Insaneiac: ARGH! You had to ask the pairing question? Well, with the way this fic is going, I'm actually aiming for it to be a Raven/Beast Boy pairing (don't kill me!), with a tiny bit of one-sided Beast Boy/Starfire. Any Rob/Rae fans out there, or BB/T fans, realize that I am one of you; it's just that this pairing works better for the story. Okay, enough self-justification. Oh yeah, and a bit of a warning. This chapter has angst in it. Lots of it.

Reviews

Ubermann: Snapping is the least of his issues. Thanks for the compliment.

LadyMaundrell: Yes. Yes I do. It makes my heart sing to see you suffer at the claws of my cliffhangers. –Insert evil laugh here- I'm just playing. Enjoy the chapter.

We Gots good gramer: You had to ask the damned pairing question, didn't you! And I hate me too, so we're good.

Kazzy103: I must admit, I thought the Thragthox thing was fairly well done, though I've done better. And yes, that cliffy was evil. So evil, infact, that churches have begun preaching against my cliffhangers. Yes, I do intend to put Beast Boy through the proverbial ringer, but it's for his…scratch that, our own good. And for the record, or at least, for what I know, Terra and Beast Boy were an item for a while.

NumbuhZero: Ahh thanks. I am cool aren't I? Beyond that, here's an update, and enjoy it.

Rebel-Aquarius: I swear, I have attack dogs. BIG ONES! That have machine guns on their heads. BIG ONES! And the more you threaten, the more killing him looks like an interesting twist. Enjoy the chapter, and bring it on.

Alexnandru Van Gordon: Thank you for not saying more, and yes, Robin is acting like a jerk. A big stupid jerk. And yes, Cyborg can be nice…once in a blue man.

Chibi Scooby: ALL HAIL CREAMPUFFS! Story continuing…check. Chapter greatness…check. Comatose…check. It all looks good. Enjoy the chapter.

Eryka O.G.: Update here, enjoy. And yes, like I mentioned, that ranks as my most evil cliffy yet. Go me, oh yeah!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything but the plot. My plot. And apparently, it's a good plot. Oh yeah, I own Winry too. Go me!

Chapter 4: A Real Nightmare
Three simple words.

That was all that they were. Just three simple, insignificant words.

"GET AWAY FROM ME!" Beast Boy screamed, unable to back away anymore. Slade stared in amazement. He knew he had an affect on people, especially the weak minded, but even this was beyond him. Never before had the annoying little changeling been so terrified of him, yet here he was now, quivering as though Slade had been haunting him like a ghost, never leaving his mind, always grasping at his soul.

Among many things, it made Slade smile. Fear was a powerful weapon to have, and Beast Boy had given him more fear than Robin or anyone had ever given him.

"Get away? Why would I want to do that?" Slade replied, closing the gap between himself and his soon-to-be pet. "What would possibly make me want to leave? I brought you here did I not?"

"You didn't mean too. It was for someone else."

"Then why would I have used a robot designed to look like Terra?"

"Go after Robin! That's what you do!" Beast Boy cried, closing his eyes as he watched man approach. 'It's not real. I knocked myself out when I took down the Slade bot… it's just another nightmare… THIS ISN'T REAL.'

"I'm not here for Robin Beast Boy." Slade responded, looking down at the quivering green Titan. "I'm here for someone else. Someone who I know is more deadly, and much more useful to me than Robin ever was." It wasn't a total lie, but it wasn't totally true either.

"Then take Raven. Take Cyborg! Take Starfire even!" Beast Boy cried, scurrying away from Slade, to the opposite end of the room. Slade stared in amazement as he watched Beast Boy run and hide instead of attack, but was even more amazed by the fact that he had just tried to sell out his best friends. The smile widened, the control deepened. "Just leave me alone… Just leave me alone…" Beast Boy muttered weakly.

"I don't want any of them." Slade continued, as he wrapped his hand around the back of Beast Boy's neck, and lifted him off the ground. He turned him, and forced him to stare into his one eye. Beast Boy could fully see his disgusting intention hidden behind his unnerving, daunting stare, while Slade could see Beast Boy's fear and agony, behind his innocent and pure eyes.

Tears flowed freely, as he kicked and moaned, desperately trying to get free. Slade had no clue of what Beast Boy had been going through. Had he, Slade would had relished in Beast Boy's death-like fear of him, before finally breaking his mind like a twig under an elephant. However, he still needed his collar before he would truly take Beast Boy away. Truly, all the importance held in this meeting was purely just to let him know that he would be Slade's property. That soon, all the freedoms of his life, the joys, the blessings, the fun times, the friends, the best friends, and the pleasure of life would be taken from him, and tossed away to rot. That his life would soon become bound to Slade by that of a leash. And beyond all, that he would lose his joyful freedom that he treasured so.

And he would never be free again.

"I'm here for you, Beast Boy."

Main Pit ------

Robin pulled his bo-staff aggressively from the destroyed chest region of a grounded Slade-Bot, which had just been the last standing attacker in the crowd. It had been the exact same as last time they were here. A weak, pitiful attack force to do the initial attack, while Slade went after a target he set out.

"WHERE'S BEAST BOY!" Robin growled, turning to Cyborg.

"Can't tell, his communicator isn't picking up."

"Why, WHY would he run off like that!" Robin growled, as he looked around the room. Tunnels were destroyed, all besides the one behind them. They needed to reach Beast Boy. "He could be dead for all we know!"

"Friend Robin, I do not believe Beast Boy is dead." Starfire replied, hopeful as always.

"He'll wish he was when I get through with him." Robin muttered. He had not only run off during the middle of a battle and he endangered himself greatly, but he also broke code. The Titan's were supposed to fight together, never abandoning the team to go after a specific goal. Beast Boy had already done that once, and he almost died because of it. Then again, he did it enough himself, and still hadn't learned the consequences. It almost cost him his mind once.

"Robin, calm down. It's Beast Boy. He probably tripped over his own feet." Cyborg replied, still attempting to pick up the communicator. Raven's eyes twitched as Cyborg said his piece, a slight glare burning into his back. "And as far as I can tell, he landed on his comm., the idiot."

"But what if it is something worse! WE NEED TO FIND HIM!" Robin yelled, rage and conviction flowing through his voice.

"You're overreacting Robin." Raven intervened, looking around. She could sense something, something trickling into her sub-consciousness. It felt like fear, or something very close to it.

"Overreacting!" Robin replied, turning towards Raven. He was even more insulted when he found her not even staring at him, but rather off in space. "I'm worried about my team Raven! Beast Boy is somewhere out there, and we can't find him! What if Slade is here? What if Slade found him?" Finishing, Robin turned towards the un-blasted tunnel. Raven gave a slight sigh, and then turned towards the tunnel to help find Beast Boy.

"Huh…" Raven started, turning fiercely. Robin and Starfire turned to her, both with questioning looks in their eyes, moments away from asking a question when Raven's eyes lit up like bonfires. "Beast Boy…!SLADE! NO!" Raven screamed, before breaking off in a sprint.

"RAVEN, WAIT!" Robin called, having no effect on her. Raven disappeared into the wall, leaving the rest of the team behind. Starfire was confused, Cyborg indifferent, and Robin was irate.

"Doesn't anyone listen!" Robin growled, slightly in anger, more in concern. It was purely unlike Raven to just run off like that. Not to mention that the typical Slade formula still lingered in the air. Where Slade-bots were, Slade was too. Robin turned sharply towards the available tunnel, and with the last two remaining team mates, charged off to find Beast Boy.

Slade and Beast Boy ------

All the crying had ceased, the tears stopped, and the struggling ended as Slade finished his sentence. "I'm here for you and that little friend of yours Beast Boy."

"Why… Why me…?" Beast Boy choked out, in more of a weak whisper than anything. "I've…I've done nothing to you!"

"Dear boy, it's not what you have done to me, but what you will do."

"Why…?" Beast Boy choked out, trying to look away. He wanted to look at something, anything, other than his mask. "Why not Robin? Why me…?"

"I've watched Robin for quite some time, long before the Titans truly existed. True, I only took deep interest in him when he came to my city, but I've known about him for a long time. Robin was a warrior, a fighter, and a survivor. Every time I watched him fight, I saw something I could mold. Then I saw you Beast Boy. I thought you were nothing more than an annoyance, a pest."

"I am… I'm not worth anything to you. I'm…useless." Beast Boy choked out, more serious than he had ever been in his life. So serious that it hurt him to no end.

"Quite the contrary." Slade replied, before his voice took a sinister dive. "And I don't like being lied to." Slade drilled his free hand into Beast Boy's stomach, and driving all the air from his lungs. His squeal of pain was almost as rewarding as the sound of his tears on the ground, or the sight of the fear in his eyes. "You are an animal. You have the primal instincts and bestial senses that give you an edge. Robin is, like myself, a warrior. We're survivors. But you are much more vicious than a warrior Beast Boy. To put it blatantly, you're a beast. A beast that I want as my own."

Beast Boy merely whimpered, as he felt the last fragments of his hope fade away. Raven was right; they were more than just dreams. They were more than just nightmares. They were premonitions. And had Beast Boy just swallowed his pride, and stopped hiding behind a stupid smile and witless jokes, he could have told Robin and the rest. They could have helped him. They could have protected him.

They could have saved him from Slade. But it was too late now. Slade was here, and the rest of the Titans were as far from him and his tormentor as possible. Slade had all the time he wanted and Beast Boy had no where to run, and no place to hide.

"I don't want to be your beast." Beast Boy muttered weakly, a tear finding it's way down his cheek. 'Someone…anyone…help me please…Raven…Robin…where are you…I'm scared…help me please...'

"Frankly, I don't give a damn what you want Beast Boy. It's what I want. I wanted Robin first, and I almost had him." Slade began; pausing as he tightened his grip on Beast Boy's neck, rewarded was a squeal of pain. "But you, along with those other pathetic Titans, kept him from me. Now I want you Beast Boy, and I doubt any of them will miss someone as pathetic as you, until they see you kill like the animal you are. Then they will fear you like a demon, and attack you like an enemy."

"NO!" Beast Boy yelled, as loud as he could. A sharp punch connected with Slade's mask, causing the man to stumble backwards, and drop his prey. It also cracked the mask, clean along the side. Not enough to break, but just enough to impress the maniac stalking Beast Boy. It had been something he wanted to test, a theory. He still believed that Beast Boy as a human was a useless annoyance, but the chemicals still enhanced his physical strength, more so when emotional. It may have been the were-beast he wanted, but he also wanted to watch the Titans fall.

And what better way to beat them then to do it with their own best friend.

"You see Beast Boy; you get stronger when you're emotional. You get deadlier when you're angry. Those pathetic "friends" of your fear you because of this. You scare them. They don't know when you will lose control, but they expect it." Slade began, grabbing a second punch, and using Beast Boy's momentum to toss him to the ground. He quickly followed up by pinning him to the ground with his knee, firmly planted on his chest. "Right now, they see you as nothing more than a threat. When I'm done with you, they'll see you as nothing more than a monster."

"No they won't." Beast Boy growled. "NO THEY WON'T!"

"Stop lying to yourself boy! Why do you defend those that hate you?" Slade continued, watching with a disgusting sense of joy in his eye as Beast Boy struggled. "They would lock you away, or even kill you. I, on the other hand, have great plans for you child."

Beast Boy's eyes had become lost in his fury. The innocence lingered, but was now accompanied by one of the sweetest emotions in the world, hatred. Slade watched, amused, as Beast Boy struggled to get the much stronger man off him, but couldn't even manage to make him twitch, even with his enhanced strength.

"I DON'T CARE!" Beast Boy yelled, attempting another punch, only to have his hand grabbed and slammed into the floor. "I'm not going to be your damned pet!" Beast Boy growled, as if it were a death threat. "And you can take you damned speeches and your damned plans, AND ROT IN HELL!"

"How poetic. What it is that makes you think that you could stop me?" Slade replied, his tone deadly smooth.

"Robin! He'll…"

"Lock you away in fear and turn you into a menace before your friends' eyes, just like I would. Face it, if you go to Robin, he'll be just as cruel to you as I am, and you know it to be true."

"Raven…she'll…"

"She'll tell Robin, fearing you. Sooner of later Beast Boy you are going to have to realize that you are mine now. You won't tell any of them just out of the fear that they may hate you. Your silence will result in you being plucked from them by myself. You'll never see them again. At least, not until I unleash you on them. Either way Beast Boy, you will lose."

Slade had him trapped. His trust was broken, his will was fleeting, and his anger rising. Now was the perfect time to do it. He watched as Beast Boy's eyes began to show another emotion, one that represented the very basics of victory. They showed sorrow. Beast Boy knew what he said to be true. He knew Robin would do that, in the clever disguise as it being for his own good. And Raven would sell him out, just like Cyborg would. Suddenly, his eyes lit up with his last, dire hope.

"Starfire will help me." Beast Boy whispered, more than likely trying to convince himself. Slade had not been expecting her name to show up. His eye showed it, but only for a very brief period of time. "Starfire won't let you take me. She won't let Robin cage me!"

"Starfire?" Slade said, a disdainful sting accompanying her name. "Starfire would fear you more than anyone. She'd cry at night, stuck between keeping your trust and watching you slowly degrade into a monster. And when you're gone, she'll break down." Slade replied, watching Beast Boy's rage. "You would hurt her beyond anything anyone has done to her, just by putting that burden on her. Then they would hate you even more Beast Boy."

The words had their intended effect, as Beast Boy's last hope, his dire need to believe in someone, faded from his eyes. What was left was an empty rage, a damaged sense of need, and a total lack of emotion, other than hopelessness. Slade had Beast Boy pinned to the ground, not just physically, but emotionally and mentally as well.

"To put it quite plainly Beast Boy…" Slade began, lowering his face, hidden behind his sinister and now crack masked, to Beast Boy's frantic, pure, and defeated eyes. Anticipation lay within his one eye, as he watched the green slowly drain from Beast Boy's face. "You are going to be the perfect, little pet." Slade finished, a razor sharp sting accompanying the last three words.

"No…no…no…" Beast Boy cried out, tossing his head side to side, until Slade grabbed him by the chin, and forced him to look back at him, back into his eye.

"Oh yes. And there is not a thing you can do about it. You will be my little dog. You will do what I tell you to do, when I tell you to do it. If you don't, I will punish you, brutally, just like a master would his dog."

Beast Boy felt everything sink, falling deeper within him than anything had ever felt before. Watching Terra sacrifice herself, turning into a monster, being attacked by the Titans, nothing could compare to the emotions her was feeling at that precise moment. "No." Beast Boy whispered weakly.

"You act as though you have a say in the matter Beast Boy." Slade replied, grabbing his collar with both hands, and tossing him into the collapsed tunnel wall. "You have three days left to enjoy your freedom Beast Boy. After that, you are mine." Slade responded as he began walking towards the shadow's he came from. As he was leaving, he turned his head one last time to observe his pet. His eye lit up with passion when he saw him, lying on the ground, weeping like a lost little child.

"We'll have to fix that first, won't we?" Slade finished, before disappearing into the conveniently placed hole in the ceiling, leaving a broken Beast Boy wallowing in his own self despair, and left to fight his own demons within him. Beast Boy could have chased him, he could have used the tunnel to escape the room, and he could have done many things. But he didn't want to. He didn't have the motivation to do anything at that exact time.

He did nothing except lie on his hand and knees, weeping like a child into the ground, one hand crunched up in a fist, and the other hand grabbing at the ground. "No…" Beast Boy choked out, burying his face into the dusty ground of the room. "NOOO!" He screamed, louder than he had ever screamed before. For the first time in his life, he felt completely and totally lost. Slade told him outright, three days. Three days to run away from life, three days to try and tell Robin, three days until he never saw their smiles or tears again.

And alone he wept bitterly, his tears staining the dirt floor.

"IT WAS SUPPOSED TO JUST BE NIGHTMARES!" Beast Boy yelled into the ground, slamming his fist down on the hard floor. He wanted to lift his head from the dirty ground, he wanted to stop crying and start planning, but he didn't have it in him. His worst nightmares were coming true, and he was completely and utterly powerless to do anything about it.

"Beast Boy?" A voice muttered. Slowly, Beast Boy raised his head from the ground, locking eyes with the one person who knew the truth. Her usual steady, monotonous voice had been dashed, replaced with one of concern. But the most considerable difference in her appearance was her eyes. They had softened considerably when she locked eyes with Beast Boy, and saw the lack of hope and the unbelievable suffering within his eyes.

Raven quickly broke her stare, and looked towards his left. There was a busted Slade-bot, but it was made to look like Terra. 'That bastard…' Raven's eyes flared with anger. Slade had used Terra to get to Beast Boy. "Beast Boy…are you…"

"Why me?" Beast Boy choked out. "WHY COULDN'T IT BE ROBIN? WHY COULDN'T IT BE YOU?" Beast Boy yelled, his voice cracking. "WHY ME RAVEN? WHY?

Raven couldn't say anything. She couldn't return with a comment, or with an explanation. She couldn't even frown at him. All she could do was watch him struggle on the ground, suffering. Slade had been here, and he had been here for Beast Boy. She knew he was here the minute Beast Boy ran off, the minute she could see Terra in his mind.

"I'm sorry…" Raven muttered, walking beside Beast Boy, and kneeling beside him. She fully expected Beast Boy to yell at her, or to just continue crying. "I should have seen it coming. I knew your dreams were premonitions. They showed all the usual signs of them being so…" Her voiced failed her as she watched Beast Boy. She could only imagine the suffering he was going through. "What did he…?"

"He told me that he wants me. He's coming for me." Beast Boy began, his voice still quivering. "He said that he wanted the perfect little pet." For a brief period of time, there was nothing but silence. Even Beast Boy had stopped weeping. "And he promised that, no matter what I do, he'd come for me."

"We have got to tell Robin."

"NO!" Beast Boy yelled, out of the blue. 'Lock you away in fear and turn you into a menace before your friends' eyes' He could still hear Slade's threats ringing in his mind, as loud and as clear as a gong. "Don't you dare!"

"Beast Boy, he can help!" Raven argued back, as she stared into Beast Boy's eyes. She didn't need them to tell, but she could see it in his eyes just as she could feel it in his mind. There was fear in his eyes. Fear of Slade and his plans, but fear of Robin as well. What was most disturbing of all was that his fear of Robin was greater than of Slade.

"What has you so scared about telling him?"

"Robin won't help me, he'll lock me away. He'll turn me into a menace."

"Beast Boy, that's nonsense! Why would Robin do that?"

"Because, Slade's after…after..." Beast Boy stuttered, as Raven's soft eyes open wider. She could see in his eyes who he was talking about. Someone that Slade should have known absolutely nothing about.

"He wants your Were-Beast form! How could he possibly have known about that?" Raven remarked, both frightened and confused.

"I DON'T CARE HOW HE KNOWS!" Beast Boy yelled, breaking his eye contact with Raven. "HE JUST KNOWS!"

Suddenly, realization began to set into Raven's eyes. Beast Boy was scared of Robin for all the wrong reasons, but none the less, he had a point. The last time something concerning his Were-Beast form showed up, Robin outright went on the offensive against Beast Boy. Despite it being completely unreasonable in her eyes, she had also seen inside his head, and Beast Boy had every right to be afraid of Robin just from what she saw.

"Fine. I won't tell him a thing." Raven answered softly. "You will."

"Like hell I will!"

"Beast Boy you'd better. Tomorrow you tell him everything. Today I'll keep Robin off you, so you can get some rest. I have no doubt that what he said has left a negative effect over you. But tomorrow, you either tell him, or I will. Robin needs to know."

"But Raven…"

"BEAST BOY!" Raven yelled, uncharacteristically. Beast Boy's thought process had been completely tossed aside, as a pair of hands grabbed him by the cuff of his outfit, and hoisted him off the ground, and bringing him to eye level with Raven. "Listen to me very closely, as this will be the only time I say this. Despite my attitude towards you, you remain one of my closest, if not my closest, friends. You can not fight Slade alone. Robin tried, and he nearly became his servant! I am not going to watch as one of my friends, one of my closest friends, falls right into Slade's hands because he was too STUPID to ask for help!" Raven voiced, their eyes never blinking, never shifting. "I absolutely refuse to let you go like that…"

For the longest time, there was nothing but silence. Raven still had a rock-hard grip on Beast Boy, and Beast Boy had still not broken his stare with Raven. Finally, Beast Boy gave a long, pained sigh, and turned his head to the left side. "I'll tell him tomorrow."

"Promise?"

"I swear on it. I'll tell Robin everything, tomorrow." Beast Boy finished, before finding his emotions catching up to him. Slowly, Beast Boy's head found itself resting on Raven's shoulder, as his tears began to come back. Slowly, and with what seemed like a little confusion, a hand patted him on the back of his head, as Beast Boy felt everything rushing back. Raven had never seen Beast Boy so depressed, so completely and utterly lost in sadness. There were no jokes from him, no stupid remark, and no goofy smiles. All there was were silent tears dropping onto her blue cloak, and a trembling Beast Boy resting his head atop her shoulder. For the first time in her life, she felt truly sorry for Beast Boy.

"Why does it have to be me Rae… why me?"

"I don't know Beast Boy." Raven replied, looking off in the distance. "I just don't know."

Insaneiac: First things first…I am still a BB/T fan. The only reason I am now implementing BB/Rae is because it will really amp the story line. However, this isn't a romance fic, so don't worry. This is still about Beast Boy and a possessive Slade chasing him.