Hello, hello, hello! LOL Count Olaf rocks…in an evil, nasty kind of way. Wow, the fifth chapter already…I'm beginning to wonder when this streak of inspiration will putter out…but the point is, it hasn't yet!
Nevermoretheraven: Annoying, yes. Naïve, definitely. Lovely music, by the way.
Mcrystal: Thanks for reading; I'm glad you're enjoying it!
Ok then, on with the story!
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Robin's fever finally broke at seven o'clock in the morning. Starfire was asleep on one of the lab's vacant beds, and Raven and Cyborg were talking in a corner of the room. Beast Boy had never returned from the bathroom, so they assumed that he had gone to bed long ago.
"So, what exactly are we looking at here?" asked Raven gravely, stifling a yawn.
Cyborg sighed. "A couple broken ribs, a broken arm, cuts, bruises, and his head took a pretty severe beating. We're gonna have to keep our eye on him; he could have easily suffered a concussion, and…we need to make sure everything's all right upstairs."
"What about the fever?"
"Looks like he's got an infected cut on his chest. It's not exactly minor, but it's treatable, and it's definitely the least of our worries right now. We need to set and cast his arm as soon as possible, though."
"Is there anything I can help with?" Raven asked, trying to keep her eyes open.
"No, Ray. At least not 'til you've had some rest. Go, I've got enough juice to last me a good five or six hours worth of watch duty."
"You sure?"
"Yep. Go get some sleep" he said, smiling reassuringly.
Raven made no further argument. She stumbled off to her room, wondering how on earth Beast Boy and Cyborg could constantly pull all-nighters on the Game Station.
Her room was dark and quiet. Raven breathed deeply, soaking in the familiarity of her haven. Tense muscles relaxed, her over-crowded mind was automatically cleared as though she had rubbed an eraser across it, and she felt safe again. She flopped on her bed, still fully clothed, immediately falling into a deep sleep.
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Robin moaned in his sleep, shifting slightly on the white hospital bed.
"What's the matter, Robin?"
Raven's eyes were wide, staring pleadingly at him, begging for help.
"Does this bother you?" Slade tightened his grip around her neck. Raven choked, gasping for air.
Robin's legs were filled with lead. He tried to run to her, but he couldn't make his body move. His mind was a complete blank; he had to save her, she was dieing… He could only watch in horror as Slade squeezed harder, completely cutting off Raven's air supply.
Robin screamed as she struggled against Slade's grip, moving jerkily, desperate for air.
"I wonder what will happen if I keep squeezing?" Raven was slowly weakening, moving less and less as her body began to shut down. Robin was screaming, screaming so loud he thought he would explode. Raven went limp, her eyes staring hauntingly, accusingly, at Robin. Then they closed, and she moved no more.
Robin's world was crashing in on him; he no longer heard his own screams; tears forced themselves out of his eyes; his heart was breaking into a million pieces…and all the while, Slade laughed at him, mocking his pain…
"Robin? Robin!"
He jolted awake, breathing hard and fast. He had no clue where he was or what was happening; the dream was still burning in his mind.
"Whoa, man, chill! It was just a dream!" Robin stared up at Cyborg, who was leaning over him, pinning his shoulders to the bed.
His breathing slowed slightly. "Where's Raven?" His voice cracked when he said her name, his eyes burning and a lump rising in his throat as he remembered what he had just seen. He prayed that it wasn't real.
Cyborg blinked, surprised by Robin's blunt question. "She went to get some sleep. Why?"
Robin felt some relief, but it wasn't enough. He had to see her, hear her, and feel her before he could be all right again. He tried to push himself off the bed, but he fell back, groaning as pain shot like needles through his chest and arm.
"Oh, no you don't! You're not going anywhere, and if you try to move again, I'll strap you to the bed!" said Cyborg seriously.
"I have to talk to Raven!" said Robin through gritted teeth; his arm was hurting horribly.
Cyborg sighed. Robin was stubborn, bossy, and headstrong even in this vulnerable position. He knew that arguing would be pointless, so he gave in and called Raven.
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An annoying beeping sound drifted into Raven's dreams. It got louder and harder to ignore every second, forcing her eyes open.
"Somehow that didn't feel like five or six hours" she thought as she realized that the racket was coming from her communicator. "What?" she said groggily as she flipped it open.
"Uh, sorry to wake you up, but…Robin says he needs to talk to you" Cyborg said apologetically.
At the mention of Robin's name, Raven snapped to attention, ready for anything.
"What is it? Did something happen?"
"He's fine…well as fine as he can be, but…well he just says he wants to talk to you."
"I'm on my way." Raven rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and flew down to the medical lab, taking the stairs to save time. Her mind was reeling with all the things Robin could want to talk about, all of which seemed unlikely. What could he want, then? She arrived in the med lab slightly out of breath.
As time passed and the dream began to fade, Robin felt more and more embarrassed. Cyborg had woken Raven from her well-deserved rest because he had a nightmare. He felt like a two-year-old calling his mommy to come chase the monsters away. Humiliation burned in his cheeks.
And yet, when he saw her come in, purple hair slightly mussed and hanging in her eyes, he wasn't sorry for calling her down. Relief flooded through him, and the tightness in his chest released as he stared at her. She was alive, she was safe... "But for how long?" The sly voice was back, echoing through his mind. "NO!" he thought desperately. "Shut up!" "How long will your precious little girlfriend be safe? How long can you protect her? How long before she winds up dead, because of you?" "SHUT UP!" he yelled, holding his head. He heard a low chuckle, and then silence. The voice was gone, for now.
"Uh…Robin?" Raven's voice was uncertain, worried.
Robin opened his eyes to see Raven, Cyborg, and Starfire, who had been jolted awake by his scream, staring at him. He winced as he realized that his arm was throbbing with pain. He lowered it back onto the bed, not looking at anyone.
"Dude…are you ok?" asked Cyborg haltingly.
Robin squeezed his eyes shut. What was happening to him? Was he…? "I am not crazy!" he thought angrily. But then, why was he hearing voices no one else could?
"Robin, can you hear me?" Cyborg was getting really worried now. A nightmare, immediately followed by Robin talking to himself…Not good signs.
Who, or what, was that voice? It sounded strangely like…was this like before? Only this time, he was just hearing Slade, rather than seeing and feeling him as well?
"Robin!" yelled Cyborg, waving his hand in front of his eyes.
Robin jolted out of his thoughts with a sense of dread that he couldn't completely pin on the strange voice. "What?" he finally responded.
Cyborg was slightly relieved when Robin answered. The far-away look was mostly gone from his eyes. Dreading the answer, Cyborg asked, "Uh…who were you yelling at?"
Robin was silent again. What could he possibly say? "Oh, I was just talking to the disembodied voice in my head. Nothing to worry about!" Yeah, right. They'd probably stick him in a straight jacket and lock him in a room with padded walls. On the other hand, if he didn't tell them something, they would probably do that, anyway. "Uh…what yelling?"
Cyborg raised his eyebrow.
"Robin, is everything ok?" asked Raven, looking at him searchingly. She had a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach; the last time something like this happened, a few hours later Robin was in Slade's hands. Coincidence? She doubted it.
"I'm fine", he said quietly. This phrase was as automatic for him as "and" and "the".
Starfire was looking from Cyborg, to Raven, to Robin, confused and afraid. She wondered why Robin did not speak to her; he knew that she was present. Robin would never ignore her; he would never hurt her…sadness filled Starfire as she admitted that this was no longer true. She remembered all his harsh words, and tears welled up in her eyes. Where had Robin gone?
There was an awkward silence between the four titans. Everyone was avoiding everyone else's eyes. Raven suddenly remembered what Cyborg had said.
"Did you need to talk to me, Robin?"
"Huh?" Then he remembered: the nightmare, the reason Raven was there in the first place. He hadn't really needed to talk to her, just to make sure she was safe…Then a terrible thought occurred to him. "I could always have that talk with her…" This idea terrified him more than 5,000 of Slade's robots ever could. He started mentally planning what he would say to her, but abruptly stopped. "You're setting yourself up. She doesn't…She would never…It's pointless!" "I…just wanted to say hi…" he said, mentally groaning. Lately, everything that came out of his mouth sounded stupid.
"Oh…hi", she said awkwardly, knowing that that couldn't be all he had wanted. Did she have to wring his neck to get him to talk?
Cyborg was looking from Raven to Robin. "Huh? You said you wanted to check on her because of that ni-" He broke off, seeing the death glare Robin was giving him. "Nice conversation you two had…the other day", he finished lamely, hoping that that was a good enough cover.
Raven raised an eyebrow at him. He looked away from her penetrating stare, twiddling his thumbs. "Oh, right. That conversation", said Raven coldly. "How could I forget that nice conversation? What did you want to say about it, Robin?"
"Nothing", he mumbled, cursing Cyborg.
"I see. So, what you're trying to tell me is I got woken up for nothing?" Something inside Raven wanted to get Robin to crack, to open up, and his resistance frustrated her. She left without another word. It wasn't true that her efforts had gone unrewarded. Remembering the night before, she almost wondered if she had imagined it all. Robin had cried; he had let down all his defenses and allowed someone to reach him. The Robin that she had seen that night had been no more than a child...a child alone in the dark. She wondered if Robin would ever allow her to see that defenseless side of him again. In fact, she wondered if she even wanted him to.
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Well there it is. Chapter five. Please review and let me know how I'm doing and what I can improve on! Later, -Dusty