Over her years in the Teen Titans, Raven had faced a lot of challenges - and kicked all of their butts, if she was being honest. Some were easy, like Control Freak or Mad Mod. Some were harder, like banishing her demonic father's hold on her. Nevertheless, she had stared down each one and eventually, overcome them. This, however? This was a whole other matter.

Robin was at her side, his arm gripping hers like a vice. His face was blank (even now he still had the mask on), but she knew he was as apprehensive as she was. Together, they pushed open the heavy doors. The chaos before them was like nothing they had ever imagined. In hindsight, the biggest mistake in all of this had been allowing Starfire to Google what a maid of honour was. After pouring through pages and pages on what a maid of honour could do, she became fixated, and delightedly began organising and ordering and generally making a mess. Some Earth festivities here, a Tamaraenian festivity there. Raven had hoped Cyborg - as the best man - may have tempered her slightly, but truthfully he was just as bad, only his manifested in loud music and video game references in the decor. Once again, she wished Beast Boy had considered her suggestion of a quiet, courthouse service.

Little did she know, her husband-to-be was having similar regrets. Beast Boy's heart had been fluttering more than a butterfly for an unhealthy amount of time, only amplifying with each person that progressed down the aisle. He wanted to peer back at Cyborg behind him, but didn't think he was supposed to. Melvin and Timmy were first, scurrying down the aisle scattering flower petals that Teether nibbled as he lagged behind. Then came Starfire, in an elegant pink dress that would've trailed on the floor if she hadn't been floating. Her smile was somehow more radiant than usual (if that was possible) and she squeezed the feeling from his hands as she passed him. For once, he wished she had held on longer. The numbness would be nice right about now. Jinx, Bumblebee, Argent and Kole strode in next, a rainbow of not-quite-matching dresses and heels that required superhero balancing skills. They each clutched a bunch of flowers the same size as the lump in his throat.

Who had they hired to play the organ again? Beast Boy couldn't even remember, but he was too frozen to look. Either way, their playing suddenly sounded a lot heavier and clumsier. Then again, maybe that was just him; the scent of the flowers was growing stronger too, stinging his sensitive nose. It made him want to sneeze, but he thought that probably wasn't appropriate for a wedding. Was it? He had no idea. He had no idea about any of this. He'd spent so long thinking about this moment, this day, but now it was here, nothing felt right. The discomfort that had nagged at him for weeks couldn't be ignored any longer, and he didn't know what to do. Maybe it would go away if he bit his lip hard enough. He decided it wouldn't when a metallic taste burned his throat.

Those imposing doors were creaking open again, and this time his heart stopped completely. Raven's hair was off her face entirely, exposing her jaw and neck for the first time, and a lacy white dress hugged her figure all the way down to the rug beneath her feet. He couldn't see her shoes, but he heard the heels click as she walked. She probably hated it; she thought heels were impractical. Nevertheless, the sight of her hanging onto Robin's arm in a beautiful gown still left him hot under the collar, and he tugged at his tie. It was strangling him, but the groom had to wear a tie at a wedding, apparently. Halfway down the aisle, Raven's pace slowed, and she shot Robin a look akin to a deer in the headlights.

"Help," she whispered softly.

Nobody caught it - she wasn't sure Robin had at first - but his face went steely. He said nothing, but the question was clear on his lips. He wanted to know if she was okay. She wouldn't mind knowing either. It dawned on her that they were just standing in the middle of an aisle, which definitely wasn't okay at a wedding. They needed to start walking again soon. She was about to voice this when a panicked squawk rang out, followed by several cries from the crowd and a "whoa, BB!" from a certain half-robot. A green bird (was that a raven?) bolted out of the window frantically, a few stray feathers drifting in its wake. Something curdled in Raven's belly. She dropped Robin's arm and disappeared in a flash of black.

Startled, Robin glanced around him. He peered confusedly down the remainder of the petalled aisle at Cyborg, Starfire and the rest of his friends, who were gathered around the abandoned altar looking as awkward as he felt. At least he wasn't alone.

He wasn't really surprised that she followed him. In his fluster, he hadn't fled far; the dirty rooftop he perched on was only a few blocks from the hall (Raven refused to marry in a church, given her... past). It had been difficult to find a space free of bird poop, but the view of the city was worth it, and he dangled his legs over the edge to kick at the pleasant breeze. This would be a cool place to get married, he mused. As long as you cleaned up the poop. The swirl of energy behind him broke his train of thought, and his chest clenched. Raven was wordless as she settled beside him, fumbling comically with the layers of her dress before surrendering to their chaos.

Eventually, he cleared his throat. "Hey, Rae." His voice sounded squeaky, like he was fifteen again. He felt closer to fifteen than nineteen.

"You left me there."

He winced. Her voice was level, no trace of emotion; almost like it was in the beginning of the team, but somehow worse, now that he knew what it sounded like with life in it. He couldn't find the right words, so he blurted out whatever ones came to him. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry, I just - it's just that - You see all the weddings in like movies and... Star did an awesome job and all and- the flowers were cool but- It was weird - not like bad weird, but just kinda weird, you know? And I-"

"I know," she interrupted. "I meant," a smirk crept across her lips, "you left me there. In that mess. If you were going to run, you could've told me."

He grinned crookedly. "I assumed you'd follow anyway."

"Obviously," Raven sniped, but she was smirking too. She looked like a different person under all that glamour. He had never seen her so much as fill in her eyebrows before, and now she was painted in full makeup. It didn't seem right. So, he told her.

He explained it all. "It didn't feel like our day, you know? It was like somebody else had organised it all - which they did, I guess. I don't know. We followed all the rules and stuff, but it still wasn't..."

"Right?" Raven finished. He nodded, and she copied. "I thought so too. You don't suit a monkey suit."

He laughed. "You don't suit glitter." He dragged a hand through his hair, regardless of whether it left it dishevelled. "We shoulda just done it ourselves, right?"

"Definitely." She reached up and began removing hair pins; the violet locks tumbled around her face. "We shouldn't have bothered with any of the rules. I thought it'd be nice but, it wasn't..."

"Us." Their voices flowed together, perfectly in time. Their laughter echoed much the same.

Despite conventions, the roof they sat upon felt so much more welcoming than the enclosed space of the hall. There was fresh air, and a beautiful landscape of city lights with the occasional burst of stars. Nobody was breathing down their necks, nobody was expecting anything of them, and nobody was watching as Beast Boy drew Raven in and kissed her. It felt like a far truer wedding.

She pulled away. "Beast Boy?"

He gazed back, bemused, with his thoughts curling across his face. Did I do something wrong? "Yeah?"

Raven took his hands into her own, gripping them lovingly. "Do you take me to be your wife?"

Eyes wide in understanding, Beast Boy nodded rapidly. "Yeah! Oh, right, uh, I do. Do you take me to be yours?"

An eyebrow slanted at him, thicker and neater than usual. "Do you mean as my husband?"

"Uhm..." He scanned back over his words and blushed. "Yes I do. Do you take me to be your husband?"

A low chuckle. "Of course I do."

"Then we may kiss... again." Beast Boy gave her his best beaming smile, showing off his little fangs, before closing the distance again. She didn't hesitate this time.

Part of her knew it was irrational to marry so young, but the lives of superheroes had to move quickly; for all they knew, if they waited until next year, one of them wouldn't be alive any more. It was the right choice for them, no matter what Jump City's tabloids had to say about it. When they broke for air, they kept their foreheads resting together, before Raven allowed herself to slump into her boyfriend's - husband's - shoulder. That would take some getting used to, but it would be worth it. Garfield had been at her side longer than she ever could have imagined, and showed her a side of emotion she thought would forever be out of her reach. He had touched her life irreversibly, and she could only hope she had done the same.

An eternity later, she peered up at his voice. "Rae?"

"Yeah, Gar?"

"Should we go back to the ceremony?"

She hummed thoughtfully. "I suppose. After all, Robin did pay for it with the team's official funding. You know how frugal he is."

His rasping, throaty laugh erupted into the air, and something warmed in her stomach. This had absolutely been the correct decision. When the mirth finally settled, she wrapped her arms around him again, and they melted away into the shadows of the night. They still had a ceremony to complete, but their marriage had already begun.

Say what you like about me, but darn it I finish a project. Eventually. After a million years. IT'S DONE, OKAY. IT'S DONE. I DID IT. WOOP.

Seriously, I hope you all enjoyed it. I had to finish this, even if I've moved on a lot since I started it and my writing has evolved dramatically. There are several bits of this story that I'm not proud of, but overall I like it. Thank you for reading, and hopefully see you soon :)

~ MusicRocks807 xxxx