Um...ahem nervous chuckle I sorta messed up the last chapter. It was supposed to be Chapter 4, not five. I know the chapter title says 5, but that was a total mess-up on my part. sweatdrop Hee, hee!! My mistake! I hope this hasn't caused any confusion. Anyway, as for dedications, I make the same ones every time, so you all know who you are! blows you kisses and tosses you flowers Just wait 'till the Christmas story I'm brewing comes up!! It's gonna be a little early, so...

Oh, and one more A/N: The twins, Coral and Taylor, are only in this story, as well as Andy. I am NOT going to tie them in with my fan's history of the Teen Titans. Don't ask me why, please. I just feel like this is how it needs to be. However, Kaytamanoff and her brothers/sisters, Shadowfire, and Molly will be part of my fan history. But enough with my senseless ramblings!! On with the show!!! (Get ready for a hilarious plot twist in the end!!! Epilogue will be after chapter 5)

The REAL Chapter 5: The Kids Go Home

(Okay, so I know this is a short story, but—writer's block, remember? I promise the next one won't suck!!!)

By now, everyone had calmed down and scattered about the Tower with their respective future family members: Cyborg was showing Andy the T-Car, Raven was meditating with Crow Boy and Kaytie (who sat on her right), Merlina was showing Coral and Sparrow her magical instruments while Daniel talked guy talk with his future nephew, Taylor. Beast Boy and Molly were in the kitchen comparing (screams of torture in background) tofu recipes (hissing and drawing back), and Shadowfire was in the gym with Robin and Starfire.

"Hee-YA!!!" Shadow shouted as she finished Robin off with the whirligig kick she learned from Nightwing. Robin moaned with the swirlies in his eyes as he asked

"Where did you learn that?"

"My dad", she answered simply.

"Amusing, Shadowfire!" chirped Star with a voice that had always captivated Robin, as it now captivated her future daughter (though not in the same way, you get it). Her eyes then glowed and she said, "Now prepare yourself, future daughter!"

Shadowfire also prepared her starbolts and shot to the ceiling with Star. After they stared each other down for a minute, they both shouted, "Gong Yi Tan Pai!!!!" and went at it, being careful not to break anything in the room, or hurt Robin.

After a while, they ended their sparring and rejoined Robin, who told Shadow, "That was some awesome gameplay, Shadow!" and bumped fists with her. Shadow laughed, "True that! I learned it from the best."

"Please tell me, future daughter," inquired Star, "Is the adult me adapted to Earth better than I am now?"

Shadow looked fondly at her same-age future mother and answered reassuringly, "Don't worry. You're well adapted into Earth ways in the future, not to mention a whiz with the slang!" She then pulled out a wallet and showed Robin and Starfire their future selves.

"Just look how cute you two are!" she said. The two looked at a picture of Nightwing (not in uniform) in a yellow T-shirt with his arm around a beautiful woman with fluffy red hair (again, similar to Yu-Gi-Oh's Mai Valentine) wearing a goldenrod blouse. Nightwing was blushing, and Star was beaming. Robin and Starfire couldn't look each other in the eye, as they were both at an awkward loss for words.

"Hey, it's not that bad of a picture!" said Shadow, breaking the silence. "Come on!" she said as she grabbed their wrists, "I want to see your rooms!"

Later that afternoon, everyone was mingling in the living room, when another light flashed, and another vortex opened, out of which stepped Nightwing and Raven (Raven had opened the portal, and Nightwing was worried about his kid).

"Nightwing!!!" exclaimed Starfire.

"Dad!!" said Shadow.

"Mom!!!!" yelled Sparrow and Kaytie as they ran to meet their parents.

"We don't have much time, Shadow," said Nightwing, one foot in the vortex, "Everyone in, hurry!"

The adult Raven, hood down, looked at her past self, and vice versa. Present Raven looked at her future self reverently as she looked at the beautiful white yet still short hair she would soon have. Future Raven smiled softly at Present Raven and nodded. Suddenly, in a pang of "Wait. I won't see Kaytie for 20 more years!!!!!" she touched Kaytamanoff's shoulder.

"Kaytie", she said sadly, "I just want you to know...I'll miss you; and I'm proud of the decision you've made to protect the world." Kaytie smiled and embraced Raven.

"Everything I know I learned from you, Raven," she said lowly in her ear, "I'll be proud to be your child." Pulling back, she added, "And I'm still watching over you. I love you, Raven...Mom." Raven kissed Kaytie on her forehead and let her go. "See you in 20 years!" she giggled. Crow Boy drew near her and said, "As pointless as emotions are, mom, the same goes for me." He hugged her and then hugged Daniel, who told him, "Bye, son."

Sparrow came to her next and asked, "Do you know why I wear white, Raven?" When Raven shook her head no, Sparrow answered, "Because all my life, I've seen my mother in a white cloak, signifying her purity. I wanted to be just like her, so I took one on, too. I could, too, because I was born in purity and light. I may have your dark energy, but I am protected by an aura of light magic from my father, the aura of pure love that can never be penetrated, let alone destroyed. Let me leave you with the assurance that you will be free from the evil of my grandfather, Trigon."

"Thanks, Sparrow," Raven said, "but I already got that reassurance from me" and pointed her hand at Future Raven. Sparrow hugged Raven and Daniel and went in the vortex.

While all this was going on, Shadowfire bid her future parents farewell.

"I wish you safety, happiness, and friendship throughout your life, future daughter!" said Starfire as she hugged Shadow.

"You too, Star!" Shadow responded then turned to Robin, who would become the father she admired and adored in the future.

"Well, so long, kid," said Robin all importantly. Shadow laughed and hugged him something fierce.

"It won't be too long, father," she said affectionately. Robin finally hugged her back While they were hugging, Shadow whispered to him, "Take warning, Robin: You and Starfire have come so far together already. You've done a good job of keeping her safe so far; don't stop now. No matter what happens, Robin, don't ever let her go, or I'll never be born."

"Piece of cake," Robin said confidently, "And uh, watch out for yourself, and if you go through your Transformation, don't fly off into space, and try not to freak out, okay?"

Shadowfire was finally confused. "Huh?!?" she asked.

"You'll find out," he answered blankly, "Bye, Shadow!!"

A little perplexed, Shadowfire ran to her father, Nightwing, embraced him, and walked into the vortex with him, looking back one more time with her mother's bright eyes at her future parents and their friends. Knowing she'd never forget this, she stepped back into the future with her dad.

When they stepped back into the future Tower, Nightwing asked his daughter,

"So, Shadow? What did we learn today?" in the tone Emperor Kuzco used in the Emperor's New Groove ("Who's in my chair?")

Looking angrily defeated with a storm cloud over her head, Shadow said to his feet, "My daddy was cool when he was a kid."

"And...?" her dad persisted.

"(sigh!) And he had a cool hairstyle, and my mom was a...hottie, and my daddy's outfit was cool."

"Ahem," he then said with his hand out. Sighing, Shadow placed $20 in his hand. Smiling triumphantly, he walked off, whistling. He hadn't walked 10 steps when he was face-to-face with his wife who had her arms crossed, her eyebrow raised, and tapping her foot. "Honey" she asked, "What was that?"

"Oh, you know" said Nightwing, "just teaching our daughter a lesson. Isn't that right, sweetie?"

"Sure, dad," his daughter responded dully, as everyone scattered in the house, "Whatever you say." Nightwing laughed and wrapped his arm around his little daughter all father-like and walked off-screen. Then Kaytie flew up to the camera and recited,

"If we shadows have offended,

think but this, and all is mended:

That you have but slumbered here

While these visions did appear."

Then, giggling, she flung a crescent of white light across the screen, ending our story.

THE

END

This is a new thing I'll be doing! REFERENCES!!!!

1. "Gong Yi Tan Pai" is the shouted phrase on Xiaolin Showdown that every fan of said show knows (it means "Ready, Set, Go!")

2. Robin's "So long, kid" line is a reference to Mike Wazowski saying goodbye to Boo in Monsters, Inc.

3. This one was obvious, but The Emperor's New Groove when Kuzco said, "Who's in my chair?" like he was talking to a 5-year-old to Yzma was the same manner in which Nightwing asked Shadow what "we" learned.

4. Daniel's "Bye, son" line is Marlin's last line in "Finding Nemo."

Fare thee well, readers!!! I'll return when you least expect it!! (takes a bow, picks up cloth, and disappears underneath it, like Esmeralda did in "The Hunchback of Notre Dame")