Hey ya, author here. Just an idea that's been bouncing around my head for a while and a combination of the new Dawn of DC Titans comics and a desire to get back into creative writing somewhat brought me here. Probably should have written this story time ago, but such it is. All reviews are cool, and if you follow or favorite, it means a lot (the main motivation to keep writing tbh). I have this whole thing roughly mapped out in my head so updates should be "pretttyyy" frequent I hope. But yea, hope if you're reading this you enjoy it
I don't own Teen Titans, or any other DC characters mentioned. It would be pretty cool if I did though,
Ch. 2 – Normality
Cyborg had always made his day up with little routines, no doubt stemming from the constant maintenance the robotic half of his body needed. Before the Brotherhood, Cyborg usually had his day planned down to the detail. He could schedule his wake-up call before he powered down for the night and he could be in the kitchen cooking by the time Beast Boy came in so the great carnivore vs vegetarian debate could rage on, as it was written in the scriptures.
He'd take half an hour to work on his baby, the T-car, either side of whatever villain decided to make an appearance as a way to blow off some steam, and he'd finish off by taking some time with whichever Titans were free. It was never hard to fall asleep when you could make the conscious decision to simply turn yourself off. During the months away from the tower, he'd obviously had to make some adaptations. Most of the time, his power source was a portable generator that he could recharge using either energy reserves from his section of the T ship, or using the solar panels on the top of the ship when he was in a spot with good weather.
While he was able to keep in touch with the other Titans using their communicators, they were in different countries all around the world. As much as he loved annoying the grass stain with the crimes against vegetarianism that he called food, he didn't think Beast Boy deserved to be contacted from a different time zone about his own breakfast, when he could be trying to catch some sleep or was in a fight against a member of the Brotherhood who had decided to crawl out of their hiding spot.
So, he got he got used to eating alone and slowly but surely, he got used to being alone, by telling himself all of the things he would tell his friends when they got back together again. He'd made a ranking of the meat feasts he'd eaten to tell Beast Boy all about; he'd made modifications to his T-ship section to make it's flying more streamlined, he couldn't wait to tell Robin all about in person. Being alone had really allowed to him to start appreciating the warmth offered by Titans Tower and it's occupants, Starfire would love to hear how time apart had made him want to be closer to the others. He'd learnt to find peace on those lonely, quiet nights during his missions, Raven would appreciate his newfound clarity.
Days turned into weeks, weeks into months, and Cyborg had settled into his routines. Until the day came that Cyborg didn't even realize he had been craving for so long. The call to come home from Robin had bounced around his head for hours. It didn't seem like it could real, like it was just to good to be true. He'd finished his final mission, a quick investigation into potential activity from General Immortus and then, he was homebound. He'd never forget those final few seconds before everything went wrong. Jump City Bay had glistened in the Summer sun like it always did, the city stood in the background, tall and proud, and he could make it out the vague outline of other sections of T-ship on the horizon….and then the distress calls started coming in. They came too quick and too numerous for it to be anything but the worst case scenario; the Titans were under attack and they were already losing. He remembered Robin's voice through the comms to split up again, if the Teen Titans had ever been back together again in the first place and Beast Boy's pleas to stay together. He hadn't said anything at the time, but Cyborg was on Beast Boy's side. They were going against a coordinated attack and surely splitting up would play right into the Brotherhoods hands. But, defeating the villain, saving the day…that was all part of Cyborg's routine.
What was not part of the routine was finding himself in a hole, in the Arctic, courtesy of Mammoth. That was certainly a new addition, one that he was quite sure he wouldn't be adding to his standard day to day. He'd fallen awkwardly on his right shoulder, and while not completely severed, he could only assume the sparks intermittently flickering from the joint were not the best sign. This wasn't supposed to happen. They'd accounted for everything, planned for everything but…they'd lost. He'd propped himself up against the cool ice that towered above him, taking out a small repair kit he kept on himself for times like these and began tinkering the with his damaged shoulder. What had happened to the others? In the suddenness of the attack, he didn't even know where they had been sent too.
It was that thought that shocked him out of his pity party. Everything he'd done over the past few months, every memory he planned on sharing, everything he'd come to appreciate and enjoy with the Titans. How could he do that if stayed sitting in a hole waiting for the cold to take it's toll? For a split second, Cyborg had actually given up and that was enough to make him the angriest he had been in months. But the emotion was raw, powerful and absolutely what he needed. He turned to his shoulder again, with new vigor, analysing the damage, looking for the repairs necessary for it to functional. He didn't need it to be perfect, he just needed it to be strong enough that when he punched Mammoth in his smug face, his arm wouldn't buckle.
He didn't care who was still out there, who else was still fighting, he'd rush into the Brotherhood's forces with a head of steam, cause that's what he did…that was familiar. One more turn of a screw and Cyborg felt his shoulder click comfortably back into place, the sparks disappearing for the time-being. He gave his fingers a flex and rolled his shoulder. It wasn't perfect, but it would do. He dug his fingers into the ice and began the long climb out of the crevasse. Kole and Gnarrk could still be nearby and need help. Just like that, he had a new order of operations. Save the nearest titans, stop the brotherhood, tell all his friends about it. He reached the top of the hole and stared down at the pit before looking towards the horizon. "You should have made sure I stayed there, and I'll make sure regret it".
The return to the tower was everything Cyborg had hoped it would be. A night of celebration, once the rush of the battle had worn out, different titans started seeking out their closest friends. The main ops room was sea of people, each looking for one specific person or another. Cyborg thought his height would help but was still struggling to see anyone when he felt a gentle tap on his shoulder. Wheeling around, he was greeted by Starfire looking at him with a warm smile.
"Friend Cyborg, I know we spoke briefly at the Brotherhoods lair, but it has been so-". Starfire didn't get a chance to finish as Cyborg wrapped her in a bone-crushing hug that would have rivalled one given by the Tamaranean herself, Starfire giggling the whole time. "It's so good to see you Star, I wanna hear everything, I was starting to lose my mind without you guys".
"Mind if I join in?" Cyborg turned to the right as Robin approached the two of them.
"Hmmmm, I'm not sure, what do you think Star?"
Cyborg was hoping Starfire would play along, but she had hit Robin like a freight train and wrapped him in a hug within seconds of him finishing his sentence. Cyborg couldn't help but smile at the scene. This felt like normal and what he'd been missing this whole time…what he had been fighting for.
He stayed with the two of them for a while, just talking normally, like teenagers would, talking about everything and anything. Eventually Cyborg excused himself from the two. After all, he still had two more titans to find. After a little searching, he found Raven sat against the window overlooking Jump City Bay, surrounded by….three children?
"No Timmy, I don't think you guys will be able to stay at the Tower, but I'll go to visit you guys whenever I can and you'll be able to come here whenever you want".
Cyborg let out a chuckle at the scene, "I don't know Raven, kids around the Tower might finally give Beast Boy some company." Raven's head shot up at his voice and even she couldn't hide the smile that spread on her face. Rising to her feet, she dusted herself off.
"I don't know, I'm pretty sure Melvin here could do better still."
Cyborg was about to retort, playing along with their game, when Raven walked forward and hugged him gently. "Good to see you safe and sound". Cyborg looked down at Raven and smiled, returning the hug, "Good to see you too Raven." For Raven, this was the equivalent of a making a scene and he knew it. He pulled her back and smiled. "Now introduce me to these kids, never took you for the doting type." Raven assumed her more natural pose and stoic visage.
"I don't dote, Melvin, Timmy and Teether played a vital role in defeating the Brotherhood, they have exceptional control of their powers for their age and th-."
Melvin lightly touched Raven's hand, grabbing her attention. "It's okay Raven, we're just kids you're allowed to dote on us".
Raven looked at Melvin speechless before a small smile spread on her face. Turning back to Cyborg, she laughed, "Told you she'd be a match for Beast Boy. Kids, this is Cyborg, he's on my team….and part of my family". The conversation rolled from there, and Cyborg was at a loss for how much Raven had changed. She was smiling more, showing more emotion and overall, just seemed more comfortable. By no means was she extroverted, but Cyborg could note the subtle changes. Whatever happened for her to become so close to these kids, he was glad it did and if had to guess, Raven was too.
"Hey Raven, have you seen BB? He's the last one I've got to catch up with." Raven's smile faltered just a little bit. "Yea, I saw him about half an hour ago up on the roof, I don't think he was planning on leaving it anytime soon." Cyborg looked at Raven quizzically. "The roof? What, we got more Titans up there?"
"Nope, it's just him up there, I think after everything he just wanted some air….I think you should go talk to him though." Cyborg didn't know how to feel about Raven's slightly vague statement but he nodded, gave her a final hug, said goodbye to the kids and told them they could call him Uncle Cy. Just before he was out of earshot, Raven called his name.
"Cyborg, I spoke to him briefly earlier…I think these past few months have been hard on him…if he seems different, it's not your fault...he's just going to need some time to readjust".
Cyborg could only nod again as he left main ops and headed to the staircase to take him to the roof.
Beast Boy was exactly where Raven said he would be, sat on top of an air vent, feet dangling, staring out past the Bay to the city beyond it. Cyborg quietly walked up behind Beast Boy and cleared his throat.
"Beast Boy? Looking pensive? I never thought I'd see the day".
Beast Boy visibly jumped off the air vent, clearly startled out of whatever train of thought he was in, before turning to Cyborg with a big grin. Cyborg was expecting Beast Boy to play along with the joke, so was slightly surprised when Beast Boy just launched himself at Cyborg and did his best to engulf the much bigger figure in a hug.
"Dude, it's so damn good to see you…you haven't changed a bit." Cyborg let out a deep laugh. "What was I supposed too?". Beast Boy stepped back from Cyborg and the slight shrinking of his smile didn't go unnoticed. "I wouldn't blame you if you had…it's been a rough few months". Beast Boy took his place back on the air vent, but not completely turned towards the bay. Cyborg immediately understood what Raven was hinting at. This wasn't like Beast Boy, the happy-go-lucky member of the Teen Titans. He took another look at him. Beast Boy looked tired, but not the kind of tired fixed by a goodnight sleep, but the kind of tired look that only get from many sleepless nights, permanent bags beneath the eyes that looked like they had been a fixture of his face for quite a while, a hunch in his posture, almost like his entire body was sagging.
Cyborg took a seat on the vent beside Beast Boy. "How you been man? You say I haven't changed but it sure looks like I can't say the same for you right now". Beast Boy let out a short laugh. "I'm fine, I'm definitely not the same dude who left the tower with the team all those months ago, but hey, a global battle against a secretive evil organisation will do that to a guy, right?" Cyborg frowned. Sure, Beast Boy had a point, that could change a person. But Starfire and Robin hadn't changed and Raven seemed like she had changed for the better. So why was Beast Boy the one who seemed like his mind was still focused on a war that had already been won?
"Suppose you're not wrong there, but the battle's over. We won. The Brotherhood's frozen, trapped by the machine they designed for us. That's about as comprehensive a win as you're gonna get". Beast Boy looked up at the horizon. "Yea, you're right… we did win, but it's pretty easy to go from the start to the end and say we won, and then leave out all the struggle in between…I mean… that still happened right? Even if we won, there was a point where the Brotherhood had our butt's kicked…I thought you were all gone…and that's just the main time. All those times where people reported in their missions, the time Starfire was ambushed by Mallah, when Robin was isolated by General Immortus' troops and barely escaped, when Raven had to fight off Phobia alone, dammit when you fought Madame Rouge trying to get a communicator to Argent the first time, and then Starfire had to go instead cause you took some nasty hits, that all still happened".
Cyborg was stunned. This wasn't like Beast Boy was in a weird mood, this was like Beast Boy was a different person. "Man, of course all of that happened, trust me, if I had a fully human body, I'd have the scars to prove it. But it's easy to dwell on what happened, or what could have happened. The hard part is looking forwards, having gone through all of that, and finding that better future...the one we all deserve".
Beast Boy seemed to take Cyborg's words to heart. "Yea…yea, maybe you're right…it's just...things have changed for me…but hey, don't mind me, let's head back downstairs. If there's one thing I definitely want in my future, it's seeing you, me Starfire, Robin and Raven all back together again." Cyborg smiled. Maybe his best friend was just in a hole, and if he was, he'd be there to pull him out.
"Yea dude, also we got the party later, you need to get your dance moves ready". Beast Boy smiled at Cyborg but it didn't go unnoticed that the smile didn't quite reach his eyes. "I suppose I'll have to kill it on the dancefloor at least once", said the changeling as he walked past Cyborg toward the roof staircase. Cyborg stared after him for a second before following. He was sure his buddy just needed a reminder of what it was like to be home. He just needed a routine, that would get him back to normal. Confident in his assessment, Cyborg followed after Beast Boy, excited to get everything back on track.
The party had been perfect in Cyborg's eyes. It just felt so wonderfully normal. He chatted with various new titans, got to have a catch up with Bee, a strangely heartfelt reunion with Jinx and some quality time with his best friends. He also hadn't miss the Beast Boy and Raven returning from somewhere, both with oddly far away looks on their faces, but just as oddly content. He had made a note to ask them about that later. Pretty much all the honorary titans had left on the night.
When he woke up the next morning, Cyborg knew there were a few left, scattered around various guest bedrooms in the tower, but it still left the tower oddly quiet. He unplugged himself from his power source, and looked at his alarm. 8am, just like he'd scheduled. He wouldn't be able to start cooking for an hour or so yet, if he wanted to have his great debate with the resident changeling, but that was okay. Cyborg was in no rush.
At this time of day, Raven would already be up on the roof meditating, Robin would be off on his morning run and Starfire wouldn't be awake for another half an hour or so. He strolled to the kitchen, feeling better than he had in months and was then promptly shocked out of existence when he entered to see Beast Boy sitting at the counter, eating a bowl of cereal and flicking through a comic.
Cyborg looked at Beast Boy, tilted his head, walked out of the kitchen, waited for the door to close, and walked back. Yep, he was actually there. At this stage, Beast Boy had noted his friends odd behaviour. "Eh Cy? Is this like a new superstition you have? Gotta enter a room twice to ward off bad vibes or something?" Cyborg gaped at Beast Boy like he had just told him he'd just been awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature. "You're awake…before 10?" Beast Boy shrugged, "Yea I know, but it's a force of habit now. You don't get to lie-in everyday when your sleeping in a section of aircraft or under the stars, I had to learn to get up and go and I guess it's sticking with me. You guys always said I needed to get up earlier before all this anyway."
Cyborg was floored but quickly shook himself out of his stupor. "Well good for you BB, at least now the rest of us don't have to draw straws for how to give a wake up call". He walked behind the counter of the kitchen. Beast Boy being awake just meant that he could have his great debate with Beast Boy early. He was kind of disappointed that Raven wouldn't be there to see it, he loved it when Raven eventually had had enough and got involved, but that wouldn't stop him today. He'd waited far too long for this moment.
"Yo Beast Boy, I'm thinking waffles this morning with –", he promptly dropped every package of meat in the fridge on the counter in front of his best friend, "-with some side dishes, what you thinkin?". Beast Boy looked up from his comic and gave a Cyborg a smile. "Go for it man, I know I missed comfort foods more than anything".
"I think you'll find that this is the per-", Cyborg trailed off. "Wait….what did you say?". Beast Boy turned to look at his frjend again, confusion evident on his face. "I said go for it? Who knows how long it's been since you got to have a proper home-cooked meal. I'm just happy to have soy milk again, you'd be surprised how hard it is to find in some countries". Cyborg was still staring at his friend,
"But this is meat…..you're a vegetarian". Beast Boy raised an eyebrow and then lifted his bowl of cereal, "But this is vegetarian….you're a carnivore...whatcha looking for here Cyborg?". Beast Boy took a second to look at Cyborg, and noted…was Cyborg hurt?
"You're not gonna fight me on this? But this argument was a staple of tower life, I cook meat, you give out to me, Raven knocks both our heads together, the circle of life….", Cyborg trailed off. Beast Boy looked at Cyborg sympathetically. "Sorry man, guess while we are travelling I just got a new view on what people take joy. If you like to eat an entire butcher shop worth of meat every day, I'm happy for you."
Beast Boy picked up his now empty bowl and washed it out in the sink before placing it in the dishwasher. Cyborg didn't point this one out, but his mind was screaming. "Beast Boy just cleaned up after himself…without prompting". Beast Boy moved over towards the couches and opened his comic to a marked page.
"Yo Cy, when you're done cooking, wanna play a few rounds of Gamestation? It's been way too long since I played it last". Cyborg mutely nodded and went back to prepping his breakfast, a thousand thoughts running through his head. This wasn't part of the routine, this was supposed to be a fixed point. He looked up at Beast Boy, who was now engrossed in whatever comic he was reading and couldn't help but feel like he'd missed something, like Beast Boy had gone away for a few months and come back a few years older…and he didn't get too see it.
The rest of the day breezed by, Cyborg keeping a close eye on Beast Boy, without trying to arouse his suspicions. His findings were inconclusive. Beast Boy was still clearly up for a laugh. He still told jokes that elicited groans, he was still loud at times, and he was still terrible at Gamestation. But on the other side, when his jokes received a groan, he stopped telling them. When Raven asked him to keep it down, he apologised and made a conscious effort to lower his volume, something Raven seemed appreciative of, but worried Cyborg. He still hadn't talked to either of them about where they were during the party, but that had drifted to the back of his mind for the moment. The group had all settled in to watch a movie for their first night back, but Beast Boy left with half an hour left, saying he was falling asleep and that he would rather be in bed if he did.
When the movie did end, Cyborg caught Robin alone in the kitchen. "Hey man, have you noticed anything with Beast Boy today? I'm worried about him". Robin put down the empty popcorn bowl on the counter and looked thoughtful for a moment. "Yea, he seems a lot more…reserved, but who can blame the guy right now. He didn't want us to be involved with the Brotherhood in the first place and then with the way the final battle unfolded…he's probably feeling a pretty heavy weight on his shoulders". Cyborg looked at Robin incredulously.
"But we won! It's over and everything worked out! He doesn't need to put himself through thinking about the what if's."
Robin sighed. "I know and hopefully he won't but it's only our first day back. Hopefully, a reminder of what he was fighting for over the next few days will help him readjust. Until then, we're gonna be there for him, same way we were there for him to fight the Brotherhood".
Robin walked past Cyborg out of the room, saying goodnight on the way. Cyborg stood there for a few minutes before making his own way to his power station. He stared at the ceiling of his room, mind going a thousand miles an hour, trying to think of a way to help his best friend. It's never hard to fall asleep when you can make the conscious decision to power off, but when Cyborg had too much on his mind to make that decision, it was going to be a longer night for him than most.