I hate disclaimers. They always have to remind me that I don't own the Teen Titans, and that I'm not getting paid for this lol
The titans returned to the tower an hour later, much to Beast Boy's delight. The apprehending of Mumbo was surprisingly quick, even with them being short one member, and the changeling now had a few spare hours before Robin's routine kicked back in.
Deciding to hang around the tower, rather than venture into the city, Beast Boy wandered aimlessly through the halls in search of something to do. He knew that Cyborg was most likely working on the T-car, and Robin was either in the training room or evidence room, leaving him with the option of bugging the empath, or checking on the alien. Deciding that Starfire's well-being was a little more important than annoying Raven, Beast Boy made his way to the redhead's room.
As he neared her door, his hearing picked up the muffled sounds of conversation. Feeling his curiosity stir, he shuffled closer and pressed his ear to the door. He could barely make out the muted sound of his female teammates talking, but what he was hearing captured his attention.
Though he wasn't positive, he swore he had heard Raven say his name. But why she would say it, he had no idea. She had been adamant on drilling the secrecy of their arrangement into his head, so for her to blab it to Starfire was kind of a shock, and just a tad bit irritating.
He was about to silently fume about it longer, but he realized too late that the door was opening, causing him to stumble into the room.
Starfire was curled beneath her blankets, her nose red and her mouth set in a frown. Raven was standing closer to the door, a similar expression upon her face as she gave the changeling a bored look.
"Oh, you were correct to assume his dropping of eaves," Starfire mused, her voice almost as raspy as the empath's.
"I told you," Raven deadpanned, crossing her arms over her chest as she continued to look annoyed.
Beast Boy gave her a sheepish smile as he straightened himself, feeling a blush rise to his cheeks. She must have sensed him approaching the alien's room, and mentioned it to her, and that was what he had heard. Apparently, she wasn't divulging their secret to Starfire.
"I, uh," he began, scuffing his foot against the floor, "was just checking up on you, Star. How are you feeling?"
Starfire gave him a small smile as she blew her nose, earning disgusted grimaces from her teammates. "I have been better, friend. But I will do the living," she replied weakly. "Thank you for the concern."
Beast Boy returned her smile, before his eyes darted over to meet Raven's. She was still giving him an apprehensive look.
"You okay, too, Rae?" he joked warily, causing her eyes to narrow.
"I'm fine, thank you," she deadpanned.
Beast Boy nodded slowly, feeling his presence in the room grow more and more awkward. He knew that Starfire enjoyed his company, and that Raven at least tolerated it, but he was beginning to feel like he had intruded upon something. Most likely girl-talk.
"Well, holler if either of you need me!" he announced abruptly, before backing out of the room. As the doors slid shut before him, he faintly heard Starfire's voice.
"Why would Beast Boy believe you acquire his assistance, Raven?"
Feeling his face flush, the changeling quickly turned around and raced towards the common room before he could hear the empath's answer.
Lying haphazardly on the couch, Beast Boy sighed in exasperation as he glanced at the clock. He had basically wasted his free time in front if the TV, and Robin and the others were due in the common room in about ten minutes. Cyborg had already been in and out, dividing his time between preparing lunch and making a few phone calls in the hall. Beast Boy had idly wondered who his friend was talking to, but straining his ears to hear the other voice seemed like too much effort.
Shifting himself into a more comfortable position, he continued his attempt at focusing on the movie he was watching, but his mind seemed to be elsewhere.
The sound of the common room doors hissing open, accompanied by the faint smell of old books and tea, alerted the changeling to the presence of the half-demon. He felt himself stiffen immediately, wondering if she was really going to chance anything with Cyborg standing outside of the room.
Letting himself sink lower into the couch, he hoped that she wouldn't notice him.
"It's nice to learn that I inflict some strong feelings of fear within you," she deadpanned from the kitchen, obviously aware of his presence.
Letting out a nervous laugh, he slowly sat up, only to see Raven wasn't seeking his help, but rather refilling her tea.
"Uh, I..." he began, before a random thought entered his mind. Giving his teammate a slightly accusatory look, he hesitantly pointed his finger at her. "Wait a sec, Rae... have you been reading my emotions?"
Raven glanced up from her kettle, clearly taken aback by the slight hostility in his tone.
"No..?" she answered, clearly bewildered.
Beast Boy sat up straighter as he crossed his arms over his chest. "Then how did you know I was scared just now? Or that I was eavesdropping earlier?"
Surprisingly, Raven let out a snort of amusement as she turned her attention back towards her tea. "So you admit you were eavesdropping?" she mused casually.
Beast Boy's face paled as he realized what he had accidentally confessed, but his annoyance with the half-demon outweighed his embarrassment. "Uh, maybe - but only because I heard my name!"
Raven glanced back over at him, a small smirk present on her face. "How, exactly, did you hear your name, if you only started listening after your name was said?"
Knowing he had backed himself into a corner, Beast Boy quickly changed the subject. "How did you know I was there? By reading my emotions or something?"
Again, the half-demon let out a small laugh as she shook her head in amusement. Bringing her mug to her lips, she blew across the surface as she made her way towards the couch.
Beast Boy waited impatiently as she took her time crossing the room, before sitting down beside him and taking a sip of her tea.
"Well?" he barked, giving her an irritated look.
She slowly pulled her mug from her mouth, before licking her lips delicately. The changeling tried to ignore the uncomfortable tumbling of his stomach as he waited for her reply.
"I didn't read your emotions, Beast Boy," she began stoically, taking another sip of her tea, before going on, "and I'm quite insulted that you would ever think I would invade your privacy like that."
Beast Boy shifted slightly in his seat as her words registered.
"Then... then how did you...?"
Raven gave him a sideways glance, before rolling her eyes at his confused expression. "I felt your aura, Beast Boy."
"My what?"
Again, the empath gave him an exasperated look, before setting her mug on the coffee table and turning to face him. "You just love being difficult, don't you?"
Not giving him any time to answer, she continued. "Everyone has an aura that they give off - some psychics claimed to 'see' it, and they describe it as a tinted glow that surrounds a person. It often comes in a variety of colors and, suspiciously enough, works like a mood ring. I, on the other hand, feel people's auras."
Obviously sensing that the changeling still wasn't following, she let out another sigh. "All of you guys have auras that are specific to you, and that allow me to sense when you guys are near. Your aura gives off a very light feeling, though I can sense a bit of darkness buried beneath the surface. Nothing evil, or malicious - just... lost, I suppose. It is uniquely you, and can't be replicated. Your aura is basically a beacon of your presence, so that's why it can very often be difficult to sneak up on me."
Beast Boy felt himself blush slightly as he remembered all of his failed attempts to scare or surprise the empath, and how she always managed to sense him at the last minute. Deciding not to dwell on that, he listened quietly as his teammate continued.
"I was able to sense your fear through your aura, much like you are able to sense fear when you are in an animal form. I would also be able to tap into your emotions to feel it, but it is honestly a bit of a pain, as well as intrusive. I would never physically seek out your thoughts without your permission - unless, of course, it was necessary."
She ended her explanation by reaching for her tea again and taking another sip. Beast Boy sat beside her silently, weighing her words in his head. He had always assumed that Raven's empathy could read his emotions at all times, and that she just didn't actively focus on it, so finding out that she actually had to work to get a read on them was a bit of a relief. He never really had anything he needed to hide specifically from her, but he'd sometimes feel sad, and he never wanted her to wonder why.
Also, their new arrangement was stirring up a few embarrassing feelings, and he was terrified that she'd sense them, and then get the wrong idea. And that would only make his quest of befriending her that much harder. So her explanation couldn't have come at a better time.
"Auras, huh?" he mused, finally breaking his streak of silence.
Raven nodded absently, her face twisted into a look of confusion as she watched whatever movie that was on the TV. Beast Boy followed her gaze, before letting out a hearty chuckle.
"Heh, yeah, don't even try to understand this movie, Rae. It's literally just mindless gore."
He watched as the empath continued to stare at the screen, before turning her attention back to him.
"Are all of your movies this... horrible?" she questioned, a small smirk rising to her lips.
Beast Boy playfully glared at her. "No," he defended halfheartedly. "Maybe if you actually stuck around during movie night, you'd know that," he suggested coyly.
"Maybe if you guys played movies I'd want to watch, I'd stick around," she bit back.
Gasping in mock-offense, Beast Boy held his hand to his heart. "Fine then, Rae! I'll search my entire collection for a movie you'd enjoy, and you'll have to watch it with us next movie night. And if you do enjoy it, like I know you will, you'll have to stick around for every movie night!"
He had attempted to make little bets and wagers with her multiple times, but she would usually roll her eyes and call him immature. But to his surprise, she turned towards him with a look of determination, and held her hand out towards his.
"Alright, deal," she agreed.
Beast Boy slowly reached his hand out to hers and tentatively shook it, but she tightened her grip when he went to pull away.
"But," she began with a devious smirk, "if I hate it, which I most likely will, you'll have to do all of my chores for the next month."
The changeling opened his mouth to refuse, but the common room doors hissing open caused him to jump back from Raven guiltily.
His dramatic leap earned him quizzical looks from both the empath and the half-robot, the latter of which looked entirely lost.
"Did... did y'all just make a bet?"
Beast Boy let out a shaky sigh as he realized that Cyborg had merely stumbled upon their innocent wager - and nothing more. But ever since their kiss earlier that morning, Beast Boy had felt like any time spent with Raven made their situation totally obvious to anyone else. He felt like her lips had stained his, and that anybody could take one look at him and know. It was like she branded him somehow.
"I wouldn't call it a bet," Raven deadpanned, still eyeing the changeling warily. He knew she was questioning his reliability, and whether or not the whole "benefits" thing was a good idea.
Not wanting to miss out on his chance to help her, he gave her a sheepish smile, mouthing the word "sorry."
She nodded slightly, and he took that as her acceptance of his apology.
Cyborg had let out a low whistle of disbelief, before changing the subject to lunch. He had thankfully prepared a vegetarian-friendly dish, and was actually pretty excited as he explained it.
"And I didn't have to add any of that tofu crap," he grinned, earning a huff of frustration from the changeling.
Raven gave Beast Boy a knowing look, before passing him a stack of plates with her powers. The both of them then made their way to the table, where they began setting it. He noticed she had given him five plates, and he couldn't help but wonder if Starfire would actually join them.
"Is Star feeling good enough to come out for lunch?" he questioned curiously as he haphazardly plopped the plates down while circling the table.
Raven followed behind him, gently placing the silverware beside the plates. "I imagine so; she missed breakfast, after all, so I assume she's hungry."
Beast Boy nodded in understanding, before taking his usual seat and waiting for the others to join. Raven sat down beside him, straightening her plate so the striped pattern was running horizontally. She then let out an exasperated sigh, before muttering "cups" under her breath.
Sensing the chance to possibly make up for what he deemed "the embarrassing couch jump incident", Beast Boy hopped up from his seat, patting Raven on the shoulder. "Don't worry, I'll get them!"
He then raced into the kitchen, maneuvering around the half-robot as he pulled out a delicious smelling casserole from the oven. It seemed Cyborg had used his extra time to make a more elaborate lunch, rather than the usual sandwiches and soup the titans were use to. But Beast Boy wasn't complaining as he took a stack of cups out of the cupboard, before heading to the fridge and grabbing a jug of water. The girls had repeatedly complained about the tap water tasting strange, and since Starfire was unhappy, Robin had demanded that bottled water be added to the grocery list until Cyborg finished making a water-purifier.
Hauling the jug and the cups to the table, he quickly set them next to the plates, before filling each glass. Once he was finished filling his own, he placed the jug in the center of the table and reclaimed his seat.
Chancing a glance at his teammate, he noticed her brows were raised in surprise as she examined the table. He was never usually this helpful, and he could tell she appreciated it, even though it definitely raised suspicion.
"What did you do?" she deadpanned, giving him a pointed look. "Did you break something? Lose something? Feed something to Silkie?"
Beast Boy let out a nervous laugh as he fondly wondered where their little larva had crawled off to, before realizing Raven was still waiting for his answer.
"Uh, nothing that I know of," he replied innocently.
Her eyes narrowed slightly at his response as she took a tentative sip of her water. "Then what has caused this random bout of helpfulness?"
Beast Boy didn't want to explain that it was to please her, since he realized she could potentially take it the wrong way. She had made their stance pretty clear, and though he wasn't feeling anything besides friendship for her, his actions would say otherwise. So instead, he shrugged his shoulders sheepishly and quickly thought up an excuse. "I just don't want Cy to tell Robin that I didn't help out, 'cuz I already messed up during training, and I could see him assigning me more chores or something."
Satisfied with his quick thinking, he rewarded himself with a drink of water as he waited for Raven's reply.
"You didn't mess up in training."
He choked slightly at her response, completely caught off guard by the kindness in her voice. Giving her a surprised look, he attempted to clear his throat, but only managed to cough more.
Raven was avoiding his gaze as she turned her plate to make the stripes vertical, before giving him a fleeting glance. "I mean, I know that you probably have a lot on your mind right now, due to our... and it was completely expected for you to not be totally one hundred percent during training. And I know that nobody else is aware of the situation, but I think you did exceptionally well, regardless."
Beast Boy stared at her in shock as the realization that Raven had just complimented him sunk in. She never handed out praise, especially towards him, and the only time she never downright insulted him was when she'd slip him a backhanded-compliment.
"Uh, thanks?" he replied awkwardly, feeling his face flush slightly. He was beyond thrilled that he seemed to be making progress with their friendship, but a seemingly-nice Raven raised just as much concern as a seemingly-helpful Beast Boy, so he knew to take her words with a grain of salt.
Raven neglected to respond as the common room doors opened, revealing a frantic Robin helping a slightly-annoyed Starfire down the stairs. Beast Boy tried not to snicker as he caught sight of the glare the alien was shooting at their leader as he babied her all the way to the table. Despite her usually sunny disposition, a sick Starfire was a cranky Starfire. And a cranky Starfire didn't appreciate the mamma-bear antics of the boy wonder.
Stifling down his chuckle, Beast Boy directed his sights back to the stoic empath beside him, who was again adjusting her plate. He had been learning so much about her and her powers these past few days, and it was actually pretty nice. Smiling to himself, he rotated his plate to match hers as he realized that becoming good friends with her was probably going to be easier than it had initially seemed.
Well, I hope for Beast Boy's sake (and our sanity) that his last statement is true! Haha
Anywhoo, so here's another chapter! I meant to get it out yesterday, but I just didn't find the time! Sorry!
Oh, and another thank you to all you reviewers/followers/favoriters! You guys seriously are the reason that I write (besides the fact that I just love writing lol!) So, I guess you guys are the reason that I post my writing lol. Keep it up!
I'll get the next chapter up tomorrow! :P