Disclaimer. As usual. I do not own…(insert show/characters etcetera here)

I'm sorry I haven't updated in a while, but my laptop got fried (It involved apple juice, a dumb little sister, and an airplane—please don't ask.)

Also, I noticed that I introduced Circi as, just that, Circi. But lately I've been spelling it Circe. Well, I'm changing it back, sorry.

Chapter Six: Trickster, Battles and Blood

Terra's hair flowed like a golden banner down her back, and her sparkling blue eyes turned in Beast Boy's direction. The changeling's mouth opened and closed repeatedly in the classic show of shock.

"We thought…but you…stone…" he looked quite ready to collapse. Terra sauntered seductively over too him, and, in an out-of-character show of public affection, put her arm around BB's waist.

It was that that gave it away…at least to Raven.

But her strength was failing her. She could feel Larel, and the Akuba coin, coming closer, and every breath cost her considerable effort. She tried to yell out, to warn her friends, but it seemed her voice had decided to desert her.

Struggling to get the Titan's attention over Starfire's shrieks of joy ('Friend Terra! You have returned!') And Cyborg's 'booyah!'s, the telekinetic lifted her hand. Her power wasn't strong enough to pick up anything more then a pebble, but that pebble was quite enough to give 'Terra' a good whap across the face.

Beast Boy tore his gaze away from the blonde. "Raven!" he yelled "Geez, I know you guys aren't the best of friends, but—"

Starfire and Cyborg quieted their shouts, looking nervously from one angry face to the other. Robin raised his eyebrows, suspicious. "What is it, Raven?"

Sending a dark glare Beast Boy's way, Raven replied, "That's Circi. Not Terra." The words came out just strong enough for everyone present to hear, before they slipped away along with the ailing girl's consciousness.

The horrified silence that had immediately enveloped the wood was suffocating. And then…

Circi-turned-Terra let out a shout of raucous laughter and became herself again. Still grinning, she mimicked the scream of fear she had faked along with the flash of yellow light. "You fell for it!"

Beast Boy's ear's drooped in an exaggerated show of disappointment and sadness.
"Aw, don't feel so bad, Bumbling Boy. Just because your girlfriend's dea-"

"That's enough outta you!" yelled Cyborg, firing up his sonic cannon. The attack would have been deadly at such close range. If it had ever hit. Circi glared at him and tried to shift, but right after changing into Bumble Bee, she was replaced by Jynx, then a dark haired girl the other Titan's didn't know. Cyborg blinked several times, swaying slightly with dizziness at seeing the three girls continuously flash before his eyes.

Then he fell flat on his face, groaning.

"Erg. I hate that." The sorceress shook the last bit of Jynx's hair off of her before smirking in a satisfied way down at the half robot. "Still, nice and effective."

Rei and Kiyu glanced at each other. They knew what was coming next, and they knew it could only mean trouble. Big trouble. Huge, gigantic, enormous…well, you get the idea.

Unfortunately, they couldn't stop it, thanks to Trigon, an evil spell, and a set of necklaces that Circi, Larel, Hiss and Hiyd all wore. So the twins braced themselves for the trouble.

Circi slipped up to Robin, batting her eyelashes behind a loose curl of shining hair. "Hey, Boy Wonder…lets see who you like best." He took a step back from her, seeming unsure of what was about to happen.

And then it happened.

In an instant, there was two of one person present. One was standing by Robin, looking as shocked as humanly-or demonly-possible. The other was unconscious, leaning against a tree.

"I'M HER!" Circi shrieked, revulsion written across her-or Raven's-features. "Oh, gross, gross, gross get me OUT of this traitorous Blackbird body!" she didn't really need to request it. In another instant, she was herself again, doubled over with disgust and breathing hard. "That was so…so" she could find no words to tell of her brief time in her hated cousin's form.

Starfire, naïve as ever, turned to Cyborg in confusion. "Circi turning into Raven…what does it mean?"

Uh Oh.

The half-robot's head swivelled hopefully towards Beast Boy and the twins, looking for help in explaining, but finding none, turned reluctantly back to the alien.

"Well, you see, Star…um, Circi…that is to say, Robin…" he quailed under the girl's curious look more then he would a furious one. He decided to get it over quickly.

"CircichangedintoRavenbecausethat'swhoRobin'sinlovewith!"

Cyborg had hoped that Starfire wouldn't pick up on the rushed clarification, but her ears were sharper then those of humans. "He…WHAT?"

Jade green Starbolts formulated themselves around two clenched fists, matching the glint in her eyes. "I…will…!"

Suddenly, all the rage and fire left her, leaving a sobbing alien princess on the ground. "…Just sit here and cry." She finished in a whimper, hiding her watering eyes between her knees and a curtain of red hair. Gingerly, Cyborg knelt down next to her.

"Uh…it's gonna be ok, Star…" finally catching Kiyu's eye, he gestured to her with a look that plainly said, "Get over here and give me a hand!" The girl nodded and floated down to take his place.

"Hey, Star, it's alright. Who cares? It's just a guy."

"B-but I loved him!" she wailed.

"Well, yeah, there's that, and I bet he loved you too, but, you know, teenage boys, they just change their minds quickly…" (Cy had a feeling neither Starfire nor Raven were just a passing of Robin's whims, but he didn't say so) "…But anyway, don't get too upset over it."
Star didn't seem convinced. So Kiyu concentrated for a moment, her eyes losing their pupils. If anyone present had memorized the signs of certain psychic powers, they would know the girl was reading Starfire's mind.

"What about, uh, Speedy? Or, err, Aqualad! They look cute. I bet they like you! C'mon Star," Kiyu pleaded. "You're really beautiful, you know you are, a ton of boys would love you!"

The alien finally raised her head, the slightest hint of a smile on her face. "D-do you really believe so?"

Kiyu was obviously relieved. "Sure!"

Cyborg was relieved, too. Leaving the girls to their pep talk, the half-robot turned back to see Robin twirling his Bo Staff expertly through the air, landing a good thwap on Circi's head. The sorceress screamed in rage and fired a bolt of energy at him.

"I hate you stubborn, noble goody-goodies!" she yelled, tears of pain and fury welling up in her silvery eyes.

"We don't like you, either." Robin shot back, smirking.

Rei was not quite as cocky as her comrade. Again and again she glanced into the distance. A small dot had formed on the horizon, blurry and far off, but still there. She knew Larel was coming closer and closer, and that he would have the deadly Akuba, but she also knew that the key was surprise. But how close would he have to be for her to ambush him effectively…without harming Raven?

The final cousin seemed to put on a speed burst, and Rei made her decision. Gripping her orb tightly, she swooped to meet him under the cover of leaves.

Not yet…

Not yet…

Now.

In a single, sharp motion, the girl shot up like a cannon ball, barring Larel's path. Her timing was perfect. His face, which seemed handsome until you saw the maliciously glittering eyes and cruel sneer, twisted in surprise.

"Miss me?"

"Not really." Recovering from his shock, Larel made for the golden coin at his belt. "And I won't when you're dead, either."

"Scath!" Rei swore, trying to grab his arm.
"Don't use his name as some common curse, traitor!"

"I'll use it anyway I want, fool!"

"Weakling!"
"Pig!"

Both struggled to gain control of the deadly object amid a tide of insults. Finally, Rei thrust her orb into Larel's stomach and dispelled a dagger of spirit energy.

The boy staggered in the air for a moment, clutching the growing white spot that came from only the wound of a ghost. Blood stained his hand.

"You…" he hissed through teeth clenched with pain. "You…"

Even though he was evil, even though he had caused so much pain, Rei flinched and looked away as her cousin slowly spiralled towards the ground, death written across his paling face.