Hello, everyone! Today I bring you a follow-up on my one-shot What it Means to Fear. If you haven't read it, go check it out or you might not really be up to speed for this story. But if that's okay with you, feel free to keep reading!

A quick notice- this story is set before Rose Wilson, Slade's daughter, becomes a good guy. I thought I'd clear up any confusion in advance.

Also, yes, the church mentioned here is an actual church in New York. I am not at all affiliated with it, though.

I think that's it- so let's get on with the story. I don't own the Teen Titans, and happy reading!

It was ten a.m. in the morning. The sky was gray and gloomy, and cars roared in the distance as faint thunderclaps emitted from the clouds. The city was up and bustling with activity as usual- vehicles speeding down roads and freeways, buildings so tall that one was unable to see the top of them, civilians out and about, talking and eating and walking.

But inside the Titans Tower, it was quiet.

There were no sound effects of shooting lasers in a video game, no sounds of breakfast sizzling on the stove, no early morning workouts or exercises, no incessant bickering between Robin or Raven, or Beast Boy and Raven, or someone and Raven.

Today wasn't a typical day.

Inside of his bedroom, Robin stood in front of the mirror in the bathroom, fiddling with his tie. His face was somber and stony as he looped the black fabric around itself, then repeated the action and slid the knot up to his neck. He had also allowed his normally gelled-up hair to relax just for the day- and he wasn't sure he had much energy to try and put it up anyway. It wasn't the day to worry about petty things like hair.

Today was Jericho's funeral.

It had been a month and a half since the news of the young boy's tragic murder, committed by his own father, had reached the Titans. At first the whole team, honorary Titans included, had just been numb. They'd cut off communication since his death for some time- only having reopened it about two weeks ago, but nothing much had been said. But somehow, there had been some type of exchange between a few of the honorary Titans, mainly Hotspot; and a funeral had been set up for Jericho in New York City. Jericho's religious views had been unknown- so the flaming Titan had attempted to find the best cathedral he could find, which had been the Church of St. Mary the Virgin. There was no wake as the logistics of the funeral had been enough to figure out on their own, and while the Teen Titans were very capable and independent for their ages, they still had things to learn.

As for the press, the Titans had done their best to keep their friend's death away from the media. The Titans, including the

Not one of the Titans were religious- but it was the best they could do for Jericho. Because of the boy's muteness, there were a lot of gray areas with his origin that could likely only be uncovered by Rose Wilson, his sister, or Slade- and they were both out of the question as they were both very dangerous and deadly mercenaries and enemies of the Titans. Hotspot had done the best he could.

Robin, smoothing out his black suit jacket, inspected his appearance one more time. He was wearing a buttoned-up obsidian shirt, a dark pair of trousers, a black tie and an identically colored jacket. Figuring he looked okay, he slowly made his way from the bathroom, flipping the light switch off behind him and closing the door gently. Robin dragged himself across the room, head heavy, and as if through a fog slid his feet into a formal pair of shoes. Then he headed toward his door, the door sliding open automatically upon detecting his presence. Stepping out of the room, he trudged down the hallway to meet his friends, who had also been getting ready for the mournful occasion.

Robin was the last one to enter the common room- his teammates were already standing there, all wearing disconsolate expressions on their faces and dressed all in black. Starfire wore a short black dress with short lacy sleeves; the top of the dress resembling a corset. The bottom of the dress was lacy as well, identical to the sleeves and very top of the dress. Around her neck there was a lace black choker with a single black pearl in the center of it, and over her face she wore a thin veil. Through it her expression was melancholy and unsteady, as if on the verge of tears.

Raven wore a more vintage dress- yes, a dress- with long, see-through dress with chiffon sleeves that snaked down to her wrists and a skirt that fell all the way down to her ankles. Her violet hair was put up in a respectable bun with a black headband and she donned a black choker with an ebony jewel hanging in the middle of it. It was an unusually feminine look for Raven, and the other Titans noticed, but her face plainly said not to ask questions.

Beast Boy had on a long, v-neck sweater with long sleeves and black jeans with holes in them on, topped off with a belt with a silver chain dangling from one of the loops. His hair was actually in some sort of style rather than its usual muss of green- also out of character.

Cyborg had actually managed to find some appropriate clothes this time around- most of the time he wasn't able to find outfits large enough to fit over his metal build. But now he wore a polyester sweater with a long coat and a long collar that went down to the back of his knees as well as satin pants that covered his ankles and the top of his shoes.

For a few long minutes, the Titans just stood there, staring at the ground. Then Starfire moved toward Robin- bringing her trembling hands to Robin's neck to adjust his suit collar gently. Her eyes met his, glassy and filled with sorrow- Jericho's death had probably been the hardest on her. Starfire had never brought the blonde youth up very often, but they'd had a lovely friendship; and it broke her heart to see him go.

After the alien retreated from the Boy Wonder, there were a few more minutes of silence. Nobody seemed to really know what to say. That didn't happen often.

"Well," Raven finally spoke up airily, her thin voice just barely above a whisper, "I guess we'd better get going."

Nobody responded; instead they all just began moving toward the exit. There was wind beginning to emerge outside, light howls through the air.

Pale clouds continued to close in on the sky.

The flight in the T-ship to New York only took a few hours- but somehow, it felt like days. Nobody had really wrapped their heads around Jericho's death yet- it kind of felt like he was still alive.

The moments it took to find someplace to land the T-ship and for the team to drive toward the cathedral were mostly a blur. They'd halfheartedly greeted some fans, although they did refuse pictures and autographs. They were known for being open for the most part with their fans and very friendly, but today just wasn't the day for such things.

St. Mary the Virgin was a tall, gloomy-looking structure in between several other non-related stores and other places. The doors were large and castle-like, and the design was very medieval and gothic, resembling something out of the 1800's or very early 1900's. The fog continued to billow down from the sky, blanketing the ground and people's feet in the thick, eerie gas; the sky blank and dull. The weather seemed very fitting for the occasion.

Without speaking, Cyborg pushed his way to the front of his group and pushed the heavy doors open, a blast of chilly air instantly hitting the team's faces. Starfire wrapped her hands around Robin's arm as they stepped inside the cathedral...

That's part one for you guys! Also, I'm so sorry for the lack of posting lately, school is drowning me in work and I haven't had any time at all to write. As for Girls' Night, I'll have the final chapter out as soon as possible. Apologies again; just bear with me!