"I'm afraid I don't really know much about dancing," Robin admitted as Kay
led him out to the floor. The music was slow, a popular jazz song, if he
wasn't mistaken.
"There's not much to it," Kay said, putting her arms around his neck. You just kind of go like this and sway a little." She smiled tilting her shoulders just so. Robin tried it.
"Perfect," said Kay. "That's basically all you have to do. It can get more complicated of course, but that's it in a nutshell."
"Easier than I thought," Robin said. Kay nodded and they danced all the way through the song.
***
"Would you like to dance?" asked a redheaded guy, maybe a few years older than Starfire. She had been so preoccupied watching Robin and Kay that she hadn't heard him the first two times. Finally, on the third try, he got her to turn around.
"Excuse me."
"I asked if you would like to dance," he repeated.
"Oh. Um, I am sorry. Not right now."
"Later then?"
"Perhaps," Starfire answered. She didn't mean to be rude, but there was only one person she really wanted to dance with, and he seemed to be having the time of his life with Kay Tanaka.
She walked forced herself to turn away and back to the punch table, pouring herself some delicious soda. "You are still here," she commented to Raven who was leaning against the wall.
"Yeah. Why wouldn't I be?"
Starfire shrugged, downing a gulp of her root beer. "Oh, I had simply thought that you would be engaged in the act of dancing, that is all."
"Dancing's not really my thing," said Raven.
"I think Beast Boy would be rather disappointed to hear that." Starfire smiled when she saw Raven stiffen instantly.
"What?" Raven asked in a measured tone."
Starfire smiled. "You have not noticed the way he's been looking at you?"
"What are you talking about?"
"In fact, if you were to turn around I am quite certain you would see what I am talking about."
Raven took a moment to take this in. She relaxed her posture, let out a breath, and then whirled around, looking straight at Beast Boy.
That he had been observing her in his peripheral vision was obvious, despite the fact that he immediately looked at the ceiling, pretending as if he hadn't been anything.
Raven blushed. "He was probably just looking at the wall."
***
Outside, the leader was calmly observing events below. Aside from the Titans, he counted five bodyguards, two of which were obviously pretending to be regular guests. Most everyone was either talking or on the dance floor now, something that would last for perhaps another ten minutes, then Takahashi would get up and start talking. He held back his growing impatience. Ten more minutes.
***
"What about you?" Raven asked, changing the subject. "Half the male population in here seems to be giving you a lot of attention." Her mouth went up in something resembling a smile.
"Perhaps," said Starfire, "They are not whose attention I want."
"Oh." Raven pushed off from against the wall. "He'll come around," she said assuringly. She didn't ask whom Star was referring to. Didn't need to. With that, she strode towards Beast Boy's table. "That said, perhaps I should take a little of my own advice."
She nearly bumped into Kay, who neatly sidestepped what would have been a very embarrassing collision. "Sorry," Kay apologized. She turned to Starfire. "Hey."
"Hello," Starfire said. Ouch, that had come off a little ruder than she had intended If Kay was put off, she didn't show it. "Having a good time?"
"Yes"
"I'm glad. Designing a gala is a tough process, its glad to know the work paid off."
"It is very pleasant," Starfire said, forcing herself to be nice.
"Thank you." Kay was doing a better job of it, but it was clear she too was trying to make conversation without touching what was obviously on both of their minds.
Starfire touched it first. "So. . . you and Robin dancing."
Kay nodded. "I rather enjoyed it."
"I rather noticed." Starfire was surprised at how quickly she resorted to sarcasm.
"You know, Robin suggested I come over here and talk to you."
This caught Starfire off guard. She instinctively turned her head to Robin who was talking to Cyborg.
"He said," Kay continued, "that he thought you might be a little unhappy with me. I honestly didn't have any idea why that would be." She tilted her head to the side. "Are you?"
"Perhaps."
"Why?"
Oh well, a little honesty couldn't hurt. "I am not completely comfortable with how fast you have taken over our lives. You seem to be making many of our decisions for us. Where we live, what we do, it makes me a little uneasy."
"Oh. Silly me, I uh, had the funniest idea that it was because of Robin."
"What does Robin have to do with this?"
"I don't know Starfire, you tell me."
"If you are implying that I am jealous . . ." Starfire said coldly.
"Your words not mine. I really don't know what on earth you would have to be jealous about."
Starfire could have said what she really thought. She could have said that Kay had been hanging off Robin like a lovesick puppy dog and that she flirted so shamelessly (in her opinion) with the guy she had to make sure not trip on the pheromones. "I do not either, because I am not jealous. You asked if I was unhappy with you and I answered honestly, now if you will excuse me," she said instead, stepping past Kay. "I think I need to go sit down."
***
"Here she comes."
"Shut up Cyborg," Beast muttered. He paused. "Really?"
"Would I lie to you?"
"Yes." Beast Boy turned around, coming face to face with Raven. "Hey Raven."
"Hey yourself. Havin' a good time?"
"Cyborg sure is. His dance card is longer than my arm."
"Speaking of which, I wanted to ask you something."
Cyborg made a face slowly backing away. Beast Boy's mouth wasn't responding to his brain commands. Had he heard right?
He would never know. One second, his mind was in la-la land and the next, he was looking up in what seemed like slow motion. He heard the distinct sound of breaking glass and he could see the silvery shards reflecting the multitude of ambient light in the room. Dark figures, quite a few them suddenly appeared, hopping down through the opening created by the broken skylight.
What the heck?
Gunfire broke out suddenly, snapping Beast Boy back to reality.
"Get down! " Raven shouted, forcefully tackling him to the ground. His breath left him in a whoosh and his eyes went wide as he saw the table bisected by a hail of bullets. His glass of juice exploded and carrot juice splashed all over his tux. There was screaming now, and for some reason, the slow music that had been playing was still booming over the speakers, creating an eerie contrast with the sudden chaos that had taken over.
Raven yanked him to his feet. "C'mon," she yelled, "I think they're after Takahashi!" She did a quick count. There were nine . . .no, make that ten of the dark-clad figures. Each held submachine guns and they were all moving toward the podium, where Takahashi had been apparently about to begin speaking. She caught a table top in her telekinetic grasp and flung towards the nearest one, catching him off guard. The remaining rounds in his gun went into the ceiling, one of them hitting the giant disco ball hanging from the ceiling. It dropped, almost certain to fall on a little girl who had fallen on the floor.
A blue beam split through the air and knocked the killer disco ball out of the air, making it harmlessly hit the wall. Cyborg reloaded his sonic cannon. And aimed again, this time at one of the attackers.
***
Robin 's bo staff was up and out in a flash. He was the closest to Takahashi and with a gravity-defying aerial backflip that would have put most Olympic gymnasts to shame, he landed in front of Takahashi, protectively shoving the man behind him.
"What's going on?" Takahashi asked tersely.
"We're under attack. You need to get down to the ground so you don't present an easy target," Robin said, switching into his take-charge persona. Several bullets pinged against the podium, but didn't penetrate, for which Robin thanked his lucky stars. It would provide adequate cover. He dove from behind the podium, two birdarangs in hand. Both of them were specially made for hard impact, custom weighted with hard titanium alloy edges. He immediately sighted his two preferred targets, the two closest attackers. Bullets whizzed past him, many narrowly missing. He threw, and then hit the ground, turning his momentum into a log roll from which he expertly hopped back onto his feet and into a crouching position. Both birdarangs connected with solid thuds, and returned back to Robin's hand. That took two out of the equation. Or rather, four, he revised when he saw Raven take one out of the picture with a tabletop and Cyborg blast another into a table. A starbolt clipped one of the attackers in the shoulder, spinning him around and right into a back kick from Beast Boy, who turned into a mule. Ouch!
Most of the partygoers were gone by now, and Robin winced when he saw five bodies on the ground, a cursory look confirming that they were either dead or would soon be. Starfire, Beast Boy, Raven, Cyborg, and Kay ran up to the front, all breathing heavily.
"Is Mr. Takahashi alright?" was Kay's first question.
"I'm fine," confirmed the man. "Just make sure you apprehend whoever is responsible for this outrage."
"It was then that Robin noticed the distinct lack of gunfire. He peeked from around the podium and saw that the remaining attackers had dropped their guns and now wielded nunchucks. Robin himself had come across the weapon before in his escapades with the Dark Knight concerning Xiao Shung, a former student at Batman's old jujitsu training school who had turned to villainy, using his commendable martial arts skills. Nunchucks had been Xiao Shung's weapon of choice. Most people would hurt themselves worse than an opponent if they tried to use the weapon, but it could be deadly in the hands of someone who knew how to use it. "Get them," Robin commanded, and the Titans reacted swiftly, charging at the mysterious men. Raven aimed a rather impressive roundhouse at one of the attackers, and was in for a surprise when he caught her foot in the chain that connected the nunchuck sticks. With a savage twist, he whipped her off her feet and she slammed into the ground with spots dancing before her eyes and pain shooting up her ankle.
Apparently, these guys knew how to use it.
"There's not much to it," Kay said, putting her arms around his neck. You just kind of go like this and sway a little." She smiled tilting her shoulders just so. Robin tried it.
"Perfect," said Kay. "That's basically all you have to do. It can get more complicated of course, but that's it in a nutshell."
"Easier than I thought," Robin said. Kay nodded and they danced all the way through the song.
***
"Would you like to dance?" asked a redheaded guy, maybe a few years older than Starfire. She had been so preoccupied watching Robin and Kay that she hadn't heard him the first two times. Finally, on the third try, he got her to turn around.
"Excuse me."
"I asked if you would like to dance," he repeated.
"Oh. Um, I am sorry. Not right now."
"Later then?"
"Perhaps," Starfire answered. She didn't mean to be rude, but there was only one person she really wanted to dance with, and he seemed to be having the time of his life with Kay Tanaka.
She walked forced herself to turn away and back to the punch table, pouring herself some delicious soda. "You are still here," she commented to Raven who was leaning against the wall.
"Yeah. Why wouldn't I be?"
Starfire shrugged, downing a gulp of her root beer. "Oh, I had simply thought that you would be engaged in the act of dancing, that is all."
"Dancing's not really my thing," said Raven.
"I think Beast Boy would be rather disappointed to hear that." Starfire smiled when she saw Raven stiffen instantly.
"What?" Raven asked in a measured tone."
Starfire smiled. "You have not noticed the way he's been looking at you?"
"What are you talking about?"
"In fact, if you were to turn around I am quite certain you would see what I am talking about."
Raven took a moment to take this in. She relaxed her posture, let out a breath, and then whirled around, looking straight at Beast Boy.
That he had been observing her in his peripheral vision was obvious, despite the fact that he immediately looked at the ceiling, pretending as if he hadn't been anything.
Raven blushed. "He was probably just looking at the wall."
***
Outside, the leader was calmly observing events below. Aside from the Titans, he counted five bodyguards, two of which were obviously pretending to be regular guests. Most everyone was either talking or on the dance floor now, something that would last for perhaps another ten minutes, then Takahashi would get up and start talking. He held back his growing impatience. Ten more minutes.
***
"What about you?" Raven asked, changing the subject. "Half the male population in here seems to be giving you a lot of attention." Her mouth went up in something resembling a smile.
"Perhaps," said Starfire, "They are not whose attention I want."
"Oh." Raven pushed off from against the wall. "He'll come around," she said assuringly. She didn't ask whom Star was referring to. Didn't need to. With that, she strode towards Beast Boy's table. "That said, perhaps I should take a little of my own advice."
She nearly bumped into Kay, who neatly sidestepped what would have been a very embarrassing collision. "Sorry," Kay apologized. She turned to Starfire. "Hey."
"Hello," Starfire said. Ouch, that had come off a little ruder than she had intended If Kay was put off, she didn't show it. "Having a good time?"
"Yes"
"I'm glad. Designing a gala is a tough process, its glad to know the work paid off."
"It is very pleasant," Starfire said, forcing herself to be nice.
"Thank you." Kay was doing a better job of it, but it was clear she too was trying to make conversation without touching what was obviously on both of their minds.
Starfire touched it first. "So. . . you and Robin dancing."
Kay nodded. "I rather enjoyed it."
"I rather noticed." Starfire was surprised at how quickly she resorted to sarcasm.
"You know, Robin suggested I come over here and talk to you."
This caught Starfire off guard. She instinctively turned her head to Robin who was talking to Cyborg.
"He said," Kay continued, "that he thought you might be a little unhappy with me. I honestly didn't have any idea why that would be." She tilted her head to the side. "Are you?"
"Perhaps."
"Why?"
Oh well, a little honesty couldn't hurt. "I am not completely comfortable with how fast you have taken over our lives. You seem to be making many of our decisions for us. Where we live, what we do, it makes me a little uneasy."
"Oh. Silly me, I uh, had the funniest idea that it was because of Robin."
"What does Robin have to do with this?"
"I don't know Starfire, you tell me."
"If you are implying that I am jealous . . ." Starfire said coldly.
"Your words not mine. I really don't know what on earth you would have to be jealous about."
Starfire could have said what she really thought. She could have said that Kay had been hanging off Robin like a lovesick puppy dog and that she flirted so shamelessly (in her opinion) with the guy she had to make sure not trip on the pheromones. "I do not either, because I am not jealous. You asked if I was unhappy with you and I answered honestly, now if you will excuse me," she said instead, stepping past Kay. "I think I need to go sit down."
***
"Here she comes."
"Shut up Cyborg," Beast muttered. He paused. "Really?"
"Would I lie to you?"
"Yes." Beast Boy turned around, coming face to face with Raven. "Hey Raven."
"Hey yourself. Havin' a good time?"
"Cyborg sure is. His dance card is longer than my arm."
"Speaking of which, I wanted to ask you something."
Cyborg made a face slowly backing away. Beast Boy's mouth wasn't responding to his brain commands. Had he heard right?
He would never know. One second, his mind was in la-la land and the next, he was looking up in what seemed like slow motion. He heard the distinct sound of breaking glass and he could see the silvery shards reflecting the multitude of ambient light in the room. Dark figures, quite a few them suddenly appeared, hopping down through the opening created by the broken skylight.
What the heck?
Gunfire broke out suddenly, snapping Beast Boy back to reality.
"Get down! " Raven shouted, forcefully tackling him to the ground. His breath left him in a whoosh and his eyes went wide as he saw the table bisected by a hail of bullets. His glass of juice exploded and carrot juice splashed all over his tux. There was screaming now, and for some reason, the slow music that had been playing was still booming over the speakers, creating an eerie contrast with the sudden chaos that had taken over.
Raven yanked him to his feet. "C'mon," she yelled, "I think they're after Takahashi!" She did a quick count. There were nine . . .no, make that ten of the dark-clad figures. Each held submachine guns and they were all moving toward the podium, where Takahashi had been apparently about to begin speaking. She caught a table top in her telekinetic grasp and flung towards the nearest one, catching him off guard. The remaining rounds in his gun went into the ceiling, one of them hitting the giant disco ball hanging from the ceiling. It dropped, almost certain to fall on a little girl who had fallen on the floor.
A blue beam split through the air and knocked the killer disco ball out of the air, making it harmlessly hit the wall. Cyborg reloaded his sonic cannon. And aimed again, this time at one of the attackers.
***
Robin 's bo staff was up and out in a flash. He was the closest to Takahashi and with a gravity-defying aerial backflip that would have put most Olympic gymnasts to shame, he landed in front of Takahashi, protectively shoving the man behind him.
"What's going on?" Takahashi asked tersely.
"We're under attack. You need to get down to the ground so you don't present an easy target," Robin said, switching into his take-charge persona. Several bullets pinged against the podium, but didn't penetrate, for which Robin thanked his lucky stars. It would provide adequate cover. He dove from behind the podium, two birdarangs in hand. Both of them were specially made for hard impact, custom weighted with hard titanium alloy edges. He immediately sighted his two preferred targets, the two closest attackers. Bullets whizzed past him, many narrowly missing. He threw, and then hit the ground, turning his momentum into a log roll from which he expertly hopped back onto his feet and into a crouching position. Both birdarangs connected with solid thuds, and returned back to Robin's hand. That took two out of the equation. Or rather, four, he revised when he saw Raven take one out of the picture with a tabletop and Cyborg blast another into a table. A starbolt clipped one of the attackers in the shoulder, spinning him around and right into a back kick from Beast Boy, who turned into a mule. Ouch!
Most of the partygoers were gone by now, and Robin winced when he saw five bodies on the ground, a cursory look confirming that they were either dead or would soon be. Starfire, Beast Boy, Raven, Cyborg, and Kay ran up to the front, all breathing heavily.
"Is Mr. Takahashi alright?" was Kay's first question.
"I'm fine," confirmed the man. "Just make sure you apprehend whoever is responsible for this outrage."
"It was then that Robin noticed the distinct lack of gunfire. He peeked from around the podium and saw that the remaining attackers had dropped their guns and now wielded nunchucks. Robin himself had come across the weapon before in his escapades with the Dark Knight concerning Xiao Shung, a former student at Batman's old jujitsu training school who had turned to villainy, using his commendable martial arts skills. Nunchucks had been Xiao Shung's weapon of choice. Most people would hurt themselves worse than an opponent if they tried to use the weapon, but it could be deadly in the hands of someone who knew how to use it. "Get them," Robin commanded, and the Titans reacted swiftly, charging at the mysterious men. Raven aimed a rather impressive roundhouse at one of the attackers, and was in for a surprise when he caught her foot in the chain that connected the nunchuck sticks. With a savage twist, he whipped her off her feet and she slammed into the ground with spots dancing before her eyes and pain shooting up her ankle.
Apparently, these guys knew how to use it.
