King Cheetah: Ahhh, it's always nice to see the faithful reader review...heh, hope this chapter doesn't disappoint...and if it does...read just to humor me...cause the ending to this story...well I can't say too much...but it's gonna rock...(I hope).

NOTES: It's been a while since my last post I know, but this chapter was giving me a lot of trouble. For some reason I had some serious difficulties getting to the ending (then add to it the fact that my PC is having problems connecting to the internet...anyway...I personally like the direction this is headed...it doesn't matter to me if anyone is reading or not...I'm just the kind of person who hates to leave things unfinished...so this will be completed...and once school's out for the summer I may have more time to focus on this part of my life (NEW TITANS EPISODE TONIGHT ON MIGUZZI!) So, without further delay, Chapter Eight

Chapter Eight: Reconciled

Beast Boy and Terra were sitting together outside Titans Tower watching the Justice League Javelin fly out if sight. When it finally disappeared, Beast Boy glanced over at Terra, "Of all the things I could have gotten from my mom...I get this…" Beast Boy shook his head, "Ya know, she never told any of us about all this." Terra looked surprised, "Really?" Beast Boy nodded, "Yeah…for obvious reasons I guess, but this is the sort of thing that I deserve to know. Heh, no one wants to know their grandpa's an evil monster…but in this case…well, it would explain a lot." Terra smirked, "Yeah, Raven was always a bit of a mystery."

Terra stood up and looked out over the ocean, "Look, Beast Boy, if you don't want to come back to the Tower, that's ok….but if you ever change your mind…there's always a place for you." Beast Boy smiled slightly and started walking away, "Thanks." He stopped halfway down the path and turned back to Terra, "We really should be working together…two teams on different sides of the city…" He grinned, "There's nothin we couldn't handle." Terra nodded, "Not even Slade could stand up to us." Beast Boy shuddered, "Yeah…" Terra started walking up to the Tower, "So, does this mean you trust me now?" Beast Boy nodded, "Yeah…just don't disappoint me."

Terra turned her back and walked toward the Tower. Beast Boy watched her go for a moment then he turned away and headed downtown. He looked around at the people passing by. All of them were oblivious to his presence. The people of Jump City had seen so many strange things over the years that a green-skinned teenager was nothing out of the ordinary. Yet, this was the kind of thing the people of Jump City would never see, the secret struggle against an otherworldly demon. Much like his mother had been years ago, Beast Boy was a time bomb waiting to blow, but no one knew how big the explosion was going to be. Nightwing had said Trigon's hold over Beast Boy was weaker than Raven, but Beast Boy was still feeling uneasy. Knowing there was a demon inside him waiting to destroy the earth was a bit unsettling. Beast Boy looked at the world around him; he had to stay in control, or countless innocent people would suffer.

Terra walked into the main room of the Tower and dropped down onto the couch next to Warlock. He glanced over at Terra, "What's goin on?" Terra shook her head, "Nothing…" Warlock smirked as he threw an arm around Terra's shoulder, "Come on Terra…something's up. I saw you and Beast Boy rush off to the Watch Tower." Terra sighed, "Don't worry. Beast Boy had a weird dream lat night. Thought it might mean something, so we went to ask Raven…" Warlock watched her carefully, "And…?" Terra leaned her head on Warlock's shoulder, "Nothing…just a little nightmare."

Warlock smirked, "Heh…figures. So, does this mean he's coming back to the Tower?" Terra stood up, "No. We figured it was better if he stayed on the other side of town. That way we'd be prepared for anything." Warlock stretched out along the couch, "So he's on our side again?" Terra nodded. Warlock sighed, "Are you sure we can trust him?" Terra smirked, "Why not?" Warlock shrugged, "I dunno…maybe cause he attacked us." Terra nodded, "I guess, but I tried to kill his parents, and they still trust me." Warlock sighed, "Whatever…"

Terra sat down on the arm of the couch, "Besides, his team seems pretty tough. Vortex's sister…a wannabe Cyborg. And Falcon says Frostbyte's got some power too." Warlock nodded, "Yeah, but he has no control." Terra smirked, "Anyone can learn how to control their powers…" Warlock grinned, "Yeah, but Slade's not around to help him." Terra growled and hit Warlock with one of the pillows sitting on the couch, "Watch it…" Warlock reached up and pushed her off the couch as Falcon walked into the room. She walked over and leaned over the back of the couch, "What's up?" Terra glared at Warlock as she stood up, then she turned to Falcon, "Beast Boy's back with the good guys."

Frostbyte paced angrily around the room. Every time he passed Beast Boy he would start mumbling to himself. Nano was sitting on the couch resting her head on her hands, "Calm down Frostbyte." Beast Boy was leaning lazily on the counter, "Look, if you don't wanna go along with this, you can eave any time." Frostbyte growled, "Beast Boy, a few days ago, you couldn't wait to bring these guys down…what happened?" Beast Boy shrugged, "I was angry…and it was a stupid thing to say ok? I'm not a criminal…how many times do we have to do this?"

Nano stood up off the couch, "Besides, he makes a good point. Beast Boy's the only one who's had any real combat training. We wouldn't stand a chance against the Titans…and even if we did happen to take 'em out, then we'd have the League to deal with. If you wanna make a name for yourself…you don't want to be the bad guy. Look at Terra. You ask someone who Terra is and the first thing they'll tell ya is that she killed Slade. Then they might say she betrayed the Titans…but it all comes back to her doing the right thing in the end." Frostbyte glared at her, "I thought the whole reason for this team was to get rid of Terra." Beast Boy nodded, "Yeah…it was. But in the past few days, I kinda see why my parents trust her so much."

Frostbyte shook his head, "There's no way you can change your opinion that fast…there's gotta be more to it." Beast Boy looked down at the floor, "Is there something wrong with deciding to trust her?" Frostbyte shook his head, "No…but I can tell that you don't." Beast Boy glared at him, "Well what do you want me to say? That I hate her cause she almost killed my parents…that she broke my dad's heart…she betrayed them?" Frostbyte nodded, "Yeah, that'll work." Beast Boy growled, "Well, I betrayed her! I left the Tower and started my own team. And when we showed up to stop a bank robbery, instead of explaining everything, we attacked them. So I'm no better than she is…and she gave me a second chance today. I think I owe it to her to do the same."

Frostbyte shook his head, "One good deed doesn't make up for her past Beast Boy. You of all people should understand that." He turned his back and stormed out of the room. Beast Boy looked over at Nano and sighed. She shrugged, "For what it's worth…I'm on your side." He walked over and sat down on the couch, "He is right though…this doesn't make up for what happened." Nano nodded, "True, but it never hurts to give someone another chance."

The two of them looked up as Fireball walked into the room. She headed over to the couch and sat down next to Beast Boy, "I hear we're with the good guys now…" Beast Boy nodded, "Yeah, are you here to criticize me too?" Fireball shook her head, "No. I just don't know if I can work with my brother after what he did." Beast Boy looked at her, "Maybe you should get his side of the story…"

Vortex walked into the main room of Titans Tower mumbling to himself. Terra came walking in behind him, "This is a weird situation for all of us. But this is your sister…she kinda deserves to know what happened." Vortex shook his head, "No matter 'ow I do this, I'm gonna sound like the bad guy. I didn't wanna leave her, but Nightwing promised we'd go back an' get her…but, when we figured out where they took her, she already ran away. I wanted to go back and look for her, but Nightwing wouldn't let me. He said I'd never find her." He looked down at the floor and sighed, "I've been kickin myself every day for leavin her behind…" Fireball stood up from the couch with tears streaming down her face. Vortex took a step back, "What's she doin 'ere?" Fireball ran forward and threw her arms around his neck. Vortex smiled through watery eyes. He tried to find the words to speak, but all he could manage was a quiet apology for abandoning his sister. Fireball looked her brother in the eyes, "I thought you were gone…just like mom an' dad." Vortex wrapped his arms around his sister and held her tight.

Warlock walked into the room and glanced over at Vortex and Fireball. He smiled slightly and walked over to Terra, "That's two down…" Terra smiled, "Yeah…and from what Beast Boy said, it sounds like the only problem is Frostbyte." Warlock shook his head, "I coulda told you that would happen. He's got a grudge against Nightwing that'll probly last beyond the grave…" Terra leaned against the counter, "What happened?" Warlock sighed, "A few years ago, Beast Boy brought Frostbyte to the Tower…said he wanted to join the team. He trained with us for a day, and Nightwing decided to let him stay. Only, he didn't have a whole lot of control. Nightwing said he wouldn't be able to officially join the team until he had trained a little harder. Frostbyte took it as an insult and stormed out." Terra laughed nervously, "Heh…sounds like me…" Warlock nodded, "Yeah…but you got over it. If he doesn't join up with us…then he's definitely gonna be something to worry about."

Later that day, Beast Boy was sitting with Nano and Frostbyte in their tower. Frostbyte was alone on the far side of the room complaining quietly to himself. Nano looked over at him, "Do you thin he'll get over it?" Beast Boy shrugged, "I have no idea." Beast Boy looked up as Fireball walked into the room, "So?" Fireball smiled, "I'm in." Beast Boy sighed, "Good." Frostbyte got up and stormed out of the room.

Beast Boy slowly got off the couch. He looked over ad Nano, "I'll be right back." He walked out of the room and made his way through the entryway and out onto the street. He pulled out his communicator and called Terra. "Beast Boy? What's up?" Beast Boy sighed, "It's Frostbyte. I don't think he's gonna do this…and I can't just kick him out…" Terra paused slightly and collected her thoughts, "Meet me downtown…I think I got an idea."

Beast Boy waked up to the table where Terra was waiting, "This is gonna be a regular thing isn't it?" Terra smirked, "Heh…sure…" Beast Boy sat down, "So, what's this plan?" Terra leaned back in her chair, "Well…it's not much of a plan. Why don't we just tell him?" Beast Boy looked up, "Tell him what?" Terra sighed, "Everything. Would he go along with us if he knew about Trigon?" Beast Boy nodded, "Yeah, but I thought we decided not to tell the others…" Terra jumped in, "I know, but we need all the help we can get, and if telling Frostbyte is the only way to get him to help, then we'd be stupid not to tell him." Beast Boy looked down at the table, "I dunno…" Terra leaned back in her chair, "Look, we're gonna have to tell everyone sooner or later, and as long as Frostbyte can keep his mouth shut until then, I saw we tell him." Beast Boy sighed heavily, "Yeah…true…alright. I'll go tell him." He stood up to leave and Terra grabbed his arm, "Just make sure he doesn't tell anyone else." Beast Boy nodded and walked away.

Terra got up and headed back toward the Tower. She pulled out her communicator and dialed the Watchtower as she walked through downtown. Nightwing's face appeared on the screen. "Hey Rob…uh…Nightwing. Heh…I'm still gettin used to the whole…" Nightwing jumped in, "Don't worry about it. What's up?" Terra hesitated slightly, "Is Raven around?" Raven suddenly appeared next to Nightwing, "What is it?" Terra sighed, "Beast Boy and I decided to let Frostbyte in on the whole Trigon thing…" Raven gasped, "What? Why?" Terra shrugged, "He didn't want to be one of the 'good guys'. We figured we're gonna have to tell everyone eventually…so, why not tell Frostbyte now and convince him to help?" Raven sighed, "Fine…as long as he won't say anything to the others." Terra nodded, "He won't."

Beast Boy poked his head into the main room of the tower, "Frostbyte, I need to talk to you." Frostbyte glared at him and mumbled something under his breath, "What?" Beast Boy motioned him out into the hallway, "Come on." Frostbyte groaned and walked out into the hall. He glared at Beast Boy as the door closed behind him, "If this is about the Titans, I don't want to hear it. I'm not working with them!" He turned and started back toward the door. Beast Boy reached out and grabbed his shoulder, "No it's not…well not entirely." He paused slightly, "Look, we decided to let you in on something." Frostbyte leaned against the wall and nodded. Beast Boy looked down at the floor, "Slade's back." He looked up at Frostbyte, "He's after me. Apparently, I'm destined to change the world or something."

Frostbyte smirked and shook his head. Beast Boy glared at him, "My grandpa…Raven's dad…is a demon from another dimension. That's where she got her powers. When she was younger, Raven couldn't show any emotion, or it might have opened a portal that allowed this demon into our world. When she fell in love with my dad, it erased the demon's control over her. Now…he's after me. He's planning to use me to get to my mom and make her open the portal." Frostbyte stared at him blankly. He struggled with his first few words, "Dude…this…Beast Boy…" Beast Boy jumped in before Frostbyte could form a coherent sentence, "That's why I agreed to work with the Titans and the Justice League. That's the only way we'd be able to bring this demon down."

Frostbyte shook his head, "Beast Boy, that's crazy…" Beast Boy nodded, "I know…but it's true." He hesitated slightly, "Look, if you don't want to team up with the Titans, that's fine. I'm not exactly ready for that either, but we really need help with this guy." He looked Frostbyte in the eye, "Think of this as the final test. If Terra doesn't screw this up…then we can obviously trust her." Frostbyte sighed, "And if she does screw up?" Beast Boy looked down at the floor, "Then we break ties with the Titans and take her down." Frostbyte pulled out his communicator and dialed Titans Tower. Terra's face quickly appeared on the screen. "Terra…I'm in." He closed the communicator before she had a chance to respond. Frostbyte turned to Beast Boy and smirked, "Heh…for now…"

End Chapter Eight
I bet there are a few spelling/typing errors in this chapter...but, as with my last story, I don't plan to fix those until the story is complete...stay tuned this summer for my original fiction coming to "Northlands the Second Age: Elements"