Director D.Z.
patreon
Titan Academy - Cyborg (Genderbending/Milfification)
🕑 Added 2020-10-28 17:58:30 +0000 UTCThis week, a winner of the monthly poll - and the next chapter of a story I don't spend nearly enough time writing. I hope you enjoy a bit of TF work with a longer word count!
Also, this chapter is based on this lovely art by Thetransformtentacle: https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/730984962492465183/771096694430892082/2018-09-17_Cyborg_HS_personality_swap.png
-
Progress Saved.
Continue?
- Yes
No
Where would you like to go next?
[Check out the Gym]
- [Tour the Classrooms]
[Sort out your Paperwork]
Beast Boy rolled over on his bed, considering the options. “So I can’t go back to the Library and see the Prez again?” He asked, still trying to wrap his brain around how all of this worked.
“You can,” Helen’s voice reassured him, “but you need to check out everywhere else first. We want you to have a full tour of everything that’s available to you! Then you’ll be free to decide where you want to spend your time as you please.”
“Huh. So I gotta complete the tutorial, is that what you’re saying?” This was logic that BB could understand.
Helen chuckled. “Yes, that’s one way of putting it. So where shall we go next? There’s plenty of places left to explore here in the Academy!”
“Alright. Well, since I’ll have to do all of them anyway, I might as well choose randomly…” he said, tapping the down button repeatedly and scrolling through the three choices over and over… Until he closed his eyes and hit enter, selecting his choice without even checking to see which one it was.
“Ah, a tour of the classrooms~” His AI helper seemed quite happy with his ‘choice’. “Excellent – I’m sure you’ll be impressed when you see what sort of classes we teach here at Titan. Right this way, if you please~”
-
Beast Boy was never what you might call an exceptional student. Or even a good student. In the classroom of life he was the sort of person who’d be found at the back, sleeping and/or throwing paper airplanes around. School had never been his jam – being green had certainly never helped in that regard, but even if it had he wasn’t really the sort to sit around listening to lectures or – pft – studying.
Which is why when even he had to admit how incredible a school’s curriculum was, you knew you’d found something special. The tour was brisk and fast moving, if only because there was so much to see. They moved down well polished halls, walking between stadium sized lecture halls fully operational planetariums, from filled scientific museums to complete HD 5D Surround Sound Super Cinematic cinemas. This place had it all.
“There’s no zoos here, right?” BB asked suddenly with a slight edge to his tone. He didn’t approve of zoos – spending your time in the same shape as most of the animals they kept in those places could give you a very unpleasant perspective on such things.
But Helen just shook her head. “No. We keep well researched records and allow our students to study holographic recreations of animals for their basic studies – and we just fly them out to their natural habitats for their advanced courses. No animal cruelty is tolerated here in the academy.”
If ever there was a statement to brighten Beast Boy’s day, it was that. “Alright! Well I’m definitely liking what I’m seeing so far! And I can use all of this whenever I like?”
“Indeed, depending on your avenue of study. We’ll even be assigning a tutor to you to help you shape your lesson plan and make sure you have everything you need to get the most out of your time here.”
“Oh really?” BB raised an eyebrow. “I dunno, Helen, me and teachers don’t get on. If I have to deal with a pipe smoking tweed wearing jerk all the time I’m probably not going to get much done…”
Helen just giggled. “I can see that, Beast Boy. But don’t worry, while she is quite strict, I can assure you she’s anything but a, ahem, ‘pipe smoking tweed wearing jerk’.”
“Hm. Are you sure?” BB tilted his head. “That doesn’t sound like any teacher I’ve ever met.”
The AI’s eyes glinted with mirth. “Why don’t you turn around and ask her yourself?”
Uh oh. The heroic changeling gulped, his danger sense tingling. He turned around, and-
[Loading]
“Gah!” The sudden loading screen made BB jump and nearly throw his console up in the air. “Hey, again? What gives?”
“Sorry!” Helen sounded embarrassed. “It must be a patch day. Oh, this doesn’t normally happen, I’m usually much more, ah… Ready. I’m so sorry – maybe give me a few minutes to download all these new files? Then we can get right back to it.”
“Fine, fine…” It was about time he took a break anyway – he didn’t want to get square eyes or whatever it was you got by staring at a screen all day. That was a real concern for a shapeshifter! Stretching, her jumped to his feet. Time to take a walk. Maybe a quick session on Fightem Sockem Heady Blowout 5 would make for a refreshing change!
Titan Tower a thief’s nightmare. All sorts of security systems and camera networks lay ready to detect any intruder, to stop anyone from sneaking about – if you didn’t already live there. Since BB did, in fact, already live there, it wasn’t all that difficult to scuttle around the halls so that no one noticed him heading towards the TV couch. Right about now everyone should be busy with their routines – Raven meditating, Robin training, Cyborg working on the T-car and Sophia studying – so no one would notice if he took a small break from his hectic ‘cleaning’ schedule to-
“Hey BB, wassup? Finish cleaning already?”
- To get caught five steps away from his goal. Damnit!
“Oh, hey Cy,” BB turned and waved to his best friend, the mechanical marvel hero Cyborg, while doing his best to look like he hadn’t been caught with his hand in the cookie jar. “Not quite finished yet – just taking a small break, get some fresh air, you know, all that… aheh…”
Cyborg’s grin as his eye slid from Beast Boy over to the couch and the TV said that he didn’t believe a word of it. “Oh really? A small break, huh? Just strolling on through the living room? Nuthin’ to do with FSHB5 laying over there in its nice unopened box, right? Right?”
“R-right!” Crap, he was caught, he was completely caught! Excuse, excuse, he needed an excuse… “I mean, why would I need to play that when I’ve got my own game right here!”
Wait, he shouldn’t have said that! “Uh, I mean-“
But it was too late. Faster than a speeding bullet, Cyborg snatched the Date Academy tablet from BB’s grip. “Oh ho ho, really now? And just what do we have here, hm?” He flipped the tablet over, then flipped it back again. “I don’t remember seeing any game like this before…”
To be honest, neither did Beast Boy. Oh well. “Well, you know, it’s preeeetty exclusive. That’s a rare copy. So give it back!”
Unfortunately his attempts at grabbing it fell short as his much taller friend held the tablet up higher than he could reach, considering it with his keen technical eye. “Well I don’t know – aren’t you supposed to be cleaning your room anyway? Maybe I should just keep this until you’ve finished your job, huh?”
“Oh you know that’s really not necessary…” Gaaahhh! “C’mon man, just give it back, do your old friend a favour, be a pal!”
“Hmmm.” Cy peered down at him, grinning. “What’s in it for me?”
“Uh.” The green hero thought for a moment, and then slumped. Yeah, he knew what his friend wanted. “I’ll let you win our next KillBots Battle PvP match.”
“Just the one?” Tch! He knew he had him over a barrel!
“Fine, the next two. Now gimme!”
“Wellllll…” For a moment, it looked like the cybernetic crimefighter was going to hold out for more – before he yelped and dropped the tablet down into BB’s hands. “Yeowch! Damn thing zapped me!”
“Well that’s what you get for being a bully.” BB stuck his tongue out.
Cyborg squinted at him, rubbing his zapped hand, before shrugging. “Whatever. Just go get back to cleaning, BB.” He turned and started walking away. “And don’t you forget our deal!”
“I won’t!” Beast Boy yelled after him, waiting for the bigger hero to disappear before checking his tablet for damage. “Hey, are you okay?”
“Wuuuhh…” Helen’s eyes had spirals in them, and she was stumbling around her screen like she’d had three too many drinks. “So dizzy. So much spinning!”
“Sorry!” BB hissed, trying to hold her steady. “Cy gets a bit… handsy, with electronics…” It was lucky he’d gotten her back so quickly. “Uh, he didn’t interrupt the download, did he?”
But to his relief, the AI quickly stabilised and shook her head. “No, the update’s done. We’re ready to continue when you are.”
“Oh great!” Who cared about Fightem Sockem Heady Blowout 5 then? He had a ‘tutor’ to meet. “Let’s get back to my room then – before any of the others catch me…”
All thoughts of cleaning his room were again forgotten – well, they had been from the start. And waiting for him beyond the next loading screen was another familiar figure that he just couldn’t quite place…
-
Cyborg chuckled as he wandered his way through the tower, fresh from his daily workout and his hourly joshing with Beast Boy. Man, he could read that guy like a book – and there was definitely no plan to clean anything written on those pages. He’d have to drop in later to remind the guy that Raven would literally murder him if he didn’t do some cleaning today.
But that was later. For now – snacks! His metal parts might be fully charged, but his human parts needed fuelling something fierce. It was time for a quick pitstop at the fridge and a biiiig plate piled high with-
“Oh hey Sophie!” He paused in the kitchen door for a moment and nodded to the Class President, before continuing on the way to the fridge. “How’s goin’?”
Said President was sat at the kitchen table, a glass of juice in front of her, lost in thought until the new arrival woke her from her daze. Trying not to look startled, she adjusted her glasses and greeted him politely. “Oh, hello there Cyborg. You’re done with your workout?”
“You know it.” The hero nodded, pulling the fridge open and rummaging around inside. “Worked myself up an appetite today. Same for you?”
“Ah… Yes, I suppose…” She nodded, before blanching as she saw the tall pile of snacks he drew out of the cold locker. “Though maybe not quite as much as you did,” she finished with a rueful chuckle.
Laughing, he nodded, setting his plate down on the counter. “Yeah, I get that. This machine,” he said, pointing a thumb at his human face, “needs a hella lotta food to keep up with this one.” He slapped his metallic stomach to make the point.
Sophia smiled slightly. “Mmm…”
The teen hero blinked, pausing as he was just about to tuck in, before setting his food down for a moment. “Hey, Sophie, you okay? You seem kinda distracted.”
“Huh?” She blinked, looking up as if suddenly remembering that he was still in the room with her. “Oh! No, no, I’m fine, I’m just…” She began toying with the straw of her drink. “Thinking deep, that’s all.”
“Oh?” Picking up his plate, Cyborg moved over to the table and sat down next to her. “What’s on your mind, girl? Any way I can help?”
Her cheeks flushed red with embarrassment. “Oh, I don’t know if I…”
“No no,” he smiled and shook a finger at her. “We’re friends, aren’t we? Just lemme know how I can help.”
She looked down into her lap for a moment, her fingers twirling together in a nervous tap-dance. Her mouth opened once or twice, before she finally managed to pick the right words. “I… Cyborg, you know… how boys think, right?”
Ohhhhhhh. Oh, this was one of those talks. Ah damn, maybe he wasn’t the right one for this after all. Ah well, no backing out now. “Yeeeeah? I mean, kinda.” He shrugged. “I might have a little bit of insight on ‘em, sure.”
“Well…” Sophia’s nervous fidgeting increased. “So… If there was a boy that you wanted to-“ She stopped and glanced his way, before blushing harder. “-Be, be better friends with…”
“Gunna stop you there,” Cyborg said with a chuckle, grabbing a can of soda and popping the tab. “’Cus I don’t think the way I’d make better friends with a guy’d work for you. You’re not really the noogie type, yeah?” He laughed as he lifted the drink to his lips. “But what you really wanna know is- Blech! Diet?!” He scowled at the can suddenly, ripping it away from his mouth just after he’d taken a gulp.
“You think I should diet?” Sophia asked, blinking before looking down at herself. “I suppose I could lose a few pounds…”
“Ack, no no no!” The half machine man waved his free hand desperately. “No. You’re fine. I was just talking about the drink. No diet required.” He glared at the can again. “Though apparently it’s all we’ve got in the fridge.”
“Oh!” Now the Class President was blushing again, but she was smiling as she did so. “Ah, sorry, that might be my fault, I put a few of those in there… What?” She blinked at his questioning look. “I like the flavour.”
“You always did have weeeeird tastes, Sophie.” Cyborg chuckled. Oh well, he’d started now, might as well finish. He took another swig. “Anyways. What you’re looking for is- urp! - ha, excuse me!” He patted his chest, oblivious as said chest began to slim down. It was slow at first, his chest and stomach simply losing a few centimetres... but then inches began to melt away, as his metal chassis began to shrink inwards. Soon, even his arms and legs were getting in on the deal, powerful muscles and complex circuitry thinning away to far slimmer proportions. Cyborg had always been a rather bulky hero – all of that tech and muscle made for a wide frame – but now he looked far more aerodynamic. He didn’t look thin exactly – but now he was the same shape as a normal man of his age – he’d even lost a few inches of height.
Neither person sat at the table seemed to regard this as anything odd. “Yeah, what you’re looking for is getting to know the guy’s interests and stuff he likes to talk about, right? So you can, you know… start a conversation.”
“That would be nice, yes…” Sophia agreed, slightly hesitantly. “But… But how can I know what his interests are? He doesn’t seem to be interested in school work, or books, or… Um!” She sat up suddenly, her intense blush returning. “I- I mean, hypothetically! H-hypothetically, if this hypothetical boy hypothetically didn’t like any of that stuff, I, I, Um!”
Cyborg did his best not to snort into his drink as he finished off his soda – his waist cinching in and giving him a bit of an hourglass figure as he did so. Oh Sophie, Sophie, Sophie. The Class President’s crush on Beast Boy was anything but a secret in this tower – unless your name actually was Beast Boy. That hero had a head as dense as concrete when it came to romance.
“Well,” he said, reaching for a fork and pulling his plate of snacks over – not noticing as they, too, began to morph. “Hypothetically, what you’d want to do there is probably ask his friends or, hey, even the guy himself, if you can manage that.” Right now it looked like the very idea would make the Prez pass out, so that probably wouldn’t be ideal. He stabbed his fork down into his – fruit salad? Huh, when had he…? Oh well. He shrugged and stuffed the fork, laden with slices of peach, into his mouth. “F’r in’stnce’…” He paused, before chewing and swallowing. “Sorry. For instance, if you were a-haksing!”
Sophia startled as Cyborg suddenly sat upright in his seat, his back arching and his face screwing up tightly. “Cyborg? Are you okay?” She asked with some alarm.
“F-fine…” He managed, taking a deep breath and slowly relaxing. “Just, ah, shifted in my seat wrong. Anyway, what was I saying?”
The reason for his discomfort, of course, was not what he thought. As he had been speaking, his hips had begun to widen, his behind slowly inflating underneath him, rounding out into a nice, juicy peach, far softer than the metal joint it had previously been. This much he hadn’t noticed – but even he felt something, and awkward, sudden pinch, when the manhood between his legs was swiftly drawn inwards, merging backwards into his body and forming inwards instead. In an instant his entire reproductive system had been completely inverted, become a feminine womb, hidden behind a fully working vagina and a metal shell. ‘He’ had become a she, and all she was aware of was the brief tug of a slight wedgie that quickly passed.
“Oh right,” she continued, taking another fork full of fruit – this one laden with chunks of melon. “For instance, if you were asking about Beast Boy, say…” She hid her smile as she watched the Class Prez shift nervously. “I would say that he likes video games, or pranks, or loafing around instead of doing his work…” She started listing ‘qualities’ on her fingers, thinking each one through. And as she did, she paid no mind to the growing sense of weight on her chest, or the feeling of the steadily blossoming bosom that was starting to push against her arms. She just continued, oblivious as, with every listed quality, her new breasts swelled up a cup size.
“He’s into animals, obviously, and he’s a surprisingly good chef, as long as it’s tofu he’s cooking…” The grey metal colouring of her chest was turning a deep chocolaty brown, the same tone as the rest of her skin, save for just enough of her chest plate that one might be able to call it a top – a crop top made of circuits and metal, perhaps.
“Music, too, he’s got a pretty big CD collection lost somewhere in that mess of a room of his. Hey, maybe he’ll even find it while he’s tidying up…” By now she had developed real heft up top, making a nicely balanced hourglass with her expanded hips. A lot of her body had shifted from machine to man, or rather, to woman, leaving the main mechanical parts of her as her limbs and face – all of which took on a much more feminine look to them.
“He’s actually kind of sensitive, I mean, I know he hides it with all his jokes, but he’s not so bad deep down…” She sighed a little wistfully, before shaking her head, not noticing the long brown locks that flicked behind her as she did so, dark dreads now growing from her scalp and flowing down her back. God, it almost sounded like she had a crush on the guy now. That’d just be weird… wouldn’t it?
A-anyway, she was supposed to be helping Sophia. “Any of that help?”
“Um.” Sophia looked up from her notebook, where she had been scribbling everything down. “Ah, yes! Yes, I believe this will be a big help! Thank you so much, Cyborg.” She smiled brightly.
“Not a problem, Prez,” the mecha-maiden grinned, finishing off her salad – feeling a slight twinge in her vocal cords as she did so - and tossing the bowl over into the sink. When she spoke again, her voice was a few octaves higher – though it still carried all the same spunky spirit as before. “You know I’m always happy to get down to some girl talk! You ever need help, I’m here for you, you got it?”
“Got it.” The redhead nodded happily, rising from the table. “I’ll have to take you up on that. For now, though, I should get back to my studies. Thank you again!”
“See ya!” Cyborg waved as the girl as she walked away, before rising from the table herself and stretching – then blinking at the unfamiliar sensation of her mechanical body… jiggling. “Huh. I think I might need a tune up…” She muttered, before glancing at the clock and shrugging. “Eh. Later.”
She had a few appointments to keep first.
-
“Ey, boss, how’s it hanging?”
“Not bad, Cyborg.” Robin greeted his teammate with a friendly wave, looking up from the simulator’s control computer for a moment to welcome her in. In front of him, beyond a wall of large clear glass windows, the simulator itself was in action, projecting a battle scenario that the team leader was studying intensely. “Just working on our latest battle plans. I think that with a few tweaks we should be able to get our efficiency up by another 30%...”
“Hey, awesome!” The cybergal threw herself into one of the monitoring chairs and spun it around before settling and putting her feet up on one of the consoles. “Alright, Robin, let’s talk tactics. What sort of improvements are you looking to make?”
The Boy Wonder nodded and began typing on the console. “Take a look at this simulation, and keep an eye on the timer.”
He activated the program, and Cyborg’s eyes flicked to the clock, the counter counting up from 00:00 rapidly. Below them in the simulator room the holographic shape of various heroes and villains, the two forces quickly colliding and beginning to fight. She was quite pleased to see her own digital copy performing well, smashing and blasting with the best of them. Pleased enough that she didn’t notice that, once again, she was subtly beginning to change. This time the changes were small, at the surface – but they ran more than skin deep. A few small lines drawn around the edges of her eyes and mouth, a slight shift in posture as she began to mature from her early to mid 20s – she removed her feet from the computer and sat forward, paying more obvious attention to the battle in play.
The fight went pretty well for the heroes, and despite many villainous tricks, the battle was done just as the clock hit 05:00, with the villains lying in a heap and the heroes victorious – and Cyborg’s body having aged five whole years in five minutes.
“Interesting,” she said, her tone a lot calmer and far more restrained than it had been when she’d entered the room. “I take it that was our average baseline performance?”
“Right.” Robin nodded – his own attitude having changed slightly as well. While before he had been mildly amused by Cyborg’s carefree antics, now he seemed mildly respectful – as though he was talking to someone he considered a full equal in this field, rather than a simple member of his team. “But watch – I have a few adjustments we can make to our strategy here and here, I was hoping you could tell me what you thought.”
“Hmm…” The cybernetic heroine looked over the new data points as they lit up on her screen. “Ah, I see what you’re getting at. Nice catch, Boy Wonder. Deploying like this should give Beast Boy room to do his thing, and Raven should have all the space she needs. Let’s see how it plays, shall we?” She hit the activation button, and watched the timer flick into action once again.
Just as before, a battle played out before the pair’s eyes – and just as before, said eyes were blind to the changes happening to Cyborg. The way her posture once again changed, growing in subtle confidence and control, her eyes gaining the depth of experience and her movements becoming firmer, more decisive. Even her costume changed this time, her rather revealing sports top turning into a loose jacket and T-shirt, fabric practically weaving itself into existence around her as the timer counted upwards – pants materialising around her legs at the same time to complete the look. By the time the battle was over – the clock stopping at exactly 03:00 – she had gained a much more mature, though still free-spirited look, in addition to three years on her own internal stopwatch.
“There.” Robin nodded, and once again his attitude had changed as well. “Those are my suggestions in action. What do you think?”
“Not bad…” Cyberwoman nodded, stroking her chin in thought. “You’ve put a lot of work into this Robin – and you’re showing real progress. I guess all that time spent training with Bruce wasn’t just for show, huh?”
“Aha, well, I like to think not…” Robin was putting a lot of work into not looking embarrassed, she could tell. “So you’re saying this new setup looks good?” He didn’t put near as much effort into not looking eager for praise. Ah, teenagers.
“It’s an improvement,” she nodded, looking through the numbers once again. “You’ve definitely got a real knack for this stuff. Hey, in a couple of years I think you’ll even be ready to lead your own team.”
“Kind words! Thank you, Cy, I really appreciate it.” The Boy Wonder looked proud – as he should! Getting solid praise from a hero as distinguished as Cyberwoman was no small thing. Of course, she couldn’t let him think he’d completely mastered everything she had to teach…
“Well before you let it go to your head,” she said with a chuckle, punching a few more data points into her console with rapid-fire typing. “Here are some extra suggestions that I would make. Want to see them in action?”
She could feel the poor boy’s wince. “Ah- sure! D-did I miss something?”
“Not much… Buuuut…” She punched the start button and leaned back, watching the show as the counter once again began to count.
The changes to the battle weren’t too drastic this time – and nor were the changes to Cyborg. Her open jacket became a sleeker, more professional looking blazer, while her pants became a skirt. The thin lines around her eyes and mouth became just a touch deeper – not to the level of wrinkles, but certainly indicating a few decades of use. Her posture shifted as well – going from experienced and open to professionally distant. She sat up straighter, and her warm amusement faded into more clinical acceptance – just as the battle finished, and the timer hit 02:00.
“You see what I mean, Robin?”
“Hmm… Yes, I think so.” And just as before, his attitude to his friend had changed just as much as she herself had. “I can’t believe I missed something so obvious. Clearly I have a lot to learn… Thanks for your help, Professor, I’ll do my best to put what you’ve shown me into action.”
She snorted at the nickname – it was something that the ‘Teen’ part of Cyberwoman and the Teen Titans had adopted early on in their mentorship, and she still found it amusing. It was amazing what a few years of experience could do for you – her life lessons really impressed these kids. Ha, imagine thinking of her like a teacher!
“See that you do, Robin,” she said, finally standing up – with not any recognisable sign about her that she had just aged ten years in ten minutes, having gone from her 20s to her 30s in record time. “And I’ll make a fine leader out of you yet. I’ll leave you to your practice.”
He grinned at her. “I won’t let you down.”
She had to chuckle as she left. “I’ve no doubt at all.” Robin was a good student. If only Beast Boy would listen to her like he did… Ah well. She did have to admire the green hero’s spirit… But she could do that later. Right now, she had other business to take care of…
-
The T-car was in fine shape today – barely any repairs or adjustments needed at all. Naturally, this was to be expected – Cyberwoman took damn fine care of her car, thank you very much. But it was important to do regular inspections, given what they put the poor thing through on a daily basis. And of course, the last part of any inspection was the test drive! The best part of her day – it was always a good excuse to get out of a tower full of teenagers and relax.
“Ah, good morning Cyberwoman.” Of course, there was someone else in the tower who needed just as much of a break as she did…
The mechanical maiden looked up and waved. “Raven! How did your morning meditation go?”
The hooded heroine shrugged as she descended the stairs into the garage, her robe hiding whether she was walking or floating. “Not bad. I think I’ve got this inner peace stuff pretty down.” She paused. “Something was weird with Sophia, though.”
“Oh?” Cyberwoman lowered the T-car’s hood and gave Raven a raised eyebrow. “How do you mean weird?”
“I dunno…” Raven just shrugged. “She just seemed off. Something about the way she was talking… But what am I, an expert on people? It was just weird.”
“Huh. I did speak with her earlier, actually. I think she’s just got something on her mind. Or someone.” She grinned and ignored the slight flicker of irritation that rolled over Raven’s face as the goth realised which someone that was likely to be. Ah, teenagers. “She’ll be fine, she just needs time to work herself out.”
“Hmph. I guess.” Got that inner peace stuff down, did you Raven? Heh.
“Well it’s nice to see you’re thinking about your teammates,” the older hero nodded, before walking around to the driver’s side door. “As a reward, wanna go for a drive?”
“I thought you’d never ask.” In a flash of black, Raven was already in the passenger seat, waiting for Cyberwoman to join her, as she soon did. A turn of the key and a shift of the gears later, and they were away, speeding out through Jump city.
“So, how’ve you been doing Raven?” Cy asked, once the tower was well behind them. “Getting on with everyone? No problems on the team?” It was her job to keep an eye on all of her charges, after all – even ones as prickly as Raven.
“No more than usual,” was the typical grouchy reply. Raven was a moody sort, even when she was being nice. “Beast boy is loud. Robin is bossy. Sophia is…” Her brow wrinkled for a moment, the gem on her forehead wiggling. “… studious. They’re fine, I suppose.”
That was about as fair an assessment as one could expect from the goth. “And me?”
Raven just shrugged, leaning back in her seat. “You’re Cyberwoman. Obviously.” She said it as though it explained everything. Maybe it did. “How about you, oh glorious leader?”
“Me?” Cy tilted her head, though her attention remained on the road ahead. “What do you mean?”
The gothic heroine cracked a single eye open. “Well, you’re supposed to be our mentor. How do you think the team is doing?”
Hm. Interesting question. “What, you want a performance review? Alright, let’s see… Well, Beast Boy is… Beast Boy…”
Both women paused, and then nodded at this assessment. There really wasn’t much else to say there.
“And Robin is… growing, I’d say. He’s certainly got the experience and training under his belt to be someone great, he’s just working on bringing it all together. He could probably stand to be a bit less competitive, his laser focus can get a tad obsessive at times, but overall he’s done me quite proud. He’ll be a fine leader of the team one day, after I retire.”
Raven snorted. “You? Retire? Really?”
Cy shrugged. “Oh, I don’t intend to be teaching you guys forever. I’m not as young as I used to be – and everyone should keep an eye on their future. Maybe I’ll settle down with some rich husband…” She laughed. “Or I might just retire – a teacher’s pension’s a pretty good deal around here.”
“Hm.” Raven was frowning again, but she soon shrugged it off. “I guess that makes sense.”
“Right.” Cyberwoman nodded. “Now where was I. Oh right. So, as for Sophia…”
“Huh?” The hooded heroine blinked and looked up at her, her brow furrowing once again. “Sophia? But she’s not one of your students… is she?”
“Well of course she is,” Cy said, rather confused at the question. Her outfit was starting to change again – her blazer turning a dark, professional looking blue over a white shirt that could just about contain her chest, while her skirt turned black and shortened to just above her knees, making her look more like an office worker than a hero. “Why wouldn’t she be? In fact, she might be one of my best. She’s smart, hardworking, and has a good head on her shoulders. An excellent student all around – I think we can expect great things from her in the future.”
Raven bit her lip. Something wasn’t right here – again, she was assailed by this strange feeling of wrongness. Like something was happening around her that didn’t make sense – but what? Everything was completely normal here…
“I… guess…” She managed at last, still gripped by uncertainty – uncertainty that the older woman seemed to sense.
“Now, Raven, when I talk about Sophia, I don’t mean to say you should feel you’re in any sort of competition with her,” she said, her tone reassuring – though to Raven, it was just plain confusing.
“What? No, I would never-“
“There’s really no reason to be jealous or anything – everyone’s good in their own area, and Sophia’s area is just better suited to some of the scholarly things we do around here, while yours is more suited to… physical tasks.”
“I… Is it?” Fighting evil could certainly be called a ‘physical task’, but something still seemed strange about all of this.
“Oh yes. So don’t worry. Alright? I don’t want the two of you falling out or anything.”
“… No. No, it’s fine, Miss Bergman…” Raven muttered, shaking her head to clear it and not noticing the strange name that slipped off of her tongue. “There’s no problem between us.”
“Good.” The teacher nodded to herself, shifting gears as the car also began to change around the pair, its advanced tech vanishing, blinking lights replaced with an ordinary dashboard (with built in CD player), shifts happening all over the vehicle. “Although I would like to ask that you put a bit more effort into your school work. Your grades have never been stellar, Raven, but that’s no excuse for sloppiness. If they drop any further I might have to consider more extreme forms of encouragement…”
The pale skinned youth couldn’t really get any paler, but she certainly tried as she felt the teachers firm eyes upon her. “I’ll, uh, I’ll give it a shot, Teach. You know. Maybe I’ll ask Sophie for help or something…”
Why did this all feel so wrong? Everything felt so strange…
“Excellent idea. I’m sure she’d be glad to help.” The car – a sensible silver Ford – drove smoothly back into the Tower’s garage. “Thank you for accompanying me on my drive, Miss Raven – I’m glad we finally had a chance to talk.”
“N-no problem, Miss Bergman…” Raven quickly hopped out of the car. She didn’t want to hang around and risk another lecture. “If you need anything else, you know where to find me – and I’d best get back to, you know, saving the world and stuff…”
“No running in the halls!” The teacher called after the cloaked crusader as she quickly zipped away through the door. Then she sighed. “I do hope she listened…”
Ah well, Cynthia Bergman reflected. Some students would always be difficult. Like, for instance, the one she had to go and visit now…
-
There was a knock at Beast Boy’s door, just as he finally finished his awkward introduction to the stern but passionate teacher who had felt so strangely familiar… And as he looked up, he realised that his room was just as messy as it had been when he’d started ‘tidying’.
“Uh! Hold on!” He called, looking about frantically. Without thinking, he kicked a few of the messier piles under his bed, and quickly hid his game tablet underneath a pillow, much to Helen’s muffled displeasure.
“Beast Boy,” came a stern voice from the other side of the door that would brook absolutely zero levels of nonsense. “Do not keep me waiting.”
“I- I won’t!” He looked about one last time, wincing at the job not yet done, before scooting over to the door and opening it, revealing -
- Another strange sense of deja vu –
- Uh. And also Miss Bergman, who had her arms folded and was giving him a very stern look.
“Am I to assume,” she said, her eyes – one human, one cybernetic – flicked over the room behind him quickly, “that you haven’t finished tidying up yet?”
“Uh, Miss Bergman, what a surprise!” Time to turn on the old BB charm! “What brings you around these parts?”
The teacher gave him an amused smile. “I’m just checking up on one of my students and making sure he’s not having any trouble with his chores – say, for instance, if he’s managed to find something to distract himself with?”
“Uhhhh, I’m sure I don’t-“ But it was too late, she’d pushed past him into his room.
“Tut tut, Beast Boy,” she scolded him, her cybernetic high heeled feet carefully moving through the mess. “You really ought to take better care of this place – otherwise people might get the wrong idea about you.”
BB winced, eyeing how close the teacher was wandering towards where he had hidden Helen. If she found her, then...! “You- you think so, huh?”
“Oh yes,” she said with a nod. “Beast Boy, I know you don’t like to put effort into these things, but I know that deep down you have exceptional talent. If you only applied yourself, I’m sure you’d shine wonderfully. You just need to try a little harder.”
She was getting really close to Helen now, standing right by his bed. She’d notice her any second now… “I… mean, if you say so, Miss Bergman, maybe I can do that…”
“Oh, Beast Boy, please,” she sighed, giving him a strange look. “There’s no need to be so formal. You can call me Cynthia when we’re out of class.”
“Oh.” Huh, well that was nice of her. “Sure, then, um, Cynthia. I promise, I’ll put some more effort into class, okay?”
The teacher’s expression lit up, a wide smile spreading over her face. “I’m so glad to hear that. Here, why don’t I help you get started cleaning, hm? That would only be fair of me.” She reached for the bed…
“Ack, wait, don’t-“
Riiiiiiip!
Suddenly, a strange sound tore through the room, and the teacher, who had been bending over to reach down, suddenly straightened and spun around, her hands grasping at the back of her skirt while her face turned beat red. “Ah… O-on second thought,” she stammered hastily, “A- a good student should learn to stand on their own two feet, as well! So maybe I’d best leave you to it!”
BB blinked. Huh. Why was she acting so strangely all of a sudden? Well whatever, at least it stopped her from discovering Helen! “Uh, maybe you’re right, Cynthia. Wouldn’t want me getting too lazy, right?”
“R-right! Yes!” She nodded, quickly backing across the room to the door. “You have just the right of it, Beast Boy!” Already, she was out in the hall. “I’ll, ah, see you in class, then!” The door slammed shut.
Weird. Oh well.
“See you!” He waved her off, before glancing around for any other problems, and then letting out a relieved sigh when none emerged. Geeze, everyone was hassling him today.
“Sorry about that,” he told Helen as he excavated her from beneath his pillow. “She can be a real hard ass. Where were we?”
Helen just giggled. “Oh, it’s no problem BB, we know how real life can be sometimes. That’s why games are so much better~ And as for where we were… Why, I think we were deciding who you wanted to meet next!”
That sounded right. “Oh yeah!” He nodded. “I’m half way through the tutorial now, right? Though I don’t know if you can beat the two I’ve already met – they both seemed pretty nice… Though the teacher was kind of scary…”
“Don’t get ahead of yourself just yet, Beast Boy,” Helen just chuckled. “After all... You haven’t seen anything yet~”
