Disclaimer: I don't own any rights to the Teen Titans or any characters in the DC Universe.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
The sound of thunder rolled in the distance, echoing throughout the Tower and especially in the evidence room. The afternoon darkness outside mirrored the mood that permeated the Tower, like a thick fog that wouldn't clear up and disappear.
Two days had elapsed since the botched mission to capture Evangeline and Robin sat silently in the lab section of the evidence room, which was more than a mere showcase of the many mementos of past victories over the city's many villains.
Robin was seated in front of a console very similar to the one the Bruce Wayne kept in the Batcave. He fingered through the small address book he had found in the desk in the witch's apartment, as if unsure of what he was looking for. Much to his chagrin it consisted mostly of first names followed by phone numbers.
Robin had tried to trace the phone numbers to their owners but so far every single one was a mobile phone with a prepaid plan, which kept the owner perfectly anonymous. He had the analysis console search the call records for each phone, hoping to find a phone number he could trace back to its owner, but kept hitting the dead end of even more prepaid phones. He grunted his displeasure with his lack of progress, when the door slid open, revealing Raven's figure.
The sorceress was wearing a pair of gym shorts and sweat drenched T-shirt with the Titans' logo on her chest. Her hair was plastered to her scalp and Robin could see the sweat droplets on her extremities. She barged in, carrying a few books and a magic wand with what looked like a crescent moon on its tip. Robin looked up and acknowledged her presence as she headed for a workbench where Evangeline's broom was lying in state, like a dead president or a king. Robin addressed her as she sat down.
"Good workout?" He asked her as she opened one of her books.
"Yeah, great." She replied absentmindedly without looking up from her book. "At least I got back to my original weight." She added as she flipped through the book.
"Raven, is there anything going on I should know about?"
The sorceress paused her research.
"Huh?"
"This weight gaining thing, what's going on? You aren't pregnant, are you?"
Raven rolled her eyes.
"No Robin, I'm not expecting, and why are you staring at me?"
The masked boy grinned sheepishly.
"It's nothing, I'm just surprised you didn't shower first."
Raven looked up from her book.
"I'm sorry. I guess I probably reek." She said as she sniffed herself. "I must smell like a pair of sweat socks."
Robin gave her a friendly chuckle.
"I don't think it's physically possible for you to smell bad Raven. It's just kind of unlike you to not shower first. You've always been so neat and tidy."
Raven responded with a small smile of her own.
"Well, I guess since I bagged Gar I can let myself go now." She replied in her deadpan as she resumed flipping through the book's pages. Robin's immediate response was a grin.
"Did you just crack a joke Raven?"
"What? You think I lack a sense of humor? Or have you forgotten that I fell in love with and married the team clown?" She answered with a hint of annoyance.
"Point taken." He replied. "And for the record I think you look pretty hot when you're all sweaty."
Raven raised an eyebrow, betraying that his comment had caught her off guard.
"I'll pretend I didn't hear that from my adoptive big brother."
"What, your brother can't tell you that you're hot?"
"No, he can't" She replied with a small smile on her lips. "My husband wouldn't appreciate it, and neither would Starfire."
Robin snickered at her final remark.
"So what's up? What was so important that you skipped your sacrosanct shower?"
"I thought of something while I was running on the treadmill and I didn't want to wait."
Robin got up and walked over to his 'adopted' sister. Raven was right however, she needed a shower in the worst way possible, but Robin's face did not betray what his nose told him. He picked up the magic wand and examined it. It had a modern appearance, with a translucent crystalline shaft that had a prism like effect on the light that shone through it.
"I've never seen you use one of these before."
"I suppose there's a first time for everything." She replied as she resumed flipping through the book's pages again before stopping.
"I've been approaching this the wrong way Robin. I've been trying to learn more about Evangeline through her broom. That was counterproductive and for good reason: It's not hers, someone gave it to her. So I found an old medieval spell that will help me find that person."
"And that's where …"
"The wand comes in." She completed the sentence for him.
Robin stroked his chin the way he always did when he had an idea.
"Raven, Starfire told me once that you can contact the spirit world. Is it possible to contact Evangeline that way?"
"If she is willing I might be able to contact her, but from what we saw on her note I doubt she would accede."
"What if you offer to bring her back to life, like Trigon did with Slade?"
"I can't revive the truly dead; no one can, except for God. Trigon didn't bring Slade back to life, he saved him before he died, keeping him in an undead kind of state, withholding Slade's flesh and blood."
It was then that the console chimed, drawing Robin's attention back to its cybernetic presence. Robin walked up to it and smiled.
"Find something?" She asked.
"It's nothing major, just a friend of hers. But I have an address." He replied as he tapped on the keyboard, summoning a hardcopy of the report. As soon as the printout was complete he snapped it up and folded it before storing it in his utility belt.
"His name's Scott Perry." Robin said as he prepared to leave. "Maybe he knows something. I'll catch you later Raven …"
The sorceress grabbed the Boy Wonder's wrist as he walked past her. He turned and looked into her weary face.
"Dick … I just wanted to say thanks … for everything. You have no idea how much your support means to me … and Gar."
Robin leaned over and pecked Raven on the cheek.
"Anything for my sis." He replied before dashing out the door.
Robin leaned the R-Cycle into the sharp curve, twisting the throttle as he accelerated through the canyon like boulevard that carved up the posh La Mirada neighborhood. As he zoomed up the street the mansions slipped by, like telegraph poles swishing past a train in an old western movie.
Robin could only wonder what was Scott Perry's relationship to Sarah McDougall, AKA Evangeline. The two individuals came from completely different worlds. Perry was the son of privilege, the scion of one of Jump City's oldest and wealthiest families. His father was a senior partner at Perry, Jones and Smith, which was perhaps Jump City's most prestigious law firm and was heir to a fortune that rivaled Bruce Wayne's.
Sarah McDougall had grown up on the other side of the tracks. She was born into a dysfunctional home and had been seized by Child Protection Services at a tender age, and had bounced between foster homes until she turned 18. She had been extremely rebellious during her teen years and in addition to being sexually active and involved with drugs she had another, unfortunate stain on her record: She had dabbled in Trigonic worship.
As Robin pulled up to the Perry estate the huge wrought iron gates open automatically, as he had made an appointment with Scott, who was still underage, and his father Roger, who insisted that he would do all the talking and that his son should keep his mouth shut. He made his way up the long driveway, which reminded him of the one back at Wayne Manor and when he reached the front door a butler was waiting for him.
"Greetings Mr. … Robin, if you will follow me this way please. Mister and Master Perry are waiting for you in the library." The butler greeted him with a Bostonian accent.
Robin was led through the mansion, which he noticed was much newer and less interesting than Wayne Manor, still he felt a strong sense of nostalgia as he followed the butler to the library. Soon they reached a large pair of cheery wood doors, which the butler opened and then announced their arrival.
"Robin of the Teen Titans has arrived sir."
"Thank you Wooster, that will be all." Roger Perry replied as he rose from his desk. A teenager who bore a resemblance to the lawyer sat contritely in an oversized wingback chair.
"What can I do for you, Robin of the Teen Titans?" Mr. Perry asked. "Hopefully this has nothing to do with my son." He gestured at an empty chair. "Please have a seat."
Robin politely accepted the offer and sat down in another wingback chair.
"I'm investigating a suicide Mr. Perry, and I have reason to believe that your son is acquainted with the deceased."
"If it's a suicide then there isn't anything to investigate is there?" The shyster replied.
"Not exactly." The Boy wonder replied. "The deceased committed a crime before killing herself and we're hoping that your son might help us shed some light on what happened."
"And how would he do that?"
"Easy." Robin replied. "Scott, just tell me everything you know about Sarah McDougall."
"Sarah McDougall?" Roger interrupted. "Scott, is she one of your classmates at the prep school? I'm not familiar with that name."
"Neither am I." Scott replied.
"We found your name and cell phone # in her address book." Robin interjected as he flashed the tattered address book.
"May I see that?" Roger asked the Boy Wonder. Robin handed the book to Roger, who examined the page carefully.
"What is the meaning of this Scott? Who was this girl?" His father grilled him.
"I don't know any Sarah McDougall." He replied adamantly.
"Do you know an Evangeline?" Robin asked.
Scott's face fell when he heard the question.
"Are you saying Eva's dead?" He stammered. His father frowned upon seeing his reaction.
"Scott, say nothing more."
"Was she your girlfriend?"
"Don't answer the question."
Robin reached into his utility belt and extracted a Ziploc bag that contained one of the used condoms found in Evangeline' bedroom.
"We found this and many more at her apartment. I can get a court order for a DNA test if necessary."
Roger took his son to the far corner of the room and they exchanged whispers for a few minutes, after which Roger addressed Robin.
"If the matter is kept confidential we will cooperate with you."
"Don't worry; I don't intend to drag the Perry's good name through the mud, you have a deal. Now Scott, if you'll tell me everything you know about Evangeline, starting with how you met her."
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
When Robin returned to the Tower he headed straight back to the evidence room, where he found Raven still hunched over the broomstick with a frown on her face, mindlessly twirling the magic wand in her hand.
"Any luck Raven?"
Raven stopped playing with the wand and put it down on the work table.
"No … well, not exactly." She sighed."How about you?"
"Scott Perry proved to be a very useful contact. I learned all sorts of things about Evangeline."
"Such as?"
"Where's your boy toy? I think he should hear this."
"My husband is not a boy, and he's not my 'toy' either."
Robin smiled as he issued a mock apology.
"Forgive me my impertinence milady, so where's your man?"
"He made me some lunch and went to take a nap."
"That's not like him, why isn't he pestering you like he always did when he was younger?"
Raven rolled her eyes before answering.
"You know very well that he only did that to get my attention."
Robin chuckled.
"And he gets plenty of that every night now, doesn't he?" Robin said as he wagged his eyebrows.
"Don't go there Robin. What's with you anyway? Are you trying to take his place as the team's pest? Because if you are, you're doing a great job."
Robin ignored Raven's barb.
"If he's napping we can tell him later. Here's the scoop:"
Robin sat down before continuing.
"Perry met Evangeline at a rave almost a year ago. They hit it off almost immediately."
"Isn't she kind of low rent for someone like him?" Raven asked.
"Definitely, you should have seen his father's face when he admitted they were lovers. Anyway this went on for several months when with no warning she dumped him, about three months ago."
"So what happened? Was Daddy Warbucks not giving her enough baubles or something?"
Robin shook his head.
"He said that she gave him no reason, she just broke up with him. Perry then began to work her network of friends, tracking them down at the hangouts where had seen them before. At first they were very tight lipped about what had happened and even a little hostile towards him. Eventually he got some information. Turns out she was hanging with some guy named Andreas."
Raven gasped.
"What is it Raven?"
"That's who enchanted this broom."
Robin perked up.
"Really? What else do you know about him?"
Raven sighed.
"Nothing, except that he's a good sorcerer. He put a powerful knowledge block on the broom. I'm lucky that I was able to get his name out of it. What else did you find out Robin?"
"Perry says that once he found out about Andreas that all of Evangeline's friends just vanished. He hasn't run into a single one of them, which might explain why none of them answer their mobile phones. I'm guessing that they're all like her, runaways who are squatting in condemned buildings. But there is more."
"They dabbled in magic too?" Raven asked.
"Or at least they tried. At least that's what Perry heard at the cafés where they used to hang out. And they all looked up to Evangeline. I asked Perry if he could remember when she started to dress like you, he said that must have happened after they broke up."
"Must have?"
"He never saw her again, at least not when she was alive. I took him to the morgue and he ID'd her."
"So where do we go from here Robin? Are you going to check your database?"
"I will, but I don't expect to find him. Perry says that the friends told him that Andreas was a foreigner, that he sounded German. No photos but I did get a description…"
"Let me guess, he's young, tall, blond and blue eyed. He'll stand out like a sore thumb back at home." She replied sarcastically.
"Perry mentioned that someone said that they thought he was from Austria, but that's it."
"Maybe Ranesh knows something…" She mumbled under her breath.
"What's that Raven?"
Raven stood up from her chair. Robin couldn't help but notice that while she looked as lean and muscular as ever that her hips looked … wider?
"I'm going to do some investigating of my own." She announced. "I'll be back by dinnertime."
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
"Raven! You are back again so soon!" Ranesh cheered as she walked into his store mid afternoon. "You should bring your young man by one evening; the entire community is simply dying to meet him."
Raven smiled softly.
"I suppose I will, maybe I'll bring him next week for the equinox festivities."
"That would be wonderful Raven; I'll let everyone know …"
Raven raised her hand to stop him.
"I must apologize Ranesh, but this isn't a social visit."
The old man nodded.
"I understand my dear. What can I do for you?"
"Tell me about Andreas."
"You mean the Austrian?" He asked.
"I believe so. Turns out he and Evangeline were an item if I'm not mistaken."
The old man grimaced.
"That they were, much to everyone's chagrin. We never told you about her Raven, she was very strange. She was a wannabe, a hack. She had learned some spells but had no talent, unlike you. At first she hung out with some rich boy from La Mirada. He used her; at least that was the word on the street. Then Andreas appeared out of nowhere. "
"What was he like?"
"Very smooth and suave. I think he is from a noble family, he had the polish. He visited Amorista Lane occasionally, you know, to buy supplies and such. He's a powerful sorcerer Raven, almost as good as you are. Anyway, one day he showed up here with Evangeline and a one eyed man wearing armor."
"Slade." Raven interrupted. "Sorry, please continue."
"So that's his name. He still comes here occasionally, by himself."
"Don't let him in Ranesh, keep him out. He's bad news."
"We already figured that out my dear. He's been banished. But back to Andreas and Evangeline, at around that time, a bit over two months ago she changed her look …"
"And started to dress like me?"
"Yes my dear, how did you know? No one has seen her in over a month."
"I have. She's dead."
Ranesh frowned.
"I see, that's most unfortunate." He replied. "What happened to her?"
"We believe that she killed herself, which is why we need to track down this Andreas. We think he might have had something to do with her demise."
Ranesh nodded, and motioned for her to follow him into his office. His study was a dusty old place, stacked with boxes full of scrolls and shelves groaning under the weight of countless ancient books. He walked up to a wooden file cabinet and extracted a blank scroll from it. He unrolled and placed it on his desk. A wand was produced out of the folds of his robe and he tapped the scroll with it three times, each time repeating: "revela"
Text began to appear on the scroll and as Raven watched a picture of who must have been Andreas appeared as well. The man was young and was the epitome of Aryan perfection: bond, athletic build and flawlessly chiseled good looks. Even though he wasn't her type Raven had to admit to herself that he was very handsome.
"Take this my dear, and do be careful. This man is not to be trifled with. It would be wise to take someone with you, someone magical."
Raven took the scroll from him and thanked. She then paused, as if thinking.
"Ranesh, I need another favor."
"For you my dear, anything you need."
"Can you make a ministra pendant for me?"
"It will be my pleasure. I think I have the perfect stone for it too." He replied as he opened another drawer. He removed a flawless emerald from it and showed it to her.
"He will make a fantastic ministra magi, of that I have no doubt." He smiled. "I will have it ready by tomorrow. I will need a strand of your hair though."
Raven nodded and plucked a hair from her scalp, handing it to Ranesh.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
So what is Raven up to? Ministra magi? Stay tuned.
And now its mail bag time! We've reached a new record for this story. 19 reviews in chapter 8. The only time I did better than that was on the final chapter of "The Wild Man's Journey", which had 20 reviews! Come on gang, you can break that record, I know you can (shamelessly pandering for reviews )
The One They Call Shamis - "Holy hell! Did not see that one coming. This is one hell of a roller coaster ride so far, and I hope it keeps coming. Amazing story!"
Holy Hell? Isn't that an oxymoron? LOL! Just kidding! Thanks for your kind words.
St. Jack of randomness - "DUUDE! The end of this chapter was rather morbid, the Titans were so CLOSE, only to find the girl dead and hanging. How are Mr. and Mrs. Logan going to break the curse now? Oh well, keep up the AWESOME work man! :D"
Raven can be perseverant.
Shyguy1 - "Ok, maybe I'm jumping ahead. Anywho, this is great. Keep writing more. Maybe Robin is going to do the same thing he did with Slade and try to retrieve evangeline... Just speculating. Once more I say, Keep Writing Space Cowboy"
I have to admit, you guys come up with a lot of great ideas. Too bad I can't use them all.
TheForgottenHero - ":) I liked this chapter a lot. It just had a lot of suspense and I just really like it. I like how you used Japanese magic and I couldn't help but think of Trouble in Tokyo while reading it. But technically, she could be pregnant cause you can get pregnant of the first time.. possibly? I don't know.. :) But OMG she's dead? Now she's going to go to Raven's Daddy and stir up some trouble... o.0 "
To be honest I borrowed the paper doll idea (and others to come) from Negima! I might have to send a thank you card to Ken Akamatsu.
xXCanaryXx - "Omg...
DIE EVANGELINE!DIIIEEE! Oh wait. She is dead. Oops
Does she really think that Trigon will accept her?
I mean, Slade tried something kinda like that and he is a big-shot villian (more like loser, he just wants Rob as an apprentice wow...) But then again, yuh never know.
I was laughing my brains out with the letter, hehe i like what she said at the end, her goodbye was soo hilarious. I feel really bad for Rae, but pity does nothing as many know. I read some of the mailbox stuff and i saw that some people thought Rae was goin preggo. I remember that but now that i think back, i kinda brushed it off as jothin, ya know. Now that i think about it tho, maybe it's got something to do with the curse? But she probably aint preggo, they only had..'you know what' once. Not that big a chance.
I kinda got creeped out with the dead body. But it IS a dead body, typical thing to be a bit spooked.
Now, we hav to find evangelines teacher, aka the dude who gave her that dasterdly broom.
As always, i anticipate the next chapter! :)"
Actually, several weeks have passed since the wedding, so they've had cough plenty of opportunities.
Hairul The Nightrage Beast - "What A god damn it, to pull off suicide, now you're gonna get F'd up all over when you're in hell, trust me once in hell she's gonna re enact her suicide over and over again for eternity."
Yeah, one would think the Eva is going to be a bit "disappointed" with her "reward".
wolfenstien - "Great fic dude, and I'm glad you're back writing... you are one of the few great TT fanfic author's :D"
Thanks! Your words are deeply appreciated. Being the talented artist that you are your words carry extra weight.
Anon - "Yay! Another story from you! I was saddened to read in your discontinued "Tough Times..." story line that you might not be writing anymore. I even stopped visiting fanfic for a while. Then loandbehold, I come back and see another one from you! Huzza to you! Loving the storyline so far. Read all 8 chapters in one sitting, it was so damn good. The way you wrote the note that was pinned to Evangeline's body was phrased so well, I was expecting to read that Raven incinerated the body afterwards! Very good on the whole "you're a bad daughter, a traitor, you don't know your place" aspect. I for one would like very much to see Raven forsake her human blood if only for a chance to see her go full demon; especially written by you. Have a big ole slobberknocker between Demon Raven and the Beast. Well, looking forward to your next update!"
I had a lot of fun writing Eva's suicide note. It is also tempting to have Raven go full demon, but she has her moral code. Still, you never know...
GreenRock - "Well, I think it's safe to say now that Rae and BB are virtually screwed; now that Evangeline has topped herself . . . brilliant twist to the story though.
Something tells me that Trigon will be making another appearance sometime soon . . . and Evangeline for that matter. Whoever her mentor is, will surely know how to help the CCC break the curse; even if it means going to hell and back - literally.
Now that there are hints that Rae is pregnant (I have the other commenter's to thank for that one; I didn't even spot that one in the previous chapter) this story has just gotten juicier, and I'm salivating bucket loads as we speak.
Another superb chapter."
Thanks. I was really pleased with chapter 8 and I'm happy to see that you guys liked it as well.
still too old for this -"Well, that's different.
You know, I actually enjoy the little slices of life segments better than the 'action' segments. The interplay between BB and Robin was excellent. A nice push from BB to the eternally delaying Robin.
The story's moving along quite nicely. I admit, the suicide of Evangelina was a bit of a surprise.
Question: Since it has been well established that Raven is a very talented sorceress, now that Evangelina is dead, could Raven practice a little necromancy and raise her spirit from wherever. I would assume that she isn't finding her current abode to be quite the vacation spot she expected. (Demons are notorious for being unappreciative.)
I don't imagine a little thing like dark magic would get in her way when it's Gar's life that hangs in the balance.
Just a thought. Please continue, I'm finding this fascinating."
LOL! I was hoping it would be different. As others have pointed out they do seem to be in a pickle now.
AllYourWafflesBelongToMe - "Another great chapter! Thanks for making my day with this well-written story! :D the Force is indeed strong with you!"
I keep trying to levitate stuff, but nothing happens!
AWordToTheNot-So-Wise - "Again you throw another twist into the plot just as I thought that a floodlight was going to be shed unto it. Another well written chapter although I don't think the scene between Rob and B was quite on par with what you've shown you can do, it just seemed to be a little bit hurried. Anywho, that is my only bit of criticism this time around. Once again, just like to say another thrilling installment in what is turning out to be quite a little gem of a tale and keep up the good work."
In hindsight I could have done a little better with Robin and BB's midnight chat. Oh well!
FelynxTiger - "Quite deep moment between Robin and Gar playing with the relationships between the member of the team is just awesome and the way you do it let me chase of the false Evangeline it was truthly stupendous , D: I freak out of what they found in the ceiling. Can't wait to know what could possibly awaits for our Heroes!11one1!"
And then again other people liked the chat scene.
Thowell3 - "I usually like your writing but for some odd reason I like yet also dislike where this story is headed. But it is your story, and you're a really good author heck I would probably really enjoy working on a collaborative story with you, that way we both know what would happen."
I'm blazing new trails (for me) with this story, so bear with me. And thanks for your kind words.
The Cretan - "The interaction between Logan and Grayson in the first half was good. They never had much in the animated series. I'm not a Robin fan but every character needs their spot and you pulled that off rather well. I have to ask, are you a fan of the comics?"
These days I'm reading manga (guess which one?), and haven't had the opportunity to read about the Titans in their comics. I'm also glad you like to Robin and BB chat.
almostinsane - "Great chapter! LOL. From reading your reviews, it seems everyone wants Raven pregnant. Now that would be interesting...
I can't wait for Raven and Beast Boy (along with the other Titans) to kick some cultists' ass. Thanks for writing this. God bless!"
Everybody does seem to want her to get preggers. But as you can see I put that rumor to bed ... for now.
titanfan45 - "I imagine that Evangeline is currently very disappointed with the "reward" that she is likely not getting. Beat Boy and Robin's late night conversation was well written and I hope Robin listens to Beast Boy for once."
For once Robin had to listen, as BB definitely was the wiser one this time.
Ferlion12 - "A new raven huh? Well, this could be interesting if played up."
So many options and choices. What do I do with Eva now?
KingofRandom117 - "Dead witch-fake with clear mental problems"
Oh yeah, Eva wasn't coloring with a full box of crayons!
