"Raven, please talk to me…," Slade begged.
"What is there to say? I'm leaving, Slade. I can't take this! Misery seems to loom around whatever we do. No matter how private it is. I can't take it! Our daughter is dead…by my hand!" Raven cried throwing her suitcase into the limo.
"You didn't kill her! She couldn't control her powers, and there was nothing you could have done about it!" Slade tried to sooth her, still paining inside that he could have saved Rhiannon.
"But I gave her those powers…and--"
"You didn't kill her! You are no murderer! You have done nothing wrong. And if living your life is wrong, than we should all be dead. Any life is worth living."
"I'm still leaving," Raven said, one foot inside the door. Slade grabbed her shoulder, holding her back.
"Don't leave."
"I have to."
"Why?"
"Because it's destiny," she said, and quickly got into the limo, closing the door as fast as possible. The limo rolled forward, and soon was gone into the distance.
"Where is she going?" a familiar voice asked. Slade turned his head to find out who it was, and behold it was Starfire.
"Why are you here?" Slade said threateningly.
"To settle things, because Ri--Nightwing won't."
"He's to afraid of what I would do to him. A wimp. But, it's a mistake on his part to send his "prize" if you will."
"I am not a prize. I was not won," Starfire said, slightly baffled, "but where is Raven going?"
"I don't know."
"Don't know? We must find her!"
"Give her space, she needs it now," he sighed, "how did you know that you would find us here?"
"Where else could you be?"
"At one of my other five hideouts within the city. Just go tell Nightwing that everything is okay, and he can still sleep soundly at night."
"He won't stop talking about his foolishness those sixteen years ago, Slade. He regrets it."
"And if he didn't, I'd kill him. Easy enough, eh?" Slade joked.
"Do you want to know something?" the familiar voice asked. Slade looked into her eyes, as if psychically telling her yes.
"When I first found what scandalous things you and Raven were doing together, I suspected the worst. But there is more behind the mask than I ever thought there could be. I do not question Raven's choice for her lifelong companion, but I deeply respect it."
"Thank you, Starfire."
"Which is why you should be running after her with open arms."
"I'm tracking her right now, my dear. Just because the mask is off, doesn't mean the brain behind it isn't," Slade said, pointing to his skull. Star smiled at the comment.
"I must go now. I wish you the best of luck, from both Nightwing and I," Starfire said walking away.
-xXx
"So everyone else leaves, and we get stuck with the damned tower?" Cyborg questioned himself aloud.
"Well, at least we get to decorate it the way we want," Changeling said with glee.
"I was thinking that we could rebuild it to the way it was and hand it over to the city. Maybe they will change it into a museum or something. Leave everything the way it was. Even your stuff."
"Yeah yeah. Well, I know one thing I can take that no one else will even think about taking," Changeling said happily, walking towards the fridge.
"And what is that?" Cyborg asked.
"Tofu!" Changeling shouted while hugging the tub of a vegetarians delight.
-xXx
Raven arrived at the airport, and took her suit case and went into a line to see when she could get a ticket to anywhere. Even hell was more appeasing to her than Jump City.
"Where would you like a ticket to, Miss?" the ticket lady asked sweetly, when it was Raven's turn to buy her ticket.
"A one way ticket to the most rural and relaxing place you have," Raven sighed.
"Tired of the city?"
"Yeah."
"Well let us seen then…. There is a ticket to Garnett Rise. Would you--"
"Yes, that is perfectly fine. Anywhere but here," Raven smirked, her voice stressed and impatient.
-xXx
Slade walked into the house and headed for the kitchen, his mind racing in several different directions. Unsure of what the road ahead was going to be like. On the kitchen counter lay a note that was neatly written. It read:
Dear Slade,
Since the tower needs repairing, and the job is much more than the pay of the Titans, I decided to pay for most of the damage. The amount put a rather large dent in our joint account, my dear.
With love,
Raven
P.S. – The amount is roughly $630,320
He read the number again at the bottom of the note and his jaw dropped open, without him realizing it.
"What? How could…she didn't…why…joint account? What joint a--…oh yeah," he stammered in disbelief, "God damn it." He walked to the "computer room", as he had come to call it, and signaled the device to locate Raven's location. To his liking she was still on the ground in the airport.
-xXx
"Raven left," Starfire bluntly said as she walked into the room where Nightwing was.
"Where?" Nightwing simply asked.
"I don't know, and neither does he. She's still trying to process the loss of her daughter."
"It's going to take time for that to heal."
"Of course, that is expected. But what is not expected is your attitude. You are being very curt."
"Curt?" Nightwing angrily said, insulted, "I'm just still shaken from the other day. I had to hold Rhiannon down as she was building up that energy. I was looking into her dying eyes…and it all could have been prevented…if--"
"Nightwing…please. Do not do this to yourself again," Starfire soothed.
"But Star, just look at what I've become! I'm the villain…the very person I swore never to be! And what's even more frustrating is that Slade is the good guy. How ironic is that!"
"Very, I guess--"
"How can you even look at me Star? After all I've done."
"I see the person who's struggling to be. The one who cares, and who loves. We just need to free the good person struggling inside of you. Just relax. Soon all will be close to normal."
"Normal?" Nightwing questioned.
"Well, to what us is normal," Starfire smiled.
-xXx
Slade slammed the taxi cab door shut and walked casually into the airport, looking around for Raven. This was not going to be an easy task, since he didn't know where she wanted to go, or in which direction she was heading.
Over the intercom, a man's voice said, "Flight 356 heading for Garnett Rise is now boarding at loading dock C7. Please have your tickets ready at the door."
"She better not be on that flight," Slade hissed as he dashed down the hallway towards the loading dock.
-xXx
Lackadaisically, Raven readied her ticket in her hand, and got on line. The wait was surprisingly short, but it didn't matter how long it took to get out of here, she just wanted to know that she was leaving. She turned around, thinking she heard her voice faintly, but there was no one there she recognized. Facing the front of the line again, her name was called again, and she turned around once again. No one. Under her breath she called herself an idiot for thinking that someone knew where she was.
Now that world isn't ending,
"Raven!" She heard that cry loud and clear. The tone of voice, the sound of it…the mere thought of him sent the best kind of happiness through her body. She couldn't turn around, she wanted to leave all of this behind, and it was catching up to her again.
"Raven, what are you doing!" he asked.
It's love that I'm sending to you.
"What does it look like I'm doing? I'm getting on a plane and leaving."
"You can't leave, Rae," he said, lifting up her chin so her eyes could met his one.
"Why can't I?" Raven said, threateningly.
It is in the love of a hero,
"Because I love you, and I know you feel the same way. Don't leave because we will feel the way we did for those sixteen years, and more. Forever we will be without each other's company, Rae. Forever."
"Aww…," a woman standing behind the couple sighed, obviously listening in on the conversation.
"No. I can't. I just won't stay!"
And that's why I fear it won't do.
-Hero, Chad Kroeger
"Then I will go with you. I will follow you to the edges of the earth. There is no one I would rather be with than you."
"You have no one else but me."
"But I have made it that way."
"Excuse me, if you don't mind me saying anything, but…my dear, you should take up on his offer. It's not very often you get a man like this. Trust me, I've gone through several, and still haven't found one I'd want to keep," the lady stated.
"See…even she agrees," Slade pointed out. Raven breathed in deeply trying to keep tears back.
"Ma'am, may I please have your ticket?" the woman asked. Raven turned around and looked at the tunnel where you boarded the plane, the woman who ripped the tickets, and back to Slade. It was true, she would rather be with him than no one else, but would she risk the emotional damage? Of course.
"No."
"Excuse me?" she asked.
"No, you may not have my ticket. I've had a recent change in plans," Raven smiled, turning around, grabbing Slade's hand, and walking in the other direction.
"So now where are you going? And why did you volunteer our money for the tower!" Slade questioned.
"First of all, it was our doing that destroyed the tower, and it's not where I'm going…it's where we're going."
"And where are we going?"
"Garnett Rise."
"Where the hell is that?"
"Who knows."
-xXx
Time stands still for no one, and it marches on with a fast paced rhythm. We each get our chance with time, trying to make the most of it that is. Time is the only thing that has stayed constant since its beginning, and we rely that time will always be existent. No one knows when it will end, or if it ever will. That uncertainty keeps us going. The uncertainty that time will stop and the world will end. It's what makes us live, and move on.
And just like everyone else, the not so normal couple moved on, trying to make the most of what they have, and what they always will have…each other. And that's just what they will need, to get through the next stage of their lives….
'Slade…,' Raven called from the bathroom.
'Yes?' he answered, peaking his head into the doorway to see what was the matter. Raven looked at him, and an array of emotions swirled. Should she be happy, or be fearful?
'I'm pregnant.'
-xXx
For once, everything was considered normal. No Titans, no trying to hide anything. It was just them, and they liked it that way. Strangely, the team was never in contact since the ordeal, and Raven always wondered how the others were fairing.
"I told you everything would work out fine," Slade reassured Raven as he cradled her in his arms.
"For now," Raven smiled.
It was now roughly a year since the couple moved to Garnett Rise, and they enjoyed it very much. Their house was hidden, and their social life consisted of talking to themselves, it wasn't always an easy life. Like every other healthy couple, they had their disputes, mostly on how to raise the children. Though they were only a few months old, most problems start at the very beginning. An ear piercing scream was heard, and both of them sighed as they lazily got out of bed and tended to the needs of the children.
"It's always Steph, never Sam," Raven sighed, picking up the baby, holding her closely to her chest.
"Then Steph is more like you, I presume?" he joked.
"Sam has to have some flaws you will grow to hate. After all, he is your son too," Raven smirked. Steph seemed to have stopped complaining, and settled down. Raven placed her into her crib, and slowly walked out, with Slade close behind.
"I still can't believe it, twins. Someone up there doesn't like us," Slade sighed.
"Yeah, well life isn't always fair."
"Twice the mess, twice the diaper changing, twice the food, twice the noise…," Slade listed.
"Oh shush. You spend more time at work than home."
"I provide, don't I?"
"I can't complain about that."
The two went back to bed, utterly exhausted from the night and day work with the newborns. It was true that Slade always seemed to be wrapped up in work, and was never home. He never talked in depth what he was doing, and his day was always 'fine'. Nothing varied. They swore to never keep secrets from one another, Raven and Slade did, but this one had to be kept. She would not like him working as a vigilante, especially when she was a retired "good guy".
-xXx
Finally the first of school came across the family. It was a hard day for Raven. She feared that the public would destroy the twins. A slight case of paranoia? Definitely. As much as Raven protested the idea of them leaving the constant care under her wings, she let them go. Soon, many "first day of schools" came and went. The two resembled their parents more and more. Steph, the oldest by mere minutes, had the dark style as her mother, but her personality was quite the contrary. She was always upbeat and attentive, a very happy girl. Although, she did have her corks. She was very opinionated, and did not back down very easily when told. A stubborn brute, she was usually called by her father. Sam was more conservative. He was quiet and usually locked himself in his room. Despite his attitude, he was much like his father. They were always close, even through his teenage years. Steph and her father were always locking horns, disagreeing with everything.
"I just want to go out with my friends, Dad," Steph complained, throwing her hands into the air.
"On a cross country road trip, my dear. My answer is final, no."
"I'm sixteen now, and besides it's only for like not even a week. Okay?"
"You can't even drive, and you want to go on a road trip?" Slade mused.
"Angie and drive."
"How old is she?"
"Eighteen."
"You aren't going."
"Dad! Please, just let me go this once!" Steph begged, "why do you fear so much?"
"Anything can happen. Do you want to end up like your sister! She never made it to her seventeenth birthday!"
"What? Dad, I don't have a sister! …I had a sister?" Slade became wide-eyed at his comment, and tried to dismiss his daughter's question.
"Just go ask your mother if you can go," he sighed.
"I asked you a question. Did I have a sister?"
"Go as your mother, Steph."
"It has to do with the fact that you don't age, I assume."
"Stop pestering me," Slade said, his voice angry and his gaze annoyed.
"I will once you answer my question."
Slade was trapped, he had to answer the question. It was inevitable that she would find out her parent's past. Raven and he both agreed to keep Rhiannon and her unknown legacy a secret. And it telling the story of Rhiannon, they would have to reveal who they were.
"You did have a sister. Now go ask your mother if you can go or not," Slade demanded.
"Yes, sir," Steph sighed, walking out of the study.
-xXx
"He did?" Raven questioned, sitting at the kitchen table with Sam and Steph.
"Is that true?" Sam asked, now interested. Raven paused, her mind frozen with the thoughts of the past. Feelings that she never thought she would feel again, came back to haunt her. She gulped hard, and nervously spat out an answer.
"Really!" Steph and Sam simultaneously said.
"Yes, I don't want to talk about it anymore," Raven said, getting up from the table weakly. She needed to talk with her husband.
-xXx
"How come they never told us?" Sam asked, perplexed.
"Well, it's obviously for bad reasons," Steph sighed, "otherwise they would have mentioned her at least once. But that didn't, and that's what makes me wonder…."
"They are very secretive people. Self sufficient. They won't even ask each other for help or support."
"It's the oddest relationship ever, in all the history of the weirdest and most complicated relationships."
"Agreed."
-xXx
"Why did you tell her?" Raven shouted, bursting into the room. Slade turned away from looking out the window, unbridled from her sudden entrance.
"It slipped. She was insisting me on letting her go with her friends on a trip."
"Where? Oh never mind that now. But what did you say to her?"
"I told her that she was going to end up dead like her sister."
"That's real sweet of you to say…"
"Why are we so frustrated to tell them. They should know. She's family."
"It happened sixteen years ago, Slade. It's the past! Besides, our identities would--"
"They are our own children, Raven. They have every right to know. They are old enough to know the paths that we veered from. It's time someone knows our life story but us," Slade said in monotone.
"I guess I'm just not ready to handle the loss again…," Raven sighed, visibly getting upset.
"Listen," he said, wrapping his arms around her tightly, "no one is ready to hear about the child they lost. Especially when it's a bond as strong as a mother and child's." Raven dug her head into his chest and silently wept, preparing herself.
-xXx
Both Sam and Steph went to college, all ready to face the world on their own. Slade and Raven successfully accomplished raising their children. And for an ex-villain and ex-good guy, they did a pretty damn good job. Did Slade and Raven tell their secrets to their kids that night? Of course. But they left out the Teen Titan heritage and Slade's infamous attacks towards them. Was it the smart thing to do? Probably not.
-xXx
About three months into the twin's sophomore year of college, the phone rang loudly at home, and Raven swiftly answered it.
"Hello?" she asked.
"Hey Mom, it's Sam," Same answered.
"Hey baby! What's up?"
"I know this is really sudden and everything--"
"Yes…."
"But I'm just calling to tell you that I'm getting married."
"What!" Raven said, nearly dropping the phone.
"And we want you and Dad to come to Jump City to celebrate the Thanksgiving with her parents," Sam said, slightly demanding.
"Jump City?" Raven questioned, a little nervous at the name.
"That's where her parents live. I'm going to call Steph and tell her to come too. Hope to see you there. Love you, bye," Sam said, hanging up the phone. Raven, slowly put the phone on the hook.
"Slade!" she yelled her voice shaky, "we're going to Jump City!"
A/N: A long chapter to celebrate Christmas Eve, eh? I hope you enjoy, and I have a Merry Christmas. Or to be politically correct, have a Happy Holidays. .
