Authors Note: Thank you for your WONDERFUL responses! I am so pleased that there is some interest in CATTS. As usual all important announcements will be posted at the end of the chapter. So see you down the bottom!
Chapter 2: A Whole New World
Robin blinked and looked around. He had no idea where he was, only one thing was certain he had never been here before. The barren landscape stretched out as far as the eye could see, marred only by red mounds that stuck out in odd places. Tentatively he took a step forward, the ground trembled and all of a sudden strange green objects shot out of the mounds. They fell to the ground with a soft plop and then to Robin's horror begin to crawl straight towards him. He couldn't tell what they were; they looked like little blobs with two beady eyes. They had no legs and made horrible squelching sounds as they moved. They seemed too tiny to pose any real threat but there were so many of them. Robin stepped back involuntarily. The blobs seemed to gain speed. Now Robin was no coward but he wasn't about to wait about and see what those blobs would do. Turning tail, he fled.
OXOXOXOXO
Raven rubbed her hands evilly as she stared at the kitchen door. "Any moment now," she whispered.
OXOXOXOXO
Robin stood panting by a rope bridge. It stretched out across a deep gorge and a small almost invisible river flowed at the bottom. For a moment he felt a twinge of fear and sadness as he remembered his parents and their death but shaking it away he took a firm step and then another leaving the safety of land behind. Pulling himself forward he ignored the squeals from behind him, the first thing was to get safely across then he could worry about…those things. But of course when there is a bridge in the middle of nowhere things hardly ever go smoothly. Thankfully for Robin the green things seemed to not be able to venture onto the bridge (why he wasn't sure.) Unfortunately they still seemed intent on killing him, if the way they were shaking the ropes was anything to go by. Robin wobbled dangerously and grabbed the sides. He knew he couldn't chance moving when the bridge was like this; he would probably be swung to the side and dashed to death on the rocks below. His only hope was to wait there until the creatures got tired and left him alone. Robin sighed. Some hope. Just as he was about to give himself up to the vicious blobs what looked like a grey comet hurtled out of the sky towards him. Before he could register anything he was in its arms being carried away even deeper into this strange land.
OXOXOXOXO
Starfire whistled as she jumped in a small puddle outside. It was such a beautiful day, it was a pity there was no one to share it with. As she moved her way into the shade of a tree she heard a small 'miaow' and looked down. There in the grass was the most adorable white kitten she had ever seen. It was almost as cute as Silkie. Smiling she picked it up and cooed at her. "Aren't you the cutest little kitty?" she whispered stroking its tiny head. "Aren't you a pretty little thing?" Suddenly Starfire's head seemed to split in two, she dropped the kitten yowling on the ground and put two hands to her head. She had no idea why it was hurting so much but less then two seconds later the pain (much like the kitten) was gone.
OXOXOXOXO
The grey figure delivered Robin safely to the ground and turned to go but then stopped. Robin stood staring at it hesitantly. It looked almost like a taller Raven except as far as he knew Raven didn't wear grey…Slowly it turned around and Robin gasped. "Starfire?" he asked excitedly. The girl shook her head, no emotion at all crossing her face. "No. Or at least I am one of many."
"Huh?"
The grey cloak billowed around her in the light wind. She was an exact replica of Starfire except for her clothes. Besides the cloak she wore a long grey skirt and a small thin strapped grey top. Her feet were bare and her hair was hidden under her hood but her green eyes still shone. However they didn't shine with the happiness and joy Robin was used to, they still glittered but they were empty. "Who are you?" he asked now half afraid.
The girl rose a little into the air. "Emotionless of course. I'm the only one here who doesn't feel anything."
Robin scratched his head. "You must've felt something or you wouldn't have saved me," he reasoned.
Emotionless stiffened. "I am slightly influenced by others here. Just because I do not feel does not stop me from doing what is right."
"You're looking annoyed now!" prodded Robin.
Robin swore Emotionless rolled her eyes. "This is pointless. I have things I need to be doing. If you know what's good for you stay away from the Grishnaks. I dropped you off in Happy's land so you should be all right." Without another word she shot up into the sky and disappeared in the fading light. Robin shivered. That girl was way to much like Raven inside Starfire for his liking. He now had an inkling of where he was. If that girl was one aspect of Starfire he was in her mirror. Of course he didn't know she even had a mirror like Raven's but that was beside the point. Right now he needed to find Happy and get out of here…before anything else happened.
OXOXOXOXO
Robin staggered wearily up to a small yellow house and fell panting on the ground. He had, had no idea Starfire's mind was this big! Did Happy really need to own all that land? And did Emotionless have to drop him off so very far away from her house? He stared hopefully at the door. Maybe Starfire…well Happy actually would realise he was there and waltz outside. He stared.
And stared.
And stared some more.
Then he moaned and buried his head in his cloak. Obviously no such luck. Maybe he'd just lie down here for a little longer, the ground wasn't comfortable but the sun was so warm and his cape rather soft...
OXOXOXOXO
Robin blinked and opened his eyes. He felt warm and he was lying on something much softer then his cloak. Somewhere nearby he heard a loud giggle. Bolting upright he stared at a room that was so yellow he could barely take it. The wallpaper was yellow, the furniture was yellow, his blanket was yellow and the girl sitting in front of him was practically yellow. She was wearing a summer dress that came up to her knees, a feathery boa and a big white daisy in her hair, she was barefoot and her hair was tied up in a messy ponytail. If it wasn't for the fact that she blended in almost perfectly with her home Robin would have been quite blown away by this version of Starfire, as it was he was a little scared. Starfire was a very happy person naturally so would her happy form be just like her or somehow…happier?
"Hello?" he asked hesitantly.
Happy giggled again. "Um can you talk?"
Giggle
"I'm Robin"
Giggle
"Can you tell me how to get out of here?"
Giggle
"Do you laugh all the time?"
Giggle
"Um…boo?"
Giggle
Giggle
Guffaw!
Robin almost fell off the bed at the loud burst of laughter that issued from the slender figure. "Oh!" it finally said gasping. "You are so hilarious! I thought that I should die of laughter!" Seeing Robin's alarmed look she placed a calm hand on his forehead. "Do not worry. It does not mean I will actually die. It is just an expression."
Robin nodded. "Right…so can you tell me how to get out of here?"
Happy stared at him for a moment still smiling then nodded back decisively. "Of course I cannot! I'm just too happy to know trivial things like that! Why I spend so much time being happy I do not even have a minute to find out why others are not!"
"That must be tiring," replied Robin playing along.
"Oh it is," said Happy. "But in a most delightfully cheerful way. But if you really want to leave this glorious land and my glorious domain I suppose you will have to visit Wisdom." Happy skipped over to a yellow cauldron on the hearth and sipped it. "Ow!" she cried. "That was a most happy kind of burn," she added a minute later after sipping a cup of cold water. Robin shook his head desperately. He liked Starfire a lot it was true but this was just too much. "So you were saying Wisdom…?" he asked urgently. Happy pulled a map out of her pocket and handed it to him.
"It would give me great joy to escort you but I am afraid there is much I have to do. Follow this map and you should be fine."
Robin's eyes widened behind his mask. "But Wisdom lives all the way across the plains!"
Happy beamed. "She likes to be able to sit and concentrate in peace. But is it not wonderful? You can visit all my sisters as you travel and I am sure they will all offer you food and shelter!"
Robin's face darkened. "Oh yeah? Even Fury?"
Happy's smile faltered for a second. "Fury is not really so bad…" she said unconvincingly. "But perhaps it would be better if you took this way around instead. Fury does not appreciate disturbing guests." Looking again at the vast map Robin clutched Happy's sleeve. "Can't you fly me at least part of the way?"
Happy shook her head in what could have been almost considered a sad way for her. "As I said I would love to but there is much I must be doing." Seeing Robin's frustrated look she perked up. "But I can take you to the edge of my land. That will be quite easy for me and not time consuming at all."
Robin sighed giving up. "Well thanks then," he replied trying to seem grateful. Happy tittered as she grabbed some dust from the cupboard. Robin had the feeling he could have said 'Go to hell,' and she would have still been unperturbed. Happy handed him a piece of yellow chalk and indicated the floor. "Draw a circle there," she chirruped.
Robin quickly drew an almost perfect circle on the ground, he looked up at Happy but she was still bustling around near the hearth. He bit his lip. If Starfire were there he was sure she would have cooed and told him how clever he was and…it's not that he needed her to say those things of course. It was just…nice. But he was interrupted again as Happy hopped into the circle with him.
"Here!" She popped a vial of sunshine liquid into his belt and then gave him another cup into which she had mixed the dust. "The vial contains a liquid which you may use if you ever feel you are in need of clear thinking. In some places a mind is quickly fogged up and once you lose your way it is not easy to find it again." Before Robin could interrupt she continued, the uncharacteristic seriousness was gone and a jovial look back on her face. "Now quickly drink up!
Robin tipped the cup to his lips and swallowed. He then looked quizzically at Happy who had jumped out of the circle. "Now what?" he asked impatiently but he had barely finished his sentence when the room began to spin. He was in a void, total blackness encompassed him and except for the odd tree or flash of light that zoomed past he was alone. He found he couldn't move, he was stuck, his legs wouldn't obey him, he could do nothing, he was sinking, falling and he couldn't escape…
With a thud he landed on the ground gasping. For a moment a yellow circle seemed to glow around him before it faded into the ground. He stood and stared out at the plain in front of him devoid of growth, sunshine or life. He looked back at the fertile green that surrounded this plot of land and the small sunflowers that waved in the breeze. Taking a step forward he disappeared into the gloom; into sadness.
Authors End Note: So I wonder which emotion will be next. (Please note the sarcasm) Anyway hope you all liked this as usual but I must tell you even though this chapter is rather long please don't expect this length for other chapters. Sadly my creative genius (haha) usually expires at 1500 words. Also this story focuses on Robin. I'm sorry to Raven, Beastboy and Cyborg fans but they're really not going to do much. Starfire is a main character because all her emotions are present but she herself won't be there much either. Isn't Robin a lucky thing? The lone star…Well my blabbering is finished for today so bye!
Pet Peeve: Characters that are too perfect. There are a very select few perfect characters that I like such as Sakura from Cardcaptors. Come on, she's pretty close to perfect but she's just so cute. And Star is too I suppose but she's very naïve and innocent so I don't think of her as totally all rounded. I HATE Sora from Digimon. Oh my gosh, she's like Little-Miss-Crest-Of-Love, all the boys like her, she's athletic, a tom boy, caring. Her only problem is she's a bit insecure. Grr, makes me so mad. In Inuyasha, Kagome's ok but just because they make a cute couple. I like Sango so much better (then again I haven't watched that many episodes so…) If you've read a book called Eragon I hate Arya! If they get together I will die. She is so up herself…(mad grumble) And in Harry Potter! Ginny is just about tolerable but that's it. I like Fleur more then I like Ginny for goodness sake! It's like they're supposed to be absolutely beautiful, always in these amazing situations saying witty things and being so wonderful!! So that's my rant for today. Feel free to comment (and disagree lol).
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P.P.S. I apologise for all the abrupt scene changes. It must be a phase.