Pairings-
Nightwing/Starfire
Changeling/Raven
Cyborg/Bumblebee
Flash/Jinx
New Team
Azar Steve Logan (eldest son of Ch/Rae)
Marie Rita Logan (eldest daughter of Ch/Rae)
Kayla'nder Mary Grayson (eldest and only daughter of Star/Wing)
Lucas Barry West (eldest son of Fl/inx)
Celine Mary West (eldest of daughter of Fl/inx)
John Silas Stone (eldest son of Cy/Bee)
TT
As the morning sun shone on the abandoned T-shaped building, a small, dark portal opened and 4 people stepped out of it. There were two adults, a man with a deep forest green hair and complexion, who was following a woman with dark grey skin and long flowing purple hair. She looked around, and flashed a nostalgic smile at her husband.
"Oh, Gar…"
"I know, Rae." He said to her with his own weak smile. "Doesn't look all that different huh?"
"We're the only ones who changed, apparently…It's strange to see how far we've come since those days."
Raven locked her deep violet eyes with Changeling's dark green ones, and he pulled her into a hug. She somewhat laughed, and stared up at him.
"What's this all about?"
"I just can't believe it."
"Believe what?"
"That after all this time, all the fights we ever had, all the confusing and mixed signals, and even that one time we broke up; I still can't get over the fact that we've been married for 20 years. And this-" he said, waving in the general direction of the giant T, "This is where it all began."
Raven smiled again, and said, "You're a sweet, idiotic, goofball."
He winked at her, and said, "That may be true, but you're the one who said yes when I proposed. What does that say about you?"
"That even the most intelligent people make questionable decisions."
"Mmm." He grunted while leaning in to kiss her. She returned the favor, but as their lip-lock deepened, they heard a small cough behind them. They broke off, and groaned in response to the newcomer.
"You also forgot to mention that we've been 'blessed' with these monsters." Changeling said while putting up air quotes. Their daughter Marie smirked at them and said, "Now if you two are done mauling each other's faces," at this Changeling raised an eyebrow and Raven sighed, slightly blushing, "could you guys open up the place?"
He shook his head and said, "No, we're gonna wait for the others. Besides, only Uncle Dick has the override codes to open it."
She sighed heavily. "Darn it. I was hoping for first pick on the rooms."
Raven smiled, "too bad. Now, go help your brother with your guys' luggage."
"Kinda looks like he has it all under control."
The three looked at the oldest Logan child, who was floating his sister's numerous suitcases out of the portal. He was seated on a very large trunk which held his entire library. Whereas his sister needed 6 suitcases for uniforms and street clothes and 2 carry-ons for personal stuff, he had fit all his belongings in 3 medium-sized duffle bags. Even as he was moving their luggage, he was engrossed in his copy of Stephen King's The Shining. Marie gave her parents a mischievous smile, and began to creep up behind him. Azar was blissfully unaware of the danger as he was immersed the world of the Overlook Hotel. He had just reached the horrific climax of Jack Torrence smashing his own face in with a rouque mallet, his sister screamed in his ear,
"AZAR DON'T FREAK!"
He yelped, dropped his book and instinctively flinched, mentally shoving his sister into the nearest tree.
*WHACK*
"Ow…" Marie said in a very small and weak voice.
As he stood above his little sister, Azar just shook his head and rolled his eyes.
"That, is what you get for scaring the crap out of me."
"Heh. Worth it to see the look on your face, though."
He shook his head again, and rolled his eyes as he helped her up. Changeling and Raven walked over, their mother having a small smile, while their father openly roared with laughter. Raven looked at her son proudly, and said,
"You've gotten better at multitasking with your magic. However, you need to tone down the instinctual backlash."
Azar rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Yeah. Sorry about that."
Changeling was still laughing. "Ha! If you knew how many times your mother magiked me to God knows-"
Raven suddenly slammed a hand over his mouth with a sharp glare. "Don't you DARE tell them about that time."
"Tell them about what time? 'Cuz I sure as Hell am interested in this!"
Both father's and daughter's face lit up at hearing the voice and went up to meet the large half black and half metal man staring down at the small family
"Uncle Stone!"
"Cy!"
"Hey, cute Grass Stain! Oh, and hello to you too, Changeling."
Marie giggled and hugged her favorite uncle while her father groaned. However it turned into a quick smile when his best friend crushed him in a hug. He turned to Azar and Raven and let them each initiate the separate hugs, knowing their indifference to physical contact. When it came to Raven's turn, she warmly embraced her old friend saying,
"It's good to see you, Cyborg."
"Yeah. What's it been, like 2 or 3 years?"
"Ever since the Christmas disaster, yes."
They both shuddered at the memory of the last time the whole team, plus their families, had gotten together at Nightwing and Starfire's house for the holidays. Starfire had decided that she wanted to cook for everyone; needless to say, chaos ensued. After she burned the salad, they had all called off the 'home-cooked meal', and ordered a pizza. Suddenly, a large black boy tackled the Logan siblings, saying,
"What's up, cousins?"
"John! Get off of me!"
"Aw, come on, Az! Show a little love!"
"You know he can't, that emotion is still in his mirror!" Marie said, laughing.
"What am I, chopped liver?" a new voice said.
"No, Aunt Karen." The brother and sister chorused. While John said hello to Raven and Changeling, Bumblebee chased Azar and Marie around, the whole time berating them.
"How many times do I have to tell you not to call me that?
"Until it isn't funny anymore!" they shouted back.
"It makes me feel old!"
Everyone laughed as she smacked the back of the two teens' heads. Without warning, two shrill screams were heard.
"Friend Raven!"
"AZ!"
Both son and mother looked fearfully at each other.
"Oh shi-"
They were both tackled ,sending Raven to the ground, and Azar flying into the air while the two attackers squealed and crushed them in a hug. Starfire had a hold of Raven, while her son was in the arms of the dark-haired Grayson child. Raven was trying not to scream from the pain, as Azar had his lungs crushed by his best friend.
He managed to wheeze out, "Yeah…good…to…see…you…too…Kayla…can't…breathe?
While Raven somehow choked out "Star…killing…me!"
"Oh, I am the sorry! However I have not partaken in the seeing of you in forever!"
Starfire said this while pulling them both up off the ground, meanwhile Kayla simply fluffed and messed up Azar's black hair while laughing.
"Yeah I agree Az! Why haven't I dragged you to someplace new lately?"
"Kayla'nder Grayson. If you touch my hair again, or drag me to another party or mall, I will END you."
"Sounds like my nephew needs to loosen up!"
A new voice joined in as Nightwing high-fived the guys and hugged the girls. Suddenly, 2 blurs appeared, and were already shouting at each other.
"I so won!"
"Easy, there squirt. No way you can beat your old man."
"Exactly my point! You're old, and past your prime!"
"Wally!"
"Lucas!"
While Kayla had called and flew over to her boyfriend, her father had walked over to the older Flash. He asked him,
"What was all that about?"
"Junior here bet me lunch for a month to whoever could get here first!"
"Well, technically, you're both late. So…no one really had a chance of winning."
Everyone laughed as the two had sour looks on their faces. A pink-haired woman walked up and put her hands on her hips. Jinx glared, and shook her head at her husband and son.
"You both got here at the same time, and left us all with the bags!"
Immediately, various items of luggage came into view, all which had come from the boat which was used by many of the families to get from the Jump city coast to the Titans' Island. Azar, who had been standing off and talking to Kayla, felt hands reach up and cover his eyes from behind. He allowed himself a small smile and turned around.
"Hey Cels. You know I hate it when people touch me, right?
"Oh, c'mere and stop being a butt!"
He carefully opened his arms to embrace her, but she simply burrowed right into his chest, and looked up while mock pouting.
"You didn't respond to any of my texts this whole week…or hang out with me…you mad at me?"
The last part was said with a little seriousness and worry, but he just shook his head.
"Nah, I've just been super busy with a lot of stuff lately."
"Jerk."
"Bitch…speaking of which, guess who got all seasons up to 12 on disc?"
"No way…I love you."
"Yep. Supernatural marathon this whole week."
"Am I invited, or are you two lovebirds going to have a Netflix and Chill?"
They both jumped and pulled apart at Kayla's sniggering voice, and both blushed.
"Oh, shut up Kayla."
"Cels! No need to be so rude!"
She said, winking as the three walked up to the doors to the tower, where everyone was gathering. Nightwing looked at the young men and women who were about to take the first step in their new lives as superheroes.
"Welcome to your new home…The Titans tower."
Without further ado, he opened the doors…which promptly fell in.
A nervous chuckle was heard.
"Not. A. Word." He warned.
TT
When they walked into the Tower, the youths decided to walk off and change into their uniforms which most of them had designed specifically for this. Azar had just clicked on his belt, when he heard a knock at the door.
"Come in." he called.
His mother walked in, and looked at him. He spread out his arms.
"What do you think?"
"Looks good. After designing both yours and your sister's, I still think you could have gone into fashion."
"Har. Har."
He replied shaking his head. She held out 2 boxes to him, one about the size of a FedEx box, the other as small as a jewelry box.
"Mom-"
She held up her hand and he stopped talking.
"I know Christmas is a month away, and your birthday just passed, but consider them housewarming gifts."
"…thank you."
"Make sure you open the big one first."
He looked at her, puzzled, but grabbed the larger one anyway, and tore off the wrapping.
"…Oh, wow…"
He pulled out a cloak, similar to his mother's, complete with the dark red stone clasp. However, where hers was blue, this one was black as midnight. As he put it on, his mother was explaining,
"It's enchanted to only fit you. It will also shift length and fit to accommodate your size if you ever grow."
"Thanks. Can I open the second one now?"
"Of course, while I'm still here."
He opened the smaller box, and saw a small copper circle, a remnant of a penny, which was attached to a simple leather cord. He then shot her a quizzical look. She smiled and said,
"Years ago, when the prophecy surrounding my birth came true, your father gave me that for good luck. I lost it when I opened the portal for my father, but he somehow found it again. I've come to think of it as an amulet for hope and new beginnings…also, it was the first piece of jewelry your father gave me."
They both laughed at this, but Azar shook his head.
"Mom, I can't take this…it means too much."
"It's because I means so much, which is the reason why I'm giving it to you. Also if you don't take it, I'll curse you."
He shook his head and put it on, smiling. She then shot him a sly look.
"You know, that was the first time I realized I had feelings for him…you could give that to Celine-"
"MOM!"
Raven just chuckled.
TT
As everyone walked into the main living room, they all surveyed each other's uniforms. Azar had his cloak with the hood flipped up, casting half of his face in shadow. He had thick black combat boots which went up to his ankles, and black fitted pants that resembled jeans, but allowed more movement. His top was also black, with the sleeves ending just above his elbows, and he wore fingerless gloves that ended at his wrist, with deep red stones on the back of his hands. His belt was a mix of his Father and Mother's, with a grey and black disc that clicked in and had similar stones such as those on his gloves and cloak going around his waist. Everything paired nicely with his black hair and light green skin. He had designed his sister's uniform to mirror their Father's new uniform, with white and purple blending with her green hair, which she had up in a ponytail. The sleeves, which went to her wrists, were purple, as well as the shoulders. The top accented her figure, and stopped above her stomach. She had light purple leggings with a stripe of white going down each of the sides. In addition, she had thin whit boots, which went over the leggings and stopped at the knees. She also had gloves with a bear paw on the backs of her hands, and for a fashion statement, added a pair of grey goggles to be worn around the neck or on the top of her head. Her clothes were made out of the same material as her Father's which allowed the fabric to melt into the skin when she changed shape. John was wearing a mix between an exoskeleton and armor. He had on thick silver boots, with shin guards leading up to thigh and waist armor. His torso piece was styled like a tank top, leaving his shoulders bare. He had on gauntlets which started from his elbows which extended into gloves that stopped after the first digit on his fingers. Throughout his armor, there was accents similar to his adoptive Father's tech, with blue wired pieces. He had tied his dreadlocks together to get them out of his face, and wore his own patented red glasses which was the same color as his Father's eye, and had many similar functions, as well as some new ones. Kayla had regular purple Converse High Tops on, with a purple fitted miniskirt, with burgundy leggings underneath. She wore a red long sleeve with a high mandarin collar, but her wrist to her elbow was covered by silver gauntlets similar to her Mothers'. Lucas was dressed in the traditional Kid Flash outfit, with red boots and gloves, and a yellow one piece suit and a red belt. His mask came up from his suit which only covered his eyes and the bridge of his nose. His top had a red lightning bolt with a circle inside of it, which matched his red hair. Due to their mixed parentage, however, both of the West twins had a wild streak of pink hair in their natural red. Celine was the last to walk in, who wore a black long sleeve with a purple shawl similar to her mother's over her shoulders. She had on leggings with purple, red and black stripes underneath a fitted burgundy miniskirt and her feet were covered in purple and black platforms. Azar admired Celine but Lucas openly stared at Kayla. Both, however could appreciate the girls without any trouble.
Nightwing cleared his throat and said, "Alright. We have two orders of business to take care of. Step forward and announce your codename, which you should have thought of by now. Also state your age so the Tower computer has both on file, and can recognize you."
All of them looked at each other, but no one stepped up.
Lucas decided to go first. "Kid Flash. Age 18."
Next was Marie. "Beast Girl, 16."
"Cypher. 18" John.
"Nightstar. I'm 17" Kayla.
"My name is Hex. Age 18" This was Celine.
Azar looked up, cleared his throat and said, "Crow. 19."
Everyone nodded, but then he also added, "We're the NextGen Titans."
As everyone smiled at the name, Nightwing said, "Time to take a vote as to who will lead the team. Both the new and the original team members will take part in this decision. With this information, you will all be part of a real team, and the tower computer will recognize this. That being said, I vote Kid Flash."
Starfire piped up. "I will also vote for Kid Flash."
Cyborg: "Nah. I'll go with Crow."
Crow looked up, shocked that anyone would vote for him. Even though there was one opposition, Kid Flash was still pretty excited about his two votes.
Bumblebee smiled at her nephew and said, "I agree. Crow."
Jinx voted for Crow and the new Flash (who had taken over from Barry Allen) voted for Nightstar. Both Changeling and Raven voted for Nightstar, and Crow and Nightstar inversely voted for each other. Beast Girl decided to vote for Nightstar. Hex voted for Crow, which only left Kid Flash with quite a problem. Should he vote for his girlfriend, or his favorite bro?
"Um…after some thought…I vote…Crow."
Everyone was in shock. That is, except for Nightstar. She walked over to Kid Flash, and while hugging him, whispered,
"Good choice. It should definitely be him over me."
Hearing this statement, Kid Flash realized he was safe, and released the breath he had been holding.
Crow, however, was already vehemently shaking his head. "No, No, No. It should be her, not me. She can be a way better leader than I can."
Nightwing raised an eyebrow. "Well, we voted you, so-"
"Yes and it was a mistake!"
"Not only are you the oldest, but also the most responsible. Not to mention the fact that you're probably the most powerful." He looked around at the teens. "No offence."
"None taken." They all spoke. He turned back to Crow
"You're a quick thinker, and a wise one at that."
"Any one of us is smart-"
"You've always been the bravest and strongest of us all, man." Cypher said.
"Technically-"
"Like my dad said, you super intelligent, plus you're fearless. You have a naturally confident and commanding attitude." Nightstar added.
"But-"
His father simply said, "The best leaders are those who have no desire for power." Astonished eyes turned to him, and he rubbed the back of his head nervously. "Heh. Little quote from a government class I took years ago."
Everyone turned back to Crow, who looked like he still wanted to fight about it, but two looks, one from his mother, and another from Hex caused him to stop, facepalm, and heave a defeated sigh. On the opposite side, his actions caused his mother and friend to smile and high-five. Nightwing gestured for him to approach the computer/table interface. He did so, and at Nightwing's nod, placed his hand on the table. After a few seconds of nothing happening, he felt a searing pain on his hand. He withdrew it with a hiss of pain, and glared at Nightwing.
Nightwing explained, "The computer needed to input your fingerprint for the system. Also, to mark you as leader."
A sudden beeping was heard, and a flashing lit up button saying 'protocol i17A' appeared. Getting the message, Crow pushed it, which caused all the lights and power of the tower to switch off. At the teens' confused faces, Nightwing explained,
"Protocol i17A was a rebooting system I worked up with Cyborg and Batman. We had to learn how to build and run this Tower from the ground up, so your first act as a team, you get to do the same, and make this place habitable. Later!"
Suddenly, all the adults filed out with quick goodbyes and hugs. The new team stood shocked, and silence filled the room.
"Well." Started Cypher, "So much for putting on our uniforms. I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm putting on work clothes."
They all laughed and shook their heads.
TT
They all regrouped in the living room again, and Crow started divvying up jobs.
"Alright. Cypher, I want you to go down into the basement and access the power systems to try and get it up and running. Beast Girl and Nightstar, I want you two to fly around and check out the outside of the Tower and check on any structural damage. Me, Kid Flash and Hex will walk around the Tower and survey the inside. Meet back here in thirty minutes tops, ok?"
Everyone nodded and walked off to start working. The three walked around, noting that there were 4 rooms, 2 guest rooms, as well as a studio/office space that was used by Nightwing for a room. They decided to put numbers in a hat for the order in which they would choose the rooms, when the day was over. Beast Girl and Nightstar noticed no structural damage, aside from a broken window or two, but they saw that there was a fair amount of overgrowth on the island itself. After very much clanking, small explosions, and lots and LOTS of loud swearing, Cypher got all the basic electrical systems up and running. They all reported back to each other, and decided to order pizza due to the kitchen not being up to par. Suddenly, an age old debate started anew.
Beast girl started with, "Let's get Tofu!"
Cypher snorted, and said, "Nasty. What we need is a meat lover's."
Beast Girl wrinkled her nose and said under her breath, "Animal killer"
"What was that?"
Crow miraculously shut them both up with a murderous glare. He then said, "We'll just get both."
"Let's get pineapple!"
Everyone turned and stared at Kid Flash, who had a sheepish look.
"What? I've always wanted to try it."
"Cheese, please" Hex piped up.
"Anything's fine with me, as long as I have my ketchup." They all shuddered at the thought of Nightstar's favorite 'beverage' . As Cypher was on the phone, ordering everything, Crow noticed an incoming face call coming on the computer. So he flicked it up to the big TV, answered it. They were then all greeted, and shocked, by Mayor Schemo's jovial face.
"Um, Mr. Mayor, this is a huge honor, sir." Crow stammered out as they all tried (keyword tried) to look nicer.
"Please, the honor is all mine. It is wonderful to meet the new team of Titans protecting our city. How are you all faring today?"
A mutter of "fine, thank you" was heard.
"Good! Now, down to business. As you all know, the government funds superhero teams such as the JLA, or the Justice Society, and so forth. Naturally, you are no exception." Eyes widened at this. "I am sending you the link for the number of the bank statement and arrangements. The balance currently in there will be your monthly salary. Any questions?"
Crow enlarged and opened it, and his jaw dropped. "Uh…Sir? There are six zeroes."
He immediately looked troubled. "Oh no! Is it too small? I tried-"
"No! Uh, sorry, sir I was just shocked! This is more than enough."
He smiled again. "Wonderful. If there is anything else, please, never hesitate to ask!"
Kid Flash spoke from the couch. "Actually, yeah. Do you know the best Home Repair Crew in Jump City?"
TT
Hey guys and gals! This is my first chapter of my first Fanfic! Hope you all liked it, feel free to review, and I'll answer any questions I can without giving away too many plotpoints!
See you next chapter-the Titans have their first training session…What could go wrong? Hold on tight!