Disclaimer: I own no part of the Teen Titans or their associated canon nor, any other already copyrighted material.

(A/N): Okay…another chapter. Not much to say really…

Chapter 7

Torn

Raven raced down the stairs into the tower and headed for the main room. She tapped her foot impatiently as the elevator began descending. The black book had disappeared, happiness now gone and replaced. She glanced down at her foot and noticed a pair of black energy shin guards had appeared on her lower legs. Black armor was the representation of fear. During her training sessions she had been covered in a full suit of armor a couple times. Concentrating as hard as she could she was still unable to make it vanish. 'It's this damn rod. Magnifying my emotions to the point I can't fully contain them.' After a moment she considered the consequences if she lost control with this thing attached to her. Visions of what 'Slade' had shown her popped into her mind. She shivered as the doors slid open. She bolted into the main room and searched for Beast Boy. It didn't take long.

He was on the couch again playing his skating game. She could hear a voice over as she approached.

"…I'd start with a Hiroshima Snot Rocket, but you can try these other tricks." For a moment she stood confused as to just what the hell a Hiroshima Snot Rocket was. Shaking her self she jumped the couch landing next to Beast Boy. He jerked back in alarm, dropping the controller and raising his arm to defend himself. When he saw who it was his hand fell to his chest over his rapidly beating heart.

"Jesus Raven! You trying to give me a heart attack?"

"No. You don't eat enough meat to worry about that anyway."

"I don't eat any meat…"

"Exactly…now that we've got that out of the way…I need your help." He blinked a couple times, not sure if he had heard her right.

"My help? You need my help?" She rolled her eyes.

"Do you see anyone else I might be talking to?" He shook his head dumbly. "Okay, now listen carefully. I need you to get this rod," she held up the sword, "away from me. Then you have to keep it away from me and put it somewhere I can't get it." He looked at her uncomprehendingly for a moment.

"You want me to steal from you?" She nodded hastily. "Is this a setup?" She shook her head erratically.

"Why would you think that?"

"Paranoia?" She let out an exasperated sigh.

"Okay listen carefully. This thing is magnifying my emotions, if I hold onto it much longer I could start to lose control. And you know what happens then?" Stark terror slowly crept across his face. She could see the obvious question forming on his lips and barreled on before he could ask. "I've tried to get rid of it myself. For some reason I can't. I think it might be stopping me. No, I don't know how. Now, will you help me?" He stood and thought about it for a moment. Suddenly he looked over his shoulder.

"Hey Robin!" She spun around rapidly wondering how the Boy Wonder had gotten to the kitchen without her noticing. Her head whipped around. She didn't see him. Where… With a sudden jerk to her right arm than nearly pulled her to the ground she felt the Sword being yanked from her weakened grip. She turned back to see a gorilla turn into a cheetah and dart out the door. Half of her was overjoyed at the sudden freedom from the darkness she didn't know had been there. The other half already had her in flight pursuing the thief out the door. As she alternately faltered and flew on the two halves fought each other for control. Fortunately the pursuing side was on a time limit. She just had to hold out that long…

Beast Boy darted around another corner holding the rod in his teeth. He was fast as a cheetah but he couldn't keep this up for long. A blast of dark energy from behind him however gave his a second wind. Raven hadn't mentioned she was going to chase him. 'Okay, think Beast Boy, think. Where would Raven not be able to find this thing…' Not his room, that would be the first place she would look. Transforming into a raccoon he dove into a heating grate and hid just before she shot around the corner and past him.

Human again he silently made his way across the tower. He could hear her spirit form ripping back and forth through the walls, trying to find him. 'Okay, gotta get rid of this thing…the Ocean! That's it! She'll never find it there!' "Yes!" He heard the raven screech to a halt at his exclamation. "Shit!" He whispered and began to move as quickly and quietly as he could down the vent headed for the roof. Arriving at the top floor he waited and heard nothing. Kicking the grate off with both feet he slipped out onto the floor. To his right was the door to the roof. Just as he turned a black and blue figure turned a corner to his left. He transformed before it was fully aware it had spotted him. Time seemed to slow to a crawl as his cheetah form carried the rod toward the door, which was still ajar from Raven's earlier passage through it.

"Azarath…" He could her the fierce growl behind him as he dodged again evading black energy shots. The hallway seemed longer than it ever had. "…Metrion…" He was wall jumping now, doing his best not to get hit. The door was getting closer. It had to be. "…ZINTHOS!" With a final burst he lunged up the stairs and rolled through the door as much of the entryway exploded in black energy. With no time to think he switched to gorilla and threw the rod toward the ocean with all his might. End over end it glittered through the twilight before disappearing beneath the waves with a small splash. He turned back and tried to jump.

Fast as he was a set of black talons still caught him, leaving three sinister slashes across his right side. Falling backward his lower back crashed into the roof ledge. Desperately shaking his vision clear he saw Raven take a few running steps toward him. She was going after it. As she was about to jump he gathered his remaining strength. "Sorry Raven." With everything he had he let loose an uppercut directly into her exposed midsection as she jumped over him. In the same motion he stood and caught the girl over his shoulder. With the wind knocked out of her he could feel her form go limp against his back. Rage, pain and dangerous amounts of blood spilling from the slashes across his side he made his way through what was left of the door and headed for the medical bay with his unconscious passenger.

Cyborg, Starfire and Robin stepped out of the elevator headed for the main room and froze. A trail of blood lead down the hall headed for the medical wing. After a second they all bolted down the hall as fast as they could. Starfire flew ahead and was the first in the med lab. The others followed rapidly and pushed her several feet in at their arrival. Before then was a scene none of them expected. On the bed lay Raven, apparently unconscious. On the far side, sitting on a stool, shirt off, treating what appeared to be large gashes in his side, was Beast Boy. Again they stood there stunned as he looked up at them, exhaustion painting his face. "Hey." Starfire bolted toward him, eyes widening even more as she got a good look at the slashes that were still oozing small amounts of blood.

"Friend Beast Boy…Who did this to you?" Cyborg and Robin also drew closer, Cyborg now scanning his security system.

"Uh…it was…uh…"

"Out with it Beast Boy. We need to know what we're up against." Robin looked at him, waiting.

"Uh…it was…Raven."

"What!" The three said in unison. Beast Boy quickly raised his hand to defend her.

"It wasn't her fault! That…thing Arkanus left behind was messing with her head. You see…" He explained what had happened that afternoon. From her appearance in the common room to asking for help to the chase through the tower. "…and then…I punched her to knock her out. Guess it worked." They each sat in quiet contemplation for several moments.

"BB," Cyborg spoke from his side where he was working on the gashes. The bleeding had stopped but they still needed to be treated. "When she come to…she going to kill you."

"Dude, I was afraid she was going to kill me then. Looks like I bought myself some time." Robin glanced over the monitors hooked up to the bed.

"Well, she is just unconscious. She should come around in a little while. Someone should stay with her until she does. Just to make sure she isn't still…off."

"I'll do it." Beast Boy sheepishly raised his hand. He lightly touched the large bandage Cyborg had finished affixing to his side. "Probably best of I don't do anything for a while anyway." After a moment of consideration Robin nodded.

"Okay, report to us at the first sign of anything strange."

"You got it. Last thing I need is a matching set." He again patted the bandage.

"Okay. We'll be in the living room if you need us." Beast Boy nodded as the trio headed off, each giving a last glance to Raven before the door slid closed. Making their way to the living room they sat in silence for several minutes. Finally Robin spoke. "We're going to need to get that blood cleaned up."

"I've got a new cleaner bot I've been working on. I'll get it going." Cyborg left and headed for the garage, strangly glad to be alone with his thoughts. Robin sat on the couch staring blankly at the blank tv. Star sat next to him also staring at the screen, partly wondering what he saw there.

"Do…do you believe friend Raven will recover?"

"I'm sure she'll be find Star. She probably just got the wind knocked out of her. I just hope she'll be normal when she comes to."

"What…what if she is not…normal?"

"We'll deal with that if we have to. After all, what is 'normal' around here anyway. I mean, we have a half demon, a cyborg, a green kid that can change into animals, a mask wearing, screwed up kung fu kid and a beautiful red hared alien that throws energy bolts. Normal just isn't in it." She thought about what he had said, and he just caught the slight redness in her cheeks when she heard the part about her self.

"I do not think you are…screwed up." She smiled at him, and he smiled back automatically.

"Thanks Star." He gently took one of her hands in his and looked at it considering. "You always see the best in people. In me." She looked out with eyed that were oddly partially closed.

"There is much good to see in you friend Robin. You are caring, understanding, dedicated…and you have a strong sense of justice. It would taken someone who had lost eyesight not to see the good in you."

"Thanks Star." He raised her hand in his and laid a gentle kiss on the back. Her breath caught in her throat and his head came back up and his eyes, at least where she imagined his eyes were, locked with hers. "It's good to hear it from a friend." Still just a friend. She would give anything to be more. He let their hands fall but he didn't let go. His thumb made tiny circles on the back of hers. He broke the moment as his acute hearing picked up the sound of Cyborg returning. When he strode through the door a few seconds later they sat, flipping channels staring at the TV. If Cy thought anything was up he didn't mention it. Soon he joined them with a bowl of popcorn as they watched a stonehenge special.

Beast Boy was drifting in and out. He was exhausted after being chased through the tower and he hadn't gotten much sleep the night before. He had a hand holding one of Raven's so he'd be sure to know when she awoke. His head would loll for a few minutes then he'd almost fall out of his chair, start awake and repeat. After a few near misses he decided to pull the chair forward so that if he did fall, it would only be his head hitting the soft bed, instad of the tiled floor. It was in the middle of one of these lolling sessions that he felt Raven's hand twinge. Looking up he saw her eyes flutter slowly open. She looked around, trying to shake the drowsiness out of her head.

"Hey." She looked at Beast Boy, trying to reassemble her fractured memory starting that afternoon.

"Hey. Glad you're finally awake. Remember what happened?"

Slowly she managed to snap the pieces into place. Suddenly she remembered the slash to his side. Glancing down she saw the bandage covering most of the right side of his torso. She also realized he wasn't wearing a shirt. "Oh…Beast Boy…I'm sorry." She gently reached out to lay a hand against the bandage. White energy glowed around it for several seconds. When her hand pulled away she let out a breath she had been holding in concentration. "There. Better?" Startled he peeled the bandage back and looked at where the wound had been. Not even a scar remained. Tearing the bandage of and throwing it in the trash he smiled.

"Thanks Rae."

"Least I could do after I…" A few more seconds clicked into place. Her face suddenly turned dark. "You hit me!" The relief on his face turned to stark terror and he began slowly backing away, hands raised in surrender of defense.

"Now look Raven…I was trying to help you, I panicked! I didn't know what else to do!" She had slipped out of the bead and was now stalking unsteadily closer. "I'm sorry!" He was wailing now, terrified out of his mind. "Please don't kill me! Don't send me to another dimension!" Her hand was suddenly encased in black energy.

"You knock me out, carry me down here and do god knows what to me…" His eyes were growing wider by the second. She had him off balance and she was enjoying it. "…Taking advantage of the situation…"

He risked his own life to interrupt her. "Take advantage! I would never take advantage of you! I'd never doing anything to you!" Her black encased hand pressed against the skin of his chest. She could feel his heart racing, in fear for his own life. She let the energy spread a little and begin to envelop him. Leaning in very close to his head, which was turned to one side, eyes shut tight, she whispered right in his ear.

"Never? Even if I ask you to?" He was to afraid to speak, fearful any answer would end in his transportation to another dimension, or the afterlife. After what felt like an eternity he slowly opened one eye. To his astonishment she was sitting on the edge of the bed, legs crossed, hand over her mouth…giggling at him. "Well, I guess we can call it even. You did help me after all." After several moments he managed to find his voice.

"So…I get to live?" She nodded. "And stay in this dimension?" She paused as if seriously considering the question before nodding again. He let out the breath he was holding and took several large ones to replace it. She had him completely turned around. Hopping from the bed she held out her hand. He took it with immense trepidation.

"Come on, the others would probably like to know what's going on." He nodded dumbly and followed as she half pulled him to the common room. They did make a brief stop at Beast Boy's room to get a new shirt. When they entered Robin was just finishing a conversation with Speedy from Titans East.

"We'll be there. Later." The image winked out and he turned to the door. The other also turned. Starfire darted up to them, nearly crushing them in a hug.

"Friends! You are well!"

"Uh…yeah Star. We're fine. Uh…air?" She released them quickly and stepped back.

"So," said Robin, "care to give us the rundown Raven? Beast Boy filled us in on what he knew, but I'd like your side of things." She nodded as they moved to the couch. Giving a quick rundown she hit all the important points of what had happened. Beast Boy was grateful she left out the part about the tea. "So…the Sword is gone and it's not influencing you anymore?"

"Right."

"Good enough for me. Glad to have you back." Cyborg smiled with the team as she sat.

"And now that you're back…you can hear about the party we're going to!"

"Party?" Beast Boy practically exploded. "Hell yeah! Go party, go party! Where? When? Is it a Mexican theme?" He pulled a sombrero out of nothingness and slapped it on his head and began dancing with a pair of maracas, pulled from the same nothingness.

"Uh, no that kind of party dude." Cyborg spoke staring at him in bewilderment.

"Say what?" The dancing stopped. Robin spoke in reply.

"It's a formal event. The JLA is having a party to commemorate their five-year anniversary."

"Formal?" The hat and maracas disappeared. "Oh man."

"Friend Robin…what is this 'formal'?"

"It means it's a fancy party Star…like prom." He eyes lit up at this news.

"Only…this time you will not be going with Kitten…correct?"

"Not a chance in hell…uh…no." Raven's deadpan cut through the Alien girls chearful response.

"And let me guess…you said we'd all be there."

"Sorry Rae. Wouldn't look good if we all didn't show."

"Hey," Cyborg's head popped up, "that means we get to see Raven in a dress!" The death glare she gave him made him wish he had just kept him mouth shut…down in the garage…while starting up the T-car.

'There has to be a way out of this.' Raven thought. Deep down though, she knew there wasn't.

(A/N): If you feel it is warranted feel free to review. I welcome any and all opinions.