The
Magical Dreamer
Chapter
One: Of Dreams and Déjà vu
By Azareth Sakura
Disclaimer: I don't own Teen Titans and stuff. Just the plot and any characters I end up creating later on in this story.
It's funny how whenever you want to stay asleep, especially to catch the last tangible moments of a dream or the much needed sleep, something happens and you always wake up, cranky and irritable until said distraction leaves you. With the satisfaction of knowing you can now return to slumber in peace, you place your head back upon the pillow, only to find that you are now awake and will not be able to succumb to the slumber that you wanted to finish.
Alien as she was, Starfire was no exception to this rule. She cursed inwardly as she slowly opened her eyes and focusing them on the heavy metallic door at the edge of her room. A loud, obscenely obnoxious knocking sound resonated throughout her room and woke her up. It had abated for approximately two minutes, and as soon as she tried to fall back asleep, it began again- loud and obnoxious, as it had been the first time.
Trudging across the room, she reached her door only to have it swing open before she could type in the unlock code. Apparently, some concerned member of her current household had overwritten the command keeping it locked. Her slight early morning irritation drained out of her normally cheerful self as she stepped back to let the Boy Wonder in her room. She motioned for him to make himself comfortable while crossing the room to open the curtains of her large windows, allowing for her body to absorb some of the sunlight energy.
Starfire stretched her tired muscles briefly before turning back to face her leader. A slight blush crossed her cheeks as she tried to recall the last moments of her dream, but found that the details were swiftly leaving her memory; she could only remember the two of them had been in the dream, but as to what they did when they found each other was a mystery. So the princess blushed for a reason she did not know, and asked him why he had been banging so vociferously at such an early hour (it happened to be about 8:45 in the morning).
"You weren't up," Robin confessed sheepishly, not quite looking her in the face, "I was worried since you're always awake at dawn and down by 6…" here he paused to look at the most beautiful creature he had ever seen. "So when I came up to check if you were all right, I heard some strange…noises. It sounded like you were screaming at one point, and then there was nothing." He paused again. "I turned to leave, when you said…" Robin trailed off, unsure of how best to phrase what he wanted to say.
"I said…?" Starfire asked, brimming with curiosity as she prompted him to finish the statement.
"You said my name." He said relentlessly staring down at the thick, fluffy white carpeting of Star's tastefully styled room. Starfire blinked twice before turning to Robin with her large green eyes widened. Robin by now had shyly lifted his gaze off of the floor to see a pensive looking Starfire. Immediately worried that she was thinking of how best to tell him that the dream was nothing, that he was nothing (as more than a friend, anyway) he opened his mouth to say Never mind and escape as quickly as possible, when she finally replied.
"I do recall saying your name in a dream," she said slowly. "But I cannot recall the contents of this dream." She smiled brightly, "Perhaps I will recall at a later time, yes?"
As always when in the presence of that illuminating smile, Robin could not help but reciprocate, "Yeah, Star, I'm sure you will." He stood slowly, not quite wanting to leave, but his task was complete and he'd look idiotic sitting around on her bed. Affectionately ruffling her ruby locks, Robin ambled towards the exit, once again, as slowly as possible before pausing at the sound of her voice.
"Robin?" She called after him.
"Yeah?"
"I will be certain to inform you if I recall the dream. And..."
"And?" Prompted the lovesick teenager.
"And I would be most pleased if you waited for me to ready myself before joining me in the eating of the breakfast. If you have not yet eaten, that is," said Starfire smiling.
Robin's heart beat just a little bit faster. "Star, I'd be glad to join you for breakfast." Starfire giggled and floated over to the bathroom.
What the Tamaranian didn't know, and would probably never know, was that the infamous Boy Wonder would've said yes to her even if he had eaten. He was crazy, he decided. Crazy in love with a goddess, he thought, a goddess that I'm not worthy of. Idly he wondered just what it was that made him so insane for his supposed best friend. Robin knew he shouldn't have those types of feelings for her, but he could not help it.
After all, she was perfection incarnated. Sweet, kind, funny, naïve, she was everything. And she was beautiful. Breathtakingly so. In fact, Robin reasoned, that it probably was his bloody hormones that made him so obsessive whenever Starfire was concerned. Well maybe not just his bloody hormones. It was his bloody hormones and Star's utter perfection that had Robin wrapped around her slender tanned fingers.
So wrapped up in his thoughts was he, that he almost didn't notice his Starfire exit from the bathroom, dressed in her customary purple garb, cheeks a rosy red color, green eyes twinkling, and flaming hair wet. Almost. A few drops lingered on Starfire's cheeks, and he would have thought them tears had he not seen them flow down from her damp bangs. The wide grin on her face also led him away from this conclusion as well.
He swallowed nervously as one of the drops of water continued on down her right cheek, swirling down slowly and seductively down her neck. Again his heart sped up, his bloody hormones a raging frenzy as he used all the self control he possessed to suppress the strong desire to take her in his arms and kiss her senseless. Luckily for him and his fight in a losing battle, she turned around to put her towel back on the rack in her bathroom giving him time enough to calm himself down.
"Robin!" She exclaimed happily upon her return, "I am most joyful that you waited!"
"Of course, Star," he said, all nervousness hidden behind a mask of unwavering calm, "I will always wait for you."
Starfire merely smiled serenely, and the two friends waltzed out of the Tamaranian princess' living quarters to the elevator. They went down in an amicable silence, the kind only the best of friends or closest of lovers could share, thought Robin. It's a good thing we're both, he continued to himself, or will be at least…one day… I hope…
The kitchen was remarkably empty. Sure the curtains on the windows had been pulled back to let the morning sunshine through, but not a single Titan was there. This accounted for the relatively peaceful atmosphere in the room, of which the pair was glad. Robin went over to make a pot of coffee while Starfire in her tiny white apron (she saw them used on TV, so she had to have one) hovered behind him, staring in deep concentration at the cookbook propped up in front of her.
As the water had yet to boil, Robin crossed the floor to see what it was that Starfire was making for breakfast. After reading the title of the dish, Robin smirked before tapping her shoulder.
Starfire whirled around, startled and stared up at him with her eyes wide. "Need some help?" He asked, eyes behind the mask shining with amusement.
"Oh, yes!" She exclaimed happily. "While it does seem so easy to prepare the hashed browns, and they taste so wondrous, I am somehow unable to prepare them for myself!" She looked at him. "Is this not odd?" Starfire pouted cutely, "It is because I am not of Earth, yes?"
Robin tried to suppress the laughter at the absurdity of Star's theory, and somehow managed to succeed. "No, Star, it's not because you're an alien." He smiled as he pointed to a closet, in which many ingredients were kept. "It's because you aren't using the right ingredient."
Almost four years on Earth, and Starfire never had the opportunity to learn the culinary arts. This was mainly due to the fact that as superheroes, there was hardly ever a time to sit down and eat a proper meal. The usual breakfast consisted of coffee and some store bought food (such as cereal) or something easily made (such as eggs). Lunch was almost always interrupted by some sort of villain. Even though Slade had been defeated a while ago, the police of Jump City still relied on the Titans to catch every single villain or crook, no matter how minor of a threat they were. The Teen Titans didn't mind this, for if they could not fight crime, then they had no purpose. Or so they felt.
After a fight, no one ever really felt like cooking, so take out was the normal solution. Dinner was another issue unto its own. There were the occasional late evening fights, after which someone other than Starfire, who took a bath after a fight, would cook some semblance of dinner. If not a home cooked meal, then there was pizza, or the sporadic invitation from the mayor of Jump City or some other prestigious community member requesting their presence at a formal event.
Returning back to the present, Starfire grinned sheepishly and said "Oh," before asking, "Then what, Robin, is the ingredient that I must use to make the hashed browns?"
And for the next fifteen minutes, the Boy Wonder taught his beloved princess how to make the "hashed browns" with the help of the magic ingredient known to Earthlings as the potato.
Hash browns made, dishes piled neatly in the sink, and two Titans seated across each other at the table, the perfect, peaceful meal was ready to begin. Robin lifted his fork, dipped it into the ketchup on the side of his plate, and was bringing the food loaded utensil to his face when all of a sudden- BANG!
The doors of the elevator clanged shut and loud squabbling was now audible. Cyborg's heavy footsteps signaled their proximity to the pair, as Robin and Starfire sighed, knowing that said peaceful meal was now destined to be ruined. The remaining males living in the tower noisily made their way into the dining area, shouting obscenely at each other.
"MEAT!" Cried the vexed half robot as he forcefully slammed a pan onto the stove, getting it ready for the bacon soon to be placed upon it
"TOFU!" Screamed the green changeling from the fridge where he was brining out a fresh packet of tofu so he could turn it into his own breakfast meal.
"Please," began Starfire, leaving her spot from the table to float in between the arguing pair, "I am sure that a compromise can be-
"Star, " whined Beast Boy as he turned to face her, "tell Cyborg not to eat the meat! It was once a living creature! It's inhumane! And it's just WRONG! "
"But, it is his choice to eat-
Starfire was cut off as Beast Boy morphed into a cute green kitten with large, watery green eyes. He made a doleful face, one he knew he could count on to coerce the alien teen into doing almost anything.
Inwardly, Beast Boy grinned, for he could feel Starfire's resolve weakening as he continued to look at her with those gigantic eyes. This feeling was literal, for Starfire had begun to pet the fluffy green kitten. Unluckily for him, however, his plan would soon become a failure as the over protective Boy Wonder's left eye twitched in the beginnings of jealousy. It also didn't help that he already thought the changeling had a feeling slightly more than just friendship towards his Starfire.
Getting up from his own table setting, he picked Beast Boy up by the scruff of his neck and deposited him outside of the room, before dusting his hands off and returning to find Cyborg's bacon and eggs breakfast sizzling on the stove in the kitchen. Immediately, his gaze fixed upon Starfire, especially as she bounded towards him with a large smile on her face.
"Thank you, friend Robin, for rescuing me from the large-eyed Beast Boy kitten! I could not have held my resolve for much longer!" She exclaimed perkily as she came forward and hugged her favorite Titan (not that he knew, of course). Somewhat awkwardly, Robin hugged her back, and gruffly replied,
"It was nothing, Star." The smell of her strawberry scented hair intoxicated him, and more than anything he desired to entangle his fingers in her silky smooth hair as his lips captured her own in a kiss. Subconsciously, Robin's hands left her back and moved towards her waist to pull her closer to him so he could realize said desire.
But, this just happened to not be his morning. At the removal of his arms from her, Starfire thought this to be a sign to let him go so he could finish his breakfast. She smiled at him again before floating back to the table to put her now empty plate in the sink. Robin swore inwardly before chugging down the last of his black, bitter coffee.
And all this happened in the span of two minutes.
As he watched them from the kitchen, Cyborg smiled softly, almost wistfully. He knew the Tamaranian princess was the best thing to ever happen to Robin. He also knew that she loved him just as he loved her, but Robin could not see it. One day he would, however, and when that day came, Cyborg would be there, proud for his comrade and the girl he saw as a younger sister.
Beast Boy trudged into the room with a pouty sulk on his face. He shot a childish glare at Robin who reciprocated a fiercer glare, before wandering into the kitchen digging a block of tofu out from the fridge. He set it on a plate and waited until Cyborg left to eat at the table so he could cook it. The changeling surveyed the room while he waited, noting that the resident goth was not present, an odd occurrence since she normally rose earlier than the rest of the Titans.
Choosing to comment, Beast Boy asked the group, "Where's Raven?" Two shrugs came from the other male members of the room, but Starfire looked at him pensively.
"I have not seen her all morning," she replied, "but I did not awaken at my customary hour so I cannot be sure that she is awake. I shall go check on her, yes?" Without waiting for a response, the now concerned Starfire drifted off into the direction of Raven's room.
Thoroughly annoyed at having lost the opportunity to at least watch Starfire flit about the main room, Robin glowered at a potted plant that was sitting on the kitchen counter in front of the window. Beast Boy finished cooking his tofu meal, and walked over to the table in time to notice Robin's anger issues with the plant.
"Dude, what's got you so mad?" He asked as he stuck a bit of food into his mouth. Cyborg turned to face Robin, one eyebrow raised, as he too wanted to know the answer to the question. He gulped down a large glass of orange juice as they both waited for a response.
As they expected, Robin answered with a sullen "Nothing." Without another word, he exited the room, most likely to work on some files or tone his muscles in the training room.
The remaining Titans looked at each other and shrugged before returning back to their respective meals. "Mega Monkeys V after we finish breakfast?" Asked Beast Boy through large messy mouthfuls of tofu.
"Nope," replied Cyborg as he stood to pile his plates in the sink, "Gotta work on the T-car. It's not gonna become cooler on its own you know." He left his plates and followed the path Robin had taken. He took the elevator down to the basement floor where his pride and joy was located.
A gleeful smile formed on his visage as he walked closer to the car, rubbing his hands together. "My precioussss…" he said creepily as he polished the surface of the car with a brand new, completely clean towel. Nonexistent spots were removed under his careful care, and thirty minutes later, the sounds of Cyborg tinkering with the T-car were audible throughout the lower regions of the giant T-shaped tower.
When Starfire tentatively knocked on Raven's door, she was barely surprised to find the half demon awake. In fact, she remembered today to be a sort of special day for Raven, because many years prior on this day, the dark empath gained a sort of control on her destructive powers so that she could harness them for good.
From the crack in the door, Raven affirmed Starfire's presence and half-smiled as she opened the door fully for the princess to enter. "Yes?"
"Beast Boy was concerned for your state of being and I volunteered to come and make certain of your well of being." She smiled. "Also, I recalled today to be the anniversary of the time that you began to learn control, and I wished to join you if I may, in the celebration process you are undertaking."
Raven's cheeks tinged pink at the mention of Beast Boy. Inside her room, one of the candles' lights fizzled out leaving a thin trail of smoke floating above it. "Of course you can join me, Starfire." She stepped back to allow her in, and Starfire entered the room. On a podium in the center of a circle of herbs with many different powers, lay an ancient book, the Book of Azar.
It was open to a page somewhere in the middle, and Raven slowly chanted the words, tracing the worn lines with her fingers. The words were unfamiliar to Starfire, who mumbled them along with Raven, until Raven held the book out to her. Suddenly, the words formed in her mind and she chanted alongside her friend. They both could feel the crackling of good energy in the air, mixing with the sweet smelling incense, to give them both a sense of tranquility. Their respective powers built up inside of them, and each girl was able to maximize her reserves slightly.
On the floor below them, sweat from Robin's brow dropped down onto the tiled floors as he paused in his work out. Breathing heavily, he mopped his forehead with a towel and returned to the training with renewed vigor. For the second time that morning, he acknowledged his insanity. A thought of Starfire training with him, muscles flexed, sweat glistening on her thin frame, suddenly crossed his mind, forcing him to once again pause in his work out.
He walked out of the room then, forsaking further training to shower. Anything he did at that point would be half hearted, for Starfire was on his mind, and he couldn't get her out of it. As he let the water soothe his muscles, he allowed himself to indulge in a daydream starring Star and himself, alone, partaking together in some enjoyable acts of vulgarity that he knew for a fact he would not mind performing with her.
Robin sighed and shook his head, clearing his mind of all risqué thoughts, before turning of the water and changing into a fresh uniform. His temperament was much improved, as all feelings of jealousy and irritation had drained away in the training room. The insanity was lessened as well, and Robin felt himself capable of his normal, jovial demeanor.
His abilities would soon be tested, however, as he stepped into the main room just as the alarm sounded loudly, alerting the Titans of trouble. Beast Boy joined Robin by the main computer as the two waited for the other three members of the group. Cyborg bounded up the stairs, wrench still in one hand, and the two girls flew in shortly after.
"Trouble." Stated Robin in a matter-of-fact tone. "There's a robbery going on by the docks. Titans, GO!" he exclaimed in his trademark fashion. They nodded, and raced to the basement. Cyborg and Raven leapt into the T-car, and Robin hopped onto his shiny, red R-Cycle. The two vehicles sped off, with Starfire and Beast Boy in pterodactyl form flying swiftly beside them.
The docks were eerily quite when they reached. Using his sensory circuits, Cyborg detected the presence of a single person inside the dimly lit receiving areas inside the large buildings. A fork in the paths caused Robin to give them the order to split up into two groups.
Cyborg, Beast Boy, and Raven took the left path while Starfire and he tackled the right. He raced through the corridor with Starfire beside him, eyes and hands glowing green with pure raw power. The path once again bifurcated, and at Robin's nod to Starfire's questioning glance, the two split up.
Robin walked briskly, peeking into doors as he passed them, only to find them completely empty. His senses were alert, but the only sound he could hear was the sound of his metal-tipped boots on the ground. Finally, the path ended at a gray colored stonewall. It was a dead end. Robin angrily pounded a fist on it, before turning and running back in the direction from whence he came, eager to get to Starfire, to see if she had found anything.
And little did he know that she had in fact found something.
It was something familiar to her, but from another time or place. After they had split up, and each had taken his or her own path, Starfire had slowed her speed down to a slow hover, so that she could look into each room she came across. Her glowing fists lit up the dark, solitary rooms, bathing them in a greenish light. This made the objects in the rooms slightly more discernable, yet Starfire could not see the figure of any person in any room.
She continued down the hall, which was not unlike that which Robin had raced through. At the end of the path, there was a dead end too, but something standing in front of the wall caught her attention.
He was tall, and dressed in black. He wore a mask, it too was black, but as he stepped out of the shadow, Starfire immediately recognized him.
"The Red X!" She exclaimed, flying forward to poke his body. "Are you truly The Red X, or are you Robin in disguise?" She asked though she knew the answer. Robin had promised her already once before, that he would never wear the suit of Red X again, and Starfire believed him. She asked the thief this question more for the sake of asking, not for any other reason.
Red X didn't reply, but merely grabbed the wrist of the hand that had been poking at him and used it to pull her closer to him. A breeze filtered through the open skylight above them, and with it, a rush of light pink cherry blossoms encircled them. Starfire closed her eyes and breathed in their sweet scent, suddenly remembering this scene from another time.
"They are for you…" came the voice unbidden from her dream.
Red X handed her a bouquet of white lilies tied with a pink satin ribbon. In the center of the bouquet, standing slightly taller than the other flowers was one perfectly shaped, crimson red rose.
"They are for you…"
"They are all for you…"
"For you, my lovely…"
"I don't want you to leave me here,"
"Starfire,"
"I love you."
The words from her dream resonated around inside her head, and the poor Tamaranian princess stared up at the man who held her gently in his arms. She accepted the bouquet he had presented to her, and he held her closer.
"I love you…"
She lifted her fingers to the side of his face. "Robin?" She asked him, sounding remarkably similar to a lost, confused child. She puzzled over this feeling she had inside of her, a feeling where this moment had happened before, and was happening again. It was déjà vu.
Red X opened his mouth as if to speak, perhaps to tell her that she was mistaken, but at that very moment, Robin skidded to a stop before him, eyes narrowed in anger, bo-staff out, and body positioned to attack.
"Let. Her. Go." He said through his gritted teeth. Red X smirked at him, and Starfire took notice of this new arrival.
Through glazed eyes, she stared at him, and smiled wanly, "Robin," she said, her words sounding slurred, "I seem to have re…recal…recalled my dream…" With that said, her eyes closed, and her limp body slumped in Red X's arms as she fell asleep or fainted, Robin could not tell.
"STARFIRE!" He shouted to her in concern before running at his hated rival.
Yuka: Thanks I'm glad you thought there was enough fluff, because there probably won't be any major fluff for a while. Red X will be in the story, but it's a RobxStar. But you know that already. Thanks for beta-ing
Babie A: Thanks for liking my story. I updated as fast as I could, mainly because your words were so nice, so thanks!
Tootsieroll64: I'm glad you liked the descriptions.
TitansFan: You don't have to wait any longer because the next chapter is here:D
Clueless90: Updated!
DeLiRiOuS aka CAPTAIN obvious: There weren't any dream descriptions in this chapter, but there will be in the next one…I think… Thanks for liking it :
THANKS YOU GUYS FOR REVIEWING! I heart you all.
Author's Note: Thanks you guys, for reviewing the prelude with such kind words I'm surprised that I managed to type up another chapter so soon normally I take weeks but maybe you'll like it. I wasn't sure if it actually fit in well with the prelude, but I was assured by Yuka that it did, so enjoy it :)
