Save if I become my demons - Starset

Chapter 6

Damian sat at a table in a busy cafe. He had an untouched frappe by him and a half-eaten pastry but he couldn't really taste anything. He really just wanted to get back to the tower and ensure Raven was still safe.

It had been 3 days since she had been saved by Jason Todd and for the past three days, Damian had not wanted to leave her side. She was healing well physically and she was talking to him about the horrors she faced but nothing seemed to help with the nightmares she kept having. It was causing her to lose sleep and hindering her from healing completely. Damian couldn't stand it.

Even when he wasn't physically there The Joker was still hurting her.

"You're gonna have an aneurysm if you think too hard, kid," the unadulterated voice of Jason Todd said to him.

"I came here because you asked me too and you're late, Todd," Damian replied. "I don't like leaving Raven alone with the others, they try to help but Beastboy has no tact, Beetle is awkward, Kori and Dick do better but I would still rather be with her."

"All right," Jason said sitting down with his treats. "I'll get straight to it. Fuck Batman and whatever he says. You want revenge, I want revenge, and Raven will want revenge. Let's get it."

"How do you purpose we do that, Todd?" Damian asked.

He wanted revenge as much as he did but there was no way in hell he would put Raven in any danger or anywhere remotely near the Joker again.

"No matter how much you want to protect her, "Jason said with a grim expression. "The Joker is going to come back. He didn't succeed in his full plans. His intent was to kill her to hurt you so he could ultimately hurt Bruce. Until one or both of you are dead he won't leave either of you alone. Saving her hardly hindered any of his plans, he likes dragging this shit out. He gets a sick pleasure out of it. We have to put a stop to him once and for all."

"I don't want Raven to get involved," he told the older man.

"That's not up to you," Jason replied.

Before Damian could say anything else, his communicator went off.

"Trouble?" Jason asked.

"Yes but we aren't done here," he told him. "Leave Raven out of this."

"Sorry kid," he said. "That is not up to you."

Growling, Damian ran out of the store.

A woman came a few seconds later to give Jason the bill

"Damn kid," Jason said pulling out some cash. "His dad's a billionaire and he leaves me with the tab."

Jason paid off the bill and decided to pay the Titans Tower a visit.

...

Raven was meditating in the living room. The alarm had gone off but Nightwing, who was still staying with them, had recommend she sit this battle out. She hadn't disagreed, she was still fairly tired.

It had been a rough few days. She had mostly healed but the lack of sleep had made it difficult for her to get back to 100%. She feared she never would be able to go back to normal.

Then again was she ever truly normal?

"We can destroy him, Raven," the voice of her father said. "We can tear him limb from limb, tear his face off, and give him something to truly smile about."

Raven ignored her father's taunts. He had been filling her head with the thoughts such as that since the start of her capture.

She ignored every single one of them.

She continued to meditate in silence, an occasional burst of pain coming from her left set of ribs. They refused to fully heal.

The sudden feeling of a presence brought her out of her meditation with a small jump.

"Jason?" she said to the man who was directly in front of her. "You scared me."

"Sorry!" he said sincerely. "I literally teleported directly in front of you, I didn't think you would be in here."

She smiled at the older man.

"It's okay," she said.

"How are you kid?" he asked as he took a seat on the sofa.

Raven got up and sat next to him.

"Better but not completely healed," she said. "would you like some tea?"

"Sure," Jason replied. "Nightmares?"

Jason had remembered how long it took him to get over the nightmares of the Joker and the Lazarus Pits. The nightmares of death. He still had them occasionally. One not too long ago.

"Yes," she replied. "Damian told me about what you went through."

"He's a sick fuck," Jason replied with a small frown on his face. "A sick fuck who kills little boys, paralyzes women, and ….well you get the gist."

Raven nodded, a phantom ache coursing through her body. A reminder of the unspeakable acts that occurred. The act that fueled her nightmares.

"Did the nightmares go away for you?" she asked as they headed towards the kitchen.

"They're rare now," he told her as she boiled the water. "But unfortunately they won't ever fully go away."

She stopped what she was doing and turned to look at him.

"But it did get better," she asked. A small sound of desperation hidden within her words. Her voice trembled and her eyes watered."Right?"

He put his arm around her and gave her a pat on her head. She glared at him and he laughed.

"Of course it did kid," he replied. "But only because I refused to live like a scared little mouse. It takes inner strength and all that bullshit."

Raven gave the strange man a look.

"Inner strength and all that bullshit?" she asked.

"You know, learning to cope, finding things to help me move on, motivation to make sure no one else had to go through that," he told her. "it's why I became the Redhood but I guess I failed. He's still hurting people and he keeps getting worse."

The room became a bit quiet as the two sipped their tea.

"I want to kill him," Jason said breaking the silence of the room.

"I know," Raven said.

"I'm gonna kill him," he replied. "I'm here to ask if you want in."

Raven stared at the warm mug in her hands. She had figured he would ask but she was unsure.

She wanted her revenge, she truly did.

But did she want to kill him?

She felt that would be crossing the line. Her father would approve and that scared her too. And what if they failed and he got his hands on her again. What if Jason got hurt or killed? What if Damian got hurt or killed?

What if he hurt her again?

The phantom pain coursed through her again. She was the first to be hurt by him that way but would she be the last?

At that thought she had made up her mind. She did not want the joker getting his hand on anymore women or children. On anyone at all. His cracked mind was finally falling apart and people would continue to be raped and be killed if she allowed him to walk the earth.

She deserved revenge. He deserved to rot in hell. She would work out the kinks affecting her morality later.

She looked at Jason. He was a rough and tuff looking man but at that moment he looked somewhat vulnerable. He wanted her help, he needed her help.

"I'm sure we can work out something that gets revenge for the both of us," she told him.

He nodded.

"Let's work out the kinks tomorrow," he said. "Bring the baby bat with you since he will probably try to follow you."

Raven nodded.

...

End Chapter 6