A/N: Not to fret, there shall be updates on the shorts since they're pretty easy to write and I have all the prompts written down. This right here is my experiment project. Not meant for the young ones. If you like BBRae, smut, and very complex relationship dynamics, you've come to the right place. Keep in mind this takes place way after the series and thus, characters may seem a bit OOC, but they are merely grown up at this point. Please enjoy.

Grizzly Bears

"I would rather die of passion than of boredom..."

- Vincent van Gogh

Prologue:

Indoctrinate

9610.

The gold gilded numbers shone under the shoddy, flickering lights of the hallway. He stood outside her door, and tried to tell himself that he could handle this.

In the distance, he heard the elevator doors ding, and then slide open. Feeling suddenly self conscious of his stature, he tried to pretend like he wasn't being some creep stalking the strange, quiet girl who lived in apartment 9610. He hid beneath his cap and the collar of his plaid dress shirt in a futile attempt to go unnoticed. Not that it would help much; the whole green thing sort of gave his identity away. If he was being honest, he hadn't even built up the courage to even knock yet. That didn't mean he couldn't pretend that he had. As he peeked out from beneath the lid of his hat, he made eye contact with the gentleman walking down the carpeted hallway towards him. The older man gave him a friendly, closed mouth smile and nodded at him curtly. Garfield did his best to return the notion, but his nervousness was getting the better of him.

Once the man had disappeared beyond the corner of a wall, Beast Boy let out the shaky breath he'd been holding. He then looked back up at the daunting, plated numbers on the door and remembered why he was there again. He took in a deep, steady breath, and hesitantly lifted his fist up towards the entryway. With his heart racing and the anxiety making him break out into a steady sweat, he slowly rapped his knuckles against the wood of the door, once, twice, three times. The sound of his knock seemed to echo and reverberate in the otherwise empty hallway of the ninth floor.

Then the waiting began.

He could hear her come to life just beyond where he stood, right through the paper thin walls of the building complex. There was some audible shuffling, and then nimble footsteps growing closer. He gulped and braced himself for impact. He adjusted his hat, smoothed out his shirt, and prepared to give her an honest, toothy grin.

He heard the locks coming undone, slipping out of place, and then the handle turning. The door swung open with a gust of air, and then she was standing before him.

She looked a bit disheveled, like he'd just awoken her from a much needed nap. Her straight, dark hair looked unruly, and her amethyst toned eyes were half lidded as she stared back at him with mild disinterest. The small, red gem in the middle of her forehead gleamed in the faint, fluorescent lighting. She was barefoot, and wearing a baggy grey sweater matched with a pair of tiny black shorts.

"Hey, Rae," he stammered when he finally recovered his voice.

He couldn't help but feel like he sounded as croaky as a prepubescent boy.

In response, the elfin woman stepped aside and left her doorway wide open in invitation. All the lights were off, with nothing but the faint rays of daylight filtering through her windows to cast long shadows.

Beast Boy licked his dry lips and stepped forward with uncertain legs, crossing the threshold in a single stride. Once he was in, she closed the door behind him, putting all the locks back in place. In the mean time, he managed to distract his rampant mind by taking in the appearance of what Raven now called home.

It certainly lacked the dark decor her room had had back in Titan Tower, he noted. If anything, her small, shoe box of an apartment was pretty barren. The kitchen was compact and on the right side of the room, only containing the bare necessities, while the entryway led directly into an equally small living room. There was a single love-seat couch in front of a forty inch, flat screen television set, an old coffee table, a tall, black lamp in the far left corner, and two massive, oak bookshelves crammed with most of her reading material next to the balcony curtains. He was willing to bet she had a matching set in her bedroom.

On the left, there was a short hallway leading to two sets of closed doors. All the walls were painted a chalky white, and there weren't any paintings or photographs to be seen anywhere.

"Nice place," he finally commented aloud, his eyes wandering about the expanse of space he was in.

In the silence after, he could hear the gentle ticking of the clock on the wall. There was a book left open on the couch cushion, and an indent on the fabric that had been recently sat on. He deduced that she'd most likely passed out on the couch while reading.

So he had woken her up after all.

She walked passed him then, her scent wafting into his nostrils like an old, familiar friend. He could hear the way her bare feet stuck to the cold, tiled floors as she moved gracefully about her abode. He was almost startled by the action; he'd been so used to seeing her levitate along in the tower that he hardly remembered she could walk, too. She stepped into the kitchen and pulled open her refrigerator door, the bright light casting shadows on her delicate features.

"Want something to drink?" She asked him in her staple gravelly voice, with her head still buried in the frigid contents.

Beast Boy scratched nervously at the back of his head. "Have anything fizzy?"

When she stood up, she met his tense smile with a single, raised, inky black brow. He was asking a stupid question; Raven never did drink any pop, and that at least hadn't changed.

"Hah," he chuckled, "on second thought, what do you have?"

"Water, tea, grapefruit juice, and cheap beer." She listed off the beverages on her index fingers.

Garfield fought off a scowl of distaste at her horrible preferences in refreshments. He was a guest, after all, and thus had to be respectful. "Beer?"

"It's not mine, if that's what you're asking. All that stuff tastes like piss to me," she explained dryly.

He briefly wondered if Raven entertained guests often, and why they'd be leaving alcohol in her fridge. Especially since the empath had never been a fan of the stuff.

"I'll go with the beer, then. Help you clear it out before it winds up in the trash," he decided.

"Fine, but I should forewarn you," she began to tell him as she made to grab a can from the open fridge, "this particular brand probably tastes worse than the normal kind." She stuck her hand into the bright, artificial light of her cold box and pulled out a lime green, aluminum can.

Without warning, she tossed it at him.

He hadn't been graceful in catching it, and if it weren't for his keen animal impulses, he'd probably have dropped it on the floor pathetically. It bounced in his hands before he could have a firm grip on it. There was a look of amusement in the demi demon's eyes and a half smile on her lips. Beast Boy was tempted to stick out his tongue at her. Even after all these years, she still got a kick out of watching him squirm.

The can hissed as he popped open the tab, and then took a tentative sip of the cold, hoppy beverage. She watched him intensely with arms crossed, gauging his reaction the whole time.

When the response she was expecting didn't occur, she appeared mildly surprised.

Garfield shrugged in answer to her misgivings. "I've had worse. Did you know Cy tried making his own brew this one time? Now that was disgusting. Not even Star could handle it, and she's got nine stomachs."

A chill ran down his spine at the memory of the taste.

Raven shook her head. "I had no idea Vic had been so ambitious. He always was a mean cook, though."

"Yeah, maybe if you weren't a vegetarian," Beast Boy pointed out, rolling his eyes.

"We should sit down," she instructed suddenly, ignoring his jibe and walking towards her living room.

Her pale toes sunk into the plush of her thick, beige carpet before she resumed her spot on the couch. She put her bookmark between the pages she'd been reading, and then closed the novel to place it on the aged, wooden coffee table. That left a nice, empty space for him right next to her.

His anxiety was back in full throttle, but he walked towards her regardless, as if his legs had a mind of their own.

He was still ever conscious of the space between them and ensured that he was a good, comfortable distance away from her when he'd sat down. She'd pulled up her pale, bare legs and sat haphazardly on them, while Garfield appeared as stiff and awkward as he felt. Raven, on the other hand, looked entirely relaxed, propping her elbow up on the headrest of the couch and staring at him lazily. Garfield cleared his dry throat and placed his beer on a coaster lying on the banged up table before him.

"I'm going to be honest with you, Beast Boy," she said, focusing his attention.

When he turned his head, he found himself staring into her infinite, violet shaded pools.

Her fingers fidgeted along the naked skin of her thighs and kneecaps. "I can't do this alone. Working two jobs is...taxing. I don't remember the last time I got a full night of sleep, or a day off."

As she said it, it was like the exhaustion had suddenly become more apparent. There were discoloured bags under her eyes as well as a gauntness to her cheeks, and she looked even more ghostly pale than she typically did.

"Is it money?" he asked her, concern lacing his tone of voice.

She nodded once. "The government checks no longer cut it, and I've been at this for so long now, I'm not sure how much more I can take."

She clutched her forehead in agony, mussing up a few short strands of violet coloured hair in the process. She grimaced then, her brows furrowing as she elaborated further; "If I don't get in enough time for meditation and proper sleep, my emotions go haywire and I start to lose control of my powers. It's dangerous for everyone."

Garfield touched her shoulder instinctively, reaching out and wishing to comfort her, much like how he'd always done when they were younger. He caught her magnetic gaze upon the moment he'd made the unexpected, physical contact.

"What can I do to help?" He asked her sincerely, being sure to appear sympathetic to her plight.

She looked away then, as if to be burdened with guilt. "I'm not asking for money. Beast Bo- Garfield..." She corrected herself in an effort to convey the seriousness of the matter.

At the use of his real name, there was an unsteady inflection in her normally monotone voice.

She searched all the lines and curves of his face, her expression charged with emotion, and he felt instantly helpless in her presence. In that moment, she could have asked anything of him, and chances were he'd do it without a second thought.

"What I'm saying," she confessed breathily, "is that I need a permanent roommate."

A/N: Consider this a teaser; a prologue of what's to come. Don't expect any smut for a few chapters, but not to worry, there will be tons of it throughout. As for timeline and the relationship dynamics between the Titans, all of it will be cleared up in the story itself, so just be patient. Let me know what you think and if the concept seems interesting. :) Thanks for reading!