Hey everybody! Here's Chapter 9! So, so unbelievably sorry for the super-long wait! (cries) I got started working on a novel for a while and also lost interest in this fic for a few months. Don't kill me, but Teen Titans became my...second-place obsession recently. I've currently been obsessing madly over Fruits Basket (the most awesome, totally radically mind-blowing manga...and anime that's disappointing after you've read the books) and haven't really been too pressured to continue this fic. But, for you guys, who have waited so patiently (Hopefully, though it wouldn't surprise me if I've lost many of you) for the next chapter and would not appreciate being left hanging just as the plot begins to unravel, I decided to get my lazy butt in gear and update. Even if it's this short...but I didn't want you guys to be pissed at me much longer. So ends my pathetic excuse! (Bows)

Disclaimer: I do not own Teen Titans. I won't. Ever. Congratulations on making me state the obvious. (Cynical salute!)


Chapter 9: The Curse Is The Easy Part

"Aagh!" Cyborg groaned as he tossed away his once-best chainsaw. He had gotten it as a Christmas present two years ago from Robin, and now it was a mangled, broken mass of scrap. It landed with a metallic clink in the pile of discarded, disassembled tools that lay beside him and in front of Raven and Beast Boy, never to cut through an iron alloy again. The two looked frightened, their skin pale and eyes wide. Perhaps this was because their frustrated teenage friend had recently come within an inch of their skin with a chainsaw, not to mention pliers, a handheld saw, and a very nasty-looking soldering iron. Not a scratch had been inflicted on the cursed handcuffs that bound the two, although there was one reaction to the abuse. Every time it was put under stress, a shower of navy and emerald sparks would appear and encircle the offending nuisance, skimming along edges and faults and breaking it down into bits as quickly as so much acid. Yet, through the constant abuse of metal and fire it remained, with adamantium-like resistance, securely fastened onto the hands of the two superpowered teens.

Starfire and Robin watched nervously from the circular couch, more afraid now for their friends' staying in one piece than the curse that bound them. The metal-man was growing increasingly agitated, and it was clear that he was only seconds away from a total meltdown. Robin, the ever-vigilant, though forward and bossy, leader, spoke up.

"Okay, Cyborg, I know you've tried your hardest, but I think its time to stop. This obviously isn't working. Now, let's just...put the machete down and try something different, okay?" he interjected, flipping deftly over the back of the sofa and walking slowly forward towards the chair where the three sat. He waved his hands gently in front of his chest in a calming gesture.

Cyborg whipped his head around irritably, glaring at the festively uniformed Boy Wonder. He opened his mouth to say that he never gave up, and this was simply a challenge of endurance, but thought better of it when he saw Starfire's pale, wide-eyed face sticking out meekly from behind the couch cushions. He also noticed that Robin's forehead was furrowed in worry, and a rapid, frantic wheezing was sounding out from behind him, where he knew the cursed pair sat. Beast Boy was hyperventilating. Glancing down at the deadly weapon cradled in his unwieldly hands and the pile of destroyed machinery that lay scattered around his knees, he realized the full gravity of the situation. This wasn't just a dangerous scene, this was a health hazard to anyone within forty feet of the area! Not to mention the fact that he was getting really, really pissed off. He started to laugh.

"You..ha ha...you guys, ha ha ha...I'm not gonna...ha ha ha...not gonna-gonna hurt you! Ha ha ha...ok, ok. I'll stop!" he chuckled, robotic lungs pausing for breath frequently to accomodate his hysterics. Robin paused in his slow approach, shock apparent even through his face mask.

"Are...you okay, Cyborg?" the baffled leader asked, totally blown away by his bipolar behavior. If Raven cracking a smile meant hell was about to break loose, what was it supposed to mean when the solid, straight-forward mechano-man switches moods at the speed of sound?

"I'm fine...I..hehe...sorry. Guess I just got a little too serious there. I'm laughing because, looking back at it, it was kind of funny. (And, thanks to a mini-recorder stationed behind his mechanical eye installed so he could replay fights and learn from his mistakes, he really could look back at it) I got so serious, and you all were so freaked. But...I think I'm a little stressed out anyways. Talk of curses and crazy stuff like that kinda gives me the heebie-jeebies, and plus- I just got that new version of Turbo Racers X-treme, and my best buddy won't be in playing order to lose to me if I can't get this thing off first!" he ended his monologue with a little chuckle, trying to lighten up the situation.

That explanation had been partly true, but the real problem behind his mood swings was a malfunction in his software. A few reactors had shorted out in his last battle with Cinderblock, and he hadn't had enough time to repair them yet. For now, the reactions would be fairly minor. If the problem ran uncorrected, though, every emotion that surfaced would appear and disappear spontaneously and violently. In a way, the problem would be quite similar to human bipolarcy, in that there would be a 'hormone imbalance' that caused emotions to escalate to unreasonable levels for short periods of time.

"Hey, whatever, dude." Beast Boy had recovered from his shock enough to choke out the sentence. It's not like you would've actually slipped or anything, right? Heh...heh...?" His brow furrowed in silent question.

"Right!" Cyborg's solid answer seemed to placate the little changeling, and he nodded vigorously.

"So...sorry to interrupt the monologuing, but...I'm guessing you can't get us out of this?" Raven's eyebrows arched, challenging even her chakra in height, as she lifted her arm and dangled it, along with Beast Boy's limp limb, in front of Cyborg's face. He paled.

"Eh...yeah, that's pretty much it in layman's terms..." he sighed, shrugging his massive shoulders apologetically. "Unless you have some non-magic voodoo charm for this kinda thing, I'm stumped. May just have to grit your teeth and sweat it out."

Raven's eyes grew sharp with irritation, but she sighed, blowing the emotion off and rubbing her forehead with her long, grey-hued fingers. Glancing over at Beast Boy, who was currently working a mound of stuffing out from a hole in the arm of the chair, she grimaced.

"It's not the handcuffs I'm worried about, Cyborg. The curse is the easy part. What scares me...is him."