Chapter Eleven
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The next day, Raven went along with Speedy and Herald on their search. It was Robin's suggestion that she go out and walk around instead of being cooped up in the Tower and her room for the whole day. Finding the suggestion sound, she agreed, and was then put on Herald and Speedy's team.
"I want to go back to the bookstore I sent you to yesterday," Raven informed the two Titans walking along either side of her.
"But we already there, and we didn't find anything." Speedy said. "Do you think we missed something?"
"It's a possibility. But Blathorne gets new shipment once a month, and today is that day." Raven said, striding ahead of them. Eventually the three reached Blathorne Books and Antiqua, the males following Raven's lead into the store and being silent as Raven greeted the owner behind the counter.
"Hello Maggie."
"Raven! How good it is to see you dear." The elderly woman behind the desk greeted, smiling at the teenager. "I haven't seen you in a while."
"I've been busy," Raven said, trying to ease the bluntness in her voice. "Maggie, if you don't mind, is it alright if I take a look at your new shipment now?"
The elderly nodded. "It's no problem at all dear. Madeline is out to lunch and won't be back until another half hour at least. The shipment stays in the back until she comes back to put them out."
"Thanks," Raven told her. "Come on you two."
They followed Maggie into the backroom that was filled with recently acquired objects. "Please keep things orderly and not broken. You can ask me about any object in here if you get confused."
While Raven and Herald began to rummage through the mass, Speedy made his way over to Maggie.
"Ma'am, have you and Madeline organized these objects in any way?"
"Oh no, I'm afraid I couldn't do that." She patted her hip gently and smiled at Speedy. "But my dear Madeline was able to sort the items into piles before she went off to lunch."
"Do you know the specific piles she sorted them into?"
"It's arranged by subject dearie. Mystery, detective, that's one category and you'll find the other books sorted in this way. As for our more ancient items, well it hasn't been sorted yet."
"Thank you for your help ma'am." Speedy told her and joined his teammates in their search.
"Any luck?" He asked while running his finger down the spines of a stack of books.
"Nope." Herald said. He was searching in the same fashion as Speedy—looking at the color schemes. Doing so was quicker.
"Call me if you find anything remotely similar," Raven told them, brushing of the dust from her hands as she rose from her crouch. "I'll be in the back looking through the antiques."
"Tell us if you find anything," Speedy responded, not looking at her.
The three of them worked solidly for an hour, searching through every book and the last of all antiques. Since Madeline, the bookshop's granddaughter, had not yet returned, they continued their search for another hour, this time going through the store's open and hidden inventory, as well as the logs of every item ever sold, bought, retrieved, or given.
"Are you sure that she's okay with us going through all of her stuff like this?" Speedy suddenly asked, the thought suddenly occurring to him, making him pause in the middle of his work.
Raven nodded. "I spoke to her about it through the phone yesterday afternoon when we went back to the Tower, and she was fine with it. That's why she was expecting us. In addition to that, she's grateful to be of help since I saved the shop a while back," Raven told them while browsing the store's records.
"I'm afraid there's not much here," Herald told them with some disappointment after both he and Speedy finished their search. "Raven, why would you suspect this store, if you don't mind me asking? After all, in Jump alone, there are more than three bookstores. Not to mention it might be a better chance if we check out other cities or even another planet, considering the fact that your father owned it."
"Herald's right." Speedy told her, sounding a lot like Robin at the moment. "We should move on, Raven. There's nothing here."
Raven shook her head, unwilling to listen, and ran her fingers past the pages. "No. It has to be here. Something has to be here."
Herald and Speedy exchanged a concerned glance. "Raven, tell us why. We can help you."
Raven paused, hesitating, but they gently nudged her on. "I can't explain it. There's a feeling I'm getting from this place, but I don't know what it is."
"Can you pinpoint where this feeling is coming from?" Herald asked, tone serious, and Raven stopped for minute, the words appealing to her.
"I hadn't thought of that," she admitted, and closed her eyes in concentration. "Azarath Metrion Zinthos," she murmured softly, and moved forward. The two Titans followed her in silence, daring to hope that this was a lead to the object they were searching for.
Raven stopped at a table, and the three crowded around it, confused, for nothing lay there.
"That's strange. There's nothing here. Why?" Raven asked herself, a frown creasing her brow.
"Maybe it's the table," Herald suggested. "Since its magic, it could have transformed into a table, just hiding in plain sight."
"Or, it could be underneath the table," Speedy said, thinking his argument more sound, although he couldn't deny the fact that Herald's suggestion held possibility.
"Or," Raven said, running a finger across the table's smooth but slightly dusty surface, "it was here, on this table, but isn't any longer." With that said, she immediately began to write all over the table with her finger, drawing runes and intricate patterns invisible to the naked eye, only visible in the girl's frenzied mind.
The two males, wary of the scene, backed up to give their teammate space as she cast her spell.
"Azarath Metrion Zinthos...Qualacrum Avasat Quierre…Qulacrum Avasat Quierre…Evarra! Evarra!"
A light shined, flashing brightly in their eyes and the two looked away, unable to bear it. When the glow faded, they looked back, but were confused, for nothing visible was there. At least, not at first glance. But Raven pointed to the soft, faint light floating above the table.
"What is it?" Speedy whispered, confused but in awe of the magic at the same time.
"The lead. It will guide us." Raven, who was not as transfixed as her two companions, said, watching it with intent eyes. Slowly, the speck bobbed up, down, up, and floated gently past them. Following it, they noticed how the light led them out of the shop and onto the streets. The setting around them changed, progressively getting darker as the path they traveled took then through dark and dirty alleyways. They grew wary of what might lurk behind the shadows, but as the light continued on, never wavering, neither did they.
At least, not until they reached a wall, a solid dead end.
"What?" Raven asked in disbelief. "It can't be, there's nothing here."
Herald and Speedy exchanged a glance. It seemed as if even Raven's magic couldn't best this mystery they were searching for. It was time to go back.
"We did our best, Raven. We should head back now," Herald said, gently placing a hand on her shoulder.
To their surprise, Raven's shoulders slumped in defeat. "You're right. It's just a waste of time." She turned on her heel and strode on as if with a purpose. They followed after her, puzzled by the behavior, but decided against pushing it. After all, Raven was the Titan's most mysterious member. Who could truly understand her?
It was on their way back to the tower past the book and antique store when Speedy suddenly tensed and slowed, causing the others to suddenly become alert as well.
"What is it Speedy?" Raven asked, eyes scanning the walls around her.
The archer's eyes were only focused ahead of him and he slunk forward carefully, the others trailing behind him. A few moments later, they finally found the object of Speedy's concentration. It was an old woman, nothing special about her at all. But, coming closer, even Raven noticed something odd about her.
"Who is she, Speedy?" Raven asked in a quiet whisper.
"The lady I talked to at the bookstore about the guy who was holding a green book." Speedy said, just as quiet.
"Wasn't she just a regular woman?" Herald asked with some confusion on his face.
Speedy shook his head. "I thought that way at first, but thinking about it now, it's suspicious. Why would this woman notice and remember what a stranger is carrying? And is it a coincidence that this very thing might be what we're looking for, something Raven's magic can't locate?"
Suddenly seeing the reasonability of Speedy's observation, the two Titans nodded their consent and continued to trail the old woman. The path she was taking them through was also strange, for what old woman needed to walk down alleyways? They also noted that she was progressively walking faster, until she broke out into a full run. The Titans, realizing that they had just been discovered, broke any cover left of them and gave chase to their quarry.
"Stop!" Speedy shouted, wondering how an old woman could run so fast. But as it was a civilian, the Titans could not use their powers or weapons to stop the female. "Ma'am, we mean you no harm! We just need to talk!" Speedy called out, hoping to lower the other's guard. It didn't do much because the old woman merely ignored him. She came to a sudden stop, and when they came closer, they saw why. They had reached a dead end.
"Why are you running?" Raven asked, eyes narrowed. "Do you have something to hide?"
"You youngsters just about gave me a heart attack!" the lady cried pitifully, and clutched a fist over her heart.
"We're sorry, but if you could just answer a couple of questions," Speedy began to say, but was taken aback when the old woman suddenly turned and launched a rock at them. They dodged the projectile, and were surprised to see a large indent in the wall behind them.
"That's some strength," Herald said, his eyes wide with astonishment.
Raven narrowed her eyes at the woman. "Somehow, I have a feeling this lady isn't that old." She advanced suddenly with Speedy right behind her while Herald got over his momentary hesitation.
"Who are you, really?" Raven asked, as the woman dodged her punch and ran sideways to avoid Speedy's arrow, surprisingly agile. But they had already deduced that this was no ordinary woman.
"You'll find out soon enough," the woman told her, and threw some powder straight into Raven's unsuspecting face. She stopped in her tracks, beginning to cough immediately, eyes watering. Speedy and Herald ran past Raven and aimed to hold the woman down, but she threw down a smoke bomb, preventing them chase for just a moment. As the smoke cleared up, they noticed her figure atop the wall, beginning to run away.
Raven, having recovered, narrowed her eyes. "Oh no you don't. Azarath Metri-ughnn!" A sharp pain lanced through her mind, and she stopped her incantation, clutching her head.
"Raven!" Speedy and Herald was by her side immediately, full of concern. "Are you okay?"
Her legs buckled beneath her suddenly, but they caught her, being in such a close proximity. "Raven, Raven!" It was no use, because she was now unconscious. Looking back at the wall, they knew that their target was also long gone. With no other choice, Herald blasted a portal to the tower open with his trumpet.
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Toot!
The sudden sound of a sound that hadn't been there surprised the occupants of the room and they turned to see a circle open up in the air behind them.
"Huh, Herald? You guys are sure back ear—Raven!" Cyborg suddenly called out upon seeing the limp form in Speedy's arms. He rushed over with Robin, Starfire, and Beast Boy immediately and Aqualad behind them.
"What happened?" Robin demanded, looking directly at Speedy.
Speedy shook his head. "She tried to cast a spell and suddenly passed out."
Beast Boy, hearing that, looked over. "What? No way."
"It's not just that," Speedy told them. "We were chasing down an old lady, but that was probably a disguise. She threw some weird powder at Raven and later when Raven tried to spellcast, she passed out."
"What? What kind of subst-" Robin began to said, but was then surprisingly interrupted by Starfire who had not been following the conversation.
"Robin, allow me to return friend Raven to her room. It would be best to permit her some rest from this most unusual turn of events."
Robin nodded his consent. "You're right Starfire. Take Raven back and look after her." Starfire gathered her unconscious teammate into her arms with little trouble and made her way out of the room. "Speedy, Herald, tell us what happened."
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Carefully, Starfire set down Raven on the latter's bed, but as soon as her body touched the new surface, Raven began to stir.
"Shh," Starfire cooed gently to her friend. "Raven you must rest."
"Star?" Raven fought to open her bleary eyes. "What am I doing here? Where's…where's…" she was unable to force the incoherent words out of her mouth but the other Titan understood what she wanted to ask.
"It is alright friend Raven," Starfire said soothingly. "Friend Speedy and Herald have returned you home. Rest now, and you may tell us of your ordeal later."
"But-" Raven weakly protested.
"You are unwell. You must not overexert yourself."
Raven finally gave up and closed her eyes. Starfire exited the room and walked back to the main room where she had left the others.
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Raven was out of it for the rest of the day but awakened later that evening feeling nothing out of the ordinary.
"Raven, are you okay?" Beast Boy approached her with some worry in his green eyes. "What happened back there?"
"I'm fine Beast Boy," Raven replied, a bit touched at Beast Boy's concern for her. "As for that, I don't know."
"Is there anything I can do to help?"
Raven shook her head. "I just need to meditate. This will pass, I know it will."
She retreated to the roof for the rest of the evening to avoid similar worry, and Starfire kept them away though she had plenty of worry for her friend herself. She might have been the most gentle of the original Titans, but the Tamaranian could be plenty scary herself when exerting her will. In fact, none of them were quite sure how she did it, but she was able to coerce the Titans to leave Raven alone for the night.
That was where Jinx found Raven, meditating on the roof, sitting on the cold steel of the roof's ledge. It was silent, no muted chanting of a well-reiterated phrase, of the mantra that everyone knew to be solely hers. Jinx had been surprised to see the dark figure as not another shadow casted by the moon, but recovered from her shock soon enough, opting to sit down beside the other female, dangling her own two feet over the ledge.
"Hey Raven."
The cloaked Titan didn't bother to open her eyes. "Jinx," she acknowledged.
"I heard about earlier. Do you think that's our lead?"
"Yes. But we don't even know who she is."
"Shapeshifters are never the easiest to find. What do you think about the others? The ones we discussed."
"If there is no other option, we'll have to bring them in." Raven opened her eyes and turned to Jinx. "But not now."
Jinx matched her look. "Then when? All this searching, all this trouble, and over a book, over a fate we don't know. I'm not saying it's not important. But it may be years before we get anywhere near a conclusion."
"I understand. But we can't lax our guard. This is my father we're talking about. Trigon, destroyer of worlds. Whatever he's holding precious is important, and whoever stole it from him has to be as equally cunning." Raven looked up at the moon. "That's why even if you never brought it up, we would have had to enlist from our enemies. I have a feeling that this will involve both sides, not just us heroes against villains. We have to stand together on this."
Jinx needed a moment to digest Raven's words. "Wait. You mean to say that you were going to ask me to contact them anyway?" Her voice was incredulous, understandably.
"I feel with each passing day we are headed into uncertainty." She looked directly into Jinx's eyes. "If you can trust them for certain, then we'll trust you on that. Just this once, because the line will always divide us, but until then, I hope we can count on each other."
Jinx nodded fiercely. "You won't regret this Raven," she promised, stunned in her former-rival's sudden belief in her as a true member of the team, just like she how she had been surprised when Raven had first approached her about the subject some nights ago.
Raven gave Jinx a small smile. "I know I won't."
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While Jinx left Raven to her own thoughts, Raven stayed on the ledge, looking about towards the horizon. All of this, these dreams, she was discovering something in her past that she had never thought she possessed, and while it didn't scare her it did make her nervous. After all, what would she do when they found the Book? And of Elliot, and her father, and the thief that somehow crippled her magic ability?
She clenched her fist at the thought, her anger returning at the former helplessness she had felt from before. How dare she, that villain, block off her magic? And more importantly how could she bring it back? What had that powder contained, Raven wondered, and how long would the effects last?
Some conversation with her other selves hadn't been all that helpful, but Knowledge had only told her to give it time, and it would be gone. She hadn't known how she came by that information, but the only source was a faint tugging of familiarity that she had experienced the powder before. Raven therefore concluded that it must have been from her time with Trigon but she had yet to relive that memory. But she was determined to because she couldn't not have her powers. It was unthinkable, no matter how many times she had wondered in the past. Her powers were a part of her, and she felt a certain hopelessness at this sudden loss. Deep down, Raven was sure that if the circumstances were different and of her own choosing, then she wouldn't have minded as much. Nonetheless the situation was different now, and she would handle it accordingly.
The current was still there, but she couldn't reach it. Not yet. Raven stood up and calmly walked back into the confines of the tower. "Soon," she promised, a whisper of vengeance on the wind, akin to her demonic nature.
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Two months passed by, with not a hint in sight of what they were searching for. No book, no apprentice. While they made no progress, time did not stop and nor did the crimes. After a sudden surge of escalation in criminal activities, Robin put the project on hold and ordered all Titans back to their posts, fighting back any protests as he did so.
"This is still a largely unknown rumor. Right now, what's more important is keeping our cities safe. So go back now, and when we need you, we'll call."
The mass of Titans left the T-Tower of Jump City, travelling en route back to their cities group by group until only a few were left in the tower, Kid Flash, Jinx, Herald, Jericho and Bushido being five out of nineteen along with the three children who were Raven's wards.
"Kid Flash, Jinx, Herald, Jericho, Bushido, why are you guys still here?" Robin asked. "Your cities have been damaged as much as the others. You should go stabilize them."
"Robin, we want to keep searching. This guy could be dangerous." Kid Flash said. "Besides, I'm sure the Flash can handle Keystone City without me for a little while longer."
"There are many fine warriors in Japan. Robin-san I wish to stay and aid you in this endeavor. Also, it would not do to let the enemy think that the Titans have weakened because of their loss in members."
Robin snorted. "If they think the five of us can't handle anything, they've got another thing coming to them." He turned to Herald, ready to hear his reason.
"Y'all remember the lady we chased? Well since Speedy ain't here, I'm the only one who really remembers what she looked like. Besides, my portals do come in handy, and when we're all ready to go I can take everyone home in no time flat." He gestured to the honorary Titans beside him.
Robin frowned. "I'm sure Raven remembers as well as you do," he argued.
Herald nodded. "Yeah, I'm sure she does. But it looks like Raven has a lot on her plate, doesn't it?"
Uncomfortably, Robin could only agree with Herald's statement. He glanced at the blond boy next to the cloaked personage, and Herald following his gaze spoke before Robin could. "Jericho's with me."
"That's fine." Robin turned his attention the only female in the room. Jinx. Although he knew Jinx followed Kid Flash, he was also curious if there was another reason driving her to stay in Jump. "What about you, Jinx?" He didn't mean for that slight edge in his voice to slip out, but it did anyway, despite his efforts to remain civil with the former villain.
She didn't back down or cower from his question, always feeling that she had to prove herself to the leader of the group, even more so when hearing that edge in his voice. "It's not only because Kid Flash is staying that I am too. I'm staying because I want to help, Robin. And in case you forgot, Jump is my home too. For as long as I'm needed, I'll be here. Okay?"
Robin stared at her, and tensely the others awaited his verdict. "That's right." He said at last, and turned away. "Jump City is our home." He turned back to them. "Then, as long as you're willing, I appreciate your help on this project." This statement was directed to all of them. "Trigon is not a person to take lightly. He is dangerous and he is not human. He is also the first to ever come close to destroying the world as we know it, and we have to be on our guard."
He walked over to the door, saying over his shoulder as he went, "I'll let the others know you'll be staying longer." It was only when the automated door closed behind him that the others resumed their conversation.
"Man, that was so weird," Jinx commented to her boyfriend with a confused tone.
"Weird?" Kid Flash turned to his girlfriend with some elation. "Robin hasn't bitten your head off for once. It's great!"
Jinx frowned. "Yeah, I guess."
Kid Flash rolled his eyes. "Jinx, come on. You complain that he doesn't treat you as he should and when he does you question it? This is a good thing, okay?" He grabbed both of her hands in his and squeezed it, looking into her eyes as he did so.
She smiled back at him. "Yeah. You're right, this is a good thing."
The door opened and they all looked over to see Beast Boy walk into the room, headed immediately for the fridge. "Hey, I heard you guys were staying! That's awesome!" He opened the refrigerator door and immediately began rummaging around, pulling back with a frown when he found nothing edible in there.
"Aw man!" He turned to the Honorary Titans with a disappointed and worried look on his face. "No food! Raven's gonna kill me!"
Herald raised his eyebrow. "Raven asked you to get her food?" he asked, somewhat skeptically.
The five of them stared at Beast Boy, unable to believe that would ever be the case and interested in his response.
Beast Boy shook his head. "Well, not for her. For the kids, you know, Melvin, Teether and Timmy Tantrum? They're sleeping right now, but you know they'll be hungry when they wake up."
"So did Raven want you to bring up food?" Jinx asked.
"Well, I'm kinda scared if I don't bring up food. Plus Cy looks really tired so I was thinking of getting him something too." Beast Boy looked forlornly at the fridge. "But we don't have anything."
"I could pick up a few things if you want." Kid Flash offered. "Speedster, you know."
Beast Boy turned hopeful eyes on the redhead. "Really? You would?"
Kid Flash nodded. "Yeah, it's no problem."
"Except for the fact you don't know what to get," Jinx interjected. "Beast Boy, you got a list anywhere?"
Beast Boy rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Sorry, I don't."
"What so hard about shopping for food? I get all the healthy stuff," Kid Flash said. "It should be fine."
"Do you know what Cyborg likes to eat? Besides pizza and all that junk food? Do you know what he wants as a light energizing snack? No. Do you know what Raven would want children to eat? Healthy stuff right? But they want junk food. So how do you get tasty healthy snacks? And what about dinner? Are we eating take out? Shopping's not all that easy Wally." Jinx told him. "Granted that I used to steal most objects, but I assure you that there are times that I bought items legally."
The other Titans in the room were rendered speechless and Jinx rolled her eyes. "Boys," she turned on her heel and began walking out the door. "Come on you lot. We're going shopping."
Catching themselves, the boys hurried after the former H.I.V.E. leader as she made her way out of the tower and onto the streets.
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Jinx walked down the street with airs of confidence as they shopped for every item she thought she necessary for the Tower and its current members. They were headed to one more stop before going back to the tower when Herald, who was walking beside Jinx, stiffened suddenly, and she turned to him with some concern. "Herald? What is it?"
The others turned to them and were about to stop as well, but Jinx turned on them and hissed for them to keep walking like normal. Confused, they did so while giving Jinx and Herald strange looks. She ignored them all, turning her attention back to Herald. "Herald, tell us what's wrong."
"Over there, that's the lady who escaped Speedy, Raven, and I the other day."
The others turned their head to look and saw their target as Herald described her.
"We should chase after her," Beast Boy said with some determination in his eyes.
"Yeah, but not like how you plan to, Beast Boy. If we go after her head on, we'll lose her. No, we have to follow a strategy." Jinx said, watching their mark with a cold gaze.
"And what strategy should we follow?" Bushido asked.
"This," Jinx replied and began to rapid-fire instructions to her team. "We'll split up. Beast Boy I want you to take the sky and try to be inconspicuous as you tail her. Herald, you need to take Jericho back to the Tower and drop off the groceries and then get back here and let us know when you do. Bushido you take the east, Kid Flash I want you to cut her off in the front but don't show yourself until I say so. Team with Beast Boy on this one. And I'll follow from behind. But above all, while we're here, act causal. We can't have her know that we're onto her. Everyone got it? Good, Titans, go!" The last part was said in a whisper, and slowly they all sunk off per her orders, but Jinx noticed it wasn't as smooth as her old team's skills. Still, they did it well enough.
From the start, they suspected nothing, but after a couple of minutes, Jinx realized what was up, cursing herself for not noticing earlier.
"Guys? She knows we're after her, so we're going to keep going and turn the surprise on her. She's trying to direct us somewhere but we're going to lead her elsewhere. Bushido, start closing in. Make her head south, lure her to the alley by the docks. Everyone else, keep going."
"Got it," they replied, and continued the pursuit.
They had her trapped in a corner, back against the wall much like her previous encounter with Speedy, Herald, and Raven. Jinx motioned for Herald to come out while the rest hid in the shadows awaiting the next chain of events.
"Hold it right there," Herald said boldly, revealing himself to their opponent.
She turned and fully faced him, for some reason still in the guise of an old woman. "Oh it's you." She said this in a disappointed manner.
"Who were you expecting it to be?" Herald asked curiously. "And why don't you drop that guise—I know you're not really an old lady."
"Ah, but now why would I do that?" she purred, drawing a hand underneath her chin. "What would you like me to be?" With the confident gait of a cat she circled around him slowly, changing her appearance right before his eyes. The result was a tanned beauty with dark hair in a ponytail wearing a tight dark-blue dress. "Does this suit you? Herald?"
If she had hoped to unnerve him, she had no luck, because Herald was stone-faced. She pulled back from him with a frown. "That's no fun." She flicked her hair back over her shoulder. "What do you want?"
"Who are you?" Herald asked immediately. With a name they had an identity, and it was under Jinx's orders that they interrogate the villain as long as her guard was down. She had told them sternly that bringing the villain back to the Tower was a bad idea in general. After what she did to Raven, it was best not to underestimate her.
"Wouldn't you like to know," she said, ignoring Herald's question. "But I don't want to answer that. Pick something else." She smiled when she saw the frown on his face. Frustrating her enemies had always been a favorite activity.
"What do you want from the Titans?" Herald demanded.
"To surrender," she told him coolly, but he noticed her backing away. Seeing as how he noticed, she gave up the pretense. "Our chat has gone long enough. Good-bye Titan." She was prepared to run off but Herald shouted and some figures came out into the light, surprising her.
"You're not going anywhere!" Kid Flash stated, a determined glimpse in his eye. She knew then that he would chase her long until she ran out of energy. Being a speedster, such a task was easy for him. It would not be easy to face him with his team, but she was not as stupid as they would have wished her to have been.
"That's what you would like to think." She smirked and revealed the ball she held in her hands. "Like I said, good-bye, Titans." She threw the ball to the ground, and smoke exploded around them everywhere, making the Titans helpless to give chase. But Jinx, while waving the smoke away from her face was able to spot the woman in the corner of her eye. Without another thought she gave chase, and shouted to the others to follow.
Jinx chased the woman, vaulting over any obstacles in her way. The villain was too far ahead to notice that she was being tailed at all, her first mistake. Finally, Jinx was pressed against a wall, creeping slowly, waiting for her moment to strike. She seemed to have lost the others in her haste, but that didn't matter to her now.
That was when she heard the other muttering in a low voice. Jinx couldn't make out the words completely, but what she did hear made her concerned. Her target was asking why they needed Elliot, and since Jinx couldn't hear the voice of another person she could only assume there was another person involved.
Peeking out slowly from behind the wall, she observed her target, whose back was facing her. Jinx immediately noticed the difference in her appearance despite not seeing the other's face. For one thing, the shapeshifter's skin was lighter to a white shade and her hair, although still black, was noticeably shorter to an approximate shoulder-length cut. Her body was slender, curvy, and fit with slight muscle definition in the blue and silver outfit she wore. As she kept talking, Jinx thought she could detect the hint of an accent in the other's voice.
"I don't understand. Why is he so important?" she hissed out loud, clearly irritated with her partner.
"Fine, I get it. I'm just tired of not making a move sooner." She let out a sigh. "Let's just get this done and over with. Can you get me?" she made an irritated face at her communicator. "I'm being chased. Kid Flash and the Herald are among them. I can lose them, but it's faster if you just whisk me away."
At that, Jinx jumped out of hiding and blasted pink energy waves at the woman. Surprisingly to Jinx who thought she had the element of surprise, the agile villain dodged her attack. "Hold it right there!" she shouted nevertheless, determined to not let the villain escape. The shapeshifter made an annoyed face at the communicator she held in her hand. "Do you hear that?" she demanded, and then glanced up at Jinx, shooting her a glare that mixed the feelings of annoyance and boredom.
Jinx blinked at finally seeing the face of her mark for the first time. She was older than Jinx was, definitely, but not by too much, unexpectedly. Those cold, calculating blue eyes were familiar to Jinx, but she couldn't place it at the time. "Who are you?" Jinx demanded of the other.
"Me? What about you? Aren't you a villain? Having defected to the hero's side is shameful." The woman tsked at Jinx. "Now, if you'll excuse me," she stepped back and smirked. "My ride is here."
To Jinx's surprise the woman vanished, leaving her alone in the alleyway. The rest of her group caught up to her and seeing her defeat trudged back to the Tower in a brooding silence.
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"Raven?" Jinx hovered by the doorway of the older Titan's room uncertainly. "Can we talk?"
They had returned from their adventure earlier in the afternoon. Luckily, no other Titan had seen Jericho and Herald's quick in and out of the Tower, so they were not bombarded with questions and expectations. Seeing as how they hadn't gained all that much information from the chase, they agreed to keep the incident to themselves for the time being, seeing as the description of the villain would hardly be helpful because she could disguise herself at any given moment.
Raven looked up from the book she was studying on her bed. "Sure. Come in."
Jinx moved to Raven's side and sat on the other girl's bed, the automatic door closing shut behind her, encasing them both in the dark confines of Raven's rather dark room. "What is it?"
Jinx took a deep breath and then described the encounter with the villain. "We didn't tell anyone because we didn't want to cause unnecessary trouble. But the conversation I overheard worries me. What should we do?"
Raven was silent in thought, and closed her book. "Jinx, I want you to do contact your old team. Get their cooperation, and then bring them here, to the Tower. I think you're right, and we need help. But if we want to get a leg up on this character we should act soon, this being the first move."
"What about Robin? You know what he thinks of me!" Jinx couldn't help but cry out with frustration.
"If you remember our conversation from before, I said not to worry about Robin." Jinx stood up and began to pace in the available space of her room, needing some sort of movement to help her think. Raven watched her with intent eyes. "I can handle him. But you have to bring them here first, and make sure they understand the situation. We are in the calm before the storm. When things happen later, I can guarantee they will happen fast."
Jinx stopped suddenly, a thought occurring to her. "You'll really back me on this? You won't turn against me?" she asked, eyes hard at Raven.
Raven nodded. "You have my word as a Titan Jinx."
Jinx's shoulders sagged in relief. "Thanks." She made her way out the door.
"Just let me know when to expect them." Raven replied, and returned her attention back to her book.
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A/N: Hello again everyone. I'm sorry that's it has been five months since I last updated, but I am very happy to know that you all have stuck with this story despite my infrequent updates. While this chapter is only a little bit longer, I have decided to upload the next chapter in two weeks' time. Also, uni is giving me a bit of a hard time, so forgive me for studying instead of writing. For any of you who follow my -Man story, those update days can be found on my profile. In addition, I am also really into abc's Once Upon a Time so if any of you watch that you can keep an eye out for a fanfiction I'll be uploading sometime this week. (In case you're wondering, I support Hook x Ariel, and though the shipping name has yet to be determined (on tumblr) my friend and I came up with Salvaged Hook and Pirate's Ballad, respectively. But as of currently, those two are in the top three (the other being Hookriel) and all three names are tied.) But in any case, please check it out if you're interested!
To my reviewers: MadHat11D6, feathered moon wings, GapTeethBlueHair, MissBliss8527, Kiri-Kay, paintersmurffan12, Guest, discb, and raven344, thank you all for taking the time to review. I really appreciate it and I wanted to let you know that your words are not in vain. These reviews help to remind me that this story is still here and its fate does matter to the ones who read it. It makes me happy when I get reviews and I'm glad that you all like the story. I'm also glad you think they are in character, because that was one of my goals. As for the plot and character concerns… Well, let's just say things are working out a bit faster than I had expected, so you'll get the answers soon enough. Thank you all for your patience, and I hope that this chapter was to your liking.