The disclaimer crap is all in the first chapter if you really want to read it that badly then go there and read it. I do however wish to repeat that I do own my own storyline and my characters, which right now include Quanta.

I want to thank everybody who has given me a review because it gives me something to strive for. Also thank you guys for correcting some of the things that I've gotten wrong with my story. Sorry for the long down time between chapters but I got massive writers block. Anyway please read and review.

From the Ashes

Chapter 5

"You won't believe how good it is to see you guys." Terra said as she leaned farther back against the edge of her bed. The three female members of the Teen Titans had retired to Terra's bedroom soon after Star had arrived so that they could catch up, and even Raven was happy for the time.

Terra's bedroom was a thrown together affair in one of the upper stories of the many buildings that made up what the rebellion saw as their base, even if it was just the half destroyed buildings that no one else except the truly poor wanted. However the blond woman had managed to find a bed in reasonably good shape and a dresser that still had all of its pieces. Besides the two large pieces of furniture there were several broken back chairs serving in the place of tables, and covered in paper – no doubt reports.

Terra sat beside the bed with her back against it as Starfire lay above her running a comb through the other woman's hair and deftly twisting the golden locks into complicate braids. The young Tamerainian become interested with human hairstyles shortly after the Titans had started to dissolve around Slade's attacks and had spent many a worried night letting the mundane task of braiding take the worries from her mind. Raven, who had cleared off on of the chairs to sit on, was just happy that Star had found someone else to practice on. Braids definitely weren't her style.

"Friend Terra it is truly a joy to see that you are not a stone anymore." Starfire said, the first smile since she had seen Robin again spreading across her face.

"Yeah, it's nice." Agreed Raven.

"Why Raven that almost sounded happy from you. Are you sure you're feeling well." Terra lifted up one hand and pressed it up against the young spellcasters forehead, in a mock gesture of concern.

"Don't expect it too often." Raven growled, but a small smile stayed on her face, taking the bite out of her words.

"Awww, I knew you were just an old softy at heart."

"Beast Man was most happy to see you as well Terra. He was as happy as I have seen him in many bemongs." Starfire gathered up a handful of hair to begin another braid and revealed the blush that was spreading across Terra's face and to her neck.

"And if I wasn't seeing things you seemed happy to see him too." Raven said, smiling slyly at her friend. The blush spread even farther and Terra lowered her head, the finished braids obscuring her face.

"Hey, how did I get to be the butt of all these jokes? Besides what about Starfire and Robin. I bet they've been dating for years now." Terra was joking as she said this but the temperature in the room almost seemed to drop a few degrees.

"Robin is not the Robin we used to enjoy company with. Robin is not Robin but Nightwing." Starfire said slowly and she sounded like she was almost on the edge of tears.

"What?" The blonde turned and pulled the braids from Starfire's unmoving hands and stared at her.

"Robin has been calling himself Nightwing now. He left us years ago and we only found him a couple of days ago when he saved me from some of Slade's soldiers." Raven explained.

"But why did he…" Terra started to ask before a small shake of Raven's head stopped her. None of the Titans except for Starfire knew why Robin had left in the first place and she had never shared it with anybody. Whenever somebody tried to ask her she would quickly change the subject.

The mood in the room was tense as Starfire took Terra's hair back into her hands and began to braid the blonde's hair again. The orange hared superhero's face was set into hard lines though there was a slight shimmer in her eyes of unshed tears. Raven had sunk back into her normal blank face completely unreadable though the look of confusion and sorrow for her friend in Terra's face was enough for both of them. A noise from outside the room broke the tension in the room, the sound of metal scraping on metal.

"Oh, crap. I hoped Shogun would take longer to get to this." Terra said, scrambling to her feet, the last braid that Starfire had been working on unraveling in a spray of blonde strands. She hurried over to the window and cursed.

"What has happened with your Shogun?" Starfire asked.

"He got in a fight with Robin …. I mean Nightwing." On the street below the two fighters had crossed weapons with each other, Shogun with his katana and Nightwing with his staff. A small crowd of people had gathered around the two and several of them were shouting out bets on who would win. The Rebels didn't get a chance for much entertainment and a fight was always interesting.

Nightwing grunted as he pushed hard against Shogun's weapon, metal grating against metal as both tried to overpower the other. The two were evenly matched though and neither seemed to gain an advantage over the other. Black eyes met green across the crossed weapons and both of the fighters smiled at each other.

"I have to admit that you're good." Shogun said. He pushed backwards from Nightwing and moved back a few steps, getting some distance between the two fighters.

"I would be lying if I said you weren't too bad yourself." The two crashed back together, metal ringing against metal as they tried to find holes in each others defenses. "But I have more tricks." Nightwing thrust wildly, one handed, and Shogun easily batted the attack to the side. The black hared hero's other hand came around, bringing several of his explosive disks around and towards Shogun.

"So you say." Shogun's left hand let go of the hilt of his weapon and thrust towards the incoming disks. A blast of wind accompanied the thrust and forced the disks into the ground at both of their feet. The explosion threw both backwards though both managed to land on their feet. "Who has the tricks now?"

"So you're a windbag. That won't be enough to beat me." Both warriors drew themselves up for the charge when a yell stopped them.

"Both of you two stop." The crowd parted a Terra stormed through, Raven and Starfire close behind her. "Shogun what did I tell you about this kind of thing?"

Shogun sheathed his blade with one smooth motion and bowed to Terra as she approached. "I am sorry Terra. I just wanted to see how good the famous Nightwing actually was." There was a mark of sorrow to his voice, truly sorry for what he had done. He may live in the modern world but he was in his heart a true samurai and completely devoted to his lady.

"I had to see what kind of fighters this place had before I figure if I'm going to throw my weight behind you. So far I am far from impressed." Nightwing crossed his arms across his armored chest and met Terra's eyes directly.

The young blond girl's blue eyes widened, shocked at the difference between Nightwing and the Robin she remembered. It was quickly over though, the girl had been running a resistance group for the last few months and it had forced her to grow up quick. It would take a lot to shock her again.

"You're not one of my men. What you do isn't my problem though I would like your help."

"I like to work alone." Nightwing turned away from the girl, his cloak whipping out behind him. The circle of rebels parted for him as he walked away. There were a few seconds of silence before Starfire floated into the air and followed after the black hared hero.

"He is a good fighter but something about his eyes scares me." Shogun said, as he adjusted his grip on the sheath of his blade.

"We know him and sometimes he scares us." Cyborg said.

Nightwing slid into one of the many broken buildings that populated the area around the rebel's base and dropped down into a broken back chair. His emotions were a seething storm underneath his calm exterior as he tried to bring himself to terms with what was happening. After Robin had left and become Nightwing he had immersed himself in battles against the worse types of criminals in an attempt to push away his emotions, and if you had asked him a week ago he would have said that he had been successful. Now he wasn't so sure.

He heard something hit against the rubble behind him and he turned, pulling his staff out of his belt as he did. He only saw Starfire standing in front of him. She wasn't even looking at him but the ground, where her booted foot slowly ground a small chunk of concrete to dust.

"What do you want?" Nightwing wasn't happy that the person who stirred up his emotions the most had sought him out and he let it bleed through into his voice.

"I wish for us to do the talking." Starfire was clearly nervous about being here. She had been just as confused as the rest of the Teen Titans when he had left but she had a budding romantic relationship with him as well. His leaving had been a crushing blow to her.

"I don't have anything to talk about with you."

"Well I have some things to talk about with you." Starfire looked up and met his eyes. Her own eyes were glistening with tears and her lip trembled as she tried desperately not to cry. "Such as why you left us. Why you left me." The last words trailed off as she desperately fought off her tears.

"I don't want to …"

"But you will talk about it." Starfire cut off Nightwing, anger now blazing through her voice as the first tears fell from her eyes and stained her cheeks. "Because after the sorrow you caused I deserve the knowledge."

Nightwing scowled at the alien girl in front of him. How dare she ask him to explain his actions to her. It wasn't her business why he left just as it wasn't her business what he chose to do while he was out fighting Slade.

"I don't have to take this." Nightwing stood to his feet and turned away but Starfire was on him before he could take a step, gripping his shoulder with bruising power even with his armor.

"Yes, you do because I will not let you leave this place until I have the information I require." Starfire spun him around and forced him to look into her glowing green eyes, all trace of tears burned away by her anger.

"Back off." Nightwing yelled, threatened as she pressed into the past that he had kept hidden for so long. His foot shot up and caught her in the side. Starfire took the hit without complaint and spun, throwing Nightwing into the side of the building. The young man bounced off the wall and he landed on his feet. Metal slid underneath his fingers as he extended his staff and charged forward. Starfire flew forward, clearly intending to fight him.

Nightwing swung his staff but Starfire swung her arm to meet it. The young Tamerainian's powers were driven by her emotions and her super strength was specifically driven by her anger. At this moment she had never been stronger. The blow hit the staff and bent the metal in half and ripped the weapons from Nightwing's grip, sending it spinning into a wall. A blast of green energy shot of Starfire's eyes and smashed into Nightwing's chest, throwing him into a wall.

Starfire was on him before he could do anything and pinned him against the wall. Nightwing pushed against her arms but it was like trying to move steel girder with his bare hands.

"You will answer me now."

"Fine just let me go." Starfire pulled back from the young man and he looked down at the ground. He seemed to be reluctant to talk about what he had been hiding for so long but Starfire had more patience than he did.

"I was ashamed." Nightwing whispered.

"What do you mean?"

"It was just after I had become Slade's apprentice and attacked you guys. Even after I turned on Slade and beat him with you guys it was impossible for me to just shake off what I had done. I had become a criminal Star. It was something that I despised with all of my heart, but I sank right into the criminal world. And I was good at it Star, I was really good at it." Nightwing's voice was soft in the beginning but as he spoke he seemed to gain some sort of strength.

"I could see what Slade was saying and it all made sense to me. It made so much sense that it scared me. I could see myself turning into something that was just like Slade and I couldn't take that. I wouldn't let that happen."

"But why did you leave your friends? We would have helped you through your troubles." Starfire asked.

"I couldn't look you guys in the face anymore after I turned on you guys. I tried to keep going but I couldn't take it anymore. I always thought you guys couldn't trust me even though I knew that you did completely. And that I really couldn't take. You guys trusting me after I turned. I just didn't deserve it."

"That is why I left. I couldn't take you guys trusting me even when I didn't deserve it." Nightwing stood to his feet and walked past Starfire, unable to look at her.

"Robin you don't have to feel the shame. We just wish you to come back to your friends." Starfire said as she watched him walk away.

"Star my name is Nightwing now. Even if you guys do forgive me you can never change the fact that I'm no longer the same person who used to be your friend." Nightwing's voice was soft in defeat. "And I didn't mean to hurt you Star."

End Note: Well that chapter took forever. I hit college and didn't have much time but I got some time this semester and decide to keep writing.