Disclaimer TEEN TITANS and all other related characters and material are the property of DC comics and Cartoon Network, I claim no ownership.

Chapter 20: For the Very First Time…

By: Ansa

Raven stepped inside the apartment later than expected. By the time the three of them had finished the discussion, they had already spent an hour in the store and had yet to even look at dresses. After what seemed like a wave of gowns was thrown at her by Susan, they decided to call it a night, going home empty handed. The quest for the wedding dress, as Susan had dubbed it, would continue tomorrow. Even though it shouldn't have, it amazed her how much time she had on her hands now that classes were done for the summer. She often found herself sitting on the couch and reading for most of the time even after visiting the computer center, which was still open during the break, to do some work on wedding plans. Searching for florists and a decent Justice of the peace that wasn't too pious for the most part, she was just glad she didn't have the job of planning the reception that was just recently decided on.

Originally they had not planned on one; they didn't have the money for it. Friends, it seems, of any kind, can surprise you with the most amazing amounts of generosity. Susan and Derek didn't have much more money than they, but put their contribution together with that of the guys from the garage, and you have just enough for a decent reception, minus a band and open bar. Derek had promised he would provide the music, and alcohol never really was a big concern, so this reception was just as good as anyone else's, and they were forever grateful to have the chance to have it.

Hanging up her coat and closing the door behind her Raven looked around the apartment, seeing Beast Boy already setting the table. The setup was for three, seeing as how Starfire had been living with them for the past few weeks. What he didn't know was that tonight she would be spending the night out, giving the two their time together. Nor did he know exactly what was in store for tonight; that one of the rules would be broken. Raven continued through dinner with nothing to say, yet very much on her mind. Never once did what she was about to do leave her thoughts, nor did the rosy areas on her cheeks ever fade. When he asked of them, they only radiated stronger.

She ate dinner quietly, speaking only when to answer questions and the like. Trying her best not to be too conspicuous yet failing miserably. Occasionally Beast Boy would ask if she were feeling well, why was she so quiet, and was only answered with nods or a rather annoyed sounding "yes." The night passed rather quickly, as if to spite her. She wasn't sure she was ready for this, in fact, she knew she wasn't, what she wasn't sure of was whether or not she was really going to do this. She looked forward to a long quiet evening to give her time to think…so much for that.

Looking up at the clock she clock she was horrified to find it already eight o'clock. Dinner, what seemed to be only seconds ago was already finished, dishes gently stacked in the sink to be washed tomorrow. Time was definitely not on her side, as if it had some kind of grudge. Today was Friday, which meant no work for him tomorrow, which meant…evening showers. Taking a deep breath, she stood up from the couch and headed into the bedroom, closing the door behind her.

Inside it was pitch black, not even the light of the moon piercing through the window shades she had pulled down earlier, making quite sure they were secure and would not slip. Her heart beat heavily in her chest, even though she was alone in the room, she could still imagine him there. Just the thought of him being in the same room as her while she undressed, even though he wasn't, was enough to stall her. Her hands trembled as she tried to shake it from her mind, her fingers slowly tugging up her shirt. It was agonizing, so much so that random objects on the dresser began to shake and rattle in place, her powers letting her know that they were still quite active and linked to her very feelings.

Raven took another deep breath and concentrated hard, focusing everything on a single thought and clearing her mind of everything else. Everything that made her blush, that made her hands shake, and every thought that made her afraid to continue vanished and was replaced with that of what she always thought of when meditating, a stormy beach. She had to control herself, for his sake. Later when she bears herself to him, these thoughts would return, the nervousness and fear would come back. That she could not stop, and she knew that. If she could, then there would be no problem at all, no need for her "training." Later, she will be nervous, later, her powers will again manifest…but not now. If she lost it now, she would not be able to continue tonight's plans, and that she could not accept.

Opening her eyes again she was now calm, collective, and confident. Her hands did not falter for a moment as the remainder of her clothing fell to the floor, leaving her standing naked in the darkness of the bedroom. She stood there for a moment, feeling somehow triumphant. Turning into the bathroom she flicked on the light switch and light poured in, stinging her eyes slightly. When her eyes recovered she stared into the mirror, studying herself carefully, checking for blemishes and the like. Nothing of the kind was to be found, perfect. If she wasn't so focused on her goal she would have smiled at this. She never really did put much stock into her own appearance, except her hair of course. Outward appearances didn't matter much to here; they were meaningless and only drew attention away from what really matters in a person. Still, she wasn't above being proud of her own looks every once in a while.

She was ready now, she could tell by hear heart starting to beat wildly again and her focus starting to shatter as she turned on the shower water and wrapped a white cotton towel around herself. This was it, no turning back, no regrets. She repeated this to herself as the doorknob to the living room turned slowly in her grip, and the door pushed out. On the couch sat Beast Boy, watching an old "Mystery Science Theater 3000" episode he had taped off of TV some time ago. She never quite understood the draw to that particular show, but he seemed to like it.

"I'm taking a shower…" She just barely managed to say it without her voice trembling, stating it so matter-of-factly as if nothing out of the normal was waiting.

"Ok hun." This scene had become so normal to him he didn't think much of it, not even turning his head from the screen, that at the moment flashed the opening segment of his show. Aside from him the rosy tint in Raven's cheeks started to show themselves and she turned her head slightly, grabbing the towels edge tightly.

"C-come…j-join me?"

There was a moment of silence, where even the antics of Mike J. Nelson and the robots on the Satellite of Love seemed to pause, or maybe that was just the remote nearly being dropped on the floor.

"Beg pardon?"

"Y-you heard me…"

"But…isn't that rule number three?" Beast Boy finally had turned to look at her and nearly drowned in the sudden gush of blood that shot from his nose. He had seen her in nothing but a towel before, this wasn't new, but mixed with the thoughts of what she was suggesting was just enough to produce such a reaction.

"…I know." That was all she could managed to get out, she had nothing more to say, not even a clue as to what she might say. How were you supposed to act in this sort of situation? She didn't know how to be seductive, but then again she always associated that word with lust. Lust was not what she felt. That was something different, something dirty. What they had together wasn't lust, nor was it dirty, but something pure instead.

Beast Boy just stared back, not sure what, if anything, to do. Inside his chest he could feel his heart beating against his ribs, almost ready to burst through like he was in some Saturday morning cartoon. He watched as she turned and started to head back into the bathroom, leaving the door open behind her.

"…Are you coming?"

The sound of the rushing water slowly grew as the door remained open, steam slowly flowing outside into the bedroom and eventually the living room. He thought for a moment, so very wanting to follow her, but still not sure if she was serious or not. Meanwhile, inside the bathroom Raven stood waiting, still holding the towel tight around her. It had just recently hit her, the fact that she was not the only one that was going to be naked…that she would be able to see him as well. She wasn't sure how she would react, or how she should react when it happened. She didn't want to make him feel uncomfortable with himself, but then she didn't want to make herself look too interested either.

The sound of the door shutting in place broke into her thoughts and almost made her heart jump into her throat. She could feel the steam trap itself inside, making things dry and humid inside as it rose and surrounded her. She listened, trying to decide if he had entered or just closed the door to give her privacy. Unfortunately the sound of the water against the shower floor drowned out anything that might give him away other than direct speech. She turned her head slowly, peering over her shoulder, her eyes low and staring at tiles at first. As she raised them, slowly but surely two socked feet came into sight.

"A-Are you sure you're ok with this?" When her eyes reached his they revealed to her just as much uncertainty and concern as hers did to him. His arms were at his side, fingers dancing nervously with themselves. He wanted this, to be closer to her, to feel her smooth skin against his…but if she wasn't sure, if she wasn't ready, than neither was he. "I mean, we can wait for the honeymoon, its only-…"

"N-no…we've already waited too long. You've been so patient." She gazed into his eyes, stepping slightly closer to place her hand against his cheek. He had been so good, putting up with her. Susan was right, any other man wouldn't hold out for so long, but he did. Never once did he break the rules, never once did he question them. He was nothing less than a saint, and she wanted to do this for him. Not because it would help her prepare, help her get control, but because…she really wanted to be closer to him this way as well.

"I can't give you everything yet…for that, I ask you wait just a little bit longer." She turned, letting her hand slowly slide down from his cheek as she walked to the edge of the shower stall. With one final deep breath, and her back facing him, her fingers loosened their grip on the fabric…and the towel fell to the floor. Beast Boy watched, his face turning the color of that of a strawberry as Raven's curved back arched slightly, slipping past the curtain and into the shower. A few moments passed, hot water streaming down her body as she stood leaning against the wall under the shower before the curtain on the end rustled, and a naked Beast Boy stepped in.

He stood there, staring at the floor for a moment, gulping down a nervous mouthful of air. This was a first for him in more ways than one. Never before had he seen a girl naked, never before had a girl ever seen him naked, and never before did he ever shower with anything else short of a rubber ducky. His eyes slowly worked their way up, starting at her feet. These he had seen before, nothing new. Moving up he found her slender legs, looking so smooth and soft as water ran down and streams. Her skin was so pale, but not like in any way he had ever seen before. Her entire body was such a unique shade, not so much light as snow, and not so much dark as storm clouds. Instead, it was soft middle tone, like the color of the sea during the storm.

Her knees came next and her legs started to curve, clenched tightly together, one slightly overlapping the other to hide what would eventually come next. Her hips were slender, not wide at all, but then again, they didn't need to be. Between them, lay her sex, hidden by her shyly crossed legs, only the slightest edge of violet hair peeking out to be seen. He blushed, but he wasn't sure what at. Was it at the realization at what he was looking at, or was it at how cute her shyness was? He wasn't sure, and he couldn't much think it through, the beating of his heart drowning out every possible inner voice or outer ambient noise. Her stomach soon followed, smooth, flat and sexy he had to admit. On her side he could see one arm was left hanging, the other bent and holding on at the elbow. Just above her bent arm, were her breasts, almost framed by the angle at which her arm was set. He noticed the area of chest just above them were flushed a rosy red just as much as her face, her breasts heaving slightly as she breathed. Her natural beauty set of an amazing glow about her.

He tried looking into her eyes, but her head was turned, her eyes pointed to the floor, never moving. He wanted to hold her, to be closer to her, to feel her smooth skin against his. He loved her. He didn't want her to feel any kind of pain or fear or discomfort of any kind. Very slowly he approached her, not at all used to seeing her cower so. It was not at all like her, but then again showing any kind of emotion wasn't like her either…the old her, at least. His arms wrapped around her slowly, their wet skin sliding against each other as she settled in his arms, still trembling so very much. For the first time they felt their bodies together, with nothing between them, their naked flesh pressed against one another as if hungry for one another. Only then, when she was in his arms did she look up into his eyes.

"...Y-you know I love you…right?" The question wasn't so much for him, but for herself. For no other, would she ever do such a thing. For no other, would she give herself so completely. For no other, would she ever love so deeply. She knew this, but she needed to make sure he did as well.

"I love you too." He nodded, his arms wrapped tight around her, her breasts pressed firmly against his chest, her perfect smooth skin joined with his. He needed nothing else but this. For the rest, he would wait. They would be together, they will be one, and they will be happy. For now, all he needed was this moment.

Raven's mind must have just clicked, the fact that both of them were naked together finally registering in her head…either that or her eyes had drifted south. Whatever the reason, a loud pop echoed through the room. At first they weren't quite sure what happened, both knew that it had something to do with her powers, but other than that, nothing seemed to be wrong. That is, until they noticed massive amounts of sweet smelling lather bubbling up all around them…the only evidence left of the shampoo bottle that sat on a corner shelf.

"S-sorry…"

The night air sent chills down his side, or was it the sight of the towering manor that he once called home? Dick Grayson stared up with cold eyes at one of the second story windows where Bruce slept, the man who was like a father to him but was now nothing more than foolish old man. He pulled off his helmet and shook out his long hair that had been stuffed up for the ride. Setting the kickstand he finally stepped off and headed towards the door which had yet to be opened. He knew someone was there; the gates certainly didn't open themselves. Right now he rather hoped that it was anyone but Bruce, even if he did have a few questions to ask him.

Losing Starfire again had sent him crawling into the safety of several vodka bottles. For days he sat at home drinking, not in any kind of condition to do much else. Several times Batgirl, Barbra, had come to try and drag him out of his pathetic state. In a way, she had succeeded, even if it wasn't directly. During a fit of meaningless chatter while she cleaned up the empty bottles strone across the floor she mentioned the wedding…and the honeymoon. He hadn't even given his original suspicions a second thought since that night, he couldn't. He could barely even remember what had happened the night before, so it wasn't any surprise that he had forgotten that. Once reminded, even his drunken state could not hold back this nagging idea that something wasn't right.

A few days of black coffee, clearing the apartment of any remaining traces of alcohol, and a strict work out lead him here to the doorstep of Wayne Manor. Since it re-entered his brain it never left, it consumed him and only gained in intensity as he thought about it more. There was no way he would gain any peace, not until he figured out what exactly was going on, if anything.

"Master Grayson, my, it certainly has been a while hasn't it?" The door creaked slightly when it opened and the kind-hearted Alfred stepped out to greet him. He wished things hadn't have to be this way, between he and Bruce, because he rather enjoyed Alfred's company. Fond memories of his years here always managed to feature him, always to helpful and caring to him. He wished this visit didn't have to be business, he so wanted to catch up with him. Even if it wasn't, he doubted very much that he would be able to stay, that would risk a confrontation with his old mentor.

"Hello Alfred, how've you been?"

"Very well thank you, will you be staying for dinner?"

"No, I'm sorry but I need to ask you something, it won't be long."

"I'll be happy to help if I can."

"Thanks." Dick smiled; Alfred was always ready and willing to help, no matter who or what it may be. Little did he know the information he was about to give would only make things worse between Dick and his master. "Can you give me the address to Bruce's cottage in Ireland? He's letting my friends use it for their honeymoon and I want to make sure they've got everything they need."

"I'm sorry, but I'm afraid Master Bruce doesn't have a cottage in Ireland, not that I know of at least."

"…What?" Dick's eyes went back into the cold stare, widening as the words flew through his mind. Another chill went down his spine, he had his suspicions, but never did he think they would be founded.

"Perhaps you misheard him. Don't worry; I'm sure he'll make sure your friends are quite comfortable."

Dick didn't even hear his response, his mind was swimming and no noise but that of his own thought would register to him. No cottage…what did this mean? Was he right or…maybe Alfred was just unaware of it? Maybe, Bruce bought it just recently. He was wishful thinking now; Alfred knew much more about Bruce's business than anyone would expect a butler to. Something was going on, something wasn't right, and he needed to find out what.

"Are you sure I can't convince you to stay?"

"Yeah…sorry Alfred, but I've got some business to take care of."

Damn! So frigging hard to write this one, maybe because I knew this would be my last one before moving back to college. That's right; I'm going back for a new school year. That means that the next chapter will take a bit to come out. For the rest of this week I will be packing and then I leave early Monday. Depending on how things go, I would expect to start work on the next chapter next WED (only have one class on MWFs.) Until then, I hope you enjoy this and I ask one thing to ponder and post in reviews. Should I describe BBandRae's first night "together" or just time jump over it? Note that if I do write about it, it will be done as tastefully as possible, and the series (part 3 that will include the honeymoon) will be given an M rating. Lemme know what you think. Later Days!

ANSA