Chapter 5: It's Magic, You Know…
(Oh, Oh, Oh, It's Magic, You Know-Oh-Oh…)
The rest of the day went relatively smooth, with both teams steering clear of any 'work' related topics. They spent the entire time talking with each other, like old friends coming togther for a simple hangout. Of course, not everyone did much talking. Including the person who really was revisiting old friends.
Robin and Raven tended to stay out of much of the conversations, much to the displeasure of the others. Raven, everyone seemed to understand, as the Titans knew she wasn't social, and the Young Justice team seemed to quickly realize that fact. But the other bird seemed to be in a totally different world.
After the beginning of the conversation Robin seemed to tune everyone out. His mood was still tainted from the start of the day, and it didn't seem like idly chatting with the others would help any.
Batman, with the common theme of Slade coming up as well, ruined the entire day for him.
Finally, much to Robins relief, the sun was setting, and Kaldur suggested they turn in for the night. Everyone agreed, a few more enthusiastic than others, and M'gann proceeded to show the guests, sans Robin, their rooms.
Robin went his own way, socially exhausted from the grueling day. He trudged down the hallway like a walking corpse, not really paying attention to his noise levels as he usually did.
He had the pathway to his room in the Mountain memorized after the second visit all those years ago.
This was the reason he didn't have the same level of spacial awareness he was ingrained with. Unwarranted memories started laughing his mind as the ebony stalked to the room, and he found himself lost in his reminiscing. Which is why, when another body appeared around the corner, he ran headlong into them.
The ebony quickly backpedaled and opened his mouth to apologize. He mentally chastised himself for zoning out as badly as he did, the thought of what Batman would say to his carelessness flitting through his mind for a moment, before he shot it down.
Robin stopped in his tracks as he finally registered the smirking form in front of him. His mouth snapped shut and the apology quickly died on his lips, being replaced with a frown.
"Hello, Zatanna." he said monotonously, while the magician smirk seemed to deepen.
"What happened to Zee? Why do you have to be so formal?" she rested a hand on her hip, jutting it out as if to emphasize her point. Robin just sighed and gave her a scrutinizing gaze.
"Zee died when we broke it off, Zatanna. You should know that. After all, you're the one who broke up with me." Zatanna gave a small frown at that comment, but it immediately lifted into a bewitching smile as she stepped a bit closer.
"That's true, I did break up with you. But that was a long time ago, why don't we...start over?" she stated it in such a seductive manner Robin almost physically gagged. She had also taken a step further towards him, so they were only about a foot apart.
Robin was tempted to take a step back, but refrained. She might have seen it as a sign of weakness. He still had to tilt his head slightly to give her a small glare, but over the two years he had grown, so he was only a few short inches smaller then her. Better for intimidation and maintaining a strong front.
God, he was starting revert to the old instincts Batman first ingrained him with. This whole visit seemed to be poisoning him.
"No way, we're over. I'm not even attracted to you anymore. It was just a pre-teen fling, okay? It didn't mean anything." Zatanna frowned once again. Robin felt victory starting to swell in his mind, but it was quickly swatted away when the smirk returned a she laid a delicate hand on his shoulder.
"What happened back then doesn't matter. We're older, and I think we both know what were want." she whispered the last part as she leaned closer, their faces so close that he felt her warm breath on his face.
Robin quickly pushed her away and fought the blush off his cheeks.
"Really, Zatanna? I thought you were a better person than this. I don't like you, and I'm not sure I ever really did. Plus, I'm pretty sure I have deeper feelings for someone else close to me." Zatanna's frown went deeper with every word spoken, but a curious glint entered her eyes as she processed the last comment.
"Who? I know you and that alien aren't together, so is it someone else from Jump City? Or is it that brooding one in the cloak?"
"Definetely not the brooding one in the cloak, as you so eloquently put it."
Robin whipped around in suprise to see Raven standing at the end of the hallway, her hood uncovered and an almost dangerous glint in her eyes. The magicians eyebrows sprung up her forehead in suprise, not having heard her coming down the adjacent hallway.
"R-Raven..." a red tint graced the Boy Wonders cheeks, and he cleared his throat before continuing. "What are you doing out of your room?" Raven floated forward, coming to a stop a comfortable distance away from Robin. The empath gaze fell upon the magician, and they instantly hardened into a glare.
"I couldn't meditate or sleep. I could sense a pit of teenage drama across the hall." she deadpanned, Zatanna unconsciously shrinking into herself from the piercing gaze. Her cheeks turned pink in reaction.
"Well, you should just go try something else, because this has nothing to do with you. This is personal. For the both of us."
"I'm sure it is, and that's why I could feel Robins loathing and frustration while all I could feel from you was lust." at that sardonic remark, both of the teens in question turned as red as an apple.
"Um...I-I think I'll just g-go back to my room..." the magician proceeded to scurry down the corner, quickly disapearing from sight.
Raven simultaneously turned and floated back down the hallway she came from, giving Robin a small ghost of a smile and a wink as she turned the corner. Robin responded with a fond smile and a small shake of his head, his mood lightening slightly from the girls' banter around him.
And Ravens obvious victory. That was defientetly a plus side since it became apparent Robin wasn't going to win that one by himself.
With his mood now slightly lifted, he proceeded the short distance to his room. But as he reached the door and was about to key in the pass-code, his hand hesitated.
He expected everything to be the same as before he left, but that would most likely cause a new tsunami of emotions and past memories. And, quite frankly, he had enough of complicated emotions for one day. It was wearing him thin, and all he wanted to do was crash down on a soft surface and try to get a decent nights sleep.
It was unlikely his slumber would be absent of some of the typical nightmares, but it never stopped him from trying before.
Inhaling a deep breath, he pressed the code into the screen.
The door swished open, and a column of dust plauged his nose. He sneezed, but proceeded to walk into the room anyway. The air was musty, as if it hadn't been used for a while, and the only current circulating through the room was from the door, which slid shut behind him with a slight squeak.
The air was musty and stale, and every one of his possessions had a fine layer of dust settled ontop of it. Aside from the bed, which was a mystery Robin didn't have the brain power to figure out at the moment.
The only thing that was on his mind was solitude and sleep, no matter how fitfull.
Without a second glance at the objects he left behind when he got 'fired', Robin fell face first into the comforter and closed his eyes. He didn't bother to take off his mask or uniform, which he was sure to regret later, but right now he could only focus on the soft mattress beneath him.
After breathing a content sigh, his vision faded to darkness, all conscious thoughts being replaced by the nightmare plauged images that were sure to pop into his head periodically throughout the night.
Relatively short, and more of a filler if anything, but I REALLY wanted to have Zatanna, Raven, and Robin have a more separate meeting.
Also, sorry if Zatanna seemed REALLY OUT OF CHARACTER, but there are three reasons for that:
1.) I was never really sure how to write her in the first place, as she was always lower on my interest list for DC.
2.) I thought she would be a slight *cough* female dog *cough* after their break-up, and then when she sees the way Robins grown into his body, she's interested again, but not for the right reasons and she is being a TERRIBLE person, as Robin points out.
3.) It fits better for my story line if she's like this, as it adds a bit more clashing.
I would have written more for this chapter, but our town is celebrating…something, not entirely sure…and I have volleyball, pep band, marching band, and homework for school, so I just got this done as fast as I could between all of that, and as such, please excuse any and all mistakes whether they are grammar, or simply sentences that don't make much sense.
All of that aside, hope you enjoyed this filler chapter (it had SOME drama in it, it just wasn't very important to the story plot…), and things will be picking back up again from here!