Alright, so here's what Raven has that Winifred never had. And fighting. There's always violence in my stories. Not to mention you slutty fan-girls who screamed in Trouble in Tokyo when Beast Boy ripped his shirt off and then got irritated when you realized he still had his uniform on underneath will get excited in this chapter, if you like Beast Boy and Raven fluff. And this will be serious fluff, people. You've been waiting the whole story for this. The next chapter and this one. Damn.
Enjoy!
Chapter 14
"I Have It, You Want It"
Their heads snapped up, and Raven covered his mouth with her hands, automatically. Beast Boy was in too much of a panic to object, although he honestly didn't care. They hardly breathed as the rustling began again, except much more active. Their heads slowly turned to each other, both knowing exactly what the other was thinking.
She woke up.
Oh, this wasn't good.
Robin was hiding with Starfire, Cyborg, and others in the shadows of the room. Emily had strictly ordered them to leave Beast Boy where he was, for when (for some reason she'd felt the need to make it very clear he would) he woke up, he would be in charge of keeping Raven quiet when she woke up.
"Why Beast Boy?" Jinx had asked, absent mindedly.
Emily had turned to her with a peculiar expression on her face. "Would anyone else like to restrain her?" She was curious, not mocking. Nobody had made any moves to volunteer, and so Beast Boy was involuntarily voted (though they were sure he wouldn't mind) to be Raven's caretaker while everyone hid when it was time. At first, Robin had objected, until Emily had made it quite clear less then an hour wouldn't even be nearly enough to tame her sister the way she needed to be (Me: SEXUAL! AGAIN! . . . I did warn you I was going to do this) and ineffectively would be no time to calm her and convince her to move on. But when asked for instructions, she simply said, "Raven knows. Beast Boy will know." And had refused to speak any more on the subject. Instead, hiding places were found and the lights shut off. Then the waiting had begun.
But Emily wasn't here anymore.
They prayed their fellow team members knew what they were doing.
The eyes of the glowing child on the floor (who had formally been transparent) now pried open, as if she really had been sleeping. But Emily informed them spectral beings never slept. They just . . . how had she put it? Recharged without moving.
When asked if she was aware, Emily said hardly, and all she could focus on, if that, was breathing. And only out of habit. Another fact they had learned, their kind didn't need to breathe. They just liked the feeling of it.
"But, friend Raven will awake, correct?" Starfire had asked. After receiving a nod, she'd spoken no more.
But now, as the girl gained full consciousness, they were terrified for them. True, they had heard Raven, and then a muffled bump, something that sounded like Beast Boy's voice begging her to shut up. They'd seen him beginning to peak over the side of the couch, her voice again, the same hollow sound of floor-hitting, and this time Beast Boy ordering her to be quiet. After some hushed whispers he'd gotten gotten a better look, as had Raven, and then it was quiet again. Odd actions, they admitted, for people who knew what they were doing, but that wasn't surprising to them. Not really. It was Beast Boy and Raven, working together, after all. Nothing should be natural about it. If it did get natural, then they'd get worried.
Raven and Beast Boy looked on in horror before they snapped out of it.
'What do we do?' Beast Boy mouthed, clearly terrified.
Raven made a gesture with her hands. 'I don't know!'
'I thought Emily told you!'
'I forgot!'
'You forgot? What do you mean you forgot-!?'
'I just can't remember what she said! Her memories here and mine are still separating! And what about you? She seemed found of you, did she tell you anything?' Beast Boy blushed deeply. Her eyes widened. She was being sarcastic, but if he really did say something . . . 'Did she!?'
'Well . . .'
'Beast Boy,' He flinched. Even without speaking, her eyes were warning him to tell her. The silent 'or else' evident.
'Well . . . you first! What do you have that she doesn't?'
Raven looked away, towards the covered windows. Beast Boy could tell she was debating something inside her head, but, since he knew it would be best to wait until she decided, he sat there and said nothing. Then she turned back to him, looking him dead in the eye.
'Starfire has it . . . Jinx has it . . .'
'Wha-?'
A loud groan came from the being, and they both froze.
And so it began.
"Emily?" Winifred groaned out the name. An image of white filled her head before quickly fading into her sisters face, in a meadow, their meadow, smiling at her with that compassionate, understanding face. Then it went back to white, then the brilliant light turned into some dark room. And then she remember her sister was gone. Only one, single-minded and hate filled thought continuously entered her mind.
This was their fault.
This was their fault.
This was their fault.
This was their fault!
The shriek that came from her mouth was diabolically inhuman, and scared the hell out of even her. But she was too driven by rage to notice anything besides just that emotion, and she began storming over to the sealed windows. She could've sworn she saw something dart away from the couch to behind it, but when she looked, it was gone. A rat, she guessed, and continued.
Beast Boy's ear picked up as he heard the footsteps coming towards them. He grabbed Raven and pulled her to the right side of the couch, then behind it. He could practically feel the glowing eyes of Winifred, but the feeling left him quickly and the two shared a look. Beast Boy still wanted answers, and she knew it. But he also knew now was no longer the time.
Raven disagreed, grabbing his shoulder and forcing him to her. Beast Boy, she could tell, nearly gasped at this, but kept his lips firmly clamped shut in a tight line as her frantic yet hushed whispers filled his ears. Then, as she pulled away to see if he understood, she caught sight of eyes, hiding in the shadows and silently growled.
The bastards.
The rest of the Titans now had a better view of their companions, who, Starfire noted, were in a very close proximity to her. She doubted they themselves knew it, but as soon as they had darted behind the couch, out of view from Winifred once again, Raven had Beast Boy's arm around her waist, pulling her along and out of harms way. Raven had also had her body pressed against Beast Boy's chest, managing to do so without actually sitting on his lap. Her hands were also encased in one of his, although not covering them entirely. When he had succeeded in maneuvering them silently, he'd let go, but soon after Raven had gripped his shoulders again, saying something very quietly in his ear. Then, after pulling away, her eyes flicked directly to Starfire's own and, after mild surprise, narrowed at them. Beast Boy, in response, turned around and saw them as well, looking over every hiding space each Titan was in.
"I do not believe our friends realized we were still here, and been incapacitated." Starfire whispered to Robin, looking nervous and fearing her friends had misunderstood terribly. Robin nodded his agreement and moved out of the dark.
"Cover me." He breathed to Speedy, who gave him a thumbs up.
Robin, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath while waiting till he was positive that he wouldn't be heard and timing it so he moved when she did, he rolled behind the couch in one, quick, silent movement. He now crouched next to his friends.
"Dude, where have you been?" Beast Boy demanded, in hushed tones. (Me: Do I really have to keep saying how quiet they're talking? You all get the point)
Robin's mask rose, "I could say the same for you. We had to hide, Emily made us. She said you'd be fine." His eyes glanced down at their hands. "And I see you two have been getting along well enough without us there to separate you two from fighting."
They didn't understand until they looked. Raven had not registered the slight pressure on her hand as Beast Boy's had unknowingly placed itself on top of hers. They weren't holding hands, so to speak. But it was very similar. They both pulled back immediately.
"It doesn't matter how we've been getting along," Raven retorted, changing the subject immediately. "Where have you been? And why didn't you let us know where you all were?"
"Emily-." He stopped abruptly, wondering why he was defending himself. "Hey, I just followed the orders from the person you left in charge while you took off."
Raven glared, but said nothing. Beast Boy cut in. "Well, now that we're done arguing," He turned to Raven. "You have any idea what she meant by that?"
Raven shook her head, and Robin noticed a faint blush on her cheeks, but apparently Beast Boy didn't or he ignored it for some reason that went unknown to him. For the moment.
"None whatsoever. But maybe if you told me what she said to you-."
The loud groan of bending metal kept Raven from answering and saved Beast Boy from answering. They peeked over the couch, careful to only let their eyes skim the surface. Just enough to see but be able to duck back down, if needed. Winifred had her fingers pressed into the metal that barricaded the windows, her hands arched. With a twist of her hands, showing of her inconceivable strength, she pried it off the glass, careful not to break it, before little lights began pressing it inwards, till it was nothing but a large ball of crumpled metal. She stroked it with a hand, her eyes studying it. Robin was vaguely reminded of the bewildered but understanding expression Emily had on when she'd been, er, "reborn".
The metal shattered, forcing them to duck back down to avoid injury. All of them pressed their backs on the couch, closing their eyes and waiting until the clanking stopped. After a while of quiet, Raven opened her eyes. She noticed Robin and Beast Boy doing the same. They all gave each other thumbs up to indicate they were okay.
The explosion sent them flying.
The couch was slammed into the wall to the left, and Robin, Raven, and Beast Boy were all slammed into the locked doors. The only audible sounds were their grunts as the pain shot up their body. (Me: Because of my genius, I have had something similar happen to me. Many times. In different ways. This whole face-pain description is entirely accurate). They all dropped back to the ground, their cheeks impacting the ground first. The pain was pressurized and sore at once, not piercing, as would have been expected. It just hurt so much it was almost numb. But sure as hell it would leave a bruise in the morning. (Me: AND IT DOES! . . . or, puts you in a retainer for almost knocking out your front teeth but really, who does things like that . . .heh heh.)
They pried themselves off the ground to hazily see the bright feet that seemed to have been redressed in odd-shaped boots that went up a few inches past the ankles and spiked up rather then stayed in a rim. Her legs were bare until around her things were a ruffled light navy blue skirt had been placed. A white spiked belt had been attacked to that and to the belt a black shirt with white-silver-blue straps going in an 'X' across her chest. Attached to the belt, going down the back of the skirt was a white material, bunching up around the sides. It was truly odd.
"Just the people I wanted to see," Her voice was amused and cruel. Raven could hear the anticipation of the kill in that voice. She knew that tone all too well, thanks to dearest daddy.
Raven felt her aching chin cupped within ice-cold fingers. Admittedly, it felt pretty good. Even as her head was tilted up and forced to look into the murderous eyes did she hardly feel anything but those cold fingers. And a touch of fear every now and then. "Hiding like the vermin you are, am I correct in assuming that?"
"Let go of her!" Beast Boy grunted out, still trying to shake the pain off.
Winifred, glancing at Beast Boy from the corner of her eye, smiled smugly now. Instead of following Beast Boy's orders, she did the exact opposite of what he wanted. She lifted Raven off the ground, gripping the front of her cape, and hoisted Raven into her arms. Raven could make no move to object as the girl, about the same size as her but thinner, carried her under her legs and back, simply striding along like she was no weight at all to her. Raven guessed she weighed as much as a toothpick to her, if that.
She was aware of Robin and Beast Boy shouting after her, and heard their struggling, but Raven felt oddly at ease. Winifred would not hurt her yet, she knew. This was going to be more mental then physical. They had time.
And, using her empathy, Winifred had others to find before killing Raven. This was the way sacrifices were thought. Only one, and no one else would be harmed.
Well, at least it wasn't someone important . . .
Raven, deciding not to care anymore, even relaxed her tensed body, knowing she could do nothing. She let her face touch Winifred's arm, enjoying the ice-cold sensation that eased the ache.
She wasn't fighting back. She wasn't even struggling!
What was she doing?
Beast Boy tried desperately to figure out just that. Robin was struggling to stand, and Beast Boy could do nothing but stare in horror as the girl he'd become so fond of was now being carried away by the person currently on their 'Most Dangerous Enemy' list. It was traumatizing, to say the least. Not to mention utterly baffling. He would've thought Raven to be at least trying to get away from Winifred, or as far as possible. But no, she was even leaning into the psychotic menace! Obviously, she knew something about her that he didn't. And if he didn't understand soon, he would go absolutely insane with fear. Robin's words were music to his ears.
"Titans . . . go." He groaned weekly.
It all happened so quickly.
From all parts of the room, and outside the severely damaged door (which was blasted off its hinges for entrance by Cyborg), their friends came to their rescue, hearing Robin despite how quiet his order was. Winifred whipped around, shocked at the loud sounds and how she found the room now filled with her hated ones. She couldn't help but grin wickedly. And she had their little princess, didn't she? Oh, she had picked a good choice in taking this one hostage.
"Let her go and nobody gets hurt," Beast Boy heard Cyborg order. He spared everyone a glance, and saw Starfire picking Robin up gently. He felt hands on his own person and saw Kid Flash hoisting his friend to his feet. And damn, was he sore. Kid Flash gave him a reassuring look before both boys turned to where Raven was, her eyes nothing but slits as her energy that had been drained from her body took its time coming back. Her head was also still curled towards Winifred, and her right hand, the one away from Winifred, hung limply towards the floor, not folded on her stomach like her left hand.
The specter grinned. "It's a bit late for that, if that was your goal. And on the contrary, no matter what someone else will get hurt, am I correct?" No one answered. Winifred looked down at Raven, almost lovingly but with a smug bitterness in her expression. "You care for this girl, don't you?"
"We're a family, of course we-." Cyborg began.
"I wasn't talking to you!" The entity shouted, silencing Cyborg at once. Her eyes roamed the crowd until she met Beast Boy's eyes. The two glared hatefully at each other for a long moment, then Winifred grinned. Kid Flash had backed off to where Jinx gestured him to come, both knowing that Beast Boy wasn't exactly safe to be around right now. And he seemed to be able to stand on his own well enough. Starfire had also taken Robin to stand next to Cyborg, so he was left alone behind everyone, having a staring contest with a ghost.
"You want her?" Winifred turned away, towards the now freed windows, the moon in her eyes. Raven, half-awake, also could not help but notice how bright and luminescent it was, almost calling to her. But she didn't know what it was saying. She didn't speak 'moon'. At her light joke, she allowed a small, tired smile to grace her lips before letting it dissolve as Winifred turned back to them. Suddenly she could hardly breathe, and yet she still did not move at once. But a low grunt came from her mouth and her hands automatically ripped at her throat, where some type of band was holding her neck from behind. It wasn't quite choking her, but it still made it difficult to get enough oxygen. She could still hear the taunting smile and expression she probably wore, even though she couldn't see her. "Come and claim her."
Raven registered the foreign way she talked, not 'Come and get her'. Instead, the word was 'claim'. More possessive and owner-worthy, she noted. But this thought happened in about two seconds of complete silence, because after that, there would be no such thing.
"Titans, go!"
As they charge, the scattered metal sprang to life around them, hovering in the air a moment before taking off to form a circle around the edges of the room, away from everyone but trapping them in at the same time. This would end here. No matter what.
Anyone with a lazor, gun, or some type of projector power shot directly at Winifred, careful not to be near Raven, who was still floating on Winifred's right side. The impact made a large explosion, but the smoke was zapped away by some type of light of their enemies own, the same color as her glowing body. Raven remained untouched, to their relief.
Winifred had fallen to one knee, it giving out for but a moment. But as she looked up, a foot was promptly in her face before she was sent into the window, it cracking where she had promptly hit. It did not shatter, for Robin had not kicked her with even half the force it took to break the windows (though he had used all his strength). Cyborg had made sure near to nothing would break this place down anytime soon.
Though not harmed (much), Winifred became disoriented. Before she could regain her self-balance, a pink hex shot directly at her spine from behind, amped up to it's strongest power potential. It only made her stumble, but that was enough to send her into confusion again. Starfire, the strongest of them all, dove into the air as high as the roof would allow, and then began spiraling down to where Winfred was. The girl hardly had time to look up before the blow that would create a seismic earthquake (if Starfire were to try this on the ground) impacted her, crushing her into the ground. Starfire jumped backwards at once, so as not to break her hands. Even her kind had their limits. Though she would heal quickly (as the people of her planet did, considering they were a war-planet), Starfire was never found of pain. No matter how small it was.
Winifred had made a large crater in the ground, testing the limitations of the floor before cracking, and groaned as she got up. That one actually had hurt a bit, and she was sore all over, but she could easily continue fighting for hours, if needed.
The Titans saw this, and Kid Flash, as fast as he could go, ran headfirst into her stomach, letting his foot swing around, knocked her backwards. Winifred's eyes widened as he sent another her way.
She dodged it entirely, and everyone froze (save Kid Flash).
They continued the light-speed game of dodge and throw that only Starfire's eyes could follow really, considering she'd flown at this speed many times before. Everyone else only saw them for a split second in different parts in front of the window before they were somewhere else again. No one dared fire anything for fear of hitting their companion, and their was no way, even for Starfire, that the could predict where they were going to be next. They were forced to stand there, without doing a thing.
Kid Flash had never met anyone, save his mentor, who could keep up with him. Only when he was half-assing it really. But as he watched this girl's face, her expression smug and taunting as she smirked at him through narrowed eyes, mocking him, he felt genuine nervousness. Then Kid Flash came reeling backwards, caught by Starfire, as Winifred landed a hard blow on his chest with her palm. Through his fear, he left his chest exposed and didn't dodge quick enough, which let her palm graze his chest. But with her strength, that was more then enough. He was incredibly lucky nothing had broken.
She straightened out of her position as Starfire set him down on the his feet, next to Jinx. The enchantress gave him a look that voiced her concern, and he shook his head, insinuating he was fine. They turned back to the fight. Or at least everyone was about to, but something else caught their attention. They then remembered the first person Winifred had originally challenged.
A loud roar, very nearly shaking the Tower, filled the room. Everyone turned around, and nearly choked on their spit. Beast Boy had turned into everyone's most feared creature, the one they believed to have hurt Raven when it first showed up.
The Beast.
Even Winifred looked startled before her eyes narrowed and her teeth became clenched. Raven fell back into her arms and the burnt coffee table floated behind Winifred, closer to the window and away from the Titans. She was wheezing for the air she'd been deprived of, and her hands kept glowing blue for a second before sparking out, telling them she was unable to heal herself for the moment. Ever so carefully and in an over-exaggerated fashion, showing just how frail Raven was compared to Winifred's strength, the girl placed Raven on her back, on the coffee table. She even went so far as to stroke Raven's face with her hand, and through the reflection in the cracked window, showing many disconnected parts of Winifred's face and Ravens, the girl smirked slyly. The insane meter went up a notch.
The Beast gave another battle-cry before launching over everybody and slamming all its force into Winifred's body, once again testing the durability of the glass. This time it shattered in a few places, sending Winifred tumbling to the ground. Raven could do nothing but watch as her life was fought for, a tired and weak sensation filling her body. Then she remembered something, her eyes widening.
The water-!
Emily now stood right in front of Raven, only a few feet away. She stopped. "You've got to help my sister, Raven. Please, I don't know what else to do anymore."
"I'll do whatever I can." Raven said boldly, hiding the fear in her heart.
Emily smiled sadly. "I know you will. Thank you."
And she splashed the water at Raven, she heard the whispers of information she needed to know about what she needed to do.
Raven visibly paled, although nobody noticed in the moonlight. And the Beast was too busy fighting to notice her increased heart rate. There was no way Raven could do that, and she wouldn't. There wasn't . . . and especially not in front of-!
Another shatter snapped Raven out of her thoughts, looking to see what had broken now. Anything left of the decorations had joined the metal swirling around the room, and the glass that had once been on the window was accompanying them as well. Anything in Winifred's little vortex was in pieces, not ever one slab of something. Just tiny little pieces that meant nothing . . .
Starfire made a move to pick Raven up in her arms, only Robin and Kid Flash with her. Everyone else was trying to help Beast Boy or at least distract Winifred. They weren't doing much, but it was something. Winifred turned, as if sensing someone near her and sent a large blast there way. It hit them three only, missing Raven completely. The girl fell back on to the coffee table, losing air for another second as she watched the three against the wall, trying to recover and try again. Beast Boy, on the other hand, was still fighting furiously.
As the teeth tried to get a hold of Winifred's arm, neck, or anywhere it could, she'd always grab the face just a second before too late and shove it off before jumping against the wall or away again before the monster did it again. He was better then she thought, but no match for her. She was just playing with him. If she wanted him dead, she could have crushed his face a while ago.
The wind was knocked out of her altogether as it head-butted her, sending her next to where Raven was. For fun, Winifred cast a glance at the gasping teenager, and then her angry and tiring expression turned to a wicked grin. She held her fiery hand above Raven's head, receiving a wide-eyed look from the green monster before it screeched and lunged at her again. And because she was growing tired of this game, Winifred grabbed his outstretched arm and flung him towards the door. He skidded backwards, landing but a few yards away and still growling in warning. Winifred remained tense for a moment before relaxing, turning back to look at Raven again.
"So, you really do want her." She breathed, giving Raven that sick, loving look from before. But this time Raven remained untouched as Winifred turned around. The ghosts hands had balls of fire, still the same luminescent color as the light from her body, and was now grinning wildly at Beast Boy. "What will you do for her?"
To their surprise, their green friend did not move for a moment. Their jaws nearly dropped at what he did next.
He turned back into a human, seeming not tired in the least, before walking towards a totally confused ghost. He stood only a few feet from her, his hands folded behind his back in a nonchalant fashion. She slowly lowered her hands before extinguishing them altogether. They were both far from relaxed, but not about to rip each others heads off.
When Beast Boy finally stopped, he was only about a foot from her, well within Winifred's killing range. And yet . . . she did not have the immediate urge to kill him . . . for now. "You wish to speak with me?" She finally said after a moment.
He nodded, hands dropping to his sides. "Yes."
Another paused.
"About?"
"I want to know what Raven has that you don't."
"Why?"
"Maybe . . . maybe we could . . . help, in some way."
Winifred looked at him with a calculating expression. Then, ever so slowly, she came to her decision. Her lips curled into a smile.
"You."
Raven, though going unnoticed, cringed. There was no stopping it now.
Beast Boy looked dumbstruck for a moment before she turned to Robin, scowling at him. "And your friends . . . she has friends . . . you all do . . ." He breathed out, feeling a little relieved and yet saddened at the same time. "People who care for you . . . people . . . who . . ." Beast Boy could see her face, on the verge of tears. She was also breathing funny, also a sign that she was upset. But he dared not reach a hand out to her, unsure of how that would affect her.
"Protect you," A voice croaked.
Beast Boy's eyes shot to Raven, looking over Winifred's shoulder. She was looking at him with a pained expression, as if something was wrong. He at once thought she was in pain, but felt somehow it went deeper then that. Something bad was going to happen. Raven knew it, and now he did.
"Yes," Winifred nodded, eyes watering now. "That is part of it . . ."
Raven's eyes went wide, Beast Boy noticed from his peripheral vision. Obviously, she had thought that protection was all Winifred was thinking about. Now, she had been thrown off course and anything could happen.
Beast Boy then understood something. Something even Raven couldn't understand fully unless she really thought about it. You couldn't just tell Winifred what something felt like, or even get her to feel it herself. You had to show her. He just didn't know what to show her.
"Part of it?" His voice remained steady. Calm. Or, as calm as he could manage with his mind slowly getting an idea of what Emily wanted that only Raven and Beast Boy give.
Winifred though, as calm as Beast Boy was, picked up the edge of fear he held. Her eyes, formally focused on the floor, snapped up to his face, sadness no longer inside them. "You wouldn't understand," She growled. Then threw back her head and wailed, "No one would understand!"
The vortex, formally slowing, although Beast Boy hadn't noticed, now sped up to twice what it was before, the objects becoming nothing but blurs of color. Winifred was obviously distracted in her wailing, and Beast Boy decided if he didn't do it now, he probably wouldn't get another chance.
Moving quickly, as originally planned, he dove forwards, towards where Raven was, and rolled up to the table she was on. Before she was even aware of what happened, Beast Boy had her up in his arms and had morphed back into the Beast, so as to be able to move quicker. He jumped over his companions once again and landed in front of the door. He'd managed to do this in all of about three seconds. Maybe two, he wasn't counting.
He was Beast Boy again as soon as his feet touched ground, and still had Raven in his arms. By now, Raven's cheek was only slightly sore, and her body was very cold from staying in such a close proximity to someone who was the temperature of near freezing for so long. Beast Boy's warm body felt perfect to her, and if she ad the energy, she would have. But instead, she blinked a few times, looking at him. "Beast Boy?"
"Yeah?" He was very aware of how close their faces were, but decided not to care right now. He was just glad he had been able to make Raven safe again. And now she wasn't the hostage anymore. It made him even happier that he'd managed to be her savior. Then he frowned, feeling he should've been able to save her. Raven noticed this and, before saying what she needed to say, smiled very slightly at him. "Thank you . . . for saving me."
Beast Boy's brows rose in surprise, but nodded, nonetheless, "Uh, sure, no problem."
Raven was about to continue when Winifred's cry of agony started up again, making them both flinch. The two shared a look. Raven spoke first between the two of them.
"You know, don't you?" He nodded to her question and she sighed. Beast Boy kept his arms around her as he set her feet on the floor, hoping it would make things more comfortable. It didn't work. Raven continued. "I just don't want to . . . force it upon you, I guess."
Beast Boy gave a weak grin. Raven noted how nervous he was. "Well, it wouldn't exactly be forced-."
The wind around them began howling, as if it too had a mind of its own. Some scattered debris inside the near tornado blew up, making a few people scream. Beast Boy already had his body to the wind and so it took near to no effort for him to shield Raven from the objects. What also made it easier (and far more pleasant, even in this situation) was that Raven had automatically clung to him. It was . . . nice. Odd, but nice somehow. Winifred's screams were getting so loud they could almost feel the vibrations on the ground. Beast Boy, normally thankful of his good ears, now wished he had normal ears. It was so loud-!
His train of thought cut off as Raven, apparently having regained strength in her legs, darted away from his hold. She'd seen the pained expression Beast Boy had, and knew if it didn't stop soon, bad things would happen. She silently snorted as she ran. Right, because things weren't bad at all right now.
"Raven!" Beast Boy pelted after her, despite Robin's hand, that tried to grab his forearm. He ducked away from it and was next to the girl he had become so close to in an instant. She turned to him, as if for approval. He nodded and, to her surprise, gripped her right hand tightly in his left, a serious but understanding expression on his face. Raven allowed her expression to match his before Raven let go of his hand and stepped but a foot in front of the source of all this chaos and what could be the source of more. Absolute genius, Raven, she thought to herself. Absolute genius.
"Winifred!" The girl continued her screams, drowning out some of Raven's shout. "Winifred, by code of Human Dominance Over Specter, I order you to be listen to me!"
That did it. The girl froze on spot, staring at Raven with an envy so green Beast Boy could nearly see it turning her skin to match his. In actuality, it was not. He just had an over-active imagination.
Raven took another step towards her, and Beast Boy matched it, not letting Raven out of grabbing distance if he could help it.
"I know . . . what the man who helped birth you did to you." Beast Boy noticed she did not use the word 'father', and understood at once. Winifred would not think of that fat, drunken old man as her father. Just a donor, so to speak. Raven would know what that was like.
At the memory he shuddered. Raven noticed his shudder, noted to ask about it later, but kept on with her speech.
"He killed you, didn't he?" Raven said very quietly. The jealous pang in Winifred's eyes evaporated at once, filled with nothing but shock. The girl did not move, signaling for Raven to continue, since she did not object or show any signs of rage. "As much as you may hate me . . . as much as you might even blame me for some of the things that have happened to you . . . I know what it's like . . . to hate your father. Father's are supposed to be kind," Beast Boy's ears pricked up at the familiar words, spoken almost word for word. "Fathers . . . are supposed to protect you, and they're supposed to," Raven swallowed. "Raise you."
". . . Yes." Winifred agreed after a moment, her voice very still, if voices could be. She seemed to not trust Raven, nonetheless. "And what exactly would make you hate your father so much, hm?"
Raven looked her square in the eye, without any fear. Or none that Beast Boy could sense from her. "He tried to use me to kill my friends, destroy this universe and myself," Winifred's eyes went back to that wide-eyed shock. "He nearly succeeded, but my friends saved me. I was able to rid him in the end, from this place. With help . . . You didn't have help though, did you?"
Winifred shook her head. "N-no."
Raven placed a hand sympathetically on her shoulder. "I know. And I'm sorry . . . But Emily, you protected her, didn't you?" Winifred nodded reluctantly. "I was inside her head, Winifred, as she was in mine. You have no idea how much that meant to her that you protected her from so much while your mother did so little. You were her real mother. Not Vera Salem. You."
"Really?" Winifred asked, hanging on Raven's every word. As if she needed this more then imaginable.
Raven nodded, "Absolutely. I would know, I got the information first hand. She loved you, Winifred. The only reason she helped us rather then you is because she didn't want you to have to fight anymore. You'd done so much for her already, she thought you shouldn't have to. And I agree with her completely! You've done more in your few years then people in their eighties have!"
"Love . . ." Winifred seemed to have tuned out after that. Beast Boy suddenly felt wary. Something in his gut said she was off.
He was right.
Winifred's face turned into a distorted scowl of hatred, anger, malice, jealousy, longing, and many other horrible expressions. "People always said love and compassion and affection were the answer to everything! That if we loved one another enough then we could get through anything! Well you know what? I'm SICK OF IT!" The tantrum was coming on, Beast Boy could tell. He knew kids. Winifred was barely a teenager. She was still a child, at heart, he knew now. A lost little girl, just wanting to die in peace. Her voice raised, and he and Raven both took steps back. "THERE ISN'T ANY LOVE IN THIS WORLD! IT'S JUST A FANTASY! NOBODY CARES ABOUT ANYBODY IN THIS WORLD! NOBODY! EMILY ONLY PITIED ME LIKE SHE DID MY MOM, SHE NEVER LOVED ME LIKE I CARED FOR HER!"
Tears were streaming down her face. Love. Affection. Compassion. Winifred didn't believe in any of that anymore! Beast Boy was beginning to panic. They needed an answer! If Winifred didn't see reason soon, they'd have no choice but to-.
"Now- don't- blatant- difficult- to love, meaning to try at all- without trying- kiss . . ."
" -kiss . . ."
" -kiss . . ."
" -kiss . . ."
"Kiss?" He breathed. Raven's head snapped in his direction.
"What did you say?" She asked, clearly unable to hear him. They were thrown backwards, unhurt, and then Winifred's magic blocked out any of the light the window hoped to give. Beast Boy did not notice. He was in shock with realization.
Only Raven could help him, she'd said. He needed Raven to do whatever he needed to do so that, somehow, under whatever circumstances, Winifred could see that men could be good guys. That not all of them were as horrible as her father. That people did care for one another, she just never lived long enough to see it. Probably in town or wherever she lived, some boy might have had the hots for her. Maybe, if she'd lived, she would've married him. Maybe she would've loved someone, and if Emily was there, see her sister get married too.
But she never did.
Only Raven could help him.
Oh shit.
Everyone ducked as the swirling air above them threw another object at them. The ghost was hard to spot, but her outline was still visible on the other side of the room. "What do we do?" Someone shouted over the wind.
Robin shouted back, "Try and keep away from it!"
Beast Boy looked around the room, noticing that Raven seemed just as serious looking as Robin. "Raven!"
She looked over at Beast Boy, her hair moving around her face. He ducked between the crowd, running over to her, "I've got an idea!"
"What?" Robin asked, everyone ducked again.
Beast Boy glared at the ghost, "Come on." He grabbed Raven's hand, pulling her towards the ghost.
"What the hell are you doing!?" She shouted.
"Trust me!" He shouted back.
"I do!" She snapped, "But right now I'm not so sure!"
Beast Boy ignored her and continued until they were just below the girl, "What do you want!?" She screamed.
"We want to show you that you're wrong!" Beast Boy said to her, "Just because your dad was a bad guy doesn't mean all people are!"
"We didn't know about your sister, Winifred." Raven added, "No one did, and you are right to be angry! She was your sister, we understand!"
"NO ONE UNDERSTANDS! AND YOU'RE WRONG! NO ONE CAN CARE ABOUT ANYONE IN THIS WORLD!"
Beast Boy held up Raven and his intertwined hands, "That's not true, Winifred. I care about my team and . . . someone else . . ."
Raven turned and stared at him, "You do?"
He nodded at her before turning back to Winifred. "And that's more then you every experienced besides anyone but your sister, but its true."
She didn't say anything, but continued to watch them. After a moment, her eyes narrowed, "Prove it." She growled at them.
Before Raven knew it, Beast Boy had turned her to him, "Sorry Raven." He whispered.
"What-?"
OW! OW! OW! Stop screaming! Calm yourselves! More details on the make-out (Yes it shall become a make-out) in the next chapter! And, congrats to ME!
THIS IS THE LONGEST CHAPTER I'VE EVER WRITTEN! YOU'RE WELCOME!
Bye. Ach! I said stop screaming!!!!!! (XD)!