Legalities: I do not own or own rights to the Teen Titans.

Chapter 9

The Titans were arguing when Raven and Speedy entered the room again. They were passing around a piece of paper and kept saying the same things in more and more heated tones.

"We don't know who sent it," Robin said. "We can't just blindly follow a lead we know nothing about. We need to think and plan before we jump headlong into this."

"But this is the first real lead we've had," Terra fumed, gesturing to the piece of paper now in Beast Boy's hands. "We have to go at least check it out before anything happens. These refugees have been impossible to track down. What happens if this one moves on while we're sitting here thinking?!"

"Robin's right, man," Cyborg said. "We have to assume this is a trap. Without any indication of who this is from we might be playing right into Nightwing's hands. We need a plan."

"What the hell is everyone talking about?" Speedy asked, dropping Raven's arm from his. Something, Robin noticed, he did reluctantly.

"We got this dropped off on the front door," Cyborg explained, nodding at Beast Boy to give him the paper he had finished reading. "The doorbell rang but the sensors didn't show any life signs but us all day. We opened the door and found this on the steps."

Speedy took the proffered paper, opened it and read.

The coordinates on this page should lead you somewhere that will aid your in your search. Ask for a being by the name of Mattathius. He is a survivor of Noctis. He can help you.

-One who wishes Noctis' destruction

"Well if that doesn't scream fucking trap," he scoffed, handing the paper to Raven.

Robin threw his hands in Speedy's direction in an exaggerated gesture. "Thank you! Trap!"

They argued for what seemed like hours. Everyone's tempers were rising and despite everyone's opinions and thoughts they were getting nowhere. Raven had said very little since her first attempt to argue for following the lead. She spoke briefly to her own companions during the arguing, but didn't voice anything else to the group. The conversation had slowly dwindled to Terra and Robin arguing the merits of their points. Terra was bent on the destruction of Noctis, no matter the risk, and Robin was only concerned with Raven's safety.

"But what if it isn't a trap?" Beast Boy asked after he couldn't stand the cyclical arguing anymore, hands held up in a defensive manner. "Hear me out. This could be the most helpful lead we've ever had. What if this answers everything? I'm not saying we rush in with no plan, but maybe this is something that we follow up with in caution. There's got to be a way to not lose this lead. If there is a survivor, an existing refugee, can we risk not getting in touch?"

Raven raised an eyebrow in surprise at Beast Boy's rationality. His words made sense, but she was just surprised to hear it from him. He had grown and she was impressed.

She stared back at the piece of paper, rereading the words for what may possibly have been the hundredth time. This was hope. This letter was hope. But she couldn't help the fear blossoming in her as she read the words again. It was too easy. Who had written this? Why come forward now?

"We also can't risk delivering Raven into the hands of that monster!" Robin snarled, less impressed with Beast Boy's reasoning. "We don't know what he's capable of!"

"Robin," Raven said gently, speaking for the first time since her initial trepidatious suggestion that they follow the lead, her voice showing how tired and weary she was of mostly Robin and Terra arguing and getting nowhere.

He turned to look at her, trying to gauge her face to see which way she was finally going to argue this after hearing all of their arguments.

She glanced at Terra and nodded to her and Terra stared hard at her before backing down. She gave one last contemptuous look at Robin before she stomped out of the room, bumping Raven's shoulder roughly as she did. Raven blinked slowly before resuming the stance she was bumped from, squaring herself before Robin.

"We're not going to get anywhere arguing in circles like this. No one is going to back down from their opinion and it's not helping. Everyone needs to calm down."

She walked to the window and pinched the bridge of her nose as she thought.

"You can't still be considering going?!" Robin demanded, approaching her. "This letter showing up is too convenient and we know that Nightwing is here in the city. None of the sensors were tripped when the note was delivered. Doesn't that seem odd? We can't afford to go chasing a lead without figuring some things out first."

"He's right Raven," Cyborg began. "I know you want answers but nothing about this seems right."

"But we've gone on crazy leads before," Beast Boy argued. "Hell, Robin you went on a crazy hunch following Terra the other night when you knew nothing about what was going on."

Robin glared at Beast Boy but admittedly didn't have a response. Beast Boy was right, but this was about risking Raven and he was not prepared to back down and do so.

"Perhaps we may consider taking the risk," Starfire said tentatively. "Friend Raven needs these answers more than we ever did and this has been the only opportunity that we have had in some time."

"I won't chance it!" Robin yelled, his booming voice reverberating off the windows and filling the large room.

Raven covered her ears and sank to the floor. Robin had seen this happen to her when her emotions were out of control before and instinctively went to her side, taking deep breaths and trying to calm himself as he did so.

She shook, her powers sparking black around her as she attempted to control her breathing. Robin laid his hands on her shoulders and tried to calm her.

"Rae, I'm sorry. This is probably too much. I . . ."

He trailed off and stood up, looking around him, his eyes narrowing in suspicion.

"What did you do, Raven?"

The accusation in his tone snapped the others to attention. They looked around to see what was amiss and noticed that none of Raven's companions were still in the room. At some point after Terra's exit Aqualad and Speedy had slipped out as well.

"What did you do?!" he asked sternly, grabbing her shoulders as he knelt before her. "You're emotions don't short out like this anymore. You led me to the window away from the others and then you tried to convince me of you losing control of your powers. You were distracting me while the others left. Where did they go, Raven?"

Raven held her hands out in front of her when he grabbed her, a defensive move and one that still stung even as he glared at her. He looked at her hands.

"Where's the note? You had it last."

"Robin, I can't let this lead go. If there's the chance we'll find answers we have to take it. Hesitation has brought death at the hands of Noctis. You haven't had to live like we have. Sometimes you take the plunge. And nothing was going to convince you to let me take it."

"Terra," Robin said, standing. "Terra took the note as she bumped into you. She didn't say a word in defense or argument after you looked at her. She left so suddenly so she could take the note." Realization dawned on his face. "So she could have the coordinates. Fuck! Raven what did you do?"

He turned from her and took off down the hallway calling to the Titans as he went.

"Titans, go! Find them! We can't let them go alone and get themselves killed."

The Titans all leaped into action and went on the search for the others, leaving Raven sat on the floor in front of the window.

They're all so emotionally wrecked they didn't even think to have someone watch me, she thought. They're already getting careless. She scoffed. I guess I'm not one to talk since I got my team to chase an impossible lead into what is more than likely to be a trap. Still. I have to know. I have to try.

She sank into the floor in a pool of inky blackness and rose through the floor of the training room. She had discussed the possibility of having to make a quick exit with Speedy the first chance she got after telling her story to the Titans. It paid in their situation to have a backup plan and an exit strategy. They had decided that the training room was the best suited to fit the large portal that their device would create. So that's where she went to now, hoping her friends had gotten the device up and running and ready for her when she got there. She was not disappointed.

Speedy looked at her with a blank face as she rose through the floor.

"I don't like this," he hissed. "It still feels like a trap."

"And yet here you are," she said, a slight tone of surprise in her voice.

"I mean, we discussed the merit of taking this lead ourselves, but I didn't know you were just going to go and have Terra run off in the middle of the discussion. I saw you palm the note to her. I knew you wouldn't give up and I'll be damned if I'm going to let you do something this stupid without me. You always have me. You know that."

She looked into his eyes with such gratitude.

"Even if you are making the worst decision I can possibly imagine and are being the most bull-headed person alive."

" . . . And there it is," she said as she smirked. "But thank you. Really."

She looked at the door which still remained closed.

"We need to hurry. They'll be here soon."

Aqualad stepped up to her.

"You sure you want to do this without them? What if it is a trap? What if he's there?"

"I never said we'd do it without them," she said, looking back at the portal. "We leave it open behind us. They'll follow.

"They won't like being manipulated like this," Terra pointed out, voicing the fact but not trying to talk Raven out of it either. Robin was being so unreasonable in his desire for Raven's safety that he wouldn't even consider her arguments and she was currently to irritated at him to feel too sorry for him.

"I know," Raven admitted, lowering her head. "But I have to do this. We all agreed that the risk is worth finally ending this whole nightmare. He has to be stopped."

"He is going to kill you," Speedy said, stepping up to the portal. Raven knew he meant Robin. "You know that, right?"

"I know. But this is more important than his feelings."

Speedy nodded and turned to face the swirling vortex. "I'll see you on the other side."

He stepped through and vanished. Terra walked in next and Aqualad behind her. Raven could hear footsteps approaching the door as she stepped onto the platform. The door opened and she saw Robin's face contorted with rage and terror as he made eye contact with her. She turned from him and stepped through the whirlpool of light knowing with all her heart that he would follow. And that he might hate her for it.

O • O • O • O

Raven blinked at the sudden light on the other side of the portal. They had stepped out into an ancient forest, twisted trunks and limbs tangling about one another in an impenetrable canopy of varying shades of green and gold. It was what Raven imagined a fairy tale forest would look like. She half expected to see actual fairies flitting about. It was a place one could easily get lost and be completely content with it. She could see a path winding through the trees.

The others who came through before her were all walking back to the portal, having checked for immediate danger. Speedy nodded as he approached. All clear. Raven let out a breath she hadn't known she was holding and nodded back.

She had just begun to relax when she felt the hand grab her arm and she was spun around to find herself face to face with Nightwing's fury.

She panicked and tried to pull away, a whimper that she was ashamed of escaping her throat as she could feel the terror clutch at her heart.

"What the hell were you thinking?" he growled, grabbing her other arm as well and shaking her once. "This is beyond stupid coming here blindly, Raven! I can't believe you did this."

Ravens eyes narrowed as her shallow breaths deepened. She looked at his masked face, his spiky hair and heard his words, finally, as they broke through her haze of terror.

"R-Robin?" she breathed, her body flooding with cold as the panic lifted and the adrenaline faded.

His eyes widened in understanding and panic as he let her go, taking a step back.

"Oh, God. Raven, I'm sorry. Yes, it's me. He's not here. Nighwing isn't here. It's just me."

She closed her eyes, trying to slow her wildly erratic heartbeat. Robin could see her trembling and cursed to himself. He had been terrified for her and he hadn't thought through what his grabbing her in anger like that would seem like to her. He had only wanted to make sure she was safe but instead he had scared her senseless for a moment when she had thought he was Nightwing.

Speedy stepped up behind Raven and laid his hands on her shoulders, pulling her back against him and whispering in her ear. She reached up and clasped her hands around his resting on her shoulders and gripped him so tight her knuckles leeched of color. She nodded, eyes still closed, and took in several deep breaths, her tremors fading. Speedy extricated his hands from her crushing grip and wrapped his arms around her shoulders from behind, glaring at Robin over Raven's head.

Raven opened her eyes and stepped forward, pulling out of Speedy's embrace, but catching one of his hands before it fell back to his side. She squeezed it affectionately and turned to nod a thanks to him. He gave her a smirk in return as she let his hand go.

Robin stepped up to her and made no attempt to touch her, afraid of how she would react.

"I'm sorry, Raven. I didn't think and I never meant to frighten you. But that doesn't change how incredibly rash and stupid coming here on your own was. What were you thinking?"

"I wasn't thinking," she said turning back to the forest and looking at the path. "I was hoping. And hope isn't something that we've been able to feel in a long, long while. This is about more than me, now, Robin."

Robin lowered his head and sighed, rubbing his face with his hands.

"Well we're here," he said finally, looking down the path. "We may as well follow the lead. Everyone keep your eyes open." He looked at Aqualad, the only of Raven's companions who wasn't currently upset with him. "How do we close the portal? If Nightwing is in our world we can't leave him an open door."

Aqualad went to the device and disabled it, putting it away in a backpack that Terra carried. They looked at the path and couldn't see any indication of which way was the way to go. After some exploring Starfire found a sign in a language she could not read. It pointed to the path ahead so they decided that was the way to go. Maybe it led to a town.

They walked silently, too wary to engage in conversation as they looked around them waiting for signs of something dangerous coming their way. Robin refused to make eye contact with Raven, his anger at her flippancy and manipulation still too close to the surface for him to let it go.

Terra was in the lead when she suddenly stopped. The rest caught up with her and saw what she had seen to stop her in her tracks. There in the middle of the path and approaching them was a being. It appeared humanoid, but extremely tall with skin so pale to be translucent. It was wearing a cloak and stopped before them.

"One of you is Raven," the figure said in a gentle, fluid voice. "I was sent to find you."

"Sent by who?" Raven asked as she made her way to the front.

The figure knelt down before her so that they were at eye level with each other. "That I cannot say, but I am here to help. My name is Mattathius. I am a survivor of my world that was destroyed by Noctis. I was told the one named Raven might stand a chance of destroying Noctis for good. I am here to help you as much as I am able so you might finally have a chance to destroy him."

The hope in Raven's chest grew so large that it hurt.

A/N

Hi everyone! Just wanted to say thank you to everyone's feedback so far. It may not seem like much, but the reviews are really helpful and I enjoy reading every one. Some have asked about the past relationship between Raven and Speedy. Some of it will be fleshed out in future chapters but there will likely be a prequel that includes her doomed romance with Speedy and a tragic first love for Raven. If I leave anything with loose ends please let me know and I'll address it in the prequel.

Thanks again for reading! I hope everyone enjoys it.