Kaldur'ahm followed Aquaman out of the palace, with Garth at his side. As they exited the airlock back into the cold ocean water he noticed that the black submarine was gone, along with the Dark Knight. They continued their way down the familiar boulevards of the underwater capital, this time without the gawking citizenry who knew better than to annoy the king with their rude stares. Nevertheless Kaldur could feel their furtive glances, even if they were hidden behind the drawn curtains in their homes.
Soon they approached the structure he immediately recognized as the home he grew up in with his mother. His father, Black Manta, had pretty much been absent most of his life and the burden and responsibility of raising him had fallen upon his mother alone. As they swam up to the front door it slowly opened in anticipation of their arrival.
Aquaman gestured to the young men to enter the dwelling first. Kaldur glided in first, followed by Garth and Aquaman. The home was spacious, a gift from the king to his mother. It was one of the nicest homes in the city outside of the palace grounds. The walls were made of the finest quartz, polished to the point of brilliance and the floors were made of onyx.
Kaldur saw his mother standing in the middle of the ample foyer. She was a beautiful woman; her ebony skin did not betray her years. She looked as if she was about to have a breakdown and he could see her jaw tremble. He felt awkward, knowing that this woman, while identical to his own mother in every way was in fact a stranger. Finally she threw her arms wide open and flung herself at the young man who was identical to her son. She wrapped her arms around him and buried her face into his shoulder, sobbing without shame. He gently wrapped his arms around her, understanding her reaction to him. After a few minutes she regained her composure and stepped back after kissing him on his cheek.
"I, I know you are not my Kaldur." She stammered. "The king has explained everything to me."
She exhaled a deep sigh.
"And yet, you are identical to him in every way."
The young man stared into the woman's eyes, searching for something that would betray that this woman was a stranger, but found nothing.
"I suppose that I am. You are identical to my own mother, except for the sorrow you have experienced."
"Tell me my son, what have you done since you defeated Trident?"
The four Atlanteans sat down at the couch and Kaldur explained how the Young Justice League was formed and how he wound up being the leader of the group.
"They're the equivalent of the Teen Titans in their universe." Garth added.
"Not quite." Kaldur corrected him. "Unlike the Titans we have only been together for a few months. Also unlike them, we are supervised by the Justice League."
Aquaman frowned upon hearing those words.
"The Justice League has mixed feelings about the Teen Titans. While they have proven themselves over time we still feel that they are remain too reckless and to inexperienced to operate independent of supervision. There are many who are still livid that they did not contact the league for assistance when they confronted Trigon and Slade."
Kaldur looked confused.
"I am unfamiliar with this incident."
Aquaman proceeded to explain how Raven was Trigon's daughter, which had been kept a secret from the Justice League, and how she had been sired for the sole purpose of bringing Trigon into the universe.
"Had they asked for assistance we could have kept Slade away from Raven. The portal window was small. It was doable. Instead Raven knocked her teammates out and surrendered to Slade, effectively handing the world over to Trigon."
Kaldur stared dumbfounded at Aquaman.
"Raven is a demoness? How is that possible?"
Garth came to the gray Titan's defense.
"To be fair to Raven, she actually defeated and destroyed Trigon. And no one in the Justice League could have done that, not even Superman or Captain Marvel."
Kaldur became quiet as he processed all that he had heard.
"That is … most disturbing to hear. Having a demoness on the team, I cannot reconcile with that decision. Is Robin unaware of the risk of having someone like her on his team?"
"Raven is half human and is a dear friend." Garth replied in an irritated voice. "She isn't evil."
"She betrayed her friends and the entire world." Kaldur objected.
"Her father used his powers to overwhelm her will, she wasn't herself. But after she became the portal she was freed from her father's control. He underestimated her and she vanquished him."
Kaldur looked troubled.
"I find this world to be disturbing and I hope that Batman will soon be able to locate our origin so that we may be able to return to our home."
The woman placed a hand on his shoulder.
"My son, is there no way I can convince you to stay with us?"
Kaldur lowered his gaze to the floor, dreading what he was about to say.
"I understand why you ask this, but we must be honest with each other. You are not really my mother and I am not truly your son."
"Does it matter?" She asked with a sorrowful expression.
"I am afraid that it does. My true mother is back in my universe. Would you steal me from her?"
The dark skinned woman dropped her head.
"I understand what you are saying, not that it makes losing you again any easier."
Kaldur wrapped his arms around the woman and embraced her.
"I am sorry … mother, but it can be no other way. If it is any consolation, we might be stranded here for some time."
The moment was interrupted by the sound of the front door being opened rapidly and slamming into a wall. Releasing his mother, Kaldur turned and recognized the intruder.
"Tula." He greeted her politely as he glanced at Garth. He then emphasized with the woman he recognized as his mother as seeing the duplicate of his former lover brought back painful memories to him as well.
The young woman swam up to Kaldur and wrapped her arms and legs around his body while kissing him passionately. At first he became wide eyed but soon melted into her loving embrace, savoring the kisses he had lost back home … to his friend Garth.
"Thank the gods, its true! You have returned from the grave, my love and my betrothed." She wailed as her voice trembled
Kaldur felt lightning shoot down his spine.
Did she say 'Betrothed'?
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Terra stormed into the lair, a grimace adorning her face. She proceeded straight to the mess hall and opened one of the freezers, from which she retrieved a tub of ice cream, which she began to consume directly from the container with a large spoon.
"Who does that gray bitch think she is?" She grumbled between heaping spoons of the frozen treat.
"I should have just kicked her ass right there. She thinks she's so scary and intimidating, but I'm not afraid of her."
A deep monotone echoed throughout the room.
"You should fear her Terra. She has become much more powerful since the last time you engaged her."
Terra turned towards the source of the reprimand.
"I know I can take her Slade. She's just a sad, creepy witch."
"You will need more training to accomplish that, apprentice."
Terra slammed the ice cream tub in the kitchen table.
"I won't wear that suit again. I'd rather be turned back into stone."
Slade picked up the ice cream tub, and examined it before handing it back to the geomancer.
"That won't be necessary. You are now able to fully control your powers. But you won't be fighting Raven, apprentice."
"What? Like hell I won't! You think that I'm gonna let her keep BB?"
"Jealousy does not become you, Terra."
"This isn't about jealousy! I can't let her be BB's girlfriend! She's a monster! She'll use her magic on him, she might even marry him."
"They do seem to be made for each other. They're unconventional, shunned by society and both harbor an inner darkness which they struggle to control."
Terra went bug eyed.
"What the hell are you talking about Slade? BB doesn't have anything dark inside him!"
Slade chucked.
"Don't be so sure of that, apprentice." He picked up a clicker and turned on a huge screen that hung from one of the mess hall walls. Footage of the Beast rampaging through the city played repeatedly on the high definition monitor.
"They have much more in common than you know." He droned in his monotone.
Terra stared mesmerized at the footage.
"Wow … I want to have his babies."
"He is every bit the monster Raven is. If anyone will provide him with offspring, it will be the demoness."
The blond earth bender glared at Slade.
"You're just envious of his powers, Slade." And I am going to fight Raven, and after I kick her sorry gray butt I'm taking BB back."
"He was never yours to begin with Terra. Why do you think he dismissed you from the hospital?"
Terra gasped.
"H-how did you know?" She stammered.
"I have my ways Terra. Now listen to me child, you are not going to engage Raven, there will be no fight between the two of you."
Terra crossed her arms as she intensified her glare.
"Then what am I supposed to do to her?"
Slade chucked.
"Isn't it obvious apprentice?"
"Uh … no!"
Slade patted her on the crown of her head.
"You're going to save her life, Terra."
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
The doors to the hangar slid open, revealing the cavernous room. The T-Ship was parked in its usual mooring and next to it stood a large white sphere.
"Whoa! What happened to the ship? It was here an hour ago!"
"It's tired, and it's also hungry." M'Gann replied as she walked up to the sphere and began to caress it. Connor stared at her shapely figure, noticing how Starfire's outfit accentuated her feminine curves. He knew that her humanoid shape wasn't her true form, but he didn't care, not one bit whatsoever.
"Whadya mean it's tired and hungry? Are you saying this thing is alive?"
Megan sighed.
"She is, and not only is she hungry, she's hurt."
"I guess I could bring some gear and medicine down from the infirmary. What does she eat?"
Megan suddenly looked worried.
"Her diet is organic, but is nothing that is found on Earth. She can't metabolize Earth food."
"Do you have a formula? We might be able to synthesize something for her."
Megan smiled.
"I was hoping you would ask. I have it all here on this datapad."
Cyborg took the PDA from the Martian and studied the formula for a couple of minutes.
"The formula is unusual and its pretty complex, but I can do it. How much do we need?"
"Can you make 1000 liters?"
"Whoa! 1000 liters? Hmmm… I suppose, but it's gonna take some time to make that much. I can make it in smaller batches. Will that help?"
"The sooner the better. She's in hibernation now, but she'll wake up as soon as she smells her food."
Cyborg grinned.
"And I though the grass stain's tofu was weird."
"The grass stain?" Connor asked with a growl.
Cyborg then realized his faux pas.
"It's just an affectionate nick name we have for him."
"We?" Superboy asked.
Cyborg rubbed self consciously rubbed his neck.
"Sorry Megan, I didn't mean to offend you."
She beamed back at him.
"I think that nickname is kind if cute." She replied.
Cyborg laughed nervously.
"OK then, well, I'd better get to work in the lab … I should have the first batch of 50 liters ready in 30 minutes …"
Cyborg exited the hangar without saying another word. As the sliding doors closed Connor crossed his arms and frowned.
"Stupid jerk." He muttered. "They think they're so cool because they're independent."
"He did apologize." She timidly remarked. "And maybe we should pay attention to them. We might learn something."
"Like what?"
"Well … they really seem to care about each other. I mean, look at Robin and Starfire…"
His expression softened when he heard their names.
"They do seem to like each other." He acknowledged. "I know Batman wouldn't approve of that."
"Batman isn't here." She replied.
He rewarded her with a smile.
"Yeah, he isn't … I like that."
Cyborg said that he's coming to visit.
"Great, I'll bet the local one is just as big a jerk as ours."
Megan giggled.
"He probably is." She then paused before continuing. "Connor, you were going to ask me something in the kitchen."
The Kryptonian blushed slightly.
"Yeah, that … uh … well you see … I uh …"
Superboy stopped babbling and stared into Megan's eyes. His super hearing detected that her heart rate had suddenly increased.
"Yes?" She asked, her voice dripping in anticipation.
Superboy leaned forward and planted a long deep kiss on the Martian's lips. After what felt like an eternity they separated … and he bolted.
"I'm sorry Megan, I shouldn't have done that." He muttered as she dashed away, with his eyes closed. He then felt two hands on his chest, pushing back at him as if trying to stop him, which didn't work. He opened his eyes and he saw that is was her.
"I'm sorry, that was … rude. Please forgive me." He apologized.
Megan stared into his eyes, her face so devoid of expression that she could have passed for Raven. She then levitated so that they were eye to eye.
And wrapped her arms around him and kissed him like she had never kissed before.
They were still in each other's arms when Cyborg returned 30 minutes later with the first batch of Martian space ship food.
It was mid-morning the following day and the elevator sliding doors parted open in the common room, revealing Cyborg, Raven and Beast Boy who had just returned from the hospital. Everyone was present in the common room (except for Kaldur, who was still in Atlantis) and they all erupted into raucous applause. The changeling was seated in a wheelchair and still looked weak and tired, but he managed to crack one of his signature grins as the tin man wheeled him into the room. He was surrounded by his fellow superheroes who all began to banter with him. Raven walked out of the elevator and took in the scene in the room. She always felt uncomfortable in crowds and she wandered off into the kitchen to brew some herbal tea. As she was setting up the electric kettle she sensed a now familiar presence behind her.
"Don't bother asking, I didn't." She told the blond archer. "Go ahead and kick my butt."
"I figured as much, so what did you do with him?"
"I had passionate sex with him." She deadpanned.
Artemis chuckled.
"You do suck at telling jokes. What did you guys really do?"
Raven sighed.
"We talked."
"About?"
"Stuff."
"What kind of stuff."
"About how we feel for each other."
"And?"
"We agreed to be a couple."
"Really? Raven, I'm proud of you … but wait a minute … you didn't kiss him?"
"He was tired, his pain killers got to him, so he fell asleep. He slept through the night. Speaking of which, he's due for his next dosage."
Raven pushed her way into the crowd. They all knew she spent the night at the hospital with him, and even though Raven's uniquely delivered profession of love had been kept a secret, they could put 2 + 2 together and were all grinning at the sorceress, who ignored them.
"It's time for Beast Boy's medication, after which he will nap. You'll get to see him later at lunch time." She droned in her gravelly monotone as she grabbed the handles of his wheelchair and carted him away. Everyone politely wished Beast Boy a good nap and a quick recovery. Raven wheeled him into the elevator and the doors swished shut. As soon as the elevator doors closed almost all of the boys present in the common room began to make kissing sounds, which were short lived as the females began to slap them on the backside of their heads.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Raven pushed the wheelchair up to the door to Beast Boy's room, which slid open revealing the pigsty that was within. Raven frowned and pushed the wheelchair into the room, navigating through the obstacle course of piles of trash and dirty clothes.
Raven scrunched her nose in disgust and raised her hands, summoning her dark energy. The piles of trash flew off the floor straight into the incinerator chute, while she summoned several empty hampers from his closet, which became stuffed with clothes that flew into them. Beast Boy watched with a grin as a vacuum cleaner materialized and began to clean the carpeted floor while Raven silently summoned a duster and began to tidy up the bookcases and his desk. She finished after a few minutes and opened a window to let some fresh air in. The then turned around and glared at him.
"This is the one and only time I will ever clean your room. If you want me to spend time with you in here, you will keep it clean. Have I made myself clear?"
The green Titan nodded.
"Thanks Rae, I will, I promise."
"Rae?" She frowned and paused. Her expression softened. "OK, you can call me that, but only in private. Understood?"
"Sure Rae."
The raised her hand and enveloped him in her obsidian light, gently guiding him to his lower bunk, where she deposited him. She then retrieved a glass of water and his bottle of pain killers.
"Time for your medicine." She said in her monotone, and then recalled what Artemis had told her.
"I think it is, I'm starting to feel sore again."
"Which is not surprising as you still have a hole in your chest."
"Yeah, that was kind of dumb."
"You couldn't help it. Johnny Rancid's never used firearms before. If I ever see him again I'll rip his head off."
"Raven, do you think your blue light might help?"
She arched one of her eyebrows.
"I can't fully heal it, but I can probably speed it up."
Raven sat on the edge of the bed and leaned over the wounded changeling, placing her hands over his injury. The healing blue energy appeared and worked its way into the wound. Beast Boy began to moan.
"Oh Rae, that feels good, real good."
Raven continued the healing process for several more minutes, until she finally stopped.
"That's all I can do for now. How do you feel?"
"A lot better Rae, thanks, you're the best girlfriend in the world."
Raven froze upon hearing those words. She then locked eyes with him and summoning all her courage she leaned forward and pressed her lips to his and the exchanged a timid and shy kiss. She then felt his hand behind her head, gently pulling her in for a deeper kiss. She resisted for a split second, but then found herself melting into his embrace and lied down next to him as they continued to smooch.
A light bulb exploded somewhere in the room.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
OK, I apologize, that was the biggest heap of mush I've ever written.
And now its mailbag time!
TheNightwingfan - "Awesome(: More Robin stuff please. I'm glad that BB wasn't all like "Oh it's okay Terra! Welcome back!" What will Terra do now! Eh, it's Terra, she's not my favorite character but with her in this is just makes more drama. Keep up the good workk(:"
Slade and Terra and clearly going to be the bad guys in this story.
Riqis Inna Sunja - "Thats great! amazing! i absolutly cant wait for another chapter! keep up the great work!"
Thanks!
grogger - "Great chapter... Though, I thought Terra had that suit that enhanced her abilities last time she beat raven, and she was trying to fight control cuz of her dad and all. I don know, only seen that episode once ."
Actually, the suit allowed Slade to access her powers and even control Terra's actions.
YJluvr - "U GO RAVEN! love it and update soon also can u add in some like robin robin confrention it would be cool 2 see how the others would react 2 the 2 robs fighting with each other. (like about bats and stuff)"
The Robins will have some action when Batman comes to dinner.
xKROWEx - "This was great. x] I honestly didn't know Slade was a.k.a Deathstroke, so I can gladly say I learned something! Loved the tension in the hospital room, it seemed fitting. Well... not necessarily with the hospital setting, but the whole emotional scene.
I'm hoping for some serious revenge action in the future, maybe... ^-^ Great writing, not sure if this chapter could've used a bit more explanation on like, inner turmoil. As the guy from Aladdin said with the lamp, ah, still good. :D
- Krowe"
In the show they called Deathstroke by his given name of Slade to "tone it down" a bit.
AzNx dRiFtEr - "Cool raven got her man. Hope artemis is vet in hers soon."
Artemis is better at giving advice than following it. Patience grasshopper!
OwlheadAthena - "HOORAY! I WAS THE ANONYMOUS PERSON WHO SAID: 'Gods I love this story! XD'
BECAUSE I DO!
So, so, so, so happy!"
Thanks!
Sir Alwick - "
Because he's mine.
I am?
Yes, you are. Now shut up.
I liked that exchange."
Raven likes to get to the point.
titanfan45 - "An angry Starfire would be more than a match for Terra. If Terra doesn't keep away from Beast Boy, I don't think Terra would beat Raven this time."
Terra is definitely not a "Look before you leap" kind of person.
xXCanaryXx - "Yes,yes I have come to review! :D
I feel like fanfiction is a bit slow lately. Not many authors are publishing and there are lots of bugs on the site. It's like everyone died or something. (Jk. o.o)
Tee-hee. I'm finally accepting the fact that Teen Titans has been taken down and now we have Young Justice. -sigh- Atleast we have Superboy. 3
I wonder what the Titans would look like in Young Justice art style? I also heard BB will make N appearance though. I wanna see how he'll look. :)
This is really good. I am loving Supermartian and I liked their lil moment here. Heh.
Woo! Get your man Raven! Terra thinks anybody will tKe her bAck? I don think so. Silly lil blonde.
Update Soon.
~xXCanaryXx"
Welcome to the YJ section. The fan fiction site still has problems. In the Teen Titans section you still can't edit the story properties page. My advice to anyone with stories posted: If you don't already have them backed up, do so now. I wouldn't be surprised of something is very wrong with the website, maybe its database even.
GreenRock - "Well, if anything we know about little miss geomancer, is that delusion is her best friend; and when it comes to a certain green shapeshifter, delusion isn't too far away. Who knows what concoction Terra will drum up, but whatever it is, methinks that she is the one that will not escape unscathed."
Poor Terra, so screwed up!
Jazzmonkey - "Ur story is awesome! I liked how the teens all tied together but at the same time each had their own style. But quick q: when will bats appear and b totally confused about two birds? Oh, and I hope u can put in a relax chapie where the teen titans totally dote on yj-robin and starfire especially. And of course, tt-robin gets extremely annoyed by him. PLZ do a chapter like that! I'd review like 20 times just to see that happen! Great chapter!"
Like I said above, when Batsy shows up there will be some real tension between the two Robins.
KaliAnn - "I really did like this even it was a bit short, but you really know how to handle a verbal catfight! I still wish Superboy got to tell Megan how he felt, but its nice to see Jinx being friendly with her. Can't wait for more!"
He finally did!
The-Real-Deal37 - "I like this story so much. Update soon!"
Done!
loony - "pretty good"
Thanks
Kitty723 - "Go away terra, bb now is raven! Will slade show up soon? Please continue "
Slade will definitely play a big role in this story.
Illucida - "
"We don't have anyone like her back at home." Artemis added.
[laughs hysterically] Yet. We all know know you're not who you appear to be, Artemis, and will most likely have a similar role as Terra in the YJ series.
I like that this wasn't all about the hospital scene. The scene back at the Tower gave the chapter more readability by breaking up the hospital scene into two and set up events for the next chapter.
Nice chapter, overall."
Thanks! I really hope they don't have Artemis do a Terra on the YJs.
Kairan1979 - "I hope I'll see Young Justice kicking Terra's butt after she tries something to "return" Beast Boy."
If it was just Terra, she would do something dumb, but let's not forget that she's Slade's puppet.
SuperninjaX - "(slaps terra) YOU STAY AWAY YOU JERK! how bout a one on one Robin chat eh?"
There will be a whole chapter dedicated to Robin vs. Robin.
babytiger5360 - "Omg! I love this chap! Hahahaha I can't believe how they treated Terra! :D good riddens"
Terra is like crabgrass, she just won't go away!