Quality Time Chpt 4

Quality Time

Chapter 4: The Beginning…Or the End

A new day greeted Jump City. Though small patches of gray still occupied some regions of the sky, the sun was shining, as the storm had passed. Inside Titan’s Tower, three of the teen heroes occupied the kitchen, preparing to start off a promising morning in their usual manner. With a few minor exceptions, of course.

Cyborg, discarding his chef’s hat, had just settled into his seat, having made the final preparations to his breakfast. He sat down to a large stack of Belgium waffles, piled high with mounds of melted butter and maple syrup, rubbing his hands together and licking his lips in anticipation. He wasted little time, making short work of his meal, ingesting one whole waffle per bite, before chasing it down with a tall glass of orange juice. After one final gulp, he thumped his chest, letting out a monstrous belch that almost seemed to shake the foundation of the tower.

“Whew! ‘Scuse me,” he let out, covering his mouth from the massive burp, “I’m gonna be gettin’ a fan letter from whoever was watching the Richter scale on that one,” he chuckled proudly, wiping his mouth with a napkin.

Robin sat opposite of Cyborg at the table, nursing a small glass of juice, still feeling the queasy and nauseous effects of the previous day’s dare gone awry. His complexion was rather pale with bags drooping so far below his eyes they were visible even below his mask. It was obvious he had gotten little, if any, sleep.

Starfire sat close beside him, attempting to spoon-feed him a bowl of oatmeal. Starfire, despite earlier feelings of joy for Robin devouring her cooking whole heartedly to please her, even though it was not meant for ingestion, could not help but feel responsible. After all, her concoction was the cause of his unfortunate decline in health.

“Come, Robin,” she instructed with a smile, holding out a spoonful of oatmeal, “You must replenish your strength.”

Robin glanced at the spoon, finding little appetite. “No… thanks, Star. I’m… not very hungry at the moment,” he courteously refused, doing his best to hold a small smile for her concern.

“Oh, but you must,” she moved the spoon closer, “I do not know of many who have partaken of the eating of epidermal remedies, but I believe you should at least eat something so that it does not overtake your earthly stomach again.”

Robin looked down at the steamy glob of oatmeal, now beginning to dribble off the spoon. His face shriveled at the very sight, still finding no desire to eat. He then looked up from the spoon to Starfire’s, almost glowing, face. Her eyes pleaded with him, accompanied by a gentle smile.

“I really don’t have much of an appetite right now, Star,” he kindly refused, though hesitantly, “Uh… maybe later.”

“Please, Robin. I swear on the honor of my Kanorfka that this is Earth based oatmeal,” she assured him, dipping the spoon back into the bowl, stirring the oatmeal and getting a fresh scoop. “I believe you have had your fill of Tameranian cooking for a while.”

Her assurance did little to further his appetite. Keeping a hand over his stomach, he took a tiny sip of juice, slowly swallowing. It was evident he was trying to be cautious of all food intake, both solid and liquid.

“Perhaps you would prefer to be fed in the Earthly manner to which I have seen on the TV, common among feeding the sick,” she stated, a renewed sense of hope.

Robin looked at her questionably. ‘Manner on TV for feeding the sick?’

Starfire held out the spoon, a brighter and almost sickening expression of happiness on her face. “Here comes the plane of air,” she said in nurturing voice, similar to a mother feeding a small child. Starfire held out the spoon in front of her, literally flying around the room, making noises similar to an infant’s impression of an airplane, executing a barrel roll and loopdy loop around the main room. Robin and Cyborg watched, bewildered by the sight.

“Wish my mom did that when she fed me,” Cyborg said, slightly in awe.

“Not helping,” Robin remarked. “Starfire, it’s alright. This isn’t necessary. You can come down now,” calling to her.

But, Starfire was too caught up in her nurturing moment. She flew one more pass around the room, doubling back, heading straight for Robin, the spoon aimed straight at him.

“Incoming!” Cyborg shouted, ducking under the table.

Robin made an attempt to duck for cover as well, unfortunately the sudden movement jostled his stomach into an uproar, reviving the queasy feeling, accompanied by a small sharp pain in his gut.

Robin held his stomach with both hands, attempting to lessen the agony. He looked up, just as Starfire was only a few feet away, flying at him at top speed.

“Coming in for the landing!” she shouted cheerfully.

Robin was completely immobile. He couldn’t leap out of the way without his stomach suffering for it. He could only look on as she continued her approach, awaiting the inevitable…

SLAM!!!

Starfire collided with Robin, plunging the spoon into his mouth at high velocity, both of them crashing onto the ground.

Cyborg slowly emerged from under the table, surveying the damage.

Robin was flat on his back, out cold, the spoon sticking out of his mouth. Starfire sat up, rubbing her head, sitting across Robin’s lap. She quickly regained her senses, looking over at Robin.

“Robin!” she gasped, sitting him up with his shoulders, “Oh, I have done wrong. I did not mean to injure you so.” Starfire began to grow misty eyed, pulling him into a small hug. “I wished only to aid you in your recovery. And now, I fear I may have…” Starfire pulled back from the embrace, stopping to notice the spoon sticking out of his mouth. She plucked the spoon from his mouth, finding it empty of any trace of oatmeal.

“Oh, joyous day!” she cried happily, clutching the spoon, allowing Robin to fall flat on his back once more, “I have succeeded in the rekindling your appetite.” She was once more in an unbridled frenzy of happiness, getting to her feet. “I shall prepare the next path of flight by which to feed you,” she said enthusiastically, rushing to the bowl of oatmeal to fetch another spoonful, making the airplane noises once again.

Cyborg merely shook his head with a smile.

At that moment the door swished open, Raven stepping into the room, making her way over to the kitchen area to prepare her usual cup of herbal tea. She paused a moment to take in the sight of Starfire’s ‘assistance’.

“Let me guess,” she began, reaching into a cabinet, fetching the tea, “Starfire decided to help speed Robin’s recovery from yesterday?” she asked, behind Cyborg.

“Yup,” he nodded, his back to her, not taking his eyes off the two in front of him.

Raven filled a kettle with water, placing it on the stove. “You know, the ideal way for someone to get better is to ‘prevent’ further injury,” she said dryly, igniting the burner on the stove.

“Outta his hands, I guess. You know how Starfire gets,” Cyborg shrugged. “But, knockin’ him out aside, you gotta admit it’s sweet how she takes care of em’.”

Raven gave a look at Cyborg, before turning a quick glance at Starfire, who was happily carrying a still unconscious Robin over to the table. “Any sweeter, and I’ll get cavities,” she replied.

It didn’t take long for the water to boil. Within minutes, the kettle whistled, as a wisp of steam bellowed from the spout. Raven carefully poured the hot liquid into her mug, dabbing the tea bag twice, before letting it settle at the bottom. She brought the mug up to the bottom of her nose, breathing deeply the calming aroma. She gently blew across the top of the mug, cooling it just enough for a quick sip.

“Robin in pain, Starfire playing nurse maid, and you as the spectator of it all. All the elements signifying the start of another perfect morning,” Raven said, sarcastically.

Cyborg cracked a smile, coming to a realization.

“On the subject of starting a new day,” he began, scanning the room, “Aren’t you forgetting something?” he asked slyly.

Raven looked at him, taking another sip of her tea.

“Yes,” she said plainly, looking down at her cup, getting up from the table, moving back over to the cabinet. “This tea is more bitter than usual. It could use a dab of honey,” she answered, pulling a small bottle of honey from the cabinet.

“I was thinking more along the lines of… say… a certain person you agreed to spend a little quality time with?” he smiled, hinting at what was missing.

Raven looked at him, still an empty expression.

“He’s still asleep,” she answered, knowing fully well he was referring to BeastBoy, taking another sip of tea.

“So?” Cyborg replied.

“So, when he wakes up, we’ll start this ridiculous wager,” she said, sitting beside him. “That being said, I’d like to enjoy my tea in peace, seeing as how it might be the last peaceful moment I have for a while.” She closed her eyes, breathing deeply the steam rising from her cup.

“Fraid not, Rae,” Cyborg said with a smile, leaning against one arm on the table. “The bet was for the course of one month, starting today, you two are inseparable. Thirty days, from sunrise to sunset. We thoroughly went over the ground rules, and you’re not changin’ anything on me now,” he practically gloated.

Raven lowered her mug slightly, shifting her pupils, looking at him only through the corners of her eyes.

“Of course, unless you’d rather forfeit within the first hour, that’s fine,” Cyborg grinned, rolling his eyes upwards. “ No shame in takin’ the easy way out, right? I mean, everybody knows their limitations, and no sense tryin’ to push yourself over some stupid little toy, right?” he teased, reminding Raven of what was in this for her.

The level of irritation was growing. She knew he was only trying to get under her skin, to rile her up, just to get her to stop stalling and get it over with. And unfortunately, it was working.

“Then again, I’m sure BeastBoy’ll be relieved too, bein’ let off the hook and all. Then again,” he paused, “I figured he woulda’ quit before you did.”

Raven tried her best to ignore him.

“Guess I just thought the two of you’d at least make it through the first day,” he spoke, as if Raven wasn’t listening.

Raven’s grip on her mug tightened, her fingers heated by her powers beginning to slip, the tea beginning to come to a boil in her cup.

Cyborg got up, slowly walking away from the table with a grin.

“I’ll just go tell’em no rush to get up, seein’ as how…”

Raven’s cup shattered into a dozen pieces, no longer able to restrain her aggravation, startling Cyborg and Starfire, making them jump slightly. Robin still remained motionless, fragments of her cup littered in his hair.

Raven continued to retain her passive expression, staring straight ahead as if nothing had happened. Her hands were still in front of her, holding their position like they were still grasping the mug. Raven rose out of her chair, wringing out a small portion of her cloak, damp from the departed tea. She pulled her hood up, moving past Cyborg towards the door without so much as a word.

Cyborg grinned.

“That’s the spirit, Rae,” he called after her. “It’ll all be over before ya know it.”

The door swished open. Raven was about to pass through the doorway, but stopped, turning back to face Cyborg.

“And don’t worry,” Cyborg offered her, “Robin’ll be so busy recuperating, Star’ll be so busy helpin’ Robin, and I’ll be so busy makin’ repairs from the storm, you’ll never even realize we’re around.”

Raven’s stare hardened.

“So, you two’ll pretty much have the place ALL TO YOURSELVES,” he teased, in a lovey dovey tone, walking back to the kitchen to deposit his dishes in the sink.

Upon taking care of the dishes, he turned, only to find Raven, up close and personal. She glared at him, almost with a haunting gaze. The lights went out, and a sheet of black energy blocked out the sun from the windows, leaving total darkness, with the exception of the eerie white glow of Raven’s eyes.

“Cyborg?” she started, keeping her calm and empty tone, “How many pieces does it take to re-build a robot?”

“Uh…I… dunno’,” he responded, nervously.

“Keep pushing, and you’ll find out the hard way,” she warned, almost menacingly.

Cyborg seemed to shrink, as Raven towered over her, giving him one last look.

Feeling as though her point had been made, Raven turned, exiting the room. The instant the door closed behind her, the lights came back on, along with her powers dissipating from the window.

Starfire peeked out from behind Robin, where she’d been cowering from the sudden creepy atmosphere.

“Despite that we have become closer, there are still moments such as these that Raven’s behavior strikes me as… scary,” Starfire quivered.

“Tell me about it,” Cyborg agreed, looking back at the door. “BeastBoy’s gonna’ be stuck with a girl who’s got a temper like a live grenade.”

Starfire hoisted Robin up, flinging him over her shoulder. “Perhaps it would be best if we were to stay out of range,” Starfire commented, leaving to bring Robin to his room.

Raven made her way down the hall. She could’ve merely dematerialized through the floor, and transported herself to BeastBoy’s room instantaneously, but was in no rush to get to where she was going. Besides, she felt it would be best to walk off the irritation from Cyborg’s last remark.

Raven arrived at her destination, standing in front of BeastBoy’s door, taking a few calming breaths. She didn’t feel nervous or anything of that nature. It was just that BeastBoy’s room was not a common place she often went. And despite the fact that they were in this together, she felt no reason to get off to a bad start by lashing out at him for Cyborg’s earlier behavior. No sense in making a bad situation worse.

Finishing her deep breathing, and believing her mind to be in a relatively calm state, she knocked at the door, deeming it to be futile to put this off any further.

“BeastBoy,” she said, in her usual monotone.

There came no reply.

Not surprising considering that most of the time, BeastBoy was the last person to get up. Whether it was because of his late night movie watching or his animal metabolism that caused him to sleep more, it didn’t really concern her.

“BeastBoy?” she asked, slightly louder, knocking once more.

Still no answer.

Raven sighed, realizing if this were ever going to get underway, she’d have to give things a kick-start, stressing the ‘kick’.

Raven reached for the door to open it. To her surprise, it wouldn’t budge. She pulled harder, feeling the door wanting to move, not locked, but as if it were jammed somehow. Raven frowned, taking a step back, raising her hand to the door. With a flick of her wrist, the edge of the door was encased in black energy. She eased her wrist to the side, sliding the door open with ease through the assistance of her powers. As the door slid open, small piles of clothes toppled over the entranceway near the bottom of the door, most likely wedged in the track.

Raven stepped over them, cautiously and quietly entering BeastBoy’s room. No sooner than two steps inside, it became evident why BeastBoy did not have many visitors to his quarters. The air was stale and old, with a faint smell of dirty laundry, causing Raven to raise her arm, using her cloak to shield her nose from the odor.

“Ugh,” Raven whispered to herself, “Would it kill him to open a window?”

The lack of circulation aside, Raven continued to move forward, stepping gingerly over the clumps of scattered clothes on the floor, similar in the fashion of walking through a minefield.

She came to a stop, curiously leaning over to carefully pick up a single shirt that was neatly folded. One clean thing amongst this mess seemed too much to hope for. She shook the shirt, trying to unfold it, curious to see if it was in fact clean. But, it wouldn’t budge. Raven shook harder, but the shirt remained as she found it, stiff and unmoving. She tried to pull it apart, but seemed as if the cloth was stuck together. She gently banged it against the wall. The shirt made the sound of granite as it impacted against the surface. The shirt was as solid as a rock.

Raven dropped the shirt, making a heavy thud against the floor. “He probably doesn’t even wash his clothes,” she thought, “He probably just wears them for a month, then burns them. It would seem more practical in his case.”

Raven continued deeper inside, passing the crooked posters and wobbly piles of comic books. She stopped at the foot of BeastBoy’s bunk bed, walking around to his bedside, finding him still fast asleep.

BeastBoy was on his side, curled up into a ball, sleeping peacefully, a small amount of drool beside his partially opened mouth. Much to Raven’s surprise, he wasn’t snoring, as she might of guessed would be fitting of him, which made it seem all the more serene.

Thought hesitant to wake him, but wanting to take her leave of his messy environment, she reluctantly kneeled down. “BeastBoy,” she said.

Aside from him stirring slightly, tightening his eyelids, it seemed to have no effect.

“BeastBoy,” she called a little louder.

Nothing at all this time.

She bent over, shaking him gently, “BeastBo…”

He rolled over, facing away from her, letting out a tiny yawn.

Raven’s patience was wearing thin. “I tried,” she said, plainly, her eyes glowing.

With but a thought, BeastBoy’s entire body was absorbed into a black aura. Tilting her head upwards, BeastBoy was slammed into the baseboard of his top bunk, and sent crashing back down onto the mattress.

“Ah!” he groaned, holding the back of his head, sitting up. He turned, noticing Raven. Almost instantly, a math problem popped into his mind: BeastBoy sleeping + Raven = Pain

“Heck of a bedside manner ya got there, Raven,” he said, still rubbing a sore spot on his head. “ Couldn’t you just wake the old fashion way?” he pouted, unable to stay angry at Raven.

“I suppose so,” she replied, “But it might have seemed a bit excessive to drop you in the ocean.”

BeastBoy smirked. “Ha ha, very funny,” he scooted his legs over the side of the bed. “Leave the jokes to…HEY!, Wait a sec.” He hopped out of bed. “How come you always tell me not to set foot in your room, and here you are, coming in mine? And while I was sleepin’.”

Funny how the most of the time his brain would work properly was when she really didn’t want to hear it.

“What if I’d been sleeping naked or somethin’?” he crossed his arms.

Raven gave him a doubtful look, concealing a blush all the same. “I would’ve assuredly gouged my eyes out, and dropped dead before the visual could sink into my mind,” she said dryly, looking away. She started to walk back towards the door to his room. “I’ll be waiting outside. Hurry up and get ready,” she paused, halfway into the hall, “We have a wager to carry out, remember?” That being said, Raven stepped out into the hall, the door closing behind her.

BeastBoy stood there, scratching his nose, taking a minute to fully remember the bet. “Oh yeah,” he exclaimed, “I almost forgot.”

He began to reminisce about a bizarre dream he’d had, which had somehow blocked the bet from his mind. “I had the strangest dream,” he spoke, loud enough so Raven could hear, “I dreamt I ate the world’s biggest marshmallow s’more.”

Shaking the puzzled expression from his face, he turned back to his bed, beginning to messily straighten out the sheets. “Let me just make my bed and…” he stopped, noticing something was missing, “Hey, where’s my pillow?”

BeastBoy burped suddenly, expelling a feather from his mouth. He watched it sway back and forth in the air, slowly making it’s way to the ground.

“What did you say?” Raven asked, missing that last statement.

“Nothing,” BeastBoy answered, scurrying to get changed.

The day was now officially underway. Both Raven and BeastBoy were determined to make good on their word, and remain in one another’s presence all day, for better or worse. Mostly worse.

10:26 A.M.

Raven usually liked to start the morning with a bit of recreational reading, both to spur her intellect and to help fully awaken her. Raven sat on the couch in the main room, carefully reading one of her thicker books, filled with musings of poetry. Her eyes scanned the pages carefully from left to right, taking in every word, though occasionally halted by the actions of her mandatory associate.

BeastBoy sat several feet away from her, closer to the center of the couch, for optimum view of the TV. Not as big a fan of literature, he had decided to fill the void, basking in television’s radiance. His feet up on the table, one arm leaning on the back of the couch, and the other pointing straight ahead with the remote in his grasp, he flipped from channel to channel. It came as no surprise there wasn’t anything to watch to help speed the passage of time between Raven’s reading.

He flipped through the channels, quickening the pace after every program deemed boring. He changed to another channel for every three seconds, enough time for him to hear a brief excerpt from whatever was on, just before clicking over.

-CLICK-
“It slices. It dices. And can be yours for no cost to you with just the signature of a simple liability form…”

-CLICK-
“Recent study shows that chocolate may actually prove a viable cure for…”

-CLICK-
“Go ahead. Make my…”

-CLICK-
“On the next, all new episode, of…”

Despite her patient attempts to block the constantly changing noise, Raven was having little success, finding it harder to concentrate on her book. She could probably block out the TV altogether if it didn’t keep changing, giving her something new to ignore each time.

“Would it be too much to ask for you to pick something and stick with it?” she asked, barely taking her eyes off her book, the smallest bit of annoyance in her voice.

“I would, but the TV just won’t gimme anything to watch,” he shrugged.

“The TV doesn’t ‘make’ shows for you to watch, it merely shows what is there,” Raven said, her patience reaching a low.

“Well, how come it won’t ‘show’ me something good?” he retorted, trying to use her own logic against her.

Raven was growing more and more irritated, this time not only for his lack of consideration for her reading, but for his sheer decrease in brain power. She would expect something like this from anyone else early in the morning, due to the possibility that they weren’t fully awake and not in their right state of mind. But, BeastBoy was an exception. He was like this most of the time, morning or otherwise.

Raven’s right hand tightened her grip of the book. A part of her wanted to use her powers to break the TV. Another part wanted to put BeastBoy THROUGH the TV. But, she knew that was not the answer. Raven considered using her powers to resolve such matters, a careless waste of energy and a reckless display of control. And the more recklessly she used her powers, especially to attain such petty things as disciplining BeastBoy, the more she would have to meditate later on, and a lengthy meditation session was something she could not afford with BeastBoy close by.

She tried to ease her mind, reminding herself that this would all be worthwhile. She imagined the visual she had created so vividly when Cyborg presented the sound filtering earpieces to her yesterday. She pictured BeastBoy, trying to get her attention, to tell a joke, and all that was audible to her was sweet nothingness.

She took a deep cleansing breath, allowing all her anger to gather and pass through her mouth, as she breathed outward. Feeling less tense, she loosened the grip on her book, letting the moment of frustration slide.

“It’ll all be worth it,” she chanted in her mind, “Before you know it, his voice will be but a distant memory.”

12:19 P.M.

It was now lunchtime. And seeing as how Robin was in no condition, and having no desire, to eat, Starfire attending to him, and Cyborg still undertaking the long haul to repair the tower, it left the two of them alone at the kitchen table.

Raven poured a fresh cup of herbal tea, declining BeastBoy’s constant offerings of vegetarian cuisine.

“C’mon, Raven,” he pleaded, “Just a taste?” BeastBoy asked, wishfully, spreading a thick layer of tofu across a piece of bread.

Raven looked down at the globbed white substance, glancing quickly at BeastBoy, before turning her back to him and his lunch of the day. At the moment, probably the most courteous method she could find to say ‘no thanks’.

“It’s full of soy beanie goodness,” he tried in a vein effort to tempt her.

She kept her back to him, not even giving him or his tofu a second glance, taking another sip of tea.

“Eh,” he shrugged, “Your loss.” With a smile, he slapped another piece of bread atop the tofu, making a sandwich.

Opening his mouth wide, he bit down into the sandwich. But, because of the large portions between the bread, a large glob of tofu squirted out the back, landing with a splat on the top of Raven’s head.

BeastBoy froze in place, his mouth still engulfed in the sandwich, his eyes wide with fear, and his healthy green skin becoming rather pale.

“Uh-uh…eh…I,” he clamored, putting his lunch down, swallowing hard. “D-don’t worry, Raven. Here, let me…um…get that for ya.” BeastBoy grabbed a handful of napkins, rushing over to Raven’s side.

BeastBoy wiped Raven’s head, trying desperately, and furiously, to get the tofu out. But all he served to do was rub the tofu deeper into her hair. BeastBoy was on the verge of sweating, afraid any second his hand would burst into flames.

Throughout the incident, Raven had just sat there motionless, tea in hand. She felt a slight tingle, partially from BeastBoy’s frivolous attempt to clean the spill, and partially from the cold tofu that was now dripping down the back of her head, and past her neck. Her eyes were closed, straining more than ever before not to lash out, an occasional twitch from her eye.

“It’ll all be worth it. It’ll all…be…worth it,” she repeated, slowly in her mind.

4:41 P.M.

After continuous scrubbing, and cleaning, Raven had finally managed to relieve herself of the unclean feeling regarding lunch that had made her skin crawl. Dawning a fresh change of clothes, she proceeded to the rooftop, followed closely by BeastBoy. The next thing common to her daily routine was meditation. And right now, she needed it in the worst way.

The sun hung low in the sky over the city from atop the roof, an occasional breeze catching Raven’s cloak, as she levitated a few feet from the ground in lotus position. Her arms drooping to her sides, and her eyes closed, she focused her mind, attempting to expel the many lingering notions of frustration and uneasiness that had tested her will for the day.

“Azarath Metrion Zinthos,” she chanted, quietly. “Azarath Metrion Zinthos.”

She could feel the burden being lifted from her mind, as her troubled emotions began to settle. She breathed at a much slower pace, allowing the calmness of the moment to overtake her.

“Azarath Metrion Zin…”

BLAM! BEEP! BEEP!

The sudden noises caught Raven off guard, throwing off her center, losing her train of thought, dropping to the ground swiftly on her rear. Giving a slight grunt, rubbing her backside, she turned slowly, glaring intensely at the source.

BeastBoy sat near the edge of the roof, playing a handheld video game, twisting and turning with the actions of his game. His face seemed to brighten and fall continuously, each sound effect changing his expression. The frequent beeps, explosions, and action music from the device had BeastBoy so preoccupied, he didn’t even seem to notice Raven’s abrupt end to her meditation.

“Yeah! Come on, come on,” he cheered, drawing closer to the screen, a determined look on his face, “Just… a little…”

Raven’s glare still went unnoticed, a steady black glow rising from behind her. Her facial expression had gone from routine annoyance, to a stare that almost signified the approaching end to someone’s life. Her eye twitched again, barely restraining her amplified desire to take disciplinary action.

“No! No! Get back to… stay away fro… AAAGGGGHHHHH!” he groaned, falling over to the sound of dismal beeping, signifying his loss of the game. “Why? Why do you mock me?” he asked, holding his game to the sky glumly, as if expecting an answer.

Raven was silently huffing and puffing, still on the verge of an emotional meltdown. Still ignored by the one person who was practically begging for an early grave, and he wasn’t even aware. Her eyes narrowed, the most hateful look on her face, trying to stare a hole through the sulking green boy.

She continued to stare, feeling something inside her snap. From behind BeastBoy, across the ocean, a large suspension bridge leading to the city began to wobble. The ends of the bridge were yanked off the ground and lifted into the air, bending towards the direction of one another. The many girders and support beams bent in every angle, being tugged and pulled by an invisible force. Within a matter of moments, the bridge was tied into the shape of a pretzel.

Raven caught herself, and though not proud of her actions, felt a bit of relief, bringing her fit under control. It might not have been BeastBoy, but at the moment it seemed gratifying to break something. She looked past BeastBoy, eying her power’s handiwork. She panted from the slight exhaustion brought on by the release of such large amounts of energy.

“Whoa. You okay, Raven?” BeastBoy asked, finally acknowledging her presence without the distraction of his game. “Meditation musta’ been pretty intense today, huh?”

Raven quickly regained her composure, restoring her face to neutral, releasing her last slip of power, causing the remains of the bridge to fall into the ocean. This too, of course, went unnoticed by the oblivious boy in front of her. “You have no idea,” she answered.

Raven lifted into the air once more, trying to resume her meditation on account of her recent emotional surge. She spoke no chant this time, except for the one in her head.

“It’ll all be worth it,” she chanted desperately in thought, “It’ll ALL BE WORTH IT.”

7:53 P.M.

Raven trudged down the hall, her head hanging low. Raven had her share of rotten days, but today had been one for the record. She headed towards her room, not usually one to turn in so early, but was willing to make an exception. The arrangement of the bet stated that the day officially ended their time together when they turned in for the night. Despite Raven’s lack for desire of sleep, simply laying in bed in total silence would suffice. Between the disturbed reading, the mess at lunch, and her botched meditation, it would probably be the only real peace she’d gotten all day.

BeastBoy walked alongside, whistling happily, escorting her to her room. It seemed he still had hardly a clue just how miserable the day had been for Raven.

“Dude, I thought this woulda’ been a lot tougher when Cyborg made this challenge,” he beamed, as they neared Raven’s door.

“It’ll all be worth it. It’ll all be worth it,” Raven mentally reminded herself, remaining silent.

“I mean, who’d a thought this’d be so easy?” he continued, moving ahead of Raven to get the door for her.

“It’ll… all be… worth… it,” she struggled to retain her thought.

“The next twenty-nine days are just gonna fly by,” he added, as the door opened for Raven.

Raven was halfway through the doorway when she stopped suddenly, hearing BeastBoy’s last statement, taking the time to fully consider the possibilities. Twenty-nine more days? Of this?

“It’ll be… it’ll be…” she tried to convince herself, finding it harder to reassure herself.

“Right, Raven?” he grinned, eagerly awaiting her response.

“It’ll…  it’ll…”

“Uh, Raven?” BeastBoy asked, his smile fading, a bit concerned by her lack of movement or response.

Raven spun around, coming face to face with BeastBoy, startling him. She couldn’t take it anymore. She couldn’t even convince herself.

“I realize that rational observation is something you don’t perceive entirely well, nor do you understand,” she said, struggling to maintain a tone just below angry, “But, today, has been the most irritating and miserable experience of my life. And coming from me, THAT’S SAYING SOMETHING!”

BeastBoy was slowly backing away, with Raven staying right in front of him, not breaking eyesight with him.

“You are… THE MOST … obnoxious, annoying, loud mouthed, childish, infantile, immature, and INFURIATING person, I’ve ever known!” she bellowed, making the best effort to keep her voice down, seething with anger.

BeastBoy’s back was against the wall, Raven still face to face with him. It was taking everything Raven had to vent, even as calmly as this, without her powers slipping.

“Everyone else in this tower has gotten to me at one point or another. You, however, continue to try my patience, time and time again,” Raven said, still outraged, but slowly quieting her tone. “You can’t act like a child forever. So why don’t you just act your age, for your own sake, if no one else’s!”

Feeling her point to have been made, she turned, entering her room, before her powers did something she’d regret. She slammed the door behind her, leaving BeastBoy still against the wall, in a combination of fear, shock, and who knows how many other troubled feelings.

Raven leaned against the door, breathing a heavy sigh. Walking towards her bed, she paused a moment, looking back at the door, and what had just taken place. Not the most graceful way to bring BeastBoy to the realization of her misery today, but what was done, was done. No doubt this would leave damage control to be done in the morning, but right now, sleep sounded promising to her.

Raven climbed into bed, uneasily drifting off into sleep. A small wave of guilt manifested in the back of her mind, but she quickly dismissed the feeling. BeastBoy wouldn’t take this too hard. This was not the first time Raven had popped off at him for his childish behavior, and he’d always bounced back. And, this time would be no different.

At least, that’s what she thought…

Next Chapter: The first day of the bet has come and gone, and has left less than desirable results on both BeastBoy and Raven. But, what effect will Raven’s tantrum yield? Will this prove to be an omen to set the tone for the rest of the month? Will the bet even hold up for that long?