Terra pulled on the cord in the bus, signaling that she wanted to get off. The bus was in the middle of the cannery row section of the Harbor District, which looked abandoned and dilapidated. It was late and the area was dark and deserted. Terra was the only passenger on the bus at this point, and the driver glanced at her via a large mirror he kept at the front of the bus.
"Miss, are you sure you want to get off here? There won't be another bus until morning. This isn't exactly a safe place for a young woman to be alone."
"I'll be fine."
The driver pulled up to the next bus stop and opened the doors. Terra hopped off and disappeared into the shadows.
"It's your funeral." He muttered as the bus pulled away.
Terra waited for the bus to leave. Once it was gone she walked to a vacant lot and summoned a small boulder out of the ground and hopped on it. She flew deeper into the cannery row area until she was near the river bank. There, just as Slade told her months ago, was the derelict hulk of what used to be the 'Happy Dolphin' tuna canning plant. She hopped off the boulder and walked in through the shipping dock where trucks used to pickup cases of canned tuna for local delivery. Happy Dolphin went out of business years ago when the USDA found bits of dolphin meat in the cans and shut them down. Slade purchased the canning plant for a song during the bankruptcy sale. He had used a sham business as a cover. As far as everyone else knew, the plant belonged to a Japanese businessman named Hiroshi Sato. Slade was good at covering his tracks.
Terra passed through the shipping and receiving area and entered what had once been the canning room. It had been stripped bare of anything of value since the bankruptcy. There was a large enclosure that had once been a large walk in refrigerator. Terra entered and began searching the wall until she found what she was looking for. She pressed on the loose panel and another one flipped over, revealing a retinal scanner. Terra placed her right eye in front of it and after a few seconds it beeped and retracted itself, and was once again hidden.
Terra heard a soft rumbling behind her as a section of the room's floor rose, revealing an elevator that emerged from the floor. She stepped onboard and pressed the down arrow button. The elevator descended silently and slowly until after a few minutes it had reached its destination. The doors opened revealing what could only be one of Slade's lairs. It was full of gears and machinery, which were currently idle. There were several dozen late model SladeBots standing in the corner, brand new and never used, deactivated, waiting to be turned on for their first command. Placing the lair under the riverbed was a smart move by Slade. The location was isolated enough to hide it, even from Batman.
Terra headed into the lair's living quarters. They were tidy and clean. Even in his absence Slade was a neat freak. He hated clutter with a passion. The kitchen was well stocked with frozen food and other nonperishable items. She pulled out a single serving of lasagna from the freezer and heated it up. She scarfed it down quickly and washed it down with some soda pop that Slade kept in the fridge specifically for her. There were several tubs of ice cream in the large freezer. She scooped several helpings from the Neapolitan tub and slowly savored her dessert. After she was done she smacked her lips and tossed the dirty dishes into the sink, then staggered off to the sleeping quarters. The day had finally caught up with her and she was tired. She kicked off her shoes, stripped down to her underwear and got into a bed. She was asleep within minutes.
-( - )-
There was a loud knock on the bedroom door. Raven opened her eyes and the alarm clock indicated that over 4 hours had passed since Gayla left. There was another series of loud knocks. Gayla had returned.
"Just a minute!" Raven shouted. "I'm not dressed".
Raven sighed as she removed Beast Boy's palm from her bare chest. She rolled over to face her 'stud muffin'. She kissed him on the nose and he stirred, but did not wake up. She told him that 3 times were too many, but she didn't mind the encores at the time herself. The knocking resumed.
"Mistress! You must get ready for the banquet! I have your new clothes ready!"
"I'm coming!" she said as she roused Beast Boy. "Gar! Wake up! We have to get ready."
Beastboy opened his eyes and yawned as Raven got up and put on the robe she had found earlier in the closet. She walked to the door and opened it. Gayla was there, carrying several shopping bags which Raven took from her. Gayla peered around Raven and saw that Beast Boy was sitting up in the bed, his green, muscular torso naked as he stretched. Raven could see the disapproving look on her face.
"We'll be ready on time, don't worry. But don't come into help me." Raven instructed her.
"I wouldn't dare." Gayla retorted.
Raven and Beast Boy showered and dressed quickly. Beast Boy thought the clothes were comfortable but couldn't help but feel that they made him look like a monk, and told Raven. Raven assured him that it was standard fashion for males on Azarath, much like a suit and tie were on Earth. Raven's outfit resembled her old Titans winter outfits, with pants and a fur trimmed cape and hood. As they finished up Raven instructed Beastboy on some protocol for the banquet. Since he was officially her 'first' he would be seated with her at the main table. Second husbands and below would be seated at a separate table, near the rear of the banquet hall. Also when they entered the hall she would hold her right hand horizontally at her side, pointing forward with her palm facing downward. He would place his left hand on top of hers and she would lead him to his seat.
They emerged from the bedroom with time to spare and Gayla was waiting for them impatiently. She looked extremely cross and it was confirmed when she spoke to Raven.
"Mistress, whatever you do, do not tell your guests that you are a 'mono'. And you, 'Garfield', if you love her as much as you claim, you will not make a scene or embarrass us at the banquet. You will behave!"
"Give me some credit." He replied with a hint of irritation in his voice.
Gayla sized up the couple. They were unusual to begin with. Raven was gray, courtesy of her father no doubt, and the boy, the boy was green! Still, she had to admit, he was handsome, if perhaps too muscular. His new clothes would hide that, fortunately. She walked up to him and raised his hood.
"Let's go." She announced curtly.
Raven extended her hand and Beast Boy grabbed it with his. Gayla clearly disapproved the gesture, but held her tongue and led them to the banquet hall.
"They do have vegetarian food here, don't they?" Gar asked as they entered the elevator.
-( - )-
Starfire and Richard had been kissing and petting for quite some time now. They eventually stopped, once they realized how late it was. She lifted her hand to her face, admiring the ring that was worthy of royalty.
"Richard, where did you get this ring? The gem is gorgeous. You can't buy a ring like this in a store. Trust me, I know."
Richard hesitated before replying. "It's a family heirloom."
Starfire wasn't as naïve as many thought. She knew very well that Richard's parents had been modest circus acrobats before they died in the sabotaged trapeze accident. The ring was worth more than their entire lifetime incomes would have been had they not died.
"Did Bruce give this to you?"
He nodded in the affirmative. "You're a member of the Wayne family now Star."
She eyed the heirloom on her finger. The emerald was huge and flawless, more perfect than anything she had ever seen on Tamaran, and she had seen plenty.
"Whose ring was it?"
"Originally? I don't know. Bruce's mother was the last one to possess it. I believe it's been in the family for many generations."
"Then I am much honored to be deemed worthy of wearing it. I must thank Bruce for his kindness."
"He has a way of surprising people when they least expect it. I'll bet he has Alfred already making the wedding plans!" he chuckled.
"Richard." She asked with concern in her voice. "What kind of wedding do you want to have?"
He hesitated again. "I really never gave it much thought; I just assumed that Alfred would take care of it. No one has better taste than he does."
"You didn't answer my question Richard. Do you want a religious ceremony, or a civil ceremony?"
"I'm not very religious Star. I'm not an atheist, but I haven't set foot in a church in years. It would be kind of phony of me to insist on a Church wedding. Is this important for you?"
"No, it is not. Tamaranian weddings are civil affairs. Remember how Blackfire was the minister at my thankfully cancelled wedding to you know who?"
"You mean gurgle-something? Don't remind me. That was the worst day of my life."
She giggled. "Mine too."
The grandfather clock in her room chimed twelve times.
"Look, it's already midnight; we'd better get some sleep". She said as she patted her bed.
Richard yawned as he pulled off his shirt. "Sounds good to me."
-( - )-
If Beast Boy had any doubts regarding how wealthy and influential his mother in law was, they were removed as they approached the entrance to the Ball room. The entrance itself was huge and the Ball room was cavernous, you could play a soccer match in there and have room to spare. The room was packed. Arella had gone all out to celebrate Raven's return, and it showed.
"She invited half of Azarath." Raven whispered to her mate. "I don't believe it."
As they reached the entrance Raven extended her hand and Gar placed his on top of hers. His outfit was navy blue, which indicated to all present that he was Raven's 'first'. The crowd fell silent as they entered the hall. There was a single large table on a dais in the middle of the room. Raven saw that her mother was already seated and there were two empty chairs next to her. She could feel the ocean of emotions seeping from the crowd, and not all were positive. She quickly led Garfield to his seat. He waited for her to be seated next to her mother before seating himself.
"You can lower your hood now." she whispered to him as she lowered her own.
Several wait staff, all men, began to attend them. There were so many that Beastboy wondered if they would cut his food and feed him. The head waiter approached Raven and asked what they would like made for them. Being seated at the head table had its privileges. Raven ordered for both of them and as quickly as they had arrived the waiters disappeared.
Raven took a good look around the table to see who the guests of honor were. As expected they were all members of Azarath's inner circle of top Matriarchs. And each one had brought a son with her.
Setup city Raven thought to herself. It's my first day home and they are already parading the merchandise before me.
Beastboy noticed this as well and Raven felt his discomfort. Once again she took his hand to reassure him, but she knew that there would be a clash before the night was over. She made eye contact with the various Matriarchs but remained silent. Finally, a portly woman across the table broke the ice.
"Raven dear, it's wonderful that you have returned to us, you have no idea how much you have been missed. We are all delighted to see that you have already taken a 'first' at your young age."
Another woman interrupted. "What Mayra is tiptoeing around is when will you begin courting for your next 3 husbands? Allow me to say that I have no heiress and no daughters in law yet either. You would be my primary daughter in law. And the dowry would be most generous with a monthly allowance to keep you in the luxury you deserve, until you take over the family business when I retire."
By this point the other women had all joined in making their pitches to Raven, who looked overwhelmed. This time it was Beast Boy's turn to squeeze Raven's hand.
"Ladies, please, there will be time for this later. Raven will court all of your sons before picking the final 3, won't you dear?" Arella commanded the table, which fell silent. All eyes were on Raven.
"No Mother, I won't. I already have a husband. I don't want a second, or a third or a fourth!"
The portly matriarch laughed. "Oh Raven, please don't tell us that you are a 'mono', are you?"
Arella glared at Raven. There was much at stake here and Raven knew it. The entire Ball room was focused on the conversation at the head table.
Mayra continued laughing "Do you actually love your 'first'? I heard that his nickname is 'Beast Boy'. Do you have wild intercourse with him like an animal?" the woman snickered.
Raven had heard enough. She stood up her eyes glowing red and split into two demonic pairs.
"Yes, I do love my husband and his name is Garfield, and I will not tolerate anyone calling him my 'first'." she seethed. Even though she didn't shout, her voice echoed around the room.
The Ball room fell silent, and then, from the fringe areas, where the less important guests sat cheering and applause broke out and began to spread around the room, growing louder and louder. Arella and the matriarchs looked stunned. Soon the cheering was so loud that Arella could not make herself heard.
Raven took Gar's hand and he stood, whereupon she embraced him and kissed him passionately. The cheering continued as the couple released each other and hand in hand left the ball room together, amid the crowd's unceasing cheers.
As they emerged from the Ball room they ran and found a place to hide. There they hugged and kissed again. As they surfaced for oxygen Gar looked at his beloved in the eyes and said what she already knew.
"We're in trouble, aren't we?" He asked.
