We own the rights to nothing within this story.
'The Geeks Get the Girls' is performed by American Hi-Fi
"Oh, it feels so good to be back in business," Ravager nearly sang as her foot hooked one of the robber's ankles and sent him crashing to the bank's floor. Several feet away, Kid Devil slammed another of the armed men into the wall with enough force to crack the wall while his other hand turned the barrel of the rifle into slag that pooled on the floor. Hatrack gave a whooping cry as she flipped over another before slamming a wool cap down upon the woman, which stretched her entire form and then trapped her. She cartwheeled away as the remaining member opened fire on her only to be summarily stopped by a blow that launched him all the way through the doors of the bank. His weapon clattered against the floor as Blackfire folded her arms over her chest and growled.
"Why do you fools never save us all the trouble and just surrender?"
"Are you kidding?" asked the white-haired teen, still using the armor she had acquired from NOWHERE, as she flipped the goon over her shoulder, sending him crashing into a table. "This is ridiculously cathartic after not being able to kick the ass of all those jerks in school."
"Still, how about we finish up and stop scaring the citizens?" Gar advised, his voice emerging from the headphone in her ear. Still hampered from joining them in the field by his wound, the shape shifter had set himself up as mission control, lounging upon the couch and devouring a large sundae as he watched the feeds from the bank's cameras projected on the central computer. Scattered about him were reports and files from Dayton Industries as well as his personal laptop, which was tasked with searching for ballrooms.
"Killjoy," Ravager grumbled as she cracked an elbow across the man's face, dropping him to the ground and ending the simple confrontation. Kid Devil tended to the civilians, helping them from the floor and offering his reassurances as Hatrack produced a variety of haberdashery that she adorned the children with. Blackfire awaited them with obvious impatience, drifting ever closer to the skylight she had led the assault through. Finally, they were prepared to depart and Hatrack leapt forth to capture a hand of the alien as she exited through the prominent opening. The remaining pair took a more mundane path, leaving through the front door and slipping into an alley. There was a moment of hesitation before Kid Devil's hand found Ravager's, and she tensed, unused to it before relaxing and lacing her fingers with his.
They strolled forth, winding their way towards the nearest transport, and were nearly there when Kid Devil asked, "Hey, you want to do something tonight?"
"Like what?"
"I don't know. Maybe just something to eat or a movie or something. It's up to you," he offered.
"Like a date?" she grinned.
Taking a steadying breath, he nodded, "Not 'like.' Definitely a date."
With a slight chuckle, she leaned in to reward him with a kiss and he responded eagerly before they were interrupted by the voice in their ears.
"Psst. Eddie. Hey, Eddie. Eddie . . . take her to 'Hole in One.'"
With a frustrated growl, Ravager ripped out the headphones from both their eyes, tucking them into one of their pouches as Gar chuckled. The shape shifter sighed as he was taken offline and set his laptop to the side as he prepared to rise before the stern visage of Nightwing dominated the screens projected by the central computer.
"Garfield!" he barked and the verdant man yelped, the jerk of his body sending the spoon from the bowl spinning over his shoulder to hit the wall. Placing a hand against his chest, he took several deep breaths before scowling at the domino-masked hero.
"Dude! Not cool."
"We need to talk."
"Mm," Gar grunted, placing a hand against his abdomen as he faked flashes of agony. "Sorry, dude. I think that surprise you gave me opened something up. I should probably go rest up."
"Gar, I've seen you grow back fingers and toes like it's an afterthought. Who do you think you're fooling?" demanded Batman's original protégé.
He huffed, "For your information, I am still on recovery status."
"Which makes this a great time for us to talk."
"About what?" he sighed.
"Your team."
He looked up, eyes brightening as he asked, "We finally getting T-Communicators?"
"No," he answered shortly. He noticed the sudden hardening of the verdant eyes and he cut off his response, "Gar, since your team's creation, you guys have broken more bones and caused more injuries requiring hospitalization than we did in our entire tenure as Teen Titans. Ravager took out somebody's eye."
"Only Kitten's. And that . . . wasn't one of Rose's better moments. Kitten was egging her about her dad, and that's kind of a touchy subject. But we haven't sent anybod– that many people to the hospital recently! Aside from, you know, me."
"Recently, you guys have been distracted with the NOWHERE mission, and we still can't find the woman that was running it or any of the information stored on their computer systems."
"We saved those kids," Gar growled.
"And how many more did you sentence to further torment in those Colonies? You should have waited, Gar. Contacted us or something before just charging in there without any sort of plan," scolded the senior hero.
"Uh-uh. Now way, dude. You cannot pull that on me because you know that if our roles were reversed, if it was some member of your little Bat-Family captured by a bunch of nutjob scientists, you wouldn't hesitate to go crashing in there," he pointed out.
"But I wouldn't have just gone barreling in without a plan, Gar. You can't keep acting like a kid forever," he glared before taking a breath to calm and collect himself before he continued, "Sorry. I didn't call to have an argument. I wanted to let you know that if you can't control your team, Gar, we will shut you down. That isn't a threat and it's not something I want to do, but I can't just have you guys going rogue."
"You know, there's something I have to take care of," Gar grunted as he pushed himself to his feet.
"Gar -"
"Later, dude," he said, turning off the main console and watching it go dark. Placing its hands upon it, he simply stood for a moment and breathed, calming the howling and roaring running through his blood, demanding to be released. Talons tipped his fingers and thick fur pushed from out of a skin while his form began to enlarge before he brought the changes to a halt. Slowly, they receded and he released a shaky sigh as he ran his fingers down his face. Turning, he collected up the papers and his laptop, juggling them as he headed towards the door leading into the hallway. Dropping off the materials in his room, he dug his cellphone from his pocket and made a call. After a moment of ringing, Blackfire's voice filled his ear.
"- you do not stop swinging, I will drop you. What?" she snapped with apparent frustration.
"Have I mentioned that your voice could put the choirs of heaven to shame, my golden glory?" he grinned.
"Please tell me there is a reason you called beyond that."
"Actually, yeah. What are you and Duela up to?"
"You mean Hatrack?" she grumbled. "We're on our way back to base, but we were going to grab some ice cream first. Did you want some?"
"Do I want ice cream? Always. Unfortunately, there's something I need to check up on, and I don't think I'll be here by the time you return," he replied.
"Your injuries require you to rest," she commented with a slight edge to his voice.
"I promise, it's nothing big. I just have to get to some meetings. I don't know how long I'll be gone, but I swear to you that I'll take it easy," he offered as he pulled open a drawer, rifling through his clothes.
"Very well. Just return to me safely."
"You got it, my iridescent angel," he assured her as he finally pulled a ring from the drawer, studying it grimly. "I will see you later."
"Farewell," she answered before he clicked his phone shut and slid it back into his pocket. With a sigh, he slid the ring onto his finger and watched as his skin suddenly shifted into a soft peach hue. Looking into the mirror with sapphire blue eyes, he studied the blonde strands sprouting from his head and the rounded ears. He ran his fingers through his hair before turning away and collecting a canvas jacket from his closet before leaving the room.
Several moments later, he stood outside upon the brick pathway, hands in his pockets as he breathed in the cooling air.
-I thought you guys were done with the infiltration at the school.- Danny noted.
"There's something else I need to take care of," he revealed.
-Well, you look good. Don't get me wrong, I prefer my salad head, but normal isn't a bad look on you.-
Gar rubbed the back of his neck, "Normal's overrated. But thanks. You think you can drop me off at the Pepper Tree?"
-Oh, I see. It takes getting your guts torn out for you to start making use of my talents.- he observed, the sarcasm apparent even in the written word.
"You know, I can just walk," he smirked.
-Don't even think about it.-
As the world darkened about him and a howling filled his ears, he closed his eyes and felt himself hurtling forth through the void. For a moment, all his senses dampened save for the roaring and the strange winds that buffeted him. The winds dissipated and he felt the burgeoning presence of light pressing against his eyelids and he peeled them open to find himself in what had once been a regular alley, but was now decorated with pink awnings and brilliant splashes of color. Cars hurtled by along the main road, too busy or preoccupied with their business to notice the rather unique modification to their city. Adjusting his jacket, Gar proceeded to the edge of the alley and paused before glancing back and posting a request.
"Hey, if they ask, tell them I headed into work."
Graffiti along the walls rearranged itself in vibrant letters to convey, -All right. Do you want me to pick you up.-
He paused, sniffing the air and the warm currents before shaking his head, "No, thanks. It's going to be a nice night. The walk would probably do me some good after all the sitting around I've been doing."
-You could probably use it. See you later then.-
The alley converted to its typical dark and trash-strewn state as Danny departed, and Gar slipped his hands into the pockets of his jeans as he strolled the short jaunt down the sidewalk to the door. Holding the door open, he nodded to the parents of the small family that spilled out before he slipped inside. As he breathed in the warm scents, he began to salivate and licked his lips as he glanced about the small diner before spotting a white-haired man near a window, sipping a dark cup of coffee. Striding over, he slid into the seat across from the stern-faced elder man who regarded him warily from his remaining eye. A basket of fries sat in front of him, and Gar stole one as he smiled at the man.
"How's it going, Wilson?"
"Garfield," he returned in greeting as he pushed a fry into the pool of ketchup piled in his basket. "How'd you find me?"
"I've smelled you whenever I come into the city. I also smelled the pie you've been chowing on, and I recognized it. This is also one of the time their pies are fresh, and so I just hoped that I would get lucky," he shrugged as he swiped another fry.
"Thwarted by a pie," chuckled the mercenary.
"Yeah. Honestly, I'm just glad I didn't find you lurking at a school or playground or something."
The shape shifter didn't balk under the glare that Rose had obviously inherited as the man growled, "I have three children – and those are only the ones I know of. The woman I married was older than me. Stop spreading those rumors, or I'll hunt you like the animal you are."
"I swear, every other conversation I have has at least one threat made against me," he moaned.
"Have you considered the common factor amongst those conversations?" suggested the man as a steaming slice of apple pie was placed in front of him, topping with an exorbitant amount of whipped cream. Before the waitress could depart, Gar requested the same and then sighed as he looked across at the cyclopean elder.
"You don't totally stink of your guns or explosives, so I'm assuming that you're not here to kill anybody," he said.
"I wasn't planning on it," he shrugged between bites. "But I'm . . . adaptable."
"Hey, me too," Gar smirked, which he turned towards the matronly woman as she set his plate of pie before him. Drinking in the scent, he hummed appreciatively and began to eat while continuing the conversation. "So, you know anything about these NOWHERE guys?"
"I know I'm going to take them apart," he menaced, his single eye blazing. "You may want to convince not to do the same to you."
"Oh, come on. What did I do?"
"You let my daughter get captured."
"Your daughter is one of the most willful people I have ever met. I told her to wait up, and she didn't. That's why she got caught. And, sorry, but who was one of the main reasons she got out before anything bad could happen to her? Oh, right. Me. Heck, she got a new uniform out of the deal," he argued.
"You should have kept a closer eye on her."
"Dude, I kept two eyes on her, which is more than you've ever managed, but trust me when I say that doesn't help."
"Hmm," he grunted grudgingly.
"But you haven't heard anything else about them? They have some sort of interest in metahumans."
"I'll keep my ear to the ground. But don't expect much beyond a smoldering crater by the time you get there."
"If you get the kids out beforehand, I'll pay you," he murmured.
For a moment, Slade Wilson observed the disguised man before him, regarding the matured features and lean physique before giving a dark chuckle that sent chills up the spines of those who heard it. As Gar glared, the mercenary continued laughing, "I underestimated you, back when you Titans first gathered together. You would have made an interesting apprentice."
"That just sounds creepy! I mean, you get why we thought you were a pedophile, right? You at least sexually assaulted Raven."
"I was demonically influenced."
"My ass."
"Are you attempting to rile me into a fight?"
"Ye-no-not really. Could I just punch you in the nose and we call it even?"
"If I get to break every finger on the offending hand."
"See, that kind of throws off the whole 'even' thing, doesn't it?"
"We're getting off track here."
"Don't we always?"
"I came here for two things, Garfield."
"A nondescript white van that has 'Free Candy' painted on the side, and – and . . . all right, I'll admit, I'm stumped on the second one."
"I came to see if my daughter could be trusted to your care."
"Why?" he snarled. "Because you're going to look after her if I'm not? Going to see what other parts of her body you can get her to carve out? Listen, you can probably kick my ass. But if you touch that girl, I will rip out your throat."
Slade scoffed, "You think you can manage that?"
"I'm ready to find out," he returned, an animalistic growl rumbling within his throat.
Holding the steely gaze for a moment, the elder appraised the youth before him, measuring the steely conviction shining in his vision. Assured by what he saw there, he finally nodded and settled back into his seat, releasing the tension from his form as his gaze fell downward. He tapped his fingers against the table as he solemnly studied his cooling slice of pie and after a moment, he admitted, "I have come to a conclusion that I am not a good father. It is not an easy thing to accept, and why it took me so long to recognize, but with one son dead, another mute, and a daughter missing an eye, it gets hard to ignore the evidence."
Gar grimaced and inclined his head as he apologized, "Sorry."
"Joey – Jericho has no need for me anymore. But Rose . . . Rose is still young. I have many enemies, and they would not hesitate to use her against me. I just – I need her to be safe."
Glancing away for a second, Gar rubbed the back of his neck and offered, "Look, I probably shouldn't be talking about this with a guy who's pretty much the arch-nemesis of the Teen Titans – actually probably shouldn't be talking to you at all – but the Titans are family. And Rose is a part of that. We fight to the dying breath for family."
"So I've learned," he gave a humorless smile before meeting the disguised gaze of the shape shifter. "Listen closely, Garfield. I'm entrusting my daughter to you. You will ensure that you fight for her until your dying breath because if you do not, I shall be the one to finish you off."
"Again with the threats," he sighed.
"Garfield."
"Right, right. No, I got it. Protect the big, scary mercenary's daughter, or end up with my handsome mug mounted on his trophy wall," he flippantly waved away the menacing tone.
"I'm glad we could understand each other," he said as he sipped from his mug of coffee.
"Speaking of understanding, do you have any information for me so that I can kinda, sorta justify this meeting?"
Setting down his mug, he regarded the younger man for a moment before offering, "Your blood – the samples that got stolen? It wasn't Waller. I've been doing some work for her recently, and they definitely don't have your blood."
He frowned, "Any idea who does?"
"Unfortunately, no. I do not relish the idea of anybody making more of you."
"Hmm."
"No witty comeback? No engaging comeback? Garfield, you're slipping."
"What? No, it's – do you come in contact with Red X much?"
"Not if I can help it," he scowled.
Gar sighed and shook his head, "Dammit. Listen, I need to go look into a few more things, but just put this on my tab. I promise I'll look after Rose for -"
"Stop," he directed as he grabbed Gar's forearm before he could rise. As the faux blonde arched a brow, the mercenary and premier assassin continued, "I told you I came here for two reasons. One was to ensure somebody would look after my daughter."
"And the second?" he queried, settling back into his seat as Slade released his arm and leaned forward. His face was grim, moreso than Gar was accustomed to and he fidgeted slightly in his seat under the hard gaze. The instant of silence seemed to stretch for eternity, and he grew wary of breaking, lest he should uncork some rage to shake the entirety of existence. When Slade spoke again, any of his sardonic tone was gone, and he was dauntingly serious as he made his demand.
"You are going to tell me about this . . . boy that my daughter is dating."
Rose collapsed into her bed, happy and sated. Her date with Eddie had been somewhat awkward, neither of them entirely certain on the protocols or etiquette of such an excursion. They had ended up settling for a small burger joint for dinner and gotten into a small argument over who would pay, his chivalry butting heads with her independence before they had compromised and used the card Gar had once lent to Rose and then forgot to reclaim. After that, they had considered a movie but found nothing to pique both their interests, and turned towards the arcade where she once again demonstrated her mastery with the shooting games until they had exhausted their supply of quarters.
Blackfire had been too preoccupied with some incident Duela had instigated to give them a lift back to base and they had debated as to whether or not to use the underground means of travel before deciding to walk. Bathed in the soft glow of the lamps, they meandered through the park, handling a small pocket of thugs who had attempted to accost another couple. As they continued on their way home, hands clasping together, Eddie had gathered enough courage to initiate a kiss and Rose had been pleased enough with him that her enthusiasm had led them to topple into a bush. After they had entangled, they had continued home, plucking twigs and leaves out of each other's hair along the way. Any further amorous action had been summarily cut off by Duela awaiting them, attired in pink bunny pajamas and clearly hopped up on sugar.
As she nestled into her pillow, still imagining the heat of her beau and riding on the endorphins and adrenalin the last kiss ignited, something between a vision and a dream filled the world about her.
She floated in the kitchen, bearing witness to Gar devouring an unhealthily large bowl of ice cream buried under a variety of toppings. His hair was shorter but no less thick, and there was an intangible sense to him that was more animalistic than usual. Faint scales were scattered about his neck and his jaws obviously unhinged to allow him larger bites, and even in her semi-corporeal state, Rose felt sick at the sight. As his mouth stretched open once again to permit the ladleful of ice cream, and a ribbon tongue crept out to catch a droplet, the door opened and Rose had the unique opportunity to watch herself storm into the room, dragging an obviously reluctant Eddie behind her.
Rose mused that she hadn't changed much in whatever interim had occurred aside from growing her hair out and developing more prominent curves. However, she eagerly admired Eddie's impressive increase in musculature, apparent even in his olive shirt and cargo shorts. Future-Eddie stood a head taller than future-Rose, and his tail was as thick as her wrist as it coiled behind him. His horns had grown longer and his teeth sharper, but despite his fearsome appearance, he appeared abashed as future-Rose stopped directly beside future-Gar, who still had his mouth closed about the ladle, and leveled a finger at him.
"That's it. As of tomorrow, we're both consenting adults," she declared hotly.
Future-Gar gave a genial nod and pulled the utensil from his mouth to offer his congratulations, "That you are. Happy early birthday, red."
"Thanks, Gar," Eddie noted, the tenor gone from his voice and the Rose watching the vision swore she could feel the resounding baritone in her bones.
"I've got three years before I lose him. After tomorrow's party, we're getting hitched, barricading ourselves in my room, and getting to work. If anybody interrupts our attempts at making life, I'll end theirs," future-Rose seethed.
Future-Blackfire in decidedly immodest civilian attire paused along with everything else as she entered the room at the tail end of the fierce declaration. The silence was broken as future-Duela tumbled from the ceiling and managed to land safely on the ground. Her red hair was arranged in pigtails and she wore a rotary dial on a chain about her neck as she looked on eagerly. Future-Eddie suddenly became highly fascinated by the carpet between his talons though he did not drop his grip on future-Rose's hand, not backing away from her statement. She stared defiantly at the verdant man whose face was flat, expression uncharacteristically unreadable as he considered the announcement.
With a sigh, he dropped the ladle in the bowl, wiped his hands on his jeans, and slid from the stool to regard the young couple. Folding his arms as he stared down at them with a hard gaze, he did not speak for several moments. It was the sternest that Rose, either version, had ever seen him and it bordered on foreboding before he finally spoke, his eyes narrowing and his voice firm.
"I get your first-born child."
Everybody blinked in shock, aside from future-Duela who started chanting 'Rumplestiltskin,' and it took future-Rose a moment before she recovered to glare at the shape shifter and snap at him, "No."
"I get to name him or her?"
"No."
". . . Can I choose the middle name?"
"No."
"Fine," he huffed before finally giving a gentle smile, "How about I get to walk you down the aisle?"
"N-"
Future-Rose paused as she suddenly realized what he had requested and she gaped up at him as he slipped his hands into his pockets and smiled warmly. Finding her voice, she tried to sound rough as she demanded, "W-why would you want to do that?"
"Since I can't imagine that your dad's gonna be there for the ceremony, at least not where we can see him, I'd like to be the one that hands you away. If that's all right with you."
"I – it's . . ."
Tears began to form in her eye as she struggled for words before simply nodding and stepping forward to capture Gar in a hug that he easily returned. He signaled for future-Eddie to join in, future-Duela squealed and worked her way in to the tangle of arms, and before future-Blackfire slipped away, the shape shifter called out, "C'mon, my midnight sun. You know you want in on this."
"No, I don't. But I do know that you won't shut up until I give in."
She flew over, landing lightly on the ground to be pulled into the group hug, a small smile that she couldn't totally hide forming upon her lips as she gently set her head atop the crown of future-Rose's head. Future-Gar's arms had elongated, turning serpentine to accommodate everybody and he smiled brightly before, without lifting his head, he admitted, "Also, Jaime already took best man, so that was out."
The vision began to fade but not before she could catch future-Gar's last words.
"Gaack! Rose! Not the kidney, not the kidney! I was joking!"
Just so that it is clear, Rose's visions are not a definite future, just a possibility. However, we hope that you enjoyed this chapter and please express such pleasure with a little review or something. Please?
Silencus: We're glad that you appreciated the last chapter, and we hope this one managed to top it. We responded to the rest of the review in our PM to you, so we'll talk to you there.
ABReviewer: Hey, he tried. That satisfies his nobility if nothing else. The team is probably going to start referring to Neron as such from now on. We debated whether we should or not, but at least one other person wanted us to maintain the relationship and we enjoyed writing it. We'll figure out what's up with Gen 13 at some point. Actually, when we initially joined this site, it was with the intent to post a story about them. However, we knew nobody was going to read it, so we wrote this instead.
