Wishful Thinking
A Teen Titans fanfic by Lavender Gaia
Editing by Lavender Gaia
Assistance by Emmi and Laine
Chapter 2: Helping Hand
Disclaimer: I do not own Teen Titans or any of its characters. They are all property of DC Comics.
Donna looked over the menu as she and Robin sat at a circular table on the deck of the pizza parlor. "Do you come here often?" she asked, adjusting her seat so the sun wasn't directly in her eyes.
"Huh? Oh, yeah," he replied, confused by the suddenly over-polite small talk. "Except we almost never get meat. It kind of freaks Beast Boy out."
"Understandable," she nodded. "Is he a vegan or just vegetarian?"
"Depends on what mood he's in that day," Robin grinned at her. "Wanna get the usual?"
She smiled at him and pretended to think. "Pepperoni, sausage, ham, green peppers and tons of extra cheese? You got it." Donna watched as he told their order to the waiter. "I remember a certain butler who always wondered why you picked pizza over his filet mignon or lobster. Have you talked to him lately? Either of them?"
"Not really. Have you?"
Donna fiddled with the straw in her glass of lemonade. "A few weeks ago."
"And how are they?" He tried to question her lightly, but she noticed that he was more passionate towards the topic than let on.
"Good," she attempted to reassure him. "Nothing new in Gotham.'
He nodded slowly, absorbing the information. "And how's Diana?"
"She's good. She's been spending a lot more time with the league since I'm spending the summer away and going to college in the fall." Donna laughed. "We sound so boring! Tell me about the Titans."
He grinned at her. "Let's see, what do you want to know?"
"Where'd you get the awesome motorcycle?"
"Everyone could fly and Cyborg had his car, so it's just easier for me to get around that way. Plus, like you said, it's awesome."
"Dick, you fly. Just not in the way that everyone thinks about," she told him lightly, squeezing his hand. "So, what else can you tell me? Like what can the rest of the Titan's do?"
"Aqualad probably mentioned Beast Boy, but he can turn into any animal imaginable. Cyborg is just that: a Cyborg. He has a sonic cannon as well. Raven is an empathy with healing and telekinetic abilities."
"And Starfire?" Donna prompted.
"She's very strong, and she can fly, as well as shoot starbolts out of her hands and eyes," He explained.
"Sounds like you have a great team going here. And the Teen Titans have an excellent reputation. You're happy here," she smiled at him from across the table. "You are happy here, right?"
"I am, Donna. I really am. Of course, I could do without the villains attacking everyday, but without that where would I be?" He shrugged. Before she could open her mouth to say something, a waiter put their pizza in the middle of the table and he dove right in.
"Hungry?"
"This pizza is awesome. Try it," he urged with a mouth full of cheese.
She carefully picked up a slice and brought it to her lips to blow on it. Then she took a bite, a strip of gooey cheese falling against her chin. "Oh, wow. If nothing else, this pizza is enough reason to stay here."
He grinned at her. "Remember the time we tried to make pizza?"
A laugh erupted from her throat. "Oh, I remember. We got sauce everywhere. I thought Alfred's head was going to explode!"
"I ended up having to repaint the kitchen. But I did learn a good lesson at least," he congratulated himself.
"What? Sauce stains?"
"No!" He blushed lightly. "When Alfred tells you no, it means no. That and never try to add tomatoes to your sauce using a blender. Especially when you can't find the top."
"Didn't we also put the pepperonis in there?" she choked out, cheeks flushed from laughter.
"That was your idea!" Robin protested.
"Well, you went along with it," she reminded him. She put down her crust and leaned her head back, shaking in amusement from the fond memory.
He took another slice of pizza and jammed it in his mouth before he said anything else to incriminate himself. Across the table, she rolled her eyes and did the same. After being sick of the silence, Donna began telling him about school, at his request. Robin enjoyed watching her talk animatedly about it; at least she enjoyed school. He hadn't liked his last experience (though, with Mad Mod as the headmaster, who would?) and sometimes he wondered about if he could have possibly made it like she did.
Robin chuckled as he reached for his fourth slice of pizza. "You really are gorgeous, you know."
She blinked. "Thank you. That's sweet. Completely random, but sweet. Wait, why do I sense a 'but' coming?"
Before he could answer, a ringing vibration in his pocket interrupted. Pulling the communicator out of his pocket, he flipped it open and looked at Raven's face on the screen. "What's up?"
"The H.I.V.E. again. They're hitting the bank on 51st."
"Gotcha. I'll be right there," Robin closed the top and put it in his pocket. "Donna, I'm sorry."
"Don't be!" she admonished, handing him her camera bag. "Go change, I'll pay for this and meet you by the bike."
He nodded and ran to the men's room. He put his shirt and jeans into the bag, thankful that he had worn his spandex underneath. After throwing on his gloves, cape, mask and utility belt, he went down to the street.
"Hey," Donna greeted him with a nod, working the button on her pants.
"Um…what are you doing?" He asked, before noticing the red cloth covering her legs. "Do you want to help?"
"It was kind of the plan," she grinned, hopping behind him on the bike.
"Alright, let's go," he pulled into the street, breaking the law in order to weave in and out of traffic while Donna removed her shirt and placed it in her bag.
"So, tell me about these H.I.V.E. people!" she said in his ear over the roar of the streets.
"Mammoth and Beast are basically just big and strong. Gizmo is a mechanic, but Cy or Beast Boy generally like to take care of him. SeeMore has different eyes; eye-orb, eye-shield, X-ray eye, you get the picture," he told her. "Jinx can cast bad luck hexes."
"X-ray eye, great," she sighed. "This Jinx, does she need to use her arms in order to cast the spells?"
"Yeah, I think so. Why, what are you thinking?" Robin would have turned to look at her if watching the road wasn't an important part of driving.
"You'll see." They both hopped off the bike as it pulled up to the crime scene.
"What's going on?" Robin looked at Cyborg for information, as it seemed that they'd just arrived a few seconds before them.
"Gizmo, Mammoth, SeeMore and Beast are inside. We can't see Jinx anywhere, and that's never a good sign," he reported. "We think there are seven workers and five patrons, but that's just a guess."
He nodded, then addressed the troops. "Right. Ok, Beast Boy I want you to turn into a small animal. A rodent or something and go through the pipes from the drive through. Raven and Starfire come through the front, I'll take the back door with Cyborg and Wond-," he looked behind him for their sixth member, seeing no one.
"Um, Robin? Who're you talking to?" His green friend questioned.
"I guess no one. Ok, Titan's GO!" He and Cyborg ran through the side alley. After a few moments, Robin had the lock undone and they were in.
Cyborg spotted Gizmo to the side, taking things out of the president's desk and muttering to himself. "I got the pipsqueak," the mechanical man told the fearless leader, coming up next to the loud kid and aiming the sonic cannon at him.
Robin turned towards the front only to run into a solid wall also known as Mammoth. The man picked him up, tossing him across the room. A birdarang shot out, wrapped around a hanging light from the ceiling. It served as a pendulum so Robin could swing back and kick him in the head.
The big man fell backwards for a second before regaining his balance. Until Beast Boy rammed into him from the side and Robin's bo staff made him lose consciousness. "Alright! Now that's team work!" Beast Boy had transformed back into his human self and held up his hand for a high five.
Robin's gloved palm met Beast Boy's. "We really shouldn't be celebrating yet. There are still four more criminals."
"Make that three!" Cyborg announced cheerfully, approaching the two. He had slung Gizmo over his shoulder, who had somehow become trapped in his own mechanics and was muttering something about tin-faced snot-munchers.
"Good job." He led his teammates into the front room after he finished tying up Mammoth. Raven had moved all the hostages to one corner, where she stood by them, creating a barrier from the attacks. Starfire was hovering near the ceiling, trying to hit Beast with starbolts as the villain dodged.
But what grabbed his attention was the way SeeMore was standing there, chuckling to himself as he watched the fight. "Gotta love X-ray vision…"
Robin kicked him hard, watching as the H.I.V.E. member flew across the floor. He knelt over him, grabbing his collar and hissed, "I'd suggest you don't do that again."
"Um…right, right," he switched back to the normal eye as Robin pinned him on his stomach. Overhead, Beast flew through the wall and onto the street outside.
"Oh, I did not hit you, did I, Robin?" Starfire flew to meet him, green eyes worried.
"No, I'm fine. Nice throw." Robin smiled at her as the police came in and began escorting the H.I.V.E.
When an officer had taken over care of the hostages, Raven met the rest of the group outside. "What about Jinx?"
The Fearless Leader sighed. "I don't know where she got to."
"Actually, she's right here." The group turned around and Robin grinned at his friend, who had Jinx tied up with a lasso. "I saw her going towards the pawn shop around the street while these guys distracted you."
Beast Boy gaped openly at the woman, gesturing to the red halter body suit that had twenty-two gold stars running across the sides and chest, as well as the gold belt with the classic W on it. "Oh, wow! You're Wonder Girl!" He looked back and forth down the street. "Where's Wonder Woman? Where is she?"
"She's not here," Wonder Girl chuckled, pushing her black hair behind her shoulders. "You don't recognize me, do you? It's Donna, Beast Boy."
"Whoa. So…Donna is Won…" Cyborg blinked, taking in the arm gauntlets and lasso that the police handed back to her. "That's awesome! Thanks for the help!"
"Wait wait wait wait wait!" Beast Boy turned and glared at Robin. "You knew Wonder Woman's sidekick-"
"Partner," Donna interrupted
"-and you never told us!"
"It never came up," Robin shrugged. "If you ever asked me, then yeah, I'd have told you."
As Beast Boy launched into a game of Twenty Questions about Wonder Woman, Starfire tapped Robin on the shoulder. "Are you alright, Robin? Something seems wrong."
He grinded his teeth. "I don't know. It just seems that that went too well. It was too easy."
"Is there a reason we're all standing in the street?" Raven announced, looking bored.
"Well, Donna and I still need to get some of her clothes from the hotel. We'll meet you back there," Robin told them as the four remaining Titans climbed into the T-Car.
"Alright, we'll see you then." Cyborg waved from the driver's side window and pulled away.
"I can fly if you don't want a passenger," Donna told him, reaching down to adjust her black boots around her mid-shin.
"No, no, it's fine," he smirked.
"Why do you keep looking at me like that?" She insisted, crossing her arms over her chest.
"I just like your new outfit. It's different than your original one," Robin reminded her, nodding towards the side of her face. "I especially like your earrings."
Fingering the gold stars dangling from her ear, Donna winced as she remembered her old uniform. It had been a red tank top with a large gold eagle on it, partnered with extremely short shorts pattered after the stars part of the flag. Ballet shoes had been on her feet, with laces that wrapped up her legs. "Don't even go there, Short Pants. I remember your old uniform too."
He chuckled. "Alright, alright. I forget, you know all my darkest secrets." He mounted the R-cycle. "Hop on."
They drove to the hotel she was staying at and after she slipped her pants and shirt over the uniform and went inside, leaving Robin to relax as she gathered some clothes and informed the staff that this was the only night she would need the room.
When she returned with just a duffle bag, Robin raised an eyebrow. "That can't be all you have."
"Of course not." She hopped back on the bike. "This is just all I need for tonight. You said Cyborg would take me get the rest tomorrow."
"Right, right. C'mon, let's go back to the tower."
When they arrived, everything had already gone back to normal. Raven had retreated her room, Beast Boy and Cyborg were arguing over what to watch on television and Starfire was playing with Silkie. Robin showed Donna to a guest room. "You can stay here. I'm right down the hall."
"I remember," she grinned. "Thanks. I'm sure you have things to do after every case, but do you think I could take a shower? After a fight and spending a day on the plane I feel kind of grungy."
"Oh, sure. Bathroom's right down there," He nodded towards a door with the boys room/girls room symbols on it. "We only have one, but if anyone else needs to use it, don't worry about making them wait."
"In this huge tower you only have one bathroom?"
Robin shrugged. "I didn't build it."
"Well, thanks. I'm gonna let you get to do whatever you have to do." She leaned over and kissed his cheek. "Thanks, Dick."
"No problem, Donna. Enjoy your shower." He exited her room, letting the door close behind him and escaped to the roof. It was here that under the stars, in the cool night air, he liked to think over their battled. What had they done right or wrong? What should they work on when they train? With the wide sky above him, staring out into the vast ocean, it seemed to put everything into perspective.
"Robin?" A soft voice called from behind. Starfire peered down at him. "Would you mind some company?"
"Not at all." He gestured for her to sit.
"Were you thinking of the fight today?" She cocked her head to the side, looking at him curiously.
He nodded. "Um, by the way, when SeeMore is around, you should watch yourself. He likes to watch you with a certain X-ray eye."
"Eep!" She instinctively used her hands to shield to more private parts of her body. "I thank you for that information. I shall do better in the future."
"You did great today," Robin protested. "The way you threw Beast was awesome. Especially since you were taking on both him and SeeMore at the same time while Raven protected the hostages."
"Are you still feeling uneasy about how it all came to be?"
"I don't know," He looked at the seas crashing against the rocks. "I just think we got off too easy."
"Perhaps we are just becoming better?" Starfire suggested. "And your friend helped."
Robin half-smiled. "That lasso always did come in handy. It's been a while since we're had an equal number of fighters on our team."
"The last time was Terra," she said coolly. "And we all know how that turned out."
He glanced at her sharply. It was a harsh thing to say, and seemed ever worse out of Starfire's generally soft-spoken mouth. "Well, it's not like Donna's joining the team anyway. She's going to college at the end of summer."
"I am still unfamiliar with exactly how your seasons work. How long does this summer last?" Starfire asked. "A week? Two?"
"Usually two to three months."
"Months? But…but…does she not have anything better to do with her time?" she sat up indignantly.
"Well, she has a few good friends from school, but since most of them are going to different colleges in the fall, they're doing different things over the summer. She already sent time with Titan's East, because she already knew Speedy and Aqualad. Diana has her own things to do. She wanted to spend some time with me."
"I see. And did you first meet her because she is Wonder Girl?"
Robin nodded. "Batman and Wonder Woman, whose Donna's big sister, were working together on a case. Since I worked with Batman and Donna works with Wonder Woman, we get tagged along. She was the first person I met that understood doing homework and going to fight bad guys.
"We instantly clicked. Alfred used to ask when we were going to finally get surgically attached, because we were so inseparable it seemed like we were joined at the hip. She lived in Gotham for a while and we were best friends. We fit well together; both of us knew what it's like to grow up as a superhero sidekick in our mentor's shadow."
Starfire considered this. "I believe you are what Raven would call kindred spirits?"
"Yeah, I guess you're right. But I'm sorry, you didn't come up here to listen to me talk about Donna," he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.
"No, no, it is fine." She forced a smile.
"Didn't you have a best friend back on Tamaran?"
She shook her head, eyes downcast. "No. There I was the Princess and rarely interacted with others. When I was younger my sister and I went to train on the planet Okaara. I only went back to Tamaran briefly before coming here. Though I had acquaintances, and occasionally spent time with my younger brother, there was no one who was my friend like Donna is yours."
Starfire didn't talk too much about her past, but it was always interesting when she mentioned something new about herself. It felt nice for her to open up to him. He was about to ask more when the door opened. They both turned to see a very embarrassed Donna.
"Oh, I'm sorry!" she pushed her wet hair behind her shoulders. "I'm interrupting. Please excuse me. Cyborg said I could find you up here, I just thought you'd be alone. Um, Dick, just come see me when you're done, ok? No need to rush. I'm really sorry." She turned and walked back down the stairs quickly.
The mood was broken. Both teenagers looked at each other uneasily. "I'm actually kind of tired, Starfire. Maybe we can do this again tomorrow?" Robin suggested.
"Oh, yes, of course," She nodded sadly. "Have the sugary dreams."
He grinned at her. "Sweet dreams to you too, Star. See you in the morning."
Even after he left, she remained there for a while, just staring at the scenery. The moonlight reflecting on the water, lights sparkling from the city. But even that couldn't brighten up her mood.
Starfire was so lost in her own thoughts, she didn't even realize Raven was there until her friend was sitting next to her. "Are you ok?" she asked, even thought she already knew the answer.
"I'm afraid not," the redhead whispered, wiping a lone tear as it rolled down her cheek. "Raven, I feel as if I've lost my best friend." She leaned against the shorter girl and began to cry.
The empath could sense the sorrow radiating off of her usually chipper friend and wrapped an arm around her shaking body. "It'll be ok, Starfire. Don't worry. I'll make it ok."
A/N: For some reason, these chapters just seem to write themselves. There were two more huge scenes that were supposed to be here, but I guess they're going to make up chapter three. Please excuse me if the second half is a little…weird. I was feverish and missing my Harry Potter party while I wrote it.
I edited Donna's background a little to compensate for the lack of original Titans. Please excuse it, as I'm doing my best to make it work with the plot already established by the television show. Oh, hey, has anyone else noticed that all of the H.I.V.E. five are based off of X-men characters? I think the fact that Terra is based off of Kitty Pryde (besides the fact that Kitty's not a crazy homicidal mofo) is genius, but I'm wondering if these are supposed to be open parodies or the writers are just lazy.
Questions, comments, reactions and reviews are greatly appreciated.
Review Responses:
Bree-2006: Dick Grayson is just so much more interesting. Plus, I'm a very big fan of the 80s Wolfman/Perez run. I even refuse to buy the new Teen Titans series because there's no Dick. I do read The Outsiders and (no surprise) The Return of Donna Troy. I hope you like this new chapter.
Starrydreamz: I'm happy you like this! It will eventually be RobinxStarfire, and as soon as I send the finish chapter to my beta I will resume working on Commitment chapter 10.
TendoGurl: Thank you so much for reading and reviewing. I will definitely continue.
Kay Jolyn: I like Babs, but I'm obsessed with Donna. I think she embodies everything every woman should strive to be and her relationship with Dick in the comics is priceless. I think all of the Titans feel that they're more than just teammates: they're family, and I'm going to do my best to portray that. I hope you like the new chapter.
Pinkprincess: I hate having people out of character, so I do my best to write them as close as possible. So saying that everyone is in character is one of the biggest praises I can receive, and I thank you!
DOJ: I shouldn't be surprised that you reviewed, but I'm so happy you did! I remember reading your one shot, so I do remember you are indeed a fan of Robin and Starfire. If you ever get a chance, I suggest you read the Wolfman/Perez run of Teen Titans, which has cemented Dick Grayson as the only Robin in my mind. And yes, Robbie is a tad insensitive, but he can't be like our Scott and Lance all the time (but Lance is going to be a tad unreasonable in the next chapter of Commitment, which I hope to have finished by tomorrow, but don't hold me to that!).
Renee Kayla: Thank you so much for reviewing! I hope you like this new chapter.