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Dick was nervous. He didn’t know why he was nervous… he was also scared… excited… happy… deliriously happy… to the extent that he couldn’t seem to keep the lopsided grin off his face.
“Come on Boy Wonder, you’re cheeks have got to be hurting…”
When Raven had announced that she would only have one Maid of Honour and no Bridesmaids, Starfire had declared that as per the Tameranian custom of Gallinanox, the prospective candidates would fight it out until only the victor survived. Needless to say, she won by default, as no one dared oppose her. Raven, though secretly glad to have Starfire as her Maid of Honour, had managed to convince Kori to wear a classic midnight blue floor length dress instead of the barbie inspired pink sequin minidress Starfire had originally proposed.
Dick turned to the grinning man next to him. The battle for the best man had been even more dramatic. For a while it had seemed his life at turned into a full blown season crossover, as all the Robins and Titans, including Steph, had made their respective bids. However at the end of the day there was no surprised when he’d asked his best friend, Wally West, aka Kid Flash, to be his Best Man. “KF, have you got the rings?”
Wally groaned and rolled his eyes to the heavens, he pulled out the velvet pouch and tipped the gold bands into his palm, “for the two thousand and third time… yes!”
Dick touched the bands, they were perfect. After the entire ordeal with Raven’s father, Dick had visited the rocky shores Starfire, Beast Boy and Cyborg had fought Trigon and he had gathered all the pieces of the rings of Azar that he had been able to find. At the time, he’d just wanted Raven to have that link to her childhood home and mentor. The only problem was that he was unable to put the pieces back together. He supposed he could have asked Raven, but something had held him back. He wanted to see the rare moment of surprised delight lighting up her eyes… so he’d waited.
Over the years, they had found that much like Raven’s pure soul, Arella had also survived the destruction of Azarath. The Titans had rescued her from her fiery prison. Trained as an Azarathian High Priestess, she had moved to Gotham and re-trained as a nurse at the Wayne Foundation Charity Hospital, helping other young girls avoid her fate. Between her, Lucius and Bruce… and the rather haphazard help from Nitemite, they had reformed two Rings of Azar, stabilised in a new base of gold Nth Metal. He wasn’t sure if it would still protect the owner against Trigon, but the gold Nth Metal gleamed with fresh hope for the future and the small red stones of Azar still spelt out the protective charms of the past… and inside was engraved Raven & Richard, Always Believe.
His smile softened as he thought of her face, keeping these rings a secret from a curious and suspicious empath had not been easy. All she knew was that the wedding bands would be a joint gift to the bride and groom from their parents… and Nitemite. Of course Bruce was the Batman, and as such, the rings also included a heart rate SOS signal, electromagnetic RPM controller, Single digit sonic agitator and a bat-tracer. Dick chuckled, he wasn’t sure what Raven would make of the “enhancements” but he would try to explain that this was Bruce’s way of telling Raven that she was now part of his family. He would be there for her… the entire bat-family would… if she needed them.
At a commotion at the entrance, Wally slid the rings into their pouch and tucked them safely in his inner jacket pocket. The best friends looked on in some disbelief as Control Freak, fully decked out in what looked like Jame’s bond’s famous formal tuxedo, was being challenged by an astonished Titans East security detail.
Wally and Dick exchanged a glance, surely Titans East could take care of Control Freak… right?
“Greetings, Titans!” Control Freak’s loud voice boomed through the chapel and caused many seated guests, including esteemed members of the Justice League, to turn to watch.
After some hushed talking, Bumblebee exclaimed, “you know what… we’re done talking. We're taking you back to jail.”
“Not so fast! I came here for the ultimate wedding of the century, and I'm not leaving until I see them kiss!” Control Freak insisted, causing some of the younger guests to giggle, “I’m not here as the Titans Number One Nemesis…”
He paused to scowl at Speedy’s snicker and Aqualad’s snort, “… but as the President of the RobRae Fan Club!”
Every member of Titans East stared at at him in completely dumbfound silence, until Bumblebee said, “Say what?”
“That’s right! I have an invitation!” Control Freak persisted.
Más y Menos grabbed the proffered invitation. “Sí, es la invitación real.” They chorused.
Control Freak straighten his back, “I even got them the Snyder Cut of the Complete Clash of the Planets boxset digitally remastered to Blue Ray 4K and including 257 hours of extras and 494 hours of director cut voiceovers!”
“Eh?” Titans East looked between themselves in confusion.
Just then a green lizard transformed into a drooling Beast Boy, “Dude! That’s awesome! Clash of the Planets! That’s a classic!”
Beast Boy ushered Control Freak to the pew reserved for key fans, as they chattered like a couple of Clash of the Planet fan boys.
Aqualad broke the silence after their exit, “What just happened?”
Just then Bruce Wayne and Arella walked in as he escorted Arella to the front. He turned and asked all the guests to be standing for the Bride before slipping next to Diana and Alfred taking his position as father of the groom.
At Bruce’s que, Jericho started to play the wedding march, as all the guests stood.
The collective gasp echoed through the chapel, the Bride looked stunning in the transition royal Azarathian wedding dress, of white lace adorned with gold thread and the red jewels of Azarath sewed in lieu of Swarovski crystals. It had surprised no one when Raven had asked Cyborg to walk her down the aisle. In every way, except by blood ,he was her big brother, including the rather awkward “what is your intension” conversation when Dick and Raven had finally started dating to threatening to sonic boom Dick into oblivion if he ever hurt Raven.
Completely oblivious of the goofy grin on his face or the warning glare coming from Cyborg, Dick’s gaze was transfixed on his bride. Raven didn’t wear white often, but she looked… like an angel. He watched Cyborg carefully lift the veil and his heart stopped.
Raven’s makeup was unsurprisingly minimal, but she was breathtaking, her eyes were a deep plum, her cheeks coloured with a soft blush and her violet hair was up in an elegant twist, with gentle wisps falling to frame her face.
Arella conducted the wedding with grace and a more than a few motherly tears of joy. As she asked for the rings, Wally jumped forward, with a cheeky wink at Raven, he tipped the rings onto the Book of Azar.
Raven gasped as she gazed at the Rings of Azar that she had believed were lost forever. Turning her incredulous gaze to Dick, she murmured, “How is this possible?”
Dick grinned, capturing her expression in his heart, “Perhaps somebody believed”
Raven watched as the only man she had every loved, whether he’d answered to Robin, Nightwing or Richard Grayson, picked up the smaller of the two rings. As he slipped the ring on her finger it glowed and the symbols changed from those of protection, to those of love, but neither noticed, as plum eyes locked with deep blue. As Dick gazed into the eyes of the woman he loved, his voice was soft, clear and firm as he said “With this ring I promise I'll always love you, always love you.”