Disclaimer: I own nothing as usual

The Countdown

Everyone was born with it. A count down to your "soul mate." He was usually good at ignoring the tiny ticking clock that was imprinted on the inside of his wrist. He had been trained to ignore it and he had his heart broken by it. He had thought he had found the right person, despite his adopted father's opposition to relationships when there was a job to do.

Barbra had been funny, sweet, kind, smart and tough as hell. When Robin had first met her he couldn't help, but feel the butterflies when they shook hands. Once he was alone in his room he eagerly ripped back the cuff on his shirt to see if the clock had been drained to zero before it would fade away. He was disappointed when he realized there was still several time left. Maybe it took a while, he thought foolishly.

So they tried and they both hoped their clocks would realize that they did indeed find the one. But, they were wrong. It was a mutual breakup and they agreed to still be friends. He swore he would never look at the damn thing again.

It had been an accident. He was already growing frustrated with working with Batman after all these years. He wanted to get out and be his own hero. He was leaning against the shower wall, thinking of how to bring up the subject of leaving to Bruce. He dropped his head, letting the hot water run over his sore neck. His eyes fell on his wrist and the tiny clock was the lowest he had ever seen it. The shock nearly made him slip on the wet floor. He quickly did the math. It only had a week at best left. Maybe this was a sign that he needed to give him the push to leave…

Robin stood in a dark alleyway on the edge of Jump City. He smiled slightly at the thought of being in a new town where nobody knew who he was. It was time to step out of Batman's shadow and show what he could finally do. He was tempted to take a peak at his wrist, but he fought the urge. He had gently reminded himself that he didn't leave to find his "soul mate", but to be his own person. Besides the soul mate stuff was a load of crap anyway.

Suddenly, a bright green streak of light shot over him, moving towards the center of the city. His eyes were transfixed on it and he thought of how beautiful the color looked streaking across the sky. He watched as he saw it fall and crash somewhere in the city. It only took him a moment to snap out of his awed gaze and start running for the center of the town. No time like the present to start his city saving career.

The adrenaline pumping through his veins made him grin as he quickly scaled cars, his boots hitting the pavement hard. He rounded a corner, terrified people running past him, and skidded to a halt. A medium sized crater had been created right in front of the pizza and arcade place. He couldn't see much due to the smoke rising from the crater.

There was a moment of calm before the storm hit. Robin could see a pair of glowing green eyes through the smoke and as it cleared he was shocked by what he saw. A girl, who looked to be as old as he was, stood in the crater, teeth bared and wrist bound by giant metal cuffs. She had long, fiery red hair that wrapped around her armored body and tanned skin. Robin would have been lying if he didn't think she was the most beautiful (and terrifying) person he had ever seen. He watched her stumble forward into a crowd of curious by standers. She was yelling at them, in a language Robin couldn't understand, and thrusting her cuffs forward.

Someone took a photo of her, the flash causing her to cry out in pain. That's when the storm hit. She started heavily swinging her cuffs, slamming them on the ground, causing people to scatter. She ran over to the pizza shop and started slamming them into the structure that was holding the outdoor patio. Robin sprung into hero mode and grabbed a birdarang , throwing it straight at her. It was enough to knock her off her balance and get her attention.

Her eyes were still glowing a bright green and she was snarling at him. She started after him, swinging her metal cuffs as hard as she could into the ground. He flipped backwards to avoid falling, but she was quick to keep up with him. They moved throughout the city square, he only a half a second ahead of her. He flipped over her, throwing down an exploding disc to give himself some distance. He could see her glowing eyes through the smoke. He watched her for a moment, trying to decide what to do next. His whole body froze as he watched her foot slide under a car, kick it into the air and kick it towards him. He ducked just in time and stood back up to see where the car had landed.

"Stronger than she looks." He muttered to himself.

He turned and she was in front of him, swinging her arms and sent him flying back before he hit the ground. He groaned and realized his green glove had ripped from the impact on the ground. His eyes widened in great surprise when the clock on his wrist was flashing zero.

"You have got to be kidding me." He said as he pulled it closer to make sure his eyes weren't playing tricks on him. If the clock was at zero then this meant that this strange girl… "No way."

He turned to see her launching at him. He quickly pulled out his bo staff and knocked her back into a car. She looked un-phased as she pulled herself from the indented metal. The bo staff shattered in his hand, but that's not what was causing his heart to race like it was. He needed to think, but he needed to stop this girl, whoever she was. Before she could strike him a green bighorn sheep knocked her out of his way. Robin blinked and the green bighorn sheep was now a green boy. He shook his head and started looking for the alien girl. He had questions. Lots of questions.

"At your service, sir! Wowzers!" He said with a wide smile and stars in his eyes. "Aren't you Robin, sir?"

The sound of his name grabbed his attention and he looked back at the green boy who was still staring at him. So much for starting somewhere fresh where no one new his name.

"No need to call me 'sir'." Robin stated as it reminded him too much of Bruce.

"I'm Beast Boy," he said as he stuck out his hand for Robin to shake, "ex Doom Patrol member, sir."

Robin racked his brain as he shook Beast Boy's hand, trying to think of who the Doom Patrol was. His eyes swept the city and nearly popped out of his head when he spotted the alien girl just behind them.

"Uh, Beast Boy, was it?" Robin said as he spun the green boy around so they were both facing the same way.

The girl was lifting a bus with her bound hands. Robin blinked, admiring how strong she really was. He only had a moment to do so as she hurtled it towards both of them with great effort. They dove out of the way and Robin noticed out of the corner of his eye someone jump from the shadows and catch it.

"Must be my lucky day." Robin mumbled as he watched the bus get set down and a young man in a hoodie step from the shadows next to himself and Beast Boy.

"Yo, who's here wrecking my neighborhood?" The young man said.

Well, Robin thought, at least he was on their side. He turned to look at the girl who was standing just a few feet away from them. How could she possibly be his soul mate? She was trying to destroy him and for all he knew she could be dangerous criminal hell bent on destroying Earth.

"She is!" Beast Boy said as pointed to her.

All three watched as she raised her cuffs in the air and slammed them on the ground. The outer shell fell away and tanned hands were poking out from the bound cuffs. Her hands suddenly began to glow green like her eyes and Robin groaned internally. Not only was she super strong, but she could summon some sort of energy bolts as well.

All three took off running as she began firing like a machine gun. The onslaught only lasted a minute and Robin landed behind a car, turned and gazed out to where she was. She was breathing heavily and she sunk to her knees and for the first time since she had landed, she looked tired and defeated. Now was their opportunity to stop her.

"This girl is gonna wreck the whole city." The hooded boy said from next to him.

Soul mate or not, Robin wasn't going to let her destroy anything else. "I won't let her." He said as he slammed his hand into his palm, ignoring the blinking zeros. "I won't lose this fight."

He pushed himself out from behind the car, prepared to charge. He noticed Beast Boy and the hooded boy were right behind him. Although he didn't want to admit it, it felt right to be part of a team, not matter how small or quickly thrown together it was. Before they could even get near her a wall of black energy that was in the shape of a raven rose between them. A girl wearing a dark blue cloak stepped out from the shadows, her violet eyes narrowed in thought while looking at the alien girl.

"Maybe, fighting isn't the answer." She finally said as she looked away from the girl and locked eyes with Robin.

Robin's eyes widened for a moment. He had been so determined to fight and take down this girl when maybe, all this time, she was just looking for help. She clearly wasn't from around here and she didn't seem to speak their language. Maybe she was scared and she had fought back because he had dealt the first strike. He looked down at the blinking zeros and released a heavy sigh.

"You're right." He said as he put his weapons away. "Stand down."

The boy with the hood crossed his arms over his chest. "What, like you're the boss or something?" While Beast Boy said, "Roger, sir."

"Just give me a chance." Robin said a little more gently.

He looked at the dark, cloaked girl and she nodded his head. The black energy shield fell and he gathered his courage as he slowly approached the alien powerhouse still kneeling not to far from them. As he neared her she found her strength and pulled herself to her feet, pointing her glowing hands at him in defense. Robin admired her resilience. She must have been through a lot to keep going even when she seemed exhausted.

"Gokta!" She yelled, causing him to stop.

"Hey, it's okay," Robin said in a soft voice, trying to keep her calm, "I just want to help you. My name is Robin."

She paused for a moment when he said his name, but she shook her head and yelled again. "Gokta buhovna!"

"Look, I can help you if you let me." He said as he slowly reached down in his utility belt for something that could unlock her wrist. If she didn't trust him enough now, then they were doomed.

She stared at him, her eyes still glowing, but Robin only smiled in return. She needed help and he wanted to help her. Finally the glowing from her hands and eyes faded and she lowered her arms. Robin was surprised to see a pair of gorgeous emerald eyes, now softer and less terrifying, watching him carefully. He worked quickly to free her and the cuffs slammed to the ground between them. He tried to sneak a peak at her wrist, but her body armor covered them.

"There, maybe now we can-"

He was cut off when she grabbed him from behind the neck and pulled him in for a kiss. This was not what he was expecting. The soul mate thing had gone from zero to one hundred very quickly. Before he could even comprehend what was going on she had pushed him to the ground, her eyes glowing green again.

"If you wished not to be destroyed," She said in English, "then you will leave me alone."

She took off into the air, leaving Robin very confused on the ground. Not only could she speak their language now but also, she could fly! And she had kissed him! Robin scratched his head as he watched her disappear. He had thought they were making progress and that there was something to this countdown thing, now he wasn't so sure.

"So, I'm Beast Boy, who are you?" Robin heard Beast Boy saying just behind him.

Robin shook his head and stood up, brushing dust off of his uniform. He had to go after her. This wasn't how it was going to end. He at least needed to talk to her, figure out why she was here and if she needed help. He turned to see the other three people standing just behind him. Beast Boy was smiling between the hooded boy and dark girl, who were both looking at him.

"You're still going to go after her, aren't you?" The hooded boy asked like he already knew the answer.

"I need to see if she's dangerous." Robin said quickly. It seemed logical enough.

"More like if she'll give you another kiss." He responded with a slight smirk.

Robin blushed, but ignored the comment. He started in the direction he watched her fly off to.

"I'll come with you, sir!" Beast Boy said excitedly as he caught up with Robin.

"Seriously, stop calling me, 'sir'." Robin said with a hint of annoyance in his voice. He wasn't looking for an audience to tag along as he tried to confront his potentially dangerous alien soul mate. "And I'm not really looking to be part of team."

He strolled passed Beast Boy, a pang of guilt bubbling in his chest as he saw the look of disappointment cross over his face. He tried not to think about it. He wasn't in the business of starting a super hero crime fighting team. He didn't make it far as he heard Beast Boy scream, "DUUUUUDDDEEES!"

Robin turned around, running back to where everyone was standing. A giant space ship hovered into view right over the city. A projection of a giant green lizard like creature stood over the city, staring down at everyone.

"People of Earth, do not be alarmed," the creature said in perfect English, "we are hunting for an escaped, dangerous criminal. We will not harm any Earthlings and will leave in peace once we have the girl." A bit of a sneer crossed over the lizard's face as he said his next words, "But if we find that you are assisting her then we will not hesitate to destroy you."

The transmission cut out. Robin was still staring up at the now empty sky, his eyes narrowed. There was something wrong about what the space lizard had said and he didn't like the sneer on his face as he talked about destroying the city. Something wasn't right.

"And you're still going to go after her." The hooded boy said, grabbing Robin's attention, but this time he was smiling.

"Wouldn't hurt to team up, just this once." Robin said as he returned the smile. "I'm Robin."

"I'm-" Beast Boy started.

"We know!" All three heroes said before he could finish.

"The names Vic, but green dude here called me Cyborg, and I kind of like that." Cyborg said with a small smile, causing Beast Boy to grin widely. "So call me Cyborg."

"Raven." Was all the dark cloaked girl said.

"Let's find our alien girl." Robin said, causing everyone to smile.

The group had been searching the city for several minutes, avoiding the army of green lizards that was ransacking the empty streets, looking for the strange girl they were also searching for. They just hoped they could find her first.

"She's near." Raven said suddenly, causing the rest of the group to look at her in surprise. Raven blushed awkwardly. "I can sense things." She explained.

"I can pick up her scent!" Beast Boy said as he transformed into a bloodhound and began sniffing around.

"And I can pick up her heartbeat on my arm." Cyborg stated as he flipped open a panel with a small monitor and red lines running across it.

Robin had to admit he was impressed with the three of them so far. He was already thinking of how they could work together as a team. He quickly shook that thought from his head. This was a one time thing and once they had found the girl and gotten rid of the alien lizards he was off on his own again. Or was he? He was still trying to workout the whole soul mate thing. After this was all over where would he and this girl stand? If they made it out of this alive.

"So why is finding space girl so important to you?" Cyborg asked, breaking Robin's train of thought.

Robin's hand immediately went to his wrist with the blinking zeroes before he could stop himself. Cyborg had noticed and a small, knowing smile passed across his face.

"And I thought my soul mate situation was complicated." He said gently.

"It doesn't mean anything." Robin said as he looked away from Cyborg, his cheeks burning.

"Maybe." Raven, who was clearly listening, said. "Or maybe not." She held up her own wrist and both boys saw flashing zeroes underneath her blue gloves.

Cyborg's face broke into a wide grin as he looked down at the green bloodhound that was still sniffing around. "Gotta say, I didn't see that one coming."

"Hey guys, I think I-" Beast Boy stopped as everyone was starring at him. He watched as Raven quickly covered up her wrist. "Caught her scent…" He was still looking at Raven, his heart racing quickly as his hand clasped around his wrist where his own clock was imprinted.

"And I picked up her heart beat!" Cyborg said, trying to cut the tension.

The group took off and found themselves outside of a video game and movie renting store. The girl in question was stuffing her face with any and all snacks that were at the counter. She hadn't even bothered to take the wrappers off of the candy bars. She must have been deprived of food for a long while, Robin thought sadly to himself.

"You know those would taste better without the wrappers." Beast Boy said timidly.

The girl stopped, dropping the box of popcorn she was holding and turned, her green energy bolts glowing fiercely as she snarled at them. All four of them backed against the wall.

"Hey, we're friends, remember?" Robin said hoping she wouldn't try to take them out in such a small space.

"Friends?" She asked, her glowing eyes narrowing. "Why? For what purpose did you free me?"

"You looked like you were in trouble." Robin explained.

"We were just trying to be nice." Cyborg added.

"Nice?" She cocked her head to the side. "We do not have this word on my planet. The closes is weak."

"Well," Cyborg said sarcastically, "Around here nice means nice and if you want us to continue being nice then tells us why you're space lizard's prisoner."

"A name would be helpful as well." Raven added.

They were surprised when she powered down, her hands folding against her front and her eyes downcast.

"I am not prisoner," she said in a soft voice, "I am prize."

Robin's eyes narrowed immediately. He didn't like how that sounded at all. "Prize?" He growled.

"My name is Princess Koriand'r of Tameran." She stated a little proudly, meeting their eyes. Robin's jaw dropped. A space princess? His soul mate was a freakin' space princess! A space princess that could fly, throw energy bolts and was super strong. He rolled his shoulders wondering how he could ever be good enough for her. "In your language it would be Starfire."

"Starfire." Robin murmured, rolling her name around on his tongue. He liked it. He liked it a lot. He saw her give him the smallest of smiles as he said her name.

"What did you mean that you were a prize?" Raven asked, bringing them back to the task at hand.

Starfire's smile fell and her eyes returned back to staring at the ground. "My planet was invaded by the Gordanians and we were losing the battle. My father did not know what to do so he signed a treaty with the Gordanians offering me as a prize for peace."

Everyone stood in shock at her words.

"And what do they plan on doing with you?" Cyborg asked when no one else spoke.

Starfire shifted uncomfortably on her feet, still avoiding their eyes. "The Gordanians were transferring me to the Citadel to live out my days as their-" She hesitated for a moment, "as their servant."

Robin's fist had tightened with every word she said. He could only imagine the horrors that would await her if she was taken away by these creatures. He was not going to let that happen.

"And the Citadel are?" Raven asked.

"Not nice." She answer finally meeting their eyes.

"Then you're not going with them." Robin said immediately. He watched her eyes widen in surprise as he took a step towards her. "Not if I have anything to say about it."

"Don't you mean we?" Beast Boy asked with a grin on his face as he jerked his thumb at himself, Cyborg and Raven.

Before either Robin or Starfire could answer a large blast sent all five of them flying back into a shelves of dvds and games. A group of Gordanian soldiers stood in front of them, their spears glowing with bright electricity.

"Get her!" The one in front yelled, pointing a clawed finger at Starfire.

Starfire looked at the others and they all gave her the smallest of nods, a sign that they were with her. She smiled as she launched into action, the four other teen heroes right behind her. She was impressed by their strength and determination as they fought the Gordanians back. She flew out of the video store, charging her bolts and firing them at one of the soldiers. They got around her defenses and knocked her down. A soldier stepped over her, thrusting his glowing spear in her face.

"You're coming with us, Princess." He said with a sneer.

Robin wasn't too far from the fallen alien. His eyes widened for a moment before he grabbed the spear of the soldier he was fighting and flung the creature into the one standing over Starfire. She looked up at him and smiled. He could feel the butterflies flutter as he smiled back.

Beast Boy, in elephant form, and Cyborg knocked the last two soldiers back, causing the retreating group to fall over. The Gordanians cast a scared look towards the group and flew away before they could advance again. Beast Boy transformed back into his normal form and high fived Cyborg.

"Dude!" Beast Boy said, grinning madly at all of them. "That was so awesome! Raven, who knew you had such cool powers?"

Raven blushed, earning a smirk from Cyborg and Robin, but she just muttered thanks and tried not to make eye contact with Beast Boy. Robin shook his grin away as he remembered their situation.

"Now that we've interfered we need to prepare for the storm." He said more seriously.

"Trogaar will strike harder-" Starfire began, but she was cut off when a new transmission filled the sky from a small island out in the ocean.

"People of Earth," the voice said angrily, "you had been warned. Prepared to be destroyed."

The transmission cut out and a giant, canon like weapon started to rise out of the orange spaceship sitting on the island. All five teens watched in horror as it's shadow fell over the city.

"Great." Raven said as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"So after trashing a pizza place and a perfectly good video store, now we've managed to make a giant space gecko mad enough to vaporize our whole city?" Beast Boy asked as he pulled at his face in distress.

"Go team." Cyborg stated sarcastically.

"All the fault is yours!" Starfire yelled angrily as she turned to Robin, any sign of softness she had displayed earlier gone. "I commanded that you leave me alone, but you insisted upon the being nice!"

Robin stood there in shock for a moment. Was she serious? After everything he had done fore her and she was blaming him for this turn of events?

"My fault?" He fired back just as angrily. "You blast me, you kiss me, but you never stopped to mention they have a giant particle weapon?!"

"We are so doomed!" Beast Boy cried over Robin and Starfire's screams. He looked accusingly at Cyborg, "I can't believe I let you talk me into this!"

Cyborg looked affronted at the green hero. "Say what?! I was ready to walk before you-"

Raven looked at the four people standing in front of her arguing and yelling with each other (Starfire had taken to start screaming in her own language causing Robin to become even more frustrated). They were falling apart before they had even started. She needed them. Something much darker and dangerous was to come to past and she needed them more than she could ever admit. Not to mention Beast Boy was…

"QUIET!" Raven yelled, catching all of the off guard. They were all watching her and she took a deep breath. "Arguing isn't going to solve anything. We made our choices and now we have to deal with them."

"Raven's right." Robin said in a calmer voice. "We're in this together."

He looked around at all of them and they nodded their heads in agreement. His eyes lingered on Starfire a moment longer. Her anger had melted away and that small smile had returned to her face. He wanted to look at her smile forever.

"I have a plan."

Raven's dark energy faded as the five heroes took in their surroundings of the Gordanian ship. Beast Boy wrapped his arms around himself, shaking slightly.

"That dark energy stuff is-" He caught Raven's eye and smiled, giving her a thumbs up, "super cool!"

Robin motioned for them to move forward, but Raven hung back a little bit. Cyborg noticed and hung back to talk to her.

"Mind telling me why you're distancing yourself from us?" He asked with a gentle smile. "You were the one who got us to stop fighting."

"I don't really fit in and if you haven't noticed I'm scaring away my supposed 'soul mate'." She said as she threw air quotes around the word.

Cyborg placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "He's green, half of me is metal and she's from space. You fit in just fine." Raven smiled in return to his words. "And I wouldn't worry about greenie, he seems to love everything."

Raven blushed, but said nothing as they caught up with the rest of the group. Robin motioned for them to stop so he could peer around the hallway to make sure it was clear.

"I would like to offer my apologies." Starfire stated, catching him off guard. She was looking at him, her eyes wide and full of worry like he would yell at her again.

"Don't worry about it," Robin said quickly trying to calm the fear in her eyes, "I'm sorry I yelled too."

She laughed, her eyes flicking down to the ground for a moment before they met his masked ones again. "Again, you are very nice. Only my k'norfka has shown me such kindness." She said her hands held out in front of her.

"Well," Robin said as he started to reach out to grab her hands in his own, "things are different here."

Their fingers brushed together for a moment and Robin could see her cheeks go pink and he could feel his own burning as his stomach did giant flips.

"Uh, guys!" Beast Boy said, disturbing their moment. "I think they knew we're here."

Trogaar picked a piece of food out of his teeth, staring down at Earth with a disgusted look in his eye. His men readied the weapon and he was ready to give the order to fire. Not only would he be heavily rewarded for returning the Tameranian girl, but he was also getting to destroy a weak planet in the process. Maybe he would get to enjoy the girl before they handed her over.

"The Earth shall learn that it takes more than five juvenile heroes to defeat Lord Trogaar." He declared.

A sudden explosion caused the doors to the hallway to open. Trogaar looked over as the smoke cleared and the five juvenile heroes he just denounced stood defiantly in the entranceway.

"We're not five heroes, we're one team." Robin stated.

The launched into action, taking the Gordanians out one by one. Beast Boy had transformed into a kangaroo, knocking soldiers out of the way, clearing a path for Starfire as she blazed through, taking out her own soldiers. Trogaar had caught Beast Boy by the leg and threw him into the wall. Beast Boy transformed back into his normal form and slumped to the ground. Raven gasped and rushed to his side, throwing back a soldier that was about to attack the unconscious went hand to hand with Trogaar, eventually getting knocked into the wall, falling to the ground unconscious.

"Robin!" Starfire cried as she watched the boy that had been so kind to her hit the ground.

She and Cyborg came together, knocking out soldiers that were running towards them. The pair worked together well, taking out a few soldiers here and there. Their luck had run out, though, as both were soon knocked back to where Robin was just waking. Robin watched as Cyborg's arm looked like it was about to transform, but stayed the same as he settled on the ground.

"Can you rewire that into some sort of weapon?" He asked.

Cyborg looked down at his arm. "I can try."

Before he could give it a chance Trogaar stood before the three of them, angrily snarling at them.

"Valiant effort, but it seems your luck has run out." He said as he glowered down at them. "After I destroy your friends, I will punish you severely for you've done." He said as he looked down at Starfire.

Robin moved slightly in front of her (despite knowing she would probably be better suited to fight this monster more than he was). He wanted to protect her no matter the cost.

"Get away from my friends." Raven's voice said from behind Trogaar. "Azerath Metrion Zinthos!"

Black energy filled the area, slicing the front part of the ship and the weapon off, causing it to fall into the ocean. All of the Gordanian soldiers had been knocked out. One, last soldier, stood up, heading towards Raven and Beast Boy, who was being supported by the former. He sucked in a deep breath, growing at least another foot, his claws lengthening dangerously. He raised them to deal a deadly blow, the two watching helplessly, but before it could be dealt a bright white energy hit him square in the back. The soldier fainted and they looked to see Cyborg, his arm turn canon, smiling at them.

"Okay, I'm only going to say this once, boo-yah!"

The group stood on the small island, the sun rising in the distance.

"That's quite a view." Raven said as the ocean breeze softly blew threw her hair.

"Someone aught to build a house out here." Cyborg said in agreement.

"I think I know a guy that could make that happen." Robin said with a grin towards Cyborg.

Cyborg returned it. "I think I know a guy as well."

"Yeah, it'd be cool to live out here if you like sunshine and the beach!" Beast Boy said as he elbowed Raven, a slight blush creeping on his face.

Raven giggled, her stomach fluttering a little bit as he looked at her with curious and playful eyes. "You're pretty funny."

Beast Boy's eyes had stars in them as he looked at Raven like she was the most amazing person in the world. "I have a couple of jokes! Want to here them?"

Raven casted a worried look at the boys and the sniggered in response.

"Please," A voice said from behind them, "I look nice?"

Everyone turned to see Starfire. She had changed into a purple top, mini skirt and boots. The outfit contrasted greatly with her black body armor she had been wearing so far. Robin could feel his heart beating out of his chest as he looked at her. She was as radiant as the rising sun just behind him. He wanted to fall into her light.

"Welcome to Earth, Starfire." Robin said as he took a few steps towards her. His eyes flashed down for a moment to the blinking zeros on his wrist.

"May I stay here?" She asked timidly. "On Earth? The people here are very brave and most kind."

"You don't need our permission." Raven said with a kind smile.

"But if you want our friendship, then you've got it." Cyborg said as he pulled out three devices handing them to Raven, Starfire and Beast Boy.

"We make a pretty good team." Robin said as they each took their communicator, examining it with curious eyes. "I was thinking we could become one."

"I thought you weren't in the business of starting a team." Beast Boy stated with a bit of a smirk.

Robin looked over at Starfire, her eyes still on the communicator. The events of the past hours had drastically changed everything he thought he wanted. The way they worked together to defeat the Gordanians was something that couldn't be replaced. It didn't help that he had secretly decided he would follow Starfire to the ends of the Earth if she asked him too. He knew he was doomed. If he was going to fall, might as well fall hard.

"I've had a change of heart." Robin said as he finally tore his eyes away from her.

"You guys can all crash at my step-dads house until we can build something!" Beast Boy said as he pumped his fist in the air. "He's out of town for a few months on business. He'll never know we were there!"

Robin turned to Cyborg, "Think you can call up your guy?"

"Think you can call up yours?" Cyborg asked, but the boys were smiling at each other.

The group started after Beast Boy, who was babbling about all the things they could do together, when Starfire grabbed Robin by the arm, holding him back.

"Robin, may I ask you something?" She said in a nervous voice.

He was thrown off by her nervousness, but nodded his head, wondering what she was going to ask him. He was surprised to watch her pull off her gloves and hold up her wrist so that he could see blinking zeros imprinted on her tanned skin. His heart began racing as he just started at them. He couldn't believe that she had them too.

"I have been told that when you meet the person you are supposed to be with forever that the countdown reaches zero." She said, her smile warm and her eyes full of passion.

"I've been told that too." He said as he pulled off his glove, showing her his own zeros. "On Earth we call that person a soul mate."

"Does that make you my soul mate?" She asked, rolling the word around on her tongue.

Robin pulled his glove back on over his hand. "Honestly, I don't know." He watched her smile fall slightly and he reached out, hesitantly at first, and grabbed her hand. She looked at him, her eyes sparkling in the sunlight. "But I would love to find out."

Her smile returned, filling her whole face and Robin couldn't help, but smile in return. Together they followed the rest of their friends, the sunlight casting down on the beginning of something beautiful.

Some slight changes to the episode, but I enjoyed writing this! If you noticed I made some references to the comics. Got the idea (countdown to finding your soulmate) from a tumblr prompt a while ago and wanted to run with it. So I hope you enjoyed it! Please leave a review telling me what you think!

Vballqueen17