Raven's Eyes

Raining Dreams

She's Alive?: Yes. She is. By the way, guys, threats work very well as inspiration.

...oh. And -tune- I love Bosco!

P.S. For all interested, I've co-written a Marauders' Era fic. It can be found on this site under the penname 'Hopeless Romantics'.

Disclaimer: -insert witty something or other here about how I don't own Teen Titans-

"Please, you have to let me join you!" Ten-year-old Raven begged the Justice League. "Please, I'm the only one who can stop him! Without me you don't stand a chance!"

"She's a demon." A woman said coldly. "She can't be trusted. Send her away."

"Please!" pleaded the child again, eyes wide and welling with tears. Things began to float of their own accord.

"Get her out of here, now!"

The thirteen-year-old Raven Roth sat up in her bed, batting her eyes tiredly. She quickly glanced around and mentally swore. Things around the room had dropped where they'd been flying, and judging by the state of her bed, she'd been levitating in her sleep again.

A nun came rushing into the room, looking around. "Little Bird!" she cried. Ever since Raven had told them her name, they'd called her things like 'Little Bird' or 'Blackbird'. "What have you done?" The woman scowled severely, looking at the lamp laying in shambles on the floor. "I'd suggest candles to Mother Superior if I weren't afraid you'd burn the place down." She shook her head, looking up at Raven, who looked unfazed as usual.

The nun sighed. "I'll clean this up. You get some breakfast."

Raven responded with a nod and slipped from her bed, walking carefully around the nun and the broken lamp. After getting herself dressed, she swept with the elegance of a royal (which, if you got right down to it, she was) down to the rather sad excuse for a cafeteria. She helped herself to some orange juice and dry toast, nibbling quietly as the nuns ran to and fro.

A particularly imposing woman approached Raven, a deep frown on her elderly features. "Didn't we just dye your hair?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"But it's nearly purple again!"

"I know, ma'am."

"I think we should try shaving your head again and giving you a wig." sighed the Mother Superior.

"It will only grow back in a day or two." Pointed out Raven, which gained a reluctant nod of agreement from the stern woman. Her odd physical features had always been something of particular discomfort for the nuns at the convent she'd been sent to by the Justice League. The League's logic was that the good spiritual energy would limit her. She'd been behaving herself, but all the religion rubbish had done as much as a gnat bite to keeping her in check.

Regardless of these theories, the nuns had tried to make due with her. They attempted to dye her hair at least once weekly, but the dye always vanished after three days at most, no matter what they did. No amount of makeup, generally frowned upon by the nuns except in this case, could conceal the grey notes to her skin. And then there was that gem; that paganistic symbol of certain devil worship. They'd tried prying it out several times, but stopped after Sister Mary Alice had nearly lost her hand to the child.

"The Archbishop is visiting today, Raven," the Mother Superior began. "You are to stay out of the way and be quiet. Entertain yourself somehow. I've brought you the newspaper to read and a book of crossword puzzles. I trust you will be able to feed yourself with a full kitchen?"

Raven nodded and was left in the quiet solitude of the dining hall. She examined her materials for the day. A ballpoint pen and a few dull pencils, one bearing teethmarks. An old, Christian-themed book of crosswords. Yesterday's newspaper. Bor-- wait.

The girl stopped, looking at the front page more closely. Batman was there... he'd been one of the men to bring her to this horrible place. In reality, the convent wasn't terrible, but it was agonizing to be treated that way by all the nuns. Not to mention she always had the fear her father would come. Robin, apparently his apprentice, was leaving to 'find his own way to help people'. Raising a brow in interest, Raven read further. Apparently the boy was going to Jump City, where there was a large amount of crime and a struggling police force.

Jump City wasn't far from the convent at all.

Raven nearly showed signs of anxious excitement as her head popped up and she looked out the window. She could practically see the haze of the city on that horizon. Unable to contain herself, Raven licked her lips and chewed a bit on the lower one. She had reached a crossroads and needed to make a decision.

She'd been flying for almost an hour by the time the nuns noticed she was gone, along with a few pages of the paper and her few things. She had left a note. In neat, scripty handwriting, it simply said 'thank you'.

The wind ran through her violet hair, and a smile curled over Raven's pale lips as she soared over the countryside outside Jump City. The cloak she'd first come here in, now a few sizes too small but still wearable, billowed behind her. And then she saw it.

Jump City rose before her like some black, shining monster. Smog blanketed the upper areas around the skyscrapers, and traffic bustled through the streets. Zooming in for a landing outside the city so as not to attract attention, Raven quickly removed her cloak and pulled on a jacket to blend in as much as was possible. She tugged the hood over her head.

One week later...

"Why am I here?" the fourteen-year-old inquired, looking skeptical.

"You need help. I'm offering it."

"But what can you do?" Robin said, fighting the urge to laugh. The girl before him was frail looking and dainty. She looked like she'd snap if the wind blew too hard. She looked grey, but that was probably the lighting of this dank, vacated shopping center she'd insisted on meeting at. Her hair was a startling shade of purple, but dyes could easily achieve that. Raven muttered something under her breath, and behind him a dumpster flew up in the air, before landing, roughly fifteen feet away, with a cry of twisting metal.

Raven simply cocked a brow at him, arms folded over her chest. Robin had to use all the willpower he had not to gape.

"Who are you?" he managed. Raven smirked.

"Your new partner in crime fighting." she replied, the smile fading as she stifled the welling happiness in her chest.