I'm baaack! xD Okay, so, the next chapter is basically a part two to this one so I'll try to post it tomorrow. No promises, though haha.

Guest: Ikr? He's causing a bit more trouble before settling down too, lol.

Krumelmonster: I sent you a PM hehe but yes, he did. And yes, they are. xD Also, thankou so much! xD

Happy reading!

Rescue Me

The Changeling was on his knees with his arms pinned to his sides, immobilized by dark energy while she strutted around, casually collecting magical items. Raven decided if she couldn't get the book to summon the dead, she wanted everything else this man had ever collected. She wanted more power. She needed more power. She needed to feel safe. This brokenhearted version of her certainly wasn't White Raven; she was much more unstable and unfocused. So she would get her hands on as many magical artefacts to enhance her skills as she possibly could.

Garfield tried to shapeshift, but she didn't let him. He couldn't move either. This time she was very rested and fully charged and the confident glint in her eyes made him blush as she looked around the room encasing everything in dark energy and teleporting it back to her new home. He couldn't help but smile at her. In spite of his current vulnerable situation, he wasn't scared at all. The dark energy around him didn't hurt. It actually felt cozy, as if it was embracing him. And he knew she was making it feel like that on purpose.

"Stop smiling at me." Raven muttered.

He just widened his grin. "Did you like your Christmas gift?"

She stopped and placed one hand on her hip, facing him and smirking. "Yes, actually."

The shapeshifter's wide grin was replaced by a charming, flirtatious smile. "Good. I had to. You look so absolutely ravishing lately."

The empath rolled her eyes and went back to stealing. "Shut up."

"Are you taking everything this poor guy owns? Do you even know how all this stuff works!?" Garfield practically whined, looking around. "Don't you think this is a bit mu-Mmph!"

Raven smirked at him as his mouth was covered by a dark energy gag. It was playful and she could sense he wasn't hurt. Besides, she thought it looked cute. "I said shut up."

The Changeling narrowed his eyes. He tried to glare, but again, he was mostly turned on, so he just faked outrage as well as he could, though it seemed the more he struggled and protested the more amused she was.

"I can sense you're into it." The sorcerer said smoothly once she was done collecting everything she wanted. She walked up to him sensually and made him look up at her so she could appreciate how flushed his cheeks were. "It's getting harder to keep you from changing. Is that because of The Red?"

As soon as she removed his gag, he smiled at her. "Yep! Maybe soon you won't be able to at all!"

"Then I guess I'll just have to go back to manipulating your emotions."

Garfield stared up at her lovingly. "Or you could just ask nicely."

A mischievous smile appeared on Raven's lips and she reached out and gently ruffled his hair then grabbed it, leaning his head back a little further. She smiled wider because of how much he enjoyed her touch. "Why do you confront me one on one when you're not prepared?"

"Guess I like spending time with you more than I like winning."

That pulled at her heartstrings. Shit. Stop feeling giddy, Raven. Get it together. The empath opened her mouth to tease him further, but she sensed the other Titans were approaching. He looked sideways too, so she could tell he heard or sniffed them. "Well, our time's up. See you next time."

As soon as she disappeared and his magical restraints were gone, he lost balance and placed his hands on the floor for support, absentmindedly smiling to himself.

"Is she gone!?" Nightwing entered the room.

Garfield straightened up and cleared his throat. "Yeah. I thought you guys were supposed to wear her down."

"Sorry, she had some new tricks this time." Superboy easily leaned against the wall and smirked. "But you're not hurt, so…no harm done."

Richard glared at him. "Except she'll have a lot more new tricks soon because she took all this stuff."

Conner chuckled. "Right. Yes. Except for that."

"Besides, he could have gotten hurt." Dick frowned.

Superboy laughed breezily. "Please, she's never going to hurt him. They probably spent the whole time flirting. Look at him; he's all hot and bothered."

Garfield stood up and wiped his uniform, fully aware his cheeks were flushed and his hair was disheveled. Dick realized Conner was right and sighed as everyone else chuckled.

Ravager addressed the shapeshifter. "Are you having secret sleeping-with-the-enemy sessions?"

The Changeling huffed. Oh, I wish. "Of course not."

Rose narrowed her eyes. "I give them a month to get there."

"You're on." Damian shook her hand.

Garfield rolled his eyes, but his heart was aching. She'll never sleep with me again. That's definitely over. "You're losing money, Rose."

"We'll see." Ravager confidently folded her arms.

It hadn't been two weeks yet when the ambush happened. The Titans had been engaged in stopping a robbery. They saw a room full of hostages through the security cameras and the Changeling only shot Nightwing a quick glance to confirm he should go since he could easily get through locked doors without taking them down, which could end up hurting someone. Dick nodded at him and he broke into a sprint. But once he got to the room where they were supposed to be, it was empty.

His instincts nearly saved him, because they shouted at him to get out of there. But he could already smell it. Whatever was in the air was extremely harmful. He held his breath and started changing, but he'd already inhaled the toxic gas. It made his vision blurry, his limbs numb, his mind hazy and his powers malfunction. Fuck. Get out get out get out. His body was desperately trying to save him, shapeshifting without a clear plan as he stumbled towards the door. But it was all turning to black already. He was losing consciousness and out of time.

When he woke up, there was a bag over his head, his hands were cuffed behind his back and he could feel cold metal around his neck. He immediately tried to free himself, but if his powers had malfunctioned before, now they were completely blocked. He couldn't shapeshift at all. This isn't Raven, I can't sniff her. Who else can do this!? When they finally removed the bag from his head he blinked a few times, because it was extremely disorienting at first. Then his vision became focused again and Garfield realized he was in some kind of laboratory. And then he saw a familiar face and a greedy, wicked smile. Oh, fuck.

"Finally, we can talk alone." Lex Luthor said in a chilling, evil voice.

Raven suddenly got a terrible feeling in her gut as she felt her blood run cold. It could only mean one thing. Something awful had happened. She meditated to try and get a vision, and all she saw was him. Garfield looking scared and in pain, over and over again. The empath picked up her T-communicator, but it rang before she could call them and she felt nauseated, because she'd told the Titans to only use it for emergencies. As in, life or death emergencies. "Dick. It's Garfield, isn't it?"

"Raven." Nightwing said. "I…yes. How did you..."

"What happened? Where is he?"

"We don't know. We lost him in a mission. It was an ambush."

Her breath caught in her throat. "It wasn't us."

"I know. When you warned us about Luthor, we took some precautions. He was wearing a tracker, but…whoever took him found it and disposed of it on the street."

Raven's entire body tensed up and she clenched her jaw. "Tell me everything you know."

Garfield screamed again. He was so tired. First they took his blood, his liquor, samples of skin and saliva. Then Lex explained the collar was built for him with alien tech. He'd noticed it resembled the collar Soto had him wearing all those years ago – except it was slightly modified and much worse, because it could make him powerless. It still shot agonizing electric shocks through his body, and when it allowed him to shapeshift, it would securely adjust around him no matter what he changed into, just like Soto's. The remote never left Lex's hand.

Then the experiments started. The people in the white coats put him in a large empty room with reinforced glass and put him through every kind of situation to see what would trigger him and how, if something made him more compliant or more aggressive, if he was in control of the changes or if it was a reflex, and so on. They made him hallucinate, they nearly froze him to death, they beat him up, gave him shocks and starved him, but he refused to shapeshift. They were measuring his responses, analyzing his brain and trying to understand how it all worked and he knew whatever Lex was planning to do with all this information wasn't good. He wasn't about to let him use his gift to hurt people, so he didn't comply.

That got on Luthor's nerves a bit. He had expected him to be easier to break. So he decided to get creative and chained the Changeling to a chair. "Okay, fine. We can do this the hard way."

"What are you trying to do to me? I thought you just wanted my DNA." Garfield frowned, squirming a little at the sight of the torture tools.

"I said I'd make you my lab rat." Lex said calmly. "We are going to see how far you can go, I'll make you jump and bend and run and dance for me while I study you. And if I have to turn you into a pet and domesticate you first, so be it." He turned around with a knife in his hand and a wicked grin on his face. "You'll be loyal and obedient by the time I'm done with you. And you'll only answer to me. Then I'll use you however I want."

Garfield gulped loudly and struggled helplessly against his restraints. He desperately tried to reach out to The Red, but whatever this thing around his neck was doing it definitely emanated something that messed with his brain, because his connection to it was completely blocked. Lex Luthor started cutting him open and the shapeshifter bit his lip to avoid screaming, but the villain didn't stop. He continued slicing his chest, his stomach, his arms and his face. When he finally did scream, Lex started enjoying it even more.

"You won't be difficult to break, will you? You don't have a whole lot of willpower."

Garfield squeezed his eyes shut and remembered Raven telling him he could last longer than he imagined under torture because he was stronger than he thought. I can do this. He opened his eyes and grinned smugly at his captor. "I have more than you think."

Lex didn't like that. He gave the green boy another excruciating wave of electric shock. The shapeshifter grunted in agony as his body shook wildly. Once it stopped and he was panting heavily, Luthor sighed. "I could use your gifts so much better than you ever will. Submit to me and trust me, I'll help you do impressive things."

"I don't need you for that. I'm already impressive." Garfield smiled tiredly.

It got worse. He slept in a terribly cold cage and in chains. The next day, there were more tests, more samples and naturally, more torture.

"If you just behaved, you wouldn't have to go through this." Lex said evilly as he iron-branded his emblem on the shapeshifter's back.

Garfield's eyes rolled back in his head and his lips parted, but the pain was too excruciating to even scream. Shit. Raven is gonna be so mad. The villain stopped before he could pass out and he attempted to catch his breath. He was covered in sweat and blood and now his nostrils were contaminated with the scent of burned flesh. His burned flesh. Lex had been cutting him open and beating him up a lot in his attempts to tame him. He was cold and sore and he knew he looked awful. So he started chuckling softly, even though it sent annoying shots of sharp pain through his bruised body.

"What are you laughing at, freak?" Lex hissed.

He chuckled a little louder at that, just as Madame Rouge entered the secret lab.

"Have you tamed him already?" She asked casually before noticing the shapeshifter was laughing. "Oh, I suppose not."

Luthor pressed a knife to Garfield's neck. "I asked you a question, pet."

The Changeling swallowed and looked at his captor with an amused expression on his face. "She's going to destroy you, you know?"

The villain frowned and pulled the knife back. "What are you talking about?"

Garfield chuckled softly again. "What do you think? The witch of Siren Mansion? The destroyer of worlds? She who banished Slade to the Phantom Zone and absorbed Eclipso's ass? I'm sure you've heard of her." He realized the people in the white coats were exchanging nervous looks. "Yeah, her. She's gonna find me."

Lex scoffed. "Have I tortured you so much you forgot she hates you? She left you, idiot."

The Changeling breezily shook his head. "It doesn't matter, she'll still come. And she won't like this one bit. She'll make you pay for it." And then he definitely saw it. A glint of doubt and fear flash through his captor's eyes. "You know…for someone so smart, pissing her off is kinda dumb."

"Luthor? What is he talking about? I thought you made sure she wouldn't be a problem. Isn't that why I kissed birdie boy?" Rouge folded her arms.

Lex quickly regained his cool and collected posture and tone. "He's bluffing. She doesn't give a fuck."

"Are you sure?" The French woman pressed. "He doesn't look worried."

Garfield had a peaceful – though exhausted – smile on his face. "Personally, I think you should send me back with an apology note right now and pray for mercy. But hey, your call."

Luthor sent another electrifying shock through his body. "Maybe you need a muzzle."

The second night was even colder. His body ached so badly he couldn't even get any sleep. He started to miss things like a decent meal and a shower. Don't worry, she'll come. She'll definitely come.

"Oh my God…"

Garfield frowned at the sound of Raven's voice. That's weird. She always says Oh my Azar. He turned around too quickly and winced in pain, but she was there, with her fingers on her lips in shock and tears in her eyes. Except…he sniffed. No lavender. "You're not her."

Rouge changed back and glared at him. "Impressive."

"This collar doesn't give you control of all my powers." He said smugly. "What was the plan? To pretend she was rescuing me then break my heart?"

The French woman examined her nails. "Precisely."

Well, that's fucking cruel. His mind went back to her again, hallucinating with him saving her multiples times to then find out it wasn't real. How absolutely desperate she must have felt. "Well, you may look like her and sound like her, but you smell like decay."

Madame Rouge angrily opened her mouth to respond, but then Lex Luthor came in.

"Remarkable. Let's explore that today." He said calmly. "Let's get started, pet."

This time they chained him up to a table and Lex began by slowly burning his arm. He smiled as the shapeshifter screamed in pain.

"When will you understand I own you now?"

The Changeling panted. "What is it with you bad guys and this obsession with owning people?"

"Allow me." Rouge said evilly, pulling a knife from the torture tools. "You're clearly going too easy on him."

Garfield swallowed and braced himself. As bad as Lex was, he had a feeling Rouge could be even worse.

She lightly ran the tip of the knife up his chest and examined him intently. "Well, look at that." Madame Rouge grinned an utterly malicious grin. "You grew up nicely."

The shapeshifter didn't like the hungry eyes she was watching him with and squirmed a little, but his face showed no fear. "Yeah? You didn't. You look awful."

The vain woman's grin disappeared and she glared at him instead, quickly getting her hands on tape to harshly cover his mouth with. "Try making your little jokes now."

Yeah, that makes it harder. Since he couldn't really do anything else, Garfield just returned her glare as defiantly as he could.

And then she had a wickedly brilliant idea and turned into Raven again. "Maybe this is more to your liking." She smiled and caressed his cheek before slapping it hard. "I'm going to have so much fun playing with you."

That got to him, and he couldn't hide it. He knew she'd seen it in his eyes. And so it began. Day after day he would spend cold nights in the cage, be experimented on and tortured. They held his face under water, hung him upside down and gave him endless shocks as he still wouldn't cooperate. They also injected him with toxic substances to see how he would respond, which at one point made him end up shapeshifting against his will after all – they were beyond excited at first, but then Luthor had to stop it with his remote before Garfield tore the whole place apart. And Rouge always looked like Raven to torture him. By the end of the second week, he wasn't any more compliant. But he was much more miserable.

The villain worked on cutting the word freak into his chest with broken glass while looking like the girl he loved. "Did you really think I loved you? Look at you. You're repulsive. Who could ever love you?"

Garfield screamed into his gag as she made another deep cut. He didn't want to let it get to him. He knew it wasn't her. But the fact that she looked and sounded exactly like her just made it so much worse. Stop looking like that. Stop wearing her face. Please. He cursed internally, because he felt tears in his eyes. No, no, no. Not now.

"Awe are you going to cry?" Raven-Rouge slid a finger up his chest then held his chin in her hand so firmly he grunted in pain. "Well isn't that just-"

The villains interrupted their mockery to look around in confusion, because the lights of the lab began to flicker and the computers and equipments were turning on and off at random.

"I thought you said the power here wouldn't be affected by the rest of the building." Rouge told Luthor, becoming herself again.

"It isn't."

"Then what is that?"

Garfield was already smiling. Then a lightbulb exploded, making both villains jump. The workers were desperately trying to figure out what was going on. Both Lex and Madame Rouge stared at the Changeling quizzically when they realized he was laughing freely.

The woman removed his gag. "What are you laughing at, you idiot!?"

The Changeling grinned at them. "That would be my ex."

He was extremely amused to see color drain from both their faces and the rest of the people in the lab immediately try to run away – only to find out all the doors were locked. Lex and Rouge took a step back from him and looked around worriedly.

"You're sofucked." Garfield chuckled breezily, ignoring the pain it caused.

Madame Rouge glared daggers at Lex Luthor. "I thought you said she didn't give a fuck." She sighed when she realized he looked a bit confused. "Step aside, I'll handle her."

A dark energy bird appeared out of thin air and Raven emerged from it, floating above their heads right in front of the table Garfield was lying on. Rouge was immediately encased in a ball of dark and scarlet energy that bound her. The lights flickered faster and the lab became windy as the temperature dropped. Now the fear in Lex's eyes was obvious to anyone. Garfield grinned wider, in spite of the pain and the cold.

Her heart sank when she saw him watching her with grateful eyes. His wrists were cuffed above his head and there were chains holding the rest of his body in place. His uniform was all ripped, so she could see his green skin tainted by purple bruises and blood. There was a collar around his neck and a remote in Luthor's hand. She took in the cage on the corner, the experimental reinforced-glass room, the medical equipment and the torture tools. The empath looked at Garfield again. They'd cut the word freak into his chest. She couldn't remember being this angry since her own torture. She couldn't remember ever being this angry, since she would have switched places with him in a heartbeat to spare him from the last fifteen days.

Raven's eyes glowed red and she turned her attention to Lex Luthor as her voice gained that chilling, echoed quality. "Did I not warn you what would happen if you laid a finger on him?"

Lay a finger on him and die. He definitely remembered. "I-I…no, you don't understand, Raven. T-this isn't…I thought-Mmphh!"

The gag they had been using on Garfield was suddenly securely tied around Luthor's face and he was hopelessly trying to remove it. The shapeshifter chuckled happily.

"Silence." The sorcerer stretched her arms out and every single person in a white coat, not to mention a now drained Rouge and Lex himself, had their legs and arms wrapped by dark tentacles that pulled them down, forcing them to their knees and binding them. Raven lowered her body to the floor and approached the woman first. She touched her head and looked through her latest memories, making her scream. First she saw her manipulate Dick and then she saw her torture Garfield, all while wearing Raven's face. "You turned into me to torture him?"

Madame Rouge's eyes widened and she tried to make her body stretch in any way that could release her, but the dark energy tentacles just held on tighter. "Wait! I'm sorry. I can help you. I'll be on your side, you can trust me."

"I'll be the judge of that." The empath squatted and placed her other hand over Rouge's chest, making her scream again. After several seconds, her glowing eyes focused on the woman's face. "Rotten."

The villain's eyes filled with fear. "Are you going to enslave me?"

"No. You don't get to live."

Rouge despaired and struggled against her restraints. "What!?"

"What made you think you could touch him!?" Raven's glow burned brighter.

Garfield's eyes grew huge. When she used the same words he said to Adonis before killing him, he knew what it meant. The villain seemed to know it too.

"No, wait! Fuck! Please!" Rouge begged, but there was no real repentance or sincerity in it.

The white glow emerging from the empath's hands entered her body and destroyed everything vile it found inside, which meant there simply wasn't enough left in the end, and Madame Rouge's limp body fell lifeless to the floor.

It all happened so fast and Beast Boy was still shocked. Fuck. She killed her. She really killed her. He wondered what was wrong with him, because as dark as Raven killing for him was, it still made his heart skip a beat. But he didn't want her to regret going too far and suffer for it later. Or worsen her afterlife odds even further. Rouge was a powerful monster, but Lex was just a bad person.

Lex Luthor's eyes were enormous as he watched his partner die. He struggled desperately against the tentacles and muffled cries escaped his lips until the sorcerer removed his gag and he looked up at her. She was not amused. "I'll never touch him again, I swear!"

Raven smiled wickedly and looked through his memories as well. Watching him torture Garfield sent her over the edge again and she furiously lifted him by an invisible grip around his throat. The villain's body shook violently while he suffocated.

"Rae, don't kill him." The Changeling's hoarse, tired voice pleaded. "Conner…"

Lex saw a tiny frown appear on her forehead and she immediately dropped him on the floor. He desperately gasped for air and he could tell she was hovering over him and he wasn't quite safe yet. He knew she wasn't done.

"Intelligence is power, Luthor. You've always known that." Raven said coldly. She was grateful for Garfield's intervention, but that didn't mean she was letting him get away with it. "But do you know what's even better?" Her hands glowed brightly in a mixture of dark, scarlet and bright yellow energies when he finally looked up at her. "Actual power."

He screamed when her incredible magical whirlwind involved him, shifting his form into something else entirely. The pain from his bones shrinking and changing was excruciating, but it was over reasonably fast. And then he realized what she'd done. This fucking demon witch.

Raven placed her hands on her hips and stared down at him. "Now you're the pet."

The Changeling laughed as loudly as he could in his current state, because she had just turned Lex Luthor into a small and harmless dog.

"You'll stay cursed until you've truly repented in your heart. Then you can be human again." The empath said plainly, allowing the lights to stop flickering and the wind to cease, the room temperature to rise again and her eyes to finally stop glowing. She turned to the now more-terrified-than-ever workers still bound to the floor. "I have memorized all your faces. Fix your lives or I'll come for you."

They nodded aggressively in agreement.

"Ten minutes of nonstop nightmares seems like a merciful punishment for you for now." She said, stretching her arms out again. "Next time, I won't be so nice." And then she put them all to sleep and turned to the green boy bound to the table.

His heart fluttered recklessly when she looked at him, because her face immediately softened when she rushed to his side and her eyes looked him up and down, filled with hurt, concern and tears.

"Shit. What did they…shit." Raven whispered.

Garfield smiled breezily at her. "I knew you'd come. Thanks for the rescue, love."

The sorcerer focused on his face. She fought back the tears and did her best to smile slightly at him. "I told you I'll always rescue you. Sorry it took so long. I had to find the right brains to dig through to get close enough to sense you."

I told you I'll always rescue you, she said. And she let me call her love. That gave him wild butterflies. "Are you kidding me?" I took eight months to save you. "You're a sight and just in time. Also, didn't I tell you to never apologize to me about anything ever again?"

Raven rolled her eyes fondly. "Well…sorry to tell you, but…you're not going back to Titan Tower yet."

Please say that means you're taking me to Siren Mansion. I want to be around you so badly right now. "Okay…"

The empath awkwardly held out his collar's remote. "The Sirens know I'm rescuing you. If we don't at least get ransom money, I'll never hear the end of it."

The Changeling's smile widened a bit. "So I'm your prisoner now?"

She was getting butterflies too because of the feelings emanating from him. He's not scared or upset. He's actually kind of excited. "Well…yes."

"I'm very okay with that." Garfield sighed contently, closing his eyes.

"It will give me a chance to heal you too."

Well, this just gets better and better. He grinned, keeping his eyes closed. "That sounds heavenly. But…not tonight. Recharge first. I don't want to hurt you."

"Don't worry, I'll take it slow." Raven broke his chains with dark energy, including the one keeping his arms above his head. She gently brought them down, resting his cuffed hands on his stomach. "I'm going to teleport you as smoothly as I can, okay?"

His grin got all cheeky and playful. "Yes, my queen."

She rolled her eyes and blushed a little, making his heart race. Then she carefully enveloped his body with dark energy and floated him into the air slightly, touching his chest and his knees as they were both teleported to the entrance hall of Siren Mansion, with Garfield lying on the couch. He relished in the sensation of lying on something soft for a change.

"She's back! And she found him!" Harley cheered excitedly, rushing to their side. "Wow, they really tortured you, huh?"

Catwoman and Poison Ivy came up behind her. They grimaced a little at his state, but the blonde's eyes were glistening. She had a soft spot for torture.

"Is that a collar!? That is so cool!" Harley Quinn hugged Raven. "Is he our pet now!?"

The Changeling bit his lip and watched the empath as she rubbed her temples. He was feeling a bit exposed and slightly in danger now.

"No, Harley, you can't play with him." Raven said plainly. "Look. I only wanted to show you I brought him back and-"

"Won't he change?" Selina frowned.

"No, the collar won't let him." The sorcerer answered.

"So where are we keeping him?" Catwoman asked.

"My room. He's staying in my room." Raven ignored the overwhelming excitement and gratitude that poured out of him for that. "In fact, I'll be taking him there now."

"Your room? You're keeping the Titan prisoner in your room?" Selina raised an eyebrow.

Harley's eyes were still eagerly eyeing his collar. "Are you going to play with him?"

Poison Ivy folded her arms and smirked. "What are you doing with him in there?"

The empath turned around to face them. "Whatever the fuck I want." She said pointedly. "He's not our prisoner. He's my prisoner. And I'll do whatever I want wherever I want with him. Is that clear?"

Garfield's cheeks burned. Why is that so hot? He knew exactly why. She was protecting him.

Harley giggled hysterically. "Crystal clear! You don't like sharing, got it! Have fun!"

Selina playfully put her hands up in the air. "Forget I said anything."

"Just don't set him free." Pamela said pointedly.

"I won't. Your job is to ask Nightwing for ransom money. However much you think it's fair. Batman will pay for it." Raven concluded. "Now, if you'll excuse me…"

She teleported them one more time and this time, Garfield found himself lying on her bed inside her room. He looked around and noticed how similar it was to her room back in Titan Tower. He also noticed Michelangelo on a chair beside her bed and his heart soared. Then he smiled as Salem climbed onto the bed and rubbed against him.

"Sorry about that. I just needed them to see I brought you back." The empath spoke from the bathroom.

"Don't apologize to me, remember? Ever."

She came into the room again and rolled her eyes. "I never agreed to that."

"I know but…you should." The shapeshifter said quietly. "Also…I don't know how much money Dick will be willing to pay for me now." He chuckled softly. "He kinda hates me since you left."

Raven gently enveloped him in dark energy again and floated him towards the bathroom. "I doubt that."

The Changeling stared at her blissfully as she lowered him to an empty bathtub. I could use a bath. "Really?"

"You can't sleep on my bed smelling like that."

And then she took her time cleaning him up. She washed his sweaty hair first, massaging his scalp. Garfield practically moaned at the sensation and his heart ached in a wonderful way for once. Then Raven gently wiped his face with a wet cloth and washed the blood and sweat off his body with warm water. He closed his eyes and winced in pain every now and then, but mostly he felt warm and fuzzy and fully enjoyed every second of being touched by her again. She's being so kind. I miss her kindness so much. The shapeshifter noticed her eyes were welling up too. "Remember when I did this for you?"

"Of course I remember. I was much filthier than you." The empath chuckled softly, starting to carefully dry him off.

"Because you were gone and tortured for much longer." He looked into her eyes. "I wish I could have saved you as fast as you saved me."

She smiled sadly. "That doesn't matter. All that matters is we're both safe."

Raven wrapped him in her fluffy robe – the same one he and Kory wrapped her in when she was hurt – and floated him back to bed because she didn't want him spending energy trying to walk yet. Then she sat down next to him and frowned, examining his exposed, wounded chest.

"Don't."

The sorcerer looked up at his face. "What?"

"Don't heal me now. I know you're thinking it."

Her eyes widened slightly because she really was thinking it. So she pulled the covers over him instead, which he gratefully grabbed with his cuffed hands to pull closer, sighing contently and closing his eyes. Raven tried to ignore his cuteness and went behind a curtain to change into her sleeping clothes – black shorts and a loose gray t-shirt.

"Will it be too weird if I lie there with you?"

Garfield's eyes shot open. She wants to share the bed with me!? Okay, keep it cool. Play it cool. "Of course not. It's your bed."

She hesitated when she sensed his infatuation with her, but the truth was seeing him like this was killing her. She needed to be close to him, hold him and make him feel better, at least until she could finish healing him. It didn't matter what he did, she would still want to take care of him in this state. So the empath lay down on her side next to him. The Changeling was lying on his back and staring at her room's ceiling, trying not to let her sense how nervous he was.

Raven brought a finger to the giant, deep cut on his cheek. She could tell it was extremely painful and it made him wince and grimace a bit every time he spoke or smiled. And he loved to speak and smile. "Just this one." She whispered.

Garfield's eyes focused on her as her fingertip glowed white and delicately traced the agonizing cut on his cheek, healing it and leaving nothing but a light scar behind. It felt amazing and he wasn't sure which was better: her gentle touch or the soothing healing magic. "I…thank you."

She smiled slightly at him. "How are Dick and Kory?"

"Oh, she's making out with Conner now." When he saw the sorcerer frown questioningly, he chuckled lightly. It was much easier without that painful cut on his face. "I know."

Raven's frown softened. "I guess that makes sense. He doesn't mind being a rebound and Kor probably thinks she needs one right now."

The shapeshifter bit his lip. "Dick's worried, though. That she'll fall for him."

"Well…I guess that's possible…he's actually not that bad and they have a lot in common. But…" Her line of thought was interrupted by a wave of fresh heartache and jealousy. She sighed tiredly. "Seriously? Still with the Conner thing?"

"I…no." Garfield felt rather embarrassed about this particular emotion now. "I'm sorry, it's not him. It's just that…what you said got me thinking of…well…"

"Oh. Klarion?"

He nodded slowly. "Yeah I mean, you have a lot in common too. Maybe he's not just a rebound. And I know that's my own fault and I…well, I have no right to feel jealous, I know that. But I still do. But I won't act on it, I promise."

He's being sincere. That's kinda mature. She rolled her eyes. "I'm not in love with Klarion, Gar."

Oh, thank God. The Changeling exhaled and smiled. "He's in love with you, though. Not that I blame him."

Raven huffed softly. "More like obsessed with me. It's psycho love, but…he's loyal."

Garfield opened his mouth to say you deserve better but then he realized that he was supposed to be better and he hurt her more than Klarion ever would.

"What about you?" She asked quietly. "You like someone, don't you? You're not all over scandals and orgies anymore; someone's caught your eye. You can tell me, I won't curse her." Raven chuckled, doing a marvelous job at hiding how much she was dreading his answer.

The Changeling looked at her and desperately tried to read her enigmatic face, but he had no idea what she was feeling. "There's no one."

"Really? No one?" The empath narrowed her eyes. He was emanating sincerity, but it just sounded so unlikely to her.

He chuckled at how skeptical she looked. "C'mon Rae, who's gonna follow you? No, I'm not into anyone, I'm just trying to be healthier and all that so I quit the meaningless sex."

She blinked. Thank Azar. "Oh. That's good, I guess. The trying to be healthier part, I mean."

The sorcerer suddenly inhaled deeply, because his cuffed hands were by her shoulder and his fingers were playing with a lock of her hair.

"Hey, is your hair a little longer?" Garfield asked while admiring the purple lock between his fingers, absolutely distracted by it.

Raven relaxed and smiled slightly. "Mhm. A little. So…you're really not scared of me."

He frowned. "Why would I be- ohh, you mean for getting all intense when you rescued me?" When she just nodded at him with soulful eyes, he smiled cheekily. "Nope. It was sexy."

She turned her face and chuckled against the pillow. "You're insane. I killed someone."

Garfield's heart warmed up at the sound of her chuckling this freely again. "Not someone. Rouge. Don't shed a tear for her, Rae. I mean it. You saved me. You pulled me out of Hell again." He said quietly but sincerely while looking into her eyes. "Thank you."

"Don't mention it." The empath closed her eyes and sighed peacefully.

"Rae? Don't you need your crystal to sleep? The nightmare…"

"Not since the bunker." She muttered. Not since you were selfless and kind to me again.

He smiled truthfully at that. Did I have anything to do with…no, probably not. Just thank God she's not going through that anymore. "Oh, good. Better than good. Awesome."

Raven smiled softly and rested an arm across his chest over the covers. Salem cuddled between them. "'Night, Gar."

Garfield's chest ached and his heart wanted to soar freely. He had to contain his bliss. She's only doing this because you're hurt. Enjoy it because it will be over soon. "'Night, Rae."

The next morning, he woke up alone and figured she was out doing villainous things already. The shapeshifter struggled to sit up and groaned in pain. Great. Now what am I gonna do all day? He looked around and thought about trying to find something he could steal before going back just so Dick didn't give him as much of a hard time, but then he smelled something that made his stomach roar greedily. Is that what I think it is!? Garfield was practically drooling when she opened the door carrying a plate full of vegan pancakes and a bottle of water.

He stared at her with wide eyes and a huge grin. "No fucking way!"

Raven rolled her eyes and placed the plate and the bottle in front of him on the bed. Her heart broke again when she saw his black eye and the cuts on his chest partially showing, though her robe was still hiding most of the damage.

Garfield put his cuffed hands up in the air and looked at her. "Are you taking these off me?"

She leaned against the wall and folded her arms. "Of course not. You can eat with those on. In fact, I'm cuffing you to the bed when you're done."

He pouted. "Seriously? Isn't this freaking collar enough? It's not like I'm going to escape with no powers and a bruised body." Regardless, the shapeshifter started devouring the pancakes at once because they smelled delicious and he was really hungry. He closed his eyes and hummed in satisfaction, because they tasted as amazing as he remembered. It was so good he thought he might cry. "Who says I even want to escape?"

Raven grimaced. "Still talking with your mouth full?"

Garfield chuckled. "C'mon I was tortured and the food was awful and this is really good, give me a break."

"Fair enough. Anyway, you might not escape but you'll look through my magic books and try something stupid." She said stoically while watching him eat. "You'll probably end up summoning Lucifer by accident and then I'll have to save your ass again."

The Changeling swallowed his last mouthful and smiled light-heartedly. "Mmm…that does sound like something I would do."

The empath smirked. "Besides…maybe I think those look cute on you."

He froze. There it is. That flirty voice. He glanced at her to confirm it and she was definitely eyeing him sensually. It made his cheeks turn pink and his heart race. He got so flustered he couldn't think of a witty comeback as she smiled confidently and walked up to him, summoning a laptop on her hands.

"I have to work. I'll be back as soon as I can. What do you want to watch?"

Garfield shot her a toothy grin. "Clash of the Planets!"

Raven couldn't help but smile fondly at him. She cuffed his hands to the headboard above his head and placed pillows under him for support so he could see the laptop playing a marathon of Clash of the Planets on the table by the end of the bed. "Comfortable?"

Yes, actually. "Well, I'd be more comfortable without these handcuffs and this collar and-"

"Too bad. This isn't a resort." She placed her hands on her hips and raised an eyebrow.

The shapeshifter smiled up at her. "I'm comfortable. But…what if some other villainous person comes in and finds me like this?"

"I cast a spell weeks ago. No one comes in without my permission, don't worry."

"But what if you don't come back for lunch!?"

"You'll just eat when I come back. You'll live."

He whined playfully. "Fiiine. But just so you know, I wouldn't try to escape." Like I'd pass on the chance to spend time with you. I miss you so much. So freaking much.

"Sure. I'll start healing you later, okay? I promise."

"Only if it won't hurt you." Garfield said sincerely.

"I mean, we negotiated trading you on Friday so I have to get started, there's a lot to heal."

He grinned widely. That's two more nights of Raven! He could tell she was confused about his emotions because she quizzically tilted her head to the side. "Well, you don't have to heal me at all. You already saved me, so don't worry."

"Yes, well, I'm still doing it." The sorcerer said as she walked to the door. "See you later."

"I'll be right here. Not going anywhere." Garfield joked. When she chuckled softly, he decided to make another joke. "Don't kill anyone at work today, love!" Shit. Was that offensive!? His entire body tensed up.

Raven rolled her eyes playfully. "No promises."

The Changeling exhaled in relief and turned to watch the movie.

Several hours later, the empath came back with vegan pizza and more water. "Sorry, that took a lot longer than I thought it would."

"Is everything okay!? Are you okay!?" He turned his head as much as he could to look at her. Hungry as he was, he was mostly concerned.

Raven smiled softly and released his hands from the headboard, keeping them cuffed to each other. She put the pizza on his lap and the water in front of him. "It's handled. And I'm okay. Just…tired."

Garfield attacked the food as soon as he realized she really was okay. Fuck, it's so good. He beamed at her. "Thank you."

She opened her mouth to say something, but her T-communicator rang. She picked it up.

"It's Dick. Don't speak unless I tell you to speak." The empath instructed firmly.

Her commanding voice sent shivers down his spine. "I love it when you're bossy."

Raven rolled her eyes and answered her communicator. "Yes, Nightwing?"

"Raven, what the fuck?"

The empath smirked. "What?"

"You're asking for a lot of money."

She fought back a smile when Garfield raised his eyebrows at her in a way that clearly meant I told you so. "I mean, I did all the work."

Richard sighed. "Right. Well, thank you. Is he okay?"

"Not really but that's not my fault. That was Luthor, Rouge and the creepy scientists."

"Raven!?" Cyborg spoke into the communicator. "Is it bad? How hurt is he? Can I talk to him?"

"It's bad, Vic. But I'll heal as much as I can before he goes back. And no, you can't."

"Why not?!"

She ignored Garfield's pleading eyes. "Because I had a long day and I don't want to hear a two-hour-long conversation about whatever geeky thing you two are currently into."

Damian took the communicator and chuckled. "None of us do. By the way, what happened? Did you capture Rouge? What about Luthor? My brilliant brother forgot to ask. Are we supposed to pay for them too or are they brainless and working for you now?"

Raven bit her lip. "Well, I…I might have sort of…killed Rouge."

"Sick." Damian said pointedly before protesting as someone obviously snatched the communicator out of his hand.

"You killed Rouge?" Nightwing asked in a concerned voice.

"It was an accident."

"Oh. What happened?"

"I got angry."

Dick sighed. "Raven…"

"I only destroyed the evil, rotten parts of her soul. It's not my fault there was nothing left."

"I mean, she has a point there." Rose said in the back.

Another tired sigh from Nightwing. "What about Lex?"

"Close. But no. Garfield got me thinking of Conner and I stopped."

There were several seconds of silence on the other side.

"Thank you. To both of you. I wouldn't have blamed you, but…thank you." Superboy said quietly. "So where is he now?"

"Please let me tell them!" The shapeshifter whispered urgently, reaching for the communicator, but the empath shook her head and pulled it away from his reach.

Raven cleared her throat. "I turned him into a dog."

Several seconds of silence passed once again.

"You did what!?" Nightwing finally asked as loud gasps and muffled laughter could be heard in the back.

"I just cursed him a little. Don't worry, he can turn human again. He just needs to genuinely repent. It's entirely up to him." The sorcerer smirked, shooting Garfield an amused smile. He was beaming at her.

"Oh! You're just like the sorcerer in Beauty and the Beast!" Starfire squealed.

"Well, I'm nicer than her. He doesn't need someone to love him; he just needs a change of heart. Besides, I turned him into a dog, not a monster. But…yes, kind of."

There was soft chuckling on the other side.

"Raven?" Nightwing said seriously. "I know they're laughing, but…listen, you know I trust you. But I find all of it a little alarming."

"Okay, but Dick, you didn't see what they were doing to him." Raven matched his serious tone. "It's a miracle I didn't hurt the workers. I just threatened them and gave them bad dreams."

"See? That sounds merciful." Kory said in the back.

"I…was it that bad?" Richard asked quietly.

"Worse."

Nightwing's voice gained a more severe, judgmental quality. "And then you decided to keep him prisoner too?"

"That's completely different." Raven answered, rolling her eyes at an amused Garfield eating pizza in front of her. "He's ridiculously comfortable, trust me."

"Well, that…" Dick cleared his throat. "What if we don't pay? Then what? We know you're not killing him."

"Why would I kill him? I simply won't give him back." She smiled at the way that made the shapeshifter's cheeks blush.

"…you can't keep him there forever." Nightwing stated almost questioningly.

"Sure I can. I can control him without wasting my powers now. I borrowed Luthor's tech, there's a collar and a remote. So pay up or you might have to fight him next time we meet." The empath hung up and then addressed a now slightly scared Garfield. "Don't worry, I'm not really going to do that."

He immediately relaxed and chuckled. Of course she's not. She's my Rae. "I told you he wouldn't want to pay."

"He might not want to but he's going to."

Just a few minutes later, Raven was helping him sit up on the bed and sitting behind him, pulling the robe down to his waist. Garfield's heart accelerated wildly at first, but then he felt a blissful, warm sensation and a soft moan of contentment escaped his lips.

"Wait…don't." The Changeling whispered as soon as he realized she was healing the wounds on his back. She's tired. She said she's tired.

"Don't argue with me." She said plainly, continuing to heal him as he reluctantly went quiet.

Once the empath was done, she helped him lie on his back and lay on her side next to him again, propping herself up on one elbow and frowning at his wounded and bruised chest, wondering where to even begin. Finally, she decided to start by getting rid of the word freak and placed her hand over the deep cuts, allowing her magic to soothe his pain.

The shapeshifter felt absolutely amazing, but he noticed the small frown on her forehead, so he gently grabbed her wrist with his cuffed hands and whispered pleadingly. "Please, stop."

Raven sighed. "Garfield. I want to heal you. Don't you…don't you want me to?"

He realized she sounded a little hurt. "Oh, no, wait, that's not what I meant! Of course I want it. I want it so badly, it's just…well, I just don't want to hurt you." His voice got smaller and smaller and his eyes suddenly welled up. "I don't want to hurt you anymore. I…I've hurt you so much already."

Oh, shit. She had nearly forgotten her heartache – not really, because she couldn't possibly forget, but it was nice to pretend it wasn't there. Now her bruised heart was all painful again and she swiftly sat up and looked away from him, pulling her knees to her chest. "We don't need to talk about that."

Man up and do it. This is your only chance to tell her. "No, listen, Rae…"

"No, please." The sorcerer whispered. "I don't want to talk about it." I just want to heal you and sleep next to you and then smell your scent on my bed for a week.

"Okay, we don't have to. But I…I just need to tell you something. Please. And then we never have to talk about it again if you don't want to."

Raven took a sharp intake of breath. He means that. But what else is there to say about it? "…I'm listening."

Okay. Let's do this. "I am…sosorry."

He'd said it before, obviously. Several times. But this time sounded different. His voice was dripping with emotion and it wasn't eager or pleading. He wasn't expecting anything, he was just being sincere. She hugged her knees a little tighter.

"I know I've said it before, but…you were right. I didn't get it then. I do now. I get what I did to you. I get why you can never forgive me. I don't want forgiveness anymore…I just want you to know how sorry I am." It came out a lot more choked up than he meant to, but he managed to keep his emotions under control so he didn't hit her with an overwhelming wave of heartache that would only hurt her further.

"…oh." Raven exhaled softly.

Garfield took a deep breath and spoke quietly so his voice wouldn't crack. "You see, I thought that…putting it in more mundane terms, I thought that what I did was like…if you got a really amazing job opportunity on the other side of the world and I couldn't follow you so I stopped you from going. Which…I mean, it's bad. But…that wasn't it, was it? It was more like…if you lived with some chronic,painful illness…" He took another deep and shaky breath to avoid choking up. "…and then suddenly there was a cure on the other side of the world and…and then I stopped you from going because I couldn't follow." A strangled sob escaped the shapeshifter's lips. "And I…I can't take it back…I wish I could."

She squeezed her eyes shut and grabbed her chest for comfort. Shit. That's exactly what it feels like. "Well, I…yes. But I…I told you that."

"You did, I know you did. But I didn't listen. Not really. I didn't want to listen. But I…you have no idea. I'll be sorry forever. I was supposed to take care of you and I did the opposite."

Raven had a feeling he was keeping his emotions in check so they didn't overwhelm her. But his words alone could have done that, so the ground shook and the lights flickered. It was the first time he actually owned up to it and she wasn't expecting it. She wasn't expecting it to ever happen. So she needed a few deep breaths to calm down before she wiped away the silent tears that had rolled down her cheeks and turned around to look at him again. He was crying softly. Why do I want to forgive him so bad? The sorcerer frowned and swallowed. "What changed? Where is all this coming from?"

The Changeling shot her a sad half-smile. "I mean, therapy helped."

She let out a small, soft chuckle. "You're going to therapy?"

"Twice a week." He shrugged. "You told me I should figure out why I did it, so…"

Raven resumed her previous position beside him. "…did you?" He looks so vulnerable and he's being so sincere. I just want to kiss him.

Garfield nodded and inhaled, staring into her eyes. She lay next to me again. I can't believe this is happening. "It really wasn't about how I felt about you, Rae. I swear that was the purest part of me. It was about how I felt about myself. I just couldn't truly believe you loved me because I didn't feel worthy of you. I was constantly scared you'd fall out of love with me or just find someone better. And when you…well, I couldn't believe that you'd come back. I thought you'd forget me if you went – which is no excuse, obviously. I should have let you go either way, I just…I felt worthless without you and I was selfish."

I know that's how you felt. I hate that that's how you felt. "Do you still feel worthless?" She whispered softly, removing hair from his forehead.

The Changeling sighed and closed his eyes, enjoying her tenderness. "No. I actually like who I am. I mean, most of the time. I despise myself when I think about what I did to you, but I can't change that now so I'm just trying to be better. I definitely don't feel worthless anymore. But…I'd be lying if I said I feel like I was worthy of you at any point. I still don't know what you saw in me."

Raven huffed and rolled her eyes.

He opened his eyes and frowned. "You're annoyed. What did I say?"

"I mean, it's just that…I'm really glad you like yourself and you don't feel worthless. I'm glad you're connecting to The Red. I am. I'm so proud of you." She told him sincerely, trying to ignore the surprise and absolute delight pouring out of him at her words. "But…still with the pity party. You keep talking as if you were the only one with insecurities. I mean, don't you think I felt that way too?"

Wait, what? She couldn't possibly feel unworthy of ME, right? "I…what do you mean?"

The empath sat up and looked away again, because if she looked at his wounded face she would back off and she did want to address this part. "I mean, don't you think I was extremely jealous whenever someone more fun or perkier smiled at you? Don't you think I was constantly afraid you'd wake up from your dark-girl phase to find out all the things you found exciting about me just seemed boring?" She didn't turn around, but she could sense absolute shock emanating from him. "Well, I did. I just didn't want to let it affect you."

Garfield lightly touched her elbow with his fingertips. "You're right." When she turned to him again, he stared into her eyes. "I don't need to get why you loved me. I know you did. You loved me so much and so purely and truthfully. I see that now." His eyes welled up again. "And I know it's too late and…well, I'm sorry. I wish..."

Her face immediately softened and her bruised heart started healing without her permission again. Shit, I wasn't expecting him to be mature all of a sudden. Raven lay down again, but this time she cuddled up to him. "I'm still going to heal you, you know?"

Garfield smiled and puffed his chest a little, trying to contain his bliss. She was pressed against him and he could feel her warmth. "Just promise me you'll stop if it hurts. Please."

The empath nodded and her hand glowed white. She rested her chin on his shoulder as she went back to healing his chest. I'll just heal him until I'm completely exhausted and then fall asleep. "You know, I never got why you loved me either." She whispered. When he stared at her with wide eyes, she smiled tiredly and continued. "And I definitely didn't feel worthy of you. Maybe that's normal. I mean, I tried to be, but…my love was so…limited. I'm sorry you felt like I'd forget you if I left. I wouldn't. I would have come back to you as soon as I could."

Holy fucking shit, is she serious!? "I know that. It's not your fault I didn't believe you. Rae, look at me." He waited until she locked eyes with him. "I lost you, but you'll always be the love of my life, okay? Your love…limited or not, it was the most blissful thing I've ever experienced and will ever experience. I'm just so sorry I wasn't ready for it."

Shit. I think maybe I…do I forgive him? Raven inhaled deeply and moved on to a different wound. "Thank you for saying all of this. It means a lot to me."

"It's too little too late, but I'm glad it meant something." Garfield said, now fully enjoying the warm and wonderful sensation of her soothing magic. He'd missed it so much. And she was gently touching his chest and arms as she healed most of the bigger bruises and deeper cuts and burn marks, and it felt absolutely heavenly. And then she started nuzzling his shoulder as she did it. His eyes widened and his chest burned at the intimacy and he took the chance to turn his head and inhale her hair's scent – it brought happy tears to his eyes.

Raven had been hiding her face on his shoulder so he couldn't tell she was hurting, because she wanted to ease as much of his pain as she could before they fell asleep. But eventually, she grunted in pain and panted, and then his cuffed hands gently grasped her wrist to keep her glowing hand from repairing more damage.

"Please, stop. Please, love…" The shapeshifter whispered sweetly, massaging her wrist with his thumbs.

The sorcerer smiled slightly, keeping her eyes closed, feeling so tired she almost felt slightly drunk. She nodded in agreement and the glow died out. He let go of her hand and she rested it on his chest, nuzzling his shoulder again.

The Changeling's heart swelled with affection and he smiled lovingly, watching her. "This isn't how you treat all your prisoners, right?"

Salem once again climbed onto her bed to snuggle up between them.

Raven sighed contently against his shoulder. How dare he heal my heart like this? "No, you're special…" She said groggily before drifting off to sleep.

Garfield's heart skipped a beat and he beamed at her sleeping face. "'Night, Rae…"

Rescue Me (OneRepublic)