Chapter 18

I am back… I know… I always leave for months at a time. I am so sorry! I grovel at your feet! Forgive me! But for a while, I had been working on my HP fic (Something to Write Home About…. Check it out!) So I hadn't gotten a chance to work on any of my TT ones.

Emly: Wow… I have never been so flattered in my life. Thanks!

(Last time:)

The sorceress closed her eyes, and cast white-hot electricity at him, just as Keefe came around the corner into the corridor.

"Raven! Stop!" Keefe ran and held her arms behind her, and pinned her face first into the wall. But it was too late. William had already become the human tortilla chip. Granted, he was breathing, but just looking at him made Raven crave for some salsa.

"Joe! Take William to sick bay, now! And then get Brent and Thomas to take over." He turned to Raven. "And you. Get inside. We need to talk." He said this coldly, and pushed her inside of the bedroom roughly and took no pains to get her out of the way of the door frame.

Slamming his fiancée onto the sofa and closing the door with a loud click, he turned and yelled, "What the Hell was that? Is that how you repay my guards for saving your life? By frying them? And why William? He's my friend!" His face was red and he was doing his best to stay on the other side of the table as Raven. Otherwise he would throw himself at her and pummel her to within an inch of her life.

Raven said nothing, but rubbed her arm where she had hit the door jamb.

"Answer me! You may be the Queen, but you are still under my control. Things don't work here the way they do in Jump City."

She looked at him resolutely, and said, "You wouldn't understand."

"Try me."

"He asked me if I wanted to watch my figure until the wedding."

Keefe replied coolly, "So you fried him?"

"When I was younger, I was really chunky. In elementary school, before I joined the team, kids used to tease me and call me names. I left for two years, then came back thin, like I am now, and everyone wanted to be my friend or my boyfriend, hell, even my girlfriend. I was the same person, only thinner, and no one saw that. They only saw this. Not me. And if you are going to tell me that I am being overdramatic, I don't want to hear it."

Keefe turned and walked out of the bedroom without a word. Raven stared at the door where he had left silently then gasped, "Oh! What have I done?" She covered her mouth with her hand, and stifled some sobs.

A few minutes later, a nameless guard came and asked Raven if she would like to be escorted to the library. "Why?" She asked.

"Don't you have a meeting with the Titans?"

"Oh yes." She had forgotten. "Please, just bring them up here."

When the guard left, she ran to the vanity, and wiped away the marks form her tears. She smoothed down her hair that had flown all around her when she blew up, then had a glass of water to calm her nerves.

She heard a light tap on the door and then Thomas poked his head in. "Ma'am, we just wanted to let you know that we have arrived."

"Alright, thank-you. When the Titans arrive, please show them in."

He nodded his assent, then pulled the door to.

She was powdering her nose when the door opened again. She turned around and saw her teammates, and a smile crept onto her face.

Terra ran forward and embraced her. "We saw Keefe wandering around in the hall. He told us what happened. I'm so sorry Raven."

Raven pulled back, smiling. Then she asked, "Would you like a tour of the grounds?"

Keefe wandered about the palace aimlessly, checking around corners before he himself went around so as not to run into his fiancée. His head was crammed full, debating whether to kill her or to kill William. At the moment, it was leaning towards her.

He went to Sick Bay to see William. He was almost looking normal, thanks to the healing powers of the philosophers.

"Milord!" William threw himself at Keefe's feet. "I am so sorry! Please, forgive me!"

"It's not your fault, Will. It wasn't anyone's fault. There are circumstances that you don't know about. You are going to keep your job, but you will have night shift, along with Joe. That way you won't run into the Sorceress as much. Alright?"

He nodded, and gulped.

The rest of the day passed uneventfully for the entire palace. At dinner time, the Titans and Raven sat around the table in the kitchen. They were served spicy candied salmon with couscous and pine nuts. They were halfway through the meal, laughing and chatting, when the door opened.

No one paid attention, figuring it was just another servant that was going in and out of the kitchen. Then Vernon threw himself to the ground, kneeling. Raven looked up at the door, and saw Keefe standing there.

He looked at her once, just once, then asked Vernon to make him some mashed potatoes. He sat down at an empty seat at the table and chatted quietly with Robin. Terra and Starfire looked at Raven curiously, but she just shook her head minutely, warning the girls not to say anything. She assumed that once Keefe got his potatoes, he would leave. But he stayed, and conversed some more with Robin.

"If you all will excuse me. I am dead tired. I am afraid I must retire for the night. I will see you tomorrow." Raven smiled, and went upstairs to her room. She told the guards who were on duty to fetch Gretta and a violin player.

When the maid entered, Raven told her to start a bath and get and ice pack for her arm; it was rather sore and swollen. The musician entered, and Raven directed him to serenade her while she soaked.

She got into the hot, steamy bath, and laid her head back on an air pillow. The musician entered, and played almost a lullaby for her. While she relaxed, she heard the door to the hallway open, and heard combat boots on the ground.

"Thank you Michael. I think that's it for now. Here, take this." She got fifty chips out of a purse that was on her pile of clothes next to the tub and handed it them to him. He bowed and left the bathroom.

She closed her eyes and waited for Keefe to come charging in. He didn't.

She called, "Keefe? Come in here please. I would like to speak to you."

He did, sitting on the chair that Michael had sat on only moments before. He gazed at her naked body through the steaming water.

"Yes?"

"Well, seeing how awkward we were together this evening, I would like to apologize about harming William. Is he alright now?"

"Yes, the philosophers restored him back to normal this afternoon."

"Are we cool?"

"I am actually a bit warm; I'm not sure about you."

It took Raven a moment to realize what he meant. "Oh! Never mind. I guess you guys don't say that here. I meant, is everything okay between us?"

"Oh yeah. I suppose so."

Raven noticed his eyes hadn't moved too much since he sat down. "Hon, do you want to get in?"

Check it.