-Dashes in dramatically- It is I, The Hooded Menace, with yet another chapter for you, my beloved readers. Sorry it took so long to post; a lot of things were going on in Menace Land, I was stuck, and for the last blinkin' week, wouldn't let me upload the chapter. Oh, and as a warning - this chapter has serious weirdness. But I like it anyway. Read and review, as this story was outreviewed by one of my one-shots. Sad, really.

Disclaimer - Unfortunately, the current definition of mine forces me to say that Teen Titans is not mine :'(

The Power Of The Sea -

Conspiracies

Raven tread softly down the hall. She knew that Robin wanted her away for some reason, and she doubted that it was to see if Aqualad knew her favorite color. However, she didn't want to get involved in whatever was happening, for getting involved in Robin's business would be both unwanted and potentially ugly. Nobody likes being chewed out by a walking traffic light, so the empath contented herself to go to Starfire and listen for sounds of bloodshed. The perky princess was in her neon-colored bedroom, happily finger-painting her walls. Upon seeing Raven, she swooped down upon her, smothering her with a super-powered hug.

"I am so pleased to see you, friend Raven!" she squealed, "I have discovered the joy of the painting with the fingers! Is it not glorious?"

"Its beauty is unparalleled," remarked the darker Titan, mournfully looking at the bright splotches on her cape.

Starfire agreed, completely missing out on the sarcasm. "Do you also wish to partake in the painting?" she asked innocently.

"Not really, Star. Actually, Robin wanted to make sure you feed Silkie because we are about to eat, and he doesn't want another 'incident'."

"Oh, no, that would be terrible," the alien replied. She paused a moment in thought. "Raven?"

"Hn?"

"How long will friend Aqualad be here?"

"He'll be here for dinner, if that's what you're wondering."

"No, for how long will he stay here at the Tower with us?"

Raven was silent. She had been wondering that herself. She was sure he would stay until she had made sufficient progress, but how long would that take? A week? A month? He wouldn't stay forever, although the more she was with him; the longer she wished he would stay. It was strange. She couldn't remember feeling this way about any of the other Titan visitors. Why was he so different?

"Raven, are you doing the 'spacing out'?" asked Starfire, who had been watching her as she mulled over the question.

"Um, no," she lied, pulled back to reality, "I was thinking that Aqualad will be here for a while."

"Glorious! I will make a Pudding of Joy to celebrate."

"Not right now. It's time to eat."

The Tameranian left the room twirling and giggling, followed by a much more subdued Raven. After a brief stop for Starfire to feed Silkie, and, at Raven's insistence, wash her hands, the two made it to the table. The other Titans, excluding Cyborg, were already seated. Starfire sat at the end next to Beast Boy, across from Robin, while Raven sat next to Robin, across from Aqualad. Moments later, Cyborg appeared, a chef's hat jauntily place on his head, bearing the food. After a brief but epic battle for the potatoes, everyone dug in. Conversation was light, mostly about mutual villains that the Titans had faced. By the time dessert came, the atmosphere was free of the earlier tension. That is, until Raven asked for the chocolate pudding. Aqualad reached across the table for it, only to be stopped by a green-gloved hand. "I was here first," the owner of the hand – Robin - hissed.

"Okay. Whatever," shrugged the Titan East, "It's just pudding."

"Oh, that's just what you want me to think," cackled the slightly deranged leader, "It starts with the pudding. But then, you'll be passing Raven the rolls and then the potatoes! I see through your clever plan, Fish Boy, but it's not going to work!"

Aqualad's eye twitched. "Fish Boy? Never heard that one before. And what are you talking about?"

"Don't act all innocent, for your game is up! I know that you are planning on luring Raven away to the Titans East so YOUR team will be the most powerful. But NO ONE is going to take her away from us!"

"Earth to Robin? I'm. Right. Here." Stated the empath irritatedly, "You're being overprotective and ridiculous, and you need to stop. Now."

Beast Boy leapt to his feet. "No, he's right!" he yelled, "Aqualad must NOT succeed in his fiendish plan to take Raven away from us!"

With that, the changeling brandished his fork menacingly.

Starfire looked at Cyborg.

"Have they gone the nuts?" she asked him sadly.

"Afraid so, Star. Robin and Beast Boy have lost it," replied the metal man.

"What should we do?"

However, Cyborg was spared the need to answer, as Raven, fed up, trapped the troublemakers in orbs of dark magic.

"Listen," she said coldly, "You are both acting stupid. Aqualad is not going to get me to join the Titans East, even though your behaviors are making me want to. He is just helping me, being a gentleman, which is more than I can say for you two." She released them. "Now, I am going on the roof to meditate. If either of you disturb me with one of your farfetched schemes, I will be forced to send you into another dimension. Perhaps you'd make sense there."

With an incredibly scary look, Raven left the room.

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She appeared minutes later on the roof. Quickly, she assumed her meditative position, floating in the air and chanting, but she couldn't clear her mind. The ridiculous claims of her teammates kept coming back to her, buzzing around her head like a swarm of mosquitoes. She knew it wasn't true, but the very idea that Aqualad was helping her for his own purposes hurt her deeply.

You're acting like a fool, she chided herself, calm down, forget them, all of them – especially Aqualad. He's made things so ... complicated. I don't know how to feel around him; I don't even know what I feel around him! He makes me feel so safe, but at the same time, I feel that it'd be dangerous if I got too close. What is that? she wondered.

A deep rumble of thunder interrupted her musings, and Raven looked up to see that it was about to storm. She stood up and pulled her cloak close, running to the door to the Tower. It was blocked.

"Hello child," rasped a somewhat familiar voice, "It's a pleasure to see you again."