Johnny's daddy was taking him fishin'
When he was eight years old
A little girl came through the front gate holdin' a fishing pole
His dad looked down and smiled, said we can't leave her behind
Son I know you don't want her to go but someday you'll change your mind
And Johnny said "Take Jimmy Johnson, take Tommy Thompson, take my best friend Bo
Take anybody that you want as long as she don't go
Take any boy in the world
Daddy please don't take the girl."
Beast Boy watched as Robin, the leader of the newly formed Teen Titans, paced up and down the common room floor, his shadow towering above them on the large screen behind him. "If we're gonna do this, we need to do this right. We'll each be splitting up into groups to patrol the city. As there is an uneven number of us, the groups will change depending on who went last."
Cyborg and Beast Boy shared a grin, best friends since the day they met. "Look at the fearless leader," the mechanical hero mouthed, giving a mocking impression of Robin's serious face.
Beast Boy laughed loudly, causing an instant silence. "What?" he asked innocently, rubbing the back of his head.
"Like I was saying," Robin began again, glaring at the green changeling, "the patrols will switch every week. Tonight, I'm going to send Beast Boy and Raven out for first patrol, followed by Cyborg and Starfire."
"Aw man!" grumbled Beast Boy, glancing at the dark girl floating beside the couch. "Do I really have to go with her? She's mega creepy! Why can't I go with Cy or Starfire?" Next thing he knew, he was upside down behind the couch, having been propelled there by Raven's power. She shrugged as they all looked at her.
"You'll go with Raven tonight, Beast Boy, and that's final. Who knows, you might find something in common."
Same old boy
Same sweet girl
Ten years down the road
He held her tight and kissed her lips
In front of the picture show
Stranger came and pulled a gun
Grabbed her by the arm said "If you do what I tell you to, there won't be any harm"
And Johnny said "Take my money, take my wallet, take my credit cards
Here's the watch that my grandpa gave me
Here's the key to my car
Mister give it a whirl
But please don't take the girl."
Five years later, and a lot had changed in the Titan Tower. After all their battles, defeating bad guy after bad guy, each had gotten closer to the other. All it took was a trip to Tokyo, and relationships had finally started to develop. Robin and Starfire confessed their love for each other, and Beast Boy and Raven started going out on small dates. Even Cyborg found someone to love in BumbleBee, the leader of Titans East.
While they still had their share of fights and misunderstandings, real love developed between the two most mismatched pair in the Tower: Beast Boy and Raven. However, after they got to know each other, they each found some small part of themselves in the other. It all came to a head one night while the two were at the movies on a date. Raven pretended interest in the monster film while Beast Boy was on the edge of the seat cheering on the movie hero. At the end, while they were walking back to the tower holding hands, Beast Boy made his move and kissed Raven softly on the lips. Shock froze her into a stunned silence as Beast Boy watched worriedly, fearing both that he had ruined things and that he would be shot face first into a nearby building.
Before anything could happen, a black-clad figure with a red X on his chest barged between the two, startling them into motion. On the edge of panic, the villain Red X grabbed Raven from behind and held a razor-sharp X-knife against the heroine's neck. "I'm not in the mood for any BS, Beast Boy," he said roughly, the knife digging into the woman's neck. "Just give me all you have and I'll be gone."
Beast Boy watched in wide-eyed terror as the scene played out before digging into his pockets, unwilling to risk his love's life with some kind of heroics. "Here man, take it all," he whispered, handing over his wallet and keys to his moped. "Just take it and go, I won't even call the others. Just please, don't hurt Raven." A deep love colored his voice, causing it to crack as he said her name.
"Good choice, idiot," Red X snarled before grabbing the loot and disappearing as quickly as he appeared. Beast Boy rushed to the terrified woman, catching her before she fell to the ground.
"Raven! Raven, are you okay?" he asked desperately. She just nodded and the slowly walked home, Beast Boy holding onto her tightly.
Same old boy
Same sweet girl
Five years down the road
There's going to be a little one and she says it's time to go
Doctor says the baby's fine but you'll have to leave
'Cause his momma's fading fast and Johnny hit his knees and there he prayed
Take the very breath you gave me
Take the heart from my chest
I'll gladly take her place if you'll let me
Make this my last request
Take me out of this world
God, please don't take the girl."
Several years later, a much more mature Beast Boy, now going by the name Beast Man, paced up and down the hospital hallway, muttering and grumbling to himself as he waited for the doctor to come out with news on his wife, Raven, who was giving birth to their first child. As he grew more and more worried, a man dressed in a white lab coat stepped of the room and walked over to him. "Garfield," the doctor said, using the hero's real name, "the baby is a perfectly healthy boy, inheriting your green skin and his mother's dark purple hair. However," the doctor continued, his voice getting low with emotion, "the mother is having complications with the birth. She is having excessive bleeding and her heart is having trouble pumping blood."
Beast Man fell to his knees as the doctor walked back into the room, his eyes locked on the fleeting of his love screaming in pain, almost seeming to compliment the screams of his newborn child. The door closed on the view as tears clouded his eyes, leaking down his face to fall onto the hard white floor. An anguished cry was torn from his throat as his fists pounded the ground. "Why? Why?" he screamed, cracks appearing in the marble beneath him. "Please, whoever's out there, don't take her from me again!" Hospital staff, patients, and others looked over at him before turning away, unable to gaze long at his pain. He finally fell completely down to the floor, sobbing uncontrollably. "Please, I'll do anything... Take me instead," he pleaded with whatever deity was listening, hoping against hope that his cries were heard. "Just spare her, please, take my soul instead..." his voice quieted down to whimpers before becoming as silent as his heart...
Johnny's daddy
Was taking him fishin'
When he was eight years old
As the life left his body, Beast Boy's mind went back to the day he first met Raven. Even then, he knew he loved her, even if he hid that fact to himself. The sun glinting off of her dark hair, a light in her eyes he recognized even then as needing someone to love. Even then, he loved her.
