Catastrophe. Chaos. Pandemonium. Green, black and blue eruptions lit up the windows of the gigantic T in the middle of the tiny island they called their own. Citizens stared in fear at the mayhem flashing before them. What was going on inside their heroes' home? Was there a villain? Were they in danger? Clutching their hands to their chest, they thought about rushing back to their homes when collectively, they breathed a sigh of relief. For now, they were safe. How did they know? Their resident teen hero had just been flung out the window. And everyone knows, Beastboy only flies out the window into the crashing sea below because of one person. Raven. Black light preceding his fall cemented their thoughts as some passerbys chuckled amusedly. However, one question still remained, what the heck was going on in there?
"Me?! Why should I do it?" Beastboy yelled after flying back into the Ops room, still soaking wet and reeking of the sea.
Raven glared frightfully at the green teen and growled. "Because I said so!" her hands curled into mini weapons and Beastboy's eyes flitted from her fists to the other faces of his team-mates.
Three determined expressions met his. Moaning, he stomped his foot petulantly on the ground. "I don't want toooo. It's not fair! Besides, last time I checked it was Starfire's turn!" he pointed his finger satisfactorily in her direction and smirked.
"Hey, don't go picking on the little lady just 'cause you know she'll do it." Cyborg crossed his arms and stared the changeling down. "But actually, he does have a point Star." He conceded apologetically, eyes slanting down in sympathy.
Not willing to back down, the Tamaranian stood up for her rights and retorted hotly, shooting her arm down for emphasis. "If I recall Cyborg, my doing of the laundry, which included Beastboy's five month old uniforms and Robin's sweaty shirts, not to mention the horrid odour, negated this responsibility." She declared smugly.
Robin's face, now slightly red from Starfire's description of his and Beastboy's clothes, shook his head. "Still, you have to do it. We all agreed on this months ago!" his voice held no room for negotiation and no one dared to contradict him. No one that is, except for Raven. Snorting unbecomingly, she pulled back her violet hood and locked her dark eyes on his, "Oh please Robin, you're just trying to pressure her into doing it because you said you'd make it up to her."
"Dryyyyyy!" Cyborg cackled from behind the Boy Wonder's cape with Beastboy snickering along, sneaking in a quick high five.
Shooting them a glare, their normally cool and collected leader sputtered for words, but ceased once he noticed the look on Starfire's face. Tugging at his collar and swiping at his hair, he was the epitome of a nervous freshman on their first day. Silence reigned over them for a few minutes longer until, Raven's lone eyebrow shot up in a triumphant expression. She had won. And they all knew it. "I think I've proved my point." She stated smugly, sitting back down onto the long couch and pulling out her thick tome. Flashing her a smile of gratitude, Starfire stepped back to sit next to her purple haired friend as Raven nodded back in welcome.
Pointing a curious finger in the air, Beastboy's green ears twitched as he cocked his head to the side. "Actually, didn't Cyborg say he would do it, if Robin helped him oil the T-car?" Beastboy's non-chalant question caused many eyebrows to rise and many hopes to be born.
Hopeful stares pressured the robotic teen as he stepped back slightly, raising his hands defensively. "Nuh uh! Raven told me should would do it if me and Beastboy shut up last night during our video game-a-thon."
The cool priestess shook her head coldly. "No way. I won't do it. I never do this kind of thing. Ever." She growled at everyone in the room, crossing her legs stubbornly.
"Raven, you have to! We made a deal!" Robin cried out desperately.
"Find someone else to do it." She turned her noise to the air and huffed.
Desperate and at his wit's end, Beastboy uttered the single most worst thing he could ever have said, "But you're a girl!" He burst out.
Silence.
Nobody dared move a muscle.
"Excuse me?" dangerous and feral, dark eyes glowed from beneath her hood. In grim satisfaction, she watched as the green changeling seemed to shrink in size, bringing his hands together in a pleading position, now fully on his knees. Forest green eyes begged for forgiveness, a desperate aura hanging about him, there was nothing Beastboy hated more than being tossed out the window. "Please Raven, don't kill me! I didn't mean it! I swear!" he begged pathetically, nearly on the edge of hysteria.
Without answering, she levitated Cyborg's ground beef for the next day and dumped all over his head. Watching as bits and pieces of meat rolled off his body and the horror flashing in his eyes. Simultaneously, Cyborg and Beastboy broke into pathetic sobs. "Raveeenn!" they cried. "My breakfast!" Cyborg moaned in his hands, sobbing comically as his fantasies of a deluxe omelette vanished in his mind.
"Ewwwww, I'm covered in meat! Raven!" Beastboy rolled around frantically, trying to shake off all the meat from his hair and shirt.
Starfire tried to comfort Cyborg while at the same time trying hard not to laugh. "Friends, we must come to an agreement. We all live here together, so we must all do the pitching in. I think we can exempt Raven for our own personal safety, but I think Cyborg should do it." She finished.
Cyborg stopped bawling immediately. "Why do I have to do it? I hate doing it!" he exclaimed, all traces of sadness gone.
"We all hate it! But someone has to do it!" Robin yelled.
"But I cook every meal we have! I shouldn't have to do that too! It's way too much work!" he defended himself, gesturing at the leftover spaghetti and salad dinner still on the table.
Raven nodded in consideration. "He has a point. I think Cyborg should be exempted too." Her tone was final and no one dared go against it.
Grudgingly, the other three Titans agreed. Staring at each other pityingly, they all knew that one had to be sacrificed for the greater good. It felt exactly like when you were a kid and it was recess and everyone was playing hide and seek and no one wanted to be it, so playing eenie-meenie-minie-mo was your only option. The suspense and the light fear that touched your heart, the battering in your chest, the suspicious stares at everyone who glanced your way. It was a showdown, a battle to the death, except in this game, the one who survived, would be the one who lost. None of them wanted to do it. But they all knew someone had to. Now, it was just about who could get away with it.
Starfire spoke, her soft voice resonating loud and clear in the spacious Ops Room. "I should not have to do it because I do all the domestic tasks in the tower. I clean, do laundry, and take care of you when you are sick, which for Beastboy, was just two days ago, therefore, I should also be exempted."
The clear logic of her argument and the fact that the Tower wouldn't be able to function without the red haired alien brought a halt to Robin's refutation, and left him standing there, mouth wide open and finger poised readily in the air for more than a century. Finally, he sighed miserably and gestured the couch, indicating that she was off the hook. Clapping her hands in delight, she giggled happily and slapped a high five with the robot teen.
Only two remained. A standoff between the Team Leader, and the Team Clown. No one knew who would win. Sure, Robin was the leader, always smart and cunning, coming up with last minute plans and always catching the bad guy, but his opponent was Beastboy. The boy with a lucky streak that never broke and a way with words that could rival Shakespeare. This wouldn't end well, but damnit if the other three wouldn't get to enjoy it.
The two boys walked idly around each other in a disfigured circle. Eyes boring into the other's, they both wracked their brains for a job they'd done that would let them off the hook, but neither could come up with anything important. Sure Robin was the leader, but what did he actually do all day besides locking himself up in the Evidence Room and never coming out? Which was actually a strike against him, considering that if he even dared even hint at his bad habit, Raven would probably force him to do it as punishment. So, figuring it would be best to just keep quiet, a light bulb burst in his head and his mouth widened in a grin as he jumped up excitedly. Unfortunately, Beastboy chose that moment to pitch in his two cents as well. "I take care of the garden!" Robin yelled.
"I convert the world to vegetarians!" Beastboy yelled back.
Freezing, four pairs of eyes swivelled towards the Team's youngest in bewilderment. "Say what?" Cyborg asked, surprised.
"It's a full time job you know." He replied, very seriously.
Well there you go. Beastboy managed to pull the rug from under everyone yet again. Exhausted and long since tired of the conversation, the five heroes stared at each other, sighing. "Well someone has to do it." Raven commented dryly.
Snapping his fingers, Robin smiled contagiously, a familiar expression on his face. "I got it!" he cried.
Four heads snapped up towards his. Flipping open his communicator, he pressed a couple buttons before waiting a bit, his mischievous grin already hinting at what was to come. "Hey Aqualad? We have an emergency." He said seriously.
"I'll be there as soon as I can. What's going on?" Aqualad's determined voice cracked a smile even on Raven's face.
With a disgusted face, Robin's nose curled up in disdain as his voice lowered.
"The dishes."