Raven wasn't surprised.
The fact that she could hold a whole conversation with Garfield and enjoy herself as she did so was something she was already aware of. He had that charm of knowing exactly what she wanted to hear and he also never ran out of conversation material for both of them. He was annoying at times, and never knew when to give up, but Raven couldn't say she hated that about him.
So when she found herself absolutely engrossed with their date at the local coffee shop, she wasn't surprised; Gar was a total gentleman, she knew that well, so she had prepared herself for small courteous actions from him. The drag of her chair, opening the door for her, walking on the side of the street, all of it, she was ready for it. In fact, she looked forward to it and felt elated by his little nothings he did for her. He may be a prankster, but he knew to be courteous as well. It seems Rita raised no fool.
The band that was currently playing the gig was one she knew well, and she was happy to see Beast Boy nodding his head to the music as well.
"So, Sakutia, huh?"
"Yup, that's why I'm green" He smiled sheepishly, his sharp canine tooth poking out and enhancing the smile.
They were talking about their powers, their origins and their consequences. It had been some time since they reached the place, but their drinks had just recently arrived.
"And I'm gray because…I'm a demon" She shared back, already done retelling her story back in Azar. She knew that Gar was aware, but she merely recalled it for the sake of conversation.
"Half-demon" He pointed out with one finger up in the air for emphasis before slurping his banana-mango smoothie. She had brought him to a tea-coffee store, but she hadn't expected him to drink tea either way.
"Whatever" She rolled her eyes at him, sighing "I've realized that if you're half American and half Italian people are cool with it, but half demon? You can't just be half demon, you either are or not" She frowned, not liking the tone of her own voice.
"Does it change anything?" Of course, Garfield is anything but shocked or stunned. In fact, he was pretty relaxed for someone dying out of nerves an hour earlier while on their way to the place, "Look, I know you hate it, but…" His ears shot down for a second to gather resolve to ask and she probed his emotions for a second, and it wasn't shyness he was feeling. He was genuinely scared to ask this question, "Can I…make a comment on your demon side?" He finally blurted out his question, stunning her, "It's nothing bad, I swear—er, well, at least I think it's not" The dark sorceress frowned and stared directly at Beast Boy, probing his emotions to try and find out whether she should send him to another dimension for a bit or let him say something about it.
As far as she could remember, no one from the team ever mentioned it. No one even questioned her demon side or asked anything about how it worked—or how she worked, and it wasn't for lack of curiosity.
It was because Raven always expressed how much she despised her demonic heritage that no one said anything about it, and she wasn't mad about that. Her demon side had nothing to do with humans or aliens (or Cyborgs) because she was from an entirely different dimension altogether, and the farther she could keep her friends from having anything to do with hell or demons, the happier she'd be, even if somehow a part of herself was left ignored. It's a part she hated after all.
But Garfield was emanating embarrassment and curiosity, curiosity allowed because usually when she took this long to answer, she'd usually say yes.
Raven decided to let Beast Boy be the first one to speak about her demon side.
"Gar, I'll let you say your 'comment' but please keep in mind that your mouth is at times stupid and this topic is very dangerous, okay?" Nodding twice, a bubbling warmth invaded her senses, coming from him. The same one he had whenever he wanted to compliment her.
"Okay, but be aware that I know it's not cool for you, and that you don't like it and—"
"Just stop trying to absorb the fall and say it, Beast Boy" She breathed for a second and then brushed a strand of purple hair from her face, "I won't get mad"
"Fine but it's actually two things and—"
"Garfield"
"I find it hot!"
…
After ten seconds of confused blinking and silence, Beast Boy continued.
"I—uh, knowing that you're…Y'know ...It's kinda hot, I don't know why, Rae" His ears quickly perked up, "I-I mean! I know it's horrible for you and I'm not trying to downplay its seriousness but, I don't know…" He couldn't even explain himself correctly.
Raven was left stunned in place, with her mind running ten miles a second. Beast Boy just confessed he found her demon side hot. It made her strangely mad and confused, and maybe a little…
"He said knowing that you're a demon, not that your demon side is hot" From within her mind, Knowledge rationalized with her.
Not that her words changed much at all.
"…Would you elaborate?" When his ears and cheeks reddened tenfold, she realized she was taking this too seriously. Beast Boy didn't really know what being a demon enticed, or what demons as a whole represent; the only thing he knew came from comics or games, and demons there, admittedly, were a bit more attractive than real fallen angels. Other information he had must've come from her own mouth but she almost never let any slip of data regarding demons in the presence of her friends.
"He likes the aesthetic part, I bet~" Without a doubt, it was Affection who sneaked the comment into her mind. If it was superficial then…
Maybe she wouldn't get as mad as she initially thought.
Relaxing, she took a sip of her tea and watched as Garfield squirmed in his chair, still expecting to be exiled into a different dimension anytime soon, "Why is it…hot? Do you like it?" She asked, making sure her tone was far lighter than before.
"No!" He instantly denied the idea, somewhat making her flinch, "I mean—yes!? I like you, Rae…I don't know what the right answer for that would be" He sighed, "But…your gray skin is thanks to demon blood, right?" Reluctantly, she nodded, "And your eyes?" She shrugged and nodded as well.
"Hair as well, unless you thought I—"
"I know it's real…I'd be able to smell it if it was just a dye" He sheepishly reached with his hand and placed it on the hand she had resting on the table, making her blush, "And you skin is cold, Rae" She blinked in surprise, not aware that he could sense this type of things, "I find it…interesting. It draws me to you, you make me curious; you are a lot of the time very much like other human girls, but then some things stick out that make you…" He blushed again, "I don't know, sort of ethereal…I mean, you have another dimension because your emotions and demonic powers are too strong to control normally. When you get mad, your eyes turn red, and darkness starts to surround you. I've always known it's really hard for you, but at the same time…"
Internally, Raven couldn't help but smile. Whereas she hated what her blood did to her body, Beast Boy found it attractive. And even though she hated the eternal struggle with her emotions and emoticlones, she knew Beast Boy has always been interested in them, found them fun and curious.
Despite this being about her demon side, it was sweet.
"I could let a horn grow on my head too, y'know? To complete the look" She sarcastically replied back and he swallowed, forcing her to pause for a moment.
"I take it back, he doesn't like it…" A giggling Affection echoed through her head.
"He loves it" And that eternally dark mush of a voice could only belong to rage, who Raven guessed must be feeling quite happy with herself after Beast Boy's confession. If you were talking about her demon side, you were talking about Rage herself.
"It's also selfish…" He scratched his ear, "L-Like 'hey I get to show off my girlfriend is a demon' boyish stupidity, heh" At the word 'Girlfriend' Raven's eyes widened for a second.
"You do realize it's only our first date?" A small pang of hurt reached her but it was quickly shoved away. Immediately, she felt guilty. They were both putting effort in this, it wasn't fair for her to shut him down so quickly, "Although…Given how pleasant it has been so far, I'd be willing to schedule another one" She playfully tried to mend her mistake and Beast Boy brightened up with a toothy grin, nodding twice in agreement with her "So the idea of dating a half demon is…appealing to you?"
"It's just a dumb thing in my head. I mean, come on. We're at a somewhat normal cafe, though a liiitle bit gothic…and surrounded by normal people that see us and think, now that we are wearing our Holi-disguise, that we are just normal teenagers, maybe on a date. And yes it is, but she's also a demon" He landed on a decent explanation, "Like, super rare, y'know? Even though I'm green and all that"
Something clicked inside of Raven's head. Of course, how many other demons does he know? How many other demons did she know? Seeing a demon was already extraordinary (on earth) so of course it would be special. Barely speaking to one in friendly terms was already an accomplishment…now dating a demon? How many could claim that?
"Like you're already special, but—"
"I get it" She cut him off and he gulped, but looking at her, she was showing him a small smile. It made his legs shake.
"And that, too" He gave her lopsided smirk, "I get to make a demon smile, like dude, how crazy is that?—don't misunderstand me, I talk about this with Rob sometimes—"
"Robin feels that way about me!?" She whispered harshly and then realized her mistake. The cup in front of her shattered a little bit from the embarrassment, "Ah…because Starfire is an alien, right?"
"That's right. It's just strangely…cool. Unique. Special, I guess? I say all this because I don't want you to think I'm put off by anything regarding you. Even your…dark side, Vader" Of course, after being so sweet, he had to follow up with a cheesy joke. Raven found she didn't really mind.
Pondering as she sipped her tea, her eyes shifted to see the place as her thoughts ran wild. She couldn't bring herself to be angry or even mind, and in fact, Rage was so elated she could feel the warmth in her chest, coming from somewhere she'd never felt it come from before,
Her demon side was…pleased. The adversity she generally felt towards Beast Boy (Her demon side, not her) was suddenly wiped away and she felt acceptance. Approval. Rage approved now too, the last of her emoticlones left to accept her…affection for the changeling.
"It's time now, bring him here" Knowledge wasted no time in making herself known.
"After the date" She knew Knowledge wouldn't even try to argue against that.
"Of course, I'm enjoying myself…Our Garfield is such a gentleman"
Blushing, she shook her head and cut off the connection.
Seeing his stunned face, she smiled again, a rare occurrence for her, "I'm not mad, Beast Boy. I'm just processing this" She took a breath, "But I think I'm happy you…aren't repulsed by it" Raven smiled at him.
Of course, Garfield had a way with words when it came to her that no one else had. "I know that you are repulsed by it, but I don't like it. It doesn't sit right with me when you say you hate a part of yourself…even when I know it's like a curse to you" Beast Boy sipped on his smoothie to find out it was empty, and he let out a dry chuckle, "Sorry, Rae"
"D-Don't be.." Bothered, Raven stood up and reached for her tea, "I thought I'd be bothered by it but…Rage, my emoticlone?" He nodded to let her know he knew who she was talking about, "She's…quite pleased. With your words, I mean" Blushing, Beast Boy took the chance to breathe and stood up to throw away his cup.
Thankful for the brief respite, Raven was ready to continue when he came back. She had feared the worst when approaching this conversation, but she had ended up feeling quite happy…and dare say, a bit sexier. So Beast Boy thought dating a being of destruction and dark evil was hot? The more she ran the idea in her head, the better it sounded. It was as if everything inside felt…more confident now.
He liked her as both a demon and a human. Suddenly the unyielding wish of forsaking her demon side and getting to be fully human didn't eat away at her heart so strongly anymore. It might cause her unending pain and will always prove to be a challenge to her, but at least there was someone who…didn't hate it. Or her.
"I brought you a cookie" Ever the sweet guy, she accepted it with grace. She blushed when the green changeling decided to sit next to her this time, instead of across the table.
"T-Thanks" She planned on leaving her hood up for a little longer, but seeing Beast Boy take some steps to get them closer forced her to reconsider, "And the second thing? Is it still about my demon side?" She out her hood down.
"It's mostly about you as well" He confessed and she suppressed a sarcastic remark. So far, it has been mostly about her today, "Yes or no questions, not too complicated" After a second, she decided what the hell.
"Fine"
"Aren't demons and horns…a thing?" She mentally chuckled at his question.
"I choose not to let mine grow. I like looking the way I do" Sensing his next question, she decided to continue, "No, my demon side is way different than…this one. Sure we may have a humanoid figure, but…we have multiple eyes, our skin is even darker and it'd be bizarre for you to witness it…your mind might not wrap around it well enough and it may confuse you" For him to see her like that, he'd have to dig at her walls for a long, long time. Even Raven herself could count the times she decided to take on her demon form with one hand only.
Smiling, it seemed like nothing would change the way he felt about her.
"Wings?"
"I do have some"
"Some?" She smiled.
"They grow up to nine pairs" His wide eyes and surprise filled her with a strange feeling of delight and relief. This was the first time she found herself talking about her demon side without something dying right next to her.
Beast Boy was a little confused but continued forward, "Not you, but do normal demons feel pain?" He asked an obvious question but she couldn't fault him for that.
"They do, but I guess I can see where you are coming from. Just because they feel pain doesn't mean they react the same way we do…some enjoy it a lot, others can't really be bothered by it"
"Do you need to eat?" She rolled her eyes, stopping herself from snarking sarcasm his way again. They just had breakfast in the tower, and he knows she can grow an appetite at times, but Raven understood that he was talking about her demon side.
"My human body does, but my demonic part doesn't. Meditation is all I need to exist as a demon" Beast Boy whistled lowly and she rolled her eyes.
"Does sunlight affect you?"
"A little, nothing major. I get burned easily though"
"Last question, are you immortal? I…I know you can die but, what about age?"
"I age normally, and no, I'm not immortal, but killing me is…a little trickier than usual" She couldn't believe these were his questions…nothing serious. No 'ritual' questions other idiots had asked before, fans of her or just people she had agreed to hang out with in the past. No 'killing' or if she feels the need to kill people as a demon. His questions were innocent and cute, and these were demon facts she did not mind sharing in the slightest
"That's…a relief" He let the comment escape and she questioned him with an eyebrow, "I mean, knowing that I'll get to grow older with you…I sorta' guessed that demons did not age"
Her heart swelled a bit but she had to tackle the issue, "Beast Boy, I get the sentiment and want to share it, but this is only our-"
"Even if we don't work out, Rae. I don't see myself without you…I mean, without the team it would be a hard life, and I don't wish for us to ever separate. And I know it's only our first date, but without you…I just can't see it possible, even as friends or comrades, I don't ever want to be…away from you" After he was done talking a small lightbulb a few meters away popped out of nowhere, and she berated herself for losing control like that.
Raven was stunned and silent. She had conveniently ignored Happy and Affection when they had described the love that Beast Boy felt for them, merely pretending it wasn't true. She had thought of it as just a normal attraction.
But Garfield was devoted to her. Since the day they met, and maybe there was a hiccup or two in their relationship here and there, but throughout the years, he'd remained with the same devotion. If it wasn't for him, she'd have never opened up enough to call Starfire a sister, or The Titans her family. If it wasn't for him she'd have gone dark after the whole Malchior fiasco. Beast Boy spent a good amount of every day on her, giving her attention, filling her day with something to do other than being sorry for herself.
The year without him had shown her how miserable it would be to be without him. And thinking of him going away with someone else…
Another piece of electrical equipment broke down somewhere close to them, and she had to stop herself from thinking like that.
"Bring him here, NOW!" Rage, having waited patiently, finally had enough and demanded her to be done with the date. As happy as she was to have it, she wanted to see the real Beast Boy herself, as much as the other emoticlones did.
A chorus of emoticlones demanding she bring Beast Boy to them started a chant, and she had to cast a spell to mute them out of her mind.
"You okay, Rae?" Noticing her troubled face, Garfield voiced his worries, "Sorry, I'm coming off too strong, aren't I? Star said I should just be honest with you but I must've stepped over the line. I know it's our first date…I shouldn't jump ahead and-"
"No, Garfield! You aren't...doing anything wrong. Actually, I've been…enjoying myself, as surprising as that might be to you" She sighed again, "But with me nothing is simple"
"I knew that already, so what's up?" He stood up when she did.
"First, let's get out of here" She aimed to walk towards the reception and pay, but a green hand pulled her directly to the exit, "Gar-"
"It's my treat, Raven" He said with the tip of his ears red. He must've paid when he excused himself to throw his cup…the little green imp, "Don't think too much about it, let's just go" She made a face but still complied, realizing he hadn't let go of her arm in the process. She didn't pull back, and she let Beast Boy pull them straight to the exit.
Once there, the emoticlones reached a consensus to lend Raven enough magic power to open a portal that directly led them into Nevermore. It was only then that she noticed their real need to see Beast Boy.
It was another testament of her real feelings. With Malchior (And other failed dates with people in the past) she had liked them, but one or two, or sometimes even three emoticlones always disagreed, and none had ever been brought to Nevermore. Now, with Beast Boy, all of her emotions demanded to meet him, and all of them agreed with her decision to pursue a relationship with him. Even when rage hadn't really too eager, she hadn't complained about her decision, and now she was happy that had been the case.
She knew Beast Boy wasn't a fan or dark portals, but once they reached a hidden alleyway and she summoned the thing, he didn't hesitate to take it.
The whole thing took at most five minutes, and suddenly, instead of a giant city filled with buildings, they appeared in a large, white space, with different zones of different colours that could be seen around the distance.
"Woah, it's no longer a maze?" After getting used to his body being tangible once again, Beast Boy realized that Nevermore had undergone some massive changes since his last visit here.
"After we beat Trigon, I no longer needed to have massive lands that helped control Rage" She pointed out to one of the multiple colourful sections until he spotted a red one, "Now, Rage's land is connected as well, and that gives me a lot more control" She finished explaining and Gar couldn't help but smile. More control meant more emotions to show, and he was glad about that.
"And where's everybody?"
"We agreed to meet you in…rage's domain, actually" She shyly replied back, "She is my strongest emotion, and that means that I have the strongest level of control within her domain. Don't worry, she wants to meet you and, for once, it's not regarding chaos and destruction" This time, it was her that took his hand and slowly dragged him around as she flew. Eventually, they reached Rage's domain, which was, as usual, pitch black and red. Beast Boy guessed that was just because this was really her demon side, which was the reason why everything was so devoid of light.
Still, a small house in the middle of it all surprised Beast Boy.
"That's her home. Demons are…very, very organized, as you may have already realized with me" The changeling chuckled awkwardly, remembering multiple occasions where moving something out of order inside her room had caused him painful punishment, "She likes to keep it minimalistic, too"
"Another demonic traid?"
"Sort of. Demons, like dragons, like to keep a secure stash of treasure…but unlike dragons, what demon's consider precious depends a lot, for example, there's love demons, believe it or not. And what they consider precious is that which they feel devotion to" He tried to open his mouth but Raven didn't let him, "But you don't get to decide what a demon loves, Gar. They are beings born from hatred and evil, so they'll love evil people, and love evil things"
"What—Like, succubus?" Finally, he blurted something stupid. He had taken a while to do so, so she guessed it was only right it happened,
"Those don't exist" His shot of surprise irked her the wrong way and she slightly flickered his nose in return, "Not in the way you think. They feast on other's lust, but they don't need to perform acts with you to get it. In fact, succubi are born with inherent ego; none of them would 'lower' themselves to have…whatever, with a human being" Getting closer, she prepared herself; Any second now, her emoticlones would detect her, and she knew none had it in them to keep control.
"Are all demons like that?" He asked, insecure. Stupid, she thought with a spice of affection.
"I'm not like that" Before she could answer, a dark voice made itself present behind Beast Boy, forcing him to yelp in surprise. Raven barely rolled her eyes, bracing herself.
It has begun.
"Wha- Rage? What happened to you?" Recovering from his shock, Beast Boy took a step back to look at the red emoticlone.
No longer surrounded by dark tendrils of demonic power, the emoticlone looked exactly like Raven. No extra pair of eyes, no redness inside of her pupils. Just…Raven. With a bit of a frown, maybe, but that was also a usual thing regarding the empath.
Instead of replying back, the emoticlone merely looked at Raven expectantly. After a few crucial seconds of silence, Raven nodded in approval and that was all Beast Boy registered before a huge, dark hand wrapped itself gently around his body and lifted him.
"Let's go, we've been waiting" She said, ignoring the changeling's struggles.
"Uh, R-Rae?"
"It's okay, Gar. She won't hurt you" Following her emoticlone, Raven remained floating next to Beast Boy, already resigned to let this event roll out.
Before they knew it, the entrance to the red house in front of them was already in view. Raven could hear the loud chatter coming from the other side of the door and groaned lowly. Everyone decided to join, apparently.
The door opened and Beast Boy was placed inside first, thrown lightly into it. Rolling on the floor, he stopped in the middle of what could be called the living room, and quickly froze in…overwhelming surprise.
In front of him, standing proudly, there was a pink cloaked Raven, looking at him with a huge grin on her face. He already knew this emoticlone, and he smiled as he remembered. Then on his side, sitting on a dark sofa, was Sloth, the brown emoticlone.
Quickly standing up, Beast Boy did a 360 turn to look at his surroundings, and found himself literally cornered with Raven's emoticlones. Happy was the only one standing up, Sloth was resting on a black sofa, to his left there was Brave and Rude, both sitting on small bean bags, also black. Behind him, Knowledge was looking at him with a small smile on her face as she sat next to Timid, which was the only emoticlone with her hood up, on another sofa, this time black. It seemed to be the only furniture in this…strange house.
And then, right behind Happy, he caught a glimpse of another emotion, sitting on a single-person couch. It was purple, and he couldn't quite pinpoint who she was…
But her eyes were brightly looking directly at him with a smile so permanent he wondered if that was how he looked after drinking two beers.
"Beast Boy/Gar/Garfield/BB!" Suddenly everyone greeted him, forcing the changeling to flinch from the loud noise. He attempted to say something but Happy seemed to be done with waiting, and suddenly he felt himself pushed back,, tackled by Happy into a bear hug.
"BB!" She joyfully exclaimed, hooking her arms around his neck to dangle from it and spin.
"Happy…it's been sometime" Smiling, Happy was about to say something before she was kicked away by…Brave.
"BB" She nonchalantly smiled at him, acting cool, before she finally gave in and pulled him into a hug. A huge sigh could be heard coming out of her mouth, and just as fast as it came, the hug abruptly ended.
"My turn, bitch!" Brave was pushed away and without warning, Garfield was pulled into Rude's arms, squeezing him tight and purposefully, "Heya, Beast Boy" Smirking, Rude leaned in and lightly planted a kiss on Beast Boy's cheek before she was literally engulfed in black energy and thrown into a wall. On his part, he was blushing madly.
"We agreed to one hug per emotion, no…no kissing!" Rage must've walked in while he was distracted, and now she was seething in front of them, barking Rude's ears into non-existence.
"What can ya' expect? I'm rude for a reason! Do you think I give a fuck? I find it pitiful y'all didn't try that before me! Hah!" Jealousy filled every single emotion, and with a flick of a finger, Rude was sent to a special corner of the house, tied and muted by multiple dark tendrils of magic.
"My turn!" Ignoring the events that just occurred, Beast Boy found himself in the arms of knowledge, who Beast Boy recognized very well.
Once close enough, he whispered to Knowledge, "Hey…not that I mind and all that, but-"
Giggling, Knowledge merely squeezed him tight one more time before she let go, "You'll find out soon enough…for now, just enjoy it, Garfield" As soon as she stepped to the side, Timid crashed into him, burying her face on his chest.
"H-Hello, Gar" Her small voice reminded him of just how vulnerable and cute Raven could get at times, and he couldn't help but hug back, smiling.
"Timid, how you holdin' up?" The gray emotion merely smiled and nodded, indicating that everything was peachy. After a second, she let him go and immediately rushed behind Knowledge.
"I pass, but come over here, BB" Lazy as ever, Sloth didn't even get up from the couch. Beast Boy walked closer to her, until his head was directly on top of her, "Come closer" She made a motion with her finger and Beast Boy obliged, oblivious to her intentions, "Uh, a little bit closer, BB" Close enough, she chanted a protection spell around herself before pecking a kiss on his cheek as well.
Beast Boy's face exploded into red and she deemed whatever came afterwards worth it.
"I knew I should've kept you and Rudeness at bay…" In the end, on the punishment corner, you could see both Rude and Sloth tied up and muted with black tendrils around them.
"Okay…" Confused, Beast Boy tried looking for the original Raven, just to realize that she wasn't there at all. Setting his sights to the closest Raven, which was Rage, he gulped, "Uh…your turn?" He asked and she frowned and growled.
"Demons don't give hugs" She declared proudly and Beast Boy grimaced before turning around. He stopped when he felt a tug on his uniform just to look at an embarrassed demon, "But…I can make an exception" Quickly, he was pulled in by dark magic into Rage's arms, who squeezed him tight in return. She let out a long sigh before she finally let Beast Boy go.
"Phew…that was…weird. Good! But weird!" Finally thinking he was done, Beast Boy aimed to walk towards Knowledge and get more answers, but he stopped in his tracks at the sound of someone fake coughing.
"I believe it is my turn, dear Garfield?" From the other side of the room, the unknown emotion finally made herself present, standing up and walking towards him. Unlike the others, she was glowing a low violet light and her cloak was purple. Her essence filled the room more than any other emotion did, and Beast Boy couldn't help but stare in silence at her.
"I-uh, sure…but which emotion are you?" At her hesitation, he smirked, "I only hug emoticlones I know!" He teased her and instead of getting a reaction, she smiled brightly and giggled.
Her giggles literally added more glow to her aura.
"I wish to say, but Raven won't let me. Can I still get my hug?" Her pout was so adorable and unlike anything he'd seen before that he decided to let it be.
Soon, the purple emotion wrapped him in her arms, her cloak and her scent. She was warm, warmer than other emoticlones, and warmer than Raven herself. The feeling she emanated was powerful enough to invade Beast Boy, and he found himself in a river of assurance, happiness, relaxation and fulfillness. Now he really needed to learn who this emoticlone was.
Not registering how long their hug took, it was yet another voice that finally kicked them out of their mental war, "Alright! I gave you all your fifteen minutes with him, now stop all this madness so we can proceed" Finally, it was the original Raven, who had patiently waited outside the house per their agreement.
"Ah! Rae!" Noticing that he was still holding the purple emotion close to him, he immediately pulled himself out of her arms, making her pout, "S-Sorry, they just started to-and I couldn't…" Trying to find a way to help his immediate demise, Beast Boy started blurting out excuses.
"Gar, it's okay" She quieted him with a nod of her own, "I knew this was going to happen…And I'm glad it did. We didn't bring you here just to hug my emoticlones and hang out"
"Although that would be a great idea!" Happy added, sitting on a couch as she waited. Every other emotion seemed to gather around them once again, even those tied and binded to the wall.
With a gentle hand, Raven had Beast Boy sit down cross legged in the center of a circle made of emoticlones (sans Raven) and then she sat down in front of him, in the same position.
"Yup, we need to talk" That came from Brave, who was making herself comfortable on one of the many couches.
"Talk?" Confused, Beast Boy felt a little intimidated. All emoticlones and Raven were giving him their attention. All of it, "Talk about what?"
Then out of nowhere, all of the emoticlones plus Raven spoke at once, with a smile on their faces.
"Of course, our relationship"
-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
"Are you sure, Cyborg?"
"Positive, Rob. They probably just needed a second to themselves, y'know?"
"But their communicators just…went off. As if they went to another dimension or something, there is no trace of them here on earth"
"Look, dude, I bet Star already filled you in on the details, but Raven asked the green bean on a date today. I would only guess our local goth demanded privacy for the extraordinary occasion, sounds fair?"
"But…"
"Rob, when you disappear with Star, we give you a few hours in advance before bothering you two. Give them…one, two hours tops before going crazy, alright?"
"...Fine. Robin out"
Sighing, Cyborg let his forehead hit the floor as he remained the only titan in the tower, as usual, covering for both Raven and Beast Boy's absence.
If your date was going to be interdimensional, you should've said something, dumbass Raven.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
"You want to talk about us?"
Back in Nevermore, Beast Boy remained as confused as he was when he first entered the pocket dimension. In front of him, all of Raven was present. All of her, her emotions and her attention, were all directed to him, and it was…a bit overwhelming, but the good kind of overwhelming.
"Yup! I think we need to clarify some…things, Raven has said, that thwart our efforts on this date" Knowledge decided to join the two in the middle of the circle, and most emotions agreed to that. The yellow Raven had all the information available and was the least likely to act on her impulses while being so close to Beast Boy himself.
"Said? But…isn't this too serious? She said it's only our first date" Suddenly, a thunderous growl reigned over the whole realm, and all emotions turned to look at Rage in surprise.
"It's not just our first date, Beast Boy" The demonic side of Raven replied, "Raven just lacks the backbone to let you know just how much time we've-"
"Rage! We agreed on something!" It was both Brave and Happy that stopped her from speaking further. Raven sighed in relief, not liking where she was going with this, "Sorry about that!" Laughing nervously, they dragged Rage to the back of the circle. The only reason why she didn't blast them away in anger was because they were right. She did not want to rush things either, it was just frustrating.
"So it's not just a first date?" Completely shocked, Beast Boy could barely keep himself from passing out on the spot. There was too much going on at once, but at the same time, he was happy to be surrounded by Ravens.
Not knowing how to approach the subject, Raven turned to look at Knowledge with hope. If she couldn't, then Knowledge could. She lacked the anxiety and shyness Raven had regarding this type of conversation.
Coughing to get his attention, Knowledge started, "Garfield, did you know that Tamaraneans are generally pollyamorous?" Sensing where she was going with this conversation, Raven blushed and tried to look anywhere but Beast Boy.
"Pollywho!?" Sweat dropping, all emoticlones realized that maybe using Knowledge as their guide wouldn't be as smart.
Giggling, it was affection who decided to stride inside the circle and sit down beside Beast Boy, way closer than either Knowledge or Raven herself sat.
"Polly-amorous, Gar. It's when…" The emoticlone leaned and whispered to his ears. It took a second for him to understand, and then he blushed. Sensing his immediate question, she intercepted it, "No, Starfire isn't like that. She respects and adores Robin too much"
"No, I get that. I can't imagine Robin's face if she were to bring some random into their relationship…" Just thinking about it was enough to bring a bout of chuckles his way.
Knowledge decided to continue where she left off, "And did you know that Atlantians mate only for brief periods of time? That's why Aqualad is always changing partners. He only feels attraction and love towards them for a little while, then it changes"
"Didn't know fish-breath was like that…it makes sense why no one on East Titans dates him though…" Beast Boy had always wondered why Garth stuck to small flings rather than serious relationships, but he guessed fish life was way different than humans.
"He supposedly needs to find his soul mate before he can settle down, but who knows when that could happen…" Knowledge nodded towards Affection who added nicely.
Garfield gulped and realized where this was going.
"And demons…did you know that they bond forever?" She muttered as a shy whisper, but it was loud enough for his sharp ears to hear it.
The changeling immediately went quiet, shock overwhelming his senses.
"Y-You guys bond…forever?" He asked, incredulous. Raven had dated (or tried dating) a handful of times before…he hadn't thought those flings had meant to last so long at the time…
"When all my emotions accept the person…I'm trying to date, which I thought would never happen, then yes…It's-I mean, we'd like for it to be…" Raven's eyes drifted away from his in embarrassment, with her cheeks flaring red.
"Raven lacks the guts to let you know this shit is for the long game, Beast Boy" Unable to hold herself back, Rage stepped into the circle and confronted Beast Boy.
"Rage!" Happy tried, but a dark tentacle held her in place.
"We respect your human wishes and brought you here to warn you before decidedly jumping into a relationship with us" She was taking it seriously, even when her face was red and not with anger, but with embarrassment, "We…don't want you to think this is a game" Her voice turned gentle and fearful, almost vulnerable, "And it won't be easy…I mean, I am a demon" As if to prove her point, she lifted a few of the couches around her with dark magic, making them levitate before dropping them on the floor once again, "But we'd like to think we're…"
"Worth it" All the emoticlones said at the same time, as well as Raven, who looked intently towards Beast Boy.
By his side, the Changeling couldn't keep up with the information. So dating Raven meant…forever? He couldn't see the problem with that, or at least not personally. Forever was a long time, but Raven was so incredible to him, he couldn't fathom a future where she wasn't involved, romantically or not. He considered himself the luckiest man alive to have been invited to this date, and stupid for not having acted sooner on his feelings. He had left the team for a year to grow stronger after feeling inadequate within the team, but he had stalled on his feelings for Raven even after coming back from his journey. To hear that she was taking it this seriously…
Then again, when had Raven not taken anything with due seriousness?
"I-I told you we'd…sound too desperate" Shyly, it was Timid who broke the tense silence between all of them. From the look of worry that adorned every emoticlone's face, Garfield realized he needed to say something.
"D-Desperate!? Pshh!, As if!" Standing up, he picked up the pace and tried to calm Timid, "Forever is fine, dude. I mean…R-Rae?" His ears went down with embarrassment and he took solace on the fact that Raven seemed to be having it ten times worse than he was, "Are you…is this…?" For all his ability to downplay things and bring out humor, Beast Boy was at a loss for words.
"It's real, Garfield" Her eyes rested on his own and she slowly levitated towards him, "I know, it's all too much and we're coming off too strong, like you said, but…We needed to let you know"
"Forget about coming off too strong or too weak, Rae. I'm asking if you are all…if you are all sure?" A wave of humble insecurities washed over Raven and her emoticlones, all sensing Beast Boy's worries, "I-I mean…forever, with me? Isn't there someone out there better fitted for you? I'm stupid, Rae. I barely read books or think much at all, I'm annoying and I can be a handful at times…"
"But you are also a-a…amazing, BB" Timid slipped in, not liking how Beast Boy made fun of himself.
"And strong!" That was Brave.
"I have plenty of situations filed in Raven's bank of memories that show us just how smart you actually are, Garfield" Knowledge added, smiling at the scene.
"You're funny" Sloth, for once, wasn't lying on the couch, but actually looking straight at Beast Boy with a smile.
"A prankster" Rude added.
"You're my best friend!" Happy wasn't far behind, smiling at him with her toothy white grin.
"And we find you quite attractive" The last voice was Affection, who was sitting next to him, looking at him with a lustful smile.
"You like us as a whole…not just our human side, or me, the demon side" Rage went back to her place on the back of the group, but her presence was no less evident.
"You are all I'm looking for, Gar" Finally, Raven flew to his side and took hold of both of his hands, "Whenever I'm sad, you're there for me…and on the off chance I laugh, it's thanks to you. If a stone gets thrown at me, I don't even register it any more, because I know you'll be there to stop it" Instead of shying away, Beast Boy took the chance to get closer and remove his hands from her hold. Instead, he placed them on the curve of her lower back.
The empath took her queue and placed her arms around his neck, finally bringing their bodies so close, they both could feel the warmth enveloping them.
"No fair, I wanted BB to hold me like that" Happy muttered on the side just to get elbowed by other emoticlones, shushing her. This was their moment, no need for an emoticlone to ruin it.
"Rae…you know I'm on board with this…forever with you-it honestly sounds like a dream" Beast Boy closed his eyes and let his forehead rest against Raven's, "But…"
"You don't think you're worth it" She voiced what his emotions were already screaming at her. When Beast Boy nodded, ashamed, she shook her head in denial, "You are"
"But I'm green"
"And I love it" His ears shot down.
"And my ears…?"
"I dig them a lot"
"And-"
"Garfield?" She cut him off before he could continue, and his eyes showed Raven how open he was being.
"Rae?"
"Do you want this?…Us?" Her question was one with weight and he took no time to nod in agreement.
"Forever?"
"Forever" She nodded back. All of her emoticlones nodded as well, multiple times.
"I love you" It was as if Nevermore turned pink at his words, and no one noticed, but Affection shone so bright she easily blinded the sun.
"I love you, too"
"I love you, Raven"
"I love you, Garfield"
As soon as she said that, she felt Beast Boy's lips brush her own only for a quick moment before they parted again.
"Forever?"
Smiling, she nodded and sighed in relief.
"Yes, forever"
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That's the end of this 4 chapter-one shot. Next stories should not have anything to do with these last four chapters, at least for now that's the idea. Maybe a fifth chapter when they come back from their date…maybe.
Thank you for the reviews