Chapter Sixteen: I Do

"Raven?"

Richard knocked on Raven's bedroom door. It was fairly late at night; the rest of the tower was already asleep. Raven's bedroom light could be seen through the tiniest crack under the door. He knew she was still awake, most likely working her way through last minute details. It took a few moments, but she opened the door.

"Richard? You're still awake?" She said in a slightly breathy voice as she turned back towards her desk, waving him to come inside as she walked.

Richard followed her inside, letting the door shut behind him as he entered. He looked around her room. There were papers, fabric samples, partial flower bouquets and magazines scattered on just about every surface. She appeared to be working with a song list that was to be given to the DJ at the reception. He knew she had talked Victor into calling one of his old school friends for the job.

Raven gathered up a few papers and placed them inside of a folder before letting out a relived sigh and turning to face him.

"So what brings you for a visit so late?" She inquired.

"Well, the wedding is tomorrow, and well… with me being the best man and you the maid of honor, I thought… well I thought that you might consider being my date for the wedding." He asked nervously.

"Sure" she replied with a gentle smile.

"Great! So, Ill see you in the morning then?" he said with a smile.

"Yeah, it's going to be a long wonderful day." She rose and walked with him to her bedroom door as she stifled a yawn. "Good night Richard."

"Good night Raven." He stepped outside the door and let it close behind him.

He couldn't hide his smile as he strolled to his bedroom door, typed in his door code and went inside. It may not have been much, but it was an excuse to spend time with her. He would be allowed to dance with her, hold her hand, and just generally be near her the whole day without giving off any impressions.

He had spent a lot of time thinking about how things would be handled. He did want to tell her his feelings, but he couldn't really decide how to handle it. He didn't want to just ask her out and hope she would say yes. He wanted her to become fond of him. He wanted things to just fall into place. He wanted to have a moment where they would be so close that he would be capable of asking her to be his girlfriend and they would have a closeness that would make it silly for her to reject him. His mother had told him when he was young that with her and his father, things just happened. Things just fell into place. Love wasn't something that you had to work hard to attain. True love would find you and just happen. When it did you needed to work to keep that relationship great, because you would never find another like it. He wanted something like what his parents had. He wanted a true love, a soul mate. He wanted something that would be forever and he wanted to make certain that Raven would see him the same way he saw her.

Sleep came easy for the Boy Wonder. His thoughts were filled with the happy visions of what could happen the following day, and it gave him very pleasant dreams to enjoy.

Finally the day of the wedding had arrived. Everything was set up and ready. The wedding was to take place at two o'clock and the reception would be at the tower as soon as the wedding was over. The decorations for the wedding itself were simple and easy to disassemble. The decor in the tower was another story.

Raven and Kori woke up early, and with Victor's help, they had the party room decorated by noon. The room was decorated in ribbons of white and yellow with daffodils and lilies hung from the ceiling, in centerpieces on the tables, and in vases on shelves. They had set up four tables for the catering to be arranged on. The caterers would arrive at one o'clock to set up the food before the group was to head over to the beach.

Tara and Garfield spent the morning in separate rooms as they prepared their nerves and minds for the wedding. As the caterers set up the food under Victor's supervision, Kori and Raven helped Tara get into her dress and get her hair fixed.

Richard was busy making certain that Gar got ready without being nervous.

"Not going to get cold feet are you?" Richard asked as Gar fumbled with running a comb through his hair.

"Me? Never! I'm really looking forward to this. I was nervous yesterday, but now… I feel really good about this." He replied cheerfully.

"You're a lucky guy. A love like you two have isn't easy to find." Richard replied thoughtfully.

"Ha... yeah. It isn't easy being green, girls normally reject me." Garfield said with a laugh. "Speaking of love though; have you admitted yours to yourself yet?" Gar asked with an inquiring raised eyebrow.

"Heh, yeah... I finally did. Everyone knew before me didn't they?" Richard asked with an embarrassed smile.

"Victor figured it out first. I suspected... but it was Vic that fueled my belief. Tara always hoped you'd find someone to settle down with that would help ease you up a bit... but she never thought it would be Raven until I mentioned something about it to her. I'm honestly not sure if Kori knows or suspects any of it though." Gar said as he pulled socks over his bare feet.

"It took me so long to figure out." Richard said more to himself than anything.

"Naw, you just wanted to be a good leader. I guess good leaders don't usually fall in love with their teammates. That and Raven never was one that was easy to get close to. So you wouldn't have realized things with her because of that I think. Have you told her yet?" Gar asked.

"Not yet. I'm still planning out how I want to tell her. I did, however, manage to get her to be my official date for the wedding." He replied with a smile.

Garfield met his friend's eyes with a smile before spinning around and posing.

"How do I look?" He asked with a wide grin.

The arrangements at the beach had been constructed and everyone gathered at the chosen spot. A small archway had been erected and decorated with daisies and daffodils. Richard, Kori, Victor and Raven took their respective places on the sides of the archway. Alfred stood in the center of them, bible in hand. The guests stood in two small groups, leaving a small pathway leading to the archway. The guests included Wally, Mas y Menos, Speedy, Bumblebee, Garth, Jennifer, Bruce Wayne, Donna Troy, and Superman.

Garfield came up to stand by Richard and await his bride. His calm demeanor was slipping and he was becoming obviously more nervous. Richard gently punched him in the shoulder and shot him a large smile when we looked back at him. He returned the smile and appeared to ease up slightly. He looked down between the guests and saw Tara get out of Raven's Avalon.

Tara walked slowly between the guests with a calm smile on her face. She approached the wedding party and took her place next to Gar. They smiled at one another, looking deep into one another's eyes before turning to face Alfred when he began the ceremony.

The ceremony proceeded swiftly. Gar and Tara shot each other blush-filled glances as Alfred spoke of undying love and a perfect union. Kori smiled largely as tears of pure joy ran down her cheeks. Victor resisted the urge to call Kori over to attempt at consoling her so she wouldn't cry. Raven watched the couple become one with sorrow and longing in her eyes and nothing but pure joy on her face. Richard kept his eyes on Raven throughout the ceremony. He was blinded by unbridled joy and was unable to see the sad love in her eyes, and instead spent the time daydreaming about the reception and the time he hoped to spend with her that evening.

"I now pronounce you Man and Wife. You may kiss your bride." Alfred pronounced.

Garfield swallowed hard and nervously before leaning in and kissing Tara deeply. A blush crept across his cheeks when all the guests began cheering for them. The couple made their way between their guests, who threw flower petals over them as they walked by. Garfield held the door to the backseat of Raven's Avalon open and closed it once Tara was safely inside before going round the car and getting in beside her. Raven and Richard walked side by side to the car and got into the front seat and started the drive back to Titan's Tower. They had rented a limousine for their guests, which Victor and Kori drove to take them to the tower as well.

Once back at the tower, the festivities really began. Victor's DJ friend played loads of music; Tara threw her bouquet into the crowd of ladies, which Kori caught. Gar then threw Tara's garter belt at the crowd of men, which Mas and Menos fought over before it was flung at Speedy who then chose to wear it as a bracelet for the rest of the night.

The atmosphere was fantastic, the music was wonderful, and the food was tolerable. Slow songs began playing and many coupled up to dance, while others stood around talking. Donna dragged Bruce to the dance floor and they spent a good portion of the night dancing and smiling with one another all while hoping no one would notice how much they were enjoying each others company. Garth stole Raven away for a short bit and earned her acceptance of his apology. Wally talked her into dancing with him soon afterward while Richard and Speedy caught up with one another.

Time past by like a dream. Speedy introduced himself and spent the remainder of the night dancing with Jennifer. Everyone took turns dancing with the newlyweds and wishing them luck. Things were perfect. Richard had been waiting to find a time to dance with Raven, and the opportunity hadn't offered itself. He hadn't been spending as time with her as he had hoped to. He looked around the room, having lost track of her yet again and found her standing near the window looking out to the bay.

He walked up and stood beside her. She glanced in his direction to see that it was him and smiled. He looked out to the bay with her and reached out for her hand. They stood there together and watched the sunset in harmonious silence. The sea swallowed up the sun, casting deep burgundy and burnt oranges across the sky before melting into a deep cloudy blue. Another slow song began to play behind them.

"You know I'm going to make you dance to this with me right?" Richard said to her as he continued to gaze at the horizon.

"I assumed as much" she replied simply before looking at him with a soft smile.

He led her to the dance floor and placed his left hand around her waist and held her hand in his right as they began their dance. He made her feel overcome with nerves when his eyes insisted upon gazing into hers. He couldn't help it of course. A gentle smile remained on his face and his eyes would look no where else but at her. He had hoped to dance with her more throughout the night and it hadn't happened. Now that he finally had her in his arms he couldn't hide his excitement. Raven however didn't want to feel like the center of attention to anyone, and instead elected to lay her head on his shoulder so he would be forced to stop looking at her. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and danced closer to her. He blushed when his eye caught sight of Victor, who had a rather large knowing smile across his face from where he danced with Kori on the other side of the room.

The song ended and other songs began. Richard looked at his watch and took note of the time and followed after Raven who had wandered off for a glass of punch.

"Come on, I have something to show you." Richard said as he came up behind her and took hold of her hand.

"Where are we going?" she said with a light giggle, following him solely out of morbid curiosity.

He led her out of the room and to the elevator, only Wally noticed them depart. He smiled softly to himself before wandering over to ask Bumblebee for a dance.

The pair rode the elevator up to the top level and Richard led her down the hall to the rooftop. They climbed the stairs and stepped out into the chilly night air. He reached off to the side and pulled a blanket out of a plastic tub that was sitting on the roof. She looked at the tub curiously before accepting the blanket that he draped around her shoulders. He led her over to one of the risings where he lifted her up onto it, before climbing up to sit next to her.

"So what on the rooftop required my attention?" she asked him curiously.

"Wait for it. You'll see." He replied with a smug smile on his face. He knew she hated surprises.

He sat silently, looking around the bay and the night sky. She sat there in more of an awkward silence watching him and looking to the areas he had himself fixated on. She watched him as he looked at his watch and then back to the horizon. She looked up at his face, taking more notice of his features. His strong jaw, his matured face, the softness his skin held in the moonlight. His eyes looked fresher and more relaxed; they had lost much of the worn look she had seen in them the night she returned. His hair had been lengthening and now sat a few inches below his shoulders. It shone a glossy black under the night sky.

"I have something on my face?" he inquired without looking away from the sky.

"Just taking note of your features." She replied.

"So you can dream of them tonight?" he asked with an egotistical smile and a light chuckle.

"More like so I won't confuse you for another when I kill you for keeping me in suspense." She replied with a laugh. "What are we up here for anyway?"

"That." He said as he pointed off into the sky.

Her eyes looked off into the sky where he pointed and beheld a shooting star. She watched it as it danced through the sky and fell down past the horizon. She looked back up where it had come from and saw another and yet another.

"Oh..." she gasped as she watched the lovely lights dance in the sky.

"A meteor shower." He finished her sentence for her.

She leaned herself into his arms and together they watched the stars dance through the sky before falling below the horizon. Time seemed to stand still as the stars took flight through the sky.

"Richard?" her voice rang out softly in the night.

"Yes Raven?" he asked her.

"Thank you." She said to him, slinking further into his arms.

"Your welcome Raven." He replied with a smile, wrapping his arms more around her.

The shower continued for hours. The two birds laid together on the rooftop watching the shower in the sky before falling asleep in each others arms just shy of daybreak.

Author's Note::

It's probably horribly obvious, but this fic is on an official hiatus. I haven't done a proper update for it in about 3 years and I have since lost the motivation and direction I had planned for it. I've been more in the mood to write lately, so I will be looking at this and working with it's outline. I would like to shorten it down from the original broadcast-ed 50-something chapters to a more reasonable number. Something under 30 chapters maybe. So hopefully you will see more of it soon and it won't be too large of a change. My writing style has changed since I began this story. I'll try to fit into the groove of things, but when it seems like someone else finished it, don't be surprised. When I finally do start updating it again, be warned that I will be posting updates in blocks. I want to write most of it before posting it. I might actually complete it and then add in chapters slowly till it is all online.