Chapter III

The next morning, Beast Boy woke up with his whole body aching. His bones filled with the stress of anticipation from the night before. After their talk, Nightwing suggested that they continue their conversation the next day. He was surprised at the older boy's reaction and though he knew his friend could understand the need for time off, it almost seemed like his friend had half expected this.

He wondered how it would go with the rest of the team, there was no doubt they would miss him. He was only planning to be gone for six to twelve months, so their reactions shouldn't be too dramatic, but knowing Cyborg and Starfire, that was asking a lot. A part of him worried that things wouldn't be the same when he came back. What if they didn't miss him as much as he thought they would? What if he changed so much that they didn't recognize him, and he had to start all over… He knew he was being ridiculous, but couldn't get rid of the thoughts and fears plaguing him.

Beast Boy knew that Nightwing wouldn't replace him with someone else and not let him back on the team. Knowing his friend, he was sure that any person the older boy allowed on the team would be holding his place until he got back. Cyborg was his best friend, and there was no way he would forget Beast Boy. He remembered times when they were apart because the other was on a month-long mission. As soon as they came back, it was like no time had passed. He hoped this would be the same. Six months to a year was a long time. Starfire wasn't one to forget people; she was one of the most loving people he had ever met. But he remembered the times he had hurt her either through a bad prank or his words. What if time apart really ended up dissipating their friendship? He doubted that Starfire wouldn't let that happen. She was his sister, and she'd keep their bond alive even when he wasn't there. As for Raven, they had only started being closer as friends in the past two years. He knew she wouldn't forget him but he worried that their progress in not being as antagonistic to each other would fade. He made a point not to let that happen when he got back. Her friendship meant too much to him.

Walking down the corridor, Beast Boy stretched his arms over his head, already imagining the sweet smell of waffles waiting for him in the kitchen. Breakfast was the best part of his mornings—simple, comforting, and predictable. But as he rounded the corner and entered the kitchen, his heart sank.

Cyborg stood by the counter, crumbs scattered on his plate, the waffle maker conspicuously empty.

"Aw, c'mon, Cy!" Beast Boy groaned.

Cyborg smirked, unapologetic. "Sorry, man. You snooze, you lose!"

Beast Boy's shoulders slumped. "Seriously? What am I supposed to eat now?"

"Why don't you whip up some of that tofu stuff you're always raving about?" Cyborg teased, leaning casually against the counter.

"It's not 'stuff.' And it's definitely not breakfast food," Beast Boy shot back, his tone sharper than he intended.

"Could've fooled me," Cyborg said with a shrug. "The way you talk about it, I figured you'd be fine eating it all day. Just grab some cereal or something."

"I DON'T WANT CEREAL!" Beast Boy snapped, his voice echoing through the kitchen. Before he could think, his hand lashed out, claws grazing Cyborg's chestplate. His breath came in short, ragged bursts, his body trembling with barely contained energy.

Cyborg's expression shifted, the humor draining from his face. He raised his hands, his voice calm but firm. "Whoa, hey! Chill out, man. I get that you've been dealing with a lot lately, but this isn't cool."

Beast Boy froze, his hand still midair as if he couldn't believe what he'd just done. His adrenaline crashed fast, leaving him standing dumbly in the middle of the kitchen.

"I… I didn't mean to—" he stammered, his gaze dropping to the floor.

Cyborg sighed, his tone softening. "Look, I'm not mad. But this keeps happening, and you gotta figure out what's going on. You good?"

"I'm taking some time away from the team… Me and Nightwing are gonna go over the details after lunch."

Cyborg's demeanor changed from a frustrated and concerned older brother to something unreadable. It caused a spike of anxiety to swell in Beast Boy's throat and go down to his stomach. He had no idea what his friend would say, but he knew it wouldn't be easy to hear.

"I get it, man," Cyborg finally said, his voice softer than Beast Boy expected. "This team—it's like family, but even family can be overwhelming when you're not in the right headspace. If stepping away is what you need to get back to yourself, I support you. Just… don't forget you've got people here who care about you."

Beast Boy nodded, forcing a small smile. "Thanks, Cy. I'll miss you guys… a lot."

"Me too B."

"Thanks Cy."

On his way to the conference room, Beast Boy passed a photo on the wall. It was from the time he and Starfire celebrated their birthdays together. Starfire didn't have a birthday due to the Tameranian calendar having additional months and days compared to the Earthen one. It was impossible to calculate where her birthday would fall on as it would probably be years apart. They'd thrown a huge party, full of games, food, and a treasure hunt where everyone used their powers. He smiled at the memory.

Other birthdays for the titans had been just as fun, Cyborg's was always a low-key gathering with family recipes and games, while Raven's was quieter, just the five of them watching horror movies and eating ice cream. Even Nightwing's celebrations had their charm, small get-togethers before he'd head to Gotham.

Looking at the photo, Beast Boy felt the bittersweet tug of leaving the people who had been his family for years. He knew he'd miss them, but taking time for himself was the only way he could come back stronger—for them and for himself.

When he got to the conference room, Nightwing was sitting at the head of the table, a small screwdriver in hand as he messed with his communicator. He closed it up as soon as Beast Boy entered the room and gestured for the changeling to sit down.

The two of them went over the logistics of his absence and what it would mean as far as his position on the team, Beast Boy would be gone for eight months to a year, and would choose another Titan to carry out his duties until he returned. Against Nightwings wishes, the changeling also turned in his uniform and communicator. The older boy thought it unwise but understood since he himself had done the same thing when attaining his current title, shedding the identity of Robin.

As they delved into the intricacies of his absence, the two meticulously discussed how it would impact his role within the team. Beast Boy estimated his leave to last between eight months to a year, and would be leaving in a month. Eager to uphold his responsibilities even in his absence, he carefully selected another Titan to step into his shoes and carry out his duties until his return. Despite Nightwing's slight apprehension, the shapeshifter made the bold decision to surrender his uniform and communicator. Understanding the weight of this symbolic gesture, Nightwing acknowledged that he, too, had once undergone a similar transformation when he relinquished his persona as Robin to assume his current mantle.

"Are you sure about this?" Nightwing asked, leaning forward, his elbows resting on the table.

"I am," Beast Boy replied, his voice steady despite the lump in his throat. "I've been out of control, and I don't want to keep putting that on you guys. I need time to figure things out—away from here."

Nightwing nodded, his expression thoughtful. "It's not easy stepping away. When I left Gotham, it felt like I was losing everything—Bruce, the team, my identity. But it also gave me the space I needed to grow. If this is what you need, I'll back you up."

"Thanks, man," Beast Boy said. "I just… hope I can come back and be better for the team."

"You will," Nightwing assured him. "And we'll be here when you're ready."

As soon as they were done picking out who would be covering for Beast boy, the alarm rang throughout the tower, flashing red lights signaling trouble. The two went up to the common room where Raven, Cyborg, and Starfire were waiting for their leader.

"Gizmo is raiding S.T.A.R. Laboratories, let's meet there and take him down."

Nightwing got on his cycle, Cyborg and Beast Boy took the T-car, and Starfire and Raven took flight on their way to S.T.A.R. Labs. It would take them ten minutes to get there by car, even while ignoring the speed limit. Raven and Starfire would get there first and detain him.

As Gizmo grew, so did his nasty attitude and aptitude for technology. He hadn't grown too much taller, only reaching a height of five feet even. He was more dangerous because after an electrical fire that scarred half of his face, he got a bad concussion that formed a bruise on his brain, causing borderline psychotic behavior. Recently, there had been a string of bombings using a new and unusual type of acidic fluid in place of C4. Nightwing suspected Gizmo of being the perpetrator but had yet to find evidence. Unsure of why the bombings were happening, he kept a close eye on the now teenage kid genius. His watch slipped because of recent team conflict and soon to be absence of one of his team members. He had no doubt that Gizmo's raiding of S.T.A.R. Labs had something to do with this.

"So where do you think you're going to go?"

The question caught Beast Boy off guard, he had been mentally preparing for the upcoming fight. It was a fair inquiry, though at the moment he wasn't entirely sure, maybe he would go visit Rita and Steve then thought better of it and decided wherever he would go, he'd have to be alone.

"Probably Africa? I mean it's where I was raised. Things might make more sense there."

"I get it. Just feel bad that you're missing out on Game Night."

Game night had been developed by Nightwing as a way to let loose. Recently their caseload of villains had become more and more bloodthirsty and malicious, leaving the team to feel anxious and depressed. Especially if there was nothing they could do to save the victims life. Game night was every other Friday at seven. The whole group enjoyed spending time together and feeding into their competitive tendencies. Part of the other reason they had game night was because they had stopped Control Freak from destroying his least favorite game company, and in return had received prototypes for card games, board games, and video games to try out. Their current favorite was a card game called 'Cardenfreude', whose name was still being workshopped, they just called it adult apples to apples. Each night they would try something new and review it for the developers, and it was a ton of fun. Last game night Cyborg had invited Sarah, his girlfriend, to come and play with the team. Jinx had gotten roped into it as she had been returning a book she borrowed from Raven.

"Wait, so how do you play this game?" Sarah asked.

"Okay so how it works is, one person gets a card prompt and has to answer it for the person next to them going counterclockwise until everyone has answered it." Cyborg answered. "I'll go first… Ahem, What is a song that best describes them?" He said looking at Beast boy. "That's easy, 'I Wish' by Skee-Lo."

"Man this is lame, is there anything else we can do?"

"We could play SuperSmash again!"

"Wait, has Sarah played Cardenfreude?"

"No? What's that?" Sarah questioned

"It's like an adult version of apples to apples. Super inappropriate and very politically incorrect, but that makes it even more fun."

They played it for the rest of the night, Starfire ended up winning. Since then, Sarah started coming to game night more and more. Jinx also brought game night to Titans east, which Bumblebee thought was incredibly helpful to the team dynamic on top of being a stress reliever.

"Gah I didn't even think about that."

.The Titans arrived at S.T.A.R. Labs just as chaos erupted. A deafening explosion shattered the air, sending shockwaves through the ground. Flames licked the side of the building, and plumes of black smoke billowed into the sky. Screams from the lab's employees could be heard faintly as debris rained down onto the street.

Through the smoke, Gizmo emerged from the gaping hole in the lab's wall, carried by four mechanical legs that moved like a spider. He clutched a metal briefcase in one hand, a smug grin spreading across his scarred face.

"Get out of the way, you crud-munching twats!" Gizmo sneered.

"DUDE! Language!" Beast Boy exclaimed.

"What a dick," Nightwing muttered.

Raven bumped his shoulder in disapproval but said nothing.

"Titans, GO!" Nightwing commanded.

Starfire surged forward, unleashing a flurry of starbolts that lit up the battlefield. Gizmo's mechanical legs skittered out of range as he barked commands at a small drone swarm, sending them zipping toward the Titans. The drones unleashed bursts of electric shock, forcing Starfire to break off her attack.

Raven enveloped two drones in her dark energy and slammed them together, their parts scattering across the street. Beast Boy, in the form of a gorilla, charged straight at Gizmo. Before he could close the gap, Gizmo activated a turret built into his backpack, firing a stream of incendiary rounds that forced Beast Boy to take cover behind a crumbling piece of wall.

Meanwhile, Cyborg was engaged in a shootout with the drones still hovering around. "These things are rigged with more than just shocks!" he shouted as one of them fired a concussive blast that knocked him off his feet.

Nightwing vaulted over a pile of debris, his staff whirling as he took down one of the drones. "We've got to disable that backpack, or he'll keep throwing toys at us!"

As if to prove his point, Gizmo hurled a grenade into the fray. It detonated in a shower of acidic fluid, melting a nearby car and sending toxic fumes into the air. Cyborg's sensors blared a warning. "That acid's gonna eat through anything it touches—don't let it hit you!"

Inside the lab, terrified scientists tried to escape, but some were pinned under rubble from the earlier explosion. Starfire broke off her attack to lift a chunk of collapsed ceiling, freeing a pair of trapped workers. "Run! Quickly!" she urged, even as Gizmo's spider legs closed in on her.

Beast Boy rejoined the fight, shifting into a cheetah to sprint past Gizmo's turret fire. He leapt onto Gizmo's back as a monkey, yanking at the wires connecting the mechanical legs to the backpack. Gizmo roared in frustration, slamming Beast Boy into a wall.

"Not fast enough, loser!" Gizmo taunted, activating a defense mechanism that sent an electric shock coursing through Beast Boy. He yelped in pain and reverted to human form, collapsing to the ground.

Raven swooped in, encasing Beast Boy in her energy and pulling him out of harm's way. "Stay back. I'll handle this." Her voice was calm, but her eyes glowed with barely contained anger.

Gizmo grinned, clearly unfazed. "Oh, spooky goth chick thinks she can scare me? Bring it on!"

Cyborg took aim at Gizmo's legs, firing a precision blast that finally took out one of the joints. Sparks flew as the mechanical limb collapsed, forcing Gizmo to compensate. "Nightwing, now's your chance!" Cyborg shouted.

Nightwing closed in, his staff spinning in a blur as he engaged Gizmo in close combat. Gizmo's remaining legs lashed out like whips, but Nightwing ducked and weaved, landing blow after blow on the damaged backpack.

"Why won't you just DIE already?!" Gizmo screamed, deploying another wave of drones from his backpack.

One of the drones careened into the lab's remaining support beams, causing part of the structure to collapse. A section of the ceiling fell, narrowly missing Cyborg and Raven. "This place is coming down!" Cyborg warned.

Starfire, seeing the danger, unleashed a concentrated blast of starbolts at Gizmo's remaining legs, finally disabling them. Gizmo toppled to the ground with a shriek of frustration, pinned under the weight of his own tech.

"Enough!" Raven intoned, her voice echoing with dark power. She wrapped Gizmo in a cocoon of black energy, immobilizing him completely.

"Good work team! Quick and efficient. I'll see you back at the tower, Cy come with me." Nightwing took Cy with him to return the briefcase and brief the police on what transpired. Raven offered to help the injured but it wasn't as bad as they thought and the emergency services assured her they had it covered. And so, Raven, Starfire and Beast boy went to fly back to the tower.

As they made their way over Jump City, Starfire began to talk about what she wanted to watch for movie night the next day, explaining how she would make some Tamaranean dishes. But beast boy couldn't pay attention, preoccupied with thoughts of his future. It was scary to not know how long he would be gone for, and he would miss his friends terribly.

Once they reached the tower, Raven and Starfire made their way to their rooms to shower and prepare for meditation. Beast Boy, still lost in thought, turned toward his room but paused when he felt a hand rest gently on his shoulder.

"Hey, are you okay?"

It wasn't often that Raven reached out to check on him. Over time, their bond had deepened, and she had become more attuned to his feelings. Beast Boy wasn't sure how to respond. A part of him wanted to open up, to let her in, because out of all the people he knew, Raven would probably understand. But the words felt stuck, tangled up in everything he wasn't sure how to sort out.

"I don't know, actually…"

Raven sat down quietly on the ledge of Titan's Tower, and Beast Boy crossed his arms, his gaze distant. She noticed the subtle signs of his inner struggle: the way his ears drooped slightly, how his body language seemed heavier than usual. He didn't need to say anything for her to understand that something was weighing on him, but Raven had learned not to push too hard.

"I'm… moving to Africa."

The words were simple, but they hung in the air between them. Raven's reaction was almost imperceptible, but Beast Boy knew her well enough to catch the slight widening of her eyes and the faint press of her lips.

"I think with everything going on with the beast… it'd be better for me to take a step back. I need to figure out who I really am. You told me once that knowing when to let it out is what makes a man… I think this is me trying to figure out what that means."

Raven didn't say anything for a moment, but her quiet presence was enough. "I understand," she replied softly, her voice steady.

She did understand. In her own way, she had been going through something similar—feeling the pull of change, the quiet pressure to find a new way to be herself. But this moment wasn't about her. It was about Beast Boy.

They didn't need to fill the silence with more words. The understanding between them was enough. They stood side by side, the weight of the moment settling in quietly.

Later, Beast Boy stood in his room, the duffel bag sitting on his bed, ready to go. His eyes scanned the room, lingering on the small, familiar pieces of his life with the team—the framed photo of them all, the worn joke book from Cyborg, the hand-knit scarf from Starfire.

It all felt distant now. He ran a hand through his hair, his mind heavy with the weight of what he was about to do. He wasn't just leaving the Tower. He was leaving everything he'd known, everything that had kept him grounded. He was about to go find something—a part of himself, a piece of his past that might hold the key to understanding the beast inside him.

The thought hit him harder than he expected. He wasn't sure who he'd be when he came back, or if he'd even come back at all.

Beast Boy picked up the duffel bag and paused, staring at the photo of the team. His heart tightened. This wasn't a simple trip. This was him stepping away from his family, trying to answer questions he wasn't sure he could.

"It's not goodbye," he muttered, voice rough. "It's just… I need to figure out who I am."