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Chapter 20 Best Beast Boy

Raven bit her lip as she looked up at the crystal cages above the arena. Two of her teammates were gone. They had been eliminated with very little effort on their opponents' part (at least, that was the case for Robin). Seeing this image made turning back toward her taller interdimensional counterpart all the more stressful. She knew that, if Starfire and Beast Boy got eliminated, then the duty of winning this fight fell completely on her. And…sure, she didn't really care. This fight didn't really carry as much weight for her as it did for her teammates. But still, she had a feeling that she would suffer profusely if Robin thought that she threw the game.

But that still didn't change things for her. She didn't want to fight back, as doing so would obviously trigger her inner demon and cause it to go on a rampage. She needed to avoid that scenario at all costs, for she didn't want to have her nightmare become a premonition. So, she decided right then and there that she would not let anything…anything prompt her to fight back against her opponent. It was more trouble than it was worth. She could handle a lecture from Robin. She couldn't deal with people's blood staining her hands.

"You're worried," Raven said bluntly.

"You're observant," Raven replied. She kept her eyes away from her double's shadowy face.

Raven smirked. "I guess, on some level, that makes things just a smidge more interesting." She rose about a foot into the air. To Raven's shock and horror, she extended her arms, letting dark energy to build up in her hands.

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos!"

Words that Raven used so often to calm herself down now filled her with dread. She just barely avoided getting struck by the dark energy blast that Raven fired at her. She looked toward her counterpart, her breathing and heart rates speeding up.

"I thought you said you weren't psyched for this fight!"

Raven gave her a stoic look that contained smidges of a smirk. "I'm not." Her eyes glowed white as she fired more blasts. Raven dodged them, although doing so was difficult considering she wasn't using her flying power. Her heart rate was so fast that it was actually painful. She kept her eyes on her double at all times, fearing the potential damage that this taller, more sullen version of her could make.

"Why don't you fight back?" Raven asked.

Raven sucked in a breath. "Because." She tried to sound indifferent despite being out of breath. Personally, she felt like she succeeded. "Somethings are just like…whatever…you know?"

Raven sniffed. "I guess I can respect someone who doesn't engage in things they don't care about, even if all the other people in the arena are totally sold on this whole fight thing." She gestured toward the other Titans, so absorbed in their battles that nothing could draw their attention away. Raven turned back toward her. "But still. This fight means a lot to my friends, and I don't want to end up disappointing them."

Raven sighed. Wow, I version of me who cares about her teammate's feelings. It's an interdimensional miracle. She barely avoided the blast that Raven sent her way. Her breathing sped up again as she wonder what in the world she could do in order to get herself out of this literal nightmare scenario.

…

Beast Boy had to admit, this fight was the most fun that he had had in quite a long time. Even though it was obvious Beast Boy overpowered him on every level, from size to strength to intimidation factor, the taller counterpart of the green changeling didn't really take the fight seriously. Was that because he considered himself superior, and thus didn't feel that he needed to be at one hundred percent power in order to beat the shorter Beast Boy? Eh, probably. But honestly, Beast Boy didn't care whether that was the case or not. Since neither one of the changelings put their hearts and souls into the fight, at most treating it as a game, that meant both were allowed a little room for fun.

And fun they had. What started out as a game of one-ups manship over who had the best animal forms had turned into a scenario where both Beast Boys admired the others transformations. At this very moment, Beast Boy had turned into a tiny donkey, and was dancing to an imaginary beat in front of his double.

"Yeah, Boy!" he called out, the dancing putting a smile on his face. "Ain't this the most awesomest thing you see all day!"

Beast Boy turned back into a human, holding his hands to his sides as he laughed. "Dude, that's hilarious! I can't even turn into a donkey that small!"

Beast Boy grinned. "That's not the only trick I be having up my sleeve. I can also turn into…" he morphed again, smirking when he saw his double's jaw drop a little. "Eh? See? I can transform into a full grown, balding man!" He made his eyebrows go up and down. "Impressive, eh?"

Beast Boy slapped himself in the face. "Dude! That's so cool! You can turn into a man?" He put his hand to his chin. "I guess, technically, humans are animals. So, in its own weird, funny way, it actually makes sense!"

"Of course it be making sense, foo!" Beast Boy morphed back into himself. "I'd like to see you turn into something just as impressive as that!"

"Hmm…" Beast Boy tapped his foot as he considered what his double just said. After a few seconds, a wicked gleam appeared in his eyes. "Oh, I definitely can!" He backed up, grinning with a devilish flare. "Prepare to have your mind blown, Mini Me!"

Beast Boy's face fell. He was about to call out his double for giving him a nickname like that. Before he did, however, Beast Boy morphed. The form he took was huge, hairy, and looked like some sort of ferocious monster. Beast Boy's jaw dropped when he saw this. That…that…what even was that? What was the creature that his double had just morphed into? It was large, intimidating, scary. It blew his tiny donkey dance straight out of the water!

"What…what…what…" he shook his head in order to gather his bearings. "What in the what filled what…?!"

Beast Boy morphed back into his human form, still wearing the same grin he had before he transformed. "That's my werewolf form. Pretty cool, right?"

"Oh, it's be more than cool! It's awesome! It knocked my socks off so hard that they now be on the other side of the planet!"

Beast Boy chuckled. "I'm glad that you like it."

Beast Boy returned the smile. Man. How in the multiverse could his double be this cool? There was so much to like about him! Beast Boy's first impression of him before they started the fight had been incredible, and the interactions had only gone up hill from there. Beast Boy could see himself becoming good friends with this goofy, tall green dude. They would become the best buds to ever walk the Earth more so than him and Cyborg.

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos!"

Beast Boy blinked. There, just a few feet to his left, he saw the two Ravens fighting. Or, to be more specific, the taller Raven was firing dark energy blasts at the shorter Raven. Raven dodged each and every single one of the blasts, but she didn't fire back. She didn't rise into the air, she didn't go all "Azarath Metrion Zinthos" on her double's behind…she didn't do anything that looked like even the barest definition of combat.

And it didn't take long for Beast Boy to find out why. The conversation they had returned to his mind, about how Raven had been worried about killing everyone thanks to her demon half and its unbridled power. So, naturally, seeing his ex-girlfriend not fighting back, seemingly fearful about the option of using her powers, filled Beast Boy with worry. She needed help. She needed someone to assist her, otherwise she could get eliminated. Or worse, injured.

"Rae rae!" Beast Boy, leaving his double in the dust, made his way over to the lovely witch in blue. At least, he started to. His double held him back by placing his hand on his shoulder.

"Dude, where are you going?"

"I need to help Raven! She be needing help on the battlefield yo! And I be the one who needs to help her out!"

Beast Boy looked confused. "Dude, if I know anything about Raven…any version of Raven…it's that she is tough. She can handle herself no matter what situation comes her way. She doesn't need your help. And besides.." he scratched the back of his head. "This battle is between you and me. If one of us doesn't emerge victorious, then that could cause a problem."

Beast Boy snorted. "Oh, now you be taking this whole fighting thing seriously?" He looked between his double and the Ravens. "But you know what? That's fine. If I need to get you outs in order to be helping Raven, then so be it." He turned and punched his double right in the nose.

"OWW!" Beast Boy held his hand to his face. "Dude, why did you…?!"

Before anymore words could be said, Beast Boy morphed into a gorilla. He beat his chest before picking up his double. With all the strength he had at his disposal, he threw him toward the force field.

"LOSER!"

Beast Boy grinned as he morphed back into a human. "Yes. That was good!" He turned his head. "Now, to help Raven!"

…

Admittedly, Robin was pretty impressed at the fact that Beast Boy was able to eliminate his double. Usually, the green changeling was so incompetent that he couldn't even open a pickle jar without assistance. But this time, he came through. He had managed to do something that didn't embarrass the team or anyone who observed them in action.

He cackled at Beast Boy in the cage by his side. "Ha! You lost, buddy! You got beaten by the most useless member of my team!" He let out a mighty guffaw. "It must really suck to be you right now!"

Beast Boy flashed Robin a glare. "Man. Some inspiring leader you are…"

"Hey Robin, look!" Cyborg pointed down into the arena. "Beast Boy's going over to help Raven!"

"What?" Robin looked down into the arena. Sure enough, Beast Boy was running over to the two Ravens. This caused the Boy Wonder to squint. "What in the world is he doing?"

Beast Boy shrugged. "I don't know. He must really like his Raven."

Robin squinted harder. "True. But he isn't even taking time to celebrate his victory." He backed away from the wall, his mouth in a serious line. "He's hiding something. I just know it."

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Chapter 31 Part of My World

The trio flew as fast as they possibly could, with Larry leading the way. Raven had to admit that she was impressed how much their rescuer seemed to know the cavern they found themselves in. He turned at all the right places, not taking any time to think twice about his course of action. Despite the fact that Raven gave him annoyed looks, Raven had to admit she felt safe in the presence of this little… whatever Larry was. She didn’t even stop to worry about the fact that she could hear Trigon roaring in the cavern they had just left.

Eventually, the trio stopped. Larry took some deep breaths and sank to the ground. Raven stopped, letting go of her double’s hand as she also landed. Raven looked around the place where they occupied; instead of the dark red walls and the ever burning lava, this place looked more like a sewer system. It had the look, the sound, and… *gag* the smell. Raven wrinkled her nose, trying her best to not let the scent bother her. As bad as it was, it was still leagues better than the danger that they were in while in the presence of the Trigons.

“Well,” Larry said once he caught his breath. “I think we’re safe for now.” He floated back into the air and looked at the Ravens, smiling a smile that was so full of proud yet so innocent at the same time. Even though she wasn’t entirely sure what the future would hold for all of them, she felt nice looking into Larry’s face. It was certainly a better source of courage and motivation than any of the screams and shouts that came out of Robin’s mouth.

“Thanks for saving us, Larry.” Raven beamed. “You’re a pretty cool dude.”

Larry chuckled as his face turned red. “Aww shucks.”

Raven cleared her throat, standing up to her full height (wow, Raven hadn’t noticed how tall she was until literally just now). She sent a look in Larry’s direction. “I suppose I should thank you too. At the very least you didn’t end up breaking reality.” Raven almost laughed at that before she realized her double wasn’t joking, which just raised… so many questions.

“Yeah, that was a pretty big goof on my part,” Larry said as he scratched the back of his head. “Probably the biggest goof in the history of all of my goofs.” He put the smile back on. “But I’m glad I could do something now! I always like helping out the Teen Titans, in anyway I can!”

Raven’s smile grew bigger. “That’s good to hear. We could always use a little helper (especially since pretty much all of us stink at fighting).”

Before Larry could respond to this, Raven stopped him. “Wait.” She pulled a device out of her cloak. By the looks of it, Raven would guess that it was the same kind of Titans communicator that her team used on and off. Raven pressed a button and spoke into it. “Calling any Titan, over.” She released the button, her eyes practically glued to the little, circular screen. Unfortunately, all she got was static.

Larry floated up to her and looked at the communicator. “I don’t think you’re in range.”

Raven snorted. “Considering we’re in another dimension, I think that pretty much goes without saying.”

For the first time since they met, Raven’s features contorted into a look of fear. “Then what do we do?” She took deep breaths. “We… we need to get in contact with the others! We need to let them know where we are!”

“Yeah,” Larry said as he put his finger to his chin. “We most certainly do…” He thought about this for a good three minutes before his features lit up. “I know!” He got out his finger, the same finger that had managed to unlock the Ravens’ cage. “Let me try to use some magic! I’m sure I can help us to with some interdimensional communication.”

Raven hesitated, almost pulling away from Larry entirely. Raven didn’t know why though; if he could help them, he should help them. They weren’t exactly in a position to deny anyone’s aid, especially since they had the Trigons to worry about. Raven must’ve reasoned this was the case too, as she let out a sigh and held the communicator out to Larry. The little Robin clone got right to work, holding his glowing pointed finger right on the communicator’s screen. The device itself glowed too, and it produced a humming sound that Raven would readily admit was very soothing to the ears. When Larry pulled away from the communicator, he did it with a grin.

“There. It should be all good.”

Raven nodded despite her raised eyebrow. She held the communicator back up and pushed the button. “Raven calling anyone, over.” Raven waited with bated breath, hoping that whatever magical spell Larry put on the device would work.

Thankfully, a voice came from the communicator in no time flat. “Raven?” The voice sounded like Robins. The trio gathered around the communicator, and Raven felt extremely excited to see Robin’s face on the screen (wow, those were words she never thought she’d say in a million years). “Raven, is that you?”

Raven smiled. “Yes Robin. You have no idea how happy I am to see you.”

A whoop came from somewhere on the line. “It’s Raven! Let me talk to her!” Before long, Beast Boy’s face appeared. “ Rae rae ? Where are you?”

Raven smiled and gestured for her double to hand over the device. “Hi, Beast Boy .” She even put her hood down, letting her ex boyfriend (who she was now questioning if he should remain an ex boyfriend) see her face. “I’m so happy to see you.”

“I am too, Mama!” He put one eye really close to the screen. “Are you okay? I now Trigon drained your power…”

Raven trembled, all at once becoming more aware of the weakness that now rested in her body. “I… I’m fine. I’m not completely powerless.” She cringed. “Yet.”

Beast Boy let out a breath of relief. “Oh, good.” He backed up. “If somethings decided to happen to you… I don’t knows how I would feel.”

A pang rang through Raven’s heart. She honestly didn’t know what to say to this. Sure, normally she couldn’t stand such sappy sweetness from anybody. And maybe the only reason she liked this show from Beast Boy now of all times was because much of her power was gone, and much of her demon half along with it. But honestly, that didn’t matter. She still appreciated Beast Boy taking the time to care about. It… it made her feel… less alone.

“Thank you,” she said, her face growing warm. “I’m gonna let Raven and Robin talk now, okay?”

Beast Boy sniffled and nodded his head. “Of course, Mama. That be a good idea.” With that, he backed away. Raven handed the communicator back, and Raven let out a sigh as she began talking to Robin.

“We have Larry to thank for helping us escape. He… I don’t know what we would’ve done if he hadn’t shown up.”

“Well, it’s good that you’re safe. Good job, Larry.” This compliment made the interdimensional, reality warping being grow even redder. “Now, there’s a lot we have to know. I honestly don’t know where to begin.” He took some time to think about this before putting on a brave face. “I guess I should start with a simple question first. Do you know where you are?”

Raven seized up when this question was asked, and Raven did the same thing. Beads of sweat rolled down her face as she questioned their current location. They could be anywhere in this vast, vast multiverse, anywhere that the two Trigons thought would be a great place to hide. She honestly felt sick thinking about this, thinking about how dire their situation was and how fixing it would be nearly impossible.

“I don’t…” Raven hesitated, curling a strand of hair over her ear. “I’m not sure.”

“But we can easily find out!” Larry exclaimed. He floated up to the ceiling, which Raven only now realized had a manhole cover. The light that filtered into the sewer once Larry moved it was so so SO welcome. In the cavern, Raven had honestly worried that she would never see natural light again, so this… this took a big load off her chest, if nothing else.

“Come on, ladies!” Larry exclaimed. “Come join me out in the open!” He laughed and zipped out of the hole. The Ravens exchanged a look before they followed after him. Since she had the ability to fly, and Raven was stuck climbing the rungs, Raven was the first one to exit the hole. 

When she did, she gasped. “No way!” She let out a breath. “This is great!”

Raven raised an eyebrow, wondering exactly what her double was seeing. When she poked her head out of the manhole… she had to admit, she wasn’t really that impressed with what she saw. The sight that met their eyes was a city, illuminated by moonlight streaming down into the streets. None of the buildings particularly stuck out to Raven , probably because she lived in a world of bright colors and this place looked rather… drab in comparison.

“What is this place?” she asked, her confusion piling up.

Raven beamed as she stepped out of the sewer. “It’s my Earth!” She looked back down at her communicator. “Robin, we’re in our home dimension! We’re just a few miles away from Titans Tower!”

“That’s great!” Robin exclaimed. 

Raven studied the city. So this was Raven’s home dimension, huh? Interesting how a serious group of Titans didn’t live in a place that was brightly and goofily colored like her home. Fortunately, there was one thing that was impressive about this place. If she looked straight ahead, Raven could see a large building in the shape of a T rising up over the rest of the metropolis. She smiled, actually feeling quite nostalgic while looking at Titan’s Tower. Sure, it wasn’t her Titan’s Tower, but she still felt safe looking at it.

“Okay, so that’s one of my questions answered,” Robin said. His brow furrowed. “How is the situation with the Trigons?”

Raven sucked some air through her teeth. “Well, we managed to escape from them, as I’ve previously said. However…I think it’s safe to say we’ll be in a lot of trouble when they realize we’re missing.”

As if that was some kind of cue, a large stream of orange fire burst out of the manhole. Everyone shrieked and jumped away. When they did, they heard Trigon complaining from within.

“Why did the Ravens have to escape? Do they just want me to get in trouble with Big Triggy?”

Raven cringed and gestured for Larry and her double to follow her to the sidewalk. They moved swiftly, not making any noise whatsoever. Once they were on the sidewalk, away from the immediate danger, Raven whispered into her communicator.

“They’re coming! They want to find us!”

Robin nodded. “Okay. Well, here’s what I suggest. Don’t go to Titans Tower; they’ll probably think that’ll be the first place you’ll go. Stick to the shadows; don’t call attention to yourselves or use any power that might draw their attention.” He cringed and looked over at Larry. “Unfortunately, Larry, since you have the strongest power out of any of us, you’ll probably have to leave.”

“Leave?” Larry’s shoulders slumped. “But this is an adventure! Besides, I want to help you guys!”

“You did.” Robin smiled. “You did an amazing job getting the Ravens out of captivity.” 

Larry puffed out his chest. “But I can do more! I can fight the Trigons! I can…”

Raven shook her head. “No. You are powerful Larry, but the Trigons are even more so. Sure, my Trigon isn’t at full power. But if he gets to that state, even you with all your reality warping won’t stand a chance against him.”

“Exactly.” Robin looked serious once again. “We can’t risk it. The Trigons would tear us to shreds if given the opportunity, and I know that they’re really jonesing the get Raven’s powers. So we need to be discreet. Outwit them, if at all possible.”

Raven snorted. “Well, that won’t be difficult. My Dad’s dumber than a bag of bricks.”

“But my Dad isn’t,” Raven said. “So I wouldn’t underestimate this situation. We’re in danger, so we have to lay low.”

“Exactly,” said Robin. “I’ll try to find a way back to our dimension so we and the Goofy Titans can aid you two. I don’t know how long that’ll take, but… I’ll certainly try.”

Raven smiled. “Thanks Robin. We’ll talk to you then.”

“Talk to you then,” Robin replied. “Over and out.”

With that, the screen went black. The Ravens exchanged a worried look as Larry let out a sigh.

“Well, I guess I should leave.” He raised his magic finger. “Good luck, Ravens.”

With that, he vanished. Once he was gone, Raven looked down at her double.

“Well… I guess we start walking.”

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Chapter 32 Need of a Plan

Once he turned off the communicator, Robin felt as though the weight of the world was on his shoulders. He put the device back in his pocket before hanging his head and sighing. He couldn’t remember the last time everything seemed to pile up against the Titans to this degree. Their encounter with Trigon was close, but even then, Robin could at the very least say that he was still in his home dimension. This time? Forget it. They were separated from their team, had two deadly, wicked demons coming after them, and worst of all, were scattered across two completely different dimensions. How could he come back from that? Just one of those circumstances was pretty bad. But now that he was so far away from absolutely everything that he held dear…

Robin swallowed a lump. He tried to get his emotions back down to a calmer level, tried telling himself that this wasn’t and wouldn’t be the end of the world. He could come up with a way to conquer this. He could defeat the Trigons, find the Ravens, and make everything as right as rain once again. He was a Teen Titan; he knew for a fact that he and his friends would succeed in the end. He… he was… certain… of it…

“Robin, you are sweating,” said Starfire.

Robin internally flinched and wiped the sweat off his brow. He looked into the caring green eyes of his beloved alien princess. She came up to him and took his hand in hers.

“I…” he tried to say something. After all, he was the leader. It was his job to reassure the Titans, his job to boost and keep up team morale. Unfortunately, no words came to him. The only things that did were stuttery half words. “I uh… um, uh…”

Before he could object, Starfire put her finger on his lips. “It’s okay,” she whispered. “I understand that you are doing the freaking out.” She pulled him into a hug, thankfully not using so much strength that she crunched his bones into powder. “Just breathe. Do the taking of the deep breaths. Try to remain calm.”

Robin found that wasn’t as hard to do as he imagined it to be, and that was thanks to his close proximity to Starfire. Seriously, she always knew how to bring him up. She was always there for both him and his other team members, ready to fill the role of supportive friend when he himself was unable to. He hugged her back, all while a smile grew on his face.

“Thanks Star.” His smile only grew bigger as he hugged her even tighter. “I appreciate it.”

“Daww!” Cyborg said. To Robin’s complete surprise, he wiped a tear from his non-cybernetic eye. “I always love to see stuff like this!”

Robin didn’t have that reaction at all. Instead of dealing with happy tears, he turned toward his Starfire with a look of bewilderment and jealousy. “How come you never do stuff like this for me?”

Starfire laughed before shrugging. “You never seemed to do the needing of it.”

Robin blinked before smiling. “Yeah, I see what you mean.” He laughed. “I can be the cool, stoic guy when I need to be.”

Robin snorted right as Starfire released him from her embrace. He cleared his throat, getting every single eye to turn toward him. He did his best to appear strong and dependable, hiding his fear as he addressed this very unique, near impossible situation that they found themselves in.

“Okay everyone,” he said, his voice carrying through the air. “This is probably the biggest threat that either of our teams have ever faced. If we don’t take care of this soon, then it is very possible that the whole multiverse could be at stake.” He saw quite a few people clench up and tremble when he said this. He didn’t blame them. “So, now more than ever, we need a solid plan. We need to find a way to get back to our home dimension, join the Ravens, and put a stop to the Trigons and their schemes once and for all.” His heart pumped. “Absolutely no pressure or anything of the sort.”

Cyborg took a step forward. “But Robin, how in the world can we do that? We’re literally dimensions apart?”

“Yeah,” Beast Boy chimed in. “And call my old fashioned, but I think interdimensional travel is… kinda impossible?”

Robin shook his head. “If it is possible for people like Raven and her father, then there could be a way where it is feasible for us.” He frowned. “And we can find that way. I know we can.”

“I know you can too!” Beast Boy exclaimed. He took a step forward. “And I really hope you can too! I don’t wants to leave Mama Rae rae all by her lonesome! I wants to help her! I needs to help her!”

Beast Boy chuckled. “Man, you are really attached to your Raven, Beast Boy .” His chuckling intensified. “Maybe we could use the red string of fate connecting the two of you to cross the dimensions and get back to her.”

Robin shook his head. “Funny, but ultimately not helpful.” He turned away, looking down from the roof to the brightly colored ground all the way at the base of Titan’s Tower. “I’ll come up with a plan though. I promise all of you that I will.”

Starfire stepped closer to him, practically radiating uncertainty. “Are you sure, Robin?”

Robin almost cringed. No. He most definitely wasn’t. He felt like he was way over his head for possibly the first time in his entire life. Sure, more often than not, he was brave enough to go toe to toe with enemies like Trigon and Slade. But now, he felt like he was just one step away from crying and cowering in the corner like a frightened child. This feeling was almost comparable to how he felt after losing his parents; alone, with no way to work around the very obvious problem and pick himself back up.

However, he needed to appear strong. That’s what everyone expected of him, and (most importantly), it was what everyone needed. They were looking to him for guidance. Even though he himself felt like there was little guidance he could offer, or any hope that could illuminate the very dark tunnel, he was going to appear strong. He was going to be strong.

“Of course, Star.” He smiled. “Just give me a few hours to think, and I promise you that I’ll find a way out of this mess.”

…

Raven didn’t want to complain. She really, truly didn’t want to complain. The situation was already bad enough, so any complaints that she made would just make everything a thousand times worse. But… oh man, her feet ! They burned, making the already egregious task of walking even more excruciating. Right before almost falling flat on her face, she grit her teeth and berated herself in her head. To think; a superhero who donned the name of Lady Legasus in the past was having more trouble walking than a newborn baby. How shameful and pathetic was that? Man, was she glad her teammates weren’t here to see her in such a state.

Unfortunately, there was someone there. Raven stood at the end of the path, looking at her with a raised eyebrow. Raven could practically feel her judgment even without the use of her empathic powers. She stopped, took a breath, and continued after her. It felt like her feet were going to burst open when she finally did catch up with her double.

“You okay?” Raven asked.

“I’m… fine.” No way in the vast vast multiverse was Raven going to show herself being weak. After all, weakness was the exact opposite of what both girls needed in this increasingly dire situation. “I just… I just need time to catch my breath.” She leaned against Raven’s leg like it was light post. While she managed to catch her breath, her feet still screamed at her to put them out of their misery. Man, she had never wished she could use her flying power so much before.

Once she got herself all set, she looked back up at her double. “Let’s…” she winced as she moved her foot, almost falling to the floor and crying. “Let’s keep going. We want to stay ahead of the Trigons as much as possible.”

Raven had a raised eyebrow, but nodded regardless. The two girls continued walking, sticking to the shadows that such a night as this one was capable of creating. Raven winced at pretty much every step though. She recalled when Starfire made her read the original Little Mermaid, and how it was said that each step the mermaid took while in human form felt like she was walking on extremely sharp knives. Man, what Raven wouldn’t give to trade that pain for hers. It sounded like Heaven as opposed to the hell she was going through now.

After a while, Raven stopped again. “Okay seriously, you need to stop.” Despite her incredulous exterior, Raven detected the slightest hints of empathy coming from her. “Clearly, you aren’t used t walking like this.”

Raven snickered. “Are you kidding? I love walking…” Right before she finished her sentence, she collapsed down onto the ground face first. The exact thing she had been trying to avoid throughout this whole experience. The pain all over her body was… well, let’s just say that she was really wishing that she stayed to be tortured by Trigon .

Raven leaned down toward her. Now, instead of the annoyed, stoic mask, she wore a concerned look. “Look, why don’t we take a break.” She looked to the right before pointing. “Let’s go down this alleyway. Your Dad is less likely to look this way.”

Knowing that she couldn’t walk another step, Raven nodded. She tried to stand up, but thanks to Raven picking her up, she thankfully didn’t have to. Sure, under normal circumstances, she wouldn’t let anyone touch her in such a fashion. But these weren’t exactly normal circumstances, now were they?

Once they ducked into the alley, Raven set her down on the ground. Raven sighed and held onto her feet. Maybe… maybe this was for the best. Sure, the alley stunk to high heavens (more than likely due to the dumpster that she had her back up against), but this rest was much appreciated. She would be put up against a thousand dumpsters if it meant she didn’t have to walk another centimeter.

Raven took a seat alongside her, despite the fact that she wrinkled her nose at the atrocious odor. She watched as Raven took deep breaths, rubbing the bottoms of her her feet in order to help herself cope with and maybe even alleviate the pain. Raven honestly didn’t expect her to say much of anything, which she was okay with.

After a little bit though, Raven did speak up. “Not used to walking, huh?”

Raven hesitated. Oh man, should she even talk about this? What would her counterpart think of her if she admitted to this admittedly pitiful weakness of hers? She wanted to stay silent about it, which she had done for pretty much all of her teammates. However…

“I hate it,” she said, trying to push aside the embarrassment. “I usually fly everywhere, as I always feel like that’s so much easier and far less… painful.” She winced as she grabbed ahold of her other foot. “And let me tell you Raven; if we find a way to fix this and help me get my powers back from the Trigons, I am never going to walk again.” Raven chuckled at that, which prompted Raven to glare at her. “You think this is funny?”

Raven shook her head. “No, not funny. If anything, I find it relatable.” She smiled down at her double. “I’m not the biggest fan of walking either. I mean, I’m not opposed to it. But I do like to use my flying power more often than not. I think… well, since I was blessed with said power, I figure why not use it every once in a while?”

Raven smiled. “Yes! Yes, exactly!” She hesitated, looking down at her feet. “But… but you know what? Even though I hate walking, I’ll gladly do it this time.” She paused. “I don’t want our Dads to emerge victorious.”

At least, that’s what she out loud. Honestly… she wanted to get rid of her powers. After all, she was down by seventy five percent. Would it… would it really hurt to be down one hundred percent? Would it really hurt to be free of the burden she had carried since the day she was born?

Oh man, she couldn’t believe she was actually thinking this! Why was she having second thoughts? Why was she thinking with her selfish head as opposed to her heart, which she knew cared about the fate of her friends as well as the world. She grit her teeth; curse her! She shouldn’t be thinking like this! She didn’t want the Trigons to get her powers! She would die before she did!

Raven must’ve noticed the conflict going on within her head, because she leaned down. “Hey. Are you…?”

“ Rae rae ?”

Both Ravens gasped. They looked down the alley to see Trigon floating just a few feet away. Without any conversation, Raven picked Raven up and ran with her down the alley, away from her father. Even with Trigon getting farther and farther away, Raven still felt scared.

More so by her own thought process than anything else.

Chapter Text

Chapter 33 Time for a Change

Raven kept on running, all while Raven stayed securely held in her arms. Even though she logically recognized that they were getting farther away from Trigon , it still felt as though they weren’t getting any farther away from him. It was like chasing a rainbow in reverse. Raven almost wanted to give her double a big, frightened hug, for the thought of her father finding her in this trying and difficult time made her wish to seek comfort, any sort of comfort in any sort of form.

After a little bit, Raven came to a stop right in front of a clothing store. She caught her breath as she set Raven down on the ground. Even though she hadn’t been running, Raven also decided to try and catch her breath. She had, after all, been practically hyperventilating as they ran through the town away from Trigon . She put her hand to her chest, taking deep breaths. Just for the heck of it, she took the time to say and focus on her trademark mantra.

“Azarath Metrion Zinthos,” she said, her voice so low that not even a bacterium could hear it. “Azarath Metrion Zinthos. Azarath Metrion Zinthos…” she let out her breath, just now realizing that she was breathing at a much easier and more consistent rate. She smiled, feeling like everything was finally starting to go well. She looked up at her double, refusing to let the smile vanish. “Well. I think it’s safe to say we’re in the…”

Before she could finish her sentence, a big, booming sound occurred just a few buildings away. Both Ravens shrieked and looked over, terrified by the thunder-like sound. To Raven’s terror, she spotted a smoky cloud forming just around the corner. Fire rained down, and she smelled the unmistakable stench of smoke. She gulped, all at once starting to shake.

“Where are they?” Trigon’s voice boomed. “Surely, finding them shouldn’t be this hard!”

The Ravens exchanged a look. Without any need for words or conversation, they both realized that they needed to find a place to hide. Raven looked at the store that they stood in front of, shining its light down on the street via its very big and very see-through display windows.

“In here!” She whispered. She bolted inside, and Raven followed after her without a moment’s hesitation. The girls looked around the store, getting strange looks of confusion and curiosity from the many people shopping there. The didn’t care though; the only thoughts filling their heads were ones concerning getting away from the demon that was on the hunt for them. At least, that was what Raven thought of; she couldn’t exactly speak for her double.

The two half-demon superheroes bolted toward the back of the store. Before long, they found some mannequins and hid behind them. All the while, they tried to get their breathing back under control. Raven peeked out from the display stand that the mannequins stood on. She saw her father, floating just outside the store. He looked confused despite the fiery power surging through all four of his wicked eyes. Clearly, he didn’ see them bolting into the store, a fact that brought Raven such a strong sense of relief that she honestly didn’t even know what to do with half of it.

She smiled and turned toward her double. “I think we’re safe, finally!”

Raven didn’t seem to share in her excitement, not even a little bit. So, she sniffed and looked back at Trigon with a raised eyebrow. “I wouldn’t be so sure.”

Raven blinked. “Why not? We’ve chosen the best possible hiding place! There’s no way he would think to look here.”

Raven shook her head. “You’re underestimating him. I wouldn’t do that; it’s a dangerous game to play.” Her face looked grim. “Nothing is stopping him from coming in and looking…”

Before she had even a chance to finish her sentence, the sound of a bell ringing rung throughout the store. Raven’s heart stopped and jumped into her throat at the exact same time. She stared, in terror, as her father floated in the doorway. All the other customers looked at him, some even going so far as to drop the clothes they had been considering purchasing to the floor in terror.

Trigon didn’t seem to pay heed to the fright of the customers. “Hello, citizens of the Serious Universe!” He reached into his pocket, pulling out a wallet. “You wouldn’t happen to have seen my daughter, would you?” He opened the wallet, causing a row of pictures to fall out of it. Even though she was far away, Raven knew for a fact that those pictures were of her. This caused an unbearable bout of nausea to form, first in her stomach and then in her throat. “It’s very important that I find her; I do have a multiverse to destroy after all.”

As if that was the cue that alerted the customers to how scared they actually were, almost everybody in the store screamed. The customers screamed, the clerks screamed; everybody. In a rush, they bolted toward the emergency exit in the back of the store, clearly recognizing that trying to make their way past Trigon would be suicide.

Once all the people disappeared, meaning Trigon and the Ravens were the only ones left inside, Trigon pinched his brow. “Oh, this is not going to be easy for me, is it?” He looked back at the door, igniting a hope in Raven that he would decide to leave the store. She almost smiled, her heartbeat slowing down. Oh please let him go out! She thought. Please let him go out and give up searching here!

Unfortunately, after a little bit, Trigon shrugged and turned back around. “Oh well.” He floated forward. “No harm in searching here.”

DNAG IT! Raven pulled away, feeling like she was just a push away from backing up into the wall. Man, she really needed to learn that misplacing hope was a dangerous game.

“What are we going to do?” Raven whispered as she went back over to her double. Her face conveyed terror, a type of terror that would make even the most stoic of masks crumbled into pieces. “We’re doomed!”

Maybe it was just Raven’s inner contrarian, but she decided to shake her head. “No,” she whispered back. “We’re not doomed.”

Raven raised an eyebrow. “He’s a demon, Raven . In terms of a combat oriented superpowers, there’s no way that my magic would be able to overpower him!” She looked back out at Trigon , still floating forward. “Sure, I have my white Raven superpower, but that requires a lot of mental energy to summon! There’s no way we’ll be able to beat him!”

Raven frowned, seeing her double’s points crystal clearly. It was true that they couldn’t beat Trigon in terms of sheer power. But… but what about in terms of intellect?

“We still have a way to escape.” She pointed at the mannequins. “We’re in a clothing store. Why don’t we pick up one or two disguises?”

Raven gaped at her, her eyes wider than the sun. “Are you insane? How is a simple change in clothes going to fool him? He’s not dumb enough to fall for that!”

Raven shook her head. “That may be true of your Trigon. But mine? Oh, he is far away from being the brightest bulb.” Huh. Kind of fitting given that Trigon was a being composed of pure darkness. “I know for a fact that this’ll work.”

Even with that reassurance, Raven didn’t appear convinced at all. If anything, she appeared to be even more skeptical. “But… but…!”

“Rae raes?” Trigon called out. He looked through a rack of pants just mere feet from the girls. “Are you in there?”

Raven winced. She looked back at her double, who tried to tell her with her eyes that this would work. Even if she wasn’t one hundred percent certain, Raven would still suggest this plan because… well, what choice did they have? They were just minutes away from bein discovered! It was really their only available option.

Eventually, Raven sighed and nodded. Smiling, they grabbed some of the clothes off the mannequins and made a beeline for the changing rooms. Despite the clothes she picked up being noticeably too big for her, Raven still put them on happily. As she did, she put her trademark dark cloak to the side. Right as she finished getting dressed, she studied herself in the mirror. Hmm. The hoodie, purple and with a front that spelled out the name for a show she had never seen, looked so big that she practically floated in it. Regardless, she still was fairly confident about this. This only proved to be more true as she pulled her hood up. To her delight, she saw that her face wasn’t cast in shadow, meaning her dad was even less likely to pick up on the fact that it was her.

So, with a grin on her face, she exited the changing room. Raven came out of the one parallel to hers, sporting a tee shirt and a pair of short blue jeans. She wore a baseball cap, hiding her striking violet hair as well as the gem on her forehead.

“You look great,” Raven whispered.

“Thanks.” Despite sounding stoic, Raven was able to pick up on the fact that her double was shaking. “I only hope it’s enough.”

“It will be. I promise.” Right as she said that was when Trigon came from just around the corner. He blinked at the two girls, possibly questioning why two people had failed to run out of the store screaming like every one else who had been present. He floated over to them, squinting all the while. 

This caused Raven to smile. “Woah!” She said, trying her best to put on a high pitched voice. “It’s a demon!” She turned toward her double. “Isn’t that cool, sis? An actual, genuine demon is in this store! At the exact same time as us!” She turned back toward her dad. “Talk about a great birthday!”

Trigon blinked before chuckling. “Well well well. A girl who’s happy to see me. Don’t see enough of those.” He smiled at her. “My name is Trigon , little one. Trigon the Terrible.”

Raven giggled. “That’s so cool! My name’s just Rachel. Rachel the… the…” she laughed. “Well, I don’t exactly have a title; I’m just an ordinary little girl.” She gestured toward her double. “And this is my big sister Angela! She’s in high school, which I think is super neat!”

Trigon beamed at looked up at “Angela.” “It’s very nice to meet you.”

Beads of sweat rolled down Raven’s face. “Uh… um…” she clearly struggled, both with what to say as well as with how to keep this act convincing. She looked over at her double, who gave her a reassuring smile. Raven knew she could do it. She just needed to stay strong; strong and confident.

“It’s nice to meet you too… er, Trigon .” She sounded like she was going to pass out, and she even cringed at the extra deep voice she had forced herself to speak with. She looked like she was just inches from running away, or from abandoning this charade entirely and begrudgingly accepting her fate.

Thankfully, Trigon was still none the wiser. “No no, the pleasure is me.” He did a bow before looking at the two girls. “Say, you two didn’t happen to see two half demon sorceresses in dark shadowy cloaks come into the store, did you?”

Raven laughed. “Oh no!”

“I… I think I would remember if I saw something like that,” Raven added, all while she still sweat.

“Oh.” Trigon’s shoulders slumped. “That’s a shame.” He shook his head and looked back at the girls. “Well, if you two ever do see that, feel free to give me a call.” He grinned again. “It was a pleasure meeting you both, you impish little fangirls.”

Raven laughed, trying her best to sound as happy as possible about her dad’s compliment. She waved goodbye as Trigon floated out of the store. Once he was no longer visible standing on the curb outside, both Ravens let out the breaths they had been holding.

“Well.” Raven smiled at her double. “I think now we’re officially safe.”

Raven shook her head. “I cannot believe that actually worked.”

“Well, believe it baby!” Raven turned back to the changing room. “I don’t know about you, but I think we should keep these clothes on. Will help us be more safe and less recognizable on the streets.”

“Uh… um… yeah, you’re right.” Raven shook her head as they both went back into retrieve their old clothes. “Man, who knew that such a goofy plan would be the most foolproof.”

Raven laughed. As she picked up her shoes, leotard, and cloak, she smiled a little bit to herself. She was glad that the plan worked… but still scared out of her mind. The fear refused to leave her even as she and her double walked out of the store without paying (hey, the cashier was gone, so why not?). She knew, deep down, that all she did was just buy the two of them some time.

Hopefully, it was enough time…

Chapter Text

Chapter 34 Bonding

Beast Boy rested on the couch in Titans’ Tower’s living room. He sunk back, trying his best to get comfortable. The purpose behind this was distraction. He wanted to distract himself from all the horrible things going on right now. The Titans had the fate of the entire multiverse at stake; thinking about something like that for more than a few minutes was bound to make someone overwhelmed. A fact that Beast Boy knew all too well.

However, that wasn’t all he was focusing on. The thought of the Ravens, stranded dimensions apart from the rest of their teams, made his stomach churn. The churning only grew stronger when he imagined his Raven , stuck in a place so unlike her home and trying her best to run away from the two monstrous demons who wanted her and her double (as well as all the Titans really) dead.

That thought caused him to sweat, which was never a good thing for Beast Boy as his sweat always smelled (had something to do with his animal superpowers, or at least that was what he figured). He got up from the couch, realizing that sitting down was doing a horrible job of actually relaxing him. He got up and went to the kitchen, hoping that doing so would allow him to get a bite. Food would be perfect at the moment; food never failed to put him in a good mood. He was just about to enter through the door when he stopped, blinking at the scene. Both Cyborgs and the other Beast Boy stood over the table. Cyborg had attached a whisk to his arm, and now he was stirring some kind of pink batter.

Beast Boy stepped in, his curiosity getting the better of him. “Yo dudes, what are you doing?”

Cyborg smiled when he saw his best friend. “My Cy told me about a whole new thing we could try in the kitchen!”

“Oh yeah?” Now Beast Boy was at the very least interested. “And what’s might that be?”

Cyborg grinned. “Cake waffled!” He continued stirring the batter. “I found out this recipe a while back. Basically, you put cake batter in the waffle iron as opposed to waffle mix!”

Beast Boy’s eyes grew wide. “Woah! That be genius, yo!”

Beast Boy laughed. “I more or less said the same thing.” He gave a playful smirk. “And let me tell you, I don’t think I’m ever going to eat regular waffles again. Cake waffles are just too darn great!”

Beast Boy couldn’t help but agree. Seriously, it was such a fun and smart idea that he was surprised none of his teammates tried it before. He hopped in a seat, watching as Cyborg whipped up the cake batter (which judging by the color he was pretty certain was strawberry). His mouth watered so much that he could fill a reservoir (not that anyone would be willing to drink out of that particular reservoir, but that was neither here nor there). His stomach growled as well, getting chuckles from everyone present. After a little bit, Cyborg was finished making the batter and turned toward the waffle iron, situated and plugged in on the counter. He ladeled the batter in, all while he had a smile on his face and a glitter in his real eye.

“Well… I think this should be ready in a little bit. We just need to wait.”

Beast Boy nodded. He figured there was no better way to help the time go by quicker than starting up a conversation. 

“So, Tall Serious Titans. Do you, uh… do you guys watch TV?”

Beast Boy’s eyes glittered. “Uh, yeah! Pretty much all the time!”

Cyborg chuckled. “It’s pretty much our main pass time. Nothing is better than plopping down to watch your favorite show after a whole day of whooping butt and taking names.”

Cyborg grinned when he heard that. “The two of us our the exact same way!” He exclaimed, his voice rising to super excited levels. “Well, I mean, aside from the butt whooping thing.”

Beast Boy blinked. “You guys don’t do superhero work?”

“Oh no’s, we certainlys be doing that.” Beast Boy chuckled. “We just don’t likes doing that. Sometimes, we completely ignores the crime alert when a good TV show is on.”

Beast Boy and Cyborg stared at him like he had just escaped from Arkham Asylum. It was then that Beast Boy felt a little embarrassed. He scratched the back of his head, hoping that his and Cyborg’s doubles weren’t judging the two of them too hard. Although… he wouldn’t really blame them if they were.

“O…kay…” Cyborg opened up the waffle iron, placing the strikingly pink breakfast items on a plate. “Well… I sure hope that you guy’s version of Jump City doesn’t experience too much trouble.”

“It… doesn’t.” Beast Boy bit his lip. “I means…. There is the police force. Oh! And Titans East.”

Beast Boy gasped. “No way! You guys have a Titans East in your world too!”

Cyborg nodded. “I mean, our worlds are more or less identical, so…”

Beast Boy still smiled. “That’s awesome!”

“Ehh… not reallys,” Beast Boy said. “Titans East and we aren’t exactly on the best of terms.”

Cyborg smirked as he got another waffle out of the iron. “Probably has something to do with you guys not taking your jobs seriously.” He said that just loud enough for the Goofy Titans to hear, and it made both of them sink back a little bit.

“We… yeah, we aren’t exactly the best superheroes…” Cyborg said as he put his hands behind his back. “We… we could really improve in quite a few areas in that field.”

“But that’s be why coming across you Serious Dudes is so great!” Beast Boy smiled, looking at the Serious Titans with a sort of adoration and approval. “You guys be the best superheroes in the whole Multiverse thingy! If there’s anybody who coulds helps our team approve by watching, it be you!”

That caused both Beast Boy and Cyborg to smile. However, it wasn’t really pride that either of them had in their expressions. More like… humility.

“Thanks man,” Beast Boy said. “That’s really nice to hear.”

Cyborg got a third waffle out of the iron. “Yeah.” He chuckled. “I don’t know if we’re the best superheroes in the multiverse, but… yeah, your comment was appreciated.”

Beast Boy chuckled. Man, if this display of genuine humility was anything to go off of, it meant that the Serious Titans were the best superheroes a city like Jump City could ask for. Putting themselves out there for the sake of the people, stepping right in the line of fire to protect everything they held dear… why didn’t his team do that? Seriously, all they did was dance and eat and sleep. They really needed to think about their approach to crime fighting; maybe everybody and their Mama wouldn’t see them as the worst kind of jokes this side of Gotham. Just a thought…

Anyway, Cyborg quickly finished with the last batch of waffles. He turned toward the lot of them with the most satisfied smile ever seen. “Well, here we go guys.” He set the plate on the table. “Hopefully these will be even better than the waffles my dad used to make.”

Cyborg gasped. “Your dad my waffles too?!”

“Yep! And he was the greatest at it!” Cyborg’s shoulders slumped. “At least, before he died…”

That caused everyone to squirm. “Oh.” Cyborg directed his head down toward the table. “Yeah, dying was the worst thing he ever did.” He chuckled. “But hey, at the very least our dads left us with cool robot bodies! That’s gotta mean something, right!”

Cyborg did a double take, looking like his double had just said the most ludicrous thing in the world. “Man,” he said, sounding absolutely mystified. “This goofy dimension is certainly something else.”

Beast Boy didn’t know what he meant by that, but honestly, he was too entranced by the sight and scent of the waffles to care. After Cyborg got butter and syrup out of the fridge, the boys all dished themselves and began chowing down. The second the first bite hit the top of Beast Boy’s tongue, he felt as though he had found his one and only true love.

“Oh Mama…” He smiled. “This be the absolute best.”

“Isn’t it?” Beast Boy asked as he stuck another bite in his mouth. 

“Yep!” Beast Boy chuckled. “Only thing that be missing from this is a side of bacon strips.”

Beast Boy nearly dropped his fork. He stared at his double, his eyes wide and his jaw dropped. “You… you eat meat?”

“Uh, yeahs.” Beast Boy took another bite. “Who doesn’t?”

Beast Boy did double take after double take. He also had what appeared to be a smidgen of disgust in his expression. “Uh… nobody, I guess.” He refused to look at his double from that point on, instead placing the bits of waffle into his mouth with a tentative body language.

The awkwardness carried to the others at the table. All four Titans ate their food slowly, not really daring to speak. Beast Boy was ultimately the one who broke the silence.

“I hopes you guys’ Robin can come with a good plan.”

“Oh he will.” Cyborg smiled. “He always does.”

“Yeah,” Beast Boy said as he wiped his mouth. “And he’s really good at working under pressure. He’ll find a way to help us get back to our dimension.”

“I hopes he do.” Beast Boy’s ears drooped as he looked back down at his waffle. “I hate to think about Rae rae in a completely different universe without any of her friends.”

Beast Boy blinked before chuckling. “You’re really attached to your Raven, aren’t you?”

Both Cyborg and Beast Boy snickered. “How much time do you have?” Cyborg asked. 

“Yeah.” Beast Boy shook his head while sporting a smile even he would admit was absolutely mushy and gushy. “My Rae rae …” he sighed, the sound dreamy. “She be amazing. Everythings about her be perfect. Her hair, her skin… the way she glares at me with her four red eyes when she be mad… the way she slaps me with her telekinesis when she be particularly annoyed…” He almost melted into a lovestruck puddle right then and there. “She be perfect.” He sighed. “I onlys wishes she would let us date again.”

Beast Boy looked shocked for the second time in the last five minutes. “Wait, you guys dated?” When Beast Boy nodded, he looked like he was going to faint to the floor. “That’s… that’s…!”

Cyborg laughed. “I guess that means you need to step up your game, BB. If this version of you goes out with Raven … well, I don’t think it takes a genius to figure out that it’s fate.” He wiggled his eyebrows and gave Beast Boy the biggest of all grins.

This caused Beast Boy to shrink back. “I, uh… I…” He stuttered so much, like there was not a more embarrassing thought in the world than him going after and smooching his Raven. And, as much as Beast Boy hated to admit it, he found this funny. He even exchanged a look with Cyborg , who looked at the taller green changeling with a knowing sort of look.

“Well… anyway…” Beast Boy righted his posture and looked at the two Goofy Titans sitting with him. “The point is you shouldn’t sweat it, BB .” He took another bite of his waffle. “Robin will come up with a plan. I’d bet my most comfortable pillow and all my cute anime dolls that he would.”

Beast Boy’s heart sunk. “I hopes so.” He ate at his waffle some more. He really did hope that would be the case. And really, hoping was all he could do at the moment. Hoping and believing in Robin.

Huh. Believing in Robin. What a scary thought…

Chapter Text

Chapter 35 At the Drawing Board

Robin looked out at the view from the top of Titans Tower’s roof. The goofy world was certainly colorful, and some of the colors even helped the Boy Wonder to smile. However, they could also be seen as blinding. Looking at the colors for too long not only put a severe strain on his eyes, but they also made the fact that he and his team were in another universe all the more prominent. Metaphorically speaking, it was a humongous monster staring down the team, laughing and snorting and making its presence known to pretty much everyone. 

Because of this, the pressure that Robin felt was also more prominent. He sighed and took a seat, letting his feet dangle off the side of the roof. He had to do this. Everyone was counting on hims, counting on him to be the light that will guide them through this scary dark night. And Robin definitely wanted to provide that for everyone. The only question now was… could he?

He shook his head, letting out a whimper that most people would describe as uncharacteristic of him. Yes, he could. He had to. Everything was at stake. If there was anytime where the Titans needed him to be the headstrong, fearless leader. It was now. And Robin wasn’t the type of person who failed to meet expectations. He would figure out where to go from here. He just needed a little bit of time.

So, he put his hand to his chin, lines and ridges forming in his forehead as he dedicated every last inch of his willpower to thinking. He could almost see something. A vague idea, an inclination that the answers he sought were right there. Ripe for the taking, right for the grabbing and turning into a plan that was concrete and dependable. He concentrated harder. The answers were right there, he just needed to…

Robin blinked before scowling. No, nope, they were gone. Down the metaphorical drain. Shaking his head, the Boy Wonder stood back up. He could do this! He knew he could! He just… oh, why was this so hard? It should be easy for him!

“Hey!”

Robin blinked a second time before his heart sank. Oh goody. He never would’ve imagined he would feel so annoyed at the sound of his own voice, but then again, he was in another dimension.

“Hello Robin ,” Robin said, doing his best to brush his annoyance to the side and put on a welcoming voice. He honestly couldn’t say for certain if he succeeded in that endeavor.

“Think of plans in a broody fashion, ain’t ya big guy?” Robin chuckled. “I would expect nothing less from me. I like to brood too.”

Robin snorted. “ You like to brood?”

“Of course!” Robin puffed out his chest. “I’m a great superhero! And all great superheroes get top marks in the practice of brooding!”

Robin almost descended into laughter. That was probably the most humorous thing he ever head from his double, and said double probably didn’t even intend it.

“Yes, you are definitely a great superhero.” The smile went away, fading like a vapor in the wind. Man, if only he could be the great superhero everyone needed him to be…

“So.” Robin put on an interested expression, slapping his hands against his hips as he teetered back and forth on the heels of his feet. “How’s that master plan of yours coming along?”

Robin hesitated, not sure what he wanted to admit to his counterpart. Something told him that, if he admitted to Robin that he was having trouble, his double would never let him hear the end of it. He would laugh at him, tell him that he sucked as a superhero and was definitely the “inferior Robin” that he had originally thought him to be. And sure, Robin’s ego wasn’t nearly as fragile as his double’s; he could conceivably grin and bear it. Even still… well, discouragement was the last thing he needed. It was the last thing any of them needed.

“I’ve been making progress,” Robin eventually said. Which… was kind of true? Kind of? He didn’t really know.

“Oh.” Robin nodded his head. “So, I guess you aren’t really in need of my help.”

Robin didn’t even need to hesitate over what to say in response to this. “No. You can just go relax with the others. I assure you that everything is going smoothly, and you will have a sturdy plan at the end of the day!”

Robin squinted at him. Maybe he saw through the lie. Sure, this version of Robin didn’t seem to possess the emotional intelligence to pick up on the cues Robin was leaking, but still. It didn’t exactly take a genius to see that he was struggling. And unfortunately, that was a fact that Robin seemed too acutely aware of.

“I see,” he said, dragging out the last part of the last word. He continued squinting at Robin, causing the Titan’s leader to sweat. Robin put his hands on his hips. “Well, okay then. If you think you have everything under control… well, I can definitely trust you.”

Robin breathed a sigh of relief and managed to smile. “Thanks Robin .” Honestly, that was probably the nicest thing his double had ever said to him. Maybe that meant he was making progress to winning this bobble-headed superhero over? One could only hope…

“Of course.” Robin turned, looking like he was ready to go back down into the tower. Robin took a deep breath, slowly letting it out as he reveled in the silence. Aww, silence. That was the best thing that one who was doing their best to think it could have. It was liberating. It was exhilarating. It was…

“You know,” Robin said, turning back around with a frown on his face. “You’re still the Inferior Robin.”

Robin felt a pang, which kind of surprised him. Granted, the insult had come from out of left field, but still. It certainly disoriented him, and made him feel a little bad to hear someone talking about him in a way that was so… discouraging.

He sighed. He shouldn’t let this get him down. “That’s your opinion.” He slicked his hair back. “And honestly, I don’t think expressing that opinion would be too terribly conductive in this scenario.”

Robin smirked, snickering like a schoolgirls who were gossiping at a playground. “Even still, it’s true. And unless you do something crazy, like go toe to toe with Trigon himself, it’s probably going to stay that way.”

Robin blinked before smiling, seeing a fault in those words. “It’s funny you mention that. You see, I already went toe to toe with Trigon.”

THAT caused Robin to cease up. He slowly turned back to his counterpart, looking slightly impressed but mostly surprised. “Wait, really?”

“Yeah.” Robin smiled, crossing his arms and standing up to his full height. “My whole team beat him up and vanquished him from existence. And I’ve gotta say, I have never been so proud in us. It is, without a doubt, our greatest achievement.”

Robin stared, his jaw dropped. “You… you…” he hesitated before his face reverted back to its default expression. “Cool story. Sounds pretty false to me, but it’s still cool.”

Robin’s face fell. Once again, he felt a pang, which confused him more and more. Why did he feel this way? It’s not like he cared what Robin had to say. His head was so big it could be seen from space; why would Robin take the words and comments from someone like that seriously?

Ultimately, he just sniffed. “Well. I guess you can believe that if you want to.”

Robin chuckled. “Oh believe me, I will.” With that, he finally went back down into the tower.

Once he was gone, Robin let out a deep breath that he didn’t even realize he was holding in. He put his hands to his temples and massaged them, trying his best to keep his temper down. He wasn’t going to let Robin’s words get to him, and he most certainly wasn’t going to stoop to his level. He was above that. He was better than that. At least, he should be better than that; that was what was required of someone donning the mantle of superhero.

So, trying his best to not think about his conceited double, he got right back to thinking. Unfortunately, every time he got even a smidge closer to coming up with a usable plan, Robin’s words echoed in his ears. He shook his head, grit his teeth, and massaged his temples. Why did this bother him so much? Supervillains slung insults at him all the time, and he didn’t feel down about those. Was it just because Robin was another superhero? Nay, another version of him?

Oh… oh goodness. Now that Robin thought about it, what did his double’s terrible attitude say about his personality? Was he conceited too? Was he just as unbearable to be around in the best of times? Thinking about these questions actually made him back up and sit down. Thinking about them… oh man, it was like he was falling into a tunnel. A very big, very deep tunnel with no light to speak of.

Thankfully, Starfire came up onto the roof right at that moment, saving him from a downwards spiral. “Oh, Robin.” She giggled. “The other Starfire is such the delight to be around. She is just so happy and wonderful.” She flew over to him. “I am glad to say that I am starting to become the friends with…”

She stopped when Robin turned toward her. The alien princess floated in place, looking at Robin with a furrowed brow. “Robin?” She floated over to him. “Are you alright? You look… disturbed.”

Robin bit his lip. He slowly sat down, with Starfire doing the same thing right beside him. He struggled to speak, not really trusting his tongue to not spill every question nagging at his soul.

“Starfire…” he swallowed a lump. “Am I conceited?”

Starfire blinked. “What? Oh no.” She shook her head. “You are not the conceited Robin. If I were to speak truthfully, you are one of the most humble individuals that I have ever come across.”

Robin’s heart melted right then and there. “Aww, really?” He seized up again before turning away. “That’s good to hear. After all, the other me…” he shook his head. “He just seems so… disingenuous.”

Starfire frowned. “You believe so?”

“Well… every single conversation I’ve had with him so far has gone down a… less than positive road.” His spirits and his heart sank. “It… it kind of makes me wonder about my own character.”

Starfire nodded. “Well… you do have the flaws of your own. You can be stubborn, and you can do the obsessing over certain things.” She put her hand on his shoulder. “But I can assure you with the utmost certainty, you are not conceited. And even if you were…” her eyes sparkled. “It is still something that you could easily overcome.”

Robin blinked. “You think so?”

“Mmhm,” Starfire said as she nodded. “One thing that has always fascinated me about people from all corners of the universe is there ability to grow and change. Everyone has the capacity to learn from their mistakes. And you…” she smiled. “You definitely have those abilities. It’s what makes you such a joy to be around.”

Robin’s heart melted even more. He even felt his face grow warm. “Man, Star. That’s… that’s really sweet. Thank you.”

“You are ever most welcome, Robin.” She hugged him, the action very nice to him. Right in the middle of the hug was when a question entered Robin’s mind.

“Star… do you think my double can change to?”

“Of course!” Starfire said without a moment’s hesitation. “He is a version of you, yes? The shreds of the doubt are far from my mind; he is more than capable of making the change.”

Robin let out a breath, actually finding some form of comfort in those words. “That’s good.” In fact… hearing those words, and recognizing the assurance that cam packaged with them… it was just the motivation he needed to return to the drawing board. So, he patted Starfire on the hand. “You go have more fun with your double, Star. I have some more thinking I need to do.”

“Of course, Robin.” Starfire pulled away from him, all while her brow furrowed again. “Oh the man, I hope we find the answers we need soon. I am feeling very concerned about the Ravens.”

Robin nodded. The Ravens. He could only imagine what kind of danger they were in right now…

Chapter Text

Chapter 36 Needing Rest

Man. Walking wasn’t anywhere close to getting easier for Raven . Her feet stung, literally stung. Although she couldn’t see them with her shoes on, she felt really really really scared over what her feet might look like. Were they bright red? Were they covered in sores? Probably, because right now, Raven was just two steps away from throwing up her hands, procuring a rusty saw out of thin air, and sawing her feet off. She never wanted to walk again. She didn’t even want to hear the word “walking,” as right now, all her rage and discomfort were targeted toward her feet and the damage they were causing her.

She stopped, more so to protect her own well being and sanity than to actually catch her breath. Raven looked over at her, and for a second, Raven debated whether this was a good choice. They were still on the run, still making their way through a city so foreign to her, all while a ferocious, deadly demon was hot on their trail. She knew that her pathetic baby feet feeling slightly sore was a much better experience than being captured and detained by her and her double’s Dads. So, she should suck it up and get over it. Right?

With this thought in mind, she moved her right foot forward. When it made contact with the sidewalk, tears actually formed in Raven’s eyes. She bit her lip, trying her best to not scream at the top of her lungs. Before she even realized it, she collapsed to the ground. She considered taking off her shoes, seeing just how bad the damage was. It was only her desire to resist throwing up that made her keep the shoes on.

“Hey,” Raven said as she came over. “You okay?” Her brow actually furrowed. “Do you need to rest?”

Raven battled the tears accumulating in her eyes. What she wanted to say was no. She could keep going, she could pick herself up and continue on her journey through this big, scary version of Jump City. She needed to be strong, as the whole multiverse was depending on her keeping her inner demon out of her father’s wicked, greedy clutches.

But… she wasn’t strong. Her feet hurt so much that it felt as if the pain was creeping its way up her legs. She couldn’t even believe this; she had been Lady Legasus? Why was it so difficult for her to use her legs now? Now, of all times? She should be able to keep going! She shouldn’t be so… pathetic.

“I…” she tried to lift herself up. She really, truly tried. Unfortunately, she couldn’t. She wasn’t strong enough. Not as strong as the multiverse and especially her fellow Teen Titans needed her to be…

Raven looked even more concerned as she got down on her knees. “You’re hurting.” She stared her double right in the face, the level of seriousness unmatchable. “I can feel all these frustrations swirling around inside you. You need to take a break.”

Raven grit her teeth. “No, I don’t!” She put her hands down on the sidewalk and tried to push herself up. “I need to keep going! I need to…”

Right at that moment, Raven’s eyes grew wide. She stared down the street, looking as though she had been frozen in place. Curious, Raven looked where she was looking. Her heart practically stopped in its tracks when she saw that it was Trigon, floating down the sidewalk parallel to theirs.

“Ho hum, ho vens! I am looking for the Ravens!” He sung, which created quite the contrast to his foul, angry mood from earlier in the search. Raven braced herself, preparing for the extreme fear and terror that would pop into her mind upon being discovered and then captured by this foul creature. She almost passed out as Trigon stopped, looking straight at them with a look of wonder on his four eyed face. He smiled when he saw them. Raven expected to hear him exclaim that he found them at the top of his voice, expected him to teleport them all back to that wretched, horribly hot cavern.

What she didn’t expect was what her dad ultimately said to them. “Angela! Rachel!” He waved at them. “It’s a small world, isn’t it?”

Raven blinked before she remembered that she and her double were currently donning the disguises they wore in the clothing store. She let out a breath of relief, as did Raven.

“Yeah, it certainly nice to see you again!” Raven called out with her overly high pitched voice from before. “Just makes my birthday better and better!”

Trigon giggled. “Yep! It certainly does!” He started flying away. “Well, have a Happy Birthday! I’m going to resume my search for my daughter… daughters…” He stopped before shaking his horned head. “Well, I need to find two girls so I can conquer the multiverse. So look forward to that!”

“Okay!” Both Ravens exclaimed as they both gave Trigon a thumbs up. Once he had rounded the corner, both girls let out long, drawn out sighs of relief. “ That … was WAY too close!” Raven exclaimed.

“Indeed.” Raven looked back down at her. “Look, we can’t keep wandering these streets. If we do, then eventually your dad will get smart and come after us. Besides…” she looked down at Raven’s ever aching feet. “You are in no condition to keep going.”

Raven opened her mouth, prepared to object to her double’s claim. But after feeling another surge of pain travel through her feet as she tried to stand up, she realized she couldn’t. Doing so would just be foolish on her part.

“You’re right.” She looked up at her double, feeling more in need of guidance than she ever had before. “So, what do you suggest?”

Raven stood up. “Well, there’s a hotel just a few blocks away. We can stop there, possibly get some sleep.”

Raven smiled when that was suggested. Yes! Sleep! Oh, she wanted to sleep so badly! Doing that would be the perfect way for her to recuperate, as well as help the useless pain-causers attached to the ends of her legs to heal.

“That sounds good.” She winced. “But… but I don’t think I’m in any position to…”

“Already way ahead of you.” Raven hoisted her double into her arms before letting out a breath and rising into the air. As they were in the air, Raven had to admit that she was feeling really safe. Sure, she was in danger of being dropped (possibly; Raven did have a pretty tight hold on her), but she didn’t know. She felt like she trusted her double. She just felt comfortable in her arms, which was a much needed contrast to the discomfort she felt while walking down the streets.

Eventually, both Ravens arrived at the hotel. Once they checked in and got into the room, Raven set Raven down on the bed. Raven let out a breath of relief as the light was turned on; the bed felt so good!

“Okay,” Raven said as she walked over to her double. “Take your shoes off.”

Raven blinked, feeling ready to object, but the look on her double’s face told her that wouldn’t be wise. She did what she was told, and almost passed out when she saw her feet. Sure enough, the bottoms were bright red and covered in sores. Raven even noticed a gash on her left foot, oozing crimson. She cringed just looking at them, feeling grateful that Raven had decided to stop her walking for the night.

“Okay,” Raven said. She knelt down in front of Raven’s feet, putting on a stoic mask to possibly hide her own form of discomfort. “I’m going to heal these up.”

“Heal?” Raven asked. “You can do that?”

“Yeah.” Raven sent her a confused look. “You can’t?” When Raven shook her head, she blinked and did a double take. “Okay then…”

With that, she held her hand over Raven’s left foot. Her hand glowed with a soft blue light, and as it hovered over Raven’s aching feet, the dark sorceress from the goofy dimension was very pleased to report that her pain was receding. It was like Raven’s hands were some sort of magical vacuum, sucking up all the pain and storing it in an invisible bag that would never need to be opened. Raven even smiled when she felt this. Not only was it relieving, but it was also somewhat satisfying.

“There we go,” Raven uttered when she finished with the left foot. She moved onto the right. “Man. And here I thought you’d make a good track runner in the future.”

Raven blinked before she realized that her double just told a joke. “Oh. Yeah.” She chuckled. “That… uh… that might not come to pass.”

Raven nodded and continued on with her healing process. As she did, a silence befell the room. It was somewhat uncomfortable, as this meant that the only things accompanying Raven were her fear and worry. She realized that she wanted to start a conversation, if for no other reason than to distract herself.

“Raven?”

“Yeah?”

Raven pressed her lips together. She intended for this conversation to be totally inconsequential, made up of fluff instead of heavy hitting, deep emotions. However… well, her tongue evidently had other plans.

“Do you ever… well, do you ever wish you didn’t have your powers?”

Raven blinked. She stayed silent for a minute, and for a second, Raven feared that she might have hit a nerve.

“Sometimes.” Raven’s hand stopped glowing as she stood up. “They have proven to be quite the hassle. And… and I would admit it would be nice to have the ability to express my emotions freely. But… but I can do good with them. I have done good with them, despite all of the troubles that they caused me.” She looked away. “I can’t really say this, as sometimes it doesn’t feel like an honest statement. But… I would never trade my powers away for anything.”

Raven’s heart sank. “I… I see…”

Raven nodded. “Yeah.” She looked back at her double. “What about you?”

Raven’s stomach squirmed. Oh, how could she answer this? How would her double feel if she actually told the truth? Not good, she imagined.

So, she opted to lie. “Me neither.”

“I see.” Raven stood still for a minute before walking over to the bed. “Well… let’s try to get back to sleep. We can worry about the Trigons in the morning.”

“Yep.” Raven pulled the covers up around her body as Raven turned on the light. Unfortunately, she didn’t know if she would be able to sleep. Maybe this was because of the stress of being the Trigons’ target, maybe it was because of the need to keep her powers under control, maybe it was because of the weight of the lie she just told. Either way, she knew it would be a long night…

…

Trigon kept humming to himself as he continued down the streets. He looked left and right, up and down. He knew he would find the Ravens. He just knew it.

Unfortunately… well, his confidence in that fact grew more and more slim the longer he searched. No matter which way he turned, he failed to see the two gray skinned girls in dark blue cloaks. By the time midnight rolled around, he was so frustrated that he actually growled and sunk to the floor.

“Man,” he said. “Why does this have to be so hard ?” Seriously, Raven was his daughter? Shouldn’t it be easy to locate your daughter in a crowd?

“ TRIGON!”

Trigon bolted upright when he heard that voice. “Oh!” He turned, seeing a portal with Trigon’s four red eyes showing through behind him. “Big Triggy? What’s going on?”

A low growl came through the portal. “Get back to the lair. We need to talk…”

Chapter Text

Chapter 37 Azarath Metrion Zinthos

A dark gloom settled in on Beast Boy , one that felt like it was taking big bites out of his soul. He and the other boys had just got finished eating the cake waffles. Once the delectable flavor had vanished, this just meant that everyone was left to stew in their emotions regarding the whole debacle they now found themselves in. While he couldn’t speak for everyone else, Beast Boy couldn’t help but think of Raven . One could argue that he had grown obsessed with the shadowy witch, as he thought about her constantly. But really, who could blame him?

Right as he was taking a seat back down on the couch in the living room, his double and both of the Cyborgs entered the room. Now, Beast Boy wasn’t the brightest bulb on the chandelier; far from it. However, he did pick up on the tells on their faces and in their body language that gave away their true feelings. It ignited concern in him, especially as he considered that Beast Boy and Cyborg were stranded in a completely different universe. Sure, the two of them seemed to have been holding up rather well under scrutiny, but the fact that they looked sick to their stomachs now gave away of how they really felt about this whole situation. 

As such, Beast Boy kept his eyes on them as he adjusted his position on the couch. “You dudes okay?”

Beast Boy didn’t even hesitate before he shook his head. “No.”

Cyborg blinked at him, looking at the green changeling like he had just turned into an alien animal he had never seen before. “No? What do you mean no?”

Cyborg stepped forward, looking at his double with a serious expression. “There’s a lot on all of our plates right now.” He frowned. “And the longer we go without Robin giving us a concrete plan, the harder it gets.”

Beast Boy felt a pang. He realized in that moment that he wanted to do everything in his power to cheer these guys up. Not only would it help him stop thinking about Raven for a brief period, but… well, it would also be the right thing to do. It would lift their spirits, let them know that the Goofy Titans (or at least one fifth of the Goofy Titans) saw that they were struggling and wanted to help.

“It’s gonna be okay, guys.” The tone he used was somewhat soft, at least in comparison to some of the other tones he had used in the past. “Trust me. Your Robin is really a good leader.” Both Serious Titans raised eyebrows when he said that, which prompted him to chuckle. “Sure, I don’t knows him very well, but I could see it. I could see it in the way he carried himself, in the way that he is doing his best to come up with a plan. He’ll think of something.” He smiled. “I know he will.”

Even with that assurance, the Serious Titans still didn’t look too convinced. “I don’t have any doubt in my mind that Robin will be able to think of something.” He paused. “What I do doubt is that we will be able to execute the plan thoroughly.”

“Yeah,” Beast Boy added. “I mean, there’s so much that could go wrong! There’s so much that we could completely fail at doing!” He sighed. “There’s too much at stake here…”

“Hey,” Cyborg said, speaking up for the first time. “Don’t be like that.” He extended his extendable neck toward Beast Boy and Cyborg, a sight that confused the latter and amused the former. “We’re Teen Titans. We are some of the best superheroes ever!” Beast Boy snickered at that, prompting Cyborg to frown. “Well, okay, you guys are some of the best superheroes ever. And if the genius of the cake waffles was any indication, you guys will do amazing at executing your Robin’s plan.”

Cyborg blinked before snickering. “Making cake waffles requires a completely different skill set than hopping dimensions and beating two very powerful demons.”

“See, that’s where your wrong!” Cyborg smiled. “In both circumstances, you put your all into doing your best and making others happy! You did your very best with the cake waffles, and it yielded absolutely amazing results!” He grinned, the expression as bright and as goofy as he was. “If you can do that with little things, I don’t doubt for a second that you’ll be able to do it with big things. You’ll deliver!” He retracted his neck, securing his head back onto his shoulders. “You got this bros!”

Both Serious Titans chuckled. “Thanks,” Beast Boy said.

“Yeah, thanks, that’s really helpful,” Cyborg said. He scratched the back of his head. “Although… I still can’t help but worry about this whole thing…”

Beast Boy sighed, but not due to frustration. No, if anything, the sigh conveyed empathy. He could relate to these two guys perfectly. He could put himself into their shoes in a way that he never could before with anyone else. So, he realized that he needed to do something to cheer them (and himself) up.

He stood up. “Well, why don’ts we does something to take you guys’ minds off of it?”

Beast Boy blinked. “Like what?”

“Ooh ooh, I know!” Cyborg exclaimed. “We could have a dance party right here in the living room! OOH, or we could have a meat party!” He slapped his belly, his mouth watering. “Man, I can’t even remember the last time I had a meat party…”

Beast Boy made a face. “Uh, I don’t think we should do anything involving meat. I’m a vegetarian.”

“Yeah.” Cyborg hesitated. “And, to tell you the truth, I really don’t feel like dancing right now…”

“Makes sense,” Beast Boy said. He dedicated sometime to thinking about this before a lightbulb went off in his head. “Oh, I know what we can do?”

“What’s that?” the other three Titans asked in unison.

“Just follow my lead,” Beast Boy said with a smile. He sat down on the floor, crossing his legs as he did. The others followed suit, and once they were in position, Beast Boy closed his eyes and held out his arms. “Azarath Metrion Zinthos… Azarath Metrion Zinthos…”

“Oh.” Beast Boy opened his eyes to see Cyborg smiling. “That is a good idea. It always seems to work for Raven.”

“Exactly.” Beast Boy closed his eyes again. “Azarath Metrion Zinthos…”

“Azarath Metrion Zinthos,” said Cyborg.

“Azarath Metrion Zinthos,” said the other Cyborg.

“Tofu, game station, Terra.”

Everyone opened their eyes and gave Beast Boy a look. When he saw their gazes, he chuckled and squirmed a little.

“Sorry. I just… I find that mantra works better for me.”

After a second, Beast Boy smiled. “Well, as long as it works, I ain’t complaining.” With that, he closed his eyes, and all four boys continued on with their meditation.

…

As Trigon floated back to the layer, he felt afraid. Of course, he would never admit that fact out loud because he was Trigon ! He was the Soul Devourer, the Lord of Madness. He didn’t get scared! Emotions like fear were things that mortal men possessed and felt. He didn’t get afraid, no siree.

As such, when he went to Big Triggy, sitting on his throne like he was the King of the Multiverse, Trigon decided to push his fear to the side. There was nothing that his double could do to him. They were on equal footing; heck, Trigon probably had an advantage over him because he was at full power! He could definitely hold his own against Trigon. No matter how big and how… scary he appeared…

Trigon shook his head. There he went again with the fear. Again, he pushed it to the side, telling himself that he shouldn’t get caught up in all these pitiful emotions.

With that, he floated up with Trigon’s line of side. “Hello, Big Triggy. What might you be desiring this time?”

Trigon narrowed his gaze, causing his four evil eyes to shine red. “First off, don’t call me that.” He paused. “EVER!”

Trigon felt tremors run up and down his arms. “Right, right, of course.” It took all of his self control to not say ‘well excuse me for deciding on a cool nickname’ out loud.

“Second,” Trigon said, his voice booming louder than a storm right on top of them. “You failed me. You failed me in the most pathetic, most inexcusable, most… stupid way one could possibly imagine!” He growled. “If I had all my power, I would blast you into smithereens, you pathetic excuse for a demon!”

Trigon blinked. “Oh. Ouch.” Yeah, those words actually did hurt. But, again, he wasn’t one who should be feeling emotions so trite, so he just pushed those feelings to the side. “Uh… how, might I ask, have I failed you?”

Trigon’s growling grew louder, filling the whole cavern and causing it to shake. “You have failed in your search for the Ravens.”

“I have?” Trigon blinked. “I mean, I know it’s been taking me a long time to find them…”

“The time and speed at which you search doesn’t matter!” Trigon sniffed. “Especially when we consider that the Ravens fooled you.”

Trigon blinked again. “Uh… fooled me?” Now he felt deathly confused. “H…how so?”

Trigon looked so angry that it appeared like he was about to blow a gasket, a fact that actually made Trigon back away from him a little. “You really are that stupid, are you?” He shook his head “And to think, for a second, I expected more from you…”

Trigon’s confusion only grew more pronounced. “W… what are you talking about? How did the Ravens fool me? I haven’t even come across them yet.”

“Except that you have,” Trigon snarled.

Silence. There was no sound in the cavern save for the lava bubbles below bursting as they boiled over. Trigon’s jaw dropped a little as he stared at his double, questioning if he had heard him right.

“Uh… what?”

Trigon did a facepalm with one hand and snapped his fingers on the other. A projection of an image appeared before Trigon , one that showed two girls sleeping away in two separate hotel beds. He squinted at them; they looked kinda familiar…

“Uh…” he looked back at Trigon. “Why are you showing me Rachel and Angela? What have they got to do with any of this?”

Trigon groaned, the sound containing more layers of frustration than were possible to peel back. “THOSE ARE THE RAVENS, YOU TWIT!” He glared at him. “They donned disguises while in the clothing store you were in before and completely went under your nose.”

Trigon’s jaw dropped. “What? No, no! That can’t be true! They’re just two normal…” he stopped. He squinted at the projection, studying Rachel’s face for any similarities that it shared with that of his daughter. He was shocked to find that they were identical.

“You… you’re right…” he grit his teeth and growled. “Oh my word! How could they do this!” He grew angrier and angrier with each passing second, an emotion that he decided he didn’t want to push to the side. “Those girls think they can hide from me? Fools! They are fools!”

“No, you are the fool!” Trigon waved his hand, causing the projection to disappear. “You were a disgrace to the name of Trigon! You couldn’t even use your head for one single, solitary second!” He looked ready to breathe fire. “And because of that, you have wasted a boatload of precious time! YOU FOOL! YOU’RE A FOOL!”

Trigon cringed , telling himself that he shouldn’t take those words personally. Sure, his ego was in tatters, but that wasn’t what was important right now. He needed to prove his double wrong. And he was going to do that by retrieving the Ravens.

“Where are they?” Trigon demanded, his breath coming out in the nastiest, most evil way possible. “I’m going to find them! I’m going to find them and bring them in!”

“You’d better.” Trigon leaned forward. “They’re in a hotel called Outward Inn, just near the edge of Jump City. And if you fail to bring them to me, like you did before…” he growled, barring his teeth. “Just be aware that there are gonna be some dire, and I do mean dire consequences.”

Shudders and chills ran through Trigon again. “Of… of course…” With that, he floated towards the cavern’s exit, ready to capture those two pesky black birds once and for all.

Chapter Text

Chapter 38 A Great Escape

Waking up turned into a very slow process for Raven , as it so often was. When she finally fluttered her eyes open, at around ten thirty in the morning (if the nightstand clock was anything to go by), she sat up and stretched. Surprisingly, she felt well rested. She felt like every last ounce of energy that had been sapped away when the girls were being hunted by Trigon had been restored to her. She slung her feet over the side of the bed, yawning and stretching some more. She noticed Raven, who was also in the process of waking up.

“Good morning,” Raven said to her double.

“Good morning,” Raven responded, her voice sounding somewhat groggy. She rubbed her eyes, smoothed out her violet hair, and rubbed her arms. Based on what Raven could see, she wagered a guess that her double had some trouble sleeping the night before. Her theory was proven right when Raven turned toward her, with dark circles underneath her eyes and a look that screamed that this superhero was exhausted.

This ignited concern in Raven . “Rough night, huh?”

Raven nodded. “I stayed up to keep watch, to make sure that Trigon didn’t come across us.”

Raven frowned. “Oh.” Now that she thought about it, the two of them really should have taken shifts keeping watch. That would have been much more practical than Raven getting all of the sleep while Raven struggled to keep her eyes open. It didn’t even occur to her to do that last night. But now that it had been mentioned, the dark sorceress actually felt a little guilty.

“Sorry,” she said out loud. “I should’ve helped with that.”

“It’s alright,” Raven said as she rubbed her eyes again. “I’m used to sleepless nights.” The tone of her voice contained a mysterious edge, one that made shudders run up and down Raven’s arms as she considered what her double could possibly mean by that. She was about to ask Raven when the taller, more serious hero stood up and looked toward the door. “Why don’t you and I go get some breakfast?”

That made Raven perk up pretty much immediately. Oh man, breakfast! That was perfect; she hadn’t eaten anything at all since… since… oh wow, since she had stumbled across this parallel dimension. To say that she was hungry because of that would be a massive understatement.

“That sounds perfect,” she said, giving Raven a smile that she mirrored in the most subtle of ways. So, with Raven still fluffing out her hair, the two of them made their way toward the door.

It didn’t even take too terribly long for Raven to smell the delicious aromas coming from the hotel’s kitchen. They did make her stomach growl, but they also ignited some sort of happiness within her. She loved food. That was probably the one single thing she had in common with the rest of her team. She would do anything to get some great food into her hands and later into her mouth. There was no better, more easier way to make her happy than by giving her the opportunity to eat until she could eat no more.

Thus, when the Ravens got to the dining room, and Raven spotted the buffet resting near the back wall, her heart welled with the most positive emotions. And sure, she still had to suppress them to ensure that she didn’t reawaken her inner demon, but even still, she felt immensely happy and excited. She zipped over to the buffet, with Raven following closely behind.

“Oh man,” Raven said. She licked her lips as she looked at the scrambled eggs; fluffy, golden, and smelling better than pretty much anything that she could find in her home dimension. She turned to Raven. “Are you sure we’re not in Heaven?”

Raven snickered, although it wasn’t as… joyful as Raven would’ve expected the sound to be. “I highly doubt anyone like us would be allowed in Heaven.”

Raven felt a pang. “Dang, that’s depressing.” She paused. “I mean, it is true, but still depressing.”

Thankfully for her, she didn’t need to dwell on that for long. She immediately started putting stuff on her plate, practically drooling a river as she looked at all the scrumptious breakfast food. Pancakes, waffles, bacon, biscuits and gravy, oatmeal… Raven didn’t care if she wouldn’t be allowed in Heaven; this display was more than enough to make up for that. By the time she had finished piling food on her plate, she practically had a mountain. And sure, it was difficult to carry it over to a table without dropping anything, but that was a small price to pay.

When she seated down at the table, Raven joined her within no time at all. Unlike the goofy sorceress, she had only two waffles covered in syrup on her plate. She also eyed Raven’s plate with a sort of… incredulity, a sort of judgment that Raven had never really seen from anyone. Oh well. She wasn’t about to let it bother her.

“Well,” Raven said. She lifted her fork and knife and started to cut into her first waffle. “Let’s…”

CHOMP!

Raven actually dropped her fork. She did double take after double take as she stared at Raven and her now empty plate. “H… how… how did you…?”

Raven chuckled. “Oh, I’ve always been able to do that. My mouth opens extra wide depending on how much I want to eat.” She chuckled before letting out a burp. “That’s one of my favorite powers.”

Raven, while still stunned, simply shook her head and looked back down at her waffles. “Well, now I’ve seen everything…”

As she began eating her breakfast, Raven decided to go get seconds. She went back up to the buffet, piling as much food onto her plate as the first time. Raven was only halfway done with her first waffle when Raven got back, opened her mouth as wide as she could, and stuffed her face full with a second, more tasty round of food.

“Mmm mmm mmm,” Raven said as she wiped her mouth with a napkin. She grinned and looked back at the the buffet. “I think I want to get…” 

Just as she was about to get up again, Raven stopped her by grabbing hold of her arm. “ No ,” she said, using a stern tone that Raven had only ever heard from her mother. “Leave some for the other guests.”

Raven sighed. “Alright, alright…”

With that, she just sat still while Raven ate away at her breakfast. And, unfortunately for Raven , the stillness and silence meant that she had more time to think without any distractions. And the worst part about that was that all she could really think about was their situation and their problems. She thought about Trigon , still searching for them. Sure, they managed to escape from him via the help of the outfits they stole, but… oh, if he did find them… if he came across them and actually found a way to drain the rest of Raven’s power supply…

She sighed. Why did all the odds have to stack up against her? She wasn’t even referring to just this incident; this happened with her all the time. Things always seemed impossible, always seemed extremely dangerous. Was this just something that came packaged with being a Raven? Probably. Based on what her double had told her, she seemed to have gone through a lot of strife as well. Oh, why could a Raven from any dimension ever catch a break? Maybe it had something to do with their demon half…

And with that thought, a floodgate of other thoughts opened. Once again, Raven had the desire to get rid of her demon half. Trigon had offered her a normal life, which honestly looked more and more appealing the more time she spent thinking about it. A life, free from her father’s influence. A life, free from carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders. A life where she was… normal. Where she wasn’t a monster, where she was just… human. 

Was it so bad to wish for that? Was it so bad to long for that? It would be such a pleasant reality. Sure, humans still had their own struggles and trials, but they would be nothing in comparison to the struggles she had to go through. If only she could work something out with Trigon . Her getting rid of her powers would be… 

BANG!  

Both Ravens shrieked and bolted out of their chairs. Screams filled their ears and the scent of smoke filled their noses. Said smoke flew into the room, causing both girls to cough. Right as Raven wondered what could cause this fire was when Trigon’s voice filled the room.

“RACHEL! ANGELA! I KNOW WHO YOU REALLY ARE! COME OUT AND COME WITH ME!”

Raven’s eyes grew wide. What? Trigon had figured it out? Oh… oh man. This wasn’t good; this was so very not good.

“I’M NOT KIDDING! COME OUT RIGHT NOW, YOU DISOBEDIENT LITTLE DEVILS!”

Without much thought, Raven bolted out of her chair and ran to the other side of the room. Raven followed her, all while the shrieks of the people staying in the hotel grew more… bloodcurdling. The smoke filling the room also grew more and more thick, which was actually kind of a small mercy as it meant that Trigon wouldn’t be able to see them as easily. Sure, it was still mercilessly hard to breathe, but Raven was still thankful nonetheless. 

Unfortunately, moving over to the other side of the room was a bad idea, as there were no windows or doors there that could help the girls escape. She started to hyperventilate, which was something nobody should ever do in a room full of smoke.

“What are we going to do?” Raven struggled to say. “ Trigon … he’s here! He’s gonna, he’s gonna… oh man, what do we do?” She pulled her stolen hoodie over her head, hoping that the end would be quick and painless.

“Hey, try to stay calm,” Raven said. Just as a crash occurred near the entrance was when Raven wrapped her arms around her double. “Hold on!”

With that, a coldness and a darkness overtook Raven . She gasped, at first not knowing what was going on. It was only once the two started to move that Raven realized that her double was using her soul self. This was a handy power, one that Raven in all her wisdom had decided to avoid using while she was still in her home dimension.

The two flew for what felt like forever. Raven couldn’t see a single thing as they moved away from Trigon , nor could she properly see and take in her surroundings. Despite that, she wasn’t afraid (at least not as afraid as she had been previously). She trusted her double. She trusted Raven to keep her safe, to take them far away from the danger that they both knew they had been in.

After a little bit, the girls came to a stop. Raven dropped Raven down on the ground before exiting her soul self form. Raven tried to get her breathing back under control. As she did, she noticed that she and her double were back in their regular outfits, with their black leotards and shadowy blue cloaks. Sighing in relief, Raven pulled her hood over her head. Somehow, having her face concealed in shadow made her feel more safe.

“That was close,” Raven said.

“Yes,” Raven agreed. The sound of wailing sirens filled the air, causing the heroes to turn. Smoke rose up into the air in the area where the hotel had been.

Raven swallowed a lump. “We could’ve died…”

“Yeah.” Raven pulled her own hood back up. “Which means we need to change our plan.” She began walking away, much to Raven’s confusion.

“Where are we going?” she asked as she followed after her.

Raven bit her lip. “I know that it’s risky… but now that Trigon has found us and made a scene like this, we need to get as much protection as possible.” She narrowed her gaze. “And the best place to get that is at Titans Tower.”

Chapter Text

AN: Hey guys! It's been a while, huh? Well, I finally felt the motivation to write a new chapter for this story! I hope you all enjoy it! :D

Chapter 39 Respect

Laughter carried throughout Titans Tower, in a way that would make one question if the Titans were really as worried as they originally thought. Beast Boy looked upon his double, who stood in front of him. He flashed him a cocky grin, and Beast Boy mirrored the expression perfectly. The goofy Titan stood up to his full height, hoping to make him seem more intimidating than usual. They were, after all, dealing with some very serious business.

"Okay, dude." Beast Boy's grin grew both bigger and cockier. "You ready?"

"Bring it!" Beast Boy responded, the sparkle in his eye impish in the best way possible.

Beast Boy squinted at his double. His double squinted back. "One… two… THREE!" When he yelled the word "three," both changelings transformed at the exact same time. When they did, and when Beast Boy got a look at what his double had transformed into, he let out the loudest gasp in his life. "No way's!" He jumped up and down. "We dids it! We transformed into a kangaroo at the exact same time!" He giggled. "We be perfectly in sync, yo!"

Beast Boy smiled before turning back into a human. "I know! It's like… oh man, it's like we can read each other's minds!"

Beast Boy gasped again, this time even louder than his previous gasp. "Maybe we can!" He turned back into a human, closed his eyes, put his hands to his temples, and hummed. "Mmmm… you be's thinking about… pizza?"

Beast Boy laughed. "I actually am thinking about pizza!" The way his eyes shimmered made Beast Boy think he was looking into a forest-green night sky. "Dude! This is so cool!" He snickered. "It's almost like we're the exact same person or something!"

Beast Boy heard some high, fluttery laughter coming from just behind him. He turned, his face lighting up when he saw the Starfires. The goofy Starfire had Silky, her pet larva, in her hands, and she pet him on the head like he was an ordinary dog or cat. Starfire observed the two Beast Boys with a grin, making her look almost as beautiful as Raven.

"I believe all of us have done excellent when it has come to the bonding." She placed her hand on Starfire's shoulder. "I have learned all about your Goofy dimension from my counterpart, and I must admit it is quite fascinating. The way she describes Tamearan is very different." A wistful look appeared in her eyes. "And yet, so familiar at the exact same time."

Starfire sighed. She too had a wistful look, but there was also some longing and the slightest hint of nostalgia mixed in. "Oh boy, I sure do the missing of Tamearan. I often long to go there, as it is hard to be the only Tamearanian on a time of all humans." She stopped before snickering. "And whatever Robin may be."

"HEY!"

The four Titans' all blinked. While Beast Boy couldn't exactly speak for the others, his heart sank a considerable degree as he saw Robin approaching them. His eyebrows were miles high, and there was such a strong degree of ire in his expression that it could make anyone fear for their life.

"Why do you guys feel the need to disrespect me like that?" He asked. Beast Boy didn't know if it was just his imagination, but he thought he saw… sadness in his face? "You know, I do my absolute best for you. I formed this team, I've led it through some of our toughest battles, AND I stuck my neck out to make sure that we never broke up! So seriously, what is with all the disrespect?"

If Beast Boy only thought he saw sadness in Robin's expression before, he definitely saw it now. Which… okay, seeing that was officially the weirdest thing that had happened to him all week! He didn't even know Robin had the capacity to feel sadness! He thought he came from some sort of alien world where all emotions except cocky arrogance were shunned! Robin actually had sadness? This was like front-page news!

"Dude…" he didn't know what to say. He wanted to sass him, and make fun of Robin in every way possible. Under normal circumstances, that would probably be what he would do. But somehow, it didn't feel appropriate this time around.

Thankfully, Starfire was willing to come to the rescue. She approached the Goofy leader, kneeling down to his height and putting her hand on his shoulder. There were so many emotions packed within her smile, more than Beast Boy could possibly name.

"Robin, maybe it would be best if you do the treating of your team with respect."

Beast Boy had to take all his self-control to not snicker. Robin? Treating his team with respect? What kind of reality would have a Robin ever treating his team with respect?

Well… maybe the Serious Titans' Robin did. This realization helped Beast Boy to keep his mouth shut.

"Respect?" Robin raised an eyebrow. "What good would that do? All my team responds to is yelling and screaming?"

Starfire snickered. "Have you tried the other methods?"

Robin opened his mouth. He was about to say something; it was right on the tip of his tongue. However, much to Beast Boy's surprise (and his delight), Robin just as quickly shut his mouth and scratched the back of his head. "Well… I can't really recall a time when I did…"

"Well then, maybe now would be the time to start?" Starfire rose into the air a little bit while still kneeling in front of him. "Respect is a two-way street, as the people of my dimension have said. If you wish for people to treat you with it, then it is a good idea to treat them with it first. After all, it is easier to be nice when you feel like you are being treated like the actual person."

Starfire blinked as she patted Silky. "Truer words have not been the spoken…"

Robin's jaw dropped. He looked at Star, the disbelief on his face almost comical. "You… you guys think that would work?" Every present Titan nodded, causing Robin to blink. "Huh. Okay." He looked back at Starfire. "Does your Robin treat you with respect?"

"Of course he does!" Starfire exclaimed.

"Woah." Robin bit his lip as he thought about this. "Does… does he act perfectly in any given situation?" Both Starfire and Beast Boy laughed. The sound was probably loud enough to be heard by the Ravens and the Trigons, and it made Robin wrinkle his brow. "What? What I say?"

Starfire got her chuckling back under control. "The answer to that question is no."

"Yeah, no! With an exclamation point!" Beast Boy chuckled. "Robin definitely doesn't act perfect in any given situation! He can be obsessive; wickedly obsessive. He also tends to go in way over his head. And yes, sometimes, he raises his voice louder than he should." The smile on the changeling's face spoke volumes. "Yeah, he can be a lot sometimes."

Now Robin looked confused (and Beast Boy had to admit that he felt confused too). "And yet, you still think of him as a good leader?"

"Of course!" Starfire said. "You don't have to be perfect to be a good leader! All you have to do is put the best foot forward, which is another thing people in my dimension say." There was something about her face. It looked so… warm. This Starfire seemed like someone that Beast Boy could trust with the deepest secrets of his heart, with the most horrible thoughts and the worst traits that he had been trying WAY too hard to hide. She just looked so trustworthy, as well as wise beyond her so few Earth years.

Robin blushed and directed his gaze down toward the floor. "I… I guess I have a lot to learn about being a good leader."

"Maybe. But I have a feeling you can do it." Starfire grinned again. "I have the belief in you, Robin."

The leader's eyes grew wide, and his jaw dropped. "You…" he sniffled, smiling as he did. "That's nice to hear, thank you." He smiled at his teammates, an action that he practically never did. This altered Beast Boy's heartbeat, and actually made him hope for the future. Maybe, with time and practice, Robin could actually turn into a good leader. Maybe he would be someone whom Beast Boy could look up to, as opposed to someone whom Beast Boy despised being in the same room as.

Right at that moment, the door opened, and both Cyborgs walked into the living room. "Guys!" Cyborg exclaimed. "You guys are never going to believe this; Cyborg and I discovered something wicked cool!"

Beast Boy perked up. "Oh! Can you guy read each other's minds too!"

Both Cyborgs blinked. "Uh, no." Cyborg snickered. "I don't think I'd use that power even if I had it." He shuddered before smiling and coming in closer. "No, instead, Cy here and I discovered something about the warlogog!"

Starfire blinked. "The whirl-a-what?"

"The warlogog," Cyborg said. "It was that magical orb that the Trigons used; the one that Larry told us about." He typed something into his arm, and a projection of the warlogog appeared right before everybody. Beast Boy couldn't help but woo at it; even in low resolution, and even while covered in a blue filter, the thing still appeared so tantalizingly beautiful. Forget the pearl of great price; Beast Boy wanted to sell all of his earthly goods in order to get a hold of that!

"Woah, cool!" Beast Boy said this in sync with his double, causing both of them to laugh.

"It is indeed cool!" Cyborg said. "Both of us Cyborgs decided to do research on it. Larry had said that every dimension across the universe has one, and we wanted to see if that checks out!"

Robin took a step forward. "And… did it?"

"It did!" Man, the enthusiasm in Cyborg's grin was unparalleled. "We discovered many legends about warlogogs in this universe!" He pressed a button, and the picture being projected changed to show a plethora of historical documents and pictures. "Apparently, many people have sought to find out the location of it, knowing it has such awesome power!"

"Yeah!" Cyborg exclaimed. "I also found one document that says people believe Santa Claus uses a warlogog!"

"Santa?" Beast Boy gasped. "Wait a second! We know him!"

"You do?" asked the three present Serious Titans.

"We do!" Starfire's eyes were wide as she rose into the air and floated about. "We know him very well. We have had many of the whimsical variety of misadventures when it comes to the Santa Claus!"

Beast Boy did a double take. "So… wait, Santa is real in your universe?" He crossed his arms. "Man, why does this dimension seem to get all the cool stuff?"

Suddenly, Robin gasped. "Hold on a second!" He smiled, which kind of made Beast Boy worry. Smiles from the Titans' leader were almost never a good sign. However, the second Robin opened his mouth, relief washed over Beast Boy's soul. "If Santa has a warlogog… maybe we can get it from him! Maybe, we can use it to hop through the dimensions and save the Ravens!" He laughed. "Oh man, we have to get it from him!"

The Serious Titans exchanged confused looks. "Uh… that seems a little out there," said Cyborg. "But if you guys say you know Santa, I'll count it as a viable lead." He pressed the button on his arm again, and the projection disappeared. "Come on guys; let's go tell Robin!"

Chapter Text

AN: Hey everyone! I just want to thank you all once again for the support this fanfic has received. Not only has this become my most viewed story, but this is also the story that has the most favorites! I seriously can't thank you guys enough; you all are awesome! Thank you for supporting me, especially through the infrequent updates.

Anyways, onto this story's FORTIETH chapter!

Chapter 40 North Pole Ahoy

When Robin initially heard the plan that the others came up with, he was extremely skeptical, so much so that he actually laughed and told the others to let him continue thinking. However, everyone else had insisted that this was a good plan, which… honestly confused him more than anything else. Like, seriously, going to Santa Claus' workshop in order to get a warlogog? On paper, it sounded insane. It shouldn't work on any level. But… well, the Goofy Titans insisted. They told him this was the best thing to do right now, as well as the answer to their prayers.

So, he relented.

His team followed the Goofy Titans to the North Pole, a sentence that Robin never in a million years would've thought he'd act out. Like, how were they supposed to get to the North Pole? Cross through the seven layers of the Candy Cane Forest and go through the Sea of Swirly Twirly Gumdrops? He didn't know on any level. Heck, about halfway through their journey, he had questioned his team whether or not he was the only one who thought that the Goofy Titans had completely lost their marbles. Cyborg had insisted that they keep following the Goofy Titans though, if only because this plan, if it actually worked, was exactly what the group needed. Even with that sentiment, Robin was still skeptical.

But then, he noticed some things about the landscape. For one thing, it started to snow, despite the fact that the Goofy Titans' home looked like it was right in the middle of summer. He also saw one or two sights that made him do a double-take. Were… were those candy canes growing in the ground? Were those reindeer carrying… holy crap, were those reindeer carrying elves? Not some people dressed up as elves, but real, actual elves? How was that even possible? Santa didn't exist in Robin's home dimension, despite all of the fantastical elements that Robin had encountered in his travels. So, how was it that Santa existed in this universe? Sure, it was goofy, but not that goofy. Right?

Well, Robin soon would find out just how goofy this place was. He kept seeing other things, like walking gingerbread men and living snowmen. Robin noticed Starfire and Beast Boy looked absolutely delighted to see these, even going so far as to scream and laugh uncontrollably. Cyborg stared at these sights in wide-eyed amazement, looking at Robin like he had any explanation for why this was possible (he didn't. Most definitely didn't). Robin, while racking his own brain, looked over at the Goofy Titans. He didn't quite know what to expect when it came to their body language and reactions, but he was surprised to see Robin giggling maniacally.

"That jolly old elf won't know what hit him." He cackled. "He's caused us so much trouble in the past; I think it's about time we returned the favor!"

Robin blinked. Wait, that met Santa before? Huh. Somehow, he wasn't nearly as surprised as he supposed he should be.

Before long, the Titans walked up a hill. When they got to the top, and when they saw what was below them, Robin's jaw dropped. Santa's workshop sat in the snow, glowing with Christmas lights and painted with the most appealing red paint job in the world. A neon sign had been put on top of it, and it said "Santa's Workshop" in bright flashing lights. Robin had to slap himself across the cheek, just to make sure he wasn't dreaming.

"I don't believe it." He shook his head. "I don't believe this!"

"Oh, Santa's workshop looks the most whimsical!" said Starfire. She giggled. "The twinkling lights adorning the walls are the most delightful."

Beast Boy's eyes glimmered. "Dude, if Santa is real in this universe, do you think I can ask him for that new Mega Monkeys game? I've been dying to play that for months. Ooh, or maybe I can finally get a new moped! Oh man, that would be sweet!"

Robin laughed and turned around. "Oh trust me, Serious Titans. There is no sweetness or happiness to be found in this place!" He looked back down at the workshop. "Santa is one of the most annoying baddies we have ever faced."

Robin snickered. "Wait, wait. Santa Claus… freaking SANTA CLAUS is a villain in this universe?"

"Better believe it!" said Beast Boy. He looked down at the workshop. "We need to be sneaky, yo. If Old Santy finds out we be snooping around in his workshop looking for his warlogog, he's gonna have a hissy fit."

"Oh yes," said Starfire. "It will be most unpleasant."

Robin's jaw dropped. He looked over at Cyborg. "Okay, are we sure that everything that's happened since we met the Master of Games isn't some sort of elaborate fever dream?"

Cyborg shrugged. "Wouldn't be surprised if it was at this point."

"Okay, guys!" Robin looked back at all the Titans. "I will say this in the most respectable and nice way possible!" He winked at Starfire, who giggled and gave him a thumbs-up. "We need to do this quickly and quietly. Stick close to the walls, hide in the shadows, and most importantly, don't let anyone in there see you. This has to go well; we go in, we go out. Understand everyone?"

"Yeah dude," said Beast Boy. He gave Robin a grin. "Also, nice way of being respectable for once."

Robin chuckled. "It felt a little weird doing it, but I'm sure I'll get the hang of it."

With that, all eight of the present Titans crept to the workshop. They pressed their bodies against the red wall, and Robin pointed up toward one of the many tall windows. With a quietness that some might consider impossible, Starfire used her eye beams to burn a hole through the window, allowing the guys to sneak in. Robin used his grappling hook, touching down extra softly while everyone else snuck in along with him. Once they were all in, Robin shushed them and started leading the way. Robin tried to keep his eyes entirely on his counterpart, but it was a little difficult because…

Well, it was Santa's Workshop! They were in the workshop of the real, actual Santa Claus! Even with the lights turned off, the sights to see in here were certainly colorful and inviting. Conveyor belts stretched all around the room, with cogs and strings hanging from the ceiling. Presents galore were everywhere, stacked high and glittering even in the lack of light. The whole place also smelled distinctly of melted chocolate, which was enough to make Robin's mouth water.

Of course, the sights weren't enough to quell his confusion. He tapped on Beast Boy, who just so happened to have taken on the form of a reindeer. "So…" he whispered. "What were the circumstances under which you guys met Santa."

Beast Boy chuckled. "Well, one time, we were on his naughty list, so we came here to get off of it. We reminded him that Christmas is all about the presents, which allowed him to make the right choice when it came to giving us gifts."

Robin made a face. "Um, I'm sorry? Since when is Christmas all about gifts? In my dimension, we remember Christmas as a time of giving, a time of peace on Earth and goodwill to men!"

Beast Boy chuckled again, this sound a little bit louder than the previous one. "Your dimension sounds weird, bro!" Robin looked over at his team when this was said. All they had in response to this statement was one collective shrug.

"Keep it the down," Starfire whispered. "I believe we are approaching the part of the workshop where Santa does the hanging out."

Robin looked up ahead, noticing the change in the room. Instead of a full, decked-out warehouse, they now appeared to be entering a simple hallway. Nodding, he stuck closer to the walls, creeping along them like some sort of flea-ridden mouse (both Beast Boys even turned into mice at this section, as if to prove Robin's point). They stayed so quiet that Robin couldn't even hear himself breathing. He kept looking over his shoulder, both to keep his eyes on his teammates as well as to make sure no one was in the workshop who would see them and set off any alarms.

"Guys!" Cyborg whispered fiercely. "Elves!"

Robin looked up ahead to see two elves, standing in front of a door they appeared to be guarding. Robin decided that he should probably be the one to deal with them, as he knew how to do that discreetly. However, before he even took a step, his double chuckled.

"Don't worry guys, I got this." Using the natural blackness of his cape to blend in with the shadows, he snuck toward the elves. Swiftly and silently, he pulled something out (Robin guessed it was a chloroform cloth) and held it in front of one of the elves' mouths. They didn't even scream as they got knocked out. Their fellow elf buddy raised an eyebrow when they saw them collapse, not even aware of the fact that Robin was behind them. Robin covered their mouth too. They passed into sleep with ease.

"Okay!" Robin gave the Titans the thumbs-up, a sight that actually made Robin smile. It appeared his double could be competent when he wanted to be.

On that note, Robin picked the lock on the door and opened it. He gestured for the others to sneak in, which they did quickly. Robin saw they were in a room with an enormous fireplace, and a red armchair rested in front of said fireplace. Robin could just barely hear someone breathing in the chair across the room. His eyes grew wide; was that Santa?

Robin didn't waste any time. He gestured for the Titans to stay still, and he tiptoed toward the chair. Robin held his breath, unsure what would happen. Oh, please let this go well. PLEASE let this go…

Before he knew it, a whole assortment of missiles and bombs dropped down from the ceiling (Robin must've accidentally walked over some kind of laser). The Titans let out one big, collective shriek and jumped back. The person who was in the chair turned toward him. Robin's breath caught in his breath when he saw it was Santa himself, holding both a warlogog and some kind of pistol.

"Ho ho ho." He grinned wickedly. "What took you so long?"

Chapter Text

Chapter 41 Ho Ho Ho

Robin's eyes grew wide. His heart pounded as he stared at this… really really really weird sight. Santa was holding a gun! A flipping GUN! Why in the world… universe… why in the vast multiverse would he ever hold a gun? That was just messed up! There was no real way for him to wrap his mind around this, around the fact that SANTA CLAUS was ready to pump them full of lead.

"Oh my gosh," Beast Boy said. He stared at Santa, his eyes shining in the oddest way. "Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh! It's Santa Claus! He's right there!"

"I know!" Cyborg grinned, grinning at Santa while the jolly old elf gave every one of them a raised eyebrow. "Oh man, every single dream I've had as a child is about to come true!"

Robin snorted. "And every nightmare too, considering he's holding a GUN!"

Santa laughed out loud when that was said. "Ho ho ho! My my, it is such an interesting thing to know that there are more Teen Titans." He sharpened his expression into a glare. "Or at least, it would be if I didn't hate the Titans with every fiber of my being!"

Robin sniffed. "Yeah yeah yeah, it's nice to see you too, Santa." He took a step forward, wearing a brave face. "Listen, we have come…"

"To get my warlogog?" Santa chortled, his belly shaking. "I figured as much. I knew you would want to get your naughty mitts on it one day." He looked down at the warlogog, his eyes shining in a way very similar to the artifact's surface. "I'll just make this easier for you, Titans. I'm not going to give it to you! Not over my dead body!"

Starfire raised an eyebrow. "How does that make things the easier for us? I think it would make things harder!"

Santa smirked. "You know, you're absolutely right." He laughed again. "Ho ho ho! Oh, I can already tell that this is going to be fun!"

Robin's blood boiled over. Forgetting who he was talking to for a brief instant, he stepped forward with gritted teeth. "Listen, we need that warlogog. And we aren't leaving this workshop until you hand it over!"

"Well then," Santa said, grinning a wicked grin so unbefitting of him. "It looks like you aren't leaving at all!" He cackled, a sound that actually made chills run up and down Robin's spine. He backed up with wide eyes, almost running into Cyborg. "You know, I don't think just a simple beat down will be fitting enough for a showdown with eight Teen Titans. It's time for me to unleash… my secret weapon!"

Beast Boy blinked, shaking like a Mexican jumping bean as his double tried to console him. "Uh…" he swallowed a lump, all previous excitement from before having vanished right into the ether. "What exactly would your secret weapon be?"

"Oh, you'll see." Santa pulled out a remote from his pocket, pressing down on the big red button it had in the center. When he did, a creaking sound came from the other side of the room. Robin turned, his heart pounding in his head. All the Titans' eyes were wide as the door opened, allowing a plump, silver-haired, red-dressed woman to enter the room. She giggled as she looked at the Titans, sounding like she was going to kill them and mount their heads on the wall as trophies.

"Titans," Santa said, his voice extra slimy. "Allow me to introduce… my wife!"

The Titans let out a collective gasp. "You… you're Mrs. Claus?" Robin asked, his disbelief reaching catastrophic levels.

The woman chuckled. "Oh, Mrs. Claus makes me sound so old. I would prefer if we refer to each other on a first-name basis." She sneered. "Call me… Megan!"

Goosebumps formed over Robin's arms. He swallowed a lump, exchanging looks with his teammates and the goofy Titans alike. Almost all of them looked as upset and frightened as he was, and they only got more scared as "Megan" slowly approached. It was like she was the lion, and they were a bunch of gazelles.

"Wait." Starfire rose into the air, looking from Megan to Santa. "Please, dear mythical holiday figures. Do you really believe this to be necessary?" Her brow furrowed. "Look past the grudges you may hold and listen to your hearts. Would it really be the worth it for you to kill us in this manner?" She looked at Santa, her eyes glimmering. "Please Mr. Santa Claus, it doesn't have to be this way. We don't have to fight; this issue can be solved peacefully if we allow it to be. In fact…"

"Ughhh… are you finished yet?" Santa turned the safety off on his pistol. "I've been looking forward to defeating the Titans for years now; I'm not going to wait any longer!"

Starfire did a double-take. She closed her eyes, an angered expression appearing on her face. "Well then…" she opened her eyes, which now glowed green. "So be it."

With that, she shot eye beams in Santa's direction. Santa shrieked and jumped out of the chair, just barely avoiding getting hit. From behind the chair, he readied his pistol and aimed it at Starfire. It hit her in the chest, sending her flying into the wall near Megan.

"Starfire!" Robin yelled. He rushed over to her, but to his shock, Megan made a giant silver fist materialize out of what looked to be thin air. Robin just barely stopped himself from rushing toward Starfire, but it was unfortunately too late. The fist shot forward, hitting Robin and sending him flying backward. His back made contact with the wall, an event that caused him more pain than he had felt in a long time. He groaned, trying to push the fist off of him. As he did, he heard shouts from the others, as well as the typical sounds one usually associated with a Teen Titans battle.

"Robin!" As Robin groaned, he heard Cyborg rushing forward. Based on the way the air moved, Robin had a feeling that Starfire was accompanying him. His theory was proven right when the fist got lifted off of him by the goofy alien princess. He had to admit, he was impressed by this, as her little bobblehead self seemed to do it without breaking a sweat.

"Th…" he winced, sucking air through his teeth as he pulled himself out of the crater that had formed in the wall. "Thanks, Star."

"No problem." Starfire looked at him, giggling as she did. "I couldn't just sit back and let such a handsome hero like you get hurt."

Robin seized up. "Uh…" his eyes traveled around the workshop, trying to look anywhere other than the lovestruck heroine. Just as he was starting to sweat, Cyborg stepped.

"Look, can we save the flirting for later?" He turned back to the battle, raging in the closed corridors of this tiny little room. "We've got to get that warlogog!"

"Right," Robin said with a nod. Despite his injuries, he raised himself up to his full height. "Cyborg, try to get Megan. Starfire, you blast Santa behind with a starbolt."

"Sure thing!" Both heroes said in unison. Cyborg charged, aiming his sonic cannon at the psychotic witch who claimed to be Santa's wife. Starfire shot forward, a starbolt charging in her hand. Since Santa was locked in a battle with Robin, he seemed to be distracted enough for this plan to work. She aimed her starbolt…

Only for Santa to turn around and shoot her. She fell to the ground, wincing as she tried to lift herself up. Santa cackled, putting the barrel of the gun directly on top of Starfire's temple.

"NO!" Robin shouted. He thwacked Santa in the back of the head with his bo staff. "NOBODY HURTS MY STARFIRE!" He thwacked Santa a second time, yelling at the top of his voice as he did. Growling, Santa shot him in the face. Robin ran at him too, but Santa shot him as well, making him tumble to the floor.

"Santa, darling!" Megan called out as the two Beast Boys and two Cyborgs surrounded her. "I'm afraid I'm being overpowered!"

Santa grinned. "Then let's move this to the workroom!" He cringed. "I don't want to get my private corridors dirty anyway."

With that, he and Megan rushed out, with Santa still keeping a firm hand on his warlogog. Robin pulled himself to his feet, noticing a smoky smell emanating from his costume. That didn't matter though. Not when the battle wasn't even close to over.

"Guys, go after them!" He shouted. The Cyborgs and Beast Boys nodded and bolted out of the room (with the latter two turning into cheetahs in order to do so). This just left the two Robins and the hurt Starfires. Robin ran over to his Starfire, while Robin did the same for his.

"Star, you alright?" Robin asked as he lifted her head up.

Starfire coughed. "I… I will be." She winced as Robin helped her rise to her feet. "This isn't the worst I've endured."

Robin sighed in relief. He looked over at Robin, who was following his example and was raising his Starfire to her feet. Once all four of them were all set, he looked toward the door. "Come on, guys. We've still got a warlogog to get."

"Right!" The other three said in unison. The Starfires rose into the air and flew out of the room, with the two Robins running alongside them. When they got to to large, open workroom portion of the workshop, Robin noticed Cyborg aiming his sonic cannon at the ceiling. This confused him until he saw some gears fall from the ceiling, crushing the conveyor belts they landed on and utterly destroying the presents they rolled over.

Santa growled as he got out of the way of one of the gears. "YOU GUYS ARE RUINING MY WORKSHOP!" He pulled what looked like a walkie-talkie out of his pocket. "Attention all Santa's elves!" Robin's heart rate spiked when he heard Santa's voice being projected through some sort of intercom system. "All are required to help old Santa out in the workshop! We've got some naughty superheroes on our hands!"

The second… the very second he finished saying that, the doors in various parts of the workshop opened. Robin shrieked when he saw throngs of elves, stampeding their way into the workshop. Sweat poured down Robin's back, and he watched in terror as the Cyborgs and Beast Boys got run over by these creatures.

"Yes! Yes!" Santa laughed. "Ho ho ho, you really are Santa's little helpers!" He cleared his throat. "All those who are trained, grab your candy guns and start shooting!" He turned toward his wife. "Megan, my dearest love, activate your ultra mega sonic blast!"

"With pleasure." Megan ran across the workshop, opening up a present wrapped up in red and silver wrapping paper. Out of it, she pulled out what looked like a giant ray gun. Giggling, she pressed a button, starting the warming-up process. "Oh, it looks like Christmas is coming early for me today!'

That was enough for Robin to know that he needed to act now. He charged at Megan, reaching into his pockets and pulling out his birdrangs. He was just about to throw one of them when something hit him in the shoulder. "AAH!" He fell to the ground. Putting his hand to the wound, he saw that he had been splattered by a shot of melted chocolate. He gritted his teeth, looking up at the elf who had shot him.

"Say goodnight, birdie boy!" He aimed the gun, ready to shoot more chocolate. Robin braced himself to get shot, but before that happened, Robin got in the way. Using his bo staff, he deflected all of the shots. He wore a serious face when he did this, and he stepped closer and closer to the shooter the more chocolate shocks he managed to deflect. Fear appeared in the elf's eyes just before Robin pounced on him, landing on his head and pounding him onto the ground.

Robin smiled as he lifted himself up. "Thanks, Robin." His double smiled when he said that, an expression Robin mirrored as he came over. "You know, you aren't so bad at this crime-fighting thing."

Robin smirked. "Thanks. I spent a lot of time…"

Before he could finish, a group of elves pounced on him, pinning him to the ground. Robin gasped. He jumped towards them, determined to help his double, but ended up getting pounced on and pinned down himself while he was still in the air.

Robin struggled against the elves' hold. "Let me go!"

"Yeah, let us go!" Robin yelled.

"Ho ho ho." Santa came up to the two of them. By lifting his head slightly, Robin saw that the Cyborgs, Beast Boys, and Starfires were also pinned down. Each one of them struggled, but the elves were surprisingly strong. Robin's heart sank at this sight, and he only grew more despondent when Santa and Megan walked up to him and his double.

"Well well well," Santa said. "Looks like I finally get the chance to destroy the Titans!" He giggled. "I always wished for this day to come. I even added it to my Christmas wishlist."

Robin grunted, still struggling against the elves. They didn't budge; in fact, some of them even stuck their nails into his arm. Fighting the pain, Robin could only watch helplessly as Santa and Megan walked over to Robin, with the giant ray gun still charging up in Megan's hand.

"And you know, I think it's only fitting that we destroy the most annoying member of the most annoying superhero team first." He grinned at Megan. "Okay sweetie, do your worst!"

Megan chuckled. Robin's fear reached never-before-seen levels as he watched the ray gun building up over his double's form. Oh, what could they do?

Chapter Text

Chapter 42 I Should Just Let Them

The day waged on, and Raven's fear continued to build. Of course, she didn't express it, as she figured that would create more problems than it would solve. When running from two interdimensional demons, emotions didn't factor in. One had to keep moving forward, keep walking without looking back. She wouldn't rest until she got to Titans Tower. She wouldn't stop until she and Raven were safe.

Of course, not stopping created quite the problem. Like the previous times when she had walked, her feet stung. It was like she was walking on broken glass after being bitten by a thousand bullet ants. She wanted to stop so desperately and treat herself. But, of course, such a desire didn't matter at this point.

"How…' Raven cleared her throat just as she and her double stopped at a crosswalk. "How much longer until we get to your Tower?"

Raven frowned. "With the rate we're going?" Her face fell. "I'd say about three hours."

"Three hours? Dang." Raven tried not to whimper while standing on her injured feet and didn't say a word when the light turned green. "Does it usually take you this long?"

Raven snorted. "No." She started walking, and Raven followed her. "Most of the time, I can fly, or I can get Cyborg to drive me in his car."

Raven winced. "Yeaaaah…" She took in another breath. "Well, I guess we'll keep on trucking."

"Yeah. Trucking."

They continued on their walk. After about an hour passed, Raven's feet hurt so badly that she could barely move. It almost felt like a round of bullets had shot her feet and were now lodged between her bones. Each step felt like she was stepping on fire, but again, she couldn't stop. She wouldn't stop. Not until the two of them got to…

"Oh my gosh, your feet!"

Raven blinked, coming to a much-needed stop as she looked up at Raven. "My feet? What's wrong with my…" she looked down and gasped. Some very large holes had opened up in her shoes, causing her throbbing, bumpy red feet to poke through. Just looking at this made Raven want to throw up.

"I… I…" she wobbled and collapsed, and Raven leaned down to catch her. Raven tried to tell herself that this wasn't a big deal. Sure, it hurt, but next to being captured by the Trigons, she would take this event in an instant. "Let's…" she cleared her throat. "Let's keep going…"

"Keep going? Are you insane?" Raven shook her head and lifted Raven up in her arms. "Come on, I'm gonna heal you."

Raven wanted to object, but Raven was already moving before she got the opportunity. Her double raced down the sidewalk until she found an alleyway. Raven saw that it was a very clean alleyway, albeit a very cramped one. Raven snuck against the walls until they got to the center. Then, she put her double down, let out a breath, and held out her hand.

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos."

The blue light appeared, and Raven felt a relief pretty much immediately. Of course, she also felt bad that they were forced to come to a stop because of her, but she wasn't about to complain. She waited for Raven to finish, the pain shrinking and the relief growing. She looked into her double's face as she did this, noticing how serious she looked. She was so strong. An immovable rock, a hero that anybody could look up to. This sight made Raven's mind reel. She bet that Raven didn't have the same struggles she did. She bet that she currently wasn't considering giving her powers up.

Because that's what Raven was wanting right now. She knew she shouldn't; she knew it was one of the worst ideas she could ever have. And yet, thinking about everything that this would offer her. A new human form, a new human life, and no reason to ever talk about her dad again. Oh man, those thoughts were so overwhelmingly sweet. But… but… Oh she shouldn't, she shouldn't be thinking about this. And yet, the desire grew stronger and stronger. It just… it just wouldn't stop.

"Raven? Are you okay?"

For the first time in a while (possibly her entire life), tears formed in Raven's eyes. "Dang it." She wiped the tears away, thinking about everything. Why was she like this? Why was she so selfish? Why couldn't she be a good hero like Raven? Oh man, why couldn't she be like Raven…

"Raven, please tell me what's wrong," Raven said. She reached toward her double as if to put her hands on her, but stopped halfway. She hesitated before ultimately deciding to pull back. "Maybe I'll be able to help?"

Raven dried more tears from her eyes and looked at her double. Through the stoic mask, she could see genuine concern. She could see someone who really wanted to help, who was probably prioritizing her safety and health. And… well, who wouldn't be a better person for Raven to talk to than herself? Surely, this version of her could understand! And if she couldn't understand… well, she could at the very least try to.

So, she adjusted her position and sat up. "I've… I've been doing some thinking. Before, my dad offered to take my powers away from me. And… well, your dad wants to get my powers too. And… maybe I'm thinking… that I should just let them?"

Raven's eyes grew wide. She stared at Raven for quite a while, a practice that only proved to make her feel worse. Her stomach churned, and she had to look away. She was judging her, wasn't she? She was thinking about how that was a stupid idea, how that was the worst thing that she could possibly suggest.

"I mean…" Raven bit her lip. "I can't help but think about what it would be like to have a normal life." She rubbed her shoulder, looking away from Raven's gaze. "Having normal friends to hang out with and such…" She sniffled. "I mean… there are times when I absolutely hate my life. I hate who I am. I hate what I am. I feel like I belong nowhere, that it would just be best for everyone if I wasn't part of their lives. I mean… for crying out loud, I'm half demon! What sane person would stick around the daughter of the devil himself?" She cried some more. "I try not to let it bother me; I really do. I try not to think about it too much, how much it hurts to have to wield these powers, and how much it hurts to exist like this. I try to just let myself get distracted by books and the wacky adventures me and my friends go on, and sometimes that works. But… but it only works for a second." She looked down at one stone on the ground. "I really wouldn't mind being rid of my demon side. Just once, I want to know what it's like. Just once, I'd like to be… normal." A silence befell the scene, one that weighed down on Raven. She couldn't look at her double, away from her double… nothing she did helped her feel better. She felt like one of the most selfish beings in the world for even saying this. She felt like she was the exact type of evil being that her father had bred her to be, and it felt terrible. She wanted to disappear. She wanted to…

"I get it."

Raven did a double take. She looked at her double, who looked back at her with shimmering eyes. On some level, Raven questioned if she had even heard that in the first place. She wiped some tears from her eyes and sat up, all without looking away.

"You do?"

Raven nodded. "It's a constant struggle." Now it was her turn to look away from her double. "Sometimes, I wonder if it's worth waking up in the morning. I wonder why I'm even doing what I'm doing when what I am is one of the worst things a person could possibly be." She frowned. "And it hurts so much. For years, I felt like I was inherently bad. Unworthy of love and friendship, I guess you could say."

Raven's eyes grew wide. "So… you really do know what it's like?"

"Yes." Raven held her glowing blue hand over Raven's foot again. "I thought that I was only the bringer of bad omens. I wanted nothing to do with my friends or the city I wanted to save. I just…" she hesitated, even shaking a little bit. "I just wanted to disappear. I wanted to leave this dimension forever and go to one where nothing bad could happen, where I could express my ugliest emotions without any consequences." Her frown got deeper. "I felt dirty for even thinking that though, which meant I was stuck between a rock and a hard place. On the one hand, I didn't even see the point of protecting Jump City anymore. But on the other, I knew that if I left it, then I would just be giving into the demonic genes I had inherited. After all, I'm a hero. A hero isn't supposed to be selfish. Otherwise, can they really call themselves a hero?"

Now Raven frowned. "Okay…"

"And I really wished I wasn't me. I wished I was someone else; someone who didn't have a horrific destiny waiting over the horizon and who didn't have to worry about a father who was going to take control and destroy the world." She sunk a little. "But more than anything else, I wished I was someone who wouldn't hurt anybody. Especially the other Titans."

A silence befell the scene, only broken, every once in a while, by the sound of cars driving past the alleyway. There was a sort of sadness in Raven's eyes, as well as some sort of longing.

"What made you decide to keep going?" Raven finally asked.

A tiny smile graced Raven's lip. "Honestly? As corny as this may sound, my friends?" She chuckled and scratched the back of her head. "My friends were supportive of me even in the worst, darkest times. They showed me that, even with all these horrible thoughts and feelings running through my head, I was still worthy of love. And that I didn't need to be normal to earn love from anybody."

Raven blinked. A small smile appeared on her face too, and it only got bigger as Raven went on.

"This is why I said I would never wish my powers away to you earlier. Sure, they come with big drawbacks and even bigger responsibilities. But in the end, it's all worth it. If I can't get up in the morning, I just remind myself that I have friends. Friends who will lead more toward a better tomorrow, friends that will remind me of the value of hoping for the best." She looked right in Raven's eyes. "Are your friends like that? Do they do stuff like that for you?"

Raven thought about this question for a bit before nodding. "They… yeah. I think they do." She chuckled. "I mean, don't get me wrong; they drive me absolutely crazy!"

Raven laughed too. "My friends do the same thing to me sometimes. Every rose has its thorns, you know."

"Yeah." Raven thought about this some more. "But… they do provide me with good. A whole world of good, as a matter of fact." She sniffled again. "And I don't think I ever would've met them if I was born normal."

"Exactly." This time, Raven managed to put her hand on her double's shoulder. "So don't worry about a thing, Raven. You've always got friends to support you."

"Yeah. I do." She frowned. "But… but what if my demon side takes over? What if it hurts my friends?"

"That won't happen. I know what it's like to be a Raven; you won't let anything happen to your friends." She patted her shoulder. "And, when there are times you feel extra demonic, just know that you can always think about them. You can always picture them, and your powers will be controllable once again."

Raven giggled. "True. Very true."

Raven nodded before pulling away and looking down at Raven's feet again. "Well… I think your feet should be fully healed at this point."

"I think so too." Raven took a deep breath and rose to a standing position. She smiled once she did. "Yep! I feel good as new!"

"Good." Raven stood back up, putting the stoic mask back on. "Now, let's hurry. We need to get to Titans Tower before the Trigons find us."

Chapter Text

Chapter 43 Dimension Hopping Time!

Beast Boy's almost shrieked as he saw Megan holding a gun over his leader's face. Sure, Robin wasn't known as the best leader of all time, but… come on, he didn't deserve to die! None of Beast Boy's friends deserved to die! Just the thought of that happening was enough to make a deep, dark void form in his stomach, enough to make him feel as if the whole universe was breaking apart and crashing on top of him.

"No!" Beast Boy struggled against the elves' hold, but for such tiny creatures, they were surprisingly strong. A low growl escaped from his throat the more he tried to get free, he even kicked. Still, it felt as though the elves weren't about to let up anytime soon.

Then he got an idea.

"YOU GUYS LEAVE ROBIN BE!" Without any warning, he transformed into a T-rex. He roared at the top of his voice, making the elves who were holding him shrink back and cower in fear. Everyone else in the room seemed to be taken aback by this display too, especially Santa and Megan.

"What in the Christmas Kringle is going…"

Beast Boy charged at him, his attention solely focused on getting to the Robins. He headbutted Megan, sending her flying back while screaming at the top of her lungs. Her back cracked with the most painful sound the human body could possibly make, making Beast Boy cringe. However, he was not about to feel sympathy for her. She was willing to kill Robin. That couldn't be overlooked or ignored.

"YOU DO NOTS HURT MY LEADER! OKAY!"

Santa looked like a dear stuck in the headlights as Beast Boy charged at him next. Unlike Megan, the changeling decided to whack him with his mighty tail. The jolly old elf flew both upwards and backward, his head making contact with the part of the assembly line attached to the ceiling. He landed with a crash, groaning as he did. Once he was sure he wouldn't get up, Beast Boy decided that it was time to go after the elves. Fortunately… there didn't seem to be any more in the workshop. They had all vanished, no doubt with their tails between their legs.

And with that, Beast Boy transformed back into a human. He let out a breath, noticing for the first time that the rest of the Titans from both teams were gawking at him. Blinking and feeling a little squirmy, Beast Boy chuckled and scratched the back of his head.

"Sorry. I got kinda carried away…"

"BEAST BOY!" Robin yelled. Unlike many of the previous times he had yelled at his team, he didn't sound angry at all. Quite the contrary, he actually sounded proud! An emotion Beast Boy believed he would never see from him. "You… you saved my life!"

Beast Boy smiled, the expression just a tad sheepish. "Well… you're my leader. And my friend." He had to use all of his self-control to not cringe at that last statement. "I… I couldn't just lt you die."

"Very cool, BB!" Cyborg said as he came over and patted his best friend on the shoulder. "Pretty awesome, too."

"Indeed," said Starfire. "You might very possibly be the most heroic out of the five of us!"

Beast Boy's face grew hotter than a stovetop. "Th… thanks."

"Uh, guys," Robin said as he came over. "I hate to break this up, but we need to move!" He pointed toward Santa, still groaning on the floor. "The Clauses are going to wake up at any minute!"

"Right," Robin said. He went over to Santa and grabbed the warlogog (which Beast Boy was shocked to see hadn't shattered or cracked at all throughout any point in the fight). "Come on everyone!" His face grew serious. "We have some dimensions to hop."

Beast Boy smiled, and together, the two teams went out into the snow. Once they were a good distance away from the workshop, Robin looked down at the swirly pink orb in confusion. Beast Boy didn't blame him; in fact, if he were to wager a guess, he would probably say that Robin was asking the same question in his head that Beast Boy was asking in his.

"How do we work that thing, yo?"

Robin looked uneasy. "I don't… know." He stood still for a second before waving his hand over the warlogog. "Hear me of warlogog, and transport us across the dimensions!" He looked at the artifact, leaning close into it before his face fell. "Shoot, I don't think that's right…"

"Here, let me have it," Cyborg said as he approached. Robin handed it over, and Cyborg stared into the orb's pink interior. "I think I know some way to work this. When Cy and I were reading about the warlogog legends, they said that they require you to A) have a specific mindset and B), you have to have some semblance of power to unlock its abilities."

"Oh!" Starfire exclaimed, a big smile growing on her face. "That makes the sense! Robin doesn't have any powers, so he's practically the useless!"

"Hey!" Robin shouted. "Be nice! You know that's a touchy subject for me"

"Yeah!" Robin said as he rubbed his arms. "To be honest, I've always worried about that too…"

Starfire, while she had only giggled for Robin, forced herself to stop laughing when she heard Robin's plight. "I apologize, Handsome Robin." Robin sent her a glare before she turned back to Cyborg. "So, the Serious Cyborg, do you believe you can do the working of the warlogog?"

Cyborg's brow furrowed a bit. "Well I… I don't know. But I can certainly try!" He looked over at his double. "In fact, Cyborg and I have thought up a pretty decent method we can use to try it."

"That we have!" He approached Cyborg, holding out his hand. "Stand back, everyone!" Cyborg grinned in the most mischievous way possible. "Prepare to have your minds blown!"

He took his double's hand, and before the eyes of everyone present, they began to morph. Beast Boy watched this display with a dropped jaw, reeling at how the circuitry and parts of the two Cyborgs were meshing and changing in the most alien of ways. Seriously, he had never see anything like this before! It was like spotting a triple rainbow, or a unicorn in the wild! He couldn't tear his eyes away, couldn't stop staring as the two Cyborgs fused and changed into something entirely new.

Within no time at all, the Cyborgs had turned into what looked like a spaceship. Cyborg's head was situated at the front, and Cyborg's head was on top of a very weird, circular structure. The spaceship had multiple seats; in fact, they had exactly the right amount of seats for every one of the present Titans. It blew Beast Boy's mind as he looked at this structure.

"Woah!" Beast Boy said, approaching the Cyborg ship as Beast Boy tried to remember how to speak. "Guys, how did you…"

"We've done some experimenting," Cyborg said with a cheeky grin. "We wanted to make sure to use the most effective method possible to dimension hop."

"And the most stylish!" Cyborg chuckled. "Okay everyone! Hop in!"

Beast Boy didn't need to be told twice. Grinning, he got into one of the seats. Starfire and Robin got in right beside him, and the Serious Titans got in the seat parallel to theirs. Beast Boy snuggled into the seat, trying to keep himself from falling into a laughing fit.

"Man, you guys are really comfortable to sit on! My butt is very snug!"

"Thanks… I guess," Cyborg said. He looked back towards Cyborg. "Cy, get the warlogog ready!"

"With pleasure, Cy!" A little compartment at the bottom on the circular structure Cyborg was a part of opened up, and a stand holding the warlogog rose upward. Once it was right in the center of the circle, Cyborg snickered, and just like that the warlogog began to glow. Pink bolts of what looked like lightning floated off of it, filling the circle. As if that wasn't impressive enough, a pink bolt of light shot forward, and an interdimensional portal opened up right before the Titans.

"Woohoo!" Beast Boy whooped, much to everyone's surprise. "Cyborgs, that was SO COOL!"

Cyborg chuckled. "Th… thanks." He put on a determined face. "You ready, guys?"

"I don't think it would matter if we weren't," Starfire said as she looked back. She pointed toward the workshop. "The Santa Clauses are coming after us!"

Beast Boy's heart skipped a beat. He looked back and sure enough, both Santa and Megan were outside and getting into what looked like Santa's signature sleigh.

"Oh… boy…" Beast Boy swallowed a lump. "Yeahs, we really needs to be hurrying."

"Alrighty then!" Cyborg laughed out loud. "Well, Titans… it's dimension hopping time!"

The engine roared to life. As Beast Boy gripped the sides of his seat, the machine rose into the air. Fire shot out of the exhaust pipes, adding to the building anticipation. Beast Boy couldn't help but hold his breath. Please oh please let this go well. He paused. Especially for Raven…

"Here… We… GO!"

The machine shot forward. Beast Boy shut his eyes as they entered the portal, on some level not knowing what to expect. He waited a few seconds, just to make sure he hadn't been blown up, before cracking his eyes open a tiny bit. When he did, his jaw dropped. Along with every other Titan, he gawked at the sight that laid before them.

It was space as far as the eye could see. Other portals rested in various places, glowing like the most luminous kinds of stars. And there were thousands of them, possibly millions! They just sat there, twinkling and waiting for someone to fly toward them. With their pink color, they actually looked… pretty.

"Man," Beast Boy said, being at a loss for words for what was possibly the first time in his life.

"I know," Starfire said. "It is more glorious than the Tamaran moon during my planet's lunar festival!"

"It is beautiful," Robin said, frowning as he did. "But how are we going to know which one leads to our Earth?"

"Hmm," Cyborg said, biting his lip as he did. "That… that question might not have an answer quite yet…"

"Well, we need to find an answer!" Robin pointed backwards, his masked eyes growing wide. "Here come the Santas!"

Beast Boy looked back, feeling like he was about to have a panic attack when he saw Santa riding his sleigh. "Cyborg, speed up!"

"Of course!" The engine roared to life once again, and it zipped forward at incredible speeds. Beast Boy once again had to grip the sides of his seat to keep himself steady. Gritting his teeth as tears flew from his eyes, he felt like he was going to throw up with the incredible speeds the spaceship was flying.

"Cyborgs, go faster!" Robin yelled. "They're still on our tail!"

"We're going as fast as we can, Robin!" Cyborg screamed. He cringed. "I don't think we can outrun them…"

"We may not have to!" Cyborg shouted. He gestured toward a warlogog portal coming up. "Aim for that portal!"

"That portal? Cyborg, are you insane?"

"Just do it!"

Cyborg hesitated before sighing. "Okay…" With that, the ship zipped forward. Beast Boy closed his eyes as they entered the portal. Oh, what was waiting for them on the other side?

Chapter Text

AN: Okay guys, I'm gonna be real with you. I have absolutely no idea how well this part of this story is going to go. After all, part of the reason why the alternate dimensions worked in the original movie is because the differences in character designs and animation. Obviously, in fanfiction form, I have neither.

But, on the bright side, since I don't have to worry about the dreaded voice actor budget, I have an opportunity to give more alternate Titans lines! So… well, I guess we'll have to see how this chapter ultimately shapes up.

Enjoy :)

Chapter 44 Dimension Dash

Beast Boy paused. He wasn't dead yet, which was certainly a good sign. Plus, he wasn't in excruciating pain either, so the crossover into this different dimension went at least somewhat well. He slowly opened his eyes, deciding that now was the best time to take in his surroundings.

It was night, first off, and the lot of them were flying over Titans Tower. The building looked absolutely gorgeous like it had its own glow. The city that its island rested on the shore of was pretty dark, with buildings that loomed over everyone and everything. In the moonlight, they cast tremendous shadows over the city, like they were the guardians or maybe even the gods of this strange new dimension.

While Beast Boy dealt with the awe that this sight provided, the Cyborgs steered the ship downwards into the city. They came to a stop in the streets mostly concealed by the darkness created by the aforementioned shadows. The Titans all looked around, scanning the sky. There was no sign of the Santas, at least not yet. They were in the clear, at least for now. He let out a breath he didn't even know he was holding, thankful that his lucky stars still had power even when crossing dimensions.

"Hmm…" Robin stood up, studying this dimension. "This place is… interesting."

"It's really drab, is what it is," said Cyborg, turning his head this way and that. "Not a place where I would want to live."

"I do not find this place livable either," said Starfire. She frowned. "Although… I do wonder what the Titans who reside in a place like this would look like…"

"Hey!"

Every one of the present Titans blinked. They faced ahead, and Beast Boy's jaw dropped at who stood before them. They were other Titans! There was a Beast Boy! There was a Starfire! Ooh, and a Raven! All of them were present, save for Robin (a fact that made Beast Boy feel a little jealous of this team).

Although… who was the guy in black with a blue bird image on the front?

"Woah!" Robin jumped up, wearing a big smile. "These guys look so cool!"

The new Titans exchanged looks. "Uh…" the new Starfire cringed and looked over at the originals. "Have you guys come from another planet or something?"

"Yeah!" said the new Beast Boy. "On top of that, why do you look like us? Are you trying to steal our thunder?"

Beast Boy laughed, as did a lot of the other Titans. "Oh man." He tried his best to get his giggling under control. "You guys haven't seen people from another dimension before, have you?"

The man in black's eyes grew wide. "Another dimension?" He looked at the Robins, a small smile growing on his face. "Well. I guess that explains why you guys look like younger versions of me."

Both of the original Robins jaws dropped. "Wait. You're a Robin?" asked Robin.

"Well… I was. I go by Nightwing now."

Robin looked like he was going to jump in the air and do a little dance. "Oh my gosh! That's awesome! I didn't know that I would have a counterpart who is this awesome!"

"I'll say." Robin turned toward Starfire. "Now that I think about it… Star, does this guy look anything like that Nightwing guy you encountered in the future?"

Starfire gasped. "Oh, my glorbnock! He does!" She giggled. "Wow, that is quite interesting!"

Starfire sent googly eyes towards Nightwing. "Not to mention extremely handsome." She let out a dreamy sigh. "It's really funny how my dimension seems to have the ugliest Robin."

"Hey!" Robin exclaimed.

Suddenly, a light appeared overhead in the sky. All the Titans looked up, and Beast Boy's heart skipped a beat when he saw a warlogog portal. Santa and Megan were coming in through it, zipping towards the Titans with the strongest sense of ire.

"Is that… Santa Claus?" Nightwing asked.

"Dudes!" Beast Boy yelled. "We need to leave!"

"Right," The Cyborgs said in unison. They charged up the warlogog and made the ship rise into the air. Before anyone had the time to wish the new Titans goodbye, the ship zipped off, heading straight to the new portal that had just opened up.

Once they were back in the void, Beast Boy let out a breath of relief. He was about to comment on how lucky they were to avoid the Santas when, much to his disappointment, they exited through the portal and chased after them.

Thankfully, nobody wasted any time. The Cyborgs steered the ship into another portal, one that led to a… very strange place. It looked like it was drawn entirely in crayon. For as far as the eye could see, this sketched-out grass covered the land. The sky also looked like it was the product of a creative child's brain.

"Woah, this place be trippy yo," Beast Boy said.

"Yeah," said Beast Boy. "It kind of reminds me of what the world looked like when Larry broke reality." He rubbed his mouth, frowning as he did.

Suddenly, a treehouse appeared in the Titans way. The Cyborgs gasped, trying their best to pull up, but failing and completely decimating the treehouse. To Beast Boy's surprise, little tiny versions of the Titans fell out of the treehouse's windows. Not only were they also drawn in crayon, but they were also really short and looked to be much younger than anyone of the Titans riding the interdimensional ship.

"Woah dudes, look!" Beast Boy said, pointing right ahead.

Robin gasped. "Woah! They're little baby Titans, with little baby hands and everything!"

"Oh, they are the adorable!" Starfire said while her double smiled at the sight.

Unfortunately, the little baby Titans weren't nearly as happy as they were. In fact, the little Robin actually had tears growing in his eyes. "You twashed our twee house!" He started crying, bawling as a matter of fact. The other baby Titans were quick to join in.

Beast Boy cringed, putting his hands to his ears. "Yeesh. These guys be more annoying that Robin screaming.

"Hey!" Robin huffed. "What is with everyone insulting me on this trip?"

Unfortunately, the Titans once again didn't get much room to breathe, as Santa and Megan burst through the portal. The Cyborgs got the ship in gear once again, rising into the sky and leaving the Baby Titans in the dust (thank goodness; Beast Boy's ears were starting to bleed).

It didn't take long for them to exit a portal and enter a new one. The second they entered through this particular portal, Beast Boy was forced to hold his breath. Water surrounded them on all sides (Beast Boy wondered if this was the same water dimension that Larry had accidentally taken them to). Right as Beast Boy was worrying that the eight of them would drown, they passed by what was possibly the weirdest sight so far; an underwater Titans Tower. Some mermaid Titans were swimming around it, and when they passed by them, they gawked.

"What the flying fish sticks?" asked merman Robin.

Within no time, they exited that dimension, and Beast Boy was able to breathe once again. As he took in multiple breaths of precious, precious oxygen, the ship flew through yet another portal. The world they saw on the other side was black and white, and Beast Boy saw some Titans that reminded him of those old-timey cartoons from the 1930s. He actually laughed out loud when he saw them; they just moved around in the funniest ways possible.

The Starfire of that universe caught a glimpse of the ship passing by. "Hot diggity domarts, get a load of that everyone!"

The Titans exited the portal right as the old timey Titans gawked at them. The next portal that they went through brought them to a world that looked so stereotypically steampunk that it could have a book written about it. Beast Boy looked over the side of the ship to see the Titans of this universe, smiling when he saw them.

"Yo, Cy, look!"

Cyborg turned to get a look at the Titans. "Woo!" He whooped. "Goggles on top hats; let's go!"

Beast Boy chuckled at his friend's enthusiasm. "So, we saw mermaid Titans and Steampunk Titans. Now all we need are animal Titans and we'll be all set yo!"

Cyborg laughed. "Oh, I hope we run across those guys! Just thinking about them makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside."

"Uh, guys," Robin said. "I hate to interrupt, but we're still not anywhere close to losing the Santas!" He pointed back, and Beast Boy's heart filled with fear. It looked like the Santas were even closer than they had been before!

"You are going on the Naughty List forever, Titans!" Santa shouted. "I don't care how much you beg!"

Beast Boy gulped. "Uh.." he looked at the Titans. "Do we… do we have any idea how we can get these guys off our tail?"

The Titans exchanged worried looks with one another. A few of them opened their mouth, looking ready to suggest a course of action, only to close their mouth and shrink a little bit into the seat. Honestly, this was one of the most worrying things Beast Boy had seen in a while. If nobody had any clue how to deal with this… oh man! This was their only plan; the only way they could possibly get to the Ravens and help them out with the Trigons! If they couldn't get to them… if they were lost in the distant corners of the multiverse…

Oh man, Beast Boy was starting to cry. He wiped the tears from his face, feeling desperation building and building within him. "Guys, please think of something! Please!"

Cyborg pursed his lips. "Hmm…" he thought about this for a little bit before his face lit up. "Oh! I know!" He looked over at the other Titans. "I know how we can lose them!"

"How?" Beast Boy asked, his heart starting to pound.

Cyborg snickered and grinned wickedly. "You see guys, this ole' ship of ours has one thing that Santa doesn't."

Cyborg grinned. "Breaks."

With that, the ship came to a screeching halt. Initially, this just served to fuel Beast Boy's fear more than anything else. How does this help? He wanted to yell at the top of his voice. We're supposed to outrun the Santas, not give them an opening to catch up with us! He began to sweat. Oh man, this is it. This is the end of our journey. He closed his eyes, fearing the worst…

Only for the Santas to fly right over the Titans. Beast Boy gasped when he saw this, watching in amazement as they entered through another warlogog portal. He could just barely see them crashing back into their home dimension, specifically into a parking lot in a mall in Jump City. The portal then turned all white, indicating that the portal had closed and the Titans were safe.

Beast Boy blinked once, then twice. He gawked, unable to speak as the reality of what just happened occurred to him. Then, he grinned and put his fist in the air.

"WOO!" He wasn't the only one who was celebrating, as the other Titans were all exchanging smiles and breathing sighs of relief. "You be a genius, Cyborg!"

Cyborg chuckled. "Well…" he looked up at his double. "I learned from the best." This made Cyborg chuckle, and it even looked like he was blushing a little bit.

"Very good everyone," said Robin. He stood back up. "Now, let's not waste any more time. Let's go find our dimension so that we can help the Ravens."

"Wait!"

Robin blinked, as did everyone else, at that voice in the void. The Serious Leader turned, gawking when he saw Larry once again. "Larry!" He stared at his mini-me. "How did you…?"

Larry laughed. "I've been watching you guys ever since we separated. And I must say…" his eyes twinkled. "You guys were awesome with dealing with the Santas! Like, seriously, you all kicked their butts good"

A smile slowly grew on Robin's face. "Thanks, Larry." He put his serious face back on. "Although, that was the easy part. Finding our home dimension will be a little more tricky."

"Not necessarily," Larry said with the cheekiest grin imaginable. "I can help you guys in that department." He floated closer to Robin. "And… well, I had an idea that might give you an advantage over the Trigons."

Robin leaned in closer as Larry whispered into his ear. When the reality warping double finished, Robin gave him one of the proudest and most impressed looks ever. "That is a good idea!" He sat back down. "Cyborgs… " He grinned as Larry took a seat next to him. "We're going to make a slight detour."

AN: Well... I think that went pretty decently. I mean, there were some details from the original that aren't here, like the comic book Titans. But you know, that would be really hard to replicate. Overall, I'm happy with this chapter.

Well guys, we're approaching the climax! I hope you're all excited! :D

Chapter Text

Chapter 45 Airborne Chase

Finally. Frigging finally! After walking for hours, battling sore feet as well as the anxiety as to what would happen if the Trigons found them, the Ravens were now on the edge of Jump City. Titans Towser was just one simple boat ride or flight away. Raven couldn't help but let out a breath when she saw it, even laughing a little bit. This… it had almost felt like this moment would never come. Raven had worried that all the pain and fear that she had dealt with would mean nothing in the end. To see all of this finally reach said end made her feel… happy. An unusual emotion for any version of the dark sorceress, but Raven really felt as though things were starting to go her way.

"Okay." She adjusted her feet before looking up at Raven. "That's your Titans Tower?"

Raven nodded, still wearing her trademark stoic expression. "It's pretty cool." She stepped toward the shoreline, letting out some breaths when she did. "We're in the home stretch Raven; we'll be safe and sound in no time." She rose into the air, holding out her hand for her double to take. "Come on; let's not waste any time."

Raven smiled. She walked up to her double, firmly taking her hand in hers. They rose even higher into the air, with Raven's excitement and relief rising as well…

"Well well well."

Both Ravens gasped. They turned, and their eyes grew wide when they saw Trigon floating right behind them. There was a sort of heat in his four eyes, a heat that could make even the strongest people shudder. Raven's stomach churned as she looked at her father, and she sweated more than usual.

This is not good.

"It's nice to see you, Rachel and Angela." Trigon got in closer, his glare becoming both more concentrated and more furious. "You left such a strong impression on me that I knew fate would have us meet again."

Chills ran up and down Raven's arms and spine. She wanted to scream; she wanted to scream at the top of her lungs and cower in the corner. Being on the receiving end of these horrible looks her Dad was giving her and her double… this was the worst feeling in the world. There was no way that it could get any more unbearable.

SPLASH!

Never mind! Both Ravens turned around, with Raven cringing when she saw the other Trigon standing in the water. He completely blocked out the view of Titans Tower, and the shadow he cast over everything was dark enough to be mistaken for the night. Raven swallowed a lump, and she only grew more nervous as Trigon hopped out of the water.

"I've been waiting for this for far too long.' Like Trigon before him, he glared at the Ravens, his eyes glowing with a wicked red. Raven felt herself shrinking under his gaze. Seriously, she had thought TRIGON'S glare was unbearable!

"Here is what you will do, my dears," said Trigon. He wobbled a little on his one leg, almost falling to the ground. Even with that, he didn't look any less intimidating, which was a feat to be sure. Raven's insides twisted into knots, and she felt like she was right on the cusp of throwing up. "You will give me the rest of the little Raven's power. If you fail to comply, then the consequences will be extremely dire."

Raven stole a glance at her double's face, noticing that she too looked frightened and taken aback. At least for a second; she just as quickly put on a determined face. Raven could make an educated guess as to what she was thinking, and while she was grateful for it, she also was scared to the nth degree. Raven, please don't do anything reckless. We can't afford to lose at this stage of the game.

"We will never give you Raven's powers." She rose even higher into the air. "If you want them, you'll have to get through me first."

She then did something that Raven never in a million years would've expected. She zipped into the air, traveling at speeds comparable to a rocket ship. She zoomed towards Jump City, with Raven grasping her hand with all the strength she had at her disposal. Her sweating didn't dissipate though; if anything, it just got worse.

"Raven, are you crazy?"

"Maybe," Raven said, all without stopping.

"TRIGON!" Trigon shouted at the top of his already booming voice. "GET THE RAVENS! NOW!"

Raven looked behind, her stomach lurching when she saw her dad chasing after the two of them. Raven looked behind as well, but even still, she didn't stop. In fact, she sped up, creating a scenario where the city beneath the two of them was just a blur of colors.

"Come on, Ravens! All we want is the power within one of you so we can obliterate the multiverse! Is that so much to ask?"

More for the sake of retaining her sanity than anything else, Raven faced forward. Raven zipped around the various buildings, cutting it really close when it came to avoiding them. Raven harbored a guess that the reason why she was doing this was because she was trying to get Trigon to crash into the buildings while chasing after them. A good plan… but one that was far from effective. Raven saw Trigon swerving out of the way of the buildings just in the nick of time, growing angrier with each glass window he failed to break.

"THIS IS NOT HOW THIS IS GOING TO END!" He clapped his hands together, and red arcane bolts shot out of them. Some of them were right on the cusp of hitting Raven, making her let go of her double's hand and fall to her death. They thankfully avoided them, but the fact that they got as close as they did didn't do Raven's ramped-up mood any favors.

"Raven, he's using magic!"

Raven turned toward Trigon. "Well. Two can play at that game."

She fired some black arcane blasts at Trigon, a practice that made Raven smile. Yes! They were fighting back! They actually had a way to beat Trigon and make the distance between the three of them even greater! Raven's heart jumped for joy, her hope rising by a considerable degree.

That is, until Trigon growled and sent a barrage of red arcane bolts in the Ravens' direction. Trying to dodge these bolts was like trying to avoid rain in a thunderstorm, and it once again made Raven fear for her life. She closed her eyes, unwilling to watch if something were to happen to Raven and send both of them falling to the ground. Unfortunately, doing that made things worse, as now that she couldn't see, she could feel the strength of the wind rushing around the two of them, and she heard the sound of the arcane blasts whizzing past her ears. She had no choice but to open her eyes, which she did…

"AAH!" Raven got hit by one of the arcane bolts, and she started to fall. Raven's heart raced, and for a brief second, she feared that this was the end for them. She looked down at the pavement below them, the pavement that they would go splat on… unless he did something to stop this. So, she took a breath.

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos!"

She activated her own flying power, stopping Raven from falling as she held her up in midair. It felt so good to be able to fly again… but mere seconds after she did, she heard the whispers in her mind again. They seemed louder than before, more wicked and mocking. Tears welled up in her eyes, and she even put her hand up to the gem on her forehead. Please, she thought. Please don't be released, please don't be released…

Thankfully, Raven finally managed to recover. She gripped hold of her double's hand again and began flying. While she didn't say anything, Raven sensed a strong bout of gratitude fill her. It made her smile. It also made her feel good, knowing that she had single-handedly been responsible for saving Raven. What made it feel even better was the fact that it had mostly been Raven who had done the heavy lifting when it came to keeping the two of them safe, and now Raven had finally done something to return the favor. It felt good. It felt really good.

"OH, FOR THE LOVE OF PETE!" Trigon bellowed. He held out his hand, which glowed with the red aura that Raven would recognize anywhere. He telekinetically lifted a car from off the ground, chucking it at the Ravens. In response to this, Raven flew upwards, avoiding getting hit. As she shot into the stratosphere, she looked down and telekinetically picked up some objects too. She hurled them at Trigon, with some of them hitting him directly in the face. That sight… the sight of Trigon falling back down to earth and making a huge dent in the road when he landed, was possibly the most satisfying thing Raven had ever seen. She even laughed a little. She was about to tell her double that she did a good job…

Until Trigon landed in their way. Before either of them could properly react, he snatched the Ravens and gripped them in his fist. Raven gasped, and her double struggled. Right as Raven was beginning to worry about coming out of this situation alive, Trigon threw them down to the ground. He did it hard, so hard that when Raven landed, it felt as though her back had snapped in half. She groaned, trying to lift herself up to look at her double.

"Raven…" her heart skipped a beat when she saw Raven, unconscious right next to her. "Raven, are you…"

To her terror, Raven's father floated up to them and activated his telekinesis yet again. Raven gasped as his signature red aura surrounded her double, holding her in midair. Since she was unconscious, she didn't even have the opportunity to struggle. Raven gasped, jumping to her feet. Her heart pounded in her ears as she looked at Raven.

"Dad, let her…" she gasped again, an icy cold fear growing with her when she saw that Trigon had something in his open mouth. With its orange glow, there wasn't a doubt in Raven's mind what it was. There was also no doubt in her mind what her father wanted to do. "DAD, STOP!"

Trigon laughed from up above. He hopped over to the three of them, grinning as he did. "Finally, my Mini-Me has done something smart." He glared down at Raven. "Now, little demoness, you have a choice. If you care for my daughter and want her to live to see another day, then you will give me what's left of your demonic power. Otherwise… your father will destroy your friend."

Raven looked at her double, still unconscious in the air. No… no! This couldn't be happening! Her dad couldn't do this! He had been known for doing some horrible, wickedly evil things in the past, but THIS? He couldn't do this; he just couldn't!

"Uh…" Raven hesitated, her legs starting to shake as she tried to figure out what to do. She couldn't give up her demon… and yet, Raven would die if she didn't. She couldn't let her new friend die… oh, but if she didn't, then the whole multiverse would be in danger! The Trigons would destroy everything until there was absolutely nothing left. What could she do? Oh, what could she do…

"It seems you don't seem to care about my daughter as much as I originally thought," Trigon said, his voice maliciously pleased. "Oh well. Trigon, do your worst."

Trigon beamed. He opened his mouth extra wide, the fire in his throat growing even brighter and stronger when he did. Raven gasped, her heart rate going through the roof.

"NO!"

Without even thinking, she activated her powers, causing the gem on her forehead to crack. Black ooze shot out of it, completely covering her. When she was completely covered, she shot toward her double, wrapping her slimy black wings around Raven right as Trigon shot a stream of fire at her. It hit Raven's wings, which filled the young hero with relief. Raven was safe. Oh, thank goodness, Raven was safe…

"Too easy," Trigon said.

Before Raven could react, something sharp and hot hit her in the back.

Chapter Text

Chapter 46 Feeling Great

Raven groaned, feeling as though she had every weight in the world pressing down on top of her. What happened? How long had she been out? She almost felt like she was sick like she was going to vomit up everything that she had ever eaten. Fighting the groggy feeling in her eyes and head. She pulled herself into a standing position. She opened her eyes…

And genuine fear struck her.

"NO!" She yelled. Her father had a red light shooting out of his forehead, specifically, the gemstone on his forehead, and that red light was sucking away the darkness from Raven's demon form. Raven couldn't move as she watched this; she could not turn away nor could she run. She just stood there, helpless, as Trigon consumed what was left of Raven's powers.

Eventually, the darkness had completely run dry, leaving Raven floating in midair for a brief second. She fell to the ground, hitting it with a painful-sounding thud. Not wasting any time, Raven floated up to her. She turned her over, actually sweating while she hoped that her double was still alive.

She was, thankfully. But… oh, what did this mean? Trigon drained her powers. He was now reaping the rewards of leaving her completely powerless. This… this was not good. Oh, the multiverse was now in more danger than ever before.

"Yes," Trigon sneered. Raven, despite every instinct within her telling her that she shouldn't do it, looked up at her father. He had both of his legs now, and red energy swirled around his form. He laughed just as red clouds brewed over him, swirling and twirling as they blocked out any blue the sky might have.

Once again, Raven felt as if she was going to throw up. "Oh no…"

"I know!" Trigon exclaimed. "Isn't it beautiful?"

Raven's stomach churned as Trigon's laughter grew louder. It carried throughout Jump City, and if the citizens had even a lick of common sense, they were probably rushing around and trying to hide. Trigon rose into the air, still laughing like he had just won the lottery. Raven began to sweat. What could she do? She had defeated him before, but that was thanks to the help of the other Titans. And that was the thing; the other Titans weren't here…

Suddenly, a light appeared behind Trigon's head. Raven blinked, and both Trigons looked at it in utmost confusion. Raven in particular couldn't take her eyes off of this sight; the light glowed pink and white in the most tantalizing way. It kind of looked like… a warlogog portal…

Raven gasped. Could it be?

"WOOHOO!" A loud, enthusiastic voice called out, one that Raven would be able to recognize pretty much anywhere. "WE MADE IT!"

A small smile spread across Raven's lips. "They're here." Even though she wasn't one to experience emotions, especially positive ones, her heart did jump for joy regardless. The others were here. They had somehow found a way back to this dimension despite all odds. Maybe they would be able to help her!

"What is the meaning of…" Before Trigon was able to finish his sentence, the… ship?... That both groups of Titans were riding him hit him square in the back of the head. And they must've done it really hard, because Trigon wobbled and fell to the ground, sending dust spreading everywhere as his back made contact with the street. This caused Trigon to gasp in the most shocked way possible (which Raven honestly didn't blame him for).

"BIG TRIGGY!" He floated over to his double looking concerned (an emotion Raven never in a million years would've thought Trigon was capable of feeling), allowing the Teen Titans to zip down toward Raven. Robin, in his seat, reached out his hand.

"RAVEN, COME ON!"

Raven put on a determined face. She telekinetically picked up her double, hoisting her over her shoulder, before taking Robin's hand. The Titans flew away, which came as a relief to her. It was only a small one though, as there were way too many horrible circumstances piling on top of each other. As they went to Jump City's beachfront, her heart beat at a pace that she could never remember ever experiencing before.

Eventually, the Titans landed next to the beach. Everyone jumped out of the ship, which Raven only realized were actually the transformed Cyborgs when the two of them transformed. They all crowded around her, smiling their heads off.

"Oh, Friend Raven!" Starfire said. "You have no idea the joy we have to lay eyes on you!"

Raven smiled. "I feel the same way." All at once, Beast Boy approached her, causing her to smile. "I see you were able to do something cool for the first time in your life, eh Garfield?"

Beast Boy glared at him. "Hey! I can be cool!" He paused before stepping closer. "But that doesn't matter right now." He reached his arms out as if to hug her, but stopped himself. Instead, he patted Raven on the shoulder. "I'm just glad you're okay."

"Me too." Raven once again became aware of what she was carrying. "I just wish my double was okay too." She laid Raven's unconscious form down on the ground, causing the others to gasp. The loudest and most shocked gasp belonged to Beast Boy.

"RAVEN!" He went up to her, looking like he was about to cry. "Is… is she okay? What happened? Is she even alive?"

Raen let out a breath. "She is alive, but all her powers have been drained."

"Ohh…." Robin stepped forward, his furrowed brow and concerned eyes showing through his mask. "That's not good."

"NO! IT AIN'T!" Beast Boy, pushing Raven to the side, leaned over his version of the shadowy sorceress and shook her."Rae rae! Mama! Please wake up!" Tears sprung up in his eyes, surprising Raven. "Please Mama, please!"

Miraculously, Raven began to stir. She groaned a little bit as she began to wake up. Her eyelids fluttered open, and she stared into Beast Boy's face for a little bit. The others must've noticed this, as they all crowded around. Meanwhile, Raven was trying to figure out how exactly to approach this situation.

"Beast Boy?" Raven asked, her voice just a little groggy.

Beast Boy gasped. "Oh, thank goodness!" He wrapped Raven in a hug, all while tears fell from his eyes. Blinking, Raven looked over at her Beast Boy to gauge his reaction to this whole display. He just gave her a mischievous grin, which made her face grow warm.

"Mama, I thought I'd lost you! The Trigons drained your powers while you were stuck in an alternate dimension and and and…" He whimpered. "Oh, I is just so happy to see you alive!"

"As are the rest of us," said Robin. He stepped towards Raven with a raised eyebrow. "Just… how do you feel?"

Raven blinked. "How do I feel?" She sat up, prompting Beast Boy to pull away from her for just a little bit. She put one hand to her chin and the other to her heart. "I… I feel…" Raven could feel the suspense beating down on her. How did her double feel? Was she okay? What kind of devastating impact did having her powers drained have on her feelings and mental state?

"I feel… I feel…" Raven sat still for a little bit before smiling in the biggest, brightest, most luminous way possible. "I feel great!"

Every single one of the Titans from both dimensions blinked. "You… really?" asked Cyborg.

"Yeah!" Raven rose to her feet, pushing her hood back in the process. "I feel better than I've ever felt!" She let out a triumphant laugh. "I feel like everything is falling into place! I feel like an entirely new person! And on top of which…" she pulled the increasingly confused Beast Boy towards her, wriggling her eyebrows as she did. "Hummana hummana!"

She then planted a kiss on Beast Boy's cheek shocking everyone including Beast Boy himself. "Hey! Woah woah woah!" He tried to pull himself out of Raven's hold but was having trouble. "I love getting kissed as much as the next green guy Mama, but… man, this is just too weird!"

Raven laughed, a sound that made everyone gawk. "Why is that a problem? Everything is going right for once in my life!" She pulled Beast Boy closer to her, squeezing him as he gasped for air. "After everything that has happened in my life, I think this new high is a nice change of pace!" She laughed out loud. "I never want to come back down!"

The other Titans continued to gawk at this strange sight before Robin turned toward Raven with a befuddled look. "Uh… how is this possible…?"

"Yeah!" said Beast Boy. "I thought all Ravens were supposed to be dark and gloomy!"

Deciding to not take those words too personally, Raven sighed. "Well, Trigon drained away her powers. Those same powers impact her emotions, which in turn impact her personality. Taking the powers away… well, I think it's only natural that she would be feeling this good."

"Oh," said Robin. He looked at Raven, still lavishing the goofy green changeling with kiss after kiss. "Still though, it is pretty weird."

Cyborg chuckled. "And you should know because you're an expert on weird."

"Hey!"

Cyborg stepped towards Raven and Beast Boy. "Well… we need to do something about this, right?" He frowned. "I mean, she can't stay like this forever!"

"I beg to differ!" said Raven, pulling away from Beast Boy for just a few seconds. "I feel no anger, or hatred, or fear! Why in the world would I want to give that up?"

"I can think of a few reasons," said Robin, taking a step forward. "I mean, Trigon did harvest the energy that your powers have." As if that was some kind of cue, Trigon's laugh could be heard booming through Jump City once again. Everyone shuddered, including Raven, who could say with full confidence that she had never experienced chills this icy cold. "And if that's the case, then we need to defeat him before he does something bad with them!"

"Eh, what could he possibly do that's so horrible?" Raven picked Beast Boy back up and began smooching him again, much to his chagrin.

Raven sighed. "Raven, as amazing as this might feel for you, we do need to approach this situation with a level head." She looked at the Titans again. "How in the world are we going to defeat the two Trigons? It was already hard enough taking care of one!"

Robin smiled, much to Raven's surprise. He giggled, a thing so unusual for him that it made Raven question if this was really her Robin. "Oh, don't worry Raven." He went over and pried Beast Boy and Raven apart, all while still smiling. "We thought up a plan on the way here thanks to a very special friend."

Raven blinked. "Very special… what are you even talking about?"

Robin didn't respond, instead still wearing a mischievous grin. Much to Raven's confusion, all of the other Titans wore the exact same expression. She had never felt like an outsider looking in so much before.

"Come on everyone," he said. "Let's go pay the Trigons a visit."

Chapter Text

Chapter 47 Hexagon

Trigon cringed as he examined his double, lying unconscious in the street. There… was there any real way to revive him? That ship that had hit him hit him pretty well; he wasn't even groaning. And honestly, the sight of his big, powerful counterpart lying unconscious and helpless made Trigon panic a little bit. Seriously, after all the effort he had put in to ensure that Trigon was at maximum power so that they could destroy the multiverse together… this was like some sort of sick joke. There was no way this could be reality; there was just no way.

And yet, here they were, and Trigon couldn't be less thrilled.

"Come on, Big Triggy!" He jostled his arm, but the only response that Trigon gave to that action was a low groan. He didn't open his eyes or move, which just served to make Trigon feel even worse. Biting his lip, he flew over to Trigon's face.

"TRIGON, WAKE UP!" He slapped him multiple times, so hard and so quickly that a red mark would've appeared on his face if he wasn't red already. Trigon didn't halt at any point, instead speeding up and doubling the intensity the longer he slapped. He was so preoccupied with this (quite frankly frivolous) practice that he didn't even notice both versions of the reunited Teen Titans coming up to him.

"Woah!" He heard his daughter's voice call out. "See guys? Trigon is knocked out, so there is nothing to worry about!" She laughed as Trigon continued with the slapping.

"I wouldn't let my guard down just yet," Robin said with a hint of apprehension in his voice.

"COME ON!" Now that the Titans were all present, Trigon needed to wake up his double ASAP. Unfortunately, nothing he did was working. Trigon lay as dormant as a doornail, ensuring that Trigon's own emotions reached levels that they never should've reached. "WHY WON'T YOU…?" Suddenly, he got an idea. Backing up, he snapped his fingers, and a humongous pitcher of water appeared above Trigon's face. Trigon snapped his fingers, pouring the water over Trigon's face. The demon gasped, instantly rising to a sitting position. Trigon couldn't remember the last time he had felt this relieved as his double coughed and attempted to gather his bearings.

"There's the Big Triggy I know and love!" Trigon sent a glare his way, but Trigon decided to not pay it any mind as he floated up to his double's face. "I'm so glad you're awake! The plan of two Trigons taking over the multiverse wouldn't work if there's only one Trigon!"

Trigon gave him a look and sniffed. "Especially considering that Trigon would be you."

Trigon blinked. Did… did his double just… make fun of him? No, no, that probably wasn't what was happening. He was just a little grumpy from being woken up in such an abrupt manner. Yeah, that was it; Trigon shouldn't take his words personally.

"So…" Trigon chuckled and gestured toward the Titans. "Both Titans are here."

"WHAT!" Trigon turned toward them, and the sight of them made him growl. He rose to his feet, gritting his teeth and glaring in a way more threatening than Trigon would've expected. "HOW IN THE WORLD DID THEY GET HERE?"

Beast Boy hesitated. "Uh… well, we found this warlogog thingy from the Santas of our universe…"

"Beast Boy, not now!" Robin said.

Unfortunately, he was too late. Trigon directed his wicked gaze toward Trigon, looking ready to stomp on him. "You're telling me that they managed to unlock the secrets of interdimensional travel? How could you let this happen?"

Trigon blinked. "Wait, you're blaming me?" He floated up so that he was about level with his counterpart. "I wasn't even in the same dimension as them!"

"Still, you have made mistake after mistake after mistake!" Steam shot out of Trigon's nostrils, making Trigon worry if he was going to breathe fire on him. He didn't, thankfully, but still, the mere possibility terrified him. "You are one of the most pathetic excuses for a demon that there ever was! I cannot even fathom how you are the Trigon the Terrible of your universe when all you do is screw up!"

Oof. Ouch. Trigon cringed when he heard that. He looked down at the Titans, on some level resenting them for putting him in this position. He could barely look at his double, for the sheer amount of hatred he displayed was so strong that Trigon was surprised he was still alive.

"Look…" Trigon put on a smile, hoping that the expression would serve as the perfect mask for the nerves he felt. "This isn't a big deal!" He chuckled. "Sure, the Titans are here, but that doesn't mean anything! You're at full power, and so am I! We can defeat them together and they work together to conquer the multiverse!" He chuckled, scratching the back of his head as he did. "We can just put these silly grudges behind us! This really isn't…"

Before Trigon could even finish, Trigon reached out and plucked him out of the air. Trigon gasped, finding the sensation of Trigon's hand gripping his body to be one of the most uncomfortable sensations he had ever experienced. On top of which, the fact that he was doing this made Trigon's goal to appease him and see the two of them as equals much more difficult to accomplish.

"Trigon…" Trigon winced. "This isn't a big deal…"

"Of course it's a big deal!" He sighed and facepalmed with his free hand. "Do you honestly think you can just brush this under the rug?" The glare couldn't get more concentrated if he actively tried. "Do you think this is funny? That all of your monumental screw ups don't matter in the end?"

Trigon once again tried to not take those words too personally, but… well, how could he not take them personally? "Trigon…"

"I keep saying that you are the most pathetic excuse for a demon, but you know what? I don't think that statement is accurate." The hate in his face builded and builded, causing Trigon to sweat. "You are the most pathetic excuse for ANY being, even those half-witted humans that are watching us right now! How in the world can you be so unfathomably stupid? Oh. I know why." He paused, bringing Trigon closer to his face. "It's because you come from the joke universe. Everything in your universe is a bobbleheaded joke."

"HEY!" Robin yelled.

"And because of that, that extends to even you. No, not 'even' you; ESPECIALLY you! You are just an inferior being in every single way! Nothing about you is impressive! Nothing about you is strong! 'Trigon the Terrible…' you are an insult to that name! You give it a whole new meaning because you are, in fact, terrible! You are terrible in every single way!" He sneered at him. "Every wrong way."

"Oh snap!" Cyborg said.

Trigon stared into his double's eyes. This… this is what he thought of him? These were the views and opinions he held toward him?

Before he knew it, Trigon sniffled. With a tear in his eye, he glared at his double. "I think I've had enough of you!" He opened his mouth, and…

"WHAT?" Every one of the Titans yelled.

He ate him. He ate Trigon whole, all fifty feet of him. As Trigon swallowed his double, a new type of emotion filled him. It built up in his heart, and it made him feel resentment. Wicked resentment paired with some of the strongest hatred he had ever felt. His eyes glowed red, and his rage reached levels higher than the highest heavens.

"IS NO ONE ON MY SIDE?"

Then, Trigon started to grow. The eyes of all the Titans were wide when they saw this, but that wasn't the only trick Trigon had up his sleeve. He began to morph too. His legs grew and shaped themselves, and his abdomen extended. His face changed into a new shape, a new gruesome shape that had eight eyes instead of four. He also started extra arms, a sight that made half of the Titans look ready to throw up.

"Uh… what's happening?" Cyborg asked as he put on a nervous smile. "Why are we sprouting extra limbs all of a sudden?"

"Her Trigon not only ate my Trigon," Raven said, her eyes filled with a fear that was so unconventional for her. "He also absorbed his powers!"

"He's leveling up…" Robin said, for once not looking smug or confident.

Trigon only chuckled at their responses to this turn of events. "Yes. Heed me, Titans." His horns extended, curling upward the longer they grew. "I am just so sick of everyone turning away from me!" He gritted his teeth. "First. I try to take over the universe, but that plan falls through! Then, I try to take over the multiverse with Big Triggy, but he wants nothing to do with me!" He sneered. "Well, the time for all these bitter developments is officially over!" His back turned into the back of a horse, and a new helmet appeared on his head. "I will not be ridiculed, nor will I be put down! I am taking over the multiverse all by myself this time! For I am no longer Trigon. I am… HEXAGON!"

The Titans stared at Hexagon's completed form. None of them moved. Even Raven looked dumbfounded and horror-stricken. Hexagon chuckled at the sight of them, reveling in the joy of seeing them like this. The Teen Titans, the one thorn in his side that he could never seem to remove. The Teen Titans, the absolute bane of his immortal, eternal existence. The Teen Titans, the team that brought him some of the worst emotions that he had ever felt. They were all standing perfectly still, not moving at all. Did Hexagon even need to say this was a satisfying sight? Did he even need to express how good it felt to see this?

Well, he was going to do it anyway. "That's right, Teen Titans," he said, his voice taking on a deeper bass than his already deep original voice had. "I am a new being. I have al the power that anyone in the multiverse could ever ask for. I am the supreme being. I am the ruler of all realms of existence!" He chuckled, still finding immense and unmeasurable pleasure at seeing the Titans in this state. "And as my first order of business…." Hexagon extended his four arms, holding them out in front of him. A ball of red energy formed in front of him, building and building and building. It illuminated the streets, bathing the entirety of Jump City in a wicked red light. The Titans were all too shocked to even think about moving.

"GUYS!" Robin shouted a little too late. "WE NEED TO…"

Before he could even finish his sentence, Hexagon shot the ball of energy toward the Titans. They screamed at the top of their lungs as they got hit, a sight that brought Hexagon only the most giddy type of relief.

Heed my warning, multiverse, he thought. It is now time for Hexagon's reign.

Chapter Text

AN: Well guys, this story officially has the second most amount of chapters out of any story I've written! Woo! I don't know if I'll surpass my current record (56), but I am at least glad and happy to see how far this story has come. Seriously, thank you all for your support :)

Anyway, on with the show!

Chapter 48 Titans Go!

Robin groaned. His whole body ached, from his head to his toes. The pain was some of the worst he could ever remember feeling, but it was nothing compared to how dazed he was. The experience was comparable to that of a concussion. The only difference was that Robin was still conscious and not knocked out. This was probably for the worst, and it made Robin long for some relief to come over him. He wanted to be knocked out. He WANTED to be unconscious, as at least then he wouldn't experience the burning pain.

All the other present Titans groaned. Robin, gritting his teeth, tried to stand up. When that didn't work, he realized that he needed to crawl if he wanted to get to the others. Not an ideal or pleasant way to get around… but what other option was there? So, grunting, he hoisted his body up. Pins and needles rushed through his arms, and when he leaned against his arm in a certain way, pain shot all throughout his body. His arm was broken. There was no other way to explain this; his arm was broken.

But despite that, he still crawled. He crawled over to Robin and shook him, trying to get him to wake up. "Robin…" his voice was hoarse, so painfully hoarse. His throat even burned when he tried to get out the word. Even still, he cleared his throat and spoke again. "Robin, wake up."

Robin's eyelids fluttered. He looked directly into the eyes of his double, the corners of his mouth turning up into a smile despite the circumstances. "Huh. I guess it doesn't matter who the inferior Robin is right now." He chuckled, the sound strained. "We're both equally useless in a fight against Hexagon."

Robin smirked. "We're not useless, and you know it." Robin blinked as Robin used all the effort he had to stand up. He extended his good arm and helped his double stand up as well. Once they were both standing, Robin looked at the other Titans. Not a single one of them looked happy or even comfortable as they laid sprawled on the concrete of Jump City's street. Regardless, both Robins approached their Starfires. As Starfire groaned, Robin hoisted her to her feet. She winced and put her hand to her stomach.

"This hit me right in the glorknob." She blinked as if she was just now noticing Robin for the first time. Her eyes traveled down to his arm, and she gasped. "Robin! You're arm!"

"I know." Robin didn't even bother lifting his arm, as the effort needed to do so would cause him more pain. Instead, he used his good arm to comfort Star. "Are you okay though?"

Starfire's green eyes shimmered. "I feel the fine, Robin. But if you are hurt…"

"It does not do the mattering if Robin is hurt," Starfire said. Robin noticed all the other Titans gathering around, each looking beaten up pretty badly (none of them seemed to have broken arms like Robin, thankfully). "We have the dire threat that must be faced."

It was then that Hexagon laughed. The sound carried throughout Jump City, probably giving those who heard it the fright of their life. Gripping his hand into a fist, Robin turned to look at the humongous fusion of two demons. He looked thrilled. He looked absolutely thrilled with life, with how things were going for him right now. He was probably making a plan for what to do next, which dimension he would like to conquer, and whose souls he wished to devour. Looking at him while he was this satisfied was like watching a teenager bully a preschooler; it filled Robin with insurmountable anger.

"Foolish mortals!" Hexagon declared. "You really think you have even a chance to beat me? HA! Pathetic! Every single one of you is pathetic! I have acquired more might and power than anyone in this vast multiverse could possibly comprehend!" He grinned. His teeth were so sharp and so ugly that they made Raven… freaking RAVEN whimper! Looking at this monstrosity was probably causing each of the Titans to enter a whole new level of panic, a possibility that Hexagon was all too aware of. "You are mere insects in comparison to me! I could crush you like bugs, and that would be the end of you!" As if to prove his point, he stomped his left front hoof. It shook the ground, even leaving a crater-like impression on the street. The Titans all fell down, amusing Hexagon enough to laugh. "See! You can't possibly defeat me!"

Robin staggered to his feet. He looked at the other Titans. Members of both his and the goofy team looked terrified. However, they also had this fire in their eyes. With the exception of the Ravens, they all looked like they knew something that Hexagon didn't. And there was a very good reason for that.

"You're not going to win this one, Hexagon!" Robin yelled.

Hexagon laughed. "HA! As if you have even an ounce of power to determine that! I'm practically a god now! And the five of you are… what? Measly human teens who have some rinky dinky superpowers? Again, I must say HA! You can't possibly defeat me! I have the might of two Trigons!" He tilted his head back. "HA HA HA HA…!"

"HA HA HA HA!" Beast Boy laughed along. This sound made Hexagon pause and look at the green changeling in confusion. As he blinked his eight eyes, the other Titans joined in on the laughing chorus. The Starfires, the Cyborgs, the Beast Boys, and even Raven joined in on this laughter. Raven looked shocked, stupefied by this action.

"Wha… what is…?" she looked toward Robin, who gave her a confident smile.

"Don't worry, Raven." He looked back at Hexagon. "That's where you're wrong, Hexagon!" Robin puffed out his chest, hoping that he could look intimidating despite his torn suit and broken arm. "For you see, there's one thing that you don't know. One tiny but important thing that could affect the whole outcome of this event.." Robin turned toward Cyborg, who opened a compartment in his chest. Hexagon's eyes bulged out of their sockets when he saw the warlogog. Robin, by contrast, just grinned as he picked up the interdimensional artifact.

"We didn't come alone."

The warlogog began to glow, much to Hexagon's disbelief. Both he and Raven gawked as warlogog portals appeared all over the sky. One by one the portals opened, glowing with such a tantalizing pink light that promised the Titans favor in this battle.

"Woohoo!" came a very familiar voice from one of the portals. Robin, grinning, turned to see Larry flying out. When he saw Hexagon, like Robin before him, he puffed out his chest. "Get ready for your jaw to drop, Hexagon! Because we're about to have the biggest, grandest family reunion in the history of the multiverse!"

With that, some more versions of the Teen Titans came out of the portals. Robin's confidence shot through the roof when he saw all of them. There were some familiar faces in the bunch, faces Robin was excited to see again. There were the Titans whom they had encountered in the ultra-serious universe. They all stood proud and strong, landing on the ground with determined faces. Robin felt stronger just looking at them.

The baby Titans came too. Based on the way they were laughing, one could easily come to the conclusion that they were going out for just a normal day at the playground. Behind them were the 1930s Titans; they still looked black and white despite the fact that they were now in a colorful universe. There were the mermaid Titans, the steampunk Titans, and some Titans who looked like they came from a comic book… oh man, there was so much variety here!

"Ooh, looks guys!" Beast Boy said, pointing to a group of Titans who looked like they stepped out of a 1980's punk metal concert. "We looked like those guys at one point!"

"Oh the yes!" said Starfire. "I felt so cool when I had that appearance."

"Woah!" said Beast Boy. He pointed toward some other Titans. "They look like they stepped right out of a comic book!"

"And look! There are some pirates!" Cyborg said. Robin could only chuckle at their reactions, which made the shocked and confused Raven that much more shocked and confused.

"GUYS!" Cyborg shouted. He pointed toward a group of animal Titans. Robin and Raven were birds, Starfire was a starfish, Cyborg was a bunny, and Beast Boy (ironically) was just a normal human boy. As they got into their battle poses, Cyborg squeed like a little girl. "THERE ARE ANIMAL TITANS! THERE ARE ACTUALLY ANIMAL TITANS!"

"Ooh, there are some other animal Titans over there!" Beast Boy said. Robin turned to look at them, almost bursting into laughter when he did. Robin was a monkey, Raven was a rabbit, Starfire was a tiger, Cyborg was a bear, and Beast Boy was a lamp. A very green but no less usable lamp.

"Huh." Beast Boy grinned. "I guess a Beast Boy being a lamp isn't so farfetched after all!"

More and more Titans popped out of the portals, each looking more interesting than the last. Hexagon's jaw stayed dropped as he saw all these people, which made Robin even more confident in their chances. When the last Titans came out of the last portal, Larry flew over to Robin. He grinned a grin goofier than the goofy Titans. The grin didn't even fall from his face when he saw Robin's broken arm; he just laid his hand on it, fixing it as good as new.

"So, Robin. Are you proud of me for finally figuring out how to fix arms?"

"Very, Larry." Robin patted the interdimensional hero on the head with his newly repaired arm before facing Hexagon. He held the warlogog high above his head, smiling in ways one didn't normally do when they were facing against a demon. "SAY HELLO TO THE TITANS FROM THE INFINITE EARTHS!"

Hexagon cringed when he saw some of those Titans. One could even say he looked scared like he was all of a sudden less sure of his chances of coming out of this fight unscathed. This look made Robin's heart soar, and he was willing to guess Robin felt the same way based on what he said next.

"You may be able to beat two teams of Titans…!"

"I definitely could," Hexagon said with a dry expression and delivery.

"But now… you're up against all of us!"

"That's right!" Robin couldn't stop grinning as he looked down at his double. "Robin, will you do the honors with me?"

"With pleasure!" Robin, as well as a majority of the other Robins presented, crowded around at the front of the pack. With an extra confident and excited ring to their voices, they all pointed forward and said:

"TITANS, GO!"

Chapter Text

Chapter 49 Hexagon vs The Multiverse

"YAAH!"

All the Titans from all the universes jumped towards Hexagon, either using their flying powers or getting help from someone with flying powers to cover as much distance as possible. Hexagon, growling, shot his arms towards them in an attempt to stop them, but that just gave the Titans a landing pad. The two Robins at the front of the pack landed on Hexagon's arms and barged forward at top speed. They both got their grappling hooks and staffs ready. The other Robins followed their example.

"AIM FOR THE FACE!"

Multiple Robins shot towards Hexagon at once, hitting him square in his eight eyes. The demonic fusion screamed, batting the Titans away with his four burly arms. Unfortunately for him, the Robins had more tricks off their sleeves than that. The 1930s Robin, wearing a face more giggly and giddy than most other 1930s cartoons, threw a stick of dynamite right down Hexagon's ear canal. The explosion this sound created was immense, not to mention extraordinary. Hexagon put his hand to his ear, but that would turn out to not be the best decision. Bird Robin of the animal Titans pecked away at his ears, and the monkey Robin shot bananas right into his mouth. Nobody thought much about this action until the fruits exploded in Hexagon's mouth.

"NICE!" Monkey Robin and Robin yelled. The latter attacked Hexagon's forearm, sending more punches toward him than were seeable with the naked eye. Hexagon, despite the very immense pain, tried to squish Robin. The goofy Boy Wonder was so preoccupied with this activity that he didn't even notice Hexagon reaching for him, meaning he was essentially toast. Thankfully and luckily, he teleported away right before Hexagon could crush him. He blinked while standing on the ground before he heard laughter. Looking up, he spotted Larry, giggling and twirling around in the air.

"I did it!" he exclaimed. "I actually figured out how to teleport someone properly! WOO!" He held his hand high above his head, looking ready to dance like he was at a disco party.

"Yeah, you did." Robin, wearing a super-determined face, looked back up at Hexagon. "But that won't be enough. I still need to find a way I can attack Hexagon."

"Not a problem, Bobblehead Buddy!" Larry then morphed into a cannon, laughing all the while. "Well, what are you waiting for? Hop in!"

Grinning wickedly, Robin stuffed himself into the cannon. Once everything except his monstrous head were inside, Larry's fuse lit up. Robin hyped himself up when this happened, giggling like a menace. I can do this. I can…

BOOM!

"WOOHOO!" Robin went sailing back towards Hexagon. He didn't know how well this fight would bode in the Titans' favor, but… man was he feeling confident about their chances!

…

The group of Beast Boys sailed towards Hexagon in their bird forms, which was something Beast Boy only realized was a little silly after taking a second to think. What damage could birds do? No, seriously, what damage could birds do? They weren't even in the form of particularly big or strong birds, like ostriches or peregrine falcons. They were just normal sparrows, orioles, and finches. Not the greatest selection out there, which was a problem since they were going into battle against the fusion of some of the most powerful beings in the entire multiverse.

He sighed. "Mans, we can't do nothing when it comes to damage." He zipped higher into the air, hoping that he could afford himself some time to think. "We need to be something scary, something painful. We needs to deal as much damages to the big bad Hexagon as possible." Flapping his wings, he turned toward the other Beast Boys. "Anyone got any ideas?"

The Beast Boys exchanged looks, looking just as stumped and as confused as Beast Boy felt. Right as Beast Boy was about to grow frustrated, the face of his original, serious double lit up. He zipped higher into the air, aimed himself toward Hexagon, and morphed into a piranha.

Beast Boy gasped as his double shot toward Hexagon. "Piranhas! That be brilliant, yo!" He turned toward the other Beast Boys. "Dudes, let's all be piranhas!" He aimed himself at Hexagon's stomach, morphing into a piranha. He, along with all the other Beast Boys, yelled at the top of their voices as they shot into battle. Beast Boy opened his mouth as wide as his fish self could allow, and…

CHOMP!

Oh goodness gracious, Hexagon tasted nasty! His belly tasted like it was covered in garlic juice. What was a demonic fusion doing lathering himself in garlic juice?

Well, that was neither here nor there. Hexagon screamed in pain as he tried to detach the Beast Boys, but it was like trying to remove ticks that had lodged themselves deep into the skin. This satisfied the Goofy Green Changeling. Was this what it felt like to win in a fight? Was this what happened when a bunch of different Beast Boys from a bunch of different dimensions came together to fight off a common enemy? If so… well, he could say that this satisfied him. It satisfied him a lot.

…

The Starfires rose into the air, with Starfire and Starfire at the front of the pack. Starfire, with her eyes glowing the green that many planets associated with the world of Tamaran, squinted at the humongous red double. This nuisance… this hideous, horrible monster, had created more trouble than was appropriate. He had kidnapped Raven, he had made a mess of the multiverse, and he had almost gotten the Titans killed on more than one occasion… he needed to be taken down. He needed to be taken down right here, right now.

And thankfully, she had the perfect method to accomplish that.

"Tameranean battle formation Pleeblex!" She shouted while squinting and pointing at Hexagon.

"RECKSAR!"

The Starfires shot starbolt after starbolt right at Hexagon, hitting him in the arms, the mouth, the nose, the chest… they hit him in multiple areas, causing a burning scent to fill the area. Starfire smiled. While she couldn't speak for any of her counterparts, she could at least say that she was feeling boatloads of righteous fury. Once again, the one-half of Hexagon had started this whole mess. How could she not be aggravated at him? How could she not feel righteous anger towards him? How could she and the rest of her counterparts want to take him down? It seemed like a no-brainer. It seemed…

"AAH!" The Starfires split up when Hexagon took a deep breath and shot a stream of fire breath in them. Starfire ended up in the same group as her original serious counterpart, and as such, she looked towards her for answers.

"This is more difficult than battling a blortworm! How can we do the defeating of the Hexagon?"

Starfire sighed. "Well… I think we might need to…"

Before she could finish her sentence, another Starifre zipped past the two of them. It was the comic book Starfire, and she looked as determined and as furious as they come. Starfire watched in awe as she flew towards Hexagon, not knowing whether she was acting brave, reckless, or a little bit of both. Thankfully, she got an answer to that inquiry within no time at all.

POW!

She punched Hexagon right in the face, making him stumble backwards. All the Starfires cheered when they saw this, as did Starfire herself.

"WOO! THAT WAS THE AMAZING!"

Starfire chuckled. "I don't know about you, Star, but I believe we may have the chance to defeat Hexagon after all."

"We most certainly do!" She turned back to the other Starfires. "COMEON, SISTERS!"

…

Cyborg and Cyborg each let out a deep breath as they stood on the ground. They looked at the massive monstrosity that was Hexagon before exchanging a look with one another. However, it wasn't a despondent look, nor was it one of despair. It was one of determination, of confidence in their plan and confidence in each other.

"Ready, bud?" Cyborg asked.

"Yep!"

So, grinning from ear to ear, both Cyborgs morphed into military tanks. The rest of the Cyborgs followed suit, which only made Cyborg feel even more confident.

"Ready!" All the Cyborgs aimed their guns at Hexagon. "Aim!" The guns charged up, with the power they had showing if one were to look inside the guns themselves. "BOOYAH!"

BOOM! The look of the guns going off was electrifying. The lasers they shot at Hexagon's form glowed like a million suns, creating quite the light show. It was an effective light show too; some of the lasers formed dents and even wounds all over Hexagon's front. Cyborg grinned when he saw this, and his counterpart did the same thing by his side.

"Well. Are we awesome or what?"

Cyborg smirked. "Eh. I think it's safe to say that we're awesome."

The Cyborgs laughed before firing more laser blasts.

…

"HYAH! HYAH!"

Raven, along with her counterparts, aimed telekinetic blasts at Hexagon. Raven herself was using both her anxieties and her fears as the fuel for her powers. She couldn't help but think of Raven, still watching powerless on the ground. How was she feeling at the moment? Was she happy like she had seemed to be before? Was she frightened out of her mind? Raven didn't know, and she wasn't interested in guessing at the moment either. No matter how she felt, she needed to be protected.

Yes, she needed protection. And… well, maybe this sounded supremely corny on Raven's part, but… she wanted to be the one to personally protect her counterpart. She has gone through a lot. Really, they had both gone through a lot, especially together. Raven's mind flashed back to all the misadventures they had ever since they got taken hostage by the Trigons. She thought about how they had fooled Trigon with costumes. She thought about how they had breakfast together in the Outward Inn. She thought about all the moments they shared, the moments of fear, apprehension, and understanding. Raven… she was someone who Raven really connected with. Perhaps that was to be expected, but… well, that connection needed to be protected and nurtured. The girl who Raven had helped escape from the powerful, vastly horrible interdimensional demons who had been chasing her all this time wasn't going to go down or die so easily. Raven would fight Hexagon. She would fight Hexagon for Raven's sake.

And she did. She and her counterparts made some amazing progress when it came to beating up the demonic amalgamation. It was impressive, in a sense. Considering that Trigon himself was already a galaxy-level threat, it was a miracle that the Titans were making as much progress as they had. Not that Raven was complaining, of course; she was beyond thankful that they were making progress. And she had no doubt in her mind that the other Titans felt the same way.

"Keep it up, crew!" Raven heard Beast Boy yell.

Raven grit her teeth. Oh, I will. She took a deep breath, uttered "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" and aimed another blast of dark energy at her father… fathers?... father. As she did, she did something she didn't normally do; pray. Please please, PLEASE let us defeat Hexagon. I need to keep Raven safe.

"It's working!" Raven heard Starfire shout out. "We have the above hand!"

This made Raven smile. Maybe… maybe the Titans would win. Maybe they would take down Hexagon. That would be incredible. Beating one Trigon by himself had been nothing short of a miracle. Them defeating two was unfathomable… and yet it was happening. It was happening right here, right now, and Raven was here to witness it. Nay, take part in it.

We're doing it. We're gonna win.

Unfortunately, her high spirits were quickly snuffed out. In a blink-and-you'll-miss moment, one of Hexagon's four arms shot towards the Starfires. He had his hand curled into a fist, which he used to punch the Starfires out of the air. Raven felt multiple levels and layers of fear shoot through her when she saw this.

No! NO!

"ENOUGH OF THIS FOOLISHNESS!" Hexagon bellowed. His hands glowed with an orange aura, and as they did, an odd sensation came over Raven. She gasped as she, as well as everyone else, glowed too. All the Titans… the whole multiverse of them, rose into the air. They rose higher and higher until they all formed a heilo of sorts that floated above Hexagon's head. The demon raised his hands high into the air before…

SLAM!

All the Titans were thrown to the floor. The only ones who didn't land on concrete were the two Robins; they landed on a roof. No one else was as lucky as they were; they all landed with enough force to shatter every last bone. And that was exactly how Raven felt as she lay on the ground. She felt like she couldn't move. She felt like she shouldn't move.

This… oh man, we really need a miracle…

Chapter Text

AN: 50 chapters everybody! Woohoo!

Chapter 50 It Might Be the End

"Oww!" The feel of his back colliding with the roof made Robin feel like his back had suffered irreversible damage. "Oww…" He groaned, looking up into the darkening red sky while sucking some air through his teeth. He felt as though the world was laughing at him, jeering at him because of the pain that he was currently suffering.

"Robin…" Robin said, his voice shaky and hoarse. Robin just barely had the strength necessary to see his goofy double. Instead of lying on his back, he was lying on his stomach. Honestly, Robin had no idea which position would be more painful.

"We… need to get up," Robin said, pushing through the hoarseness to deliver the message.

Robin winced. He put his hands to the ground, trying to pull himself up. However, that might as well have been impossible. Every last part of his body ached, he began to realize. The bones in his arms might as well have been replaced with twigs that someone had snapped in half. His head pounded, his heart thumping in his ears as he looked up at the very red, very menacing sky up above.

"I can't…"

"You have to!" Robin gritted his teeth and tried to stand once again. "We… can't give…" he winced, grunting in pain. "Give up!"

Robin gave his double a wide-eyed look. "Robin…"

"This is the fight of our lives." He got to his feet, wobbling a little bit but being able to stand nonetheless. He lugged himself over to his double and extended his hand. "And I don't know about you… but I don't think us Robins are the kind of people who let pain stop us from kicking butt."

Wow. Robin couldn't help but gawk at his double, wondering where in the multiverse he had obtained such resilience, such vigor. He slowly raised his hand, with Robin giving it a tight squeeze as he took it. Grunting, he hoisted Robin up. The head rush made him want to get back on his back immediately, but he didn't give in. He held out his arms for balance and smiled at Robin.

"Thanks, Little Buddy."

Robin grinned. "Aww, shucks." His face then grew uncomfortably serious as he directed his gaze behind Robin. Robin turned, his heart rate picking up as he caught sight of Hexagon. He stomped toward the other Titans, his gigantic form casting a shadow dark as night over everyone. But that in and of itself wasn't what bothered Robin the most. What bothered him was that Hexagon held his four arms in front of him, and in those four arms fireball the size of the moon formed.

"No!" Despite his pain, Robin rushed toward the edge of the roof. He gawked as the fireball continued to grow in size. "Robin, we need to do something!"

"But what can we do?" Robin asked. "We're over here, and Hexagon's all the way over there. I don't know about you, but I think that paints a crystal clear picture of what our chances look like."

Robin started to hyperventilate. Yes, really; Robin was hyperventilating. He felt so small, so helpless. He hadn't felt this way in a long time. He didn't feel this way when his team fought Terra, when they fought Slade, not even when they fought regular, non-fused Trigon over the fate of the entire world. The only time that he had felt this way was a time when he wasn't even a superhero, when being a superhero wasn't even a possibility in his mind. That being, the night when his parents died in the circus.

"No…" Robin shook, hanging his head as he gritted his teeth. He felt tears build in his eyes, but he didn't dare let them fall. "Our friends… the multiverse…"

"I know." Robin stepped forward and took hold of Robin's hand. "I know."

It was at this point that Robin closed his eyes. He couldn't watch this. There was no way he could even stand a chance at watching this…

…

Despite the pain of crashing onto hard pavement, Raven knew she had to act fast. Her pain didn't matter as Hexagon built up a fireball in his hands, so she scrambled to her feet. All the other Ravens must've realized the same thing she did because they also scrambled to their feet. Before Raven could even formulate a plan, the Ravens all activated their telekinesis. The black aura that surrounded their hands (or any other kind of appendages they might have) surrounded two buildings on opposite sides of the road. Buildings that Raven realized would make for very effective barriers.

So, Raven did something she didn't normally do and smiled. "Great idea, everyone!" She took a deep breath. "Azarath Metrion Zinthos!" She activated her own telekinesis, which seemed to be all the help that the other Ravens needed. The buildings flew towards each other, forming a shield in just the nick of time. Hexagon released his ever-accumulating fireball, hitting the buildings and sending sparks flying everywhere. It was the perfect solution!

But even with that said, it wasn't a permanent solution. Those buildings, while not fragile, couldn't stand against Hexagon forever. If he bashed against them, which he seemed to be doing right now, then eventually, they would crumble. That would essentially spell the Titans' doom, as there would be nothing standing in the way of Hexagon pummeling them into the pavement.

As such, Raven deactivated her telekinesis (there were enough Ravens present to keep a hold on the buildings) and fell to the ground with a sigh. She stood, gazing at the ground, trying to come up with a viable solution. She saw the other Titans who weren't Ravens. All the Robins, while not dead, looked like they were right on the cusp of death. The Starfires lay sprawled in every direction with knees and elbows that bent at strange angles. A good majority of the Cyborgs were missing body parts, and those that weren't were emotional wrecks. And worst of all…

"BEAST BOY!" When she saw him, Raven bolted toward her goofy green teammate. She lifted him by the head, and he groaned as the pain no doubt spread through his entire being. Raven couldn't help but cringe. "Don't worry, BB. I'll help out." She took a deep breath and placed her hand on Beast Boy's chest. "Azarath Metrion Zinthos!"

Her hand glowed with a soft blue aura this time, and based on his facial expression, Raven was sure that Beast Boy's pain was lessening. This was further evidenced by the fact that parts of her own body were starting to ache to obscene degrees. She had to stop before she finished the job in order to catch her breath, as well as to ensure that she didn't absorbed too much pain.

"Beast Boy. Are you alright?"

Beast Boy grunted as he rose to a sitting position. "I'm okay. Thanks, Raven." Raven had to admit that she had never heard him sound so grateful, especially towards her. She was about to smile and express her own gratitude of Beast Boy still being alive when his eyes traveled forward. He cringed when he saw the two buildings being held in place by the Ravens. He whimpered when he heard a banging sound coupled with the sound of shattering glass. His eyes traveled over to Raven, who couldn't help but squirm.

"Raven… there's gotta be a way to stop this, right?" He scooted closer to her. "You're really smart, Rae; is there anything we can do to defeat Hexagon?"

"I…" Raven scanned the area for Larry, hoping that his reality-warping powers would aid them in this fight. Unfortunately, he laid unconscious on the ground with various bruises. And considering that Raven had already used a lot of her mental energy and physical state of being to heal Beast Boy, she knew she didn't stand a chance of healing Larry. Even if she could, it would be too dangerous, as her and Larry's powers mixing would create an even bigger problem than the one the Titans were facing right now.

So, she had no choice but to say "I don't know."

Beast Boy's face fell in ways that Raven had never seen before. He almost looked… accepting of their fate, like he knew that there was no way to win this war. He took hold of Raven's hand, stroking her fingers with his thumb. Raven blinked and turned toward him, all while he gave her a melancholy smile.

"Raven… if we don't get out of here okay, I just wanted you to know… that you are really awesome." He chuckled. "I don't tell you that enough, but you bring a light to my life that is so unique. And… well, I'm happy that we got to be on the same team. I'm happy that we had the opportunity to get to know each other."

Raven's eyes grew wide. "Beast Boy…" she held his hand close to her heart, trying to process the words that he had just said to her. If this were any other day, she'd probably make fun of him for it. She would probably say that his words were corny, that they came out of nowhere, and that they were so mushy gushy that they would make cupid blush.

But she didn't do that now. Sure, the words were still unexpected, but hearing him say that at such a time as this.

"I don't know what to say."

"That's fine." Beast Boy pulled her toward him, wrapping his arms around her in the tightest yet kindest way possible. "You don't have to say anything."

Raven sniffled. She hugged her teammate back, thinking about how much she agreed with him. If this was the end, if this whole struggle meant that her life was going to end today, she could at the very least say she had a happy life. Despite the ups and downs, all her friends had made it so that she lived a good life. Cyborg had been a big brother. Starfire had been a best friend. Robin had been a strong leader. And Beast Boy? Beast Boy…

Raven hugged him even tighter. "Thank you, Beast Boy. Thank you for everything."

The two just sat there for a while. The sound of Hexagon still pounding on the shield rang in their ears, and the grunts and groans of the Titans (whether they be the Ravens struggling to hold the shield in place of the other Titans grunting in pain) could be heard, but those didn't matter nearly as much. What mattered was that Raven and Beast Boy were sharing this moment, this wonderful moment. This was amazing. This was sweet. This…

Was the reason why the Titans couldn't die today.

Raven pulled back from Beast Boy as the reality of that realization kicked in. No. No, the Titans couldn't die today! They couldn't! Raven wanted to live! She wanted to have more of these sweet, precious moments with Beast Boy. She wanted her other friends to have a life and a future after this moment. Heck, she wanted the goofy Titans to have a life and a future after this moment. She wasn't going to sit back and let her father defeat everyone! She had already believed the lie that Trigon had supreme control over her life before. She wasn't going to believe that again; she had defeated Trigon and found a bright future before, so she could do it again.

So, she stepped away from Beast Boy. "This isn't the end, BB. We're going to get out of this; I know we are."

Beast Boy blinked. "But how?"

Raven put her hand to her chin. "Hmm. How…" That was a big question, no doubt about it. It did seem pretty hopeless right now, but there had to be a way to get out of this mess. Just what was it?

"You know, I never noticed how colorful everything is!"

Raven blinked and turned, seeing Raven walking through the throng of hurting Titans. With her hood down and a smile on her face, it looked like she didn't fully grasp or comprehend the seriousness of the situation they all found themselves in. This theory was only proven right as a fireball came flying right towards her.

"Like this rock streaking towards me! It's beautiful!"

Raven gasped. She was about to push her double away from the hurling projectile, but Beast Boy beat her to it. In his bear form, he grabbed Raven and pulled her out of the way just before the fireball could crash into them. Even with this display of fast-thinking, Raven still was all smiles and joy.

"Raven!" Beast Boy exclaimed as he held her overhead. "You have to snap out of this; we need you!" He set her down on the ground and turned back into human form. "Uh… can't you get your powers back somehow?"

Raven gasped. "Wait." She smiled and rushed over to the goofy Titans. "Yes! That's it!"

Chapter Text

Chapter Text

Chapter 52 Purple Glow

Was it a good or bad thing that Raven felt horrible consuming her double? It was for a good cause, but it did involve eating an actual, living person. Did that mean she was bad... actually, you know what? She didn't want to spend a lot of time thinking about this. What she did made her feel horrible, but she didn't want to think about it nor did she wish to analyze the implications. Eating Raven had already been uncomfortable enough.

"Well." Beast Boy stepped closer to Raven, placing his hand on her shoulder. "That be…."

"I know; I know what it be." Raven stood in place, battling the guilt over what she just did. Sure, Raven had encouraged her, but even with that in mind, she felt like she committed a mortal sin. Especially when one took into account everything that the two Ravens had been through together. Hiding from Trigon, having the heart-to-heart, bringing each other up from the depths of despair… well, okay, it was mostly Raven bringing Raven up from the depths of despair, but the point still stood.

"How do you feel, Mama?" Beast Boy asked. His tone of voice made it clear he expected something grand something borderline world-shattering. Raven was about to speak up, crushing his dreams in the process, when…

"Woah." She looked down at her hands. The black aura that so commonly appeared whenever she used her telekinetic abilities was present once again. Not only that, but she sensed a change within herself. The feeling was in her veins, flowing through her and making her feel as though she could conquer the world. This was it. These were Raven's powers being awakened in her.

"I feel… good." She flipped her hair. "More like myself."

"Good." Beast Boy patted her on the back. "So… you think you can eat the rest of the Ravens?"

Raven looked at the others, still maintaining the shield. Feeling a sort of high over having the power running through her, her guilt from eating her double morphed into excitement. If she ate all the Ravens, she'd be unstoppable. She'd have more power than she ever thought possible, more than enough power to go after Hexagon. The world would be safe. The multiverse would be safe. All because of her.

So, she smiled. "Oh yeah."

And with that, she got right to work. Flying over to the Ravens, she ate each one of them whole. Part of her felt guilty while doing this; there was this little voice in her head saying that she was technically taking the lives of all these girls. And was she? Well, yeah, probably; one didn't just get swallowed whole and walked away just fine. Well, unless they're a circus performer, but…

Gah, that didn't matter! The Ravens would be fine, and even if they weren't, this was completely necessary! This was the one thing that could save the multiverse, the one way that everything could potentially turn out fine. Hexagon was in the process of destroying everything, everything Raven loved and everything she hated. He couldn't do that. He wouldn't get a chance to do that.

CHOMP! CHOMP! CHOMP! More and more Ravens were consumed, and more and more power filled Raven. By the time she ate mermaid Raven (who, funnily enough, had been completely useless when fighting this battle on land), her power levels were beyond what she had ever hoped or dared to dream. It felt like there was a fire in her demon-human blood. She felt like she was ascending into Godhood. Which… she might be. No person in the history of the multiverse has experienced these power levels. No person, dead or alive, could say they had this type of spirit within them, this kind of determination. Because that's what Raven was: determined. She hadn't been before, but now that she was making progress towards what some might view as an unachievable goal, she felt as though could and would do anything.

Thus, when the last Raven was eaten, Raven couldn't help but smile. She looked down at her hands, which had black vapor swirling around them. But that wasn't all. Her whole body glowed purple too. She could say with full confidence that she had never experienced something like this before. Seriously, never! She smiled, laughing at the sensations within her, the feelings and emotions that came with this sort of thing.

"Mama?" Raven turned to see Beast Boy running up to her. His jaw dropped, and the purple light she glowed with reflected in his eyes. Despite his shock, Raven just felt better. She felt more complete than she had since… holy crap, since her gem originally cracked!

"Mama? Are you okay?"

Raven grinned. "I'm better than okay." She rose into the air. It felt natural to do so, it felt right. The purple around her grew brighter and brighter. Laughter came out of her mouth like it never had before. "I'm doing this!" She rose even higher, the powers within her growing more and more. "I'M DOING THIS!"

The light grew even brighter.

…

Robin grunted as he looked at Hexagon. He was so close to breaking the shield. The doom of each Titan from each multiverse was getting closer. All of them were going to experience the exact same fate; dying at the hands of a terrible, horrible, monstrous demon fusion ever. Not a good fate. Not what the Titans needed. Not the way the Titans deserved to be remembered.

"This is it," Robin said. "This is the end."

That sentence made Robin determined. "No." He stepped toward the edge of the roof, closer to Hexagon. Despite his own doubts and worries from earlier, he knew he couldn't just sit idly by. "We're going to stop him."

Robin raised an eyebrow. "Uh… how? How in the world could we actually do that? Have you SEEN Hexagon! He's huge!"

"Yeah, he's larger than your head." Robin laughed while Robin gave him the stinkiest of stink eyes. "Sorry, I'm just trying to help us feel better. You know, humor can take the edge off things."

Robin sniffed. "Well, first of all, if either of us is going to rely on humor, it's going to be me." He faced Hexagon's back. "Second, I still don't see how we have ANY chance of fighting Hexagon."

"Which is why we aren't going to." Robin blinked as Robin pulled some birdarangs off of his utility belt. He gave his double a serious face, one that he hoped would convey the severity of the situation. "We just need to distract him."

Robin's eyes grew wide. "D… distract him?"

"Yes." Robin turned his head, all at once feeling a whole slew of emotions. "If Hexagon focuses his attention on us, that might give all the other Titans time to escape and think of a plan."

Robin gasped. "But… that would be suicide! It would be stupid!"

Robin flashed him a sparkling grin. "It would be heroic is what it would be."

Robin frowned. The gears turning in his head were visible for all to see. He looked past Robin, at the demon who was so close to achieving his goal. He looked like he wanted to say a million things, and yet couldn't say a single word. He looked like he wanted to run and hide… yet knew there was truth in Robin's words.

"Wouldn't that be the best thing to do?" Robin asked. He stepped over and put his hand on his double's shoulder. "Wouldn't that be the best way for two Robins to go out; by defending the world and helping out his friends?"

Robin's frown got deeper. A kind of solemn mood appeared in his expression, one that Robin knew through their short time together was so unlike him. He reached for his own birdarangs, pulling them off with a seriousness that made it clear he knew. He knew how this was going to end. He knew how it needed to end.

He turned toward his double. "Let's do this."

Robin grinned. With both of them taking deep breaths, they hurled the birdarangs at Hexagon. They exploded, sending fire shooting off the back of his head. Hexagon grunted, turning to glare at the two Robins.

"You two again." He turned away from the shield and aimed his two left fists at the Robins. They only barely managed to jump out of the way in time, with Hexagon's fists leaving a crater in the roof they just stood on.

Despite this, Robin just grinned at his double. "So?" The two continued running away from Hexagon, who aimed fist after fist at the rooves that they stood on. "You know, as someone who defeated Trigon before, this really takes me back."

Robin snickered. "I'm guessing defeating your Trigon is a lot more impressive than defeating mine."

"Eh, probably. That just might…"

Before he could finish his sentence, Hexagon shot a flaming fireball at them. The Robins shrieked as it landed, and the went flying face-first onto the top of another roof. Robin grunted, trying his best to get up. He reached for his double.

"Robin…" he only barely managed to stand up and walk over to him. "Robin, are you alright?"

As Robin helped his double up, said double coughed and put his hand to his head. Robin cringed when he saw a lump the size of an orange forming. "I… I'm… I…."

"This is the end of the line boys," Hexagon's voice boomed. He held his four hands together, and a fireball grew in between them. Bigger and bigger it grew, its orange glow making Robin's heart pounded. He looked down at Robin, who looked more terrified than he ever had before.

"This looks like the end!" Robin said as he wrapped his arms around Robin's waist. Honestly, even though the gesture would clearly embarrass his double if he were in any other state of mind, he didn't denounce him for it. In fact, he patted him on the back as he looked up at Hexagon. He knew it would end like this. He had distracted Hexagon, and now, they were going to experience the consequences that came with that decision. Hopefully, it wouldn't be in vain.

"HYAAH!" Hexagon shot the fireball at the Robins, with Robin cringing, closing his eyes, and bracing himself for the hot, painful, powerful impact. He waited with bated breath, but… it didn't come. It didn't come, and the Boy Wonder was all the more confused because of it.

"What….?" He opened his eyes and gasped. "Robin, look!"

Robin, who had been whimpering and cowering, opened his eyes and gasped. A black and purple aura encircled them, keeping them safe from Hexagon's blast. Robin couldn't help but grin. Robin, on the other hand, was completely and utterly stupefied. And, incidentally, so was Hexagon.

"What?" Hexagon asked. "What is the meaning of…?"

The sound of the buildings scraping against the pavement wrang through the streets. Both Robins and Hexagon turned their attention there, gasping at the sight. The creature that had pushed the buildings apart… what words were there to describe it? It was a big, black dragon, with glowing white eyes and purple energy wings. Purple fire escaped from its mouth, and it had spikes running down its back that glowed the same purple as everything else.

Robin gawked at that. "Is that… Raven?"

Hexagon, seemingly just as confused, turned toward the dragon with a raised eyebrow. "What are you supposed to be?"

The dragon stayed silent before smirking. "What? You don't know a flock of Ravens when you see one?" Robin felt giddy beyond all comprehension to hear it talk with Raven's voice, and he only grew more giddy when he heard her say. "We are… The Unkindness."

Robin beamed. Oh, this just got interesting.

Chapter Text

AN: We're in the homestretch guys! Oh man…

Chapter 53 Hexagon vs The Unkindness Part 1

The Titans cheered, the sound echoing in Raven's ears. And it wasn't just limited to her team either; she could hear the entire multiverse cheering her on. Their voices blended together into an absolutely gorgeous, encouraging noise, and Raven felt a surge of warmth and positivity fill her just listening to it.

"You got this, Mama!" Beast Boy shouted.

"Boo yah Rae; you can do it!" Cyborg shouted.

"Do it, Raven!" Starfire screamed, sounding far more barbaric and bloodthirsty than one would come to expect from the alien princess. "Finish him off!"

Raven smirked. She glared at Hexagon, who looked back at her with the utmost disgust. Taking this fusion down was going to be satisfying. Oh, so satisfying.

"Daughter…" Hexagon murmured. The heat in his eight eyes got worse. He stepped forward, digging his hoof into the ground and creating a deafening scrape. As she cringed, Hexagon pointed at The Unkindness. "YOU CAN NOT DEFY ME!"

"Watch me," Raven said with a smirk. She took a deep breath, and white fire shot out of her throat. Hexagon screamed as it hit him in the chest, sending him flying backward. If it wasn't for him suddenly grabbing hold of the buildings surrounding him, he probably would've flown backward for quite a while. Raven kept her eyes locked on him, her breathing rate becoming slow and steady. She started approaching him.

"You aren't gonna win, Hexagon. You just aren't."

"HA!" Hexagon guffawed. "Even when you've taken on the form of a dragon, you are still foolish, daughter." He raised his hands to the sky, and red lighting shot out of the equally red clouds. Raven raised an eyebrow when she saw the lightning form into a telekinetic shield and spear.

Really? He thinks he can defeat me with a spear? Well, he was wrong. Taking a deep breath, Raven rose into the air. The purplish energy wings on her back stretched out and flapped, and with one more deep breath, she flew toward the charging Hexagon. The wind rushed around her face, and she could feel a bitter type of confidence fill her. Hexagon wanted to take everything away from her? He wanted to take her powers and hurt her friends? No. No, no, no. Raven increased her flight speed the closer she got to Hexagon's face and then….

WHACK! She punched him right in the face. The shield and the spear might as well have been pieces of jewelry with how little of a practical purpose they served. Hexagon tumbled back, all while Raven smiled. This… this was going well! This was actually going well, much to her shock. Maybe Hexagon wasn't as powerful as she had originally believed…

SLICE! A gushing sound occurred as a sharp pain lodged itself in the Unkindness's chest. She shrieked, the sound filling the atmosphere. She pulled herself away, another gushing sound occurring as she pried herself free from the point of Hexagon's spear. She put her hand to her chest, cringing when she saw blood.

"Give up, daughter!" Hexagon readied the shield and the bloodied spear once again. "You had your chance to join me, but you don't get the same mercy from me now."

"Raven!" The sounds of Raven's friends cheering her on sounded more desperate than before, more concerned. Raven looked down at them, noticing their faces. Could… could she defeat Hexagon for them? Did she stand much of a chance against him? Could she save the multiverse?

The answer was yes. Grunting, Raven placed her bloodied hand back down on the street. "Like you have any mercy to offer." She shot another bolt of fire breath at him. This one scorched his eyes, causing him to shriek. As she did this, Raven could sense the other Ravens using their healing powers to heal the wound in her chest. Good. With their combined powers working together, they'd be able to mend her up in no time.

Speaking of combined powers, Raven had this thought in the back of her head. If she were to guess, she would wager that it was one of the other Ravens whispering to her through her brain waves. If she were to wager another guess, she would say the one specific Raven was the same Raven she had been hanging out with for most of her time in this universe. She said something that made Raven's eyes grow wide. If… could she do this? Could she pull this technique off? Could she… she didn't know, but if she could… oh, this attack would be invaluable against Hexagon. It would do a lot of damage, if the images flashing through Raven's mind about the last few times it was used were any indication.

Deciding it would be the wisest move to at least attempt it, Raven smiled. She faced Hexagon before closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. She blocked out every sound and sensation, including the stinging sensation in her chest from when Hexagon stabbed her. She felt the power of all the Ravens flowing through her. Even though she often struggled under the weight of just her powers, there was something different about the power of all the Ravens. It was encouraging. It was warm. Maybe this was because Raven wasn't carrying this burden alone. Maybe it was because the various Ravens whispered little words of encouragement into her mind. Either way, she felt a form of positivity she didn't normally feel, one so much stronger and more substantial than the euphoria she had when Trigon sucked up her powers.

"Okay ladies," she whispered to the other Ravens. "I'm gonna need all of you to help me out when it comes to this attack." The Ravens whispered more words of encouragement to her. She smiled, took a deep breath, and closed her eyes. When she spoke, it wasn't just her voice speaking. It was the voice of the whole multiverse, speaking in unison and displaying the purest form of teamwork.

"Azarath…" Raven's heart pumped. "Metrion…" This had to work. It would work. "ZINTHOS!"

A white silhouette of a raven appeared over the Unkindness. Its light was so bright, its power so pure and untainted by the influence of any of the Trigons. Raven let out a mighty yell before pointing forward and releasing the power. The white raven screeched, the sound the mightiest sound that a raven could possibly create. It shot toward Hexagon, hitting every last inch of his upper body. The demonic fusion screamed in pain, sounding as though he had just been severely burned. He nearly collapsed to the ground, clearly having been weakened by the white raven's blow.

Raven grinned. "Man, Raven, you weren't kidding about it being powerful." She took in another deep breath. "Alright girls, we're gonna do it again, okay?" Raven took a step forward. She positioned her dragon wings in a way so that they were pointing directly at Hexagon. She got into a position that resembled a cat who was about to pounce, and she took some careful steps forward. The cheers of the other Titans could be heard, their worry and concern completely gone as Raven took in another breath. "Azarath Metrion Zinthos!" She shot another white raven at Hexagon. Then another, and then another. If this were a video game, she would've been button mashing in order to spam a single attack. And luckily, just like a video game, the attack she was spamming proved to be super effective. Hexagon could barely stand as he took hit after hit. Honestly, Raven was surprised that he was still standing. She reasoned it must be because he was two Trigons combined; if it had just been one Trigon, the white raven would've taken him out by now.

But that didn't matter. While not as effective as it could be, the white raven was still incredibly effective. Hexagon winced, looking more and more like he was going to collapse and pass out on the street. Raven saw various cuts form all over his body, oozing demon blood. His whole appearance also looked mightily disheveled. It was kind of like Raven was a thug who Hexagon had encountered in the street, a thug who beat him to a bloody pulp. Seriously; by this point, Hexagon was so so so close to death. He even shook, cringing as his whole form vibrated. It was almost as if all the attacks the Unkindness was doing to him were threatening to rip the two Trigons free from one another.

"Give up, Hexagon!" Raven screamed. She lunged forward and punched him right in the face. He shook some more. She was so close; so close to defeating this big red nuisance. The thought of no longer having the deal with Trigon in ANY form was so tantalizing to her. It was no wonder why Trigon had listed that as a perk the first time he tried to take Raven's powers. That reality could be hers. It WOULD be hers! She aimed punch after punch in Hexagon's face. She was so close. So close she could taste it, she jut needed to…

"AAH!" Before she could even fully comprehend what was happening, Hexagon aimed a punch at the Unkindness's face. The attack was surprisingly effective; Raven felt as though her entire face was on fire. Right as she put her hand to her cheek to apply pressure to the injury, Hexagon aimed another punch at her. And if the last punch was bad… oh, this one was a million times worse. Raven's face might as well have been shot; it ached beyond all mortal comprehension. She wanted the pain to stop, wanted to get some relief from this pure, unadulterated agony.

But of course, Hexagon had no compassion for her. He punched her again, this time in the chest. Considering that Raven had been stabbed in that area less than ten minutes ago, the pain she felt upon impact was LEAGUES worse than before. She felt like crying. Hot tears poured from her eyes, tears that burned the parts of her face that it touched.

"That's enough daughter!" Hexagon sneered. "I have had it up to here with you! It's time that I be a father and discipline you, as I should've done a long time ago!"

Then, the warlogog that floated above his head glowed. A portal opened up right behind Raven, and the sight of it made her sweat. Sure, the portal wasn't nearly big enough to fit the Unkindness, but Raven wasn't about to relax. Hexagon had a plan regarding this portal. He was going to do something with it, something horrible that would provide him with some sort of advantage.

THWACK!

"AAH!" Raven screamed as she went flying backward, right into the portal. Just like she predicted, her whole body didn't fit into it. The only thing that fit was her head, which would've been a massive relief… if it wasn't for one teensy weensy detail.

The dimension the portal led to was an underwater dimension. The water filled Raven's nose, causing her to gasp. She held her breath, but even as she did, she felt a form of weakness overcome her. She kicked and struggled, desperate to get her head out of the portal. She couldn't stay here; she'd drown otherwise! She needed to…

"AAH!" Raven screamed as she felt a tightening sensation around her throat. It wasn't just one tightening sensation either; she felt four distinct, equally disastrous hands tightening around her airway. Her struggling and kicking increased, but that did very little. Hexagon refused to take his grip off of her. And because of him choking her, she couldn't pull herself out of the water dimension either. As such, the longer she struggled, the weaker she became. The air she desperately needed was becoming impossible to obtain.

"It's over, daughter!" Hexagon proclaimed.

Raven's eyelids drooped. Her… her surroundings… were growing dark…

Chapter Text

Chapter 54 Hexagon vs The Unkindness Part 2

While the Unkindness was going toe to toe with Hexagon, both of the Robins leaped across the roofs of the buildings. They mainly did this so that they could get a better view of the fight, but this also had the added benefit of getting out of the way when Hexagon and the Unkindness fighting would’ve destroyed the building that they were standing on. Robin couldn’t help but thank his lucky stars because of this.

Of course, when the Unkindness got her head stuck in the warlogog portal, that was when Robin started to worry. This is especially true given how Hexagon landed attack after attack on her neck specifically. Seeing this happen, knowing that it gave Hexagon a great advantage, made him worry. And he very rarely worried nowadays.

“Friend Robin!”

The Robins looked down to see their other teammates flying up to the roof they stood one, with the Beast Boys taking on bird forms and the Cyborgs being lifted by the Starfires. Robin wished he could say this event brought him relief, but it really didn’t. The Unkindness was still losing the fight, still on the brink of death. That last fact made Robin realize that they didn’t have anytime to waste.

“Guys, we need a plan,” he said. He pointed toward Hexagon. “He’s killing the Ravens. We need to do something before he succeeds.”

Beast Boy gasped a little. “Oh, if something happened to Mama Rae Rae .”

“Nothing is going to happen to Raven , Beast Boy ,” Starfire said. “We’ll defeat the Hexagon.”

“Yeah, but how?” asked Cyborg, all while he kept his eyes on the demonic fusion. “The Unkindness is really our only hope, and right now she’s losing!”

Robin bit his lip. It really did seem like things weren’t boding in their favor, a realization that made him sweat. He didn’t even want to imagine what would happen to the multiverse if the Titans lost this fight, but his brain was making him do it anyway without his permission. Each possibility filled him with dread at best and horrible despair and depression at worst.

“What can we do…” his mind raced to think of a plan, but nothing came. Nothing came to him at a time when this makeshift team needed a plan more than anything. His heart sank, and for a few minutes, he wallowed in his despair.

“Wait! I got it!”

Robin blinked and turned toward his double. “You do?”

“Yeah!” Robin pointed up at Hexagon’s head, specifically at the warlogog that was situated in between his horns. “We need to destroy that warlogog! If we do that, the portal will close!”

Cyborg blinked. “Wow. That’s a really good idea, Robin !” He chuckled. “Where were those over your career as team leader?”

“Oh, shut up!” Robin flashed him a glare. “Now is not the time to be bashing each other. Now is the time where we’re supposed to take action.”

“He’s right.” Robin stepped forward and flashed Robin a smile. “I think it’s a great idea.”

“Thanks,” Robin said, his expression making it seem like his double’s compliments meant the world to him. He turned toward Cyborg. “Cyborg, can you shoot me at the warlogog?”

Cyborg smirked, picked up Robin , and stuffed him in his sonic cannon. “With pleasure.” He aimed the cannon and…

BOOM! Robin went sailing through the air, yelling at the top of his voice. For a split second, Robin worried that he wouldn’t reach the warlogog, that Hexagon would move out of the way before he did. Thankfully, he did it. He hit the warlogog with the speed of a bullet. Cracks formed in its surface, and before anyone could say anything, it shattered into a million pieces.

“NO!” Hexagon screamed. He put his hand to his head right as the warlogog portal around the Unkindness’s head disappeared. She blinked and gasped, coughing her lungs out. Once she recovered, she glared at Hexagon. The level of seriousness on her face… it was chilling. It was honestly the most chilling thing that Robin had seen in a while.

“Thanks, Titans,” She muttered out loud before aiming a fist at Hexagon. Specifically, she aimed her fist at the gem on his forehead. Since Hexagon was preoccupied, he didn’t even have time to move out of the way. This meant the gem cracked, and Raven’s demon slithered out of it. A good amount of it got loose, only being stopped by Hexagon hastily grasping hold of its tentacles. Grunting, he tried to stuff it back in his gem. However, the Unkindness acted quickly, getting a hold of the demon and tried to tug it free. Hexagon wasn’t going to give it up without a fight though.

“NO!” He screamed again. He pulled at the the demon, meaning he and the Unkindness engaged in the most important tug o’ war game of all time. “This is MINE! You didn’t even want it, daughter!”

The Unkindness gritted her teeth. “If it means keeping the ones I love safe, I’ll hold onto it for all eternity.” She gave a tug. Hexagon gave another tug. The father and daughter were determined to not let the other gain control of the demon, which of course meant that they were both stuck. Every time the Unkindess seemed like she was about to pry it out of Hexagon’s hands, he would give another tug, this one more powerful than the last. Robin couldn’t help but cringe at the sound of the Unkindess grunting.

“Do you think she can do it?” Beast Boy asked.

Robin ran his hand through his hair. “I don’t know. These odds don’t seem very good.”

“Well then, we should change the odds!” Starfire exclaimed. She flew off the roof and addressed every Titan. “COME ON, TITANS! RAVEN NEEDS HELP IN THE TUG OF THE WAR!”

Robin beamed. “Oh man, I like the way you guys think.” Using his grappling hook, he jumped off the roof and landed on the ground. When he did, he saw his goofy double on the ground, grunting as he held his hand to his legs. “You okay?”

“I’m perfect!” Robin rose to his feet, grunting as he did. “I’ve dealt with a few scrapes before; it’s no big deal.” He looked over at Hexagon’s giant hoof. “What was that Starfire was saying before?”

“We’re gonna help Raven ,” Robin said with a grin. “We’re gonna make it so that she wins the battle and gets her demon back.” Robin raised an eyebrow, but Robin just smirked at the sight of that. “Come on, I’ll show you how!”

…

Raven could say with full confidence that her confidence in her winning this fight was decreasing. Her hands stung as she tried her best to get her demon out of Hexagon’s hands. It was like rope burn amped up to a million. She really wished she could let go of it, but of course she couldn’t. She was stuck in this tug o’ war, which, again, she was starting to worry she would lose. After all, Hexagon was using all his might to pull the demon back into the gem.

“Ahh!” The demon almost fell out of Raven’s hold, with her getting it back just in the nick of time. She gritted her teeth, feeling sweat form all over her scaly body. She could hear the encouragement of the other Ravens echoing in her ears, and she would be lying if she said they didn’t help somewhat. But that was a pretty big “somewhat,” as the longer this went on, and the more her hands stung as she tried to get the demon out of Hexagon’s grip, the weaker and more tired she became.

Hexagon must’ve been aware of this, as he let out the most wicked, most satisfied, most taunting laugh Raven had ever heard. “You should just give up now, daughter. You are never going to defeat me! I am great! I am powerful! I…”

“AM THE OUTNUMBERED!”

Raven blinked when she heard Starfire’s voice. She looked behind her, noticing that all the Beast Boys in the multiverse were tugging on her wings. The Cyborgs were pulling her forward from down below on the ground, with the Robins keeping Hexagon tied down in the exact same place. As for the Starfires, Raven couldn’t really see them, but based on the way Hexagon was grunting and losing his grip on the demon, she had a feeling they were trying to pull him backwards.

Never before had Raven felt so grateful. “Oh, I have an awesome team. Thanks, everyone!” The help giving her the exact type of motivation she needed, she gave a hard tug on the demon. Hexagon tried to pull it back, but the effort he needed in order to do so was noticeably a much larger amount than before. Raven felt like giggling; it seemed like things were finally working in her favor!

“It’s over, Hexagon!” Still hearing the encouragement of all the other Ravens, as well as the encouragement from some other Titans for good measure, she gave one more tug on the demon. And finally. FINALLY this was enough to get the demon out of Hexagon’s grip. Raven smiled as the demon enveloped her Unkindness form.

…

Robin grinned as he watched what happened to Hexagon. He let out a horrible, ear-piercing scream as he went falling backwards. The two Trigons that made up who he was split up. The Trigon from Robin’s universe was a transparent, blue hologram, and when his back came in contact with the pavement, he went POP and vanished from existence. Meanwhile, Trigon from the goofy universe went flying backwards, bouncing across the pavement like a rubber ball. If he recovered, he would probably act as another threat that the Titans had to face.

Luckily, Robin knew exactly what to do to prevent that. He got the warlogog that was from the goofy universe out of his pocket, opening a warlogog portal directly in the path Trigon was bouncing in. He went right through the portal, which showed a nighttime universe on the other side.

Blinking, the demon got up and looked around. “Huh. Where am…” He didn’t even get to finish his sentence, as Robin saw something grab his leg. Trigon gasped when he saw what it was, and if he were to be honest, Robin didn’t blame him. It was a zombie version of Starfire. In fact, zombie versions of the other Titans surrounded Trigon , moaning and groaning as they clearly wanted to eat his brain.

“No!” Trigon tried to free himself from the zombies’s grips. “NO!” Smirking, Robin immediately closed the warlogog portal.

“Well… that’s that.”

“I’ll say!” Robin said as he joined him at his side. He let out a laugh and puffed out his chest. “Oh man, it’s going to be nice to be able to live in our universe without having a Trigon breathing down our necks.”

“Couldn’t have said it better myself.” Robin turned around, and when he did, he gasped. “Oh my gosh; Raven!” He rushed over to her. As he did, he reasoned that the Unkindness must’ve split apart, as other Ravens were getting up on various parts of the pavement. If Robin could’ve attended to all of them, he would’ve, but he mostly kept his sights on the Raven from his universe. He bent down and offered his hand. “Are you alright?”

Raven coughed and took Robin’s hand. “I’m alright.” She rose to her feet, and all three of them looked forward some more. Just a few feet away, a big black demon stood on the pavement. Its entire body looked to be made from black sludge, including its wings and its tentacles. The only part of the body that wasn’t midnight black were the eyes. Those were red.

“Is that…”

“Yeah.” Raven put on a grim face. “It looks like we aren’t in the clear quite yet. If we want to emerge victorious, Raven has to get her demon back under control.”

Robin felt a lump form in his throat. “And… we can’t do much in the way of helping her, can we?”

“No,” Robin said, looking worried for possibly the first time. “This is something Raven has to do by herself.”

Chapter Text

AN: Hey guys. Been a while since I wrote for this particular story and fandom, huh? Well… I'm back! I figured it'd be best to finish this story. At first, I wasn't particularly interested in doing that, admittedly, as I wanted to focus on my Mario stories. But this story is literally two to three chapters away from being finished, and I know a lot of people have particularly enjoyed it. So… why not? This will probably be my last hurrah for the Teen Titans fandom, so I hope I go out with a bang.

Anyway, on with the show!

Chapter 55 Inner Battle

Silence beat down on Raven. The silence and the darkness surrounding her created an insidious environment. She felt like she was miles away from her body, like she had been expelled by the inner demon. The very monster that she had tried for years to fight seemed victorious right now. And yet, she felt like she was trapped in her own body at the exact same time. She couldn't move. That wasn't for lack of trying; her limbs literally would not respond to her brain's commands. She was stuck, stuck in this horrible darkness and over encumbered by this awful silence.

Except… it wasn't silence. It seemed to be on a first glance, but it really wasn't. There were whispers surrounding her, rushing to her ears like some sort of demonic sound wave. The sound tightened its hold around her with an iron grip, increasing the stuck feeling she had a few minutes prior.

She gasped. Finally, some part of her body responded to her brain's commandments, and that was her eyes. They shot open, allowing her to see the dark, black, and red region she was currently in. Sweat covered her, while the coolness it brought felt like spiny needles poking into her skin. Tingles overtook her, which were worse in pretty much every way.

"Wha… Where..." Raven struggled to stand up. Her heartbeat accelerated, especially as she saw the darkness around her moving. Black tendrils curled around the ceiling, squeezing it while coming close to her. Red particles that almost looked like embers drifted through the air. The whole place had a dangerous, wicked, kinda lonely vibe. It took every ounce of self-control Raven had in order for her to not cower in fear.

And even that much self-control threatened to give out when she heard a voice. Or, to be more accurate, it was multiple voices, all working in tandem to say one message.

"Give… in." They were slimy and snakelike. They overlayed each other with completely different pitches, but that mattered very little. Whether they were a high voice or a low voice, they all carried the very evilness Raven had denied for so long.

"You can't fight me," the voices said. "You are a fool for thinking you can. Give up, Raven. Give up… and give in."

Raven gripped her hands into fists. The black tendrils traveled down the walls and started slithering towards her. Raven raised her hands as her breath caught in her throat.

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos!" She shot a bolt of black shadow magic at the tendrils. The voices just laughed in response, making Raven shake.

"You fight against your demon side," they said, "and yet your first instinct is to use your demonic powers against us. Pathetic. Pathetic and hysterical."

The tendrils shot toward Raven. They wrapped around her ankles and wrists, squeezing them. The sorceress gasped, feeling sensation disappearing from the impacted appendages.

"Let me go!"

"You cannot deny the evil within you." The voices chuckled, sounding even slimier than before. It sounded like they were relishing in her pain, like they were eating her misery up and using it as a power source. They tightened their grip, making Raven hyperventilate.

"Just give up, you foolish girl. Normal humans cannot resist their dark side, nor can they hope to. And you have demon blood flowing through your veins. You were born with your dark side baked into your DNA, stronger and blacker than anyone else's. You cannot hope to combat it."

Raven gritted her teeth. "Sure, I can! I know I can!"

"And how could you possibly know that? Because of the hope that you foolishly cling to?" Raven let out a cry as another tendril wrapped around her belly and started squeezing that. "There is no hope for you. You are evil. You are wicked. You are the daughter of Trigon the Terrible. He sired you, he put your dark side in your mind simply by bringing you into existence. Not only is you giving into your dark side probable; it's inevitable."

"No! It's not!" Raven struggled even harder. The tendrils just increased their grip. She felt like she was being squeezed, like her goodness was being extracted from her to be drunken like a juice by this… thing. Or, rather, her inner demon. The personification of all her inner turmoil over the years, all the temptations she faced, and all the evil in her heart that she wanted to deny. This inner demon was stronger than ever. It wanted to choke her. It wanted her human side gone. Her goodness was nothing more than a nuisance, a little mosquito buzzing around its head that it was going to squash and kill. Raven had been fighting her demon side all her life, but… wasn't that kind of a practice in futility? Wasn't that a pointless fight? Like the demon said, normal humans couldn't resist their inner demons and their voices. How was a human-demon hybrid expected to?

Raven whimpered. She stopped struggling, feeling the life draining out of her body and soul. She should've ended this fight years ago. Or, better yet, she should've just let Hexagon keep her demon to all to himself. Her existence was doomed to be a cursed one, and now that curse was finally strong enough to win once and for all. Why did she think she even had a chance at fighting it?

"RAVEN!"

Raven's eyes grew wide. That sounded like Beast Boy! It sounded like he was calling out to her, like he was… cheering for her.

"YOU GOT THIS MAMA!"

"YOU CAN DO IT, FRIEND RAVEN!"

"YOU'RE STRONG, RAVEN! KNOCK THAT DEMON OUT!"

"I BELIEVE IN YOU! WE ALL BELIEVE IN YOU!"

Tears welled in Raven's eyes. Her friends… Robin. Starfire. Cyborg. Beast Boy. They all rooted for her. They all believed in her. They believed that she could be good, that despite all her challenges, she could be a hero. They believed she could win this fight. They believed that she could win against her own dark side.

Which… maybe she could. If they believed in her so strongly, maybe she could believe in herself. Maybe she could win this fight, and maybe she would triumph over evil in the end. Her desire to be good came from more than just a rebellious teenage desire to defy her father. It came from her friends, from the people who loved her as she was and who believed she could be better.

"What is this? What's going on?" The demon hissed.

Raven smiled. That was it. That was why she continued her fight. That was how she knew that she would come out on top in the end. It was because of her friends. They were the light at the end of the tunnel. They were the proof that she could be so much more than what Trigon sired her to be. They loved her. They drove her crazy, they could be too much at times, but there was no doubt in Raven's mind that they loved her. They stuck by her when, logically, they had no reason to. They not only believed in her, but they actively fought for her. They had faith in something an entire universe wouldn't be faulted for rejecting.

Raven would win this fight. Her inner demon was shrinking away and shrieking just from this thought pattern. And what made it even better was that this thought pattern was nowhere close to going away. It was growing. The volume of her positive, hopeful thoughts grew louder and louder. It filled not only the cavern, but Raven herself. She felt a warmth building up in her heart. It was foreign to her, sure, but it was still beautiful. It gave her strength. THEY gave her strength.

"Stop!" The demon sounded like it was in pain now. "Stop this this instant!"

"No!" Raven faced forward. She saw the demon's head, with its four red eyes and sharp black teeth. She probably would've felt scared of this sight before, but now? Now that the demon was shrinking away and cowering in fear? She just felt even stronger. The warmth in her heart grew, which made light fill the cavern. Raven's jaw dropped as she realized that this power was making her glow.

"You can't win this! I will come back! I always come back!"

Raven smiled. "You will come back, but I'll be ready for you. I'm not going down without a fight. Mark my words; you have no power over me." Her grin grew bigger. "My friends are proof of that. They are my family. This is my home. And you are not welcome here." She took in a deep breath. "AZARATH METRION ZINTHOS!"

The light filled the cavern; there was not a single shadow left in this place. The demon shrieked in pain, its form sizzling as the light overtook it. Before long, it was gone. All that was left was Raven. All that was left was the hope she felt, the joy and love she would hold close forever.

With the smile still on her face, she closed her eyes.

…

"Raven Mama? Is you alright?"

Raven's eyelids fluttered open. She looked up to see Beast Boy and the rest of her friends standing over her. They all looked scared, like she was a bear they were trying to poke with a stick. The tension in the air could be sliced like butter. No one seemed to move.

That is, until Raven smiled. "Guys. Thank you. For everything."

With a collective gasp, her friends shot forward and wrapped her in a hug. With the entire multiverse watching, the Teen Titans laughed and cried as they tried to wrap their minds around this glorious reality. No one talked. Even though she normally hated hugs with a passion, Raven let her friends do it to her now. She didn't know why, but she somehow felt more complete.

"Oh, Raven!" said Starfire. "We were so worried."

"I was too. But… I thought of you guys… and I didn't worry anymore." She let them go and smiled at them. The warmth she felt back in the cavern was back in her heart, glowing bright and beautiful inside her. "You're awesome." She looked into the eyes of her ex-boyfriend, who looked at her with the most hopeful gaze imaginable. "I love you guys."

Beast Boy sniffled and dried a tear from his eye. "We loves you too, Mama."

"Lots and lots and lots," said Starfire.

"You're our Raven. You're our sister," said Cyborg.

Robin smiled. "It wouldn't be the Teen Titans if you weren't a part of it."

Raven sniffled. She didn't know if she would use the word perfect to describe this scene, as nothing was perfect. But… this was pretty darn close. Within a hair's breadth. They had saved the multiverse. They had defeated Hexagon. After all this trouble, after all the struggles, the Teen Titans were back together. Forever.

"Alright!" The group turned to see Robin holding up the warlogog, making portals appear. "Titans of Infinite Earths!" He grinned. "Time to hit the road."

Chapter Text

Chapter 56 Great Goodbyes

Watching all the different versions of the Teen Titans enter into the warlogog portals was so bittersweet. It was visually striking, too, and it honestly made Raven wish she had the art skills to capture a moment like this. After all, this was the outcome that she had been hoping for. The world… no, the multiverse was safe. It would never experience a threat like Hexagon again.

Thanks to her.

"Goodbye, Protein Titans!" Raven turned to see Cyborg wiping his organic eye free of tears. "You guys were even more amazing than I hoped you'd be!"

"Catch you later, Steampunk Titans!" Beast Boy yelled. "You guys were a big help!"

"You all were a big help!" Starfire rose into the air as she waved at the various versions of her friends. "I adored spending time with you and fighting by your right and left sides!"

Robin smiled. "You guys were pretty neat." He sighed in an almost dreamy way. "I guess… this just goes to show how universal and awesome the Teen Titans really are."

Raven smiled as she watched the Titanimals jump into their portal. "Yeah. I guess it does."

Finally, the second-to-last team hopped into their portal. This meant there were just two teams. The serious team faced the goofy team, all while Robin had the warlogog gripped tightly in his hands. Even Raven smiled at them, looking upon the goofy Titans with an almost proud look.

"Well, it's just you guys now," she said. "It's time to go home." The minute she finished saying that sentence, Cyborg and Starfire rushed toward their serious counterparts and wrapped them in the tightest hugs. While Beast Boy and Robin clearly didn't know how to feel about this, Raven did manage to get a chuckle out of the sight.

"You were incredible, man," Cyborg said. "You are a true superhero. I knew it the moment I set eyes on you."

Cyborg sniffled. "Thank you. That is what I strive to be." He hugged him back. "I just can't believe what a whirlwind of an adventure this was. When we got approached by an interdimensional being inviting us to a multiversal tournament… well, I never thought it'd lead to this."

"Me neither. But man, I'm so glad it did." Cyborg chuckled. "The only thing I can really think to say now is… booyah."

Cyborg laughed. "Booyah indeed."

As they did that, the Starfires gave each other hugs too. Both of them had tears in their eyes, yet they still smiled in a way only a Starfire could.

"I'm gonna miss you," Starfire said.

"I'm gonna miss the you too. You… we kicked the butt of Hexagon because you and your team were able to help us." Starfire pulled back. "Just to do the check of doubles, but you are royalty in your universe, yes?"

"Oh yes. Tameranean royalty."

Starfire beamed. "Well, if that's the case, if for one of the reasons or another Blackfire can't… you would be making of an amazing Queen."

Starfire put her hand to her heart. "Thank you. I have that feeling in regards to you as well." Beaming, Starfire pulled away, still wiping her emerald-green eyes as she looked upon her double for the very last time.

This display seemed to be what gave Robin and Beast Boy the courage to approach their doubles. Beast Boy let out a satisfied breath. "Well, dude… I suppose I'll be catching you on the fly." He smirked and transformed into a certain colorful insect. "The butterfly, if you will."

Beast Boy laughed. "Yeah. I don't know if this is even possible, but I really hope we see each other again. And…" he hesitated, stole a glance at Raven, and looked back at his double. "And I hope that, whatever it is you got going on with your Raven… I hope it goes well."

Beast Boy turned back into his human form and grinned. "Aww, dude!" He giggled, turned into a gorilla, and pulled Beast Boy into a hug. "Gorilla hug!"

"Oh, I'll show you a gorilla hug!" Beast Boy took on his own gorilla form, which not only allowed him to hug Beast Boy, but also allowed him to noogie him. Beast Boy laughed up a storm while this happened.

The Robins, meanwhile, looked upon each other with serious expressions. Eventually, Robin extended his hand, and Robin took it. As they shook hands, Robin smirked.

"Oh, what to say to someone like you?" Robin glared at him, but that went away when Robin spoke back up. "Honestly… despite the gripes I had with you in the beginning… I enjoyed working with you. Our approaches are different, but what matters is that we both look out for our teams. And… you look out for yours. Despite everything, you definitely look out for yours. So… you really are worthy of the title of superhero. Nay, the title of Robin."

Robin beamed. "Thanks. I still have a lot to learn, but honestly? Seeing how great you are? I now definitely have a goal that I can strive for. So.., I've gotta thank you for that." He paused. "Thank you, Robin."

"Hey. What are friends for?"

Raven smiled. She then looked toward her own double, looking at her with expectant eyes. She took a step forward, removing her hood and allowing her black hair to be visible for a moment. Raven did the same thing, letting everyone see her purple hair.

"We couldn't have saved the multiverse without you." Raven snickered. "I just wish we didn't have to say goodbye so soon."

"I know. But life goes on. And you never know; we may run into each other again. Maybe your dad will try to take over the multiverse a second time, and you'll need my help again,"

"SHHH! Don't jinx it!" The Ravens laughed. Once she calmed down, Raven smiled again. "Well, if that day does come… I know who to call."

"Yes." She grinned. "You definitely do."

"Okay, guys!" Robin proclaimed. "Let's get going, okay!"

Raven and the other Titans nodded. Stealing one more glance at their serious doubles, they jumped into the warlogog portal.

AN: Don't go away! There's one chapter after this, so stay tuned!

Chapter Text

Chapter 57 All Is Well

The Goofy Titans returned to their homeworld, and Raven couldn't remember the last time she had felt this enthralled by its colors, this happy to breathe in the air. Maybe she was still recovering from the high she got from losing her demon, but… no, no, that wasn't it. She was just happy to be home. As she and her friends stood on the roof of her tower, the familiar and the safe were accessible to her once again, and peace and tranquility had been restored. And most importantly, Raven was surrounded by friends that she cared for more than anything else in the world. She had every right to be happy.

"Well," she said, smiling as she did. "All's well that ends well."

"You know it, Mama! And this totes ended well." Beast Boy flashed the other Titans a smile, one that was so bright that it was almost out of character for HIM. HIM, one of the most positive people on the team. And honestly, Raven didn't mind this. She often got annoyed by people's overt positivity, but now? Nah, it was completely justified. "That fight with Hexagon was SICK!"

"Did you do the seeing of the Unkindness?" Starfire asked, giggling as she did. "It was quite the epic monster battle."

"It was," Robin said. He looked down at the rest of the world, lying sprawled out for all of them to see. "And this may be a little weird to say, but… I'm gonna kinda miss the Serious Titans. They were pretty cool."

"Yeah. They were." Cyborg grinned. "But we're pretty cool too! You guys especially; you're cooler than Antarctica!"

Beast Boy laughed and morphed into a reindeer. "Thanks for the compliment, my DEER friend."

Raven smirked as she and the other Titans exchanged looks. "Uh, Beast Boy, reindeer don't live in Antarctica."

Beast Boy blinked. "They don't?" Everyone shook their head, which made him pause. "Huh." He then shrugged. "Eh, whateves, it still be a good joke." He transformed back into a human. "And I is glad I gots it out of my system, cause now I have something serious to says."

The Titans blinked. Beast Boy turned his attention to Raven, smiling as he did. He approached her, carrying himself like he was a prince straight out of a fairytale. Raven felt her face growing warm. It only got warmer as the green changeling took her hands in his.

"Rae rae… I know I ain't the most mature person in the world. I can't think good, I don't takes a lot of things seriously, and I can be obnoxious. But… during this mission, when you were legit in danger… I got scared. Really scared. I realized that you ares the most important person in my life. My first thought when you got captured by the Trigons was… 'What's if I's never see her again? What's if I never get to hear her voice again?'" Beast Boy actually SNIFFLED, which really threw Raven off. This was so unlike him, and yet…

"Beast Boy?"

Beast Boy sniffled again and dried his eyes. "Sorry, Mama's. This was… it was an emotional journey, and it mades me realize something. That being… I don't want to live life without you. Ever again. And I know that I fumbled the last time we tried it, but… Raven? Would you like to be boyfriend and girlfriend again?"

Raven stared at Beast Boy, completely stunned. He looked so uncertain, like he was anticipating the worst. And yet, the hope he looked into her face was so pure. Beast Boy had been right in saying that he didn't take things seriously most of the time, but Raven knew he was doing it now.

"Beast Boy…"

Beast Boy flinched. "Oh, darn it." He sighed and hung his head. "I shoulda known it was a long shot…" Before he could finish his sentence, Raven kissed him on the lips. His form was tense and surprised at first, but that was only for a minute. When that minute passed, and he realized exactly what was happening, he relaxed a bit and held her close. The kiss lasted for a good three minutes, and the other Titans grinned as this happened.

Raven eventually pulled herself away and smiled at Beast Boy, all while she cried real, authentic, happy tears. "I love you, Beast Boy."

Beast Boy looked so touched in the best, most vivid way possible. "I love you too, Raven." He pulled her close again and kissed her again. They held onto each other super tightly, not daring to let each other go.

The other Titans had the most satisfied expressions on their faces while this happened. Cyborg even wiped a proud tear from his organic eye. "Oh, my Little Buddies are growing up so fast!"

"They are indeed!" Starfire said. She smiled at Robin. "I think we all are."

"And it's all thanks to the Serious Titans." Robin beamed. "I hope that, whatever adventures they go on back in their dimension, they're the adventures of a lifetime."

…

The Serious Titans watched the sunrise from the living room of Titans Tower. Raven could say she never felt this supremely good. The closest thing that compared to this was when she had defeated Trigon the first time. THAT had been spectacular. This? This trumped that. She and her friends saved the multiverse, and had kicked the butts of TWO Trigons! One Trigon had seemed impossible, but two? Talk about an unachievable dream.

And yet, the unachievable dream had been reality. Everything had lined up in the perfect way. This was… miraculous.

"Oh, I feel the most positive feelings within my heart." Starfire smiled. "That was certainly an enjoyable adventure."

"Yeah. It was." Robin wrapped his arm around her midsection and held her close. Both of them smiled as he did this. "Everything turned out all right in the end."

"You bet it did." Cyborg sighed in the most relieved way. "I hope that, wherever the alternate versions of the Titans end up, they show their universe that they got their back."

Raven smiled. "I do too. The Teen Titans… we will always have the back of our friends." She looked at the sparkling purple waves, undulating on the shore of Titan Island. "It doesn't matter what universe we're talking about, because we're all heroes. We all have something to offer, and we all go out of our way to make sure the day is saved. Sometimes hesitantly, sometimes seriously, but the Teen Titans will never let impossible odds stop them."

Robin beamed. "Couldn't have said it better myself, Raven." He looked upon his friends. "And even if said impossible odds are overwhelming, we can and will beat them if we stick together."

"You said it, dude." Beast Boy yawned. "Oh man." He chuckled. "But even after beating the impossible odds, we may need to take a nap or two afterwards."

Robin chuckled. "Very true. What do you guys say we do that?"

The Titans nodded in agreement and went off to their rooms. This just left Raven alone at the window. She watched the rising sun.

"Goofy Titans, wherever you are… thank you." She pulled her hood back. "Thank you for keeping the legacy of the Teen Titans alive."

AN: Oh… my God. I finished it. I FINISHED IT! 57 Chapters, over 100,000 words, close to four years… I can't believe it! I thought this day would never come! I'm actually close to crying right now!

Thank you guys for all the support you've given this fic. Seriously! This is my most viewed, most favorited, and most followed story EVER! You guys are the reason I was able to finish this at all, so… thank you. Thank you all. I hope I didn't disappoint.

Stay safe and stay awesome :D