Bleeding Stars, Destiny's Child

by multiverseworm

Summary:

Following the events of The Judas Contract, three years later, both a more mature Raven and Damian find themselves trying to figure out a way to help the ceaseless nightmares that Raven has been going through about the inevitable end of the world.

She was reluctant to tell anyone at first, but after Damian finds out what is happening to her, he cannot do anything but embark in this journey with her.

Will Damian or anyone in this world be enough to help her stop what she was created for?

 

(Please bear with me, the first couple of chapters are a bit short but they get longer as the work progresses)

*This work is based on the DC Animated Movie Universe events. However, I take a different direction and ignore the imminent Darkseid attack and give the characters another development and story in order to follow my plot.

Chapter 1: Sleep well, child

Summary:

Hi! I started writing this fiction because I was in search of Damirae content. There's great content here, but I wanted something more, so...

Here you go I guess!

Please forgive any grammar mistakes that may appear, English is not my first language.

The red sky and destroyed horizon was sickening to observe. Even the clouds had an orange turning grayish color to them that didn’t sit right. But the worst of it all? The corpses. The hundreds… No, thousands, perhaps even millions of corpses throughout the city and maybe even the world, if anyone survived. 

The shaky breath from running and running was leaving her exhausted. How long has she been like this? What is she running from? She kept wanting to turn her head to see if she was safe already, to see if after all of this she could stop her torture now, but she was afraid of what she would find if she did. 

“Why am I running? What is this?” The questions that escaped her mouth in a skeptical way made her suddenly stop her movement. The blisters and wounds from all the time she had been on the run, perhaps hours on end, caught up to her at that moment.

“Took you long enough.” A deep voice behind her snapped her out of her thoughts. She knew that voice, unfortunately, she knew that voice well enough.

She turned slowly, still shaking, part of it from her tired body and part of it afraid to face, him. “Father…”

“Raven. Why have you been running, daughter?” He made a pause. Normally he would hide his physical appearance, but at this moment he looked almost human, only two small horns trying to find their way out of his head. “This couldn’t have been possible without you.”

Raven shook her head repeatedly and tried to not look around. She was struggling to not feel the feeling of death around her and the guilt that was starting to consume her. “No, I didn’t do this. I trapped you.”

A smirk formed in him and the true form of Trigon started forming in him. “Oh you did, you stupid girl.” His voice deepened, sounding almost diabolical. His skin turned red and  eyes turned yellow and multiplied. “You might have trapped me with a minor trick, but sooner rather than later, you will fulfill the destiny you were created for.”

He was starting to grow more and more, taller than any building that was ever in the city where they both stood. She was taking steps back with tears in her eyes, trying to figure out what to do. Escape? Fight? Give up?

“We will meet again, and again, and again. Until you realize there is no escaping from this.” He smiled, looking at her as if she was no more than just a bug to smash with a boot. He started to lift his foot, after all, Raven was no longer of use to him. In a swift movement he stumped his foot towards the ground and as Raven screamed…

“Raven! Wake up!” Kori was shaking her up and down when she heard the screams in her room. 

Raven opened up her eyes but they were a bright red color that had no conscience to them. The gem in her forehead was glowing as it was trying to fight a dormant Raven. A sudden shadow flooded the room in the shape of a black raven. Kori was tossed back and was about to be attacked by the shadow. She covered herself with both of her forearms and yelled at her until someone else stood between Kori and Raven’s shadow.

“Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos.” Damian pronounced with a calm voice. The shadow started to dissipate before both of their eyes and just an exhausted Raven remained. He quickly noticed the energy it drained from her to cast such an umbral, so he approached her and helped her to get to her bed while she held her head trying to figure out what just happened.

“How did you know that would work, Damian?” Kori turned to him while she placed a damped towel on Raven’s neck. 

He sighed, no emotion on his face. “I didn’t.” 

They both stood there in silence, trying not to force what Raven might or might not want to discuss of what just happened.

“I am fine. It was just a bad dream.”

“A lot of those lately.” Kori added, with clear concern in her voice.

“Not as much as you are making it sound.” She was being dismissive. This was clearly something that she didn’t want the titans to have to deal with.

“Ninth in the last three months.” The girls kept quiet when Damian gave this fact. Raven just lowered her eyes and sighed. “I know.”

There were a few moments of silence. As if none of them wanted to speak. Or more likely, didn’t know what else to say. Kori decided it was best to drop the subject for the night and start looking for answers in the morning.

“We should let her get some sleep. She must be exhausted and us interrogating her is not going to help right now.” She tried reaching out for Damian’s shoulder and he just took a step back without taking his gaze off Raven. “Let’s go.” Kori repeated with more authority this time.

Damian scuffed and gave one final looked at Raven before leaving the room and walking the halls of Titan’s tower and entering his own room. Kori turned to Raven and took the damped towel she put earlier in Raven’s neck before pursing her lips.

Raven could feel Kori’s emotions. In that moment they were in a range of worry and fear, to sadness and powerlessness. 

“I will be okay. I’ll meditate a little while before I go to sleep again.” She gave an attempt of a smile before continuing. “Does that ease your mind?”

“It does. Thank you.” She started to walk towards the exit and stopped before closing the door. “You do know we will have to talk about this in the morning, right?”

Raven bit the inside of her cheek and nodded. 

“Good night then.”

Kori closed the door and went to her room, calling Dick who clearly would be awake and on patrol. Trying to fill him in on what was going on with Raven.

“Yeah, I know something’s going on with her.”   A fight could be heard in the background of the call.

“What? How?” Kori was brushing her hair while having the call on speaker.

“Little Wayne filled me in.”

“Of course he did.” She giggled. She knew that there was really only one person that Damian trusted and that was Dick. “I feel this could be way out of my league. I don’t know how to deal with it.”

A growl was heard, then a punch and finally a sigh. “Babe, that’s what you said when Damian first got to the Titans and that was what? Three years ago? You didn’t know how to get him to get along with the others. And then the whole thing with Raven’s father happened and you handled that well. So…”

“That’s it!” She shouted while jumping from her seat. “You are a genius. I love you.” She hung up the phone and headed to the database from the tower, where she stayed all night looking for answers.

-

The kitchen was, as always, a mess. Garfield and Jaime were fighting over orange juice since there was only left for one glass. Damian had breakfast earlier than everybody after his first training session of the day. He was now reading in the library trying to find something to keep his mind off what happened last night.

He noticed Raven walk past the library door heading towards the kitchen, where the commotion could be heard. No more than a minute after that she returned from where she came from and entered the library without noticing that Damian was inside. He gave her a quick look and returned to his book.

“I’ll eat later, after those two are done wrestling over the juice.” She mentioned casually as she always did with Damian, but he was not faced by her joke today. “Tough crowd, huh?”

“Kori was looking for you earlier.” He said in a cold tone, never lifting his eyes from the pages from his book. “I guess she wanted to let you rest.”

Raven stood still with her arms crossed and not taking her eyes off Damian. She wouldn’t say a word until he looked up to her. He knew this, he knew her very well but he just let out a tiny sigh.

“You wouldn’t have to deal with Kori if you would just tell me what is happening to you, you know?” He flipped the page on his book while talking to her through their bond. The one they developed when she healed him in a training session where he was severely injured. He wouldn’t use it often, but this situation had raised red flags for him and he was not gonna let it fly.

Raven shrugged when she felt Damian’s voice inside her head. She took a step back feeling defenseless. “You can’t do that.”

Damian closed his book and left it on a side table before standing up and meeting Raven’s eyes, still his mouth not uttering a word.  “Tell me. We have this stupid bond for a reason. Don’t we?”

A brief moment of doubt flooded her mind. Maybe telling Damian wouldn’t be so bad? Having someone to confide in, someone that can clearly make better plans than her and could help her figure out how to get out of this situation with her father, if there was a possibility. He could see this in her eyes, he was getting through to her. 

Damian lifted his hand in order to reach Raven’s shoulder. He was not one to be physical with people, but if this meant he could convince her to tell him, he would. However, the moment his fingertips were grazing her skin, the crystal in her forehead started to glow once again. She shut her eyes with anger and pain while trying to control the words her father was yelling at her.

“Shut up, shut up, shut up!” Both of her hands were at the sides of her temples while she started murmuring words that controlled the glow, lowering it little by little until it was no longer glowing. 

Damian was frowning towards the incident that just happened before his eyes. He had been suspecting from the first two nightmares she had that those were somehow related to her father and the crystal where she has him trapped. This was only reaffirming his theory but he needed more, he needed her to tell him what was happening exactly.

“Please don’t tell Kori.” She begged after she read his thoughts and saw the theory of his father clear as day on his mind. 

“I won’t.” He quickly answered with total honesty. “But you have to tell me exactly what the hell is going on, Raven.” 

In that moment, Raven could notice how Damian was now more of a young adult than the little teenager he met when he first joined the Titans. The deepness of his voice took her off guard and she just nodded before taking his hand.

“I will. All of it.” Her eyes glowed and her aura started appearing as a shadow surrounding both of them. “But not here. We need to go somewhere safe.” Damian knew what she meant while looking into her eyes and without breaking eye contact he nodded firmly. 

“Lead the way.”

Notes:

I know this may be a little short. But I wanted to write something before knowing which direction to take with this work.

I hope to make the next chapters longer now that I have a clearer idea of what I want to write and the plot to be.

Thank you for reading if you came all the way here!

Chapter 2

Notes:

Italics means they are thinking, dreaming or using telepathy

It was in the blink of an eye that both of them appeared in Raven’s former realm, Azarath. The feeling of destruction still present in the air even after all of the years that had passed after Trigon’s presence in this world was chilling. Building’s destroyed, pieces of rubble scattered all over, and more importantly, the feeling of loss of the culture that was thriving. Sorrow wouldn’t even begin to describe what the place conveyed.

Even though Damian had only been there once, he felt like he knew the place as if it was his own. Perhaps the bond he shared with Raven had done more between them than just a mental connection, but also shared a familiar feeling with places, just like this one.

Raven had stopped casting her dark shadow and the glowing that was typical of her started fading away once she finalized the spell. She found herself looking towards Damian who was analyzing every inch of the place. 

Tactical. Smart.

She thought to herself. It’s not like he would find any type of life there or anywhere close really. But it gave her peace to see how much he cared. She could trust him.

“No one can hear us.” She reiterated Damian. “Not even my father.” Pointing to her crystal, now a more matte red than a bright one, she gave Damian half a smile, trying to reassure him. Or maybe, it was more to reassure herself.

He nodded, but still wanting to make sure before engaging further on the subject he asked “How is that possible?” 

“Azarath is in another realm. Different from earth and different from… well, the realm Trigon is from. The deal is that the crystal and I stay together so that the bond doesn’t break.” She makes a pause while breathing, a minute relief could be seen across her face. “As long as the crystal is with me, in here he cannot hear me, the same way that right now I am free from the torment of his voice.”

Damian, still with a face with no expression in it, feels relief as well. However, a thought creeps its way into his mind. Why doesn’t she come here? She’d be free of her father . He quickly pushes that thought away. That would mean losing his best friend, probably forever. Instead, he opts to ask for what they came for.

“So.”  He leads her to what looked like used to be stairs where they could sit down. “The nightmares.”

“The nightmares.” She repeated.

Raven took a deep breath while looking up at the sky. The moon that used to be there, crushed, now particles floating in the atmosphere. She faced down and looked around, seeing the place she once called home. Gone. Where to start? She was wondering. Here.

“This.” She let out a heavy sigh while closing her eyes to stop the tears that were forming in her eyes from escaping them. Her lips trembled. “This is my nightmare!”  She yelled out with frustration in her voice, four eyes appeared in her face. Her anger let her demon side show, but quickly hid it while looking the other way.

Damian didn’t react. He had never been fazed by her powers or what they could do. He was just letting Raven get it all out in order to continue with the conversation.

After making sure she no longer had her demon face on her, she turned to face Damian again. “I’m sorry.” 

“You have nothing to apologize for.” With a reassuring and firm tone he nodded and put his hand on her shoulder caressing it in a gentle way before continuing. “I take it that your nightmares are about what happened that day?” 

The touch of Damian on her shoulder was calming. It helped her think clearly. “Yes, and no.” He stopped momentarily. “What happened that day happened because I acted like what I was made for. What I was meant to be. A portal so that my father could bring the end of the world.” She paused. “A means to an end.”

“Raven…” He began to talk but was interrupted.

“Spare me the lecture that everyone can choose their destiny. I was made to be the person who brings the end of the world. There’s so much one can do to change their destiny.” The sense of realism Raven had was something Damian always found refreshing in her, but not on this. Not like this.

“Kinda like someone that was conceived with the best DNA available to be an elite assassin, isn’t it?” Maybe it was an obvious remark, but it was a necessary one if she was gonna dismiss a lecture , as she was calling it.

An immediate feeling of regret set inside her chest. “It’s not the same thing-”

“Please, do enlighten me.” He crossed his arms while waiting for an explanation. He wasn’t hurt by this comparison at all, but he was, however, angry that she felt this way about herself. That she was only meant to be one thing, and one thing only. She stayed silent and he continued. “Is it because I am not half demon? Because believe or not, I have been called the spawn of Satan myself.”

“You know that’s not true.” She quickly intervened.

“How do you know? How are you so sure?” He pondered the questions with their eyes intertwined. 

She shook her head without breaking eye contact. “I know you.” Her index finger went to Damian’s temple. “I have seen your thoughts and you are nothing like people expected you to be. You are good, kind, and have shaped your own way.” She made a pause. “You are not like you are because of how they wanted you to be, but despite of.”

Damian was the one silent now. He lowered his gaze a few seconds before engaging again with her. “If you believe so highly of me, who from the moment that was conceived, was expected to be the greatest assassin the world has ever seen. Why can’t you , who had a loving mother, a stable-ish childhood, and now friends, some credit?”

His words made so much sense. He was right, maybe destiny is something that you could control in certain situations. But this was getting overwhelming to her. She concentrated her sight onto the sky of Azarath while heavily breathing. Both of her hands were holding on tight to the edges of the stairs, her knuckles turning white of the strength she was using. “He is not done, Damian.”

Damian frowned, there was so much to unfold from that. “What does that mean?”

“The nightmares started for a reason. He has been warning me.” She locked her eyes with Damian’s. “He is planning his escape, and I feel he could do it. I don’t know how. But I know he has something big going on. And he is going to use me to end everything on earth.”

With each word, Damian’s concern grew bigger and bigger. “What is it that you see in your nightmares?” A quick thought appeared in his mind. “I remember reading in one of my grandfather’s books that dreams, or in this case nightmares, can have hidden meanings in the details we see in them.” 

Raven was silent, listening to each word that Damian uttered. She knew that the collection of Ra's Al Ghul library was vast, and definitely what Damian was proposing made sense. Damian was looking at her trying to see what she described from her dreams, see what they could make of those details and give them meaning, and Raven nodded while concentrating on her dream.

“Well, I…” Blank. Her mind couldn’t focus on the details as such, while trying to remember her dream she just remembered the fear. The guilt.

Her breath started to lack. Her heart rate started to go faster than if she had just run a marathon. The panic was starting to get into her. She held herself tight in a hug while shutting her eyes.

Damian noticed how she started to act, just like when she was asleep. “Raven, it’s not real.” He stood up from where he was seated and took both of her shoulders with his hands, trying to make her look at him. “You are not there, you are here, with me.”

She was trembling, her whole body felt as if it just went through a whole pressure compactor. The voice of Damian was slowly grounding her. Just before she opened her eyes, one memory from the nightmare came to her. 

Raven was looking at her own skin after she stopped running and was looking at the blisters and wounds, that’s when she noticed…

She snapped out of the memory and started to try and catch her breath. Her face had sweat dripping down her forehead. Damian held her from the waist and slowly made her lay her head on his shoulder while using his other hand to brush a few locks that got out of place during the commotion. “We’ll figure this out.” He dismissed the idea of getting her to remember the nightmares again, not if it meant to put her through this every time.

“I remembered something.” Her breath had normalized and was finally able to speak. Damian turned his head slightly towards her to give her his full attention. “My skin. I had been running, it was blistered and wounded. And… when I was looking at my wounds I noticed I was covered in tattoos? Or did they look more like scars?”

Her head felt dizzy trying to get the description right. Damian takes her chin with his thumb and index finger to make her look up at him. “That’s good.” He nods. “It’s great even. Gives us somewhere to start.”

There was something in the emerald of his eyes that just made her believe him. They stayed silent for a couple of minutes, he was waiting for her to continue and she was giving everything thought. Her father’s plan, her own destiny, her friend’s fates, the fear, the guilt, the clues. 

“You stupid stupid girl … You might have trapped me with a minor trick, but sooner rather than later, you will fulfill the destiny you were created for.”

That was something that for sure she wouldn’t forget. It was something that not only appeared in every nightmare she's had so far, but every time her father threw a tantrum. Every waking moment. Every Sunday afternoon. Every training session. Every meditation hour.

“Sooner rather than later, I will fulfill the destiny I was created for.” She muttered to herself and then looked at Damian who had a confused look as he was trying to keep up with her thoughts. “Oh no.”

Damian was no fool, and afterall, he was the son of the greatest detective of the world. After a few seconds of connecting the dots he knew where she was getting at. Damian let out an angry sigh. “It’s not a nightmare, it's a prophecy. He is not threatening to escape. He is right where he wants to be.”

Raven lowered her eyes and hugged her knees while she nodded with defeat.

-

He had been walking around in circles for what felt like hours, trying to figure out a way out of this for her. They could not leave Azarath without a plan in place because Trigon would be able to hear them again, but with every passing minute that they were waiting to return to earth it became more and more suspicious anyway.

It had probably just been half an hour tops since he started spiraling trying to play out all of the scenarios and think of all the options to deal with a situation like this one. But all of this pacing was starting to drive Raven crazy.

As she was still sitting on the stairs she decided to stand up while crossing her hands and releasing them in front of her. “Okay, that is enough.” 

Damian snapped out of his thoughts and faced towards her. Confused. “Wha-”

“I said enough. You have not come up with anything useful in the last thirty minutes.” She started walking down the stairs to meet him at the beginning of these and stood in front of him. “And I’m not saying you couldn’t but we have been gone for too long. It’s gonna get suspicious, Dami.” 

“I know.” He nodded slightly without taking his eyes off of her. “But we do need to be able to talk without your father knowing. Or else how are we going to deal with this?”

She smirked, as it wasn’t already obvious. 

“How do you think?”

Their bond. Her voice resonated in Damian’s head and he simply shook his head, clearly amused. “I thought you said you didn’t like when I used that thing.”

“I don’t.” Or more likely, wouldn’t like to feel vulnerable to Damian sniffing around inside her head and finding things she doesn’t want him to know. “But, even though my father talks to me, he can’t actually read my mind. It’s safe if we talk there.”

“Well, then.” He smirked. Even though he was a young adult, it seemed he was a kid that was just given a christmas present.

“You do know you can only use it for my father related trouble, right?” She pointed at him, almost as if she was warning him of a consequence if misuse of this gift occurred.

He lifted his right hand and held three fingers up. “Scouts honor. Or whatever the Americans say.” He lifted one eyebrow looking at her while holding in his laughter and she just smiled. “I can promise it in Arabic too if it makes you more comfortable.”

Raven used her telekinesis to pull Damian’s cape from behind him and cover his face leaving him breathless. “You’ve been spending too much time with Dick.”

He got out of the cape’s grip and while catching up his breath he rolled his eyes. “It was either him or Todd, and believe me. You would’ve hated me.”

She giggled. “More?”

She was smiling, relaxed, without a thought of the nightmares, the fear, her father. Damian was taking it all in, he wished she could stay like this forever, without a worry in the world. 

But it was impossible.

“You have no idea.” He smiled. They both held in their words while looking at each other, enjoying the happiness that was surrounding them. Like a fragile bubble of joy that was about to burst.

“We gotta go.” 

It was unclear who thought it. Maybe both of their thoughts meddled into the other. Maybe both though it. Maybe no one did. But they knew it was time to go back to earth. 

Damian knew he had to start researching. A lot. 

And Raven. Well, she knew she wasn’t alone with the monster that is hidden inside her closet anymore.

Once more, she approached Damian and her powers formed a shadow that overtook both of them and made them disappear from Azarath. When they opened up their eyes again, they were standing in the middle of the library, right where they began. The crystal in Raven’s forehead was now glowing again, and Damian knew it was no longer safe to talk to her about everything that was going on with her and her father.

“I believe you have not eaten yet.” He pointed out after a few moments of silence.

Raven noticed how he deviated the conversation into something innocent and nodded with a smile. “No, I have not.”

“Waffles sound good?” He started walking towards the exit and opened the door for her.

“As long as you don’t burn them.” She teased and followed him into the kitchen.

When they arrived into the kitchen aisle, Damian simply rolled his eyes when he saw the mess Garfield and Jaime had left behind in their routine wrestling breakfast. Raven seated herself in one of the stools while she watched Damian clean with a grumpy face and started cooking for her. She had forgotten Kori was looking for her when she felt her coming on the hallway but knew it was too late to escape.

“There you are!” A cheerful Kori entered the room while walking towards them. “What is this mess? Damian, you know the rules, you have to clean when you cook.”

Raven couldn’t help but laugh out loud when she saw the fuming face of Damian. He served her the waffles and started cleaning the kitchen’s mess while whispering curses in Arabic. “Gar and Jaime did it, actually.” She clarified before taking her first bite.

“Well, in that case, thank you for cleaning Damian.” She turned to Raven, as she thought she wouldn’t want her Damian to hear this. “I need to talk to you about your nightmares. I did some research last night. Can you meet me at the strategy room after you’re done?”

Damian heard everything while pretending to wipe the counter. Raven just slowly nodded since Kori caught her off guard and after that Kori smiled. “Great, enjoy your food.” She left and Raven turned to Damian who was already in front of her. 

“What do you think she researched about?” She swallowed a gulp in her throat while talking to him through their bond.

“I don’t know, but if it has anything to do with your father, you can’t be there. He would know.” He shook his head slowly. 

“No, Damian. You promised me.”  

“I won’t do anything you don’t want me to. But, how are you going to do this if we don’t tell her?” His reasoning was logical, and she knew he had a point. But she didn’t felt ready to involve more people in this. She didn’t want anyone else to be in the middle of her family problems, because in her family, this meant the end of the world.

After a few minutes of pondering, she had a realization. “I have an idea.”

Notes:

So... if you are a teen titans fan you might have noticed that besides taking inspiration from the DC movies I am also taking inspiration from the animated show from 2003. Please bear with me, the storyline is similar in some aspects but believe me, the plot and direction I wanna give it is way, way different.

Thank you for reading. What are your guesses for next chapter?

Chapter 3

After hearing the master plan of Raven, Damian was still seated with his arms and legs crossed on the counter of the kitchen observing her. “You do realize the OBVIOUS flaw in that, right?” He said inside her mind while raising an eyebrow. There was a sass even telepathically in the way he said it. The plan was simple enough in Raven’s mind: Damian would tell Dick he needed to distract Kori, wouldn’t give him any reason why and it would work because Dick was the only one capable of distracting Kori and also would do anything for Damian.

Raven was still eating her breakfast, not so much because she was hungry or because she knew she needed to, but because it was a way to distract her father by performing daily actions while she talked to Damian without him noticing anything odd. “What? He trusts you.”

Damian got up from where he was sitting and approached the cabinets to take a glass and pour himself some water. “I know he does. But it’s a band-aid on a bullet wound.” He started explaining. “It will work today, but what about tomorrow? He is going to need more than a simple ‘trust me, Grayson’. He will start asking questions.” Damian gulped the water that was on his glass and wiped some that escaped his lips with the back of his hand.

“I don’t want them involved.” The leftover waffles were already cold and she put them away in a plastic container ignoring Damian on his way to the fridge. She stored them and closed the door letting out a sigh before turning around.

He knew that she would have to accept help eventually. But for now he would try and adhere to her wishes, as long as they wouldn’t compromise her safety. “I’ll do it. But, at least humor me with something.”

She was laying her back on the fridge, both of her arms crossed. He had agreed to do it, so she felt like she owed him at least to hear what he had to say. “Tell me.”

“You don’t want Kori, Grayson, or any of the Titans involved because you care about them. Correct?” She nodded. “Let me get someone else involved. Someone you don’t know and, therefore, you don’t owe anything to.”

She thought about it. It wasn’t like not knowing the person would make her feel less guilty about involving them, but as long as she could make Damian keep his promise. She could fold. “Done.” Damian’s lips formed half a smile.

“You didn’t finish your waffles. I thought I got better at cooking.” He teased, trying to change the subject while speaking out loud.

Raven scrunched her nose while thinking. “You did. But pretty much all credit goes to Alfred, doesn’t it?” They both started walking out the kitchen while Damian sent a text message to Dick.

“Certainly not to my father.” He glanced at her. Dick responded soon after. “I gotta go and call Dick.”He stopped walking with his phone in his hand ready to dial. “ Give me ten minutes and I’l get Kori off your back for the rest of the day. Remember, band-aid on a bullet wound.” Those words practically echoed in Raven’s head before she saw as he walked away through the hallway talking to Dick and telling him he needed to distract Kori, no questions asked.

Dick refused at first, he knew it would be impossible to keep things from Kori, but the way Damian was asking sounded so serious that it gave him no other choice but to accept.

Raven on the other hand decided it would be good for her to meditate and do some research of her own. She had long been ignoring the issue of her father’s nightmares, so she needed to start facing them straight ahead.

She headed to her room and painted a circle on the floor in order to have a more deep meditation. Damian mentioned that the key could be hidden in the details of her nightmares, and by the way he worried when she attempted to remember back in Azarath, she knew she had to do this on her own. Why worry him if there’s no reason to?

-

The next few days passed by without a word from Kori to Raven. Damian had convinced Dick to take her on a getaway trip to a tropical island. A treat, courtesy of Bruce’s black card.

In the meantime, Raven had been having sessions of meditation, or more like vivid dreams. Each one gave her more frustration than the one before. Sometimes she would be able to catch a glimpse, a sensation, a detail, anything, no matter how small it was, and she would write it down in a journal that she kept with herself at all times hidden with magic. 

Her father would be laughing at her with each failed session, reminding her of how pointless her efforts were. But, to her surprise, everytime she immersed deeper in those dreams, the easier it was to ignore the constant mockery inside her head. Trigon was unimpressed about this, it meant nothing more than his daughter going through another phase of rebellion.

Since Kori had been out of town a couple of days, the titans were dispersed in their usual activities and training. So, Raven had forgotten about Gar and Jaime’s plans.

“I said are you coming, Rae.” Garfield repeated, getting in the way of Raven’s thoughts. She was sitting at the library, she had her journal on her lap and closed it when she realized what was happening. 

“That’s today? I thought you said Tuesday.” She stood up and held her journal close to her chest while walking towards Garfield. 

Gar looked at her confused. He took his cellphone out of his pocket and checked the date on the screen. “You had me for a minute there. Today is Tuesday.” Jaime appeared in the library entrance with a big smile and what seemed like a way too big cooler.

“I packed the snacks, beverages, snacks…” He nodded. “Los esenciales.” He gave both thumbs up to Gar and Raven and she just smiled with a bit of embarrassment. 

“You know what, I lost track of time. You guys go ahead and I’ll catch up.” She pressed her lips together hoping they wouldn’t get mad. 

Garfield and Jaime looked at each other and smirked. “Damian said the same thing. If you guys wanted to spend more time alone, you could’ve just said so.” Gar teased Raven by turning into a butterfly and making a heart with his wings, to which she just rolled her eyes to this remark before leaving the room holding on to the impulse of squashing him.

“Yeah, yeah. We’ll catch up.” She dismissed them, but an obvious flare was on her face with the thought of those two teasing her about Damian.

She hadn’t seen much of him in the last few days. But it wasn’t like he was seeing much of her either.

Damian had been conducting research of his own, taking care of the Kori situation, and of course, getting in contact with someone that he knew for a fact would know a thing or two about what they were dealing with, and hopefully, could provide answers.

His research mostly consisted in the database he stole from the batcave when Bruce was not around, a few books he still had from his time in Nanda Parbat, and of course, some intel from Oracle’s files collection he may or may not have bought for the fair price of taking the fall in whatever she sees fit.

So far he had a basic file build up: biography of raven, biological tree, powers, abilities, weaknesses, and a compilation of different versions of lore that referenced her. The destined child that would bring the end of the world, a half-human, half-demon entity. Antichrist, Al-Masih ad-Dajjal, The Beast, The False Prophet, Cambion, Kalki, Angra Mainyu… All of these had similarities and differences to what Raven had been through. 

Perhaps it could be her past and her future. But all? None? How many? How to know which to rely on?

These questions pondered inside Damian’s head. Running around and around. Chasing a tale that could not be reached no matter how much he tried.

The worst of it all? He hadn’t been able to get in contact with anyone that could help. There was so much Dick would or could do for him. Time was of the essence, and every second that passed felt like a rain drop fading away in a desert. You feel powerless, and you are just standing there, watching it happen in front of you, without any say in the matter.

A knock in the door got him out of his thoughts. “Garfield, for the last time, I told you I will go if I pleas-” He had gotten up from the chair in front of his desk and walked to open the door expecting to find an overjoyed Garfield, and instead found Raven with both eyes wide open to his words.

Damian’s cheeks turn bright red and one couldn’t tell if it was the anger that was clearly directed towards Gar, or the embarrassment of finding out that it wasn't him. “I’ll make sure to deliver the message.” She raised both eyebrows, clearly holding in a laughter. The rose cheeks of Damian made him look way younger and cute.

“You will not say a word.” He pointed at her before crossing his arms and looking away. “And I do not look cute.”

Raven stopped her amusement when she heard the last part. Did she think that out loud? “What?”

Damian just let her in while walking towards his desk to close his files now that she was here. “You make the same face anytime Titus does a new trick. Which I can’t blame you for. He does look cute, but I don’t.” Raven felt relieved to hear that, in a way she knew that Damian would never read her mind without her consent.  “I thought you were going with them.”

He finished putting away all of his research and leaned on the edge of his desk while crossing his arms. She was still by the doorframe. “I was. Am.” Her crystal glowed, her father was trying to tell her something, but she ignored him. “I just lost track of time, I told them I would catch up, and they told me you said the same thing so I came to check on you.” 

“I wasn't really planning on going. But if I didn’t tell them I would, they wouldn’t leave me alone.” He shrugged. He knew he wasn’t known for being the one to have fun but still, without taking his eyes off her he was reminded that he had other more important things in his mind.

She tilted her head, there was a noticeable frustration inside Damian, she could feel it. “Maybe this is what we need, a day to get out of our heads.” She offered. “The way I see it, we can stay here and be miserable. Or, we can go over with Jaime and Gar and be miserable in the sun.”

The sun outside was peeping through Damian’s room curtains. Maybe it wasn’t such a bad idea after all, and besides, Raven seemed eager to go. How could he refuse? “That sounds like an excellent plan. Let me gather my things. I’ll meet you at your room?”

She couldn’t help but smile and nodded to his question before heading off to her room to pack a bag with a book, sunscreen and a towel. She put a bathing suit under her clothes even though she didn’t actually think she’d go near the water or even leave the comfort of the shadow an umbrella could bring. 

A well and simple packed bag was ready as well as she was when her father screamed at her louder than he had been doing the days before, tired of being ignored. 

You ungrateful child! You think you can just pretend to ignore the inevitable? You will be known as a traitor and a destroyer, and you’ll be left alone, not even I will look at you once I am done destroying everything you love… This little fling of yours is going to destroy you. I’m going to make sure of that, mark my words, child. MARK MY WORDS!

Raven was on her knees getting control of her own mind after this little overpowering on behalf of her father. How did he do that? He had been under control so far, and ignoring him was working pretty well. How did he enter her thoughts again? How did he overpowered her own mind? 

This was not good.

Does this mean he could start hearing her conversations with Damian if he gathered power enough? It wouldn’t be safe anymore. Their plan would be compromised. She had to tell him. Damian knocked on the door and Raven quickly stood up and opened the door. He immediately knew something was wrong.

“What happened?” He asked without hesitation. A frown appeared on him, she was ready to tell him when she noticed Damian’s back-pack and casual wear for the beach. He needed this day off. She could tell him about what happened the next day, so she quickly changed her expression.

“I thought I left the water running on the kitchen sink. But I just remembered that Gar used it right after me.” She made it seem like it was no big deal. Damian didn’t fully believe her as he could read her body language and she was still a little tense, but decided against asking further if she dropped the subject.

“Right.” He dismissed as well. “I have everything ready. Are we taking my bike or…?” He was gonna suggest one of the cars Batman selflessly donated to the Titans.

“I could portal us there. Is faster.” He was gonna refuse this option since he knew she had to save her strength but they appeared in front of Garfield and Jaime faster than he could utter a word.

“Hey! You guys made it!” Jaime greeted with a smile. Gar was eating snacks while laying on a beach chair and his expression changed to an upset one. “Pay up.”

“Damn!” He turned himself into a squirrel and started looking inside his backpack to give Jaime a ten dollar bill and turning into himself again.

“Wait, what’s happening?” Raven asked with confusion in her face while Damian ignored them and started setting up an umbrella for them.

Jaime giggled and shook his head. “Garfield bet me you guys wouldn’t show and I bet him you would.” He kissed the bill and Gar crossed his arms.

“Yeah, whatever. I’m gonna go swim, since apparently I’m the only one that knows how to do it with style.” He took off his shirt before starting running towards the ocean and  jumping inside the water as he came out as a dolphin. A lot of tourists that were around started taking pictures of the sighting of a Dolphin.

Jaime rolled his eyes and turned to Raven. “When do you think he’ll remember why we have to wait after eating before we swim?” The dolphin started making dolphin noises that sounded an awful lot like he was in pain. “Ah, there it is.”

Raven held in her laugh by covering her mouth with one of her hands and shaking her head feeling a little sorry for Garfield. 

“The umbrella is ready.” Her thoughts and giggles got interrupted by Damian who had approached her from the opposite side Jaime was in. She turned to face him and then the umbrella and smiled while nodding.

“Thanks, I could’ve done that, you know?” She teased.

“I know. Probably way better than I did.” He teased back and got out of her way so she could go take a seat.

Raven sat and started putting a lot of sunscreen all over her body. When she was done, she took out her book out of her bag and decided that a good read would be what she needed. It was difficult at first to concentrate on what she was reading, what had happened with her father was still roaming around in her mind, but after a while she got into the story the book offered and got immersed, getting herself lost for a while.

Damian had let her do her own thing, watching over her in case she needed something but keeping his distance so he wouldn’t smother her by sitting right next to Jaime where Garfield was sitting before they arrived. He watched every move she would do. When she started putting sunscreen on her skin, even if there were clothes converting the majority of her body, he couldn’t help but wonder how it would feel to touch such delicate, soft, and beautiful skin. 

Perhaps she wouldn’t notice, or perhaps she wouldn’t care at all, but everything she did, he perceived as performed with the most delicate and elegant essence. This was something he had noticed from the moment they met. These moments of delicacy or elegance could go from something so simple as reading a book, to something so complicated as performing a spell. Was it the way she didn’t care nor notice that gave her more credit to this? He may never know the answer to that, but he knew that as long as he got the fortune of enjoying moments like these, where he could just sit and watch her.

God. He could watch her for eternity.

He probably got lost in his thoughts a good few minutes before Jaime interrupted him by whispering something into his ear.

“Mmm?” Damian muttered, not fully aware that he was asked something and turning his face away from Raven to look at Jaime.

“Hermano, I said, can I ask you something?” Jaime whispered again. “And you don’t have to answer if you don’t want to.” Damian was even more confused but he nodded anyway, giving him permission to ask whatever he had on his mind but with a frown that was warning him to watch his words. “Well, I’m already regretting this. But, why haven’t you asked her out? It's obvious there’s something going on between the two of you.”

Damian stayed silent. He was not about to answer this question, especially not to him. Jaime backed up and put his hands in the air, making a sign of apology and to let go of the subject. To avoid making anything even more awkward he got up and started walking towards the water, leaving Damian behind.

He stood there, frozen, thinking about this question. It’s not like he hadn’t thought about it before, but he was always burying whatever he felt for Raven. He was taught a thousand ways to torture, kill, slaughter, destroy someone. But love? That’s something he was never trained for. 

He could try, right? Maybe talk to Dick about it. Get some opinion on the subject. No! What is he thinking about? They had bigger issues to think about. 

One more time he turned to the direction where Raven was sitting. She had taken off the shirt that was covering her. Probably the heat. He flushed and looked away.

Even if he opened up to the possibility of asking her out, there was no possibility of her returning that feeling back. This was getting inside his head and the thought of Raven couldn’t leave her mind.

He got up and without taking off any of the clothes he had on he ran and jumped inside the ocean to make laps. Exercise always cleared his mind. But also he felt the need to cool down with the water. He may have stayed a well forty-five minutes to one hour doing laps until his body was so tired he just left himself floating while he stared at the sky.

What the hell is wrong with me?

Notes:

Hey there! So did you guys see that ao3 was down earlier today? Got me scared for a second there. Anyways, here is another chapter! I was inspired in this one, maybe you could tell.

Also, little batfam reference number 2. Yes, I will give you guys more content like this.

Hope you liked it<3

Chapter 4

Notes:

Remember, Italics for dreams, thoughts or telepathy. Also, please read my final note! Thank you<3

Raven started to feel the sun tickle in her toes. She realized that the sun was starting to set and the shadow from the umbrella was no longer enough to cover her completely. At that moment, she realized that she must have been immersed in her book for more time than she intended.

A sigh escaped her lips while she closed her book and left it on the chair beside her legs and started to stretch her arms and neck. She was still a little stiff from being seated from what must have been at least a couple of hours. 

Her gaze turned to her right, looking for the others. She found Jaime laying down with his eyes closed. Probably trying to catch a break from all the snacks and games they might have played, knowing them. Gar on the other hand had turned into a dog and was playing catch with some girls that were at the beach. However, she couldn’t find Damian anywhere. 

Strange.

“Hey, Jaime.” She called while getting off her chair and burying her feet on the sand, feeling the coolness underneath it. 

“What’s up, Raven?” He answered back with a bit of laziness in his voice.

She smiled, he looked tired, but like he had fun. “Where’s Damian?”

“The creepy mocoso hasn’t left the ocean for over two hours.” He pointed to where Damian was.  He was closer to the shore now, looking to the horizon, where the sun was setting, still with his clothes on. “At least he is calmed now.”

“Calmed?” She raised an eyebrow while trying to understand how much she could’ve missed all of this just because of a book. Why did he just start training out of nowhere? Why didn’t he take his clothes off and just leave his bathing suit?

“Yeah, I asked him about…” He quickly shut and shook his head. “Well, I ask about something, can’t even remember what it was, really. And then he decided to go and take some laps. Did them for an hour. Esta loco.”

Raven nodded to Jaime and then turned to where Damian was standing. The water was only covering his body from the waist down so she decided to stand and walk towards him to see if she could feel what was going on with him. She grabbed her oversized t-shirt to cover her and walked to the shore until her feet could feel the wetness of the sand. 

She started approaching little by little until the water started covering her feet and stopped when it reached a little under the knee. Damian was still far from her reach, but could easily be heard from there. She was moments away from calling his name when she noticed the way the sunset light hit Damian. The warmness of the color of the light went so well with his tanned skin. She always thought Damian’s skin was something so beautiful, that just complimented his green eyes and vice versa. 

The wind started to blow a bit harder and she felt a breeze that chilled down her spine, snapping her out of her thoughts. His aura seemed uneasy, he got something in his mind that got him distraught. “Damian.” She called calmly.

He straightened his back when he heard his name and watched over his shoulder to see her standing there. “Sorry, I didn’t see you there.”

“Wow. Did I sneak in the great Damian Wayne?” She smirked, joking with him in an effort to lighten the mood. He did not react. In fact, he didn’t even move. 

Raven held herself tight while drawing her attention to the horizon once again, trying to ignore the fact that Damian was not in the mood. He closed his eyes while he enjoyed the warmth of the sun on his face for a few seconds before swimming closer to where Raven was standing and walked the rest of the way when the water wasn’t deep enough anymore. His clothes were soaked and glued to his body. His shirt was see-through at the moment making his muscles more noticeable.

He was shaking a little, his tired body because of the laps from earlier plus the breeze that the evening brought kept cooling him down. “Did you enjoy your book?” It seemed like he wanted to deviate the subject but at the same time, he showed genuine interest in her.

“I did. A lot.” She was looking directly into his eyes, trying to keep herself from looking down at his wet clothes. “Didn’t even notice what you guys were doing all this time. Looks like you had fun too.”

“It does?” He looked confused and shrugged. “I guess after all, I clear my mind when I train.”

“Wanna tell me what that was about? I can feel your distress.” She placed her right hand on Damian’s chest. “It doesn’t take the bond to know something’s off.”

He let her place her hand there without taking his eyes from hers. There was no reaction in his face but his heart started to beat faster. This was not the place nor the time to talk about something not even him knew what it was about. Without breaking eye contact, he took her wrist and slowly pushed her hand away. “It’s nothing you have to be concerned about. I promise.”

Damian seemed sincere and Raven trusted him with her life so there was no reason not to believe him. She was not completely convinced to let the subject go, but she could feel this was something not worth pushing too far. She nodded in agreement without saying any more. “You know what? I’m starving. Let’s go.”

Walking backwards and getting out of the water she smiled at Damian before turning completely and continuing until she reached where the boys were. Damian saw how the last streak of sunlight was bathing Raven as she walked away. He sighed and walked after her.

The four of them finished the day by eating the rest of the food and drinks they had packed for their little excursion. Damian didn’t say much as he remained distant the rest of the evening, even if it wasn’t out of character for him. However it made Raven feel a little excluded, as if she had done something wrong.

When the food was gone and Garfield had no more energy left in him, they decided to go back to the tower. Raven teleported them there. She expected Damian to refuse but he stayed back and let her take that decision on her own. 

After they arrived at the tower, everyone said their goodnights and headed to their room. Raven watched as Damian quickly left without saying a word. She needed to talk to him about what had happened with her father but couldn’t even get the opportunity to utter a word.

Another day, I guess.

-

The uneasy feeling of the floor beneath her made her snap her eyes open and sit up straight while looking around. Raven was in the middle of nowhere, her hands felt a familiar texture made contact with her skin, she was laying in the middle of a desert filled with pure white sand. 

The sky once again was filled with a bright red color that filled the whole view. She stood up and cleaned the sand she had in her knees and legs while trying to figure out where she was. She had never seen this place before in her life, but everything seemed so… quiet.

She gasped when she noticed that the tattoos were once again on her skin. As fast as she could, she uncovered her arms and legs as much as possible trying to memorize every inch. 

“They look like birthmarks…” She muttered to herself after taking a closer look to each individual mark. 

For some unknown reason, the marks on her skin almost started to look like letters to her. A headache invaded her while trying to make sense of each mark. Some she could read as they repeated and now she knew what they were. Kinda like when you haven’t practiced a language in a long time and you are rusty at first but after one word or another you start to get the hang of it. 

This, however, was different, since she was pretty sure she had never encountered similar letters or dialects like this before. Or had she? How could she know what the letters were and how to put them together if she hadn’t learned the language before?

Wind started to flow through the desert, the calm that was felt before was gone. A simple coo was heard above her. She glanced towards the sound encountering a white raven, it looked so elegant and it was looking back at her. It cooed one more time at her before disappearing behind a blinding light. Almost like a warning.

A loud thud behind her made her adrenaline skyrocket. 

“He’s coming…”

Unlike her other nightmares, there was nowhere to hide here. Not a building, not a tree, nothing. 

Her heartbeat kept rising and her fear made her stomach turn. She started trying to use her powers to portal herself out of there, but they weren’t working. Why weren’t they working? She started to try harder and harder. 

She had to escape.

“Raven!” Damian yelled as he woke up with sweat in his forehead and running down the hall towards Raven’s room. He felt Raven’s fear in her nightmare. She woke him up thanks to their bond getting stronger because of the constant use lately. 

He practically kicked her door down on his way to her. He hold her on his arms and with his hand he held her face and closed his eyes while starting to recite something he learned after researching day and night. ” Vires augeo. Per aspera ad astra. Vires augeo. Per aspera ad astra. ”

He kept repeating over and over. It was a chant in Latin that urged her to increase her strength and to overcome difficulties to reach a better state or health, in this case, a better state of mind. While reciting this he didn’t stop his caressing in Raven’s face. 

She started to lower her beats per minute, her breath was no longer shaky and after a few minutes she opened her eyes, finding Damian’s. “Damian? What-”

“You were having another nightmare. You called for my help.” He explained. He slowly stopped his caressing without letting her go from his hold.

“I did?” She sat up on the bed and touched her crystal. It didn’t hurt like in other occasions when she woke up from a nightmare. “What did you do? I-” She paused trying to remember. “I remember, I was having the nightmare, I remember everything from it. But then when I felt like there was no way out, it all just…”

She looked at him, as if she was trying to decipher a puzzle. “It all just what?”

“It just disappeared. I was in one of my memories in the gardens of Azarath. Learning a healing spell.” She began. “How did you do that? You don’t have magic.”

She didn’t mean it in a bad way, but she was impressed by that achievement and wanted to know more. “My grandfather always made me learn various languages. Including latin. I learned an Ancient Chant in the research I was doing for a mission.” He lied, knowing Trigon could hear them. “I thought it might help you. And it did.”

Damian would never cease to impress her. She smiled softly at him. “Thank you."

He returned the smile. Raven’s eyes had a light to them in the dark that just made them seem like a rare jewel. “You have nothing to thank me for. I would do it again.”

She flushed. It was a good thing they were in the dark, he wouldn’t notice. Damian felt a bit embarrassed of still being on her bed and got up while he cleared his throat. “Perhaps I should let you rest.” 

There was a sentiment of disappointment within her, she wanted to spend more time with him but couldn’t ask more from him than what he had already done. She simply shrugged without really answering.

He noticed that and approached the bed once more but was still standing so he wouldn’t make her feel uncomfortable. “Are you sure you’re okay? Maybe I should stay a little longer.” If he left without being a hundred percent sure she was alright he wouldn’t forgive himself.

“It’s just that, it was the first nightmare I had woken up from without a headache or stress.” She felt embarrassed to admit that and lowered her eyes. “But I couldn’t ask you to stay. You have to rest too.”

He shook his head and sat beside her. “I can stay and watch over you if it means you will have one night of complete rest. I don’t mind.” 

Damian helped her lay down once again without taking a no for an answer. She laid her head on the pillow looking at him fondling her hair. It didn’t take long before she started closing her eyes as a result of such delicate touch on her hair. The sleepiness was taking over her more and more, until she was more asleep than she was awake. “Damian…” She mumbled with fondness.

Suddenly, he felt like his heart skipped a beat. The way she pronounced his name. Such elegance, such rush. “Rest well. I will take care of you.”

And he did. He didn’t bat an eye for the whole night. He spent the night tracking Raven’s breath, making sure it was not rushed or altered. When she was deep sleeping, he made push-ups to distract himself and keep his blood running so he wouldn’t fall asleep.

By the time the sun started to come out, he had sat down beside her to admire her just a little bit more, before she opened her eyes and he could no longer do so with such freedom. He hadn’t seen her so relaxed in so long, so carefree. Every breath she took sounded like a rhythm he longed to hear for years. He closed his eyes concentrating on this sound when a whimper interrupted his thoughts.

Raven started moving through the sheets, a big breath was let out as she was starting to stretch herself and open her eyes. To her surprise, she found Damian still there. She figured he might flee once she fell asleep, but he didn’t. “You stayed.”

“Well, don’t sound so surprised. I may be many things, but I always keep my word.” He got up from where he was sitting and gave her half a smile. “I take it you did rest?”

“I did. Like I haven’t probably in years.” She admitted.

“I am very glad to hear that.” He could still hear the way she pronounced his name when she was half asleep just by looking at her. “I gotta get going. I got a late start for my training today.” He started to walk away.

She frowned. “What? Damian, you are the one that needs to rest now. Knowing you, you must have not slept at all last night, did you?” He shook his head in denial and she crossed her arms. “You gotta go and sleep.”

“I will do that, after training.” He replied firmly. And even so, he didn’t even think he could sleep in the middle of the day. “You’re welcome to join me, you seem like you might wanna kick my ass.”

“I’m considering it.” She said with tiredness. 

“Let’s go then.” He walked past her and went to his room to gather his training gear. 

He was changing clothes when he received a message on his phone. He stopped what he was doing and went to his desk to check what it was.

[Unknown]:     > I’ll meet you at one o'clock at the bar on 7th street.  

                     > Don’t be bloody late or I won’t waste any more of my time with you, little bird.

[Damian]:    > Whatever you say. 

                 > And you better live up to your reputation or I will be the one not wasting my time anymore.

“Finally, some improvement.” Damian said out loud. But what he really meant was that finally there was some hope.

Raven had been waiting for him for a few minutes so he came by his room to check on him, finding him shirtless since he was still changing clothes. “I’m sorry. But are we going to do this today or…?”  She asked while looking away.

He didn’t mind and still finished putting on his gear in front of her. He had a different attitude now, knowing that he would finally meet with someone that might provide answers. “Why? Having second thoughts?” He teased.

Raven laughed and shook her head. “Okay fine, you’re going down. I am not holding back.” 

“Wouldn’t have it any other way.” They both headed to the training room teasing each other for a well deserved training session. 

This will be fun. A small brawl against Raven, a quick shower and headed to the bar I go.

Notes:

Hi guys! Here it is another chapter. I was a bit distracted while writing this because I got an epiphany!

I want to write another fic, at the same time I am updating this one! It would also be Damian, but with the exception that it will have an original female character as a protagonist.

What do you guys think? Should I go for it? I literally was doing research for this fic, and found some info that I thought would be perfect for another story and hence... VOILA!!!! I already have the idea for at least 5 or 6 chapters. Let me know if you think I should go for it belowwww.

Chapter 5

The street leading up to the bar had a very particular smell, one that could almost make your eyes burn. A mix of alcohol and urine, probably already spread on the walls and alleys from that part of the city. Damian was walking with his hands inside the pockets of his hoodie. He was dressed as a civilian, or more accurately, he was in disguise dressed as a civilian.

The people that he walked past stared. But he couldn’t care less what they saw or what they thought.

Whether he liked it or not, he drew attention. He definitely looked like a spoiled rich kid that had no business walking alone in that part of town, but the drunks that were roaming the streets in broad daylight were not too much harm even if they wanted to. They were either too hungover from the night before, still unable to find their way back home, or they were already too drunk early in the day to care for a boy like that.

Finally, after a couple more blocks of walking without a particular expression in his face he arrived at the bar where he was set to meet with his contact. It looked like a peculiar place. A traditional pub sign was on the outside, the door was made out of wood and very worn out, probably years of bar fights and humidity had taken a toll on the place inside and out.

Pushing the door, it creaked, making a shrieking sound that made a couple of drunks at the bar turn their heads towards Damian and stare at him for a few seconds, probably thinking the many ways they could eat that boy alive if he had chosen the wrong place to grab a pint. Damian, of course, paid no attention whatsoever to them, his sight was already fixed on one person in particular across the room.

“Over here, little Wayne.” Called a blond man who was sitting in a booth on the corner of the pub while smoking a cigarette without looking at Damian, his eyes were locked in his cards. He was playing a game of poker, seemingly against himself.

Damian approached the man, a couple of thugs that were not drunk enough yet heard Damian’s last name and started whispering amongst themselves. Another problem to deal with later.

“I see you are as careless and stupid as I’ve heard.” Damian sat down on the seat in front of him in the booth. “You better be as resourceful and knowledgeable as well, Constantine.” 

Constantine simply smirked while Damian rested both of his elbows on the table, staring at him trying to figure out what was so funny. “They say the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, don’t they, mate?” He gave Damian a quick wink before returning to his game and revealing his game, he had a full house and smiling  with enthusiasm. “Pay up, you wankers!”

Damian raised an eyebrow, confused by what Constantine had just said until a second later two creatures appeared out of thin air on the booth. They were making faces of disappointment and pronouncing things he couldn’t quite understand, probably a magic or ancient language. They gave him a couple of items that glowed, and faded once Constantine took each of them.

A few moments later the creatures disappeared again and Constantine laid back on the back of the booth while lighting another cigarette. “I thought I told you to meet me here alone.” Damian complained.

“You’re cheerful. Ain’t ya? So what? I had some business to resolve with these lower class demons and they happened to be in the neighborhood. Two birds with one stone, don’t it?” He was growing tired of this conversation, but he was staying as a favor to Zatanna, as he was actively trying to regain her love. 

“Those were demons?” Damian asked, somewhat impressed. He had heard of Constantine's reputation and this just further proved that he earned it, whether he was an asshole or not.

“Impressed, little bird?” He teased and grabbed a pint of beer he had on the side giving a big sip and sighing from the taste. “So, are you gonna tell me why you asked to see me? Or can I go back to gamble with the demon morons?”

Damian scuffed and crossed his arms. “Before I tell you more, what do you know about a demon that does by the name Trigon?” His eyes were inspecting every inch of Constantine’s face, trying to figure out if he let out the minimal sign or expression that could tell him something without saying a word.

“Trigon, eh? You do know that before running you have to learn to crawl and then to walk, right, little bird? Hell, for this kinda demon you gotta learn to do a triathlon!” Constantine didn’t know whether to be impressed or concerned from the question Damian pondered. 

“I’m still waiting. What do you know about him.” His voice was deep, at eighteen you could clearly see the resemblance of Bruce's voice.

Constantine just rolled his eyes and gulped almost all of the pint of beer before speaking again. “Trigon, also known as Trigon the Terrible, or so I’ve heard, is a super ancient and immensely powerful inter-dimensional demon.” He made grand gestures with his hands to exaggerate the words since he found it ridiculous that they were talking about him. “That’s the kind of demons one doesn’t mess with, I’m tellin’ ya.” 

The last part sounded like a warning and Damian got curious. “There’s more, what is it?”

“What’s this about? Why the sudden interest in the mystic arts?” Constantine replied as well, they were both too stubborn and untrustworthy of the other.

Damian needed answers and he knew that if he didn’t bulge he wouldn’t get any. “I’m sure you’ve heard about an incident that happened close to Khandaq City in the Middle East about three and a half years ago. It must have been a pretty popular topic among your demon friends, didn’t it?”

Constantine’s eyes widened, he heard rumors, but nothing was ever confirmed. Trigon had finally come to conquer and destroy the world and yet everything was as nothing ever happened in a matter of hours. He had also heard about the rumor of the offspring of Trigon and how that was the key to him getting to cross to this world. “You know his child.” He affirmed and laughed softly. “Oh little pretty birdie, why didn’t you start there, eh?”

Damian clenched his fists, he didn’t want to involve Raven so early on. Not without answers. “Trigon’s child has no fault whatsoever. She didn’t choose to be her daughter and now I need you to help me find a solution to her torture. Can you help or are you useless?”

Constantine tilted his head with a smirk. “You fancy her, don’t ya?”

Damian was caught off guard with such a question and growled. In a swift movement he had taken out a batarang and crawled up the table to hold it to Constantine’s throat but he made a spell so Damian would go right through him making him fall on the floor.  

“Oh to be young and in love.” He teased a bit more while snapping his fingers so new bear would appear on his pint. Damian got up from the floor and approached Constantine taking him by the collar of his shirt. “Alright, alright, jeez. Not mentioning that sensitive subject again… “

Damian let go of his shirt and sat down on the booth again. Keeping his distance and trying to choose his words. “Are you gonna give something useful?”

“First of all, to do that I need to know exactly what you need my help for. So far you have only confessed your love for her to me, and that’s not so useful either.” Damian wanted to kill him right there and there, and Constantine pulled both hands in the air and laughed once more. “That was the last one, mate. I promise.”

Using all of his strength to not murder him, Damian breathed and looked at him. “She has him trapped and is carrying him around all day, every day.” His jaw was already sharp enough, but he clenched it even more while holding everything inside him together. “I don’t know how, and I don’t know why, but he is gonna escape his prison and destroy this world, while torturing her in the process.”

“Wait a fucking second, little bird. Are you shitting me?” He asked with a low voice. “That girl you fancy trapped Trigon with her bare magic? And she is using her magic to keep him trapped while performing other spells and tasks?” He sounded impressed and out of words. “How old was she when she trapped him?”

“What does it matter?” Damian seemed annoyed, thinking this was another attempt to be an asshole. “She was 14.”

“Bloody hell.” Constantine fell back into his seat. Damian could see that many thoughts were floating around inside his head. “Wait, how do you know he is gonna escape? You are not saying he wants to escape, you are saying he is gonna escape. Why?”

Damian was silent after that last question. He didn’t fully trust him to tell him that, not yet. “I’ve given you enough, what can you give me? I need something if I’m going to say another word about this.”

“Well, well, well.” Constantine shook his head. “You got the better parts of both your mum and dad, eh?” He enjoyed teasing Damian, it was way more fun than doing it to Bruce, Damian did react. “You’re right, it's only fair I give you something as well.”

Constantine got up from the booth and finished the rest of his beer in a big gulp. 

“Come boy, I think you’ll like this.” He said while tilting his head indicating the direction of a backdoor that led to the alley. He opened it and walked through it. 

Damian got up ready to follow Constantine when the two thugs from earlier got in his way, cutting him off. They had heard his last name and probably thought they could get a good reward for the son of the richest billionaire in America.

“You guys really don’t wanna do this, trust me.” He said as calmly as he could.

“Oh, but I think a rich kid like you ain’t gonna do nothing. Don’t make it more difficult, kid.” Said one of the thugs before trying to take one of Damian’s shoulders. Damian took his wrist and twisted it until he heard a crack and the thug laid crying on the floor. The other one went for a hit to Damian’s face. He dodge easily and took this other guy's arm and twist it behind his back before kicking him away. 

Damian fixed his clothes and walked through the door as Constantine did and he was in what seemed like a library and a study in a big house, looking for a book on the shelves. It looked cozy, nothing like what he imagined would be Constantine’s style. “What’s this place?”

“Why? Too small?” As Damian had only previously lived in mansions, bases and towers, probably the House of Mystery would be of no astonishment. “House of Mystery, daddy never told you bedtime stories about it and the awesome adventures of when he visited?”

Damian shook his head, Bruce didn’t but he had read one or two things about it in the batcave files. “So, what was it that you were gonna show me?”

A figure appeared behind Damian and he pulled one of his daggers to encounter it. Constantine stood between him and the figure. “Kid, stop trying to kill everything that moves. God, for me to say that.” He rolled his eyes and sighed. “This is Black Orchid. The spiritual embodiment of the house.”

Orchid observed Damian for a few seconds and after that she walked past both Constantine and Damian to a bookshelf to grab a book and give it to Constantine. 

“This is it, thank you.” He blew the dust that the book had gathered with the lack of touch of probably centuries without use. Constantine opened it and started surfing the pages. “Here.”

Damian approached Constantine and saw the page he was reading. It was a language pretty similar to Latin, but still, couldn’t figure out most of what the page said.

“Your girl has a thing for tattoos, does she?” Constantine asked and Damian frowned, not understanding where he was getting at.

“She’s not tattooed.” He clarified.

“Huh.” Constantine read the page again as if he was trying to remember the different translations of a word. “Right, not a tattoo as such. The page is talking of a mark on the skin like a scar.” 

Damian froze. “Scars?” A memory immediately appeared in his mind.

“My skin. I had been running, it was blistered and wounded. And… when I was looking at my wounds I noticed I was covered in tattoos? Or did they look more like scars?”

Raven had seen scars on one of her nightmares, it was covering her body.

“What does the scars mean?” He asked with a more urgent tone.

Constantine saw the realization within Damian’s eyes and kept reading the page making noises while muttering some of the words trying to get some meaning out of them. Constantine’s face changed to a frown. “What?” He uttered in confusion.

“What do you mean what?” The stress was starting to get to Damian. He needed some answers, and he needed them now.

“Hold your horses, little bird.” Constantine put one hand in the air and looked at Damian. “Have you ever seen the girl’s skin? Does she have any scars at all or not?”

Damian once again didn’t know whether to answer the question or not, giving too much information wouldn’t be the best strategy, but he was desperate. “I have, she doesn’t have any scars at all. Can you tell me what the hell is going on now?”

Constantine sighed. “The book talks about a prophecy.” He began and Damian crossed his arms while he directed every single of his senses towards him to pay full attention. “A half-demon, half-human bridge that will decide the fate of the world. Comforting.” He joked, trying to lighten the mood with no luck at all. “This creature, I’m guessing your girl, is supposed to have a giant birthmark covering her whole body. A scar if you will, that is supposed to tell the story of this prophecy, and he/she who shall bear it shall be the only one that shall be able to read it, blah, blah, blah…”

Damian stood there, processing the words from Constantine. A birthmark. That’s what Raven saw in her dreams, that’s the key. The prophecy, they need to know what it says.

“...be her.” Constantine finished. Damian got distracted and didn’t listen to that last part.

“What was that?” 

“I said, it can’t be her, you said your girl doesn’t have any scars, so it cannot be her.” Constantine repeated, but he knew that Damian was hiding something. “Doesn’t she, little birdie?”

“Can I have that book?” He asked, ignoring his question.

“She has seen them.” He laughed while tossing the book to Damian. “I’m intrigued, birdie. This girl of yours is strong and I certainly want to know how all of this ends.”

Constantine snapped his fingers. And the door that led them there started glowing. 

“Just know, that once you don’t know how to interpret the prophecy or deal with the dark magic she’ll have to face. My quota will rise up.” He smiled and let himself fall on the couch of the library. “I really hope your pride doesn’t keep me away too long, birdie. Cheers.” He toasted as he conjured a glass of whiskey in his hand.

Damian wasn’t taught how to be grateful, so he just looked at Constantine one last time before opening the door and walking through it with the book tucked inside his arms. 

Once he walked through the door, he appeared right in front of Titans tower. It was nighttime. He didn’t know how time worked in the House of Mystery, but somehow, he arrived a lot later than what he would’ve liked.

Thankfully, everyone was already asleep and he went to his room without a problem, where he started scanning all of the pages of the book so he could start pattern recognition of the language in order to translate it. It could take a few days until it finished translating, but at least he had some hope to hold on to for now. 

Notes:

Yay, finally Constantine appearance. What do you guys think? The plot is thickening!

I also wanted to let you know, in case you haven't already, that I am writing another Damian fic at the same time as this one, with a completely different plot. In case you wanna check that one as well(:

Chapter 6

Notes:

Italics for the telepathy.

The waves were softly breaking when touching the seashore and the sun was starting to come out in the horizon. The sound helped Raven meditate when she couldn’t sleep but she hadn’t realized how long she had been there until the sun rays started warming up her pale skin.

The incense that had been lit had been out for quite a while and the smell had faded away. The cape over her shoulders and the hood that was covering her head helped her with the cool breeze of dawn.

Maybe she had realized all of this, but was in a place so quiet that she didn’t wanna interrupt her peace by getting up and heading to her room.

“Got up early or stayed up late?” A voice behind her asked, making her jump slightly out of surprise. She opened one of her eyes and looked over her shoulder. 

She already knew who the voice belonged to, but it was always nice to see his face.

“Lately, I feel no difference at all.” She answered, letting out a sigh and taking off her hood to face Damian, who was taking a seat on the sand, right next to her.

He had his gear on, probably was on his way to a quick jog after training inside the tower.

“It shouldn’t feel that way.” He put his arms over his knees without taking his eyes off the sunrise. “You should go and try to rest.”

Raven had her eyes locked in the sunrise as well, they looked tired, with bags under them. Damian felt powerless anytime he saw any sign of hardship on her. 

“I probably should.” She simply answered, knowing damn well that even if she tried, she wouldn’t rest as well as she’d need.

The both of them stood there in silence. Almost as if they had agreed to enjoy the sunrise without saying a word before worrying again. The yellow, orange and pink in the sky was too bright for Raven’s taste, but still, it was beautiful. It reminded her of Azarath.

After a few minutes, the sun had come out completely and the sky was a soft blue.

“ I need to talk to you. ” They both said to the other at the same time inside each other’s mind.

This made them turn to face each other with a frown in their face. Raven had to tell him about Trigon being able to read her mind if he pushed hard enough and that their telepathic conversations weren't as safe anymore, and Damian had to tell her about his encounter with Constantine, the book and the prophecy.

Damian looked like he was about to say something else and Raven shook her head. She needed to tell him before he said something that could compromise them.

Without any warning, her shadow self wrapped them both and made them appear in Azarath. It was a powerful and sudden spell to teleport them there so suddenly, so she fell to her knees and Damian immediately grabbed her in his arms and carried her to a place where she could sit.

“Are you okay?” How long had she been weakening to the point of being physically ill. Damian felt a guilt like no other before. “Was that spell too much?”

“Nothing I can’t handle.” She dismissed while looking away. “Listen, there’s something I gotta tell you, Damian. I had to bring you here before you said anything else.”

There was urgency in her voice. This made Damian clench his jaw and breathe in order to let go of the other subject to concentrate on the new matter. “Why here? We had the telepathy, there was no reason to-”

“My father breached my thoughts.” She interrupted. Damian stayed silent for a moment.

“How?” 

“It happened the day of the beach, I had been ignoring him so far and it was working.” She started explaining with a hint of panic in her voice. “I don’t know, he simply got tired I guess, and he overpowered my mind, he breached my thoughts so I could hear him. So now… I’m not sure if he will be able to hear our conversations if he pushes far enough…”

Raven lowered her eyes and held her knees close to her, hiding her face in them, ashamed.

Damian was still caught up on the part that this happened since the day of the beach and he didn’t know. He had been so focused in finding a solution to the problem that he had failed to check up on her.

“Has it happened again?” He squatted beside her trying to find her buried face. Raven shook her head, denying. Damian put his hand on Raven’s head and started caressing her hair. “It was a slip. If it hasn’t happened again, it means you handled it. Which you shouldn’t have done alone, of course.”

The relaxing touch of Damian’s hand against her hair made her feel less anxious. Slowly turning her head to face him, she nodded. “I guess I might have dealt with it, but still, I couldn’t risk you telling me anything if I still didn’t know if it was safe. Even now I still don’t feel like it is.”

“Perhaps it’s not, and will not be a hundred percent. But I can’t allow you to bring me here every time we are going to talk about your father.” He was still caring for her hair, softly. “Not if it drains your energy like it just did.”

Raven was hypnotized by Damian’s green eyes, Azarath made them shine in a way only a star would. 

Whenever he cared for her like that, she knew she could not allow her father to bring any harm into the world, because the world had Damian Wayne in it.

“I am just healing more slowly than I normally would. That’s why it drained me.” She explained.

“Still. I’d rather risk your father knowing our plans than you falling ill.” There was no doubt in any of those words. 

Raven’s heart skipped a beat and her cheeks turned a little pink. If it wasn’t because of the energy she lost one would’ve thought she was flushed, but it only looked like she was starting to feel better.

“But, I-”

“I mean it.” He reassured.

There was nothing else that she could say that would change Damian’s mind, she could see it in his eyes.

“Fine.” She agreed. “I’ve always hated that you are so stubborn.”

“I know. But that is also the reason why we are friends.” He replied.

She rolled her eyes as if she didn’t agree, but couldn’t help to feel odd at the mention of them being friends. They always had been but lately, that tag felt unsuiting.

“Wait, you said you had something to tell me as well.” Unintentionally, she changed the subject.

Damian sighed and nodded while getting up from where he was. “Right.” He cleared his throat. “I called for one of Batman’s contacts and asked for help with all of this. He is well respected in the magic world and I thought he might provide with some interesting information.”

Raven’s attention was immediately caught and she sat up straight to give him her full attention. “Not surprised that you went and talked to someone related to Batman.”

“Not related, just a contact in his database.” He clarified. “His name is John Constantine. Ring a bell?”

She had heard the name before, he had a reputation, that was for sure. “He's a drunk.”

“Well, I didn’t say he was the Justice League's greatest asset.” He crossed his arms a bit offended that despite his research and efforts, that’s all Raven could say of Constantine. “Besides, I contacted him because of his knowledge, not because of his table manners.”

Raven pouted, unsure of how wise that was but still agreed. “Okay, so what did you find out?”

Damian took a seat and interlocked both of his hands and stared at them while he found the words to tell Raven about the birthmark. She could feel his nervousness with her powers. It wasn’t great news.

“So we know that you are supposed to be the portal between you and your father.” She nodded, slowly. “Well, he had a book. Very ancient. With information about you, or well, the spawn that will decide the fate of the world, and Constantine was trying to translate a few words on there that had different interpretations.”

She tilted her head. Her curiosity was growing bigger but at the same time remained with apprehension to know the rest.

“What did the book say?” She asked when the pause from Damian felt too long.

He clenched his fists and let out a breath. “It said something that at first Constantine interpreted as the word ‘tattoos’, but as I clarified to him, you didn’t have any.” 

Raven’s face changed to one that was immediately connecting the dots of what Damian was about to say. “He read the page again and it did not refer to tattoos, per se. It referred to a scar on the skin, but then again I told him you didn’t have any. He then proceeded to explain that more than a scar it must be a birthmark, a giant one at that, covering your skin and that…”

The memory of her dream, the scars she saw on her skin, it was replaying in her head, over and over again. That’s what that was, a birthmark, but for what? 

She turned to Damian when she no longer heard him speak. “That what?”

Damian locked his eyes with Raven’s. “That the birthmark is the prophecy of what is supposed to happen. It is written on your skin. That is the key to knowing the meaning of all this and you are the only one that is gonna be able to see it.” He concluded.

Raven was in disbelief. “I’ve had the key this whole time?”

“It isn’t as surprising when you think about it, you were already the door, it was logical to assume there must have been a key. We just didn’t know where to look for it.” He tried to comfort with his words but Raven was still in shock.

Damian noticed she was buried deep into her thoughts as if she was either searching for something or processing still. He got up from where he had sat down. “Do you need a minute? I can go for a walk so you can-” 

“No, I-” She quickly said after hearing his voice. “I was just enjoying the calm. It’s so quiet here and…”

“You’re glad your father isn’t here.” She nodded when he said this.

“I already know what I have to do, and I’ll deal with all of it when we get back. I promise. But, I just want five more minutes here. In silence.” Damian didn’t say anything else, he didn’t have to, he would give her what she wished because he could feel how much she needed it.

He sat down once again, this time closer to her and put his arm around Raven’s shoulders pulling her closer to him so she’d know he would help her in any way he could to achieve the peace and quiet she craved. 

Raven closed her eyes when she felt Damian’s warmth and protection embrace her, making her entire body relax. Damian didn’t move an inch, he wanted to make her as comfortable as she pleased. 

The way her head was laying on his chest allowed her to hear Damian’s heart. It was a steady beating. She wanted to memorize it, like a song that became your favorite and you never wanted to forget about it.

Once a few minutes had passed she gently got up from where she was laying and gave him a shy smile. “I find myself thanking you a lot more lately.” She joked. “Thank you.”

Damian cursed internally when she pulled away. He enjoyed that closeness with her and made the most of every second he had that kind of opportunity. “There really is nothing to be grateful for.” His eyes traveled all over her face, admiring her.

Raven felt how her stomach turned when he did that. Her powers accidentally made him feel the same without her knowing and they both just looked away.

“I should get us back. We need to start working on the birthmark and that…” She got up ready to use her powers.

He stood up as well and took one of her hands stopping her. “Remember that I’d rather your father know than you use your powers and fall ill again.” He muttered close to her face. “We’ll use telepathy for the time being. Agreed?”

The last part sounded more like an order than a question. She was nervous enough because of the closeness of their faces but she nodded anyway. “Agreed.”

He let go of her hand and she sighed before conjuring her shadow self and teleporting them back to the tower. This time she wasn’t as weak as before, probably because she had a pause from dealing with her father.

They had appeared in Raven’s room and she took a seat in her bed, taking a breath. 

“ I know what I gotta do, Damian. I’ve got to see the birthmark and write it or draw it. Whatever it takes so we can have a chance at reading it. ” She told him in her mind.

He smirked, being proud of her. She was so strong. “ It won’t be easy, how do you plan on doing it? ”

Damian had started walking around the room, to make it seem like he wasn’t paying attention to her. Still keeping the act in front of her father.

“ You know, I’ve got one or two tricks up my sleeve still. ” A laugh escaped her lips out loud and he ignored it, keeping his back to her but thinking it was cute.

“ Of course you do… ” He accentuated his sarcasm in that last thought and she wanted to throw a pillow at him for it. “ Do you need my help with whatever it is you’ve got planned? ”

Raven sighed and let herself fall on the bed before turning her head at her desk, where a hand mirror was. It looked a bit dismal and old. She already knew what she had to do and where she had to go. “ I think that you have to sit this one out. ”

He turned to look at her when he heard that last thought. “ That’s not what I asked. ”

She got up from bed and walked past him getting out of her room. “ Yes, I may need help. But no, I won’t allow you to help me in what I need to do. It’s got to do with magic, dark one, so no. ”

He was following her, not sure where they were going. She took a few turns until she reached the living room and sat down on the couch, turning on the tv. 

“ Raven, didn’t we just agree I am not letting you put yourself in danger? ” He sat down next to her on the couch, watching the tv as well. His body was full of anger.

“ And you should? ” She changed the channel.

He clenched his jaw and sighed heavily. “ At least tell me what it is that you’re gonna do. I will not intervene. ”

She put the remote down. One thing she knew is that she could trust Damian when he made a promise. “ I will enter my own mind. I have a way to do that. I will find my nightmare and I will write or draw the birthmark. ”

“ You what ?!” He inside her mind and got up from the couch. “ Isn’t your father inside your mind as well? That doesn’t seem dangerous at all. ”

The TV exploded out of anger when Raven got fed up with Damian meddling with her plan. “ Why is it right when it is your plan, but it’s dangerous when it’s mine?! ”

They both stood there, sitting on the couch while the TV was on fire. Damian wanted to tell her how much he worried for her, how much he feared the minimal damage would happen to her. “ I just…” But he couldn’t.

“ Unless you have a better plan for it, I am doing this. End of story. ” She glared at him ready to throw him out of the window if he argued anything else.

“ I do not have a better plan for it. ” Damian admitted and got up from the couch walking towards the exit. “ Yet. ”

He left the room before Raven could say anything else to him. She threw the remote out the window and pouted as she cursed him internally. 

The one thing she hated the most about Damian was the one she liked the most, how deeply she cared about her.

Notes:

Hi! This chapter took longer because I was focused in my other fic! Sorry...

Hope you enjoy this one!

I already have planned out the next chapter, Damian's plan and more...

Let me know what you think in the comments<3

Chapter 7

“What do you mean you can’t help with this?” An infuriated Damian kicked the chair from the batcave trying to liberate some of his anger.

“Robin, calm down.” Bruce told Damian. He had his Batman suit on and was not having this kind of behavior, not after he had so much improvement over the past few years he had been with the Titans.

“Don’t tell me to calm down, father. You were the one that suggested we call her after I came to you for help.” He pointed out to where the woman was standing, silent and ashamed of not being able to be of much help.

Damian had left the Titans tower the same moment he walked out the door after his little argument with Raven. He flew in one of the jets straight to Gotham in search of Bruce. His father may be the last person he wanted to know about the situation, but he would know what to do and how to plan accordingly.

His only condition before filling him in was that he was gonna be in charge of the decisions, not Bruce. This was his mission and he did not plan on giving up his role. Not if Raven’s life was on the line.

They were both overlapping arguments and Bruce looked as if he was about to pound Damian’s ass if he kept heating up like that, getting his emotions to overrule his judgment.

Zatanna approached them both after having enough of the both of them arguing, she had her signature fishnet that covered her legs and the white corset on her torso. Damian couldn’t stand to see her face and just turned his back on her.

“Batman, he needs to understand why I can’t help with his request.” Bruce nodded and crossed his arms. Damian felt the gaze of his father threatening him to look at her and listen to what she had to say.

He unwillingly faced Zatanna once again. “Speak.”

“I admire your pure intentions to help your friend. But, even though I am a magic user, entering the mind of someone like Raven to assist her is something I can’t do.” She took a breath making a pause. “She’s half-demon. And I’m sure she really is a wonderful person, but a mind that is bearer of not only white magic but of a very dark one, and that additionally is housing one of the most powerful demonic entities, I’m afraid it’s too much to handle for me and my magic.” 

Damian scuffed as Zatanna concluded her explanation. Bruce had seen her potential but as long as she was not ready, she was more of a risk than an asset.

“We can work on an alternative.” Bruce intervened to calm the obvious troubled line of thought Damian had at the moment.

“She’s not gonna wait. She’s stubborn. Do you know how infuriating it is? To want a plan in place before she does something reckless because she won’t listen?” He yelled at Bruce, clenching both of his fists and trying not to let his despair get the better of him.

Bruce stood still, not really reacting, just staring at him. “I do.”

Damian closed his eyes and pinched the arch of his nose with his index finger and his thumb. He realized the irony of what he just said. “Gloat, father. You must have been dying for this day to come.”

Bruce again didn’t react. It was not about gloating or making sure Damian got the lesson. He didn’t want to see his son suffer. He could see how much he cared for Raven and the toll this whole situation was taking on him.

“If I may.” Zatanna interrupted, a bit sad to see this scene and still trying to be of help. “I know you don’t like him, but he’s great with dark magic.” She was talking directly to Bruce, she had already made him do a favor for Damian once, maybe if Bruce agreed, he could be involved again.

Bruce immediately knew who she meant and growled in disapproval. Damian also knew who she was referring to, but Bruce couldn’t know he sought his help before, especially now that his growl implied disapproval.

When Damian didn’t jump at the opportunity to drown Zatanna with questions about who she was referring to, Bruce knew something was off. “Something you wanna share?”

Damian sighed. “I will not be apologetic for seeking answers that could help her, father.” He preluded before actually telling Bruce. “He has already been of great help for this. I contacted him and asked for advice that he provided. Partially.”

Bruce frowned, clearly upset that this wasn’t consulted before with him, but as Damian stated, he didn’t regret his actions and had a good reason why. “Other than the fact we need to discuss how you contacted him.” They both looked at each other with nuisance. “Did he actually help you out? What did he want in return?”

Zatanna approached them as she wanted to know the answer to that question as well, she had told him to do it as a favor but with Constantine one never knows if personal gain could have overcome his honesty. Damian pouted and looked away.

“Nothing.” He confessed and Zatanna and Bruce looked at each other.

“Come on, kid. I love the guy, but he’s a pain in the ass if you want to make a deal with him. What did he want?” She asked again, not fully convinced.

Once again, Bruce was worried for his son.

“Why would I lie? I may be many things. But a liar is not one of them.” Bruce looked at him, this time one could read an emotion on his face. Disappointment.

Damian felt his stomach turn since this is not how he wanted this to go. He simply wanted someone to tell him what to do. How to help her.

“Nothing.” He repeated with defeat and shame. “But he did say his quota would rise once I would need him again, which apparently I do now.”

Zatanna approached Bruce. “I will talk to him, I will not let him make any kind of deal with him. He has to help because it is the right thing to do, not because there is something to gain from this.” She explained.

Bruce observed Zatanna a few moments before speaking. “Good.” He made a pause. “And next time one of my children makes a request to you, you let me know first.”

She shrugged, ashamed that he figured out she was the one that set Damian and Constantine up. One firm nod was enough to let Bruce nod she understood.

Zatanna turned one last time to face Damian. “Give me an hour and I will meet you here with him.”

“You have thirty minutes.” Damian corrected.

“I like you, kid. But don’t push it. I need an hour to find him and most likely sober him up.” She put a distance between them and created a portal before disappearing in it.

The cave was left in silence between Bruce and Damian. 

Bruce took off his Batman mask.

“Are you gonna ground me, father? Because I think I am too old for that.” Damian reproached without looking at his father.

Bruce ignored what Damian said and held him by both shoulders before pulling him closer to embrace him in a hug that clearly startled Damian as he was stiff, unsure of how to react.

“I was gonna say that I am proud of the man you’ve become.”

This threw off Damian even more but still it made him feel full of joy. Unsure of it, he slowly returned the hug to Bruce and closed his eyes. His stiff body started to relax as the danger it first felt was no longer present.

He didn’t know what to say in return so he just stood there in silence.

“Well, isn't this nice?”

A deep voice said in the background and a heavy thud of a bag hitting the floor made them break the hug.

“I didn’t know you were in town, and I most definitely didn’t know you were making the big man act out all soft.”

“Shut up, Todd.” Damian said aggressively as he crossed his arms. “Sounds like jealousy to me, but then again, you can’t handle being the number two either way.”

Jason was ready to fight Damian as he was charging right at him and Damian was sticking out his tongue as a toddler would do.

Bruce stood between them to avoid a very nasty fight, he had annoyance in his face. “Jason, stop it. Damian, don’t tease him.”

Jason simply sighed while rolling his eyes and walked back to where he left his bag and picked it up. “Whatever.”

“What brings you here, Jason?” Bruce asked after both had calmed down.

Damian ignored them and sat down in front of the computer to search for somethings while trying to bypass some of Bruce’s security.

“I thought you’d like to know that I just got these back from a certain feline villain that is visiting the city.” He opened his bag and there was a lot of jewelry inside, diamonds and other fine stones.

Bruce paid minimal attention to the jackpot Jason was clearly proud of getting back by himself. “Selina is back in town?”

Jason rolled his eyes again and closed the zipper of the bag angrily. “ Thank you, Jason. You did a great job, Jason. ” He mocked Bruce’s voice. “Would it kill you to say it, old man?”

Damian laughed from where he was when Jason mocked Bruce. At least they got along with something, the old bat thought. 

“Well done, Jason.” He said without trying to sound as if he was forced to say it. He meant it.

Jason smirked as if he had achieved his goal of getting under Bruce’s skin, but underneath it all he liked when he complimented his job. “Like I said, whatever.” He cleared his throat. “Yeah, your little situationship is back. She has awfully sharp claws and it wasn’t easy taking these away from her.”

He kicked the bag and took out a chocolate bar out of the pocket of his leather jacket and started eating it. 

“God, you have no manners, Todd.” Damian pointed out once again giving them his attention.

“Shut up, little brat.” Jason gave him the middle finger while smiling and Damian pulled out one batarang ready to fight again.

Bruce simply took a deep breath before sending Alfred a message. It only took a couple of seconds before he replied.

“Well, look at that. Alfred made your favorite meal, Jason.” Bruce mentioned and Jason turned around with surprise.

“Oh, you are good.” He squinted his eyes while accusing Bruce. “But since I am not gonna reject Alfred’s cuisine. I’m out. This ain’t over, punk.” Jason threatened Damian and then got out of the cave as fast as he could.

“Food, father?” Damian asked unironically.

“You deal with as many kids as I do and then you can talk to me about how I do it.” Bruce raised an eyebrow.

“I suppose you have a point. But still, you brought it on yourself when you decided to adopt half of Gotham’s orphans.” Damian said jokingly to which Bruce smiled and simply hugged him over the shoulders. 

At that moment, he noticed just how much he had grown up. Damian was practically the same height as he was, maybe just a couple of inches shorter. Not a boy anymore.

“It’s almost the time Zatanna told us. Get your stuff ready, I will-” Bruce started to say but got interrupted by Damian.

“You can’t come, father.” He lowered his gaze in shame. “Raven has not told yet about this to the other Titans, if you show up there…” He paused to correct himself. “If Batman shows up there, she won’t forgive me for telling so many people and involving them.”

Bruce had mixed feelings inside him. He was so proud of Damian, of how much he was willing to sacrifice for another person, the promises he kept, the character he had built. But, on the other hand, he couldn’t just let him do whatever he wanted, what if he needed him? What if something went wrong?

“We do stupid things for love.” Bruce stated.

Damian was taken aback for such a comment. “Wh- What?”

“It’s true. We all do. We all have done, and we will still be doing them.” He smiled softly to Damian and put one hand over his shoulder. “I know you know, Damian.”

Damian took a step back, still startled by what Bruce was telling him. In denial. And Bruce could see this.

“Son. I may have not been there for you since you were born.” He continued. His fists were clenched, taking strength to find the right words. “And I may not have been great when you first got here but, this whole time, the only thing I’ve had in my mind is trying to let you know how much I love you, how much you mean to me, and how you make me proud. Every day.”

Damian was speechless. He had never seen Bruce so… vulnerable.

“You are afraid. Afraid of what you may feel for her. Because love was not something your mother or I provided to you, at least not in the beginning. And I am sorry for that.” He closed his eyes, not being able to look at his son after saying that. “You don’t have to be afraid. You are a good man, Damian. Not because of me or because of your mother, but despite us. So don’t be afraid to love her, you deserve to love openly, fearlessly, defenselessly.” He concluded while opening his eyes to meet Damian’s.

Damian’s heart could be heard inside his head. Every single one of those words was rushing through his head. “Why are you telling me this?”

Bruce smiled. Even now, his little boy still needed a little push to learn a lesson.

“Because as I said, we do stupid things for love. And I will let you go alone as promised, but you have to embrace it in order to have a clear judgment when making decisions.” He explained. “You’ve always had one of the greatest minds in this world, but you have to go into this mission knowing and accepting that the decisions you are going to have to make need to be unbiased.”

Bruce’s intentions were clearer now. And he was right. Damian nodded slowly while he thought of Raven. Every inch of her skin, the sound of her laugh, the tingling feeling on his head when she used telepathy on him. 

Every moment he spent with her resulted in a feeling of overflowing overjoy in his memories. If that was taken away from him, he wouldn’t know what to do.

“So, do you know what you feel?” Bruce asked.

Damian sighed and nodded before locking his eyes with his fathers. “I do.”

Bruce smiled and brought Damian one more time close to him to hug him. “Unbiased decisions, Damian.” Damian simply nodded, agreeing with those last words.

They broke the hug after what felt like the hug of a lifetime, and before Bruce put his mask on, he gave Damian one last smile that could tell him once again how proud he was of him.

-

A portal opened a few minutes later and Zatanna crossed over with Constantine tumbling by her side.

“Bloody hell, Z. I told ya to give me a couple more minutes.” He looked like he was about to be sick.

“I thought you said you would sober him up.” Damian pointed out.

Zatanna wanted to pound Damian and simply just sighed. “He’s mostly sober.”

“Try hangovered, dear.” Constantine said with sarcasm and a fake smile while he looked around and saw Damian and Bruce. “Little bird! Nice to see you again, how’s your girl doing? Nightmares still a bother?”

Bruce took Constantine’s coat to lift him up and look at him. “John.”

“Bats! Long time no see!” He laughed as he pulled out a cigarette and lit it up. “You alright?”

“Other than that we need to discuss why you talked to my kid without my permission. No.” He took Constantine’s cig and put it out.

“For fuck’s sake, is anyone around here any fun?” Constantine joked and Zatanna crossed her arms, clearly mad and embarrassed. “Right…” He cleared his throat. “What am I good for?”

Damian approached Constantine and smirked, knowing damn well that what he was about to say was gonna drive him crazy. “Have you ever been inside a demon’s mind?”

Constantine smirked back and started to laugh very slowly. “I take it back, the kid does know how to have fun. When do we leave?”

Notes:

I wanted to include a little batfam moment. I know it's only Jason for now, but believe me I plan to add more moments like this!

Also, I may or may have not cried a little while writing good dad Bruce speech<3

Chapter 8

Raven was sitting on the floor of her room with her eyes closed, inside a circle she had formed. Incense smell was flooding the room, relaxing her. 

In front of her was her hand mirror, placed on the floor. She was merely taking strength so she could go inside it and roam the corners of the inside of her mind.

“ Raven… ” A voice inside her head made her open her eyes. That wasn’t her father, it was.

“Damian.” She whispered out loud.

Raven got up from where she was sitting and stepped out of her room, she could feel Damian calling for her. She might have been angry at him, but she wouldn’t ignore him, especially if he was in need.

“ Raven… ” She heard again but louder. She was getting close as she walked through the hallways of the tower, taking the elevator all the way to the roof.

The doors opened and she hadn’t noticed, while she was meditating, that it was already night time outside. 

Damian was standing on the edge of the tower facing the horizon, the same way he was the time she gifted him Titus. But something didn’t feel right. He wasn’t alone.

“Damian?” She started to approach him while looking around, feeling the energy of two magical beings. “ What did you do? ” Her concern started to turn to anger.

Damian turned to her when he heard her and sighed knowing she wouldn’t be the greatest fan of this plan. “ I told you I didn’t have a better plan, but now I do. ” He told her through their bond.

She frowned while clenching one of her fists. She was ready to engage in an argument with him when she felt a faint whisper in her ear.

“ Abscondere et latere. Occultare et celare. Abscondere et latere. Occultare et celare. ” A masculine voice was the one doing it, she was about to attack whoever was doing this magic but then, both Constantine and Zatanna appeared in front of them.

“Is it done?” Damian asked, ignoring Raven’s obvious confusion.

Constantine scuffed while he put his hands inside the pockets of his trench coat. “You know, mate? If you are gonna doubt all of my abilities maybe I shouldn’t be here.”

The thick brit accent escaped a lot more when he was angry. 

Zatanna rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, embarrassed by such an attitude. “John.”

“Yeah, yeah. It’s done and I’ll keep my mouth shut.” He replied, winking at her.

Raven was still oblivious of what was happening and kept looking over at Damian.

“ Wanna tell me what the hell is going on? ” She used their bond not wanting to mess up in front of her father still.

“Constantine took care of that. We can speak freely now, he won’t hear a thing.” Damian replied out loud and Raven frowned. “Care to explain, John?”

Damian asked John without taking his eyes off Raven’s.

“A thank you would be nice as well. These kids have no manners.” Constantine joked and looked at Raven. “Hello there, I’ve heard a lot about you, daughter of Trigon.”

Constantine smirked while introducing himself and Raven quickly looked at Damian with disapproval. Why did he have to involve so many people?

Damian gave another look to Constantine, similar to the one Bruce used to intimidate his peers, urging Constantine to explain to Raven what he had done. “The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, innit?” He teased Damian when he saw the parallel with Bruce. “I casted a concealment spell, a very powerful one at that sweetheart, so that your father can’t see or hear us. You’re welcome.” He grinned.

Zatanna intervened, seeing that Constantine was starting to get on everyone's nerves. “He’s right. Your father can no longer see or hear anything about you. John perfected this spell when he wanted to hide from demons when he owed them something.”

“Don’t have to expose me like that, love.” Constantine looked at her with embarrassment.

“The point is.” Damian stepped in. “I have a plan.”

Raven wanted to be mad at him but knowing that he had thought about something was not letting her do it. “You have my attention.”

An almost unnoticeable smirk escaped Damian’s lips when he heard her say that. 

“Good.” He paused, letting sink in these few moments of truce between them. “You said no Titans, they are not Titans.” He pointed towards Zatanna and Constantine.

Raven nodded.

“You said you want me to sit this one out for what we may encounter inside your mind. I am sitting this one out, that’s why he is going with you to make sure everything goes smoothly.” Once again Damian pointed out Constantine.

“Am I supposed to let anyone inside my mind like that?” She said sarcastically, there was no more argument to it than that one.

Damian didn’t react and stood in silence for a couple of seconds. “No. I would never force you to do anything you wouldn’t want.” He stated and Raven was about to reply but he continued. “That’s why I asked him to come. You didn’t want to risk me, you didn’t say anything about anyone else.”

“Charming.” Constantine whispered to Zatanna when he heard that he was merely collateral damage. Zatanna held back a laugh.

Raven saw Constantine out of the corner of her eye and then Damian again. She didn’t have much choice but to nod again. “Fine. And her?” She pointed towards Zatanna.

“She’s here to make sure he doesn’t mess up.” Damian replied and Zatanna agreed. Constantine scuffed but didn’t say a word.

It was all so sudden, but even if she didn’t expect Damian to have a plan so fast, she knew she could count on him. He’d never let her down.

She didn’t care if they weren’t alone or if this wasn’t proper of them, but she approached Damian and embraced him in a hug, burying her face in his chest.

“Thank you.”

He was caught off guard but promptly returned the hug, putting his arms around Raven’s waist and closing his eyes, enjoying the feeling of having her so close to him. “You’ll never have to thank me for this.”

Unbiased decisions, Damian.

After a minute, Damian broke off the hug after the words from his father came to his mind.

“Zatanna and I will watch over you two until you come out of your mind.” He said moving on from the hug and trying to refocus on the mission.

Raven swallowed a lump she had in her throat and smiled slightly. “Right. Follow me then.”

She said to the three of them and started to walk to the elevator, Damian right beside her.

Zatanna let them take the lead and got close to Constantine so she could whisper something to him. “Are they not-?”

“They truly say one gets wiser with age, Z.” Constantine replied. “They are not together, no.”

Zatanna simply nodded and moved on.

They all sneaked inside Raven’s room and she closed the door. Constantine immediately started nosing around the room. 

“Just because you’re helping, doesn’t mean I’m not gonna kill you if you don’t keep your hands to yourself.” Raven threatened and her four demon eyes appeared on her face.

Damian smirked letting her threaten him all she wanted, he liked it when she did that. 

“Bloody hell, girly. I was just merely admiring your chambers.” Constantine replied and Zatanna shook her head in opposition to his behavior once again.

“Sit down and shut up. I know Damian brought you here, but if you are gonna come with me and meddle in my mind, I am the one in charge.” She stated with firmness and seriousness.

Damian sighed a little bit and laid on one of the walls of her room.

“I like her, little bird.” Constantine said to Damian, it sounded like approval. “So, how is it that we’re gonna enter your mind?” He asked, now looking at Raven.

Raven was casting a spell to draw a circle and some symbols on the floor, around the hand mirror.

“We are going through there.” She pointed out the mirror. “I created it years ago to help me meditate. It’s an easy way in and easy way out. If you know your way around.”

Zatanna wasn’t as convinced, if it was so easy, why wouldn’t she allow Damian to go inside?

“What’s the catch?” Zatanna asked. Raven didn’t look at her, she kept working on the symbols. “If it’s so easy to get in and get out, what’s the catch?” She repeated her question.

This sparked Damian’s curiosity. It was something he had not allowed himself to ask her to respect her wishes, but it was something he wanted to know.

Raven closed her eyes letting out a breath. “Because I am half-demon. A regular human inside my mind would draw too much attention. There are things in there that would try to kill him. Things that are… from my demon side.”

She revealed in shame, lowering her eyes to avoid looking at Damian. 

“This idiot is gonna be fine, he has magic to protect himself.” Raven said, referring to Constantine. “If I used my magic to hide Damian it would only make matters worse.” She finished.

Damian wanted to come closer to her and hug her, to reassure her he would’ve been fine no matter what.

“Noted.” Constantine intervened. “Let’s go then. I love it when I have to face death straight on.”

Raven gave Damian a quick look and she opened her mouth slightly, as she wanted to say something but she refrained from doing so.

“Take my hand.” Raven said, entering the circle where the hand mirror was.

Constantine followed her lead and took her hand. “I’ll see you later, Z. Don’t arrange the funeral just yet.” He winked at her and she just tried not to kill him, she hated when he made such jokes.

Damian clenched his jaw, watching as Raven started to pronounce her spell.

“Azarath, metrion zinthos.” 

Her shadow self made itself present appearing from inside the mirror and surrounding both Constantine and Raven in it before swallowing them into the reflection. Only the mirror remained. 

Damian and Zatanna exchanged looks, not one said anything but they both knew the next few hours would be stressful enough.

-

The first thing Constantine saw was a black sky with no stars at all. The atmosphere was cold, but no breeze was blowing in that place. It felt empty and like someone was observing you at the same time. The fact that only the echo of what seemed like birds chirping words of wariness was not much comfort.

“Cozy.” Constantine said while looking around. 

There was a big stone path in front of them, floating into space with no clear ending nor direction. Raven ignored his sarcastic comment, her mind was not something she was willing to fool around with.

“Try not to get behind or you’ll get lost.” She started to walk while saying that, not really paying attention to him. She would honor Damian’s wishes and let Constantine come along but under no circumstances would she consider him a friend.

He didn’t argue and continued to follow her closely. 

It was good that Constantine knew when to shut up. He could feel the threat in the air. He was an outsider and whatever creatures were inside there knew it.

A shadow ran past behind them. Raven couldn’t care less about the shadow, displaying her knowledge of the place and obviously already knowing what that was.

“You know, girly? If I’m gonna be of any help, a little piece of advice would be nice.” Constantine complained as he looked back trying to keep an eye on that.

Raven rolled her eyes, still walking. “If you’re concerned, that was nothing that can hurt you. We’re still far away from the real threats.”

She disregarded and he caught up with her. “And how in the bloody hell am I supposed to know that? This is your mind, girly. I know a lot about many things, but this is a completely unknown shite to me.” 

He stopped her from walking any further and she simply sighed, annoyed. 

“She’s here only to let the others know of any unwanted visitors, she’s not a fighter and she won’t hurt you.” Raven let out trying to move on.

“She?” Constantine wondered.

“Me.”

A soft female voice made them turn their heads. It was a familiar voice. Constantine immediately recognized the girl.

It was Raven, or at least it looked exactly like her, only her clothes were a different color. A wash out gray.

“Another you?” Constantine asked almost as if he didn’t expect something so cliché.

“Not another me, genius. A part of me.” Raven explained. “She’s one of my personalities and since she’s a coward and doesn’t make a noise I made her keep an eye on the entrance of my mind so if anyone ever gets in she’d let know the others.”

Constantine’s face turned into a grin. He was amused by this. “Others, girly? Which one are you?” He asked the one in gray.

She hid behind the original Raven. “I’m sorry, I don’t like talking to strangers. Specially the ones that are rude. I’m sorry for saying that you’re rude! And I’m sorry for repeating it!” 

She hid even more and Raven sighed. “Timidity, sadness, loneliness.” Raven explained she then whispered something to her timid self and she nodded agreeing with whatever she had told her. “Can we move on?”

Constantine laughed slightly and Raven simply ignored him before continuing her path. Timid Raven used a spell and disappeared so she wouldn’t have to talk to Constantine and he caught up once again with Raven.

“I’m fancying your mind more and more.” He complimented and continued in silence for a few more minutes.

They had progressed a lot more than Raven thought they would without another incident. She thought they might make it to her pit of dreams before encountering another one of her personalities, but she thought wrong.

A few giggles that could be heard at the distance caught the attention of Raven first.

“No.” She muttered to herself. “Not them, dammit.”

She squeezed her eyes angry that those three were the ones that were going to show up now. Constantine heard Raven and smiled.

“Sounds like I’m in for a treat. Innit?” Constantine teased.

“I told you his accent was awesome!” One voice said behind them and two others started giggling.

Raven wanted to be swallowed by a portal straight to hell at that moment. Constantine turned around and found three more girls that looked exactly like Raven, this time wearing pink, green and purple clothes.

“Well, hello there.” Constantine greeted and Raven clenched both fists. “Who do we have here now?”

The Raven that had green clothes approached him first with not an ounce of shyness in her. “We are other personalities of hers. I’m Bravery. That one over there is Happiness.” She pointed out at the one in pink that was blushing, probably the one that mentioned the accent. “And that one is Love, or sometimes passion.” She then pointed towards the one in purple smiling a bit flirty.

“Kill me now.” The original Raven said to herself once again.

“Timidity told us we had company, and we wanted to come and see who she had brought. At first we thought it might be Dam-” Happiness Raven started to explain but the original Raven used a spell to close her mouth.

Constantine smirked and looked at Raven, she was completely flushed and mad. Embarrassed that her personalities were giving her secrets away.

Love Raven, still smiling, approached Constantine. “You’re very cute. But still, our heart is only for the one she won’t let us name. Why didn’t she bring him? I would have done what she’s too afraid to do!”

“Don’t say another word!” Raven’s demon voice came out.

Bravery Raven rolled her eyes. “We’re not afraid of you, we are you!” 

“To your positions. Now!” She repeated, this time louder.

The three of them simply mocked her and giggled. “Bye, John!” They all said at the same time before disappearing with their individual shadows.

“I will feed you to the worst creatures of this place if you dare to even breathe right now.” She threatened and Constantine holding a laugh simply mimicked as if he had closed his mouth with a key and threw it away. “Good. Now let’s go, we’re almost there.”

As promised, no more than 5 minutes later, they had arrived at what looked like the edge of the path. 

In front of the edge, a few feet away from where they were standing, a pit of floating flashes of dark blue light were going around in circles. These flashes of light were her dreams. Some were bigger than others, as they have had more impact on Raven.

The nightmares were easy to spot, they were rather black, not blue, and the aura they held was absorbing the good dreams. Erasing them from Raven’s mind.

“An easy task I see. Only have to find one specific nightmare among hundreds of others.” Constantine cleared his throat. “Give me a specific detail from the nightmare, love.”

Raven looked at him confused. She had not figured out yet how she was gonna find the nightmare yet, but apparently Constantine did.

“A detail?” She asked and proceeded to close her eyes to start thinking, trying to remember. “There was… a red sky.”

“Not broad at all, but alright.” He scuffed and rolled up his sleeves before concentrating to cast a spell. He took out a card from a deck he had in his pocket, it had the number seven on it, believed in many cultures to be a number associated with finding or discovering. “ Reperio in obscurum. ”

The card started burning without really taking any harm. He launched the card inside the pit and it followed the current, going in circles as well for a couple of times. 

Finally the card got ripped and it attached to two different flashes of light. Two different nightmares.

“Right. You had two nightmares with a red sky on them?” He asked as they now got to choose between the two possible ones.

“At least there’s only two.” She replied not caring much what he thought.

A seat appeared before her. It looked like a throne made out of branches and it had more than enough space for the two of them. It was floating in front of both of them. She climbed on top of it and sat down, crossing her legs and closing her eyes.

“I’m coming with ya, love.” Constantine said before jumping on top of the throne as well, disrupting the process of Raven.

“Why?” She raised an eyebrow, annoyed at his insistence.

“The little bird didn’t bother to bring me here, only for me to stay behind on the juiciest part. I’m coming.” He stated, with a tone he didn’t use often, serious and firm.

“Stay silent then. I need to concentrate, the nightmare is there but I need concentration in order to access it.” She gave one last look and sighed before closing her eyes again start reciting her words. 

Azarath, metrion, zinthos.

Azarath, metrion, zinthos.

Azarath, metrion, zinthos.

Azarath, metrion, zinthos.

She kept repeating it. Sweat was dripping down her forehead, she was holding herself back since she knew accessing the nightmares would startle her. 

Damian came to mind, as if he was the one next to her and not Constantine. She felt safe, accompanied, she didn’t have to be afraid to remember. She accessed them.

They were sucked into the first nightmare. The one that had been more old. Constantine was baffled at the sight of the horizon covered in thousands and thousands of bodies. Some were already skeletons and some just barely had died.

“Gotta give it to you. Your nightmares are spooky.” He spoke as he was looking around. The sky was a bright red and not a soul could be heard. 

Raven was just standing in the same spot they landed, trying to remain unfazed by the view, but miserably failing at it.

“Is this it? Is this the dream?” He asked, trying to change the subject as he could see the effect the place was causing on her.

Steps were heard by them. She was running towards them, like her nightmare usually started, escaping from something.

Raven remembered what this nightmare was about. A loud thud was heard after the steps. “No, this is not it. Let’s go.” She started to walk away to make a portal and get out to the pit again so they could go to the other dream.

In the last seconds there, Constantine heard the pieces of a conversation. He turned around and he glanced at a tired Raven maintaining a conversation with her father, Trigon, before they appeared back at the pit.

“Father…"

“Raven. Why have you been running, daughter? This couldn’t have been possible without you…”

He didn’t say anything about what he had seen and remained beside her on the seat that was above the pit. Raven wasted no time as she wanted to get this over with as quickly as possible and had wrapped them and sucked them into the second dream.

This time the landing was much more abrupt as she had not a clear mind, after witnessing the first nightmare, and fell into the white sand that covered her dream by miles. They had both landed in it and were just getting accustomed to the feeling. The sky, as she told Constantine, was also red.

He was the first one to get up and offered a hand to her. “You alright?”

“I’m fine.” She took the hand he offered and got up. “I remember this.” She stated while cleaning the sand from her legs.

“Is this it, girly?” He wondered and she nodded as she confirmed this. 

Constantine looked up to the sky and noticed a white bird above them, heading to a defined direction. “Does that ring a bell?”

“We need to follow it. If we follow it, we will find me.” Not a second after she said this she started flying and dragging Constantine along, to follow the white raven that had been warning her in her nightmare.

A mile ahead, there was herself. She couldn’t see neither Raven nor Constantine since this was like a memory, something that couldn’t be altered. 

“There they are.” Raven said as soon as she laid her eyes on the birthmarks she had all over her body, or her other body.

Constantine had a confused look on his face. “Prophecies. They really are a pain in the arse.”

Raven turned to look at him. “What do you mean?” 

“Not even because I’m inside your head can I see the stupid marks. I guess it’s up to you to write them, love.” He explained.

He took a step back and lit a cigarette to let her work. Raven conjured her journal and approached herself, taking a seat on the sand and ‘pausing’ the nightmare so she could have time to examine each part of the birthmark.

“Turn around.” Raven demanded Constantine after about an hour.

“Excuse me?” He reproached.

“I will get her, myself, naked. We don’t wanna miss any parts of the birthmark.” She explained. “Now turn.”

“I’m a gentleman, love. Not a perv.” He scuffed, offended, and turned around lighting another cigarette. 

Raven took off the clothes her other self had on and examined her skin to see if the birthmark was further along than her clothes allowed to see. It did. Especially on her back.

She hurried herself and drew all of it before putting on the clothes on her again. 

“It’s done. Wanna take a look?” She offered the journal so he could see the words.

He slightly turned around making sure everything was decent before taking the journal into his hands. “Nicely done.” He was trying to make sense of some of the shapes. “I think it’s a dead language.”

“No shit, Sherlock.” Raven teased and took the journal back from him. He rolled his eyes and scuffed. “I’ve got an idea, let’s go.”

She unpaused her nightmare and the white raven resumed her coos, like warnings. The thuds, just like in the nightmare before this one, started to become louder.

Before anything else could happen, Raven got them out of there with her magic and sighed before going back to the stone path. Constantine followed closely not knowing what she meant by idea.

“We gotta meet one more of my personalities, she’ll help us out with this.” Raven said as she hid her journal back into her usual hiding spot with magic.

“Let me guess. The smart one?” Constantine teased and Raven simply laughed.

“They are me, are they not?” She replied, clapping back at him while walking past him, heading towards the part of the path she knew she’d find that personality of hers.

The personality Raven was looking for was Knowledge, her most logical part. She was usually  stationed almost at the beginning of the entry to her mind, close to Timidity. It was most quiet there so she could read without a lot of disturbances.

The way back was shorter than Constantine remembered and they didn’t say much as there was not too much in common between them. However, Constantine decided to break the silence with a question that he would rather ask now and not have the itch later.

“So, you and little birdy?” 

Raven got stiff as soon as she heard the question. “Careful, I could still feed you to the unknown.”

Not caring too much, he continued. He was thinking he would rather open the pandora box the whole way through and not just poke it. “Look, I may not seem like it, but I am a sucker for a good love story. So, why not? Is it because of his temper? I don’t like it either, too much like his father. Who likes daddy issues, right?”

Raven turned to him, her four demon, red eyes flaring at him. “I am the one with ‘daddy issues’! He is lucky to not be involved with me! I want to keep him away from this, from my father and from his wrath!”

Her demon voice escaped her and her skin turned red as her anger was increasing. Constantine took a step back but was not afraid of her, he was just giving her some space.

“You are protecting him. Now it makes sense, girly.” He concluded, nodding his head to himself.

She calmed herself down and returned to her normal appearance. She shrugged and turned her back on him. “Yes, I am.” She sighed. “Don’t you dare tell him.”

“Not my place, love. I just wanted to satisfy my curiosity.” Constantine said sincerely and without caring too much.

Raven was about to say something else when the sound of a book closing made them turn their heads.

“Curiosity is a good thing. Arrogance is not.” 

Another girl that looked like Raven made her appearance in front of them, she was carrying a book and was wearing yellow clothes. She was the only one of them all that had a distinguishable added accessory to her. Glasses.

“The smart Raven, I presume.” Constantine replied to her words.

“I’m Knowledge, her intellectual personality. And you are Constantine, the drunken, reckless wizard. I presume.” She replied. She wasn’t as welcoming as were the three before her.

“I liked the others better.” He muttered, displeased to meet this one.

Raven ignored Constantine and took out her journal to give it to Knowledge Raven. “We need your help.” She opened the journal on one of the pages she had written on. “Do you know or remember anything about this language?”

Knowledge Raven took the journal and adjusted her glasses while she examined the letters and symbols. “It’s most likely a Dravidian language. Dead of course.”

“Dravidian?” Constantine asked, approaching with curiosity and eagerness, he had definitely heard of them before but didn't study them enough to contribute with something.

“Yes, love.” Knowledge Raven said, mocking his accent. “Mostly spoken in South-Asia, you know, South India, Pakistan, The Tibet, Sri Lankam etc. There’s a lot of them, current and dead ones. I don’t speak any, but I’m almost positive these scribbles are from a Dravidian language.” She explained and closed the journal, handing it back to her.

Raven took it while she was thinking. “I know someone that might speak one.”

Knowledge Raven smirked, being proud of her deduction, knowing who she meant. “That’s why we’re the same person.” She gave a disgusted look at Constantine. “Take this one with you, I don’t think I’ll resist experimenting on him.”

Constantine returned the look and turned his back on her. Raven said her goodbyes and stood next to him.

“I thought your mind would be way more sinister.” He complained. 

“Once we’re done with my father, I will make your life a living hell.” She replied before casting a spell to take them back to the beginning of the path where the entrance to the mirror was. “Go, I have to cast another spell after you leave.”

“Don’t take long or your boyfriend might put a sword through me, and I’m not gonna be of much use if he does that.” Constantine warned before walking through the entrance.

He was launched outside the mirror, hitting his head on the roof of Raven’s room. Zatanna ran to his aid and Damian got his sword out and pointed it at him. “Where is she?”

“I’m gonna add prophet to my list of talents.” He joked.

As soon as Constantine left, Raven made her father appear before her, he was inside some ruins, chained. She casted some spells, strengthening the chains he already had holding him and adding some more to hold him tighter. 

“I see that you figured a way to conceal everything from me, child. Clever. How long do you think that will last before this chains finally set me free?” Trigon laughed and a chain she just had put, broke. “Your time is running out, no matter what you do now.”

Raven got furious and cast a more powerful spell to chain him down with double the ones he already had. He growled as he struggled to break free. “Maybe it is running out. But as you said, there is still time.”

She stepped back and made the image of her father disappear before walking through the mirror portal and appearing in front of Damian, Zatanna and Constantine.

“See? She’s alright.” Constantine yelled at Damian.

The spell drained her energy and she could barely stand. Damian promptly held her in his arms and laid her on her bed. “Are you okay?”

Raven sighed and let Damian carry her and take care of her. “I am. Thank you.”

“I’m not, I was almost murdered by this blood thirsty wanker over here.” Constantine had his arms crossed. “Can you tell me now how we are gonna read that?”

Constantine pointed out the journal that Raven was holding in her arms. She looked down at it and then looked up to meet Damian’s eyes. “He is gonna help us read it.”

Notes:

So sorry to have taken so long to write this one. I have been so busy with some family issues, but I compensated by making this chapter twice as long.

Hope you enjoy it! How are we feeling so far with this plot? Let me know in the comments

Chapter 9

Notes:

I know I'm starting to take a week to update the fic and I used to take two or three days at most, but bear with me a couple more weeks until I get some things in my life settled.

Enjoy this chapter!

Constantine was standing with a face of confusion after Raven had told all of them Damian was the magic key to them being able to read the prophecy.

“Are you mad? What does the little bird know about a dead language?” He yelled with skepticism.

Raven rolled her eyes and ignored him while she concentrated on Damian. He was flipping through the pages of her journal. Slowly.

He looked like he was trying to make sense of some of the words after already figured out some others, and without taking his eyes off the letters he answered to Constantine turmoil. 

“Dead does not mean extinct. Just like latin is not current anymore, but it is still widely used. You, of most people, should be aware of that.” Damian closed the journal to face Constantine finally after having finished his initial assessment of the contents. 

Constantine scuffed and Zatanna simply patted him on the back.

Raven, on the other hand, intervened as soon as Damian closed the journal. “So, what do you think? Is it something you can help with?” 

Damian ignored Constantine and gave all of his attention to Raven. “Well, first of all, it is not a dead language, it's just really old. One of the oldest in the world, actually.” He began explaining. “And you were correct, it is in fact a Dravidian language. Tamil, if I’m not mistaken. Unfortunately, I do not speak it and therefore cannot read this journal. However-”

Raven was handed back the journal by Damian and she took it while she kept thinking, when Damian got interrupted by Constantine. 

“I thought you said he’d be able to read it, girly.” Constantine was in a mood, probably still annoyed that Damian tried to run a sword through him.

“Well I-” Raven was going to respond trying to get up from the bed but Damian intervened.

“I speak at least five different languages fluently, and can read and understand at least another dozen. It was logical to have the assumption I would be able to help if it was a Dravidian language since I was raised awfully close to the region where 250 million people speak any of those variations.” He was approaching Constantine in a threatening manner. “And I was not done. I was about to say that, even though I do not speak Tamil, I am familiar with it since I grew up speaking Arabic and Urdu in Nanda Parbat, which for your information, is very close to where Tamil is widely spoken. So I can chime in and help translate the contents of the prophecy if given time and proper resources.”

Zatanna could feel the tension building up between Damian and Constantine and she decided to put herself between the two of them. “Okay, that’s enough. We get it, Damian. Constantine is only complaining and not contributing. Let’s move on, shall we? What can we do to help?”

Damian stood his ground and kept eyeing Constantine. He turned to Zatanna after a few seconds. “A portal would be fine.”

Damian walked back to Raven’s bed, she was sitting there looking at him with confusion about what his plan was. Without notice, he took Raven into his arms once again.

She held onto him without really knowing if it was a good idea to argue about it or not, but ultimately decided against it.

“We can do a portal, kid. But you need to tell me where we’re going.” Zatanna replied.

Damian walked over to them and nodded. “The Batcave.”

Raven’s whole body froze as soon as she heard that. Batman was not somebody she wanted involved, not yet. Not unless absolutely necessary. “ Damian… ” She talked through their bond.

“ He’s not allowed to intervene. I will fight him if necessary. The Manor has all the resources I need and you can have a place to rest there. Please. ”

Zatanna had already opened the portal to the Batcave. She was waiting for them but could see they were sharing a conversation, looking into their eyes even if their mouths were shut. “We will meet you there.”

Both her and Constantine walked through. Him winking at them as he left. 

The portal remained open.

Once they left Damian was the one to talk first. “I promise you. You know I never broke my promises... I promise you he will not intervene unless he’s asked to.”

His feelings were honest and sincere. She could feel them. “I hate how much I trust you.” She sighed and hugged her journal tighter. “Let’s go then, before I change my mind.” Damian smiled and was about to walk through the portal when she talked one last time. “And next time, let me know if you are going to pick me up. I feel like a burden whenever you do that.”

She looked away ready to go and he briefly paused. “You are not, in any way possible, a burden.”

He crossed with her still in his arms. It was a good thing Raven was looking away as she was completely flushed by the statement and had felt a turmoil inside her, as only Damian could cause.

-

The Batcave was as accurate as Damian had described to Raven so many times. 

Constantine, Zatanna and Batman were chatting next to the computer and got silent as soon as they crossed the portal. Batman being the first to approach the both of them, no expression on his face, but definitely a purpose on his mind.

Damian knew where this was going. He was going to try and take the lead. “No, father. We have an agreement.” 

Those words made Bruce stop right on his tracks. “I was merely going to ask if she’s alright. Zatanna filled me in and I already asked Alfred to prepare a room for her.”

Damian put Raven down and took a step closer to Bruce.

They were both battling in a staring contest.

Constantine rolled his eyes after the silence had been extended for too long. 

“That’s our queue, Z. These two are going to be having a pissing contest until the prophecy is translated and we are needed again.” He was not wrong with his statement, but then again, it was rude and the timing was not it.

Both Bruce and Damian turned to look at him in silence. “Yeah yeah, we’ll piss off now. C’mon, Z.”

Constantine put his hands inside the pockets of his trench coat and started to walk away.

Zatanna sighed and approached Bruce, Damian and Raven. Giving them a card from a deck. “When you need us, say my name backwards onto this card and we will come as soon as we can.” Before catching up with Constantine she smiled. “Sorry for his behavior, we’ll work on it.” 

She finally left after catching up with Constantine.

Damian turned his back to Bruce returning to Raven making sure she was okay after he put her down earlier. “Thank you for arranging accommodation for her.”

Bruce took out his Batman mask after Constantine and Zatanna had left, revealing himself to Raven. She simply stayed silent while she fully took in how Bruce Wayne looked with the Batman suit on, even though she already knew who it was, the shock of seeing it was there nonetheless. “Whatever I can do to support you, I’ll do.”

He crossed his arms not really knowing what else to say to reassure Damian he trusted him. 

Raven pursed her lips and looked away, it had been a couple years since she had seen Bruce and it was not a pleasant feeling to know he had her on a watchlist because of the incident with her father.

The silence was starting to get deafening, but thankfully, Alfred arrived. “Master Damian, it’s nice to see you have returned home and that your friendship building skills have improved.” He joked with a straight face referring to Raven.

“Pennyworth, it is also nice to see that your sense of humor is intact.” He returned the joke with the same amount of seriousness as him. “This is Raven, she will be our guest. Indefinitely.” Damian slightly rounded Raven’s waist to move her slightly forward and introduce her to Alfred.

“It is an honor to finally meet you, Miss Raven.” Alfred made a small bow. 

“Finally?” Raven asked, not knowing what Damian might have told them about her. Damian got nervous when he heard her ask that, hoping Alfred wouldn’t let out how much he talked about her every time he visited.

“Pardon me, miss. Are you not one of Master Damian’s teammates?” Alfred wondered with a raised eyebrow. 

Raven felt embarrassed for asking that thinking it could mean something else and she simply nodded, repeatedly. “Yes. Yes, I am. Sorry. It’s nice to meet you as well.”

Alfred’s usual emotionless face let out a quick smile, he could see right through Raven and her embarrassment. “May I show you to the room we accommodated for you? It’s ready now.”

Raven looked at Damian, as if she was looking for approval. After all, she was at his home.

Damian smiled and nodded, letting her know it was okay to go with Alfred. She smiled back at him and faced Alfred again.

“Yes, thank you.” She started following him. Even though they were almost out of the cave Damian heard her say something to Alfred that faded as they got away. “I’ve heard you are a really good cook…”

“Why, thank you, miss…”

Damian got an almost imperceptible smile on his face. He was lost in his thoughts but was brought back to reality because Bruce decided to stand right next to him.

“I took the liberty of calling Tim.” Those first words were enough to change Damian’s whole mood. He didn’t hate him, but out of all the bunch, they had always had one of the most difficult relationships. “And before you lose your mind. Remember that Tim has one of the best minds in the world outside ours. He has cracked the Batcomputer more times than I would like to admit, and has the abilities to help you translate and interpret that prophecy.”

Damian hadn’t noticed how much he was clenching his jaw until Bruce finished his argument. He was right. Tim was a great asset for that task, but working with him was going to be a pain in the ass.

“Good thing I am in charge. Is it not?” Was the only thing Damian said before turning to leave the cave.

Bruce frowned and sighed, knowing exactly where he was heading but still needing to ask. “Where are you going?”

“Out. Patrol. It’s not like Gotham doesn’t need it.” He jumped on top of one of the bikes and started to speed up heading to Crime Alley. At least beating up some goons would help with his frustration.

Bruce was still standing in the cave and decided to use one of the comm lines. “Oracle, tell Spoiler and Orphan they can return earlier. Red Hood is going to have some company down in Crime Alley.”

Barbara opened her comm line and she was making a sound of disappointment with her mouth. “Wow, already made him throw such a tantrum? I owe Nightwing so much money.” She giggled and Bruce growled. “Yeah, yeah. Informing them now. And you better hope little Robin left the sword home or you are going to be in trouble with my father. Oracle out.”

Bruce sat down on the chair that was in front of the batcomputer while he let out a breath hoping his son wouldn't execute too much 'justice' to Gotham's criminals. 

-

The morning after his rant, Damian decided to avoid Bruce at all costs and just concentrate on Raven. He hadn’t given himself the time to properly assess her journey with Constantine and why she had ended up so drained.

He wanted to make sure she was okay. So, early after sunrise he sneaked up into the kitchen trying to get some food to bring to Raven. 

After finding some waffle batter Alfred had stashed inside the fridge and made a fresh batch with some fruit on top, he put everything on a tray before taking it to Raven’s room.

He cleared his throat and knocked on the door, hoping she would be awake.

Raven slightly opened the door unsure of who it might be but smiled when she saw Damian. “What are you doing here?”

“I brought you breakfast. Waffles.” He pointed out the tray and smiled.

She frowned. “You’re bringing me breakfast now? Don’t you eat in a dining room or something in this big house?”

“We do, but I wanted to get an early start, so I thought I’d bring it to you.” He offered the tray again to her.

Raven could feel the turmoil of emotions inside Damian, even if she had no powers, she would. She got worried and opened up the door to let him in. “Come one, those smell terrific.”

They both sat on the floor and placed the tray in the middle of them, kinda like a picnic. She started to eat one of the waffles, Damian only watched as he waited for her to finish. 

“Aren’t you gonna eat? At least some fruit.” She offered.

He shook his head. “I’m not hungry, but you should eat. Yesterday you were pretty drained and you need your energy back.”

Is that what was bothering him? Her being drained out? 

“I’m fine now. So.” She took one of the berries that was on the plate and got close to Damian. “Open your mouth. You need to eat as well.”

He didn’t expect her to get so close at that moment so he obediently nodded and opened his mouth. As Raven placed the berry gently in his mouth, her fingertips grasped Damian’s lips, making him feel goosebumps all over his body. Her skin was so soft.

“Is it good?” Raven asked, tilting her head and Damian’s heartbeat skyrocketed. 

“What?”

“I asked if the food was good.” She smiled with confusion. Not sure why he was so distracted. “Damian, you know that I’m an empath, right? I can feel your anger and betrayal. I know something got in your head and knowing you that’s not an easy thing to do. Is everything okay?”

She gently placed her hand on top of one hand he had on the floor, trying to show him her support. He saw her hand and smiled with sadness and then looked away while his thumb stroke the hand she had placed in his.

“My father called one of my…” He paused. “Brothers.” It seemed like Damian didn’t like using that word. Like it wasn’t accurate.

Raven tried to understand where he was going with this but didn’t really understand. The only brother she knew he had was Dick and he had no problem with him. “Right. Sounds like something that he shouldn’t have done?”

In a moment of realization, he noticed how he never told her how there were several more people involved with Batman. “Dick is not the only one I have to call brother, you know? I now realize that I never told you how many ‘siblings’ I have.” He used air quotes. “Would you like to take a walk through the gardens and I can tell you all about it before discussing the root of the problem?”

Damian got up from the floor and offered a hand to her so she could get up as well. She smiled while getting up from the floor after accepting his hand. “You know what? I’d love to hear more about family drama that is unrelated to me, so yeah. Let’s go.”

-

“I didn’t expect you to have so much family, especially siblings.” Raven mentioned as they had finished taking probably their twentieth lap around the gardens of the mansion.

Damian had devoted a good amount of the morning to filing her in his family’s tree, history, business, drama and more. One thing she could always expect was for Damian to be detailed and accurate when telling a story.

He had dates, names, explanations, causes, fun facts and a section of Q&As for each part he finished telling so she could ask freely, as he would not hide anything.

“Came to me as a shocker as well given that I was raised as a single child until I came to live with my father.” He replied to Raven’s comment about the number of members in his family. 

The garden had bloomed a lot of flowers both for decoration and for other useful purposes, such as teas that were of Damian’s likeness. Alfred made sure of that.

Raven approached one bush where some shell shaped flowers stood out from the rest. It looked blue, almost purple-ish with the right lighting. It was beautiful.

Damian noticed how mesmerized Raven had become after she was captured by the flowers beauty, just like he was by hers every time he looked at her.

“It’s used often to brew medicinal tea. It has exceptional health benefits and properties for the human body. It grows mostly in SouthAsia.” He wanted to give Raven an explanation of such an exceptional flower. “It is also one of my favorite flowers, its beauty is unmatched and that’s why it’s frequently used in ceremonies, festivals and rituals. Not often something so handy and useful is also so beautiful and fragile.”

Damian was not really talking about the flower but about something quite more important and special to him. Something that, as he described, was beautiful and fragile, but also so exceptional he couldn’t quite believe he had her in front of him. His Raven.

Raven had long stopped paying attention to the flower and focused it on Damian. It was a superb and delicate feeling to hear him describe something new to her.

“I like it. Especially the colors.” She pointed out since the center of the flower was a soft white that the more it fades outwards, the more it became a strong blue shade. It resembled her. “What’s it called?”

Damian had started to rub the petals of the flowers gently with one of his fingers. Raven caught this movement and got lost in it for a few seconds.

“Butterfly Pea Flower is its most common name, but its also been named bluebellvine or blue pea. I rather used its scientific name, Clitorea Ternatea.” 

Clitorea Ternatea?

Raven was unsure as if she heard right, but her mouth was quicker than her mind to ask Damian more.

“As in…?” She immediately regretted the two words that came out of her mouth and faced away, feeling her cheeks and, honestly, entire body burn.

Damian had never given a second thought to that name until Raven made that remark. He looked at what his finger was doing to the petals and thought what a big misunderstanding this must be.

“Oh.” He faced away as well, taking the hand he had placed in the flower to the back of his neck, swallowing a big lump before speaking again. “Yes, the name did derive from its likeness to the…”

Damian choked, not really knowing if he should fulfill that sentence.

“Got it!” Raven fortunately beat him to it. “That’s what I thought.”

None of them uttered a word for a few seconds until she noticed how Damian was picking some of the flowers from the bush. She wondered what he was doing.

“The brewed tea is excellent. You must taste it.” He smiled and after having picked enough flowers and putting them in a basket that was nearby for harvest purposes he offered his hand to her. “Alfred will brew enough for both of us if I bring them to him. Come on.”

There was a simple smile and no hesitation before Raven took his hand and started walking back to the Manor with him. Even if they were just friends, she didn’t feel alienated to how ordinary it was to them to simply care for each other and hold hands. 

When they entered the kitchen there was Alfred, putting away some groceries he had just bought from the store. 

“Master Damian. Miss Raven. Good morning, or should I say good afternoon?” Alfred pointed out to the clock that they had hanging above the kitchen’s sink. It was already past noon. Barely.

Raven giggled as she liked the sense of humor Alfred had. It seemed to either amuse or piss off Damian and she enjoyed watching both happen.

“Hilarious, Pennyworth.” He smiled and put the basket he had on his free hand on top of the kitchen table. His other hand still holding on to Raven’s unsure of why he hadn’t let go but not addressing it until either she mentioned it or she pulled away since she hadn’t already. “I was wondering if you could brew us some tea? I already brought some flowers from outside.”

Raven was smiling, looking at Damian and then the flowers. Alfred noticed how she looked at him and how they hadn’t stopped holding hands. “Of course, Master Damian.” Alfred took the basket and proceeded to start working on the tea.

In the midst of Damian being giggly with Raven and Alfred being used to his presence. Damian missed that someone had been sitting on one of the chairs of the kitchen all along.

“Wow, you really get all distracted and googly, huh?” A masculine but slightly high-pitched voice made Damian’s skin crawl and he let go of Raven’s hand.

Raven had noticed the guy but didn’t say anything as she thought Damian also had. Now she knew he didn’t.

“Drake. Of course.” Damian said, grinding his teeth. 

Tim got up from his seat while he blocked his phone and put it in his pocket. “Hi baby bro. Long time no see.”

Hearing the name Damian called him, she inferred who he was thanks to all the stories she had gathered in the last few hours. “This is Tim? I thought he’d be shorter.”

Tim was approaching Raven to introduce himself but the comment made him chuckle out of loss for words.

“Aww, so you do talk about me.” Tim decided to used this as an opportunity to tease Damian. “Short? That’s how you describe me to other people? You’re one to talk.”

Damian growled while grinding his teeth. “Merely for informational purposes. She needed to know who the least important sibling was. I guess she interpreted it as a lack of heightness.” He smirked knowing this was a sensitive topic for Tim.

“Least important my ass! There’s a reason Bruce had me on speed dial!” He yelled, almost like he was hissing.

“Master Timothy, watch your language.” Alfred intervened while he was pouring some water in a teapot. His tone was calm but firm, almost fatherly.

Tim immediately changed his attitude when he heard Alfred. “Sorry, Alfred.” He pressed one of his hands behind his neck feeling embarrassed and sighed before addressing Damian again. “Look, I came here as a favor to Bruce, not you. So, when you’re ready to not pick a fight, I’ll be waiting at the study on the East Wing from the Manor.”

Raven didn’t know exactly what Tim meant by favor since Damian haven’t gotten to that part yet. He said he would tell her about his family and then about what troubled him. 

Given his reaction towards Tim and the situation, she could assume this had to do with it.

Her powers allowed her to feel both sets of feelings. Damian’s anger and frustration, and Tim’s abandonment and sadness. She knew Damian’s version but not Tim’s, and it must have hurt as much.

“Nice to meet you, Tim.” She said empathetically while Tim left the room, a shy smile on her face.

Tim saw this and calming his emotions he tried to return the smile, nodding, acknowledging her greeting before he left.

Damian sat down on one of the chairs while Alfred was starting to serve the brewed tea.

“I appreciate this didn’t end in broken bones or the use of our fine silverware as weaponry.” Alfred mentioned it to Damian after his china cup was served.

Raven couldn’t quite figure out yet if some remarks Alfred did were jokes or not. Damian couldn’t be bothered to react this time whether it was a joke or not, he was too pissed to do so.

She took a seat right next to Damian where a teacup already awaited her.

“Thank you, Alfred. It looks and smells amazing.” She complimented with a smile.

“It is my pleasure.” Alfred bowed with his head before turning to take something else from one of the counters. “Feel free to try one of my homemade cookies to accompany your tea.”

He left a plate of cookies in between Damian and Raven’s cups and smiled before returning to his duties.

Raven took the cup in her hands and blew some air to decrease the heat it was still present on it before taking a sip. 

The tea was sweet and aphrodisiac. It made her senses tickle while she close her eyes to enjoy the taste. And she didn’t notice Damian was staring at her reaction.

“I used to have some pots with these flowers back at Nanda Parbat so I could brew this tea. It's good, isn’t it?” Damian asked, his voice was more soothed than earlier when they encountered Tim.

“It is.” Raven breathed out and looked at Damian as he was the one now tasting the tea. 

She debated herself but she knew she had to ask him about Tim, even if it meant taking his current calm state away.

Apparently she had been thinking too loud through their bond.

“I know. He is the reason I was so out of it this morning. My apologies.” He looked down at his cup of tea, staring at his own reflection in it.

“You don’t have to apologize.” Raven frowned, feeling the guilt Damian was feeling.

“Not for that.” He replied. “For my behavior just a few minutes ago. I told you about my family because my father asked Tim to be here to help with your prophecy.”

Raven was listening to him and her face dropped when she heard that yet again, another person had been involved in this. 

“Da-“

“That is why I was so angry, so upset.” He interrupted, not proud of doing so but he needed to make her understand. “I made a promise to you and my father has challenged that promise without my consent, after he had made a promise himself, to not intervene and to listen to me before taking any actions.”

He stopped looking at his own reflection and turned to Raven.

“Timothy and I have an already complicated enough relationship for father to come and break his promise, and then force us to work together on something you have yet to agree and I will not force you to.” He concluded. Both of his fists were clenched on top of his knees.

Raven took one of his fists and started caressing it with her thumb. 

Even though it was not what she wanted, she could see Damian’s effort to keep his promise and struggle when he wasn’t able to. She didn’t want to be yet another factor that added up to his issues with his sibling.

“I understand. I don’t like and even less approve of what your father did, but I understand where he’s coming from.” Her own father came to mind, her empathy was surely going to be her doom one day. “I think is stupid that at this point I care who should get involved, I still want as few people as possible but, I think working with your brother would do you good.”

Damian was hesitant to Raven’s insight at first but after feeling her care in how she held his hand and smiled at him, he couldn’t help but agree.

“What you think will never be stupid to me. But if you think I should work alongside him. I will do so.” Damian smiled back. “Once we finish our tea I will go find Timothy.”

“Great.” She replied and proceeded to take one of Alfred’s cookies. As soon as she tasted it she felt how it crumbled inside her mouth. The sweetness was just perfect for the tea they were having. Her face was priceless.

“I see you have discovered what everyone around here craves for. Careful, Todd or Brown could fight you for some of those.” He joked before taking another sip of his tea. Jason and Stephanie were known to end with bruises and wounds over Alfred's cuisine.

“For these cookies I will fight them back, I can assure you that much.” She laughed. She hadn’t laughed so openly in a long time.

It had only been a day since Constantine had put the spell to conceal her father from disturbing her, and it was a pleasure to see her so free, so happy, so relaxed.

It was her he was doing all of this for. It was her, the reason he was going to endure the cockyness his brother Tim exude when interpretations and translations were the topic. 

And maybe Raven was right, it would do him good.

Notes:

I think next chapter I will finally start writing the prophecy as such. So it will be a wild ride between Damian and Tim's interactions.

Now, I know we all enjoy only positive bat family content, but given that I am using the animated movies as reference for this fic and neither Tim, Jason, Steph, etc. appear in those movies I need to give them some development, before the wholesome moments.

Positive side: batfam content!

Chapter 10

Raven had stayed behind with Alfred in the kitchen. She had decided to let Damian deal with his brother. This was something he had to face.

Within the feelings of Tim, she felt a lot of things. Anger, resentment, jealousy, but also positive feelings such as pride, concern, compassion. He was conflicted in his feelings towards Damian, but ultimately, he didn’t truly hate him or despise him.

Raven knew she couldn’t simply intervene, those kinds of mixed feelings are something people have to work through and have to be willing to heal.

-

Damian’s mind was all over the place.

He was approaching the East Wing, walking the corridors of the Manor while holding on tightly to Raven’s journal where she had written all of the words and sentences that would reveal the prophecy.

He kept pondering on Raven’s words from earlier.

“I think working with your brother will do you good.”

He sighed. 

The door of the study was finally in front of him. Raven better than anyone else knew him, and he trusted her. 

Maybe trying wouldn’t be so bad.

His hand reached for the doorknob and turned it, opening the door. Tim had headphones on and was typing some stuff on a laptop, sitting on top of a large sofa instead of one of the uncomfortable chairs.

He quickly glanced at Damian and sighed before typing for a few more seconds. Finishing whatever he had there before closing the laptops and taking the headphones off.

Damian had crossed his arms while waiting for Tim to finish. Tim began to talk before his little brother even had a chance. “You don’t look too thrilled to be here.”

“There is no point in dishonesty, Timothy. You know I am not, but either way I am here and I will collaborate with you, so I suggest we get started right away.” 

Tim definitely was not ready for an answer like that. Damian looked different, not like himself, the angry management issues, blood thirsty kid he met, but instead with a goal in mind that stopped him from behaving fully like that.

“Alright, we can do that.” Tim tried to get the journal from Damian’s hand. 

He wanted to take a look at the contents of it but Damian backed away instantly.

“You do know I have to read it in order to help, right?” Tim inquired as if it wasn’t obvious. Damian knew this but he was hesitant.

“I know, I just…” He paused trying to bring himself to explain why he was hesitant but refrained from doing so and changed the subject. “Is called Tamil. It is part of the family of Dravidian languages from South Asia. Raven thought I would be able to read it since I speak Urdu, but even though I am familiar with it, they are very different languages.”

Tim nodded. “Yeah, Urdu leans more to the Arabic side and all that. Tamil tho, that’s a new one for me, but I do like a challenge.”

Damian rolled his eyes. The fact that Tim had so much knowledge irritated him. 

“This is not a game nor a personal metrics assignment.” This comment came out way harsher than Damian intended.

Tim smiled slightly, he was briefed by Bruce about Damian’s affinity for his teammate, the one they were doing all of this for. He was not about to tease him about this, even if he wished to do it with all his being.

“I know that. Relax.” Once again Tim offered his hand to take the journal from Damian’s hand, this time allowing him to give it to him instead of simply taking it.

Damian sighed and squeezed the journal one last time before letting it go. “Here.”

Finally, the exchange happened and Tim nodded, grateful.

He opened the journal and started flipping through the pages. One could see in his eyes how he was making mental notes, even if he was not able to speak an ounce of the language.

On the other hand, Damian had begun to look for any dictionaries and books that could be of potential help for the task at hand.

Tim hummed while he closed the journal once he finished sorting his thoughts out. “I don’t think this is as complicated as we might think it is.”

This time, he didn’t sound arrogant, he sounded insightful. Damian turned around with a dictionary opened up on a page but ignored it as soon as he heard Tim.

“What makes you say that?” Damian left the dictionary on one of the desks the study had to offer and approached Tim, eager to know more.

“Well, a lot of the script or words are quite similar. Repetitive.” He explained, holding his chin with his index finger and thumb. “If I’m not mistaken, this is probably old style, very repetitive language to get to one point.”

It was quite impressive how Tim came to that conclusion by merely flipping through the pages for a few minutes. Bruce was right, but that was not the point at the moment.

“So, as soon as we figure out the pattern, we will be able to take shortcuts to read the whole prophecy.” Damian concluded. A grin appeared on his face, pleased to know Tim was a good asset.

“Genius, right?” Tim used his arrogant voice now, just because he enjoyed teasing Damian here and there.

Damian rolled his eyes, fed up. “You are efficient, I’ll give you that. But do not make this more difficult than it has to be. Alfred will not be happy if we stain the carpets with your blood again.” 

He made the remark to point out how Tim was almost always more physically hurt at the end of their little hassles. Mostly because Damian used a sword.

Tim clenched one of his fists. “May I remind you it has not only been my blood on the carpets?” He was clearly pissed, but Damian enjoyed this.

“Ah yes, the sweat and tears as well. But those do not stain.” Damian’s voice was calm, which infuriated Tim even more.

“No, but your blood will.” Tim had every intention of starting a fight without any regard for what Alfred or Bruce might think.

Regardless of how much Damian was enjoying this, he once again remembered Raven’s words and thought she might be disappointed if he returned and let her know what had happened was that he made the gap between he and his brother bigger.

Damian sighed and looked away or else he wouldn’t be able to say the next words that came out of him. “Maybe I have undermined your abilities in the past. Can we move on with this?” He pointed out the journal.

Tim’s anger turned immediately to confusion. “Wh- You- I-” He stuttered. This truly caught him off guard and was not sure what to say.

Damian was trying his best to not tease him about the stuttering. “Can we?” He repeated.

“Was that an apology?” Tim pondered, not caring if he sounded dumb.

“It is as close as you will get to one for now. So, can we move on?” Damian repeated once again, grinding his teeth.

Tim knew it was even if his little brother wouldn’t admit it. “ We can.” He smiled. “Come on, let me show you something I’ve been working on. I think you'll like it.”

Tim opened the door to guide Damian towards a room Bruce had provided for him so he could arrange it however he saw fit. They were walking in silence down the hallway, all the way to the end of the East Wing where the room was.

“Father provided the biggest room of this wing?” Damian asked, intrigued.

“Well, for the sake of keeping peace, I will ignore the fact of how surprised you just sounded.” Tim pouted, trying to not seem offended. He opened one of the doors of the room and step aside so Damian could get in. “After you.”

Damian rolled his eyes but didn’t respond, entering the room. 

Inside there was a big white table in the middle of the room. The material seemed like it was a touch screen that can be played with and display images. On top of it, hanging from the ceiling there was another screen similar to the other one, that mirrored the images from the one below it. 

The walls from the room had different things attached to them. Two had screens with columns of letters alternating direction, ones going up and the others down. As if they were trying to match each other.

Finally, the third wall of the room, had a screen with a keyboard with not only the latin alphabet, but from other alphabet’s used across the world, from different cultures and eras.

Damian had no expression on his face but he definitely was examining down to the last minute detail every part of that room. Tim had followed from behind and taken a seat in one chair that he custom made for him to comfortably sit whenever he came into that room.

“Neat, huh?” Tim smiled more proudly than he wanted to show. 

“You build all of this? By yourself? What was your goal?” Damian stopped at one of the screens while he typed something in Arabic and it worked perfectly.

Tim wrote something on the board that was in the middle of the room and scuffed. “Wow, surprised a second time. Again, I will try and not take offense.” He sighed and laid back on the chair. 

“I was merely stating the fact that-”

Damian got interrupted right away. ”I know.” Tim gave him half a smile trying to not make him worry. “Riddler was starting to become a pain in the ass for all of us a while ago. He wanted our attention by throwing five or more of his stupid riddles a day.”

Tim began his explanation and Damian frowned. He felt a bit guilty from missing all of that while residing with the Titans.

“At first it was pathetic.” Tim continued. “But in no time, his riddles started becoming more and more sophisticated and our time response for his crimes was becoming sloppy. I had to come up with something since Bruce was too involved in Justice League business, Dick was in Bludhaven, Jason is…”

“Jason.” Damian answered as he understood what Tim meant.

“Right.” Tim giggled. At least they agreed on something. He sighed before continuing. “Barbara was the only one smart enough to help me build this thing, but she was at the hospital at the time after… well.” 

The joker wanted to play a sick joke. Tim didn’t have to say it, Damian understood.

“It is a great advancement, Drake.” Damian tried to change the subject so they wouldn’t have to talk any further about the previous one. “But, is this not a little too advanced even for The Riddler?”

Damian pointed out all of the technology and the size of the room.

“Well, yeah.” Tim replied. “After taking down Riddler, it seemed like a waste to simply put the version I had created away. So I kept perfectioning it until it became all of this. The most advanced cross-referencing, translation and interpretation tool ever. I just didn’t know yet what we would ever use it for. Until now.”

For the first time, maybe ever, Damian smiled openly to Tim. “I am quite impressed. You definitely are more than I have ever given you credit for.” He made a pause as soon as he saw Tim’s face start to change to a grin. “Yes, it is a compliment. And yes, I probably will not repeat it again so you better have heard it right.”

“Oh, don’t worry, this room is fully equipped with cameras in every corner. I will be showing this at the Christmas dinner.” He teased, making Damian fume and roll his eyes. “Alright, let’s start then.”

Tim opened a software on the table and smirked at Damian. Damian sighed and nodded while taking a seat. The journal had not left his hands that whole time.

He opened it and put it in the middle of the table. The screen on top of it that acted like a mirror started to scan page by page. Word by word.

“Well, let’s relax while the scanner does its thing and we will deliberate once the computer has nowhere else to go.”

Damian nodded and laid back on the chair’s backrest. Both stayed silent not knowing what else to say while they waited for the scan to finish.

“So…” Tim began, trying to find a topic to break the deafening silence that flooded the room. 

It was obvious that this was his goal, so Damian raised his hand stopping him before he proceeded. “Look, I am trying my best to work this out and have a peaceful interaction. Maybe even an amicable acquaintance, so I will allow you to ask me one question.”

He crossed his arms and looked away. The way he was making an effort to make it look like he didn’t care was not fooling Tim at all.

“Right.” Tim said slowly as he tried to think about a question he’d like to ask. He had one hand on his own chin while looking up, humming when he had a realization and his eyes sparkled. “Got it. Who’s beaten your ass worse? Dick? Or Bruce?”

“That is your question?” Damian had one eyebrow up and a dumbfounded look. What a ridiculous question.

“It is.” Tim said with firmness. “Either that or you can tell me when you realized you were in love with that cute girl you brought home.” 

Damian changed from dumbfounded to alarmed. So he decided to answer the first question instead. “Grayson. Father has always pulled back his strength.”

“Wow, you must really like her.” Tim had some snacks hidden in a drawer below the board. He started chewing on some hazelnut flavored treats. “Want some? These are home-made. Alfred made them and I hid them here from Jason and Steph. They barely come here anyways.”

His little brother looked troubled. Damian hadn’t even heard about the snacks he was offering. “I guess I knew from a very long time ago, but I never truly accepted it until I came to Father for advice on the mission.”

Tim stopped chewing what he had in his mouth and swallowed it whole. He was perplexed. He didn't expect Damian to answer that question at all.

Damian saw the look on his brother’s face and felt an immense shame inside him. “Nevermind what I said.”

“No. It’s okay.” Tim leaned forward, he wanted to show Damian that he truly cared. “I shouldn't have asked in the first place. But, if I may, I think it’s great that you can accept that you have feelings for her, that’s the hardest part. And even if you were trained as a bloodthirsty assassin, there’s nothing you need as much bravery for, as you need for loving someone openly.”

Tim smiled with sadness, speaking from experience and not just to give him a pep talk. Damian also didn’t expect Tim to answer anything at all. Especially not something that he actually needed to hear.

“That is-” He shook his head. “That was-” He cleared his throat and sighed. “I appreciate your words, Drake. But I am not brave, my feelings for her remain hidden.”

“I know.” Tim acknowledged. “Doesn't mean you’re less brave. The key is knowing that, eventually, you will get a chance to tell her how you feel. There are a lot of people in this world whose feelings will, as you say, remain hidden for their whole lives. Those are the people who are not brave. The ones that decide to never take the step instead of deciding when is the right time to take it.”

“Huh.” Damian seemed surprised. “I wouldn’t have taken you for the hopeless romantic one. I would’ve guessed that it was...”

“Steph? Dick?” Tim guessed with a smile.

Damian laughed. “Actually, my guess was Todd. You do know Austen is his favorite author, right?”

Tim’s face dropped as he processed the information. One would assume he had just won the lottery. “Austen, as in romantic novels writer, Jane Austen?”

“Correct.” Damian had dived into Austen’s catalog himself and found it quite compelling despite the romanticism. “Why are you acting so strange? One compliment and you seem to be losing it.”

“Oh no, I’m great. More than great. This is gold, you know?” Tim was grinning, as if he was up to something. 

“I am not following. What is?” Damian couldn’t understand what Tim’s mind had going on.

“You’re kidding.” He couldn’t believe what Damian was asking and had to explain. “Jason, ‘I am the toughest of all because I use guns and don’t care, I flip Bruce off, and have participated both as an anti-hero and hero’, Todd reads Austen?” Tim expected a positive answer after that explanation, maybe to be backed up.

“She is a remarkable author.” Damian advocated, as he would’ve done with any other author he liked.

Tim didn’t have anything else to say after that. Damian had a point. Maybe he would make fun of Jason for being a romantic, not for Austen being an author of romantic novels. “I guess she is.”

“If you want dirt on him, just mention to him the time Father had to save him from a bunch of low level thugs he couldn’t take down by himself as Robin. He’ll know what you mean.” Damian smirked knowing that’s what he wanted in the first place.

“You’re not as bad as you’ve made yourself seem all these years.” Tim smirked back. 

“I guess the feeling is mutual. I apologize for not allowing myself to interact with you more, or any of you for that matter.” Damian was being truthful.

“Don’t worry, there’s really no hard feelings at all. But, what made you change your mind?” Tim was full of curiosity. 

Damian instinctively smiled when the reason came to mind. “Raven did. She thought this whole thing would be easier if I opened myself and actually acknowledged you.”

Tim noticed this smile. “I’m liking this girl more and more. I know you don’t care about my opinion, but I think she’s great for you.”

“I do value your opinion, Drake.” Damian intervened. “I just think it’s better to not let people know their strengths or they will get overconfident in their abilities.”

“Like you do?” Tim teased. He couldn’t help herself.

“You wish. I am not overconfident, I am just better at everything than everyone else is.” He said calmly and sounded a bit presumptuous.

Tim laughed openly, there was too much irony on all of this. “Not cocky at all.”

-

There was a knock on the door that interrupted whatever Damian was about to answer to that. It was a soft knock that Damian could have recognized anywhere. Raven was knocking.

She had received directions from Alfred on how to get to where Damian and Tim were huddling after an hour or so since they had been working on the prophecy. 

She was not proud and had promised to leave him to it, but was dying to know what the progress had been so far after she felt something through her bond with Damian, like a message needed to be delivered. Unsure of what it was, she decided to go to him.

Damian got up from his seat and walked up to the door on a hasty walk, taking the handle and twisting it even before his whole body was standing before the door.

“Raven. I thought you would be meditating in the gardens after finishing your tea.” Damian commented, with a smile. He was glad she chose to find him instead.

Raven brushed one strand of hair behind her ear, a bit embarrassed. Not knowing what to say now that she was standing there. “I was gonna do that, but I- Alfred kept me company while I finished and then…” 

She glanced inside the door seeing Tim still sat on his chair. 

“I felt you calling me. Like if you needed to tell me something. Is it about the prophecy? You guys figured something out?” She asked while biting her lower lip with anxiousness.

Damian got confused for a second, he had not called her. He realized what had happened after a couple of seconds and immediately stayed silent, not knowing what to say.

Tim noticed this and got up from his seat to help his little brother out. “We are very close. We should be having the first words and cross-references in a few minutes. Wanna come in and take a seat? I got snacks!”

He smiled wide openly and Raven let out a breath. She felt relief knowing that in no time she would have access to the information that would help her understand her destiny better.

“Oh, I am so full from eating all of Alfred’s cookies, but thanks.” Raven entered the room while looking at the screens on the wall.

Damian closed his eyes before mouthing a ‘thank you’ to Tim for intervening when he became speechless. 

“Alfred willingly offered you all of the fresh baked cookies?” Tim was impressed. “He must really like you."

“You think so?” Raven smiled. She could feel Tim’s aura, he was so kind and genuine. “I better keep it that way.”

She turned to Damian and smiled at him before taking a seat on one of the chairs.

Damian blushed and followed her lead, taking a seat next to her. “You don’t need to do much, he is an excellent judge of character and he must have seen what I already had.”

That came out way softer than he intended with his brother Tim in front of him, but he did not take it back, he meant it.

Raven’s cheeks were flushed after that comment. Since her journey inside her mind with Constantine, her efforts to hide her feelings for Damian when this kind of comments happened were becoming more and more difficult.

“I guess he should have also trusted your judgment.” Raven replied.

“Oh no, Alfred must have liked you on his own. Just like I do.” Tim intervened with a smile. He was trying to help Damian with this conversation and how they both seemed to be hiding their feelings for each other, even if it was obvious to everyone but them.

“You like me already? Why? We’ve barely exchanged a few words.” Raven was confused by Tim’s comment.

Damian wanted to kill his brother right there and then. He knew that Tim meant what they had just talked about, how she had made him become more approachable, and changed his ways. But she didn’t need to know that.

Tim noticed Damian’s glance and knew that he had just screwed up and needed to fix it so he grabbed the journal and approached her so he could show her something.

“Well, because you acted very nice earlier in the kitchen even though I was kind of an ass to little D here.” He pointed to Damian and giggled, which Raven replicated. “And also, I noticed the level of detail you went through to write all of this, even if you haven’t seen the language before. You like books, right?”

Raven took the journal and once again read the words she had written during her journey to her mind. “I do. You noticed that just because of how I wrote this? That’s impressive.”

Raven smiled, feeling a friendship develop between them. He was definitely someone that she could probably relate to. Her powers were telling her so.

“If you need any good recommendations while you’re staying here, I can definitely provide them. Just so you don’t die out of boredom hanging out with him.” Tim whispered in Raven’s ear while pointing towards Damian, making Raven giggle.

She approached Tim’s ear and whispered back. “He’s not as boring as you think he is.”

She started telling him about the time the Titans went to an amusement park and Damian defeated Beast Boy in a dancing competition. Tim’s face was priceless.

Damian could not hear what they were both saying and was about to complain when the door of the study opened up and both of the boys turned to see who had walked in. Raven was still whispering something to Tim and had not noticed yet the presence of another.

“I knew you had to be back in town!” Without warning a blonde girl embraced Damian in a tight hug. “I missed you so much!”

Even though the girl was shorter now than he was, she easily lifted him in the air making his back crack because of the pressure. Damian groaned in response to that. 

All the commotion made Raven turn her head towards Damian and the girl, she didn’t recognize her, but she came to the conclusion that because of the quirky smile, blonde hair and overall cheerful attitude that it must have been one of his sisters.

Damian remained as stiff as he always was when it came to physical contact. “Afternoon, Steph. Can you return my personal space?”

“No.” She expressed firmly. Damian rolled his eyes. “Fine. But just five more seconds.”

There had been more than thirty extra seconds than she already requested.

“Brown.” Damian called.

“Alright!” She let go frowning and rolling her eyes. “Can’t a big sister be a big sister and be a pain in the ass by hugging his baby brother?”

Damian sighed and pinched the arch of his nose trying not to kill her. “Stephanie, we have discussed this. I am not, and have never been, a ‘baby’ brother to you.”

“Bullshit! I will call you what you are to me.” Steph stuck her tongue out at him. “I assumed it was you when Bruce called last night telling us to head home early. Why didn’t you call?”

Raven had stood in silence that whole interaction but watching with endearment, it was quite something seeing how Damian unwinded with people he knew.

Tim, on the other hand, was amused. He knew that Damian fought everyone in the Manor but had a soft spot for three people: Dick, Alfred and Steph.

“I have also discussed with you the lack of necessity for you to know my whereabouts if-” Damian was explaining to Steph, but she peeked over his shoulder, and her eyes caught a glance of Raven giggling with Tim.

Stephanie interrupted Damian as soon as she saw Raven. “Oh my god. Who is that?”

Damian’s eyes widened when she heard Stephanie interrupt him. He knew she would be the most reckless of them all when it came to Raven.

“Oh god! Is that why you didn’t call? Because you brought a girl-” Stephanie’s words were quickly muffled by Damian’s hand on her mouth while they left the room.

He was so quick with it that not Raven nor Tim were able to make anything of what she had said.

Steph and Damian were both already way down the hall. She was struggling to get out of his grip, cursing him out, before he finally spoke out loud.

“Before I release you. You need to keep quiet. I am more than serious about this, Brown.” Damian had a look on his face different from other occasions when he was just being condescendent.

Steph frowned and nodded slowly in agreement.

Damian let go of her and she proceeded to speak. “Why? Who is she?”

Steph muttered. She could be sneaky if required, and this situation definitely required it.

“She is one of my teammates, at the Titans. I brought her here because of a mission.” He explained. But Stephanie could tell there was more to it.

“You could’ve said that back there.” Her face lit up. “So I was right? Is she your girlfriend? Or why else would she be staying here and you would be acting so weird?”

Steph was overjoyed with the thought of a soft and in love Damian.

“She is not. Stop that.” Damian replied harshly. “Like I said, she is here because of a mission, and I am urging you to please not trouble her with any love drama you have going on in your head.”

“You like her.” Steph stated, touched. “Does she know? Did you give her flowers? Oh god, you’ve finally fallen for someone! I’m so proud of you! Jason owes me so much money…”

Steph kept going from one topic to another, making it harder for Damian to keep up. So he stopped her. 

“Stephanie, please.” Damian begged, using a first name basis. “I have already been through this with Father and Drake, I am begging you to please let it go for now. What I bring her in for is far more important. Can you do that for me?”

This completely caught Steph off guard. She didn’t expect Damian to ask her for that, and not in such a kind way. He was desperate and she could tell.

“How bad is it?” She asked in a more serious tone. Whatever made Damian risk taking her there, where all of them were, had to be bad enough if he was gonna endure the teasing and joking for her.

“Bad enough.” 

That’s all he had to say before she pursed her lips and nodded. Fully understanding that he needed help and that, for now, that included helping him avoid the teasing for the rest of their brothers. Especially Jason.

“I won’t say a word. And I will keep Jason away.” She winked at Damian, letting him know that she understood that he didn’t want him to add to his current frustrations.

Damian nodded. He was, as always, trying to find the right way to thank anyone who offered him help but instead, he decided to embrace Stephanie in a shy hug.

She gladly hugged him back and patted him on the back. Letting him know she understood that was an act of gratitude on his behalf.

After the timing of the hug was over, Damian started to pull away but Steph didn’t let him, holding him tight to her.

“Uh, Steph?” Damian muttered when he noticed she wouldn’t let go.

“Five more seconds!” She replied instantly, but this time Damian didn’t argue anything against that.

-

When Damian opened up the door of the room where the translation and scanning was happening again, Raven was laughing.

Her eyes were closed, creases were forming on the edges of her eyes while she held one hand to her mouth and other to her stomach, trying to not laugh as much.

Damian instinctively smiled while looking at her. He forgot for a moment of all of his troubles. He hadn’t noticed Tim hiding his phone back into his pocket until Raven turned and blushed when he saw Damian.

“How did it go with your sister?” She asked, trying to hold back some of the giggles.

“Am I missing something?” One of his eyebrows raised, looking suspiciously at the both of them.

Raven stayed silent for a moment glancing at Tim and then again at Damian.

“Nothing…”  She replied. She was a bad liar.

Damian was about to reply something to her obvious lie when the board in the middle of the room made a beeping sound and showed big blue flickering letters in the middle of it.

D O N E

Tim and Raven lost their amusement instantly as their faces dropped seeing the message on the screen. Damian approached the screen and looked at Tim.

“Drake.” He uttered as an order so he could get working.

 “On it.” Tim replied immediately.

Raven’s gaze was still locked on the screen. Processing as she knew she was about to get the first clues to knowing her true destiny.

Damian noticed this and put a hand on her shoulder, squeezing as a way to show his support to her. “Just because it has been written, does not mean we can not re-write it. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves.”

Raven looked up to meet Damian’s eyes and nodded. “Thank you.”

“Right.” Tim interrupted while looking at the screen. And typing some things on some other screen that was on the wall. “So, the computer does say it is Tamil, but…”

“But?” Damian replied with a frown.

“Well this is the weirdest shit I’ve seen the machine do. But it says it is Tamil, old one, but not from our dimension.” He explained as best as he could as he was as confused as the computer. “The computer picked it up, apparently, from some old magic books.”

Damian looked at Raven as soon as he heard that. Raven was astonished and quickly got closer to the screen Tim was reading from. 

“Let me see that.” 

She started browsing through the reference the computer had brought up. Not all of it was Tamil as it mentioned. Some of it was a language she knew. 

“Is Azarian. How could I not have seen it before?” She felt betrayed by her own self.

She walked towards her journal again and took it, opening it in one of the pages where she wrote the prophecy.

Raven could almost see the words floating on her mind. 

The Azarian was hidden within the Tamil inscription. It was a blend.

“What does the computer say? Are there any clear words in the translation?” Raven asked after finding the Azarian.

Tim corroborated with the computer and pulled out whatever it picked up and translated already.

“Looks like gibberish to me. Here.” Tim displayed the words on the screen that was on the board so both Damian and Raven could read them.

Have become other be must. 

Will, rise, burn, again.

Born, shall, come.

Comes, sire, mortal.

Damian kept reading the words. He was visibly frustrated when he couldn't get anything out of them. His fists were clenched as he was trying to hold his emotions together.

“Like I said. Gibberish.” Tim said with the same frustration, feeling like a fool when his invention couldn’t be of help.

“It’s not.” Raven replied. “Put the scans from my journal on the screen again.”

Tim was confused but followed her lead. He immediately did as he was told and Damian kept looking over at Raven, intrigued.

When Tim finally pulled all of her scans on the screen, she started using her magic to get them out of the screen and make the letters float around the room. 

She then proceeded to separate each letter she knew was from the Azarian language and put it away from the Tamil one. Once each of the letters was separated, she returned all of the letters to the screen.

“All of those are Azarian. From Azarath.” 

“Your home.” Damian complemented, beginning to understand where she was going with this.

Raven nodded. “Where can I write? So I can give you the translations for each of these letters.” 

Tim tapped twice on a corner of the screen and it glowed, allowing her to write freely. She started writing the translations for the letters as quickly as she could. 

Damian looked over her shoulder and wondering how every letter held so much significance. 

Once Raven finished she sighed. “Run it again.”

Tim nodded and made the computer run the translator again. The three of them were dead silent while the computer did its job.

The beeping sound was deafening after it was ready again. 

Raven looked away, she didn’t want to see whatever was on the screen now. Tim kept reading it over and over in silence and in disbelief of what he was reading.

“Somebody please read it out loud. I can’t read it on my own.” Raven pleaded.

Damian looked at Tim shaking his head in disapproval. He would be the one to read it, until a computerized voice beat him to it.

Initiating Automated Audio Reading

“Oh no…” Tim said, trying to stop the audio from continuing, miserably failing. The voice continued.

 

What you have concealed, you shall become. 

You have no other choice.

Your destiny will be fulfilled.

The portal must be opened.

 

Skies will burn. Flesh will become stone.

The sun will set on your world. Never to rise again.

Your destiny will be fulfilled.

The portal must be opened.

 

Time won’t wait forever.

You can’t run away from who you are.

Your destiny will be fulfilled.

The portal must be opened.

 

The gem was born of evil’s fire,

The gem shall be his portal.

He comes to claim. 

He comes to sire the end of 

all things mortal.

 

What you have concealed, you shall become. 

You have no other choice.

Your destiny will be fulfilled.

The portal must be opened.

 

Raven was hugging herself after the voice had finished with everything the translation had done.

“Raven…” Damian said as he approached her. 

She had her back turned to both Tim and him.

Tim decided to gently get up from his seat and leave the room. He knew this must have been pretty rough to hear and it was not a good moment to be in there. He was not needed, Damian was.

After Tim left, Raven sniffed. She turned without looking Damian in the eyes. 

“I know how it sounds, but-” Damian tried to talk but he was interrupted by her.

“I’ve been putting it off for too long, Damian.” She kept sniffing between words. “I have known what I was created for my whole life. The time I stopped my father those couple of years ago… It was a band-aid on a bullet wound.”

Damian felt how she was using their bond without her noticing. She was feeling sad, almost heartbroken.

“Do not say that. I will not allow it.” He said in despair.

“Damian, there is nothing else to do. My destiny has been written for me.”

She looked up to meet his eyes and Damian felt a sharp pain inside his chest when he saw inside her eyes. Full of tears and sorrow.

“Raven.. There is always something else to do. I will do everything in my power to-”

“I’m sorry Damian, I have no hope left today… I just, I wanna be left alone.”

She took a step back and with a broken voice she casted her most used spell before disappearing inside her shadow Raven, disappearing into thin air.

Damian was left alone in the room, clenching his fists and jaw, glancing once again at the screen with the words.

“I will not accept that destiny for her.” He muttered to himself before sitting himself down to work on the prophecy once again. Keeping himself up the rest of the day and all night, not caring about resting.

All he cared about was founding out more. Founding out what that meant. Founding out a way to help Raven. All he cared about was Raven…

Notes:

Once again I apologize for the lateness on uploading this.

I haven't had time to write as much lately, but once I am settled again next week, I feel I will be writing as often as I did again.

So... anyways. How did we feel about this chapter?

Chapter 11

Bruce had been filled in by Tim about what had happened the day before. The development they had made in the prophecy and how, after Raven left, Damian had spent the rest of the day and the night awake, working on it.

Something had shifted in the way that Tim talked about Damian when he was briefing Bruce, something positive. 

Bruce thanked his son and sent him on his way. He couldn’t help but smile when no one was close by. The situation was not ideal, but at least they were mending their ways, learning to be better. Learning to be more like Dick, and not like him.

After pondering on what he should do, Bruce walked to the kitchen and asked Alfred to prepare Damian’s favorite tea and something to eat as well. He would be the one to bring it to him.

Damian had fallen asleep on top of the board that was in the middle of the room. He had his arms crossed out on the table and his head on top of them, breathing in and out in a very gentle way.

Bruce entered the room carrying a tray with all of the things Alfred provided. He was surprised to find Damian like that. 

He didn’t see the young adult son that had become and had been away with the Titans for almost four years, he saw something he never envisioned before, a child sleeping peacefully.

At that moment, his heart felt heavy, seeing how life once again was testing his son. Putting him through another trial. Something he shouldn’t have picked up as his responsibility, but he chose to anyway out of the kindness of his heart. Out of love.

He put the tray down on the middle of the board and kneeled down to Damian's face. Unsure of it, Bruce used his hand and brushed his son’s hair.

“Damian.” He called.

Damian sighed. “Yes, father.” He sounded grumpy when he woke up.

“Wake up. I brought tea.” Bruce was still brushing Damian’s hair, given that he hadn’t cut off his hand yet.

“I am awake.” He sighed heavily, before stretching his arms and yawning. He rubbed his eyes before facing his father, unsure of what he was doing there. “No offense, father. But you can’t even boil water.”

Bruce's endearment for his little boy was gone after that comment. “Alfred made it.”

“Huh, then I guess it is drinkable.” He took the cup of tea and drank from it, just a sip. He looked at Bruce who was now taking a seat on the edge of the table. “What is it, father?”

Bruce crossed his arms. “I came to check up on you. Am I not allowed that either?”

“So, let me see if I’m getting this correctly.” Damian left his cup on the tray again. “The night that I got here, I went deranged against Gotham’s goons and everything was fine. But I stay up a couple more hours working on a case, and you have to check up on me?”

Damian was frowning, challenging Bruce with his eyes.

“But it’s not just a case, Damian. Is it?” Bruce replied in a cold voice.

“No.” Damian confessed, lowering his gaze. “It is not.”

Bruce looked away, not wanting to see his son like that. His attention was captured by some of the words from the prophecy, plastered on one of the screens Tim had on the wall.

Damian noticed the direction his father was looking. “It is useless. There is only so much I can do without her intel.”

He grabbed the cup again and drank the rest of the tea from it. Bruce was still examining the words on the screen.

“I don’t think that’s true.” Bruce replied before turning to look at his son again. “You’re just putting too much pressure upon yourself.”

“The fate of the world is in jeopardy, father. I think it is fair to say that this stupid translation is something quite frustrating.” The bags under Damian’s eyes were getting more prominent.

Bruce couldn’t take it anymore. “Eat your breakfast and take a shower. I’ll wait for you at the main entrance in about an hour. And wear something nice.”

Damian frowned and straightened on his seat. He didn’t know what his father was on about, but he had many things to do and was not about to waste his time on whatever plans he had. “But-”

“Not optional, Damian.” Bruce was already halfway out the door when he said this, slamming the door on his way out.

Damian growled with anger before staring at the tray of food his father had brought for him. 

He had no other choice but to follow his father’s instructions hoping to get rid of him as soon as he could in order to move on with the prophecy.

While he ate, he wondered if Raven was safe. He knew she was one of the strongest people he knew, but still, he needed to know that wherever she was, she was okay.

-

The view of the black and starless sky that the corners of Raven’s mind offered, even though it was not something people would agree with, she thought it gave tranquility.

After leaving Damian the night before, she thought the best bet was to go inside her own mind to meditate on the prophecy that had now been translated and her knowing her own destiny.

She was levitating at the top of one of the rocks from the long path that connected all the corners of her consciousness, her legs were crossed and her eyes closed.

Every breath she took was an attempt to forget the words that were now embedded inside her mind ever since she heard about the prophecy a few hours ago, before disappearing in front of Damian. 

The prophecy. Words that kept coming and going over and over inside her. Like a tape that had been stuck in the same song for ages.

What you have concealed, you shall become. 

You have no other choice.

Your destiny will be fulfilled.

The portal must be opened.

Raven was having a hard time trying to make sense of every part of the prophecy. She felt like there was something missing in all of the things she heard.

She had gone to the part of her mind where meditation and mindfulness was stronger in order to conclude and interpret those words faster, without any success.

Sweat was starting to drip down her forehead with each fragment of the prophecy she remembered.

Skies will burn. Flesh will become stone.

The sun will set on your world. Never to rise again.

“Skies will burn.” A voice muttered, making her open her eyes abruptly and falling from where she was levitating after losing concentration.

Raven faced the direction the voice came from, at the bottom of the rock she was sitting on. Her mirror self was standing there waiting for her.

Knowledge Raven, with her yellow cape and eyeglasses. 

“What did you say?” Raven repeated while flying down the rock to meet her at the bottom.

“You heard me. You are just too afraid to face the logical part of it and embrace it.” Knowledge Raven raised an eyebrow, accusing her other self.

Raven usually got along with her mirror parts pretty well, but she didn’t like to be challenged, especially when she knew the others were right. At the end of the day, that was their purpose.

“Skies will burn.” Raven repeated, sighing heavily. “Like my nightmare, I know. But I still can’t understand why it is part of the prophecy.”

Knowledge Raven rolled her eyes and adjusted her glasses before taking her other self’s hand and dragging her to another place of her mind.

“Where are you taking me?” Raven asked, annoyed, but still following her.

“I guess I have to do everything for you." Her Knowledge self answered. "I’m taking you to the answer.” 

Raven didn’t argue any more and continued to follow her. They were going to a part of her mind she knew was there but barely visited in her tours to the inside of her mind.

They reached a door at the end of one of the paths of her mind. There was nothing behind it, but they both knew what awaited behind that door.

“The chamber of time. Our lifetime.” Raven looked at her Knowledge self. “Why? There’s only memories in there. Besides, the elders from Azarath told us that it was forbidden, even if they wouldn’t say the reason why.”

Knowledge Raven pinched the arch of her nose underneath her glasses, tired of all of this whining. “Would you just get in?”

Raven had no other choice but to obey herself, she knew she had a reason to have dragged her all this way. She used a spell to unlock the door and set foot into the room.

There was a giant dome with a clock in the middle that covered the entirety of the floor of the room. It had two clock hands as any other clock would have, but they were not moving and there were no numbers written on the clock. 

The whole clock was covered with a layer of clear glass that separated the clock from both Ravens. They were walking over it while they admired the room, taking in every single detail in it.

Raven kneeled when she noticed something glowing on the floor. The clock was also covered in a thin layer of white sand that was trapped under the glass. She was unsure of the function of the sand.

“I thought my lifetime memories would be stored here.” Raven mentioned while she stood up again.

Knowledge Raven smiled, almost thinking of how cute her ingenuity was. “Think of a memory, any memory.”

“Any memory…” Raven repeated while holding her chin, humming as she thought. She smiled as a memory came to mind.

The white sand started to glow moving around the clock in circles while the clock hands made a loud echoing creaking sound as they moved, counterclockwise. Both the glowing sand and the clock hands stopped at the same spot. 

The sand surpassed the glass that separated the clock and the girls. It was morphing into a live image of a memory.  Almost as if it was happening before her eyes.

Damian appeared before her, looking confused while another version of Raven herself revealed a hidden puppy that was underneath her cape. 

She smiled when she saw how Titus immediately bonded with Damian and vice versa. He didn’t show it that day, but he was thrilled with his present.

The image started to scatter once it was done and the sand returned to where it belonged, underneath the glass surface. 

Raven sighed with a smile on her face, still remembering that day. “That was…” She shook her head. “I still don’t get what we’re doing here.”

Knowledge Raven facepalmed herself. “I can’t believe we’re the same person. Look at the wall.” She pointed out where the clock hands and sand had stopped.

There was a number glowing on the wall. A year. 

“It’s the year the memory happened.” Raven concluded.

“Yes? Go on.” Knowledge Raven encouraged her.

Raven rolled her eyes while she examined the room once again now that she had seen what the room was capable of. 

She turned around and saw the clock hands from where they started their movement to where it ended. They traveled counterclockwise… To the past. A memory from her past.

But, they were in a specific point on the clock at the beginning, right before she thought of her memory. The clock hands were positioned not even at the middle of it, which meant that she hadn't reach the half point of her life, not yet. It was going at the pace of her life.

“These are not my memories, this is my life.” She was baffled. “That can’t be. The clock shouldn’t be complete. It should only show my life up until now, until this moment.”

Knowledge Raven pursed her lips. “Raven. The reason the elders from Azarath forbid you to enter the chamber of time within your own thoughts, was because of your powers and… Your destiny. Think about it, deep down you know what I’m talking about.”

Raven stared at her other self and swallowed a lump that had formed in her throat. “I can see more than my past.” She paused, looking at the point the clock hands were when they first entered and then further away. “I can see my own future because it has already been written for me.”

“And…?” Her other self rolled her hand, urging her to continue.

“No. No, no, no.” Raven said when the pieces of the puzzle started to come together. 

Skies will burn.

The memory of her nightmare appeared inside her mind and the sand proceeded to glow and move again, circling the clock while the clock hands moved once again, this time clockwise. Forward in time.

They passed the point where they had been in the first place, the present time, and kept going further into the clock until they reached one point and an image of Raven levitating appeared before them.

Her arms were wide open and her head was thrown back. Her face was filled with what could be described as pure pain. She looked like she was screaming.

A burning light was coming out of her. Starting to blind the two of them.

Suddenly, the whole sky that was surrounding her turned red. As if the sky itself had begun to burn. Then, the image disappeared and the sand returned to its place once again.

Raven was standing still while processing what she had just witnessed.

“It wasn’t a nightmare.” She stated before looking at her other self with a conclusion about what it all meant. “I can bend time, can't I? I wasn’t dreaming. I actually warped reality and traveled to that place, taking over my own consciousness in the future without realizing it.”

Knowledge Raven approached her and nodded, unsure of what else to say. Usually the other Ravens were more helpful when it came to emotions and comfort.

Raven fell to her knees feeling sick and wanting to throw up. “It was all gone. They were all gone. I actually did it.” She was holding in a sob. “I let my father through and no one was able to stop him.”

Tears started to stream down her face, the sorrow invaded her to the bone. If that was her future, her destiny, how was she supposed to stop it?

The realization had hit her suddenly.  Her eyes were filled with pure fear and urgency. She had a massive headache that wouldn’t go away. 

“How on earth am I gonna tell Damian?” She muttered with a broken voice. She hugged herself while on the floor. Her knowledge self observing from a distance unsure of what to do.

A noise of a thud was heard outside. Both Ravens turned their heads unsure if they heard it or not. 

“Was that-” Knowledge Raven began but she was interrupted by a loud boom. Five shadowy looking creatures entered the chamber, they looked like if they were floating, like a dark black flame with red eyes. Malicious smiles on their faces.

“Oh no…” Raven uttered, fear and adrenaline were invading her body. "You can't be here!"

-

Damian had finished eating and showering in less than forty minutes. 

He had been sitting at the beginning of the stairs from the main entrance for twenty minutes while writing in a hand holding notebook, still working on the case.

Bruce walked in through the front door holding a bouquet of flowers. “Great, you’re on time. Follow me.”

He made a sign with his hand pointing out to the entrance so they could get out. Damian put his notebook away and stood up. “Father, what is this all about?”

“There’s someone I want you to meet. In fact, I’ve wanted it for quite some time.” Bruce kept walking with the bouquet in his hand. 

Damian could not put his finger on what it was that his father’s face was displaying. He looked absentminded.

He followed him all the way out to the entrance and into the gardens, following a path he had not been to before. Damian was confused, since the blueprints for the manor he had studied when he first arrived did not show anything beyond grass and abandoned woods.

“Father, why are we heading in this direction? Who is it that we are meeting again?” He pondered with carefulness, still unsure of what to read from his father’s aura.

“We are not meeting. You are.” Bruce corrected. 

Damian frowned, and clenched his jaw. This was certainly a waste of time.

He was about to say something when they encountered a big, tall tree that had provided much shade to two very fancy and large headstones at the bottom of it. Engraved on them could be read the names Martha and Thomas Wayne. 

Damian froze at the spot when he saw the names. He knew about his grandparents fate, he knew about what that caused in his father, and he knew how he still deeply cared. But he didn’t know they were buried there, and in fact, had never cared to know or visit.

Bruce didn’t wait for Damian to say or do anything, he continued to kneel and place the bouquet between both headstones in complete silence.

“Earlier you said that the fate of the world was in jeopardy.” Bruce was still kneeling, using a handkerchief to clean some of the engraved letters that had gathered dust or dirt.

Damian nodded and cleared his throat before speaking. “I did, father.”

“Is it the world that is in jeopardy, or your world?” Bruce pondered, standing up and turning around to face his son. “Spare me the act of not knowing what I’m talking about.”

He opened his mouth to answer but instantly closed it the more he thought about his answer. “Fine, then spare me the fact of having to answer something you seem to already know the answer to.”

Bruce sighed and took a step to stand beside him and look at the headstones. “That’s fair.” He replied. “I had already lost my world when I was about the age your mother brought you to me. My world were my parents, Damian.”

Damian crossed his arms to his chest, feeling a hint of guilt inside him of never asking anything about that to his father. “I know the story, Pennyworth told me everything about it.”

“No, he didn’t. He just told you the facts.” Bruce corrected once again.

“Is there a difference?” Damian was trying his best to be sensible even if he sounded harsh, and Bruce could tell this.

“There is. Alfred must have told you what happened, when it happened and what it led to.” Damian nodded so Bruce continued. “But the true story is how I lived that night.”

Bruce took a deep breath, closing his eyes and letting out the breath before proceeding. “I saw my own father be a hero to save me and then fall to the hands of a man he had already tried to save, with his fortune, good deeds to the city and more. Like he tried to do with many people in Gotham.”

Damian had never been more silent and willing to listen to his father. Maybe because he felt bad, or maybe because he might actually felt like there was something in all of this he needed to hear.

“After both of my parents died before my eyes, my heart got filled with desire for vengeance, for blood. And I wanted the man that killed them to suffer like I did. But in time, I realized that it was not the way, even though he took my whole world from me. My father had taught me to be better, help the people in Gotham, the people in need, be a beacon of hope.” Bruce paused for a second. “What one does despite losing their whole world is what’s important, because we have to give meaning to the lessons they taught us, the meaning they provided for us.”

Bruce searched for something inside one of his pockets and got it out, handing it to Damian, who was in the middle of processing the whole lecture his father had just delivered.

“Damian, I know she is your world. But you cannot let her blind your judgment, not if your goal is to help her. To show her how she has been the guidance you need to become the best version of yourself.”

Damian took what Bruce had handed him. It was a white pearl. From the size, and details of it, he came to the conclusion it was one of the pearls his grandmother was wearing the day she died.

He stared at the sphere that laid on his hand and pursed his lips.

“What if I’m doing more harm than good? Maybe I am letting her affect my judgment, and hence, affecting her outcome. Maybe I should step away.” He closed his hand in a fist, holding the pearl close to his chest.

“You think leaving her on her own through all of this is a good call?” Bruce inquired. 

“Then what should I do, father? If I stay I will make poor decisions based on irrational and biased feelings, but you are saying that if I step away I will cause her to suffer loneliness throughout her sorrow. I don’t get what it is that you want from me!”

He took a step back. Frustration slipped in each word he uttered.

Bruce turned to him and smiled with sadness. “I have always admired how everything you do, and you say, whether everyone considers it polite or not, is driven with so much passion. Damian, your passion was the very thing that from birth made you so strong and thriving in such hostile conditions in the League, with your grandfather, your mother, and then with me.”

Damian felt ashamed with that last part and looked down. A thin breeze was making some leaves move and fade away the hostility he felt.

Bruce continued. “But now, you need to learn to control such passion, to not let it overpower your decisions. Do not get rid of it, since this is the thing that will allow you to keep going when you most need it, but control it. You don’t have to step away, you don’t have to abandon her, you don’t have to escape her, you just have to find the balance.”

A sharp pain invaded Damian’s chest. “Why? Why do you have such trust and faith in me, father? I have been no more than a disappointment to the standards you hold.”

“Why?” Bruce scuffed, he couldn’t believe the question. “Because you are my son.”

Damian felt tears forming in his eyes, but he wouldn’t let them escape. He swallowed a lump that was hurting his throat before trying to speak again.

“I-” A sharp pain inside his mind made him clench his eyes and hold his head with both hands.

“Damian? What is it?” Bruce concern was obvious as he approached him trying to look him in the eyes.

Damian felt fear, sorrow and pain, but it wasn’t his. 

“She’s scared. She’s calling for me.” He paused and looked at Bruce. “She needs me.”

Bruce was uncertain of this. He wasn’t aware of the full capacity of the bond his son and Raven shared. “Where is she? How are you so sure?”

“She called me, father. I am completely sure. What I ignore is her location.” His heart was beating fast, even if his face wouldn’t show it. He was thinking about how to act. “The card that Zatanna provided in case we needed her aid, are you carrying it with you?”

“I secured it in the batcave. Come on.” Bruce urged knowing well his son was in despair.

Damian stopped his father putting a hand on his chest. Bruce looked at the hand and then at Damian, confused by this action. 

“I am grateful to you, for the lecture and also…” He opened up the fist where he still had the pearl Bruce handed to him. “For allowing me to meet my grandparents.”

Bruce picked up the pearl with his index finger and thumb. As soon as the pearl was off his hand, Damian started to walk back to the Manor in a haste, preventing his father from saying anything back.

Bruce stood there a few seconds, knowing well that it was Damian’s way of showing gratitude to him without it turning too affectionate. He simply smiled and started to follow closely behind.

-

“Annataz…” Damian whispered on the card Zatanna had given to them. 

The ink of the card started to glow, a white and blue light was running through the ink, shining more and more and starting to open a portal.

Damian threw the card to the ground so she would have space to appear or whatever she had to do with her spell.

Bruce had put on his Batman suit and Damian his Robin suit as well. 

Zatanna’s figure appeared as a shadow and became clearer as the light started to dissipate. “Batman. Robin.” She addressed. “I didn’t expect you to call so fast.”

“Zatanna, thank you for coming.” Bruce thanked, shaking her hand. 

Damian noticed that the usual blond drunk was not with her. “Where is the brit?”

Zatanna let go of Bruce’s hand and raised an eyebrow, resisting the urge to not cast a shape-shifting spell on this boy. “You surely have less manners when the girl is not around.”

Damian didn’t find her comment amusing, especially with their current concern.

“That is why we called you.” Bruce intervened, trying to avoid any further friction. “We need to know where the girl is.”

“What do you mean? Didn’t I open a portal here a couple days ago so she would be safe?” She crossed her arms, wondering what had happened in such a short amount of time.

Damian and Bruce looked at each other. Bruce stepped in. “She decided she needed space. Now we need to find her.”

“She must have taken her tracker out.” Damian explained and displayed an image on the screen from the batcomputer. “I put one on her the day we met. It shows her inside the manor, but she left yesterday, so she must have taken it out.”

Zatanna examined the image on the screen. “Apart from that being a not so healthy relationship trait.” Damian frowned, less than amused by that comment. “I’m guessing you want me to do a location spell. Do you have anything of hers with you? Or could be something she’s attached to, her energy will be drenched on it.”

Bruce looked at Damian knowing he must have prepared for this. “Yes.” He pulled out the journal Raven had written the prophecy. “Will this do?”

Zatanna took the journal and started muttering some words under her breath. There was a light glow but it stopped. “I don’t think so. She barely used it, didn’t she? Do you have anything else that could work? It could be anything that has a strong bond to her.”

“We do.” Damian looked at Bruce out of the corner of his eye. “Me.”

“Robin.” Bruce reprimanded.

Zatanna looked at him up and down. “No offense but, just because you have feelings for her doesn’t mean it could work, her magic has to be bonded with you. Her soul’s essence basically.” 

“Good thing it is.” Damian answered, crossing his arms and glaring at her. “She healed me once before with her magic and we have been bonded ever since. Use me.”

He didn’t hesitate, Bruce stepped back and sighed. 

“Fine, come closer.” Zatanna agreed. Damian got closer to her. She placed one hand on his chest and another on his head. “Once I have her location, you will be able to see where she is.”

Damian nodded and Zatanna started pronouncing some words that at first seemed gibberish but after some listening, Damian noticed where words being spoken backwards.

“ Dnif yeht noitacol dnob eht hguorht, era yeht trapa. ” ( Apart they are, through the bond their location they find.)

Zatanna’s eyes turned white as she felt the bond made its job and find the location at the other end of it. 

Damian started to feel how he was getting an image of the place Raven was at. At first he got a glance of the Manor, then the main entrance, he felt like he was floating through the hallways until he reached the door of the room they had arranged for Raven and then, a bright glow made him reappear in the batcave.

He fell down to his knees trying to catch his breath and not throw up. That spell had made him feel like a rollercoaster that went a thousand miles per hour. 

Bruce kneeled and helped him up trying to make him take it easy, but Damian was more interested in the answer.

“She’s still here? How?” He addressed Zatanna.

“The mirror. I saw beyond the door when you fell to the floor.” She explained. “The mirror she used to enter her mind with Constantine was on the bed. She must be inside it.”

As soon as Damian heard that he frowned and freed himself from Bruce’s grip, walking towards the stairs that led to the manor. “I need to go find her.”

“Robin!” Bruce called. “You have to think about this! Remember what we just discussed.”

Damian froze, with his back turn to them. “Yes, father.”

He turned around. His fists were clenched.

“I’m guessing you need me to call John.” Zatanna got close to Bruce. He simply growled, agreeing. “Right. Step back, he might be drunk.”

She started to open a portal above them, from which Constantine fell down, he had a bottle of whisky in one hand, a bruised lip with blood coming out of it, and a torn shirt covered in an unknown green ooze. From the torn the fabric had, three big scrapes on his chest were peeping through.

“The hell is wrong with you, Z! I was winning!” Constantine yelled while getting up from the floor. Tumbling a bit given his current and not so sober state.

“You were winning?” She pointed out all his obvious scratches and more.

Damian was starting to lose it. He took Constantine’s bottle and smashed it away from them. “And here you are gonna lose if you don’t get it together. We need your help, so you better sober up or else-”

“Or else what, little bird?” He grinned before burping and using his magic to move Damian out of his way.

“Or else. Me.” Bruce said, standing in Constantine’s way.

Constantine smiled and put his hands up. “Hey, didn’t tell me this was an all-bat party. You alright, batsy?” Bruce didn’t find that amusing and simply stared threateningly at him. “Jeez, you all are tough crowds. What do you need me to do now? And more importantly, am I getting paid?”

He asked while taking out a cigarette and lighting it up. 

“Is money all you care about? You fuc-” Damian was about to unsheathe his sword.

Bruce stopped him and looked at Constantine. “If money is what you want, we will come to an agreement after we are done requiring your services.”

Constantine widened his eyes and looked at Bruce. “That’s more like it, batsy. I knew you were my favorite for a reason.” He chuckled. “Well, the wait is thrilling not gonna lie there.”

“John.” Zatanna called, embarrassed and in a way, trying to make him listen.

“I’m going through the mirror again, and you’re coming with me.” Damian intervened. He was tapping his foot, tired of wasting time.

“Do I look mad?!” Constantine yelled when finding out he had to go with Damian. Bruce frowned at him, threateningly. “Maybe... I am mad enough?” 

Bruce nodded approving of his answer. Constantine sighed.

“Then let’s go. I am done wasting time.” Damian pushed him out of his way and once again started to walk up the stairs in a rush.

Bruce said something to a communicator he had, alerting Alfred to keep the rest of the family in line so they wouldn’t interfere while he dealt with this.

Constantine and Zatanna were following behind Damian. “John, what the hell are you thinking? You cannot take Batman’s money.” She whispered while they tried to not get lost in the manor’s labyrinth.

“I’m risking my life, Z. And I don’t mean the witch girl’s mind. I mean the bloody kid with a sword.” He pointed at Damian. 

“If you do this right, I promise they will compensate you and not just with money. Please, John. I know you can do this.” Zatanna begged.

Constantine scoffed. “Just, let me get back alive and I’ll consider it.”

Zatanna smiled after that answer and got close, depositing a kiss on his cheek. 

In a matter of minutes Damian, Constantine, Zatanna and Bruce had arrived at Raven's room. Damian opened the door and sighed when he found the room arranged, not a single thing out of place.

The mirror, however, stood out in the middle of the bed. 

Damian was about to go for it but Bruce stopped him. “Are you sure you don’t want me to go? I can bring her back safely.”

“No.” Damian sighed before looking at his father. “She called for me, I am the one that has to bring her back.”

Bruce nodded, he knew that he needed to trust Damian and make him feel this trust.

“Touching.” Constantine uttered with fake repulsion on his face. “Are we going or-?”

Zatanna rolled her eyes and shook her head, once again embarrassed.

“We are.” Damian replied. He got close to Bruce and embraced him in a quick hug, closing his eyes. “I will be fine, father.”

“I know.” Bruce whispered to him and broke the hug allowing him to step away.

“Right.” Constantine shrugged, resting importance to that moment. “Hold tight, birdie. You’re gonna wanna puke after this.”

“Just get on with it.” Damian’s voice was filled with exasperation.

Constantine rolled up his sleeves. “Alright, damn.” He placed the mirror on the floor between them and started to cast a spell that would allow them to go in. “ Claustra dimitte, porta aperi! Per portam astralem transporta! ”

Constantine had to repeat the spell a couple more times until the mirror looked like it was breaking, but it was only a superficial magic lock Raven had put on to keep intruders away.

After the lock broke, a golden shadow started to swallow both Damian and Constantine into the mirror.

Constantine winked at Zatanna right before they disappeared.

Bruce stood there with his arms crossed, not moving even an inch, and decided to wait until their return. 

“They’re gonna be okay. John doesn’t seem like it, but he wouldn’t allow anything bad to happen to those two.” Zatanna placed a hand on Bruce’s shoulder.

“I don’t care if he does this for money, as long as he brings him back safe and sound.” Bruce's voice was cold. His eyes still staring at the mirror on the floor.

He was hoping there was no major issue in there and that they would come back safe, but still, he couldn’t help but worry for the next hours they would be gone.

After reaching for his communicator he delivered a message to Alfred. “Alfred, Oracle is in charge for the next four hours. Make Red Hood and Orphan take the first shift. I will let you know if further hours are necessary to cover.”

A last breath got out of him while he settled in the room next to Zatanna to watch over the mirror for as long as it was necessary.

Notes:

Damian is going into Raven's mind!!! And uncle Constantine of course made another appearance to bother the two of them.

What do you think will happen next chapter?

Chapter 12

When Damian’s head finally stopped spinning, he started to take in his surroundings while catching his breath.

“What a thrill, ain’t it? First time entering a demon’s mind?” Constantine had his hands placed inside his trench coat pockets. He was amused by Damian’s reaction.

Damian straightened up and frowned. “She’s not a demon.” 

“Demon, witch, whatever, birdie. Your girl made our ride pretty rough with all that magic.” He explained. “I must admit she’s really good.”

Constantine noticed something odd when looking up at the starless sky. Something was different from the first time he visited. His amusement quickly faded and Damian could tell, but he did not care.

The sky had something that resembled northern lights. Three colors stood out: red, purple and white. These lights seemed to be fighting to have more space on the skyline, pushing each other and, as a result, creating big flashes of light.

“Maybe you should listen to your daddy and let him take your place, birdie.” Constantine suggested. His concern was genuine but he wanted to pass it off as a mere suggestion with no meaning behind it.

“I’m staying. If you are so concerned for my well being, I suggest we get going so we can get out of here as soon as possible.” Damian replied, totally sure of his decision.

Constantine shrugged, agreeing. “Just stay close, I would hate having to inform batsy how I lost his child in the darkness of a witch’s mind.”

The both of them started walking the stone path Constantine became familiar with on his last visit. 

After reaching a certain milestone on the pathway, Constantine started to look for something, or more accurately, for someone. His eyes went from left to right searching every corner for a familiar shadow.

“What are you doing?” Damian pondered while he followed the sight of Constantine.

Constantine stopped after finding nothing. “I was trying to see if-”

“Are you… Damian? Are you really?” A voice behind them interrupted Constantine's train of thought. It was Raven’s voice.

Damian turned around in the blink of an eye when he heard that voice.

A Raven with gray clothes was standing shyly behind one of the rocks from the paths, barely peeking out of it. Timidity Raven was the one in front of them at the moment.

“Raven.” Damian called with relief.

“Birdie, she’s not-”

“I heard you calling, where were you? Are you hurt?” He tried to get close to her but she vanished and reappeared further away. Damian didn’t understand why she would get away from him.

“I- I’m sorry.” She said with fear and guilt in her voice. She was hiding again.

“Birdie, she’s a part of the Raven you know, but she’s not her.” Constantine explained after seeing the confusion that remained on Damian’s face. “This is a conscious part of her personality. Timidity and loneliness, I think.”

Timid Raven was unsure of what to do. Maybe she should approach them, or maybe she should disappear now that she had the chance.

Once that Damian understood Constantine's explanation he cleared his throat, trying to relax his voice, like he would do when he had to deal with a little kid in Gotham.

“You asked if I was really Damian. I am.” His voice was soft and gentle. This made Timid Raven reveal herself just a little more.

“I- I’m not saying you’re not.” She stuttered while looking away. She didn’t seem to be able to keep eye contact for too long, or at all. “Can you- Can you prove it? Can you tell me something only I would know?”

Constantine was silent while he let Damian handle the situation. Maybe bringing him wasn’t bad after all. And at least he wasn’t trying to run him through with a sword at the moment.

“Prove it?” Damian gave it some thought. “You once told me that, as insufferable as I was, I had a kind and generous soul.”

Timid Raven finally came out from where she was hiding after hearing that. She was still shrugged, as anyone filled with shyness would be. But something in her changed.

“You really are Damian.” She felt embarrassed and blushed, but she still felt like she needed to hug him, desperately, so she did. “Why- How are you here?”

He hugged her back, even though she wasn’t her Raven as such, he could feel her close. “I heard you, or her calling.” They broke the hug and she looked away at the sky. “She was in danger, was she not?”

Timid Raven nodded.

“I called him for help.” He explained while pointing at Constantine.

“Yeah, yeah. I’m the savior.” Constantine intervened.

Timid Raven ignored Constantine and focused on Damian. “It’s not safe for you here. You have to get out. I’m not-” She paused. “I’m not tossing you out, but-”

Constantine felt something weird happening on the horizon. Dark magic, and it was heading for them. “Birdie, heads up.”

Timid Raven got scared and vanished.

“What on earth is that?” Damian asked as he unsheathed his sword.

“That, mate, is your little girlfriend’s welcome party for us. Dark magic manipulation.” Constantine replied with an amusement smirk. “And I mean pure darkness.”

On the horizon, a giant flock of four eyed ravens were coming directly at them. The sounds they emitted were unlike any raven they have ever heard before. They sounded like nails screeching on a blackboard. 

It was unbearable.

The more they got closer, the more details Damian could see on them. They had red, flaming eyes. Its feathers seemed to be made out of sharp, black glass. 

“This is gonna be fun!” Constantine yelled amid the loud noise. He put his hands up while he conjured some magic to cast a spell over Damian’s sword. 

The sword started to glow in a gold color. Damian felt how it got hotter as well and both the feeling and the heat fainted away as the spell finished. “What did you do to it?”

“Something that will be useful now that we’re dealing with demons and magic. But be careful with it, you can hurt those things now, at the end of the day, they’re part of little girlie.” 

Damian nodded. “Got it.” 

As soon as the ravens were right over them, Constantine conjured another spell to put a protective layer around them. At least to wear them off a little. 

The layer acted as a dome where the ravens started colliding and falling down the edge of the path, down to the unknown of her mind.

Constantine knew Raven’s line of defense couldn’t last forever, and he would rather let it get tired before hurting it because he knew it meant hurting her. In a way, Damian could see this was his intention and he appreciated it, but wouldn’t say it out loud.

The dome started to get smaller and smaller. There were not as many ravens left as there were in the beginning, but still, Constantine’s magic couldn’t handle keeping the barrier up any longer. 

“Birdie, get ready. These bloody wankers are gonna have to get it.” A forced voice came out of Constantine as he felt his powers drain out.

Damian simply nodded before taking position, ready to face those things. The dome finally disappeared and the rest of the ravens started to aim for him and Constantine.

Damian jumped in front of Constantine and swiftly began to slice each bird that remained on the flock. 

The spell Constantine casted upon his sword made the ravens turn to dust after being sliced in half by Damian’s skills. It also seemed to make the others weaker, but still, there were too many and Constantine was barely throwing magic blasts since he had been drained out.

They had been at it for a while now and they were both getting exhausted.

“Well, you’re the expert. How much longer do we have to hold them for?” Damian asked while he saw one of the ravens that had crashed into Constantine’s dome barely alive. 

He knew those were not real animals, and were most definitely part demon, but still couldn’t help feeling guilty for taking their lives.

Constantine was trying to catch his breath while sending some blasts here and there. “Don’t ask me, I got no bloody clue!”

“What?!” Damian punched one of the birds with his bear fist. “Then what the hell are we doing here?”

Out of nowhere, a forcefield started to protect them from the ravens. It was magic very similar to Raven’s. Once the birds saw the magic that was protecting the guys, they shrieked. It was a warning. And then, they started to leave.

“Ah.” Constantine said with a smirk, he was relieved. “I was waiting for that.” He pointed to where the magic came from. 

Another Raven had appeared and was still using her powers to protect them from the flock. This one was wearing green clothes and her eyes were still glowing from the magic. She had one arm up while casting her spell.

Once all the danger was gone, she stopped and let a breath out. “Hey, Dami.” She smiled at Damian.

Damian was confused at first for the cheerfulness and enthusiasm this Raven exuded. He looked at Constantine. “I am assuming, cheerful Raven?”

“Wrong! Hey, we should bet on this, see how many you can guess correctly.” Constantine suggested with a laugh. Damian arched an eyebrow, finding no amusement in his suggestion. “Why you gotta be so dry, birdie? She’s the one that has balls, alright?” Constantine rolled his eyes and crossed his arms after giving him the answer.

“Yeah, I’m the Brave part of our personality, or hers. However you prefer to see it.” She giggled while getting closer to Damian’s face. In the end, she had no inhibitions or shyness whatsoever. “Timidity told me you were in danger, so I had to come and save you, of course.” She whispered.

Damian felt vulnerable when Brave Raven did that, he didn’t expect it. He flushed and cleared his throat to dissimulate. Constantine tantrum was quickly drawn away because of this amusing scene.

“We greatly appreciate your help.” Damian replied. One of the ravens came to Brave Raven’s shoulder. It was hurt and she started to comfort it with a smile, stepping away from Damian.

“They are not bad, you know? Just a little trick we came up with to protect ourselves from outsiders. They were doing their job.” She healed it and the raven took to the sky, from where it came from.

“I can see that, I was not fond of hurting them.” He confessed in all sincerity.

Brave Raven smiled. “I know. We know how much you love animals. Is one of the things we love most about you.”

Not an ounce of regret, fear or anxiety after pronouncing those words. Damian froze when he heard her say that. He quickly dismissed it as something else, she probably didn’t mean it that way. 

Damian was still trying to find the right words to move on from that comment. Needless to say, when he was not successful, Constantine decided to intervene. “So, girlie number three.” He began.

“Raven. Get it right, old man.” She replied with a snarky tone.

“Who are you calling old?!” 

Brave Raven chuckled when she saw how much offense he took. “What? Old age took away your hearing as well?” 

This time Damian couldn’t help but smile with that comment. He found it funny.

“These bloody kids…” Constantine muttered to himself.

Damian ignored Constantine and tried to move on. He focused on Brave Raven this time, trying to keep away from his mind how she looked so relaxed, without fear, worries. With vivacity and eagerness inside her.

“Raven.” He called. “You must know why we are here. Where is-? Where are-?” He couldn’t quite phrase the question about where his Raven was. 

Brave Raven understood either way. “I am her, she is me. But also I am just a part of her, so I am not her. I get that you are confused. Knowledge would probably be better than I am at explaining all of this.” She paused. “ She is still here, we just don’t know where they took them.”

Damian was nodding to her explanation, she was right, it was confusing. But as soon as Brave Raven reached the last part he widened his eyes. His heart stopped for a moment.

“Where who took them?” He straightened up.

Brave Raven tilted her head, she liked how protective Damian got. Probably the others might’ve gotten intimidated by the sudden and threatening change he had, but not her.

“All we know is that…” She paused to look at Constantine before explaining. “She entered her chamber of time with Knowledge. Temporal agents that our father sent to take her.”

Constantine put a hand up stopping her. “Girlie did what? She entered her chamber of time? I thought that was only a myth.”

“Only to children’s party level wizards like you, human.” Brave Raven rolled her four demon eyes and Constantine was growling in anger.

Damian kept eyeing the both of them. “Care to explain what the hell is that?”

Constantine sighed, calming himself down. “As far as I know, birdie, that chamber is something only a handful of people can access with proper training and magic. It’s supposed to harbor all of your lifetime’s events. Past, present and future.”

“Jealous?” Brave Raven stuck out her tongue. 

Damian nodded slowly to Constantine’s explanation. “Right, so… She was there. And then the temporal agents appeared, and then what happened?”

Brave Raven sighed. “They somehow knew she was vulnerable right now and got access here to take her away. They plan to get her out of here, but it is impossible with all the traps we set.” She smiled proudly.

Constantine frowned. “Wait. What do you mean they knew she was ‘vulnerable’? And why would they want to take her away now?”

Damian felt his stomach drop when the realization hit him. “I know why.” He turned to Raven as he felt the need to explain while the words from the prophecy appeared on his mind.

The gem was born of evil’s fire,

The gem shall be his portal.

“It was not ‘gem’. The translation was not ‘gem’!” He yelled. “I’m going to kill you, Drake!” Constantine and Brave Raven looked at each other, this time neither having any idea of what was going on.

“Are you okay, birdie?” Constantine inquired, a bit of concern in his voice.

Damian ignored the question and proceeded. “It was ‘crystal’. The crystal was born of evil’s fire. The crystal is Raven.” He began his explanation again while his heartbeat was going up and down. “She was born from Trigon, who is the evil’s fire. What happens to a crystal when it is suddenly exposed to extreme heat? The shock of the interaction will cause the crystal to break!”

“Uh…” Constantine was very confused with all this explanation, he had not read the prophecy at all, so he was not following.

Brave Raven however, connected the dots pretty fast. “We were suddenly exposed to the fire with the prophecy. We broke! We are vulnerable right now!”

Damian pointed at her since her answer was correct. “Bingo. And now, the crystal shall be his portal. Trigon sent his temporal agents to retrieve her, to fulfill her destiny now that she knows it and is vulnerable.”

Constantine was baffled with this information all of a sudden. “Wait, birdie. So how long do we have until she has to ‘fulfill’ her destiny?” He made air quotes  while asking.

“That, I am not entirely sure yet.” He pursed his lips. He was clearly worried that time might be running out. “What it is certain right now, is that we need to go find her before those demon goons can take her anywhere else.”

“And if we are facing Trigon’s demons we might need a backup plan, birdie. These are no regular demons.” Constantine added.

Brave Raven smiled with enthusiasm. “I’ve got an idea! Let’s call Rage!”

Damian and Constantine turned to look at her. Damian spoke first. “Who is she referring to?”

He was asking Constantine since he was the one that got to meet the Ravens first. 

Constantine shrugged. “Don’t look at me! I only met the quirky ones.”

Damian rolled his eyes and turned to Brave Raven. “He’s right. He only met me, Happiness, Love, Timidity and… Knowledge?” Brave Raven was counting with her fingers as she remembered. 

Constantine nodded after hearing all of the ones she mentioned, agreeing, but Damian, who was taking mental notes of the other personalities that might make an appearance, froze when he heard one of them was ‘Love’. He remained silent.

If Timidity was apologetic and fearful, Bravery was the one without any fear at all and willing to fight and displayed strength and confidence he had not seen so broadly in her before. What could he expect from the others? And especially, from Love?

“Damian?” Brave Raven called, snapping him out of his thoughts. 

“Yes.” He affirmed. Not even knowing what he was responding to.

Brave Raven giggled when she saw him distracted. “You were completely out of it! What were you thinking about?” 

Damian’s face turned red. “That’s not important. Now, can you repeat what you were saying, please?”

“Just cause you asked so nicely.” She winked and gave a thumbs up. “I was saying that if we call Rage, she will give a pretty good fight. She’s always angry and when she lets go of that anger, she can beat the crap out of anyone. She’s the pure representation of our darker urges and demonic self.”

Constantine gave a look to Damian of disapproval. “Speak your mind, wizard.” Damian allowed Constantine to say what he was thinking.

“First of all, I’m a warlock, you little shite.” Constantine corrected Damian. “Second of all, don’t you think that having someone on our side that doesn’t control who they target their rage against is not really an ally, is it, birdie? I’ve dealt with demons for far too long to know they can’t be trusted.”

Brave Raven frowned and kicked Constantine on the shin, making him squeal from the pain it caused him. “We are not a demon…” 

“Bloody h- you are half one.” Constantine growled back between his teeth.

“Enough. The both of you.” Damian’s deep voice made an echo. “Raven, I hate proving this drunken loser right.” He addressed her.

“Hey-”

“But.” Damian continued. “I need you to tell me if we can trust this part of yourself.” He looked her right in the eyes.

She held the gaze of those green eyes, thinking about her answer. “Not fully. But we need her. I promise you that.” 

Damian nodded, he didn’t need to hear any more. “Let’s go get her.”

“This just keeps getting better, I guess.” Constantine sighed. “Where is she?”

“Where she always is. Inside the dark part of our mind. She hides herself there, where she can’t hurt us, she only comes out when Raven is either in imminent danger on the outside world or someone really pissed her off.” She explained and conjured the image of some woods and a cave. It looked like the trees had burned down and some of the logs had been cut in half.

“How do we get there?” Damian asked.

“There’s a long road there.” Brave Raven pointed out the path. “Or a shortcut.” She pointed to the abyss that laid beyond the edge of the path. 

“Nice.” Constantine smirked while leaning to look down. “Ladies first?”

Brave Raven smiled sarcastically. “Of course. Go ahead then.” 

Damian got tired of their squabbling and sheathed his sword on his back before jumping into the abyss, not wasting an additional second.

Brave Raven chuckled. That was incredibly brave, hot, and full of determination. She jumped right behind him, crawled up like a cannonball while screaming out of the upbeatness Damian caused on her.

Constantine sighed before taking a step onto the edge and letting himself fall as well.

-

The three of them had been walking for what seemed forever, but in reality had just been only around twenty minutes. 

Damian kept answering weird questions Brave Raven was asking him while they searched those darkened corners of the woods for Rage Raven. 

The questions varied, but mostly they seem to be things that maybe Raven wouldn’t ask out of fear of the reaction or simple anxiety. 

“Do you still miss your evil grandfather?”

“Does Dick know you love him? You should tell him!”

“Has Alfred ever outsmarted you? Well, duh. But, how many times? And what's the most embarrassing one?”

Constantine would’ve made her shut up, but he was too amused with the questions and also the answers. Mainly because they were innocent and they embarrassed Damian, but he wouldn’t say no to her.

Brave Raven smiled, she thought of a question she needed the answer to. “Do you…” She made a pause. “Think we are pretty?”

Damian stood still. He started to reach for his sword, slowly.

“Dami?” Brave Raven asked when he didn’t answer the question.

“I heard something.” He whispered and pointed out to a tree that had its branches broken and the leaves withered.

Four eyes started glowing in the dark over there.

“What are you doing here? I have told you to not bother me here. Get out!” A demonic voice spoke. But nevertheless, Raven’s voice.

From the shadows emerged a version of Raven different from the others. This one had the typical four eyes, red ones. She had red skin, and her clothes were red as well. She almost looked like Trigon.

“You don’t know me, but we need your help.” Damian intervened before any of the others could.

“I do know you. Damian Al Ghul.” Rage Raven replied, Damian’s frown got even bigger, he didn’t like that name, not anymore. “I know you befriended her, us. But I don’t want anything to do with her cheery feelings, or with his magic.” She pointed at Constantine. “Leave. Now.” She turned her back on them.

“If we leave, you’ll cease to exist. She’s in danger. If something happens to her, what will happen to you?” Damian pondered.

Rage Raven looked over her shoulder. “What do you care? I am the worst part of her.”

Her aura was trembling, trying to control her impulses of anger. 

“You are part of her. Just like all of the others. Why would that make you less important?” He was stoic, but firm.

This question angered her even further. “Because I hurt others!” She grew in size and horns bursted out of her forehead. Her voice was once again deepened. Demonic. She was inches away from his face, threatening him.

“So? We all do.” He replied, locking his eyes with hers. “Me more than most. And I have learned that everyone does it, in its own way.”

Rage Raven started to calm down and return to her original form, more like the Raven they knew, still with four red eyes, but calmer. She was staring at Damian, studying him, understanding him and what her other selves had concluded already about him.

“Look, the Raven I know is one of the strongest people I know. Hence, you must be as well. I am here for that Raven, we need that strength, that will-power. If it is not here, tell me so now, and we will be on our way. But if I may, I think it is.” He was rather direct but encouraging. A natural leader.

If Bruce was there, he probably would’ve been proud that Damian was turning out like Dick and not like him. 

Rage Raven looked away, in the direction of a cave that hid between some trees. Her home, or at least where she had been hiding since she was able to remember. She felt anger rising again inside of her, but not against any of them, but against herself, for always staying alienated from the remaining parts of her own self.

“I’m allowed to let my rage fall upon whoever took her, right?” She asked with eagerness. Part of her still filled with anger was trying to overtake her as always.

Damian couldn’t hold back an amused smirk from this request. “I would not have expected less from you. Shall we?” He made way so Raven would be the first to walk.

She sighed, clenching her fists and started to float in a haste. She didn’t nod or gave any indication of agreement, she simply led the way.

Damian started to follow closely behind, after he saw the determination of this Raven. Or maybe it was just probably the urge to let out her powers how she hadn’t allowed herself before.

Constantine and Brave Raven had simply been observing the conversation develop from afar. Brave Raven with googly eyes and fondness about how well Damian was handling the situation, and Constantine ready to amuse himself when they were ready to go.

“I thought you weren’t scared of anything, girlie.” Constantine whispered to Brave Raven when Damian and Rage Raven were already some distance ahead of them and couldn’t hear them.

Brave Raven turned to him with confusion plastered on her face. “What are you talking about?”

Constantine smirked. “Right before the scary one interrupted you. You asked him if he thought you were pretty.”

“That made you think I was scared?” She flipped him off and started walking away to catch up with Damian. The idea of it was ridiculous.

Constantine laughed before speaking out loud. “My bad! I thought you were scared to ask him if he loved y-”

Brave Raven used Constantine’s trench coat as a muzzle with a spell to refrain him from uttering another word. She got close to Constantine’s face, while looking over her shoulder, making sure Damian was not aware of what was happening.

“Listen to me, and listen right. I am not afraid.” She clarified. “It is simply not my place to ask him that. Not Love’s, not Happiness’, not Timidity’s, or any of the remaining others. Only Raven, as the sum of all of us, can and should be the one to ask him that. Do you understand, John Constantine?”

Constantine, still muzzled, nodded slowly without breaking eye contact with her. She was not only brave but intensely and scarily threatening. 

“Good.” Brave Raven affirmed. 

She let go of the spell that was holding the muzzle up and turned her back on him, catching up with Damian and her other self. Leaving Constantine behind, gasping for air.

“These bloody teenagers are gonna be the death of me.” He mumbled to himself, following the rest of them.

Rage Raven knew those woods like the palm of her hand, so in no time, she showed them a shortcut to a secret passage that would lead them right to the front of the entrance to the chamber of time.

The passage looked like two tall, black trees had fallen upon each other, forming a doorway. Across it, there was a blurry image that didn’t allow anything from the other side to be seen.

“How come I never saw this before?” Brave Raven asked her other self when they arrived at the spot.

Rage Raven clenched her fists trying to remain calm to such a question. “That’s because I created it. To move freely around our mind without ever bumping into any of you. To remain in solitude.” She didn’t look back when she answered the question, but her voice was demonic, angered.

“You had to ask.” Constantine whispered to Brave Raven and she jostled her elbow against his ribs.

Rage Raven grasped the portal with her hand and whispered an enchantment to direct it to the point she wanted to go to. “There. I’ll see you in a minute.” She didn’t hesitate to walk through, being swallowed by the portal.

Brave Raven hummed impressed. She’d never had to use portals to navigate her own mind so it was impressive how Rage managed to create a universal one that was so stealth. “I guess we’ll see you there.”

She walked through the portal as well with a big smile for Damian. Constantine rolled his eyes. “Let’s go, birdie.” He sighed before walking calmly through the portal.

Damian was walking through and had one foot inside the portal when he heard something behind him. A voice, from a woman.

“..the same mistake again…” The voice faintly said.

“Hello?” He stopped to see if anybody responded, but the voice remained silent after that.

Damian frowned and decided it was not worth exploring it, after all, it was Raven’s mind and this mystery might not belong to him.

He finally walked all the way through the portal appearing with the rest of the lot he had engaged in this mission with, right outside the chamber of time, where the door had been turn to pieces and a fight had taken place.

Brave and Rage Ravens were examining the place using magic while Constantine just stared. He refrained from using magic he didn't have to use in order to keep Raven's defense mechanisms dormant.

Damian approached both Ravens, while looking at the scene, scratches on the walls, blasts, gravel, and traces of dark blood, hopefully not human. Hopefully, not Ravens.

They had been able to cast a spell to rewind the images of what had happened in that place for themselves, not allowing to show neither Damian nor Constantine.

Knowledge and Raven had been seeing what the chamber of time had to offer, what they could do in there when five shadow inter dimensional demons interrupted them. They had been sent by their father, Trigon.

"Hail Trigon" They uttered in a different language, a demonic one, only they understood.

Trigon had enhanced them with more powers that were hidden in his home world. He got his message across of where to find these powers and how to enter her daughter's mind when Raven got weakened by the revelation of the prophecy.

The demons wasted no time in fighting Raven and her logical part. It was not a fair fight since they were outnumbered and knowledge was not one to use the brawn rather than the brain. 

When the Ravens fell unconscious, the demons discussed how they were gonna execute the next part of their plan now that they had been successful with the first one. They were to carry them to the part of the mind where Raven uses her power to hold Trigon prisoner in order to double cross him. Use her as a leverage, they knew that if she died, Trigon would be trapped forever. 

Brave and Rage finally reached the final part of Raven's squabble with these demons. It ended with them dragging her away.

Damian was still standing with his arms crossed, watching them, eager to know more.

"Well, do we have a lead?" Damian asked.

Both Ravens looked at each other. Brave Raven was the one to step in and talk. "Yes, and you're not gonna like it." She made a pause to let him digest it. "They're headed with both of them to our where we keep our father prisoner."

Damian's worry became obvious. "Then what are we waiting for? Lead the way." That sounded more like an order than a suggestion.

Brave Raven nodded, agreeing. Rage Raven and her started to lead the way towards their new stop. She left out the part of the demons threatening to kill her and how that would be a permanent solution to all of her concerns about her own destiny. 

While they all headed there, that was all that was inside her mind now as was actually considering it.

She was the Brave aspect of her personality after all.

Notes:

I have been working on this all week!
Mostly because I have been bombarded with a few ideas for other fics.

Do you think you would read something about Jon and Damian? Or Dick and maybe Wally or perhaps someone else? I already have the stories thought out, but I don't want to have to write 4 fics at the same time...

What do you think??

Anywaysssss... Damian inside Raven's mind. My clueless poor boy. What do you think happens next? Do you think he'll get to meet Love?

Chapter 13

Notes:

So you don't get lost in this or future chapters, here is the full description of all Raven's personalities so...

SPOILER WARNING!

Raven's personalities:
-Timidity (Gray): Apologetic and depressive.
-Happiness (Pink): Expressive, cheerful and playful.
-Love (Purple): Feminine, passionate, flirty.
-Bravery (Green): Strength, braveness and fighting spirit. Unless angered, she's upbeat and outgoing.
-Knowledge(Yellow): Intellectual, logical, problem-solver.
-Rage (Red): Anger, darker urges, demonic heritage. *Appears when she loses her temper.
-Rudeness(Orange): Bad manners, sarcastic, rude.
-Sloth (Brown): Sloppier qualities, hygienically challenged, slouches.

Raven opened her eyes feeling dizzy. Her eyesight was still blurry but she distinctly saw the figures of the demons that took her and knowledge. Immediately, she reacted to where she was and what was happening.

She was being carried by one of the demons, he smelled like rotten eggs and the touch of its skin felt uncomfortable.

Her first instinct was to move ready to either blast them with some magic or run if it was necessary. She quickly realized she had been restrained with some shackles on her hands, feet and neck.

The shackles not only restrained her from moving her arms and legs. They had also been heavily enchanted to keep anyone who wore them from using magic. 

“Release me. If you were sent by Trigon, you must know you are not allowed to hurt me.” Raven spoke with confidence, or at least she tried until she saw how Knowledge was being dragged, still unconscious.

Knowledge didn’t have shackles like she did with runes engraved on them. But she did have one large symbol painted on her forehead. Blood had been the paint of choice. That symbol probably did whatever the shackles did but on a minor scale.

One of the demons gave Raven an evil grin. “We are not here to get something for Trigon. We are here to get something from him.”

Raven frowned. “I don’t understand, I can feel the ancient magic he must have provided to you. Guarded in hell, no doubt. He didn’t send you?”

“Of course not. Not all of us want to spend our eternity with our loyalty pledged to him.” Another one of the demons answered.

Raven was trying to figure out a way out of there, but without magic, her resources were limited at the moment. Her father was also at risk of escaping, but as long as she was not on the outside world, it was not an urgent matter.

Knowledge Raven was starting to regain consciousness. At this point, her skin had been burnt because of the dragging through the path of gravel. She looked at Raven full of pain.

Raven looked at her and showed her the shackles discreetly, telling her with her eyes about remembering anything about those kinds of shackles or runes.

Knowledge did her best to look at the shackles, trying to read the runes and come up with the answer. 

“How come you decided to double cross him? Aren’t you afraid of the consequences if he finds out about this betrayal before you can actually get something from him? If he gave you these powers he can certainly take them away.” Raven was smart, she had learned a thing or two from Damian to get information from lesser minded beings.

“Your father will do no such thing, you filthy witch. As long as we have control of you, we will have control of him. He was barely able to get his message across with all the work you’ve done to weaken and subdue him!” He growled with a demonic voice, almost as if he wanted to bite Raven’s face off.

Raven’s eyes widened. “I have done that?” 

As far as she was aware, all the energy she had drained herself from, all the sleepless nights, all the failed missions she's had with the Titans these past few months, it was all the result of Trigon weakening her. 

She hadn’t stopped to think it might have been mutual.

“Hush, you fool.” One of the demons silenced the other, he had been giving out too much information. “Muzzle her. We are almost there and we do not need any surprises.” 

“Then you are not going to like me very much.” Damian had his sword unsheathed and pointed it at them. He appeared to be alone, right in front of them.

“Damian…” Raven whispered when she saw him, fearing for his safety, and wondering how he had gotten there. Her adrenaline started to rise. “You have to get out of here!”

The demons outnumbered Damian and simply started laughing when they saw him. “A mortal? Human out of all? This is not even a fair battle.” One of them hissed.

Damian smirked. “Funny, I was about to say that. Ladies?” He called.

“Ladies?” Both Raven and the demons were confused when he said that.

The demons had not realized that a shadow had sneaked on the ground until it reached their feet while they were distracted by Damian. The shadow started to swaddle each of them, making them stay in place. And swallowing them into the ground until each of their bodies were trapped midway.

“Witch!” One of the demons called when he realized what was happening, trying to break free from the spell.

Part of the shadow emerged from the ground, shifting into Raven’s shape but in this case with her red clothes and distinctive four red eyes. A grin appeared on her face. “Try again.”

Her demonic voice appeared while antlers grew from her forehead, resembling more and more her demon side and her father.

“You are nothing more than a minor abomination! You are not like us.” They were still trying to break free when Rage Raven began using her magic to swallow one of them into the darkness of her shadow even further.

The part of the book where she read about those runes finally came to Knowledge. She started to panic when she saw what was going to happen now that she knew what they needed to do to free Raven.

Brave Raven appeared. She made a war cry and landed on top of one of the other demons and started to punch and use magic to cause pain in him but barely attempting to actually kill him until Damian started running with his sword towards them, now powered with Constantine’s magic, ready to slice those bastards.

“Damian, no!” Knowledge cried. “One of them binded itself to the shackles that hold Raven hostage. If you kill them we won’t be able to free her!”

Damian stopped his sword just an inch from the demon's head when he heard that. He growled with frustration.

Rage and Brave were overpowering four of the demons, while Damian took a step back. The demon he almost sliced giggled in a mocking way. “Get out of our way, puny mortal. We might even forgive your life.”

Damian couldn’t care less for what that monstrosity was saying. “Well, do what we brought you here for.”

Raven was once again confused and looked over to where Damian was talking to. 

Constantine had been observing the hassle from afar. He hadn’t been able to admit to Damian how much juice the entrance to Raven’s mind had taken from him. She was powerful and her protections were no joke.

He walked over them nonchalantly, with his hands in his pockets. The demons immediately recognize him.

“John Constantine. I hear your soul is up for a reward.” One of them said.

“And it sure is not gonna be you claiming it. Huh, mate?” Constantine got closer and lit up a cigarette. After blowing out the match he used the smoke coming out of it to perform a spell. “ Scrutinium Spirituum. Detectio Magicae, Invenio Absconditum .”

The smoke started to expand around all of the demons making them cough. The smoke dissipated after a few moments but wrapped around only one of the demons, as if it were a chain.

“There you have your binded bastard, birdie.” He kept on smoking, not really caring what they did with the demons.

“Good. Shall we proceed?” Damian smirked before approaching one of the demons and decapitating him. He knew that wouldn’t kill him but it would weaken him and drain a bit of his power.

However, the head did not grow again. His sword glowed after slicing the flesh of the demon. The spell Constantine put on it was preventing the demons from regenerating.

Rage Raven was letting go of her wrath and using painful spells on the demons to further subdue them. The trail of heads and limbs Damian left, Rage wrapped around with her shadow and casted them out of her mind.

Brave Raven was merely punching and doing some armlocks to the demons, having fun seeing their fear. She looked at Rage, giving her an awkward thumbs up. Trying to encourage her and make her feel included. Rage simply rolled her four eyes and continued with her tasks.

Damian got to where the demon that was carrying Raven was, she jostled him on the ribs when she saw Damian come and kneeled so he would be able to slice the head out of it easily, which he did.

She stood up with difficulty because of the shackles and Damian immediately helped her, putting his sword away once he saw the other Ravens had everything under control and were sending parts of the demons away. Most likely to hell.

“Are you hurt?” He asked. His hand was placed on her cheek, examining the bruises the demons left on it. 

Raven nodded. “I’m fine. But, what are you doing here? How-”

“You called.” He interrupted her, he felt the need to explain since he knew she wouldn’t allow him to check up on her until he did. “Maybe you didn’t realize, but you did. You were in danger so I called him and dragged him along.”

He pointed at Constantine who was still smoking his cigarette. “Cheers, girlie. You alright?” He couldn’t care less. “And of course, no one gives a shite about the one that made the spell and brought the kid here…” He mumbled to himself and kicked one demon’s finger that was laying around.

“I’m glad you came.” She replied to Damian with a faint smile which he returned. “And please don’t worry about my wounds, I will heal once we get rid of these things.”

She put the shackles up. Damian nodded. “Of course. Now, let me help her.” He pointed to Knowledge who was still shaken up about the fight from earlier and the one from just now.

Damian helped her up and fixed up her glasses, also cleaning the rune the demons painted on her forehead with blood. This one looked so different from the others. “Thank you, Damian. I’m Knowledge, by the way.”

“You know me as well?” He pondered with curiosity.

“Of course I do, we all do.” She smiled. “Maybe I am the one that remembers more things about you since that is my job here. Learning. Pondering. Concluding.”

He offered his hand to introduce himself regardless. “Well, it’s a shame I only get to know you in here. I am sure you would impress me with your knowledge, no doubt.”

Knowledge smiled, caught off guard by that compliment and hiding the blush of her face by fixing her glasses. “Why, thank you. I will try and make her talk to you more about some of our fun facts about demonology.”

The only demon that remained was the one that was bound to the shackles that were restraining Raven. “You cannot harm me.” He tried to reassure with a not so confident voice.

“Knowledge, correct me if I’m wrong but, I believe this entrapment Raven is currently involved in is only an issue if the creature bound to it dies. Harm is not part of the equation.” Damian inquired with Knowledge.

She fixed her glasses while nodding in agreement. “You would be correct, Damian.”

The demon hissed. “I will not be touched by some puny mortal with a sword. You cannot make me talk. I am immortal, you fools.”

“Oh, I am not the one who is gonna harm you.” Damian replied. “She is.” He stepped out of the way letting Rage Raven approach the demon with an evil grin.

Rage continued to get close to him until her shadow covered him and he disappeared inside it. His screams were silent.

Damian turned to Constantine while Rage had her fun. “You know how to unbind her, right?”

Constantine finished his cigarette and dropped the end of it on the floor. “I do, birdie. It’s kind of simple to be fair, but I don’t have the juice to overrule that kind of demonic incantation.”

“So, you’re useless.” Damian concluded.

“Didn’t I just point out who was the one you needed to keep alive?” Constantine looked like he was throwing a tantrum.

Damian ignored him and returned to Raven. She sighed. “I have the power, but with this, not so much. I’m blocked. I’m useless as well…”

“Not necessarily.” Knowledge intervened. Damian and the others turned to look at her, intrigued.

“How come?” Damian replied, encouraging her to go on.

“Well…” Knowledge snapped his fingers and a tiny bolt of light came out of it. “She’s blocked. Which means her magic is trapped not allowing it to flow out of her.” 

They all nodded. Damian was fully concentrated on each of her words. She proceeded.

“Imagine a river. The river is our body, or hers.” She pointed at Raven. “And our magic is the water that flows in it. Those shackles are a dam the demons built so the water couldn’t flow anymore. Luckily, they didn’t count with something. Us. We are the water that is trapped inside the dam and we can perform the spell.”

Knowledge pointed at herself, Brave Raven and Rage Raven.

Damian was a bit lost at the end but Constantine was the one that understood this time. “My my, you’re quite clever, aren’t ya? But you do know that we would need all of you, right?”

Constantine laughed and Damian finally caught on. “Your other personalities?” He asked Raven directly.

Raven stood there for a few seconds thinking about her answer, that was not something she wanted Damian to deal with. Her personalities so far had behaved themselves, but if Love or Happiness were involved, she’d prefer to go alone on the rest of the journey.

But she knew Damian would not approve or allow that to happen.

“Raven?” Damian snapped her out of her thoughts.

“Yes, my other personalities.” She admitted. “If these three are here, then we are missing five.”

“Five?” Damian was surprised.

“Five?!” Constantine seemed to be even more. “I only met…” He started counting mentally before answering.

Knowledge rolled her eyes. “Five, dumbass. We’re eight in total.”

“Which are the ones that I’m missing?” Constantine insisted as if it was his right to know.

Knowledge paid no attention to him and turned to Damian to explain further to him, and only him. “We need to go find Happiness, Sloth, Rudeness, Love and Timidity. Love and Happiness are usually together, as well as Sloth and Rudeness, but Timidity is always hiding because of how shy she can be.”

Brave made a cartwheel to land beside Knowledge so she could also add something. “Rage will take our little hostage friend with us. And I will take you to where our other us are. I usually spend a lot of time with Love and Happiness as well, so I know where they’ll be.” She smiled openly.

Constantine rolled his eyes. “Can’t imagine why, love.”

Brave Raven stuck out her tongue before walking away. “Just follow me. They’re in the garden of dreams and precious memories.”

Damian got closer to Raven and put one of his hands under her knees and the other one under her back to carry her since she couldn’t walk. 

Raven had a pale face, even paler than usual when she heard where they were headed. She usually kept her good memories there, some from her life at Azarath, but the majority from some moments she cherished with the Titans and with Damian.

“Are you okay? You look a bit ill.” Damian was worried for her.

Raven nodded and dismissed his concerns. “I’m fine, just still a bit shaken from before.”

“Don’t worry, we will get you out of those things in no time, habibti.” He reassured. The last word with a thick accent. 

She found it odd that he would say something in Arabic to her, since he knew she didn’t speak it. “What was that?”

Damian frowned, not understanding what she meant. He hadn’t noticed what he had called her. “I’m sorry?”

She shook her head. “Nothing. I- I’m just tired.” Raven dismissed, to let go of the subject.

The others were already some steps ahead and Damian continued to walk until they caught on.

-

The garden was unlike what Constantine pictured. He had something lugubrious and dark but comforting to Raven in some way in mind. 

Damian however, imagined something just like this. From his brief visits to Azarath, he imagined the garden would look like something similar to a conservatory used as a greenhouse. A space designed to care for plants but also to meditate, like she prefers.

The walls were tall and the ceiling had a skylight that allowed one to watch the starless sky from Raven’s mind. 

When approaching the plants or flowers, each one revealed some memory or dream from Raven, forming something close to an astral projection of it. She was trying to hide whenever any of them got to close and the images projected.

One of the memories had her meditating on Azarath as an infant with the monks, teaching her new techniques while her mother was bringing food to their home preparing a meal similar to what she used to have while she lived on earth. Other had her kicking Gar's ass in a video game he pressured her into playing. One of them was, of course, when she gifted Titus to Damian.

Damian was fascinated by the place and kept detailing everything while Raven looked up at him.

“It was certainly built by you. Has your essence down to the last detail.” Damian complimented. 

Raven smiled faintly, forgetting about the memories and all. “Thanks?” She laughed.

Some shushing was heard from behind some plants, followed by giggling.

“Found them!” Brave Raven yelled.

Raven closed her eyes knowing this was it. Love or Happiness would open their mouths.

“Dami!” They shouted in unison. Love and Happiness appeared in front of Damian and Raven. Their eyes were shining as they admired Damian like and angel had fallen from heaven.

Love with her characteristic purple clothing and Happiness with her pink ones. 

Damian blushed when he heard them. They were way too confident, familiar and close to his face. “Uh, hello. I suppose you know me as well, like the others.” He put Raven down to introduce himself offering his hand.

“Oh my god. We know you way better than the others.” Happiness giggled. Love was only staring at him, as if she was compelled by his image.

“You do?” Damian asked with surprise.

Raven felt like throwing up. “They are messing with you! Part of her act! Happiness, jokes and stuff… you know?” She was nervous and even she couldn’t believe that lie.

Constantine was trying so hard not to burst out laughing. This was so awkward he could cry from second hand embarrassment.

“Right. So, we actually need you.” Damian got to the point, moving on from Raven’s comment.

“You need us?” Love finally talked to him, getting closer to his personal space. Her eyes were almost forming hearts in her irises as if the request had been for her specifically.

“I-” Damian widened his eyes beneath the mask and started stuttering not knowing what to do or why that was happening.

Raven face-palmed herself and thought that it was time to get control of the situation.

“ We need you. All. You need to come with us, search for Sloth and Rudeness, and Timidity, and join your magic. My magic. To get me out of these.” She put her wrists up to show them. Her voice was in a sense rude but firm, standing on business.

All the Ravens, Constantine and Damian turned to look at her. Damian nodded in approval and relief.

“What the girlie said.” Constantine agreed.

“It’s Constantine!” Happiness yelled with excitement. “Hi, John…” She blushed and so did Love, on a minor scale.

Constantine had not been a fan of the treatment from their counterparts so that was refreshing for him. “Well, that’s a bloody greeting! Hello, love.”

Damian saw how the Ravens blushed and couldn’t help but feel jealous by it.

“Don’t bother, he’s a jackass!” Brave Raven told the others. Damian felt proud of her.

“He is?” Happiness asked with confusion. “I’m sure you misunderstood Bravey… So, let’s go get Rudeness and make her fight him or whatever if you’re right.”

“Ooooh, that’s brilliant, Happiness!” Brave agreed.

Meanwhile, Love was still fixated by Damian’s side. 

“I find that idea great as well. Shall we move on?” Damian suggested so they would keep moving. He hated seeing Raven entrapped in those things.

“We shall…” Love muttered almost leaning into him.

Damian smiled at her trying to be polite but got close to her Raven and picked her up again. “Where is… Rudeness?”

Brave and Happiness were arguing about Constantine being a good or bad person. The one that answered to him was Knowledge that had been very quiet up until now. 

“She’s usually right outside of here. With Sloth. We don’t all have to go. Maybe just two and then return with the rest.” Knowledge suggested.

Damian thought about it. “I will go then.”

Raven stopped him. “I’ll go with you.”

“You stay here with Constantine and your other selves. I will be quick, I promise.” He went to put her down near some flowers, where there was a bench.

Raven couldn’t argue with him. Especially since Knowledge wouldn’t say anything about what she worried the others would.

“Fine.” She smiled and sighed while relaxing a bit.

When Damian stepped back to return with Knowledge, he noticed that leaving Raven seated on the bench activated one of her memories on the flowers behind her. It was a glowing memory from the time they went to the carnival and they ended up together at the top of the ferris wheel.

She had her back turned to the memory so she hadn’t notice what was happening. He stared at the memory for a few seconds and the image changed to when they were laughing at the mirrors from the fun house.

But something caught his eye. The memory changed again to when he was dancing, competing with Garfield, the memory showed a smiling, endeared Raven. Admiring him as he danced.

“Damian, are you okay?” She was about to look where Damian was looking but he stopped her by taking her hand.

“Yes. I was just thinking how much your wrists must hurt with these on.” He touched the shackles and got something from his utility belt. It was some spray foam.

He used it in between the shackles and Raven’s skin, creating a barrier of protective sponge that would prevent her from harming herself further.

“It’s scary how you have something for every situation.” Raven smiled as a ‘thank you’.

“It would be scarier not to.” Damian smiled back as a ‘you’re welcome’.

He finally got up putting the spray foam away and went back to where Knowledge was.

The image of Raven looking at him at the carnival, while dancing was still on his head. She looked at him differently in that memory than she had ever looked ever again.

“Ready?” Knowledge asked when he saw him return.

“Ready.”

They headed out the garden to where a field of what looked like pitch black clouds was there. 

On top of one of them, a figure of someone was sleeping. Snoring. This Raven had brown clothing.

Knowledge looked away, embarrassed. “Yes. That one is Sloth.”

“Can I ask where the name comes from or what part of her personality is she?” Damian turned to Knowledge.

“I don’t think Raven would like me to reveal that. But then again, you will find out as soon as she comes down so…” She looked up again to where Sloth was. She had changed positions and was drooling. “Not our proudest part. She’s usually kept here and has never had to come out more than two days at a time.”

“When was the last time she got out?” Damian kept learning more and more about Raven, and it was something that he rather enjoyed.

“Probably… About seven years ago.” She sighed. “Hey Sloth!”

Sloth opened one eye and yawned. “What do you want? Is it dinner time already?”

“We need your help.” Damian intervened. 

Sloth opened both eyes when she heard Damian’s voice, she never heard anyone else besides her father’s or her other selves. “Who is we?”

She got down from the cloud while yawning and scratching her neck.

“Obviously all of the others, you lazy witch.” The voice of another Raven was heard behind them. A Raven with orange clothes was standing with her arms crossed staring them up and down in a rude way.

“Rude…” Sloth complained of her tone, rubbing her eyes.

“Miss obvious, congratulations. Is part of my job, idiot.” The one in orange clothes replied.

Knowledge Raven arched an eyebrow. “Rudeness, in case it wasn’t clear already.” She introduced her to Damian.

“Got that. Thank you, Knowledge.” He replied and looked at Rudeness. “So we-”

“Need our help, heard that from over here.” Rudeness interrupted Damian. “I’m not deaf, you know?”

Damian frowned. “No but you could let me speak at least.”

Rudeness laughed sarcastically. “Like you let others? Hurts, huh? When you are the one being disrespected instead of others?”

Knowledge just lowered her gaze, she didn’t want to meddle with whatever these two were about to get into. Sloth was already asleep again.

“I’m trying to help all of you, so I guess I deserve some respect.” He replied, sounding cocky and entitled.

“Yeah, sure. Mr. spoiled rich boy. Let us all bow to your moral superiority.” She faked a bow.

Damian turned to Knowledge. “Do we really need her ?” 

“Hey, Mr. I was raised by the League, I’m still here.” Rudeness called when Damian ignored her.

Knowledge sighed. “We do need her.”

Damian nodded to Knowledge and clenched his fist, taking strength before turning to Rudeness. “I apologize if, like you say, I may have been rude. I sincerely just want to help Raven and that would not be possible if you are not a part of our plan. Would you be so kind as to come with us and help?”

He was being gentle and sincere at every word he said. Rudeness arched an eyebrow and softened her gaze. “I-” She was unsure of how to respond to that, so she simply smirked. “Well played, spoiled boy. Let’s go." She turned her back on them but before walking she shared a piece of advice with them. "And try to keep Sloth a few feet away from you, the smell sticks.”

Damian nodded and signaled Knowledge to follow them. Knowledge made a disgusted face while guiding Sloth and Damian walked in silence right next to Rudeness. There was not really much left to say.

As soon as they got back, the first one to greet them back was Love. She ran towards Damian and hugged him tight. 

“You’re back! You can take me with you next time. I know where Timidity is, you know?” Love was whispering to his ear, almost trying to kiss his cheek.

Damian was intrigued by that even if he was nervous by the proximity of Love. “You do?”

Raven saw as soon as Love ran towards Damian and felt anger invade her. Her four eyes grew bigger on her forehead but she tried to control it before speaking. “She does not.” Her tone was still angered.

“I actually do!” Love had now laid her head on Damian’s shoulder. Damian was thinking that maybe deep down, this was Raven’s more affectionate side towards their friendship and really didn’t make any of it.

Constantine wanted to stir the pot a bit further seeing how amused he was with all of this teenage drama. “I say let’s allow the rainbowed one to go with little birdie to get the last one of you. Can’t hurt, can it?”

Raven completely glared at Constantine after he said that. He knew he was as good as dead after she was freed, but at least he would get a good laugh from it.

“I knew I liked you for a reason, John!” Love blushed while smiling at Constantine and hugged Damian tighter. 

Damian was a bit annoyed that he didn’t get a say in that decision, but at the end of the day she was a Raven, so he could trust her. “Alright. So, where is Timidity?”

“Damian…” Raven called before Love could get another word out. There was concern on her face.

Damian pushed Love away as soon as he saw Raven’s expression and went straight to her, ignoring all of the others. “Give us a moment.” He ordered.

Love, Happiness and Brave giggled when he ordered them to leave them alone. Knowledge simply nodded. Constantine, Rudeness and Sloth were already walking out not really caring what they had to talk about and getting into an argument themselves, one that Rage was enjoying and feeding with her powers so Rudeness would be even more cruel.

Once they were left alone, Damian sat next to her and took off his mask to look at Raven’s eyes. Taking one of her hands with the utmost care, making sure not to hurt her wrists he caressed it before asking. “What is it?”

Raven couldn’t bear to look into Damian’s eyes. She lowered her gaze and covered her face with both of her hands. It was stupid of her to have called him and not know what to say to him now. She just wanted to avoid him going alone with Love.

Damian could see she was battling herself to get the words out of her. The position she was in, the shackle around her neck was making pressure on it. “You’re gonna hurt yourself.”

She straightened up and took a deep breath before opening her eyes and turning to him again. “He’s threatened to kill you. Multiple times.”

Damian frowned, this was not really where he thought the conversation was going. “Your father, I’m guessing.”

“Yes.” She confirmed.

“I do not mean to be rude like everybody assumes I usually am but, I already knew that.” He couldn’t be less afraid of Trigon or his threats.

“But do you know why? Why does he have such an insistent desire to tear you apart? Limb by limb?” Raven pondered. She was pouting, trying not to cry as tears formed in her eyes.

He looked away as he thought about it. “If I’m being honest, I hadn’t really given it much thought. I assumed it was because he is evil. And on top of that, I don’t care.”

“Damian…” She scoffed as if she found it either hilarious or ridiculous how he, the son of the greatest detective in the world, could be so clueless and careless. “Why not Kori? Or Gar? Or Jaime? Why not threaten them?”

Damian remained silent. Unsure of the answer, or more likely, sure of his conclusion but unsure to say it out loud.

The silence was killing Raven, she had the words she wanted to tell him right on the tip of her tongue. Awaiting to get out.

He had his own words as well.

Each of their heartbeats were making loud thuds in the middle of the deafening silence they were both drowning in. The sound of the thuds increased in volume and frequency.

 

Thump.

    Thump.

         Thump.

              Thump.

 

Their hearts were going faster and faster. Until they were interrupted by each other speaking at the same time.

“Your father knows I have feelings for you-”

“My father knows I have feelings for you-”

Notes:

We are finally here!!!

They have finally said something. But apparently, they both expected something completely different, and they still have a lot on their plates...

Young love, what can I say?

Chapter 14

Notes:

"She fell first but he fell harder."

Raven knew exactly when and where she started catching feelings for Damian. 

When she first met him, she saw a boy that was sad and hurt, the reason was yet unknown for her, but she could see past the charade he put up in front of other people. She was able to feel whatever revolting feelings he exuded.

It was not until she had to heal him and the bond they created revealed so much more that was behind in his past that she not only understood the feelings and sensations she felt within him, but she could also see how he was still trying to be better than whatever he was instructed and raised to be.

The day at the carnival only led to a confirmation for her that something was growing within her. Once Damian was able to relax, let go and enjoy, she saw him just as he was supposed to be all along, a teenager having fun, laughing around and winning prizes.

However, the defining moment for her to catch feelings for him was definitely when she saw him give his prize so selflessly away to a little girl that seemed to want it more than he needed it. 

The flame definitely started to burn for her in that moment, as soon as she realized what an incredible and truly kind person Damian was even if not even himself could see it.

The flame she felt was not like a wildfire or a bomb that gets ignited and torches everything on its way. It was subtle, but enough to make her feed her own personal bonfire inside. Something to warm her heart in times of solitude and need.

So, today when she realized that once more he had been selfless and came to her rescue as soon as he knew she was in danger, he had faced the dangers of her mind, and the demons that meant true harm for her, she realized that it wasn’t fair for her to keep concealing all of this secrets if the world was gonna end anyway, she just didn’t know yet when she was gonna tell him. 

The last straw came when he saw Love so handsy and close to him. What if she told him? What would Damian’s reaction be? Would he be mad that her best friend didn’t have the guts to tell her herself? Would she lose him altogether? Would Love take away what was rightfully hers to do?

Not anymore. She needed him to know.

After she called for him, this was it. She had to let her know what was behind a lot of it. Her feelings.

“My father knows I have feelings for you…”

-

For Damian it was quite different.

He had never had the opportunity to really get attached to anything or anyone by the way he was raised. 

The League had always had one goal for him in mind, to become the greatest assassin in the world and heir to the League, leading them to take over like the conqueror he was always meant to be. He was made to be.

Or at least, he was never taught otherwise until he was delivered to his father and had to live a completely different life than the one he knew. 

His views were even far more challenged when he was forced to go and live with the Teen Titans. A group of normal-ish teenagers, that other than having powers and devastating backstories, behaved as normal, awkward teenagers. Needless to say, he did not fit in.

The way his life turned around completely overnight didn’t allow him to think about the feelings that may have emerged when he met and got to know Raven. 

At first, he thought she would be a distraction, another obstruction on his path. But after the accident he had with Jaime, that led her to heal him and unwillingly open up to her, he knew that she had something different. 

She was someone different.

When Raven already knew what feelings she had started to develop for Damian, he was barely starting to examine her. He did not realize that his urge to know more about her was not detective work, but the beginning of a normal first teenage crush.

The first time Trigon threatened to invade the world he learned how strong she was, how much power she held, how brave she was. Raven was so much more than he first thought he would ever give her credit for.

There were multiple moments he had physical reactions he could really not give an explanation to. His heart beating faster or panting whenever he got to his room after an interaction with her. All signs of nerves. Clueless about the meaning of them.

But the real moment he finally saw what his true sentiment for her was happened around the time he finally got some peace after deathstroke had finally fallen. The day she considered that a thoughtful present might be what he needed to get through those conflicting feelings.

A puppy. 

Something he had always been passionate about but wouldn’t let anyone know since the League considered it a weakness was his love for animals. 

At first, he was confused by the gesture having had no previous experience whatsoever with any kind of pet. But as soon as the puppy held one ear up and wiggled its tail, he not only felt connected to it, but to Raven. Their bond had strengthened.

She saw Raven for the first time for what she actually was, not only his best friend, but the most incredible, thoughtful and brave girl he had developed a crush on.

The little spark that enabled him to finally see Raven in the true light he was supposed to, ignited a spark that in no time became a wildfire of emotions. 

From that moment on, he knew what he was feeling, but was too scared and too inexperienced to know what to do or say, and on top of that, he knew that she knew him better than anyone. Why would someone so kind, so nurturing and so devoted like her, ever feel something for someone like him, that was raised to be the opposite? Cold, cruel, deathly.

He decided his best bet was to make his feelings remain hidden and not ruin what he already had and, most likely, was the most he was ever going to get. Her friendship.

When Raven’s nightmares started again and the whole journey to get to the bottom of this was getting narrower, he felt like he needed to come clean to her, the question was how? When? 

Every moment for the last few years they had spent together he was reassured she was the one thing that kept him going towards his improvement. But now that the prophecy was aiming to take that away from him, he could no longer keep it in.

Once he saw that Raven and he got a moment alone, he felt like this more than ever was his chance to at least come clean and let her decide if he was to continue helping her after learning about his deep, true emotions.

The moment he heard what she was talking about, how Raven was questioning the reason his father wanted him dead so badly, he thought she might have gotten to the conclusion even quicker than he was able to confess. 

So he needed to say it before she did.

“Your father knows I have feelings for you.”

-

They both stood in confusion after the other one interrupted. Both thought they might've misheard.

Raven shook her head and looked away. “You have feelings for me?”

Damian felt a knife going through his heart when she looked away. Maybe his fears and instincts were not so misguided after all. She was gonna step away now that she knew.

He took a deep breath but held his head high. He had already said it, he now needed to own his words. “I do. I have for quite some time now. I never intended for this to be the cause of one of the issues with your father.”

Raven immediately turned her head to face him, he was now the one with his gaze lowered. Ashamed.

“You didn’t cause anything, Damian.” She squeezed the hand he had been caressing. “My father threatened you, not because of your feelings but because of my own. I have also felt so much for you…” She paused. “He knew threatening you would be torture for me.”

Damian looked at her with guilt when she mentioned torture. This was exactly what he wished to avoid. Her suffering because of him. 

“Hearing you say you also feel something back was the very  thing that kept me awake so many nights during the past few years. I wanted to hear it so badly.” Damian took both hands of Raven on his own to get them close to him and place a soft kiss on them. “You, single handedly have made me improve as a warrior, as a friend, as a man. I wanted to be worthy of you even if deep down I never thought myself worthy of someone so remarkable, rare, and immaculate such as yourself.”

Raven was flustered and hypnotized by how effortlessly these words came out of Damian. He was being so truthful that she didn’t have to read his mind or use their bond to know what he was experiencing as he said all of this.

There was no need, it was written all over his face.

“Damian, stop.” She begged. “Stop saying you are not worthy. If all these years you say you have improved taught you something is that you are worthy of many things. Good things.”

Her hands were placed on each side of his face, touching his cheeks softly.

“Maybe.” He interrupted as he closed his eyes briefly, enjoying the touch of Raven’s skin before opening them again. “But you are far more than just a ‘good thing’. You are the greatest thing and if I ever will have an opportunity with you, I must earn it.”

Raven chuckled. She didn’t mean to, but she found it amusing how hard he was trying to gain her affection when he already had them all for himself.

“Is this funny to you?” He tried to remain serious but a smirk escaped him when she saw that smile he so often chased.

“It is, a little.” She replied, still giggling. “You already have earned it, Damian. All of it.”

Her voice was soft as she confirmed this. She needed him to know how much he already had accomplished.

“I don’t wish to be something you cling on to just because of the conflicted feelings towards your father.”

Raven scoffed a bit insulted. “I’m not conflicted. I’m just afraid of what will happen to you. I-” She made a pause, biting her lip and pondering if she should say this or not. “I’m the real problem here. Look where you are Damian, what you had to fight. It’s not fair to you.”

He frowned. “I am choosing this.”

“You shouldn’t… It’s not your fight, it’s mine, always has been.” She replied, a bit harshly. He stayed silent.

Damian wanted to respect Raven’s wishes the best he could, even if it meant stepping away when she asked him to, but not with this.

“It is my fight if it involves you.” He finally replied full of confidence. “Even if you decide you no longer want me to be part of this, I will be. Trying to find the answer, the solution. Trying to ensure your wellbeing. You can’t stop me from doing that.”

She knew he was right but still couldn’t help but feel guilt over having him involved in this.

Raven was gonna say something else when Brave Raven walked in with a smile, no shyness of interrupting whatever they might have been talking about, or doing for that matter.

“Hey guys!” She waved. “Constantine is a pain in the ass that won’t stop complaining of how much time we’re wasting, and the others wouldn’t let him get inside to interrupt you so they sent me. Are you gonna take much longer?”

Brave Raven was rocking herself on top of her tiptoes while she awaited an answer. Damian looked away since he knew they had to leave the conversation for another time.

“We are done, we’ll be out there in a moment.” Damian replied, his gaze still fixated on whatever it was other than them.

Brave Raven nodded with a joyful smile. “Alrighty, see you in a moment then.” She cartwheeled out of there straightaway.

His eyes caught the moment of the memory the plants had showed him earlier again. Raven’s memories about the day of the carnival and how she remembered so fondly how he was dancing that day.

Raven looked over in the same direction he was. She saw the memory and a smile with a hint of shyness made her blush. “That was the first day I think I felt something for you, you know?”

The confession made Damian blush as well. He placed one of his hands on his neck and started scratching, somewhat nervously. “You did? It was so… early.” He was surprised.

“That day I simply could feel and see how much you care for others, how sweet and gentle you were even if you didn’t know. You were trying so hard to hide that part of you because of how much pain you have been that I simply understood and saw you in a new light.”

She got up as she said this. She was ready to go outside with the others in order to find Timidity. Damian was simply too stunned to speak after that little insight she had just revealed.

It was crazy to look back now and see how it didn’t take her as much to realize what she felt and he actually took much longer to realize, even if deep down he always felt the same.

When he saw her get up, he quickly did as well and helped her by carrying her. “I got you.”

“I know.” She smiled when she was in his arms and he started to walk outside.

Finally outside, Constantine was the first one to speak. “Well, it’s about bloody time. Shall we move on?”

Rudeness Raven was done with his attitude so she looked at him. “Shut up already, you old hag. You only seem to know how to smoke, complain and be humiliated by us, repeatedly.”

“Excuse-”

“Yes, you heard me alright. Now don’t act so offended and shove it.” She replied before he even got the chance to.

If Damian didn’t know any better, it looked like Constantine was about to pop a vein. 

Love and Happiness on the other hand were already tailing Damian. Happiness was giggling and blushing while Love only made heart eyes by the way he was carrying Raven. Something was different now.

“You told him! Didn’t you?” Love was face to face with Raven. “I never thought you would, I’m so proud of you! Did you kiss already? He said it back, didn't he?” She was going way too fast with all she was saying.

“Love.” Raven called angrily when she saw Damian get flustered by all of the questions, especially the one with the kiss. “Let it go or you’re going to be roommates with Timidity and not Happiness.”

Love quickly shut her mouth while still being close. She looked at Damian and got close to his ear. “I’m not letting her or you ruin this. I promise you that, Dami.” The voice she used was serious and at the same time, flirty.

She winked at Damian while biting her lower lip and backed away to where Happiness was, still giggling because of how close Love got to Damian.

“Well… Uh-” Damian was out of words.

Raven simply sighed. “Brave, where can we find Timidity? You always find her when there is danger.”

Brave Raven stopped to think before answering. “It’s more the other way around, she finds me when something is wrong so, I wouldn’t know where she is.” She smiled again.

“That complicates things.” Damian added. 

“What if we cause some trouble ourselves? Kick some rocks, bother some of those pretty birds you had attack us and cause a fuss, eh?”

Raven frowned. “There is no way I’m letting you mess with my spells.”

“He’s right.” Damian intervened. 

“He is?” All of the Ravens spoke at the same time.

“Not about the ravens or the spells, but if Timidity is watching for dangers and problems to alert the others, we might get her to come to us if we cause trouble.”

He smirked. Raven could see he definitely had an idea of how to achieve this. “What do we need to do?”

-

“Are you really sure about this? I feel we could just simply look for her around until we find her and just, you know, not be making suicidal decisions?”  Raven was biting her nails, completely not on board with Damian’s plan.

Damian had his sword out, making Constantine put another spell on it. “Thank you for the vote of confidence.” 

“He’s so brave, isn’t he?” Love was whispering to Happiness, and they were both sighing in love for him.

“He is… So brave.” Happiness reassured.

Raven wanted to take her other selves heads out with all of the inappropriate comments they made. “Does it have to be that thing? I’m liking Constantine's suggestion about using my ravens instead.”

She was looking over at Rage who had the demon still trapped but ready to let go at any given second, just as Damian instructed her to. If he was in danger, maybe Timidity would show up looking for Bravery.

“I hate hurting animals. Even if they are not real, they are still a part of you and I’m not going to hurt them.” Damian turned to Raven and kneeled to where he had seated her earlier.

“Why do you have such a big and compassionate heart? It’s going to get you killed.” She replied harshly, because of how worried she was.

Sloth Raven was trying to nap right beside Raven but her stress wouldn’t allow her to. “Just relax, jeez.” She yawned. “I’ve got snacks for the nerves. Want some?”

Out of an unknown location she pulled out some candy she had been storing to snack. She offered it to Raven in order to relax her.

Raven simply smiled trying not to be rude about her offering. “I think I’ll pass.”

“Whatever.” Sloth started eating the candy anyway, falling asleep on the process.. 

Constantine approached those two, after dealing with Damian’s sword. “She smells funny, but I think she’s the best of all of you. Doesn’t talk back, doesn’t fight, and has candy.”

Raven turned to look at him over her shoulder. “You seriously have to get your priorities in order.”

“Got 'em, not changing them now, love.” He replied with a smirk while lighting up a cigarette.

Damian was done with all of it so he simply looked over at Rage without really giving them much notice. “Are you ready?”

“This is going to be…interesting.” Rage tilted her head, she was intrigued and talking with her demon voice. Eager to release the demon she had subjected.

Raven shut her eyes and placed her hands over her face. “I’m not gonna look.”

Sloth was asleep. Rudeness was already getting under the skin of Constantine. Love and Happiness were watching with fear but also confidence that he was strong and skilled to get out of it without a scratch. Brave was overjoyed to see a fight like that so she was biting her lips trying to contain some of the emotion she felt. 

Knowledge was the only one that was on board with his plan, it was the most logical way of getting Timidity out of the shadows in a quick way. Still, she was hiding behind the rest of them, trying to not look at the outcome.

Rage finally started to let go of the demon they had captured. She was laughing diabolically. However, to ensure Damian’s safety, even if she wouldn’t admit she cared about it, she drew a similar enchantment on the demon to keep him from using any kind of magic when fighting Damian.

Once the demon was freed, he let out a sigh of anger. “You fool, this is going to be your doom.”

“Then give me your best shot.” He tempted the demon with a grin. 

The demon got even more angry and put up his large arms up in the air, using momentum to hit a big shot to the ground, sending a wave right at Damian, making him flip back and land trying to regain balance. 

The demon took advantage of that and charged at him. He used his claws when hitting at him, but he could barely get a grasp of him with how quickly he dodged the blows he threw at him.

Brave, Happiness and Love were mesmerized by the way he was fighting the demon so effortlessly. So much so he hadn’t had to use his sword on it yet.

“You got this, Dami!” Happiness cheered.

“You are the best!” Love cheered as well, almost looking as if she were to faint because of the adrenaline rushing inside her.

Damian got distracted when the girls cheered and the demon got to use his claws right on his chest, making him grunt in pain.

The demon used this as an opportunity to grab him by the neck and try to choke him, but Damian finally used his sword and cut out the arm that was holding him. The demon yelled while Damian coughed to catch his breath.

All the Ravens were scared when that happened and gasped.

“Aren’t you supposed to help him?” A shy voice whispered to Brave Raven’s ear.

She turned around immediately when she heard the familiar voice. It was Timidity, with a complete look of fear on her face while watching Damian suffer the claws.

“She’s here! She’s here! Rage, lock him up!”

“Pfft. Boring.” She started using her powers to wrap him up again inside her shadow and subdue him once more. “There.”

Love ran towards Damian to aid him. “Are you okay, Dami? I’ll heal you, don’t move. You were so brave, and looked so gorgeous too.”

She was complimenting him and admiring him, the blood, the sweat and the grunts were too distracting.

“Love? I could use that healing spell.” Damian stopped her and  smiled at her.

“Right! Sorry…” She smiled and started to heal his wounds on the chest while touching a bit more than she had to. Damian just blushed and looked away.

Timidity was confused as to why they were all looking at her. She was about to disappear again. The nerves were too much for her. 

“Don’t go, Timidity. We need you.” Brave stopped her and smiled trying to remain calm and make her stay.

“N- Need me? Why? Why did I do? I swear I didn’t do anything. I promise.” She was rambling way too fast.

Raven got up the best she could with the shackles on and Damian finally came back after the healing spell Love performed on him. He carried Raven once more, making her lay her head on him.

“We need you, because you were the last piece we needed. You are my savior.” Raven explained while in Damian's arms.

“I- I am?” Timidity asked while hiding behind Brave.

“Of course you are. Just now when you appeared you saved me from that demon.” Damian added as well.

“I did?” Timidity smiled shyly.

“Trust me.” Damian smiled.

Timidity lowered her gaze, nervous and flustered.

Knowledge stepped in. “We have everyone. Constantine?”

Constantine was still bickering with Rudeness when he heard his name. “Now what?”

Knowledge rolled her eyes. “The conjure, smartass. We need it now that we have the full power to perform it.”

Rudeness chuckled. “I like this side of you, four eyes. You tell him.”

Knowledge ignored her backhanded compliment. Constantine sighed and used his magic to make one page of a book appear in front of her.

“This is it, girlie. One of you recites it while drawing the magic of the others in a circle of concentration drawn with a bit of salt and candles. Ta-da, you have a shackle free and ready to kiss bird boy Raven.” He explained, Raven once again glared at him but he didn’t care, he was hoping to get killed after having to deal with Rudeness all day. 

“Easy, I guess.” Knowledge replied.

“You just have to decide which one of you will recite the spell.” Constantine inquired.

“I’ll do it.” They all said at the same time and frowned at each other.

“I’m the bravest, I should be the one to do it. What if something goes wrong? Have to be brave and not fear anything to keep going!” Brave Raven said with pride.

Knowledge scoffed. “Well, I’m the smartest, which means if something goes wrong I know how to handle it with logic.”

Rudeness rolled her eyes and laughed sarcastically. “Yeah right, so you think you’ll beat everything with fun facts and pages out of books? I should do it, I’m tougher than you.”

“But not than me!” Brave Raven yelled.

“Sure about that?” Rage intervened with anger.

They all started squabbling, talking over each other. Damian and Constantine simply looked at each other without really knowing what to do or how to interrupt them.

“Well, I appreciate Damian more and want her to be with him and that will happen if I free her. I should be the one doing it.” Love said over here.

“I’m the happiest one, I can do it, you all do it out of spite or selfishness!” Happiness responded over there.

Rudeness answered. “You think the power of friendship can beat us?”

Happiness responded. “Well yeah, you rude… rude!” She crossed her arms.

Sloth was yawning while still laying on the floor. “I’m the chillest one, I should…” Yawn. “Do it.”

Raven had it with all of the squabbling and the fuss they were making. 

“Enough!” Her voice echoed. Making them all turn and see her after they had been silenced. “I decide who performs the spell.”

“But-” They all wanted to complain at the same time.

“Shut up!” She silenced them again. “Constantine will do it. He can draw magic from all of you now that you’re here and perform the spell himself. And I don’t wanna hear any more complaints.” 

“Awww, girlie. You think so highly of me?” Constantine teased.

“Oh god, I’m seriously considering letting my father loose just so he can make you shut up! Just perform the damn spell!” Raven replied. “Anyone want to add anything else?” They were all silent after that. “Good.”

Constantine approached the Ravens and ignored them while drawing the circle and starting to light the candles.

Damian on the other hand whispered to Raven’s ear while they got settled to do the spell. “Just so you know, that’s who you are. Getting them all in line, they listen because they are you. And I’m glad I’ve gotten to know them all.”

Raven blushed and smiled. “Even Sloth?” She asked with embarrassment.

“Especially her.” He teased and she pounded him on the shoulder knowing he was joking.

“We’re ready for you, girlie.” Constantine called, interrupting them.

Damian and Raven turned to look at him. Damian nodded and got Raven closer to the circle, leaving her seated in the middle of it before stepping out.

“Right, so all of you, take a spot around the circle. Evenly.” Constantine instructed the Ravens.

Some listened and followed the order right away, like Love and Happiness, others it took more persuasion in order to make them follow Constantine’s orders, like Rudeness or Rage.

Once they were all settled he sighed and looked towards Rage. “You, after I’ve begun the spell to draw magic from all of you, your power is not going to be strong enough to keep holding off the demon. Luckily, I’ll have enough juice to subdue him and also free our little girl.”

Damian was rounding them up while listening, he was considering all possible scenarios while he circled all the Ravens.

“And after she’s free. It can be killed now?” Damian asked referring to the demon.

“Sure, birdie. You can try and off the bastard if you want. I will tell you when to do it. But after it loses its head, Rage will cast it out like she did its friends.” Constantine didn’t mind if Damian killed it, it was way more efficient than to use magic for it.

Rage growled with a grin, happy to do so.

“Fine, then proceed.” Damian allowed.

Constantine started first with the incantation to draw the magic from the Ravens, reciting multiple times since they were so many and they were powerful, maybe even resist the spell at first since he was an outsider.

“ Capere Virtutem, da mihi vim tuam. Extratio Energiae vis tua nunc in me est. Capere Virtutem, da mihi vim tuam. Extratio Energiae vis tua nunc in me est.”

He was staring to draw the energy from the Ravens with these conjurations. They all faintly glowed, each on their on particular color and forming a rainbow over Constantine, wrapping him in it.

When he had enough energy, he knew it was moment for Damian to prepare. “Get ready, birdie.”

He continued to the second part of the spell. Absorbing the magic as if it was his. “ Absorptio Magicae, vires tuas nunc meae sunt. Absorptio Magicae, vires tuas nunc meae sunt. Absorptio Magicae, vires tuas nunc meae sunt. ”

He repeated three times. Damian was ready to fight the demon, which had already made its way out the restraint Rage had it in. 

The demon was even more mad than before, knowing he would get no other chance to kill Damian if he didn’t achieve it now. So it charged at him with everything he had. And Damian fought back, this time not holding back.

Constantine was now performing the unbinding spell from the shackles and the demon.

“ Fractura Vinculum, vincula magica dissolvo. Solvo Fascinum, incantationem frango. Disruptio Magicae, potentiam tuam rescindo. Evanesco Vincula, nexus magicos evanesco. Abolitio Enchantmentis, ligamina tua destruo! Abolitio Enchantmentis, ligamina tua destruo! Abolitio Enchantmentis, ligamina tua destruo! ”

The demon started to growl as it felt how the magic that bound him to the shackles was being severed and not only that, but the magic that Trigon offered it as well.

It screamed in pain until a figure of a much skinny and weak demon was left behind. Panting.

The shackles that held Raven captive broke as all of this happened. Freeing her from that entrapment once and for all.

“Finally.” She smirked and got up from the ground. 

She used her powers to subdue the weak demon that remained and got close to it. “Not so tough now, huh?” 

The demon roared at her but didn’t look so threatening at all anymore. “You’ll regret this, you filthy witch!”

Damian clenched his fists and jaw as he heard it say those words. Now more than ever he wanted to kill it.

“We’ll see about that. And next time you try to take advantage of me to gain something from my father. It won’t be me the one you’ll have to deal with. It will be her.”

Rage was being pointed and she grinned before using her magic to cast out the demon to its hell.

Raven’s hands and eyes were glowing still but lowered their glow as Damian approached her. “I like your style.”

He complimented Raven and Constantine decided to jump in and make a fuss again, even if it meant being killed by the demon girl or the assassin boy. “I bet it’s not the only thing you like about her, eh birdie?”

Love and Happiness giggled at Constantine's comment.

Damian indeed wanted to kill him, but decided against it. “As much as I would like to run my sword through your heart. There’s no point in it, since this is none of your business. I will kill you myself if you dare to meddle in things that do not concern you again, though.”

Constantine shrugged, not caring. “Whatever you say, birdie. Just trying to help two clueless children. I thought it might help me win some points with Z.”

“Oh, I bet it will, John.” Happiness giggled as she blushed.

Damian noticed the blush again. “I will have to address that on another occasion.” He whispered to Raven as he pointed out to Happiness blush, with a hint of jealousy.

“Yeah, we’re not addressing anything until we talk further about... everything else. For now, can we go back to the outside of my mind?” She replied not really endorsing his jealousy.

Damian sighed, knowing he wouldn’t get anywhere if she already had decided so. She was too stubborn. “Fine.”

The girls quickly approached Damian, Happiness and Love clinging to him. “Don’t go! You can live here with us, it’ll be great. We promise!” They were pouting, begging him not to go.

“I know it might be. But I have to help Raven, out there. You understand that, right?” He explained, softly.

They nodded with disappointment and hugged him tight. “I will hunt her down if she does something stupid to make us be apart.” Love whispered to him and Happiness nodded in agreement.

Damian started to say his goodbyes to each of the Ravens. 

Rudeness made a sarcastic comment but complimenting him at the same time. 

Timidity said goodbye shyly, unsure if she should apologize for not helping earlier. Still, she apologized repeatedly for many things, especially things from their past, like making fun of him or similar things.

Sloth gave Damian one of her favorite snacks before heading back to her usual sleeping spot. 

Knowledge thanked Damian for all his help and insightful plans. She was impressed by his tactical skills and critical thinking.

Rage was not much of a thanker or sentimentalist, but she did a nod and that was all Damian needed to know she was thankful for getting her out of her usual solitude.

Brave Raven hugged him, lifting him in the air while she chuckled. She thanked him for the great fights she got to witness.

And after all of them had said their goodbyes to him. Constantine got close to Raven and Damian so she could get them out this time.

“Azarath, metrion, zinthos.” She whispered before her shadow self wrapped them all three in it and casted them out of her mind to where the mirror was. 

Bruce and Zatanna were waiting for them outside.

Notes:

Who doesn't love a great "she fell first but he fell harder" kind of trope?

Well, thank you for all of your comments on my last chapter! I really felt inspired with them all. I really appreciate how much love you keep giving my work.

Next chapter... Damian and Raven have the talk? Let's find out...

Chapter 15

When the portal from the mirror opened and they appeared, it was already night time outside and the figure of the moon could be seen from the window. They must have spent at least a good twelve hours inside Raven’s mind.

The light the moon reflected was the only thing illuminating the inside of the room, but it was enough to see every single person that was in there.

Bruce stepped in and was the first one to ask what had happened.

“Robin? Did everything go according to plan?” Bruce was stoic but still a hint of worry could be heard in his voice.

“Might have had some detours, father. But everything went as expected.” He was holding Raven by the waist so she could hold on to him after using her magic. Bruce noticed this.

“John.” Zatanna called full of relief when she saw him. “Did you behave?”

“Ouch, love.” He joked before smiling. “Think so little of me?”

She rolled her eyes with a smile on her face. “Sometimes maybe not enough.” She arched an eyebrow teasing him and Constantine simply smiled back while scratching his neck.

Raven let out a breath while heading for the bed to sit down with Damian’s help. 

Once she was sat she looked up at Damian, noticing Bruce’s staring at them. This made Raven look away. She felt exposed by such an inquiring look.

“Can you explain what happened in there?” Bruce crossed his arms. His deep voice made an echo in the room.

Raven pursed her lips unsure of what to say, or what he expected her to say. Damian noticed how uncomfortable she was and turned to look at Bruce, straightening up.

“Maybe it is not the time, father. She needs to rest.” He stood still and firm.

Bruce sighed. “I know she needs to rest. But I need you to explain that.” He pointed right at the mirror from where they had entered and gotten out.

The mirror had a few minor cracks all over the handle and a couple more on the edge of the mirror as well.

Raven noticed the cracks and took the mirror into her hands with guilt all over her face. 

Damian was done with how, for Bruce, the interrogation was more important than the wellbeing of Raven. Her Raven. “Father, that is enou-”

“These must have happened when Rage casted out the intruders back to hell.” Raven started to explain not wanting to cause any more friction between Bruce and Damian.

Constantine examined the cracks and nodded. “The little witch girlie is right.” Bruce turned to him and growled, kind of allowing him to go on. “The pressure her magic must have had to cast out those wicked bastards had to be huge. Cracking the mirror on their way out.”

“Yes.” Raven nodded, agreeing with Constantine’s explanation.

Bruce was still debating whether or not that was an answer enough to let them out of their sight for the moment. He still had many questions left unanswered and many more emerged because of that half-answer Raven and Constantine provided.

Damian sighed and clenched one of his fists while closing his eyes, calming himself down.

“Father, I will give you a full, detailed report before breakfast tomorrow. Can you please just let her rest for now? Enough with the interrogation.” 

Zatanna and Constantine were almost frozen behind Bruce, trying to go unnoticed while the situation unfolded. Constantine, of course, with a smile on his face wanting to know what would happen and who would yield.

Both Damian and Bruce kept a staring contest for a few seconds, examining each other as if trying to find a weakness in the other, but when Bruce noticed that Damian would not yield with this, he decided to give up.

“Full report. Hers included.” Bruce pointed at Damian, giving him an order.

He didn’t mean to be so cold, but he was mostly worried about Damian. Trying to be reassured his son was okay and no longer in danger. Raven felt this with her powers and smiled lightly while facing down at the floor.

“Will do so, sir.” Raven answered this time. “Complete transparency.” She reassured.

Bruce looked at her for a moment before facing Damian again, who had not moved an inch trying to protect her if Bruce decided to push it.

“I’ll show you the way out.” Bruce told Zatanna and Constantine without taking his eyes off of Damian.

Constantine chuckled softly. “Amazing, Batsy lost to the little birdie.” He whispered at Zatanna.

Bruce finally turned around and growled again while walking towards the door, opening it for them.

The three of them walked out and Bruce gave a final look at his son before closing the door.

Once they were all gone, Damian took his mask off and approached the night stand next to Raven’s bed and poured a big glass with water that was in a jug before returning with her and handing it to her.

“Thanks.” She took the glass of water and chugged almost all of it. She hadn’t realized how thirsty she had been while away until the water touched her lips.

Some small drops of water escaped her lips while chugging and she quickly felt embarrassed about it. Damian on the other hand, approached her and wiped the excess water very gently with a handkerchief he always carried with him.

Raven just froze while she saw him clean the water. He smiled after he was done, he liked the silences that came because of moments like that. 

“There. Do you need some more water? I can bring you food as well, you need to eat.” He offered with a bit of worry in him.

Raven shook her head, denying his request without taking her eyes off of him. “I’m okay. I was just thirsty but for now I'm good.”

She was hypnotized by Damian’s eyes. Such a particular shade of green that embedded any pair of eyes that dared to look at him.

Damian smiled and took the glass from her hands, breaking the eye contact to go and place the glass on the nightstand once again before returning and sitting next to her.

“You should rest. At least a couple of hours. You need it.” He insisted when noticing the deep eye bags she had developed. She also looked tired, and that she was losing weight as well. 

This had Damian truly worried.

“I’m not tired.” She simply replied, looking away. 

Raven was indeed tired, but she also had a lot on her mind. The demons, the magic, her father, and… The fact that she now knew Damian had feelings for her as she did for him.

Not an ideal situation with everything else going on. He was in more danger now than ever before, but at least it was a good thing that her father couldn’t hear or see them anymore.

Damian knew that when Raven had made up her mind about something it would be almost impossible to change her mind. How stubborn she was.

Could this at least be used as an opportunity to talk? He was wondering and debating with himself.

“I think that’s the best thing to do.” Raven replied. “Sorry, your thoughts were too loud and all over your face.” She pointed out with a teasing smile, trying to lighten the mood.

Damian got flustered when he heard her say that. She caught him off guard. “Well. I mean-” He cleared his throat unsure of what else to say. 

He had faced life and death situations before, but nothing had made him as terrified as this situation was.

Raven placed her hand on top of one of Damian’s that was placed on his tight, fidgeting from nervousness. “We’re just talking. We’ll be okay.”

That reassurance was more directed towards herself than to him. Nonetheless, it helped and Damian nodded and gently squeezed her hand with a smile, more confident than before.

“I’m sorry I did not tell you anything before. I was afraid of losing this.” He looked embarrassed and full of guilt. 

Raven frowned. “What do you mean?” She pondered, wanting to understand better.

“I-” He silenced himself trying to find the right words and getting them out. “I know I was not a good person. Why would someone who had been trained as an assassin would be?”

“Damian…” She called with heaviness in her heart.

Damian looked at her. “I know what you are about to say. I am a good person, I have a big heart, I care for others and so on. That is what I was afraid to lose.” He paused with sorrow in his eyes. “I know I was not a good person, but even if Richard, father, everyone else told me the contrary, I never really felt it to be the truth until I met you.”

Raven felt her heart wanting to come out of her chest. She felt honored that Damian thought so highly of her opinion but never would want him to believe those other things about him ever again. She ached for it.

“When I met you.” He continued. “I saw a girl full of mysteries that never in a million years I would have imagined would be the one person I would trust to tell me who I am when even I couldn’t believe in myself.”

He turned his whole body towards Raven. “You got into my head that day I got hurt because of Reyes bug armor, and saw all of the worst parts of me and my past. And instead of running away you told me I was a kind hearted person. You became someone so important to me, someone that couldn’t care less for the flaws and scars I carried with me that I was terrified of losing that. You.”

Raven placed the other hand Damian was not holding on his cheek and started caressing it. She kept analyzing Damian’s eyes, seeing the burden he had carried with his secret. Hurting was the last thing she ever wanted him to feel.

“Even if I didn’t have any feelings for you. You could have never lost me. Ever.” A light and comforting smile appeared on her face. “I appreciate you too much to let you go just for that. Or do you think you would be able to get rid of me so easily?”

Her joke put a smile on his face. “Of course not. You’re too stubborn for that.” He joked back.

Raven acted offended and gently pushed away his face with the hand she had on his cheek, making them both laugh.

“Maybe I am. Just for the things I consider of value.” She replied. “But so are you.”

He chuckled, amused. “I am, only for the few things that are truly worth it.” He placed his hand on top of the one Raven had on his cheek and took a deep breath, fixating his eyes on hers. “Like you.”

The moonlight that was entering through the bedroom window bathed Raven’s eyes with such a particular glow one could’ve thought she had sapphires shining inside her eyes.

He moved his hand from the top of Raven’s hand to her hair, combing it and twirling a few strands that stood out on the sides. The texture was soft, like touching the petal of a flower and probably smelled as good too.

Raven felt chills all throughout her body when Damian’s fingers started twirling her hair. He looked so in love when looking at her, that she was wondering if he had been looking at her like that the whole time and was just now realizing it or if he was just too good at hiding his true feelings.

“Raven.” He called almost in a mutter, snapping her out of her thoughts.

“Mmmh?” She responded unsure of what he was about to say. She was not paying too much attention.

Damian placed a few strands of hair behind her ears, not losing focus of her eyes as he leaned closer to her. “I cannot delay this any longer.”

Raven was confused by these words for a second right before Damian closed his eyes, and while holding her chin with his hand, he got her closer to him until they were able to seal both of their lips in a gentle and soft kiss.

She felt a tiny amount of strain he used so she would lean closer as well. But once her lips touched Damian’s, she sighed softly and followed along. Soon after, the strain quickly relaxed.

A turmoil inside of her spread quickly as chills and adrenaline ran through her body.

Damian’s lips were a taste she had always wanted to try. They were bittersweet, kind of like a cup of tea that was prepared to perfection with just the right temperature and the right amount of sugar. 

Raven’s were an addicting taste to him, like nothing he had ever encountered before. The softness of her lips kept him in a state of trance and mesmerized sentiment.

He was being very gentle in every move his lips made on hers. 

The time seemed to have paused as they were enjoying the taste of the other.

Her cheeks were flustered and her heart was starting to pump faster and faster.

Damian moved the hand that he had on Raven’s chin and placed it behind her neck, pulling her even closer as the kiss deepened.

Raven gasped softly, letting out a little moan by the surprise that Damian’s action caused on her. She took her right hand and placed it on Damian’s hair, behind his head, wrapping her fingers with it and pulling it slightly.

Damian groaned as a response without breaking the kiss. On the contrary, with his other hand, he wrapped her around the waist firmly so she wouldn’t be able to break the kiss either.

They were both immersed and lost in the connection they were sharing.

The room was spinning around and heating up with every second that passed by.

They wanted more. Until…

“I swear to god I will break your jaw if you don’t quit it!”

A familiar feminine voice was heard outside the door of Raven’s room. Stephanie’s.

This made Damian open his eyes and break the kiss abruptly, taking distance from Raven as they were both panting, trying to catch their breath from such an adrenaline rush.

Their cheeks still flustered. Raven’s usual pale skin was now a total shade of red while Damian’s tanned skin was not able to hide the obvious pink he had on.

They were both still trying to process what had just happened, unable to take their eyes off each other. No words coming out of them.

“I just want a quick look and I’ll be on my way!”

This time a male voice was the one that made an appearance. Jason’s.

Damian frowned as soon as he heard that voice outside of Raven’s room. He must have found out and Steph was trying to keep him out of it. 

He was furious.

“Are those…?” Raven asked when he saw Damian’s mood change.

Damian sighed. “Unfortunately, they are.” He got up from the bed and before anything else happened, he took Raven’s hand on his and got it closer to him, placing a soft kiss on her knuckles like a true gentleman. “I know we have much else to talk about, but first, I have to go and kill my brother.”

“Okay?” Raven replied with a little giggle while blushing. “But, you are not actually going to kill him, right?” She asked, now not so sure.

Damian simply smirked. “I’ll be back.” He turned around to leave the room and before opening the door he turned to her one last time. “It was more than I ever imagined it could possibly be.”

Raven knew he was referring to the kiss. She felt the same way, but the nerves made her only shrug and face down.

Damian walked out of the room, encountering one subdued Jason with his face to the floor with Stephanie twisting his arm behind his back to keep him down. They both stopped squabbling when they saw Damian come out of the room.

“Oh this just got even more intriguing! He got out of her room in the middle of the nigh-Ouch!” Jason was teasing still on the floor but got quickly silenced by Stephanie twisting his arm even further, causing him to whimper.

Stephanie frowned. “Shut up already.” She looked up at Damian without letting go of Jason. “I tried to keep him out of it, I swear.”

Damian sighed and rolled his eyes. “I know you were, Brown.” He looked down at Jason. “You’re losing your touch, Todd.”

“Once little Steph lets me go, you’ll see if I’m losing it, little demon.” He answered with his mouth partially muzzled by Steph’s boot.

“Jesus, you’re such a pain in the ass.” Steph intervened. “Are you okay, Damian? You look a little…” She noticed sweat and fluster on Damian’s face and giggled when she realized what that was all about. "Oh!"

Jason giggled as well, very teasingly.

Damian closed his eyes and crossed his arms. “Look. She needs to rest, so either you kindly go away for the night or I will drag you unconscious to the batcave’s confinement chambers. Your choice.”

Steph let go of Jason now that Damian had threatened him. She knew he wouldn’t risk picking a fight inside the manor with Bruce still around.

Jason got up twisting his arm around without taking his eyes off of Damian. “Mmmh.” He took a quick look at the door behind Damian. He looked way too serious and more murdery than usual. “I guess his heart truly grew three sizes today.”

He grinned before taking a step back, knowing that his comment was more than enough to make Damian furious. Steph simply rolled her eyes. “Just go, or I’ll encourage him to break a few bones I wouldn’t.”

Jason put his hands in the air while walking back with a smirk, crossing the hallway until he was nowhere to be seen.

“How did he find out?” Damian immediately asked as soon as Jason was out of the picture.

Steph sighed and crossed her arms. “You’re welcome?”

He pinched the arch of his nose and took a deep breath. “Thank you, Brown. How did he find out?” 

“Much better.” She smiled. “He was suspicious that Bruce hadn’t been complaining of his ‘anti-hero’ ways for two days in a row. He came to the manor and overheard Bruce talking to Constantine and the super pretty and way out of her league girl Zatanna about what had happened and I just so happened to be around when he was heading this way.”

“Convenient.” Damian replied with sarcasm.

“Right?” Steph didn’t care. “So, did you use protection? Please tell me that Bruce gave you the talk already.” She placed her hands together as she was begging. Steph came to the conclusion he was leaving Raven's room for more than just a kiss.

Damian got enraged and glared at her. “This is definitely something I certainly would not and shall not discuss with you! Go to bed, Brown. Now!”

He pointed in the direction Stephanie’s room was, trying to stay in control of his embarrassment that emerged from that comment.

“I’m going!” She replied before walking away. “But remember, when going into battle, wear a helmet!” She yelled the last part, obviously alluding to the use of a condom, and ran before Damian could even attempt to kill her.

Damian wanted to disappear from the face of the earth knowing that Raven must definitely have heard that. He walked back to Raven’s door and knocked slightly.

She opened the door with her powers and let him in again. She was already lying down on the bed with her head on the pillow. Her eyes opened slightly, finding Damian’s when he approached the bed and kneeled beside her.

“I am sorry, I should have known you would be resting now.” He caressed her hair trying to relax her.

Raven closed her eyes, enjoying Damian’s touch. “It’s fine. If I must confess, I rest a lot better when I know you’re around.” She sounded sleepy, not fully conscious of her words. She yawned.

Damian blushed and smiled, admiring her. “I will stay a little longer if that is the case.” He leaned closer and kissed Raven’s forehead gently. He saw how she was already more asleep than she was awake and got closer to her ear in order to whisper something. “Do not worry, I am here for you, habibti.”

Without stopping his touch on her hair, he got up and took a blanket, tucking her in it while he softly mumbled an Arabic lullaby. 

He stayed there, watching over her until he was completely sure she had fallen in a deep sleep.

-

The strength she was using was taking a toll on her. She was making her best effort to keep the energy flowing and stop the inevitable from happening.

The screams that came out of her were piercing for Damian, who kept mouthing something but Raven couldn’t quite make anything out of it given the distance that was between them. She was too focused on the pain and on her spell. On her destiny.

“It is no use. The time has come.” The voice of Trigon was heard like an echo inside her head.

Raven growled while her magic was starting to lose momentum and she felt like she was about to lose it all. “I don’t care. I will not let you destroy this world.”

She had her eyes closed, trying to concentrate her magic as best as she could.

“Look around, child. Your world is already gone.” His demonic voice muttered inside her, snapping her eyes open and finding the same image she had been encountering for months.

The whole world had been decimated. The sky was a burning red. Hundreds of thousands of bodies that were laying around. Not a single sign of life left to be seen.

She fell to her knees, defeated. “How?”

“You cannot stop destiny. It is what you have yet to comprehend, daughter of mine.” Trigon grinned while he walked away and took a seat in a throne formed with destroyed buildings and debris. “You are destined to be my portal, my greatest strength, that’s what you were bred for. To be alone for eternity and be a tool for destruction. Be proud of your great destiny.”

She was sobbing, clenching her fists on the ground and squeezing the dirt underneath her. Anger flooding through her “No. I will not be used for that, father.”

Raven looked up towards her father’s throne with determination with her eyes full of energy. 

Her characteristic blue clothing started glowing and became brighter and brighter until her shadow self became a white, blinding light that Trigon had to conceal himself from.

-

She woke up alarmed after seeing that last image in her dream. Trigon was… frightened?

Or so it seemed.

After a few moments of analyzing the images she saw in her dream, trying to not forget the details this time, she noticed she had been levitating this whole time. Her powers must have been triggered while asleep.

“At least I didn’t blow up a hole in the manor.” She muttered to herself before lowering herself down to the bed.

She conjured her journal and wrote the details of what she saw in her dream and closed the journal once she had finished writing.

Raven was wondering how she could bring this up with Damian. After all, she hadn’t been able to tell him about the time manipulation and jumping yet. That was going to be a hard one.

She got out of bed and headed to the bathroom to take a shower. She felt dirty after spending so much time inside her own mind and the dream made her want to wash everything away.

When the water started to wash away everything that had her worried, the moment Damian’s lips touched hers appeared in her mind, sending an electric feeling throughout her whole body.

She placed two fingers on top of her lips trying to remember the feeling and smiled, closing her eyes when the warmness and gentleness he used made itself present as if she was feeling it again.

A fluster invaded her as she felt a knot form in the lower part of her stomach and as soon as she noticed that she quickly dismissed it. That was not something she could focus on right now. There were bigger fish to catch yet.

After getting out of the shower she got dressed and stepped shyly out of the room, unsure of walking those hallways now that she knew Damian’s family was going to question her or god knows what.

Before she could step out, she noticed a post-it glued to the floor. It had Damian’s handwriting.

 

Hopefully when you see this, you will be well rested.

End of this hallway, one turn to the left, two to the right.

You’ll find a red wooden door with a golden handle.

Enjoy.

-D

 

“Enjoy?” She smiled, curious to know what Damian meant by it.

As instructed, she walked through the hallway taking the necessary turns until she find the door Damian described. 

She opened it up slowly and found herself greeted with a warm welcome by a familiar face.

“Titus! You’re so big now.” She started petting him behind the ears to which Titus barked back with excitement.

Once she was done addressing the Great Dane, she noticed the smell of food in the room. Her gaze turned to examine where she was and what was in there.

The room looked like it was used as a study. It had a big library, but also art supplies such as pencils, notebooks, canvases, brushes, etc.

The interesting part was something that didn’t feel like it belonged there: a table in the middle of the room arranged as a mini breakfast buffet with a variety of food choices for her to eat from.

“That’s what he meant by ‘enjoy’, huh Titus?” She joked with the dog. He barked as a response before taking a seat next to one of the chairs that was next to a canvas. He looked used to the spot, probably Damian sat there a lot.

Raven wondered how much time Damian must have spent there if Titus was so used to it. She smiled while theorizing about it and started to serve herself some of the food to taste it all.

Definitely looked and smelled like it had been cooked by Alfred. The taste merely confirmed this.

After she was done eating, she grabbed some of the food that she couldn’t eat and kneeled next to Titus, feeding him some of it.

“If you tell Damian about this I will not do it again.” She threatened, to which Titus ignored and continued to eat.

When Titus was more concentrated on his food than on her, she started to go around the study, seeing what books they had in there and looking for something that, if she was gonna stay in the manor a few more days, she might as well have a good book at her disposal.

She found a book with an interesting title while browsing the shelves and tried to get it out when a little sketchbook that was hidden next to it fell to the floor and a bunch of sketches spread all over.

A sighed of frustration got out of her when she kneeled to pick everything up until she noticed the little signature on each sketch. It was Damian’s. These were made by him.

“Titus, did you know he could draw?” She asked with a smile while sitting herself on the floor to take a good look at each sketch.

Some were minor sketches like just a cup of tea, a flower, a chandelier from the manor.

Some others were more elaborate like the gargoyles from Gotham’s buildings, or a portrait of Dick smiling, Titus fetching a ball and… 

“Me?” Raven muttered to herself. 

There was a sketch of her holding Titus as a puppy. The details of her eyes were so beautiful she could have almost missed it if it wasn’t for her gem and that she knew that moment from memory.

“I see you find something that is, let’s say, a hobby of mine.” Damian was standing next to Titus. He had a black turtleneck sweater on while he petted his dog on the head, firmly.

“Just a hobby? Damian, this is pure talent.” She mentioned with her eyes fixated on the images from the sketches. “How come I never knew about this?”

Damian shrugged when she asked that, embarrassed by his answer. “As great as art is for my mental development, it is not something I like to share.”

Raven could feel what Damian felt at that moment. “You’re afraid they will think you are not good at this.” She got up from the floor and walked over to him.

“Nonsense. I could care less about what my family thinks. I am better than them all.” He dismissed.

Raven crossed her arms. “Is that so? Or is it not that this is something you truly appreciate, not as a skill, but as a passion, and that’s what frightens you?”

Damian pouted and looked away. “Are you reading my mind?”

“Didn’t need to. But I guess that confirms it.” A little giggle escaped her trying to lighten the mood.

He looked at her out of the corner of his eye and smiled when he saw her giggle. “Perhaps you are somewhat correct. I prefer my family seeing me like they do. No real hobbies, or like you called ‘passions’.”

“I’m not pushing it, Damian. But even if you decide to not tell them, at least know that I think you have a beautiful talent.” She placed her hand on Damian's cheek and got close to place a kiss on the other.

Damian cleared his throat feeling the blush paint his cheeks and decided to change the subject. “I saw that you two ate. I’m glad.”

Raven pursed her lips knowing she had been caught. “How did you know?”

“Titus was salivating when I entered the room and lowered his ears indicating submission. He wanted more.” He arched an eyebrow as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Raven turned to Titus. “Traitor.” Titus simply whined and got down on the floor.

“Well, I came to take you to the cave if that is something you are ready for. If not, we can wait here or take a walk in the gardens.” Damian took the sketches from Raven’s hand and organized them inside the sketchbook before handing it back to her alongside the book she was trying to reach for.

Raven took both without questioning his reasons. “Walking or doing anything else would be delaying the inevitable. Let’s just go now.”

Damian nodded. “As you wish. Follow me.”

He placed one hand on Raven's back, gently. He started guiding her through the manor. Some hallways she didn’t see the previous days. It was like a whole different house.

“We are taking alternate routes to avoid my siblings.” He explained when he noticed the confusion on her face.

In a matter of minutes, they got to the cave.

Damian got in first, opening the way for Raven and then following her closely until they reached the batcomputer.

Bruce was close by, working up some improvements to the batmobile engine when they both entered the cave. As soon as he caught glance of them he stopped what he was doing and grabbed a towel to clean off the oil on his hands.

He noticed a change in the whole of the body language from both Damian and Raven. They were acting differently, but he knew better than to intrude.

“How was Alfred’s food? Hopefully it made you feel better.” Bruce tried to be warm towards her but Damian decided to intervene since he didn’t know how he felt with that.

“She ate almost all of it.” He stated.

Raven was caught off guard and simply decided to add to what he said. “It was great, Mr. Wayne. Thank you.”

“I never get used to getting called Mr. Wayne. That’s what they used to call my father, so you can call me Bruce if you feel like it.” Bruce was still trying to be polite despite his son’s attitude.

Raven nodded, unsure of calling him that and looked at Damian. “So, I’m assuming you didn't bring me here to talk about Alfred’s food.”

Damian and Bruce shared a quick look, as if they had discussed something she didn’t know yet. This only worried Raven further.

“When I was inside your mind, I had a moment of, let us say, enlightenment.” Damian began, clicking the keyboard on the computer pulling little fragments and sentences of what the prophecy said, occupying most of the screen.

Only the non-repetitive parts of the prophecy appeared there, but some of the original words had been crossed out and replaced with others, underlined, or otherwise had notes.

 

What you have concealed , you shall become.

You have no other choice .

Your destiny* will be fulfilled.

The portal* must be opened.

 

Skies will burn. Flesh will become stone.

The sun will set on your world* . Never to rise again.

 

Time won’t wait forever.

You can’t run away from who you are .

 

The gem crystal* was born of evil’s fire*,

The gem crystal shall be his portal.

He* comes to claim. 

He comes to sire the end* of 

all things mortal.

 

Raven was appalled by all of the words, the way each had been pointed out to have a certain meaning or question. She was still trying to pinpoint everything she was reading.

“What’s all this?” She finally asked after not being able to fully grasp what she was seeing.

Damian stood next to her and started pointing out each type of word. “The ones that have been underlined, their meaning remains a mystery, we need more information or more clues to figure out what the prophecy means with them. On the other hand, the ones that are in bold are the ones we already have a meaning for. Each of those has their meaning pointed out with an index on top. You can know each meaning by clicking on them.”

“And the ones that are strikethrough?” She pondered when he didn’t give an explanation for those.

Damian looked up to those and stayed silent for a couple of seconds. “They don’t hold any meaning for the sake of this mission or for me.”

She understood what he meant when re-reading the words. In a way, he didn’t want to believe she was only her destiny and nothing else.

Raven decided to move on and clicked on a familiar word, one she already knew the meaning of. A feminine artificial voice started talking.

“Portal. In reference to Rachel Roth a.k.a. Raven. An ability to serve as an inter-dimensional portal. She is a half-human, half-demon breed. Direct descendant of the demon Trigon and the human Arella Roth. Other abilities include empathy, healing, telepathy, telekinesis, sorcery, dark magic and martial arts. Teen Titans member. Status: active.”

Raven sighed before looking at Damian. “Not sure about how I feel that your computer knows too many details about me.”

“I would never use any of this information with an altern motive.” He replied to reassure her.

She turned back to the screen and her eye caught sight of one of the meanings. She clicked on it full of curiosity. The artificial voice made another appearance.

“Sun will set on your world. In reference to a natural phenomenon called ‘total solar eclipse’ that happens cyclically where the moon, directly between the Sun and Earth, casts a shadow on our planet, preventing any sunlight from reaching us and leading to a period of darkness. Total solar eclipses have an average of recurrence every eighteen months in any part of the world but an average of recurrence every three hundred and seventy five years on a specific location on the planet’s surface.”

Raven’s eyes widened. “Solar eclipse?” She turned to Damian. “What does it mean, why do you think it’s a solar eclipse? What’s going on?”

Damian hoped she wouldn’t press that one specifically, but now he needed to clarify things with her. “Everything has an explanation, but take a seat. Please.”

He begged, worried about her wellbeing. She did, without being totally sure of it. Damian proceeded while Bruce crossed his arms, still staying close by in case he was needed.

“At first I thought the prophecy only meant to be an analogy. An indication that our world is doomed to be destroyed and never recover. But-” He paused. “Then I remembered what you had told me about your dreams, our visits to the ruins of Azarath. It all made sense. The skies in Azarath never saw the sun again, and you described the sky in your dream to look a red color. When the sky is fully covered by the moon, the aura it exudes shows different shades of orange, red and black. I concluded that the prophecy is bound to happen during a total solar eclipse.”

Everything he explained, he tried to remain as neutral as possible. But the fear in Raven’s eyes was making it an impossible task.

“When? The voice said it’s cyclical. So, when is it going to happen?” She asked a bit harshly. Fear started to invade her. “When am I destined to destroy you all?”

Damian looked at Bruce who had been the one that briefed him that intel about eclipses and when the next one was going to happen. Bruce nodded when he saw his son look at him. He knew his son had to let her know everything or else nobody would be able to truly help.

“Three weeks.” Damian replied. "Next total solar eclipse is meant to happen on October 27th, and it cannot be a coincidence that date is your-"

"Birthday." She muttered.

Notes:

Hi guys! I'm sorry the update took so long, I caught covid and all the symptoms wouldn't allow me to even touch my phone for days.
I'm still recovering but at least I finally finished this chapter!

Hopefully Damirae's first kiss was worth the wait!

What are we expecting for next chapter? Any thoughts?

Chapter 16

“Raven… Where are you?” A playful female voice could be heard in the distance, searching for her. 

Some giggles escaped from a very young Raven, no more than five years old, while she tried to remain hidden behind some bushes in the vast gardens of Azarath.

She felt two large hands grab her by the waist and pick her up from the ground, making her squeal of surprise.

“Found you.” The woman said with a calmed smile. “Why were you trying to hide, daughter of mine?”

Raven was revolting all over the woman’s arms, trying to get off her. Her giggles turned into a saddened expression. “Mother, please. I don’t understand why we have to do this.”

Arella finally sighed and lowered Raven to the ground, kneeling in front of her. “It’s an earth tradition. I want you to know my traditions, your background.”

She was trying to catch Raven’s gaze, but Raven kept looking away. “It just… doesn’t feel right. I don’t like it. I hate it.” Raven finally looked at Arella, her eyes could transmit her despair. “Can’t we just skip the day altogether?” She begged.

“Raven…” Arella was in pain because she knew her daughter could feel something was wrong with just her gut. “It’s your birthday, and it’s not like just because we wish for it the day is simply going to be skipped. Doesn’t work that way. Besides, it’s meant to be a happy day, you were born and for me that is a true celebration.”

Raven was pouting, unsure of it. “But why doesn’t it feel right? What’s wrong with me?”

Her mother suspected this could be the result of her other, non-human, half. “There’s nothing wrong with you.”

“The elders say there is! I can hear their minds, I know what they say about me, stop lying!” She yelled and the bushes around her withered in an instant, affected by the powers Raven’s emotions exuded.

Arella gasped when she saw her raw power do that. “Raven, stop it. The elders don’t know what they’re saying.” She knew she had to tell her about her father, but didn’t know how.

“I said stop lying!” Raven’s demonic voice and four red eyes made an appearance with all of the rage she was feeling inside. Once she felt her demon come out she immediately snapped out of it and looked to her own hands, frightened. “Wha- What’s wrong with me?” Tears started to stream down her face.

Her mother embraced her in a hug, still in shock to see the resemblance of her daughter to her father. She gulped and sighed. The moment she feared had arrived. “It’s time I tell you who your father is…”

-

Not a single tear had formed after learning when the prophecy was meant to happen. She had a dead look in her eyes.

Damian was unsure if she was trying to still process what had just been said or if she had completely shut down her emotions. Either way, it was painful to see her that way. 

He had given her space to process it, going with Bruce closer to the Batmobile until he was required by her.

Bruce continued to work on the Batmobile’s engine with assistance from Damian to finish with the task at hand. Damian simply was passing him the tools he needed without taking his eyes off of Raven.

“You gotta talk to her, Damian.” Bruce spoke softly, wiping some of the sweat that was dripping on his forehead. “Time is running out every passing second.”

Damian wouldn’t look at his father. “I know that better than anyone, father.” He replied harshly. “I am still unbiased, but she needs space to process this.”

“She will.” Bruce replied. “But for that, she needs your help.” Bruce's gaze turned to Raven as well, she had barely moved.

Damian took a deep breath and walked over to her, leaning to where she was sat and placing his hand on her shoulder. 

Raven got out of her memory, remembering the day she learned who her father was. She looked up to Damian who had a worried look on his face.

“I’m fine, I was just-” Raven began.

“You do not have to justify anything at all.” He interrupted. “And even if you are fine, I will always worry for your well being. That is non-negotiable.”

Raven tried to smile, but she was too shocked to do so. “I was remembering the day I learned who my father was. Did you know it was on my birthday?”

She lowered her gaze again. Damian kneeled in front of her in an effort to hold a conversation with her. “I was not aware of that.”

She scoffed. “Yeah, well, it was also the first time my demon side came out.” Her voice carried embarrassment. “My mother saw me, and she was horrified, even if she never admitted it, I saw her face. That’s when she decided to tell me who my father was. I have never celebrated it, you know, my birthday. I’ve never considered it an occasion worthy of celebration.”

Trying to not be saddened by the way that memory still affected her, Damian held both of her hands in his. “I do. Celebrating the day your life began is not even enough to express how much I am grateful you are here, and that I got lucky enough to meet you. However, I would never force you to remember a date you do not feel fond about.”

Raven felt tears form in her eyes. She bit her trembling lip. “It is now also the date everything else is supposed to end.”

“It may be. But something I know for certain is that you and I are too stubborn to let a witless prophecy determine that.” Damian said confidently while gently squeezing her hands to show his support.

She shook her head and closed her eyes before letting go of Damian’s hands and leaning over to hug him around the neck and whisper into his ear. “Your stubbornness is more than enough for that.” Raven joked to let him know she was better.

He wrapped her around the waist and started to give gentle pats on her back with a smile Bruce could see from the other side of the room. “Glad we are on the same page.”

They stayed like that for a couple of minutes. Damian was waiting for her to break the hug until she was ready to do so. A quick sigh and final tight squeeze and she started to pull back. 

“Okay, I am ready now.” She got up. 

“For what?” Damian asked confused, while getting up as well. 

“To tell you about some things that I also discovered while inside my mind.” Raven looked at him, she looked tired, unsure of the words she wanted to choose to explain what she had unfolded while in the chamber of time.

Damian got unsettled when he heard this. The ambiguity of her words mixed with her tiresome resulted in a feeling he needed to shake by getting the explanation of what she meant. “Regardless of what it is, you can trust me.”

A tiny twinkle sparked in her eyes when he reassured her. A sigh followed by fidgeting with her fingers while the words began to flow out of her mouth. “I believe Brave mentioned the chamber of time to you and Constantine, right?” He nodded. “When I was young, I was told by the elders of Azarath that the chamber was a way to connect with one’s lifetime milestones but that it was forbidden to explore it.”

“Did the elders care to explain the reason it was forbidden?” Damian pondered, folding his arms across his chest to pay more attention to her.

“They didn’t, but to a naive and impressionable girl like I was, I just always accepted it as the way it was supposed to be. Never attempted to enter the chamber.” Raven felt foolish to have never questioned such an important part of her own mind.

“Until now.” Damian added to her statement.

“Yes.” She replied, thankful that he didn’t judge her for her foolishness. “I thought that what the elders meant by milestones was simply up until the present-”

He interrupted. “But you could see even beyond that.” He stated more than asked.

She frowned. “How did you know that?”

“Brave and Constantine gave me a rundown about it.” He clarified. “Please, do proceed.”

Raven nodded, now it was easier to continue. “Before the demons came bursting through the front door and all. Knowledge explained to me the true purpose of the chamber to someone like me.”

“Like you?” Damian’s expression was a mix of confusion and intrigue.

“Not only a magic user but, just like my father, an interdimensional demon.” She answered. “I could see beyond. The future of something that it’s obviously already predestined for me.” Raven took a deep breath before speaking again. “The thing is… when I tried to see what the future held for me it was something I had already seen before.”

Damian pursed his lips. “You had? Where?”

“In my dreams. Or should I say nightmares.” She replied before letting out a laugh of disbelief that Damian didn’t understand the reason for. “Not nightmares either. The future is the accurate term.”

Raven was laughing softly. It was the irony and a slight coping mechanism to go on.

“So you had a vision of the future in your nightmares. I guess it’s mostly an expected conclusion.” He tried to make her know that he understood.

“Damian, you’re not understanding.” Her laughs stopped and he looked at her with concern.

“I apologize if I’m not. Please, explain it to me.” His hand tried to reach one of hers but she backed away instinctively.

“I-“ She shut her eyes closed. “It was not a vision, Damian.” A faint pause was made as she opened her eyes. “I was not seeing the future. I was in the future.” Damian’s eyes widened as he heard those words, he was in disbelief. 

“Wait. You-“

“I manipulated, warped and traveled in time. Yes.” She answered before he could ask. “I was not dreaming. I was not having a vision. I was in the future, seeing exactly what will happen and interacting with a future version of my father inside a future version of my body.”

Damian was the one that was speechless now. A lot of thoughts going through his mind. 

Raven’s powers were feeling the hurricane of emotions that were tearing down his logical thinking at the moment. One emotion was sticking out even more than the rest. 

Fear.

She couldn’t quite point out where the emotion was coming from. What thought made him feel that way. Still, she knew she needed to be there for him just like he was there for her.

“I won’t let anything happen to you.” She whispered, taking Damian’s face in both of her hands.

Damian gasped and grabbed her hands. “It is not me I am afraid something is going to happen to. I cannot stand the thought of your sadness.”

This made Raven smile with the same sadness Damian was trying to avoid. But she was happy to hear that nonetheless. “Careful, that almost sounds romantic.”

It was an innocent joke that lightened the mood just about enough so he would regain his composure.

“There is something else. A couple of things actually.” She added once that Damian seemed to be ready, backing away from touching him to continue with her explanation. He nodded firmly allowing her to go on. “When the demons had me captured, something slipped out of them and last night I had a dream. I think those two things might have a connection and I think it’s something that might be able to help us.”

Once again, Damian had been completely invested in the explanation. He put his index finger on top of his lips, silencing himself so she could speak furthermore.

“The demons mentioned that they wanted to blackmail my father because he was in a vulnerable position. At first I thought they meant he was trapped and could not physically access any dimension, but one of the demons said that my magic not only has been keeping him hostage, it has also been weakening him. Me along the way, but weakening him regardless.” 

Damian had been stoic while listening to every single word. It made sense. Her constant tiredness, her weight loss, her eye bags. All of it. It was her own magic against her.

“You said you had a dream.” He mentioned to finish with her intel before asking any questions.

A slow nod confirmed his statement. “Last night. I am unsure if once again I warped time, but I do know I saw something new. A weakness. In my father.”

“A weakness? How can you tell?” He inquired, arching an eyebrow.

She grinned. “He was frightened, because of something I did.” She paused. “Let me show you.”

Raven took a few steps closer towards him and held two of her fingers on his temples. They both closed her eyes and she started to use their bond to transmit the images of the dream she had the night before, fast forwarding the part where a muted Damian is yelling at her and stopping right at the moment she is on her knees.

Damian was glowering while the image of her sobbing on the floor appeared inside his head. The pain that could also be felt was making him angry but he set that aside and focused on what she wanted to show him.

“There.” 

She pointed out at the exact moment she started to feel anger and confidence. Her aura faintly glowing at the beginning but the glow suddenly increasing, blinding Damian.

“My father. Watch my father.” She mentioned when the image of her clothes were starting to turn white and her powers felt stronger.

With the bond, Damian was able to feel the rush Raven felt inside of her when the shift happened but, as instructed, he focused on the image of Trigon. At first he only looked blinded by the light, but upon further inspection he looked frightened because he looked hurt.

The image dissipated and Damian snapped his eyes open at the same time that Raven did, they found each other’s gaze.

“You were hurting him.” Damian affirmed, examining her sapphire eyes.

“Yes.”

“Your powers, they got stronger. Nothing compared to any level you have showcased before.” Again, an affirmation. This time however, it sounded like he wanted to ask how she did it but knew she wouldn’t have the answer.

Raven lowered her gaze to her pale, trembling hands. “Any magic user has the ability to reach a peak. For some it takes years. Others simply cheat their way into it with dark magic, but raw power doesn’t equal knowledge to use it. Either way, I’ve got three weeks. It’s useless.”

She looked away, guilt building up in her alongside a handful of embarrassment.

“It is with that attitude.”

A male voice that came from across the room made both Damian and Raven turn their heads in that direction. Dick was standing next to Bruce. His characteristic and always positive smile was on his face.

“Grayson.” Damian greeted, a mix of surprise and anger. He turned to Bruce who had promised him to not involve more people until he instructed him so. “Father?” He asked Bruce, expecting an explanation.

Raven shyness was starting to show more. She decided to hide herself behind Damian, almost wishing she would disappear.

Dick stepped in before Bruce could talk. “Damian, before you rightfully blame Bruce.” Bruce glared at Dick. “Just know that I too am a detective. Babs told me you were here, willingly. I obviously found that odd, so after a few calls here and there I got the hang of what was going on, Bruce merely confirmed it and after that I came straight here.”

Bruce remained without expression while Dick talked. Damian simply wanted Raven to feel safe and comfortable, but in a way, he also wanted to confide in Dick.

“It’s no use hiding the problem anymore, Damian. We need all the help we can get.” Raven spoke softly from behind him. Damian turned to her. “ I need all the help I can get.”

Damian examined her for a few seconds, making sure she was saying the truth and not something she was forced to say because of the situation at hand. He nodded when he noticed the determination in Raven’s eyes. “If that is what you desire, we will do so.”

“Smooth.” Dick mumbled to Bruce with a hint of pride. Bruce was not amused by Dick’s comment.

Bruce stepped forward. “Damian.” He called. “What’s the next course of action?” For a moment, Damian thought his father would try to take the situation into his own hands, but felt a pleasant surprise that he trusted him with this.

Damian stood there for a few seconds, his right hand to his chin while he pondered on the answer. Raven was the most eager of them all to know what he thought.

A sigh left him when he came to his conclusion. “We need to know more about what you saw. The capabilities of your magic and how you can get there.”

Raven pinched the arch of her nose. “Not him again…”

Bruce growled in annoyance while Dick looked desperately in every direction hoping he would get an answer of what they meant.

-

“Can’t get enough of me, can’t we people? Cheers to that!” A drunken and joyful Constantine hugged Bruce over the shoulders before sipping from his bottle of whiskey.

Without really moving or speaking in a loud voice, Bruce decided to issue a warning for the Brit. “You’ve got three seconds.”

“I’m not gonna lie. When I saw your faces I expected way worse. I’ve read his file but he doesn’t seem so bad, just drunk.” Dick was standing next to Damian and Raven, being careful with his words so Constantine wouldn’t be able to hear him.

Bruce was still dealing with the lot of the drunken Constantine, refraining himself from doing something to him that would possibly incapacitate him.

Raven turned to Damian and whispered to his ear. “Should we tell him?” Referring to Dick.

“Let my brother find out the hard way. I think we could use the amusement right now.” He joked while whispering and Raven smiled slightly, trying to hold back a chuckle.

From the entrance to the batcave that came from the manor, the figure of a tall, tanned redhead made an appearance while flying down the stairs. She knew like she knew her way around the place already.

Raven was the first one to catch a glance of her. “Kory?” She asked with a bit of emotion and relief. After all, Kory had always looked after her since they met. Kory was already waving back after that.

When Raven called out her name, all of the guys turned to where she was looking at. Dick’s face was soft and smitten. Damian rolled his eyes, of course Dick wouldn’t travel all this way without bringing her along. Bruce, as always, remained without expression. Constantine on the other hand.

“My, my, my…” He began while running his fingers through his own hair. “Hello, love. I’m Constantine. Let me guess… Almeracian?” It was almost as if he had been sober all of a sudden, flirting in the most natural way.

Kory was unsure of who he was but decided to answer his question. “Tamaranian.”

“Even better!” He took Kory’s hand and placed a kiss on her knuckles. “A complete pleasure.”

Dick’s soft expression changed the minute he heard Constantine call her “love”. He was beside Kory in a rush with a frown and glaring at Constantine ready to kill him if necessary. “Back up, you cheap dyed blond. She’s mine!” 

“First of all, not that it bloody matters, but I’m natural!” He pointed at Dick, his face was filled with offense even if he didn’t want to show it. “Second of all, I don’t mind sharing, especially if you, pretty boy, are involved.” He winked at Dick.

Dick flustered immediately and started stuttering. “Well. I- I-” He was at a loss for words.

Kory found Dick cute like this, all stuttery and whatnot. Constantine was biting his lower lip while examining Dick’s expression. He knew what he had done and was having fun with it.

“Can we get to the point?” An exasperated Bruce intervened from where he was standing.

Raven was holding in some giggling because of the scene unfolding before them. She simply approached Damian before letting them go on. “You were right.” He smiled, proud that he was able to make her smile despite everything that was going on. Her laugh was the most important thing in the world right now.

“Always so bitter, Batsy.” Constantine replied. “The least you could do is let me have some fun if you are not gonna pay me for my services.”

“You can have your fun once the world is no longer in danger.” Bruce replied, coldly.

Constantine rolled his eyes while the hiccups made an appearance. “The world is always in danger according to the lot of you.”

“Glad you find the end of the world amusing, John.” Damian intervened, stepping in front of his brother and father.

“End of the world?” Dick mouthed towards Bruce. Apparently he hadn’t been briefed all the way. Bruce ignored Dick since he knew Damian would want to be the one to tell him.

Raven sighed when she heard Damian intervene for her. Constantine was still behaving rudely with no regard for anything or anyone. “Isn’t the end of the world an average day for the League? Give me a break, mate.”

“The League can’t do anything about this. No one can.” Raven finally spoke out loud. “I am gonna bring the end of the world in three weeks and nobody can do anything about it.”

Dick and Kory looked at each other. They were worried and also astonished by these news. “Raven, what do you mean?” Kory was still trying to process what she had said, but she was more worried about Raven’s own well being.

There was something more than just pessimism in her words. There was acceptance of her own fate and Damian was not gonna have that. “As long as there is still time, we are gonna try everything we can to avoid that. You are not what they made you to be. You are not a destroyer.” He reassured her without caring what anyone in the room thought about it.

“Very touching, but what on earth do you kids mean three weeks?!” Constantine yelled with his arms up in the air. “I was gone for less than a bloody day, you wankers!”

“And yet, you managed to consume more alcohol in that day than what one can find inside a liquor store.” Damian replied while getting in his face and taking the bottle to throw it across the cave, smashing in on one of the walls.

Dick tried to step in but Bruce held his arm in front of him, stopping him from doing so. Not yet.

Constantine chuckled and sighed. “Fine, I thought you weren’t going to bother me in a bit so I wanted a drink and to trick some demons into giving me their prized possessions. Sue me.” He placed his hands inside the pockets of his trench coat not caring what Damian had to say.

Damian was glaring at him. The whole of his body and soul wanted to beat the crap out of him but he knew they needed him. No other magic user in the world had his knowledge, guts to cheat his way up the ladder and is respected for his work with the members of the Justice League.

“This couldn’t wait any longer. We need to find solutions, answers, and unfortunately you are the best option for this. Especially since you’ve been close to this case for a while now.” Damian felt a hand on his shoulder, he didn’t react since he knew it was Raven’s before she even got to touch him.

“Please, I need help.” Raven confessed while getting beside Damian. “I know that, not so deep down, you actually care about others fate. I’ve felt it.”

Constantine scoffed while looking away, a nervous laugh revealing she was right. “If what you say is true, what is it that I can do to stop the end of the world in three weeks?”

“You can’t.” Raven answered. “But I believe I can, I just need your assistance to train my own magic.”

Dick and Kory had been staying out of this conversation until that point. Kory had to intervene after learning that she had been through so much these past weeks. “What do you mean you can? I don’t doubt it, but I also don’t want you to take too much of a responsibility if is not necessary.” She sounded like a worried mother, and after all she had been taking care of Raven since they took her in the Titans years ago.

Raven turned to Kory. “I dreamt about it. I think there’s a part of me powerful enough to stop my father, once and for all. But I have no idea how to access it.”

“You had a dream about it?” Constantine sighed. “Are you serious, girlie? All of this because of a dream you had?”

“I know there’s more to it, you drunken mess.” She clapped back harshly to him. “I can feel it.” She turned to Kory almost as if she was begging to be believed.

Kory nodded letting her know she trusted her. Dick placed his hand on Kory’s back, patting her since he knew she felt awful for not being there for her before.

“I saw it. She showed it to me.” Damian added. “What she says is true, that is why I suggested contacting you.”

Constantine lowered down on the cockyness and rudeness. “Alright, what was it in this dream that makes you think you could overpower your own father?”

Raven hesitates to explain it since now all eyes are on her, but when Damian takes her hand to give her the confidence she needs, she starts explaining. “My dream showed my father already accomplishing everything he has been warning me for. I felt a deep rage inside of me, like nothing else could be lost. So, I felt my powers start to improve like crazy and this bright, white light started to grow inside me. And I just…” She paused. “I just started hurting him. I don’t know why or how, but I did.”

“A white light?” Constantine asked. “That is specifically vague, girlie.” He hummed while he thought more about it. “So, you want me to help you achieve this power in three weeks? That sounds like an awful lot of work and not enough time to even grasp the surface of it.”

“You’ll have to make it enough.” Damian intervened with a threatening look on his face.

“Damian.” Dick spoke when he saw that more than anger, his little brother was afraid and desperate. “Pressuring more won’t take us anywhere. We have to allow him to help anyway he can in the timeframe we’ve been given. We can’t control time after all.”

Raven had a moment of realization as soon as she heard Dick utter those words. As if the answer had been in front of her all along. “Actually…”

All the people that were in the room turned to look at her with curiosity. Damian had an idea of what she might say but was unsure of the exact thought that was running through her mind. “You have never been awake while doing so if what you told me is true.”

Constantine’s curiosity sparked. “Tell you what, birdie?”

Raven turned to Constantine. “What if there was a way to train for more than just three weeks? What if we had more time? Would you be able to help me?”

Damian’s worry only increased when he saw Raven’s desperation for an answer. Constantine chuckled. “In that hypothetical case, of course. Any surprises you want to tell us about?”

“I can manipulate time. I’m not sure how, but I’ve done it. I’ve been traveling to the future unconsciously.” She explained, still waiting for an actual answer from Constantine.

Kory looked completely baffled by that information. How could she miss this? Had she been really too distracted by other affairs?

Dick was holding her hand, trying to comfort her. This was way more complicated than he anticipated. And he also should’ve paid more attention to the situation, and to Damian.

“My, my.” Constantine was circling Raven after she explained. “Seems like you have even more potential than I anticipated.”

Bruce decided to intervene this time for his son. He was getting tired of Constantine’s games. “You have yet to answer the question, John.”

Damian wasn’t as fond that his father intervened, but if that somehow helped to push him and get the answer why needed, he wouldn’t question him.

“I can help. But the girlie’s plan has a fault.” He answered, not really caring for any threats Bruce might send his way. “If you were to bend time in our favor, how do you expect to use the full capabilities of your powers if you’ll be already using more than half of them in not letting time pass?”

Raven stuttered because of his question. “I- I hadn’t thought about that.”

“Of course you didn’t.” He rolled his eyes and Damian growled, infuriated. “Luckily, I already have a solution. You can come with me to the House of Mystery. Let us say that it exists in a ‘void of time’ so we can practice as long as you need in there.”

“That.” Damian began after his earlier growl, but quickly softened his voice. “Actually sounds like a perfectly reasonable plan. Raven?”

She was thinking about it. “It could work. I really think it could.”

“I am going to come with you.” He clarified when he heard her decision about the matter.

“Wait a minute, birdie. There’s a trick.” Constantine clarified before they could move any further. Damian frowned. “In order to really not let time pass, once we go in, we can’t come out. So-”

Damian interrupted him, already knowing where he was going with this. “So if we go in, it could be weeks or months for us until we come out again. Even if time here has not moved a second, am I wrong?”

Constantine shrugged and nodded. “I think you got the gist of it pretty well.”

“Damian, I can’t ask you to do that.” Raven gasped, afraid that he would get stuck in there for her without anything additional to do.

“You are not asking one thing. I am deciding to go, and help you out.” He was caressing one of Raven’s hands without taking his eyes off of hers. She smiled faintly, unsure of that decision of his but thankful he would be by her side.

“Well, at least in there you won’t age even if you get to a more mature age mentally.” Constantine added.

“Then it’s decided.” Damian stated.

Bruce walked over to him. “I’ve been to this place before. I should come along.” It almost sounded like an order.

“She needs to concentrate, father. And she’s going to need someone to support her.” He glared at Bruce, this was not something he had to do, it was Damian’s only.

“Damian’s right.” Kory spoke out loud after staying out of the conversation for so much time. “I should go as well, to support her.”

“Kory, you can’t.” Dick intervened before anyone else could. “I know how you feel, but right now, you can’t help her.”

Raven didn’t know why Dick was saying this, but perhaps she would like Kory to come as well. “I’m sorry for keeping you out of it for so long, Kory. I just didn’t want to burden you with my problems. But I’d love it if you came.”

“The handsome circus boy is right. She can’t come along.” Constantine was taking out a cigarette from his pocket that was quickly discarded by Bruce. Constantine rolled his eyes and proceeded. “Should I tell them or do you want the honors?”

All of them turned to Dick and Kory. Damian was the one that asked. “What does he mean, Grayson?”

“Well-” Kory started before blushing and lowering her eyes.

“She’s pregnant. We’re having a baby.” Dick spoke before she could. He looked thrilled to share the news but also a bit disappointed. “We were gonna tell you, but these weren’t as happy news anymore. Not with the end of the world threatening to happen and all.”

Raven smiled with tears in her eyes. “You’re serious?”

“I am.” Kory replied. “But Dick and John are right. I can’t go like this, if months could happen inside of there. What about the baby?” Kory’s lip trembled. She felt overpowered and useless to help Raven.

“I know what you’re thinking. That’s no issue at all.” Raven went to take Kory’s hands in hers. “If anything, this is the greatest help I could have received from you. I have one more reason to train and take down my father.”

Kory smiled and she and Dick embraced Raven in a tight hug.

“Does this mean I can train the little bastard once they are born?” Damian asked as if it was the most normal thing to ask in this kind of situation.

“NO!” A unison from Dick, Kory and Raven was heard after that question.

Bruce had been awfully quiet. More than usual. He looked stunned. Dick decided to approach him. “Bruce, are you okay?”

Bruce nodded, unsure of what to say and ignored the topic altogether. “You’ll have to take your training gear with you if you’re going to be so much time away.” He was referring to Damian.

Dick tried to get past that reaction and lack of acknowledgment to focus on Damian. “He’s right.”

“Everything the kid might need, the house will provide. Can we go? I’m starting to rethink my choices of spending way too many weeks trapped with these two wankers.” Constantine intervened and yawned.

Damian nodded and looked at Raven. “Are you ready?”

“I am.” She replied.

“Wait!” Dick yelled before they disappeared or whatever. “Come here.” He pulled Damian into a hug, to which Damian first felt adamant to but slowly started to give in, hugging Dick back. “You’re doing great, little Wayne. I know you are what she needs right now.” Dick whispered in his ear.

Damian felt a bit embarrassed by the comment but nodded without saying anything in return while breaking the hug.

“So sentimental. It would be like you never left!” Constantine tried to cheer them up while a portal was opening.

Raven got nervous when the House appeared on the other side of the portal. Damian stood by her side and took her hand in his. “I will take care of you. We’ll be fine.”

She turned and nodded at him with an unsure smile right before they walked into the portal, leaving Bruce, Dick and Kory behind and entering into the dimension where the House of Mystery resided.

Notes:

Well apparently we find a solution for the lack of time...
Also, Uncle Damian???

How do we feel about the chapter???

Chapter 17

Notes:

Sorry for the delay, but this one is gonna be a long ass chapter.

 

Please feel free to listen to this song, is the one that inspired me throughout my writing process for this chapter: https://open.spotify.com/track/2QjOHCTQ1Jl3zawyYOpxh6?si=f45bf9afac1a4d5c

The timelessness of the place was quickly felt by Raven’s powers. Something in the air simply was telling her that the dimension they had crossed to was stuck, whether it was in time, place, reality, or something else.

Constantine walked nonchalantly through the porch of the House and the door opened by itself, letting them in. “Come on in. Before I change my mind and tell her to cast you out.”

Damian and Raven were following closely behind. Damian frowned when he heard that. “Her?” He was under the understanding that only Constantine knew about this place or was the only one with access.

“Yes. He prefers me as a ‘she’.” A female figure appeared to greet them at the entrance of the house. She looked un-human and pretty emotionally detached about what she was saying. Her skin was a purple-ish color, her eyes a bright magenta color that pierced through your thoughts once you looked into them.

Constantine smiled and got past the female figure, towards the living room, where a new and expensive bottle of whiskey awaited him, pouring himself a big glass and taking a seat on one of the couches. “Ah yes, that one over there is Orchid. Let’s say she’s the woman of the house.”

Raven’s powers couldn’t quite feel true humanity in Orchid, but she was as close to a living being as one can find. “I am the magical aura of the House.” Orchid began to explain.

“Represented in human form.” Raven added. Damian looked at Raven and then at Orchid, she was giving a half and well rehearsed smile.

“That is correct.” She confirmed to Raven. “John doesn’t usually bring visits.” Orchid was examining them as if they were the rarest of creatures. “Especially non-magic users.”

Damian felt the intrigued stare of Orchid upon him but he simply cleared his throat. “This isn’t a social visit. We are here on other business.”

Constantine rolled his eyes while he sipped from the glass he had served some of the whiskey to. “Just tell her, birdie. She’s the house, she’s gonna see, hear and provide everything in here. Whatever you tell her, she has to do. You might as well trust her right now.”

Orchid hummed once she realized where the similarity came from. “He’s the off-spring of the one you called ‘The Batman’. That is why he doesn't trust me, just like his forebear didn’t when he met me.”

“I am not my father.” Damian said with a mix of exasperation and self-disappointment.

Raven felt Damian’s disappointment and placed a hand on his shoulder, patting gently to show support. She decided to trust the humanoid avatar of the house. “We’re here to train my magic. I believe you might be of some help and we’d appreciate it.” She made a pause. “I believe we haven’t said our names yet, he’s Damian and I am Raven.”

“Raven.” Orchid repeated, while her memory searched for information she had read in one of the millions of books of the house. “One of the most remarkable earth creatures evolutionarily speaking. Such a fascinating capacity to adapt to different and hostile environments.” Orchid tilted her head, examining Raven who lowered her gaze with a shy smile. She found that fun fact to be something unexpectedly beautiful.

Damian’s glare quickly softened and his guard was lowered once he noticed Orchid’s knowledge about animals and that, without intending so, she had made such a kind comment to Raven.

Raven was gonna say something else but suddenly her head began to ache and her body to shiver. Orchid and Damian noticed this, so Damian got closer to her and held her by the waist while she gave a smile of dismissal, trying to avoid any concern for him.

Out of the corner of his eye, Damian noticed that Constantine was already at half a bottle of whiskey and the drunkenness wouldn’t take long to reappear.

“Orchid.” Damian called. “If you’re here to assist us. Please make sure that John is sober and with no access to any additional bottles for the time being.”

“What?!” Constantine yelled from the couch he was sitting on. “You little wanker-”

Orchid snapped his fingers while nodding. The bottle disappeared as well as any other spares he might’ve hidden across the house. “Are there any other requests I can assist you with?” She looked at Raven, knowing she might be of assistance for her apparent current condition of exhaustion.

Constantine was running from one end to the other searching in his hiding spots. Raven was giggling, covering her mouth to not make it as obvious but still, holding on to Damian with light trembles she fought to hide.

Damian looked at Orchid. “Since he is in no condition to impart any kind of knowledge. Can you show us to our respective rooms and prepare a chamomile tea for her?”

“At once.” Orchid replied, merging into the floors.

Raven’s giggles stopped immediately as soon as she heard how he was already suggesting things on her behalf. “Tea?”

“Yes. It will do you good, so you can have proper rest after ingesting it.” Damian arched a brow as if it wasn’t obvious what his intentions were.

“Rest? Already? We just got here.” Raven questioned.

“And he is already drunk. You cannot learn anything like that and you haven’t been resting properly, you’ll need your strength at its fullest.” He placed a hand on her cheek caressing slightly, gazing into her sapphire eyes for a few seconds before approaching to place a kiss on her forehead.

The lips of Damian making contact with the skin of her forehead sent shivers down her spine. “Fine.” She sighed. “On one condition.”

“Of course.” Damian replied without hesitation. 

“Don’t leave the room once I fall asleep. I-” She paused. “Maybe it’s the bond warning me that you’re away or, I am not su-”

“I won’t leave you.” He cut in, trying to put her mind at ease. She smiled warmly.

Orchid was back after a few seconds. “The tea is waiting in her room, I’ve arranged the doorways to take you to each part of the house you wish to go to. You only need to think about the room before opening the door.” 

“We are most grateful.” Damian replied. “For now, your assistance is no longer required for the night.”

Orchid nodded. “In that case, I will go and deal with my master.” They hadn’t noticed that Constantine was gone until she said that, and before they could ask what she meant, she had merged into the house once again. Maybe it was best if they didn’t know.

Raven let out a gasp as her hand felt the grasp of Damian’s fingertips when he slowly reached for it. “Come on, let’s get you that tea.” She nodded while getting lost on his piercing emerald eyes. 

As they walked towards one of the doors from the house, Damian concentrated to think about Raven’s chambers so they could cross to it.

He grabbed the door’s handle and twisted it before stepping aside so she could go inside first. She did.

The room, as the rest of the house did, had a gloomy, somber vibe. The walls were covered with a wine color wallpaper from floor to ceiling. The ceiling was taller than she thought it might be and it had a contrast with the walls, painted with a light pearl color. 

A chandelier was hanging from the center of the ceiling, with hundreds of crystals that reflected the light of a dozen candles that were around it.

There were three tall windows in all of the room, but they were all covered with large caramel drapes with fine pearl details.

Two chairs, one tea table, a tiny dresser, two nightstands and the large queen size bed made up for the furniture inside the room. There was a fireplace in the middle, facing the bed. It was already lightened up.

All the furniture looked like it had been pulled out from a castle two centuries ago. Brand new, classical, lavish. The upholstery of these were cream colors, giving a contrast with the walls and making the room pop more. 

At the other end of the room, next to one of the nightstands, there was a wooden door half opened that showed what looked like a bathroom inside. 

Overall, the room was big, cozy and easy on the eyes.

“Constantine has style.” Raven declared after taking in the whole room. He looked at Damian, searching for his approval as well.

“Not bad.” He agreed. “It could use some rugs, or decoration on the walls.”

Raven jostled her elbow slightly on Damian’s ribs with a smirk. “Don’t tell me they also teach art and decor at the League.” The sarcasm was overflowing.

“Amongst other things.” He replied mirroring her smirk. She chuckled and pushed him away playfully. Her strength still not at all close to recovering.

She noticed the tea on the tea table by the chairs. Steam still coming out of it. “It’s still warm.” She pointed out, completely impressed by the efficiency and approached the chairs, sitting on one of them, sighing while she took the cup in both of her hands to take a sip.

Damian remained where she left him, still by the door. Observing her from afar. Even such a meaningless action like sipping tea had a hypnotizing effect on him. 

With everything they had been the last few weeks, not to mention the last couple of days, the opportunities he used to take to stop and admire Raven like he used to to, like he would do the most delicate and valuable of art pieces, were gone.

She felt the piercing gaze he had fixed on her after another sip, when she noticed he had not taken the seat that was next to her own. When her eyes met his, they both felt how their hearts were starting to synchronize in their heartbeats.

Raven lowered her cup of tea and left it on the table from where she first grabbed it. Damian still standing, gave a couple of steps towards the chairs. “Is the tea-”

“It’s fine, Damian.” She cut him off. “I know you worry, but the tea is fine, the room is fine. I’m fine.”

He nodded to her response, firmly. “I’ll arrange the bed for you. Finish your tea.” It was almost an order.

She watched as he approached the bed and started to untuck the bedsheets, examining the pillows and arranging them in a very specific way. Her tilted head went to one side and then to another wondering what that was all about.

He must have heard her because he replied to her question. “You do not feel comfortable with as many pillows, but the one you do use needs to be fluffed out on your right side in case you need something to hold on to while asleep, that seems to soothe you.” He explained after finishing with the bed and turning to face her again, walking over to the tea table.

Raven never thought he would know as much about her, and not about something like how she likes to tuck herself in at night. She was unsure of what to say at that moment. What can one say when you discover that there is someone that seems to know you better than yourself?

Damian looked down when she didn’t say anything, maybe he overstepped. “If you would prefer I-”

Raven had gotten up from the chair, not taking her eyes off of him. “Shut up. It’s my turn now.” Her trembling hand took Damian’s jaw and cheeks, slightly burying her fingers on his skin, forcing him to look at her.

When he heard those words he was startled, befuddled on what she meant by that, or if it meant what he thought.

Any trace of doubt was quickly erased when she fiercely locked their lips down in a passionate, fiery kiss. This was a different kiss than the one they shared the night before. It was full of confidence and need for one another.

Damian could still taste the chamomile in Raven’s lips. It was a comforting sensation that blended perfectly on the mellow and puffy lips that were sending him into orbit. He was overwhelmed and being governed by that kiss.

While their breaths were intertwining as they heaved for air, one of his hands was searching Raven’s back. Touching gently, beginning by the waist and working their way up until her neck, grabbing her tightly and bringing her closer to his body.

His other hand was fixated on Raven’s waist, but as soon as he felt the heat start to rise, he used that arm to lift her off the ground and sit her on top of the table, pushing the teacup away and smashing it on the wooden floors.

“Damian.” Raven tried to call when she heard the teacup break but a moan was what got out instead. 

Damian had taken his kisses from those precious, delicious lips to her cheek, leaving a trace of tiny pecks and gasps that were headed to her neck. “Tell me, habibti .” The lack of air and a deepened voice that spoke right to her ear made Raven’s skin crawl.

Her head was thrown back and her eyes closed as well after that, feeling herself letting go in every contact Damian’s mouth made with her pale neck. 

On the other hand, Damian inhaled her essence at every breath he took. He was forming a memory. He felt like that scent was now the oxygen, the life force he needed to keep breathing.

Her legs were spread open by Damian’s knee, placing himself closer to her, causing the growing erection he had under his pants to make contact with Raven’s leotard, which was hiding her wet crotch underneath. She gasped at the realization of the bulge that was pressing on her.

Both of their hearts were pumping blood faster than their minds could process what was happening at the moment. But then, that same overexertion and adrenaline started to make Raven shiver more than she was before, making her dizzy with every passing moment.

“Damian.” She called once more, faintly.

Damian felt the shivering in his arms and as soon as he heard his name, he stopped every action to look at her.

Her eyes remained closed, but this time, she appeared to be forcing herself to not faint or throw up.

“Raven.” He called out, uneased. She was breathing in and out, while she held her head on one of her hands.

“I-” She tried to speak but the nausea was too much to even speak. A hand was quickly placed on her mouth trying to stop the tea she drank not too long before from coming out of her mouth. Her other hand was on her stomach while she bent forward with pain in her abdomen.

Damian quickly took her in his arms and rushed her to the bathroom, where she couldn’t help herself any longer and puked everything inside the toilet. 

He was using one hand to hold her hair in a ponytail, to stop it from getting dirty while the other hand reached out for his handkerchief ready to help her clean herself up. Her hand instinctively took it.

While she finished he was combing a couple of his fingers through her hair to calm her down. Remaining silent so she would feel free to get it all out.

After a couple minutes she was done and started to wipe her mouth, letting herself fall on the bathroom floor since she had no more strength to slowly sit down. Her face was facing away from Damian’s, embarrassed.

He was still combing her hair, worried and feeling like his heart was gonna burst out of his chest. “We can stay here until you feel better.” She remained quiet and he decided to give her space and be useful in another way. “I will go fetch you a glass of water.”

As he was getting up she spoke. “I may have… Been undermining the severity of my weakening.”

“I know.” Damian replied, kneeling again. “You are strong, but also stubborn. I had known for a time that your condition was rapidly deteriorating.”

Raven finally faced him. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

“Because you hadn’t.” He sighed. “It was not my place to point out the obvious. I knew you knew. That is why I kept Constantine close.”

“What?” She was baffled, with no clue what he meant.

“He is a drunken mess. But he has managed to sever the connection you had with your father, one that caused you terrible anxiety and sleep deprivation. He took care of you inside your mind, to keep you from using excessive and unnecessary amounts of magic both times. And, you seem to trust him.” 

She hugged her knees after hearing Damian’s clarification. It made sense, but still it felt somehow blindsided. “Does he know?”

“He knows there’s a prize if he completes his tasks. But, I do believe he has come to care for you, like every single person that meets you. Like I did.” Damian’s hand reached for her cheek and caressed it. “Come on, let me help you get cleaned up and I will take you to rest.”

Raven would be lying if she said she wasn’t too tired to argue, so she decided to not ask further questions and let herself be helped by Damian to where the sink was.

He was too kind to her by taking a towel that was there, dampening it and starting to wipe her face clean before passing her some apparent ‘guest kit’ that probably Orchid provided to each of their rooms, that had basic hygiene supplies.

She opened it and started to brush her teeth with it while Damian watched from the door, keeping just enough distance from her to make her feel comfortable but not too much if she were to fall ill again.

Once she was done, she turned to where he was and smiled. “I think I can make it to bed on my own.” It was a mumble. She knew she could, but was hoping Damian might carry her, she was still a bit lost in the sensations from a few minutes ago.

“I know you can.” He said right before picking her up into his arms and carry her into the bed.

Damian seated her on the edge and started to help her to get rid of her cloak and boots very gently and with no other intent behind. As soon as only the leotard remained, he waited until she laid down to tuck her in.

“You’re…” Raven began when he was tucking her in. “Are you gonna stay?”

She probably felt like it might be awkward to stay after what had happened and she was obviously not gonna force him, since she initiated the kiss and put them both in that position.

He arched a brow while he stood up straight after tucking her in. “Of course. Unless you have changed your mind. I will never go against your wishes.”

Raven thought about it for a second, she was embarrassed, but she did want him to stay. “Stay.”

“Then, that is what I will do. Excuse me for just a minute.” Damian gave her a tiny, almost imperceptible smile before walking towards the bathroom to quickly wash his face with cold water, trying to remove the memories and sensations from his mind and body. Remain in his best state of mind by storing all of those fantasies away for the night. Not when she needed him.

He quickly rinsed his mouth with a bit of the travel size mouthwash the guest kid had with it and returned to the bedroom after taking a last big breath.

When he got out of the bathroom Raven was facing the other way and couldn’t see him. He took off his belt, combat boots and socks to methodically place them on top of the drawer that was in the room. He had no other clothes so he would sleep in his jeans and black turtleneck.

As he was arriving at the bed and getting next to Raven in a semi-seated position, she turned and noticed he hadn’t taken off any other clothes. “You don’t look too comfortable.”

“I think I can manage.” He replied not really caring about his comfort but rather hers. As he said this, he was starting to gently stroke her hair with the hand that was on her side.

She sighed as she found this to be comforting. Her eyes were fighting to stay open, but she was miserably losing that battle. However, while she remained conscious, she decided to ask something that had been bothering her for quite some time. “Damian, can I ask you something?”

Her voice was sleepy and relaxed. He found this endearing. “Ask away.”

“What does habibti mean?” A slight movement of her head to open her eyes and look at him when he answered. 

Damian froze for a moment. He didn’t know why she was asking this but it took him just a few seconds to realize he had unconsciously been calling her that. There was no point in finding an excuse. “It means, ‘my beloved’. I apologize, I had not realized I had been calling you that. If you find it to be inappropriate I-”

“That’s… actually very beautiful. I like it.” She confessed after learning its meaning. “Can you repeat it?” The blush reappeared as she made the request, but it was something that sounded beautifully in his accent.

“ Habibti .” He repeated with a thick accent followed by a smile. “Like that or should I change anything?” He teased.

She blushed even further after hearing that accent and his joke. “Shut up.” She used the bed sheets to hide her face. He chuckled.

“If you allow it, I can call you that. But only privately.” He clarified. “It’s something that I do not wish to share with the world. It is yours only.” Damian was taking the pillow off her face as he said all this. 

While he used his thumb to caress her cheek, Raven looked up, understanding the deeper meaning of the word as he requested this. “That works for me.” 

The intimacy of knowing it was for the both of them to share that made her feel butterflies inside of her. She rested her head against the pillow once again closing her eyes and sighing deeply.

“Then it’s settled.” Damian resumed his strokes on her hair. “Rest now, habibti .”

Raven once more felt chills all over her body and she let herself fall into a deep, relaxing sleep knowing she was safe next to Damian and that while she remained inside the House of Mystery she could do no harm to the world.

-

The next morning, Damian had already been up for a while doing some pushups with his turtleneck off and just his jeans on while he awaited Raven’s awake.

She barely opened her eyes and yawned when she noticed Damian on the bedroom floor, shirtless. “Morning?” She was flustered as she stared at Damian’s toned back, shoulders and arms and how they got even more defined with every additional push up. 

He pushed himself off the ground to stand up. “Good morning. You got better sleep than other nights.” He was stating as a fact rather than asking as a question.

“How do you know?” She did feel more revitalized than she had in months.

“You snored.” He giggled. “I am glad you got a good night’s sleep. Are you ready to deal with an, most likely, alcohol abstinence Constantine?”

“Ugh.” She whined. “Way to rain on my parade, Wayne.”

“Wayne?” He asked, when he heard his name. “Huh, I was merely pointing out a possible scenario, Roth.”  He replied with a snarky tone.

She made a disgusted face. Her last name felt unnatural to her, and not at all how she identified as. “You win, Damian. Let’s go before I regret it.”

Raven got up from the bed and used magic to draw her cloak towards her, putting it on in the blink of an eye. She also noticed Damian walking towards his turtleneck again and she decided to conjure a black tank top for him.

“Thank you.” He was a bit confused for the gesture but nonetheless, grateful.

They both got ready to get out of the room and before opening the door, Damian concentrated on the kitchen, he wanted Raven to have a proper breakfast before her training session with Constantine.

He turned the handle and they entered a wide, open kitchen. It had a more modern vibe than the rest of the house, but still it looked like a kitchen from last century, probably the sixties.

Orchid was there preparing some food with a mix of magic and practical skills. Constantine was bent down on one of the lower cabinets with his head inside it, looking for something.

“Let me guess, he’s looking for some booze?” Raven asked with a little giggle.

Constantine got out, knocking his head on the cabinet on the way out. “I wouldn’t have to be looking for it if you haven’t taken it from me, you little sh-”

“Shush.” Orchid intervened. “As I repeated many times, I am only doing as I was told by you.”

“Yeah, but not over ranking me on the process!” He yelled.

Orchid ignored him and served them breakfast. “Eat. It is all as you humans call, vegan.”

Damian was impressed and nodded. “Thank you for this.”

They sat down while Orchid turned to Constantine. “Let us go to the adjustable room, we will wait for them there.” She instructed and turned to them. “We will be there when you are done. Right, John?”

He mumbled something under his breath and she snapped her fingers to make him stand straight. “I said yeah, you bloody demons.” He walked, shrugged through the door with Orchid following behind.

“Huh, I guess he is a bit grumpy.” Raven joked and bit into her breakfast. Damian smiled and started to eat as well, it was good but not as good as Alfred’s food. He was now letting sink in how much he was gonna miss that while he was away.

-

They had entered the so-called adjustable room after finishing their breakfasts about an hour ago.

Constantine had gone about forty minutes of that hour pleading a case to them about how he was not a drunk and he needed to drink to concentrate if they wanted his help. Damian refused every request he made.

After a while, Constantine gave up and finally started to talk about unlocking hidden potential in each magic user. His words were not so out of touch with reality.

Both Damian and Raven were listening very cautiously, especially Damian who was trying to see how Constantine’s words or teachings could further apply to Raven. Even though he didn’t know much about practical magic, he knew her, and that could be of some use.

He was explaining how each different magic user decides to exploit or draw power from their abilities. They decide on this very early on when they are learning to control their magic, their powers, and get stuck in a comfort zone that either takes them years to figure out how to get out of, or they search for shortcuts that are not sustainable on the long run but can work for a one occasion’s heavy duty.

He was almost asking Raven if she would rather use the shortcut so they could head home early. She adamantly refused his suggestion. “If I’m gonna take my father down for good, it will be because of my will to unlock the potential, not because of cheating.”

“There’s nothing wrong in having one or two tricks stored for when you need them, girlie.” Constantine replied with a scoff. “It’s not cheating, it's just being clever.”

Raven rolled her eyes, not willing to listen to this. “Can we skip to the part where we start training?”

Damian remained quiet between this interaction, he saw Raven needed to be in charge of this, and of course, she could handle Constantine if required.

“Yeah, yeah. Go fuck myself I guess.” He muttered to himself before looking at her. “Right, so, each magic user has something that makes them stronger or where they draw their power from. I do it from arcane items when my spells don’t cut it. Some people use familiars-”

“What’s that?” Damian interrupted.

“A familiar is kinda like a family pet that helps you with your magic, enhances it, teaches you spells if you’re new at it...” Raven replied to Damian, having knowledge of this through all of the books she has read.

“Someone paid attention in occultism class.” Constantine congratulated her. “So, as I was saying, some people use familiars, and then there’s other people like Z who are simply just gifted from the day they are born.”

“You’re forgetting the dark magic users.” Raven mentioned as if that needed to actually be mentioned.

“Look, girlie. I’m all for dark magic, and I know you’re half demon. But I don’t think attacking your father, who is the embodiment of dark magic with more dark magic. It would be too dangerous, almost like-”

“Trying to put out a fire with gasoline.” Damian concluded, understanding what Constantine meant.

“Do you enjoy interrupting me, little bird? It’s rude.” Constantine’s face was filled with offense.

Damian rolled his eyes. “I actually find it quite amusing. Thank you.”

Constantine scoffed and turned to Raven again. “Point is, girlie. No dark magic for you.”

“For once, I concur.” Damian added. 

Raven sighed. “Fine. So, how am I supposed to unlock my potential? Am I not made to wield dark magic?” She crossed her arms, almost hugging herself. Frustration visible in her face.

“That is your problem, girlie. Magic users are supposed to wield magic. You are a magic user But most importantly, you are half-human and half-demon.” Constantine was looking for something in his pockets, but couldn’t seem to locate it. “You don’t have to pursue only dark or white magic, you can benefit from both.”

Constantine found what he was looking for. It seemed to be a talisman, in the form of a handwatch, there was an image in it. A yin and yang under the glass.

“Balance?” Raven asked. “How do you think I’ve handled all of my spells so far? No dark magic, no white magic. Neutral magic.” She raised an eyebrow unsure of where he was going with this.

“It’s nice to know I do have some knowledge you two lack.” His pride seemed to be overflowing and both Damian and Raven just stared at him until he proceeded. “Alright. Neutral does not equal balance. You’re afraid to step fully into either side. Why? Because you think you’re too evil for white magic? Or is it because you think if you allow yourself to use dark magic, you’ll end up like your daddy?”

That seemed to hit a rough spot for Raven, as she looked away. Damian intervened. “Enough.”

“He’s right.” Raven mumbled before facing them again. “I still don’t understand how this balance is supposed to work if I’m gonna step away from any kind of dark magic.”

Constantine face palmed himself. “I thought you were the smart one.”

“She won’t be using any dark magic because of her father, he will be the yin and she will be tha yang. Light and dark.” Damian walked over to where Raven was. “Good and evil.”

“I’m no good.” She finalized.

“Stop whining, girlie.” Constantine rolled his eyes. Damian frowned expecting another stupid comment. “If something has taught me in so many years of dealing with all kinds of demons is that you are not evil.”

Damian softened his gaze and Raven was caught off guard but was a pleasant surprise after all. “Fine, how do I become the light then?”

“Now we’re talking.” Constantine summoned a chair and sat down. “You need to find what makes your powers stronger. When have you felt like you’ve pushed your boundaries? What drives your magic?”

Raven stands there pondering about the question and about her answer. “I’m an empath. Emotions play a big part of my power.”

“That’s brilliant, girlie.” He got up from the chair and clapped his hands two times. The room started to change. It looked almost like another dimension, a hellish one. There were a few minor class demons there, nothing that could truly hurt her. “Have at it, try and find an emotion that helps you get rid of these demons.”

Damian was unsure of this tactic, but if it helped Raven train, he could just stand by and observe. Raven sighed and closed her eyes trying to concentrate on any spell she learned to blend it with an emotion, fuel it.

She used the power she felt rushed through her and directed it towards one of the demons, but this attack made him grow slightly.

“Oh yeah, forgot to mention. As long as you are still feeding your spells with dark magic, they will grow.” Constantine added while he lighted a cigarette.

Another one of the demons attacked her, making her fall back. Damian went for his sheathed sword but Orchid stopped him, shaking her head as this was something that Raven had to do on her own.

He stepped back, and crossed his arms, adopting an stoic stance trying to not transmit any of his worry.

Raven attempted one more time another spell, concentrating in using only the white magic, as instructed. Keep the balance.

Needless to say, she failed again. Her mind was not in it.

“Again.” Constantine commanded while taking out a spell book to read while she trained. Damian rolled his eyes at this lack of interest.

Raven had been hit again and was on the floor, but she took her time and thought about a new approach, and a new one, and a new one. Over and over again, she got stuck in that loop of constant failure for what felt like endless hours.

Damian had begun to grow uneasy with this supposed training. “I think that’s enough.”

“She’s not done yet, little bird. She’s still having at it.” Constantine replied without taking his eyes off the book. Raven was heaving, getting up from the floor again.

“Call it off. That’s enough for today.” Damian unsheathed his sword, this time pointing it at Constantine.

Constantine rolled his eyes, closing his book. He got up, using his index finger to draw the sword’s tip out of his face. He snapped his fingers and the demons vanished. “You’re done, girlie. We’ll try again tomorrow.”

Raven turned when the demons vanished. Her face was not only tired, but was filled with the biggest amount of frustration Damian had ever seen her display.

She used her telekinesis to grab the book and smash it on Constantine’s face before walking out the room, using the door to go to her room and slapping it when she closed it again.

Damian didn’t even allow Constantine to recover from the smashed book on his face when he took him by the stupid collar of the shirt and made him look at him. “I know her, she is not like me. You will not achieve anything by pushing her like that. You better try another strategy tomorrow.” He let go of Constantine’s shirt. 

Before walking out the door as well, he stopped next to Orchid. “Bring her a cup of tea and something to eat. She needs her space but she still needs to eat.”

“I will.” Orchid replied.

He gave one last glance at Constantine before walking out of the room, into his own. 

The bedroom was still untouched since he didn’t spend the night there. He tightened his grip on the sword’s handle before letting out a sigh and starting to undress, preparing for a shower.

-

When he got out of the shower, he was way more relaxed than he had been with everything that’s going on. He couldn’t stand seeing Raven so helpless, so frustrated, and not being able to do a thing about it.

He contemplated his reflection on the mirror for a few seconds before quickly brushing his teeth and stepping out of the bathroom into the bedroom, drying his black dampened hair with a towel.

Damian froze when he saw Raven was sitting down on the floor, her legs crossed and eyes closed. Meditating. 

He decided to stay quiet until she was ready to get out of her meditation that was soon after. “Thank you for the food.” Raven thanked, opening her eyes and noticing that Damian had only a towel around his waist covering him. She immediately flustered.

“You needed it.” He replied, unsure of what else to say.

“I know.” She got up from the floor. “I didn’t mean to intrude. I thought you might be out, training or eating. I was gonna wait for you.” Her eyes kept looking away, avoiding the sight of Damian’s naked torso.

He got closer to her, searching for her eyes. “I am here now. What is it?” His fingers grabbed Raven’s chin gently, so she would look at him.

A minute gasp escaped her lips when her eyes met his. “I felt so frustrated. I wanted to keep my distance because I hurt John, but… After Orchid gave me the food. I knew you sent her, and I knew I didn’t want to be alone, I didn’t want to keep my distance from you.” There was a hesitation. “You always help me when I can’t carry the weight of it all, so I wanted to come to you.”

Damian’s gaze softened. Both her and his eyes were beaming, speaking to each other without words. “If I could carry all of your burdens, protect you from ever having to suffer any kind of despair,  just so I can ensure your happiness. Believe me, I would.”

Raven was silent. Examining Damian’s facial features. His green eyes that had a way of glowing only around her. His soft, dark bronze skin, that had a few scars here and there. His build and toned physique, not unlike the kid he met a few years ago, a result of his hard, constant training. His furry eyebrows that made his eyes pop even more. And now that he was damp, a few curls formed on his thick black hair.

“You don’t have to do that.” She replied after getting lost in the admiration of his features. “My happiness is ensured every minute I get to spend with you.”

“I’m honored.” The only times he smiled as often and legitimately was when he was around her. His hand searched for Raven’s cheek, caressing it, enjoying the sensation her soft skin left on his fingertips.

She laid her head on the hand Damian was using to touch her cheek, while both of her hands held it. She drew his hand towards her lips and placed a kiss on his palm. “Do you think I can do this?”

Her confidence seemed to be flickering. He pursed his lips and nodded. “If there is anyone that I can give vouch for with total confidence, it’s you.” He sighed and wrapped her around the waist and neck with both of his arms, pulling her into a hug and kissing her forehead.

She found the forehead kiss and the touch of her cheek with Damian’s bare chest to be comforting. His scent was a mix of cinnamon and citric flavors. Afrodisiac.

Her eyes closed enjoying the moment, burying her face in his muscled chest and slowly working her way up, trailing his collarbone, neck, until she reached his cheek, searching for his lips.

Damian’s skin was sensitive with each passing touch. But he stopped her before she could kiss him. His thoughts were trapped on the events from the night before, how the flusterness of it all made her ill. He could not allow that to happen again. “Raven, I-”

She shushed him, placing a finger on his lips. “I know, you spoke through our bond.” She pointed at her head. “But either if it’s the food, the fact I got a good night’s sleep, or the way time doesn’t seem to pass here. I just know that I can do this, and most importantly, I want this.”

Damian felt his heart skip a beat. If the House was somewhere time didn’t pass, after Raven said this, he was merely confirming it.

While still holding her in a tight hug, his back was sensing the trailing of her curious fingers. All of this while they stared at each other, breathing in each other’s air. 

She was waiting for his decision, and he was deliberating what would be the best for her. His father’s words were pounding inside his mind.

“Unbiased decisions, Damian.”  

And then, he sighed. Deciding to push his father’s insisting words away. They held no meaning.

Not tonight.

“And I want you, habibti .” He spoke in an undertone, his nose touching hers.

Pulling her from the neck, he crashed their lips into a desperate kiss. Her tender lips were exquisite to taste, to devour.

The hand he had around her waist buried his fingers in place. Raven felt her whole body crumble with just that one action, letting out a pleased moan in between kisses.

That moan switched something inside Damian. 

Without breaking the kiss, he used the arm that was holding her around the waist to lift her up, no struggle at all for him, making her wrap her legs around his own waist. 

His hand wanted to explore more, so it started rubbing all of Raven’s back, up and down, making his way to her glutes. Squeezing gently. The action made him feel a rush of adrenaline in every inch of his body. The sensation was addicting. He wanted more.

Raven on the other hand, had wrapped her arms around Damian’s neck, entangling her fingers on Damian’s dampened hair locks. Pulling slightly with every squeeze she felt.

The towel Damian had wrapped around his waist was doing a poor job at hiding the growing erection underneath it. His thoughts were cloudy, only focusing on the way her lips and her inner thighs were heating up with each passing second.

He knew she was experiencing the same lust he was. Their bond barrier was blurry. He could feel what she felt. Lust what she craved.

The hand that was still on Raven’s neck pushed her chin up, breaking the kiss. His lips were pecking her jaw, inhaling her scent, searching her earlobe and toying with it before gently stroking his tongue on her neck.

Goosebumps and shivers could barely begin to describe the fixation they were developing for each other’s body.

Damian walked over to the bed, unzipping her leotard before laying her down on it. He was using his hands to clutch Raven’s thighs, still wrapped around him, knowing that perhaps it would leave some marks on her, but the idea of it was driving him crazy.

Once again, he paused the contact of his lips to her skin, to admire her, how she was laying down for him.

The hand that was still on her thigh trailed up from there to her waist and until he gently placed it on her shoulder, twirling with her leotard strap. “May I?” He requested with a tiny smirk, but still awaiting her consent.

“Yes, Damian.” She replied. Her eyes still fixated on his.

Damian nodded before placing a kiss on her lips, moving away from them to then kiss the shoulder where he was holding the strap, slowly starting to undress and reveal her collarbone.

Before revealing her chest, he got closer to her and united their lips once again and with his eyes closed he finished removing all of her leotard, throwing it far away. No regard for the location as it was the least of his concerns.

Her cheeks were bright red as she felt how she was left in the nude. She had never been one to really wear clothes under the leotard. It was already too restricting and made the call long ago to not restrict herself even further.

Damian felt all of her bare skin even if he had his eyes closed and was focused on their kiss. 

Whether he would ever admit it or not, he might’ve fantasized about that incessant riddle for a time now. And was very pleased to finally find out the answer.

As his lips searched for something other than hers, he trailed down with smooches and licks, his arm parted Raven’s legs, spreading them open and hunted for her more sensitive parts. 

The loud groan Raven let out as soon as his thumb touched the most triggering part of them all, he knew he had found his target. 

At this point, his lips had already found the tenderness of her breasts. 

His tongue had as much ability as the rest of his body did. Licking, squeezing, biting. His thumb rubbing against her clit with the same rhythm his tongue was.

He looked up, exploring Raven’s features as she moaned, heaved and contorted her body.

Once his thumb felt the abundant wetness she was exuding, he could no longer wait to taste her. Delight himself on the flavor he had craved to know for so long.

His mouth parted ways with her perfect rounded breasts, making his way down to her waist, stomach and finally inner thighs. The smooches induced in her tiny electric bolts wherever they were placed. 

Raven stood on her forearms to get a better view of how his devotion towards her was driving him to please her.

“You are the apex of all my dreams, habibti .” He whispered too close to her wetness. His breath as he spoke, made any type of control she had over herself collapse.

A steady, slow stroke of his tongue to delight himself as he tasted her for the first was enough to let him go in for more, ferally. Sucking and pampering her clit as she was struggling not to come within those first few seconds.

How did he manage to find that sweet spot so easily? She couldn’t care less.

Her head was thrown back and her fists clenched to the bedsheets. “Damian… Fuck.” The moans of his name were louder each time.

One of her hands gripped Damian’s locks once more, not allowing him to stop. Her hips started to roll in place, pleasing herself with every stroke.

Damian’s hands were nipping her thighs, constraining them from closing down. Not until she had released the orgasm he knew she was about to experience.

Her legs began to weaken, toes curling, and whole body trembling as a final yelp got out of her. Her hardened nipples and the way she collapsed onto the bed let Damian know he had accomplished his goal. 

He got up from where he had kneeled to taste her, licking his own lips to clean the remaining wetness from them. 

Damian placed himself on top of Raven, tracing his fingers along her waist.

She pulled him into a new kiss with one hand and explored his skin with her other, until she found the towel that remained on, snatching it away and firmly taking his swollen arousal into her hand, massaging it. “Please, Damian. I want to be yours, all the way. Make me yours.” 

He groaned at her touch. Whatever shyness she might’ve had before, was completely erased after her orgasm. She knew what she wanted, she needed him inside her. Her eyes and voice begged for it.

“You are mine.” He replied with authority. “As I am yours.”

He opened her legs once more, placing himself between them and using the tip of his hardened erection to tease her still sensitive clit a couple of times before aligning with her entrance.

The tightness as he entered made her moan in pain. The veins on his toned forearms became more prominent as the blood of his heart pumped through his body. Adrenaline rushing and demanding more strength, more speed.

As soon as he had gone in and out a couple of times slowly, allowing them both to adjust, he started to thrust more. 

The echo of their skins colliding into one another as well as their moans syncing up. The sensation was sending Damian into an ecstatic mode. 

“ Antee jameela , habibti .” He moaned in Arabic. Raven didn’t know the meaning but the thick accent he used made her bite her lip.

Damian lifted one of her legs while he held her down by the waist with his other hand, placing her leg on top of his shoulder to go deeper into her. The thrusts made her rounded breasts bounce around, creating a view he could only describe as a work of art made to be admired and praised by him.

They were getting closer to the peak of their pleasure.

Raven’s moans and Damian’s speed were increasing. 

The bond unified their thoughts as they got to experience each other’s emotions and sensations, allowing them to finalize the build up into a joint release of the sparks and trembles their climaxes brought.

The delight of the warmness of their bodies united inside Raven made them collapse into the bed.

Damian got out of her, both groaning as he did. He rolled on the bed and pulled her in with him, embracing her in a hug.

He smirked while they were still trying to catch their breaths, noticing a new find beam into her eyes, and an amused expression as well.

“Was it amusing? Or am I missing something?” He asked, placing a kiss on her forehead. “Because it was a rush I might want to experience again.”

She sighed with a giggle. “It was perfect. I just… definitely need to learn Arabic.” She teased. Her fingers making circles on top of his chest.

“You might.” He replied, taking her hand and kissing her knuckles. “But for now, I can translate. I said that you are beautiful, my beloved.”

“Sounds better in Arabic.” She got up from his chest and kissed his lips softly.

“Is that right?” He smirked, taunting her. But in fact, he was truly excited to use his first language more often than he did. “In that case… Omri, bahlam feeki .”

“Meaning?” She asked with endearment in her eyes.

“My life, I dream about you.” He spoke softly, using his fingers to caress her arm. “I’m letting you know that even if I’m asleep, you’ll be in my thoughts.”

An unavoidable blush covered her cheeks and ears. “Who would’ve thought?”

He frowned, confused. “What?”

“That the angsty teen I met a few years ago was gonna be so incredibly cheesy.” She joked, while closing her eyes and laying down on him again. “And that I would find it so cute…” There was a small yawn after that.

He smiled and shook his head, pulling the bed sheets over them, tucking her in with care. “And who would’ve thought that the shy, witch girl would make me fall to my knees in devotion to her…” He whispered to her ear. She smiled. “Rest, habibti . I’m not going anywhere.”

As Raven drifted and fell asleep, he decided to stay awake a few more minutes and admire her. 

Raven. 

His Raven.

Notes:

I've been planning for this since I first thought of the fic. I know I made you guys wait for 16 chapters before finally getting some action between these two, but I hope it was worth the wait.

There's nowhere but up from here (if yk what I mean)

(Also sorry for the tease at the beginning, but if you made it to the end, thank you<3)

Chapter 18

Notes:

Nothing to add to the plot. This chapter is smut, and smut only.

Since this chapter is pure smut, you can very well skip it if you don't feel like reading such graphic stuff.
Additionally, this chapter can be read without any context of the story as well.
Enjoy!

The next morning rolled around and Damian felt himself waking up with a heavy exhale and a smile plastered on his face. The memories from last night crawled around in the back of his mind, telling him it had been more than just another one of his dreams.

His eyes snapped open once he realized the reality of the situation, turning with a smile looking for Raven by his side only to not find her there.

The grip around the duvet was determined and quick, getting up from the bed and checking up in the bathroom only to find himself alone in the room.

Where is she?

Has she changed her mind?

Perhaps it was a mistake. I was a mistake for her.

Thoughts invaded his mind, poisoning it with malice intent.

Clenching his eyes and growling he spoke out loud, aware that he was supposed to be heard. “Orchid, provide me proper clothes for training.”

Not a moment later, a glow came from inside of one of the drawers of the dresser, so Damian approached it and placed his fingers on top of the handles and opened it. Finding a uniform that consisted of a bright red with gold details, sleeveless shaolin top, and this was accompanied by its own tight, black bottom pants.

Once ready, he exhaled and walked over to the door, concentrating on it and thinking about going over to a training room. Twisting the handle, the door revealed a very and quite familiar training room.

It looked like a blend between the dojo he used to train at in Nanda Parbat, the Titans tower training room and the Batcave’s gym. At least it made him feel like he knew the place even if he didn’t recognize it at all. He felt at home. 

Since the room was equipped with every single item he would ever require to train, he decided to go with a wushu stick and adhere to his own roots.

A blow here, a whoosh there. The stick was an extension of Damian’s body as he trained. 

He usually was violent with his training, letting out some steam. But today, he seemed to be like a fish underwater. He was flowing with his training. It was not rough nor aggressive. He was simply undisturbed, calmed. His movements were gentle, mellow. 

Just like last night, with Raven.

He had not been rough. How could he? Not with her. Not with a queen like her. Wait… Queen? A goddess, you mean. And a goddess like her cannot be treated roughly. At least not at first…

A sigh. Goosebumps forming on his skin. The memories returning to him.

The faint taste of her wet clit was something he could still taste and would not be able to forget anytime soon. Her breasts bouncing around in perfect circles that were hypnotizing and probably unworthy to witness. The softness of her pale skin, so contrasting with his calloused and harsh fingertips, not like she seemed to mind. And of course, Raven’s eyes clenched while her mouth was half opened, moaning his name. Oh god . She had been moaning his name. 

His heart skipped a beat at the realization. When did he stop concentrating on what he was doing? Wasn’t he training?

Damian was heaving. His chest going up and down trying to catch a breath. Droplets of sweat covered his forehead, not entirely because of the workout he was supposed to be doing, and… 

Shit .

The large bulge that was under his black training pants was merely a physical reaction to everything else that was going on inside his head. He might’ve had a stoic face on, but his blood flow betrayed him right then and there.

He closed his eyes and breathed. Years of learning to control his own body and mind must not have been in vain just to succumb to the first thought of lust. He couldn’t let himself be defeated by the carnal desires that were running through his mind. He had to stop thinking about her. He had to take her out of his-

“Damian?” 

His eyes snapped open. His cheeks burning red after hearing that voice. Slowly looking over his shoulder, he merely wanted to confirm he had in fact heard correctly and not playing again with his imagination. 

A very worried and out of breath Raven was standing behind him, awaiting a response. He swallowed and only half turned, hiding his erection behind a punching bag that was nearby. “Good morning. I suppose.” He began to yap. “If time does not pass time here, perhaps that is not the term, but yet again, after having slept, that is most likely the term-”

“Damian.” She interrupted, taking a step forward. Worry still on her face. “You were…” She was unsure of what exactly was going on. All she knew is that he had accessed their bond and he was, well, agitated would be the best word to describe what she felt. “Are you okay?”

Raven was trying to find his eyes, but he refused to look at her. At first out of shame, and eventually out of doubt. “Are you?” He questioned back, finally looking at her.

“What do you mean?” Raven tilted her head, confused.

Damian opened his mouth and closed it again, trying to find the right words to ask. “What happened last night. It meant something to me. It only reinforced what I already feel for you.” He paused. Raven widened her gaze, surprised. “If it didn’t for you and that is why you fled this morning, you are making the right decision.”

He was pushing away his feelings, and Raven could see past this facade. “It wasn’t that at all.” Shaking her head, she approached Damian and placed a hand on his jaw. “I was just… I felt revitalized. I can’t explain it, but I wanted to get up and wander around, eat something, read a book…. I felt good. Like I hadn’t in weeks.”

She shrugged as she confessed this. Damian placed one of his hands on top of the hand Raven had on his face. He was smiling, endeared by her new found spirit. “You do look way more energized. I’m very glad that is the case.”

His lips traveled to Raven’s knuckles and placed a soft kiss on them. She gasped and her eyes beamed. “So.” She began, trying to hide the blush that tiny kiss had painted on her. “Are you gonna tell me why I felt drawn here? And why I felt…?” She didn’t know how to finish that question.

Damian hummed as he looked up, seemingly clueless to her inquiry. He felt embarrassed to admit the answer to that. “What did you feel?” The words came out of his mouth before he could process that he did not intended to say that at all.

Both of them flustered immediately. Raven thought about his question for a moment. What did she feel?

“Well, I was having some fruit in the kitchen when I felt myself gasping for air. My heart started going faster and my skin crawled all over. I thought you were in danger, because I could feel you thinking about me and then…” She bit her lower lip after something hit her.

Damian crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow. “And then what?”

One of her knees started to rub over the other, clenching her inner thighs. “And then I…” She looked away. “I got wet…” She mumbled, complete and utter shame invaded her. “I have no idea why I did that.”

“Oh.” Damian replied. “In that case, it was my fault.”

She turned, frowning. “It was? How?”

“Well, I found myself drifting while training and ended up getting lost in last night’s events. Causing myself a physical reaction, and I suppose I dragged you along through our bond.” He confessed, a quick cough trying to dismiss the subject.

Raven didn’t know exactly how to react, this was all so new to the both of them. Still, there was one thing she had on her mind and had to get out. “You did that to me… just with our bond?”

Damian would lie to himself if he said that he didn’t feel excited about that question and the flirty and playful way she asked it. He decided to tease. “Too invasive, huh? I promise you it will not happen again.”

Raven glanced at him with panic in her eyes. “What? I didn’t-”

Damian grinned, taking a step forward and using his index finger to lift up her chin. “Relax, habibti . Just as last night, I will always do whatever you want me to. Nothing more. Nothing less. I only abide by and for you.”

Raven stared with disbelief at Damian’s green eyes for a few seconds until it registered to her. She held all the power. “Damian Wayne. I want you to kiss me. Slowly. Show me your affection.”

Damian smirked. A soft but noticeable nod confirmed to her he would do as she wished. 

Placing one hand on her waist and using the other to caress her hair, he slowly closed the distance between the two until their lips came into contact with one another.

Exhaling, her whole body relaxed, giving in to the kiss that was mellow and full of affection, just as she had requested from him.

Damian moved his hand back and forth around Raven’s waist. Not in a sexual manner, but in an affectionate one. He wanted to feel her, her body, her presence. Her.

A gasp made her break the kiss when Damian’s hand squeezed her waist firmly. She never noticed before how large his hands had gotten now that he had grown more. “I-” She hesitated. “I want you to do what you did earlier, with our bond. Show me how you did it.”

Her voice was almost a whisper that would have been lost if Damian wasn’t paying his full attention to her. 

His breath was shaky as was hers after the kiss. Even if he found himself drawn to this confidence about the power she held and that she seemed to be enjoying, he still managed to get flustered about her request.

“I was…” He began trying to recall how he used the bond, even with all of his cockyness, he knew he accessed it involuntarily.  But he would do his best. He smirked. “I was thinking about last night. But more specifically, I was thinking about us last night.”

Licking his lips, he started to go around her, circling as if she was a meal he wanted to taste. Raven felt Damian’s eyes observing her. “And what else did you think about?” She asked not as confident as before, more subdued to Damian’s glance.

“You.” He concluded. “And how could I not? If you were a vision my mortal eyes were barely able to handle.” He started to think once more about how Raven looked last night, swirling and moaning beneath him. Her moans like a siren song for him. 

The thoughts about her and about last night were starting to do their job and produce lust within Damian. His erection growing strong underneath his training pants.

Raven could feel the bond start to make its job. Just like she felt in the kitchen, she was experiencing what Damian was. He was aroused. 

Her legs started to tremble when the heat within them started to increase. A pounding between her thighs was an indication that just as he had a visible erection through his pants now, she must be as wet as she can get.

“Damian…” She whispered, despair in her voice, unable to think clearly.

He got closer to her, from behind. He didn’t touch her and decided to just instead breathe into her neck. “Yes?”

She shuddered. “I can feel it.”

“What can you feel, habibti ?” He replied, grasping his lips to Raven’s neck. Stopping himself from actually tasting it. Not until she allowed it.

“Everything you wanna do to me.” She uttered with a tiny moan, clenching her eyes shut. “I want you to do it. Everything .” She emphasized that last word trying to desperately let him know that she needed him. Badly.

With that said, there was little to no time he wasted to wrap her around his arms, pushing her close so her back would be in contact with his chest, and her ass with his erection. 

His lips indulged into the sweet taste of her neck, kissing, nipping and biting every so often. His hands were tracing her waist once again, teasing going up or down to touch her breasts or her inner thighs. Making her shiver whenever he did so.

Raven felt like at least she wanted to feel his bulge more closely, so she took upon herself the task of motioning circles with her ass and pushing it closer to him. A snarl escaped his lips and one of his hands traveled up until Raven’s throat, holding her tight by the jaw.

“I am going to do everything, but I’m going to take my time. You deserve as much.” He muttered before biting her earlobe slightly and teasingly.

Biting her lip, she nodded, accepting her fate and the ride he obviously had in mind for her.

Damian proceeded with his lips once again biting and tasting her neck right before the hand he used to hold her jaw up traveled back down. Slowly. 

The breathing of Raven was making her chest go up and down, right where Damian’s fingertips were starting to grasp over the leotard fabric. Goosebumps all over made her nipples go hard.

Finally, Damian took one of her breasts upon his hand and squeezed while his other hand traveled down to where she was clenching her legs shut and started to rub over her clothing, knowing his clit was already sensitive for the amount of lust she was craving. She bit her lip, drowning another moan that tried to escape her.

With his lips he started to search for the leotard buttons and using his teeth he started to unbutton them. Raven was shaking with each minute touch his lips had with her back when each button was left undone.

How could she ever begin to describe the sensations Damian was making her feel with just some simple pecks and caresses he was providing to her? Was it the affection she felt for him? Chemistry? Lo-

No, she could not think about that right now. They were at the House for more serious business but still everything that was going on at the current moment was distracting her. And she wasn’t going to complain.

The hand Damian had on Raven’s breasts stopped its attention to them and traveled back to start undressing her. Removing the leotard inch by inch just on the upper part of her, letting her breasts finally be free. 

His other hand did the same as the first one and stopped the rubs on Raven’s inner thigh to help Damian drag the leotard all the way down to her feet. While he did so, he was leaving a trail of gentle kisses on the pale skin that made him feel like he was touching a soft cloud.

When getting up after getting her naked, his hands were at the sides of Raven’s legs, stroking their way up while he kissed his way back to Raven’s back and neck. “Turn around.” He commanded.

Raven did as she was told and turned slowly to face him. Her cheeks were burning red because, even though they had displayed each other’s naked bodies the prior night, she was still nervous to find Damian’s hungry eyes meeting her bare skin. 

She would probably never get used to the sensation, but it wasn’t bad, it just meant that she was willing to surrender herself to him over and over again.

Damian slowly stepped forward, making Raven step back. One step. Two steps. Until she felt the coldness of the wall hit her back’s skin. She gasped. Her whole body is ready to surrender once again.

He put his right hand next to Raven’s head, leaning on the wall. Their breaths intertwined once again. Raven never noticed before how that kind of shaolin tops made Damian’s shoulders look even bigger and more toned. When did he get so tall? So fit? Oh god .

She was closing her eyes as she inhaled and exhaled rapidly. “You are so beautiful.” Damian whispered when seeing her body, feeling her emotions through their bond, knowing she was as far gone as he was.

And like that he pressed their lips together once again. A passionate kiss, unlike the one Raven requested earlier, but nonetheless, still full of affection.

In between sighs and kisses, Damian took Raven’s bottom lip with his teeth. He gave a tiny teasing bite before sucking on it and proceeding with the kiss. It wasn’t  long before his lips moved from the tenderness of Raven’s lips to her jaw pecking and nipping at it.

His left hand traveled down Raven’s waist towards her ass and grabbed it, brute force in that squeeze making Raven unable to contain a moan, sending shivers all over Damian’s body. How the fuck could a simple sound be something that could hold so much power over him?

While his kisses left Raven’s neck and he started to slightly bend down, to gain access to her breasts. Using his right hand he started to playfully and gently stroke down her nipples, looking up at her and finding her with her head thrown back at the wall while she was biting her lip.

Without taking his eyes off of her he placed one of her breasts in his mouth and began to suck and lick it. His left hand stopped squeezing Raven’s butt and traveled in front of her, grabbing her thigh and opening her legs so his hand would have a free pass to feel Raven’s most sensitive parts. 

His fingers were trailing their way from Raven’s knee all the way up to her lips. He opened the folds with two of his fingers and started to rub once he found her beloved’s trigger point.

The wetness his fingers were experiencing while stroking her clit up and down with his thumb was driving him crazy. What did this witch do to him that he craved for her taste with so much eagerness?

Damian couldn’t wait any longer. He stopped with his attention to Raven’s breasts and traveled with rough, sloppy kisses down to her crotch.

The fingers that had been playing with her clit he decided to taste, delighting himself on such a captivating flavor. Raven opened her eyes when she heard Damian mutter something in Arabic. She was ignorant to what the words she heard him say were, but she was pretty sure it must have been a curse with the way he said it.

Damian didn’t even give her time to keep wondering about the words when he buried his face into Raven’s inner thighs, anxious, aching to taste straight from the source. He was licking and eating out her clit and wetness as if he had been gifted a caramel that he had to eagerly lick in order to enjoy.

Raven’s fingers locked themselves into Damian’s curly, dark locks. He always got his hair curly whenever he would get his hair damp or messy. It was a view, to see him kneeling for her, eating her out, devoted to her.

With one of his hands he lifted Raven’s leg to put her on top of his shoulder in order to have more area to work with. He was moving his head up and down, sloppiness in each movement, but still it was exactly what was taking Raven over the edge. 

One would think he had been hooking up with different people for quite some time to know how to do this so perfectly, so knowingly. But he just let himself not think about it too much and simply enjoyed the taste. 

His tongue was the one having more fun, the tenderness of the aroused clit made his tongue want to fiddle with it as long as she would allow him to.

As long as she would hold on before her imminent orgasm. Because that was all that mattered to him, to see her release all of her frustrations away in one simple bodily action, caused by him and only him.

He could feel her breathing going faster and her fingers pulling on his hair. She was too close. So Damian tightened his grip on her legs so she wouldn’t be able to stop the upcoming climax.

And just like that. Release.

Her legs trembled. The tremble spreaded throughout her body. A loud scream of pleasantness while accompanied by a guttural sound was making it even harder to breathe properly. Her inner walls were clenching and a bit more of the wetness escaped into Damian’s mouth, who had not stopped his attention to her clit even through the explosive orgasm she was having.

He was still looking up, the face she had while diving deep into her climax, was something he would like to portray someday in one of his artworks. But he knew that nothing could ever be able to live up to the image in front of him right now. She was so perfect, she was his right now . 

Once the release was over, Damian gave a few more strokes with his tongue. The taste was never going to be enough and he wanted to store it in his memory as long as he could.

He got up, licking his own lips and caught Raven’s lips into another kiss, not even allowing her to catch her breath as she was still heaving. She was tasting herself in that kiss. But more importantly, she was tasting Damian’s lust.

She used her hands to brush Damian’s arms, feeling every inch of muscle fiber he had developed over the years. The shoulders, the biceps, the forearms and the prominent veins that popped on them. God, his forearms . Why were those so toned as well? 

Breaking the kiss, he swiftly removed his shaolin top, leaving his chest exposed to her. She glanced at it as if it was the first time and they indulged into another deep kiss before her hands traced figures all over his skin. Stopping at some of the scars he held and being even more gentle with those.

“You said you wanted everything.” Damian expressed in between kisses. His hands, one on her neck and the other lifting Raven’s leg to wrap around his hips. Her crotch felt the bulge that had not decreased in all of this time.

His desires echoed at the back of her mind. Their bond was giving him away. “Do it. Just like you just pictured.” Her eyes looked like those of a siren, inviting him to comply.

Damian got lost into those eyes before continuing the kiss and using one of his hands to get rid of his pants. Naked and with his arousal finally free, Raven felt the fluster come back to her when the tip made contact with her skin.

He lifted her up in one quick swoop, making her legs lock around his waist and her arms rest on top of his shoulders, the tip now teasing her entrance. “You drive me crazy, witch girl.”

“Witch gi-” She was about to complain about the nickname when she felt the hard cock of Damian enter into her. She tightened the grip on his shoulders while moaning loudly, Damian growling along with her moan. Both of them adjusting to the sensation of such thickness inside her.

His hips started to move in and out of her, very gently until her furrowed eyebrows changed from pain to pleasure. He grinned at the sight of her expression changing, knowing he could go harder now.

The thrusts began to increase the speed, and with each thrust, Damian exhaled at the excruciating sensation of such a connection with her goddess.

As the speed increased, Raven’s breasts started to bounce in circle motions, giving Damian another stimulant on top of the way she moaned his name and her walls clenched around his cock.

“Fuck.” He grunted. His voice was deeper than usual. “Fuck, Raven.” He moaned.

He dipped his head into Raven’s neck, breathing into it while clenching his teeth.

The speed decreased, he wanted to do it harder. His hands held her by the waist so he could control her body and help her go deeper. The thrusts were now timed so he could used all of his strength and put it into each of them, the clapping sounds of their skins echoed with each of these controlled and dominant poundings. 

And then, once more he increased the speed. Raven was crying and moaning. The sensation was drowning.

“Damian, don’t stop.” She begged when she felt the friction in between their skins turn it red. It was something she didn’t expect to ask for. More of this surprisingly pleasant pain.

Dammit , the way he had her grabbed by the waist. So controlling, so hot .

Damian’s grip, just like his speed, increased. He was gonna leave marks there, but it was something that he found rather encouraging, knowing that beneath her clothes, she would have something that would tell she was all his .

Breathing into Raven’s ear, he nipped her earlobe while he moaned. Knowing he was close to reaching his peak. 

Raven felt his orgasm coming when their bonds once more were going like crazy. The feeling made them hold onto each other tighter as the spasms finally began again. 

She couldn’t help but scratch Damian’s back due to the sensation of his cum filling her up. He growled when he felt the scratch since it added more to his own climax. 

A moment of silence fell between them once the spasms started to dissipate and their moans had been silenced when gasping for air. 

Raven felt Damian’s forehead lay on her collarbone as he tried to catch his breath. Her finger started to gently stroke his hair while pecking kisses on it. “I forgive you for calling me witch girl. But fucking me like that won’t save you every time you piss me off.”

“Won’t it?” Damian asked, backing away from where he was resting his head to look at her. He smirked.

She blushed. “You can try.”

“I might piss you off more often then.” He teased and before she could answer anything he united their lips into another kiss, softer this time. He used this opportunity to get out of her, without putting her down yet, she let out a tiny gasp.

Raven broke the kiss and looked at his mesmerizing green eyes. “You know what? As much as I’d like to repeat this. I’ve got to go meet Constantine for training. I’m late.”

Damian pouted, and whimpered. He didn’t want her to go, not after what they had just done. He looked a bit pathetic, but cute nonetheless. “He’s probably never been on time to anything his whole life. He can wait a few more minutes.”

She scrunched her nose. “Think about it this way. The sooner I go, the sooner I’m free so you can do whatever you want with me.”

Damian arched an eyebrow. “That sounds like a course of action I can get behind, other than you of course.” His voice was sassy.

She flustered even more. “Let me go, boy wonder. I gotta go learn a thing or two.”

He chuckled with amusement while lowering her down. Her legs still trembling. “Get dressed. I would help you, but that will not help our goal.”

She rolled her eyes and got on the tip of her toes to give him a quick kiss. “I’ll see you there.” She snapped her fingers and a quick spell got her clothes on her again. 

As Raven walked out the door to the room Constantine was waiting for her at, Damian smiled stupidly, before picking up his clothes, sighing. How the hell did he manage to gain the affections of such an extraordinary woman?

Notes:

I'm sorry for not adding anything relevant to the plot with this one, but I was inspired and kept writing. It was gonna be a quick scene before further diving into the main storyline but I got inspired and kept going and going.

Hopefully you enjoyed this chap!

Chapter 19

Raven was trying to hold it together ever since she arrived late to the training session, Constantine would not shut up about it. As if he was the most on time person ever. Right.

He had been trying to light up one of his cigarettes for a minute straight. His hands were shaky, unassertive. His forehead was dripping sweat. And even though he was making fun of her for her tardiness, he looked like he was one inconvenience away from losing it.

Abstinence from the alcohol was not doing him good.

“I get it. I’m late.” Raven rolled her eyes while using her magic to light up the cigarette. She rather have him on her side than lose him to delusion over some booze. Or rather lack of it.

“I could’ve done that!” He took a big huff from the cigarette and proceeded to pinch the arch of his nose. “Where is-” He paused. “You know what? I’d rather not bloody ask.”

Raven smirked slightly, trying to hold back a giggle. She knew he was gonna ask about where Damian was but if he did it was like summoning a demon. 

The irony.

“So!” Her tone was cheerful. “Are we gonna try something different today?”

Constantine stopped pinching his nose and looked at her. “Someone’s chirpy today.” He pointed out. “I don’t do chirpy. Drop it, girlie.”

Raven rolled her eyes. “Are you gonna teach me or not?”

“Yeah, yeah. Today we’re gonna do… Exactly as we did yesterday.” Constantine gave her a fake grin. “Same drill. Demons, feed them black magic, you’re dead. Use white magic only. Feel free to try something that doesn’t get you as smashed as yesterday, love.”

Constantine snapped his fingers and the same demons as the day before appeared. He took another big huff from his cigarette right before the door from the room opened and Damian showed up. 

“Well, goodie. This must be my lucky day.” Constantine couldn’t care less if he used sarcasm around Damian or not. 

Damian was in such a good mood from last night’s and earlier’s events that he simply decided to reply with the same amount of sarcasm. “Considering the days you’ve had, I would agree with you.” He crossed his arms when he got to stand beside Constantine.

“You-” Constantine noticed that Damian wasn’t as aggressive as always, so he simply eyed him without really responding and continued to watch Raven’s exercise closely.

Raven on the other hand had a couple bad first test runs when fighting the demons, just like the day before. She kept going wrong on her magic, but something inside her told her how to start following her instincts to fight these beings. 

She looked at Damian who was watching her every move since he got there a few minutes ago. She felt a bit of fluster and blush covered her cheeks. So she remembered her encounters with him.

She was an empath right? Why not take advantage of her emotions?

All of those emotions, from the moment he called her habibti , to the moment he kissed her. They hugged. They slept close to each other. 

Their bond. Their peak.

And in that moment, finally. Improvement.

The demons finally were starting to get beat up. She went one by one. She didn’t know how but her magic was more powerful, and the demons were staying down, unlike the day before when they were feeding from her magic. 

Constantine took the ciggie out of his mouth and rubbed his eyes with his free hand. Seeing the improvement.

The demons were not completely unconscious when she finished, but they were mostly drowned of their energy so she could look over at where Constantine was, panting after her effort.

“Bloody hell, girlie!” He sounded surprised. Even a little, proud?

Damian was smirking, that one was proud for sure. He could see a little beam, sparking inside his queen’s eyes. He didn’t know exactly what it was, but whatever it had been, he was happy it had helped her.

“Was that okay?” She asked walking over to them, still catching her breath.

“Okay? That was something let me tell ya.” Constantine nodded in approval. “I saw your potential when I was inside that head of yours but I didn’t know you really had it in you! What did you do to improve so fast?” He wanted to know if she had cheated, or in case she had not, he wanted to know how to do it himself either way.

Raven blushed when remembering the real cause of her improvement. The thoughts of her encounter with Damian last night. She grabbed her chin and faked to be thinking about it. “Mmmm…”

Her bond accidentally revealed that to Damian, who’s cheeks blushed as well but whose face remained stoic. 

Constantine was too distracted taking another cigarette out of his pocket to light it up to notice those two blushing. “Well, whatever it was, keep it up and we'll have you ready to face big bad daddy in no time.”

Raven looked over at Damian slightly arching a brow, she was being a bit flirty. “Got it.” Damian blushed even further and looked away.

“Let’s do it a few more times, love. Even if that back there was better than before, you still need to practice.” Constantine glanced at the both of them, unsure of what had gotten into them, but chose to ignore them. He snapped his fingers. “Heads up.”

The demons were once again up and running, ready to face Raven. 

She winked at Damian right before walking back to where the demons were and started to face them once again, and again, and again. Damian was proud. Very proud. 

Some of the face downs she didn’t make it quite as well as that first one. Some of them she did. Some of them it was unclear, but Constantine still was demanding more from her. Raven was getting exhausted. 

Damian turned to Constantine who was unfaced. “Aren’t you gonna instruct her on anything? Praise or reprimand? What kind of mentor are you?”

Blowing a huff, Constantine pursed his lips. “Technically, I ain’t one, little bird. You forced me here, remember?” He took another cigarette out and offered it to Damian. “Ciggie?”

Damian scoffed and rolled his eyes right before using his sword to cut the cigarette in half with a swift movement. Constantine shrugged not giving two fucks about the rejection of his offering and decided to keep monitoring Raven’s training. 

She fell down onto her knees after one of the defeats. She was exhausted. At this point she had been training for at least four hours straight. Damian, who had been resting his back on one of the walls of the place, got up from it when he saw her fall.

“You need a break.” Damian spoke out loud. 

“I’m fine. I can go a few more rounds before a break.” She lifted one hand, stopping him from coming closer. When she looked at him, her four demon eyes appeared and her skin turned red, like a warning. He took a step back.

“Oooh. She bites.” Constantine teased. “But as much as I hate to do it, I, for one, agree with the little bird here. You're starting to rely on black magic, love. Give it a break.”

“Don’t call me love .” Her demonic voice echoed through the room, her shadow started to grow over her. 

Her demonic self was showing in a way Damian had never really seen in the outside world, only when he visited her mind and saw Rage lose control. Sure, he had seen her skin and eyes before, but never like this.

She truly was looking like a demon. The darkness of her raven shadow was filling the room. He had never been afraid of it, and now was not the exception, but right now something was off. Something made him feel they were not safe.

Damian frowned. She was losing control. Raven never loses control. “Constantine, what the hell?” He warned the warlock. This was clearly something to do with his so-called training.

“Bollocks.” Constantine cursed. “Breathe, girlie. You’re not this. You don’t wanna be. You’re more in control than a thousand other magic users I’ve encountered.”

Damian was clenching his jaw. He had no idea what was going on and he felt useless. Raven had a deadpan expression on her face. “What if I have always been?” Her magic made Constantine levitate and restrained him, squeezing his throat to leave him out of breath.

Damian was still unsure of what was going on, but still, he was not going to let Constantine die. Even if he wished it so. “Raven, let him go.”

“Shush, birdie.” Constantine struggled to get his words out. “She won’t hurt me. She’s just lost her balance momentarily. Exploiting this much white magic without letting out black magic can be dangerous to amateurs.”

“Who are you calling an amateur?” Her demonic voice pierced through Constantine’s ears and a bit through Damian’s. Her grip on Constantine’s throat was tightening.

“Noted. No calling you that .” He joked. “What I mean is that, you’re half demon, love.” Constantine was still gasping for air between words. “Maybe you need to balance out the black magic more often than other magic users. But it doesn't mean you’re this.”

“He is right.” Damian intervened, a soft voice coming out of him. Stepping closer, sword sheathed, without any fear in him. “You wouldn’t hurt him. As you wouldn’t hurt me.” Damian reached for her hand into the darkness of her shadow.

Raven felt Damian’s warm touch even if his hand seemed to get lost within the darkness. 

The shadow started to retract within itself, creating an air current inside the room. Constantine gasped for air as he felt how her gripped finally let go of his throat and in seconds she was back onto the floor, on her knees, no more red skin and her four red eyes were fading while she looked at the both of them.

“I- I’m sorry.” Her voice cracked. Damian was quick to be by her side, already embracing her into his arms and settling her head into his chest. “I just felt out of it, like my mood completely shifted and I was not in control anymore.”

She sniffed, hiding her face further into Damian’s chest. He was caressing her hair. Constantine was standing a couple feet from them. “That’s where I think you’re wrong, love. You were in control. Just not like you’d want.”

“Shut it.” Damian glared at him. It was not the time to debate about the subject.

“Wait, what do you mean?” Raven wiped a few of the tears that had streamed down her face and turned to look at him.

Constantine put his hands inside the pockets of his trench coat. “Am I the only one that noticed a familiar face just now? When I was being choked out? Huh?” 

“Rage.” Damian intervened. He thought about it when he saw Raven shift. He looked down at Raven. “Rage was in control.”

“Apple doesn’t fall down far from the tree.” Constantine teased about his detective skills winking at Damian, who rolled his eyes back. “Birdie is right. Rage took control. I mean, you were in control, just not who you’re used to handing the control to. She’s the representation of your demon half, innit? She must have felt pushed away because of all the use of white magic and wanted to make a statement.”

“She felt jealous?” Raven snorted. “That’s ridiculous. I would never-”

“Raven.” Damian called softly. She looked at him. He had talked to Rage during his visit to Raven’s mind, he knew how secluded she was in there, how isolated she must have felt.

Raven scoffed, getting away from Damian. A little part of her had always denied her demon half, stored it deeply inside her in order to try and be a normal Azarian and then a normal human. “Rage shouldn’t have done that, that’s all.” She got up from where she was still kneeling down. “I think I need that break now.”

She walked over to the door and once again slammed it after walking through it. 

“Is she gonna slam the door every time we finish training? Orchid is gonna kill me.” Constantine complained. 

Damian ignored his comment completely, he was just trying to figure out what was going on inside her beloved’s head. Her thoughts.

“Do they always take turns?” Damian asked bluntly.

“What on earth are you talking about now, birdie?” Constantine frowned while walking over to the door, opening it and entering a room that looked like a billiard room. He must be really looking for ways to pass the time without booze.

Damian was following closely. “I mean, her personalities. The ones that I met. I never thought about it until I saw Rage take over her just now. Do they always take turns in taking over her? Are they not as obvious as rage?” Damian questioned. It was something he’d never had to look for since he didn’t know her personalities existed.

Constantine was arranging the billiard balls without really paying much attention to Damian. “Oh birdie, that’s such an interesting question. Let me think.” He took a cue stick and started rubbing it with chalk while humming. “Got it!” He faked realization. “Of course I’ve got no bloody clue! Why don’t you go and ask her and leave me alone.”

Damian glared at Constantine while he took a quick glance at the game and smirked. “Fine. You may not know a lot about that. But you do know about the magic you are helping her control and learn. If I beat you, I want you to tell me everything, down to the last detail. Even the risks.” He pointed at the game while taking a cue stick just like Constantine.

Constantine gave a comical and sarcastic laugh. “I’ve played with actual demons to keep my soul. Do you think I’ll play with you if I know I’ll win that easily?” His eyes were defying Damian.

“Then let’s make it more interesting then. If you beat me, I’ll request Orchid to allow alcohol back into the House.” Constantine’s eyes widened but Damian held a hand up. “In moderate and very little quantities.”

Constantine didn’t have to think about it twice. “Deal. I’ll even let you break the balls up.”

Damian smirked. “Foolish of you.” He remarked right before bending over the table and positioning his cue stick to target the white ball. He shot it at the rest of the balls making a perfect break and pocketing a couple of them. 

He smirked and continued to hit the balls, pocketing a couple more before missing his fifth. Constantine was biting the inner part of his cheek when he saw how good Damian was. Of course he should be, he was a fucking brat. He would know that kind of game. 

“Thanks for leaving something for the rest of us.” He joked. “I guess.” That last part he muttered to himself a bit grumpy. 

He positioned himself just like Damian did before, bending over the table. He realized how differently it was to play when completely sober. He was not stumbling to focus on the targets. However, he was not used to that.

He missed.

“You’ve got to be bloody kidding me!” He yelled, moving his arms with the stick dangerously attempting to poke Damian’s eye out.

“Watch it.” He warned Constantine. “I thought you’d be better at this than just fumbling like that.”

“Yeah, well, I used to do this drunk. It looks different now.” Constantine crossed his arms over his chest.

“What a sorry excuse.” Damian sighed and bent over once again. His eyes could pierce the balls if they wanted to, his eyesight was penetrating.

He started to pocket all of the rest of the balls, he was merely playing before. He wanted it to be over now, so he won quickly and fair. Once he was down to the last ball, he pocketed it while looking right into Constantine’s eyes. Not even looking into the ball’s direction.

“Show-off.” Constantine scoffed. He took a cigarette out and went over to some cushioned chairs that were in the room, letting himself fall into one of them. “So, what do you want to know, brat?”

Damian still had the stick on his hand, he placed one of his hands on his hip and arched an eyebrow. “That’s it?”

“Hey, I’m many things, but I keep my word.” He inhaled a big huff and looked at him. His hand was twitching, almost as if it was used to also holding something while on that chair. Perhaps a glass filled with whiskey to which he no longer had access to. Damian guessed.

“Very well.” Damian left the stick on top of the billiard table and walked over to the chairs, sitting on the one that was in front of Constantine. “I know the M.O. when I see it. My father often abuses it. You don’t want to tell us everything unless it is absolutely necessary. What is it?”

Constantine sighed, taking out the artifact he showed Damian and Raven earlier. With the yin and yang. “You know? You seem to hate your daddy’s practices but only when they’re not convenient for you.”

“Get to the point.” Damian frowned.

“I know, I know. Hit a rough spot.” He inhaled the last huff of his ciggie before putting it out into the ashtray. “Look, birdie. I know that for your girl to defeat big bad daddy she needs one of two options. Either she eliminates him for good, which is not good for the soul, or she goes for an alternative that does not consume her vital functions like the crystal on her forehead is currently doing. You with me so far?”

Damian nodded, understanding every word but staying silent to allow him to continue.

“Good. So, since we’re going for the second option. The spell to contain Trigon is complicated to say the least. Killing is easy, but making sure that someone like him gets trapped for all eternity it’s tricky, you know what I mean?” He sighed while toying with the artifact before throwing it at Damian, who caught it easily and without hesitation. “What do you see there?”

Damian looked down at the artifact. He was able to detail it more thoroughly now that he had it in his hand. The black and white colors from within the yin and yang were jewels of their own, a black and a white sapphire.

“It’s detailed. Congratulations to the artist on such defined work.” He looked back at Constantine. “But I’m sure that the fine jewels are not what you want me to see.”

“Snob.” Constantine made a disgusted sound. “But actually, it is the details of the jewels that make each part of the balance. Without them, the yin nor the yang are complete. Can you tell me why that is?”

Flicking the artifact, Damian laid back into the chair. “I do know that answer. I thought I answered it yesterday. Balance, light in the dark, dark in the light.”

“I’m so regretting bringing you here.” Constantine grinded his teeth. “When we got here I knew we needed to help our girlie with the control of her magic in order to cast the spell that is gonna lock down her father. My magic is not as powerful or as effective as hers. She’s his daughter, the very source. I just didn’t know how we would make her that powerful without increasing her daddy’s chances in the process.” He paused with a bit of frustration and then relief. “ But , I figured it out just now when she lost it, birdie. Let’s recap, shall we?” 

He snapped his fingers. A magic projection of a much bigger yin and yang appeared before them, Damian was paying attention. 

The big black part got bigger and started to shape shift. “The yin. The darkness, evil. Yadda, yadda, yadda. We know the drill. This is Trigon.” Then, the big white part, the yang, started to shift as well. “The yang. The light, good. Who is this, little bird?” He mocked Damian and smirked, Damian was not amused, he was scowling.

“We went over this already.” Damian was frustrated, he got up from his seat. “Yes, she is the light, he is the dark.”

“You’re missing something.” Constantine pointed at the little black and white dots they had not acknowledged yet. The ones inside both the yin and the yang. “I told you I figured it out. At first I thought she needed to just use white magic to neutralize her father’s magic but, I guess we just saw the consequences of her using just one side of herself…”

“Her demon side comes out. Like an instinct reclaiming its territory.” Damian grabbed his chin thinking about it.

“That’s what the dark dot inside her is. The demon side. That is the balance, she needs to accept it. That’s her ticket to unlock her true potential as a magic user. If she accepts every single part of herself, she will be able to use her magic as she pleases without any fear of losing control to her own self.” Constantine looked as if he had just made an hypothetical mic-drop. 

Damian was still analyzing every single word Constantine had just said. He liked having all of the information so he could make informed decisions with it. 

He looked over at the warlock, who was still waiting for some kind of congratulation or at least an acknowledgment. “My father was right about you.”

Constantine’s face changed. His eyes widened. “Right about me? What does that mean? What the hell has Batsy said about me?”

“Let’s stay focused.” Damian ignored his inquiries. “If that is what the balance means for Raven. Acceptance.” Damian pointed to the black dot inside the yang. “What does that mean?” He then pointed at the white dot inside the yin, where Trigon was. 

Constantine calmed down and thought about the question for a few seconds. “Hopefully, you can get that answer from her yourself.” He snapped his fingers and the door from where they came from started to glow. “Yeah, I knew from the moment you won that you were gonna tell her whatever I told you, you smoochy wanker.”

Damian didn’t answer and simply walked over to the door. “You better be right about her magic. She trusts you even when I don’t.” He left through the door and Constantine stood there, thinking about his words.

-

“ I mean, it makes sense. More sense than the stupid jealousy theory you had about Rage .” Raven was talking through the door, the water running in the shower was muffling her voice. She still sounded mad about it.

Damian was waiting outside the bathroom door, he had walked into her room when she was meditating. But she was still so mad that she decided to go inside the bathroom and take a shower. That’s when Damian decided to tell her about what he discussed with Constantine while he waited outside.

“We never said the word jealousy.” He muttered to himself, like he wanted to talk back to her. Besides, it was Constantine the one who suggested it.

“ What was that?” Raven asked from the shower.

“I’m just asking if you have any idea what might balance out your father according to Constantine?” Damian spoke loudly this time, changing the subject.

The water stopped running and after a minute of silence the door of the bathroom opened. Raven came out of it with just a towel covering her body. Damian blushed and looked away.

She had a brush in her hand and took a seat on the edge of the bed while combing her hair. “Well, if the balance is supposed to be the light inside the darkness. Maybe it’s the part of my father that even if he’s a terrible genocide, he still cares about me-ish.” Raven shrugged. “Even terrible fathers care about their kids.”

Damian sighed heavily. “Personally, I would not consider anything your father does as a kind act. But I do trust your judgment.” Damian settles back into the wall he was next to. His arms crossed while facing Raven, he was trying to figure out what was behind her thoughts. “Something else is on your mind.”

Raven had dissociated while combing her hair. She let out a tiny gasp when she heard Damian. “I know what you must think of me.” She got rid of the hair brush, placing it on the nightstand. “That I’m weak for not accepting all of myself. I know I should have addressed it or meditated about it a long time ago, but..”

“Raven.” He stopped her. “You’re one of the strongest people I know. And even if I believe so, I’m not here to judge you. I’m here to support you.” 

Damian walks over to the bed and kneels in front of Raven, looking up at her like to demonstrate just how devoted he is to her. She looks down and locks her fingers to his hair. “I know I’m a demon. Or at least half of one. But I think I’ve always been afraid of truly accepting that because it would mean I’m just like him.”

He placed his hands on Raven’s thighs, clutching them. “Legacies are something I’m quite familiar with. The expectations, the burden, the desire to leave it all behind and be your own self without your supposed birthright getting in the way.” One of his hands lifted from her thighs and searched for her face. “Accepting who you are has nothing to do with any of that. What’s important is that you are at peace with that.”

She leans into his touch. “I’ve always been so grateful to have you as part of my life. You’ve always been so accepting of me. Even when you first arrived at the tower. You were cold, but because that’s how you behave with everyone. You treated me like you treated everyone else. You were not awkward nor afraid.”

Damian bit back a smile and kissed her thigh. “Not anymore I’m afraid.”

“I’m glad.” She smirks. “I like our new system.” A subtle tilt of her head as she said this. Teasing.

“Is that right?” Damian smirked back. The hand that he still had on her thigh started to move up and down, sending shivers down her spine. “I must confess, I’m very fond of our new system too.”

“If I’m honest. I thought you’d never do it. Correspond my feelings, I mean. And kissing me, I was truly surprised when you did it.” She was joking, of course, but she enjoyed bewildering Damian.

He stood up from where he was kneeling and placed his hands on each side of Raven, approaching her face, predatorily. “If I remember correctly, there were two of us with unspoken feelings in this circumstance, you could’ve just kiss me first, habibti .” 

Her heart fluttered with the way he said her nickname. “Fine, you win this round, on one condition.” Both of their eyes were locked into the others.

“Let’s hear it and I’ll consider it.” He spoke softly, their noses touching.

“You accept I was the one to confess first.” She arched an eyebrow, waiting patiently for his answer.

Damian frowned slightly, thinking about it. “Just because you opened up the conversation that day, I’m going to give it to you. But for the record, we did confess at the same time.”

“Technicalities.” She rolled her eyes right before pulling Damian into a soft and gentle kiss with her.

He sighed as he felt Raven’s neck pull him in but didn’t protest at all. They both needed that kiss desperately.

Raven paused the kiss slightly. “You know what? I just remembered that Constantine suggested that whatever I did to improve my powers I should keep it up. Maybe we could-”

“Magic is not my specialty, but if it helps. Of course I will do to you whatever you wish me to.” Damian traced Raven’s jaw with tiny smooches. She shut her eyes closed due to the sensation his lips caused on her skin.

“Mmmm.” She hummed. “Actually, I was thinking of returning the favor.” Her hand rubbing up and down Damian’s arm, his sleeveless top allowing her to really take in how much she appreciated his fit body.

Damian cut his smooches and looked at her. “Oh?” He was caught off guard. “What do you have in mind?”

She bit her lip. “Take off your clothes. Lay on your stomach on the bed and don’t peek.” There was a playfulness to her instruction.

He didn’t protest at all and did as he was told, stepping back from the bed to first get rid of his sleeveless top, giving Raven an astounding view of his body. The way his shoulders were getting bigger each time she got the opportunity to appreciate them up close. The tiny scars he had spreaded across his skin, whether his chest, abdomen or arms, even on his back. The defined muscles on each part she was admiring. And a new, subtle, growing happy trail she hadn’t noticed before. Probably because he might’ve not had one before.

He went on to get rid of his pants, and even though he was the one standing nude in front of her, she was the one that blushed and looked away. The size of his cock was still something she was getting used to and might never cease to impress her.

As instructed, he laid down on his stomach and awaited further instructions from his beloved goddess. 

After he finally laid down, she got up from where she was sitting and got rid from her towel, throwing it far away. “No peeking.” She reminded him. He was unsure of what was going on.

Raven climbed over the bed to get on top of him. She was so tiny compared to him. Her legs on each side of Damian’s and her crotch settled nicely on top of his ass. Damian flustered as soon as he felt Raven’s warm skin make contact with his. 

“First, a little treat.” Her hands were trailing up and down Damian’s back. It was huge. Her words made Damian have goosebumps all over his body.

The view she was getting from where she was sitting at the moment was like admiring a work of art. She bent forward to kiss Damian’s neck, nipping and biting at it every so often with spaced timing. She wanted him to enjoy it.

Damian on the other hand closed his eyes and breathed heavily, moving Raven’s body on top of him as his body heaved. She got up from kissing his neck and while still massaging his body, her lips started to trail his back. Her warm breath and the fact he could feel her wetness dripping right onto his skin was driving him over the edge.

“Raven…” He spoke softly, almost into a moan.

“I know.” She smirked. “Turn over and don’t move. I’m not done with you yet.”

He clenched his fists when he heard that. He wanted to dive right into pleasuring her. As she stood up to allow him to turn over, he turned and peeked at her naked body. 

He gulped.

She came back into bed crawling and grasping with the tip of her fingers the thighs of Damian, finding her way over to his crotch to play a few moments with his balls before taking a firm grip on Damian’s cock. He threw his head back, clenching his jaw before looking down again.

Raven smiled as they connected their eyes. She started to rub up and down gently before her face approached and gave a few kisses on the top. “Dammit, witch girl.” He moaned, crumbling with just a mild action.

“Witch girl, huh?” She used her tongue to trace the length. “You’ll have to make it up to me.” She continued to tease without really eating him completely. “And don’t move.”

Damian wanted to argue back when she suddenly gobbled his thickness in one single gorge. He whimpered.

She found it encouraging to see him like that, receiving instead of providing pleasure. She felt her own clitoris start to throb with that sight of him. So while she kept eating him, she used one of her hands to touch herself.

Damian’s arousal grew bigger when he realized what Raven was doing to herself while also eating him out. 

“Fuck.” He moaned. He wanted to be the one providing that release but it was so hot seeing her enjoy this like she was doing. 

The way he moaned made her tremble. She was starting to go deeper with such encouragement. Even if she’d never do this before, she could feel letting herself loose to take in more just by his moans. 

“ Say my name .” She moaned into their bond. 

As soon as Damian heard her inside his head he felt his orgasm coming. “Raven.” He moaned, clenching his whole body. “ Al’ama , Raven!” He cursed in Arabic as he felt his release starting. 

Raven stopped her own pleasure to welcome Damian’s release into her mouth. She never thought something like that would taste so right. She gladly enjoyed it after the first impression and smiled, liking her lips before crawling on top of him.

She kissed his jaw. “You can move now.” A subtle whisper but the permission Damian needed to grab her by the waist and neck, pulling her into a desperate kiss, tasting himself.

He was clutching into her skin, leaving them both out of breath due to the kiss. “You drive me crazy.” He mumbled in between kisses.

On a swift movement with the hand he had on her waist, he lifted her to position her on top of him. More specifically, on top of his face.

She barely had time to process how she got there, or balance herself once in that position when Damian had already begun eating her clit out desperately, fiercely. Sloppy strokes all over her crotch while his hands squeezed her ass with lust.

Her moans were now the ones flooding the room. Her hips instinctively moving on top of him, grinding hard as she felt the release of her own orgasm too close as she had worked on herself prior to his blessed tongue taking care of her.

In a couple of minutes, her whole body began shivering. Her legs were weak and her whole body covered in goosebumps. Her orgasm like an electric shock left her in a limbo for a few seconds while Damian continued his sloppy strokes through her orgasm to make it last as long as it could.

Once she was finally done, she fumbled on top of him. He lifted her with a chuckle as he was out of air with her ass on his face. Not that he minded.

“Oh, habibti . If you are ever to assassinate me. Please do so like you just attempted.” He placed her on top of his lap smirking. Tracing tiny circles on her back. 

She blushed and cradled his face. “Believe me, if I tried, I’d be too pleased to actually assassinate you.”

He let himself fall back to the bed still holding her close. Smiling goofily as if he had been  hypnotized by her. She was playing with his hair, twirling her fingers around it. He was purring with her touch, snuggling closer to her.

She found that behavior of his quite cute and endearing.

“Do you think I’ll actually get to the point Constantine wants me to be with my magic before he teaches me the spell?” She questioned out of nowhere, her mind was distracted. “Do you think I’ll accept myself enough to fulfill my duty?”

Damian’s attitude shifted and turnt more serious to think about the answers he wanted to provide. “I have never doubted your power.” He took her hand, intertwining their fingers. “But more importantly, I have never doubted you. You are truly a unique, resilient and unprecedented woman. I don’t doubt you will get to a place of acceptance of yourself. And I vow to help you achieve it.” His eyes were full of determination.

With those words Raven felt a hint of hope and something more. She was now sure of what she felt but she needed to wait. It was not time, not yet. 

“I guess, for now, I gotta keep training and working on myself.” Raven made Damian snuggle back onto her. “And I know. I’ve always known, boy wonder.” Her last words were soft, in a whisper, before they fell back into a comfortable silence. 

They didn’t need to say anything further and stayed cuddled into each other’s arms, listening to the sound of their breaths and the thumping of their hearts until little by little they fell asleep once more.

-

A room with barely any light in it. Surrounded by mirrors, she started to walk to the center of it, blindly.

The light became more and more bright as she approached the center, allowing her to actually perceive what the reflections offered. It was her.

Raven’s expression frowned as the mirror in the center showed her own self covered in clothes resembling her own but in a bright white color. She turned around to admire all of her outfit as she’s never owned any like that, but she remembered seeing it before.

Where?

As she turned to take a good look, she realized the other mirrors were reflecting herself as well, only those reflections held different versions of her.

Her personalities, her emoticlones. Happiness, Timidity, Bravery, Rudeness, Knowledge, Love, Sloth, Rage. All of them looking at her.

She analyzed them. Why were those reflections not copying her actions? Why was her only true reflection the one covered in white?

“We are you.” One of them said.

“You are us.” Another one added.

“We can’t be us without you.” A third one intervened.

“And you can’t be you without us.” A fourth one concluded.

Raven frowned, turning every time one of them spoke. “I know. I know that.”

“You don’t.” A fifth voice replied. 

“You use us at your convenience.” The voices were melting with one another at this point.

“And hide us when we are not required or accepted.” Raven was covering her ears right now, overwhelmed by the voices.

“You need to accept us.” A final voice was heard before everyone spoke as one.

“Or we will not be able to help.” The voices were deafening.

She felt a sharp pain in her eardrums. Tears streamed down her face as she felt the sound was too loud to handle until she completely faded out.

Notes:

Sooo, yeah. We're getting closer to the end of this fic, the climax is approaching since Damian, Constantine and Raven are connecting the dots and finding the answers they needed.

However, I'm thinking of this becoming a series. Maybe my next work being focused on Damian facing a challenge instead of Raven, what do you think?

Let me know<3

Chapter 20

Notes:

TW: Time jump lol

Also, please note that I didn't originally know I'd take this direction in order to get to this point of the plot so, I'll update some of the tags too, so...

Another TW: mild dissociative identity disorder

The following months inside the timeless House, Raven had immersed herself in an intense training routine that consisted on ignoring her dream, not talking about it, pushing herself to the limit during the rough sessions Constantine put her through and, of course, taking out her frustrations with the help of Damian’s understanding, support, and…abilities.

Ever since that night where she had envisioned her other selves letting her know what she had to do in order to achieve her true potential, the frustration within her kept growing exponentially because she knew what she had to do each time a training session ended up in failure.

“You had been doing so well this week, love. What’s the matter now?”

Constantine would try to inquire when he would notice her aura decading at certain times, but that would only add to her frustration.

Damian had not been an exception at expressing his concerns either. He had been constantly the one to make Raven open up about her own deep thoughts ever since he sensed something shifted within her and he felt it through their bond.

Nonetheless, he never pushed it. 

Especially since his attempts in having a conversation about the subject tended to end in… other affairs.

Oh yes. Their encounters started to increase as part of their routine. He either wanted to start a conversation as part of his worry for Raven’s well being or Raven would just look for immediate comfort into Damian’s embrace after a bad training session with Constantine.

However, all of these ups and downs that were going on for months in advance and were mildly ignored by Damian could only last for so long since they were also accompanied by suspicious changes in mood and attitude within hours or even minutes in between one another.

It was like that first time when they saw Rage take over her during the training session, but it had been becoming more frequent and more random. 

At first, they were not suspicious at all, since her emotions were always on check since the meditation helped her to keep them under control. But afterwards, they started to notice a pattern of changes.

It would be normal human emotions shifting so they wouldn’t suspect at all. She would go from happy to annoyed when something wouldn’t go her way, or from training mildly good to making a mistake and then burst into an apologetic rant.

The real breaking point for both Constantine and Damian to wonder what was going on with Raven was of course, when she started to jump from one emotion to another without a reason and talking nonsense. 

Mentioning topics that had nothing to do with the one at hand.

Two days prior, Constantine had been eating a classic British breakfast while Damian prepared some nutritious meal for both Raven and himself after his daily morning training  while she sat on a stool and read a book.

They were all in complete silence, each minding their own business when suddenly Raven bursted into tears and an apologetic and gloomy look in her eyes, looking at Constantine with guilt built into her eyes.

“I’m sorry. I know I’ve been rude, and mean, and I need to do better, and I know I can’t because I-” There was a pause that both Damian and Constantine waited with eagerness and worry. “ What? What are you looking at?”

Raven asked either with total nonchalance or completely unaware of what had just happened a few seconds ago.

Constantine and Damian shared a knowing look. Something had to be done and they can no longer wait until this progressed to something that was unfixable or they couldn’t deal with.

-

“I think it’s her own personalities manifesting outside her own mind. Gaining control of her for a few seconds.” Damian stated while watching Constanting pace back and forth in the little sunroom which contained pots with plants he had started to grow over the past few weeks. A hobby he had found quite relaxing, or at least that’s what he used to say to avoid talking about his alcohol deprivation.

“No shit, birdie.” Constantine scoffs, his tone less sarcastic than usual. “More than manifesting, they’re actually pushing her inside her own self. She had an absence of memory just back there. They used to share control or be conscious of one another, but they’re starting to grow stronger. The question is why?”

Damian stands there pondering Constantine's remarks. “I might have an idea.”

“Well, I’m all ears.” Constantine crossed his arms.

“She’s been hiding something.” Damian states. “I know she had a dream that had to do with her personalities and her true potential. I felt it. Maybe it’s starting to take a toll.”

“Yeah, yeah. Your bond and all that. But what was it about?” He urges Damian to continue.

Damian sighs filled with frustration. “I haven’t been able to get it out of her.”

“What?” Constantine grumbles. “Alright. So this dream, how long ago did it happen? Has it happened again? Maybe if we trace the pattern of frequency I can capture it so I can examine it and-” He was ranting about possible solutions. Alcohol free life had definitely benefited him.

Damian interrupted him. “It happened almost eleven months ago.” He bluntly stated.

“Are- you- shitting me?! ” Constantine yelled while spitting and lifting both arms in the air. Even Damian knew this wasn’t his best moment, probably ever. “What in the bloody-?! Are you taking the fucking piss?!”

“That’s enough.” Damian stopped Constantine by putting a hand up. He knew he might’ve pushed it too far with keeping this from him this long, but after letting some steam out, they needed to get back to work. “What matters now is how we are gonna resolve this. So get it together. I admit, it was not my fairest decision. However, I still will not allow you to jeopardize Raven’s wellbeing.”

“And what do you think you’ve been doing for the past eleven months, mate? Taking her on a spa retreat?” Constantine spits and Damian clenches his fists, angry that unfortunately he is right.

He took a deep breath. “Just. Move. On.” He warned with grinning teeth.

“Not so easy to be the one to mess up, is it?” Constantine points out with a cocky tone before cupping his hand to his chin and thinking. “This dream of hers, what did you feel?”

Damian unclenches his fist before answering. “As if I was drowning in a sea of emotions. I couldn’t decide which one to feel. They were all trying to take the spotlight one after the other but-” He pauses, trying to explain the sensation. “It wasn’t because they were aggressive about it, it was more because they wanted to be heard. Like they wanted to transmit a message.” 

“A message she must have heard and probably buried deep, deep into the most forgotten parts of her own self, surely.” Constantine adds. “Whatever she dreamt, she knows the message. You only felt what she saw and experienced. But she had an entire conversation and engagement about something.”

One heavy sigh left Damian’s lungs. “Then I need to get it out of her.”

“And are you sure you can? Because it seems to me you’ve failed to achieve just that for quite some time.” Constantine said almost in a scolding way.

Damian raised one eyebrow with curiosity about this new found attitude of his. “I know I can. I just needed to be sure I needed to push her into doing something he refuses to do. It’s not right and it was my last resort.” He sighs while running a hand through his hair. 

“You used to be so cold hearted, that this consideration is kind of- disturbing. But either way, birdie, our girlie is much stronger than you are giving her credit for. And you knew that way before I did.” Constantine points out. “Don’t let your dick think for you, mate. At least not in this situation. And also, for the millionth time, not when you’re in the kitchen!” His tone was kind of fatherly until that last sentence where his personality stood out.

It had been a time now since Constantine had found out about the ‘demon birds’, as he liked to call them, extracurricular activities.

Damian remained stoic, but in some odd way, he appreciated Constantine’s insight although he would not reveal that. “I will let you know whatever intel I gather from her dream.” That’s all he had to say in response to his comment.

He started to walk back into the main part of the House in order to head back to the library. Raven had found that room to be his favorite in the House when she was not training or ‘exercising’ with Damian. 

Constantine’s voice made him stop momentarily. “You gotta remember if you’re doing this for her sake or yours, birdie. Because the way you’re heading, it’s for none.”

Damian looked over his shoulder for the split of a second before actually entering the House to find Raven. He sighed.

It was rare and definitely eerie when Constantine was right once, and even more so twice in one day. 

-

Raven had been reading a book about a woman that gets lost in the woods and finds herself buried in a difficult position, escaping out of a serial killer to a magical realm never to be seen again or face him with little chances of surviving but the promise of making it home if she does. 

Or at least, that’s what she had told Damian the night before. 

She had described the book as an emerald green hardcover book with golden trees in the back and somber trees on the front. 

When Damian stepped into the library, Raven was seated down on a couch with her legs up to her chest while she flipped the pages of the book. However, this book was a new one, or rather, an old one she had read previously, and completely different to the one she described the night before.

This one was almost a pocket sized book, the image on the cover was simply a bird and a map on the water, probably the sea. One she had also told him about a couple of months ago about a boy that can turn into a bird and sneaks into pirate boats trying to discover the mysteries of the sea.

Damian frowned, but assumed she finished the other book and decided to re-read one of the ones she liked before. So he took a seat on the couch, almost snuggling up to her. She smiled without really looking up from the book.

“How much did he lose now?” Raven asked while flipping the page of her book.

She knew it had become a habit of Damian to, every now and then, play a game or two of billiards with Constantine. A sporty way of getting their frustrations out. Mostly Damian’s. What she didn’t know, was that the game served as opportunities to talk about Raven’s progresses and setbacks as well.

“Twenty-four hours without cigarettes.” Damian answered with amusement before resting his chin on his beloved shoulder.

Raven chuckled devilishly before gently using one of her hands to caress Damian’s hair. “I’m almost done with this chapter.”

“Take your time.” He answered, enjoying the gentleness of her affections and letting out a sigh. Damian liked the comfortable silence they sometimes indulged in. It was comforting and very calming. 

After a few minutes of them being in complete silence. Raven closed her book and set it aside on a coffee table that was close to her. 

Damian was the first to speak. “You wanted to give it another read? Must be a good book.” He embraced Raven tighter by the waist now that she was done.

Raven accepted the embrace with a smile until she processed his words. “What do you mean?” Her eyebrows furrowed with curiosity.

“What do you mean ‘what do I mean’?” Damian lifted his chin up from her shoulder and looked into her eyes with dubiousness. 

“You said I wanted to read it again. Damian, this is my first time reading this book.” She explains as if it was obvious.

Damian huffs. “Isn’t this one about the boy who turns into a bird and travels into boats?” He inquires.

Raven is taken aback by his insight about the book and nods with uncertainty. “It is…? How did you know?”

“Because you told me? Two months ago you read it for the first time and then-” Damian stops in his tracks when he starts concluding what just happened.

Raven raises an eyebrow. “Hello? Why are you saying I already read it?” She asks Damian since he suddenly stopped his rant. Damian ignored all that Raven was saying at the moment. His mind was racing trying to connect the dots at the moment. 

She had no memory of reading that book because she was not the one reading it at the time. Just like at breakfast with Constantine, one of her personalities took over and did something for her without really letting her recall anything about the event.

How long had this actually been going on? And most importantly, why ?

“Damian!” A sudden snap from Raven made Damian come back to reality and look at her. However, he didn’t answer immediately.

He was examining her. Was she Raven? Was she one of her fractionated selves? Could he tell her about what was going on? If it was one of her personalities would it be better to talk to her than Raven to get the message he and Constantine were talking about across or not?

So many questions. But he decided to go for something that would let him know who she was. Or rather, what emotion was she.

“Damian?” Raven asked again when in a sudden movement Damian leaned in to cup her cheek with his hand and capture her lips in a sudden, passionate and loving kiss that didn’t last quite long.

He broke the kiss before it could escalate and he looked directly at Raven, expecting her reaction. Her emotion .

Raven was looking at Damian with surprised yet measured eyes, unsure of what that sudden surge of affection was and why his expectant eyes were analyzing her so intently. 

“I usually don’t mind those lips of yours, but why did they stop? And why are you looking at me like that?” She questioned with the same amount of flirtation as she did with caution to assess his intentions.

Damian could see she was not Love nor Happiness since she was quite composed. Rage was out of the question as well since her reaction had not been a disrupted one. Sloth and Rudeness were never included into this since they tend to be too untroubled to get involved into this.

Two options remained aside from the main one, of course. Brave and Knowledge. 

The questions she pondered after the kiss were both incredibly brave but also insightful. Brave, even though not a fearful one, she’s also not a reckless one. She might as well be assessing the situation just like any of the other Raven’s would. However, Knowledge might be too pondering what that was about even if she had a soft spot for Damian as well.

If Brave, she would not feel any kind of fear nor embarrassment to anything he said unlike Knowledge. If not, only two options would remain. He knew he had to ask something that might cause an embarrassing reaction on her, even a subtle one like a tinted pink on her cheeks.

“ Habibti , I merely wanted to point out how deeply captivating and mesmerizing are your eyes while you concentrate on such an ordinary task like reading a book.” Without having to utter any kind of lie, he smiles at her while waiting for her reaction.

And there, a bright pink shade starts tinting Raven’s cheeks. Embarrassment, so not Brave.

Either Knowledge or the main, everyday Raven was in front of him.

“That’s-” She clears her throat. “Quite the compliment and very sudden too.” She smiles while looking down for a second to regain her composure. “Thank you.”

Damian decided to test the quickness to which her logical thinking would act if a random puzzle was asked to her suddenly. Her time response would give her away. “Can you tell me the smallest even four-digit number written with four different digits?” He inquired right before analyzing every single inch of her face waiting for her reaction.

Raven was taken aback by the sudden question, she raised an eyebrow in confusion of his attitude but she answered without too much hesitation. “One thousand and twenty four.”

“Knowledge.” Damian uttered while slightly frowning. She, on the other hand, sighed with defeat.

“Clever.” Knowledge smiled. “How long have you known?”

Damian shook his head. “No, you are not evading questions while refocusing my own attention.”

Knowledge huffed with a smirk. “Worth a try.” She laid back onto the couch. “Well, what do you wanna know?”

He kept a close eye on her every move. “Why are you taking over her?”

She scoffed with amusement. “Damian, I’m not Love, but I found your logical reasoning quite attractive for a reason. Try again.”

Damian felt his jaw clench. She was right, he was not thinking as logically. He took a deep breath while gathering his thoughts. “It began with Rage, didn’t it?”

“Good. You’re not as far off as you seemed.” Knowledge praised. “What else?”

The way his thoughts kept going back and forth to try and decipher clues was piercing and almost a mystery on its own. “How are you managing to remain so long in control of her and not make her remember stuff?”

She hummed, intrigued by the question. “I only have a partial answer. Does it work?” Damian nodded in confirmation. “Well, we started to take control once she started to lose focus, after the night she had a dream. How she forgets stuff beats me. We are all pretty unaware of the gaps in time if another one takes over forcefully.”

“That night she had a dream. What was it about?” He asked, still lingering on the first piece of information she shared.

Knowledge sighed and looked down to her hands. “About her. Us. All of us.”

“I figured. She used our bond. It made me feel...” He states.

“Made you feel what?” Knowledge inquires with curiosity.

Damian huffs. “That’s it. It made me feel. A lot at once. Fear, happiness, anger, passion, everything.” His face stoic as he recalls that night, waking up with a turmoil inside him. Emotions driving him insane, not knowing what to feel.

“Interesting.” Knowledge hums as he reviews the situation. “Maybe that’s why she hasn’t accepted it either.”

This comment catches Damian’s attention. “Accept what? What happened in that dream?” A slight increase in his voice as he spoke. 

Knowledge sensed the slight tension Damian was starting to accumulate so she decided to give in. “Alright. I’ll tell you.” She sighed. “All of us already knew what needed to be done in order for us to unlock her true potential. So we decided to ambush her in her dreams, let her know what is necessary for her to really be able to achieve the goal she has set for herself.”

“Go on.” Damian urged with a calm but cold voice.

“She needs to accept us. All of us.” Knowledge explained. “And she really has to mean it. No half acceptance or reluctance. She needs to take us in as we are. With some of us she can deal with, but with others…” She can’t quite finish the sentence but Damian nods, understanding who she means.

“So what you said just now, about me feeling it all. She felt that too? That’s why she hasn’t accepted you yet?” Damian inquired with a raised eyebrow.

Knowledge hums. “That is the logical explanation, yes.” She looks at Damian squinting her eyes. “But I’m her logical part. You seem to know her as a whole. What do you think?”

Damian started to bury himself within his own thoughts. Each one leading him closer to the answer of why she hadn’t accepted the other parts of herself as her own.

As he started to piece everything together, he felt the necessity to lay his head back to the couch. It was hard coming to the conclusion of something that had been in front of him all along and that he clearly hadn’t seen his beloved struggle with, blinded by the bliss of the intimate moments they had been sharing the past few months.

He groaned right before having to utter the answer out loud.

“She doesn’t want to accept them because she’s afraid she’ll lose track of who she truly is with all of them in her at once.” Damian sighed.

Knowledge raised an eyebrow. “That’s not logical. We already are inside, we need to be one now.”

Damian shakes his head. “No. I mean, with her emotions being kept in check, she’s never had to question her own feelings before. If she’s sad, Timidity comes out, if she’s happy, Happiness comes out. But now, she won’t know if something she felt before still feels the same now. Or if something that caused her to be sad before will cause her the same sadness now because all of her emotions will be in her at the same time like in the dream. Causing her a turmoil of emotions.” He explains with despair, running his fingers through his hair.

Knowledge sighs. “She will question if she has feelings for you or not.” She states bluntly.

Damian’s expression turns cold. “Yes. She will.”

“I had not considered it like that. It’s not logical, she won’t stop feeling.” Knowledge scoffs with disbelief, trying to understand the reasoning behind it all.

Damian smiles with a darkened glance. “It’s not about logic. It’s not about whether or not she won’t feel. It’s about discerning whether or not the feeling is good or bad. Which feeling is actually invading her. If I go in for a kiss, is it excitement? Or is it fear?”

Knowledge stays silent this time, letting Damian’s reasoning sink in.

“I have to make her reason. Reassure her that it doesn’t have to be that way. I know she’s stronger than that.” Damian added after carefully thinking about it.

He hadn’t noticed that Knowledge had been awfully quiet for a couple of minutes now so he turned to where she was sitting and she was looking at him with a curious look.

“Who’s stronger than what?” Raven asked.

Once again Damian sighed as he tried to figure out who was standing in front of him. He felt powerless and decided he had been postponing this for way too long. He was done playing around.

“Who are you?” He blurted the question without any warning.

Raven tilted her head even more, surprised by his question as if trying to figure out the meaning behind it. “Did you hit your head? Did Constantine put a spell on you?” She asked, annoyed.

“Who are you?” Damian repeated this time slower. His eyes darting a daring look.

Raven is taken aback by the sudden hostility. “I’m Raven. We met in the Titans about four years ago. Five if you count the time we’ve been in this stupid house.”

Damian examines everything about her response. Witty, clear, brave, annoyed. She’s a lot yet not a specific thing. She’s her.

“Raven.” Damian calls softly after realizing it is indeed her.

“Yeah? That’s what I just said.” She responds in confusion. “Am I missing something?”

He sighs and takes her hands. “We need to talk.” His tone is so serious that she is now taken aback once more.

“What about?” She tilts her head. Her heart rate has increased. She knows this is more serious than she’d like it to be.

“I know about your dream.” He blurts.

Raven frowns and straightens more into her seat. “What? What are you-”

He immediately interrupted. “Please, let us get over this game of pretend. You know exactly what I’m talking about, Raven. It would save us a lot of time if you’d be upfront with me.” 

She stares at him for a few seconds. Her face in pure disbelief. “Fine.” She sighs. “How do you know about the dream?”

Damian shakes his head. “That’s not important right now. What’s important here is that you need to tell me why you haven’t accepted them.”

“So you know everything .” Raven’s tone hints defeat. Damian simply nods. “It’s complicated. I don’t think you’d understand.”

“I think I already do, but please, go ahead.” Damian encourages.

Raven looks at him with doubt and at the same time with trust. “Of course you do.” She takes a deep breath and looks down at her hands. “I think it’s mostly the uncertainty of my own self-realization. Like, realizing that one thing I felt might not be the same as another if combined with another feeling. If that happens, who will I be?”

Damian reaches for her shoulder, gently. He makes her look at him while cupping her chin. “You’ll be Raven. Just more emotions at once.” His voice was firm and without any trace of doubt.

“But how will I know-”

“If you love me?” Damian asked with certainty in his words. Raven’s heart suddenly skipped a beat at the revelation that he knew. He knew she loved him. She could only bring herself to nod at that moment, still in shock that her secret was now out in the open. 

“Yeah...”

Damian smiled softly, letting out a huff. “I’m a mortal, and even though it has not been my forte, I’ve learned to deal with my emotions. I believe that, if someone so out of touch with the human feeling like me can do it, someone as brave and strong as you can do it too.” He expresses with a smile, taking her hand and placing a soft kiss on her knuckles.

Raven’s cheeks tint of a soft shade of pink while her lips curl up in a shy smile. “How long have you known?”

“About you loving me, habibti ? Ten minutes.” Damian answers with a smirk. “However… I gotta say that about me loving you , that I’ve known for about a couple of years. I knew I had feelings for you, a crush as they call it but, there was a moment when I realized a couple of years ago even if I wouldn’t admit it to myself…”

“Is that so? What happened?” There was a smug expression to Raven’s eager tone.

Damian smiled fondly as he started to remember the exact moment. “I had gone on an undercover mission with Grayson and my father. I asked you to please keep an eye on Titus in my absence.”

“I remember that. He was all grown in size but he was still a puppy in age.” A chuckle of nostalgia fills the air that Damian follows with a fondly smirk.

“When I got back a couple of weeks later it was as if I never existed. He was so effortlessly under your spell… I mean, his behavior towards everyone else at the tower hadn’t changed, but with you, he felt safe.” Damian explains while lost in thought. “I found you too, cuddling on the library’s sofa. I had been training him to be aware of any threat, but he was so out of it that he remained asleep. And that’s when I knew.”

Raven looks at him with a blush and a slight smile. “Because I took care of Titus?”

Damian turns to Raven and shakes his head with his heart endeared at her innocence. “No. It was because of your way of taking care of him, so effortless, so caring. The way he trusted you, I just knew I could trust you as well. I knew I loved you.”

He took her hands on his and held them dearly. “My point is, Raven, that I love you. I love you. And if I, Damian Wayne, who was taught to not feel in order to be the perfect weapon, can learn to discern my own feelings, you can too. You can learn to identify love too. And I trust you’ll find the answer each time. And if not, I will be there to help you remember each time.”

With a gentle cupping of her cheek in his hand, he pressed their foreheads together.

Raven was speechless. She never imagined something like this could be true. Damian confessing such deep feelings for her, without any doubt, stutter or hesitation. 

“You are so… sure. Maybe that’s exactly what I need.” Raven sighed with relief. The weight she’d been carrying lifted a tiny bit more, leaving it lighter than it was before. She looked into Damian’s eyes now that they were face to face. “I’ll try, I’ll do it.”

Damian huffed with a smile and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead. “I’ll be there when you do.”

The reassurance that she needed was stronger than ever. She leaned in to close the distance between them and capture Damian’s lips into an affectionate kiss. Damian still cupping her cheek, caressing with his thumb with graceful strokes until she unexpectedly broke the kiss.

“Oh, and by the way.” She spoke up, leaving Damian with a dumbfounded look on his face since he found no reason for the kiss to be interrupted until... “I love you too.”

Notes:

I am so sorry for the late update! I've been struggling with insomnia and anxiety, and turns out that I needed a visit to the psychiatrist and some anti-depressants and sleeping pills lol

I wasn't in the best state of mind to write these past few weeks but I'm back and hopefully we're getting closer and closer to the end of the story<3

Also, sorry for the time jump, but FUN FACT: did you know that I originally planned it to be a 3 year time jump instead of an eleven month one?

Chapter 21

Notes:

Before you read the chapter, I firstly want to apologize for having been away for too long. I'll explain a bit better why I was away at the end notes, but I wanted to upload a chapter before the end of the year so you guys know I AM NOT ABANDONING MY FICS.

Here it is the continuation of the story for you guys, and you can read a bit more about my absence at the end. Happy New Year to all of you!

With that said, please note that the Arabic language used throughout the chapter may not be completely accurate (apologies if that is your first or second language).

A loud thump on the countertop of the kitchen made Constantine startle while he was examining an old Amazonian artifact that was provided by Orchid in order to learn more about the old gods and demigods magic synthesized in reliques. Raven’s hand had been the one to make such a deafening sound while slapping down the countertop. Damian was leaning on the kitchen’s aisle behind her, arms crossed.

“Bloody hell- Are the both of ya trying to kill me!? Again!?” He yelled. A vein popping out of his forehead due to the strain.

Without saying a word, Raven picked up her hand from the countertop, revealing a ripped sticker label from a Whisky bottle. A Glendfiddich 21. 

Constantine’s pupils doubled in size when looking down at the ripped label. He took it in his hands as if it was a priced and fragile possession. “What-? How did you-? Where the fu-!?”

“I’m ready to give everything in my training, and I want you to not hold back.” Raven interrupted, her voice full of determination. “At all.”

The dumbfounded face that was invading Constantine had no price for either of them, but right now, they were focused on what was necessary for them to do. 

The scoff Constantine let out was loud enough to ring into Damian’s ear and make him frown. “So I’m guessing this is some kind of promise that I’ll get what I want if I do as you’re asking. Am I getting warmer, love?” His voice was full of sarcasm and a huff at the end.

“Not a promise, a guarantee.” Raven replied, placing one hand on her hip and the other on the countertop as she locked eyes with Constantine. “I already instructed Orchid to provide you with three of those if , and only if you manage to help me unlock my full potential as you initially promised.”

A sly smirk appeared on Constantine’s face as he heard Raven’s words. “Well, I’d be damned. More than I usually am, of course.” He chuckled. “Even if you haven’t actually unlocked shite, you’ve managed to learn a thing or two about me.”

Damian’s face in the background was not one of amusement, but he moved on from the comment to not interrupt Raven. 

Raven knew that Constantine’s smirk was hinting of approval to her proposition but she still wanted a confirmation. “So, adjustable room? In 20 minutes?”

Constantine huffed and got back to what he was doing before getting interrupted by the demonbirds, not bothering to look at them. “An hour.”

That answer was not of Raven’s liking, and she was about to protest. “But-”

Damian’s arm appeared in front of her, stopping her from doing so. “An adequate amount of time. However, not a minute longer.” He firmly stated. A gibberish mumble escaped from Constantine’s lips, but luckily it sounded as close enough to a confirmation as they would get. 

Raven huffed but was quickly distracted by a subtle yet firm hand on the small of her back as a silent Damian began to guide her out of the kitchen and towards one of the doors, concentrating already in one specific room. 

He reached for the door’s handle, and as they were crossing the door, a muffled yet frustrated voice coming from the kitchen was heard. 

“You little shite! She needs her energy! Don’t you two dare to fu-!” Was the last thing that was heard as Damian closed the door behind them.

-

Both of Damian’s hands were on the sides of Raven’s head, cornering her up against the wall. With a smirk, he was teasingly approaching his lips and already altered breathing onto his beloved’s neck.

“Mmmm… An hour sounds like a lot of time.” Raven commented, her eyes closed as her breathing was catching in her throat given the shivering sensation Damian’s lips were provoking just with a simple and warm breath.

Damian laughed softly as he started to place soft and strategic kisses on the smooth parts of her neck. “A lot? If anything, I believe it won’t be enough…” A quick bite from him made her gasp. “But I will make it work, habibti .” The deepness of his voice rang in her ears as she melted with just a few words.

As he continued to nip gentle kisses on her neck, one of his hands travelled to her waist, where a firm grip made her feel how her skin crawled all over. 

“You are not normally such a tease… You’re taking your time…” Raven pointed out each of Damian’s gentle nips. 

“Very observant.” He praised as his other hand placed itself on one of Raven’s legs and raised it from behind the knee so she would straddle him with it. “Maybe it could be the fact that I want to enjoy this, with the person I love.” 

At that moment, she was reminded of that simple yet quite important fact. They had finally said that they loved each other. They had finally got past that stage of only having admitted to having feelings for each other and actually said they love each other. 

It was all being too real for her. 

But it was a good thing. That only made her develop more of a deepness inside her heart of what she wanted now. Of what she needed.

She needed him. Because she loved him.

She knew what Damian meant by wanting to enjoy this. It was a different kind of enjoying all of the moments they had shared together. This time it held a different meaning.

Her heart started racing. Adrenaline rushing through her being with each passing second. Her chest revealed how her heart rate had increased with the constant heaves. Damian couldn’t help but smirk and tighten his grip on Raven’s thigh.

“You are quite agitated already, habibti .” His voice dropped a couple of octaves and Raven had to grip onto Damian’s shoulders to ground herself to reality as the rush was starting to consume her. “We are just getting started… and I do think we should enjoy ourselves.”

Damian’s hands travelled up from Raven’s thigh and waist, touching and squeezing everything on their path until they reached his beloved’s arms. 

Closing her eyes and with a strong bite of her lower lip she gasped. “Damian… for Azarath…” She opened her eyes again, meeting his intense and unwavering gaze.

Without breaking eye contact with her, he continued to press his calloused hands onto her skin until he reached his target. Her wrists.

With agility, he had already both of her hands pinned up her head, gripping them firmly with one of his own. The fact that only until then Raven was able to notice how much Damian not only had grown in height and muscle tone, but his hands had also developed into a grown man’s, meaning he got to hold her wrists into one of his hands with no effort at all and space to spare.

She flustered even further, unsure if it was the fact she had been cornered or the sudden new realization that had hit her, but regardless, she was starting to let go of her past rush of adrenaline and giving into the pure happiness of enjoying the moment.

A sly smirk formed on Damian’s face once he noticed Raven giving into the moment instead of overthinking it. “That’s more like it. Now, shall we proceed?”

Raven, still biting her lip, but softer this time, nodded with a hint of submission. “We shall.” She murmured, leaning slightly forward to nuzzle her nose with Damian’s.

A flutter formed inside Damian when he felt Raven’s nose taunting him. He couldn’t wait any longer, and he pressed his lips against hers, fiercely initiating a kiss.

She definitely did not want to waste any second further so she jumped and used the leg she still had on the ground to finish straddling Damian’s waist. A guttural groan came out of him when he felt her pressing herself against him. That only served to tighten his grip on his beloved’s wrists.

“ Habibti, 'ant tajealuni majnun. ” ( Habibti, you drive me crazy ) He growled in Arabic to her lips, his voice becoming deeper as his accent always made it come out with this effect. Thicker.

Damian knew Raven didn’t have to understand what that meant, but she was having a crude and feral effect on him, and after all, she was an empath. What Damian was oblivious to, was that on some of the occasions Knowledge had taken over Raven's body, she had taken the opportunity to enrich her mind with new found books and information, such as Arabic lessons.

“ Hal hadha sahihun? ” ( Is that so? ) She whispered back right before a confused look appeared on both of their faces and the heat of the moment suddenly paused.

Damian was analyzing Raven’s face to see if he had heard correctly while Raven had widened eyes and a mind behind them that was going a thousand miles per hour, wondering where that came from and if she had actually said it at all.

“Did I just-?” Raven started, trying to confirm her rather delusional thoughts but was quickly interrupted by Damian.

“You did.” Damian firmly replied before tilting his head with a frown, hoping to test a theory further. “ Mundh mataa tatahadath lughati al'umu ?” ( How long have you been able to speak my mother tongue? )

His thick accent made an appearance once again. He knew that if she was able to speak Arabic, even unknowingly, it would come out naturally.

Raven didn’t seem confused at all. In fact, she simply replied with no problem. “ Lays ladaya 'ayu fikrati. ” ( I have no idea. )

Damian felt a new surge of adrenaline rising inside him. He smirked. “ 'Iinah yunasibuk. Kthyraan .” ( It suits you. A lot. )

He leaned closer to her lips again, teasingly. She quickly became flustered again, unsure of how that new skill of hers made her feel, since it was not a conscious one. She decided it was not an issue to be worried about for now, so she smiled while watching Damian’s every move. “ Aistamira fi dhalik, habibi. ” ( Keep going, habibi. )

Without hesitation, Damian kissed his beloved’s lips once more, indulging in the drowning sensation of how he never seemed to ever get enough of them, his grip tightening once more over her wrists. She hummed, approvingly and used her teeth to bite on Damian’s bottom lip.

This only served to only fuel fire within him. His free hand searched to undo the zipper on Raven’s  leotard, as it was an instinct already of how to undress her with ease. 

She wasn’t gonna fall behind, so she did exactly the same as he was doing and she started to remove Damian’s shirt while breaking the kiss momentarily. Her legs tightening around his waist to press him further against her now that both of their skins were exposed and warmed up.

Goosebumps crawled all over her skin once she felt Damian’s built up body pressing against her. She suddenly noticed how he had developed more mature features as the kiss progressed. 

Tiny, tickling hairs on his chest were making her realize just how much of a man he had become. It was a simple, yet important detail that had her dazzled about it. 

Damian’s lips started to go down her neck again, this time passing by her clavicle and nipping gently down to her rounded breasts, leaving faded purple bruises all over them. His tongue was slurping messily as he delighted himself with her perked, rose colored nipples.

His free hand reached to the in between of her legs. Two of his fingers separated her labia gently, applying just the right amount of pressure while rubbing by the sides of her clit, already wet by the previous foreplay and overflow of sensations.

A heavy and high-pitched moan left her chest. She tried moving her hands from above of her head to touch Damian. He lifted his gaze to look at her as she struggled and spoke while giving himself a rest from having his mouth full with her rounded breasts. “Looks like you are desperate to get yourself involved. Are you not, habibti ?” He laughed softly and bit her nipple, letting go of her wrists. “Have at it.” His hand went to now hold her waist, squeezing firm and hard.

The sentiment of freedom couldn’t let her decide which idea she would carry out first, but she was sure about one thing and one thing only.

She needed to touch him.

One of her hands wrapped around his hair, pulling gently on it as she was still enjoying the kissing and biting he provided. The other hand was roaming all over Damian’s shoulder and arm, feeling the broad muscles that were keeping her lifted up in the air.

Her cheeks kept on flustering as Damian’s fingers brushed harder against her clit. Her head hit the wall as she threw it back, gasping for air and moaning with her eyes closed.

Damian frowned, biting a bit too hard on her breast, feeling the brute necessity of tasting her. His hands moved to the sides of his beloved’s hips.

He left a final mark on her breast, sucking before trailing down her abdomen as he lifted her from his waist with both of his arms. Raven used her hands to hold herself from Damian’s head as she felt the movement beneath her, she didn’t protest, because she knew exactly what he was about to do.

She was receiving the image through their bond.

With Raven’s help, she straddled Damian’s neck and shoulders with her legs, leaving her most intimate parts at full disposition for Damian’s face while he held her by her perfectly rounded and squeezable behind. 

A long and slow struck of his tongue as he sighed, humming as if he was in the most important fine wine tasting event of his entire life. “I’ll never get tired of your god-sent taste, habibti. It is the most-” Another long, wet lick. “Mmm… Ravishing and intoxicating flavor a mortal like me should always be grateful for.”

Raven’s mind was too far gone already to even attempt to answer Damian's words when he buried his face in between her legs. His lips kissing and sucking her clit. His tongue making his way from left to right. Up then down. It was as if he had been deprived of water for days, stranded in a desert with nothing else but a limited reserve that didn’t last but a dew hours and was just now finding a fountain where he finally was able to drink himself a pure, fresh and sweet glass of water.

“Damian, oh…” Her breathing caught inside her throat since her first orgasm didn’t took long to arrive with such abilities from him. Her legs tightening around his neck as he smirked but didn’t stop. “Damian, what are you- Fuck-”

She cursed as she kept on prolonging her orgasm and then falling onto a new wave of pleasure. Her hands gripped onto Damian’s hair, her knuckles turning white. 

Sloppy sounds, mixed with pleasured hums could be heard all around the room. Damian kept on looking up as he went on, finding excitement in each of Raven’s winces and whimpers. Each pull of his hair she performed was an incentive to keep going more and more.

Her hips started going forward and back. A grinding movement as she felt the need to help him achieve her second orgasm. 

“Good girl.” He praised with a deeper voice. “Do you want to come in my mouth, habibti ?” He squeezed her ass harder and pressed her against his face even further. He didn’t really care for the lack of air as long as she was satisfied.

Raven was only able to nod, answering his question.

Damian brought one of his hands to the front and used one of his fingers to introduce it inside her, massaging her g-spot as he kept on sucking on her clit. “Mmmm, what was that?” He asked again, a bit of tease in his voice.

She moaned, letting a growl out at the end of said moan. “ Fuck , I want to come in your mouth, Damian Wayne!” Her grinds intensified as she started to feel the build up finally pay off a second time. The strength of her legs once more tightening around Damian’s neck, preventing him from gasping for air as she trembled and started to spasm all over for a few seconds, enjoying the second release.

Damian licked and licked the strands of cum she had let out with her second orgasm, cleaning her up once she relaxed her body. He smirked, satisfied with how shaky she felt on top of his shoulders. “Don’t tell me you are already done with your energy. We still have about over half an hour before your training session with Constantine.”

He started to lower her from his shoulders once again to his waist. Raven smirked as she rounded his neck with her arms. “Not even close, bird boy.”

That’s all he needed to hear. 

He picked her up with ease in one of his arms while he undressed from the waist down with the other hand. His lips had crashed into his beloved’s once more.

With a bit of teasing, he took his time, using the tip of his cock to play with her already sensitive clit. This made Raven shiver and bite Damian’s lower lip out of need. “Are you aware we have a limited amount of tim-“

She was silenced as a squeak escaped her lips once Damian introduced himself into her wet entrance with one swift thrust. Her nipples hardened as the sensation of his fully hardened cock inside her. 

Damian hummed. He buried his face on Raven’s shoulder, biting and leaving noticeable marks on her skin as he started to move up and down. Both of their skins were slapping and echoing across the room. Her gasping was leaving Damian in a trance. 

Without stopping his movements, he carried her towards the bed and laid her on her side. He placed himself on a perpendicular position to her. He kept on thrusting all the way he was there. His leg was now pressing on her clit given the position he had her. 

He was lifting her leg up to his shoulder while using his other hand to squeeze her breasts, smirking at her as he pushed himself further inside her. “You’re so wet for me, al’ama .” He tightened his grip on Raven’s leg while kissing her calf, cursing under his breath. “I truly do love you, habibti .” He groaned. “You are the best thing I could ever ask for.”

Raven lifted her gaze, meeting Damian’s eyes as she processed his words amid the bliss of the situation. “I love you too, Damian.” She gasped in between thrusts and reached for the hand Damian had on her breasts, intertwining her fingers with his. “For Azarath, how I love you… I have no doubt now.” She moaned.

Damian started to raise the speed of his movements after a while in that position. The friction of his leg against Raven’s leg was starting to send her over the edge once more. She had her entire skin full of goosebumps. Both of their moans and groans were not holding back as well as the slapping. 

Finally, the breathing of them both started to synchronize and come to a rhythm of ecstasy that had them reaching the peak of adrenaline they both craved. But this time with a mutual goal of demonstrating each other the love they had for each other. And there it happened. The strain of their bodies pressing together as they experienced a final gasp.

Raven started to experience the spasms that let her know her body was having the bliss of her life. At the same time, the firm grip of Damian’s hand on her leg while his jaw and eyes remained clenched and they both felt the warmth of his cum filling her completely made them experience those few seconds in a slow motion kind of replay.

They let themselves slouch down onto the bed after that, exhausted.

Raven felt herself being pulled into Damian’s arms and placed on his chest, while her long hair, which had been growing the last few months, was being caressed by his kind hands. Her forehead being filled with gentle and caring kisses. 

“I love you.” Damian whispered. “Now that I’ve said it, I do not think I will ever get tired of saying it out loud. Ever.” His hands gently tracing every faction of her face.

Raven closed her eyes, enjoying the sensation with a soft smile plastered on her face. “Even around your family?” She couldn’t help but tease.

Damian sighed as he knew he had been caught, so he simply laughed. “Maybe, it is something you, and only you deserve to hear.”

“Fair enough, bird boy.” She gave it to him and smirked, looking into his eyes. “And I love you too. In case I hadn’t said it back yet…”

Damian smiled and leaned over to kiss her lips, gently while lifting her chin up. “Come on, we have eight minutes before your lesson with Constantine. Let’s get you bathed real quick so you can clear up your mind as well.” 

-

With a ticking pocket watch in his hand, tapping his foot impatiently, and having the deepest scowl on his face, Constantine received the demonbirds inside the changing room. “You’re late.”

Damian had a nonchalant look on his face while he walked beside Raven inside the room. “We are barely a minute and-” He checked his own watch before proceeding. “Twenty two seconds late. And taking into account your past arrivals into this same room, I’d say we are actually early. Move on.” He replied sassily.

Constantine groaned and clenched his fist while Raven tried to not laugh out loud. “Whatever, mate. Are you ready, love?” He turned to Raven now. “Do you have any energy left? At all?” He glared briefly at Damian.

“Good as new.” Raven replied, giving a brief smirk at Damian.

Constantine rolled his eyes. “You’re killing me! Z hasn’t come to visit me in weeks and a couple of teenagers are having way more sex than I had in ages, how come this has become my life all of a sudden-”

Damian huffed and interrupted him. “This is your problem? Us having intercourse because you haven’t?” He pointed out and Raven couldn’t help but snort. 

“That is way too pathetic, even for you. Don't you think?” Raven added.

“Ugh! Just get over here and tell me what you remember from our last lesson, girly!” Constantine snapped with frustration and a hint of embarrassment in his eyes, running a hand through his hair.

Raven glanced at Damian for a second, a rush of confidence glistening in her eyes. Damian smirked while he crossed his arms up in his chest, knowing this was about to be her best training session to date. 

She turned to face Constantine once more and took a deep and relaxing breath. “Okay. I’m ready.”

Notes:

Yes, this chapter being mostly smut is a very loud "SORRY" for all of you that had been waiting for me to update this fic.
I honestly have had some very rough months lately. We are approaching maybe three more chapters of this fic before it comes to an end. But, I want to share why it took me so long to continue this story:

I was on the edge of getting evicted at the end of september and beginning of october. Also, I live away from my family (at least the family I do keep in touch with) and this made it extra difficult to deal with. I wasn't able to afford a lot of stuff and deal with that eviction (that was thankfully resolved) because I was paying some medical bills, but all of that sent me into a very deep depression. I had to get psychiatric help and after a few months losing some friendships because they didn't want to stay and deal with my many issues (financial, mental and whatnot), I started to feel better just a couple of weeks ago when a christmas bonus at work finally helped me to start to get out of debt.

Right now, one of my New Year's purposes is to get into writing more, despite of my personal issues. So, more fic content to come. But I wanted to upload one last chapter before the year ended as a compromise to myself and you guys. So... HERE YOU GO! HAPPY NEW YEAR'S!!! <3

Chapter 22

Notes:

Finally back. Sorry for the MIA status. But I did say I wouldn’t abandon my fics. More on my absence below.

Damian’s jaw couldn’t be tighter. He was, however, unaware of how severe the tightness was making him grind his teeth.

She had made great progress unlike previous occasions when she had been beaten down to the ground when the frustration had overwhelmed her. But still he couldn’t help but feel each beating she was taking in order to get stronger in each drill.

Raven was resilient. A quality that had, for obvious reasons, made him fall madly in love with her, but as of now that was the same quality he was wishing she would lack at least in the slightest so she would actually take a break.

“The strength isn’t physical, love.” Constantine’s voice was heard from one side of the room. “You know exactly where it’s supposed to come from.”

His hands were in his pockets and his gaze was fixated on Raven’s every movement. Unlike every other occasion where he had been present at the training session, his stance at the present moment was revealing concentration, concern and genuine commitment, and this did not go unnoticed by Damian.

“If you don’t shut up, I swear I will-“ Raven retaliated with a loud groan as she got a second to catch her breath but was quickly interrupted by a witty voice from Constantine.

“That’s your fifth threat in a row, love. One might start to think your threats are in vain, so you better start threatening me less and concentrating more. How ‘bout that?” His tone was sarcastic, yet firm.

Damian couldn’t help but huff at the amount of sudden leadership Constantine seemed to have gained. Was it all that it took for him to become a great teacher, a good incentive in the form of a bottle of scotch? 

Damian was hesitant to believe so. 

-

Clanking sounds echoing throughout the batcave. A flipping escrima stick lands on Nightwing’s hand as he smirks at Damian.

“You’re sloppy.” He expresses in a teasing voice, in an obvious attempt to mess with his head.

“No, I’m uninterested.” Damian in his Robin uniform replies, coldly.

Nightwing frowns under his domino mask. “Get interested.” He states in a firm tone.

The sparring between the two continues. 

Both the sword that Damian wields as well as the escriba sticks that Nightwing holds keep on making contact in an endless dancing while they move around the corners of the cave.

“I don’t need to be trained by some circus clown.” Damian states bitterly after getting rid of one of Nightwing’s sticks. “My grandfather taught me everything I need to know about personal combat.” He attacks Nightwing again, with an overconfident attitude.

Nightwing, with expertise, deflects his attacks and replies. “Well, I was trained by Bruce Wayne. And every time they met, he kicked Ra’s Al Ghul’s ass.” A confident, yet determined smirk. “Just like I’m kicking yours.” The sparring continues after he kicks Damian straight on the jaw.

-

Grayson.

Damian thought to himself after getting lost in his own thoughts for a moment. The wonder of why he was thinking about that specific memory all of a sudden was hitting him pretty hard. Was it the nostalgia of not having seen his brother for quite some time now?

A loud sigh escaped out of him. His gaze returned to where Raven and Constantine were. 

The rough way Constantine seemed to be pushing Raven towards her goal, as well as Raven complaining in a frustrated, dismissive manner made him realize. 

There was something else about the way Constantine was making Raven train now. It was something that Damian could recognize a mile away since he had been in the same place as Constantine was at the moment. He started to care for Raven, or at least that was Damian’s logical conclusion, because to him, who couldn’t care for someone like her?

It was a similar bond he was quite familiar with and fought for some time when he first met Dick. One where someone takes you under his wing and decides to train you, so you can be better than what everyone else already has you type-casted as, because they know exactly what that is like. 

Constantine cared for Raven, and he wanted her to be better.

He was suddenly snapped out of his thoughts when he heard Constantine shout at Raven, and his beloved groans echoed throughout the room as a result of the strain of a spell she was using. 

“You’ve almost got it, love. Hold it right there, that’s it.” He was frowning while he concentrated on her technique. 

Damian on the other hand could see the amount of energy the spell was taking away from her and couldn’t help but worry about her state. “John-“

“Not now, little bird!” Constantine shushed Damian immediately. The unwavering focus of his gaze remained attached to Raven’s every move. “Hold it, love!”

“Ugh!” A loud, frustrated groan escaped her mouth. The spell had broken after the strain had been too great, and the demons she had been facing up until now started to lump together to form a mush.

The scene the House had managed to create around Raven during this particular training session was a chaotic one. Demon after demon started to solidify a greater being that would turn into a similar, yet not at all the same looking as Trigon.

A grotesque, emerald gray-ish, interdimensional demon whose mission was to destroy everything on his path. This made-up version the House of Mystery had consolidated in order to comply with both Constantine’s and Raven’s training needs, was no more than a non-sentient being with a mindless force of destruction, incapable of awareness or thought.

It moved with uncanny grace, as if obeying the unseen hand of some malevolence force. Its path was marked by a trail of rubble and devastation, leaving nothing untouched in its wake.

Damian’s face twisted into a grimace of unease. It was a mask of deep concern that his usual calm and confident eyes were now betraying him with a sense of hesitation and uncertainty. 

The simulated demon and Raven were now facing each other after it had finish shaping itself into the giant creature before her. Her demon side could only react to it and show her reddened skin and glowing four eyes.

Her weariness was palpable, but so was her motivation to achieve the goal she had set for herself. Despite her obvious fatigue, she pushed herself forward, her expression a wince of determination and tension. But even then, she had the spirit to smirk at the vile looking thing. 

“You’re not even in the top 3 demons I’ve fought in this place, ugly. And I’m so tired, I just want to get this over with so…” Heaviness in the way she breathed out before she continued, not flinching at all. “Bring it.”

Suddenly, the demon unleashed a bone-chilling screech that sent shivers down Damian’s spine. Its screeching scream echoed through the air, a hideous sound that could pierce one's ears. The demon’s eyes glowed with fiery intensity as it unleashed that distinct sound of pure malevolence. This was being used both as a battle cry and a weapon, an attack that sent fear coursing through the veins of whoever dared to stand in its way.

However, Raven was no ordinary opponent. She was not impressed nor defied and remained where she was, ready to take on him as she was expected to.

As the demon came charging at her, both of her hands tightened into a couple of fists as she poured every last dash of her energy into it. “Azarath metrion zinthos!” The defining demon voice that characterized Raven’s demonic side had a peculiar pitch, one that Damian was all too familiar with by this point.

Her eyes started to morph from a bright red to a slight pink, as if a white light was starting to invade them while her imposing shadow self started emerging from her in a way it never had before. Powerful, determined and majestic.

A deafening burst of smoke and light swaddled around both Raven and the non-sentient demon, blinding Constantine and Damian in the midst of the confusion and commotion.

Dry and heavy coughs were heard from both of the men as they were trying to regain any kind of vision of what was going on. Constantine however, was the first one to notice what had happened once the smoke started to clear. Raven had succeeded, but barely leaving any energy so she could remain conscious, so as soon as the spell started to wear off, her body started to collapse towards the ground.

“Cedar, res infirmae, et permitted ea stare in fide.” Constantine’s movements were swift and certain as he casted a spell to stop Raven’s free fall while Damian swiftly positioned himself underneath her to catch her in his arms. 

The soft landing of Raven in Damian’s arms allowed for him to start checking for any concerning injuries she might have to worry about but luckily she had none. 

“Habibti, I’ve got you.” Damian softly whispered to her as she started groaning in his embrace. 

As she started to stir, a clear frown on her face, her eyes opened up and immediately searched for the entity she had faced mere seconds before. “Where did it go?”

”You did it, love.” Constantine said as he stared at the empty space left in the room. “The spell worked. It was a bit too draining for you, but if you find the right way to balance the source of your power and how you let it flow through the spell, you might be onto something.”

Raven sat down, grabbing her head. Damian was still preoccupied about the state she was in and how swiftly she got up, but still allowed her to set in as she was coming to, processing what she had just achieved.

“I did it.” She repeated under her breath as she took in her surroundings. The demon was gone. 

She had succeeded.

Constantine approached Raven. Damian was unsure of what he intended to do, but quickly realized that Constantine had a different air to him.

His hand rested on Raven’s shoulder. “I knew you’d be able to figure it out, you little minx.” Constantine chuckled and his gaze even had a warmth to it.

Raven came back to her senses when Constantine placed his hand on her shoulder. The emotion of having achieved it, just once, was something that from one moment to the next, made her eyes fill up with tears.

Constantine was caught off guard when Raven’s arms wrapped up his body, her face hiding the tears in the chest of her teacher.

”You never doubted me.” She stated.

”I could never, love.” Constantine replied, wrapping his arms around Raven to hold her in a comforting embrace. From Damian’s perspective, he could’ve sworn it was almost a fatherly gesture.

Damian quickly shook the thought out of his mind, just being glad of having Raven finally achieve the spell she needed to master.

The hug was broken when Raven suddenly stepped back and roughly wiped the tears off her face with the back of her hand.

”I gotta-“ She started speaking, but Damian’s voice quickly shut her train of thought.

”I can hear your thoughts loud and clear.” Damian intervened, disapproval on his face as he stepped forward to cup her cheek. “You did it, but you shouldn’t overdo it.”

Raven smiled faintly. 

Unlike other occasions, she was not frustrated enough to argue against Damian’s decision. He could hear her inner voice repeating louder and louder, the need to repeat such an important achievement to confirm the capacity she had. But Damian wouldn’t let that happen.

”You shouldn’t have heard that.” Raven stated.

Damian smirked and leaned to kiss his beloved’s forehead. “Even without the bond, I know you well enough to gather what is going through your mind just by looking at your face.”

Flushed cheeks.

Raven leaned into the hand that Damian had on her face. “Shut up.”

Constantine was lighting up a cigarette nearby to avoid looking at the PDA that was happening before him. 

“For once, demonbirds, please just let her rest?” He stated, looking into oblivion as if trying to make it seem like he didn’t care at all.

”Don’t worry. I am tired enough to actually just want to get into bed.” Raven expressed with an amused tone. “I’m done for the day… but thank you.”

Her tone was sincere, despite everything that had happened throughout the last few months, in their own way, they have both grown fond of each other.

Damian smiled, looking down. “Let’s go, habibti.” He softly spoke. “You need to rest.”

Constantine cleared his throat. “Yeah, the little bird is right, love. Because tomorrow, we go again.”

A defiant way in his voice and the way he smirked made her feel confident about her progress after so long.

”You bet we will.” 

 

Notes:

FINALLY! We are close to the end of this story.

I am so sorry I wasn’t able to update the chapters. I have been THROUGH it these past 7 months.
A quick breakdown:
~My apartment got broken into
~I had to pay for security cameras, a locksmith and some other bunch of shit
~I got promoted at work! Which is would be great if my job didn’t consist on Immigration Law. (It’s been great since January trying to save several clients from deportation😬)
~Due to the stress at work and having to work Overtime for months, I went into emergency surgery for (you guessed it) AN APPENDICITIS! YAY!
I was in recovery for a month.
~A bitch ass coward broke my heart by kissing some other woman (who happened to be in a relationship so she cheated on his guy with mine)

Overall, my year has been pretty shitty, but has also been pretty eye opening. That is why I don’t wanna leave my writing anytime soon.

Thank you for your patience!

 

Additional note - I am editing all chapters to provide a great quality work to all of them.