Chapter 25

Somewhere in Louisiana. February 23th, 2018. 10:38 PM.

Damian and Raven walked down the street of the little bayou town, killing time before they went back to their hotel. They had managed to reserve a room for the night (under false names, of course, to distance themselves from their true identities should anyone recognize them as Red X and Raven; they called themselves "Thad and Rachel Grey", and most everyone around assumed they were brother and sister. They snickered at the confused looks they got when Damian responded to such assumptions with a quick peck on Raven's cheek), but the both of them decided to explore a bit before shoving off to bed, seeing as how, aside from the mountains, Azarath, and Hell, neither of them had ever been so far from an urban environment before.

"Okay, I have to ask…" Damian began, "I've heard you mention that people call you Rachel before. What's that all about?"

"Rachel is…" Raven shook her head. "Ugh, it sounds so bizarre saying it like this… for lack of a better term, Rachel is my 'Earth-name'. My actual birth-name is Raven Roth, yes; that's the name my mother gave me when I was born. After I escaped from my father, I found my Aunt Alice, and she called me Rachel. Everyone called me Rachel from then on, but I held onto my real name deep down… y'know, for my mom.

"Then when I was eleven, I was discovered by a sorcerer — Zatarra. He took me in, and he and his daughter Zatanna helped me to better understand Azar's gift… and I appreciated the fact that, from then on, I went back to being called Raven. Then after a year of learning all I could from him and his daughter, they brought me to Titans Tower, and Kori took me in… at some point after that, Zatarra became Doctor Fate, and Zatanna and I lost touch. I spent the next two years as Kori's student, learning 'Superhero 101' with Jaime and Gar. Then you came along, and… well, the rest is history."

Raven turned curiously to Damian. "So what about you, huh? 'Thad Grey'? What's that from?"

Damian smirked, putting his arm around Raven's waist as they walked. "Nothing quite as personal as your story, I'll say that much," the Titan said tauntingly. "'Thad' is short for Thaddeus, Alfred's middle name, and 'Grey' I took from Grayson, which, as you know, is Nightwing's last name." He paused for a moment, then remembered. "I do actually have another name though… although I've more or less left it behind."

Raven looked over at him. "What was it? If you're okay with me asking."

Damian's face shifted into a more solemn expression. "When I was first born, my gr… Ra's decided to call me 'Ibn al Xu'ffasch'." The boy scowled as the name escaped his lips. He'd not uttered the name in years. He glanced over to Raven, who was watching him curiously. "… it's Arabic. It literally just means 'Son of the Bat'. Because that's what I was… the offspring of the first man for generations that Ra's deemed a worthy successor. The genetically perfect heir to the mantle of the Demon's Head… but fortunately for me, after hearing the name out loud, Mother insisted I be given a name in my father's tongue as well. Hence, I was given the name Damian Wayne.

"Growing up, it confused me… many of the members of the League spoke fluent English, and hence referred to me has either 'Damian', 'Honorable Grandson', or something to that effect… some even called me 'Prince Damian', which is funny to think about, considering I had no actual empire to inherit. But for most of my life, Ra's was insistent on referring to me only as Ibn, as were most of the Arabic-speaking members of the League. But when I turned eight, I made it very clear that Damian was my chosen name. Then when I was ten, Deathstroke betrayed and murdered Ra's, and I was sent to live with my father. I worked with him for three years as Robin, and after one particular ordeal with the Justice League (which I totally resolved, might I add), Father made me join the Titans."

"And again…" Raven added with a smile, "we both remember the rest."

Damian grinned as he pulled Raven closer, pressing his lips to her cheek. "Yeah, we do," he continued, a playful lull in his voice. "Met a cute witch-girl, went to the Pier, found out her father was the Devil…"

"Fought your dead grandfather to save her from the Devil, gave her a shoulder rub, killed the Devil…" Raven added.

"Cut a werewolf's arm off, helped one of Deathstroke's slaves get her freedom, got a new suit…" Damian went on.

"Brought the cute witch-girl home for Thanksgiving to meet your family, finally kissed her over the holidays, then brought your whole team home to beat the biggest bad guy in your hometown." Raven concluded, planting a kiss on Damian's cheek as they stopped walking. "Anything we left out?"

"Well, then the cute witch-girl and I started hitchhiking across to country to get home, for some insane reason," Damian replied teasingly, wrapping both his arms around his beloved's waist. "Although I guess that part isn't quite history yet."

Raven smiled back at him, her arms sliding around his neck. "No, not yet," she sighed. "But it's certainly been a good time so far."

Damian's face softened as he leaned in, touching his forehead softly to hers. "Yeah… yeah, it has."

The two let their eyes drift shut as they pulled closer to one another, their lips connecting in a way that invoked a feeling in their bodies that, while now rather familiar to them, still caused them to tingle head-to-toe in excitement. Damian's arms snaked further around Raven's waist as he pulled her in, gently holding her body against his as their lips continued to slowly dance back and forth, back and forth. Raven tilted her head just barely as she leaned in further, and her cheeks grew warmer as she timidly flicked her tongue over Damian's lips. His hands beginning to tremble, Damian allowed his lips to open up just enough, his own tongue sliding forth and meeting hers in her mouth. His cheeks flushed as he recognized her taste… although studying it more intently, Damian realized that she tasted more like rain. Not Gotham rain, which brought on an air of sorrow, but… more like rain over an open field, the kind of rain that seemed to wash away all the guilt in his soul, all the regret that was gathered up in his heart. Their tongues continued to swirl together tenderly, pulling the both of them into a state of euphoria as it dimmed their minds to the world around them, until it seemed as if they were all that remained. Everything else was a dream, but he was real. She was real. And this moment was very, very real.

They carried on for a few seconds, and then slowly pulled their lips apart to draw breath. A single strand of saliva stretched between their mouths, the two went beet red as Damian wiped it away, gently running his thumb across Raven's bottom lip. His eyes lingered there for a moment, zeroed in on the soft strip of flesh that poked out ever-so-slightly before his eyes. It wasn't until this point that they noticed the amethyst lights in the air, swirling around them as if dancing through the air.

"I…" Raven whispered, her heart racing. "I think I've had enough of wandering around town for tonight…"

"I agree…" Damian's head sank into Raven's shoulder, and he placed a few small kisses along her neck. "I'm getting tired… let's go on to the room and call it a day."

In an instant, Raven pulled her Damian into the shadows beneath their feet, and they emerged in their hotel room. Damian stumbled, dizzy from the experience of his first shadow-melding, and let himself fall back onto the twin-sized bed beside him. Damian had to admit, it would take a few more days to readjust to a smaller mattress after being in Gotham for so long. But right now, he was just grateful that the bed was there to hold him up, as he hazily turned just in time to watch Raven disappear behind the bathroom door.

After Damian had showered and dressed down into his sleepwear (even he knew he was spoiled when he looked at the black satin outfit in the mirror), he walked out of the bathroom to find Raven lying on the bed, her eyes fluttering over the pages of Tolkien's Unfinished Tales. Damian let a tired smile spread across his face as he noticed the blue satin gown draped over her light-grey skin, with thin straps suspending the loose garment from her shoulders, and a subtle frill around the bottom trim which rested at her mid-thigh. Alfred had it made just for her, along with nine more exactly like it, not long after they left after their visit for Thanksgiving. The old caretaker had called it a "late Christmas present" when she found them laid out in her room at the Manor last month, although later she and Damian realized that they were more of a "welcome to the family present". After another moment of reading, Raven smiled as she looked up to meet his icy blue eyes, and set her book on the nightstand beside her.

"I swear, these sleeping outfits would be the best thing I ever wore…" Raven began as she pulled the covers out from under her, drawing them up over her legs, "if they didn't leave my legs so cold."

Damian chuckled as he slipped under the covers beside her. "Well, I assure you that they're probably the most expensive items in your wardrobe," he replied. "I've seen how much these things cost, and it's absolutely flooring."

Raven let out a quiet giggle as she rolled over to face him. "Well, it means a lot to me that Alfred went to the trouble of…" the young mage had to stop short as a yawn slowly drifted out of her mouth. "… oh wow, I really am worn out."

Damian yawned as well, rubbing a hand over his closed eyes as he did so. "Same here… but before we both pass out, I have one more question…" he pointed over to the balcony, where a bird covered in jet-black feathers perched on the stone railing. "Do raven's just sort of follow you around? Or is that a dumb thing to ask?"

"Baby, c'mon. There's no such thing as a stupid question… except for 'so your mom did it with Satan'," Raven smirked as she lazily looked over her shoulder at the bird outside before turning back and sliding her arms around her Damian. "But no, ravens don't follow me around… and that's not a raven. It's a crow."

"Ah…" Damian smiled as he slid in closer, letting his own arms slither back around Raven's waist. "Well, my tutors in the League of Assassins never thought to instruct me in the sacred art of ornithology…"

"I got curious when I was little, so Aunt Alice got me a bird book…" Raven blushed faintly as her nose brushed up against his. "Now all I can remember is the difference between crows, ravens, and blackbirds."

"Well, you'll have to tell me all about it sometime," Damian sighed as he watched Raven's irises slowly swirl within themselves. "… I love you."

Raven's eyes softened as she looked back at him endearingly. "… I love you too."

Raven switched off the lamp by their bed with her powers (Azar would forgive), and the two brought their lips together once more, each pulling the other in closer as they kissed. Damian welcomed the taste of rain again for a brief moment before they pulled away. They both sighed softly, and kept their eyes closed, letting themselves become breathe in the essence of the one in their arms.

"Goodnight, Ms. Roth."

"Goodnight, Mr. Wayne."