"Why me?"

She had given in, and walking with the three to her new room.

"None of the titans would ever hurt you. You are the oldest in the new generation of titans. You know their weaknesses. You know their strength."

Mina bit her lower lip. Malchior leaned towards her. He smelt like sulphur, and made her want to chough.

"You have powerful powers too. You're just a late bloomer."

He took out the rubber band holding her hair, and started to play with it.

"All the best ones are."

Mina turned her head away, but didn't dear ask him to stop.

"If it's Lochan you're thinking of, don't."

Mina turned her head and looked at him, surprised.

"You know he doesn't love you."

"And I should just take your advice? You are one of my captures after all."

He smiled at her.

"Of course not. You should follow your mind. You know that people just don't fall in love, especially not boys. It's not rational."

Mina looked down at the floor, her hair covering her face. She didn't want to show him he had hit a weak spot. He took some of her hair behind her ear.

"Don't be sad. It's just the way we are."

"I know."

They stopped outside a door.

"Here's your room."

Gizmo and Malchior went, but Zhana staid. She measured her up and down.

"I can't believe you are who Malchior says you are."

"Then his probably wrong."

She shook her head.

"He never is."

She opened the door and followed Mina in. The room was simple, but pretty. A bit medieval inspired with dragon mirror and drapes over the bed. Mina liked it, and hated that she did.

"I guess you approve."

Zhana sat down by the mirror and checked that everything was in place.

"There are cloths in the closet. I suggest you change."

Mina went over to the closet and opened. It was full of medieval and renaissance inspired dresses. That seemed to be an ongoing theme. She pulled out a blue and green one.

Zhana didn't motion to leave, and Mina sighed and pulled of her clothes right in front of her. Zhana seemed to be about her age, with long light brown hair, and big dark eyes. She was wearing a dress similar to hers, only it was brown and dark red. They almost looked black, so dark where they.

Mina sat down on the bed, now changed, and Zhana moved behind her and started to comb her hair. She was very gentle, but unsure. Like she hadn't combed someone's hair before.

"Why do you do this?"

"My father. Your uncle, Nightwing, killed him."

"If he did, he had a good reason."

Zhana stopped brushing.

"He didn't."

The girls sat in quietness. Mina knew she had hurt Zhanas feelings, but didn't care. She was the victim her.

"Brush my hair."

Zhana gave Mina the brush and moved so she was sitting in front of her. Mina grinned her teeth together, but started to brush ever so gently.

"Are you a virgin?"

Mina's hand dropped. Zhana turned her head to see why she had stopped brushing. Mina rose to her feet to put the brush back.

"You are aren't you? Don't be upset. Most girls like you are."

"Girls like me?"

"Witches to be."

Mina raised one eyebrow as she turned to look at her.

"I bet you haven't even kissed someone."

Mina suddenly didn't feel like telling Zhana about Lochan. Zhana got out of bed, and stood in front of her. She looked different, and Mina could feel her pulse starting to go faster. Her breaths got shallower, and her palms got sweatier. It was like when Lochan was standing in front of her.

Mina turned so Zhana couldn't see the impact she was having on her. But it was like she knew. She grabbed Mina from behind.

"Lust is okay. If we didn't have lust, we wouldn't have love."

Mina wanted to say something, but couldn't. Zhana placed her hand on her chest, moved it to her breast, down her stomach to end at the top of her thigh. Mina hadn't felt anything like the teasing movements Zhana was doing.

It was a thousand times stronger than with Lochan, and soon Mina forgot about Lochan. All there was was Zhana and her hand. But suddenly her hand was gone. Mina opened her eyes, which she hadn't realised she had closed.

"Good night my princess, next time, I will give more."

Then she left, and Mina could hear a door open and close, and a key turn. They had locked her in. Mina almost fell to the floor, as all her energy seemed to vanish. She dragged herself to the bed. She fell asleep before she could get under the covers.

"Minerva, time to get up."

Mina opened her eyes, and looked into Malchiors face. It took her a second to remember who he was.

"What?"

"Time to work."

She got to her feet, and followed him. He was wearing a black robe, and Mina rolled her eyes.

"You laugh?"

"Isn't the outfit a bit over the top?"

"Unlike the cloak your mother gave you?"

Mina was shocked. How did he… of course.

"I don't like when people read my mind."

He looked over his shoulder as he stopped in front of a door. He gave her a smile.

"Old habit."

He opened the door, and gave her his hand. She took it, and he led her into the biggest magicians workshop she had seen. Mina didn't want to, but she was impressed. She saw things she only had read about in her books.

"You like?"

He was behind her, and whispered in her ear.

"This could all be yours you know."

She looked over her shoulder.

"I don't do magic."

"You could. It's all in there."

He started to play with her hair again.

"The knowledge, the gift. You are your mothers daughter."

"So people keep telling me."

"You know, I don't understand what she saw in Beast Boy."

Mina was sick of everyone talking bad about her father.

"You had some work?"

"Yes."

Malchior stopped playing with her hair, suddenly remembering why he brought her hear.

"Wow."

Mina was standing a few feet from her potion, and even thou she hated it, she felt proud that he was impressed. It was weird. It was so long since her mother had thought her this, but she remembered everything.

She was confused, to put it lightly, for some reason everything she hadn't been able to do with her mother, she did here without problems.

"I told you, you're a late bloomer."

"But 18 years? And don't read my mind."

He came over and stood in front of her.

"Some don't bloom until they are over 60. 18 years is nothing."

He bent down and softly placed his lips on hers. She was taken back by this, and didn't do anything. She just stood there, and soon he was finished.

"I thought guys didn't fall in love?"

He just smiled to her.

"We don't. This is just lust. But do you know the difference between my lust and his?"

"What?"

He came even closer, and again started to play with her hair. He started too automatically do it, and didn't pay much attention to it.

"He only wants you for your body. I want you for your mind."

She looked up at him.

"And that's better because?"

"I won't leave when I'm done."

"Malchior, Gizmo wants a chat with the girl."

Zhana was standing in the doorway and looking at them. Mina felt embarrassed, remembering what she had done last night. But she didn't stir. Malchior grabbed her hand and kissed it.

"Until next time my queen."

Mina just looked at him, and then followed Zhana.

"Why did you do what you did?"

Zhana just continued to walk down the hallway.

"If you wanted me, why didn't you just take me last night?"

She stopped outside another door. Mina couldn't see the difference from that one and all the others they had passed.

"I'm just waiting."

"For what?"

She got a gruesome smile.

"For you to break down."

Mina actually got a bit scared, and quickly went through the door. It was unlike anything she had seen so far.

From what she had seen, she could guess this was some sort of castle of some sort, but this room was totally high tech. Even the floor was covered in metal. It kind of reminded her of Cyborg's room times ten.

"Girl, over here."

Gizmo was wearing sort of spider legs on his back, and this lifted him into the air high enough so she had to look up at him, and not down.

"There."

He pointed to a spot on the floor. Mina shrugged and went over to the spot. Suddenly a green light swiped over her.

"Just knocking out any tracking devices you have."

Mina could feel Erleas necklace around her neck, and swore under her breath, but didn't let Gizmo hear this. The green light was gone and he motioned her to walk with him. The spider legs mad a small clank every time they hit the floor, but Mina soon didn't even realise this.

The room smelt sterilely and metal, and was quite cold. She started to rub her arms so she wouldn't get to cold.

"So, what can you do?"

"What do you mean?"

"Fighting."

Mina bit her lower lip. She didn't like the way this conversation was going.

"I know some hand-to-hand combat that Nightwing thought me, and archery from Arsenal."

"And the gun?"

Mina swallowed.

"Come on, we've seen it, and I guess you didn't leave it in your room. Give it to me."

Mina bent down and pulled it out of a strop around the thigh. She gave it to him. He rolled her eyes.

"Semi-auto. Low range. Boring."

He tried to throw it away, but Mina caught it.

"Okay, keep your baby gun, but look at this."

She put it back in place as Gizmo held up some sort of rifle.

"Fully automatic, 50 rounds. High speed. Try it out."

Mina didn't want to, but she was intrigued. She took the gun, and was surprised about how light it was.

"Titanium. Try it out."

She turned to a target, a cut out of a person, which suddenly appeared and shot.

Mina had never felt anything like that. The target just vanished. She was impressed, but again she would rather die than let him know that.

"It's okay."

"Okay? That's a work of art girl. I knew you didn't know anything."

"It's just to messy for my sake."

Mina cursed herself. Why did she say that?

"You see that's what I like about archery. It's clean. No mess. No fuzz."

Shut up. She bit her lip, preventing her from saying another word. Was this what Zhana meant, by her breaking down? Gizmo raised his eyebrow.

"Wait here."

He went of, and soon got back with a bow and some arrows. The bow was completely high tech and off metal, even the string. So were the arrows. It was unlike anything Mina had ever seen.

"Let's see just how good you are with that thing."

She placed an arrow on the string as a new target suddenly appeared. She shot it, and the arrow sank into the doll's chest. Gizmo was standing there with his jaw open, and Mina felt a sort of pride fill her. When she realised that herself disgusted her.

"Can I ask you something?"

"If you must."

"Why me?"

Gizmo turned to her, and was surprised, and then he smiled.

"Because you are just like us."

"No, I'm not. You guys are villains. Evil. You kill just for the heck of it."

"I never kill just for fun girl. Of course there are, casualties. But don't point your finger at me. You have killed three of my men, and I bet you haven't even stirred because of it."

Mina's chest started to hurt. Her head was pounding, and she felt like dirt as she realised he was right.

"But I had to kill them, to save the children."

"Did you? You couldn't just have wounded them like the man at the bank. Admit it. You loved killing them. You loved knowing that you controlled over life and death, the power that brought. You lust for it."

Mina started to take shallow breaths. Gizmo just turned his back to her.

"I had to kill them to save their lives."

"Just keep telling yourself that."

"I had to."

Didn't I?