Woo! My first reviews for this story! Don't worry, BloodCri, I'll try! ;) And now, chapter 4!

Chapter 4: Cats and Cobras
Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.

People fighting...everywhere...

Beep. Beep. Beep.

The Titans...guys...

Beep. Beep.

Tobias.

Beep.

A spell.

Beep.

Arms lifting him up...

Beep. Beep.

Quick motion.

Beep. Beep.

Voices speaking...can't understand...silence.

Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.

He knew very well what was going on around him. He knew where he was, but he didn't wake up. The deep confines of Daniel's subconscious allowed him to be conscious enough to know his surroundings, but his state of unconsciousness was too deep for him to move, much less wake up. So he lay there in that hospital bed (even though he wasn't in a hospital) in mental seclusion, spared the annoyance of the home-kit heart monitor. He had no idea that his sister and his friends were on their way for him.

Once they dropped up on the Riviera, Lina and Umbra stepped out of the Ponderosa (whip crack!). Lina put the bottom of her wand in her wand in her mouth and blew. Like a straw, silver magic sparks showered out and over the boat, cloaking it with invisibility.

"Stay," she magically commanded it, then ran off to the others, her faithful Umbra at her side.

"Okay," Robin said, "Fan out. Find either Daniel or Tobias, or any of the witch hunters he hangs around. Tobias will be in a priest's robe; so will his friends."

"Why is he dressed as a priest?" Lina asked.

"How many times have you seen 'The Hunchback of Notre Dame'?" Robin asked back. Lina's hand flew to her face! That was only her favorite movie ever! She'd seen it enough times to know about the priest & villain, Frollo. Tobias was just like him!

"FOR THE LOVE OF MERLIN," Lina panicked, "WE'VE GOTTA FIND DANNY!" Cyborg was behind her, so he held her shoulders and looked down at her.

"Don't worry, Lina," he said, "We'll find him. And wherever he is, I'm sure he's fine." Lina looked hopeful.

"All right, Titans!" Robin said, "Here's how it is: Beast Boy, you and Lina look around the Square. Cyborg, you take the resident areas. Star, Raven, you two search the parks and around the Eiffel Tower. Umbra, you're comin' with me. We're searching around the Notre Dame cathedral. Titans! GO!" They scattered. Beast Boy turned eagle and carried Lina to the Arc de Triomphe, Cyborg looked around the streets of the suburbs and apartments, Starfire looked at one park, then she and Raven both scaled the Eiffel Tower. Robin took Umbra with him because he valued her animal senses, and would likely find a trail. It was this trait that often helped them in crime fighting, along with Umbra's adult mind and intellect; she often lent it to him and helped him out with problems. In a sense, Robin had come to respect the lovely black cat as his friend and teammate. (Score 2 for the kitty!)

Robin and Umbra stared up at the gigantic cathedral of Notre Dame. A small breeze blew, and Umbra lifted her nose to it.

"Umbra?" Robin asked, "What is it?" Umbra narrowed her eyes and moved her ears around. She put her face close to the cobblestone ground beneath her.

"There was a fight here," she said, not looking up, "A bunch of guys...priests, I think. The lint from their robes is all over the place. And here..." she ran over near a building, "is where Daniel and Tobias duked it out. See those burns? (Robin knelt and looked) They're very faint, but you can tell some spells and/or hexes were fired. And look!" She picked something up in her mouth and placed it in his hand. Robin held it up; it was so thin, it was almost invisible: A hair.

"Blonde," he said, "Daniel was here. And judging by those burns, he wasn't here longer than a half hour before he disappeared." He whipped out his communicator.

"Guys," he said, "We've got a lead on Daniel's location."

"Love to help you out, Rob," Cyborg said, "but I'm a little busy here!"

"The same is with us!" Star shouted into hers, "We are encountering a group of witch hunting priests!"

"Dude! We need backup!" Beast Boy was panicking, "The priests are after Merlina! I'm trying to protect her, but we're swamped!" His transmission was cut!

"Lina!" Umbra meowed in distress, "Robin, what are we gonna—MEOW!" Another net ensnared her, but this time a rope dragged it to her captor, a youthly priest.

"Umbra!" Robin started to run to her, but was attacked from the left by another priest. Robin took care of him with a whirligig kick, but the priest with Umbra had gone! A third priest snuck up on him and stabbed him in the neck with a tranquilizing needle. The priest slung the dead weight Robin over his shoulder and ran off.

Meanwhile in the streets, Beast Boy and Lina were fighting more witch hunters than they could. Lina had stunned every boy in her path with her stun saber or sleep powder, but she was running out of ideas and energy. She and Beast Boy were back-to-back.

"Any ideas?" Lina said, getting desperate.

"Dude," he answered, "look who you're asking!" A priest spoke to him.

"You are an unfortunate victim of the witch's evil spell," he said, "If you will help us, we can free you."

"DUDE! I am NOT UNDER A SPELL!" Beast Boy shouted, "Just because she's a witch doesn't make her evil! Besides, help you against my friend? Yeah, right!" He turned into a lion and roared at the priests! Lina was touched by his words and defense, and she had her wand lit. Beast Boy crouched for her to get on, and she did. He then cuffed at every priest his claws would reach, Lina clung on his mane, then he turned into a horse, bucked & kicked, then took off under an overpass-bridge with Lina sitting backwards on him, shooting cold light from her wand.

Beast Boy kept running until a black snake slithered into his path. Like the average horse, he reared, throwing the unprepared witch off his back! When she turned over on her back, she saw a green cobra in front of her confronting the black one. But all they did was hiss and clack. From behind the black snake and out of the mist walked a priest in a black robe. Merlina recognized him immediately as Tobias and froze where she was.

"Doris," he told the snake, "recoil." Doris the black snake quickly and obediently slithered up his arm and around his shoulders. Beast Boy did the same thing to Lina; no way was this freak gonna have his way with her again! The chivalrous man within him would see to that. Doris angrily hissed at him, as if she was calling him a copycat. And Beast Boy clacked back at her as if to say, "So sue me, lady! Just keep your master away from my friend!" Lina smiled at her cobra of a friend and sat up, glaring at Tobias.

"Looks like we're even," Tobias indicated the snakes.

"Believe me," Lina said as she stood, "We are far from even." More of Tobias' priests were running after her, but Tobias made an invisible bubble of energy around him and Lina, blocking the others.

"Tell me one thing, Tobias," Lina demanded, "What do you want with me, really?"

"To kill you, of course!" the priest boy yelled, "After what you did to my father, you expect me to leave you alone? I want vengeance, Rose! You're a witch! You drove my father insane! And everyone knows witches—all witches, young and old—must be sent back to Hell, where you all belong!"

"Oh, really?" she retorted hotly, "Is that why you molested me in the middle of the street?"

"As a matter of fact," he said, "yes. I wanted you to suffer, to give you a memory that would spurn your worthless life forever. Plus, it's true that while I stalked you, I found you rather desirable. And everyone knows that's no way for a priest to behave."

"I see," she said venomously, "You think that by killing me, you'll redeem your own soul? (scoff) Let's see if you even make it that far!" She put her wand to stun saber and ran at him. Beast Boy launched himself off of her, tackling Doris. Lina's saber came down on Tobias' red energy defense, made of his own crossed arms. Lina strained and pushed to break through, and screamed, "THE LIGHT SHALL CONQUER THE DARK!" and broke his defense, stunning him. The energy bubble fell, and a priest shot Lina in the neck with a tranquilizer, K-Oing her.

"Lina!" Beast Boy turned back to normal, but Doris was too quick. She coiled around his throat and bit him with her special sedative venom. He, too, fell into the arms of a priest.

"Put him with the others, Avery," ordered the priest that carried Lina, then turned to another, "Get the master, MacNair. The snake will follow you."

Author's Review:
Okay, so in this chapter, Doris represents Tobias' arrival, but this is the only time she does that. Later on, we'll focus on her and Umbra. I have no idea what's with all the tranquilizers, but just go with it.

Obviously, the two priests known as Avery and MacNair are named after two of Voldemort's followers in "Harry Potter." If you're wondering where Daniel is, you'll find out in the next chapter. Ceres fans will especially need to pay attention in the next chapter and a few later on. (Little heads-up for you.)

Umbra's investigation was a shining moment for her, I think. It just proves her intelligence a bit more. And when I said "Score 2 for the kitty!" I was alluding to the Christmas fic, when we delved into her friendship with Beast Boy (for a little bit, anyway.) Umbra was actually inspired by Sailor Moon's Luna, (but you probably figured that out) but she doesn't have a British accent.

Oh, about this whole "evil teenage priests" thing? I'm not trying to slam on any particular religion; I'm just alluding to Frollo in "The Hunchback of Notre Dame."

And...that's pretty much it. Till next time!

-samuraistar