It would be amazing if I owned the Teen Titans - almost as amazing as you wonderful readers are! ;D
Raven stifled a giggle as she watched Beast Boy race around the magic shop with wonder-filled eyes. Starfire had coyly suggested shopping for the rest of the ingredients alone, leaving Raven to accompany (well, more like babysit) the changeling. Despite knowing exactly what the alien was trying to do, Raven allowed it. Spending a little time with Beast Boy before the ball seemed like a good idea.
"Dude, Rae! Check this out!"
Raven cautiously made her way further into the shop, dodging the slew of ten-year-olds that were present. She was pleasantly surprised that the children were leaving them alone, but she chalked it up to a room full of "magic" and short attention spans.
Something that seemed to be affecting her teammate as well.
"Isn't this awesome? You just stick in a quarter and set your hand there, and it reads your palm!" Beast Boy's excited grin faltered slightly at the empath's look of indifference, until he seemed to come up with the bright idea of a demonstration. He quickly pulled a quarter out of his pocket and slipped it in the slot, before grabbing Raven's hand and placing it in the designated area.
"What are you doing - " she began, but the changeling silenced her with a grin.
"Just watch - it's so cool!" he insisted.
Raven let out a shaky breath as she turned her attention to the machine. Above her hand was a panel of possible outcomes; ranging from future careers to the identity of one's soulmate. She felt slightly disappointed when Beast Boy pushed the button for Outlook on Life - as if she didn't already know how she saw the world. The lights beside her fingers lit up momentarily as it begun its "reading", before the chosen panel lit up the Free Spirit outcome.
"Pretty accurate, huh?" he mused, giving her a cheeky smile. Raven merely huffed in amusement, before noticing that the changeling had neglected to let go of her hand completely. Though the machine had "accurately" read her palm, her teammate's own hand had been resting on top of hers.
He seemed to have noticed at the same time as he attempted to snatch his hand away, but Raven quickly caught it with her own.
Smiling internally at the blush on his face while ignoring her own, she gave him a small smirk.
"Your turn."
Just like he had moments before, she placed his hand on the machine, before giving him a pointed look. As if reading her mind, he rolled his eyes fondly before digging into his pocket and fishing out another quarter. She felt her smirk return as she took the coin from his hand and slipped it into the slot.
"Hmm," Raven hummed, pretending to seriously consider the options. "Well, how about we see who your soulmate is?" she suggested casually.
Beast Boy nodded slowly as his blush intensified slightly.
Feeling confident, and extremely grateful that her powers were not acting up, Raven slowly pressed the button.
Again, the lights beside Beast Boy's hand lit up, but Raven was focused on the answer panel. There were several possible outcomes for who his soulmate could be, though Raven was hoping the Close Friend option would light up.
And it did.
She attempted to suppress her smile as she tilted her head to the side in mock-confusion. "Huh," she mused, turning her attention back to her blushing teammate. "Do you think that it's referring to Cyborg?"
The look of disgust on Beast Boy's face was enough to bring her smile to the surface as he backed away. "Eww! Rae!"
She shrugged innocently as her eyes scanned the store. Though at first the magic shop seemed like a pointless place to go, she was finding that it was becoming very useful as her eyes settled on a particular display.
"Oh, love potions and spells?" she mused aloud, giving Beast Boy a sideways look. "Do you think they work?"
Her teammate appeared to be speechless as his mouth opened and closed repeatedly. Deciding not to wait for an answer, Raven began making her way towards the pink display shelf.
Embrace the day, Raven, she reminded herself, feeling her burst of confidence falter slightly when Beast Boy didn't automatically follow her. She knew that her behavior the past couple of days had been strange, and that she was bound to have been sending him a plethora of mixed signals, but she hoped that she wasn't scaring him away.
As her hand traced the label of one of the potions, she felt a shiver run down her spine when she caught sight of her teammate from the corner of her eye.
His shoulder bumped against hers ever so slightly as he leaned in to read the label.
"'Guaranteed to triple your chances of getting the guy!' Huh."
Raven slowly pulled a bottle off of the shelf as she flipped it around to read the ingredients. "Well, what guy wouldn't love sugar-water and red dye number forty?" she deadpanned, earning a chuckle from her teammate.
"Sounds foolproof - you should slip some to that mystery guy of yours."
Raven could feel her heart beat speed up as she tried to keep her composure. She attempted to get a quick reading on her teammate's emotions, but found that he was still somehow muting them. She groaned internally as she realized she'd have to stick to reading his body language - something she wasn't very good at.
Shifting her gaze back to him, she noticed the hunched-over way he was standing as he rolled on the balls of his feet with his hands in his pockets. His eyes scanned the room sporadically as he took a few shuddering breaths, before looking back at her.
"So, uh... this mystery guy - "
"I'm still not telling you, Beast Boy."
Raven smirked at the disgruntled expression that appeared on her teammate's face as he scoffed in mock-offense.
"But what if he's diabetic or something? Or hypoglycemic? Or are those two the same thing?" A confused expression clouded his features, and Raven fought the urge to smile again. "Which is the one where you can't have sugar? Or is it that you need sugar?"
"Just stop before you hurt yourself," she laughed, setting the love potion back onto the shelf.
He let out a small chuckle as well, before rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. "You think so highly of me," he mused sarcastically.
Raven lightly smacked him on the shoulder as she made her way towards the exit. Despite the fact that it had only been a few minutes since Starfire had left them, the empath was feeling a little overwhelmed. Sure, Beast Boy had no idea that Starfire's suggestion of splitting up had ulterior motives, but Raven still felt a little hesitant. The idea sounded good on paper, but her fleeting confidence was tempting her to find the alien.
"Awe man, we're leaving?"
Raven smiled to herself as she peeked over her shoulder. Beast Boy was slowly trailing behind her, obviously reluctant to leave the store.
"I thought you were gonna get some of that love potion!"
Raven shook her head in amusement as the green teen caught up. "Are you saying I would need it?" she questioned coyly, arching her brow.
Beast Boy let out a nervous laugh as he avoided her eyes. "N-no, of course not," he mumbled shyly.
Raven felt her confidence slowly return as they began walking down the boardwalk. Giving him a sideways glance, she noticed a faint blush on his cheeks. Suppressing a devious grin, she decided that "faint" wouldn't do.
"Then why would you assume I was going to buy a love potion?" she drawled, letting her gaze wander as they headed in a direction she hadn't been yet. The shops and attractions were slowly becoming more commercial, and she realized that they were getting closer to the boardwalk carnival.
Beast Boy seemed to have noticed as well as he began making a roundabout way back to the center of the market. Naturally, Raven followed his lead, though they were still walking side by side.
"I don't know... I mean, I know you wouldn't really need one, since the dude would be stupid not to already like you," he replied after a while.
Raven felt her heart skip a beat as they passed the magic store once more. She allowed a small smile to surface as her teammate eyed it longingly, before they found themselves in the center of the market once more.
"So you think he already likes me?" she mused, hoping that her monotone was strong enough to convey nonchalance.
Beast Boy scoffed incredulously at her question. "Well, duh! Every guy who has ever met you has probably liked you!"
Rolling her eyes at his dramatics, she let out a curt laugh. "Oh, so every guy I know likes me? Sounds credible."
She tried probing the changeling's emotions as she waited for his reply, but found nothing more than his usual happy-go-lucky attitude.
"Well, okay, I maybe exaggerated a little," he laughed, before rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. "What I meant is, any guy who knows you like I do would be crazy not to like you."
Raven's heart began pounding a mile a minute as she soaked in his words. Is he hinting at something? she wondered, feeling her cheeks flush. Chanting her mantra in her head, she pressed his emotions harder, trying to find any indication of affection.
Unfortunately, all she found was mortification, and she figured he had realized what he had potentially let slip.
"I-I mean - " he began in a panic, again resembling a Christmas tree.
"Friends! Thank the goodness I have found you!" a cheerful voice interrupted from behind.
Raven felt her heart sink as both her and Beast Boy whipped their heads around, only to be greeted by the sight of an excited alien.
"I have found all the ingredients, so we may begin the task of making the makeup!"
The empath couldn't find the will to be angry with her teammate's ill-timed appearance as she gave the redhead a forced smile.
"That's great, Starfire. Should we head on back?"
Raven idly hoped that Beast Boy would protest, but he seemed way too flustered to even speak properly at the moment, so she figured it was a lost cause.
"If we are all done with the shopping!" Starfire enthused, directing her attention to the changeling.
It took a while, but Beast Boy eventually found his voice. "You two, uh, go ahead," he replied, avoiding eye contact with either girl. "I have, uhm, something I need to buy real quick."
Raven felt her curiosity get the best of her as she opened her mouth to question him, but Starfire beat her to it.
"Oh! What is it that you are planning to purchase?"
Again, Beast Boy avoided their gazes as he glanced around at their surroundings. "Uh, just one of those little wooden elephants - I forget which store they're at, and I don't wanna waste your guys's time by dragging you around. After all, you guys got a ball to get ready for!"
His words seemed to convince Starfire as her face lit up in excitement. "And get ready, we shall! Come, Raven! The circles of darkness will not conceal themselves!"
Raven was about to protest, but the alien's inhuman strength was enough to pull her from the ground as her teammate sped off towards the parking lot. Feeling defeated, Raven let herself get dragged along as she glanced back at Beast Boy, who began heading back towards the magic shop.
Though she could have sworn he passed it before her and Starfire turned the corner, and she completely lost sight of him.
Hmm, I wonder where BB is going? :P
So here is another chapter! Again, the wait wasn't too long, so I hope you guys have fully forgiven me! :D
Also, some thank-yous are in order: this fic has passed 200 favorites! That is so completely amazing! I never imagined that happening, and I am beyond ecstatic! Thank you to everyone who had favorited! And thank you to my followers and reviewers as well! We're almost to 600 reviews and 300 follows - another incredible feat that I never thought would happen! You all are amazing! Eeeee! :D