Hey y'all! Long time no see, eh? Sorry again for the long wait, but my creativity has been blocked by a number of things as of late. Now that it's summer though, I'm finding a bit more time to write. Thanks for being so patient with me, you lovely people. But anyway, here you go! Chapter 14!!

Disclaimer: No. I do NOT own the rights to Teen Titans, nor any other copyrighted works for that matter. Except a poem in a book of literature, but that's another story. It has no relevance here. The only thing in this story I own is the plot.

Chapter 14: Save the Girl or Save the World

And through the wall my fist you call but then you always run

So what's it for the love and war it's only fair for some

You save the girl you save the world well that's not true it seems

Lesson learned speak out of turn I bite my tongue it bleeds

Bite my tongue it bleeds

--"Shrink the World" (Yellowcard)

Raven stared at him, an unreadable expression on her face. "Now?" she asked dully, lip wrinkling in disgust.

"Yes..." he squeaked, shrinking back from her glare. "I'm sorry, but nature calls, alright? My bad!"

She arched an eyebrow in surprise. Normally he wasn't so frank with her, or so sarcastic. She guessed it was finally getting through to him that her threats were empty ones as long as she was under the curse's hold. With a frustrated sigh, she unfolded her stiff legs and snapped closed the book that was sitting on her lap.

"Hold on a second, and then we'll go, alright?" she muttered, stretching a bit before tugging at him to stand and walking over to a chest that sat in a corner of her room. She rummaged through it for a moment and pulled out a few items from its musty depths. Then she stood and began to stride from the room, dragging a grateful Beast Boy along behind her.

For the sake of privacy, I'm not going to go into detail about the bathroom break. However, I will mention that it involved a great deal of discomfort, flaming cheeks, a very thick blindfold, and a pair of earplugs, both fashioned from the things pulled out of the girl's old chest. When he was finished, he tapped Raven on the shoulder with his free hand and they vacated the premises with great haste. What would the others think if they had caught them there? Both shuddered at the thought.

Striding in unison to the main room again, they found it empty of any of their other roommates. It was all the better, really, considering. Now no one could tease them about their predicament. The silence was interrupted by a loud, obnoxious grumble that issued from the green teen's stomach.

"Huh. I'm hungry!" Beast Boy exclaimed, using his free hand to rub his slim belly. All he'd had to eat that day was half of a tofu sandwich, which wasn't that filling to begin with. He started over to the refrigerator to find some lunch, and Raven silently trailed behind him, too hungry herself to protest. As the boy rooted through the fridge in search of something remotely edible, she gazed around the room, eyes resting on the cabinet that housed her stockpile of tea. She licked her lips. A nice packet of Tazo sounded really good right about now.

When her friend backed out of the mini fridge with a plateful of cold vegan pizza, she dragged him over to said cabinet, opening it to remove a packet of the Tazo tea labeled Wild Sweet Orange. It smelled intensely invigorating, and she shivered in anticipation of its interesting flavor. After she poured herself a mug of water and put it in the microwave, too tired to start an entire kettleful, she dug through the refrigerator in search of something solid. In the fruit drawer she found a plastic bag full of rotten grapes--yuck--and another bag with a few somethings in it. The somethings happened to be a few firm, ripe peaches. She grabbed one and pulled the protesting green teen (who was trying desperately to consume his meal with no hands, a very messy process) to the sink in order to wash it. When she wrapped it in a paper towel and took the first crunchy bite, a sigh escaped her lips. It was delicious.

The microwave then announced its existence with a loud, prolonged beep. She set her peach down at her spot at the table, allowing Beast Boy to set his plateful of pizza down as well, then strode over to silence the machine and retrieve her hot water. When the tea bag was dropped in and began to steep, she walked over to sit in her chair and began to eat. The two consumed their lunch in silence, merely concentrating on filling their empty stomachs, but of course this was Titans' Tower, and nothing was ever silent for long.

A loud siren sounded just as Raven was taking her first sip of tea, making her slam it down on the table and slosh a little on her hand. Beast Boy, in the middle of swallowing, choked and she had to pound him on the back with her free hand to dislodge the offending pizza. Just as the huge flatscreen television projected a map of the city, the other three Titans sprinted into the room breathlessly.

A larger-than-life picture of the electricity-powered monster known as Overload dominated the screen before it shrunk to a thumbnail portrait at the corner of the television. A map of the city took its place, a red throbbing dot making its appearance at the local hardware store. All five Titans sighed in irritation--not this guy again. Robin immediately took charge as usual, running up to the computer and typing in the coordinates to sync with the GPS systems on the team's vehicles.

"Okay, team, you know what to do. Douse him with water and make sure he can't reach any electrical sockets! Let's go!" he shouted, beginning to run from the room, when he suddenly skidded to a stop and turned to Beast Boy and Raven, both half-risen from their chairs. A confused expression crossed his worry-lined face while he put a hand to his chin, in deep thought.

"You two...I'm sorry, but I don't think you should come," he said apologetically. "Without your powers, you wouldn't be much of an asset, and you would probably just get in the way. I don't want you guys in danger until that curse is lifted, and stuck together like that, even if you still had your powers, it would be pretty awkward trying to get around and dodge his attacks. I think you need to stay here."

"Robin! We're coming!" Raven shouted, even as Beast Boy protested with a loud "No fair, Robin!" The Boy Wonder put his hands up in assurance, trying to ward off their anger without making a scene.

"I know, I know," he said. "It's NOT fair, but you guys don't need to be putting yourselves in any undue danger when we can easily handle him ourselves. You're NOT coming, and that's final."

Raven and Beast Boy both stood back in frighteningly similar pouts, mirror images of each other as they furrowed their brows stubbornly and stuck their lower lips out in a childish grimace. But in all honesty, there was nothing they could do to usurp Robin's decision. Despite all her airs, Raven knew that the bossy teen was the leading authority of the group's actions, and he had a point anyway. They wouldn't be any help on a mission, handicapped as they were.

Both recognized the inevitability of their homeboundness at the same time and sat back down with matching groans. Not only were they to be excluded from the protection of their city, but they had to deal with one another's sole company while the others were off battling evil. Were they ever going to get a break?

The others said a quick goodbye and charged off, the doors sliding shut behind them and leaving an awkward silence in the main room. Soon afterward, the T-car was seen gliding over the waters of Jump City's lake towards the glistening skyscrapers in the near distance. Both teenagers sighed huffily and turned towards one another with despairing looks on their faces. What to do, what to do?

Well, ta da! Chapter 14! Sorry it took so long to get it out, yet again. Writing does not happen to be one of my priorities right now... But anyway, thanks for reading and as always, please review!!

Tsuki