Part 2 - Pride and ignorance

Walking towards Starfire's room in the den of night was not something Raven enjoyed doing but something she was forced to do. She knew that Robin was going to go nuts if he continued this way and that Starfire was the only one that could at least try to bring Robin back to his normal self. Walking along she passed the glass walls of the tower observing the quiet city. She couldn't help thinking how most of the people over there were probably asleep, just like she was supposed to be. She didn't ever think about it to much but she did wonder sometimes how it would be if she lived a normal life. No crime fighting, no villains, no worries what so ever. Indeed, it would have been a great thing but what about those who would suffer if a criminal would strike? She realized that what she and here friends were doing was a deed of honor and that others benefit from their work. Also, never would she, or any other titan for that matter, have accepted a reward for their crime fighting. Appreciation and respect were the only things that they asked for.

Yes, what they were doing was hard, but everyone in Jump City depended on them. But who did they depend on?

"We all depend on Robin" Raven thought to herself. Just like the people of Jump City depended on the titans for protection, the titans highly depended on Robin for guidance. He was the one that researched the background of every villain and knew everything about the cities slums, he was the one that kept things together and mediated conflicts, and he was the one that coordinated both his team and the honorary titans. He did all of these things and more. and yet he would never become so irritated as he was now. He is a true leader, but every leader can mess up once in a while and no leader is perfect, and the stress caused by Slade's return was now becoming a burden to heavy for Robin's shoulders. He was going to go insane unless somebody acted right away.

Raven was now in front of Starfire's room. She concentrated and tried to sense what her friend was feeling. Sadness, worry, depression, a sense of uselessness ... all of these feelings came from her best friend. She entered Star's room without even knocking realizing that such formalities were not necessary at times like these. Starfire was sitting at the end of her bed and looking out the window with her hands covering her face. Raven approached Starfire and thought that asking for her help now was probably not such a hot idea but a voice inside her told her to go on.

"Behind every great leader there is a great women". This was the thought that made her realize Starfire was the answer.

Raven sat down next to her friend and tried to look at her but couldn't see her face because of her hands. She gently took her hands into her palms and placed them down but contrary to what she was expecting, Starfire was not crying, she was just worried.

"Hey Star" Raven stared "I was wondering how everything is going. Are you alright?"

"No Raven, I am not alright, I am most worried" Starfire replied "Do you not see what is happening? Robin is no longer the way he used to be. He is ignoring us and never tells us anything. The team is going to fail if this goes on."

Starfire's expression was indeed one of a highly worried person, but Raven knew that she was also hiding something. She spoke about how bad things were going on with the team as if she and Robin weren't even in love. This was not the Starfire she knew but realized that her friend was so depressed that she tried to avoid talking about the things that were obviously on her mind.

"Look Star, I know how you feel" said Raven slowly "You don't have to hide it; I know that Robin's attitude is eating you from the inside out. I understand what you are feeling".

Starfire sat up and kept her head down. "You probably understand best these kinds of feelings" she replied "But what am I to do? He never speaks to me and I know how dedicated he is to his work, but this is becoming to painful. We used to be so close but these last three weeks have separated us completely and I am afraid that he does not care about me anymore and that if I try speaking to him I will just make things worst".

"If that's the case, how can things turn out worst then they already are?" asked Raven "You still love him, and I'm sure that he still loves you, but Slade is a far bigger obsession at this moment. I agree that what he's doing is for the best, for all of us, but he's pushing him self too far and you're the only one that can help him. You have to go and talk to him and try to snap him out of this frenzy."

Starfire turned around to face her friend; her eyes looked like they were searching for answers. "But how am I to do that? How can I accomplish the snapping out? Did none of you try this before?"

"Star, even if we tried it wouldn't have worked because Robin won't speak to us" Raven replied "We are his team mates, his friends, but you are his girlfriend, his soul mate; if there's anyone he would rather talk to that's you"

"Do you truly think I am the only one that could help him?" asked Starfire now looking at Raven with a determined and hopeful expression on her face.

"I'm sure about that. You should go and try to talk to him right now, after all, he hadn't slept in two days and maybe you'll talk him into resting"

"He is awake?"

"I've heard him work when I passed his door, I'm pretty sure he's still up" replied Raven while standing up from her friends bed.

"I will go talk to him right away" said Starfire storming out of her room.

Starfire left in such a hurry that Raven didn't even get to tell her to be cautious about what she says. She left the room to try and catch up with her but Starfire was already gone. Instead, she found Beast Boy outside her friend's room looking perplexed.

"What's going on Rachel? Where is Star flying in such a rush and ... " said BB but stopped as he realized what probably happened "... uhum, I get it. Do you think you did the right thing?"

"I hope so. If not at least I tried" replied Raven yawning.

"Come on babe, let's go to bed, you're tired and need to rest" said Beast Boy putting his arm around his girls neck and walking towards her room.

"I hope everything turns out right. If it doesn't ... it's all my fault" said Raven to herself a bit scared of things not going as planed.

Starfire flew all the way to Robin's room with her heart full of hope knowing that she was the only one who could help him. She was so desperate that she was ready to do just as Raven instructed her without thinking of any type of consequences.

When she arrived to his room she took a deep breath to prepare her self and then knocked but there was no answer. She knocked once more, but again no answer. She was asking herself if Robin fell asleep but remembered what Raven told her, that he was more than probably awake and that he would be working. She put her ear next to the door to hear if something was going on but she could only hear a humming sound in the background that came from the computer.

"He has fallen asleep with leaving the computer on?" said Starfire to herself "Robin is more responsible and would perform the shutting down first, but come to think of it, he was probably exhausted and collapsed".

This last thought made her worry even more. Imagining Robin down on the floor disturbed and frightened her so she entered his room without trying to knock again. The room looked like a real military headquarter. Newspaper articles, files, maps, photos, spare parts from robots, weapons that he was working on ... all of these were keeping him away from her. She walked towards the computer to see what he was actually working on but instead found him asleep with his head resting on the keyboard. She went next to him and wanted to take him over to her room but noticed something on the computer screen. It was Slade's mask.

"This has got to stop" said Starfire turning off the screen annoyed of what she saw and what was going on.

She looked at Robin and noticed that he was snoozing off somewhere far away in a dream world so she decided to take him to bed. She lifted his arms up and tried to take him in her hands but in the next moment she found herself being slammed to the ground and felt a grasp around her neck.

"I'll kill you Slade!" yelled out Robin who thought he was being attacked.

Starfire couldn't even move. It happened so fast that it shocked her. "He said he would never hurt me" she thought to herself.

"Robin ... it is me, Starfire" she tried to yell but could only mumble.

In an instant of a second his grasp got lose and he pulled back falling down on the floor breathing hard. Starfire tried to catch her breath and stood up on her hands and knees massaging her trough. Robin got up and rushed to her to see if she was okay. He was just as shocked as her.

"Oh my God!" Robin exclaimed "Starfire I'm sorry, I didn't mean to, I thought you were Slade and ... Hey wait a minute! What were you doing here anyway? Don't you know I have work to do?"

After hearing this Starfire was enraged. He attacked her and now he is the one complaining instead of helping her? This was just not the Robin she loved.

"Robin, you are a complete klorbag!"cried out Starfire "You truly are what is called a jerk! I have come to see if you were asleep or to help you sleep in the case that you were still up. I have come here trying to do good; I came here hoping that you still love me and after trying to help you this is how you behave?"

"Look Starfire, I have a lot of work to do. I can't sleep and you know I will refuse to sleep until I finish what I've started, now please just leave me alone, I have work to do!" he said in a very very cold manner.

"So I do not interest you anymore?" asked Starfire while standing in front of Robin with her palms on her thies and stopping him from leaving "You said you would never hurt me, yet you have just done that! You were the one I trusted the most, the one I loved, the one I have offered my body to, and now this is how you act? Telling me to go away? Robin, look at me and say something. I will not stand you behaving so ... "

"Starfire shut up!"yelled Robin waking up the whole tower in the process. Starfire was so frightened by her lover's shouting that she backed up to the door "I have work to do and a villain to catch. I'm doing this for us, so that we could live a better life. I'm doing this so that we don't have to fear Slade coming back and trying to destroy us. What is it you don't understand?"

"I do not understand why you will not talk to me!"said Starfire who was now on the border between despair and rage "You work day and night and come to no solution. You are stubborn and do not care about us anymore, and most of all, you don't care about me. After all that we have been through you just shout at me telling me to up my shut?!?!"

The sensors reacted when they picked up Starfire's movement and opened the door. "You know what Starfire?" said Robin walking towards her "I don't care! The only thing I care about is catching Slade once and for all, and if you don't understand it you can just leave. Now get out!"

With a swift move of the hand Starfire slapped Robin over the cheek so hard that he landed on the other side of the room. She turned around with warm tears streaming down her face ... but for her, those tears felt like blood.