Red-X threw himself backward into a crouch. The titanium soles of his suit skidded against the concrete floor, leaving black marks in their wake. A crackling green starbolt flew over him, just barely singing the top of his head. He rolled to the left, temporarily shielded by a wooden crate, and a shattering crash resounded from where he had been hunched moments before. An enormous T-Rex tossed back its head in fury, a jarring roar unleashed from its jagged-tooth maw.

The criminal chuckled, his synthesized voice filling the abandoned warehouse.

"C'mon now kids, you're getting a little too predictable," he taunted, firing off a series of x-lasers at the alien princess and changeling. "Can't you at least try, for me?"

The green shifter quickly morphed into a mosquito, the shots firing past him, but the redhead was not as lucky— one of the searing lasers clipped her shoulder and she went down, spinning in a nosedive. A yell came from behind the thief, catching him off guard, and a heavy metal rod slammed down on his head. He stumbled, his vision blurring slightly, but whirled around in time to catch Robin's follow-up kick, a lethal aim at his stomach. Grabbing the hero's foot, X used his momentum to throw the masked titan backward, sending him flying into the demolished debris of crate.

"Try this on for size!" came the challenging shout of the menacing half-robot. He raised his arm and fired a missile from his computerized arsenal. It exploded into the opposite wall, sending a deadly avalanche of brick raining down onto Red-X.

Clouds of dust rose up from the settling rubble, and silence filled the cavernous warehouse.

Robin walked over to the collapsed pile, kicking aside a brick with his foot.

"Is he… unconscious?" Starfire asked tentatively, her hand gingerly covering her scalded shoulder.

"Not quite, cutie," a voice cut through the sooty air behind them.

The heroes spun around and found an entirely whole Red-X standing on a swinging metal catwalk, high above them. He clutched a Xenothium battery close to his chest and saluted mockingly.

"It was funs, kids. Next time, bring better toys."

He flipped off the platform, soaring toward a large window whose glass had been blown out long ago.

"Not so fast, X," a sharply articulate voice warned.

A huge black claw shot forward, grabbing the rogue midflight and tossing him to the floor. Red-X lay there unable to move for only an instant before springing up off his back, ignoring the bruised muscles that protested in agony.

"Don't get angry now, Sunshine," he teased, flinging a shuriken that was as sharp as it was red toward Raven's path.

She leapt aside and he lunged forward, darting past the frozen titans, his feet leaping nimbly over the pile of destroyed bricks as he made his getaway through the huge hole blasted in the wall.

"Titans, GO!" came Robin's furious shout, commanding his teammates to chase down the wanted fugitive.

xxxx

The titans sprinted through Jump's smoggy streets in dogged pursuit. Fleeting glimpses of a black cape whipping around corners were their only leads in following him; he was too far ahead for them to ever get a good view. As they rounded the final block of 12th Street and turned onto the much dingier Spit Row, Starfire flew up above them to survey the location of their prey.

"I can see a black figure!" she called down to her friends from her high vantage point.

"Keep moving, Titans!" Robin pressed urgently, as if any of the exhausted heroes needed reminding.

They ran past dilapidated buildings, former residences that had been condemned and shut down. The windows of many were smashed in, and the paint peeled off the exteriors like shedding skin, making them favorite habitations among the city's regular hard drug users.

Robin spearheaded the chase, followed closely by Beastboy morphed as a racing greyhound, then Starfire, Cyborg, and finally Raven bringing up the rear.

A dark hand shot out of a narrow and dank alleyway suddenly, grabbing Raven's arm and yanking her back into the cool, pooled shadows. The dark titan was taken off guard by the unexpected move, and she stumbled. An arm snaked its way round her waist and pulled her back against a firm chest, steadying her. Then an unseen hand reached up and tugged down the midnight blue hood, allowing deep-hued hair to spill out over her shoulders.

A pair of soft lips brushed across her ear, ticking it with small, warm gusts of breath.

Raven shivered.

"I like when you get all flushed from exertion like this," a husky voice murmured. His breath smelled of cinnamon.

He pulled her even tighter against him, and she could feel the warmth seeping out of his body, into hers. Her heart was racing in her chest, yet she felt oddly calm in spite of it.
He bent his head lower over her shoulder, speaking so quietly that Raven had to strain to hear his next words.

"If you don't stop being so damned attractive when we fight, this sort of thing may end up happening regularly."

Without warning he spun her around to face him, backing her against the alley wall. An ungloved hand flew to her face, fingers caressing her cheek like velvet. The other gripped her own clammy hand, holding it tightly as if to anchor her there.

Raven closed her eyes just as he pressed his lips against hers, searing them. His mouth moved against hers gently, coaxingly, tender at first. It grew hungrier though, quickly becoming more demanding. He increased his pace with fervor, an eager and breathless desperation as if each kiss were the edge of life. Raven was only too willing to oblige, allowing him take charge. A feeling of lightheadedness had overcome her, and her lips felt like they were burning.

Nearby, a series of streetlights exploded loudly and shattered in splinters to the ground, one after another, leaving the whole block bathed in darkness. Her emotions were getting out of hand.

Could this only be a dream? she wondered, eyelids fluttering closed.

But no, he was here, his legs pressed against her own, their now-sweaty hands still clamped together, her fingers resting on his chest, his arm hooked around her neck.

A familiar beeping tune cut through the air.

Jason ignored it, refusing to avert his attention from the empath before him, but the noise steadily grew more insistent, demanding to be acknowledged.

He sighed. "You better answer that."

Raven reluctantly pulled out her communicator and flipped it open.

"What?" she asked flatly.

Beastboy's face filled the screen. "Where the heck are you Raven? One second you're behind us and the next you're gone. Are you in trouble?"

Raven glanced up for a moment, almost imperceptibly, at Jason's resigned face. She looked back down at Beastboy, impassive.

"No," she said. "I thought I could sense Red-X heading down a backstreet, so I followed. The lead's a dead end, though. I'll catch up with you shortly." She snapped the communicator shut.

The thief gave her a rueful smile, wishing their interlude hadn't been cut so short.

"I'll be seeing you," he promised, kissing her forehead and then her nose. His lips lingered there for a long pause before he finally pulled away, retreating slowly until he melted into the surrounding shadows.

A gust of wind blew through the alley and Raven shuddered. She felt unusually cold.

xxxx

Back at the Titan Tower, Raven fell onto her bed, exhilarated and tired, blood rushing through her veins. Her head crinkled against the pillow, and she sat up curiously to see a folded piece of paper resting there. She picked it up and smoothed it out, reading the tidy scrawl inside.

Next Thursday, 7 P.M.

Raven couldn't help smiling to herself.

X

X

Red-X should wear a sign that reads "Too Hot to Handle". That's just my opinion though. Thanks for reviewing guys!