Fan Fiction ❯ Broken ❯ Chapter Four ( Chapter 4 )

Raven wondered what the consequences would be if she blew something up, though she decided against it in the end. She didn't like pacing or sitting around-it always resulted in remembering. And being in Titan's Tower didn't exactly serve to help.

Shutting her eyes both against tears and the sights around her, she got up. Singing and dancing were the only things which always served to get her mind off the Titans, and she had a concert coming up.

She took one step, then another. Her movements were tentative-singing and dancing were easier in an apartment than in Titan's Tower. Raising her arms gracefully, she spun once and stretched her leg to the side so a tiptoe touched the floor to the right of her. She spun again, skirt flaring out.

It's always so much easier to dance with music…she mused sadly, but pushed the thought out of her mind and focused on doing the ballet-like movements which she was actually capable of doing without thinking.

"Turn around," she sang, hardly aware that her lips were moving. "Every now and then I get a little bit lonely and you're never coming 'round."

The words seemed less like sound and more like air, swirling around her body. She loved this song-it was the first she had ever heard on earth.

"Turn around
Every now and then I get
A little bit tired of listening
To the sound of my tears"

The movements were coming easier now, more gracefully. The lovely sound of her own voice eased the roar of her thoughts to a gentle hum.

She could get lost in this, and she always did. Her eyes were shut, hair and skirt swirling with her movements. She could hear the music of pianos and guitars as if it were real.

Raven had finished the entire song before she realized that she had company-a company of five applauding superheroes, to be specific.

***

He hadn't told them. He hadn't told anyone. The moment he realized who the girl on the poster looked like, Cyborg dashed into the nearest music store and sprinted to the counter.

Pointing to another picture of Raven (this time she was standing at the edge of a cliff in a periwinkle sundress, wind riffling her hair and skirt as she gazed out with a sad pensive expression. Superimposed behind the image was a close-up of her face and said expression) he gasped between breathless pants, "Who is that?"

The worker, a tall slender teenage girl with long hair and hazel eyes trimmed in thick black eyelashes, lifted a dark brow as if he should have known the answer already. "That's Raven. She's been famous all around the galaxy for a year."

Cyborg gaped. "Why haven't I heard of her, then?" he demanded. "There are pictures of her everywhere, but until a couple days ago no one ever mentioned her."

The girl shrugged. "She didn't want any pictures or news of her showing up in Jump City until at least a year after her first CD was released. Apparently she was one of those Titans. She's an amazing singer."

Cyborg felt slightly ill. At least I know there was nothing to worry about…she's perfectly happy without us. "Can I get any CDs?" he asked, wondering just how amazing a singer Raven was.

There again was that don't-you-know-anything expression. The girl pointed a long slender finger, and Cyborg turned to see three rows of massive shelves that were almost entirely empty. Only one was left.

"It has to be restocked every hour, even though the CDs all cost a minimum of twenty bucks," she informed him calmly.

"Fallen Angel is only here because all the songs are Evanescence songs, and some of them are sung with Amy Lee. You can buy it if you want. $49.95 because there are twenty-eight songs and six of them are music videos for DVD or computer."

Walking over, Cyborg picked up the CD case. Raven was standing on the cover, looking fairly similar to the way she had over a year before she left.

She was wearing what seemed to be a beautified version of an angel's gown-just black. The raven wings of her soul self stretched from her back, and everything about her was dark and ethereal. He could picture Evanescence's lead singer looking exactly like her, for he had seen several Evanescence CDs.

He smiled bitterly. Raven had loved Evanescence. She would be thrilled to sing with her. I guess she got everything she wanted-and here I was worried!

Going back to the counter, he pulled three twenty-dollar bills from his jeans pockets, staring at the cover as the girl counted out his change. He tucked it into his pockets without looking at it.

He started to leave, but stopped when his inhumanly (literally) keen hearing caught her words.

"You're a superhero," she said softly. "I'm sure you can get someone to give you a ticket to your girlfriend's concert. One of your friends might have one already."

Eyes wide, he spun around, but she was gone. Smiling suddenly, for what felt like the first time in years, he turned and left.