Author's Note:

I'm back and I hope better than ever. After almost a year of my unscheduled leave of absence I have done a lot of thinking about my stories. I have read more fanfiction than I will ever admit to anyone and I believe that it has made me a better writer.

So now the long awaited update to this story. I really hope people who liked this story before still remember it and aren't too mad at me. Without further ado, back to the story.

I do not own Teen Titans, please don't sue me.

An Alpha Emerges Chapter 9: Heroes Are Made Not Born Part 2

Sunlight filtered through the windows of Wayne Manor rousing its occupants from their slumber. Bruce Wayne was already awake and down in his Bat Cave going through all the information that he had earlier this morning. Try as he might he had been unable to get any sleep so instead he had come down to think everything over.

"I thought I might find you down here."

Bruce was drawn out of his thoughts by the voice of his trusty butler Alfred.

"I couldn't sleep. Too much to think about." Bruce replied.

"You need your sleep Master Wayne." Came Alfred's reply.

"I know but there is just so much new knowledge from last night. If what they say is true we are the only ones to ever hear this story. But I feel as though there are still things they are holding back from telling us."

"Maybe, but it is still theirs to tell. Maybe we will learn more tonight."

"Maybe. Anyway Beast Boy and Cassandra still have training in half an hour so I need to start getting ready. I'm going to have them do a full our spar today." Bruce said.

"Will Master Garfield be allowed to use his powers?"

"Not at first but I may allow it after the first few spars."

Meanwhile upstairs Cassandra was also beginning to rise from her sleep. As she wiped the blurriness away she thought back to everything that had happened the night before. First there was the trip to that mechanic's shop. She still could not believe they had let a criminal go. Even more unbelievable was the fact that they were keeping it a secret from Bruce.

What was most strange was the fact that that wasn't the weirdest part of the night. She still could not believe that Beast Boy and Miss Martian knew each other, apparently very well. Hearing the story of how the two of them and how Beast Boy obtained his powers was incredible to say the least. She couldn't quite get over the feeling that there was still much more to the story that they didn't say.

'Maybe tonight' she thought.

Glancing at her clock she saw that she only had fifteen minutes left before training started so she rolled out of bed and went to her closet to put on her workout clothes. Afterwards she left her room and proceeded down the hallway towards the stairs. She paused briefly as she passed Beast Boy's room before shaking her head and continuing down the hallway. There would be time for them to talk later.

A few rooms down Connor Kent was also waking from his slumber. Still slightly groggy he stretched out his arm, expecting to be met with the familiar feeling of his girlfriend. He was always the first of them to wake back at the Watchtower. This made him very confused as his reaching arm found nothing but air and empty sheets. Opening one eye he felt the memories from the previous day rush back into his mind.

His girlfriend had spent the night in another man's bedroom. Probably sharing the same bed as said man. Needless to say Connor was not thrilled with the idea even if said man was like a brother to his girlfriend. A brother he had not even known she knew before yesterday… no. He wasn't going to allow himself to get hung up on that detail again. They had argued about it yesterday before they came to Gotham and that was that.

It had always been tough for him when it came to dating Megan. She had always been a very secretive person and while he knew she had shared much of those secrets with him yesterday was just another reminder that there was still a lot about her that he did not know. There was more to that story they told last night, that he knew. But that wasn't the only thing that bothered him about last night.

From the second that kid and him had first seen each other there had been an unspoken tension between them. He was not sure what the kid's problem with him was but he knew what his problem was with the kid. Call it jealousy or some other petty emotion but he didn't like the way Megan talked about him. Like he was the most important thing in her life. Sometime before he and Megan go back to the Watchtower he was going to have a talk with Beast Boy. They were going to have to learn to get along because otherwise they would have to make Megan choose between them and as things stand right now Connor did not like his chances.

Knowing that there was no chance of him getting back to sleep he rolled out of bed and slid his clothes back on. Exiting his bedroom he proceeded to walk down the hall. He stopped in front of Beast Boy's door but after hearing no movement proceeded on his path.

Inside said room Garfield's eyes were starting to flutter open. It took a few seconds for the blurriness to dissipate but when it did he was met to a familiar sight however one he had not seen in years. At some point during the night it appeared that his sister had come into his room and laid down next to him.

He could remember how restless his sleep had been at first. For years now he had been plagued with the same nightmare and nothing he did seemed to make it go away. The only thing that helped was Megan. His older sister had always been able to make the bad dreams go away. Unfortunately due to the secrecy of their relationship they had been unable to consistently meet up which led to many sleepless nights for both of them.

After lying in bed for a few more minutes and going over everything that had happened yesterday his eyes drifted to the clock that lay on his dresser. His eyes widened and he quickly jumped out of bed, not taking into account his sister's arms were still around him as she went tumbling off the side of the bed with a startled cry.

When Megan picked herself up off the floor she was just in time to see her brother pulling on his workout clothes and heading for the door.

"Sorry Megan practice starts in five minutes. Gotta go. Love you, bye."

And with that he was out the door and sprinting down the hallway while Megan sat on the floor attempting to process what just happened. Then a smile made its way onto her face.

'Same old Garfield. Nice to know somethings never change.'

Sprinting into the Batcave Beast Boy dove the last few feet, landing just in front of Batman and beside Cassandra who stared down at him. Batman looked down at him in annoyance while Cassandra couldn't quite fight the smirk that was making its way on to her face. Not that she would admit it but over the few months he had been here she had found herself growing very fond of the emerald skinned changeling.

"Would you like to explain why you felt the need to dive on the ground?" Batman asked the young man as he picked himself off the floor.

"Well I didn't want to be late for training so I dove to save time." He explained.

Batman looked at the watch he was wearing, "You're still five minutes early." He said with his usual stoic expression.

Beast Boy stared back at him with an equally stoic face and said "seriously?"

Batman nodded. A giggling sound then came from the entrance to the cave. When the group looked back they were met with the sight of Miss Martian, a hand covering her mouth as she laughed at her embarrassed brother.

"I'm sorry Garfield but that is just so like you." She said. Her boyfriend Superboy who was standing next to her also felt a smile begin to come on her face. However the most shocking surprise came from beside Garfield.

Cassandra was currently standing where she had been but she was laughing. Actually laughing. Batman was staring at her in shock, over the time that Batman had known he had never once seen her laugh before. As for Beast Boy, after the first few moments when he stood there shocked his face broke out into a smile. This was what he loved most about being a hero, making people laugh. If that meant that at times he had to be the butt of the joke so be it.

"Well, if we are done it's about time we get started on today's training. Beast Boy you will be facing off against Cassandra as usual. Let's get started."

The smile dropped off the face of Beast Boy hearing Batman's exclamation. He may have gotten much better at hand to hand combat but Cassandra still had a major advantage over him. This was going to be a long day. He quickly glanced over at his sister to see her with a slight smirk on her face.

'This is gonna suck.'

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Later that day night had just fallen and the heroes were settling down around the dinner table while Alfred served them their food. Both Beast Boy and Cassandra could feel their bodies aching from the intense battles they had fought over the course of the day.

At first things had played out much like they had the previous weeks. Cassandra was wining each bout, though Beast Boy had been putting up one heck of a fight. Then things had changed. Batman had announced that Beast Boy would be allowed to use his powers in the next matchup. The only rule was no scratching or biting, not that Beast Boy ever bit anyone as they had learned last night. In the interest of keeping things fair Batgirl was also allowed to use her weapons and gadgets. The resulting battle had been a bruising affair that left the two of them beat up and exhausted. Batman had called the match a draw as to prevent any long term damage that would cause either or both of his students to would sideline either of his apprentices.

Dinner was a simple event, with Megan and Beast Boy being the only two people at the table talking. They both knew that they would be facing another uncomfortable conversation once dinner however at the moment they were content to catch up with one another after over a year apart.

Dinner itself took about thirty minutes after which the group once again found themselves in the living room on the couches. After the day of training Beast Boy was actually feeling pretty good about his life. For the first time in months he felt at ease. The betrayal of his friends had taken a greater toll on him than he had let on. Now, with his sister beside him once again, the two of them not needing to hide what they were, he felt like he could take on any challenge. Even if that challenge was telling a story he had never told a living soul.

"Well Garfield, I've given you the entire day to let last night process and think on things but now it's time to get back to things. I know there is more to this story than what you told us last night." Bruce Wayne said, once again sitting in the same chair he was sitting in last night when he heard the first part of the story. Now that Beast Boy thought about it, everyone seemed to be in the same seats that they were in the previous night. He was sharing the couch with Megan and Connor, with Megan being in between the two boys. Bruce was sitting in a chair by himself to the left of the couch, Cassie in a chair to the right of the couch. Behind Bruce stood Alfred, a silent yet strangely comforting presence.

"You're right. I've thought about it all day and I agree. I've kept this a secret for long enough. You'll have to bear with me, this is something I've never told to anyone before. In fact Megan is the only one who actually knows this."

Megan gave his hand a gentle reassuring squeeze, causing Connor to narrow his eyes in annoyance. An action that went unnoticed by the rest of the room. Beast Boy took a deep breath and closed his eyes, trying to remember where he left off on his story.

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(Flashback)

Young Garfield's eyes fluttered open for the first time in over a week. His eyes gazed up at the wooden ceiling of his parent's hut. He was having a hard time remembering the last thing that happened to him. The last thing he could clearly recall was being attacked by a green monkey. Anything after that was a hazy chopped up series of scenes that flashed randomly through his mind.

Garfield tried to sit up but found he was unable to do so. Never in his life had he felt this weak, unable to perform even the simplest task. As his continued attempts to move any part of his body all failed he could feel panic rise in his body. Just as he felt like he was going to completely lose it he felt a comforting hand grip his own. Rotating the only part of his body he was able to, his eyes, he was met with the sight of a strange green woman standing beside him.

"Who are you? What happened to me? Where are my mom and Dad? What's going on?" Garfield's voice rose with every question as the panic inside him continued to rise.

"Calm down young one, my name is Miss Martian and I am from Young Justice. I found you in a clearing a little over a week ago, you had been attacked and I brought you back here. I'll let your parents explain the rest to you, they should be back in a few minutes. Until then you have me to take of you. So, how about you tell me a little about yourself."

Garfield couldn't quite understand the reason but he instantly trusted her. For some reason he felt this inexplicable connection to her, even though this was the first time he was ever actually meeting her.

It took a couple minutes but Miss Martian was finally able to calm the young boy down. "Now just remain calm, I'll go get your parents. Ok?" She turned to head out the door to find the Logans but was stopped by a small, weak grip on her arm.

"Stay" he said. He had no idea where he found the energy to raise his arm, he just knew that he didn't want this strange lady to leave. She stared at him for a moment before her eyes softened and she nodded, moving to once again take a seat beside his bed.

"Alright, I'm not going anywhere. We'll just stay here and wait for your parents to come back from lunch. Why don't you tell me a little bit about yourself?"

For the next half hour the two of them sat there talking, waiting for Garfield's parents to come back. Garfield told her all about his life, his love of animals, and his dreams for the future. Miss Martian also found herself telling him about her life. What it was like being a superhero, her boyfriend Superboy (the first time they were a couple) and what she wanted to do with her life.

One thing Garfield couldn't figure out was why she kept staring at him from time to time. His inability to move his head left him unable to see his body, even when he grabbed her hand he had been reaching blindly. This prevented him from seeing the changes he had gone through over the course of the last week. Most specifically, he had no idea that his skin had turned green.

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"It happened a few days after Mark and Marie had administered the serum." Megan explained. "One minute he was this normal, tan little boy and the next he was green. Scared the hell out of all of us but after running several tests they were able to determine that the color of his skin did not mean the serum had failed. In fact it seemed to be working. A few days later they declared the serum a success and were in the process of recording their findings into their journal."

"So there is a written copy of the serum somewhere." Bruce said curiously.

"Not anymore." Garfield replied. "They burned all their notes and journals on the serum a few days later when I first shapeshifted."

"That must been crazy story" Cassandra said in her typical broken English. However, he time with Beast Boy was drastically improving her speech. He had an uncanny ability to bring even the most reclusive person out of their shell, whether they wanted to or not.

"Yea it was. It was a few days after I woke up. The day I woke up my parents had come back and hugged me and we had reunited."

"Of course I took that as my cue to leave." Megan said. "The only thing was, Garfield wouldn't let me. He didn't want me to leave and to be honest I really didn't want to leave. I had watched over him as he slept for days and I had become quite protective of him. Whether it was my blood in him or something else there was definitely a connection between us. So I decided to stay a bit longer. Garfield was still too weak to get out of bed for the next few days so I would watch over him while his parents went back to their research. Eventually he was strong enough to go outside after about a week so I took him out to play. That was when it happened."

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(Flashback)

"Please mom. I've been stuck in this room for so long. I want to go outside and play. Besides Megan is going to be with me." Garfield pleaded, his lip pursed out in a begging expression. Just barely poking out was the tiny tip to his fang, something both he and his parents were still getting used to.

It had taken a long time for Garfield to be back to his normal self. When he discovered his green skin he had been understandably shocked. For the next few hours they couldn't get him to do anything. He just sat in his bed staring at his reflection in the mirror. As time passed he had accepted it, even come to like it. He thought it was cool.

Marie Logan was torn. The last time he had gone out she had almost lost her son. That was not something she would ever be able to forgive herself for. However what Garfield said was true. He had been stuck in that room for far too long, especially for the hyperactive child that he was. And Megan was going to be watching him the whole time. She couldn't really think of a reason why they couldn't go out.

"Alright, but don't go too far. And I want you back at the village before sundown." Marie said, talking in equal parts to her son and his newly acquired 'sister'.

"Don't worry Marie." Megan said. "I'll keep an eye on him. Come on Garfield." The two of them then headed out of the village to the forest, heading off in the direction of his favorite clearing. As they walked through the village every villager they passed stopped and bowed to the young child and the hero. This village was filled with superstitious villagers and after hearing what had happened to the young boy they had grown to adore they had come to see him in a whole new light.

Many now believed that the child was saved by a nature spirit, therefore he was blessed and must be treated with respect and even reverence. For days while he recovered he had visitors from the villagers as they brought him toys and food and other gifts in the hopes of appeasing the spirit that had taken such an interest in this boy. Mark and Marie had tried to explain that it wasn't a spirit but it had come to no use so they let it go, after insisting on stopping the gifts.

After a short walk the two found themselves back in the clearing Megan had found Garfield in. He had told her stories of the adventures he has had in this clearing during the days he was bedridden. Now that she was not worried about him and he was not in any danger Megan could look around and truly appreciate the beauty of the spot.

There were animals scattered around the clearing, some getting a drink for the pond that lay towards the side while others had found rocks among the clearing and were content to lay around and soak up the warmth of the sun.

"Wow. You were right Garfield. This really is a beautiful spot." Megan said.

"I know. It's my favorite spot out of all the places we have been to." He responded with his typical goofy grin that had quickly become endearing. He then led her over to his spot, a large rock a bit off to the side, covered by the shade of a small tree.

"This is where I always sit when I come here. I can just stay here and watch the animals and they don't even notice me."

"Don't you ever get scared that one of the animals will attack you?" Megan asked apprehensively, looking at the large jungle cats that were lounging around on the other side of the clearing.

"Not really." He responds. "Animals aren't that much different than you or me, just more primitive. They don't attack things for no reason."

"But what about the monkey that attacked you?" She asked.

"It was scared. From the marks it had I guess it just escaped from a predator or something and it must have thought that I was a danger and attacked. It was my fault, I should have known not to approach an animal while it was showing aggressive behavior." Garfield said. Megan stared at him. This was by far the most intelligent thing that she had ever heard him say. For the entirety she had known him he had always seemed like a simple, happy go lucky kid.

She had once asked him if he wanted to follow in the footsteps of his parents and become a biologist but he had said he didn't. Yet at that he moment he sounded just like his mother.

"You seem to know a lot about animal behavior." Megan noted.

"Yea, I love animals. They're the best part of traveling around with my parents."

"Yet you say you don't want to be like your parents." She said with a question tone.

"Yea. I love traveling around and exploring new places, not to mention meeting new animals. But I can't stand all that work they have to do inside. I would rather be out experiencing nature than stuck inside staring at tubes and paper."

Now that Megan thought about it she realized he was right. She could never imagine sweet, hyperactive Garfield stuck in a lab all day.

"Well, what's your favorite animal?" She asked him.

"To play with or watch?"

"To watch"

"Oh. Well the last time we were in the United States my parents took me to a zoo and I got to see an exhibit of Gray Wolves. They were so cool, like dogs but more dangerous. Hey fun question. If you could be any animal, what would you be?"

"I really don't know. What animal would you be?" She asked.

Garfield took a moment to about his answer, giving Megan the opportunity to look away and watch the small group of lions move from their position and head off back into the jungle. However, when she glanced back she was unable to see the green child who had been sitting beside just a moment ago. She then looked around, expecting to see that he had just gone to play with some animal that had peaked his interest however she still could not get a sighting of him.

She continued to look around for the next few moments, anxiety rising within her until she was distracted by a bird hopping onto her knee and beating its wings furiously. At first she paid it no attention, continuing to search for Garfield but the birds continued attempts to get the attention finally forced her to focus on it.

As she finally looked at it her attention went to the unusual coloration of the bird. It was a deep jade green coloration but what really drew her focus was the bird's eyes. They were a deep green, much like the rest of its body, yet they looked familiar for some reason. In addition her telepathic abilities felt as though there was something familiar about this bird.

Zeroing in her telekinesis on the bird she was startled to pick up panic radiating from the bird and a voice coming from its mind.

'Megan, help me. I don't know what's going on. Help me, I'm scared. What do I do?' The bird transmitted to her through her mind connection.

'Garfield?' she thought tentatively.

'Yes, it's me. Tell me what to do.'

'Alright. What happened?'

'I don't know. I was just thinking about your question and how I wanted to be a bird so I could fly anywhere I wanted then next thing I knew I was a bird. I tried to fly but I couldn't so I had to jump to get your attention and help me, I don't know how to change back.' She could feel the panic coming off him in waves as she digested the information she just heard. That was when she thought back to what they had to do to heal him. He had some of her blood in him, meaning he might have gotten the ability to change from her. So it might work the same way hers does.'

'Ok, try this. First you need to calm down. Take deep, soothing breaths.'

It took a few moments but he was finally able to get his breathing under control.

'Ok, next I want you to focus on you. Think of your appearance, what you look like and really focus on that.'

It took almost a half hour with constant encouragement and couching from Megan but he was finally able to change his form back into that of himself. He then spent the next hour sitting in his sister's lap and crying while she held him, whispering reassuring words into his ear as she gently rocked him back and forth.

After he had finally calmed down they headed off back to the village. Garfield continue to sniffle and Megan never once let go of his hand. They both knew they were in for a long explanation when they got back to the village. Megan also realized that she would not be returning to the Watchtower any time soon. Now that Garfield had these gifts he would need someone to teach him how to use them, and she was his only option.

Megan did have to wonder, why could he turn into animals when she couldn't? Whatever the case was she was in it for the long haul. In the short time that she had known Garfield he had become more than just a young friend for her. He had truly become her little brother and that night, after explaining to his parents what had happened that is exactly what she told him. She also made a promise, one she vowed never to break.

"I promise I will always protect you"

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"And that's it. That's the story of how I got my powers. Megan stayed with my parents for the next couple of weeks before she eventually had to leave and go back to the Watchtower when her 'vacation' was over. Fortunately she was able to show me the basics of how to control my new abilities, though I could only change into small animals at the time."

Beast Boy concluded the tale and looked around at the rest of the room. Bruce was unreadable as ever, Cassandra sat there with a curious expression on her face, Connor's expression had lost much of its aggravation and Megan simply sat there with a small smile as she remembered that time. She missed it, there was no complications it was just her, Garfield and his parents. They had a happy life in the village, one she missed every day. Just as she missed Mark and Marie, two people she had also grown very fond of.

"Ok, well it's getting pretty late again so I think I'll go off to bed. Unless you want to give us tomorrow off? Beast Boy asked with a hopeful expression on his face however he received only a stone faced shake of the head from his mentor. "Didn't think so."

With that he left the room to head upstairs. It had been another long day but at least he had completed his story, well all the stuff he was going to tell them. The real story of his past was only just beginning but it was not one he was going to tell anyone any time soon.

Back downstairs things were beginning to break apart as everyone went their separate ways to get ready for bed. Once again as Connor and Megan passed Beast Boy's room she stopped and looked to her boyfriend. However this time she received a gentle smile and an understanding look. She smiled back, gave her boyfriend a kiss and went into the room leaving Connor to once again head to sleep alone. Tonight however he wasn't jealous. He knew he had no reason to be. He and Beast Boy had two very different roles with Megan. He was her boyfriend, Beast Boy was her brother. He knew tomorrow he would still need to have a chat with him but that could wait. For now everything was fine.

In the room Beast Boy and Megan were already falling asleep. Telling that story had taken a lot out of them after an already tiring day. From his breathing she could tell her brother was already fast asleep, and the smile on his face told her he was not having any nightmares tonight. Just as she fell asleep she whispered something she had been meaning to say for years.

"I'm sorry I let you down little brother."

Author's Note

I'm back. I apologize for the long wait between updates I have been very busy and stumped for ideas. For those of you coming back to this story thank you for not giving up. For those of you new to this welcome. I want to promise you that I will never leave it this long again but to be honest I can't.

I will promise that no matter what I will not abandon this story. If you like what you see here I have another Teen Titans story I am currently working on that I will be updating next. Also if you like How to Train Your Dragon I invite you to take a look at the rewrite I am working on. First chapter is up but I hope to update again in the coming week.

Please Like, Favorite, Comment, message me I don't care I welcome it all. Until next time, happy reading. Dark 350 out.