What are you doing?

Reading.

Okay let me know when you aren't. I miss talking to you.

Raven was reading the story of Malchior the wizard's titanic battle with the evil dragon Rorek. Not even Shuichi could disturb her without her irritation. She was further irritated when Beast Boy and Cyborg wanted to play "stank ball."

"Why do you have to stay in your room all the time? Why do you have to be so creepy?" She sat back down on the bed, feeling a sadness she hadn't felt in awhile.

"I'm not creepy. I'm just different. I wish there was someone who understood. I wish there was someone more like me."

"I couldn't agree more." The book spoke, making her throw it to the ground in surprise.

"Ouch…"

"Did you just talk?" She asked, feeling very confused.

"Indeed I did."

"But you're a book."

"Actually I'm a man trapped in a book," the book then flipped to a page with a pair of white eyes accompanied with some white hair.

"Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Malchior."

"You're the wizard in the battle. But that-"

"Was over a thousand years ago? I was trapped in the book and have been waiting for someone to find me for all this time."

He sounds like he's lying to you Ray.

This is none of your business.

He's just trying to take advantage of you. You're feeling down about yourself. He just wants to use you.

You don't know that. Now stop.

Kurama couldn't stand it as she got closer to that fake in the book. He knew something was wrong. He knew he was just trying to get something from her. People weren't just imprisoned in books for no good reason. He kept trying to check in with her but she became more and more distant. He felt helpless as she starting falling for this bastard who was in a book of all places. Every time she talked to him she would seem so upset. He would catch her laughing or being happy with this monster and he felt himself becoming increasingly angry. He didn't know how to feel. He wanted to get her away from him, but had no idea how without her getting mad at him. But he was starting not to care.

"Raven, you're the best thing that's happened to me in a thousand years."

"Then you don't think I'm… creepy?"

"Certainly not."

Please! I am so sick of listening to this guy butter you up! Most of the things he's saying are things I've already said to you. I told you you're beautiful and it doesn't matter. I told you that you aren't creepy but my opinion no longer matters. He is just using you for something and you are too blind to see it.

You're just like the rest of them! You just don't like him because he understands me! You think I'm creepy too you just don't want to admit it!

Raven can't you see what he's doing? He's just playing with you! He needs you for something I just don't know what yet!

If you can't accept this then I don't want to talk to you anymore.

Fine.

How dare he assume that Malchior was a bad person? He actually understood her while Kurama only pretended to like her for her brother. He didn't have any real feelings for her, not like Malchior did. She was glad she was getting rid of him. He was such a jerk anyways.

"You've been teaching me dark magic?!" She demanded an explanation as she burst throughout the door.

"Dark, or merely misunderstood? People fear power Raven, that is why they call it dark. We need this magic if we are ever to be together. Or do you want to be alone again?" A tear rolled down her cheek. He cupped her face.

"It is time." She felt nervous as she recited the incantation. She could hear Shuichi's voice saying that Malchior was using her. She pushed it back, hoping that she could be happy once they were together. She tried to push Shuichi to the furthest corner of her mind. She then realized that Malchior was the name of the dragon, not the wizard. She ran towards the book to try and stop it, but it was too late. The other titans ran in after Malchior escaped through the ceiling.

"He lied to me. He lied to me and I gave him exactly what he wanted."

"Raven?" Beast Boy asked sadly.

"Just get out of my room." Shuichi had been right. She should have known. He was always right. He could always see things as they really were. She should have listened but she didn't. Shuichi! He cared about her. How could she have not realized it? She tried to contact him but there was no answer and she couldn't blame him. She quickly went out to fight Malchior.

The look Shuichi was giving her was the most angry she had ever seen him. His eyes were narrowed in furry and his mouth was twisted in a frown. She felt nervous as she looked at him. His friends were looking back and forth at them like a tennis match.

"Let's go outside Raven." His voice sounded low and furious. She slowly walked behind him, holding her arm nervously as the left the hotel. He took her upstairs to the roof and looked at her. He looked more angry than she could have even pictured.

"Where's your precious Malchior now?" She looked down.

"You were right. He was just using me. I had to trap him back in the book."

"And now that your little love interest is over you figure I'll still be around waiting for you don't you? You think that I'll be so happy to see you again after what you shared with him?" He ground out still looking at her with furry.

"No. I expected you to tell me you were going to marry one of my sisters."

"I see now that my opinion doesn't matter to you. If some other guy with white hair who you don't even know tells you that you're beautiful then it must be so. But if your own best friend says it you don't believe it at all. Not to mention you cutting me out just because you were falling in love with some asshole who was using you. But now that you've come running back I feel SO much better." One tear rolled down her face. He looked away, not wanting to see. It had been his goal to hurt her. It had been his goal….

She would never know what kind of pain she had put him through. He had been so sad that she had chosen that THING over him. He hadn't been as social with his friends, he even avoided Hiei. He had resisted every urge to contact her, to try to reason with her once again. But worst of all, she had broken his heart. He had been falling hard for her without realizing it. But now he knew that he loved her. Or at least was starting to. But now he would have to put an end to the silly emotion because she could just give it to anyone so easily. He had been so sad and angry the last few days that he was grateful he didn't have a match anytime soon. His heart was breaking even now as she stood before him, trying her best to apologize in the only way she knew how.

"I'm sorry Shuichi. I'm so sorry. He just made me feel special. But that's what you were trying to do all along. And I didn't realize it because I thought you had to. I thought they were making you but now I know they weren't. And I'm so sorry I hurt you." Her crying had escalated, and he looked at her, the anger receding from his face.

"I've had time to think about all the things to say about you, all the wonderful things that describe how you are, why I think you're fascinating. But if you asked me to write it down I haven't got a paragraph. Because you're something that can't be explained. I'm sorry that I wasn't good enough, that I couldn't make you feel special like some stranger could. I don't know if my pride is hurt or my heart. I can't tell."

"You were plenty good enough! It was all my fault!" She looked at him, trying to convey what she meant. He looked down, trying to hold in everything he felt.

"Is this how you feel when you try to keep everything in?"

"Whatever you feel, I think I feel it too." The tears were still falling from her eyes as she slowly approached him. He didn't move, but he felt himself tense. He tried to tell himself that he shouldn't trust her again, that she had hurt him too much. But he just stood there as she reached up and touched his face lightly. His eyes closed, as he willed himself to stay strong.

"I'm sorry." He looked down into her eyes.

"I should have been there for you more. Then you wouldn't have felt creepy."

"You did everything you could have done. It had nothing to do with you. This is all my fault. I'm so sorry." He slowly reached down and hugged her.

"You'll be at my match tomorrow right?"

"Anything you want."

"Sleep next to me tonight?"

"Of course."

"Play cards with my friends and I?"

"You're pushing it there but fine." He looked down and smiled down at her. As they started to walk back down stairs, she stopped abruptly.

"Shuichi?" He looked at her, "Are we….going to be okay?"

"Yeah. I think we're going to have to be." He slowly took her hand in his and they walked back down the stairs together