Hi there, I'm Tex Murphy and this is my first fanfic. I'm rather nervous about how it will be accepted, especially after some of the fine works I have read on this site. The first person's work I read and enjoyed here (and inspired me to write my own) was TheUbu, the crazy Canadian who drinks too much Coca Cola.
Obviously I do not own the Teen Titans, but please respect that the story at least is my original work.
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Flavour of the Month
Chapter 01
Raven puzzled for a second, the pen in her hand stationary as she glanced to the ceiling in hope of some inspiration. As she returned her gaze to the empty white page in front of her, the end of the pen tapped against the corner of the page absent mindedly, dotting it with black marks.
"Ummm…" Starfire leaned in closely, furrowing her brow as she looked at the freshly inked dots. "I do not recognise this language. What does it say?"
"Nothing," Raven exhaled with a hint of irritation. "I'm not really a writer anyway. I prefer to read," she said as she leaned back on the sofa, leaving the pen resting on the paper in front of her.
"I do not understand," Starfire puzzled. "If you enjoy to read the books, it should not be difficult as you should be familiar with how the writing is done."
"… It's easier said than done," Raven muttered as Starfire continued to scribble away. It was clear that she had made considerably more progress with her work than Raven. The smile on her face and occasional giggle gave away that she was enjoying this pastime. Raven would normally have retreated to her room at this juncture but Starfire had seemed to be keen and she had agreed to it. "Just a short story…" she reassured herself as she sat forward, re-evaluating the blank page, which was still just as blank as she had left it. Raven pondered about how important the first paragraph was and how it would set the tone for the entire story. It was no quick task to come up with something suitable. She tried to think back to some of the tales she had read and how they had dealt with it. She figured most writers would get writers' block at some point, especially at this stage… all except Starfire.
"Hehe…" she dotted a full stop on her page and turned to beam at Raven. "The first chapter is completed," she announced proudly. Raven wondered for a moment why Starfire was looking at her so expectantly. Then it clicked.
"Maybe … you can tell me what you have so far." That was certainly what Starfire had been waiting for, Raven thought, as Starfire's expression clearly indicated. Starfire picked up her first page and held it up in front of her.
"Ahem." She cleared her throat in an almost theatrical style and her expression looked rather serious. "The tale of the prince, the princess and the evil Grempork." She paused for a moment to check Raven was paying attention. "Once, there was a beautiful Tamaranean princess. She lived a happy life on the planet called Earth. She had many friends who she played with every day, but the closest person was the handsome prince, called Dobin."
"Dobin?" Raven interrupted, realising the poorly hidden parallels between this story and Starfire's situation.
"Yes," explained Starfire, "that is the prince in this story." Raven raised an eyebrow in a questioning fashion but Starfire seemed unphased. "Dobin lived with the princess in a tower and they were very good friends. All of the friends shared many good times together and many fond memories were created," she paused to clear her throat again.
"One day, the princess was talking to her good friend Naven…" Raven sank back into the sofa and made herself comfortable. This was going to be interesting, she thought.
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" 'Oh, dear princess… I was tempted by the evil Grempork', said Dobin, but knew all along that the princess was the one for his heart." Starfire was stood up by this point and was making vague actions to accompany the story with her free hand. Raven had since pulled her hood over her head, using it to disguise her bored expression and frequent yawns.
"Well?" Starfire looked to her slightly listless friend for a response. The wide eyed look suggested she might be hoping for a favourable review.
"Hmm," Raven thought aloud as she took back her hood and combed a little hair out of her eyes. "The part where we… they all swam in the lake of mustard was .. interesting." Diplomacy was not Raven's strongest suit.
"Oh yes, what a fun thing to do that would be. Also delicious," she smiled widely, imagining so much of her favourite food. Raven shook her head, wondering for a second how Starfire's mind must work.
"I am glad you liked it," she said, smiling as she browsed a couple of the pages, happy that her efforts had been appreciated. "Perhaps soon I will be able to hear your tale?" Raven suddenly looked as if she had just been informed she was late for an appointment.
"Err…." she started, looking at her blank sheets. Fortunately her poor explanation was delayed by the sound of the main lounge doors sliding open. The two girls looked to see who it was.
"Hey," said Robin, as he wandered over to the refrigerator.
"Your attire is not usual Robin, what is the occasion?" Starfire questioned, as Robin was indeed not wearing his usual outfit, instead wearing a smart black suit minus the tie.
"I'm just getting into the feel of my new tux," he said, stretching his arms to feel how much give there was in the jacket should the situation require he act.
"It is pleasant looking… but why now, and why do you drink when the risk of spillage is high?" Starfire pointed at a slightly sheepish looking Robin who was drinking milk from the carton.
"Well…" Robin wiped his mouth and returned the carton to the fridge, "We have that award ceremony in a while so I thought I would get used to the tux before we went." Starfire pressed her finger to her cheek and looked deep in thought.
"The one the mayor sent us the invitation to last week," Raven reminded her, "The one at city hall."
"Ah yes!" She remembered and suddenly perked up, "For our services to the people of the city. It will be a celebration of us! I hope we also get to have the party."
"I don't," Raven said flatly.
"So…are you going to get dressed?" Robin asked.
"But I am dressed," Starfire said glancing down at herself to make sure.
"I meant… something different to wear … something for the event." He skirted around, trying not to imply there was anything wrong with the way she was dressed now.
"Is this not sufficient? It has served me well on many an occasion in the past…" Starfire babbled slightly.
"He means something for the occasion, like his tuxedo," Raven clarified from her seat.
"Oh." Starfire had a realisation and Robin breathed a little sigh of relief. "Yes, I think it would be good to decorate myself with an attractive garment if we are to be seen by so many people." She turned to Raven. "Would this not be a good time for us to engage in the painting of the nails and the braiding of the hair?" Raven exhaled and looked at Starfire whose eyes were wide open with excitement. Saying 'no' to her when she was like this was always difficult as it was like kicking a puppy. A sick puppy. Normally she would have avoided these situations by hiding out in her room but she realised this time she may be cornered.
"Yeah Raven," Robin added, walking over to the sofa and leaning against the back rest. "Besides, you need to get ready too; we only have a couple of hours."
"Get ready?" She raised an eyebrow.
"Yes, you must change into something suitable. Maybe something that glitters." Starfire seemed to already be making plans.
"I don't think I own anything like that."
"Do not worry, I am sure I have something suitable to lend to you." Starfire turned to thought. "Perhaps the pink one…."
"This will be fine." Raven's tone of voice indicated that her patience had come to an end. She got up and headed towards the exit. "I'll be in my room."
Starfire looked to Robin with disappointment in her eyes. "Nevermind Star, you can help me with my tie." He took the tie out his pocket and held it in Starfire's direction. She looked at the length of fabric with some confusion.
"Is this also some kind of decorative garment?" She took the tie and examined it. "How is it applied?"
"You tie it around the neck part of a suit, like this one." He said, raising the collar on his shirt. Her face seemed to indicate she understood.
"I think I understand but this black length of fabric does not look very decorative. If it were green it might look more pleasant."
"Err …I think black goes better with the suit." He said, taking back the tie.
"So… one just ties it around the neck and pulls it tight?" She made the actions with her hand which made Robin realise it might be better if he handled this one.
"I think I can manage actually," he said, starting to put the tie around his neck. Normally he would allow her a try, but this was an important occasion and he did not want anything to go wrong.
"Oh…" Starfire's voice mirrored the disappointment on her face. Fortunately for Robin, Starfire was easy to please if you knew the right way to go about it.
"Don't worry though," Robin started. "I'll let you practise when we get back." She lit up like a candle.
"Oh, yes. I would like that." He looked at her for a second and couldn't help but crack a smile as he remembered how innocent she could be sometimes.
"Well then," she said as she finished watching Robin tying his tie, "I shall go and make my appearance more pleasing." Robin gave a small nod of acknowledgement and she disappeared in the direction of her room. He then skipped over the back of the sofa, landing in a seated position.
"Aaah," Robin exhaled and stretched as he made himself comfortable. He reached forward and took the remote from the table. "Let's see what's on," he said, flipping the 'on' button.
"Welcome to a special World of Fungus double bill…" the TV blared, causing Robin to scramble to find the button to reduce the volume. His fingers found the button to change the channel first, but that would be fine for him, as long as…
"Was that not the show 'World of Fungus' on the television?" Starfire enquired, peeking anxiously through the door.
"Err…" Robin thought quickly, "it was an advertisement for the show on another channel."
"Oh…" she said and disappeared again, "most disappointing. I would have liked to have seen…" her voice trailed off and was curtailed when the doors closed with a barely audible hiss.
Robin wiped some imaginary sweat from his brow and allowed himself a wry smile as he started to browse the channels.
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"So her name's Clara," Beast boy looked longingly at an opened letter he held in his hands, "and she totally digs my cute look."
"Uh huh," Cyborg continued polishing the T car with a great deal of care. Beast boy was walking around the car as he spoke, attempting to raise Cyborg's attention.
"She knows all about the Titans, but mostly about me," he stopped pacing and smiled dreamily, holding the letter to his chest.
"Sure thing buddy," Cyborg looked carefully at the headlights, occasionally breathing on them using his finger to remove any marks he noticed. Beast boy glared at Cyborg.
"You're not listening!" His subtle attempts at engaging Cyborg in a conversation so far had not worked and his annoyance was starting to show. Cyborg stood up straight and turned to face his friend.
"Look, I get it. You've got a fan and you're excited," he explained in a matter of fact way, "but the T car's not gonna clean itself."
"Yeah, but she's not just any fan." He matched the lack of humour in Cyborg's eyes with his own. Cyborg raised his eyebrow a little and then shrugged.
"Alright, man," he said, relaxing his posture and leaning against the car. "Tell me about her." Beast boy grinned widely and hopped onto the bonnet. Cyborg looked suitably unimpressed but Beast boy ignored that and happily started to explain.
"Well, she's called Clara…"
"Yeah, you said that bit," Cyborg's thoughts were now on how he was probably going to have to re-polish the part where Beast boy was sat. This did not make him happy.
"Okay, umm… well she's from Jump City. She's my age… she's really into computer games. Best of all though…" Beast boy beamed, "she really likes me." Cyborg raised his eyebrow again and scratched his temple lightly with his finger.
"So… what… you're saying she's crazy?" He smiled, taking pleasure from annoying Beast boy.
"No…" Beast boy thrust the letter towards Cyborg. Attached to the letter was a small photo. Cyborg took the letter and narrowed his eye a little to examine the picture. "See?" Beast boy said smugly, "she sure looks normal enough to me." Cyborg nodded his head slightly in acknowledgement. She was fairly attractive, he had to agree, although it would take more than a pretty face to stop him taunting Beast boy.
"Sure, she may look normal," he attempted to sound as serious as he could but a slight mocking edge still filtered through, "but you know you gotta be careful. I mean you just never know. She's already sending you letters and pictures…" Beast boy's eyes lowered a bit and Cyborg smirked to himself as he could almost hear the cogs in his friend's head grinding together. "Gotcha," he said, grinning. Beast boy looked slightly relieved and knew he had been had. Then that mischievous smile crept back across his face.
"Yeah, I knew you were just jealous," Beast boy retorted with an element of scorn.
"Oh, me? Jealous? I don't think so. You can hold on to the crazy," he joked, "now get your butt off my car. It's gotta look perfect since lots of people are gonna get to see it shortly."
"Huh," Beast boy hopped onto his feet, "a black guy worried so much about his ride. You're really playing up the stereotype," he teased.
"Man you can talk to me about black when you ain't the same shade of green as my momma's toilet," he retorted. Beast boy glared right back at Cyborg. Although he felt the comeback was a good one, he was not going to let it show.
"Well that's… erm…" he wagged his finger in Cyborg's direction, "…umm…" His glare faded into a look of thought and the wagging finger returned to scratch his chin.
"Out of ammo already? That girl's putting you way off your game." He returned his attentions to the car and chuckled to himself. Beast boy was short of a good response but he did not have to admit it.
"Well I suppose I should go and make myself look good. I don't want to disappoint the pretty ladies." Beast boy raised his head in an arrogant fashion and strode towards the door.
"Whoa, you know we've only got a couple of hours, right?" Cyborg said, the phoney surprise in his voice obvious.
"Very funny…" Beast boy said in a sarcastic tone. He had a good come back on the tip of his tongue but a nearby monitor made a low beeping sound and distracted him.
"Someone at the door," Cyborg said, stepping over to the monitor. A few button presses later and the screen displayed an image from one of the security cameras on the front of the tower, showing the entrance area. "Oh, it's just the mail man," he said, as if perhaps he had been expecting something a little more exciting. He turned to Beast boy, or rather where he used to be. The door was open and the words 'I'll get it' were left hanging in the air. Cyborg shook his head and went back to the car.
"He's got it bad."
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Raven was annoyed. She muttered to herself as she approached the reception area. It always seemed to be her getting the door these days, even though the others were perfectly capable. Next time she would just ignore it, she decided as she glanced at the monitor to check who it was. The short older man with tufts of untidy white hair was unmistakable. "Open Sesame," she said with her typical emotionally void tone as she pressed a button on the panel. The locking mechanism hissed and then the sound of metal grinding against metal as various bolts slid out of place. Bright sunlight poured through the crack of the opening door causing Raven's eyes to narrow reflexively.
"Beautiful day, eh?" the red faced man smiled. "Raven right?" he reached out with a batch of letters, gesturing her to take them.
"Long way to come for a few bills," Raven took the letters and started examining the one on the top of the pile.
"Heh," the old man chuckled, "it's alright, I've got the boat." He gestured to a small speed boat at the shore. "A nice excursion if the weather's good," he looked at the sky and shielded his eyes with his hand, "like today." Raven looked up from the letters for a moment. The sun was shining in a cloudless sky, while the sea lapped calmly against the island. The temperature was warm for this time of year too. Nothing was particularly 'good' about that though, she thought, returning her attention to the mail.
"Who addresses a letter with just 'BB at TT'?" She questioned, inspecting one hand written letter. The old man shrugged.
"Beats me, I just do the delivering." He attempted to start a little conversation, "so…" he began.
"Thanks for your time." Raven turned around and went back inside. Moments later the man was facing a closed door again.
"Oh well," he sighed and turned to return to his boat. At least Beast boy was friendly, he thought.
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Beast boy arrived in the lobby to see Raven closing the doors. He noticed she seemed to be fairly occupied with a letter she had just opened. An impish grin spread across his face and he rubbed his hands together. An evil plan was in the making. He tip toed toward her, making sure his steps coincided with hers to mask their sound. He was banking that she would be too engrossed in her letter to notice him. Just as she was a few steps in front of him she looked up with an eyebrow raised in a questioning fashion. "Beast boy," she sighed, "if your idea of surprising someone is walking in front of them, I might have to re-evaluate how stupid you really are." He wore his guilty and dejected look well, whether he really felt that way or not.
"Yeah… I guess my plan wasn't too well thought out," he heaved an almost theatrical sigh. The trained eye might have noticed the slight glint in his eye, but it seemed that Raven had not.
All of a sudden his arm shot forward and snatched the letter from her hands. She reacted instantly, attempting to grab it back but she was not quite quick enough. He turned his back to her and held the letter at arm's length in front of him, putting it out of her reach. "Dearest Raven, as your biggest fan…" he read out loud, imitating what he imagined to be an aristocratic manner of speaking.
"Give it back!" she grabbed for it and tried to move around him. He moved with her, keeping his back in her way and the letter away from her clutching hands.
"Please take … the time to … read this small composition … I have put together," his words were broken up by the attempts of Raven to grab back the letter. "I call it an ode to the black rose…" Beast boy paused as he noticed Raven was no longer grabbing for the letter. Turning his head to see what she was up to, he noticed her hood was now drawn over her head. He turned to face her and leant in, trying to get a clear view of her face. "I know you're blushing under there," he taunted.
"Azarath…" she began her incantation, although deliberately leaving a little pause before the second part.
"Err…" Beast boy tried to discern whether she was serious from any clues he could pick up. Unfortunately her even tone and steady posture, at least as far as he could tell under the cloak, gave nothing away.
"Metrion…" His face betrayed that he now believed her to be serious. He took her free hand and thrust the letter into it.
"Here…" he said, a definite nervous edge creeping into his voice, "I was just curious to see what had you so interested," he laughed uneasily.
"Right. So … you came all the way down here just to annoy me?" she started back on her previous path to the elevator, side stepping Beast boy.
"Actually…" he followed on behind her, "I was wondering if there was anything for me." She stopped and audibly exhaled. He came around to her right side and watched her thumb slowly through the mail.
"I don't think your invitation to host the Jump City comedy awards is coming," her dry tone of voice was ideal for such sarcastic comments. Beast boy was about to think of a suitably witty reply when he spotted his letter. His hand darted in and retrieved it before Raven could make any remarks. She had noticed that it was the letter she had passed comment on earlier. "So… what is it?" Even Raven had to admit she was slightly curious.
"Just fan mail," he shrugged as he tucked the letter into the back pocket of his trousers, as if the occurrence was so regular it was almost a chore. Raven was not convinced.
"I thought you needed fans before you could get fan mail," she ridiculed. He turned up his nose as if to rise above her comment.
"Well she might not write me drippy poems," he took a few steps toward the lift and pressed the button to call it, "but she's really into my style," he boasted as he preened his hair in the metallic surface of the door.
"I didn't know they allowed asylum inmates to send letters," she said as she stepped forward to get in the lift. Beast boy followed her in with a slightly aggravated expression.
"Yeah well maybe you'd have more fans yourself if you weren't so cold all the time," he snapped. Sure, he should have the right to mock her remote attitude like she always did him and his outgoing ways. Maybe he had gone a little too far though. "I mean… umm…" His tone softened apologetically.
"Whatever," she shrugged him off. As usual it was hard to tell Raven's mood exactly, but he was pretty sure he had crossed the line. A change of tack was probably the best idea.
"So…" he restarted the conversation, "you wearing anything nice to this mayor's thing?" An exasperated sigh implied that was not a topic she wanted to cover. She must be bugged about something, he figured, discounting instantly the idea that the problem might be him. He hit the button for his floor and a few moments of uncomfortable silence followed. Only the sound of the mechanics whirring into action punctuated the journey.
"I don't know why everyone's so bothered about it," Raven finally spoke, her voice breaking through the low hum of the lift "it's just an excuse for the mayor to get himself associated with us to boost his own popularity," she complained. She was not a great fan of politicians. "You think it's just a coincidence that his term of office is almost up?" Beast boy shrugged. He did not have much of a view on the subject simply because he did not know that much about it.
"He seems nice enough to me." Beast boy said cheerily. Raven shook her head and decided this discussion was not going to make any progress. Besides, the fewer of the world's evils he knew the happier he would be and explaining it would almost certainly lead to a headache.
The familiar chime of the lift told them they had arrived. The doors slid silently open to show the familiar grey corridors. Beast boy gestured for Raven to exit first with his arm and a slight bow of the head. She looked at him a little confused, "this isn't my stop," she said, holding up the letters.
"Oh… well you just take those upstairs then…" He said, scratching the back of his neck and feeling a little silly.
Raven raised her eyebrows expectantly.
"Oh right," he stepped out of the lift and raised his hand for a small wave. Raven nodded and reached for the panel. The doors slid shut and Beast boy proceeded to his room, a skip in his step as his thoughts turned to the letter in his pocket and the new suit he had bought for today's occasion, which he thought was going to look totally sharp.
He had already opened the letter by the time he came to his room. He went through, still engrossed, and sat on the edge of his unmade bed.
'Dear Beast boy,
Thanks for the last letter! I started writing this one straight away but I didn't get to finish it for a little while because dad was making me do my school work so sorry about that. Still, here it is in all its glory, I hope you like reading it as much as I liked writing it.'
"I'm sure I will," he said to nobody in particular, an almost involuntary smile creeping across his face.
'Sorry to hear Raven is still being mean, but I think I am starting to understand her from what you have told me. I told you about my older sister Erica right? She's a total antisocial goth too, I think those guys would get along. At least you have Robin and Cyborg to play on the Gamestation with. Oh, by the way, do you know how to beat the scorpion boss on Hidden Assassin? I can't seem to figure out how to damage him in his second form. Then when you die you have to do that whole level again, it's so annoying.
Hmm what else to say… Oh! I'm going to be at that award ceremony on Saturday the 15th. I'll be one of the screaming fans outside. I think only press and stuff are allowed in. I don't have an invitation either. If you see me, come over and say hello! My friends would be so jealous…'
Beast boy lowered the letter to his lap and looked over to the cupboard and weighed up putting on his new suit against finishing the letter. If Clara was going to be there, it might be precious extra time that could be better invested on his hair. "Hmm…" he contemplated while picking a little piece of tofu out of his back teeth with his index finger.
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"…and so we can now see the crowds starting to gather for the arrival shortly of Jump City's favourite quintet, the Teen Titans," the reporter gestured to a group of people behind him before turning his well practised smile on the camera. "This is Tom Maxwell. Back to you in the studio Susan."
"Thanks Tom, maybe they'll be able to 'rescue' the mayor's waning opinion poll figures…" The screen flicked off and Cyborg sat forward on the sofa, resting the remote on the table.
"Woo yeah!" he exclaimed jubilantly, almost dancing in his seat, "They all waiting on the Cyborg for the real action to begin," he cheered to an unphased Raven who was sat a little to his left, nursing a cup of tea. She shook her head disapprovingly before taking a tentative sip. "Aw come on Ray, cheer up."
"This is me cheerful," she looked at him with a total lack of facial expression. He let out a small sigh of disappointment before turning to speak to Starfire who was floating behind the couch, putting the finishing touches to her hair.
"Lookin' good Star," he said, admiring her long pink dress. "Hey, isn't that the one you wore when Robin went on that date with K-…" she shot him a fiery glare which reminded him how much he did not want to go there, "err… that time," he coughed nervously.
"Hmm…" Starfire pondered, going back to concentrating on her appearance, "Is it not strange that the females must spend so much time selecting suitable articles of clothing for such events while the males are required only to wear this 'suit'?"
"Guys tend are better suited to other things … like eating," came Raven's dry voice in response.
Starfire thought about that for a second, "This does seem to be true, but I am also skilled at …"
"Hey," interrupted a mildly offended Cyborg, "there are lots of different suits to choose from. This one took me forty minutes of shopping to get," he said, using his hands to highlight his suit.
"Oh, I had not realised that it was…" started Starfire again.
"So twenty minutes there, twenty minutes back," Raven cut her short with another jab.
"Friends… let us not argue… for this is a joyous occ…" she attempted to reconcile her feuding comrades but was yet again broken off in mid sentence.
"At least I made the effort." Cyborg's voice rose and his posture became more hostile, "you're still wearing that same old tired combination. Nothing wrong with wanting to look nice." She stared back defiantly. Starfire looked at the other Titans hesitantly, wanting to mend the situation but not quite sure how.
"Just because you're dumb enough to get all worked up about some meaningless event…" she sniped.
"Hey!" called Robin from the kitchen area with a somewhat hurt tone.
"Well at least I get excited about some things." Cyborg replied in kind, raising his voice a little more.
"FRIENDS!" Starfire shrieked, expressing upset as much as anger and cutting through their argument like a hot knife through mustard. The others stopped their bickering and turned to her with trepidation on their faces. They knew that Starfire was probably the one of them that could be pushed furthest, but the one they would least want to deal with once she had been pushed. "Let us not fight over who wears which fashions," her voice was laced with concern. "We should be pleased that the people will be so happy to see us, let them not see us divided," she attempted to rouse but her scolding had left them looking at their feet uncomfortably.
"Sorry Star," Raven and Cyborg mumbled in unison, which was followed by an awkward silence. Raven drank a little more tea, Cyborg brushed down his suit and Starfire looked anxious, wondering if she'd been too harsh. Robin was the only one making any noise as he stacked some dried dishes in one of the cupboards.
Their attention was piqued again briefly by the familiar sound of the door opening. It was Beast boy. This time, though, his attire was more striking than usual, in everybody's opinion. He had donned a well cut light grey suit with a maroon shirt. He pointed his index fingers as if his hands were pistols and smiled broadly, "Azarath, Metrion, Beast boy!" he announced. The lack of any response caused his smile to fade into a look of mystification. The atmosphere was almost tangible in here. Glancing over the glum expressions of his team mates confirmed it. Probably just some silly argument, he figured. Fortunately he was in good spirits and knew exactly how to lighten the mood.
"Hey Cy," he sauntered down towards the other Titans. "Nice suit. Did you have to skin an eight foot penguin?" he said, grinning expectantly for some traditional banter. Cyborg did not rise to the verbal challenge, instead choosing to keep his gaze on the floor just in front of his feet. He mumbled something but it was not easily audible.
"…Okaaay then," Beast boy turned to Raven, realising his brand of personality might not be working on Cyborg, this time. "Raven…" he smirked, "surely you're not planning to go in that?" Dead silence again. Only an exasperated exhalation clued him in that she probably was not going to be any fun either.
"Whoa, tough crowd," he said after a few seconds to nobody in particular, fiddling with the top button of his shirt awkwardly. Robin placed his hand over his eyes and shook his head in despair of the situation. Somehow Beast boy had managed to demonstrate his ability to say completely the wrong things in an almost expert fashion.
"You are putting your legs in your mouth Beast boy," piped up Starfire, prompting a look of total bewilderment. "Err…" she stopped to think, guessing she had probably made an error there.
"Foot?" Robin suggested.
"Oh yes," Starfire hit one closed fist against the other open palm with a look that might have led one to believe she had just solved a great mystery. "You have the foot in the mouth Beast boy so it may be wise to stop with the joking for now," she advised.
"Hmm" Beast boy thought. If he had said something inappropriate it would explain their reactions. Maybe there had been some commotion here before he arrived shortly before, or maybe they were just jealous of his fan mail. "So… Starfire. Looking nice." She responded with a little twirl to show off her dress. He looked to contemplate something for a moment. "Hey…" something came to him, "isn't that the same dress you wore when…"
"Beast boy!" Robin shouted, cutting in just in time to save Beast boy from what would have been his worst faux pas of the day. Cyborg allowed himself a little smirk at the situation. "So…" he said, his attention drifting to Starfire, and whether or not she was going to go into ballistic mode.
"So…?" Beast boy prompted him, noticing his almost spaced out gaze.
"So are we all ready?" he looked around at the other Titans to confirm. It seemed so.
"I guess…" Beast boy shrugged. Cyborg stood up and stretched a little.
"T car's ready to go," he informed Robin with a business like tone.
"Okay then, let's go." Robin started towards the lift with Starfire and Beast boy in tow. Cyborg followed a little behind, stopping half way to turn to Raven who had not moved from her seat.
"Coming?" She put her cup down and got up.
"Titans, go," she quipped in her usual monotone.
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So there it is. What did you think? I hope you liked it. I had actually written this about six months ago and only now have I posted it. To re-read it was quite strange, having read other fics. I often criticised people for too easily leaning on Starfire's amusing turn of phrase, but I noticed that I kind of do it too. She's easy to write to a basic standard, but hard to write very well.
I wonder if you are thinking, "Hold on a minute. If he wrote the first chapter so long ago, is the second chapter ready already?" Well… there are two answers to this and both of them are 'no'. Also I am not quick at writing when I do write and I go through long phases where I am uninspired to write, or just busy with other stuff. I guess I will see how you guys respond before getting to work on more. I hope I can write more like this.