Chapter Text
A Tender Moment
By DemonRomantic
It was dark. That was okay, darkness had never bothered her, in fact it made her feel calm. It was the anger she suddenly felt that was making her toss in her sleep. Raven could feel the presence of the rage that wasn’t her own before the vision of her father filled the blackness. His wicked laugh filled her mind and made her sweat.
“You think that you can escape me so easily, little one?”
She didn’t answer. She knew it was only a dream, but the fear was completely real.
“I made you and I can undo and remake you as your true self!”
“You’re dead, you can’t hurt me anymore!” She shouted.
The chuckle echoed and then faded along with the image of Trigon. She bolted upright with a gasp, that made the one laying beside her wake with a startle.
“Rae? What’s wrong?”
She turned to look at Beast Boy, Garfield as she had been calling him for the past few years now, and took a stabling breath.
“It was your dad again, wasn’t it?” He frowned, sitting up along with her and wrapping his arm around her shoulders.
Nodding, she took another deep breath and placed her own hand over his before squeezing it to make sure he was real. She knew that he was, but it still felt good to anchor herself to him.
Pulling her into him with a hug, he brushed his hand down her long hair that fell in a waterfall down her back. “He can’t get to you. He’s gone, baby.”
The fear tinted with anger she had felt were both eclipsed by the love that radiated off of her partner. Her own emotions enmeshed with his until she was able to relax. Kissing her forehead gently, where the mark of an old jewel had once sat, he pulled away and grinned his warm and kind smile, stroking a stray lock from her eyes.
“I’ll make us some tea if you want.” He said softly.
She shook her head. “Just, stay here with me. Please.”
He nodded, not letting go of her. Her hand came up to caress the side of his face, and he held it there with his own. She could feel the corner of his lips tugged into a smile, and it further soothed her. Finally pulling away, she studied him for a moment. His hair was messy from sleep, and he bore no clothes except for his boxers. Although his eyes were drowsy with tiredness, he was watching her alertly.
“What is it?”
She let herself smile, knowing that she could do so without worrying about her emotions going astray. Leaning into him, their foreheads met in the middle and she sighed out a relieved sort of breath. “I’m happy… I’m happy that this is where I am, and I’m glad that it’s with you. Not just glad.”
She kissed him, letting the rest of her body meet his. He pulled her in as she came, holding her as close as he could. They slowly sank back down into the mattress with her on top as they continued to kiss. When her lips broke away, they were only a mere breathe apart from his; their eyes and bodies still connected. He had been lacing his fingers in the back of her hair, and they were still tangling there as he held her.
“I love you.” She whispered.
“I love you, too.”
“I’m sorry it took so long for me to tell you how I feel. I’ve always felt it. I just couldn’t…”
He silenced her with a kiss. “It’s okay, Raven. We’re together now, and that’s all that matters.”
“But we’re not the Teen Titans anymore. So much has changed…”
He let out a single remorseful laugh. “You can’t be the ‘teen’ titans when everyone grows up… We’re all still friends, that’ll never change.”
She nodded sadly. She did miss the time she’d spent with the whole team, the adventures of being younger and unbound by adulthood. But this was nice; in some ways better.
“Hey, in the morning, why don’t we call everyone up and see if they can come over for a cook-out?” He grinned.
She couldn’t help but return the smile. With a nod, she rested her head on his chest. “That sounds nice.”
“Rae?”
“Hmm?”
“I think that we ought to try again?”
She didn’t move from her spot above his heartbeat, the lull of it was putting her back to sleep. “For a baby?”
“Well, yeah, but I meant we ought to try being a team again.”
That did make her lift her head and she sighed. “It would be nice, but I don’t know, Gar. I think sometimes change just happens. We can try all we want to keep things where we like them, but then sometimes that change makes better things come along.”
He rubbed her back. “Yeah, you’re right. Still, I want to ask the gang anyway.”
She nodded, her eyes drooping. “Yeah. Ask them…”
“Rae?”
She was already asleep again.
He smiled, kissing the top of her head. “Good night, Raven.”