A Tameranean's Raven

Sisterhood

Rain hammered the city in angry torrents. It had been a long time since Raven witnessed a thunder storm this severe. She used to like them, but now? Now they were a nuisance as dark lasers arched in the sky. An aerial battle was taking place. One Raven hated having to be a part of, but it wasn't like the boys could be particularly helpful.
Overhead, Starfire shot about ducking and weaving an avalanche of attacks. Her fists glowed green along with her eyes, but she had yet to retaliate. Instead, she was begging, and even pleading for the fighting to stop.
"Sister please!" Starfire cried, narrowly avoiding a particularly aggressive laser. "Let me help you!"
"I don't need your help! I'm going home and there's nothing you can do to stop me!" Blackfire yelled, lightning arching across the sky at her words.
"You can't, you know that! Your crimes must be paid for if not here then there!" Starfire insisted, shooting past a building as her sister's eyes ignited with energy. "You're only making it worse by doing this!"
"If you left me alone none of this ever would have happened!" Blackfire snarled, nearly clipping Starfire's side when a black shield appeared to intercept the jet of energy. The alien girl's smoldering black eyes settled on Raven who was floating a safe distance away. "You! You're always meddling!"
"Trust me, I don't want to be here anymore than you do," Raven frowned, hands alight with magic. "Listen to your sister and this can all go away."
"I'm not going to listen to her or you, demon!" Blackfire scoffed, her eyes darting between both Starfire and Raven.
"Demon?" Raven glowered, a voice in the back of her head threatening to take over. "You don't know the half of it. If you hurt her, you'll find out exactly what kind of demon I am."
"Raven, don't," Starfire warned, sensing the growing darkness around her girlfriend. If Blackfire antagonized Raven enough, there would be no going back. "Blackfire, I don't want to hurt you."
"Maybe you have your moral restrictions but I don't." With a frown, Blackfire shot forward slamming into Starfire with enough energy that the impact audibly echoed. Spinning in a free fall the two collided with the side of a building, sailing through the windows and out the other side. With a roar of righteous anger, Blackfire planted a glowing punch straight into her sister's face.
"So we're doing this the hard way?" Starfire asked, wiping at her mouth where a line of blood had formed. "So be it."
All at once the two sisters exploded in a fit of passion and energy. Raven watched from the side, ready to intervene if need be.
"Is she okay up there?" Robin worried, his voice carrying over through an earpiece.
"So far she's holding her own. I'm ready to intervene if need be," Raven informed.
"Why not get involved now and speed up the process?" Beast Boy asked, watching from his perch on a nearby building.
"They have to sort it out themselves. It's personal," Cyborg reminded, his arm canon ready to fire.
— — —
"You were always the favorite!" Blackfire hissed, a hand wrapping firmly about Starfire's neck as she slammed her into the roof of a donut shop.
"Me?" Starfire gasped, kicking her sister away. "You got whatever you wanted whenever you wanted! I was always second to you!"
Ducking a punch, Starfire caught her sister by the arm and shot a beam of green energy into her side. Blackfire flew backwards, taking out the donut shop sign. Rising up from the rubble, she turned her heated gaze back to Starfire.
"Do you know the kind of pressure they put on me?" Blackfire demanded, setting her feet firmly on the rooftop. Below her, the roof began to crack with energy. "You had none of that! Being second was a blessing! No one cared what you did! No one wanted me for who I was. They only liked me because I was the heir."
"I did!" Starfire protested. "I wanted you to be happy. I thought you were!"
"It was a lie. Everything in my life was a lie! I was acting. My love for you wasn't even real, Star. None of it was. You are a nuisance. You get in the way of everything." By now, a halo of raw energy surrounded Blackfire threatening to explode if she remained unstable.
"You don't mean that," Starfire whispered, the energy in her hands slowly dying as the words buried deep into her skin.
"I do. Mom and Dad wanted me to be great. They let you be a child. I wanted that. I wanted to be you so bad it hurt. So yes, I hate you and it's your own stupid fault!" With a flourish of the hand a wave of black energy swallowed Starfire whole. It felt like her body was burning and slowly dissolving with each second that passed. All of Blackfire's grief and hatred was funneled into her with the weight and viscousness of a million daggers.
It was relentless in nature and it left the Tameranean's throat raw from crying out in pain. She couldn't respond, couldn't retaliate, and she was left to endure, hoping it would pass in time. Only when things were becoming truly unbearable did it stop. Darkness now warred with darkness as black tendrils danced across the rooftop. Red eyes smarted with unbridled rage and all of Blackfire's energy was being consumed by the shadows.
Howling shrieks filled the night sky as Raven intercepted the remnants of Blackfire's attack. When it petered out, Blackfire retreated, eyes wide with barely suppressed fear at the sight of the demon. Starfire expected Raven to pursue but instead, with a violent shiver, the sorceress returned to herself.
"Are you alright?" Raven asked, turning to inspect Starfire's form. The poor girl was covered in burns, and her clothes were singed and tattered. Up above, the sky let loose an even heavier deluge of water.
"Take me to her," Starfire pleaded, staggering to her feet.
"Star I don't think-"
"Please!" The Tameranean begged, clutching at Raven's form like her life depended on it. Without another word, Raven carried the battered girl down to the streets below where the boys were fending off Blackfire's attacks.
Cyborg fired off a well placed shot, effectively downing the alien girl. Shivering, Blackfire struggled to get up. Planting a foot in her chest, Cyborg aimed his arm canon again. It charged for another shot to properly incapacitate the enemy. Just as he was about to fire, strong arms wrapped about his arm as Starfire stood protectively over her sister.
"Move, Star," Cyborg ordered.
"No, please Cy. She's my sister," Starfire begged, her eyes welling with tears. The two regarded each other for a moment before Cyborg lowered his arm and motioned for Robin to effectively cuff Blackfire. "Be gentle Robin."
"She's going back to prison, Star. You know that right?" Robin asked, carefully moving Starfire away from her sister.
"But I can help her," Starfire insisted. Robin shook his head and moved back to where Blackfire lay. He twisted her arms back and placed a set of cuffs on her wrists. A red light turned green, effectively negating her energy attacks. Next came the visor. A metal band wrapped firmly around Blackfire's head eliminating her line of sight.
Shivering from head to toe, Blackfire was forced to her knees. By the trembling of her shoulders, Raven could tell she was crying. Much to Robin's frustration, Starfire knelt before her sister, their foreheads touching.
"It's going go be okay Blackfire," Starfire promised.
"You don't know what it's like there. What they do to people," Blackfire hissed. "What they do to me."
"I can help you, you just have to let-"
"I don't want your help!" Blackfire sobbed. "I want to go home!"
"Come on." Having heard enough, Robin jerked Blackfire to her feet, shoving her towards a waiting transportation vehicle. Starfire made a move to follow when Raven wrapped her arms firmly about the Tameranean.
"Raven," Starfire choked out.
"I know, Star. I'm sorry." As much as Raven didn't like Blackfire for all she'd done to Starfire, the half demon couldn't bear watching Starfire in pain like this. With a sob, Starfire fell into Raven's embrace, her only comfort being the half demon. "It's okay. Let it out."
— — —
Starfire stood in the shower letting the water wash over her skin. All she could do was hear her sister's broken voice and words. She wanted nothing more than to hold and comfort her but Blackfire would never allow it. Her pride was too strong.
And as much as Blackfire's words hurt, Starfire didn't have it in herself to hate her sister. Not when she remembered the better times they had together. When they used to play tag and dressup or sneak into the kitchen at night. All of that was gone now. It had been for some time, but the wounds were reopened and tender now.
Slowly, the water ran cold, but even still Starfire didn't want to move. It was as if the water would eventually drown away her sorrows. That if she stood there long enough the pain would melt away and she'd be okay again.
Some part of her was aware of the water being turned off and someone gently coaxing her out of the shower. Soft hands wrapped her up in a towel and guided her to an adjacent room. Eventually, Starfire realized that it was Raven taking care of her. That her partner was the one carefully drying and brushing her hair, the one dressing her wounds, and the one whispering soft words in her ear. There was something about the tenderness of it all that caused Starfire to cry again.
"It's going to be okay, Star. I promise. You can visit her if you want. I won't even tell the boys." Raven worried wiping away the tears running down Starfire's cheeks. She wasn't too sure what to do. She'd never had to comfort someone experiencing such sorrow before.
"I love you," Starfire whispered, her hold tightening on the half demon.
"I know," Raven laughed lightly, "I love you too. Are you okay now? No more tears?"
"I'm sorry," Starfire sniffled, drawing the damp towel around herself even more. "You just mean a lot to me and you are always the goodest to me. If I lose you like my sister..."
"You're not going to lose me. I'm not going anywhere. I've fought hard to be here. I won't tap out anytime soon." Raven couldn't help but feel a fraction of Starfire's sorrow. She hadn't experienced loss the way Starfire had. How do you help someone grieve a person now dead to them when that person was still alive? Blackfire made it quite clear that Starfire wasn't loved. It would be a tough pill to swallow by anyone.
"Do you think she really hates me?" Starfire asked, watching as Raven examined a burn on her arm. With careful hands, the half demon dressed the wound and thought about her answer.
"No, I don't think she hates you. I think she's mad at your parents more than anything but it's hard to be angry at your parents. You want them to love you, and when you feel like they don't it's painful," Raven reasoned. Standing, she coaxed Starfire out of the towel and helped her into a set of pajamas. "I guess, in a way, I understand where she's coming from."
"I think in another one of the lifetimes you would have been friends," Starfire determined, finding comfort in Raven's words no matter how small it was.
"I think so too," Raven agreed, pulling out Starfire's usual stuffed rabbit and passing it over to the alien girl. Starfire took it gratefully and held it tight against her chest. "What do you say? Want to watch a movie with me?"
"I would like that. Can we have the pop of corn?" Asked the Tameranean.
"Of course, anything you want." Phasing through the floor, Raven set off to complete Starfire's request while the Tameranean made herself comfortable in bed. She waited impatiently for Raven to come back. At last, the sorceress returned carrying all the snacks Starfire loved along with popcorn.
Getting everything situated and starting the movie, Raven happily settled Starfire in her lap. The Tameranean leaned back against her girlfriend with a sigh and absent mindedly played with Raven's fingers. Every now and then when Starfire would grow quiet, her thoughts venturing back to her sister's words, Raven would remind her with a kiss that she was indeed loved. Despite her previous doubts, Raven was coming to terms with the fact that she could be enough for Starfire. She'd spent the first week or two of their relationship terrified that she'd never be able to love or reassure someone properly. But that was a lie she'd convinced herself to believe. Nearly a year later and here she was, effectively consoling the light of her world and giving her all the love she needed.
Perhaps their relationship wasn't perfect. No one's ever was, but they were enough for each other. In truth, they were both touch starved and lonely people not used to someone caring for them. Sometimes things could be a painful reminder of the past. A past when no one wanted you, but Raven wanted Starfire and she'd do anything to make sure the other girl knew that. Even if it meant giving her a million kisses and some popcorn because sisterhood was a complicated sort of thing. A thing of pain, love, forgiveness, and more.