Author's Note: Hello, it's me! I hope y'all are staying safe, sane, & healthy. I just want to quickly talk about how action scenes are not my strong suit, and also that I had to look up very specific questions to get some minor details that I didn't end up getting the answer to, so if there's anything that may seem incorrect or whatever, please forgive me. I try my best to be consistent and to follow canon (with the exception of the creative liberties I've taken).

Anyway, I tried my best lmao. I feel like this chapter doesn't pack as much of a punch as others, but it's necessary for the plot. To tell y'all the truth, it was hard for me to get into the groove of this chapter (not unlike past ones). If you also write, I think you can relate to having a scene in your head, but not knowing how to actually write it out. In this case, I was just putting it off. If it takes me a while to update, it's usually because of that lmao.

I hope you guys enjoy! Thanks for reading!

P.S. If you're confused, do not worry. All will soon be revealed...


She more so felt his words than read them, each letter of his scrawl a slash across her skin, to the point where she grew numb to it.

It cut so deeply, too deep, new scars from which he takes all that's left of her resolve, the little she had left. Perhaps it was never that at all. She did not know what to do ever since he looked the other way.

She never had the will to choose anything other than him, and that had changed. That had changed and now it is changing again, even though she does not want it to. She did this to herself. She allowed his regrets to etch themselves down her arms and through her ribs, where they join his. Another thing that felt nothing but dreadfully everlasting. And everything that is her fate. She must have been created to suffer.

"You kill me," she said to the letter. His eyes still hidden in her mind. "You kill me." She whispered this as if it were a secret.

She can keep a secret. She can go to her secret. The one that has a knife to her chest, so close to pressing in, splitting the blood and the bone. Her mouth tasted like blood, her teeth buzzed with the sheer overwhelm, the rage built into the lining of her stomach, all acid and threatening to come

up.

She does not find the words when she sees him. The warmth of his eyes had leaked and spilled down somewhere she could not find. He looked like summer dying. Yet he marked and marred her, drew it out of her, forcing her open but not open enough, not enough to trust that he will not turn his back on her.

He always lies. Straight through his teeth. Even his eyes hide it. Mostly. And she does not fall for it, but she chooses to believe she has. She remembers what it is like to be held, and that is where she betrays herself.

Every day came a new loss to grieve. Her chest swelled with it, soul punctured by it, yet struggling to break free even when she finds comfort in him again.

The blare of the alarm takes her out of her head, shaking her from the core.

He frowns apologetically. "We gotta go."

"B-but…"

But what?

"We can talk later, if you want. Okay?"

For the sake of time, she nods and walks out, fighting the urge to turn back and failing to do so.

Because he is looking right back.

He smiles slightly, awkwardly, but it still reassures her. Somehow.

"At this damn time?" she hears Cyborg say down the hallway.

"Lotta psychos!" Beast Boy shouts back.

"We're headed a little further into the city. Looks like someone wants to play with us," Robin says behind her.

"You think?" Cyborg says once he approaches them.

"Yeah, ya think so?" Beast Boy says, clear exhaustion weighing his expression down. "They're always tryna play with us…"

"Yeah. Let's go."

She feels him cup her elbow for a split second before walking past her. She watches Cyborg's brow twitch before following him.

They pick up their pace and turn the corner. She attempts to follow, but it is only then that she feels the weight of her limbs. She has not slept. The sun is only now starting to rise. She does not have enough time to restore her strength...

Beast Boy turns at the corridor, a look of worry she recognizes too well. "You good?"

She smiles tiredly. "I am afraid I did not sleep either…"

His eyes brighten once they move from her. She turns to find Raven by her side, reaching out to touch her arm. A surge of energy rushes over her, and in an instant, her feet leave the ground. She did not even realize that she was not flying.

"Thank you," Kori smiles, her heart suddenly so full of love and emotion.

Raven nods. "Just be careful."


"Saw that," Cyborg smirks.

He rolls his eyes. "Shutup."

He snickers as he starts the car and drives out of the garage. "The hell is taking them so long?"

"Sleeping schedule's not the best," Dick says without thought. His brain keeps showing him her neck and he doesn't— he doesn't know much of anything, really.

Cyborg raises his brow. "What's that supposed to mean?"

He can't help but chuckle at that, his demeanor already breaking. "It means you're the only one who doesn't stay up all night." Something about it all just seemed so ridiculous.

"Is that why you forgot your new outfit?"

Dick shakes his head and bites back another smile. "Nah, man. I totally pussied out."

He actually considered wearing his new costume for a split second. But something felt off. Something like the sketchy ass location at this sketchy ass time to break the law.

"Maaaaaan, I betcha would've looked so cute."

"Oh, definitely."

"They're really taking their sweet ass time, huh? Like we don't have a criminal on the loose."

Dick goes stiff in the passenger seat, his gut tightening. "Don't worry. They're waiting for us."

Cyborg looks at him with this exaggerated look of confusion. "How do you know, man? This some kind of test? Wanna explain what it's about?" He narrows his eye. "You're calm. Real calm."

"No, nothing like that." Dick sighs. "I got a feeling. A strong one," he says just as they appear overhead. "Do you guys not look at your communicator?"

"Apologies!" Star shouts in the sky.

"No worries. We're not in a rush or anything," Cyborg shouts back through the open window, and her guilt drags her whole face down in less than a second.

Dick instantly shoots him a death glare.

Cyborg laughs. "Y'all are too much."

He flares his nostrils. "I'm glad you're entertained."

"Sorry, little lady! Let's get a move on!" he beams up at her, and she nods, following them as he begins to drive, his expression evening out. "Yeah, of course I looked, man."

"Of course you did," he sighs. "Sorry. I'm just…"

"Sleep deprived? Glad I'm missing out."

He's suddenly aware of his spine and how stiff it is. He wants to lean back, but he's actually scared that if he relaxes, everything he's keeping at bay is gonna rise to the surface. But also, holy shit, he needs to lay down.

Her neck. Her neck. Her neck.

He sits up so straight that maybe his back would break if he bent it with a bit too much force. They were picking up speed. He tries not to watch her in the air, her limbs hanging just a little more than they usually do. She looked exhausted just now, in his room.

I wonder what she's been doing.

He cringes and shakes his head.

None of my business. Not. My. Business.

"You think it's that killer, don't you?"

Dick snaps back to reality, and stares dumbly at Cyborg, his face even tighter than before.

"Do you think you know who it could be?" he continues when he doesn't answer.

He exhales and finds his words. "The crime scenes remind me of what I've seen back in Gotham. It… has a certain style."

"So you think it's someone from Gotham?"

"No."

Cyborg glances over in confusion for a split second "Then what? Where, then?"

"I said I saw it there. But no trained assassins are from Gotham." He pulls at his hair and bites his lip. "Have you ever… seen a dead body?"

Cyborg makes a face somewhere between a grimace and an uncomfortable smile. "Yeah. I've seen a few. After accidents. But never… I can't imagine seeing that all the time. Damn."

"I mean, it's not like I saw one every night of my life," he says, matching Cyborg's expression. "But yeah, often enough. Enough to be able to tell the difference between someone who knows how to kill and someone who… just does."

"Damn."

"Yup."

They ride in silence for the next few minutes, the road getting darker as they go deeper into the city. The sun brighter behind them. Out the window, he can spot the buildings by the beach that he… would rather not remember.

"The building we're going to," Dick starts, his throat closing in. "It's an old storage unit for Wayne Enterprises. It's rarely used anymore."

It must have been the way his voice strained, because Cyborg asks, "Is there some context missing here?"

He smiles weakly. "A whole lot of it," he says as they pull to a stop.

"Dude better not waste our time…" Cyborg mutters as he steps out of the car, and Dick follows.

He's never been to this building in particular, but he knew there was nothing of actual importance there. Still, out of all places? Everything was screaming at him that this could be someone he knows.

He walks up to the entrance and pulls the handle. It opens the way it should. No alarms. No lights except for the sun streaming through the high glass windows, and he looks past the lint flying in it for something to focus on.

The quiet of it was unsettling, like the ringing in your ears right after it stops. It was warm and smelled worn, untouched. He scans the high shelves, searching for any flicker of movement.

"Okay, why is this kinda freaky…" Beast Boy says.

Dick turns to face Raven, her eyes already on him. She nods.

"Stand back," he says, just loud enough for them to hear, but it still echoes.

He inches forward calmly, slowly, walking past the wide, empty space and stopping at an aisle. The shelves were only half full, lined with boxes neatly organized. He can't see much through the gaps, though.

He hears a frantic whisper behind him and pulls his arm back, raising a finger to shush it.

Then a sharp gasp cuts through his system and he whips around, only to see black energy quickly climbing towards him. But just as he's about to go under, his feet leave the ground and Raven's forcefield is covered in smoke. He holds his breath until he hits the floor again, but then something else knocks the wind out of him, and he's inhaling it without meaning to.

He hears their grunts of pain, some sort of struggle behind him. What the fuck is happening?

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos!"

He's taken into Raven's magic, his feet just barely covered by it. Through the black and white, he can see an outline, something faintly. Someone watching and waiting.

It flickers before shrinking down, the edge of his protection slowly inching up his legs, his torso, his neck, melting out of it.

He stands there.

Wearing his costume.

What the fuck?

Dick leaps onto his feet, grabbing his bo staff and immediately pointing the end of it to the red x on his chest. "Who are you?"

He chuckles and it sends an actual shiver down his spine. Not out of fear, but from something… something…

"Why would I tell you that?" he says, and the fucker's clearly amused, even through the tinny sound of his voice through the mask.

"Rob!"

Dick clenches his fists, everything else frozen, caught in his space, ready to move at a moment's notice.

"ROB! You good?"

"Yes," he hisses through his teeth.

"Tsk, tsk. You should talk nice to your teammates, y'know. You don't wanna be like your father, do you?"

"What. Do. You. Want."

He laughs again, something lighter than before, almost childish.

"Why don't you help your girl?" he mocks, extending his arm and pointing his fingers like a gun. "I got a good shot in."

Dick shoves the staff against him, surging forward as it shortens and pushes him back. He uses the momentum to swing, but as soon as he stumbles, the fucker recovers and blocks it.

Each movement of his, he matches perfectly, neither of them even hitting the other. "Getting tired?" he taunts, kicking his leg into the air. When Dick tries to catch it, he swings it back to the ground.

"Not a chance," Dick growls.

He hears Cyborg's footsteps approaching fast, his pants shooting his heartbeat up even further. "Rob!"

"I got this!"

"You sure about that? Your team could barely handle me. I got 'em all tied up in a minute."

Running on adrenaline and instinct, he reels his fist back and slams it into his gut, actually relieved that it lands. He drives his knee in right after, but he can't hit as hard because he's already slinking away, another bomb of smoke erupting around him. He swings his staff in circles, only hitting metal as the smoke fills his nose, his laughter twisting his insides.

Until he finally lands a hit. He swings again into his side, but then he takes a blow in his own gut, knocking him back against the shelves.

"I hope you're not breathing that smoke in. It's not good for ya."

Dick swings his feet out, reaching to take him down, but he only misses. "Why the fuck are you here?"

Again, he laughs. "Don't worry about it."

Dick scrambles to his feet, searching out in the dark for him. For anyone. The anger is burning him from the inside out.

Because it did only take a minute.

How the fuck did they all get so caught off guard?!

Then, beyond the horrid smell of the smoke, was something entirely different. Something fresh, coppery. He holds his breath and runs forward, bouncing back as he bumps into the shelves, the smoke thinning out as he goes.

That's when he sees them. Raven on the ground, Beast Boy holding her close. Starfire with a gut-wrenching look of pain. Cyborg trying to talk to her, but she can't stop looking at Raven.

"What happened?" he heaves, immediately being thrown into a coughing fit.

"S-she collapsed…" Beast Boy says softly, stroking her hair in his lap.

"When she tried to protect us after that first bomb went off, it just kinda… backfired on her," Cyborg says.

God, his blood is fucking boiling. But then he looks at her again, her eyes wide and full of tears, and he wants to cry with her.

Raven couldn't take control of her powers. And from the looks of it, Starfire couldn't, either.

"I'm sorry," he says, because he can't think of anything else to.

Cyborg shakes his head. "Not your fault."

"He — he was wearing my suit. My, my… no," he says when Cyborg looks at him in pure shock. "Not that one."

"I mean, still. What?"

"She's waking up," Beast Boy says softly, smiling in relief as Raven grunts and sighs.

She blinks her eyes open and immediately shuts them, her brows furrowing and lips pulling into a frown. "I'm fine," she deadpans.

"Yeah, okay," Beast Boy says as he gently helps her sit up.

"Raven…" Starfire mouths, a tear falling down her cheek. He notices now the red material across her stomach and arms, broken apart and most of it on the floor around her.

"Star…" he starts, taking a step forward, but she cranes her neck all the way to the side, trying to hide herself.

It's okay. That's okay.

"Okay," he whispers, forcing himself to tear his eyes away from her.

"I'm fine," Raven barks, standing by herself. Beast Boy shoots up to her side and she rolls her eyes.

"Uh, Rob… are you… bleeding?" Cyborg asks, taking hold of his arm.

"I don't know." He pulls up his sleeve and inspects his arm. Absolutely nothing. Just a line of red, already run down his arm and into his glove. He hadn't even noticed. "Wait. I smelled something…"

Dick takes in a deep breath before running back through the smoke, which was beginning to dissipate. He goes through the same aisle, looking above him as best as he can, until he finds a metal frame run with red.

Right above it, a big cardboard box, soaked through.

"Beast Boy." He sighs heavily. "You're not gonna like this."


After much prompting from herself and Beast Boy, Raven agreed to be checked upon in the infirmary room.

She is the okay, but the look Beast Boy had given her was not. It only told her again what she already knows.

She could not bear to look at Raven for another second. For hours, she has been in her bedroom, trying to piece together what had happened in the morning. Feeling the sting at her scar everytime she thought back to it.

X'hal. She does not want to think about it. About why she would get hit there. About how it was a chain reaction between them, starting with her. Then Raven. Then Beast Boy.

And it is all her fault.

She jumps at the knocking at her door, rapid and loud. "Hey, uh, it's me. Can we talk for a minute?"

She holds her breath and makes her way to the door, fighting the urge to shield herself from his stare. Or maybe to show him just how ashamed she is. How much she understands that this was all her own doing.

"Hello…" she says quietly.

"Hey, uh… is it cool if I come in?"

"Of course," she smiles weakly, moving aside to let him in. He stands awkwardly in the center of her room, even after the door shuts and the silence becomes painful, which only took a second or two.

"Soooo… how're you feelin'?" Beast Boy says as he finally turns to face her, his fingers wringing together.

She follows his movement, tapping her forefingers together, over and over, finding it too difficult to look into his eyes. "I am the fine. Thank you for asking. How are you feeling?"

"I'm good, Star. You don't have to— have to talk so formal with me. It's okay. I'm just here, to… to…" he sighs and reaches for the back of his neck, rubbing it. "Look, I talked to Rob not too long ago and I really wish I didn't talk to him the way I did. I won't make the same mistake with you. 'Cause you guys are my friends, y'know?"

A small part of her is relieved at the fact that he still considers them friends. She smiles slightly, wrapping her hands around her hair. "Did you… speak to him about Raven?" she asks gently.

"Yeah. I don't really know anything, so I'm totally not prying or anything. It's just that I see firsthand how Rae reacts to the emotional overload and it— it kinda kills me, Star. It does. So, to be honest, I got really upset about it. At him, mostly."

She looks down at her feet, face heating with the familiar shame. "And me… as well. I understand."

"Hey…" He steps forward and puts a hand on her shoulder. "I know you feel bad about it. And I know Rob does too. I really saw it today."

She steps back, wrapping her arms around herself. "I feel awful, Beast Boy." Her chin wobbles. "It is my fault that she… that her powers failed her."

"You shouldn't put all the blame on yourself… that's really harsh, don't you think?"

"But it is the truth."

"I mean, I don't know. Things are a lot more crazy than I realized. I didn't realize just how crazy until recently."

She turns her back to him and presses her fingers to her eyes, willing herself not to cry. "I am sorry," she whispers, afraid to speak any louder.

"I'm not blaming you. Okay? We all got stuff going on. I see that now. And I understand."

"That is no excuse…"

"Excuse for what? Having feelings?" He chuckles. "I thought you Tamaraneans lived off of that."

She shakes her head. "We do… but normally not at the expense of others."

"Well, Rae's a literal empath. She's kinda supposed to feel all those feelings. Especially when she really cares about the people that have those feelings."

She looks up to the ceiling, tears running loose despite her efforts. "I am feeling too much. And it is hurting her. And hurting you."

She hears him slowly approach her. "Well, when you care about someone, you want to help them through that pain. Even if they don't want to admit they have it in the first place."

Her chest aches instantly, her scar ringing with the memory of the bullet that struck her. She squeezes her eyes shut and tries to even her breath. He softly places his hand back on her shoulder. She does not have the strength to shrug it off.

He squeezes her shoulder. "We're all doing the best we can. I can't be mad about that. So I'm sorry that I was. I'll leave you alone now, okay? And I'm gonna talk to Robin later. Just take it easy." With that, he leaves.

It takes her a long while to calm down. She settles her racing thoughts somehow, the burden of her guilt lightening as she recalls his words. She may not believe them fully, but his understanding meant a lot in the moment. More than she deserved.

She sits on her bed and reaches under the pillow, holding the envelope in her hand as if it were the most delicate thing. She stares at her name. She does not know what she feels, or what she is doing. It only makes sense for her to go. It is the only thing she can do.

With the letter held to her chest, she walks down the hallway to his room, her heart hammering. She knocks before she can think, and then she is back to last night, having almost no control of where and to who she goes.

Except there is no response. Not even a sound.

"R-robin?"

Nothing.

She stand stock still. Unable to decide what to do.

What should she do? She feels like a fool.

X'hal, I am a fool.

"Starfire?"

A jolt of fear makes her clutch her chest, the letter crumpling. He raises his arms, an apologetic look instantly on his face.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you…"

She exhales a long breath, her fingers trembling with the sudden burst of adrenaline. She shuts her eyes and leans against the door. "It is the okay," she huffs, trying to catch her breath.

"Did you… wanna talk to me?"

Without looking at him, she nods her head. She remembers the ruined letter and flattens her palm against it.

"O-okay. In my room?"

She nods again, lifting herself off the door to allow him to open it. She stares down at her feet as she enters him room, rubbing her hand over the letter against her chest, afraid to look at just how much she really damaged it.

"Are you okay?"

"I ruined it," she snaps, raising the letter to him. "I ruined it."

He shakes his head, dumbfounded. "It's not a big deal, Star. It's—"

"I wanted to burn this letter. And now I cannot believe that I ruined it! Regardless, I cannot forget it. I cannot."

"I'm… sorry?"

"Do not be." She walks past him and begins to pace after setting the envelope down on his desk. "I am the sorry."

"What for?"

"For— for… allowing things to get so out of hand…"

"What does that mean, Starfire?"

She stops in her tracks and finds the courage to look at him. "It means, you never should have written that letter. You only wrote it because of me."

He tilts his head, to her annoyance. "Uh… yeah?"

The frustration creeps up her neck and cheeks. "Do you not see it?! This is all my doing! Richard! You must see it…"

"Starfire."

"What?"

"Can you sit, please?"

"Why?"

"Just— I don't like this," he says, his frown growing as deep as the crease between his brows.

He gestures to his bed and she complies, her legs bouncing uncontrollably. He pulls his desk chair close to her and sits right in front of her, his expression softening.

"What happened, Star?" he asks so kindly, and it almost makes her cry.

She inhales a shaking breath, her nose and eyes prickling as she stares straight past him, afraid to truly look at him. She then closes her eyes and simply breathes through it, taking the time to calm herself down once more.

"I did not mean to yell," she finally says, eyes unopened still.

"It's okay," he says, soothingly.

"I am the sorry, I cannot look at you…"

"No, it's okay," he whispers.

She cranes her neck and opens her eyes to stare at the wall. "Thank you."

"For what?"

"For understanding."

"It's nothing."

"It is everything."

"Even now?"

She nods slowly. "Even now."

The silence that follows is not entirely disconcerting. Her heart is still running wild, but beside it was a sense of safety. She had so much to say, and she could say it all. The only problem being that she did not know where to begin.

Where did it all go now? I cannot even look at him.

"No rush," he says quietly, and she imagines the ghost of a smile on his face.

Except there is a rush. It needs to end. She needs to fix her mistakes.

"How do I even tell you?"

"You don't need to do it right now if you don't want to. You can change your mind, Star. I'm always here to listen."

She glances at his desk, the white of the envelope seeming to glow against everything else. She cannot remember why it used to make her so angry.

The sting rides through her scar.

I have made worse mistakes.

She stands abruptly and walks over to his desk to grab the letter.

Maybe I am wrong. Maybe it was a mere coincidence.

"Are you okay?"

"Y-yes… I apologize, can we talk another time?"

"Okay," he nods. "Okay. No problem."

"I-I am sorry."

"It's okay. Don't worry about it, okay?"

She smiles in his direction before leaving him alone, quickly retreating to her own room.

What do you do when you start to piece it all together?

What do you do when you do not want to?

She holds her palm to her stomach, her skin hot to the touch.

X'hal. Let me be wrong.