Chapter 7.

The Conversation

Upon returning to Titans Tower, Robin escorted Raven to the evidence room, shutting the door when the cloaked girl was comfortable. The masked boy stood over her. "All right, now let me in on what you know, Raven."

She looked up at him, pulling down her hood. "I was at the mall, with Starfire. I was reading while she was shopping and this boy came over…his name was Rex…"

Robin rested his hand on his chin. "Rex…all right…" She continued. "We talked for a bit, but something just seemed…familiar, I just couldn't understand what though."

Robin just nodded. "All right, go on." Raven sighed. "Then there was the fight with Plasmus. I caught Rex pick-pocketing someone. I saved him from one of Plasmus's attacks and when I asked him if he was all right, he was gone….disappeared. It was soon after that Red X showed up."

The masked hero raised an eyebrow. "Interesting. So, maybe this Rex and Red X are connected somehow…maybe the same person." Raven looked down, furrowing her brows. "That's what's been bothering me. Clearly X has his sights set on Starfire, but Rex had said he was interested in me..."

Robin ran his hand through his spiky hair. "Two minds, one body. That's the only way I could look at it. The next time he shows up…IF he shows up, I'll do my best to make sure he doesn't just slip away again. I want ALL the answers."

Raven looked at him. "What about Blackfire? She's still out there somewhere and clearly she came back to take Starfire out for good." Robin nodded. "Hopefully, she'll cause a disturbance and that might get X to come out of his hole and mess in our affairs again."

Meanwhile, Starfire was worried. Her sister was on the loose, Red X had designs on her and now Robin had hidden himself away again and with Raven, no less. "Oh, Robin…"

Cyborg put his hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry, Star. I think Raven knows somethin' that Robin needed to know. I understand how you feel, but don't worry…everything'll be ok with the both of you." The alien princess looked at him worriedly. "I most certainly hope so, Cyborg..."

Robin was now sitting beside Raven, having continued discussing the mystery of Red X and the possibility that he was in fact the boy that Raven met at the mall days ago.

"All right Raven, I think I've got something. I dressed as Red X before to gain Slade's trust…that's how it started. Maybe either you or Starfire could act as though you've turned rogue in an attempt to gain X's trust…but which one of you?"

Raven just looked at him. "You can't be serious. However, if it was going to be completely plausible…I would nominate myself. You know it would take pretty much a lifetime of convincing by Starfire for someone to believe she'd actually gone bad."

Robin had to chuckle slightly at this. "You've got a point, but trust me Raven. Apparently, his mind is somewhat fragile and if you go to him, it might cause him to slip up so we can finally put him away ."

Raven sighed. "This is going to take a bit of work, I hope you realize that. As much as the thought of deliberately performing criminal acts sickens me slightly, I suppose it is a necessity in order to convince X of my 'new lifestyle'. "

Robin went to the door. "Don't worry, Raven. This time, the guy I'm trying to fool won't see it coming. I already made that mistake and I've learned from it. The others are going to know from the start, I just hope they can pull off being convincing enough."

Raven gave a sly smile as Robin opened the door. "Trust me, I think they can pretend well enough that they don't like me." He smiled as well. "Judging by your attitude in the past, I'm beginning to think you may be right."