I would like to thank my cousins (though they'll probably never read this), who have kids of their own, for unknowingly being my field research for every scene involving the twins xD

PSI-Triforce: again you should write all this stuff lmao aaaaand THANK YOU! XD

So...I MIGHT update again tomorrow, I'm not sure, but I'm really tempted to...we'll see.

Happy reading! xD

Alive

Garfield took a sudden, sharp intake of breath and held it in while his brain tried to catch up to what was happening. What did she just say? Did I hear that right? I probably didn't hear that right. She must have said something else. "W-what?"

"I asked you if you'd maybe wanna marry me." She said calmly.

The Changeling blinked blankly at her nonchalant face. "Is this a prank?" He looked around the room, trying to sniff anyone else. "Cy? Are you hidden somewhere?"

Raven sighed and rolled her eyes, pulling Illyana away from her breast and covering it, since her daughter was done feeding. He's conflicted. And confused. "If you don't want to, just say so. It's okay."

"Gawk- ah!" He squeaked, turning back to her with wide eyes and making Mark chuckle again. "Wait, that's not what I meant! I just…I thought you didn't want to be anyone's wife. I thought the thought alone overwhelmed you."

The empath nodded slowly. "It did."

"And I'm okay with that." Gar said quickly. "You don't need to change your mind about this, I'm so much happier than I've ever dreamed of, you have no idea. We don't need to-"

"Gar, I know. And I know you'd never ask, that's why I'm doing it…" Raven shrugged. "I just, looking at you right now…it doesn't seem so scary."

His face softened as he exhaled, his eyes vulnerable and wide staring into her violet ones. "It doesn't?"

"No. So, if it's still something you want…I could marry you."

The Changeling frowned again and bit his lip. It was definitely something he wanted, but I could marry you made him feel like she'd just do it to please him, and he didn't want her to do that. She didn't need to do that. He didn't need anything more from her.

"What I mean is I'd like to marry you."

That changed his expression entirely again. His breath caught in his throat. And then Mark cried, because his father had stopped entertaining him several seconds ago. Garfield cradled him and swayed his body back and forth to distract him and get him to stop crying. It worked. Illyana seemed to be falling asleep in Raven's arms while the empath patiently waited for his response. He cleared his throat and whispered. "Are you sure? You can think this over."

Raven shot him an affectionate smile. "I wouldn't have suggested it if I wasn't sure."

He swallowed and collected his thoughts. She wants to marry me. Holy fucking shit. I'm gonna marry Raven. A flirty grin took over his features. "Are you proposing to me?"

She shrugged again. "I guess. But you can say no, obviously. It won't change anything."

Garfield couldn't help but roll his eyes. "Can we not pretend we don't know my answer? I mean, as far as proposals go, wanna get married was a little lame, but-"

"Fine." Raven interrupted him, straightening up and freeing one arm to reach out and gently stroke his hair. Her face and voice were as soft as her touch. "Gar?" She waited until he locked eyes with her. Once she knew he couldn't look away if he tried, she went on. "My best friend. My one true love. My soulmate. Will you marry me?"

It sounded a bit playful, because it was ridiculously cheesy. But she did mean it.

And he knew it. He knew she meant every word. And it melted him like butter. Garfield's lips spread into an idiotic, dreamy smile and his heart pounded loudly in his ears. Oh my God…Oh my GOD. "I…wait, I should be proposing to you!"

He hastily moved, gently placing his son on the couch, supporting him with the stuffed Godzilla. Mark was distracted enough by whatever his parents were doing now, so he wasn't crying anymore.

"Garfield, what are you doing?"

The Changeling got down on one knee in front of her. "What I would have done if I knew you'd say yes, obviously!"

Raven rolled her eyes. "This is completely unnecessary, I've already proposed."

"Will you stop being so stubborn for one second and let me do it?"

The empath just sighed and stared at him fondly.

"Raven, I love you with every fiber of my being. Every moment with you is a moment I'm grateful for. I want to be as close to you as I can while watching you soar and never hold you back. And if you just let me do that for the rest of my life, I'll die a happy man. Would you maybe, possibly, grant me the huge privilege of being your husband?"

Raven bit her lip, because he was suddenly being absolutely serious and treacherous tears were trying to find their way to her eyes. His hopeful, adoring gaze made her chest ache in that wonderful way only he could.

He grimaced, because her face was a little pained. "Oh, shit. Did I say something wrong?"

The empath quickly shook her head. "No, love. I just…" She finally smiled and spoke in a playful voice. "This is just so surprising, I never saw it coming."

Garfield immediately chuckled at her joke. "I know, I really caught you off guard, huh?"

"Oh, absolutely. But yes, I'll marry you, Gar."

"She said YES!" He exclaimed happily and dramatically to the ceiling.

"Shhh…" Raven shushed him, because while Mark was wide awake and watching them intently, Illyana was snoring in her arms.

Garfield just beamed at her and whispered. "Sorry. Also, I don't have a ring…but I will get you one, one worthy of you. And then I'll do this properly."

The empath rolled her eyes again. "You can get me a ring if you want, I'll wear it proudly. But no more proposals."

He gasped in outrage. "But…but why not?"

"Because we can't have three proposals, Gar. It's ridiculous."

The Changeling pouted. "Oh, but…I have this whole thing I wanna do. I mean, it's how I always envisioned it, I just never thought I'd get to do it…" He looked up at her. Are you serious? She said yes. Take it. "I mean, er…sorry. No more proposals. Just the ring."

Raven sighed, her heart swelling with care and passion. "Okay, you can do your thing, as long as it's not too embarrassing. But that must be the last time one of us proposes."

His gigantic, toothy grin came back. "Deal!"

"So…should we keep this between us?"

"Yeah, for now. They can be there when I do the real thing, properly, with the ring!"

"I mean, Conner's probably heard us."

"He won't tell on us. He's been way cooler since M'gann."

"Fine. But I don't want a big, fancy wedding."

"Love, all I'll see all night is you. I don't care how big or small it is."

"Good to know. So, as much as I love the sight of you on your knees, how about you come over here and kiss me now?"

His cheeks blushed and he practically jumped onto the couch next to her, leaning in for a sweet, passionate kiss and whispering happily against her lips. "I'm marrying Raven."

"I know, I'm her." She chuckled softly into the kiss.

"I love you, fiancée."

"Right back at you…fiancé."

"Oh I love the sound of that."

By Valentine's Day, Garfield finally convinced Raven to let the others watch the twins for a whole night so they could go on a date. Blissful as their current situation was, they hadn't been alone together in forever and they certainly missed it.

So Starfire was holding up Mark and smelling his diaper while Wonder Girl tried to sway Illyana back to sleep, but both babies just cried louder. They had been crying for a while.

"Ugh, make it stoop!" Conner grunted, covering his ears.

"They're probably hungry." Bumblebee stated tiredly, rubbing her temples.

"Oh, Rae left some breast milk in the fridge!" Kory exclaimed hopefully.

Wonder Girl smiled at her and nodded. "Oh yeah that's right."

Cyborg spat out the gulp of juice in his mouth, making everyone yelp or grimace. "HEY, you guys need to LABEL that shit! I almost DRANK that this morning!"

The Tamaranean just chuckled and shrugged apologetically.

Donna rolled her eyes and handed Illyana to whoever was closest – which unfortunately, happened to be Damian. "Here, hold her."

Wonder Girl opened the fridge to get the milk and Robin held the small girl in the most awkward way, with his hands under her armpits and all his muscles tensed up, looking comically uncomfortable.

"That's not how you hold a baby, dude." Cyborg walked up to him and showed him the proper way to carry her. "Here."

"Why don't you just take her?" Damian promptly suggested.

Victor chuckled. "Nah, dude. You got this."

Robin held Illyana as a baby should be held, but he was still stiff as a pole. And then he felt someone's eyes on him and turned his head. Rose looked extremely amused. "What?"

She shrugged, fighting back a smile. "Nothing. You look cute."

His cheeks flushed at once. "Oh, um…thanks."

"Alright, then." Donna came in with two bottles. "Let's feed these guys!"

Meanwhile, Raven and Gar enjoyed a very calm, delicious meal.

"You look mesmerizing." He admired her freely, resting his chin on his knuckles.

She rolled her eyes and smiled lovingly. "Thank you. You look very nice too."

"Not like you."

Raven hadn't dressed up since that last red-carpet event where she went all out, so she put effort into this. She was wearing a black and blue Saree and the raven necklace and earrings he gave her. Her long purple hair was shiny again for the night.

"I mean, you're always hauntingly beautiful. But this is…wow. You're glowing."

"I'm just glad to be alone with you for a change."

A gigantic, blissful grin spread across his face. "Me too. My heart is, like, aching for you."

"Mm?" She asked innocently, taking a bite and watching his eager nods. The empath swallowed and spoke again. "How uncomfortable."

Garfield chuckled. "Not really."

"You know…" Raven bit her lip. "I find it really hard to leave their side."

"I know."

"But I also can't wait to go back to work."

The Changeling tilted his head to the side and smiled at her. "Why didn't you say anything? We can alternate. I'll stay with them next time there's a crime alert."

She instantly returned his smile, because that was exactly what she'd hoped he would offer. "I'm saying it now. And thanks. I'd really appreciate that."

"No problem, love." He dismissed it with a hand wave. "So, what theme are we picking for their first birthday?"

Raven frowned. "Gar, that's several months away."

"No, I know. I'm just wondering…" The shapeshifter rubbed his chin. "Magic? Animals?"

"How about the Red?" Raven suggested, sipping her wine. "It's your thing, but it's also a cosmic force. It's spiritual and I'm quite fond of it."

Garfield beamed at her, with shimmering eyes. "It's our thing, now. That's brilliant."

The empath smiled softly and took another bite of her food.

"When will you go back there with me?"

"I want to." She nodded. "Very much. It just feels irresponsible now, doesn't it? If anything happens to us in there, they-"

"They lose us both." Gar stated seriously. "Yeah, it's occurred to me too…"

"We have to do more than take care of each other and occasionally save the world now."

"True, the world's like, piece of cake." He chuckled sadly. "I miss taking you, though."

Raven smiled slightly. "Maybe when they're a bit older."

The Changeling's face lit up again and they finished their meal in comfortable silence. And then he felt something…strange. It was as if warm fingertips were running over his skin, teasing him under his clothes. And they felt like Raven's fingers, because they were doing exactly what she liked to do to him when they were alone. He instantly shivered in pleasure and suppressed a moan, because they were in public. "What the…"

"You okay in there, love?" She asked in a thoroughly amused voice.

Gar opened his eyes and looked at her. She was smirking at him. "You're doing this."

Raven innocently rested her chin on her knuckles and watched as he closed his eyes again and fought back another sinful sound of helpless pleasure. Her dark energy manipulation had never been more precise and she was making him feel her hands caressing his whole body, teasing everything she wanted to do to him later.

"R-Raven…I…please." The shapeshifter breathed out between shaky breaths.

She chuckled softly and released him. "I'd say I'm sorry, but that would be a lie. That was delightful to watch."

Gar narrowed his eyes at her and whispered. "You filthy tease."

"I might have to do that more often. Maybe when you're walking down the corridors after training or chilling in the ops room." The empath shrugged, smiling mischievously.

His heartbeat raced wildly. "You wouldn't."

"Oh, I certainly will."

Gar's lips parted, but no sound came out. He was so painfully turned on he was just about to beg for her when she spoke again.

"So…do you want to maybe go somewhere more…private?" Raven purred, showing him she had her crystal inside her purse. "I miss…you know…you."

The Changeling grinned an absolutely lustful grin. "I thought you'd never ask."

They didn't have as many opportunities to be intimate anymore, for obvious reasons, but when they did, it was better than ever. With her control growing sharper everyday, Raven didn't need to use her crystal until things got really heated, so she actually got to stay whole, sense him and bask in his feelings during foreplay, which was always such a wonderful, blissful experience.

The next day, after waking up entangled with her in white hotel sheets, inhaling her scent, enjoying her warmth, covering her in kisses and listening to her soft, melodious laughs, he decided this was the day. The day he would do something he had been thinking about for several weeks now. He still had no idea what Radiant meant when she last spoke to him and he was starting to think she only said that to get him to stop bothering her. So he waited until his children and Raven were all asleep and the whole tower was dark and silent that night and he went up to the roof to summon God's Mercy one last time.

Garfield quickly dropped to his knees when she appeared in front of him yet again against all odds. "I know you gave me your answer already, but…I want to ask for something else."

That intrigued her. "I'm listening."

He took a deep breath and felt his eyes start to sting. "I…I just…I don't know how this works, but…if there's a chance I'm going to Heaven…"

"There is. A strong one."

"I don't want to." The Changeling looked up pleadingly. "I don't mean to sound ungrateful, it's not that, I just…I want to go where they go. Please. I'm begging you, please just let me follow her wherever she goes…"

"You wish to join your family in Purgatory in the afterlife? Does Raven want this for you?"

"Don't tell her, please." Garfield begged again, doing a poor job at suppressing the sobs and tears that were inevitably emerging. "She'll think I'll regret it and try to stop me. But I'll never regret it. I can't be away from them for eternity, I can't…" He bowed his head again and whispered desperately. "If I can't fix this, I…I need to at least be there for them. And I want to. I just want to be with them, please."

Radiant's face had become full of endearment. "Keeper of Beasts." She made him look up at her. "This isn't necessary. You hold the key to your own plea."

She stared deeply into his confused, pained, teary eyes until they widened enormously as he finally understood. And with one more affectionate, soft smile, she vanished.

The engines fell into place in Garfield's head. Ohhhhhhh. "Holy shit."

He immediately stood up and ran back to his room, feeling his heart pounding wildly in his chest and hopeful excitement building up in his gut. As he entered the room and admired her sleeping peacefully on his bed with Salem snuggled up against her, he decided not to say anything yet. He needed to be sure. So he lay down next to her, determined to start searching for some definitive answers first thing in the morning.

A few weeks later, Raven tried making Illyana have some mashed bananas, but she just kept turning her face or spitting it out. The sorcerer felt less tired now since the twins started sleeping through the night and she was even able to go back to training and start going on missions here and there when Gar stayed in the tower. But the babies still needed to be fed all the time and that was still exclusively on her, for obvious reasons. "C'mon, Lyana. You're six-months old; we need to start introducing solids here…"

"Mark loves it!" Gar chanted happily, feeding him another spoonful of mashed bananas.

Raven straightened up and folded her arms, slightly annoyed. "Wanna switch?"

"Ahh…not really."

She raised an eyebrow at him. "I'll just prepare her something else."

"As long as it's vegan!"

"Again, I said we can prioritize vegan food." Raven said calmly, slicing several fruits and vegetables and placing them on Illyana's plate. "But if all she accepts is meat, we're not letting our daughter starve."

Garfield playfully whispered to Illyana. "Did you hear that, Beast Whisperer? If you don't start eating, she's gonna give you meat!"

The empath rolled her eyes and approached them again, trying to feed her daughter. And then she glanced sideways when the Changeling suddenly stopped laughing. He was frowning and serious, now. "What is it?"

"It's…a disturbance in the Red."

"You can sense that without reaching out to it now?" She asked in awe, fully interested.

Gar couldn't help the proud grin on his face. "Yeah, I can."

"That's-" Raven's focus suddenly switched targets, because her daughter was eating. She exhaled in relief. "Oh, good. Illyana likes carrots."

"YES! Vegan!" The Changeling celebrated. "Good job, Lyana!"

Raven kept feeding the girl carrots and shot him an amused smile. "Well, I don't know who I'm prouder of."

Gar just beamed at her.

"Go."

"Huh?"

"Go tend to the cosmical life source. We'll be here when you get back."

His grin widened even more, to the point where his cheeks hurt. "You sure?"

"Of course. Just, be careful and come back to us."

"Always." He leaned in to give her a sweet, quick kiss. "I'll be back before you miss me."

Raven continued patiently feeding her children and smiling tenderly until he came back pulling a confused Starfire along and looking anxious. He felt anxious too, she could sense it – not in a bad way, it was actually closer to sheer euphoria.

"What's going on?"

"Kor, can you watch the kids for a bit so I can talk to Rae?" He asked urgently.

Kory glanced between them to see if she could figure out what this was about, but Raven seemed just as confused as her and Gar just looked impatient. "Sure, I'll watch them."

"Thanks!"

Raven exchanged a quizzical look with Starfire as she allowed herself to be dragged away by her fiancé all the way to the roof.

"Gar, what's this about? You're freaking me out."

"Sorry. I needed fresh air for this. I have something to tell you."

The empath rolled her shoulders back and nodded. "Is it…good?"

"It's wonderful."

She smiled slightly. "Then why are you so nervous?"

"It's just…" The Changeling took a deep breath to calm down and looked into her eyes. "It's huge. I wanted to tell you weeks ago, right when I got it, but I wanted to wait until I was absolutely sure I could do it. And I am now. I'm sure." He reached out and grabbed her hands, rubbing them with his thumbs. "I know what to do, love."

A light frown appeared on her forehead. "Gar, I have no idea what you're talking about."

"I know how to save you and our children from Purgatory."

Raven's breath caught in her throat and her eyes widened enormously. Surprisingly, there were no cracks on the ceiling and no sound of lightbulbs exploding in the distance. Stronger than ever indeed. She opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out.

Garfield carefully cradled her face in his hands. "Love, I-"

"Wait." Raven suddenly said in a serious and urgent tone, looking down and furrowing her brows. Oh, no. No, no, no. Please no.

"What?" He asked in an equally worried voice. "What is it, love?"

She lifted fearful eyes to meet his. "I…I have a bad feeling."

Fuck. "Is it Trigon?"

Raven just swallowed dryly and stared into his eyes. She didn't need to say anything. This time a huge, loud crack did appear under their feet. They didn't even flinch, though.

"How long do you think we have?" Gar asked, feeling his skin tingle in anticipation and fear of losing his family just when everything was right again.

"Not long. We need to hide them."

It all happened within minutes. Raven teleported them back into the ops room and tried to calm the twins – who could also sense something bad and familiar was coming – while Garfield called the others. Jinx opened a portal and the Titans East soon joined them.

"I'll let the Justice League know." Nightwing said surely. "Raven, how long do we have?"

"He's close. I…I have to protect you all." The empath said, trying to clear her mind from anxiety and fear so she could think of the next step. "I'll make sure he has no power over you, just like I did last time."

"They don't answer." Richard muttered, frowning in frustration at the Justice League's lack of response.

"There's no time, I have to do it now." Raven stated urgently, handing her babies to Gar and Kory. I'll need white magic for these many people.

The others were still confused and worried, but they still marveled at how instant her change into White Raven happened before their eyes. She chanted in Latin, hands and eyes glowing bright, hair and cloak flying around, and they felt a sudden magical energy enter their bodies. It was stronger than last time, the original Titans realized. Way stronger.

The empath allowed the wind and glow to cease, but her hair and cape were still white. "I need to face him." She turned to Gar with a deep stare. "You must protect our offspring."

The Changeling's face contorted in pain. She was right, he needed to protect them. But he also really wanted to go with her. "Wait, let me try something."

Garfield turned into an amoeba and cloned himself, like he did all those years ago. His consciousness was still unified. Okay, now the hard part. He concentrated on shapeshifting both of them into something else. He wasn't sure this could be done, but he needed to try, because he needed to be in two places at once right now. It wasn't easy. And it was slightly painful.

But it was possible.

Two identical, green, gigantic Werebeasts appeared in the middle of the ops room, making everyone yelp and take a step back – except for Raven, she just gasped softly. The Werebeast was still the most intuitive form when it came to protecting Raven. It was like this primal part of him that had always recognized her as the most precious thing in the world. Its violence was only ever tamed by her voice. So it only felt right to use it now. But these Beasts were different. Stronger, more dangerous, covered in dragon scales, armed with Gargoyle wings and demonic powers.

"What the…"

"Holy SHIT!"

"Since when can he do that?!"

"Did you just clone yourself, man?"

"Raven, which one is him?"

"I…both of them." The empath whispered in awe, glancing between the two Werebeasts. "Gar, this is amazing…but…"

"It doesn't hurt that much." The first Beast told her.

"Now I can be with you and them." The second one concluded.

Raven frowned and bit her lip. She didn't want him to do this to himself. But she knew his mind was set. There was no point arguing with him about this. And no time.

"What happens if one of you dies?" Ravager asked with morbid curiosity. When everyone stared at her quizzically, she shrugged. "What? You're all thinking it."

"True." Jinx smirked.

"He…he loses a part of himself." Raven whispered in agony.

"I'll be fine. I'll be careful." The Beasts assured her in unison.

The empath puffed her chest and turned to the others. Dick was still trying to contact the Justice League. "Nightwing?"

"Nothing." He shook his head in concern.

"Okay…" Raven took a deep breath. "Kory, Terra, M'gann. Take Mark and Illyana and go with one Gar to the Titan bunker. Stay hidden if you can. He'll definitely come for them if I can't beat him. Take Salem and Silkie with you."

All three heroines nodded surely.

"But…you'll definitely beat him, right?" Blue Beetle asked.

Raven rolled her shoulders back. Stronger than ever. "Definitely. He'll be back in my forehead in no time."

"Still, the rest of us will back you up." Richard said seriously. "Titans, g-"

"RAVEEEEN!"

Trigon's chilling, demonic voice echoed through the air, giving everyone goosebumps. He sounded angrier than ever. He sounded deranged.

"COME OUT AND FACE ME, TREACHEROUS DAUGHTER."

And then it happened. The lights went out. Not just in the tower. Sunlight was suddenly gone, blocked by dark clouds. The sounds of birds singing and soft waves were instantly replaced by screams and blasts. The scent of blood and dusk filled the air.

It was the end of the world. Again.

Nightwing shot his team one more deep, meaningful look. "Titans, go!"

Raven teleported them outside – except for those guarding her children – and they quickly realized this would be no easy fight. People hadn't been turned to stone this time. Instead, some had four demonic eyes on their faces, and they were turning on their loved ones and attacking them. It was a blood bath and utter destruction surrounded them everywhere. The Titans immediately started doing damage control while Raven confidently floated into the air to face her father, but then something knocked her down.

The empath frowned in confusion and held onto her head, glancing up to see no other than Superman flying above her, four red demonic eyes on his face, completely under her father's control. Fuck. She quickly tried to lift herself off the ground, but something knocked her down again, breaking her leg in the process. It was too quick to see or react to. She screamed in pain and it was loud enough to make all the Titans turn around. The Werebeast was already over her, growling protectively. And then they saw who did it. The Flash had a smirk on his face when he folded his arms, standing beside Superman with the same four red eyes on his face.

A magical rope wrapped around the Werebeast's neck, pulling him away from her and making him roar in pain. It was being willed by a Trigon-possessed Wonder Woman. Raven immediately stretched out an arm to release him, but the Flash was obviously faster than her and her arm was broken before her hand could glow. She retrieved it and screamed again. And then the entire Justice League landed menacingly, one by one, all clearly possessed by Trigon, who was laughing wickedly, relishing in his daughter's suffering.

Kid Flash was the first to react, running towards Barry and pushing him away from Raven before he could attack her again. Superboy held Superman back while she desperately stretched her other arm and helped Garfield phase through the Lasso of Truth before it could suffocate him. The Werebeast immediately grabbed Diana and threw her several miles away, before coughing to catch his breath. Trigon's laughter wavered when he realized he couldn't possess the Titans.

"I see you've protected your friends against my influence. But this will not save their lives."

"I guess us worrying about living up to the Justice League doesn't seem so silly now." Donna whispered to Dick before they exchanged a worried look.

And then the Titans engaged in battle against the Justice League, keeping the possessed heroes away from Raven while she worked on healing her body. Except they soon realized it wasn't just the Justice League. Several heroes and villains were turning up, all with four demonic eyes on their faces. Nightwing's heart nearly stopped when a Trigon-powered Batgirl jumped in front of him, taking advantage of his shock and heartache to knock him to the ground, but he quickly rolled over and got back on his feet to fight her. Superboy and Krypto's way to Raven and Garfield was cut short when Supergirl tackled Conner.

"Kara?!"

She smiled wickedly, the same four red eyes as everyone else glowing brightly back at him. "Kara isn't home right now."

Chaos spread across the battlefield as buildings fell down left and right and the air became intoxicated by the rotten scent of death and decay. The skies were red and dark and enormous cracks appeared on the ground beneath their feet, glowing in a blinding scarlet color. The Werebeast stood his ground, standing fiercely above Raven while she mended her bones, attacking anyone and anything that dared come near her.

The empath panted and looked around. Damian and Rose were battling Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy. Wonder Girl was fighting Wonder Woman next to where Speedy was keeping Green Arrow busy. Cyborg was going up against Batman and Slade while Jinx held Zatanna back and Blue Beetle dodged Static Shock's attacks and tried talking him out of it. Wally and Barry seemed to be in a dangerously balanced battle of their own, but all she could catch of that were glimpses.

"Stay close to me, love." The green Werebeast growled.

Superman went straight for them. Garfield's incredibly resistant Beast didn't move an inch, fighting the Trigon-powered man of steel ferociously and decisively, making it perfectly clear no one was going to touch her as long as he was there. But all together the battle was one of the most hopeless, messed up, revolting sights Raven had ever witnessed. The Titans were giving it their all, but there weren't enough of them to stop every enemy in this fight. Her father had been preparing for this for months. She was stronger than ever, it was true. But so was he.

It couldn't matter, because she knew she was the one who should stop Trigon and her broken limbs were healed now. She couldn't hide under Gar's enormous Beast forever, it was time to rejoin the battle, so Raven teleported to her father's side, but as soon as she did, Wonder Woman pulled her away from him again after having thrown Donna out of the fight. Raven phased through Diana's grip and Bumblebee struggled against the Amazon until Wonder Girl found her way back to them.

Raven's hands and eyes glowed brightly, but she was attacked from multiple fronts, making her avert her attention from Trigon to form a force-field. The winged Werebeast flew to her in a heartbeat, knocking villains and heroes down from the skies before they could harm her, but there were far too many enemies to fight. Raven tried time and time again to reach her father, but she simply couldn't get to him when there were these many super-people devoted exclusively to keeping her from doing just that.

And then she realized even though the main fight was here and Trigon was still focused on her, the apocalyptical overall scenario of people turning on their loved ones, nature dying, constructions catching on fire and basically everything that was once good slowly disappearing from the face of the Earth was probably spreading across the planet.

The Titans were all that was left because of her protection, but they could barely contain the situation at hand, let alone tend to the rest of the world. People would start dying if she didn't win. People were probably already dying. It's YOUR job to save them, Raven. Gar, your children, your friends, the world. You cannot fail.

"TIME TO LOSE EVERYTHING YOU LOVE, DAUGHTER."

Gar was still fighting Superman when the Trigon-possessed members of the Doom Patrol showed up. It broke his heart, but he didn't hesitate for a second, shielding his mind from Mento by borrowing magical creatures' skills and charging at them.

Raven kept trying to catch a break and summon enough magic to trap her father, she really did. But at this point her brothers surrounded her, hitting her with magical energy blasts from every direction. She was the strongest of Trigon's children, but it was six against one and it certainly kept her busy, especially when Superman joined them. Trigon was laughing loudly, apparently having the time of his life. And then it happened.

She only sensed Martian Manhunter a second before he became visible and smirked at her. And Raven's blood ran cold, because she knew it. She'd felt it. He had read her mind. He knew exactly where her children were. Her eyes widened and she immediately attacked him, but the dark energy blast was weakened when she was struck by lightning nearly at the same time. Raven screamed as Static Shock circled back and shot again, but Gar's Werebeast shielded her. The empath turned to defend herself against Zatanna.

Raven was phenomenal, but again, there were too many enemies. Martial Manhunter was gone before she could stop him. She glanced over at him and realized in dreadful horror Superman was flying away with him while Krypto desperately followed. Despair rose up her chest, making her stomach twirl and her heart wrench, sucking all the air out of her lungs. NO. No, no, no, no. PLEASE no.

Garfield's consciousness remained unified, so the Werebeast went back to keeping Trigon-possessed foes away from Raven, being her most fierce protector, fighting them left and right in determined fury before they could touch her while she focused on the world-conquering demon that caused all of this.

Meanwhile, the other Werebeast prepared to fight in the Titan hideout bunker.

"Superman and Martian Manhunter are coming. They're possessed." He told Starfire, Miss Martian and Terra in an urgent tone.

M'gann tried to get the babies to stop crying while Kory and Terra immediately assumed a battle stance. Miss Martian thought about taking the twins somewhere else, but it was too late. With Superman's speed, there was no time. Besides, Mark and Illyana could sense danger and they were making things fly around dangerously, so hiding them would be impossible now. In any case, Clark and J'onn J'onzz were here already.

Garfield and Starfire immediately charged at Superman. They could both take powerful hits and match his physical strength. Kory's blasts seemed to at least slow him down a bit, too. They weren't as fast as him, but Krypto joined them, flying around and protecting the shapeshifter and the Tamaranean. The space dog did his best, but he wasn't quite as fast as the man of steel, though.

Terra screamed as her eyes glowed in bright yellow and the earth did her bidding. She tried to bury Martian Manhunter while M'gann shielded her mind, and she nearly succeeded several times, but her mental shield would crack every now and then because his psychic abilities were simply too powerful, so M'gann had to join the blonde and fight him too. Gar saw them struggling and remembered Dick telling him J'onn J'onzz's weakness.

"M'gann, switch!" The Beast yelled to the Martian, who instantly understood and went for the man of steel while he charged at Martian Manhunter, breathing fire.

They were all giving it more than their all and at the top of their game, but it was a fight that couldn't last forever – not without unwanted deaths.

Back in the main fight, Cyborg joined Gar in covering Raven, using all his technological advancements to anticipate the possessed enemies' moves and his human drive to push further than ever before. Her way still wasn't clear and she had to dodge and neutralize heroes and villains, but she had a split second to focus and think. The empath considered freezing time, but by the time she began trapping her father, she wouldn't be able to keep it going and then her brothers would kill her before she could finish.

Raven exhaled in frustration, surrounded by explosions, magical whirlwinds and destruction, and stared up at the darkened skies. "I didn't ASK for any of this!" She yelled at whoever was out there watching her and whichever entities could hear. Her face contorted in pain and her voice distorted into a desperate plea. "Just give me an answer, PLEASE! Show me what to do! I didn't…I…"

"You cannot stop me this time, my dear. Your children will belong to me soon." Her father's voice echoed, pulling her out of her urgent prayer and averting her attention back to him as something truly terrible happened.

One by one, Trigon's sons disappeared, willingly allowing themselves to be absorbed, merging with their father and making him unbelievably stronger. Raven's breath caught in her throat when she realized this had enhanced his power in such a way containing him was highly unlikely now. This version of him was too mighty to trap. It was hopeless.

It was too late.

"It's over, child. You can't beat me anymore, I am unstoppable. You CAN still join us. I'll let your friends live if you join me. Make your choice. Join us or watch them die."

A small smirk appeared on Raven's lips. I know what to do.

She could try doing this herself, but there was someone who could do it better. So her soul-self detached from her body and swiftly searched the battlefield for one redhead speedster. Wally?

Kid Flash didn't stop, but his eyes widened slightly. Raven?! What do you need?

Travel back in time.

What?! I thought you said we shouldn't-

Just a few seconds. Trust me.

Wally West didn't argue, because literally every second counted. He accelerated his pace and felt a piece of her soul enter his body, understanding this was how her consciousness traveled back with him. It felt invasive and a bit uncomfortable, but it didn't hurt. He reversed about a minute back and immediately turned away from his previous fight with Barry to run to Raven where she was staring at the skies and asking for an answer. As soon as he touched her, the piece of her soul he was carrying left his body and flowed into hers, giving her a clear vision of what to do.

Raven stretched out her arms, her entire body glowing and eyes practically burning in bright ethereal light. She remembered all she'd learned from Dr Strange about time manipulation and focused entirely on her core. "STOP!"

This time, as time stood still, it wasn't a desperate accident. This time she knew exactly what she was doing.

Raven calmly turned around to face the six confused half-demons she had purposely spared from freezing. The battlefield was silent now, as the chaos was abruptly interrupted by her magic. Raven's white cloak and hair flew around as she approached the Sons of Trigon, her eyes still glowing brightly. "We need to talk."

Alive (Sia)