I know this particular crossover has happened in the comics, but as you've probably noticed by now, this will be VERY different from that. So I published chapters 9 and 10 today so if anyone came straight to this one, check out chapter 9 first lol. I'll publish 11 and 12 together as well, as soon as I can.

Happy reading :)

Demons

On their third day at Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters, the magical dream team was worried. Raven had been talking to Wanda about enchantments all night – which killed Starfire's plans to talk to her about Beast Boy – but now she was less excited about the whole thing and growingly more concerned. They needed some kind of solution already.

"Magik, maybe you could banish her to Limbo?" Raven suggested.

"She's too strong." Illyana shook her head. She hated admitting it, but it was true. They'd held back when the Phoenix broke loose because of Jean and now she had grown too powerful.

"Is there a curse you could use to trap her? Like you trapped your father?" Dr. Strange asked Raven.

"Back then I accessed white magic somehow, and I still don't know how to do that on purpose. Besides, Trigon's my blood, our bond made it easier for me to trap him. I don't know any curses strong enough to hold her."

"Maybe if we combined all of our powers it would work." Wanda suggested.

Magik frowned. "But where would we even trap her? Raven constantly keeps her father at bay, who's going to take on that task with Jean? Because she will try to escape, and when she does, she'll be furious."

"What about the demon army?" Strange asked Illyana.

She nodded at him. "They'll fight for us. Between me and Raven we gathered a lot of powerful allies in Limbo, yes. But I'm sure so did Apocalypse and Jean. There are many demonic dimensions they might have gone to."

"I have one more thing I want to try. My soul-self usually doesn't travel that far, but if you all help maybe I can reach her. We would need Soulsword." Raven looked at Illyana, who nodded at her. "Then maybe I could sense her. Spy on her, even. If I go inside a person, I can read more than emotions. I could try to find a weakness…maybe even take a peek at her plans."

"Isn't that dangerous?" Stephen Strange frowned.

"What other option do we have? Besides, I can be stealthy. I'll be gone before she notices me." Raven straightened up. "Hopefully."

"Okay. Let's try that." Illyana agreed. She didn't love this plan. She didn't want this teenage witch girl to get hurt. But they were running out of time.

"Okay, but we should wait for dusk. It will work better." Raven said pointedly. "Then we'll figure out a plan."

It was still early in the morning when Beast Boy approached Raven while she practiced Tai Chi by herself in the training room. He admired her from a distance for a while. Then he approached and started doing it with her. When they were done he realized she wasn't looking directly at him. He also noticed she had a tiny speck of dust on her eyelashes.

"Hold up." Garfield said as he gently reached out and removed the speck of dust for her. His gaze lingered on her face, admiring every detail.

Raven's muscles tensed as soon as he touched her. Okay. You've prepared for this. She did prepare. She couldn't keep letting him get his hopes up. It was cruel. So she'd meditated a lot before starting her day and she'd taken all her confusing feelings for Beast Boy and locked them in a box. She had prepared for this her whole life. You can do it, just reject him.

"You need to stop this." The empath said bluntly, keeping her face deprived of any emotion.

He bit his lip and looked down. "I don't want to…"

"Beast Boy, you're not listening to me." She disappeared for a split second and came back with the napkin rose and his drawing in her hands. Raven looked him right in the eyes. "I don't want you." She said blankly as she pushed the drawing to his chest, making him take it. "I'll never want you." She did the same with the napkin folding. "You need to leave me alone. I'm trying to save a whole planet here; I don't have time to worry about your feelings."

Garfield's heart sank deeper than ever before. Why are you surprised? Of course she doesn't want you. He fought back tears as his chest ached painfully. He felt small and he felt stupid as he stood there lamely holding the gifts he'd given her and looking down at them.

"I…sorry." He whispered.

It broke her heart. But she had prepared for this. She stayed as disconnected from the situation as she possibly could. Raven hardened her face so that it showed no sympathy. You're doing this for him. Just hang on.

Beast Boy looked up at her with watery eyes. "I…I'll leave you alone."

"Thank you."

And then he left – or actually, he ran out would be a more accurate way to describe it. And Raven finally exhaled. Well, that was excruciating. But it was done. It was clear and final and it was over. Now someone pretty and fun could eventually swoop in and heal his heart and everything would be good again. Now she could focus on saving the world.

Beast Boy rushed inside the room he was sharing with Robin and Cyborg, hastily tossed his returned gifts to the side and collapsed on his bed, burying his face in his pillow. The other two Titans were there. Cyborg had been working on using his technology to build replicas of his cannon for some of the X-Men. Some of these kids were awesome but others had pretty useless powers. They needed something. Robin had been doing his morning push-ups. They both immediately stopped and rushed to their friend's side.

"Are you okay?" Dick asked gently.

"Dude, what happened?" Cyborg said nearly at the same time.

"You were right." Beast Boy's strangled voice was all muffled because he didn't move his head from the pillow. He sniffled.

Robin exhaled. "Raven rejected you."

Garfield nodded affirmative against the pillow and Victor and Dick exchanged worried looks.

"Hey man. At least you had the guts to go for it." Cyborg tried to cheer him up.

"Yeah. And at least now you know. So now you can move on." Robin followed Victor's lead. He wasn't as good with this kind of thing. But Garfield was his friend, so he needed to try.

"Was she harsh?" Cyborg rubbed his friend's back and he could feel him sobbing softly. Victor loved Raven, but they all knew what she could be like when she lost her cool.

"She was…honest." Beast Boy mumbled into the pillow. "It was a very clear-cut rejection." He finally moved to sit up, wiping the tears from his face. "I'm an idiot."

"Beast Boy. You know she cares about you. It's just that I don't even think Raven can feel the way you wanted her to feel." Robin said in a soothing voice.

"Yeah, man. Besides, I think that Kitty girl kinda likes you." Cyborg waggled his eyebrows.

"Yeah." Garfield smiled sadly. "Thanks, guys. I don't really want to move on yet. I'll leave her alone, but…I don't want to think about anyone else yet. But thanks."

Beast Boy decided to focus on training. Maybe if he could at least tame the Beast, that would make him feel better. More…worthy. He decided to try getting all his energy out of his system in the obstacle course and then try to meditate by himself. It wasn't enough. He still couldn't focus. So he got up and punched the punching bag hard a few times. He felt irritated with himself for being in this situation, so he imagined punching all the weakness out of his body.

He couldn't stop at that point. All his anger, pain and frustration were desperately seeking satisfaction. Then when his body was exhausted, he turned into a gorilla to keep punching. He was vaguely aware of someone asking him to stop, but he didn't. And then the punching bag broke loose and flew across the room. Garfield was human again, panting, extremely sweaty and a little self-conscious about the way everyone else in there was staring at him. Most of them just seemed concerned but some looked scared. He felt slightly better, though. Slightly…lighter. He thought about trying to meditate now. But…he needed somewhere private.

Beast Boy got a little lost wandering the hallways of Xavier's School looking for a place to meditate, but he realized this could actually work. After destroying the punching bag, he felt a little calmer. So Raven didn't want him. It's not like he didn't see it coming. It was only hurting this much because he had dared to hope anyway. He started walking faster. Garfield began smelling her scent in the air at this point, but he figured that he was just imagining it from thinking about her so much. Surely she was somewhere else with the magical dream team.

And then he turned a corner and saw something that made his entire body shut down and his stomach twirl and twist making him instantly nauseous. There she was. Raven had her back pressed to the wall. Nightcrawler was pressed against her. His catholic lips were locked with her demonic ones. If his heart was already broken, now the pieces had been smashed.

Raven's muscles stiffened as soon as she sensed him there. She opened her eyes and gently pushed Kurt off of her. "Garfield…"

Well now he just felt worthless. See? It's YOU she doesn't want. Beast Boy's mind was a blur and he fought back the embarrassing tears trying to find their way to his wide eyes.

Kurt on the other hand was just uncomfortable. He didn't mean to hurt his new friend. He had noticed there was something going on between them; though in his defense he had no idea how much Garfield liked her. It's just that…well, Raven was hot. And dangerous. And different. And interesting. So when she sent him these signals he figured that since she's only going to be around for three more days and they might all die in the end, he shouldn't pass on the opportunity.

"I uh…I should go." Nightcrawler shrugged apologetically at both of them and teleported out of there in a dust cloud.

Beast Boy was still trying to move. He managed to shift his body slightly but he was still trapped in her eyes because she was looking right at him. He sort of hated her for looking so beautiful there, with her lips slightly swollen and her hair all messy. She looked guilty too, but he wasn't sure why. Technically she didn't do anything wrong. But then he remembered she could sense his heartache. Of course she looks guilty. He felt exposed. And embarrassed. And crushed.

"Gar, that wasn't…" Raven began, searching for the words to comfort him without giving him hope.

But he was gone already. He turned into a hawk and flew out of there as fast as he could. So Raven desperately looked for Starfire for about ten minutes before she just floated into her Lotus position and sent her soul-self to find her instead. She was on the roof by herself for some reason. Raven teleported.

"Kory I need t-" Raven stopped talking when she realized how sad Starfire was. She tilted her head to the side. "What's wrong?"

"Oh, nothing." Koriand'r smiled. Raven had come looking for her; she wasn't going to turn it into a pity party. "What do you need?"

Raven stared at her friend for a while. She had been sensing Starfire's spirit was a little down since…well, since their first night here. But she thought that was because she was homesick. She also detected some jealousy but she figured that was because Robin got a lot of attention from some mutant girls. Not as much as Kory got from the guys, but still. Now Raven wasn't so sure. She sensed doubt and…fear. There wasn't much Starfire was afraid of, so the empath was worried.

"It doesn't matter. Tell me what's wrong."

"Nothing's wrong!" Kory gave her friend a giant grin.

"Kory. Empath, remember?" Raven asked tiredly.

The alien princess hugged herself. "Oh, right." Maybe I should just be honest. "Well, it's just that…you see, I've been feeling…well, I miss you." She looked at Raven and saw subtle surprise in her friend's face. "I mean, I'm happy for you, I am. I'm glad you made these wonderful new friends that can make spells with you and talk to you about stuff that I don't understand and rule over Limbo and…" She stopped to sigh heavily. "I guess I'm a little jealous. I mean, not that you have other friends! I'm most joyful about that. I just, I liked being your best friend."

Raven frowned slightly. She was so confused. "Star, what are you talking about? You are my best friend."

"But…" Kory bit her lip and looked away. "You stay up for hours talking to Wanda about magic stuff and I see how much you like it. You actually get excited. And then there's Illyana and you two can go hang out in demonic dimensions instead of…you know, the mall. Even that older guy seems to be a better friend to you than I am."

Raven closed her eyes and swallowed. She was beginning to understand where this was coming from.

"I'm just sad because I thought we'd always be the best friends but you like their company so much and I'm scared of…" I'm scared of being replaced. Kory stopped herself before she sounded bitter. The truth was the whole thing had been giving her Blackfire triggers.

"Kory. Kor." Raven calmly walked up to her friend. "I want you to listen to what I'm going to say, okay? Because I'll mean every word." She waited until Starfire looked directly at her and then continued. "No one could ever replace you. I know I've been spending a lot of time with them, and I'm not going to lie, it is nice to find people who understand that side of me. I'm sorry I got carried away and made you feel this way, but you need to understand that…well, they might have more in common with me, but you are my best friend. Nothing will change that." She gave her a reassuring smile. "The love and support I get from you is unmatched, okay? And it means more than having things in common."

Starfire's expression switched from concern to bliss while she heard her friend speak. They had never talked about this so she had no idea she felt this way. By the time Raven was done talking, the Tamaranean had a huge smile plastered on her face and her eyes were sparkling. "Oh friend Raven!" She hugged the empath a bit too tightly then loosened her grip when she heard her grunt in pain. "Sorry! I'm just so filled with the relief!"

"Yeah." Raven fixed her slightly disheveled looks after Kory let go of her. "And just so you know, I might not be as good as you with words and stuff, but I'll be your best friend the best way that I can. I'm always on your side, okay? If anyone messes with you, just let me know." She said stoically, but sincerely.

Koriand'r nodded happily. She already knew that. Everyone knew that. Only two weeks ago Raven made a guy pee his pants for shouting something disrespectful at Starfire. Kory was going to let it slide, but her best friend was a whole other subject. "So what did you need?"

Raven suddenly felt her heart become heavy again. "I need you to comfort Beast Boy."

"Oh. Did you…hurt him?"

"I broke his heart." The empath said with a slight hint of sadness in her voice. "I meant to. I had to." She quickly added when she saw Kory's devastated expression. "But then…then he saw something I didn't mean for him to see." She bit her lip.

"Oh?"

"He saw me kissing Nightcrawler."

Starfire's shocked face and gasp made Raven flinch.

The Tamaranean stayed speechless for a few seconds until she decided on what to say next. "Why did yo-"

"Look, Kor…I can't talk about this. I need to eat lunch and meditate all afternoon then try to send my soul-self to spy on the Dark Phoenix. I can't talk about it now."

Starfire understood that. She really did. But it didn't mean she was less intrigued.

"Anyway, he's hurting. And I just need you to…talk to him, please? But…you know, just don't tell him I like him." Raven said pointedly.

"You like him?" Starfire's eyes widened at the implications of what her friend said. It was one thing to admit she liked his attention or even that she wanted him, but this was another level.

It was Raven's turn to widen her eyes, but only for a split second. "I…I didn't say that." She collected herself. "And it's completely unimportant."

"I disagr-"

"Kory." The sorcerer stared at her friend meaningfully as if begging her to leave it alone. She did. Raven spoke again. "Just tell him…I don't know. Tell him there are other fish in the ocean or whatever people say to people. Tell him I suck. Tell him he can do better. Okay?"

Starfire sighed sadly. "If that's really what you want…"

"It's what I need."

"Then…" Kory placed both her strong hands on Raven's shoulders and looked her in the eyes. "I got you."

Raven smiled genuinely at her. She didn't know how her friendship with Garfield would survive this but at least she knew she wouldn't lose Kory. "Thanks, Kor."

When Starfire found him, Beast Boy was a wreck. He was hugging his knees to his chest and burying his face in them. She approached him slowly.

Garfield lifted his head slightly when he smelled her and quickly wiped his face. "Oh. Hey, Star."

Kory just sat down next to him and wrapped her arms around him. He rested his head on her shoulder.

"Who told you?" Garfield asked her softly.

"It doesn't matter."

"She told you, didn't she?" His chest ached so badly he thought it would never heal. It was even worse than when Terra broke his heart. Starfire didn't respond so he sniffled and spoke again. "Did she ever talk to you about…me? Or how I feel about her?"

Yes, quite a lot actually. Koriand'r bit her lip. She couldn't give Raven's secrets away. "You know that if she had I couldn't tell you…"

That's a yes. "I just want to know if she hates me."

"She doesn't hate you." Starfire rubbed his arm soothingly in support.

Beast Boy took a deep breath. "Then she didn't kiss him to punish me. Maybe she really likes him." He was trying to make himself feel better but somehow it just hurt even more.

"She didn't mean for you to see that. I don't know why she kissed him, but it wasn't to hurt you." Kory said softly. "Have you even eaten anything today?"

"I'm not hungry."

They sat there in silence for a while.

"Are you ready?" Stephen Strange asked the Titan sorcerer.

Dusk had come faster than Raven expected. She was in the middle of a circle with Magik, Scarlet Witch and Dr. Strange around her. Robin was leaning against the wall on the corner because he didn't like this idea at all and he wanted to keep an eye on it.

"As ready as I'll be." She floated into her signature Lotus stance and closed her eyes.

Her soul-self detached from her body and emerged in the form of a giant shadow raven. The others chanted the incantation and the raven disappeared. They stayed focused on keeping her safe and boosting her astral projection while she traveled through space following the Phoenix's energy. It wasn't that difficult to track. It was the most powerful energy out there. There it is. Raven's soul infiltrated the massive destructive Phoenix Force. She had taken the form of an enormous fire bird. The empath tried to sense anything human. She hadn't given up on Jean yet. But there was nothing but blind rage and raw power. Ruthless, inconsequent, unmeasurable power. More power than she had sensed since her father.

Who ARE you? It spoke to her.

Raven remained calm, but silent. She had been noticed. The Phoenix's voice was sultry, but still extremely menacing.

I can feel you sneaking around. I can see you.

Shit. The empath began to panic. Now the Phoenix was spying on her instead.

Interesting…you host a power that rivals mine. An evil power.

And then Raven felt pain. Sharp, blinding pain. She needed to leave.

Come find me... The entity whispered seductively.

And then her voice suddenly became a wicked, chilling hiss. …HALFBREED.

It was the last thing Raven heard before she fled.

The empath opened her eyes and collapsed on the floor holding onto her chest and panting. It felt like her soul had been twisted in someone's hands. "Ouch…"

"Raven!" Robin shouted as he ran to kneel down beside her. "Are you okay?"

She looked up to see the other sorcerers had also gathered around her with concerned and hopeful looks on their faces.

"I found her." Raven whispered in her hoarse voice.

"And? Did you see any weaknesses?" Wanda asked her expectantly.

Raven looked into Robin's eyes. "I know what to do. But I need to talk to them about it first. I'll tell you tomorrow, I promise." She said firmly.

Robin nodded. He trusted her judgement. "Do you need anything?"

The sorcerer shook her head at her friend. "Thank you, Dick."

Richard smiled and helped her up, then gave Dr. Strange a quick nod and left.

"Raven…?" Stephen's eyes were narrowed as he stared at her.

Raven took a few deep breaths. Yes, she knew what they needed to do, but that didn't make it any easier. She had thought of it before, but she had hoped she could find another solution. Now she knew for sure there wasn't one.

The empath raised her eyes to meet Strange's. "I need to unleash Trigon."

He took a literal step back, immediately understanding her plan.

"I thought you couldn't control him." Illyana frowned at her. "What changed?"

"Nothing. I need to unleash his power and let it turn me into…well, the worst and most powerful version of me. That way I'm sure I can at least weaken her. And she will at least weaken me too. Either she kills me and you all come in to finish her or I kill her and you all come in to finish me." Raven said plainly.

"But…" Wanda bit her lip. "Raven…in that plan you die."

"Yes, I…I need to die." She frowned and looked down for a second, then hardened her face and looked up stoically again. "We both must die in the end. The battle will take a lot of our power. You need to kill whoever is left and you need to do it fast."

"Absolutely not." Stephen said pointedly. "You are just a kid. I'm not letting you do this."

"If someone has a better plan…please…" Raven broke for a second and her eyes welled up. "I'm all ears." She looked around but nobody had anything to give her but sad eyes. "I don't want to do it. But it's the only way. We need to fight this thing in two days..."

"I'm so sorry for reaching out to you." Wanda whispered regretfully. "This isn't even your world…"

"Wanda, I'm glad you did. If I can save your world, I will." Raven squeezed her hand lightly then addressed all of them. "Please don't tell my friends. Don't tell anyone. I'll tell them tomorrow."

Nobody liked this plan. As a matter of fact, they all hated it. They liked Raven and she was younger than all of them. No one wanted her to die, but they also knew she was right. It was the one plan they had and it could actually work.

"Maybe I should do it. If someone's going all out and losing control to fight her, it should be me. Then you can finish me off." Scarlet Witch said.

Magik frowned sadly. "Wanda…your powers are different. They have a habit of accidentally bending reality when you lose control. It's too risky with chaos magic..."

"Tell me everything there is to know about Trigon so I can prepare." Stephen Strange nodded at Raven. "But I'm still trying to find another way."

The empath smiled sadly and summoned a huge dark-covered book. She handed it to him. "Everything you need to know is right there. Try not to think badly of me when you read it."

"I could never." He said sincerely as he took the book from her hands.

"I need to go."

Raven rushed out of there because it was still early and now that she knew she was going to die there was a lot she needed to do. She could talk to everyone else tomorrow. Right now she needed to talk to him. But she had to make a stop for a quick enchantment first.

Beast Boy was alone in his room. After Starfire couldn't starve anymore and went to get something to eat he just wanted to be alone. It was nice of her to comfort him, but he still wasn't hungry. He felt…empty. Almost numb. He was probably exaggerating. So a girl didn't like him. It wasn't the first time and it wasn't the end of the world. But…it also wasn't just any girl. It was Raven. Wait…is THAT Raven? He sniffed her scent through the door and his entire body stiffened. Not again. Why can't she leave me alone?

"Beast Boy, I need to talk to you." There was urgency in her voice. "It's important, I swear."

He opened his door slightly to reveal half his face. "Okay…"

Raven pushed the door open and walked in. Her heart sank when she realized how swollen his eyes were. "I made you cry." She stated sadly.

Garfield looked at his feet. There was no point denying it.

"Listen…I need you to come to the roof with me." She said.

He frowned. "Why?"

"Just…just because."

Beast Boy sighed heavily. Now he just felt frustrated. His voice became high-pitched and he flailed his arms around exasperatedly. "Raven, I can't. You take the stuff I give you then you give it back. You tell me to leave you alone and you kiss the best friend I made here. So I try to give you space. And now you come asking me to go to roofs!"

Raven bit her lip to avoid smiling. She hadn't meant to do this to him, but the way he got worked up was kind of cute. "I know. But things have changed."

Garfield stared at her quizzically. "Since this morning!?" He squeaked.

"Precisely."

"But…how!?" Beast Boy had no idea what was even going on at the moment.

"I'm going to die." She said bluntly.

Wait what!? "Wait what!?" He brought both his hands to his head. "What do you mean you're going to die!?"

Raven walked up to him calmly and took both his wrists in her hands gently bringing his arms down to his sides, completely unaware of the fact her touch was giving him chills.

"The Dark Phoenix will kill me. Or weaken me, and then the others will kill me. I have to unleash Trigon's power to fight her." She explained quietly.

Beast Boy stared at her with wide eyes. I can't believe I'm going to cry for the third time today. What's this girl doing to me!? "No. Raven, that…no." He said firmly.

She removed her hands from his wrists and placed them on his shoulders making sure he didn't look away from her. "That's not what I came here to talk about. That's only the reason I came. I don't want to talk about that now. I want you to come to the roof with me. Please?"

He started panting. He was trapped in her eyes again and he couldn't look away until she released him. "Raven I…you can't just say you're going to die and expect me t-" His voice broke as he choked up a bit.

"I know. I know it's a lot to take in and I know I hurt you today. But think about this: if I'm right and I die the day after tomorrow, won't you wish you had gone to the roof with me right now?" Raven's voice was soft, but firm.

Beast Boy's heart was pounding. She was touching him and speaking softly to him and staring into his eyes and inviting him to…he wasn't sure what she was inviting him to. What's with this roof thing? "What's on the roof?"

"Come with me and you'll see."

Garfield swallowed. "Okay."

Raven teleported them because she didn't want to waste a single second anymore. There were a few snacks on the floor, over a blanket. And there was a crystal in the center of the rooftop, surrounded by candles. Beast Boy looked at her questioningly and noticed she was looking up at the sky, so he did too. It was beautiful. It was a starry night like he hadn't seen since Africa.

"This Universe has its problems. Apparently mutants are seen as inferior by a large group of people. But they haven't polluted the air as much. The night sky is nicer." Raven spoke softly while she gazed at the stars, admiring them.

Beast Boy smiled. "Yeah…I like stars. One of my best childhood memories is going to an o-"

"Observatory."

He raised a suspicious eyebrow at her. "You also read minds now or something?"

"You told me, silly." Raven rolled her eyes.

"I did?" He frowned. He'd told her so many things about him he didn't remember most of them. And he didn't think she'd remember either. Apparently he was wrong.

Garfield couldn't help but notice how beautiful Raven's skin looked under moonlight. She was practically glowing.

Raven nodded. "Which is why I made this." She slowly walked up to the crystal on the floor. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" Then she spread her arms wide and dozens of projections sprouted from the crystal, spreading across the entire length of the roof.

Beast Boy's eyes widened in awe and he gasped. The projections were absolutely beautiful. They weren't solid, so you could walk through them. They had this beautiful glow to them. And they were everywhere, all around them. He recognized them too. It was the solar system. The sun, the moon, the planets, the constellations…all of it. It did remind him of the Observatory, but it was much more impressive and mesmerizing. His eyes sparkled as he moved around like a child, jumping from one thing to another and letting out small squeaky sounds of happiness.

"This is so cool! How…what is this!?"

He turned to Raven to find her standing there watching him with an extremely amused look on her face.

She shrugged smugly. "I did a little witchcraft. Beginner's stuff."

"You did this? I mean, duh, of course you did this. But…why?"

"To say sorry I made you cry today." She said seriously.

Beast Boy stood there while his heart fluttered. So maybe she didn't want him in the way he wanted her to, but she definitely cared about him. He beamed at her. "Best apology ever."

That soothed her heart. But she wasn't done yet.

"But you didn't have to. I mean, I kind of made you make me cry." Garfield said.

"That doesn't matter." Raven walked around the projections slowly, without breaking eye contact with him. "I'm still sorry." She whispered.

He widened his grin even more. Beast Boy realized he was getting butterflies in his stomach again so he looked away from her and started rambling excitedly about random astronomy information he vaguely remembered. She followed him and listened. He was wrong about a lot of it, but she only corrected him when he asked her about it.

"Are you hungry?" Raven asked after a while.

Beast Boy stopped moving. Now that he wasn't miserable anymore he realized that he was starving. He hadn't eaten anything since breakfast. He turned his head and stared longingly at the pile of snacks on the blanket. "Is that ours?"

"No, that's for the other people bonding on the roof tonight." Her tone was sarcastic but her eyes were warm.

The shapeshifter chuckled sheepishly and walked over to their snacks. They were all vegan. He beamed at her again. "You're awesome."

Raven smiled slightly and sat down next to him on the blanket, eating a few chips while Beast Boy devoured his snacks. All the while Garfield did his best to avoid thinking about how much this resembled a date.

"So…" Beast Boy said with his mouth full. "You're not really going to die, right? You just said that to get me here."

"I wish I had." She looked up at the sky again.

"But…" He swallowed. "You CAN'T! Raven, you can't die, okay?" He paid no mind to her attempts to make him stop talking. "You're simply not allowed to die. We did not discuss this as a team."

Raven sighed. "Garfield…"

"No!" Beast Boy started talking faster and faster as Raven resigned to staring at him with a blank expression on her face. "Listen, if you die everything will suck. Okay? Starfire won't have a best friend anymore and there won't be anyone to help Dick with his boring research all the time, and Cyborg will have to make fun of me alone and that's just NOT the same! And then I'll just be absolutely miserable for the rest of my life so you can't just decide you need to die and hand in your notice! You're great Rae but you have a serious problem of thinking that because you're all mighty and stuff you need to go sacrificing yourself on every turn like some tragic her-mmph…"

Garfield's eyes widened and his heart pounded wildly, because Raven had softly pressed her lips to his. His mind went blank. She kissed him lightly and gently and started pulling away, but she stopped midway. Their lips were still touching and she lingered there. Beast Boy closed his eyes while his face contorted with longing and shock and he kissed her ever so softly. His chest burned with desire and passion and he fought back the urge to pull her closer and kiss her deeply. Her lips were even softer and tasted even better than he'd imagined. After their lips parted her face lingered inches away from his and her cold breaths made him shudder. After a few seconds like that, Raven pulled away and they opened their eyes. His eyes were huge and pleading, but her eyes were filled with yearning too.

"You k-kissed me." He stuttered, as if to confirm it had actually happened.

"Yes, well…I needed you to shut up." She smirked playfully. "It was either kissing you or gagging you with dark energy. Kissing seemed nicer."

He smiled idiotically at her and flushed. "Definitely nicer."

Raven stared at him fondly and finally allowed her face to show affection. It was still contained because she was still Raven, but Beast Boy could definitely see it in her eyes and her small smile. Not to mention he could see her blushing. Does she like me!? He reached out and gently tucked her hair behind her ear, admiring her. Then he let his fingers play with her hair on their way down.

She let him do it and stared at him with slightly wide eyes the whole time. The gesture made her feel all warm and fuzzy inside. It was taking all of her control to not cause havoc and damage this gorgeous mansion. "So…" The empath uncrossed her legs and pulled one knee to her chest. "I actually wanted to ask you something."

He continued to stare at her with that dreamy smile on his face. She kissed me! She freaking kissed me! "Is it a question or a favor?"

"Favor, I suppose." She bit her lip.

"Okay. The answer is yes."

Raven rolled her eyes fondly. "You don't even know what it is."

"I don't care. Whatever you want from me, you'll get."

The sincerity in his words and the devotion that was pouring out of him made her chest ache in the most wonderful way. One of the snack bags exploded and they both jumped slightly. Raven chuckled coyly. "Mm…sorry."

God she's so fucking cute. Garfield grinned gigantically at her. "I don't care if you explode all my food for the rest of my life if you just keep looking at me like that."

More likely for the rest of MY life, meaning two days. Raven felt a twinge of sadness and wavered.

"What is it…?" Beast Boy desperately wanted to reach out and touch her but he wasn't sure what the boundaries were here yet. It seemed wiser to just follow her lead.

"Nothing." She recovered and smiled at him. She wasn't going to waste this on sadness. "I wanted to ask you...well, you see, there's something I'd like to do before I die. And it seemed impossible before, but…now it's not." Her face became stoic again, though the spark in her eyes was still there. She realized she would have to say it out loud because he wasn't getting it. "I wanted to know if you would like to have sex with me."

Beast Boy choked on his saliva. Out of all the things he'd imagined she could ask, he would never guess that. Is she serious?! Maybe this is a prank. He coughed while she waited patiently for his response. "W-What!?"

"It's okay if you don't want to, I'll understand. I guess I coul-"

"NO!" Garfield interrupted whatever line of thought was forming in her mind. "I want to, obviously I want to. I just need a few seconds to wrap my brain around it, okay?" He chuckled.

Raven just stared at him, her expression impossible to read. Garfield had mixed feelings about this request. On one hand, it was all he wanted, but on the other, she was only asking because she had her mind set on sacrificing herself in two days. And as much as he wanted to sleep with her, he would obviously give it up entirely if that meant she could live. He couldn't bear to think about her dying, it hurt too much. He wouldn't believe it, he couldn't. She was wrong. There was another way. There was always another way. He just needed to find it.

"Just checking, if I say no would that change your mind about the whole sacrifice thing?"

Raven gave him a sad half-smile. "What do you think?" When he just raised his eyebrows expectantly, she spoke again in her monotone. "No, of course not. I'll still protect this Universe if you don't want to sleep with me."

"Okay, again, not a matter of wanting. I mean, I want to. I really want to." Beast Boy bit his lip. "So…who else did you ask?"

"Huh?" Raven tilted her head in confusion.

"Uh…who else did you ask before me?" Garfield asked cautiously. He needed to know exactly how low he was on her list. The bit of pride he had left needed to know.

Raven rested her chin on her knee and narrowed her eyes at him. What kind of question is that? "Who do you think I asked?"

"Oh. Mmm…well, I guess probably Nightcrawler. And Gambit. Maybe Scott. Not Robin, because…Starfire. Oh! The sorcerer guy…"

"Are you insane?" Raven scolded him. She had heard enough. "First of all, Robin!? And Strange is old enough to be my father!"

"Well, no, not Robin, becau-"

"It's not just because of Kory. I don't…" Raven grunted and rubbed her temples. This was so frustrating. Was she not being clear? Did he need her to spell it out for him? "Why would you think I'd ask any of those guys before you?"

Beast Boy blinked. "Uh. Because…well, you said you didn't want me. Like, this morning." He explained with a confused look on his face. He was basically talking to himself and trying to make sense of any of it. "You said you'd never want me. So I know I wasn't your first choice. And then, well you kissed Kurt, so I figured…"

"Okay, I see what happened." Raven interrupted him. "I thought you understood from all of…this." She gestured towards all their surroundings with the stars, the projections and the two of them. "I thought you got that…well, I wasn't completely honest with you."

But Beast Boy just looked even more confused now.

"Garfield." Raven was getting frustrated. She didn't know how to do this with words. "When I said those things to you…I did it because I needed you to stop chasing me. It wasn't…it's not exactly how I feel, okay?"

"Oh."

"I didn't ask anyone else. It's a bit nasty of you to think that, actually."

He let that sink in for a moment. "Wait. I'm your first choice?"

She rolled her eyes. "I'm kind of only going to ask you, idiot. I'm not that desperate for sex. I'm just…a bit curious. I'd like to see what all the fuss is about."

"I'm your only choice!?" The shapeshifter looked up at her in shock.

Raven buried her face in her hands. Why do I like him again? "Yes, Beast Boy."

"But…you kissed Ku-"

"How are you so clueless?"

"What do you mean?"

"Why do you think I kissed him?"

"Because…he's…cool?" Beast Boy shrugged. How would I know why she kissed him?

Raven grunted exasperatedly. "Ugh. I kissed him because I couldn't kiss you. Okay? He was safe to kiss. After we went home I'd never see him again. It would never get complicated." But now that I'm not going home, anyone is a safe choice. She watched his expression switch from a puzzled frown to his signature stupid, gigantic grin. There you go. Finally. "You weren't an option, okay? It would be too irresponsible and dangerous. He was the closest I could get. Happy?"

Oh my God. Oh my God oh my God oh my God oh my God. She DOES want me! Beast Boy momentarily forgot the sad circumstances behind this entire interaction. Somewhere in his mind he had decided to find a solution to save Raven tomorrow. She would tell Robin tomorrow. Then Robin would know what to do, he always knew what to do. Right now he wanted to feel happy. He wanted to relish in this moment. His smile was so wide that his cheeks started to hurt, but he couldn't care less.

"Okay, well." Raven was overwhelmed by the excitement she could sense radiating from him. "You are happy. Good." She cleared her throat. "Is that a yes?"

"That…are you kidding me!?" His voice got so high and squeaky it made her wince. He cleared his throat. "Sorry. I mean, yes of course it's a yes." Garfield spoke in a still excited, but more reasonable tone. "But wait, how…I mean, how…?"

"How won't I explode everything and accidentally kill everyone?"

"Well…yeah?"

"Well, someone's confident." She smirked. It wasn't her fault he was so fun to tease.

"What!? No, I mean…I mean not that I don't…it's just that it-"

"I'm messing with you, Gar. Obviously I can't have sex. I mean, not here. I'd probably become a bomb and do the Phoenix's job for her. You have no idea how much effort it takes to get through a conversation like this without doing any damage." She said pointedly. "But I have a plan. Just follow my lead tomorrow. Okay?"

Tomorrow. He'd have to talk to Robin before. Or after. Didn't matter. He'd figure it out tomorrow. He nodded. "Okay." Is this really happening?

Raven bit her lip and watched him for a moment. Then she leaned forward to press their lips together again. Beast Boy welcomed it gladly, closing his eyes and savoring the moment. He wasn't expecting a second kiss tonight. Then Raven lingered for a while just like she had before. Only this time, she parted her lips before kissing him again.

Beast Boy's eyebrows shot up when he realized she'd slipped her tongue in his mouth and he kissed her back slowly, melting into it. It was still sweet and soft, as she needed it to be. The glow from her beautiful projections around them and the starry night sky were making the moment even more special. Beast Boy could only think of how sweet she tasted and how he never wanted to stop kissing her. But then suddenly there was a loud, terrifying sound and a huge crack appeared on the roof of the X-Men's mansion.

Raven pulled away and inhaled sharply, then smiled playfully. "Whoops."

Beast Boy chuckled. "Damn this roof. I don't want to stop." He whispered.

"We have to. But I'll see you tomorrow." She whispered back. "By the way…did you throw away your flirty gifts to me or did you happen to keep them?"

"You mean when you gave them back crushing my heart in a million pieces?" He said teasingly.

Another loud noise. The crack got bigger when Raven's heart ached. She took a deep breath with her eyes closed to control herself. Keep it together, Raven.

"Shit, sorry! I was just teasing." Beast Boy chuckled sheepishly. He reached out and took her hand in his, rubbing small circles into her palm with his thumb. "You put all the pieces back together, Rae."

She blushed and bit her lip apologetically and he smiled fondly at her.

"I threw away the folding but I couldn't do it to the drawing."

Raven swallowed. "Do you think I could maybe have that back?"

Garfield squeezed her hand. "Of course you can, it's yours. Do you want to get it now?"

She smiled. She really did want that drawing back. "No. Just keep it with you and give it to me tomorrow. Can you not tell anyone about this or about what I asked you?"

"Yeah, no problem. Though I don't know how I'm going to explain my sudden mood swing to Cy and Dick when I go back to my room now." Beast Boy laughed.

Raven chuckled quietly. "Just tell them we talked and made up. It's what I'll tell Kory, at least for now. It will make things easier for me. Please?"

She would tell him he could tell everyone about them after she died if he wanted, but until then, she needed to keep things simple. It would be hard enough to tell them she wasn't going home when this was all over; they didn't need to know she was having sex with Beast Boy. Kory would want to know, but Garfield would tell her later. It would be something sweet for them to talk about and remember her.

Beast Boy smiled hugely at her. "Like I said, whatever you want."

When they phased through the roof and back inside the building, several X-Men had gathered there to inspect the large crack on their roof. Ororo, Scott, Colossus – who was Illyana's brother, apparently – and the girl Raven had been borrowing all her clothes from, Rogue. The empath had sensed loneliness emanating from her from day one, and it all made sense when she learned about her powers. She'd been working on something with Scarlet Witch to give Rogue a few moments of freedom. If they survived this, Wanda would tell her. Raven hoped they would. In any case, Rogue was the only one whose style pleased Raven.

"Oh, hello there." Rogue quirked an eyebrow at the pair.

"Oh! Hi." Raven stepped away from the green boy beside her and wondered why she didn't sense any of these people before they phased through the ceiling. Obviously you were too distracted kissing Beast Boy's face. She cleared her throat to try clearing her mind. She should have guessed someone would be here, it was a loud crack.

"Did you have anything to do with this…?" Ororo gave Raven a knowing half-smile.

"Mmm…maybe." Raven answered, still slightly embarrassed. "I'll fix it in the morning. Sorry. Good night." She floated out of there before they began asking for context.

"Hey Rae, hold up!" Garfield's voice stopped her before their ways to their rooms parted.

She looked at him. Her cheeks were still flushed. "Yeah?"

He brought her hand to his lips and kissed it tenderly. "'Night."

Raven rolled her eyes at his antics, but her heart fluttered a little anyway. "'Night, Gar."

Demons (Imagine Dragons)