Review Responses:
SatuSimpson: I actually don't like chocolate, but thanks for the offer. I updated pretty soon after you sent this review. Thanks for the compliments, I'm glad you like the story.
John Steppenwolf: Trigon issupposedly very powerful, and is nearly invulnerable, save for a few weaknesses which are spoilers. In this fic, he's limited to the powers of his daughter, and that of course causes problems.
An Ammused Person: This chapter isn't quite as long as the last, but I'm glad you liked it. Hopefully the next update will come sooner, but you know how that goes.
Gothicthunder: Thanks!
Rain and Fire: I'd be amazed if they did that, but "The End" already deals with Trigon, so I'm thinking it probably would never happen. Still though, I'd love to be a writer for the series, though it's an unrealistic dream.
Romantic Raven: I'm glad you like them!
Ultimate R-Man: I like the way the emotions are growing as real people too. It's good to see it happen. I'm glad you like the fic!
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Animeluv09: I'm glad you like the story! Yes, this story is co-written with Regreme Erutaerc. He basically outlines the plot and comes up with scene ideas, and I write it out. I'm glad you favorited me and the story, thanks for the review!
aly'n'jen: This chapter obviously didn't come out quite as early as I'd have liked, but still here it is. Thanks for the review!
Dr. Evil 99: Another well thought out and articulate review from you. We've spoken about this story often on AIM, and as such this response is mostly for completeness. Thanks for the review of course, and I hope you enjoy this latest update.
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disappearer/Syani: I'm glad you like it. I've considered writing a novel, but I haven't sta down and tried yet. Maybe someday.
Ryuu no Taiyo: Long chapters are partly the reason the updates are so far apart. Still, I think a chapter should be at least 10 or 15 pages to be worth posting, so here's another long one.
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Quite a Shame: Glad you liked the last chapter. Wisdom interrupts, but she's still a good person.
The Last: Here's the next chapter, a little shorter, but hopefully still good.
Psycho King: Trigon has a big ego because he's nearly invulnerable in person. Still, hubris is often a weakness.
Raidersrule76: Abyssar Mortis Zandia is just made up words. Abyssar refers to the Abyss, home of Demons. Mortis is a corruption of Latin for death, and Zandia is the country that a Trigon cult operates out of in DC Comics universe.
The Mad Shoe: Hopefully this chapter will make today for you.
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Jackdaw: Took longer. Sorry.
A/N: Hello Readers. Sorry for the over-two-month delay. Hopefully, again, I'll have the next chapter out sooner. The fic is drawing to a close. This chapter has less action than the previous, but the next one is action-packed. See you all soon.
Raven leaned heavily on Beastboy as he helped her down the corridor. The hallway was relatively silent, despite the footsteps of eight copies of herself following them. Beastboy was smiling, walking slowly enough for her to keep up. The emotions were staying a few paces behind them; Wisdom keeping them in place. Raven was glad that Wisdom seemed to know that she needed this time to think.
Beastboy was no longer simply the moronic green jokester he had been for most of the time she'd known him. Raven allowed a small smirk to spread across her lips. She'd always assumed that he was no deeper than that; a jokester who, perhaps, paid just a bit more attention to her than he should. Today, however, had quickly proven otherwise. He had been attentive, calm, supportive, and even... attractive. Not only that, but he had been resourceful and adaptive enough to defeat Trigon. As impressed as she was, Raven had little trouble understanding her sudden attraction to Beastboy.
She looked up to notice him smiling at her, a strange look in his eyes. His voice was quiet and concerned when he spoke. "Raven, are you ok? You haven't been talking."
Raven nodded, her face deadpan. "Yes, I'm fine. I was simply thinking about... Rage."
Beastboy's smile stayed, but his eyes grew darker. "She attacked you."
"Yes, but she seemed like she was doing it of her own volition." Raven looked up and saw Beastboy cocking an eyebrow at her. "She was doing it with no control from Trigon."
Beastboy nodded. "Yeah, all the emotions grabbed their sides at once, and then Hatr- uh, Trigon yelled that Rage was a traitor and left. How is attacking you bad for Trigon though? Doesn't he want to defeat you?"
Raven nodded grimly. "He... He wants to defeat my will. He wants control of me. If he kills me though, he loses. If I die, he has no way to come into this world."
Beastboy stopped walking, and Raven had to stop as well, since she couldn't continue on her own. The emotions all stopped, also, remaining a few feet behind them. "She... she was trying to kill you?"
Raven looked up at Beastboy. Her voice showed a bit of irritation when she spoke. "What did you think she was aiming to do?"
"I don't know, maybe just hurt you or weaken you, so Trigon could take you over. Why would she want to kill you? Wouldn't she die?"
Raven nodded. "Yes. She would." Raven sighed. She didn't like saying the next part. "She wanted to get away from... my father."
Beastboy's eyes widened. He stammered slightly, but nothing coherent came out.
"She figured that killing me was the only way to stop him. The only way to free herself." Raven didn't like discussing this with Beastboy. He was too lighthearted; a jokester. Dark subjects like this were better kept far from innocent hearts.
Beastboy closed his eyes, obviously trying to think things over. Raven simply watched him. She knew that nothing she could say would change whatever he was feeling. She saw his eyes clench shut, and a tear fall to the ground. When he opened his eyes, his look was fierce.
His voice was calm when he spoke, but Raven could sense that he was deeply affected by Rage's attempted sacrifice. "I will stop him, Raven. He won't control any part of you, ever again. Don't worry, I'll stop him."
Raven could only nod; she was unused to seeing him like this. She'd only seen that look in his eyes once before; when Terra was holding the stone above his head, and Slade was controlling her. He wouldn't give up on her, and she knew it.
She just hoped that she ended up better than Terra had.
Rage could only watch as Trigon walked through the city. He was purposefully forgoing use of her powers, since the Titans were apparently able to track them that way. Trigon's burning rage had abated. He had ranted until he was out of breath, and now seemed to be simply looking for an idea.
Rage, bored with watching Trigon wander around in her body, turned her thoughts inward. Beastboy was an anomaly. Hatred and Malice had both been turned, and their devotion to Trigon had only been second to her own. She hated Trigon, but she wasn't quite ready to call herself a Titan. The problem wasn't that they stood for truth, order, and good. The problem was Raven.
No matter how Rage looked at it, Raven was simply fated to lose. Trigon was actively trying to control her mentally, of course, but his influence ran deeper than that. She was half demon. No part of her was inherently good, but half of her blood ran pure evil. It was impossible for the weak, human part of her to hold out forever.
Rage sighed mentally. Her body was nothing but a prison as Trigon looked into shop windows along the back road that he was walking down. Raven was fated to lose... but Beastboy still intrigued Rage, and she had no idea why. She felt no anger towards him, which surprised her. He'd taken her 'sister' emotions from her, yet she felt no anger. Pity, perhaps. He would doubtlessly face her as if she was Hatred or Malice, and that would earn him nothing against Trigon now.
They had only won because Trigon's attention had been diverted. There was nowhere else to send his attention now. When she ended up fighting the Titans, which she could see no way around, Trigon would maintain full control.
Rage tested his control of her mind, just a few probing jabs against the stone wall of his compulsion. He ignored her feeble attempts. Rage sighed again, realizing that her own power was woefully insufficient. Perhaps Beastboy would provide her an edge. Honestly, however, she hoped that Malice and Hatred could provide their strength as well. A little cooperation may just be what they needed.
Trigon stopped suddenly, and this caused Rage to notice their surroundings. A run-down area of town, not any place that any normal girl should be walking around alone. Guilty glances were thrown at her from every common pusher standing on street corners. Somehow, she felt that everyone was unnerved by the strangely clad Titan with four glowing red eyes. Trigon was staring into a store window.
A costume store. Rage felt the anger grow inside her as she saw the Raven costume in the window. It wasn't exactly correct, a few minor alterations needed to be made. However, with a few minutes' work, this would be an effective disguise. Effective enough to fool Beastboy.
Rage let her anger simmer and boil. She'd need every ounce of power she could muster. Beastboy was going to be in real danger, and she wanted to help him. She couldn't explain it, but she definately needed to help.
His life would depend on it.
Beastboy stopped as he and Raven finally approached the door to the medical lab. He grinned at Raven, who was sweating with the exertion of walking so far with her injury. "Rae... are you ok to go in?"
Raven found it strange that the nickname didn't bother her. Normally, she only allowed Cyborg to call her that, and she only allowed that much because he wouldn't stop if she asked anyway. Coming from Beastboy, however, it felt endearing, and she couldn't help but smile a small bit. "I'm not hurting as bad as I was, but... you have yet to tell me what you were going to say before you left to face Hatred."
Beastboy blushed, remembering that he had indeed promised to tell her. He heard Romance snicker confidently behind them. She was shushed quickly by Wisdom, but he could tell that even Wisdom was listening as well.
"Uh... I think we both sort of know what I was going to say, Raven. I mean, it was pretty obvious." Beastboy, faced with the burden of confession, was suddenly nervous about it. He was pretty sure that she knew what he was going to say, and she seemed like she wanted to hear it. Still though, he couldn't shake the fear that she wouldn't share his feelings, and that she would be angry at his confession.
Raven's face remained deadpan. Her eyes, however, were warm. They darted across his face, and Beastboy felt himself getting lost in their violet depths again. "I... think I know. However, I want to hear it from you. I don't like to be mistaken."
Beastboy grinned slightly. She wouldn't give up until he said it. He heard a squeak of excited anticipation come from Romance. That, and a sensual purr from Lust, reminded him that they had an audience of sorts. Beastboy turned once more towards Raven and smiled. "Ok, I guess... I guess what I was going to say... Well, it's not a guess. I mean it. Raven, I love --"
The door to the medlab slid open, revealing a smiling alien girl. "Raven, Beastboy, others! I am happy to see you! I was just coming to bring you all here!"
Starfire's smile lessened slightly at the angry glare from many of the emotions behind Raven and Beastboy. Raven looked irritated as well, but Beastboy was grinning, as if trying to hold back laughter.
"I have... done something wrong? Why is it that you are angry, Ravens?" Starfire tried to understand what she had said to anger them.
Romance spoke up first. "He was about to tell us that he-"
"He was about to tell us something, but we are not sure what. I am certain that we will find out sometime." Wisdom cut Romance off mid-sentence.
Embarrassment covered her face with her hands, not trusting the darkness of her hood to cover her blush.
"Don't worry about it, Star. How is everyone doing?" Beastboy was grinning, even though he'd been stopped from saying it once again. Seeing Raven and the emotions have such a reaction to the interruption did nothing but prove to him that they felt the same way. He'd tell her sometime, and he knew she'd say it back.
Starfire smiled at Raven and Beastboy. She had figured out exactly what she had interrupted. She was happy that the two Titans were growing so close; it gave her hope that perhaps she would grow closer to Robin soon as well. Starfire put all that away, however, and focused more on what was happening right now.
"Robin has asked that everyone come here. I am better, thanks to Malice and Hatred. Cyborg is repaired as well. Robin is still injured, though he is, of course, trying to use his ankle anyway." Starfire spoke as she walked back into the medlab.
Cyborg grinned at Beastboy from his recharging station. He had already made the necessary repairs, and just wanted to be at full power in case of another fight. Friendship was holding her head, and wobbling. She looked like she was recovering from a mild concussion, and didn't seem to be quite up to any combat yet. Hatred was frowning at Robin, who was walking around on his ankle, even though he winced every step he took. Malice was standing next to Hatred, shaking her head at Robin's stubborness. Worry was sitting in a corner, wringing her hands nervously.
"Robin, stop being an idiot. Let your ankle heal before you start fighting again. Stay off of it for a few days." Hatred was trying to suppress the annoyance at this person.
"A few days? We don't have a few days to sit here and heal. Knowledge, how long before permanent damage is done to Raven's psyche from this emotional split?"
Knowledge could rarely resist a direct question like that. "At most, one or two hou--" Suddenly, Knowledge caught Beastboy's worried look. She felt... strange. She didn't want... to tell the truth. She had never lied before, but she didn't want to worry him any more than she had to. "--days. One or two days."
Wisdom looked at Knowledge. Knowledge could tell that Wisdom had caught her. Wisdom just smiled slightly, however. Knowledge made a mental note to research the effects of emotion on honesty.
Beastboy grinned. "Dude, listen to them. You have to stay off your feet; we'll take care of Rage."
Friendship, still holding her aching head, nodded slightly at Robin. "Yes, be careful. We know you care a lot for your friends, and detest personal weakness, but you have to understand your limits. Don't kill yourself over us."
Robin frowned, and pulled himself up off the floor and onto the medical table, rubbing his ankle lightly, to assuage the pain. Batman had never stopped due to a fractured ankle; neither should he. He hated being weak, but he honestly knew that fighting in this condition would cause problems for the whole team. "I'll sit this one out, but you all have to keep moving on this. Figure out a way to find Rage. Go and get her. Soon."
Cyborg nodded, checking his arm display. "My power cell is at eighty percent. In a few minutes, I'll be good to go look for a new way to find her. Friendship, how are you feeling? You took a bad hit on the head back there."
Friendship smiled at Cyborg. "I'm doing fine. My head hurts, but I'll recover."
Beastboy looked up at Friendship from the table that he had laid Raven down on. "You were hit in the head? Are you sure you're ok? You shouldn't be sitting up."
Friendship smiled happily at Beastboy, who was now standing next to her, helping her lay down after fluffing a pillow for her. "I'm ok. You worry too much. Hatred threw a stone at me, but I'm ok now. It's not her fault."
Hatred glared at Friendship from where she was standing, working with Malice to heal Robin's ankle as well as possible. She had to bring it up, didn't she? Hatred hadn't meant to telekinetically throw the rock, but Trigon had forced her. It wasn't her fault.
Beastboy smiled, however. "Yeah, I know it wasn't her fault. Still though, lay down for a while. Let yourself heal. You're not Robin; you can't just force yourself through the pain."
Friendship was happy that Beastboy cared so much, and could not say no. "Ok, ok. I'll lay here for a bit. I'll get some rest." Friendship lay back on the pillow and resigned herself to at least a few hours bedrest.
Hatred turned and glared at Friendship. Beastboy noticed the hate in the glare, and raised an eyebrow. "Hatred? Are you ok?"
Hatred jumped slightly, not expecting that he'd notice. She'd been thinking about how much fun it'd be to knock Friendship out again, after stealing Beastboy's attention from her. "I... uh..."
Malice couldn't resist the temptation to humiliate her sister emotion. "She's jealous of Friendship. Hatred is scared that you like Friendship more than her. Not that I'd blame you."
Hatred turned towards Malice with a fierce look in her eyes, and blasted her backwards with a spark of telekinetic power. Malice stopped herself by levitating, and growled as she gathered black power around her hand to attack back. Suddenly, both of them found themselves bound with bands of telekinesis, and Wisdom was glaring at them, her eyes glowing white from using so much power.
"Stop this. We have injured people in here. You will be civil."
Hatred and Malice glared at each other as the power around them faded, but set aside their differences to finish healing the flesh wounds on Robin's ankle. They couldn't correct the bone, but they could still get his skin closed up.
Suddenly, Hatred felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned to see who it was, and jumped when she saw Beastboy's emerald eyes looking into hers. "Are you ok? I didn't mean to hurt your feelings; I was just worried about her."
Beastboy could feel the other emotions watching him talk to Hatred. They seemed tense, as if she was likely to attack him for no reason. Even Robin had his hand on his utility belt, near a freeze disc. Fear and Worry were standing close together in a corner, holding on to each other trying to calm themselves.
Hatred didn't attack, however. Instead, she felt her face get hot, but she wasn't angry. She was blushing. "I'm fine! I... uh... sorry about attacking Malice. I just... please don't hate me."
Hatred didn't understand why she was feeling this way. Her words wouldn't form sentences, and her mind was running in circles. She almost preferred hating everyone to this uncertainty she felt right now. If this was how love felt, how did people in love ever talk to each other?
Beastboy grinned. "Hey, it's fine. I know it's got to be weird to be here after you attacked us and stuff, but it wasn't you doing it. Trigon did it, and no one here blames you."
He was lying, and she knew it. She had noticed everyone's tense expressions when he'd started speaking to her. Still, she felt better knowing that at least he didn't blame her for what had happened. She was still getting used to the fact that someone existed that she didn't hate, but she was starting to see why. "Thanks, I'm glad that you don't think I'm dangerous. I can see why Raven feels the way she does about you."
Beastboy grinned, blushing. Robin and Cyborg both grinned as well, a mischievous gleam in their eyes. They found their mouths held shut with a thin layer of black power, however, and Wisdom shaking her head at them. She released them a moment later.
"Anyway Titans, we need to find a plan on stopping Rage. By all accounts, she's a powerful fighter. We could hardly handle Hatred; if Rage is worse, we'll need a good plan." Robin said, trying to focus on the matter at hand.
Brave threw a few punches in the air, bouncing on her toes as if boxing. "There's not much to plan about her. Trigon is controlling her completely, and he's given her a lot of power. I say we just rush in and kick her butt!"
"Yeah, that's what I'm thinkin'. We don't know enough about her to really plan anyway, and we have a lot of power on this team now. I say we go for it." Cyborg held up his arm, in sonic cannon form.
"Yes, because that worked so well the last time. If Hatred was able to fight you all off at once, then Rage will do it faster, and with less reservations. She is willing to do anything to stave off Trigon's entry into this world. Anything." Raven was sitting up on the hospital bed, holding her injured side.
"Raven is pointy, friends. We cannot simply attack Rage." Starfire looked around, noticing a few confused looks.
Wisdom sighed. "She meant that Raven 'has a point.'"
Starfire accepted the corrected idiom happily. "Yes, Raven has a point. Rage would surely defeat us if we simply attack outright. Perhaps a sneaky attack is required?"
Raven's irritation was completely unhidden as she spoke. "Speaking of 'sneaky attacks', everyone can see you, Lust."
Lust stopped sneaking up behind Beastboy, trying to look innocent. "I was just trying to help Beastie here relax. His shoulders look so tense. He needs a nice massage, don't you?"
Beastboy smiled at Lust, despite how uncomfortable he felt with this facet of Raven. "I'll be ok, Lust. Hey, Hatred, did Trigon tell you anything before you got free that might help? Like plans for the immediate future or anything?"
Lust turned away, a little put out from Beastboy's quick dismissal of her. He always resisted her advances. She could tell that he felt strongly for Raven, and what she suggested was simply a natural progression for those feelings. Why did he have to be so difficult?
Hatred ignored Lust as well, responding to Beastboy's question. "No, he didn't really ever share plans with me. Rage has been his second-in-command since the split. Malice and I never really got anything but temporary assignments, like gathering artifacts."
"So, we have no idea what her next move is. This isn't good." Wisdom vocalized everyone's thoughts. "Despite Knowledge's... prediction of how much time we have left, I think we should move quickly."
Knowledge nodded. "I will go to the common room, and look into ways of tracking her. Join me when you are all ready." Knowledge turned quickly, leaving the room, and the door slid shut behind her.
Beastboy turned from the attack plans and looked towards Lust, who was sitting on a medical bed in the opposite side of the room. She was hunched over slightly, her face sad and lonely. Somehow, she managed to make the expression of sadness look seductive, her lower lip pouting slightly, and her eyes glistening in a hurt manner. Happiness was sitting next to her, saying something quietly, and forcing a smile towards her saddened friend.
Beastboy changed his inner ear slightly, making them more catlike, so that he could hear far better. He listened in on their conversation.
"Smile, Lust, come on! I don't like seeing you so sad. Love was a friend of mine, and so are you! Come on, it's not like he hates you." Happiness' smile looked forced, and her eyes had a pleading look to them.
Lust shook her head, instinctively tossing her hair slightly to attract the eye. "He doesn't want me. He wants Romance, or maybe even just Friendship. He doesn't like me."
Happiness sighed. "Hey, you are even getting me depressed, and I'm always happy. Of course he wants you. What teenage boy in Jump City doesn't want Raven? Maybe you are just going about it the wrong way. Hey, how did a fly get in here?"
Lust glanced over at the buzzing insect doing circles around her head. Stupid thing. She could smash it with her telekinesis if she-- wait... it was green. "It's not a fly. Go ahead and change back, Beastboy."
Beastboy changed back to human form, sitting next to Lust on the medical table. He grinned at Happiness. "Hey, can you go talk to the others about battle plans for a second? I need to talk to Lust."
Happiness smiled back, always eager to please. "Sure, but you should know that, like, half of them are watching you anyway." Happiness got up and walked over to the group, trying to distract them from Beastboy.
"Just go ahead and tell me that you want me to stop talking like that, Beastie. I know you don't like it." Lust tried to harden herself against the inevitable. She knew that he didn't want her around.
"That's not what I'm here for. I... wanted to make you a promise." Beastboy was whispering, but he sounded serious, and Lust immediately started paying attention.
"Look, I guess I've been kinda mean to you. I mean, it's just that you are kind of being a little pushy. I want you to know that it's not that I... I mean... I uh..." Beastboy stopped a moment to collect his thoughts, scratching the back of his neck nervously. "Well, I think like you do sometimes."
Lust grinned; she knew he thought about Raven that way. She still didn't say anything though, wanting to hear him out.
"It's just... Raven doesn't. At least, I don't think she does, and I know she doesn't about me. Even though I definately want the same things you want, I want to make sure she does too. I don't want her to get hurt, and I especially don't want to hurt her. So... I guess what I'm saying is that even though I won't do anything with you while you guys are all out here, uh... I'll make it up to you if Raven and I... ever decide to do that."
Lust smiled widely, the realization of what had just been said dragging her immediately out of her mild depression. "You promise? You will make it up to us?"
Beastboy smiled back, happy to see Lust happy. "Yep, but only if you lay off the flirting and pressure while you are out in this world. It really bothers Raven, and I want today to go as easy as it really can."
Lust giggled happily. He thought about her the same way she thought about him! She wasn't unattractive. He wasn't uninterested; he was just waiting for Raven. She couldn't contain her excitement, and suddenly leapt slightly and hugged Beastboy, knocking both to the floor in a tangled mess. "Okay! I'll lay off the uh--"
Lust looked down at Beastboy, who was laying underneath her, and felt the confused and teasing thoughts of the emotions and Titans behind her. She was being embarrassing again. She leaned down to put her lips near Beastboy's ear, and whispered quietly. "I'll stop flirting, but remember your promise, Beastie. I'll be waiting."
Lust quickly got off of Beastboy and stood, helping him up as she did. She turned towards the staring group of emotions and heroes, and laughed a little nervously. "I... uh... tripped. It's not what you think."
"Heh." Cyborg turned towards Robin, laughter in his human eye. Robin was wearing a wry smile as well, trying to hold himself back from berating Beastboy.
Malice, seeing Lust's blush and Beastboy's grin, sauntered over to him, poorly imitating Lust's seductive hip swaying. She stopped walking just a little too late, standing just a bit too close to Beastboy, a dark glint of mischeif in her eyes. "So, 'Beastie', what was all that about, hmm? Doing dirty things over here in the corner?"
Cyborg laughed, unable to hold it in. Seeing Lust blushing meant that Beastboy must have said something really crazy; there's no way any personification of lust would blush otherwise. Raven shot Cyborg a glare, but to no effect. Robin chuckled a bit too.
Malice smiled as she heard the laughter behind her, and saw Beastboy grinning and blushing a bit from the attention. "Must have been something nice, given how bashful you've got Lust acting. How do you embarrass someone like her, anyway?"
"Yeah, BB. What'd you say to her anyway?" Cyborg was grinning wide as he teased his friend, eyes glinting with laughter.
Beastboy scratched the back of his neck again, the nervous habit seemingly a constant today. "I... uh... didn't really say anything important, just talking is all. Robin's mission briefings are so boring anyway."
Robin laughed. "Come on, Beastboy, make the briefing more interesting: tell us what's up with you two."
Beastboy looked down, trying to think up some way of diffusing the situation. Instead, he saw a few dark bruises on Malice's legs. Malice, unaware of the bruises, stretched her right leg out in a showy manner. "Like the legs? We're all mind readers; we already know you do."
Beastboy ignored the laughing from Robin and Cyborg. Instead, he looked up at Malice, concern on his face. His voice was low, such that the laughing boys on the other side of the room couldn't hear. "What happened to your leg, Malice? It looks like you are still hurt."
Wisdom, seeing that Beastboy was now wearing a more serious face, felt the need to curb the laughter. "Robin, we should focus on the task at hand. Knowledge may have... overestimated the amount of time remaining."
Something in her tone of voice quieted Robin's laughter quickly. She hadn't directly said it, but he now realized that Knowledge had lied. There wasn't any time to waste. He could tell by the change in Cyborg's demeanor that Cyborg had gotten the message as well. Taunting Beastboy could wait; Raven's life may be on the line. Raven couldn't help smiling at Wisdom, who nodded curtly back at her.
Malice, however, looked down at her legs with surprise. "What do you mean? Oh. Yeah. Hatred kicked me earlier in the hall; don't you remember? When I was making fun-- uh, helping Worry with her leg problems, and you told her not to listen to me."
Beastboy shook his head. "I didn't mean it like that. Why did she kick you so hard?"
Malice shrugged. "I guess she thinks I deserved it. You didn't seem to care much back in the hallway."
"I didn't realize that she actually hurt you. Sit down on the table. Come on." Beastboy hopped down from the medical table and helped Malice up onto it, even though she could quite easily do it herself.
"Lust, could you heal her? I don't want her walking around like it's nothing." Beastboy smiled at Lust, and Lust could do little to refuse his request. Lust smiled back, obviously still happy from Beastboy's promise, and her hands glowed with healing magic. Malice watched her for a moment, then turned her eyes back to Beastboy.
"I'm sorry. I guess I should be nicer to Worry and the others. I'm just... not used to this 'togetherness' thing. All of my life, especially the part as 'Anger', I've been hated and despised by everyone. To suddenly be accepted like this is a big change."
Beastboy smiled at Malice, glad that she at least felt bad for harrassing the other emotions. "Hey, it's ok. No one blames Happy for being happy, so I guess we can understand you being a little malicious sometimes. Don't get so worried."
Malice just smiled. She could still sense the tension in the room every time she or Hatred stepped forward or spoke, but knowing that Beastboy didn't blame her for her previous actions was... comforting. She looked down at her legs, now well healed from Lust's careful tending. Lust winked pointedly at Beastboy, then sauntered in her trademark walk towards the other Titans. Malice turned back to Beastboy. "How do you do that?"
Beastboy grinned lopsidedly and hopped up on the medical table next to Malice. "How do I do what?"
Malice kicked her legs back and forth a bit, fidgeting to try and dispel her strange nervousness. "You are so disarming. Here, I was about to make you feel guilty for ignoring me in the hall, and you go and make me like you even more. I'm not used to... liking someone."
Beastboy laughed. "Yeah, I don't think Raven is used to it either. She's cute when she's awkward. Well, she's sorta cute all the time." Beastboy scratched the back of his neck nervously.
Malice smiled. "She'd like to hear this too, you know. Girls like compliments."
Beastboy smiled through the blush. "I'm getting better at talking to her emotions, but I don't think I can really talk to her as easily. I get all nervous."
"That's part of your charm though." Malice leaned back, supporting herself with her hands. "Trust me, Raven is just as nervous about you, if not worse. Hmm, it looks like they are finishing up."
Malice and Beastboy dropped off of the table and walked over towards the other Titans. Robin had apparently decided that the medical lab was not a good location for mission planning, and everyone was preparing to leave for the common room. Robin took a few steps towards the door, favoring his injured ankle noticably.
"Unnacceptable!" Starfire floated over to Robin, her eyes full of concern. "Your ankle is injured; you should not walk like this!"
Robin cocked an eyebrow. "I can't fly, Star. I'll just have to walk. I'll be fine."
Starfire sighed. "Robin, I will not allow you to injure yourself further."
Malice's grin showed all the temptation of her name. "He shouldn't walk on that ankle. It's a pity none of us are strong enough to pick him up and carry him to the common room."
Robin glared at Malice, but could do little to stop Starfire from picking him lightly up and floating gently into the air. Robin knew it was pointless to fight her, as she was so innately strong as to make any struggling on his part useless. He tried to ignore the smirk on Cyborg's face.
Beastboy walked forward, with Raven leaning heavily on him for support. "C'mon guys, let's get up there. We need to help Raven as soon as we can."
The group moved as quietly as can be expected for a group of such a size. Raven and Beastboy kept towards the back of the group, largely due to Raven's increasing difficulty in walking. Though there was little remaining physical damage, her mind was being strained to its limit by the emotions being removed for so long. Still, she had time to think as she walked with Beastboy. Her mind, cloudy as it was, was still active. Robin may be the detective of the team, but she was always observant as well, and she saw something else in the way the group was walking today.
Normally, everyone deferred to Robin for orders; everyone focused on his thoughts and actions. It wasn't an intentional thing; he simply led by example. Now, however, something was different. The regular Titans were still walking up front, and Robin was still putting on an air of authority, but her emotions were largely ignoring him. At first, Raven thought they were clouding around her. However, it was soon obvious that it was Beastboy they were following now. Granted, they were at the back of the group, but the constant backwards glances from the others, the wry smile on Lust, the grin on Malice, and the way Fear hung close to him all pointed out the change in leadership.
Beastboy had done more to free Raven today than she had been able to in her entire life. Within one day, he had nearly freed her from the mental influence of her father. Raven smiled, looking at Hatred and Malice walking side by side with Wisdom and Happiness. Even if she couldn't be completely free, Beastboy's help could not be denied.
Neither could Raven deny her growing feelings towards him. Today had brought out everything good and pure in Beastboy, and now, Raven knew that Love had been right. Whether or not it made sense, she had come to be very attracted to Beastboy, perhaps even to love him, in the course of one day. It seemed so strange to her, for her emotions towards someone to change so quickly, but there was little to be done about it now. She only hoped that Beastboy understood what he was getting into if he loved her as well.
"So... what are you thinking about?"
Raven snapped sharply back to reality as Beastboy's voice broke through her reverie. "I'm... just thinking."
Beastboy's grin grew, his eyes shining at her slight blush. "About what? Come on, I won't tell."
Raven smirked back at him. Even with her powers so greatly diminished from the strain of her emotions being loose, she could feel his mischief, and almost taste his attraction to her. "Fine, I was thinking about you. About us."
It was Beastboy's turn to blush now, caught off guard by her direct reply. "What- What do you mean us? I mean, we're just friends."
Raven's smirk moved into a smile. "Yes, just friends. Thank you, Beastboy, for resisting Lust."
Beastboy blushed, and Raven thought he looked just a slight bit guilty. "Heh, yeah, no problem. Don't worry about her jumping on me back there. I didn't do anything with her."
Raven nodded. She had been watching them and knew that nothing had happened. At least, nothing overt. "I trust you. Also, don't think that I've forgotten about finishing what you were saying."
Beastboy grinned. "Yeah, I won't forget either. I'll tell you later, when there aren't so many people around."
Raven nodded, feeling her face grow hot from blushing again. It was annoying to turn red at such simple things, but she could learn to live with it.
The door to the common room opened, and Starfire floated into the room, carrying a rather embarrassed Robin in her arms. Knowledge looked up from the main computer terminal, looking a bit frustrated by her apparent inability to find the last emotion. Starfire floated over to her as the rest of the Titans and emotions filed through the doorway. Starfire set Robin down carefully on his feet, next to Knowledge, then landed also, smiling at the slightly undignified Robin. Robin looked to Knowledge. "So, have you found anything that could help us?"
Knowledge shook her head. "Whatever Rage is doing, she's not using her powers. Without using them, she's just another metahuman wandering through Jump City, and it's nearly impossible to track her."
Robin nodded, leaning on the computer terminal and looking up at the map of the city. "What could she be doing without using her powers? Raven, any ideas?"
Raven shook her head, then winced from the pain of sudden movement. "No, I can't think of anything she could be doing. I don't understand why he's hiding; it's not like him."
Malice frowned. "What I don't understand is why he's being so calm. Trigon has never been one to sit patiently and scheme for power."
Wisdom walked towards Beastboy, who was in the kitchen, retreiving some more aspirin for Raven. Beastboy looked up as she got close, smiling. "Hey Wisdom. Why aren't you going over the mission with the rest of them?"
Wisdom narrowed her eyes at him, regarding him suspiciously. "Why did Lust tackle you in the med lab? I know it couldn't have been 'nothing', as you told Raven."
Beastboy grinned, blushing slightly. "Uh, it was basically nothing. I mean, it wasn't anything dirty. I just... uh... Well, I mean every guy has a Lust side, you know?"
Wisdom nodded, unsure where he was going with this.
"Well, I have thoughts like that sometimes, but I would never try to take advantage of Raven's Lust emotion. I mean doing that with Lust is like doing that with Raven, and that's just not right. All I know is that I'll wait for Raven, even if it takes me years, until she is ready; I won't rush things. So, I guess I told Lust that in case Raven and I end up together, that I'll, uh... I'll make it up... to her." Beastboy looked at Wisdom, embarrassed and obviously hoping she wasn't angry.
Wisdom looked back at Beastboy, a surprised look on her face. After a moment, she recovered her senses and smiled slightly. "Beastboy, you've really impressed me today. Because of Love, we've all known how Raven felt about you, deep down, for quite some time. Still, meeting you in person, seeing how you've risen to this challenge set before you, I'm very impressed. Even if you and Raven do... act on your feelings, you and I may not get many chances to talk like this again. I just want you to know that I'm glad that you and Raven share these feelings. You've been very kind and very helpful today, and I can't imagine that we could have won if you hadn't been helping. That, coupled with your honesty and gentlemanly behavior today, has proven to me that you are a good person for Raven to be with. I just... wanted to say that."
Beastboy smiled, loving the compliments, and finally realizing that he had little to fear from telling Raven how he felt. "Thanks Wisdom, I'll try to visit you guys sometime if Raven will let me. Right now though, I think I should bring her the aspirin."
Wisdom smiled, and followed Beastboy back over to the couch, where Raven nodded and smiled at him, taking the aspirin quickly, hoping to lessen her headache. Robin was still talking to Knowledge.
"It seems like you've tried everything; we may have to resort to combing the city visually." Robin frowned, unhappy at his inability to find his enemy.
Beastboy spoke up, trying to be helpful while he held Fear comfortingly. "Dude, no way. Half of us are injured, and you can barely walk. We can't walk all over town looking for Rage. We need a plan."
Robin sighed. "I could stay here and coordinate the search. It would likely take us hours to cover the entire city, however, so we'd better get started."
"But... what if we..." Fear's eyes got wide as everyone looked at her in surprise. She held on to Beastboy and pressed her face agaisnt his neck and shoulder, trying to hide.
Wisdom spoke softly, knowing that Fear needed the encouragement. "Go ahead. It's ok. Everyone is simply unused to hearing your ideas. I think I know what you are about to say; go ahead and say it."
Fear pulled away slightly, and looked up at Beastboy. Beastboy grinned lopsidedly, one tooth sticking up from his lips. "Go ahead. I'm sure whatever it is, it's a good idea."
Fear smiled a little, then turned around, looking at the rest of the Titans. "I... I just thought... well, Raven knows a spell that can help. It might find Rage if we cast it."
Wisdom nodded. "Fear is right. I was just thinking of this myself. The spell takes only a few minutes to cast, but we need a few components from Raven's room. I will retrieve-"
"No, I'll go. You guys stay here and plan out how to beat Rage; I never listen anyway." Beastboy grinned, giving Fear a gentle hug and smiling at her before letting her go. "What is it that we need?"
Knowledge smiled. "Just a few things. A hawk's eye, some nitric acid, and a touch of copper should do it. You can find all of those in Raven's room; they should be labelled. Just don't touch anything else, ok?"
Beastboy looked towards Raven, who smiled and nodded at him. "It's ok. Just this once."
Beastboy smiled widely. "Ok. Everyone just keep planning on how to save Rage, and I'll be back in two seconds!"
Beastboy changed into a cheetah and padded over to the door, waiting as it slid open, and then stepped into the hallway, breaking into a run, happy to feel helpful.
The hallway flew by as Beastboy sprinted through it as a cheetah. He almost passed Raven's room before he realized what was happening. He skidded to a stop, claws digging into the carpet to halt himself, then changed back into a human, grinning. He pressed the switch to open the door, then stepped inside cautiously.
Raven's room was dark, and flipping her lightswitch seemed to have no effect. Beastboy stepped forward, watching his feet carefully to make sure he didn't step on anything important. He stopped when he got to the center of the room, and looked around, still not used to being in here.
The walls were a dark blue, with decorations that sent chills down Beastboy's spine. The walls covered in books were more than a little intimidating, but Beastboy wasn't here for them anyway. He spotted a smallish cabinet on the left wall, and walked over to it, opening it easily. Inside were what had to be spell components. Dozens of small, carefully labelled jars, as well as a few bundles of plant leaves and other strange things, filled the cabinet. Beastboy walked over to the window, opening the heavy curtains to let the failing light of the evening into the room. Looking over the bottles, he quickly located the bottles he needed, and closed the cabinet, smiling.
The door hissed shut behind him as he stepped once more into the hallway. He couldn't change into animals while carrying the bottles, so he started running at human speed back to the common room, annoyed by how limiting it was.
A flash of blue on the roof access stairwell caught his eye as he ran by, and he stopped, walking back a little to get another look. Raven stood at the top of the staircase, looking down at him quietly, though something was different about the way she carried herself.
"Beastboy, leave those there. We found Rage. Follow me." Raven's voice was colder than it had been for most of the day, and her recent smile was gone.
Beastboy put the three bottles on the ground, and cocked an eyebrow at Raven. "Raven? You seem different. Are you sure you know where Rage is?"
Raven furrowed her brows, her voice angry. "Of course I'm sure! I wouldn't tell you to follow me if I wasn't!"
Grinning, Beastboy started walking up the staircase, towards Raven. "So, where is she?"
Raven opened the roof access door, walking out onto the roof, with Beastboy following. "You'll know when we get there, Beastboy. Stop asking stupid questions."
Beastboy wasn't stupid; he knew this wasn't Raven. Her cloak looked cheap, like it was from some halloween costume store, and she was far too angry over nothing. It was obvious this was Rage, pulling some trick. He would follow her anyway; maybe he could help her get her freedom, as he had with Malice and Hatred. "So... uh... Raven, do you think we can save Rage? I mean, I want to help her."
Rage turned towards him, a strange look in her eyes. "Help her? I think she's beyond help. Come on, we have to go quickly, before she gets away."
Beastboy watched Rage turn and fly into the evening darkness, her blue cloak billowing in the wind. He reached down and pressed the switch on his communicator to allow the Titans to track him, and then changed into a bird, flying quickly to catch up with her. He'd free her; he couldn't live with himself if he did anything less. Beastboy silently promised Rage that Trigon wouldn't win, that she would be free.
He swore it on his life.
A/N: Beastboy is aiming to try to save Rage alone, but is that possible with Trigon's powerful control over her? You'll have to wait till next chapter to find out. Thanks for all the reviews and support throughout this fic. See you all next chapter!