Twelve Lovers of Alcina

by 123thinkbright

A collection of phenomenal diamonds has been brought to Jump City, catching the interest of the elusive thief, Red-X. But what exactly are his intentions with the collection? As Raven looks deeper into the legend of Alcina, she realizes that Red-X might be in over his head with this one. Mature content in a few later chapters!

2. Chapter 2 - Good Aim

Chapter 2! Enjoy!

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The Jump City Children's Hospital was throwing its annual 'Night to Remember' Prom for all the patients and their guests. In the hospital, there were quite a few patients with untreatable conditions, and chances of them living for the prom in their teen years were very slim. The kids would dress up and have a date – usually friends and family – and would be treated with the best food in the entire city. Everyone always looked forward to this event, and there were so many donations that the hospital went all out with decorations and in getting guest performers. Unfortunately, all the commotion also attracted the attention of many villains who think it to be the best time for illegal activities. Because of the increased crime rate, the Titans would have to spend much time out in the field to make sure the event went as planned, making it difficult for them to attend. This year, however, one of the Titans was personally invited. Unable to turn down the invitation of a cute, six year old, Raven said yes.

Two days have passed since the park incident, and only two were left before the dance. Raven was currently in a trance of much needed meditation. After leaving the pizza joint on Monday, she and her team had to deal with the Hive, followed by Killer Moth. The couple of days after were no more lenient as they dealt with Mumbo, Johnny Rancid, Control Freak, Plasmus, and a few others. It was quiet at the moment and will hopefully remain that way for a while. It was not long though when there was a knock on the door.

"Raven?" said Starfire from the other side, "I was wondering, since the event of your invitation is in only two days, perhaps you would like me to accompany you to the mall of shopping to find a dress." Raven sighed before allowing her friend entrance.

"I'm not sure that's a good idea Starfire," she said. "No offense, but you have a completely different taste in clothing than I do."

"Precisely!" exclaimed the alien. "This is such a special occasion! You must allow yourself to dress differently from your usual attire, at least this once. I assume you do not want to wear gloomy clothes for an occasion that is to celebrate life. The children are to have an unforgettable night, and you must try to make it so, even if you are not in your area of ease."

Raven smiled slightly at her friend's words. "You mean 'comfort zone'. And I know it's a special occasion, which is why I feel honored that someone thought of asking me of all people." Starfire opened her mouth to interject, but Raven raised her hand for silence. "I'm not saying I don't want to wear something nice, but…"

"But?"

"I'm not going to lie, but going shopping with you actually, sort of scares me."

Starfire stood there gaping at the empath before doing the unexpected – bursting out in laughter. Raven chuckled nervously, wondering if the redhead knew that she was being serious. It's not that she didn't like going to the mall with Starfire, or at least not as much as she did before, but Starfire's wardrobe choices were more revealing than what she was comfortable with. And to have Starfire help pick out a dress? Now that was a scary thought indeed. However, Starfire's dedication was stronger than Raven's fear as they ended up at the mall an hour later.

The girls walked side by side through the people-filled mall. Though they were accustomed to the attention that came with being a Titan, the girls still felt a bit tense walking around in their uniforms when there was no crime, and so decided to wear civilian clothes. Starfire wore a fitted, purple crop top, low-rise jeans that wrapped around her legs perfectly, and purple wedges that only made her taller. Raven wore black jeans and flip-flops, and a tank top with the words 'If karma doesn't hit you…I will'. The shirt had been a gift from Beast Boy, and one of Raven's favorites. Though it wasn't the most modest form of clothing, it was still considered normal compared to what other girls are known to wear. Even with that thought for comfort, the female Titans still received much unwanted attention from the male population, and being an empath, Raven knew exactly what they were thinking when giving them looks. Unknown to them, Raven had been tempted to send them to another dimension on more than one occasion.

The girls entered a fancy looking store that, when inside, is seen to have nothing but dresses of all types and styles. It took Starfire no more than ten minutes to fill one of the dressing rooms full of dresses, though Raven was pretty sure that she had just grabbed anything she could get her hands on. Taking deep breath, Raven entered the dressing room, deciding that it was best to just get it over with. First, she eliminated all the dresses that were brightly colored. After putting aside all the pinks, yellows, oranges, and greens, half of the dresses were gone. Next, she took down all the dresses with a bunch of ruffles, and the ones that were way too puffy. Finally, she took down all of the black dresses, even though she had been tempted to keep them as options. Starfire had been correct about the prom being a special event, and she should dress for the occasion. In the end, Raven was left with only three choices.

The first was a short dress that didn't even reach her knees. It was midnight blue with spaghetti straps, a sweetheart neckline, and the bottom was flowing satin. From the chest to the waist, it had silver sequence that went in a swirl pattern. Raven pursed her lips, not really impressed, and walked out to show a waiting Starfire. The alien princess smiled brightly at her friend, but did the same motion with her lips as she took a longer look at the dress. Raven, standing in front of the three mirrors, tilted her head and sighed.

"It seems a bit –"

"Plain," finished Starfire, equally unimpressed. "It is a lovely dress, but perhaps it is not the one we are looking for."

Raven nodded in agreement. "On to the next then."

The next dress was crimson colored and reached down to the ankles. The straps were thick, covered in fake diamonds. They reached down to the sweetheart neckline, connecting between the breasts. The fake jewels made a cross in front of the stomach, with the sides being bare-skinned. The satin ran from the waist down, and in the torso area, it only covered the breasts. From behind, the straps made an 'X' in the upper back, connecting to the bottom of each breast, then made another in the lower back region, where the diamond pattern went down to the end of the dress. It was a breathtaking dress, but Raven couldn't help but frown at the amount of skin that was being exposed. Exiting the dressing room, Raven saw something spark in Starfire's eyes that she could only describe as desire – for the dress. Chuckling inwardly, Raven went to stand in front of the three mirrors.

"It's a nice color," the sorceress commented.

"It looks lovely on you," said Starfire, her eyes running up and down the dress. "The design is rather exotic."

"Perhaps too exotic," said Raven. "The prom is for kids Starfire. Don't you think it's a bit too much? Inappropriately so?

Starfire opened her mouth, but closed it immediately. Raven bit her lip to hide her smile. Based on the energy that was radiating from the alien, it was easy to tell she was torn from wanting the dress for herself, and complementing her friend who was currently wearing it.

"…I –"

"I don't think it's for me," declared Raven, giving her friend an out. "I think it's too inappropriate, and the color is nice, but it doesn't really go with my skin tone. No, this dress is not for me." Lifting the train, she walked backed to the dressing room, but before closing the door, she turned back to Starfire. "You know…yours and Robin's anniversary is in a few weeks. I think this dress would be perfect for that." The last thing she saw before closing the door was white as Starfire beamed from ear to ear.

There was one last dress hanging against the wall when Raven entered the fitting room. It was a short, barely reaching mid-thigh, sweetheart, strapless dress. The color was white, except for the small, royal blue, floral designed corset that circled under her breasts and went around to lace and tie around the back. The fabric around her breast was satin, with the lower part of the dress being silk organza. It was short and simple at first glance, but as soon as Raven slipped into the dress, it was more than just short and simple; it was perfect. It made her legs look longer, her arms looked more open, and her breasts were held up nicely. Overall, Raven felt like what she was supposed to be: a girl going to prom with a dress that made her feel very pretty.

As she stood in front of the three mirrors, Raven couldn't help but blush as Starfire gushed over the dress. "I'm guessing this would be the one?"

"Oh Raven," giggled Starfire. "The dress is wonderful, and you look most beautiful! But it is you who must decide on whether it is the correct one."

Raven tilted her head as Starfire touched the fabric of the dress. The cute smiling face of little Anthony popped into her head, and she automatically knew that this is the dress that he would choose for her. Turning her body to face her alien friend, Raven nodded firmly. Squealing in delight, Starfire grabbed both of the empath's hands and spun her in a complete 360. Once they made their purchases – with Starfire buying the crimson dress in her size – the girls made their way to another store where they would be able to find shoes and accessories. However, after five minutes, Starfire shooed Raven out of the store, claiming she had found the perfect shoes for her, but wanting them to be a surprise. Though bewildered at being forcibly removed from a store, Raven consented to staying outside. Walking over to the electronic store at the opposite side of the vicinity, Raven's interest was peaked as the news came on.

"The Sinister Sparkle Association has given us some exciting news," announced the reporter, "as it made public the beginning of a new exhibition. According to the SSA, the collection of diamonds, the Twelve Lovers of Alcina, will be coming to Jump City. That's right folks; the most prestigious collection of jewels will be publicly displayed here in our very own city. For those of you who do not know of this collection, allow me to enlighten you with the backstory. According to the Greek myth, Alcina was a princess in the ancient city of Athens, where her beauty attracted suitors from many places. Alcina's father promised his daughter's hand to the man who brought her the most luminescent diamond in the world. Twelve men brought diamonds that had them in the running, when tragedy struck. The princess Alcina was said to have drowned herself when she was not able to choose a single husband among her many suitors. The twelve jewels had been hidden away by the king, who was consumed with greed, but soon committed suicide after the loss of his daughter before telling anyone where he had hidden the collection. These diamonds have been found one-by-one at different locations around the world, and now, they are coming here."

'Alcina?' thought Raven. 'Well, they pronounced the name right at least. But that backstory was just ridiculous. Still, that collection is worth more than even Bruce Wayne could afford. How in the world are they planning on protecting it in a city like this?'

"Due to the crime rate in the city," continued the reporter, "each diamond will be displayed at different times, which will not be announced until the day of the presentation. The price to see each diamond will be high, with only the most elite being able to afford to witness these beauties. The police department are coming up with a full-proof plan to protect these diamonds, no doubt with the help of the Teen Titans, in order to provide the highest security for this collection. With that said, if you would like more information on the exhibition of the Twelve Lovers of Alcina, stop by Jump City's Museum of Ancient Artifacts today, and they'll tell you where to go from there."

'Risky,' thought Raven. 'Very risky. Even if they do only put out one on display at a time, where will the rest of the diamonds go? I really hope they are not planning on hiding them together at the same place.'

"Raven?" said a voice from behind her. The young half-demon turned to find her alien friend standing with a white box in her hand. "Is everything alright?"

"Yeah," answered Raven. "Sorry, I just got a bit distracted. So are those the shoes?"

Starfire held out the box, her smile reaching from ear to ear. Raven went to sit at the nearest bench and removed the lid from the box. Inside was the most beautiful looking pair of heels she had ever seen, and she had seen Starfire buy a lot of them. Taking out one of the shoes, Raven slipped it on to find it to be the perfect size. It was open toed, with a bow-like design on the wrap around the toes. The shoes were pure white, with the heel being a royal blue. At the bottom, the sole of the shoe was gold, with the inside being silver. On the side of the shoe was a little blue twig-like design, with what appeared to be blue leaves at the ends. Taking out the other shoe from the box, Raven couldn't help but think that the colors will go perfectly with her dress. She also couldn't help but notice that the price on the box was scratched out.

"Starfire," said Raven with a frown, "these must have cost a lot of money."

"Do not think of the expenses," replied Starfire. "This is a special occasion, and I wish for you to have a perfect night. Are they to your liking? Please, tell me true."

Smiling softly, Raven nodded. "Yes, I do like them – a lot actually. They're perfect."

The rest of the day was pretty much uneventful for the two girls. Starfire went into a few more clothing stores to shop around, and Raven went into a small bookstore that had a pretty neat section on myths and legends, where she bought herself an untitled book. Fifteen bags later, they headed home. As soon as they entered the living room, all the guys asked Raven to show them the dress. However, their alien teammate forbade it, saying it was going to be a "surprise that would bring much joy to everyone who will be fortunate enough to see."

After Raven put her things in her room, she went back to the living room to find Cyborg and Beast Boy racing it out in a video game, Robin cheering on his green teammate who just got in the lead, and Starfire walking over to her boyfriend with a bowl of popcorn. Going over to the kitchen, Raven decided on a nice, hot cup of tea. While waiting for the water to boil, she felt a presence behind her. Turning around, she saw her team leader reaching into the refrigerator for a drink.

"Hey Raven," he said. "How was the mall?" Raven poured her tea into her mug and shrugged.

"Superficial enough," was her reply. "I saw something interesting on the news though. Have you heard of the Twelve Lovers of Alcina?"

Robin raised a brow before asking, "Is that a soap opera or something?

Nearly choking on her drink, Raven held back her laughter. "Um, no. The Twelve Lovers of Alcina is a collection of extremely valuable diamonds."

"Interesting. So...?"

"So," continued Raven with an impatient sigh, "the collection is coming to Jump City." Robin frowned as it dawned on him her meaning.

"How valuable?"

"Very."

"Then why weren't we told about this?" he said. "We could help with security."

Raven shrugged. "All I know is that the collection is coming to Jump City, and the SSA are trying to come up with some plan where only those who can afford it would be able to see the exhibit."

"Even so, the criminals in this city are relentless. One in particular…" Robin's voice made a growl-like sound as he left the sentence unfinished, and immediately, Raven knew whom he was referring to.

Other than Slade, who has basically disappeared from their radar, Red-X is the only criminal whom the Titans have never been able to take into custody. As of late, Red-X has been keeping a low profile by stealing expensive artifacts from museums every other month. Each time, instead of making a run for it, he would be waiting for the Titans to show up, almost as if begging for a fight. After every loss, Robin would get more and more frustrated. The team thinks it is because he hated to see a suit he created for evil and locked away, be used against its creator. But Raven knew the truth. And that truth is that of all the Titans that lived in the tower, Robin was the one they could no longer trust to do what is best for the team.

"I'll call the police department in the morning," said Robin. Nodding, Raven went back to her tea as her leader went back to sit next to his girlfriend and watch the game.

The game went on for a while with Raven leaning on the counter, watching her friends enjoy themselves. After a while, Beast Boy sullenly lost his controller to Robin, who had previously challenged the winner. The green teen went to join his friend by the kitchen table, placing his arm around her, and muttering about foul play. Minutes passed by when suddenly the doorbell rang, the sound echoing off the walls causing the five roommates to freeze in their spots. Raven and Beast Boy shared a questioning glance when the doorbell rang again.

"We have a doorbell?" questioned Beast Boy as he walked out through the sliding doors. When he came back, he had a rectangular, brown package in his hands. "Since when do we have a doorbell in this place? It's not like villains come knocking on our door asking for a cup of sugar. Usually they just bust the window open."

"Who's that for B?" asked Cyborg, getting up from the couch and walking over. Beast Boy shrugged before handing the package over to Raven.

"Who is it from?" asked Robin, suspicion kicking in. It wasn't a usual occurrence for them to receive mail at the Tower. In fact, they had a separate unit just for that.

"It doesn't have a return address," stated Raven, looking on all sides. "Well, we might as well get it over with and see what's inside." No one said a word as she placed the box on the counter and cut it open with her powers. What she found inside was a complete surprise. Inside was empty, save for a brown football. Raising her brow, Raven took it out of the box, wondering what the punch line was. She handed the football to Robin as Cyborg examined the inside of the box.

"Why would someone send you a football Raven?" inquired Robin as he handed it back to her.

"Your guess is as good as mine," was the reply.

"Yo, there's a more in here," said the metal man, holding up a folded paper. "There's a letter."

Beast Boy ran up to look over his shoulder. "What does it say?"

"It says," announced Cyborg, clearing his throat dramatically, "'I know this might not be the cleverest way to get a girl's attention, especially after almost hitting her on the head with a football, but I figured this would be less painful on both sides. So, I thought it would be best if you saw the throw coming. You have the ball in your hands, and yes – this time, I was aiming for you.'"

"I do not understand," said Starfire after a short silence. "Is this a threat towards Raven?"

"Nope," chuckled Beast Boy. He took the ball out of Raven's hands and pointed it at her. "It means that Raven's got a boyfriend!"

"No," was the only word Raven muttered out before she was drowned out by Starfire's squealing and Beast Boy's laughing.

Robin took the letter and said, "That's enough Beast Boy. Whoever sent this obviously knows his way around a computer. If anything, to get through Cyborg's defense system, this person must've had some form of government or military training. There's no way any regular civilian would be able to get something sent to our front door."

"But people pop up on the big screen all the time," pointed out the green teen.

"That's public contact information," retorted Robin. "That was made easily accessible in case the PD needed to contact us. This is different and we should get to the bottom of this."

"Ease up Sherlock," said Cyborg in an unimpressed tone. "Whoever the hacker is had not only managed to find a way to be untraceable, but he also didn't do anything to damage my system. I would've gotten an alert if something was wrong or changed."

"But you said he was untraceable. That means –"

"It means we won't be able to find him," continued Cyborg. "Bro, it's just a football. This guy is just trying to impress our girl here. He must really be into Raven to go through all this trouble."

"Impossible," was all Raven said as she made her way to the exit.

"Wait Rae!" called out Beast Boy. "You forgot your gift!" He threw the football over to his friend who caught it flawlessly, glaring at him in return.

As Raven opened the door to her room, she felt a familiar presence coming closer. Turning, she saw Cyborg walk around the corner to join her in her room. "Yes?" she inquired as the mechanical man took a seat on her bed.

Raising a brow at her nonchalant attitude, Cyborg smirked. "I bet I know who sent you that football." Raven rolled her eyes.

"Are we still going on about this? Aren't you a bit concerned by the fact that someone managed to hack into your system, breaking all of your firewalls and codes, without you realizing it?"

"I'll get to that in a bit," replied Cyborg with a shrug. "Like I said, he didn't take or damage anything, so I think we're safe for now. For now though, I'm interested to hear what you've got to say about this guy."

"Since when are you into gossip?"

"Ever since some random guy decided to hack into my system just to send you a football."

"…Point taken."

"C'mon Rae," said Cyborg with a smile. "You and I both know it was the guy that we saw at the park."

"So?"

"'So'? You know you think he was good lookin'."

Raven rolled her eyes again at that statement. "He wasn't that attractive."

"Are you kidding me? He was hot! Hell, even I admit that if I was a girl, he'd be in my pants by now –"

"Cyborg!"

Cyborg laughed, dodging a pillow encased in black energy that flew at him. "Kidding! I'm kidding!"

"Sure you are," muttered Raven, her face beet red.

"Anyway," continued Cyborg. "This guy seems interested in you Raven." Raven opened her mouth to object, but he held up her hand to keep her quiet. "Whether you're willing to accept it or not, guys do want you Rae. And this guy is willing to pursue you. He's shown you he's interested, and who knows, he might even be brave enough to ask you out on a date…"

Raven raised a brow. "Where are you going with this?" Before Cyborg could answer, a different voice joined the conversation.

"You should go for it…"

Both teens looked over at the door to find Beast Boy chuckling, his hand scratching the back of his head. Annoyed, Raven asked, "How long have you been standing there Beast Boy?"

"Not too long," was his reply. "Sorry, I was just curious about the football, and I heard Cyborg say he knew who sent it, so –"

"So you decided to snoop."

Chuckling, Cyborg said, "Give him a break Rae. He was just curious."

"Curiosity killed the cat."

"But satisfaction brought it back," countered Beast Boy with a triumphant grin. "C'mon Rae. What's so wrong about giving this guy a chance?"

"Gee, I don't know," Raven said as she made a show of pretending to think. "He's a stranger and might have a hidden agenda, or he might have some inappropriate intentions, or I could lose control of my demon side and accidentally kill the guy –"

"Or," interrupted Cyborg, "you could make the best decision in your life and actually fall in love."

Beast Boy wrapped an arm around the empath's shoulders and gave her a squeeze. "It's okay to love again Raven."

She could feel their sincerity. They meant every single word, and Raven couldn't help but smile softly. But before she could make a reply, the entire tower echoed with a loud beeping alarm, and red lights going off everywhere. The conversation was dropped immediately as the three Titans ran to the Main Ops Room and gathered around their team leader.

"It's Red-X," announced Robin. "He's broken into the Scientific Artifacts Institution on the other side of town."

"What would Red-X want with science stuff?" asked Beast Boy.

"It doesn't matter," declared his leader. "We're going to make sure he doesn't get away this time. Titans, go!"

Raven, Starfire, and Beast Boy took to the sky as Robin mounted on his R-Cycle and Cyborg, driving in his T-Car, sped through the streets of Jump City. When they got to the building, all the alarms were going off, and all of the more important artifacts that had a protection trigger were sealed shut. As Cyborg went to shut off the alarm, the rest of the team split into pairs. Starfire and Robin went to the left, while the other two went to the right. Beast Boy transformed into a small woodpecker and flew ahead of his teammate. Meanwhile, Raven glanced from side to side as she walked, trying to find anything out of place – and that included a feeling of anxiety that was not coming from any of her friends. Keeping her focus on that nearly hidden emotion, Raven was able to pin point where it was coming from.

"Lasers," whispered Raven before gliding after her green friend. The alarms continued to screech as she felt herself getting closer to the anxious person, but she came to a stop when she heard distant tapping. Standing still, Raven counted the taps, knowing it was Beast Boy communicating in Morse code. He went fast, and it was nearly impossible to keep up, but she managed to get a sense of his message. 'Don't turn off the alarms. I have the element of surprise. Keep the alarms on.' Raven took out her communicator quickly. "Cyborg," she said. "Do not turn off the alarms. I repeat, do not-" and then they were off. Seconds later, a loud blast was heard from ahead. Raven levitated to where the sound originated from, only to find Beast Boy sitting against the wall, groaning as he rubbed his aching head.

"What happened?" she asked. Without answering, Beast Boy tackled her to the ground as a giant beam shot over their heads.

"Don't you just love science," said the synthesized voice of Red-X. "It really knows how to make a bang."

Beast Boy turned into a rhino and charged towards the thief, just as Raven chanted her mantra, encasing some of the display boxes and aiming at the thief. Red-X tossed aside the laser he was supporting over his shoulder, flipped over the green rhino, grabbing it by the horn in mid-air, and throwing it over his head. Raven dodged the green creature and began making her way closer to the thief, but when she looked back, he was already gone. Turning in a full circle, Raven tried to locate where he was, but he was nowhere to be seen. Suddenly, she felt a presence looming behind her.

"Sorry," whispered Red-X. "Too much is riding on this." He placed an X on her shoulder, and soon she felt herself being electrocuted. It was short-lived, but it was enough for her to lose consciousness for a few minutes. When she came to, Raven heard clashing noises from somewhere in the building – no doubt her teammates going head to head with the wanted thief. Taking the x off her shoulder, the young half-demon teleported to the source of all the noise. When she got there, she found Starfire stuck to the wall with red goo, and Robin trapped in a red net that he didn't seem able to cut through. Beast Boy, in the form of a small monkey, was holding on to Red-X's mask, while Cyborg shot his sonic cannon from a distance.

"Raven!" called out Cyborg. "Grab him!"

Raven focused her attention on Red-X's footing. When she was sure of what his next move would be, she used her powers to form a black shadow under his feet, grabbing the thief's ankles. Noticing the thief pause in surprise, the green monkey jumped out of the way as the metallic man took aim and shot his cannon. It would have been a direct hit, had Red-X not taken out some of his X-plosives and thrown them at the beam. The sound was loud and all three Titans were harshly pushed back by the impact. When all the smoke cleared, the three Titans who weren't trapped ran to where they last saw the thief, only to find him gone.

"Raven, Beast Boy," called out Robin, "the roof!"

Raven grabbed hold of Beast Boy's arm and teleported them to the roof. Sure enough, there was Red-X getting ready to jump over to the next rooftop. Beast Boy charged in the form of a bull, aiming for the red X on the thief's mask. Raven couldn't help but roll her eyes before hovering in the air and aiming her black powers at him. Red-X jumped out of the way from both Titans' attacks, and at the same time forced Raven to back up, and made Beast Boy run off the roof, though he flew up in the form of a hawk a few seconds later. Red-X ran towards Raven in unimaginable speed, throwing a few swings, and forcing her back each time. It got to the point where Raven had to put up barriers to block his attacks. When her back was to the wall, she could tell he was smirking behind that stupid mask. Before she could even raise her arm to block the next attack, Red-X pushed the button on his belt and vanished. However, at that very second, Beast Boy, in the form of a kangaroo, was aiming to kick the back of the vanishing thief's head, only to end up kicking his teammate in the face, knocking her out completely.