A/N: Just a few responses this time.
teentitantruefriend: Hey, you came back! Hehehe, yeah, but it's not like she wasn't asking for it. I'll do my best.
LaughingRanna: Beats me, not one in my vocabulary anyway (hehehe). Cool, that's what I was hoping for. Don't worry, it'll come.
benny2000: Well, pairings aren't exactly the main focus of the story, but I'm afraid I'm rather more inclined toward RobRae. Thanks, gives me the creeps just thinking about 'em.
Insanity101: Hehehe, yeah I figured it was something like that. And here I just thought the review alerts didn't like me (shakes hotmail inbox-folder upside down angrily, moth flies out). Thanks, I had a bird before called Callypso, but she flew out my window. I guess I'm not very lucky when it comes to pets. Lol, well, all the descriptions of him snoozing I've ever read were so serious, I thought "Hey, lets make it a little lighter to brighten up the chapter". Boy Wonders have salivary glands too, you know! Don't worry, you'll get 'em both.
Okeydokey, here goes:
Beast Boy hurriedly stirred his tofu eggs. His eyes were slightly narrowed and his tongue was poking out in concentration. The chef hat leaned dangerously forward over his forehead. His apron was splotched and stained in several places. The eggs sizzled. They had to be just right today.
He paused for a moment to look around the room. The only other person in the kitchen was Starfire, in similar attire, messing with some yellow, jiggly, whatever-it-was. It was obvious she was trying to make it perfect, however yellow masses of jello with things in them could be perfect.
B.B. looked over at the sofa. Robin and Cyborg were sitting on it, but surprisingly the Gamestation controllers lay untouched. Both had their heads bent in serious conversation, and they occasionally turned around to make sure the other two were still busy.
On any other occasion, Beast Boy's curiosity would have gotten the better of him, and he would be begging to be included in the conversation. However, at the moment all that mattered was that this breakfast turned out great.
He turned over the bacon, making sure it wasn't burnt.
Terra'll probably be super hungry when she wakes up, he thought. B.B, chuckled to himself. She was ALWAYS super hungry.
He shot a nervous glance toward Starfire, who was viciously smashing something in a box with a mallet that sounded suspiciously as though it were alive.
Maybe she liked it, but I'm sure as hell not gonna touch any Tamaranian food, he added as an afterthought.
While Beast Boy and Starfire prepared their "breakfast feast", Cyborg discussed with Robin what he had seen last night.
"I'm telling you man, she just blew a fuse! And then she just went and lay down for a while, staring into space. Seriously, it was not a pretty sight."
"What do you think caused such a reaction?" asked Robin in a low voice, glancing toward the kitchen to make sure Beast Boy was still focused on his tofu eggs.
"I'm not sure. Whatever she was thinking about, it drove her heart rate up and activated her "fight or flight" response. I'm guessing she was in some major panic."
Robin narrowed his eyes, rubbing his chin with his index finger. "Well, we still can't rule out some sort of trap. We'll have to talk to her about what happened and check out how she responds. We can't assume anything yet."
As if on cue, the door to the main room opened, and Terra walked in. She had discarded her apprentice garb, and was once again dressed in her black and yellow Titan uniform. She looked a bit tired, but other than that unscathed.
Beast Boy and Starfire's eyes lit up.
"Terra!" they exclaimed at the same time.
"You're awake!"
"Glorious!"
"Heh, yeah guys. I'm up," answered Terra, smiling hesitantly.
Cyborg stood up. "How are ya feeling?"
Terra looked over at the couch. "Just fine. I slept like a rock," she replied cheerfully.
Robin shot a fleeting look at Cyborg. He stood up also. "Up for some breakfast? I think you have enough to last you all morning."
"Uh, yeah, sure," she uttered, gawking at the food laden table. "Why not?"
Beast Boy rushed forward and grabbed Terra's arm, dragging her toward the counter while Starfire eagerly pushed from behind. It wasn't long before she was settled, with plates piled with tofu eggs, bacon and glorg tottering before her. The two "chefs" stood proudly over there work, complete with chef hats and aprons, grinning broadly. Terra sweat dropped anime style.
The Titans sat down to eat, Cyborg muttering something about alien food and tofu crap before sitting down with a plate full of ham he and Robin had prepared for themselves.
They began to eat in silence; most of them were too busy chewing to make conversation, others, namely Cyborg and Robin, merely speechless at certain members' table manners.
Robin noted a certain Titan's absence but refrained from comment; the others seemed not to have noticed, and he knew she was probably still cleaning her room. The Boy Wonder noticed Terra looking around a few times too, as though she had also perceived Raven's absence, but then she would soon after resume the consumption of her meal and say nothing each time. Robin narrowed his masked eyes.
Beast Boy and Starfire ate ravenously, constantly asking Terra how everything tasted. The earth-shifter tried her best to eat and act normally, and assured them their feast was fabulous.
"Seriously B.B.," said Terra laughing after Beast Boy asked for the third time if her food had been warm enough. "Everything tastes awesome. It's been a while since I had anything in my stomach…"
She trailed of at this, smile disappearing as she dropped her gaze to her plate and picked at the remains of her food.
Robin took that as his cue to start his questioning. Everybody appeared to have finished breakfast, and Starfire had already volunteered to clear the table.
"So, Terra. I was wondering if you wouldn't mind talking a bit about…what happened." He clasped his hands on the table and carefully studied Terra's features.
Terra looked uncomfortable. "Uh, well…yeah, sure, I guess," she said, rubbing her upper arm with a gloved hand. She paused for a moment, and sighed.
"Look, before anything else, I just wanted to say…I'm sorry."
"I'm sorry I betrayed you. I know that what I did was horrible, and I wish I could take it back, but I can't."
She stared fixedly at the table's polished surface, her eyes unseeing, her hands clenched into fists.
"I don't think I can forgive myself for putting your lives in danger, after you had taken me in and offered me to be a member of your team. Offered me a home."
Terra squeezed her eyes shut tiredly. "And I just hope that you can forgive me, and believe me when I say that I didn't mean anything I said or did before, even if it didn't seem that way. I was cowardly and scared. I thought Slade wanted to help me."
Robin flinched at the mention of the villain's name.
"I thought that I was all alone, that no one else could ever help me or want to be my friend. I was wrong. Please forgive me," she finished quietly. "Please…Prove me wrong."
The Titans gaped at Terra, clearly surprised by this little speech. Starfire's emerald eyes filled with tears, and she fought to suppress a sob. Robin and Cyborg merely stared, mouths slightly opened, evidently at a loss for words.
Beast Boy, however, didn't hesitate. He immediately stood up, and enveloped Terra in a warm embrace. Terra's eyes widened in shock.
"Of course we forgive you, Terra," murmured Beast Boy in a thick voice. "You saved us, saved the city."
He let her go and looked at her affectionately. "You made a choice, for the greater good of everyone. You totally rocked!" he finished, pumping his fist in the air with a flourish.
"Yes, friend! Beast Boy is correct, you were astounding and worthy of admiration!" piped Starfire, wrapping Terra in a long-avoided bone-crushing hug. Terra said nothing, though the lack of oxygen was making her lightheaded.
"But what happened? Why were you turned to stone?" urged Robin gently.
Terra turned away and stared out the window. "I'm not really sure. I used all the power I could to try and contain the lava in the earth. My powers stretched out of my control, which created enough energy to successfully cool the magma into stone again, but..."
Terra felt a tear escape down her cheek, unnoticed by the others, "…in doing so, turned me to stone as well."
The Titans stood silently, staring at the earth-shifter. There was a momentary pause. Then Robin asked softly, "How did you escape?"
Terra looked at the leader of the team for a moment before turning away again.
"It took a while. I'm not sure how long I was in there, but I was fighting it the whole time. It seems the only thing that wasn't frozen solid was my mind. There's not much to tell. It just…took a lot of concentration."
Though her answer was very vague, the Titans couldn't help but believe her. Even Robin had almost no doubt of her intentions now.
"Hey, don't sweat it Terra. The important thing is that you're okay and that we can keep being a team," said Cyborg reassuringly, placing a large hand on her skinny shoulder.
Terra's eyes widened with surprise. "Do you mean…?"
Robin nodded in concurrence, arms crossed and smiling. "Yes, you're still a member of the Teen Titans."
Terra's expression was difficult to read. She blinked several times, before casting her eyes down again.
"Thank you," she whispered. "Thank you so much."
Robin stared at her and didn't respond.
"I think this calls for a match of superhero volleyball!" announced Cyborg proudly.
"Sweet!" exclaimed Beast Boy.
"Wonderful!" cried Starfire, giggling madly.
Terra smiled, albeit somewhat sadly. "Sure, why not?"
Cyborg looked around. "Hey where's Raven? Do you think she'll wanna play?"
"Dude, does Raven EVER wanna play?" quipped Beast Boy, rolling his eyes.
Robin said nothing. A presence he had detected a long time ago in the shadows quickly disappeared.
Starfire smiled excitedly. "I shall go ask if she wishes to join us," she said, before flying off in the direction of Raven's room. The rest of the Titans moved toward the elevator.
"Yo, Robin, you coming?" called Cyborg over his shoulder as he pressed the elevator button.
Robin snapped out of his silent musings. He was still near the table. "Uh, yeah sure. Wait up."
He headed toward the elevator, toward the others, trying to shake off the feeling of uneasiness that had latched onto him since the night before.
A/N: Well there you go. I don't feel like this chapter was very good, but bear with me, it'll get better. Sorry if things seem a bit slow. Gotta run,
Jambey