Disclaimer: Okay, I don't own any rights to the Teen Titans, DC Comics, or anything else affiliated with them!

Author's Notes: I've worked really hard on this fanfic so please, please, please review; even if it's a simple "It was good" would make my day! Go easy on me though, this is my first Teen Titans fic after all...

CHAPTER ONE

I walked slowly down the sidewalk, my boot heels clicking smartly. The nights were cooler than normal causing me to wear my long leather jacket. Its edges drug the ground; I was short, I admitted it. Tonight was quiet; the streets dark from the lamps being knocked out. I saw everything clearly though; the moon was shining bright enough. My long black hair blew into my face, making me take a band and pull it back into a simple ponytail.

I had been walking for awhile now. I think I was in a new city, Jump City as a matter of fact. Everyone knew about Jump City, the city with the Teen Titans. Their picture was on the front page of every newspaper I had gotten my hands on. Was I jealous? Hell yes. I spent my free time working for others benefit and barely got a "thank you." Yeah, I was just a normal human girl, no powers, but so was Robin. And from what I'd read and heard, he was the leader of the team. I still didn't get how that worked out. It might have been my image... I didn't exactly look like a good guy in my black leather pants, bodice, gloves, tall black boots, and of course my dark make-up... Maybe I should try letting up on the leather... But that girl Raven, I think that was her name, didn't look like a good guy either. In any case, I loved the way I looked. My body was in tip top condition. Courtesy of my martial arts training and gymnastics classes I was made to take when I was younger. I had heard that Robin had undergone training too and that made me smile for some reason.

I shifted my backpack to my other shoulder. Holding only the few clothes that I possessed and some other small things; it wasn't that heavy. I looked down the dark street, hearing alarms going off in the distance. That reminded me of home, well my old home. I hadn't been there in a long time and didn't plan on returning anytime soon. There was nothing for me in Gotham City. Not anymore.

I turned around when I heard footsteps coming close. It was a man and he was running right at me. I hesitantly stepped over to give him room on the sidewalk.

As he ran past, his arm jotted out hitting me into the building next to me. What the hell? I thought, rubbing my scraped shoulder. I looked on the ground for my bag realizing what had happened. "Oh. I know he didn't!" I said aloud, running the way he had taken off.

My breath caught a bit when the cold air hit my lungs. I saw him dart right and I followed not too far behind. I turned to see him at the end of the dark alleyway. "Hey!" I shouted angrily.

The man stopped his attempts at trying to climb the cyclone fence. He turned to me, then looked down at my backpack he held in his hands, grinning.

"Yeah! I believe you just nicked something of mine!" I yelled at the man.

"You better watch who you talk to like that," the man said, moving closer to me.

The closer he came, the bigger he seemed. Size didn't matter to me though. The bigger they were, the harder they fell. "And you better watch who you steal from!"

I heard scuffling behind me and turned around. There were three men blocking my only way out. Great. I took off my long leather jacket and threw it into a corner knowing this wasn't going to be easy. I had been exposed to many encounters like this before. Hell, I got paid for teaching people like these a lesson back in Gotham. Maybe I would continue to do that here; it certainly paid well...

They were each carrying a bag. The alarms... It finally clicked. "You're who the cops are after."

"The...t-the T-t-teen T-titans! They're on their way!" One of the men said, looking frantically back and fourth.

"And the Teen Titans I guess," I rolled my eyes.

"I knew this was a bad idea!" Another man said looking at me only once.

The mere sound of movement was all the warning I had. I dropped to the ground, kicking out towards the pair of feet just behind me. His grunt told me he went down. I got to my feet, seeing two of the men out of the corner of my eyes coming towards me. "Don't even," I spat. Doing a running hand spring, I swung both of my legs coming down in either of their chests. I fell with them. When I tried to get up, one grabbed my ankle. I twisted, my other boot clad foot hitting him firmly under the jaw. I jumped up as soon as I felt his grip on me go slack. The man that I had kicked the feet out from under was trying to climb up the fence again. "Oh no you don't!" I ran over and pulled him back by the collar of his shirt. He fell flat, and I put a boot on his throat. "Give me my pack." The man tried to move out from under me, but I stuck my boot heel deeper into his throat. He held up my bag. "Good. Now what are you supposed to say?" I lifted my head at the clatter of the two men. The third was no where to be seen. "Give me a minute," I stated to them. I turned my gaze back to the man on the ground. "Well?"

He gurgled something that didn't nearly sound like the apology I wanted, but I could pretend...

"That's what I thought. Maybe you'll try thinking before stealing next time," I said letting up on his throat. The two men at the end of the alley had closed the distance between us.

"You're just a girl," one mocked.

I smirked, ducking when he took a swing at me. "You're not supposed to hit girls. Didn't your mother teach you anything?"

The man grunted, and the other caught me before I could move away. I was thrown against the wall, and a man pressed hard against me, my arms tight between us. As I tried to pull away I felt cold metal on the side of my head, and the soft click of a safety going off. "Shit," I whispered.

"Maybe you'll try thinking before playing with the big boys next time. Wait, there won't be a next time. Too bad," the man's breath was hot on my ear.

We all stopped breathing when we heard the rumble of a motorcycle. It was getting closer. I might could use this to my advantage. "Ooh, better shoot me quietly, or else the big bad Titans might hear."

The man with the gun cursed. "Where's Greg?"

"He went to get the car," the other man not holding me said.

"Good."

"Tick tock," I said hearing the cycle get louder by the second.

"Run," one of them cried. "I am not going back to prison. We need to run!"

I felt the grip on me tighten, then loosen. In a split second I dropped to the ground, scraping my cheek. I turned onto my back, watching the man point his gun to my head.

"Move one more time bitch and you die," the man said grabbing my ankle, and dragging me into the darkness, close to the fence.

"The gunshot would be loud enough for the Titans to hear. You're stupid, but you're not that stupid," I snapped. I heard the loud cycle before I saw it pass the alleyway. Lovely.

The man gave a bark of laughter. "Looks like your luck has just ran out."

Fear rather than courage pushed me into motion. The gunshot was loud, popping my ears. I immediately felt my arm burning. I rolled, wrapping my legs around his ankles and pulled. He went down, and I kicked the gun from his reach. He scrambled for it, and I jumped onto his back. Doing little good, considering I didn't weigh much at all. Tears blurred my vision from the pain in my arm, and I swung my good arm against his head, making him hit the wall. The man fell limp beneath me. I took a breath, then another. I was not going to pass out. I pressed my shoulder against the hard wall to lever myself to my feet.

The two men were coming towards me, one held the gun I had kicked. Swell. "What is it with guns that make you feel all powerful?" I asked before running at the man with the weapon. I jumped as he aimed. My hand landed on his wrist and I twisted. Another gunshot popped my ears, but I still only felt my arm burning. "You better be glad you suck at aiming!" I screamed, kicking him where men aren't meant to be kicked. He fell to his knees and actually let out a small whine. I felt the cold blade on my neck before I knew man number two was behind me.

"Get up!" He said to the man on the ground. "Think you can best me, bitch?" I felt him nuzzle my neck, making me cringe.

"Get away from me!" I said, but stopped moving when I felt the blade actually cut my skin.

"Now, now. Don't be hasty."

I watched as the other man got to his knees and finally stand up. He wobbled a little, but soon found his way over to me. I took that as my chance. I lifted my feet from the ground and pushed against the man in front of me, he went down and so did we. My fall was cushioned by the man behind me. Wincing, I put my bad arm against his throat, cutting off his air. I took my other hand, and twisted his wrist holding the knife until I heard the soft "pop" of it dislocating. The clanging of the metal hitting the pavement was loud. I took the blunt end of the knife, and slammed it against the man's head. His eyes rolled as he lay there unconscious.

"You, you stay where you are!"

I turned to see the last man standing with the gun unsteadily in his grip. "Are we playing fucking musical guns?" The man backed up a step, but soon stepped forward as he heard the rumble of the motorcycle coming close again. "Well, guess what? I'm the only one that hasn't had a turn," that was the only warning I gave him. I did a high kick to his hand, knocking the annoying piece of metal from his grasp. He started to run into the street and I followed. He tripped and fell onto the pavement, and I sprang, my knee landing between his shoulder blades. He grunted and held his hands up. "Who do you think I am? The freaking police?"

"What do you want?" He asked.

I saw the bright light of the motorcycle coming. "I want you to sit here and look pretty. Got it?" I took his mumble as a yes. "Now, I'm fixing to get off you. Are you going to try and run?" The man shook his head. "Good," I slowly got to my feet. I rummaged in my backpack, pulling out the first thing I felt. I tore the white T-shirt, and wrapped it around my bleeding arm, wincing when the pain hit me. I wasn't sure if the bullet had gone through or not, but it sure felt like it. I tied the clothing tight, and swung my bag over my shoulder.

I started walking down the street, glancing toward one the bags that were most likely filled with money. I couldn't believe I was actually thinking about grabbing some of its contents. I passed by the bag, and almost fell into the brick wall. The bright headlight of the cycle blinded me, and I put a hand up to shield my eyes. I watched through my fingers as a figure came between me and the light.

"Are you okay?" It was a male voice.

I didn't like men at the moment. "Leave me alone. I'm going to pass out," was the last thing I remembered saying.

---

"Do you know her?"

"I... I don't know."

"Then why did you bring her back here?"

The voices sounded far away until I sat up abruptly as pain raced up my arm. I felt a soft but hard pressure pushing me back down. I wiped the tears from my eyes so I could see something other than blurred images. "My God," I whispered. Looking down on me was the Teen Titans. How ironic. The masked boy Robin and who I believed to be Cyborg held each of my shoulders.

"Hold her still," a dark girl said rubbing alcohol on my arm, making me jerk.

"Stop it. That hurts!" I tried to wriggle out of the arms pressing against me. "I'm fine."

A green boy turned up next to the girl that appeared to be Raven. "You're one lucky chick."

I managed a weak smile. "That was nothing," my eyes roved over a bloody piece of cloth on a table next to Raven that must have been my T-shirt. I shuddered. Yuck.

The green boy eyed my bleeding arm with a raised eyebrow. "I'm Beast Boy."

I nodded. "I know who you are."

"Who're you?" a slightly deeper voice demanded.

I turned my head to see who I was talking to, it was Robin. "Kaleal. Kaleal Frost. I would offer you my hand, but it seems I'm unable to do so," I said sardonically. Beast Boy laughed, making me feel a little better. "How did I get here?" Beast Boy pointed to Robin. "Oh. Thanks and all, but I'm fine. I need to go," I said as I tried to move unsuccessfully.

"Hold still," Raven said to me this time.

I glanced down to see what she was doing. I watched helplessly as she finished tying up the last of the stitches along the injury. "Were those actually necessary?" I complained.

"Unless you want an opened wound, I would think so," she muttered.

"How bad is it?"

Raven looked up as I bit my lower lip. "The bullet didn't go through. It's more like a bad burn."

I sighed in relief. That was great. Thank God that man was a bad shot. It would probably be as good as new in a couple days.

"You took out three guys," Robin stated, almost sounding proud.

I turned back to look at him. "Yeah, so what? Was I supposed to wait for you to turn around?" I asked annoyed with his attitude. Robin reached out to touch my burning cheek and I jerked back. His eyes widened at my sudden movement. "Why do people always want to touch the things that hurt?"

Robin raised his dark eyebrows. "Where are you from?" He asked, ignoring me.

"What's with all the questions?" I asked, slightly unnerved. I physically calmed when their grasp on my shoulders fell away. I looked down at my stitched and now bandaged arm. "Good job."

Raven looked up surprised. "Uh, thanks."

"Anytime. Now," I said stepping off of the table smoothly. "I think I'll be going."

"I'm not finished," Raven said, motioning for me to sit. I obliged, and she took out two small white bandages. Before placing it on my shoulder she cleaned my scrape with alcohol, making me cringe. She did the same with my cheek. "Are you hurt anywhere else?"

I brought my cold fingers to my throat. "What about this?"

Raven lifted my chin so she could see better. "I cleaned it while you were unconscious. It's not even bleeding anymore. Just a clean slice."

"Done?" At her nod, I hopped of the table.

Robin's arm was resting on a small table filled with different things. I saw his hand shift and hit a tall bottle filled with some kind of liquid. I reached out and grabbed it before it hit the tiled floor. "I knew it," he said smirking.

My eyes widened at the mistake I had made. "What are you talking about?" I asked setting the bottle back on the table.

"You've had some kind of training. I knew a regular girl couldn't have taken down three men with weapons all by herself." His eyes narrowed. "Now who are you?"

I stepped back as his demeanor changed to one of accusation. "I already told you who I am."

He stepped forward. "Where are you from?"

I hesitated. "What's it to you?" Robin rubbed his eyes. "Gotham City," I said, moving to push past him. As his hand landed on my arm instinct kicked in. I grabbed his wrist with my good hand, and pulled him over my shoulder. I fell to a crouch, ready for him to fight back. But he didn't. He had landed on his feet, though he wore a look of amazement. I stood, feeling stupid that I had actually tried to best a martial arts master. "I don't like it when people touch me."

"I noticed," Robin replied. "Gotham City, huh?"

I peered at the other Titans in the room. They were visibly settling themselves, realizing that I wasn't a threat. "Yeah. Same as you."

"So you've read about me?" Robin said actually smiling. He held out a gloved hand, then peered at my arm. He awkwardly held out his left hand instead. "I'm Robin."

I smiled back, glad he hadn't taken my throwing him over my shoulder personally. I held out my right hand, not caring about the pain it would cause. Our gloves squeaked slightly as both of our grips tightened. "I know who you are, I remember you. Batman and Robin hit the headline news."

Robin let go of my hand first. "Yeah, that was a long time ago," he turned to his bewildered friends. "This is Cyborg and Raven," Robin motioned to the other titans. "You've already met Beast Boy." I nodded to them respectively. My eyes jerked when a door opened and new light fell into the already bright room. "And this is Starfire."

The alien girl came close to me. "Hello, friend. Welcome!"

I smiled at her forwardness. "Hi. I'm Kaleal."

"It is most pleasant to meet you!"

"Uh, same," I smiled, glad she wasn't trying to hug me. "Um, thanks for everything, but I've got to go now," I said into the silence. I searched for my bag, spotting it beside Raven. I walked slowly over to get it, noticing that she flinched when I brushed her arm for its strap. "Nice meeting you all," I looked to the open door. "Could someone show me the way out?"

Beast Boy came to my side. "I will."

"Wait," Robin said.

Raven stood silently, moving in close to Robin. "Don't."

"Raven..." Robin started.

"I know what you're thinking. Don't. You know what happened last time. I refuse to go through that again," Raven said, her voice bitter.

"This is different..."

"Could someone clue me in on what's going on?" I asked.

Robin looked to Raven then to the other Titans. "Would you mind waiting outside for a minute?"

I knew I was about to be evaluated by the Teen Titans, but not sure why. "Um, okay. This way?" I inclined my head to the open doorway. At their nod, I exited the room, the door sliding shut automatically behind me. I could hear voices immediately rise and fall. I leaned against the wall adjacent to the door I had come out of. My arm hurt like hell, but at least I still had one. I smiled at my own thinking. What are you getting yourself into Kaleal? I rubbed my forehead. I needed to leave, get out of here, away from the Titans.

I looked down the hallway to my left then my right. Left was always right. Right? I rolled my eyes and went down the hallway to my left. I quickly turned at the first chance I got. An elevator was at the end of the hall in front of me, all nice and metal like. I pressed the down button, and it beeped, then opened. When I stepped in, I looked at the many numbers. I picked 1. "That should be the first floor," I said obviously. As the doors closed I saw a flash of purple. "Uh oh," I said realizing that they had noticed I wasn't where I was supposed to be. When the elevator gave a lurch I knew what to expect when the metal doors slid open again.

The Teen Titans stood there with different expressions on each of their faces. I smiled. "Uh, hi again."

"Where do you think you're going?" Cyborg asked peering skeptically at me.

"Away from here?" I hated that it came out as a question.

"I want to ask you a few things," Robin said walking into the elevator.

"Sure. It's not like I have anything better to do," I said moving so the other Titans could come in too.

Robin ended up leading me into an open room with a big screen and couches. "Nice TV."

"Thanks," he said motioning for me to sit. "If you're from Gotham City what are you doing here?"

I was slightly taken aback by his question. "Well, I... I'm looking for someone."

Robin noticed my change of answers. "Who?"

"Not anyone you would know," I wasn't exactly lying.

"I doubt that," Robin said smugly. "I'm just going to ask you flat out, are you a good guy or a bad guy?"

I laughed. "What happens if I say bad guy?"

"We hall your butt to the police."

"And good guy?"

"I offer you an opportunity," Robin said smiling.

I returned his smile. "And what if I lie?"

Robin's smile quickly turned into a frown. "You'll regret it."

The scary thing was that I believed him. "I'm a good guy I guess."

"There is no guessing. There is a fine line between good and evil, which side of that line are you on?"

"Good," I said truthfully. I wasn't evil. I kicked evil asses.

Robin glanced over to a steaming Raven. "I had a feeling you were. How would you like to be... tested?"

I stood up. "I don't like tests."

"If you're as good as I think you are, than put those martial arts skills of yours to use. Good use," Robin said. "I'll only ask once."

"What is this? Like a chance to join your team?" I asked not believing it.

"This is simply an offer. A trial. To see if we can trust you or not. To see if you are Titan material."

I backed up. A Titan? Me? I had never thought of it. Dreamed of it maybe. "You don't know anything about me."

"That's what this whole thing is.. To find out who you are, and what you're made of," Robin said.

"What does this test consist of?"

Robin looked to his friends. "A lot of questions, among other things," he smiled.

"I could do that," I thought aloud.

"Then it's settled. Let's see... we know you're name is Kaleal Frost. You're from Gotham City. You know martial arts. And we can't forget, you're looking for someone."

"You know a lot more than most people," I admitted.

"If you're a good guy, then why didn't you stay and fight crime in Gotham?" Robin questioned, looking truly interested.

"I tried," at Robin's raised eyebrow I continued. "Batman made it quite clear that he works alone."

Robin laughed. "Really?"

It was my turn to raise my eyebrows. "Yeah. After you bailed on him, I guess he decided he wanted to stay solo. Unless he fired you?"

Robin shook his head, bypassing my question. "So where are you staying?"

I turned my gaze to floor. "I don't know."

"You don't have anywhere to go?" Beast Boy cut in.

"I'll find somewhere. It isn't a problem."

Cyborg's gaze went to my backpack. "How long have you been wandering around?"

I brought my eyes to his. "A long time."

"You could stay here!" Starfire spoke up.

"Starfire," Raven grumbled in warning, but the red-head just smiled and took my hands into hers.

"She can stay here. Right, Robin?" Starfire's eyes pleaded.

I immediately knew that there was something between Robin and Starfire. His eyes softened when they landed on her smile. "Sure, Star."

"Robin," Raven said shaking her head.

"Chill, Rae," Beast Boy said, putting a green hand on her shoulder. "If Robin trusts Kaleal, then it's cool," he gave me an encouraging smile.

I gently let go of Starfire's hands. "That's really nice of you to offer, but I wouldn't feel right. I mean trust is something that I will have to earn. Maybe some other time?"

Starfire looked disappointed, and I heard Raven sigh. "No, it's fine. I don't care."

My gaze went to Robin's and he smiled. Starfire jumped up and down with excitement. "This is most wondrous!"

"It's getting late. Want me to show you to your room?" Robin asked.

I didn't have a watch, but the moon was high in the sky. My eyes fell from the huge windows overlooking the water and city. "Sure."

"Okay, then. Follow me," Robin said walking towards the hallway.

"Night, everyone," I said somewhat uncomfortable.

"Goodnight, friend!" Starfire said with a big smile.

"G'night," the rest said in unison.

I followed Robin down the hall, the silence getting on my nerves. "So."

"So," he said.

I stopped walking and waited until he noticed. He turned at once, a questioning gaze fell on me. "What's the matter?"

"The matter is that you have no idea who I am! I could have lied about everything I was saying back there! I could trick all of you and... and hurt you or something," I said incensed. Robin's smile caught me off guard. "What?"

"I can trust you."

I sighed. "But you don't know that." I couldn't help my mind from going to the thought of my father. He was a great man. A hard worker and a respected ally. He meant everything to me, and I mean everything. He still does, even though he's not here. Trust was his most valued possession. Who knew that it would kill him in the end...

"Are you okay?"

I looked up, not realizing that he had placed a hand upon my shoulder. "Yes."

Robin removed his hand when he saw me eying it and turned back around. "Don't you have a family?"

"I did," I confessed. "Why did you quit being partners with Batman?" I asked changing the subject.

Robin gave a short laugh. "Okay, you keep your secrets, and I'll keep mine."

"Sounds fair," I said, glad he didn't ask anymore personal questions.

We walked down stairs instead of taking the elevator, I'm not sure why. Robin lead me down a dim hallway, finally stopping at a door on our left. He hesitated, then went to the door on the opposite side. "Here."

The door slid open and he waited for me to go before him. When I didn't move, he walked in and flipped on the light. It illuminated a medium sized room with a round bed. There was a small table beside the bed and a dresser in the corner, besides that the room was bare. "It's... clean."

"It's plain," Robin stated. "If you stay here long enough maybe you can change that."

I smiled. "Definitely." It was a little cold and I looked at my bare arms. "Damn it."

"What is it?"

"I left my coat in the freaking alley. I bet those rats have already found it," I groaned.

Robin shrugged. "They aren't that lucky." At my confusion he continued. "You didn't think I just picked you up and brought you here, did you?" I guess my face said I thought just that because he laughed. "Yeah, I picked you up, but not before I called the other Titans to come get those guys. I think it was Cyborg who grabbed your coat while being down there."

I sighed in relief. "Remind me to thank him later." His laughter sounded oddly familiar. That was strange...

"Well, do you have everything you need?" Robin asked, thinking my raised eyebrows were in speculation.

I held up my backpack in answer. He nodded, and went to stand by the door. "Robin?" I asked, waiting for him to turn to me before I started again. "Have we..." I took a breath, then let it out. "Would you send someone to get me in the morning? I'm not sure I could find my way out of here by myself," I finished, changing what I was going to ask.

Robin looked relieved at my question. "Sure."