This story was written for a challenge from The Writer you fools. It is to writea oneshot featuring the pairing you simply cannot stand. Without bashing the pairing, that is. I picked -gulp- Cyborg and Terra. Really random and pretty lame, but oh well. Please don't flame me for the pairing; I can't stand it either.
I don't own Teen Titans. If I did, people would not be bashing Cartoon Network because there'd be a sixth season!
I'm standing alone on the roof of the tower, watching the sun rise over the horizon. The sky turns red as the sun touches it with the first rays of light. The red fades to pink, and the pink to purple.
'So this is what she woke up to every morning before we knew her,' I thought.
That was why I come out to the roof every morning so early. So I can watch the sun rise and be reminded of her.
It broke my heart in two when she was taken away from us. It hit all of us pretty hard, but I took it the worst.
I never did tell her how I felt. Well, of course I didn't; I didn't figure out my feelings until it was too late. Until she had already chosen someone else.
That seemed to be the one thing we agreed on. And when I say "we" I mean Robin, Starfire, Raven, and I. We all agreed that Terra and Beast Boy were made for each other.
And who could argue that? She thought he was funny, he though she was adorable. She didn't make fun of him and call him names, and he helped her through when she couldn't control her powers. They were always there for each other.
How crazy would it have been if I had told them that I had a crush on her too?
Of course, I didn't realize I did at first. I was so used to being the strange freaky robot that no one wanted t approach that I didn't know that I could have feelings for someone.
When I became a cyborg, I didn't know what parts of me were human and which parts were robot. I still don't know to this day. For all I know, half of my brain is a circuit board programmed to act human. That's why I didn't realize I could have feelings for her.
When I did, she and beast Boy had already gone out for their night of fun while we defended the Tower against Slade's robots.
I found out later that she had tried to save Beast Boy by taking him with her. I always knew she would have chosen him if she could only save one of us, but it hurt me deep inside my circuits when I realized she had betrayed me.
Well, I shouldn't really say 'me.' She betrayed all of us.
We had to fight her. None of us wanted to; I knew that right off the bat. Even when we all declared her "just another villain," I could tell none of us meant it.
Beast Boy's ears drooped and I could see the tears in his eyes. Starfire stayed silent and somber for the rest of the day. I could even tell that Robin and Raven didn't want to fight her.
It was only after she took us all down that we realized we needed to push all our old feelings aside and take her down like the villain she was.
I remember finding her with Slade, holding a rock over Beast Boy's head. It was then that I knew that out of all six of us Titans, one of us would not make it out alive. And I knew it would be her.
Even before the lava started coming up, I knew she wouldn't make it. And what was I to do then? Shout out my true feelings for her as she told Beast Boy that he was her best friend?
I kept silent, and that is probably the biggest regret of my life.
I visit her statue every day. Every single day I go down to where she stands encased in stone and talk to her.
I tell her things I would never dare to tell her if she was still alive. I've told her about every villain we've faced. I've told her about every childish argument Beast Boy and I had, every time we go out for pizza, every time Robin obsesses over a villain. I even told her everything about Raven's father coming and destroying the world.
I bring her flowers too. The roses we put next to her statue the day she saved the city wilted long ago. I replace them every week with a new bouquet. Sometimes I tuck a flower behind her ear or put one in her hand. Even with the look of strain on her face, the flowers somehow make her look more peaceful.
I polish her plaque and clean off the statue itself. It feels strange to be cleaning off a statue of a girl, but as she's stone now and I can't feel anything with my hands anyway, it doesn't really matter.
My feet begin moving of their own accord. I'm walking off the roof, and down the Tower. I don't know where the other Titans are, and quite frankly, I don't really care. I'm going to visit Terra.
I stop at the flower shop, just like I do every Wednesday. The owner of the shop, Harold, opens early on Wednesdays just so I can buy my flowers.
"Hello, Cyborg," He greets me with a smile and a handshake. Not many people shake my hand. They're too afraid of what I look like. But Harold is my friend.
'I wonder what flowers I should bring her today,' I wonder as I walk through the rows of beautifully arranged bouquets. 'I could give her carnations,' I think as I pass the large display of different colored carnations. 'Nah. I left her some of those last week. Maybe daisies.'
I pick up the large bouquet of daisies and carry it over to where Harold is arranging tulips. I hand him some money, and wave goodbye, not pausing once as I begin to walk to her statue.
It doesn't take me long to get there. Before I know it, here I am, standing in front of her outstretched arms, looking at the pained look on her face and feeling as if I might cry.
"Hi, Terra," I say softly. I bend down and pick up the bouquet of wilted pink carnations from her feet and replace it with the daisies. I throw the carnations down into a corner of this underground prison. There is a heap of decomposing flowers in that corner, but I never take them away.
"I brought you daisies this time," I say as I bend down again to pluck a flower from the bouquet. I take a step closer and tuck the flower behind her left ear. "I hope you like them."
As my robotic fingers brush against her stone face, my pulse quickens. I did not feel a thing, but being this close to her, even in her statue form, makes my heart beat ten times faster.
It also makes my regret of not telling her ten time worse.
The only part of my body that can still feel is my face. If someone were to place a hand on my cheek, I would feel it. As I place my hand on Terra's cheek, I cannot help but wish that I had felt her hand on my own cheek, just to be able to remember her by.
"I'll find a way to get you back, Terra," I say, drawing my hand back to my side. "I promise."
"It figures you idiotic Titans still haven't figured out how," A monotonous voice laced with malice comes from the shadows.
"Slade," I say. I would recognize that voice anywhere.
"But I, unlike you, do know how to bring her back," Slade steps out of the shadows. His single eye is wide, and looking at me so intently I feel like he is scanning me.
"How?" I breathe, barely daring to believe it.
"Why should I tell you?" Slade chuckles. I can tell he is smiling behind his mask. "You are of no use to me. Neither is your beloved Terra."
I frown at his comment.
"Please," I say, hating the way my strong voice is now weak. "I'll do anything. Just bring her back."
Slade chuckles again.
"I think I know how you can be of service," He says, turning so his back is facing me. "Follow me, Cyborg."
He begins walking back into the shadows. I follow him, my footsteps echoing around the cave.
He leads me to what seems to be an attempt at a repair shop. Parts litter the floor and a half-formed something lays on a long table. Tools are scattered here and there around the thing.
"You are to help me construct a robot," Slade says, pointing to the thing on the table. "I want it to be like me in every way, except, of course, it will not be human. If you succeed in doing this, then I will give you back your beloved Terra."
"Hold up," I say, pausing as I look at the robot on the table. "Why do you need a robot? And why do you need my help? In case you've forgotten, you built about a hundred robots without my help before."
"Yes, that's true," Slade says, his eye narrowing. "But this robot needs to be perfect. It needs to fool everyone so no one, not even you, will know the difference between it and me. Do this, and you will have Terra."
"I will," I say, and I bend over the robot, ready to start working.
As much as I hate helping Slade, I feel that everything will be worth it if I can have Terra back. I would finally be able to tell her how I really feel. Finally be able to laugh and joke with her like Beast Boy did. Finally be able to feel her hand on my cheek…
It took me a good five hours to modify the robot enough that it was an exact replica of Slade. If the Titans even knew I was gone, they certainly would be ransacking the city looking for me. But I know that they will never find me.
"I'm done," I say. Slade comes over to me, and inspects my work. He looks at the finished robot from every possible angle, turns it on, tests it, and does everything he can possible do to it before he pronounces himself satisfied.
"Will you bring Terra back?" I ask him, clenching my fists, ready to blow him out of Earth's orbit if he says no.
"Of course, Cyborg," He says lazily. "I gave you my word, after all."
We walk back to her statue. I stand back, facing her, as Slade puts his hands on her shoulders. He closes his eye, and chants, "Erisa oyt erubhat nahman eldkah."
He removes his hands from Terra's shoulders and backs away into the shadows once more. I don't care; I'm too busy watching Terra, praying that Slade was not fooling me.
I watch as the stone melts away, first from her feet, then all the way up her body until she is free. She remains in the same position, but she is now back to the live Terra we knew. Her gold hair falls down to hang limply at her back.
She blinks rapidly for a few seconds, then she begins to fall.
I quickly catch her, cradling her stiff body in my arms. Her arms are still outstretched, and her legs are still straight.
"Terra," I breathe. Her blue eyes look up into my two mis-matched eyes.
"Cyborg," She smiles. "Thank you."
"What for?" I ask. All I had done was catch her.
"For coming to visit me," Terra says slowly. "I could hear you every day."
"You mean…" I trail away, too scared to ask the question that had almost escaped my lips.
"Yes," She says, understanding my unspoken question. A faint groan escapes her lips, and she continues, "I can't move."
I gently place her on the ground, propping her up into a sitting position. I sit beside her, and massage her legs.
"Thanks, Cyborg," She sighs. "I can actually feel my toes now." I smile at her, and she smiles back.
"So, you heard everything I said?" I ask her as I continue to massage her legs.
"Yes," She says softly. "I never knew you felt that way, Cyborg." She moves her arm slowly and puts her fingers up to her ear. She takes the flower into her hand and looks at it.
"How did you know daisies are my favorite flowers?" She asks as she looks at it.
"I didn't," I say truthfully.
Terra begins inching herself along the ground to come closer to me. It takes her a good fifteen seconds to move five inches, but soon she is leaning against me.
"Thank you so much," She says, stiffly putting an arm on my shoulder and leaning her head against my chest.
"Terra?" I ask, looking at the hand that is on my shoulder. "Can I ask you to do me a favor?"
"As long as it doesn't involve walking," She laughs.
"Can you touch you hand to my face?" I ask, feeling stupid as I say it. "My face is the only part of me that can feel anything. I just want to be able to feel your hand."
Terra looks up into my eyes, but she does not move her hand from my shoulder. She pushes herself up, and kisses me on the cheek.
"I think that's better than my hand," She says, and she lowers herself back down and into my arms.