Forget Me Not

by Blue Ten

Summary:

After defeating the Brotherhood of Evil, the Teen Titans return to their city only to find that many things changed in their absence. And when an outlandish new enemy is defeated for them, the Titans are left to contemplate their place in the world. But Beast Boy won't let it end there. BBxRae, RobxStar

Disclaimer:

I do not own Teen Titans.

Warning:

This story contains spoilers for 'Things Change.'

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Chapter One: Unwelcome Guests

"Little green one. You always try so hard, and always fail so completely."

Those words... on any other day I'd have shrugged 'em off. Lies from some... brain in a jar... tryin' to psyche me out or something. But on that day, as I stood there watching an old friend slip away into the crowd... those words were all I could hear. I fought--I tried--harder than I ever had before... I even went up against him on my own... because she was more than just a friend. For the longest time, since the day she was taken away, she's been a part of me. So tell me... how can someone just let go of a part of themselves... how can you just say goodbye to something you've held onto for so long? Tch. Like that matters. The world wants what it wants. And right now, it wants me to give up.

Things changed.

Coming back to the city was like opening the door to your room and finding that someone had rearranged everything... and built shiny new office complex over your bed. Like home... wasn't really home anymore. To tell the truth, it didn't hurt that bad. Raven could always find another place to buy her books, and we could always find another place to rent our videos. That wasn't the problem for me. During a fight with what seemed like the usual kind of enemy, I saw someone I thought I'd never see again. I had never been so happy. I had never been so stupid.

While the others were off fighting an impossible battle on their own, so was I. Terra... I tried my best to give her back the memories I thought she lost. But it took a fight with Slade and an act of stupidity to make me realize something... she hadn't lost her memories at all... she just refused to remember them. And who could blame her for that? Why would anyone want to remember all that pain? She had a new life, new friends... who was I to try and mess with that?

I stood there in the hall of that school and watched, each new crowd of students that walked by keeping her from my view as she stepped away. And in an instant, she disappeared. I knew I would never see her again. I thought the worst had already happened...

We came home, not just as the Titans, but as a bigger team than we'd ever imagined. That was what helped us through the toughest fight of our lives: being a team... never giving up. When things looked bad, when the odds were against us, we knew, from then on, we could always turn to each other for strength. Together... we could do anything. But... what happens when being together just isn't enough?

On the day after our finest hour... things changed.

- - - - - -

Beast Boy stood alone in the hall of Murakami High School as the metallic sounding bell rang throughout, pairs and groups of students walking across the tiled floor to their respective classrooms in response. The girl he called Terra had since vanished. Collective footsteps and chattering resonated through the building, slowly dissipating as the area gradually cleared of people. Finally, with the sound of the last door shutting, the school became deathly quiet and the only person remaining was left to contemplate in that weighty silence.

Taking one last look down the hall, Beast Boy let out a breath and reached to his belt, removing his communicator. "Beast Boy to Robin..." he spoke into the receiver, staring off into nothing, "I'm on my way. Over," he finished, returning the communicator as he turned around. The light from beyond the exit doors bleached everything on that end of the hall in its radiance. Trying to just let go, trying to give up, Beast Boy looked straight ahead as he rushed off into the light...feeling like looking back was something he shouldn't do.

- - - - - -

In the form of an hawk, Beast Boy glided across the gusts of wind in the cloudless blue sky, making his way to the position his communicator had given him. The sun's heat was intense, beating down on the vast stretches of metropolis below, but the constant presence of the cool wind belied its effects. The changeling found it oddly calming... such a peaceful day. Leaving the ocean and bay behind, he traveled inland toward the forested city limits.

In an instant, Beast Boy's eyes focused on a plume of smoke rising from a facility just outside the city. Tilting his wings to the right, he altered his course slightly, noticing a gaping hole on one side of the building where the smoke originated. Destruction had been paved in a path from that... custom exit; trees uprooted, earth upturned, and rubble strewn outward into the forest. Seeing this, Beast Boy felt even worse for ignoring his friends for as long as he did. As he descended toward the facility, he could see four figures in the clearing... knowing exactly who it was, he new he was going to get an earful from either Robin or Raven.

Reverting back to human form, Beast Boy dropped the remaining distance to the ground, kicking up some dust as he landed. Standing still and quiet for a moment, he eyed his teammates one bye one... each looked a little worse for wear. Leaning his back against a tree, looking a little impatient, Robin massaged his right shoulder, one eye wincing as he did so. Starfire, obviously the least beat up, floated at the edge of the clearing, looking off into the forest intently--most likely for signs of the creature. Cyborg sat on a stump near Robin's position... reattaching his arm, a frustrated look on his face. Raven... well, Beast Boy had no idea what was going on with her, as usual... her back facing him. However, he knew one thing: like the others, she couldn't be very happy.

"Took your time?" Raven asked monotonously, turning everyone's attention to Beast Boy. Preparing a stern face, she turned around, ready to give him that earful she had planned on. However, upon seeing Beast Boy's glum and defeated expression, she softened her look and raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah... I did," Beast Boy answered simply, walking past Raven without even making eye contact. Looking at Robin, Starfire, and Cyborg, he took in a deep breath. "Look... I should have stayed to help you guys... but I didn't. I'm sorry. But I'm here now... and I'm ready to kick some freaky creature butt," he joked with an obviously fake grin, slamming a fist into his palm. He was relieved, not to mention surprised, to see small smiles appear on both Robin and Cyborg's faces as they left their positions and moved closer. The rest of the group followed suit, forming a circle.

"Glad to have you back," said Robin, standing where he could see everyone.

"'Bout time, too..." Cyborg trailed off, seeing Beast Boy's expression falter at the mere mention of his previous absence. He wondered what had happened with the Terra situation...

"Now that we're all here, we should be able to take this thing down," Robin started, looking over his shoulder to the dense forest. "The creature ran off into the woods, but I'm sure it's not going to the city. It seems to be targeting us specifically..." he explained, turning back to face the others, his own words making him wonder about the creature's true purpose. "Beast Boy, we'll need you to follow its scent. But first, we should form a strategy, figure out what we're up against."

"Right. And... what are we up against?" Beast Boy questioned, having the least experience with it.

Standing next to Beast Boy, Raven stepped forward. "I can't sense it, so either it has some manner of psychic shielding, or--"

"It's not alive," Robin cut in. "I got a good look at its eyes back there. It's a machine, no doubt about it."

Starfire nodded, deciding to add her two cents. "Yes. But it is no ordinary Earth robot. It is far more... intelligent than anything we have faced before," she said, squinting her eyes as she mulled over the many possible explanations for it.

"Exactly. It's sophisticated, like nothing I've ever seen before," Cyborg spoke up, crossing his arms as he began to think back to the battle. "But it's those abilities that really caught my attention. Depending on what it touches, it seems able to take on a form in each phase of matter: solid, liquid... and probably gas, too, if we gave it the chance," he explained. Suddenly, Cyborg's expression brightened up. "I've got an idea. There's one phase of matter I'm sure this thing'll be unstable at--"

"Energy," the atypically quiet Beast Boy cut in with a word apparently so shocking it had the power to widen everyone's eyes.

"Um... yeah," Cyborg scratched the human side of his head in astonishment.

"Heh... I, uh, guess I spent a little too much time at that school," Beast Boy nearly tripped over his words, a sweat drop sliding down from his temple. "Go on," he cleared his throat, turning to Cyborg.

"...Anyway. I bet if we heat this thing up to a high enough temperature, its mechanical parts will get fried."

"Yeah... it's just too bad we don't have any spare volcanoes lying around," Beast Boy managed to joke as usual, surprising himself. A fluke, he was sure...

"That's more like it," Cyborg commented with a grin. "But you're right... there's really nothing around here we can lead it into. That's why I thought of this," he said, holding up his right arm for everyone to see as he shifted it into cannon mode. "I can increase the frequency on my cannon. At the right setting it could supercharge the particles in the creature's body, vaporizing it in one blast, literally turning it into energy. But... you can guess why I've never done this before. I might end up blasting a couple other things at the same time... So if I do this, you guys gotta stay out of the way," he warned, looking each of his friends in the eye for confirmation.

"Okay. Looks like we've got a plan." Robin backed away from the group and nodded, turning his face to the forest. "Starfire, you and Raven keep an eye on things from above; if you notice anything in the forest, contact us. Beast Boy, try to pick up on this thing's scent. Cyborg and I'll follow you. If he can get a good shot, we can finish this without too much trouble," Robin finished issuing directions, turning around to look at everyone. "Titans, go!" he shouted, motioning his hands as if to say 'spread out.'

At that, Starfire took to the sky, while Robin and Cyborg made their way to the trees, waiting for Beast Boy. Raven, about to follow after Starfire, turned her attention to Beast Boy as he slowly walked toward the others... looking down at his feet. Seeing that Robin and Cyborg were busy surveying the area, she decided to ask about something while she had the chance.

Stepping forward almost hesitantly, Raven reached a hand out and grasped Beast Boy's shoulder. "What's wrong?" she asked seriously. "You seem... different."

"Nothing," he responded without turning around.

"What?"

"Yeah," Beast Boy turned around, wearing a big grin. "Nothing different. Just... business as usual." Backing away with a nervous chuckle, he suddenly morphed into a bloodhound. Sniffing around on the ground, Beast Boy picked up a scent and began following it past the trees and into the forest. Robin and Cyborg stealthily traced the changeling's path a few moments later.

"...Business as usual?" Raven contorted her mouth, attempting to digest that information. Something was definitely wrong, and, unfortunately, she now knew exactly what it was concerning. Beast Boy claimed to have seen Terra in the city and ever since had been trying to talk to her. She knew, whether or not it really was Terra he saw, Beast Boy believed so... and something must have gone wrong in his attempts. Now... it was like something inside him was broken. Being an empath, she couldn't possibly ignore it... Shaking her head, Raven looked to the sky to see Starfire flying above the treetops. Keeping a staid expression, she lifted herself from the ground. 'He can deal with it on his own.'

Noticing Raven catching up to her, Starfire slowed her flight and turned around. "Friend. Did Beast Boy explain what the matter was?" she asked with a curious and concerned face.

Nearly falling out of levitation, Raven quickly corrected herself, raising an eyebrow under her hood at Starfire. "You noticed too?"

"One does not need be a mind reader to notice such a change," Starfire replied, keeping an eye on the ground below as the two continued onward.

"Yes... I suppose you're right..." Without another word, Raven sped up, putting several feet between herself and Starfire.

"Raven."

"What?" Raven looked up from the ground for a moment before realizing what she had forgotten. "Oh," she started, floating back to Starfire's side, "he didn't say what the problem was... but, you can probably guess..."

"I see..." Starfire responded, looking down to where Robin and Cyborg were following Beast Boy. "I wonder if it was truly her he saw. I am sorry for him..."

"Don't be," Raven gave Starfire a serious look. "He got over it once, he'll get over it again," she said, turning her eyes to the ground.

Starfire looked shocked at Raven before realizing what was really going on. Floating into her friend's view, she gave a smile. "You should not pretend you do not care. Perhaps you recall what happened when you said you were not afraid?" Finishing her statement, Starfire backed away with a sheepish expression at the look Raven gave her.

Waiting for a moment, Raven shifted her look to one of slight agreement. "Point taken," she said plainly.

Suddenly, a loud growl turned Raven and Starfire's attention to the ground. "Starfire, Raven. We could use your help," came Robin's urgent voice from their communicators mere moments later.

- - - - - -

Dog nose sniffing away at the forest floor, Beast Boy followed the peculiar rusty metal scent that had been left. All the while, he attempted keep his mind focused on his goal, his surroundings, Robin and Cyborg's footsteps, anything other than what transpired mere minutes ago in the city. He didn't know why he was finding it so hard to let go... he knew he had to, for her sake as well as his own. It was only now that Beast Boy came to realize the only reason he had remained unaffected after Terra sacrificed herself... was because he had the hope that one day she would return. But that hope had been dashed and his spirit right along with it.

'She's alive. Be grateful, you idiot,' Beast Boy ordered himself in thought, hardly noticing the smell getting stronger. That thought alone gave him some solace. At least there was one thing to be thankful for: the bright side of things. 'Yeah... It's not like you--' Beast Boy cut himself off as his nose ran into a hard white rock. Backing away and shaking the stinging sensation from his face, Beast Boy looked up, eyes widening as he realized the rock was not a rock at all.

Morphing back into a human, Beast Boy backed away on his hands and knees for a moment before standing up fully. The tall and pale humanoid creature unnervingly stared him down for a moment. Its broad-shouldered form loomed over Beast Boy, red eyes staring like camera shutters from its black and white face.

Unsure of what moves to make, Beast Boy slowly turned his head over his shoulder. "Um... guys. Found it," he spoke as loud as he could, attempting to get his friends' attention without provoking the creature any further... something that proved in vain. Without warning, the monster lunged forward, arms outstretched. Swallowing hard, Beast Boy quickly changed into a snake and slithered away into a nearby bush, causing the creature to fall to the ground and kick up dirt as it crashed. Feeling incredibly angered by the thing for some strange reason, Beast Boy decided he would do no more running. With a loud growl, he leaped from cover as a gorilla, beating his fists against his chest as he charged toward his downed enemy.

Having heard Beast Boy's growls from their positions, Robin and Cyborg came out of hiding and proceeded to rush toward the fray. "Starfire, Raven. We could use your help," said Robin, quickly placing his communicator back into his belt, retrieving his retractable staff. As he and Cyborg continued forward, they could see Beast Boy grappling with the creature between the trees in the distance, growling furiously in his primal form.

Grasping the creature's hands, Beast Boy pushed forward, unsure of what exactly he was planning to do. Successfully slamming it into a tree, he glared as the trunk nearly snapped. With an odd sound, the creature's body suddenly shifted color to a deep brown, odd features quickly decorating its skin... like bark. Feeling rather dumb, Beast Boy felt the creature's now tougher hands grasp tighter, pushing him further away. In an instant, it lifted Beast Boy up and tossed him across the way where he crashed into a tree and reverted back to human form, rubbing his forehead.

"Hey, ugly," came Cyborg's voice as he jumped into the clearing.

"Heads up!" shouted Robin, tossing several metal disks toward the creature. On contact, the disks detonated, sending chunks of wood and smoke into the air. As soon as the smoke cleared, the creature was revealed... headless, a splintered mess of wood resembling a body left in its place. Tilting, limbs stationary, the body fell to the ground, making a loud thump against the ground.

"Whoa..." said Beast Boy, standing up and backing away toward Robin and Cyborg. "More like... head's off," he commented.

Just then, Starfire and Raven descended from the air, looking surprised at the defeated mass in front of them. "Are we... too late?" Starfire asked, examining the hunk of wood from afar. Without delay, the wooden body suddenly shifted back to its white form, melting into a muddy liquid with the help of the moist forest floor.

"If only," said Robin, removing several more disks from his belt as the creature began to reform. "Cyborg," he called his friend's attention while the others formed a group with them.

A look of acknowledgment on his face, Cyborg charged up his cannon again. "Right," he said, turning to the creature, surprised at what he saw. Once again in gorilla form, Beast Boy haphazardly jumped at the creature. Unfortunately, his attempt at an attack proved useless. The creature merely gobbled Beast Boy up into its muddy center. A big brown blob remained, something kicking and punching to get free from its interior. Shifting its form, the creature suddenly spit its attacker out. Soaring through the air, Beast Boy crashed into the other Titans, knocking everyone to the ground while the creature resumed white form.

The Titans remained motionless as the creature stood still and stared them down for a moment. Putting its arms at its sides, the monster's eyes suddenly took on a bright red glow. In an odd turn of events, a thin plane of red light extended from its eyes and began moving downward from the treetops like some sort of scanner. The Titans sat dumbfounded as the light passed over them and just as soon returned to within the creature's eyes.

Shaking that strange happening from his mind, Robin turned to Cyborg. "Now's your chance!" he shouted.

"Got it!" Cyborg pulled his right arm out from under the others and aimed it at the curiously still creature. "It's--"

A crackling electric sound suddenly swept across the forest. Just as soon, the creature became enveloped in a large glowing net... Thrashing around, it began struggling against the bonds, its form seeming to be unstable, shifting in and out of visibility. With one final electric crackle, the creature gave up, falling to the ground and disappearing completely in an explosion of light.

"...Over?" Cyborg finished, squinting into the blinding white light as it began to dissipate. Standing there, beyond the now empty net, were six tall figures; each carried a gun-like weapon securely in both arms. Clad in body armor, they stood still, watching as remnants of smoke cleared away from the net. Separated into sections, their uniforms were composed of white and black metal; face, shoulders, chest, forearms and lower legs were protected by the white metal, while the rest was adorned by the black. Their faces were hidden well behind full-coverage masks, seeing out through a 'Y' shaped, red-tinted glass section... too reflective to see any indication of eyes behind the mask.

As soon as things settled down, one of the armored men stepped forward, set apart from the others by his blue-tinted faceplate. Holstering his weapon back behind his shoulder, the man knelt down and reached toward the dirt. Standing up, he held a small semi-reflective object in his hand; a microchip.

"Here it is," he spoke in a voice distorted by his mask, turning around and facing one of the others. Removing a glass container from his belt, he placed the chip into it. "Make sure this gets to evidence. They should be able to figure out where it came from," he continued, handing the container over to one of his subordinates. Suddenly, the man's head turned toward the downed heroes, alerting each of the Titans into an upright fighting stance.

Robin stood at the front of the group, unsure of what to do as the man approached. Suddenly, he came to a stop and held out a hand. "We'd like to thank you for your assistance in apprehending this creature. We've been tracking it for months now."

Almost reluctantly, Robin reached out and shook the man's hand. "And... you are?" he asked, slight skepticism in his expression.

"Sentinel," responded the man, motioning a hand at his friends who all stood still and focused. "Company policy; I'm not supposed to reveal my real name. We're Sentinel, the city's reformed police force. Perhaps you saw the new building downtown?"

Coming upon a revelation, Beast Boy suddenly jumped out from the back of the group and pointed an accusing finger at the man. "So it's your fault!" he exclaimed, teeth clenched. Suddenly, Raven reached a hand out, covering Beast Boy's mouth and pulling him back into the group.

"Right..." responded the guard as he released the handshake, sounding almost sorry. "We know those establishments were quite frequented. But the city had to take drastic measures during your... absence. Crime levels were at an all-time high, so they formed Sentinel," he explained. "The owners have been compensated, though, so it wasn't a total loss."

"Great... tack the blame on us, why don't ya?" Beast Boy commented under his breath, finding it incredibly hard to trust these people.

"Well, it's good to know we got someone watchin' our backs. We really ought to be thanking you," Cyborg chimed in, a good natured look on his face as he approached the front of the group.

"Yes, truly, it was a great help," Starfire added with a grateful smile.

"Yeah, that thing had been targeting us," said Robin.

"Really?" asked the lead guard, sounding intrigued. "We'll be sure to contact your tower if we find any information regarding that--"

"HOLD ON!" Beast Boy jumped out of the group once more, hearing the sound of a record scratching in his mind as he slid in between the guards and his team. He stood in front of his friends and eyed each of them with shock. "You can't seriously tell me you trust these guys, right?" he questioned, motioning both his hands at the six armored guards.

"...BB. It's the police," Cyborg replied, furrowing his brow at the unsettled changeling. "Y'know: the people who take the criminals to jail... To protect and serve... The good guys."

"Do the uniforms ring a bell?" Raven asked plainly. In response, Beast Boy looked over his shoulder and examined the outfits. They looked normal, but something just didn't seem right. He couldn't find it in himself to place any trust in them... and he had no idea why. Giving up, Beast Boy returned to the group, mumbling under his breath.

"So, I guess we'll be working alongside you guys from now on," said Robin, looking up at the tall guard.

"I'll look forward to it," responded the Sentinel, turning around to face his comrades. "Let's move out. Back to headquarters," he commanded.

"Sir!" shouted the other guards simultaneously. At that, the guards formed an organized group and exited the area in a militaristic fashion. Beast Boy eyed them curiously on their exit.

"A little tall for a storm trooper..." Beast Boy commented quietly with narrowed eyes as the leading guard passed him by.

"Man, what's your problem?" Cyborg asked after a few moments, giving Beast Boy a look of disbelief.

"Come on! Even if they are the good guys... Don't you see what's going on here?" he asked everyone; all remained clueless, waiting for him to answer his own question. "They're trying to replace us!" Beast Boy shouted, waving his arms about wildly. In response, most of the group broke out into a good amount of laughter.

Robin shook his head. "Beast Boy. We've always had a police force," he said, stifling his amused voice.

"That's my point," responded the green Titan. "We've always had a police force. And since when have they ever saved our butts? Isn't it usually the other way around?"

"That may be true, but these guys are different, remember?" Robin queried. "And we just happened to run into something they were after."

"Yeah. Shouldn't you be happy about this? I mean, if these guys are good enough, we're gonna have a lot more free time on our hands," said Cyborg, grinning at the thought of extra time to work on his car, play video games, and train. "But that's probably just wishful thinking... odds are, nothing's gonna change. Since when are we that lucky?" he chuckled to himself, slumping his shoulders forward.

Raven suddenly stepped forward. "Is it that you think they're trying to replace us, or are you just angry that they stole our victory?" she asked in a monotone.

"I..." Beast Boy trailed off, lifting a finger in the air to retort. He couldn't argue with that. She may have been right... Beast Boy let his arms fall limply at his sides. "Yeah... I guess you guys are right. What am I worried about anyway?" he asked, looking back to see several white figures retreating toward the city through the trees.

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Author's Note: First off, I'd like to say I'm sorry this took so long. I finally got the whole story for this thing worked out in my head—all I need to do now is write it. The chapters will probably be shorter than my last fic. Hehe, no more 10,000 worders this time XD. Of course, that means that updates will most likely be speedier this time around. However, I seem to be having more of a life lately, so I can't make any guarantees...

I've been wanting to write this one since I saw "Things Change," and I hope this meets your expectations. I'm gonna try to stay more with the show than ever before.

I know in my last "Next Fan Fiction Preview" I talked about a new setting. Well, I ditched that idea in favor of this one, which I feel has a lot more heart. Hopefully you'll understand what I mean by the end :D.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of Forget Me Not. There will be more to come.

Next Chapter Preview: "Sometimes, things happen that seem so far out of your hands... All you can do is sit and watch from your tower as life carries on without you, as the world moves on and forgets. Who knew there would come a time... when heroes are no longer needed." Chapter Two: Face the Truth.