A/N: I know, I know, Promotions has been TEMPORARILY put aside. It was just a random upchuck of words and I didn't know if it would be successful. I have several chapters at hand and I don't know which one to post. Nevertheless I will try to continue even if it sucks. Flame, ON THIS SUBJECT, all you want. It isn't fair loyal readers and reviewers.
Anyway, this story came to mind while I was enjoying my Saturday tradition of watching cartoons. Of course, it's Rob/Rae but I don't know of any other pairings. All others are acceptable except for those that interfere with the birds. Titans East may or may not be involved but some of my favorite villains will be introduced, not necessarily as villains but most likely as antagonists. It is AU but the characters still have their powers, if they had any at all to begin with. It's always handy to have beta-reader so if any of you wish to help me, leave it in your review or AIM me. No e-mails because I don't check that often.
On with the show…
Morning meditation was necessary for all students, even him. He was one of the top pupils in the entire institution and here he was, eyes closed and silently chanting among them all. It was at least half an hour past down and some of his peers were leaning against each other snoring.
'Mostly newcomers.' He thought to himself. He had learned how to open his eyes slightly, unnoticeably to others, and still see clearly. The remainder were sneaking peeks at their fellow warriors-in-training. He scoffed lightly under his breath and scanned the rest of the meditation grounds.
The purple-haired sorceress was a few feet away, hovering about five inches over her meditation platform. The rising sun added a glow to her form and he became enchanted with her. Well, he had always been since they first arrived to the Orion Temple almost four years ago. They were good friends, seeing as they shared the same quarters and were at the same level.
She had forever been unapproachable. Every male that gathered the courage to engage in small talk, hopefully to get something more out of her in the end, was dismissed. Sometimes nicely, depending on her mood but on bad days, guys fled from her on the brink of tears. Their relationship started on the latter but he was very persistent and eventually his attempts became more desperate and to her more humorous. Since then she allowed him her presence.
Friends were all they were at the moment and he was determined to change that fact.
The low ring of the bell sounded in their ears, ending their session and everyone stood, some stretching others still snoring.
He saw her jogging over to him, dodging several swaggering people in the process.
"Hey, Richard. I know you weren't meditating." She stated casually while rubbing out invisible wrinkles in her royal blue robe.
"And how do you know that, Rae?" He folded his arms across his chest loosely and smiled down at her. She tapped her temple twice and a 'duh' expression drifted onto her pale face. The ebony-haired teen forgot that his telepathic friend was indeed a telepath.
"Who do you think they'll put us with this term?" Raven always asked him, knowing he didn't have the faintest idea and that it bugged him when she did. Richard playfully glared at her but decided to answer nevertheless.
"I don't know. You know I don't know. But I hope they're better than Brock and… Kitten." He shuddered in remembrance of her. Kitten Moth, a blonde first year that held a deadly attraction towards him.
Every term, two fourth-years or seniors were paired with two freshmen. They were to teach them everything they knew and were glued to them for eight weeks.
Last time, Raven and he were assigned the deadly duo which drove them to the brink of insanity. Besides being lazy and lacking the intelligence to count to 'one', Brock and Kitten relentlessly flirted with their superiors. After thirty-six hours of their behavior, Raven and Richard decided to give them hell. They trained and studied constantly until their underlings toned down their actions.
About one-third of the temple's body were freshmen and with the smaller amounts of upperclassmen, so to speak, many of them were passed on to the monks. All of the monks were masters of copious forms of martial arts and taught the sophomores and juniors. There was only twenty of them and the oldest was the headmaster, Master Houkin. He was rarely seen and supposedly resided in the private tower in the east school grounds.
Without pretense, several shhhh's and the occasional 'shut up' spread throughout the mass. Before them on a stage, were their monks smiling softly. A gong was struck by an appointee and every pupil bowed. Richard and Raven glanced at each other. It was time for the team assignments.
"Good morning, young ones."
They straightened up and said in unison: "Good morning, Master Fung." (I stole that name from Xialoin Showdown. Don't own that either.)
"As most of you know, it is time to group the fourth and first years. All fourth-years join me up here, please." His voice was deep and hollow and it frightened the newbies. His demeanor was that of an intimidating person but he was ironically kind although strict. His temper was barely viewed but when it was, it was normally directed to the disrespectful know-it-alls and those who threatened the temple.
Every few years, random attacks have been made on their home and Master Fung usually headed the force against it. No lives were ever lost but unfortunately none know by whose hands these attacks were organized.
All twenty of the seniors stood obediently with their hands clasped behind their backs and their legs forming a 'V' on stage in a blue line. All fourth-years had royal blue robes that came to their hips with white pants and black slippers. The only difference in their uniforms was the color of their sashes. The colors signified the pair that supervised together as well as their levels. (Promotions had pairings too. I'm stealing ideas from myself.)
"Your groups are as follows, Jennifer Townsend and Blake Wallace with the blue team, Tanya Richardson…" The list continued and the two waited patiently.
"How many are there this time?" Richard asked out of the corner of his mouth. The empath counted the red robes of the first years and sighed.
"Thirty."
"So ten will be left over this time. Look at that one over there." Richard said condescendingly and nodded into the crowd. Raven followed his gaze and shook her head when she saw him. He was incredibly handsome but the way his mouth hung open as he stared into the clouds dumbly immediately informed her that he was as dull as the end of a spoon.
"Please God, don't let us have him." She entreated but it only seemed to jinx her.
"Michael Strong and Kori Anders are with the black team." Master Fung announced and the boy they had been observing, waved at them and a tall red-head clapped lightly as she giggled. Raven rolled her eyes in agitation.
'Another one of Richard's adoring fans.' Richard, although he seemed to not notice, had quite a large fan club. Many of the female population would die or kill, specifically Raven, to be by his side at the moment. Kitten Moth was the president, founder, and spokesperson since her first day.
"Breakfast is being served at the moment so acquaint yourselves with your counterparts. Soon after you shall begin your training. Good day, young ones."
The gonging pierced the air again and all bowed until the monks had completely vanished.
Richard opened his mouth to protest but stopped when he saw the orange-skinned girl zooming his way.
Okay people, I don't know if this qualifies as a cliffy but… it is what it is. If this is a little vague, I'll answer any and all question next chapter. Again I'm sorry for not updating Promotions and if you just want to leave a review reading:
"Why? Why? Why? And Why? once more,"
You can if you wish.
Me sorry,
BirdsOnTheBrain