Disclaimer: Me no own.
Chapter 6: Frostbite
Robin watched the sun rising, he watched the sun fall.
He watched the moon cascade ghostly colors across the sky. He watched the water far below scraping at the sandy island shore, slowly pulling it into the watery depths.
Lately, Robin could often be found on the roof. Staring off lost in what seemed to be his own universe. He was not, however, lost in any other universe than the one his body occupied.
The waters were chilly for this time of year. Winter was quickly approaching and a chill from far below the water's surface had risen up and claimed the warm waters for itself.
The boy enjoyed watching the things of the world. It was a new sort of fascination. The world was made of angles, things colliding into each other to create the illusion of unity. Individually they were nothing but shapes, but fit together just right they painted some sort of beautiful array.
Robin came this far up to escape. The coming blistery wind had driven anyone with sense away from such heights. He couldn't take their looks, the suspicion.
He was a shape that wasn't fitting into the picture.
Why? He didn't want their help. Didn't need their guidance. In the bat cave there was a known truth: any problems that interfered with work were dealt with on ones own. He could fix whatever was ailing him, talking with an "understanding" source wouldn't do any good.
Robin picked a small piece of cement that had broken from the edge of the tower. Quickly jerking his arm he chucked it off the top. It sailed a good couple meters before the wind and gravity caught onto it.
Robin sighed when he lost sight of it within the crashing waves.
Oh how nice would it be to become swallowed in the ice depths…
The idea struck him like a rush. The waters must feel so good at this time of night; the sun had long gone away.
Without another thought the boy latched a bird-a-rang onto the side of the tower roof. He tilted backwards to fall gracefully off the roof.
Wind rushed against him as his line continued running through taking him down the towers length with a great speed. Robin waited until there was the jerk that signaled the line was almost at its end.
The ground wasn't far from him now; he spliced the cord and dropped the rest of the distance. He landed feet first and used the momentum to crouch down further so his gloved hands eventually dug into the dirt. It was the same way a cat fell from heights.
He pulled off the sand covered gloves and threw them on the ground, forcing himself upright.
Waves crashed much louder here. There was a perfumed sea air that assailed his senses when he turned to the water. It was perfect under the half moonlight. They looked like waves of liquid blue velvet.
Robin started for them, stepping out of his boots on the way.
His socked toes were the first to touch the waters. The quick change in temperatures rose a chill that ran through his body.
It felt so nice that he stepped further. The waves sloshed around his ankles now, soaking beneath the bottoms of his suit and prickling his skin.
His toes were numbing.
Robin didn't care. He welcomed the unfeeling, he wasn't like Raven, couldn't be like Raven and uncaring at will…
The water was getting deeper, or maybe Robin was walking further. He neither knew nor cared.
Ever-deeper came the water. It was numbing him from the bottom up.
No more worries, no more feelings…
The velvet danced around his waist now. Waves dared him ever further, giving him larger doses of icy water. His toes seemed to burn now; they were so cold they felt like fire.
Robin had to laugh. How wonderful would it be to get frostbite? How easy it would be to put himself out of the crime fighting business. All he had to do was fight instinct. Fight the need for warmth… he could do it.
Water was brushing his mid-chest. Every pour of his skin had tightened to preserve heat. His teeth were chattering horridly and his body shook of its own accord.
Oh, to give it all up! To become that normal boy once more, what was his name again?
He gave a sort of half laughter that almost sounded like a sob. He couldn't even remember that boy anymore. He wasn't even human anymore, just some piece of hero complex that everyone bought into.
For living in a tower with a bunch of freaks, he had to be the worst. While they fought so hard to retain their humanity he had gone and carelessly thrown his away. For what good was his humanity when he was expected to be perfect?
It was getting so dark now. Where had the moonlight gone?
Robin felt sluggish. He could still hear the waves, but they were getting more distant. Where was he, and why couldn't he feel anything?
The boy tried to wiggle his toes and got nothing. He looked out into the lake. The waves still came toward him, but they were bleary. In fact, everything was jaded…
Cyborg walked to the edge of the water watching the boy. The younger boy wavered in the water for a moment before collapsing and disappearing beneath a fresh wave.
He sighed heavily and started after Robin.
Cyborg seemed to find himself at a repeat performance. It was an almost daily occurrence for Robin to start on the roof and end up beneath the waves.
And yet, Robin never showed signs of remembering the night.
Cyborg dried the boy off carefully to ward away any frostbite symptoms and pumped an IV of nutrients into him. From the water to Robin's bed was about a two-hour period.
But he did it every day. If not…
Morning would come and Robin would not.
Cyborg worried every time as he pulled his friend from the water. Robin never accepted help, but continued to try and drown himself. One of these times the water would overwhelm him. Winter was coming and one day the water would be too cold, or his body would simply give out.
Wrapping the covers around Robin, Cyborg snuck from his leaders room.
Robins undoing would not come from any villainous work, Cyborg had noted many nights ago, he had internal demons for that.
Because I haven't done Robin yet.
Beast Boy next I suppose. I've tried a bunch of different ideas already, but he's rather hard in the horror genre.
Review.
:Bloody Fae: