Birdcage

Chapter two

Raven quietly stayed where she was scanning the room for any signs of a break in. There were several wet footprints starting at the elevator that headed towards the living room. Suddenly she noticed the soft sound of rain hitting the window panes across the way. She really had been distracted. Taking a deep breath she closed her eyes and focused again confirming there was another presence there but it was none threatening. On another plain she could see other's emotions in different colors. Over the years she had learned which colors meant what feelings. Thankfully this individual wasn't showing any hostility. They seemed conflicted but not when it came to her. She opened her eyes and her voice came out in a small tone as a calm filled the air.

"…Robin?"

"Hey," His tone was low. By now Raven's eyes had adjusted to the dim light and she could make out his form on the couch. He hadn't even looked over when he spoke. Despite his stoic response she moved one hand in the air pulling another mug down and bringing the kettle over to pour a second cup of tea for him.

"Wasn't expecting you back already. Everything okay?" She didn't really do small talk but something about this seemed odd to her.

"Yeah, my trip got cut short."

"You're here alone?" He nodded his response silently. The color he was giving off shifted slightly. He was sad? She didn't want to pry any further. The tea was done steeping and she walked over to him bringing both mugs. He wasn't in his normal outfit which she also found weird, not even his mask. She could only assume it wasn't ideal for Tamaran.

"Well I'm glad you're back. Was a little too quiet around here." He reached up and took the warm beverage from her and looked her way for the first time.

"Sure about that? Figured you like it quiet." Pushing his wet hair out of his face he took a long sip and heaved a deep sigh. That bluish hue became a little darker. Raven was not used to being the one to lighten the mood and wasn't sure what to say.

"Not much going on in town, I'm almost out of books to read," she awkwardly joked. A faint smile pulled at his mouth. "Aren't you cold with all those wet clothes on," she added. He glanced over again as though he hadn't thought much about it.

"Guess I should change…probably need to go to bed." The hue became even darker as though the idea worried him. "Kind of late to be up," his statement was directed to her. She twisted her mouth to one side trying to think of what to say back. She certainly didn't want to tell him about the dream.

"The storm woke me up," she wasn't sure he'd buy that but he just shrugged in response before going back to his drink. Absentmindedly he kicked off his boots, leaving them at his feet. Raven took a step back as he rose from the couch and started for the hallway. As he walked away he managed to shrug off his jacket and also left it on the floor where it landed.

" Guess I'll see you in the morning then," before she could say another word he was gone from sight, the deep sorrowful blue slowly leaving the room behind him. An invisible force was squeezing her around her chest as she remained unmoved. She was certain whatever was bothering her friend it most likely had to do with Starfire but she didn't want to dredge something up that was so painful. Had she broken up with him? Did it have to do with her staying behind? Did they have a fight? Every worst case scenario entered her mind making her even more worried. She quietly took another sip of her tea which had cooled more than she wanted.

Moving towards the kitchen, she left the mug in the sink before heading back to her room. At the very least her teammate's sudden return had distracted her from the bad dream. Maybe she would be able to get a couple more hours of sleep after all. But as much as she wanted to her mind wouldn't allow her the luxury of sleep. After tossing for a few more hours the sun had started to rise over the horizon. Letting out a growl she sat up and leaned over the side of her bed. Rubbing her forehead, she closed her tired eyes. Hopefully Robin wouldn't be up for any extra training today.

"Good morning, love," the whisper came from behind and caused her to let out a startled yell before jumping from the bed. She spun around but there was no one there. It had been the voice from her dream. She had hoped she had forgotten but there was no denying it. She was beginning to think she was losing her mind.

There was a light knock on the door. She groaned knowing she must have been too loud. Opening the door she was greeted by her obviously sleepy teammate.

"Hey," she quickly greeted him, hoping she didn't look as off as she felt.

"Hey," he replied before letting out a yawn and scratching the back of his head, "I know this sounds weird but I felt I needed to check on you. Everything okay?" She sucked in a deep breath.

"Yeah, I'm fine." She had managed to keep her tone low as normal and he seemed to buy it. This was the first time she got a good look at him. He was sporting a five o'clock shadow and his hair was longer than normal. His eyes carried a tired look as though he hadn't had a decent night's sleep in a while. He yawned again before getting to the point of the matter. She really couldn't judge considering her own lack of sleep.

"Okay, I was gonna go make some breakfast, you hungry?" Raven's mouth pulled to one side as her stomach loudly growled in response. A faint blush touched her cheeks but thankfully he didn't notice. Still she tried to play it off and shrugged back.

"Yeah I guess so."

They headed down to the kitchen and after several minutes of looking through the pantry and fridge Robin looked around the rest of the kitchen with a confused look on his face.

"So what did you eat while everyones been gone," he brushed the back of his hand at the cobwebs he found in the food pantry. She lowered her head some before responding.

"To be honest I usually went out to eat when I remembered to." He grimaced in response before sighing heavily.

"Guess we're going out then." Raven made a face knowing she would at least need a few minutes to get ready. That and she still wasn't fully awake. Robin must have noticed her hesitation.

"I could just go grab something to go if you prefer." She shook her head in response.

"No, just give me a few minutes and we can go out." Considering the night before she was surprised that he was this chatty. It was probably hunger that was pushing the conversation.

The trip downtown was pretty quiet. At one point Robin asked her if she'd heard from Cyborg and Beast boy but other than that neither one of them wanted to bring up the obvious awkward topics. The coffee shop was busy, mostly people on their way to work. The lack of sleep was starting to get to Raven when Robin brought over their drinks. She rarely drank black tea but after one sip she was glad she decided to this morning. It seemed to ease any tension left from the night before.

"Sorry if I startled you last night." His statement caused her to quirk an eyebrow to match her smirk. Her reaction caused him to wave his hands back and forth. "I mean I really wasn't trying to sneak in…just kind of happened that way, I guess."

"Don't worry about it," she shrugged back, taking another sip of her drink.

"Really? Cause you seemed stressed or something when you came downstairs." It bothered her for some reason that he had noticed. She might have let her guard down during the time no one was there except her.

"Nothing you should worry about. Just wasn't expecting you home so soon,". She turned the conversation in a direction she wanted it to go. He looked away, pushing his sunglasses up on the bridge of his nose. She could only assume he wore them to hide his tired gaze. He took the first large gulp of his coffee before replying. "Yeah, probably should have called to let you know beforehand," he leaned back in his seat returning her stare. "I meant to ask if you're growing your hair out or something?" Not something a typical guy would notice. She pushed the dark lock that had fallen forward back behind her shoulder.

"Haven't really thought much about it, I guess. I could ask you the same thing," she smirked back at him. He absentmindedly ran his fingers through his hair just as their food came. Raven took a quiet bite trying to figure out how to get him to talk about what happened on Tamaran. Before she got too deep in her thoughts she glanced out the window.

Several people were walking past, no one in particular stood out to her until she suddenly felt a familiar presence. Without thinking she began searching, noticing each person that walked by. There was no denying this feeling, it was definitely from her dream. Was she dreaming now? Anxiety came over her in a wave. Robin was calling her but she was too preoccupied.

'Come on, I know you're here somewhere,' she told herself. Something brushed her hand and she immediately jerked it away pushing back in such a way that the table was almost knocked over.

"Raven?" His tone was surprisingly calm considering the scene she was probably causing. She couldn't look across the table, couldn't see the look of worry she knew Robin was giving her.

"I'm….I'm…" she couldn't bring herself to say she was okay. After a few more seconds she took in a deep breath and tried to refocus. "Sorry bout that, I'm fine." She managed a timid look in his direction and received the concern she was expecting.

"Are you sure?" She managed a faint smile to convince him but noticed movement across the street and turned to see exactly who she didn't want to. There was no mistaking his tall demeanor and tanned skin. The wind picked up and blew his long pale hair. His deep gaze felt like it was piercing her soul. She instantly felt hot and pulled away from the table. "Raven!?"

She almost tripped over the chair behind her. The cool stare from across the street narrowed almost in glee. It irritated her and she dashed for the exit without saying a word.