Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans.

Ascension of the Beast

Chapter XI

Falling Into Place

'How could I be so stupid?' Garfield thought, as he watched the street lights pass by. The ride back to the Logan house seemed much longer than the ride to the restaurant had been, but that could be chalked up to the tension in the car. While Raven had been outside talking to Cyborg, the changeling made the mistake of agreeing to two proposals offered by Rose Wilson. The first was not particularly controversial—Raven and Rose had enough mutual respect that Rose spending a night under the same roof as the empath would not be a problem. But in agreeing to the second, Gar had momentarily forgotten a very important aspect of what made Raven who she was, and she was definitely not happy with him at the moment.

'How could I agree to host a party without asking her about it?" he silently asked himself. 'It's my house legally, but I'd like to think it's her home too. I should have shown her more courtesy than to just agree to it without asking her, as if she's a guest with no say.' A frown materialized on his face as he realized, 'shit! I've given our actual guest more of a say.' He cupped his face in his hands as the monologue in his head turned into a simple string of multiple repetitions of the word "stupid."

Raven could definitely feel his emotions—guilt, self-loathing, regret. Sure, the fact that he hadn't consulted her before agreeing to fill the house with people and loud noises had angered her a little, but she was beginning to suspect he might be reading too much into the quiet tension of the ride; she wasn't really that angry at him. She wished she could read his thoughts—well, technically she could, seeing as her astral self's little journey into his mind the previous night had, as an unavoidable side-effect, created a psychic link between them, but she maintained an important practical and ethical rule that such links were to be closed at all times, except in case of emergency, and this was certainly no emergency.

Meanwhile, from the backseat, Rose observed the interaction—or lack thereof—between the two. She was beginning to think she may have made an error by asking only Beast Boy—Raven lived there too, and she was never one to be happy about being flooded with a lot of noise and people. Then again, that in itself would have posed a problem, seeing as Raven would have likely said no, and Rose's plan was entirely centered on this party. But it would ruin her plan if Raven ended up hating the changeling as a result of this lapse of judgment.

Rose also wondered if it might be excessively cruel that she didn't fill him in on the details about just who she was going to invite. She had merely told him that she was going to invite some friends to throw a party, and that they'd hopefully ensure it'd be a good time. That was an outright lie, in fact, as even when she made the phone call, she did not know a single person among the group she invited. But she did know that this particular group would probably create an uncomfortable situation for both of her hosts. The shock to Raven would be intentional—it was really the entire reason Rose was doing this to begin with. But poor Beast Boy; his discomfort would be entirely incidental.

Turning the wheel as she eased the vehicle into the carport, Raven decided to break the silence. "Gar," she said in a voice she hoped would communicate that she wasn't angry, "can I talk to you in private for a minute when we get back inside? Vic had some things to say that I think you should probably know about."

Beast Boy didn't know entirely what to think, but he could at least feel relief. 'Good, she doesn't hate me,' he thought as the car came to a stop. He was, however, rather confused as they entered the house and began to traverse the hallway to Raven's room. What had Cy told her that was so important that she needed to immediately relay it to him? Also, why was she leading him to her bedroom when the study could probably work just as well? As he thought about it, he figured the only real advantage Raven's room would have would be privacy—no one who knew anything about Raven was stupid enough to invade her bedroom. 'But what's the big secret?' he thought to himself, as the pair entered the empath's private refuge.

As Raven locked the door, she made sure to activate a spell she'd set up to make the room soundproof. "Vic told me some things about the meeting he had, and it actually has a lot to do with what we've been talking about today," she said in a quiet, but easily understood tone. "But, before I can tell you anything, you have to know that a lot of this is information that the government is classifying as Top Secret, and Vic was only allowed to tell us because of our security clearances and because of how central you are to everything. So, we can't say a word to anyone else about about most of this without the CIA's permission."

Garfield was certainly taken aback by this. He hadn't expected that the United States federal government would be very interested in what was going on; indeed, the question of whether Africa or Antarctica attracted more of Washington's attention was subject to serious debate. "Okay," he answered, "I won't tell anyone."

"Well, this first part isn't really a secret, but you might want to sit down, because I'm pretty sure it's going to be pretty personal for you," Raven began, while gesturing for him to take a seat beside her on the side of her bed. As he complied, she continued: "The project that Vic has been assigned...they've asked him to develop a Sakutia vaccine."

Now Gar was very confused, which for once was because he knew more than one might expect him to about the subject. "How is that even possible? I mean, people don't live long enough to even begin to develop antibodies, and there is no weak strain of the virus which won't kill the person within three days..."

"They think you're the key," she interrupted him. The words left him visibly dumbstruck. "S.T.A.R. Labs, the CDC, the WHO...they think that since the serum your dad gave you didn't kill the virus, but rather altered your DNA to protect you from its effects, you might have the antibodies they need coursing through your blood as we speak."

"Wow," was his simple reply. He was having trouble wrapping his head around this, and it was apparent in both the tone of his voice and the look on his face, but Raven had no time to stop the conversation.

"The part where it starts to become a state secret is the reason why they need the vaccine," she said. "Apparently, the CIA has uncovered information implying that some unknown financiers from Metropolis and Gotham are pouring money into Lamumba in exchange for Kibwana partnering with them to weaponize the virus."

"Fuck!" he exclaimed as his eyes widened in horror and the color drained from his skin, transforming his hue into that of an avocado. It was an uncharacteristic use of profanity, but certainly justified. "That...that would be a Doomsday weapon. If they can weaponize Sakutia, and use it, every person infected...would die!"

"There's more," Raven added. "The CIA said the Lamumban government-in-exile wants to get into contact with you. Apparently, they figure that since you had a connection to their country and you're a well-known superhero, you'd want to help." What Cyborg never told Raven, and hence Raven never had the opportunity to tell Beast Boy, was the fact that such a large segment of the Lamumban population regarded Gar as a messianic figure and there was interest in enthroning him if he did intervene. Cyborg didn't relay this information mostly because he figured Raven would be incredulous to it, and it would perhaps be best if Gar heard it directly from the Lamumbans themselves—but there was also a concern that it might go to his head, as well.

Beast Boy gave a short chuckled. "Am I that predictable?"

"It's not you," Raven answered. "It's the situation. Anyone, in your position, with your powers, and with your past, would probably be thinking the same things you've been thinking. But, there is a lot of opportunity here."

The changeling looked at her with a quizzical look, as if to ask for an elaboration.

"Judging by the CIA's interest, we can probably expect covert support from Washington," Raven noted. "Also, the Lamumban government-in-exile could put us in contact with rebel groups within the country. So, it seems, everything's actually falling into place in a good way. We just need to put our team together."

"And figure out how to get them all into Lamumba," Gar added, as he stood, still facing her. "But, you're right. Everything does seem to be falling into place, like it was destiny, or something." He scratched the back of his head as he pondered the meaning to it all. Then he thought of something else. "So, how much does Cy know about my past now?"

"Just the most basic facts about what your connection to Lamumba is and how you ended up with your powers," she answered. "At first, he seemed a little offended that you never told him anything, but I told him that you'd been through a lot of traumatic experiences and you didn't really want to relive them. I didn't tell him anything else about it, though. If you want me to tell him what I saw, I can. But I won't unless you want me to."

"You might as well," he replied. "I wish I could tell him, but, well...you know." His head began to hang lower as a frown grew over his face.

Raven placed her hand on his shoulder in a supportive gesture. "It's okay," she told him, "no one would want to relive what you've been through. After I assured him that your past was probably the most traumatic of all of ours, I'm sure he understands." She slid her hand down and over to the spot between his shoulder blades and began rubbing him in an effort to comfort him. "Don't beat yourself up about it," she added as she gave him a pat on the back and removed her hand.

Garfield lifted his head and shot her a weak smile in response. "You know," he said, "for someone who forces herself to suppress and deny her own emotions, you're really good at stuff like this." A twinkle briefly appeared in his eye before he continued. "You're a good friend, Rave. I appreciate everything you've done and you've been doing for me."

"You're my friend," Raven responded. "I suppose I have to be nice sometime," she gave one of her trademark barely-noticeable smiles before her face turned to a firm representation of stoicism. "I wouldn't be a very good friend if I didn't try to help you through this," she said in spoken words, although her mind quietly added 'especially with all the times you've been there for me.'

"I wouldn't think any less of you if you didn't," the changeling spoke as he began to stand. "You're my friend and just having you think of me as a friend is enough for me to always appreciate you. I almost feel like you've been spoiling me this weekend." He paused for a moment. "I guess I should probably get out there and see if the guests Rose invited have arrived," Garfield noted, before adding "are you gonna come out and have fun with us, or are you gonna stay in here and enjoy your reading?"

"You know parties aren't my thing," she replied honestly. "I might make an appearance, but don't count on it."

"I'll try to keep the music down so it doesn't disturb you," he said as he opened the door. It was an unusual show of understanding on his part, but he knew by now that if she wanted time alone with her books, it was best to leave her be—even with how stubborn he can be, it's hard to avoid accepting something so simple after it's been beaten into you for four years. Still, as he traversed the hallway toward the great room, he wished she'd be there. 'I don't really know if I should trust Rose with that evil smirk she was flashing earlier.'

As he entered the room, he found that he was every bit correct to worry. Before him was a occupied by a number of women who appeared to range in age from about 18 to around 25, every one of giving him the same look of longing one might suggest a pride of lions who hadn't eaten for a week might give to a t-bone. A couple of them were even licking their chops, and he could certainly feel that uncomfortable sensation of having someone undress him with their eyes.

Author's Notes
This is another case where I was going to write one chapter but ended up dividing it into two. The next chapter is going to be rather long regardless, as I figured the most natural point to split them was right where this one ends. Anyhow, this should be a nice short bit of conversation to hold you over until I post the next chapter (which should not be long, as I didn't make the choice to split the chapters until after I was already done with like 2/3 of the content of what will be the next chapter), although I must warn that the content I have written thus far for the next chapter has convinced me to upgrade the fic's rating to M. Chapter XII is most certainly not going to be family-friendly, and it'll have some controversial plot elements.

BrandonK679-I hear that. I guess my main question with regard to how Garfield reacts, though, is how I want to play with it in regard to his personality development. If, on the one hand, his reluctance to lead is played as a residual effect of his obvious self-esteem issues (I mean, come on, the guy blames himself for his parents' death), then it might be a useful plot element to show him becoming more willing to lead as his character develops through the story. On the other hand, Gar's reluctance to lead could also be played as a matter of honor, invoking the Cincinnatus character trope, which would actually make him even more heroic, IMO.

shugokage, daniiibabiii-Glad you like it. Hope it continues to be as good.

LiumD-Like I was saying in my response to BrandonK679, I'm mostly divided on the issue of how I want to play it in relation to Gar's personality. In that respect, I'm still pretty much undecided, though.

Annatheavidreader-I always figured that Duela tended to act up mostly when the Titans weren't including her, and on the flip side of that, you have the fact that Raven was able to get Duela to do a Heel-Face Turn and start kicking Enigma's ass very easily by just inviting Duela to join the Teen Titans. She's only as reasonable as a lunatic can be, but the one constant throughout her interaction with the Titans is that she seems to have an obsession with being one, and then she acts up when she's not one.

As far as Bette goes, don't worry. I will not be teasing any sort of romantic connection between Gar and Bette in this fic. Although I'm going to keep her single for a while, I do have a pairing in mind for her which neither involves Gar nor Dick, so she'll be neutralized to some degree romantically. As far as her canon relationship with Gar goes, I'm not sure how far it actually went, but I do know that there was at the very least a significant amount of ship teasing; I think the writers were planning on pairing them if the Titans LA story got its own permanent series, but that never happened. At any rate, Bette's obsession with Dick certainly would have been an obstacle to a relationship with Gar. I kinda feel sorry for her, though...she never gets to boy. Certainly never helped that she was so obsessive over Dick though; his love life is too much like Bruce's: been loved by many women, but really only loved two in return.

As for the nature of the relationship between Beast Boy and Raven, even if they're not romantically paired, they'd still be subject to the Platonic Life Partners, Vitriolic Best Buds and Like an Old Married Couple tropes carrying over from the cartoons, so, yeah, I do not see any future where their special relationship does not carry on ad infinitum. Then again, I'm also of the opinion that the cartoon built up WAAAAAAY too much Belligerent Sexual Tension between them for them to remain perpetually platonic...at some point they'd eventually have a heated argument, there'd be a few slaps, and the next thing you know their tongues would be buried in each other's throats and they'd be trying to rip each other's clothes off (well, if it weren't a family-friendly cartoon, at least lol). Of course, I've already defused most of the BST for this story, so I'm not going in the Slap-Slap-Kiss direction.

Oh, and I'll throw you a bone and give you this spoiler, since you mentioned her: Cassie Sandsmark is indeed on the list of Titans I want to include in this story.

CheeseJellyBean-Glad you like it, hope it continues to be an enjoyable read. I intentionally wanted the conversation that Cyborg and Raven were having at the beginning of Chapter II to be an ambiguous teaser. I can't dispel any of the ambiguity without spoiling something, but it'll make sense sooner or later. I had originally been intending to write a lot more than I actually have from Beast Boy's POV, but for some reason, the Raven POV chapters just kept coming and coming. Most of Chapter XII will be in BB's POV, though.

JasonVUK-Well, I've got some nagging doubts about this chapter and the next one, but I'm glad you've liked it so far.

Hairul The Nightrage Beast-Yeah, I did kinda neglect to mention her swordsmanship skills, but they'll be invoked from time to time in the story. As far as her matchmaking goes, well...we'll see in the next chapter how much win it is.

Audience Participation (II):
Are there any artists out there who would like to create a cover image for this fic? Send me a PM if interested.