Sorry about the lack of author's note or anything on the last chapter. Thanks for all the reviews, guys! I think I got back to everyone. I was on vacation last week, so I may have missed some. If I did, sorry, but I still really appreciate the support! I don't think I'm going to do teasers for this story, because the chapters are going to be mostly drabbles, although I will let you know what the subject of the next chapter is going to be, so you won't be completely in the dark. I also realize that I forgot a disclaimer at the beginning of the fic, but you all know that I don't own Teen Titans. And if you forgot, there was your reminder. Alright, then. Let's get this show on the road.
Terra, the plaque read. A Teen Titan. A true friend.
Starfire floated in front of the stone girl, knees crossed and back hunched as she inspected her.
She'd known of this girl's existence, even before the cataclysmic clearing out of the city. Luckily, she'd been in Gotham for that. Or unluckily. It depended on how you looked at it, and Starfire wasn't quite sure how she did.
Starfire bobbed gently, leaning closer.
Although she'd known about the girl's existence, she hadn't known the specifics. What color were her eyes? They were open, now, frozen into steely gray rock.
It felt disrespectful, coming here. She wasn't a friend. She hadn't known the girl in stone personally. They'd never spoken. She didn't know anything about this girl, really.
And what made it worse was that she wasn't even here to mourn.
Starfire was solemn, but the kind of solemn that accompanied deep thought instead of sad feeling feelings.
So many thoughts swirled around her head. What did the Titans really think of Terra? She knew that Beast Boy especially liked her, and the others were kind to her.
What did Robin really think of her?
The thought scratched at the back of Starfire's mind, and she shook it off quickly. That didn't matter. Nothing mattered anymore, not for this girl… not for Terra.
Other thoughts that made her feel just as guilty crept into Starfire's mind. What if that were Starfire, frozen in stone, immoveable. She didn't know the specifics, but clearly something happened. Something the Titans couldn't prevent. They must feel guilty. But would they feel guilty if it was Starfire? The girl who they hardly knew, the girl who stole occasionally, the girl who almost brought Gotham to destruction by the hands of Gordanians?
Starfire landed. She felt strangely connected to the statue girl. She wished they'd met.
"Terra," Starfire whispered, her voice sounding too loud in the quiet of the cave that housed the girl. "I am sorry for what happened to you. The Titans-"
Footsteps. Starfire whirled around, ready for a fight. No. She doused the starbolts she lit as an instinctive reaction and paused. She couldn't fight in here. Not in front of the statue girl.
She also wasn't supposed to be in this cave-memorial. The Titans put a barrier in front of the cave. It was no more than black and yellow tape, similar to police tape that warned bystanders not to cross into a certain area. Starfire was not about to be stopped by something as flimsy as tape. If they wanted people to stay out, she decided, they should have set up a better barrier.
That was before she thought she would get caught. Now she was cursing herself for her curiosity, which she could never seem to get the better of. She sighed and ducked behind a rock structure that jutted out from the ground.
"Terra." It was Beast Boy's voice. "I… how are you doing?" He sounded so sad. It broke Starfire's heart a little. "I brought this. I thought you might like having this around. Something to look at other than dirt." An object, hollow by the sounds of it, was placed by the base of the statue. "I don't suppose you're gonna break out any time soon?" Beast Boy left a long pause, maybe giving Terra an opportunity to respond.
"Please," he said after the long pause. "I… Miss you. Even after everything you did… We all miss you." Another long pause. "Raven can't cure you. She doesn't know why. She thinks you're healing in there. But I told you, Terra, you control your powers. Your powers don't control you. You're hiding in there. I know it and you know it, too. You don't need to hide."
Starfire squeezed her eyes shut. She should not be hearing this. This was a private moment, and even if Beast Boy never found out about her presence, she was interrupting him. She certainly would not like someone to spy on her if the situation were reversed.
"Don't hide, Terra. Stop- stop hiding." Beast Boy's voice was rising in pitch. He was getting angry. Starfire put her hands over her ears, although that proved to be less than ineffective.
"Come out of there! I know you can do it! You can't just leave me like this!"
There was a bestial snarl and a very loud thump. The ground beneath Starfire shook a little. She peeked out in time to see Beast Boy transform from something large and hulking to his normal form. He panted angrily, his fists balled up, but his anger quickly melted away and he stared down in horror.
He'd knocked Terra off her base.
"T-Terra!" he gasped, horrified. "I'm sorry! No, no, no…" He scrambled over to her head and attempted to lift her by the shoulders. She seemed too heavy for him.
Starfire wondered why he didn't change into a more powerful animal to make lifting Terra easier, but he looked panicked and she supposed that he wasn't thinking clearly.
"I'm so sorry, Terra," Beast Boy choked, and she could hear tears in his voice.
Starfire couldn't handle this anymore. Very quietly, she floated next to him and gently lifted the statue girl, returning her to her place on top of the stone base. Beast Boy was sill sprawled on the floor, his legs in an M, his forehead in his hands.
She should go. He didn't want her here. "Um… Beast Boy?"
He snapped his head up at her, baring his teeth in a fearsome growl even without shifting his shape. His voice was hard and sharp as he snapped, "What are you doing here?" Shining tear tracks streaked own his face, and Starfire stayed meek. She wasn't frightened. She could overpower Beast Boy in his human form, and most probably even in his most fearsome animal form, although it would be difficult.
"I came to pay my respects," she told him softly. It was a lie. She intended to pay her respects, but she wound up battling her own jealousy. She tensed a little at the thought. How despicable of her to be jealous of the statue girl, knowing that she may very well be petrified for the rest of her days.
Beast Boy's entire body softened. "I'm sorry," he mumbled, and she wasn't sure if he was talking to her or to Terra. "I mean, you're evil-"
She was not, but she let it slide.
"-and Terra's here, and she's so…"
"It is the okay. She is your friend. You cared deeply for her. All of this is normal."
Silent tears leaked from his eyes. "She was my best friend. I told her no matter what… and then I… I couldn't protect her."
Starfire bit her lip, deciding. She couldn't leave him, not like this. She kneeled in front of him and took one of his hands, a supportive squeeze. He didn't squeeze her back and he just held his hand out limply, not fighting her hold at all. "Sometimes we make promises we cannot keep, not because we do not wish to keep them but because we do not know we cannot. True friends acknowledge that and understand."
Beast Boy surprised her by throwing his arms around her neck. He leaned into her shoulder, although she didn't think he was crying. She patted his back softly, soothing him into he pushed away from her an ran a hand through his hair, visibly feeling a little awkward.
"Um… sorry. I usually come by myself so that no one has to see… that."
"Do not worry." Starfire smiled kindly and helped him to stand. "It is understandable. May I inquire about the box, however?"
Beast Boy tensed up and Starfire regretted asking. She shot a guilty look at the sparkly, silver, heart-shaped box that rested at Terra's feet, now that she was righted on top of the statue base.
"I… made that for her. Before. Raven said I should probably keep it where I can't see it, but I didn't want to. So I put it where I can only see it sometimes." He scratched the back of his head. "Kinda stupid, I know. But I can't just get rid of it."
"No," Starfire said, shaking her head. "I think it is a good idea. Even if it hurts, it is important to remember. And maybe one day it will not hurt so much."
He smiled at her, dropping his hand from the back of her head. "Yeah, maybe. Thanks, Starfire."
"It is not a problem," she told him, smiling. "I am glad to be of help."
"Maybe you're not so evil," he mused, and she didn't know whether to be pleased or offended. "Um, so, do you wanna hear about… Terra?"
Starfire bit her lip again. She didn't, honestly. Her story was sure to be riddled with trials and unfairness and strife, but all that Starfire would feel was that knot of guilty jealousy that wouldn't go away. But Beast Boy wanted to tell her, and he looked as though he needed to talk.
"Yes," she decided. "I do."
Beast Boy sat and patted the ground next to him. Starfire took a seat there and he paused, unsure of where to begin.
"What was her favorite color?" Starfire prompted, hoping to set him at ease by asking about simple facts.
He smiled, memories apparently flooding into his mind. "Red. Her favorite color was red."
Yep. In chapter 13 of Reach, I had Robin mention Terra and Starfire knew who she was. That wasn't a continuity error; that was me having this in my headcanon. This is set between chapters 10 and 11, since chapter 10 was Transformation (season 2, episode 7) and chapter 11 was X (season 3, episode 2). There's a lot of time between those two chapters, and obviously this has to happen after the season 2 finale. I purposely kept Star out of the season finales, but that doesn't mean she doesn't know any of what was going on.
Next chapter: Star/X pilfering action.