Hi dere and welcome to chapter nine.

I understand the previous chap was a bit of a disappointment to some, and I'm sorry for that. :/ Well, here's what I have to offer you now and I hope you enjoy this. I think it's quite a bit better.

I do not own any of the following DC characters/ideas mentioned in the literature.


Furry, detestable creatures shuffled past Raven's ankles. Her skin crawled and she cried inside. Rats. Pungent, stinking, rats. In the darkness she watched as a heaping pile of them absorbed Starfire, tearing the alien flesh from her bones. She heard the screams in her mind and could not escape the ringing noise that was left behind. Had Raven eaten anything, she'd surely have vomited at these thoughts.

She had found that she could no longer truly sleep; taking very short rests whenever her body could no longer take the agony of being awake. She wished she could sense whether or not the Titans were near her, but the collar on her neck prevented her from doing anything of the such. Still, she had a feeling they would be there in a time. She worked herself to the bone, so as not to quit on the fact that they would come and rescue her. The Titans would never leave her for dead because they were her family.

Raven's stomach growled loudly and sadly. She felt hollow, both mentally and physically. Her thoughts rapidly moved from one thing to the next in an attempt to forget her hunger. This was truly the longest period the girl had ever gone without bodily sustenance. She was beginning to ponder the taste of the bindings that held her captive.

Patience. Patience was all that she needed. She knew they would come. She knew that she would soon be safe in the clinic of her home, the antiseptic scent stinging her senses. She was nostalgic to such a smell.

The half-demon closed her eyes and swallowed. It had felt like years since she last attempted what she was about to do. She licked her chapped lips and rasped, "Azarath Metrion Zinthos. Azarath Metrion Zinthos. Azarath Metrion Zinthos…"

….

She was practically right before the Beast now. It could smell her so distinctly that its mouth watered. The Beast increased its speed until it was surrounded by immense metal objects within the trees. It assumed they were contraptions designed to stop the likes of creatures like itself from entering the base of the Brotherhood of Evil.

Swiftly through the thicket it went, over-hanging branches swiping at its fur and leaving small bloody whips on all parts of its body. The Beast had never seen so much green—not through its own eyes anyhow. It had never been given the opportunity to leave the boundaries of the city, so forests were images it had only seen in the memories of the changeling.

The Beast had no time to enjoy the sight. Just as it began to approach great shining doors, it caught whiff of another scent: Chemically treated fur and…bananas? It was him. The Beast felt its stomach rumble with ravenous excitement. The brute felt a pervading rage as well and it encouraged the rush. It yearned for its fangs to sink into the skin of its opponent. From behind the large doors, the Beast heard Mallah inform his droids to engage and destroy. It knew the Titans could take on the bots while it went for the ape himself.

The doors ruptured open then, at least a hundred droids rampaging towards their master's enemies.

"Titans, GO!" Robin shouted. He and his teammates immediately charged for the armed metal creatures. The Beast however, ran past, decapitating a few with its jaws when it needed to. It didn't care about them. It wanted Mallah. Inside and undeniably so, so did a certain changeling.

Through the doors the Beast went, and to its surprise, Monsieur Mallah was nowhere in sight. It followed his scent through the darkened corridor.

…..

"Boyfriend Robin! We must—hyah! We must follow the Beast to find friend Raven!" The Tameranian yelled in between the fury of starbolts she released upon the droids.

"We can't! There's too many of 'em!" Cyborg yelled after defeating a few opponents with his metal fists.

"Cyborg's right, Star!" the boy wonder replied. "We have to fight these first! We have to have faith that Beast Boy is still in that thing. I know he'll find her."

Starfire nodded in understanding, continuing the fight alongside her teammates until the final enemy.

….

The Beast circled its prey. It had finally cornered its super. Mallah shook with fear as he held onto his rifle. He admitted to himself that he honestly could not fathom what this monster could truly be. He had already emptied an entire magazine, and yet only two bullets had made contact with the brute.

"W-What are y-you?" the ape asked with utter terror. The Beast wished it could speak to answer him. Instead, it roared louder than it ever had before to prove its superiority. Mallah dropped his gun and knew that his only remaining weapon was his brain. He was well aware that the Beast was faster, stronger, and more deadly than he, but it was certainly not smarter.

Mallah wondered what a monster could want from the Brotherhood of Evil. Why was it here? They had been off the radar for years, and had only returned for their desire of Xeno—

Of course. Was this an…animal the shape-shifter could become? It was surely green enough. Mallah smiled darkly.

"Here for Raven, are we?"

The Beast's eyes narrowed and it growled lowly.

"I thought so. Well you're not going to find her. She's dea—"

The Beast charged for Mallah, white-hot wrath in every single step, and at the sight of this, the ape scrambled to his feet and fled.

The Titans slew the final droid after many minutes of fighting. They had little time to catch their breath as they advanced into the building.

"Split up, and stay hidden." Robin began. "We do this stealthily. At the sight of anything relevant, contact me on your communicator." Cyborg and Starfire nodded once simultaneously, and with that, each Titan moved about in alternate directions.

Robin was wary. He knew that the Beast was even more unstable in this environment. If Beast Boy was at all present in his current form, he was doing flips at the thought of how very, tangibly, close he was to Raven. The boy wonder exhaled and extended his bo-staff. He was ready for anything the Brotherhood could possibly throw at him.

Cyborg charged his sonic cannon and kicked open a door that was connected to the corridor. It was empty, so he continued through the dimly lit hall. All was silent, and the heart monitor in his arm told him that the Titans were calm, and therefore not currently in contact with any threat. He was cautious of every step he took, and honestly, he was surprised to find that no guards patrolled the base of the Brotherhood of Evil.

…..

Starfire hovered barely above the ground, her legs tucked beneath her. Her hands were balled into fists—she was ready for anything that might come out at her. She could prepare a starbolt in the blink of an eye at any moment, surely. Easily. She thought to herself how far she'd be willing to go to get Raven back. She could not kill, but she would hurt someone if she had to, in order to protect her family.

She continued forward, checking every room that she passed for any opponents.

Robin witnessed a green creature chase Mallah on all four to a hidden room. Upon first sight there was no entrance, but then, the floor would break apart to reveal a descending staircase. When the two had gone into the gap, just as quickly as it appeared, it then disappeared. Robin would inform the remaining two Titans that he'd discovered which direction they'd be going next. In a short time, Cyborg and Starfire were beside him, and together, all three watched as the floor opened again. They would proceed with much caution.

The Beast was running out of patience. Every moment it was separated from its mate was equivalent to about a dozen years of recorded time. It growled, and knocked Mallah to the ground with a paw. The ape screamed in terror and crawled backwards on his palms and feet. Though the Beast wanted to see Raven, it found that toying with its food was much more amusing than was expected.

As the Beast gazed upon Mallah, its eyes feasted on the ape's fear. The sight whetted its appetite. Just as the monster reached for the ape again, Mallah would scramble to his feet and continue onward, screaming for nearby droids to assist him. The Beast's eyes widened, and it moved faster to silence its prey. It leapt atop Mallah and began swiping at his torso. Each time the Beast's claws met skin, flesh was torn from the ape's body.

The Beast continued its attack until it heard shuffling behind it. Surely it was the Titans that approached. It had expected them to stay occupied with the droids in front of the building. Angrily and impatiently, the Beast gripped the ape by the neck. It roared not an inch from Mallah's face, and its message was recieved. Lead the way to Raven.

The Beast then shoved Monsieur Mallah into the wall and released him. The ape sprinted toward where they were keeping the half-demon. They continued advancing onward until they came upon the screams of a familiar voice. The Beast burst into a sprint at full speed, shoving past Mallah. Its claws scraped across the cement floors until it finally came to a complete stop outside of the room. There she was, her body smelling of dead, charred skin. Her hair fell over her features, and she glanced down at nothing in particular.

She looked like death.

"Where is the Xeno—"

The Beast roared fiercely, charging for the girl and standing defensively in front of her. It desired only to protect her from any more potential damage. The shocks would have to pass through the Beast first now, or so it thought.

"B-Beast Boy…" she whispered, her eyes clouded with tears. The Beast did not turn. It only glared at the Brain and Monsieur Mallah.

"Again," the Brain deadpanned. With the push of a button, Raven was harmed once more, the currents frying everything within her. The Beast grew angry and conflicted. It thought that the current would harm him first because he stood in front of her. It yelped as it watched her suffer, circling the chair, attempting to locate the source of her pain. It knew that if it didn't pry her from the seat soon, she would die. Without another thought, it ripped clumsily at the chords connected to her skin. When it came in contact with them, its fur raised at the shock. It was quite a painful process to remove the girl from the chair, and so the Beast grew even more irate at the thought of all that she had been through.

With a final great swipe of its paw, the chair was smashed to bits. Raven fell to the ground, unable to stand. The Beast lifted her carefully with its hands, bringing the frail woman into its chest.

"Now, Mallah!" the Brain shouted abruptly. Monsieur Mallah fired what appeared to be a single barrel rifle. The shot released a roped net that entrapped the Beast. It held Raven securely in its arms as it tumbled to the ground. The feeling of being confined again was not something the Beast enjoyed. It would be thrashing about if not only for the weakened girl that had been trapped with him.

"Well done, Monsieur Mallah. I must admit I was unsure if we could actually capture two of the Titans. Now we have a true advantage—"

"Think again!" shouted the notorious leader. "TITANS, GO!"

Just as Robin said this, droids ambushed the three from behind. Mallah approached the net that held the Beast and the half-demon captive. If the Brotherhood of Evil thought this was how they were going to capture the ultimate predator, they were dead wrong.

The Beast used its claws to slash open the net. When it was free again, it was upon its prey once more, its teeth sinking into the ape's shoulder. Mallah screamed in horror as blood rushed from his wound. The Beast loved the sadistic taste.

The Brain quickly moved away from the scene, terrified that it would be next. The Beast roared fiercely; it wanted to eat its opponent. Raven awoke to the shouts and watched in terror at the predicament before her. She gathered what little strength she had and cried out for the Beast to stop its rampage.

It didn't listen. It was having too much fun. Each and every attack was not enough to kill the prey, but only to painfully weaken it. It amused both, the Beast and the changeling to watch the ape suffer. Together, the mind and body reached for the ape's throat. They lifted Mallah from the floor with one hand, tossing him into a wall with unbelievable force.

Raven knew that Garfield was going to kill Mallah if she didn't stop this madness immediately.

"GARFIELD, PLEASE! PLEASE STOP THIS! YOU AREN'T A MONSTER!"

The Beast raged on, ignoring her. Garfield however, took his thoughts off of the meal before him.

"GARFIELD, PLEASE! I KNOW THAT YOU'RE IN THERE! PLEASE DON'T DO THIS! HE'S NOT WORTH IT!"

The Beast stilled as the demoness continued.

"I don't know much about the Beast, but I—know—you! And I know you can hear me! I know this isn't you!"

The Beast growled at that.

"Please…! Please come back to me now…"

The changeling did not protest the call of his beloved. The Beast fought to stay in the tangible world, but found that it was too easily overcome by the sudden boost in willpower from its vessel. It roared and collapsed to the ground, clenching its head. Gradually, its muscles began to shrink, and its fur began to recede. Inaudibly, Raven crooned,

"That's it, my love... Come back to me now,"

Garfield could feel his own fingertips again. He felt his veins constrict to their original size. His thoughts were louder and true. His body was his own once more. He felt the coldness of the concrete beneath him stick to his clammy skin. He was…naked. He groaned and pulled himself to his stomach, and on his hands and knees, he pulled his figure towards her. Raven's fingertips gripped the ground as best they could, fingernails digging into the pavement as she dragged herself closer to the changeling.

Inch by inch the two continued, no matter the pain. Wordlessly they crawled, unable, unwilling to stop. Willpower alone kept them moving, and like a pair of magnets, love is what drew them together. With one hand did the changeling reach for her, and Raven mirrored the gesture. Their fingers met and they each grasped tightly, never leaving one another's gaze.

"Baby," Garfield cried, pulling her into him. He put his lips to her forehead and tucked her gently into his chest. He lifted her chin gently and realized that the collar still held captive her neck. Her skin was paler than it had ever been and her hair was as dry as cotton. Her frame was thinner than normal, bones coming to a point as they protruded from her skin. Her eyes appeared to be bulging from her face because of how thin it looked.

Garfield carefully lifted the girl from the ground into his arms and stood. He limped to where Cyborg hovered over Monsieur Mallah, attempting to stop or slow his bleeding. Mallah's eyes widened as the changeling approached, and he attempted to scoot away.

"Hold still!" Cyborg insisted, applying pressure to the ape's wounds.

Mallah's breathing increased as the shape-shifter reached a hand towards him. Garfield snatched the belt from Mallah's torso, eyeing him with an undying rage. His eyes were truly terrifying to the bloodied ape. The changeling reached inside each compartment of the belt until he located a small key.

He released the belt, and held the key to the neck device. It beeped and flashed a green light, plummeting to the ground. The impact was much louder than the Titans had expected; it must have weighed at least twenty pounds.

"God, Raven. You're too light. We're gonna get you some food soon, baby. Don't worry."

Raven did not reply. She only stared into the eyes of her love. Weakly, she moved her hand to his cheek.

"I knew…you'd come…" she rasped.

"Of course I'd be here, Rae... Now don't speak. Rest. You're safe now."

"I won't close my eyes…until…I can kiss—"

Before she could finish her request, the man pulled her in more closely and they kissed for many moments with her grasped in his arms. When they broke apart, Raven immediately passed out, her muscles finally being allowed to give in. Her head lolled back, and Garfield caught it with his arm. He would not release her until later that night when Mallah was securely in jail and Raven was safely in a cot.

Garfield turned to look upon his teammates. Robin's expression was unreadable—he surely thought about how to handle the changeling's murderous intent towards Monsieur Mallah. Starfire's face was flushed, and she glanced away from the green man with a very small grin. Cyborg rubbed a metal hand across the back of his neck and said,

"Let's go home. And uh, BB? Lets get you some clothes."

Beast Boy had forgotten. He looked down once, blushed, and rapidly moved for the exit of the building.

How…awkward.

….

The heart monitor went on and on. It was infinite.

It was in her sleep. It was in her wakefulness. It was in her everything.

And the smell of the room was simply too clean. It smelled of many artificial chemicals. She smiled internally, welcoming the redolence.

She sensed another presence in the room and struggled to open her eyes.

"Hi," His voice sounded from beside her.

"Hey," she whispered, the corners of her mouth pulling upward.

He kissed her lips until her eyelids fluttered.

She gazed into his eyes then, and smiled at the implausible sight of the green man that she loved.


In case anyone didn't understand why Garfield was naked, well, his clothes got obliterated in the transformation to the Beast. Okay, just so you know, the next chapter will be the last! Have a good one everybodeh c:

-theambiguousyayo