Ahem…it's been a month, I know. But, in honor of a late Christmas, New Years, and leaving you guys hanging, I stayed up til five in the morning to write chapter 5! When I'm working on this (and when I was working on SW) I seriously don't sleep much. But that's okay, because it's worth it when I get your reviews!

So…this chapter is pretty straightforward, so I don't have much to say. Uhm…I'm still fuming that there are only 3 episodes left…although "Go" was pretty hilarious…especially 'cuz at the beginning of season 5 the Titans were all asking BB, "Why don't you ever talk about the Doom Patrol?" but in "Go" he seriously would not shut up about them. Aw…he was so little and adorable…and they made fun of his mask, the meanies. But I guess I don't have room to talk, 'cuz…well, you read SW, didn't you? If not, then how do you even follow this story? Well, I guess you could follow it, but you'd be pretty confused. So, if you're reading this and you haven't read Silver Wing yet, you should go read that. And reviewing it wouldn't hurt, either…

Ah, before I forget, does anyone know about the new forum feature? And more importantly, would anyone be interested if I made one? If you are, and have suggestions, please let me know, because I might be interested in putting one up. It sounds fun, anyway.

DISCLAIMER – Basically I still don't own Teen Titans…but James and Lucy are mine, along with eight very dead girls that you'll meet in this chapter. Creepy thought, eh?

Porphyria

Chapter Five—Reminding

"You understand the terms, don't you Mr. Owens?"

The Shadow Man's voice was calm and contained, while James felt exactly the opposite. Every word upped his anticipation, and anger was throbbing in his skull. The icy stares of Shadow Man and the blonde girl did little to ease the tension. Still, James kept quiet, rather than risked receiving what he'd been promised.

"I understand," James finally responded, his voice quiet and strained. "I'll do everything you ask."

"Everything?"

James's gaze flickered to the blonde girl's steely blue eyes, and then returned his attention to the Shadow Man. "Everything."

"I believe you," the Shadow Man said seriously. "Remember that I trust you." He headed for the door, but when James moved to follow, he turned back, a smirk crossing his eerie features. "Don't worry. I'll bring Lucy to you."

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"How can somebody kill nine girls and not get caught?"

Cyborg's question had been nagging the Titans for five hours, he was just the first to speak up and break the silence that had settled over the team. The living room was buried under a sea of papers, and the Titans were scattered throughout the mess of police reports, background checks, newspaper articles, interview transcripts, and countless disturbing pictures. Surprisingly enough, there was an order to the madness—one space in the center was mostly clear, save for the photos of eight smiling young women, and a spot for a ninth.

"They all have the same hair and eyes, and they're around the same age," Robin said with a sigh, recapping what little they did know. "Add in that they all died the same way, and there's no denying that these murders are related." His features suddenly creased into a frown. "But whoever the killer is, he doesn't leave a trace of evidence. It just doesn't seem possible."

"Were there no suspects in the crimes?" Starfire asked, glumly scanning a set of autopsy notes.

"Sure there were," Cyborg said. He tossed a manila folder on to an already teetering pile. "But they were all innocent. Or at least they weren't proven guilty."

"Let's just start at the beginning," Robin suggested. "Who has the files on the first girl?"

"They're over here." Beast Boy sat up, waving a stack of papers. "Lucy Kove, age 17, died December 9th, 2000. Her whole family died three years before she did—after that, she lived with family friends, the Owens." He passed the file over to Cyborg, who was nearest.

"James Owens was the only suspect," Cyborg reported as he read. "His parents turned up missing about the same time, too. But his father was a shady guy, so I guess everyone just thought that he got himself into trouble and ran, because nobody was ever charged with their disappearance. And James was never convicted of Lucy's death."

"Did he have an alibi?" Robin asked.

"No," Cyborg said with a frown. "He threw himself off a bridge. His body was never found."

"Well, if that's not suspicious, I don't know what is," Beast Boy quipped.

Cyborg pointed out the window. "He jumped off that bridge, in January. You don't need a body to figure that one out."

The rest of the files were all very much the same—the second girl, Ava Branson, had been 15 and an honors student; then two 18-year-olds, dead within three months—Whitney Young, who had a flair for drama, and Sarah Tann, star player on her varsity softball team; there was a year before 16-year-old runaway Josie Kraft was found dead, and then Alexis Lewis, reclusive and depressed at age 17, was strangled only months later; the quiet Marly Ansen turned 15 two days before she died, and Nicholle Peters never finished her senior year. It had been quiet for two years since, until the death of this latest and yet to be identified girl.

Boyfriends, close friends, and neighbors were suspects in each crime, but none were ever found guilty. Including James, three of the men in question died before the rest of the murders even occurred. Miniscule details ruled out the possibility of eight very sadistic copycats, which left the Titans dealing with one very elusive villain—one that quite possibly possessed not quite human abilities.

"What does Raven have to do with all of this?" Beast Boy asked, glancing over a photo of Lucy, the girl that Raven resembled the most.

"Beside the fact that she looks like these girls, I'm not sure," Robin admitted. "I can't see Slade taking Raven just for this guy, but at the same time, he has to be involved. It's no coincidence that we were led to this case. This is just another way for Slade to toy with us," he finished angrily.

"You don't think," Cyborg started, "I mean, could he be behind it?"

"No," Robin said quickly. "Serial killer isn't his thing. Whoever this guy is, this girl is his obsession. She's haunting him, and in a twisted way, killing these nine girls is his way of coping with his demons."

Beast Boy stared out the window, a grim look on his face. "Let's just stop him before he makes Raven number ten."

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Terra watched silently as her master left, a limp form in his arms. At the doorway he paused, but didn't look back.

"I feel we've been neglecting the other Titans."

Terra didn't respond. She was expected or supposed to.

"There's a package on the counter," Slade continued. "Kindly deliver it to our one-armed friend."

He left without another word, taking Terra's hatred with him.

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Ever since the Puppet King incident the Titans had been considerably more wary when it came to mail, but after a sleepless night of scrutinizing countless files, Beast Boy was compelled to examine something other than a death certificate. He carried the brown clasp envelope to the kitchen, where the rest of the team was busy picking at their breakfast. They looked up curiously as Beast Boy tore off the top, but didn't say a word.

Silence reigned for a few moments after the contents spilled out onto the counter as all eyes were locked on the object, something they had last seen four months ago.

Beast Boy was the first to move—he reached out and gently picked up his blood-stained right glove, clutching it tightly in his metallic fist.

It was Cyborg who first noticed that he green friend was shaking, probably from a combination of fear, shock, and painful memories. He crossed the room and pried the glove from his friend's grasp, all the while eyeing him worriedly.

It was several minutes before Beast Boy dug up the courage to speak, and he when finally did, it was in a trembling whisper.

"If he has the glove, does he have…all of it?"

Robin couldn't quite meet Beast Boy's eyes as he confessed, "I went back a few days later, but it wasn't there. Maybe he…"

But Robin wasn't sure what else he could even say—none of them were. The message was resoundingly clear—even though the Titans hadn't seen him for months, they were all still pawns in Slade's game.

TBC

Seriously, I was this close to mailing him the whole arm. I mean, the whole thing. Maybe all rotted and stinky, too. But apparently that's too mean, so all he got was the glove. But man, I really want to mail it to someone. In my original ending of SW (the one that led up to the two dead sequels), he found his arm in a box…I even made up a song, called "Arm in a Box." It was pretty cool.

I guess that's kind of creepy. Anyway, I'll be working on chapter six over the next few days, and I've had some great ideas for later parts in the story, so I'm pretty excited. I'm not sure when the next update'll be, 'cuz I'm getting my wisdom teeth pulled on Monday, and definitely not looking forward to it, then school starts, and I'm not looking forward to that, either. But I'm working on it—just remember to review, and let me know if you'd be interested if I started a forum on here.

Child of a Pineapple