Author's Note: I know a lot of you were expecting a new chapter of All Too Well today, but I got the idea for this one-shot and since Easter was one of the prompts for it… I figured why not? Also, cause I'm kinda scatterbrained right now, so this was easier to put together than a new chapter. The new chapter of All Too Well will be out later this week, probably by Wednesday; this is another busy week in the life of me. Until then, enjoy this one-shot!
DISCLAIMER: I do not own the Teen Titans… Or any stores or books mentioned.
Adventures in Alien Sitting
My name is Rachel Roth. I'm 16 years old and up until about 3 weeks ago I was raised by monks in a place called Azarath. But my life changed when I came to Earth and met four other teenagers who are a lot like me. We all have special abilities that we've decided to use to fight crime. We're trying to build a tower on an island not too far off the coast of the city. For now we're living separately though. I'm not gonna lie, I kinda think I'd be happier staying on my own. I think some of our personalities will clash too much. I'm a pretty solitary, serious person. Mostly because my powers are driven by my emotions. If I feel too much, I'm suddenly surrounded by broken glass. However, the rest of them are fairly normal teenagers.
First there's Cyborg. Half teen, half robot. He seems upbeat and fun loving, but still smart and grounded. So far, I've gotten along with him okay, as long as he doesn't try to intrude on my personal bubble. Then there's Beast Boy, the green teen shape shifter. He still acts like a kid and couldn't even pretend to be serious. Something tells me I am NOT gonna get along with him. AT ALL. I'll end up throwing him out a window or something. Next is Robin, Boy Wonder, the Dark Knight's Ward and our "fearless" leader. No problems there, yet. He's serious, dedicated and… Okay, he's not completely unattractive. I would never do anything with him though, even if I could.
Finally, there's Starfire, alien princess terror, turned hero. She's the only other girl on the team and she keeps trying to force what she calls "the female bonding time" on me. I have never met anyone so perky, it's annoying. I struggle to remember she's new to our planet and still learning our customs. I just didn't realize there was no such thing as personal space on her planet. And since I'm telling the truth here, I might as well confess, I'm a little jealous of her. She's beautiful, free to feel as much as she wants and I think she's attracted the attention of not only every single male in Jump City, but also the Boy Wonder himself. The worst part? She has no idea about any of this.
Anyway, where was I? Oh, yeah, living with them. As far as I know the living situations are something along these lines right now. Cyborg and Beast Boy are working together to build the tower, which means camping on the island. Robin has an apartment and Starfire stays with him. He won't let her out of his sight. He says it's because if she wanders off on her own, she'll get lost. We all know it's because he just likes looking at her. And me? I'm squatting in an abandoned apartment. There's some furniture here and I have most of my books, so I won't complain.
It's just a normal Wednesday. I'm in the middle of my morning meditation when I hear a knock on my door. I panic just a little.
"Uh-oh, am I getting in trouble for being here?"
I take a deep breath and go to open the door. Luckily standing there is not a cop, but rather Robin and Starfire. Oh, boy, this can't be good either.
"What?"
"I have business in Gotham today; Starfire needs to stay with you."
"No. Why can't she help Cyborg and Beast Boy?"
"Cyborg is busy getting permits secured to build the tower and would you really trust Beast Boy to keep track of her?"
Starfire was looking up at the ceiling, off in her own alien world. Robin has a point. I wouldn't trust Beast Boy to watch a rock. I sigh.
"Fine, whatever. But you owe me. Come in, Starfire."
Starfire looks over at me and nods then enters the apartment. Something seems… Off about the usually upbeat alien girl. Robin smiles at me.
"I know. Thanks Raven."
Robin leaves and I shut the door to turn to Starfire who's quietly looking around the apartment. Okay, something is definitely not right here. Normally she'd be babbling on and on about "the braiding maneuvers on each other's hair" and "the painting of the toenails". Right now, she almost looks sad.
"Starfire?"
"Yes, friend Raven?"
"Is everything okay?"
She shakes her head.
"Do you wanna talk about it?"
"You would not wish to know."
I sigh. I've really gotten off on the wrong foot with her.
"No, I want to know. We're going to be roommates soon; we have to try to be friends. So tell me what's wrong."
Starfire sighs and sits on the couch.
"I am feeling the sick for my home. Today is Gorgbarg, the Tamaranian celebration of the day X'hal banished the Psions from Tamaran by sacrificing herself to their wrath. It is a day that is supposed to be spent with families and knorfkas, but I am unable to leave Earth without the risk of being recaptured by the Gordanians."
I listened to her talk about this holiday.
"So, it's kinda like Easter?"
"Hmm… Yes, I suppose comparisons could be drawn between Gorgbarg and your Earthly Easter."
I'm not a religious person, but I know that Easter is a holiday that people who believe in that stuff like to spend with their families.
"Oh, wow… I'm sorry Starfire."
She looks confused.
"Why? You have no reason to be sorry."
Oh, right. Expressions and idioms confuse her.
"On Earth, when another person feels sad it is customary to apologize for their sadness, even if you didn't cause their sadness."
She nods, seeming to process this.
"Do you perhaps have something that I made read to pass the time?"
Huh, funny, I was actually about to start reading too.
"Uh, yeah sure, one sec."
I grab my book then look for something for her to read. I settle on the Great Gatsby, the old writing style might be easiest for her to understand. I hand her the book and sit on the couch across from her and begin to read. About 5 minutes pass and I realize I'm not hearing her turn pages. I look up and sure enough, she's still staring at the first page.
"You can read English, right?"
"Yes, I can. It is just strange seeing your language written. These characters look so different from my native letters and numbers."
I shrug and go back to my book. We sit in silence for a long time, just reading. I look up at her as a cold breeze blows through the apartment and that's when I notice something very distracting about her.
"Uh, Starfire? Are you wearing a bra right now?"
She looks up from the book, confused.
"Am I wearing a what?"
"Oh, sorry, do they still call them brassieres on your planet?"
"I do not understand your question."
I sigh. Really? Azar, do I REALLY have to do this?
"Alright, mark your place in your book, we're going shopping."
She looks confused but follows me to the mall. As we walk towards Victoria's Secret, I try to learn more about her planet.
"So, you really don't have bras on your planet?"
"We have no need for such devices. On Tamaran, if you are blessed with bountiful breasts, you have the right to flaunt them."
Well no wonder Robin wanted her to stay with him. We arrive at Victoria's Secret and I head to an employee, a bit uncomfortable.
"Uh, hi. My friend isn't from around here and doesn't know her size."
The girl looks behind me at Starfire and goes a little wide eyed, everyone's usual reaction to seeing her for the first time.
"Um… Okay. No problem. Right this way hun."
Star looks confused, but I usher her toward where the employee is leading her. She gets measured and I end up buying her three bras. As we were leaving I agreed to do a little window shopping. Well, I couldn't exactly tell her no; not when she's so sad. That was a big mistake. When we went into clothing stores, the employees fawned over her, begging her to try on their clothes and even tried to sign her up to model for them. I ended up having to drag her out of the mall with every ounce of strength I had available. We headed back to the apartment and I noticed she was smiling for the first time today.
"Raven, I thank you for making it… Easier to be away from home during Gorgbarg. I had a most enjoyable day with you."
I crack the smallest hint of a smile.
"No problem, Starfire. What are friends for?"
Her smile gets even brighter.
"So, we are friends?"
"Yeah, we're friends- Don't hug me!"
I saw her open her arms and step closer to me. She gives the most bone crushing hugs and I'm not a huggy person to begin with. She steps back when I tell her not to hug me. There's a knock on the apartment door and I'm certain it's Robin. I open the door and he thanks me. Starfire follows him out. I watch them leave, smiling to myself. Maybe living with that girl won't be so bad…
Yay! Friendship! This one shot was also partly to help me brush up my skills with writing as Raven, since I tend to use my Starfire writings as a crutch. But since Starfire IS my go to POV, let me know if you'd want to see this story written from Starfire's POV. For now, I'm marking this as complete. Until next time, my lovelies, R&R! -Starprincess