Chapter 10
It would not take her.
It would NOT take her!
Who did Death think it was? Taking what was most precious to it?
She was precious to Death as well, it knew. But she was precious to it first and it was precious to her.
Death was coming for her Lady, and it would fight to the bitter end.
It summoned the Doll and laid in wait.
There was only one entrance.
Death would not leave her Toy Box alive.
Yomi was fairly worried for her friend. After the day's events had caught up with her, Kagari had fallen into a fitful sleep that appeared to have progressed to a nightmare. So far she'd muttered something about Death and her "Fair Lady", which was weird since she hadn't met anyone that her wheeled friend might be interested in.
The argument only two meters away certainly didn't help.
"Why did you lie to us?" asked Haha Kuroi.
Robin merely turned around from the computer screen with a questioning look. She and the other parents looked completely livid. Cyborg and the rest of the team sat nearby in the living room.
"You told us they were practically radioactive," stated Mrs. Takanashi coldly, "you said they were dangerous, kept them away from us. Why?"
The teen wonder could only sigh.
"Under the Metahuman Registration act, all mutants and metahumans must receive formal training on their abilities," he explained, "however, they must first be placed in quarantine for a minimum of three days to ensure that their powers don't pose a danger to them or to the general populace."
"But why didn't you warn us?" asked Mr. Izuriha, "It's not like back when the Avengers and the Justice League were still around. Metas are overall accepted. Even the X-Men are an official organization nowadays."
"Overall," he pointed out, "but not completely. We had no way of predicting your reactions. Heck, these days you can still find Sentinel parts for sale in the black market and we still have more… traditional threats to deal with like the Klan and the Neo-Hydra Skinheads."
"In short, you didn't trust us with our own children," scoffed Haha.
"In short, yes," he confirmed, "you have to understand. I have seen all possible cases with this. This used to be the League's job, but they've been out of the picture for years. I have seen children massacred beyond human recognition from stupid superstitions about demonic possessions and the like. Ostracized by the people that should care for them the most.
"I will protect them, no matter who I have to take on."
"There's more to it than that," said Mrs. Kuroi, "what did you mean by formal training?"
"All metas have to be trained to control their powers properly," he explained, "preferably before they are hounded by less favorable members like the Hive or the Brotherhood of Mutants. New forms of magic are discovered on a daily basis, new sciences, and new types of power like your daughters'. People will seek them out Mrs. Kuroi. And not all of them will take no for an answer."
"So what do you plan to do with them?"
"Train them, for starters," he said, "they have the option, not obligation, to join the Teen Titans or any of the other Superhero organizations around the world. A special U.N. registration is necessary if any of them want to become solitary heroes, though since there are five of them they do have the option of starting their own team.
"Of course, that's only one option," he continued upon noticing the looks on the parents faces, "since they're underage, they need your permission as they do with any other 'job'."
"That's how you do this?" asked Mrs. Izuriha with a raised eyebrow.
"Well, most metas and mutants are abandoned," noted Cyborg, "so it's usually up to the State to provide permission for hero training. Magi usually keep to themselves and the few that show up are usually trained adults."
"With a few exceptions," said Raven over her book, "myself included."
"Either way, magi have to receive formal training from their peers," finished Robin, "unfortunately we don't really know what to classify Saya and the others as. We'd never seen anything like them before. For the moment they're 'artificially enhanced metahumans' in our report."
"That makes them sound like experiments," noted Mrs. Izuriha.
"It's the standard name for people that get powers from amulets, spells, cybernetic implants and the like," said Cyborg, "not exactly the same thing, but it'll do for now."
"What's the difference?" Asked Haha.
"That the spell was an accident," responded Raven, "and was rewritten by your daughters. If I had done it on purpose, it would be an accurate report. There's also the fact that the transformations are not dependent on my magic, but on their own willpower. I think only Ying Fa has the power to hold five transformations like that."
"Who?" asked Mr. Izuriha.
"A powerful sorceress from Japan. Not important right now."
"How powerful?" asked Robin. Raven rarely revealed anything about her half of the world, so any tidbit of information was eagerly pounced on.
"The most powerful. Her predecessor could have easily killed Trigon if he'd so wished it," she responded, ignoring her teammates' reactions, "and she's supposedly more powerful than even he was, but she was only twelve years old when he attacked last year, so signing her up's out of the question."
"Eleven?" said Robin astonished as Raven nodded in response, "and she's that powerful?"
"Lady Ying Fa is to date the most powerful mage that has ever existed," responded Raven coldly, "if she were to turn on us, even with the League, the Avengers, and S.H.I.E.L.D we'd last around an hour or so."
"Uh, guys?" called Saya from the door, "I hate to break up the party, but we have a serious problem."
"That's gotta be the ugliest teapot I've ever seen," joked Beast Boy upon seeing the object on the coffee table.
"It's a watering can," said the teacher.
"So you found an ugly watering can in a flea market?" asked Cyborg, "Can't you just ask for a refund?"
"Saya, is this the watering can you said your otherself had in the Otherworld?" asked Robin.
"Yes, and it's not ugly, it's gothic," replied Saya in defense of her can, "I was going through a goth phase when Black Gold Saw was fully formed. We all had those phases. They pass after a few months."
The team, looked at Raven.
She looked at them.
"No."
Conversation over.
"So what's the deal with the can?" asked Beast Boy.
"The deal is that this is one of the most powerful tools on the Otherworld. It has the ability to force Hooded Children into the White Ruins to be turned into Masters of the Battlefields. I found it under my bed."
"What was it doing there?" asked Starfire.
"No idea," replied the teacher, "but I don't like this. If small parts of the Otherselves weapons and tools are making it here before we transform…"
"There's no telling what else might come through," finished Raven.
Saya nodded. "It might not be impossible for entire battlefields to make it here."
"What's in the fields?" asked Cyborg.
"Well there are only marble pillars in mine," replied Saya, "and Strength's was destroyed, so we won't have to worry about any pillars of fire. Chariot only has her spiders, but Death Master's Skull Legions are awaiting orders and Black Rock Shooter's contains a forest of constantly growing spikes. If any of those two make it over before Mato and Yomi transform, we could have a real carnage on our hands."
"Examine the girls' rooms," snapped Robin, "bring in anything out of the ordinary. Saya, you'll help us deal with any oddities."
The team split up and went to the rooms of their current guests. After explaining the situation, they began to tear the rooms apart. It was not necessary, however, as "unusual items" were found easily.
Less than an hour later, a sword and a length of chain were put on display on the coffee table in the middle of the living room alongside Saya's watering can.
"Nothing from Strength's room," reported Beast Boy, "hey, how about we call you Power Fist or something? Strength just doesn't sound like much of a name."
"Yeah, well it's my name and I happen to like it," Yuu snapped, "and I told you I didn't get any tools back there. My arms and my tail were both parts of my body."
"The Black Blade, my old sprinkler, and Dead Master's chains," noted Saya, "how did they get here though?"
Mato came up and picked up the sword she'd found under her bed. "I would have expected my coat," she commented as she absentmindedly tested the blade's weight, "but I never thought I'd see this again."
"Mato," said Mrs. Kuroi, "when did you learn how to do that?"
"Do what?"
Only then did she notice the simple katas that she'd been going through as if they were second nature. She paused for a second and looked at the flower vase on the kitchen table. Her right arm shot out and the blade whistled through the air, cutting neatly through the ceramic surface with a diagonal cut.
The parents clapped silently while the Titans looked on pensively. Well, most of them.
"Friend Mato, that was most impressive!" gushed Starfire, "I was not aware that you were skilled in the art of henobleg!"
"Cutting with sharp things?" translated the wary girl instantly, "That's the best name they could come up with?"
"Tae Kwon Do means 'the art of the feet and the hands'," pointed out Raven, "all things considered, that one's a bit more descriptive."
"How did you learn how to do that?" asked Robin, "I saw you playing with my nunchuks the other day. You hit yourself in the face."
"I don't know," she admitted, "it kinda feels like I've always done this. And you promised not to mention the nunchuks!"
"Not the point, you don't get that good with a sword in your first try."
"Well, it's MY sword! I should know how to use it!"
Robin and Raven looked at each other.
"What's your name?" asked the sorceress.
"What kind of stupid question is that?"
"Answer." Snapped Robin.
"It's Black-," she stopped just as her eye flared to life, "It's Mato! Kuroi Mato! I'm Kuroi Mato!"
"Enough, I get it," said Robin in the most caring way he could under the circumstances, "you, Saya, and Yuu have been referring to your time in the Otherworld as if you were there."
The three blinked in surprise.
"I think you're starting to merge with your otherselves," said Raven, "either that or you're being completely displaced."
"What does that mean?" asked Mrs. Kuroi.
"It means that Mato Kuroi will soon cease to exist," she replied, "her mind will either be replaced by Rock's or will merge with hers into a new person with the memories of both."
"If it's… displaced. What will happen to my daughter?"
"I'm not sure," admitted Raven, "her mind might be erased from existence or she might be suppressed as a second consciousness. She might even be sent to the Otherworld."
"Is there any way to stop it?" asked Mr. Izuriha.
"I don't know," she admitted, "we can't be certain of anything anymore. This is the first time this kind of thing has been documented."
"Then what can we do?" asked Mrs. Takanashi.
"I can honestly tell you that I have no idea," she admitted once more, "but if their minds are being affected as I believe they are then we must be careful. You never know what kind of memory will make it to our side next."
Yomi was worried. Kagari seemed to be having a truly awful nightmare and she wasn't sure as to what she should do.
Once upon a time she would have waited it out, lest she be subject to the wrath of her unstable friend, but now… now she was different. She smiled more, talked more, walked more (duh), and she even had more friends. Yomi truly cared about her oldest friend and she could hardly stand to see her like this, moaning about death.
"I wonder who her "fair lady" is?" she wondered aloud, only to shush herself.
She had relocated her friend to her bedroom with Cyborg's help, ignoring his jabs at their "alone time". She liked the Titans, even if they were a bit weird.
Robin had been very helpful in the gym when he helped set up Kagari's rehab program.
Raven was fun to talk with since they shared an interest in books.
Beast Boy could be a bit… difficult to get along with, but he did get along fairly well with Mato due to their mutual love of video games.
And Starfire…
She blushed deep red as she remembered the way she had taught them all English. She was grateful of course, but she would have preferred to save her first kiss for a more special occasion. Not to mention that she had kissed Mato twice.
She frowned. Why was she so upset that Mato had been kissed twice? She'd been fairly upset when Kagari had been kissed right afterwards too, now that she thought about it. It had been her turn right after Kagari's, so she couldn't really gauge her other two companions against then since she'd ended up passing out.
Still, it did bring up an unexpected pattern.
"Do I like…?"
The thought was disturbing in many ways, mainly because she hadn't considered liking other girls before. Never mind this kind of situation.
She was pretty cute, even if she was so hyperactive so often. Those eyes and that cute button nose right below her signature welcoming smile that spoke only of the trust she still held towards the world.
The orange skin even had a bit of an exotic flair to it.
"…Starfire-san?"
The sudden blare of an alarm shook her out of her thoughts.
After making sure that Kagari wouldn't wake up (meaning that she piled a dozen pillows onto her head), Yomi rushed out to the command center to catch sight of Robin as he fiddled with his utility belt. After making a mental note to ask him for a set later (they looked handy, if a bit tacky), she joined the small group in the elevator (she was surprised they hadn't sprung for a slide to get down faster).
"What is going on?" she asked.
"Bank robbery, again," he replied, "I'm starting to think they see it as a challenge to rob here."
"That would explain things," replied Cyborg, "or maybe they're just plain stupid."
"Make sure Yuu doesn't try to sneak in again," warned Robin as he mounted the T-Cycle and took off after Beast Boy and Starfire.
Cyborg popped the trunk open, pulled the pouting girl out (again), and drove away with Raven riding shotgun.
"Shoot, I was sure I had them this time," lamented Yuu in Japanese.
"I keep saying you're going to get yourself killed," quipped Yomi in their native tongue.
"Not if I transform soon!" noted the smaller girl, "Hey, do you think I'll transform if I shower with Saya-chan's watering can?"
"Maybe," she replied as they went into the elevator, "though I still don't see why you'd want to transform."
"Why not?" asked Yuu, "I liked being an otherself. Lot easier than real life."
"I'm not sure about that," said Yomi with a sweatdrop, "by the way, what's your relationship with Inori-Sensei? You seem fairly close."
"Well, you know what happened to my parents?"
Yomi nodded.
"Well, she took care of my body while Strength used it, even during college," she replied, "we'd been friends before. She was even a better friend to me than Mato was, and that's saying a lot."
"So you're just close friends?"
"Well, yes," replied Yuu with a blush, "though I'm hoping for more."
Yomi was about to question that statement when the elevator opened…
…and blue blood fell on her face.
Author's Note: Took me long enough. This chapter was tricky because it set the exact year in which the fanfic is set. It was s dificult decision to flip the finger at the timeline provided at the Black Rock Shooter anime that is set in the year 2012, but the technology shown in Teen Titan was at least 2035. In the end I improvised and set the story somewhere in the middle in the late 10's.
Anyways, I hope you enjoy this.