(A/N)- LAST PROMPT OF 2019! Wooo!
I had ridiculous fun with this one. I didn't want to go the generic route and have Robin looking for jewelry for Starfire so I wound up wholecloth creating a crystal-based villain for the Titans to fight. And then I had to add enough of a plot for people to follow along.
And then I made it angsty.
Enjoy!
Disclaimer: Once again with feeling, I don't own the Teen Titans.
RobStar Week 2019, Day 7 - Jewel
"Great. Now which way do we go?" complained Beast Boy as the four of them came to another underground junction. A half-dozen different tunnels branched off the main one, twisting this way and that into darkness.
Raven's eyes were closed in concentration, her hands pressed to her temples. She faced one tunnel, then another, feeling out with her empathic senses.
"Something's wrong," she told them, her face squeezing tighter as she strained. "I can't sense him anymore. It's like something's blocking me."
Starfire's throat tightened up in alarm. The hand holding aloft the starbolt to illuminate their path wavered, trembling. Her nails dug into her palms, white-knuckled.
Seeing the worry and fear written all over her face, Cyborg jumped in, bringing up his arm. "Well, maybe we can still track Crystallis," he suggested, pulling up his sensor program. He tapped buttons for a moment or two, letting his advanced technology scan the paths ahead.
After a minute he straightened.
"Got it. Two heartbeats, and strong energy readings, about fifty yards down," he said.
"'kay..." Beast Boy considered, peering at the branching tunnels. They veered off into inky darkness steps from their openings; it was impossible to tell which one went which way. "Which one goes down?"
Raven opened her eyes, her brows still furrowed, thinking. She reached out and put a hand on Starfire's shoulder.
"Starfire, turn off your starbolts for a moment," she instructed.
Starfire did as she was told, dispelling the glowing green ball of energy and plunging them into near total darkness.
The Titans stood there. Blinked. Waited as their eyes adjusted to the dark.
The Tamaranian was the first to spot it, and gave a gasp. "There!" she said, pointing.
Down one of the tunnels, the one slightly to their right and angling south, there was a faint blue-green glow, creeping across the earthen walls.
Starfire took point, rushing to that tunnel's opening before slowing, cautiously floating through the long corridor. The others were not far behind her.
The light grew brighter and brighter until they could see the source; dozens of Crystallis's signature luminescent crystals, growing here and there in clusters, creaking and extending far more rapidly than they should.
"Yep," confirmed Cyborg. "This is her handiwork all right."
"Be on your guards," Starfire told them, holding two starbolts close to her chest. "I believe we are coming upon an open cavern."
The tunnel went on for about another mile, the crystal formations increasing in size and frequency until they were practically lining the walls, and then the space emptied out into a large chamber, shockingly lit with bright white light from a massive cluster dangling from the ceiling. A kaleidoscope of colors splashed against the walls from growing crystals-their adversary had been very busy, apparently.
Starfire's eyes darted around, in frantic search of Crystallis and her prisoner.
"Ah..." came a light sigh from somewhere in the room. "The rest of the set has joined us."
The Titans were immediately on guard, Raven and Starfire's hands glowing and Cyborg cranking out his sonic cannon, while Beast Boy became a hound, pawing low to the the ground and growling threateningly.
With soft footsteps, the villainess stepped out from behind a large freestanding quartz, her hand passing over its milky white surface. Crystallis's pale porcelain skin shone in the light from her sun-crystal, her ice-blue eyes and fair hair giving her an almost alien look.
"I've been waiting for you," she all but whispered. "I knew you would want to see..."
"Where is Robin?" Starfire demanded, her brows narrowed furiously.
A pale white hand waved out, gesturing towards the glimmering clusters all around them.
"Do you like it?" Crystallis was asking, her eyes blank with awe. "My jewel garden..."
"Where is he?!" Starfire screeched. Underneath her anger her heart was beating with fear. The long spines of crystal were extending at an alarming rate. Starfire was certain that if they did not defeat the woman here, her creations would pierce through to the surface, breaking through the street. They had to stop her. They had to find where she'd imprisoned Robin. Her chest raked with worry over him. It was all she could do to keep from rushing the woman.
"So many pretty gems..." As if she hadn't heard Starfire's outburst, Crystallis stepped up onto and walked across one rocky shelf that was like a raised stone platform, heading for a bluish crystal that had been stood prominently on display. "And him..."
Starfire felt her breath freeze in her lungs, her blood stopping still as Crystallis brushed a bit of fog off the surface of the crystal, revealing Robin's face. He was unmasked, his eyes closed, enclosed completely in the bluish rock. Next to her she sensed Raven stiffen and Cyborg and Beast Boy exchange tense glances.
"...the prettiest gem of all," Crystallis sighed, looking over her prize with subtle longing. Her hands lingered on the surface of the large blue jewel and Starfire burned with wrath at the sight.
Crystallis turned to face them, her cold eyes finally seeming to focus on them.
"Won't you reconsider my offer?" she asked. Her hands spread, reverently. "Just think... pleasant eternal sleep. Immortality. You will never grow old. Never need anything again."
"Never be anything but a trinket on display for you," growled Raven.
Crystallis 'tut-tutted' in disapproval.
"How like the demon-seed of Trigon to have no appreciation for true beauty," she sniffed. Her icy eyes passed over Cyborg and Beast Boy, narrowing, the lines of her mouth setting firmly. "Neither of you would understand..." she declared. "Boorish, uncultured oafs."
Beast Boy gave a braying bark that sounded much like an indignant, "HEY!"
The villainess's piercing eyes came to rest on Starfire, who felt her anger give way to an uncomfortable shiver.
She did not like the look the woman was giving her. It had been the same look she'd given Robin before...
"But you..." came the breathless, interested whisper.
A prickle of alarm was all Starfire had time to feel before the room erupted. Huge splinters of greenish crystal pierced through the ground at the Titans' feet, scattering them, separating them. Starfire could hear the others cry out. Her eyes darted forward towards Crystallis. She hadn't moved an inch, but the rapidly-growing spires of rock could only be her doing. The very ground split beneath them, shifting as the fractal arms of the crystals rent it apart.
Starfire rose into the air to avoid it, only to gasp and duck down again, as the clusters on the ceiling also stabbed outwards, creating deadly obstacles. She found herself herded towards the rock shelf with the villainess and her frozen captive. Starfire gave a frantic look backwards, only to glimpse Cyborg, Beast Boy, and Raven all engaged in pitch battle against both the stretching crystal and the faceted, moving, humanoid crystal golems that served as Crystallis's minions. Even that glimpse was taken from her as the lengthening stalagmites and stalactites of crystal wove and intermixed together to create a near-impenetrable wall, some of the arms smashing together.
A falling piece from the collision hit her side, and Starfire yelped as she was flung forward onto the ground.
She shook herself, winded slightly, pushing herself up onto her arms.
Bare feet entered her frame of vision and she froze. She looked up with trepidation, seeing Crystallis tower over her, a needle-like spike of pale quartz pointed down at her face like a knife.
Starfire got her hands beneath her and rose to her feet, very carefully. She was no doubt stronger than the woman, but Crystallis's powers could make the small, harmless-looking blade grow faster than a blink, and she did not yet wish to test just how quickly it would be long enough to impale her through the face.
Crystallis was unflinching, regarding Starfire cooly. "I can sense you have an affinity for finer things," she said.
She reached out a hand. Starfire tensed, but the only thing Crystallis did was stroke her cheek, brushing a strand of hair away from her face.
"Such a lovely creature..." she sighed, almost enviously, "...Eyes like emeralds or peridots..." She dropped her hand, the knife coming up to scrape dangerously close against Starfire's throat. "You admire my garden, don't you?"
There was no threat in her voice, but Starfire still felt tendrils of fear snaking through her. She swallowed thickly, feeling the pinpoint slip against her neck.
"It is... very beautiful," she admitted, her voice wavering.
A smile spread the corners of Crystallis's pale lips, and warmth flooded through her expression, brightening the depths of her eyes.
"Do you not wish to be a part of it?" she asked.
From behind, through one of the small gaps still left between the crystal arms, Starfire heard Raven shouting up to her.
"Starfire, don't listen to her! Just get Robin!"
A dangerous flash in Crystallis's eyes and the gap sealed shut, crystal splintering and crashing to the ground. The sounds of the fighting in the other part of the chamber became horribly muted.
The villainess's smile widened and she stepped back, drawing the knife away from Starfire's throat. The Tamaranian immediately readied her starbolts but hesitated, unsure which action to take. Her eyes flitted from Crystallis to Robin. Could she defeat the woman on her own? Should she risk it? But how would she free Robin quickly enough that the villainess wouldn't have time to stop her?
Crystallis kept talking, her voice floating around the room like a sweet melody.
"I would make you into a dazzling diamond," she promised, breathy notes creeping into her tone, betraying her excitement. "Untainted by the corruptions of the world. An everlasting beauty that men would weep over, yearning to see and touch and yet knowing they were unworthy to even look upon you."
She reached towards Starfire again, but the alien girl stepped back, refusing to allow her face to be touched agin.
Undeterred, Crystallis went on, her voice dropping, turning sadder, more serious. "And oh, I could give you such lovely dreams," she said. "Whatever your heart desired would be yours as you slumbered, as I kept you safe within my crystal cocoon."
Starfire trembled, staring past her towards Robin.
His face looked... peaceful. She wondered if he was dreaming, as Crystallis promised, if he was locked away inside his mind in a world filled with his deepest desires. What might they be? she wondered.
A traitorous thought crossed her mind-that of being propped up next to him for all eternity, youth and vigor undimmed. Of marriage ceremonies and tiny black-haired babies in her arms, laughing with her brother and sister as her parents looked on. She need not wait for him any longer, came the whispering influence in her mind. Starfire wasn't sure if it came externally from Crystallis somehow reading her thoughts, or if it came from the darkest parts of her own id.
She need not suffer through his stalling and excuses, it said to her. She could have everything she wanted from him, right now.
The moment stretched out for a tick or two and then Starfire shook her head. No, she told herself, shrugging off the brief fantasy. She focused back on Robin with sadness in her eyes. It would not be real.
Crystallis stood there and waited with eager anticipation for her to answer, clearly believing that was she was offering was too tempting, no, too wonderful to resist. The woman practically vibrated as she held out her hand, palm-up, towards Starfire.
"Well? What is it that you want?" she asked.
Staring at the woman, Starfire forced herself to remember that Crystallis had not given Robin this choice. There had been no pretty words or promises of pleasant dreams; she'd just maneuvered around behind him as the Titans had fought her golems, her hands wrapping around his neck, around his mouth, pulling him backwards and dragging him down, disappearing with him into the depths of the earth.
She remembered the panic in his eyes, how he struggled in vain to free himself before vanishing from her sight, his hand still outstretched towards her.
Her fingers clenched. Her eyes narrowed and her starbolts grew a fraction brighter.
"I want Robin back," she said venomously.
Both hands snapped up, a bright stream of starbolt energy lancing across the cavern, hitting the crystal encasing her beloved. Starfire poured her fury into the beam, increasing its intensity and strength until a satisfying crack! sounded through the chamber.
A moment later the pristine surface splintered and burst, spilling Robin out into the open air.
"NO!" Crystallis shrieked, all pleasantry and gentleness gone, livid with fury.
She lunged at Starfire, knife shard clutched high in her hand.
A sudden black projection rose up from the floor, wrapping around Crystallis's wrist and yanking her backwards. Raven emerged from the pooling shadows on the ground, white glowing eyes angry narrow slants. Cyborg and Beast Boy were pulled up right after her, and both of them charged the villainess as soon as they stepped out.
She snarled, whirling to face them with a hiss.
With the villainess occupied, Starfire wasted no time and rushed to Robin's prone, face-down form.
"Robin!" she cried, pulling him up by the shoulder, turning him over.
His head lolled limply into the crook of her elbow. His eyes were open but empty, glassy and staring up at nothing, the blue of his irises overtaking his pupils.
Starfire's hand froze above his face, terrified to touch his neck and check for a pulse. Cyborg had said his heart was beating but he looked so still...
He stirred.
The breath rose in his chest, and his eyes started to clear. He blinked.
"Star...?" he said, groggily.
Starfire shuddered in relief, cupping his face and leaning down to cradle his head, pressing her forehead against his. "Robin... oh Robin!" she gasped, her voice choking with sobs. "I am sorry it took us so long to find you!" she blubbered.
Confusion entered his expression. "But... I was just with you," he said. "We were having dinner with my parents." As he said it, something seemed to darken in his eyes. "We were... we were going to tell them we were engaged," he went on, sounding hesitant and unsure now.
Starfire drew back sadly, and from the firm set line of his mouth and the aching sorrow in his eyes, she knew the realization had set in.
"It wasn't real was it?" he asked, his voice hollow with a twinge of anger. "None of it was real."
She shook her head solemnly. "No. It was not," she confirmed.
He exhaled heavily, twitching with withheld emotion. His hands tightened and he sat up.
Watching him anxiously, Starfire backed off a bit, to give him some space. "Are you all right?" she asked in concern.
He was not. She already knew he wasn't-the way he was shaking with anger and how tight his eyes were squeezing closed told her as much-but he needed to know she was right there for him, worrying about him, wanting him to be okay.
After a moment, Robin's posture and expression settled into a controlled and tranquil determination. He reached up for her hand, and she helped him stand.
"I will be," he told her, turning to face the fight. "Once she's behind bars," he hissed, seething.
The petty fire simmering in the corner of her heart pulsed a bit, and her starbolts snapped back into her hands eagerly.
-TT-
The flashing police lights splashed across the windows. Raven and Beast Boy cleared debris, moving broken crystal and shattered concrete, while Cyborg gave a statement to the chief officer.
Robin had slipped off not too long after they'd made it to the surface, but Starfire soon found him sitting atop a nearby roof, arms curled around his legs, watching the cleanup.
She set down lightly behind him.
"Robin?" she called. Her fingertips wove together, hands held up near her stomach, as she stepped closer. "Are you... okay?"
He sighed, his head dropping between his knees.
"I know it wasn't real," he said quietly. "But I still..."
Starfire seated herself beside him, reaching out a hand and wordlessly placing it on his shoulder. It didn't seem like nearly enough so she desperately flung her arms around him, and he turned automatically and buried his face in her chest, his fingers clutching her and digging into her back.
He quaked with dry, quiet sobs. "It feels like I lost them all over again," he strained, his voice tight.
She embraced him tighter. "It was very cruel," she agreed. "What she did to you. It is all right to be upset."
His face pressed closer into her shoulder and Starfire felt tiny drops of wetness soaking her top.
"If it makes you feel the better," Starfire said. "She wished to do the same to me."
Robin gave a cheerless laugh, sitting back, quickly wiping the tear tracks under his eyes away. "That doesn't, actually. I'm... I'm glad she didn't. I wouldn't want you to feel this. To... to wake up and realize the world you thought you knew was a lie."
"Yes..." Starfire murmured, touching his cheek softly. "I much prefer this world. It may be messy and painful, but it is ours."
Robin nodded. "Yeah..." he mumbled.
The stress of the day seemed to catch up with Starfire all at once, and the hand on his cheek curled around his neck and grasped at his hair, her forehead leaning in and pressing firmly against his. Her face pinched tight with emotion.
"Please..." she begged. "Please do not let yourself get captured like that again, I—" She hiccuped softly. "—I was so worried."
A flash of guilt crossed Robin's face and he started, "Starfire I—"
Both hands grasped him now. "Shh," she interrupted. "You are safe now. But I... I need to hold you... for a while."
"Okay," he whispered, pulling her into an embrace. "Okay."
It was her turn to cry, tears like glittering diamonds dropping from her emerald eyes. All the worry and fear, the righteous anger at Crystallis for doing this to him, her own guilt for even briefly considering giving in... it all spilled out like a trickling fountain. His arms were warm around her and she clung to the sensation to remind herself that he was safe and whole and alive and hers, and not a lifeless sleeping figurine encased in crystal. She had saved him. They could go home.
They held on tightly until their emotions were spent and then, feeling lighter, flew down to join the others.
(A/N)- See y'all next year!