Raven tried pushing her way through the crowd but her attempts failed. She levetaied herself into the air and scanned the crowds for Mikako, who once again managed to slip away.
Raven closed her eyes for a minute and attempted to locate Mikako with her powers. She picked up a faint trail from outside the shopping area and followed it, eventually coming to the very outskirts of the city. Her powers led her off the tar paved streets onto a dirt road, which seemed unused because their were patches of grass and a few weeds in it. Raven traveled down the path cautiously, her guard raised and she was well aware that this could all be a trap. The path led to a clearing, where an old house stood. If it weren't for the circumstances, Raven would find this house amazingly cool. It's Victorian style added to the Halloween look created by the natural spider webs and cracks in the eroding wood. She stood in awe for a minute, admiring the beauty (or what she consider beauty) of the house, but a scream broke her pensive state.
She recognized Mikako's voice and flew across the clearing to the broken steps. The creaked loudly as she ran up them. She didn't slow down until she came to the door, which stood ajar. Raven pushed it open slowly, the loud creek broke the silence that set in around her. If there was one thing Raven really loved about old and spooky houses, it was that there were constant taps, creeks, groans, and other small sounds constantly, but that drove her crazy at the present moment. Every sound would cause her head to turn, hoping for a glimpse of Mikako somewhere. She searched every room on the first floor before heading up the stairs. Raven found the master bedroom out of order. Old bloodstains on the white lacy bedspread added to the haunted look but Raven knew from experience, they weren't decoration. She only paused for a moment to examine them, but they had to be at least fifty years old.
She left the room as she had found it, crossing the hall to what looked like a young boys room. This room too had bloodstains, smeared down the wall. Whoever was bleeding had been pushed against the wall before being forced to the floor. Raven frowned and left the room quickly and walked to the next room over.
"Raven!" Mikako said happily as she entered the room, "I got my foot stuck in the floorboard here!" Raven looked at her with lack of trust. She could picture Slade hiding behind the door, just waiting for her to step within arms reach, or someone else jumping out when she went to help Mikako. Instead of going to help, Raven turned and searched the room quickly, finding no one. Her powers didn't sense anyone either. Only then did she turn to a very confused Mikako.
"No one else is here you know. It's abandoned," She explained.
"I see that," Raven answered. Mikako knew by now that despite her monotone, she was aggravated, "What are you doing here? How did you find this place?" Raven asked before helping Mikako free her leg of the floorboard.
"I remember this room," Mikako said quietly, "There used to be a garden, outside this window here. In the summer, all the flowers would grow and the colors would stand out against the trees to create the perfect blend of nature... they must have all died though."
"You remember this room?" Raven asked. She glanced around at the think layer of dust covering every inch of the room, "Mikako, look around. This room hasn't been touched in decades."
"I just remember it okay!" Mikako yelled. Honesty and frustration were explicitly shown through her eyes. Raven pulled her leg out of the floor board and looked at it.
"Your leg is fine, just a scratch. I can heal it if you just sit still," Raven said calmly. Watching Mikako angry was like trying to watch Starfire upset. It just didn't seem right. Raven tried to grab her leg but Mikako kept backing up until her back pressed against the wall. Her eyes opened wide in horror as she stared across the room.
Raven looked at her expression, "What's wrong?"
"Raven look out!" Mikako yelled suddenly. She pushed Raven out the door and grabbed her by the arm, pulling her down the hall forcefully. She ran into the boys room and slammed the door, locking it shut.
Raven grabbed Mikako, pressing her back against the door, "What is going on?"
"He's here, he's back. He'll kill you. He'll kill all of us," Mikako said looking into Raven's eyes. After taking a moment to try and understand what she ment, Raven stepped back and released Mikako. Mikako's eyes left Raven's and set on the blood stained rug before the teenager burst into tears on the floor of the room.
"What is wrong?" Raven asked angrily, "Tell me who. Who is trying to kill us?"
"He got him," Mikako said, "He got him. He got him."
"Mikako!" Raven yelled. Mikako slapped Raven, hard across the face. Raven stood in shock for a second, before yelling again, "Mikako stop!"
Mikako's pupils turned gray and her once reddish brown eyes turned to a black color. Raven tried to grab onto Mikako's wrist in an attempt to calm her down, but Mikako grabbed a wooden chair, which had been placed by a dusty oak desk and swung it in Raven's direction.
"DON'T YOU TELL ME WHAT TO DO! I CAN CONTROL MYSELF, I HAVE MORE POWER THAN YOU WILL, JUST FACE IT. DON'T TOUCH ME. JUST LEAVE ME ALONE. LEAVE THEM ALONE. THEY DIDN'T DO ANYTHING. WHY DID YOU KILL HIM? WHY DID YOU KILL HIM?" Mikako fell to her knees and Raven stood where she was, her powers forming a wall between them so Raven could defend herself if she had to again. Raven heard her sobs, which she muffled into the bed next to her. She lowered her defencive wall and placed a hand comfortingly on the shoulder. Mikako turned in towards her, burring her face at the end of Raven's cloak. Raven let her cry for a minute before teleporting back to the Tower.
She landed in the kitchen and looked around. Her eyes found Cyborgs, who was making himself lunch in the kitchen.
"Rae!" He called running over to her and Mikako, "What happened?"
"I have no idea," Raven responded. She knew they were both a mess. Mikako's hair had fallen out of her ribbon at some point and was frizzy, her eyes were red and puffy and her fingers were blistered. Raven was aware that she had at some point cut her arm and that the dust had blown over her. They both stood in the middle of the infimary while Cyborg patched their minor injuries up. Raven hadn't gotten the chance to heal Mikako's ankle so Cyborg wrapped it in a cast. Once he had finished, he turned to Raven.
"What happened?" His voice was concerned but firm at the same time. Raven recounted the story, inputting every detail she could remember.
She finished with, "I don't really know what happened though. I didn't see anything." At those words, both heads turned to Mikako, who looked them right in the eye.
"He's coming back for me," She whispered.