eyes. Cyborg winced for a moment, looking embarrassed. He powered down his cannon and turned his gaze to the girl.

Starfire looked at the girl as well. The girl’s appearance was different than the average human. There was something powerful about it. Starfire remembered Jinx telling them that the girl was an albino; but having never seen one before, it was really quite a different experience.

An even hauntingly beautiful one.

The girl before them had wavy, snow white hair that draped below her shoulders – it was the purest white beyond anything Starfire had ever seen before in all her travels. Even the girl’s eyebrows, down to the very eyelashes that laced against her upper cheeks every now and then were of the same pure white shade. Her skin was also very pale; appearing as if snow itself dusted against her skin.

Finally, through the white eyelashes stood two violet red eyes. There was a deep beauty within them; however, somehow Starfire felt unsettled as she looked within them. There was a haunting dark light that each orb held; as if there was some deep darkness that could absorb any unsuspecting soul.

Starfire couldn’t help the bad feeling that was rising in her chest.

“So, you peeps wanna tell me why you’re smashing through my windows,” asked the girl, plopping the half empty bowl of popcorn onto the table next to a glass of juice and putting her hands onto her hips.

“Um…”

Starfire looked over at Cyborg and felt a pang of pity for her friend. She could tell he was feeling a bit foolish now. Even Starfire had expected that anyone from the H.I.V.E. Academy would instantly be ready for a fight, perhaps even waiting for any moment when someone would burst into their home. But this girl had been completely shocked by their arrival. She was holding her ground, though. She wasn’t afraid of intruders, but she also hadn’t been waiting nor expecting for any.

Raven stepped forward.

“We’re looking for some information and were hoping that you could supply us with it,” said Raven.

The girl raised another eyebrow. “And yet, still can’t see why you couldn’t have knocked. It’s not that hard.”

“We are truly sorry,” said Starfire, floating forward. “We were not… expecting someone like you.”

“Who were you expecting, some criminal?” asked the girl, folding her arms with a high air. “The way the lot of ya busted in here, you’d think there’d been a mass murderer in here or something.”

“Um… let’s start over,” said Cyborg, stepping forward. “Really sorry `bout the windows. I’m Cyborg, acting leader of the Teen Titans.”

The girl tilted her head to the side.

“The who?”

“The Teen Titans,” piped up Beast Boy, acting as if repeating the name would clear everything. “Haven’t you heard of us?”

“Not really,” said the girl with a simple shake of her head. Beast Boy’s mouth dropped. Starfire wondered briefly if Beast Boy was about to say something foolish. But Cyborg seemed to see this first and he spoke before Beast Boy could pipe up again.

“Um, that’s Raven, that’s Starfire, and the green one is Beast Boy,” said Cyborg, pointing to each in turn. “We protect Jump City from criminals.”

“Ooh, so you’re a group of capes,” drawled the girl in a derisive tone. “Fascinating. What’s that got to do with me?”

“Uh…”

“May I ask you for your name?” asked Starfire, keeping her tone friendly. Trying to make friends with this girl was the best way. Perhaps then, the girl would be receptive in offering up information and maybe Starfire would have another friend. The girl shrugged lightly, turning to lean against the couch.

“Depends what you’re gonna do with it.”

“So that I may call you by your name, of course,” cried Starfire, a bright smile spreading through her face. The girl appeared to be disarmed by Starfire’s kindness; the darkened light within her eyes fading briefly. But then, the darkness slid back over them.

“The name’s Sadie Roeslyn. I’m sixteen and I go to the local high school nearby. Anything else I can do ya for before I show you the door? Since you obviously don’t know where it is.”

“What a glorious name, new friend Sadie,” cried Starfire, her smile nearly blinding. Sadie winced slightly, her expression darkening.

“I’m not your friend,” said Sadie in an icy tone. “Don’t think that you can blast in here, ask my name, and all of the sudden we’re buddy buddy. Not happening, girl.”

Starfire backed up slightly, biting her lip. This wasn’t going well. The girl, Sadie, was obviously hostile to visitors, although her friends did bust through the girl’s windows like a rampaging herd of Glorgs. But there had been a brief moment where Starfire had seen Sadie soften by her smile, yet it was as if she were blocking herself from such things. Starfire had seen something like this once before when she had watched Cyborg talking with Robin. She wasn’t sure what he had asked, but suddenly Robin’s body language had completely closed up – perhaps as if something had been painful to remember.

What had Cyborg said to him that could bring such an expression from Robin?

“Like I said, we’re really sorry about the windows,” said Cyborg, sounding extremely apologetic. “We’re here on official Titans’ business and were hoping that you could help us.”

“How?”

“This is classified information,” said Cyborg hesitantly, obviously a little nervous about sharing Robin’s disappearance. “But our… friend was kidnapped by a criminal and we received some information that you might be able to tell us more about this criminal.”

“I doubt that, but I’ll humor you,” said Sadie in a cynical tone. “Who’s the criminal?”

“Slade.”

The girl instantly stiffened. The hardened dark light in her eyes blazed for a brief moment before it clouded. It had happened so quickly that Starfire was almost unsure if it had actually occurred. Sadie turned her head to the side and scoffed.

“Slade? What kind of name is that? Sorry, but I’ve never heard of the criminal. You’re wasting your time here.”

“We have it on good authority that you were a student at the H.I.V.E. Academy,” said Raven. “We know you’ve heard of Slade before.”

“Look, I’m not a cop,” said Sadie, the darkness in her eyes increasing, yet her expression was still impassive. “Why don’t you go to them for help. It’s their job to rescue people like that.”

“But he’s our friend!” protested Beast Boy. “It’s our job to go and save him.”

“No, it’s not your job,” said Sadie, her tone turning stern. “That’s a job for the cops, the police – people who were trained to help people. The lot of you are just a bunch of kid vigilantes. You should take what you know to the police, so they can do their job.”

“Slade is different,” said Starfire; her cheerfulness turning into a more serious air, one she rarely took on. Convincing this girl to help became a desperate cry in Starfire’s heart. “Slade is no ordinary criminal. I do not believe he will easily be found by the police.”

And one that not even Robin’s K’Norfka, the Batman, has been able to find, thought Starfire.

She had been with Cyborg when he had attempted to call the Batman again; just to see if there were any news since they hadn’t heard anything from the man. But instead, the Batman’s servant had answered the call and, to Starfire’s great unhappiness, had informed them that there wasn’t any new development.

Cyborg had never looked so burdened at that moment. It was brief, but Starfire could still remember his hopeless words, “Not even Batman, the world’s greatest detective, can find a trace of Robin or Slade. If he can’t… just how are we supposed to?”

It was more than a sobering thought – it was terrifying.

“Look, there’s nothing I can do to help you,” said Sadie, her unnatural eyes darkening further. Starfire felt a terrible depth within those eyes. Deep inside this girl was a burden of horror. What it was, Starfire was unsure. But it unsettled her. Never before had she seen such eyes.

Was this really hopeless? Was this girl really just yet another dead end in their desperate search to save their friend?

Those eyes were seeming to say, ‘Give up. You’ll never succeed. You don’t need friends. There is no hope.’

Starfire clamped her mouth over her trembling lips.

Hope was the only thing keeping Starfire going. It was the only thing that kept her sane. The despair, the pain was, at any crushing moment, ready to come bursting forth in a terrible flood. It was taking her entire heart of strength to hold it all back. But it was fragile; one crack would destroy her strength, drowning her in the pain and sorrow.

She needed something; some confirmation that everything would turn out all right.

That she would see Robin again.

“Please, you must know something that could be of assistance to us,” said Starfire, trying to hold back the tears that wished to come forth. “Our friend might be suffering.”

There was no sympathy in those darkened eyes.

“A lot of people are suffering in the world,” said Sadie flatly. “And there’s nothing you can do about it.”

“Yes, there is!” protested Beast Boy. “We’re heroes; we help people all the time! We’ve got powers and abilities.”

Sadie scoffed scathingly.

“What, you think having powers makes you special? Do you think you’re better than people because of them?” snarled Sadie. Her tone increased with every word she spoke. “Well, guess what? Having powers means squat. It doesn’t make you better than people; it doesn’t make you more powerful than others. No, it just makes you different!”

The glass of juice that was next to the bowl of popcorn shattered suddenly, making everyone jump in surprise. Sadie put her hands on her hips and turned her head to the side; letting out a huffy sigh. Starfire glanced over at Raven, wondering if she had lost control over her powers. But Raven was studying Sadie carefully.

“You have powers, don’t you?” said Raven, her eyes narrowing. Sadie stiffened and set a fierce glare on her. Starfire could feel the anger, the hurt, and the bitterness flow from her soul. She wanted to hug the girl so much, offer some kind of comfort; but Starfire knew she would only be pushed away. There was too much fury inside this girl’s heart.

“Yeah, I got powers,” said Sadie; the bitterness dripping throughout her tone. Beast Boy’s ears perked up.

“Really? Hey, maybe you could help us? You wanna be a Teen Titan? What’s your power?” asked Beast Boy in rapid fire.

“No!” cried Sadie, slicing a hand through the air fiercely. “I don’t want to be a hero and I don’t want to be a villain. Just because you have powers doesn’t mean you’re better than others. I’m not above the law and I certainly don’t have to go out and save everyone.”

“But—”

“Look, I never asked to be different!” snapped Sadie over Beast Boy. “I never asked for my powers. I just wanted to be a normal girl with a normal family. But guess what? Life has this awesome way of throwing those kinds of desires right back in your face in the worse possible way. I think you’ve overstayed your welcome. Get out.”

Sadie pointed to the door.

“There’s the front door. Use it.”

The group looked between themselves, each obviously unsure what to do. Starfire looked at the girl. Was this really their lead? Perhaps it had been a mistake. Perhaps what Jinx had seen was this burning anger for any person. Maybe this girl really didn’t have anything to do with Slade.

Was their lead really a dead end? Was there no end to the suffering, the loneliness, the sleepless nights?

“We’re sorry to have bothered you,” said Raven, her voice trembling slightly. Cyborg looked completely crestfallen. Beast Boy’s head was darting between Raven and Cyborg, as if asking if they really were just going to leave now. Cyborg temporarily placed a hand on Beast Boy’s head and began to walk to the front door. Beast Boy’s long ears drooped sadly and he followed after Cyborg.

Raven turned away as well and followed the two boys outside. Sadie marched past Starfire and grabbed the edge of the open door; sharply jabbing towards the outside.

“Well? You gonna leave or what?”

Starfire gave the girl a sorrowful look before she nodded. She slowly walked to the door. Her heart was crying – crying for this girl and crying for Robin. Was this really the end of their hope? What more could they do? Even with the strength of thousands of earth men, Starfire had no power to save her friend. She was terribly, utterly helpless and powerless; something so inconceivable to her kind, to her planet.

She turned at the threshold to look at the girl.

“Oh, and expect the bill for the broken windows,” snapped Sadie. Starfire placed a hand over her heart and looked the girl directly in the eye. She had to say something; the girl looked so burdened by something.

“I hope that you will find the peace your heart seeks,” said Starfire softly. Sadie’s eyes widened briefly, before they darkened terribly.

“There’s no peace for humans. Why should I expect anything different for me?”

The door slammed shut in their faces. Stillness wafted over the four Titans.

“That… went well,” said Beast Boy, attempting to lighten the mood. But it was obvious that he wasn’t feeling it. His pointed ears were drooping sadly.

Slowly, the group turned away from the door. They only walked a few steps before Cyborg leaned against a nearby wall and placed a hand over his face. Beast Boy dropped to the ground, flopping onto his back and staring up at the sky; his chest lifting slowly in his quiet breathing. Even Raven took a moment to lean against the wall, her eyes clouded over. Starfire looked over her friends, her lips trembling.

Total despair flowed through the entire group. It was so drowning, so overpowering that Starfire almost broke down and cried right there. Their lead… their only clue ended up being nothing. Once more, they were right back where they had started; right back at that moment when Starfire found Robin’s room empty of his presence. They were no closer to saving Robin from his fate. They were no closer to taking him away and holding him close; whispering comfort into his ears and telling him that everything was all right now – that he was safe.

When would fate allow them a chance, a spark of hope that told them their friend was safe, alive?

The depression that overflowed through the group made them ignore their surroundings. They didn’t notice the cheerful chirruping of the birds, nor the gentle late afternoon breeze, nor the sunlight that shone through the chilled weather, nor the cars that sped by, nor the passersby of different types and colors, nor the young man with blond hair and deep green eyes who walked into the apartment building – nothing mattered but the deep compressing ache that threatened to burst each of their hearts underneath its terrible weight.

The world just continued along its own path; not noting the pain that four friends were experiencing; not noting that a child had been stolen; not noting the journey that each heart was being forced to go through.

Not noting the loneliness, the pain, the sorrow, the hopelessness, the anger, the fear, the worry, the terror, the rage, the change, the confusion, the comfort, the calm, the hope, the trust – never noting the play of emotions that flooded through each of their lives. The world didn’t know. How many humans were there who lived on the earth that didn’t know what was happening to them? How many were clueless to the terrible sorrow and pain; too wrapped up in their own lives?

But sometimes, there are other forces that are fully aware of what goes on within each and every heart.

Tears slipped down Starfire’s face; the beads of her sorrows hot as they streamed down her cheeks. She clasped her hands to her mouth as a terrible sob broke from her lips. She could no longer hold it back. The flood of tears poured forth and she cried – cried and sobbed in anguish. She had tried; oh, how she had tried. She had tried to be strong of heart, tried to be hopeful. Was she Rutha; weak? When all seemed lost, was her heart truly that weak that it couldn’t hold onto hope?

A hand touched her shoulder. Starfire looked up to see Raven. Her friend’s eyes were glistening and Starfire could feel that it was taking all the girl’s self control not to cry with her. Slowly, Raven stepped closer to her and in a moment, Starfire found herself wrapped in the arms of her friend. Then, another pair of arms collided against her; the arms wrapping around her waist, with small whimpers coming from Beast Boy. Another stream of tears fell down her face as the warmth flowed through her. She looked up as she saw Cyborg step closer.

“It’ll be okay, Star. We’ll find him,” said Cyborg, pain evident throughout his voice. Then, his arms wrapped around the three of them; completely surrounding them. Starfire closed her eyes, sending another wave of tears down her cheeks.

She didn’t have to be strong alone. She had friends that would strengthen her, just as she had done for them. She wasn’t alone.

But she couldn’t hold back another wave of despair that flowed through her soul. What about Robin? He was all alone. He didn’t have anyone to count on, to bring him comfort like this when he needed it. How could he survive without hope? How could she survive without hope?

A breeze ruffled through her hair. Something seemed to brush against her face. Starfire opened her eyes. Her friends didn’t seem to notice. Then, something soft, warm, and tender brushed against her face again. A lilting, trilling feminine voice seemed to enter her mind.

“Wait a little longer, dear child. Never give up hope.”

Another breeze fluttered by and the sensation faded away. It had been so brief, so quick. Starfire glanced at her friends, wondering if they had noticed it. But they had not. Starfire was still enveloped by their warm arms. She glanced upward towards the sky. She wasn’t sure what had just happened. She was sure that she had felt a presence and that a voice entered her mind – there was no doubt about it. She trusted her mind and the voice she had heard was not her own.

A wave of peace flowed through her; surprising her. There had been something beautifully reassuring about that voice. Somehow, she knew then: Robin was all right. It confused her for a moment. She had no way of knowing that. There had been no message, no contact from her friend; and yet, she just knew. She knew. Everything was going to be all right. There was still hope. Their friend was all right.

A smile graced her lips.

She untangled herself to wrap her arms around her friends, holding them tightly – but not too tight. She took a deep breath, letting all the bad emotions of her soul flow away with her exhale.

They would see Robin again – that much her heart was telling her.

And she believed it with all her soul.

ooOOOOOoo

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