Well, I hope you like the faster update. I hoped to get it out a couple days ago, but alas, I was busy. However, I'm pretty sure a lot of you will like this chapter. (wink wink)

By the way, the question was asked earlier if the Templar were inspired by the characters in the show with their respective powers. Believe it or not, I actually thought up those characters years ago, back in 2003! I debated for a long time to write an original story with them, but never got around to it. Including them in this story is kind of just my excuse to write them down on paper for once. I thought to myself, "Wouldn't it be cool if these two teen groups met up?" Hope you don't mind. Anyway…

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Chapter 18: Sweet Sorrow

After dodging several chances at being caught, Beast Boy at last followed Raven's scent to a large wooden door. Before entering, he took a peek through the small opening, and to his delight, saw the mage curled up on a bed. He couldn't tell if she was sleeping or not, but regardless he morphed, flew through the opening, and transformed back into a human. She must have heard him come in, for she quickly shot up in her bed. Upon seeing it was him, her eyes widened.

"Beast-" She was cut off when he rushed over and pulled her into another bone-crunching hug. After a second he pulled away, looking slightly embarrassed.

"Heh, I'm sorry. I should stop doing that, huh? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. What are you doing here? If you're caught-"

"Dang it, I know! But you were gone so long, I was worried sick! I was afraid something had happened to you!"

"I'm alright, okay? Look Beast Boy, you have to get out of here before someone comes or discovers you're not in your cell!"

Beast Boy shook his head. "No. We have to get out of here now. Something's not right. I just ran into Evad. He looked as if he was-"

"Under control, right?" Raven asked. Beast Boy nodded.

"How did you know?"

"I…Calabos told me," Raven said. "I didn't believe him at first, but Eutonos was just here before you came. He's warped their minds somehow…they're no longer themselves! They serve him now." She bit her lip nervously. "And if you don't get out of here, he's going to do the same to you!"

Beast Boy gripped his head as if it pained him. "This is too much. That's all the more reason for us to leave now!"

"We can't," Raven said.

"Yes, we can! I think I might know a way out of here, but we have to act fast or-"

"No! We can't!" Raven snapped. Beast Boy paused and eyed her.

"What do you mean?" he asked, sounding deathly serious. "Raven, you can't stay here. If you do, he might hurt you. He might kill you. Don't you understand that?"

"Of course I do!" Raven snapped angrily. She froze, feeling sorry for yelling at him, and her face fell. "But he won't hurt me, I know."

"What do you mean?" Beast Boy asked, now sounding impatient and fearful. "What are you not telling me?"

Raven collapsed on the bed, so suddenly Beast Boy rushed to her side to make sure she was okay.

"You okay? What's wrong?" he asked. She shook her head.

"I'm fine. I'm sorry, I just…" she trailed off. The sound of her voice made Beast Boy feel sorry for getting angry with her as he had. For the first time, he actually took time to notice her expression, and he saw that not only did she look crestfallen, but beaten, broken, and hopeless. Just seeing her like that scared him, and he knew right away something was very wrong.

"Raven, what's wrong?" he asked again, this time softly and gently, so as to not sound as though he were interrogating her. He gently turned her head so she was looking at him.

"Beast Boy," she started. "Calabos and I talked, and he told me…"

"What'd he say?" Beast Boy asked kindly, seeing how upset she was.

"He told me about his past, and then…he showed me his plans. He showed me what he's going to do with me."

"What?" he asked, now growing angry again, though this time it was out of his own hatred of the half-demon who was holding them hostage. Raven looked at him, her eyes full of worry.

"Beast Boy, he's…he's going to use me to get a new body for himself. I don't know exactly how he's going to do it, but he said he's going to use me to restore his flesh. He plans on draining my powers out of me, then using my energy to restore himself!"

As shocked as he was, Beast Boy's blood practically boiled at the thought. It seemed like every inter-dimensional villain they came across wanted to use Raven for their own twisted purposes!

"No. It's okay, Raven," Beast Boy whispered. "I won't let him hurt you. I'm going to get you out of here."

She shook her head. "No, Beast Boy. You don't understand. We can't go together. We'd never make it out alive if we did."

"I'm not going to leave you here, Raven! I'm not going to let him destroy you for his own sick plans!" Beast Boy protested.

"Beast Boy, listen to reason!" Raven whispered back harshly. "I don't have my powers, but you do. I wouldn't stand a chance in a fight, and I wouldn't be able to heal you if you got hurt trying to defend me. I'd only be holding you back if I came along."

"But…"

"Beast Boy, please listen to me," she said earnestly. "You're the only hope we have now. I wouldn't be able to get out of here, but you can. If I go along with you, we'll almost certainly end up being caught. You have to get out of here and find the others before it's too late. Maybe then we'll have a chance, but if you stay here too long or try to drag me with you, all will be lost."

Beast Boy's gaze fell, and for a while, he didn't say anything. Raven didn't have to have her powers of empathy to know how torn he was right now. She couldn't say she blamed him.

"But what if what he's planning hurts you or…worse? What if I'm too late? I can't risk that, Raven!"

"I know, Beast Boy, but that's all the more reason for you to act fast. I know he won't hurt me yet - he said that this could take a couple days to prepare. That will give you some time, but we can't delay. You have to go now. Please, for our sake, you have to."

Tears started welling in his eyes. Slowly, he reached up with a gloved hand and tenderly cupped her cheek. "I don't want to abandon you."

Raven reached up and placed her hand over his, fighting back tears of her own. "I know. But you have to go, and fast. I didn't say this earlier, but when Calabos talked to me, I found out how he works. That mental torture he put you through…it wasn't just to break your morale - it was to weaken your mind. Eutonos told me once of how he had the ability to control others. Well, he's only a shadow of himself now, so his powers are much weaker. Therefore, he can't control a mind unless it's already been broken. As long as the mind resists, he can't take over, but once it breaks, he can control you. That's why he's been doing what he's doing to you, and if you don't leave here quickly, he could control you, too."

Beast Boy's eyes widened. He remembered Eutonos telling him about how all the Templar's lives had been scarred by one tragedy or another. He didn't want to think about all the hours of mental torture they must have received to have been broken already.

"But what if he does the same to you? What if he ends up controlling you, too?

Raven paused. "I don't know. All I know is, he's not going to wait very long to use me for whatever he wants. That's why we can't wait any longer. It's up to you now. You have to do this for me, and for the others too. Robin, Cyborg, and Star are depending on you too. If they're out there and you find them, we have a chance, but we'll never have that chance if we stay here."

Beast Boy's eyes shut, and he allowed a single tear to roll down his cheek. He didn't want to go. If she got hurt while he was away, he would never forgive himself. However, deep down, he knew that everything Raven said was true. He couldn't argue with her, no matter how hard he tried.

"Oh Azar, Beast Boy, I'm so sorry," Raven said, sorrow dripping from every word. "I know this is very hard for you. God, I don't want you to go either, believe me. But you have to do this."

Beast Boy opened his eyes, took her hand, and slowly placed a soft kiss on it. "I know, Raven. I know. But I'll do it. For you, I'll do it." He saw a barely noticeable smile cross her face, but it vanished quickly and was replaced by a soft frown.

"Raven? What's wrong?" he asked with worry. Her gaze drifted down uneasily.

"I…it's nothing," she said.

"No, Raven. Something's wrong. Please tell me," he repeated.

Raven sighed before answering. "Calabos told me something earlier. He said he looked into your mind, and he saw your…feelings for me. He said you didn't really feel anything for me. He said you were just using me as a replacement for Terra."

The changeling's eyes widened as a wave of fury came over him. He told her that? That bastard!

"Beast Boy, is it true?" she asked timidly, almost apprehensively.

"Please, call me Garfield," Beast Boy requested. Heck, they might as well act like they know each other now. Raven looked slightly perplexed, but went ahead anyway.

"Garfield, is it true?" she asked again. Beast Boy immediately shook his head, and squeezed her hand tighter.

"No, Raven. Of course not. He's a liar, remember? He was telling you that to break you," he said in an echo of her words. However, he could tell she wasn't quite convinced. "Rachel, look at me." She shyly lifted her head to meet his eyes. Somehow him using her real name much his request much more personal.

"I know I still feel bad about Terra, but trust me, I'm over her. Any feelings I had for her are gone. You are the one now. Do you understand? You are the only one I love. I know you may not believe me, but I promise you, everything I said, everything I felt for you was real. I wasn't lying when I said I loved you, Rachel, and I do love you, with everything in me. And trust me, nothing's going to change that. Not Calabos or any feelings I may have had for Terra. I love you, Rachel, and I mean it."

Raven felt herself at a loss for words; she could barely speak she was so touched by his speech. She stuttered as she next tried to utter three words that were so unfamiliar to her…

"I…I love you, too," she choked as she threw her arms around him. Beast Boy was quick to return the hug, and rested her head on his shoulder as she sobbed. "I love you so much." Gar said nothing; he didn't need to. He just held her close, giving her all the comfort and support he could.

"I'm sorry I didn't…say it before."

"That's okay," Beast Boy whispered. "You don't have to say it for me to know."

Raven pulled back and looked him straight in the eye, and he returned her stare. The sudden eye contact caused an unseen tension passed between them. Both of them knew what they wanted, but neither was brave enough to do it. Finally, they both slowly closed their eyes, took a breath, and brought their faces closer until their lips finally met. As soon as they touched, it ignited an unseen desire and passion for each other. Beast Boy found himself wanting more, and so did she. Beast Boy pulled her closer, and she allowed him to deepen the kiss.

'Oh Azar, is this really happening?' Raven asked herself. The room would have surely blown up had she still had her powers; there was such a tornado of emotions raging through her mind. Never had she felt so excited, nervous, edgy, and yet so calm at the same time. Strangely enough to her, kissing Beast Boy felt right, like this was something she had wanted to do for a long time. When they finally pulled away, they both started wide-eyed at each other and were almost panting.

"You…alright?" Beast Boy asked just to make sure he hadn't crossed the line.

"Yeah. That was…my first kiss," she breathed, looking as shocked as he was.

"Mine too," he replied. He had come very close to kissing Terra once, but that Slade had interrupted that moment. Steadily, he grabbed Raven's hand and clasped it in both of his.

"Rachel, before I go, I just want you to know…no matter what he says, no matter what anyone thinks, you're not evil. Do you hear me? You're a good person – one of the greatest people I've ever met. Don't you ever believe anything different. And don't you ever, ever stop hoping. You've done it all your life, so don't stop now, okay?"

Raven nodded timidly, and Beast Boy briefly glanced at the door, reminded of his task.

"Well, I guess I should go," he muttered. 'Whoever said, "Parting is such sweet sorrow" was an idiot. There's nothing sweet about it,' he thought.

"Just be careful," Raven implored.

He managed a small, tender smirk. "Don't worry. I will." He gave her one last kiss on her hand, and after a final hug, went over to the door. Before he left, he looked back at her one last time.

"I'll come back for you. I promise," he said, sheer determination in his voice. Raven could do little but nod again. "So long."

"Goodbye," she whispered back. Beast Boy shrank instantly before her eyes, and she briefly caught sight of a small green fly before it flew out the door.

Only after he left did the aftershock of what they had just done hit her. She had kissed a man for the first time in her life, and it was Garfield of all people. Never would she ever have imagined he would be her first kiss. Then again, she'd never given him much thought, and she had never truly appreciated him until lately. Raven realized now that she had felt love for him for a long time, but she was too blind to see it until recently. Even once she realized it, she hadn't truly accepted it until now. All the thoughts, all the moments, the stolen glances, arguments, and awkward silences…it all finally made sense. This was the man she had loved all along. It had taken her this long, despite all the warning signs, to realize how important he was to her. And now, he was gone. And there, alone, Raven cried.

Beast Boy already had an idea of where he needed to go. He just had to find it quickly, and he knew how to do that. He remembered a quote from Gandalf when he saw The Lord of the Rings in the theater – "When in doubt, always follow your nose". And that, he did. After making sure nobody was around, Beast Boy morphed into a dog yet again and sniffed the air. His nose picked up a lot of smells, many of them unfamiliar, but his goal was to find the foulest, stinky-est one of them all. His initial search came up fruitless, so he kept on walking. As he neared an intersection, he heard a group of enemies approaching, and had to morph into fly to avoid being seen. As luck would have it, it was a group of gnolls and leading them was none other than Eutonos himself. He looked no less evil than Evad had, and his new appearance only added to his already-intimidating form. His yellow and red eyes stared menacingly ahead as he marched.

For a moment, he was afraid they were heading for Raven's cell, but they proceeded down the hall without turning toward her door. Beast Boy waited until they were well out of sight before moving on. Once they were, he changed back into his dog form and continued to sniff the air. Finally after a moment of searching, he picked up a foul stench that could only have been sewage. Jackpot. He followed the trail, briefly having to change shape to avoid being seen as he went. As he navigated the twists and turns and dark staircases, the scent became stronger. The further he went, the further down in the building he traveled.

The trail finally led him to a large room, where several gnolls were congregated. He quickly transformed into a dragonfly and flew up to the ceiling to avoid being caught. From the looks of it, it appeared to be some kind of mess hall or lounge. Against the wall was a large fireplace, where some kind of dark meat was being heated on a spit.

"When's that gonna be done? I'm starving!" one of them complained.

"Me too! I say we just eat it raw," another one piped in.

"Shut it! It'll be done soon," one of them yelled. "Hey! And I said stop throwing your scraps on the floor! There's a sewer hole right there, you know."

One of them growled, got up, and tossed what looked like a half-eaten bone into a hole in the floor near the corner. It wasn't that big, and a grate covered it, but the spaces were pretty large. He could easily slip through in one of his small forms. He couldn't say he looked forward to it though – the thought of plunging into a sewer didn't appeal to him one bit. Unfortunately, one of the monsters took that moment to glance up at the ceiling.

"Hey – what's that?" it asked noticing the small green insect. Beast Boy panicked. What was he supposed to do? He was seen. But would they really suspect it was him? No, he couldn't risk it. With no other ideas in mind, Beast Boy transformed into the smallest animal he knew. The gnoll looking at him from below saw the insect shrink and disappear. The other gnolls looked up as well, but didn't see a thing.

"What was what?" one asked. "I don't see a thing."

"There was something there!" the gnoll who spotted him shouted. "I swear I saw it! It was some kind of bug or something! It was right there and then it just disappeared!" The others looked up more closely, to see if they could spot what he was talking about.

"There's nothing there," the one snarled. "Gorbak, you've been eating too much raw meat again. You're startin' to see things."

"But it was there! I swear…" Gorbak protested.

"Enough! Just sit back down and get that meat over here."

The gnoll grumbled something that sounded like a threat, but stalked over to the fireplace anyway without arguing. Meanwhile up in the rafters, a small, green spider mite sighed in relief.

'Man, I thought I was a goner,' Beast Boy thought. He couldn't risk them seeing him. He had to get to that grate. Since he couldn't see very well in his current form, he switched to moth form and observed them below. He was still debating on what to do when one of them cursed out loud.

"Damn! We're out of water. Go get some." One of them tossed a wooden bucket to another.

"From where?" it growled.

"The river, you idiot!"

'River?' Beast Boy thought. Today was his lucky day after all!

The monster snarled and walked out of the room. Seizing his opportunity, Beast Boy flew down as a fly and landed on his back, careful making sure he didn't notice him. The changeling rode the gnoll, watching as it walked down the hall and then down a long set of stairs. As they descended, Beast Boy could just make out the sound of running water. Finally they walked down another set of stone stairs and into a large, underground cavern. In the middle, as Beast Boy had hoped, was a river than ran through the dark tunnel. The gnoll gave another grumbled as it knelt down in toward the running water and filled the bucket. As he turned to head back, Beast Boy flew off and landed on the wall. Once he was gone, he shifted back into a human so he could see better.

As he thought, it was a long, dark tunnel, though the space near the stairs was lit with torches. Beast Boy figured this must have served as both a source of drinking water and a place to drain their sewage. In the ceiling overhead was a rather large hole, obviously used as some kind of well or something from the upper levels. To his surprise, the river was flanked on one side by a rugged path, wide enough for someone to easily walk on. Changing back into moth form, he followed the path down the dark tunnel. As he passed through, he saw a primitive stone drain emptying into the river, confirming his suspicion that this served as a sewage drain as well. Had he gone through the sewer, he probably would have come out through that drain.

Blocking the path at this point however was a large, strong, iron grate. Obviously, Calabos must have suspected this could be used to get into his lair, and had it blocked off. He flew the bars and continued on, until at last, to his utter relief, he saw daylight! He flew faster down the dark tunnel, and as he turned the corner, saw the end just ahead. Beast Boy flew through the tunnel until he at last emerged into the glorious daylight. He flew a little further on, after making sure nobody was around, then shifted back to human form to get a better look around him.

"Finally! Thank God!" he exclaimed.

Beast Boy practically kissed the ground once he was on dry land. He had never been so happy to see grass or daylight. He wiped the water away from his eyes and looked around. It was cloudy out, that much he could tell, and he was on top of what looked like a mountain range. Surprisingly, there were plenty of trees and grass around, but only near the stream. The terrain itself was very rugged, and the only clear path was one that had been carved by human hands. Beast Boy followed this path (which ran along the river) up the mountain came from – and his mouth practically dropped to the ground at the sight.

There in the distance, higher up on the mountain, stood a huge, dark castle; one that looked like it had been built to deliberately look frightening. It was flanked by high, menacing towers, and the front of the castle had a huge door that looked a little like gaping jaws. The entire thing was built into the mountainside, and only a small part actually looked like it was separate from the mountain itself. From where he was, he could see no other entrance into the castle other than those huge doors. However, now was not the time to enjoy (or not) the scenery. He had a mission to do, and Raven was still back there. Transforming into a green crow, he quickly flew off to look for his friends.

Well, did you like it? I hope so. Don't forget to leave a review and tell me what you think! Thanks a lot. Until next time, keep on truckin.