Guys! Thank you so much for the new favs/follows! Sometimes I feel like there's nothing but bots left here but then you make me realize there's someone still reading lol
Anyway happy reading! xD
Thank You
Raven decided to go all out for once. Not because she suddenly loved red carpet events or the spotlight, but because she would have a baby bump soon and then she wouldn't attend any of these anymore – since the Titans had all decided to keep her pregnancy a secret so villains wouldn't find out – and because it was the first time she and Gar attended one as a couple, and he was ecstatic about it. She thought blowing his mind would be…fun.
It worked a little better than she'd expected. It didn't just blow his mind, it blew everyone's. She was turning heads and taking breaths away left and right. It was nearly uncomfortable and she wondered if this is how Starfire feels all the time – though at least Kory isn't an empath and doesn't need to sense people's emotions. Still, his reaction made it absolutely worth it.
Gar had taken a sudden intake of breath and held it in, jaw dropping and eyes growing huge as soon as he saw her. He'd stuttered some gibberish while his friends whistled at his girlfriend and she rolled her eyes, shooting him a tiny, perfect smile. And even now, as they got their picture taken, he couldn't get used to it. His heart stopped every time he glanced at her and the shapeshifter had yet to elaborate coherent words to compliment her, but she knew. She could obviously sense how nervous and infatuated he was from the second he laid eyes on her. It was probably why she looked so amused.
She was always beautiful to him, but this was different. This was dangerously sexy. This was some peak Queen of the Underworld shit. Her silky purple hair was pulled up into a braided hairstyle, with perfectly placed loose locks escaping and framing her soft face, which was painted to perfection with those dark, smokey eyes and those full lips. Lips that only he got to kiss.
And then there was that dress. He'd seen her in fancy dresses a few times now, but this black dress was on a whole new level. The deep V-neckline went all the way down to her belly button and her back was entirely exposed. There were black feathers carefully crafted into the straps on her shoulders, giving it a majestic look, along the neckline and scattered across the flowy long skirt in a way that definitely resembled a raven. It was the most skin she'd ever shown in public and yet it was irresistibly elegant. It was the most stunning, boldest thing she had ever worn. And it certainly wasn't going unnoticed.
The Changeling proudly wrapped his arm around her waist to get their picture taken and thanked every force in the Multiverse for having learned to trust her as much as he did now, because if not, watching her get this much attention would be torture. It usually took people a double take to notice Raven next to Starfire, but not tonight. Fortunately, he trusted her endlessly and could properly enjoy this.
"You're so breathtaking I'm a little self-conscious about having you in my arms tonight." He whispered in her ear.
Raven smiled fondly. "Don't be silly." She looked him up and down, taking in how wonderfully, devilishly handsome he was, and her smile got flirtier. "You know it's always been your arms or nothing for me, right?"
His lips spread into a wide, toothy, proud grin. What do I even say to THAT? "I love y-"
"Excuse me, may I have a word?" An eager reporter approached them.
Garfield didn't really want to be giving interviews right now, but it seemed rude to turn him down since they were doing a rather public appearance in this event. "Sure."
"Thank you. You both look amazing, by the way. Raven, that dress is standout. Stunning."
She just offered him a polite slight smile and a nod.
"Yeah she's pretty perfect, isn't she?" The shapeshifter said merrily, staring lovingly at Raven and making her roll her eyes.
The reporter nodded and smiled. "You know, I have to say, we're all incredibly happy you took her back, Changeling. So, what convinced you? Did it happen right away when she rejoined the Titans?" He placed the microphone in front of Garfield's face.
Raven tilted her head to the side and repressed a grin, watching her boyfriend with an utterly amused expression on her face while he glanced at her uncomfortably.
The shapeshifter realized she would be fine with whatever made up answer he gave the press about this, so he shot her an affectionate look and turned to the reporter again. It's about time I clear this up. "Actually…she took me back."
He could feel Raven's body stiffen slightly as her amused expression was replaced by a worried one, so he wrapped a reassuring arm around her waist.
"Oh?" The reporter said, genuinely confused. "I thought your breakup was due to…" He turned to Raven. "…with all the respect, your turn to the dark side?"
"Yeah no, it was the other way around." Garfield stated. "She had a rough time because of something I did, and that was the real reason we broke up."
The man continued holding the microphone to his face, more interested than ever.
But Raven didn't want the world to turn on him. He'd come a long way, but she was still better at not caring about the general audience's opinion. Besides, it was personal, hurtful and private. She didn't want the world to know about the most heartbreaking moment of her existence. So she urgently touched his shoulder. "Gar, I don't want everyone to-"
"I know." He smiled easily at her before turning back to the reporter. "Listen, all you need to know is I messed up in an epically monstrous way and I'm so lucky she found it in her to forgive me."
"I see." The man said, no longer being able to contain his excitement, because this was brand new information. "So what made you take him back, then?" He forgot caution and placed the microphone in front of Raven's face.
The empath smiled softly. Let's not drag this out. We can wrap this up with one charming line. "Have you met him?" She playfully touched Gar's chest. "He's hard to say no to."
That had the exact effect she wanted, because the reporter, his whole crew and Gar all chuckled whole-heartedly and no further explanations were requested. He thanked them for their time and told them to enjoy the evening, leaving to go corner Nightwing and Kory.
"You didn't have to do that." Raven said as soon as they were alone again.
Garfield just took her hand and guided her to the dancefloor, wrapping an arm around her waist and slow-dancing with her, because Perfect (Ed Sheeran) was playing and he felt overtaken with passion. Raven rolled her eyes, but followed his lead.
"You got slightly better at this." He smiled, attempting to guide her moves.
She shrugged. "I'm sober this time. And I may be a little more comfortable with it. Still feels unnatural, though."
The Changeling chuckled. "I'd let you lead if I knew how to follow. Sorry."
"That's okay." Raven smiled at him. "It's not so bad."
"We were just kids when we fell in love…"
Gar started singing along to the song, softly mouthing the words to her, and his love, passion and devotion overshadowed every other emotion in the room, and all she could sense was him. Raven took a deep breath to stay calm and not blow anything up and draw unwanted attention, but she still looked into his big, childish green eyes, embracing the fact that she was hopelessly, ridiculously in love with this man.
"I know we'll be alright this time…"
At this point, she was getting emotional and blushing, so she untangled their hands and wrapped both her arms around his neck so she could move closer to him, because it made her feel safe and stable. His smile widened as he wrapped his arms around her waist, truly meaning every word he was quietly singing to her.
"…I don't deserve this, you look perfect tonight…"
Raven couldn't remain stoic if she tried. She cradled his face with utter care and affection and whispered. "I feel just as lucky as you do, you know?"
He chuckled happily. God I love it when she touches me like that. "If you say so."
"I do say so."
They stopped spinning and he kissed the back of her hand. "And I believe you." He said. "Even if I think it's complete madness." He added, chuckling at his own joke.
Raven rolled her eyes again. "I've never been saner, actually. Now, c'mon. Let's go find everyone else."
Later that night, Gar was obviously dying to spend time alone with her, because seeing her in that dress was driving him insane. So he made his move as soon as they stepped inside the elevator. "I'll do literally anything if I can go with you to your room right now."
"Mmm…" Raven pretended to think about it. She'd anticipated this. "Anything?"
"Anything."
"Very well."
Minutes later, he was running his hands all over her body, passionately kissing her neck and pressing her against the wall while she deactivated her powers.
"Wanna get me out of this dress?"
Garfield eagerly started trying to unzip her, but she stopped him. He whimpered quietly.
"Did I say you could do it?"
He smiled. "Sorry. Can I? Please?"
She held onto his tie as if it were a leash. "Only if you behave."
Fuck. Gar blushed and got painfully harder. He immediately shot her an excited grin.
Raven seductively cupped his chin with her hand. "Who's my good boy?"
His grin grew even wider. "Me. I am. Always me."
She smiled and pulled him by the tie towards her bed, loving to watch the eager way he followed and the lust in his eyes.
"Now stay still while I get you out of these clothes." Raven whispered in his ear while she ran her hands down his arms. "You look great in them but I need them gone to do what I want to do to you."
Nearly twitching in anticipation, he nodded. "Whatever you want, my queen."
She smirked and took her time undressing him, removing one piece of clothing at a time while kissing, sucking and licking the freshly exposed inches of green skin. It made him quiver and moan and her pupils dilated. Once she was done, she reached for their dog collar, clasping it around his neck. "Still the only creature I've ever truly desired."
Garfield closed his eyes and smiled breezily, chuckling under his breath.
"What are you laughing at, pet?"
He opened his eyes, the breezy grin still plastered on his face. "I'm just happy."
She raised an eyebrow at him. "Sure, but there's more."
"Well, I…it's just; I can smell it on you." He explained. "The…desire."
Raven nodded and smiled wickedly. "Ah, I see."
"It makes me so, so happy."
"Everything makes you happy." She teased playfully. "Tofu makes you happy."
He chuckled, basking in her glory. She still looked as radiant and flawless as she had all night and he couldn't wait to get his hands on her. "Nothing makes me happy like you."
"Prove it. Show me. You have permission to touch me."
That was all he needed, really. Permission to touch this perfect dark Goddess in front of him. Garfield swiftly and skillfully removed her dress while kissing her neck and massaging her breasts, loving the way her chest rose and fell under his touch. He grabbed her thighs, lifting her and laying her on the bed, getting on top of her and kissing down her body, gently squeezing every bit of smooth ashen skin he got his hands on and nibbling wickedly with his fangs. "I adore every fucking inch of you."
She smiled and moaned at the same time, arching her back and closing her eyes, allowing him to do as he pleased and enjoying his generous touches for a few minutes. And then her fingers found the tips of his ears, making him moan just as loud as her. When he lifted his face from her thigh to stare at her with those huge pupils, she smirked. "My turn."
Raven pulled him close by the collar around his neck and kissed him passionately on the lips before moving to nibble his ears. She took advantage of the vulnerable state that put him under to spin them around and sit on his stomach, bending over to grab his tie from the floor. "Now be a good boy and put your hands together for me."
His heart pounded even louder as he did as he was told. She tied his wrists together with the tie and pushed his arms back until they were resting above his head.
Raven ran a light finger over his bottom lip and whispered, staring at him with dark eyes. "Make sure your arms stay up there unless I say otherwise."
Garfield just nodded, because he was too turned on to form coherent words. Not being able to touch her when he was yearning this much clouded his mind and his eyes. It was his turn to arch his back and breathe heavily when she started kissing his neck while her fingers teased him in the most wonderfully sinful ways.
"Mmm such a good boy." She moaned against his jawline. "Tell me who you belong to."
"You!" He breathed out desperately. "I belong to you, Raven!"
Raven smiled mischievously and bit lightly on his bottom lip while placing a thigh between his legs and rubbing it mercilessly against him.
"Oh fuuuck!" Gar whimpered, throwing his head further back, resisting the urge to bring his arms down and wrap them around her.
Her eyes shimmered as he writhed and panted helplessly under her touch. He was so beautiful she had no idea how she went years without noticing it. "Don't worry, pet. I'm in such a good mood. And you've been such a good boy."
His eyes stayed closed and his head leaned back, toes curling and legs spreading wider, because he knew what came next. She got on her knees over his sweaty body, one knee on each side of him, chuckling when he instinctively started thrusting his hips up and moaned loudly as she slowly lowered herself on him. Gar's lips were blissfully parted, a shadow of a huge grin beginning to form as she made lustful moves. He opened his eyes to admire her as he eagerly moved his hips in sync with her. They stared passionately into each other's eyes while she rode him, eventually bringing them both into a painful peak of pleasure and satisfaction.
Raven collapsed on top of him, her bare skin burning up against his, burying her face in his hair and inhaling deeply. "I love you so much."
The Changeling's face nearly split in two with the size of his grin as he finally brought his arms down and tenderly wrapped them around her, not bothering to ask her to untie his hands just yet. "I love you to infinity, and beyond!"
A heavy sigh escaped her lips, but they curved up slightly anyway. "Seriously, Garfield?"
The next day, Raven slept in. By the time she came down into the training room and began stretching, everyone else was there already. She immediately saw Gar running to her out of the corner of her eye.
"What are you doing here, Rae?"
She stared at him quizzically. "What does it look like? I'm training."
His eyes widened. "What?! Nooo you're not."
The empath folded her arms. "Excuse me?"
Gar carefully pushed her towards the bench and made her sit. "Love, you're pregnant."
The Titans turned their attention to them. Even Krypto, who had been flying around with Salem on his back, decided to land and watch.
Raven rolled her eyes. "So? I'm perfectly fine. I can still train." She looked at the others for help, but nearly gasped when all she met was apologetic grimacing. "You're not serious."
"You need to rest." The Changeling said in an overly zealous voice. "Have you eaten today? Shit, I should have taken you breakfast. Did you drink any water yet? Maybe you should lie down for a bit and-"
"This is ridiculous." Raven stated, standing up and refusing to sit back down. She placed her hands on her hips. "I'm pregnant, not dying."
"Nooo but your body is a temple!" Garfield squeaked urgently as she floated to the tatami.
The sorcerer turned to Nightwing. "Help?"
Dick scratched the back of his head and shrugged. "I'm kinda with him on this one, Rae."
"What!?"
The Changeling grinned proudly. "See?! Go back to bed, I'll get you food!"
"I mean, he's definitely overreacting." Nightwing added, shooting the shapeshifter a quizzical look. "But…it's not like you're going on missions for a while, Rae. I don't want to risk you getting hurt or any bad guys finding out about this."
Raven sighed loudly, threw her head back and stared at the ceiling in frustration. She knew he was right, but she didn't need to like it. "This sucks."
"You can do yoga and Tai Chi." Nightwing said kindly, turning to Garfield before he could protest. "It's actually healthy for her to do some exercise."
The Changeling blinked. Wait, he's right. And I knew that. "Sorry, I guess I'm being a little overprotective."
"Understandable." Richard smiled.
"But completely unnecessary." Raven pointed out from where she was already doing the Tree Pose.
He rushed to her side. "Are you sure you're okay?"
She glanced at him with a fearful frown. "I'll get tired of hearing you ask me that, won't I?"
Garfield shrugged sheepishly. "Probably."
She sighed, changing into a Warrior Pose. "Yes, Gar. I'm sure I'm okay. I'm not even getting nauseous. I just have a strange desire for strawbe-"
"Strawberries! Gotcha!" He exclaimed, running out of the training room, leaving a completely baffled Raven behind. "Everybody keep an eye on her while I'm gone, if she gets hurt I'll-"
"Kill someone, we know." Rose smirked, throwing knives at a moving target.
He wasn't going to say that, but it worked well enough, so he left it at that.
"No, wait, Garfield, you still need to…" Nightwing exhaled as he realized the shapeshifter was already gone. "…train."
The sorcerer smiled to herself, because she would never ask him to leave practice for some random craving of hers, but she really did want strawberries.
"So…" Ravager approached her carefully, wiping sweat off her forehead with a towel. "Where are you on giving birth to the Antichrist?"
Raven wasn't amused by that joke. Not one bit. And it showed on her face.
"Hey, chill." Rose said, needing some effort not to lose her cool under the empath's severe glare. "I just wanted to say that for what it's worth, I don't think you will. Give birth to the Antichrist, I mean. In fact, I'm sure you won't."
Raven's face softened. "You're just saying that to make me feel better."
"Excuse me?" Rose placed her hands on her hips in outrage. "Have you met me?"
Raven rolled her eyes and smiled slightly. "Fine. Then what makes you so sure?"
Ravager smiled knowingly and whispered her next words intently. "Delusional hope."
The empath's eyes widened, remembering the context in which she told Rose her very existence consisted of those words. Remembering what those words had gotten her through. What they had helped her endure. After several quiet moments of thought, she finally looked away, with a much more determined look on her face. "Thanks, Rose."
Later that day, Cyborg did her first ultrasound. Gar stood beside her and held her hand in bliss while Raven stared blankly at the ceiling and wondered how this was her life.
"Everything looks good." Victor happily pointed at the screen. "See? There they are."
The Changeling's eyes filled with tears and he held Raven's hand tighter. "Oh my GOD they're perfect! Look, love!"
Raven tiredly turned her head to the screen and frowned. Whatever Cyborg was pointing at definitely didn't look like babies. "Ah…sure."
She turned back to Gar and her frown disappeared, because he had a huge, toothy grin plastered on his face and happy tears in his eyes. When he looked at her, she couldn't help but smile, imagining her children might have that same toothy grin.
"I'm really glad you're the father, you know?"
Over the next few days, the mood swings started, so Raven decided to cook for everyone on a Sunday, because truth be told, her powers had been all over the place and her friends had never been more patient or helpful. She easily opened the can of peeled tomatoes with her powers, but then Salem meowed and she realized she'd forgotten to feed him. The sorcerer turned around in agony and the can fell off her hand. Tomatoes spread across the kitchen counter as tomato water splashed all over her face and apron.
Garfield stepped inside the ops room and gasped. "What are you doing around knives and fire? You can't-" He stopped when he realized her lips were quivering and her eyes were watery. "Rae?"
"I-I…" She sniffled, struggling not to weep over her own inadequacy and wiping tomato water off her face. "I made a mess and I…I didn't feed Salem…" A tiny sob escaped her lips just as the others entered the ops room. She got teary-eyed or irritated every now and then lately, but they still weren't used to it. They shot her quizzical, worried looks. Garfield was smiling fondly, though.
"What happened?" Nightwing asked the Changeling.
The dishes flew around the kitchen and some of them shattered against the walls as she struggled not to cry openly. Raven inhaled sharply and answered before her boyfriend could. "Me. I'm a disaster. I can't do anything right."
Everyone turned to Garfield, who just shook his head at them in a relaxed and discreet manner that let them know nothing actually bad had happened.
"I am so sorry, Salem." Raven picked him up, weeping softly. "I love you so much. I was just trying to do something nice and now everything is ruined. Like everything I touch."
Nightwing gently led her out of the kitchen. "This is nice, Rae." He stated, regarding the several pans that were dangerously close to burning at this point – he could probably still save this meal. It did still smell good. "Thank you so much. I'll take it from here, okay?"
The sorcerer sniffled softly, feeling nothing but support and affection from every single person in the room. "O-okay."
Bumblebee smiled at her as she stepped out of the kitchen and took her place to help Richard by cleaning up the shattered dishes.
Starfire reached out to take Salem from her best friend. "And I shall feed this little guy!"
Raven nodded slowly, barely reacting, just letting the Tamaranean take her cat before being enveloped in a caring hug by Garfield. She leaned her forehead on his shoulder and sighed. "I'm being emotional again, aren't I?"
He smiled and rubbed her back. "You're doing great, love."
She grumbled into his shoulder and heard friendly laughter around the room. Pregnancy. What an absurd situation to get myself into.
A few more days later, Raven looked up from her book as the Titans came back from a mission and saw herself exchanging shy looks with Superboy, blushing and nearly giggling. It made her extremely uncomfortable. "M'gann, you still look like me."
Miss Martian realized she was right and changed back into her usual looks, shooting the empath a coy look while Conner laughed. She had been shapeshifting to make it look like Raven was there on missions and public appearances, mostly not to raise suspicions. Raven didn't have a baby bump yet, but she hadn't been as in control as usual lately and they didn't want her in harm's way or people wondering why she was acting different.
Besides, eventually she would start showing and they would need M'gann to pretend to be her anyway. She could fly and move objects with her mind like Raven, but they did worry someone would pick up on the fact that she wasn't using magic, shadow manipulation, astral projection or any of her other powers. Still, they'd try to keep this information private for as long as they could.
After Miss Martian left to her room, Conner noticed Raven practically smirking at him and realized he was smiling. His first instinct was to compose himself and deny everything, but then he remembered she was an empath. "I know, I know. Who's into green, cute circus freaks now, huh?" He said playfully, stepping closer to her. "You got me."
Raven just smiled softly, closing her book. "You really like her."
He rolled his eyes and took a deep breath. "Remember what you told me about Garfield? That it's like, physically painful? Yeah. I get it now."
"Welcome to the club. It'll make you feel pathetic. You'll hate it."
Conner laughed loudly as she chuckled softly.
"Is there at least a buffet in this club?"
"We can definitely discuss it."
"I don't wanna fuck it up." He said in a suddenly serious voice.
Raven eyed him carefully. "Great, then don't."
He smiled again. "Just like that, huh?"
"If I can do it, so can you."
"Good point."
The following weeks were relatively peaceful and it almost felt like nothing could go wrong again. No one found out about Raven's pregnancy, they were handling villains quicker and more effectively than ever and Raven had embraced the fact that she was probably having children and started reading parenting books like there was no tomorrow, because she'd never even considered motherhood and had a lot of catching up to do. It made Garfield extremely happy. In fact, once he handled the whole afterlife situation, he would dare to call his life perfect.
He had been wondering about the League of Assassins. Damian told him they had access to the Lazarus Pit and the water of life, which granted immortality. He didn't think they'd want Raven to be immortal and engaging against them was too risky, but maybe he could figure out a way to convince Ra's. It wasn't a fully formed plan, but it was something. At the very least, it could buy them more time to figure something out.
In any case, here he was, strumming the ukulele and singing a more upbeat version of All of Me to her through a smile while shooting her heart eyes. "My head's under water but I'm breathing fine…"
Raven was watching him fondly, absentmindedly caressing her still flat stomach, not bothering to glance at her friends' amused, friendly faces and secretly entertained by how the guys always felt a little resentful when Gar did stuff like this, because it made all the girls start demanding more romance in their own relationships.
But then Damian and Rose came back from their mission and stole all the attention in the room. The shapeshifter immediately stopped playing when he saw their state. It was supposed to be a simple, easy mission. So why were they covered in blood and dirt and panting as if they'd just battled an army? But more importantly, why were their eyes wide and worried as if they had the world's shittiest news to deliver?
"What happened?" Nightwing asked urgently as Raven rushed to Damian's side to start healing him – since Rose could heal herself.
"We dug some information." Robin said before wincing in pain as Raven and Rose helped him lower his uniform so the empath could start working. "It's bad."
Richard furrowed his brows. "I'm sure we can-"
"Darkseid." Ravager cut him off seriously, sucking all the air out of everyone's lungs. She turned from her boyfriend to her teammates as Raven began making his wounds vanish. They were all frozen in place. "Back. And he learned something from last time."
Nightwing collected himself and stared her straight in the eyes. "What's that?"
"He learned that over-preparing just gives us a chance to prepare as well."
"Meaning, we don't have months this time around." Damian clarified.
Raven's hands instinctively pulled away from Robin's body to cover her own belly. Garfield was already by her side and covered her hands with his.
Richard noticed and addressed them. "We can't let him near you, Rae. He can't find out."
Raven met his sure gaze with her own. "For once I agree."
She wanted to save the world and fight the New God along with her friends, obviously. But lately, against her better judgment, she'd had this sense of care towards these beings inside her that was unlike anything she'd ever felt before – as if protecting them would be the holiest job she would ever have.
"So that means…" Superboy frowned worriedly.
"We can't count on her this time." Gar said decisively, turning to his friends.
Raven grunted loudly, throwing her head back. "Well that's just perfect."
"For him, it sort of is." Rose stated. "I mean, talk about good timing."
"I'll still help." Raven said, resuming Damian's healing session.
The Changeling turned back to her. "Love, no, you can't-"
"I know." She whispered, looking him in the eye. "I won't. I can still summon the dead and command them from somewhere safe and hidden. I can still help."
Nightwing smiled at Raven. "Yes, you can."
"Okay but then I'll stay with you." Gar declared, never removing his eyes from her.
Raven grimaced slightly. "No, love, you can't."
"What? Why not!?" The shapeshifter squeaked. "Of course I can! I have to!"
"You're too important." She reasoned. "One of us out of battle is disadvantage enough."
"Garfield, I understand you, I do." Richard said, getting the shapeshifter's attention. "But she's right, we need you. If he's taking us by surprise, I could definitely use that dragon-gargoyle beast of yours."
The Changeling's pained face broke Nightwing's heart. His eyes darted from his friends to Raven's sure face. She obviously agreed with the Titan leader. He felt utterly lost.
"I'll stay with her." Starfire announced firmly, approaching the shapeshifter. "My abilities are less unique than yours; the Kryptonians can cover for me on the battlefield. I'll protect her – them, I'll protect them – with my life if I must."
He stared into the Tamaranean's confident, reassuring eyes and his shaky breaths steadied. He wasn't exactly happy about this plan, but if there was someone who would protect his family as fiercely as him, it was Starfire. He didn't move or speak until Raven touched his shoulder.
"Love, I'll be alright." She said softly, giving him a small smile and touching his cheek when he looked at her with helpless, desperate eyes. "Kory will keep me safe and I'll send my army to back you up so you can save the world and come back for us."
The Changeling exhaled, finally relaxing his muscles. He turned to Nightwing and instantly realized he was on board with their plan. In fact, they all were. Well, obviously, it's a good plan. A sensible plan. He still didn't want to let her out of his sight during a Darkseid invasion. But he knew they were right. "Okay."
Nightwing pulled his communicator out. "Time to start calling for backup."
Donna Troy was the first person he called and the first to arrive.
"So do we know who his allies are this time?"
"Apart from the armies of Apokolips…" Richard said worriedly. "Steppen Wolf. Braniac. That we know of. Rose and Damian think there's more."
Donna nodded slowly, staring straight ahead as she stood beside him, watching most of the Titans train to exhaustion. "Remember when we used to worry about living up to the Justice League? Seems silly now, huh?"
Nightwing chuckled sadly. "Yeah. I'm glad you're here, Donna."
She elbowed him lightly. "Hey. I got your back, Boy Wonder."
He smiled. "I got yours, Wonder Girl."
The general focus quickly shifted to Darkseid for obvious reasons, but Raven's concerns around her pregnancy weren't completely unjustified, as they would soon learn. The mood swings weren't always endearing. In fact, they became quite dangerous. On this particular morning, the empath had been more distressed than usual, much like any wild bird when suddenly locked inside a cage. She was trying to meditate and find some inner peace, but it simply wasn't working.
"Rae?"
Gar noticed it as soon as he came into the ops room. She was huffing and rolling her neck in a restless manner, clearly trying to center and failing for once. So he made her some tea and carefully approached her, gently touching her shoulder.
"Hey, talk to me…"
And then it happened. Raven placed a hand on his chest to push him away, because his worry was adding to her own and overwhelming her, but she forgot to hold Trigon back for a split second. It had been more challenging since this whole pregnancy started making keeping her emotions under control like she used to become a distant dream. She could constantly feel him pressing on her mind, eager to get out, eager to ruin everything. And in this moment, as she touched the man she loved, his power ran freely through her, invading his soul and locking away everything good it found inside.
It all happened terrifyingly fast. Raven's eyes widened as she realized what her father had done to him, just a moment before everyone else gasped when Gar harshly wrapped a hand around her neck and pulled her into the air so her feet could no longer touch the ground. Her entire world collapsed. NO. No no no no PLEASE no. His green skin slowly changed into an ashen color and his eyes turned a glowing bright red, resembling the evil version of him they had to fight back when Trigon first ascended – only this time he was bigger and much more menacing.
Raven held onto his hand around her throat, trying to focus enough to phase out of his grip and feeling her eyes well up with tears. The other Titans immediately responded by rushing to their side to get him to release her, so Garfield threw her against the wall and changed into a Tamaranean beast, fighting them back and tossing them from side to side, standing his ground and being too aggressive to give anyone a moment to collect their thoughts and make a strategic move.
He made sure to knock M'gann out first, so she couldn't control his mind and Superboy would be distracted. The Changeling alternated between a miniscule bug and enormous hybrid raging beasts, taking them by surprise in an unhinged display of wildness. Long gone was their fun-loving, tofu-eating, joke-cracking resident shapeshifter. Despair filled everyone's hearts faster than ever as they wondered if they'd have to take their friend down, if that even was their friend anymore, and if they even could take it down.
Once the Titans were on the floor and his path was clear again, his current monstruous form ran to Raven, who was grabbing her injured head and trying to concentrate past the dizziness, gripped her in his claws – somewhat carefully, because he wanted to toy with her, not kill her – and flew off the glass window with her, landing by the rocks outside.
Raven sobbed. She was bruised and bleeding and she couldn't sense him anymore. All that was left was raw wrath and resentment. This wasn't like when the chemicals made him act different. This was nothing but a wicked, twisted shadow of what Gar Logan used to be. Every little piece of goodness was gone. Her heart had never been this shattered, not even when he betrayed her trust.
"G-Gar…please…this isn't you…" She whispered hoarsely in between shaky breaths.
"Right as usual, lover. This is better. Much better." He turned human again – that demonic human form, that is – and grinned a chilling grin, walking up to her. "Am I good enough for you now? Am I WORTHY?"
Starfire flew in with Wonder Girl to stop him, but he swiftly turned into Godzilla and struck them with his tail, sending them miles away. Garfield heard Superboy coming in next and turned into a demon, easily absorbing his blasts before sinking his teeth into him, injecting venom in Conner's veins. It wouldn't kill him, but it sent his mind on a trip down memory lane, only with his most painful memories, keeping him from interfering again.
Raven stayed on her knees, trying to catch her breath to fight back, because she needed to. She was probably the only one with a wide enough range of powers to take him and she shouldn't let her friends get hurt trying to protect her. But the heartache was even worse than the dizziness from the open, bleeding wound on her forehead. She was too heartbroken to move.
His corrupted human form turned to her again. "Am I strong enough NOW, love?"
Every Titan's heart sank. Their bodies were already sore. He had attacked them with more violence they'd ever seen in him and they were painfully aware of the fact that his focus on Raven was the only reason no one was dead yet. Dreams and happy times instantly seemed to slip through their fingers.
She tried to reach out to his kindness, she searched for his emotions, but she couldn't find him. No, please. He can't be gone. He CAN'T be. Raven cried openly, and it caused the ground to shake and rumble under their feet and the sea to agitate. "Gar, it's me…"
"Oh, I KNOW." He said menacingly, approaching her with nothing but hatred in his glowing red eyes. "How could I not know who you are? You're the fucking monster who seduced me." The Changeling hissed angrily, squatting next to her and grabbing her hair, tilting her face upwards to force her to look at him. "I suppose I should thank you. Now you've made me a monster too. I feel no weakness anymore."
"Raven, fight him!" Nightwing shouted desperately through his own tears. His team was down and the only person who could take Garfield on seemed completely out of it.
"I-I'm so sorry…please, Gar…" She whispered, looking into his eyes.
The ground shook all across Jump City, as if an earthquake was announcing itself. Citizens ran around in confusion. No one could tell the source was the Titans' island.
You have to kill him, daughter. Trigon spoke inside her head.
Never.
Raven knew what he meant to accomplish with this. If she killed Gar, she would snap. She knew it and Trigon knew it. And then he would be free.
The Changeling laughed evilly. "You SHOULD be sorry." He grabbed her face with both his hands, growing claws that pierced through her soft skin so she couldn't pull away, and grinned wider when she grunted in pain. "You think you're better than me. You always have. No more."
"No I don't!" Raven breathed out urgently, recklessly placing her hands over his to try calming him down, even though she knew it wouldn't work. "You know I don't. You're just saying this to hurt me. Please, Gar. I can't do this without you."
The shapeshifter chuckled wickedly. It was true, he was just saying it to hurt her. It made him feel powerful, having power over her. He tried turning into the Werebeast to watch her despair at the realization he was suddenly immune to magic, but he couldn't access it. The Werebeast was loyal to Raven. Almost like it saw her as it's mate or even it's mistress. He could never use it to harm her. It wouldn't matter, though. He wouldn't need it.
"Oh, don't worry, I'll keep you close. You're giving birth to my cubs whether you like it or not." He possessively leaned her head further back until her neck was painfully extended, claws still lodged inside her flesh. "No one will ever touch you again. You'll never see anyone but me. Because if anyone even LOOKS at you, I'll KILL them." He promised, fiery eyes locked with hers. "But I'll keep you safe, pet. No one will hurt you."
"YOU'RE hurting me!" She cried out in a strained voice.
"That's MY right. I'll never set you free. You are MINE. You're mine to hurt and to own, you're mine to punish and to claim. No one can save you from me, love."
Realization sucked all the air out of everyone's lungs.
Everything is so fragile.
Happiness. Love. All you care about. It can all be gone in a second.
You have no choice, Raven. The man you loved is gone. Trigon taunted her.
Raven looked into his eyes. His red, glowing, evil eyes. Gar wasn't there. But it didn't matter. It was still part of him. I can't.
Then let ME do it. Unleash me.
Tears rolled down Raven's bloody cheeks while she soothingly rubbed Gar's ashen hands with her own. "I'm here, Gar...it's okay. You don't have to hurt me."
She wasn't entirely sure what this part of him would be capable of doing to her. Raven sensed he still emanated passion towards her, but there was nothing good left in him, so all his love just turned into obsession. She didn't think he would kill her, but he clearly wasn't above hurting her, and nothing had ever made her feel as wounded as this. No one else could hurt her this much. Guilt for letting Trigon do this to him was consuming her. Every injury ached a thousand times more in her heart than they did on her flesh.
"Maybe I ENJOY hurting you, pet." He spat out before pulling her into a passionate, violent, territorial kiss. In reality, she'd nearly softened him up back there, but there was no softness left in his core, so it just fueled his anger instead. When she sobbed miserably against his lips, it increased his rage even further and he sank his fangs into her bottom lip until he could taste her blood as she winced in pain. "I fucking love you." He muttered resentfully into the kiss. "And I HATE you for it."
Raven made a call. A quick, sure call. She decided not to give up on him.
Forget it, daughter. You'll fail. You can't save him. Trigon threatened urgently.
You still have no idea what I can do. She pushed past the pain and heartache and held onto evil Garfield's face, ignoring the pain and kissing him back deeply while her soul-self detached itself from her body and entered his.
Raven hadn't been in his mind since back when Terra left and she did it to help him heal. This time, it was much darker. In fact, there was nothing but pain and violence in there. Nothing but decay, hopelessness and restlessness. Gar, her Gar, was nowhere to be found. So she dove deeper inside, past his mind and into his soul.
Blinding, white light hurt her eyes. To her immense relief, his soul wasn't gone. But it seemed…blank.
"Who are you?"
Raven turned around at the childish, unsure voice behind her. There was a small, green little boy before her. He looked terribly scared.
"Gar?" Raven said softly through teary eyes and a small, relieved smile. I knew you were too strong to disappear. I knew you were still here.
The child frowned suspiciously. "I know you, don't I?"
She fought back tears so she wouldn't scare him and nodded. "Yes, you do."
He slowly, cautiously approached her. "Are you…an angel?"
Raven let out a quiet, gentle chuckle. "No, but I'm here to help you. Can you trust me?"
The green boy took a deep breath, examining her. "I…"
She kneeled down and stretched her hand out, looking into his eyes. "I'm Raven. Does that name mean anything to you?"
"It…makes me feel…" He tilted his head, searching for the right word. "…safe."
Raven smiled through the tears again. "That's right. I'll always keep you safe. You're not alone. You'll never be alone. I know you're confused and scared, but I need you to trust me, Gar. Take my hand?"
Garfield slowly walked up to her. He didn't think he should, but he couldn't help it. It was as if his body automatically responded to her voice. He looked into her violet, kind eyes and all his worries faded away.
"I…I think I'd follow you anywhere." He whispered as he slowly lifted his arm and took her hand. And then a whole world of memories, emotions, values, lessons and core beliefs flooded back into him, filling the blank space they were in at an overwhelming speed. The only thing that made it bearable as he rose back to the surface was her presence.
Garfield sobbed against Raven's lips when he tasted her blood on his tongue. He pulled away and realized he had claws sunk into her silky skin, so he instantly retrieved them. Her pained face was quickly taken by relief and gratitude as his eyes, skin and hair regained their usual green shade, but his heart was wrenching in the most torturous possible way.
"R-Rae…I…" He cried openly, scanning her body with his eyes and taking in how much he'd hurt her while he was out of it.
"Shhh…shh, I'm okay." The empath whispered soothingly, holding his desperate face in her hands and rubbing his green cheeks with her thumbs. His eyes were full of self-loathing and guilt, hastily changing directions from her bruises to the glass cuts on her skin, from her head injury to her belly and then back to her wounded face. "Love, look at me. Look at me."
The Changeling's inner self-punishment was interrupted by her firm tone and he forced himself to stare into her eyes. There was no resentment in them. She was cupping his face in the gentlest manner. He cried harder and opened his mouth to say something, but no sound came out. He couldn't find words that would express his sorrow.
"This wasn't you, love." She said fiercely, trapping him in her gaze and not allowing him to look away. "This is not your fault. You were gone. I'm so sorry. I'm so, so sorry."
"I-I'm sorry! I…" Gar sobbed desperately. "I don't…did I…" He lifted his hand and lightly touched her bloody bottom lip. "You're h-hurt…"
"I'm okay, I'll be okay. I can heal." Raven whispered sweetly, wiping his tears away from his soaked cheeks. "I'll do it as soon as I rest. Everything's okay, love."
Everything is far from okay. His desperate eyes darted downwards towards her stomach.
"They're okay, too." She quickly clarified. "Distressed, but okay. I promise."
Gar's tortured face met her gaze again. "I-I'm so sorry…Raven, I-"
"Shh, I'm sorry." The empath pulled him into a tight hug. She could tell their extremely relieved friends had recovered enough from his attacks and were gathering around them, so she whispered in his ear. "It's okay, love. I'm here. I brought you back."
The shapeshifter gratefully buried his face in the crook of her neck and sobbed into it.
"What happened?" Damian asked quietly while Rose tended to the wound on his arm. He'd gotten away with nothing but that since she shielded his body with hers and he had never been more grateful for her ability to heal herself.
"It was Trigon." Raven glanced at them over Garfield's shoulder. "I need to watch him more closely. I failed to fight him for a moment. It won't happen again."
The Changeling pulled back and stared at her bleeding face in sheer admiration through his still watery eyes, because it was the first time he – and everyone else – truly understood the toll this burden took on her. "It wasn't your fault, love."
The empath shot him a sad smile. "Thank you for saying that, but…it wouldn't matter. I almost lost you. The world almost lost you. I'd never forgive myself."
He shook his head and reached out to cradle her neck in the tenderest possible manner, as if she were made of glass, avoiding the fresh wounds so he wouldn't cause her more pain. "You guided me back to light, love. You're a freaking angel."
"Well, thank God for that." Nightwing sighed, finally allowing all the fear and tension out of his body and making sure Starfire was okay.
"I'll say this." Donna Troy exhaled, assisting Cyborg in trying to fix his damaged systems and thinking this whole situation was even messier than she had anticipated. "The world is lucky you're both good people."
"Just never turn evil at the same time, please." Ravager smirked. "You know, since you're pretty much our only contingency plan for each other."
"Yeah." Superboy grunted in a dark voice as his poison-induced bad trip finally wore down. "Tell me about it…"
"I'm sorry, Conner. I'm sorry, everyone!" Garfield shot them a quick, regretful glance before bringing his wide eyes back to Raven. He couldn't stop staring at what he – or at least the worst part of him – had done to her. He couldn't release his heart from this painful, oppressive grip.
Raven sensed it and soothingly placed her hands over his again. "Gar, carry me back inside. I need to get some rest so that I can heal. Everything will be alright."
The broken shapeshifter instantly nodded and carefully picked her up, whispering in a fearful voice. "Are you sure they're okay too?"
She placed a hand over her stomach and closed her eyes in concentration. "Mmhm. They're…really strong."
It worried her, because if these children of theirs didn't inherit his goodness, there would be hell to pay. But he was heartbroken enough as it was now, so she didn't bring that up. She just prayed to The Presence that her offspring didn't come out evil.
Gar tended to her wounds while she took a nap, in spite of her insisting that wasn't necessary since she would heal herself as soon as she recharged. He couldn't bear to look at her and not try to make it better, so she fell asleep to his caring, soothing touches while he cleaned and bandaged her injuries and repeatedly placed sweet kisses over her bruises. Her heart filled with gratitude for being able to pull him back.
When Raven woke up, he was kneeled on the floor, his head resting on her bed, snoring softly. He'd clearly cried a lot more while she slept, because his eyes were awfully swollen and dried tears made the soft lighting in her room reflect on his green cheeks. She closed her eyes and finished healing her body before waking him up.
Gar felt someone's hand stroking his hair and smelled lavender. His eyes were heavy and practically glued together from sobbing himself to sleep, so opening them wasn't easy. "Rae…"
"I'm here."
He rubbed his swollen eyes and slowly looked up at her. She was healed. A strangled, relieved gasp instantly escaped his lips and his eyes filled with tears again, only this time they came with a gigantic, grateful grin.
Raven smiled sadly and stroked his cheek. "Come here with me."
"Really?" Gar asked her through wide, vulnerable eyes.
"Please."
He immediately climbed onto her bed and wrapped his arms around her, burying his face in her hair and inhaling deeply, relieved tears rolling down his cheeks.
Raven's eyes welled up as well, because having him touch her like this after what happened was a little overwhelming in the best possible way. "It was Trigon, love."
"I know." Gar whispered in a strained voice. "I'm so sorry. I know how hard fighting him is for you right now. I shouldn't have touched you without warning. It won't happen again."
She smiled against his chest and sighed contently. "I love you so much."
"You still do? After what I did?"
"You did nothing. You can't just isolate your darkness and call that you. I know that better than anyone."
"I know, but…" Gar held onto his chest, because his heart was excruciatingly tight. For a moment, he regretted asking her to go through with this pregnancy. "Love, I-"
"Listen to me." Raven said firmly, moving a little so she could lock eyes with him. "You're back. I'm okay. We'll be okay. We'll just have to do better."
She's right. Of course she's right. Do better. We can do better. The Changeling nodded back at her sure face. "Yeah, okay. We can do this."
"Don't go back to hating yourself. I need you with me. I need you present."
The oppressive grip around his heart loosened up. Gar removed his hand from his chest and devotedly placed it on her cheek. "You have me. You have all of me." He promised. "Every step of the way."
Raven exhaled softly. "Thank you."
He kissed the top of her head and they stayed like that for a few minutes, enjoying the closeness and warmth and appreciating it more than ever.
Unfortunately for everyone, that had only been Trigon's first move.
Thank You (Dido)