Author's Note: This story is the sequel to my other one-shot Twinkle Twinkle Little Starfire. If you have not read that, I suggest you read it first because this story might make a little more sense from where I left off. I think I like this story better because there is more Starfire/Robin bonding time. 3 I do not own the poem stated below.
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Little Robin Redbreast sat upon a tree,
Up went Pussy cat, and down went he;
Down came Pussy cat, and away Robin ran;
Says Little Robin Redbreast, "Catch me if you can."
"WHHEEEEEEEE!" Little Robin cried as he raced all around ops in excitement, his overly large cape trailing behind him. He jumped over the back of the couch and raced around the kitchen counter, pressing every possible button he could find on the monitors along the way.
"Hey don't you be messing up my security systems!" Cyborg scolded while the other Titans watched the toddler in bewilderment. Meanwhile Warp was secured in restraints made of Raven's black energy clearly not amused.
Robin struggled to climb on top of one of the kitchen chairs, and when he did he gave a little grunt of pride before he hopped on top of the counter and spread his arms out wide. "I'm king of the world!" he shrieked dramatically before spinning around and around.
"Oh he is the adorable," Starfire told the others her hands clasped in delight. "It is most unusual to see him like this."
"I think you mean creepy," Beast Boy told her.
"Or just plain wrong," Raven added, shaking her head.
"Yeah, well, he's gonna break something if he doesn't quit it, and I ain't paying for it!" Cyborg snapped before turning around to glare at Warp. "You wanna change him back or am I going to have to beat it out of you?!"
Warp raised his eyebrows. "You think I can change him back?"
It was silent in the room except for Robin's noises of joy in the background as the Titans all exchanged glances.
"Uh…yeah," Beast Boy answered finally.
Warp smirked. "Well maybe I do, and maybe I don't. All I know is that you Titans aren't getting your little friend back without my help, and I'm not helping until I get the clock of eternity!"
Raven rolled her eyes. "Give it a rest."
"Yeah, seriously dude, find a new hobby," Beast Boy suggested.
"Hey! Hey over here!" Robin called from where he stood on the counter jumping up and down. "Watch this!" he declared as he prepared to somersault off the counter.
Starfire giggled while the other Titans sighed in exasperation. Starfire might have found his antics amusing, but they were all exhausted from taking care of little kids to last a lifetime.
"Well, Raven and I are going to take Father Time over here to the interrogation room," Cyborg announced, "Why don't you and Star take care of the little Boy Blunder over here," he suggested to BB who groaned.
"Aw, seriously guys?" he complained. "Can't I get a break-?"
"Nope sorry," Raven cut him off as she and Cyborg headed for the sliding doors. "Have fun changing diapers," she added slyly before exiting.
Beast Boy turned to Starfire after they had gone. "Now what?"
Before she could answer, an insistent tugging on her leg distracted her. "What is it little one?" she questioned.
"You weren't watching!" Robin pouted, the mask he wore on his eyes looking too big for his face.
"Yes, I was," Starfire insisted with a smile. "You were most courageous in the attempt of the flip. It was the cool as you would say."
Robin laughed, the sound high and squeaky. "You talk funny," he told her before bounding away, his arms spread wide as he mimicked the sounds of an airplane. He nearly tripped as his belt slipped past his skinny hips and down his legs. He sat down and pulled the yellow accessory off, glancing at it in wonder.
"Oooo," he gasped as he opened up one of the compartments and pulled out a bird-a-rang. Starfire gasped loudly and flew over, pulling the weapon out of his tiny hand at once.
"You should be careful. The bird-a-rangs are most dangerous, and should not be touched by little boys," she told him sternly.
He frowned. "I'm not little!" he complained. "I can spell my name and everything! Watch!" he pursed his lips. "R….I-"
"I believe the next letter is an O," she corrected gently.
He furrowed his eyebrows at her. "No it's an 'I', my mommy showed me and everything. The next one is C."
Starfire now completely confused began to hand the bird-a-rang to Beast Boy before thinking more wisely and opting to place it on the counter instead, while the green Titan gave an offended "Humph!"
"Why are you green?" Robin asked suddenly, glancing at the changeling. "Did you eat too much broccoli?"
Starfire tried to contain a giggle and hopelessly failed while Beast Boy's expression fell in annoyance, his ears drooping. "I'm going to see how the others are doing," he muttered, before leaving the room.
The Tamaranian girl's face softened as she realized Beast Boy's feelings could have been hurt. "You should say you are sorry to friend Beast Boy tiny…one," she trailed off as he leapt up again and raced away, plopping himself on the couch and letting out a colossal yawn.
"Would you like me to carry you to your sleeping quarters?" she asked, coming to sit beside him.
He gave her a tired and rather confused expression. "I have a quarter that can sleep?" he questioned, causing Starfire to laugh once more. It was a nice feeling to know that for once she was not the naïve one.
"Come," she said, opening her arms, and after a hesitant look he got up and went to her, and she scooped him up as soon as he was in arms distance of her.
"You're nice like my mommy," he said to her, his words muffled into her shoulder. Starfire smiled at this, propping him up slightly so she could maintain a better grip on him as she began to walk in the direction of his room.
"You do not speak about her," she mused, running her fingers through his hair subconsciously. She had always wondered about Robin's past but she highly doubted that now was the time to ask questions. She didn't know if the older Robin would be upset with her later and she definitely didn't want to risk anything; not where his feelings were concerned.
She was pulled out of her thoughts by the sound of a quiet puff of air and then the shrill noise of Robin's insane laughter.
Starfire stopped in her tracks and pulled him out from her so she could stare at him in horror. "X'hal, was that what I think it was?"
He confirmed her suspicions by laughing even more hysterically. Starfire sighed. Were Earth boys always so flatulent? She could think of several occasions where Beast Boy had let one-
"I need to use the potty," Robin announced, his face suddenly comically serious. Uh-oh.
Starfire flew him to the bathroom at warp speed and placed him next to the toilet. "I trust you know what it is you are doing?" she asked hopefully, remembering how embarrassed Earthlings were with nudity.
"Yes, I'm a big kid remember?" he reminded her before pulling down his pants to prove his point. Starfire shielded her eyes and left the room before she saw anything, waiting patiently out in the hall and dreading when she would have to face the regular Robin again. After being turned into a toddler herself, she knew that once she was changed back to her original form, all of her memories would return from the brief time that she had been a child again. Robin's face would certainly never be its usual pasty color again after this episode.
She tried not to smile at the sound of him humming a tune as he went, the flush of the toilet signaling that he was finished. The door slid open and she turned around with her arms crossed and her foot tapping.
"You did not do the washing of your hands," she scolded him and his face dropped.
"Darn it," he muttered when he realized he was caught in the act. He turned around and reached up to use the sink; Starfire's eyes were trained on him the entire time to make sure he did an efficient job. After he was done her nostrils flared momentarily as she picked up another scent.
"You are smelling," she told him matter of factly. "You need to take the bath."
"No! I hate baths!" he exclaimed, making a bee-line for the door, however his overly long cape managed to get stuck on the plunger that was located right next to the sink, so he ended up landing harshly on his behind.
"But you love to be clean," she replied before she reached over and turned on the water. She made sure it was at a pleasant temperature for humans before unclasping little Robin's cape and heading for the door. "Tell me when you are finished."
"Wait!" he called before she could open the door again. "Aren't you going to stay with me? That's what my mommy always does."
Starfire paused. "However I am not your mother," she reminded him before turning to reach for the button that slid open the door.
"Then who are you?"
She froze, the question completely catching her off guard. She turned around to face him not entirely sure how to answer the question herself. "I am your…best friend," she said finally, giving him a shaky smile as he stared at her blankly.
He shrugged before slipping off his boots and socks before reaching to pull off the mask on his face.
"Don't!" she nearly screamed before she could stop herself, and he froze in alarm. "Uh…you must not remove your mask," she insisted, blushing at her outburst. "You would not like it for me to see your eyes."
He stared at her strangely before shaking his head. "You're really weird," he told her, and she frowned. That hurt, even if he was too immature to know what he was saying. She turned around for the third time, angry at herself when her lip began to quiver.
"No!" Robin yelped before leaping onto her and clinging to her hips for dear life. "Don't go! You have to stay! Mommy always stays for bath time!"
Starfire nearly collapsed in surprise before she pried his scrawny arms off of her. She crouched down to his level, completely confused on what to do. "You need your privacy," she reprimanded halfheartedly.
"No I don't!" he beamed, stripping off his shirt. "I have no shame!"
Starfire bit her lip. Oh, X'hal help her. She twisted so her back was to him. "Do the undressing; I will not look until you are in the tub." She squeezed her eyes shut as he removed the remainder of his uniform and after she heard a splash she spun around once more and turned the water off, extending her arm at full length to hand him soap as if he had some sort of contagious virus. She suddenly understood the expression of not being able to touch somebody with a ten foot pole.
Robin seemed to sense this because his mask furrowed in the cutest way. "I don't have lice you know. Believe me I checked."
She stared at him in bewilderment for a moment before she burst out laughing, her high tinkling sounds mixing with his.
~0~0~0~
Honestly this "bath time" wasn't nearly as bad as Starfire first assumed it would be. Little Robin seemed to be mature enough to not stand up in the tub or do anything of the sort to make her feel uncomfortable. Not that she was uncomfortable with nudity; it was more that she was uncomfortable of how Robin would react after he was restored to his normal self.
They had talked aimlessly about things that she had never imagined they would talk about. He told her things that she hadn't expected a five year old to know, like how a circus worked. She had always wanted to visit the circus, but never knew much about it. When she had asked older Robin about it, he had grown increasingly uncomfortable and had given her some pathetic excuse before leaving the room. However Little Robin was more than happy to share with her of what he knew.
As he washed his hair-Starfire conditioned it and brought out the hair-gel so she could style his hair the way he liked it-he splashed her gingerly, and she squeaked in shock before splashing him back. It had then turned into a full blown war and by the end she was left wondering who was more drenched.
She brought him new clothes after changing into fresh ones herself, and although they were a little big on him-maybe a lot-he didn't seem to mind. As he left the bathroom and started spinning in circles down the hallway, Starfire smiled to herself. She had never thought on the subject before, but taking care of her best friend brought out a melancholy feeling from inside of her. She wondered if she would ever have children of her own someday. She really hoped so.
She showed him his room and he leapt onto the bed and jumped up and down on it, preforming miniature flips in the air as he did so. Starfire admired his agility for a moment before flying over and pulling him down from where he was in the air mid-bounce, and he shrieked with a halfhearted "hey!" She giggled as she placed him down in a sitting position on the bed. She tucked him under the covers and contemplated giving him a kiss on the cheek before deciding otherwise. She instead lifted his chin and gave him a smile before whispering "pleasant shlorvaks," and getting up to leave.
"Wait!"
Starfire patiently turned around with a sweet, yet tired smile on her features. "Yes, my little bumgorf?"
"Can you tell me a story?" he asked her eagerly, thumping his feet against the bed.
Starfire looked towards the door unsurely. "I really should check on our friends to see the progress they are making with Warp…"
"Please," he pleaded. "It can be quick I promise."
"Well…I suppose…but I really should not stay-"
"Come on, Star!" he whined and she gaped at him. He sounded so much like his older self when he said that that it shocked her. How could she say no to him now?
"As you wish," she responded, sitting by his feet again. He gazed at her expectantly and she suddenly felt very self-conscious. She was not familiar with any earthen stories, especially ones suited for young children. "Robin I do not know any of the stories that you would like, I apologize."
"That's okay," he said unfazed, "You can just sing me a song instead."
Starfire winced. Songs weren't much better. Tamaranian songs tended to be harsh to the ears of Earthlings, and again she wasn't familiar with any Earthly tunes. Maybe if she translated the Tamaranian song of Dusk and made the tune quieter it would be alright.
"Shut your eyes," she said softly, and she believed that he obeyed although she could not tell for sure with the mask on. She placed a hand gently on his head and threaded her fingers in his dark hair. She took a deep breath and began to sing.
When the night,
Has turned the stars,
Above so bright,
You can feel a wish,
And anytime it comes,
You know you will,
Always be loved,
And our hearts are joined.
She assumed his slow even breathing was a sign that he was asleep and she smiled at him lovingly. There was a part of her that wished he could stay like this, so carefree and innocent. As she watched him sleep she suddenly felt her eyelids become increasingly heavier and before she knew it, she had laid her head beside where his feet were positioned under the blanket, and unconsciousness swept over her instantly.
After a few moments of silence Robin opened his eyes and a devious grin spread across his features. He slowly and carefully slid himself out from under the blankets so he wouldn't disturb the sleeping Tamaranian girl and tip-toed out the door, keen on exploring some more.
He wandered around for a bit until he heard voices coming from down the hallway. He followed them, pressing his ear up against the door so he could eavesdrop. He recognized the voice of the pale girl in the cloak first.
"Alright, so I guess I'll bring him to prison and meet up with you guys later," she said tiredly.
"Yeah, we'll go find Spike and blast him back to normal with…whatever this is." That was the voice of the one with the metal all over him.
"See ya, Rae, it's about time this guy was dropped off to prison," the green Titan said cackling and two voices-not to mention Warp himself-groaned at the pathetic joke.
There was a sound of swishing powers, indicating that Raven had left with Warp. Suddenly Little Robin heard the sound of footsteps heading in his direction and he instantly backed away from the door nervously. The door opened a few moments later and his eyes locked with Cyborg's and Beast Boy's.
"Hey there you are little dude," Beast Boy said grinning, as he took a few steps forward. Robin, unsure of the two teens' intentions took a few steps back.
"Careful man," Cyborg warned BB quietly, we need to get close enough so we can blast him, so be really cool about this."
"You know I can hear you," Robin told them crossing his arms.
There was a beat of quiet as both teens blinked before charging the Boy Wonder, who yelped and fled down the hallway.
"After him BB!" Cyborg shouted, pointing ahead at their colorfully clad leader.
"Dammit! Where's Starfire when you need her?" Beast Boy shrieked back before changing into a cheetah and picking up speed. As he neared the tiny version of Robin he yanked on the boy's cape causing him to halt his running. However in once swift motion, the toddler unclasped his cape the same way Starfire had showed him and took off again, running in all different directions, searching desperately for a hiding place.
The chase lasted for several minutes, and Robin was beginning to tire. A nap sounded really good right about now. By the sounds of Beast Boy's and Cyborg's panting they were beginning to become weary as well. Just when the little Boy Wonder expected his lungs to collapse he heard the sound of a massive caw indicating that Raven had reappeared. Not good.
"What is going on here?" she snapped as the two other Titans skidded to a stop inches from her.
"Trying…to…catch…the….brat," Cyborg panted.
"Not…going…too…well," Beast Boy added from where he stood bent over, his hands on his knees.
"I can see that," Raven replied sourly, glaring at Robin who lay in a heap, breathing rapidly. When he noticed how all eyes were on him however he gave another yelp of fear and took off down the hallway again, the others immediately trailing behind him.
"Not…again," Beast Boy wheezed, sweat pouring down his brow.
"Time…to initiate…overdrive," Cyborg commanded, pressing a button on his arm console and was instantly refueled with his stored energy. Robin cast frightened looks behind him as the cybernetic teen bounded closer and closer to him. Definitely not good.
"Starfire!" he screamed, desperately trying to remember which room she was in. "Help me!" Surely she could protect him from these lunatics! They were crazy if they thought they were going to blast him!
His head whipped from side to side as he passed a series of doors, looking for the familiar five letter word that was marked on the door that blocked him from Starfire. It had to be around here somewhere!
He soon located a five letter word on a door and gave a sigh of relief before entering immediately.
"Stay out of my room!" he heard Raven shout, and he almost had a heart attack when he entered. There were portraits of screaming faces hung up on the walls and statues of black ravens with four red glowing eyes.
Letting out another scream he whipped around and slid on the ground right between Cyborg's legs and out into the hallway again. How big was this place anyway?!
As he turned a corridor Raven popped up in front of him, rising from the ground ominously and giving him a menacing glare. At the last moment he turned to the right abruptly, flying down the only other path. His face grew into a wide smile as he recognized another door with five letters on it, however at the same time the sound of footsteps behind him were getting nearer and nearer. He slammed against the door, pounding on the metal before he remembered to press the button that allowed him access.
"Shoot him!" he heard Beast Boy call, and he heard the sound of the blaster behind him. Luckily the door opened at that exact time so the blast sailed through the doorway and bounded harmlessly against the opposite wall.
"Ah! Starfire, Starfire! Help me! AHHHHHH!" Robin yelled as he jumped on her, trying to scramble away from his attackers. The poor Tamaranian girl who had been sleeping soundly was violently woken and began screaming wildly as she had no clue as to what was going on.
"Hold him, Star!" Cyborg bellowed, waving his arms insanely while at the same time, trying to take aim again.
"What the zardnarf is going on?!" Starfire cried, her eyes wide in alarm. She winced as Robin kneed her in the stomach accidently in his thrashing.
"Enough!" Raven commanded suddenly, ripping the blaster from Cyborg's arms and firing at Little Robin who was hit directly in the back before he could dodge the blast.
As soon as the rays had connected with his being he grew to his normal size.
There was a beat of confusion as everyone took in the now awkwardly quiet scene.
Beast Boy and Cyborg were on their knees in a sweating heap, breathing raggedly, while Raven had this slightly crazed look on her face, mixed with the fact that her hair was a complete mess. Meanwhile Starfire lay trapped on the bed with a dazed look on her face, while Robin straddled her.
"Uh…I can explain."
~0~0~0~
Author's Note:I made up the words to that song, but if you wanted an idea of what I imagined it to sound like look up the instrumental track to Wall-e 2815 A.D.-at least that's what I think it's called-and fast forward to the time 2:55 and listen until the end. I made up the words to fit the xylophone part of it. That was only if you were curious of what it would sound like. Anyway I hope you enjoyed this story!
