Chapter 6

Beast Boy yawned, and flipped the channels. When they got back to the Tower, Raven was relatively quiet before she went to bed. He hoped she wasn't too offended by what those girls said. Being honest though, it was a little embarrassing. He didn't understand why she got so upset, and he wondered if he should feel bad about that. What was so wrong with him?

Well…okay, bad question, but Raven already told him that they were friends, and for crying out loud, they bonded over ice cream! He was usually the insecure one, so why was she suddenly caring what other people think?

Then, he began to think about it. What was really wrong with him? What was his place on the team? All he did was change into animals, and what good was that? He could remember the way Wildebeest kicked his butt when the Master of Games summoned them. When Star came back from the future, she said that not only would he be fat and bald and live as a bad act in a circus, but he'd be a lousy super hero. What would he be if he was on his own?

He put his head on the seat of the couch, and dropped the controller. "Probably a useless green freak people would stare at all day…"

(Raven's Room.)

Quietly pulling the needle through her spare cloak Raven sighed at the events of the day. Never before had she and Beast Boy been accused of being a couple, so to have it happen three times in one day was quite overwhelming. How could Beast Boy stay so relaxed through the whole thing? It didn't matter to him that someone thought he was with someone he wasn't? It was true, he usually cared a lot about what people thought about him, so why didn't this matter?

Since she was quite irritated, and someone had stolen her thimble, she'd jabbed herself enough that she started bleeding. So she dropped the cloak onto the bed, and went to the main room to get a band-aid. No need to waste her healing powers on something so minor.

Once the doors slid open, she noticed the TV was still on, but it was muted and nobody was watching. She glanced at the cuckoo clock, but it was hard to read since the lights were off and it was illuminated only by the glow of the TV. From what she saw it read 12:10. She went to look for the remote, and just as she went for it, she noticed the gloved hand hovering over it. Her eyes traveled up the black sleeve until she saw the sleeping face of the shape-shifter.

He wasn't drooling as she expected. In fact, his mouth wasn't even open. However, his face did show signs of distress. She could see that as well as sense it. He wasn't fully at peace tonight. His brows were slanted down in anger, and the ends of his mouth were set in a perpetual frown. Perhaps what everyone had said throughout the day was finally taking effect.

With no idea why she was doing it, Raven slid to the floor beside him, sitting on her knees. No. If it hadn't bothered him earlier, she had no reason to believe he was upset about it now. Curiosity abounding, Raven leaned in, and closed her eyes, trying to use the same technique she used to detect Slade.

For some strange reason, his mind was impenetrable. She focused harder, but no matter how hard she concentrated, she couldn't enter his mind. Confused, she opened her eyes to find out what the problem was. "AHH!" She fell back, the edge of the coffee table jabbing her in the back as her hood flew back.

The bright green eyes stared at her questionably. "Raven? What were you doing?"

Somewhat embarrassed at her concern, Raven picked up the controller, and dropped it between them as she moved to sit beside him on the couch. "You looked upset, I was trying to find out what was wrong." Raven said casually.

A brow rose. "By trying to kiss me?"

Somewhat went to 100% embarrassed. "Don't be ridiculous. I was trying to read your mind," she muttered defensively.

He looked at his feet, and his fingers drummed. "Oh."

Raven bit her lip. "Want to save me the trouble?" She asked him.

His eyes looked up at her, shining with a sadness she hadn't seen since Terra. "I was just thinking about how much I'm really needed. I mean, I'd be nothing without the Titans…but…"

With surprising patience, she waited for him to finish. "What am I with the Titans? All I do is morph and make jokes."

Raven was wordless. What could she say to something like that? Raven may have grown up without affection, but the Monks of Azarath always made her feel needed. Whether it was the work she did, or simply her presence, she never felt useless or unappreciated. "Um…well, remember when you were captured by that alien? We looked all day for you."

Beast Boy shook his head. "I'm not saying I don't feel liked Raven." He looked up at her, his eyes shining with hurt surprised her even more. "I just…don't feel needed...I guess."

Raven lifted her left leg onto the couch, and slung her arm over the back. "It wasn't just because we missed you Beast Boy. We need you as a member of this team. Even though you get annoying about it, you manage to cheer up the team and keep us on our toes. Sure, Starfire is like that a little bit, but she's just not you. She's the optimistic…and…you're more like…" A blush rose on her face, but she continued. "The comic relief. And you know that on more than one occasion, you yourself have saved the day. Like when we faced Thunder and Lightening, or Soto, when Cyborg got that virus you and Gizmo got rid of it, you saved the Earth's supply of cows, you saved us from Punk Rocket, (A/N: For those who do not know what I mean, this is from the Lost Episode.) and unless you've forgotten," Raven leaned forward a little as she said, "you saved me once or twice."

He looked down, and despite her long speech, he didn't look convinced. He looked back up. "And how many of those times have I caused the problem in the first place? Thunder and Lightening probably would have stopped destroying the city if I'd convinced Thunder to lay off a little sooner, Soto wouldn't have even been a problem if I hadn't left the Tower feeling sorry for myself.

"I caused Cy's virus, we'll let the cow problem go, and I saved you because you're my friend. When we fought Adonis, you wouldn't even have needed saving if I hadn't knocked him into those chemicals."

"Everyone makes mistakes Beast Boy. It's all part of life. And you have managed on more than one occasion to fix your mistakes. And if you don't manage to fix it, then you need to learn to move on."

After a long pause, Beast Boy looked up at her again, and one corner of his mouth lifted. "Thanks Raven." He held out his arms, undoubtedly expecting a hug.

Her head jerked back. "What are you doing?"

He beamed, and held his arms up higher. "Aw come on, we've hugged before."

The occasions flashed in her head. The most recent time, he had initiated, apparently because he was happy that she was back. She had told him to let go, but upon reflection, was it really so bad? If someone was so happy that she was there, then why push him away? 'Because I've been pushing people away all my life.'

The first time they had hugged, it was more of her hugging him. But she couldn't help herself. She had just been betrayed by the only boy she had ever shown affection too, and ironically enough, Beast Boy was the one who was able to comfort her. And if the others had tried, she doubted that they would have done so well.

Beast Boy, like he had pointed out the other night, knew what it was like when one's heart was broken. He had told her that she wasn't alone…he told her that he was sorry Malchior had broken her heart. She had never even told him how grateful she was.

Reaching out, Raven leaned forward, and put her arms under Beast Boy's, and around his waist. His arms were warm and…quite comforting.

Her body taking over her mind, she scooted closer, and held him tighter, closing her eyes to savor something so pleasant and so alien at the same time. He was so warm, she couldn't help it. Her head moved on his shoulder until they were ear-to-ear. Beast Boy's soft hair tickled her cheek, but rather than back off or twitch, she turned her head even closer. Why was she getting so close?

She absorbed his warmth and the feeling of his arms on her back before she pulled away.

But Beast Boy wouldn't let go. He let her have some space, but his arms remained around her. Raven's eyes opened, to view his emotionless ones.

His eyes were a mirror; in more ways than one. Not only could she see her scared, inexperienced eyes through his own, but the emotion that usually burned in his eyes was gone. He looked emotionless; just like her.

This close she could smell the spicy soap and tangy shampoo he used, and a unique, earthly scent. She had called him breathtaking, contemplated their relationship more times than usual, and had somehow managed to get closer than ever. And now she was hugging him, and in some way, more intimately than any of the previous times. 'What is happening to me?'

Before Raven could conjure up an answer to that, Beast Boy's eyes were closed, and he was leaning forward.

Her breath hitched. As if possessed, Raven closed her eyes, and leaned forward. She didn't even know what she was doing only that she wanted whatever was happening.

"AND YOU CAN GET THAT NOW FOR A SIMPLE---"

Raven opened her eyes, saw the very slightly pursed lips, and that did it.

She gasped, jumped out of his arms to her feet, and brought the hood of her cloak over her head to hide the blush. Beast Boy's eyes were wide, his mouth agape, but she didn't even try to read his emotion before she ran out of the room.

Beast Boy once more found himself looking after Raven. 'Dude, what just happened here?' Had he really tried to kiss one of his best friends? What the heck was that about? Their friendship had already been on thin ice the way everyone was calling them a couple. What the heck possessed him to want to…

Figuring he should apologize, Beast Boy rose to his feet, and went in the direction of Raven's room. When he reached the door and knocked, he heard no response. Growing bold, he changed into a mosquito, slid under the closed door. Once he got inside, he was surprised to see that she wasn't there. She must've just gotten out, since her cloak was spread across the bed. There was a gray book on the floor, but everything else in the room…was in its perfect place.

Curiosity striking him again, Beast Boy picked up the book, and examined the title. "Forevermore?"

Odd, Raven wasn't usually one to just leave a book on the floor. He opened it, and saw some mysterious words on the first page. "Once a feeling ignored, now a feeling felt; once a feeling felt, now a feeling unleashed."

All of a sudden, the book started shaking in his hands, and a black aura surrounded it. One very similar to the one they saw when Raven used her powers. Freaked out, he dropped the book to the floor, but a black vortex spun out of the book. Bits of it began to lick out like a whip.

His eyes wide in fear, Beast Boy turned around, and tried to make a break for the door, when suddenly, he felt something yanking at his leg. One of the black tentacle-like things was wrapped around his ankle, and pulling him in the book. "NO! SOMEBODY HELP! GUYS! HELP ME!"

His voice couldn't be heard, as one of the tentacles slithered up, and wrapped around his mouth to silence him. He tried to grab it, but his hands just went through a black cloud. Beast Boy tried yelling for help again, but his voice was muffled. The tentacle pulled again, and he tried to grab onto the floor. The force was too powerful, and now something was wrapping around his hips, yanking him down even more.

He felt his left foot go numb, and looked down. IT WAS IN THE BOOK! His fingers curled into the carpet, and he tried to morph, but somehow the black aura was keeping him from changing. 'Can't…change!' Finally, a bump in the carpet enabled him to hold tighter on the floor. He tried to pull out of the book, but the aura wrapped around his hands, drawing his arms and the rest of his body into the book.

'Nooooo!'

Just as the book closed, Raven walked into her room. Right after that incident with Beast Boy, she went to the bathroom to splash her face. The book that she had left lying on the floor earlier that day was still there, apparently untouched. Unsure why she had gotten it out to begin with, Raven bent to pick it, and flinched from the pressure on her headache. She picked it up, and put it on the book shelf…completely oblivious as to what secret the book held.

(Inside Raven's Mind.)

"Uh…where am I?" Beast Boy said, sitting on a rock and rubbing his aching head.

Upon further examination of his surroundings, he realized where he was. "Oh man!"

The pink and purple trees surrounded by the yellow sky almost made him nauseous. He knew exactly where he was. But when he saw Raven coming towards him, she was wearing a weird orange cloak. "Hi."

"Um…hello? Nice to…meet you?"

The orange Raven shrugged. "Whatever."

His brow rose. "Hey, I saw you the last time I was in here. Who are you?"

Shoving him off, Raven plopped into Beast Boy's spot on the rock. "Oh good, you kept my seat warm."

Grumbling, Beast Boy rose to his feet, and wiped the dust from his clothes. "No problem. So, who are you?"

She cracked her neck. "I'm Raven."

Beast Boy rolled his eyes. "What are you?" He asked exasperatedly.

Orange Raven spread out her feet, and slouched. "Why didn't you say so? I'm Rude. Also known as lazy."

Beast Boy nodded. That explained the behavior. "Okay, I don't know how I got back in here, but I really need to get out before the real Raven find out."

Rudeness shrugged. "Whatever. Go ahead, leave."

Looking around, he realized he had no idea how to get out. "Um…well, could you take me to the forbidden doors then please?"

Raven put her hand in her cloak, apparently behind her ear, and pulled a large wad of gum out, picked a hair off of it, and began chewing obnoxiously. "I don't really feel like it. Ask me again later."

He put his hands on his hips in anger. "Um, look, the way you're behaving, Raven's bound to notice that I'm here, and it'd be nice if I only had to deal with one of Raven's emotions throughout the trip."

She blew a large bubble. "That won't be a problem. The only reason I can come and go as I please through every emotions territory is because the new girl took away most of the emotions." Confused, Beast Boy held out his hands in question. Rude sighed in annoyance. "A lot of the other emotions are gone. If you don't want to deal with anyone else, you got nothing to worry about. Practically nobody's here. Just make your way through this place and eventually you'll find the doors. I'm not really in the mood to be an escort."

The thoughts sunk into his head. "But…where are the other emotions?"

She made strings with the gum by pulling it through her teeth. "I told you, that new girl took 'em. I'd stay away from her if I were you. But I don't take to new people."

Beast Boy ran the thoughts through his mind. What kind of person was this new girl? "Okay, soooo how do I know where the new girl is?"

"You don't. She usually just pops around into different territories until she finds one she wants, then she takes it."

His arms shook. "Then how am I supposed to avoid her!?"

Rude shrugged, and put a hand on her stomach, putting the wad behind her ear. "I unno."

Groaning, Beast Boy left Rude alone, and started walking away, but what stopped him, was the sound of a loud, obnoxious belch. He snorted to contain his laughter, but it didn't work. "Hahahahaha! That was awesome!"

He turned around to face Rude, who grinned. "I know."

Laughing, Beast Boy left in a better mood. But he thought some more as he walked into another emotions territory, and was greeted by Timid's labyrinth.

Shrugging, he walked in. What kind of sense did this make? Who was the new girl? What emotion was she?

Delighted, he smiled when he reached the end of the labyrinth, but he wasn't greeted with the statues, or the Forbidden Doors. He was greeted with blue skies, and green grass. "Whoa! Where am I?"

Suddenly, out of nowhere, a door appeared; a rather nice door, with a gold doorknob and mahogany wood. Warily, and somewhat thoughtlessly, Beast Boy took the slow steps to the door. He pushed it open, and the sights made his eyes sparkle.

Beast Boy looked around, not a little creeped out. He thought for sure he'd seen all of Raven's emotions. He must have been wrong. It didn't look like the territory of any of the emotions he'd met, and it didn't look like it could be home to any of the emotion's he HADN'T met yet.

It was a bedroom, and it was furnished with gold and pearls. There was a small dining table, a golden antique oil lamp as the centerpiece with pearls draped across the bulb of the glass. Two floral patterned swivel chairs sat on opposing sides of the table. The walls were colored in rich cream, elegant lamps illuminating the room.

A full-size mirror was placed beside a door on the far left corner of the room. Beside the mirror, there was a large dresser with a jewelry box resting on top. To Beast Boy's direct right, he saw a tall bookshelf, much taller than the one Raven kept. Finally, there was a little settee with a plump velvet cushion that matched the swivel chairs surrounding the table. The settee was right in front of the largest, cushiest, plumpest bed he had ever seen. There were at least six large pillows, and a very large yellow comforter. A deep red curtain was visible on the other side of the bed. The night table beside the bed didn't have anything on it except for a lamp similar to the one at the table.

The ache in his head returned, as if summoning him to the bed. With a pleasant sigh, he plopped onto the bed, the warm comforter living up to its name. Suddenly, he was enveloped by the bed, like it was trying to swallow him. "Ah! Ah! Help!"

A hand grasped Beast Boy's, and before he knew it, he was off the bed, and on his knees. He looked up to thank who had helped him, but there wasn't anyone there. He heard the opening of a door, and looked to the one he saw in the corner, that was now wide open. Chuckling, Beast Boy ran to it, and shut the door behind him. His eyes widened to the size of tea cup saucers.

Before him was the largest, fullest closet he had ever seen. There was a vanity mirror with light bulbs surrounding it. "It is massive isn't it?"

Beast Boy's gaze was drawn directly in front of him, and he was greeted by Raven lazily tracing the patterns on a large cushion. But…her cloak wasn't a color he'd seen on any of her other emotions. This one was a mix of her typical black…

And Fuschia…

(In Raven's room.)

"Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos…Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos." Raven recited. She hadn't seen Beast Boy since that close call, and for that she was grateful. Raven honestly didn't think she knew what she could say to him. Maybe the whole thing was something they should put behind them. It was an accident, and it technically didn't even happen. The entire sequence of events hadn't lasted more than forty seconds. So why did it feel like it lasted forever?

Letting out a confused breath, Raven dropped from a meditative stance, and plopped back on the bed. A friendship just may have been shot to hell, feelings might start developing 'God help me,' and she couldn't even let loose how upset she was. Groaning, Raven gripped her head.

On top of all that, she had a throbbing headache.