"Raven, you okay?" I asked, while knocking on her door.
"What makes you think I'm not?" Her voice had a sad tone, like that of someone who's been crying.
"Well," I began, "I was in the gym and I heard you and BB talking. It sounded like you were having a fight. I got worried, so I came to see if you were upset."
"Well, thanks for checking on me," Raven sighed, "but I'm not okay. Terra's back, and now all of a sudden he treats me like dirt. Well, I won't stand for this. If Terra wants Beast Boy, she can take him."
"Well, you have the right to be angry. Beast Boy shouldn't leave you like that. If Star ever did that to me, well……" My voice trailed off. "But he's a really great guy. I know BB can be a pain, and I know sometimes he doesn't like to show his feelings, but his heart's in the right place."
"Whatever," Raven grumbled. "I'd tell him I don't want to talk to him, but frankly, he's not worth my time, or anyone else's, for that matter."
"Still, I think you're making a colossal mista-" My voice was cut off by an alarm. Starfire dashed down the hall and bumped into me. Frantically, she grabbed my arm. "Star," I asked, "what's going on?"
"There's no time to talk, Robin." Man, her English had gotten good! "Some teenager just broke into the bank. Tried to steal high-security weapons."
"Get the others," I commanded, "and tell Cyborg to warm up the T-car. We've got a criminal to stop."
"You'll never catch me! My father will be avenged!"
"Dude," Beast Boy scoffed, "you seriously need a life."
We were standing in the middle of a bank vault where the weapons and armor were located. In front of us was a boy, with light brown hair and a serious attitude problem. He looked about Terra's age, and glared at her with contempt in his eyes.
"Ah, yes, looks like the idiot tagged along with you." We had agreed to let Terra come as backup, but she still was out of practice. Perhaps this bad guy was actually smart. Wait, what am I thinking?
"How are you, Max? Jealous?" Terra taunted.
"Dude," BB whispered to me, "how does she know him?"
"Oh," Terra grinned evilly, "we go way back. Of course, after the little volcano incident, we sorta lost touch."
Terra lifted two large boulders and raised them over Max. Max just threw his head back and laughed. As Terra prepared to let go, Max vanished, then reappeared by her side. He gave her a kick to the back of her legs. Terra's knees buckled. If it weren't for Bb's quick thinking, she would have been crushed under the enormous weight of the boulders she was trying to lift. Luckily, BB turned into a ram and butted her out of the way.
"You okay, Terra?" He picked her up off of the ground.
"I am now," she said, her eyes shining. Behind her, Raven pretended to throw up.
"Cute, very cute," Max mocked her. "I always knew you were a softy on the inside, Terra. Unlike you, I am one hundred percent emotionless."
"Yeah," Terra retorted, "then how come your dad's death matters?"
"My father," Max began, "was a genius, a criminal genius, but a genius nonetheless. He took me in off the streets, like he did you. He saved me from myself, like he did you. In return, I swore to continue his works after his death. But unlike you I was not an ungrateful little trai-"
I seized the opportunity and whacked him with my staff. That's the thing about super villains. They always have two things in common: tiny brains and big egos.
"Awesome move, Robin!" Starfire cheered. I smiled.
"Looks like ya spoke too soon!" Terra was right. Max was making a break for it. And, he had a hostage. "Raven!"
"Don't worry, I'll save you!" Beast Boy followed after Max. Max had already gotten to the street. He snickered, then left Raven right in the path of a speeding car. "No! Don't hurt her!"
"He's getting away!" Star yelled. She flew after him to the other side of the street. Max tried to escape by swinging across the traffic lights, but Star was a step ahead of him. She zapped the line with her starbolts.
"Aaahh!" Max yelped. Ouch, that's gotta hurt. I mean, starbolts and electricity. He'll be feeling that tomorrow.
"Yeah, Star!" I cheered. Starfire did a flip in midair, then used the wire to tie up Max, who was sucking on his burnt thumb.
"Nice job, guys," Terra congratulated us. "But where the heck are Raven and BB?"
"We forgot all about them!" Cyborg recalled.
"Raven? Raven?" I lifted a few pieces of debris and finally found her under the exploded hood of a car.
"I'm fine," she said, rubbing her hurt arm. She was clearly unharmed, except for a few minor scratches. "But he isn't." We followed her gaze to the parked car near the side of the road. Terra, Cyborg and I walked over to it. Star helped Raven up.
It was obvious what had happened. Beast Boy had seen Raven in the way of the car. Thinking of her safety and not his own, he had pushed her out of the way, only to wind up in its path. The car had hit him at a low speed, so the physical damage was minimal. He had a few cuts and scrapes, and he was bleeding. But the worst of the damage was this: he was unconscious.
"Hey, Earl," yelled an older woman to the driver of the car, who was getting out on the other side. "I think we hit somethin'."
"Yeah, I reckon you're right." Earl was an older gentleman in his mid-fifties.
"Well, whadya think it is?"
"Looks like a kid. Or perhaps an elf."
"No duh," Raven droned, speaking for the first time since we had found Beast Boy. She turned to me. "How bad is it?"
"I dunno, but let's get him back to the tower."
"Well," Cyborg said, "After a thorough analysis, and of course taking into account the damage and his powers-"
"Get on with it!" Terra interjected.
"Well, he's gonna be just fine. He's got an extremely strong immune system, and his powers enabled him to withstand the attack. But he's kinda out of it."
"How much so?" I interrogated.
"He's unable to hear us, or snap out of it. Unless…." Cyborg glanced at Raven.
"What?" she questioned. "Unless what?"
"Well, I was thinkin'…"
"That's not like you."
"Terra, shut up. I was thinking that you might be able to go into his mind and all. Like ya did with Robin. You know, convince him that we need him back."
"I'm not sure if my powers are strong enough," Raven worried.
"C'mon, Raven. You can do it!" Cyborg cheered her on.
"Yes, please, bring our friend back to us. I miss him so."
"Yeah, Raven." Terra patted her on the back. Okay, more like slapped her vigorously on the back. "You've got awesome powers. If they can blow up a building, they can knock a little green dude back to his senses."
"It's a good idea," I agreed. "If you could save me from my Slade obsession, you can do this. If you don't save him, no one will."
"Well," she strode over to the operating table where BB lay. Raven put her hand on his forehead. "I'll do it," she said finally. "After all, he did save my life. But I'll need some time to meditate and gather my strength." She leaned over and kissed BB on the cheek.
"Don't worry, buddy," she whispered. "I'll get ya out of there. Somehow."
Author's Note: Wohoo, my longest chapter! Lotsa drama, but "Earl" tried to lighten it up. Will Raven bring BB back? Will she forgive him? And who is this Max, anyway? Well, you'll have to wait. I just love a good cliffhanger.
