Chapter 10
"Rae, babe, c'mon. You gotta wake up… please wake up," Beast Boy pleaded with the unconscious form of Raven. He rocked her gently, his hand caressing her cheek, her other cheek pressed against his chest.
She made no movement, bar the steady rise and fall of her chest, a flutter of a pulse beneath her skin.
"That was more powerful that you expected," Azar said, struggling to prop herself up against the wall.
Beast Boy's head shot toward her, his eyes wild. "What did you do to her?" he demanded, barely keeping a tight leash on the Beast who screamed and roared to be free, wanting to get some answers first at least.
Azar wiped her nose, staring weakly at the blood that came away on her fingers. "I did nothing," she sneered. "She did that to herself."
Beast Boy growled. "Liar!"
"Cordea, you are not helping," the disembodied voice snapped before it turned soothing. "Young one, please be calm. Raven will be fine. It was merely a backlash of power."
"What the hell did you do to her?" Beast Boy screamed, his hands clenching around Raven, his eyes wildly darting around as he looked for the owner of the voice. He found none. Why had Raven trusted the voice so blindly?
"It is an animal. Nothing more than a pet. It will not understand," Azar snapped, getting to her feet. "It is useless trying to reason with it."
The Beast roared, forcing itself to take form and the boy calmly stepped aside, allowing the body to twist and change.
The Beast bellowed its defiance into the air, gathering up its mate in one arm and cradling it against its chest. It placed its other arm on the floor, emitting a thunderous roar at the one in red that had dared to cause this pain. The one in red yelled in fear, thrusting forward an arm and releasing a yellow burst of magic toward the Beast who curled itself around its mate protectively. It yowled in pain as the magic scorched across its shoulder and down its back. Flesh seared, fur burned.
"Cordea! No!" the voice cried. "You must not do that! Young one, please, you must calm the beast. I can help if you allow me."
"Don't listen," the boy whispered in the Beast's mind. "We don't know who to trust. We've gotta find a safe place to hide. Trees, grass, open sky. Protect Raven."
The Beast grunted its agreement. Protect the mate. She was all that mattered, not this sniveling fear stinking creature before it. Control the anger. Get to a safe place.
It pivoted sharply and bolted for the door. It lowered its good shoulder to use as a battering ram and crashed through the door, sending splinters and shrapnel of wood flying. The Beast skidded and slipped on the marbled floor until its claws found purchase, carving deep gouges in the floor.
"Garfield!" a voice cried and the Beast turned toward the sound, recognising its mate's dam in amongst the pack of people that approached it. It took a hesitant step toward the group, crooning lightly. It titled its head, its mate trusted her dam, surely the dam would help. It held out its precious cargo and crooned beseechingly, its eyes locked on the dam.
The dam paled, her hands fluttering to her mouth and she made a careful step toward the Beast, stinking of fear and motherly concern.
Someone grabbed the dam, throwing her behind them and leveled a weapon at the Beast.
The Beast snarled, recognising the danger of the weapon instantly and fought against the immediate instinct to attack. It clutched its mate's limp body closer to its chest, shielding her with its body, its eyes darting around wildly. It spotted an escape. Without pause, it darted sideways and leapt through an open window, ignoring the startled shrieks of those behind it and the frightened scream of the boy's name.
Wind rushed past its ears as it tumbled through the sky. Its claws scraped along the side of the building but it was falling too fast to find purchase.
The ground rushed up toward it.
"We are one," the boy within the Beast whispered. "We can change our form. If we can hide a tail, we can grow wings!"
As the boy said the word, the Beast felt an eruption on its back. Huge, bat-like wings exploded from its back and snapped open, jolting the Beast and its mate. But the Beast did not understand how it could use them and they did nothing but slow its fall.
It slammed into the ground, the wings sucking themselves back inside the Beast's body as it rolled, curling itself protectively around its mate. Agony rushed through the Beast like fire, but it ignored the pain. It must find a safe place to protect its mate. She was more important.
The Beast staggered upright, its vision swimming. It placed a hand to its head, before it shifted its grip on its mate once more, sniffing at her. Relief flowed through both the Beast and the boy when they saw her chest rise and fall.
"There it is!" a voice bellowed from distance above. "It survived the fall! Destroy it!"
"No! Do not harm him," cried another voice as an arrow whizzed through the air and when thunk in the Beast's back. It roared in fury and pain, its claws fumbling to the piece of wood and metal impaled it in. It yanked the arrow from its body and tossing it away. More arrows skewered themselves in the ground and yellow bursts of energy crackled around the Beast.
The Beast fled, scampering on three limbs, cradling its mate against its chest and underbelly as it ran.
People screamed and scattered when they saw the fleeing Beast surging through the streets of Azarath, cradling a white robed woman in its arm. Mothers picked up their screaming children and ran. Men cowered and women shrieked.
The Beast's claws scratched against the paved roads as it scrambled through the street. Its body rammed into poles and market carts, smashing though wooden barriers. Its breath hitched raggedly in its chest as it fled without pause desperately searching for a place to hide. A place without scent, without colour, without prey.
But there were too many scents, too many sounds. Too many swirling colours as people darting every which way. Each scream as another person saw the Beast pierced at its already sensitive hearing. Each sudden stink of fear assaulted the Beast's sense of smell, sending it reeling.
The boy's voice echoed in its mind, calm, soothing and commanding. "Calm down. We've gotta protect Raven. Stop."
The Beast pulled up short in the middle of the street. It panted, its breath grinding in its chest as planted three limbs on the ground and surveyed its surroundings.
"There it is!" bellowed a voice and the Beast looked over its shoulder. It was being chased by many prey in blue robes and one in white.
"Ignore."
But they were still a fair distance behind and the boy within did not seem concerned so the Beast did as it was told.
"Smell."
The Beast sniffed the air, catching the scent of its own blood, the stink of fear, the stench of magic, the smell of fire, the fragrance of soap, the crush of grass.
"There!" the boy cried, triumphant. "Go!"
The Beast ran, its keen sense of smell honing in on the aroma of grass, the sweet scent of trees and flowers and nature. It made a beeline for it, ignoring all in its path as it scrambled over buildings or smashed through walls.
It crashed through the roof of one of the houses, its flimsy tiles unable to support the Beast's weight. The Beast smashed into a table on the floor and it splintered beneath it, startling the occupants of the house who began to shriek. The Beast scrambled to its feet, ignoring all around it as it checked on its mate before bolting out the door.
Finally the feel of grass wafted between its paws and the Beast slowed. Trees arched toward the sky, clumping together to form a small wood. The Beast flicked its head around, its eyes searching behind it, but it seemed to have lost those that hounded it.
It dashed into the woods and lost itself in the trees. It knew it could not stay here long, but perhaps it could find shelter within, a rock formation, a cave, a den, something where it could hide and wait for its mate to wake.
The ground dropped away before it and the Beast sat back on its haunches to skid to a halt. Small pebbles and leaves were forced over the edge of a cliff, cascading into the empty space below. The Beast peered over the edge of the rock, seeing the orange sky that existed above now swirled below too.
"Azarath is a floating rock," the boy quietly whispered. "There could be caves down there."
The Beast peered over the edge once more, its eyes searching for entrances or dips and crevices within the rock that could be used to hide.
"There," the boy whispered tiredly, drawing the Beast's attention to a small opening not far from where the Beast stood. The boy was tired and the Beast could feel its own strength waning. The magic wound on its shoulder and back burned, its back throbbed from the arrow wound while its legs ached from taking the brunt of the fall from the tower.
The Beast jumped over the edge of the cliff; digging its claws into the wall to control its downward journey as it hopped and leaped over rocks and down the face of the cliff. It dropped into the cave, no more than a hollow indent in the rock face, but it was large enough to hide the Beast's bulk beneath its hanging wall.
It crawled to the back of the cave, carefully placing its mate on the ground. It hunkered down beside her, one of its fingers gently caressing her cheek as it made soft crooning noises. Its mate was safe and she still breathed. She could reside here until she woke and the boy could look after her, protect her.
It moved away, hunkering down by the opening and returned to the boy.
Beast Boy sucked in a startled gasp of breath and collapsed by the entrance to the cave, pain shooting through his shoulder and down his legs. He jerked off his gloves and yanked his shirt over his head before hissing as his trembling fingers touched the magical scorch marks on his shoulder. He moved his fingers to the arrow wound, there was blood around the wound and it ached at the touch, but the bleeding seemed to have stopped. After all, it was no more than a nuisance to the Beast. But there was a strange tingling sensation around the wound and he wasn't quite sure what that meant.
He couldn't believe they'd shot him. With arrows. Arella had said that Azarathians were passive. Yes, he'd barreled out of Azar's room with a limp Raven in his arms but he was not the one to harm her. But he could understand their judgement of him, he did look dangerous as the Beast. Robin had assumed the worst the first time he'd transformed, too.
He glanced over at Raven's still form, crawling painfully over to her side. He folded his shirt and placed it under her head, rearranging her cape so it covered her body to keep her warm.
He slouched against the wall, placing his hand against her head. She had to wake up soon, she just had to. And then he was going to get her to take them home and out of this place. They would discover how to control the Rage on their own.
He just wanted to go home, to sleep in his own bed and snuggle up to Raven in the night, to be with their friends and not be judged for that which he kept inside him.
Feeling suddenly drowsy, he leaned his head back so that it rested against the wall and closed his eyes.
TTTTT
"You're not participating," Nightwing snapped, taking the soral from Starfire.
Starfire sighed in exasperation and reached for the soral. "It is my leg that is injured, not my arms. I am quite capable of demonstrating the positions."
He moved away, keeping the soral from her. "I'll demonstrate the positions. I don't want you to injure yourself further."
She narrowed her eyes, bobbing up and down in the air. "You have stitched my wound and I have not been walking. How can I damage myself further?"
"You're not doing it Starfire, stop arguing with me."
"It is my people's weapon-"
"Which you trained me to use-"
"You still do not know everything-"
"I know enough to defeat thirteen of your greatest warriors, including Galfore, not to mention you."
"You are fussing-"
"No."
"But-"
He shook his head adamantly. "Pulling rank, Starfire."
Starfire huffed and folded her arms across her chest. "That is unfair."
"Don't care."
"Boss, you so gonna be sleeping on the couch tonight," Kid Flash said loudly.
"Shut it," he snapped back, keeping his eyes on Starfire.
She glared at him, her face hard. "Are you also planning on forbidding me to travel to the mall of shopping later?"
"No." Nightwing sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Star, just humour me okay? We're not sparring today. I can demonstrate the positions. It frees you up to correct their postures."
"Oh ye of little faith," Batgirl remarked with a grin.
"Can we get on with this already?" Speedy complained.
"Have somewhere to be?" snapped Nightwing, his shoulders stiffening, but he refused to look from Starfire. "Please, Star?"
Starfire sighed. "Very well." She waggled a finger at him. "But I will be participating tomorrow."
"We'll discuss it," said Nightwing with a smug smile.
She clicked her tongue at him in annoyance, turning to the group before them. "Since only Cyborg and Nightwing have the physical strength to pick up the soral, we will be practicing the positions using the bo staff." She cast Nightwing a wiry glance. "I have been told that some of the positions and movements required to use the soral do not make sense." Nightwing cast her a cheeky grin and she rolled her eyes. "But you must understand, the use of the soral as a weapon is steeped in tradition. I learned to use it at a very young age. One of the most important rules of soral use is having a balanced stance."
She glanced at Nightwing, who quickly slid into the position. Feet further apart, she sent cheekily.
He wrinkled his nose at her. Now you're just having a go at me. My feet are fine.
She giggled into his mind as she eyed the others in the room while they copied the stance. "Cyborg, you must bend your knees more, Batgirl, your hands must be further apart and Bumblebee, your hands need to be closer together. I realise the weapon will feel strange, but once you actually have a soral in your hand, you will understand. It has a different balance than the bo staff. Herald, your position is good, as is yours Kid Flash." She eyed Speedy and shook her head. "Speedy, you will need to pick the soral up."
Bumblebee smacked Speedy on the back of the leg with her bo staff. "This is supposed to be a punishment for you. C'mon, do it properly."
Speedy sulked and huffed. "I can't pick the fucking thing up," he snapped, eyeing the soral on the floor. "Why can't I use a staff too?"
"I've had just about enough of your attitude lately," Bumblebee snapped. "As I'm sure everyone else has. Just do it."
He grumbled and reached down to pick up the blade, his entire body straining with the effort. It took him some time to get his body into Nightwing's position, his arms shaking.
Starfire frowned and glanced at Nightwing, whose mouth was twisting with disdain as he looked at Speedy. She watched him shake his head and look back at her, waiting for her next instruction. She didn't like the animosity Nightwing felt for Speedy now and wondered what had occurred in Speedy's life to make his personality change so drastically. He'd never been this rebellious or disrespectful before.
Starfire sighed and continued the lesson, running them all through a series of movements and basic blocks.
"Batgirl," she said, drawing her friend's attention to her and halting the training for a moment. "I believe you have the same problem as Nightwing did when he first began learning the soral. Although you are indeed holding a bo staff in your hand, you must treat it as though it were a soral. If you were to hold a soral as such, the blade would unbalance you."
"Maybe we should get the bladed bo staff for her Star," Nightwing called from where he was helping Kid Flash readjust his position. "It has the same balance as a soral, just not as heavy, might help you."
"Perhaps we should have started everyone on the bladed staff?"
Nightwing shook his head and walked over to the weapons cabinet. "We don't have enough made yet, Cy and I are going to finish them off tonight. Besides, Batgirl's only having trouble because she's used a staff before. The others haven't, they could do some real damage with the blade." He gave Batgirl a wiry smile. "You have to unlearn those skills. Got me into a ton of trouble when we first started."
Batgirl snorted. "The great Nightwing, having trouble with a weapon. That'd be the day."
He grinned at her. "I had more trouble than you know. Miss Know-it-all over there only let me use the bo staff to practice the moves with, I had to use the soral to spar." He passed her the bladed bo staff. It was an imitation soral the only difference being it was made from the same lightweight material as the bo staff. "Try that."
Batgirl nodded almost instantly. "Ahh, I see what you mean about the balance."
"Are we going to do some sparring today?" Herald asked curiously.
Starfire considered, glancing at Nightwing. "I do not believe that would be wise. You only have the very basic moves at the present time."
"We could always pair them up," Nightwing suggested. "Get them to practice the moves on one another."
Starfire nodded. She moved to hovering beside Nightwing and waited while the Titans paired off and Nightwing illustrated the movements she wanted them to practice.
Nightwing and Starfire stood side by side and watched their friend's practice.
"Aww, you can't be serious," Speedy complained as he faced off before Kid Flash. "I can't even move with this weapon and you want me to face someone that moves too much?"
Kid Flash looked at Nightwing beseechingly and half annoyed and Starfire felt sorry for him. He was trying so hard to do things right and was being constantly hampered by Speedy's refusal to do it properly.
"Fine," Nightwing snarled. "Perhaps you'd like to partner with me, Speedy?"
Speedy went white and the others in the room stilled.
Starfire lay a calming hand on Nightwing's shoulder and turned her head. "Cyborg, would you mind switching with Kid Flash for the time being?"
Cyborg nodded. "Sure, better than having to patch Speedy's ass up after Nightwing's finished with him."
"Thanks boss," Kid Flash said quietly as he passed them and Nightwing nodded, watching Speedy closely.
They watched in silence for a while, with Starfire occasionally calling out pointers to her friends as weapons clanged together.
"Herald's doing well," Nightwing commented.
"As is Batgirl," Starfire said, her hands behind her back as she concentrated on their movements.
"She just had to get the balance right," he murmured, touching her briefly on the hip. "It took us ages to figure out why I was having trouble switching from a bo staff to a soral, remember?"
She nodded and smiled without taking her eyes of the practicing pairs. She frowned. "Speedy does seem to be having trouble. Perhaps we should allow him to use a staff? I fear if we push to hard, he will just resent us even further."
"Me you mean. He's just slow on the uptake," Nightwing muttered, his eyes narrowing. "But then, he doesn't really want to be here. S'okay, I'll put him through his paces when we're done." He sighed. "I'll even let him use a staff."
"You do not wish me to stay?" she asked mildly, already knowing the answer to that question.
"You and the girls are going shopping and I think you need to do that," he said with a smile, glancing at her. "Cyborg's gonna stay and make sure I don't kill him. Just… be careful on that leg, okay?"
Starfire nodded and called a halt to the practicing.
TTTTT
Three girls traversed down the long expanse that was the Jump City Mall. Shoppers glanced at them curiously before moving aside. Children pointed and giggled, teenage boys walked into objects and bragged to friends, while the teenage girls look at the boys in disdain. Shop assistants called out the names of two of the girls, waving friendly and one of them responded with enthusiasm to each wave as she floated beside her two friends.
"I can't believe I'm going to the mall as Batgirl."
Starfire smiled as she waved to yet another shop assistant. "We do not usually appear out of uniform. If you are concerned that you will be accosted, have no fear. The people of Jump City are very used to seeing us traverse the mall of shopping."
"It's just strange, that's all," Batgirl replied, rubbing her neck self-consciously.
"You may find you enjoy it," Bumblebee said. "Plenty of guys will try and chat you up."
Batgirl's eyebrows shot up. "Really? Why?"
"Hero complex," Bumblebee replied with a grin. "They like strong women. Isn't that right, Star?"
Starfire frowned and shrugged. "I do not find that boys often try and do the chatting up of me."
Bumblebee snorted. "That's cause it's always been common knowledge that you were Nightwing's, even when the two of you weren't officially dating. He'd kick their asses."
"Then you have been chatted up Bumblebee?" Starfire asked curiously, bobbing up and down in the air as they moved through the mall.
"Yeah, loads of times. Herald gets all cranky now. He hates it when guys flirt with me."
Starfire giggled. "What are we shopping for today? Perhaps we could journey to the parlor of beauty to purchase the polish of nails, or -"
"Wedding dress," Bumblebee said with a cheeky grin.
Starfire frowned. "For who?"
Bumblebee rolled her eyes. "For you, Star."
"That is not necessary. I already have a dress."
"Oh snap," muttered Bumblebee, planting her hands on her hips. "What about Bridesmaids then? Who are you having?"
"The weddings on Tamaran are not like the weddings on Earth. We do not have maids of the bride, or the flower girls, or the thing called a 'garter' that Nightwing will not explain to me."
Bumblebee huffed. "Fine. Do the rest of us get to wear what we want?"
"You may wear whatever you desire. You could even wear Tamaranian clothing if you wish."
Bumblebee eyed her. "Like yours?"
Starfire looked down at herself. "No. There are many different variations of clothing on Tamaran."
Bumblebee nodded. "Sounds fun, we can go shopping on your planet. But I still wanna go dress shopping today."
Batgirl cast her a glance. "Somehow I think your ultimate goal was to go dress shopping anyway."
Bumblebee grinned. "You got me. Any excuse."
"Starfire!" a voice called and Starfire turned curiously.
Two teenage girls rushed up, giggling furiously and whispering to themselves.
"Greetings," Starfire said, smiling at them. "Is there anything I can assist you with?"
"We're just curious. You're like Nightwing's girlfriend now right? Is he a good kisser?"
Starfire frowned. "Why do you wish to know?"
"Oh c'mon Star," Bumblebee said cheekily. "You know as well as anyone how much the fangirls crush after him."
"He's so dreamy," one of the girls giggled, her eyes starry. "And that new uniform is so sexy."
Batgirl snorted and Starfire cast her a glance, her eyebrows raised.
"I'm not even gonna go there," Batgirl said, holding up her hands.
"We saw you kiss at the Pizza Parlor on your first day back after your latest mission. Please, Starfire, you gotta tell us."
"Nightwing kissed you in public?" Batgirl curiously asked and Starfire nodded. "Wow, he has changed."
One of the girls eyed her. "Who are you?" she demanded.
"Batgirl."
"Oooh," she replied, twisting a strand of hair around her finger. "So, you're, like, his sister or something, aren't you? From Gotham?"
Batgirl choked. "Oh my god, is that what they think I am?"
Starfire giggled and leaned over to whisper in her ear. "Would you rather they know the truth? Remembering that they are fans of Nightwing?" She turned back to the girls. "I am sorry to disappoint, but I will not be telling you if Nightwing is a good kisser. Please enjoy your day at the mall of shopping."
"Oh please Starfire?" one of the girls begged, her hands clasped before her pleadingly.
Starfire shook her head.
"Can't you tell us anything?"
Starfire shook her head again, grabbing onto Bumblebee and Batgirl's wrists. "I do not do the kissing and telling. Let us go friends. We have much of the shopping to do." She dragged them into the nearest shop.
"Um, Star?" Batgirl giggled, trying to control her mirth as she saw which shop they had entered. "I really don't need anything from here."
Bumblebee burst out laughing. "Are you sure? I bet they have an 'I love Cyborg' hat."
Starfire giggled. "They have an 'I have the hots for Herald' shirt over there."
Bumblebee's head swiveled. "They do? Where?" she asked as she trotted off to look.
Starfire looked around. She'd unknowingly pulled them into the 'Teen Titans Souvenirs' shop in the mall. It was full of tatty merchandise with the Titans labels on them. From where she floated she could see copies of Raven's hood and cape hanging against the wall, stuffed green animals of all shapes and sizes, shirts and shorts with Titan logos and sayings, or the novelty 'I love -insert Titan here-' shirts. She actually saw a poorly replicated uniform of hers hanging up for sale. She floated through the shop, giggling at the Titan mugs, the cybernetic alarm clocks, Titan face masks including a duplicate of Nightwing's old mask. She saw a copy of Speedy's bow hanging on the wall, Bumblebee's blasters, Jericho's lute, and Robin's birdarangs. There were plastic retractable bo staves and sonic cannon water guns. There was even Titan communicator radios.
She giggled as she picked up a miniature figuring of herself. "I cannot believe anyone would wish to buy these."
"Hey Star," Batgirl called and Starfire turned to look. Batgirl held up a pair of red boxer shorts, the 'R' emblem plastered on the front. "Lookie here! Do you think he knows these exist?"
Starfire burst out laughing and floated over to have a look. She curled up into a ball, laughing in the air as she saw the red and green pair of bra and panties, complete with the 'R' emblem on the rack next to where the boxers were.
"Hey!" Bumblebee called from the front of the store. "They even have Nightwing merchandise! That was quick."
"Truly?" Starfire asked curiously as she and Batgirl headed over to where Bumblebee was. She was standing before a new display. There were Nightwing coffee mugs, pencil holders, briefcases, key chains, jewelry, stickers, black shirts with the blue insignia splashed across it. There were even novelty Nightwing fluffy handcuffs and underwear.
Starfire giggled as she picked up a teddy bear dressed as Nightwing and hugged it to her chest. "This is adorable! I shall have to purchase this!" She picked up a few more items, including a new coffee cup for Nightwing.
Bumblebee shoved a black and blue bra and thong into her hands. "You gotta buy this, too," she said with a giggle and a wink. "He'll die."
Starfire went scarlet.
"Are you planning on buying the Herald set of underwear too Bee?" Batgirl asked, trying not to laugh.
"Only if you'll buy an Cyborg shirt or hat."
"Fine," she huffed, heading over to the Cyborg display.
"I wonder if we should pick something up for Jinx and Argent while we're here," Bumblebee said cheekily.
"Or Raven," Starfire said, eyeing the Beast Boy merchandise.
Bumblebee laughed as she collected a few Herald novelty items. "More fun to bring her here and have her choose her own."
Batgirl held up a shirt, Cyborg plastered on the front in a victory pose with his trademark 'Boo-yah!' splashed across the front. "Suitable?"
Bumblebee rolled her eyes. "Can't you have any imagination?"
"Since Cyborg and I aren't a couple, this is the only thing I could find that wouldn't scare him off or make him think I was some sort of fruitcake."
Bumblebee sighed. "'Spose it will have to do then."
Starfire smiled and went to make her purchases.
TTTTT
Speedy hit the floor with a thump, his bo staff clattering away. He lay on the floor and panted, sweat dripping from his body.
Nightwing snarled. "You're not even trying! We even allowed you to use a bo staff and you're still not even having a go!"
Speedy sat up. "I didn't fucking want to do this, that's why! Why should I be punished for a stupid kiss?"
"Because you disrespected Starfire and you disrespected me! How dare you kiss her after we'd just announced we were getting married? And then to lie about it! What kind of person does that?"
Speedy's face twisted. "Everything's just perfect in your life now isn't it? Just peachy? You're the leader of the Titans. You got the girl. You're getting married. What about the rest of us?"
"I didn't realise this was a fucking competition!" Nightwing yelled, balling his hands into fists.
"Everything in your life is about competition!" Speedy snarled, getting to his feet.
"All right you two," Cyborg said, interposing himself between the two of them. "Speedy, hit the showers. Training's done."
Nightwing turned away from them both, snarling quietly to himself and picked up the discarded weapons, watching out of the corner of his eye as Speedy practically bolted for the exit.
"You okay, Dick?" Cyborg asked quietly.
Nightwing ran his fingers through his hair in annoyance. "He's just pushing all my buttons lately. Seems to be going out of his way to make me angry. Sorry."
"Understandable." Cyborg hesitated for a moment. "Do you want me to call Starfire? She's better at calming you down."
"No." Nightwing took a deep breath, trying to control his anger. "She needs a break. And I'd probably just end up yelling at her. I'm just gonna hit the punching bag for a while. Seeya in the common room soon."
TTTTT
"Ooh," Starfire exclaimed, clapping her hands gleefully. "Batgirl, that looks glorious on you!"
"It's green," she remarkably clinically, her fingers pinching the seam of the skirt to lift it as she twirled to display the dress. "I don't usually wear green."
"It looks magnificent with your hair," Starfire exclaimed.
"What do you think?" Bumblebee asked, drawing back the curtain of the changing room and appearing in a stunning red gown.
"That looks good on you Bee," Batgirl said with a grin. "Nice cut, shows off your cleavage well."
Bumblebee winked. "That's the idea."
Starfire pressed her lips together in thought. "Bumblebee, you are planning on wearing this on Tamaran?"
Bumblebee shrugged. "Maybe, I don't know. It's nice to have a backup if I can't find a Tamaranian dress to wear. Why? What's wrong with it?"
"Your neck is showing."
"Is that a bad thing on Tamaran?" she asked, a frown spreading on her face.
Starfire nodded. "I should explain certain things to our friends before we go. Do you recall when I told you that Tamaranians do not kiss to display affection?"
Bumblebee giggled. "Yeah, you flirt you."
Starfire giggled in return, rolling her eyes playfully. "We do not have the boyfriend and girlfriend on Tamaran. We have chosen and claimed. You and Herald would be considered claimed. If you do not wish Tamaranian males to try and claim you, and they will since they can see your neck, you will need to exchange marks."
Bumblebee raised an eyebrow. "Marks?"
Starfire scratched her neck deliberately.
"Shit… he has to bite me?"
Starfire nodded. "Not as hard as Nightwing did, but enough to leave a mark. And you will have to bite him as well. This is why all Tamaranians wear neck guards or gorgets. Those that do not are displaying themselves as single."
"And what if you're not claimed?" Batgirl asked curiously.
"Then I suggest that you do not allow anyone to touch your neck. I will explain all this and more before we all journey to Tamaran."
Bumblebee nodded, eyeing herself in the full-length mirror and twirling. "Perhaps I can wear a choker or something. Cause I really like this dress."
Batgirl smiled cheekily, ducking back into the changing room. "No, you think Herald's going to like that dress."
Bumblebee wrinkled her nose in Batgirl's direction as she continued to admire her dress in the mirror.
TTTTT
The sound of the computer beeping, blipping and pinging and Cyborg's boisterous 'boo-yah' assaulted his ears the moment Nightwing walked into the common room.
"Damn it, Cyborg, you're cheating!" Herald snapped, throwing his controller on the table in disgust.
"Am not. S'not fault I'm better than you," he retorted gleefully.
"Not better," Kid Flash said. "You've just had more practice than us. You live here remember, the rest of us are just visiting."
"Maybe you should sit this next one out," Aqualad advised. "Give the rest of us a chance."
"Nuh-ahh, we agreed. Winner plays on. Since none of you have won yet, I get to keep playin'."
Nightwing rolled his eyes and walked over to the Titan computer, tossing the small disc Starfire had found in the wreckage of that burning building yesterday on the bench beside it. He slouched down on the seat and began to type.
"Nightwing, man," called Cyborg, turning his head as the disc clanged against the bench. "Wanna join in?"
"Yeah, boss," Kid Flash called. "You can beat the pants off Cyborg for us. He's on a winning streak."
Nightwing shook his head. "No thanks, I've got work to do." He glanced around the room. "Where's Speedy and the twins?"
Herald shrugged. "Don't know about Speedy, but the twins are doing a snack run."
"You're seriously doing work?" Cyborg asked curiously.
"Yup, we have a new case."
"Really?" Aqualad asked. "That was fast, you guys have only been back a couple of days. What is it?"
"Did you happen to notice there was a frequent occurrence of fires while we were gone?" Nightwing asked curiously.
Aqualad frowned. "Well… yeah. Didn't think much of it though, I put them out pretty fast. We were thinking they were caused by electrical faults in buildings. Lots of heaters being left on and such."
Nightwing raised his eyebrows and turned his head to look at Aqualad blandly.
"We've got ourselves an arsonist, don't we?" Cyborg commented.
"Yup. Star picked it up."
"Wait… you're actually letting Starfire help you with paperwork?" Cyborg asked incredulously.
Nightwing frowned. "She's not stupid Cyborg. Just naïve of Earth ways."
"That's not what I meant, of course she's not stupid. Just, you never let anyone help. Even when you were training for the xhandal, you only barely allowed Raven and me to take some of the workload."
Nightwing shrugged and looked back at the computer. "Let's just say I had a shift in priorities. Anyway, while you guys were at the beach, Star and I attended another fire. It burned way too fast. The whole building collapsed within ten minutes of the alarm going off. Star found something in the wreckage that didn't belong." He pointed to the small metal disc. "I'm going to run some tests."
Cyborg raised an eyebrow, getting to his feet and wandered over. Nightwing saw the other guys scramble for his controller and begin playing the computer game again. "How did she manage to find something that small in a wreaked building?"
Nightwing rubbed the back of his neck, determinedly keeping his eyes on the computer. "She was in the building when it started to collapse."
Cyborg cuffed him on the back of the head. "Dick, you're supposed to look after our girl." He reached down and picked up the small disc. "Hmm… these markings look familiar."
Nightwing glanced up at him, a frown on his face. "Star said the same. I haven't seen anything like it before though. Where do you remember seeing it?"
Cyborg rubbed his chin and activating his console. "Can't rightly say, just that it looks familiar." He glanced at his arm console. "Not picking up any traces of anything unusual. The metal composition is a little unorthodox, but nothing out of the ordinary."
"Unorthodox how?"
"It's got traces of Palladium in there, it's just unusual. It's some sort of emblem?"
"That's my guess. Going to run that symbol through the computer, see what I can find."
Cyborg leaned over the back of his chair, watching him work. "What about Raven's books?"
"No. The fact that both you and Star recognise it leads me to believe it's not mythical in nature. Besides, have you seen how many books she has? I wouldn't even know where to start. Plus, there's that whole dilemma, which ones are really books and which ones are portals to other dimensions, or are going to try and eat us when we open them."
"You'd think with BB staying in her room now, she would have locked away all her dangerous stuff in case he broke it."
Nightwing smiled. "You know, I think she's actually trying to trust him to behave himself."
Cyborg chuckled. "Our little grass stain is growing up."
Nightwing paused in his typing for a moment and twisted to look up at his friend. "Cy… about Babs, you know I don't mind, don't you?"
Cyborg sighed and lowered his voice. "Yeah, I know. I… let's just say some of the girls I've dated have had issues with parts of me being metallic."
"She's not like that," Nightwing said, feeling indignant on Batgirl's behalf.
"I know… but it makes it hard to open up, that's all…"
Nightwing narrowed his eyes. "Well, you'd better figure something out. She won't wait forever."
Cyborg grunted at him and glanced back over at the game computer. "Yo! Who said you could take my turn!"
"No way dude," Herald called, laughing. "You left your seat. That's a forfeit! Our turn now."
Cyborg muttered under his breath as he lumbered back over to the boys and slouching back down on the sofa to wait his turn once more.
Nightwing sighed and shook his head, turning his attention back to the computer. He quickly set up a search program to scan for similar images in the various databases they'd collected.
He worked in silence for a long time, ignoring the hooting and hollering of his friends as they played their games. He was vaguely aware of the twins returning with snacks and offering him some, which he refused.
He leaned back on his chair, twisting the emblem between his fingers as he mulled over things. The insignia Starfire had found was nagging at him and he really hated it when he couldn't figure things out. The fact that both Starfire and Cyborg recognised, but couldn't say why was concerning. Was it a crest perhaps? Something like the mark of Scath had been? Was it some sort of warning? He'd even gone as far to check that Allgera was still in Arkham Asylum, so it couldn't have been her or the WeatherMan.
"Boss, please," Kid Flash called loudly, breaking his concentration. "You gotta do something about Cyborg. It's unfair."
Nightwing glanced over at him. "How?"
"He won't give the rest of us a chance."
"Not my fault you're no good at this game," Cyborg said gleefully.
Nightwing rolled his eyes and got to his feet. "Gimme that controller."
The sound of the computer beeping and the jovial cry of friends barracking them on filled the room.
"You want some of this Cyborg?" Nightwing smirked cheekily after they had battled for what seemed like ages.
"I though you were bringing it on sometime soon?" Cyborg retorted.
"C'mon boss!" Kid Flash cheered, his fists punching the air. "You can do it! Whip his scrawny, cybernetic ass!"
"My ass is not scrawny!"
"That's it," Herald bellowed loudly, as Nightwing's character managed to deck Cyborg's. "Finish him!"
"Oh no you don't!" Cyborg yelled.
"Wanna bet?" Nightwing smirked, his thumbs tapping away to the controller.
"Yes!" Kid Flash cried, Herald and Aqualad, while Cyborg groaned and flopped back on the sofa.
Nightwing smirked proudly, leaned back on the sofa, placed his hands behind his head and his feet up on the coffee table, letting out a satisfied sigh. "And my job here is done."
"Very well played," Starfire said softly, her fingers running through his hair.
Nightwing dropped his arms immediately, tilting his head back to look up at her. "Star! When did you get back?"
"Oh, about five minutes ago," Batgirl claimed, grinning mischievously. "Just in time to see that macho display of dominance."
Nightwing rolled his eyes while Cyborg scowled. Nightwing turned around and knelt on the sofa, looking at Starfire's bags. "Did you get me anything?"
Bumblebee erupted into girlish giggles, her hand on Herald's shoulder while Starfire went red and cast her a glare.
"Yes," she replied looking back at him. She reached down into her bag and pulled out a black mug, passing it to him.
He looked at it, howling laughter when he saw his Nightwing insignia plastered all over it. "Oh my god, that was quick!"
"Go on, Star, show him the rest!" Bumblebee said cheekily.
Starfire clutched her bag to her chest. "No."
Nightwing raised an eyebrow, curiosity taking over. "What did you buy, Star?"
She shook her head, hiding the bag behind her back. "You will see later."
"I think he'll want you to model it for him!" Bumblebee giggled.
"Leave her alone," Batgirl said with a smile. "Or we'll make you model yours as well."
"Oh?" Herald asked, looking at Bumblebee's bags. "What did you buy, honeybee?"
"Er…"
Batgirl giggled.
"Well, what did you buy, Batgirl?" Cyborg asked curiously and Nightwing noticed she carried a bag labeled 'Teen Titans Souvenirs' as well.
Batgirl sighed. "They made me," she said, pulling out the large white T-shirt.
Nightwing, Kid Flash, Herald and Aqualad burst out laughing while Cyborg seemed to be frozen in shock.
TTTTT
Beast Boy blinked open his eyes. He hadn't meant to fall asleep, but it seemed his body couldn't help it.
He felt strange. Dizzy. Sick. Something wasn't right.
A weird tingling sensation seemed to be spreading through his entire body. And he couldn't quite remember where he was, nor how he'd gotten there. Something bad had happened, something that meant Raven wasn't safe where she was and he'd fled with her still body to protect her.
He tried shifting his legs, but they felt like dead weights. He couldn't quite see properly either, the strange rocky cave he was in swimming in and out of view. Dark spots flickered around the edge of his vision.
A sudden bout of nausea sent him scurrying to the edge of the cave on all fours and heaving the contents of his stomach over the edge. He gagged and gurgled before collapsing against the cold, uneven stony floor, one arm hanging over the edge of the cave.
The light dimmed and his vision faded.
Next Chapter: WTF is wrong with Speedy? And will Raven wake up?