Chapter Two: Fade Away to Nevermore
And the silken sad uncertain rustling of each purple curtain
Thrilled me - filled me with fantastic terrors never felt before;
So that now, to still the beating of my heart, I stood repeating
'Tis some visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door -
Some late visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door; -
This it is, and nothing more,'
Presently my soul grew stronger; hesitating then no longer,
Sir,' said I, or Madam, truly your forgiveness I implore;
But the fact is I was napping, and so gently you came rapping,
And so faintly you came tapping, tapping at my chamber door,
That I scarce was sure I heard you' - here I opened wide the door; -
Darkness there, and nothing more.
Robin walked into Titan's Tower, carrying Raven's still form, where Beast Boy, Cyborg, and Starfire were arguing over what to do with the 'Pudding of Sadness'. The stench of this batch had become unbearable, and the boys were trying to convince the Tamarinian girl to throw out the mess in the bowl she currently held. Everything stopped as soon as Starfire set eyes on Robin and Raven, both of them splattered with blood. A small cry escaped her when she saw the ribbon-like cuts crisscrossing Raven's body. "Is that Raven? Dude, what happened?!" Beast Boy rushed over, his eyes growing wide as he saw the angry red gashes all over her broken body.
"Friend Raven!! Robin, what has happened?" Starfire gasped, dropping the bowl of opaque pale yellow-brown goo. Cyborg caught the bowl, and carefully set it on the counter.
"We need to get her to the Med Lab. Those cuts don't look too pretty." Cyborg said, offering to take Raven. It was painful for him to see Raven in this state. She was like a sister to him, and he wouldn't forgive anyone who hurt her. Robin shook his head.
"She needs to wake up in her own environment. She wanted to be left alone." Robin, without another word, carried Raven to her room. He lied her out on her bed, and walked out, closing the cold metal door quietly behind.
Raven opened her eyes as she heard the door close. What had just happened? She tried to remember. Suddenly, everything came back in a rush. The cuts, the explosions, the pain...her emotions...Robin! A vase across the room glowed black, and burst into pieces. So many thoughts, so many feelings were running rampant in Raven's mind. She needed to go to Nevermore, and find out what was doing this to her, why she felt the way she did. The sinister-looking mirror on her dresser, the gateway to Nevermore, glowed black and flew to Raven's hand. She stared into the shiny black depths, and felt the familiar sensation of vertigo. Raven closed her eyes, and when she opened them, she found herself in Nevermore, standing before the first stone gateway. There, a Raven in a yellow cloak and glasses, Intelligence, greeted her. "She's where you left her, but she almost got loose a while ago. She's calmed down a little, but she's getting more desperate. It took Joy, Brave, Timid, and I to keep the door closed." said the yellow-clad girl.
"Why is she doing this to me?"
"ARGH!" Robin had gone straight to the training room, despite how tired he was. He was venting his anger on the punching bag. He kicked the thick leather exterior, leaving a dusty gray footprint. How could he have done that to her? He'd taken advantage of her. He'd assumed that the problem was similar to a mechanical hitch, with a clear solution, but this was something far deeper. The heavy sack of sand swung back on its chain.
He didn't love Raven.
He'd crossed the line with her, broken his own rule. The bag swung back with the impact of Robin's fist. He had been tempted. Raven was so elusive, so hidden. Everything about her screamed of solitude and silence. For the first time, as she had lied there beneath him, her soul had been exposed to him, open for him to explore and criticize as he pleased. And he'd taken advantage of his power over her. He'd been tempted, captivated by her elusive nature. "AGH!" He punched the bag so hard, the chain broke, and the bag flew across the room. Cyborg opened the door, and managed to catch the bag.
"Slow down. I'm the one who has to fix that."
"Sorry." Robin said, sitting down in a nearby chair.
"What's up? Did something happen between you and Raven? How did you get her to come home?"
"Nothing, no, doesn't matter." Robin replied, sighing heavily.
"Wanna talk about it?" Cyborg asked, setting down the bag and walking over to Robin.
"No."
"Well...If you change your mind, I'm here."
"Thanks, but no." Cyborg watched as Robin left the room, his brows furrowed deep in thought. Cyborg hated to see his oldest friend at odds with himself. Something had happened, and it was driving Robin insane.
Raven followed the yellow cloaked version of herself through the various stages of her mind. Joy, the pink cloaked Raven, and Timid, the gray cloaked Raven, accompanied them. Hatred watched with a mirthless smile from the shadows. A dark design was developing in her head, and all that was left were the details of time and place. Intelligence led the three to a heavy iron door in a black marble wall. Dangling from the door's many latches were equally many locks, all of which were unlocked, save for a small golden one, engraved with the word, "Doubt". "When she got stronger, all of the locks unlocked at once. This was the only one that we could lock again." said Intelligence. Raven looked in through a small window in the door at the silver cloaked girl within, who was slumped against the cold black wall, asleep. Her cloak had lost its luster since she'd tried to break out of her prison. Several gashes and sores were visible on the girl's ashen skin, some of them open and festering. She woke up.
"Will you listen to me now? Please, hear me out." said the silver cloaked Raven.
"Who are you?" Raven demanded. "Why are you doing this to me?!"
"I am your Heart. I am your Love. I am dying, because you're keeping me locked away. That boy, Robin... he nearly set me free, but then Joy, Timid, Intelligence, and Brave slammed the door."
"You're the one who's been making all of these things happen to me, the one who's been hurting me? How dare you. I'll rip you out of my chest. Anything to make you shut up."
"All you have to do is admit to yourself that you love him. Set me free. Please... It will make things easier, for all of us."
"I can't afford to let you or any other sides of me surface. Let's go." Raven said, turning her back on Love. Love sighed, and closed her eyes again. Her cloak dimmed ever so slightly as Raven walked away from her heart, leaving her imprisoned. Hatred laughed a cold, hollow laugh from the shadows.
A.N. Hullo all. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Julia-Nevermore, and I am a veteran fic author. I hope you've enjoyed the story so far. Review if you are so inclined. I'll try to update asap.