The Unknowing
Disclaimer: I do not own Teen Titans or anything dealing with DCU
Chapter Nine: Follow The Lead
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Raven's POV
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Over the years I've tried numerous outlets to distract myself from my chaotic life. It had come to my attention that I needed to get out of my own head in order to forget about my constant need for balance. I have failed in liking more than I'd like to admit. I know what you're probably thinking, the dark and creepy chick probably doesn't like many activities anyway but that's just not true. I'm just a bit picky.
There's a lot of things I like and enjoy doing. Reading books is one of them. So naturally I assumed joining a book club would be a great fit. I could finally talk to people about novels we had in common. Imagine my disappointment when I found out it was all a front for bored housewives to gossip. To make matters worse, they were reading cliche eroticas with no plot. Needless to say, I didn't go back for a second meeting.
However, I did not let that slow me down. I continued on until I found a hobby that could get my mind off of… well my mind. That's when I came across a painting class one faithful evening. I was walking past it on my way to a tea shop when I walked by a tutorial for beginners art class. Normally I wouldn't have stopped, I would have made my way to the tea shop like I set out to do but I couldn't and wouldn't. I had to get out of my head and live a little. I missed so much growing up. Hell, I missed a lot being a Titan too. Sure, I learned what it was like to have friends and eat waffles for the first time but I never went to school or did all the regular stuff normal people do. The cards just were not in my deck unfortunately.
There was something else that attracted my attention to painting. My mom used to paint all the time in Azarath. She showed me how a couple of times during the limited visits I got time to see her. The monks tended to keep me busy so I couldn't cause too much trouble. At the time, nothing had stuck but now I felt more like a natural. It makes me feel close to her, even though I know she's not here any more.
The smell of acrylic paint brings me the same relaxation tea does now. I step back to look at my newest piece. There's a large moon off centered and slightly to the right of the canvas. Dark blues surround it while large black strokes of my brush encase it like it's a hidden beauty that needs to be protected. The rest I decided to leave with a more abstract feel as I used different shades of blue and purple to cover the canvas.
I smile when I decide I like this piece and the comfort it brings me as I think of my late mother. I often wonder what she would think of me now, how I turned out. I'd like to think she would be proud. Proud I became a Titan. Proud I dedicate my life to fighting evil. Proud I defeated Trigon.
Would she be proud I met her sister and her family? Would she have approved of me living with Alice? Growing up, the only thing Arella would say about her family is that they're bad news. I didn't know I had family alive and well on this planet for almost the entirety of my life. I have long forgiven my mother for keeping that from me. I needed to join the Titans. And I'm glad I did. I just wish it was safe enough for me to be a part of Alice and her family's life.
But where I go, trouble follows. It's better that I wiped their memories of me. I'll always have the memories of my limited time with them and I will cherish them until the day I die. Unfortunately, they'll never remember that I existed but it's safer for them this way. They are too dear to my heart to risk their lives.
I start cleaning up the small mess I've made before making my way to the shower. It's been two days since I woke up after fainting. Dick has been taking things slower with the case because he's worried for me. I can feel it through our bond. He tries to subside it but he can't hide it from me. I appreciate his concern but the sooner we figure out what the hell is going on, the better.
Jason is a different story. The lazarus pit was boiling over so I relieved him of it for the time being. He can now feel more like himself, whatever that may be. I understand the blind rage the pit fuels in him, it's similar to what flows through me. We share a piece of Trigon and always will. Albeit, I share his actual blood while he shares part of Trigon's magic. Either way, not ideal for either of us.
It's clear as day now. Since Jason and I have started sparring, I have been able to tell that he heals faster than any human I've ever met. I managed a high kick to his face during our first time on the mat. It caught him off guard, causing him to take a step back from me as I noticed a bruise starting to take form. After a couple hours, the mark was completely gone. Perks of the pit no doubt.
I wish I could help him more. I know what it feels like to have a madness in you that can feel impossible to control. It's not fun and it's awfully lonely.
A knock on my temporary bedroom door pulls me from my thoughts. I turn the hot water off and grab my towel. After doing a quick dry, I wrap it securely around me and float to the door. To my surprise it's Jason on the other side. He does a double take seeing me in my current state before acutely shifting his eyes to mine while rubbing the back of his neck. He's doing a better job at hiding his emotions.
"Can I help you?"
He clears his throat before speaking. "Dick thinks he found something. He wants us to meet him in the cave."
"Oh, then we can't keep his majesty waiting," I say, causing Jason to smile.
"No, we shan't or he may throw the royal dogs on us."
I "gasp" and dramatically place my hand on my chest in mockery. "Not the royal dogs. Whatever shall we do?"
He chuckles softly as he shakes his head. I can tell he's in a good mood today. Good, he deserves it.
"Let's go, Queen, before he finds out we've been dilly dallying."
I nod in agreement before closing my eyes and letting my magic flow through me. Small electric vibrations momentarily scale my form as my towel is replaced with my blue uniform and my damp hair is no longer wet, but dry as it falls along my back. Jason raises a brow.
"Well that's useful. Think you can teach me that trick? You never know when you might need to change quickly." He shrugs.
I snort. "Yeah, totally."
He pauses. "Wait, really?"
"No," I drawl out in my usually monotone voice, which causes him to frown. "Let's go."
"Are you sure there's not some charm you can give me that would do the same thing?"
"There is." I make my way down the hall, passing the dark antique interior with every step.
"Why do I get the feeling you're not going to give it to me?" Jason's eyes droop as his lighthearted expression turns into a frown.
"Because you know better."
"You don't like to play it fair, do you?"
"I never claimed to be fair, Jason."
I can't help but notice there are numerous paintings of what I can only assume to be the bat family. Dick hasn't found the time to explain his history with me in great detail, so I took it upon myself to do a quick google search on my phone. Batman has taken on more sidekicks than I realized. At first I only knew about Robin and it did not take long to find out who he was behind the mask. Just one horrible meeting with the Justice League and I began looking for kinder souls.
I came to him in a dream. Because my request for help was denied by earth's supposed "top heroes", it caused me to be more timid in my initial meeting with Dick. We talked many times over the course of numerous dreams. We learned a lot about one another, it's a time I'll never forget. My first friend.
Then one day in San Francisco an alien came crashing into town. Of course, I later learned her name to be Starfire and much later Koriand'r. I remember watching from the shadows as one by one a team started to take form and who was directing this team to save Starfire? Dick, or should I say Robin while wearing the mask. My friend. I recognized his presence and my body moved on its own accord as I made my way out from the shadows and into the city lights.
We had locked eyes instantly. For a fleeting moment, he was all I could focus on as everything suddenly felt so vivid and real. It didn't take much to convince me to join. Nothing felt more right.
After searching the web, it became clear that Batman was not as much of a loner as I had thought he was. Not only has he had multiple Robins but he also works in part with countless other bat themed vigilantes in Gotham. Apparently crime is something that never slows down in Gotham so a never ending family to watch over you is a must.
My attention is brought back to Jason when he continues our conversation at hand.
"I suppose not… Well, I'm in luck then because I don't like playing it fair either."
"Where are you going with this?" I stop in front of a grandfather clock that's taller than me, staring up at him with a questioning brow. What was he up to now?
"Didn't you promise Dickie that you were going to take it slow?" His smile is genuine but I can see a mischievousness glint in his eyes.
"Yes…" I answer slowly as my brain plays catch up with what he's about to insinuate.
"So wouldn't you say that flying and using magic is the opposite of taking it slow? And of course not to mention our sparring matches. I think you're still pushing yourself too much. In fact, I'm worried for you, Raven."
"Both require very little magic and need I remind you, it was your idea to spar in the first place." I rest my hand on my hip as I take in his words.
"True, but what would your dear 'ole leader think? Maybe we should consult with him about this and get his take on it. Or, I'll take one order of magic changing clothing charm please and we can forget all about this."
"You're insufferable."
"I know."
"And you're okay with that?"
"It's one of my better qualities."
"That, I actually believe."
….
"Wait, you found footage of Joker? Where is he?" Jason's body language immediately became rigid. He's trying to hide his sudden nervousness by folding his arms over his chest but my empathy doesn't miss much.
"East End of Gotham. Camera is a little unclear but it's definitely him. I'd recognize that tacky, purple suit anywhere. He was caught walking into an abandoned warehouse, there hasn't been any sign of him leaving either. But that's not the weird part."
"So what is the weird part then," I inquired.
"This," Dick gestures to the security camera on the big screen of the bat computer. "More than a hundred people were seen entering the same building throughout the night."
"So? It's not that uncommon for Joker to rally his followers."
"No, but what is uncommon is the fact that they never left."
"His followers never left the warehouse?" Weird. Why would they want to be in an abandoned building all night? What is it that we are missing?
"No, none of them did. Whoever went in there, never came out." Dick clicked away at the keyboard until the computer zoomed in on an image. "Notice anything off?"
Jason leaned forward on his hands, eyeing the image carefully. "What the hell is Joker doing with homeless people?"
"I don't know but it looks like our buddy, Eric Forrester's, intel was correct. I just didn't think it was on this scale." Dick sighs as he leans back and crosses his arms over his chest like he always does when he's in deep thought. "The weirdest part of this all is that there is no one guarding the door. I can't see one person on lookout duty. It's almost like they don't care if they get discovered anymore. But on the bright side, now that we know where they're meeting, we can infiltrate their hideout and get a better look at what's going down."
"'Bout time, I was just starting to get bored."
….
"Raven, can you sense anyone?"
"No, it's quiet. It feels empty."
"How is that possible if no one's left? Unless they went underground," Nightwing suggests.
"How about we go in and ask them? I have a way of persuasion." Red Hood cracks his knuckles to emphasize his words.
"Hm, how about not getting in over our heads? We don't know what's going on yet, we need to figure out what they're doing in there without tipping them off that we know."
"So the slower option? Got it. How do you heroes ever get anything down?"
Nightwing rolls his eyes as he starts scaling down the abandoned warehouse. I watch from my spot as he peeks in through a cracked window before looking back up at us. Within a moment, he's back on the rooftop with an incredulous look smeared across his face.
"You're right, Raven. It's empty." He's instinctively running a hand through his dark locks.
"So a hundred people just waltz in here and disappear? That's hard to believe. Let's go inside and take a better look."
"Agreed," I say as I phaze through the roof and into the building.
The inside is exactly what I expected it to look like. Scrap metals litter the ground while wires hang from the ceiling. Old newspapers and trash are scattered about. It seems the only sign of life are the spiders perched in their webs. There's no doubt in my mind that this place was once teeming with life, but now it lays empty and forgotten. At least, it should have been forgotten but last night many people entered this building and didn't leave. Why? What was their purpose and where did they go? Why was there no sign of anyone being in here?
"Are we sure we got the right place? It doesn't look like anyone has stepped foot in here in years," I hear Hood say behind me.
"We're definitely in the right place," Nightwing replies.
Took them long enough.
My feet start moving. To where, I have no idea. This place is one giant room with little to hide. The smell of mildew overwhelms my senses but I keep walking forward. There has to be a sign here, a clue and I need to find it. The floor creaks under my boots and I am half tempted to fly but decide against it in case I need to use my energy for a fight. And with how my powers have been lately, maybe playing it safe is the best option. Great, now I have Jason in my head. Sarcastic or not, he's still in my head.
A screech catches my attention as a small, black rodent runs past my feet and into a nearby hole in the wall. I tilt my head to the side as I watch it. And that's when my vision loses focus. Black webs sweep within my eyesight, I hear a low humming in the back of my head. Almost unnoticeable if it wasn't for the small vibrations cursing down my neck and into my backside. Why does it feel like little pulses of energy? It is dark and growing, seeping deeper and deeper until-
"Raven? Raven?"
"Hm?"
Nightwing's warm voice brings my attention out of my momentary stupor and up to his masked face. The crease lines on his forehead and pursed lips are an indication that he's worried. His strong emotions through our bond is an even bigger indication that he's worried for me.
"You haven't moved the last couple of minutes," he begins as he looks where my gaze wandered off to and then back to me. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine." I answer quicker than I anticipated. "This feels like a dead end though."
"Awh, where's your sense of adventure, Sunshine? We just got here, I'm sure we can find something worth our time."
I look over my shoulder to see Red Hood crouched down, looking at the floor through his white optics in hopes of finding any trace of people being here. I can still feel Nightwing's worry for me but I can't focus on that right now.
I continue to further inspect the warehouse. I can't feel anyone currently here or anyone that could potentially be hiding underground. This place is completely empty and the weirdest part is that I can't feel any lingering energy or emotions that should still be here. Something doesn't feel right about any of this.
I feel useless as I try to find anything that could lead anywhere but so far nothing looks to be out of the ordinary. People don't just disappear. Where could they have gone? Sighing in frustration, I turn on my heel, ready to leave this place behind me already. My answers are clearly not here right now.
I turn to notice both Nightwing and Red Hood placing small, black bugs around the space. Smart. If anyone comes back here, we'll immediately know. I only hope we don't have to wait long. The sooner we figure out what's going on, the sooner we'll be able to put a stop to this. I have to believe that stopping Blood will allow my powers to go back to normal, under my full control again. I need them to, if not for me, for everyone else.
"I hope these bugs find something since this was a dead end for us.
"I second that. We got what we could out of here, no point in staying around now," Hood agrees, straightening himself. "If anyone comes back, we'll know about it."
"Well, let's hope they do come back. The sooner we get them locked up, the safer Gotham will be, including ourselves." Nightwing sighed as he looked over the space one more time, feeling confident they'll catch a break. "Let's get out of here."
The younger birds fell into silence as they followed Nightwing out to the batmobile.
"What is it going to take to let me drive this time?"
"Not going to happen, Hood."
Here we go again. I couldn't stop my eye roll even if I wanted to as I opened the back seat door. This is not the first time Jason brought up driving the batmobile. I curse myself for letting Dick talk me out of opening a portal instead of driving.
"We don't even have to tell Daddy Bat's. It'll be our dirty little secret," he shrugs.
"As appealing as that sounds, I'm good," he begins as they speed off. "Besides, you really think the greatest detective in the world wouldn't know you drove his car?"
"Puh-lease, I could easily get it past Bruce." My eyes caught the shine of his red helmet as he detaches it. He looks back at me from the passenger seat and that's when I realize he's wearing a red domino mask. He points towards Nightwing with a smile. "This guy. What does he take me for?"
My only reaction is an arched brow while I take in their peculiar relationship from the back seat. Something about it was… welcoming. And warm. Refreshing. Ever since I met Dick, he's made me feel comfortable around him. It's one of the reasons we bonded so easily. But seeing him now, bickering with Jason, brought warmth to my heart.
It's nice to see him so carefree and open. He deserves that.
And while I haven't known Jason for a very long time, I can tell that he needs this just as much as Dick, if not more. A family. To know he's not alone. I know what it's like to feel lonely. After my mom died and Azarath was destroyed, I never would have thought in my wildest dreams that I would get a chance at a real family. A family worth fighting for no matter how rocky it gets.
"There's no way you could get it past him, Little Wing."
"Just because you couldn't get it past him doesn't mean I couldn't."
The tips of my lips raise into a smile as I continue to listen to their lighthearted bickering.
