Fan Fiction ❯ Titans Revealed ❯ Demonic Daddy Knows Best ( Chapter 1 )

Notes: While this story is meant to be one huge joke, it does revolve around my theory concerning Robin. You might not agree with it…but that's okay, because it's not yours. In short, take NOTHING seriously here. People are meant to be out of character, nothing is supposed to make sense, and…stuff.

Summary: When her parents warn her in a dream, Raven becomes suspicious of her teammates and decides to expose them.

~…~ are thoughts/telepathic speech.

Titans Revealed (a.k.a. Name That Titan)

A Teen Titans Fanfic by

Nate Grey (XMAN0123@aol.com)

Chapter 1: Demonic Daddy Knows Best

Raven was generally very careful about what she allowed herself to see in her dreams.

She knew very well that there were certain forces in her head that would never allow her to fall asleep, if they had their way.

At the same time, there were also other forces in her head that would never allow her to awaken, again, if they were in control.

The fact that both sets of forces came from her father was not exactly a source of comfort…but then, neither was he. He was, in fact, the main reason she had to monitor her every thought so very closely.

For there were many fathers that lived vicariously through their daughters…and then there was her father.

He was not, to put it simply, a pleasant man. He was, more specifically, not a man at all. And that was where it got tricky.

Haunting her dreams was one thing. Threatening to take over her very soul through her dreams (and she knew full well that he could, given the right opportunity) was quite another. Her father had done both, and Raven cherished every moment when she didn't think of him or see his face in her mind's eye.

She had once prayed for the power to destroy him. All she had gotten in return was a terrible headache, and a realization that she herself would never be able to destroy him directly. There was too much of him in her, so much that her own body sought to punish itself for hoping for his death. So long as she actively did nothing to directly oppose her father's will, his essence remained largely dormant within her.

Most of the time, anyway.

* * * * *

She was a child again. Her arms and legs were thick with baby fat, and she was wearing a diaper. To top it all off, she was sitting in a sandbox.

But that was only on surface. Her body had regressed, but her mind had not. All things considered, it was a pretty tame dream for her.

That is, until she sensed another presence within her dream…a familiar and completely unwelcome one.

He emerged from the shadows in silence, a huge mass of red muscle and flowing white hair. His four great yellow eyes all trained themselves upon her tiny form, and something of a smile touched his lips. "We meet again, my precious little Darkchilde."

"Father." Raven did her best to turn the word into an insult, but it must have seemed like less than nothing to him, coming from a baby. Perhaps that was the fate of all her insults directed at him.

He did not reach down and enclose her in a huge fist, as she'd expected him to. Instead, he merely came closer, stepped into the sandbox, and sat down in front of her. "What are you making?" he asked awkwardly, nodding at the half-formed sand creation between them.

Raven glared at him in distrust. "You'll just make me destroy it, anyway."

All four of his eyes closed, an obvious sign of restraint. "Do you hate me so much, my Darkchilde?"

"Do you really want me to answer that?" she spat.

"I suppose I have my answer, then."

"I'm sick of this." Raven tried to get to her feet, but, being in a baby's body, she lost her balance and fell forward. She was shocked when she landed in her father's large hand, rather than on the gritty sand.

He set her on her feet at once, but did not move his hand away completely, as if assuming she might fall again.

She tried to push the hand away, but even that motion made her unsteady, and it was only because of his hand on her back that she didn't fall again.

"Much as I know you would never admit it," her father said quietly, "you cannot stand on your own in this form."

"Isn't this form your fault, anyway?" Raven demanded.

"You would have run or attacked me in any other. This was the only way I could keep you still long enough to listen." He slipped a thick finger under her and lifted her to sit on his knee.

She scowled at him. "So now you're going to lecture me to death?"

"No, my Darkchilde. You will not believe it, but I am here to warn you."

"You're right. I don't believe you. When have you ever done anything to help me?"

He sighed. "Without the powers my blood gifts you with, you would have died long ago. It was only in fear of me that you allowed yourself the focus to become as strong as you are. Even if you never admit it to yourself, we both know that I made you what you are, indirectly at the very least."

There was truth in his words, but Raven wasn't about to admit it. "What are you warning me about?"

"Your friends…these `Teen Titans'…are not trustworthy. One or all of them could easily betray you at any moment. You must flush the truth out of them."

"I'd trust them a lot faster than I'd trust you," she snapped.

"For once, you would do well to listen to him, Raven," said a voice behind her.

Raven slowly turned around, her eyes widening in disbelief. "Mother…?"

The woman in white nodded gravely. "I never thought the day would come when he and I would agree on anything. But he is correct: you cannot trust the Teen Titans. At least, not until you have proven them to be wholly authentic."

"So what are you saying?" Raven asked. "That I have to attack my friends?"

"Merely expose them for what they are," her mother disagreed. "I would hope violence wouldn't be necessary, as you do call them your friends…"

"But you must not hold back," her father said at once. "If one can't be trusted, they will prey on your weaknesses. Better to strike hard and fast and be wrong, than to hesitate and be destroyed."

"Neither of you has given me anything solid to go on," Raven stated firmly. "They're still my friends."

"What are their names?" her mother asked.

"Robin, Sta-"

"Their true names," her father interrupted sharply.

Raven narrowed her eyes thoughtfully. "I hate it when you're right…"

* * * * *

Next Time: Raven begins to unmask her friends. And the truth is, indeed…probably exactly what you expected.