Ch 5

BB woke up the next morning to a knock at his door. Looking at the clock, it read 9AM. "Uh," he sighed, "who wakes up this early?" he asked walked down the latter of his bunk bed and opened the door. "Cr-Craven? What are you-?"

"We haven't had a chance to talk since you ran away last night. Can I come in?"

"Uh sure," he said as he closed the door behind him. "What did you tell my friends?"

"Nothing, I could tell you didn't want then to know but they should know Garfield."

"It's Beast boy now. That part of my life is over so what did you want?"

"How did you survive? You died. I shut off the machines."

"I don't know Craven. I just remember waking up, and I left."

"You were only a little child. Why did you leave? If I would have known you were alive, I would have-"

"I couldn't stay. I had to find my own way in the world. I didn't want to burden anyone to take care of me. With these powers I could take care of myself. I didn't feel like I deserved anyone to care for me. Who could ever love me? And now I'm getting to serious for my own good. If there's nothing else, I would like to be alone."

"Very well Beast boy."

"Oh and don't tell anyone we had this conversation. Don't tell them anything about what you know about me."

"Sooner or later it will catch up to you. You'll have to face yourself."

"Not now I don't so..."

"It's nice to see you Beast boy. I'm glad you're still here, but you should know that my wife knows as well."

"You can't let her say anything. Make sure she hasn't said anything Craven. Please!"

"I will Beast boy, but I can see that it eats at you. Take care of yourself."

Beast boy hugged him. "I won't forget what you've done for me. Thank you Craven."

Craven walked out of the room as BB closed the door. Raven came from around the corner. She had seen Craven go into Beast boy's room. 'Why?' she thought as she walked past her teammate's room and followed her uncle into the the living room. She saw him sit beside her aunt. She snuck in quietly and ducked behind the couch.

"You look troubled Craven."

"I am Violet. I went to see Garfield this morning."

"What happened?"

"He was thankful for everything I've done for him, but he wanted to make sure we didn't tell anyone, not even his friends."

"It's not our place but at the same time it feels wrong not to tell his friends. They're good people."

"What if we tell Raven? Maybe she can get Garfield to open up so at least he doesn't carry whatever burden he has alone."

"Why Raven?"

"You're mother talked to me last night. She met with Garfield in the park, and she wanted to know about Raven. Azar said the way he spoke about her spoke volumes to her. His voice was soft and caring while his eyes held a spark. Perhaps Garfield has feelings for our niece."

Raven could feel the warmth returning to her. She had never thought it was possible for Beast boy to have feelings for her. 'No, it's not possible.'

"That might not be such a bad idea," said Violet, "but there's something else you're not telling me. There's another reason you think Raven is the best person for him to talk to."

"You're right. It was the day he died. I unhooked his machines and couldn't bear to look at him. He was so small, so fragile, and beaten. He was dead. I went to my cot, closed my eyes, and went to sleep, hoping the pain would go away. I woke up at some point. My eyes were blurry, and I saw the shape of a small child wearing blue. My eyes were blurry, but I heard the child's voice. It sounded like Raven's."

"What did she say?"

"It's not your time yet. If I don't give up, you can't give up to, ok? I-I'll just heal you and then you can start over. I can start over to," said Raven.

She couldn't believe she had forgotten that she met Beast boy. She remembered how he looked that day. She swore she had never seen anyone look that small. He had so many scars and wounds that it had take everything in her not to cry. She was little then and wasn't fully emotionless yet. She had escaped her own world and away from the monks because she wanted to feel. She wanted to be like everyone else. When she had seen the dead boy, she thought about how easy it would have been to die rather than live an emotionless life. She realized she would be taking the easy way out and as she looked at the boy, she wanted to give him a second chance at life. He was too young to die like this. She healed him, flew out the window, opened a portal, and went back to Azarath.

"Raven?"

"It was you, wasn't it?" asked Craven as Raven stood up from behind the couch.

"Look, I'm sorry I spied on you," said Raven. "I-

"It's all right Raven. You're concerned about your friend," said Violet.

"You think he has feelings for me?"

"You like him to, don't you sweetie?" asked Violet.

"Violet, don't pressure the girl," said Craven.

"He's a great friend," said Raven. "He's always been there for me at my lowest," said Raven as she heard the others coming into the kitchen.

"All right y'all I'm making breakfast," said Cyborg as he came into the kitchen.

"Oh yes friend Cyborg I do enjoy when you make the waffles, the sausages, and the bacon," said Starfire.

"Well it's all coming up Starfire," said Cyborg.

"It all sounds good," said Robin as he sat next to his girlfriend.

Raven, Craven, and Violet came into the kitchen to join the rest of the Titans for breakfast. Raven went to make her tea while her family sat down.

"Hey Raven," said Robin.

"Good morning friend Raven," said Starfire.

"Morning," said Raven as she poured some tea in a few cups and handed them to her aunt and uncle.

"So is Azar waking up anytime soon?" Raven asked.

"She likes to sleep in," said Violet. "She's always been that way while my dad gets up at the crack of dawn."

'Just like you and Beast boy.'

'Shut up love.'

"It's important to get good sleep Violet," said Azar as Raven handed her tea. "Thank you sweetie," she said as Cyborg snickered.

"Shut up Cyborg or I'll send you to your girlfriend in parts," said Raven as she heard the laugh that made her warm inside.

"Good one Rae," said BB.

"Whatever," said Raven as she took her tea and sat down in the living room. It was hard for her to believe how well Beast boy turned out just from her experience with him as a little boy. 'He's hiding. How much he's hiding I'm not sure but I want to know. I want him to be free.'

'Someone's in lo-

'Didn't I tell you to shut up about that!' said Raven.

'You wouldn't want to help him so bad if you weren't in lo-

'She has a point.'

'Knowledge, I can't believe you,' said Raven.

'You want to help him, and the warm feeling you get whenever he's around is love. You love-

She felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up to see BB. 'Of course it's him.'

"Are you ok Rae? You seem distracted."

"I'm fine Beast boy. My emotions are just annoying me today, but it's nothing I can't handle."

"Is there anything I can do?" asked BB.

'I can think of a few things.'

'Shut up lust!' said Raven. She looked to Beast boy. "No, this is something I have to deal with on my own."

Beast boy frowned. "Well, if you ever need me, I'll always be here for you Rae."

The warm feeling in Raven's body began to feel hot as she blushed. "I know Beast boy. Thank you," she smiled.

Beast boy felt all warm and fuzzy when she smiled at him. He knew his feelings were strong towards the half demon, but he felt he was not good enough. His past and who he really was would scare her. He didn't want to burden her with his past when hers wasn't so bright as well.

"I just want you to be happy Rae," he said before he could take it back, "it's all I ever wanted for you ever since I met you." Beast boy couldn't believe he let himself slip like that. It was just something about Raven that made him want to reveal everything. 'No, I can't let that happen.'

Raven wasn't expecting this but she got over the shock. "I want you to be happy to Beast boy. Don't you want to be free? Aren't you tired of being a facade?"

Beast boy looked into her eyes, shocked by how up front she was being. For a brief second he saw compassion and something deeper in her eyes that he had never seen before. "Raven?"

"There's something you need to know. That day when you were little and you died, I was there. I gave you your life back."