The T-Ship was ready to depart and Robin had an impatient look on his face as he tapped his foot. Cyborg was finishing the flight plan and Starfire had already fallen asleep in her compartment and was snoring loudly as it was well past 3AM in Steele City.
"Where are they? I called them over ten minutes ago." The Boy Blunder fumed.
"Relax, gel hair. They're having some quality time together, and if I'm not mistaken, this was their first official date. Cut them some slack, man."
"I know, but we have to be on duty tomorrow."
"We're always on duty. Plus y'all get to sleep on the way home. The trip home will be a normal, subsonic flight. Everyone'll sleep on the way back to Jump."
Just as Cyborg completed his rebuke a black portal opened in the hangar and the Chromatically Challenged Couple stepped out from it.
"Good, you're back. Get in and buckle up, it's time to go." Robin barked at them as he climbed into his compartment.
Raven glided up into her compartment and the changeling, in the form of a humming bird followed her, and landed on her lap, morphing into a cat. He wiggled in her lap, until he was comfortable and settled in. She petted him as her canopy closed.
"You don't know how lucky you are, grass stain. You get to sleep on her lap for 5 whole hours." Cyborg remarked to himself in a whisper.
Robin's canopy was the last one to snap shut just as the T-Ship took off. Robin picked up a tablet and began to peruse the news back home.
"There was a bank robbery while we were at the party. It was Johnny Rancid." He grumbled to Cyborg over the intercom.
"There's always bank robberies. We'll get Rancid next time. How about you get some shut eye, Rob? Will be getting home around 5AM, Jump City time."
Raven watched their exchange from her compartment. The T-Ship quickly gained altitude and after about 10 minutes Robin turned off the light in his compartment. Cyborg did the same and set the T-Ship on auto pilot. Raven had a small reading light on. She picked up a book, but before she opened it she yawned. She had randomly picked the book from her well stocked bookcase at home, and it was only then that she saw that it was another book about the adventures of Rorek the wizard.
She put the book back down and looked at her lap. Beast Boy, still in his feline form, was sound asleep, using her bare thigh as a pillow, and was snoring. She stroked him under his chin, and he moved and stopped snoring. A tiny smile appeared on her face as she stared down at him.
So I'm going to marry you, on July 11, 2016.
She gently stroked him with the tip of her index finger.
And we're going to have two children.
She stopped caressing him.
Which means Roy is right, we're going to be sexually intimate.
She shut off her reading light and stared out through her canopy at the starry nighttime sky.
Which makes perfect sense. It is what married couples do, at least the ones with good marriages.
She continued to stare outside.
And we will have a good marriage. We looked happy … more than happy, in the future. We looked like we were in love, still in love after 15 years of marriage … that says something.
She yawned, the day was catching up with her.
I wonder what sex is like. I wonder what good sex is like … I guess I'll find out on our honeymoon, which is almost four years away.
Are you serious? You're going to wait until then? A deep guttural voice rang in her mind.
Yes, I'm going to wait until then. Now be quiet, before I come in there and make you be quiet.
Why wait? Rage taunted her,
Because I'm not that kind of girl.
Rage's laughter echoed inside her head.
Don't give me that bullshit! You're a demon, in case you forgot.
I know what I am, and I'm also a girl.
Oh for Trigon's sake, you're already 18 and you're still a virgin.
This is not up for discussion. Now be quiet or I will make you be quiet.
Listen, I'm not telling you to go slut around, though to be honest that might be good for you.
What did I just say?
Oh come on, you're engaged to him! Do really you think he doesn't want some?
This is my final warning.
Fine, have it your way, ice queen.
Raven was about to rebuke her when she noticed that Rage had finally withdrawn into some deep recess of her mind. She heaved a relieved sigh, glad that her darker side had finally relented. Raven also knew that there was some truth in what Rage said. She was an 18 year old woman, and her hormones were stronger than ever.
"Who say's we have to wait until 2016 to get married?" She murmured to herself.
The green cat on her lap raised his head, giving her a funny looking before plopping back down and falling back asleep. Raven pursed her lips.
If we got married before, would that change the future? Would that change the children?
Raven stared out at the sky, then glanced at the nav computer screen in her compartment. Over four and a half hours remained in the flight. She picked up the book and turned her reading light back on, deciding that she would read instead of pondering the future.
About 30 minutes later ...
Raven was asleep and her book, which she had already read to page 73, was on the floor, having slipped out of her sleeping hand. The T-Ship's engines hummed away and Raven began to experience REM, rapid eye movement … which meant she was having dream.
She felt confused, as she had no idea where she was. It was an ordinary landscape, and looked unremarkable. It was a meadow, on the edge of a forest. It looked very peaceful. She walked around, not sure of what she supposed to do.
"Hello? Is anyone here?"
There was no reply. Raven frowned.
"Hello?" She called out a second time.
At first she barely heard it, it was almost a sub-audible rumble. And it was coming from the forest. Raven began to walk towards it. It was then that her nostrils detected a very faint aroma, almost imperceptible at first: she smelled smoke.
She stopped in her tracks and squinted her eyes. At first she saw nothing out of the ordinary, but soon her patience paid off, as she saw dark smoke rising from the forest. She instinctively backed away, though she wasn't to close and not in any danger. Soon, red tongues of fire leaped from the tree tops.
"What's happening?" She asked herself as the forest was soon completely engulfed and she could feel the incinerating heat. Something felt wrong, very wrong.
As she stared at the inferno before her she caught glimpse of something between the towering flames. At first it looked like a silhouette, a very large one, taller than the trees and it was approaching the edge of the forest. And then she gasped.
"No! It can't be possible!'
As she stared in horror her father, Trigon the Terrible, emerged from the holocaust, taking huge strides towards her. She turned and jumped into the air, but fell back to the ground, unable to fly. She turned and with a terrified look she faced him. He appeared to be on fire himself and each of his steps made the ground quake.
"We meet again, dear daughter."
No!" She clutched her head and shook it. "This can't be real."
"I'm real enough, Raven,"
She summoned what little courage she had. "Why are you here?"
"You may have betrayed me, Raven; but you are still my spawn, my flesh and blood."
"Don't speak in riddles, father; what do you want?"
A smile that made her flesh crawl appeared on her face.
"The green idiot, why did you choose him?"
"It's none of your business!" She snapped back at him. "And he's not an idiot."
"It is my business, if he is to be the father of my grandchildren."
"You lost the right to be their grandfather a long time ago."
"I disagree."
"Disagree all you want, you have no say in who I choose to be my husband."
"Rebellious as always, dear daughter … have it your way!" He bellowed as black lightning bolts shot out of his eyes.
Raven leaped to her right, barely avoiding the deadly rays. Again she tried to become airborne and failed.
"My powers, what happened to my powers?" She gasped.
"They were never yours, foolish child; last time you caught me off guard; this time you will not succeed, you are already defeated. Submit to me and you will be spared."
"Never! I would rather die!"
"As you wish." He growled as another black barrage surged from his eyes, zig-zagging their way to the gray woman.
Raven tried to dodge them again, but her left leg was grazed. She howled in pain as her leg went limp and she fell to the ground, staring in wide eyed terror as her father closed in on her.
"This is your last chance, Raven. Join me, or die."
She closed her eyes and her jaw trembled. "No."
"Leave her be, thy foul monster!" A male voice called out from behind. Trigon looked past Raven.
"Stay out of this, mortal; this does not concern you!"
"Quite the contrary, your foulness; I will not allow you to harm the fair Raven."
"Then you will die with her, you insignificant fool."
"We shall see about that!" The voice replied.
Raven, who remained partially paralyzed, was able to finally turn around to see who her benefactor was.
"Rorek?"
This time the wizard had an "R" emblazoned on his chest and not an "M" as when Malchior impersonated him. He held what looked like a large ruby, the size of a football in his hands.
"Aldruon Enlenthranel Vosolen Lirus-nor! " he shouted.
A red beam shot out of the giant gem and struck Trigon, who bellowed in agony. As Raven watched, her father was sucked into the gem and vanished. Rorek looked at the gem, with a pleased look on his face.
"Nevermore will thou terrorize or harm the innocent, foul monster."
The numbness was beginning to wear off, and Raven rose to her feet on shaky legs. She took a step forward and stumbled. Rorek caught her before she fell.
"Thou art harmed."
She shook her head. "I'll be fine, I'm just numb. It'll pass."
"Forgive me, Lady Raven, for not arriving sooner."
"You have nothing to apologize for, you saved me. Thank you."
Rorek still had his arms around her.
"The honor is mine, fair Raven."
Raven stared into his eyes, as if in a trance. He reached for his face and removed the cloth that covered his mouth. Raven reached behind his head and pulled him towards her as she licked her lips. They got closer and she could feel his breath on her lips …
Raven woke with a sudden jerk. She shook so hard that the green cat rolled off her legs and fell on the floor. Beast Boy morphed back into his human form, cramped into the small space in front of her seat.
Raven gasped for breath.
"Rave? You OK? You look like you saw a ghost."
She rubbed her head. "I had a dream … I'm sorry … you fell down."
"That musta been some nightmare."
"Trigon was in it."
"That's a nightmare … are you ok? Ow, something's poking me in the back."
She scooted over and helped him up. As he sat next to her, he picked up the book and handed it to her.
"I think you dropped it when you fell asleep."
Raven quickly stashed the book away.
"Sorry … I ..."
"I'm OK … are we close to home yet?"
She looked at the panel. "Two more hours."
"So what happened in the dream?"
"I … I can't remember, just Trigon." She lied.
"I hate it when I wake up and can't remember my dream." He yawned. "Should I go to my compartment? You look kinda out of it, you want to be alone?"
She wrapped an arm around his shoulder.
"Don't go."
"I'll stay."
They shared a kiss and leaned against each other, and as expected, he swas oon asleep again. Raven looked upon his somnolent face and softly kissed him. The then pulled the book back out and looked at it. She pursed her lips and did something unexpected. She dropped the book into the disposal chute in her compartment and pressed the "Discard" button next to it. A whooshing sound was heard, letting her know that the book was no longer on board. She then leaned against him and closed her eyes. The next thing she heard was Cyborg's voice booming over the intercom.
"OK, y'all, rise and shine, were home."
