The Unknowing

Disclaimer: I do not own Teen Titans or anything dealing with DCU

Chapter Twelve: Pass Through

….

Third Point of View

….

Raven was out of the cold and standing in front of Dick and Jason as soon as the collar around her neck turned off and she felt that flicker of magic on her finger tips. She tore it off and through it to her feet. Feeling a rush of relief as they both smiled in unison upon seeing her. Very similar but at the same time very different.

Dick had a big smile that he felt no shame in hiding and Raven could visibly see his shoulders release tension. She doesn't need empathy to know he was extremely worried for her but now? Now, he's just happy standing in front of him.

And then there's Jason with his half smile and helmet under his under arm. His posture and overall stance was different from Dick's. He held himself more upright, almost intimidating with his gear choices. The only thing that showed otherwise, besides Raven's empathy, was that smile.

"Raven, what the hell?" Nightwing exclaimed as he took in features that did not reflect the bat cave. Why do people have such a hard time listening to him? He'll never understand.

"I know you don't approve of my actions but I refuse to just let Slade get away so he can keep chasing after me. I won't let him get the upper hand again." She turns to point at the building. "He's in there and we can stop him."

"Do you hear yourself? As Titans, we always plan ahead. We worked as a unit, that's how we won all those missions. With teamwork, not like this."

"I'm not a Titan anymore, Nightwing, and I'm going in. You can come with or keep guard at the door if you want," she clarified and looked up to Hood.

"You don't even have to ask." His words bring a small smile to Raven's face. He turns to Nightwing. "Ya'know just because someone plans it as they go, doesn't mean they're going to fail. It just means that sometimes life doesn't give us the luxury of choosing."

Raven and Jason start making their way to the door.

"Wait," Nightwing called after the pair. "Even though I don't agree with your decision, there's no way in hell I'm going to stay behind while you two go looking for Slade. I'm coming with you guys."

Raven nodded and waited for Nightwing to catch up to them before making their way into the building.

….

"Well that was a bust," Jason said as he ran his hand through his dark, chocolate colored spirals he calls hair.

Raven could sense his frustration but compared to her own, it was almost nonexistent. He was right there but of course they were too late. By the time they went into the building, Slade was already gone. It shouldn't come as too much of a surprise though, he is known for being stealthily and quick. But that didn't make her any less annoyed. Now instead of taking him off the game board, he's just out there plotting up another plan to kill her. Fucking great.

"You good, Raven?"

The sound of her name tore her away from her thoughts long enough to look up and spot Jason watching over her with a concerned look. He didn't use a nickname.

"Never better," she drawled out in her usual even tone. It doesn't make much sense to spend energy on something out of her control and it makes even less sense to waste any energy on it, unless she wants to ruin all the lights in this mansion. Besides, she's sure Dick was taking it even worse than she was. As soon as she portaled them back to the bat cave, he went straight for the bat computer to dive into many hours of what she can only assume to be investigating work.

She knew better than to steer him away so soon, she knew he needed to jump back in. At least for a few hours before she drags him to bed. His obsessive compulsive disorder is not something that has ever gone unnoticed by her, not that much can go unnoticed by the empath. She discovered it during the first time the Titans had a mission that went wrong. Dick locked himself in his room for days, refusing to leave until he got to the bottom of it.

However, mulling over the past won't help her now. The only thing that will help her now is taking out Blood and Slade. How she will do that, she has no idea, at least not yet. They are both very dangerous and play dirty but she's the daughter of darkness and the queen of hell. She won't go down without a fight.

"Ah, sarcasm, a very clever way to hide your true feelings," Jason said as he sat across from Raven. His red helmet resting on his lap as it was the only thing he took off of his suit. Usually after a mission goes wrong, he goes straight for a hot shower and rolls a joint to clear his mind and settle the pit. Works every time, except when he needs something stronger, then he would accompany the joint with whiskey. How much whiskey depended on how bad the mission went.

But as fate had it, he was drawn to the Dark Lady herself, which left him forgetting his extracurricular activities. For a short while at least.

"On some level, I know how you feel. You must be angry."

"Is that what you think?"

"Come on, Raven. How can you not be angry that Deathstroke slipped between our fingers? I know I'm angry and it definitely would have been a lot easier if we stopped him tonight. Now we're back to square one while he's running loose, keeping us on edge while we fumble along in the dark."

"Is this supposed to make me feel better?" Raven couldn't help but shake her head in confusion. If Jason was trying to help, he was doing a terrible job at it.

Jason chuckled. "All I'm trying to say is, you have a right to be angry and it's okay to show it."

"You're right. For most people, it's okay to show their emotions but I'm not most people." Raven stood and started making her way to her temporary room. After being held captive in that dirty and very cold room, all she wanted-no needed- is a warm shower. And the less people around, the better.

Jason watched as the door shut behind her. Every day they're together, he's learning more and more about the dark bird. There's so much more than meets the eye and he couldn't help but want to learn more but the right way. It's one thing to read an enemies file but when it comes to teammates, he'd rather learn from first hand experience. Too many times he has been judged by people based on his file from good 'ole Bruce. And everytime he proved them wrong, one by one. It's easy considering there's always more to a person than meets the eye. So much more.

….

"Hey Kory, it's good to hear from you. How's the mission going?" Dick asked as he rolled back in his chair. Kory's FaceTime tore him away from the bat computer as soon as he saw it.

"It's definitely more than we originally anticipated." Kory sighed. "I'm afraid at this point we're going to be here a few more weeks."

"I see and how's Damian been?"

"Difficult as always," answers Kory with a knowing brow.

Dick chuckles. "Oh course he is. I promise he means well, he-"

"Just has a hard time showing it. So you've claimed many times, Mr. Grayson."

"Mr. Grayson? I like the sound of that," Dick replies with a sly smile. He was captivated by her appearance. Her beautiful green eyes twinkled and her plump lips curved into a beautiful smile.

"I can imagine something else you'd like even more," she teased.

"I've missed you, Kory."

"I miss you too, Dick."

"So I've been thinking," he started.

"Oh? I'm listening."

"Well we've been together for a while so-"

Before Dick could continue, red lights behind Kory started going off, catching both of their attention.

"Dick, I'm so sorry but I have to go. I'll check back in when I can. I love you!"

"I love you too, Kory."

Dick placed his phone on his nightstand before leaning back on his bed. Staring up at the ceiling, he couldn't help but think about today's events. They're already pushing on a week since they've arrived at the bat cave and yet they're not much farther than when they started out. Kory isn't the only one on a mission that's taking longer than expected.

Kory… It's only been a couple weeks since they've seen one another but it's been at least a month since they were lucky enough to spend time together. Without the Titans. Without Bludhaven or Gotham. And most importantly, without Batman. When the timing is right, he's going to invite Kory to move into his new apartment. It'd be nice if he could officially move in considering most of his belongings are still in his Bludhaven apartment from lack of time because… work. It's always work.

At least this way, they'll be in the same city and under one roof more often. And being back in San Francisco means he could help out with the newer Titans. Be there more for Damian like the older brother he needs, even if he doesn't think so. Bruce and Damian are constantly at odds with one another. which is exactly what got Damian sent to the Titans to begin with. It would do him good to have more, normal role models in his life than killer assassins and a man who dresses up as a bat.

….

Hot water never bothered Raven. It didn't matter how hot it got either, she could always withstand the scalding temperature. It was something that always brought her comfort. Except now. It doesn't matter how hot the water is now because it isn't helping her forget the feel of Sebastian's lips on hers or Slade's hand on her face.

The water couldn't help her forget what she desperately wanted and that made her angry. Very angry but she won't act on it. She couldn't. It is her responsibility and burden to swallow her stronger emotions down. It is the safest decision for everyone.

Perhaps she was a tad too brash with Jason since they got back. She was being honest though when she told him that she's not most people. On the other hand, he doesn't know the extent of who she is. He doesn't know she has to bury it all down like he tries to bury the pit. While they have learned a bit about one another in the past week, there is still much they do not know about one another. But she is interested in learning more.

Sighing, she cast her lingering thoughts aside as she made work of cleaning her body. Once dry she dressed into a black, long sleeved t-shirt with black and blue striped leggings. Her damp hair layed along her back. Raven only paused for a moment before grabbing her boots and portaling to the roof. After being held captive, some fresh air would do her some good.

Instinctively taking a deep breath in and out, she started to feel the tension slowly leave her shoulders.

"Are you following me, Little Bird," came Jason's voice from behind her, surprising her as she didn't initially feel his presence. He was hiding his emotions very well.

She turned to see him leaning against the railing. He wasn't wearing his gear anymore, he traded it in for black jogger jeans and a red tank top. She could visibly see his sleeve of tattoos running up and down his right arm. But what she almost missed was the joint tucked behind his ear and nearly lost in a sea of dark curls.

"You wish." She took a step closer and peered up at the evening sky. The sky started turning pink and orange as the sun's rays started dipping low.

The crackle of a lighter grabs her attention as she turns to see Jason inhaling what she could only assume to be a joint.

"Sorry if I annoyed you earlier, I shouldn't have pushed the subject," he said as he exhaled the smoke and offered her a hit with a hand motion. To his surprise, she took it. He watched as she inhaled before passing it back. The surprises never cease to amaze him.

"The first thing I did when the pit brought me back was run for the closest exit. Door, window, it didn't matter as long as I could get outside. It felt like I was suffocating." He took a deep hit in and held it for a moment before releasing it. Big surprise but talking about being dead and getting resurrected made him feel more than uncomfortable. But this wasn't about him. "Is that why you're out here?"

"What makes you think I haven't come up here before?" Raven cornered.

"I'm pretty sure I would have seen you by now considering I come up here every night, Sunshine."

She held her hand out, waiting for him to oblige with her unspoken request. Handing the joint back over, Raven looked at it between her fingers. The day's events running through her. Why was nothing ever so simple?

"Perhaps you're right, Jason," she said as she took a hit and handed it back to its original owner. It tasted nice. Her eyes darted to a small, metal bench overlooking the beautiful forest. It was calmer and quieter than the city glooming in the distance. "It's relaxing up here."

Jason nodded. "Whenever I needed a break from B back in the day, I would come up here. Read, watch the stars." He spared her a glance before inhaling again. "If you want to be alone, I can head downstairs."

"It's okay… I don't mind the company."

"If you say so, just wanted to ask with how your day went." Jason was never the biggest people person and it didn't come as a surprise to know that neither was the ex Titan. In his younger years, he loved getting away from everyone by going up here. Not even Alfred could get him down for dinner. If he was on the roof, they knew not to bother him until he came down stairs.

With another inhale, he made his way to take up the open seat on the bench. He once again offered her the joint. "Maybe it'll help you sleep through the night."

Her eyes fell to his hand, taking his offer. "Is that why you do it?"

His low, throaty chuckle had her looking his way for the first time since he sat beside her. His eyes crinkled as he shrugged. "That, among other things. What about you?"

The question was innocent enough but it had her looking down at her lap while she took a hit. "It was common practice to use it where I come from. It aided in meditations and played a big part in our medicine."

Talking about Azarath is always so bittersweet. It was a beautiful and peaceful place until Raven wanted to learn more about her father. She will never forgive herself for making such terrible choices. She took another hit.

Jason didn't say anything after that and she was grateful for it. She didn't feel like talking anymore, especially not Azarath. She still doesn't trust her powers so staying an emotionless slate is crucial. The pair continued to sit in silence, with Jason reading a book he brought up with him. Raven went straight to meditating a couple of feet away as he read.

They must have been up there for some time because before too long, she heard him calling for her. She peaked an eye open to see him standing only a couple feet in front of her. The other thing she noticed, it was dark.

"You ready to head back inside, Queen?" Floating down to her feet, she nodded in agreement. He held his arm out, "After you my, Queen."