Just in case you haven't been paying attention, I don't own Teen Titans. Oh, and I also don't own Catch-22, which is the masterpiece of Joseph Heller, or Catcher in the Rye -which was written by J.D Salinger. Yeah…I don't own a lot of things…

'The devil damn thee black, thou cream-faced loon!
Where got'st thou that goose look?'

-William Shakespeare, Macbeth

"So, what do you guys want to do now?"

Time had that irritating habit is slipping under your notice when you weren't paying attention. Robin's ill-fated ride with Red-X had occurred early that morning- in that pre-twilight time when the new day had come but still stubbornly clung to the blanket of night. Hours later, the Titans had done all they could really do at the crime scene that was Eldred Arkham's mansion, leaving them at an impasse.

And so, with Robin driving the T-Car, Raven riding shotgun, and Beast Boy sitting with Starfire in the ridiculously spacious back seats (the SUV was built for Cyborg), Robin had addressed the rest of the day with that one question:

"So, what do you guys want to do now?"

Throwing her arms up, Starfire shouted gleefully from the back seat. "I propose an expedition to the Mall of Shopping!"

Beast Boy pumped his fist into the air. "I second! Let's hit the mall!"

Raven rolled her eyes beneath her hood. Just like a bunch of children.

"Well Rae, mind going to the mall for a while?" Robin asked her aside, both eyes still on the road. He really was a good driver, really, so long as he wasn't in some ridiculous high-speed chase.

"I guess it would be alright," Raven shrugged.

"Cool, I guess it's settled then." Robin signaled into an exit and guided the T-Car down the winding overpass back onto the appropriate road.

The dark girl guessed going to the Mall wouldn't hurt. There was a bookstore she liked to visit whenever she found herself dragged there by Starfire or the rest of the team on a shopping binge. Best of all, Beast Boy never went to bookstores. There was also a large videogame store nearby as an extra safety measure, just in case.

Eyes wandering around the windows, Raven's gaze settled onto the rear-view mirror.

Speaking of Beast Boy…

"I can see you right in the mirror, Sherlock."

Bored easily, the annoying little changeling had taken to making faces at Raven from the safety of the back seat. With a degree of talent, Raven noted reluctantly, his next face was the combination of a goldfish, an anteater, and an octopus.

Yeah…you try to figurethat out…

"Knock that off before I make that pretty face permanent," she warned.

Starfire giggled when Beast Boy called her bluff, waving his arms as the tentacles wiggled mockingly. Soon enough, the Tamaranian was joining the interesting new game. Robin was too busy driving to notice, and Raven wasn't finding those two the least bit amusing.

"That's it..."

Turning in her seat to face them, the dark girl glared at them underneath the deepened shadow of her cowl. She hissed menacingly with dripping fangs, crimson eyes glowing.

It was a few minutes later when Robin shifted the T-Car and declared "We're here!" triumphantly.

"Lovely," Raven said dully. Not bothering with her seatbelt or the door, she wrapped herself in darkness and phased out of the car.

Robin tilted his head to the back seat "Beast Boy? Star? What's the holdup? We're here."

The two sat stiff in their seats like stone, faces wide-eyed and white (an impressive feat, considering both are usually orange and green respectively)

Robin frowned in concern. "What happened to you guys?"

"Friend Raven is very….talented…"Starfire said slowly.

"Dude…." Said Beast Boy, dazed and drooling. "Never get in a funny-face contest with Raven…she'll like, totally win…"

It was a sign of the times when a pale-skinned girl with purple hair, a black leotard, and a blue hooded cloak could walk through a crowded wall without so much as raising a brow among them. Going into public was always an odd thing for any Titans. Cyborg, Star, and Beast Boy were always themselves when they went out; they couldn't exactly change out of their 'costumes'. Out of all the Titans, Robin could most easily slip unnoticed into the general public. All it would take is a change of clothes and a slip of a mask and viola!

Truth be told, Raven could change into more…traditional clothes to not attract attention, but her outfit was a standard garb in Azarath. To her, everyone else's clothes looked outlandish.

Fortunately, unlike say...Beast Boy's or Robin's, Raven's fanbase was small and quiet. Out in public, it wasn't unusual for small crowds of girls to swarm Robin, begging for an autograph ('Or God forbid, a date' Raven recalled with disgust). No, the closest thing to fan interaction Raven ever had been was nodding politely to a quiet group of teenagers dressed in that appealing 'gothic' style they had in this realm.

And if Raven ever was going to take off her Azarath clothes, she would definitely switch into that earth-style.

The Mall wasn't exactly teeming with crowds this early in the morning, and Raven was privately satisfied as she entered the small bookstore to find it virtually empty.

A boy in his late teens leaned casually back in his chair, black shoes resting on the store counter. His black jeans were worn-out to the point of white creaseswrinkling them, and the dark T-shirt he wore seemed home-made. The words: Don't Mind Me. I'm Just Another Catcher in the Rye was scrawled in white across the front.

His nose was deep in the blue-covered book he was reading. Raven wasn't familiar with the title, Catch-22; whatever that meant. He seemed to have noticed someone entered the store, however, and thumbed the page he was reading to look at her through his square-rimmed glasses. "Well good morning Miss. Raven." He waved nonchalantly at her.

"Hey there, Kurt." She said as she brushed past the counter.

"Need any help today?" he called to her back.

"I'm fine, thanks." She didn't mind Kurt much. He minded his own business and was helpful- even helped her find a book she was looking for once. He sometimes jokingly referred to her as his 'celebrity regular'.

Raven didn't mind.

Unsure what she was in the mood for, Raven made her way up and down the deserted isles of books until she found her way into the 'Fantasy' section. There was sadly little to choose from, however. Most of the books she had either already read or would never read by pure principle. She was considering a move to the 'Classics' area to try and find a Lovecraft collection (he was sadly hard to find) when suddenly-

"Raven…"

Her muscles stiffened. Her nerves trembled. Raven knew that voice.

"Slade," she growled.

"Oh, you remember me?" Slade's voice jeered. "I'm flattered"

White fire burned in her eyes. Raven felt her powers pushing against its barriers insistently. "Show your face and I'll show you just how much I remember."

"Temper, temper," Slade chastised. "We both know what happens when your emotions get the best of you…"

Fear, anger, and utter loathing for the man leaked past her safeguards. The books in the aisle trembled in their shelves. Raven grudgingly pushed her power deeper within herself.

"So, what are you doing here?" Raven asked into the air. She couldn't see Slade, but a part of her sensed him somewhere. She just needed time to isolate him and find out where. "I never imagined you as a 'shop till you drop' kind of guy."

"Oh, just…hanging around," he replied vaguely. "In the meantime, I thought you and I could have a little talk."

"I'm not interested having a chat with you. Why don't you try Robin? I'm sure he'd just love to hear from you again. Go try Sporting Goods downstairs."

Slade chucked at that. "Always undervaluing yourself my dear. I'm not here to talk to Robin. He's just gotten so…predictable, lately. The Boy Wonder's just a bore now."

He was close. God, he was close. Her powers sensed him, Raven could practically feel him. "So your favorite hobby just got boring, I'm really feeling for you. What do you want Slade?"

"Isn't it obvious, my dear?"

Raven froze. She knew exactly where he was.

She slowly turned.

Like a nightmare come alive, Slade stood there at the end of the aisle, hands clasped behind his back. His dark eye narrowed and met her horrified stare. "I want you."

"Azarath, Metrion, ZINTHOS!"

In a panic, Raven's powers rushed out from her, enveloping several huge shelves of books and hurtled them at Slade.

The flurry of books and shelves instantly buried him, maybe even crushed him.

Raven couldn't care less.

She sent her powers seeking beneath the mountainous pile; she would pull Slade out of there and deliver him kicking and screaming to the nearest Police Station.

Raven suddenly balked.

She couldn't sense him. It was as if he wasn't under there.

Wrapping the books and wooden bookshelves in darkness, debris began floating off of the pile.

"Miss Raven? What's going on! Are you alright."

Oh right, Kurt.

"Keep your distance, Kurt," she cautioned. "I think your shop's attracting the wrong kind of customers."

"What are you taking about?"

As last of the pile slowly lifted itself off, Raven kept most of the debris waiting in the air above it. If Slade tried anything, she would just bury him again.

The infamous Slade, caught by a pile of books.

She couldn't appreciate the irony quite yet.

But at the bottom of the pile…there was nothing.

Nothing.

No one

No Slade.

"What other customers?" Kurt demanded. "You're the first person to come in this morning."

She threw her senses out into the air, searching for Slade's presence. She had felt him damn it! He was there-no, he is here!

But no. There was no trace. She sensed Kurt, the gathering crowd gawking outside the door, she felt Beast Boy next door playing video games, Robin and Starfire nearby.

But no Slade!

What was going on?

A heavy migraine stabbed her temples. Her concentration failing, the objects she kept afloat collapsed heavily onto the floor. She brought a hand to her head. What's going? What's wrong with me!

"Uh…Miss. Raven?"

"I'm sorry," she said regretfully. "I can't-I…I have to go."

A giant raven made of black fire sprung from the floor and wrapped Raven protectively in its wings. Wasting no time, the bird flew high into the ceiling, taking Raven with it.

At a loss, Kurt looked around at his shop, half of which looked like a raven-shaped tornado had just blown through.

Running his hand through his disheveled brown hair, he groaned to himself. "My manager is not going to believe this…"

(Gasp!) Egad, Cy! Where did this Chapter come from so quickly? To which I reply, 'Well, person-who-sounds-exactly-like-me, after reading a few chapters of Catch-22 and taking a shower, the new chapter just came to me…so I wrote it.' Two chapters in two days! Who loves ya, huh?

So yeah, Chapter 4, what you all were waiting for: Slade and Raven! Wheeeeeeeee! And the next chapter will have even more goodness with our Mastermind and his new pet Raven. Chapter Five might take a while, but trust me, it'll be a longer read, I think. Everybody loves more content!

And yes, from the 'Wheeeeeeeeeee' earlier, I think we've all figured out I've had too much caffeine.

Oh well, thanks for reading, reviews are appreciated, yada, yada.

Until next update, fans!

-Cy