Standard disclaimers apply.

CHAPTER EDITED NOV. 24, 2004: With the insight of Aria-Angel.

GUIDING STAR

Chapter Six – Possibilities and Petty Fights

"Dick. I was wondering when you would call me."

Robin arched an eyebrow.

"I pegged you for a middle-of-this-week kind of caller," Bruce continued.

Somehow, Robin wasn't surprised that Batman sounded like he was expecting his call. It still irked him, though. The guy could at least humor him and pretend his call was a pleasant surprise. Then again, that wouldn't be like Bruce. "What, did you hack into the SF Bay Medical Center systems to find out why the Boy Wonder was spending so much time in the hospital?"

"I was actually expecting you to call and apologize for missing the grand opening of the Gotham City Cancer Research Facility last week."

Robin rolled his eyes. He never apologized for missing openings and Bruce never expected him to; this was more of Bruce's way of saying he would never allow anyone to preempt him, especially the Boy Wonder.

"However, just so you know, I didn't need to hack into any computer to have access to your daily affairs. There was a small item in the gossip section of the Gotham Daily that—shall we say—told me their version of it."

Robin frowned. "The Gotham Daily still writes about me?"

"Well, don't sound so surprised, Dick. This old town still considers Robin as a Gotham-grown superhero, so you're always on the gossip section. Last week, you apparently had a lovechild with Starfire, thus it's all too clear what you were doing in the hospital a few days ago; you were accompanying her to her pre-natal check-ups."

Robin groaned.

"I didn't believe it, of course. A utility belt has everything but the kitchen-sink in it, and I was pretty sure that you had enough sense to fit safety measures somewhere in it. Besides, Alfred said that you would have told him about it if you were in that kind of mess. Be that as it may, this morning's paper confirmed that Starfire just got out of the hospital, not because she just had her ultra-sound, but because she was recovered enough of her injuries to be released."

Recovered enough? Who wrote these articles? "The Gotham Daily writes too much crap. Really, they're all a bunch of hacks."

"They serve their purpose. I received a memo from one of my more brilliant research scientists this morning. He's a specialist in Alien Life Form Biology and Medicine. Apparently, he was referred by a colleague of his to one Dr. Angelica Peii. She was asking if there was any technology or study involving the restoration of sight in a typical Tamaranian Female, and if not, she had a possible subject that may be willing to cooperate, if such a study interested them. Well, my scientist is interested, and he said that if I would be willing to provide the funding, he would prepare all documents necessary to obtain said Tamaranian Female's consent. Since the Earth isn't exactly crawling with Tamaranians, I could only assume this Dr. Peii is talking about Starfire."

Robin frowned, massaging his brow. "Bruce—seriously, this is just like every conversation we've had in the past and it's irritating me. You don't have to know everything, okay? Please, just cut me some slack and don't make me feel like an idiot."

Bruce, at the other end, chuckled. "I take no pains to annoy you, Dick. It seems to come naturally with me."

Robin clenched his jaw, screamed silently and breathed for control. Robin leaned back in his chair and scrubbed off his mask. It suddenly felt like it was squeezing his eyes out. "Starfire… Kori lost her ability to see. The doctors said she sustained damage to her retina and macula, and that there is nothing they could do to give her sight back. Bruce, if there's any hope at all that you could help her… please, I am asking you—I'm begging you… I'm on my knees right now."

"Are you, really?"

Robin paused. It was one thing when he was exaggerating, another when it became an all out lie.

"I thought not, but that was a decent request, cheesy lies aside. Of course I'll see what I can do. Has she agreed to see me?"

"I still have to ask her. I just wanted to make sure from you, first. I didn't want to give her any false leads."

"Of course you didn't. Let me know and we'll make arrangements. You know I can't promise you she'll see again, but she'll have the best scientists money could buy working on it, and of course I'll keep my nose in it, so to speak. My scientists could do great things when they have me hanging off their back. You know me."

"Yeah, a bit too well."

Bruce chuckled. "You know where to call me."

Robin ran a hand through his hair. Yes, he did. "I'll talk to you soon, Bruce."

"I'll be waiting for your call."

"Oh, and Bruce… thanks. For this… and maybe even the motorcycle."

"Maybe?"

Robin chuckled. "Maybe. You could take it back if you think I'm ungrateful."

"And give you the satisfaction? No. Keep the damn bike."

Robin gave a derisive grunt. "I might, after all. Kori likes it, so…"

"Oh, Kori likes it. That makes everything all better, doesn't it? Maybe she is having your lovechild."

Robin rolled his eyes again. People said Bruce didn't have a sense of humor but Robin would beg to differ. Bruce had a sense of humor, alright, just a very lousy one. "Goodbye, Bruce."

"Goodbye, Dick."

They cut the line and Robin folded the phone over, replacing it in its drawer. He gave it a nudge and the drawer closed with a soft hiss.

Some time around lunch, Starfire announced that her closet was "gloriously perfect" thanks to Raven, whose "magnanimity was descended of angels".

Raven was impassive to Starfire's praise, mainly because she didn't like being called "magnanimous" and "angelic". But Raven told Starfire that if she needed anymore help, she would always be willing to lend it.

Inevitably, arguments about lunch arose, but Raven and Starfire conspired to settle the matter by ordering Chinese take-out for everyone, to be picked up by Raven in ten minutes. Beast Boy and Cyborg were still arguing when Raven put down the phone.

Robin couldn't care less, but he shot Raven and Starfire a wry look.

Raven shrugged nonchalantly. "Star and I had a craving for Kung Pao Chicken."

Stafire grinned. "Kung Pao…"

Robin deferred from mentioning that Cyborg was going to have a Kung Pow fit when he found out. Cyborg didn't like Chinese. Oh, he thought the food was fine; he just thought the portions too small. But all in all, when Raven set out then arrived with the food, they all ate it with relatively minimal griping.

Finally, Robin and Starfire were ready to leave. When they got to the garage, Robin took a deep breath and removed two helmets and one riding jacket from the racks. He handed a helmet and the jacket to Starfire. "Here," he muttered.

When she got hold of the gear, she palmed it a moment before recognition fell upon her. She gasped, and then smiled. "Really, Robin? We will take the motorized cycle?"

He couldn't believe it himself. He blew a breath through his teeth. "Yeah."

"Wonderful! This day is just becoming more glorious by the moment!" She slid on her helmet gingerly, making sure she had it on right before she slipped into the jacket. She zipped the jacket shut and declared that she was ready.

Robin tried not to dwell so much on the fact that she looked good in biker-gear by putting his own biker gear on. He twisted a dial on the side of his helmet and the visor lowered. He secured himself on the bike before helping Starfire to get on behind him.

"Hold—"

"Tight? Yes, I know."

Robin believed he almost had a coronary when she pressed and hugged a bit too snugly than he expected. He didn't know how long it took him to recompose himself, but Starfire had to call his attention, asking him if something was wrong.

"You have no idea…"

"Huh?"

"Nothing."

He lifted the bike upright, folded back the paddock with his foot and started the engine. It made a beautiful sound, as all perfect machines did, and he cursed Bruce one more time.

Bruce knew I couldn't resist something as gorgeous as this… damn him!

Robin revved its engine and Starfire giggled. He sighed softly, frustrated with himself. Couldn't resist…

He shot forward, heading for the underground emergency shoot.

Robin and Starfire arrived at the city in record time. He didn't mean to break speed limits, but by forgetting how he acquired the motorcycle, he actually enjoyed riding the thing. It was the most powerful cycle in the market, and it had been so long since he last used it that he almost forgot how much of a dream riding it had been. He was mildly concerned about how Starfire was taking it. After all, he couldn't hear her through the roar of the engine, but after he pulled up in the prison parking lot and turned to check on her, she slipped off her helmet, shook her hair loose and gasped, a wide smile on her face.

"That was most breathtaking, Robin! Such speed on a motorcycle could be such an exhilarating experience!" With her cheeks flushed and her hair tousled, Robin couldn't help but think that there was something infinitely more breathtaking than a fast ride on a 999cc motorcycle.

He took off his helmet and with Starfire leaning on his arm, they walked into the prison facility. They were in and out of the Warden's office quickly enough. The warden was a busy man and dedicated as little time to chit chat as possible. He did, however, show a moment's hesitation when he saw Starfire in plain clothes. He greeted her politely and told her that he was glad she seemed to be feeling much better from her confinement in the hospital. He was discrete enough not to mention her absence in the previous night's conflict. Instead, he told Starfire that many of the prisoners and a majority of the prison personnel would be glad to know she was up and about.

Robin wasn't even surprised she had fans in prison.

Packing the surveillance tapes and reports underneath his seat, he brought Starfire to the Braille Institute. Enrollment was quick, and even before Star left the campus, she already had homework packed in paper bags. Already, they had sent her off with workbooks and audio lessons she could listen to before she started classes the following week. She was ecstatic.

As they headed back to the motorcycle, Robin looked up at the cloudless sky. There was a gentle breeze blowing and the day wasn't all that hot. The day seemed perfect for some cold Bubble Tea.

He had to talk to Starfire anyway, and he might as well do so out of the tower. "You know, it's a pretty nice day out. What do you think about hanging out at the Bayside Park for a while? We'll grab a couple of bubble teas."

She paused for a few seconds before she nodded. "That sounds nice, Robin. Yes, let us go to the park and have some bubble in tea."

He brought them to a relatively quiet part of the park where they could find lots of shade under the many trees and not be bothered by ill-meaning seagulls.

Sitting cross-legged on the grass, Robin took in the serene view. In the backdrop, he could see the bay and a small T perched on the distant island. It made him chuckle. Unlike most people, he had little reason to look at that T with awe. He knew what went on inside it; the loud burping; the explosive kitchen equipment; the cries of despair when a pimple made an appearance... to him, there was absolutely no mystery.

There were very few people in the park at that time of the day. The office goers had finished with their lunches and the remaining few were merely enjoying the quiet. There were a few walking their dogs, even less sitting on the benches with a book or something else to occupy their time. At one corner of the park, a boy and his Labrador were playing fetch with a Frisbee while at another corner a couple sat under a tree, making out unabashedly.

Robin watched them with mild curiosity.

As the former ward of a billionaire and a young superhero, girls had only ever become a problem when he first began to notice them. While Bruce had appointed himself as Dick Grayson's guardian, the billionaire never did give him the talk about the birds and the bees. He had been young and on his own, so he was lucky he had Alfred to see to his questions, but Robin still remembered how rocky of a start puberty had been.

The girls, usually older than his twelve years, were eager and "accommodating"; always willing to give him "a good time", but it was still difficult to ride on that at the beginning; when he had little to no experience with the opposite sex, emotionally and physically. He eventually learned how to deal with those women (some more closely than most), but it was not without first-try mishaps. His first ever kiss was definitely something he wouldn't soon forget.

It wasn't nearly as involved as that of the lovers he was watching at the other side of the park at the moment. He couldn't remember for sure if there had been anything more than lips in it, but he remembered that it had been very awkward, and he had felt half-lightheaded, half-queasy that Bruce would find out and be terribly displeased (that he was getting it on with the commissioner's niece), or worse, terribly amused.

Fortunately, thirteen year old Barbara Gordon, or Babs—then the love of his life, at twelve, no less—had a firmer grasp of the situation. After their kiss, she saw the look on his face, giggled and said, "Don't worry. I won't tell anyone. It'll be our little secret."

It turned out to be a bigger secret than he thought. After that first kiss, Babs disappeared for a while, came back, and became Batgirl. Bad timing for Dick, who had, sooner than he expected, gotten over being dumped by the bat girl even before he could figure out if there was something and was, around that time, having just about enough of the bat guy.

When he left to form the Titans, Bruce just shook his hand and Babs blew him a kiss, and that was that as far as relationships were concerned.

He looked at Stafire who was sipping tapioca through a thick straw. He smiled. He wondered if she'd ever kissed anyone before. So far, she'd made no mention of past boyfriends, but then again, she'd been very secretive about the intimate details of her life before the titans. Did Tamaranians even kiss the way humans do? Did they—well—do things the way humans did things? Starfire's development certainly… well, that had been different. She did look rather funny, though he never dared to joke about it. The slightest hint in the past of a discussion drifting towards her transformation sent her eyes glowing with a dangerous green aura. He supposed she didn't like discussing those funky little horns…

"Robin, is there something you wish to discuss with me?"

It snapped him out of his thoughts. "Actually, yes. How did you know?"

"I hardly think the Boy of Wonder would sit and dally in the park with me if he didn't have something important to discuss, especially if he has a lot of tapes and reports to go through."

He smiled. "I'm beginning to think that I am predictable. Not dependable, but predictable."

"You forget, Dick Grayson, that you have surprised me today with a motored-cycle ride. I know that—well, you do not like your new motored-cycle and I do not know for sure why you chose to use it today, but I am thankful that you did."

Robin chuckled. "You should know by now that you're the only one who could get me to ride that thing."

She blushed. So did he, but he realized that the motorcycle was a good enough place to start for what he wanted to talk about with her.

"Kori, do you know who gave me that motorcycle?"

She hesitated a moment before speaking. "I have a strong guess, of course. I have said nothing, simply because I did not want to—" She leaned over confidentially. "—give away Batman's identity, in case someone was listening in. I suspect the others say nothing for the same reason."

He laughed. He supposed it was easy enough for the titans to put two and two together. Robin's life as Batman's sidekick was certainly no secret, but unlike the rest of the world, the titans knew that Robin was Dick Grayson. From all of that, it was only logical to suspect that Batman and Bruce Wayne was the same person. Robin hasn't exactly confirmed it to the Titans, but then they never asked. "Well, yeah, he's who you think he is and yes, he did give me that motorcycle."

Starfire looked awe-stricken. "That was very generous of him. Cyborg said that your particular model costs a small fortune."

Robin scoffed. "Bruce Wayne's got millions of small fortunes, so it didn't exactly break his back to give me the bike."

"Oh."

He could tell she was trying to analyze the tone and emotions behind his words. He wasn't planning on making her guess more than was necessary. "I called him this morning and asked him for help… to find a solution to your condition. He has the money and the resources, and if there's anyone who could do it, it's him. He agreed to do everything in his power to help you. All you have to do is give your consent."

Her jaw dropped, and for a moment, she said nothing, but then she seemed to have collected herself, and she spoke. "Truly, Richard? Bruce Wayne would… he would do that for me?"

Robin rolled his eyes, grinning. "Please… Bruce isn't that unreachable. He's just a regular guy, really, and he could be a real prick sometimes. But I suppose he comes through for things like this, and that's pretty much all that matters, right?"

A plaintive smile spread on her lips. Setting aside her bubble tea, she gingerly reached for his hands. "Richard, I've been meaning to ask…"

He cocked a smile. He knew what was coming. "Ask it."

"Why did you and he separate? I have heard that you made quite a dynamic team; Gotham's most celebrated heroes… did you have a fight?"

He smiled wanly. He twined his fingers idly through hers, mildly fascinated by how perfectly her hands could fit into his. "We fought all the time, but that wasn't exactly why I left. I think maybe it was a little bit about pride, maybe a little bit about trust, or the lack of it. Let's just say I realized that he'd be fine without a sidekick and I didn't want to be a sidekick all my life. I wanted to show him that I could do it on my own. I've done that well enough, I think."

"But you and he continue to be friends?"

"In our own way. I don't bother him, he doesn't bother me. Every once in a while, we check in on each other, but I couldn't remember a conversation with him where we didn't disagree on something." He sighed wearily. "There's always something."

She nodded. "And now that you have finally proven to him that you are your own man, you had to ask his help… for me."

"It's no big deal."

"It is. Thank you."

"I'd do it again, you know. If there's any chance to get your sight back…"

"I know."

"So you'll agree to this? We might have to fly to Gotham, and his scientists might have to run some tests… and then of course, they may not find an answer at all…"

Starfire smiled. "Then such is life, I suppose, but I welcome this chance to try. I do agree to this."

He gave her hand a gentle squeeze. "Good. I'll let Bruce know."

They finished their bubble tea and they made to leave. As Robin helped Starfire on to the motorcycle, she brought up one last thing.

"Robin, have you given some thought to what we talked about last night? You know… the training?"

He grinned. "Well, you know, it's going to be pretty tough—"

She was quick to respond, picking up on the hint that he just might. "I shall be equal to it! I will work hard, I promise!"

"And you'll need a lot of patience."

"I will be the model of patience! I will be so patient you will have to canonize me and call me Saint Koriand'r!"

"And you know I can't go easy on you. If I do that, that'll make me a bad teacher."

"As Cyborg says: Bring it! I will let you knock me senseless if necessary. Oh please… please Robin?"

He chuckled. "I don't think knocking you senseless would be necessary. I'll teach you, Star."

She squealed delightedly, clapping her hands.

He grinned. "Don't celebrate just yet. Believe me, three days into training and you'll be cursing me, my father and my father's father."

She scoffed.

Scoffed! Robin couldn't help but laugh.

"Dick Grayson, you couldn't possibly be worse than the Warlords of Okaara."

He grinned, securing his helmet and preparing the motorcycle for go. He revved the engine again, just to get that alluring giggle from her. She responded just the way he liked it.

Thusly rewarded, he cocked a smile. "Wanna bet?"

The motorcycle shot forward and her laughter was drowned out by the roar of the engine.

Robin glanced at his watch and saw that four hours had gone by unnoticed. He took a moment to think about Starfire and figured that she might still be hard at work on her tutorials.

When they arrived at the tower from their afternoon in the city, Starfire declared that she was on a mission to learn, so that no one, not even him, was allowed to deter her from her goals. He surmised that the edict would hold, at least until she got hungry.

Equally driven, he shut himself in his room to go over the reports and hopefully finish them early enough so he could start watching the tapes.

He tossed the final report on the finished pile and let out a breath, electing to take a short break. His pads of available post-it notes had been reduced to thin slivers, the bulk of it distributed throughout pages of the prison reports. The highlighters didn't make it either. The last yellow marker in his hand was on its final vestiges of ink before he capped it for the last time that night.

From what he read on the reports concerning Plasmus' current acidic state, the scientists who were assigned to monitor him were about as baffled as Robin was. A few months ago, they gathered tissue from Otto Von Furth and discovered that his sludge-state suddenly created an allergic reaction to living matter.

But clearly, its properties continued to develop. While before, his toxins could induce nothing but severe itchiness, his composition had progressively changed since then, attaining highly dangerous levels of acidity. When they first detected the rising pH levels in his body, they hastened to eliminate all possible elements that could contribute to it. The most reactive substance they found were the small concentrations of plutonium that were required to power the containment system. They replaced the power-source almost immediately and Otto hadn't been exposed to any radioactive substances since then. Why Otto's condition progressed in spite of that was something the scientists could not explain.

Leaning back on his chair, he picked up a vial from a set of ten tucked snugly into a foam casing. He lifted it to the light and saw a sample of Plasmus' sludge oozing inside it. He would have to experiment with the samples to make his own conclusions and he hoped he would have better results than the other scientists.

Never mind that they have a pile of PhDs to back them up, not to mention years of experience in the field… He laughed at himself. We'll see.

He went back to the pile and pulled out the scientist files. There were four in all, three of them containing the faces of dead men. He opened the folders of the three who had died and they stared back at him gravely. Unlike the scientists from the Toy Research Center, these guys weren't smiling. He supposed there was nothing much to smile about working in a high security prison.

There was a soft beep and it came from his T-Comm. He picked it up and flipped it open. Raven's face materialized on the small screen and her even, monotonous voice followed. "Oh good, you're alive."

He blinked back the exhaustion that suddenly came over him and let out a breath. "What's up?"

"The natives are restless. They want pizza."

"Cool. Call me when it's there."

"See, that's the problem. It's your turn to fetch take-out."

"Oh." It sucked to live in an isolated island at times like these: nobody delivered.

The corner of Raven's lip lifted ever so slightly. "But you don't have to do it alone. We decided to eat out. You're the designated driver of course, which means you're going to have to brace yourself for Cyborg's backseat bitching."

He sighed. "You know it. Meet you all at the garage in five. I'll go get Star."

They signed off and he surveyed his work desk. There was still a lot of work, but since he went Red X on them during his Slade obsessions, he had learned the value of taking time to decompress.

Starfire would appreciate the break as well.

He stepped out of his room and stood in front of Starfire's door. He knocked.

There was a muffled reply. He pressed a button on the side of the door and it slid open. The room was dark; and darker still when the door slid close behind him. Only a pale glow of moonlight and stars shone through her windows.

"Robin?"

Mystified by the lack of lighting, her words jarred him from his thoughts. "Yeah, it's me."

She chuckled. "I recognized you by the sound of your step. Your boots make a distinct sound."

"Oh." He wondered whether he should ask about the darkness and realized that he knew the answer already. "Star, it's a little—it's a little dark."

There was a moment's silence before she giggled. "I am sorry. I did not notice nightfall."

He could see her shadow rising from her seat and cautiously, she walked past him, her hand grasping his arm briefly. The lights came and he was startled again that she wasn't in uniform. It was still very strange to him.

"Better?"

"Much." He glanced at her desk which was littered with Braille tablets and a disk man. Earphones were half dangling from the edge of the table. "The guys want to go out for pizza and we both need a break. You up for it?"

She smiled. "Yes, give me a moment." Gingerly, she went back to her desk and groped for her walking cane. It was still extended. "I have not found the courage to retract this thing and hope for the best the next time I need to extend it. I feel it is still too dangerous since Cyborg had not configured it yet."

Robin chuckled. "Yes, better to be on the safe side."

"I would also have to talk to Cyborg about the color of this cane… I think it must be white to meet certain standards." Her hand rested gently on his arm so that he could start guiding her.

He led them out of her room. "That would disappoint Mr. Cool Guy. He doesn't consider white flashy enough."

"I am almost sure I could keep the Pikachu, though." She grasped the cane by its handle but did not use it. Instead, she held it to herself. Robin would be her guide for the meantime. "Have you uncovered anything from the prison reports, Robin?"

He shook his head. "Not much, but I've only been working on it for a few hours. I didn't expect to crack any cases, even if it does seem kind of open and shut. I mean, it could've been an accident, right?" They arrived at the elevator lobby and one press on the "down" button had the doors opening. Robin punched the button for the garage and the doors closed. "The surviving scientist said that he just heard something cracking and that was it; there was glass everywhere, but it's difficult to accept that as it is. Glass used for containing such things as Plasmus couldn't be that faulty. Anyway, I still have to look at the video surveillance. I'll probably have to reserve that for tomorrow. I have to review the bio-data on the scientists, probably after dinner… this must be extremely interesting to you."

She laughed. "Do not mistake my glazed look for boredom."

Robin groaned. "Star, your jokes…"

Stafire giggled. "Come now, Robin. I have lost my eyesight, not my sense of humor."

He laughed, but it felt a bit painful. "Fine. So, how's the intro to Braille coming along?"

"Extremely well! The package goes over a lot of data for visual impairment, and it talks extensively about Braille F.A.Q. I was in the middle of non-contracted Braille orientation when you arrived."

The elevator doors opened and the rest of the titans were already there. They piled into the car with Robin taking the driver's seat. He stifled a groan when Cyborg took the seat beside him.

Beast Boy, sitting at the middle in the passenger carriage, snickered as Robin turned the ignition.

Cyborg leaned over to his side. "Everything check out okay? Gas, oil, temperature…? Not that anything should be wrong with this car. I pretty much make sure it's perfect, but you always have to check, nonetheless. I looked at the tires before we got in and they're fine. Be gentle on the gas and go easy on the stick. Damn 'Fast and the Furious' movie have people popping the shift-stick like it was their enemy or something. Don't forget the hand-break!"

Robin sighed. This was going to be the longest ten minute drive ever.

With his elbow leaning on the window ledge and his temple resting against his hand, Robin drove miserably as Cyborg went through a litany of driving instructions. No one from the back had said anything since they left the garage; even Beast Boy's snickering had died down. One could only laugh at the situation for so long; Cyborg was now, officially, annoying.

Someone cut them in front. It was a red Mitsubishi Eclipse and it had cut so fast that it looked like its bumper had missed theirs by inches.

Cyborg's robot eye flashed. "What the--! Robin, drive on up to that car."

Sighing, Robin maneuvered from behind the Eclipse towards the left. He shifted to a higher gear, stepped on the gas and did as he was told. The Eclipse's driver was a young girl, roughly a bit older than they were; lovely and looking rather sexy behind the wheel of a sports car. She had long black hair and the cutest almond shaped eyes this side of Jump City. Robin caught her gaze briefly and she smiled, wiggling her fingers at him with a flirtatious, giggle-accompanied smile.

He wondered, for a split heartbeat, if she was waving at him, or at Cyborg.

Cyborg rolled down his window. So did she. He said something that caused her smile to fade. A deep scowl settled on her expression before she flipped her middle finger at Cyborg, said some choice words and drove off in a huff.

Cyborg settled back on his seat, furious. He rolled his window back up. "Did you see what she did? What a bitch!"

Raven, who was seated behind Cyborg, grunted. "Somehow, I don't think you endeared yourself to her when you began the conversation by saying she wasn't Robin's type. I think she stopped listening to your driving lessons right about that time."

"Well, she wasn't Robin's type."

Robin frowned. Cyborg could be so annoyingly neurotic. "What the hell do you know about my type?"

Cyborg scoffed, waving off his question. "Please. I probably know your type more than you do."

Robin rolled his eyes. "Sure, whatever!"

"Robin, you sound annoyed," said Starfire in a strangely over-sweet tone. From the rear view mirror, he saw her eyebrow lifting into a stern arch, and it sent a slight chill down his spine. "Was this girl your type?"

For some reason, Robin felt that he knew exactly what to say. "No. Naa-uh. Not even a just a little..."

"She was pretty hot, though bro, I gotta admit it," said Cyborg off-handedly. "Prettier than those chicks we met in the city two weeks ago."

Robin dealt him a glare so potent that he was surprised it didn't kill Cyborg on the spot.

A heavy silence fell and would have lasted for quite some time if Starfire didn't suddenly say, "CDRWs indeed."

Robin wanted to die on the spot when he heard it.

Beast Boy snuck his head out from the back, a grim look on his face. "Cyborg, m' man, that was unhelpful."

Cyborg scowled. "What did I say?"

Robin wanted to reach out and pull at Cyborg's circuits. He was about to say something when from the corner of his eye, he saw Raven shaking her head gravely.

Robin deciding it was better if he just shut up. When they arrived at the pizza place, he parked the car and hastened to get the door for Starfire. As he reached for the door handle, he saw that she was no longer inside the car. She had scooted over to the other door and was now leaning on Beast Boy who gave him a helpless look and an apologetic shrug.

Robin blinked, absorbing the scenario before he sighed again and flipped the power-locks of the car. Beast Boy and Starfire led the group and Robin walked alongside Raven and Cyborg at the flank.

"Interesting info you shared there, Cyborg," Raven said in a low voice. "Did you and Robin carry score cards while you were cruising for chicks or did you just yell out the scores like a couple of jerks?"

Robin grit his teeth. "It wasn't like that."

Cyborg rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "He's right Raven. Beast Boy was there, too."

"Oh, pardon me my assumption."

"We were just on a routine patrol, you know…"

"You mean you were bored," said Raven dryly.

Cyborg feigned shock. "Raven, don't be hatin'. Your cynicism causes me pain."

"I'm sure you'll find it in your heart to forgive me. You were bored…"

"As I was saying, we were on patrol and before we knew it, Beast Boy was talking to some chicks from the convertible beside us. It was the oddest thing."

Raven's eyebrow arched, her icy gaze falling on Robin. "And I suppose you two sat around and did nothing, too busy performing your patrol duties, and such?"

Cyborg looked absolutely unbothered. "Hey, we didn't want to be impolite and ignore them, especially since Beast Boy initiated conversation."

Robin growled, frustrated. "Look, I just needed to get a new stack of CDRWs but these playboys turned it into a joyride—"

Raven turned to stand in Robin's path, letting Beast Boy and Starfire walk way ahead. She looked over her shoulder, perhaps to make sure they were beyond earshot, and spoke. "And you, Boy Wonder. What's your excuse? One of them a tall, long legged red-head?"

Robin frowned. "What's that sup—"

"You know what I mean, bird boy."

Cyborg's robot eye flashed a second time that night. "Raven, I thought we agreed—"

"Shut-up, Cy. I know what I'm doing."

"Shutting up."

"Dick, I don't care how long it takes for you to accept certain things about your relationships with certain people but if you screw this up, you're going to answer to me. I gave up—" The T-Car behind them groaned ever so slightly, a dark aura enveloping it for a heartbeat. She paused, letting out a shallow breath. "You aren't the only one willing to make sacrifices here. Remember that."

She left, hurrying to join Starfire and Beast Boy on one of the outdoor tables. Robin stood staring at her, mostly confused about what she had said. He looked at Cyborg questioningly, but got no reply.

They took their seats at the table and after a moment's thought, Robin scooted over to Starfire's side. He had read from one of the info sheets that sometimes, describing the surroundings of a place to your visually impaired companion made them feel comfortable.

"It's a nice night out," he said. "The moon's a crescent and there aren't many clouds, so the sky's pretty clear. Lots of people walking around, too. I guess that's the way it is with the weekend coming up."

Starfire said nothing; she didn't even acknowledge if she heard him.

He gave Cyborg a look, as if to ask: See what you've done?

Cyborg shrugged as the waiter came by to give them menus.

Beast Boy didn't even look at the options. "My vote's on a veggie-pizza, no cheese!"

Raven arched her eyebrow. "Get a single, Beast Boy. The rest of us will eat real pizza, if you don't mind."

Beast Boy whimpered but said nothing to contradict her.

"A pepperoni and sausage sounds great about now," said Robin. "How about you, Star?"

She turned to Raven, as if Robin hadn't spoken to her. "Raven, anything you like in particular?"

Robin shot Cyborg another glare.

Perhaps sensing that there was more to the issue than pizza toppings, Raven merely said, "I'll have what you'll be having, Starfire."

"Are you certain? Well then, I'd like the pizza to have mushroom. No sausage or pepperoni."

Robin felt a headache coming on and he massaged his temples with the circular motion of his fingers. He still managed to deal Cyborg a narrow-eyed glance while he was at it.

"Raven, would you like to go to the bathroom?" asked Starfire.

Raven only took a second to stare at her before she agreed. Together, they went back into the restaurant to do the girls' bathroom herding-ritual.

"Cyborg, this is so your fault." Robin shook his head, tossing the menu on the table miserably.

Cyborg scowled. "Hey, I'm not the one who ran off at the mouth about pepperoni and sausage! Now we're stuck with mushroom. This is brutal!

Robin gaped at him. "I'm not talking about the pizza!"

Beast Boy made a motion to ignore Cyborg. "Robin, dude, Starfire's given me this cold-shoulder treatment before so I know what to do. First, you get down on your knees and beg her to forgive you then you get down on your knees and beg her to forgive you. If you could turn into a cat, that would be plus points."

"Will she forgive me then?"

Beast Boy scratched behind his ears. "She forgave me, but I don't know if it's that easy with you. Man… you told her you were going to get CDRWs? Why'd you have to lie?"

"I wasn't lying! I was going to get them, but you fools just had to—"

"But then you didn't tell her that you weren't able to buy the stuff, and you had to bum off my supply because you didn't want her asking questions about that night. That in itself meant you felt guilty about something!"

Robin rolled his eyes. "Look, you were there. Nothing happened. They gave us their phone numbers, sure, but I never called. I can't even remember where I put the numbers at!"

"I know that. Cyborg knows that, but the girls don't know that. The girls think you're a lying Casanova."

Robin felt like pulling at his own hair. "Hello! You're talking about me, here. I was too busy trying to relocate Slade at the time. You know how I get when I'm like that: I couldn't pick up a chick in a coop!" Beast Boy placed a supportive hand on Robin's shoulder and Robin promptly shoved it off. "Why are we even having this conversation? What's Starfire so pissed off about anyway?"

Cyborg and Beast Boy each arched an eyebrow.

Robin stared back. "What?"

Beast Boy shook his head. "Dude, if you don't know, then you're just plain stupid."

Robin frowned. He had never been called stupid in his entire life. Even Batman, disparaging as he could be of Robin's methods in their years of crime-fighting, hadn't use that word to describe him. He was about to say something just as biting when the waiter came over to take their order.

Beast Boy got his veggie-pizza with no cheese and Cyborg managed to find a nice combination of mushroom, meatballs and onions. He figured there was no point in aggravating Starfire anymore than she already was.

When Starfire and Raven returned, regular conversation resumed, but Starfire hadn't thawed in the least, and Robin could do nothing but mope. When they came down to the last slice of pizza, Cyborg spun it and it pointed at Robin.

He looked at Starfire whose blank stare was colder than ever. He sighed. "Starfire could have my slice."

There was an expectant hush and for a moment, Robin thought he was going to be ignored again, but then she turned to him and he looked up with renewed hope.

"Thank you, but I am quite full. Cyborg, take the slice. It would be a shame to waste it."

"Booyah!" Cyborg gleefully rolled the slice into a tube and stuffed it into his mouth.

"Yeah, booyah," Robin muttered as he pulled out the change to pay for their dinner.

Beast Boy leaned over, grumbling from the corner of his mouth. "You didn't think it would be that easy, did you? It took a near death experience for Star to go easy on me. A lame-ass pizza slice isn't worth sh—"

"Alright! I get it!"

They headed back to the car in silence.

Perhaps taking pity on him, Raven did not help Starfire get into the car. Neither did Beast Boy. Robin saw his chance and hastened to help Starfire in, but she managed to slide right into her seat without need of assistance and she pulled the door shut with a resounding bang. She almost caught his fingers. He winced, so did Cyborg. Cyborg never liked the sound of banging car doors.

Dejectedly, Robin dragged himself back to the driver's seat and brought them home in silence.

"Starfire? Could we just—"

The door slid shut in his face, nearly clipping his nose. The familiar sound of an electronic lock beeped from within and Robin sighed.

He saw Raven looking at him from the threshold of her door. He was about to say something when he thought better of it and turned, muttering a good night.

"Robin."

He looked over his shoulder.

"She's just pissed you lied and… well, if I have to explain what else, then you'd have to be stupid."

Second time tonight "stupid" came up.

"I'm sure she'll be much nicer to you tomorrow."

"Yeah, whatever Raven."

He retired to his room.

He was too distracted to bother with the surveillance tapes; he knew this after he was halfway through the first recording. Preoccupied and confused, he realized that he wasn't going to be very productive that evening.

He decided to go to bed, and hoped he could get an early start the next day.

To be continued...

Closing notes: It's hard to say whether Robin was much of a ladies' man. On the one hand, he had to be a babe magnet, as Dick Grayson (ward of an heirless billionaire? Of course he was popular!) and as Robin (I would so go for the cute superhero who looks good in tights, myself), yet on another hand, he's so obsessive and focused; basically a good-looking, unassuming NERD. Guy's gotta have experience, you know, but maybe not too much, after all, he's confused about Starfire, ain't he?

It's just one chapter now, but the next one is already half-way done.