Author's Note:

It's another beautiful day in Santa Monica, California as people gather at the beach to feel the sand between their toes... Or at least I'm guessing that's what's going on in Santa Monica, considering I don't live anywhere near California.

On a completely different note, I would like to welcome everyone again to another chapter of this Teen Titans fanfiction. Now I know what some of you may be thinking, "DAX, what are you doing? Why are you eating peanut butter with bananas and pickles? That's disgusting." To which I say... yeah you're right, but I'm out of milk and don't eat dry cereal.

Wait, you weren't thinking that? Oh... uh... well... never mind then.

I want to thank everyone for taking the time to read these updates and whatnot, I do this for you because I like ya a lot... but don't take that too seriously.

If you have any questions or suggestions, remember to PM me if you want to, I love hearing your feedback. Also, write a review if you want to, or don't, it's your choice.

Without any more of me talking, enjoy the chapter.

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos… Azarath Metrion Zinthos…" Raven chanted in the outer regions of space. Levitating over a lone asteroid: she had found a place of peace and serenity. Here, her meditations could be quite and undisturbed.

"Raven?" A feminine voice called out in the distance. The break in silence caused the mage to get considerably annoyed. "Raven?" The disembodied voice called again. With this call, Raven snapped back to reality as her peaceful center of space broke away, revealing herself to be in the Operations Center of the Tower. Behind the levitating mage, Starfire stood at the entrance of the room. "Please forgive my interruption, but have you seen Robin?" The Tamaranean asked innocently.

"No."

"Oh." The alien turned to leave, but then stopped, "Perhaps you have seen Cyborg? Or Kylar?"

"No." The mage answered again.

Starfire turned to leave again, but then stopped, "Beast Boy?"

"My eyes are closed, Starfire, I haven't seen anyone." Raven explained, hoping that her teammate would leave her alone.

"They must be doing the 'hanging out' someplace." Starfire said as she turned to leave the room. Before she left, however, she stopped to speak with the mage again, "Perhaps we should do the hanging out." The girl suggested happily, "We never have before, and conceivably it could be fun. We might journey to the mall of shopping, or perform braiding maneuvers upon each other's hair, or…" Starfire trailed off when she noticed black flames outlining the mages' entire body as she slumped over. "You wish to be alone?" She asked as she backed away.

"How could you tell?" Raven rhetorically asked, her composed voice betrayed the fierce grimace on her face and bugged out eyes. With that, Starfire bowed before she left the room, leaving the sorceress alone to meditate. Composing herself, and finding her center again, the blue-cloaked mage pictured herself in outer space. "Azarath Metrion Zin-"

"MAIL CALL!"

"AAAAAHHHH!" The girl let out a long, shocked yell as she flailed about, causing her to fall out of the air. Hitting the floor with a thud, Raven wound up in a heap in the middle of the room as the four boys entered, the bionic Titan carrying a crate as he walked in.

"Robin! Cyborg! Kylar! Beast Boy! You are back!" The auburn-haired Titan cheered as she flew to the boys, "It was… quiet while you were gone."

"Not that quiet." Raven stated as she stood up and dusted herself off.

Cyborg walked to the kitchen table and placed the crate on it. "Check it out. This was sitting by the front door." Beast Boy said as the other members gathered around the gift. "Fan mail-probably a gift from one of my many admirers." He said as he wiggled his eyebrows, the mage simply rolled her eyes at his display.

"Actually, it doesn't say who it's from." Robin said as he leaned to take a closer look at the wooden box. He was correct in his statement, the only words written on the box were –To: Teen Titans- -Titans Tower-.

"What do you think's inside, anyway?" Kylar asked as he scratched the back of his head.

"Well," The metallic teen said as he grabbed the lid of the crate, "one way to find out." He yanked the lid off before he, Robin, Kylar, and Starfire peeked inside. "Whoa!"

"Awesome!"

"Cool!" The Boy Wonder awed as Starfire giggled.

"Honestly, I was kinda hoping for chocolate." Beast Boy remarked as he peeked into the box.

Cyborg reached into the crate and pulled out its contents, "Aww, isn't that cute? Puppet Cy has a light-up eye." He cooed as he held up a white, gray, and blue miniature puppet version of himself, pressing a panel on the chest of the marionette that caused its left eye to light up.

"Yeah. They got all the details just right." Robin smiled as he pulled a grappling hook from his puppet's belt buckle.

"Speak for yourself. I'm way better looking than this!" Beast Boy complained as he held up his puppet. "And taller."

"Do I really look this angry?" Kylar asked as he held up his puppet. It had all the same features as he did; messy brown hair, jeans, black sneakers, gray undershirt, black jacket with its' brown-fluff trimmed hood over its' head and on the end of its sleeves, and slanted eyebrows that gave it an angry look. His male comrades gave him a nod in response.

"Someone certainly has a lot of time on their hands." Raven commented, pulling the hood on her puppet back to find that her hairline had also been recreated.

"I have never seen such a whimsical device." Starfire giggled as she looked her own gift over and worked it around a bit. "Hello, Starfire!" The girl said in a deep tone as she made the marionette bow and extend its' hand, "Hello, tiny wooden replica of Starfire!" She said in her normal tone as she took the small figurines' hand in her own.

Robin was playing around with his miniature self, making it perform various kung-fu moves while Beast Boy moved his puppet next to the Boy Wonders'. "Dude!" The green teen cheered as he made the puppet deliver a kick to the masked puppets' rear, "My puppet is totally kicking your puppet's butt!"

"Not for long." The spiky-haired leader smirked. Kicking into kung-fu mode, he made his marionette strike his opponent with a chop that sent it crashing into the wooden Cyborg.

"You want a piece of me, little man?" The robotic puppet asked as it shook its' fist.

The Beast Boy and Robin puppets kept taking swipes at each other as their operators provided good-natured fighting banter. Cyborg soon got into the act as well, making his replica swing into the fight and hit the backside of the green puppet.

"I'll show you who's king of puppet fighting!" Kylar taunted as he made his puppet jump into the vaudeville act. The four boys continued their fun while Raven just shot them all disapproving looks.

"Boys." She sighed as Starfire approached her.

"Shall my tiny replica do battle with your tiny replica?" The alien asked happily as she moved her own puppet in a fighting manner.

"Knock yourself out." The mage replied flatly as she tossed her marionette to the Tamaranean. Starfire could only give a puzzled stare as she watched her blue-cloaked friend leave the room.

0-0

Later that night, the Titans decided to turn in after a rather uneventful day, crime-wise, and enjoy the ever-pleasant land of dreams. However, not everyone in the building was sleeping. Back on the kitchen table where the wooden crate rested, a hand rose from inside, accompanied by a few wisps of straw and the sound of splintering wood. Next, the other hand emerged and both braced against the crate's edge as a shadowed figure, child-like in appearance with a crown on its' head, hoisted itself out. After escaping from its wooden prison, the small figure made its' way through the Tower.

0-0

Starfire was sleeping soundly in her room. While she slept the wrong way on top of her bedclothes-feet on the pillow, head hanging off the opposite edge, and still wearing her normal clothes-she didn't seemed to be fazed at all while she dreamt. Her puppet was lying nearby on a round stool.

As the defenseless girl snoozed, the small figure that rose from the crate appeared next to her. It quickly dropped out of sight and moved out of the room when the Tamaranean woke up. "Who is there?" She gasped in fright as the door to her room slid close.

0-0

"Ladies… please…" Beast Boy spoke softly as he slept on the top bunk in his room, the bottom one of which was festooned with unmade sheets and dirty clothes… along with the rest of his room. The only source of light in the room was a TV screen that flashed the words Game Over. "…One at a time. You'll all get to take your picture with me." He pulled a sock close to him and kissed it before snoring.

At the foot of the bunk, a shadowed figure made its way to the sleeping shape-shifter and held out a wooden crosspiece, much like one attached to the strings of a puppet. On it, a green spot began to glow on one of the six arms and a green light briefly surrounded the boy. Beast Boy shuddered for a moment before relaxing while a ghostly copy of the teen emerged from his body and entered the puppet next to him.

0-0

Inside the hallway, Starfire slowly made her way through as she tried to follow the noise that had woken her up moments before. "Hello? Hello?" She called out softly as she turned the corner, just missing the shadow of the small figure as it passed the hallway on the far end. "Is someone there?" She asked again as she continued her search.

0-0

Kylar was snoring soundly while he lied on his bed with his hands interlocked behind his head. The sound of a tune chimed through the room as his wooden music box lied open next to him. The marionette he had received from the box was sitting on the bookshelf that was against the wall over his bed. The door opened and in crept the small shadow before it made its' way next to the brunette and held out the same crosspiece. As a purple spot on the handle began to glow, a light of the same color surrounded the black-jacketed teen. Releasing a pained grunt before relaxing, a purple spirit of the Titan emerged from his body, much like with Beast Boy, and entered the wooden copy above him.

0-0

Inside Cyborg's room, the bionic was lying on the incline table in the middle of his room while one big hand gripped his plaything to his chest. The intruder popped next to him and held out the crosspiece, yet again. With a blue-white spot appearing on one of the arms, the big man was enveloped in the same color light. He jerked awake with a sharp gasp, but his head rolled to one side as a specter of himself passed from his body to the puppet, causing the little red eye to light up.

0-0

Finally in Robin's room, his supine form was already swathed in red light. Before dropping to the ground, his ethereal form escaped its physical shell and passed to the puppet sitting atop some nearby bookshelves.

0-0

In the hallway again, Starfire looked around the corner after hearing a creepy chuckle echo in the darkness. "Huh?" Puzzled by the noise, she slowly made her approach, "If this is a joke, it is not-" The sound of a door sliding open caught her attention as she turned to face it, coming face to face with Raven. Both screamed in sheer terror and surprise as their hair stood on end, the short violet strands forming the shape of the bird for which their wearer was named. "Raven!" The auburn-haired teen cheered when she calmed down, "You have also heard the strange noises?"

"The strange noises of you talking outside my door?" The mage quipped after composing herself, "Hard to miss."

"Oh. Forgive me," Starfire apologized, blushing deeply from the embarrassment. "I thought there was someone-" Her sentence was cut off as a sonic blast suddenly shot between them. Turning towards its source, the two girls saw Robin, Cyborg, Kylar, and Beast Boy rushing down the hall towards their position. The masked teen leapt for a kick as the changeling morphed into a velociraptor and charged ahead. The former nearly took Starfire's head off with the sole of his boot while the latter tried to get at Raven, but was stopped when she created an energy barrier to slow him down a bit.

"Beast Boy, it's me! Don't make me hurt you!" The mage warned as she continued holding up barriers to stop his snapping jaws. Unfortunately, he finally broke through and snapped at her.

As the alien Titan flew over Robin's head, he pulled out three discs from his belt and hurled them at the girl. She was able to shoot down two of the projectiles with her starbolts, but was caught by the explosion of the third, causing her to fall out of the air and land in Cyborgs' arms.

The green dinosaur continued its advance against Raven. A swing of the tail knocked her down the hall and into Kylars' arms, causing him to wrap them tightly around the girls' abdomen, pinning her own arms to her sides. "Let me go!" She cried as Robin and Beast Boy approached, the latter returning to human form.

"Friends! Why do you attack us?" Starfire asked as she struggled against the robotic Titans' titanium grip. Upon further inspection, the girls noticed that their male teammates eyes glowed a ghastly light blue.

"Oh, they're not your friends anymore." A menacing voice said from the shadows. The two girls looked in front of them to see a small wooden puppet step into the light, revealing its entire form; the head was quite large, with slick black hair parted in the middle and a hinged mouth just like the marionettes. Its' attire consisted of black boots, gray pants, a crown adorned on its head, a red jacket with gold epaulettes and a sash with badges across its chest. "They are my puppets. These are your friends." He said as he pulled the four puppet replicas of the male Titans.

"Star…fire!" The Robin puppet spoke, sounding a bit muffled and very strained.

"Raven…" The Cyborg puppet cried in the same tone.

"Please!" The Kylar puppet pleaded.

"Help!" The Beast Boy puppet finished.

"Release them!" Raven demanded while Starfire gasped at the sight.

"Sorry, but you're not in charge here." The evil puppet taunted as he swung the boys marionettes behind his back. "You don't command me. I command you!" The royal marionette held up a crosspiece with his right hand, which now showed lights on all six of its arms-red, green, white, purple, blue, and yellow. The two soulless shorter Titans held up the Raven and Starfire marionettes while each girl released a groan as they wreathed in their own color light, blue for the mage and yellow for the Tamaranean. "And with the Puppet King pulling the strings, the Teen Titans will command the entire city."

"Azarath… Metrion… Zinthos…" Raven chanted weakly before passing out as her and Starfires' souls were ejected from their bodies. Once their spirits left, a black starburst emerged from the sorceress' forehead and flared over the entire hall, knocking everyone down, and sending the crosspiece of the, now known, Puppet King skidding across the floor.

"My control!" The creepy wooden object cried as the blue and yellow souls shot out of the device. As their souls floated free from the wooden receptacles, both flashed into the bodies of the closest prone girl. By the time the Puppet King had his control device back in his hand, both girls were able to stand up and sprint off down the hall. "After them!" The mastermind ordered as the two girls escaped, the boys half-standing, half-floating to their feet, ready to pursue.

0-0

In a darkened section of the basement, a grate in the ceiling swung open as Raven and Starfire dropped down and shut it silently as their pursuers ran overhead and passed them.

"The boys!" Starfire cried softly, "Raven! What are we going to-" She began before Starfire's arm reached over and switched on a hanging light bulb. When the light shined, the two girls got a good eyeful of each other in their new situation. Their faces showed the kind of expression one of them would normally have if they were still in their own body.

"Starfire?" Raven asked through the orange-skinned aliens' body, giving her body a bewildered look.

"Raven?" Starfire asked through the gray-skinned girls' body, "*Gasp* You are me! *GASP* And I am you!" She cried as black energy crackled from her forehead and shattered the light bulb, putting them into near-total darkness.

0-0

After having escaped the Tower, the body swapped girls found their way through the underground sewers below a run down section of Jump City. In an attempt to find the two runaways, the Puppet King sent the only two flyers he had at his disposal to quickly search the city for them. Beast Boy, in the form of a hawk, and Kylar flew above the buildings as they searched. When they passed over one specific manhole, the entire street shook briefly as its cover blew sky-high, thanks to some out-of-control telekinesis. The steel circle slammed back to the pavement, rattling loudly as it settled until Starfire, as Raven, reached up and pushed it aside before climbing out.

"Oh, Raven!" The Tamaranean cried through the gloomy sorceress' body, "This is awful! Terribly, horribly awful!" Despair was absolutely filling her voice as the mage climbed out of the hole, in the alien girls body.

(A/N: In an attempt to make things less complicated, I'm going to add hyphens to the girls' names to indicate that they are in different bodies. So –Raven- will be when she is in Starfires' body, and –Starfire- will be when she is in Ravens'. Any other instances of describing the girls will be as though they are still switched.)

"Tell me about it." –Raven- said through Starfires' body as she headed down the sidewalk, pulling her body along behind her.

"Very well." –Starfire- said, catching up to her body. "Robin, Cyborg, Kylar, and Beast Boy have been trapped inside tiny wooden bodies, while a nasty creature called the Puppet King has taken control of their real bodies," The girl explained with increasing panic in her voice, "which he is using to hunt us down, and you and I are in the wrong bodies and-"

"Starfire!" –Raven- called out as she placed a hand on her shoulder, stopping the panicking girl from speaking. "You have to calm down. My powers are driven by emotion. The more you feel, the more energy you unleash." The gloomy alien explained. –Starfire- looked back and saw a couple of parking meters bent over, newspaper boxes having spewed their contents all over the street, and a mailbox melted next to them, all being the result of the trapped Tamaranean panicking.

"But what if they find us? What if our friends are doomed?" The mage asked worriedly, "What if I am stuck looking like this forever?"

"We'll fix it." The orange-skinned alien replied, "I don't know how, but we will rescue the boys and we will get our bodies back." She paused for a brief moment, "What's wrong with the way I look?"

"Nothing!" –Starfire- answered hastily as she brought her hands up, causing a pedestrian crossing signal above their heads to explode. "I will try to calm down." She exhaled deeply as she closed her eyes. "Peace… quiet… tranquil-" A car parked next to them launched straight up and crashed back to the ground… upside down… causing the alarm to sound.

"We are so doomed." –Raven- stated flatly. The car alarm seemed to have attracted unwanted attention as the green hawk that was searching for the girls cried from above.

"Beast Boy!" –Starfire- cried as she pointed to the sky. Overhead, the soulless bird went into a sharp descent with talons extended as it dove straight towards the girls.

"You mean zombie Beast Boy." –Raven- corrected as she pulled the mage toward an alley, "Run!" Both girls made a break for it to escape their pursuer as they turned into the dark pathway. "Fly! Fly!" The orange-skinned girl ordered as she started jumping and flapping her arms, trying to get clear of the ground.

Making their way further into the shadows, the girls slowed down as they saw that the green hawk no longer chased them. "We cannot fight them again." –Starfire- said, "I do not wish to, and in our present condition we would surely be defeated."

"Okay. How do you fly this thing?" The Tamaranean said gesturing at herself.

"You must feel flight." The mage responded.

"What?" –Raven- asked flatly.

"When you feel the unbridled joy of flight, you will fly." –Starfire- explained with a smile. This earned her an uneasy stare from the other girl.

"Unbridled joy? Not really my thing." The orange alien shrugged as they stopped walking.

"Look!" The blue-cloaked girl gasped as she pointed her hand down the alleyway. Her hand movement created a black spark that threw the alien off her feet and to the ground.

Picking herself off the ground, -Raven- glanced down the alley and saw a green tiger rushing towards them. "What do I have to feel to use starbolts?" The auburn-haired alien asked as she stood up.

"Righteous fury." –Starfire- replied, making an angered face to show example.

The orange Titan shot her a look of disbelief, "Your alien strength?"

"Boundless confidence." The other girl replied with a wide grin as she puffed out her chest.

"Nevermind." –Raven- returned as she ran back the way they came, yanking –Starfire- along with her. As Beast Boy pursued, the two girls took a different turn and wound up in a darker stretch of the alley. When they ran through, something swooped down in front of them, causing the girls to gasp; the mysterious object straightened and exposed Robin's silhouette, eyes still glowing blue in the darkness. They backed up a few steps only to find the green jungle cat blocking their retreat. The animal moved in closer and roared while the soulless Boy Wonder brought out his fighting staff and leapt in for an attack. Beast boy pounced as well.

The girls stood pat and sidestepped at the last moment, causing the two zombie Titans to collide in midair and fall to the ground. Breathing a sigh of relief, -Raven- and –Starfire- looked up and saw Kylars' body floating in the air. The swapped girls quickly took off down the alley as the brunette gave chase.

The mage and Tamaranean were able to evade the pursuing zombie as they ducked into yet another side passage in the alley, flattening themselves against the wall to stay out of sight while Kylar flew past the corner without a second thought. –Raven- gave a relieved smile, but immediately changed it to a frown when two very large and familiar bionic hands smashed through the bricks behind them. The surprise caused –Starfire- to create an inadvertent burst of telekinesis that propelled her Tamaranean body upward.

"Wait for me, please!" The blue-clad girl cried as she ran off before the bulky robotic Titan knocked down the wall, drooling a little bit before looking after them.

As the girls rounded a corner, they found themselves in a dead end. Turning around, -Raven- and –Starfire- saw the hulking silhouette of Cyborg approaching them while Robin, Beast Boy, and Kylar soon jumped in and joined him.

"If I can't fly, you have to levitate." The orange-skinned girl stated, "You know those words I always-"

"Yes!" The mage replied before sucking in a huge breath.

"Wait! You have to focus!" –Raven- shouted, causing –Starfire- to exhale deeply.

Soon the shadows of the four boys were upon them, "Azarath Metrion Zinthos!" The mage chanted in a hasty panic. For a moment, nothing happened. But that changed when she shot up like a rocket, dragging the alien Titan by the hand. Both girls screamed as they gained too much altitude and shot off in a direction away from the four zombified Titans, who only stared as they flew away.

Operating on a ragged edge of control, -Starfire- towed –Raven- above roof level and soared over Jump City. "I wish to stop! Please tell me the way to stop!" The blue-cloaked girl pleaded.

"Look at the ground and imagine-" The Tamaranean began explaining, but the flying mage turned her gaze downward before she could finish, "Wait!" Unfortunately for the girl, the severely inexperienced pilot dropped like a rock, causing both to slam down into a huge pile of trash between two buildings. After a moment, they poked their heads from the mound.

"Ugh! I smell like the breath of a Snervian blork worm." –Starfire- groaned as she removed a can from her head. She looked over and saw –Raven- feverishly shoveling waste toward the street. "Raven, what are you-"

"Shhh!" The working girl shushed the other girl by clapping a hand over her mouth. Leaning back to hide herself behind the berm she made, -Raven- threw a trash bag at Starfire that landed on her head and drove her out of sight.

Robin and Cyborg walked through the alley and looked around a bit just as the two girls hid from view. Not seeing anything worth attention, they continued on their patrols.

Behind the trash pile, -Starfire- created a small amount of black energy that surrounded her left hand. –Raven- gave her a hard look as the other girl moaned sadly at having lost control again. "Peace, quiet, tranquility… peace, quiet, tranquility." The mage repeated to herself in an effort to calm down.

"It's all right. They're going." The orange-skinned girl reassured her friend as she peered through a small opening in the wall of junk. As she watched the departing pair, a large green rat popped into her view, causing the mage to gasp in fright before being silenced by the alien teens' hand on her mouth. As though their luck couldn't get any worse, Kylar approached the pile of junk as well.

Both girls began sweating nervously as the green rat sniffed around the trash just as the brunette reached down to remove a bag of garbage. "Enough!" The girls heard the voice belonging to the Puppet King shout. The order caused Kylars' body to freeze in position, just before grabbing a bag, while the green rat quickly scuttled up the brunettes' arm and sat on his shoulder. The two soon walked away and joined the small puppet at the mouth of the alley while Robin and Cyborg did the same. "We will catch the other two after the ceremony is complete."

"Ceremony?" The Robin puppet asked as the Puppet King held out the four male marionettes.

"What ceremony?" The Cyborg puppet added.

"Just a little spell that will destroy you four and make your bodies mine forever." The wooden villain chillingly explained. "Come, my puppets." He beckoned for the four boys to follow him, whom they obeyed, Beast Boy still as a rat on Kylars' shoulder.

After they left, a few trash bags from the dump heap rolled away as the two girls stepped out. "How can you stand having this much hair?" –Raven- asked as she tried getting her auburn hair untangled.

"Quickly, Raven! Our friends are in danger!" –Starfire- said, grabbing the other girls' hand and dragging her down the alley, "We must follow and-"

"And what?" The gloomy alien asked in a defeated tone, "Save them with my unusable powers while your unbridled emotions blow us to bits? Nice flying, by the way." She pulled her hand away from the mages' grip.

This angered the mage as black aura surrounded her, "At least I am able to fly." The out of body plucky girl growled, "On my planet, even a newborn can unleash the joy of flight. But you are too busy being grumpy and rude to feel anything at all!"

"Maybe you haven't noticed, but my emotions are dangerous. I can't afford to feel anything." –Raven- returned as she turned her back on her body, "You may have my body, but you know nothing about me."

The aura around –Starfire- dissipated at the realization of her teammates' words. "Perhaps you are right." She admitted, causing the other girl to turn around, "And if you and I are to overcome this ordeal, we must know everything about each other. So… begin sharing."

Hearing the sincerity in her tone, -Raven- realized she was right, "All right." She returned with a smile as the two of them took a seat on the ground. "I was born in a place called Azarath…"

0-0

Dawn neared and the hour of the boys losing their souls was upon the girls. After explaining to each other their own upbringings and their respective powers, the girls made their way to a run-down area in Jump City where they found themselves hunkered behind a large stone fountain in the courtyard of a decrepit old theater named the Bijou. Examining the building, -Raven- and –Starfire- saw a green Doberman pinscher pacing at the bottom of the steps that led up to the entrance while they noticed a certain aura manipulator floating around the rooftops.

"Looks like security's tight tonight." The body-swapped Goth said as Kylars' body flew away from the building, leaving the roof unguarded, "Let's try the roof."

"Agreed." –Starfire- said as she took –Ravens'- hand, "Now, do just as I instructed. Close your eyes and think of something joyful." The comment caused the orange-skinned teen to roll her eyes and sigh wearily. "You might choose flowers, or kittens, or the laughter of children, or- *gasp*" She gasped happily as both floated clear off the ground. Slowly but surely, they ascended to the roof and were not spotted by either guardsman as they touched down next to a locked trapdoor on the top of the building. "Very, very good!" The mage cheered, "What was your joyful thought?"

"You don't want to know." –Raven- replied with a shrug as she looked away from her partner.

"Oh, but I do." The cloaked girl insisted, "Please tell me. What did you imagine?"

"You not talking." The alien Titan admitted hesitantly, causing the other girls' eyes to bug out of her head.

"Oh. Well…" –Starfire- looked down sadly, "I am glad I was able to help."

-Raven- glanced at her teammate before looking down at the lock on the trapdoor. "Your turn." She said as she looked at the mage again, "Find your center. Focus your energy on the lock."

With a nod, the blue-clad mage closed her eyes. A moment later, she opened them again, showing them to be glowing white like when the normal sorceress uses her own powers. Encasing her hands in the black aura, she focuses the magic on the lock. "Azarath… Metrion… Zinthos." –Starfire- chanted as the lock snapped apart, followed by a giggle at her success.

"Nice work." The orange-skinned alien said, impressed at her friends' control in power.

"Success!" The mage whooped as she jumped into the air. The outburst caused her abilities to flare up, causing the trapdoor to fly open and send echoes throughout the theater.

"Nice work." –Raven- groaned sarcastically as –Starfire- shrieked in terror at what she just did.

0-0

Inside the run-down building, the Puppet King stood before a large bowl filled with blue-white flames. Candles were set up in a circular formation around him and the bowl while a scenery flat was placed behind the ceramic with the boys' puppets hanging over the top edge of it. The echo of the trapdoor drew his attention before he could spill a test tube filled with powder into the fire.

"Search and destroy." The regal marionette ordered, gesturing to Robin and Cyborgs' bodies behind him, "I do not want an audience." The two soulless teens obeyed and left their masters' presence. "Well, Titans…" He said, turning his attention back to the four puppets as he poured the contents of the tube into the fire, "…time for your grand finale."

Above the ceremony, -Raven- and –Starfire- had made their way onto a catwalk and watched in horror as the Puppet King grabbed the four puppets. "No," The orange alien gasped in shock.

"It's going to be a real showstopper." The evil puppet said as he held the four puppets over the rising flames by their strings.

"Stop!"

"Don't!"

"Please!"

"Help!" The four boys cried in protest, only for their struggles to fail since they couldn't move their bodies at all.

"Don't worry." The Puppet King said, "I'll take good care of your bodies. After all, they'll be mine forever." With that, the voodoo puppet released the strings in his hand, dropping the puppets toward the flaming oblivion he had prepared for them.

Before the powerless boys landed in the bowl, an orb of black magic surrounded the four of them and lifted them into the air. When the puppets reached the overhead catwalk, they saw Raven and Starfire in front of them.

"My friends! You are unharmed!" The mage laughed as she swept the four wooden figures into a crushing hug.

"Starfire?" The Robin puppet asked as he tried processing what he heard.

"It's a long story." The orange alien responded.

Below the catwalk, the angered Puppet King gestured with his crosspiece; in response, his four victims regrouped with him, Beast Boy no longer in the form of a dog. "Go, my puppets! Capture them!" He ordered. Beast Boy transformed into a vampire bat as he and Kylar flew up towards the two girls. Robin and Cyborg clambered up the scaffolding in an attempt to capture their targets.

"Move!" –Raven- yelled as she yanked –Starfire-, who still reveled in her rescue of the puppets, down the catwalk. They made their way across the planks, but were stopped short when the changeling and brunette cut in front of them. Robin vaulted up and landed in a crouch behind them while Cyborg leapt onto the railing and fired his sonic cannon. The blast sent both girls and the puppets flying every which way, with the four puppets landing onto the stage in a heap.

"Dude, get your butt outta my face!" The Beast Boy Puppet cried.

"Can't move. Deal with it." The Robin Puppet returned.

Elsewhere, the girls were doing a little short-range skydiving of their own. –Starfire- tried grabbing a curtain cord to stop herself, while –Raven- did her best to start flying.

As a human again, Beast Boy hopped onto the railing and turned into a gorilla as he and Robin jumped over the edge of the catwalk. Their two targets, which finally managed to control their powers of flight, scattered an instant before the two zombies could tackle them.

-Starfire- made her way through the jumble of rigging while being chased by the Boy Wonder before touching down on the catwalk. "Robin, I do not wish to fight you." The mage pleaded as she dodged a kick from her zombie leader. Her pleas fell on deaf ears as the masked teen grabbed her by the cloak and threw the girl toward the railing. He moved a few steps toward the defeated girl, ready to finish the job. The swapped Tamaranean noticed one of his feet was placed within a loop of rope that lied on the boards. "But I will if I must!" She yelled as she levitated a nearby sandbag off the railing. The connecting rope was the same one that looped around her opponents' foot and quickly dragged him up through the support framework. –Starfire- gave a quick squeal in success before standing up and running down the catwalk before a green gorilla landed where she was seated.

On the other side of the fight, -Raven- was trying her best to stay ahead of Cyborg and Kylar as they made their way through the scaffolding and cables around the catwalk. She soon touched down and back up to a wall as her two opponents approached her.

"Okay, Raven. Starbolts. Just let go of your emotions, feel the righteous fury, and…" The body-swapped sorceress' pep talk was abruptly halted when the bionic Titan aimed a punch at her and knocked a few dozen bricks from the wall. She dodged to the right, only for Kylar to follow up in an attempt to seize her. She leapt away from the two attackers, but an aura powered double axe handle from the brunette caused the catwalk to collapse beneath her feet when he slammed his hands down.

Falling toward the stage, -Raven- managed to control her flying and flew back up towards the brunette, delivering a walloping uppercut that dumped him on the ground at Cyborgs' feet. The big man quickly jumped onto the railing, grabbed a rope and swung across at her. She managed to get airborne before the robotic zombies' enormous metal boots crashed through both sides of the catwalk. Flying high, the orange-skinned Titan angled herself for a diving kick that connected with the metallic teens chest just as he swung underneath her.

The force of the blow caused the robotic zombie to lose his grip and plummet towards the stage, where the four puppets of the boys laid.

"*Gasp* Azarath Metrion Zinthos!" The blue clad mage quickly chanted as she watched the body of her friend fall past her. The spell caught Cyborgs' hulking frame just before crushing the puppet vessels to toothpicks. –Starfire- smiled as she directed the body away from the pile. However, she looked up just in time to dodge a falling sandbag and saw a snarling Robin diving toward her. An instant after he landed on the catwalk, however, Cyborgs' body sailed through the air and plowed into the spiky-haired Titan, knocking both of them away.

Watching the body-swapped Tamaranean hold her own with unfamiliar powers, -Raven- smiled as she stood on a higher walk before a loud growl drew a shocked gasp. Looking up, she saw the green gorilla from before leap down to her level in a bid to crush her, only to miss when she ran down the catwalk. However, the tremor from his landing was enough to throw her off her feet.

Catching herself on her hands and knees, -Raven- looked over and saw the green animal approaching. "Righteous fury, righteous fury, concentrate…" She told herself as she stood up and held one hand straight out. A green spark flickered from the extended hand, but a swipe from the zombie gorilla ended her attempts. The orange alien flew off, only to have one of her ankles caught by her opponent and get hurled back to the catwalk. He raised his clasped hands to smash her apart, but missed when a last second roll to the side saved his targets life. Fetching up against the railing, -Raven- looked down at the sound of a scream from –Starfire- as she dodged oncoming attacks from the soulless Boy Wonder.

"Raven, help!" The mage cried as she continued dodging a combination of Robin and Cyborgs' punches. Unfortunately, the body-swapped mage could do nothing to help as the gorilla planted one of his huge hands on her head and lifted her off the ground.

She shook loose and drove the sole of her boot in his face before leaping back to the perch on the scaffolding. "Starfire!" –Raven- called out. The blue-cloaked girl looked up towards her, distracting her from Kylars' floating form as he prepared an aura sphere in his hands, ready to attack the girl. Pushing off from the framework, the auburn-haired girl dove as fast as she could and tackled the brunette in midair, driving him away from the catwalk and catching the edge of his hood in one hand to leave him hanging as his aura dissipated.

"Not me! Them!" –Starfire- shouted as she pointed down towards the stage. Looking down, -Raven- followed her gaze and her face assumed the same shock that set off her counterpart's panic. On the stage, the Puppet King was running toward the flaming vessel, carrying the four boys' replicas.

"The Puppet King is in command!" Said wooden villain cheered as he held the marionettes over the fire.

At the sight of this, the orange aliens' free hand began glowing a bright green, "NO!" She shouted as she hurled a full-strength starbolt at the villain that exploded with the force of a small bomb upon impact.

The puppets and their maker were flung across the stage, knocking the regal marionettes' crosspiece high above the scene. It bounced off a sandbag and dropped neatly toward the blue-white fire, flaring up brilliantly when the wood fell in. "Uh! My control!" The blaze shaped itself into an approximate likeness of his face, causing the Puppet King to twitch and jitter in his prone position. "NOOOOOOO!" The mastermind cried as light poured from his eyes and mouth. The influence lifted him off his feet, and the four puppets trembled as the souls trapped within flew freely, returning to their respective bodies. The same thing happened to Starfire and Raven as their spirits poured out of the bodies they currently inhabited before returning to their proper homes.

Once every soul was back where it belonged, the now returned Tamaranean landed on the ground and set the black-jacketed teen down as the blue sorceress joined them. "I am me!" Starfire cheered as she walked over to Raven, "And you are you!"

"And we're us!" Cyborg exclaimed as he, Beast Boy, and Robin emerged from the wings, while Kylar walked over to join them, all having completely recovered from the madman's influence.

"Thanks to you two." The Boy Wonder said graciously.

"I knew you wouldn't let us down." The brunette cheered.

"You go, girls!" The changeling whooped as he raised one arm into the air.

"Raven, we have done it!" The Tamaranean gasped happily as she pulled her female counterpart into a wildly enthusiastic hug.

"You're hugging me…" The mage groaned as she offered resistance.

"NOOOOOOO!" The six Titans heard an agonized scream come from the stage. They all looked over and saw the Puppet King sprawled out and trying to crawl forward as light still poured from his eyes and mouth. "The magic! Without it, I'm just a…" He trailed off as the luminosity faded, leaving the slack-jawed, googly-eyed figurine in a heap on the ground.

Kylar walked over and picked the lifeless doll off the ground. Once he brought it to eye level, a wicked grin crept across his face.

0-0

Finally, things had returned to normal. After a very, very eventful early morning, and much needed rest, Raven floated near the windows in the Operations Center as she meditated.

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos… Azarath Metrion Zinthos…" The gray-skinned teen chanted.

"Raven, forgive my interruption, but…" Starfire began as she stood behind the meditating mage.

"I haven't seen Robin, Cyborg, Kylar, or Beast Boy." She interrupted, opening her right eye as she answered the question she thought her colleague would ask.

"Truthfully, I am wishing to join you in meditation." The Tamaranean hesitated as she rubbed her left arm.

This caught the sorceress off guard, "Really?" Raven asked as she turned to the auburn-haired Titan, "All right." Starfire flew over and assumed the same meditating pose her Gothic friend was in, as well as floating at the same height above the ground. "Find your center." The sorceress said as she faced the window and closed her eyes, Starfire did the same. "Focus your energies, and…"

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos…" Both girls began chanting, "Azarath Metrion Zinthos…"

"Starfire?" Raven asked as she broke off from the mantra, opening one eye to look at her friend.

"Yes?" The alien responded, also opening an eye to see the girl.

"After this… would you like to go to the mall?" The cloaked girl asked hesitantly, as though the words themselves made her cringe at the idea.

"Mmm-hmm." The cheery Titan nodded before both of them closed their eyes again.

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos… Azarath Metrion Zinthos…"

0-0

Far from the Tower, past the city, in fact, even past the mountains, Kylar stood in the barren desert that occupied the lands outside of Jump. On his back was the same single-strapped brown backpack he wore when he first arrived in Jump. At his feet, he had a canister of gasoline and some pieces of wood. In front of him was a pile of wood and leaves that were surrounded by rocks so as to prevent the spread of a fire… even though he was in the middle of a desert.

He lifted the canister and poured some of its' contents onto the pile in front of him. After placing it back on the ground, he removed his backpack and searched inside it before pulling out what he wanted: the Puppet King. He held the lifeless figurine in front of him, "Tell me something, do you believe in karma?" He asked the doll. Its' head only tilted to the side as its' mouth hung open, "Neither do I." The brunette added as he dropped the puppet into the pile of flammables. After putting his backpack over his shoulder, Kylar pulled out a box of matches from his pocket, pulled one out, and lit it. "Where ever your soul went, I hope it found peace." He said coolly before flicking the lit match toward the pile.

Once it touched, the gasoline ignited into a brilliant blaze, consuming the wood and leaves quickly as the wooden puppet crackled as it caught on fire. As the brunette stared at the blazing inferno, the sound of screaming filled his mind as the rising flames reflected in his sapphire eyes. They weren't his screams… no… not his.

It wasn't until he heard the chiming of a tune that he snapped back to reality. Immediately recognizing the sound, Kylar turned around and saw a figure covered by a long, white, zip-up cloak with a hood that covered its' face standing a few feet from him. The figure was around the same body type and height as the brunette and also wore black gloves and boots while the cloak had gray trim on the shoulders, around the ribcage, and down the middle of the hood that lead to the back. In the figures' right hand was a wooden music box. "Lovely tune, isn't it?" The figure asked, its' voice revealing it to be male.

Confused, Kylar quickly patted his pockets to try and find his own music box. When he couldn't, he realized that it was his musical cube that the white-hooded figure was holding. "How did you-"

"Ah-ta-ta!" The figure held up a finger to shush the black-jacketed teen, "I love this song." He began moving his hand in a rhythmic fashion that followed the chiming, "But with you, I will go on ships over seas that I now know." He sang.

"No, they don't exist anymore." Kylar finished as the tune ended. With a sigh, the mysterious figure closed the box as the tune ended. "Who are you?"

"Well now, there's no fun if I just tell you that, is there?" The white-hooded male said as he tossed the music box back to its' owner, who caught it in his left palm.

"What do you want?" The brunette asked in a threatening tone as he placed the box back in his jacket pocket while purplish-black energy emitted from his shoulders.

The cloaked figure laughed at his tone, "I didn't come to fight, if that's what you're asking." He replied, "Although are you sure you should be using your powers, even after what you've been through?"

Kylar was surprised at the mysterious persons' words, but he didn't let it show on his face. Instead, the aura emitting from his body dissipated as he continued eyeing the figure in front of him.

"Don't worry, everything will be explained in due time." The mysterious stranger chuckled as he approached the brunette. When he was within reaching distance, he placed a hand on the Titans' shoulder, "But for now, it's time to say goodbye." Kylar felt a powerful energy flow through his body at the figures' touch. Releasing his grip, the white-hooded male walked past the brunette and the fire, "Just make sure you don't die before we have another one of these chats." He said calmly as he waved without looking behind him.

"Hey wait!" Kylar quickly yelled as he turned around. But when he faced the direction the figure left, he was nowhere to be seen, as though he had disappeared into thin air. Nothing but silence accompanied the brunette before he heard the sound of wood cracking. Looking down, he noticed the fire was dying. The Titan crouched next to the pile of wood, "Great," the black-jacketed teen sighed as he tossed some pieces of wood into the fire, "even more problems to worry about."

Author's Note:

Who was that mysterious figure that spoke to the brown-haired Titan? What were those screams he heard in his head? How will Beast Boy ever find a girlfriend? Tune in next time for another exciting chapter of Teen Titans Z... Wait, what the hell?

Who wrote that? This isn't Dragonball Z, it's not even close to that.

Well, another day, another chapter. I have to say, this was actually pretty difficult to write considering I don't normally like the whole body swap thing, and it's kinda hard to keep track of who says what when writing. But hopefully I did a well enough job for all my voracious readers to understand and enjoy what you read. If not, I apologize.

For those of you who take the time to read these Author's Notes, thank you, you people are my favorite. To those who do not read these Author's Notes, I still like you, but not as much as the people who do read these.

Just a repeat, but remember to write a review if you want to, and if you have any questions or suggestions, PM me if you want. I enjoy hearing from all of you.

Until next time, See You Space Cowboys.

Disclaimer: I do not own anything from the DC Universe, nor do I own anything from Teen Titans. Any other references made belong to their respective owners, again I own nothing.