An afterthought for 'Things Change', I thought it would be nice to drift the topic from Beast Boy and Terra to Robin and Starfire. (Not that Terra and Beast Boy were ever together. Whatever.) Inspired by Special A, episode 10 & Kevlar Masquerade's Follow Me, (Chapter One: Flight). Check out these two things, please. Both are super awesome.
Chapter One
Ignorance
Starfire stepped rather wearily over the dark, cold linoleum hallway. The temperature in this part of the tower was cold, but she didn't mind. She usually liked it, especially if it involved getting Robin to be chucked out of the room. Her footsteps echoed loudly through the vast foyer leading to the most isolated room in their dwelling—the investigation room.
She had unwillingly left the three other Titans in their search for the white shape-shifting object that they had fought with a few hours ago, as commanded by their single-minded leader. Beast Boy, though still a little bit dubious about his finding about and rejected by the memory lost Terra, agreed in doing the search in singles, though Raven didn't trust him for being as focused on the work. She, Cyborg, and Beast Boy split up to have a wider search party and hunting range. Approving with the agreement, Starfire didn't bother to tell them of her quitting the job momentarily, because they wouldn't know, anyway.
Tired from her walk from the Jump City Public Park to the topmost level of the Tower by using stairs, she stood in front of the door of the investigation room. Her knees were slightly shaking, and seemed like they couldn't hold her for a longer period of time. Her eyes couldn't even stay open or do another blink, but forced her body to stand still and not let herself fall.
Breathless, she stared into empty space for a few minutes, rehearsing the things that she wanted to tell Robin.
She sighed.
Partly confident and consoled, she punched in the key code. She forced herself to act as though she wasn't even a tad exhausted. It was almost like she was eager to see Robin, though something inside her told her that he wasn't going to appreciate her coming in.
The doors hissed open obediently, letting Starfire to step in. The air conditioner was whirring loudly, pushed to the button that made it work at the maximum. She slightly shivered at the wintriness of the air, feeling her warm solar-powered hands meeting each of her upper limbs in a loose hug. The small lights hung on the ceiling lifelessly, filling the room with dim, orange light. The curtains were shut tightly against the windows, not letting any sunlight in. The bareness of the place almost scared her, but she was not about to step out that easily.
Robin sat on a stool, too absorbed in his laptop standing on a white-steeled table about two-and-a-half feet to even know the presence of someone behind her. This irked Starfire.
After a few more moments of silence between them, Robin heard someone behind him cough a couple of times. He thought of this as a way to catch his attention—whoever that was.
"What are you doing here?" asked Robin, in a way that seemed like he didn't care about the answer in its next words. His voice was cold and hard, forceful and ignorant.
Despite his mood, she remained cheerful and eager. "I was to tell you that—"
But he didn't let her finish. "Get out and continue the search, I don't need any help here."
That hurt. The alien felt herself flinch a little.
She coughed a couple times more, and this time, it was louder. Robin exhaled sharply, hanging his head on the air.
"Look, do you see that I'm working on something important here—" he whirled his chair so that he was face-to-face with Starfire. He was shocked at the sight, and there was a short pause between them. It was as if he was replaying the things he'd just said.
He didn't even know that it was Starfire behind him.
"Um. Star?"
That even hurt worse. He acted like he didn't know it was her after all.
"Greetings, Robin," she said with a small smile, her voice shaking because of the chillness surrounding her. But fortunately, it was unnoticeable.
"What are you doing here?" he demanded, softening his voice so that he could make up for the harsh words that came out of his mouth lately. "You're supposed to be doing the search with the others."
"I was, and I have not found a trace of a destructive creature as such." She was telling the truth. "And I was exhausted, and I merely wanted to have a little rest, and perhaps you would also want to—"
"Go with you?" he barked. "I'm sorry, what was that again? I'm doing some important case here, and you want me to take some rest?"
"Yes," she answered defensively, regardless of the sarcasm he was showing to get her to leave. "And I know there is nothing wrong with taking a little rest," she said, her voice gentle and soothing. "And I was fervent of the idea that you and I could—"
"No," he simply said, getting back to work.
"But Robin, the colors of the sunset are wonderful!" she said, quite cheerfully. "There is red, and orange, and yellow and behind it is a wide blue sky filled with chirping birds, and—"
"Star, seriously. I've seen that sunset enough." Robin looked at the screen with outright curiosity and oblivion from the red-haired alien. "And besides, I couldn't just abandon the work. So stop your prank and—"
"I was not joking," she hastened, hurt. "I just wanted your eyes to have a little rest from that radiation-emitter computer screen to the beauty of your Earth's nature. Maybe one day your eyes would become blind because you exposed them to those dangerous—"
"I couldn't take a break, Star. I'm serious." He meant it when he was serious. "If you don't want to help the others with the search, go on and take your rest. I'm busy."
"What are you looking for specifically, if you don't mind to answer?" asked a sharp Starfire, crossing her arms over her chest.
"That creature we fought." he answered directly, and cocked an eyebrow at her as though he was confused why she hadn't figured it out in the first place. "Its shape-shifting ability was...I dunno, quite confusing."
Her expression softening, she asked, "What have you found out about it, then?"
The Boy Wonder sighed. "Nothing. I couldn't tell what material it was made of, and that's the main detail I need to find out before doing further research." Starfire could tell that he downhearted at the fact. "I couldn't even figure out if it's solid or liquid. So I think there's a pretty long time since I could figure it out. I can handle it." Shifting his masked eyes to her, he slightly changed the subject. "Speaking of handling things, have you talked to Beast Boy yet?"
"He did not tell me everything," she avoided looking at him, because she knew exactly where this conversation was going. "On what I have gathered and based on the actions she had done in his observance, she will not be rejoining us again, and his theory was that she decided to forget her past permanently because she was hurt by it, especially concerning Beast Boy."
Robin didn't notice his friend's reaction of not looking at him in the eye. Wheeling back on the sea of work, he commanded, "Tell Raven and Cyborg to start their search of Terra. It shouldn't be hard for them to find her if she's living in the city. Leave Beast Boy in his search." He knew very well that doing this was wrong, because reminder of Terra's past will only make her feel terrible. But this was the only way to get Starfire out of the room. And once she tells Raven of the command, the empath would surely turn it down. "Tell them to gather any information they get from Terra, and if she doesn't really remember about her past of having any powers, it's our responsibility to warn her of it because her life may be in danger because of us—"
"Robin, you are talking too fast." She backed out a bit, touching her temples with both hands as if she was having a headache. "But I don't think we should warn her about that, because reminder of her past would only make her feel terrible, and it's our responsibility to keep her to her preferred happiness."
Robin blew out the air from his cheeks. Busted.
"Then leave," he deadpanned. "You're distracting me from my work."
"But if you do not want a viewing of the sunset," she insisted, "then maybe you could use a little help—"
"No. The others need your help." He hung his head in the air in annoyance. "Why don't you annoy the others instead of just torturing me in here in your naive—?"
She coughed a couple of times, and she demanded sharply, "Excuse me?"
Robin paused as if he was being taken back to Earth. His eyes widened in slight guilt. Only slight guilt. "Um..."
"Is my act of bringing you out on this...this..." her head was getting redder by the minute as she thought of an appropriate word. "This glorified prison annoying you? I'm doing this for you, Robin, and wouldn't you appreciate this?"
Emphasis on 'glorified prison' came out cold and hard.
"No, I don't, Star. I'm working here." Something is taking control of his mouth, and he isn't the same 'Robin' that cared for Starfire's feelings. "I just couldn't stop this. I just can't goof around with videogames and sunsets and other stupid things. And just so you know, I have to stay in here because it's my jo—"
"Sunsets...are stupid?" The auburn girl was silent and emotionally hurt by his words. The combination of the warm colors amazed her, and she always has wished that Tamaran also had scenes like this.
"Yeah, why not?" Completely oblivious, he stared on the screen and let his mouth move by itself. But part of him asked, what's with the alternate mood swings? "Today's not the ideal time. We could do it tomorrow, if you want."
"But we do not know what shall happen tomorrow," Starfire stressed. "We have to do things and spend our lives happily while we can and be as merry as—"
"Reality check, Star, reality check," Robin breathed heavily. Seriously. Where was this conversation headed? "There are plenty of times to do these things."
"Do you really think we could do it tomorrow?" Starfire asked, the light of the universe starting to shine in her eyes.
"Yeah," Robin said, deadpan. "If I have the time, that is."
Starfire's eyes lost the glow. She did not like the way he spoke—it was like he was telling her too shoo away and never reappear. But that didn't stop her.
"But what if—"
"Star, be practical, will you?" He hastened before she could continue. "It's not like the end of the world is tomorrow that we couldn't do it. There's limit to things. There's time for that, and there's time for work. I just couldn't let myself stay away from work just because you told me so. You're not the boss of me."
Snappish, she closed her eyes and said, "So our opinions don't matter."
"No. I'm not saying anything like that. I'm saying that you're not the boss of me."
"That does not mean that as the leader of the Teen Titans, we should need to obey. That is very much objectionable. Is it not?"
"No!" This time, he finally jumped out of his seat and started walking towards her in a slow motion. "Of course your opinions matter, but you're different. I use logic before I do things; you use your feelings to do things. It's not like that for everyone."
"So I'm different," she concluded. "I don't belong here. That is what you're saying?"
"No, I'm not," he said, holding his head in two fingers of his left hand. "Of course you belong here. What, exactly, are you thinking?"
She started to be hopeful and posted a happy, triumphant smile. This was the chance that she could prove her point. "I'm thinking that we need to stop this argument and do the relaxing of ourselves in the fresh air outside and—"
"Seriously." He grabbed her wrist in an iron grip. He needn't think about the welfare of her feelings this time. "Do your thing alone."
She broke from the grip and looked at him in the eye, with her expression pouty with big, pleading eyes. "It would not be so enjoyable if I do it alo—"
"Yes it will." Robin crossed his own arms over his chest. He was too busy to even notice Starfire's strange physical changing. "You won't have me sulking all the way muttering about how stupid sunsets are. Now leave."
"Stupid?" She asked again. She couldn't believe it how her friend would possibly think of such thing. Part of her knew that Robin was going to put a negative answer on her next question, but insisted on asking him. "Do you really think sunsets are stupid?"
"Yeah," he deadpanned, his expression grim and stern. He was really annoying her, but he intended to do so. It seemed like the best thing to do at the minute. "They are."
"But I am sure you can forget that creature and leave your eyes off of that device in this prison for one moment and enjoy a sunset," Starfire said.
"No I couldn't," said the Boy Wonder, glancing at his browser, and then returning to his companion. "You happy now?"
"But then..." Starfire paused as she thought of something that might get him to have a little rest for a while. After tapping her chin with one finger a few times, she came up with an idea. "I know! Would you then instead come with us for dinner? I could call the others and we could go to the coach house—"
"No." He narrowed his mask at her, growing impatient of his friend's 'foolishness', as he would think. "What part of 'I can't do it' can't you understand? I've got too much work to do."
"Surely it can wait," Starfire said, cheerful. "You have told me that there's time for things, and this is the time for us to eat and be merry and stop thinking of villains and—"
Robin pointed a finger on the wall clock ticking loudly in the room. "It's only five. That dinner could wait a little longer. But this work can't."
Following his point of fixation, she sighed. But a new perspective entered her and verbalized with a "Yes, you may be right, but you have not given us the permission to eat our lunch when Beast Boy asked you to—"
"Then eat with the others. I'll take it later," he dismissed, waving a hand to silence her. "And I'm serious this time."
"But Robin, I was not joking!" exclaimed Starfire, who was now hovering above him. She just doesn't know when enough's enough. "I would be happy if you would accompany us in our—"
He returned to his stool and pointed a finger towards the door. "Get out."
"Robin, please."
"I said get out!" Temper isn't really the first thing in his mind by the time. "Now!"
"If you would just listen to me then maybe you could change your mind and then—"
"Leave me alone! I've heard enough of your...your..." Robin couldn't summon enough patience so he let his feelings take over him. "I've heard enough of your useless, pathetic bellowing in here! You're more trouble than help, you daft, dense idiot!"
Crestfallen, Starfire summoned up enough courage to still be able to talk to her ill-tempered leader. "I guess...I shall...leave you here alone?"
"Oh, finally." Robin whacked his head not-so-gently on the frame of the table once. "You got my point for the first time."
She remained silent for a moment. Tears started pricking her eyes as pain went in them, but she pulled them back.
"But why is your work more important than us, your friends?" she asked, more hurt than angry. "Are we not worthy of your time? Are there any flaws you found in each us which you did not like and—"
"Oh, not at all!" Robin hastened in a fake, enthusiastic voice, telling her that staying in this room for a longer time would not result to anything good. He couldn't help it, but his dry sarcasm often came to play when he was most agitated. "Instead of your helping me here, Raven couldn't stop mediating, Beast Boy's videogame addiction got to an incurable level, Cyborg can't take his eyes off of his 'baby', and you, you stupid, worthless troq can't even understand a thing I'm saying here."
Uh oh. He shouldn't have said that...
"Star...um, you know that I…" Robin wheeled his chair slowly to meet Starfire, who was currently falling over in shock. Seeing her in this way—eyes dark and ready to kill, hands fisted and ready to murder—silent anger was definitely not a sight to behold. "I didn't mean to—"
Troq. That was highly unforgivable.
"Flawless," Starfire seethed, teeth gritted. She backed out, as if she was fearful that Robin might come and get her. "So you are."
Robin gulped. Hearing Starfire's deadly voice made chills climb up his spine.
"Oh, yes. You are flawless, are you not?" She lifted her head up, which was previously pointed to the ground in humility. But Starfire's warrior-side kicked in, which she had no control over. "Well, for your information, there are a lot of things that I found flawed in you." She said it in an evil-kind-of laugh, putting as much as emphasis on the word 'lot' that she could muster. "I just want you to be thankful that I have got not enough energy to even list them."
"Starfire..." he hastened, though he knew he had no chance on winning this argument. Not now. He scratched the back of his neck which served as a sign of nervousness. All because of a 'freaking sunset', as he would think, he got into the middle of a confrontation which he didn't have any control over, and he thought that Starfire only made him look like the villain here, which he truly was.
"You know I didn't mean that..."
"So." She crossed her arms over her chest, skeptical. "I suppose that a troq like me does not deserve to be with someone like you, you, a perfect person who lived to deserve all good things here on Earth and treated like a king, compared to a useless, pathetic, blemished litter that deserves to live in a trash bag, and as you have said, a troq like me."
"Star, wait. I can explain..." he walked towards her, but she just backed out. "You know how I get when I'm angry..."
"Yes. I do," she spat the words out separately, wanting Robin to get her cold feeling. "But I did not know that you could say things such that could hurt one's feelings so badly."
"Wait," he hastened, and stepped towards her. But then again, she backed out from him. "I'll—maybe the work could—"
Starfire prepared to leave, turning her back on him.
"I will see you later. I will just invite the others to meet in the tea coach house, but it is not too late for you to join us. But I would prefer it if you were absent."
Robin would've started the fight all over again, and his temper was getting five-hundred Fahrenheit over the thermometer's standards, but he had had enough. If he was a child, he would've spat his tongue back at her while her back was on him.
And besides, Robin thought, triumph always comes to someone who is totally innocent. And he believed that he was the one that was totally, purely innocent.
Who started the whole fight? Starfire. Who entered the room and disturbed him from his work? Starfire. Who quitted the job with utterly unacceptable reasons—not to mention, sunsets—and preferred to leave her teammates behind? Starfire. Who wanted to just goof around and act as though nothing serious is happening with such big matters at hand? Starfire.
And those reasons were enough to make Robin assumed that he was standing on a pretty solid ground.
He returned to his work, but still felt the presence of the red-headed alien behind him.
Ignore her. She's just trying to convince you to watch a freaking sunset.
She was still standing there. Robin's breathing patterns started to go sharp. It was a full five minutes, yet she hadn't made a clue that she was gone. Her presence made Robin want to strangle her or something, but of course, he couldn't do that. She's his friend. It's just that…her presence disturbed him, and she'd somehow distracted him from looking and focusing on the current situation. He knew he shouldn't have reacted like that, and it wasn't like he was working about something connected to Slade. He doesn't know—sunsets were the furthest thing from his mind by the minute, and being with his laptop seemed like the best idea to do in a time like this. Yes, he knew, he risked this 'best idea' of being with a laptop instead of his friend, but although it was wrong, the destructive white shape-shifting object they fought was the more important thing.
She should understand that, thought Robin gravely, typing furiously over the keyboard.
Starfire, meanwhile, was standing there, tears pouring from her eyes. She was confident and happy before she entered this room. Why have she talked to Robin in the first place? Something in her warned her that if she came in this 'glorified prison', she would be rejected, just like all those times when Robin slammed the door on her face and spat out nasty words as a bad fruit of his obsession to villains, not to mention Slade.
But no. She listened in that voice that said that Robin was not always cold-hearted and could sometimes lend a hand if he wanted and has to. But the other part of her mind told her to stay away and leave Robin, because he'd be better off without her, anyway. As he had said, she was a troq, no matter how much she wanted to believe it. All those Tamaranian teachers back in Okaara always taunted her that Blackfire, her older sister, was way better than her. Even Ryand'r passed her standards and did much better than her, much to her depression.
But she wouldn't leave. She just stood there, watching her leader get engaged with hours and hours of work—again. She felt sad for him, and utterly confused of him. If friends were truly a matter of importance to him, why does he prefer to be with a tiresome labor instead of a cheerful, friendship get-together? Her heart went out to him, wishing that he wasn't like this. And instantly, in the very moment, she felt something…strange inside of her.
It was all so sudden. Her heart started beating faster, and it was hammering loudly in her chest. She doesn't want to move. She can't move. Her breathing started to go sharp, and it eventually hurt. Breathing hurt. Moving hurt. Everything hurt. It seemed like her situation was hopeless. She silently held her chest, trying to soothe the pain that was gradually forming inside. It seemed like her lungs were blocked by something, and she couldn't breathe.
It was not emotional hurt. It's physical.
She was sure that Robin could hear her breathing, but the small noises she made were not that much alarming. With Robin too absorbed in what he's doing, it was hard to notice little signs of respiration from his back. He didn't even notice it when she had come into that 'glorified prison', and he needed to face her first before he could even know who was there behind her.
The pain continued to grow. It originated from her lungs, and she couldn't utter a word. Her voice came out as only a small gush of air. The place around her seemed as cold as ice. Her eyes started closing, but she wouldn't give in. The world seemed to sway, and her knees wouldn't stop shaking.
Where was Robin, the Boy Wonder when you needed him? His back turned to her, looking up who-knows-what in the internet.
She muttered one last word before she let her body fall. She reached her hand out as if someone's hand was there to help her up. Unfortunately, there wasn't.
"Robin…" the voice came out weak and frail, afraid that she was really, truly about to fall and hit the cold, solid ground.
"Star," Robin breathed, and slowly wheeled his chair to meet her. "You know I'm not in the mood for anything—"
This was the time when the Boy Wonder abruptly turned into attention, and he saw Starfire moving out of balance. He hopped from his seat and came to Starfire's aid. But he was too late, and eventually, she collapsed.
"Starfire!"
He sat beside her, and cradled her in his arms. Her skin touched his, and it was scorching with fever. Robin put the heel of his hand on her forehead, and though it was gloved, the heat passed through it quickly. He turned her head so he could look at her in the eye. She had flushed, red cheeks, and she was shaking with the coldness around her.
"Don't worry, Starfire," he guaranteed, rather panicky. He had never dealed with a feverish person, ever. Starfire's eyes couldn't muster enough energy to look at him, and her surroundings started to blur. But it seemed like looking at Robin was the only way for her to get better. The sight of the Boy Wonder holding her in safety was comforting, and she didn't want to shut down. Not yet.
"I've got you," he said as he stood up, holding her sure and steady, considering his small, body size, and thin, seemingly-weak legs. He took one last glance at Starfire, and tried his best to look assuring. "Hang on."
Robin got up, and left the room with haste, leaving his work behind. The auburn-haired girl was shaky, and could not gather enough energy, so she inaudibly sighed an exhausted one, certain that she was safe while Robin was here. She curled forward against Robin's chest, and she could hear his heart beating rapidly in alarm. His breathing was fast, because he was running for several minutes now.
Maybe she could forgive Robin for calling her a troq. Maybe. But the fact that he called her that wasn't the problem that needed to be dealed with at the moment. Yes, Robin was regretful of his calling her something so rude and disrespectful, and being so ignorant in the first place. Maybe if he just went with her, Starfire will not be into something risky like this.
He knew, it was only a fever, and the girl he has in his arms was a Tamaranian, but these weren't enough to convince him that it doesn't need to worry. He also knew that with her solar-powered body, her temperature would be higher than a human's, but the flushing cheeks and rapid breathing were enough symptoms. With one free hand, he whipped out his communicator and located Raven's name first before calling the others.
The last thing Starfire remembered was seeing the Boy Wonder rushing her to the medical bay.
Despite her willpower and struggles to fight against consciousness, everything went black.
You know what? I really hate myself for everything. I told myself I wasn't going to write a story until I finish the one I've already started, but I can't help it. I've got this writer's block for Peter Pan, and I just hope my imagination will come back to Earth soon. Maybe it took a break into the Amazon jungle, or maybe explored the Kepler 22 B blue planet thing 600 hundred light-years from here or took a little sightseeing trip in the Belize's Great Blue Hole, or maybe permanently lived in one of Yellowstone's geysers and is about to be killed in 91 minutes once that geyser shoots out who-knows-what gallons of hot water, never to return again. Argh. I'm depressed. Somebody, anybody. PM me…Ahh, whatever. Whatever-whatever-whatever. I hate TiTaN-kINd-Of-GaL-ish stupid, stupid, stupid. Oh, and, yeah. If my writer's block soon recovers for Peter Pan, I'm out of this story. I'll discontinue. I'm really hoping that I will recover from this 'disease', so if you liked this and you want to get more, don't count on it. And besides, this is the only story I've EVER written without a plot. So, really. Don't count on it. I'm more prone to a writer's block in this one. Review if you like. Who knows, maybe if I get enough to pull me out of this discouragement, I actually might be able to put up a next chapter. *emphasis on might*
Favor: if you've got the time, please rate this from A to E.
Utterly depressed,
T-K-O-G xP (that's a smiley which means I'm dead. *dry spits three times for luck*) T-G-W-W-T-T-F-S. Luv y'all, RobxStar fans out there!
I'm kinda proud of it.