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Greetings, Guys ! :D
So, first of all, I'd like to apologize if my explanation about OoC sounded somewhat harsh, snappy. I didn't mean to offend anybody when explaining, so if some of you took it bad, or took it personally, I feel sorry about that unwelcome aftermath. I wasn't in the best of moods when I wrote that and… well, I guess my tension unwillingly "exuded" in my writing. That and I was beginning to get slightly upset about people continuously pointing out at the same thing, that I already was well aware of. But that's not an excuse to be harsh, so, again, sorry if anyone has been frowning upon reading that OoC explanation.
Now, guess what ? I received a review in my mother tongue, French ! How unexpected… and cool is that ? Thanks loads to you, Soleana, for making the effort to review in my native language, I really appreciate the kind attention ! And yeah, too bad ya didn't study French for more years : 'tis such an AWESOME language ! ;) So, once again : merci beaucoup pour ton feedback et ton "favorite", Soleana !
Also gratitude to Guest, who nicely called RAViNx a "very good story". I'm both flattered and honored, and way pleased that ya enjoy it that much ! :D
As usual, much praise to Icy (sorry, but your alias is still kinda complicated to write, so I hope you don't mind if I use a "shortcut", eh ?) for remaining that constant in (reading and) reviewing ! I really appreciate your regularity, ya loyal fan, and wholeheartedly thank you for it ! :D
Likewise, thanxxxx Bonar and Espacole for following my current work. Ya guys rock !
Oh, and btw : I've gathered already 32 followers utn (up to now), and am really delighted about this ! It's above three times more than my first sTTory, 8, and I just marvel at so much interest for this modest love story here. I owe you so much, dear followers ! Thanxxxx a tremendous lot for reading this fiction AND pinning it among your ongoing reads ! Much indebted to ya all I am indeed !
And now, dear readers, all together : "COMPUTERBUGSARESUCHAPAININTHE… !" Coz yeah, laptop hindrances are such a bore, aren't they ? My Mum's MacBook has lost its connection to both server and Internet ! And when did that happen exactly ? As I was at her place, using that laptop to… finish typing the previous RAViNx chapter, "It was such a fine day, until…" The Word document was 28 pages long… so, did that make it too "dense", too "heavy" for the lappy to bear ? Crap, it would be my fault… although I didn't do anything wrong ?! Damn technology !
Btw, d'ya notice how my title contained three dots at the end ("It was such a fine day, until…")… while none of these three dots showed in the chapters list, in the drop-down menu ? FF likes to make things vanish, it seems… just as happens when it's "sabotaging" an e-mail link or an e-mail address, when we use some in a PM…Jeez, technology is meant to ease our lives, NOT to complicate them !
Alright, better keep energy to write this chappy, eh, so time to now N'JOY !
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Raven sighed sleepily as she felt slumber start to slowly retreat from her body.
She may be an early riser, yet getting up betimes still never went without saying.
Her eyes opened slowly and peered at the antic clock set on her nightstand.
5:55
Her mind came back to Jinx, who had tried to conceal her worry the previous evening. Her girlfriend had claimed she was tired, immediately after the communication with the policemen ended, yet Raven had sensed she actually wasn't feeling well psychologically. The tiredness mentioned therefore was some excuse to isolate herself and not display any sign of concern.
But the empathic power had naturally detected the real cause of her leaving, and Raven had guessed that that worry she had felt in her beloved had its origin in the bad news given by Heathfield and Moser : that Jinx's former criminal teammates were now out… and that the pink-haired witch would probably have to face them one day, but in the heroine's role, this time !
The violet-haired female let her magical senses reach out and flow over to her pink love, to know if she was already awake, and if so, in what mood she was.
Then her eyes opened wider and she frowned.
What she felt was confusion and anxiety. And it evidently caused her own concern to grow.
She quickly got up and donned her cloak, her tired body switching from relative drowsiness to sudden alertness in no time, and she hurried to phase through the wall.
Jinx's room was empty.
The once apathetic teen gave it a quick thought and concluded that her "better half" was probably in the common room, so she teleported over there.
And indeed, the black-dressed female was by the picture window, clearly gazing outside, in the scarce light of the early morning.
The empathic power of the Dark Enchantress let her know that Jinx's mind was swarming with worry, and this saddened her.
Raven took off silently, landed right behind her fellow wizard and rested her hands on her shoulders.
The pensive witch jolted and turned her head.
"Sorry, Jinki… Didn't mean to frighten you..."
"It's okay, Rae. I'm glad you're here."
Jinx pulled her head backwards, face turned to the other grey face for a sweet morning kiss.
"Wait a second, please…" whispered Raven.
She briefly probed the surroundings with her sensitive senses (1) to make sure nobody was coming their way.
And once she was sure that no one was heading to the common room at the moment, she lowered her mouth and let it rest on her beloved's.
Both enjoyed this morning treat, a perfect way to start a new day.
Once they had parted, Raven positioned herself opposite Jinx and stared at her with a serious expression.
"Jinx, what is tormenting you ? I could feel your dismay, and guessed that it's related to yesterday's news about your former teammates' escape. You're worried about facing them again, aren't you ?"
The vertical pupils briefly sank to the ground and quickly settled on the violet orbs opposite.
"I am. I've become an upholder of the law and, should we have to face each other one day, they will consider me a traitor. Maybe Mammoth might forgive me, but he will be the only one. The others won't show any mercy. I just dread the future Titan alert that will be related to their wrongdoing…"
Raven put her hands back on Jinx's shoulders.
"Don't worry, Jinki. I'll be by your side, and won't let any of them harm you. Nobody is going to hurt the girl I care for. That, I swear !"
There was determination in the amethyst orbs.
The Badlucker couldn't resist a smile.
"You're too sweet, Rae. Thank you so much for your concern."
She quietly snuggled against the body of the once accursed "portal" and sighed in contentment.
"I love you, Raven. I'm so lucky to have you in my life."
The gothic Titan hugged her back, caressing her horn-shaped hair.
"As am I, Jinx. You brought love into my life, me who was a lonely half-demon, and for this, I could never be grateful enough. And since I befriended you, curiously enough, I have much less emotion issues. I thought that experiencing true love would make my power go haywire, yet no : it's exactly the contrary that has happened… Your contact has brought a real balance inside of me, an emotional balance. It's really strange, paradoxical… but I know I owe it to you ! Thank you, my Jinx !"
"I'm glad I can help you make feel better… my Raven !"
The pink one then put her head back on the violet one's chest and closed her eyes, enjoying the constant gentle caress on her hair.
The two girls just stood by the picture window, enjoying a love moment, lost in a sea of bliss.
But the sweetness of the moment, the intensity of their mutual love, the comforting warmth of their bodies stuck together… all this led to Raven losing concentration for just a few minutes… and forget to use her empathic senses to check on presences around…
…and…
…there was a discrete hiss on the right, yet in the thick silence reigning in the place, both girls nevertheless could hear it, and both swiftly jerked their heads in the direction of the low sound.
Starfire came floating into the room and spotted them.
She came to a halt, puzzled by the sight of her two friends holding each other. Naturally didn't she think about same-gender love, as she didn't know yet it existed.
Raven inwardly cursed herself for forgetting to probe the surroundings as Jinx and herself were embracing.
The sorceresses swiftly parted, their hearts suddenly racing, gulping as they gazed at the silent Tamaranean.
"Glorious morning, Friends !" the orange-skinned alien awkwardly blurted out, still feeling confused at her female teammates hugging.
"Morning, Star. I was just… comforting Jinx, as she had a nightmare. That's why she was in my arms : because she needed to be reassured…" quickly said Raven, hoping that explanation would do.
"Oh ! I see. Sorry, I was just surprised when I saw you together… But I understand now. Tell me, Friend Jinx, what was your nightmare about ?"
"Hum… about… old friends trying to kill me…" she answered, providing the first thing that came to her mind… and that was actually related to a certain current dread of hers.
"Oh, how horrible indeed…!" exclaimed the kind-hearted extraterrestrial.
"Alright, let's go for breakfast now, right ?" cut Raven, willing to ease the atmosphere a bit and focus attentions on something else, something basic.
Jinx nodded, as she did her best to breathe deeply, in order to calm down her racing heartbeats.
Starfire did as well, although more energetically, enthusiasm flowing from her.
She had already almost forgotten about Raven and Jinx holding each other.
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Raven materialized on top of a secluded mountain, among olive trees, under a sunny blue sky.
Looking around, she noticed that the Yellow Cloak was nowhere to be seen. So she let her magic probe the surroundings, which eventually lead to locating the owner of the domain, a little further to the right.
Raven started in that direction.
She had told Jinx after breakfast that she had something personal to do in her room, and that it wouldn't take that long, proposing the thrower of bad luck curses to do something with Starfire in the meantime or, why not after all, with one of the boys.
The half-human heroine stopped in the center of a sunken area, a depression where lay, scattered here and there, Greek temples.
Opposite her was a levitating figure, clad in a yellow mantle, legs crossed and arms stretched over knees, two fingers joined in circular shape, eyes closed, the whole body focused in a deep meditation.
Knowledge.
The wisest emoticlone may have been engaged in an absorbing task, she howbeit felt the presence of her owner and accordingly opened up her eyes, looking through her glasses at the similarly-dressed female opposite, who only differed on one detail : the hood, that the sensible emotion wore up, was down in Raven's attire.
"Welcome, Master ! It is always a pleasure to host you in my domain. How can I please you ?" the emoticlone politely expressed herself.
"Good morning, Knowledge. Thanks for welcoming me. I wanted to discuss a matter with you… about Jinx. And about her influence on my emotions."
The clever look of the "four-eyed" girl (2) linked with the inquisitive stare of her owner.
"I know what your concern is about, Master. Being used to refraining your emotions and often meditate to channel them in order to avoid any power outburst, you therefore clearly assumed that experiencing love would cause incontrollable energy spouting, itself in turn wreaking havoc all around. And, given that assumption, you were all the more bewildered upon noticing that no such expected thing happened, and that, paradoxically enough, your tenderness and love display, after one or two minor disturbances, actually related to the gaining of an emotional balance, whereas you expected that balance to be shattered by amorous feelings. It all unfolded in the exact antipodal manner to the one you were anticipating."
Raven made a lopsided smile. Knowledge could read in her like in a book. If there was one emotion she knew would "know it all", it evidently was her. Needless explain : she already was aware. And this extremely strong intellectual bond was very appreciated from Raven.
"You summarized it perfectly, and as usual in the most elegant and intelligent manner, Knowledge."
The emoticlone made a slight bow and resumed observing her creator, sensing there was more to be listened to.
"I am indeed distracted by that unexpected outcome : that experiencing a feeling as strong as love would end up in harmoniously balancing my emotions and quite surprisingly avoid my power to get out of hand, as it already has when I'm under an emotional influence. Gaining that inner balance while loving was what I least expected. How is that, Knowledge ? Why did it turn out completely opposite ?"
In a typical gesture of hers when she was about to explain something complex, the glasses-wearing emoticlone straightened her spectacles before beginning her speech.
"I am not entirely sure of the reason, but I have the following theory about it : your surprising self-control isn't triggered by your love for Jinx… but by Jinx's own emotional balance ! She has a really good mastery over her feelings and emotions, and this despite her half-demon condition. It appears that not all half-demons have an inner instability, because she would obligatorily have it as well, in that case. So if you have issues about your emotional management and she hasn't, while being both part human and part demon, I assume that the difference may lie in the nature of the demons that were yours and Jinx's parents. Trigon is evil, and this accounts for the "hectic emotional heritage" you have to bear, and that requires daily meditation to control. But in my opinion, Jinx's demonic parent is not evil, which means her feelings are stable, and that stability of hers has a positive effect on your own feelings. Her being close to you, and perhaps also her love for you, considerably weakens if not neutralizes the instability of your emotions, and that explains why there is now almost no loose energy when you kiss her, hold her, stroke her hair and so on. Her inner emotional balance triggers a similar emotional equilibrium in you. I can't think of anything else."
Raven had intently listened to the explanation provided by Knowledge. And while she naturally couldn't swear that it corresponded to reality, and that her emoticlone was definitely right about it all, she nevertheless felt that she had guessed correctly, and that Jinx's inner stability had a more-than-welcome balancing effect on her own emotions. She somehow sensed that Knowledge had once again managed to discover the hidden truth.
"It all sounds so logical. So pertinent. I can't help but feel you're right, Knowledge. I really believe you found out what the mysterious reason for my sudden emotional stability was. I'm convinced you are correct about it. My sixth sense tells me so."
The Yellow One shrugged.
"As I said, it's only my theory about that matter. I don't claim it to be the truth… yet I can't help thinking I may be right after all. It's a kind of… intuition. I still might be wrong about it, yet I couldn't find a better explanation, so… I stuck to that one. Which I think to be really worth considering."
Raven nodded, pondering things on and on.
So Jinx is the one helping me to live a normal life without my "hectic emotional heritage", as Knowledge called it, getting in the way… Her stability, triggering my own… Yes, it definitely sounds correct ! Gosh, I really am way lucky to have become, first friend, then lover with Jinx ! She balances me, and helps me experiencing a normal love relationship… Oh Jinki… Jinki, I owe you so much ! You are a blessing in my life ! I knew I was right getting together with you. Rage was wrong. Definitely wrong.
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Jinx had spent a long time with Robin, him showing her how were handled the criminal files : how the Titans studied them, analyzed them, sorted them, updated them if needed. She had listened with interest and asked a few questions, some pertinent ones the Boy Wonder had replied to with pleasure, as he was satisfied noticing the new member had such relevant clarification requests. He appreciated the cleverness of her interventions, which reminded him of the intelligent remarks Raven made, and to a lesser extent Cyborg as well.
Then something had unexpectedly required Robin's full attention and monopolized it, for which he had apologized, asking her to come back a tad later if she would, to which she had agreed.
But naturally, what she felt like doing, now she had spare time, was check on Raven and see if she was over with the "personal stuff" in her room.
A couple of minutes later, she was knocking on her girlfriend's door.
No reaction inside.
She redid it.
Still nothing.
"Raven, it's me. Can I come in ?"
Silence…
Although she didn't like the idea of entering a room without the owner's consent – all the more when said owner happened to be the one you loved ! -, she still couldn't help sliding the door open.
It indeed looked like the room was deserted.
I guess she finished whatever she had to do in here, then went meditating, maybe on the roof, like last time…
The grey-skinned witch was about to close the door when something caught her attention.
There, on the bed… some sparkling !
She entered the room, still caring to close the door, just to avoid anyone to find out she, the new team member, was allowed into Raven's room, whereas all ancient members were not. Then she proceeded to the bed to find out what the mysterious object reflecting the sun was.
She stopped and looked at what was there, on the bedspread.
A mirror.
One that had an elegant frame, not just the plain, utilitarian mirror, but a real work of art.
Jinx picked it up and turned to the nightstand, where she planned to leave it, for Rae to find it easily when she came back.
But right before putting the mirror down, she suddenly felt like having a look at herself in that esthetic mirror, so she put it before her face…
…and started upon spotting four red eyes appear in the depths of the reflective surface !
Her lips moved, about to open and let out some surprise sound… but before any such thing could occur, a black claw swiftly emerged from the mirror and quickly closed around Jinx's body !
The Hex squirmed to try and free herself, but the hellish grasp was too powerful, and the dark substance dragged her within the mirror, her scream abruptly cut as it had only begun !
And soon, all that was left in the Dark Titan's room was the mysterious mirror, its surface normal again, as if nothing had happened…
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Jinx couldn't believe her eyes.
A place seemingly set in space, with a dark sky everywhere and floating pieces of ground. Except that there weren't any stars : they had been replaced by some black orbs with blood-red outline.
Damn, is that place creepy ! But where the heck am I ? Looks like some kind of inferno…
Looking around, she wasn't so surprised not to spot anyone. Such eerie universe was exactly the kind one would imagine desert.
The main point here was to find a way out.
She noticed that there was a path behind her, which was winding up to a platform located a tad higher. So she set out on that passage, hoping it would lead to an exit of some sort.
Having arrived on the platform, she let her pink eyes take in the surroundings.
All around the circular piece of land, there were, at equal intervals, eight stony arches. It looked like frames of antic doors… except that there was nothing past the arches ! No corridor, no room : just the void. The same landscape could be seen through them.
Why are these things here ? They resemble entrances, but there's nothing behind : they don't lead anywhere… Strange…
Yet, although it seemed no exit could be found in that place, she still felt like stepping forward instead of going back along the same route. What incited her to do so, she didn't know. Perhaps some intuition…?
As far as she could tell, the arches were all identical. She took time to look at all of them, then finally randomly approached one.
Her face now showed a serious expression a she stared first at the arch, then at the open space in the middle, where a door might have once been.
To the eye, that architectural shape didn't lead anywhere… yet her intuition "spoke" differently, deep inside of her ! It told her of a secret, hidden passage…
Jinx licked her lips and made a few steps forward.
She stopped right below the arch.
Nothing had happened.
She hesitated then advanced once again…
…and suddenly found herself in a vast plain, under a leaden sky !
The vertical pupils grew wider at once, the shock of the change overwhelming her.
It… It was a magical door ! It teleported me here ! But what for a world is this ?!
Suddenly, a short distance from her, water spouted from the ground and the liquid squirt went really high, with a hissing sound.
Once the water had fallen down, steam filled the atmosphere, originating from the hole the water jet had exited from.
Hot water jetting from the ground… Jinx got what it was : a geyser.
Behind her, another similar racket burst, making her swiftly turn around.
A second geyser, several yards from her, had erupted high up, and steam soon warmed the place.
And then a third one, a little further.
Not willing to spend much time in such an insecure location, Jinx began walking away, her eyes worriedly observing: she was trying hard to make sure she avoided the holes of the geysers as she progressed through the threatening plain.
After a long anguishing walk, she realized that she had reached the limits of the geyser area : where she was standing now, there was no water spouting.
She felt relieved… until she witnessed the simultaneous eruptions of ALL the geysers !
Numerous liquid columns indeed jetted up at the very same time, as if foretelling some imminent dreadful event.
And that's when a deep, inhuman voice loudly asked : "What are you doing in my domain ?"
Jinx jerked her head in the other direction and goggled : a cloaked figure was standing there, observing her, arms and legs hidden under the red fabric, only the lower part of the face showing. The person appeared similar to Raven, except for the cloak colour, therefore Jinx assumed it was a female teenager, like the empath.
Then the mysterious female walked closer and stopped inches from the pink-haired enchantress, and the latter felt her heart miss a beat : in the dark part where the upper part of the face was hidden, four red slits were shining malevolently !
And given the position of those four slits, it really seemed as if these were… eyes !?
"Well well well, Jinx, have you lost your voice ? Or are you too afraid about what I have in store for you ? Afraid of your fate ?" the demonic being asked in its deep, hellish tone.
"Who… who are you ?"
"Oh, I'm only the one who will punish you for drawing Master on the wrong path !"
Jinx was puzzled.
"Master ? Who is Master ?"
"You call her Raven. And you made her love yourself, a female, while she's meant to love a male, given her gender. You perverted her ! And for this perversion, you will pay !"
This time, shock replaced puzzlement.
"Perverted her ? I… perverted Raven ?"
Rage suddenly imitated the geysers that were part of her domain : she erupted violently !
"Yes, you PERVERTED her ! You made her become a LESBIAN ! You filthy little slut ! I'll teach you to stain Master's honor !"
And there was a new feeling switch : but this time, it was from puzzlement to… anger !
"WHAT ?! What did you just call me ?! 'Filthy little slut' ?!"
"That's what I said, yeah ! Because that's what you are, you dirty lesbian !" yelled Rage.
"How dare you ?! You have no right to insult me ! And I didn't "pervert" Raven : she freely chose to love me ! There's no perversion in all this ! So you better watch your mouth !"
Rage was fuming for good.
"SHUT THE HELL UP !"
As she screamed, she raised her arms and a bolt of dark energy immediately formed in her hands.
Jinx's eyes widened but she wasn't quick enough to avoid the magical projectile : the black orb hit her "point blank" and her body was brutally cast away, crashing against a lonely mound.
"I'll show you what real magic is, you second-hand sorceress !" warned the Red Hood as she started gathering energy again.
The sixth Titan had a knee down to the ground, and was wincing from the impact, but she knew she wouldn't stand a chance if she didn't stand back up at once.
A black wave rushed to her, and she avoided it at the last minute by flinging herself out of target, using her bended leg to shoot herself off the ground.
Rage shot bolt after bolt of dark energy at her horn-haired adversary, and Jinx had to move nonstop to make sure she avoided them all.
The former villain then took off, her eyes shining a bright pink, and launched hexes at the cloaked figure, who moved this way and that way to dodge all of them.
"Ah ah, is that all you can do, perverted witch ?" mocked the red-clad female.
A savage roar of wrath left Jinx's throat and escaped through her gritted teeth.
The badluck curser threw her hands forward, and a huge mass of pink flowed from her palms.
Rage's eyes imperceptibly widened and the primal emotion had to summon a black shield to avoid being hit by the powerful display of bad luck energy.
"I'll teach you your lesson, you creepy monster !" angrily shouted the ex- H.I.V.E. student.
And she started running, throwing new kind of pink projectiles : some semi-circular, moon-shaped ones.
Once again, the violent emoticlone simply floated from side to side to avoid them all, then she resumed her position and put her hands up once again.
Yet Jinx's latest weapon had a particularity : if they missed their target, they didn't just continued their course until they met an obstacle. No, these ones, unlike the hexes, didn't fly straightforward all the way : they made a u-turn, like a boomerang, and came back to their target !
But Rage naturally ignored that, and while she was busy preparing another onslaught, she didn't notice all the magical moon-shaped projections turning in the air and rushing back to her.
Jinx raised her arms and yelled, her eyes shining even more.
This made the size of the rushing projectiles augment, and had them become shinier as well.
The first one hit Rage on the head, earning a loud and deep demonic scream of surprise.
But she didn't have time to understand what had happened to her : a second one hit her on the back, then a third one on the shoulder, a fourth one on the head again…
The cloaked figure received many attacks in a row, making her yell pretty loud, her cries a mix of rage and pain.
Jinx smiled evilly as she witnessed the success of her strategy and relished Rage's defeat.
The perverted witch showed you what she was capable of, horrible demon !
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Love raised her eyes from the chessboard and let them look left, suddenly alert of something going on in Nevermore.
"Can you feel what I feel, Happy ?" she asked, vaguely preoccupied.
The bubbly emoticlone forgot about the chess game as well, focusing her empathic senses on the remote event.
"Yeah ! Looks like Rage is up to something again… She's battling pretty harsh. But, thank God, I'm not her punching ball this time… Hey, how about we go check on that fight ?"
Love obviously was indecisive.
"It's none of our business, Happy. If Rage sees us watching her, she'll think we've come to spy and -"
"Oh, come on !" cut the Pink Cloak. "There isn't that much action in Nevermore. For once, we have the occasion of taking our minds off the usual routine and see something different ! Let's go, Love ! Please !"
The enthusiastic emotion sure knew how to sound convincing.
The purple-clad female sighed.
"Oh, okay then…" she gave in, shrugging.
"Cool ! Off we go !"
And in a matter of seconds, both girls were no more than dots in the purplish sky characterizing Love's domain.
(…)
The orange-cloaked female sprawled on the ground, under a fir, burped as she turned to the brown one dozing off under another similar tree.
"Hey, Sloth !"
The other emoticlone didn't even seem to stir.
The first one frowned.
"SLOOOTH !"
The addressee finally reacted : she produced a barely audible grunt, slowly opened her eyelids and yawned copiously.
"What, Rude ?"
The shouter, who was now cleaning out her teeth with her pinkie, gave up that activity to focus on the discussion just starting.
"You probably didn't feel anything, since you were sleepy, but there is an augmentation of activity in Rage's domain. She is fighting someone, according to the violence of the vibes. But who ?"
Sloth rubbed her eyes.
"Yeah, well, must be you-know-who again…"
She clearly wasn't willing to go check if it really was Happy.
"Hey, let's go there and watch that ! I'm bored, and so are you ! That will spice up the day a bit, eh ?"
The girl in brown mumbled under her breath.
"I'm tired, I wanna sleep…" she finally uttered.
But Rude was far from discouraged.
"We fly there and we rest under a tree. We lie down and lazily enjoy the show. How about that ? Come on, Sloth !"
The indolent one yawned to the point her jaw would unhinge.
"Sloth… I tell you we'll just lie and look… no effort whatsoever…" insisted the ill-mannered emoticlone.
"Alright, alright… we'll go !" reluctantly agreed the idle female. "If I refuse to, you'll harass me, and that'll exhaust me even more…"
Rude smirked. As if it was that exhausting for Sloth to fly to one of the closest domains to hers… that was just laughable.
Both gathered enough energy to head towards the dark plain stretching not that far away.
(…)
Brave suddenly appeared distracted.
She let the energy-encased block reach the ground, and immediately relegated the reinforcement of Timid's maze to a position of secondary importance.
What mattered right this moment was what she had perceived in the distance.
She didn't have to focus much to know what the matter was, and soon turned towards her now worried sister.
Timid's change of expression, from relaxed two minutes before to anxious right now, clearly proved she had perceived the sudden burst of energy at Rage's.
"You felt it as well, didn't you, Timid ?" asked the Green Cloak.
The shiest emoticlone slowly nodded, watching her fearless sister with much concern.
"I wonder what that killjoy is up to again. She's probably teaching Happy a lesson. But still, I'd like to give it a look. Are you coming with me ? I will protect you, don't worry ! You know you have nothing to fear with me, don't you, Timid ?"
The grey-dressed teen visibly hesitated, discreetly biting her lower lip.
"I… I don't know… do you think there are risks…?"
"With Rage, I'll honestly say there always is potential danger. But we will make sure to stay away, to avoid any wingding. Besides, as I stated before, you're with me, and as such, you are protected at best. So, do you accompany me, Timid ? Yes ?"
Brave's tone was one of sweet persuasion, and Timid realized she couldn't find a way to oppose to such a subtly convincing speech.
"O… Okay… I'll stay behind you… if that's okay with you…"
"Of course it is. Thanks for tagging along, Sis' !" the courageous emotion concluded.
A couple of seconds later, the stone maze was left to its own devices.
(…)
Nevermore may be Raven's mental universe, but the empath still won't notice each and every increase of activity as it starts. It will actually take a certain time to be perceived, depending on the violence of that activity : indeed, it is only when that violence reaches a precise threshold that Raven can actually detect it.
Therefore hadn't she at first nosed out the fight between Jinx and Rage.
But after a certain time, right after Jinx had managed to assault Rage with those moon-shaped projectiles including magical "homing device", Rage's wrath and power suddenly grew to frightening heights and sent terrible violence vibes everywhere in Nevermore, therefore allowing Raven and all emoticlones to know some battle was taking place in her domain… yet without giving away the opponent's identity ! (3)
The emoticlones hadn't tried to focus on that latter identity, several of them assuming it was Happy and therefore merely flying to Rage's to have, so they thought, confirmation of that.
Raven and Knowledge had perceived the energy of the battle as well, actually simultaneously to all other emoticlones.
"What's the matter with Rage ? Is she chasing Happy again ?" wondered the empath. "I warned her about the need to renounce that, and so did you, Knowledge."
"I did. But perhaps Happy sneaked in Rage's domain to provoke her or play a prank on her…? At least, it can't be a hostile intrusion, a foe from the outside, or else Rage would most probably have informed us telepathically that an enemy force had sneaked into your mind, Master."
"Mmmmh, you're right. But I don't want her to mistreat Happy. If my optimistic side disobeyed me, she will be punished again, but I don't allow any of my emotion to beat another one…"
Raven assumed that it may well be Happy who was facing Rage, but she still let her empathic senses focus on the demonic emotion's opponent.
And the identity of that opponent got unveiled to Raven…
The half-demon felt her temperature sink in no time !
"JINX ! Rage is fighting JINX !"
She immediately took off and Knowledge raised a hand in her direction.
"MASTER !"
But she naturally followed suit, hurrying to catch up with her both worried and angry owner.
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The great increase of energy, the one which disclosed the battle to Raven and all emoticlones, was Rage going out of control following her being "pushed around" with those multiple attacks in a row.
As soon as the onslaught was over, the demonic being, who had collapsed to the ground, stood back up, her hood down, and Jinx squinted her eyes, having the impression that her adversary wasn't just cloaked like Raven, but that she also physically matched her. She wasn't completely sure, though, given the distance between the "monster" and herself.
The deep demonic voice thundered, and sounded filled with pure hatred and wrath.
"You will regret that, filthy lesbian ! I will make you pay the highest price for mistreating me ! And when I've finished with you, you'll wish you had never met Master !"
The last words hit Jinx hard, not exactly devastating her, but still dealing her a pretty harsh psychological blow.
Stupor got a hold of her, thinking at how miserable she would be without Rae, and on the contrary how happy she was with her.
But to stupor succeeded fury, righteous fury.
The sixth Titan raised a menacing finger and half-pointed it to Rage.
"You have no right to say that ! No bloody right, you hear me ?!"
"I do what I want. And what I want is crush you !"
Suddenly, a black aura emanated from the red-clad female, and it shaped into tentacles… which immediately headed for the pink-haired sorceress !
The latter started to run and move in an acrobatic manner, her body making complex figures to avoid the dark tendrils following her close.
She managed to remain out of reach for a long moment… but eventually got caught !
Rage brought her victim in front of her face, and Jinx's eyes widened to their maximum, realizing that the demon she was staring at actually WAS Raven's lookalike, like some evil doppelgänger. But these four red eyes… ? And how frightening they were !
"I don't think I'm going to kill you, although I'm still unsure…" growled the inhuman voice. "But I'll make you regret perverting Master with your filthy, abnormal, sick same-gender love… or what you at least call 'love' ! I'll make you suffer ! Serves you right !"
Jinx, immobilized by the black tentacles, could only glare at her enemy for saying such words. That and speak out her wrath : "I hate you ! I hate you, creepy monster !"
These words reminded Rage of what she was considered by Raven… a monster ! And this simple remembrance drove her mad !
The tentacles lifted the Pink Enchantress, then made a curve movement to the ground and slammed her body hard to the ground.
While this happened, Rage was vociferating on top of her voice, her red eyes unusually wide open.
And it was naturally that incredible outburst that had brought violence's level past its limit and "given away" the fight to Raven and all emoticlones.
The tentacles lifted the Badlucker and crashed her down once again.
The victim squeezed her eyes shut, wincing from the shock, but focusing her anger as much as she was able to, hoping that maintaining her animosity high would help her remain conscious.
Hell, it hurts ! It hurts so fucking bad ! Rae… I don't know if I'll survive this, if she'll kill me or not, but if I die… Rae, I love you… thanks for making me happy… for real…
But as she thought this, Jinx recalled that Raven had told her about telepathy, and she now would have liked to use it to transmit those thoughts to Raven… but pain made it impossible for her to even focus enough to perform telepathy.
After five crashes, the Hex still hadn't passed out, and noticing this, Rage infuriated even more, screaming in a horrible way.
She released the former criminal, who fell heavily, and considered her for two good minutes, wondering what she could do to her.
Then a wicked smile twisted her mouth.
She lifted her hand high… and a black sphere started to grow in her grey palm !
Jinx, feeling so weak, tried to keep her eyes open and gathered all her strength to try and get up quickly, before she got hit by the now huge energy ball, but she couldn't : the repeated shocks had weakened her too much. All she could do was helplessly stare at her doom, which lay in the hand of the red emoticlone.
Goodbye, Rae… I know you can't hear me, but still… I.. I… love you…
Her eyes closed and she passed out.
"And here is something that should definitely knock you out, before I decide if I destroy you for good or not !" yelled Rage.
She was about to launch the large energy sphere…
…when Love and Happy suddenly appeared from behind a mound and rushed to Jinx !
They placed themselves between Rage and her victim, the Purple One with her arms stretched horizontally in the typical protective position.
"NO ! You're not killing her ! Never as long as I'm alive !" shouted a both angry and anxious Love.
"Have you gone completely CRAZY ?! Why did you do that ?! Curse on you, Rage !" screamed an unusually furious Happy.
Rage, who naturally didn't expect such a twist, was caught unawares.
But her lack of reaction didn't last long.
"Love ! Happy ! Get away from here ! She perverted Master by making her become a lesbian ! She deserves to suffer more !"
"You're going to KILL her if you throw that thing !" yelled a new voice.
Brave had just arrived with Timid, the latter hiding behind her green sister.
Both joined the Purple and Pink Cloaks, the courageous emoticlone taking a fighting stance, decided to protect Jinx at any cost.
"Stop protecting that witch ! She turned Master into something abnormal ! How can you defend her ?" shouted the four-eyed girl, yet cancelling her attack and floating down to stop at a short distance of her sisters.
"It's… It's because… Master loves her… that we defend her…" shyly said Timid.
"Hey, what's the matter here ?"
The speaker was Rude, who together with Sloth, just came to a halt close to the group.
"She tried to murder Jinx !" screamed Happy, for once everything but happy.
"Monster" deadpanned Sloth.
Rage's anger level started to rise again. Her four eyes narrowed and she gritted her teeth.
"Watch your mouth, lazy fool, or you'll be sorry !" the deep voice threatened.
"Jinx ! Oh no, JINX !"
The emoticlones felt a shiver run down their spine as they heard the distraught tone of their owner, who was now landing with Knowledge.
The empath ran to her beloved, who lay motionless on the stony ground, kneeled down to her and took her in her arms, her eyes watering. She immediately let her senses search the pulse… and was relieved to feel it, much slowed down, yet fortunately still present.
"Rage, what did you do ?" asked Knowledge in a sinister tone.
"Justice" simply replied the holder of Trigon's evil heritage.
Raven's head shot up, her beautiful face twisted by a horrible grimace of pure fury.
"Justice ?! JUSTICE ?! How DARE you call this justice ?! How could you DO such a thing ?"
"She invaded my domain !" stated the dangerous emotion.
"And so what ?! You try to kill anybody coming into your area ?! Then why the hell are we still all alive right now, since we're in your precious domain ?!"
"Master, she attacked me ! She attacked me from the rear, sneakily ! How am I supposed to react ? Let her beat me up ?"
"You were not forced to make her unconscious ! You could have imprisoned her and called me telepathically ! Why didn't you ? Besides, who attacked first : her… or you ? Tell me the truth, Rage !"
"It was me. But she lacked respect to me !"
Raven exploded in deafening hollering.
"AND SO, YOU ATTACK HER BECAUSE SHE IS IMPOLITE TO YOU ?! CAN'T YOU ONCE IN YOUR LIFE ACT IN A MODERATE WAY, IN PROPORTION TO THE OTHER'S DEED ? YOU DON'T ATTACK IF SOMEONE IS HARSH TO YOU ! YOU ONLY DO IF YOU'RE ATTACKED FIRST, TO DEFEND YOURSELF ! AND ANYWAY, WHY WOULD JINX LACK RESPECT TO YOU ? IT'S TOTALLY UNLIKE HER !"
"She called me a 'monster' ! Isn't that disrespectful enough ?"
"Sometimes I have the feeling that it's what you are, given your incontrollable violence : a monster."
Rage's four eyes briefly opened to their maximum, but soon narrowed as she gritted her teeth and clenched her fists.
"You always despise me, Master. I'll never know what to do to gain your respect. Whatever I do is wrong. With all due respect, I'm continuously hurt by your sternness, it makes me sick. But you're my owner, and I can't but accept all this anyway." A brief silence. "So what's my punishment ?"
Raven mused for a couple of seconds.
"You'll stay imprisoned for a whole month in a magical prison, right here, on this very spot where you knocked down the one I love. That perhaps will make you ponder things, and maybe once in your violent existence, will have you realize you went too far… But before I trap you, I want to know what the reason of your argument was in the first place."
Rage looked away, averting the violet gaze.
"I have nothing to say. Please imprison me now."
"I'll find out anyway, Rage. Jinx will tell me once I've healed her. And we will have a discussion at the end of the month. Until then, I don't want to hear of you."
Raven's eyes turned a shiny black.
"AZARATH, METRION, ZINTHOS !"
A black cube formed around Rage, just big enough for the demonic emotion to remain upright, in standing position.
"And don't even try to destroy that prison : I will know if you do !" warned the empath.
"I won't" said a resigned Rage, who had now sat down.
All the emoticlones were staring at their problematic sister, who didn't return the gazes, her four eyes directed at the ground. There was anger, indignation, disappointment, incomprehension and even sadness in the cloaked girls' eyes. The one visually expressing sadness was Knowledge, who had already tried, quite a few times, to reason with the most impulsive of all emotions, together with Happy. But her efforts had been, and therefore remained, vain. And this really brought sorrow in the heart of the wisest emoticlone.
"Will… will she be okay, Master ?" asked Love, her wet eyes on the unconscious female magician.
"She will be. I will heal her right away, and she will be. I thank you all for coming here and protecting Jinx. I know I can count on… you."
Raven's eyes briefly glanced at the dark cube as she uttered that.
"Curse on that insane emotion !" growled Brave, fists still clenched.
"She deserves all this ! She really does !" insisted Happy.
"Serves her right…" concluded Rude, frowning.
Raven nodded slowly, upset still haunting her.
"Look, I suggest you now all resumed your activities. I know it won't go without saying, but don't worry, I will take good care of Jinx. This should not ruin your day. After all, she's still alive, and as long as she is, I can heal her. So please be at rest, alright ?"
"We… we will try…" hesitantly said Timid.
"Definitely" added Sloth.
The emotions took off, except for the Yellow Cloak. The latter approached her Master, who now held her hurt beloved in her arms, and gently laid a hand on the blue-cloaked shoulder, her fingers on the top softly squeezing said shoulder in a comfort gesture.
"Thank you, Knowledge" whispered Raven whose eyes had started watering again.
A sorry smile briefly showed on the intelligent face.
"Anytime, Master. If you need anything… I'm here for you, and so are the others."
"I know. And I appreciate." Rae said through her tears. "I have to go now."
She gave a quick glance at the prison, where Rage still had her head hung.
"If she tries anything, warn me immediately, okay ?" the violet-eyed girl demanded.
"Of course, Master. And I suggest that, one day, you bring Jinx again in Nevermore and introduce her to us, if that's okay with you."
Raven nodded and a black sphere wrapped her and Jinx.
A second later, Knowledge was standing alone.
She turned her head to gaze at Rage, and let out a deep, long sigh…
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The two bodies were now in Raven's bed, and the Violet Enchantress held the Pink one in her arms, dark energy continuously flowing from the first one and entering the second one's organism to heal it, slowly but surely.
Raven focused on the healing, hoping Jinx would wake up before the evening, but still ready to spend the whole day in her room if Jinx's condition required it. She was ready to give everything she had, in terms of energy, to have her girlfriend back in top form, even if that meant spending hours and hours by her side, sending her her healing power non-stop.
I swear I will crush Rage if she ever does something similar again ! She has no excuse ! She deserves this month of imprisonment. And I swear she will apologize to Jinx, even if I must force her… or use all of my powers for that !
The half-demon had told Robin she would be busy meditating in her room with Jinx, probably for a few hours, and demanded that nobody disturbed her, under any excuse. She had asked him to exceptionally spare her and Jinx an intervention, in case of a villain needing to be "taken care of", because that meditation was of "crucial importance". The leader had agreed to that, yet insisted that it remained indeed exceptional.
But, better safe than sorry, the Dark Titan had still encased her door in dark magic, to block it… just in case.
Time flowed slowly, so slowly in the room of the Azarathian. Minutes became half hours, which in turn became one hour, two hours…
Raven held Jinx dearly against her heart, giving her her strength, mending her damaged body at best. Rage had badly harmed the Hex, but there was nothing that Rae couldn't "repair" with her demonic energy.
After the third hour had passed, the empath, who had changed position to lie by her love, started feeling woozy. The great amount of power she had left in the healing was now taking its toll.
Her eyes closed.
She reopened them, but after a while, they went shut again, against her will.
She once again reopened them, making them wide this time, to avoid exhaustion get a hold of her.
It lasted a few minutes, but eventually, tiredness won once more.
There were two more attempts from Rae, but she naturally lost both times.
A few minutes later, both girls were unconscious, Raven's arm still around Jinx's body, her head against her beloved, violet hair resting on the pink one, their chests regularly heaving in the quietness of the room, a striking change after such dramatic events …
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AUTHOR'S NOTES :
(1) sensitive senses : honestly, guys, don't you love alliterations…? No ? Ah, folks, where in the world have gone your poetic studies, those from back in high school ? ;P
(2) the "four-eyed" girl : I found out that this expression is colloquial to refer to one wearing eyeglasses. I put it between quotation marks "" to make a distinction with the one REALLY having four eyes : Rage. If I was speaking about the latter, I would have written it without those quotation marks : the four-eyed girl. So much for multiple-eyes description… ;)
(3) Nevermore's functioning : I stated that violence wasn't immediately noticeable in Nevermore, and that it had to reach a certain level to be perceptible by both Raven and her emoticlones. Of course, this is all my invention, part of my imagination, as we naturally ignore how Nevermore really functions… But I thought it would somehow make sense to have any display of power not immediately noticeable : coz knowing everything immediately would make things a bit too "easy", don't ya think, pals ?
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So, dark's dark, isn't it ? I wanted something darker, that would challenge Jinx, so here it was.
I hope I did well, but I have a good feeling about this chappy here. Let's see, reading your reviews, if you have the same feeling.
I was glad to involve again the emoticlones. I just love "working with them". They're one of Raven's aspects that fascinate me the most. And yeah, in this part, Rage indeed embodies all negative reactions of people against homosexuality, but mostly the violent ones. Because there are some stupid "fuckheads" who are intolerant enough to beat the hell out of gays and lesbians. Frankly, these people, I'd love to see them handicapped, with both legs broken, coz they bloody deserve it ! Homophobes can go get crushed ! They are not the worst kind ever (racists are damn worse !), but they still are nuisances.
Oh, while I think of it : dunno if I already told ya this, but if you wanna read really good sTTories, go read works by author(ess) WRITERZERO ! It's just awesome, wonderfully thought and written, with great ideas and catchy battles, as well as touching intimate sequences. Go read, tell ya !
Right, time to give this a rest ! After all, I can't always write 9'000, or even 10'000, can I ? Now that would be insane, wouldn't it ? ;P
Thanxxxx beforehand for anyone reading, and even more following, and even even more favoriting, and even even even more reviewing, and even even ev- okay, shutting it ! XD
Take care, FFellows ! ^_
Peace, Love, Ecstasy !
))))))))))))))))))))))))))))) Bloc PartER (((((((((((((((((((((((((((
