(Murdok Hotel presidential suite)
Gregor let out a saddened sigh as he poured himself a drink. "This is most disheartening." He said.
"I agree." Brion said pacing the floor. "I was hoping Tar- I mean Terra would have been willing to listen."
"She is pretty hard headed at times." Cyborg spoke from where he stood next to the couch where the girls were sitting. "But maybe she didn't mean to go that far."
"She blames all of Markovia for her family sending her away, in a way I can relate." Said Raven. Being the daughter of Trigon made me an outcast, everyone wanted me gone."
"That doesn't mean she can just lash out like that." spoke Nightwing adamantly from the chair he was sitting in.
"This is a scar that runs deep, too deep for her to simply let go of I fear." Starfire muttered. "It will take time."
"Well she can't let her emotions run wild."
"Dick, you are not a royal, you can't imagine the pressures one goes through, to work, to live up to expectations, only to have it be for nothing." the tamaranian added. "Try putting yourself in what Terra must be feeling at this very moment."
"We never should have listened to mother." Brion slammed his fists on a table. "It was a mistake sending her to boarding school from the beginning, she always did resent Terra."
"We were children brother, our pleas would have fallen on deaf ears." Gregor replied as he stirred the glass in his hand then took a sip from his drink. "Beside I doubt she'd even want to see father, even in his current state."
"What do you mean?" asked Cyborg as he and the others looked at him when suddenly the earth began to shake beneath their feet.
"Woah." Gregor dropped the glass from his hand and shattered on the ground before he nearly fell over and looked to his brother sternly "Brion!"
"It's not me!" the younger brother shot back.
"Its Terra." Raven spoke getting their attention. "It's happening again."
(Titans tower)
Changeling ran through the halls holding Gaia, who had her arms over her head for protection. Once he was at his and Terra's bedroom door he quickly opened it and found his wife tossing and turning in her sleep her hands closed tightly into fists as they glowed "Oh man, not again."
"No...No….get away!" she yelled in her sleep.
"Mommy?" Gaia spoke with worry as her father put her down and rushed over to the bed.
"Terra, Terra wake up." he said as he gently shook her.
"No...let me go." she muttered as the glowing got brighter and the shaking got worst.
"Terra! TERRA!" Changeling yelled shaking her by the shoulders.
"I'm not a witch!" she cried as her eyes shot open. "Ha...ha...Wha...what?"
"It's okay Terra, You're okay." Changeling spoke softly.
She looked at her husband with tears in her eyes and quickly hugged him while sniffling.
"Mommy?" Gaia whimpered with a quivering lip.a
Terra looked down to see her daughter look scared and went wide eye. "Oh no no no sweetie.." she said and wiped her tears away. "It's alright Gaia, I was just...having a nightmare. I'm okay now, come here." she finished and held out her open arms.
Gaia slowly moved over as her mother picked her up into a hug.
"See? Everything's fine." she said while holding the toddler close.
"Mommy otay?"
"Mommy's okay." she rubbed her little girl's back. "Now why don't we go get a snack. Maybe some vanilla pudding?"
Gaia perked up almost immediately "Yay! Pudding!" she cheered with a smile as Terra left the bed and walk out of the room.
Changeling frowned once they were out of sight. This wasn't the first time an incident like this had happened. He remembered back when they were sparring as teens and he wrapped around her in the form of a snake the end result was Terra freaking out and nearly killing him in a haze of blind anger. Then came the nightmares which put her under such stress that she made small earthquakes. They tried to confront her about them she refused to answer, and they didn't want to make her mad by prodding so they left it alone. But this was proof they were still bothering her and needed to be treated before something bad happened.
He stood up and made his way out of the room. He headed to the kitchen where Terra was feeding Gaia some pudding.
"No! Me do it!" Gaia said trying to take the spoon from Terra.
"You wanna be a big girl and eat it yourself?" asked Terra
"Yea yea!" The girl nodded.
"I don't know, you tend to get more on you than in you. Can I trust you to take small bites?"
"Uh huh, uh huh." she nodded even faster.
"Alright, then I'll let you eat it yourself." Terra placed the pudding cup on the highchair tray and let Gaia take the spoon. "But don't make a mess."
"Otay mommy." she tried moving the spoon into the cup and opened her mouth while moving the amount towards her.
Changeling cleared his throat and walked up. "Terra we need to talk."
"If it's about my fight with Brion earlier today then forget it."
"Bion hurt mommy, Bion meanie." Gaia pouted.
"What she said." Terra said pointing a thumb at her daughter.
"No, it's about something else. Can we talk over on the couch? Away from the impressionable two year old?"
"It's gonna have to wait, I wanna make sure Gaia can eat without making a mess."
"It's about the nightmares." he crossed his arms while being blunt.
Terra froze and looked back at him while Gaia's chewing slowed and she looked back and forth from her mother to her father.
She stood up before both went over to the couch. "Garfield, I told you before, I don't want to talk about it."
"Terra face it, if you don't talk about it this will keep happening, and with Gaia around, the last thing I wanna see is her getting hurt because you caused a small earthquake. Or what if an accident happens and she gets scared of you? Is that what you want?"
"No, That's the last thing I want." she said looking over at her daughter who was chewing a spoonful of pudding as she waved at her mother.
"Then talk to me, tell me what happened. Was it when you family sent you away?"
Terra sighed and shook her head. "No, it was a few years after that. But I just...I can't do this, I can't...I can't go back to that place."
"Terra, I'm not saying you have to, but I am saying you need to try and talk to me."
"All I can say is that my powers got me into some trouble when I was little, words were said, and I...did things. Things that will most likely make you see me differently." she frowned looking down at her shaking hands. "Things….I can never take back." she finished before slowly clenching her fist.
Changeling looked at his wife with sympathy and moved over before pulling her into a hug. "I guess I can be happy with that much. You can tell me the rest when you're more ready."
"Thanks." she whispered while touching his hands before they heard a small burp.
"All gone!" Gaia spoke up to get her parents attention. "More?"
"No Gaia," Terra said before walking over. "you'll spoil your dinner." As she was getting her daughter out of the high chair it's was then both hers and Changelings communicators went off.
Changeling answered his own and walked a little bit away. "What is it?"
"You guys need to get to the hotel." Nightwing spoke "Its urgent. Brion and Gregor need to speak to Terra."
"Now isn't a good time."
"Or ever." Terra finished taking her daughter out of the highchair.
"Look I know you're mad at them Terra, but this is something you really need to hear, from your brothers."
"Half-brothers." Terra corrected before sighing. "Okay, whatever. If only to shut them up."
"Alright, I'll let them know you're coming over, Nightwing out."
Once the transmission ended they pocket the communicators before Terra groaned. "Those two better not just be wasting my time."
"Don't worry, I'll be right there with you."
Later after leaving their daughter in the care of the new recruits Changeling changed into a pterodactyl and flew to the hotel with Terra riding on his back.
"There." Terra said pointing a balcony.
Changeling flew down and landed while Terra got off his back as he changed back.
"Heh Terra on a Pterodactyl." Geo-force chuckled. "Thats funny."
"Focus." Gregor chided.
"Where are the others?" questioned Terra.
"We sent them home so we could talk alone. Your metal friend seemed eager to get back to his lab. Something about booming tubes. But that's not important." he replied taking a seat. "What is important is that you're here, so we can talk."
"Let's start off with something other than markovia first," Brion suggested. "Such as the fact that you're married, to him." the strawberry blonde stated pointing to Changling.
"Yeah, I know that." she frowned crossing her arms.
"Care to tell us how...this, happened?" questioned Gregor.
"Why do you wanna know?" Terra questioned with a glare.
"Call it curiosity."
"Okay. Lets see, you sent me to a foreign country with unstable abilities that drove me to live in the wild like an outcast for about seven years. Aft that i was going all over creation with prescription grade trust issues until one day I was luring a giant scorpion into a trap so I could get some food in me for once in the past week. I met him and his team, They took me in, accepted me despite the lack of control of my powers, we fell in love, and after some time after that he popped the question." she spoke all in one go. "Any questions?"
"In our defense, we had no knowledge of your powers back then." Brion stated.
"Pfft, Oh yeah, like that fixes anything."
"Come on Terra. Ease up." Changeling spoke rubbing her back. "Don't lose your cool. Especially here because I don't think people would appreciate have a hotel fall on top of them."
She took a deep breath before exhaling to calm herself.
"It's actually quite surprising that you, the youngest of us, are the first to be married." Gregor spoke grabbing a pitcher of water on the table and poured it in four glasses then handed the couple one glass each. "Neither of us have taken that step yet, although Brion has dated in college. And some time after we return home I am to be wed."
"Perhaps you could give him some tips." Brion teased taking a glass himself along with his brother who shot him a look. "Merely trying to help you brother."
"Well for one don't stab them in the back, that one's a given. Also the best way to make your wife happy is communication, pay attention to her, and make time for her even if she wants to do something you hate." Terra stated while her husband nodded. "Of course with Garfield's ability to change into animals it can make things a little freaky," Terra added as her brothers sipped their drinks. "especially in bed." she finished with a sly smirk.
Both of them did a spit take and coughed while Garfield blushed and looked at her in shock.
"That was supposed to be our little secret." the green man whispered.
Brion beat on the table as he coughed.
"My word!" Gregor exclaimed after clearing his windpipe.
"I'm just giving you tips you'll need." she shrugged. "Keeping an open mind in intimacy can-."
"Alright alright! I think the thought of my sister laying with animals is far more enough, Ugh." he shivered.
"Let's move on to something else, uh...oh do you find yourself getting weaker when you're not on the earth surface for a long period of time? Like if you're riding in a plane." asked Brion.
"No, not at all." she replied.
"Interesting, without the earth beneath me after a certain time. My health begins to eb. It's my one weakness."
"Wow, talk about a down to earth kinda guy." Changeling joked.
Gregor groaned while Brian chuckled a little with Terra. "Admittedly yes, as sad as it is I'm useless in midair combat for an extended period of time.
"Sounds like I could beat your ass without my powers."
"Maybe, if I were in the air long enough." Geo-force shot back.
"Okay, I think you stalled enough. Now tell me what's so damn important you had to get me down here to share it."
"First of all, mind your language." Gregor chided.
"First off, I'm old enough to marry, so I'm old enough to swear, this america. Now just tell me."
The brothers looked to each other and Gregor took a deep breath. "Father is dying."
Garfield and Terra looked at him in surprise while Terra didn't react as much.
"Oh...really?" she questioned. "When did this start?"
"Not long before we were sent to America." Brion answered. "He's sick, and his immune system isn't what it use to be."
"Oh, is that all?" asked Terra drinking from her cup.
"Terra." Changeling spoke in surprise. "He's your dad."
"I heard, but I. Don't. Care." She said slamming her cup on the table. "This was a waste of time."
"Terra! How can you act like this? Father is going to die!"
"Maybe once, not any more. Let's go Garfield." she spoke standing up and walking to the edge of the balcony.
Changeling looked to her then over to the brothers. "I'll talk to her later."
"We'd appreciate that, little brother."
"Well technically brother-in-law but-"
"Garfield." spoke Terra looking at him. "Let's go."
"Coming dear." he walked over before changing into a pterodactyl and letting her hop on before he took flight off and away from the building.
"You think she'll come around?" asked Brion.
"I can only hope so." Gregor replied pinching the bridge of his nose. "Markovia needs her."
