A/N: I just want to thank all of my readers! Replies to reviewers will be at the end of the chapters.
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With Starfire back at the tower, Raven's time for quiet meditation decreased dramatically. Starfire would often insist on going to the mall or cook food that had ingredients Raven didn't want to even guess at. She decided now would be a good time to find Robin and bring him back to the Tower.
Rather than submit to Starfire's endless questions, Raven simply left a note before leaving, saying only that she would be gone for a while and that they were not to worry.
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Once Raven had entered Gotham City, she went to Bruce's mansion. Alfred greeted her at the door.
"Miss Raven, it's good to see you," he said kindly. "Come in."
"Thank you," she replied, doing so. "Nice to see you again, as well, Alfred. Where is Robin?" Raven got right to the point.
"How did you know he was here?" Batman himself appeared next to Alfred, wearing a comfortable robe and slippers. "Robin said he didn't tell anyone, not even the Titans, since you had disbanded."
"I have my sources." Raven's voice was her usual monotone. Both men were taken aback by the mysterious cloaked girl's words. "So, where is he?"
"He offered to patrol the streets alone today, and I must admit that I welcomed the break.. He seemed rather passionate about it, now that I think back…"
Raven thought about his words and then put two and two together. Ah, she thought, today is the anniversary of the disbanding of the Titans, the day Starfire left.
"If you would like to come in, we could call him…"
"No, thank you," Raven interrupted. "I'll find him on my own." With that, she thanked them again and left.
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Robin was running down an alley in pursuit of a mugger. There was nothing especially dangerous about him. He was just a common thief, albeit one with a knife and gun.
Running, focusing on something important, Robin didn't have to think about Starfire, or any of the other Titans for that matter. He hadn't heard a word from any of them, despite the promises made to keep in touch. No, Robin told himself, focus on what's in front of you. Don't look back, he thought sadly.
Turning a corner, he found the man pointing the gun at him. Behind the robber was a brick wall, a dead-end. Robin had been caught up in his thoughts of the past again and had forgot to pay attention to what he was doing. He cursed himself mentally.
Suddenly the man's gun was encased in a ball of glowing black energy and shattered. Robin followed the stream of white-outlined black power to its source as Raven stepped out of the shadows.
"Hello, Robin," she said in her customary unvaried voice. Black energy bound the thief's hands before he could grab for his knife. The energy that suddenly wrapped around his ankles threw him off balance, causing him to fall flat on his face. "There. Now that we have nothing to distract us, I have a proposition for you."
"Wait. Hold on, Raven. What are you doing here? How did you find me?" Robin demanded. He noted she had grown both physically taller and more mature. But otherwise she seemed to be the same old Raven.
Raven sighed. Like the others, he had not changed much either. He still spoke with a leader's tone of voice that indicated he expected an honest answer right away. His costume was the same, though he had also grown taller and more muscular. And, Raven believed, that if it were not for his mask, Robin's eyes would be showing the unhappiness he was feeling, especially today.
"We have been not been apart for that long. You should know I found you with my powers." Raven answered his second question first. "As to 'why,' if you would have let me finish, I would have told you. I wanted to ask you if you would consider coming back to the Tower."
"What? Why? Why now?"
"Come, and I will show you." He still seemed skeptical. "I am certain you will like what I have to show you," Raven persisted, giving him an all-knowing smile. When his uncertainty didn't abate, Raven tried another approach. "If you come and look and still want to leave after, I promise neither Cyborg nor I will try to stop you."
"Cyborg's there?" Robin's interest was peaked.
Raven nodded. "He never left. You didn't know that?" He started to answer, but she shook her head. "Never mind. Do we have a deal? Do you really have any single good reason not to come?"
Robin looked at her for a while, then finally agreed.
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During the return trip, Robin did his best to convince Raven to tell him what was back at the Tower, but she wouldn't budge. Deep in his heart, he secretly hoped it was Starfire, but his common sense discredited the dream. After all, wouldn't Raven have told him?
As Raven sensed Robin's inner battle, she was tempted to tell him the truth, but she had not forewarned Starfire. Besides, seeing the other's reaction would hopefully help their relationship, as neither seemed brave enough to speak of their feelings.
Thankfully for Raven, the return trip was as short as the one to Gotham City had been, and she was saved from giving in by the sight of the large T-shaped tower on the horizon.
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Raven decided to have Robin see Cyborg first, since she planned on Robin and Starfire greeting each other alone, Cyborg would have to know their former team leader was back so he wouldn't disturb them.
Using her powers, Raven sensed that Cyborg was in the garage again and Starfire was in the kitchen. Raven's stomach flopped at the thought of the alien girl cooking another foreign dish.
As Raven and Robin headed to the garage, Raven glanced over to see Robin staring, deep in thought, at the Tower.
"Strange being back, isn't it?" She hadn't need to read his mind to know what he was thinking. "Brings back memories," Raven said quietly with a small sigh. But she strengthened her resolve and beckoned Robin towards the garage.
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Cyborg was shocked when his leader and friend suddenly walked though the door.
"Robin? Hey, man! It's great to see you again! But why are you…" Raven appeared behind Robin. "Oh, well that explains it, I guess." Robin looked confused, but Cyborg either didn't notice, or chose to ignore it. "So, have you see—" Robin's heart leapt in hope, but he quickly quieted it
"Not yet," Raven answered, cutting Cyborg off.. Her voice held a warning tone in it. "I was just going to show him now."
Cyborg nodded and, taking the hint, went back to working on his car.
Raven then led Robin towards the kitchen. She stopped when the clattering of pots and pans could be heard, as well as soft humming. Robin went forward, not even noticing that his companion had stopped.
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Starfire looked up when she sensed that she was not alone in the room anymore. Looking up, expecting to see Cyborg or perhaps Raven, she was shocked to see Robin standing before her, his eyes as wide as her own. She wondered how long he hand been standing there.
"Robin! It is good to see you again!" Starfire, the first to break the stunned silence, ran up to the Boy Wonder.
Robin looked down at her happy face, the same one he remembered, except for her lengthened hair, which flowed freely down her back in shining waves of orange fire. He shook the thought away and returned her smile. "It's great to see you again, too, Star," he said, using her nickname.
"Robin, if I may ask…why did you leave the Tower? When I returned, only Cyborg and Raven were here, and…" Robin didn't hear anything else she said, as he asked himself the same question.
"Robin?" Starfire looked him directly in his eyes, bring him back from his thoughts. "Will you not answer my question as to why you left our home?"
"I—it was because…well, you see…" Robin stammered.
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To my reviewers:
tayk(): That's a possibility…
Kat-23: Thank you!!!
TeenTitansGirl14: Thanks! I haven't decided who, if anyone, Raven will end up with, but there's definitely a possibility of a CyRae. I'll try and keep your advice in mind. Thanks so much! And yeah, I felt bad about how short the first couple of chapters were so I stayed up late to do a longer one.
DarkXeno(): You bring up a good point. I'll be answering that in later chapters. The next one will say why Robin left. Thanks for reading! And the book you mentioned doesn't sound familiar to me…? And good luck with your fic!
pools of sorrow(): Yeah, I'm trying to slow down a bit. Sorry it was kinda confusing, I'll be sure to work on that. Hope you liked the latest chapter!
steph4nie-ff: Thanks! Hope you enjoyed chapter 4. I'll update soon I hope.
dana1313: Here you go! I hope you liked it, I'll try to get the next one up quickly.
Thank you all of you!!!!!!!