Prompt # 16
Moon
She stepped out of the portal, landing gracefully on the neatly manicured grass of Jump City Central Park. She had been gone for nearly three years; first seeing to her mother's funeral, then taking over as leader of the people of Azarath in her mother's stead.
Drawing back her hood, Raven gazed upon the city that was her home. Not a lot had changed in the time she was gone, but it still felt strange coming back. There was a feeling in the air, as if some greater purpose was coming her way.
She walked through the park, waving to the occasional passerby who recognized her. Her purple hair was longer now, reaching nearly to the small of her back. She wore the same style of leotard and cloak she had left in, now colored a crisp, clean white from merging with her disparate emotions. Reconnecting to the energy of Earth, she rose gently into the air before flying off to the recognizable landmark still located on the spit of an island a mile offshore in the bay.
The massive T-shaped tower stood as welcoming and inviting to her as it had the day it was first built. Landing on the roof, she opened herself to the emotions of those dwelling within. She easily found the exuberance of her best friend, Starfire, floating through the air in the kitchen singing to her herself. Robin was seated nearby, waves of love and affection pouring out her normally stoic leader. Next, she keyed in on her surrogate big brother, Cyborg. He was moving frantically through the obstacle course, the pink signature of Jinx's magic nearby, probably cheering him on. The one person she wanted to see most was notably absent. She sent her soul self through out the tower, searching room by room, but she still couldn't locate his emotions or thoughts.
Walking through the doorway to the roof, Raven slowly climbed down the stairs, hoping that the green skinned man of her dreams was ok. Stopping off at her room, she dropped the large satchel bag on her floor and hung up her cloak on a hook on the wall. Electing to get answers from the best detective alive (in her opinion), she walked down the hallway towards the Ops room. As the door slid open, Robin saw her immediately and jumped off the stool he was sitting on.
He was dressed down, a tank top stretched over his muscular chest, a pair of loose jeans running the length of his legs. What surprised her most was that he wasn't wearing his mask, his piercing blue eyes taking the measure of her.
"I leave for a while and you decide to relax the dress code," Raven said, in her uniquely monotone, sarcastic manner, "I see how things are, fearless leader."
"Well, that's what happens when we go from being teen heroes to being adults," He quipped, walking over to her, "Its good to see you back Raven."
"Friend Raven!" Star shouted, flying through the air like an orange missile, throwing her arms around the empaths body and pulling her into a bone crushing hug, "You have finally returned!"
"Air…need air Star…" Raven said, struggling in her friend's grip.
"I am sorry Friend Raven," Star said, setting the smaller girl down, "I am overjoyed to see you join us once again. How are things on Azarath?"
"They are good," Raven replied, "They've finally elected the next ruler, so they didn't need me anymore. How has everything been since I have been gone?"
"Things were good," Robin said, leading them to the c-shaped couch before sitting down, "The city has been the same as always; villains show up, we beat them, we go home. Jinx has been helping out a lot. It was good for her to get away from East, especially after all of the…unpleasantness with Kid Flash."
"He was very much being a klorbagh," Starfire agreed, "Cyborg and Jinx have been very close since she came to the tower."
"I can see you two are doing well," Raven said, concern creeping into her voice, "But, I noticed something when I landed. I couldn't sense Beast Boy in the tower. Is he…doing anything I need to know about?"
"You could say that," Robin replied, looking ashamed, "Let me get Cy and Jinx up here and we'll show you."
Picking up the remote, Robin connected to the communicator built into the training course. After almost a minute, both Cyborg and Jinx's faces filled the tv screen.
"Hey Rob, what's up? I was in the zone!" Cyborg yelled, receiving a gentle slap to the chest from Jinx.
"Inside voices, Victor," She said with a smile, "Wait, is that a little black bird I see there. Raven! When did you get in?"
"Just now," Raven replied, "Robin said he needs you guys up here to explain where Garfield is."
"Oh…yeah…that." Cy said, visibly deflating, "We'll be up in a minute."
A few minutes later, both Jinx and Cyborg stepped off the elevator. Very little about Cyborg during her time away, then again, Raven wasn't good with tech. Jinx had made a drastic change in Raven's opinion. Her normally horn shaped pink hair fell to her shoulders, a black choker around her throat. She had replaced her purple dress with a shimmery pink top under a black leather jacket, black leather pants and stiletto heels completing the look.
"Ok, someone needs to start talking," Raven said, her concern ramping up another notch as she leapt to her feet, "If Gar had a new girlfriend while I was gone, you wouldn't be acting like this. What's going on?"
"Best to sit down for this one, Rae," Cyborg said, joining the others on the couch.
Sitting back down, Cyborg took the remote and flicked to camera inside the building showing a jungle scape. Lush vegetation covered every inch of the room, with a large watering hole in the middle and rocky outcroppings and a cave in the corner.
"He fell apart when you left, Raven," Jinx said bluntly, "It wasn't all at once, more of a steady decline. He stopped playing videogames, stopped reading comics, he got quiet."
"For a while, I had someone with him at all times, just to make sure he didn't try and hurt himself." Cyborg added, "I know the symptoms of depression all too well."
"Then, one morning, I came out to feed my little bumgorf and found him sleeping on the couch as a large cat." Starfire said, the usual glow around her dimming, "He would not change back to a person. So, boyfriend Robin had one of the floors converted into what you see on the screen. Most days he lays around as a cat or a monkey. We make sure he has plenty of fruits and tofu so he stays healthy, but we could not help him. He was lost without you."
"Once a month, he changes into that big green thing and we can talk to him a little bit, but its not the same as talking to Beast Boy," Robin said, "Maybe with you here, we can reach him."
"How long till he changes into Tyrus?" Raven asked, wringing her hands.
"Tyrus?" The rest of the team asked, unsure of what they were hearing.
"All this time you never thought to ask if he had a name?" Raven scolded, "You just said you talk to him. His Beast form is named Tyrus, I've had whole conversations with him sometimes."
"Putting that on the back burner for now," Cy said, tapping on his wrist computer, "It's usually on the full moon, so we have a couple of days."
"Good," Raven said, opening a portal to her room with a wave of her hand, "I need time to meditate. This was not what I was expecting when I got home."
Things fell into an easy rhythm over the next few days. Raven would get up early, pour her tea and then sit on the couch watching Beast Boys habitat for hours at a time, taking the occasional break to feed herself.
Even as an animal, his depression was evident in his movements. He was sluggish, eating only when the need was great, sitting in the shadows of his cave for the rest of the time. Her heart went out to him. Seeing him broken like this, knowing it was her leaving that caused it, hurt her deep in her soul.
Raven requested she meet with Tyrus alone. By the time the moon had risen, she found herself in a glass enclosed room off to the side of the main enclosure.
She watched him walk out of the cave, his confident gait slowing as he saw her.
"We discussed this the last time you tried to draw my host out of his self-imposed exile, sorceress," His voice a rich baritone, "Putting on her leotard and cloak will not lure the injured man out of the animal he has become. Now, Leave!"
"I am disappointed in you, Tyrus," Raven said, lowering her hood, "I had figured you would recognize my scent if nothing else."
"So you have finally returned, dark one," The hulking figure said, squatting in front of the glass enclosed hero, "He thought you had given up on him. That you had no intention of returning."
"My mother's death left a power vacuum on Azarath," Raven replied, sitting on the ground herself, "I had only intended to be gone for a couple of weeks, not almost three freaking years."
"Well the road to hell is paved with good intentions, dark one," Tyrus growled, "It didn't occur to you that he would miss you, that maybe you could contact him once in the whole time you were gone."
Turning around, Tyrus leaned back and rested his back against the glass, turning his back on the situation. Mirroring his actions, Raven sat back against the wall herself.
"I missed him every day," Raven said, tears streaming down her face, "I know he was planning to ask me."
"He thought he was being clever," Tyrus answered, "He hid the ring in his room knowing you wouldn't go in there."
"Does…does he still love me?" Raven begged.
"You would need to ask him that," Tyrus replied, "He doesn't talk to me much nowadays."
For a while, they sat in a companionable silence, before Raven began to hum to herself. As her emotions swelled, she began singing in a gentle, calm voice.
Time, is the reason why we fight to stay alive
Until the morning comes.
It's a strife,
But the shimmer in your eyes just makes me know,
That you and I belong,
And you can light the dark all on your own,
So let us show the world our love is strong.
She thought of all the times he had been there for her. Starting with her being mislead by Malchior, being targeted by Adonis god knows how many times, even taking a bullet for her when Slade had cornered her on patrol once. Reaching deep into her powers, she forced every ounce of affection into her aura, literally shining with her love for him.
Like a sign, like a dream,
You're my amaranthine,
You're all I needed, believe me.
Like we drift in a stream,
Your beauty serene.
There's nothing else in life I ever need,
My dream, Amaranthine
As she sat there, she heard Tyrus begin to shift behind her. With a low groan, she felt him turn back into Beast Boy. Quietly at first, growing louder, she heard him pick up the song, their song.
Time goes by as day and nights are turning into years,
But, I'm lying in your arms,
It's the place I know I'm closest to your heart,
Where the dark is torn apart.
I know you feel the same as I inside
It feels like in a dream where we can fly.
Turning around, she saw him standing behind her, his emaciated form leaning against the glass for support. Placing her hand on the glass, she joined her voice with his to finish out the song.
Like a sign, like a dream,
You're my amaranthine,
You're all I needed, believe me.
Like we drift in a stream,
Your beauty serene.
There's nothing else in life I ever need,
My dream, Amaranthine
"Gar, you came back to me." Raven sobbed, creating a portal to pull him out of the jungle enclosure, "I thought I had lost you for good."
"I'm like a bad penny, mama," He said, his cocky grin in place as he leaned into her touch, "You won't get rid of me that easily."
"Your right," She sniffed, "Guess you'll have to make an honest woman out of me."
"Are you saying what I think you are?" He asked, unsure of himself.
"Yes, Gar," She replied with a laugh, kissing him with all the passion in her body, "Now and forever, yes."
AN: Another chapter down, another step on the path. The song I referenced is Amaranthine by the amazing band Amaranth. If you have never heard of them give them a shot, this is one of my favorite songs by them. Shout out to phantomzombie for following the story so far. Remember, R&R to keep feeding the machine. Peace ya'll