AHH! I MISSED MY OWN DEADLINE! I'm so, so, soooooooo sorry guys! I just started back at school after the Xmas break, and my volleyball club season started, and so i've been kind of falling behind on everything. take pity on my soul! or not. lol

anyway, here's chp. 8, I hope you like it. jinx is evil again! oh no! looking on it, this story looks like it's slated to go on another 3 or 4 chapters, so everyone who really likes this story, rejoice! lol. hope you keep enjoying it, and here comes the disclaimer!

disclaimer: here i am, disclaiming ownership of the Teen Titans. I don't own it.

now start reading!

Sometimes it's hard when you're so deep inside
To see all you can lose in a blink of an eye
Dreams could be shattered
You could be gone
How would I survive
Cause you're where I belong

Underneath, I can feel you move through me
Inside out, you surround me
I breathe you like I'm taking my last breath
Oh, you're everything I know
So how could I let you go

-How Could I Let You Down, Jessica Simpson

Jinx

I think I may have found an escape route.

It's not intensely creative or anything, and it may even be dangerous if the security in this place isn't quite what it's cracked up to be. For my plan to work, the security and defense in this prison has to be blind to internal threats but also extremely aware of them.

I cut a deal with Ted, the guy who shares my cell. He's a rapist, who would proudly recount his victims at a dinner party. I've heard him talking about it, just muttering under his breath-2 girls under the age of 16, and another 2 who are about 17. He's a sick man. Sick, disgusting, and perverted, I have no doubt where he's going after he dies. I'd personally escort him there, if I could.

We get 3 meals a day, but the guards bring them to our cells. We only get escorted bathroom breaks, and even those require an advance guard. They haven't brought us dinner yet (the cook isn't too precise about time, and it's torture for us not only for its being late, but because it's like crap on a fork), so when I hear them unlocking the door, Ted is going to attack me.

It's all fake, of course. If I wasn't in such a mess, I would never even talk to him. But he's going to pretend to attack me, while I scream and yell and get the guards' attention. They'll probably stun him, and pull me out of the cell to have me transferred to another one. That's when I'll attack. Normally there are only 2 guards bringing the food, and I'm a good enough hand-to-hand combatant to take them out without my powers. I can grab their keys, find a way to unlock my inhibitors, and from there I can use my powers to get the hell out.

It has to be quick and clean, and if I'm lucky (I hate that word), then none of the other guards will come either. But in planning my escape I had to make a deal with the devil. I said I'd bust Ted out later if he helped me.

Of course I won't, though. People like him deserve to be here. Even the Brotherhood of Evil would agree. The Brotherhood is made up of all types of criminals-robbers, blackmailers, super-geniuses, metas, ninjas, and I think only one assassin. But villains have a weird honor code; the Major Leaguers of crime wouldn't ever condone rape, senseless murder, terrorism.

Maybe that's because most of the members of the Brotherhood were the victims of those kind of crimes, which, I think, drove them to their current…professions.

I've been collecting my strength for the entire time I've been here, which has only been about an hour or so, but Ted filled me in on the way things work here. He's been here for a while, I can tell.

There's not much to do here but wait, so I'm trying to think of where I'll go after I get out of this dump. I most definitely can't go back to Jump, not while Kid Flash is around, and I can't be anywhere within 5 states of this place. I'll have to lay low for a while, maybe I'll just skip around. I'm not sure whether I'd be better hidden in a big city or a small town. Big cities like New York and Los Angeles and San Francisco are easy to blend into, but small towns are more rural and so they'd be harder to come across.

As I mull it over, Ted starts fidgeting. He wants to attack me, and get outta here. Or maybe he just wants to attack me. He's a rapist, and I'm the only girl here, so it wouldn't be too far of a stretch. Except, we made a deal, if he lays one slimy hand on me before the guards come and I'm let out, then I'm doing nothing for him. So he'll keep his distance. He desperately wants to leave this place, too.

…I've never been to California before. So Los Angeles it is. Summer all year long and cute movie stars. It sounds like the perfect place to go until I can pull myself together.

Soon as I'm out of here, I'm going to hit the mall, get some new clothes, and actually pay for them, to throw off suspicion. Once I'm in some civvies, hopefully no one will recognize me. I'll take a train to Gotham, and then an airplane that'll probably stop in Metropolis and go on to L.A. I'll pull some money out of the H.I.V.E. Five's hidden vault (which I made sure was located in Star City, of all places, so that if one day we were caught, at least the stolen goods wouldn't be found). I'll take up a civilian identity, one that wouldn't in any way link me to Jinx the villain, until I can contact Madame Rouge andearn my way into the Brotherhood.

These aren't exactly ideal circumstances, I'd rather have just gone straight from that alleyway in Jump City where my former team beat me up to the Brotherhood HQ, but since Kid Flash got involved, my job is slightly more complicated. Nothing I can't handle, though.

And then, once I'm in the Brotherhood, I'll find a way to get my revenge on Kid Flash. I'll teach him--no one messes with me.

And so I wait.

Kid Flash

"Uhh, you've never been to Star City before, have you?" I ask Raven as I rub my left ankle, which I think I twisted when I hit the ground. It hurts, and it's swelling, and I groan loudly. It's going to slow me down.

It took about 3 seconds to disappear from Titans Tower in Jump City and reappear at the Star City Penitentiary…or, more precisely, it took about 3 seconds to teleport and reappear in the bushes outside the Star City Penitentiary.

Raven sits up a few feet from me, and, brushing off the loose leaves clinging to her hood, shoots me a death glare that quite clearly says, "If you value your life, you will shut up."

"I appreciate the lift, but don't you guys have some sortuva Titansmobile, or a T-Truck, or something we could've borrowed instead of landing in the un-cushiony bushes?"

Raven quirks her eyebrows and her face takes on a pondering expression. "Actually, we found the T-Car dismantled this morning...the perp didn't leave a lot of evidence or anything...We think it was a crazy reviewer. Robin wasreally angry, he's been working on the case non-stop."

She stands up from the bushes and hops to the cement pathway that surrounds the place, and I follow. Or, I try to, at least.

But as soon as I manage to push myself to my feet, I topple straight over into the bushes again as I put weight on my left ankle. No, no, no, no! I get it that the entire world is against my trying this, but taking it out on my ankle? That's just adding insult to injury. That's the last time I go to Church.

As I groan again, Raven steps over to me, and without saying anything, she puts her hand to my ankle, mutters a few more inaudible words, and it instantly heals. The swelling dies down immediately, and I roll it around just to make sure. Good as new! As soon as this whole thing is over, I'll go back to Jump City and build Raven a shrine where I can come to worship her.

I stand up and pull her to the side of the building, pressing flat against the wall like a barnacle as we hear 2 guards beginning their shifts around the corner.

Raven looks at me, unimpressed. "So, what exactly am I supposed to do here?" she asks me, still with that hint of something in her voice that I can't quite put my finger on. She still speaks in monotone, but there's just…something different about her voice. It's driving me crazy, not knowing what it is exactly.

"Ok, so," I begin, ready to rattle out my big plan. "We go in and get her out."

She stares at me.

And stares at me some more.

Then she glares and says, "That's the big plan?" I nod. In my hysteria, I can't come up with anything better. It's not my fault!

"In the hysteria of my plight, I can't come up with anything better. It's not my fault!" I defend myself, shielding my head with my hands. If looks could kill, I'd be the fastest dead kid ali...ahem, dead.

But Raven just sighs and claps a hand to her forehead in exasperation. "Ok, then, follow my lead," she orders me as she pulls up her hood and leads me around the corner in open view of the guards. I really must be lucky (I now hate that word) that I have Raven doing the work for me. But I have to keep that in the back of my subconscious, because she's probably reading my mind or something.

When I notice that Raven isn't flinching, I don't either, and walk along at a normal pace. It's like she's lasering her thoughts into my ear, because I could've sworn that I heard her voice in the back of my head saying, Don't run, they'll think you're a threat.

Hearing our footsteps, one of the guards turns and yells, "Stop right there!" and comes running towards us.

I hear her voice in my head again. Don't say anything.

Raven looks at him in her creepy way and says coolly, "We're Titans."

Cool, I didn't know that she considers me a Te—oh, right, this is our cover. Oh well. Save Jinx now, become a Titan later.

And, to my surprise, it works. The guard yells to the other one, who also came running, "Stand down, they're Titans." He turns to us and says, "I'll escort you to the door."

"We can walk to the door on our own fine, thanks," Raven shoots back. Then the guard mumbles something incoherent, and waves us on, looking rattled.

Raven nods her head towards the building, and we walk the last few yards in peace as we hear the guard behind us talking into his walkie-talkie, saying, "Teen Titans are here on classified business. Open the gates."

And, as if on cue, the barbed wire gates open up, leaving us with another 20 feet or so of walking until we get to the main entrance.

Once there, we push our way through the doors and immediately a few more guards come up to us, holding metal detectors.

Stay still, don't speak. We're going straight to the warden's office.

As they approach us, Raven shoots another death-glare, as if to say, "Didn't you hear him? We're Titans." They let us through, and when yet another officer decides to escort us, Raven speaks up again. "We don't need an escort. We're not going to try to break anyone out. Just give us the directions to the warden's office."

After a few more minutes of walking, we find the office. But as I'm about to knock, Raven grabs my arm and pulls it down.

"Wait. I have a plan, and as soon as we get back to Jump City we'll need to get the documents and evidence to back it up. I don't have time to explain it to you now, because I need to get home before the Titans know I'm gone. I'll get you through this part, then you're on your own. Keep your mind open, I'll communicate your instructions to you through your thoughts."

Before I can say anything, Raven knocks, and a lazy voice inside calls, "Come in."

We open the door only to find the warden, smoking a cigar and his feet crossed on his desk. As soon as he catches sight of our costumes, he chokes, pulls his feet down with a thunderous CRASH! and puts out his cigar in a nearby ashtray.

"Titans! I wasn't expecting you!" he says nervously as he stands up to face Raven and me. Well, more like me, because he seems too nervous to look at Raven. She has that affect on people sometimes.

"We're here to secure the release of one of the prisoners here," Raven says in a harsh, yet surprisingly professional tone.

Looking reluctant at the prospect of being forced to face Raven, the pudgy little warden turns to her and says in a pretty wimpy voice, "I'm sorry, Miss. The inmates can't be released without the jurisdiction of the court. Most of them are here for life, anyway."

I do a double-take. Jinx surely can't be here for life! As I'm about to tell him off, Raven looks at me sharply and I hear her voice again. Say nothing.

I shut my mouth again, but it isn't easy. Raven takes over again, saying, "Warden, one of the new inmates was falsely accused and arrested. She committed no crimes to earn her a cell here. She arrived tonight, and her name is Jinx."

"Jinx is a criminal, Miss, from the H.I.V.E. Five. She was caught at the scene of an armed robbery!" the warden protests, his little hands balling into fists in his pockets.

And then Raven reveals her plan. It's pretty brilliant, actually, nothing I could have come up with. I should have though, because we all know that I'm capable of such brilliance, and the answer was standing right in front of me!

"No, she wasn't. Jinx was the one who foiled the robbery. She was assisting Kid Flash here-" she nods her head in my direction-"to work off her community service hours. Jinx is on parole. She willingly took on community service to repay the society. All you saw was Jinx standing near a few petty thieves and you took her in. We're here to take her back."

I'm dumbstruck. Raven is…Raven…

There's no possible way that Raven is the daughter of her father. I don't think it is even conceivable. She is a freaking saint.

It's all a plan, of course, but like Raven said, later we'll get the documents and evidence to back it up.

Mention the hostage, Raven's voice whispers. Tell him how she saved the hostage.

She probably saw the hostage when she looked through my memories.

"Jinx was the one who freed the hostage. He's still at the police station giving his account, if you want to bring him in. She helped me tonight, Warden, she doesn't deserve to be here. She reformed. She really did. There are witnesses who will tell you if you don't believe me," I say, surprised at how calm my own voice is. The words just kind of seemed like one really long sentence in my head.

The warden fidgets a little, looking uncomfortable as he pulls a handkerchief out of his coat pocket and wipes his forehead with it. "I…I can't—" Raven starts glaring again, a glare that I'm sure could make hell freeze over. "—do it without a legal adult to sign for her," he finishes nervously.

"I'll sign it," Raven says in a monotone voice that, despite all logic, seems to be charged with electricity. I know that Raven's not legally 18 yet, but because she's a Titan, she's the law. And she gets what she wants.

I'm surprised at how easily the warden gave up. I had, at the very least, expected him to call in reinforcements to contain the demon girl and the fast guy.

But Raven just signs a bunch of official-looking papers, and the flustered warden makes a call to one of the henchmen goons who guard this place. They meet us at the door, and after saying a terror-inducing goodbye, we are escorted to the cell block.

But Raven won't go. She said she had to get back, and now she is.

"Now that that's taken care of," she said, facing me, "I have to go. I trust you can take it from here. I'll be…seeing you around." Raven turns around, ready to disappear. But before she does, she says quietly, "Good luck." And with that, in a puff of smoke, Raven teleports away, before I can even mutter a thank-you.

Now comes the hard part. With Raven gone, I have to face Jinx alone. That normally wouldn't be so bad, right? Well, she hates me, remember? And after I get her out of those power inhibitors she'll probably try to run away. I can't let her go anywhere without forgiving me.

Since I already "passed through security" I don't have to have my ID checked or anything, and this time I don't mind when the guard leads me to a couple of rooms with heavy metal doors that lead to more rooms with heavy metal doors which, I assume, will eventually lead to Jinx's cell. As we finally approach the last door, the guard turns to me and says, "Don't say anything to anyone, not even her, until we've showed her out. Is that clear? You might rattle up the criminals with your…"

"Costume?" I supply helpfully. "I know. I won't say anything." He's worried that the prisoners will start getting rowdy if they see a cape walking in their midst.…By the way, 'cape' is superhero slang for 'costumed hero.' I don't actually have a cape, but I've always wanted one. But with the whole issue of aerodynamics and stuff, the cape would slow me down, so I've given up on them.

The last metal door closes behind us with a surprisingly loud shudder. I keep my eyes to the ground as we walk, but after about 5 seconds, I hear a scream.

Someone a little down the way is yelling and shouting for help, and it sounds like—

"JINX!"

OOh, another little cliffie! Well, because I was evil and went a couple days over my self-imposed update deadline, I will bring you the next chapter in 2 days. Girl scout promise.

Anyway, at the end, tell me what you think! I promise this cliffie won't be as bad as the last one (or maybe you disagree) but I'm working on the resolution to all the craziness, and I've got the rest of the story faithfully mapped out.

So plz review, I've got about 150 reviews (thank you soo much!) and I'm hoping to get a couple more. I'm 15 years old today! And in all seriousness, all I want for my bday is reviews. so please? For the birthday girl? lol.

And now to respond to my wonderful fantastic incredible lovely reviewers!

Meiriona-y'know, if i had written it in such a way that Raven did look into jinx's mind, the repercussions would have been extremely hard and long-winded to write. lol. and yes, you are psychic, everyone hear! thx for reviewing!

Heroine of the Valley-yes, you win the prize! Congratulations! You will get...absolutely nothing! Except a virtual hug and a large piece of my birthday cake. :-D thx for reviewing!

EE's Skysong-thanks so much for the in-depth review! it's really nice to hear what people like specifically about the story, it makes it so much more fun to write. thanks!

Nemesis Muse-thanks! I'm really really sorry about not explaining those references, sometimes my comic-book obsessed brain just takes off and writes them in. i will definitely explain them, should i make any future references. and just so everyone knows: the references to Jesse Quick and Jay (Garrick) in ch. 7: Jesse Quick is one of the speedsters in the comic books, who eventually gave up her powers. she was a friend of Wally West's (the current Flash, and who I believe to be the Kid Flash they used in the show), and was often compared to Bart Allen, the present-day (DCU) Kid Flash. Jay Garrick is the very first Flash, who is still in action to this day, and Bart Allen and his wife Iris were the Silver-Age Flash (who died in the Crisis on Infinite Earths) and his wife.

Shadow929-sry i didnt make the deadline this time, dont kill me! itd be sad to die before i officially turn 15. lol. thx!

Marz-will work on it! i hope you saw your reference in the beginning of KF's POV in this chappie! thats all for you, girl!

acosta pérez josé ramiro-now, that makes much more sense, but im sorry that i didnt use it. I hope my solution was satisfactory!

3musketteers-thanks!

lily23-lol, thanks for the review.

Silver Miracles-thanks! glad youre continuing to enjoy it! sry it was late!

Flying Green Flamingo-lol, thx for the review!

Rose Red2.0-yea, its pretty intense, huh? Keep reading! and thx!

pinkprincess-thx so much for the review! here ya are!

cheese lovin peep-well, this may sound weird coming from a stranger, but tell your friend's little sis happy bday! thx for the review!

Valda-lol, thx for the review! you are soo special!

the King of Flames-aww, thanks so much for the review! keep your eyes open for updates! i am turning them out as quickly as my schedule will allow.

Kelly Riley-Thanks! I'm soo glad you like it!

Potato-first off, i luv ur alias. it's great - secondly, thanks! when you say major, do you mean like, is creative writing my college major or something? im still a frosh in high school (bleh..at my school, the frosh have to put up with so much crap, lol), but maybe one day I will take that kind of course. Thanks for the review!

Maffeoel-...ahh now i feel all guilty that i broke it! But its my bday, u can cut me some slack, right? ...please? lol. im glad you like my story so much, it means a lot to me that i keep getting your reviews. to answer your question, when i said "soliciting" i meant, "enticing another to do evil." sorry, ill make that more clear next time. thanks for the review!

Forlorn Melody-thanks so much for the review! It's really nice to hear from new readers, and I hope you'll continue to enjoy it!

Robstarforeva21-thanks! I'll be bringing you all the next chapter by monday, and im sorry this one was soo late! thanks for the review!

screennameless-lol, thx for the review! im glad i could bring all three of ur faves into the same story. keep checking back for updates!

Ok, ok, im sooo sorry that this was late! ive just been so busy lately. but i promise ill bring u chp. 9 by monday. so plz, now that that's done, review! for my birthday. :-D yay...im 15 years old now...lol.