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Note: In this chapter, Beast Boy is not freaking out for telling the Titans already. Well, actually, he still is, but he is shielding his emotions again. He is pushing everything behind his mask because he cannot deal with it right now.

Disclaimer: I do not own Teen Titans

A Glimpse behind the Mask

All of the Titans, save for Beast Boy, were in the common room eating breakfast.

"Where's Beast Boy?" Robin asked suddenly.

"Friend Beast Boy is in town doing the 'chilling out'." Starfire answered, digging into her Tamaranean pudding half-heartedly.

Cyborg, who was cutting up his meat with a fork and knife, suddenly put his utensils down with a heavy sigh.

"Why didn't we notice something earlier? I mean, it was so obvious! Some friend I am." Cyborg said gloomily.

The other Titans exchanged glances. They didn't really know what to say, as the same thing had been running through their minds since yesterday.

Starfire tried to cheer her friend up. "You could not have known, Friend. We did not know that-"

Cyborg slammed his fist on the table. "That's not good enough! We didn't know, so what? We should have been there for him! We shouldn't have treated him like that! We shouldn't have made him feel like…"

"…like he doesn't belong." Robin finished.

Cyborg nodded. "Exactly! He…Beast Boy is-we never fully appreciated what he contributes to the team. Where would we be without Beast Boy?"

"I don't know, maybe a lot more peaceful?" Raven said sarcastically. She paused, then continued quietly, "The Tower probably won't be so lively. And there won't be anyone to annoy me when I'm reading or meditating."

"Yeah, who would mess up my baby without BB around? And there would be no more Meat and Tofu fights!" Cyborg exclaimed.

"Hey, by the way, did you guys notice that Beast Boy's speech sounded different yesterday?" Robin asked.

Upon receiving looks if confusion from his teammates, Robin sighed. "He didn't make any grammar or spelling mistakes. He also didn't use the word 'dude'. Actually, now that I think about it, he don't say 'dude' as often as he used to anymore."

Raven frowned in thought. "I think I remember Beast Boy stumbling on a few words yesterday. And if…, wait, so Beast Boy is actually smarter than he looks? Whoa, I never thought I'll see the day when I admit Beast Boy is smart."

"Beast Boy is an extremely intelligent human. Friends, do you not remember that it was Friend Beast Boy that led to the defeat of the Brotherhood of Evil?" Starfire questioned.

"Yeah. If it wasn't for Beast Boy, all of us would be on ice now." Robin stated.

"But that was not the only time Friend Beast Boy have shown that he is a very important member of team." Starfire said.

"But he's always…it's like he's pretending to be stupid or goofy or something." Cyborg said in frustration.

Robin's eyes widened. "You're right! He is pretending to be stupid, silly and goofy! But, the question is…why?"

A quiet voice behind the Titans spoke, "Sometimes it's better to be thought a fool than to be thought otherwise."

The Titans jumped at the voice. "Beast Boy!"

"When did you come in?! We didn't hear you!" Robin exclaimed, though what he really meant was 'I didn't hear you'. Robin's feathers were ruffled that someone managed to sneak up on him.

Beast Boy flashed Robin an amused grin. "I was standing behind you guys for quite a while. Interesting conversation you guys were having, by the way. I was just going to get a drink. So, carry on."

Cyborg coughed, having recovered from his shock. "Man, BB, you gave me quite a fright! And what was that you were saying just now?"

Beast Boy's head emerged from the fridge, holding a jug of cold water in his hand. "Hmm? Oh, that. Well, it's a modified version of the famous quote by Abraham Lincoln. And it's-why are you guys looking at me like that?"

"You know who's Abraham Lincoln?!" Raven asked, well, more like shouted.

Beast Boy looked offended. "Of course I do! Dudes, don't tell me you think I was that stupid?" He joked.

The rest of the Titans, except for Starfire, averted their gazes.

"Friends, who is this Abraham of Lincoln?" Starfire inquired, looking quite puzzled.

"He's the 16th President of the United States." Beast Boy answered promptly.

"I didn't know he was the 16th. I just knew that he was a President. I never really cared much for history." Robin said.

Beast Boy snorted, "And you say you're trained by the Bat? When I was with the Doom Patrol, Mento forced me to learn all this stuff!"

"So, what was this quote about?" Cyborg asked, looking interested. If this quote caught Beast Boy's attention, it must've been very meaningful to him.

Beast Boy poured himself a glass of water and took a sip. "Okay, I didn't really know which year he said the quote. I think it was 1930 or 1931 or something like that. Mento gave me a book full of quotes and he made me memorize them. He said it'll be useful if we ever came across a villain that uses quotes or something. Not that we ever did, mind you. I think that Mento was just finding an excuse to get rid of me. I mean, I was kinda annoying him a lot that day. And-"

"Will you tell us this damn quote already?!" snarled an irate Raven.

Beast Boy put up his hands in surrender. "Okay, okay! Jeez! The quote goes like this, 'Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak and remove all doubt'."

"Why is that quote so special to you?" Cyborg asked quizzically.

"Some people don't get the quote. I mean, they understand it, but they can't really relate to it. Before joining the Doom Patrol, I was kind of a quiet kid. I didn't talk unless spoken to, and even sometimes I don't answer. So people always thought that I was stupid or something." Beast Boy replied, placing the jug back into the fridge.

"You are not the stupid! The other people are the stupid for thinking that you are the stupid!" Starfire growled, eyes flashing angrily.

"Why did you do that? Why lower yourself, degrade yourself?" Raven questioned.

Beast Boy struggled with his words. "It's-I'm…it's a defense mechanism. I can't show people who I really am, inside. Of course later, the quiet act didn't really work for me anymore, so I changed. When I became Beast Boy, I shaped my own personality. Beast Boy's personality. I changed myself to be what people want."

Robin looked up and fixed Beast Boy with a hard stare. "If that is the case…then, who are you, really? The real you? I think we've all seen glimpses of the real you from time to time, but we still have no clue who you really are."

Starfire nodded vigorously. "Yes, friend! Let us see behind your mask!"

Beast Boy staggered back. "No! I mean, I can't."

Cyborg crossed his arms. "And why not? You've been fooling us with this 'Beast Boy' act for years! And we're your friends! I think we deserve to know, man!"

Beast Boy shook his head. "What is there to see behind my 'mask'? Nothing. I've been Beast Boy for so long now that I don't there's anything left if I stop being Beast Boy. I used to fool myself that my older self is still there. That if I ever need to stop being Beast Boy, ever need to stop being a hero, I can still be Gar-um, the old me. But you know what? I can't. Because he's dead. The old me is dead. Or maybe, he just never existed."

"You make it sound as though you have split personalities." Raven commented.

Beast Boy rolled his eyes. "I wish. Then at least I will have something to blame it on."

His teammates did not bother to push the topic any further. Somehow, hearing Beast Boy's explanation made them feel even guiltier that they did not notice earlier.

"Hey, guys, how about we go hang out at the park or something?" Cyborg suggested.

"That's a great idea, Cyborg! We can even have a picnic at the park. We haven't had one in ages!" Robin said quickly, eager to divert the subject.

"Oh, yes! I shall do the fetching of the ball of foot! Friend Raven! You must come assist!" Starfire exclaimed excitedly, grabbing a protesting Raven by the arm and zooming out of the room.

Cyborg jumped up and ran to the kitchen. "I'll get the food and the meat! Hey, Rob, chicken, beef or mutton?"

Robin wrinkled his nose and followed Cyborg. "I hate beef and mutton."

"That's because you are a chicken, or related to a chicken anyway. But I bet robins don't have much meat. They're all bony and feathery. Hey, by the way, what happened to your feathers?"

"I…what are you…wait, what?! Are you saying that I'm a…?!" Robin shouted, grabbing a frying pan and proceeding to hit Cyborg on the head with it.

Cyborg laughed in response and chucked a fork in Robin's direction.

Beast Boy smiled softly, watching his teammates. Then he sighed and glanced at his reflection in his glass of water. Beast Boy quietly got up and walked out of the room, his teammates oblivious to his departure.