#had my first dine and dash tonight and i am SEETHING

[spacechampion]

fuck you if you've ever skipped out on a check at a restaurant

[whockeywhore]

In No Certain Terms 15

“You wanna grab some dinner?” 

I said nothing, too focused on Downtown Dallas passing by the window. Jamie nudged me and asked again, grumbling when I shook my head. 

“She said we were cool.”

“What?” 

“Josie. She said she wasn’t mad.” 

“She-” 

“She’s still angry, right? I mean, why else would she not have come tonight? Or Thursday? Or on Monday?” I could see him trying to interject but I couldn’t stop myself, consumed with finding an excuse for the shitty performance behind me. “Why would she fucking lie? Why doesn’t... what should I do? You know what? No, it’s not my fucking fault. I apologized, I was the bigger person. Fuck her, right? It’s not on me.” 

“Well, I guess-” 

“I’m so pissed off!” 

“Because she didn’t show?” 

“Because she’s getting to me.” I slammed my fist against the dash of his truck and seethed, beyond frustrated with her. What’s worse was the fact that she’s always been the person I’ve gone to in times like these, always the one to talk me down and rub my back until I fell asleep. My muscles were aching for comfort and I felt like I had nowhere to go. “I miss her.” 

“I know dude.” 

“What do I do?” 

He sat silently, the red stop light reflecting in his eyes, and shook his head. “I dunno.” 

“You do.” 

“I don’t.” 

“Jamie, you-” 

“She asked us not to get involved.” His words seemed to hit harder than anything I’d taken tonight and I recoiled, unsettled by the fact that they had discussed it. Jamie lifted his hat and ran his fingers through his hair as the light turned, a loud honk from behind pushing him to step on the gas. “I’m sorry Tyler, but she asked us to stay out of it.” 

“When?” He shook his head but I pressed on. “When did she ask you? Before we talked? After?” 

“Today. We went by her house to pick her up and she... she made a few really good points.” 

“Like what?” 

“Like the fact that we’re all really close. You and I, you and Josie, Katie and Josie, and you and Katie. It could really fuck everything up if we end up taking sides. And she doesn’t want any of this getting between us.” 

“But she-” 

“She’s a good girl, Tyler, but she’s hurt. You two have some shit to work out that I can’t comment on, it’s not my place.”

“But you’re my friend.” 

“And I’m her friend too.” 

We pulled up to a stop in front of my house and he shifted the car into park, sitting at the end of my long driveway with his lights on. I could hear the dogs going crazy inside the house and I yearned for my bed but couldn’t seem to get out of the car, stuck in every bit of shit that had ruined the night. No Josie, no goals, nobody to go home to. I felt like I was sinking. 

“She told me to go on that date. She was the one who... shit.” 

“What?”

“Nothing.” 

I reached for the door handle but he caught my arm, running his free hand over his goatee. It was a nervous habit I knew he had and my stomach knotted up as I watched him. 

“You should talk to her. Really just, sit down and hash it out. Let her yell at you, yell at her. Work this out.” 

I grabbed my bag and slid out of the car, unsure of my next move as I walked up the drive. The sun had set long ago and I found myself on autopilot, going through the moves of my post-game ritual without really thinking about it. She was all that was on my mind as I shook my protein shake, knuckles white as I held the bottle. My house felt empty and cold and I took a deep breath as I grabbed my keys. 

Josie’s apartment was a few miles away but the drive felt like eternity, hands heavy on the wheel until I parked in front of her building. Her light was on and I took that as a good sign, passing the doorman with a forced smile. 

“Mr. Seguin.” I nodded and he shook his head. “Tough loss tonight. You guys’ll get ‘em next time.” 

“Hope so.” 

There were times that I hated being known around here, times like these where I wanted to shrink away from the world. I could hear her singing as soon as I stepped onto her floor and the knot in my stomach grew. She answered the door in an apron and not much else, her eyebrows high as she looked at me. 

“Can I come in?” 

She took a deep breath, a long moment to decide, and I braced myself, fully expecting a door slammed in my face. My shoulders sagged and she finally stepped aside, letting me slip by her awkwardly. I noted the half-full glass on wine on the counter and passed it, taking a seat at her dining room table. 

“What are you doing here?” 

She leaned against the chair across from me and I shrugged, clasping my hands and looking up at her. 

“I want you to yell at me.” 

“What?” 

“Yell at me. Scream at me. Throw your wine in my face, Jos. Whatever it takes to fix this.” 

“Tyler, I don’t-” 

“You lied. You said we were cool, you said everything was fine, but it’s not, and I want to know why. And I want to fix this.” She crossed her arms over her chest and shook her head, stubborn as all get out as usual. I was desperate for her back in my life and I wasn’t leaving without something. “The dogs have been fed, Josie, so I can stay until morning. And I will.” 

I could see her resolve crumbling, her shoulders sagging a bit and her face softening, before she took a deep breath. “Do you want some wine?” 

“Do you think it’ll help?” She ignored my weak attempt at humor and set a bottle between us, sliding a glass over to me. I poured a bit and then topped hers off, watching her down a long sip before she sat. 

“So?” She didn’t say anything so I leaned forward. “Okay, I’ll start. You told me to go on that date. You were the one who pushed me to go out with Rhea in the first place and now you’re angry and I don’t understand why.” 

“I’m not mad about your date.” 

“Then what is it?” 

“I... you chose her over me.”

“What?” 

“You picked Rhea. And that’s fine if that’s what you want but I- I don’t want to be a second choice.” 

“Josie, I can have more than one person in my life. I didn’t choose anyone-” 

“You did.”

“When?” 

“At brunch!” Her nostrils flared a bit and I felt my brows furrow, unable to hide my confusion. She sat back and took another sip of her wine, giving it a long minute before she started again. “He told me that you... you knew that I was upset and that you still went home with her. Do you have any idea how that made me feel?” 

I didn’t. I could see by the hurt in her eyes that it had an effect on her and I was sure she could see the shock in my own. I never thought that leaving with Rhea would come back to bite me but it had, hard. She seemed to deflate in her chair and I stood, walking around the table to pull her to her feet. 

“Josie, I... I’m so sorry. I didn’t realize.” She fell against my chest and I held her close, shaken by the warmth she brought me. The gentle sigh she let out, the way she grabbed at my t-shirt, it brought something carnal between us, an intense need to have her. 

I lifted her face and studied her, took in the gentle curve of her cheekbones, her bright eyes framed by the longest, darkest lashes I’d ever seen. She was stunning. She was beautiful and heartbroken and it was all because of me. 

“I’m so sorry.” I whispered, my lips dangerously close to hers. 

“You already said that.” 

“What can I do to fix this?” My head dropped a bit, her eyes lulling shut as I kissed her. The soft moan from her had my knees weak in an instant and I fell back, pulling her with me as my back hit the counter. 

I was grateful for the support, grateful for the way she seemed to hold me up like nobody else could, and I frowned when she pulled back with a sharp breath. 

“Tyler, sweet Tyler.” Her voice sounded muffled and distant but I couldn’t bring myself to acknowledge it. The way it came off of her lips, dripping like honey and so damn sweet, I was wrapepd up in her. “Tyler? Tyler!” 

I blinked hard and found myself back on her doorstep, keys in hand as my body tensed. Josie was standing in front of me with a confused frown on her face, brows knit together as she watched me. 

“Jos?” 

“Tyler?” She snapped once in front of my face before stepping back, hands on her hips. “You alright?” 

“What?” 

“You’ve been standing here for ten minutes, haven’t said a word until you said ‘Jos’. What’s going on?” 

It had seemed so real, I could still feel her lips on mine. I could feel the way she grabbed for me and hear her whimper under my touch. I... I was wrong. She turned on her heel and I followed her in, the deja vu incredibly intense and unnerving. 

The same glass of wine was on the counter, exactly where it had been before, and I snatched it up, downing the sweet red that was in it. She yelped in protest but stopped when I stepped up to her, setting my hands on her hips and lifting her a bit. Her ass was soft in my hands as she hit the cool marble with a quiet grunt. 

“What do you want, Tyler?” 

“You.” 

“I’m serious.” 

I was standing between her thighs, dizzy at the way they brushed against my own, and I shook my head. “So am I.” 

She grabbed my shirt and pulled me close, stealing a rough, fiery kiss before she pushed me back. “I’m still mad at you.” 

“I get that.” 

She nipped at my bottom lip and stilled, tangling her fingers in the curls at the back of my neck. Her touch ruined any bit of sanity I had left and I groaned in delight as rolled her hips against me. 

“No bullshit, Tyler. Not tonight?” 

“Not tonight.” 

[dylan-hague]

Chapter 31

Titans Island, Jump City. April 17th, 2018. 3:17 PM.

Raven let her body drift to the grass, looking up at the clouds as she lighted to the ground on her back. Reaching out with her mind, she peeked in on each of her friends; Jaime was in his room talking to his grandfather over the phone. Garfield and Tara were strewn across the sofa in the livingroom, some old horror flick on the TV. Kori and Jon were in the Training Room, working on expands Jon’s capabilities–“aggressive conditioning”, Kori called it. She could feel Jon seething with irritation, his punches snapping all around their instructor, throwing great gusts of wind behind them. And she needn’t reach out to find her Damian… she could see him shuffle up across the lawn, dropping to his knees as he drew closer. She smiled at him as he flipped around to lay down, resting his head on her stomach. She brought a hand up to his head, her cheeks turning pink as her fingers played in his hair. They kept on gazing up at the sky, watching all different shapes come and go in the wisps of white fluff in the air.

“So…” Damian said in a half-whisper, his head slowly rising and falling with Raven’s stomach as she breathed. “After we’re married, where do you think we should live?”

Raven let out a low hum as she pondered the question. “I haven’t thought about it too much…” she replied softly. “I guess I figured we’d make that decision when it came closer to time. But I mean, yeah… guess it wouldn’t hurt to think about it.”

“I mean, don’t think I’m pressing you for an answer or anything…” Damian raised his head up just a bit, looking up at Raven’s face. She smiled and placed a hand on the boy’s forehead, and he let his head drop softly back to her body.

“I know baby, I know.” Raven let a sigh drift past her lips as she thought. “… I mean, we would have to get our own place. That’s a given… maybe somewhere small, like Dick and Barbara’s place.”

“Yeah, I like that…” Damian let a smile slip across his face as he began to blush. “Maybe some place off in the suburbs, I dunno. A little house with a big yard, enough from for a dog or two, maybe a little slide and swings for the kids.”

“Kids? Like plural?” Raven rose an eyebrow as her free hand slid into his. “There’s an interesting idea… a boy and a girl, maybe.”

“Yeah… but where?” The young man wondered. “We could stay here in California…”

“Maybe we could move back to New Jersey,” Raven mused, “We could be near your dad if anything happens.”

“Who knows?” Damian grinned. “Maybe we’ll run off to Kansas, live in some little farm town, go to Friday night football every week.” Raven cracked, pulling her Damian’s head into her chest as she sat back up laughing. “I know, I know. I’m a dork.”

“Yeah…” Raven pressed her lips against his head. “But you’re my dork.”

Damian smiled, straightening up and looking into Raven’s eyes. “Always.” He held his head back to her chest, as closed his eyes as he felt the soft thump of her heart against his cheek. Raven put her arms around him, one hand gently holding his head to her as she looked down at him, love filling her eyes as a cool breeze blew across the island, its subtle chill gently kissing their skin as it passed over them.

“Y'know…” the witch whispered. “… It’s not gonna be easy going every day like today.”

“I know that…” Damian kept his voice low, gently dotting kisses on the girl’s chest, right over her heart. “But for every day my heart stops, there’ll be a day where I can sit and listen to yours beat that makes it all worth it.”

Raven felt her breath catch in her throat as his lips pressed into her skin, and she let out a quiet, shaky hiss as her head rolled back, her eyes closing. A pale hand slowly came to rest on the back of Damian’s neck, and he smiled as he lifted his head up, placing a few quick pecks on her chin and down her jaw. The girl’s cheeks burned vermilion, and her arms snaked around his neck as she fell back, pulling him to the ground in her embrace. Damian rubbed his nose against her cheek as the laid there, his own arms slipping around her waist as he pulled her to her side. He pulled his face away, looking into her eyes for a moment, watching the clouds in her irises crackle and flash with light as the whirled in a torrent of emotion.

“Are you alright?” He whispered. She smiled, her face still completely flushed, and she pulled him close, touching her forehead to his.

“I’m wonderful,” Raven sighed. “You’re wonderful, Damian. I can’t picture a better moment than this one.”

Damian closed his eyes, smiling as he felt her all around him. Her presence was like a blanket on a snow day, hot soup on a sick day, and sleeping in on a Sunday all rolled into one. She smelled like strawberries… God, it was so right. He could never deserve this… he was not, by any definition, a good man. He had done awful, horrible things. He had hurt so many people in his life. And yet, someone allowed him to find his way to Raven. Karma was a joke. Had to be. She was… perfect. There was no other way to describe it. She was perfect. A crackling fireplace when it stormed outside, a lighthouse when the waves were crashing down, an oasis in the heat of the desert… that was Raven.

“… we should go on another date.” He opened one eye, waiting to see her reaction.

Raven’s lips curled just enough to form a smile, and her own eyes fluttered back open. “I’d like that,” she said quietly. “Are you free tonight?”

Damian grinned. “I am indeed. What do you think… Bertinelli’s at 7:30, then see what we find around town?”

Raven rolled her eyes. “You’re funny. Nobody just walks into Bertinelli’s, not even a Wayne. You have to make reservations weeks in advance.”

Damian just nodded and gave her a wink.

Raven’s eyebrows rose slowly. “You didn’t…”

Damian planted a quick peck on Raven’s lips. “Surprise.”

Bertinelli’s Bistro, Jump City. April 17th, 2018. 8:24 PM.

“Might we be able to interest the two of you in any dessert this evening?”

The restaurant was dimly lit, candles here and here casting their flickering lights which melded with low-light bulbs hidden behind artistically-designed lampshades to give off a quiet, intimate atmosphere. Damian looked across the table at his date, who shook her head slowly. “No thank you,” the young man said, “I think we’re ready for the check.”

The waiter smirked as his eyebrow cocked. “Of course… I’ll get that right away, sir.” The server turned and walked towards the back, his hair bouncing around in a ponytail as he made his way through the restaurant.

Raven glared back at him. “I don’t like the way he said that…” she commented, her voice low. “Yeah, sure, we’re a couple of kids, but come on.”

“He probably thinks we either saved up for months to come here, or that we’re the dine-and-dash type,” Damian said smugly. “Little does he know that my father owns this restaurant. We pay this idiot’s salary.”

Raven held back a laugh as she turned back to face the other Titan. He cleaned up rather well for someone who was so unsophisticated when they first met; under his black slim-fit coat, the Son of Batman wore a red vest and tie, with a black shirt ornamented with (of course) red X-shaped cuff-links. On his tie was a small gold clip in the shape of the Wayne Enterprises logo. (She later looked it up out of curiosity; the clip was, in fact, solid gold, and was worth $8,300. Again, that was just the clip.) Raven couldn’t help snickering a bit when she peeked down at his ankles to find him wearing argyle socks in black and grey with red cross-hatching. He never struck her for an argyle man, but apparently she was mistaken. The slim-fit suit look was definitely working for him, and his slicked-back hairstyle made him look like the high-brow socialite he and his father often pretended to be. He looked a bit older, too… the waiter had even mistakenly offered them a sampling of some of their wines when they first sat down. She and Damian had a good laugh about that, which drew some unwanted attention from the other patrons.

Damian, meanwhile, had hardly been able to take his eyes off Raven from the moment she met him outside the Tower. She looked stunning; she wore her hair up in a dignified style, which gave her an air of confidence to mask her inner demure while also drawing his attention to her exposed neck and shoulders. She had arrived wearing a long, translucent blue shawl over her body, but she’d slipped it off when they sat down, leaving her in a black strapless dress at came down to just above her knees, which drew attention to her feminine shape while still maintaining her modesty. She’d decided to wear flats tonight… which didn’t bother Damian at all (he thought high-heels were stupid anyways; if it makes walking difficult, it defeats the purpose of footwear entirely), but he noticed they were open-toed, and he was able to make out a deep blue shade of polish on her toenails. He didn’t know why he noticed it, but he did, and it was cute. She wore her brooch from a thin white-gold chain around her neck, and little purple gemstones dangled from her ears. A birthday gift from his father, is he recalled correctly. He looked back to her face, noticing that, unlike many other women in the establishment this evening, Raven’s makeup was certainly minimal, no more than she wore any other day. The only thing he noticed that she’d done any differently had been her lips, which were coated in a dark red lipstick. (It was some brand she apparently heard about from Kori, which was known for not coming off once applied. She’d tested this, of course, by planting an exaggerated smack of a kiss on his cheek the moment she walked out of the Tower… they were right, it didn’t come off.)

After a moment, the smug waiter returned with their bill in his hand. Damian grinned as he handed the kid a check proudly signed Damian Wayne rather large across the bottom. When the waiter peeked at the check as Damian rose to help Raven from her chair, his eyes went wide as he recognized the logo on the check he’d just been given. The two Titans barely held back their laughter when they saw the poor boy run a hand roughly through his hair as he realized he’d been sassing at a Wayne the entire night. The two barely walked a block away before they burst out laughing, falling all over each other.

“Oh man, we can never go back there!” Raven cried, leaning into Damian’s chest for support to keep her from collapsing to the ground as she giggled. “Did you see the looks we were getting??”

“I knoooow!! I’m pretty sure the old lady sitting behind us called us brats when we mentioned how old we were!” Damian clasped his hands over his eyes as he cackled. “Oh, man…”

That two stood there on the sidewalk laughing for awhile before their giggles died down, and they continued walking trough the city. Eventually they found their way to Central Park, and smiled as they saw children and families playing, dogs running about, and other couples strolling arm-in-arm in the place where, last they’d visited, was completely empty and covered in snow.

“So what were we talking about before we went crazy laughing so hard back there?” Damian asked with a smile still plastered across his face.

“You mean back in the restaurant? I think it was something to do with how quiet it’s gotten around here lately,” Raven replied, taking hold of Damian’s arm as they walked. “I mean… you’ve noticed, right? Even when we’re just patrolling for little stuff, it seems like nobody’s out and about anymore…”

“Yeah,” Red X said under his breath, his smile finally easing up as he pondered the situation. “I mean sure, Jump has never had anything on Gotham, but… well, it’s still a big city. No city is without crime. But lately everyone seems to be– oh hey,” Damian pointed into a nearby tree at the little silhouettes of several feathered creatures perched in the branches. “More crows.”

“That’s strange… I didn’t know Jump City had crows,” Raven commented. “Of course, I don’t really pay much attention to what birds live where, but I didn’t think–”

Raven stopped short as an explosion shook the ground beneath them, and smoke began to pour into the sky in the direction of the Jump City Library. After their initial brace, Damian let out a groan.

“Come on…” he griped. “Why now? Why tonight??”

Raven just smiled and shook her head. “Come on, Boy Wonder. We got work to do,” the mage teased as she pinched at Damian’s side, rising into the air as she flew ahead. Damian followed on foot, pulling his red mask out of his inner coat pocket and sliding it onto his face.

By the time Red X had reached the Library (which, granted, would have taken much less time had he been in full uniform… or planned on canning his and Raven’s date night), the whole team had gathered inside, and were busy at work putting out the fire. Having retrieved an emergency breather from Jon, Damian rushed inside to join them, grimacing as he felt the heat of the flames licking at his suit through the fabric. His eyes darted all around the main hall of the library, looking for anyone in need of assistance; he knew that without his belt, he wouldn’t be much help with the actual putting out of the fire (his father would have been more useful, but frankly… Damian wasn’t quite as intelligent and quick-thinking as his father yet), so he knew his efforts would be best utilized in getting people to safety. Searching around for anyone, however, he found nothing… until he came to the Children’s section. There, lying on the floor, was what appeared to be a child covered up by a blanket. Smart kid, staying low and covering up to keep the smoke out.

“Come here, little one,” Damian called out over the sound of the conflagration all around them as he slowly inched forward, his hands outstretched. “You don’t need to be afraid, I’m here to help you get out of here. Just take my ha–”

As the blanket whipped aside, Damian realized three things. One, this child didn’t need any help. Two, this wasn’t a child at all. And three, he really should try to be more careful in these situations… unfortunately, these realizations came to him as the solid steel of a boot heel shot right into his jaw, knocking him back several feet and sending the breather flying from his mouth, landing on his chest. As Damian scrambled to his feet upon re-applying his breather, he (begrudgingly) pulled the springlocks at his wrists, frowning quite hard as his X-blades tore the sleeves of his suit all to ribbons. He raised his armed fists, shifting into stance… but froze for a moment at what stared back.

Standing there, having assumed a stance just like his own, was another Red X.

The suit was practically identical: same cape, same belt, same X-blades. It was almost like looking in a mirror, save for two distinct differences: firstly, instead of the red eye mask, this Red X wore a full face mask that covered their entire head, fashioned to look like the top half of a skull, with a red X over the left eye. Secondly, while about the same height as Damian, this impostor’s body was a tad smaller than him at the shoulders and around the waist, but slightly wider at the hips… this Red X was female.

“Okay… I’ve heard what they all say about imitation and flattery…” Damian quipped. “… but I’m gonna need to ask you to get out of my suit.”

The false X said nothing, but quickly advanced towards Damian, darting left and right as she moved like a ghost through the fire around them. Damian instantly raised his defenses, and the two X’s began their strange dance, the clanging sounds of metal bouncing off metal ringing out over the crackle of the library falling apart around them as blade collided with blade, both combatants moving in a flurry around the library. As Damian continued to fight back at this pseudo-Titan’s onslaught, he couldn’t shake the feeling that he’d been in this situation before. Something was familiar about this new enemy, and it wasn’t just his suit… but whatever it was, it made him feel uneasy.

His mind slipping into combat mode, Damian quickly came up with a plan, diving behind the smoldering remains of the front desk as the other X leaped after him. As she came down over him, the Titan let out a short cry as he slung a handful of embers into her face. She instinctively flinched, waving her hands frantically to dispel the cloud of glowing ashes coming at her eyes, and Damian took advantage of her momentary drop in defenses, quickly swiping several small, shallow cuts into her abdomen. The false X let out a cry of pain (her voice modulated and distorted through her mask), and fell to the ground. Damian pounced, pinning her to the ground and raising an X-blade to her throat.

“Start talking, faker!!” The true Red X barked. “Who are you?? Why did destroy the library!?”

“Come now, Damian…” the impostor mused. “If I wanted you to know who I was yet, why would I wear a mask?”

Damian paused, his eyes opening wide. “… what did you just call me…?”

“We’ll meet again soon, Red X. I promise.” Just as the words sounded from the fake X’s mask, the both of them were enveloped in a cloud of smoke that burst out from the impostor’s belt. When the gas cleared, Damian was all alone, the other X having slipped right out from beneath his fingers.

As the two had fought, the other Titans were busy fighting back at the flames; shortly after their battle ended, the last of the flames died down. Damian stumbled out of the library, and looked down at himself… his brand-new suit he’d bought just for tonight hung from his body in tatters. His tie had been ripped apart, the pin nowhere to be found, and several small holes were present in his shirt, some of them dripping with blood from fresh wounds. One of his shoes had gone missing as well, and the other was… oh God, it was on fire. Damian frantically stamped the fire out of his foot, and as he slowly stopped hopping about, he sank to his knees. He stayed there for a moment in the doorway, still trying to process everything that had just happened, until he heard someone plop down beside him. When he looked up, Damian almost broke down crying.

Raven’s hair hung down in every direction from her head, frizzed and messy from all the action. All that remained of her shawl was a little it of blue cloth around her shoulders, and her dress was torn at her side, exposing a long stripe of skin along her hip. She was completely barefoot, with her toes resting on the concrete beneath them, but her blue toenail polish was somehow untouched. An earring was missing, but by some miracle she still had the brooch hanging undamaged around her neck. She sighed as she looked up at the sky above, them down at a scrap of paper in her hands.

“… you know the library was a front. They built it to hide the Federal Reserve underneath…” the witch sighed. “The fire was a cover-up. A distraction to keep us busy while the bad guys made off with all the gold…” she handed him the scrap of paper in her hand. “He left you a note.” Damian opened it up, and a hateful growl rumbled in his chest.

On the paper was a stamped green question mark, with the most awful chicken-scratch handwriting. I’ll be in touch.

“So how’d you do?” She turned to Damian. “Are you alright?”

Damian sat in silence, crumpling up the note and looking back down at the concrete.

Raven felt the strain on her Damian’s mind. “… Baby? C'mon, say something.”

Damian kept his head down, his eyes drifting slowly over and glancing over at the mage-girl. “… I was attacked in there… by another Red X. I’m pretty sure they were female, but they wore a full mask, so I don’t now. But… everything about them–their stance, their moves, the way they ran, jumped, even spoke–I’ve met them before… they called me by my name. I know I’ve met them before… before the Titans… before Robin.”

Raven stared back at Damian quietly for a moment, then nodded slowly. “We’ll find them. You know we will.”

Damian’s hands trembled as he looked back at Raven. “… Raven, I’m sorry… tonight was supposed to be perfect… I just wanted to give you–”

Damian froze as he Raven pulled him into her arms, taking his lips with with her own. This time, they both tasted like smoke, and smelled much the same. But as his eyes closed, all that frustration dissolved. His fireplace, his lighthouse, his oasis… she took him away to another world in their minds, and they were all that mattered. Raven pulled her lips away from his, and he let himself drop as she pulled his head into her lap, stroking his hair.

“You don’t have to be sorry, Damian…” the half-demon cooed down at her boy. “You give me more than I could ever ask for every day. You’re all I need.” She smiled as he curled up next to her, his hands resting on her legs as he let his stress hiss out of him with his breath. “You’re mine, Damian. I’m yours, and your mine, always. That’s all that matters.”

The two of them sat there for a short while, Raven’s hands running through Damian’s hair, and the younger Titan let his eyes close, the warmth of her body next to his lulling him into a half-sleep.