Props: You know the deal...

Realitychanger: Thanks for the props!

Lady of Faerie (and her little psychopathic friend): What? You missed that I wrote 'fiend' instead of 'friend?' No, that was not a typo. 'Inane' does not equate with 'Insane.' It just means silly, frivolous, etc. (Brain: My idea of a subtle insult—Vin is not good at those.)

Thanks ever so much for the glomp! I needed that!

Artemisgirl: Hi! (Waves stupidly at CRT.) Nice to hear from you. Sorry it took so long to get to your latest, but if you couldn't tell, I like it. (Brain: He won't admit it, but he did not even realize that line was a double entendre...)

warprince2000: This is as soon as it gets, sorry! I hope it was worth the wait.

Visigoth: 'Minstrels cheering?' Dude! I'm Black! Hee hee—no prob—I love Al Jolson...

Sorry to get your hopes up for action and intrigue. I find I am resorting to cheap laughs from low humor in this chap. (Hard to break old habits...)

Rae Roth: Thank you! Peace back at'cha! Heres hoping you still like the story after this silly chapter.

BrokenNevermore: Thanks! I think that, even though it is not as well written, this chapter will still be amusing.

DM: Thank you, my dear. I tried, I really did! But I am still busy, in addition to being really frazzled in the brain. (Brain: Not me!) I don't get much time to write, and when I do, it sucks and I have to do a lot of rewrites. And your comments are always much appreciated, even if you think not.

Pyrotechnic: Cool! Make it chocolate milk. Thanks, kemosabe.

G.A.Reader: Okay, what's 'G.A.' stand for? Thanks for the props!

Fuzen Ninja: Sigh...okay, again...

Important Notice:

FuzenNinja, indeed, is a girl, but not a girly-girl or prep!

Thanks for busting my chops again. Really, though, I'm very glad to get your reviews, if only to be able to exchange amusing banter with you!

Oakey doakey—on with the story! The chapter never before seen anywhere else (including by a Beta, or editor.)

To anyone I have offended: Sorry. Really. I am tired of all the ugliness. (Brain: Not I.) Can't we all just get along?


Chapter 10, or 'Lost in Oswego.'


"We really need to call the Titans; you know-to warn them about the possible connection—"

"No! We can't!"

"B!"

"I'm sorry, Rae. But I'm scared."

"I know, me too. But we have to--I have to. I couldn't live with myself if something happened to any of our friends that we could have prevented."

The young man pouted, contemplative. "Yeah. I guess you're right. I wouldn't wish this on anyone--"

Raven sneered. "I could think of a few…"

"Rae! You're evil"

"Pardon? I'm only half-evil."

"Dude. Did you just make another joke?"


"Well, I am not going to wait. I will go by myself to find our friends, if necessary."

"No, you won't, Starfire—and that's an order. We all go together after I gather enough information."

"You cannot order me…"

"Yeah, man-what's the big obsession with gathering intel before we go? When the hell is the last time you thought about consequences before jumping into a dangerous situation?"

Robin fumed silently. "I don't need it from you too, Cyborg. What I can't figure out is why they are hiding from us. What is so bad that they won't talk to me about it?"

"Man-you ever listen to yourself?"

"Cyborg is correct, Robin. You can sometimes appear very intimidating and stubborn."

"A regular butthead, if you ask me," mumbled Cyborg, who was not smiling at the moment.


"So, when are you gonna call them?"

"I guess we should wait until after you're normal again. We can't call them from here-they'd trace our location in no time."

"But that'll be another…like, three or four days, right?"

The girl sighed. "It's the best we can do."

A frowning Beastboy reluctantly agreed. A slightly uncomfortable silence ensued, which was rudely interrupted by a loud rumbling noise.

Beastboy's face warmed. "Sorry. But orders are orders, especially when they come from my stomach. Well, I'm officially starving. What do you feel like for dinner tonight?"

"Why don't we just stay in and order something?"

"How about pizza? With pepperoni, and sausage, and Canadian bacon, and…"

The dark girl's face dropped. "Beastboy, you don't eat meat."

"Oh man! I think it's starting to affect me…sooner than usual." He grabbed Raven, and pulled her close; perhaps a bit roughly.

"What are you doing, Beastboy? What the hell! Don't you dare pick me up!"

"I—I need you—to be with me. Now. My…It is too much for me." Beastboy did not seem to be joking. "Raven I have to…have you."

"Azarath, Metrion—I don't think so—Zinthos!" A burst of black energy flattened her roommate against the wall, effectively pinning him.

"Ow…"

"Sorry, B. I know that wasn't you talking. It was the beast in you." Raven spoke without anger. "It's a product of your affliction, I'm sure." At least you better hope it is, she thought, as she casually flicked her hand in her partner's direction, freeing him.

Beastboy slumped to the floor, fists balled. "Damn it! 'Condition;' 'affliction;' 'disease.' It's not bad enough that I'm a one-man sideshow to start with--now I'm a freakin'

monster: a Were-wolf. This is so not fair!"

"It's not all bad, you know," drawled Raven. "You have me." She flashed a tiny, wry smile at her partner. "Together, we're going to get through this." She knelt beside the distressed young man, gathering him in her embrace.

He resisted, but gave in finally, and returned her hug. "What would I do without you, Rae?"

"You'd be running around in the woods, neglecting bodily hygiene, and living in a cave?"

"Dude! Another joke…?"


"So, if we're all going to look for them, who's gonna mind the store while we're gone?"

"The Titans east—I've already checked it out with Bee. They can come day after tomorrow."

The machine-man did his best to hide a slight blush from the boy wonder at the mention of the leader of the 'Easters.

Starfire jumped in to ask a question. "Why are they only going to watch one store? What about the rest of the city?"

Thank you, Star! Thought Cyborg.

"It's an expression, Starfire. It means 'take care of our everyday duties…'"

The Tamaranian folded her arms on her chest, huffing. "Humans! Why can you not speak plainly to others what you mean to say in a transparent manner, so as to avoid confusion and possible misinterpretation of your intent?"

Both boys gaped at each other, and then the Tamaranian Princess. "Uhnnnaaahhh…"


"Raven? I'm getting that strange feeling again…"

"I thought I was very clear when I told you 'no' last time."

Raven flushed slightly, grinning in embarrassment. "Oh, sorry—that feeling! Well, I'm ready whenever you want to go 'camping.'"

"You're sure you want to do it this way, Rae?"

"We will be fine, B."

"Then I think we better get going right now."


The green magpie alit in a small clearing, shaking off the gathering chill of the north woods of upstate New York. It looked around, cocking its' head in a curious manner, before transforming into a human form. Human, albeit beginning to take on some semblance of canine features…

"Raven? Are you here?" whispered Beastboy.

A darker shadow amidst the gathering gloom of the woods detached itself and rose menacingly close beside him.

"Eeeeek! Shit, Raven—can't you just say 'hi?'"

The uppermost portion of the shadowy figure slowly rocked side-to-side, in the universal signal indicating 'no.'

"Uh, okay. Just try not to scare the crap out of me any more." The shape-changer's voice became plaintive. "Please?"

The shadow shortened in height, then rose again to it's full height, towering over the frightened green figure.

"I hope that's a 'yes.' Wayyy creepy… "Well—here goes. I can't wait any longer, the itching's killing me."

The green boy swiftly transmogrified into a large grey-green wolf. Sniffing the air for a moment, he turned in the direction of the shadow and nodded, before bounding off into the woods.


Why did I agree to do this, again?

(Ahem…rhetorical question?)

Oh, yeah—it was my idea. I just hope we don't have any real excitement tonight—I'm feeling very irritable.

(Irritable is perhaps an understatement…)

I do this all the time without any serious problems.

(Perhaps you noticed that you subconsciously added the qualifier 'serious.')

Huh? Yeah, well, I can maintain control. I have to. For Beastboy.


The wolf that was Beastboy glided through the semi darkness, followed by the noiseless wraith. Bounding joyfully through the undergrowth at the edge of a stream, he stopped dead in his tracks, seemingly transformed to a statue, the only movement at the edges of his nostrils, which worried the breeze. He bared his teeth, and advanced stiff-leggedly towards a point upstream from him, sensing the presence of several other wild creatures; creatures of his own (nearly) kind.

The leader came into view, showing plainly in the moonlight filtering through the sparse cover over the stream. He was a large wolf, appearing to be quite the physical match for Beastboy.

Raven, with some apprehension, noted that besides being a physical match for BB, the leader of this pack seemed fearless, not showing any of the deference to Beastboy that he claimed to receive from other wolves.

The dark girl tensed within her consciousness, fearing an ugly confrontation. The situation resolved itself swiftly, though, as Beastboy rushed with blinding speed on the big wolf. The swiftness and agility he exhibited in knocking the other onto its back, and obtaining a firm grip on the leader's throat, astounded her. Had she been in human form, no doubt she would have reminded herself to breathe.


Wow. There really is a lot I don't know about him. I still have much to learn.

(Makes you kinda hot, doesn't it?)

Shut the hell up!

(Impressive, nonetheless…)

It's nothing—I could do as much myself, in this form. Better, in fact. It is mere child's play…

(A dangerous train of thought, that.)

Yes, yes.

(Admit it…you admire him.)

For a purely physical being, yes, he is impressive.

(Not just purely physical…)

Can't you ever be satisfied to leave well enough alone?

(My pleasure, dear…)

Sadistic bastard!

(I'm flattered.)

(Perhaps this would be a good time to bring our attention back to the task at hand—Beastboy…)


Tuning back into real-time, Raven noted that Beastboy had since allowed the old leader to regain his feet. Snarling, and clearly unhappy with circumstances, he nevertheless conceded to the strange new wolf-not-wolf. The rest of the pack gathered around, expectantly. Raven sourly obsevered the females paying special attention to the green wolf. Although these were wild animals, Raven's senses could still detect the raw emotions of open admiration and lust emanating from the she-wolves. Even the younger males fawned over him, bowing and sniffing.


Great! That's just what he needs-a bigger ego.

(He needs this.)

(He deserves it.)

Damn it! Go back in your box! I don't need confusion to add to my control issues!

(So, now it's an 'issue?')

I WILL remain in control…I will remain in control…Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos…

(It is unlikely that you will gain any additional measure of control by utilizing your chant while in astral form…)

WILL you let me at least TRY…?

(Excuuuuuuse meeeeee.)


The two sat on opposing ends of the room, not daring to look the other in the eye, silence thick and oppressive in the gloomy apartment.

Having thought long and hard to come up with an appropriate conversation starter, Beastboy finally opened his mouth and said the first random thing that came to him. "Good thing none of the bitches were in heat, huh?"

Seeing Raven's facial expression undergo five or six rapid transmutations, ranging from shock to rage, it dawned on him that perhaps he should attempt a different tack in the direction of conversational topics.

"Sorry—I didn't mean—errr…you know you're the only one for me, Rae-Rae." He waggled his eyebrows enticingly at her.

Raven snarled.

"I mean—not that I would ever call you a bit…eep!"

It took the young witch fully three seconds to quell the red glow within her eyes, long enough for Beastboy to review his entire life. "Maybe it would be better if we didn't discuss this at all," she managed to force out, between gritted teeth.

"Yeah—sure," mumbled the crestfallen teen.

Raven was overcome with the feelings of remorse and bitter self-recrimination washing over her, feelings flowing from her friend. Her boyfriend.


(He really loves you, you know.)

(Yeah—idiot!)

(Probably not, anymore…)

(Kick his ass! He called you a bitch!)

(He did nothing of the sort, and we all know that.)

I'm sorry, BB—I do love you. I know I hurt you, I just can't talk about my feelings…

(I'm getting bored of this—over and over and over again…)

(Talk to him.)

(Tell him!)

(Tell him, dammit, before I feel obliged to kill all of you!)

Sigh..you're all so helpful, thanks.

(See-I told you…)

(Shut the fuck up!)


"I—I'll go make some tea." Beastboy valiantly strove for some way to redeem himself. I am such an idiot!

Raven spoke falteringly. "Tha-thanks. That's…nice of you…to think of—me."

Really? "Honestly, Raven. You are all that I ever think of. I'm sorry I say such stupid things. I'm sorry I'm such an idiot." He blinked back tears, but Raven noticed, and was already in motion.

"I'm sorry…"

"Beastboy--shhhhhhh. Don't say anymore. I like you for who you are, the way you are. Don't apologize for hurting my feelings. Those—thoughts are my own shortcomings. If only I could speak about them to you…"

"You just did." Beastboy offered her a warm smile. "And you can talk to me about anything. I need you to. I need to know the you trust me as much as I do you."

Raven fell into his arms. "I do trust you, B. I want to tell you things…I just still need a bit more time." She sniffed, and took a deep breath. "I love you, Beastboy."

"I love you so much, Rae."

Raven raised her head from his shoulder, and looked into depths of his emerald eyes. "If you ever call me 'Rae-Rae' again, though…" She watched as the green teen's eyes widened with fright.

She chuckled oh-so-lightly.

Beastboy joined her, laughing softly, before halting abruptly—his expression becoming somber. "I won't.


"Hey, Sparky—what's shakin'?" Bumblebee's eyes sparkled devilishly, her pleasure immense at seeing the large metal man flustered.

"I told you not to call me that…!"

"You don't fool me, big guy," she smiled hugely, licking her lips. "You love your pet name, and I know it."

"You leave me no choice," Cyborg countered, evenly, "since you insist on calling me that stupid name, I'm gonna start calling you Wasp."

"You—what?" Bee spluttered, her face growing hot. "You did not just say what I think you said!"

"I did."

"Hey, you guys, break it up—now." Robin ventured between the two, who looked ready to come to blows. "I'm sure Cy didn't mean that in a derogatory manner…right?" He glanced over to his big metal friend. "Right, Cyborg?"

"I do not understand. The Wasp is a winged stinging insect similar to a Bee, correct? Why does the comparison create such feelings of animosity?"

"Uhhh…It's complicated, Star…"

Speedy looked up from the kitchen, his mouth full. "Hey, lef meee…"

Robin equivocated. "Uh, not a good idea, bud."

Aqualad stepped forward, capturing Starfire's arm in his. "Let's go for a walk, and I'll tell you about it."

Starfire tittered. "Thank you. That would be most appreciated."

Mas y Menos scratched their heads. "Que loco…"


"Well, at least that went better than it could have…"

Raven, looking very worn out, blanched. "What? Tell me what you were thinking, leading a charge on a healthy bull Moose like that!"

Beastboy seemed genuinely puzzled. "Normally, size doesn't matter much to me-"

"Yeah—when you can morph into something bigger. Not when you are stuck in the form of a wolf."

"I guess I wasn't thinking." He pouted. "It's not like I can help it."

"I almost lost control saving your fuzzy butt. I had to bail out your friends. I almost ended up killed that poor animal unintentionally."

He laughed. "Yeah—I wonder if a Moose can have a heart attack?"

"Not funny."

"Oh yes it was! A thousand-pound animal, jumping like a scared cat…"

"You don't get it."

"I do—just trying to make light of a bad situation. I guess I don't do that well, either." He kicked at empty air. "I guess I forgot to say 'thank you'…"

"Oh Beastboy—you know I…" She caught herself, considering. "Your welcome. Hug?"

Sighing, he fell into her arms, quickly falling asleep on the couch with Raven's arms wrapped protectively around him.


"You and Starfire seemed to hit it off well."

"Jealous?" Aqualad smirked, pleased with himself.

"Shut up, fish-face!"

"Hey! Chill, man. Starfire is Robin's girl—you know that as well as I."

The Titans East said their farewells to Robin, Cyborg, and Starfire, wishing them well on their quest.

"I'll be in touch next at 18:00 hours tonight," began the boy wonder.

"Hey man, we can take care of ourselves for a few hours." The archer slapped Robin on the shoulder, "Just take care of your friends, okay? We got it handled on this end."

"He's right, Robin. ." The archer slapped Robin on the shoulder, "Just take care of your friends, okay? We got it handled on this end."

"He's right, Robin. You guys take care of business—we won't let you down."

"Si, si! No problemo!"

"Where's Bee?" Cyborg inquired evenly. "I guess I should apologize before I go."

"I don't know…sulking somewhere…"

"Not a chance I'll forget, you pompous pot-metal pinhead."

Speedy simpered. "Aww…ain't love grand?"


"So what are we gonna do when we find them?" An edge of worry tinged the voice of the android.

"I don't know." Robin fingered his mask absently. "I suppose that depends on why they left, and what their attitude is. Why?"

Starfire evinced shock in her facial expression. "Surely you will welcome them with the 'opened arms' of friendship? Undoubtedly they will have conceived that what they did was for the best of the team…"

"Why are you two piling on? What did I do?" Robin winced inwardly, recalling one of his late night conversations with Raven in the hallway.

"You do come off like you're wound a little too tight, Rob. We're just suggesting that you let those two explain themselves before you make a judgement." Cyborg sighed.

Robin hesitated, looking at Starfire, then Cyborg. "…Yeah. You're right."


Aqualad sat a Robin's computer, reading up on the latest in Jump City criminal activity.

The refrigerator door slammed, as Speedy's head popped up over the kitchen counter. "Can you believe they don't even have any beer?"

"Naw, stick—unbelievable." Aqualad droned, not looking up from his work.

The archer didn't miss a beat. "I'm bored, man. Where's everyone else?"

"Ummm…M&M's checking out the tower." Aqualad, suddenly brightening, looked up from the computer. "Hey! You know, Bee just mumbled something about 'upstairs,' when she took off. We should check up on her." He smiled a wicked grin. "I'll bet she's hacking into 'Sparky's' backup database right now…"

The archer puzzled on that. "I thought she was mad at him?"

"Think about it, man."

Enlightenment dawned on the masked face. "Oh yeah…Oh shit! We better see what she's planning to do!"


"Beastboy—let's do it now."

A thrill of fear raced up the green one's spine. "Nuh-uhhh—I remember vividly my meeting with 'Mr. Wall.' I've learned my lesson. Honest."

Raven calmly folded her arms across her chest, regarding the young man as if she were contemplating a drooling imbecile in diapers.

Beastboy bravely tried to look her in the eye, but faltered under her withering gaze.

"What," he cried, out of exasperation, having failed to think of a snappy one-liner.

"Titans…telephone."

"Oh yeah," he managed to croak out, his normal green hue becoming a lovely chartreuse.

"You know, if this goes well…" the conjurer grinned wickedly, "I have been thinking about that other thing…I believe I might be ready for the next step, tonight, if the mood is right."

"I'll just go on the assumption that I don't know what you mean," the metamorph replied, with uncharacteristic sound logic and restraint.

Raven gave him a little squeeze, and a peck on the cheek. "Okay, whatever you say, hun."

Robin, please don't be a dick. He prayed silently.


"How can we be lost?" Robin was disbeleiving. "Don't you have a GPS system built into the T-Car? Don't you have a road atlas in your programming, somewhere?"

"Funny, man. The GPS is still broken, and I did have the route memorized." Cyborg's tone took on a more sarcastic aspect. "But y'all have been distracting me—boy wonder."

Robin blushed. "Uh…maybe Star should fly up and take a look around?"

"Maybe you should ride shotgun for a while, and let Starfire have the backseat all to herself." The metal man chuckled softly, pleased with himself.

"Maybe you should mind your own business, tin man, and watch where you're going," Robin sputtered.

"Boys!" The rapidly-escalating war of words was interrupted by an indignant alien. "Do you forget the reason we are undertaking this voyage? We should not be thinking only of ourselves at this time."

Cyborg and Robin were both preparing to unleash the next volley of insults on the Tamaranian, when they were cut short by the sound of a T-Comm's insistant beeping.

The masked one flipped open his communicator. "Robin here; what's the situation?"

His mouth dropped open when, on the communicator viewscreen, the image that appeared was that of the missing Raven.

Raven cracked a wry smile at Robin's reaction. "The situation is this: we need to talk."


Wow! That was a long one, for me. Hope you enjoyed.

I promise to have more for you. (But I didn't say soon...)

(Brain: You think they don't know that, by now? ...Idiot...)

Thanks in advance for all your loverly, well thought out, long, amusing reviews!

Vin

(Brain: Don't forget to check the Profile page. Dork face put up a real URL to a real webpage, where you can gather more intel on the monomaniacal misfit known as Vin.)