Thanks peoples again for your consideration.
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To Little Black Teacup- I was trying to comply to your curiosity, because in the beginning, I was going to skip the stuff about the scratch and go to three days later, but you're a good reviewer. I will have the stuff about the box in the next chapter! But first, read this one! Enjoy!
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What to Expect- If you see a little bit of Raven ooc-ness, blame it on her being sick! The genre today is- romance/general…
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Disclaimer- I do not own TEEN TITANS.
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*When I Need You Most*
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Chapter 4- A Pale Little Birdie
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(Raven's Room)
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Raven opened her eyes drowsily… She didn't feel so good.
'I feel like I've been hit by a truck.' She thought in absolute discomfort. The dark girl coughed raggedly. "How did I get in my room?" She briefly thought of Robin then started coughing again.
Slowly, the sick teenager tried to sit up, but when she felt the room around her spinning, her head told her to lie back down. As queasiness began consuming her, she felt like she was going to throw up.
Ugh. Raven groaned nauseous, after she felt her stomach jump. And when it did once more, she jolted quickly out of bed and rushed to the bathroom, vomiting into the toilet. She flushed all the rancid contents down the drain, though the putrid stench still lingered in the air…
Raven stumbled in front of her sink and washed her face and mouth. Ignoring the pounding in her head and slightly disoriented vision, she stared at her wan reflection. She looked like hell. Her usually soft violet hair was ruffled messily, tangles decorating the tips. Her amethyst eyes seemed increasingly lifeless with the soreness she was feeling, and her face was even paler than usual, making her look as white as a ghost.
The intense feeling of weakness plagued her deadened body. She didn't like it at all.
Raven glanced at the shower, her body aching to be cleansed. Slowly, she took her clothes off with difficulty, due to her hazy sight. She stood naked, at last stepping into the bathtub's parameter. Leisurely turning the knob for warm water with a squeak*, she flinched at the sharp sound, hurting her ears.
Finally, the water poured onto her head then all over her body, spilling over every crook and cranny. She dispensed fragrant shampoo into her hand and lathered. Afterwards, adding conditioner, the tangles in her hair disappeared. She rubbed her body with antiseptic soap, cleaning off all the filth that she felt.
Unsteadily stepping out of the shower into the steamy area, she grabbed a pale purple towel and walked into her closet, looking for something to wear. However, her head still throbbed, her stomach still churned, and the nausea was still overwhelming, but at least, she was clean.
She picked out a pair of fuzzy black sweatpants and a big, warm sweater that hung off her milky white shoulders. She was going to bed.
"I'm going back to sleep." She murmured to herself.
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(T Tower Kitchen)
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Robin sat in the kitchen a worried expression etched on his usually composed features as he propped his head and stared into space. A small bandage was beneath his eye, making him look like a Nelly wannabe.
The other titans, at first, had been very curious about the little cut.
(Flashback)
"Robin! Red ooze is dripping from your face!" shrieked Starfire terrified.
Robin touched his cheek and felt the crimson stickiness. "Blood?" He sighed in realization. "Oh." He had completely forgotten about the scratch.
"What had happened for you to deserve this… bloOhD?" asked Starfire in concern.
"It usually happens when you get hurt." spoke Cyborg.
Starfire gave a determined expression. "Who has hurt you!?!"
"You look really tired," added Beast Boy.
"So what happened, Robin?" questioned Starfire confused.
Everyone was looking at him.
He rubbed the back of his head nervously. "Umm… I-I fell…??"
They all sweat dropped. (What!?!)
(End Flashback)
However, the masked titan really wasn't thinking about that at the moment…
He was actually thinking about what had happened to Raven.
Robin already chose to keep it a secret for her, though, what secret he was really keeping was a mystery to him.
What was going on?
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(Raven's Room)
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No matter how much she tried, Raven could not go to sleep. Her ears were ringing and she had to puke every 20 minutes. She just stared at her dark painted ceiling. She felt like everything around her was whirling in a continuous circle.
Raven buried herself deeper within her silky covers. She didn't want to think about what happened yesterday. And even if she did want to, her mind would not allow her to go any further than 'uhh…??'
Knock* knock*
The sound of someone tapping at her door palpitated painfully throughout her head.
She tried ignoring it. Maybe, whoever it was, would just go away and die.
Knock* Knock*
The pounding in her head became more severe.
"Who is it!?!" She tried to say as loud as she could in a weak, struggling monotonous tone.
"Robin," said the titan leader, "Can I… come in?"
Pause*
…
"…whatever" Raven said in acceptance.
Robin opened the door and walked to the crumbled form on the bed. "Hey, umm… are you okay?"
Raven sneezed. AaAaCcChHhUuU!!!!
She looked away in embarrassment.
"God bless you."
"Thanks."
Suddenly noticing her paleness, the masked titan inspected Raven closer, her nose was pink and she kept coughing violently. "…So, I'm guessing you're sick."
"Wow… You are a genius." She said sarcastically in a faint voice.
He smirked. "I know." Raven rolled her eyes at him.
"What are you doing here anyway?" she asked skeptically.
"I… just wanted to see if you were okay…"
"I'm fine." She sniffled emotionlessly. "Nothing to worry about."
"Actually… yes, it is..." Robin slowly sat on her bed staring into space. His troubled thoughts from earlier floated back to his head. The events that had occurred with Raven came back to him. "Yesterday… you really worried me." He frowned in discontentment.
Raven stared at him, her eyes slightly widened in disbelief.
Robin looked at her. "What??"
Looking down, pieces of her violet hair covered her expression. "It's nothing… It's just that… I never thought you really cared about me." The mysterious girl looked up at him and gave a little smile, but it was unbelievable.
Robin flushed. 'Her smile is incredible.'
She began speaking again but turned away from him, making him pout. "Anyway, I'm the one who should be concerned about you… After all, I... I almost killed you." Raven clenched and unclenched her fists to control her anger. "And I most probably would have, if I hadn't known sooner." She grimaced at the passing thought of her father. Things in her room began to wobble. "And for that, I'm sor-"
A gloved hand landed on her shoulder in understanding, her resentment quickly dissipating. Raven looked at Robin and blushed slightly. "I have a feeling that this whole thing wasn't all your fault."
The enigmatic sorceress gave him her attention.
"The team has noticed that well… you haven't been acting like your usual self." Robin looked nervous. "We've been hearing you scream at night, and we thought you were having nightmares." Raven listened for his conclusion. "So, does this situation have anything to do with that?"
The Titan leader awaited her response. She nodded slowly, but her eyes grew cold.
"Do you want to tell me about it?" Raven sensed his desperateness.
The dark girl was unwilling to tell another human being of what she was experiencing. Her stomach twisted at the mere thought of anyone finding out.
She looked unfeelingly at the Boy Wonder in front of her, as his expression became hopeless.
Raven's heart softened… However, Robin was her friend. He risked his life for hers, without her asking him to. He deserved to know what was going on. So, she supposed, right now, she could confide in him.
Raven's acidic appearance eased. "Okay…" She sighed in resignation…
"I have been having these dreams, dreams of my past that occurred in a place called… Azerath…"
Raven told him about how the dreams started, her mother Ezra, about her hated father Trigon and her training, and even bits and pieces of her long lost past.
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In the end, Robin was overcome by bewilderment.
Raven barely sighed before beginning a series of coughs, each sounding worse.
The masked titan broke out of his astonishment. "Raven, are you alright?"
She bobbed her head in 'yes' but she began coughing again, looking weaker.
Robin gave a troubled look. "Let's go downstairs, so we can take care of you there. Do you think you can walk?"
"I'll try." spoke Raven, trying her best to stay strong. Steadily, she swung her legs to the side of her bed and pushed herself up for a second to collapse towards the ground, supported by one of her knees. 'My legs feel like jell-o.' She thought bitterly.
Robin rushed to her side. "I don't think you're going to get anywhere." He said smirking. Swiftly, he took her in his arms, making her let out a small gasp. "This way is much quicker anyway."
Raven flushed brightly as she held onto Robin. 'He feels… warm.' She laid her head on his shoulder and relaxed, making him smile. Then unintentionally, the sick teenage girl fell asleep.
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(T Tower's Living Room)
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Robin, an unconscious Raven is his strong arms, walked into T Tower's living room, where everyone was hanging out.
Each of them gasped in surprise, their eyes following the figure Robin was holding.
Starfire flew over to Robin and studied Raven. "What happened to friend Raven?" she asked worriedly.
"I went to check on her and found out that she was sick."
"But how?" spoke Beast Boy.
"Probably just the flu…" stated Robin. Everyone gave a troubled look as the titan leader kept his cool. "Cy, can you get a pillow and blankets?"
"No prob." responded the metallic man from the other side of the room.
"Star, do you think you can bring some food?"
"Yes Robin." Starfire flew quickly towards the kitchen.
"BB, get a wet towel and a glass of water."
"I'm on it." The green shape-shifter gave a 'salute' and marched towards the kitchen with Starfire.
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Once they were gone, Robin sighed and looked down sympathetically at the pretty mystery. While he was carrying her, he had been thinking of their talk. 'From what she told me, she's been through hell and back…'
He observed her emotionless face. No one could possibly imagine what hid behind that carefully protected façade. He often thought of how she could possibly keep that kind of control. 'How could one person keep all their feelings bottled up? It's definitely not healthy.'
Robin walked to the big, comfy couch and laid her down.
Slowly, his mind glided from her beautiful face to her body. He gazed at her attractive form. Out of the blue, certain thoughts drifted to his head. The titan leader mentally slapped himself for thinking such things of the mysterious girl and reddened.
Raven was his teammate, second-in-command, and friend… Nothing more.
Then as planned, disrupting Robin's inner turmoil, Cyborg walked in with a big, white pillow and blankets. Following, Starfire flew in with a tray of food, and BB brought a glass of water and wet towel.
Together they arranged the couch for the ill Raven.
The pillow was beneath her head, while she was swathed in blankets. The food was beside her, as Starfire wiped her forehead with the wet rag.
"Do you think we should wake her up?" whispered BB.
"No, I think we should let her rest." spoke Cy.
Robin nodded, and Starfire approved as well. "I agree."
Leaving the food and water for her, just in case, the concerned teens went to bed in hopes of finding their friend feeling better in the morning.
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^*/^*/ (Next Morning) /*^/*^
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(T Tower's Living Room)
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Raven woke up very, very early that morning. She felt comfortable but she knew that she wasn't in Robin's arms anymore, his warmth long gone. She yawned, noticing the blankets, cold food, and distilled water beside her. She drank the water and noticed its old taste, knowing that it had been there for quite a while. Needing to stretch, she stood up feeling as good as new.
After that, she practiced her energy on a few objects, levitating them. The dark mistress smiled inwardly. Her powers were working properly.
Then, thinking of how she recovered so well, she had a feeling that Robin had some help… Actually, somehow, she knew.
Raven was grateful to her friends...
However, she just needed a way to show it without actually telling them.
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(T Tower Kitchen)
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Each titan woke up upon entering the kitchen. A wonderful smell met their noses.
"Ooohhh what is that wonderful aroma!" squealed Starfire.
"I don't know. But whatever it is, I'm having that!" exclaimed Cyborg.
Beast Boy just drooled hungrily, as Robin wondered who could be up so early and decide to cook.
Robin, Starfire, Cyborg, and Beast Boy's jaws dropped as they saw the person who created the breathtaking scent.
Raven asked timidly yet in her usual tone. "Breakfast anyone?"
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(Stop*)
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Ugghh… Sorry for taking so long but you don't know how much this chapter took out of me!!!
I rewrote this chapter about 4 times. I wasn't too sure of what I was going to do with it.
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To Be Continued- Next chapter has more romance and I'm going to add some drama with Starfire. Stay to find out! What will happen next?
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Flame?- For once, I'll let you flamers out there reading, flame this chapter… I don't think it was that great… I would really like constructive criticism as well.
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Review!- Please review!!! It would encourage me to write the next chapter. Please!?! =)
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Love ya!!!