Origins

Author's note: This is sort of a story/bio for BB, for those of you that don't know his origins. I wrote this story for the animated version of BB so it definitely won't go strictly by the comic books, in fact, there will mostly my version of his past, slightly kiddy-fied, and simplified. It will have several things mentioned that are in the comic books, but I've had to change and add a little to his past to make the story work. I hope you enjoy reading it, and hopefully those of you that read the comics, won't kill me for changing his past. (If you find this story interesting, I highly suggest you read more about BB's life at Titans Tower)

Disclaimer: I don't own anything

Chapter 1 – Haunting Memories

Beast Boy was running. Running faster then he ever had in his life. He was a cheetah, running through tall grass. The warm African air was blowing through his green fur. It was exhilarating, the smells, the sounds. He was home. This was where he belonged. He could feel he muscles contracting under his fur, and they were beginning to sting, but it was a good sting. It made him feel alive; it made him feel powerful, primal even. 'Stronger, better, faster' he thought. He felt like he could run like this forever...he couldn't though, he could feel his body begin to slow down. He breathing became harder. 'Just a little farther...' Suddenly, he was there. He was at his village, his real home. Beast Boy came to a stop, and sat down in his cheetah form. Silently he looked at his home. It was beautiful, it'd been so long since he'd seen it, he'd almost forgotten how much he'd missed it...tears came to his eyes at the site of it. He couldn't wait to see his family.
Beast Boy made a move toward the village in his cheetah form, and suddenly, he felt something hit his back. He turned to look at his attacker. It was a small girl of about 8, she had several rocks in her hands, and it was apparent she was going to use them. Beast Boy was dumbfounded. Impulsively, the girl threw another rock at him. This one hit him in between the eyes. Beast Boy shook his head to dull the pain, but stayed in his cheetah form. He continued to look at the girl. She seemed familiar, like a friend, but somehow, he couldn't remember. As he gazed at the girl, she through another stone at him, this one hit his shoulder. Beast boy was getting very tired of this game; it was beginning to really hurt. Beast Boy tried to go back to his human form, but something was wrong. He couldn't change back. 'Change, please change, come on! Change!' Beast Boy was quite upset now, he couldn't change back. 'What if I'm like this forever?!'
Unexpectedly, the scene changed, the girl disappeared, and a strong flowing river began to flow where she'd stood. Now, not only had the scene changed, but he had changed, he was back to normal. He was looking at his hands, pondering at how he'd changed, when he heard a woman scream. He looked up, and there in the water, two people, a man and a woman, were trying to swim against the current. He recognized them immediately, they were his parents. It was obvious they were in trouble, and desperately needed his help.
The woman screamed again and went under the water's surface. Seeing the extreme circumstances, Beast boy attempted to change into an animal that could swim. Something was wrong, he still couldn't change. He tried to change into something else, anything, but nothing worked. It was horrible, his mother and father needed him, but he couldn't do anything. His mother was still under the water, but his father was beginning to try to swim to shore. Beast Boy knelt on the bank, and stretched out his hand to his drowning father. The man just barely was able to grab a hold of Beast Boy's hand. Beast Boy tried to pull the large man out of the water, but the current was so strong, and his father weighed so much more than he did. Suddenly, the man's hand slipped from his grip, and his father slipped beneath the surface. Beast Boy tossed and turned in his sleep, panting, and talking. "No...no...mom...DAD!" Beast Boy screamed, and woke up with a jolt. The river he'd been dreaming about was gone, and he was back in his own room. 'It felt so real...' he thought for a moment, then slowly, he remembered, "It was real. They're gone." He said quietly to himself. Beast Boy hated that dream. He used to have it every night when he was younger, but since he'd moved in with the Titans, he'd stopped having it. It was horrible to remember. He couldn't stand to think about it...how he couldn't save them. It was like reliving the moment they died over and over...-'STOP IT! Stop thinking about it! You can't change the past! Its over and done with, they're gone...and there was nothing you can do.' He reasoned with himself.

The other side of his mind began to think, 'I could have saved them, if I'd just known more about my powers. I could have-'

'There isn't anything you can do. If she wouldn't have broken her promise, you wouldn't have broken yours' his more reasonable side said. Beast Boy knew there was no use of trying to go back to sleep now. His past was coming back to haunt him, and even if he tried to close his eyes, he knew the images that would play across his mind. All he could do was wait until morning. As the hours began to pass by, he tried hard not to think about his parents, but the longer he stayed awake, the more he thought about them. He couldn't help but think about the little things. Like the way his mom used to hug him, and the way she always smelled like lilacs. He couldn't help but think how his Dad used to take him along when he went into the jungle to gather specimens for his research. Finally, he couldn't hold back the emotions any longer, and a flood of tears began to choke him.