In the Beginning There was Darkness

Chapter Seven

September 18, 2004

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Robin ran down the dark halls like the hounds of hell were after him. Although he felt sympathy and compassion for the dark girl, he did have to admit that this running away business was getting rather old. And chasing after the rogue Titan wasn't his favorite pastime… although sometimes a chase was invigorating. Especially when a pretty young woman was on the other end.

Robin suddenly burst through the front doors of the tower, only to find Raven sitting on the front step. She turned and looked at placidly, as if silently asking him, 'What's all the ruckus about?'

Robin looked at her strangely for a moment before deciding upon words to utter to her. "Um… hi." Pearls of wisdom, those words are.

Raven arched an eyebrow and looked at him oddly. "Hello… what are you doing out here?" She questioned flatly, her eyes turning back to survey the sunset more.

"I came to stop you from leaving…" The masked Titan said softly, feeling a little sheepish at the situation, "but I can see I don't have to." As Robin watched her, he had to admit how beautiful the young woman looked bathed in the fading hues of red, yellow, and orange. She looked like a beautiful, pagan goddess sent down from the heavens.

Raven let a sliver of a smile show in response. Sometimes that damned boy was just too kind to her. "No… you don't."

She moved over a little, signaling that she was ready to talk to him on a more personal level. Robin took the hint, and went over to sit next to her. He was deeply confused about why she chose not to run away; maybe she was ready to be a full-time Titan? Robin could only hope that was the case, but all the same he thought it best if he didn't press the issue right away, lest he be on the receiving end of her powers… again.

"I'm sorry about your room," Robin said softly, as he initiated more conversation. The silence was too awkward for him, and it was beginning to get annoying.

The dark girl shook her head in response, feeling a pang of guilt strike her suddenly. "Don't be. I should be apologizing to you, if I had never-"

"Stop it, Raven," Robin said, looking at her with a steely gaze. "You use the word 'if' too much in your vocabulary."

Raven made a sound of discontent as she avoided his eyes, and gazed into the sunset some more. "'If' is about the only word I can use in my vocabulary."

"Maybe you should try some other words," The masked superhero suggested.

"I'll think about that," Raven replied sarcastically. She paused for a moment, and looked back at Robin, vaguely noting how the sun's slanted rays enhanced his masculine features and made him appear sort of handsome. In fact, he did look handsome.

"What?" Robin asked after a moment. Although Raven may not have noticed that she was staring at him, Robin did and it made his heart skip a small beat; although he couldn't figure put why. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Raven's face flushed and she looked away for a moment. "Like what?" She asked innocently, trying to hide her new blush, and keep something from blowing up.

"Like you were admiring my handsome features," Robin teased gently, a smile playing on his full lips.

Raven stared at him for a long moment before raising an eyebrow. "Maybe I was," she replied flatly, gaze never faltering.

Robin, although caught off-guard, was not going to let her win the game she had initiated. He just smirked playfully at her and made his move. "Do not tease me so, fair maiden! For I can never hope to secure the attentions of the great and auspicious Raven."

"You had better watch that foot of yours," Raven replied, trying to keep a smile from surfacing on her lips. "Otherwise you might find it in your mouth."

"I'll remember that, Raven." There was a long pause as they looked at each other, as if surveying one another and their emotions. After the pause became too confusing, Robin then spoke again. "Are you alright, Raven? I mean, it was a bit of a shock to not have to chase after you."

Raven took a deep breath and let it out slowly, feeling some of her nervousness and tension dissipate. "I'm sick of running away… besides…" She looked away from her masked companion for a moment, as if afraid to look into his trusting face. "You make me feel like I have a home here."

Robin watched her silently, knowing she was eventually going to tell him her whole story, but for the time being she was silent. He didn't mind the silence, in fact he enjoyed it. It gave him time to study Raven more than he ever had before. Just a week ago he remembered dismissing the idea that the dark girl was pretty… and this was true. Raven was not pretty, she was beautiful.

Robin found everything he wanted beneath that dark exterior; he found beauty that was more than physical, he found compassion, friendship, and even humor, on occasion. He didn't know how long he had felt this way… but he did. Everything about her intrigued him, kept him guessing, playing, and fighting. She was… Raven. And he liked her that way.

"I told you I was a half-breed, Robin," Raven whispered finally, snapping the masked Titan quickly from his thoughts. "My mother was human, she was raped by my father the demon lord of Azarath. I have the body of a human, and the powers of an Azarathian."

Robin watched her intently trying to decipher every move she made, or every emotion that passed over her glazed eyes. She looked, most of all, sad and frightened, but he made no move to say anything, in fear that she would run away again. He wanted to keep her here with him, no matter what the cost.

"I grew up on Azarath, because my mother felt that I would be teased and tortured as I child on earth. Little did she know the same fate would befall me on Azarath. As a child I was scorned and mocked; I was called veshmer, which means 'Bastard Child'. My mother protected me and gave me a reason to live, although she herself could not. She died when I was seven, leaving me in the hands of my father. It was not a pleasing few years, but it was better than what came afterward…" Raven's eyes had now filled with unshed tears, and her gaze never left the sunset. She wished her fears could fade and disappear, just like the sun; but, alas, such could never be the case. She had to remember everything, and grow stronger.

"I was leered at, by my own father and his minions, when I turned the age of fifteen. My father, however, desired not only my body, but my powers as well. Because of the unholy union between him and my mother, my powers were unstable, but far stronger than his own were; and he feared me… but desired me as well.

"For two years I resisted and battled him, always winning in the process; those two years changed me, and I had to leave. So, I left…" Raven took a low, raggedy breath as her first tears fell down her face. "Then you found me, and took care of me… I owe you everything, Robin. You were able to make me feel strong again."

"Raven…" Robin didn't know what to say. He had no idea that she had been through so much over the course of seventeen years, and now he felt terrible for all the meant or cruel things he had thought or said. No person deserved what she had gone through, and he only wished there was some way to make the pain go away.

"I just… I wanted someone to know, Robin…" Raven finally looked back at him. "I don't mean to be the way I am… I can't help it."

"No one blames you, Raven," Robin whispered, cupping her cheeks and wiping away her tears with his thumbs. "You've endured things no one will ever fully understand… and it's not your fault."

Raven nodded slowly, feeling her face suddenly flush at the contact he had imposed. Her mind was suddenly spinning through hundreds of images of her and Robin, and all the time they spent together. Why didn't she ever understand all the feelings and emotions he spurred within her? Was she so oblivious and naïve, that she never grasped the true meaning of the twisted stomach or flushed face?

She was falling in love with him!

She was falling in love with the conceited, big-headed, egotistical, smart-mouthed, teasing, playful, some-what kind… and (let's face the gruesome truth here) handsome Teen Titan. Had she gone completely out of her mind? What exactly had changed within Raven? But more importantly:

Why didn't it bother her?

Raven pulled back slowly as Robin let his hands fall from her beautiful, porcelain face. He looked supportively at her and tried to smile, but his heart was pounding too ferociously within his chest for him to ignore. The girl, whom he just realized he loved, had not protested when he touched her. But even more significant, was that nothing had exploded, imploded, or levitated onto his head; her powers had been completely controlled.

"We're here for you… I'm here for you…" Robin said carefully, hoping his wording didn't sound strange to her; he didn't want to frighten her away. "For anything you need us for."

"I know… thank you." Raven smiled weakly at him, her eyes focusing on his mask. For the first time she noticed that he never removed the mask, and it made Raven wonder what he was hiding beneath it. Was he horribly disfigured, or so handsome that he had to hide his beauty from the rest of the world?

"Robin?" She questioned softly.

"Yes?"

The sun had long since faded and the two of them were embraced by the starry darkness. Robin looked even more handsome as he sat under the stars, looking curiously at his dark companion as she conversed with him.

"Why do you wear a mask?" Raven asked plainly, feeling a slight heat rise to her cheeks. It proboly wasn't her place to ask or anything… but come on anyone who saw Robin had to be somewhat curious about what was hidden from view.

Robin grinned back at her. "To mystify any woman that looks at me."

The dark girl rolled her eyes. "Or?"

"I don't know," Robin said, his smile fading into a mask of calmness as he looked at the sky. "I guess it's just always been like that with my family and me. We always used to wear masks when we performed our stunts… and it kinda keeps me connected to them." There was a minor pause. "Why do you ask?"

"Oh… just wondering about my teammate," Raven said nonchalantly, as her own eyes glued themselves to the sky above.

"Do you want to see me without my mask?" Robin asked casually, trying to ignore the painful beating of his heart. He hadn't taken his mask off since his last days with Bruce Wayne, but he would be more than willing to show Raven what he hid beneath the dark lines.

"I don't know… I guess." Raven's eyes became unglued, and she turned to look at the masked man. "I don't want to invade your privacy or anything." That was a lie… she wanted to see what he hid beneath that mask since the day she met him. What was so mysterious that he had to keep it hidden?

Robin said nothing more, then pulled the material from his face and looked at her, smiling a little sheepishly.

Raven could only stare in slight shock. What her handsome crush had, with his mask on, was nothing compared to when the mask was removed. His eyes were perfectly shaped, with long, luxurious eyelashes that framed the most beautiful, green color that Raven had ever seen.

"Oh." Was all she could say.

"So… should I keep my mask off more often?" Robin cocked his infamous smile, recognizing the look on her face as surprise. Did the dark girl have a soft spot for his features? Maybe she wasn't so different from pure-human females.

As soon as he asked that question, Raven found herself at an impasse. On one hand, she could say 'no', which was what she wanted to say because, honestly, who wanted to share that?; but he would misinterpret her 'no' and think that she thought he was unattractive. On the other hand, she could say 'yes' and gaze longingly upon his face… with five million other girls behind her. What to say! Oh, what to say!

"The mask gives you the macho look. If you kept it off, you'd end up being called a pretty boy." Well, that was suave, wasn't it?

"So, you think I'm pretty?" Robin asked carefully, his smile never fading.

"No, I said you'd be called pretty," Raven stated flatly, rolling her eyes. She knew he was doing this on purpose; he liked playing games with her, although she could never figure out why.

"Do you think I'm pretty?" Robin cocked a smile, signaling that he had initiated the game; and he was ready to play!

Raven arched an eyebrow skeptically and stared at him stoically. "I'm not answering that."

"So, you do think I'm pretty!" Robin cried, a grin spreading across his face.

"I never said that!" Raven cried in defense, eyes narrowing at him.

The masked Titan puffed out his chest proudly, smirking at his dark companion. "Ah, but you didn't deny it!"

"You're putting words in my mouth, buffoon!" Raven cried, her face flushing a bright red as a small rock exploded in the distance. Why did he insist on pushing her feelings around! He should know the danger if her emotions got out of control. Raven was only going to blame him if she accidentally blew him up, it would not be her fault.

"You're the one that said I was pretty!" Robin said, biting his bottom lip to keep from laughing. Raven was always so adorable when she was frustrated. Her cheeks got red and her eyes flashed brightly as she just glared at the masked menace for minutes before something exploded. She was just so… cute.

Dangerous… but still cute.

"I never said you were pretty!" Raven cried helplessly. She knew she had lost the game he had started, there was no way to win it now; all she could do was sit there and have him tease her shamelessly.

"What if I said I thought you were pretty?" Robin's smile had suddenly faded into seriousness, making Raven's heart bound in her chest, ears, and head. She stared at him with wide eyes and a tangible silence. Had he really said something like that? Did he realize what kind of trouble he could get into by saying such things!

"I'd say you were insane." Raven stood up to leave, hoping that she didn't have to see him for the rest of the night. Why did he insist on making her emotions run wild!

"Then call me crazy," Robin bolted up and grabbed Raven's upper-arm and pulled her close to him.

'Please don't let something blow up. Please don't let something blow up. Please don't let something blow up…' Raven chanted as her mantra. The feeling of being so close to him was sure enough to make something explode.

"Because I think you're the most beautiful girl I've met."

BOOM!

Raven pulled away quickly as she looked at the exploding boulder. Robin looked from the boulder to the dark woman in front of him and raised an eyebrow. "You did that, didn't you?"

"Ah…" She backed away as Robin's emotionless face locked eyes with her. "I think I'm going to bed…"

A smile peeled across Robin's lips and he nodded once in acceptance, locking those gorgeous green eyes with her own. Raven felt her heart pound even faster as she gazed into them.

"Sleep well, Raven," Robin whispered softly.

Raven nodded, then turned around. "You too…"

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And that's the end of this chapter folks! Sorry I wasn't able to get this out sooner, but I didn't have the internet for a while! Ahh the pains I have!! Woe is me!! Any whooooo…

I don't own Teen Titans, dur, and I hope you enjoy the last few chapters of this story, because I imagine it will all be wrapped up shortly.

Lots o' Love: Xaph!

PS: Tell me if you hated it, tell me if you loved it, tell me to just SHUT UP… it's all good!