A year or two later...
"Are you sure this is necessary?" asked Cyborg for the umpteenth time, tugging impatiently at the ugly black tie wrapped around his neck. Fitted rather snugly over his cybernetic frame was a specially tailored black tuxedo, made of course for this singular important event. Cyborg tugged again on the tie, not really used to wearing it. Or wearing much of anything, really. The past several years or so since the accident he'd been comfortable enough in his cybernetic frame, never really felt a need to wear anything else.
Ironic, he thought, that he, the best man, was the one fidgeting and nervous, while the groom was as calm and collected as ever.
Nightwing was also in a tuxedo, but unlike Cyborg, it didn't look quite so out of place. Since his regular uniform was black anyway, that is, and his tie was a dark navy blue. His dark mask rested across his features as it always did, as this was a superhero wedding. Dick Greyson wasn't able to marry Kory Anders.
Nightwing was marrying Starfire.
And so of course they'd dragged Cyborg in as the best man, who'd been Nightwing's friend for as long as they'd been Titans. Raven however, had managed to escape from filling in as Starfire's bridesmaid, claiming the role didn't suit her. So they'd managed to recruit Bumblebee into the unlikely role. By now the two girls were probably with Starfire, getting her dress in place, doing her hair, chatting about the upcoming honeymoon. Nightwing didn't know. Bad luck to visit the bride before the wedding, after all.
It wasn't exactly a traditional wedding. Then again, with superheroes, what was ever traditional? They lived in a building shaped like a giant letter of the alphabet after all. Thus, it should've come to no surprise they were having the wedding in a secure, remote location, carefully chosen by Nightwing and his former mentor the Batman, specifically chosen to keep them hidden from the public and from the likes who might be watching them. The last thing they needed was for the priest to come to the lines 'speak now or forever hold your peace' and have the HIVE trio burst in to tear up the place. It was another reason Cyborg was best man... nobody messed with a man who could tear through a foot of reinforced steel with his pinkies.
But where were Raven and Beastboy?
Cyborg idly switched his vision completely to his cybernetic eye, allowing his sensors to come up to maximum range and frequency. He could clearly see a number of people had already gathered for the wedding. Many of whom were still in costume to protect certain identities from the world at large. Superman and Lois Lane (no doubt here to try and get the exclusive on the first superhero wedding), Batman and Wonder Woman (the latter of whom was no doubt comparing the father to the son at the time, and wondering when they'd make a similar commitment), Speedy, Mas y Menos, Aqualad and his own father, Aquaman, Silas Stone, Arella, and many others. J'onn J'onez, Starfire's fellow alien, was present, and even the morose martian had a smile on his face. Even the honorary Titans, Hotspot and Wildebeast, were in attendance. Faces both new and familiar. Even the Titan protégés, the new generation, were wandering about amongst the esteemed guests.
Even a surprising addition had joined them among the East team. A blonde-haired, blue-eyed rock-tumbler that the Titans remembered all too well.
It was Terra.
But it wasn't, they'd explained. Not really. It was a clone of the original Terra, given her powers and her memories. Which explained how, even now, she was a fourteen year old, closer in age to the young twins Mas Y Menos than she was to the likes of Beastboy (whom the original had been closest to in age). She remembered everything in vivid detail up to the day she was attacked by the giant scorpion, but past that everything was new to her. So it was Terra, but it was Terra who'd been given a second chance. The East gang had taken her in, suspecting (rightfully) that Terra might cause tension, resentment, maybe even some bitter looks from their western counterparts. To be honest, they'd been reluctant to invite her to the wedding.
But Starfire had insisted she come. Why worry about the past, when the future was not yet written?
Ah! There, he'd finally found both Beastboy and Raven, they'd arrived late, or so it seemed. Raven was holding their little bundle of joy, Dove, in her arms, cooing it to sleep as Beastboy looked on with fatherly pride. Cyborg took a sick delight in noting that Beastboy looked even more uncomfortable in a tuxedo than he did. But Raven... sometimes he wondered what had happened to the sad and lonely sorceress who'd spent more time reading books alone in her room. Being a wife and mother suited her.
And speaking of the beautiful bride, here she came now, being led down the aisle by Galifore, her k'norfka, who was to hand her off to Nightwing. She looked beyond beautiful, dressed in an ivory gown and a steel headdress Nightwing had only seen once before. During the wedding on Tamaran. And now she was dressed like that again. Older, more beautiful, and she was soon to be his. It was like he was looking at her, truly looking at her, for the very first time.
He suddenly found it very hard to breath.
He almost barely noticed as the priest began to recite the lines before all those gathered, he could barely hear the words, he was too entranced by her. And she kept sneaking glances at him as well behind the shimmering white veil over her eyes. He responded more by instinct than anything, saying his lines, promising himself to her and listening to her do the same to him. Through sickness and health, by day or night, in costume or not, how he would always love her. He could barely even hear the 'I do's' and realize he'd said it without thinking it. Again, he was letting his heart, not his head, guide him. It seemed to know the best course of action to take.
But he did, very clearly hear, the last words out of the priest's mouth.
"I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the..."
But he'd already beaten him to it.
"... bride," he finished, chuckling somewhat in amusement.
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The reception was at the newly reconstructed (and vastly upgraded) Titan's Tower, on the island proper with a set up series of tables with enough food to feed the nation of Chong-Mai for a week. Dancing, celebrating, everyone meeting with the happy new couple and offering gifts and well-wishes. The biggest, of course, being Cyborg's tossing the keys to the T-Car to Nightwing, then pointing out the vehicle at the other end of the island for when the happy couple decided to slip away. Unsurprisingly, Beastboy had already soaped 'Just Married' onto the back.
"So what exactly do we call you guys now?" asked Beastboy, when he and Raven had managed to catch a moment to speak to them in semi-private. Most of the others had given them a little space, catching up on the latest superhero gossip, diving into the buffet (Wildebeast was tearing through it like a bull in a china shop) or dancing on the space cleared aside for just that purpose. "Mr. and Mrs. Greyson?" he asked. "'Cause let me tell you, Starfire Greyson just doesn't sound quite right."
"We're still talking about it," replied Nightwing, his hand over his wife's, giving a comforting squeeze. "But we think we'll just stick with Nightwing and Starfire. Dick Greyson is going to stay single, in a sense."
Beastboy laughed at that, and Raven quipped "I hope that's not an excuse to go..."
They all shared a laugh at that. Even Starfire. "Nightwing knows better," she added playfully. "He would never do that to me."
"Never," he agreed. "Besides, what about Garfield Logan?" he replied teasingly.
"Dude, with a wife like this at home waiting for me?" he said, looping his arm around Raven's and giving a smile. "I wouldn't trade her for a Tidwell 5000," he solemnly vowed.
"That, and he's terrified of Anger," added Raven teasingly.
Again, the laughter seemed to flow freely.
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Laughter was not so prevalent at some parts of the wedding, however. In particular, centered around three uninvited guests who had snuck in for the reception. Two of which were busy trying to devour the appetizers, the third of whom was now approaching the opposite side of the dance floor, where Cyborg was currently resting after his dance partner (the lovely Bumblebee) had departed to freshen up. His one organic eye opened wide in shock as he noticed the unwelcome guest.
"Jinx?"
Her hands shot up, almost instinctively, palms up, fingers wide, in a universal 'I mean no harm' gesture. Well, generally it was 'I am unarmed' but in Jinx's case that was never true. "I'm not here to cause trouble," she said.
Cyborg glanced around, nobody seemed to have noticed her yet. Then again, in a superhero celebration with people in colorful costumes and uniforms as much as black tuxedos and white dresses, he should hardly be surprised. However, a quick scan confirmed his suspicions as he spotted Gizmo and Mammoth tearing into the buffet table with gusto. Mammoth damn near looked like his jaw was going to unhinge like a snake and he would swallow the table and it's contents whole. No sign of Jinx's latest partners-in-crime, Seemore and Private Hive.
"What about your buddies?" indicated Cyborg with a nod of his head. "They here to cause trouble?"
She sighed, apprehensive, but collected herself quickly and said "When they heard I wanted to come, they said they'd come to. To... to keep an eye on me, I guess. But we don't want to 'cause trouble, honest," she added again, and despite himself, Cyborg found himself nodding.
"Then why are you here?" he asked.
"To apologize."
Blink. "What?"
She self-consciously rubber her arm, not really look up at him as she went on. "Look I'm... not very good at saying I'm sorry. Even though I should be, 'cause I got a lot I'm sorry about. But mostly I'm sorry that... things couldn't have been different."
"Different... yeah..."
"But things aren't different. And we can't, well, really change mistakes but... maybe we can start over?" she asked hesitantly, holding out her hand.
Cyborg raised an eyebrow, hesitant.
Jinx's hand dropped back down to her side and she turned away, lowering her head. "This was a bad idea," she said, trying to keep her voice even, choking back a sob as she felt wet tears begin to form at the corners of her eyes. "I'm sorry. We'll leave now."
Stupid, stupid, stupid! What were you thinking! she berated herself. Did you honestly think things could change! Things never change! He's just like the rest of them! Stupid, arrogant, stuck-up...!
A large metal hand gently closed on her shoulder as she tried to walk away, stopping her. Confused, Jinx's head snapped up, looking back at Cyborg. He was offering her his other hand.
"Victor Stone," he said. "Some call me Cyborg. Nice to meet you."
She was crying now... but it was tears of relief. "J-Jinx," she managed to stutter out, placing her tiny pale hand in his bigger metallic one. "Just Jinx."
He smiled, but it was a bittersweet smile. Happy tinged with sadness. "Not everything can just go back to the way it was," he said, glancing meaningfully over his shoulder. Catching sight of his date and dance partner, who'd returned from the ladies room. She was standing a short distance away, out of earshot, giving Cyborg some space. "Some things can't change."
"It's enough for now," said Jinx. "Catch you around, Cyborg," she said, turning to depart, snapping up her two friends as they made their way to the exit.
Suddenly a thought hit him. "Hey! Aren't you three supposed to be in jail?"
"We paroled ourselves early for good behavior!" Gizmo shouted over his shoulder as he zipped down with Jinx and Mammoth to the edge of the island, where a boat was waiting for them. Cyborg was chasing after them now, Bumblebee in hot pursuit, but a lot slower since her wings were bound behind her back by her dress and she'd had to kick it up a bit to try and run.
"But don't worry, we won't commit any crimes... much!" Mammoth added, and he and Gizmo broke out into laughter as they gunned the engine and high-tailed it away from Titan's island before anyone could give chase. Jinx, quiet, watched from the stern of the ship, giving a silent wave as they vanished from view.
Cyborg shook his head as Bumblebee caught up to him. Some things never changed.
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Tradition was observed at the wedding of Nightwing and Starfire. And one of those traditions was, of course, clearing the dance floor to give the newlyweds a chance for their own private little dance. It wasn't anything elaborate, it wasn't anything fancy. Neither of them danced any better than they had five years ago when they'd been to the Junior Prom of another school. But they still enjoyed it just as much. They were having the time of their lives. Each and every moment since they'd said their vows have been exponentially increasing in joy. Each moment was better than the last.
That was, of course, until a familiar jingle split the air. The speakers for the music, wired into the Titan's Tower, immediately shut off as the jingle emanated from Nightwing's tuxedo. From his pocket. The clasp at Starfire's throat lit up as well, and she clasped a hand to it quickly. Almost instinctively, Nightwing released his wife to reach in and flip open his communicator.
Damn.
"Oh man... today of all days..."
Cyborg, Beastboy and Raven were already rushing to join them, each with their Titan communicator flashing in warning. A Titan alert had gone out. A crime was in place, Nightwing quickly scanned the communicator for relevant information as the others looked on anxiously.
"Dr. Light," said Nightwing, removing his necktie. "He's..."
Nightwing's alert was cut off as Dr. Light's image came to them, floating over the island and instantly catching the attention of all those concerned. Image only, clearly even the sometimes reputed imbecile Dr. Light wouldn't have been stupid enough to try and make an appearance on an island full of superheroes alone. Even he wasn't that stupid.
"Ah, Titans. Sorry to interrupt the festivities, but I've come late with a present for the newlyweds... some class five cruise missiles!" he said, moving partially aside so the light-image could expand behind him, showing he was indeed a missile silo. And he was, indeed, launching missiles. "Ahahaha!"
"Typical," muttered Nightwing.
"Where're they going?" asked Beastboy, shapeshifting into a serpent to slip out of his tuxedo (letting it fall to the ground) then resuming his natural shape, which included his uniform. It never left him. Cyborg's transformation was far less subtle, as he ripped off his tuxedo just by flexing his huge mechanic muscles. The damn thing seemed to simply explode off of his body in a shower of black cotton and silk.
"Titan's Tower," replied Raven, before Nightwing could finish his analysis.
"How do you know that?" asked Starfire, shrugging off her tiara.
Raven, without turning her head, without tilting her body, lifted her hand and pointed unerringly behind her... at two long streaks of white. Tail-fires. And at the ends of them, streaking towards the Tower...
"Missiles!"
"Starfire, stay here!" said Nightwing, gently pushing past her. But she grabbed his arm, her emerald eyes flashing defiantly.
"Not a chance."
Raven made far less of an argument as Beastboy gently pushed her and baby Dove aside, tensing beside his teammates, until a great mechanized hand swished into view and gently blocked them from proceeding.
"Hang on..." said Cyborg gently, almost admiringly. "Why don't we let the new kids handle this?"
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All things considered, few of the original founding Titans were teenagers anymore, and the word Teen had slowly and steadily begin to drop from their name in casual conversation. But Cyborg had come up with the idea a few years back. The Teen Titans had, in a time of the Justice League, been a place where young heroes could gather together, live together, train together, fight together and be together. Too often kids with super powers couldn't relate to their peers, as most of the founding members knew all too well. They were too powerful among powerless normal teens, and too young to fit in amongst the League. Where better to make friends, then with people like yourself?
So Cyborg had set up some recruiting, and they'd found new Teen Titans. The new kids, as they were affectionately known. Two of which were now streaking through the sky to intercept the missiles.
Cassandra "Cassie" Sandsmark was the first one's name, a young girl with bright blonde hair and piercing, startling blue eyes. She was short but still young and growing, sixteen years old, and very muscular. She flew through the air as easily as any superhero, streaking up towards the missile heading towards her new home. A red two-piece uniform, long-legged pants and nearly sleeveless top clung to her like a second skin, the front of her chest was covered with a golden, very distinct double-'W' sign. A pair of silver bracelets adorned her wrists, but she wouldn't have need for them today.
A golden lasso was coiled up and previously rested at her hip, but she'd reached down and was twirling it now as the first missile made it's way down towards her. She hurled the golden lasso and caught it around the tip of the first missile. Exerting her strength she came to a dead stop in midair, swung hard, and hurled the missile off-course and into the bay, where it exploded harmlessly in the water.
This was the power of Wondergirl.
The second new kid streaking upwards towards a missile was taking far more time to intercept it. Connor Kent was a black-haired, black clad boy with thick, powerful muscles that made him look like a football player. An even more distinct, bright red 'S' shape familiar to everyone on Earth (those who hadn't been living under a rock the past thirty years, at least) was emblazed on his black t-shirt. He flew up, spreading his arms wide and waiting for the missile to come to him. He could've caught it with his bare hands, like Cassie had, but he'd run the risk of getting hurt. He was tough but he could still feel pain, and he wasn't 100 how tough his invulnerability was either. So he settled for a safer approach.
"Okay Superboy," he murmured to himself, focusing his gaze on the missile as it rocketed towards him. "Don't think like you... or the bald guy... think like Superman..." his eyes began to glow crimson, "And you'll be like Superman!"
A bright blast of fire, heated air, shot from both of his eyeballs and lanced into the rocket, setting it off and exploding it high up in the air, a safe distance from both Titan's Tower and Superboy himself. Wondergirl zipped down to meet him before they returned to the island.
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From his hidden base, the incalculatably brilliant Dr. Light (it was true, there wasn't a scale that went as low as his IQ score reached) cursed in frustration, slamming his fists down against the monitor. "TITANS!" he roared in frustration. "I will see you all destroyed!"
Angrily he keyed in some more codes, using the same coordinates, and ordered another missile launch with a forceful slapping motion down on a big, dangerous red button.
... which resulted in absolutely nothing happening.
"What!"
"Oh-you-must-be-asking-'what'-along-the-lines-of-'what-has-happened-to-my-machines-and-why-aren't-I-firing-any-missiles?'" came a voice, one that moved far faster than most coherent humans were capable of speaking, and seemed to be coming from everywhere at once. Dr. Light glanced around in shock and surprise.
"Who's there?"
"Well-there's-a-one-in-five-chance-I'm-the-Flash," replied the voice, which didn't seem to be changing which direction it came from with each syllable. "But-I'm-so-much-better-than-he-is. And-uncle-Barry-of-course-but-I-doubt-you-knew-them. But-to-really-answer-your-question-I'm..."
The shot came out of nowhere, and a fist slammed into Dr. Light's gut and bent him nearly in double. Now he could see the little twerp, a short brown-haired boy who couldn't have been older than thirteen in a bright yellow and red suit, emblazed with the lightning within a circle symbol of all those who followed in the Flash Legacy.
Kid Flash.
"Dr.-Arthur-Light," declared the teenaged speedster, recalling from memory all he knew about Dr. Light's criminal file. "Former-STAR-labs-scientist,-now-general-psychopath-and-pain-in-the-butt."
"Fool! No one outshines the brilliance of Dr. Light!" shouted the psychotic supervillain, lashing out with a blast of yellow energy from his left hand. Kid Flash, predictably, dodged it. And the next dozen that came his way. Dr. Light growled in frustration but kept firing, seeing no other way to defeat the teenaged speedster. And with his attention solely on Kid Flash, his teammate responded.
A red birdarang shot out and a yellow cord attached to it wrapped around Dr. Light's legs with his attention elsewhere. Immediately is snapped tight and his legs locked together. Totally unprepared and wearing a heavy white bodysuit, the mad scientist fell forward and landed with a heavy thump, immediately rolling onto his back to see what had happened. There, he spotted his second opponent in the darkness. The same bright bird costume of greens, reds and yellows. The same look of determination. The same dark hair, swept back in spikes. The same penetrating eyes. This one was a bit shorter, a bit less muscular, perhaps, than the old one. But now he wore the suit, and he bore the name.
Robin.
Dr. Light thrust up his hand, preparing to obliterate the new Boy Wonder as he took slow deliberate steps towards him. "You know Dr. Light, next time you want to broadcast you plan," he was saying, "you might not want to broadcast your location when you do so," he said, pointing to a spot just behind Dr. Light's head. The evil doctor looked, seeing just above his head, easily visible in his transmission, had been the name of the missile silo. Spelled out in clear, bold letters. Only am imbecile could have made such a stupid move.
Then again...
"Arrrgh!" shouted Dr. Light, aiming his hand again, preparing to blast away Robin. He'd get one Titan, today, at least!
Of course, then he blinked...
... a blur...
... and suddenly Dr. Light's hand wasn't encased in the metal glove and weaponry of his suit. Startled, he looked down, and realized apart from a black spandex suit underneath his armor, his entire suit of body armor had been dismantled. All the pieces lay in a neat little pile on the ground beside him. Even his helmet. All of his weapons, broken down to their base components, down to the nuts and bolts. He gasped openly in shock.
How...?
Kid Flash materialized back into view, looking smug, and that was how he knew.
Robin picked up Dr. Light by the front of his uniform, balling up a fist. "Light's out," he intoned, swinging in a vicious uppercut. Dr. Arthur Light knew no more.
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Nightwing snapped shut his communicator when the new Robin had finished relaying information, smiling. "Dr. Light is in custody, and no more missiles will be firing. It's over."
A cheer arose from those gathered around them. Heroes young, old, of all sorts of races and species, backgrounds and the like. In the center of them stood only five. The original Teen Titans. Who had come together as superhero kids, and grown up together.
"Guess some things never change, eh Raven?" asked Beastboy.
She nodded quietly, then looked down at little Dove in her arms. "But some things do."
"Thankfully," added Nightwing. But when the others turned to look for him, he was gone. So was Starfire
To the guests, it seemed as if Nightwing and Starfire had simply vanished, none could say when, they'd simply taken their eyes off of the happy couple for but a moment. And in that moment, they'd vanished. They hadn't gone too far, however, as the T-Car suddenly came to life and Nightwing revved the engine. They waved to their guests and their friends, bidding them both farewell as the T-Car leapt off the edge of the island and it's wheels transformed into jets, letting them fly over the water and off into the sunset.
And towards a bright and promising future.
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Author's Notes:
Honestly, I should stick to action, I hate writing scenes that advance the plot. In the comics there was a Terra II, and she was indeed a clone of the original (or at least, had identical DNA and a lot of similar memories). In the most recent issues of Teen Titans (those I actually have read) the four new Titans were introduced, and those are the ones seen above. Wondergirl, Superboy, Kid Flash and the new Robin (Tim Drake). In the older comics Starfire and Nightwing tried to get married once (that I'm aware of) and weren't able to because of a demonic teammate's interference. Hope you enjoyed the story. I know I did. I even beat my old record! One hundred thousand words, yes!
Yomiori-Wolfdemon: Alas, all good things must come to an end. And this is it for the Titans and me.
Scathac's Warrior: Another dimension? Where on Earth did you get that idea? Hehe. No I was misleading, but no it's not her. Or Malchior. Good ol' bumbling Dr. Light.
LoCaD: Hope that comes as a fitting end to the entire Titan saga. Glad you've enjoyed the ride.
Anwen: So, that's it. No more plzplzplzplzplz updates for you, it's over. Done with.
Snea: You and me both. As long as you properly credit any ideas specific to me, feel free.
Todd fan: Right back atcha.
Blackbird: As you can see, Raven is no flower-girl. Fear for all mankind? Sweet innocent little Dove? Yeah, you're probably right, but wait for her to grow up first. And yeah, Blackfire might be back… potential for a sequel!
Ultimate R-Man: And will probably ruin the events of my story, yes I know. But I will watch it anyway, damnit. And here is your answer. It is all over.
Piccolo999: I hate the 'A' bit. Honestly, we're one big happy planet, not just one nation under stars and stripes. Well doubtlessly you think that because I fooled you all. Muwahahaha.
Ray1: No, as my story starts it assumes that after 'The End' Slade dies for good. Doubtlessly, I'll be proved wrong.
Elrohirthewriter: I swear I sent you that chapter a dozen times already. I am glad however you enjoyed the likes of Tamaranians, Cyborg, J'onn, and the rest. Hope you enjoyed this as well.
TDG3RD: Neither do I, but as you can see in this chapter, she's calmed down and relaxed into her new role in life.
Comet-hime: And plenty more fluff to go around, don't you think? Ah, I'm such a sucker for happy endings. I thought you'd enjoy the BB-Rae Not-Quite-Pagan wedding, I hope you enjoyed little Dove as well. I'm glad you enjoyed the fates of all of Tartarus and the Titans.
ViciousAssassin: I thought that'd get a good laugh or two. Or maybe an 'aww it's so sweet' remark. Malchior's no threat, at least not now. Sequel potential maybe. Same with Blackfire. I agree, I don't want the League to turn into Lords either, but they are starting to walk down that path. I left Cyborg's special someone vague… to my mind, it's Bumblebee, but I see a surprising number of Cyborg/Jinx fans, so I'm leaving it vague at the end of the story.