Hello everyone, this is Sora. I'm off my deathbed and up with a brand new story. For those of you who have been following my other Teen Titans story, don't worry, chapter six is nearly finished. I give a quick thanks to Mizu who took the time to post chapter 5 of Love and Family when the porcelain gods took up most of my time.
Quick synopsis of this story for those of you who are interested: It's been five years since Terra's imprisonment, four years since Raven fled, and three years since the Titan's split. Now Raven's out to seek her friends and hopes to find where she belongs.
Well, on to the standard facts. This is a Robin/Raven pairing. This will not change. I do not appreciate pairing flames, I could care less about other flames. I am always open to compliments and criticisms. Finally, I don't own the Teen Titans. If I did, I probably wouldn't be here.
That was a little long winded of me. I'd better get on with the story. Please enjoy.
Old. Eerie. Decrepit. Any of those words could be used to describe the state of Titan Tower three years after its abandonment. The only word that came to the mind of Raven Roth was depressing.
The now twenty-year-old gothic woman stood on the threshold of what had once been her home for the first time in four years. She had not expected to find much when she decided to visit Jump City. However, seeing the darkness and desolation of the tower seemed acutely painful. Raven fought the tears that threatened to well in her unusually emotional eyes. She sighed in a fashion akin to aggravation and regret. "If only…"she whispered. Her fingers punched in the security override code, possibly the only code that hadn't changed.
Once inside and her transitional blindness wore off, Raven realized how bad the interior was. Cobwebs covered everything and the dust was very thick. Raven's hand sought a light switch she recalled was nearby. It turned out to be a useless gesture though. The tower's generators were too long dormant. No electricity flowed. She stopped briefly to train her face into its usual dull mask and then moved on.
Many of the areas in Titan Tower were much like the entrance way. The control room, the evidence rooms, the computer rooms and storage rooms. They were dark, barren and dusty. Each sight drove reality into Raven just a little bit more. It hurt.
Finally, Raven came to the top floor, the residential floor. She realized she was shaking a little. Raven was unsure if she could handle the sight of her friends' empty rooms. However, something made her press on. Her room was first. The door looked damaged and the nameplate that once hung there had been viciously torn off. Raven winced and braced herself, fearing the inside would be just as trashed.
Nothing had changed. Not one thing in her room had been touched, moved or otherwise disturbed. Perhaps the only change was the thick layer of dust that had settled over everything. Raven ran her fingers over the familiar books and titles, remembering each one almost perfectly. Part of her wanted to simply stay and become familiar with these surroundings again. However, she would not linger long; there were still more rooms to explore.
Down the hall from her was Beastboy's room. Unlike her room, almost carefully preserved, his room was empty. No furniture, posters, knick-knacks or filth remained. All that indicated that anyone had ever existed in the room was a torn photo lying on the floor near the closet. Raven inspected it closer and found it had once been a photo of the Teen Titans with "Friends Forever" scrawled across the back. A sharp pain bit into her heart at that moment. The torn photo was a harsh reminder of what she had lost. However, Raven kept it and tucked in away in her knapsack.
Cyborg's room was next in the line of investigation. Raven really struggled for her control when she saw the state of her "older brother's" room. All of the technology had been permanently shut down and some even destroyed. All of the pictures Cyborg held dear no longer remained. Something on a shelf glinted at her though. It was a wrench or, more specifically, the wrench she had used to help Cyborg fix the T-Car. Formerly, it only had a small "8 ½" engraved into one side. The measurement had been erased and something different was in its place.
Raven: Take Care of Yourself, Dark Girl.
It was a kind gesture from the mechanic man and she missed him all the more for it. A few tears collected in the corners of Raven's eyes and she tucked the treasure into her satchel. Starfire's room was next.
The former room of the Tamaranian Princess was easily the most depressing of all the rooms she had explored. The once bright walls were stripped to a dull concrete gray. The furniture remained, but disuse and lack of care meant it too had faded to a duller color. No personal effects remained, no doubt taken when Starfire departed.
Out of the corner of her eye, Raven noticed that she had not been completely right. On the empty dresser sat a pair of bright green sunglasses. She picked them up and very nearly laughed.
Flashback
"Friend Raven, I need to do the speaking of privacy with you," Starfire insisted as she floated after the gothic teen.
"In your room?" Raven groaned.
"It would be most preferred. Your room gives me…unpleasant feelings," Starfire replied. "Please, I shall make this talk of great speed!"
"Very well," Raven grudgingly acquiesced. Sometimes it was hard to say no to the girl.
"Glorious!" Starfire pulled Raven into her Day-Glo orange bedroom. Raven, very used to the darkness of her room, immediately slammed her hand over her eyes. "Does something bother you?" Starfire asked in concern.
"I believe I have just fried my retinas," Raven grumbled.
"I do not understand."
"Your room hurts my eyes, it's like looking into the sun," Raven simplified. Starfire frowned in thought before brightening again.
"I have got it!" She flew to a drawer and rummaged around for a moment. When she returned, she pressed a pair of neon green rimmed sunglasses into Raven's hand. The gothic girl stared at them for a long moment.
"…thanks," she finally managed.
End Flashback
From there on out, the few visits Raven made to Starfire's room were made with those glasses. These too were added to her bag.
Raven glanced back down and found a folded piece of pink paper. She opened it and read the contents.
Friend Raven,
It has been a long Earth year. You have not come home. There are many fights now. I can no longer stay.
The night you left, such ugly things were said between all of us. Should you ever return, please seek me on Tamaran. There is much to be said. Much to be forgiven.
Your Friend Eternal,
Starfire- Princess Koriand'r
Raven read the note again and again. Starfire never had grasped the English language, but the invitation was touching. "I may well do that," Raven mumbled. She sighed; she was slipping. Control wasn't completely necessary anymore, but Raven still preferred it to being an emotional wreck. Now she really needed to be calm, only Robin's room remained.
While Starfire's room had been the most depressing, Robin's room was the hardest on Raven. There were so many memories there. She could remember the friendly talks, the reminders that she could tell him anything, the hours of silence while working on a case. Something stung at her. Even after all the time that had passed, Raven still felt the same affection for her former leader and best friend. A tired sigh escaped her lips.
Like her room, Robin's room seemed mostly unchanged. Newspaper clippings still covered the walls and crime files were still scattered about. The only thing that indicated he had ever left was an empty closet and dresser. None of that interested Raven, though. It was what lay on his desk that had her attention.
Four communicators sat on the old oak desk. Next to those was what appeared to be the beginning of a journal entry. In Robin's firm but slightly untidy scrawl, four lines had been written.
I was a fool. They are all gone now. The Titans are no more. What have I done?
That was it, Raven could take no more. Control be damned, she was going to cry. Reality hit hard and hopelessness followed quickly. She was never going to see her friends again. Sobs racked her petite body and she slid to the floor.
A hand gently touched her shoulder in an attempt at comfort. "It really makes you heart sick, doesn't it," a soft voice said. Raven looked up, very startled. Who she saw, she couldn't believe.
Well, that is all for this chapter. My apologies if it seemed a little muddy and difficult to read. I tried writing it several ways and this was the best. The next chapter is a bit easier and clearer. I hope you'll stay with me. Good-bye for now!
