Duo Merquise landed gracefully in the garden of the Titan Tower, the feathers of her wings fluttered in the faint breeze as, with a single thought, they retreated into the folds of her back, concealed until they were needed once more.

She took in the scene quickly, clusters of Teen superheroes in their hordes overran the garden, stuffing their faces with the numerous meaty treats, the aroma of cooking burgers was strong, and faintly nauseating...

Duo's eyes were instantly scanning the crowds...it had been a while since the ordeal on Apokolips...everyone had pretty much gone their own way, body and hearts had needed a little healing time, herself included. Her knee was fully operational again...but inside...

...She was more confused then ever, trying to maintain the facade at Elias High was proving more and more toilsome, especially as she was trying to deal with her own identity crisis...

...Shinigami had been who she was for years, in the service of satan, reeking havoc under the vauge justification of "helping the innocent". But as she spent more time with the Titans...that was changing, they were actually helping people and, she was feeling a little more like Duo Merquise every day...

Meeting Cody Driscoll had helped somewhat and had also added to the confusion in an extreme way...she wanted to be around him, of that she was certain...but she wasn't sure how to be, what to expect or what was expected from her...she was even more concerened since she had neither seen nor heard from him since Apokolips.

She spotted him admist the crowd...<okay, okay...just go over there...say hello...> she began to run possible sequences through her head, analysising possible outcomes to a non-existing conversation that she wasn't sure she was brave enough to start...

<Honestly! What is the matter with me!!!???> she cursed herself whilst absent-midedly twirling the end of her braid between her fingers. <He's just a guy, this would be just like talking to any other unimportant, everyday, normal teenage boy...except I like this one...>

She would have physically slapped herself if she wasn't standing in the middle of a crowded garden, some were already concerned with her mental state...no need to increase their concerns...

She drew a deep breath, deciding that whatever the outcome of her "hello" was, it couldn't be worse then anything else she had suffered...

She walked over to him, her grip on her braid slowly increased as the blood pounded in her ears due to her accelerated heart rate. She stopped just infront of him...

"Hi Cody..."

Just by seeing Duo brought Cody back to reality. He was no longer thinking about all the mess from Mexico, the near death experience from Apokolips, his mother. Duo was here. Nothing else matters.

"Hey, Babe--" Replies Cody, his voice almost fading. "--it's been a while."

Cody curse himself many times for not going after Duo after the Apokolips thing, but it was far much easier being Risk then being Cody these days. His life was a messed up. Cody didn't know where to begin in order to put everything together.

He was actually embarressed. What was he going to say? That he doesn't have a home anymore? That he lives in a abandoned building? That his mother probably doesn't want to see him anymore. No freaking way.

"What's going on?" The Young Hero finished with a half smile.

"What's going on?"

"Nothing much...I just haven't seen you for a while...not that I didn't mind not seeing...not that I didn't want to see you...it's just..." Duo bit her lip hard to stop her rambling...<I've been around Cassie far to much, I'm beginning to sound like her!>

Duo looked at the surrounding area...Greta had gone off to find Will with Cassie in tow, her "school-friends" pretty much leaving her alone...

"It's good to see you again..." she thought back to Apokolips, to the wounds that they had all sustained, she knew that Cody could regenerate and heal himself, that he had done and been in full health since the incident...but she was still worried.

If her own psychological state was anything to go by then she doubted all was well, although Cassie seemed to be in higher spirits since her unofficial "date" with Will, and Greta had been getting nothing but better...she was envious...why did she feel as though life was only getting more tedious.

"How...how are you feeling? I was going to ask you before now but I didn't know where to look for you and...I didn't want to impose or anything..."

It was strange...it was though she was trying to re-establish a link between herself and Cody which had been so evident during the "messed-up Road Trip", she was beginning to fear that she was hoping for too much...

"How...how are you feeling? I was going to ask you before now but I didn't know where to look for you and...I didn't want to impose or anything..."

"I'm okay, Babe--" "LIAR! LIAR!" "--I had to do a few things. Some people I need to talk too 'n stuff... What about you?"

Although Cody liked this girl like he never liked anyone before he just couldn't tell her everything. Not now. It would just scare her away. And that's the last thing he wants.

"I missed you a lot though..."

Cody's voice held a grave note and she could tell all to clearly from his aura that he was deeply troubled.

"What about you?"

"Oh...you know, trying to adapt to an undercover life of a school girl whilst trying to overcome not being Satan's personal lapdog anymore...the usual..." she laughed vaugely at her own attempt at humour.

"I missed you a lot though..."

Duo smiled in response, <okay so we both aren't in the happiest of moods, and that's not going to change unless we make it...>

She decided there and then that she was determined to get Cody to lighten up. His light-hearted attitude when they had first met at the beach had been what appealed to her, it had been a contrast to her own sullen frame of mind, seeing him in less then good spirits was slightly unnerving, but it happened to the best of them, now it was her turn to return the favour...

"Come on!" She said, throwing him an open grin as she lurched forward, grabbed his sleeve and started to drag him along behind her towards the grill where all the food was being prepared. "I don't know about you but I could do with some food!"

She let go of his sleeve and turned to face him...an evil glint in her eye..."actually...why don't we make this more fun." She placed one hand on her hip and poked Cody in the chest with the other. "I chanllenge you Cody Driscoll to a bingeing contest! Who ever eats 5 hotdogs fastest wins!" She said, her voice bubbling with the excitment of her impending win.

She remembered the astonished gasps she had recieved the first time she had eaten lunch in the main hall of Elias High, she had consumed vast amounts in seconds!

"Lets make it a wager...I mean, you and me actaully know very little about one another...the looser has to fess up something about themselves that very few people know." She knew it was a very under-handed method to get him to talk...but she felt the intention behind it was good enough.

In a pleasantly sarcastic tone, "but of course I can understand if you don't want to, I mean the major possibility of being beaten by a girl , especially with so many people around to see it." She laughed aloud, hoping her annoying goading would hit a nerve.

"What's the matter Cody? To scared to take a RISK!?"

>>Sorry it took me this long to reply, Kye. My stupid real life (the one I hate) was preventing me from getting to my Virtual Life (the one I like). :P<<

"What's the matter Cody? To scared to take a RISK!?"

Cody smiled in return. "Okay, now you're in for some serious trouble, babe!" Cody had to admit. To be around Duo was soothing. In a way that she can make him forget about everything that's screw up in his life. Cody placed a hand around Duo's waist, almost unconsciously, and he turned to her.

"No one can eat faster than me." he says. "Okay maybe Fringe. So I'll even give you a head start to make things a bit more interestong."

Being around this many heroes reminded Risk a bit about the time he went to revenge Anita's father in Zandia*. The last time he played hero before being 'seduced by the dark side'. Cody cherish those memories. Truly.

"Go ahead, babe--" Risk says with a evil grin. "--cause you're going down!"

>>*Is the name right? I don't remember.<<

<<Hi...soz it took me so long to reply...but the computer died! Got a new one though! ITS GREAT!!! :D >>

"Go ahead, babe--" Risk says with a evil grin. "--cause you're going down!"

"That's what you think!" Duo said as she approached the grill where all the food was being prepared and loaded up two plates with five hot dogs each. She handed one to Cody and kept one plate for herself.

"Just don't cry too much when you loose!" Duo stated confidently, after all, she was the amazing champion of bingeing, and there was no way she was gonna let Cody win.

"And I don't need a headstart...I can beat you without one!" She grabbed a hold of the first hotdog and motioned for Cody to do the same.

"Prepare to loose BABE!"

Cody started to eat, franticly, not just because he was trying to win Duo, but because it’s been a while since the last time he ate. Being a hero doesn’t exactly put food on the table. Well, not unless you’re Booster Gold.

One, two, three hot dogs were gone easily, they tasted amazingly, Cody for a moment didn’t bother hiding his hunger. And it hit him. “Oops...” Cody moved his eyes away from the fourth hot dog and his glare stopped on Duo’s face.

Duo was dumbstruck...

Cody had already finished his THIRD hotdog by the time she had finished her first!!!

<Damn...he was hungry...> she thought, her second hotdog poised half way to her mouth as she stared in shock at Cody... “Oops...”
He stared at her sheepishly and she diverted her gaze <He hasn't been looking after himself probably...> she thought, <well you're one to talk!> He brain argued.

<At least I've been feeding myself!> She argued back...ok...to have a conversation with one's own brain could be seen as a sign of insanity but Duo wasn't exactly concerned with her impending lack of mental balance.

She began to eat in a hurry again, trying to catch up with Cody's pace...<If I win...I'll get him to talk to me...find out what's been going on! > She thought determinedly, her second hotdog had vanished within a few bites. That wasn't her only reason for picking up the pace...the loser had to do the talking...she wasn't too confident that Cody would want to listen to some of the things she'd have to say...plus her pride of bingeing was at STAKE!!! The third hotdog quickly followed the second...still she was lagging behind...

Cody's moment of hesitation cause him to lose his edge. They were now tied. He couldn’t even consider to be defeated, it was not the fact that Duo is a girl. Cody isn’t (much) sexist. But To tell her everything that’s going on. “She’ll dump me, that’s for sure!”

Cody doesn’t know how much he can keep this up. He isn’t used to eat this much. Doesn’t matter how fast his metabolism is, he’s starting to feel satisfied. “Oh crap...”

Cody once more look and Duo, she was still strong, it seems, “Damn, she’s beautiful...” Cody snap out of it. “Focus, focus!” Cody eats a half of a Hot Dog and then he stops. “All right, all right... I quit.”

“All right, all right... I quit.”

"HA HA!!!" Duo managed to say around a mouthful of partially chewed hotdog. She was thoroughly please with herself, she had scoffed a ton of food and could have eaten more...shame it couldn’t alleviate the real hunger...the one she felt when she craved souls...

She swallowed what was left in her mouth and brushed a hand over her lips to wipe away any crumbs...the movement did nothing to hide the smirk on her face.

She patted him consolingly on the shoulder, a hint of amusement in her tone, "don't worry Cody...it's not such an indignity to loose, especially to me!" She kissed him on the cheek, not deterring from public displays of emotion. She wanted to feel more comfortable around others, and to do so she was sincerely going to have to become more open in her own right. Cassie, Greta and Will had already seen her starting to leave her gloomy persona behind...although there was still along way to go.

Inside she breathed a sigh of relief...she wasn't going to have to talk. Cody had already glimpsed a little of the real Shinigami when she had interrogated two prisoners with Harm...she still couldn't understand how he hadn't condemned her for the actions...

She wrapped her arms round Cody's neck and smiled reassuringly up at him. "So...are you going to let me meet the real Cody Driscoll?" She asked softly.

"So...are you going to let me meet the real Cody Driscoll?"

Cody placed his arms around Duo’s waist and smiled. He wanted to be honest with her, more than anything in the world but his life was way too complicated. But Cody is a man of his word. He will tell her anything she wants to know.

Cody tries to think that it will be better to let someone in, to share this burden but is she prepared? Is she going to judge him? Is she going to walk away? Cody decided to take a chance.

“Oh screw it... When I was a Titan, things weren’t easy for the team, you know? The media was all over us. We couldn’t afford to make any mistakes... Eventually the team disbanded. I start to wander around... I ended up in this little town called San Juan Del Quinto...”

Cody’s voice starts to fail. Duo can see a tear in his eye.

“I needed money, I had no one to turn to, so I’ve met this guy, this crook, José Santoro... He invited me to work for him. Collect money and stuff... One day I things went south and I... I... Killed a man...”

Cody has never told this to anyone. NOT ANYONE. The image of that night haunts him to this day. The blood on his hand after beating up the poor man, on his shirt.
“After that I ran away and I ended up here. That’s when I met you guys.”

Duo could hear it in his voice, the wavering tone, and a sign of inner turmoil. The tears were also evident in his eyes as he confessed.

"I... I... Killed a man...” She tightened her grip on him, knowing that the physical touch was unlikely to help.

<So this is why...> she thought, and she watched a person torn by the guilt of their actions...and suddenly, she wanted it so much...she had killed so many during the course of her existence...numerous compared to Cody...and yet he could do the one thing that she couldn't...he felt remorse for his actions.

<He...he hates himself.> She ground her teeth, <he's kind, he's funny and he cares for everyone else...he doesn't deserve this...>

“After that I ran away and I ended up here. That’s when I met you guys.”

"I'm glad that you did meet with us...with me..." she knew she could say little to help ease the burden he had and still was carrying, at least she could let him know she understood.

"Cody..." but the words alluded her...how could she offer consolation when she could feel none for herself...? <He hates himself for that one action, he won't allow himself forgiveness...what hope do I have?>

She drew him close and kissed him gently, <I understand...> She thought...hoping he could sense it, that she couldn't either condemn or condone his actions, but she could understand them...

Cody wraps his around Duo’s waist as he kisses back. That was everything he needed, he feels like a weight has been lifted of his shoulders. Duo won’t judge him. Cody finally found someone who’ll accept him for who he is.

“Okay...” He says. “...one other thing you must know...” Duo can see that this is hard for him to say too. Not that he looks guilty for it. It’s more like he’s embarrassed. “My dad is a raging alien who wanted to take over the world. He impregnated several women from Earth and would use his children, me and my half-brothers, to take over the world.”

Cody opens a half smile. Trying to hide his embarrassment. “So, I guess you could say that, I’m half-Alien... Or if you’re a positive person, I’m Half-Human... and that’s it. That’s my deepest darkest secrets.”

“My dad is a raging alien who wanted to take over the world. He impregnated several women from Earth and would use his children, me and my half-brothers, to take over the world.”

She could see the complete embarrasment laced into Cody's features...and she did perhaps the most inappropriate thing...

She burst out laughing!

Her shoulders shook with the effort to try and supress the laughter but to no avail and she hid her face in Cody's shoulder, her muffeled laughs still very audible.

"I'm sorry...Sorry.." she got out between laughs. She wiped a tear from her eye, the result from almost splitting a gut. "That was unexpected! And I thought I had it bad having Satan as an adoptive father figure!" And she was gone again...she sincerely hoped Cody didn't take offense but she wouldn't have been able to prevent the giggles.

"I'm sorry...Sorry.." she got out between laughs. She wiped a tear from her eye, the result from almost splitting a gut. "That was unexpected! And I thought I had it bad having Satan as an adoptive father figure!"

“It’s all right.” Cody said starting to laugh too. “It’s pretty, well, funny actually... So what about you, babe? What are your deepest, darkest secrets?”

So what about you, babe? What are your deepest, darkest secrets?”

The laughter stopped abruptly as her head jerked up to look at Cody. Suddenly she didn't want to be there, <If he hates himself over one death...he's never going to want to be around me!> She thought, her mind racing as panic slowly began to set in. She cast her gaze about quickly, attempting to think of a way to change the subject, to alter the course of the discussion. She probably would have bolted if Cody's arms weren't encircling her waist.

She diverted her gaze, biting her lower lip, her head hung so her chestnut locks fell over her face, obscureing her onyx eyes.

"I'm..I'm not sure you will want to know..." She whispered.

"I'm..I'm not sure you will want to know..."

Cody's grip tightens around Duo’s waist. He looks at her, deeply into her black eyes. Cody smiles, trying to look as empathic as possible. He wants to gain he trust, but he knows, well, how hard it is to let someone in.

“Look, babe, I understand if you don’t want to tell me. I know how it feels. But I want you to know that, there’s nothing... Nothing, that will push me away...”

Cody kisses Duo, holding her body tight next to his, feeling more close to her than he ever felt to anyone.

“Nothing...” He says.

“Nothing...” The conviction of his tone confused her, he was willing to let things slide if she wanted...

She stood before a crossroad, one road was safe, secure, keeping the secrets caged as they always had been...a road that was familiar...The second, she had partially walked before. Cassie and Will knew more about her past then anyone...but even then all they knew was how she had come about her...gifts...

One way or another she knew that this path was one she would have to take...and with Cody's reassurance the path seemed that much more appealing, that much more plausible to walk...

"I don't know exactly how many years it has been since I became Shinigami." She began, still clasped in Cody's embrace. "I was...tortured I suppose you would say...I died and joined Satan's ranks so I could stay on Earth...my intent was to prevent such events from being repeated on others...at least...that's what I kept telling myself..." Her voice remained emotionless, monotone as her eyes focused on anything but Cody.

"I use to get allocated people to take out...after their soul was ripe, after they had done enough deeds for their essence to be black, I would hunt them down and drink them dry..."

The hunger in her shifted slightly, making itself evident, that it still existed even though she had grown good at ignoring it.

"I would hope, pray, that one day the order would come in... That the person, the ringleader of the gang responsible for my demise would be the latest target. He never was, at times I would fly out solo simply looking for him, not under instruction, merely off my own back...I never found him." Emotion seeped into her voice then, a harsh, bitter tone, manifested rage over the years.

She dislodged herself from Cody's grasp and turned her back on him, she didn't want him to see the cold, cruel anger laced into her features as she spoke.

"He's probably dead already, or and aged, decrepit old man...and now I'm no longer in Satan's ranks that call is never going to come...by becoming a Titan...I've given up on my goal...my quest."

Her hands curled into fists, the knuckles turning white from the strain and her arm's visible shook with the pent up aggression repressed within. "But if I ever do find him, do you know what I'm going to do?!" Her voice was a barely audible whisper, the question rhetorical, more for her benefit then for her one-person audience. "I'm going to beat him senseless and hear him scream, and when he's begging for his life..." the sinister smile that engraved into her face was sadistic, "I'm going to kick his skull in, just as he did mine..."

She span sharply then, turning to face Cody head on, <I suppose I could have been more tactful...> she thought but quickly dismissed it...

"There you go Cody, deep, dark secrets laid out on a platter...what do you think?" He tone was light, chirpy even...as though none of it held any true importance. But underneath it all she was waiting with baited breath...because for some reason, the more she was around the Titans, the more she got to know them all, the more their opinion meant to her.

"There you go Cody, deep, dark secrets laid out on a platter...what do you think?"

“What I feel about you haven’t changed, Babe. Doesn’t matter what you did in your past, we have our baggage...” Cody tries to choose his words carefully, he knew she had a tough past, but this shocked him a little. Not that it mattered.

“I won’t judge you, I can’t judge you. I’ve been there two.” Cody caresses her face softly. “And I can’t blame me you for wanting to get even... But you can’t let your anger get the best of you babe... We can’t afford to do that.”

Cody wasn’t ever the smartest kid around and it was always a bit hard to express his feeling properly, but he wanted to get his feelings through to Duo.

“I’m still here for you, I’m always going to be here for you, I promise you that, babe.” Cody runs his fingers through Duo’s gorgeous hair as he stares deeply into her eyes.

“What I feel about you haven’t changed, Babe.

<Then you’re a fool...> her mind whispered, doubt always looming at the edges, not allowing her to fully believe his words, no matter how sincere they appeared to be.

He wasn't judging what she had done...but what of what she had yet to do? None of them seemed to realise, not Cassie, not Cody...she didn't regret the past; she relieved the scenes in her mind, drinking the souls of her victims and actually enjoyed replaying the images. When she was reluctant to speak of it...it was not because she was repulsed by those images, but because it hurt to see the disgust laced into her friends' faces...to see, in physical depiction, the horrific freak that she was.

“I’m still here for you, I’m always going to be here for you, I promise you that, babe.”

"You shouldn't make promises you can't keep..." Because a day would come, when she would drink again, and she wouldn't redeem the act by returning the essence as she had done with Cassie.

She looked up at him, <he really is very handsome> she thought randomly, <I don't want to see him look at me in disgust...>