Chapter four: My Immortal
[Disclaimer: Get off my back, I know good and well that I don't own the
song "My Immortal" by Evanescence, so just give it a rest, will ya? Oh,
yeah. I don't own Teen Titans, either, but if I did the clouds would be
jealous!! ^___^ ]
It had been nearly a month since Robin's fight with Slade. He was healing
fine, and was even allowed to come back to Titans Tower to make the rest of
his recovery. He spent most of his time on the roof, looking out at the
ocean and thinking about different things. Sometimes it was Starfire,
sometimes it was the relationship between Raven and Beast Boy, and
sometimes it was absolutely nothing at all. Most of the time, though, he
thought about Starfire. How she laughed, how she questioned the things she
did not understand, and how she just...was. She had been beautiful in his
eyes, even for all her naïveté. Some would have thought of it as stupidity
or ignorance, but it wasn't like she had been born on this planet. She was
from another planet, in another galaxy...and she had loved this planet, and
the people who lived there.
Robin had been to see Starfire's grave. It was beautiful. It resembled a
float in the Rose Parade, given that every florist in Jump City had donated
flowers of all kinds. Though it was the middle of winter, they had been
able to get roses, sunflowers, daisies, chrysanthemums, and lilies, among
countless others that Robin could not name. The headstone was engraved with
a line from Starfire's favorite book, Through the Looking Glass: "The time
has come, said the Walrus, to talk of many things. Of shoes and ships and
sealing-wax. Of cabbages and kings. And why the sea is boiling hot, and
whether pigs have wings." It was wrestled out of Robin before the funeral,
and under the quote were the words "Beloved Titan, Departed This World
2003." Robin had decided that if he thought of Starfire, he wouldn't cry
anymore. He would think of the things that made him think of her in the
first place, the things he loved about her.
Then it all hit him at once. Why he had felt remorse for killing Slade.
Starfire didn't know what in all heck revenge was in the first place. She
might not have even wanted him to have done what he did. It certainly had
been satisfying, but it earned him a hospital bill close on ten thousand
dollars. But from where she was, there was nothing Starfire could do about
it. Robin had avenged her death and that's all there was to it.
"Robin? Mind if I join you?" Raven called from the door onto the roof. Robin nodded from where he was sitting on the edge of the roof. "Are you sure you should be sitting up here? You've still got casts on both arms and one leg." Robin nodded. "No, I'm fine. But you know, it's just when you get time to think you realize just how much you can think." Raven was silent as they both stared out at the setting sun across the waves. The city behind them was still blanketed in snow, but the sunset was spectacular from the top of the tower. "I know I really shouldn't care, and this might be a rather imposing question, but how exactly do you feel about me and Beast Boy?" asked Raven after several minutes. When he looked at her somewhat queerly, she added, "I'm just curious." Robin turned his head back out towards the ocean and sighed. "To be completely honest, I guess I'm glad for you. But at the same time, I wish that Starfire and I could have at least gone on a real date." He smiled faintly. "But we haven't even done that. The first time we kissed, the refrigerator exploded. The second time, we had to replace several different appliances. We don't dare go out on actual dates. At least not yet."
"You told him about THAT?!" "Well, what did you expect? It came up in the conversation." Beast Boy flopped down on the couch and further lamented his plight. "That was sort of private, you know! Are you going to tell him everything that goes on in our lives?" Raven folded her arms and stared the green boy down. "Of course not. He doesn't have the right to know, but I can tell him if I want. Why are you making such a big deal out of this?" "I don't know." Raven sat down next to Beast Boy and leaned back, staring at the blank TV screen. But it wasn't blank for long. Yet again, the screen flashed on of its own accord. "Are we ever gonna get that fixed?" asked Beast Boy. It was the news again. The same reporter as had reported Starfire's funeral was reporting on a huge riot going on downtown. "Police have thus far been unable to report on the situation, but the circumstances have appeared to have gotten out of control. The one question on everyone's mind is: Where are the Titans?" The broadcast was cut short by a flashing red screen and transmission from the chief of police. "Now they tell us. Cy, let's roll!"
"Is it fair to the people who write the dictionary to call that an uneventful riot?" asked Beast Boy when they returned. Cyborg landed heavily on the couch, preparing for an all-out gamestation war with Beast Boy. "Who does write the dictionary?" "Huh?" "Sorry. Space-out. BB, you up for a gamestation war?" "Move over, future winner coming through!" yelled Beast Boy, grabbing a controller. "Raven, you gonna watch?" he asked. She quickly considered the choices. "Pass."
Robin was still up on the roof, dark as it was. "Robin? Why are you still out here?" asked Raven. No answer. "Robin? Are you okay?" She walked up to the teenager and placed her hand on his shoulder. Even through his shirt, she could feel that his skin was ice cold. A wave crashed particularly violently on the shore far below as she temporarily lost control of her emotions for a second. She knelt beside her friend and noticed for the first time that he did not appear to be conscious, but the various bandages, splints, and casts that he still wore were propping him up. Raven picked him up, surprised at how light he was even with all the casts. She didn't even bother wasting time on informing the other two Titans, and instead flew him directly to the hospital. Flying over Jump City, Raven tried to awaken Robin to no avail. "Robin, wake up. Robin, please wake up. What is wrong with you? You were fine when we left...I don't understand. Robin, please wake up..."
"Where were you? I didn't even hear you leave." asked Beast Boy, attention not wavering from the TV screen. Raven, looking somewhat the worse for wear, stormed over to and unplugged the gamestation. "Hey!" yelled Cyborg and Beast Boy simultaneously. Raven pointed to the screen, which was playing the backed-up message that she had sent while flying over the city via her communicator. "Beast Boy, Cyborg, Robin's sick. I can't get him to wake up. I'm taking him to the hospital. I swear, Beast Boy...if you're still playing Gamestation when I get back and I find this message backed up—" The message cut off. "Is he okay?" asked Cyborg, setting aside his controller. "They haven't found anything out yet, but it doesn't make any sense. He's colder than the grave, comatose, and was just fine before we left to go sort out the riot. It was like he was the awakened dead. I don't get it. But there is something seriously wrong with him." Raven turned to the stairs and started to go up to her room. "Oh, and Beast Boy—" she returned to the couch. She whacked him upside the head. "What was that for?" "That was for playing Gamestation for two hours straight." "Then why aren't you getting mad at Cyborg, too?" "Because you were winning and didn't have the sense to quit while you were ahead. Good night." After he was sure that his girlfriend was out of earshot, Beast Boy whispered to Cyborg, "How'd she know I was winning?" "The score was right there on the screen when she came in, man. Duh." [A/N: That was...unexpected. Even for me. I used to have a plan to go along with this, but now I'm making things up as I go. Don't worry; I won't kill off Robin as well! At least I don't plan on it...MWAHAHAHAHA!! *cough, cough, hack cough*]
"Robin? Mind if I join you?" Raven called from the door onto the roof. Robin nodded from where he was sitting on the edge of the roof. "Are you sure you should be sitting up here? You've still got casts on both arms and one leg." Robin nodded. "No, I'm fine. But you know, it's just when you get time to think you realize just how much you can think." Raven was silent as they both stared out at the setting sun across the waves. The city behind them was still blanketed in snow, but the sunset was spectacular from the top of the tower. "I know I really shouldn't care, and this might be a rather imposing question, but how exactly do you feel about me and Beast Boy?" asked Raven after several minutes. When he looked at her somewhat queerly, she added, "I'm just curious." Robin turned his head back out towards the ocean and sighed. "To be completely honest, I guess I'm glad for you. But at the same time, I wish that Starfire and I could have at least gone on a real date." He smiled faintly. "But we haven't even done that. The first time we kissed, the refrigerator exploded. The second time, we had to replace several different appliances. We don't dare go out on actual dates. At least not yet."
"You told him about THAT?!" "Well, what did you expect? It came up in the conversation." Beast Boy flopped down on the couch and further lamented his plight. "That was sort of private, you know! Are you going to tell him everything that goes on in our lives?" Raven folded her arms and stared the green boy down. "Of course not. He doesn't have the right to know, but I can tell him if I want. Why are you making such a big deal out of this?" "I don't know." Raven sat down next to Beast Boy and leaned back, staring at the blank TV screen. But it wasn't blank for long. Yet again, the screen flashed on of its own accord. "Are we ever gonna get that fixed?" asked Beast Boy. It was the news again. The same reporter as had reported Starfire's funeral was reporting on a huge riot going on downtown. "Police have thus far been unable to report on the situation, but the circumstances have appeared to have gotten out of control. The one question on everyone's mind is: Where are the Titans?" The broadcast was cut short by a flashing red screen and transmission from the chief of police. "Now they tell us. Cy, let's roll!"
"Is it fair to the people who write the dictionary to call that an uneventful riot?" asked Beast Boy when they returned. Cyborg landed heavily on the couch, preparing for an all-out gamestation war with Beast Boy. "Who does write the dictionary?" "Huh?" "Sorry. Space-out. BB, you up for a gamestation war?" "Move over, future winner coming through!" yelled Beast Boy, grabbing a controller. "Raven, you gonna watch?" he asked. She quickly considered the choices. "Pass."
Robin was still up on the roof, dark as it was. "Robin? Why are you still out here?" asked Raven. No answer. "Robin? Are you okay?" She walked up to the teenager and placed her hand on his shoulder. Even through his shirt, she could feel that his skin was ice cold. A wave crashed particularly violently on the shore far below as she temporarily lost control of her emotions for a second. She knelt beside her friend and noticed for the first time that he did not appear to be conscious, but the various bandages, splints, and casts that he still wore were propping him up. Raven picked him up, surprised at how light he was even with all the casts. She didn't even bother wasting time on informing the other two Titans, and instead flew him directly to the hospital. Flying over Jump City, Raven tried to awaken Robin to no avail. "Robin, wake up. Robin, please wake up. What is wrong with you? You were fine when we left...I don't understand. Robin, please wake up..."
"Where were you? I didn't even hear you leave." asked Beast Boy, attention not wavering from the TV screen. Raven, looking somewhat the worse for wear, stormed over to and unplugged the gamestation. "Hey!" yelled Cyborg and Beast Boy simultaneously. Raven pointed to the screen, which was playing the backed-up message that she had sent while flying over the city via her communicator. "Beast Boy, Cyborg, Robin's sick. I can't get him to wake up. I'm taking him to the hospital. I swear, Beast Boy...if you're still playing Gamestation when I get back and I find this message backed up—" The message cut off. "Is he okay?" asked Cyborg, setting aside his controller. "They haven't found anything out yet, but it doesn't make any sense. He's colder than the grave, comatose, and was just fine before we left to go sort out the riot. It was like he was the awakened dead. I don't get it. But there is something seriously wrong with him." Raven turned to the stairs and started to go up to her room. "Oh, and Beast Boy—" she returned to the couch. She whacked him upside the head. "What was that for?" "That was for playing Gamestation for two hours straight." "Then why aren't you getting mad at Cyborg, too?" "Because you were winning and didn't have the sense to quit while you were ahead. Good night." After he was sure that his girlfriend was out of earshot, Beast Boy whispered to Cyborg, "How'd she know I was winning?" "The score was right there on the screen when she came in, man. Duh." [A/N: That was...unexpected. Even for me. I used to have a plan to go along with this, but now I'm making things up as I go. Don't worry; I won't kill off Robin as well! At least I don't plan on it...MWAHAHAHAHA!! *cough, cough, hack cough*]