30Kisses Theme Ficlets
Robin/Raven
By Kysra
Theme #12 (in a good mood): Smile
It was a rare thing when Raven was in a good mood, rarer still when such an occurrence was apparent. The signs were few and almost insubstantial - a relaxing of her brow, slight softening at the corners of her mouth, and a willingness to participate in idle conversation.
Lately, however, her good mood had graduated to a state that even the media had taken note of it. In addition to the smooth space surrounding her chakra stone, there was a nearly constant - almost warm - Mona Lisa smile, small and mysterious; a tiny, almost undetectable lilt in her usually flat voice; and a luminous sparkle in her eyes.
Her friends were confused as to the reason for her unusual cheer, but did not begrudge their Dark Witch a bit of happiness. Therefore, they did not question her, did not worry that - perhaps - it might be another Malchior incident in the making. Raven was anything but oblivious. She wouldn't fall for the same trick twice, and the relationships between the individual members of their group had deepened since then. Of course, it was possible that purification had made it safe for her to show her emotions, but she had never taken the time to explain the implications of her new, white-garbed persona. They had concluded that her joy was genuine.
But Cyborg had always been protective of the petite girl, and when he caught her singing a love ballad as she fixed her morning tea, he knew something wierd (and potentially dangerous) was going on.
"Hey, Dark Girl. You've been in a good mood lately."
She smiled at him, a blush blooming on her cheeks even as the cup in her hand pulsed with black energy. "I suppose I have."
He settled himself at the kitchen table, ignoring the piles of dirty dishes and growing specter of blue mold. Only Raven's portion of the kitchen was ever clean. "Wanna tell me why?"
Her snort was a seeming relic of the "old" Raven. "I need a reason?"
"I've known you for five years. You've always said you needed to control your emotions."
"Mmm, I do . . . still do. It's not dangerous anymore, but I'm afraid that if I let myself feel too much, too fast I'll drive myself insane."
She had joined him at the table, and he had covered her hand with his metal one. "I want to thank whatever it was that put that smile on your face then."
The smile widened, became sweeter, and he realized suddenly that she was beautiful. "Thanks Cyborg. I appreciate that." Then she was up and walking away, patting his shoulder as she passed him to enter the hall.
And as she stepped into the darkened corridor, tea in hand, Raven pressed the fingers of her free hand to her still-smiling lips wishing she was the type to kiss and tell; and she also gave thanks for what put the smile on her face, for what made her feel so many wonderful things that she couldn't suppress them completely - Thank you, Robin.