Chapter 3
[Titans Tower]

Edward and the crew emerged from the teleport and landed at the base of the Tower.

Edward felt Bobby get off first, then, he lowered a wing to allow Raven and the kids to slide down if they wanted. Turned out that it wasn't needed as Raven floated off Edward's back and Bobby helped Melvin get down.

"You'll need to stay out here, Bobby," Raven said, "We need to see if there's room for you inside."

Bobby merely nodded.

Everyone else went inside and Edward said, "Kids, you have to be on your very best behavior. Timmy, this goes double for you. Raven and I had to ask a friend of ours if you could stay for a few days. You need to be a big boy here. No tantrums. You need to ask for stuff.

"Melvin, you need to help as much as you can."

Melvin nodded, "Sure thing!"

They went into the Tower and the security system granted Edward and Raven access.

"Computer," Raven said, "Allow quest access to Melvin, Timmy and Teether. Authorization Raven 1 Alpha 5."

"Please specify who is who?" the AI said.

"Melvin, 7 year old female. Timmy, 4 year old male. Teether, 2 year old male," Raven said.

"Identified. Raven voice authorization recognized. Access to Tower granted. Guest authorization valid for 72 hours. Cyborg notified," the AI said and went silent.

They went to the elevator and got in.

"Commons," Edward said.

The elevator rose quickly and as the door opened, Raven and Edward saw that the hall was decorated with a lot of kid items. Raven shook her head.

[Easy, dear. The others are excited to meet 'your kids', after all.] Edward said.

That earned him a glare from Raven, [The Titans already met the kids.]

Edward sighed. He wasn't in the mood to banter with Raven. He was wanting to get Timmy and Teether situated, then, see if Raven needed help. Then again, the other team members were there to assist, so, Edward relaxed a little bit.

"This way, kids," Raven said, heading for the commons. Everyone followed, except for Teether, who was still being held by Raven.

As soon as they entered the living area, they were tackled by Starfire!

"Friends! You are back!" she squealed, "You brought the little ones!"

"Take it easy, Star," Robin said with a chuckle, "You'll scare them."

"Raven's a k'norfka, now?" Starfire said.

Edward accessed his memory of Tamaranian language and said, "In a way, yes, Starfire. These are the kids that Raven had to escort to a safe house. Sadly, Mallah tried again to get the kids."

Starfire paled, "That gorilla?"

"Yeah," Raven said, "He's determined to kidnap my kids. I won't let that happen!" Her voice took on a deadly tone at the end.

Edward reached out with his free hand and took Raven's hand. He projected a calmness to her and she responded a little bit to the effort on his part.

Beast Boy said, "Yeah, Raven's a … whatever Starfire said."

Next thing Beast Boy knew, he was covered in Raven's black energy and phased through the window! She let him go and he dropped for a second before forming a bird and flying to the roof.

"Raven, it means a protector or guardian in English," Edward reminded her.

Beast Boy came back in and he didn't look happy at all, but, a glare from Edward and Robin told him to back off as there was no harm done.

"Who is the metal man?" Melvin piped up.

"That's Cyborg," Raven said.

"Pretty lights," Teether said, referring to Cyborg's neon blue colors. Cyborg blushed a little bit hearing that.

"And the pretty girl with the golden hair?" Melvin asked.

"I'm Terra," she said, coming over to the group.

"Terra pretty," Timmy said, getting a really deep blush from the geomancer as a result.

"He's a little flirt," she commented with a smile.

The kids were allowed to roam around the commons for a while, but, it soon became obvious that they were tired as well.

"Starfire," Edward asked, "Would you like to watch them for a few minutes? Raven and I need to make sure their beds are set up."

"We covered that already," Robin said, "Melvin's bed is setting outside Raven's room, and the other two are in your room."

"I can handle it dear," Raven said sweetly. She had relaxed finally to the point that all Edward sensed was contentment. Her emotions were starting to settle down after the last several weeks of intense meditation.

Edward smiled as she got up to move Melvin's bed into her room. That was a first for the young empath. She was going to allow someone in her room for an extended time. He loved seeing her like that. The kids were such a help to Raven and they had no idea what was happening.

The other Titans were also taken aback at Raven's change in attitude lately. First, she allowed herself to be loved and to return that love in full force. Her mental powers had increased a bit. That was needed to break Terra out of her stone prison.

Edward reflected, once more, on the events of the last few weeks. Terra was, for all intents and purposes, recovered from her ordeal. But, Edward kept in the back of his mind a hidden section of the Slade database entry. Nevermore was being restored during Raven's intense meditation time. Edward had yet to see it again, but, knew that was Raven's most private area. Only in an emergency would he enter without an invite. Malchior had learned the hard way what happens if someone gets past Raven's defenses. He got beaten in Nevermore, then, killed by Edward and Terra.

Far as Edward was concerned, the geomancer had paid her debt, such as it was. Edward allowed Terra to use her powers to administer the coup de grace to Malchior.

But, Raven had gone into a shell, only allowing Edward in and for limited times. The recovery was going slow and she was downright moody as a result.

Raven, meanwhile was moving Melvin's small bed into her room and reflecting as well.

She knew that Edward was forced to defend her in Nevermore at grave risk to himself. Had Cyborg not been able to restart her heart, she and Edward would have died. Originally, she was furious at seeing her own breasts exposed to Edward and Cyborg when the gown she was wearing fell off. But, when she learned that there was no choice in the matter and that Edward had averted his gaze out of respect, she calmed down before her powers totally went berserk.

She had a major meltdown, though, after that, one that she had no idea how to repair at the time, then, her boyfriend reminded her that she had to try to meditate and to focus on her mantra to calm down. That worked and she was able to regain contact with her emotions. She was certainly grateful for Edward being in her life. After that horrid nightmare and meltdown, he would check in through the link when he sensed she had to take a break from the meditation. Maybe it'd be a quick "Hi" through the link, maybe she'd tolerate a longer conversation.

But, as Raven set the bed down, she realized something…The kids and Edward were providing her a safe outlet for some of those emotions. She was feeling happier than she was before the attack by Malchior. She had felt happier when Edward was there, in the background of her mind, a constant, warm presence regardless of what happened. It was something she had grown to cherish. Sometimes the presence was very muted, other times, it was quite pronounced. Today, it was somewhere in between.

There was a knock on her door and judging by how soft and low to the ground it was, it had to be Melvin.

Raven opened the door and, sure enough, there she was.

"Come in," Raven said, "I was just getting the bed ready for you."

"Thank you," Melvin said. She looked really tired as she went in. Melvin waited until Raven finished making the bed. Raven realized that the kids would all be suffering from jet lag and would be really tired.

A yawn from Melvin confirmed it, as well.

"You can nap if you'd like," Raven said, "I know that you've had a long day."

Melvin laid down without a word and was sleeping moments later, a soft snore coming from her.

Raven decided to let her sleep for an hour before waking her up. She went to the commons and didn't see Edward or the other two kids.

"Where's Edward?" she asked Beast Boy.

"He took the kids to his room to crash for a while. Timmy and Teether were both sleepy so, it was time to let them get some shuteye," Beast Boy replied.

Raven reached out with her mind and discovered that Edward was also napping. She decided to withdraw before he noticed.

"Edward's napping as well," Raven announced, "Might as well watch some TV for a change."

"Wanna play 'Mega-Monkey 5'?" Beast Boy asked.

"No," was her reply.

"Come on, it'll be fun," Beast Boy said.

"Beast Boy," Raven said, "I'm not interested."

Beast Boy knew better than to press his luck, "All right. Thought I'd ask."

"Just because I come out here to relax doesn't mean that I want to play these games," Raven said, "But, thank you for asking anyway."

Beast Boy handed the remote to Raven. He was silently surprised that she thanked him for asking if she wanted to play. But, the empath merely wanted to watch some TV before she got Melvin up. The kids would only be there for a couple of days and Raven wanted to spend as much time with them as possible.

[An hour later]

Raven finished watching her TV show and went to get Melvin up. She went into her room and discovered that Melvin was already awake. She looked like she had just woke up.

"I gotta go," she said, looking up at the empath.

"Bathroom is the door next to you," Raven said.

Melvin got up and entered the bathroom. A few minutes later, Raven heard the flush and Melvin came out.

"Did you wash your hands?" Raven said.

"Yes," Melvin said, putting her hands out. Raven grasped them for a second before releasing them. She smiled softly, "Sure did."

[Someone's in a good mood!] Edward said via the link.

[I am in a good mood,] she replied, [For once, Beast Boy didn't beg me to play that stupid game with him. Melvin's been taught well by the monks as well. She had a good nap.]

[Same here,] Edward said, [The boys were exhausted and by the time I got them to the room, both were sleeping. I had to lay down as well. Blasted Mallah!]

[Are you going to leave him at the South Pole?] Raven asked.

[I should, but, I know it might take a while before he's found. Kind of goes against the spirit of the 'no kill' rule, eh?] he quipped, [I'll go retrieve that ego ridden ape.]

[Just as long as he agrees to leave my kids alone!] Raven said.

[Trust me, Rae. He either agrees to my terms or he waits until the authorities pick him up. If he's smart, though, he'll make his way to one of the research stations there,] Edward said.

[Well, Mallah has enhanced intelligence, he should figure it out,] Raven retorted, [But, sadly, he uses that intelligence for evil.]

[True,] Edward said, [Let me talk to Robin first. I'll catch up to you later.]

[All right,] Raven replied and closed the link.

Edward was true to his word and sought out Robin.

After a brief discussion, it was agreed that the big ape probably got the hint. Edward contacted Interpol and made arrangements to teleport Mallah to Paris, where there'd be a nice large cell waiting for him.

Edward asked Starfire to watch the kids again. Starfire readily agreed and floated off towards Edward's room and went in. Edward trusted the Titans with the stuff in his room. Since Terra had availed herself to her room at the Tower, Edward had gotten out of his lease. That wasn't easy, though…the apartment manager pointed out that to buy out the lease would have cost Edward thousands of dollars. Luckily, Bruce Wayne stepped in and covered those costs happily. Turned out that he was a close friend of Robin and, while Edward suspected something, he decided not to pry. Edward then moved all of his belongings to his room at the Tower.

Edward teleported to the South Pole and looked for Mallah. It didn't take long to locate him, though.

"You've come to finish me off?" he said.

"No," Edward said, switching to French, "I have come to make a deal with you. You agree to not go after those children again and I will take you to Paris, where a nice warm cell awaits you, as well as food. If not, I give your coordinates to Interpol, they send someone to pick you up in a week or so. Chances are that they'd find a frozen gorilla corpse. It'd make no difference to them as justice is served.

"You're an intelligent being. Make the smart choice. A warm cell beats being frozen to death. This is not the right climate for you. Look around! Nothing but ice. It's what? 30 below zero? Even I'm cold!"

Mallah knew he really didn't have a choice in the matter. Edward was offering him a way out. It was either that or his ice encrusted body would remain there, possibly forever.

"I accept your terms," he grunted in French.

"Smart gorilla," Edward said, "I warn you of one thing, though. Do not try anything funny. I can control the teleport, you cannot. If you did something stupid, I toss you off during teleport…you would sign your own death warrant as you'd be lost for eternity. You'd never emerge from it or if you did, you could be anywhere. Emerge in rock and you're dead instantly. Emerge on the bottom of the ocean and the pressure would flatten you as your lungs implode. Emerge in space and no one would hear your final scream. Emerge in the upper atmosphere and people see the Mallah Meteor. You could even emerge in a different time. Imaging emerging in front of a hungry dinosaur?"

"You're joking!" he denied.

"I never joke about teleportation!" Edward roared, "I haven't lost a passenger in 3,000 years! I'm not about to start now, and not with an overgrown gorilla, either!"

Mallah actually slumped before shivering badly.

"Severe hypothermia?" Edward said. He already knew the answer.

"Get your monkey rear on board," Edward ordered. Mallah, knowing that he was facing arrest, got on. It was a better fate.

Edward took to the air and teleported to Paris…

[Paris, France – Interpol HQ]

Edward emerged from the teleport, with Mallah still there.

Several police officers gathered around Edward as Mallah got down.

"Remember the deal, Mallah," Edward warned, "Keep your hands where the officers can see them. Make any dumb moves and you ride the lightning again."

"On the ground, NOW!" an officer shouted. Mallah looked at the trained weapons facing him and sank to his knees.

"On your face," Edward said, "hands behind your back."

Mallah slowly complied. The officers, using several large leg shackles, cuffed Mallah's hands.

"Roll over onto your back," the officer in charge commanded. Mallah tried, but, was unsuccessful.

Edward sighed and using his snout, gave Mallah the push that was needed to get the big ape onto his back.

"Gonna take me a while to get that stench out of my nose!" Edward mused.

"We got it from here," the captain said, "Thank you for your help!"

"You're welcome," Edward said. He glared at Mallah, "Remember what lies in store if you act up…popsicle gorilla."

Mallah grumbled something under his breath. Edward opted to ignore it and teleported back home. Far as he was concerned, Mallah was handled.

Edward was relieved to be home, though. And, despite the short time he was a member of the Titans he had grown to call the Tower his home.

[I'm home, dear!] Edward said to Raven.

[Any problems?] she asked.

[Nope. Mallah had enough time to chill out,] Edward quipped.

[Yep…too much time with Beast Boy,] she groaned.

[I was being serious. He was in severe hypothermia. He was more than ready to see a nice warm cell,] Edward said.

[Oh…Sorry, dear,] she apologized.

Edward chuckled aloud, [No harm done, Rae. But, one of these days, I will get you to laugh at a joke.]

[That's what Beast Boy thinks,] she said.

[How are the kids?] he asked, changing the subject.

[Sleeping,] she said, [They had a snack and went to bed. You should see Starfire, though. She adores them.]

[Of course she does, dear. Galfore taught her well. She'll make a great mom someday…as will you,] Edward said.

Raven sighed through the link, [Could we have kids, though?]

[Don't worry about that for now. Even if that's not possible due to differences in our DNA, we can adopt. I know that you're used to these three. That's a good thing,] he said.

Edward went to his room and found a sleeping Starfire next to the kids.

[Should I let Star continue sleeping?] he asked.

[No!] Raven said, [I don't mind because I trust you not to make a move on her. It's Robin. He tends to get jealous.]

[Good point,] Edward said.

He gently touched Starfire, who woke up and almost blasted Edward.

"Hey, it's me," Edward said quietly.

"Oh! Friend Edward," she said, the starbolt fading, "Sorry."

"No problem, Star," he said with a smile, "Thank you for watching over the boys. I appreciate it, a lot."

"They are adorable…but, Timmy has the tantrum of temper sometimes," Star said.

Edward sighed, "Why did he throw a fit?"

"Silkie didn't like him," Starfire said sadly.

"Understandable, I suppose," he said, "How long did he have this tantrum?"

"Not long," she said, "Friend Beast Boy helped by doing the shifting of shape."

"Looks like I owe the green bean some thanks as well," Edward said.

"He is playing the game of monkeys," she said.

Edward said, "I know you're tired, Starfire. Go get some sleep, my friend."

Starfire smiled softly, "Thank you, friend Edward."

Edward switched to Tamaranian, "Good night, Koriand'r."

She squealed softly, "You speak my language, even my name!"

Edward smiled, "I decided to learn more about it. One of my gifts is quick language learning. It wasn't that hard to learn."

"Good night, friend Edward," she said in English. She floated off to her room, happy to know that there was one person on the planet she could speak her native language with when she wanted to.