A/N: I do not normally ship Rob/Rae. I can however see certain circumstances that could lead to a pairing. This is one of them. The birds are too dark for happily-ever-after and fairy tales. I was going to polish this up and post it after the final stuff for Bound when I'm on vacation (It's not dead!) but the story just flowed out and it somehow feels right to publish it this way. For the record, this is what happens when I listen to the darker parts of my playlist.
Disclaimer: I own nothing. I just play in the DC sandbox.
Raven watched the rooftop ahead of her in the perpetual rain that plagued Blüdhaven. She was waiting for the presence she knew would appear. She felt the pulsing in the bond. He was reaching for her again. Last time, it had been her calling out to him.
This was their way. The lives and loves that should have been theirs were sacrificed on the altar of justice. Instead, they were left with this. There would be no happily-ever-after for them, no weddings, no families and picket fences. Just cries in the dark and a bond they used to keep from falling into the very abyss they battled.
She felt him before seeing the shadow on the rooftop across from her. The torment in the bond was painful. She wouldn't ask questions. She never did. Neither had much use for words. Words couldn't cut through the shadows in their minds.
She engulfed herself in dark energy and appeared beside him. He stood still for a moment. Looking out at the city he had given everything to. Normallacy had failed for him after he had tried so achingly hard to make it work.
Raven remembered the boyish excitement Robin had when he took the job. A city of his own to care for. Starfire and him against the world. She remembered the growing disillusionment taking over the pair until one day Star left. The beautiful, kind Tamaranian was wilting against the unending battle for Blüdhaven. Obsession and rage plagued the man he had become.
The pain Raven had felt when it all crashed down was so intense that she left almost immediately. When Raven arrived, she had found him sitting on his knees in front of the large-screened map on the city. There were no tears and no sobs. Even then there no words to be said. Just the pieces of a life on the ground, irreparably damaged.
She had held him silently until their eyes had met. They came together violently, with need guiding their every movement. He was seeking something to fight the rage and prevent being consumed. The one who had always believed, the one who always kept hope now needed solace. She could give that.
Standing on the roof in the cold rain. Raven felt the movement before she saw it. Felt the mental armor that surrounded Nightwing fall as he crushed her to himself. Their lips met and arms clung to each other. There could be no heaven for those who lived in hell.
Sometimes though, the sensations as they collided were strong enough to bring a spark into the miasma that clogged their souls. It wasn't love, not as the books and movies describe.
Raven phased them into his room. As she felt her uniform pulled free and her back hit the bed, she knew this is the closest the pair would get to that. Strong hands explored curves that were familiar , drawing gasps as the touches flooded her senses. She pulled away the uniforn that was his cross to bear. Raven tore away the mask that hid haunted blue eyes and clutched his body to hers, needing the warmth and strength of his form to feel alive.
She knew without a doubt they would continue to follow each other down to hell and bring each other back to the world of the living.
The heat that suffused her limbs as he worked his magic with deft fingers brought her back from the precipice her soul balanced on. She cried out as she surrendered and let go of all the careful controls she held.
Long moments passed before she felt him cover her, seeking her out in the dark. Raven arched her back and clung to his broad shoulders as he entered her body. She felt the light and warmth of the small magic they worked seep into him. He would be saved once more.
They moved together in this familiar dance. Bodies that had memorized the contours of each other, not dueling for domination but striving to bring their souls back home.
They lay together under the blankets, still without words. Hands exploring new scars that decorated their bodies. The warmth and lethargy that spread through them meant sleep without nightmares. A brief armistice in their personal war.
It wasn't love at all, but it was enough.