(A.N.: I'm gonna say that this happens after the Malchior episode, okay? Hope you enjoy, not one of my bests, but it's good enough! NO FLAMES! If I get one flame, my evil demon side will torture the person who sent it! Flames will not stop me from writing!)
DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN THE TEEN TITANS OR BATMAN, SO ALL YOU LAWYERS GET AWAY!
"Raven? Raven? Won't you please come out of your room for a while?" The boy wonder pleaded with the Ice Queen of Titan's tower. Lately she had been secluding herself more, paying less and less attention to the rest of the team.
"NO." Her voice was monotonous, but one could feel the venomous look she was directing at Robin, even through the thick door.
"Please? It would mean a lot to me and the rest of the team…" His voice was full of innocence and pleading.
"If it'll get you to leave me alone, then fine!" Reluctantly, she lowered herself to the ground and moodily walked to the door. She swung it open, greeted by a surprised Robin.
"Wow! I never thought that I would be able to do that…" He scratched his head and glanced sideways at her. Her face was pale, paler than usual, and dark circles were under her eyes. Her usually straight hair was tangled, and a look of disgust was painted on her face. She swayed back and forth before ambling into the lounge where everyone was currently residing.
"Are you feeling okay, Raven?" Robin asked her telepathically. There was a moment's pause before he got a truthful answer.
"Lately I have been feeling a little…odd…nothing to worry about though…" A wave of worry washed over Robin; he hadn't even noticed the change until now. She was more depressed, darker, creepier. A series of beeping grabbed everyone's attention.
"Titans trouble!" Cyborg yelled. They all rushed into the T-car, all forgetting about what they had been doing.
"Ha ha ha! Finally all the jewels will be mine!" Dr. Light laughed maniacally as he sped out of the jewelry store, holding a bag full of diamonds and rubies.
"That's what you think!" Dr. Light's laughter subsided as he looked up to see the Teen Titans ready for action. Beast Boy transformed into a rhino and charged at the villain; Dr. Light quickly dodged the attack effortlessly. Starfire, eyes glowing green, was furiously throwing star bolts at him. He quickly dodged these also. He even managed to evade the birdarangs that Robin was throwing left and right. Cyborg's cannon was also no match for the villain; Dr. Light easily avoided the sonic blasts. Finally, it was Raven's turn for action. Uttering her mantra, she levitated off the ground and into the sky, a black aura surrounding her hands.
"Azarath Metrion Zenthous!" Dr. Light was shrouded in the dark magic, flailing wildly for freedom. She directed his body right up to her face, a look of hatred in her eyes.
"Remember me?" His face brightened up and he smiled evilly.
"How could I forget? Tell me, how are things going with your friends? The ones who think you're creepy and weird? The ones who hate you?" Hurt and anguish washed over Raven's face as she slammed the villain into the ground. This merely made his smile grow, so she continued until his evil smirk was completely gone. As she prepared to give the last blow, Robin stepped in.
"Raven, calm down! You're gonna kill him!" Raven lowered herself to the ground, tears in her eyes. A genuine look of sorrow was etched on her face.
"I'm so sorry…I don't know what came over me…." It was too late for apologies, though. Robin couldn't hold his anger inside and exploded in her face.
"Wha were you thinking? You lost control, Raven! You could've killed him!" The tears that had formed slowly trickled down her face, as she threw her communicator to the ground. She snapped around and began running out of the town. Robin chased after her, regretting snapping at her, trying desperately to keep up, but she was too fast.
"RAVEN COME BACK! I'M SORRY! RAVEN!" She looked back at him, her face shiny from the tears. She disappeared into the ground, leaving them all behind.
"Dr. Light was right. They don't like me…they think I'm creepy and weird. A burden to them all. I'm no fun…and not even a good hero…they'll be better off without me, anyways. I'll go to Gotham…maybe I'll meet up with the Batdude." She sighed aloud as she continued down the dusty roadside. Cars sped by, some people stopped and asked her if she needed a ride. While it would be nice, she needed some alone time. Plus, she didn't trust most of them.
"Pedophiles and molesters…they would surely rape me and murder me…" So, she slowly made her way to the Dark City, Gotham, USA.
At the tower, Robin and the other Titans all sat on the couch, deep in conversation.
"I was way too hard on her…that's why she left…" He was pacing up and down, biting his nails nervously.
"Maybe the friend Raven will come home. Maybe she was seeking the space…" Starfire tried to sound as optimistic as she could, but the thought of Raven leaving was badly upsetting her. Beast Boy's face was full of sadness as he held back the tears that threatened to pour out.
"No, Starfire. She's not looking for space. She left. Because of me, she left!" He kicked the cabinet in a fit of rage.
"I'll go to Gotham…" The thought floated into Robin's mind. Slowly, he realized what this meant.
"I know where she's going!" He raced out of the lounge, and into his own private room. Grabbing a phone, he dialed a number very familiar to him.
"Hello?" An older sounding man answered.
"Al, it's me Robin. Is Bruce around? I really need to talk to him." Robin emphasized the word really. There was silence on the other end as Alfred processed the words that had just been blurted out at him.
"Ah, yes, Master Richard. Bruce is right here. Hang on." Robin tapped his foot impatiently, waiting for his adopted father to pick up the phone.
"Robin? Is everything all right?" Worry and concern was thick in Bruce's voice.
"No, listen, one of my teammates ran away and she's heading for Gotham. I need you to keep an eye out for her. Can you do that for me?"
"Um….sure…can you tell me what she looks like?" Robin pondered for a moment as he thought about the dark girl. "Beautiful, breath taking….lovely…"
"She's a Goth, really dark and stand offish. She's kind of tall with short, purple hair. Her eyes are violet colored, and her skin is ashen. She'll be wearing a dark, navy blue cloak, probably with the hood up. Listen; if you find her, try not to upset her…she's got powers that don't allow her to show her emotions…" Robin's voice was full of affection. He had always loved and cherished his Raven. And now she was gone, all because of him. His eyes burnt as the tears slowly formed.
"Sounds like you really like her. I'll be on the lookout for her. If I find her, I'll call you."
"Thanks, Bruce, you're a lifesaver." Bruce laughed half-heartedly, and hung up on his son.
"If you don't mind me asking, what was all that about?" Alfred asked curiously.
"One of Robin's teammates ran away and is coming here. He wants me to keep an eye out for her…" Alfred stopped drying the plate he was holding, and his lips curled up into a smile.
"Sounds like Master Richard has a crush." Bruce merely nodded his head, deep in thought.
She had been walking for what seemed like days before she reached the outskirts of a dark city. Her clothes were torn and ragged, her hair plastered to her forehead. She was exhausted, barely containing enough energy to lift her legs. But she had to. She had to make it to Gotham, to escape her unloving friends.
As she entered the city, two thugs came out of the shadows and grabbed hold of the half-demon.
"A'ight girlie. We ain't gonna hurt ya's, as long as you don't scream or move around too much." He began ripping off her leotard and threw her on the cold pavement. Terrified, she tried to muster up enough energy to summon up her powers, but she was too weak. The two men pulled down their pants, and proceeded to rape her. She grunted in agony, and tried to leave, but was too weak.
A dark figure grabbed them up by their collars. Pathetically, they struggled to be let down.
Raven watched in horror as the figure threw the two thugs into the air, then bent down to look at their victim.
She cringed as the figure reached out to touch her, and a nearby light pole melted to the ground. Her vision began to blur, and she passed out just as the figure picked her up bridal style and carried her to the mansion on the other edge of town.
The sound of a crackling fire abruptly awoke her.
"Where am I!" She demanded, her mind foggy. A man to her right answered her kindly.
"Gotham City." She stared at the man, a confused expression painting her face. She tried to sit up, but the man gently pushed her back on the pillow.
"Who are you?" He smiled, eyes twinkling warmly.
"My name is Bruce Wayne. This mansion belongs to me. I found you in an alleyway; two young thugs had…raped you. After I dealt with them, I went to check on you, but you had passed out. So I carried you here." She nodded, remembering the horror and pain she had been in. She felt afraid, untrusting of this man. Her emotions got the better of her, and a lamp shattered on a desk adjacent to the warm bed she was laying on. She looked nervously at Bruce, who blinked several times before speaking up.
"That was odd…" He suspected that this was Robin's missing teammate, the one with the strange powers. She looked just as he had described, but first, Bruce wanted her to become comfortable around him. He wanted her to tell him about her unique powers.
"I'm sorry…you see, I have telekinetic powers that feed off my emotions. If I get scared, afraid, or mad, and show it, something usually breaks or melts away…I can pay for it if you like. It looked very expensive." Her voice was timid and apologetic. Bruce was now sure that this was the girl Robin spoke of.
"That's all right. It came from Wal-Mart anyway…Can I ask why you ran away?" He placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, but she brushed it off immediately. She had become afraid of men.
"What makes you think I ran away?" She had moved as far away from him as possible, and had curled up in a protective ball.
"Well, it was just a guess. But judging by your response, it was a good one." Sympathetically he looked at the young teen in front of him, the pained look in her eyes.
"Poor dear, she's been through a lot in one day…"
"Nobody liked me…" She was on the verge of tears and began to rock back and forth, trying to comfort herself.
"I'm sure somebody liked you." His voice was reassuring, full of wisdom. But she didn't listen. He couldn't possibly know what it was like to be her. To be unable to show any emotion. To be known as creepy and weird.
A sob escaped her, making the lights flash on and off.
"Just get some sleep right now." He walked out the door and into his private study. All his thoughts were focused on the crying teen, the hurt child.
Robin lie in his bed, looking up at the ceiling. "I wish I hadn't of yelled at her like that. She looked so hurt. As soon as I find her, I'm gonna hug her so tight and never let her go. She'll never be hurt again…not by me or anyone else."
The sudden ringing of the telephone broke his train of thought. Dazedly, he picked it up and answered.
"Hello?"
"Robin, I found your teammate, but…" Robin broke him off and began to chatter excitedly.
"Tell her I'll be right there…and that I love her…"
"Robin! Listen to me. She was raped…I think she's in shock or something. She won't let me touch her. Or Alfred. I think you need to let her stay with me for a while. She needs a vacation, some time away from the Titans." Robin pondered this for a moment, and then quickly decided against it.
"She won't even let you touch her! How is she going to feel comfortable, feel safe in a city where she was raped? How will she feel around complete strangers?" His voice was shrill and angry. How dare Bruce keep him away from her.
"Robin, she needs sometime away from you! She ran away! If you bring her back, she'll just run again, and something worse may happen to her. I'll tell her I called you and see what she wants to do. If she wants to go home, she can. If she would rather stay here, that's her business. Deal?" Reluctantly, Robin agreed.
"Deal. But what about your secret identity? She'll figure it out sooner or later; I did…And she's ten times smarter than me." There was a silence on the other end.
"If she finds out, then let it be." His voice was full of confidence that the girl would not expose his secret to the tabloids.
"Bruce, take good care of my Raven." Robin knew whom she would choose, just like he knew that Bruce, like always, was right. With that, he hung up, and fell into a fitful sleep.
"GET AWAY FROM ME!" Her screams broke the silence of Bruce Manor. Bruce jumped off his couch and into the room where had been sleeping. A black aura shrouded her in darkness, as she tossed and turned, screaming at invisible rapists. He raced over to her, dodging the many items that flew at him.
"Wake up! Wake up; it's just a dream, Raven. Just a dream." The aura disappeared, leaving her crying hysterically. She grabbed him up in a hug, crying on his shoulders. Taken back, he gently patted her back, whispering softly into her ears.
"Everything will be all right. It was just a dream. No one's gonna hurt you…" He broke free of her hug, held her at arms length, and scanned her with his eyes. Her ashen face was splotchy red from crying, the whites of her eyes bloodshot. Once she realized he was touching her, she pulled out of his strong grasp, and curled into a fetal position, beginning to rock back and forth again.
"Raven, I'm not going to hurt you. I promise. I need to ask you something very important, okay?" His voice was soft and low; he didn't want her to shy away from him in fright.
"Okay…" She murmured, barely audible.
"I called Robin, your leader, and he wants you to know that if you want to, you can stay here for a little while. Kinda like a vacation. He said it's up to you. He won't be mad if you stay here." He talked slowly and clearly, like speaking to a five year old.
"How do you know Robin? How did you know he was my leader?" Her tone was suspicious and distrusting.
"Robin's my son. When you ran away, he called me and told me to look out for you…" She nodded a little before timidly asking:
"He won't get mad at me?" Bruce had to bend down low to understand her. After a minute of thinking what she'd said, he shook his head gently.
"No, he won't get mad. He understands completely. He said whenever you're ready to come home; you're welcome back. Just take as much time as you need."
"Do…do you mind?" If possible, her voice got even quieter.
"Not at all." She nodded her head slightly.
"I wanna stay her for a while…but not too long…I don't wanna be a burden…" She then closed her eyes and fell into a deep sleep.
"No, my child, you stay as long as you want. You will not be a burden at all…not at all…" He pulled the covers up to her chin, and walked at the door. Before he closed it, though, he looked compassionately at her, already beginning to think of her as a daughter.