The Backstory

Elliot rubbed the back of his neck; a nervous habit Raven realized he had. "Do we have to do this now? Can't it wait a little longer?" he implored.

"You know we can't do that." Raven said.

"Indeed, friend Elliot." Starfire said softly. She put a comforting hand on his shoulder and sat next to him on his couch. They were in his man cave, in and Midnight sat on Elliot's lap. His green eyes viewed everyone lazily, but his tail twitched periodically in alertness. He purred a bit and Elliot stroked his fur absentmindedly.

"Elliot." Raven said softly. She sat opposite him in a chair, notepad and pen handy to jot anything down. "I know a backstory and bring back nothing but bad memories and reopen old scars, but we need to build you a credible one for when you join the Titans. You don't have to tell us everything, just a bit of truth to make it more believable and make it easier to remember."

Elliot sighed and thought for a moment. "I'll tell you all of it." He said.

"Are you sure of that, friend Elliot?" Starfire asked in concern. "It may be a great emotional stress."

Elliot gave her a small smile. "I'm sure of it, Star." He turned his head to face Raven. "You two are my friends. You've put a lot of faith and trust in me, now its time for me to do the same."

Raven thought of saying something, but the determined look in Elliot's eyes kept her quiet. She gave a curt, understanding nod instead and picked up her pen.

Elliot exhaled and paused for a moment, thinking of where he should start.

"I am a half-demon. My father was mortal and met a demoness who had ducked out of Hell for a bit of mayhem. They had a whirlwind romance and before long she was pregnant." Elliot scratched behind Midnight's ear. "Well, she couldn't return to Hell with an abomination, so she stayed with my father for the duration of the pregnancy. Whatever little romance they had quickly soured, and by the time I was born my mother had tried to kill my father at least twice."

Raven was scribbling furiously as he spoke. She could feel anguish radiating off of him and almost wanted to stop him, but decided against it. Elliot looked to her when she finished writing, and she nodded for him to continue.

"As soon as I was born my mother abandoned me and left me with my father. My father didn't like me much. It could be because I reminded him of his mistake, or because I looked so unnatural. I wasn't a pretty baby. I was too thin, too grey, my eyes were an unnatural amber and I'd have bursts of magic whenever I threw a tantrum." Elliot paused again. Midnight meowed and licked the back of his hand. Elliot smiled down at his companion before he continued.

"Now that I think about it, I don't blame him. He had a child with a woman he no longer loved, and a demon-child at that. I got teased in public and even attacked by religious zealots a few times. I got really good at teleporting really fast. My father pulled me out of public school and started homeschooling me, but we could never really get a tutor to stick, so he ended up doing it himself."

Starfire carefully slid closer to him. Her large green eyes were filled with empathy and she placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"When I was eleven years old, he was killed. He caught a stray bullet from a bunch of gangbangers having a shootout in a supermarket parking lot. It was so random, so pointless." Elliot clenched his fists at the memory. "As soon as I heard the news I left. I had no other family, my mother hadn't contacted us since the day I was born, and I knew I'd be ostracized forever if I was put into the system. I took to the streets. It was difficult at first, but I used my powers to take what I needed. When I was thirteen Brother Blood found me and enrolled me into H.I.V.E." He shrugged in forced nonchalance. "The rest is history."

There was a pregnant pause for a moment, with silence only broken by Raven's frantic writing. Starfire's eyes were wet with tears that did not spill over. She gripped Elliot in a tight hug, forcing Midnight out of his position with an angry yowl. "Oh, friend Elliot! How awful!" She exclaimed.

Elliot patted her back awkwardly. "It's okay, Star."

Starfire's comm beeped, causing her to loosen her grip on Elliot to answer it. She frowned at the screen, a rare occurrence. "My apologies, friends. Robin wishes to see me, he says it is most urgent." She said, rising reluctantly from her seat on the couch.

"Don't worry Star, you can go ahead." Raven said. Elliot said nothing, but gave her a small smile and nodded. Starfire looked at him apologetically and quickly flew out.

Raven set her pad and paper down and rose from her seat, gingerly sitting on the couch next to Elliot. There was awkward silence for a bit before Elliot spoke up. "I never really liked being a criminal, you know." He confessed. "Any enthusiasm I had was just for show, so that the others wouldn't notice and kick me out. The H.I.V.E Five were my family, especially SeeMore, it was something I had never had and always craved."

"And you gave it all up." Raven said.

"Not without good reason." Elliot said firmly, he could hear the guilt in her voice. "They were my family, yes, but that life was not for me. Eventually the need for me to do good overcame the need for family, and I left. I wanted to be better; I wanted to do better."

Raven sighed. "Elliot, I'm sorry."

Elliot looked at her, his facial expression was confused but his eyes were sad. "What for? None of this is your fault."

"I know." Raven answered. "I guess I'm saying sorry out of empathy? I know what it feels like to be unwanted for who you are. I was never really treated as someone worthy of family in Azarath because of who my father was. I can understand what people would be willing to do to feel like they were a part of a family."

Elliot shifted closer to her and tentatively covered her hand with his. Raven surprised him by wrapping him into a tight hug. He froze for a brief moment before returning the hug just as tightly. The position was uncomfortable for him, but he made no move to dissolve it. He could almost feel the emotion Raven was putting into the hug, and he could feel his eyes water and was glad she couldn't see.

"Maybe one day, the Titans will be your family too."

Elliot felt a surge of happiness that made a tear spill over. "I'd like that. I'd like that a lot."