A few years later …

Raven was flying as fast as she could, which is to say, nowhere nearly as fast as she could fly when she was a Teen Titan. She had just turned sixty and not only was she no longer accustomed to flying, but she also had trouble teleporting, as in she could only do it over very, very short distances.

Cyborg had offered to come and pick her up at the Abbey, but she insisted that he stay at the Tower, where she felt he was truly needed at the moment. She was beginning to regret that decision, as Titans Tower was still over 30 miles away and she was beginning to feel fatigue. She estimated that she was doing 60 mph, but knew she could not keep up that pace for much longer.

She was on the far side of the bay, in the city's outskirts when she looked down and saw a solution. She had changed into the "formal" version of her costume, the one with leggings and the faux fur trimmed cape, which billowed behind he as she went into a deep dive down towards the road below.

A taxi was just dropping off a passenger when Raven landed in front of the car. The driver gasped in surprise as she seemingly appeared out of nowhere. She staggered to the driver's side of the car. As she approached he recognized her. It might have been about 30 years since she had last served the local citizens as a super hero, but to anyone who was older she was still a living icon.

"Miss Raven, are you OK?" The driver asked.

She was bent over, panting with her hands on her knees.

"Titans Tower … quickly … please."

He go out and opened a door for her.

"Hop on in, I'll get you there right away." He replied.

-(-)-

The elevator binged as the doors opened into the common room. Mark was waiting for her as she quickly stepped out out of the lift.

"Is everything OK?" She asked, with a hint of apprehension in her voice.

"Everything's fine, Mom … you got here fast. You must have been hauling."

"I took a cab."

Mark smiled at his mother as he took her hand. "Come on, everyone's waiting for you."

The rushed down the hallway and stopped in front of a door labeled "infirmary". The door swished open. The first person she saw was Cyborg.

"Well, alright! Raven's finally here."

Raven searched the room. Mar'i was resting in a med station, which had the bed's back raised into a sitting position. She had a warm smile on her face. Starfire was standing next to her, with a smile so big that had it been any wider, the top of her head would have fallen off.

Dick, who had hung up the spandex and no longer wore a mask, couldn't have looked more pleased with himself.

But what caught Raven's eye was the infant Mar'i was holding in her arms. Raven ran to her side. The child had a light orange complexion, green hair and glowing violet eyes.

"She's beautiful." She whispered in a reverent tone. "She's perfect. I'm sorry I'm late."

Mar'i handed the infant to her grandmother. Raven's jaw began to quiver as she took the baby in her arms.

"We decided to name her Arella." Mark interjected.

"You're naming her after my mother?"

Mom and Dad both nodded as they continued to smile.

Raven stared into her granddaughter's eyes. The child stared back at her. Raven kissed her several times.

"I know that you are destined to do great things, my Arella, I have foreseen it." She whispered before kissing her again.

Starfire gently wrapped an arm around Raven and carefully squeezed her.

"We are all bound together in this child, well, except for friend Victor." She said with a hint of mischief in her voice as Raven handed the baby to her.

"Nuh, uh! I'm her Godfather, she's my baby too!" He interrupted with a hint of mock indignation as he wagged his mechanical finger.

Mark hugged his mother. Raven kissed him as well, then kissed her daughter in law.

"Raven." Mar'i spoke up. "We'd really like you to come back and live with us … full time."

Everyone had been begging Raven to return to the Tower. Even Abbot Isidore told her that it was OK if she went back. But she had resisted their pleas. But seeing those glowing violet eyes, that was the straw that finally broke the camel's back.

"OK … I will."

-(-)-

Many more years later …

"Grandma, tell me more about Grandfather Garfield."

Raven's hair was now completely gray. She was now in her early 70's and father time was finally starting to catch up with her, as she was starting to feel arthritic.

Before she fulfilled her role as the Gem, Raven did not expect to live past the age of 16. To this day she still did not know why her father preserved her as a child instead of simply letting her die when she became the portal and disintegrated. She never asked him and had no intention of doing so. After she became Raven the White and defeated her father, she told Robin that there really was no end, only new beginnings. She wasn't so sure about that now.

She had no idea at that time if she was going to age like a normal human did. At first it did not look as if she would age, but after Mark was born she saw the first signs, namely an occasional gray hair would appear. People at the Abbey would marvel at her super human strength and endurance, which persisted for decades. But that was now long gone. She could still levitate and fly, but was disturbed at how quickly she would fatigue, or how soreness would set in after performing household chores. Of course, this all meant one thing: she was not immortal and would someday die.

She looked at Arella and smiled. The child was now fourteen years of age and was her, as well as Starfire's and Dick's, only grandchild. And Garfield's as well.

"I think I've told you everything about him."

"Then tell me again."

Raven caressed the girl's face.

"How about I tell you when he accidentally hit grandmother Starfire with a balloon full of motor oil?"

"Oh, I love that story."

Arella was fascinated with Garfield. She didn't inherit his powers, she was mostly Tamaranian when it came to abilities, though she was also a half decent sorceress, and Raven had trained her well.

"Arella, your Grandfather just told me that you're going to become a Teen Titan next year, when you turn 15."

"Mon and Dad said I could."

"Yes, I know you have their permission, and while I'm tempted to pull rank and tell you that you can't, I won't do that."

Arella looked askance at her grandmother. She knew her grandmother well. Something was afoot.

"Ooookaaay, so?"

"So, I just want to be sure that you understand what you're getting into."

"I know it's not a game. It's something that needs to be taken very seriously. And it's dangerous. I know, I could die, just like grandfather did."

"So, why do you want to do it?"

"Why did you do it?" The girl snapped back.

"I think you know the answer."

"I know why you did it before becoming the Gem, you were trying to make up for what you were going to do, you told me yourself. But why did you keep on doing it after you defeated … him? I mean, it's not like there was a super hero shortage."

Raven looked away and stared at the crescent shaped couch. She knew Raven was looking at the spot where her grandfather would always sit.

"I suppose that I wanted to help. But now, I wish I hadn't."

"Because of what happened to grandfather Garfield?"

She nodded. "Yes, that's why."

"Grandma, you had no way of knowing that was going to happen."

"Before he died, we were talking about quitting and having a family. We were thinking of being Titans for one more year, and then …"

The girl put her hand on Raven's forearm.

"You still miss him?"

"Every day I wake up and still instinctively look for him next to me.

"Grandma … maybe … maybe you should have found someone else?"

Raven smiled at Arella.

"You aren't the first one to say that. But the painful truth is that no one could take his place. And before you say that a second husband doesn't have to take his place, yes, he would. You have to understand, I wasn't always the way I am now. When I was young I was grouchy, impatient, quick to anger … so much so that I had to meditate for hours every day just to hold it together. Your grandfather was the only one who ever really understood me and was the only one who could put up with the awful person that I was, and still am."

"Grandma, that's not true."

"It is true. I was often cruel to him. I told him he was stupid and useless, and that he should leave me alone. Azar knows why he never gave up on me. You've seen the video of me slapping him in Tokyo."

"I have. Uncle Vic once said that grandfather liked the challenged. That he wanted you to smile."

"He made me smile many times … I still can't believe that he forgave me for slapping him in front of the whole world … do you understand, Arella? No one else would have or even could have put up with me, no one. And your grandfather, he not only put up with my baggage, he loved me … and made sure that I knew I was loved … and ..."

"And?"

"And I never loved anyone else … when we were young, some of the gossip magazines spread stories about grandfather Richard and I being an item, which of course is absurd. He is very important and dear to me, but not that way, plus his heart always belonged to your grandmother, may her soul rest in peace. In fact, it still does."

Arella nodded sadly. Starfire had passed away a few years before, from an incurable Tamaranian malady.

"Grandma, are you going to die too?"

Raven wrapped her arms around the girl.

"Someday, I will, of course. But I plan to be around for a long time. Someone has to make sure you stay out of trouble."

The girl smiled.

"And speaking of trouble, I understand that there is a boy that you like. Who is he?"

Arella grinned sheepishly. "I think I'm late for obstacle course training. Can we talk about that later?" She replied as she ran out of the room.

-(-)-

I think the next chapter is the last one.