Chapter 3
Disclaimer: I do not own Teen Titans. --
A/N: Thank you to all of my reviewers. You all have made me very happy. please review more! It inspires me to write more and faster. Sorry this chapter took so long. I've been busy…
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"I am going to KILL you, Beast Boy!" Raven screeched. "I may not have my powers, but I will manage to maim you in some way, somehow!" Beast Boy cowered in the corner of the med bay, whimpering. "It was an accident!" Raven's eye twitched involuntarily. "GO GET ME A NEW LEOTARD! NOW!" The green changeling nodded in fear and scampered out of the room. As soon as he was out of the door, he slapped his forehead hard.
Man, Beast Boy, you're so stupid! he mentally scolded himself. I can't believe I spilled my orange juice all over her! It's only been one and a half hours, and I've already messed up! He turned into the hallway leading to Raven's room. I mean, it's not like I'm usually that clumsy! I just get nervous around her beautiful body… He slapped himself again. BAD THOUGHTS! STAY OUT! He stopped in front of Raven's room, took a deep breath, and knocked. About 20 seconds passed before he realized that Raven was not in her room. He sheepishly chuckled to himself and went in.
Carefully creeping to her dresser, (which, to his disadvantage was at the opposite end of the room) Beast Boy eyed the room suspiciously. The creepy paintings and the masks were still there, and still creepier lights were coming from the bathroom. Who knows what's in here… he thought as he glanced at a book that he could swear growled at him. He quickly crept past it, and finally (and thankfully) he reached the dresser. "Now," he said to himself. "What drawer are Raven's leotards in?" He mulled it over with his head resting on his hand. I could find all sorts of stuff in here… The dresser had five drawers. He picked the top one, and slowly, he creaked it open to see…
…Raven's leotards. He sulked. Well, what were you expecting? he asked himself. He sighed, picked one up and started to walk away, thinking of what could have been in the drawers. Actually, it couldn't hurt to look in the other ones, right? He grinned mischievously and set the leotard down on the ground. He walked back to the dresser and opened the second one. Her capes. Reasonable. He closed that one and opened the third one. He raised an eyebrow and picked up a black tank top. Raven has regular clothes? That are this… skimpy? The tank top would surely end more than an inch above her belly button, and the straps were as thin as possible. The surprised boy dropped the shirt back into the drawer and picked up a white mini skirt. His jaw dropped. He had never seen Raven wear such… tight and small clothing! (not that he didn't want to…) He shook his head of the image of Raven wearing these clothes and put the skirt back in its place. He closed the drawer and opened the fourth. Raven's (regular) underwear. He shrugged. Finally, Beast Boy kneeled down, closed the drawer and opened the last one…
…And his jaw dropped once more.
Raven wears lingerie? he thought, holding up a lacey black panty. He almost fainted right then and there. He held it closer to his face for inspection. I can't believe Raven wears these! He put it down and picked up a pink thong. His jaw dropped again, this time, almost to the ground. "My gosh!"
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Raven sighed impatiently and looked down at her soaked, sticky leotard. How long does it take to get a stupid leotard? I hope he's not going through my stuff… Ugh, he probably is. Going directly against Robin's orders, Raven got up from the bed and walked over to the door. Taking a deep breath, she walked out of the med bay and turned into the hallway towards her room. She walked silently except for the clacking of her boots against the ground. Finally, the girl stopped in front of her room. She heard Beast Boy say, "My gosh!" and then, puzzled, she silently went in…
…to find Beast Boy holding up the one piece of clothing she swore she'd never wear. Darn you, Starfire, she thought as she saw the article of clothing in Beast Boy's hand. She closed her eyes and tried to remember why she had let Star convince her to buy all of that stupid lingerie that she never wore. She shut them tighter as she tried to remember why she let Beast Boy in her room without her. She sighed an almost inaudible sigh and opened her eyes, glaring at Beast Boy, who hadn't even noticed she was there.
"Remind me to kill Starfire before I murder you."
Beast Boy froze, for the first time realizing that he was not alone. He stopped breathing for a few seconds as he turned slowly to stare at Raven's angry (understatement of the year) face. Mouse, mouse, mouse! He thought as he desperately tried to shape-shift into the rodent. Come on, what's wrong with me! And then he suddenly realized that he had Raven's powers, not his. Oh crap, I don't know how to use Raven's powers! he thought desperately. If I say her weird magic words, the tower could blow up! Oh crap, oh crap, oh crap! Despite his panicky thoughts, he remained frozen on the outside. He dropped the thong into the drawer and grinned nervously, eyes shifting back and forth from one end of the room to the other.
"Hehe…" he managed to get out. "Can we pretend this never happened and move on?" He knew she'd never go for it, but it was worth a try. He closed his eyes, bracing himself for the attack that would surely ensue. Nothing happened. He opened one eye. Raven was still leaning against the doorway. He opened the other eye. Her face, strangely, was not as angry as before.
She pushed herself off of the doorway frame and walked slowly toward the dresser. The girl stopped. She slowly bent down, picked up the leotard on the ground, straightened herself, and closed the drawer with her foot. She stood there, scrutinizing his nervous face for any trace of betrayal.
"Ok." She turned and walked away, out her door, and into the hallway. She heard him scramble up in confusion as she walked down the hallway. He burst out of her room and ran to catch up with her.
"Wait, what?" he asked, puzzled. He stopped and looked at her, eyes wide. Raven stopped and turned to look at him.
"You said, 'Could we pretend this never happened and move on?', and I said 'Ok'." She turned started walking again. He ran to catch up with her once more.
"But, but…" She never does things like this! He thought. Where's the angry yelling, the frustrated glare that Raven always wears after situations like these? He stuttered, and almost tripped, although the ground on which they were walking was completely smooth. Raven sighed and stopped again. Beast Boy followed suit.
"We can keep this a secret, as you said." She waited for his reply.
"But, but… Where's all the angry yelling? Why aren't you throwing me into the wall and threatening me in 400 different ways like usual? And why did you agree?" exclaimed a frustrated and confused Beast Boy.
"I can trust you, right?" Beast Boy froze, shocked. He opened his mouth, but no words came out. The green boy closed his mouth, his brain registering that talking was not an available option at this point. He nodded slowly, which was all he could manage at the time.
"Good." Her heels clacked against the floor once more as she made her way down the long hallway. Beast Boy shook his head as if to get all of the surprise out and walked with Raven, straining to keep up with her fast pace.
"But, where are you going?" he said, still flustered. Raven's trusting me?
"Back to the med bay, of course. Robin ordered us to stay in bed, and he'll throw a tantrum if he finds out we've been up." She quickened her pace and rounded the corner.
"Oh." Raven's trusting me?
They arrived shortly at their destination and awkwardly stepped into the room. Beast Boy stared at Raven in wonder. Raven's trustingme?
She sighed and dropped the leotard on the bed. "Well, if you don't mind, I'm going to get changed now. Turn your back please." Beast Boy nodded and sat down on the bed, facing away from her. He grabbed the sheets in his hands. I wonder what Raven looks like without her leotard on… he thought. He glanced over his shoulder. Raven was looking at him, arms folded across her chest. "No peeking." He nodded. "Promise me." He nodded again.
Raven smiled inwardly as the changeling sheepishly turned back around. Now was her chance to check his ability to keep a promise. She picked up the leotard and unzipped the zipper to make him think she was undressing.
He visibly tensed.
She smiled and rustled the leotard and let it drop to the floor.
His grip on the bed tightened.
She took off her cape and let it fall to the ground. "Oops." She audibly bent down with a fake sigh, as she heard the sheets in Beast Boy's grip tear slightly. But he still didn't look. Pleased that he would not betray a promise, Raven stood up and threw the cape on the bed. She unzipped her actual leotard and let it fall to the ground quietly. She quickly got dressed in her new leotard, smiling slightly as she remembered she could now show emotion. After clipping on her cloak, Raven sighed triumphantly, knowing she could trust Beast Boy.
Little did she know, Beast Boy was watching the whole thing, reflected in the glass medicine cabinet in the corner of the room…
Wow, Raven is so… so… He stopped himself before he thought any further. I must not like Raven, he told himself. She would never like me, and I would only end up getting hurt, he reminded himself. The green boy took a deep breath and, even though he knew the answer asked, "Are you done yet?"
Raven nodded. And then, realizing he couldn't see her, she was about to say, 'yes', when the oddest thing happened. He said, "Alright." And got in the bed.
Raven froze. Could he see her? No, he wouldn't have looked… she told herself. He promised me. He promised, and he would not break that trust. She resolved the matter in her head by telling herself that it was just his super animalistic hearing that heard her nod. Yeah, that's got to be it. The empath forgot that only she would have super animalistic hearing, since they traded powers. But she took a deep breath and relaxed in blissful ignorance. "Ok, then." She walked over to the bed and got in. Beast Boy blushed slightly at being so close, but she didn't notice.
At that moment, Robin, Starfire, and Cyborg chose to burst into the room, all of them laughing like crazy. When the laughter died down, Robin sighed and smiled at the two.
"Have fun?" Cy's voice had a certain happiness to it. Raven looked angry as she remembered, and Beast Boy looked scared as he remembered. Neither answered. "Ok, then. Well, we sure did." He grinned.
Starfire smiled the brightest smile ever. "Yes, it was very enjoyable. After the place of the pizzas, we journeyed to the Carnovoyle. It was wonderful! There were lights, and food, and mustard! And Friend Robin and I went on to the Wheel of the Ferris!" She exclaimed, reliving every moment of it in joy. Her eyes gleamed with happiness. Robin smiled too.
"Yeah, it was fun. It was the Carnival, Star, not the Carnovoyle." He smiled a little bit more as he looked at her blush. "Oh, yes, Friend Robin."
"So, you guys want to go get some early dinner and watch a movie?" Robin smiled, waiting for their reply.
"No thanks."
"Sure!" Beast Boy turned to look at Raven and smiled. "It'll be fun!" Raven glanced at him. "No. And that's final." But after much begging and pleading, Beast Boy managed to convince her to watch the movie with them.
"Yes!" he cried as she finally said she would go with them. "Come on, let's go make popcorn!" he said as he rushed out of the room, Starfire and Cyborg trailing behind.
Raven sighed. Robin smiled. "You don't have to watch, you know." Raven nodded and looked down. "So why are you still here?"
"I was just wondering whether you guys taught each other anything while we were gone."
"No."
"No? Then what were you doing for the past 2 hours!"
"Well, the first hour, I was trying to meditate, the next half hour Beast Boy was trying to get me to play video games with him, (in vain, I might add), and the last half hour was spent me getting mad at him for spilling his juice all over me." Robin did not look amused. "So you don't even know for certain that you HAVE his powers?" Raven fidgeted. "Not exactly…" Robin walked over. "Well, then let's test something… we'll test your super hearing." When Robin said that, something clicked in Raven's brain.
"Robin?" He nodded. "Could you first do something for me?" He nodded again. "You're about as tall as Beast Boy, right?" He nodded once more. "Could you sit right here," she said, getting up and pointing to where Beast Boy was sitting, "and tell me if you can see me without looking behind you?" He sighed and sat where she pointed, while she stood where she did before. "Uh, I can't really see you…" he said, scrutinizing the wall in front of him. "Oh! Actually, I can see you in reflected in the medicine cabi..net…?" He finished questioningly as Raven stormed out of the room before she heard the end of the sentence.
"Beast Boy!" she yelled threateningly. "Get over here!" Beast Boy froze and slowly walked over to Raven. "Finish making the popcorn without me, ok?" he yelled over his shoulder to Starfire, who grinned and nodded. He turned his attention back to Raven.
"Yes?" he asked innocently. He gulped, hoping she wasn't about to say what he thought she was going to say.
Which, to his detriment, she did.
"I can't believe you looked." He glanced away. "I'm sorry, Rae, I-" he began, but she cut him off.
"No." She said, staring at him with a hurt look in her eyes. "Don't call me Rae. And sorry just doesn't cut it." She looked away and closed her eyes. "I trusted you. You broke your promise. How can I trust you with anything else, now?" She opened her eyes and gazed at his trouble face. He said nothing and she started to walk away.
"Wait, Raven! What about the movie?" he exclaimed, following her.
"Do you really think that I'd watch a movie with you after I found out you broke your promise?" she asked, walking towards the med bay. "I'm taking my hour and a half of alone time now." She opened the door, turned around, and stopped. "Oh, and Beast Boy?" she asked, looking to her right at the hallway (over her shoulder). "If you know what's good for you," she paused and flicked her gaze to his eyes, "you won't bother me." And with that she turned and walked into the med bay, the door shutting firmly behind her.
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Raven sighed and sat down on the bed. Robin was gone; he must have left and joined Starfire in making popcorn... And according to that burnt smell, he was too late.
She sighed once more and thought a bit about Beast Boy and his promise. But soon, she pushed those thoughts away and decided that the only thing she needed to do right now was meditate. So she awkwardly sat on the bed, legs crossed, (she can't float) and started chanting her mantra. But weariness soon overtook her as she settled down in her bed, closing her eyes and falling asleep.
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Raven woke up some few hours later. She checked the clock; it was already 8:30. The movie had been over for probably over half an hour. She sighed and sat up in the bed. The dark girl looked around and was about to go back to sleep, when something caught her eye. There was a note scribbled in messy handwriting on the table next to her. Beside it was a cup of tea. She touched the side. It was cold. Raven turned her attention to the note. The messy handwriting indicated it was Beast Boy who wrote it. She sighed, as anger built up slowly in her mind, but nonetheless started to read it.
Dear Raven, it read. I'm extremely sorry about breaking my promise to you. I swear it will never happen again as long as I live, and if I ever tell anyone any secret of yours again, you can maim me extra well. She laughed softly, despite herself. I'm really sorry, and I made you this tea…but by the time you wake up, it'll probably be cold. I asked Robin not to wake you up just so that I can teach you stuff. When you wake up, you're supposed to call me, though. Anyway, I don't think I have the right to ask you this, but I hope that one day you can find it in your heart to forgive me, and find some way to trust me again. On that note, the letter ended. The only other words written underneath were, Your Friend (?), Beast Boy.
She sighed. How could she stay mad at him now? She looked at the cup of tea. Although it was cold, she picked it up and sipped the beverage. The note said Raven was supposed to call him when she woke up. She sighed once more and swung her legs over the side of the bed. She was about to go call Beast Boy when he walked through the door.
He looked up to see Raven staring at the ground uncomfortably. "Oh, hi Raven," he said, blushing slightly. She looked up at him. He smiled. "You're up." She looked down at herself and back up to him. "Yeah, I think I am," she said sarcastically. Beast Boy's heart sank. She was still mad. He looked down at his feet and shuffled further into the med bay. "Yeah. Sorry." He looked away and scratched the side of his neck awkwardly. "Robin said we have to teach each other stuff now…" he trailed off, waiting for her to say something. Her expression softened as she saw his hurt face. "Sorry." She stood up. "Oh, um, thanks for the tea." Raven gestured to the empty mug. "Oh yeah, sure." They stood there awkwardly for a few seconds, each one waiting for the other to say something.
"Well, we should-"
"I think we need to-" They both started talking at the same time. They both chuckled uneasily and Beast Boy said, "We should start." Raven nodded.
"Well, I thought I'd teach you my powers first, because I figured they're easier…" Beast Boy said, looking into her eyes. "But you can't actually shape shift yet because your clothes would just kinda rip when you shifted back, so we'll have to figure that out tomorrow." He smiled nervously. "For now, I'll just try to explain it as best I can." Raven nodded again. "So first, teach me the basics. How do I shape-shift?" She smiled at him, indicating she wasn't mad anymore. He grinned happily and started teaching her everything about his powers.
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One hour later, Beast Boy was giving Raven fake situations in which she has to think of an animal to shape-shift into.
"Ok, Cinderblock is attacking Starfire, Robin is helping her, Cyborg is shooting him with his cannon, and I'm throwing garbage cans and stuff at him. You're on our left and Cinderblock is looking away. What do you do?" Beast Boy questioned her.
"I shape-shift into a rhino, charge him, get his attention and change into an osprey. Then I fly around his head in circles to distract him while you guys attack him more." Raven sat back on the bed, satisfied with her answer. Beast Boy nodded and smiled. "I have taught you well, my young apprentice," he said mockingly, bowing. Raven smiled and chucked a pillow at him. "Hey!" he said, chucking it back at her. She put it back in its place and cleared a strand of hair away from her face. He smiled.
"Ok, last one for tonight." Beast Boy paced around the room, trying to think of a situation. "Ah!" he said. "Alright, here's a hard one. Starfire is throwing starbolts at Plasmus from the air. Robin is fighting him with his staff, and Cyborg is picking up heavy stuff to throw at him. I'm up in the air above you, and you have just been grabbed by Plasmus. What do you do?" Raven thought for a moment. She looked into his eyes and saw pure happiness, excitement and pride. She shook her head and looked away. "Um…" she thought out loud. The dark girl looked up at Beast Boy again and smiled the most sincere, small smile she'd ever smiled. "Then I'd trust you…" she cleared her throat. "to save me." Beast Boy raised an eyebrow.
"Okay, so you trust me… Wait, what?" Raven looked deep into his eyes, a sincere look planted on her face.
"I trust you." Beast Boy's eyes shimmered with happiness and joy once more. "I trust you too," he whispered, smiling happily.
After a few moments of silence, Raven looked away. "Um, we should probably get to sleep." Beast Boy rubbed the back of his neck. "Uh, yeah. You're right. Good job." Raven blushed slightly at his praise. "Thanks. Good night." He smiled and started to walk away. The green boy stopped in the doorway and smiled at her. "Good night." And then he was gone.
Raven laid back on the bed, thinking profusely about what just happened. Why did his smile send shivers down her spine? Why did her stomach do flips when he praised her? It's all just because I'm tired, she finally decided. It'll all go away in the morning. With that, she closed her eyes contentedly and tried to fall asleep.
But she couldn't. There were way too many things to think about. She sighed and opened her eyes. The girl got up and walked out of the med bay, up the stairs to the roof. There she sat down on the edge, swinging her legs in the air, thinking about everything, gazing at the stars. Then, she heard something. Footsteps that no one else could have heard. She looked at the entrance, tensing up. She smiled when she saw it was Beast Boy.
"Hey." Beast Boy smiled at her and walked over.
"Hi."
"Whatcha doin' up here?" he asked. Raven raised an eyebrow. "I could ask you the same thing."
"I come up here every Thursday night, to think about things and stargaze." He looked wistfully up at the bright stars. Raven chuckled and looked down. "So that's why I sometimes find a blanket up here on Friday nights when I come up here to think and stargaze." They looked at each other and laughed. Raven patted the space beside her and Beast Boy sat down.
"So what are you thinking about?" Beast Boy asked, startling Raven. You, her mind chimed against her will and/or knowledge. "Um, you know, the whole power switching thing," she said. He looked up at the sky once more. "Yeah… pretty confusing, isn't it?" She looked down. "Yeah, I'm sorry about that whole thing, I wasn't thinking, it was-" He cut her off. "No, it was my fault, I shouldn't have yelled at you like that. I mean, I did ruin that book." Raven looked at him. "Yeah, I mean, you didn't have to yell at me that much," (his ears drooped) "but all of it was my fault, and plus, I can just go down to the bookstore and get another copy." (he perked up) Beast Boy looked at her, eyebrow raised a little.
"If there's any copies left." His eyebrow went up further.
"When I'm feeling better." He looked at her expectantly. She sighed.
"When Robin lets me." He nodded and smiled. She gazed out over the city, pondering. "What were you thinking about?" she asked suddenly. You, he thought dreamily, but answered, "Oh, just… stuff. Like old memories that were brought up today." She nodded, signaling for him to continue. "Like when we went to the park that one time and I spilled Star's mustard all over you." They both chuckled at this. "And how you didn't get mad at me for some reason, you just glared at me for a second and then started wiping it off…" She played with her fingers and smiled. "You can still see that stain if you look closely on that leotard." He laughed. "Really?" She nodded.
"Oh, that reminds me," he said. "You have to take one of my suits for battles and stuff, since it's the only material that can stretch when you shape-shift…" he said uncomfortably. She nodded. "I can change it, right? Dye it and stuff?" He nodded as she looked up in thought.
"You know what I've been thinking about most, though?" Raven sighed as she continued. "I can't believe I can now feel freely." She glanced at him. "I mean, it feels so good to be able to laugh… but no one wants to hear that…" she grimaced. He frowned. "What do you mean?" She just looked down.
"Your laugh is so pretty, Rae." She scoffed lightly. "No, really. It's like wind chimes ringing, or water rushing down a mountain, or, or, birds chirping in the morning." She blushed and looked up. "Do you really mean that?" He smiled kindly and put his hand on her shoulder. She flinched, but let his hand rest there. "Of course I do, Rae."
They continued talking like that for most of the night, about their past, present, and future. When they finally got tired of speaking, they laid back and looked at the stars.
"Can you see Cassiopeia?" Beast Boy asked. Raven blushed slightly. "I never really learned the constellations…" Beast Boy looked at her. "You're kidding me." She shook her head. "Well, then I'll have to teach you some." He grinned.
"Ok, well, look," he said. "There's the big dipper."
"Where?" Raven asked. "There?" She pointed in a random direction. He laughed. "No, Raven, to your left." She pointed questioningly in another direction. "No, silly, there!" Without thinking, he took her hand in his and pointed to the constellation. She blushed furiously. "Oh."
"See it?" he asked, still unaware he was holding her hand. She nodded. "There's Cassiopeia," he said, pointing her hand in another direction. She nodded again. He lowered his arm, their hands still entwined. "Aren't' they beautiful?" he asked softly. "Yeah." She gazed softly at the stars. "Um, Beast Boy?" she said, snapping back to reality.
"Yeah?"
"You can let go of my hand now…"
"Oh," he said, blushing as he retracted his hand. After a rather awkward silence, he spoke again. "Do you see the little dipper?" She nodded, this time actually seeing the constellation. "I love looking at the stars…" she trailed off, caught up in the beauty of the night sky. They looked at each other and smiled. Beast Boy's heart did flips. Raven's stomach turned.
And for how long only they know, the couple laid on their backs, stargazing together, until they fell asleep entwined in each other's arms.
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A/N: Well? Did you like it? Did you hate it? Tell me in a review. When you review, it makes me write faster and update sooner. The review I got today from Roth-Writer39 was the one that inspired me to finish. Thank you to all of my reviewers!