Back in Titans Tower, Nightshade was making brownies. And Cyborg and Starfire kept hovering over her.
"What is this strange brown treat you are making?" Starfire asked. Her eyes were big and curious just like a child's.
Whereas Cyborg was simply drooling on her shoulder.
"Can I lick the spoon?" Cy asked excitedly.
"NO!" laughed Night. She whacked them both with the wooden spoon she was using to stir the mix. They flew into the living room. "Now, bother someone else! Jeez!"
She shook her head at the two of them, chuckling to herself. Secretly, though, she dipped her finger into the mix and smacked it into her mouth. She closed her eyes and savored the flavor.
"I saw that!" Cy exclaimed like he was telling on another kid to the teacher.
This made her crack up even more.
"Chill, would ya?"
Cy made a pretend face of rage and plopped down on the couch. Star remained in the kitchen, watching Night cook.
"What is…this?" Star asked.
Night smiled at her. She pushed the mixing bowl to Starfire.
"Try some!"
"You would…allow me?" Star wondered hesitantly.
"Sure. Go ahead! (But just don't take too much.)," Night said. She winked at Star. Star made glittery eyes and lifted the spoon out of the bowl. She dipped one lightly tanned orange finger into the spoon and tasted the brownie mix. She immediately smiled and did a little dance around the kitchen.
"It is glorious! Tell me! How is it you are such a wonderful cook, friend?" asked Star enthusiastically.
Night leaned back against the counter, mixing bowl in one hand. She stared up at the ceiling and absentmindedly stirred the already mixed brownie liquid.
"How am I such a good cook? It comes naturally, I guess," Night answered. She flicked her eyes back down to Starfire. "I think the day I really learned was when my…well…mentor, you could say, taught me the basic things of how to survive on my own. Cooking was one of them." In a low voice, she winked at Star. "But I personally prefer to make the good stuff."
Night pointed to the bowl. Star nodded, appearing to understand what she meant. Night pulled over the greased pan she had on the counter and slowly and carefully scooped and poured the mixture out into the pan. When finished, she left the bowl to Starfire and the spoon to Cy.
"How come she gets the bowl?" complained Cy.
"She wasn't the one drooling on my shoulder," Night countered. She placed the pan into the already heated and set oven and allowed the brownies to cook for twenty minutes. Until then, she plopped down on the couch next to BB. She smiled at him; he blushed and smiled back. She patted his head like a dog. At her touch, BB nearly melted into a puddle of raging hormones.
"You're hilarious," Night said, smiling brightly.
Beast Boy appeared dazedly happy for a moment, but he looked down, a melancholy look clouding his face.
"Yeah…thanks, Night."
"What is it? What's wrong? Did I…say something or what?"
Beast Boy glanced up at her in alarm and waved his hands at her.
"NO! No…it's just…uh…heh…um…I'm just…thinking of something," he stuttered. "It's nothing."
Nightshade gave him a weird look and shrugged, relaxing into one position until the brownies were set to ding.
"Okay."
First Raven, and now BB! Who next?
Nightshade glanced at all the Titans. She recalled a month ago when she had first crashed with the Titans. When Nightshade had noticed the name Terra on the room she had been given and mentioned it to Robin, he had had the exact same reaction as Raven and Beast Boy had today. Did it have something to do with this mysterious Terra? She wondered what happened to her, where she went, and most importantly who she was. She must've had a great impact on all their lives as a friend because they all seemed cast down when anything seemed to remind them of this Terra. Or seemed to remind them. She wouldn't know because Terra was way before she ever came along.
Nightshade's hand shifted to the Titans communicator she constantly kept with her, in her suit and casual clothing. She turned away from Beast Boy, lifting it out from her pocket. She fingered it gingerly. She frowned thoughtfully. She would treasure that she had been accepted into the Titans' home. She promised herself that, no matter what the circumstances, she'd be a good friend. At least, she would try. Trying is the closet thing to success and victory she could even think about.
Whoever this Terra was…I'm never going to be like her. I'll think that much. I'm going to stay here and guard my friends' lives. I may be slightly off in my powers, but I vow. I vow that nothing will ever come between all of us.
The sudden dinging of the oven bell jutted Nightshade instantly from her deep thoughts. She bounced off the couch, catching herself with some telekinetic energy that formed a disk beneath her feet. It lifted her up and hovered over the ground, flying towards the kitchen. Raven watched her with silent, neutral eyes. Nightshade didn't notice this at all.
Raven glanced down at her book, but didn't read the words. Instead she stared so hard at them that they blurred into a black and white mass.
It's good that Nightshade has at least some extent of control over her powers. She seems surer of herself, I've noticed.
A flash of blond hair filled her eyes. She heard the laugh. It made her mind ache at the memory. Raven eagerly shut her eyes and shut it out.
I'm noticing too many similarities. Nightshade will never be her. Nightshade is different than she was. She won't…she couldn't…she won't…I know it. She's too good for that. I know it. She's too good.
Raven observed Nightshade as she took out the brownies and set them on the counter to cool. She had to literally swat away Cyborg, whom was drooling over Night's shoulder again. Night swatted him away playfully, laughing. She didn't seem to have any guilt on her shoulders, no uneasiness. But, of course, she didn't look like she had it either, though. And Raven saw and felt how that had turned out in the end.
Meanwhile, Nightshade waved an oven mitt over the hot brownies to help cool them down.
"Are they ready yet?" asked Cyborg. He touched the brownie, but pulled immediately retracted his hand and stuck it in his mouth. "That's hot."
"Cy, they have to cool first!" Nightshade exclaimed at hi, waving him from the kitchen.
From the sofa, Robin smiled and Starfire giggled silently. Raven stayed solemn; she wasn't very much in the mood for being cheerful right then. She went right back to reading her back, delving deep into the story.
Meanwhile, Nightshade was beating Cyborg on the head with her fists. Finally he got the message and shied out until the brownies were cooled.
Nightshade took in a deep breath and burst out, "BROWNIES!"
All the Titans were swept away in the hurricane of her voice. Cyborg motored over to the brownies, as did Robin and Starfire.
"Aren't you gonna get any?" Night asked Raven and Beast Boy.
"Tofu for me, remember?" Beast Boy reminded Night.
Night nodded and turned to Raven.
"No thanks," Raven said before Night even uttered a word. "I'm not up for a sugar high today."
Nightshade made a disappointed face, but toughened up and stood right in front of Raven. Night placed her fists on her hips and looked down at Raven. Raven glanced up briefly and blinked at her.
"I made brownies for everybody and you don't want any?"
"I said no," Raven snapped bitterly.
Night smiled a little.
"Good for you. You're getting some anyway, missy. No ducking away from this!"
And, with these words, Nightshade grabbed a resisting Raven's wrist. She dragged Raven over to the kitchen with the ultimate strength. Raven gave in; the others stared at Nightshade with awe for no one would ever dare to force Raven to do something, nonetheless grab her by the wrist. It was only something Nightshade was brave enough to do.
"Eat," Nightshade commanded, pointing at the half-gone brownie.
Raven made an "are-you-kidding-me?" look at Nightshade, frowning deeply with a warning look in her eyes. Nightshade narrowed her eyes at Raven and stared at her with the exact same amount of creepy warning. It mildly surprised everyone that Nightshade could equal up to Raven.
"Fine," Raven growled.
Raven took the knife from the pan and cut herself a decent sized amount of brownie and bit into its moist, rich surface. The flavor of the desert rolled over her tongue and down her throat. She glanced up at Nightshade in wild surprise. Nightshade was leaning against the counter, arms crossed and nodding, and a pleased smile on her face.
"It's…excellent," Raven said quietly.
"See? Now…who's wrong?"
Raven made a face. Nightshade raised an eyebrow at her. Raven sighed, rolling her eyes. Night smirked.
"I am," Raven admitted.
"Okay. That's all I wanted to hear. Now, enjoy it! All of you."
Starfire smiled at Night as she finished the remnants of her brownie.
"Oh yes! I have enjoyed this tasteful Earth desert of yours very much! Will you make it again?"
"Maybe," Night replied slyly. "'Night, guys. I'm off to bed."
And with that, Nightshade strolled out of the main room and into her own, white room. The one that once belonged to the mysterious entity named Terra.
Nightshade laid on her bed in the darkness of her room. There was no moon that night, so again, no light flooded in. Instead, shadows moved here and there on the wall. A knock came from her door.
"Come on in," she said.
Light flooded the room as the door slid open. Beast Boy stood in the doorway. He walked in slowly and looked around, his eyes adjusting to the dark. The door shut behind him.
"Nightshade?"
"I'm over here," Night said loudly.
Beast Boy followed her voice and sat down at the end of her bed. Night sat up and looked at Beast Boy with the hint of a smile.
"You know, I've never seen anybody talk to Raven like that before," he admitted. "It was…cool."
Night flushed in the darkness, glad BB couldn't see her.
"Thanks…"
"Usually Raven is…well…"
"Creepy?"
"Yeah."
"So am I."
BB gave her a surprised look, aghast at what she had said.
"You're not creepy!"
"Yeah, I am."
"You're cool."
"Admit it! You think I'm creepy, don't you?"
BB looked down as Night smirked at him.
"Fine. You're creepy. But in a good way."
"I like being creepy," Night said. "A nice difference that not a lot of people have. And I can scare the crap outta people! Ha!"
Beast Boy smiled at her. She smiled back.
Nightshade turned her head away and looked down. She pursed her lips nervously.
"You know…earlier?"
"Yeah?"
"You mentioned that you were thinking of someone. Was it…um…this mysterious Terra?"
Immediately a crestfallen look clouded Beast Boy's face. Night furrowed her brow.
"She…was important to you…wasn't she?"
A tiny tear slipped down BB's cheek.
"Yeah…more than you'll ever know…"
"Can you…uh…tell me about her?"
Beast Boy looked at Night. He shook his head.
"I…I don't think I'm ready for that."
He bowed his head sadly. Nightshade wrapped her arms around Beast Boy and hugged him tightly. He seemed dazed at first, but accepted the hug. Night placed her head on BB's shoulder.
"Whenever you're ready, you can tell me," she said. She pulled away and smiled softly. "You know you can me anything, okay? I'll keep your secrets."
BB smiled at her.
"Thanks…Night."
"Sure. You better get to bed. Don't know what we'll face tomorrow."
"Yeah…'night, Night."
"Good night," she said back.
And Night then sank into her bed and slept.
Raven levitated peacefully in front of the huge glass windows, her back to everyone. Nightshade glanced up from the glorg Starfire had eagerly prepared for her. She finished the substance quickly and sauntered over to Raven, wearing her black pants, but paired with an Evanescence T-shirt, Amy Lee's face plastered on the front.
Night smacked her lips together. She immensely enjoyed Starfire's homemade glorg; it had tasted like sushi mixed with ice cream.
Quietly, Nightshade came up beside Raven's side, shoving her hands into her pockets.
"Can I join you, Raven?"
Raven opened one eye and looked up at Night, who ruffled her white hair with one hand.
"You…want to?" she asked.
"Yeah," Nightshade said. "I want to."
"Alright."
Nightshade smiled. She levitated herself in the exact same manner as Raven and crossed her legs. She placed her hands out, her palms out. She chanted the same chant Raven always said.
Then, suddenly, Raven's chant went silent and she opened her eyes.
"Nightshade?"
Night opened her eyes and looked at Raven.
"Yeah?"
"How come you're meditating with me?"
Night was taken aback by the question.
"What do you mean?"
"How come you want to be friends with me? Aren't you…you know…scared of me?"
Nightshade widened her eyes and shook her head furiously from side to side. Then, she rose her head and grinned.
"No, Raven. I think you're cool. You're one of the coolest people I have ever met!" Nightshade said excitedly.
Raven smiled at this.
"Really?" Raven asked.
"Yeah. You seem so mellow and calm and down-to-earth. And your cloak! Don't get me started on that!"
Raven smiled at this and laughed. Nightshade laughed along with her.
"So…you don't hate me?" Raven asked.
"Heck no! I'd like to think of you as…one of my best friends."
Raven smiled at this.
"Thanks. I appreciate that."
"No problem."
Nightshade closed her eyes, ready to meditate more when Raven spoke up.
"Nightshade?"
Night opened one eye.
"Yeah?"
"You're one of my best friends, too."
Night smiled and said, "I'm glad."
And the two meditated in peace.
Raven meant what she had said, though some part of her was still reluctant not to trust Nightshade so easily. But they were now close friends.
"Combat practice, y'all!" announced Cyborg.
Nightshade whipped her head around. Robin and Raven were standing besides Cyborg. Starfire and Beast Boy glanced up.
"Really?" Night asked.
"Let's see if you can beat me, Night," challenged Cy.
Night smirked.
"I'll take that as a challenge, big guy," replied Night. She leaped over the couch and joined the others.
They made their way downstairs and outside. Nightshade levitated using her telekinesis. She crossed her arms and stood beside Starfire and Beast Boy. They watched as Cyborg did the entire practice, punching through metal, blasting laser robots with his sonic cannon that retracted from his right arm.
He finished, looking pretty pleased with himself.
He looked at his arm and his eyes widened.
"Boo-yah! New course record!"
"Well, yeah…you're the first one to do the course," said Raven.
Cy made a sour look, but ignored Raven.
"Okay, Night. You're up!" said Robin.
Nightshade walked confidently over to the starting line. She shook out the nervousness from her body and took in a few deep breaths. She chilled instantly.
"Go, Night! You can do it!" shouted BB.
"Kick the butt!" exclaimed Starfire.
Cyborg simply crossed his arms and watched Nightshade with amusement.
When the countdown came down to one, Robin said, "Go!"
Then, Nightshade stood there for a moment and closed her eyes. She levitated into the air.
"Darkness and shadows I call to ye…come to me!"
And so, the darkness and shadows willingly obeyed her and came to her, shrouding her lovingly. Her clothes were changed from casual to her crimefighting suit.
She sucked in a breath and floated through the air. Laser beam robots attacked her first. Her hands were instantly shrouded with a dark energy. She turned her back and sliced the robots in two. They exploded in midair. More followed her. Then, sonic cannons from the sidelines began to shoot at her. She easily dodged their beams, making the laser beam robots follow her into the sonic beams. The last of them exploded with a burst. Bits and pieces of metal covered the ground.
Nightshade soared high into the air when more lasers followed her every move from the ground. She sent her shadow fire at them and they exploded like all the rest. Then, she ducked under some slamming gates that tried to crush her delicate looking body.
Suddenly she got caught under one.
Starfire, Cyborg, and Best Boy were taken aback.
"No!" shouted BB.
There was a loud creak and Nightshade appeared, pushing the heavy gate up and off of her. BB smiled and laughed triumphantly.
The last part was a big, empty hole in the ground. Nightshade easily levitated over it, dodging some arrows aimed at her. She landed on the ground with a big sigh and a huge smile for everybody. She placed her hands on her hips and wiped the thick coating of sweat from her brow.
Cyborg glanced at his wrist and made a surprised and mad face.
"How'd I do, Cy?" Nightshade asked.
Cy frowned and held up his wrist. The time read one minute and forty seconds.
"Looks like we have a new course record," said Raven, smiling at Night. Night smiled right back at her.
"I must've softened it up for her!" said Cy.
Robin shook his head and smirked.
"You have survived!" exclaimed Starfire.
"Yeah! Excellent, Night!" BB said.
Night gave Beast Boy a hug and he melted at her touch.
"Thanks, BB," she whispered.
"Sure…no problem…ah…"
He fell onto the ground. Nightshade crossed her arms and giggled.
Night's hand moved to the Titan's communicator hooked onto her belt, secure and tight and safe. She fingered the circular warning light she had on the center of her belt. It made her fill up with pride. She was a Teen Titan. She wondered if her parents would be proud of her.
Bitterness filled her. She seethed, anger rushing to her head and to her heart. It made her burn from within.
Night levitated onto the ground outside the Tower.
"Didn't they care?" she growled underneath her breath. "Didn't they want me? DIDN'T THEY?"
Night, with all her power and might, unleashed a torrent of darkness, shadows, and telekinetic energy. It swirled around her. It lifted her white hair up. She struck out at the rocks and dirt, at the water and the grass.
"I wasn't good enough for them, was I? THEY NEVER CARED."
Nightshade's eyes glowed pink from the hard pressure. She crossed her arms in front of her chest and let out a final torrent of anger. The waves of Jump City's bay arose slightly from the energy Nightshade unleashed. Nightshade lay face-first on the ground, crying. Her shoulders shook and her entire body trembled.
She felt something on her shoulder.
"Nightshade? What's wrong?"
BB's voice only made her cry harder. Why did she deserve such wonderful friends? What did she do to achieve them? Nothing.
"You…you wouldn't understand," Night whispered in a harsh rasp.
Beast Boy wrapped his arms around Nightshade's shaking shoulders and hugged her tightly. It was comforting to know that somebody cared, that somebody understood.
"You said that I can tell you anything. I know you can tell me anything."
Nightshade turned her tear-stained face to Beast Boy's green one. She smiled softly.
"You're right. Why is that?" She laughed at herself bitterly and then sighed. "You sure you wanna know?"
"Yes," Beast Boy said, nodding sincerely. "I'm listening."
He sat down beside her. Nightshade sat up and wiped away her salty tears. She looked out at the moon above.
"I don't know where I came from," she began. "I never knew my parents. They abandoned me as a baby. But my mentor and best friend Gadget raised me, teaching me martial arts and everything else I know. Besides her help, I lived on the streets, homeless, wandering from place to place. She's the one who helped me to first comprehend the strange powers I had. She's the one who gave me my first suit.
"I still hold a grudge against my parents."
Nightshade gritted her teeth as more tears flowed freely from her eyes.
"Why? Wasn't I good enough for them? Wasn't I? Was I really that much of a burden to them that they had to abandon me on the streets to die?"
Beast Boy hugged Nightshade tightly. Nightshade buried her face into his shoulder.
"You're good enough, Nightshade," he said softly. "You're good enough to anything and be anyone. Okay?"
"B, I'm glad you guys are my friends. I've never had a friend apart from Gadget. I've mostly worked alone out there."
They pulled away from the hug. Nightshade ducked her head and blushed. She pursed her lips.
"You have us. You're a Teen Titan now," Beast Boy said.
Night flicked her eyes back up to his face and smiled.
"I know," Night murmured. A bit of her toughness settled back in. "Glad I'm here, too."
BB smiled and took Night's hand, leading her back into the Tower.