Chapter 13—Deadly Reunions
"Mom, can we stop and pick up dinner?" Olivia asked as she walked with her mother and siblings to the front passenger side of the T-UV, the Titans very own sport utility vehicle.
"Are you going to call home and ask everyone what they want and then remember it all?" Raven asked, hoping that the daunting task would discourage her 9 year old daughter.
"Sure," she replied. "Where's the communicator?" Raven shook her head as she reached into her cloak pocket with her free hand. Not finding it, she handed five month old Caleb to Olivia and continued the search for her communicator. As she did this, Toby occupied Emily by teaching her to play Rock-Paper-Scissors. The November chill made their breath rise in air when the kids laughed.
Raven and the kids paid little attention to the people bustling around them. Each one appeared to be simply another person. Because of this, Olivia was startled that much more when out of nowhere, a woman stepped out of the crowds and hit her mother across the back of her head with a street sign she had just uprooted from the concrete sidewalk. Olivia screeched for her siblings and quickly handed Caleb to Emily, who ran for the T-UV and crawled inside, locking the door behind her. Olivia and Toby turned to the scene before them.
"Who are you?" Toby shouted.
"What do you want!" Olivia screamed. Both of the kids stood poised to react as the woman laughed at them, standing menacingly over their fallen mother.
"Do you honestly think you can do anything about this, even if I told you?" she glowered. Olivia picked up several wooden crates with Toby's help and threw them at their adversary, but the force field she had erected around herself caused the crates to simply shatter. Seconds later, the woman disappeared with Raven, leaving her children alone on the cold sidewalks of Jump City.
"Toby, did you find mom's communicator?" Olivia asked, her voice still shaking.
"Here it is!" he said, pulling it from one of the shopping bags as he and Olivia slid into the car and re-locked the door.
"Where's mommy?" Emily asked, her voice barely audible above Caleb, who still sobbed in fear. Olivia picked Caleb out of his car seat and cradled him, convincing him that everything was okay and Toby pulled his little sister's shaking form into his arms and hugged her.
"Everything's gonna be okay, Emmy," Toby said, hugging her for a few more seconds before popping open the communicator.
"Calling all Titans! Calling all Titans!" Toby cried into the communicator. "Is anyone there?" Seconds later, the image of his father materialized on the screen.
"Toby, we had a talk about you kids playing with mom and dad's communicators. You can't go calling like that unless--"
"Dad, we need help! Some lady came out of nowhere and attacked mom!" Toby interrupted. Beast Boy froze.
"Where are you?" he demanded.
"Broadway and 16th street," Toby replied.
"Are you all right?" Beast Boy asked. Toby nodded. "We locked ourselves in the car. We're okay, dad, but mom…that lady…she…"
"It's okay, Toby, we're on our way. Just stay in the car. We'll find you, okay?" Beast Boy said, sensing that the stress was finally starting to catch up to his children.
"Dad, hurry," Olivia added. "Caleb won't stop crying."
"I'm on my way," Beast Boy repeated. "Just stay put."
Agonizingly long minutes passed before Beast Boy and Robin arrived to rescue the kids. The twins were the first ones out of the car when their father landed on the sidewalk and morphed out of his hawk form. Once he had ascertained the safety of all four of them, he looked up at Robin.
"What happened here?" Robin asked. The kids repeated the story in as much detail as they could.
"The twins probably saved Raven's life," Robin said. "They distracted the attacker and by just being there, they probably convinced her not to kill Raven in front of her children."
"But, what now?" Beast Boy asked. "So she took Raven somewhere else to kill her?" He was plainly angry, and he didn't realize the gravity of what he had said until he heard a soft gasp behind him. He turned around and looked into the eyes of all four of his children.
"Mom…mom's dead?" Toby asked.
"We didn't save mom?" Olivia added. "We failed our first mission?"
"Mommy?…" Emily murmured.
"Now you did it," Robin grumbled, folding his arms across his chest and waiting for Beast Boy to respond to his children.
"That's not…I didn't mean…kids…" Beast Boy struggled. Robin stepped in.
"We'll discuss it at home. C'mon, kids. Let's go home," Robin said, ending the conversation. The ride back to Titan's Tower was silent.
"We don't want you to jump to conclusions," Robin said when he and Beast Boy sat the Logan children down in the living room. "Your mom is out there somewhere and we're going to find her."
"That's right. It was wrong of me to say what I said. I'm just afraid for your mom. I love her, and I want her to be safe," Beast Boy added.
"So…mom's gonna be okay?" Toby asked tentatively.
"Your mom's a pretty strong woman. If we work together, she'll be just fine," Beast Boy reassured him. Toby nodded, and gestured for his sisters to come with him to their rooms. Beast Boy picked up Caleb and followed them. As they got to the door, Robin looked up and called for Olivia to come back.
"Yes?" she said as she returned to his side.
"I wanted you to know, Olivia, that I was really proud of how you took charge out there. It took a lot of guts to do what you and Toby did, and it was really cool," Robin said. Olivia smiled.
"Does that mean that we can come work out in the combat arena more often?"
she asked hopefully. It was Robin's turn to smile.
"Yeah. Definitely," Robin laughed, hugging Olivia. Olivia ran back across the room and up the stairs before looking back.
"Uncle Robin?"
"Yes?"
"Call me Hummingbird," Olivia replied. Robin smiled and nodded and the eldest Logan proceeded to her room.
That night, it took Beast Boy longer to get Caleb to go to sleep. Not that he could blame his infant son. Raven's disappearance had rattled them all. None of their known enemies had been directly responsible, and there had been no clues except for what his children had seen.
When Beast Boy finally rested his head on his pillow, sleep claimed him only minutes later. What sleep he got though, was filled with tumultuous nightmares of what could only be explained as his own fears of what could be happening to his wife. He tossed and turned in his sleep, crying out and breaking out in a sweat.
Olivia stood in her parents' bedroom doorway and watched for a moment. Should she interrupt? What did mom do when dad had nightmares? She made the decision a second later and padded on bare feet into the room, resting a small hand on her father's shoulder. Beast Boy awoke in another cry of fear and sat up, running a hand through his hair and looking at his older daughter.
"I woke you up. I'm sorry, Olivia," he mumbled.
"It's okay, Dad. I'm here," Olivia murmured, getting up on the bed and hugging her father. "Just rest. Everything's okay." Beast Boy smiled softly, lifted his daughter's chin and met her eyes.
"You really are just like your mom," Beast Boy said. "You even talk like she does."
"Thanks, dad," Olivia murmured, resting her head against Beast Boy's shoulder. Toby and Emily appeared at the door a moment later.
"What's wrong?" Toby asked.
"Dad had a bad dream," Olivia replied. Without hesitation, Toby and Emily joined Olivia and snuggled into bed with their father, lulling him finally into a restful sleep.
The next day dawned chilly, and brought the first light snowfall of the year. Olivia bit her bottom lip and squinted a bit as she scrutinized the quickly cooking pancake in front of her. Auntie Torque had taught her that if she watched carefully, she could flip the pancake at just the right time and not burn the chocolate chips in the batter. Toby, like their father, turned his nose up at chocolate chips, and chocolate in general, but not Olivia. When it had been a rough night, chocolate chip pancakes were a must.
"Did you make some without chocolate?" Toby muttered, still rubbing his eyes as he entered the kitchen. The five transferring Titans had left very early that morning, and with Raven gone, that left the kids to start breakfast.
"Of course we did," Olivia replied, poking her tongue out of the side of her mouth before carefully flipping the flapjack.
"We?" Toby asked.
"Yeah, Jason helped," Olivia replied. Toby scratched his head and peered over toward the table, where Jason was carefully setting plates around. A minute later, as Toby started back toward the door to go and wake their other siblings, Jinx entered the room with a babbling Reese following closely behind her. Jinx carefully picked him up and hushed him. Morning was generally quiet time in Titans Tower. Toby came back into the room with Emily and Caleb, promptly settling his little brother onto a blanket on the floor to allow him to roll around.
"Is dad up yet?" Olivia asked.
"Would you be?" Toby replied.
"Thanks for starting breakfast, guys," said Cyborg as he entered the room.
Though he was awake, the human half of his face reflected a pronounced lack of sleep. Despite tiredness, he took over at the stove and finished the pancakes.
"Didn't you sleep okay, Uncle Cy?" Jason asked.
"I was up for a lot of the night, trying to find your mom. I can't seem to lock in on her communicator signal," Cyborg replied.
"Maybe that bad lady that Toby and Olivia saw shut off or broke it," Jason replied.
"Or maybe mom's hiding and she shut it off to keep the lady from finding her," Toby supposed.
"…Or maybe it's frozen!" Olivia cried, pointing out the window and down to the ground. "Look!"
"It's Raven!" cried Robin, pulling out his communicator. "Beast Boy, get up!"
When Robin, Beast Boy, Toby and Olivia arrived in the yard, Raven was just starting to come around.
"What happened?" Raven murmured. Beast Boy wrapped her cloak around her and swept her up into his arms.
"You're safe now, Raven. You're home, honey," Beast Boy replied, kissing Raven's temple as she relaxed into his embrace. "Olivia, let's go."
"I found something," Olivia replied, examining the ground around a stand of trees. Robin joined her.
"Take Raven inside, I'll stay with the twins," Robin said. Beast Boy nodded and returned to the tower.
"Whatcha got, Hummingbird?" Robin asked as he and Toby joined her.
"Footprints. Should we follow them?" Olivia asked.
"No!" Toby cried.
"What's wrong?" Olivia asked him.
"Someone's out there. Let's just go back to the Tower. We can go looking later," Toby replied. Robin pulled the staff out of his utility belt and stood at the ready.
"Where?" he asked.
"I can just feel it. Someone's watching. Please, Uncle Robin, let's just go back!" Toby begged. The young hero started to shake and fell to his knees. Robin picked him up and carried him as Olivia followed them back to Titans Tower.
Upstairs, Beast Boy settled Raven into their bed and spread an extra blanket over her.
"Do you remember anything?" Beast Boy asked.
"No," Raven murmured. "I'm sure with some rest and a chance to meditate I can remember. I just need time. Are the kids okay? I was so scared for them." Her eyelids were getting heavy as she spoke, and Beast Boy nodded and smoothed her hair back before kissing her forehead and then her lips before tiptoeing toward the door.
"Gar?"
"Yes?"
"Would you…could you please hold me?" Raven whispered. Beast Boy toed his shoes off and slid beneath the covers behind her, winding his arms around her.
"Rest now, sweet Raven. I'm here now," Beast Boy whispered, kissing Raven's ear and the back of her neck as he cuddled against her.
"I don't understand why I can't remember!" Raven whimpered. "The last thing I remember is being hit and then Toby and Olivia screaming. I lost consciousness wondering if I'd ever see them again!"
"Shhhh…they're safe. They even tried to defend you. They did great," Beast Boy replied. "They were afraid that they had failed you."
"Dad?" a voice called from the other side of the door.
"Come in, Olivia," Beast Boy called. Olivia came in carrying a fussing Caleb.
"He's hungry, Dad. Does mom have a bottle for him in the fridge?" Olivia asked. Raven lifted her head.
"Hi, Mom!" Olivia said brightly.
"Bring Caleb here, baby. I'll feed him," Raven replied. Olivia gratefully surrendered her baby brother and then hugged Raven.
"I'm glad you're okay, Mom," Olivia said, turning to leave. When she got to the door, several more small people passed her by in the hall.
"Wait for me!" she cried. "We're on practice mission three-alpha!" Olivia took off running down the hall after Jason and Emily. Beast Boy and Raven shook their heads and smiled.
"They're all growing up so fast!" Raven mused.
"I know. It's hard to believe that the twins are going to be ten in the spring. Starfire and Jinx are both due in February. I'm amazed at how many kids we've got between everyone," Beast Boy remarked as Raven coaxed Caleb to nurse. Caleb's tears dried immediately as he sucked hungrily from Raven's breast.
"You'd have been so proud of Olivia and Toby," Beast Boy continued. "They have both grown up so much."
"I can tell," Raven replied. "We're going to have to let them train harder. They know that Mas and Menos were only 12 when they joined the team."
"That's what scares me. Robin, too. We don't want the kids to jump in too soon. We were thinking that Mas and Menos could come and help us train the kids. Maybe someone younger than their moms and dads would be beneficial," Beast Boy said.
"That brings up another issue. When they're ready to become the Titans, what's going to become of us? We've been crime fighters for so long, I can't imagine what else I'd do with myself," Raven said. "We could go back to Azarath, but now that Trigon isn't an issue anymore, there wouldn't be much to do there."
"I know. Robin said he had an idea, but he was going to have to make some phone calls," Beast Boy replied. Raven nodded.
"I think I'm gonna go join the others in the practice arena if the kids are going to try and tackle that next mission," Beast Boy said, sliding out of the bed.
"Okay," Raven said, leaning up a little in anticipation of another kiss. Instead, Beast Boy simply left the room. A bit baffled, Raven took all this in and turned her attention back to Caleb, who had fallen asleep in her arms. Since he was asleep and her other children were otherwise occupied, Raven rested her head back against the pillow and fell asleep.
"Hello, you have reached Titans Tower. To whom do you wish to speak?" Starfire said, sounding particularly chipper today.
"Hiya Star! It's Aries!" said the voice on the other end of the line. Starfire's mood immediately plummeted.
"I do not wish to speak with you, and I most certainly do not wish you to speak to Robin. Speedy, Torque, and the others are already on their way to Steel City. Why have you called?" Starfire replied.
"I called to tell you something you really ought to know. I realize that this isn't what you want to hear, but there was more to Robin's and my night together than you think," Aries replied.
"I do not believe you. Robin loves me and I did not need the alcohol to convince him of that," Starfire shot back. Aries barreled ahead.
"What did he tell you? Lemme guess, it was some sob story about how you have his heart and if you leave, you take it with you and without it he'll die," Aries said. Starfire was dumbfounded.
"How do you know all of this?" Starfire demanded.
"I told you. I know more than you think. You should keep better track of your man, Princess," Aries replied, hanging up the phone when Starfire did not speak again. Starfire hung up the phone as Robin walked into the bedroom and kissed her cheek.
"Who was on the phone?" he asked, peeling off his uniform shirt. It was damp with sweat from training with the kids. "You should see Jason with a staff. He's getting really good! Did you know he could fly?" Starfire looked up in surprise.
"Our son has acquired the flight?" Starfire gasped. Robin nodded.
"Can you believe it? He and the other kids are going to make a heck of a team when they get older," Robin replied, walking over and softly kissing Starfire's lips. Starfire momentarily forgot her phone conversation as Robin nudged her toward their bathroom.
"You just got up," he murmured. "Would you care to join me for a shower, Mrs. Grayson?" Starfire smiled and slowly nodded.
"I like that idea, my husband," Starfire whispered. As much as she was firm in her belief that she had Robin's loyalty and love, a very small twinkling inside her wondered if Aries had been right.
The next morning, as Beast Boy was doing his rounds, his communicator went off. Minutes later, he walked into the kids' school and into the office.
"Is something wrong?" Beast Boy asked. The secretary looked up from her desk, a stern-looking woman with glasses that sat low on her nose.
"Your daughter, Emily, was in a fight on the playground. She's in the counselor's office now. She's not hurt, but she's been inconsolable ever since," the secretary reported.
"My Emily? In a fight?" Beast Boy said softly, signing her out so he could take her home. "Emily won't even defend herself from her siblings, let alone anyone else."
"Well, you're going to have to be the judge of that. You superheroes must know to handle things like that, right?" the secretary snipped. Beast Boy decided to keep his answer as short as hers.
"Thanks, warden," Beast Boy muttered, setting the pen down and leaving the office. From there, he headed to the counselor's office. Still yards from the door, he could hear his little girl sobbing. Mrs. Lee, the school counselor, opened the door a bit when he knocked. When she saw Beast Boy, a note of relief played across her face.
"Thank you for coming," she said, opening the door farther to allow him in. "I've tried to talk to her, but she just won't stop crying. I was about to go and get one of her siblings to help me, but the principal suggested that we call her parents instead.
"Can you tell me what happened?" Beast Boy asked.
"So far as I know, there was a scuffle on the playground. Emily had been petting a wild field mouse in the soccer field and a group of boys came along and killed the mouse. Emily started to scream at them and started to cry. The boys pushed her and kicked dirt at her before a teacher could get to them and break it up. The boys insisted that Emily started it, but we know better. Emily isn't in any trouble, but she's so distraught we thought it best that she go home for the day. She keeps trying to say that the mouse was afraid and didn't want to die, but there's no way she could know that," Mrs. Lee replied.
"She said that?" Beast Boy asked. Mrs. Lee nodded. "I don't know what to make of it."
"Toby and Olivia's powers began to surface at about the same age Emily is now. It could be that her powers are communication with animals," Beast Boy replied. "Would it be all right with you if I took some time to talk to her here before I take her home?"
"Of course. Take all of the time you need," Mrs. Lee said. With this, she left Beast Boy in the softly lit office to speak to his daughter. Beast Boy knelt down on the floor near the bean bag chair that Emily was curled up in and gently went to pick her up. Instinctively, Emily cried out and swung her fist, tagging her father in the shoulder. Beast Boy held on as he tipped backward onto his bottom on the floor, chuckling a bit as Emily realized what she had done. Her eyes grew wide and she covered her mouth with her little hands as she gasped and sat down hard in her father's lap.
"I'm sorry, Daddy!" she gasped. "I didn't mean it! I'm sorry!" Beast Boy was still chuckling.
"You've got a heck of a left hook, sweetie!" Beast Boy teased. Emily cried harder as Beast Boy swept a hand over her little face and brushed away a few strands of hair that had fallen into her face. "Why don't you tell me what happened on the playground. Mrs. Lee told me about the boys and the mouse, but she said that you could understand the mouse's thoughts."
"I did, Daddy! He was so scared! I was petting him nice and he had never trusted people before because they're so big and when the boys came over he panicked and was screaming when they took him away from me! He begged me not to let them kill him! I couldn't do anything! They broke his neck and flung him across the field and then tried to beat me up!" Emily wept, pouring her heart to Beast Boy as he hugged her and rocked her a bit.
"Oh, Emily," he murmured, kissing the side of her head. "It's okay, sweetheart. Your mouse isn't afraid anymore. He's in a place now where no one can hurt him anymore. You did just fine. You tried to tell the boys not to kill him without starting a fight with them. Everything's okay now."
"But, Daddy," Emily whimpered. "Why could I understand him? I knew what he was saying and feeling."
"I think that this is your special power, baby girl. Your powers are that you can communicate with animals," Beast Boy replied. Emily nodded.
"Daddy, can I go home?" Emily whispered. Beast Boy kissed his daughter's forehead and nodded. With this, the two stood, retrieved Emily's school things, and left the school, being sure to leave a note for Olivia and Toby so that they knew that their father had picked Emily up already. Beast Boy carried Emily on his shoulders for a while, and then morphed into a horse, continuing to carry her this way until they reached Titans Tower again, where he tucked a quilt around her as she curled up for an early afternoon nap.
When Speedy stepped out of the car in Steel City, he took a deep breath of the fresh air. The newer Tower lay before them.
"C'mon, you. We've got unpacking to do," Torque chuckled, getting off her motorcycle and tentatively wrapping his arms around his waist before proceeding inside. When the new members of Titans East entered the building, Torque stopped short and swept Aidan into her arms to keep him from going further into the main room.
"What's wrong, Torque?" asked Mammoth.
"Oh my God," Aqualad gasped, running into the room. On the floor, scattered among broken furniture and crackling bare wires were three of the remaining members of the team. As Aqualad lifted her head and shoulders, Bumblebee opened her eyes.
"When did you guys get here?" she muttered.
"Five minutes ago. Bee, what happened?" Speedy replied. Terra and Torque managed to wake Mas and Menos, but Aries was nowhere to be seen.
"We were ambushed…Some woman…Dark hair, olive complexion, bright green eyes. We'd never seen her before. When she showed up, Aries vanished. Where is Aries?" Bumblebee recalled. Aries wasn't in the Tower. After settling Mas and Menos into the medical bay to recuperate, Torque and Mammoth remained at the Tower to defend it and begin repairs while the others went in search of Aries.
A weary Torque smiled softly as she noticed that Mammoth already had most of the extra furniture that they had brought with them settled into the bedrooms. As much as he hadn't wanted to leave, Torque was certain that he was excited to be there with them anyway. Aidan rushed into his new room and began to pull open the boxes, hardly waiting for his mother as she put away his clothes and toys and made the bed. When this was finished, several hours after she began, Aidan joined Mammoth in the main room where he handed the giant Titan the tools he needed as he repaired various computers and pieces of furniture.
Torque made she and Speedy's bed, sure she'd need it before she finished unpacking and then turned to Speedy's luggage. When she opened it, she stood up, closed her eyes, and pinched the bridge of her nose with her thumb and forefinger as she sighed. Being Speedy's wife had its definite benefits, but one of his only faults lay plainly before her: he was a total slob when it came to packing a suitcase.
Torque shook her head as she began searching through and sorting Speedy's clothes and extra uniforms, using her powers to smooth, stretch and straighten as she went along. In a bunched up pile in one corner of the suitcase, Torque discovered her husband's underwear. Among them was a pair of underwear that she was sure didn't belong to either of them. It was a pair of ladies panties, black with yellow edging. Torque only knew one person that they could belong to and it made her whole body go numb.
"Where did you find those? I thought the washing machine ate them," Bumblebee quipped as she walked into the room.
"Um…I…saw them in the corner in the…laundry room..." Torque fibbed.
"Thanks! They're one of my favorites. Need any help unpackin'?" Bumblebee offered.
"No…no thanks, Bee, I got this," Torque replied. As soon as she left the room, Torque fumbled for the edge of the bed and sat down as she trembled. She had never had reason to suspect that Speedy was being unfaithful to her before. They had such an openly romantic relationship that Torque had been sure that she was keeping Speedy more than happy. What had happened?
Speedy sauntered into the room minutes later and laughed.
"Somehow, I remember that suitcase being neater than that when I packed it. I think we have to talk to Aqualad about his driving skills," Speedy joked, taking Torque's hand and pulling her up and into his embrace. He sighed contentedly.
"I'm so happy I married you. You're so strong, baby. I love you, Ginny," Speedy said, looking sincerely into Torque's eyes. Then he noticed it. "Babe? You're shaking! Are you okay?"
"It was just…the state of everything today. It's just been a long day and I'm getting a little tired," she replied. She had never lied to Speedy before, but this was something she needed to think about. She didn't want to interrogate him or risk losing him.
"Well here, let me put the clothes away. Or mine at the very least. I'm sure you have a place you want to keep certain stuff. I know better than to move anything of yours because it'll disappear," Speedy said. Torque smiled.
"You just lie down here and relax," Speedy said, covering Torque with the quilt that they had received for their wedding. Torque let her head sink into the pillow and her eyelids drooped. She hardly heard Speedy say that he would take care of Aidan so that she could rest until dinner before she fell asleep.