The Winds Continue: Young Justice, Zephyr Book 2

Chapter 19: An Incident While Dancing

Original photo by Eijisaeki, I edited it. I love their art style, check them out.

It was against my better judgement to turn down Dinah's therapy sessions. Part of me knew it would probably be best to talk, but most of me knew it wouldn't do much good.

Talking wouldn't change what happened. It wouldn't bring Kaldur back to our side, it wouldn't bring Artemis back, it wouldn't bring my dad back...So I decided to do my own therapy session.

By using one of the smaller dance studios to clear my head.

Sure, I couldn't do any super-complex moves because of how I was still healing from the whole 'alien torture' thing, but I could still do hard enough moves to distract my mind.

Usually if it was this bad, I'd use the cave's gym...but Kaldur blew the damn thing up.

That's where Nightwing, Miss M, Conner and Mal are; in a warehouse in Blüdhaven where the new living quarters is. From what Dick told me, it wasn't pretty but it's not like we had a lot of choices.

Meanwhile Jaime, Bart, Maia, Garfield, La'gann, as well as some of the younger abductees the aliens snatched we're being interviewed by Dinah. Originally Maia was in the same boat as me, not seeing the need for therapy. But I did the mature thing and convinced her to go. The younger members needed help, I didn't want any.

From what I heard, the abductees Dinah was talking to were all teenage runaways, probably from families that wouldn't notice they were gone...I felt bad for those kids, and told the league that I had a couch of any of them needed a place to stay.

But the kids weren't my biggest problem. It was Kaldur, and my goddamn emotions. Kaldur was the man I loved, at one point I thought he was the love of my life...at one point I believed he felt the same way. But then Tula died, and he found out Black Manta was his father and suddenly: he ups and leaves. He didn't say goodbye. And that's not even touching on the point that he murdered Artemis; my best friend, my teammate, a girl I considered my sister, the woman who's boyfriend still hasn't returned my calls because he probably hates me.

If she were here, she'd be able to give me advice. And to be honest, I'd probably listen to her. Sure Dinah would be all for giving me advice...but I just wouldn't be able to bring myself to take it.

Artemis was betrayed by everyone in her fill at one point or another, and yet she still came out on top. She'd probably tell me to 'woman up' and get over it. And I've tried...God I've tried. I've tried to ignore it, talk about it, fight it: but nothing ever works. Every time Kaldur comes along I break and...it's getting harder to fix the cracks...

As sorrow, regret, and anger flood through my body; my dance moves begin to reflect. My spins, twirls and flips become body-throws, complicated foot work that never stops leaving the ground, and body-rolls. My dance turns from modern-acrobatics to sad modern with powerful accents...

Just as I go to stick a high-kick leading into a body-fall, suddenly a bright light flashes in front of my face and I loose my footing and I feel my body collapse onto the floor.

For a moment, I blinded from the sudden light and I have to run my eyes to make the spots go away. However when I do open my eyes: I'm shocked to find a girl standing there, looking dazed and confused.

The girl had the back to my fallen body but from what I could tell she was average height, but frightfully skinny and had little to no curves. Her hair was long, choppy, damaged and dark black and held back in a sloppy ponytail. Her skin was pale, but unhealthily so that it almost looked like she hadn't seen the light of day in years. From what I saw her top was black, tight, corset-like, and ended just under her bust. Her pants were the same dark colour as the top but tight leather and covered her whole legs, disappearing​ once they met a pair of heavy combat boots. Her arms were covered in tattoos, which traveled up her neck and down her back.

"Excuse me?" I asked, standing up and fixing my leggings and tank top. I brushed a hand through my hair to shove it out of my face, as I stared at the girl, confused as to where she had come from.

The girl whirled around and looked at me, staring straight at me with her blue eyes.

Well, I should say eye as one of them appeared to be deeply scared by a thin line running from just above her left eyebrow and traveling across her face to the right corner of her lip. She appeared to be somewhere around my age, maybe younger and a few piercings littered her face on her eyebrows, nose, lips and ears. Upon closer inspection, under her tattoos were more scars.

Something about her features seemed eerily familiar.

"Are you okay? What's your name?" I asked approached her with caution. She didn't seem scared, just confused.

Suddenly, her cold gaze focused more on me as if she were reading me. She squinted her eyes, as if trying to focus before a look of shock and worry crossed over her face.

"Shit." She muttered, before whirling away from me. Her voice was also familiar, but tough and strong-sounding. moved her hands to shield her face and I saw that her breath quickened. "Shit shit shit shit shit! I'm gonna kill that damn speedster!"

Speedster?

"Can you tell me your name?" I asked.

"No!" She groaned and I rose an eyebrow.

"Okay..." I muttered, a little confused at her answer. "Do you know how you got here?"

The girl didn't answer, only groaned louder and continued to curse.

"Hey, just...calm down...okay?" I said awkwardly, going to place a comforting hand on her shoulder but she slapped my hand away, causing her body to turn back to me.

She really does look familiar...why?

"Do I...know you from somewhere?" I asked, furrowing my eyebrows as I look deeply at the girl in front of me. A look of panic floods her face before it turns to pain. Suddenly, I see her step away and dig into a pocket of her belt until she pulls out a...needle?

"W-wait!" I cry, but before I stop her: she pushes the needle's point into her arm. Suddenly, her body eases into relief and I study her form as it relaxes, curious as to what she had us injected into herself. I take a look at the needle to see a familiar printed logo on the side: a large W.

Wayne Industries...wait, does that mean..?

"Is that...Wayne Industrie's autism medication?" I asked. The girls eyes widen and she throws the needle into a nearby trash bin.

"No!" She yells.

Why is she lying..?

"Are you...okay?" I asked. The girl seemed to find the question unnerving. As she begins to chew her lip, she reaches​ up and grabs a strand of hair; playing with it. Almost like I...wait.

That's my nervous tick...that's why-

I suddenly back away, ready to strike. "What are you...and why do you look like me?"

It's a bridge episode, ya. But next episode will (hopefully) be a lot better.