Recovery

May, 2012

Author's note(s): All Teen Titans characters are owned by DC Comics and/or Cartoon Network.

You'll notice some elements from the comics in play. That's intentional, but, I want to keep those to a "dull roar" as I do prefer the animated version better. Some things I prefer (as in the team members knowing their "alter ego"/Secret Identity)…others I didn't like (as in Terra's death or BB talking in other forms).

Prologue
[Titans Tower – Shortly after the events in "Trigon Tries Again."]

Edward Barnes muses…

I blew it. I allowed my emotions to get the best of me fighting for Raven and the team is somewhat frightened of me. The only one that isn't is Raven. My sweet little empath is helping me the best she can, but, I have to remember that while she's instinctually drawn to my problem, if she tries to use her abilities to draw all my pain out at once, it will kill her.

I do let her in. I have to let her do what she can, but, the only thing that's keeping us together is our love for one another.

Arella says that the violence needed to put Trigon down for good has poisoned me. That said, she's still very grateful for what we've done for her and keep doing. Maybe Rae's mom is right. She spent the better part of her life in Azarath and, well, I wish it were still in one piece as that would be a great vacation spot right now. I might avail myself to their teachings, though. Just to balance out the more violent parts of my nature.

The team did vote on one thing, though. They are going to let me use their real names in private. Heck, I already know Robin is Richard Grayson, Starfire is a loose translation for Koriand'r, Beast Boy is Garfield Logan and Terra is a play on Tara Markov. I found out that Raven is Rachel Roth (I really prefer Raven, though...LOL!) Cyborg finally broke down and said his real name is Victor Stone.

Well, vote is a misnomer. It just happened. The one that really needs to maintain a secret identity is Robin, of course. If I could come to the conclusion that Bruce Wayne moonlights as Batman without too much trouble, the rest of the world could figure it out as well. It's hard to hurt Batman, but, even I fear if someone went after Bruce Wayne's loved ones.

Dick will not come out and admit this to the rest of the Titans, save Raven and I by extension: He still sees Bruce as an adopted father. I had looked up the incident that cost Dick his parents and I felt a flash of anger knowing that they had been murdered. Then, I realized that had they not died, the Titans would not exist.

Dick still visits his parents' graves and I asked him if I could honor them as well. He was, needless to say, surprised, but, agreed to the request.

But, Robin's acting like a true leader. He knows I'm trying to heal some deep emotional scars and told me that I could take as much time as I needed…going on missions for Rae and I is optional for now. I've gone on some of the missions, though. He's trusting us to not do anything improper in letting us spend time in each other's rooms. He's asked that the doors be kept open a couple of inches, though.

Cyborg's helping as well. He's letting me use his high end equipment to blow off some steam and, honestly, it does help. Hard to stay angry when one is trying to lift 5 tons and not shatter the bones…then again, in my human form, that would happen, so, I use a different form to protect my bone structure. Raven's noticed a difference in my regular muscle mass.

Starfire is too emotional right now. She's feeding off my negative vibrations and it's affecting her flight powers, which require her to be joyful. Then again, it's fueling her Starbolts. I feel bad that my alien friend is being affected by the anger I've been trying to purge. It's like someone planted that in my blasted head.

Beast Boy and Terra are being really supportive. He told me what he went through after Terra betrayed the team and his heartache. He'd get just as angry for weeks after the betrayal and when she was petrified, it was ten times as worse. If Raven had not risked opening herself up and given BB a shoulder to lean on, the younger shapeshifter would not have gotten through it.

But, being on the Titans has brought out the best in me as well and I wouldn't trade that for the world. I've met new friends and allies, not only in the main Titan group, but, in the Justice League also. Then, there are the honorary Titans.

Another of those will be making a visit. We've had Raven's "kids," Kole, and Gnaark. But, now we have a unique teen coming. He is mute and has a pretty interesting ability as well.

There's something else. In the last few months, even before the Trigon incident, I've been pondering asking Raven a question and had to keep Raven from getting too close to finding it before I was ready to ask.

The Trigon incident, though made me realize, through Starfire's innocent remark, that Raven's been waiting for me to ask her and even told Starfire that she would say "Yes."

Chapter 1
[Titan common area]

Edward was still depressed and it was not a feeling he liked. He had allowed his draconic rage to be unleashed and he knew that the other Titans were now worrying about him.

He was playing a solo game of Mega-Monkeys 6 on the GameStation and actually doing pretty well when the communications console beeped.

Edward paused the game and jogged to the device and opened the channel. There was a guy he hadn't seen before, blond hair and green eyes.

"Titans Tower, Edward here," he said.

The guy started making hand signals and Edward realized the guy was unable to talk.

"I'm Jericho," he signed, "Is Robin there?"

Edward signed, "He is, would you like to talk to him?"

"You can talk to me. I am merely mute, not deaf. But, yes, I would like to talk to him," he signed back.

"My apologies, Jericho," Edward said. Jericho smiled and signed, "I'm used to it. Apology accepted."

"Hold on a moment and I'll get him," Edward said.

He put the call on hold and opened the intercom to the rest of the tower.

"Robin, you have a call from Jericho," he said.

Robin replied, "I'll be there in a moment, then."

"Understood," Edward said.

He reopened the outside channel and said, "Robin's on the way and should be here in a moment."

Jericho signed, "Thank you. When did you become a Titan?"

"About six months ago," Edward replied.

"Good! The Titans needed another member. Do you have any special abilities?" he signed.

"I'm a Dragon," Edward explained.

"A Dragon?" Jericho replied, "I don't understand."

"I can shapeshift, like Beast Boy does," Edward replied patiently.

Jericho nodded, "OK." He looked at Edward oddly, though.

Robin came into the room then and said, "Don't tell me, Edward. You can speak in sign language as well?"

Edward chuckled, "Of course. Jericho and I were getting to know each other a little bit."

"Good!" Robin said, "I can't do sign language very well."

"You two talk," Edward said, getting up, "I'll translate."

"Thanks!" Robin said.

"Hi, Jericho," Robin said, "What's up?"

Jericho signed, "I was wondering how things were there in Jump City."

"Not too bad, man," Robin said, "Some of the bad guys we've taken down lately aren't too eager to get out of jail soon."

"Who did you take down?" Jericho replied.

"Mallah somehow got released. Edward and Raven were able to defeat him," Robin said, "One of our newest members, Terra, took down Slade."

"My dad?" Jericho signed.

Robin's face paled a little, "Yeah, he was taken down. Jericho, there's something that you need to know, but, not over the communicators. We have to tell you in person."

Jericho's face fell then. He didn't have to be told.

"Jericho," Edward said, "Where are you at? We'll come get you."

Jericho signed his location and Robin said, "Sounds like where Beast Boy met him before. Take him along."

"OK," Edward replied. He did not like to be the bearer of bad news, at all.

"I'll be there shortly, Jericho," Edward said to him.

"We'll get the guest room ready for you," Robin said.

Jericho signed off and closed the connection.

"He's Slade's SON?" Edward asked.

"He is," Robin said, "He's also an honorary Titan. He's nothing like Slade."

"Why wasn't he told of his dad's death?" Edward asked, "He has a right to know…to say good-bye if he wants to."

"He and his dad did not get along very well," Robin explained, "From what we know, Slade is part of the reason Jericho's mute. He was able to talk until he was about 10 when he was kidnapped. Slade did not want to cooperate in giving over some information and while he saved his son's life, it resulted in his vocal cords being damaged."

Edward nodded, "I can understand why. I will shoulder this burden, then."

"No," Robin said, "As the leader, the duty needs to fall on me."

"All right," Edward said, "I will do as you ask, is possible. But, I will not hide the truth from him should he directly ask me."

"Oh, I got a message from Batman," Robin said, "He mentioned that Bruce would like to talk to you personally."

There was the unspoken agreement that only in Robin's room would they discuss Batman and Bruce Wayne as the same person. The other team members probably were aware, but, they were playing dumb with that issue.

"Gotcha," Edward said, "Here or somewhere else?"

"He said at Wayne Manor. You've gotten a rare dinner invite," Robin said, "I'd go, but, there are still some issues."

"No worries, Robin," Edward said, "I'll ask Raven if she'll teleport us over there. Once I've been there, I can teleport, as you know."

"That will work," Robin replied. Edward knew they did talk at times, and, between Bruce and Edward, the finances of the team were taken care of in an informal agreement, but, Edward also knew that there would have to be something in place formally pretty soon.

Edward wished, though, that they would sit down and talk about the rift between them. Edward did not feel it was his place to intervene though. If it was something in their private lives, he was certainly out of the picture. It didn't affect the team as a whole, so, again, Edward knew his place was elsewhere. Only if it interfered with the Titans would Edward step in.

"Wayne Manor's number is stored in the computer. Talk to Alfred and he'll get you set up," Robin said, "That's one guy I miss, though. He was a third father to me and, well, I also miss his cooking."

"Top notch?" Edward said, raising an eyebrow.

"No offense, but, I'm biased towards his pot roast and several other dishes," Robin said.

"What offense?" Edward said, "I'm a big dragon and can take my lumps when it comes to someone better than I in the cooking department. I look forward to this dinner, then. We might have to compare notes."

"Alfred would enjoy that," Robin said.

Edward pulled out his communicator, "Edward to Beast Boy, can you come to the roof, please. We gotta go pick up Jericho."

"Awesome!" Beast Boy said, "Be there in 5."

"You want to come with me?" Edward asked.

"Nah," Robin said, "I need to think how to tell him about Slade."

"Ok," Edward said and headed for the roof of the Tower.

[Five minutes later]

Beast Boy arrived on the roof and Edward said, "Hi, Garfield! You ready?"

"Ready as I'll ever be," Beast Boy said, "Where's Jericho at?"

"Robin said that he might be on a mountain top," Edward replied.

"Man, I hate climbing that thing!" Beast Boy said.

"Who said anything about climbing?" Edward said with a laugh and morphed.

"Forgot about that," Beast Boy said and hopped on Edward's back.

"He might be depressed when we get there," Edward said, "He might have figured out that his dad is deceased."

"His dad?" Beast Boy asked.

"Slade," was all Edward said.

"Bummer," Beast Boy said, "I take it Robin wants to tell him."

"Yeah."

They took to the air and after a quick mind touch, Edward teleported.

[A remote mountain top somewhere in Europe]

They emerged from the teleport and Beast Boy said, "I'll fly on ahead, if you want."

"Nah, it's fine," Edward said, "I see him already."

Edward came in for a landing and realized that he'd flatten a lot of the flowers there.

"On second thought," Edward said, "Go for it, I need to morph as well."

A moment later, there was a green eagle in Edward's vision and Edward did the same before landing.

They returned to their human forms and headed for where Jericho was strumming a guitar. It was a sad tune though. Edward hadn't heard it before, though.

As Edward and Beast Boy approached he looked up to see them.

He waved, but, deep down, Edward was just as saddened.

[Edward,] Raven said through the link, [What's wrong?]

[I think Jericho figured out that his father died recently,] Edward replied.

[I know,] Raven said, sending a mental hug for support, [That's for Jericho as well.]

Jericho signed, "My father is dead?"

Edward knew he would get chewed by Robin, but, said, "I'm so sorry, friend. He was murdered in a prison riot several weeks ago."

Jericho collapsed in tears.

[Tell Robin that Jericho knows already,] Edward said sadly, [He is mourning now. We'll bring Jericho back to the Tower. I don't want the kid alone. Give Dick my apologies. He'll understand, I hope.]

A moment later, Raven replied, [Dick said to bring him back ASAP, and, that he understands fully. Nothing to apologize for if Jericho forced you to tell him.]

[I wasn't going to lie to the kid, Rach, you know that,] Edward said. He was trying to block Jericho's distress from reaching her.

"How did he die?" Jericho signed.

"There was a prison riot and according to the investigation, another inmate started the initial fight. By the time I got there to help quell it, your dad had taken a shank to the head. I believe it was quick," Edward replied.

Jericho leaned into Edward, who just hugged him and let him mourn.

[I can feel his distress, honey,] Raven said sadly, [I want to ease his pain so bad.]

[No,] Edward said, [Rae, he needs to mourn. I've discovered that mortals when they lose someone, they must grieve. It's part of the closure process. To take that away, even when the intentions are for the best, robs the person. I think that he did not get the chance to talk to Slade and possibly forgive the man. Robin's right. I refuse to visit Slade crimes on his son. I can't, honey. He's sobbing in my arms.]

[I know,] Raven replied, [When he wants me to, I'll help him. Right now, focus on him.]

Jericho was silently sobbing his eyes out and Edward wished he could actually vocalize what he was wanting to say. The sobbing was helping, though.

"Hey," Beast Boy said, "I can understand how you feel."

Jericho looked at Beast Boy and signed rapidly.

Edward relayed, "He's saying, 'How in the hell do you know how I feel? You don't know the pain this is causing! How hurt I am!'"

"I do know your pain," Beast Boy said, "I lost my parents years ago suddenly. They were caught in a waterfall and I only survived cause of my abilities. Why do you think I crack jokes all the time? It still hurts. It never goes away. It will always be a part of me, though."

"Jericho," Edward said, "I know you don't believe it right now. I've lived a long time and seen hundreds of generations come and go. Those I called family over that time, when they passed, a little piece of me went with them."

"How old are you?" Jericho signed.

"Almost 3,000," Edward replied, "It's part of being immortal, I'm afraid."

"You're not hardened against grief?" he signed.

"No, and I do not want to be," Edward said, "If I were to not mourn when a loved one dies…I would be a true monster. No, I'm not truly human. Beast Boy will tell you from experience, my emotions are a lot more intense than human feelings."

"Yeah," Beast Boy said, "Don't get on his bad side. Several bad guys did that and they are happy to stay behind bars. Some are dead as well."

"You kill?" Jericho asked.

"With great hesitation, yes, I have killed enemies," Edward replied, "I won't kill the Titan's human enemies if at all possible."

"Not unless they attack Raven," Beast Boy said.

"Those that attacked Raven who I killed or helped to kill, though, were non-human, Beast Boy. Don't forget Terra buried Malchior," Edward replied.

"Who?" Jericho said. There was no word for "Malchior" in sign language.

"Another dragon," Edward replied, "He had seduced Raven a few years ago and in the process fooled her into releasing him from an ancient Chinese curse binding him to an ancient book. Well, she managed to re-capture him after a fight. Somehow, he was released again, and attacked Raven, first by tearing apart her mind. I went in there and with some help from Raven's emotions, kicked him out of her mind. So, he attempted to attack directly when she was down for the count. He didn't get the chance to even come close. He was defeated once and for all. Terra, one of the new members of the team, buried him. You see, she's a terrakinetic. She can move earth with her mind."

Jericho sighed then said, "Dang."

"Robin's waiting for us at the Tower," Beast Boy said, "If I know him, he's got the guest room ready for you."

"I'd like that," Jericho replied, "I do not want to be alone right now."

"I don't blame you one bit," Edward said, "You ready?"

"Yes," he signed back.

"No luggage, I see. No problem, I'll get whatever you might need that the Tower doesn't have," Edward said.

"Thanks!" Jericho replied.

"It's going to be a tight fit," Edward said, "I don't want to flatten these flowers."

"They'll grow back," Jericho replied.

Edward morphed back to mini-dragon and said, "Hop on!"

"I have a better idea," Jericho replied, "But I'd like to ask you first."

"Ask away," Edward responded.

"Dude," Beast Boy said, "I think he wants to possess you. Don't worry, Jericho won't harm you."

"Hmmm," Edward said, thinking about that one. He didn't want anyone in his mind, save for Raven.

[Dear,] Raven interjected, [It'll be OK. He won't hurt you or invade your mind. In this case, he's just riding along.]

"Raven's vouching for you, Jericho," Edward said.

"How?" Jericho asked.

"We're telepathically linked," Edward said with a draconic grin, "It comes in handy a lot! OK, do your stuff."

Edward lowered his mental defenses as Jericho looked into his eyes. His eyes turned black with their normal green and next thing Edward knew, Jericho had faded from sight. He felt Jericho enter his being and raised an eyebrow…Or rather Jericho did.

"Looks like I still have control over my voice," Edward said, "OK, This is going to be weird for you, Jericho. I will need control of my wings at least, but, I'll tell you how to operate the rest of me. You can control the legs."

[All right,] Jericho said, [Hey, I can talk in here!]

[You're accessing the link I was talking about,] Edward said.

[Hello, Jericho,] Raven said.

[Hello, Raven,] Jericho said, [It's awesome to be able to TALK!]

[I'll bet,] Edward said, [See if you can use my vocal cords.]

[No can do, unless I take control when you're sleeping or out cold,] Jericho explained.

Edward chuckled to himself.

"What's going on?" Beast Boy asked, "You got that same look that you get talking to Raven."

"Just having a threesome," Edward replied with a laugh.

Both Jericho and Raven groaned at that one. Beast Boy however, got the hint and the pun pretty quickly and laughed.

"OK, Jericho, I need you to lower my back end and keep my front legs kind of bent. Just like if a cat were jumping into the air," Edward said aloud for Beast Boy's benefit.

Jericho did that and Edward said, "That's fine. Now, tense up the leg muscles and jump into the air. When you do that, I'll start flapping the wings and we'll be on our way."

Edward felt weird, though, as Jericho propelled Edward into the air. Edward started flapping his wings as Beast Boy got aboard as a falcon.

Edward felt Beast Boy morphing back to human a moment later.

"Now for the tricky part," Edward said, "Normally, when I teleport, the passengers are, well, on my back. Jericho, I need to say this with the utmost seriousness and gravity. You MUST stay where you're at during the teleportation process. If you leave me during that time, you are as good as dead because I will have no idea where and when you dropped out of the teleport. Beast Boy has teleported with me several times and he's aware of the risk involved. That's not a threat, but, a dire warning. Heck, even Mallah got the hint when I had to teleport his frozen monkey butt from the South Pole to Paris 5 months ago."

[Mallah was thawed out?] Jericho asked.

[He was,] Raven replied, [Damn gorilla thought he'd attack my kids again. Between Edward, Bobby and I, he didn't put up much of a fight.]

Jericho laughed and said, [Warning received, let's go. Sadly, there is a limit on how long I can stay.]

"Here goes," Edward said, "Cross your fingers…or my toes."

Edward pictured the Tower in his head and teleported back.

[1000 yards away from the Tower]

Edward and passengers emerged from the teleport and Jericho said, [Holy cow! That was a weird feeling.]

[Actually, we were supposed to emerge over the Tower, but, no biggie,] Edward replied.

He flew towards the tower and had to make a choice: Land on the roof or land at the base and go in that way.

"Heading for the roof," he said, "OK, to land will be interesting. I'll overfly the roof once so Jericho can see where to land, then, circle back. On the second pass, I'll aim for the center of the roof and as I get close, I'll do what's called a backwing, to reduce my speed.

"Please make sure that my legs are braced for the impact. As I land, there will still be some forward motion, so, allow my legs to move with that and then, slow me down to a stop."

[Got it,] Jericho said.

Beast Boy flew off as a precaution and formed a dragon of his own.

"Good idea!" Edward said, "Go ahead and land so Jericho gets the idea better."

By then, the other Titans and Arella had come out on the roof to watch.

Beast Boy flew ahead and landed. He had just a similar size to Edward and made the landing look easy.

Edward overflew the roof and circled back. As he came closer to his target zone, he started to reduce his speed and as he landed, poor Jericho had difficulty with the landing!

Edward started to skid off the roof, only to be covered in Raven's powers! She had intervened and carefully set Edward back on the roof.

Jericho decided he had enough for the time being and left Edward's body.

He reappeared and signed, "I'm sorry."

Edward morphed back and replied, "No harm done. Thanks, Raven!"

"You're welcome, dear," she replied.

"You and Raven are dating?" Jericho asked.

"Yep," Edward said.

"Welcome back!" Robin said, "I want to offer my condolences, Jericho. I'm sorry about your dad."

Robin wasn't just saying that to be polite. Sure, he and Slade were enemies, but, he was not going to put the sins of the father on the son.

Jericho signed sadly, "I will miss him. There were things I wanted to say to him."

Edward relayed that to the team and Robin said, "We'll take you to his gravesite, if you'd like."

Jericho replied, "Yes, I would like that."

Terra looked like she was going to blow a gasket, though.

Edward noticed and said, "Terra, I'd like to introduce you to Jericho. He's an Honorary Titan. Jericho, this is Terra, the young woman I was talking about. She's a good friend."

"Slade's son?" Terra asked darkly.

"Terra," Beast Boy said, "Jericho's not like Slade at all."

Jericho signed to her, "I'm not my father, Terra. He is why I cannot speak. I had been kidnapped at the age of ten and when he had a choice of my life or divulging some information, he refused to divulge the information. I paid for his ego with my voice."

After Edward translated, Jericho pulled down his turtleneck sweater to show an ugly cut across part of his throat.

"Figured he'd even trade his own son for his ego," Terra said, "But, I'm sorry he let that happen to you."

Edward sighed.

"What's wrong?" Jericho signed.

"Nothing that I can't handle," Edward replied, "Just been going through a hard time."

Jericho signed, "Can't be as rough as being told that you'll never be able to talk again. That was the hardest day of my life."

"True," Edward said. He walked over to Raven and took her hand in his.

"But, when you're so protective of the one you love that you over-react to a potential threat when you know she can handle things herself," Edward continued, "It's hard. Or when there's a telepathic link involved that you are overjoyed to have and take the risk of negative stuff getting through. It can be a strain.

"But, the good really does outweigh the bad. I wouldn't trade this for anything."

"Just remember, Edward," Raven said, "This runs both ways.

"Jericho, this is my mother, Arella. Mom, this is Jericho."

"Nice to meet you," Jericho signed.

"Nice to meet you, too," Arella replied.

"Another sign reader?" Edward said with a smile, "Nice!"

"Let's go inside," Robin suggested.

The team went inside and headed for the common room.

"Since Jericho's our guest, I think he should be able to pick dinner for the team," Robin said.

"Who cooks?" Jericho replied.

"Edward does," Robin replied, "It prevents arguments between Beast Boy and Cyborg."

"Would he know lasagna?" Jericho asked.

"Of course," Edward replied, "I make it from scratch. My own sauce as well."

Jericho smiled, "Would you mind? I haven't had that in a long time."

"Not at all! Like Robin said, you're our guest. It's only fair that you get to select your first meal here," Edward replied.

"All right!" Beast Boy said happily.

"Booya!" Cyborg said.

"Friend Edward's cooking is glorious!" Starfire exclaimed.

Raven gave a soft smile as a reply.

Arella said, "That sounds wonderful, Edward. Would you need any help?"

"Possibly," Edward said, "I have to go to the market and get what we need. It shouldn't take long."

"I'll go with you, Edward," Raven said. Edward nodded his agreement to that idea with a soft smile thrown in as well.

Since the Trigon incident, Raven had decided that she needed to be near him. Edward had been seriously destabilized in that incident. He was, for the first time in centuries, doubting his abilities.

Trigon's sons had not only successfully captured him, but, prevented him from using most of his abilities. And, Edward didn't want to admit it, but, those ropes he was bound with had hurt badly. They were magically enhanced to prevent his powers from being used. It took one of his sons to make a mistake for Edward to break loose.

He was given a measure of revenge with their own capture and death.

But, the worst harm was seeing his sweet Raven in tears due to the destruction of Azarath as well as Trigon's last stand in Nevermore.

Edward normally had excellent control over his emotions, but, deep down, Edward knew that he had allowed his anger to go out of control. The other Titans had understood why.

After the rescue and final defeat of Trigon, Edward had holed up in his room, only allowing Raven anywhere near him while he wrestled with his feelings.

He even considered for a little while, ending the relationship with Raven. However, after much soul searching, he had come to realize that he needed Raven in his life for as long as humanly possible. He couldn't just pack his stuff and leave the team. Yes, they would survive with or without him, but, Edward knew, deep down, that they also needed him.

Terra, for example, had a very personal reason for being one of his best friends. She knew that Edward considered the life debt paid in full, and was happy about that. He supported her when she took down Slade. Oh, she knew that she had issues still. But, as she allowed her friends to trust her and she learned to trust as well.

Edward smiled to himself as he knew he helped Terra and Garfield to be truly happy.

Robin and Starfire had become close as friends first, then, as a committed couple. Yes, it was a risk. Robin had to force himself to take breaks from his reports and other stresses of leading the Titans.

And…Raven herself. She had never been allowed to really feel happiness and to feel true joy. And, yes, there is a big difference in the empath's mind. She felt close friendship with Robin. He was the one that rescued her from Trigon the first time. She knew his deepest, darkest secrets and held those close to her heart. But, now, she knew happiness, joy, and she knew that she was loved as well. Heck, everyone in the tower knew that as she was projecting those feelings to the others.

Well, Edward sat down one night and did a pro/con list and realized that he was very blessed to be part of the team. The pros greatly outweighed the cons and when Edward was done, he knew he was truly home. For the first time in centuries…Edward Barnes was home. He had friends who he considered to be family.

One thing he heard about was when Galfore had told Koriand'r that she needed to listen to her heart and do what was best for Tamaran. She listened to the advice and her heart after banishing Blackfire from Tamaran forever and named Galfore to be the next emperor of the planet.

Edward took that same sage advice and he knew that being with the Titans was best for them, the planet and himself.

That was a huge balm for his aching emotions and as he got his debit card from his room, he resolved to take case of some business that evening.

In his room was a special ring he was going to give Raven that evening…

Dang...Talk about an absence! I was actually able to write this entire story in the forced downtime :) So, those that have me on an author alert will get this head's up. However, I'm going to post the entire thing at this time, so, those that would normally put this on a story alert will be saved the time.

This is going to be one of my longer stories, though, so, sit back and enjoy!