Disclaimer-I don't own the TT

Impulse

Story By StormDancer

Chapter 5

"You have what!" Victor screamed at Raven, "But you have never gotten detention in your life!"

Raven rolled her eyes.

"There's a first time for everything," she told him, "And you don't have to stay or anything, Roy can give me a ride home."

"He has detention too?" Vic asked suspiciously.

"Yeah, he was the one who made me late for Mad Mod's class."

Victor frowned.

"I am going to kill that kid. Getting my little sis in trouble!"

"But then he can't snoop on Mark anymore," Raven pointed out. Vic's mouth dropped he hadn't been aware she knew of his intentions.

"What- I wasn't- I mean-" he stammered, but his voice firmed, "I'm only trying to do what's best for you, Rae. I don't want you hurt."

"I know," Raven dead-panned, "And that's why I'm not killing you right now, though I am angry. But I'm warning you, fuck off. I can make my own decisions; I don't need you to baby me."

She stalked away. Victor stood for a moment, deep in thought.

"You still gonna go through with it?" a vice asked from the shadows.

Victor spun to face where the voice had faced, raising his fist slightly.

"Relax Stone, I'm not going to hurt you," Jinx assured him, stepping out of the shadows, "I just wanted to know if Raven managed to stop you from looking into Mark."

"Yeah, I'm still on it," Victor replied, "Why?"

"Because then I have an offer," Jinx told him, gesturing. A small boy with a shaved head stepped out next to her.

"O'jenus?" Victor asked incredulously.

"I have to work with him!" Mikron whined at the same time to Jinx.

"Yes, and yes," she grinned.

"What's he doing here?" Vic asked.

"Mike's going to hack into the school system for you, check up on Mark. If you want, that is," Jinx told him. Victor frowned thoughtfully.

"I suppose that could help," he admitted reluctantly. Jinx nodded briskly.

"Okay, then, off you two go. Be good boys, now," she urged them into a niche outside the school, where Mike had his laptop set up. She made sure they were set up, and then left. Victor peered over Mike's shoulder as he worked.

"Can you hurry it up?" he asked impatiently, "I don't have all day."

Mike turned from his work to glare at the older boy.

"Don't tell me what to do," he demanded. Victor glared at him, stepping closer and throwing his shoulders back to make him look even more massive.

"Why Not?"

"I'm not doing this for you," Mike told him shortly, "I'm doing it for Rae, because she's always been sort of nice to me. And I'm doing it for Jinx, because I know she has a good reason. But I have no reason to do a favor for you. So don't tell me what to do!"

Victor shut up.

O0O0o0O0o

"Raven Roth, you better come down here before I-" Garth never finished his threat as he opened the door to Raven's studio only to find her not there. He came back downstairs with a puzzled expression.

"She's not there," he told them.

"Where else could she be?" Gar asked blankly.

"How about that Goth store she goes to?" Tara asked innocently. Roy glared at her.

"She's not Goth, Tara. She's just not bubbly," he informed her shortly. Tara stuck her tongue out at him.

"Now that we've got that mystery cleared up for the thousandth time," Dick took charge, "Where is Raven? Did she have a rehearsal or something?"

"No," Garth immediately told them, "She said that she didn't have dance all week. She seemed almost relieved."

"Relieved?" Kori asked, "That is unlike friend Raven. She normally is saddened without dancing."

"Roy, remember how you told me to tell you if she stopped dancing, because then we'd know something was wrong?" Garth asked Roy.

"Yeah," Roy agreed hesitantly, unsure of where the other boy was going.

"Well, has anyone seen Rae dance for the past week?"

Everyone glanced at each other in horrified realization.

"No," Karen spoke for them all, "WE haven't seen her dance."

"Something's wrong with her," Gar asserted, "I've never seen her stop dancing."

"Neither have I," Victor agreed, "And I've known her the longest."

'Well then, what is wrong with our friend?" Kori asked innocently.

"I don't think she knows something is wrong," Dick stated, "Because then she would have talked at least to you, Vic, and she wouldn't be so happy. I've never seen her as happy as she's been these past weeks."

"This isn't her happy," Roy muttered, "This is her being infatuated."

"Damn!" Victor yelled, banging his fist on the table and making it jump along with his friends, "She is infatuated!"

"With whom?" Tara asked. Gar rolled his eyes.

"Me, of course."

Karen slapped him on the head close after Tara did.

"Haven't either of you noticed? She likes Mark Chior, that new guy."

"So, what's wrong with that?" Tara asked. Gar nodded inquisitively.

Kori began to answer, than looked questioningly at her boyfriend.

"What is wrong with him? All our friends were most enthusiastic when we, I believe your term is, got together. Why should we not be happy for Raven?"

"Because," Roy explained before Dick had a chance, "The sexual tension between you two was so thick you could cut it with a knife, and we were all happy that was going to end. And we don't know anything wrong about Chior. That's the problem."

Garth rolled his eyes.

"Roy, that made no sense."

"There's nothing on him," Victor informed them tightly, his voice shaking with rage. Karen looked at her irate boyfriend, than hastened to explain.

"Literally, nothing. No history or anything. It's like he just appeared out of nowhere to seduce Raven."

Dick clenched his fists.

"We should show him that to mess with one of us to mess with the rest," he spat. Gar raised an eyebrow.

"Dude, Rae was mad at Vic for days because he was snooping. She'd kill any of us," he pointed out. Garth glanced sideways at Roy, but Roy shook his head. He didn't have to mention that Raven couldn't stay mad at him.

As Vic was about to respond, the door opened and Raven waltzed in, literally dancing with joy. She glanced at them all, her eyes vacant.

"Hey, guys," she giggled, "What's up?"

She grabbed a purse off the counter and waltzed back out.

"Where are you going?" Vic yelled after her, but the door closed upon his yell.

"Dude, she was giggling!" Gar exclaimed as Roy walked over to the window and peered subtly around the curtains.

"She's going somewhere with Chior," Roy announced flatly. Victor's motuh dropped.

"And she didn't let me have my say! I am so going to kill him when they get back!" he yelled. Tara laughed.

"Ever wonder why she didn't bring him in?" she asked. Gar grinned.

"Yeah, it's like 5 big brothers and 3 sisters. He'd be dead, and she knows it."

"Did anyone else notice what she was wearing?" Kori asked randomly.

"No, Kori, we're guys. We don't notice that," Gar informed the girl.

"She was wearing white, wasn't she?" Garth asked, belying Gar's words.

"Yes," Kori affirmed, "She was. And I have never seen Raven wear anything light."

Roy stared after Mark's car.

"Much as it pains me to say it," he said reluctantly, "Do you think maybe we're just being irrational and Chior will be good for and to Rae?"

The friends glanced at each other, than grinned simultaneously.

"Naah," they all agreed.