Disclaimer: I do not own Teen Titans. Neither do I own the general idea of this mini-story. That goes to The-New-Nightingale.
IMPORTANT! Although the last chapter ended on a happy note, I'm going by the alternate ending to continue the mini story because it fits best with the sentences I picked for the story. Sorry! I should have made the original ending the alternate but the alternate came to me after. Sorry!!
Type: Mini-story
Title: Again & Again: Broken
Pairings: RedxRae
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Red X stared at the table, a stupid grin on his face. His eyes were emotionless and his hands were limp in the cuffs. Robin studied Red X. He had noticed the sudden change in Red X when he was talking to Raven. Whatever Raven had said had effected X, badly. Robin was starting to be concerned for the poor thief.
Robin banished that thought from his head. How could he, leader of the Teen Titans, feel sympathy for a thief! A sworn enemy! But that look in X's eyes, it was like he died on the inside, which very well might be the case.
"X," Robin said softly. X looked up at him, his green eyes like endless voids. "Can you tell me who you are?"
Red X looked back down at the table, that silly grin still on his face. "My name? What is my name? I don't know anymore. Am I Red X? Or am I someone unknown? Am I Todd as my friends used to call me? Or Ryan as the kids at the orphanage called me? Or maybe I'm Danny, like my mother used to say. Or am I Ronan, like Raven called me?" X looked up at Robin and asked, "Do you know who I am?"
Robin looked at Red X, incredulous. He cleared his throat and tried a different question, "Why do you steal X?"
"Why does the sun set?" Red X countered. "Why does the wind blow? Why do you save people? Why do I love chocolate so much? Why does it take so goddamn long to get to the center of a tootsie pop?! It's because that's life!"
Robin narrowed his eyes at X, wondering if this was a trick or if Red X had truly gone insane. "Who do you steal for X?"
X shrugged, "My mother used to tell me to stay out of trouble, but I wanted to be cool like those bad boys. I guess I should have listened to her. Next thing I knew I was in a bunch of shit. I stole for a lot of people. My so called 'friends', business leaders, heck, even the friggin' president of the United States!"
Finally!Robin thought, relieved. A sort of sensible answer! "Is that why you took the suit? So it'd be easier to steal?"
"What's easy these days?" X mumbled as he waved at nothing. "Just living is even so fucking hard. People are suicidal because they can't take the pressure, girls resort to nasty things because they lack self-confidence, guys think they pick up a chick by doing something lewd."
Robin blinked, trying to see what X was but he only got half of what he was saying. He was really starting to get pissed off a bit. X wasn't like this! Robin reached across the table and grabbed X's collar, "X, how come you like this now?! What happened to you?!"
To Robin's surprise, X burst out laughing. He bended over, holding his stomach, laughing for no good reason. Robin could only stare. When his laughs subsided, X told him, "Reality, Chuckles, reality is what happened to me."
At least he's calling me Chuckles! Robin thought, taking that as a sign of life.
X slowly pulled Robin away from him and sat back. Robin could see he seemed like he was back to normal. Silence filled the room until Red X broke it. "Have you ever experienced a wonderful feeling? Something that made you so happy, you'd give anything for it? Have you ever felt that way Robin?"
All hell must be freezing over, Robin thought with horror. Red X actually called me by my name!!
X didn't wait for him to respond, "For the first time in my life, I felt happy, like all the shitty things in my life had never happened. I thought I had nothing but I soon learned that when I had her in my arms, I didn't need anything. As long as I had her, I was content."
Robin suddenly realized that the "her" X referred to was Raven. So they did have an affair together, and by X's words it had been the best damn thing that had ever happened to him. Robin stopped his questions and decided to listen to X instead. Maybe I'll finally get what he was saying.
"You know what Rob? Life fucking sucks." X chuckled. "It throws a bunch of crap at you and sees how you handle it. It's like a test." X leaned back in the seat and held his hands up like he was surrendering. "And you know what? I give up! I don't care anymore; I already lost everything when she said those words."
Robin looked at X, and saw that dead look enter his eyes again. This would take awhile. BEEP! BEEP! Robin looked at his communicator as Cyborg paged him, "Rob! Mad Mod is at it again."
"Ok, I'll be down." Robin looked at X. He was talking softly to himself.
"Cyborg!" Robin called through the communicator. "Could you come up and lock up Red X in one of those spare rooms we turned into cells? We'll be keeping him in the tower for a while."
"Um…alright Rob. Did you get anything out of him?"
"Not really," Robin sighed, maybe this would tide over in a while and he'd be able to properly interrogate Red X. And maybe, the real X would be back
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Red X looked at the plain room the Titans had stuck him in. It had a bed, dresser, nightstand, desk with a chair, and a small window that was practically impossible to climb out of. Red X slowly walked up to the bed then plopped down on it. He looked around the room again and sighed.
X threw his boots off and took the cape off, throwing it on the chair. He curled up on the bed, holding his knees to his chest as he buried his face in his knees. He hadn't been in such a feeble position since the night his mother died. "Mom," X said quietly. "Are you there?"
Of course, no response, but X kept talking. "It's been nearly 16 years since you died. During that time, I've been trying to rebuild myself, and it was working for awhile."
X moved his head from his knees and stared at the wall. "I met someone special Mom. Do you remember those times at night when I'd climb into your lap and you would pet my hair, telling me, 'One day Danny, you'll find a special someone. Someone you'll love maybe even more than you love me.'" X laughed quietly. "I remember I used to pout and say, 'No, mommy, I'll always love you more!'. But you would just shake your head and laugh."
He was met with silence again. Although he tried his hardest to smile, it just fell again. Of course his mom wasn't there. She was dead. X turned to face the other wall. "Mom, do you miss me, wherever you are? I miss you. It's been hard without you."
X tried to smile and brought up a cheerier topic, "I wonder what you would have done if Raven had just gone with me and you were still alive. You would have probably cried. I can just see it." Red X closed his eyes and imagined a different world, a world where Raven had said yes, and gone with him. A world where they could be together…
Dream…
"What is it, X?" Raven asked, holding his hand as he guided her somewhere. A blindfold was over her eyes. She smiled and looked like an angel.
He smiled, "Just wait and see." He led Raven down a path until their destination came in sight. He made her stop a couple of feet in front of it. "Ok, you can take it off."
Raven slowly took the blindfold off and gasped. In front of her was a quaint house. The one she had always dreamed of, the one she wanted to live in with X. "X," Raven breathed. "It's…it's…"
"Great? Wonderful? Fantastic?" X provided, smiling widely.
Raven smiled at him and finished, "Perfect." She ran to him and he caught her in an embrace as they kissed sweetly. When they pulled apart, Raven smiled wider, "It's everything I've always dreamed of."
"I'm glad you like it." X kissed the jewel on her forehead then her lips.
Fast forward…
"Dude, you need to chill." Lyle, one of X's closest friends, laughed as he watched X pace back and forth.
"Easy for you to say, you're not about to get married." X mumbled.
"Well, you love this girl don't you?" Jake asked, another one of X's friends.
"Of course I do, it's just…" X trailed off.
"Just...?" His friends prompted.
"What if she bails? Or what if she doesn't say, 'I do'. Or what if she leaves me later? Or what if she finds someone else? What if-"
"Whoa!" Lyle held his hand up like a stop sign. "Dude, you're worrying over stupid things."
"Yeah," Jake nodded his agreement. "Who cares about what if's, but's or and's if this girl loves you and you love her back. As long as you have each other, then it's enough."
X sighed, "You guys are right, I'm worrying over stupid things."
Another one of the groom's men (Do they even have a name?) popped his head in. "Hey guys, the ceremony is gonna start soon."
X started to get nervous again and the guys all laughed.
Fast forward…
X waited along with everyone else (the crowd consisted of new friends they made in the new town they lived in, old trusting friends, and family members) as the music filled his ears, but when the door opened and Raven came walking down the aisle, it was like they were the only ones in the room.
Raven looked beautiful. She wasn't in one of those gaudy, fancy dresses but more of a subtle, elegant one. The bodice made of velvet as was the skirt that ended at the feet perfectly instead of trailing down the aisle. A skinny, silver ribbon tied around her breasts, forming an X, and came around the waist to trail down the front of the skirt. There were also see-through flared sleeves lined with silver ribbon. Around the neck Raven wore a pearl chocker. (If people want, I can post a link to the picture of the dress I'm describing.) Of course, Raven also had a veil.
X couldn't help but smile with pride. That was hisRaven. The love of his life, and no one could take her away from him. Raven looked at him from behind her veil and smiled at him. When she finally got to the altar, X took her hand in his and helped her up. "You look beautiful," he whispered to her.
"Thank you, so do you." They both smiled and turned to the preacher.
(Fast forward the boring preacher stuff…) "Do you, Ronan Xavier, take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife?"
"I do," X smiled, staring into Raven's eyes.
The preacher turned to Raven, "And do you, Raven Roth, take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband?"
Raven smiled, "I do."
The preacher even smiled and said more things about being married and told them to put their rings on. After putting the rings on, and more preacher speech, he finally said, "By the power invested in me by the state of [insert state of choice and Almighty God, I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride."
X turned to face Raven and took her veil in his hands, slowly pushing it up to show Raven's face. They smiled at each other one more and X grabbed Raven's waist with one arm and chin with one hand, bringing her into a kiss as the crowd screamed with joy.
X turned towards the crowd and smiled along with Raven. He could see his mom whooping along with everyone while dabbing her eyes with tissue. It was like a perfect dream…
End of Dream…
X opened his eyes as he heard a knock on the door. "I'm coming in," a voice said. The door opened and Cyborg walked in, a plate of food in his hands. When X saw him, he couldn't help himself. He burst out crying, startling Cyborg. Of course, all of that was just a dream. None of it would ever be real. It could never be real.
"Hey man, are you okay?" Cyborg asked, standing there, wondering if this was a scam or something. But X seemed too distressed.
X started laughing hysterically while crying. "Yeah, just fine." He laughed and cried his pain away, but it would always come back. No matter what he did, it would always come back to haunt him.He'd used to believe, that time healed all wounds. Until the day that she broke his heart.
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Robin went over the tape that had been recorded when he was interrogating X. His words seemed so senseless, but there was something there. Robin could feel it. Robin sighed and played the tape again. He listened more intently this time, and as he did he started to realize what X was saying. He was saying the truth.
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Heehee! I hoped everyone liked it! A little Christmas gift. I'm really sad I couldn't do the other ending and make the wedding real, but it just wouldn't fit with the sentences I picked beforehand. And who knows? It might end happy. The story isn't over yet. ;) The next chapter will be the end of this mini-story though.
Thanx for reading!
Ciao,
Xaleria