The End: Epilogue

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The sea breeze was sweet and strong. The sun was high, its light warm. Above, a few clouds drifted through the blue sky. Below, waves splashed against the rocky shore. Raven closed her eyes, smiling as the wind blew through her long hair. She did not hear the footsteps, but sensed the familiar presence coming up behind her.

"They're ordering out for a feast," Chaos chuckled. "Shouting about saving the 'whole danged universe,' to quote your friend Cyborg." She sighed and put her hands on her hip, looking out at the horizon. "I can't think of a better reason for a party." She felt Raven's eyes on her and turned, seeing the small, sad smile on her face.

"Are you going to leave?" Raven asked.

"Not yet." Chaos shrugged and popped her neck, smirking. "I made Kali promise to wait for me to come back, and I know that she's all right now. Besides, I'm really hungry." She sat down on the edge of the roof, patting the place beside her. Raven sat down as well, holding her legs up to her chest. For a few minutes, they were silent. After those minutes, Raven turned to look at Chaos.

"You knew that all of this was going to happen?" she asked.

"I did," Chaos replied.

"Why didn't you ever tell me?"

"I've always told you that destiny is never absolute. Heaven is the only thing that knows exactly what's going to happen. When anyone or anything else predicts the future, they're always wrong or they don't see all of it."

"That doesn't explain why you didn't tell me."

"No one can know everything about themselves. It's some stupid law that Heaven has. When Gabriel told me everything seventeen years ago, he sad that I shouldn't tell you."

"You listened to Gabriel?" Chaos laughed aloud at the question.

"I didn't want to, but he actually bothered to explain why, for once. There are so many things that happen to create a person's destiny. If the person knew what was going to happen, they would try to influence things in the way they wanted. If that happened, then everything would be shot to hell." Raven let out a soft snort. "OK, I'm not quoting. The thing is, you couldn't know. That's really all there is to it." She reached out and brushed her fingers against Raven's cheek. "I would have told you—just like I would have done everything I could to stop it if it were anything but this."

"Thank you," Raven whispered. She took Chaos's hand and smiled, but it was laced with sadness. After a moment, she looked away. "I killed him." Chaos frowned at the faint horror in Raven's voice.

"You're a hero, not a saint," Chaos said. "You did the right thing." Raven leaned over, resting her head on Chaos's shoulder. "You did." When Raven nodded, Chaos smiled and stood up. She pulled Raven to her feet, wrapping the young woman in a hug. "Come on, little blackbird. It's a damn good day, and I feel like playing my violin." Raven smiled and followed Chaos back into the Tower, so eager to hear the demon woman play that she never thought of how her friends would react to the violin itself.

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"Dude!" Beast Boy shrieked.

"Is that made out of what I think it's made out of?" Cyborg asked. Chaos smirked and handed him the violin and its bow. The weight in his hands nearly dragged him to the floor, and he struggled to curl his arms back up.

"The strings are gold as well," Starfire murmured. She dragged a finger along one of the strings, hearing it hum like tapped crystal glass. Chaos took the solid gold violin and bow back from Cyborg, spinning the bow in her fingers. Robin opened his mouth to speak of the impossibility of the instrument, but closed it again and shook his head at himself.

Grinning, Chaos put the violin under her chin and slowly pulled the bow along one string. The familiar sound of a perfectly tuned violin sang out, until she gently pressed her finger down on the string. The sound changed immediately to the wavering chime of a piano. The next moment brought forth the echoing sigh of a flute. Three quick draws produced the strike of a drum, the screech of a guitar, and call of a trumpet.

"Anything you'd like to request?" Chaos asked, smirking. When all she received were dumbfounded stares and a single quiet smile, she shrugged and started to play. A full orchestra flowed from the gold violin, playing a piece that was nothing short of hypnotic. It swept into the heroes, soothing them as surely as any lullaby from their childhoods.

For Raven, it was her lullaby—the song she hummed when happy and thought of when sleep eluded her. It had been years since she had heard it, and it was still the sweet, soft song that her mother had made for her. She smiled at Chaos, and Chaos at her. When the song eventually drew to a close, silence reigned for a few moments more. Raven slipped her hand into Starfire's, gently drawing the other young woman down for a kiss.

A chime signaled the arrival of the pizzas they had ordered. Cyborg and Robin walked away in a trance, leaving Beast Boy staring at Chaos. He opened and closed his mouth a few times, swallowing hard and biting his lip. He sucked in a deep breath and tightened his hands to fists, bowing his head.

"I've got—I have a request," he whispered.

"And what would that be?" Chaos asked.

"Back there, when you were yelling at Trigon for all the stuff he did, you said that you could fix someone who got turned into stone." Beast Boy looked up at Chaos, eyes wide and pleading. "Can you help Terra?"

"Depends," Chaos murmured. She drew the bow across the violin's strings, wind chimes floating in the air. "Why should I?"

"Please!" he shouted. "I care about her! I want her back!" He froze when Chaos's fingers touched his forehead, looking up when she drew them back a moment later. Her eyes were closed, both in thought and to look at the memories she took from his mind. Robin and Cyborg returned, arms laden with stacks of pizza boxes. Chaos opened her eyes, and Beast Boy met her gaze.

"We're going to eat first," she murmured. "But that doesn't mean I'm not thinking about it." He smiled, striding away to claim his vegetarian pizzas.

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"Why are we all here?" Cyborg asked.

"Once I read her mind, I'll decide if I bring her back or not," Chaos replied. "You're all going to hear my decision, and I'm leaving after this." They stood before the stone figure of Terra, deep underground. Chaos strode forward, and the Titans watched as she reached out and touched the stone girl's forehead. They held their breaths, waiting for a long moment before Chaos lowered her hand. She turned to look at Beast Boy and smirked at him.

"Request granted," she murmured. She turned back and laid her right hand on Terra's forehead. A pulse of black flames rushed from the scar on her wrist, traveling down the stone figure from where her hand touched it. The gray stone began to fade away, changing to living flesh and blood. With a sigh, the girl started to fall back to the ground. Beast Boy ran forward and caught her, holding her to his chest.

"Terra?" he asked. The girl's blue eyes fluttered open, widening in shock when they saw the green of his eyes.

"Beast Boy?" she whispered. He smiled and nodded, unable to speak. Tears welled in her eyes and she hugged him tightly.

"It's OK," he said. "It's OK." He pulled Terra to her feet, and she looked at the other heroes. They smiled at her and she returned the smile, tears flowing unstoppably. She turned to Beast Boy and kissed him, pressing her face against his neck when they parted.

"Sappy, isn't it?" Raven turned to find Chaos standing behind her. "But you all were ready to forgive her, and she wanted to live."

"I guess you're getting soft," Raven chuckled.

"Only because of you, little blackbird," Chaos replied. She smiled, opening her arms. Raven gladly gave the demon woman the hug she silently asked for. "You always make me proud of you, Raven."

"Thank you," Raven said softly. They parted, and Chaos combed her fingers through Raven's long hair.

"I'll see you around, little blackbird," she said. With a smile and a wink, Chaos walked away, fading into the darkness. Raven smiled as well, turning back to take Starfire's hand.

"Let's go home."

—end—