Identity?

Chapter Seven

    I didn't sleep the rest of the night. I only thought of Jarrett and how true that statement I'd put on my old Facebook profile really was.
    Marceline Drews truly was no more. She died in the fire that taken her home and her parents' lives along with it. Blair Grant was what had been left behind; a broken girl with no family or friends, scarred and disfigured.
   I pulled back the sheets and looked at my leg. I ran my fingers over the soft, sensitive, new skin. It felt odd, how weird the skin felt when I touched it. It felt sort of scratchy to the touch, but soft at the same time and sent an uneasy tremble through my body. How horrible it was when you're grossed out by a part of your own body.
    When natural light started to stream in through the skylight, there was a knock on my door. "Enter," I said, and the door slid open, Bruce walking in.
    "Good morning, Blair." He said, and I grinned. The new name did have a nice sound to it...
    "Hey, Batsy."
    He smiled and sat down on the edge of my bed. "Did you sleep well?"
    I sat up and nodded toward a camera in the top corner of the room near the door I'd noticed last night. "I think we both know the answer to that. So, what's with the cameras, hm? Watchin' over me, watching my slow descent into madness?"
    Bruce put a hand on my shoulder. "I wasn't watching you, Blair. I went home."
    "Home?" I asked. "This isn't your home?"
    He shook his head. "No. I live out in Gotham, as does Robin. Artemis, Kid Flash, Kaldur'ahm—they all have their own homes. Their—"
   "Their own families," I added softly. Bruce continued as if I hadn't spoken.
    "M'gann and Superboy live here with you, but if you'd like, you're more than welcome to come live with Robin, Alfred, and I."
   "Where exactly is here?" I said, and Bruce stood me up. He walked me out of the room and stopped.
   "Computer, open back hanger." He requested, and in a room that branched off the living/briefing room that had a large cliff-like structure with water below, steps lead up to an area where a large portion of the wall divided, spraying beams of sunlight across the metal floor. I followed Bruce out onto a huge cliff overlooking a sparkling blue ocean and spacious beach. Solid rock and earth was beneath my bare feet, soft grass between my toes, extending for what seemed like miles both below and in front of me.
    I was standing on a mountain.
    The smell of the fresh air with the salty scent of the ocean mixed together was amazing to me. It was so... so pure! So clean! The sun felt warm and comforting on my now newly pale skin. A light breeze pushed back my hair. All kinds of lush plants and vegetation dotted the enormous mountain, a huge green field below at the base of it that gradually faded into soft sand, a thick forest off to the east. It looked so soft that I wanted to leap from the cliff and land in the plush sea of grass below me.
    "Blair, this is Mount Justice," Bruce began. "It's the mountain just outside of Happy Harbor, Rhode Island. Inside, it used to be the first head quarters of the Justice League, also know as the Secret Sanctuary. Eventually, the League moved the head quarters to Washington DC, the Hall of Justice. So Mount Justice, or the Cave, was repurposed as the Team's base of operations."
   I whistled, taking in the scenery, then smiled. "Boy, Batsy, you could be a tour guide next to your Dark Knight duties and Wayne Enterprises."
   Bruce grinned. "Thanks, but no thanks. I'll be headed to work. M'gann and Superboy are here, and I'mjust a phone call away." I smiled at him and nodded, still taking in the gorgeous view. Before he left, Bruce hugged me and did something that made my heart stop and made me miss my dad. He kissed the top of my head and said a soft, "I'm here for you." then left without waiting for a response.
     Tears brimmed my eyes and clouded my vision. I bent forward, wrapping my arms tightly around my torso. Not before long I was gasping. My dad was gone. He was never coming back, and I needed to figure out a way to accept that. I couched down wuth my back to the hanger and felt my whole body tremble. I bent my head down, my toes on the edge of the cliff, my eyes staring siren at the sparkling blue sea through blurry eyes.
    A sudden hand on my shoulder made me look up, seeing Superboy standing behind me, his expression worried. "Are you okay?" He asked softly, and I stood quickly, wiping my cheeks on the back of my hands.
    "Y-Yeah, I'm fine, Conner." I replied softly, clearing my throat. He studied me a moment, amd I knew he didn't believe me.
    "Really, I'm okay." I said, and smiled a little. He nodded once, and I followed him back inside.