Phoenix's Soul:-walks into view-Wow I must say that this is the first time in quite a while that I have been coming out here on a regular basis. I mean check it out this is like totally the third thing that I've come up with in like less than 24 hours. I wonder what's gotten into me.-looks over at the large pile of bottles off the screen-Oh yeah that would definitely explain it. Well on with the story.
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Masks
Raven snapped shut the large tome that she had been reading for the past several hours. Something was bothering her. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but there was just something wrong.
"It's quiet too quiet," she said softly as she stood up from the couch and walked out of the common room.
The other Titans had gone out for the day and had of course all come back at different intervals. Though none of them had actually come into the common room she could still feel their energies as they entered the Tower. Cyborg had arrived of course in his T-Car and actually he hadn't left the garage since he got back, but he was moving around it constantly. Robin and Starfire had arrived together just as they had left at the same time. They had come into the common room for a few minutes to get something to eat then had gone off to Starfire's room. Judging by the amount of energy that she had felt radiating from that entire floor she knew she didn't want to know what they were doing even though she did know.
No the one person she was most interested in finding at this moment was him. The one that bothered her all the time, and yet for some reason wasn't at the moment. Usually Beast Boy would come into the common room and play video games. This didn't usually bother Raven, until he got bored at least. Then he would turn his attention to Raven and pester her until she either said or did something. This usually ended with her either shouting at him or just leaving the room. But he had been back for hours now and he hadn't done anything to her. She had known Beast Boy for years, and when he wasn't doing something to you at the moment it meant he was setting up one of his idiotic pranks. And right now Raven really didn't want to bother with a prank.
But something was strange. She couldn't feel his usual happy aura. It was something that she just couldn't help but feel because he radiated so much of it all the time. She had gone over most of the tower until she had finally gotten close to the top of the tower itself. She thought she felt Beast Boy on the roof, but something was different about him. He wasn't radiating his happy go lucky aura anymore, it was something darker, sadder, something just so not Beast Boy.
"Beast Boy?" Raven said softly barely above a whisper as she opened the door.
She could see Beast Boy on the far side of the Tower. He was standing so close to the edge that from where she was standing Raven thought that he was floating in the air. She silently walked over to where he stood. At first she thought that he was silent, but as she got closer she heard a soft noise. It wasn't something that she could figure out. She didn't know why but as she got closer she felt herself getting sadder.
"Beast Boy," Raven said softly this time close enough for him to hear.
Beast Boy stood up a bit straighter and he brought his arm up to his face and seemed to wipe away something. He turned towards her and he gave her one of his big stupid grins. His eyes were closed and he walked a little closer to her.
"Hey, Rave, what's up?" he asked opening his eyes and stopping just a foot away from her.
Raven looked into Beast Boy's face and she knew something was wrong. Even though he looked like his usual cheerful self he was still radiating that sad aura. She looked closer at his face, and then her eyes widened slightly. Beast Boy's eyes were bloodshot and red.
"Beast Boy have you been crying?"
"Crying? Me? What makes you think that?" he asked forcing a laugh.
"Beast Boy," Raven said in a flat voice. "Don't lie to me. I can see it in your eyes. You maybe smiling at me right now to try and hide it, but your eyes are completely red. I don't have to be an empath to realize that you've been crying."
"I'm sorry, Raven," he said with a voice touched with sorrow and turned his head slightly to the left looking down.
"Beast Boy, I don't understand. Why are you crying? What could possibly make you, the happiest person I've ever known, cry?"
"We all wear masks, Raven," he said looking at her. "Some of us just can't always wear them like others."
Raven could tell by the look he was giving her that he was referring to her. She knew that what he meant by masks for her was the fact that she couldn't show her emotions. But she had no idea about what he meant "we all."
"Beast Boy…." Raven didn't know why she was doing it, but she reached out her hand and placed it gently on his cheek. "Please tell me what's bothering you."
Beast Boy's face slowly changed as Raven touched his cheek. He found that this simple touch of her hand was breaking down his will. He couldn't keep fighting the pain that was inside of him and he let it all go. His smile faded and tears began to flow freely from his eyes. Raven looked on in shock at him, but she neither pulled her hand away nor moved away from him.
"Nothing, its just the past, Raven, that's all," he mumbled biting his lower lip.
"Beast Boy," she whispered softly.
If she had been going to say anything else she had forgotten what it was completely after what happened next. Beast Boy flung his arms around her shoulders and rested his head against her shoulder crying, his whole body shaking. She was stunned for a moment, but then she wrapped her arms around him holding him tightly until he finally stopped shaking. He pulled back a bit and wiped his eyes before giving her a genuine smile this time.
"I'm sorry, Raven," he said softly.
"Sorry, for what?"
"For not being as strong as you are."
Raven closed her eyes and shook her head with a soft smile. She then leaned up and kissed his cheek softly before looking into his eyes. When she spoke it was in a soft gentle voice that Beast Boy had never heard from her before.
"You're stronger than me Beast Boy. At least you have the strength to remove your mask. Maybe someday I can be as strong as you."
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Phoenix's Soul: Alright well I didn't plan it to be like that, but that was still good. I know kinda much more serious than what I do, but I thought it was pretty good. "Until the Next Chapter"
