A Raven Colored Past
Chapter Two: A Trip for Two to Hell
(June 3rd 2004)
- - -
Raven choked on her breath, lavender eyes widening in shock. "What?"
Sephiroth snarled slowly, his anger dying down as her own did the same. "He's dead! Even demons don't last forever, you should know this, Raven."
"I'm not going back," Raven said defiantly, trying to discourage any more thoughts of returning to that dreadful place. "I will never go back."
"You're his heir, you don't have a choice."
"There's always a choice!" Raven turned on him, eyes glowing white again.
"Um…" Starfire began slowly, hoping she wasn't treading on dangerous ground.. "Maybe it would be best if we left you alone for a while?"
"Yes."
"No."
Both answers were instantaneous, the two people glared at each other for a few long moments before Robin stepped in.
"I think Star is right… we'll leave you two alone for a while…" Raven's four companions quickly exited the living room, each praying that the room would still be in one piece when this was all over.
"You rule the Underworld," Sephiroth began again, after they had left. He was trying to pound some sense into her new, Top-World brain, but it didn't seem to be working. "You're betrothed to me."
"So that's it, is it?" Raven snapped, crossing her arms over her chest. "You want to marry me so you can control the Underworld? Isn't that what you're after?"
"Yes," Sephiroth glared, refusing to even remotely disguise his intentions. She was smarter than any other demon he knew (beside himself), so there was no use in trying to hide what he truly wanted. "Your father betrothed you to me. It's law."
"That law doesn't exist here." She turned away and looked out the window to the beautiful skyline. That was something she would miss, if she had to go return to Azarath.
"You don't belong here." Sephiroth spoke steely.
"I belong where I want to!" Raven yelled, whipping around to meet him in a battle of words. "Don't you dare tell me where I belong!"
"You're MINE, Raven!" Sephiroth pointed at her, as if daring her to defy him again. "You have to come back to Azarath NOW! There's nothing you can say about it!"
"I don't WANT to!" Raven cried, feeling as if she were throwing some sort of childish tantrum. She didn't want to go back! And why should Sephiroth have the power to control her like that? "There was a reason I left, you know!"
"So, you want to stay here with these insolent fools!?" Sephiroth gestured to the door where the Titans had exited. "They don't even know the extent of your powers, Raven!"
"But-"
Sephiroth cut off her response, feeling that a winning end was coming soon. "If they did, they'd never be friends with you!"
"No…" She whispered. "They're my friends… they'd follow me into hell…"
Sephiroth sneered, he had won the battle. The end was in sight, and he would come out victorious. "Oh? Would they? Let's test that theory, shall we?"
"Don't!" Raven said quickly, feeling the shame of defeat enter her. She knew she had lost. She always lost to Sephiroth… he was cruel and manipulative and knew exactly how to pull Raven's arm to make her do anything he wanted. "Don't make them go there. I don't want anyone to go there…"
"I thought you said they'd follow you into hell, Raven?" He sneered at her.
"They would… but I don't want them too…" Raven whispered, looking down at the ground.
"Then you admit your defeat?"
"Yes."
"And you'll come back to Azarath with me?"
Raven took a long slow breath, then looked back up at her half-brother. "For a while. I'll clear things up with my father and then I'm coming home, to the Top-World."
"Azarath is your home."
"The Underworld is only home for those who deserve to be there." With that last statement she turned and left the room, leaving behind a smug Sephiroth who had, once again, gotten his way.
- - -
Raven pulled her knees close to her chest, looking up into the dark green eyes she found comforting. Beast Boy looked sympathetically at her and for a small moment, she wanted to be wrapped up in the embraces of her companions that she loved so much, no matter what she told them. She was sitting in the middle of her room with all of her friends gathered around her in a circle, and told them what was going to happen to her.
"So… I told him I would go to Azarath with him… just to clear up things with my father. Then I'll come home." Raven rocked her body for a moment before sighing deeply and sitting still.
"To the Top-World?" Starfire asked quietly.
Raven looked into her eyes and blinked in mild surprise. "Well… yeah. This is my home, Starfire. I don't belong in the Underworld, no matter how much everyone tells me I do."
Starfire smiled. "We know you belong here, Raven."
"Some one should go with you, Raven," Robin spoke up.
Beast Boy perked up in response to the boy wonder's proposition. "I'll go. I don't trust Sephiroth."
Raven's eyes narrowed at him skeptically. "Beast Boy, although I am glad you want to look out for me… let's face it, I would kill you by the end of first day."
Robin nodded in agreement, looking sympathetically at the shape-shifter. "She has a point, BB."
"We should all go with her," Cyborg said calmly. "We're a team, we should stick together as a team."
"And who would protect the city while all of us are gone?" Raven questioned practically.
"I guess you have a point. We could get the JLA to do it… but…"
"But Gotham city has been under a lot of stress lately," Robin sighed deeply, holding his suddenly pounding head. "Some one should go with you, Raven."
"Listen you guys…" Raven started, looking at her friends calmly. "It's not like I've never been to Azarath before. I lived there for fourteen years of my life, it's not a strange place to me. And I grew up with Sephiroth so he isn't a stranger either. I know that he's manipulative and cruel… but I've just come to accept that. He's a bastard and he's been that way since the day he was born, so what?"
"Raven…" Beast Boy looked pleadingly into her eyes. "I just… We just don't want anything to happen to you. You're too precious."
The other Titans nodded in agreement.
Raven, however, was taken aback by Beast Boy's comment. He'd never really expressed any strong emotions to her, except goofiness and gaiety. But as she looked into those deep eyes… she felt her self melt, then give in to the look. "Alright… someone can come with me."
Robin nodded decisively. "Good."
"So…" Cyborg questioned carefully, "who's gonna go?"
- - -
Raven couldn't belive it. She couldn't. The Gods must really hate her, because out of the four possible candidates to go with Raven to the Underworld… the chosen one had been Beast Boy. The green bane of her existence was chosen to follow her into the depths of hell… hopefully he would stay there.
"Why…?" Raven asked herself, crawling into her bed. It was nearing four in the morning and she wished to have at least some sleep before she faced hell… literally.
"Why did he have to be chosen? He'll be dead before the end of tomorrow…" She threw the dark covers over her head and brooded.
'Maybe…' her mind spoke. 'You want him to come… maybe, you feel protected by him?' There was a pause. 'Nope, that theory just went down the drain. There's no way in hell that I could ever have any feelings, other than toleration and despise, for him.'
"But that's where I'm going isn't it, hell?" She asked herself out loud, then sighed again as her eyes closed for much needed rest… which she unfortunately didn't receive. Her dreams quickly turned to nightmares of black fire, burning ravens, and a sinister red face that controlled it all. Her father was haunting her sleep, and making a horrible mess of it. She knew what was happening though; in reality, her father was making one last, feeble attempt to get Raven to stay in Azarath.
He was even more foolish than Beast Boy was.
Raven knew better than to fall for any of her dead father's tricks. The point was though, that Raven was her father's favorite… out of the thousands of children he had, for some reason Raven was Trigon's favorite. That allowed her to have a fairly luxurious life in Azarath, but that also meant she bore the responsibility of ruling the kingdom when Trigon died. And in all honesty, that really sucked. Who really wants to rule a place where everyone stupid goes?
"Raven."
Raven moaned loudly, pushing the covers from her head. She read her clock before turning to face a pair of shockingly green eyes. "Oh Gods, what do you want, Sephiroth? It's six in the morning."
"We're leaving. Get your ass out of bed," He said unceremoniously.
"Screw you." She threw the covers back over her head and buried her face deep into her pillow. In an instant the covers were ripped from her body, and Raven had to look at that wickedly handsome face again. She snarled at him as he watched her lie helplessly in her bed. Raven knew exactly what he was thinking of when he looked at her, and she'd be damned if he thought any more about it.
"Bit me." She growled to him before getting out of her bed. She threw on her cloak, walked down the hall to Beast Boy's room, and knocked angrily on the steel door. There was a loud moan, sounds of falling and tripping, then the door opened to reveal a tired, green face.
"Yeah?" Beast Boy yawned, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.
"We're leaving, so get ready," Raven said crisply.
"Yep…" Beast Boy said, perking up slightly. "Give me a sec." He closed the door to get ready for their departure.
"Wait!" Sephiroth turned to quickly to Raven and glared. "I don't remember telling you that you could bring some one to Azarath."
"I don't remember you saying I couldn't." She leaned against the wall and snarled at Sephiroth. He slammed his fist into the wall next to her and snarled back.
"Watch your step, Raven. You wouldn't want to find yourself in trouble… would you?" Sephiroth threatened, eyes turning a dangerous shade of red.
"You would want your body dismembered, would you?"
Sephiroth turned quickly to meet a pair of dark green eyes. "Are you challenging me?" He asked steely.
"Are you threatening Raven?" Beast Boy countered instantly, drawing himself up.
"Shut up, both of you and let's go," Raven said, throwing an angry look at Sephiroth. "I just want to go, get this over with, and leave the Underworld."
"Suit yourself, Queen…" Sephiroth remarked.
Raven turned on him in a flash. "Do NOT ever call me that again! I am NOT part of that world, I am my own person and I belong to the Titans!" Her eyes had begun to glow white, and Sephiroth knew he had crossed the line, but refused to show his fear. He would control her, even if she was the queen of the Underworld… she was still his.
"So you, Sephiroth, shut the hell up and get going!"
There was an exchange of angry looks, then Sephiroth turned away and vanished in a small black cloud. Raven sighed deeply and looked back at Beast Boy, shaking her head in disbelief.
"What?" He asked innocently.
"You didn't have to stand up for me, you know."
"I know."
There was a long pause and Raven's eyes got wide with surprise as she watched him smile lopsidedly at her. Was he hinting that maybe… maybe he liked her? If he knew he didn't have to stand up for her, but he did anyway… did that mean there was something more… right?
Nah!
It was Beast Boy, he wasn't bright enough to be subtle at anything. And even if he was, Raven would have enough sense to feel it… wouldn't she?
"Are you ready to go or not, Beast Boy?" Raven asked irritably.
"Do we have too?" The green boy pleaded helplessly. "The farther away from Sephiroth we are, the better I feel."
His dark companion sighed deeply and shrugged. "I know… I know… But if I don't show at Azarath he's gonna come back for me."
"Grrr…" Beast Boy growled and nodded reluctantly. "Fine. Let's get this show on the road."
Raven rolled her eyes and sighed deeply. "Whatever."
- - -
Here you go! The second chapter, ain't it purdeee? I gots some notes I think you should read:
1 - For all of you wondering: YES, this IS a Beast Boy and Raven fan-fiction. All of you, Robin and Raven fans… sorry, but let me finish this story and I promise to write a Robin and Raven fanfic just for you!
2 - I don't own Teen Titans, cause if I did than that would mean I wouldn't have to write fan-fictions… besides Beast Boy would be mine!! ALL MINE!! (If you haven't seen BB from the New Teen Titans (comic) recreated in 2001… oh MAN are you missing out. That's a fine piece of eye-candy right there… grrrr…. I guess there is a reason they call him Beast Boy!) Okay… I'm done ranting now… go read some other stories and enjoy yourselves! Ja!