Post Script

(One-shot) (slightly revised) An addendum, an after thought to "Things Change." Things are also changing for another one of our other favorite couples. RobStar
It would be among the last times that they broached the topic of their relationship, if there ever was such a thing. And although Robin was a skeptic when it came to love and being able to find the one perfect soul mate, he realized, in retrospect, that if ever there was a person meant for him, it was and always would be Starfire. Haplessly, amidst all of the "almost" moments that they had, the tender moments of friendship that they shared, they were too busy living as superheroes, fighting crime, caring for their friends to ever delve further into the issue of their relationship.

He hadn't seen her so melancholy since Terra's betrayal as she stepped out from Beast Boy's room. She still floated and greeted him with a brief smile, although she approached him slowly, as if forcibly pushed along by an invisible gust of wind.

"How is he doing? Has he said anything about what happened back there?" He asked her, in hushed tones as they walked towards her room where they could safely talk about their teammate without fear of being overheard by Beast Boy.

"He is sleeping now…I am very glad for that." She seemed to wish to say no more as she looked contemplative, her mind needing some sort of introspection before it could fully grasp hold of a newborn resolution, but Robin's continued gaze upon her indicated that he was not quite satisfied with her response. "So was it true-did he really find Terra?"

"He did. Beast Boy- he did not tell me everything, although from what I have gathered, Terra will not be rejoining us. It appears that her actions appalled and pained her so that she has decided to forget her past entirely, even the pleasant memories of her time with us, with Beast Boy, in an attempt to begin anew."

"Maybe we should try to find her. If she lives in the city, she can't be that hard to find with Raven's empathy and Cyborg's technology. She doesn't have to rejoin the team, but if she doesn't have memories of ever having powers, she could be in danger, and it's our responsibility to warn-"

To his surprise, though, Starfire interrupted him with gentle, but firm "No, we should not." She sighed softly for a moment and proceeded on, choosing her words carefully. "I believe that what Terra did though…this is for the better …for all of us. Terra was our friend, and I shall never forget that…I shall treasure each memory I have of her dearly, but we should not-we cannot afford to live in the past. If we were able to find her and restore her memory of everything, would it not merely cause her more pain, in the end?"

She paused for a moment as she looked towards him- green eyes meeting two blank, masked ones. "On Tamaran, we were taught that betrayal among friends was among the most terrible crimes to commit, not only for their effects of treachery, but also for the damage towards friendship it causes. Even if we were to assure Terra that we have completely forgiven her and are willing to receive her again as a friend, I believe that there will always be a barrier between us…for the guilt of one who has betrayed, even for one who has redeemed herself, can never truly dissipate."

And in silence, they both remained for several moments, both contemplating, while one came to a fearful realization. It was as if she was suddenly plunged into water, and she was struggling to stay afloat as she grasped him by the shoulders. A sudden outburst, a spark of sorrow as the words spilled from her lips. "Oh Robin! What if this is the beginning of the rekmas? I do not wish to drift apart from Cyborg, Beast Boy, Raven, or you…I fear that we are all starting to change and that there is no longer any sort of stability and…" Here, she stopped, seemingly unable to continue as she wrapped her arms about him in a tight embrace stifling a sob. He did not resist her as he shakily lifted a palm to stroke her back, to console her.

"Not all change is bad Star…"

It took her a moment to compose herself and when she did she appeared a tinge paler and a bit more vulnerable than usual. "I apologize for being overly emotional. It is simply that I began to imagine our team's parting, and I cannot bear the thought of being parted from-from…" He could not bring himself to find words of comfort although he knew that she was in desperate need of it, but could only mutter, in a more demanding tone than he intended "From who?"

"From you Robin…" The words reverberated within his mind as he subconsciously segregated himself, physically, from her. He had always been trained to foster as few connections with others as possible…romantic relations were of course, looked upon as liabilities; love could not only be a weakness for enemies to manipulate him, but it could endanger his loved ones as well. He recognized that there was always some sort of attraction between Starfire and him, and although there had been several times…seeing her at Kitten's prom, when she was endangered in battle, that he reasoned to himself that since she was also a superhero, she could protect herself, that he would not let her become a liability. Yet, Slade upturned his assumptions.

There she was, before him again, tears dripping from her face like blood as Slade attacked her mercilessly with the nanoprobes. As much as it panged him to admit, he could not bear to take such risks…to see her crumple to the earth, ravaged and hurt. Batman had been right all along. To be a hero, to be a true hero, was to be alone. If he was free to give himself away, he would have loved her, proclaimed it in an instant, and although he wished to convey it in words, he couldn't seem to find the proper words to do it, and in his gestures and expression, he found himself balked and awkwardly still, as if she had said something quite terrible.

He desperately tried to string words together as he watched her anticipatory, nervousness fade to a melancholy, despondent sort of smile; words, how fickle they were, seemed ungraspable to describe his current thoughts. How he wished that he could be with her but that he could not risk her safety…perhaps, it would be implicit in his actions and she would speak for him, ask him the proper questions so that he could begin to properly speak…

"I…I am sorry Robin, but I am quite tired from the day's excursions. Please excuse me." Without another word, she shut the door behind her.

"Starfire-wait; I…" He raised his hand to knock upon her door, but stopped and could not find the courage to do so though he stood in front of her door for several minutes…perhaps it would be easier this manner…and what did one night, one miscalculated moment matter?

Yet, as he walked from her room, the hallways seemed to echo with her voice. But we should not-we cannot afford to live in the past.

A.N.: This still isn't up to par with what I really wanted this one-shot to be like, but it's a small slight step closer. I always enjoy it when author notes contain some sort of commentary on what they themselves thought of their piece (a bit like a DVD extra feature) so here are my two cents:

I initially really disliked this piece, but it was slightly redeemed (although I'm still not completely satisfied) by the prose and the portrayal of Starfire. Also, I do agree with reviewers that it isn't quite as emotional as it could be, but I do like how it's a bit more open to interpretation now and a bit more in tune with the aura of the actual episode "Things Change." Essentially though, it's now more or less a snapshot rather than an actual full-fledged one-shot.

I originally had a more conclusive ending that I had tacked on before, which takes place a few years in the future as Robin, now Nightwing, reflects upon his decision as he receives a wedding invitation from Starfire. That was cut out though b/c rereading this it felt terribly excessive and dragged the ending out. I may revise this once again and maybe start it with a glimpse of the future as Nightwing gets the invitation and then splice it with the past. Who knows lol.

Anyhow, do review and let me know what you think of this so that I can improve.