Well I guess you guys liked that game didn't you? :)

It certainly was an interesting race between Beast Boy and Raven, I'll say that. The first couple reviews were so unanimous I almost felt you guys had an unresolved hatred for that character LOL.

But just as it started to even out a bit, the winner came by quite a lot. Who's the winner? Let's find out! But first...

SylphofSpace - Thank you! It is true that he wouldn't be able to control Raven's powers, especially after 1 hour (or so) of training.

shugokage - Thanks! And thanks for the vote as well.

Guest - Umm... I'm sorry, but I really didn't understand what the 'second option' meant. Was that for Beast Boy or Raven? o.0

RJay Fame - And your vote adds another one to Beast Boy's death toll.

Bluedog197 - Whoa that's a lot! Haha, I did have Aqualad use his water powers (and now that I think about it, how did he fight on land? I'm pretty sure causing every fire hydrant to explode every single time he fought would be a serious problem...), and I hope the moment I wrote is good enough.

BizkitRebellion - Thanks for the vote! And there's a chance Raphael will be a bit more than just a mention in this story...

titanfan45 - Great point you have about Beast Boy having to heal Raven. As for the elevator scene, I'd think that when they switched, a bit of their personalities and traits would mix in with the other. I tried to have a fairly distinctive difference when they switched. For example, when Raven was Raven, I tried to make her as serious and sarcastic as possible. After the switch, I slowly worked to make her more mischievous and playful. The same goes for Beast Boy.

Soulfulbard - Not so much screwing up as it is lack of experience. She'd probably not switch correctly or revert back to human without her wanting to.

tacocat15 - Thanks for your vote!

krikanalo - Lots of times in body-switching stories, it's the little things like bras that go unnoticed by authors but would play a rather big part in the actual characters... But thanks for the review and vote!

daniiibabiii - I hope I updated fast enough!

Guest - Haha, thanks for your vote!

Soul - Thank you. I hope you enjoy this chapter.

jovanchin2013 - Really good idea you have there. Too bad it didn't play out. I hope you'll like the chapter!

gabylokita41 - Haha, no deletion here! I'm really starting to like this story, too. Maybe even more than the Heart trilogy!

Okay, okay. On with the story.

Chapter VI - Raphael

I didn't notice when the soft pitter-patter of rain had ended. "It stopped raining," I pointed out to Gar.

"Hmm," he replied, shaking the cup of coffee he held in his hands. Lifting the cup and throwing his head back, he gulped down the remaining coffee and set the glass down, letting the cubes of ice chink against the bottom of the glass cup.

"Do you have anywhere you need to go?" he asked.

"Not really. You?"

"Not much." He smiled his mysterious smile. I looked outside the window of the bank then back at him. Back out the window, back at him. For some reason, I was compelled to go back to him and listen to the rest of his story. Something about it, whether it was the story itself or perhaps the storyteller, deeply attracted my attention. I looked at him and pointed outside the window. "Would you like to go outside and tell me the rest of that story?"

"I thought you might say that," he chuckled. The man stood up and scratched his short green hair in a boyish manner. I smirked—a little more cynically than I had intended—as he did so. If he had sensed any unintended sardonicism, he ignored it and proceeded to nod and lead me out the door.

The night was cold. I remember because I was shivering when Gar had offered me a jacket. I looked down and saw that I was already wearing a hoodie. Our footsteps made soft 'toip'-ing sounds as we stepped on the puddles left behind by the rain.

I asked him to tell me more about the story. I didn't want to admit it much, but I was keenly interested in what was going to happen next. I was still a bit unconvinced though. The skeptic in me wondered whether or not he had just made it up.

Gar said he wished to walk a little before continuing the story. Back when he and Raven were dating, he said, they didn't go to amusement parks or movies that much. Instead, they simply walked around the streets of Jump City, smelling the crisp air and seeing the friendly faces of those walking by. He joked saying that if they had measured the total distance they had walked together, it would be the same as that of the Earth to the Sun ten times.

He began whistling a little tune as we walked. Something inside me felt at peace.

"Alright, where was I?" he wondered aloud. "That's right, the fight with Titans East."

I breathed in the cold air and rubbed my hands together. "Well you see," he continued. "Raven and Beast Boy were just getting used to each other's powers, so you know that's not going to end well. I can personally tell you it didn't. But I'm rather glad it didn't, because if it had, Raven never would have shown me something that made me first fall in love with her…"

…

"Titans GO!" both teams of Teen Titans cried.

Speedy immediately leapt into the air and unleashed a barrage of arrows upon the Titans West. Starfire and Cyborg evaded them while Robin blocked the ones coming his way with his bo staff. Beast Boy ducked, narrowly avoiding it, while Raven waved her hand, forgetting that she no longer had her powers. Instantly realizing her mistake when no magical shield appeared, she fell back as she was struck on the shoulder. Grunting, she pulled out the arrow and avoided the other arrows that flew her way.

A starbolt knocked back an unsuspecting Speedy. Mas and Menos snickered and clasped each other's hands, chanting simultaneously, "¡Más y Menos, sí pode—"

"Oh no you don't!" Beast Boy suddenly interrupted as he tackled Menos onto the ground. "Sorry about this, kid," he said as he took Menos by the arm and threw him as far as he could. Menos shrieked in Spanish before he landed with a noticeable thud on the ground.

Cyborg proceeded in a fight with Bumblebee as Robin was locked in hand-to-hand combat with Speedy. "This seems familiar," the robotic man grumbled as he blocked three swift punches from Bumblebee.

"Tell me about it," Robin replied as he evaded a punch from Speedy, grabbed his arm, and put him in an arm-lock. "Don't hurt them!" he called to his teammates. "We need to break the mind-control somehow!"

A rough kick on the back from Aqualad knocked the Boy Wonder down to the ground. "What mind-control?" he jeered. "I feel better than ever!" With this, he raised two outstretched arms and called upon his aquatic powers. The sinks and pipes of the main lobby and kitchen exploded as jets of water shot up into the air. He smiled viciously as he bent the jets of water and shot them directly towards Cyborg. The Titan grunted and shot a sonic blast at the jet of water, causing it to disperse in a splash in the air. As another jetted towards him, he again shot it with a blast. A sharp pang in his back caused him to lose his balance and fall forward. Cyborg fell on his chest with an arrow sticking out of his back just as waves of water began crashing onto him. Groaning as he struggled to stand, he heard the arrow beep three times before electrocuting him. "Not again…" he gasped before falling down in shock.

Speedy, having previously dispatched Robin, then began searching for the next most dangerous Titan—Raven. She had been strangely inactive, which Speedy deduced to mean she was hiding somewhere to prepare a large attack. He dashed throughout the room, evading the starbolts that shot his way, as he searched for her.

Beast Boy was huddling behind the sink, desperately muttering, "Azarath Metrion Zinthos. Come on! Azarath Metrion Zinthos!" before Speedy found him. Letting out a surprised yell, he thrust both palms in front of the archer's face, screaming at the top of his lungs, "Azarath Metrion Zinthos!"

The mind-controlled Titan gave him a bewildered look before retrieving an arrow from his bow. Beast Boy started backing away slowly before a large green bear pummeled Speedy into the wall. The bear clawed at him but was knocked back by a swift kick to the chest. The large mammal immediately reverted back to human form before grunting and jumping back to her feet. She clenched her fists and eyes as she shifts into a peacock. As the rogue Titan gave another look of bewilderment, the peacock seemingly sighed in frustration before changing into a monkey and delivering him several sharp jabs in the chest.

Beast Boy let out a sigh of relief as he glanced in Starfire's direction, seeing her engaged in a fist-fight with the Titans East's leader. He was surprised at how adept both women were as a blur of orange and brown fists jabbed at each other. Starfire succeeded in landing an uppercut on Bumblebee, sending her flying. The former then pinned the latter onto the ground. Starfire's eyes began glowing green until Karen merely smiled and shrunk onto the size of a bee. The tiny bee flew towards the Tamaranian's face and delivered a mighty blow on her nose.

Beast Boy gritted his teeth and stepped forward before hearing two synchronized cries: "¡Más y Menos, sí podemos!" He looked over and saw the two twins clasping each other's hands before disappearing in a blur. Before he knew what was happening, he felt a sharp pain on his chest knock him into the air. The twins landed on a wall and jumped back, striking him back down into the ground.

Beast Boy stood up and choked on something. Shaking it off, he saw a distant figure in black slowly walk towards him. Raising his fist, Beast Boy shouted, "Azarath Metrion Zinthos!" The man evidently felt a force, as he was pushed back a few inches, but shook it off and kept on walking. Beast Boy looked back and mentally concentrated on a nearby pan. He watched as it levitated itself and flew towards his target. The man merely knocked it away with a punch and kept on walking. The changeling began to panic and stretched his palms forward. "Azarath Metrion Zinthos!" he cried, causing a nearby lamp to explode. "Azarath Metrion Zinthos! Azarath! Metrion! Zinthos!" He heard a bunch of dishes shatter in the air. A rough uppercut on his chin knocked him backwards and onto the ground.

He stood up with the taste of blood in his mouth. His mind was in a haze. He felt himself being lifted up by a fist. Another fist struck his face. Lifted him again. Struck him. He fell onto the ground. A foot kicked him roughly. Lifted him and repeated the process. It wasn't soon before he lost vision in his left eye and fell to the ground. Beast Boy coughed up a tooth. He placed a hand on his sides and felt a rib give way. He shifted his position—a difficult task as he lost all feeling in his legs—and spluttered blood. He saw a man wearing black clothes tower above him. He felt as if the man was snickering, gazing down upon him as if looking at a tiny, helpless, worthless ant.

He disappeared in a blink, leaving behind a bright distortion of light. The Titans East, as if on cue, abruptly ended their attacks and ran into the portal, disappearing into specks of light. Beast Boy saw a green figure run into the portal before it closed. Then darkness covered his eyes as he was eclipsed in utter silence.

…

Raven gasped as she dropped onto the ground, panting on all fours on the hard concrete. She grunted and looked up, coming face to face with Rift crouching before her. "I knew it was you," he said in his same calm, callous voice.

"Rift!" she said between gritted teeth. She stood up with some difficulty and stared into his mask. This was the first time she was able to get a good look at him and notice some of the more subtle details of his outfit. He wore a black bodysuit that covered his entire body along with a silvery belt on his midsection. Two boots with silver outlines covered his feet and two black gloves covered his hands. His bodysuit formed a hood at the top that covered a black mask that looked like black strips of fabric wound around his face. Two tiny slits revealed his cold eyes.

Raven looked around and saw the Metropolis skyline. She and Rift were standing on one of the skyscrapers that towered above the city. She turned attention back to the man before her. "Who—" she panted, feeling her lungs begin to burn. "Who are you?"

The man stepped closer until he felt her breath crash against his mask. "You know who I am," Rift answered mysteriously. "You know who both of I am."

"Both—of you?"

"Both of me you have seen and saw. You believe I am not, but in truth… I am."

"What does that even mean?" she barked.

"We are two, I am," the man in the mask continued. "Bound by a Deal with the Devil. You have met another one like me before." He took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. "We wish two for two absolute opposites, and yet wish still for the same thing."

In a flash, the man grabbed her shoulders with his hands and slowly led her towards the edge of the tower. "What—do you want?" she huffed.

"One of I seek Sin," he hissed.

"What do you want?" Raven repeated, feeling herself at the very edge of the building.

"The other I seek…" he said softly, as if whispering to a dead soul. "…something much different."

"What?"

Rift brought his lips to her ears and whispered in a ghastly voice, "Redemption."

With that, he pushed her off the building and watched as she fell and fell and fell.

Raven awoke with a jump. "Whoa!" she heard. "Slow down there, B.B."

"What happened?" she muttered, rubbing her head and feeling the ground soaking wet. She looked around and saw she was back at Titans Tower.

"They disappeared," Robin answered. "He came near the end of the battle and ordered the others to leave."

"You had jumped in after him, friend," Starfire continued. "We were worried until you suddenly appeared before us. Within seconds, you had woken up. We feared something terrible had happened."

"What happened in that battle anyway? You seemed a bit off," Robin said.

"I—It's nothing," Raven replied. Looking around, she asked aloud, "Where's Be—I mean where's Raven?"

"She was injured badly," Cyborg said. "She's gone to a trance to heal herself. We put her in the med bay just a couple minutes ago."

The sorceress was silent and slowly made her way towards the elevator, carefully walking around the damaged furniture as she did so. She ignored Cyborg and Robin's complaints about how much it would cost to repair all the damage and instead found herself thinking about Beast Boy. She supposed she shouldn't be surprised he was badly hurt. After all, her powers were very much hard to control; how could she expect him to master them with only an hour of training? But still, she started feeling something strange and indescribable—the same feeling she felt when she had accidentally hurt him during their fight with Rift and sent him flying towards Andern Falls. Was it worry? Guilt? Fear? She decided to shake off whatever feelings she had and focus on the task at hand.

The elevator took her to the med bay, where she saw herself in a resting position floating about a foot above the bed. She cocked her head slightly to the side as she approached Beast Boy. So that's what she looked like when she was in a recovery trance.

Raven brushed aside the messed up hair on her body and noticed the blood on her forehead. "Whatever happened to you must have been bad," she mumbled to herself. "Poor thing. You probably didn't even know how to fight yet. It must've been bad, standing there defenseless while getting beat up over and over again." She sighed. "You'll be fine, Beast Boy. I'll make sure of it."

…

One could've called it a modern day Knights of the Round Table, and one would not be very wrong. It certainly was round, that fact was the same, but it was much larger than the one in Arthurian tales, and seated one thousand men and women. The chairs were all the same height and style, as the people here knew no sense of superiority or inferiority. But they did understand respect and were very much devoted to it, so therefore the chairs were seated according to one's position in the world's hierarchy. And thus congregated one thousand men and women—the New Azarath Council.

A little bit of history and geography is appropriate. The New Azarath Council's congregation was held in the Hall of Assemblage inside the Azarathean Palace, located within the center of the Gardens of Dimanesper. The Gardens, along with Sorcerer Leon's Square and the Holy See, make up what was known as Corpacean City, the capital of New Azarath.

Azarath's ancient history began several millennia ago when the Demons waged war against the humans in an event known as the Sorcerer-Demon War. The first Azar led those gifted with magic against the Demons, eventually defeating them and casting them off as formless energy in another dimension while she gathered up the gifted humans and created a new world for them—Azarath. Her people lived in peace and adopted a pacifist society, choosing to focus their time on the growing of their world and learning more about their magical capabilities. Meanwhile, Azar grew weak and eventually passed on her powers, knowledge, wisdom, and soul onto a woman who had just become of age. This woman became the second incarnation of Azar and would lead Azarath for hundreds of years.

One thousand years ago, the pure dark energy of the Demons began to take form, merging and condensing to form a creature known as Trigon. The Demon began formulating a plan to take his revenge and conquer the world, which led him to impregnate a young mortal woman named Angela Roth, impregnating her with the half-demoness child Raven. Sixteen years later, he used Raven as a portal to escape his dimensional prison and destroyed Azarath. Azar used her body to protect her people, allowing them to live while her spirit once again was transferred and merged into another young woman who would become the third Azar.

Two years later, New Azarath now stands where the ruins of Old Azarath once was. However, all is not what it used to be two years ago. Very much shaken by Trigon's attack, the New Azarath Council began to take on a much more radical view.

"That's impossible!" a man named Father Therion exclaimed as he slammed the table with his fist. "How dare you—all of you—come to such conclusions?"

"It may be the only way," another man returned. "Or have you forgotten what had happened two years ago?"

"And others are to pay for the actions of a demon?" the Father replied. "Perhaps some action must be taken but this? We are a pacifist society. Must I remind you what 'pacifist' means?"

"It means peace," an elderly woman said. "So should we do everything we can to spread the very peace we have? Should we know share it with all worlds?"

"Not this way," another man answered, backing up Therion. "How can we possibly teach others peace… by force? The entire thing reeks of irony. It makes absolutely no sense!"

"It was because of evil in the world that the Demons first manifested," came another voice. "If we were to remove the evil, we would remove all chances something as powerful as Trigon can exist again."

"But not like this! The Weapons we have created were to be used against Trigon or any other extremely dangerous enemies. Not so we can conquer other worlds and force them to assimilate to our peaceful ways."

"Why not?" a thin woman with a shrill voice said. "We have developed such advanced technology and societal methods far beyond those of other worlds. Why should we not help them advance?"

"Think about the repercussions!" a younger man cried.

"Think about the possibilities," the woman returned.

"Her Holiness Azar would never agree!"

"Her Holiness is not here, is She?"

"She is on Her yearly pilgrimage but will arrive soon!"

"Surely it is through Her will that our idea has been conceived?"

"Don't you dare blaspheme Her like that!"

"You will learn your place, Lieutenant!"

"How can I?" the young man fumed. "Or have you forgotten on what grounds we have made this world? Azarath is a place of peace—a sanctuary. We know no superiority do we not? Who are you to say you know what Her Holiness desires?"

"Should Her Holiness Azar not return within three days and the New Azarath Council has a three-fourths agreement, the Interuniversal Cleansing Act will begin effective immediately," the shrill voice echoed.

"Since when were those rules created, Clergywoman Sorenda?"

The young lieutenant opened his mouth to say more but was silenced by another man who sat beside him. "Raphael," the man said. "Calm down. It's over."

"But Etzel—"

The man glared at him, causing the young lieutenant to shut his lips and lower his head.

"Is there anything you wish to say, Captain Etzel?" an elderly man asked weakly.

"Just one thing, Don Quixote," the man said calmly as he stood up. "There is legally one person who has a say in this matter."

"And what would that be, Captain?" Clergywoman Sorenda asked in her cold, calculating voice. "Her Holiness Azar is away on a pilgrimage. Our Lady Arella is safeguarding the demon Trigon as always. Professors Gast and Wintergreen have already agreed. Unless you were to go back in time and consult Sorcerer Leon, who else is there to question our plan?"

Captain Etzel revealed a tiny smile as he glanced at Lieutenant Raphael. Turning to face the entire congregation, he answered, "Our Lady Raven of Earth."

…

Beast Boy woke the next day. Because he was in such physical and mental shock, the Titans agreed it was best he stayed in bed for the day. He found the bed quite comforting and enjoyed having yet another vacation after their stay at Andern Falls.

"Hey," Raven greeted as she entered the med bay with some orange juice. "Feeling any better?"

"I dunno," he replied with a grin. "I feel like I'm gonna be handicapped forever…" Raven made a face and handed him his drink.

"How long are you going to lie there and complain?"

"Forever," he answered childishly. "It's so boring being in a hospital bed. I mean it's a fun vacation and all but there's nothing to do!"

Raven rolled her eyes. "Well what do you expect me to do? Juggle peanuts while riding a pink elephant?"

"No… just," he thought for a moment. "Hey! How 'bout you read me one of the stories in your books!"

"I don't think you'd like them, Beast Boy. Unless you're interested in the works of Azarath's version of Aristotle."

"Fine. How about movies? Got any Azarathean movies?"

"Nooo…." She rolled her eyes. If it wasn't her own body that was injured, she would've left him right then and there.

"Yeah you do. I saw that CD in your room once. It was like 'Magic Duels' or something?"

"W—what?"

"Yeah 'Magic Duels' something. Lemme watch that?"

She suddenly realized what Beast Boy was talking about. Back in her years in Azarath, she used to be an expert on Magic Duels—Azarath's version of sword-fighting incorporated with magic. She had used to film short videos of her and her partner, Raphael, magic dueling. The third time she came to visit Azarath a few years ago, she was given a copy of the video and an Azarathean projector so she could watch it on Earth.

"No—I'd rather not show it, Beast Boy."

"Come on! I'm a sick and dying patient here."

"You're about to be a straight up dead patient!"

"Please! Just show me! Magic duels sounds so cool!"

Raven clutched her green hair in her hands. "Fine! Azar, you're such a baby!"

Beast Boy smiled his same ridiculously childish smile as he watched Raven leave the med bay. Restless in his bed as if he was a little boy waiting for a new toy, he waited until Raven returned with a CD and a strange looking machine. Grumbling about how she suddenly turned into his nanny, she turned on the machine and inserted the CD.

The video started immediately. Azarathean text on a black screen were the first things Beast Boy saw. Then he saw a fourteen year old girl with gray skin and indigo hair, posing next to a slightly older boy with gray, unruly hair and tanned skin. They both wore matching yellow and gray outfits and wielded a sword. "That's me and Raphael," Raven said. Beast Boy didn't realize how handsome Raphael actually was.

The video cut to them on an open field, where they stood at a distance, each staring into each other's souls and slowly raising their swords. In complete unison, they shifted into a guard position. Then they acrobatically leapt into the air and fired a bolt of light from their swords. The video showed them engaged in a rapid sword fight with one another, incorporating their magical abilities as well. As Raven watched, a small smile sparked on her face as she remembered those times while Beast Boy simply stared in awe. After a few minutes, the video shifted into a behind the scenes take, which showed some people in Azarathean clothes congratulating Raven and Raphael on their excellent work. It should the two duelers drinking water, practicing with each other, laughing. Raven in there… she was smiling. She looked happy.

"Who is that?" Beast Boy wondered. "It—It's her… It's Raven. But this isn't the same Raven standing next to me, is it? That girl in there… she's not the same one I've known for the past four years." He threw a hidden glance at Raven who stood next to his bed. He saw it then for the first time. She was smiling. Not the same sarcastic smile she had always worn when he knew her. Not the same sardonic chuckle of relative amusement. She was actually—really—smiling. "That girl in front of me now…" he thought. "She's not the same one who's been friends with me for four years… not the same one who had fought crime with me."

He turned back to the television and saw that same Raven who stood next to him. There she was, fourteen years of age and smiling like a normal girl. He saw another shot of her, sword in hand, engaged in a faux sword fight with Raphael. He watched as she jumped into the air, slashed the area inches away from her partner's nose, before expertly landing on her feet and throwing back an orb of darkness. "This girl," Beast Boy thought. "Is much… cooler. But that word's just not right. It's not cool… it's beautiful, almost. Beautiful in Raven's own way. She's… cool."

He watched as a voice said, "Say 'Hi' to the camera, Raven." He watched as she looked at the camera, gave a small smile and raised her hand. "Hey," she said. The video ended.

"Wow…" Beast Boy gasped. "Was that really you? You were so… different back then."

"Yeah, I was a lot different," Raven said wistfully as she took the DVD. "I was taught to control my emotions so normally I'm like what I am now. But whenever I was with Raphael—well, he had his own way of making me smile." She looked at the CD with reflective eyes before telling Beast Boy, "I'll be right back," and leaving.

Beast Boy slowly became aware of his reddening face. He felt his cheeks with his palms and noticed how warm his face was. He also started to feel his heart, which beat faster than usual. "Wh—what's this?" he asked no one in particular. "Is it… hot in here?"

The changeling looked over to his side and saw his empty cup next to him. Reaching over and picking it up, he held it before his face and examined his reflection. He looked over every single part of Raven's face, hair, and eyes, noticing how strange it was to see her face so up close. Slowly, he managed a smile. "So that's what you look like when you smile, Raven," he said. "You should smile more often. It looks better on you."

…

Raven walked around her room and placed the CD and player into a cardboard box on the corner. Scratching her head and letting out a sigh, she realized that this might be her last time in her own room for a while. Until they switch back bodies, she'd have to spend her nights in—and she shuddered horribly at the thought—Beast Boy's room.

The sorceress looked around and thought it best to Beast Boy-proof the room. Magic was inaccessible so she'd have to do things the old-fashioned way. She knew her priorities—the first thing to lock away and keep out of Beast Boy's sight was her magical artifacts. Having the entire city sucked into an alternate dimension probably wouldn't be the most convenient thing to happen at this time.

She started gathering some books and trinkets until she came across her bottom drawer. She dropped her other items and opened the drawer, searching through it meticulously. A difficult decision came upon her—what was she to do with her underwear? Surely she couldn't let Beast Boy even share the same room with her undergarments let alone see them or even use them. But this is underwear, one of the most basic and essential pieces of clothing there was. And surely letting Beast Boy use her underwear was way better than letting him go commando in her body.

She dug into the drawer and sifted through the undergarments. "Maybe I'll just hide the good ones," she said to no one in particular. "Beast Boy can have the simpler and older ones that I'll burn later when we switch back…"

She was just in the middle of lifting up a pair of bras when the door suddenly crept open to reveal Starfire standing at the door. "WHAT? BEAST BOY?" the Tamaranian exploded.

"Star, wait!—" Raven immediately said, dropping her underwear. But the princess's eyes were already burning green as she leapt and pounced on Raven, grabbing her collar with her horrifically powerful hands.

"What do you think you are doing in Raven's room? Touching Raven's undergarments?" she screamed. "Answer me, Beast Boy!"

"Starfire I—"

"Don't you 'Starfire' me!" she fumed. "How dare you intrude in our friend's room when she is injured and violate her privacy and bras?"

"Starfire!"

"You shall pay for this you morthagarbling skitzoblarggh!"

"Starfire!" Raven shouted as her friend raised a starbolt. "Starfire, it's me! Raven! I'm Raven!"

"What?"

Raven gently placed her hands on the alien princess's shoulders and looked into her eyes. "It's me, Star," she said. "It's Raven."

"R—Raven?" The starbolt faded as Starfire gazed at the boy before her. "Raven!" she shouted.

"Shhh!" Raven darted past her and shut the door.

"My friend, how are you—"

"Shh, don't talk so loud! The others will hear you," Raven said as she placed her finger on her lips.

Starfire lowered her voice. "How did this happen? You are Beast Boy?"

"Yes, Starfire. I'm Beast Boy and Beast Boy is me. We switched bodies," Raven explained.

"Just like we did a long time ago?"

"Sort of. But this time it wasn't because of the Puppet King."

"How did this happen? And for how long?"

"Not so long… It happened at Andern Falls. The first night we stayed there. We found this weird restaurant and the cook offered us some wine."

"You told me you do not drink alcoholic beverages anymore!"

"Starfire, I know you sometimes slip some Tamaranian cocktails into your drink. You told me before. Why can't I drink Earthly alcohol once in a while?"

"Fine," she grumbled. "Please continue."

"Thank you. Well Beast Boy and I drank the wine and we switched bodies. We've been trying to figure out how it happened and how to switch back but so far we have nothing. The restaurant and the cook disappeared and we're stuck."

"Why did you not tell us? We could have helped."

"We didn't want to ruin your vacation… And we thought that our team would've been at a disadvantage if you knew what happened and refused to let us fight. If we had told you guys, you wouldn't have let us fight the Titans East and you would've been outnumbered 3 to 5! It's times like these that Beast Boy and I have to fight. We're beginning to adjust and with a little more practice we'll be used to our new powers in no time."

"I still do not understand. Why is it that we cannot tell them now?"

"Soon we will, Star. Soon. But not yet."

"But—"

"Can you please just trust me on this, Starfire?"

She sighed. "Okay, Raven. I will."

Raven thanked her and the two female Titans made their way out of the room. Raven walked towards the elevator and rode down into the med bay, where to her surprise she saw Beast Boy standing up next to the bed.

"Beast Boy!" she cried. "What are you doing? You can't walk yet!"

"Then what am I doing right now, Raven?" he teased as he gently put one foot forward. "Your magic did all the work already. Your body completely healed itself." He took another step, then another. Suddenly his foot lost control and he slipped forward, falling straight into Raven's arms.

The two looked at each other for a split second before they pulled apart. "Let's go up and tell the others," Raven said as she turned around to hide a blushing face.

"Yeah, let's go," he agreed as the two Titans made their way to the elevator.

Beast Boy's walking quickly improved as they made their way to the living room, and by the time they had made it he was feeling as if he was never hurt at all.

"I want to see Raven," they heard a voice say. "Just let me see her. She knows me."

"Yeah, right!" Cyborg said. "Who are you? Are you with Rift?" Beast Boy and Raven looked at each other and quickened their pace. By the time they made it to the living room, they saw Starfire, Cyborg, and Robin in a fighting stance facing a man about their age.

The man noticed the two new figures that approached. His eyes lightening up, he waved his arm and cried with a smile, "Raven!"

Beast Boy took a step back in shock, as did Raven. They both knew who this man was. "Who is that, Raven?" Robin said. "Do you know him?"

Beast Boy gave a half-nod and said, "He—he's an old friend. He's… Raphael."

As the three Titans lowered their weapons, Raphael said with a serious face, "Raven, I'd love to talk but we're in trouble."

"Trouble?" Raven blurted out. "What trouble?"

"New Azarath is preparing its Weapons. They are thinking about using them to conquer other worlds in order to enforce peace. And right now you're the only one that can stop them."

"M—me?" Beast Boy said.

"You need to speak to them and convince them otherwise. If it doesn't work… well, you know how powerful the Weapons are."

…

Rift walked inside the New Azarath Palace donning a black cloak over his suit. Walking past the unsuspecting flocks of people as he made his way up the golden stairs, he made his way around several hallways, slipping past the guards before hiding in a spare drawing room. He turned around and came face to face with a middle aged woman with cold eyes.

"Greetings, Clergywoman Sorenda," he said.

"Greetings, Rift," came the reply.

"Is it done? Have you convinced the Council to release the Weapons?"

The woman nodded. "It is so. However, the pesky Captain Etzel pointed out that if Lady Raven were to come here and voice her opinion, the plan may very well fail."

"I thought so. I paid a visit to the Titans and personally handicapped Raven myself—or at least, Raven's body."

"What do you mean 'Raven's body'?"

"Nothing. I suppose you've played your part, Sorenda. Now it's time I played mine." He glanced at the clock in the room. It was made Azarathean-style, but he was able to make out the time. "My control should be wearing off right about now."

"What do you mean—" the woman said. She suddenly gasped and felt as if she was pushed back by an invisible force. Regaining her balance, she gazed around with a confused look before seeing Rift and taking a step back in fear. "You!" she cried in horror. "Who are you? Where am I?"

"Hello, Clergywoman Sorenda," Rift greeted casually. "My name is Rift. But I don't think you'd need to know that anymore."

"Wh—what? I'm calling the guards!"

"Alright. But before you do, let me ask you something." The man reached into his cloak and pulled out a small revolver. "Earthly technology," he explained as he brandished the gun before the woman. "Instantly recognizable. I wonder… if New Azarath were to unleash massively powerful Weapons onto worlds it deems too violent and chaotic, and then they found one of their most respected clergywoman dead through an Earthly bullet, how would they react? Let's find out." And with this and pointed the gun at the clergywoman and fired. She stepped back with a loud gasp, clutching her heart before collapsing. A pool of blood trickled through her clothes and eclipsed her cold body.

~Difficult Words to Say~

Alright, alright. I'll admit it wasn't the best chapter so far. To me, this really was the awkward 'middle' chapter between two important ones. Next chapter will be much better. Promise!

Thumbs up for killing off Sorenda?

Thumbs up for Rift being a devious ass?

As for the game, if it wasn't painfully clear already, Beast Boy was the winner. He won 8-4? (I forgot exactly how much but it was by a lot). I'm thinking I'll do the game one or two more times. I'm not sure how significant the second game will be but the last game with be extremely significant in the story.

As for the moment... Sorry if it seemed awkward. I hope it satisfied. But really, there couldn't have been a real MOMENT between them because after all, they still see themselves as friends. They will have plenty of more moments later on, promise. At least now Beast Boy is starting to see that he's falling in love with her :)

Now I know what you're asking now... the "What if?"s.

Well Beast Boy was the winner. That means Beast Boy was the one to be injured and Raven would take care for him. It also means that Starfire would've been the one to find out the secret first, Raven would've had her encounter with Rift at the Metropolis skyline, and Rift would've killed Sorenda. And most importantly, Beast Boy starts to have feelings for Raven.

If Raven had been the winner, Raven would've been injured and Beast Boy would've taken care of her. Cyborg would've been the one to find out the secret, and the Crowe's would have visited the Titans. The Crowe's, to cheer Raven up, would have told her the story of how they first met. No encounter with Rift, Sorenda would've lived, and Raven would've started to have feelings for Beast Boy.

Just a couple last things I wanted to say. The story is divided into several "arches" if you will. Each arch will have a different tone in the story and a different feel and is separated by the italicized segments between Gar and the narrator. The first arch (Chapters 1-5) had a very light-hearted and whimsical tone (hence the humor). The next five chapters will be focus on Beast Boy and Raven's upcoming relationship.

Finally, a tiny teaser for the next chapter:

The cook's identity will be revealed. And it will be a shocker.