The Nightingale
Disclaimer: Don't own the Teen Titans or any of the songs mentioned.
One-shot fic. After defeating the HIVE, the Titans decide to attend the Jump City High Choir Concert. The music has a moving effect on Raven and brings her and Robin closer together. RaRo Pure Fluff!
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"This one will be perfect with my Prom dress!" exclaimed Jinx, the pink haired witch. She was admiring a blood red ruby cut into two pieces in the shape of a broken heart. It hung loosely on a thin, silver chain.
Mammoth and Gizmo smashed glass cases containing fancy watches, and the two boys helped themselves to the hand-crafted time pieces.
"This one looks like crud," snorted the short bald boy. He tossed it over to his partner, who attempted to try it on, but his thick wrists would not allow the strap to buckle, and it broke in the process of his exaggerated efforts.
"Those don't belong to you. Put them back or else," came a voice from the entrance. The Teen Titans blocked the only way out, but their presence didn't faze them in the least.
"Attack pattern Lambda," commanded Jinx, and immediately the troublesome trio launched themselves at the five heroes.
"Titans, Go!" dictated Robin, and the team set off to counter the opposing team.
Cyborg and Gizmo squared off in a battle of electronics. The boy genius' mechanical spider legs sprouted and the metal teenager aimed his sonic canon at him. Once he fired and distracted the vertically challenged boy, Robin swung past and attached a cyber kinetic scrambler onto Gizmo's energy pack. Sparks of electricity flew from the boy's backpack, and he fell to the floor with a thud.
Starfire let Mammoth have a shower of star bolts, letting the righteous fury flow from her fists. Beast boy became a Tyrannosaurus rex and roared in the steroid enhanced teen's face. While caught in a state of shock, Star made a final blow and the giant was down.
Raven threw kicks and punches at the pink-haired witch, landing more than missing.
"You still fight like a boy," said Jinx coyly.
"And you smell like one. Azarath. Metrion. Zinthos!" Waves of pure black energy emanated from the blue-cloaked mystic and formed into a raven. Jinx blasted spurts of pink, but the ebony bird was unaffected. Its left talons hooked the girl in its grasp and sent electrical dark charges through her body. It dropped the girl from several feet in the air and she met the floor ungracefully.
Still charged with energy, Raven ripped steel beams from a nearby work project and tied the three villains up. The team left the HIVE students for the police to handle.
"Dude, pretty soon they're gonna run out of Greek letters for their attack patterns. I wonder if they'll start to use letters from different languages," mused Beast boy aloud. The four other titans rolled their eyes and rounded the corner to the T-Car. A poster on a building's wall caught the alien girl's eye.
Starfire read the words on the wall, turned to her teammates and asked, "Friends, what is a choh-ir?"
"Choir," corrected Raven. "A choir is a group of people who sing. Sometimes badly."
"Well, our city's school of high is holding a concert. Oh, we must attend! We must par take in more of our city's customs!" chirped the Tamaranean girl.
Cyborg, Beast boy, and Raven groaned in dismay, but Robin lit up with a mega-watt smile.
"She's right," he agreed. "Let's go to Jump City High's Choir concert. I heard they're the best in the region, anyway."
"Oh, wonderful! I must go to the mall of shopping and pick out a new outfit for this marvelous occasion!" Before anyone was able to protest, the red-headed girl took off in flight toward the nearest mall.
"This. is. pointless," spat a voice. Raven certainly did not wish to attend such a pointless event. She would rather read a good book or meditate, not have her ears undergo torture!
"C'mon Raven. These concerts only happen once per season. It's spring, so these are supposed to be their better songs. These things don't even last an hour and a half. If it goes more than that, I'll ... I'll make you tea for a week," pleaded Robin.
"Why are you so hell-bent on making me go to this thing?" replied she, raising her left eyebrow.
"Well, I, um.." Damnit. He couldn't think up a good excuse. He couldn't just blurt out, 'Because I want you to be there with me!'
"Because this will be something different for you!" Smooth, boy wonder. Real smooth.
It must have been, for Raven slumped her shoulders, sighed, and nodded her head. "Fine. I'll go. I'll be going to my room to look for something to wear rather than the 'Mall of Shopping'," mocked the violet haired one.
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"Is everyone ready?" Robin entered the main area. He looked over the large curved couch and found Beast boy and Cyborg completely lost in Turbo Racers III. The metal teen must have used his remaining holographic ring he used to disguise himself as 'Stone' since he appeared whole human. He wore a blue t-shirt and black jeans with bulky black boots. The back of his shirt said, "BOOYAH" in big white blocky letters. The changeling of the group had on baggy khaki pants and a blue plaid button down shirt with a white wife beater underneath. His over shirt was unbuttoned, showing his lightly built frame. He wore a pair of Nikes on his feet.
Robin scanned himself over, comparing himself to the other two male titans. He wore a white baseball t-shirt with black sleeves and a pair of relaxed fit blue jeans. Under his shirt around his waist was his trusty utility belt. On the back of his shirt, the number "01" was displayed.
"Friends, I am ready!" The cheery voice's owner floated out of the room hall. Robin thought Starfire looked very attractive, but then again, he always thought she was pretty cute. She wore faded hip hugger jeans with daisies embroidered at the hems and up the side seams. When they reached her pocket, a daisy button ended its path. Star's shirt was a powdery pink cap-sleeved top with a shiny decal of a kitten. Over her shoulder she carried a light pink vinyl purse with a red heart sticker in the corner. Her toes wiggled as she stood admiring her toenails as they shimmered a bright pink color. The flip-flop sound of her sandals disrupted the boys' game.
"You look great Starfire," commented Robin while he eyed his comrade. The door to the rooms opened again and Raven emerged.
Robin's jaw hit the floor, and the two video game obsessed boys turned off their game. They froze in place once they caught sight of the girls.
Raven wore a pair of dark blue flares, but they were losing their color in the thigh areas by natural wearing. Her form-fitting shirt tank top was gray with black trim. On her chest was a decal with a psychotic looking bear; the trademark of Radiohead's Kid A album. Around her neck were pucca shells and she wore black boots. She looked comfortable, yet beautiful all at once. While thinking of a comment, Beast boy beat him to complimenting her.
"Sweet! You look awesome, Rave! Didn't know you were a Radiohead fan," brown-nosed the green boy with a bit of red in his cheeks. Raven gave him a small smile in thanks and walked towards the door.
"I have my watch, Boy wonder. If this lasts even a minute over ninety minutes, well, lets just say I don't like sugar in my tea," taunted the dark girl. Robin finally closed his mouth. No longer looking like a fish, he gave a nod and ushered the team out of their home.
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"They must be good if they can fill up their whole auditorium!" blurted Cyborg in complete awe. Of course, he was going gaga over the speaker systems. "Such lovely, up-to-date technology. This school's got it made! Why don't we come here, Robin?"
"Because we don't have time to attend classes. That's why we home school ourselves, remember? We're -Heroes-," replied the masked one.
The first choir to perform was the Non-Varsity women's choir. Their songs were short and sweet: one in Latin and two about how fair love is and whatnot.
The Men's Varsity choir took the stage next, with a set of wonderfully performed songs including a catchy version of 'Havana Gila'. 'My Love is Like a Rose' was quite lovely, especially in Starfire's mind, as she sighed dreamily during the whole piece. "My, how romantic earth men are," she whispered to Raven, who shook her head. Their final song, entitled 'Who are the Brave?" made the male titans beam proudly. Each lyric felt like it described the team to a T. 'Those who serve mankind, these are the brave,' indeed.
Women's Varsity came up, and Raven rolled her eyes once again. 'Great,' she thought. 'More songs about love and junk.' However, instead of singing a sappy love song, the group started with a frightening a capella piece titled, 'See the Gipsies.' (Yes, Gipsies, not Gypsies.)
See the gipsies dancing high, see the gipsies dancing low
See the gipsies stamp their feet, duba!
Clap their hands to every beat, leba!
In the firelight whirling round, duba!
To the zither's jangling sound, leba!
Dancing!
leba, leba, leba, leba, leba, la!
Part B seemed a bit more uplifting and gentler. The frightening first part calmed down as they continued to sing:
Round the fire gipsies sway, listen to their strumming:
Rida, Rida, bom, bom, bom, listen to their strumming.
Happy songs, laughter gay, summer days are coming.
Rida, Rida, bom, bom, bom, summer days are coming.
That last note sounded evil. She knew there was some sort of part in the music where there was a Coda. Just as she thought, the girls jumped back into their creepy chant from before. The song ended in an intense "la!" Raven took in a deep breath. Maybe this wasn't so bad after all.
The girls' second song was in Old English. The plot described Adam and Eve and the 'appil.' It was a very dramatic piece.
Raven groaned as the third piece started. She knew it: a love song. She wanted to spit on the ground, but found herself getting caught into the song's melody. It was called 'The Nightingale.' The girls took in their air, and let out pure emotion. This group was much more skilled than the Non-varsity choir. These girls felt like they were singing straight into the mysterious one's heart.
O nightingale, O nightingale,
Warbling at eve when all the woods are still,
Warbling at eve when all the woods are still,
Oh nightingale, that on yon bloomy spray
Warblest at eve, Warblest at eve when woods are still,
Warblest at eve when all the woods are still,
Thou, the lover's heart dost fill,
Thou with fresh hope, the lover's heart dost fill!
Ah! O nightingale!
Thy liquid notes that close the eye of day
Fill my heart,
O love!,
Portend success in love,
Portend success in love,
Portend success in... love.
O nightingale..
She let out a quick breath, taking in the glorious notes she just heard. They touched her heart, and felt the nightingale's prophecy of success in love pulsate from within and she relaxed. Robin looked at Raven and saw how wonderfully calm she appeared. 'She looks so peaceful, so beautiful. Just like that song. Had she been wearing her cloak, I would have thought it turned snow white with the emotions she was experiencing. She looked completely in control.'
Then one of the dimly lit light bulbs exploded.
'Maybe not.'
Raven snapped out of her trance just in time to see the Varsity Mixed choir. She noticed this choir combined the two previous ones, so she felt like she was in a real treat.
Their set began with a song called 'Rise Up, My Love, My Fair One.' Short and sweet. Starfire enjoyed the simple beauty of this particular piece. Even Beast boy got into it, rapping his fingers against the arm of the chair with the beat of the triplets.
Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away;
for lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone;
the flowers appear upon the earth;
the time of the singing of birds is come;
arise, my love, my fair one, and come away,
come away,
away.
The silence pierced through the room as the conductor lowered his arms. He spoke to the choir softly, encouraging them to show more emotion. Robin picked up the concert program and flipped the booklet to the list of songs. ''Lamentations of Jeremiah'. Sounds depressing,' he thought.
The song opened with the men singing a deep, mournful rhythm. Then the altos joined in, sounding equally grim. Each titan felt their chests feel heavy, as if they too were lamenting. The sopranos roared in, sounding sonorous, as if the women of the town were wailing in grief. Although the song was in Latin, each of the five felt the sorrow emulating from the choir. The song ended on a cliff-hanger, and Beast boy nearly fell out of his seat in anticipation. Cyborg wiped a bit of sweat off his head.
"Whoa! That was rich!" Cyborg commented.
"Yeah, very moving," agreed Robin.
Starfire, Beast boy, and Raven nodded. Raven struggled to hide any emotions, but shuddered as another light bulb exploded into oblivion.
A third song, entitled 'Zum Gali: Dance the Hora!' lightened their spirits, and the choir ended the program with an Italian opera piece called 'Prologue.' This song was a gorgeous ending to a gorgeous concert.
On the drive home, Robin nudged Raven. "How'd you like the concert?" He smirked, and she looked straight ahead.
"It was.. nice. I enjoyed it," she replied calmly. "I had to restrain my emotions during at least two songs." She widened her eyes. Did she just admit that?
"I'm glad you liked the concert. It seems we all did. Maybe we should make this a seasonal event!" Robin suggested. Starfire clapped her hands together, completely delighted.
Once back in the tower, Raven teleported to the roof. Her emotions had reacted to the music. She remembered the tune to 'The Nightingale' clearly, and hummed it softly to herself. The stars glinted in the night sky and the crescent moon smiled in approval to her humming.
"Portend success in love, portend success in love. O, nightingale.."
"Didn't know we had our own Nightingale in the tower," a voice came out of nowhere. Raven had not sensed him, and his sudden appearance startled her, which erased a few windows from existence as her black aura sparked out.
Raven gave Robin a menacing glare. "How long have you been up here?" she inquired.
"Long enough," he stated. He strode over to her, a boyish smirk against his features. He stared into her deep blue eyes. Raven looked into the whiteness of his mask. Without realizing it she reached up and let her fingers trace the black area. He knew what she was going to do, and he didn't mind at all. She carefully peeled off the thin-filmed mask. Robin had his eyes closed when she removed the one thing that concealed his identity. She tilted her head in curiosity, and Robin slowly opened his eyes. She took in a sharp gasp of air as she gazed into crystal blue pools. Before she could let out a word regarding his hypnotizing stare, he leaned in and pressed his lips onto hers. Raven responded to his kiss, and wrapped her arms around his neck while he held her close to him. Raven could feel her power rising, but felt it reside a few more seconds into the kiss. They broke apart, and Robin smiled before brushing his lips against her soft cheek.
'Why didn't anyting explode?' thought Robin. As if she read his mind, Raven answered his unasked question.
"Being in love helps me feel at peace. It allows me to express my emotions a bit more freely. You remember the Malchior incident, do you?"
Robin nodded. How could he forget? Seeing Raven in that pure white cloak was mesmerizing. She seemed genuinely happy and carefree. However, Malchior had broken her heart. Robin vowed he would not do the same.
Raven laid her head against Robin's chest, taking in the sweet scent of his cologne. He stroked her hair softly and kissed the top of her head. He leaned down a bit and whispered into her ear, "I love you."
As pink rose to her cheeks, she remembered the lyrics of 'The Nightingale' and how she felt the song was being sung especially for her.
Portend success in love.
Raven smiled and looked up into sapphire blue eyes. "I love you too," she replied. Robin traced her lips with his thumb before claiming them with his own lips again.
As the stars twinkled in the sky, a nightingale flew off the edge of the roof and towards the moon.
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Err yeah. MAJOR FLUFF. That's possible the FLUFFIEST FLUFF I've ever Fluffin' thought up.
I forgot who wrote the Boys' pieces. These were all songs my High School choir sang for Fall and Spring concerts. I love them so much; I still have the sheet music with me.
Lyrics to the Rest of the songs mentioned will be put in a "2nd chapter".