Disclaimer: DON'T YOU PEOPLE GET IT? I DON'T OWN TEEN TITANS!!!
Butifihavemywaywhenitakeovertheworldillmakesurethatpeopleunder15willNOTbeall
owedtowatchit!!!hahaha!!!
AN: Look, I know that right now this story doesn't look like it's going to be an ansty, "Oh god no, WHY?" kinda fic and that a lot of you guys are beginning to think that's it just another Rav/Rob corn feast. There will probably be parts that are full of mush, but I promise you, I'm just getting started.
You haven't met the real me. (LOL I'm in NO WAY a phsco killer! For heavens sake I'm only a teenager. There will be pently of time for that later. Ha ha)
Following Shadows-Chapter 4: Mistletoe and Purrs
"You will NEVER win!" Hissed the voice that had been haunting her for sixteen years. "There WILL be more, and they will keep coming until you join me!" "Never!" Screamed Raven's dream-self, heedless of the smashing objects around her. "Yeesss" The evil hissed. "You will, or that nightmare you've been having will be ten times worse by the time it comes true." "Never!" she shrieked. "You'll have to kill me first!" "Why bother?" Trigon whispered. "I have the power to turn you against yourself. Endless nightmares. Continuous tricks of the light. A stream of ghosts following you where-ever you go. A few months of that, and you'll either spend the rest of your life in a straight jacket, or jump out of a window 45 stories up." He laughed then, like the idea of his daughter going insane was amusing. "I hate you!" She cried. "I HATE YOU!"
************************************** "Raven!" She woke up then, taking quick terrified gasps. A dark shadow loomed over her, gently shaking her shoulders. "Raven, calm down! It was just a nightmare!"
"Who are you?" she seethed. "Come to do my father's dirty work for him?"
"No! Raven, what are you talking about? It's me, Robin!" Taking a closer look, Raven could see his familiar outline in the moonlight.
"Robin? What the hell are you doing in my room?" She heard what sounded like her Mask statue cracking, but ignored it and focused on the boy beside her.
Crossly, he answered "I couldn't sleep and I was walking past your door when I heard you screaming. I figured you needed help." What he didn't mention was that ever since the attack, he and Beast Boy had taken turns in guarding her room from any others. Starfire hadn't survived the first night and Cyborg needed to charge, so that left him, who was used to pulling all nighters, and Beast Boy who could turn into nocturnal animals.
Raven blinked. She knew there was more to the story than that, but she was still weak from the demon's attack, and couldn't focus her powers. "How long have I been out?"
Robin stared hard at her, not saying anything.
"How long?"
"About a week and a half. It's the 22nd today"
Raven could see him grinning. "I hope you've done your Christmas shopping."
She just stared at him, not finding his joke amusing.
"Hee hee... I was just joking! Jeez" He got up then, and was about to go out when she stopped him. Raven did not like what she was about to do, but considering the alternative... "Robin, do you think you'd be able to..." she hesitated.
"Yes?" He encouraged.
"Well, can you stay with me tonight? Not like that!" She defended, when she saw the look in his eyes. "It's just, I don't want to go to sleep and you'd be a good distraction."
He looked around the room. There was smashed glass and broken objects everywhere. Maybe that was why she didn't want to go back to sleep. Whatever she was dreaming about, she couldn't control her emotions over it.
Robin sat back down on the bed.
"Who's going to paint whose toenails?"
***************************
"So, are you going to tell me what been bothering you now, or am I going to have to wait until the next time you're attacked?" The sun was starting to rise when Robin asked the question that had been on his mind since he had first noticed her strange behavior.
Raven looked out the now glass-less window. "You're just going to have to wait"
"Raven!" He cried, exasperated with her secretive behavior. "What ever that thing was that attacked you had friends. Friends, who are going to come back! It's selfish of you to not tell us when we could be in the firing line as well!"
Raven stilled. All of a sudden her books rattled and started flying across the room. "Selfish?" She whispered dangerously. "I'm selfish?" Her eyes narrowed "Do you even know what I have to go through every night so you lot can stay alive? Do you?"
The books became more violent, ricco-shaing off each other.
"That's not what I meant!" He sighed. "We're the great Teen Titans. If we can't help our own team mates, then who can we?"
"I don't need your help" Robin looked down at Raven intensely as she said it.
"You do"
"I don't"
"You do"
"I don't"
He shook his head and sat up against the bed head beside her. "No matter what you say, you do."
"And what makes you say that?" Raven asked dryly. The Boy Wonder was getting too close for her liking.
"The fact that that freak would have killed you if we hadn't come home the time we did" He stated simply. Turning his head he looked directly into her eyes. Feeling her stomach tense Raven looked away. She did not need this.
"I can manage. Next time I won't underestimate the enemy"
Robin shook his head. "There's more to battles than that. You are always going to find someone who you just can't beat" And then he launched into a lecture about combat tactics.
**********************
"Raven!" Boomed Cyborg has he walked in the kitchen and saw her sitting at the green and red decked table. "Good to see ya Dark Girl! Was real worried when you didn't wake up. We all were" He rummaged through the fridge, pulling out a carton of eggs and a huge ham. Whipping out the pan, he let it heat up.
"What some?" he asked while cutting thick slices of the ham. Raven was about to say no when she realized that she hadn't eaten for over a week. "Sure" she replied coolly.
"So, three more days till Christmas. We would've waited till you woke up to put up all the decorations, but you had taken such a blow we weren't sure by the time you woke that we'd be doing Halloween" He cracked a few eggs into the pan then threw in a couple of slices of ham. "But still, I'm glad you're here to celebrate the season of joy with us. I know a certain fellow that would not have had a good time without you." He started humming then, pretending not to notice the strange look Raven was giving him.
'Who the hell does he mean?' she thought to herself.
******************************
"Ugh! I hate shopping!" Muttering under her breath, Raven cursed holiday shopping crowds. It had taken her half an hour to get to a cash register just so she could purchase a couple of chew toys for Beast Boy. But aside from the atrocious queues, nothing else had gone wrong. As well as the chew toys, Raven had gotten Beast Boy a bigger pair of speakers as he was always complaining about how small his old ones were. For Starfire she had picked up a book and a bunch of Disney films on fairytales since she had seen Sleeping Beauty and fell in love with it. Cyborg was easy. She bought a stack of games she knew he would kick Beast Boy's ass at. That left only one person.
Robin.
What do you get for a boy that you know as little about as he knows about you?
She had left the Mall and was walking down a side market when she saw the perfect gift.
A set of razor sharp chucking stars.
Briefly she wondered if they gift-wrapped.
*************************** December 24th, Christmas Eve.
"Oh! How I love the excitement!" Clapped Starfire as she twirled around the living room. The tree glowed with bright colors and dripped with candy- canes. Sitting under the tree rested their presents, reflecting the colors from the lights. Hanging over the doorway was a bundle of mistletoe. The boys had added it to every one, laughing hysterically as they did. "Yeah, exciting" muttered Raven. Starfire beamed at her.
"I am glad you agree friend Raven!" Bouncing over to the door, she knocked into Robin. "Oh Robin! I am glad that you are here! Friend Raven and I were just agreeing on how exciting it is tonight!"
"Oh, you were huh?" He raised an eyebrow at Raven who just shrugged but still keeping eye contact.
"Where were you?" she asked.
"Out" He replied evenly. "Needed to get a few last minute things"
"Is that why you have scratch marks on your arm?" She questioned, not missing a beat. Raven knew something was up but he was blocking her from his mind.
"Hey! Starfire and Robin are under the mistletoe!" Yelled Beast Boy, coming up behind the two. "You know what that means!"
"And what does it mean?" Asked a very confused Starfire.
"It means," Raven patiently explained "That you two have to kiss"
Starfire looked blank for a moment then smiled. Shyly she turned to Robin. "Shall we kiss then?"
Robin smiled back. "Sure" Raven looked away as their faces drew closer. She didn't like the ugly feeling that built up inside of her at the thought of those two together. It could turn into something nasty if she wasn't careful.
Very nasty.
"Dinner's ready!" Boomed Cyborg from the kitchen. She teleported out of the room without even turning around.
******************************* Christmas Day
Raven was late out of bed the next morning. She had been plagued with the same nightmare all night. When she finally managed to get some real sleep, it had been past sunrise. Looking at her clock, Raven groaned. Robin had made a rule that no one was allowed to open presents till everyone was awake. It was now 11 am.
She bolted out the door in her pajamas.
*******************************
"Wow! Awesome Raven!" Beast Boy had been the last to open his present from her and he was really stoked with it. "Now open yours!"
"Yes Raven! Open your gifts!"
She sighed. It was bad enough that they had to sit on the floor to do this together let alone make up comments about how wonderful each gift was.
She opened the one from Beast Boy first. It was a gothic horror novel that she'd been wanting to read.
"See?" He asked, proud of himself. "No chickens!"
"Thank-you. It was unusually thoughtful coming from you"
The one from Cyborg was next. A bunch of Aromatheropy oils and candles rolled into her lap. "How did you know?" she said, surprised.
"I asked a chick at that new hippie shop what you'd get a girl who spent all her time in her room meditating. She suggested those."
Raven nodded.
"Excuse me" Robin got up from his place and left the room.
"Open mine now" commanded Starfire. Raven did and found the most beautiful white cloak she had ever seen. The material was light, but very warm and felt soft under her fingers.
"Do you like it?" Asked Starfire anxiously. "I hope it was the right choice"
"It is. Thank-you" Looking under the tree, she noticed that there were no more gifts. Robin hadn't gotten her one. She got up to leave when he ran back in, holding something behind his back.
Something that meowed.
"Don't forget mine," He said sheepishly. Pulling Raven's gift out from behind his back she gasped. It was a tiny jet-black kitten, with a red ribbon around his neck. Taking the small fluff ball from him, she made up her mind.
"I'll call him...Nightwing"
Robin smiled at her then, a special smile that sucked her in and refused to let her go. She smiled back.
AN: Look, I know that right now this story doesn't look like it's going to be an ansty, "Oh god no, WHY?" kinda fic and that a lot of you guys are beginning to think that's it just another Rav/Rob corn feast. There will probably be parts that are full of mush, but I promise you, I'm just getting started.
You haven't met the real me. (LOL I'm in NO WAY a phsco killer! For heavens sake I'm only a teenager. There will be pently of time for that later. Ha ha)
Following Shadows-Chapter 4: Mistletoe and Purrs
"You will NEVER win!" Hissed the voice that had been haunting her for sixteen years. "There WILL be more, and they will keep coming until you join me!" "Never!" Screamed Raven's dream-self, heedless of the smashing objects around her. "Yeesss" The evil hissed. "You will, or that nightmare you've been having will be ten times worse by the time it comes true." "Never!" she shrieked. "You'll have to kill me first!" "Why bother?" Trigon whispered. "I have the power to turn you against yourself. Endless nightmares. Continuous tricks of the light. A stream of ghosts following you where-ever you go. A few months of that, and you'll either spend the rest of your life in a straight jacket, or jump out of a window 45 stories up." He laughed then, like the idea of his daughter going insane was amusing. "I hate you!" She cried. "I HATE YOU!"
************************************** "Raven!" She woke up then, taking quick terrified gasps. A dark shadow loomed over her, gently shaking her shoulders. "Raven, calm down! It was just a nightmare!"
"Who are you?" she seethed. "Come to do my father's dirty work for him?"
"No! Raven, what are you talking about? It's me, Robin!" Taking a closer look, Raven could see his familiar outline in the moonlight.
"Robin? What the hell are you doing in my room?" She heard what sounded like her Mask statue cracking, but ignored it and focused on the boy beside her.
Crossly, he answered "I couldn't sleep and I was walking past your door when I heard you screaming. I figured you needed help." What he didn't mention was that ever since the attack, he and Beast Boy had taken turns in guarding her room from any others. Starfire hadn't survived the first night and Cyborg needed to charge, so that left him, who was used to pulling all nighters, and Beast Boy who could turn into nocturnal animals.
Raven blinked. She knew there was more to the story than that, but she was still weak from the demon's attack, and couldn't focus her powers. "How long have I been out?"
Robin stared hard at her, not saying anything.
"How long?"
"About a week and a half. It's the 22nd today"
Raven could see him grinning. "I hope you've done your Christmas shopping."
She just stared at him, not finding his joke amusing.
"Hee hee... I was just joking! Jeez" He got up then, and was about to go out when she stopped him. Raven did not like what she was about to do, but considering the alternative... "Robin, do you think you'd be able to..." she hesitated.
"Yes?" He encouraged.
"Well, can you stay with me tonight? Not like that!" She defended, when she saw the look in his eyes. "It's just, I don't want to go to sleep and you'd be a good distraction."
He looked around the room. There was smashed glass and broken objects everywhere. Maybe that was why she didn't want to go back to sleep. Whatever she was dreaming about, she couldn't control her emotions over it.
Robin sat back down on the bed.
"Who's going to paint whose toenails?"
***************************
"So, are you going to tell me what been bothering you now, or am I going to have to wait until the next time you're attacked?" The sun was starting to rise when Robin asked the question that had been on his mind since he had first noticed her strange behavior.
Raven looked out the now glass-less window. "You're just going to have to wait"
"Raven!" He cried, exasperated with her secretive behavior. "What ever that thing was that attacked you had friends. Friends, who are going to come back! It's selfish of you to not tell us when we could be in the firing line as well!"
Raven stilled. All of a sudden her books rattled and started flying across the room. "Selfish?" She whispered dangerously. "I'm selfish?" Her eyes narrowed "Do you even know what I have to go through every night so you lot can stay alive? Do you?"
The books became more violent, ricco-shaing off each other.
"That's not what I meant!" He sighed. "We're the great Teen Titans. If we can't help our own team mates, then who can we?"
"I don't need your help" Robin looked down at Raven intensely as she said it.
"You do"
"I don't"
"You do"
"I don't"
He shook his head and sat up against the bed head beside her. "No matter what you say, you do."
"And what makes you say that?" Raven asked dryly. The Boy Wonder was getting too close for her liking.
"The fact that that freak would have killed you if we hadn't come home the time we did" He stated simply. Turning his head he looked directly into her eyes. Feeling her stomach tense Raven looked away. She did not need this.
"I can manage. Next time I won't underestimate the enemy"
Robin shook his head. "There's more to battles than that. You are always going to find someone who you just can't beat" And then he launched into a lecture about combat tactics.
**********************
"Raven!" Boomed Cyborg has he walked in the kitchen and saw her sitting at the green and red decked table. "Good to see ya Dark Girl! Was real worried when you didn't wake up. We all were" He rummaged through the fridge, pulling out a carton of eggs and a huge ham. Whipping out the pan, he let it heat up.
"What some?" he asked while cutting thick slices of the ham. Raven was about to say no when she realized that she hadn't eaten for over a week. "Sure" she replied coolly.
"So, three more days till Christmas. We would've waited till you woke up to put up all the decorations, but you had taken such a blow we weren't sure by the time you woke that we'd be doing Halloween" He cracked a few eggs into the pan then threw in a couple of slices of ham. "But still, I'm glad you're here to celebrate the season of joy with us. I know a certain fellow that would not have had a good time without you." He started humming then, pretending not to notice the strange look Raven was giving him.
'Who the hell does he mean?' she thought to herself.
******************************
"Ugh! I hate shopping!" Muttering under her breath, Raven cursed holiday shopping crowds. It had taken her half an hour to get to a cash register just so she could purchase a couple of chew toys for Beast Boy. But aside from the atrocious queues, nothing else had gone wrong. As well as the chew toys, Raven had gotten Beast Boy a bigger pair of speakers as he was always complaining about how small his old ones were. For Starfire she had picked up a book and a bunch of Disney films on fairytales since she had seen Sleeping Beauty and fell in love with it. Cyborg was easy. She bought a stack of games she knew he would kick Beast Boy's ass at. That left only one person.
Robin.
What do you get for a boy that you know as little about as he knows about you?
She had left the Mall and was walking down a side market when she saw the perfect gift.
A set of razor sharp chucking stars.
Briefly she wondered if they gift-wrapped.
*************************** December 24th, Christmas Eve.
"Oh! How I love the excitement!" Clapped Starfire as she twirled around the living room. The tree glowed with bright colors and dripped with candy- canes. Sitting under the tree rested their presents, reflecting the colors from the lights. Hanging over the doorway was a bundle of mistletoe. The boys had added it to every one, laughing hysterically as they did. "Yeah, exciting" muttered Raven. Starfire beamed at her.
"I am glad you agree friend Raven!" Bouncing over to the door, she knocked into Robin. "Oh Robin! I am glad that you are here! Friend Raven and I were just agreeing on how exciting it is tonight!"
"Oh, you were huh?" He raised an eyebrow at Raven who just shrugged but still keeping eye contact.
"Where were you?" she asked.
"Out" He replied evenly. "Needed to get a few last minute things"
"Is that why you have scratch marks on your arm?" She questioned, not missing a beat. Raven knew something was up but he was blocking her from his mind.
"Hey! Starfire and Robin are under the mistletoe!" Yelled Beast Boy, coming up behind the two. "You know what that means!"
"And what does it mean?" Asked a very confused Starfire.
"It means," Raven patiently explained "That you two have to kiss"
Starfire looked blank for a moment then smiled. Shyly she turned to Robin. "Shall we kiss then?"
Robin smiled back. "Sure" Raven looked away as their faces drew closer. She didn't like the ugly feeling that built up inside of her at the thought of those two together. It could turn into something nasty if she wasn't careful.
Very nasty.
"Dinner's ready!" Boomed Cyborg from the kitchen. She teleported out of the room without even turning around.
******************************* Christmas Day
Raven was late out of bed the next morning. She had been plagued with the same nightmare all night. When she finally managed to get some real sleep, it had been past sunrise. Looking at her clock, Raven groaned. Robin had made a rule that no one was allowed to open presents till everyone was awake. It was now 11 am.
She bolted out the door in her pajamas.
*******************************
"Wow! Awesome Raven!" Beast Boy had been the last to open his present from her and he was really stoked with it. "Now open yours!"
"Yes Raven! Open your gifts!"
She sighed. It was bad enough that they had to sit on the floor to do this together let alone make up comments about how wonderful each gift was.
She opened the one from Beast Boy first. It was a gothic horror novel that she'd been wanting to read.
"See?" He asked, proud of himself. "No chickens!"
"Thank-you. It was unusually thoughtful coming from you"
The one from Cyborg was next. A bunch of Aromatheropy oils and candles rolled into her lap. "How did you know?" she said, surprised.
"I asked a chick at that new hippie shop what you'd get a girl who spent all her time in her room meditating. She suggested those."
Raven nodded.
"Excuse me" Robin got up from his place and left the room.
"Open mine now" commanded Starfire. Raven did and found the most beautiful white cloak she had ever seen. The material was light, but very warm and felt soft under her fingers.
"Do you like it?" Asked Starfire anxiously. "I hope it was the right choice"
"It is. Thank-you" Looking under the tree, she noticed that there were no more gifts. Robin hadn't gotten her one. She got up to leave when he ran back in, holding something behind his back.
Something that meowed.
"Don't forget mine," He said sheepishly. Pulling Raven's gift out from behind his back she gasped. It was a tiny jet-black kitten, with a red ribbon around his neck. Taking the small fluff ball from him, she made up her mind.
"I'll call him...Nightwing"
Robin smiled at her then, a special smile that sucked her in and refused to let her go. She smiled back.