Chapter 6

Raven. Gar almost didn't want to believe it. It would be too much to hope for, but that girl, she looked so much like her. Glancing over his shoulder, he considered his options.

He could keep running, escape, transform back, and get hopelessly lost, penniless. Or he could keep running, get caught by the dogcatcher, and be put to sleep because nobody wanted a green cat. Or he could introduce himself to this fine young lady, who could get him away from that man and bring him home with her. Add the fact that the lady might be Raven…well, it certainly was a no-brainer. He jumped.

He landed right next to her, and began purring, weaving himself between her legs. Rachel looked mildly surprised.

"A cat." A very random green cat. Memories from a decade ago began to piece together, and her mind clicked. Beastboy… A hand tapped her shoulder. It was an animal control officer.

"Ma'am, is he yours? If he isn't, we'll have to take him to the shelter." Rachel looked down, if this wasn't whom she thought it was, she sweat dropped; anyway, Kory would love him.

"Yes, yes he is." She mumbled hesitantly. The man raised his eyebrows at her suspiciously.

"Here BB." she said in monotone. Gar trotted over to her instantly.

"What does BB stand for?" He did not plan to make this easy for her. Rachel groaned, saying Beastboy would not be smart. B…B…

"Beanen Brusselsprouts." She heard herself saying. She wanted to smack herself. Beanen Brusselsprouts? The man nodded reassured. That certainly made sense, and he walked off on his merry way.

"Hey, you," Rachel stared down at the small green cat. "You have a lot of explaining to do." In a moment, Rachel and Beanen Brusselsprouts never seemed to have been in the area. The people looked at each other with confused stares. It was as if the two had disappeared into thin air. In reality, Rachel had called upon her powers to transport them in a shadow to the apartment for quick transportation. This was important news.

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To the surprise of the other contestants, Jade and Ahn had hit it off. It was a cause of gossip as no one had anything else to talk about. Gossiping was their way to relieve the tension, and today, the contestants would receive the date boxes. It consisted the names in the group dates, and decided who would be on the individual date.

The sound of the key turning caught everyone's attention, and Mara de Mille came into view holding the date box. She was immediately surrounded by women, all eager to open the box. Slowly, as if to build the suspense, Mara lifted the top of the box. All the women leaned forward. The contents of the box contained four sheets of paper along with four objects. The objects being a Star City Speedsters baseball cap, a helmet, a toy ferris wheel, and a flower. Mara read the four lists aloud.

"The first group date," she cleared her throat, "Shirley, Sharon, and Jade. The second group date, Katherine, Annabelle, Ahn, the third, Lina, Clarissa, and myself, Mara. And for the individual date, Jessica.

Jessica nodded carefully. She knew if she didn't receive a rose on this date, she would be sent home. On the other hand, if she did, she would be home free during the next rose ceremony. She had to make Wally like her on the date, or else she would go home. She massaged her forehead trying to relieve her stress.

The other girls immediately began conversation on where they would go. A Star City Speedsters baseball cap was no doubt a clue that one group would go to the baseball stadium with the bachelor.

The helmet indicated something with wheels? The mini ferris wheel probably meant the amusement park, and a flower led to the botanical gardens. On the lid of the box, the host had also graciously written that three women would go home at the end of all the dates. Jade and Ahn stood side by side, arms crossed. They didn't make any comment. Jade glanced at the twins. They looked worried. She grinned, they should be, they were competing against each other for the same guy; why were they on this show again? She shook her head. Oh how dumb some people could be.

"What time is it?" At that, all the women looked up at the clock, and began panicking. They needed to get ready for their dates! Sharon and Shirley looked crazed; their group was the first date. Eyeing each other, they both rushed up to their rooms. No doubt they would be trying to outdo their counterpart.

Jade sauntered up to her suite. Casual would be nice she decided. All of these hints didn't really lead to something that was really dressy. She decided to wear what she wore on the day she arrived. Black with striped stockings and a striped scarf. It was one of her favorite outfits. Besides, being autumn, it could get chilly.

Stepping outside, she raised an eyebrow. Whoa.

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"A cat! Rachel, I didn't know you were a cat person!" Tara exclaimed. "He's so cute!"

"Come here little cat," Kory crooned, "Auntie Kory has some yummy food for you!" She looked puzzled when the cat seemed to…cringe?

Rachel heaved a deep sigh. "Are you guys seriously telling me, that you think there are green cats running around everywhere?" They looked at her silently. Tara communicated their feelings in one word.

"Huh?"

"It's Beastboy." Rachel said emphasizing his name. Tara and Kory's head whipped around staring at Gar who had now transformed back from a cat.

"Hehe. Surprise." He said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head. Immediately he was glomped by Tara and Kory, whom were both squealing with this pleasant surprise. Turning to Rachel, he grinned.

"Beanen Brusselsprouts? What kind of a name is that?"

"A name for a green vegetarian," she said scowling, "but welcome back." she added as an afterthought. Tara interrupted Rachel's moody act, by asking Gar a question.

"What brings you here?" Everybody turned to him, as he laughed rather uneasily.

"It's kind of a funny story," he began, "By the way, is Jade Hex, by any chance, Jinx?"

"Yes," Rachel stared at him intently, "but where did you meet her?"

"Um, the bachelor of that show, he's a friend of mine. Actually you guys all know him, he's Wally West, the Kid Flash…" he waggled his eyebrows, "Get it?"

Kory shook her head. "I do not know of this Kid Flash. Who is he?"

"He was new," Gar replied, "But anyway, he was a hero, and as his 'good old friend' he sent me for some background research on Jade. By the way, I'm curious, why is she on this show again? She kind of slapped him."

Rachel smirked. Tara smiled. Kory giggled uncontrollably.

"Blackmail."

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Jade cautiously walked over to Ahn around the ring of women surrounding Sharon and Shirley.

"What did I miss?"

Ahn smirked. "Catfight as you can tell. Fun to watch isn't it?"

The bachelorettes began egging the twins on, both of which were pulling each other's hair, slapping, scratching, and screaming when the bell rang. Immediately the commotion stopped, as Mara got up to answer the door.

"Hello ladies…" Wally West paused as he looked at the twins. "Perhaps I'll give you two another minute," he smiled at them. As he turned to leave, he mumbled to himself, "or an extra hour." After all, the twins had really gotten into it; their hair mussed, and dresses ripped. They would need all the time they could get.

Stepping outside, Wally felt a sudden gust of wind, and with it a note. Upon opening it he rolled his eyes. It was from dear old Uncle Barry.

Only ten girls left. So have fun being a bachelor while it lasts.

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I really hope this met everybody's expectations. Thanks for all your reviews!