Teen Titans Fan Fiction ❯ Heroes ❯ A Normal Day ( Chapter 1 )

NOTE: All of the author's notes and review responses have not been edited out of respect for the reviewers and the laziness of the author.

 

Blowfish: Not only is this my first Teen Titans fic, but it's my first non-humor fic, too! Yeah, I decided to take a crack at the whole “serious” thing. Anyway, there are a few things that need to be said before you read this. The story itself, before anyone asks, was inspired by the lesson in Spiderman 2. I know many of you feel this may be unoriginal, but I feel the lesson can be applied to all heroes, not just Spiderman. And if you haven't seen the movie, don't worry, you'll get it anyway. And yes, this fic will be somewhat Raven-centered, just like half of all the Teen Titans fics. I can't help it, she's my favorite character! I hope you enjoy this fic.

 

“talking” `thinking'

 

Disclaimer: I don't own Teen Titans. If I did, Robin would stop being such a wuss and just ask Starfire out.

 

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BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BE—SLAM!

 

Rae Roth groggily slammed the snooze on her alarm. `Damn, I hate that alarm…ALARM?! Crap!'

 

Rae quickly turned off her alarm and sprang out of her bed. She hurriedly ran to her closet, tripping over several things along the way, while cursing herself for not cleaning up more. She tossed her nightclothes (a blue t-shirt and some gray sweatpants) into the corner and pulled on jeans and a black sweater. She grabbed her recently-completed article off her writing desk, which took up, in Rae's opinion, far too much space in her small, shabby apartment. But she needed it badly, so she really couldn't complain.

 

She stumbled down the stairs of her building, passing by a few of her fellow tenants.

 

“Guten tag, Ms. Roth!”

 

“Good morning, Rae.”

 

“Hey there, Rae! Wanna go for a drink later?”

 

Rae laughed. “I told you Adrian, I don't drink.”

 

“Cards then, maybe? Deiter, Jim, and I are gonna play a bit o' poker.”

 

“Yes, Ms. Roth,” said the German man. “It vill be much fun!”

 

“Yeah,” agreed Jim. “Especially when I win...”

 

Rae smiled a bit. “Maybe…I'll see you later, I'm gonna be late.”

 

Rae dashed down the streets, and by the time she reached Main Street, she realized she had made up enough time to walk the rest of the way to the bus stop. She slowed her pace to a walk, and admired the hustle and bustle of the early morning rush: People going off to work, taking their kids to school, maybe even just going out to enjoy their day off. She paused, and looked far off into the horizon, to the river. Where it stood.

 

Titan's Tower. `I can't believe it's still standing,' she thought. After the Teen Titans disbanded ten years ago, no one had the heart to tear it down. So the city simply left it there, as sort of a memorial to the heroes that had protected their city. No one knew where the Titans were now. No one except Rae Roth, Dick Grayson, Gar Logan, Vic Stone, and Star Anderson.

 

And they weren't telling.

 

Rae shook her head a few times. `You can feel nostalgic later. Miss the bus and you're dead.' So she took off, praying that she would make it. Her boss, the editor-in-chief of the Jump City Herald, was not a patient man.

 

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Gar Logan grinned. This was great. He had a week before his next show, and it was a local one. He would be doing several others just like it before going on tour again. `I love comedy…' he thought. He sat back in his “La-Z-Boy” recliner, closing his eyes. He had everything he wanted. Everything. All of his dreams had more or less come true: Was he one of the country's richest stand-up comedians? Yes. Did he have a deluxe apartment in the heart of the city? Yes. Were women almost thrown at him wherever he went? A big yes. Sure, girls had been a problem for him before, but now? Guys begged him on their hands and knees to teach them.

 

Life was good.

 

But for some reason, Gar was troubled. He didn't feel content at the moment, and that was annoying him. While trying to pin down the reason, he finally concluded that he was simply bored. `Hmm…' he thought. `What is there to do?' He decided he would go pick up a newspaper. Yes, that would certainly cure his boredom. So he got on a jacket, and stepped out into the chilly October air. He went up to a newsstand and bought a paper.

 

“Hey, aren't you that comedian?” asked the man at the stand.

 

Gar grinned. He got this all the time. “Why yes, I am,” he replied in a nonchalant tone.

 

”Nice to meet you.”

 

“You too. Seeya.”

 

“Bye.”

 

He walked over to a bench and sat down. He was about to look at the front page article when the t-shaped tower in the distance caught his eye. He gazed at it for a few minutes, letting his mind wander. Then he managed to tear his eyes away from it, going back to his paper. `What's past is past,' he thought.

 

How wrong he was.

 

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“Mr. Grayson! I've got the report!”

 

“That's excellent, Joe. And how many times have I asked you to call me Dick?”

 

“Sorry Dick. I only just got promoted. I'm not used to thinking of you as anything but my employer yet.”

 

Dick laughed. “That's fine. What's the report say?”

 

“Our sales are up by five percent!”

 

“Excellent!”

 

“Yep.”

 

The secretary burst in rather suddenly.

 

“Mr. Dobson, you have an urgent call on line two.”

 

“Thanks Tracy. See you around, Dick.”

 

Dick waved. “Seeya.”

 

As they left, Dick sighed. He knew he should call up Bruce and give him the figures right away, but he just didn't feel like it. He yawned. He was exhausted, as usual. `Can't help that, it's your own fault,' he thought. He looked out the window. He wished he could see Jump City, but there were too many skyscrapers in the way. He sighed. `I wonder if the rest of them can still see it,' he thought. Obviously Star wouldn't be able to; she lived in Gotham City, like him. But the others…

 

Maybe they still looked at it.

 

`Speaking of which,' he mused. `I need to give Star a call. I can't keep blowing her off. But first…' He picked up the phone, and dialed the CEO's office.

 

“Bruce Wayne speaking.”

 

“Hey, Bruce. It's Dick. I've got the report.”

 

“Great. How are sales?”

 

“Up five percent.”

 

“Excellent. Just send the rest up to my office.”

 

“Sure. Um, Bruce?”

 

“Yes?”

 

`Don't be a chicken.' “Can I have a day off, say, next Sunday?”

 

There was a long pause.

 

“Sure, as long as Joe can handle things.”

 

“I'm confident he can. That's why I promoted him, remember?”

 

“Yes…and Dick?”

 

“Yes?”

 

“Have a good time with Star.”

 

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Vic Stone was very happy. He had just gotten off the phone with Carl Leever, the businessman he had been negotiating with for weeks on end. He turned to his co-workers, a grim expression on his face to contrast the hopeful ones in the room.

 

“Guys…” he said quietly.

 

Vic's friend Gus sneered. “That bastard! I knew he wouldn't—“

 

“WE GOT THE GRANT!” Vic yelled.

 

“WOOHOO!” yelled Gus. “I knew he would pull through!”

 

There was a lot of cheering, hugging, and handshakes throughout the group of scientists and technicians. They were doing some very important work on a machine that would revolutionize the manufacturing industry, and had at long last got the grant they needed to make it a reality. Vic tacked the blueprints up on the wall.

 

“Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Project Cyborg!”

 

“Project Cyborg” was an intricate machine that was to be run by a single person, who would be hooked up to it. At first, “Cyborg” had been just a nickname, but then, as it caught on, it became the official name for the project. Vic had come up with the nickname, and whenever anyone asked how he'd been inspired, he would simply say: “It was a just a joke at first, and it made sense.”

 

But he knew that wasn't the real reason.

 

`Not like it matters,' he thought. `I just hope this works out the way we want it to.' He looked out the window at the Titan's Tower. `I wonder if—' All of the sudden, the phone rang. Vic managed to escape the barrage of slaps on the back to get to it.

 

“Jump City Scientific and Technical Facilities, how may I help you on this wonderful, wonderful day?”

 

“Sounds like someone got their grant.”

 

“Gar? What's up, man?”

 

“You get the newspaper yet?”

 

“Probably around here somewhere. Why?”

 

“Front page. Look. Now.”

 

Vic was confused as he picked up the newspaper. “What's so special about—“

 

Before he could finish his sentence, he saw the headline: “Nightwing: Gotham City Menace, or Misunderstood Masquerader?” He scanned the first few paragraphs.

 

“Definitely weird. Even in Gotham, they usually just slander him to all hell. This is almost defending him.”

 

“Yeah. But I think they got his side of the story this time.”

 

“Whaddya mean, `his side of the story'? It's not like he'd accept an interview from a reporter.”

 

“Not just any reporter, no. But I bet he'd take an interview from a friend.”

 

“What?”

 

“Did you see who it's by?”

 

Vic looked, and a smile passed across his face. The by-line read: “by Raven Roth”.

 

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“Nice job, everybody! We're gonna be great next week, I guarantee it!” the director shouted.

 

“See you at the show, Star,” said Harriet, one of the actresses. “We're gonna be awesome.”

 

“Yes,” agreed Star. “I believe it will be a most wonderful performance.”

 

“You're gonna be the best,” Anton, the lead actor added. “You're one of the best actresses I've ever seen.”

 

Star blushed. “You flatter me, but I am an amateur.”

 

“You're also modest. I couldn't ask for a better leading lady.”

 

Star couldn't help but blush again. She couldn't have imagined being asked to play one of the title parts in Beauty and the Beast. She had played a lead part before. Every actor and actress' big step towards true fame. Many actresses would be happy just to be in the same theater as Anton, who was quite handsome without his beast costume on.

 

But Star had eyes for someone else.

 

`Too bad he never calls me…' As if on cue, her cell phone rang. `Damn, I love that man.' She smiled and answered.

 

“Star Anderson, who is very lonely and considering going single, speaking.”

 

“I get the idea, Star. I'm sorry. Things have been very busy lately.”

 

“Things are always busy,” Star pouted. “What do you want?”

 

“To tell you a certain man is going to come to see Beauty and the Beast on its debut night in Gotham, and he is going to take a certain lead actress out to dinner afterwards.”

 

“Oh Dick! Really?”

 

“Really.”

 

“No work?”

 

“Bruce let me off the leash for one night.”

 

“You are certain you will not have to leave because of a…disturbance?”

 

“Bruce promised he'll take care of any.” Dick laughed. “He actually said he could use the exercise, I've been taking care of most of them lately.”

 

“Dick…you have no idea how much this means to me.”

 

“It means a lot to me too, Star. It means a whole lot.”

 

“Where would you like to go after dinner?”

 

“It's your special night, Star. Wherever you want.”

 

Star smiled. “Have you perhaps heard of that new French restaurant? The one on Parker's Street?”

 

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Blowfish: So? How'd you like it? By the way, the reason I keep calling Raven “Rae” is because that's what's what everybody calls her. I had her full name in the by-line of the Nightwing report because the paper wouldn't put her nickname, would they? That just wouldn't make any sense. And yes, I decided to just call Starfire “Star”, instead of Kori. I don't know why, but I just didn't want to call her Kori. Eh. Anyway, tell me what you think. I know it may seem boring right now, but this was just the introduction. Please review! I don't care if you flame me, just put something! The next chapter will probably be up soon.