~Gotham City~

~Beast Boy's POV~

"Welcome to the Sweet Bean Café!" the cashier smiled creepily, "Can I help you?"

"Sure, I'd like the veggie croissant with cheddar soy crisps and water."

"Alright, and for you sir? Um, sir?"

I could hear the teen talking to me, but I just could not tear my attention away from the girl at the back. She had long black hair and pale skin. Her eyes landed on mine for no more than a half second, but my enhanced sight caught the brief recognition that flashed across her face.

Within seconds I was drifting towards her. She could sense me approaching, the fiddling with the ring on her finger made that obvious. I wasn't doing anything to try to calm the rampaging emotions inside of me, and it was clearly affecting her.

"Hey, Rae" I whispered, hardly even audible.

She did not even glance up at me as she stirred her tea and said, "I thought I made it clear you didn't need to find me."

"I know you didn't mean it." I said evenly.

I slid into the seat beside her, making it impossible for her to escape unless she used her powers.

"Beast Boy…" she mumbled, a blush had grown on her cheeks.

Something about that blush sent a surge of confidence through me. Without thinking I slipped my hand under hers and removed her hologram ring. Her hair slowly transformed back into the long purple locks I had always loved. I set the ring aside and began stroking the ends of her hair like I would when we had the tower alone and we would relax on the couch. A sigh escaped her pale lips. I watched as her blush had consumed most of her face and realized I probably looked as embarrassed as she did.

"Raven," I leaned closer to her. She tilted her face towards mine slightly.

"Yes," she breathed. I rested my head against her neck.

"Please, come home…" I whispered into her hair.

Suddenly I was engulfed in her dark energy being transported to who knows where.

~Azira's POV~

I glanced around the back, but couldn't spot anyone there either.

"Um, could you make that to go?" I asked, sheepishly.

"No problem," the guy entered something into the cash register. "That'll be $15.95."

I quickly paid for the meal and waited for the order. Since no one else was around the cash register, the boy started talking to me.

"So, how do you know Ms. Roth?"

"We used to be friends, but we lost touch. I hadn't heard from her in a long time, and last I heard she was expecting. I wanted to congratulate her in person." I smiled.

"That's really nice of you. We're quite a ways from Jump City if you and your friend were visiting from Rachel's home town?"

"Yeah, but we missed Rav-um-Rachel enough to ignore the lengthy travel."

"Oh, it looks like your order is ready. Here you go!"

He handed me a bag with the logo printed on it. "Anything else I can help you with?"

"No, that's all." I answered before adding, "Actually, if you could maybe direct me towards Rachel's home, that would be a lot of help."

"We aren't really allowed to disclose our customers' information…but, I guess I can make an exception this time, just don't tell on me." he winked.

I laughed awkwardly and thanked him for his generosity as he handed me a note with Rachel's information on it.

With a final word of thanks, doggie bag in tow, I exited the café. Hopefully Beast Boy had found Raven and the two had teleported to her house. Perhaps Raven had tried to flee and Beast Boy jumped into the vortex in order to keep her in sight. At least that's what I keep telling myself. I don't want to believe that he would have found her only to forget I was still with him. Maybe it's best for them to be alone at first anyway. I don't want to be a third wheel on my parents shared emotions. I would be eavesdropping on more than my emotion-driven powers could manage.

An alarming honk nearby caused me to abruptly come to a hault just before the curb dipped into the street. A man shouted colorfully as a flash of yellow whizzed past me sending the paper cascading away from me. A girl with big curls and make-up caked on her otherwise beautiful features sneered and laughed at my misfortune. Further down the sidewalk I spotted the fly away sheet of paper. An orb of dark energy manifested around it. As the note crossed in front of the girl and into my hands, she watched mouth agape. I smirked and continued following the directions scribbled across the note.

~Beast Boy's POV~

"Ugh…" I groaned as I pushed myself into an upright position on the couch. I had forgotten how crazy that dark energy magic was. It always left me feeling like I had a hangover…minus all the vomiting.

My eyes adjusted to the dim lit room. I realized I must be at Raven's house. Mostly because there was a surplus of gothic décor combined with a large bookcase overflowing with various pieces of literature.

"That took you longer than usual," Raven commented.

I spotted her leaning against the wall, her arms folded in her common gesture. I sat up fully on the couch as she made her way to the seat next to me.

"Ha," I smiled wearily and joked, "It's been a while since I've been on that rollercoaster."

The corners of her mouth turned upward slightly before curving into a frown instead. She remembered she was mad at me.

"You should have listened to me, Garfield," I flinched at the sound of my real name in such an aggressive tone.

"But Rae, I only-"

"Don't 'but Rae' me. I appreciate that you are concerned, but I specifically told you not to try to find me."

"And when have I ever done what I was told?" I smirked.

Raven paused, her indigo eyes glittering as she sat in silence. I instinctively moved closer to her, my hand outstretched and coming to a rest on her cheek. She tilted her head against the warmth of my hand. My animal senses picked up the familiar scent of lavender and jasmine mixed with the sweet musky scent of desire.

Without warning, I leaned in and pressed my lips against hers. The sweet taste of her lips overwhelmed my senses. I felt her tense against the kiss, but she never moved. My hand slid to her side so I could guide her back towards the couch. Her lips came to life under mine, accepting the kiss eagerly. Her tongue grazed my upper lip in desperation for more. I smirked against her mouth before parting our lips.

"I knew you missed me as much as I missed you…"

"Shut up," she whispered as she blushed, pushing me off of her.

She faced forward on the couch we sat on. Her arms crossed neatly over her protruding stomach. She caught me staring and shifted uneasily.

"I'm taking her with me to Azarath once she's old enough."

"You're not even going to talk to me first? You can't just go off into another dimension without telling me! And you can't just take our child with you!"

At that point I had jumped to my feet, anger deteriorating the joy I had been feeling in her presence.

"She's mine, too! I want to be there for her! You can't expect me to just take a step back and watch the two of you vanish never to return!"

"There is no discussing our departure, Gar. The demon half of me is causing her to develop much faster than any other child. She will need to come back with me to Azarath. Her training is essential for the future of this dimension. My demon half mixed with your genetic mutation make her much more powerful than you, me, or any of the other Titans. If she were to lose control of her powers, or if she were to be tempted by evil, she could destroy the entire planet."

"Then we can teach her together," I said. "I'm not giving up on you, Rae. And I definitely won't give up on us."

I sat back down next her, placing my hand on her stomach.

"Garfield," her voice was stern but her expression was placid.