Chapter 12: Broken Bonds

DISCLAIMER: I do not own any DC characters or logos.

After leaving her friends, the Tamaranian had begun to wander the corridors. It was a lonely time for her, having been abandoned by the person she had cared most for, only to meet him again four years later. On top of that, the former boy wonder hadn't even extended a single apology. While Starfire was no expert on Earth's customs, she was sure from past experiences that such treatment was considered rude. Bringing her thoughts back to the present, the alien princess began to realize how far she had gone while lost in thought.

Staring up the nearby corridor, she headed towards the light ahead. Peering into the room, she caught sight of the couches and plasma screen television on the wall. Remembering where she was, the young Tamaranian sat down and tried to rid herself of the anger and bitterness that she was feeling. Feeling the anger bubbling in her chest, Starfire lost control of her powers, sending energy from her eyes. The beam shot clean through the nearby wall, leaving a burned hole where the blast had hit.

Feeling a hand on her shoulder, the young alien jumped in surprise. Spinning around in alarm, she took a fighting stance, her eyes beginning to glow.

"Whoa… take it easy." Shayera said, taking a step back from the startled Tamaranian. "I was just wondering why you were remodeling the walls of the lounge."

Starfire took a deep breath, effectively calming herself for a moment. "You should not have startled me."

"You shouldn't be trying to demolish the room." The Thanagarian hero replied, looking slightly irritated by her lack of consideration. The two glared at each other for a few minutes until Starfire couldn't anymore. "My apologies…" she said, looking downcast.

Hawkgirl's cold expression softened for a moment. "It's fine… You okay kid?"

Starfire looked up at the Thanagarian, holding back the emotional outbursts that threatened to escape. "I am doing well." She replied with an uneasy smile.

Shayera lifted an eyebrow, looking slightly disbelieving. "I'm sorry if I don't buy that." She replied, taking a closer look at the younger hero. "What's wrong?"

The Tamaranian girl stared at the floor fro a few moments before answering. Thinking quickly, the alien girl put on a wide smile. "Nothing is wrong at the present time." She answered, grinning ever wider to emphasize her lie. Unfortunately for her, the older hero still wasn't falling for it, and continued to stare daggers at her.

"Oh, very well…" Starfire answered in defeat. Floating across the room, she landed on the couch. "Perhaps it would be best if I speak to someone… You will not tell anyone of this meeting, will you?" she asked.

"Of course not… It's between you and me." Hawkgirl replied with a nod. "You have my word."

"Thank you." Starfire replied, giving her superior a small smile. "The situation is concerning a man… There are… complications…"

Shayera nodded. "A man huh…"

"Indeed… I am… unsure of how I feel." She answered, looking even more depressed.

The Thanagarian nodded. "I think I know ho you're feeling."

At this, the young Tamaranian's head shot up in surprise.

Shayera smiled at her reaction, considering the younger hero's situation carefully. "Let me guess… You feel like whoever it was betrayed you… and you also believe that you may have done something to push him away in return." She replied.

Starfire thought about this for a moment, considering every aspect of her former relationship. After a few moments, she inclined her head in shame. "How… would you know?"

Hawkgirl looked slightly downcast, as if she too once felt the same pain. After a few moments, the Thanagarian answered. "Well… I know what it's like."

"What do you mean?" Starfire asked with an inflection of curiosity in her voice.

Shayera smiled knowingly. "I too know what its like to be an outsider on Earth. I also know what it's like to find love with a human man… and lose it." The Thanagarian warrior stared towards the floor in silence, the painful memories of her past beginning to resurface. After what she did, only a handful of people between Earth and Thanagar would trust her. She couldn't blame them, sometimes even she hated herself for the things she had done.

"Are you all right?" the curious Tamaranian asked.

Hawkgirl looked up again, turning back to the younger hero. "I'm sorry about that. Now… Tell me, did you do anything to cause the separation?" she asked.

The Tamaranian thought about it again, but couldn't think of anything in particular. "I… don't think so. Perhaps he found me to be an annoyance, or maybe he grew tired of my presence?" Despite her multiple guesses, she felt as if trying to find out the answer was no better than groping in the dark.

The Thanagarian sat back, an understanding look on her face. "Don't overanalyze it." She said. "Just tell me… do you care about each other?"

"Yes…" Starfire answered. "But I do not know if he still sees me as a friend who is a girl."

"You mean girlfriend, right?" Shayera asked.

The Tamaranian Princess looked slightly embarrassed. "Sorry… Despite my time on Earth, I have not still fully grasped the mechanics of the language."

Hawkgirl leaned forward again, looking suddenly serious. "That's not the point I was trying to make. I was just wondering if you still feel the same way about this man."

Starfire said nothing, but a large blush engulfed her orange complexion. Shayera saw her reaction and knew that nothing more needed to be said. "Well… judging by your face I can tell that you feelings haven't changed. If he really means something to you, I suggest you talk to him…"

The young Tamaranian folded her hands, and stared into her lap. Despite how conflicted she felt about the situation, Starfire wasn't sure what to do.

As Shayera left the room, she hoped that the young Tamaranian wouldn't make the same mistake she did.

WITH BATMAN

"I just don't understand…" Nightwing said to his former mentor. "What should I do."

Batman's expression remained devoid of emotion, but he was a little concerned for his former sidekick. "I'm sorry I can't help you. I'm really not the right person to talk to about this sort of thing."

"You're probably right about that. After all… you never accepted Diana's offer." Dick Grayson replied, a small smile appearing on his face.

Bruce's expression hardened as he glared at the former boy wonder. "You know I don't have time for that. Diana's a beautiful, headstrong woman… but romance within teams almost never works."

Nightwing gave a harsh laugh, looking slightly irritated. He realized that he had struck a nerve. "Yeah… maybe. Or maybe you're just afraid of commitment."

"Leave it be…" The Caped Crusader ordered, his eyes slightly narrowing.

"Fine." Dick Grayson said with a shrug. He wasn't surprised that Batman reacted the way he did. Despite what his former mentor said, Nightwing knew that Bruce Wayne was afraid that people would go after the woman he loved, just to get to him. It was the reason that he had always ended his relationship with every woman he had ever had romantic feeling towards.

Batman's expression changed. "If you need some advice, maybe you should just do what you think would work. Now get out…" the Dark Knight said, gesturing toward the door. "I have some cases to look over and I can't do that with distractions."

Getting to his feet, Nightwing was more than happy to leave the stubborn bat to his work. Walking down the hallway, he realized again that he was a lot like the man whose shadow he had worked so hard to escape. Seeing a light at the end of the hallway, he decided to see if she was there.

WITH STARFIRE

Looking up, she realized that Hawkgirl had left. Hearing the sliding doors, she expected to see Shayera, but was surprised to see who it really was. Nightwing stood in the doorway, his long black hair particularly noticeable now that she was alone with him.

"Hey Star… you okay?" he asked, looking genuinely worried about her.

Starfire looked away, attempting to ignore his presence, as he crossed the room. Stepping forward, Nightwing had a slightly awkward expression on his face as he sat down next to her. "Look, I…" he began, but the stubborn alien turned her back to him as she stood up to leave.

His expression became downcast. "I'm sorry." He forced out. Despite his many talents, Dick Grayson had never been great at expressing his feelings. Looking up, he saw that Starfire had frozen in her tracks with her back still turned to him. "I wasn't thinking about anyone else when I left the Titans. I should have… but I can't change the past. I guess I just wanted to make a name for myself so bad that I disregarded my friends." He finished.

Neither of them said anything for a while, it was as if they were both rendered speechless. The silence seemed to drag on forever, neither of them speaking. After a few minutes, Starfire turned around to face her ex-boyfriend. Looking into her eyes, Nightwing was glad to see that her icy expression had softened.

"I am sorry. Perhaps I should have been more understanding of what you wanted." She said, looking into his eyes. "But I wish to know something?"

"What?"

"I wish to know if what happened four years ago really meant anything?" she asked with longing in her eyes.

Nightwing smiled, but hesitated for a moment. "It did… it still does." He said.

With a squeal of delight, the Tamaranian leapt forward into his arms, circling the hero in a bone-crushing hug. Surprisingly, he made no attempt to resist her suffocating hold. Looking into her eyes, he pulled her closer, allowing their lips to meet. After a few moments, the couple separated.

"Nightwing…" she said uneasily. "Are you planning on leaving again?"

The young hero looked hesitant to tell her the truth. Not having the heart to say it, he nodded in response to her question. "I'm sorry… but I don't think it'll be as long this time." He replied. Smiling at her, the former boy wonder pulled a small device out of his pocket and handed it to her. "You can use that to keep in touch." He said.

Starfire grabbed hold of his arm as he turned to leave the room. "Can't you stay here with us? We can both be members of this organization." She implored.

Nightwing gave her a small smile. "I told you, I don't intend to join any team any time soon. I'm already a reserve Leaguer anyway, and that's enough for now." He replied. Seeing the pain on her face, the hero couldn't help but feel guilty about leaving. "I'll be back soon… I promise." He said to her.

Reluctantly, the Tamaranian Princess released his arm as she watched him walk out the door. She sat down looking a little weary from the emotional moment. The young alien wondered if she should've stopped him from leaving. Standing up, she decided to see her beloved off. She flew through the air, landing in the main hanger of the Watchtower just in time to see his form vanish into the light of the transporter.

The two other Titans sat at a table in the cafeteria, their ears pressed against a speaker. Deactivating his bug, Cyborg let out a laugh. "Shame it had to end like that… He didn't even say goodbye to us." The half metal hero said.

Raven shot him a disapproving look. "Be that as it may, do you think that invading their privacy was wrong?" she asked.

He shrugged in response. "We were just looking out for them." He replied. "So Rae, speaking of the Titans, do you miss Beast Boy."

The young sorceress indulged in a rare smile. "Actually, yeah I do."

Cyborg almost fell out of his chair. "Really! Who are you and what've you done to Raven?" he asked mockingly.

Raven smiled again. "Yeah… I never thought that I'd say it either."

NOTE TO READERS: I'm not really a romance writer, so I used some simple material and left it at that. Thanks for the reviews, I'm not kidding when I say that it helps give me the motivation to write more of the story. I'm going back to the main story in next chapter, and I will try to fit Beast Boy in somewhere in this story. Nightwing will ba back to, so don't worry. Keep reviewing.