Warning: Chapter may be slightly more mature than others due to mild language.

Disclaimer: I own nothing but the original characters and the plotline. Everything else belongs to DC Comics.

Chapter Twenty-Four:

Some weeks later, Raven stands on the edge of the roof, looking out at the city she is destined to destroy. A small smile graces her lips. 'No matter how trying this time period has been, it has been the best of my life.' She wraps her arms around her waist, clutching her body tightly. The red markings are all over her body, shining brightly, telling her that today is the day.

When she hears someone walk onto the roof behind her, she holds her cloak together so that no one can see the markings. Turning to face the door; she is unsurprised to see Robin. After all, he's often watched the sunrise with her before.

"How are you doing?" She asks him softly.

"How did I not see that she would betray me? How did you not see it?"

Raven smiles as gently as possible, moving a few steps closer to him. "Would you hate me if I told you that I did see it?" He stares at her wordlessly. Then he waves a hand, silently ordering her to keep talking. "I knew she was going to betray us, Robin, just like I knew from the very beginning that Terra had no control over her magic. I also knew that I had to let her betray us."

"Why do you say that?"

"We were too complacent, and you guys were far too reliant on my abilities. You needed to trust your own judgment, and now you can learn from your mistakes. I'm sorry to have done that to you, but it had to happen."

Robin nods. "I suppose I can understand that. Did you find out why Asteriel went to Slade?"

It's Raven's turn to give an affirmative nod. "She's his daughter. She, like him, was born without any superpowers. Slade used to be a chemist, and he liked to experiment on his daughter. The result was Asteriel's hydrokinetic abilities. She could have left him at any time, but she chose not to."

"Slade has a daughter? How the hell did that happen?"

Raven gives him an annoyed eye roll and a wry smile. "Well you see, Robin, when a man is a manipulative bastard and an innocent girl falls in love with him, a psychotic child is the result."

Robin does the unexpected by bursting out laughing. Raven closes the distance and wraps her arms around his waist. Robin, completely surprised by the action, instinctively hugs her back. "I'm sorry," she whispers. Her head lies on his chest and he rubs her back. "You have nothing to be sorry for."

"I have everything to be sorry for." She pushes away from him, their moment rapidly disappearing. "Everything." She turns away, facing back the way she was originally. "I should've let Malchior kill me. Trigon wouldn't be able to use me then."

Robin stalks toward her, standing directly in front of her. "How dare you? How dare you say anything like that? Do you not realize that there are people that love you?" He rips his mask off his face and Raven looks up into pools of blackness. "Do you not get that we trust you? Or that we will do anything to protect you?"

He places his hands on his shoulders and shakes her. His eyes are pleading and Raven bites her lip. "I'm going to get you all killed."

"And we will gladly die for you! That's what family does for each other."

Raven shakes her hand. "Don't declare me your family, Robin. It's not a good idea."

A bright flash of light blinds the Titans. When they regain their abilities to see, Malchior stands before them. His white tunic is stained with dirt and blood. He's holding his stomach with a blood covered hand.

Raven's own hand flies to her mouth to stifle a gasp. She and Rorek watch Malchior fall to the ground and immediately rush to his side. "You're going to have to heal him, Raven," Rorek says as he examines him. "This is a cut made with an iron blade. That's why it isn't healing. He'll die if you can't save him."

"Get my herbs. This is going to take more power than I have ability."

Rorek runs from the room. Raven gently moves Malchior's hand away from the wound and replaces them with hers. A white aura shines from her palms, slowly casting poison out of the wound. A dragon's blood is normally golden, like the ichor of the gods, but his blood is currently black. That's how Raven knows there is still iron in it.

"Damn it," she whimpers as she continues to heal. The exhaustion is quickly overcoming her. Her teammates stand behind her in a semi-circle. "I need to borrow your energy." She looks up at them, never ceasing her healing.

Cyborg is the first to agree. The others quickly follow. With their energy in addition to her own, Malchior's blood slowly changes from murky brown to golden brown. She stops taking her teammate's energy to do the last bit of poison cleansing on her own.

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos."

His blood is gold.

A newly healed, but still weak, Malchior walks in the park with the Titans: official and honorary. Every few minutes they stop walking. Anxiety tears at the sorceress' heart. Finally she stops walking.

"Why are you here?" She asks softly. Malchior's liquid onyx eyes meet hers and while hers are stubborn and indignant, his shine with pity. Tears well up in hers, spilling down her cheeks. The darker dragon slams a stasis spell down on her powers, seeing that she's about to lose control.

"Azarath has fallen. Arella led the survivors to an allied realm. Trigon has taken over." He pauses, looking at her with raised eyebrows. "Open your robe, Raven."

She gulps and takes a single step backwards. Her body resembles that of a cornered animal. She knows that Malchior just backed her into a corner. If she refuses to open her cloak, the other Titans will rally to Malchior's support. If she does open her cloak, they'll know what will occur at midnight that night.

Midnight would come in a few short hours.

AN: The End part one is next, and that should be up in a bit.