Beast Boy watched the T-Ship steadily rise into the sky, heading back towards Jump City until it vanished into a cloud. A strong sense of nostalgia overcame him and some of his new teammates noticed that he was a bit misty eyed.
"Good riddance!" Super Boy chortled. "Who does she think she is? Barging in here like she owns the place and expecting you to follow her home like you're a lost puppy."
M'Gann was more in tune with what Beast Boy was feeling than her half Kryptonian boyfriend. She placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.
"Were you and Raven close?"
The changeling looked at his green teammate and gave her a weak smile.
"We're friends." He murmured. "I wonder why she came here alone? I would have expected Cyborg to come … Raven … she's not the touchy feely type … if you know what I mean."
"You mean you really don't know why she came alone?" Artemis interrupted.
He shook his head.
"She's got it for you … bad." Artemis replied with a grin.
"What?"
"You heard me green bean, she's in love with you, and I'm guessing she's felt this way for a long time."
"OK … look guys … you've had your fun with me … I wore the tutu while riding the unicycle … I think the initiation stuff is over."
"I'm serious Beast Boy."
"And so am I! Raven is a friend, but just a friend. And I know she can barely stand my guts. And besides, ever since Malchior … well … let's say that she hasn't been into dating, if you catch my drift. And like I said, she doesn't really like me all that much … she thinks I'm stupid … she's even told me so."
Artemis crossed her arms and grinned.
"Look Garfield, she was begging you to go back to the Titans. Wouldn't that be Robin's job?"
"I … I don't know." He stammered. "I suppose so, but he's really proud, so maybe he sent Raven."
A deep monotone interrupted.
"Artemis is correct, Beast Boy. I've spoken with your Robin, who will soon become Nightwing since we have our own Robin now, and he agreed to not try to bring you back to the Titans. Raven's visit was unauthorized. It was her own doing and hers alone."
The changeling glanced over at the Young Justice Robin, whose secret identity was Tim Drake. "But it doesn't make any sense, Batman … why would she disobey Robin?"
"Isn't it obvious, Garfield?"
"I thought she would be glad I moved on."
"Which you have done, Beast Boy. You are now a member of Young Justice. And speaking of which, we have a new member I would like to introduce. I'm sure most of you are familiar with her."
Batman turned to a door that was in the shadows and gestured with his hand, indicating to an unseen individual that it was OK to come out of hiding. A blond female, wearing a blue costume with a large white star on her chest emerged. She was carrying a golden staff in her right hand.
"Stargirl?" Kid Flash asked in surprise. "I thought you already were in the Justice League!"
"I asked her to temporarily join the team. She, along with Beast Boy, will be your mentors for the next few months."
The masked blond girl smiled at the assembled heroes and began to introduce herself to the team. She approached Beast Boy last and extended her hand to him.
"You're even cuter in person." She greeted him with a wink.
"So you really agreed to join us?" The changeling asked in a skeptical voice. "You were in the Justice League, in the Watchtower with all the big guys and gals."
"Well … I did have a bit of a run in with Supergirl and Green Lantern suggested that I come stay with you guys … let's just say it was an offer I couldn't refuse …"
She then took Beast Boy's hand in her own.
"But maybe I'm glad I came … so you were a Teen Titan, huh? What was that like?"
"I got bossed around a lot."
"Yeah, we've all heard in the Watchtower that your Robin can be a real jerk. Nothing like our Robin, right, Tim?"
The YJ Robin grinned his agreement.
"Say, you don't have a girlfriend, do you? I've heard through the grapevine that you and the gray girl, what's her name?"
"Raven."
"Yes, Raven. Anyway, the gossip is that you two are an item."
"What? Where did you hear that?"
Stargirl smiled, and winked at him again.
"I'm just teasing you Beast Boy. Everyone knows that Raven is a witch."
"She's not a witch … I mean, yeah, she's creepy, unsocial and has a really nasty temper."
The assembled heroes guffawed at his remark.
"I'm sure that we're all a lot nicer than her. And you can call me Courtney. May I call you Garfield?"
The changeling was almost as star struck as the shapely blonde's revealing uniform.
"Yeah, sure … Courtney."
She rewarded him with a grin.
"Cool, so how about you show me around Mt. Justice, Garfield?"
Beast Boy turned to Batman, who with a subtle nod told him it was OK. Grinning himself, the changeling led Stargirl, who had already hooked her arm into his own, out of the large cavern. As soon as they were gone Kaldur'ahm addressed Batman.
"Forgive me for asking Batman, but you almost seem to approve of this? I thought you believed that romance had no place on a team."
Batman paused before replying.
"It hasn't stopped Connor and Meagan. In any case, if this will help him forget about Raven and the Titans … I can live with it."
-( scene break )-
Raven sat in the cockpit, her arms crossed and her eyes shut while the autopilot guided the T-Ship back to Jump City. The gray sorceress usually concealed her emotions, but being that she was alone there was no need to hide that she was upset. And upset she was, with herself. While Beast Boy was away on his "vacation" she savored the peace and quiet in the Tower. She was able to meditate and read to her heart's content, never interrupted by the green pest. It had been sheer paradise. At least it was at first. As the days rolled by she noticed that she missed him. When the two weeks had passed she began to worry as there had been no word from him.
After the 3 weeks passed the call came through. The timing was impeccable as its impact on them was maximized. They were seated around the dinner table, eating Cyborg's "patented" 3 meat spaghetti, which was one of the tin man's better batches. They were collectively beginning to worry about not hearing from the changeling during the time and Starfire, in one of her signature bouts of anxiety began to lament out loud that Beast Boy was a week late.
"Don't worry about it Star, I'm sure he's fine." Robin comforted her.
"Then why is his communicator turned off?" Raven grumbled. "Starfire's right, we should search for him …"
"Oh, you know the grass stain, he probably forgot to take his charger with him and the battery on his communicator is dead…"
"No … I checked his room … he took it with him."
Cyborg gave her a quizzical look.
"You really went into his room?"
Raven glared at him.
"What? Just because I'm a creepy demoness that means I don't care or worry about him? Starfire is right; he's a whole week late. Something's wrong."
She stood up and threw her plate on the floor, shattering it.
"What in Azar's name are we doing here? Garfield might be hurt or in danger and all we're doing is sitting around here stuffing our faces!"
Robin frowned at the sorceress.
"Raven, don't take this the wrong way … but since when do you care about Beast Boy?"
With no warning the table was enveloped in dark energy and was flipped over, crashing all the dishes onto the floor.
"What's that supposed to mean? Of course I care about him! He's my friend, one of my best friends in fact."
"You have a funny way of showing it." Cyborg chuckled.
Raven extended her hand and trapped the bionic Titan in her obsidian light. Her eyes became crimson red and began to split into 4 Trigonic eyes. Before she could do anything she would later regret the giant view screen came to life, revealing Beast Boy's smiling mug.
"Hey guys!" His voice boomed over the loudspeakers.
Raven released Cyborg from her magical grip and dropped him on the floor.
"Beast Boy! Where have you been? We've been worried sick about you!"
The changeling grinned sheepishly while he rubbed the back of his neck.
"Sorry guys, I guess I should've called sooner, but I didn't want to do that until I was sure."
"Sure? Sure about what?" Robin barked at him. "What's this all about Beast Boy? What have you been up to? Where have you been?"
Before he could answer a dark figure joined him on the screen.
"Beast Boy has decided to join Young Justice. We'll be sending for the rest of his possessions … Batman out."
Raven sighed in the cockpit as she recalled the bomb he dropped on them that day. The rest of the day was a blur to her; she still couldn't remember what happened after that. Two days later M'Gann and Superboy showed up in her bioship, without Beast Boy, to collect his possessions. They were gone within an hour and Raven remembered standing in what was left of his now empty room. Every personal item that identified the room as belonging to the changeling was now gone, except for a single item: the heart shaped box he had long ago made for Terra. Raven picked it up and examined it, before crushing it with her dark energy.
"Approaching Titans Tower … autopilot will disengage in 30 seconds … please prepare to land the T-Ship." The onboard computer droned.
Raven took the controls and guided the team's signature jet into the rooftop landing bay. Robin was already there, waiting for her with crossed arms and a scowl on his face. He was angry with her but for the moment she didn't care. He could yell at her for all she cared, it didn't really matter. After shutting the engines off she floated out of the cockpit, feeling his eyes burning her as if they were two lasers. Without betraying any expression she floated down and landed in front of Robin. With his arms still crossed he growled at her.
"You went there against my direct orders. Do you have anything to say?"
She locked her eyes with him.
"I want him to come back."
"So do I Raven, but he doesn't want to come back."
"He's confused."
"Really? How so?"
She scowled at him before replying.
"He's been taken in by them and their adulation. He doesn't understand that they're just coworkers. We're his family Robin, he belongs with us."
The Boy Wonder dropped his arms and softened his expression.
"Call me Nightwing. Batman just called and told me that I can't call myself Robin anymore."
Raven did something uncharacteristic for her. She let her anger get the best of her.
"What!? That's a load! You're Robin! He can't take that from you … that bastard!"
"I'm sorry Raven."
"For what?"
Robin looked away from her, clearly uncomfortable with what he was about to say.
"I didn't realize that you had feelings for him. Had I known, I would have gone easier on him."
Raven slapped her leader in the face.
"Why did you do it!? Why? You knew this was going to happen, didn't you?"
Robin rubbed his face before answering.
"I told Kid Flash that Beast Boy was ready to move on. Why? Because I knew he would be a better fit with Young Justice than with us."
Raven began an otherworldly growl.
"And you didn't even ask us …"
"Hey, you agreed to put him on probation."
Raven tried to slap Robin a second time. This time the Boy Wonder caught her arm and locked it behind her back. She struggled to free herself but stopped as she began to sob.
"I'm sorry Raven, I'm really sorry. If only I had known how you felt …"
He released her and she shoved away.
"If it's any consolation, Batman's invited us to attend a Teen Superhero summit at Mt. Justice next month. The Titans East and the Honorary Titans are also invited. We're all going."
Raven nodded while she choked back her tears.
"Look at me, I'm pathetic. I'm crying like a stupid schoolgirl who got rejected by her crush."
"Hey, he's important to you. It's nothing to be ashamed of … Raven … how about if I arrange to have you spend some time with Young Justice … you know … like an exchange program?"
She nodded before replying in a broken monotone.
"That would be … nice."
-( - )-
Later that evening at Mt. Justice …
It was Beast Boy's and Artemis's turn to clean up the kitchen after dinner. The young archer cast a sideways glance at the changeling, who was busy wiping down the countertops as the finished up their chore. A slight chuckle escaped her lips.
"What's so funny?" He asked?
"Nothing … it's just that you had a reputation of being a slob before joining our team."
A small smile appeared on his face. "Who say's I'm not a slob?"
"You always do a good job in the kitchen."
"You should see my room." He snickered.
"A pigsty?"
"You'd better believe it."
A loud laugh escaped from Artemis' lips. She then became a lot more serious. "What about Raven?"
"What about her?"
"So, what you said earlier, she really means nothing to you?"
"I didn't say that."
The archer was loading the dishwasher and paused her task. "So you do have feelings for her."
His posture slouched and he pursed his lips before replying.
"Well … yeah … I mean … we've been through a lot of tight spots together."
"So … do you have feelings for her?"
"What do you mean? What kind of feelings?" He replied with an evasive tone.
"Romantic feelings … doofus!" She smirked. "It was pretty obvious she has them for you. Didn't you see her face when you told her you were staying here?"
He turned around, leaned on the counter and heaved a heavy sigh. "Yeah … I saw that … I don't get it … Raven's never been that way with me before."
"Some girls are like that … and Raven's always had a reputation for hiding her feelings. So what do you think of that?"
"I don't know. I mean … I've always cared about her, I just never thought she could think of me romantically … what do you think I should do?"
Artemis resumed loading the dishwasher. "Do you like Courtney?"
He smiled. "You bet … she's pretty hot!"
"Is that all you guys think about?" She smirked a second time.
"Uh … no. She's pretty fun too, and smart … without being stuck up like Raven."
"You really want my advice?"
"Um … sure."
"Forget about Raven and stick with StarGirl."