Quality Time Chpt 3

Quality Time

Chapter 3: Wanna’ Bet?

Cyborg proceeded down what seemed like an endless hallway, but it only seemed endless because he was taking his time. He walked slowly, taking only half the distance he'd normally take with each step, deep in thought. The day had barely begun, and his thoughts reassured him there was still ample time to do what needed to be done. He had pretty much worked out everything in his mind. Now, it was only a matter of putting it into action.

"Okay", he said to himself in preparation, taking a deep breath to calm his nerves. "Just be cool. Be calm," he gave himself a pep talk, "And don't do anything BeastBoy'd do."

He came to a stop, turning to face his destination. A door with Raven's name written clearly in big bold letters greeted him, though not with the most welcome of thoughts. The residence and sanctuary of Raven was a place not to be taken lightly, especially to someone who'd made the mistake of entering uninvited as he had in the past. Who knew what other sorts of mystery and mysticism awaited behind this same door.

He shakily raised his arm, gripping his hand, moving it towards the center of the door. He gently wrapped on the door with his metallic knuckles, careful so as not to annoy Raven by merely banging at her door.

"Uh, Raven? You got a sec?" he called, trying to maintain a casual tone, so as not to imply the purpose of his visit.

The bet was that purpose. Cyborg was still hung up on the suggested dare, turned wager, from the short, but still entertaining, round of Truth or Dare. A simple enough stipulation, involving the constant company of two of his fellow friends and teammates. A dare worthy of it's own sitcom in Cyborg's opinion.

The bet would require that BeastBoy and Raven remain constantly in close quarters with one another's company. Difficult? Perhaps not. But with the two intended individuals in question, it would be far from easy. Raven and BeastBoy could very well be closest to complete opposites as imaginable. BeastBoy, an energetic, over imaginative, fun loving, over the top prankster, and Raven, a quiet, passive, emotionally limited, empath. It was like comparing day to night. Getting two, so completely different from one another, to accept such a thing would be an improbable task. Improbable, but not impossible, at least not for someone like Cyborg.

Cyborg knew that they'd both be reluctant, if not completely against it, to undertake such an arrangement, especially Raven, but he figured if he could get one of them to go along with it, it'd be easier to convince the other. And seeing as how Raven would prove to be the most difficult to convince, it'd be best to start with her. If he could get Raven to accept, BeastBoy would be a breeze to persuade in comparison.

"Raven?" he called again, not getting an answer. "Raven, you in there?" he spoke a little louder, knocking once more.

Cyborg cracked open the door, just enough to peer inside. Perhaps she was deep in meditation, or fully involved in one of her books, and failed to hear him. From what little he could make out through the crack in the doorway, it appeared she wasn't inside. Going against his better judgment, he widened the opening, moving the door just enough to poke his head through, but as before, there was still no sign of Raven.

Cyborg leaned back,looking around behind him, scanning both ends of the hall. Certain that no one was around, and furthering his chances, he opened the door fully, and cautiously stepped inside. He moved quietly, or at least as quiet as possible for someone with reinforced metal feet, a few steps into Raven's room, curious as to whether or not she truly wasn't there.

"Raven? Um...Don't mean to bother you or anything...but, if you're in here, I need to talk to you." he said, just above a whisper. "Raven?"

The room was dark, and not just because of Raven's 'cheery' taste in decoration. The storm was still going on outside, giving hardly any light through the window, save for the occasional burst of lightning. The tapping of the rain and the wind blowing against the window only served to amplify the haunting atmosphere.

Cyborg gulped, swallowing hard the sense of uncomfortable fear building inside of him. He looked around him, feeling as though the many trinkets and objects around her room were coming alive, watching him. The lightning flashed, illuminating a statue of a black bird with red eyes perched above a nearby bookshelf, seeming to cast an eerie gaze at him. Cyborg took a step backwards, beginning to be intimidated as thoughts began to wander about what might be lurking in the unseen shadows. This was Raven's room after all. If she had a mirror that led to another dimension and a cursed spell book with someone imprisoned inside of it, who knows what else might be in the room with him. His glance shifted to the other side of the room, this time catching the lighting lit up a pair of drama masks that hung on the wall. One smiling, one frowning, but both with sets of eyes that seemed to follow move after trembling move. The pupil of his human eye shifted more frequently, no longer intimidated, now in the grip of steady fear.

"O-okay," he stuttered slightly, "Guess you're...not in here, then." He spoke out loud, doing his best to retain his firm voice.

But, trying not to sound scared didn't seem to overshadow the fact that he was nervously backing out the way he'd come in. His arms were out to his sides, definitely alarmed, not taking his eyes off of the many sights in front of him that seemed to startle his senses.

A sudden crack of thunder boomed, the light from the window scaling the shadows of the room to the ceiling, the final straw that served to officially scare Cyborg clean out his hard drive. His breathing became more erratic, turning to exit the room, only to come face to face with another shadowy figure. The lightning flashed once more, highlighting the gaze of a pair of menacing eyes, staring him down.

"GAAAAAAHHHH!" he yelled, reeling backwards four and a half steps, falling flat on his backside, a hand over his face and his teeth chattering.

In an instant, several candles scattered around the various corners of the room lit up, their gentle flames bringing a warm glow, banishing the darkness and dispelling the panic in Cyborg's view. Through the aid of the candlelight, Cyborg looked up to see what, or rather whom, had startled him.

Raven stood before him, waving her hand in a half circular motion, lowering the intensity of the candles. She stared passively at the mechanical man on the floor, who was slowly beginning to regain himself, caught off guard by the sudden shock.

"Geez, Raven!" he said, his normal voice returning, a hand over the right side of his chest. "If I still had a heart, it'd be having an attack right now."

Raven removed her hood, still unchanging of her expression.

"I'm serious, Rae. You nearly scared me half to death.” he said, getting to his feet.

"Only half?" she replied dryly, moving past him, taking up a meditative position above her bed.

Cyborg sighed. "Okay, I suppose I deserve that for comin' in your room and all," he offered sympathetically, "But I just wanted to talk to ya."

Raven hovered above her bed, her eyes closed, her palms faced upwards, slowly beginning the process of delving deep into her usual trance to focus her mind. "So? Talk," she said bluntly.

Cyborg leaned against the wall, his arms folded, staring up at the ceiling, not knowing exactly where to begin. "Well...Ya know that dare I came up with? Or should I say, that bet?"

Raven remained silent.

"I've been thinkin', and I was wondering..." he began, his head tilted to the side.

"No." she said in her usual monotone.

"No? No what?" he queried. "I haven't even gotten to anything resembling a question."

"No need. You came here to ask me to consider taking part in that ridiculous wager," she said, opening one eye half way. "Why else would you come to speak to me so soon after the game? I refused then, as I am refusing now." Raven closed her eye, turning her attention back to meditation.

"Alright, so you know why I'm here. Then, you should also know that I don't give up that easily." he said with a confident smile.

"Cyborg, I wasn't born yesterday. You've got an angle going here. Out of sheer curiosity, just what do you stand to gain should I participate in this infantile game of yours?" she opened both eyes, giving him her full attention, curious as to what his response would be.

"Me?" he replied innocently.

Raven just stared, obviously not buying the act.

"Look, all I'm getting outta this is the plain and simple satisfaction that I came up with something YOU couldn't do, and bragging rights on BeastBoy, and besides, I have a title to protect." he grinned, a mental image of himself holding up a gold championship belt, with the words "Truth or Dare" engraved on it, entering his mind.

"Sorry. Still not interested." she said, unenthusiastic as ever.

The grin disappeared from Cyborg's face, replaced by a look of desperation. "Aw, C'mon Raven! Just be a sport, will ya?" he asked, nearly groveling, but maintaining his dignity. "Tell ya what, I'll sweeten the deal." he snapped his fingers, a hopeful smile returning. "I mean, it's only fair that you get somethin' outta this too, right? For your trouble," he offered.

"Cyborg, this may come as somewhat of a shock to you," she turned, her whole body facing Cyborg, hovering lower, "But unlike BeastBoy, I cannot be swayed by your petty and childish offerings of video games, food, or your homemade techno toys." She turned away, her point being made.

"You sure about that?" he asked, smiling slyly. A compartment on Cyborg's lower thigh opened. He reached inside, removing something, holding it closer for Raven's inspection. "I thought something like this'd be perfect for you."

Cyborg held out what looked like a pair of wireless earpieces, complimented by his own personal craftsmanship. Beside the right earpiece were three colored buttons, one red, one blue, and one green. Aside from that, fairly normal in appearance.

"Not much of a music lover," she said, thinking hardly anything of his offer.

Cyborg frowned. "These aren't just some headphones ya plug into a cd player. These are...'special'."

"Special, how?" Raven asked, raising an eyebrow.

Cyborg smiled, suspecting he'd sparked her interest. "Well, several months ago, when we were squarin' off against Brother Blood, I started tinkering around with a few ideas to come up with a way to protect us from Blood's mind control, and I just happened to come up with these little babies."

Raven took one of the earpieces from his hand, examining it thoroughly. "I fail to see how something like this would've been a benefit to the team. What was your intention? To distract ourselves from being controlled by playing music at max volume, shattering our eardrums?" she remarked in her empty tone.

"How many times I gotta tell you? These AREN'T typical headphones. They have one very unique feature," he boasted, taking the one piece from Raven's hand, carefully placing both in her respective ears. "See, besides being almost unnoticeable, my original intention was for them to block out hypnotic suggestion. But, they double as being state of the art sound filters."

Raven looked at him, still unsure why he'd offer these to her.

"Allow me to demonstrate," he offered. Cyborg pushed the red button, just below the earpiece on Raven's right ear. "It's a three part system.” he explained, “The red button activates a tiny enhanced digital microphone, recording the exact pitch, wavelength, and frequency of a particular sound. The blue button..." Cyborg pushed the blue button.

Raven had her eyes closed, still in a light trance of meditation, waiting for him to finish this ridiculous presentation of his, but she began to grow impatient, hearing nothing from him after a few seconds. If he was trying to build suspense, all he was doing was getting on her nerves.

"Cyborg, if you're not going to tell me, then leave. I have no intention of..." she turned, to give Cyborg a glare, usually reserved for BeastBoy. However, as soon as she opened her eyes, looking at Cyborg, she stopped in mid sentence.

Cyborg's mouth was moving, but nothing was coming out. No words, not so much as a peep, as if his mouth had a mute button. But to her surprise, she could hear everything else, clear as day. She turned, facing the window, still able to hear the rain coming down outside. She leaned over, picking up a nearby book, thumbing through, able to hear the crisp sounds of the pages. She returned her view to Cyborg, who was grinning. He opened his mouth wide, as if he were shouting, stomping his feet, flailing his arms wildly, trying to illustrate how much of a commotion he was making. She could hear his feet making contact against the floor, but again, his voice seemed to be the only thing lacking.

"Okay! I get it," she said, folding her arms, signaling him not to stress his point any further.

Cyborg leaned over, pushing the green button on her earpiece. "See?" he said, his voice registering once more. "Once the device records the sound, the blue button isolates it, filtering it out of your line of hearing, and of course, the green button restores it," he explained proudly.

Raven looked at him briefly before removing the earpieces to look upon them in a new light, a bit impressed by Cyborg's invention. A device that could drown out a particular noise or sound, without silencing everything else.

"Just imagine it, Rae," he said, trying to plant a thought in Raven's head, "No more interruptions during your meditation? Reading in total silence? Heck, a plane could take off ten feet from your room, and you wouldn't even flinch in your sleep."

She was beginning to see where he was going with this. Calmness and silence were two things vital to Raven further controlling her powers. Not to mention, at times, her sanity.

"And that's not even the best part," he grinned once more.

She gave no verbal reply, but listened intently.

"If these little wonders will block out my voice, imagine what, or...WHO, else they'll block out," his grin widened, leaving Raven to come to her own conclusions.

With the thought of a safeguard against all possible noise, distraction, and annoyance, a single name registered in her mind.

BeastBoy.

The thought seemed too good to be true. She could almost visualize it. BeastBoy doing his victory dances following videogames, without so much as hindering her reading in the main room, his corny jokes, literally falling on deaf ears.

“But…if you’re not interested,” Cyborg said, removing the earpieces from Raven’s hand, “I guess I’ll just put these back in storage.” He smiled.

Raven’s thought burst.

“WAIT!” she called, just as Cyborg turned to take his leave.

“Yeeesss?” he said in a cocky manner, turning slowly, knowing he’d baited her.

Raven quickly realized how she sounded, clearing her throat, regaining her uncaring tone. She ceased her meditative position, down off the bed, and gracefully landed lightly on her feet on the floor.

“It would seem a waste to just…lock them up somewhere. Especially considering their obvious…potential. To the team, of course,” She said dryly.

“Of course,” Cyborg nodded, grinning once more.

“And I’m sure I could find the time to…er…um…properly field test them,” she explained, trying not to sound so as if it mattered to her, taking a few steps towards him.

“I’m sure,” he agreed, teasing her further, dangling the earpieces beside him.

There was what seemed like a long silence that followed.

Raven was still having an inner debate with herself. Was it really worth it? “One month, alongside BeastBoy, the single element aside from my father, that requires constant restraint and control to maintain my powers from lashing out. And for what? Some insignificant little plaything of Cyborg’s?” she reasoned mentally.

“Okay, maybe not so insignificant,” She thought. One month of sheer annoyance, in exchange for a possible lifetime of peaceful bliss. A fair enough trade. “After all, there is an old saying that it’s always darkest before the dawn.”

A cascade of BeastBoy’s annoying habits and behavior popped into her head at that moment.

“Then again, there’s another saying, that which does not KILL YOU, makes you stronger.” She frowned. “But why would I ever want to be THAT strong?”

“Well?” Cyborg asked, reminding her he was still there, breaking her train of thought.

Raven turned to her side, staring at the wall, taking a moment more to fully think through her decision.

“Very well,” She sighed, turning to face him. “One month. And not a day more,” she said sternly, almost warning him not to test her.

“Deal,” He agreed. “One whole month, side by side with one another. We’ll discuss it more thoroughly as soon as I take care of one other detail,” He waved, turning to leave.

“Hold it.” She said, stopping him cold.

Cyborg turned once more.

“Aren’t you forgetting something?” she asked, holding out her hand, as if expecting payment.

“Oh, you mean ‘these’?” he held the earpieces up to eye level.

Raven gave a slight nod.

“Absolutely,” He smiled, extending his hand towards Raven’s, seemingly to hand them over. “Just as soon as you go through the ‘whole’ thirty days of the bet.” He snatched his hand away.

After having her hopes thoroughly dashed, she gave a cold look to Cyborg. He obviously had never intended to give them to her right away, merely to lure her into it.

“It’s not that I don’t trust ya, Rae,” he smiled, lightly tossing the earpieces into the air and catching them, “I just wouldn’t want ya to go and change your mind.”

Her cold look was now an uncomfortable glare.

“Besides, these’d make it too easy. The bet isn’t necessarily challenging if ya can just tune out the person you’re suppose to be stuck with,” He pointed out, teasingly.

Raven’s threshold of tolerance for Cyborg’s teasing had reached its limit, her eyes crackling with a white glow. Stacks of books from the shelves behind her began to levitate into the air, swarming above her like provoked hornets. A black aura engulfed the litter of books, steadying their movement, almost if they were being aimed.

“Heh heh,” Cyborg laughed nervously, taking a step back towards the door. “Well…uh…guess I’d better be goin’.”

Cyborg took another step backwards. At the exact same time, Raven took a step towards Cyborg, the swarm of books moving with her, trained on her intended target.

“OKAY! LATER! BYE!” he blurted out, quickly turning to leave. In one swift motion, he flung open the door, leapt into the hall, and slammed the door behind him. He stood against the door, breathing a sigh of relief. “Phew!” he gasped.

WHAM!

The barrage of books hit the door with such velocity, leaving imprints in the solid metal surface of the door, surrounding Cyborg where he stood with near misses. Cyborg’s head creaked, turning to find the many projectiles perfectly contoured around him, coming no closer than a centimeter from making contact. He knew it was no accident, nor dumb luck, that the books had not found their mark. This was merely Raven’s way of saying, “Try that again, and you’ll be sorry.”

He inched away from the door, moving down the hall, anxiously putting distance between himself and Raven’s room. Phase one was a success.

Back inside, Raven breathed heavily, venting her irritation. Her breathing eventually slowed, calming herself once more.

“What have I gotten myself into?” she muttered, holding her head in her hand.

Cyborg continued down the hall, a smile on his face, and a bounce in his step. The hard part was over. Raven had given her consent to the bet. Compared to her, BeastBoy would be a cinch to persuade.

Cyborg proceeded further down the hall, approaching BeastBoy’s door. He reached to knock, but stopped suddenly at the sound of a loud commotion coming from inside, resembling a crash.

“BB?” he called, baffled by the noise. “Everything okay in there, man?”

There was no answer.

“BeastBoy, you alright?” he asked louder, beginning to grow concerned. He put his ear up against the door, listening for any kind of activity.

Another crash boomed from behind the door, accompanied by what he could make out as grunting, implying a struggle. Cyborg stepped beside the door, his back firmly against the wall, his arm converting to his sonic cannon. “An intruder? BeastBoy’s primal form attempting to get loose again?” he thought. Either way, a definite cause for alarm.

A roar could be heard from inside. Cyborg flinched, getting a slight chill. No animal BeastBoy had ever turned into made a noise like that. His hand quivered as he slowly reached for the door, his arm cannon charged and at the ready.

As his reach was nearing the door, a loud snarl came from inside, causing Cyborg to gulp in hesitation. After pausing briefly, he reached once more, feeling as if he was about to break into a cold sweat.

Just as his fingers began to brush against the door, it burst open, a blur darting past him. Cyborg turned, taking aim at whatever had been ejected from the room. His sonic cannon hummed as he turned, about to let loose a thunderous blast.

It appeared to be nothing more than a sizable pile of clothes. He lowered his weapon, puzzled, taking a step towards the pile. But before he could further inspect it, something shot out of the doorway, wrapping around his arm, taking a firm hold of him.

“WHAT THE!?” Cyborg yelled, caught off guard.

What appeared to be some sort of tentacle had formed a tight grip around his arm cannon. Cyborg struggled, mustering his strength, grabbing hold of it with his other free hand. He pulled at it vigorously, literally tearing it into pieces, and quite easily at that. It squealed, retreating back into BeastBoy’s room, leaving Cyborg dumbfounded. What had just happened?

He looked down at what little pieces remained in his hand from his attacker. Despite it’s strong attachment to his arm, it had been made of cloth. The ripped fragments, upon closer examination, appeared to be…sleeves. Had Cyborg been attacked by some sort of possessed clothing?

Before he could attempt to make sense of the matter further, several other tentacles shot out from the doorway. Apparently, whatever it was, was merely regrouping. One tentacle grabbed his torso, another his left leg, another took hold of him by the neck. Their hold was much tighter this time. Cyborg grabbed one, attempting to tear it apart, as before, but it was different this time. The tentacles were now of stronger material, much denser than before. They were heavier, with numerous layers of clothing over each part.

Cyborg pulled and pulled, but it did little to loosen their grip on him. And, he still had no clue as to what he was dealing with. His answer came soon enough.

From the doorway emerged a large bulky mass of, what appeared to be, clothing in the shape of a large octopus. Numerous pieces of swirling clothing made up its almost blob like form. Shirts, pants, socks, everything was a living moving part of its body. Not to mention it gave off a stench that could drop a charging rhino. Moving closer to Cyborg, it made a gurgling sound, giving the possible notion of hunger.

“What…the heck…are you?!” he shouted, still struggling to break free. “And what’ve you done to BeastBoy?!”

The creature moved closer, a shirt close to the middle of what he assumed was its head, bent into the shape of an eye, taking a closer look at its captive.

“Ugh! And would a breath mint kill ya?” he yelled, ceasing his struggle momentarily to fan the foul odor with his hand.

The creature apparently took offense to the remark, creating a large opening below it’s newly formed eye, making its mouth visible, with socks as its teeth. It roared, leaving Cyborg nowhere but its dark insides of denim and cotton material to look.

Cyborg shut his eyes, as if accepting his fate, waiting for the end to come. Who would’ve ever guessed? Out of all the villains, all the perils, all the dangers he’d faced as a teen hero, he was going to be done in by somebody’s laundry.

“LET HIM GO!” came a muffled yell.

Cyborg’s eyes popped open.

He looked over at the pile of laundry that had first been sent hurdling out of BeastBoy’s room that was now beginning to squirm. An arm poked through one side, followed by a leg on the opposite side. The pile gave a low rumble, before a green gorilla burst free from the pile. The gorilla pounded its chest, giving a commanding roar of its own. The gorilla morphed, BeastBoy resuming his human form.

“Hang on, Cy! I’ll save ya!” he announced, lowering his stance as if he was ready to attack.

Cyborg’s face went blank. His mouth cracked ever so slightly, hinting a smile.

Then came the sound of repressed chuckling. The chuckling quickly erupted into boundless laughter, Cyborg now holding his side, taking his hand away briefly, only to point at BeastBoy. He was laughing his head off, or at least he would if wasn’t so firmly bolted into his neck.

By this time, even the creature was giving off sounds equivalent to laughter. His grip loosened on Cyborg, but he was too preoccupied to notice. Soon, both Cyborg and the creature were holding one another, so hysterical in a fit of laughter. They needed one another to keep their balance.

“Dude! What gives?” he asked, scratching his head, but feeling something strange. It was then that he picked up on what struck them as so funny. BeastBoy’s eyes looked up, finding that in his escape from the pile of laundry, a pair of green underwear with a pattern of teddy bears had found its way atop his head, wearing it like a hat.

“EEK!” he squeaked, snatching them off his head, stuffing them in his back pocket. “I really gotta get a new wardrobe,” he said to himself. However, this did little to cease Cyborg and the creature’s laughter.

BeastBoy just looked at him, annoyed. And he was supposed to be in danger? He merely tapped his foot, waiting impatiently for Cyborg to stop laughing. After coming to the conclusion he might be waiting a while, he decided to simply get on with it.

“Alright already!” he shouted.

BeastBoy morphed into a bull, snorting, stamping his rear hoof against the ground. He charged the creature, making contact, hitting it head on. But because it was made out of clothing, the creature was not solid, causing him to run right through, colliding with the wall. The impact reverted BeastBoy back to human form, rolling backwards, coming to a stop right from where he started.

Rubbing his head, and shaking the dazed feeling, he got to his feet. He looked up to find the creature looming over him, the lighter moment of laughter gone, Cyborg still in his grasp. Several tentacles, formed out of shirtsleeves and pant legs, shot at him, attempting to grab him. BeastBoy morphed into a jackrabbit, springing from side to side, avoiding its swipes.

He then took on the shape of a large snake, wrapping around the creature, attempting to get a hold of his own. But again, the creature was not a solid. It was merely a hollow mass of clothing. BeastBoy squeezed as hard as he could, but he felt as if he was squeezing nothing at all. The creature simply plucked the snake by its head with one of its tentacles, uncoiling it from around its body, tossing it aside. BeastBoy returned to human state in mid air, landing on his feet. Once more, it looked down menacingly at BeastBoy.

He was starting to run out of ideas. How do you a fight a living pile laundry? BeastBoy tried to think. “If I was a bunch dirty clothes, what would scare me off?” he thought. His eyes went wide as idea struck him, bringing a mischievous smile to his face.

The creature advanced towards BeastBoy.

“Stay back!” he commanded, reaching behind him, pulling a bottle of liquid detergent, “I’ve got SOAP, and I’m not afraid to use it!” he grinned, shaking the bottle threateningly at it.

The creature pulled back, hissing like a vampire caught in daybreak. It turned, dropping Cyborg face first onto the ground, scurrying back into BeastBoy’s room, slamming the door behind it.

BeastBoy breathed a sigh of relief. “Laundry day gets rougher every month,” He said, tossing the bottle over his shoulder.

BeastBoy walked over to Cyborg, who was still unmoving, planted face down into the floor.

“Yo, Cy,” He said, rolling his friend over onto his back, “You okay?”

Cyborg groaned, his eyes closed, clearly still out from the combination of shock and confusion from struggling against a living mass of laundry and being dropped on his face.

BeastBoy nudged his shoulder, trying to snap him out of it, but it seemed to have no effect. Scratching his chin briefly, another idea came to him. He reached into his pocket, pulling out a snack bar of tofu, removing the wrapper and waving it under Cyborg’s nose.

“Wakey wakey”, he hummed, as Cyborg’s nostrils twitched, picking up the scent.

Cyborg’s eyes shot open, revived instantly, almost vaulting backwards.

“YO! Keep that stuff away from me!” he shouted, his hand up in front of him, furiously refusing the smell, sight, and all around hint of anything involving BeastBoy’s tofu.

BeastBoy grinned. “Tofu. Is there anything it can’t do?”

Cyborg got to his feet, popping open a digital readout on his arm, doing a system’s check. There didn’t seem to be any real damage.

“So, what’s up, Cyborg?” BeastBoy asked, dusting himself off.

Cyborg closed the readout monitor. “Well…I needed to talk to you abou…HEY! Hold up!” He exclaimed, realizing the need for answers, “JUST WHAT THE HECK WAS THAT THING!?”

“Uh…what thing?” he replied sheepishly, quickly blocking his view of the remnants of laundry lying in the hall, attempting to scoot them behind him with his foot.

“Don’t play dumb with me, man,” He said scornfully, bringing himself down to eye level with his green friend, “That THING was made out of YOUR clothes. Plus, it practically had your signature stank smell of year old socks and wet fur.” He folded his arms, awaiting an explanation.

“Okay, first off, how could I possibly bring laundry to life? Secondly, how do you know those were ALL my clothes? And third, my smell is more like MONTH old socks and wet fur.” He crossed his arms.

Cyborg raised an eyebrow, still not convinced. True, BeastBoy didn’t have the power to do anything even close to bringing life to inanimate objects. But there were only two things in the tower that could.  Raven’s magic, or…

“You didn’t happen to leave some of Star’s cooking lying around in there, did you?” he asked.

“ME?” BeastBoy asked, nervously. “No! No, no no no!”

Cyborg continued to stare, unconvinced at the young changeling.

“Well…maybe,” He twiddled his thumbs, glancing off to the side.

Cyborg sighed. “Man, you should know better than to leave anything Star makes just lying around. And in your room of all places?”

“What’s that supposed to mean? Just what’s so wrong about my room?” he argued.

“Oh, nothing. Other than the fact that it’s the equivalent to living in a nuclear fallout,” Cyborg replied, “That, on top of Starfire’s cooking, and you’re just askin’ for trouble.”

“It’s not my fault,” He pouted, thinking back to the events that had led up to the incident. “Last month, Star was celebratin’ one of her fancy shmancy alien holidays, and brought me this dish of…uh…’something’. And…well…I just didn’t have the heart to just toss it, even if it was potentially hazardous to my health.”

“Couldn’t be much worse than all that tofu soy crud you pack down,” He chuckled, annoying his green friend. “Did you at least try it?”

“No.”

“Why not?” Cyborg asked curiously.

“Well, I looked at it…and…something looked back,” BeastBoy answered, shriveling his face in disgust.

“Ya couldn’t have just said, ‘no thanks’?”

“Dude, you know as well as I do how Star goes from zero to weepy in under 3 seconds,” he pointed out.

“Suppose ya got a point there,” Cyborg agreed.

“Anyway, I guess I left it aside for just a little too long,” He continued, “Good thing I didn’t try it. Anything that can incubate inside somebody’s laundry, and bring clothes to life, can’t be good for ya.”

“No kiddin,” Cyborg said, glancing at the door, “I wouldn’t worry though. Not even an adaptive alien life form could survive for long in there.” He grinned.

“Oh, come on! It’s not THAT bad!” he protested.

At that moment, the door to BeastBoy’s quarters opened.

Cyborg turned, taking aim with his sonic cannon, BeastBoy in attack mode once more, but what greeted them was far from threatening.

The creature emerged, sluggishly grabbing the doorframe with its tentacles, struggling to balance its own weight. It drunkenly weaved from side to side, pale spots of green visible all over. It looked as if it was convulsing, gasping for breath, piece by piece of clothing falling off, becoming lifeless upon touching the ground, as it appeared to be starting to wither.

“You’re right. It’s not that bad,” Cyborg agreed, lowering his cannon, “It’s worse.”

“What do ya’ think’s wrong with it?” BeastBoy asked, puzzled.

“Don’t know. Maybe it found it’s way into your closet,” he joked.

The creature was now crawling desperately, no more than a hand full of shirts clawing along the ground. It gave up only a foot away from the two teens, trembling, on the brink of expiring. And then, with its final breath, hacked up a single gym sock, spitting it onto the floor. It then gave up, collapsing onto the ground, returning to a lifeless mound of clothing. A tiny purple slug like creature crawled out from under the pile, obviously the remains of Starfire’s dish that had brought life to the clothes. Leaving a trail of thick slime behind it, the parasite gave a weak cough, before also falling over, sharing the fate of its laundry based form.

Cyborg bowed his head. Even if it had tried to eat him, BeastBoy’s room was a fate he wished on no one.

BeastBoy picked up the sock with two fingers, pinching it closely to his nose, taking a small whiff. “*sniff sniff* Hmm…” he said, reminiscing in his mind. “2003. A very good year,” He complimented the aroma.

Cyborg’s tongue hung out of his mouth, “Okay, I did NOT need to know that.”

BeastBoy shrugged, flinging the sock over his shoulder. He then began gathering up the stray articles of clothing that littered the hall, depositing them in a pile back inside his room.

“You will WASH those before you wear’em, right?” Cyborg asked, standing in the doorway.

“Don’t sweat it,” he reassured him, walking back out into the hall, joining his friend.

Cyborg shook his head, rolling his eyes. Somehow, he found that less than reassuring.

“By the way, didn’t you say you wanted to talk to me, or something?” BeastBoy asked, leaning against the wall beside him.

Everything came flooding back to Cyborg. In the midst of all the excitement, he’d forgotten why he came in the first place.

“I did,” he began, “Concerning that little wager I came up with earlier.”

“Aw, c’mon, Cy,” he replied, shaking his head with a smile, “I might not be the most gracious looser, but even I know when to accept defeat.”

“Yeah, after you whine for a rematch about fifty times,” Cyborg whispered.

BeastBoy heard him, but paid him no mind. “Dude, just let it go. You lost.”

Cyborg thought for a moment. “You know what? You’re right,” he said, smiling, turning and beginning to walk away. “I can live with losing the game…seeing as how you’d loose the bet,” he added.

BeastBoy nodded, walking back to his room, but just before he could reach for the door, he caught Cyborg’s remark.

“Hey! You don’t know that!” he called after him.

“Maybe not,” he paused, turning halfway, “But with a record like yours, who’s to say ya wouldn’t?” And with that, continued down the hall.

BeastBoy stood there, taking a brief moment to let the remark soak in. Cyborg made it sound so certain that he’d loose, almost as if he’d already lost. BeastBoy wasn’t about to take this lying down.

“Hey, Cy!” he yelled, running after him, screeching to a halt in front of him. “You don’t know for sure that I couldn’t do it, but you can’t assume that I couldn’t do it.” He explained, pointing a finger at him. “In fact, we both don’t know what’d happen, because we both know that Raven would NEVER agree to anything like that in a million years.” He crossed his arms, convinced his point had been made.

“Oh, really?” he grinned. “Well, what would you say if I told you that Raven had already accepted?”

BeastBoy looked at him, slightly in shock. He rolled up his sleeve, looking at his wristwatch, shaking it, putting it up to his ear to make sure it was still working. “Is it one million A.D. already?”

“So, what do ya have to say now, smart guy?” Cyborg asked, in a smug tone, tempting his ego.

BeastBoy didn’t want to say no, but he didn’t want to say yes either.

“Oh, come on!” he pouted. “You can’t really expect me to spend a month with Raven.”

“You sounded pretty sure of yourself a few seconds ago. Besides, one month won’t kill ya,” Cyborg replied.

“The month might not kill me…but Raven is another story,” he shivered.

“Come on, man. She’d never REALLY kill you,” He said, trying to boost his confidence to undertake the bet.

“You’d be surprised what ya can live through,” BeastBoy said, leaning against the wall, sliding down onto the floor. “Raven likes her space, especially the space without me in it.”

“Don’t you think you’re bein’ a little hard on yourself?” Cybrog asked, looking down at him. He knew Raven didn’t detest him that much.

“That depends. You feelin’ sorry for me and not gonna egg me into it?” he asked with a hopeful smile, making a puppy dog face at him.

“Nope.”

BeastBoy hung his head. “Must be nice not to have a heart,” he said.

“Look, what could be so bad?” he asked, kneeling beside him.

“Are you kidding me? She’s probably written a whole book of torture techniques in my honor,” BeastBoy said, remembering all the times he’d annoyed her.

“Don’t you think you’re exaggerating a bit?” Cyborg asked, doubtful Raven would ever go that far, yet somehow not able to completely dismiss the idea.

“Of course I am. It’s my nature,” he smiled faintly, “But the point is, it’s been hard enough to get Raven to…you know…’adapt’ to me,” he explained, taking on a rare serious tone. “What if I end up doin’ something to wreck it? I mean this is ME we’re talking about.”

Cyborg had never thought to look at it that way. It was definitely a possibility. A prolonged exposure to someone had one of three outcomes. They’d both gain a new perspective of one another and become more respectful and understanding of each other. They’d remain the same way they are now. Or, they’d develop distaste for one another and their company. Or in Raven’s case, more distaste.

He could see where he had a point. BeastBoy had gone to certain lengths to try and get Raven to open up. At least, lengths that mostly went as far as a crummy joke and an offer for tofu cuisine. It’d taken quite a while for Raven to develop the tolerance she had of him. He could see why he wouldn’t want to jeopardize that.

“Okay, listen up. Cause I’m only gonna say this once,” Cyborg started, matching serious expression with BeastBoy, “If Raven was gonna start avoiding you because of how you behaved, trust me, she would’ve started a long time ago.”

BeastBoy looked at his friend, still not completely convinced, but more so than before.

“You’re worrying about nothing,” Cyborg said with a smile, messing his hair, “Besides, you get some company out of it, you can find out stuff to use against her the next time we want her to play a game with us…” he grinned, reverting back to his conning goal, “Plus, you know I’m just gonna eventually talk you into it one way or another.”

BeastBoy smiled, “Tell ya what, Cy. You talked me into it.”

Cyborg’s smile couldn’t get any bigger.

“So, what’s in it for me?” BeastBoy asked, catching him off guard.

“Say what?”

“You can’t tell me Raven isn’t doing this outta the goodness of her heart. There’s gotta be something in it for her,” he reasoned, “Unless you just blackmailed her, or told her it was somebody’s dying wish or something.”

BeastBoy froze.

“It…isn’t somebody’s dying wish, right? It isn’t Robin from eating Star’s alien zit cream, and you convinced him on his death bed to get her to go along with this, RIGHT?!” BeastBoy asked, afraid he’d guessed it.

Just like BeastBoy to exaggerate.

“No. And Robin wouldn’t die from eating that stuff,” Cyborg reassured him, “At least not unless he went back for seconds,” he pondered.

“Oh,” he said, a mixture of relief and disappointment. It would’ve been nice if he’d guessed something right for a change. “Well, in that case, you’re definitely bribing her with something. What’d you promise her? A shock collar that zaps me when I get within ten feet of her?” he chuckled.

Cyborg was silent.

“DUDE?!”

Cyborg laughed, “Relax. It’s nothing like that.” He waved his hands, dismissing his worry. “I just didn’t even think to offer anything like that.”

BeastBoy sighed in relief.

“But, I wish I had. Oh well. Another time,” Cyborg whispered, an evil grin on his face.

“Anyway, for putting my own personal safety at risk, I should get something too,” BeastBoy continued.

“Okay. What do you want?” Cyborg asked, suspiciously.

“What have you got?” he grinned.

Cyborg thought, trying to think of something BeastBoy would want, and if necessary, something he’d be willing to part with.

“How bout…my enhanced copy of Mega Monkeys 4? Jacked up the difficulty, added bonus levels, and a high score you’ll never beat,” he boasted.

“Found it, played it, beat it,” BeastBoy smiled.

“FOUND IT?! When?!” Cyborg asked, irritated.

“Two weeks ago. You should really learn to hide your stuff better. Starfire hides Christmas presents better than you hide your private stock of video games,” BeastBoy grinned.

“And just who said you could go in my room?” Cyborg asked, giving him a cold stare.

“Cy, you’re the biggest little kid I know. You’re room is practically a treasure hunt of cool stuff. It’d be impolite not to invade your privacy to get a hold of goodies like that,” He said, trying to make it sound sensible. “What else ya got?”

Cyborg was still a little upset with him, but let it slide. After all, it seemed he was willing to go along with the bet.

“How’s bout I custom build you a new moped?” he flashed his eyebrows.

“Nah. That’s outta my system,” he shrugged, “Besides…” he reached into his pocket, pulling out a picture, “Nothing could ever replace what I had.” BeastBoy looked solemnly at a photo of the Tidwell 3000, shedding a slight tear.

Cyborg drew back for a second, disturbed he kept a photo of his former moped with him.

“He really needs to let it go. It can’t be healthy to obsess over a vehicle,” He said to himself, pulling a photo of the T-Car from one of his compartments, snuggling it against his cheek. “Isn’t that right, baby?” he said, kissing the photo, and stowing it back in his compartment.

“Look, why don’t ya just tell me what you want, and save us both a whole lotta time,” Cyborg said.

BeastBoy thought for a second. There wasn’t really anything he desperately wanted. No video game seemed to peak his interest, nor did the prospect of Cyborg cooking and partaking of tofu with him. Though, it was tempting.

“Not much I can think of,” he said, scratching his head. “Unless…” he trailed off, looking over at his door.

Cyborg gave him a questionable look, getting an uneasy feeling.

“Clean my room,” he said, proudly.

There was a brief silence.

“That’s it?” Cyborg said, relieved. “Okay, fine. You go for one month in Raven’s company, and I’ll clean your room,” he accepted, cracking open door and having a look inside. “Though, personally, I think you’d be better off calling in an air strike, and starting over,” he said.

Cyborg closed the door, extending his hand to his green friend.

“Deal?” Cyborg questioned.

“Deal,” BeastBoy nodded, shaking the mechanical man’s hand.

“It’s a bet, then,” he walked past him. “We’ll work out the details later. I’m gonna go tell Raven, it’s on,” he left in the direction of Raven’s room, a sinister smile forming.

BeastBoy smiled, watching him leave. However, as soon as Cyborg rounded the corner, disappearing from view, a wave of doubt overcame him. He started having second thoughts, thinking about the potential of what this wager could bring.

“What have I gotten myself into?” he said, turning, reentering his room.


Next Chapter: Raven and BeastBoy have agreed to go along with the intended wager, each of them with something to gain. But, how will their first day together play out? Can the two of them coexist without compromising one another’s nerves?