Author's Note: Revised & Reposted

Raven…

Another dream…another nightmare…another vision.

Raven…it's perfect…

No images this time, no blood, no marks, just the voice…

So perfect…

It was dark…infinitely dark. She couldn't move…she couldn't even breathe, but she didn't need to breath, like a baby in the womb…

Together, Raven…

In the womb…contained, imprisoned, meaningless…

Together Raven…Let us go…

In the womb, about to be born…about to be freed…

Together…

When Raven awoke, the windows had again been shattered sometime during the night, and the gentle wind of the ocean was rustling her bed sheets.

The breeze was laden with moisture and salt, her blankets and pillow already damp. Raven knew that she wouldn't be able to go back to sleep again, after all, nothing is worse than a damp pillow to sleep on. She blinked slowly, deep velvet eyes staring off into the hazy pink clouds that stretched across the city. The sun wasn't up yet. It was still night.

Not dawn yet.

Raven let her eyes close and leaned back against her pillow, waiting for the dream to dissipate, but it didn't. She could still hear the voice, still recall the words. The echoed throughout her thoughts, like a broken record in an empty auditorium.

Beast Boy was alive…but barely. He was in the lower sections of the building, breathing, eating and drinking through a series of tubes, surrounded by beeping machines and darkness. He wasn't able to speak…he hadn't even opened his eyes yet.

Raven…couldn't blame him.

The only way that Raven could describe yesterday afternoon was quite frankly like experiencing a small corner of Hell. There had been so many people, so much shoving, so much noise. News crews were flashing pictures left and right, microphones being shoved in every face, some people were crying, some people were making signs, and some just stared. Beast Boy had been taken to the Titan's Tower mainly because Cyborg had all the equipment of a normal hospital and then some. They also had the only equipment that could handle a patient as…unpredictable as Beast Boy. He'd been flown over from Terra's house by chopper, swooped down to the medical wing, and kept hidden behind the numerous white backs of the doctors as tubes were attached, anesthesia was administered, and grimacing gazes were exchanged. The doctors managed to keep three titans behind a glass wall…but non of them could stop separate Cyborg from Beast Boy's side. Nothing could. Not with the expression he had.

The metal Titan had stayed there until his friend was in a stable condition. His face so pained, so infinitely afraid.

Raven truly didn't know what had happened until she saw that face. Only then did she realize that something truly terrible had happened. She'd never seen Cyborg look like that. And she never wanted to again. She'd seen him angry…sad…lonely…but never like this. She'd never thought there'd be a day that Cyborg could look the way he did situated in that room, amidst all that bright, white, hospital light. Amidst those shuffling white coats and beeping, clunky machinery. Maybe this was how he looked after his surgery. Sad, afraid, and at such an utter loss.

Thus…was Cyborg.

Starfire and Robin were still out of the Tower at this time. They didn't know what happened until they got back, having to push their way through a throng of scared, teary eyed people and flashing, yapping reporters. As soon as Robin realized what had happened…he was on his way out again. Ready to do what birds of prey did best.

Hunting.

Ready to go hunting down whoever did this and not willing to return until he found it out. Just like Robin. Ever the vigilante.

He was told that he was searching for the same man as before. The same killer as the others. If they had hoped that this news would stop him, they were sorely mistaken. All this news did was make it personal. Robin was dangerous now. As it always had been with Robin when faced with bad news, he makes himself worse. More dangerous. More edgier. He was a predator now. He would remain a predator until this man was caught.

Thus…was Robin.

That meant that Raven had to share the waiting room with Starfire…which basically meant she had to sit in a chair, patting her companion aimlessly on the back of her head as the Tameranian bawled hopelessly into her lap as medical chaos ensued in the next room.

Raven just watched the back of Starfire's head as sob after sob echoed into her lap, her English and her Tameranian garbled together whenever she tried to speak, emerald eyes glassed over with tears.

And something. Something about the way she cried. Something about the way her stomach fluttered on Raven's leg, something about the way her tears moistened the hem of her cape…made something heavy and horrible bob in her throat.

Raven had never cried. It was the unspoken rule of her life. Raven. Never. Cried. Grief was shrugged off. Tragedy was ignored. Sadness controlled by meditation.

Until now.

For the first time in years.

Raven cried…just a little.

And it stung.

It hurt.

Her tears had come silent and hot, her sobs almost undetectable. But they were there. She could feel them.

Although the best excuse was in the next room…Raven knew she was crying because of something more than what'd happened to Beast Boy. Something that only Starfire could coax out of her. Something about that Tamaranian.

For some distant reason, hidden behind the moist, hot fog of her tears…Raven knew that she wouldn't have been crying if Starfire wasn't here with her.

Thus…was Starfire.

Thus…was Raven.

After five grueling hours…the doctors said that Beast Boy was going to make it. A close call for sure…but he was going to make it.

And that was that.

He was in stable condition now, locked inside a plastic curtain, dressed in a spotted hospital gown, masked in clear, plastic tubes and masks. His eyes were shut, skin pale, heart rate monitor…steady. The doctors all gradually seeped form the Tower as the sun disappeared behind the horizon of skyscrapers and the stars slowly began lighting up across the sky.

He was going to make it.

But the damage had been done.

With that news, the Titans all did what none of them should have done. They went into their separate rooms. A hundred different worries worrying four different minds. None of them wanted to be alone…but not one had the stomach to talk to anyone else. Contrary to what most people said…whenever something truly terrible happens. Something you never thought could happen. You don't want the comfort of another. You don't want a sappy, clueless exchange of half-hearted words trying to comfort you. You want to be alone. You want isolation…if only for a little while. For them…it lasted the entire night.

Thus…were the Titans.

Raven hadn't been able to do anything but sit in her bed. Sit and stare at the ceiling like she had for so many sleepless nights. Was this just another one then? Was it any different from any other? She'd stared at that ceiling before, felt something cold and awful pull at her ribs. She just never cried.

The nightmare is the same…you just screamed this time…

She sat there until she'd somehow fallen asleep.

And now Wrath had sent her another dream.

Ambiguous, meaningful, and laced with…longing.

Her eyes moseyed over to her clock.

Ten after Four. Perfect. Too early to get up, too late to go back to sleep. She slipped back against her pillow, huffing and bringing up a forearm to her forehead. She felt sick.

'Raven.'

Her eyes opened. Her breath caught in her throat.

The Red Raven was at the edge of the bed.

It's crimson robes stood in a moist, but stark contrast with the rest of the room. It seemed to glow in the pre-dawn murk, face hidden in the veil of its hood.

'Raven.' It whispered again, lips parted ever so slightly.

"No." Raven said, index fingers going to her temples, eyes squeezing shut. "I refuse to hear you, Wrath. Not now."

The voice seeped through regardless. It sounded so…delirious.

'Raven. It's close. Open your eyes and see. Remember it, Raven! Remember! Your dream had purpose! It would mean so much if you just tried to remember! Remember, Raven!'

"NO!"

When her eyes opened again, the room was empty. A breeze rustled her covers slightly as the sun's rays finally burst from over the horizon, illuminating her entire room in a pale yellow scrim. Raven raised her hand instinctively over her face…and froze.

The mark of Scath shimmered on her palm.

"No…" Raven said again…only this time, she whispered. "Please…no…"

Another breeze rustled her sheets, carrying the faintest of voices with it.

'Remember…remembe-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-r…'

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

By that afternoon, the four remaining Titans sat around in different locations in the main room of the Tower. Starfire sat at the far end of the couch, a three foot high stack of used tissues lay crumpled on the floor beneath the armrest. Robin sat next to her, in the almost exact same position he had been in when he sat next the Beast Boy, arms folded, leg crossed, body tensed. Raven, her hood drawn, hovered cross-legged on the other side of the room, facing out into the city, but taking into consideration every word Cyborg said as he paced back and forth in front of the couch. They were back together…but there was nothing warm-hearted or comforting in any of the forlorn glances they gave each other. No smiling words of comfort, no kind pats on the back. These were the Titans when they meant business…and non of them were displaying that better than Cyborg. He still had his serious face on.

"I went off to check on Beast Boy about twenty minutes after I last spoke to him. I tracked him by his communicator to Terra's house. The entire place was trashed to say the least. Looked like Beast Boy and our man had one hell of a fight. Both Terra's foster parents were dead when I got there. B.B. was in a chair with the guy sitting in front of him. Looked like he was…talking to him about something. I'm not sure. I shot him through a window as soon as I saw him."

Robin spoke, speaking callously, almost to himself. "What was he saying?"

Cyborg found an unoccupied edge of the couch and fell into it, slapping his hands on his knees. "I have no idea." He said. "All I know is that this guy is young. He's only a kid. No older than any of us." He glimpsed out the window and sighed. "Only a kid." He sad again for no real reason.

"Was there anything else about him? Anything we could use?"

Cyborg rolled his head forward and sighed to the floor. He seemed hesitant.

"Yeah." He said.

Raven suddenly felt his eyes fall on her.

"Rae, I think you've got a friend in this city."

Raven's body tensed, although she didn't turn around. She didn't say anything. Luckily, Robin did as he shot from his seat.

"What?"

Cyborg sighed again, running a hand over his head. "This guy…he…had the same powers as Raven." He glanced over. "He looked like you…he moved like you…Jesus, Rae he even almost acted like you."

Starfire stood up and piped in, still maintaining some of her innocent alien ignorance. "That is a lie!" She said, nose still red. "Raven would not act in such a terrible, hurtful way to our friend Beast Boy despite her threats and evil eyes!"

Her statement was ignored…but in its own Starfire-ry way…it helped.

Robin didn't speak for several seconds, his face turning grim as he sat back down. Finally he glanced up at Raven, then back at Cyborg. "Are you sure?"

"Am I sure?" Cyborg repeated with a sarcastic laugh. "The son of a bitch pinned me too a wall with one of her spells. I'm positive, Robin."

A pause…

…Then, slowly, all three pairs of eyes eventually moseyed on over to the blue caped girl hovering in the corner. Her back remained turned. Her eyes out to sea.

"Raven?" Robin asked slowly. "Do you…know anything about this?"

Slowly, she closed her eyes, speaking in almost a whisper. "I don't know…"

Liar…

"Oh, please, friend Raven." Starfire said, rising from her seat. "Anything will be helpful! Surely you must-"

Raven remained facing the window, hood up. "I came here alone, Starfire. I had a mother but that's all."

From somewhere deep inside her mind, something stirred; like a ripple across a glassy sea. Something trying to break the surface. Something trying to get remembered. Raven's head jerked to the side, teeth biting shut.

It's nothing. She told herself. Why shouldn't be nothing?

Cyborg didn't notice and huffed. "Well this guy sure didn't hit like a girl." He said, rocking himself up from the couch and approaching the fridge."

Robin ignored him, eyes still hovering on Raven. "Is there anybody else? Anyone else that you know of that could do those things?"

Another ripple. Another cringe. "No…" She finally said. "My father was responsible for all of that. The teachings of Azarathian telekinesis is bestowed only upon...those like me."

If Beast Boy had been there…he would have no doubt made a bad joke, a snide comment, or something to lighten the mood.

But he wasn't there.

He was in the basement

With an arm missing.

Looked like the mood will have to be kept at the current setting.

Robin sighed. "Fine, let's get a schematic of the city and see if we can locate him. You said he took a communicator right? Maybe we can use it to get a lock on him."

"Tried that already." Cyborg said, removing something from the fridge. "He must of disabled it somehow. He's completely off the chart."

Robin didn't respond. He usually didn't. He was still in predator mode. "Just get me schematics." He finally said.

Outside, the clouds had rolled over the sun, sending a momentary shadow over the tower. The sun's rays lit them from behind like a grand, white projector…illuminating the clouds the background of a dramatic Renaissance painting. Distantly…for a fleeting moment…it somehow reminded her of home, her real home. Her memories were shattered of course…scattered throughout her mind like the foundations of a long since burned down building.

Childhood memories was where most of them were. That's where a lot of things were.

The most prominent…of course…were those fields. Great, big, rolling fields. Rolling on forever, rippling in the breeze in swaying waves like an emerald ocean. They stretched on forever, off into the horizon where it melted away into the transitional mist between the land and the eternally orange sky with full beautiful clouds, slowly passing over in an endless cycle.

She could see them now, hidden behind the hazed veil of the past like staring at an object beneath a frozen lake. It may be murky, unreachable…but it was there. She'd seen it. She'd been there.

It had been freedom…it was perfect.

It was her past before she knew of Trigon. Before she knew of the Prophesy. Before she knew of Earth.

She had only been four at the time…innocent, happy, and untainted. She could remember those sunny, open days, frozen in a place where time had no meaning. Existence had no purpose.

And she would run.

With the wind in her hair.

The grass hissing by her thighs.

The endless orange sky spinning over her head.

She would run until the soft, strong hands of the monks found her. Hoisting her up with drawn hoods and empty faces. She would often be led away from the fields, back into those sharp, dark cathedrals. She could still remember the way their hands grasped her wrists as she followed after them. Strong, protective…but by no means paternally.

Then…she'd always look over her shoulder. Back at those fields.

Those endless rolling fields.

Her hand would wave, her feet stumbling, her head bouncing…but she would wave.

Goodbye…paradise…I'll see you tomorrow…

Then…the Red Raven muttered something.

Raven snapped up from her stupor and turned. The remaining Titans were gathered around the large screen, looking through blueprints of the city.

Backs to her.

Voices hushed.

She lowered herself slowly to the ground and suddenly realized that her hood was down. Furrowing her brow she raised it again and cleared her throat.

"I need to meditate." She said, having no intention of doing so.

The three remaining Titans didn't respond and didn't notice as Raven disappeared into the hallway.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

A door hissed open into a large, black room. Standing in the doorway, a small red dot bounced unhappily from a boy's lips. In his hand, there was a large duffel bag. His gaze was on the floor.

"Back already?" A voice droned from the darkness. "That was quicker than I expected."

The red dot answered. "Don't act like I work for you."

A pause.

"Hmm. You're tone was much lighter earlier on today. Did something happen?"

"Thing's didn't turn out quite as I planned. I…overdid it again. It's a bad habit."

"From what the news has told me Beast Boy is still alive and in stable condition. The entire city is looking for you… not to mention the otherfour you promised me dead. Quite the bad habit. "

The boy's voice suddenly rose. "Three. There were only three Titans was that I promised. I'm not killing them all."

"So far you haven't killed one. Are you sure you can fulfill your promise?"

The boy's words caught in his throat.

"I'm…I'm sorry about my attitude. I just need more time. Please. I can do it! I know I can! The Titans East-"

"…are not the Titans you're dealing with now."

"…"

"Understand?"

"…yes."

"Good. You'll have your device when you finish."

"You've….you've already built it?"

The voice from the other side of the room chuckled. "I like you, boy. I can see how…dedicated you are. You have so much potential."

"Thank you. Uhm…I'm flattered."

"I must confess you've tickled my curiosity. Of all my records I have in my big ol' computer…I can't seem to find one for you. You're an utter ghost, my friend. There's never been a face that I've haven't been able to put a face to. You're an exception. The first."

"I've always been sort of secretive. It's a bad habit."

Another dry, knowing chuckle. "I wouldn't say that."

"You have the device though? Completed?"

"Yes. In my holding area. Safe until the bargain is completed."

The boy bowed, cigarette crushed between grinning teeth. "Oh, thank you. Thank you so much Mr. Slade."

From the darkness, a masked face grinned. "You are welcome. Now get going."

"Yes. Yes I will."

The boy turned and headed for the door, a noticeable bounce in his step.

"And boy?"

The boy stopped.

"You should really stop smoking. It's not healthy for someone at your age."

The boy removed his cigarette, glanced at it with a raised brow, then replaced it.

"Yeah…It's a really bad habit."

The door hissed shut.

Ending Author's Note: More coming soon.