FicWad

Chapter Two: Reunion

RRRRR
(Robin's POV)

I turned to my fellow teammates after seeing how late it had gotten and suggested we head for bed. It may have been quiet lately, but I wasn't about to let the team slack off in the case that tomorrow someone decided to harm our innocent city. Everyone yawned and stretched before saying their good nights then heading off to their corresponding rooms. Cyborg was the last one left, as he usually was, to power down the tower and turn on the security system. I followed behind Star since my room was only a short walk down the hall from hers. She was flying slightly above the ground, leading the way.

This angelic beauty had saved me so many times, from death and from myself. It was her that always worried whenever I would become too obsessive over catching a criminal. It was her that would try to keep me sane when I was teetering on the edge of insanity. Her touch that would always draw me back to reality. When I was Slade's apprentice, I vividly remember the crestfallen look on her face when she found out I was working with Slade. That look haunts me at night; it's the same look she gave me when I shot her. Slade had activated the bots inside of my teammates when I held back while facing Starfire and had threatened to kill them all if I didn't fight back. I laid Star on the ground in front of me and she reached up a desperate hand to me, praying I would take it and return home with her and the team. I didn't; not yet. But right before I shot her with the energy beam on my wrist, her soft voice said my name…It killed me. Yet, after all of that, she's still here and has never held it against me. I smiled at her back. My smile fell slightly remembering the other time I saw that heartbroken frown on Starfire's usually smiling face. When I had invented Red X to get close to Slade, and yet again, she found out it was me; I thought it was all over at that moment. The worst part was not that I had hurt her as Red X, but afterwards… When I had hurt her as Robin.

"Robin?" I felt a chill run down my spine. I knew it was inevitable. After what I did, they would all want an explanation. Especially her. I gathered myself before opening my bedroom door; and there she was. A frown was marring her features, her eyes seemed almost dull in the dim light of my bedroom. "Um, what's up, Star?" I already knew. It was a silly question to ask, but I couldn't stand any more than a second of her just staring at me with that disappointed frown.

"I wish to discuss the Red X. Why is it that you did such a thing without telling me…us? We are a team, Robin. Please, did you not trust us to keep it a secret?" I clenched my fists. Guilt consumed me like a lit match in a puddle of gasoline. I didn't want to lie to her; I shook my head. "I didn't trust you guys at all. To agree to go along with it... to fight me as if I were a true villain and not me in disguise… to keep it a secret… anything. I don't know why, I just…didn't." I ran a hand through my un-gelled hair in frustration. I make the stupidest mistakes, so stupid that I can't even think of a good reason for why the mistake was made in the first place; saying it out loud just sounded so horrible and so ignorant.

Star's frown deepened, "Why is it that you lack the trust for us?" I couldn't meet her eyes. Why? I don't know, Star. I'm a loner, I'm not good at this team thing. Aside from Batman, I've always done things alone and depending on other people often leads to failure or disappointment. "I don't like depending on others. I figured that the less people involved in my idiotic scheme, the less people would get hurt." I still couldn't look at her, but I felt her hesitant caress on my shoulder. "We are not so fragile." I let a slight smile tug at the corner of my lip. "I know, Star."

"You are my best friend. I would like to know I can trust you, Robin. You have the notion that trust in us, your team, is undeserved yet you are the one that has lost the conviction of us." My stomach did a disgruntled flop at her statement; it was true, but hearing it out loud, from her of all people, made me feel sick. I held my face in my hands, "I know. It'll take a long time to regain your trust and I understand that. I should've trusted you, I know that now. I don't know what the hell I was thinking. We are a team and I screwed up. I can't tell you how sorry I am, especially for hurting you, Star." I reached up and grabbed her hand in mine, giving it a gentle squeeze. "I never wanted to hurt you." She stared down at our hands before that familiar smile finally broke through her disappointed frown. "I know, Robin. But you must learn to trust us. We are your friends, and we will always be here for you. You do not have to do this alone."

It had been almost two years since I wore that suit, and a little over a year and a half since that thief had stolen it and was flaunting himself around in it as a constant reminder of the mistake I made. Luckily, we haven't seen him in months; twelve months and two weeks to be exact. Since then, the team had finally forgiven me and our friendship was rekindled all thanks to Starfire and her forgiving heart. She was the one to convince the rest of the team that mistakes happen and that I had learned from mine. It took a little longer for everyone to truly move past my deceit, but over time, I've not only regained the trust of my team but our friendship felt almost stronger now.

I was so lost in thought, I almost ran straight into Starfire as she stopped in front of her room. We both paused outside of her door as she hesitated to go in. "Well, I guess…I'll… see you in the morning?" I rubbed the back of my head awkwardly. I was really, really bad at this. She luckily didn't seem to notice, throwing her arms around me in a tight, almost too tight, embrace. "Yes, friend Robin. Pleasant shlorvax." She finally released me and I had to take in a slow, staggered breath just to be sure none of my ribs were out of place. "Um, yeah. Good night, Star." She gave me a final wave before flying into her room and shutting the door behind her. I stood, staring at the door for a moment, kicking myself over being such a coward, then made my way to my own room.

Dammit! I mentally cursed myself, once safe inside my bedroom.

Dammit, dammit! Why are you so afraid? Why can't you just tell her how you feel?!

Because you are a superhero; a leader. She would just be a distraction for you.

She's already a distraction.

What would you do if she rejected you? If she didn't feel the same way?

She wouldn't! She does… I mean, I think she….

No. you hope she does. She has never indicated that she feels anything more for you than a friend. Speaking of which, what is it that she called you just a minute ago?

'Friend Robin.'

Exactly. Friend, nothing more. Get her out of your mind. Whether or not you pursued this, it will not end well. You of all people should know this. So, get it together, Dick.

She doesn't even know that side of me. She doesn't even know the 'me' behind this mask. All she knows is Robin.

Now you are finally talking sense and doing a good job at reiterating my point: leave. This. Alone.

I could show her…

My internal battle was giving me a headache. I suppressed the urge to scream out in frustration and instead opted to snarl under my breath. An anxious hand ran through my hair. "I really need some air…" I gave up any idea of sleep right now, knowing I would only be haunted by her there too. I decided to head to the roof, a place Starfire had actually shown me long ago to be a good spot to go to be alone and think. There I go thinking about her again.

I pushed the creaky, steel door that opened to the roof. Of course, who was there? None other than, "Starfire, hey." My previous internal battle seemed to dissipate from my mind at the mere sight of her. She turned to give me a shocked smile, obviously not expecting to see me up here at such a late hour. I walked over and sat beside her on the edge of the tower.

"Hello, Robin. What is it you seek to escape from?" Her question threw me off. How did she know I was troubled? As if she had read my mind, she shrugged. "It seems you only come up here when something is troubling you." A dry, humorless laugh left my lips. You, actually. I came here to escape you. Yeah. Say that, Boy Blunder. Instead, I decided to ignore the prodding all together and turn the question back on her. "Well, you do the same. Are you alright? Is there something that you came to escape from?" She stared at me with those big, sparkling emerald eyes and I could've just about melted into butter. My heart fluttered softly.

She shook her head slowly, turning her gaze back out towards the gentle sea before us. "I could not sleep." She was fumbling with her fingers in her lap and I knew she had more to say. A breeze from the ocean blew past us, shifting her hair. She held herself in a hug in what appeared to be an attempt to protect her exposed skin to the chill. I don't know what had gotten into me, but I quickly wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her against my side. She gave me a look of surprise that quickly shifted into a grateful smile which I happily returned.

"Robin, how do you feel about me?" I felt like the breath had been knocked out of me. Did she really just ask that outright? Is that what has been troubling her? I found no words would come to my gaping lips and I just stared at her, moving my jaw up and down in an attempt to compose my jumbled thoughts and remember how to properly speak. "I, um, I er… I just… what?" God, I'm so smooth.

"What is it I mean to you? It has been troubling to my sleep, for reasons I cannot quite understand. I just need to know." There those piercing eyes were, once again staring past my mask, through the eyes hidden beneath it and into my soul. She just kept staring, waiting. I let out a sigh; I was not going to get out of this. This was it. This was my chance to tell her how I feel about her. She obviously feels something, right? Why else would she be asking? Why else would it be a topic that keeps her awake at night? "Well, Star... I-I'm actually not supposed to... I mean, We're teammates and superheroes and I don't think we should..." I tried, Bruce. I honestly tried to put what you taught me ahead of my own selfish desires. Unfortunately, sitting here, the moonlight illuminating Starfire's every feature in the darkness; the way those emerald eyes were sparkling and staring at me in such a hopeful way, I just couldn't do it. I couldn't pull the whole, 'it's not you, it's me. And my fucked up mentor's rules about dating.' I couldn't turn her away. In fact, I found myself levitating closer to her as my words faltered on my tongue. I sucked in a deep gulp of the chilling night air. My arm loosened around her shoulders so that I could instead snake it slowly around her waist and pull her closer to me. My other hand was shaking and sweating beneath my glove as I lifted it up to cup her face. This was it; I was finally going to allow myself to break the rules, to ignore all of my training and finally give in to the aching loneliness inside of me. I felt a sudden burst of courage as I dove to close the remaining space between us. Our lips were just about to finally come together until—

"Well, this is new." Starfire went rigid in my grasp, pulling away from me as we both glared in the direction of the voice. "And here I thought you would never make a move." Red X emerged from the shadows, clapping his hands together slowly. Star and I both rose to our feet and quickly got into a fighting stance. "What the hell are you doing here, X?" I was not happy. He ruined my one chance at showing Star how I felt and of course, I just hated the guy in general, so seeing him again, alive and well, was not pleasant.

Red X lolled his head to the side, placing his hands on his waist, "Robin, I'm hurt. After all of this time—"A starbolt interrupted him, missing his head by barely an inch. "Oh, I'm sorry. Was I not paying you enough attention, sweetheart?" He reached into his belt and pulled out something, throwing it towards Starfire. My eyes went wide, "Star, look out!" It was too late. Right before impact, Starfire attempted to fly away from the attack, but the object expanded into a goopy material in a sloppily shaped X that grappled her before she had a chance to maneuver herself out of the way. It made a disgusting wet sound as it stuck to Starfire and threw her along with it back against the wall and the door leading back into the tower. She fought against her binding, but to no avail. She desperately shot her green energy from her eyes at part of the goop, but yet again, it didn't budge.

"You aren't going to be getting out of that any time soon, babe. If I were you, I'd conserve my energy." Red X stated to her as he sauntered towards her. She lifted a confused eyebrow at his statement, "But I am not an infant?" He was muddled by what she meant, which I took as my moment to strike. I grabbed a birdmerang out of my belt and threw it at X, which he dodged by shifting his weight forward towards his captive.

"Nice one, bird boy. You've got some cute toys but seriously," He pulled out another X shaped object and thrust it in my direction, "thanks for the upgrade." It moved at a quick pace towards me, I back flipped to the left to avoid it but he had already thrown another; this one landed at my feet then exploded. Luckily I tumbled to the side just before feeling the wrath of the explosive. I quickly jumped back to my feet, thrusting out my left leg to connect with that hideous skull mask. X's weight was put off momentarily by the strike, so before he had a chance to counter it, I forced my right foot into his gut. He made a disgruntled sound, mumbling something unintelligible under his breath before I prepared a fist; X was ready for this one. He grabbed my fist with his hand, pulling me into him, then jabbed his knee into my pelvis. "You're good, kid." He still had ahold of my fist, so while I gripped my stomach, he spun my arm around and held it against my back. I could feel the material of his mask against the back of my head as he laughed, "But I'm better." He yanked upward on my arm, emitting a pained groan from me. I could feel the stinging ache in my shoulder from having my arm in a position it was not meant to be in.

"Why.. have you come back? After.. all this time?" I was trying to hide the agony in my voice, but knew I was failing. X laughed again, this time more audibly, then shoved his heel into my back and released me from his grasp. I faltered to the ground and attempted to steady myself back on my feet. I glared at the masked stranger. "I got bored." He replied, giving me a shrug as if it were really that simple of an excuse. I scoffed. I held my smarting shoulder, allowing it to slowly rotate until some of the pain had dissipated. X bent down, placing his hands on his thighs. He tilted his head as he stared back at me, "You may wanna put some ice on that." Something about that condescending tone of his pissed me off.

He then tossed a glance at the still captive Starfire. "I'll take care of her while you're gone. I've always wanted to make out with a foreigner." I growled, "Leave her out of this." The muscles in my jaw flexed impulsively at his words; words I hoped Starfire hadn't heard. Trying to explain that to her seemed like it would be…uncomfortable. I wasn't so lucky. I heard her sweet, innocent voice, "Please, what is this, 'make out?'" I could feel the heat in my cheeks rise to an uncomfortable degree. My fingers tugged awkwardly at the collar of my shirt. Red X, on the other-hand, acted as if it were the most normal thing in the world. He chuckled, "Well, cutie, I'd be glad to show you what it means."

All awkwardness vanished; this disgusting pervert was about to get what was coming to him. No one flirts—I mean talks, to Star like that. I released my shoulder, then pulled out another birdmerang and began sprinting towards him before Starfire even had a chance to respond. X saw my fast approach and didn't even attempt to stand up or move out of the way; he merely tossed three more X shaped explosives around my feet. Before I had a chance to dodge them, they all three blew up simultaneously. I felt the heat from the bombs before the power of the detonation thrust me off the roof and over the edge. I was spiraling, falling down towards the icy waters below. The brisk air was unkind as I began my descent down the side of the tower. I could've sworn I heard Starfire's pained cries and worried Red X was hurting her until I heard her shout again, "Robin!" My hands were grasping at the air in a desperate attempt to avoid impacting the sharp rocks below. My mind finally decided to react to what was happening and I pulled out another 'toy', shooting it at the top of the tower. The sharp tips shot out and caught on the edge of the building and I instantly felt myself come to a halt in my journey. I couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief before going back into hero mode and climbing back up the rope to get to the roof. The trip down may have only lasted seconds, but it certainly took a bit more energy to ascent my way back up. I finally threw my hands over the side, grabbing on to the inch of ledge I could reach. My jaw fell open. My body, trembling only moments before thanks to the frigid free fall, was now numb. My heart may have just dropped four stories in that fun little descent, but it was nothing compared to how far my heart was plummeting after what I saw once I got back up to the roof.

XXXXXX

"Robin!" She was fighting hard against the gelatinous slime cementing her to the door after seeing her precious Wonder Boy fall off the roof. I grabbed her chin in my hand and forced her to meet my gaze. "He's fine." This didn't seem to sit well with her. She snarled, "You… you, Zorkmorking Clorbag!" The tone she used made it sound as if she were cursing, which was just amusing to me, really. I still feigned hurt, of course. "Ouch, such an innocent beauty using such horrid language? Please, don't tarnish your purity on my behalf." This seemed to throw her off kilter. Whether because she was confused by my wording, or because she was wondering if I had truly understood her foreign ramblings, I'm not sure, but she still looked pissed about me throwing her boy toy off the roof. I held up my hands, to show no harm, "I'm telling you, he's fine. He's a hero with a utility belt, remember?" She seemed to calm down a bit at that, but her eyes still darted back to where Robin had been standing only moments ago before meeting my gaze once more. "What is it that you want? Why have you returned?"

Those eyes. To be honest, I had only ever been this close to her one other time. The time I first realized just how powerful that tight little body of hers truly was. She was in a situation almost identical to this one, but we didn't have a true alone moment because those damn friends of hers were there too. I didn't have the time to truly see her. Detail for detail; aside from that body. But now, those eyes; those mesmerizing eyes. A deep emerald spiraling with a mixture of emotions: anger, hurt, fear, and oh so beautiful.

I smiled, though she couldn't see this. "I'm here for you, cutie." That seemed to throw her off. Now those eyes were laced in confusion and what was this… curiosity? "I am afraid I do not understand." My hand moved from holding her chin to cradle her cheek. "Let me help you understand then." Her eyes were still cautious, still wide as they watched me lift the lower half of my mask to reveal my lips while still obscuring my eyes. I placed my other hand against her other cheek so that she could not turn away as I leaned in. In only a moment my lips crashed into hers. Now, I've kissed many girls and I've fucked a lot of girls. But this kiss was somehow so different than any of those times. The moment our lips interlocked, it was as if I had suddenly came alive. My body went numb, the heart I didn't even think I had anymore seemed to swell, and I found it impossible to ever pull away. All coherent thought seemed to have fallen along with the bird boy over the side of the building; all except one. She was now kissing me back. Her need and longing was tangible on her lips. I honestly didn't expect it to be so easy. I guess I should thank Boy Wonder for being so horrible at making a move, for emotionally and physically secluding himself from such a clearly lonesome beauty.

My hands moved to the back of her neck to deepen the kiss which she didn't seem to mind. Just as I opened my mouth, flicking my anxious tongue against her lower lip, she seemed to have woken back up. I heard her gasp and she was now alert as to what was happening. She pulled her face out of my grasp. I got one last look into those deep eyes before they began to glow a very angry shade of green. "No, no, this… Leave! Now!" I held up my hands in surrender, taking a cautious step away from her. She was pissed and what else had I seen in her stare… hurt? I had little time to think about it before those potent eyes released two streams of that livid energy, knocking me across the roof and flat on my back. It took me a moment to regain myself, gripping my stomach in agony. She was definitely making this game a lot more interesting, that's for sure.

I caught my breath and tugged my mask back down to cover the rest of my face. "Feisty, aren't we? This is going to be fun." Just as I staggered back to my feet, I saw Starfire stare back to where Robin once stood, now with an ecstatic grin spread across her face. "Robin! You are… unharmed?" He was ignoring her as his fuming glare was directed at me. I chuckled, trying to conceal the fact that my stomach was still burning from the attack. "Hey, sorry, Tweetie. Looks like Sylvester won this one." I jabbed a thumb in the captive alien's direction to animate my meaning. I saw Robin's fists clench a little tighter just as he started sprinting towards me, letting out an irate battle cry. I dodged the attack and was prepared for a fun fight until that annoying little blue light on my wrist began blinking furiously.

"Damn… looks like we have to cut this short." I was still dodging an infuriated Robin's bo-staff strikes, as I reached into a back pocket on my belt and pulled out a small vial. Robin thrust his bo-staff towards my face, so I carefully ducked the attack and slid the vial across the ground to tap against Starfire's foot. "That'll take care of your sticky situation, sweetheart." I gave her a salute before leaping backwards off the side of the giant T. "Catch ya later, kid."

He ran over to the edge as if wanting to watch me go 'splat' but instead, I hit a button on my belt and evaporated into thin air. As soon as my finger hit the button to teleport me, my smile fell. I knew I was in trouble. I wasn't supposed to make an appearance: not yet, and not like this. The boss man was not going to be pleased with me, that's for sure. I let out a breath I hadn't even realized I was holding the moment my feet touched ground in that dark, dank hallway I had grown to know all too well. The elation and pure kid-like joy I was feeling only moments ago while standing alone with Starfire was gone now and buried back deep within the confines of my cold heart.

The long walk down this hallway always seemed to remind me just who I am and what I am. Each echoing step against the cold, wet slabs of concrete beneath my boots seemed to be mocking me. I tried to replace this ever present ominous shadow looming over me by thinking back to how warm and inviting those lips felt against mine. How she had actually kissed me back, for quite a lot longer than I expected her to. The corner of my lip tilted up slightly behind my mask at the memory, but only for a split second.

I was out of the hallway and now standing in a large room. The ceiling was high and the wall in front of me was covered in different computer screens. In front of them was an oversized chair, more like a throne, with a living nightmare of a man sitting in it. His body was covered in some kind of light-weight yet durable armor and his face was all hidden behind a copper mask; all except that one piercing eye. He had one ankle resting atop the other knee, and his fingers were together in a pyramid fashion in front of where I assume his mouth would be.

I shifted awkwardly from one foot to the other before allowing my arrogant front to take over. I crossed my arms in front of my chest. "What's up? I got your 'buzz.'" I pointed a finger down to my wrist where the irritating blue light was still flashing wildly. He continued to just stare at me, unmoving. I wish he would just yell or fire me or something. This shit was unnerving. After what felt like a million ticks from the clock behind me, he finally lowered his hands to his lap, continuing to stare at me. Sometimes I wondered if Slade could read minds, with how often he would stare at you. But really I think he just knows it freaks me out, so he keeps doing it. I sighed, deciding to give in; I knew what he wanted. "Okay, look, I'm sorry. I know I was supposed to just lounge about and watch them do their boring routine until beddy-bye time, then start back up in the morning when they get out of their jammies and get ready for breakfast, but uh, I got bored." I shrugged as if that was the perfect excuse.

Slade finally stood up, interlocking his hands behind his back. "Got bored? I believe I'm paying you, giving you an endless supply of synothium, and allowing you to live and all I've asked of you is to keep an eye on the Titans. It seems even that was too much for your little mind to comprehend." My hands balled into fists. Who the hell did this guy think he was? Yeah, I had heard all of the horror stories of who Slade was, what he was willing to do and what he has done in the past. Yeah, everyone I had ever talked to in the underground world of ours trembled in terror at the mere mention of his name, or pledged their undying support to anything he ever requested. Yeah, I heard all this shit and then still agreed to be his 'apprentice' as he called it because unlike all of the rest of these cowards, I have nothing to lose. I have nothing that he can threaten me with, so everything he was offering me for my services heavily outweighed any of the bad that may bestow itself upon me in the future if I ever fail him—which may be today. Ah well, it was a good run.

"Pshh, well if you don't think my services are living up to your expectations, let's cut this contract of ours short." Slade chuckled darkly, continuing his approached towards me. I held my ground. "Oh, no, X. That's not necessary." My fingers twitched towards my belt, just in case. His eye darted from the fingers I held on my belt then back up to my face. "Don't be stupid. That's not going to help you against me." He turned his back to me and turned to stare up at the screens before us. "At first, yes, I was extremely disappointed that I was going to have to punish you for disobeying my direct orders, however, this is playing out much better than I had ever hoped."

My eyes followed his hand as he pointed a finger towards the screen in the upper right hand corner. It was an angry Robin pacing back and forth on the roof, occasionally tugging at his hair and moving his mouth quickly as if he were rambling. Still standing in front of the door leading into the tower was the ever attractive alien, holding herself in a worried hug. She was now released from the goop and was anxiously shifting her weight as if unsure of what was happening. Her big, round eyes were watching as Robin went from one end of the roof to the next. She winced at something he said, then averted her gaze.

At first I was confused with what was happening, but then it hit me. "He saw the kiss." It was supposed to be a subconscious thought, but my lips betrayed me and it came out an audible whisper. Slade turned back around to face me, amusement dancing in his eye. "Yes, he did. And so did I." I didn't know what that last part was supposed to indicate, but chose to ignore it regardless. "So… he's pissed? And you're pumped about that, I guess?" He rolled his eye as if I was his ignorant child whom he had to explain everything to. To be fair, if he would just tell me his plans, I wouldn't be so damn confused. He merely shook his head impatiently, clearly done with the conversation as he took his place back on his 'throne'. "Plans have been accelerated. You can resume your criminal mischief tomorrow." I nodded even though his attention was back on the screens in front of him. "Kay," I turned to begin my descent back down that ominous hallway until something finally dawned on me. "Whoa, whoa, whoa. Wait just a second. You have a camera up there…" I pointed back to the now empty image of the rooftop on the far right computer screen. "So that means you can see everything that happens up there, which I'm guessing also means you have cameras pointing in through the windows of the tower as well… so why the hell did you have me positioned in the same damn spot for the past few weeks?! What is this, busy work?" I was exasperated. All of those late night stake outs, and this bastard was already able to see everything without my morning report?

Slade chuckled in response. He began typing away on the keyboard in front of him and I assumed this meant I would be getting no real answer, so I turned back around to leave. This contract wasn't going to last long if this guy continued toying around with me; I love a good game, but not when I'm not the one in control of the board. "You did well tonight, X. But understand that if you ever disobey a direct order again, it will not be a pleasant experience for you. Whether you fear death or not, I will have you begging for it."