2014-08-24 - Opening Shots: Light in the Darkness

Ever since the battle with Doctor Light, Raven has been despondent at best. She has been alone, more so than usual. To most Titans, that may not be a red flag. After all, this is Raven we are talking about. She is always despondent.
The fear that caught Raven offguard. That had to be dealt with. Never had Raven felt such fear....and she was determined to not have that happen again.
For now, Raven is in her room. Meditating. She remains quiet...purging her self of the seed of fear. Working to return to her usual control.
For Starfire, the last three days had been an exercise in exhaustion. On near constant patrol and checking in to make sure that wahtever it was Doctor Light was up to they would have forewarning. But, thankfully or perhpas maddeningly, nothing other than an ecnounter with a demon from another world.
        For now, a short time after having had a somewhat uplifting chat wtih Red Robin, she was on her way towards her room to bed. But first.. She went to knock on Raven's door.
        At the sound of the knock, there is a soft reply. A single word.
        "Enter"
        The door opens on its own, allowing Kory access inside. Within, the room is dark, with Raven sitting upon the floor. Her legs are crossed and her hands held out in a classic meditation pose. Without opening her eyes, Raven calls out. "What is it, Starfire?"
Coming in, Starfire glances about the dimly lit room and scans it, "I wished to make sure that you were all right, Raven.  And apologize for having not checked in over the last few days."  Starfire went to slowly go over to her knees then, assuming a gentle lotus position.  "Are you centered?"
Coming in, Starfire glances about the dimly lit room and scans it, "I wished to make sure that you were all right, Raven. And apologize for having not checked in over the last few days." Starfire went to slowly go over to her knees then, assuming a gentle lotus position. "Are you centered?"
"Yes" is the reply that greets Starfire. As Kory sits, Raven's eyes open, the dark orbs focusing upon her guest. "Apologies are not necessary. I was grateful for the extra solitude to allow me to find my focus." She remains in her meditative position, but at least she is being talkative. "I was caught off-guard. It will not happen again."
Starfire nods over at Raven gently, "What happened, exactly?" her words are soft and reassuring. Kory tries to dampen her normal inquisitiveness and concern then for her friend, knowing that more emotions would not help now.
Raven regards Starfire with mild curiousity, as if deciding if she should share. With a minor shrug, Raven offers an explanation. "I was using empathy to track Doctor Light. He has a very clear and identifiable aura that allows for easy tracking. However, I had not anticipated that he would be working in tandem with another." There is a pause..."I left my emotional blocks down...and was assaulted with irrational fear. Had I not lowered my inhibitions, I would not have been affected so profoundly."
        Raven locks her eyes with Starfire. "I hesitated. That cost us Light's capture. It is my failure that freed him."
Starfire shakes her head gently, "It was not your failure." she went on, her hand reaching up to gently rest on Raven's shoulder, "It was being caught by surprise. Light never works with backup that otherwise is not being his.." She searches her mind for the right word. "Lackey. He does not normally deign to cooperate with others. You were acting to try and quickly locate him so we could neutralize him. None of us were expecting him to have a telepath as reinforcement. Under other circumstances, we would have done the same thing."
 "Nevertheless, if I haven't hesitated, we would not be having this conversation." There is no inflection of emotion in Raven's words. She is speaking logically...and very plainly. "As previously stated, it will not happen again." She looks rather determined. "However, Kory, I do appreciate your words. Never think otherwise."
Starfire ndos gently, "We all make mistakes. none of us are immune." She went to gently raise her hand up to squeeze, if permitted, at Raven's shoulder. "All of us are permitted them. None of us are omnipotent. we will catch Light and we will stop him."
Raven nods, falling into silence. It is a prolonged pause before Raven responds with words. "We will stop him. And whatever plan he has concocted." With that, she looks up to Starfire and offers a sincere thank you, before returning to her meditation. In Raven's mind, the conversation is now over.
There is a gentle nod over from Starfire then as she rests her hands on her lap, and she queries, "Do you mind if I join you?  It is more comfortable amongst friends than it would be on my own."
There is a gentle nod over from Starfire then as she rests her hands on her lap, and she queries, "Do you mind if I join you? It is more comfortable amongst friends than it would be on my own."
 Raven's left eye opens, just enough to capture Kory's intent. When judged that the request is sincere, the sorceress nods, that left eye closing. The two would make quite a pair, sitting in the middle of Raven's room on the floor. Yin and yang. Direct opposites....meditating together.
Starfire goes to slowly sit over in a lotus position, resting her hands on her lap as she does so and closes her eyes, joining Raven over in quiet meditation as her body and mind slow, relaxing.