Frozen
Disclaimer: Don't own the Teen Titans. Never have, never will. All characters in this chapter belong to their respective creators.
The Prologue
All was calm in Titans Tower.
At least, as far as the word 'calm' could be defined in Titans Tower.
Starfire was working her very hardest in the kitchen, sorting the 'junk' food from the 'good' food and trying to persuade Beast Boy, busy playing with the minds of the computer game characters in 'Pedal to the Medal', to taste her brand new recipe, 'Tofu Surprise.' Unfortunately for the Tamaranian chef Beast Boy wasn't interested in finding out what the 'surprise' of 'Tofu Surprise' actually was.
Robin was exercising - the third time in a week - in the training gym, pushing each piece of the equipment to its highest possible capacity. He was determined not to allow any spare time he had whatsoever to disappear without putting in at least a few moments of preparation for his next battle.
Cyborg was washing the T-car.
In fact, all was calm on the outside, not the inside, of Titans Tower. Raven was sitting on the roof of the building, staring out to the sea, her mind wandering and revelling in the peacefulness of the setting sun.
It was the typical aftermath of a battle, and the Titans were enjoying the feeling of pride in themselves while it lasted.
Robin's communicator beeped. He lowered his leg mid-kick towards a punching bag and flipped open the tiny machine. "Yeah?"
"Robin. I'm on the roof. There's something out here you might want to see."
"Be right with you."
The Titans were already gathered by the time the leader got there. "What is it?"
"There." Raven pointed out to sea, towards a large, spherical, shadowed shape that had materialised on the horizon all of two minutes ago.
"…. so, what is it?" he repeated.
"Well you just wait right there for just one sec', while I pull out my ultra magnetised telescope and take a peek. How the heck should we know, it must be at least 2 miles away!" Cyborg glanced down at his arm and frowned. "I can't get a reading all the way over here. It's probably just an ice-berg or something. No big deal."
Raven shot him a withering glance. "And when did you last see an ice-berg that was perfectly spherical?"
Robin looked over his back towards the city. "I think we should take a look. Just to be on the safe side. It looks a little bit more than just an ice-berg." He looked pointedly at his green companion.
It took Beast Boy a few moments of silence to notice what his leader was trying to say to him. "Man, there's never a moment's rest… be right back, ladies and gentlemen. This won't take a minute." He turned to a seagull and leapt into the air, and flew off towards the 'ice-berg'.
The Titans watched him go. "He'd better 'be right back': my baby's waiting for a bath and I get irritated when I'm separated from her for more than five minutes," muttered Cyborg. "I didn't know you were so paranoid about large scary objects shadowed in darkness, Raven."
His hand promptly turned black and shot up from his side on its own, and he slapped himself on the cheek. "Ow…"
Raven almost smirked.
Half an hour later and the Titans were sagging beneath boredom, with the exception of Raven, meditating cross-legged on the edge of the roof. There was a severe lack of entertainment to be found. Starfire looked over at Robin.
"Robin, does this mean the 'Tofu Surprise' I have been preparing shall not be ready for the Evening of Dinner? Only, Beast Boy is taking the time that is his and I wanted him to be the first to taste it."
"I'll try to contact him… we should never have let him go alone." Robin flipped open his communicator, but before he spoke a word his purple-clad companion grasped his arm urgently and pointed out to sea.
A squirming green shape in the water, struggling against the waves, was making its way slowly over to Titans Tower. Only Starfire's alien eyes had caught sight of the tiny form. Metres away, just before the figure was lost to the Titans in the shadow of the great T-shaped building, it lifted itself out of the water and fluttered lopsidedly up to the roof. Beast Boy had transformed from a seal into a seagull and landed heavily in front of his companions. His left wing was wounded, the feathers sizzling at the tipped edges.
Cyborg ran over to him. The green seagull called out softly, reached up its wings towards its friend-
-and cawed angrily when the metallic man grabbed him by the wounded wing and lifted him up to face him.
"IF THAT SOAPY WATER HAS IN ANY WAY, SHAPE OR FORM STAINED MY CAR, I WILL PERSONALLY SCRUB IT CLEAN WITH YOUR FEATHERY BUTT!"
In response, the seagull pecked Cyborg on the nose.
"Did you find out any more of the object?" Robin asked as the seagull leapt into the air and changed back into Beast Boy. Back on his feet he did not look too stable – he was hovering between standing and sitting, waving about dangerously like a tree in the breeze, holding the crook of his left arm in his right hand and wearing a grimace of pain on his face. The material of his sleeve was smouldering slightly, a sign of the wound on the seagull form's wing.
"I didn't get chance to," was all he muttered.
Cyborg, still rubbing his nose, spoke through his fingers: "Are you saying I've been up here wasting my time while the T-car needs wash-"
"That thing started blazing lasers at me when I was 10 metres away! It hit me on the arm, I performed the fastest U-turn a seagull can possibly do and, in case you didn't notice, I've just swum a mile in the form of a bird that isn't waterproof!"
"Friends, please calm down! We should rejoice that Beast Boy has returned to us with little damage!" Starfire cut in, seeing Cyborg about to blow his top. "I believe we are in need of some refreshments: come, I will prepare dinner. The 'Tofu Surprise' is quite probably simmering as we speak."
"No time, Star," came the voice of authority. Robin stepped forward and flipped open his communicator again. "That 'ice-berg' is armed and dangerous. It must be equipped with movement sensors or something: it saw Beast Boy coming, and was prepared for it." Cyborg looked as though he was about to pick up the leader of the Teen Titans and throw him unceremoniously off of the roof. Robin added quickly, "Imagine what would happen if a fishing boat"- Beast Boy visibly shuddered – "went too close to that object? We're putting innocent civilians at risk by not investigating this thing further-"
"It isn't just the fishermen you should be worried about."
The Titans turned to Raven, sitting cross-legged and silently on the edge of the building. She had one eye open and was eyeing the coastline of the city. "In case you hadn't noticed, that 'ice-berg' has been coming closer while you four have been bickering pointlessly, and, in case you hadn't noticed, it's heading straight for the city. If it's armed with movement sensors and is the size of a skyscraper, shouldn't we be worrying right about now?"
There was a brief silence.
"Ah," said Cyborg.