Hi, people. I hope you liked the preview! Now, this story is going to be a BB/Rae story, so if you hate the couple, too bad! Just go sulk in a corner or something. Oh, and I'll try to get the next chapter to you soon. I'm going to stop talking so you can start reading. See ya!!!
Look, I don't own any of the characters. Which really sucks, but oh well.
Chapter One
-Teen Titans Common Room-
Raven sighed. This is the third time today he's tried something like this. When is he just going to give up? It's never worked, and he usually got a couple bruises for his trouble. Still, I have to admire his persistence. It must take a lot of bravery or a lot of stupidity to do this every day. Raven sighed again, watching as one green changeling tried yet again to make her laugh out loud by doing one of his many stunts. This time, it was balancing one of Cyborg's game systems on his nose while burping his ABC's. Who even knew that he was smart enough to say the alphabet? Oh well, you learn something new every day.
"Beastboy," she monotoned, sitting on the couch with her arms crossed, "You know that Cyborg will kill you if you drop that, right?" Beastboy did his best to give her an injured look while balancing a Gamestation X on his nose.
"That's part of the thrill," he informed her while wobbling back and forth to keep it balanced on his nose, "Knowing that if you break it, Doomsday's going to come and kick you ass into a million pieces." He took the Gamestation off his nose and bowed. "Thank you, thank you! You're such a wonderful audience." He looked at Raven, who was staring out the bay window with a bored expression. Dang, he thought, his ears drooping, this isn't working! Maybe I should try something a little more creative…like jokes. Yeah, jokes are good!
Raven stared out the window, trying in vain to block out the sound of Beastboy, who was now attempting to make her laugh in the form of lame jokes. How on Earth can he do this!!! He's been at it for an hour! Just what did he think it would accomplish, anyway? It's not like it's ever worked before. Why does he even bother? And why am I the person singled out for this torture? He never does this to any of the others.
While Raven tried to figure out the mysteries of the universe, Beast Boy was almost ready to give up. Dude, this isn't working. What am I doing wrong? Chicks are supposed to dig this. Maybe I'll ask Robin later. After all, he managed to get Star somehow. Resigned to another failure, he trudged from the common room. Oh well, there's always tomorrow. At least she didn't hurt me this time. He sighed, the small crack in his heart widening a little. I would do anything to get her to notice me. Anything. He slowly walked down the corridor, heading towards his room. He knew just what he would do to keep his mind off things.
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-Back In The Common Room-
Raven was curled up on the couch, with herbal tea at her side, and a book in her hand. If anyone was looking at her (even though no one was), for all intents and purposes, she would look like she was deep within the pages of her book. But in her mind, she was trying to solve a mystery. A mystery that involved a lot of small little incidents that had never crossed her mind to be anything noteworthy, until she had really thought about it. At the center of this conundrum was this question. Why am I the only one that Beast Boy tells his jokes to? Truth be told, she had never really questioned the fact that Beast Boy only did this to her. She had just accepted it as a fact of life. The sky is blue. The grass is green. Small green shape shifters are annoying. But now that she thought it over, maybe it was something that should be questioned. Why was I the one singled out for it?
And then, there were other things that, although were small in comparison, that just didn't seem completely right. Like the fact that she had caught Beast Boy last week trying herbal tea. At the time, she was confused as to why, but when he told her that he had just wanted to see what it tasted like, she had figured it was an act of boredom. Or, how once he had walked into the common room and he'd had paint on his hands. Also, occasionally, she'd catch him looking at her with an odd expression on his face. And whenever she asked why, he would make up some lame excuse and all but run from the room. Something's going on, she thought, and I need to find out what. If Beast Boy is having problems, then he needs to talk to somebody about it.
She paused. Wait, where did that come from?! Why am I so concerned about Beast Boy? For as hard as she tried to tell herself that she didn't care, she couldn't bring herself to do it. Well, he's my teammate. I care for them all now. Even though, the feeling had never been quite as strong as it was for Beast Boy. All of this, Raven decided, is connected. I just don't know how yet.
Raven looked up from the book. The sun was about to go down, and the light was starting to fade from the sky. Mesmerized, Raven got up and walked to the bay window. The orange light from the sun caught the water of the bay just right, making it look like a sea of diamonds. Even the Jump City skyscrapers looked like glowing monoliths in this perfect, glowing sunset. This is my home, she thought, and I'm glad that I can fight for it, every day. That's what I love to do. And I hope that never changes.
Raven blinked. All of a sudden, her vision was blurry, and her head started to pound. Raven swayed, lightheaded. "What?" Raven murmured out loud. She could see stars in a pitch black sky now, stars that shone with an irregular flame. They seemed to be calling her, beckoning her to follow, mesmerizing her. I will follow you, Raven said silently. A part her head was screaming at her to stop, that this could be a trap, but it locked behind iron bars. In her mind, she reached up a hand to the sky and grabbed one of the stars. As soon as she touched it, white flames, so bright and pure it was blinding, filled her mind. Raven screamed, and a wave of black swept over her vision. Gratefully, she succumbed to sleep.
* * * * * *
-Beast Boy's Room-
Beast Boy walked into his room. As usual, it looked like five types of bombs had gone off in there. Just the way I like it, he thought. As he crawled over hills of old food and dirty clothes, he made his way over to the one corner of his room that was relatively clean. In that corner, there was an easel, canvas cloth, and a table with paints and paintbrushes on it. Unknown to his friends, Beast Boy was an avid and skilled artist. For him, it was a stress releasing sort of thing. Whenever he felt upset or unhappy, he would sit down and paint a picture. The results usually came out pretty good, and if they didn't, well, Beast Boy didn't really mind. After all, he thought, it's not like I sell these things or anything. It's just something I like to do. Right now he had a pretty good idea that he could paint. So, he took a fresh canvas and places it on the easel. He picked up a medium sized brush and dabbed different colored paint on his palette. Mixing a few, he made the first brush stroke.
As he painted, he felt more at ease than he usually did. That's probably because no one but Raven's here, thought Beast Boy. Robin and Starfire were doing a beach date, and Cyborg was going around the island updating the security system. Also, Beast Boy could not imagine something important enough to get Raven in his room. It would take a declaration of war at the absolute minimum. So, his secret was safe, for the moment, and he was free to relax as he painted.
As he worked, he began thinking. How did he ever end up falling in love with Raven of all people? It was probably, he mused, around the time that dreadful Malchior showed up and hurt her like that. I was so angry at him for breaking her heart that I would have killed to get my hands on him. And then, when she came out of her room and threw her arms around me, I didn't want to let her go. So, I decided that I would do whatever it takes to make her happy, and I ended up falling in love with her. It's just like me, he thought bitterly, to fall in love with a girl who will never love me back. I'm so far out of my league it's not even funny. I mean, I'm green for god's sake! I'm not smart like Robin, I'm not good with people like Star is, I'm not strong like Cyborg, and I'll never be anywhere as good as Raven is. She so smart and strong and beautiful... He felt a tear trickle down his cheek. I'm just a nobody. The weakling, the jokester. And I'll never be good enough for Raven. More tears started to drip down his face. "Never," he whispered, finishing his last brush stroke. For a moment, he sat back and really looked at his picture. Then, he slowly sank to his knees and began to sob, rocking back and forth a little on the floor.
The picture was of a girl, sitting under a shady tree while reading a book. She looked so peaceful, with a small smile gracing her features. Her purple hair fell over her face a little, and her slim fingers were tracing a line on the page she was reading. Her chakra glimmered a little in a ray of sun, and her amethyst eyes shone with peace and serenity. It was Raven, looking almost like an angel in her beauty.
"She'll never be mine," Beast Boy wept, on his knees on the ground. "She's far too good for me," he finished quietly. He rubbed his eyes clear but for some odd reason, they stayed blurred. Why does my head hurt all of a sudden? Beast Boy wondered. Then he went still in awe. He could see stars, the most beautiful stars in the world right above him, so close that he could almost touch one. And floating among the stars was his angel, his beautiful Raven, reaching out a hand and gently touching a star, caressing it like a bird. He could also fell the compulsion to hold one of the stars, but no desire could draw him away from how beautiful Raven looked right now. He marveled in her presence.
Then, another figure appeared. It was Cyborg, and like Raven, he reached up and grabbed a star, holding it gently in his hands. Seconds later, Robin and Starfire appeared together, and like the other two, they reached up and grabbed a star, though they didn't let go of each other's hand. The star's swirled around them, and Beast Boy could almost hear them asking a question. Well, they asked, are you coming?
Heck yes, Beast Boy thought back, and grabbed a star. Instantly, bright light filled every corner of his mind, and he lost consciousness. The five people disappeared, leaving only the strange stars as their witness.
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