Note: Again thanks for all the reviews! And, just a warning, if you read this and go "huh?" you need to beef up on you're Batman.
Chapter 2: A spot of philosophy
Robin didn't come down for breakfast the next morning. It was unusual that he would miss breakfast, the most important meal of the day, but on the other hand, he did have a tendency to forget to eat, so no one thought anything of it. However, when he didn't come out by lunch time, Starfire started to get worried.
"He should eat," She said. "Perhaps I should take him some food."
"He can get it himself," Cyborg said gruffly.
"Are you angry with him?" Starfire asked.
"Angry, why should I be angry? Just because Bird Boy's keeping secrets again."
"Secrets?" Starfire gasped. "Why would Robin be keeping secrets? He would not be keeping secrets!"
"Just ask Raven," Cyborg said.
"He's not keeping secrets," Raven said, "At least, no new ones."
"He went all postal on that photographer," Cyborg said, "Then he wouldn't talk about it."
"He has a right to privacy," Raven said.
"Does he have a right to lie to us?" Cyborg asked.
"Robin would not lie," Starfire asserted.
"Unless he was dressing up as Red X and fighting us so he could get all buddy-buddy with our enemies," Cyborg answered.
"He said he was sorry," Starfire insisted.
"And that was cool, until he started doin' it again," Cyborg said.
"I think maybe we are leaping to conclusions," Starfire said. "Perhaps if you tell me what exactly transpired . . ."
"A man was hiding behind a dumpster, watchin' us. He said he was a journalist, doing a story on the Titans, but Robin treated him like he was some sort of supervillain."
"You don't know that he wasn't," Raven pointed out.
"That guy was a nobody," Cyborg said with confidence. "Robin just went crazy."
"If he did 'go crazy' perhaps he had a good reason," Starfire suggested.
"Reasons he won't share," Cyborg said.
"Reasons he doesn't need to share," Raven interjected.
"Why are you suddenly little-miss-trusting-Thomas?" Cyborg asked.
"First of all, its 'Doubting Thomas'," Raven said. "And second, Robin has proven his trustworthiness more than once."
"When he keeps secrets, bad things happen," Cyborg insisted.
"Like what?" Raven asked.
"Like killer nanite infections."
"Robin was a victim in that situation," Starfire said. "Just as we were."
"That doesn't give him license to keep secrets," Cyborg said. "This team is built on trust, and knowing that Robin is keeping things from us makes me kind of not trust him."
"That's your issue, not his," Raven said.
"Do you suppose Robin could be in trouble?" Starfire asked. "The last time, with the nanites, he was . . ."
"Hey, guys," Beast boy said. "There's a really easy way to find out."
"How?" Cyborg asked eagerly.
"Simple, I spy on him."
"Oh," Raven said, rolling her eyes. "That's a good way to build trust."
"We're not the ones who need to build up trust," Cyborg said. "He is."
"I do not like the idea of spying on our friend," Starfire said.
"If we don't spy on him, we won't know if he really is our friend," Cyborg argued.
"So, should I do it then?" Beast Boy asked.
"No," Raven said definitively.
"Yes," Cyborg said, with equal conviction.
"Looks like you're the deciding vote, Star," Beast Boy said, turning to the young alien.
"I do not like making this decision," she said, looking form one friend to the next. "Robin has always done what was best for us all."
"What he thought was best for us all," Cyborg said.
"That is true," Starfire sighed. "He is very brave, and very noble, but sometimes, I fear, in his desire to protect us, he makes the wrong decisions."
"So?" Beast Boy said uncertainly. "Is that a yes?"
"It is," Starfire said, closing her eyes and nodding.
"All right," Beast Boy said. He'd been excited about the idea of trying to spy on Robin. If nothing else, it would have been a good test of his skills. But Starfire's heart-broken consent took all the fun out of it. This was a serious thing, a sort of betrayal, and he suddenly started wondering what good could possibly come of it.
"Just don't get caught," Cyborg warned.
"I won't," Beast Boy snapped before he turned into a tiny mouse and scuttered away.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
The face on the screen wasn't one Beast Boy would have expected to see. It wasn't a dark shadow, or some massive kung-fu master, or a mystical alien. It was just a man, an old, bald, man. He looked tired, and he spoke with the same kind of accent as a lot of the actors Raven and Starfire liked. The man seemed too old to be Robin's father, but still, the Boy Wonder was bearing his soul to this ordinary, wimpy even, old man.
"I just, I didn't want to do it without his approval. I didn't think it was right."
"You haven't sought his approval on a great many issues for some time now."
"Bruce doesn't have a right to dictate every particular of my life, but that doesn't mean I have the right to put him and you in danger."
"Master Richard, we are, all of us, constantly, in danger. All it takes is one person with an unusually keen intellect and proper motivation, or, as your friend Mr. Cook has proven, one unlucky coincidence, and the secret will unravel. No matter how closely you guard the truth, it is the truth, and therefore it is obtainable. But then, you know that."
"Alfred, can I ask you a question?"
"Of course, Master Richard."
"Have I been lying all this time by hiding the truth from my friends?"
"Do you think you have?"
"It's just, they've been so open with me," he said, looking at his feet and rubbing the back of his neck. "Star in particular, and I never even told her my name."
"But, have you lied to her? Have you ever, with malicious intent, held the truth from her?"
Robin sat for a minute, thinking, finally he said. "No, not, not about -- about this, not about who I am. I never lied nor hid, I just, I played it close."
"If you may be so bold as to assume I have gained some insight into your friends from your correspondence, I would say that Miss Starfire seems to be the type of person who could easily understand your motivation, and, accordingly, would be quick to forgive you your caution."
"I guess," Robin said softly. He took a deep breath, "But that still doesn't solve my problem. If I tell them, I lose control. If something happened . . ."
"You'll lose control?" the prim British man said, raising an eyebrow. "Heaven forbid anyone in our little family ever lose control of anything."
There was a pause. Finally, Robin answered, "If your comparing me to him, you've made your point."
"I just think you should consider what behavior drove you away from your home in the first place, and whether or not you're willing to drive your friends away in like manor."
"But, you, and Leslie, Lucius Fox and Mr. Haly . . . even Bruce . . ."
"You cannot keep suffering from others, Master Richard. It is noble that you try, but you have to realize that suffering will happen to all of us. It is the way of the world."
"If we can't stop suffering, what's the point of fighting at all?"
"It has always been my understanding that it is not the suffering of the innocents you fight against, but rather, those who see their fellow man as little more than a means to an end, or a prize to gain, that is, those who would strip the humanity from any and all they meet."
"I guess," Robin muttered.
"Can you tell me truthfully, looking back on your life, that all the pain you went through was fruitless? That it lead to a worsening of the state of your soul, not a bettering?"
"No," Robin answered hoarsely. "But that doesn't mean I want it."
"Perhaps not, but all the good you do, you could not have done without suffering the grievous sorrows you were forced to forbear. You are strong, Master Richard, and it is indeed your duty to protect those weaker than yourself. But you should not protect them from suffering, which fortifies the spirit, or pain, which makes us strong, but rather from hopelessness, despair and humiliation. Fight evil by all means, my dear boy, but fight the right evils."
"Alfred," Robin said hesitantly. Beast Boy had never heard Robin sound like that, like he was afraid. "If you could . . . if you could have stopped it all. If you could have saved the Wayne's and my parents . . . would you have?"
The astute man laughed softly, "You've found the weakness of my conviction, my dear boy. Every time I see that damned signal in the sky, I fear I would and every time I hear the stories about children saved from burning buildings and murders being locked away, I thank God I was not given such a terrible power."
"I miss you, Alfred."
"And I miss you, sir."
"I think I'm going to try and come home for Thanksgiving this year."
"That would be most welcome."
"Bruce wouldn't . . ."
"He worries about you, almost as much as I do. It would do him good to see you fit and well."
"Thanks Alfie," Robin said. His voice had regained its cool confidence; whatever shadows of doubt the Boy Wonder had been feeling were apparently gone. "I'll be in touch."
"Then by the secure satellite video link I shall stand, tingling with anticipation," the British man said dryly.
Robin laughed. "Talk to you later."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"Master Richard?" Cyborg asked incredulously.
"Perhaps you misheard," Starfire said hopefully. "Perhaps he said 'Master Robin'."
"I didn't mishear," Beast Boy asserted.
"But even if he did . . ." Cyborg started
"I didn't!"
"Yeah, but even if you did, why is this old man calling Robin 'Master' at all? It's kinda creepy. And in the movies, that's never a good sign."
"You're forgetting something," Raven said.
"What?" Beast Boy asked.
"Robin is a master. He has black belts in Kung-fu, Tie-kwan-doe, Karate and Ti chi."
"You can get a black belt in Ti chi?" Cyborg asked.
"It is possible this man, whoever he is, is studying under Robin."
"Nuh-uh," Best Boy said emphatically, shaking his head. "No way. I saw the way they talked. Robin was going to this stranger for help."
"I don't like this," Cyborg said. "This has got a bad feeling to it."
"You're all being ridiculous," Raven said, the smallest hints of anger in her voice. "If Robin is hiding something, it's nothing new. He's the same person he was yesterday."
"Well, maybe we couldn't trust him yesterday," Cyborg said defiantly.
"I cannot believe that," Starfire interjected. "Robin has always been . . ."
"If you're going to end that sentence with 'honest' I might just whack you upside the head till you start remembering right."
"Perhaps honest is not the right word," Starfire amended. "But the dishonest things he did, he did for good reason, to protect us and this city."
"He did for his own reasons," Cyborg argued. "If this was the first time I learned he's kept something from us, or even the second . . ."
"Are you going to get mad at him every time he doesn't tell you exactly what he's doing in his life?" Raven demanded. "If he decides to go for a walk, are you going to suspect him of a nefarious rendezvous?"
"Na-who-witz randa-what?" Beast Boy asked.
"Maybe I should," Cyborg said defiantly. "The fact remains, we don't know anything about him, and he's betrayed us more than once."
"He's acted ruthlessly more than once, but he never betrayed us," Raven asserted. "If he ever decided to do us harm, I doubt there would be enough of us left to debate his trustworthiness."
"All the more reason to debate it now," Cyborg said.
"Friends," Starfire said emphatically. "Talk like this will only hurt us. If we have any doubts about Robin, we should ask him about them. I am sure there is a reasonable explanation for it all."
"There is an explanation," Robin said from the door. His voice was calm and somehow hard - not unlike a sword or dagger. The room fell silent and everyone turned to look at him. "But, whether it's reasonable or not," he continued coolly. "I really couldn't say."
"Robin!" Starfire exclaimed, running up to him. "Tell us how you are an honest person and a good friend and would never betray us unless it was only pretending to betray us so that you could really aid us in our fight to protect the city!"
"Yeah Robin," Cyborg said. "Do that."
"I don't know if I can." Robin told them honestly.
"Why not, Master Richard?" Beast Boy asked.
"You know, when you spy on people in the air ducts, you really should turn into a snake, not a mouse," Robin said. "The claws on the metal are a dead giveaway."
"Dude, you knew I was there?!"
"Of course I did," Robin said. "And I could have ended my transmission at any time, or, better yet, closed the air ducts, sealed my room and been assured I was in total privacy."
"Then why didn't you?" Beast Boy asked.
"Because," Robin said. "I want you to know I trust you."
"And to prove our trustworthiness, we spy on you," Raven commented flatly.
"So, who was the guy?" Cyborg asked. "And why was he calling you master?"
"The guy is Alfred, my Butler, or, rather, my guardian's butler."
"Your guardian?" Starfire asked.
"Your butler?" Beast boy said.
"My name is Richard Grayson," Robin started calmly.
"No," Starfire interjected. "You're name is Robin."
"My parents named me Richard Grayson," Robin continued. "But everyone always called me Dick."
"The name fits," Cyborg muttered under his breath. Robin glanced at him, but didn't say anything.
"My parents were trapeze artists. I grew up in a circus," Dick continued. "Until . . . ." he couldn't quite finish the sentence.
"Until?" Star prompted.
"The rope snapped," Dick answered quietly. "And my parents fell."
"But why should that . . .?" the pretty alien continued.
"They fell to their death, Starfire," Raven said. "They died."
"No!" Starfire practically screamed as she burst into tears. "You're wonderful parents who loved you died!"
"Ah, yeah," Robin said uncomfortably.
She ran up to him, throwing her arms around his shoulders and pulling him into a bear hug, bawling all the while. "This is a grief too heavy to bear! How can you go on!?"
"By fighting," Robin answered, pulling himself away from her just enough so he could address the rest of the group. "You see, the wire didn't just snap. It had been corroded by a natural acid. One of the mob bosses, Frankie Zucco, had been trying to extort the circus's owner, Mr. Haly. But Mr. Haly wouldn't pay, so my parents were murdered to make good the threat."
The room fell silent. Even Starfire's crying stopped. After a moment, Robin took a deep breath and continued. "Bruce Wayne took me in. He was there, that night, and, ah, he could understand. When he was a boy, he saw his parents murdered too."
"How can one house hold such sadness?" Starfire asked. Tears were flowing freely out of her eyes but the grief she felt appeared to be too heavy to express itself in sound and movement. She was beyond bawling.
"Bruce Wayne?" Cyborg asked. "As in Wayne Enterprises? As in gobs and gobs of money?"
"And a mansion with a butler?" Beast Boy asked.
"Yes, I guess, and yes," Robin answered.
"How did you become Robin?" Raven asked, taking a step closer.
"When my parents died it was meant to look like an accident," Robin said with a forced calm. "And those members of the police who wanted to investigate it were blocked by those who were on the take. "
"On the take?" Beast Boy asked.
"Being bribed by the mob," Raven supplied.
"Batman knew what had happened, and why, but he didn't know how. He needed someone with inside information about the circus to do some investigating and I needed someone to help me bring my parent's murderer to justice. He trained me to be his partner and, once we brought Zucco down, he invited me to stay."
"So, when did you get you're super powers?" Cyborg asked.
"What are you talking about?"
"You know, man," Beast boy said. "You're super powers that make you super strong and fast and smart."
"I don't have any super powers," Robin insisted.
"Well, maybe you were exposed to some radiation or something," Beast Boy suggested. "Was your mansion right next to a power plant or a chemical factory?"
"No."
"Perhaps you are not really human?" Starfire suggested, almost hopefully.
"I am human," Robin assured her. "If I were an alien, I think a doctor would have noticed by now."
"Hey, maybe a witchdoctor put a spell on you," Beast Boy continued.
"Or maybe Batman gave you some sort of mutating serum," Cyborg said. "Or injected you with nanites?"
"No," Robin said, he was starting to sound annoyed.
"Maybe he didn't tell you he did it," Cyborg suggested.
"Yeah," Beast Boy said. "Batman's supposed to be a really shady guy."
"None of that is true!" Robin practically yelled, taking an angry step back. "I'm just a normal guy with exceptional training!"
"Are you telling us," Starfier started, "That you are not special, not unique, not -"
"I'm just Richard Grayson," Robin said cagily, "nothing behind my back or up my sleeves."
"Is that why you were hiding?" Cyborg asked. "Because you were ashamed of . . . ." He was silenced by a glare.
"I was hiding to protect those I love; people like Alfred or Mr. Haly. If someone like Slade found out about them, they'd be in danger. I can't have that."
"Ok," Cyborg said. "But we're the good guys, we'd never go after your family or whatever."
"I see that," Robin said. "That's why I told you."
"And you didn't tell us before because . . . ?" Cyborg asked.
"I was happy to trust you with my life," Robin said. "But their's . . . ."
"So you don't trust us to keep our mouths shut when we're around supervillians, is that what you're saying?" Cyborg asked accusingly.
"I'm saying that you can never be too careful."
"I think we're finding out that you can," Cyborg said.
The two boys stared at each other for a moment. Robin blinked first. "I can't change what I did," He said, addressing the whole room. "And I wouldn't, even if I could. I'm sorry if I'm not who, or what, you thought I was, but I never lied to you."
No one answered him. Cyborg looked angry, Beast Boy looked confused, Raven looked annoyed, and Starfire hadn't stopped crying. Without another word, Robin turned and left the room.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"So," Beast Boy asked. "Wha'da'ya guys figure on doing now?"
"What do you mean?" Starfire sniffled.
"Well, do we kick him out of the tower, or, what? I mean, could we kick him out of the tower?"
"We will not kick Robin out of the tower!" Starfire said emphatically. "He is our friend and --"
"Starfire," Cyborg interrupted. "How can Robin be our friend when Robin doesn't even exist?"
"He does exist!"
"No, Dick Grayson exists. Robin is just Grayson in a mask."
"You all are fools," Raven interjected.
"What are you talking about?" Cyborg demanded.
"Not six months ago, Robin -"
"You mean Dick," Cyborg interjected.
"It doesn't matter what I call him, what matters is he saved our lives by infusing himself with killer nanites."
"Ugh," Beast Boy shuddered. "You mean those orange glowy things?"
"He chose to die as one of us."
"Instead of being a slave to a psychopath," Cyborg said dryly. "Wow, noble."
"We were the only hold Slade had on him," Raven said. Her voice stayed the same volume, but, somehow, it seemed to double in intensity. It sent chills down everyone's spines. "If we died, he was free."
Cyborg didn't answer. Beast Boy looked guilty. And, Starfire continued to cry.
"Fine," Cyborg finally snorted. "You go be on his side."
"He has always been on our side," Raven said authoritatively. "So I'm not going anywhere."
To be continued . . .
READER APPRICIATION!
I was asked (twice) this is a Robin/Starfire story, and the answer is YES, because, at this time, in this place, Robin and Starfire were a couple. However, my conscience prohibits me from saying that without mentioning that Batgirl/Oracle and Robin/Nightwing are clearly meant for each other and are only apart because it builds romantic tension – that and Babs can be a spaz.