Teen Titans, Princess Problems

Tears of Thought

Poilishing off the last chapter of her book, Raven set the paperback down on her wooden bookshelf lightly. The old structure wobbled slightly under the weight, but Raven payed no attention to it. She kept reciting the last words of the book in her head, blankfaced.

For if no one loves you, do you really exist at all?

She didn't know if the words spoke to her directly, or if it was just a game her mind was playing on her. Raven let out an exhale she wasn't aware she was holding in, and sat on the corner of her bed. The matress creaked under her weight as she flopped down backwards, sending a cloud of dust into the air.

Do you really exsist at all?

Raven looked down at her pale hands, which were clenched into fists. Her fingers were ghostly white; the skin beneath her nail just a shade darker. She slowly relased them and looked absently into the dark room which she sat in. Sometimes she didn't feel at all like she existed. She felt like things could go through her (which they often times could) and only see her as nothing more than a creepy, goth girl.

Raven sighed closing her amethyst eyes and crawling into the bed further. It felt like she was the only one who could understand her, and everyone else was just blind to the hardships she had to face constantly. It seemed like everyone elses life was perfectly shaped for them, except of course maybe Robin's, whos parents died when he was small (which she only knew of because of thier special bond), or maybe that Starfire's sister wanted her dead, but no one was exactly in Raven's footsteps.

The empath held a pillow to her chest, silent tears cascading down her face, soaking the pillow. She didn't know how long she cried for, but once she sat up and looked out the window, the moon was high in the sky. Raven wiped the remaining tears from her cheeks and fell into a nightmare.

***

Shadows chased her through an endless maze. Scenes from her life flashed before her eyes everytime she rounded a corner. The shadows cackled, speeding up and biting at the end of her cloak. Raven ran, her powers offline, through the maze, panting and shaking.

Metal walls sprung up from the ground, trapping her in a box with the shadows. Raven started to hyperventilate, scratching at the blockades with her fingernails.

"Stop!" She cried, kneeling down at the feet of the shadows. "S-stop.."

The shadows stopped thier endless rhythm of laughter and disappered, leaving clouds of dust behind that gently fell into the dirt below them. Tears stung the back of her eyes as Raven tilted her head up. The walls slowly dropped back into the earth with a loud thump, allowing the demon to escape the box.

"Raven?" A voice called for her. She couldn't tell who or where the voice came from, and she was too weak to find out. It called for her again, but Raven's eyes were already closed. Before she hit the ground, a soft voice whispered from in front of her.

"July 30th..."