Disclaimer: I'll be looking for a job at DC Comics so that all of this can become canon.
A/N: Hello world!
So you're probably wondering what the heck is up with my story description. I feel that it is inadequate to label this story under "Starfire" since this is essentially a story about all of the Titans. However, the main plotline will be revolving around Starfire, which is why I labeled this under her name. What is the "Blorthog Project" exactly about? Well, while I was writing "Dust" I thought about doing a giant story that would basically be a season 6. A continuation of that stupid episode "Things Change" into the season 6 that episode was meant to be in. I won't say much about future plot points or who's going to get involved in this story, since this is a freakin' huge project. There will be thirteen parts/episodes. Each part will have three acts. Consider "Things Change" to be the first episode of the sixth season. I will be continuing the theme of things changing over time for this season.
ANYWAY, unlike me the Teen Titans show had a team of writers working on the episodes. I'm working by myself. It will come out, but it's not structured like my other stories.
This is the beginning of a long and arduous project. Unfortunately this will not be updated regularly like my other stories. I'm sure you'll understand why. But it will be finished, I guarantee that. But now I'm babbling.
Fasten your seatbelts, keep your hands and feet inside of the vehicle at all times, and prepare for one hell of a ride: I present to you the first act of the first episode of the sixth season!
Teen Titans Season 6: The Blorthog Project
Episode 1: The Mercenary
Act 1
-BB-
Jump City, California
Main Street
It was nearly nightfall by the time that Beast Boy managed to catch up with the other Titans.
He didn't understand his whole day. While the other Titans were off fighting that shape-shifting monster Beast Boy went in search of the girl who looked like Terra. He transformed from a hawk back to a human and landed on the streets of Jump City. Beast Boy looked up at the dark night sky. The light from the city washed out most of the stars, but he could still see a lot.
Terra liked to be outside, Beast Boy thought. She liked the outdoors. That's where she belonged.
A fiery object blazed across the sky. Beast Boy watched the shooting star fizzle out of existence as it streaked across the stratosphere, so bright that it left an afterimage upon his retinas. He had never seen a shooting star so bright before.
He still couldn't believe that he had allowed himself to walk away like that.
Tears prickled the edges of his eyes. What if Robin was right? What if he had been imagining things? What if he was so desperate to see Terra again that he allowed his mind to play tricks on him? At the same time Beast Boy felt as though walking away was the right thing to do.
Soon Beast Boy managed to find them. Instead of fighting the strange monster they were at the Jump City Police Department discussing the situation with the local commissioner. They looked up when he entered the room. Honestly, Beast Boy felt a little uncomfortable walking in like this. He did feel a little guilty about ditching them when they needed his help. While he could be a slacker at times, Beast Boy wanted to be a reliable person. He could be a reliable, competent leader when he wanted to be. His leadership against the Brotherhood of Evil proved that.
"Uh…hi," Beast Boy said. "Did you manage to beat that monster—thing?"
"No," Robin replied bluntly. "It got away again."
Beast Boy had to stop himself from flinching at the coldness in Robin's voice. He knew that Robin and the others wouldn't be happy that he ditched, but he still wasn't ready for the lecture.
"We could have used your assistance," Starfire said.
Did the others really believe that he had ditched them on purpose? The Titans had dealt with worse things than that monster. For crying out loud, they just defeated the Brotherhood of Evil! A bunch of old guys who did all they could to bring down the next generation of young heroes. Beast Boy's ears drooped.
"I'm sorry," he said. "But I had to know."
The others exchanged glances. Was there anything they could say to him? Well, they had given him grief all day about him ditching the team. Beast Boy was prepared for more, especially from Robin. Sometimes the guy took himself way too seriously.
"Well, did you find anything?" Robin asked, crossing his arms over his chest.
"I'm trying to let her go." Beast Boy paused. "Slade showed up."
Well, that was partly true. At once the other Titans tensed. None of them had heard from Slade for about a year. Ever since they defeated Trigon Slade disappeared from the criminal scene. Truthfully, Beast Boy had expected to see Slade among the members of the Brotherhood of Evil. But it appeared as though the criminal mastermind thought himself better than those losers.
"What?"
Of course it was Robin who spoke first.
"Well, Slade didn't show up himself," Beast Boy admitted, "a Sladebot came and confronted me. Just like that time you became Red X."
It was out of rage that Beast Boy managed to flatten the robot. Robin had been barely able to defeat the Slade replica when he fought against it the first time. Unlike Robin, though, Beast Boy had powers. When he fought the real Slade on top of the Ferris Wheel he managed to hold his own. That was something Robin couldn't do, and Beast Boy knew that it pissed the Boy Wonder off.
"The Sladebot…" Robin said. This put Robin in a thoughtful mood. Suddenly his masked eyes widened. "The monster we've been trying to catch is a robot."
"The shape-shifting monster?" Cyborg asked. "A robot? I don't know…"
"When we were fighting it I managed to get pretty close," Robin said. "Its eye…it's a camera. As for its shape-shifting abilities, I've definitely seen similar types of creatures. For instance Batman and the Justice League fought off an Amazo before..."
He paused, as though surprised that he mentioned Batman. Everyone else shot him an odd glance as well. No matter how many times Beast Boy pressed the Boy Wonder to talk about his relationship with the Batman Robin wouldn't talk about him, let alone the entire Justice League.
"What's an Amazo?" Beast Boy asked.
"An android that is able to copy Metahuman powers. Once it stole all of the powers of all of the JLA members. While it doesn't seem to be an Amazo it could very well be a prototype or some variation of it."
How did Robin know these things? Guess that was a bonus that came with growing up with Batman and the Justice League.
"I have a feeling that it's been leading us on a merry chase," he said finally. "As a distraction."
"To distract us from what, though?" Raven asked.
"I'm not sure," Robin said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully, "but we're going to find out."
"But why would Slade be behind this?" Starfire asked. "This does not make sense."
"Yeah…since when have his robots been so sophisticated?" Cyborg chimed in. "We've always been able to beat the snot out of his robots."
Yeah, now that Beast Boy thought about it Robin's theory was strange. If the shape-shifting monster was indeed a robot then it was a pretty sophisticated one. But of course, Robin was the detective. Speaking of detective…
"Are you going to call Batman or the Justice League to make sure that it isn't an Amazo?" Beast Boy asked. "Because I don—"
He flinched at the death stare Robin gave him. Why did Robin have to do that? Sure, he understood Robin's desire for independence, but why did he have to act so cold towards Batman? Didn't he keep up with them on occasion?
"If it is then we'll be able to stop it," Robin said, "we don't need to Justice League's help."
Well, Beast Boy would love to meet the Justice League anyway.
"We'll resume our search for it in the morning," Robin said. "It'll be impossible to find it in the dark anyway. Let's go back to the Tower."
The others nodded in agreement. As they dispersed to go back to their rooms Beast Boy found himself staying behind in the common room. He wanted to be alone with his thoughts for a while. Right now he felt irked at Robin's coarse attitude towards all of this.
What was with Robin sometimes?
Although Beast Boy didn't want to think ill of his friend, he knew that Robin wasn't infallible. Sometimes he acted like he knew best. That attitude probably came from being raised by Batman. But over time Beast Boy noticed that Robin's tough guy attitude had changed over the years. He became a little more laid back. Still, Beast Boy knew that no matter how much time passed Robin would always get tense whenever Slade was brought into the equation. Beast Boy didn't blame him.
Beast Boy understood Robin's hesitancy to talk about his mentor because sometimes Beast Boy felt the same way. But what if Batman ever got into trouble? Would Robin take the Titans to go help him in Gotham?
Something told Beast Boy that he would.
-R-
Jump City, California
Titans Tower
Slade was back.
Robin ran a hand through his spiky hair. He knew that this day was going to come sooner or later. It had been a long while since the Titans had heard from Slade. They were too busy off fighting the Brotherhood of Evil in Paris to worry about what Slade was up to in Jump City.
"I'd rather you didn't see that," Slade breathed, placing his mask back upon his face. "But this is only a temporary condition."
Robin simply stood there will his mouth hanging open a little. For the longest time—ever since he had heard of Slade—Robin wanted to see the man unmasked. He knew Slade to be a hard, cold, calculating man. Not like this. It was strange, seeing this whole new side of Slade.
Several thoughts ran through his mind. All at once he pitied Slade's condition, but he couldn't make himself feel sympathy. This was a man who had died and who should have stayed dead. A man who had made others suffer. Slade didn't deserve pity.
That was the last time Robin had a "heart-to-heart" conversation with Slade. Now that they were arch-enemies again Robin wasn't sure how they would interact. Would things be different between them now?
No.
They were still enemies.
He didn't want to fall back into his old habits. Robin knew that his obsession with Slade had come and gone, but somehow the man kept coming back to him like a sadistic yo-yo. Even though they teamed up together to defeat Trigon Slade would always be one of the Titans' worst enemies.
His hands tightened into fists.
None of this made any sense. If what Beast Boy said was true about the Sladebot, then why would Slade get involved in something like this? Why would he bring his old apprentice back to life? Or, if he wasn't the one who reversed the effects of the stone, then why would he be defending her? Robin felt as if he was the only one who could answer this question. Although Slade wasn't as obsessed with him as before Robin felt as if he knew Slade the best.
Sure, Slade freaked Raven out during the whole Trigon thing. Sure, Beast Boy was mad at Slade for getting involved in Terra's supposed resurrection. But unlike the others, Robin had actually lived with the man. There was no denying the fact that he knew Slade the best. So what was his motivation for doing this? He didn't know.
And Robin wasn't okay with that.
He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck with a gloved hand. If the others knew that he was beginning to stir up old habits they would kill him. He didn't want to go back to his old self. More importantly, though, he didn't want to fall into the same trap as he did last time. Slade was a master of psychology, so even talking to him was like playing a mental game of chess.
Don't get too involved in this, Robin thought, remember what happened all of those other times. It never ends well.
Robin didn't want to make the same mistake again. But he had promised himself that before and he had broken that promise when the dust incident happened. Why had he let himself fall into that trap? Why is it that he kept falling for Slade's tricks over and over again? Well, this time Robin promised himself that if he needed help he would call the other Titans.
Even if it hurt his pride.
Robin glanced at the clock. It was getting late and he knew that he should go to bed. He knew that Alfred would tell him to stop acting like Bruce. Sometimes he needed a distraction. Turning away from his desk, Robin opened his laptop to check his email. He hadn't been able to talk to anyone back in Gotham for a while, since the team was busy dealing with the Brotherhood of Evil. His heart leapt when he saw that he got an email from Alfred. He opened it.
Master Richard,
Master Bruce and I heard about your team's achievement in apprehending the Brotherhood of Evil. I commend for that and I am sure that Master Bruce does as well. We miss you back in Gotham and hope that you will be able to visit soon.
However, I am speaking for Master Bruce here: you must call him, Dick. There is a matter that you two must discuss together concerning your future. Not only as Dick Grayson, but also as Robin. I will say nothing more on the matter, since this is something that the two of you must discuss on your own.
-Alfred
Robin read through the email again. Was Alfred implying that…that Bruce wanted him to stop being Robin? After rubbing his face and reading through the email again Robin became sure that that was exactly what Alfred was implying.
A future…his future…
He exited out of his email and powered down his laptop. Leading the Titans had always been Robin's top priority. Technically, Robin knew that he was still a minor and under Bruce's legal guardianship. Was it because he was nearing the age of eighteen?
He didn't know what to think.
After all of these years being separated from Bruce Robin thought that the man would finally get out of his life. But he supposed that he would always be at the end of "Batman and Robin" no matter where he went. As long as he was wearing this costume he would always be connected with Batman.
Why was he always connected to someone? Robin got up and left his bedroom, intending to go to the kitchen to get a glass of water. Now that he thought about it, he always seemed to be part of some team. First he was the youngest Flying Grayson. Then, after his parents died, he became Batman's sidekick Robin. When he had gotten tired of Bruce's controlling attitude then he moved to Jump City and formed the Teen Titans. And, even for the briefest time, he worked alongside Slade.
When would he become his own man? Did he have to prove anything to anyone?
He rubbed his forehead as he thought about these things. Now that things had quieted down a bit since their victory over the Brotherhood of Evil he actually had time to think about these things. Why was Bruce suddenly so interested in talking to him again? He knew that the Titans had proved to be a competent team. They saved the world from Trigon. If anything, the older heroes in the superhero community shouldn't be thinking of them as kids anymore.
As he entered the main room he realized that Beast Boy was still there. Instead of watching TV or playing video games he was just sitting there doing nothing. He shouldn't have given Beast Boy such a hard time about Terra…not after everything Beast Boy did to save the team from the Brotherhood of Evil. And Robin knew what it was like to lose someone you love.
"Beast Boy…I'd like to talk to you."
Beast Boy looked up at the sound of Robin's voice.
"I…I know this whole thing with Terra must be hard for you," Robin said. "Sometimes we just see what we want to see."
"How can you possibly understand, Robin?"
The boy wonder looked at him. He had never shared much personal information with any of the other Titans, except for that time when his suitcase was stolen. He showed them what was in his suitcase: a picture of his parents. A poster for the Flying Graysons.
"I've seen a lot of death in my life," Robin said, his voice nearly a whisper. "My parents were murdered in front of me. Believe me, Beast Boy, you have no idea how much I would love to see them again."
The changeling's eyes widened. Robin realized that he had much civil conversations with Beast Boy since he became a Titan. Robin thought of his own parents and of the pain he felt as he watched them fall to their deaths. For a moment Beast Boy fell silent, perhaps thinking about his own tragic past as well.
"So what are you trying to say?"
"Once before I tried to extract revenge on the man who killed my parents," Robin replied, "Batman stopped me from beating the man to a bloody pulp."
He could remember that night as clearly as he remembered watching his parents die. Although Beast Boy was probably the most lighthearted Titan Robin knew that Beast Boy held a beast within himself. Sometimes he was under the impression that Beast Boy hid behind his humor to hide the pain he felt inside.
"It's not worth it," Robin said, "to extract revenge. Someone else will end up getting hurt."
Yes, someone always got hurt. He had to help Batman limp home, since he got injured while fighting Tony Zucco's men. There were so many things he could go after Slade for, but unless the man showed himself then Robin wasn't going to go after him alone.
"It's just…I got so mad at him," Beast Boy said. "I've always been pissed off at Slade for doing those terrible things to Terra…"
"So you destroyed the robot? What if that was Slade? What if you had killed him?"
Beast Boy shot him an evil glance. For a moment Robin was reminded of just how much power Beast Boy had. He was reminded of the beast inside of the changeling. Robin's eyes narrowed as he felt himself tense.
"So?" Beast Boy asked. "Even if I did then he would be one less threat to deal with."
Robin didn't like Beast Boy's new attitude. Unlike Robin, Beast Boy could accidentally kill someone much more easily than Robin could. What he did was out of rage and rash. Before the changeling could protest Robin grabbed a fistful of Beast Boy's uniform.
"Listen to me," Robin snarled, surprised by his own harsh tone, "take that attitude somewhere else. When I worked for Slade he tried to train me as an assassin. He tried to teach me how to kill."
Beast Boy's expression softened, but Robin wasn't done talking.
"Think of your dead loved ones. If we kill then we'll sink just as low as the other villains. That's a lesson I learned on my own without Batman's help."
The Boy Wonder released his friend. For a good minute Beast Boy sat on the couch, mulling over Robin's words. Robin sat down himself and placed his head in his hand. He had never admitted to anyone before that Slade was an assassin. He didn't want to tell the others that Slade tried to teach him how to kill. The words simply slipped out of his mouth, and now he couldn't do anything to take them back.
The changeling looked down at the floor for a moment.
"Slade tried to train you as an assassin?"
Robin fidgeted when Beast Boy said this. To think that Beast Boy would be the first person he would admit this to…not to Starfire, or Bruce or even Alfred, but to the teammate that Robin felt he understood the least.
"Yeah," Robin said, "he's a mercenary."
"After all the horrible things he's done to us, haven't you ever once considered revenge?" Beast Boy asked. "While I was fighting the robot today I felt so angry…I didn't even care if I killed Slade."
"When I trained underneath him I won't deny that I thought about killing him if it meant saving you guys. Of course I've thought about revenge, but honestly I'm more worried about being the object of revenge."
Well, that much was true. As the former partner of the Dark Knight Robin probably had more villains out for his blood than anyone else on the team. There were people in Gotham—most of them now in Arkham—who wanted him dead.
"If Slade is involved, then what are we going to do about him?"
"Slade likes to play mind games. He'll always be our enemy." Then, in a voice almost too low for Beast Boy to hear, Robin added, "and always my arch-enemy."
He knew that Beast Boy had heard that. But that's how Robin always thought of Slade. They would always be enemies. Out of all of the Titans he held a much more personal grudge with the man. He knew that it was self-centered to think that way, but that was how he felt. They would always be at odds with each other no matter what.
"Dude," Beast Boy said, "he's my enemy as much as yours."
"I feel as though he's always coming after me." Robin grimaced. "He always taunts me…always comes after me…"
"I hate Slade as much as you do," Beast Boy said. "For what he's done to us…for what he did to Terra…"
This, then, was something that they had in common.
"If Slade is behind this then we'll defeat him together," Beast Boy said. "You and me."
Beast Boy raised up his fist. A little baffled, Robin lifted up his closed fist and watched in silence as Beast Boy bumped fists with him. A comical smile spread across Beast Boy's face.
"Come on, Rob," he said, nudging Robin in the ribs with his elbow. "Whatever happened to all of those puns you made when you worked with Bats?"
"I…don't really want to talk about Batman right now."
Robin didn't want to talk about the Dark Knight. Even after all of these years with his team he was still reluctant to talk to them about him. It didn't help that he and Bruce ended on such sour terms. A bad parting of ways that Robin never really apologized for.
"Listen, we should go to bed," Robin said. "I need to go to bed."
He turned away and headed back towards his bedroom. Robin didn't hear Beast Boy follow him into the hallway. Honestly, though, he had a lot on his mind.
-C-
The next morning Cyborg woke up bright and early, perhaps earlier than usual.
He was worried about a lot of things. BB was his best friend, and seeing him so distraught didn't do anything to help Cyborg's mood. Although he wasn't as close to Terra as BB was her betrayal and death did affect him.
He heard noise coming from the gym.
Intrigued, Cyborg diverted his walk to the kitchen to the gym. He had a suspicion that he knew who it was, but why would he be up this early in the morning? Cyborg opened the door to the gym and blinked in the sudden light.
Robin was jabbing violently at a punching bag, grunting loudly as he attacked the thing. What the hell was Robin doing up this early in the morning training? This was early, even for Robin. The Boy Wonder didn't pay any attention to Cyborg. He hadn't even noticed that the door had opened.
"Uh…Robin, what are you doing?"
Robin's head snapped up at the sound of his name. Sweat poured down his face and soaked his uniform. His cheeks were flushed red. His normally spiked hair was plastered to his forehead and his masked eyes were wide. For a brief moment Cyborg thought that Robin's face looked like that of an innocent child caught stealing candy.
Cyborg walked forward and placed a hand on his friend's shoulder. "You don't have to do this to yourself."
To his surprise Robin wrenched his way out of Cyborg's grip. He took a quick drink of water and then headed back to the punching bag. Cyborg watched him with a dumbfounded expression on his face. Sure, back when he was an athlete he worked himself hard…but never as hard as this.
"What is this all about, Robin?" Cyborg asked. "It's been years since you've acted like this. Is it because Slade's back?"
Robin's face twisted into a grimace, but Cyborg wasn't about to back down. He knew Robin well enough to know when something was wrong with him. In the weeks following the apprenticeship the Titans watched Robin train himself harder and harder, as though trying to prove to himself that he wasn't weak. Of course the others made him stop but sometimes Cyborg couldn't help but notice that Robin still did this to himself. No one could ever really wash away the physical and mental scars of the past.
"It's…well…it's just that…" Robin couldn't seem to find the right words to say. "It's not just about Slade."
"Then what?"
Robin began to wipe his face dry with a towel. A pained expression crossed his face as he looked up at Cyborg. The cybernetic teen crossed his arms over his chest. Sometimes the kid needed a little prodding. He wouldn't allow Robin to bottle up his emotions again. Before he could ask him again Robin spoke.
"I'm not sure if I'll continue being Robin," he said quietly. "I may have to leave the team."
Cyborg could not hide the shock on his face. "You can't do that!"
"But it isn't my choice, is it?" Robin asked, his voice still quiet. "I didn't start out as Robin on my own."
At once Cyborg understood the problem. Last night Robin must have gotten a call from his mentor regarding his superhero activities. But why would Batman do that? Wasn't the reason Robin left Gotham was because Batman wanted him to become his own man? Why would Batman suddenly take over Robin's life again?
"He's not seriously going to fly out here—"
"Maybe. Maybe not." Robin sounded a little defeated. "I have a feeling that I know what's it's all about though. Like it or not I have a civilian life. I can't do this forever."
Cyborg didn't know what to think. Robin was their leader, he couldn't just abandon them now. Not after all the Titans had been through together. Surely Batman understood that. Batman had to understand that. But at the same time Cyborg could see the logic in those words. While Jump City and Batman financed Titans Tower being a superhero wasn't exactly a day job. Robin was the only Titan without superpowers. The only one who could hope to lead a normal life here on Earth.
"What are you going to do?"
Robin sighed.
"Well, I'm not entirely sure yet. I have to call him sometime soon to talk about it."
"Do you believe that it's right to put away the mask now?" Cyborg asked. "After all we've been through?"
The Boy Wonder smiled weakly.
"I know that someday I'll have to stop being Robin. I just don't know when that day is. I'll figure something out."
He didn't sound too sure of himself. Cyborg never liked seeing his leader act weak. He himself wasn't sure how to feel about this. While he knew that Robin had a rocky relationship with his mentor Cyborg knew that Robin respected him and his authority. If Batman—or whoever was under the mask—didn't want him to be Robin anymore then Robin might just do it.
"Ok…" Cyborg said. "Just…just don't push yourself like that, ok? It's not healthy."
Robin let out a low sigh. "Fine. You're right. I shouldn't be doing this."
The Boy Wonder picked up his towel and began to wipe his face dry.
"Oh, and Cyborg," Robin said, turning back around, "please don't tell the others. Not yet, anyway."
The Boy Wonder hung his head and walked away. Cyborg opened his mouth to call out to him again, but then he decided against it. Robin was right. This wasn't something that the others had to know right away. And to think that this was coming after their grand defeat of the Brotherhood of Evil. Cyborg shook his head one more time before heading to the kitchen to make himself some breakfast.
-S-
She didn't sleep well these nights.
Starfire woke with a start. Slowly, she sat up in bed and glanced at her clock. It was so early in the morning. She didn't need to be up for another two hours.
Instead of trying to go back to sleep Starfire pulled the purple bedcovers off of herself and got out of bed. The first feeling that overcame her was confusion. Ever since they came back from Paris she thought that things would go back to normal.
They hadn't.
She lifted up her hands and rubbed her tired eyes. Fighting that strange creature yesterday did nothing to help her mood. Things had changed since they left Jump City. Buildings were torn down. People came and left. And Terra—whom Starfire had presumed died in the fight with Slade—had suddenly come back to life. Or so Beast Boy said.
The Tamaranean wasn't sure what to think about that. In her heart she desperately wanted Terra to be alive. Albeit the girl's sudden betrayal Terra had been Starfire's friend. Nothing could ever change the fact that Terra gave up her life to save the other Titans.
I really should go back to sleep, she thought.
Starfire forced herself to lie back down on the bed. Why did she feel so anxious? There was nothing particularly stressful going on besides this business with Terra. However, she had this itching feeling that she should call Galfore to ask about Tamaran. The Titans had been so busy fighting the Brotherhood of Evil that she hadn't had the time to check in with Galfore.
No, I should not be resting.
Starfire walked out of her room and began to walk down the hallway. Although she usually liked to keep an optimistic attitude about her several things had been gnawing at her mind. Even though she was here on Earth helping to protect Jump City she was still in line for the throne. If ever she needed to become the new Empress of Tamaran she knew that Galfore would step down.
To her surprise she heard voices coming from the gym. Immediately she diverted her steps toward the voices. Although they sounded muffled she recognized them as belonging to Robin and Cyborg. What were they doing so early in the morning? Her eyebrows furrowed as she tried to listen to their conversation. They sounded like they were arguing about something.
"-it's not my choice, is it?"
What were they talking about? As she stayed to listen she realized that Robin was speaking about not...well...continue being Robin anymore. What did this mean?
Before she could open the door or do anything the door swung open. Robin strode out of the gym with a grim expression on his face, his shoulders slumped as he walked stiffly away.
"Robin?"
She watched him stiffen as soon as he heard her voice. He spun around and faced her, the eyeholes of his mask widening in surprise. Even in the semi-darkness she could see his flushed cheeks and sweaty face.
"How much of that conversation did you hear?"
Starfire didn't know what to say. He just sounded so…angry. Robin stood there, shaking, unable to think of anything to say to her. For some reason she felt guilty for running into him while he was like this, but at the same time she knew that he needed her. He just didn't like to say it.
"Enough."
Without saying anything more she wrapped him up in a hug. As they hugged Starfire couldn't help but notice that he was getting taller. All at once he was the same boy whom she met her first day here on earth…and yet at the same time he was someone different. His voice had gotten lower. His muscles had fleshed out. She noticed that he sometimes had stubble on his chin.
"This is silly…" he said in a low voice. "I shouldn't be getting upset over something like this…"
"It is all right to be upset sometimes," Starfire said.
They broke apart. She knew that it was hard for Robin to express his emotions. He usually let his emotions bottle up until he exploded. She supposed that that was a result of being trained by the Batman.
"I don't even know what I'm upset about," Robin said, trying to laugh. "I mean, I don't know for sure what he wants to talk to me about…it's just…"
He trailed off. Sometimes it was difficult for Starfire to understand the whole concept of secret identities. She understood that he had a family that he needed to protect, a family outside of the Teen Titans.
"Crime-fighting has become such a part of me…fighting with you guys has become a part of me…I don't want to leave Jump City."
"I am sure that you will be fine, Robin."
He raised his hand and touched the edge of his mask. An odd sensation went through her as a small smile spread across his face.
"What if I decide to quit being Robin?" he asked. "If something happens…if I have to quit and go away to school…"
"What are you trying to say?"
"What I'm trying to say is this: we've been through so much together, Star. I want you to know who I am."
A shock tingled through her body when she heard this. As his friend Starfire had glimpsed his true face once or twice, but never long enough to see the color of his eyes. Always in darkness or when he needed to change quickly.
"You don't have to do that—"
Robin peeled away his mask and opened his eyes. Words of protest stopped flowing from her mouth as her breath caught in her throat. He had a pair of the most dazzling blue eyes that she had ever seen. Robin looked so different without the mask.
"Robin, you don't have to do this—"
"I think that it's been far past the point when I should you my secret identity," Robin said. "After all, Slade knows who I am."
Her green eyes widened at this. How could he say it so nonchalantly? The Tamaranean placed her hands over her mouth. Why hadn't Robin mentioned this before? As soon as Robin saw her horrified look a pained expression went over his face. He reached up and took her hands in his, squeezing it a little to comfort her.
"Why—why didn't you tell us?"
He merely looked at her, his eyes betraying more emotion than he ever could with his mask on. As though to reassure her that everything was fine he squeezed her hands a little. Yet somehow Starfire knew deep down inside her that Slade would know Robin's secret identity. It was the sort of thing that the criminal mastermind would do.
"It's not important," he said, looking away from her. "It happened a long time ago."
"What do you mean it is not important?" Starfire asked hotly. "This is something that you must share with your friends."
"Look," Robin said. "Can we talk about this some other time?"
He looked like he regretted mentioning that to her. But now Starfire was going to become insistent about this. She wasn't going to back down now that he admitted this her. She didn't feel angry just…concerned. Curious.
"Why did you not tell us?"
"Because I didn't want you guys to worry about me!" Robin snapped. "It's been three years, Star. Slade's not a threat anymore. I can take care of myself."
Although he tried to keep his voice straight she thought that she heard it waver. He had held back his fear before, and the other Titans didn't realize just how deeply that fear ran until someone activated the dust in Slade's mask.
Nervously, Robin avoided her eyes and examined the wall. Why did he always keep these things to himself?
"My name is—"
He stopped speaking when he heard a door open. Raven stepped out into the hallway.
"Why is everyone up so early?" she asked.
Raven paused when she saw them together, her violet eyes fixated on Robin's face. They widened slightly, but then the empath turned away. Without speaking Robin placed the mask back over his face. As soon as he did this the alarms began to bleep.
Trouble.
With a swish of his cape he turned towards the common room, ignoring the stares from both Raven and Starfire. This would have to be explained later. After a moment Starfire began to follow, several different thoughts whirling in her head.
Even with all of these crazy things happening in their personal lives it always came back down to this. It didn't matter what was going on: they had to respond to the city's alarm whenever there was trouble about.
Time to be a hero again.
-Rae-
"The JCPD has been tracking the thing for us," Cyborg said, his fingers typing quickly as he brought up a window displaying the areas in which the monster had been seen. "It's back downtown again."
Like everyone else, Raven felt miffed that they didn't bring down the monster yesterday. She wasn't sure if she agreed with Robin's theory that the monster was a robot, but then again she wasn't the detective here.
"Titans, move out!" Robin snapped.
They left the Tower and went downtown. All of the while Raven couldn't stop thinking about Beast Boy's story about what happened yesterday. Even though Beast Boy said that he let the supposed Terra go Raven could still feel his apprehension. It leaked from him like steam over hot water.
Raven wasn't sure how she felt about the whole situation. While she was also curious about whether or not the girl Beast Boy met was Terra, she felt as though there were more pressing matters at hand. Her relationship with the girl didn't end well. The last time they really interacted was when they fought in the mud, both women attempting to drown the other in a battle for their lives.
Soon they arrived in downtown Jump. Each of the Titans tensed, waiting for the creature to reappear. Raven didn't like fighting the creature. Robin's theory that it was an android or a robot actually made sense, since she couldn't sense the creature's mind.
And if his theory was correct, then why would Slade be behind this? Raven didn't like Slade as much as the rest of the Titans, though possibly more since Slade managed to frighten her badly just before Trigon came.
"If any of you spot the monster then notify me at once," Robin said through the communicator. "We have to bring it down together."
"Why don't we just call for backup?" Raven asked. "The other honorary Titans—"
"Have their own problems to worry about," Robin replied. "This is our city. We protect it. If things get too out of hand then we'll call for backup."
Always the strict one. Well, that was why Robin was their leader, wasn't it? Raised in Gotham and trained by the Dark Knight. It seemed as though he had a lot to live up to. Sometimes Raven felt as though Robin tried too hard to distance himself from Batman. Inevitably, he ended up exhibiting many of the gruff qualities of his mentor.
"Roger that," Raven said.
She glanced over at Beast Boy, who wasn't paying attention to the conversation. He gazed out into space, perhaps thinking about his meeting with the girl from yesterday. Raven forced herself to stop looking at him as her violet eyes gazed out at the skyline of Jump City. Once before she saw this city in flames when her father came through the portal to this world. She was glad that she had been able to do something to save this world she had come to love. To save the friends that had become her family.
"Let's just get this over with," Beast Boy said. "We should have taken down this thing yesterday. I should have helped."
Yes, you should have, Raven thought.
However, Raven didn't voice those thoughts out loud. It wouldn't do them any good if she caused strife between them. That wasn't what Beast Boy needed at the moment.
All at once their communicators began to bleep crazily. Everyone took out their communicators and flipped them open. Raven wondered who was on the other line. The JCPD?
"Titans! Good to see you all!"
Everyone tensed at the sound of that silky, dangerous voice they knew well. Beside her Beast Boy froze completely as he gazed down at his communicator. Raven couldn't help but grimace at Slade's ugly face.
"I'd love to chat, but I'm afraid that I have things to do," Slade said, "if you want to catch up, I suggest that you come and find me. I'm sure your leader is more than capable of doing that."
And with those words Slade's voice fizzed out of existence.
"We've got a lock on Slade's location," Robin said. "If Slade's connected with Terra's reappearance or the monster then we're going after him! Let's go, Titans!"
Beast Boy and Raven exchanged glances. It had been some time since Robin exhibited his obsessive behavior, but if Robin was right then they shouldn't think too much about it. Both Raven and Beast Boy leapt into the air and flew towards the column of smoke. It was clear that Slade wanted to get their attention.
Well, he certainly got it.
End of Act 1
A/N: Good? Bad? Tell me!
Even though I absolutely despise the episode "Things Change" the reason I despise it is because none of these plot points were ever resolved.
And yes, since I am a fan of writing Slade vs. Robin fics, there will be plenty of that rivalry tension here. Actually, I think there will a little something for everyone in the episodes to come.
Right now I'm trying to set up most of the plotlines that will be explored in greater depth in the coming episodes. I'm also continuing with my theory that Slade knows who Robin is. For those of you who read my other story "Dust" I kind of go deeper into my theories about that there. In the comics Slade definitely knows who Dick Grayson is.
Stay awesome, guys.