Chapter 22 Two More Down

Okay. Beast Boy's ego stroking had gone on for far too long. Even though the changeling had taken a break from his dancing in order to watch Starfire getting eliminated, he had jumped right back into it afterwards. Whenever he threw a punch at Raven, he would wear the smuggest expression that Raven had ever seen. He looked so…cocky facing off against the sorceress, which was weird because, from a pure power standpoint, Raven was clearly the stronger of the two. She even proved that by using more attacks while fighting him, one time even using her telekinesis to toss him around like a rag doll.

But even with that taken into consideration, Beast Boy still displayed a very naive form of confidence. When Raven used her telekinesis on him while he was in his gorilla form, he morphed into a whale that practically took up the entire stadium. Admittedly, this was impressive, and Raven would have been pushed out of the arena due to that one, singular move if she didn't use teleportation. But still, the rage in her eyes as she shot chunks of the floor toward Beast Boy, as well as the fact that he smiled and laughed all the way through this endeavor, told Raven that he needed a serious reality check.

"Beast Boy!" Raven made her way over to his face, running down the long length of his currently whale shaped body. "You need to be careful! Raven can be dangerous when provoked! I should know!"

In response to this, Beast Boy just laughed, an action that was both expected and disappointing. "No need to worry about me, Mama." He morphed back into a human, looking at Raven with a grin that looked more egotistical than anything else. "I is doing a good job! I can handle your dimensional double, or whatever be the right thing to call her."

Raven sighed. There was no hope for him, wasn't there? There was no way she could drill the danger into his head. He was more than likely going to get seriously hurt, and when he did, Raven was going to be right there to tell him "I told you so." She gave her ex boyfriend a raised eyebrow, hoping that action would help convey the message that he needed to listen to her.

And…it kind of worked? Maybe? At the very least, it caused Beast Boy to pat Raven on the shoulder.

"It be okay, Rae rae. I is gonna protect you. I will do's it in anyway that I need to."

Okay. Admittedly, that was a little heartwarming. "Beast Boy…" Suddenly, Raven spotted something, gasped, and pointed behind him. "LOOK OUT!"

Beast Boy blinked. Without any time to react, a chunk of the floor (surrounded by a black, purplish aura), hit him square in the back of the head. He dropped to the floor, much to Raven's horror.

"Beast Boy." She felt so many emotions brewing inside her. Some were positive, such as flattery and sympathy. Others were more negative, such as annoyance and anger. What. An. Idiot. He should have listened to her. He should have taken her advice and made sure to be extra careful while facing off with Raven. He should have…

You will be consumed!

Raven shrieked. Oh no! Her inner demon…it was feeding off her emotions! And, because it was feeding, its strength was growing! In a fit of desperation, Raven put her hand to her forehead.

"Stop," she said as she closed her eyes. The whispers were still present, so she resorted to the tried and true method of getting herself to calm down: her mantra. "Azarath Metrion Zinthos." She git her teeth. "Azarath Metrion Zinthos…"

"Are you okay?"

Raven nearly jumped out of her skin. She opened her eyes to find that she was face to face with her double. Well, more like face to waist, but the point still stood.

"Oh, I'm…fine." Raven forced on a smile. No way was she going to show her double that she was weak, that she was vulnerable. "I'm…just…peachy."

Raven sniffed. "There are a lot of negative feeling built up inside you." Raven cursed under her breath; she forgot Raven was an empath like her. "I don't think that a state like that would count as 'just peachy.'"

Raven grit her teeth. "What I feel is none of your business." She felt heat grow in her eyes, the same heat they possessed whenever her eyes started glowing. "There's no need to worry about me!" She opened her second pair of eyes, which drew the slightest traces of terror out of her double. "I'm doing fine! I'm doing just…"

Oh, yes. Give into the rage. Let the hatred inside you rule your mind.

Raven nearly shrieked again. She closed her second set of eyes, panic sprouting in her mind like a poisonous flower. Tears even sprung up as she said her mantra at lightning fast speed. She couldn't give in. She. Would. Not. Give. In.

Unfortunately for her, Raven seemed to notice her struggles all the more. Raven could feel what felt like concern emanating off her double. It was subtle, sure, but it was still there. On top of that, the concern was accompanied by fear, sympathy. Raven felt for her. Raven even suspected that she wanted to help in anyway that she could. On some level, this was appreciated, if a little surprising. On the other hand though, Raven didn't need these emotions from her double. No way was she going to show weakness in front of her. With the exception of Beast Boy in recent events, she never showed weakness to anybody. It was just who she was.

So, she took in a deep breath and sent Raven a stoic look. "Sorry about that." She readjusted her hood. "Now, wasn't there something we were doing before?"

Raven blinked. "You mean me beating up your Beast Boy?"

Raven felt a pang. "Yeah. That…" Right at that moment, Beast Boy groaned. Both Ravens looked to see him standing up. He wobbled a little, putting his hands to his head as he did.

"Beast Boy?" Raven asked. "Are you alright?"

Beast Boy laughed. "I is doing just fine, Mama." He looked back at Raven. "I was just about to show this taller Mama here that I be a forced to be reckoned with."

Raven sent him a look filled with ambivalence. "Oh yes. You and your strength are so impressive that they make my jaw drop."

Beast Boy grinned. "Thanks!" Without another word, he transformed into a bull. He butted his head against Raven, sending her flying across the arena. The shorter shadowy sorceress was impressed. The taller one, not so much.

"That's…it." Raven stood up, wiping dust off her cloak. "I think it's time I end this once and for all." Her eyes glowed white as she chanted the mantra. "Azarath Metrion Zinthos!" Beast Boy glowed with the same black aura as before. He shrieked, kicking his legs to try to escape.

"Whatcha doing, Rae rae?" He sent her a look, one that took puppy dog eyes to the next level. "Can't we talk about this?"

Raven shook her head. "Sorry. I'm not much of a talker." With one effort filled grunt, she flung Beast Boy all the way over to the force field.

"LOSER!"

A lump formed in Raven's throat. Great. Beast Boy was out. He couldn't fight on her behalf anymore. This was just…peachy.

…

Beast Boy gasped as he teleported into a crystal cage. He looked back and forth. On his right, there was nobody. On his left, there were Cyborg and Robin.

"Man, BB!" Cyborg said, his natural eye sparkling. "You really went all out down there."

"Thanks." Beast Boy stood up, watching the arena with concern in his eyes. "I only hope Raven will be okay."

Robin sniffed. "Why should you worry about Raven! She can handle herself, at least much better than you can!" He narrowed his eyes. "Why in the world would you go an aid her like that? Is there something you're not telling me?"

Beast Boy hesitated. He didn't know if he should tell his leader about Raven's nightmare. The shadowy sorceress herself was known for being secretive. She hardly shared anything with anybody, so the fact that she shared her fears with him and only him told Beast Boy that the nightmare was supposed to remain confidential.

With this realization, Beast Boy gave his leader a sideways glance and a shrug. "I don't think there be, man."

Robin growled. "You're lying. You're a horrible liar, Beast Boy! Almost as bad a liar as you are a superhero!"

"Hey!" That voice sounded like it belonged to Beast Boy's double. "That's mean!"

"Indeed," said Starfire. "Leaders are supposed to do the inspiring of their teammates. They are supposed to do the building up, not tearing down."

Robin huffed. "Like you guys would know anything about what makes a good leader."

"LOSER!"

Beast Boy blinked. Wait, what? Someone else got out? How? When? He hadn't really been paying attention to the arena. He looked to his left, seeing Starfire in the crystal cage beside his. He blinked.

"Starfire? How did you get out?"

Starfire giggled as her face turned red. "I was going to do the fighting against the other Robin and Cyborg. But…oh, I just couldn't do it!" She smiled as she rose into the air. "The other Robin is just so handsome!"

"Oh, you think so too?" Starfire asked. She giggled as well. "He is quite the looker. I do not do place the blame on you for slipping up."

Robin, unfortunately, wasn't so understanding. "Wow. You threw away the perfect opportunity to win just because you saw a pretty face." He shook his head. "Way to put up a fight, Star."

Starfire still smiled, not at all brought down by her leader's words. "The important thing is the participation and the good sportsmanship."

There was a moment of silence before Robin spoke, using a raised tone of voice. "The important thing is we need Raven to turn this around!"

This made Beast Boy's heart skip a beat. Oh no! He looked down into the arena. Raven faced Robin, Cyborg, as well as her double. This sight made Beast Boy's stomach churn. Please let this end well. Please!