A/N: Last chapter! Thanks for all of the reviews! As a side note, I've only edited previous chapters for typos, spacing, and other small things. I intend to continue this story line for anyone who's interested, though it won't be up for awhile as I'm planning for it to be a longer work. In the mean time, there might be some one-shots. 3

Per usual, I don't own the Teen Titans.


Well past midnight, the team trudged back into the tower like zombies. The ride home had almost put Beast Boy to sleep, so much so that he made no objections to Robin's insistence on a quick medical check before bed. The Boy Wonder's relief was obvious when Starfire turned out to be perfectly healthy for someone who'd been missing a soul. In the same spirit, Beast Boy found himself letting out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding when Raven's rapidly healing bruises were the only remnant of the ordeal. As a testament to her healing powers, Beast Boy himself only ended up with a couple strained muscles. He was happy to accept one of Cyborg's painkillers for the lingering soreness.

"Just one more thing," Robin said before everyone could leave. He fished around in his pocket for a moment before pulling out a shiny, jagged crystal.

"Dude, I'm tired. Can we deal with Star's broken jewelry later?" Beast Boy interrupted.

Robin shot him a look. "I dug this out of the rubble. It's a piece of whatever was keeping those ghosts stable."

"It's a quartz crystal," Raven interjected. "It was enchanted."

"So, you're tellin' me that a rock almost killed people?" Cyborg asked.

"Well, two birds with one stone and all," Beast Boy muttered. Raven shot him a glare.

"Oh, I have heard such an expression!" Starfire added, her easygoing delight shining through the fatigue. "But I do not understand. How is it related to the appearance of ghosts and the stealing of souls?"

Raven continued, "The quartz must have been used as a prison for the spirit that attacked us. It's not a common practice for obvious reasons."

"We need to be sure it won't be able to do any more damage," Robin clarified.

"It's been destroyed, so it shouldn't pose a threat. Either way, now that All Hallows' Eve is over, there's no way for it to be anything more than a broken crystal," Raven finished. Robin nodded, satisfied by the explanation.

"Until next Halloween…" Beast Boy added, trying to make his voice deeper.

"Man, stop trying to be creepy," Cyborg said. "You suck at it."

"You wouldn't say that if it wasn't!"

"That doesn't even make sense."

"Yeah, you're right," Beast Boy conceded with a yawn. Even Cyborg looked shocked by the changeling's unwillingness to argue.

"Alright everyone, get some rest. Training's still on for tomorrow," Robin stated before heading out of the room, crystal still in hand. Everyone else groaned.

Starfire followed him out with an eager look on her face and an earnest goodnight to the rest of the team.

"If we're lucky, she'll convince him otherwise," Cyborg offered hopefully before moving to the door himself. "G'night, y'all."

Raven floated out just behind him and it took Beast Boy a moment to realize she'd left without saying a word. So, naturally, he rushed after her.

"Rae," he called out, spotting her just as she'd reached her door.

She stopped and he heard her sigh. At any other time, he would've brushed off her exasperation, but she looked dead on her feet. For once, he thought maybe it could wait.

"Sorry," he started, "you're probably pretty tired. We can talk in the morning maybe?"

"No."

"No?"

"We should talk now."

He brightened a bit. "Yeah? Sure. Yeah. About—"

"I can't encourage you."

He felt his ears twitch. "What?"

"I'm sorry."

"I don't…" he stared at her in disbelief, but she didn't turn around. "I don't get it."

She sighed. "I can't have you hoping that we'll be anything more than teammates and friends. I never should have...It was all a bit too stressful and I let it get out of hand. I shouldn't have."

When her meaning finally hit him, it was like ice water to the face. For a moment, he'd been so sure. After all, if she really hated him that much, she would've easily thrown him off of her in a second. "So, why did you kiss me back?" he asked.

"I apologize."

"That's it? You're just sorry? 'Cause normally, people don't just accidently kiss someone back unless—"

"Please, Gar," she begged, her voice soft and a bit raspier than usual.

His eyes narrowed. "Why?"

She didn't answer.

"Rae, if I imagined it, then fine, but you can't just say no and not give me a reason."

He heard the wall beside them crack, but he refused to take his eyes off of her. She looked more like a trapped animal than the indifferent teammate she was pretending to be. Cautiously, he reached out a hand to grasp her shoulder. She pulled back quickly at the contact and turned to face him, violet eyes shining.

"It was a mistake. I didn't mean to—"

"Don't lie to me, Rae."

"It's Raven and I'm not lying."

"I don't believe you."

"I don't care what you believe."

"You look like you're gonna cry."

"I'm exhausted and I just want to go to bed."

"Why are you so stubborn?"

"Why are you so insistent?"

"Because I can't just let this go."

"You have to," she shouted at him. The crack on the wall spread.

"But why?"

"We can't, Gar. No matter what either of us wants, it can't happen."

"Rae, you can't be serious."

"It's too dangerous. I can't risk everything for this. I'm sorry."

"But we already have."

"Stop it," she scoffed. "This doesn't have to change things if—"

"What if I want it to change?"

"It's too much, Garfield!"

A lightbulb down the hall burst. Beast Boy only watched her in silent disbelief.

"I didn't want you to find out because I'm not ready. I…" Her eyes looked at him with more sadness than he'd ever seen before. "I don't know if I'll ever be." She turned abruptly to face her door again and opened it, slamming it closed again with a burst of power.

Beast Boy stood staring at the closed door, still as a statue, willing her to come back. So, he hadn't been wrong at all. He'd pushed her to tell him, but now it was like she'd held out her affection as his prize only to rip it back again, just out of reach. It was like being told his princess was in another castle, but there was no other castle. The worst part of it all, though, was that she'd almost cracked under the weight of it. Immovable, unflappable Raven was distressed because she cared and she didn't want to. He didn't know how to take it.

He stayed at the door until he heard her voice reciting the familiar mantra. She wouldn't be coming back out and his very presence was probably doing nothing to help. So, he dragged himself down the hall and into his own room, tossing off the uncomfortable tie and jacket before the door had even closed behind him. He let the softness of his mattress envelop him and roughly tried to toe off the dress shoes, which only resulted in him sitting up again to rip them off a bit angrily. He tossed them against the wall in retaliation then flopped back onto his back.

He was so tired, but his thoughts threatened to crush him and it felt like the top bunk of his bed might fall down with them. He should ask Cyborg to take the bunk beds down for him, anyway. He always hit his head in the mornings whenever he fell asleep on the bottom bunk. After a minute of staring, he lifted himself up and climbed to the top bunk, pulling back the sheets and wrapping them around his body like a cocoon. He didn't care how dirty he was. He would wash the sheets tomorrow because Beast Boy washed sheets now. Not well, but he washed them. Now, he just needed to pretend nothing bad had happened.

So, he ignored the fading pain in his limbs and the dizzying pain in his heart. He listened to the crash of waves outside his window. He willed himself to think of nothing else and, in his exhausted state, he slept soundly. In his dreams, he danced without ghosts, without fear, and with no one else but a half-demon, dressed in stars.