Titans on the Run!: Seriously, Music?
AN: I don't own the Teen Titans, Epiphone, or anything else you may have a question about. [Phew.] Oh yeah, [thoughts] and "Dialogue", sorry about that!
Feeling as calm as the water that lapped the shore of the island, Raven mentally scanned the tower for her teammates. Raven didn't do this very often, but sometimes she found out a lot of interesting things about the other titans.
First, and easiest to find, was Starfire. Her cheerful nature stood out like highlighter on newsprint. She was in the kitchen. Her emotional signal almost overpowered another's, who was close by. Concentrating a little harder, she could make out Cyborg's. His signal was apprehensive and just a little frightened. Raven pondered this and said to no one in particular:
"Star made another pudding."
Focusing again, she sensed Robin's presence in the gym, training no doubt. She could feel his mind going over martial arts moves from his past training with the Batman. Concentrating further, she could actually see flashes of his training with the Dark Knight. She noted mentally to ask him about his mentor when the chance came up.
Almost forgetting, she started her scan for Beast Boy. When she did a mental sweep of the tower, she would always seem to find Beast Boy last. She didn't know whether it was because his signal was sometimes the hardest to find or not. She often pondered why his emotions seemed to change drastically as opposed to her other friends. Initially, she blamed this on residual instincts from the animals he takes the forms of, but she didn't know if that really happens, having not talked to Beast Boy about it. Not finding his aura, she reasoned that he wasn't in the tower.
Just as she was going to finish up and head inside she felt a mischievous aura pop up behind her.
"HEY RAE!!!"
Whipping her head around and clutching her heart, she glared at the green prankster.
"What on earth are you doing?" She snapped. She also took note that he was in street clothes.
"Nothing. Nothing at all." He said pretending to be nonchalant . "I was going to sneak up on you. But you probably sensed me coming for miles."
"You'd be surprised." She said dryly. "Where are you of to this morning, anyway?"
"The Guitar Shop."
She figured as much. Beast Boy really didn't take many things in life seriously, but he played guitar with a sort of fervor that really surprised her. Yes, he was a crime-fighter, but that's something he sort of has to do. Something they all had to do. But other than playing games with Cyborg, Beast Boy didn't have any hobbies or interests. So she found it a pleasant surprise that Beast Boy had discovered something to do other than practical jokes. And although she wouldn't necessarily come out and tell them, she though that, for being amateurs they sounded pretty good.
"Well, have fun." She said, half-turning to leave. Before she took her first step, she felt a spike in Cyborg and Robin's auras before she heard a violent explosion coming from the kitchen on the tower.
"On second thought, why don't I come with you? We need some things from the store anyway."
Walking down Main Street, Beast Boy had bags in his arms and Raven had her purse. Being mid-morning in a busier section of Jump City, cars settled into a mild pace as kids were freed from school and roaming the streets. Although it was still cool, there was still the threat of a very hot day. Raven kept a brisk pace, wanting to get the errands done before the weather had a chance to disagree with her usual cloak.
Beast was a little behind, watching people as people watched him. He knew even though he was a member of the Teen Titans, it's not every day a green person walks down the street with a bag of groceries. Coming to a crosswalk, a car-full of girls stopped at the light. Smiling cheekily, Beast Boy waved. The girls, overcome by a fit of giggles, waved back as their light changed. Sighing inwardly, Beast Boy remembered a wise saying.
"Boy, you nailed it in one, Kermit." He muttered more to himself than anything.
"What?"
"Huh?" Beast Boy started when he realized he had said that out loud and Raven was eyeing him quizzically.
"Ahem. It's not easy being green, Rae."
Raven looked at him as though he was a frog.
Neither of them spoke, until they were nearly at the local instrument store.
"Uh, Raven?" Beast Boy asked not catching her eyes.
"Yes?" She answered, noticing this.
"What do you think about the band?" He asked, hesitantly.
"Well," She started. "Star finally found her rhythm after Robin gave her that crash course in earthen music theory. And she has enough energy in her attempt, it won't be long until she gets really good. Robin's got good enough reflexes to seem better than his time spent practicing, plus he's got a good ear...."
Beast Boy was slightly taken aback at her answer. He expected a typical 'Okay, I guess.' from the usually demur girl. But a part of him was glad that someone liked what they were doing, even if it was a roommate.
"What do you think of the guitar parts?" He asked, this time looking directly at her.
"Well, I like the way the lyrics and guitar work with the percussion parts, wile keeping the bass an integral portion..."She said, looking a a passig storefront.
"Really?!?" He asked, not even trying to hide his shift in mood. "I wasn't really sure you were even listening."
Raven noticed this and quickly threw herself into defense mode.
"Well you guys make so much noise, I just found myself actually listening." She said in an indifferent air.
"But you've definitely improved from the disaster you called music when you started." She said with a wry smile.
"Well, there it is."
He gestured towards a building in a shopping center. It looked normal enough, with barred windows, various manufacture's decals and signs, and a modest storefront sign that read 'Jack's Guitars and Pianos'. As they walked in Raven hid her mild astonishment, as there was guitars and other musical instruments lining every available inch of the walls. There were even some on the ceiling. Upon entering a middle-aged man with sandy blond hair looked up from his newspaper.
"Hiya, Green Machine!"
Raven looked at Beast Boy with a mix of a questioning glance and easily suppressed laughter, as she mouthed this new moniker.
"It's a just a nickname I got from the workers here, alright?" He whispered. "Hey back at ya, Jack!"
Putting the bags down, Beast Boy went over to the guitar section, as Raven walked over to the shop owner.
"So...how have you known Beast Boy?" She said as she admired a beautiful, archtop guitar hanging from a hook behind the register.
"Well, he blew in about five months ago. As green about music as.... well as he is now I guess." He said with a small chuckle. Noticing her gaze, he turned around and laid the instrument on a cloth on the desk.
"Yeah. She's a real beauty. Your standard Gibson Dot, but with a flawless maple body and chrome hardware."
Raven just nodded. It was beautiful. The paint was only a transparent coat, so one could see the natural ridges and patterns of the wood. The body had two f-shaped holes in the top away from the strings. The neck also had a vine inlay that seemed to grow from where the neck joined the body to nearly where the tuning pegs were. The knobs were polished and gleamed in the fluorescent light. Although it was a far cry from Beast Boy's simpler starter guitar, she could really she him playing it. [I don't really know why, but this guitar really suits him. I wonder...]
Pulling herself away from its looks, Raven gave herself a reality check (And nearly a heart attack. Nearly.) when she saw the price.
Visibly wincing, she gave it back to Jack, with a small smile, and returned to watch Beast Boy dart from different guitars and amplifiers.
Putting it back, Jack looked thoughtful for a moment and turned to the quiet heroine.
"Are you two...? I mean to say are you guys...?" He stumbled.
"No, No. We just live together." She said, a little too quickly.
"Alright, just asking." He relied good-naturedly, as she reddened slightly.
"Hey Jack." Beast Boy said returning from deeper in the store, "Could I get some medium-gauge strings for my friend's bass, some 5-A sticks for our drummer, and this strap for myself." He rattled off, handing the strap to him.
"Sure, sure." He said putting it all in a bag for him.
"Thanks, see you around." The changeling said handing him some bills.
"Ready to go?" He inquired, turning to his shopping companion.
Walking back across the bridge to Titan's Tower, Beast Boy thought about Raven and the guitar. Even though he was trying out guitars in the store, his enhanced hearing could still make out what they were saying, and he could see her expression out of the corners of his eyes. Then he realized, he looks at Raven a lot, from the corners of his eyes. Mostly because he liked living in this dimension. But Raven wasn't hard on the eyes at all, he reasoned. [Umm....well...nah.] Not really wanting to explore that thought with her in close company, Beast Boy remembered the expensive instrument from the store.
[Well pretty girls and pretty guitars go hand in hand, I suppose.] He giggled to himself, earning another strange look from his cloaked teammate.
Raven looked at him, as he walked along seeming as though he thought of something really funny. Suddenly there was something she wanted to know.
"Beast Boy, why do you play music?" She asked catching his eyes.
"Well," He started, finding that he couldn't look at her eyes for the second time today.
"Well I guess I just needed something to do." He replied. [It wasn't a complete lie.] He reasoned to himself. [It's when she gets that serious look. It's like she trying to...]
"...read my mind." He finished out loud looking at Raven, then looking away again.
"What?" She asked giving him a soft look.
"You wouldn't...like, you know, read my mind or anything like that, would you?" He asked.
Raven looked thoughtful for a moment.
"No, I like to read novels, not pamphlets."
"Dude!?!?" He cried defensively.
"Alright." She said laughing slightly at his expression. "Well, I wouldn't forcibly looking into someone's mind, unless it was an emergency or something like that." She explained, tucking a strand of her behind her ear. "But I can pick up on stronger feelings that you guys give off."
Beast Boy felt the color drain from her face for a moment. [What if she.....?]
"So...what have you....uh....felt...from...from me lately? He stammered, this time capturing her lavender eyes with his sharply inquisitive, forest-green gaze.
Turning the tables, it was now her turn to look away. [He's using that gaze of his again.] She thought. She chanted silently, and collected herself before answering
"To tell you the truth, I have to be in a deep meditative focus to do that enough to really know what you're feeling. So I haven't really..."
Before she could finish, a silver and white blur sped passed them, kicking up a sight gust in it's wake.
"Was that the T-car?"
"Uh..."
Just then the communicator chimed and Beast Boy answered. A panicked Cyborg was dividing his time between driving and talking/shouting into the screen.
"Uh...HEY WATCH IT!!!...Rae or B.B. whoever picked up...COMING THROUGH!!!... MAN!!!...Star was trying to cook...uh...something she got from home...and it blew up in the oven!!! Now I gotta go get some- HEY I'M TURNING HERE!!! THANKS!!!... some tools to fix the gas leak. So don't go inside until I get back, Star and- THE LIGHT'S GREEN MAN!!! GREEN!!!...Star and Rob should be outside when you get there! Later!"
As the screen when blank, Beast Boy and Raven looked at each other and then at the direction the T-car was probably breaking many traffic laws in.
[So much for an uneventful morning.] The green teen mused.
AN: Oh yeah! Took me a while but here it is. Massive thanks to all those who reviewed: Byebyebb18, Lady Sparrow, Dragon Mage, The Black Moon, and bunny133. Stay tuned for more. Review, for you are truly kings and queens among men. Later.