Hello there readers! This is my first Teen Titans story soooo…. Yeah. It's going to take a while to get to the real BBRae, or any pairings. I gotta build up the plot and story line. But it will happen (: So read on, and please review, flames are accepted(: Thank you all so much.

Her pale fingers drummed against the wooden desk. Head propped up on her left hand, she looked at the bored with a blank face. Her violet eyes darted to the clock. It was only eight fifteen, thirty minutes into her Algebra class. She sighed in exasperation. Rachel Raven Roth ran her fingers through her dark, shoulder length hair. She laid her head down, a splitting headache forming between her eyes. The teacher stood at the front of the class pointing toward the board droning on and on about ellipses.
"Rachel… Rachel… Raven," Her teacher gritted from behind clenched teeth, "can you tell me what it means when the beginning of the horizontal and vertical axis are zero?"
"No. I can not."
"And why is that?"
"Because I wasn't paying attention to you."
"Yes, I know, because you were sleeping."
"I was not sleeping." Raven continued in her monotone voice.
"Yes you were. I saw you, everyone else saw you."
"Just because I had my head down, doesn't mean that I was sleeping."
"This is insubordination young lady!"
"What are you going to do, give me detention?"
"No, I'm going to call your father." Raven froze, her face still a bank mask, staring at her teacher.
"You wouldn't dare." Raven called her teacher's bluff and smirked a bit when the teachers face faltered.

"Maybe I won't, but the principal will. Go down to the office." The teacher wrote her a pass and the girl stood up from her seat. Standing up, she grabbed her black backpack, covered in pins of every kind, snatched the pass from the teacher, and left the class room.

Raven walked down the familiar halls. She knew this path all too well. She could do this blindfolded and backwards. All too soon, she was walking into the office. She took her seat and smiled as she heard the secretary of their small school bustling around in the back.
"Julie, I'm home!" Raven said dully. The plump secretary stuck her head out of the back room, and shook her head.
"Already? Raven, it's only been," she checked the clock, "thirty five minutes." She sighed and waddled her way into the room. She wore a knee length pencil skirt a flowing red three quarter sleeve shirt. Her pipe curls fell to her chin. In a failed attempt to keep them tame, Julie pinned them back, but the bobby pins were sticking out in all directions. Her chocolate eyes glittered as she looked at the girl. Of all 80 people in this town, Julie was her favorite.
"Why are you here this time honey?" Raven looked up from behind the veil of dark purple and bit the inside of her lip.
"I got a really bad head ache and I put my head down. The teacher got really upset with me because I couldn't answer her question. She said I was sleeping and when I tried to tell her I wasn't, she said that I was being insubordinate." Julie let out a sigh.
"You know he's waiting for you. You have to go in." Julie looked at the papers as Raven walked past. The young girl walked to the door, hugging herself. Slowly, she knocked three times on the clouded glass door.
"Come in Rachel." A deep voice boomed from the depths of the small office. She slowly walked in.

The room was adorned in camouflage and trophy animals. Two hunters orange chairs sat in front of the large wooden desk. Behind the desk was a very large deep green chair. A ten point rack was mounted behind him, and when he turned around it made him look like a monster from a Si-fi movie. His lifeless eyes reminded her of a dead fish.
"Rachel. This is the fourth time this month that you've been sent down here. You've been nothing but trouble. I'm not sorry to say that I am forced to expel you from this school. And you better believe that I will be contacting your father, personally." Yes, this man was one of her father's friends. Not only was he the only school's principal, but he also owned a large chain store in the neighboring three counties. Raven got up calmly and walked out of the room, slamming the door behind her. She picked up her backpack and looked at Julie. She felt like she was going to cry, but kept her mask in task.
"Well… it looks like I'm not going to be a problem here anymore."
"He expelled you?"
"Yup. I've… I've got to go home." Julie quickly made her way around her desk and hugged Raven tightly.
"Oh honey, I'm gonna miss you. Don't forget me."
'Forget you, how could I forget you? You're like the mom I never had. I don't think I could ever forget you.' Julie was the closest thing Raven had to a mother. Her father told her that her mother had left them alone and took her brother with her when she was five. That when she left, it shattered his heart, and that's why he drank all the time, and slept with so many women; to try and fill the hole in his heart. He said the alcohol made him forget. Raven detangled herself from Julie and walked out of the school. She popped in her headphones and melted into the music. She walked the path home, and stopped in front of her house. It was a fairly large house, four stories, and fairly normal. There was a white picket fence, just the right amount of trees and bushes. The grass was always under control, and there was an unused swing set in the back yard for the appearance of a happy home. Raven opened the fence and walked up the cobblestone path. Her dad's car wasn't in the drive way.

She shoved open the double doors and prayed to whoever was listening that her dad wasn't home. But that prayer didn't get past the ceiling though. After she shut the door, she made her way quickly to her room on the fourth floor. She made it all the way up the stairs with no signs of her father. She opened her door and looked inside. Empty. Raven sighed and shut the door behind her, but when she turned she was greeted by a large hand gripping her throat. Her father leaned in close and the stench of alcohol numbed her senses.
"So," he squeezed, "you think it's okay to not follow the rules?"
"Father, I-" She was cut off when her father squeezed tighter.
"No. I'm going to show you what happens when you don't follow the rules." He squeezed tighter. Raven desperately clawed at her father's hands, trying to get out of his iron grip. Her lungs screamed for air, her body screamed for air. Raven's head was spinning, desperately trying to cling to life. Her heartbeat slowed, her shoulders slumped. Trigon let go of his daughter's throat and she fell in a crumpled heap on the ground, gasping for air. He picked her up by her hair and threw her against the door. "Why do you always try and ruin me?" He kicked her in the ribs, "You know I have to have a clean reputation. So why," he opened the door and kicked her outside her room, "do you," he grabbed a fist full of plum hair, "have to," he pulled her up to his face, alcohol seeping from his pores, "ruin it!" Trigon roared as he flung Raven down the stairs. Her head bounced off the wooden landing between flights. He slowly thudded down the stairs as Raven tried to pick herself up. Trigon let out a laugh and kicked her in the stomach. Raven let out a yelp, pulled her knees to her chest and wrapped her arms around them. Trigon walked to her and shook his head. With a running start, Trigon kicked Raven down the next flight of stairs. Raven toppled down the stairs, trying to cover her head. She was stopped by the wall smacking her back. Slowly Raven slid down the wall. Raven tried to crawl away, but Trigon was behind her. Kicking her once more, Raven was sent flying down the stairs. Head over heels Raven's body was battered by every step. It felt like an eternity until she landed at the foot of the stairs.
Raven's vision started fading in and out as she struggled to keep her eyes open. Trigon stepped to her and took her head in his hands.
"You are just like your mother. Worthless! Now that you're expelled, you get to spend every day with me. You better get used to it." Then Trigon left his daughter to fade into darkness. Raven didn't give in to the sweet release of sleep though. Although she didn't remember everything that happened, she could remember glimpses of crawling up the stairs and into her bed where sleep overtook her senses.

The morning came all too soon and Raven woke to her father yelling.
"If the house isn't clean when I get home, last night will be considered paradise compared to what will happen to you." She could see her father in her mind, his tall and bulky stature, pale skin gleaming with charm in his three piece suit. Messy black hair slicked back with gel. With briefcase in hand he'd turn and open the door while putting on his mask of perfect home living. Raven heard the door slam behind him and his car start. She waited until she made sure he was out of the drive and down the road to get out of bed.

Raven sat up and immediately was overtaken by dizziness. She clutched at her head and let out a moan of discomfort. She shook her head when she looked at the clock; 7:30 am. Raven stood up and grabbed for Motrin and winced when she felt her ribs sting in pain. She turned to the mirror hanging up on her wall and lifted her shirt. Black and blue bruises stood out on her porcelain skin. Raven squeezed her eyes shut and let her shirt fall back over her stomach again. She went to her drawer and pulled out a baggy t-shirt and faded jeans. She walked down the stairs, stopping at each floor and inspecting it. She may need to dust, but that's all. But the first floor was a different story. Cups still half full of alcohol sat on shelves and tables. Constellations of broken glass glittered on the floor, no doubt put there by the rage of her father. Raven walked into the kitchen and was met by a stench that was un-nameable. Half rotten food sat on every ledge, every plate. Flies buzzed around Raven's head and she swatted absent mindedly at them. She made her way to the freezer and grabbed a couple ice packs. She made her way to the bathroom cupboard next, not caring to look at the floor. She scrounged through the cupboard for a few minutes before she pulled out what she was looking for. She folded a towel in half, length wise, and wrapped it around her small frame. She placed the ice packs inside the fold of the towel, where the worst of the bruises were, and then wrapped an ace bandage around them to keep them in place. When Raven was done treating herself, she set out to clean the house.

Four and half hours later, Raven was done cleaning the first floor, and was half way done dusting the second, when she retched her father's door. Raven bit her lip but opened the room. It was a mess. Clothes were lying in heaps on the floor, and panties of mystery women were thrown carelessly around the room. Raven decided she would clean off his bed. Maybe do some laundry.

Twenty minutes passed and his bed was cleaned. Now Raven was searching for his clothes. She already picked up a few of the piles that smelled awful, and now she was looking for clothes under his bed. She moved a pair of pants and found a box. Curious, Raven pulled the box out from under the bed. Raven battled with herself about opening the box, but her bravery and curiosity won. Slowly Raven opened the box. Inside were envelopes. Lots and lots of envelopes, of all shapes and sizes. Raven picked one up. It was addressed to her. She picked up another, her name written on this one as well. She dumped out the box and scanned all the envelopes on top of the pile. They were all addressed to her. She tore into the first one she could pick up. It was pastel pink, and inside of it there was a card in the shape of a rabbit. A fuzzy cartoon rabbit was printed on the front, holding a flower. She opened the card and read the rhyme inside, then froze at the scrawl under the printed words.
'Happy Easter my angel. I'm sorry we couldn't make it to you again this year. But I want you to know I still love you and I always will.
~Love Mom.'

Raven couldn't believe her eyes. Her mother hadn't just packed up one day and left her life completely. She tore through the pile of envelopes, looking for the one with the most recent date. Finally, she found it. It was dated on her sixteenth birthday. She ripped through the glue and pulled the letter out. Quickly unfolding it Raven dove into the words.
'My dearest Rachel,
Today is your sixteenth birthday, and I'm so sorry I couldn't be there with you. You probably have so many questions that only a mother can answer. One of the major questions you probably have is, how can a mother leave her own daughter for eleven years? The answer to that question is the man taking care of you. Your father was abusive, physically and mentally. I had to get away. I tried to take you with me and your brother, but your father wouldn't hear of it. Your father is a vengeful man, and when I told him I was leaving with you two, he took you from your room. He flew away, told you it was daddy daughter time. You were so happy. But I couldn't find you. He left for two months, and I couldn't stay in that house. If I did, I knew he would come home and hurt me and your brother. Rachel, I'm so sorry I left you with him. But I came back for you. Every month I'd drive here and talk to your father, but after four months, your father threatened to kill you if I ever came back. Rachel, I couldn't let him do that. Your safety means everything to me. I couldn't let you get hurt. I couldn't let him do that to you. It's been sixteen long, hard years without you here with us.
I love you Rachel. Inside this envelope is a necklace that I bought for you before you were born. I hope you like it. I love you my darling.

~yours truly,
Mom.' Raven looked at the papers in her hands in amazement. Her mother hadn't walked out of her life, she was forced out. She took the letter and envelope and shoved it in her pocket. She then quickly put the rest of the envelopes back in the box and pushed it back under her father's bed. Raven flew up the stairs and slammed her door behind her. She grabbed her big duffle bag and unzipped it. She threw her candles into the bottom, along with her hair brush, make up, and toiletries. Then she grabbed only the best of her clothes, which wasn't much, and threw shoved them in the bag. She put her boots on top of her clothes and slipped on her tennis shoes. She took off her shirt and pulled on her sweater. Raven dead bolted her door, grabbed her bag, and climbed out her window.

Thumb out, Raven was trying to hitch a ride. She'd already walked ten miles, and it was getting dark. She was so tired, and her ribs stung with pain; her ice packs melted a long time ago. Raven felt like giving up; she was never going to see her mother. Raven closed her eyes and let out an aggravated sigh when a car slowed to a stop in front of her.

An elderly couple smiled at her through the widow of their small car. The old woman rolled down her windows, her silver hair was short, and her golden rimmed glasses covered bright blue eyes.
"What's a young girl hitch hiking for?"
"I haven't gotten my license yet, and I'm trying to get to," Raven took the envelope out of her pocket and read the address, "1354 East Jump Street, Jump City" Raven bit her lip as the woman rolled up her window to talk to her husband. A few minutes passed and Raven heard the car door unlock. The woman rolled down her window and smiled at Raven.
"Get in dear, we'll take you there." Raven smiled and got into the car. "I'm Cordelia, and this is my husband Sidney. What's your name?"
"Uhm, my name is Raven…"
"That's a beautiful name." Sidney said from the driver's seat.
"Thanks… do you know how long it's going to take to get there?"
"About two and a half, maybe three hours." Raven looked out the window. "You look tired dear, why don't you get some sleep? We'll wake you up when we get there." Raven tried to keep her eyes open, but she couldn't. Before she knew it, Raven drifted into a dreamless sleep.

Raven woke to a voice calling her name.
"Raven, Raven honey, it's time to wake up. We're here." Groggily Raven wiped her eyes and moaned.
"Huh?"
"We're here." Ravens eyes shot open after Cordelia's words sunk in. Raven thanked the two and got out of the car. Cordelia and Sidney pulled out of the drive, and down the street as Raven made her way to the door, bag in hand. The house was two stories, and was average size. She couldn't see much, but the light on the front porch drew her in like a moth to a flame. When Raven stepped on the porch, all her confidence left her. But she couldn't turn back, if she did she'd have to go home. And she didn't know when her father would notice she was gone. But if he did, she was dead, literally. Raven took a deep breath and pushed the doorbell down. A grand dinging rang through the house, and soon the house was alive. She heard footsteps from behind the door, and a muffled talking. The door swung open revealing a middle aged woman wearing a dark blue house coat and fuzzy monster slippers. Her face was adorned with laugh lines, and wrinkles were around her eyes. She had long cascading onyx hair that tumbled down her back, and her tired violet eyes began to register the girl standing before her. Finally Raven was able to find her voice.
"Mom?"