Woohoo next chapter! I'm so happy with all the reviews I've been getting, but there's something I want to address with them. I know a lot of authors write their replies on the next chapter, but I prefer handling them separately; it just kind of annoys me to see all those responses crammed together at the last minute, so I'll send messages to whoever reviews personally. I hope I'm not offending anyone by doing this. Thank you for continuing to read my work and baby! It means a lot to me!

Another note, please look at the update on my bio; it may be of some interest for you to read, maybe? :D yes? Please?

A month passed. The Titans hadn't encountered Vendetta once, though they saw Vivi at least once a week. Compared to the usually bubbly and slightly sarcastic waitress, the new Vivi was quiet and withdrawn. She constantly had bags under her eyes. She no longer joked with them, engaged them with light, teasing banter; instead she hurriedly took their order, plopped it on the round table and disappeared silently until it was time to pick up the check.

The first one to notice, unsurprisingly, had been Robin. He was used to speaking to the girl as he waited out the usual battle that broke out over the toppings, but lately, she'd had a sort of distant look in her eyes, as if she were in a different world. Any attempt to talk to her was either completely ignored or graced with a small, distracted glance and a strained smile before she resumed her spacing out. It took longer for the others to notice, but once they did, they did their best to cheer her up.

Normally, the antics of the misfit group of superheroes would bring a smile and chuckle from their waitress, but now it had absolutely no effect.

Vivi hadn't pulled a foist since the jail incident. No one had bothered her in the time she used as a "vacation" from her thieving, yet she couldn't shake the feeling thst she was being followed, that every step she took, every action she went through was deeply scrutinized. She knew someone was watching her, and she just hoped, prayed that it wasn't Slade, that it was anyone but Slade. She knew also that she couldn't live like this; like a rat caught in a trap. She had to leave Jump City. Immediately.

Her departure would have to be quiet; no one could know that she was even leaving, much less where she was actually going. She presented her boss with her resignation-she could afford to do that at least; no one knew who she really was, and teenagers quit their jobs all the time. Totally normal. Still, the girl felt a pang whenever she thought of her most loyal customers, the Titans. She knew that they had been trying their best to get her to open up to them, but they were the last people she could ever confess to, the last people she could trust. She knew it hurt them that she shut them out, but she no longer had the luxury of befriending them.

Somehow, they found out about her resignation, and she could no longer ignore them.

The Titans swarmed her at her work, her last week at the restaurant, badgering her as to why she would abandon them to another waiter, pleading her to stay.

"If it's a money problem, you can just stay with us!" Beast Boy begged, his lip pulling into what he thought was a charming pout. He tugged on her hands like a child, throwing her off balance.

Starfire was the next to barrage the waitress "Yes, you must remain with us, you have become a dear friend to us and I fear that no one else will have the ability to serve the delicious pie of pizza but you!" The alien girl was hanging off the human girl's shoulders, dragging her down into an awkward sort of squat.

Vivi attempted to shake the two heroes off, but with no success. "Guys, really, you'll be okay without me. It doesn't take any talent to carry a pizza to a table. And I don't have money problems Beast Boy, I'm having school problems. If I don't get my grades up, my mom'll kill me," the girl sighed, exasperated. She was lying through her teeth; she hadn't been to school in over a year, and the last time she'd seen either of her parents was a year even before that, her father abandoning her when she was young, and her mother stumbling out in a drunken rage, declaring that she would never return. Last she'd heard, her mother was living it up in Vegas, where men bought her beer and whatever else she needed in return for her "services".

The two didn't take the hint until Robin forcefully pried them off with the help of Cyborg. Vivi looked at them gratefully, but her small grin was eaten quickly by a frown when she heard the Boy Wonder's next words.

"You know," he started thoughtfully. "This is the most emotion we've seen from you in a real long time." Vivi sent him a small glare and huffed as she turned away, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Not everyone lives a perfect life, Champ. I have some problems that I'm sorting out right now." She told him bitterly.

Robin looked a little taken aback by her outburst, yet took it in stride. "if you ever need anything, you can always come to us. We'll always help out a friend." He told her kindly, a smile gracing his masked face.

She turned to eye him fully, eyes narrowing as she replied "I'll remember that. Thanks," she finally grinned when the boy hero stuck out his hand for a farewell handshake. She grabbed it in her own, small hand and tugged him closer, suddenly enfolding him in a back crushingly tight hug. The others joining in, wrapping their arms around each other, Vivi and Robin squashed together in the middle. She flashed him a cheesy grin, forcing it onto her face so the group would stop pestering her. Sure, she loved them, but a small, petty part of her couldn't help but feel that she had to leave because of them. Slade was their enemy after all, even if he had yet to make himself known to them. Cinderblock's appearance had been proof enough for that.

Late that night, Vendetta made a last appearance in Jump City. She stood on a rooftop; the covering of the one and only Titans Tower. She had to admit that the view on the island building was nothing short of spectacular. She looked on at her beloved city, the last chance that she would ever have to do so. There were no lights on the roof so Vendetta had pulled her visor goggles to rest atop her forehead rather than diminish the view. She wanted to drink in this final picture, her last moments before she had to leave, her hover board was propped against the generator to the tower, humming softly as the cool-air jets whirred and threw off a pale blue glow that cast deep shadow's over her face.

She couldn't come back; not until Slade was out of the picture. He hadn't done anything- not yet at least. But he was clearly insane and Vendetta didn't want to be around when things didn't go according to plan. She'd seen what happened to those who helped evil masterminds: The villain may end up in prison, but there was a good reason why no one ever heard of the thief who helped carry out secret missions; it's difficult to talk when you're buried in some back alley.

Finally, the thief knew she couldn't linger any more. She shuffled over to her board, tipping the nose to fall to the ground. The jets propelled the device and kept it from crashing. Just as she set a booted foot on the board, she felt a large hand clamp around her wrist before hauling her back. Vendetta let out a strangled cry, altered by the distorter as her arm was twisted in its socket. Straining against the angle her arm was held at, she forced herself to look behind at her captor. Her slate gray eyes, visible without her visor to shield them, widened in terror. Slade had returned for her.

It gets a little angsty with Vivi's parents, but she obviously doesn't live with them and I don't want it to become a plot issue…. I know it's lame and a total copout… IM SORRY! DX aaannnd the cliffhanger on top of it! You all should just come and kill me now… but I have the promise of more chapters to keep me alive right? Right. :D