70Our Mirrored Future
Chapter 17
"We need a plan of action, yes?"
Starfire, Robin, Cyborg, Bumblebee, and their future selves were currently sitting in the Main Room.
"Yes, Star." Nightwing turned to his wife. "Kori, you take Star, Bee, and Karen out on a patrol of the city. Search high and low for any signs of Terra or Malchior." The adult alien nodded, heading for the open window with the other three females on her heels. "Victor, you and Cy round up the kids and gather any information you can in town." The metal man grunted in agreement, pulling his past self to the door in search of his son and his friends. "Robin, you and I will check the bay." At the confused look her got, he added, "You never know what goes through a villain's mind."
The two leaders walked down the hall and up a flight of stairs. Conveniently, the lab was located on the same floor as Nightwing's room. Robin sat in front of one of the many computers, sifting through the security camera footage. Meanwhile, Nightwing searched for any security breaches in the last two days.
The younger of the duo continued to do his job until something dawned on him. "Hey, where are… the beast boys and the ravens?"
Nightwing chuckled. "Is that what we're calling them now?"
Cheeks a light red, Robin snorted and turned away. "Well, what would you prefer?"
"Alright, alright. Rachel, Raven, and Dove are working on finding a way to send you all home. Magic is right up their alley. And Garfield and Beast Boy haven't left their sides since… well the beginning."
Robin nodded. "Hm…"
"What?"
"… I just haven't gotten used to his real name yet. Garfield. Well, it does make sense. A lazy orange cat and Beast Boy have some of the same qualities."
They both shared a good laugh before returning to their duties.
"Wow."
Rachel, Raven, and Dove were currently in the former's room, sifting through books that had been strewn across the floor.
"She's right. Got the prophecy right here." Raven held up a large tome, pointing out a certain paragraph.
Rachel looked at her daughter. "Can you make the markings reappear?"
The youngest of the trio nodded, focusing all of her energy into her palms. The black swirls painted themselves on her skin, earning a gasp from the other two females.
"… Wow." Raven could do nothing but stare. She had only ever heard stories about this legacy; had never thought it was real. But now she was looking at it with her own two eyes. And it was permanently etched into her future daughter's body.
"Oh, sweetie." Rachel swept her second born into a hug. She knew the pressures there were to having magical tattoos. They were not just for show; they served a higher purpose- most of which were not good in the least.
"Mom," the girl called, causing her mother to pull back and look. "Do you… know how I can control it? I mean, I've never had… powers like these."
Her mother rubbed her arms soothingly. "Of course, honey. If you want, we can make a regular meditation schedule." At the younger's large smile, she gave a small, warm one back.
"Yeah. Thanks."
"Hey, did you find anythi- Whoa."
Beast Boy and Garfield had come back to check on their progress, only to come upon something totally different.
The latter looked pointedly at his wife. "Rachel, I thought Trigon was dead."
She nodded her head. "Yes, he is. Gar, these are different types of tattoos…" The adult empath the proceeded to tell the tale of the mysterious tattoos to the males. "As I said, these are different tattoos…. Good ones, I hope."
He frowned. "What do you mean you hope?"
She shook her head, purple hair swaying around her shoulders. "I mean, they can be used for either good or evil. But," she turned toward Dove, "I know they're in good hands." The two shared a smile before Beast Boy cleared his throat.
"So… Did you find anything about the mirror?"
Raven stepped forward, book in hand. "We have to be back in our time within a week of our arrival. It says that you need the power of an empath to activate the abilities of the mirror." She paused. "But… you need more empaths than we have here to do it."
Beast Boy struck a thinking pose: one fist on his hip, the other cradling his chin. "Well," he started. "didn't you say Dove inherited, like, all the powers of the fallen magic users?" At the countless nods, he said, "Then Dove alone should count for- what?- thousands of empaths by herself."
Silence spread throughout the room.
"… Dude! What?"
"… You came up with that all on your own."Raven sounded as surprised as she looked.
The teenage changeling snorted, crossing his arms and looking away. "Well DUH! That was so easy! I'm surprised you guys didn't figure that out before I did. Sheesh."
A smirk made its way to the teenage empath's lips as she crossed the room to pinch his cheek. "What's the matter, BB? Upset that your brain is showing?"
The room filled with much needed laughter; the tense atmosphere slipping away. The boy puffed his cheeks. "Hey! I-"
A loud beeping sound echoed as all the communicators went off. "Nightwing?" "Robin?"
"Titans. We have a trail. All of you need to report to the Main Room."
Without a word, they all filed out of the room like they had been told.
"Where are the others?" Garfield asked when they entered the Main Room.
Without turning around from the computer, Nightwing answered, "Out gathering clues. But," he opened a file on the machine. "We have a lead."
The group crowded around the two leaders, staring intently at the images that appeared on the overhead window. It showed Terra and Beast Boy battling off to the left while black energy shaped like a bird raced toward the young female changeling. Raven winced when large dragon claws swallowed up the girl. Everyone saw the flash of yellow slip through the claws at the last minute, mentally thanking Stinger. Then the humungous dragon disappeared in thin air. The group- excluding the leaders- blinked in confusion when the screen went black.
"Uh… Robin?"
"Yes, Beast Boy?"
"… Is a map about to blink onto the screen or something?"
The boy wonder raised an eyebrow. "Rewind it, Nightwing." Said man did was told, stopping the video right before Malchior disappeared. It resumed, showing him turn into black mist. "There." Everything froze in its place. "Look closely at the smoke."
Raven squinted at the image, blinking when she saw a trail of black heading to the west. "I… I see it."
Rachel nodded. "Me, too."
"Garfield, you, Beast Boy, Robin, and I should head in that direction. Search for any traces of them whatsoever." Nightwing rose from the computer seat and turned to his team. The other heroes nodded.
"Wait, what're the girls gonna do?" Beast Boy raised an eyebrow.
"We need to continue research on the mirror." Rachel informed him, patting the teenager on the head.
Beast Boy pouted as the others chuckled at his antics.
Garfield strode up to his wife. "Be careful, Rae."
She raised an eyebrow. "What am I in danger of?"
"We have no idea where either Terra or Malchior are. They could be waiting to strike you at any moment."
She smiled at his concern, cupping his face. "Thank you for your concern, honey. But You have nothing to worry about. I have two powerful empaths with me. If they do show up, we'll be ready. You be careful."
He grinned. "When am I not careful, dear?"
She rolled her eyes, ignoring the rhetorical question, and pecked his lips with a tender kiss.
"Um, Rae?"
"Yes, Beast Boy?" He fidgeted uncomfortably under her gaze. She frowned slightly in concern. "Beast Boy, what's wrong?" His face scrunched up before he cried out in a whisper.
"I'm worried about you, that's what's wrong!"
The teenager blinked before smiling one of her rare smiles. A laugh escaped her when she wrapped her arms around the changeling and he yelped. "Thanks, Beast Boy. But, like Rachel said, you have nothing to worry about here. I'm more worried about you."
He grinned a soft grin at her. "You're worried about me?" At her somewhat shy nod, he said, "Well, that's good to hear. Here I thought it was a one-sided thing."
She rolled her eyes. "Wow, BB." She frowned at his surprised expression. "What's wrong now?"
"… You called me BB. And it wasn't an insult."
She blinked. "Really? ... Yeah, I did. Maybe being around our future… married selves is affecting us?"
The green boy's face fell a bit before he chuckled weakly. Raven frowned, easily recognizing his cover up. Without a second thought, she leaned forward in the embrace she had not let him out of yet.
"Rae? What're you-?"
He froze in place when soft lips placed themselves on his cheek. Both with red faces, the duo backed away from the other. "Uh…" he scratched his neck nervously.
"… Yeah." She pulled her hood up, looking away as she did so.
"Hey," she looked up hesitantly at the sound of his voice. "Leave your hood down." At her questioning look at him and the hands removing the dark blue fabric he said, "It makes it much easier to do this."
Somewhere in the tower, a lamp glowed black, shattering into a million tiny pieces and scattering across the floor. But in the Main Room, everyone else in the room disappeared. It was just Raven- who was clinging to the material of the shape shifter's shirt- and Beast Boy- who was pressing his lips to the lips of the empath in his arms.
'Beast Boy is… kissing me…' Raven could not help the thought from bouncing around her brain.
'Yeah, I am.' She had almost forgotten about their- accidental- mental link. What really surprised her was the emotion she felt from him through the link- and the emotion she knew he was feeling from her. They stayed in their mental bliss, only slightly aware of someone clearing their throat.
"Uh, Mom? Dad? You guys are gonna need to come up for air soon, right?" Dove giggled before being swatted by her mother. "But, Mom. Look at them."
"That's private, Domonique."
The teenager sighed, turning to wish her father good luck. The adult empath smiled softly at her and her husband's past selves, hoping for the best for the young couple.
The superhero duo broke apart for much needed air. Staring in each other's eyes, they continued a mental conversation.
'Beast Boy?'
'Yeah, Rae?'
'… If you find her, whoop her ass. For me. And for the rest of… our family.'
He grinned broadly. 'Anything for my girl.'
She raised an eyebrow. 'Your girl?'
The green teen looked away sheepishly. 'Uh…'
With a smile, the dark girl reached up to stroke his cheek. 'It's okay, BB. …Wow. I did it again.'
With a mental chuckle, he responded, 'Just can't keep my name out of your mouth..uh, head can you?'
'Don't push it, Garfield.'
He chuckled sheepishly out loud, clasping their hands together on the side of his face. "Yeah, I got it, honey." At her glare, he leaned forward and pecked her cheek slowly. When he pulled back, he whispered in her ear, "I have to go now, Rae."
"Be careful, BB," she whispered back, stroking his cheek all the while.
He grinned as they parted, waving before he turned into a hawk and followed his future self out the window to meet Robin and Nightwing in the city.
'See ya later. Love ya, Rae!'
The empath laughed softly. 'I… love you too, BB. See you soon.'
Here's a long chapter! Hope you liked it! OMG! BB and Rae KISSED! What's gonna happen next?
Okay, so I know how the rest of the story's gonna go. They're gonna... well I can;t tell YOU that. But You will find out if you STAY TUNED!
ja ne,
-Tsunei-chan