Chapter 2 of my second TT fan fiction piece. Still same scenario, just latter that evening at Titans Tower. If you like this stuff, go to my other piece to get a look at what a finished Raven pseudo-epic ala Wordbearer is without three week pauses between chapters... Enough self plugging on my part, it's just plain rude. In any event, here we go with chapter2. One more thing: I don't own Teen Titans in any way shape or form. That honor belongs to someone at Cartoon Network and I have no intent of challenging that person! I don't sek to make any money from this and hope this doesn't get me sued... On with the show!
Shadows of a Fallen Angel
By Wordbearer
Raven stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel about her dripping body. The air was thick with steam despite the quiet hum of the fan in the background. She hated dirt with a silent ferocity and it marginally soothed her to get the mud off of her body. She looked back at the shower and grimaced; the walls were stained with mud. The dark mystic didn't like the way the drain sounded either. The sight reminded her of the way Terra had left the room during her visit. Raven forced the thought down with instinctive discipline and set about drying her wet hair which hung like a pair of limp snakes about her face. Eventually satisfied with the dryness of her hair, she combed it with even stokes in front of the mirror.
Raven paused midstroke and tilted her head at the reflection in the mirror. A heart shaped face dominated by a pair of blue eyes gazed back at her. She blinked as the light caught the blood red chakra embedded in her forehead. Her slight mouth pierced as she reflected on the smooth gray tone of her skin. The ashen shade contrasted starkly with her indigo hair. Raven shock her head slightly at her self absorption and continued to comb her hair. She continued to sneak glimpses at her reflection as she worked however...
It was at this point that a deep, arrogant voice spoke in the dark mystic's ear. "Gazing at yourself in mirrors? I had thought that those weakling Azarathian monks had broken you of all such indulgences. There may be hope for you yet daughter..." The all pervading sense of familiar wrongness that colored her senses gave her all the clues she needed to identify the speaker.
Not bothering to look around the bathroom, Raven spoke softly to herself, "Father." Trigon the Terrible laughed darkly from his abysmal prison and Raven knew that his voice was only in her head. She was angry at this casual violation, yet she held her energies in check.
Trigon spoke again, "Now, now, Raven. Is that anyway for a child to speak to a concerned parent? I felt your soul flicker and flare earlier even from the Abyss where I dwell. I come because I was concerned about your wellbeing."
Raven grimaced to herself as she spoke, "I could do without your false concern. Just leave me alone."
Amusement rippled through Trigon's response, "You did have a close call tonight, my scion! You are normally not this easy to rile up. I want to find out what happened..."
Raven dropped to her knees as her father rustled through her memories as easily as she would turn pages in a book. The sensation burned and her aura flared in response to the tightly suppressed agony. Her features tightened and twitched in pain, yet she held her silence. Raven fought to keep the energy in check by continually murmuring her mantra.
This surreal tableau held until Trigon pulled his mental talons from her memories and spoke, "Most impressive. Most impressive indeed. The only failing I can see in your performance is your earlier reluctance and the ultimate clemency you extended toward the weakling." Pride was dripping from his voice and Raven was repulsed by his approval.
A whisper below audible level issued from the dark mystic's mouth, "Curse you father. I nearly killed her and sent her soul plummeting into the Abyss."
Trigon responded drolly, "Yes, nearly. If you had finished the job, I would have taken great satisfaction in making sure the traitors' soul received the most... delicate attentions possible in the Abyss. No one challenges my scion." Raven's eye's hardened with anger, anger at her father for his behavior and anger at herself for her earlier willingness to surrender to the instincts he had burdened her with.
Grey was clouding her vision as her father's presence in her mind ate away at her energy reserves.
She had to focus through a developing migraine as Starfire inquired from the other side of the door, "Are you okay, Friend Raven? You have been in the room of bodily cleansing for a half hour and Beastboy hops around making cries of distress whenever I mention the word 'water'." Raven fought to push Trigon out of her head in earnest now, leaving Starfire's query unanswered as she focused inward.
The daemon lord didn't resist her effort and added one more comment, "These humans are good for you. I had lost all hope of your daemon heritage coming around before now. It is only a matter of time at this rate, before you open the Rift and release me from my prison of your own accord. I look forward to the..." His voice fell silent and the grey film tainting her sight lifted as his presence withdrew. Raven's grimace deepened at the horrific sincerity in her father's voice. The mirror cracked as her control slipped and waves of dark energy lightly buffeted the room. She planted her palms on the tile and levered herself to her feet, breathing heavily. She focused and the miniature storm died along with her aura.
Starfire called again in a concerned tone, "Raven?" The dark mystic replied in her normal monotone despite the fact that sweat poured down her face.
"I'm coming out now. Tell Beastboy that he can do his business."
"That is no longer a problem. Friend Beastboy has gone in search of a bush." Raven managed to roll her eyes as she opened the door. Starfire hovered right outside and her eyes widened in concern as she took in Raven's disheveled appearance and the cracked mirror. Her desire to escape the ensuing conversation outweighed her hygienic pickiness and Raven curtly preempted the alien's answer.
Raven coldly said, "I'm fine Starfire. I'll take care of the mirror in the morning. For now, just leave me alone and let me get to bed." Her voice was tinged with anger and Raven wished that she had brought a spare cloak into the bathroom so that she could hide some of her expression in shadow. Clad only in a towel, she was distinctly uncomfortable. Starfire nodded in understanding. Sighing, the dark mystic turned and walked toward her room down the darkened hallway.
Thus, she didn't see the calculating gleam that sparkled in Starfire's emerald eyes. The tall alien whispered to herself as she counted out points on her fingers.
"Raven is clearly upset about her fight with Terra. She does not want us to know why or share her pain like true friends should." Starfire drifted down the darkened hallway as she reflected.
"Raven was not comforted by the pudding of sadness. Nor will she enjoy the sound of the gorka pipes." The alien frowned, biting her lip as she wracked her brain fro ways to make her introspective friend feel better. Starfire's eyes lit up as she hit upon a solution.
"Of course, the rice cakes of remorse!"
She paused mid-exclamation, "Now where did I store my X'hlian pepper pods? I hope I brought enough..." The alien moved off determinedly into the dark hallway.
Raven was in bed asleep, but it wasn't a restful sleep. Her mind had conjured up a nightmare visionscape upon which her guilt, fear, and anger could play itself out, given form by the legacy of her daemon father. She helplessly looked on with her mind's eye. She and Terra faced on another across a mud filled arena, mirrored walls sending crazed reflections in all directions. Above the arena, an audience watched in grim silence. Its members were every foe and friend she knew: Jinx, Robin, Dr.Light, Starfire, Mad Mod, Cyborg, Slade, Beastboy, Overload, Thunder, Mumbo, Aqualad... The crowd faded into the infinte shadows above. Terra and Raven moved to an angry dance, sometimes, grappling, sometimes hurling each other about the arena with sporadic bursts of their powers.
Raven was winning: Terra gasped and heaved as she was hurled back by in a wave of black energy. Raven saw the blonde in staccato flashes as she fought: sweeping Terra into the mud, blocking a clumsy strike, throwing Terra into the air like a broken stick. The fight seemed to slow as the dark mystic struck Terra in the chest, her hand aglow with black light. The blonde hit the mirrored wall hard and slid down it limply. Raven caught sight of her reflection and paused horrified. She didn't recognize herself. No, she recognized herself from a hundred nightmares. Her features were utterly transfigured: red skin, four angry yellow eyes, flowing white hair over a ragged blue cloak. She looked like her father.
Trigon's voice rang out, "Finish her off, child." Raven snapped her gaze upward and looked upon a horrid spectacle.
Her friends and her foes were being borne off by a tide of shadowy figures, Futile resistance flared and drowned as flaming knives were brought to bear on the dissenters. Trigon towered above the tide and his gaze looked upon her alone.
He intoned in his rumbling voice, "Slay the traitor and I will share my throne with you unto the ending of the universe." Raven was horrified to find herself nodding agreement and gesturing at Terra as the other fought to get to her knees. Raven engulfed Terra in a black cocoon and held her under the mud. Her face widened into an involuntary smirk as the air bubbles trickled to the surface from Terra's lungs. She could only see the mud, bubbles popping one by one. Trigon's laughter filled her ears as the bubbles stopped. The vision faded to black.
Raven snapped awake and clutched her sheets to her chest. She calmed herself and looked toward her window. The dark mystic could see bars of blue through shades and squinted at her alarm clock.
The squat device accusingly blinked '9:03' in red letters, prompting her to scowl tightly as she thought, "Overslept. The others will be up by now and I'm going to get a lot of meditating done with them around. They're so sensitive to my needs..." She sighed lowly as she reflected. True, she could scare them into leaving her alone for a few hours, but she didn't feel like doing that this morning. Pulling herself out of bed, Raven opened her closet revealing a swath of blue outfits. She selected a cloak and fastened it over her shoulders. Suitably armored against the world, the dark mystic straightened her shoulders and unlocked her door.
Raven silently padded down the hallway, hoping against certainty that she might find the main hall deserted and have the chance to quietly enjoy her tea. Those futile hopes were crushed as she detected a pungent aroma coming from her destination. Bracing herself, she walked up to the main hall door and it opened. Revealed was a scene that was pathetically normal in her life. The kitchen was a mess: bowls, spoons, spatulas, measuring cups, pans, etc filling the sinks. She squinted as she looked at the mass that was charred to the pan's surfaces. Was that rice? The aroma was thicker here, almost sickeningly strong. The TV had the gamestation logo emblazoned on its screen, evidently paused mid session. Starfire darted over to Raven holding a tray covered with roughly rectangular, purple and orange lumps. The alien's eyes blazed with eagerness and the dark mystic shuddered internally as she waited fro the bubbly alien to speak.
"You are awake at last, friend Raven! I have been awaiting your arrival."
Raven gazed cautiously at the red-head as she inquired, "Cooking this morning?" Starfire blushed and shrugged apologetically.
"I am sorry for the mess. I wanted to make you the rice cakes of remorse. Sadly I miscalculated the amount of heat need to prepare the rice and was only able to salvage enough for ten." Leary of anything Starfire made and internally amazed at the fact she could burn rice, Raven raised an unseen eyebrow.
She said, "Did you offer some to the others?" "Oh, yes! But, oddly they didn't want to have their second cake."
Starfire looked marginally distressed as she continued, "Cyborg and Beastboy looked most sick before dashing out of the room and Robin said he liked it, but also departed at some speed. More for us!"
The dark mystic tweaked her eyes in reluctance, "I think I'll pass, Starfire. I just want some..." She trailed off at the crushed look on the red-head's face and relented. She was not in the mood to crush hopes right now, even trivial ones.
"Very well. Give me one." Starfire held up the tray and Raven picked up the smallest cake. She took a bite of the strangely colored morsel and amazement washed through her at the taste. It was good; more than that, it was familiar... Starfire saw the minute signs that indicated pleasure in her inscrutable friend and rejoiced inside, careful not to disturb Raven's train of thought as she munched.
The dark mystic asked, "May I have another?" Starfire bit her lip to keep from squealing in joy as happiness washed through her being like a flood. She nodded in the affirmative. Raven took the largest cake this time.
Raven paused halfway through the next cake and asked a question she hoped she would not soon regret, "How did you make these? These are very... good. We had something like them on Azarath."
Starfire's response bubbled with happiness, "It pleases me that you are happy with the cakes. These always cheered me up when I was a small child in the B'reck Knuml. I had to do much improvisation to recreate the recipe. It helped that I had a stock of X'halian pepper pods on hand."
Raven raised an eyebrow and asked, "X'halian pepper pods? Purple fruit that grows on a short bush with black leaves and huge white flowers?"
"Oh, yes. I am glad you know of them. I had to use most of mine to flavor this batch. We can go to get some more together! This is..." Raven zoned out briefly as she reflected. X'halain pepper was an aquired taste and your first bite could be quite repulsive. A part of her, normally kept under tight control, quirked her lips into a brief smile, as she imagined the boys' reaction to the strange taste. Cutting into Starfire's happy monologue, the dark mystic gestured at the tray and spoke.
"Have some. You shouldn't have to do all those dishes without getting something out of it."
"I had two, but thank you." Starfire grabbed a cake and began to munch on it as the dark mystic did the same. The two females shared a quiet moment. Raven lost herself in the experience, a slight smile gracing her face. Her nightmares seemed light years away as she partook in this simple pleasure.
So you made it down here. What did you think? Good? Bad? Don't care? If you see fit, leave a review. Thank you for you time.
