Disclaimer- I don't own the TT.
Night Jewel
Story By StormDancer
Chapter 9
It is not light that we need, but fire, not the gentle storm butthunder. We need the storm, the whirlwind, and the earthquake.
"Why does that man have to be so damn confusing!" Raven yelled into the silence pervading her room, "Why does he have to be so damn right!"
She heard a few books fly out of the bookcase, but ignored them. Her concentration was already ruined, thanks to Him, so what could a bit more raging do? Her room began to blow, as if caught in an intense whirlwind. Loose papers, books, even the figurines were caught in the tornado of dark magic centered on the girl. The only thing in the room not to move was the obsidian knife tucked into her belt, though her cloak and belt and even necklace were twining about her.
"Raven?" the soft knock on the door interrupted Raven's ire, "May I speak to you?"
Raven's cloak settled back into place along with the rest of the room, although a number of the books were still on the floor, and it was far dustier than usual. Pulling up the hood of her cloak, she opened the door just as Starfire was raising her hand to knock.
"What?" she asked, not caring if her curtness hurt the sensitive girl's feelings.
"May I enter?" If there was one thing that endeared Starfire to Raven, it was the correct use of the words 'may' and 'can'.
Raven glanced around the room. It didn't look too much like she had just had a temper tantrum in there, not enough so that Star would notice or she couldn't explain away.
"If you want."
The door slid open the rest of the way. The moment it did so, raven was barreled aside by three figures rushing inside and slamming the door closed, as much as a sliding door could be slammed. Raven glared at Beast Boy and Cyborg, attempting deep, claming breaths.
"I will give you to the count of ten," she began, but Cyborg cut her off.
"This is an intervention, Raven."
The words took her so much by surprise as to cut off her fury entirely.
"What?" Her snap was half-hearted at the most.
"What did you do to Red X?" Beast Boy clarified. Raven's cloak flared away form her body in a burst of anger.
"What did I do? What did I do! That's not the question!" she exclaimed angrily, "The real problem is, what did he do? And why in all my father's hells is he doing it? He's messing everything up!"
"But friend Raven," Starfire interjected as Raven paused for breath, "What is this 'everything' you speak of?"
"All the rules! Everything that makes the world go round! The boundaries that make heroes heroes and thieves villains! My shields!"
"So you admit that you feel something for him," Cyborg said, quick to jump on the opening she had left him.
"I said no such thing," Raven contradicted, calm once more.
"Who are you trying to kid?" Beast Boy laughed, "Titans East is asking about it. Even Robin is catching on. What more do you need to know you're being obvious?"
"I don't feel anything," Raven repeated, hoping that if she said it, it would be true, 'He doesn't make me feel at all."
"And if you believe that, you are a khlorbag," Starfire stated calmly, "You know he makes you feel, and you are scared."
"I'm not scared."
"Uh, dude, stop denying you're scared," Beast Boy begged, "I don't feel like another haunted house."
He was treated to withering glances from all the teammates in the room.
"Not that kind of scared," Cyborg informed him loftily.
"I knew that," at the others' obvious skepticism, he frowned. "Really, I did!"
"Returning to the point," Cyborg announced, "Raven, just admit that you like the guy. As long as you keep him in line, no one cares that he's a criminal."
"I don't like him!" she asserted. Beast Boy dodged a flying book. She continued regardless, "and he doesn't really like me!"
Three amazed stares greeted her last statement.
"Dude, you're an idiot," Beast Boy said slowly, as if in great revelation.
"Do you really believe that?" Cyborg's amazement shone through every line of his metallic face.
"Friend, that is the stupidest thing you have ever said." Scorn dripped from Starfire's voice.
"What do you mean?" Raven asked, in real confusion.
"He saved your life," Cyborg began.
"But so have you," Raven observed.
"He told you his life story," Starfire asserted.
"Not anything incriminating."
"Enough that you could track him down, however," Starfire pointed out.
"Not really. Not a name, or even really a place. If I was anyone else, I wouldn't have a clue."
"But you are not just anyone, you are you. And you have resources that he does not truly know of, or so I would believe," Star contradicted. As she realized what she had said, she blushed and averted her eyes. "Not that I heard anything, of course."
"Starfire, never be an actor, okay," Raven admonished, "Because you can't lie for your life. How much did you hear?"
"I heard Robin's name and became like a cat," Starfire admitted, "I only listened until I perceived what you were speaking about, however. I let after that."
"Good."
"But from what I heard," the alien continued, "You could find out who he is, if you wished."
"But he doesn't know that," Raven explained.
"He took the chance," Cyborg cut in, "He's as suspicious as you, he might have considered you knew someone related to his story. He trusted you, Rae. And maybe its time to repay that trust."
"I don't trust anyone." She turned away, looking into the dark wall. The obsidian knife at her hip glinted, drawing her attention.
"Perhaps you should reconsider that," Starfire stated. Raven heard two pairs of feet, one light and one heavy, leave the room. She assumed that Starfire had floated, and the boys had walked out.
"He's not evil now, Rae." Beast Boy's voice proved her assumption wrong. She turned to face him. He was standing in the middle of her room, face uncharacteristically grave. When she didn't stop him, the boy continued, "Don't make him change that."
Raven's face was filled with confusion.
"Terra didn't go to Slade on a whim," Beast Boy explained, eyes bright with unshed tears, "I pushed her away. Don't make my mistake, Raven. Or maybe he'll be stone this time, and you'll be the one crying."
He walked away, pout of the room. Raven stared after him, too struck by the comparisons to think about the ramifications on Beast Boy of such a statement. She wouldn't push X over the edge, would she? Just because she had issues, it didn't mean he would be hurt by them. She wouldn't hurt him. She would never hurt him.
"You see, dear heart?" a too familiar voice hissed from one of the open books her rage had thrown on the floor, "You hurt everyone you love. If you let this boy in, you will hurt him. I am the only one to free you from the cycle. Liberate me, and you can love me without fear, for you cannot hurt me."
"I hurt you once," Raven retorted, refusing to be caught in the spell of his words, so smooth in comparison to Red X's rough, sincere compliments. Malchior chuckled richly, his voice reverberating throughout the closed room. X's only echoed through her heart.
"But never again," the dragon assured her, "Never again, my lovely Raven. You cannot hurt me, so I am safe. I am the one you were always meant to love, the sole being in the multiverse to be unafraid to let you love them."
"Not the only one," Raven said suddenly, a small, almost shy, smile spreading over her face, "Maybe there is another."
She strode out of the room without hearing Malchior's reply.
o0O0o0O0o
"Robin?"
"What?" he almost managed not to sound like a petulant child. But only almost.
"Don't act so immature," Raven scolded, "May I talk to you?"
He hit a button, and Raven padded in, her feet making almost no noise on his hard floor. Purposely hard, because it was so hard for people to move silently on it. Still, he only heard her because his senses had long been honed to pick up every detail, to never fail him. And yet they did, time and again. He couldn't keep anyone safe, not his parents, not his mentor, not his teammates, and not his friends.
"What do you want?"
"To apologize."
The words took him so much by surprise that for a moment, he forgot his anger. Everyone knew Raven never apologized unless under extreme duress.
"For what?"
"I've been treating you very rudely for only trying to protect me," she recited. He wondered who had coached her, and almost missed her last, muttered words, "However unnecessary it may be."
Those made him feel better. The words were Raven's, pure and unadulterated. He held back a smirk. He could milk the remorse a little bit longer.
"How do you know it's not necessary?"
He had meant it to be a joke, sort of. She took it seriously.
"I don't, not really. But Rob," she stopped, than amended herself, "But Dick, I want to take a chance for once in my life. I'm going with my feeling. I don't think he'll hurt me. And even if he does," her voice grew cold, 'I have experience dealing with those sorts of entities."
Robin had stiffened when he heard his birth name on her lips, but as she continued, he realized he couldn't be mad while she was bearing her soul to him. They were soul siblings. They argued, but at the end of the day, they both knew they had each other's best interest at heart.
"I don't think you can imprison Red-X in a book, Raven," he teased.
"Malchior was a centuries old dragon," Raven replied, voice anything but mirthful, "Red X is but a man. I can do much, much worse to him."
"I'd take offense at the 'but a man' comment if I didn't know what you were comparing men to."
Her look told him how not impressed she was by his wit.
"But in all seriousness, Raven, I'm sorry too," he tried to imbue all the sincerity he was capable of in his voice. He didn't like raven being mad at him. It was as bad as when Star was. No, not as bad, nothing could be that bad. But it came in a fairly close second.
"Good. Now we're even."
"I guess I was just being overprotective-"
"You think?"
"Shut up. I was being overprotective, and maybe, a bit jealous."
Raven's face was comically horrified.
"Robin, you like Star. Not me. Right?"
Robin laughed.
"Of course," he assured her, "Don't worry. But he's supposed to be my alter-ego. A reflection of me. I'm supposed to be the better half of him. So why does he get his girl before I get mine?"
"Because he had the courage to speak up," Raven informed him, "And he hasn't gotten the girl he's pursuing yet. He has a lot more wooing to do first."
She rose, but Robin stopped her from leaving.
"What do you mean, he spoke up."
"He started wooing me. You have barely made a move on Star. You're just lucky she's infatuated with you."
She slipped out of the room, leaving Robin looking after her, almost motivated by her words. A moment later, she ducked back in.
"Dick, you said you knew Roy when you were growing up. Did you have any other friends?"
"Yeah, one," Robin told her cautiously, hoping she didn't catch him not naming the boy. Wherever Jason was now, he really didn't want him mixed up in this business. Again.
"What happened to him? Did you keep in touch?"
"He disappeared. Ran away. Why?" Robin's voice was tight with guilt and anger. Anger at Raven for bringing it up and anger at himself, for being so weak.
"No reason, I just wanted to know. And Rob?"
"What?"
"Starfire was looking for you. She said something about a new cafe she wanted to try."
Raven laughed as she watched Robin scramble to his feet and bolt out of his room. Starfire was good for her soul brother. And it appeared Red X was telling the truth, he really must have trusted her. Maybe, just maybe, Red X could be good for her as well.