A/N: Thanks to Rinmarugames and Veggiestudio for creating the anime couple maker dressup game I used for the new story picture! I was able to easily make a cute Tesla and Beast Boy hanging out, and it warms my heart!

Game can be found on Rinmarugames . com under "Mega Anime Couple Creator" or on Dolldivine under the same name!

Robin flipped through the pictures of the building Tesla had been in, sipping his coffee as he tried to make a connection. Her description of the event had been vague at best, and she said she couldn't remember much of anything about the assailant other than that he had said they'd meet again. She had retreated to her room shortly after to recharge and try to sort out the jumbled memories she'd received from the sprite. Robin had taken that opportunity to retreat to his room as well to review the evidence.

He'd already been staring at the pictures for a couple of hours. He'd lost track of how many times he'd clicked the switch button. Starfire had brought him coffee, but it must have been some time ago, because as he sipped from the mug he noticed it was cold. He grimaced, placing the mug back on his desk.

The task had not been easy so far, especially because he kept trying to push down the paranoid feeling that Slade was involved somehow. He knew he was crazy for even thinking it, the man had been submerged in lava after all. He'd fought this demon of paranoia before, so he rubbed his eyes and looked again, looking for real clues instead of simply something pointing to their long-dead nemesis.

He even managed to convince himself that he was imagining the small black and copper disc, emblazoned with a black 's', hiding in the corner of the room.

Slade was dead. There was no way he was involved.

"Is there?" He muttered to himself, a sense of dread welling in the pit of his stomach. Ominous skies were forming in his future.

Tesla rubbed her temples, a dull headache fighting against the relief of her touch. Her new memories weren't sitting very well, even after several hours trying to sort and timeline them. They simply couldn't be placed. The moonlight filtered in through her large windows, illuminating an untouched dinner Starfire had insisted she take. She lay in the moonlight, stretched out on the gray sofa with one leg dangling over the edge and the other propped up on the arm. She had chosen to lounge in the shorts she'd worn the night before, as well as the shirt she'd nicked off of Beast Boy, mostly because she hadn't been able to work up the energy to change. She stared blankly at her Nebula wall, hoping to find some answers in the intergalactic decor. Vague training sessions, doctor's visits, meals, tiny clips of conversation with the scientist…

None of it made any sense. There was something missing, some connection between them. And then there was...well, there was one memory that couldn't possibly be hers, and she couldn't tell if it had come from the bundle of memories she received or if it had been triggered by them. The scientist was in it, but he was much younger. There was no lab. Was it a clue? She closed her eyes and tried to isolate it, to search for more clues.

She looked down at herself. Her hands were so tiny, clutching a little cloth toy shaped like a sore throat bacteria. Its beady black eyes stared up at her, filling her with joy. She shook the toy, giggling a tiny giggle at the rattling noise it made. Her feet were kicking uncontrollably, with socks covered in cartoon rockets on them. She heard movement, and turned her head to see someone. The scientist, except he wasn't the same. His face was worry-free, young, and his dark hair was long, grayless, and tied in a ponytail. He wore regular street clothes, not his lab jacket. The room behind him was an inviting blue, with planets painted on the walls. There were bars separating them, but he clicked something and they disappeared downward.

"Well, good morning, my little nebula. How's my starshine doing today?" He placed his hands under her armpits, swinging her up out of what she now saw was a crib. She could only babble as a response, to which he chuckled, bringing her to his chest. "Well, that's alright. Today's a very special day, so I'll give you some extra time to wake up."

As they left the room, she caught a glimpse in the mirror. There was the scientist, and in his arms (what must be the original owner of the memory) was a tiny girl, approximately one year old, with curly black hair and blue eyes. Upon seeing her reflection, the child reached out and said "Mira, Papa!" The scientist chuckled.

Almost as quickly as she saw it, the reflection was gone, and she was on a ride through a messy yet sophisticated apartment. A huge wall of windows revealed a cityscape, and through it she could clearly see a large building with a planet at its spire. The words "Daily Planet" circled the planet. Her gaze glanced to the floor, bored with the view. Toys littered the living room, from early reader's books, to science based activities, to barbies with only one shoe.

"Well, if it isn't my two favorite people," came a soothing female voice. Excitement washed over her at the sound, and her head whipped around to regard a beautiful woman with similarly curly black hair. Her brown eyes twinkled with a smile as she looked at the child. "How's my little birthday girl this morning?"

"Mami, Mami!" The child shrieked, reaching her hands out greedily. The woman laughed, and relieved the scientist of the small being, cradling her gently. She looked up at the woman, taking in every feature. It felt like a distant dream.

"Hola, mijo," the woman cooed. "Es tu cumpleanos, your birthday! Are you excited?"

"Mami, Mami, desa, desa!" The child cried.

"Yes, mijo, desayuno. It's breakfast time."

The woman placed her in a high chair, where she started banging her sore throat stuffie on the plate. The woman removed it from her hands and placed a bowl of cheerios on it instead. The child glanced around the room, her eyes landing on a vase full of fresh sunflowers. So pretty…

Tesla woke up with a start, her whole body covered in a cold sweat. When had she fallen asleep? Was the memory a dream? Was it even real? What did it mean? She'd been made in a lab, so there's no way it was hers. Was it a clue from the scientist? It clearly was about his life before her. Who was the baby? And the woman? His family? Were they still out there? Without any names she couldn't google it.

She sat up slowly, her breath still coming fast. Her curls were stuck to her forehead, so she reached up and pushed them away, shaking the moisture off. Something wasn't right, she could feel it in her chest. She needed to find the scientist's family, and quickly. She started to get up, but then remembered the night before.

"Calm down, Tesla," she whispered to herself, placing a hand over her loudly beating heart. She needed to wait, the Titans were her allies and they could help her. Running off on her own was dangerous, and she didn't know what she would even do when she found them. She peeled the soaked purple shirt off her back, leaving her in her tank top.

As she calmed down, and her body relinquished its adrenaline, she was left with a feeling of melancholy knowing the scientist had a family, a wife and a real daughter that he loved very much. She looked at her hands, the glint of her emitters in her wrists starting to make her sick. She would never be human, she could never be anyone's real daughter. She was just a manufactured person who couldn't even be sure their personality was real.

She floated over to the window, bathing her face in the moonlight, wondering if the chill she felt was a real feeling or some algorithm her body ran when she was supposed to be cold. She pressed her hands flat against the window, focusing on the feeling. She would never be sure, she could never really know how much of her was herself and how much was a computer.

The tears dropped to the floor silently. At least she knew those were real.

His hand hovered in the air, frozen in its place where he had gone to knock. When Tesla had taken off to her room this morning, he'd been hoping she'd be out by now. Starfire had even brought her dinner, but even now, after the moon had risen high and all the other Titans had retreated to bed, Beast Boy was still waiting, worried.

Finally, after what seemed like ages, he rapped his knuckles against the door. The sound echoed through the quiet hallways, and then he could only hear his heartbeat hammering against his ribcage. He nervously clenched his fists, afraid to admit to himself that the nervousness came from the fact that she had received some new memories and might be a different person.

The doors opened, making him jump. He hadn't heard any footsteps, but then she had probably just used her powers to open them. He listened for an invitation, and upon not hearing one, decided that the doors opening probably counted. He stepped inside, letting the doors slide closed behind him. The moonlight pouring in through the windows illuminated her, creating an enticing silhouette, calm and serene. She was standing still, contemplative. His heartbeat did not slow, still hammering loudly in his ears, betraying his nervousness.

"Garfield," she said softly, breaking him out of his thoughts. "Do you think of me as a human?"

A human? He was caught off guard by her question, and confused by her meaning. He definitely saw her as a person. She wasn't really technically human, but then most of the people he knew weren't.

His silence seemed to be enough of an answer for her, as she turned to face him, her tan skin washed out in the moonlight. He felt a stab of guilt as he noticed tears shining on her cheeks. "I see…"

"No, wait, I didn't mean to hesitate, I was just caught off guard, sorry," he mumbled the last bit, feeling a little ashamed. He didn't really have an answer for her. His emerald eyes followed her form as she moved from the window to sit on the couch. She looked at him expectantly, and with a start he realized she wanted him to sit. He obliged, grabbing a pillow to hug to occupy his nervous hands.

"I'm not human, but I'm a person, right? Is that what you were thinking?" She held her hands out to see them in the moonlight, the small light emitters in her wrists reflecting the rays silently, glinting like diamonds.

"Eh, guilty," he admitted sheepishly.

"That's only natural to think for humans, I suppose," she continued. "It's natural to be wary of things that are inhuman, things that could change with a simple reprogramming...or with the receipt of new memories." Ouch. Nail on the head. "Something artificial, like me, could never truly be normal, no matter how many memories I receive or how much I adapt. My physiology is not the same, I was never a child, I never had a family. We could never truly understand one another…"

Her voice was strained, almost like she might cry. Something was bothering her, he'd never heard her talk like this before. He placed his hand on her forearm, catching her eye with his stern gaze. "Just because you aren't human doesn't mean we'll never understand each other," he said firmly. "It just means we'll have to communicate more so we can understand each other better."

She smiled at him, the kind of smile adults used to give him when they were humoring him. Her amethyst eyes were full of pain, pain that wasn't present before. He wondered if something in her new memories had set her off. He thought it was ironic that the kind of pain he saw was precisely what made her human, or at least close.

"Did something happen? Was it something in your new memories?"

She didn't respond at first, choosing instead to lean over towards him. Her soft hands felt warm on his neck as she embraced him, and he returned the gesture enthusiastically, his own arms resting on her lower back. "It's nothing," she muttered. "It's just hard to come into this world so suddenly like this."

She wasn't telling him the whole truth. Normally he would make her tell him what was going on, but his gut said she needed comfort over a stern hand right now. He reached up his hand, brushing her curls away from her face, noticing the slight dampness of her bangs. In fact, the cold sweat was all over her body, from her brow to her...well, he could see she'd been in distress. He opted to leave his hand on her hair, figuring words might not help. He didn't know what he'd say anyway, everything sounded too cliche, like something out of a soap opera.

"The scientist has a real daughter," she said suddenly, startling him. "She has curly black hair and blue eyes. She speaks spanish. And his wife, a beautiful latin woman. She's kind and soft-spoken, and she likes sunflowers. His real family is out there, and all this time I've been pretending that someone like me could really be his daughter."

And there it was, the real issue. The only family she knew, and she had found he had another family. Her perception turned it into a them over her situation, instead of accepting that she might matter just as much.

He leaned back on the arm of the couch,one arm around her shoulders and the other's hand tangled in her hair. The moonlight made her locks almost glow blue, like ocean water from the caribbean. He wondered how he had ended up here, with this girl in his arms every night, a girl who had no idea of the implications of such a relationship. Her scent was so intoxicating, and every movement of her body against his was...sinful. He felt so dirty, knowing she probably didn't think that way about him. He tried to relax, but his animal instincts had always been stronger than him, so the hammering in his chest continued, as did the guilty thoughts. If she noticed, she definitely didn't say anything.

She wasn't crying, just holding him. He could feel her heartbeat against his chest, synchronizing with his own. As his fingers brushed through her curls, he found himself wondering about her past. Who really was the scientist? Where is this family she suddenly knows about? Who were the 'bad people' after her and why did they want her?

His heart wrenched as the last question popped into his mind: What would he do if he lost her, too?

Beast Boy rose from his bed at noon, like usual, having gotten no sleep at all, not like usual. After he'd left Tesla's room the night before, he'd lain awake all night wondering about what the world had in store for him. He wondered if the gods were testing him. Or if they simply enjoyed watching him in distress.

He groaned as he realized his purple uniform was still dirty from digging Tesla out of that abandoned building. He tossed it in the hamper and reached into his closet, fishing out his new red and white uniform he'd gotten as a gift recently from the Doom Squad. He fingered the soft fabric, contemplating if this would change his whole look, and then with a shrug decided to pull it on. Who knows, maybe he'd like it better. After zipping it up, he regarded himself in the mirror.

He certainly didn't look bad. The new uniform complimented his muscles better, and the fabric seemed to be more breathable. He ran a hand through his bedhead, smoothing it out.

"I guess I don't look too bad," he said to himself, a grin forming on his face. He shot himself some finger guns and wink, feeling new confidence spreading in his body. Maybe he could put all this questioning and sleepless nights behind him after all. He wouldn't solve Tesla's mystery through self-pity, after all.

The door behind him slid open and Cyborg slid into his room, extending one flat hand towards him accusingly.

"You!" Cyborg said, his stance made even more confusing by the indiscernible tone of voice.

"Uh, me?" Beast Boy raised an eyebrow at the taller titan in question.

"Oh, hey, new duds. Nice," Cyborg said, straightening up. "I was just gonna say that Robin wants us all to meet in the living room. Seems Tesla has found a new clue for us to follow, and it actually lines up with our latest mission."

"Oh, cool, be there in five, okay?" Cyborg saluted humorously, and closed the door behind him. Beast Boy glanced up to the mirror on his wall, where photobooth pictures of him and Tesla hung like a trophy from their night out. That night seemed so long ago, he thought.

"Don't worry, Tess," he said, his fingertips brushing one of the pictures gingerly. "We'll solve this mystery."

A/N: Sorry this chapter took so long to get up, I've been working on my husband's YouTube channel as well as having a bit of writer's block and general wondering where to go next for BB and Tesla. I have a pretty good plan from here, so hopefully the next one comes out soon!

PLEASE REVIEW, it helps me to know I have an audience who is really paying attention to the story. Thanks so much for reading today!