Chapter Three

The next day was quiet. Ever since Slade left the city, for whatever reasons he may have had, the Titans didn't have much to do. Every once in a long while, something would happen, but it wouldn't last long. Actually, come to think of it, the worst thing that happened in months was a small hurricane. Today, Beast Boy would sit and wait, along with the other Titans, but nothing would happen. No, not today. Because today was a calm day. The next day was not.

Beast Boy was woken that morning by thunder, and a sudden flash of lightning. It was early. Very early. Tired, he stretched and got up slowly. He grabbed his blanket and laid down on the couch, where he had originally been. He must've fallen off. He heard the thunder again and sounded as if it were getting closer. He pulled the blanket up over his shoulders, but he noticed a tear in one of the corners. But it was not just torn. No, it was clawed. He looked at the floor. The thin carpet was charred slightly in one disfigured shape. A teddy bear. That was all Beast Boy could make out of it. A simple little child's toy. A teddy bear. He turned over and fell asleep again. He fell of the couch a second time and landed on the floor with a thump. He'd fallen right on that spot, between the couch and coffee table. Near his head, which was buried into his soft, white pillow, came a sound. It started off as a low growl, but it transformed into a sort of maniacal laugh. Then a giggle. But Beast Boy did not wake.

"Beast Boy? It is... just thunder?"

Beast Boy looked up. Kneeling on the coffee table, staring at him nervously, was Starfire. Beast Boy pulled the blanket to his ear and faced the other way. "Yeah, Star," he said to her, already half asleep. "Just thunder."

But suddenly the thunder clapped again, hard enough to shake the entire tower. Starfire gave a feeble squeak. Beast boy sat up and looked into her eyes. Those eyes... "Just thunder." He said again. And he smiled. She relaxed a little. Beast Boy got up and sat beside her on the coffee table. The thunder continued, louder and harder every time. Beast Boy squeezed her hand, firm yet gentle and only Beast boy knew that it was Starfire who comforted him, as it seemed so much the other way. And Beast Boy then wanted to scoop her up and hold her and then the two would sit there; sit until the end of the storm neared. Then he could lean in and kiss her good-night- his first kiss would be small and light- and then all could be well. Yes, well. But then it hit.

The force was unbelievable as a large bolt of lightning hit the ground right beside the tower. The power shut off and both Beast Boy and Starfire were sent tumbling off the table. The thunder then seemed the loudest, almost teasing, and Beast Boy cursed aloud, aware that his hand had begun to bleed again under his glove, and that Starfire, confused, afraid, and now alone, had burst into almost silent cries, but they were loud enough for Beast Boy to hear. Suddenly, he heard footsteps; someone coming, no, running. Someone was running desperately through the tower's halls, headed for the living room. Within seconds, the footsteps came to a complete stop and Starfire's light cries began o slow.

Damn! She doesn't need him! Why doesn't that bastard just leave her alone for once?!

And suddenly, Beast Boy felt mad.

After a while, the sun began to rise slowly and Beast boy could see Robin in the dim light. Starfire was beside him, practically in his lap!, her head resting peacefully on his shoulder. She was asleep and Robin had his arm wrapped around her, holding her hand in his own. And in the golden light of the rising sun, they sat there for what could've been hours, and in all that time, not once did Robin take his eyes away from Starfire's face. Then again, his eyes could've been closed under that mask for all Beast Boy knew, because after a few moments, Robin's head fell lightly to hers. And Robin was smiling. Three hours later the storm would slow down, but by then, all five Titans would be fast asleep

Beast boy entered the tower. Perhaps it was cold because he shivered, but he really paid no mind to anything other than the mirrors. The hundreds, maybe thousands of mirrors, floating all around him, the light clanking of glass on glass echoing eerily throughout the tower. He walked on. In one mirror, and one mirror only, Raven's reflection. Her face was twisted, blue; dead. He continued on. The next reflection: Cyborg. Mutilated and bloody; both robot and human. He kept on going. Robin's reflection. It glared at him. Then it smiled-no, grinned; an evil, sickening type of grin. It pointed at another mirror. Starfire. She was on her knees, crying, a stuffed animal in her hands; a teddy bear. And Beast Boy ran then. Ran through all those mirrors. Ran until he collapsed to the ground. Now his own reflection appeared in only one mirror; his face red and sweaty. He stood up and stared into it. Behind him, another reflection appeared. It was a young boy. A young boy whose face seemed to have been drained of all innocence. And it laughed. An adorable, babyish laugh, but with some, hideous, forceful tone to it. Its reflection suddenly appeared in all the mirrors. Thousands of little boys. He was everywhere. It was everywhere. It surrounded Beast Boy, its laugh, its horrible, menacing laugh, ringing in his ears.

And it was. In his head, he could still hear it; whatever it was. He looked around. He was beside the coffee table and across the room, Robin and Starfire lay, both fast asleep, Robin's arm still around her.

Yeah, like he had to be that close!

Beast Boy got up and stretched. He passed by Robin and Starfire on his way out, and while he did, he pushed Robin off of her, moving him from his protective, loving embrace. Looking around, almost as if he were being sure no one was around, he readied himself to pick her up. But then he heard a sound from behind him. Robin was waking up and he moved away, cursing under his breath. Robin didn't seem too surprised that he was almost two feet away from Starfire, once he woke up. He smiled, and slowly scooted himself over to her. Beast Boy watched, his teeth clenched-in anger. Robin gathered her in his arms and he kept her in his lap for several minutes before she finally, to Beast Boy's relief, began to stir in her sleep. Robin stood up and carried her over to the couch where he set her down gently. Perhaps he would have brought her to her own room if it weren't for the fact she was waking up.

Or maybe to his own...

Robin pulled the blanket over her, completely unaware of the tears. He brushed back her hair from out of her face. She opened one eye, but Robin didn't notice. Beast boy stared at her.

She's beautiful, isn't she? You know it, can't deny it. You-no! Not again. But she is. She's beautiful.

"Robin?"

Robin began to leave the room when Starfire jumped up suddenly and started after him...Robin turned to her and smiled again.

"The pier is practically empty 'till twelve." He said, holding out his hand. Starfire took it.

And as the two headed out the door together, Beast Boy felt that strange urge to follow. And he would. Oh, yes. He would. And he did.

Robin was right; the pier was empty. Only it was a little emptier than they had expected. Two rides, three games, and an ice cream stand were the only things open. Beast boy hurried to the ice cream stand and watched as Starfire practically dragged Robin over to the new Ferris wheel. For the next few hours, he would watch them. They'd walk around, talk, play games, sit through rides, and the entire time Beast Boy would be there. Watching.

Not watching. Watching over.

After the pier started flooding with people, they had gone back to the tower. Searching for solitude, Beast Boy has gone to Terra's room. It was the closest vacant room in the tower, discluding his own. Besides, he wasn't so sure his room even was "vacant". He wasn't very sure he wanted to know either. Terra's room was exactly the way he'd remembered it. Her walls still a mass of sparkling stars to black. Her large bed with pink covers still had a small bit of green fur from when he'd laid there. Cried there. That had been when he'd found out. That bitch! Nothing but a...

Beast Boy moved over to the bed and touched it. The soft covers sunk in and when he took his hand away, the fur stuck to his glove. He wanted to forget her. He wanted Terra to leave his mind, and his heart. But that wouldn't happen. He loved her and still did, or maybe it was someone else who was making his heart a ticking time bomb. Maybe his feelings had fallen for someone else. And perhaps it was no longer a maybe. He lay down on the bed and closed his eyes, deep in thought. Eventually, he drifted to sleep. It was the kind of light sleep that didn't take long to fall into and wasn't very hard to snap out of. The kind you usually don't dream in. But he did.

"Terra!" Beast Boy ran toward her, excited, yet unsurprised.

He ran and he ran and so did Terra, but neither came any closer. Not until Beast Boy stopped. Then it changed. Terra was in front of him now, her blonde hair blowing shapelessly in the wind, her face brought into a joyful smile, a passionate kiss awaiting at her lips. Beast Boy wrapped his arms around her and ignored the tear that rolled down his cheek. But then suddenly, it was no longer Terra who hugged him back with loving arms. It was Starfire. Starfire who cried into his shoulder, breathing heavily. Starfire who all of the sudden grew limp. That was when Beast Boy cried out of fear and loneliness; when he mourned the loss of his friend...His dreams, his hopes, his life... Her whose skin was now colder, whiter; dead. And at that moment, came the laugh. That horrible, death-singing laugh. But it was his own throat, Beast Boy's throat, from which it hissed out its breaths, and continued. Continued to laugh.

Just to let you know, if you haven't already figured it out, anything in bold italics (the way I'm typing here, DUH.) is in Beast Boy's mind. Dreams, thoughts, whatever...