Chapter Three: The Key


"Welcome to Lugo, España Teen Titans! ¡Bienvenido! My name is Gobernador Felipe Lopez." The governor, who was around his fifties, enthusiastically exclaimed as he shook hands with each Titan, who had just arrived at Lugo for their vacation.

Robin smiled broadly and he firmly shook hands with the governor. "It is a great honor to be here Gobernador Lopez." He said with the same enthusiasm the governor possessed.

Gobernador Lopez laughed wholeheartedly. "Nonsense señorito. The honor is ours and the people of España. If it weren't for you, my, who knows what our world would be now!" He said. He then whispered something to his secretary and she nodded, then started to yell 'The Titans' transportation please!' In Spanish. Governor Lopez nodded to himself and stared at the teen heroes once more. "Well then, jóvenes heróes (young heroes), we should get going! The journey to Lugo Manor is quite long." A limousine suddenly appeared before them.

The Titans' face lit up and they nodded happily. When they entered the limousine, their jaws dropped. There wass a 36 inch TV hanging on the one end, underneath was a DVD player with various DVDs beside it. The couch was stretched around the back, covered in red velvet. There is a minibar on the left side.

"Now this is what I call a ride." Beast Boy said as they drove off toward Lugo Manor.


The Titans were speechless.

No, scratch that—

—they are completely and utterly stunned and dumbstruck.

Yes, that was it.

The manor was surrounded by a platform of green grass and tall trees, not to mention the fifteen feet wall enclosing it. The manor itself was enormous too— stretching for miles and standing at towering heights. The walls were made of thick, gray bricks with a few lion-headed gargoyles resting on top of each pillar near the door that stretched up almost as high as the manor itself with several carvings the heroes couldn't make out.(1)

Gobernador Lopez laughed. "Oh my, you haven't even seen the whole manor and you're already gaping? I wonder what your reactions will be when you see the interior!" As if on cue, the humongous doors opened and the Titans' jaws dropped.

The interior was majestic! The floor was made of granite and it has a design of a rare flower. On the end are the staircases that face each other, but then met at the middle and became one(2). When the Titans look above, their eyes bulge out of their sockets. The chandelier was magnificent! It was a traditional vintage chandelier of the medieval ages, but what makes it so outstanding were the decorative glass birds hanging from it. Not only the chandelier made their eyes bulge, but also the ceiling. It was painted of the setting sun, with the hues of blue, purple, pink, orange and yellow swirling in harmony as its stretch across the whole ceiling. It also has paintings of different species of birds soaring through the sky.

There was complete silence before Cyborg broke it off. "Wow. Whoever owned this place must be very rich. And has a thing for ravens."

"What?" Raven's head snapped towards him. "What did you say?" She asked again.

Cyborg shrugged nonchalantly. "I said whoever owned this place is rich and has a thing for ravens." He explained calmly.

"Why do you say that friend Cyborg?" Starfire asked as she stared at her cybernetic friend.

"Look above. There are many birds but only one stands out. Ravens. The chandelier's dangling birds, over there, there, there, and everywhere. They are just scattered that's why it can't be noticed if you don't look hard enough." He said as he pointed at every raven he saw in the painting.

The governor's eyes narrowed. "Hmmm, you're right. How come I did not notice it before?" He asked himself, scratching his head.

Raven bit her inner cheek, not knowing what to say.

"It doesn't matter." Robin interject. "You've invited us here to have a vacation señor. Please, don't stress yourself over it." He added with a smile.

Gobernador Lopez laughed once more. "Oh sí. Perdóname, señorito Robin." He said.

"Uhh, what did he say?" Beast Boy innocently asked Raven

"He said 'Forgive me, Mr. Robin.'" Raven explained with a clenched jaw.

"Ahh."

The sound of a door opening caught the attention of the governor and he turned to see a young blonde woman, dressed in a traditional maid gown approaching him. "Señor Lopez, perdóname por llegar tarde." She said panting.

Gobernador Lopez smiled at the young lady. "It is alright Elena, and no need to speak Spanish. You are American! And so are the Titans." He exclaimed as he gestured to the heroes.

Elena turned her head and curtsied towards the teens. "Good morning. I'm Elena, the caretaker of this manor for thirteen years. Till the present of course." She said, smiling at them.

Gobernador Lopez clasped his hands. "Children, Lo siento but I have to go. There are still tons of paperwork waiting for me in the office. Elena, take care of our visitors." He explained as he headed towards the door.

"I will Señor." Elena said and then turned to them. "Please come along, let me show you to your rooms."

"Ooh! Can boyfriend Robin and I share the same room?" Starfire said as she flew towards the caretaker while batting her eyelashes.

Elena took a step back, completely caught off guard of the alien's behavior. "Uhm, alright. Of course." She stammered as she walk towards the door she had entered. Starfire gave a squeal of delight and took Robin's hand to follow her.

Raven couldn't help but feel her chest constrict in pain. She quietly sigh and shook her head. She really needed a vacation of her own. To clear her mind and get away from them so that she can heal. Her frown deepened. There is no way she can heal. She had given him everything. It's impossible to heal.

At least, it's impossible with them around.

She massaged the bridge of her nose and searched for her other teammates. Only to find them already staring at her with a look she hated the most—

Pity.

She scowled, levitated her luggage and walked towards the direction Elena and her leader went off to, leaving the two boys behind.


"Are you sure you want to be far away from you friends Miss Raven?" Elena asked the hooded girl with the look of uncertainty in her eyes.

Raven bit her tongue from giving a snarky comment. She let out a deep sigh before answering the maid. "Yes, very sure."

Elena nodded. "Alright then Miss." She said and started to journey towards the other rooms of the hall but stopped abruptly.

This caused Raven to raise a delicate brow. "Is there something wrong?" She asked.

Elena shook her head. "No Miss. It's my problem actually." She explained.

Raven slightly narrowed her eyes at the girl. "Tell me."

The maid stared at her, stunned. "Excuse me Miss?"

"Tell me the problem then." Raven said with a very stern voice while crossing her arms.

Elena's eyes widen. But then she sighed and her shoulders sagged. "I just realized that there are only three vacant rooms. The rest are upstairs, on the third floor." She said.

"That's it?" The half demon said while the maid bit her lip and nodded shamefully. Raven sighed and uncrossed her arms. "No need to be... Ashamed Elena." She explained as she stared at the maid. "Come on. I still have to unpack." Elena nodded weakly and marched towards the staircase (which was located on the other end of the hall) with Raven and her luggage right behind her.

Raven's lilac eyes traveled on the walls of the manor, observing it. She frowned. "No paintings?" She asked, her eyes never leaving the walls.

"The paintings are all upstairs in the third floor hall, in the ballroom, the library and the RG room." Elena explained and Raven noted that her voice was quivering. Which was quite, strange for her.

Why would someone be afraid of paintings?

And what is the RG Room?

"Are you okay? You seemed off when I mentioned paintings." Raven asked, her monotone slightly slipping away.

Elena turned to look at her and smiled. "Yes Miss Raven. I'm alright." Raven once again raised a brow under her hood. She is obviously not okay, but the heroine decided to put the matter aside when her eyes spotted something hanging from the ceiling. Elena frowned when she realized the heroine wasn't looking at her anymore. She then slowly turned her head and also spotted the hanging object Raven was staring at.

Raven walked towards the hanging object and slowly detached it from the thin rope it was hanging from. Once she did, she carefully observed it and realized it was covered in a thin piece of lavender cloth. She stared at Elena, who was already beside her, and removed the cloth to reveal—

An antique key.

Raven couldn't help but stare in shock. Not because there was a vintage key such as this nor because she found it dangling from the ceiling. It was because of the key's unusual yet beautiful design.

The key was (presumably) made of gold but is black in color. Its thin blade has the shape of an outstretched bird's wing and it has a head of a bird.

A raven.

"Strange." Raven muttered as she fingered the key. "I never knew keys like this existed back then." She added softly.

"Strange things do happen in this place." Raven looked at Elena who was pale as snow. Elena suddenly realized what she said and attempted to take it back. "I didn't— I mean—"

"It's alright. You don't have to tell me." Raven said, not taking her eyes off the key.

She then suddenly felt strange, attachment to the thing. She inhaled deeply and her eyes traveled the halls once more. Her eyes suddenly darted towards the door near the staircase. Again, she felt the same, strong attachment feeling towards the door and subconsciously made her way to it. Elena couldn't help but feel scared as she watched Raven reach the door and trace invisible patterns on it. "Miss Raven?" Her voice was trembling. There was no point in hiding that now.

Raven then stared at the key and then to the doorknob of the door. She sucked her breath when she saw that the doorknob was a head. A raven head.

Same with the key.

With trembling hands, she slowly inserted the key to its keyhole and turned it clockwise. She then heard a soft 'click' and pushed the door open.

Raven fought the urge to swallow the invisible lump in her throat.

The room was painted dark blue. There were several bookshelves on the left side. On the floor was a zigzag carpet leading straight to the bed. The bed was placed at the center and was semi-enclosed by a raven's head. The interior was like her room back home—

— if not, then this room is her room back home.

Elena slowly approached Raven, who was having trouble breathing. "Miss, come. Maybe some soup will calm you down." She meekly suggested.

"No." Raven said with a tired voice. "I'm fine. I guess, I'm just shocked. But I'll be fine." She gazed at the room once more before continuing. "Is this room taken?" she asked.

The caretaker shook her head.

"Hmmm. I think I'll take this as my room then."

Elena stared at her with a surprised look on her face. "What?" She managed to utter. "Miss you can't possibly—"

"I'll be fine." Raven insisted. "I'm just... shocked but it will wear off." Elena stared at her for a few moments before giving in. "Alright Miss Raven." With that said, she left.

Raven stared at the direction Elena went off to and let out a sigh. She levitated her luggage and settled it on the foot of the bed and closed the door.

She flung herself to the bed, buried her head on a pillow and let out a muffled scream. First day of vacation and she's already having a migraine. She rolled to her side and stared at the ceiling. What the hell is happening here? First, the paintings on the ceiling of the welcoming room, next, the dangling key with a raven head, then the raven head doorknob, and then this room which oddly looked exactly the same as her room in the Titans Tower. Not to mention that strange feeling of being drawn or connected to these things as if she had been here before—

She opened her eyes and sat up, alarmed at the last thought.

As if she had been here before.

She had been here before.

Been here before.

Here before.

Before.

Before.

Before.

She placed her hand on her forehead. "Get a grip Roth." She loudly scolded herself. "Just relax Raven, it's just a coincidence. This means nothings. Just a coincidence. Nothing more." She told herself, but then frowned. Letting her hand fall to her side, she could only let one word escape her lips.

"Hopefully."


AN: Yay! Finally updated. Sorry for the delay. I'm just so busy at school and I've had a terrible writer's block and I have to reread this story over and over again! Anyway, here is chapter three! I hope you all like it :) thank you for those who reviewed and followed this story. :)

And guys, PLEASE REVIEW. I do appreciate it if you followed or favorited my stories but I need reviews, critiques so that I can improve because honestly, I'm not satisfied on how I write. :(

#1: Does this make any sense? If it doesn't, well, just forget that I wrote anything like that.

#2: Uhm.. Did I describe it correctly? I do hope so, just imagine that staircase in 'Beauty and the Beast', you know, when they dance. ':)

Disclaimer: The Teen Titans is a property of DC Comics and Warner Bros.

Read and Review?

EDITED 5/17/15