Manic State
"This is a nightmare."
Beast Boy was on his hands and knees, refusing to look at the television screen. His body shook and trembled with anguish. He couldn't stand to look at it much longer. Cyborg placed a hand on his friend's shoulder.
"I know, B I know. But we are Titans, man! We can get passed this. We have to."
"But duuude… I… How did this happen?"
"There were just too many people." Cyborg frowned, "They all just got on too quickly, and it just… crashed."
Beast Boy sat against the foot of the couch. He held a shaking hand up towards the screen. His words were struggling to escape his lips.
"What are we supposed to do now!?" He looked up at Cyborg with watery eyes as he walked towards the television.
"I suppose…" Cyborg put his finger on the television's power button, "We wait until they can fix the multiplayer servers." Cyborg read the message on the screen one last time.
Violent Crime Game Online servers could not be reached. Please return to Single Player Mode.
It was too much to bear. Cyborg pressed the television's power button, and the message was replaced with the windowed view of the evening Jump City landscape.
At the opposite end of the couch, Raven sat reading her withered, gray, ancient book. She sat with her legs crossed as she turned the book to the next page. Her eyes glanced upward briefly to comment, "What a tragedy."
Robin and Starfire were sitting in the kitchen discussing Tameranian Politics when Robin decided to join the others' conversation.
Robin turned his head to face the distressed duo, "Don't you two think that playing a game about committing crime is odd when you fight crime on a daily basis?"
Beast Boy stood and turned towards his leader, "Hey man, don't tell me that you've never wanted to know what it's like to play for the other team."
"I did play for the other team. Twice, remember? And as a result, the four of you almost died and a thief is out there stealing tech with a suit that I designed. What I'd give for a restart button."
Beast Boy rolled his eyes, "Pfft, whatever dude, it's just a game."
Robin turned back to continue his conversation with Starfire.
Cyborg walked to the couch to grab the remote, "Aight B, you want to watch a movie instead?" Before Beast Boy could respond, Raven closed her book and said, "Beast Boy is waking up early tomorrow morning."
"I am?"
Raven sighed, "For our morning meditation, remember? You said you would wake up earlier from now on."
Beast Boy's eyes drooped downwards, "Oh yeah. I forgot." He reached into his pocket to glance at his communicator's watch. "It's nine thirty. So that gives me…" he used his fingers to count. "That gives me only eight hours of sleep!"
Raven stood up to leave, "Yep, then you better get to bed now so you won't be completely useless in the morning."
Beast Boy turned to Cyborg, "Maybe tomorrow, Cy. Maybe we'll watch a cool mob movie to fill the void."
"Aight, Grass-stain." They high-fived and fist bumped each other. "Have fun waking up mega-early."
"I'll try. G'night, everyone."
Robin and Starfire turned to the departing couple. "Good night, guys." "Have a wonderful blorgenarff!"
Beast Boy paused for a moment in response to her farewell before continuing down the hallway after Raven.
Beast Boy walked inside Raven's room and closed the door behind him. Raven was inside the bathroom connected to her room. The white fluorescent light from the bathroom spilled into the bedroom. Beast Boy could hear Raven brushing her teeth when she asked, "Argh you shure thah youre ochay with this?" Beast Boy walked over to the right side of the bed and began to remove his gloves.
"What did you say?"
He heard a spitting sound before she repeated, "I said, are you okay with waking up so early? I understand that you are not accustomed to it."
He dropped his gloves on the floor and began to take his shirt off. "Rae, I can adjust. I know tomorrow morning will suck for me, but after that I'll be fine."
Raven shut the bathroom light off and entered the bedroom. "I just don't want to force you into—" She stopped and noticed Beast Boy's gloves on the floor. She used her powers to lift the gloves in front of his face. "Not in my room." She said, and he took the glove in his hands. Raven continued, "I just don't want to force you into anything that you're not comfortable with." She walked towards her dresser on the left side of the bed.
Beast Boy neatly placed his gloves in the dresser next to his underwear and comic books. "You're not forcing me into anything, Rae. I lose four hours of sleep tonight, big deal, so what?" He removed his shirt and began to fold it. Raven undid the clasp of her cloak and used her powers to fold it into a neat square. "You do know that eight hours is the recommended amount of sleep, not twelve, right?" Beast Boy kicked off his shoes and picked them up off of the floor. "And they call me the weird one." He placed his shoes next to the dresser and undid his belt. "How have you managed to stay so beautiful with so little beauty sleep?" he asked.
Raven turned her head and blushed. "You're just saying that so you can get lucky tonight." She used her powers to remove her belt as she reached behind her back for her zipper. Before she could grab it, Beast Boy was already there unzipping it for her. Her belt dropped to the floor as she lost her concentration. He leaned in so his lips were just grazing the back of her ear. "C'mon Raven," he whispered, "I don't always think with my penis." She smiled softly as he peeled the leotard off of her shoulders.
"You're a man." she replied, "And besides, it isn't like you ever use your brain either." He chuckled in response as the leotard fell down her legs, leaving Raven in her black bra and panties. He wrapped his arms around her waist as she tilted her head back and reached up to stroke his hair. "Well if you weren't so damned sexy, maybe I'd be able to think straight every now and then."
She turned around in his arms, and kissed him on the lips. They stayed like that for what seemed like minutes before separating. "Shut up." She said and she crawled into bed. He walked back over to his side of the bed before joining her underneath the sheets. She grabbed her alarm clock and set it to 5:30AM. She set the clock back onto the bedside table before unclasping her bra. Beast Boy propped himself up on one elbow. He always enjoyed watching her undress. It was never unexciting.
She laid down on her right side, with her back facing him. "Garfield, with the way you're looking at me, I can tell that no matter what happens, you won't be getting any sleep tonight."
"What's one night without sleep?" he said as he closed the distance between them. He wrapped his arms around her before beginning to kiss her neck. He placed one hand on her breast with the other sliding down towards her panties. She moaned lightly, enjoying his ministrations. "Careful Gar, I don't want you to be 'thinking' too hard with so little sleep tonight." He moved her undergarments out of the way, preparing himself to enter her. "Rae, if you really believe that this is how men think, then you are dating the smartest man in the world."
He slowly entered her from behind and they moaned together. He moved his hand away from her panties and held her hand with his, their fingers intertwined. She squeezed back tightly as they made love together, and left the world behind.
BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP B—
Raven turned the alarm off without so much as a groan. She sat on the edge of her bed and stretched her limbs. She twisted left and right until her back gave a satisfying Crack and a Pop. She made a mental note to herself to do something about the aging mattress. She turned to inspect Beast Boy, and was surprised to find him still fast asleep. She wondered to herself how he was ever able to wake up when there was an emergency.
She grabbed the sheets and ripped them away from him. He didn't even flinch. Raven considered using her powers to throw him off of the bed before she came up with a better idea. She quickly retrieved the alarm clock and set it for 5:31AM. She set the volume to its maximum level before placing it next to Beast Boy's elf like ears. She stood and walked to the bathroom to begin her daily routine with a shower.
Raven had only just turned the water on before hearing the alarm blast from the bedroom. She giggled as she heard a girlish scream and a thud follow the sound of the alarm. She walked to the bathroom doorway. "Oh good, you're up." She said,her voice never losing its monotone. "Now you can get ready for meditation." The alarm was still blaring loudly as Beast Boy scrambled off of the floor, desperately trying to shut the damned thing off. He mashed every button on the clock, failing to silence the alarm. He finally gave up and ripped the power cord from the wall.
He turned his head towards Raven, who was smiling in the bathroom doorway. "Good morning to you too, Rae." He said, with a sarcastic tone. He groggily got off of the bed and walked towards her. He kissed her with a little bit of revengeful force before moving inside the bathroom and closing the door behind him, leaving Raven outside. "Are you kidding me right now, Gar?" she said through the bathroom door.
"I'm sorry, Rae I can't hear you!" He started as he began to relieve himself at the toilet. "My ears aren't doing too well this morning, perhaps you are aware!?"
"Garfield, open the door."
"What was that? Hang on, Rae I'll be done in a minute or twelve."
He chuckled at his own comedic brilliance before seeing Raven phase through the bathroom door.
"Oh right. You can do that."
She walked by him and flicked the back of his head before stepping into the shower. "Lift the seat up next time or I'll phase you out of the tower."
"Love you too, babe."
As they opened the door to the roof, Beast Boy groaned at the lack of sunlight. The city lights were still reflecting off of the ocean waters. The blue hue of the sky seemed to seep into the landscape, save for a faint glow of orange on the eastern horizon. Robin stood at the edge of the tower's roof, sipping at his morning coffee.
"Morning, Robin." Raven said.
"Morning, Raven." Robin turned to greet her and was surprised to see Beast Boy accompany her.
"Holy-, you actually did it? You got Beast Boy out of bed before noon? Good morning, Beast Boy. You look jet-lagged."
Beast Boy rubbed the bags under his eyes. "Yeah, well… shut up."
Robin smiled at them. "I'll leave you two alone for your meditation."
"Thank you, Robin." Raven said, "We'll see you at breakfast."
Robin walked past them and left the way that they had entered. Beast Boy and Raven approached the edge of the roof before entering their meditation positions.
"Have you been practicing?" Raven asked.
Beast Boy yawned. "What's to practice, we sit still for an hour and ponder the universe."
Raven sighed. "Meditation is an active process. You must focus on breathing, emptying the mind, and finding your center. Step two should be very simple for you."
"Saw that one coming a mile away, Rae." He sat on the floor with his legs crossed. He began to fidget with his position.
"Do I have to sit like this for an hour?"
"Normally, you'd have the freedom to choose whatever meditation position works best for you. However I'm afraid that if you choose to lie down, you'd fall right asleep."
"You have so much…" he yawned for what seemed to be the 100th time. "… faith in me, Raven."
"Just try to sit still and focus on your breathing. If it helps, you can try to focus on my mantra as well."
"Alright then, let's do this."
Raven hovered a few inches off of the ground as not to leave Beast Boy completely alone on the ground.
"Azarath Metrion Zinthos." She began to slowly chant. "Azarath Metrion Zinthos. Azarath Metrion Zinthos. Azarath Metrion Zinthos."
At first, Beast Boy believed that he was actually getting the hang of meditation. He only felt his breathing, his heartbeat, and the sound of Raven's soothing voice. He began to lose concentration about fifty minutes into the meditation. He was able to only regain concentration very briefly before being overwhelmed with a distressed feeling. His ears perked up and he opened his eyes. Raven sensed his agitation. "Is something wrong, Gar?" she asked.
"No." He said to her, but even he didn't believe his own lie. "Yes… Maybe… I don't know!"
He stood up and began to pace back and forth on the rooftop. Raven floated upward and touched down to the ground. Beast Boy felt extremely anxious. His whole body was shaking more and more with each passing second, and his instincts screamed for him to move, to just move! Raven placed a hand on his shoulder, and he jumped in surprise. "Garfield, what is going on?" her voice gave only the slightest indication of worry, which meant that she was very worried.
"I don't know, I just… fuck!"
He grabbed the railing of the rooftop in an attempt to steady himself. His fists clenched tightly on the metal bar.
"Something is wrong. Something's wrong something's wrong something's wrong!"
His body was trembling. His anxiety was climbing higher and higher with no sign of stopping. He felt like he was about to have a heart attack. He felt like something bad was coming. Then it hit him.
"Wait! Nothing is wrong with me! I-I-I've felt this before, only not so strong."
"What do you mean?"
He looked at Raven in her eyes. He paused for a moment before responding. "Downstairs in the common room! We need to warn the others!"
He bolted after the door and raced down the stairs, leaving Raven on the rooftop confused. "Wait! Warn them of what?!"
His heart was pounding a mile a minute. Every animal instinct in his body was screaming at him. They were all shouting at him to fly away, to run, and to get the fuck out! He made it to the common room and found Cyborg, Starfire, and Robin in the kitchen. Cyborg was preparing bacon and eggs. Raven phased through the ceiling and touched down in the center of the living room.
Cyborg turned to see Beast Boy enter the room. "Hey B! Don't mind me, I'm just fixing up your most favorite breakfast in the whole world."
Beast Boy ran up to the kitchen counter. "Earthquake!" he shouted.
Everyone turned their heads towards him. "What?" said Robin.
"Earthquake! Huge earthquake! Heading right this way. A really big FFUCKING earthquake! We need to move!"
"Woah woah woah, wait a minute fur-ball!" Cyborg held his hands up. "Calm down, if there was an earthquake, my seismic sensors would have detected it by now. And besides, nothing is shaking, so I think we're fine." He turned back to his sizzling pan of bacon.
"I'm serious! We need to get in the air, or something! Right now!"
Robin stood up and walked towards Beast Boy. "Are you sure Beast Boy? Can you feel earthquakes coming like dogs can?"
"Yes, exactly!" he hastily walked towards Raven and tried to pull her towards the exit. "C'mon, we need to go now!"
Cyborg set down his bacon again. "Are you serious Robin? There aint no earthquake! B is just pulling a prank on all of us so he could get out of meditating with Raven."
He pulled up his seismic sensor on his arm.
"Like I said if there was-" an alarm began to sound on Cyborgs arm. He looked at his sensors and his human eye widened in shock. "H-Holy shit."
"Friends?" Starfire asked, confused. "What exactly is an earthquake?"
Robin ran to the computer at the front of the common room. He jumped into the chair and typed away on the keyboard. He brought up the screen to reveal a seismic map of Jump City. Red waves representing seismic activity were passing through the city and were making their way to the tower. As Robin gaped at the screen, forks, knives, cups and plates began to shake on the kitchen counter top. Beast Boy panicked and dove under the dining table and gripped onto its support beam tightly.
The wave struck the tower violently. Raven was almost thrown off of her feet before levitating in the air. Robin went down in his knees and gripped onto the chair he was just sitting on. Starfire let out an "eep!" before hovering in the air. Cyborg steadied himself against the counter and the stove.
"Stay calm everyone," Cyborg raised his voice above the rumble of the Earth. "The tower was built for things like this, we should be fine!"
Every animal in Beast Boy's DNA was howling and wailing in protest. He hugged the table's bar for dear life. The entire tower seemed to be bending and sliding, threatening to collapse.
Minutes seemed to pass by before the quake subsided and the rumbling faded away. Raven and Starfire touched down, and Beast Boy crawled out from underneath the table. Everybody turned their attentions to the tower's computer. The origin point was placed six miles in the mainland. The Richter scale read 9.8.
A few seconds of silence were followed by the Tower's alarms blaring in the common room. Robin turned to the rest of the team. "Titans, trouble!"
AN: I hope you guys enjoyed chapter 2. I made it longer so I could give you something that you could actually spend some time on reading. Please bring any grammar errors to my attention, and feel free to criticize and explain what could use improvement.
Along with your review, why not answer this…
I'm curious, have any of you given "Teen Titans Go!" a chance? I have, and I like it, except for the singing and the Trigon episode, and Cyborg's ultimate cock-block. That rat bastard. Let me know what you think.
I own nothing. Nothing at all. No characters, no songs, nothing. This is a non-profit fan-fiction. Please support the official release of Teen Titans, and please purchase Eminem's song "Déjà Vu". Stealing is wrong. (Unless it's from pirates.) If you listen to the song, you'll get a good idea on where this fic is heading.
Muh Fukin' Latah