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Robin POV:
His body moved with the air around him. Sweat was glistening off his pale skin and he panted as the moves get more complicated. Punch, kick, right hook, kick, back flip, duck, handspring, kick, jump, punch twice, front flip, kick. He soared through the air and twirled three times before landing on his invisible opponent. Punch, duck, right hook, left hook, duck, swipe leg, flip. Calculations were running in his mind as fast as he can blink.
As he fought the invisible enemy, he is doing his math homework. You should know that Robin is a master at multitasking. The homework was due in three days and the Boy Wonder still had to train. So why not do both at the same time? As he fought, he concentrated on the problem in his head.
Question: What's the geometrical meaning of the central extension of the algebra of diffeomorphisms of the circle?
Punch, hit, slap, duck, kick, kick, flip twice, handspring, punch, kick...
Answer: f(x) = x/2 if x is even
f(x) = (3*x+1)/2 if x is odd
Then the conjecture is: iterates of f(x) will eventually reach 1 for any initial value of x.
Robin stops to take a break. He sits down, grabs a pencil and writes down the answer. Then he takes a swift drink of cool, refreshing water, stands up, stretches, and takes his stance.
Before the Boy Wonder can continue his training, a voice is heard from the doorway of the training room.
"Whoa," Wally comments as Superboy nods his head. The two teammates were observing the youngest for about three minutes. Even though he was in his white/blue workout suit with his mask on, they could still tell he was working hard.
Robin smirked knowingly and stated, "I was just training." An idea formed in the young boy' s head. Why not train, fight a real opponent, AND do my math homework all at once? Robin smiled. Genius. "Hey, Supes! Care for a friendly match?"
Normal POV:
Superboy raised his eyebrow and grunted which Robin seemed to take as a yes. The taller male unfolded his arm and walked gruffly towards the middle of the training room with Robin following suit. Kaldur appeared by the doorway to join the redhead and Wally said, "This is gunna be a good spar!"
He then zipped to the kitchen, grabbed a bowl of popcorn, flashed back, and sat down while chewing loudly.
Voices could be heard in the hallway coming towards the boys as Robin and Conner began to stretch.
"...I'm telling you, there is no such thing as glow in the dark lamps! What would even be the point of having—hey! What's Robin and Superboy up to?" Artemis said as she walked in with M'gann.
Wally looked up from the floor and said, "Sfurpfboy anf Rofin—"
"Conner and Robin are having a match as it may seem. Would you like to join us in watching the friendly spar?" Kaldur interrupted to save Wally from be punched for talking with his mouth full.
Artemis shrugged as she sat down FAR away from the annoying redhead while M'gann looked nervously from Superboy to Robin. A webbed hand is put on her shoulder and she looked up to meet the soft eyes of Aqualad. "They will be fine." He said reassuringly.
M'gann visibly relaxed and sat down next to Artemis who was trying to take the popcorn away from Wally. She was saying something about being too fat to be Kid flash. Either way, Kaldur sat down next to M'gann and the match began.
Before any hitting was informed, Robin flipped through the air and landed next to the bench. Quickly, he scanned the next problem of his math homework before he handsprings back to the circle in the middle of the room. The smaller boy cracked his knuckles before saying, "Okay, I'm ready!"
Superboy's POV:
Superboy charged at Robin with his fist at the ready. To Conner, it was just like fighting a villain. You had to imagine all of your loved ones were at risks if you didn't win. But most importantly, you had to remember the skills and the techniques. Without them, you were nothing. Black Canary taught him so many things. All of which were running through his head as he tried to land a punch on Robin.
Superboy knew better than to use his super strength in a match between friends. Robin was only 13 years old and he was only human. If it was Kaldur, Wally or M'gann, he could probably let just a little of his power out. But no way would he turn that power on between a match with Robin or Artemis. He knew very well that the wrong punch could kill them.
Robin's POV:
To Robin, it was just like training. You had to read your opponents next moves before they made them and when they did, you'd be ready. In Robin's mind, millions of little strips of thoughts were swimming through his head.
2,000 million times the power of 12 equals the equation of pi times the...
Punch, kick, watch his fist! Quickly now, perfect! Nailed it! Jump, NOW! Kick, crap, he dodged it! Punch to the nose, kick to the chest, jump, flip, dodge, duck, duck, swipe! Yes! Kick...
If twelve times 42 equals X then that must mean 564 multiplied by the power of 344 is the distance of the ride! So that means 2,334 divided...
He's going to punch you. Dodge! He's going to kick you, it's a fake, so duck then swipe. Now do a front flip onto his back, kick off and punch! Now!...
Friday, Friday gotta get down on Friday, Ughh! I gotta get this crappy song out of my head!
Wonder what it's like back in school...? Barbra is probably wondering where I'm at...
Dodge, Kick, swipe, Flip!...
Artemis POV:
The rest of the team watched as if hypnotized by Robin's movement. He seemed so concentrated, so in charge, so focused on winning. If only they could see his eyes, they would know he was in a hundred places at once.
Through all the punching and kicking, only Artemis seemed to notice something was off with Superboy. His movements were ridged and getting stiffer by the minute. His lips were perched in a growl and it almost seemed like he was snarling. But the thing that caught her eye was that there was a weird kind of gleam in his eyes.
The blonde girl cursed silently as she realized what it was: anger.
Well that can't be good...
Superboy POV:
Superboy was angry. No, he was furious. Robin was dodging everything Conner threw at him! Why can't he get at least ONE FREAKIN HIT IN? The older boy knew Robin was good at fighting, but he was Superman's clone for god's sake! Superman would have already beaten the Boy Wonder. So why. Can't. He?
Rage consumed the older boy's body and he saw Robin flip away from yet ANOTHER of his hits. Conner mentally screamed in pure anger and lashed out at the younger male. He tried to punch Robin in the face but the Boy Wonder gabbed his fist. So Superboy concentrated all of his super strength power into his leg and kicked. Hard.
Robin POV:
I got it! X equals the square root of 2,328,442. That times pi equals... YES!
Robin dodged another one of Conner's hits and flipped backwards. Since Robin already finished his math homework, it was time to finish up this match. Superboy charged once again with his fist placed at his side. From the stance of his position, Robin already knew Conner was going to punch. So the Boy Wonder grabbed his fist.
Before anyone realized what Conner was going to do, it was too late. Before Robin had time to organize his thoughts, a kick to his chest was aimed precisely at him. No time to dodge or duck. The poor boy didn't even see it coming.
Normal POV:
Robin grunted as the large foot connected with his ribs. Crack!About four rids shattered with the process and Robin flew through the air like a bird.
When Robin flew, his mask peeled off of his face revealing two surprised, pain-filled eyes. The team stared in horror as their 'little brother' soared across the room and hit the back wall with a loud SLAM. Not even Wally had seen that coming. And he was the fastest boy alive!
Robin stayed against the wall for about two seconds before his eyes fluttered closed, he peeled of the wall, and he limply fell to the stone cave ground. By then, Wally's brain caught up with his eyes and he zipped over to where Robin's landing point would be. The small boy landed with a thud into the redhead's arms and KF gently placed the boy onto the ground.
Kaldur and Artemis ran over as fast as they could to their fallen teammate. M'gann flew. All of their hearts were beating rapidly as the team surrounded their little bird.
Artemis felt anger at herself for not realized sooner what Conner's intent was. M'gann felt a deep hole in her heart, sucking out all cheerfulness and leaving a painful sorrow in its mist. Kaldur felt such a strong sense of worry and pain; he felt the prickle of tears come into his eyes. Wally felt such dread and agony, he could not bear to look at his best friend, yet he couldn't take his eyes away.
Superboy had the worst of all. Guilt was pricking needles into his chest as he ran over to the fallen bird. Guilt, shame, horror, sadness, dread, agony, hurt... all were piling up in his mind; making his breathing into short quickened breaths of air. He did this. He hurt his best friend. The only person on the team who had tried to reach out to him. To include him. The only person who could make him laugh and feel like he was loved.
Robin was the only person who seemed like he actually CARED about him. Not the pity kind of care. But the REAL kind. Robin had given him advice, helped him learn and how did he repay him? By almost getting him killed.
Normal POV:
The team surrounded their youngest member. Robin's eyelids were closed tight and he was very still. His head was turned to the side; facing the teammates. Every small breath he took seemed to be cause pain into his features and a grimace on his face. This was the first time the team saw Robin without his mask and without a knowing smirk plastered on his face. It didn't feel right. Robin without a smirk was like the sun without its light.
Everyone held their breath as they all looked at Robin. After a moment of the tension building silence, Artemis whipped around to glare at the blue eyed clone.
"This is all your fault!" She cried while pointing a blaming finger in his direction and getting up in his face.
Superboy's eyes widened and he paled greatly, "I didn't mean to—"
"Oh, he didn't mean to?" Wally sneered from the ground. The redhead stood up and glared at Conner. "What exactly did you mean to do? With that much power and with that trajectory, you could have broken every bone in his body! He's just a kid. But not just a kid, he's a human kid.You could have killed him!"
M'gann stood up from the floor in Conner's defense, "He didn't mean to! It was just an accident, I'm sure his purpose wasn't to hurt Robin—"
"Oh, there you go again!" Artemis cried, throwing her arms in the air, "You always defend him like he's your boyfriend or something. When will you get it through you head that he actually hurtRobin? He shouldn't even be allowed on this team—"
"THAT IS ENOUGH!" Kaldur roared. Everyone froze in shock. Kaldur was the clam, caring leader. He never once yelled at them. Aqualad took a deep breath and said, "Robin is hurt. Now is not the time to be pointing fingers. We must get Robin to the medical wing, now. It could be life and death."
Well that shut them up. Artemis and Wally were silently glaring at the clone from the sideline while Conner was shifting shamelessly, and M'gann was looking nervously at Robin. Never the less, they were still quiet.
Kaldur took another breath and shifted his gaze to Kid flash. "Wally, I want you to GENTLY run Robin to the medical wing. Be careful of his ribs and his back."
Wally nodded. The leader then turned to M'gann. "M'gann, I want you to contact Batman and tell him to come over here quickly." He looked at Artemis, "I want you to contact Red Tornado and have him meet me in the medical rooms and Conner, you to contact Black Canary and tell her EVERYTHING. Have her tell the story to the league and we'll settle this then. For now, it is not the time to be arguing. All of you know what to do. Robin's life is at stake. Go."
M'gann and Superboy ran down the hallway into the communication room while Artemis went to get Red Tornado. Aqualad was already half way there to the medic rooms and Wally was left alone with Robin.
The speedster gently lifted the small boy and Robin gasped in pain. A single tear strolled down Wally's face and he whispered softly into the boy's ear, "I'm sorry, Rob."
KF looked into the pain filled face of his best friend in his arms before zooming off down the cave. Robin was whimpering in pure agony and the unconscious boy clung on to Wally's civvies shirt. The smaller boy dug his head into the redhead's chest as he let out quickened breathes of pain.
It felt like an hour before they finally got to the medic's wing, even though it was only five seconds. Wally speed walked to the nearest bed and gently uncurled Robin's fingers from his shirt. He tenderly placed the boy onto the bed and quickly got a cold wet cloth to place over his head. The small boy was sweating and his face was flushed with a fever from the pain.
Kid flash pulled up a chair and sat next to Robin, not sure in what to do next. He settled for just waiting until someone showed up. Preciously two minutes later, Batman ran into the room with Artemis and an old guy behind him. Batman rushed onto the other side of his son and said, "Alfred, get out the medical equipment. We're dealing with four broken ribs and a bone fracture in his middle back. He also has a minor concussion."
"Right away Master Bru—Batman."
Batman turned to look at Wally and Artemis. "I want an explanation," he growled.
Wally looked like he was about to pee himself but Artemis on the other hand was unfazed, "Yeah," she sneered, "I want one too. But the world isn't perfect."
Batman glared hardat the archer and said, "We will disgust this later. Go get Red Tornado and Black Canary."
"I'm here. Now what's the big emergency—oh God, Robin!" Black Canary ran into the room as she inspected her student.
Red Tornado followed suit and stated, "What happened?"
"No time for talking." Batman said, "Everyone out. Alfred, Diana, Red Tornado and I will tend to Robin. You gather up the team and wait in the hallway. I want to talk to you when this is over with."
They didn't need to be told twice. Soon enough, the rest of the team joined Wally and Artemis. Tension filled the air like that moment before a storm is about to hit. Artemis was still glaring halfheartedly at Conner but now was not the time. Her little bird was in there and she didn't feel like starting a fight, but she did want an explanation. Artemis would have to wait for Batman...
Soon enough, Batman, Red Tornado, and Black Canary all emerged from Robin's room. Wally's head snapped up to look at the older heroes and exclaimed, "How is he?"
"He'll be fine," Batman stated and the entire team let out a long sigh of relief. "Now for that explanation—" he started.
"It was all my fault!" Conner cried out.
"Damn right," Artemis muttered.
"I was angry that Robin managed to avoid all my hits when we were sparing so I thought he could handle my super strength, but then I got even angrier and put all of my power into my leg and kicked him in the chest. I wasn't thinking when I did it and I'll assure you, I'd NEVER hurt Robin." Superboy exclaimed.
Batman growled and whispered, "If you ever hurt him again, I will personally throw you off this team. You are a team. You're supposed to help each other defeat evil, not fight because you were feeling jealous. You're supposed to protect and care for each other. And if you ever make that mistake again, or disregard him in ANY way, you WILL hear from ME. Do I make myself clear?"
All of their heads bobbed up and down. Batman nodded, turned to Red Tornado and said, "Thank you for the help. Come with me to disgust the latest mission. Black Canary, stay close to see if Robin needs anything. Alfred will be watching over him and he will be staying here for a few weeks until he is recovered enough to walk. Then I will take him back home."
Dinah nodded her head and Batman and Red Tornado walked away into the meeting room. Kaldur looked up at Black Canary and asked, "Can we go see him now?"
Diana looked into the hopeful eyes of the team and sighed, "Okay, but make it quick."
Like a crowd of anxious teens, (which they were) they rushed into the medical room where Robin was lying in his bed. He had no shirt on, instead there were many bandages covering his chest. Attached to his arm was an IV and an oxygen mask was placed over his mouth to help him breath while his ribs were healing.
M'gann started to sob as she threw herself into Conner's arms. The clone barely registered she was there as he stared numbly ahead at his unconscious friend. Artemis allowed slow tears to drift down her face and she looked over to Wally who was trying to unsuccessfully to hold back tears of his own. Kaldur's face paled greatly, and he silently looked away at the small teammate.
The team shuffled quietly over to the ebony haired boy. They all just stood there, watching him and taking in the comfort that he was alright. Just then, Robin's form shifted slightly. Wally grabbed his best friend's arm and whispered, "Rob? You okay, man?"
Artemis didn't even bother to reply back with a starkly retort of 'Does he look okay?'
Robin's deep blue eyes slowly fluttered open and he was met with the tear-stained, grieve-filled faces of his teammates. Slowly, Robin pulled the oxygen mask off his face and whispered, "Hey, guys. Not feelin' the aster today, huh?"
If Wally could hug the little midget, he would, but the speedster settled for just smiling widely. Everyone began talking at once and Robin tried to understand what everyone was trying to say. It was something about ribs with an evil Batman and a wall...? Suddenly everything came back to Robin in a quick flash of memory.
X equals the square root of 2,328,442. That times pi equals...
Punch, Kick! Flip! Superboy is going to punch me, I caught the fist. Wait, why is he angry...? Oh crap he's about to kick me! Too late now...
CRACK! My mask is off...
Ow! Who put the wall there? Uhh... my chest hurts...
I'm falling...
Robin gasped, which earned him a blinding hot pain that radiated from his chest and back. The boy winced in pain and his teammates all asked what was wrong.
The Boy Wonder looked up to Superboy. The clone tensed visibly. Here it comes, the blame game. Well, I do deserve this. I am the one who almost killed him...
Robin opened his mouth and smiled. The team looked at the small boy with confusion written all over their faces. Robin chuckled softly, careful not to hurt his ribs, and said, "Congrats on winning the match, Conner! I knew you could do it!"
"Wha?" Wally said intelligently.
"But—but he hurt you... and you're okay with it?" M'gann stuttered.
Robin shrugged softly and whispered, "I was testing him to see if he could do what it takes to overcome his fear and let his instincts take over. That's how Batman taught me."
Conner looked at Robin in utter shock. He—he got hurt and almost died just to help him...? The clone shook his head and chuckled quietly to himself. He will never understand that boy.
"By the way," Robin said, "Can you get my homework from the gym and write, 'X equals the square root of 2,328,442. That number times pi equals 923,453,213,467."
Wally smiled at the smaller boy. "Sure thing dude... wait... were you doing your math homework while you were fighting Superboy?"
The teammates all look down at the Boy Wonder to find him fast asleep. His head was rolled to the side and he looked a lot more peaceful then he was before. M'gann smiled lovingly at him before placing the oxygen mask back on his face. Then the teammates left the medical bay to go into the entertainment room. It was peace and quiet at last...
"Hey! Does that mean he actually did his homework while fighting Superboy?" Wally bursted out.
Conner shrugged his shoulders and said, "He's the Boy Wonder, what did you expect?"
Artemis shook her head slowly and stated plainly, "Damn."
They all nodded in agreement to Artemis' statement. Wally looked over to her,
"Well said."
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