Summary: Valentine's Day is coming, and Beast Boy wants to give Raven something special. But things might not go as planned…

Disclaimer: Story comes with everything you see here. Rights sold separately, batteries not included.
Translation: I do not own Teen Titans.

Author's Notes: This fic turned out to be a real pain to write. But then, it was written in response to Furubafun's challenge, and I guess challenges aren't supposed to be easy. :-D

Statuesque

It was already late evening; the sun was starting to set and it would be dark soon, but he wanted to visit her anyway. There was something important he needed to talk about, and for the past three years, she had been the best listener of anyone he'd ever known.

As he moved through the stone corridors his shadow spun and moved, repositioning every time he passed a new set of lights embedded in the walls. Since more than one of the Titans visited Terra on a fairly regular basis, Cyborg had installed the lights himself to keep the tunnels lit at all times. It was more convenient than having to bring a flashlight along, and overall made the corridors brighter and more inviting.

Beast Boy passed the last set of lighted sconces and entered the gigantic cavern at the tunnel's end. He gave a wave at the familiar figure at its center and called out lightly, "Hi, Terra!"

Her statue stood as always, tall and serene on its pedestal, the stone arms flung wide in a welcoming gesture, if one wanted to think of it that way.

The changeling gave a sheepish grin as he approached and gently laid a yellow rose near the plaque at the base of her pedestal, as was his custom whenever he came. "Sorry," he said, "I know it's getting late, but I really wanted to talk to you. It's important."

He took a deep breath, like one ready to launch into a long and wordy explanation. "Remember how I told you that Raven and I were kinda going out? But it wasn't really official, but I was also sort of hoping that it could be really soon?" He paused for a moment, as though to give the statue time to respond, and then launched back into his speech. "Well," he was starting to blush now, and act as though he were a bit flustered, "Tomorrow is Valentine's Day, so guess what? I'm going to ask her to be my girlfriend!"

Beast Boy's proclamation echoed back at him from the cavernous chamber, and as it began to fade, so did his initial excitement, it seemed. He looked down at his toes and scuffed at the rock floor. "Well, I'm going to try, at any rate."

He began pacing back and forth in front of the statue. "I mean, I've never had trouble talking to Raven, except when it's something serious like this. Then it's like I can't think straight, and I start sounding like an idiot." He smirked and gave Terra a sidelong glance, as though she had made a smart remark in response. "Okay, fine, I start sounding like more of an idiot than usual."

Shrugging off the attempt at humor, Beast Boy turned serious again. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a sleek, rectangular jewelry box. "Here," he said, gently pulling open the lid and holding it up towards her as if she could see, "I brought it with me, because I wanted you to be the first one I show it to."

It was a bracelet, simple and delicate. The silver chain links were set in a pattern, alternating with polished, dark blue stones.

Beast Boy pulled the box back down and took a moment to gaze at it himself. "It's one of the ones that Raven pointed out when she and Starfire went to the jewelry store. I, ah, asked Starfire to go in with Raven and get her to pick something out, and then tell me what it was so I could make it a surprise." He grinned sheepishly and looked back up at Terra. "There was this one, and then Starfire said there was another one that Raven liked, but I decided to get this one because Raven likes blue so much. What do you think?"

He waited for a moment, as though he truly expected a response, and then proceeded to be a little more specific. "Do you think she'll like it? I mean, you don't think she'll be mad at me because I didn't get the other one, do you?"

His questions echoed away into the expanse of the cavern, eventually being absorbed back into the silence.

Beast Boy sat down in front of the statue, cross-legged, gazing up at the still form. He gave a little sigh and rubbed a hand at the back of his neck in a nervous habit. "Terra," he began, "I came here for another reason, too. I just wanted to tell you…I mean, I haven't forgotten you." His green eyes flicked back and forth across the statue's features, as though searching for an answer. "I'll never forget you," he continued, more confident now. "You were more than a friend to me, and I just wanted you to know that even though Raven and I—"

He stopped short for a moment, because that hadn't come out right. He and Raven weren't even official yet. "Well, if Raven and I…if we ever…" Beast Boy gave a frustrated grunt. Even when he was talking to a statue and not a real living girl, he still couldn't get the words right. It would be a wonder if he ever managed to ask Raven out intelligibly tomorrow.

"Terra," he tried one last time, "You'll always be really special to me, no matter what. I know you'd understand that, and understand why I want to give this to Raven tomorrow. And I know you'd be okay with it. So that's why I wanted to show you first, and that's what I wanted to tell you." He gave a half-smile and got to his feet, scooping up the jewelry box. "Anyways, thanks for listening, Terra. I'll come back later tomorrow and let you know how it went, ok?"

Beast Boy gave her still form was last look before he turned to leave…and blinked in surprise.

Terra's eyes were open.

The changeling squinted and craned his neck slightly forward. He'd always thought that her eyes had been closed. Had he just never noticed until now? No, that wasn't possible. He'd come here many, many times over the years, and he knew what her statue looked like. Terra's eyes had always been closed, and he remembered thinking on more than one occasion that it made her look as though she were merely sleeping.

So then, when had her eyes opened? How had they opened?

An idea that had crossed his mind many times before now flickered to the front of his thoughts. He had often wondered if Terra was merely in a comatose state, unable to move or react to her surroundings but still aware, able to recognize when someone else was in the cavern with her and understand what they were saying. It was one of things that had kept him coming back to visit her on a regular basis, not only for his own sake but for hers as well. Beast Boy knew that if he were locked in a stone coma, he would die of loneliness if none of his friends ever visited.

And so now, Terra's eyes were suddenly open. Did that mean she was able to move now? Was she getting better? Was she coming out of the coma?

Still a bit uncertain, Beast Boy waved his hand slowly back and forth in front of the statue like he was trying to regain the attention of someone who had zoned out for a moment. "Terra?" he asked, "Can you hear me?"

For a long moment Beast Boy just stood there as the seconds ticked away in silence, waiting. He had no idea what kind of response he had expected to get; he was just waiting for something—anything—that would show any signs of life in Terra's stone form.

The seconds turned into minutes, and finally Beast Boy realized he'd been holding his breath. He let it out with a soft whoosh and frowned to himself, looking at Terra's open eyes. Had it just been his imagination?

No, he shook his head. He knew Terra, he knew what she had turned into, what she had looked like for the past three years. And during all that time, her eyes had never been open. She was waking up. That had to be it. What other explanation was there?

And then, as if she had heard his very thoughts, the pupils of Terra's eyes slid across their stone sockets to turn her gaze. Silent and still as ever, Terra appeared just as she always had…except now she was staring straight at Beast Boy.

Beast Boy felt his heart begin to pound. He shoved the jewelry box into his pocket and turned towards the tunnels, an excited sense of urgency racing through him. "Listen, I'll be right back, Terra, okay?" he called to her over his shoulder as he moved away, "I'm gonna go tell the others, and we'll come get you!"

He raced away, adrenaline pumping through him. Terra was waking up. After all this time, she was finally coming alive again! He had to tell the rest of the team, they could all come back together and…well, he didn't know what. Maybe they could get her out of the cavern and bring her back to the Tower to help her as she came out of her rock form. Cyborg would know how to move her, he was sure of that.

Lost in his excitement, Beast Boy rounded a corner—

—and nearly ran face-first into a solid rock wall. He managed to stop short just in time, and for a moment was bewildered.

He had visited Terra's caverns more often than anyone else. He knew the way through the tunnels in and out, and they were as familiar to him as Titan Tower. How had he run into a dead end?

"Huh," he muttered to himself. Maybe he just hadn't been paying attention, and had taken the wrong exit tunnel from Terra's cavern. He had been a bit excited and flustered by her sudden reanimation.

Turning around, Beast Boy started backtracking, at a slower, jogging pace. Shaking off the initial sense of surprise and confusion, he allowed himself a small chuckle. Now he would have to go past Terra again; she was going to think he was ridiculous for taking the wrong corridor. He'd have to give her a quick apology before he left for real this time.

But when he re-emerged into the vast chamber, it wasn't from one of the tunnels right beside his normal exit route. It was from a side corridor, at nearly a ninety-degree angle away the tunnel he was so sure he had first taken.

Stopping dead in his tracks, Beast Boy stared. This wasn't possible. How could he have exited the chamber on the west side, run into a dead end, and then retraced his steps to enter the same chamber again…but from the north side?

Forgetting what he had planned to say to Terra, Beast Boy strode across the cavern straight towards the proper corridor. He stood in front of it for a moment, looking around to make certain this time that he really was taking the right tunnel.

Nothing seemed amiss.

Beast Boy shrugged and headed down the corridor. It must have been a weird fluke, or maybe his imagination was going overboard. He'd never visited Terra's caves after dark before, and she'd certainly never shown signs of life before. He was just letting himself get distracted by the unfamiliar circumstances, that was all.

A few minutes later, Beast Boy had just about managed to convince himself that the strange tunnel incident hadn't even happened…until he saw another dead end come into view.

But he knew he had taken the right tunnel this time! He'd made sure of it!

Beast Boy glanced up at the lantern sconce on the wall. The small light inside glowed steadily, unperturbed by the fact that it was lighting nothing but a solid wall of rock.

That didn't make sense. Cyborg had installed the special lights himself, so that they would light the tunnels and mark the pathways in and out of the cavern. But this was the second path that had brought Beast Boy to a dead end, and he was sure that Cyborg wouldn't have wasted lights in one tunnel that led to no where, much less two.

What in the world was going on?

There was nothing else to do but head back to the main cavern. Again. He wasn't sure what he would do once he got there, but at least it would be better than standing at a dead end. Terra would keep him company, at the very least.

He hadn't gone more than a few yards back down the tunnel when he heard it. There was a slight echo, barely noticeable, but his ears twitched as they picked up the abnormal sound. A single pair of footsteps didn't have that kind of echo. It was as if someone was behind him, following him, and trying to make their footfalls match his.

Beast Boy stopped where he was, his heart beating faster now. The echo stopped as well, and for a long moment Beast Boy remained motionless, trying not to breathe as he listened for any hint of a sound.

Nothing.

He started to move forward again—and every single light in the tunnel went out.

For a moment Beast Boy just stood there in the pitch-blackness. Then he took a breath and adjusted his vision. His pupils dilated into cat eyes, absorbing any light that might possibly have been left. After a few moments he was able to see again—just barely. Placing a hand against the tunnel wall for reassurance, he began to move again.

As he rounded the last corner, Beast Boy let out a sigh in relief. There was the opening to Terra's cavern, just where it should be. At least that hadn't changed.

But in the next instant, the breath caught in his throat. There, silhouetted against the stark blackness of the cavern opening was an even darker patch of shadow…in the shape of a human being. And it began to move towards him as surely as if it could see him in broad daylight.

"Terra?" he breathed.

She was beside him now, and her voice sounded next to his ear in a hissing whisper. "I could hear you, Beast Boy," she said, placing a cold, stone hand on his chest, "But I don't like what you were saying…"

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Raven sat in her favorite chair by the window, sipping at the last of her tea and apparently concentrating her novel. In reality though, she wasn't paying that much attention to the words on the page. She would glance up periodically to gaze out the window at the landscape below, or send her gaze around the room. It was unlike her to be so distracted, but she had a fairly good reason to be.

Today was Valentine's Day, and she was sure that Beast Boy was going to give her something.

She knew all about the bracelet, and for a fairly simple reason: Starfire wasn't very adept at subtlety. The redhead was always one to wear her heart on her sleeve, no matter what the circumstances. So it hadn't been very hard to figure out that when the overly peppy alien dragged her into a jewelry store 'to indicate the glorious baubles of her choice,' it was for an ulterior motive. Someone had asked Starfire to figure out what sort of jewelry Raven might like, and Raven had a good idea who that someone was.

Her first 'date' with Beast Boy actually hadn't been that bad. The changeling could be surprisingly caring and sweet at times. And over the past few years, he'd started to mature and was slowly growing out of his overly childish manners.

Since the first date though, Beast Boy hadn't asked her out again—yet. Raven was certain that it was only a matter of time, especially considering the jewelry store incident with Starfire. And, seeing as Christmas was long past and her birthday was taboo, the logical assumption as to when Beast Boy might venture to give her said jewelry would have to be today. Valentine's.

So here she sat, biding her time, waiting to see if Beast Boy would actually pull through. Raven told herself that she wouldn't be surprised or upset if he didn't, but in reality she suspected that she might get a little miffed.

The doors swished open and she glanced up from her book, as had been her routine all morning. But it was only Robin.

He moved towards her, a light smile on his face. "Hey, do you want to come down to the training room with the rest of us? Starfire set up a piñata."

Raven cocked an eyebrow. "A piñata for Valentine's?"

"Yeah, well…" Robin shrugged and rubbed a hand nervously at the back of his neck. "She still gets confused sometimes with all the different holiday and birthday traditions. But it kinda works, actually, because she filled it with a ton of those conversation hearts and a bunch of the little spicy red ones, too."

Raven refrained from making a face. She didn't like the cinnamon hearts, and thought the sugar ones were tacky and tasted like chalk. "No thanks," she said.

"You can think about it for a little while of you want," Robin answered, "We're waiting for Beast Boy to get back before we break it open anyway."

"Beast Boy's not here?" Raven blinked.

Robin shrugged. "He mentioned something about going to see Terra's statue either yesterday or today. I haven't seen him this morning, so I figure that's where he is at the moment. Why?"

And odd thought struck Raven, and something in her stomach began to sink and boil with unbidden emotion. Beast Boy went to see Terra…on Valentine's…

Her book snapped shut with a loud clap and she rose from her seat, the aura around her turning black and violent as she strode towards the main doors.

"Raven?" Robin blinked at the sudden display of anger. "What's wrong? Where are you going?"

The doors slid shut behind her in reply.

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Raven strode through the stone corridors, forcing herself to maintain steady, meditation breathing to stay calm. Her emotions were getting overactive, and the chatter in her head was rising. Why was she so angry with the thought of Beast Boy visiting Terra on Valentine's? Then again, why would he ask her out and then ditch her on Valentine's for Terra? And why was she jumping to conclusions and letting petty jealousy get the better of her in the first place?

Pulling her consciousness above the internal din, Raven focused on just getting to the main cavern. And as soon as she stepped into the huge chamber, she saw it.

There was Terra's statue, standing just the way it always had, except for one small detail. Over Terra's right hand, someone had slid a small bracelet so that it dangled on her wrist. The dark blue stones and silver links looked oddly out of place against the stark, earthen color of Terra's statue. Another moment passed as Raven stared, letting the confirmation of her suspicions sink in. Angry thoughts began rising, and she had to push them back and calm herself as she moved closer. "Beast Boy had someone take me to a jewelry shop and figure out what I liked…so that he could buy it for Terra's statue…"

She took a long breath and tried to calm the raging emotions within, but knew that her anger was quickly getting the better of her. "That," she pointed accusingly at the bracelet, "Should have been mine." She stretched out a hand, reaching for the bracelet's clasp with the full intention of taking it for herself when something caught her eye. She stopped in mid-reach, and turned to regard the statue.

Had Terra's eyes always been open?

Without warning, the statue's stone hand clamped down hard around her wrist.

Raven gasped as a wave of panic and fear swept through her. Fueled by the sudden emotion, a stream of uncontrolled, dark energy erupted in the space between girl and statue. Raven heard an unearthly shriek and felt herself pushed backwards by her own instinctive attack. The grip on her wrist released, freeing her and leaving her unscathed.

Terra did not fare so well. The telekinesis had not just shattered her hold on Raven—it had shattered her arm past the elbow. Now she stood, cradling what was left of the limb, glaring cold hatred. "You witch," she snarled, her face an irate mask.

It was then that Raven had the chance to truly see what she was facing. Terra was a living statue, her solid form moving as naturally as it had when she had still been flesh and blood. But beneath the surface of the stone Raven could see the aura of a spirit, its light glowing through sightless eyes. This wasn't the real Terra—it was her ghost, inhabiting the statue form like the empty shell that it was.

Raven tried to breathe evenly, to force her heartbeat to stop racing. "Terra—"

"Don't talk to me!" Terra cut her off, her eyes maniacal. "I don't want you here!"

Raven took a step back and tried to act non-threatening. There was something going on here that she didn't quite understand, and she had a feeling that if she didn't figure out what it was, Terra was going to try and kill her for no reason.

Before she could say anything, Terra's eyes lit with power and in the next instant three rocky projectiles were flying towards her at deadly speed. Raven slid sideways to dodge the first, then formed a small shield of dark energy in front of her to deflect the last two. One of them shattered, blinding her for a moment in a cloud of dust and rock debris.

In that moment Terra charged forward, striking out at Raven with her remaining arm. Raven shot out a hand and caught the blow, leaving the two of them grappling as Terra strained to push forward and Raven held her firmly at bay.

"Terra, stop it!" Raven yelled, trying to get through to her. But then something caught the corner of Raven's eye, and she turned. There was a body, lying just out of sight behind Terra's pedestal. Raven's eyes widened. Without thinking, she shoved Terra back into the wall with horrendous telekinetic force and made a dash for Beast Boy's still form. She knelt beside him, horror on her features as she tried to comprehend what she was seeing.

In the center of his chest were vicious red marks and bruises, as though someone had been clawing at him. The veins beneath Beast Boy's skin were all swollen to the point that they seemed to strain against the skin that was holding them. But there was no pulse pounding through them, no sign of a heartbeat. They were all solid and silent, and through the green tint of his skin she could see that they were the same hue as Terra's statue, as if his heart and blood had literally been turned to stone…

The rock floor began to vibrate beneath her, then suddenly dropped away as a crevasse split open. Caught off guard, Raven half slipped and started to fall, her left leg sliding down through the opening in the rock. And then, more quickly than it had opened, the crevasse slammed shut. Raven let out an unbidden scream of pain as every bone and muscle below her knee was crushed. She strained against the ground that now held her pinned in place, trying to focus and ignore the waves of agony.

Then Terra was looming over her, literally shaking with rage. "Don't you dare go near him…"

"What did you do to him?" Raven demanded, her teeth clenched half from pain and half from anger.

But Terra didn't seem to be listening. She let out a shriek and fell to her knees, pounding her fist into the ground. "It wasn't fair!" she screamed, "He would come and talk to me, treat me like I was still a real person, make me feel like I was still loved and cared about…"

Her neck twisted and turned her face towards Raven, a frightening look of hatred etched into her stone features. "But after a while, the only thing he talked about anymore was you. All that time when he'd been visiting and talking to me…it hadn't been because he still cared. It was because I was dead, and so he knew all his secrets were safe with me. And I could do nothing while he told me all about how he was falling in love with someone else…" Terra whirled on Raven, looking ready to strike at her. "I sacrificed everything for all of you—for him—and this is how you treat me for it!"

"You're dead, Terra!" Raven shouted at her, "We mourned for you, but then we moved on. We got on with our lives, and so did Beast Boy. And if you expected him to stay faithful to a grave, then you're the one who isn't being fair!"

Livid, Terra raised her arms and let loose a howl like something truly undead. Gold power erupted from her form, streaming outward in all directions like a shockwave. The entire cavern began to quake, rifts broke open on the walls and floor, giant chunks of rock began to fall from above.

Raven looked up to see the ceiling coming down on her. She knew she couldn't get out of the way; she was trapped in the crevasse, unable to get free. In a last, desperate move, she tried to summon a shield—

And the world went dark.

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Robin perched on one of the few outcroppings of rock that was still solid, overlooking the demolished area and watching the sun as it began to set. It had been more than six months since the incident, but he still found himself coming to the destroyed cave site fairly often. Before, when it had simply been the place where Terra died, he'd felt no great need to visit on any sort of regular basis. Now that it marked the graves of two more of his teammates, however, the feeling responsibility to pay them all the proper respects was almost overwhelming.

Search teams had scoured the caves for nearly a week after the collapse, but never found a trace of the bodies. Robin supposed that was another reason he felt drawn to the place; coming to visit made him feel like it made up for failing to find them, in some strange way.

As the sun finished its journey below the horizon, Robin gave a long sigh and turned away, heading home. Behind him the deep red and orange hues remaining in the sky began to fade, and soon the gravesite was alone and silent in the onset of darkness.

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