FudoTwin17: Hey, guys.

Cat: She only just realized she hasn't updated in forever.

FudoTwin17: Yeah. *ashamed* I hope no one imploded or exploded from waiting (I'm so sorry!). But I do actually have some legitimate excuses. The first is that my aunt died. The second is that one of my really amazing drama club friends died. The last is that I'm really sick and really drugged.

Goldfish # 4: VERY drugged.

FudoTwin17: Which reminds me! I'm sorry if I have grammar issues or misspell something or say something stupid. Ugh! I dunno. Right now isn't the best, but you've been waiting forever for an update, so I figured it's long past time to give you one.

Dog # 1: She doesn't own TT or YJ.

Chapter 13

The large room had suddenly lapsed into another silence. It made the aura around the grouping of heroes and heroines so heavy and electric that the huge room felt almost crowded and claustrophobic. In a way, it seemed to be choking those in the room, making it hard to breathe and even harder to speak in the veil of silence.

Finally, Raven seemed to have enough. "So . . . . Robin led you into the souvenir room?" She urged dryly, noting how the team, formerly lost in obviously painful memories, quickly reeled themselves back into the present.

"Yeah." Kid Flash swallowed a lump in his throat. He shifted uncomfortably, one hand gliding up to his messy red locks automatically. He closed his emerald eyes, blocking the Titans from view, pretending that everything had gone exactly how he'd wanted it to. "He and Artemis were backed in. Zatanna and I were trying to get to them, but . . ." He swallowed again, eyes opening just enough to stare through dark lashes at the floor. "I-Well, we . . . we were too slow."

If I'd been just a little bit faster, He couldn't help but think, I could have saved him. We'd be having fun at home the way that we should be right now. We wouldn't be separated. I wouldn't not know him anymore. We'd be best friends.

Artemis clenched her hands together tightly, ignoring the light pain of squeezing too tightly. "We were doing okay for a while. We took out three of them while waiting for the others. We'd informed them of the situation so that they could meet us at the center of the battle instead of us breaking away to find them. Since we detoured into KF's souvenir room everyone knew where we were."

Gray eyes haunted with past memories, mistakes, and regrets slowly closed. She felt her hands begin to shake more in their locked position. She took a deep, calming breath before finally looking up at the curious gazes sent her way.

She didn't want to say it. She didn't want to say it!

Her voice was soft like a whisper when she finally spoke again. The others had to lean in to hear her trembling voice. "It was my fault."

. . .

"Only two left!" Artemis exclaimed happily, notching an arrow as quickly as she could. "And I still have plenty of arrows!"

It was hard to believe that the two of them were doing so well against such skilled opponents. They would surge forward, and then the two humans on the team would push them back. It was a constant battle that seemed to go a bit too long, but it was definitely in their favor.

However, Robin didn't crack smile. He was wearing a dark expression as he stared them down, fighting with a controlled vigor. His outlook was almost brooding, almost like Batman-stoic and intimidating. "Don't let down your guard." He didn't say why or give any real hint at encouragement. For a moment, just a moment, it startled her.

But she jumped back up quickly, fighting with everything she had. It was then, arrow notched and her hand firm, that one of the robots made it's final mistake. It just barely turned it's head away from her so that she could see the crevice between the metal plates at it's neck and chest. A smirk her sister would be proud of lit up her face as her arrow sailed forward, hitting the crevice so perfectly that it slid all the way across and stuck out at the other side of it's neck. She watched, satisfied, as it threw sparks and twitched before powering down.

"Artemis! Watch it!" A force suddenly slammed into her so hard that she lost her grip on her bow and found herself sprawled unceremoniously on the ground. Her landing was much less than graceful, and it took a second to blink the stars from her eyes. Once she had, though, she was startled by the blurry figure diagonally in front of her as it seemed to solidify, surrounded by light.

She blinked again. "Robin?"

However, when the light finally evened out, and the world around her made sense again, horror hit. The figure belonged to Robin, but she knew all too well that the shining gold and purple were symbolic to one specific hero that she nor the rest of her friends had any love for.

"Doctor Fate," Artemis whispered in complete horror, her lips parted in a silent gasp.

. . .

"Your fault?" Repeated Starfire, sounding a bit more than surprised. She seemed oblivious to the looks of sympathy and disbelief on the older team's faces and quickly rushed on. "Surely not! As a friend of Robin, you would never willingly place him in harm's way! No, you're his friend. You wouldn't do that."

Artemis rose her gray eyes sadly, her beautiful irises swimming in regret and abandon. "No. It was my fault."

There was a short silence in which everyone in the room seemed to be suffocating, their ability to breathe being affected by their inability to process. Finally, Raven spoke. Her eyes seemed to flash slightly as if she were trying to understand the situation before passing judgment. "What happened?" Her bluntly stated inquiry immediately stirred the room's occupants.

It was almost surprising how stable Artemis's voice was as she spoke, her voice like a rushing river as it trapped each and every one of them within it's rushing current, dragging them along whether they wanted to continue or not. "I was stupid. I took an easy shot without considering the consequences. Because of that, one of the robots, the last one, managed to get the upper hand. Robin saw it when I didn't and pushed me out of the way. The blast-The bast knocked him into a shelf. When the shelf collapsed on top of him, the Helm of Fate fell on him."

Though the Titans (or at least most of them) didn't seem to understand the importance of the statement, they seemed to infer from the way that Artemis's voice cracked, and the way the other team stiffened that it was terrible, something painful that they didn't want to remember.

It was as the Titans were getting up their courage to speak that Artemis stood. "Excuse me." She stated, turning and disappearing from sight. There was a short moment of silence before a rush of wind blew back hair and loose articles of clothing. It took all but Cyborg (who's sensors had picked up on what had caused the wind) a moment to understand that Kid Flash had run after his blond teammate.

"I-I'm sorry." Spoke Starfire after a moment, discomfort obvious in every word. "I do not know what the Helm of Fate is."

Their Atlantian leader blinked before giving her a tired smile. "I see. I apologize. I didn't realize . . . ." He trailed off, shaking his head. He pursed his lips. "Have you heard of Doctor Fate?"

"Of course!" Beast Boy exclaimed, his eyes lighting up. "He's one of the older League members. He used to show up all around the world to fight evil!" The way the preteen grinned made Aqualad wince slightly. After there was no enthusiasm shown from the team, the opposite really, Beast Boy's smile slowly fell.

"Yes. He was one of the older League members." Kaldur confirmed slowly, his expression schooled to give away no emotion. In a way, that was telling enough. "However, his costume is not entirely a costume."

There was a short pause before Cyborg, his face full of confusion, spoke. "Say what?"

Kaldur licked his lips, sorely tempted to leave the room and head after Wally and Artemis. Of course, though, he knew he couldn't. He was the leader. This was his responsibility. "There is a spirit contained by the Helm of Fate. We call him Doctor Fate. When the user places the helmet on themselves, their body is no longer theirs. Doctor Fate has complete control of the host body."

"That's horrible!" Exclaimed Starfire, her eyes wide at the very idea.

Kaldur chuckled. "Yes, it is. It is unpleasant seeing your body fight, feeling the pain of battle, and yet having no control over the situation."

Unpleasant. Kaldur knew very well that the world could hardly describe the complete anxiety of wanting to help-needing to help yet being completely irrelevant to the situation. It was a terror beyond words and a pain that couldn't be described.

"You sound as though . . . you went through it?" Raven slowly spoke, her voice betraying her in the form of a hesitant question. Once again, Kaldur found himself shifting uncomfortably, and he couldn't help but watch as her dark eyes flickered in recognition of his nervousness-a sign that she was the only one to seem to notice.

"Yes." He replied softly.

He was immediately thankful when her eyebrows furrowed, and she moved her gaze away, thinking about her leader instead of the other's leader in front of her. "And the Helm of Fate fell on Robin." She murmured softly. She peered up at him through dark lashes. "What happened next?"

"Doctor Fate beat the last robot and went in search for the others. However, it was when he was done that caused the rift between us and Robin." Kaldur stated, his eyes moving away from the Titans sitting on the edge of their seats to his own team. He took in Zatanna and Miss Martian's misty eyes as well as the way Conner's hands had fisted. Faintly, he noted that the younger Robin had disappeared. His eyebrows rose in surprise. However, he quickly pushed it away considering that the Titan's leader was also missing. He sighed, turning back to the other team.

"What happened?" Whispered Beast Boy, appearing more than just invested in the story.

"He . . . He did not want to give Robin's body back." Kaldur began slowly.

Beast Boy's breath caught. "No-No way. You're joking!" The youngest exclaimed, eyes wide.

"I'm afraid it is true." The Atlanian softly murmured. His smile was weak, wry, and it hid none of his true thoughts. "He used Robin's body to return for a time. For-For nearly a year, he was back. He worked with the League and away from them, going around the world and helping people." He sighed heavily. "He did things that Robin would have done."

"But-But-" Starfire's eyes were teary. She didn't seem to know quite what to say. However, their youngest did.

"But he's a hero! One hero shouldn't steal another hero's body!" Shouted Beast Boy, jumping to his feet.

"I may agree with you." Murmured Kaldur in a soothing tone. "However, it already happened and cannot be undone. What is most important is that we got him back."

There was a light scoffing sound behind him. Kaldur's lips thinned, but he said nothing as none other than Superboy spoke, eyes flashing. "We never got him back. He may be in control of his body, but he's never really come back."

"What do you mean?" Cyborg questioned, fidgeting only slightly.

"When Robin came back, he was off." Whispered Megan, her big, brown eyes dropping painfully. "He-He was in complete solitude for almost a year with only Doctor Fate to talk to. Suddenly being pulled out of that solitude was hard to get used to. He came back angrier, quieter. He didn't prank anyone, barely spoke, hardly ever joked, and he got into arguments-fights more. You should have seen him and Batman-" Her voice broke and she looked away.

"As much as I don't like to admit it, she's right." Zatanna whispered, eyes tearing up. "He was different, and-and-" Her voice broke for a moment before it returned, wavering only slightly, "and it was like we lost him all over again."

Silence swept over them, keeping many of the heroes' weeping hearts at bay.

. . .

Artemis hugged her knees to her chest, sitting against the wall. It was a random hallway, but it was far enough away that she was sure she'd hear anyone coming. It made sure that she couldn't be sneaked up on, though she knew it was almost useless against a bat or-

"Hey."

-a speedster.

"Hey." She murmured halfheartedly to the first Kid Flash. Her gray eyes struggled to life their heavy gaze to the boy, but in the end, she let them remain firmly glued to the floor.

"Mind if I join you?" Wally questioned. She bit her lip, nodding quietly. She shifted only slightly when she felt his arm brush hers. She couldn't help but wince at the light touch. She just wished that she could be left alone. Alone, just like Robin was for-

"You know, it wasn't your fault." KF began, his voice too serious. "I mean, he never blamed you, and none of us ever did either. You were just there when the incident happened. I mean, it's not like any of us could have done anything to stop it. I wish we could've, though. I-I honestly believe that we were just there. All of us. The-The guilt we fell is-isn't right. It's survivors guilt." The way his voice continuously cracked made Artemis wince. "But no one could have done anything."

Artemis didn't raise her eyes, but she did wince in surprise when she felt a firm hand underneath her chin. She winced once she'd looked up, staring at emerald eyes. "It wasn't your fault."

Tears gathered in her eyes. However, she held them back. Artemis didn't-wouldn't cry. She couldn't, no matter what. "He pushed me out-out of the way. If he hadn't-"

"If he hadn't, then you would've become Doctor Fate, and Robin would feel like you do right now." Artemis winced at the blunt statement. "The only difference," Wally went on, "is that he wouldn't talk about it. He'd always be convinced it was his fault. He'd never get over it. It would be one of a million of other things on his mind that would forever haunt him. It would simmer and bubble, and he'd turn into Batman."

Artemis flinched as if she'd been slapped. As much as she hated-loathed herself for what had happened to Robin, she couldn't deny Wally's words. They were fact. She knew it just as well as he knew it.

"So," Wally began again, his voice just a little bit stronger as he studied her face, "I'm-I'm almost glad it was Rob and-and not you."

The blond blinked in surprise, lips parting in a silent gasp. For a scary moment, she suddenly understood everything. Wally was the other immature kid in their group (despite being two years older than Robin). He was always pulling pranks and messing around. The two of them were best friends-practically brothers! So how did he feel when, right after he pulled Zatanna down a vent with himself, his little brother had his body stolen? Artemis could remember how quiet he'd gotten after Fate appeared. It was like he was the one who's body was stolen, not Robin's. He'd probably gone over how things could have turned out thousands of times in his head. What if he and Zatanna hadn't fallen? What if they got rid of their robot just a little bit faster? What if he were as fast as the Flash?

The archer couldn't help it as she stared painfully into her friend's eyes. She couldn't help it either when she caught the dark circles under his dull green eyes or the red rims around his eyes. She couldn't help but wince at the sight.

It's not your fault.

Artemis had always been a firm believer in the idea that actions spoke louder than words. However, she knew that her firm belief in the saying was mostly because she wasn't that good with words. But that never mattered before, and it certainly didn't matter now. She was good at actions-very good.

Slowly, she crept forward, noticing as gloved hands moved through her hair instead of remaining below her chin. She took one last rickety breath before pushing soft lips against another chapped pair.

The two pushed away rational thought, replacing it with primal feeling and pain-so much pain.

. . .

Jason couldn't help it as a laugh, real and joyful, bubbled up out of his lips. It was the first time that he had so much fun on patrol! Sure, he'd had fun before but not like this, never like this. He never had his hero laughing alongside him nor was he praised for simple things. He never even considered the fact that taunting villains could be as great as the rush of jumping through the air, the wind rushing through his hair, constantly competing in a jolly game-a race.

The young partner wished that he had more fun with Dick before this. It hurt a little that he never had Dick to enjoy life with. The manor could get a little lonesome after all, but he would give the world for just this one moment.

He grinned as he realized that Dick was gone, a laugh echoing around him. He slowed to a stop, noting that he was somewhere in the urban part of town. In other words, he was completely surrounded by shops that emptied themselves by ten at night for fear of monsters in the night. He chuckled, scanning the area for his big brother by moonlight.

It was fairly quickly that he noticed a comical shadow looming over him. He knew almost immediately that it was a joke. The shadow was that of a giant bat, the shadow that terrified hardened criminals to death in Gotham.

Suddenly, the boy was tackled, and, in a giggling mass of tangled limbs, the two were wrestling on the street. Though it may have looked rough and a bit unfair from anyone else's point of view, Jason could only see it as proof that he did indeed have a brother. Soon, the two of them were huffing (Jason more than Dick, to his displeasure), sitting on the top of a pizza joint.

"So, what's the team like?" Jason asked, fidgeting. He couldn't meet Dick's gaze as it fell heavily onto his shoulders.

The truth was that, despite being happy at the strange, immediate acceptance by Dick, that didn't make it any less odd having a brother or dissolving the hurt of being left behind for the Teen Titans. And, as much as Jason had been around them since the start of the mission, Jason didn't really know them. He took a deep breathe, forcing himself to look up into white lenses.

"Well," Dick began thoughtfully, "Cyborg, the oldest, is pretty levelheaded. He's pretty fun, he likes his tech, and he's Beast Boy's best friend. He gets mad sometimes, but I've never seen him make a completely wrong choice before-err, well, except once when he brought a piece of pie with an evil mother attached back to the Tower, but that's a story for a different time." Dick said with a sly grin.

Jason couldn't help a light snicker.

"Then there's Raven. She's the most hopeful person I've ever met." Dick rubbed his chin, obviously in thought. He continued slowly. "Out of the team, we probably know each other best. She's sarcastic and a bit quiet, but she's very smart and extremely loyal. Sometimes, she loses faith in herself, but that's why we're here-to help restore it."

Jason smiled. From the simple explanation, he already liked her. She sounded . . . cool.

"And then there's Starfire." Dick began once again, an odd smile on his face. "In a way, she's the mother of our group. She keeps us together. She worries about us. She's a great person, caring, optimistic, and very helpful, but if she ever offers you food she made, don't eat it."

Jason chuckled halfheartedly. He wished that he could smile and be happy for Dick, but . . . he just couldn't. It was hard to be happy for Dick when the biggest wish of his heart was for him to return to Gotham. He'd pictured the Titans as almost rude, evil, selfish people that stole away family, but now . . . . Jason knew he was wrong, but he couldn't quite get rid of that feeling-blaming them.

But he couldn't help but really blame Starfire. She kept their group together whenever it was ready to fall apart. She was the mother-the glue. And when Dick talked about her, there was this tenderness in his face. He'd only ever seen that look on one person, and she was still in Gotham, waiting for both Robins to return.

"And we can't forget Beast Boy! You're a bit older than him, but I can see you two getting along." Dick smiled, leaning forward just a little bit. "He's a prankster. He's fun, but he can get serious." His smile left for just a moment before it returned. "He's a good kid. He enjoys life. You'd like him."

Before Jason could speak or make a silent judgement, a loud bang interrupted the silent night. As it regestered in his mind that that noise was a gunshot, strong arms were around him, and he was moving into the street-no, one of the many alleyways. Dick released him, his face showing none of the emotion it formerly had.

"Come on," He began, "We've gotta-"

Jason's big brother stopped himself, staring at either side of the alleyway where none other than Dick's parents blocked the way. Both exits were unavailable to him. Jason gritted his teeth. This was bad, really bad.

. . .

FudoTwin17: Ugh, you have no idea how long I've been working on that.

Cat: A really long time, especially counting when the laptop would shut off LibreOffice, and she'd have to rewrite parts.

FudoTwin17: Ugh. Rewriting some of this was like dying inside.

Dog # 1: Oh, well. It's over now. Please review!

FudoTwin17: Yeah. R&R! Bye, guys.