In The Beginning There Was Darkness

Chapter 6

September 6, 2004

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"Hello…" Raven said softly as she watched the green Titan stroll into the living room. He didn't even spare a glance as he walked by the quiet girl, Robin and Cyborg may have fallen for her tricks, but Beast Boy would not. He wasn't foolish enough to give into the spell that she cast with her innocent anger, frustration, and shadowed past. He didn't care if she jumped of the top of the tower, and that was that.

"Nice to see you too," Raven muttered sarcastically under her breath, rolling her eyes as the green Titan moved past her wordlessly. She returned to her book and groaned inwardly as the television turned on and Beast Boy loaded his new game: Mega-Super-Hyper-Bots Eight. Because, you know, that was the most creative and artistic title that she had ever heard of.

"Um, Beast Boy?" She asked, unsure of what might happen next if she provoked him. "Could you turn the volume down a little? I'm trying to read."

His head whipped around and his eyes narrowed into slits. He sat there, staring at her for a long while before making a hissing noise and saying nothing more. He turned back to the television and began noisily pressing buttons, without turning down the sound on the screen.

'Well, that was a complete waste of my time and breath.' Raven sighed deeply, wishing she had the nerve to pound him on the head with the game controller… unfortunately that would provoke the wrath of the other alien Titan. Starfire had been protecting Beast Boy from Raven's evilness as of late. Too bad Raven couldn't protect the Titans from the parasite.

The doors 'swooshed' open, and the dark girl looked up into a pair of green eyes.

'Speak of the devil…' Raven tucked her book into her cloak, and after a moment's pause she stood up and began to head toward the exit, lest she be drawn into battle by the woman. Unlike Beast Boy, who felt the cold-shoulder was the path of best resistance, Starfire felt as though she should constantly insult or berate Raven for every little thing she may possibly do, be it bad or good; and the Tameranian was very vocal with her opinions.

"Leaving?" The alien girl snarled at Raven. The latter rolled her eyes and sighed deeply, just wanting peace from the redhead.

"Yes… does it matter to you?"

"You're up to no good," Starfire said, eyes crackling with energy that was itching to be used in a hurtful fashion, "I can sense it…"

"And your scent is driving me away further." Raven bared her teeth cruelly at the shocked face of the Tameranian. "I can smell it the moment you walk into a room." Starfire shot a single starbolt at Raven, who easily dodged it, a triumphant smirk mounted on her lips.

"You make it difficult to tolerate you," Starfire hissed as the dark girl started for the door again.

"And you started it, Starfire." Raven walked out without another word, almost wishing that Starfire would follow her, just so she could get a few more shots in. But, alas, there was no sound of footsteps only the muffled noise of robots being blown up. That meant Raven would have to wait until supper to insult her some more… pity.

"Ah, there you are!" A familiar voice called from down the hall.

Raven looked up and forced down the light blush that formed on her face, as the masked Titan jogged down the hall to greet her. She took a deep breath and locked eyes with Robin as he stopped in front of her.

"Um… hello," she whispered softly. Things had been sort of awkward between them since last week, when Raven had been so close to him. They had both realized the dangerousness of their situation, and what it could possibly provoke later. However, Robin, unlike Raven, decided the best way to combat such strange feelings was to simply ignore them, and continue on with life. Raven couldn't ignore the feelings, as they could be her down fall later.

"I've got a surprise for you!" He called in a sing-song voice. Raven gave a start, then looked at him a little strangely, hoping that there would be no repeat of last weeks… er, problem.

"What?" She asked, as stoically as possible, although her heart jumped around a bit. She knew it was wrong for her accept gifts from the others, but she did enjoy it. After all, she had never been given anything unnecessary when she was on Azarath.

"Close your eyes and I'll show it to you," Robin said, grinning in his trademark way. He had something up his sleeve, and Raven knew it. He never used that smile with her unless he was planning something.

"How am I supposed to see it with my eyes closed?" The dark girl questioned, raising an eyebrow skeptically.

"Very carefully," Robin laughed. "Now close them."

"You're impossible," Raven sighed as she let her eyes close.

"Oh, I know," Robin said conversationally, as he linked his arm with hers and began pulling her along the labyrinth of corridors. "You remind me of it on a daily basis."

"Yes, well, it keeps you check. Lest you be even more impossible," Raven said as she was pulled around a sharp corner.

"Thank you for your kindness, fair maiden," Robin joked.

"Don't start that 'fair maiden' crap or I'll run away again," Raven laughed.

"You know, I always did love the thrill of a good chase." There was a minor pause as the two of them came to a stop. Raven sensed the presence of another person, and assumed that it was Cyborg. "Okay… open your eyes."

Raven's dark eyes fluttered open to discover her hypothesis true as she looked into the smiling face of Cyborg. She then turned to Robin and stared skeptically at him. "Um… is this my surprise?"

Cyborg raised an eyebrow as a smile twitched at the corner of his lips. "I'd watch it, little lady," He teased playfully, "Otherwise we'll take your surprise away."

"Come on, Cy. Move." Robin said, slightly irritated. "We worked too hard for this mindless chatter." Cyborg shrugged, then moved to his left and revealed a door, marked with a single word: 'Raven.'

The dark girl looked in slight shock from the masked Titan to the mechanical one. "Is this what I think it is?" She asked, happiness finding cracks in her voice to seep through. Her companions nodded at her question, grins plastered across their faces. Raven had wanted this for weeks now, her own room and privacy. And now… now she had it!

"Why don't you open your door?" Robin asked, nudging her a little and smiling.

"Okay…" the dark girl whispered softly and carefully. She raised her hand to the memory pad next to the door and pressed gently. Then with a magnetic hiss, the door pulled open and revealed Raven's new room…

… in all its tragic glory.

Raven's beautiful room was trashed. Books were lying on the floor, the pages burnt or ripped out. Her dark, silk sheets and bed things were ripped from her bed and torn to shreds on the floor. Candles and pictures that were gifts from Robin and Cyborg were broken and thrown across the room. The worst part of it all was the words "Blor-narg" and "Sethonsou" were painted across the wall above her bed.

"Awe, hell no!" Cyborg cried, staring in shock at the state of Raven's room. "I did NOT spend all that time for this to happen!"

Raven backed out of the room and closed the door. Her breath was caught in her chest and it took a long time before she was able to look at her companions She turned around to stare into the equally shocked faces of Robin and Cyborg. "I'm guessing you didn't know anything about this either."

"No!" Robin said quickly and irritably. He was angry as all get out, who would harbor such hateful feelings against Raven as to terrorize her room like that? And after all the work that both he and Cyborg had done in the past few days. "I swear! Three hours ago your room was perfect, Cyborg and I fixed it up ourselves."

"Well," Raven shifted uncomfortably, eyes falling to the ground, afraid to tell them the truth. "I think I know who did… but you don't want to hear it."

"Oh, yes we do!" Cyborg yelled angrily. "Robin and I worked too hard on this room for you. No one has the right to do that to you. And if it was that little green twerp, I swear I will pound his ass into the ground."

"It wasn't," Raven said flatly, a hint of sadness lining her voice. "Not unless he knows both Tameranian and Azarathian. That's what language those words on the wall were…" Raven ran her slender fingers through her hair and took a deep breath. Her thoughts swirling around into a black mess in her head. She'd been nothing but the origin of anger and ill-feelings since she came here, surely Robin had to see that now. Raven wasn't wanted here, she knew that… she had to leave, or something worse could happen next time. "Look, Robin and Cyborg, I don't want to cause trouble, but-"

Robin raised an eyebrow, staring at her skeptically as he cut off her sentence. He didn't want to hear her sad remarks last week, and he had no intention of hearing them this week. She was a Titan now, no matter what; and she would always be a Titan. "Don't even start, Raven. I'm sick of your self-pity, and I don't want to hear it."

Raven's eyes glowed white for a moment at his ill-thought remarks. He didn't have to be so rude about it! And besides, the state of her room should be more than a red flag to the masked Titan, he should know that Raven's presence in the tower was only causing chaos. "Well, look at that room! I'd say that's a pretty good hint for me to leave!"

"No," Cyborg said calmly, as his lips pressed into a thin line. "I'd say it's a pretty good hint for me to go pound some justice into a snotty princess from Tameran. Come on you guys, I'm sick of her attitude and she's going to hear about it." He stalked off down the hall, muttering about stuck up aliens and their idiotic ways.

Robin and Raven stared at him in mild surprise for a moment, before shrugging off the strange situation and following him back down the labyrinth of corridors to the living room. Robin took a deep breath and looked at the girl next for him after a moment of silent walking. He watched her for a while, sizing her up and trying to decipher every move she made. Finally, as they approached the door to the living room, Robin decided to speak.

"Look, Raven…" he said carefully, looking deeply into the beautiful eyes he was becoming fond of, "I know you're on pins about being a Titan, but you shouldn't be. You're just as much a member as me or Starfire, and no one has the right to treat you like that." He had stopped in the middle of the hall and turned to face her fully. "I don't want you to feel like every time something bad happens, you have to leave. It's not your fault at all, no matter what. We're just still getting used to you."

Raven shifted a little, understanding everything that Robin was trying to tell her. "I know… I just feel like no one wants me here some times. I'll either be ignored or insulted… or something, like when I was-" The dark woman stopped herself and her eyes wandered away from his trusting face for a moment.

There was a long pause in which Robin said nothing, he knew Raven was going to tell him something very personal, and he didn't want to upset her. "I've been alone for a lot of my life, Robin… my father never loved me and my mother was dead… and…" There was another pause as Raven tried to bring all her thoughts together, realizing that her scrambled bits of conversation were not making any sense. Finally, she looked at her companion sadly, deciding to tell him the information that was the most immediate.

"Robin, those words on the wall… they meant 'Half-breed'." There was a slight, painful pause as the masked Titan tried to piece it together, he was having some trouble.

"What?" Robin looked at her strangely. "I don't understand…"

"I'm not a pure Azarathian…" Raven took a deep breath and her eyes darkened slightly. "I want to tell you about my past, Robin. I've been thinking about it lately, and you deserve to know everything… but it will take far longer than a few minutes, and…"

Shouts were suddenly coming from the living room; Robin rolled his eyes at the sound and Raven shifted a little, knowing she was the cause of discord.

"Nine tonight," Robin said as he edged closer, eyes locking with hers. Raven made no move to back away, there would be no frightened repeat like last week's. The dark girl would take everything that the powerless super-hero could throw at her, she didn't want to be afraid anymore. "You, me, and the roof."

Raven nodded, her eyes shining hopefully. "Nine."

"RAVEN!" The doors were thrown open and Raven jumped back, staring into the glowing eyes of Starfire. "YOU LITTLE SNITCH!"

Raven rolled her eyes and walked past her into the living room, Robin close behind. Cyborg and Beast Boy looked at the redhead angrily and she glared at the pair in complete and utter loathing (Sings: Loathing! Unadulterated loathing! For your hair! Your voice! Your clothing! I loath it all! Every little trait however small! Makes my very flash begin to crawl!). "I can hardly call myself a 'snitch' if Cyborg and Robin saw my room at the same time as me," Raven stated practically as she leaned against the back of the couch to look at Starfire.

"I can't belive you would sink so low, Star," Beast Boy said suddenly, glaring at the alien girl with disgust, and shaking his head in disbelief. "You and Raven have some mean fights sometimes, but vandalizing her room?"

Raven fell to the floor in shock. "W-what?" She stuttered, blinking with wide eyes at the green Titan. "Beast Boy?" She asked carefully, hoping the green guy wasn't replaced with some body snatcher from Mars.

Beast Boy turned to Raven and shifted a little uncomfortably as the room around him went silent with shock and surprise. "Look, Raven…" the green boy started carefully, "I know that you and I don't always get along and all… and I took Star's side, because I thought she was right and we couldn't trust you because you were and stranger and from a different planet and all… But, how can I trust some one who vandalizes your room? And you never even got to enjoy it." He added the last part sheepishly and shook his head. "So, I'm sorry for all the things I did or said to you, Raven. It wasn't very nice."

Raven stood there and gaped like a fish for a moment. He did not just say nice things like that… did he? What in the gods' names was this boy on? Honestly? "Ahh… thank you, Beast Boy, for standing up for me." Her cheeks flushed a light pink and Raven turned away.

"Yeah well, maybe I was a little too hasty in deciding who you were, so… let's try this again…" the green boy held out his thickly gloved hand, and smiled brightly. "Hi. I'm Beast Boy, and welcome to the Teen Titans."

Raven let a glimmer of a smile show and she took his hand carefully, fully accepting his apology for his rudeness. So, through Starfire's stupidity, Raven had gained another friend and made an ally. Irony was very sweet, when your enemy was on the other end. "Hello, Beast Boy. Thank you for welcoming me to the team," She said softly.

Starfire seethed with anger. "So, that's how it is!" the redhead glared at the green boy and all the other Titans, who were still getting over their shock. "I try to save this team from some one like her, and it gets thrown back in my face!"

Raven raised an eyebrow, and sighed deeply, suddenly wanting to just smack the girl very hard. "Listen, Starfire. I never asked for this, and neither did anyone else. But, everyone seems to be just fine with me joining your team, except you!"

"That's because they don't know you! I know what your species is like!"

"Oh, do you?" Raven seethed, eyes glowing white. "Princess? I bet you never even left Tameran! Except to come to this planet!"

"Blor-narg!" Starfire hissed at her.

"Raven! Starfire!" Robin called, now knowing what that word meant. He did not want Raven's wrath induced.

"Bitch!" Raven called out in English, then turned and fled from the room.

Robin sighed deeply and rolled his eyes before he started chasing after her. He paused near the door and turned back to Starfire. "Your punishment is to fix Raven's room and buy her new things. Cyborg will tell you exactly what you need, and I'll be by later to see your progress. I want it done by tonight, no exceptions." Without bothering to hear Starfire's complaint, Robin ran from the room, hoping to catch Raven before she tried to run away…

…again.

- - -

HA HA! I bet all of you thought I rolled over and DIED! Well, I didn't! I'm sitting here on my computer, it's 11:30 PM and I have to haul my happy ass out of bed at five AM so I can read Oedipus, the damned play about the man that killed his father and married his mother. YAY Greek tragedy!

The song I started singing in the middle of the paragraph is called 'What is This Feeling?' it's from a musical called "Wicked", and it is an AWESOME song, so if you have the chance I would listen to it. It makes me laugh… ha ha ha. Actually that song would fit CRAZY good into this story… maybe I'll type up the lyrics for next chapter.

Anyway… the reason this took so damned long to get out was because school started, and then I just started obsessing over InuYasha again! Like out of no where, I'm suddenly watching it all the time and reading all these really good stories. So anyway, I was starting some work on an InuYasha story… so I'm kinda excited about that. Even though I'm already piled down with stories… ANYWAY!

Well, I don't own Teen Titans… and if I did… MAN! The Beast Boy would so be mine!

PS: Tell me if you hated it, tell me if you loved it, tell me to get my ass back on my PC and write some more… it's all good.