I do not own Teen Titans.

Mirror

People always overlooked him as a fool, a dunce, an idiot.

He was fine with that. Really, it was always to his own benefit. It was always easier to surprise the baddies, easier to worm out secrets, easier to endear himself to everyone.

But he wasn't quite as oblivious as everyone thought he was.

Sure, Robin was mentored by the Bat himself. Cyborg had access to some of the best technology the world had to offer, Starfire was born and raised a warrior-princess and Raven was a freaking empathy.

Just a shame it didn't mean squat compared to him. He'd been in the freak-fighting business way longer than any of them, even Robin. Although, that probably depended on whether or not Tamaranian years were at all similar to Earth years.

Freaking alien biology.

But he still saw what they frequently didn't. Some things could only be honed by bitter experience. Just a pinch of animal instincts certainly also helped.

And that was probably the reason he was kinda maybe just a bit scared absolutely shitless by Starfire.

Oh, she was sweet and lovable and loving and adorable and kind and trusting… she was everything he ever wished he'd find in a girl and then some.

But she also had a darker side. She hid it well, there was no mistaking it. Hell, if it wasn't for Blackfire providing a contrast he might never have noticed it.

Oh hell, he'd known something was fishy as soon as she had set foot on the planet. She smelled dark, for lack of a better explanation. The tell-tale stiffening of Starfire's shoulders when they embraced was also a pretty clear sign that they just didn't do hugs.

And then a borderline-priceless gem?

Out of the goodness of her heart? Hah.

Anyway, it had taken him a few days to finally get a handle on her. The girl was passionate. Like Starfire was, and then some. She burned, long and strong and bright.

But never more so than when they sparred.

Oh sure, it had taken some convincing, but one quick morph into a T-Rex? Nothing impressed quite as much as a giant killer lizard.

She fought hard, but never dirty. Fast, but sporting. Taunting, but clearly respectful.

Starfire didn't do that. She hit hard and fast, always pressing her advantage. She never let up, not until someone gave up or was incapacitated. Always with that little smile like no one could see what she was.

She loved fighting. She lived in it.

Blackfire didn't. It was just another tool in her arsenal against the universe.

What kind of darkness did sweet naïve little Starfire hide that even Blackfire seemed to pale in comparison?

AN: Yeah… Insomnia makes me weird.

Anyway, Alternate Character Interpretation for the alien sisters – hinging on the fact that Tamaranians are apparently a warrior-based society. That leads to a rather interesting mindset in my view, especially when you consider Starfire was being groomed to become their queen… which necessitates a 'anything goes' mentality.

And Beast Boy is just so damn useful for stuff like this. People seem to forget that he really was the longest running crime fighter in Teen Titans, running with the damn Doom Patrol prior to the start of the series.

Again – not meaning I'll return to writing quite yet – Semester Finals are in three weeks.

But writing really is addictive, so who knows what might happen.

~GrinGrin

Written: 03/05/2014

Posted: 03/05/2014