'Tis the Season
Ironraven

Teen Titans, The Justice League, and related characters are the property of DC Comics, rather than me.

--- 29 November

"Ah, man, that is really, really lame." Beast Boy rubbed his head, gently, feeling the gooseegg that was slowly rising there.

Cyborg stood there watching Jump City's finest load the last of the gang into the wagon. "Yeah, posing as a charity to smuggle that stuff out of the country. And just before Christmas."

"The Christmas of gifts happens every year?"

Beast Boy chuckled, looking up into the only eyes he'd ever seen that were greener than his. "Of course. December 25th, every year. Trees, gifts, lots of food, all of it."

--- 1 December

Robin absently rubbed the edge of his hand. It throbbed from having been used earlier in the day. Still, the pain was worthwhile. The minion had been willing to talk to the Titans, and he confessed to everything. Everything.

"How do you that?" Beast Boy sat on the edge of the roof next to the nominal leader of his team. Robin had ask for him as his partner for the stakeout, a rare occurrence.

"Do what?"

"You know, make them talk like that. You didn't yell, you didn't hit them, but... Jeez, you got him to admit to lieing to his mother about being a smuggler."

Robin looked down at his friend, trapping him with his eyes. They didn't waver, they didn't move. Beast Boy could feel them, reaching into his mind, taking it apart. He was aware of his mouth starting to move as something unraveled. Then Robin asked the first question. "Why do you only take your man-beast form when Raven is in danger?"

Beast Boy wanted to be quiet, he tried to be quiet. He pleaded mentally with his lips to stop moving, but they wouldn't. The flush and the heat rose in his cheeks as he confessed. Then he felt a slight shake, which snapped him back. His voice was a hoarse croak. "It's one of those uberscary Batman things, isn't it."

Robin nodded, then turned back to what they should have been watching. After a long time, he spoke again. "Don't worry, what you tell me stays with me."

"Dude, I don't ever remember what I told you."

"Riiiight."

Beast Boy was greatful for being behind Robin. He honestly couldn't remember what he had said, but he remembered the one question, and it made him blush a deep shade of olive.

--- 3 December

Beast Boy walked through the streets of the merchant district. Robin had assigned roaming patrols through the shopping areas at at random times. He was expecting a robbery, or something. As if. "So, what do you want for Christmas?"

"For it to be over." Raven had her hood up, partially to ward off the few flakes of snow, and to keep her ear plugs hidden. The little foam cylinders were the only thing keeping her from strangling bell ringers with the speaker wires that carried the nauseatingly cute carols from box to box. Or tieing them up with strings of lights and hanging them from their ankles off convenient points on walls. Screaming kids, growling parents. She'd already had to separate two sets of parents who were fighting over toys.

"Oh, come on, you must have something you want."

Raven looked at him out of the corner of her eye. He really wanted to know. "A first printing of Poe's sixth collection of poems."

"Okay... that would be really old, wouldn't it."

"Or maybe the compiled arcanum of Merlin" Raven smiled under hood. Let him figure those out, a book never published and another century and half old. Up ahead, she heard shouts and felt a pulse of fear. The electronics store half a block shown with an unnatural aura, and a familiar figure stood outside of it. "Control Freak! Let's go!"

--- 7 December

Cyborg left the shop, a small bundle in his arms. He shielded it from the wind with his body, trying to keep it warm as he made hsi way to the T-Car. He'd felt comfortable leaving it running on the street. It was the middle of the day, and Raven was in the passenger seat. He felt sorry for anyone who tried to steal it.

He knew that it was odd to make a personal errand during a patrol, but sometimes, it seemed like Robin had his staff hidden someplace uncomfortable. This was important.

"Flowers? What are they for?" Raven ducked slightly as her teammate placed the bouquet behind her. It filled the backseat nearly full.

Cyborg slid into the car, the induction pads in his hands and the wheel telling him everything about the car. He slid into the traffic, driving silently until he reached a stop light, signaling to go towards the hills on the edge of town. "It's personal. You don't have to come with me if you don't want, Rae."

Raven looked at him, then the flowers, then thought about the direction they were headed. She silently sat, wondering for a moment. "We partnered up for this patrol. If it isn't too personal, I'm going with you. Besides, everyone is having the holiday crazies out there."

The traffic and the crowds lessened as they moved out of the mercantile district, moving through residential neighborhoods. They sat in silence as the road wound higher into the hills, to a place of silence and piece. The two young heros got out of the car, Cyborg holding the flowers in his hands. He led the way towards the center of the grounds, and set the flowers on the ground, at the base of the flagpole. "My granddad wasn't my real grandfather."

Together, they stood in silence, her hand resting on his forearm, as those who had worn other uniforms in the past stood their eternal vigil.

--- 9 December

"I have brought us the tree of fakeness!" Starfire floated into the room, carrying a box almost as long as she was tall.

The others looked at each other. Raven scowled, and returned to her book. Cyborg dropped his forehead into his palm. Robin cleared his throat gently. "Uh, Starfire, we got a tree last year."

"Does not one get a tree every year?" Star frowned, as she thought about the trees that were for sale in the parking lot of the mall of shopping. Yes, everyone on the television got a tree every year.

"Uh, Star, that is only if you use a natural tree." Cyborg seemed slightly unsure of where to go from here. The fake tree issue was one of few times Raven and Beast Boy had openly agreed, and they had supported each other's arguments. It mostly came down to killing a tree to put it in the living room for only a few weeks, then tossing it away. Raven said it was bad karma, and Beast Boy said just because he'd never turned into a tree didn't mean he couldn't. "We still have the last three."

"Oh." Star seemed to shrink a little, as if the box was pushing her down, then she brightened. "Then we shall not have a Tree of Christmas, but a Woods of Christmas! One Hundred Acres? Please?"

Raven groaned.

--- 11 December

"I saw you looking at those trees."

Beast Boy raised his head from where he'd been staring at the multicolored nebula of lights and ornaments. "Huh?"

Cyborg smirked down at the changeling, miming a classical, canine pose. "I said, I saw you looking at those trees. Don't even think about it."

"HEY!" Beast Boy vaulted the back of the chair he'd been sitting in, chasing Cyborg who was already half way down the hallway.

"Idiots." Raven shook her head as she put the last of the dishes away. It had been her and Starfire's turn in the rotation. At least they did them promptly, unlike the two who were thundering down the hall. Last week Robin has threatened to hide the controllers for the game station until there wasn't a single dirty dish in the Tower.

"Raven, why do you not have the seasonal spirit?" Starfire scrunched the sponge, over and over, in the soapy water, getting the grease out of it. It seemed like the only time the kitchen really got clean was when the two of them did the dishes. "We have defeated your father, you can be happy now. You need not always be under a cloud."

"But I like my cloud."

--- 13 December

"Just be glad it isn't a Friday, Raven." With a wave her hand and a flash of pink, Jinx snapped the cable that held the HVAC unit midair, the heavy machine eagerly leaping down towards the ground and away from the crane.

Raven looked up, then drew the elongating shadows around her, coming out of another behind the pink haired sorceress. "Bet you let a black cat cross you, didn't you."

An elbow in the kidney staggered Jinx with a cry of pain. From her knees, the HIVE alumnus grabbed Raven's ankle, pulling it from under her. A grey stockinged knee slammed into black sheathed ribs as another knee, this one in black and pink stripes, crashed against a blue belly. The two impacts forced the air from the two young women, and pushed them apart. They lay gasping for breath, as a figure approached.

Both grey skinned forms rose up at sensing the energy nearing them, knowing it would be friend for one, and foe for the other. Jinx sprang backwards, flipping until she was behind the several tons of air conditioner she had planned on using to flatten Raven. Raven flipped to her feet with a silent snarl as Cyborg crouched next to the blue haired girl, "You ok?"

Jinx squeezed her eyes tightly. She could remember Stone, Victor, dancing with her, taking comfort in his gentle strength. He still lurked in the corners of her dreams, always gentle, kind, then he turned into Cyborg. Who wanted to put her in jail, with handcuffs. She glanced at her arm, seeing the darkening bruise, numbed by the cold air for now. She didn't want to fight him, to see him.

Raven lofted over the top of the machine, ready for anything but her counterpart standing there, arms widespread, palms up. The eyes silently signaled the surrender.

Raven sent Cyborg off to help the others as she guarded her captive, warily. Starfire came shortly, to tell them that the others had fled into the sewers, but they would not give chase. After a brief wait, the wagons arrived at the warehouse. Unarmoured police loaded the common thugs that had been the henchmen of the HIVE-Five into a simple van. Two armoured tactical officers approached to take Jinx to the special threats vehicle that awaited her. As she was led past Cyborg, she looked up at him, her eyes filled with sadness. She was surprised when he called out to the officers, asking them to wait a moment.

"Jinx..."

Jinx's heart tripped through it's paces at the sound of his voice. "Yes, Cyborg?"

"I'll know if you are naughty or nice."

Despite the humility of letting herself give up, and of being arrested, Jinx still smiled. "I know."

--- 15 December

"Has anyone seen Raven? Lunch is almost ready." Starfire's shoulders settled on the back of the couch, watching Beast Boy and Cyborg as they watched their digital champions try to hit each other as they played Redneck's Revenge yet again. She was floating horizontally, her feet tapping slightly with the unrelenting thwang of the digitized steel guitar that the game used as background noise.

"Nope"

"Sorry, Star, not since this morning. She said she was going out." Cyborg's fingers pranced like rather overweight reindeer on the game controller. "Said she might be gone for a while."

"She said she would be going to the mall this afternoon. I was hoping to do the tag along."

--- 17 December

Starfire rummaged under the trees, lifting, shaking, and sniffing each of the brightly colored packages under the tree. She hummed Christmas carols to herself, as Silkie napped on the couch.

"Uh, Starfire?"

Star jumped a little, sending a shiver from tree to tree, the ornaments ringing. "Robin, hello! Have you seen Silkie?"

Robin looked down at the pudgy maggot that lay, belly up and snoring, on the couch. "He's right here."

Star turned on her knees, looking at her pet crossly. "There you are, bumgorf! Bad Silkie. Bad. You mustn't worrying me like that."

Silkie's eyes opened, looking up at Robin. The two shared a shrug; Silkie had no idea why he was being scolded, and Robin had no idea who she was trying to fool.

--- 19 December

Cyborg drank from his glass, and froze. He couldn't swallow, he couldn't spit. His metallic components seemed to tarnish were he stood. Closing his eye, he made an effort to swallow. He didn't want to, but he needed to breath, and he didn't want that stuff in his mouth when he did so. Oh, dear God, that eye watering smell...

He gasped, clutching the counter for support. "What, what was that."

The green blur in his vision stuffed the last of the grocery bags into the holder. "Eggnog! Just like you asked for."

"That wasn't eggnog. That wasn't poison, poison tastes better." Cyborg breathed heavily, lest he yakk up his spleen. He could feel it, it wanted out, away from what ever that was.

Beast Boy pulled the fridge open, and took out a cardboard carton. He sniffed its contents, and the checked the date. "Dude, it's fine. Look, it's eggnog."

Cyborg looked at the beige, green and red container. "That isn't eggnog! It's soy eggnog! Soynog!"

"Hey, soy is good for you. It can be made into anything, just like me!"

"Let's find out."

Seeing the gleam in his friend's eye, Beast Boy decided the best idea was to run.

--- 21 December

The alarm pulled Robin out of the shower in a hurry. He was still pulling the wrinkles out of his tights, his hair dripping water down his back as he stumbled into the main room. He was expecting an emergency, a crisis, a disaster, maybe even the end of the world.

He stopped with the others, and stared at the kitchen. The air was filled with a kaleidescope of scents. The lights had been dimmed, the room illuminated with candles and kerosene lamps. The table was loaded with food, and each next to each place setting was a small package wrapped in dark blue satin and silver ribbon. At the foot of the table, Raven stood, her hands on her hips, looking at them, daring someone to say something.

"Well, someone say something!" She knew what they were thinking, of the one and only time she had cooked for them. But this was going to be better, this was going to be good. The really hard parts were take out. Everything else had been made from a box; she could read, after all.

"Raven? Did you do this?"

"No Beast Boy, the food fairy just decided to bomb our table." She stared at him, wanting him to make a smart remark. One of them, any of them.

"Raven, it smells good." The green one stepped forward, sniffing the air. The scent of peppers, saffron, wheat noodles and a variety of vegetables was alluring. "That's drunken noodles!"

Raven nodded, tryng not to blush. It had been of the few things she'd actually made herself, and it sounded like the intended recipient approved so far. The others came closer, talking in amazed tones. The Tower had rarely seen food like this, and it was even rarer for it to have been made by one of the girls. Starfire hugged Raven tightly. "You have found your Christmas spirit."

For once, Raven didn't struggle at the embrace. "Not quite. It is the Solstice."

"The what-hiss?"

Starfire spoke up "A solstice means the axis of a planet is pointing directly towards it's sun. It is the start of a new season on many worlds, or a year." As a being who crossed interstellar voids, it was perhaps natural that she would be the most familiar with astronomical landmarks. She joined her friends in investigating the table. "Is it this solstice that the Christmas and the Hanukkah and the Day After Sale celebrate for different people?"

"It's something like that, Star. Raven, you didn't have to-"

"I wanted to, Robin. Everyone, sit down, it's getting cold." And eat they did. She was surprised that Beast Boy hadn't needled Cyborg about eatting tofu in the noodles. Besides, tomorrow, she could tell him. And everyone had been in awe of the jellied salad she had saved for dessert. It was as close as she could come to recreating the dish of Azarath, given that the actual ingredients weren't even available in this dimension.

As they finished everything, she looked at the packages by her friends. No one had commented on them. Had they not noticed? "Are you going to open those?"

Beast Boy frowned slightly. He knew Christmas, and he knew about Hanukkah, but this Solstice was new to him. "You mean now?"

"Well, they are Solstice gifts." Robin nodded to Raven, before starting to loosen the ribbon and unwrapping the fabric.

The others did the same, and quickly uncovered wooden carvings, each one different. Starfire spoke softly, stammering a little "They are... quite lovely, friend Raven. Tell, what are they?"

"Old Azarathian runes. Each one forms a word." Raven stood, and walked around the table. She stopped behind Cyborg's chair, the dark stained shape in his hands. "Strength." She moved on to Robin, glad that the stain had matched the red of his jerkin. "Will." She rested her hand on Starfire's shoulder, the wood polished under a light coat of wax, but left pristine white. "Joy." She ruffled Beast Boy's hair, smiling as the greened wood seemed to meld with his flesh. "Trust."

Beast Boy tilted his head up and back, looking up at her in awe. "You made these?"

"The mall really didn't have any meaning in it." Raven looked around at her friends. They had saved her too many times to count, including from herself. In their own way, each of them knew her better than she knew herself. Lost in thought, she didn't notice she was still playing with Beast Boy's hair until he slipped out from under fingers.

A small green rabbit scooted across the floor, disappearing under the trees. After several seconds of rummaging, Beast Boy emerged with a large, flat package in garish green and red wrapping. Holding it before him in both hands, he bowed to Raven, presenting it to her. The others looked at each other as she looked at the package in silence. A single grey finger stroked the slick paper. "Uh, Raven, my arms are getting tired."

"Sorry", she blushed, her voice quiet as she accepted the package. "No one ever..."

"Get used to it, there is more under there with your name on it." Cyborg watched over her shoulder, his breath caught in anticipation. "An' you don't get it for a few days."

A single finger, shrouded in blackness, slid along the taped seam, letting the paper fall way. Within was a frame, with a part of a newspaper's first page. Her face twisted in confusion for a moment, then she spoke softly, reading the words. "Evening Mirror, Wensday, January 29th, 1845..."

"I couldn't find the book you wanted, Raven, sorry."

---

Author's Notes:
The Evening Mirror was a New York daily, that Edger Allen Poe once worked as an editor for. The January 29th, 1845, edition included the first public printing of The Raven. If you could find even the header of the paper's first page, it would be a major goodie for a Poe-phile. And to anyone else, it is just a torn up newspaper, even if it is over a century old. Beast Boy did his homework, the sneaky little bugger.

As for Control Freak, yeah, he's hit the stores this time of year. Wow, what a loser. I'm not sure which is worse, than I feel sorry for a cartoon character, or that I get his jokes. blush

OK, this is basically a lot of little snippits of fic that I've had in my head for a while, like Robin's question to Beast Boy. And Raven and Jinx's fight, just because they are so much a like, particularly if Jinx still has a thing for Cyborg, and she thinks that she was just a short term substitute for Raven.