Hello. Well, I updated. Let's have a parade. YEAH PARADE. Okay since I gave Raven a flashback and reflection time, I gave Robin those too. Also Speedy enters the picture. Yeah Speedy! But everyone knows Robin's better. (Ducks tomatoes thrown by Speedy's fanclub) Also this chappy has the return of the infamous Julie. YEAH JULIE! Anyway...

Disclaimer: I wish I owned them, so I could decide what happens. Then all the RavenRobin shippers would be happy. But I might have to dodge more tomatoes from the RavenBB and RobinStarfire people. But that probably won't happen. Darn.

On with the show...
December's Secrets
Winter Carnivals

Robin rose with the sun as an indescribable cold chilled him within. Small loneliness crept inside his heart at the absence of his girlfriend. In the past his inner voice would have called him pathetic and desperate, but now it was different. Even though the voice was still there, another one was over powering it. Now iw was screaming at him, telling him he would never be complete without Raven, his Raven, beside him. As he sat on the roof watching the sun finish it's ascent into the sky, he realized how hopelessly in love he truly was. He never wanted to go back to the dark times he had without her. She made everything so much better. She eased his suffering mind and shared his load of problems.

FLASHBACK

Robin's face glowed in the light of the computer as he checked over the city for the umpteenth time that night. Slade was out there somewhere, and he wouldn't rest until he found him. The familiar darkness loomed over his soul that was normally present when his nemesis was on the lose. His stomach grumbled in protest to his refusal to take a break from work. He denied it the pleasure of eating. He had to work. He had to focus.

As the thought crossed his mind, the metal door swished open. Robin's one distraction walked quietly to his side. "Thought you could use this," Raven said placing a pizza next him, "I saved it from the clutches of Cyborg so be thankful."

Robin laughed lightly, "Thanks, I appreciate it."

"How's it coming?" Raven asked hesitantly.

"Not good. I haven't gotten anywhere all day. I don't know what to do next," he answered as he turned to the Goth. His breath caught in throat for a reason he didn't undersatnd. It had become a his usual reaction to her beauty. He had a hunch what it was, but his mind denied the notion. As he looked at her now, he wasn't so sure anymore. Her violet eyes scanned the screen before they found Robin's masked ones.

"He does this every time; he just disappears without a single trace. Then he pops up. This time we'll be ready for him," Raven assured him giving him a small smile, "are you almost done?"

"Probably not." Robin responded.

"You've been up here for nearly three days. I'm worried about you, Robin," she finished. Robin's gaze didn't relent. She had said 'I' not 'we.' He could see the worry and sadness clouding her vision. "I don't want to lose you, wonder boy."

Robin felt his heart plunge into his stomach. He made her hurt. He made her suffer. Without thinking he wrapped his arms around the girl. He felt her tense in his arms. He wasn't sure why he did this, but he felt he had to. "You will never lose me, Raven." She relaxed in his arms and let a single tear escape her. Robin held her at arms length. She looked so amazing especially as the tear shined on her cheek. Gently he wiped it with is thumb. Before he knew it, his lips were gently pressed to hers. A gasp came from Raven lips from the initial shook, but soon she felt herself kissing back.

Robin broke the kiss suddenly and backed away, "I'm sorry."

Raven looked hurt as the word flowed from his lips. She turned her gaze and quickly walked out. Robin chased after her towards the roof.

END FLASHBACK

Robin smiled as the memory flashed through his mind. His thoughts were interrupted by the small thudding of shoes. Raven walked across the roof quickly. Sitting beside him, she leaned her head on his shoulder. "I missed you," she whispered.

Wrapping his arms around his girlfriend, he was no longer bothered by the freezing climate. "I was just thinking about us."

"What about us?" she asked.

"Oh, just our first kiss. How did you know I was out here?" Robin questioned.

"I felt you out here," Raven answered, "through our link. You felt sad then happy. Are you feeling okay?"

"Yeah, so you felt what I felt?" Robin continued.

"Vaguely, it's because of our bond. It's really weak now. All we can do now is speak telepathically and feel small parts of each other's strong emotions. It will get stronger over time," Raven explained.

"Right," Robin was fascinated with their bond, "let say we have children."

"Then I will have a direct bond to my children, but you won't. You'll have an indirect one through me though," Raven answered, "but I don't think we'll have worry about that for a long while."

"That sounds good," Robin returned, "I think we better get inside before the others wake up."

"Do we have to?" Raven came very close to whining.

"Afraid so, but we'll tell them soon, so we don't have to hide. I promise," Robin whispered. Raven kissed him lightly before retreating into the tower. Robin turned to the horizon once more before following suit.

TTT

At a quarter past twelve all the Titans tried to pile into the T-car in order to travel to the so called winter carnival. It was obvious it wasn't going to work with the addition of Speedy. "Obviously this isn't going to happen," Raven yelled frustrated and cold, "Who the hell had the bright idea of scheduling a carnival in the middle of December?"

"It's probably a holiday thing, Rae," Robin answered.

"It's still a stupid idea, and the person who thought of it should be shoot," Raven spat.

"Okay here's the deal. Since Terra, Beast Boy, Starfire and Speedy are together they go in the car, and Cyborg has to drive, Raven and I will take the R-cycle," Robin decided.

Terra gave Raven a knowing smile which was returned by a glare. "Are you sure you want to put two people on that death trap when you're driving?" Cyborg protested.

"We'll be fine," Raven spoke up.

"I am surprised that you are willing to do such a thing," Starfire said as she turned towards Raven.

The Goth shrugged, "I trust Robin not to be stupid."

With that the Titans, including Speedy, took off toward the outskirts of town. Nearly an hour later the T-car pulled into the gravel parking lot of a giant fair. A relaxed atmosphere swept over the Titans as they exited the car. Little kids ran around the place as their parents tried to keep up. They beamed at the sight of the fair. Roller coasters were piled high and thousands of large booths were awaiting to be visited.

Cyborg looked around for the familiar red motorcycle, but to no avail. It wasn't there. A loud melodious beeping brought him out of his thoughts. Quickly he picked up his communicator, "Cyborg here."

"Hey Cy, we're going to be late. We ran into some heavy traffic," Robin's shouted through the noise, "go ahead and go in. I have to go," he hung up without another word.

"Whatever," Cyborg mutter under his breath, "listen the birds are stuck in traffic, so we're going in without them."

'Traffic, right,' Terra thought as she rolled her eyes.

TTT

'Turn on the next right, Robin," Raven spoke to Robin telepathically. They were headed to the nearest cafe for a quickly cup of coffee before they went to the carnival. That would give the others plenty of time to forget about them, so they could be alone at the fair.

Robin did as he was requested and followed Raven's direction. They soon found themselves in a dark cafe that smelled of strong coffee. A girl their age was on the stage reading a poem to a captivated audience. She wore dark clothing and had shoulder length brown hair. Raven smiled at the one on stage before sitting in the corner both. "Julie's always has something."

"Okay, that's it for now guys. I have to go catch up with some old friends," Julie finished. She stepped off the stage and walked towards the corner, "Well if it isn't the two birds. What's up?"

"Hey, Julie. It's been a while," Robin started.

"Not for Raven. She was kind enought to come by a week ago, but it's been nearly two months since you two came together. Even longer since Terra came by. What's up with you guys? You are the only ones worth talking to around here, and you weren't here, so I had NO ONE to talk to," Julie glared as she sat across from the couple. She was the only on besides Terra who knew. She was an old friend of the team, and every so often the whole team would meet her at the cafe. They let her finish ranting and finally she said, "Okay let me guess your usual right. You two are WAY too predictable. I'll go put the order in."

She came back in five minutes with a cup of coffee and a mug of herbal tea. "So what are you guys up to?"

"We have to go to the carnival outside of town with the others. We thought we'd let them get a head start," Robin answered the girl across the table.

"You mean you still haven't told them," Julie whined.

"Well, we plan to let it out after the ball in two days," Raven returned making Julie smile widely.

"Wow! The press will have a field day. Damn that ball. Because of my father, I'm forced to go too. John also will be there," Julie scowled. Her father was the head of one of Wayne Enterprizes's partner businesses. She was extremely rich, but she choose to ignore that part of her life. She had a nice car, but besides that she gave to charities and kept a part time job in her spare time. Julie claimed it gave her a sense of freedom.

"Good then I'll have someone else to talk to," Raven said in response to the news.

"Are you guys going together?" Julie asked.

"We're working on it, but listen we have to get going. We'll see you at the ball in a couple of days," Robin said as they went through the doors hand in hand. Julie rolled her eyes at their quick escape.

TTT

The R-cycle pulled into the parking lot causing dust to fly in all direction. The two Titans entered the public arena after paying for their plastic bracelets. They looked around at all the great attractions and made their way into the heart of the festivities. The atmosphere was alive with the feeling of pure joy. The birds walked to the nearest ride and got on. In the swirling excitement they forgot all about their responsibilities and issues. They forgot about all the secrets and the lies. They blissfully walked around the park looking at the booths hand in hand. They were like others; they were a where are you taking me?" Raven yelled as she was dragged across the park.

Robin looked at her and smiled obnoxiously, "The house of mirrors."

"No, Richard I hate that place. Richard," she protested. He blatantly ignored her and continued his trek.

He led her into the maze of mirrors and let her hand go. Before she knew it, Raven was lost. "Richard!" she screamed. She heard laughter from behind her. She turned to see the reflection of her boyfriend. He cackled at her menacingly. "Creepy," her muttered under her breath, "Richard come out, please."

The images around her spun and she ran through the door into another room. No luck. She reached out to touch Robin, but it was only a mirror. No luck at all.

She felt two arms wrapped around her as the images disappeared. "You know I'm always with you," he whispered softly into her ear.

She turned to face her boyfriend and glared at him. "Don't do that. This place gives me the creeps."

Robin continued, "Then let me take you somewhere else. A place where there's nothing, but us and the stars in the sky."

TTT

Terra laughed wholeheartedly as Beast Boy's attempt to smash the milk bottles succeeded. The animal morpher smirk proudly at his accomplishments. He handed his girlfriend the giant stuffed teddy bear that was his reward. She kissed him lightly as a thank you. The night had been perfect. They did everything the carnival had to offer, but more importantly they had done it together. Raven had been absolutely right about them needing some time alone.

The two took off into the bright lights of the night.

TTT

Starfire screamed as the roller coaster took off. She clung for her life onto Speedy . He laughed at the shook of the alien. Her wind blown hair settled down as the cart came to a halt. Starfire looked about her. They were in the middle of the track. "Looks like we're stuck," Speedy said calmly as he held Starfire in his arms.

Starfire smiled at him warmly and rested her head against his shoulder. He was a good guy, and the closest one to Robin that she had. Cyborg yelled at them from the behind cart.

TTT

"It's beautiful," Raven gasped as the Ferris wheel reached the top. She could see for miles. She gazed at the small twinkling lights in the distance, "It kind strange to know we protect this city."

Robin, on the other hand, stared only at the girl beside him. "Raven, I have something for you."

She smiled at him, "What did you get me?"

"Let just say this is an early Christmas present," he handed her a small box. She looked at him for an explanation. He just smiled at her. Slowly she lifted the velvet lid. A beautiful silver locket with a dark blue Raven looked back at her. She was speechless. "I believe the raven is made of the finest Azarathian crystal. I hope you like it," Robin explained.

On the inside of the heart-shaped locket was a picture of them on their first date. They were kissing. Next to it was a picture of the entire team at the park. All of them were laughing and smiling from the events of the day, even her. "I love it, Richard," she answered as tears pooled in her eyes. The couple kissed passionately as the sky behind them lite up with blue and red fireworks.

TTT

All the Titans assembled at the food courts in the center of the fair grounds with many pizzas to consume. They ate together while happily discussing the events of the day. "So what did you and Raven do?" Beast Boy asked Robin as he bit into this fifth slice of extra dairy-free, cheese pizza.

"Just walked around and I persuaded her to go on a few rides. Nothing big," Robin lied and glanced at Raven who smiled slightly. Subconsciencely she gripped the locket under her shirt. She wanted more than anything just to show Terra and brag about her boyfriend.

It was a quarter past one when the T-car and R-cycle returned to the island. Beast Boy carried a sleeping Terra into the tower as the rest followed. Speedy headed to the guest room and the others to theirs. Robin stopped at Raven's to say good night.

"Thank you for the gift, Richard. It means a lot to me," Raven said as she kissed him softly. Later that night Raven sat awake thinking about Robin in all his wonder. She smiled softly as her eyes fluttered closed.

Author's note: Tear. Well, that's it for now. I hope you enjoyed it. Review please, and don't worry the next chapter will involve the ball.

Ba Bye.