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Thanks for the favs, follows, and reviews!
missyrod: No, it isn't all fluff. I don't think that I am capable of writing that for an entire story. There will be some drama. I think.^_~. Also, I changed the part that was confusing in chapter 1. Thanks for letting me know.
ShikaIno1: Right!
Guest: Thanks!(●'◡'●). I hope you will continue to enjoy the story.
Everyone: Continue to read and enjoy. And the next chapter should be out later on this week.
Chapter 3
"What's going on?" Dick asked, trying to process everything that happened in the short period of time.
"You mean the fact that Raven knows that Duke was a manbat, and she was able to come up with a solution within ten seconds flat?" Tim asked.
"Or maybe, you are asking about why she knows our secret identities that Bruce spent centuries keeping from everyone after Superman discovered his," Jason asked.
"Really? That's what you are worried about?" Tim chuckled. "We can easily kidnap her, mind swipe the information, and return her back to Azarath before Alfred starts—Wait, are you upset that you couldn't find out her identity, but she was able to find out yours?"
Jason stared at Tim for a second. "No."
Tim studied him for a moment and smirked. "If you say so."
"No, what's going on with Raven?" Dick clarified. "She isn't the type to visit a friend unexpectedly after a long period."
And she wasn't the type to ask for help, even if she needed it.
Dick still recalled the scared teenager covered in blood while shaking in fear. Yet her eyes screamed "danger" as he tried to approach her.
Jason said, "We don't know. She said that she needed to speak to Damian."
"Damian?" The eldest son raised an eyebrow.
"Yea." Jason confirmed. "She said that he would want to meet with her."
"She wasn't lying about that," said Tim. "Did you see how fast he took her out of here?"
"Yeah," Dick whispered as he thought.
"What are you thinking about?" asked Tim.
"Raven might be in trouble. This could be related to the reason she returned to Azarath suddenly."
"You might be right. You did say that Damian took the news hard?"
Dick nodded. He remembered the pitiful look on Damian's face when he had informed his little brother that his favorite teacher had resigned from the Titans Institute. "All she left was a letter with no explan—"
Dick's words stopped in his mouth as a familiar scent penetrated the air.
"Please, don't tell me that is what I think it is?" Tim asked as they turned to face Jason.
"You have got to be kidding me." Dick said.
Damian stopped moving. With both regret and need, he let his mate go and took a few steps back. He desired to see all of her.
Their three years apart has been good to her, or maybe his memory of her failed to live up to the reality. She was stunning. Her pale skin helped highlight her silky, shoulder length black hair and crimson lips. And her eyes. Her amethyst eyes almost brought him to his knees.
He wanted her.
But he couldn't have her.
Not like this.
He hadn't found it yet, but he knew there had to be a way to break their curse. Until then, he needed Raven to stay in Azarath.
"We need to talk." "Why have you come?" They both spoke at the same time.
Silence followed.
It was during the silent moment that Raven gazed away from him to take in his hidden lair located in the snowy mountain of Canada. He had decorated that lair with her in mind. He had used the dark colors that she preferred along with the gothic designs that she admired. Here and there, one could notice his presence, such as the twin swords hanging on the wall. But the lair, which all male vampires had for themself and their mates, mainly focused on her comfort.
"Do you like it?" He asked before he could stop himself.
Her gaze turned back to him. "It's nice," she drawled, causing him to fight back the nervous feeling that he created inside of him.
She licked her lips, causing cold blood in his arteries to travel down south. "Damian, we need to talk."
Damian's gaze shifted to hers. He enjoyed the movement of her mouth more than he should have. "If it's about the mating mark, I'm looking for a way to get rid of it."
An enormous smile graced her face, causing his heart to crumble. "Good," she said as relief flooded her face. "For a moment, I thought you would want to keep it."
"I want to keep it. Marking you, making you my mate. It wasn't something I did on a whim. It was my destiny being fulfilled."
She shook her head. "You can't mean that. You were only a child when—."
"I wasn't a child. I was an adult vampire, who was leaving the Institute that year."
"You were only an adult for four years."—His age had been equivalent to a 19-year-old human.—You hadn't even experienced your first haze yet. Damian, you were nothing more than a child." She whispered the last part.
Damian growled. "I wasn't a child who got caught up in the moment and succumbed to the pleasure between your legs. I loved you. I still do."
"I'm sorry, Damian. I don't love you, not like that. To me, you will always be one of my beloved students."
His hands clenched, but his tone remained even. "I know. Since the mating was completed and I gained your memories, I knew who had your heart." Raven looked ashamed, but her eyes didn't waver from his. "Your feelings for him are nothing more than a small insignificant infatuation."
"Just as your feelings for me."
His eyes bled red. "I love you. Doesn't that mean something?"
"We can't be together."
"We already are!"
She licked her lips as three heartbeats passed. "You said, you were looking to remove the mating mark."
His eyes returned to their normal color as he thought about the issue at hand. This wasn't the time for his emotion to rule over him. "As I stated earlier, I want to keep it, but due to my circumstances, it is best that it is removed."
"What circumstances? Is everything okay?"
He smiled. Her worries, which he could taste in the air, reminded him of the time when she was his mentor and he was her troublesome student. Her genuine worries for him were one reason why he fell for her.
"I am fine, but it is a situation that needs to be handled soon rather than later. Having you as a mate will complicate things." He didn't want to lie to her, so he didn't tell her anything that would make her run from him.
She studied him for a moment. "Is there any way that I can help?"
"You can—" A sweet fragrance filled his icy lungs. It was a fragrance that hunted his dreams and eluded his grasp for three years.
He raced towards her and gathered her in his arms before she could blink.
"You're going into the mating haze." He whispered, licking her ear and tasting a hint of the sweet nectar under her skin.
He could hear her heartbeat increase and felt her skin shiver.
"Damian?" She called as his lips traveled to her dress mock neck. He pulled at the fabric with his teeth.
"Damian." Her hands pushed against his chest. "You can't. You will only make the mark stronger."
"You're right." He licked her neck. "But I still need to ease the haze." His hands rubbed the sides of her thighs. "It's my duty as your mate." He licked her neck again. The fragrance of her haze was getting stronger, fueling his desire for her. "Don't worry; I won't bite you."
"Damian." She gripped his shirt and ground her lower parts against his.
"Are you starting to feel it?" He whispered in her ears, taking her ear lobe against his tongue. "I should make you beg for it, for your words earlier." He gripped her hips and pushed her away slightly.
The hurt look on her flushed face almost made him want to laugh. How could she ever think that he would make her beg for anything? She only needed to ask once.
He kissed her before dropping to his knees and pushing her dress up. Coerced by her smell, his tongue sneaked out to lick her through her underwear.
"More." She gripped the back of his head, grinding against his mouth and tongue.
He could tell that the haze was in full bloom inside of her. She was never this demanding when she wanted or needed something. And now, she needed him. He went to devour her with his mouth when every muscle in his body stiffened then froze in place.
"Damian." Raven grounded against his mouth, unaware of his condition, until she stopped.
No, not stopped.
She was gone.
Taken by a vampire that had entered his lair.
He struggled to follow her, but his body wouldn't listen.
"I told you, Damian." The ancestor's voice flowed into the lair. "You should have listened."
Damian continued to struggle while cursing the ancestor in his head.
"I know what you have been planning. I can read your thoughts. I know you were attempting to disobey me. That's why I jumped started their mating haze that was lurking under the surface."
They? Damian thought.
The ancestor continued. "Now, you don't have any choice but to share. Jason will bite her by the end of the night while she begs for him."
A/N: Poor Damian. I love to torment him.
