AN: This doesn't justify more than two months of absence, but I did try to add more content than some previous chapters. Please forgive the lapse in writing style, I try to save the more elaborate parts for Danny. Anyway will update again soon. Promise
But You Call Me Smiley
"Let's go."
Robin nodded and turned back to the console. He hit a key and the system began to wirelessly transmit the data on the map to each of the Titan's communicators.
The communicators chirped in unison to signify receipt of the data.
"Alright you guys have the maps. Starfire you take the section outlined in green, and…" Robin was interrupted when the yellow, round device in his hand emitted a sudden shrill whine. Immediately all five communicators, including the one embedded in Cyborg's arm, were issuing the same ungodly sound. The images on the screens distorted and were overcome with grey static. All at once the noise ceased and the gadgets sparked.
The flash of electricity shocked his hand and Robin dropped his communicator, Starfire let out a soft yipe as her did the same. Raven threw hers always, just as Beast Boy dropped his with a yelp and stuck his thumb in his mouth, nursing the electrical burns.
Fours communicators hit the floor sparking and hissing. Thin wisps of grey electrical smoke issued from the casing along the seams and from behind the screen and then all four devices went dead.
The Titans stared dumbfounded at their fried communicators.
An instant later the computer data corrupted. The files in the system began systematically deleting themselves along with most of the programs, all the while a small red light flashed at the bottom of the screen like a progress bar baring itself with utmost discrete authority. It read simply "Dalv Ind."
And then the phone rang. Five pairs of eyes turned toward the phone next to the console. It continued ring and rang four times before Robin recovered enough from his stupor to pick up the phone and hit the speaker button.
"About blasted time you picked up the phone."
The voice on the other end was tight with a suave northern accent, but laced with irritation.
"Who is this?" Robin demanded.
"Vladimir Masters though I'm astonished you didn't find that out on your own with your incessant snooping."
"Vlad Masters? You mean the cheese billionaire?" Beast Boy blurted out.
"Yes," the voice snapped "But I deal in more products than just cheese. I run half the dairy companies in the continental US I'll have you know."
A look of disgust came over Beast Boy's face.
"What you don't like milk green bean." Cyborg joked playfully and Beast Boy glared at him
"I'm lactose intolerant."
"Oh how wonderful for you," Masters drawled sarcastically "But I called for an entirely different reason than to listen to your distain for my industry from reasons I have no control over."
Beast Boy glared indignantly at the receiver as the voice continued.
"Look children, you've been far too deep into matters that do not concern you bu-"
"When half our city freezes over these matters concern us." Robin cut in sharply, a murderous silence flowed over the line. And Vlad Masters voiced returned seething with rage.
"Family matters do Not concern adolescent heroes of some hip-hop, retro-youth city, on the coast of a state full of bleeding heart, liberal college students!"
"I beg your pardon Mr. Cheese Master," Starfire piped up angrily "but you are not Danny Fenton's family, you-"
"ACCORDING to the state constitutions of both Michigan and Minnesota as well as forty-three other states, INCLUDING California I am the only family Daniel. Has. Left. And no bumbling bunch of children will keep me from taking my godson home where he belongs. Something I should have done the moment I picked up his trail in Colorado."
"Wait Colorado," Raven broke in cutting off Starfire's brewing objection "Daniel's been in Jump for almost three years, you knew he was here the whole time?"
The sound of a man taking a deep calming breath drifted faintly from the receiver.
"Yes, I knew he was here, how else would it have taken an event of this magnitude for the authorities to finally catch on to his whereabouts. Do you really think a grieving fourteen-year-old now seventeen-year-old boy with hardly the beginnings of a high school level education would have the knowledge, the resources, at the very least the presence of mind to keep himself hidden with an entire city, no, the entire tri-state area looking for him."
"I have been using all of my resources, blacking out news articles, corrupting databases, deleting entire search engines to ensure only I know Daniel's exact location at anytime."
Robin was struck with sudden realization, his head jerked to the console which continued to format essentially the entire hard drive, and still, flashing innocently in the corner…
"Dalv Industries…"
"Precisely, my dear boy."
The five Titans stood in silence, unsure now of just where they stood.
Between a boy their city, or between a Godfather and his Godson.
"Now what I meant to say ear-"
"No, hold on this ain't right!"
"If you knew where Danny was. Why did it take three years for you to come get him."
Having both Cyborg and Raven gang up on him at once had clearly put Vlad Masters off his advantage. As could be discerned from yet another silence over the phone line, but this one was not ominous or angry, it was sad, and clearly the man on the other end had aged and grown old with this simple question.
Why… Why hadn't he come for Danny?
"I… I haven't been the best guardian…"
"I am the only person in this world who can truly understand Daniel and what's more I am an adult, but it took me a full month after… the incident… to realize I needed to lay to my past feelings to rest and take Daniel in as he was. The only person who can understand me as I understand him."
"I left that poor boy alone in his grief and when I finally came to my sense he left, clearly showing he wanted nothing to do with me, even that he feared the very sight of me. At the time it was best to let Daniel go his own way, and to watch over from afar…"
"But I can no longer stand by while that boy tears himself apart and an entire city with him, so I will ask you again to stop meddling in matters that do not concern you."
"And what if Danny doesn't want to come back with you." Robin countered.
"Then I will take him back regardless, he can't control himself and I'm the only person who…"
"What makes you think you're the only one who can help him?" Beast Boy interrupted,
"Yes, are we not also capable of understanding him?" Starfire added.
Vlad voice rose in rage and frustration "Leave it to children to jump to conclusions, there is far more involved here than you are aware of, I am coming to take Danny back, and you would do best to stay Out. Of. My. Way."
The line went dead with a violent click as the man on the other line slammed down the receiver.
The silence in the previously noisome room was ill-placed and heavy, Cyborg looked to Robin and he was the one to break it.
"Well what do we do now?"
"We must find Daniel, before that man does." Starfire responded immediately. She looked to others for agreement but was met with silence. Her eyes settle on Robin who was deep in thought.
"We do. Yes?"
"It's not that simple Star. Master's is Danny's guardian and on top of that a billionaire. Legally Daniel is his responsibility and he has the right to take this into his own hands."
"But he does not have right!" Starfire blurted out "He has not been responsible and he has not been a… a… guardian for Danny!"
"Yeah, but he seems genuinely concerned for…"
"Anyone can put on an act like that." Raven interjected, "What he said about making up for his mistakes could mean nothing at all."
"I know." Robin responded "But he said he was the only person who understood Fenton and talked as though he knew exactly what he was going through. It's safe to assume Masters may have similar abilities as Danny and knows how to deal with them."
"Or exploit them."
Robin and Raven locked eyes for a moment and Robin caved.
"Alright, we find Daniel, but we give Masters a chance. If it doesn't look good then… Then we'll take him."
"Um, dudes I think we're all forgetting something." Beast Boy piped up waving his arms in front of their faces "Like how the communicators are all totally fired and the computer is eating itself."
Cyborg slapped at heavy metal arm on Beast Boy's shoulder, making the scrawny boy's knees groan.
"He forgot the communicator in my arm has a secondary firewall I programmed myself." He said with smirk brandishing his left arm with its illuminated display, showing a pristine and highlighted map of the city. "I've still got all of the coordinates at least for the western and southern halves of the city... Just give me one sec…"
After a few quick taps to the screen Cyborg had a full three-dimensional holographic display of the south-westerly portions of the city. The north-eastern half of Jump city was riddled with distorted static and holes in the map. While the Titans knew their city well, Cyborg's firewall hadn't prevented the Dalv virus from wiping out the points Robin had plotted before he had the chance to commit them to memory.
"They're four points on the map for this part of the city." Robin began, taking over for Cyborg "The warehouse on the docks, the video store, a bookstore, and what we assume is Fenton's last known place of residence, an apartment complex we have tapes of him entering and exiting daily. I checked the records and a Daniel Fenton isn't listed, so he probably used an alias. We'll have to split up, Starfire and I will take the docks since it's a larger area, Beast Boy will take the video store, Raven the library, and Cyborg the apartments. If he doesn't show up then maybe we can find some idea as to where he is. Our communicators are dead so we'll meet back at the Tower in two hours."
A quick glance at the four teenagers confirmed their understanding.
"Alright Titans GO!"
The Titans split off from one another as they arrived at their respectable locations, beginning with Robin and Starfire at the docks, to Beast Boy, to Raven, and finally Cyborg was alone as he pulled up to a humble and moderately dilapidated crowding of townhomes and apartments built around a large covered parking area filled with sparkling fifty thousand dollar cars. Trademark of young, inexperienced adults who lived beyond their means or put pleasure before practical finance, living in pathetic rundown hostels, while driving useless and frivolous sports cars to and from offices a short bus ride away and barely capable of getting more than ten miles a gallon in an already congested and smog choked city. All for the sake of ego and reputation.
Cyborg checked the coordinates again on their one and only map, the map pointed to the tall homely apartment on the extreme right of the covered parking. Shutting off his own car, Cyborg stepped out and approached the door. The sun was fading and just a small, glittering orange gem was visible between the buildings as it slipped below the ocean horizon.
The list of residence was almost illegible in the fading light, but his mechanical eye cut the glare and he could make out the names that once would have been illuminated by a dull backlight. Beside the names were the room buzzers and above the entire list the intercom and microphone. Neither looked as though they worked, but Cyborg took a chance anyway and rang the first name on the list, boldly emblazoned at the top. Chu Xiaowen the landlord.
The buzzer rudely echoed beyond the door and after a few moments a heavily accented voice crackled through the intercom.
"Hello? Who is this? I expecting no visit."
"Look ah… Chu? My name is Cyborg I'm with the Teen Titans. I need to ask you a few questions about someone who used to live here."
Abruptly the door swung open and a beaming China man in a holey t-shirt and jeans stood in the doorway.
"My first name no Chu, but you call me Smilely. Teen Titans welcome here anytime."
The man, Smiley, ushered him inside to a dimly lit hallway and through a door to the left into a small ground level apartment just across from the elevator and stairs.
"Tenets have confidentiality agreement but you stay for tea anyway."
"Confidentiality?... Look uh Smiley this kid I'm talking about isn't actually an adult so he can't have confidentiality or even rent an apartment and I can't…"
Before Cyborg could finish the Chinese landlord had shoved through the doorway and sat him on cushions at a low table. He quickly produced a kettle and several matching chipped cups. The tea must have been on the burner when Cyborg rang because it still searing hot to the touch.
"Sit sit sit drink, Mr. Cyborg. Then we talk, drink."
Cyborg sighed but took a sip.
Smiley had certainly earned his name. His weathered old face was perpetually turned up in a cheerful grin. His eyes were crinkled together in eternal amusement so that on the smallest gleam off black could be seen between his wrinkles. He was spry for his age and quick. Bustling about the tiny apartment and deftly maneuvering his increasingly more cleverly stored stuff. From the pots and woks hanging from the ceiling to the bamboo rice steamer that doubled at a lamp shade and the floor mat he used as both a bed and his curtains.
The tea pot, however, served one purpose, and that was to serve tea, and it proudly held it place centered in the cabinet where it was most easily accessible so that Smiley might entertain his most sacred of hobbies and rituals.
His evening tea.
And that particular evening, he shared this ritual with his guest.
The metal man of the Teen Titains, Mr. Cyborg.
"You good children." Smiley was saying as he scurried about his cluttered home "You rescue good people and beat bad men. Help you in any way possible, but I can't a violate confidentiality agreement. Then Smiley get in big trouble and Teen Titans have to beat me." He laughed and offered Cyborg and platter of wafers.
"Uh no thanks man I'm full… but look, the person I'm asking about is just a kid… like us… uh the Titans, he doesn't have confidentiality."
Smiley looked confused "No confidentiality? but he say he eighteen, that adult."
"Well you see he lied he's actually only… Wait you know who I'm talking about?"
Smiley grinned "No kids here at Smiley's apartment alone, but one boy come here year ago, say he was eighteen and got apartment. He good boy, always work hard and go to work every day, never stay home sick. And he always pay rent on time." Smiley nodded to himself "Good boy."
Cyborg jumped to his feet nearly knocking over the tea, Smiley yipped loudly and dove to save his precious tea cups.
"Aiya! Careful Mr. Cyborg!"
"Oops sorry, my bad… but what did the kid look like, what was his name?"
The small old man gave him a shrewd look, something that seemed out of place and the faced lined with laugh lines and light.
"He skinny tall boy, with a black hair, blue eye. He say his name Jack Tucker."
Cyborg looked away for a moment and busied himself with the communicator embedded in his arm, after a few moments he pulled up an image on the hallow-graphic display.
"Is this him?"
Smiley squinted at the image and nodded.
"He older, but that him, that Jack."