Uh oh! Reviews are down. Hopefully you like this chapter better.

Also, I will be gone for two weeks starting late next week. I'll try to publish one more chapter before I go on my trip to England, but no promises. I definitely won't be updating during my trip, so don't be surprised if the next update isn't until mid September.

And now, back to the story!

-( - )-

A roaring fire crackled in the fireplace as Raven climbed into the enormous canopy bed while Garfield brushed his teeth in the room's private bath. The sorceress stared at the dancing flames, mesmerized by how much they resembled the fire demons her father once sent to capture her.

There was of course only one demon in the room, and she was only a half breed. Still, not a day went by where Raven wasn't painfully aware that she wasn't like other women. Normal women did not have natural violet hair or grey skin. They also didn't have a demonic monster name "Rage" living inside them either and didn't need to meditate for hours to keep it under control.

Raven turned to the bathroom, and through the open door she watched the man that she loved as he prepared for the night. He was only wearing a pair of boxers with a dinosaur pattern on it, but that's not what she noticed.

Barbara Gordon described Garfield earlier that evening as "cute" and as Raven continued to watch him it sunk in: Garfield had grown into a handsome man. But now, he was not only handsome, he was now "normal". He didn't have pointy ears or fangs anymore. He no longer smelled like a wet dog. He now looked like a healthy young man of 21 years of age, the kind of guy you would see on a college campus. And this meant one thing:

He could now do better than a bipolar demoness/human hybrid.

A lot better.

One thing Garfield told her that the others on the team did not know was that Mento and Elastigirl were his adoptive parents. Another secret only she knew was that their alter egos were Steve Dayton and Rita Farr, one of the wealthiest couples in the world. They were in the same league as Bruce Wayne and Oliver Queen, meaning they had more money than they could ever use or need. And Garfield was their only heir. The blond man in the bathroom was now one of the most eligible and desirable bachelors in the whole world.

This of course meant that the tabloids would eventually have a field day at her expense, mocking her as unworthy of the future billionaire. Of course, she didn't really care what the tabloids wrote. What she did care about was what Garfield thought. Raven was pleased with the course of events of the day. Meeting Tim and Babs did wonders in helping him come to terms with his new lot in life, and that made Raven happy. But that didn't change the fact that a great deal had changed in both his and their lives. And there were so many unknowns. What if Garfield failed to transition into a non-powered superhero? Just because Tim was able to do it was no guarantee that Garfield would be able to do the same.

There was a common wisdom in the super hero community, and that was superheroes could not couple with non heroes, because it simply didn't work. Sure, there were exceptions, like Superman and Lois Lane or the Flash and his wife Iris. Of course Supes was constantly having to save the headstrong Lois from his enemies. Others, like Hal Jordan, tried; but eventually he, the Earth's first Green Lantern, had to end his relationship with Carol Ferris, as it proved to be too impractical.

Raven closed her eyes and pondered what if Garfield came to the conclusion that they were now an unequal couple? Would he end their relationship? Or there was an even worse scenario: what if her enemies used Garfield as a weapon against her? She could find herself having to break up with Garfield, just to protect him.

As Raven pondered these issues her train of thought was interrupted by the bed moving. She opened her eyes and saw his smiling face in front of hers.

"Hi" She greeted him.

He placed his hand behind her head and gently pulled her into a tender kiss. She reciprocated and they continued to smooch, with each kiss becoming more passionate. He stopped and reached for her nightgown, gently pulling it over her head, exposing her magnificently formed chest..

"I'm back, baby." He whispered in her ear.

Raven remembered Tim's words, that they could be as loud as they wanted. That was about to be put to the test as they discarded any remaining garments they were wearing.

"I'm going to rock your world." She whispered in his ear.

As they continued with their foreplay and were getting ready for the next step, they were interrupted by a loud series of beeps.

"Damn, I forgot to put it into silent mode." He apologized.

"Put what into silent mode?"

Gar reached over to his nightstand. "My Doom Patrol communicator."

The square radio continued to beep. The magic was gone.

"You might as well answer it, it could be important." She sighed.

"Sorry, Rave; I don't even know why I turned it on." He apologized as he flipped it open. Mento's face appeared on the tiny screen. The man looked clearly surprised.

"Garfield?" Mento was so surprised at what he saw, that he didn't notice that his adoptive son was in bed with Raven. "So … it's true?"

Gar nodded. "Yeah … it is … I lost my powers … I'm not Beast Boy anymore."

Elastigirl pushed her way onto the screen.

"Garfield, are you OK? Are you hurt?"

He shook his head "I'm fine, really. The Sakutia virus is gone … I'm normal now, just an ordinary guy."

Rita glanced at the clearly nude Raven, who covered herself up with the bed sheet. "I can see that you're fine, in more ways than one."

"Garfield, your communicator says you're at Wayne Manor. Are you visiting Batman?" Mento asked.

"No, we came to see someone else. We're going back to Jump tomorrow."

"Negative. You're coming to Dayton Estate. I'm sending a helicopter for you; it'll be there in an hour. Get dressed, we want you here ASAP."

"What about me?" Raven interjected.

"You're welcome to come, Raven. We have much to discuss with you as well." Elastigirl replied. "So hurry up, Cliff is already on his way. Doom Patrol out."

The small screen went blank and Garfield flipped the communicator shut.

"Well, that's a mood killer." Raven grumbled. "Nothing like having your boyfriend's parents interrupt a good romp."

"I'll make it up to you, I promise."

"How? I can't even contemplate … doing it … under their roof." She droned in her monotone. "That just feels wrong on so many levels."

"How about something way better than that?" He asked, with a small smile on his face.

She gave him a puzzled look. "What are you saying? Something better than sex?"

He gave her a tender kiss. "Yeah, much better. It's time we make it official."

She gasped "Official?"

He nodded. "I don't have a ring." He smiled sheepishly. "Raven … when we get there, I want to tell them that we're engaged."

Raven became wide eyed. "Gar … engaged? You're serious? I know we've talked about this … but … are you really willing to hitch your wagon to a half demon?"

He smiled bashfully. "I am. But I guess I should do it right."

Still buck naked, he dropped onto his right knee. "Raven, will you marry me?"

Raven broke into a huge smile and wrapped her arms around him. "You're out of your mind … but yes, I will!"

They celebrated their betrothal by resuming their earlier make our session … and lost all track of time (and I won't tell you what they did, but you can guess); until they heard the sound of a helicopter landing in front of the Manor. Needless to say, their superhero training came in handy as they were able to get dressed in a matter of seconds and were soon on board the helicopter, heading back to the Hamptons, where the Dayton Estate was located.

-( - )-

The sleek silver turbocopter, with the Doom Patrol's logo on its side, sped away from Wayne Manor. Tim and Alfred waved goodbye as the chopper headed out to sea, heading along the cost to Long Island. Robotman was at the controls.

"It's good to see you kids again, it's been too long, Gar."

"Yeah, it has … I was still Beast Boy last time."

"Yeah, I couldn't believe it when I heard the news. How are you holding up, kid?"

"It's been hard, really hard."

"Well, for what it's worth, I wouldn't mind getting my old body back."

"That's the thing, Cliff, for me this isn't my old body. I became Beast Boy when I was a toddler, I can't even remember clearly before that happened, when that monkey bit me, that's when my life began, and now … it feels like it's over." He whispered unhappily. Raven squeezed his hand.

"I guess you are going through a pretty rough patch."

He squeezed Raven's hand back.

"I have Raven … she's been my rock through all this."

Cliff turned to glance at Raven. "Yeah, it helps to have a quality dame."

Robotman slowed the chopper as they were now approaching a helipad on top of an enormous mansion. "Welcome to the Dayton Estate, Raven."

She looked out the chopper's front window and saw Steve and Rita waiting by the helipad. She gulped, wondering how they were going to take the news that their son, who had permanently lost his powers was going to marry a monster. She then saw an unfamiliar figure, who was wheelchair bound, approach the helipad.

As soon as the copter's door opened Rita ran to greet her son. They exchanged a hug and she kissed him on the cheek.

"Look at you, Garfield … I still can't believe it."

"Believe it, Cyborg says it's permanent."

Mento and the stranger in the wheelchair approached.

"I'll be the judge of that." The wheelchair bound man interjected.

"Dr. Caulder! Do you really think you can undo what happened?" Gar greeted him.

"I'm certain that I can. No offense to Cyborg, but he's an Engineer, not a Doctor."

Raven cleared her throat. "I don't believe we've met before."

"Dr. Niles Caulder, at your service, young lady."

"Dr. Caulder is the founder of the Doom Patrol." Mento interjected.

"That is until Mento took over, now I'm just a consultant. And the team doctor." He spun his electric wheelchair around. "Let's go to the lab, we have work to do."

As the group followed Caulder into the Mansion Raven saw a glimmer of hope in Garfield's eyes. She felt it too, a hope against all hope that his powers could be restored. But she also knew that Cyborg was more competent than Caulder gave him credit; which mean that disappointment was probably waiting for them.

She just hoped he would be able to handle it.

-( - )-

"Gee, Doc; how about leaving some blood for me?"

Caulder gave Gar a mild glare. "You've always hated needles."

"If they can restore my powers, then I'm good."

The doctor removed the needle from the blond man's arm. "I have enough to get started."

"To get started?" Raven asked.

"Yes, to get started. This isn't going to be one of Cyborg's shoot from the hip remedies; this may take some time and I will probably need more blood samples later." He replied as he bandaged Gar's arm, who winced upon hearing the words. "You're free to go, Logan; I think your parents are eager to talk with you … and your unusual, but lovely young lady."

Mento and Rita led Gar and Raven back into the main wing in the mansion; with their final destination being the dining room. Rita picked up a bronze colored bell and rang it. Within moments a uniformed maid entered the room.

"We're ready for the luncheon, Consuelo."

The maid nodded and left the room. Steve gestured to have a seat. The dining room table was huge; it could easily seat 60 people. There were four settings, set with fine china, crystal ware and platinum cutlery. Raven saw that there were also seating cards and she sat down at the one reserved for her. Gar gallantly pulled her chair for her, which did not go unnoticed by his parents. As soon as they were seated the maid returned, and placed four bowls of tomato bisque soup before them, and filled their goblets with mineral water.

"We just returned from a mission." Steve announce before taking his first sip of soup.

"Brotherhood of Evil?" Raven asked.

"Isn't it always? Gar added.

"Yes, it was." Rita replied. "We destroyed their base, but they got away. We came home to regroup and that's when we saw your news."

"Have you given any thought as to your next steps?" Mento asked.

"Robin is going to train me to be a non powered super hero; if I can't recover my powers."

"Good, I'm glad to hear that you haven't thrown in the towel. It's going to be hard work, but I know you can do it Garfield." Mento added.

"I'm so proud of you, Garfield. This is great news." Rita added.

Raven subtly cleared her throat. "We have some other news."

Rita raised an eyebrow "You do? I hope it's good news."

Raven look at her beau. The expression on her face said "They're your parents, you tell them."

"Yeah, about that … Rave and I, we … uh … we're engaged."

Steve and Rita stared at him as if he had just grown a second head. Rita broke the silence that ensued.

"That's very nice, but aren't you both a bit young still?"

"We are in our early twenties. We aren't teenagers anymore. It's also better to have children when you're young. As you know very well, in our line of business things happen, incidents that can leave one sterile."

The remark hit home with Rita, who became sterile when she suffered the freak accident that turned her into Elastigirl. While Raven couldn't see Rita balling her fists under the table, she could sense her anger at the remark.

"Rita is right, this seems very sudden. You've only been dating for a year. Marriage is a big step, Raven. You know that we raised Gar in our faith and …"

"Yes, I know that Gar is Catholic and that he believes that marriage is for life, he doesn't believe in divorce. Also for the record, while I am not Catholic I also believe in the lifelong permanence of marriage."

"That didn't stop you from having pre-marital sex with him, did it?" Rita grilled her.

"Now wait a minute!" Gar bellowed, "That's none of your business."

"You're our son; it most definitely is our business." Mento quipped.

Raven sighed. "Yes, we are sleeping together. But if it will make you feel any better we are monogamous and have never had any other partners … also …"

Raven paused. "I'm willing to marry in the Church, first of all because it's important to Gar, and secondly because it's important to you."

"And the children?" Rita asked.

"We will raise them Catholic."

"They'll be one quarter demon."

"I was under the impression that God loves everyone, and our children will be three quarters human. They will be sons of Adam and daughters of Eve, as C.S. Lewis would say. I will even attend Mass with the family."

Mento nodded. "OK, that makes me feel better."

"But there is another issue." Rita interjected.

"Our inequality." Raven interrupted. "We are confident that Gar will make the transition to non powered superhero."

"But what if he fails?"

"Rave and I will work it out."

"You mean you'll be OK working a cushy job at Dayton Industries while your wife risks life and limb fighting super-villains?"

"If it comes to that, I'm willing to retire and live a normal civilian life … well … as normal as possible for two ex superheroes, especially for one who looks like me."

Steve and Rita looked at each other.

"Excuse us for a minute." Rita announced as they walked out of the dining room. Gar took his fiancé's hand.

"You'd really do that? You give up being a Titan?"

"In a heartbeat … I'd give up anything for you."

They leaned into each other and shared a series of tender kisses. As they continued to smooch, Steve and Rita returned. They stopped and turned to face his parents.

"Well?" Gar snapped at them.

The Daytons smiled.

"Welcome to the family." Rita announced as she spread her arms, inviting Raven into a hug.

Hugging still wasn't Raven's thing, but she knew better than to reject the offer and she embraced her mother-in-law to be. She then hugged Mento just as Consuelo arrived with the salad course. They resumed their places at the table and resumed eating their meal. Gar reached under the table and grabbed her hand, giving it a tight squeeze. Everything seemed to be so perfect.

What could possibly go wrong?