A/N: here we go, here we go again!!! read, enjoy, review!! emphasis on the 'review'!

How Long Is Never?

Chapter 4

"This place is so empty, my thoughts are so tempting

I don't know how it got so bad

Sometimes it's so crazy that nothing can save me

But it's the only thing that I have

If you believe it's in my soul

I'd say all the words that I know

Just to see if it would show

That I'm trying to let you know

That I'm better off on my own."

--"Pieces", Sum 41

Starfire sat rigid and impatient on the very uncomfortable bed in the infirmary, her jaw set and teeth gritted as Cyborg carefully removed the stitches from the now-healed gunshot wound. His mechanical fingers had sprouted an array of medical equipment, which she assumed had also been utilized to sew her up in the first place, and he was now finishing what he had started. She tried her best to ignore the very strange sensation of thread being pulled from her skin, but the only other topic occupying her thoughts was Robin. And she did not want to think about her leader…or, her soon-to-be former leader. She contained a sigh. These past weeks had been agonizing, and that pain was definitely not due to her injury but rather the following conversation. It hadn't helped that Robin had then locked himself in his study and emerged only for meals and hygiene purposes, both occurrences few and far between. She didn't think that she could stand living here any longer: ignored by Robin and secretly pitied by the rest for Robin's actions or lack thereof. If she left and he followed, then he would have proved himself. And if she left and he did not, then he would have proved himself anyway. But she couldn't stay. She was useless as a Titan, anyway. No unbridled joy, no righteous fury, no boundless confidence. Just bitterness and poisonous anger and desolation.

"There ya go," Cyborg announced, tossing the thread away and scrutinizing the scar. "You're practically as good as new, Star."

"Thank you, friend Cyborg," she returned with true gratitude. Now that she was healed, she had no reason to hang around this place she had wanted to leave for weeks. Of course, Cyborg didn't know that. Nor did Raven and Beast Boy. Nor did Robin. He would be the last to find out. She had planned on only telling Raven, who was the closest thing—now that Robin had abandoned her—to a confidante that the Tamaranian girl possessed. But in due time. She wanted to pack before she went about delivering her secret goodbye.

Cyborg waved his hand, which had normal fingers again. "No prob, li'l lady. My pleasure." He left the infirmary, the door swishing shut behind his bulky form.

Starfire stared after him for a minute or so, running her forefinger unconsciously over the scar, which was nothing more than a very slightly raised line of tissue. Leave Titans' Tower? The prospect echoed hollowly in her head, sounding almost ominous. She had arrived on Earth and only ever been in Jump City, really, and had only ever lived in the Tower. But she supposed that the idea of living elsewhere on Earth should be nothing compared to the fact that she had lived on various planets with various degrees of hospitality, all of which had been relatively worse than here. How frightening could the rest of humanity possibly be compared to the Gordanians?

Running her hand through her long auburn hair and heaving a sigh, the Titan exited the infirmary and padded quietly down the hall to her room, pausing involuntarily on the threshold before she entered all the way. Soon she would be gone, and nothing would remain but a memory. How very depressing. She chastised herself inwardly for thinking such thoughts and busied herself with hauling her duffel bag from her closet. She unzipped the bag and placed it on her bed before she glanced around her room, wondering what she should take with her. What did one need outside the Tower anyway? And who would befriend her to show her the human way?

She scanned her room for such objects and bit her lip as she lifted her framed photograph of the Teen Titans from her desk. Cyborg was making peace signs with both his hands and grinning his very broad Cyborg grin; Raven was glaring sidelong at Beast Boy, who was trying to take up most of the picture, his arms spread wide and eyebrows nearly raised to his hairline; she herself was smiling happily and waving with one hand, the other tucked behind her back; and Robin was standing beside her, his arms folded comfortably on his chest, and sporting a suave smirk. Her teeth dug further into her bottom lip before she managed to loosen her grip on the frame and deposit it gently in the bag. Might as well keep some means of recalling the happy times.

She turned to her closet next, eyeing the few hanging, violet uniforms, symbols of her role as a Titan. Sure, the outfit was traditional Tamaranian dress, but it was recognized on Earth as belonging to one of the famous Teen Titans. Of which she would be no more. Continuing to think in this vein, she changed into an unassuming pair of jeans and a t-shirt, placing her current uniform next to the other ones. The rest of the "normal" clothes were stuffed in the duffle along with all the odds and ends she felt she'd need, and she zipped it shut resolutely. That was that. She pulled on a jacket and slipped on shoes and swung her bag onto her shoulder, heading for the door once she was ready. She turned the light off as she left, sneaking down the hall to Raven's room.

Glancing around furtively, hoping desperately not to be caught by any other Titan, Starfire knocked softly on the door, not wanting to attract undesired attention.

Raven's voice issued from within, sounding as annoyed as her monotone could. "What?"

"Please, it is I, Starfire. I request the permission of entrance."

There was a slight delay, and then Raven cracked the door open enough for the other girl to venture inside. The empath closed the door immediately, her violet eyes narrowing as she appraised her friend's unusual apparel. "Any particular reason you decided to conform to the greater part of teenage girl society?" she inquired.

Starfire glanced down at her clothes before meeting Raven's gaze squarely. "Indeed, there is. I…I am…" she paused and rallied herself. "I am…leaving."

One dark eyebrow arched. "Leaving?"

"The Tower. The Titans. Jump City." Starfire elaborated accordingly, her eyes dropping to her shoes. She didn't want to see any more of the emotion that had managed to find its way onto the normally stoic half-demon's face.

"What? Why?" Raven demanded as several books were encased in dark energy and flew violently across the room, slamming loudly into the opposite wall. Her jaw clenched momentarily as she fought to control herself, and she appeared to succeed, repeating more calmly, "When did you decide this?"

"A few weeks ago," Starfire confessed. "The day after I was shot."

"Something tells me you're not running for your safety," Raven observed, crossing her arms beneath her cloak.

Starfire nodded once, but she didn't feel the need to make any sort of explanation. "This is the goodbye, friend Raven…so…goodbye."

Raven looked at her levelly for a very long moment before she lunged forward and very uncharacteristically threw her arms around the incredibly surprised Tamaranian. "Don't expect to ever hear this again, but I'm going to miss you."

Starfire returned the embrace and drew back. "I shall miss you as well, friend. It has been glorious to partake in the spending of time with you."

Raven glanced down at her hands. "I trust when you get to wherever you're going that you're going to tell us, right? You're not going to just disappear entirely, are you?"

The other frowned slightly, her eyebrows slanting together. "I am not sure. I will probably tell you," she added, stressing the intended recipient of such information. "But I must go. I have far to go before I can do the sleeping. Goodbye, friend Raven."

"Goodbye, Starfire," Raven offered, pulling her cloak tightly around herself and telepathically raising her hood into place.

Starfire nodded and left with a wave, creeping down the corridors to the elevator. Once inside, she poked the "B" button, descending all the way to the basement. She entered the garage, bypassing the R-Cycle and the T-Car, and entered the tunnel that connected the Tower's island with the mainland of Jump City. Her footsteps echoed loudly in the silence.

TTTTT

Robin tried to massage his headache away, his fingers sinking into his temples as he studied yet another map of Fairway Avenue, struggling to locate the sniper's position based on the trajectory of the bullets. He didn't know what such information could do for him, but he wanted to know something, and this was all he had. The prank call and the attempted assassination were too convenient to be coincidence, and he was perfectly confident that they were related. He just didn't know how or why or who was the one connecting them.

He heaved a heavy sigh, his breath disturbing some of the papers on his cluttered desk. It didn't help that Starfire had been avoiding him. Of course, he didn't know why he expected her to not avoid him, after what he had said. But apparently he just didn't know a whole hell of a lot of things. He groaned, fingers biting painfully into his skull, and leaned his forehead on the desk.

Just then the door to his study slid open, and he looked up expectantly. It had to be her…

But it was Raven. She was standing there, arms crossed forbiddingly on her chest, eyes glaring from the shadow of her hood. Robin shrank back in his chair, feeling a great sense of foreboding settling in his stomach.

"She's gone," Raven nearly spat, the most accusatory she had ever sounded. "And it's all your fault."

Robin closed his eyes behind his mask, blocking out the world and shrouding it in familiar darkness. So she had gone, left the Tower, left Jump City and gone elsewhere.

Just as he had hoped she would.