The strike team tumbled down the ventilation shaft, hoping to catch Terra off guard. As they reached the end of the shaft they emerged into the HVAC room. Once they were all out they regrouped and waited for resistance, but none came. The alarm was still blaring as they entered the main hall in the lair, ready for combat. They saw dozens of SladeBots, but realized that they were deactivated. Batman ordered the team to spread out in pairs to search for Terra. Starfire noticed the dirty dishes in the sink, so they knew that someone had been there recently. Further inspection found a slept in bed, which was already cold. The shower stall in the bathroom was moist. Someone had been there very recently and they just missed her. But the question remained, where was she and why did she leave? The question was soon answered as Cyborg made another discovery: a message console that had been used recently. Batman examined it and saw that it had a recent message still in its memory. Apparently someone had forgotten to clear the buffer, which contained both the incoming and outgoing parts of the exchange. He pressed the replay button and Slade's image appeared on a screen, while Terra's sleepy mug appeared on another.

"Wake up Terra; I have some very good news for you."

"This had better be good Slade. I hate being woken up in the middle of the night."

"Oh, it's very good, trust me. You're going to get another chance to kill Raven."

Terra's face brightened at the news.

"OK, you've got my attention. Where is she? Has she returned?"

"No she has not. She's still in Azarath, with her husband Beast Boy."

"And how am I supposed to get there? It's in another dimension."

"It will be arranged. But you must first return to Jump City, which is a good idea as Batman has located the Gotham lair and is preparing to capture you. If you don't hurry he will apprehend and send you to Arkham Asylum, and you don't want that, trust me."

Terra looked visibly shaken by Slade's warning about the Dark Knight.

"Ok, I'll be out of here ASAP."

"That's a smart girl. Don't keep me waiting. Our benefactor can be very impatient".

And the recording ended. Batman downloaded it into flash memory module and led the team to the exit elevator.

"We're going to Jump City. Be ready in an hour"

-( - )-

Raven and Beast Boy were turning in for the night. He saw a look of weariness on her face that he had never seen before. They had no change of clothes but Ria had been able to procure them some sleepwear, which in balmy Azarath consisted of a T-shirt and some boxer shorts, and a pair of silk dressing gowns (robes). Her valet took their clothes to the laundry, promising they would be ready in the morning. Ria could tell they were tired and wished them a good night before the valet arrived. It had been a whirlwind day for both of them and Beast Boy knew that Raven needed some soothing. She lied on her side, facing him with her head on his shoulder. He ran his hand soothingly along her side, caressing her waist and hip. She had been still for several minutes and he was beginning to doze off when she whispered to him.

"I'm so sorry Gar, you deserve better than this." A tear dripped from her cheek onto his shoulder. He cupped her face in his palm.

"I'm not going to lie to you Rae, but I hate it here. I want to go home."

She kissed him tenderly on his forehead.

"I know. I'd rather face Terra. But how can we leave Azarath like this? It's just wrong Gar; it's not supposed to be this way. They are my people and I'm their protector. I can't turn my back on them."

He stroked her hair and kissed her.

"Of course we can't. We can't turn our backs on them. We're Titans. "

She kissed him back.

"You know I love you, right?"

He smiled. "How could I not? You only shouted it into the faces of those nasty matriarchs" He paused. "I hated how they were parading those guys in front of you, it made me feel so..." his voice trailed off as he pulled himself up, sitting on the edge of the bed. He didn't want her to see his face, as he was fighting back tears of anger.

Raven hopped off the bed and stood in front of Beast Boy, her gaze locked with his. She took his hands in her own and dropped down on her knees.

"Gar, I'm so sorry you've had to suffer through all this. You do know that I would never betray you? I would rather die than forsake you Gar."

He sniffled. "Thanks Rae." A tear streamed down his cheek. "I already knew that, but sometimes it just helps to hear it. It's just that I've never felt I was good enough for you, and all those pretty rich boys just reminded me that I'm a green freak with pointy ears and fangs."

"Hey!" she said crossly "They might be rich boys, but you're something they'll never be: A Man. My Man."

He cracked that goofy smile she loved from the day she first met him. He scooted over and patted the bed with his palm. She slid in and embraced him. Within minutes they were both asleep.

-( - )-

"So what are you going to tell your daughter Arella?" Mayra asked.

The Matriarchs had met in Arella's office on the top floor of her tower, and she did not like the tone of Mayra's voice. Arella saw hostility in their eyes. She knew what they were going to say. They had not approved of Raven's return when Arella had planned it months ago. Their grasp on Azarath was tenuous at best. Had it not been for the puppet they had appointed as Mayor they knew that all control would have been lost months ago. Now with a mayoral election coming up it was possible that their hard earned gains might get flushed away.

But they were also shocked. They had no idea that the populace rejected the rule of the Matriarchs and their polygamous morality. The crowd's thunderous approval of Raven's public display of lust for her first still stung in their ears. Something had to be done. Something WOULD be done.

"That's my own business!" Arella thundered back at her.

"It isn't any longer." An old crone snapped back at her. "She's become a threat Arella. If you won't deal with her, we will."

"And just what do you propose I do? She's my daughter for Azar's sake. My only heir."

"We told you not to bring her back. She's been on Earth far too long." Another Matriarch crowed. "She's been corrupted. You saw how she expressed her lust for that boy! We're lucky they didn't strip down and mate right in front of us."

Arella snorted at the ridiculous suggestion.

"And she isn't really one of us." Mayra continued. "She's human, like you! Only you humans can be so filthy with your animalistic desires. And don't deny it! We've heard the stories about you and your husbands. We looked the other way because you kept it private, but no more Arella. You will resolve this problem now or we will!" she snarled.

The accusation stung. Arella considered herself Azarathian, and Raven had been born in Azarath. She thought that they had been accepted as a one of them. Now she knew the truth.

"Again, what do you want from me?" Arella asked. She knew right there and then that she was finished, as she could not control Raven.

"You have three choices." The crone answered.

"One: You control her, make her behave. Make her pick her other three husbands. She can even have orgies with them for all we care, as long as she behaves in public."

"Or?"

"Two: You send her away and she can never return. We'll even buy you out so you can return with her if you wish. You might as well without an heir or sons." Arella had no offspring with her 4 husbands. She leaned too late that human and Azarathian genomes were incompatible.

"Or?"

"Three: You let us deal with her."

Arella laughed. "You cannot harm her. She is beyond any of you. Yours is an empty threat."

The crone cackled. "You underestimate us my dear. We have been in touch with your friend Slade Wilson on Earth. He is most despicable, but useful. In exchange for a handsome payment he has promised us an assassin who can take care of your daughter and her 'first'. So it's really up to you Arella."

Arella stared at the quorum before her. They shocked her, but she concealed it. So much for Azarathian enlightenment, the Matriarchs were no better than the Mafia on Earth. She had already made up her mind. She would warn Raven and Garfield. She knew that that they would never submit. Hopefully they would leave. The other option was unthinkable: civil war in Azarath, plus Slade's assassin.

"I will speak with her tomorrow."

-( - )-

Beastboy woke up first. It had been a warm night and they had kicked off the covers from the bed. Raven was curled up next to him, snoring softly. Beastboy thought that it was funny how she snored. She was so delicate looking, his gray princess, and her snoring seemed so out of place. He still couldn't believe his luck. That a freak like him had wound up with a girl like her. He remembered how the girls at the pizza parlor snubbed him the day Soto kidnapped him. They even preferred a dog to him. And there had been other girls he had struck out with. No wonder he had fallen for Terra, he really was desperate at the time. And Raven had always seemed so inaccessible, so out of his league…

He noticed that the snoring had stopped. He looked down and saw that she was awake and had been observing him.

"Time to get up" she said.

"I don't want to. All there is on the other side of that door is nothing but trouble. Crazy, power hungry women who hate men and now hate us too."

There was a knock on the door. Garfield put his robe on and walked to the door and opened it. It was Ria.

"I'm sorry to disturb you, but Arella is here to see both of you."

Beastboy opened the door all the way. "Tell her she can come in now."