A Tameranean's Raven

Welcome Home (Part 2)

The days ticked by painfully slow. A week passed and then another with no sign of Raven. It was like she'd completely disappeared, and that thought terrified Starfire more than anything. She did her best to stay optimistic but once the others gradually stopped looking, she was left alone in the search.
"Star," Robin sighed, watching as the Tameranean headed for the door, "come on. Take a break would you?"
"I need to find her Robin," Starfire frowned, adjusting the bag on her shoulder.
"You're wearing yourself out. You don't eat and you don't sleep. Raven wouldn't want you doing this to yourself," Cyborg reasoned, pausing in his consumption of breakfast.
"She's tough, she'll figure something out," Beast Boy assured. "She's probably hiding somewhere. She'll turn up eventually. She just doesn't want to be found right now. She's good at that."
"What if she is not okay? What if she is hurt or scared? I can not stay put if something is wrong, I have to do the helping," Starfire worried. She could feel the sting of tears in her eyes, but she pushed them aside. She didn't want to cry in front of the boys.
"Maybe you can still help while staying here," Robin reasoned, "eat some breakfast with us and then we can look at Raven's library. We haven't tried that yet. There might be something about her brothers in there. She was doing research on them when we first figured out who they were."
"Alright." Sighing, Starfire dropped her bag by the door and sulked into the kitchen. The guys did their best to cheer her up, she was grateful for that, but it wasn't the same when there was a glaringly empty seat at the table.
After forcing down a bit of breakfast, enough that the boys no longer pestered her to eat, she ventured off to Raven's room. Admittedly, Starfire had spent a lot of time in it since Raven vanished. It was comforting feeling like a bit of the half demon was still around.
"Does she alphabetize her books?" Beast Boy asked, having slipped in behind Starfire and gone straight to the book case. "What a nerd."
"Beast Boy you barely know how to read, don't go judging someone based on how they keep their books. At least they have some," Cyborg snorted, pulling a stack of them off the shelf and settling on the floor. Without another word, Cyborg's red eye scanned the pages of the first in search of key words. He wasn't about to read the whole damn thing. That would be insane.
"We will have to put them back right or she will get mad," Starfire reminded, keeping track of who had what book. Robin opened his mouth to say something but seemingly thought better of it. There was no sense reminding the Tameranean that Raven wasn't exactly present in order to be mad.

— — —

"Either drink it or don't. I'm tired of having to keep you alive!" Greed yelled, holding a cup of water up to Raven's parched lips. A smile that was far from comforting fell across the half demon's face.
"I told you, I am incredibly stubborn." While the words were mocking, Raven had to admit she was in a lot of pain. Every inch of her body hurt and there was nothing she could do to dull the ache. As much as she wanted to be strong and hold out, it was becoming a reality in which her body would fail her one way or another.
For a while she had hope that kept her going. Maybe her friends would find her and everything would be over, but as the days wore on and no one came, that hope shriveled up and died. It was a wilting flower that got swept away in the breeze.
"Fine." Tossing the cup aside, Greed reached up shoving his hand in a fistful of Raven's hair and craning her neck to the side. Her pale skin was decorated with a series of bruised injection spots and he was about to add one more. "This is horribly ironic."
"Well, maybe it's working after all," Lust shrugged, floating lazily in the air.
"We will see. I have a feeling that today is the day. I'm changing the game. Maybe she can't convince herself of her identity, but I can," Greed determined, jamming the needle in Raven's neck and pushing the syringe plunger down.
"What? Did you find out my real name or something? Trust me, I know what it is. No need for a reminder," Raven winced, sweat decorating her forehead as the numbness set in. Without another word, Greed and Lust retreated from sight leaving the half demon to suffer once more.
The minutes passed in silent agony before the spotlight flicked on yet again. The temperature rose and Raven's eyes were forced shut. She hated impossibly bright things that weren't Starfire.
"Let's begin shall we? Have you ever been to therapy?" Greed asked, their voice carrying through the empty room. "We need to search the inner self. Answer the questions truthfully and this will all go smoothly."
"Fuck you," Raven rasped, aware of the sweat coating her skin and the pain making her stomach coil.
"Do you believe you are the strongest of your team?" Greed questioned. His words were pointed, demanding an answer.
"No." The word barely left Raven's mouth when searing pain arched up her spine blossoming at the base of her skull.
"Wrong answer. I'll ask you again. Do you believe you are the strongest on your team?" Greed repeated, a smile hinted in the tone of their voice.
"No." More pain.
"You're lying to yourself. Be honest! Do you believe you are the strongest on your team? It's easy! Say it! Admit it to yourself and we can move on. Accept it, revel in it, and let it go. Do you think your are the strongest?"
"Yes." The pain subsided and Raven was able to properly breathe again. They'd never asked her questions before and now she wished they never thought of the idea.
"Good. Now, do you think you are better than mortal people?"
"No."
"Liar!" Wrath roared, clapping gleefully as Raven writhed in pain. "Liar! Liar!"
"Try again," Greed chuckled from somewhere out of sight.
"Do you think-"
"Yes. Yes." The admission was almost more painful than the lie. Sure, Raven thought she was better than normal people. If she didn't then she wouldn't control her powers around them. She herself wasn't normal. She couldn't ignore that, but there was also something a little more sinister to that truth.
"It's not working fast enough," Sloth sighed, slumping over on the floor as if preparing to take a nap. "We only have so much time before our opportunity passes. We can't stay on earth forever. It'll make us weak."
"What do you suggest then?" Greed demanded, kicking at his brother to keep him awake.
"May I ask a question?" Lust inquired, an underlying tone to his voice that made Raven impossibly nervous.
"By all means, go ahead." Sighing, Greed gestured for Lust to take the lead. Taking a moment to compose himself and reflect on what he wanted to ask, Lust settled on a smile and sickly sweet tone.
"Do you feel that the Tameranean belongs with you more than anyone else?" Lust questioned, watching the half demon closely. "Because you deserve her. You are the strongest, correct? Who else should possess her besides you?"
"She's not a possession!" Raven protested, but there was a waver in her voice.
"That was more than one question. Stick to simple answ-"
"Watch," Lust insisted, interrupting Greed. He nodded back to where Raven sat, and the girl's dark purple eyes shifted to a dull red. "Play the angle where her feelings are strongest. She'll feed on her more...primal instincts."
"I see," Greed smiled, turning his attention back to the changing half demon. Even now Raven's pained smile had changed. Her teeth were sharper and bared in a twisted grin. "Good work brother. We're finally making progress."