This is Chapter 8. We are going back to the Teen Titans here. I want to let the readers know that I do have more chapters at home, like up to ch 19. If you like the story and want to read more please let me know. Okay enough about me on with the story :)

Chapter 8: Surprise

This was turning out to be a strange day. First Terra provides the breakthrough solution to Blackfire's shackle dilemma that was so simple no one knows why they didn't think of earlier. Second the day at the beach turns into a disaster with Blackfire getting kidnapped and the return of the mystery girl. Third the last person they expected saves Blackfire, but promises that one of the Titans is now in Slade's debt; not someone you want to be indebted to. To top it all off Blackfire has just revealed that she was banished from Tamaran and the only person who can either let her back or allow her to stay on Earth is the same one who exiled her. Yes this day has taken a turn for the worst.

"So who else never wants to go to the beach again?" Beast Boy asks wringing out his damp hair.

"Not now man, I'm kind of not in the mood."

Cyborg stares at the canyon lost in thought. Starfire and Raven still in their bathing suits are trying to mediate while Blackfire sleeps on the dusty earth using a rock as a pillow. Star gives up after a few minutes and sits by her sister too concerned to "find her center or clear her mind".

Robin paces the edge of the canyon as Terra follows with her eyes. An air of tension has clouded the bubble of happiness the Titans were surrounded in earlier. Now all they felt was a sense of foreboding and impatience towards Slade's last words, 'one of you must come with me.' There is no doubt in anyone's mind that he won't be satisfied with just one day it was for keeps. The question was what did he want and who would have the unfortunate task of staying with him?

Terra walks over to Beast Boy leaning on his shoulder. He places a hand over hers and leans his head on top of Terra's head. Beast Boy gives a soft growl sweeping Terra off her feet and sitting her in his lap; she doesn't object but instead cuddles next to him. Robin holds Starfire's hand glancing at the sun reflecting off the reddish-brown rocks. With eyes closed Raven breaks the silence, "What are we gonna do now?"

Robin clears his throat and still holding Starfire's hand he replies, "What we do best. Chill out and have fun. There's no point in worrying about what he's going to do. If we do it'll drive us crazy, so how about we change things up and go out to eat. How about a nice restaurant we can sit, relax, and talk like normal teenagers not crime fighters anticipating our enemy's next move."

Cyborg and Beast Boy smile and then laugh as they hear Raven's and Blackfire's stomachs growl. Blackfire mumbles about chocolate cake and strawberry cheesecake that gives Robin a great idea. Raven gives a tiny smile to which Terra gives a thumb up. The first thing on the agenda is to change clothes and then on to… it's a surprise!

Robin is in the lead as the sun shines in their faces. Starfire is still holding his hand and Terra hasn't let go of Beast Boy's hand yet. Raven notices the wistful almost jealous look Blackfire gives her sister, but she is quick to hide it. Cyborg with a long sigh climbs into the T-car with Blackfire, and Terra riding Beast Boy's back towards home. They walk into their enormous living room with the wide windows allows everyone a beautiful view of the sunset.

"I don't know about you guys and gals but I feel like freshening up before dinner. I'm gonna take a shower and change into something a bit more comfortable, anybody care to join me?" Robin asks heading for his room. Cyborg follows mumbling about monkey suits, aka a suit, and so is Beast Boy. Terra felt tempted for a moment to go with him to give advice. She thought better of it at the last minute however she can't help blushing at the thought.

The ride home was uneventful. An enjoyable silence fell over everyone. Perhaps it was the knowledge that there was no point in worrying over…Slade. It made us feel better to know that we could do something fun for once. Blackfire felt a little out of place; here she is sitting in the living room of her sister's house, watching Terra play with Beast boy's ears, while Raven drinks her herbal tea, and Cyborg mumbles about a "monkey suit". Robin strolled through the sliding doors toward their bedrooms and didn't come back out for a while. Cyborg looked like he was about to fish him out when Robin came back.

Starfire giggled and Raven burned her tongue on her tea. Beast boy had a strange glow on his face and Terra just looked sheepish, as if someone was going to ask her to dance. Cyborg smacked Robin on the back and began laughing. Blackfire couldn't take the suspense anymore so she asked, "Robin why are you all dressed up? Are you going out somewhere?"

"Thanks for asking Blackfire. As a matter of fact, we are all going out to dinner. I won't spoil where we're going but I thought it would be nice to dress up a little. It's not like this is the… prom. You don't have to do this, but I admit it feels…good."

Raven sipped her tea a moment before clearing her throat. "I have a question. Where are Blackfire, Terra, and I going to get clothes? We don't have anything even close to formal wear. I don't think Blackfire will want to share with Star. So how are we supposed to get these "informal" going-out clothes?"

Robin smiled and handed Star a card. Star stared at the card for a minute before getting a huge grin. Blackfire and Raven looked quite nervous. Terra looked excited and Beast boy seemed about to dance right now. Cyborg sighed not particularly happy about this but not against either. He just wondered if a store made suits for someone his size.

"Sister there is no need to despair. Robin has provided us with a great gift. This is… a… card to hold the money with. What is this called again?"

"You mean you guys have credit cards?! How did you get that credit card?" Terra exclaimed. Robin grinned while Beast Boy jumped up and ran to his room. By the time he came back Terra gasped. He was in a forest green jacket, a white shirt underneath, and black pants with shoes that matched his shirt. Raven was not surprised his hair still looked spiky even after he tried brushing it down. Starfire flew into her room dragging Blackfire behind her. Raven shook her head.

"Well it looks like we are going shopping. I hope they have something in my color."

"Raven I'm sure you'll look fine. Maybe Star has something her sister can use, but I'm worried about me. I doubt I'll find anything to match…him. He looks so handsome! I think a nice light blue or even a light teal would be nice. Raven you could wear a skirt. I can see you in a long skirt, midnight or almost navy blue with a beautiful sapphire blouse that reminds you of a night sky full of stars…" Terra continued but Raven had kind of tuned her out. Starfire came out in a long gown, shimmering silver that looked like crystal, with light rosy pink curling 'S's across her top and an aqua blue shawl over her shoulders.

Robin was also in a suit. He had a short black jacket on that didn't reach his waist. His shirt was toned down beige, and his pants had stripes of silver running through the black background. Blackfire was also in a gown. Her long hair was curled off to the side, so it fell to the side of her face. The back of her hair was pulled up in a bun. Her gown was shorter than Star's only going up to her knees. The top of her gown had a v-shaped neck in a deep burgundy; with a pattern which reminds her of flames. The bottom of her gown had swirls of a peaceful "breeze" in a cool green; that almost looks like teal.

The boys' mouths hung open. Star and Blackfire looked like models. Cyborg wondered what Rave would look like in a gown. Beast boy stopped himself from drooling by thinking of Control Freak in a pink tutu. That thought had him cracking up. Raven gave a small chuckle. Beast boy always did know how to laugh at the most random moments. Beast boy managed to tell the joke and the rest of the boys soon started laughing. Terra looked at Blackfire who shrugged.

Robin calmed down to tell Cyborg, Raven and Terra where they could get some "dresses" for the evening. Cyborg muttered about monkey suits and Raven looked anxious.

"Don't worry Raven. It will be over before you know it. Besides think how pretty you'll look in a gown. Who knows you may want to wear it again?"

"Blackfire there is no way I'll wear this again, so I don't see the point of buying it. Why waste Robin's hard earned money? Besides I can't dance," Raven answered with a sigh. Robin chuckled once, "to be honest that's not the only card. There's one for each of us; with our bank account. The mayor wanted to thank us for saving the city so much, by giving us credit cards. I'm not sure if we have to pay them back, and I wanted to save them for a special occasion."

"Okay I get it. I'm not gonna like it but I guess it wouldn't hurt too much. One question how are we supposed to keep the food off our pretty dresses and suits? I thought the whole point was that we wanted to use them again?" Raven asked with a slight smile on her face.