{Unedited}
Requested by; FuzzyGiraffe72
Keys;
Y/N = Your Name
~.~.~.~.~.
"B-but, mother, I-I don't understand," I heaved as my mother and father pulled me through winding hallways, going on seemingly forever.
"We don't have time to go into details, (Y/N). We just need you to have faith in us." My father answered for my mother, his heavy footsteps behind me not loosing their pace unlike my much lighter ones, occasionally losing their balance at each corner.
"But, why has Uncle done this? He would never-"
"Zod hasn't begun his plan yet," my mother spoke harshly, entering a code on a panel, opening a pair of sliding doors. Ahead was a large ship of an unusual shape, one I had seen many of Krypton's soldiers crews train in. "But he will commence it. And soon."
Memories of Zod training me flashed through my head. It was only last week had I managed to knock him to the ground in hand-to-hand, rather than the other way around. And although he had managed to gain a bruised eye and swollen lip, he smiled at me with more pride than anyone ever had. So when I learned that he was planning on taking over Krypton and the Council, I was mortified.
I shook my head in disbelief, tearing my hand out of my mothers grip, my eyes welling with tears.
"N-no! H-he would never! He trained me, my brothers, my sisters. He loves us. . ." My small voice croaked as I tried to keep is strong.
The sound of soldiers footsteps marching down the halls echoed through the room. My mother rushed over and shut the doors, locking them. Meanwhile my father squatted down to my eye-level, squeezing my shoulders.
"You will understand in due time."
"A-are you coming with me?" The sympathetic look in his eyes grew, his grip on my shoulders tightening.
"No."
Sweat had formed in the palm of my hands as I strapped myself into the seat.
"Here," my mother handed a small crystal dangling a dark silver chain, clipping it around my neck. I looked down at it, then back at my mother.
"What is it?" I asked, twirling it. My mother gently took the crystal in her fingers, mumbling a small Kryptonian rhyme I had learned when I was younger. Suddenly a hologram appeared in front of me, showing an image of my mother and father, holding each other close and gazing into each others eyes.
The hologram quickly faded away and I looked over to my mother, tears in both of our eyes.
"There is still so much for you to learn, (Y/N)," she sighed, running a hand through my hair, "I wish I were a better mother to you."
"I could never have asked for a better mother."
The guards had finally managed to break down the door but it was too late - my ship was already soaring far into space. I stretched my body around in my seat, allowing the ships automatic controls to take over. However I wish my struggle was worse, because by the time I had turned around, my home had been lit up a series of explosions. I stared in shock, my brain not being able to process as I reached further and further into space.
"No. . ."
Nothing passed through my mind as I headed into space towards the Phantom Zone - a place I was told I would be safe until a man of the name Jor-El would find me. I stared at the hologram on my crystal before entering the zone, waiting for Jor-El to find me.
"I shall never forget you. . ." I whispered.
A year had passed. And Jor-El never found me. A whole year and that hologram was the only thing that pushed me, keeping me alive. But when he had appeared in front of me within his own ship, I was more than shocked. I was angry. So when I boarded his ship with steamy tears streaming down my face I accused him of the death of my parents. He had accepted my hatred for him as my punishment and took me out of the Phantom Zone with his projection device - pressing the black and white buttons. I refused to return to Krypton with him, boarding back to my ship, claiming that I would visit on occasion.
At first Jor was against the idea, but after persuading him of being 30 years in the Phantom Zone, I was seat on where I was trying to go. It was only the third time I visited Krypton to help did the planet explode. The same feeling when I saw my parents died returned, firing up in the pit of my stomach. An agonizingly loud scream left my mouth, but there was no one to hear it, audible only within my own ship.
I had returned to the Phantom Zone, Jor's projection device near my side every day. I tampered with the device every year, trying to remember the brief lectures I always had with Jor when I visited. And one day, perhaps by miracle, it worked.
"And that's how I got here." I finished, looking up between Superman and Batman, both of which who didn't believe me. I stared down at the cuffs on my wrists, knowing fully well that I could break them, also knowing that that's what the two men were probably expecting. So I didn't.
"Do you really expect me to believe that? All coming from a 12 year old girls mouth?"
"And you took on a sidekick of the age of 9." I spat back at Batman, my glare matching his.
"Br- Batman. Let me talk to (Y/N)-El - alone." Superman intervened. Once Batman had left the room Superman began to talk.
"Okay. For now, I believe that we have no other choice but to believe that everything you have told us is the truth." I flexed my hands as he spoke, staring up at him.
"But there is no full way of knowing that you're telling the entire truth. So that means we can't let you out of our sight. . . and I think I know the perfect place."
It was hard to believe that that was only a few months ago, and now - I was on my first mission with the squad. As difficult as it was to get on Superboy's good side, with him only being half Kryptonian (or 'mutt' as I had first called him, mumbling it in Krpytonian so no one else would understand, evidently earning me a glare from Superman), but now I looked up to him as a brother, training alongside him and learning new things about Earth that my parents, although I had managed to inherent both of their smarts, had taught me.
I followed Superboy into Miss Martian's bio-ship as we escaped the the mountain on the Krolotean island, the squad and their mentors all on board. Almost all of them.
"Wait - where's Superman?" Connor asked, glancing around the ship. My eyes widened in realization. I quickly flew out of the ship only to be stopped by Beast Boy.
"(Y/N), where are you going?!"
"I'm going to find Kal! I'm not losing any more of my family, Garfield. Please understand." I pleaded as I flew off.
I strained my ears as I flew high above the island, using my x-ray vision to scan it. It was only a few seconds before the bomb went off that I saw him, the explosions filling my vision.
The same feeling when I saw Krypton and my home being destroyed came back, images of the destruction's burning in my brain. I felt sick to my stomach as I let out another agonizing scream, the terrors piercing my mind.
I swallowed deep breaths and attempted to clear my head. When I was able to keep my breathing steady I scanned for Superman's body, finding him being hauled onto Miss Martian's ship. I flew down quickly, kneeling beside Superman's unconscious body.
"H-he's okay. H-he's okay, thank God." I mumbled in Kryptonian when I heard his heart still pumping. The long flight back to Mount Justice was a long, sullen one.
I had kept myself locked in my room after that, the flashbacks still occurring after the explosion. I even refused to see off Superman and the rest of League when they were sent off for trial. I refused to leave my room besides for food, not having enough energy to shower or even change from my suit. Never sleeping, never moving.
Connor tried to talk to me. Tried. He never really knew what to say but I knew he mean't well. So when he did I'd roll over in the sheets and smile weakly, letting him know he had tried his best and to leave. But it never really did anything.
Black Canary and Superman tried talking to me, Canary often making me visit her in her 'counseling office'. But I never said anything to either of them. The silence only bringing on the flashbacks harder.
Garfield had tried to talk to me on numerous occasions, changing from trying to get me to talk, to trying to make me laugh, or even just sitting with me in silence, as if I was going to say something. But I never did. I just laid in my bed, facing to hard wall.
They all thought I was depressed about the death of the Krolotean's. Genocide was the term I had come to terms with myself in my head.
"Look, (Y/N). That explosion wasn't-"
"It's not the explosion!" I spat, sitting up in my bed with tears streaming down my cheeks. Garfield looked at me in shock as he sat on the end of my bed. I wiped at the tears that leaked endlessly down my face.
"I-I don't deserve to be here. . ." I mumbled, looking down at my bed sheets, gripping them between my fingers.
"What do you mean, (Y/N)? Of course you deserve-"
"No, Garfield. I don't." I sucked in a loud breath and looked up at him with stinging eyes.
"I should've died, Garfield. On Krypton. With my parents. I could've done something instead of just. . . running away!" A loud sob escaped my lips.
Garfield hesitantly made his way up my bed, eventually sitting next to me, wrapping his arms around my balled up frame. Hiccups escaped my mouth as Garfield hushed me, resting his chin upon my head.
"I don't deserve to be here, Gar. I shouldn't even be alive," I whispered, covering my face with my hands, my body wracking with sobs.
"Please don't say that," Garfield whispered, his voice unusually uneven. I pulled away slightly and looked up at Garfield, who himself has tears welling up in his eyes.
"Never say that again. Ever."
"But-"
"No 'but's. You're here for a reason - we all are." Garfield looked straight into my eyes as he spoke. I shook my head, not believing him.
"It's true. Would your parents not risk their own lives if they believed you weren't worth it?"
Garfield was one of the few I had told my story to, entrusting that he could keep my backstory a secret.
"You're here whether you like it or not. And I refuse to let you believe you're not worth it." He let out a sigh, his body slouching slightly.
"When I first saw you, I honestly wasn't sure what to think. But when I saw you go hand-to-hand with Superboy, I knew that I wanted to know you better. And when you told me what happened to you, I swore a vow to never let you feel alone in this world. And I still keep that very close."
A few tears had fallen down my cheeks, a hesitant smile on my face.
"Thank you," I said, voice hoarse from crying. Garfield wrapped me back up into his arms, resting his chin back on my head as I began to fall asleep.
"You mean the entire world to me."
~.~.~.~.~.
It's 12:17 AM right now and my dog keeps barking send help.
Okay so school is being incredibly rude and is making me stress the hell out before school holidays begin and my photography internal is due upcoming Friday and I low key wanna pull my eyes out.
BUT ON A MORE LIGHTER TOPIC; I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Once again I'm super duper sorry if this isn't exactly what you wanted! Just let me know if you want anything changed because I am totally willing to do so. I hope you don't mind that the intro was long, I just wanted to try and keep it as realistic (to the comics) as possible, especially with the Phantom Zone because you know, Jor-El was the one who made the projection device, plus it gave reader and Superman a much closer relationship which is what I was trying to portray in this one (because ya know Jor-El is Superman's father in case you didn't know).
Please don't be afraid to send in any requests by either commenting or messaging me directly! I have a few ideas lined up but I'm still willing to accept any requests!
Chika chika
Izzie