In the Beginning There Was Darkness

Chapter Four

July 30, 2004

"Where can I put this?"

Robin looked up, from his place on the floor, to the woman who stood in front of him. He noticed she was levitating a rather large bed behind her, and looked slightly irritated. There was little wonder as to why. The other Titans had been shunning her for the past week; and although Raven had participated in two different battles, and proved herself worthy on both occasions, they were still ready to jump on her for any fault she may make.

On the up side, in response to a near problem-free week, Robin had offered Raven permanent status of a Titan. And after some bantering, throwing things, and blackmail… Raven excepted, although not as eagerly as Robin had hoped. She was very hesitant about 'making friends with people who wanted her dead,' as she so delicately put it. Robin only told her to give them more time, to which she replied with a raised eyebrow.

In any case, she was now a member of the Teen Titans and as a sort of 'commencement gift' Robin told Raven that she could redecorate her room in anyway she saw fit. She wasn't exactly thrilled, but on the up side she wasn't nasty about the gift either. Unfortunately for the two of them, the other titans had matters of 'more importance' this weekend, and were no where in sight, leaving both Raven and Robin alone in the tower… and doing all the work.

"You can set it in the hall for now," The masked hero said as he stood up. There was a slight thunk as the bed landed on the floor. He cocked his head to the side and looked carefully at her. "Something bothering you?"

Raven sighed deeply and peeled off her cloak, throwing it into the closet. "When is something not bothering me?" She questioned, pulling her hair back into a tiny ponytail and walking toward him.

Robin averted his eyes from Raven as she crossed the room to stand next to him. Although he had seen her without her cloak once or twice before, it could still be a shock to him. He forgot exactly why she wore that cloak, and was rudely reminded when she peeled it off. Underneath that cloak she was hiding the most beautiful and wild curves that any woman could dream of having.

"What did Star say now?" Robin questioned exasperatedly, rolling his eyes beneath his mask. The two of them had been going nonstop for the past week, whether it be in English, their own language, or just glares and sneers, you could not get the two of them to say or do at least one neutral thing to one another.

Raven rolled her eyes. "It's not just Starfire, it's everyone. It's not fair for you to be doing all the work."

Robin smiled slightly. "I'm not alone. And don't worry about it, Raven, I'm in pleasurable company." He winked at her, but Raven only rolled her eyes in response.

"I still think you're intolerable," She stated.

"I'm glad some one does. I'd really hate it if everyone liked me."

Raven shook her head in response to his comment, then nodded to the large cans at Robin's feet. "Is that the paint?"

"Yep, I hope this is the color you wanted." He peeled back the top of the can to reveal a beautiful, deep purple that matched the color of Raven's eyes. Robin looked up at her, and in spite of all her efforts, her excitement still shone through her expressions. He cocked a slight smile in response. It was nice to see her reacting in a positive way… besides, she looked really pretty with her eyes lit light that.

"Yeah… it's a really nice color," She said, looking up at Robin.

"It matches your eyes," He said in response. Raven's cheeks flared suddenly and she looked away.

"Don't think complementing me is going to make you any more tolerable," She stated quickly, looking back at him as soon as the blush had faded.

"I wouldn't have it any other way," Robin replied, grinning broadly. He poured the pain into a pan and handed her a paint roller. "Let's get started, shall we?" And for the next few minutes nothing was heard but the crinkling of the plastic drop cloth and the sound of paint being squished onto the wall. Finally, Raven turned to Robin and asked him a question that had been bothering her lately.

"Robin?"

"Hm?" He looked over at the dark girl.

"How did the Teen Titans get started?"

There was a moment of silence as Robin tried to put his memories in words. (remember, I'm making this up. And yes, I do know the history of the Titans. I'm 'reshaping' the history to work with this story) "Well… a while ago I kind of stumbled upon Cyborg. I went to go have my motorcycle fixed and there he was, working as a mechanic at the shop. I already knew Beast Boy, he had been sort of a side show freak in the circus I was working for-"

Raven looked up, surprised that Robin had let himself fall to such a level. Being a carnie wasn't considered the most desirable of jobs. "You were working in a circus?"

He smiled back at her, understanding the tone of her voice. "Yeah…" his smiled faded quickly. "My whole family did… we were a flying trapeze group. Actually... we were pretty good." He shifted a little uncomfortably before returning to the story. "Anyway… a good friend of mine was talking to the mayor of Jump City about what to do about the crime problem… and my friend recommended that I help out for a while. He and I had done some crime work in Gotham, and he had seen me fight. So, for a while it was just me, and occasionally Beast Boy.

Then I met Cyborg and started questioning him about his tech and so forth. In the beginning he was really reluctant to be putting himself in such danger… but, it worked out in the end, he loves what he does now."

Then, over a year ago Starfire sort of crash-landed on our doorstep. And it's been the four of us fighting ever since…" He looked up at Raven and cocked a lopsided smile. "Well… at least until this beautiful girl from Azarath came into our lives."

A paint can suddenly exploded on the other side of the room, spraying both the Titans with a very purple color. Raven quickly grabbed control of her emotions and turned to glare at Robin, who was now laughing quite hysterically at the situation he knew he had caused.

"Sorry!" he said between his peals of laughter. "Sorry!"

Oh yes, this meant war.

"You missed a spot," Raven said flatly.

"Huh?" Robin stopped laughing, just in time to watch Raven rub her purple hands all across his once clean chest.

"Hey!" he cried suddenly as the cold paint seeped through his clothing and landed on his skin. "These were my best scrubs!"

"Ohhh, too bad for you," Raven said, smirking at him.

"You're so going down, Raven!" Robin picked up a handful of paint and threw it at her, smacking her in the face with it. He broke into another fit of giggles as he watched several different expressions fly across Raven's face, ranging from shock to anger.

"That's it! You are so gonna get it!"

Before you could blink an eye the two teenagers began throwing globs of purple paint at one another in an all out paint-war. The two of them were laughing the whole time, or Raven was laughing as much as she could without blowing something else up. Finally, when the globs of pain ceased being airborne, Robin decided to something a little drastic, even for him.

"I have won!" He cried, tackling Raven around her middle. The two of them went sliding through the purple paint, like a slip-n-slide. They skidded across the slick surface of the plastic drop cloth, as Robin pinned the dark girl to the ground with his hands and knees. She just stared up at him, letting only a sliver of a smile show through.

"I hope you enjoyed that," Raven said sarcastically as she looked up at the boy who had her pinned in a puddle of purple paint. Strangely enough… she wasn't really bothered by the fight, or his weight upon her body. It actually felt… good. She had never really experienced fun like that before.

Robin was breathing hard and grinning broadly as he stared into her intriguing eyes. "I haven't had that much fun in months!" He cried ecstatically, paint dripping from the top of his hair.

"Well, I'm glad I could help you with something… now could you let me up?" Raven asked raising an eyebrow and squirming slightly under the pressure he exerted on her body.

"Don't you think I deserve a prize?" Robin asked cockily, raising an eyebrow in speculation.

"For what?" Raven asked incredulously.

"For besting you! For winning the war!" He cried in triumph.

Raven only laughed coyly at him. "The war is not over, and you have only won a battle." She paused for a moment. "Now get off."

Without another word Robin rolled off her, only to land on his back in another puddle of paint. He cringed as more of the purple goo seeped into his hair. He looked over at Raven who was wringing the purple paint from her own hair and wiping it off her body. Even covered in purple, she was still magnificent.

"What?" She asked suddenly, looking over at him and noticing his blank expression. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Robin sat up, squeezed the paint out of his hair, and then stood on both feet. "Like what?" he asked automatically, approaching the dark girl.

"Like a have something on my face…" Raven said, raising an eyebrow.

"You have purple paint on your face… if that's what you're asking." Robin grabbed a rag off the floor and began wiping off his own body, suddenly wondering if he should regret the paint fight. This non-masculine color was going to be stuck on him for the next week.

"Never mind," She said exasperatedly as she finished wiping off as much paint as she could.

Robin looked over at her and noticed that she had missed a whole side of her face and began to laugh lightly. Raven looked… cute. Just completely innocent and oblivious to the purple streak that crossed her left cheek and neck. "Come here…" he approached her and took the rag from her hands. "You missed a spot." Then, with surprising gentleness and care, he wiped the purple streak from her face.

Raven just stared at him for a moment, feeling sort of foolish that he was taking care of her like that. No one had ever really taken care of her, at least not since her mother had died. Strangely enough, it felt good to have some one look after her and laugh with her, like Robin was doing. It felt so much better for someone to not be afraid of her, or shunning her, or even wanting her dead. She didn't have to worry about all of that… but maybe she should. Raven couldn't let anyone take care of her, not really. Both her and the other party would only be hurt in the end. Just as she had been before she arrived on earth.

Raven batted his hand away and looked firmly into Robin's eyes. "What are you doing?" She asked irritably.

"Just helping you…" he offered her the rag he had used to clean her face, hiding his surprise from her. It was so sad to see her turn away from him, but just for an instant… she saw gentleness and thanks behind her dark eyes. And it only intrigued him more. "But if you don't want my help, just say so."

Raven shifted uncomfortably looking from his paint-smeared face to the rag in his hands. She wanted his help… she was grateful for everything he had done for her thus far, although it was difficult for her to express it.

"Robin…" She started carefully, taking the rag from him. "I… I wanted to thank you for everything you've done so far. I know I haven't exactly been grateful but… I just wanted you to know that I really appreciate it."

There was a moment of strained silence before Robin spoke. "Raven, I can tell that this transition isn't exactly easy for you… but we're all here for you." He immediately regretted his words as soon as they came from his mouth. Raven was skeptical to anything that included the other Titans, and she was not afraid to show it.

"No, Robin, you're the only who has 'been here' for me. And you know it too," She looked tenaciously at him before sighing deeply and sitting down. "I just wish everyone would give me a chance… It's really hard for me to coexist with them if they keep shunning me." Raven sighed exasperatedly and looked away for a moment. She had been forced to teach herself to ignore what other people said or thought… but for some reason, she found herself wanting their companionship.

"Why don't you take the first step then?" Robin questioned, looking down at her carefully. "I mean, just offer to do one nice thing for them. Maybe help them with their dish duties or something..."

Raven glared up at him suddenly. "I don't do nice."

"I don't know… you're nice to me," Robin said, nonchalantly shrugging his shoulders.

Raven's cheeks filled with color instantly and she looked away, hoping to get a strong hold on her emotions before something exploded. Of course she was nice to Robin, how could you not be? After all the hurdles and back-flips he had done for her, along with his charm and charisma… how could you avoid doing at least one good thing for him?

"You are impossible sometimes," Raven said, rolling her eyes.

"This is true, but I am an impossible guy who is helping you paint your room… not to mention the fact that I am also not turning you into the police," Robin grinned at her, noticing the slightly shocked look on her face. It melted slowly into frustration as she realized he was joking.

Raven rolled her eyes in response to his false threats. "Do what you will… but I'm going to take a shower." She stood up and began walking out the door.

"Hey!" Robin cried, chasing after her. She stopped and turned around to look at him. "Winner gets to shower first!" he cried like a child.

Raven cocked a small smile in response. She had an idea that would almost guarantee her the shower first. "I'll race you to the bathroom then," She offered casually.

Robin opened his mouth to accept before a thought smacked him in the head. He looked at her as if he suspected foul play, and raised an eyebrow. "I don't fly."

"Not my problem." Raven shrugged.

"You're going down…" Robin said, baring his teeth at her in a snide smile. Before Raven could even think, he had stolen a head start out of the door and down the hall. The dark girl chased after him in an instant.

"That's not fair!" She cried from down the hall, "You cheated!"

"I didn't cheat!" Robin called over his shoulder, as he rounded a corner. "I used my resources to secure me a win."

"That's cheating!!" There was no way for Raven to win the race. She was too far behind, and she'd be damned if she lost another battle to the masked teen. "Azarath Metrion Zinthos!" She cried, waving her arms in front of her and wrapping Robin in a black aura. He was immediately levitated to the ceiling, where he floated angrily.

"Now, that's cheating! This is not fair!" Robin cried, glaring down at the dark girl, who was smiling slyly up at him.

"I'm not cheating, I'm using my resources to secure me a win," She quoted.

"What a way to twist my words…" Robin sighed deeply. "Fine. You can have the shower first…" Raven set him down on the ground and shook her head.

"You're the one coated in purple paint." She smiled, handing him a towel in a truce. "I just wanted to make sure I could beat you at something."

Robin stared at her for a few long moments before deciding to speak. "You intrigue me greatly." Was all that came from his mouth.

Raven laughed lightly at him. "I'm glad I do something to you." With that she turned around and let him walk himself to the shower, without fear of pursuit.

- - -

Thank you to everyone!! Sorry about that last chapter's author notes… I know they were annoying. But anyway! Here's the fourth chapter, I hope you liked it! I know Raven was a little OOC, but ya know… to each his own. The next chapter should be out soon!

Lots o' Love: Xaph!

PS: I don't own Teen Titans, 'cause if I did, Beast Boy would SO be mine!