CH3

Beastboy walked into the common room and everyone shut up and stared at him.

"Raven won't be joining us."

"Why?" Robin threat questioned again "What did you do to her?" he practically yelled this, getting up and getting in Beastboy's personal space. So, being the alpha male he was, he growled, low and deadly, like every deadly mammal in the world all at once. And it was terrifying.

"Nothing she didn't want." He said in a deep voice that wasn't his own "Now back the fuck out of my personal space before I rip your heart out." Robin decided it would be prudent to move,

"Is that a threat?" he narrowed his eyes.

"No, a warning, I can't keep my instincts in check forever if you keep trampling all over them, doing exactly the wrong things to get me to calm myself down boy blunder." he pushed Robin away, not a shove, but still firm, and walked to the couch.

"It's never been a problem before," he said slowly following. "why is it now? Is it connected to your improved hearing? What about your bloody sheets?"

"You saw those?" Cy put a hand on his shoulder, but cautiously as he didn't want to push any buttons like Robin did.

"Dude, you can't exactly hide something like that, they were covered. I know you said I don't have to worry about it but after that little show with Raven just now BB, do I need to worry?" the concern in his voice was genuine, he just wanted to help, unlike Robin who just wanted to be secure.

"Please friend, we are most concerned with how you have been acting and merely wish to know if you are the 'ok'." Starfire was genuine too.

"Not all of you do." he said under his breath " I'm fine, and really, everything's ok it's just..."

"Just what?" asked a cold monotone. He jumped up and whipped his head to the door to the common room where Raven had just entered.

"Raven! What are you doing here, I thought you said you were going to rest for a while after," she gave him a death glare and he sat down as she made her way before him. "uh, never mind, of course you're up, nothing happened so why wouldn't you be up?"

"I changed my mind. Just what Beastboy?"

"Raven I don't think I-" She gave him another death glare. "On the other hand, I do enjoy being alive."

"Good, so speak."

"What you guys saw back there was...my primal side I guess you'd call it. It was my Beast...THE Beast." Robin's eyes went wide then they narrowed and Beastboy could tell he was pissed.

"That thing that almost killed Raven and tried to kill us? THAT Beast?" Beastboy groaned and did a face-palm.

"DuuuuuuUUUDE, for the last time, that was ADONIS! I was protecting her, and I only attacked you 'cause you did first." then he mumbled "I told you to back off." Robin glared at him and Cyborg rolled his eyes.

"Well we didn't speak giant freak ass snarling mutant hybrid green bean." Starfire nodded

"Yes, please friend, we could not understand, as friend Cyborg said, your 'giant freak ass', yes?" Robin thought of how to correct his girlfriend but gave up and Raven just stared at her, Beastboy looked at Cyborg, both confused.

"Dude, did she just say my but's fat?" Cyborg shrugged "Okay, moving on from my bruised ego...I made a deal with my Beast." he had the full attention to everyone "I accept him, let him into my head, and let him out every once in a while, and he behaves." he got some skeptical looks. "What?" Robin gave him a look of 'really?'

"You're talking like it's a person Beastboy."

"He is, sorta." Robin's eyes narrowed.

"Explain." funny how things like 'team meetings' always seemed like Robin talking or questioning someone and the others reeling him back as needed.

"Well, I can see him, and I can hear him, and he keeps me company." Cyborg felt he should say something

"Uh, buddy? I, uh, well...eh..." but what could he say? 'You know that this just makes you sound insane and unstable right?' Not what he needed to hear right now. Robin took over again.

"So, nearly mauling Raven counts as 'behaving'? What does he do when he's not behaving?" Beastboy shrugged

"Never been an issue, really, it's kind of nice not having to worry if someone will stage a coup in my own body. The only reason he attacked Raven was because she touched me before I told her it was ok. It was more of a reaction than a decision actually. Besides, everyone knows you don't go near a predator when it's hurt, it's gunna lash out." Raven raised an eyebrow

"A 'predator'? Beastboy...you're one of the nicest, kindest, most caring people I've ever met, you're right after Star on list of obnoxiously cheery people." coming from Raven this was a gushing endearment "That being said yes you can be dangerous if you want but you are just not a predator." The rest of the team seemed to agree, and he smiled at her, Raven recognized something of that smile and it made her nervous. He rubbed his right hand over his mouth, staring at her, dragging his index finger slowly down his lips, tugging slightly on the bottom one. The tip of his tongue darted out and dragged across the second then first knuckle, catching on his claw, looking at Raven the whole time, who began to blush. It was only slightly, but it was there, and it was enough for him.

He walked towards her, everyone watching him, as he backed her to the couch, the edge of the seat catching the backs of her knees, making her fall back. He leaned down, supporting himself with hand on either side of her shoulder, he leaned into her left side and whispered in her ear

"You know what I think?" he leaned back and looked into her eyes, noticing the sparkles of excitement, fear and anticipation dancing there. he grinned wider and leaned into her left side. "I think that ever since what happened in my room you are only beginning to see how much of a predator I can be. And I think you've realized by now, that since I am the predator, you are my prey." She gasped, heart racing, skin flushing, she felt heat race through her skin and tried to say something, her voice failing her. "Does that sound right to you?" he blew on the bite mark and she shuddered, giving a single imperceptible nod he barely felt with his skin against hers. Someone cleared their throat and he glanced to the side for a millisecond before he looked back to her, fire in his eyes. "Where?" he whispered a small askance. She immediately understood.

"My room, one am." he nodded ever so slightly even as he was being called again. He turned, the fire diminishing, less unruly, but still there, still wild. By the time he turned around he was back to normal, mostly. He was met by the faces of his three team mates. Starfire looking interestedly, not exactly knowing what went on. Cyborg, having heard the whole thing with his robotic ear and flushed deeply, eyes wide, staring intently at some spec of dust off to the side. Robin looked at what had just happened, Cyborg's reaction, and deduced what just gone on, his own eyes going wide, but then deciding, he really didn't want to know.

"Beastboy,"

"Ja?" Robin pinched the bridge of his nose, closing his eyes.

"I really don't want to know what just went on, so lets get back to the subject at hand. This...new you, what's going on?" Beastboy rolled his eyes, typical Robin. He was calm when he explained.

"I was tired of the Beast hounding me, so I made it a deal with him. We agreed, I mix us together, let him out occasionally, and he gives me some peace. I indulge in some things I've been wanting to do for a really long time, and he behaves. He gives me some of his strength and speed, even better senses, and I let him have a body, even if it is one only I can see and hear."

"What exactly do you 'indulge' in?"

"I go hunting." everyone was shocked, they would believe murder of Beastboy before hunting. Raven was the first to recover.

"Beastboy, you go out and kill 'innocent animals'? doesn't that go against your beliefs?" He shrugged, oddly calm about it.

"It's part of the Beast, he's helped me accept that there is a food chain that will continue with or without me, so, why not have some fun once in a while?" Now Cyborg was joining in, deciding to be curious.

"But what do you...I mean, when you go out, what...this isn't you man, what do you do when-" Beastboy shook his head.

"Dude, I don't ask where you sometimes go at two in the morning after you shut off the tower's security, I don't ask what Robin does when he visits Star on Tuesdays, and I don't ask why Raven gets that look she gets when she looks holds that yellow crystal. No one is going to ask me what I do when I go into the forest at night. If anyone want's to find out, then they can go with me when I need to let loose a little. Understand?" He looked around to make sure his point was perfectly clear. Cyborg understood he needed some privacy in his life, he needed the same thing after all so he gave a nod. Starfire just plain respected his privacy and so said

"Of course friend." Robin was wary, there was still the matter of the bloody sheets.

"No one gets hurt?" Beastboy shook his head.

"No humans get hurt."

"You're not prolonging anything?"

"Not sadistically." Robin glared at him and Beastboy rolled his eyes "Not any longer than any other animal would have." Robin thought about that, really thought. Beastboy could he his mind trapezing through all the loopholes and stretched meanings and bent conditions that could be placed on that simple sentence. Man was animal, Man was pretty sadistic, Man~ and on and on his thoughts would go with all of his syllogisms, but he must have reached a conclusion because his eyes relaxed.

"Okay Beastboy, I trust you." the 'don't let me down' was naturally implied with the way he said it. "But answer me this, the blood what-"

"I was hungry." Robin's eyes went wide and he opened his mouth...and shut it again deciding, once more, that he really, really did not want to know. He shook his head.

"I don't want to know right now, but you're taking me on your next trip, understood?"

"Yeah, sure." he said, already dismissing Robin's words, until Robin grabbed his shoulder and turned him around.

"Understood?" Beastboy growled a little and shook himself free.

"Yeah. Sure. But if you want to keep up you need to get one of the girls to fly you. I'm warning you right now though, when let loose, I go all the way. No tech, no jewelry, and no threads." his ears twitched "Speaking of which, my sheets need to be changed over." the titans then heard the laundry beep and he began walking toward the laundry room. They all looked at him and he shrugged "I've got good ears. I'll probably go out again pretty soon, anyone who wants to come with is welcome, but I'm gunna leave late, if you're not there you're not there." he opened the door to the laundry room and went inside.

"So, keeping in mind that he can still hear us,"

"You bet your ass I can!" came a shout from the laundry room. Robin's brow furrowed and he shook his head.

"That's going to take some getting used to. Is anyone going to go with him?" He looked to Cyborg who shook his head.

"The green bean has a point, he respects our personal time," this got him an evil look from Raven "well, when it counts the most he does, so I think we should give him the same courtesy." He looked at Raven who just stared at him. She broke their uncomfortable silence saying

"Do you really expect me to go?"

"Uh, well, erherm Starfire," he turned to her, discomfort fading "what about you? Will you fly me?" she nodded, smiling

"Yes friend Robin, it would be most educational to see how friend Beastboy allows tightness freedom." the boys looked to Raven

"She means 'lets loose'." the boys both went 'ohhhhh' "Whatever, you discuss this, I'm going to my room." there was a shout from the laundry room

"Byyyyye Raveeeen!"

"Moron." she said under her breath

"I heard that!" she rolled her eyes and left for her room.