Ugh. Just got over a four day bout with a fever, and it wasn't pleasant. The worst part is that started on the weekend, so I was stuck inside, sick all of Saturday and Sunday. Blegh; I hate it when that happens. But, I'm all better now, and it's freezing up here. There's only an inch of snow on the ground, and it's SO COLD! Plus, of course, I've got my grade musical I'm going to have to start working on, so I'm going to get busy pretty soon. If it helps, though, I've been trying to figure out a posting schedule so I won't have to keep making false promises, and then leave you all hanging for another couple of months. I feel so bad when I do that… So, anyway, enough of my blabbering. On with the chapter!

Chapter Seven: Dilemmas

"There's something wrong," Cyborg said, voice quaking as he re-entered in the room. Beast Boy, spread across the couch, had nearly been asleep but at these words, sat straight up. Cyborg didn't even look at him as he crossed over to the main computer and switched it on, typing furiously as he opened multiple windows. Starfire had returned from the medical wing as well but she lingered in the doorway, and Beast Boy was frightened to see that there were tears welling up in her eyes.

"Dudes," he began uncertainly. "What's wrong? Is Robin okay? Is it Raven? What happened?"

Cyborg gestured for him to join him at the computer, and Beast Boy did so, feeling his heart throbbing nervously in his chest. Yeah, he had known that whatever was up was seriously wrong, but at the same time, had been clinging to the futile hope that, in spite of whatever Slade had been up to this time, Raven would be able to help prevent and unravel it, so she could bring Robin back.

He'd been focusing on this outlook, because he didn't want to listen to the little voice in the back of his head that listed the multiple possibilities of just what could go wrong.

"Is Robin okay?" Beast Boy asked again, voice growing louder. "Is it something with Raven, or—?"

"Shut up and look," Cyborg growled, so angry that Beast Boy fell silent and stared up at the screens where a picture of Robin's brain was being displayed, while little bars popped up on the sides, containing various pieces of information.

"He is receding," Starfire whispered, coming up beside him. "That is what Cyborg says."

"Receding?" Beast Boy looked back at Cyborg, who was staring determinedly at the screen. "What do you mean?"

"Something's happening to him," Cyborg said tightly. "Starfire and I were checking on him, and the monitor was displaying something weird. So I looked into it…" He trailed off grimly, and Beast Boy felt himself begin to panic.

"And what? What? What's wrong with him?"

"I thought the problem was that he's been in his mind too long already," Cyborg explained. "And it is. It's definitely one of the factors. But something else is in there, and whatever it is, it's causing him to sink deeper and deeper into unconsciousness."

"Which means?" Beast Boy demanded.

"If it keeps up, he's going to be in a coma—permanently!" Cyborg roared, his temper snapping.

Starfire gave a muffled sob, as Beast Boy stared at the screen, unable to wrap his mind around it.

"But…but what about Raven?" He whispered.

"I'm not sure," Cyborg murmured, calmer now and looking ashamed of his outburst, and at the fact that Starfire was now crying harder because of it. He turned away from the computer at last to look mournfully at the two of them. "For all I know, her going into his head could be the reason why this is all happening."

"That can't be possible," Beast Boy argued stupidly, unwilling to accept that idea.

"Perhaps this is of Slade's doing?" Starfire suggested.

"Until something more happens, we're completely in the dark," Cyborg muttered. "All we can do for now is guess…and hope that nothing's gone horribly wrong."

"It's got to be Slade," Beast Boy protested. "We all know it is!"

"So what?" Cyborg said listlessly. "Even if it is, there's nothing we can do about it…" He sighed and shook his head. "Whatever's going on, it's up to Raven and Robin now to figure it out.

Beast Boy bit his lip, looking back at the screen again.

"It's going to be okay," he said aloud, although it was more to himself than anybody else in the room anyway. "Everything's going to be okay."

He ignored the seed of doubt that had crept into his heart.

R-R-R

Even though his ears were ringing, and his palms were sweating just a little bit from nerves, Robin was still unable to believe he was actually kissing Raven.

No, scratch that: He couldn't believe that he'd gotten the guts to kiss her in the first place.

His lips pressed gently against hers, his arms coming around to circle her waist ever so carefully, like she were made of glass. At first, aside from the widening of her eyes, Raven offered no response much to Robin's horror. He had been so sure that he had made the wrong assumption and that he was now completely humiliating himself; and he'd just been ready to pull away and begin apologizing profusely, when her hands came around to tighten on his shoulders.

And then he was no longer afraid, but held her close, his mind spinning on its axis. They kissed for a moment longer, before Raven jerked suddenly, and sprang away like she'd been burned.

A long silence followed, full of uncomfortable, darting glances in each other's direction.

Finally, Raven swallowed hard and managed to choke out:

"What…what was that?"

Robin shifted his eyes from his shoes to look at Raven, half-smiling.

"Good?" He asked her hopefully.

Raven blinked, before guffawing loudly.

"Are you kidding? It—" She stopped suddenly. Robin eyed her curiously, and she cleared her throat and continued in a gravely voice:

"Why did you do that?"

"I don't know," he admitted, sounding surprisingly calm. Raven looked suspicious, and he laughed a little self-consciously.

"I guess it was a…thank you?"

"Huh?"

"For saving me," he explained. "I never got a chance to say thank you earlier, so—"

"You kissed me," Raven concluded flatly, but her eyes were twinkling mischievously just a little bit.

"Well, yeah, I guess. I mean, I think…?" He sighed. "All I wanted to do was to show you how grateful I was that you risked a lot to come and help me. I'm sorry I didn't when you first arrived, and that I yelled at you because of it."

Raven shook her head.

"It's fine. I almost forgot about it until you brought it up just now."

Robin smiled tightly, even though he knew she was just trying to ease some of the tension that had been there earlier.

Silence lapsed between them for a moment, as they sat, purposefully looking away from another, before Raven cleared her throat.

"And by the way…"

Robin gave her a curious look.

"It was good."

Robin stared at her in disbelief, before a broad smile spread across his face, right before it gave way to laughter.

R-R-R

"I knew it!" Love sighed dreamily, twirling around in circles while the other emotions looked on. "I knew from the very beginning that he loved her!"

"She almost lost control," Wisdom pointed out practically, even though she was smiling as well.

"Who cares?" Love demanded airily, landing in front of Wisdom with a final spin. "She knows that he cares, and vice versa. It's so beautiful!"

Courage made a face, and Joy punched her jokingly in the arm.

"You can't fool me," she giggled, beaming. "You're just as happy for her as the rest of us.

"Almost all of us," Courage grumbled underneath her breath, shooting a glare at Anger, who was standing a ways off, watching them. "Don't you think it's weird she's stuck around this long?"

The other emotions glanced at one another, nodding slowly in unanimous agreement. Courage, satisfied, turned in Anger's direction, who saw her coming and smiled in amusement.

"Something bothering you?" She asked pleasantly, as the other girl approached.

"Yeah—why are you still here, and what do you want?" Courage snapped, getting right in her face. Anger continued to grin in an infuriatingly superior manner.

"You still haven't caught on? I have to admit, I'm a little disappointed."

Courage took a step backwards, her expression of loathing never flickering.

"You sound like Slade," she spat in disgust, and began to walk away to rejoin the others.

"Birds of a feather," Anger sang, not the least bit concerned.

Wisdom watched in alarm as Courage's face twisted in aggravation, and before she could speak up, Courage had whipped around, charging back towards Anger with one fist held high.

It was over in a split second; when Courage was within reaching distance, Anger grabbed hold of her raised arm, jerking it violently. Courage was sent flying through the air to sprawl on the floor in an undignified heap.

Anger wiped her brow of imaginary sweat with the back of her hand.

"You guys sure put up a fight. She nearly had me!"

Courage growled furiously, but Timid scurried over to place a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"Don't let her get to you," Wisdom said aloud, staring evenly at Anger. "She's not worth it."

Anger pretended to look offended, but her four red eyes twinkled merrily.

"Don't be so mean! I'm just another one of the girls!" She cackled. Wisdom remained severe, watching her dispassionately.

"I want to know what you're doing here."

"And I want this inferior little world to be destroyed once and for all," Anger shot back, bored. "You don't always get what you wish for."

Wisdom didn't speak, but continued watching her. Anger stared back for a moment, before smiling to herself, as if fondly remembering a private joke someone had told her.

"What?" Wisdom asked sharply. Anger raised an eyebrow.

"Temper, temper. Wouldn't want to lose it, would you?" She added wickedly. "I was just thinking…"

Love was tapping her on the shoulder, and Wisdom turned to look at her.

"Something's up."

"I'll be right there," Wisdom said, slightly distracted, but Love shook her head insistently.

"No, it's something bigger, and a lot more dangerous."

Wisdom raised an eyebrow, momentarily forgetting that Anger was still watching them.

"How dangerous?"

The severity in Love's eyes said it all, though.

"We were thinking that we could, you know, go somewhere else, so that we can focus our strength in full," Love added. Wisdom didn't miss the way her eyes flickered hesitantly over at Anger, behind them.

"Okay," Wisdom said underneath her breath. "But we need to leave someone here, in case Raven comes."

"Already taken care of," Love replied instantly, as she started making her way back towards the group. "Hurry up! We haven't got a lot of time."

"Coming," Wisdom told her, following, but unable to ignore how Anger had straightened up in anticipation, her eyes glowing in fiendish delight.

R-R-R

"So…was it your first kiss?"

Raven frowned, breaking her meditative trance as she opened her eyes to look over at him. Robin was sitting cross-legged as well, watching her pensively, but with just a trace of eagerness as well. The two of them had chosen to stay put for a little bit, to rest, before heading on.

"What?"

"Was that your first kiss?"

Raven's face reddened—she was doing that a lot lately.

"You're still talking about it?"

"I just want to know," Robin said quickly, albeit desperately. "That's all."

"Why does it matter?" Raven muttered, feeling embarrassed, and trying to stall for time as she tried to decide whether or not she wanted to answer his question.

"I just want to know," he repeated insistently.

"You're making a really big deal out of all of this."

"I've never kissed a girl before," Robin blurted. "This was my first. Ever."

Raven blinked, feeling a little lightheaded as the impact of the words sank in.

"Really?" She all but whispered. He nodded.

"I guess you could say…" He was extremely red now but pressed on. "I guess you're the only one that I wanted to kiss."

Raven felt her eyes widen.

"Do you mean it?"

He nodded solemnly.

"Cross my heart."

Raven hesitated, staring down at her hands folded in her lap, before sighing.

"Yeah. It was my first kiss too."

Robin's face lit up with a brilliant smile, and she grinned back, aware that she probably looking like a lovesick moron—but it was worth it. It was weird, in a sense, to think that he had liked her for so long without her knowing it…and yet it also made her heart soar, realizing that she was the only one, and very well might be for the rest of his life.

"I…" Raven took a deep, somewhat shuddering breath, trying to see if she could say it. Robin glanced up from where he was twiddling his thumbs.

"Did you say something?"

Too risky, too risky; she'd flipped when he'd kissed her, and she couldn't risk it now when their situation was too fragile, still uncertain. Her throat closed, those three little words sticking there like glue. She could only shake her head.

"I should probably go back to meditating," she croaked out. Robin stared at her, seeming suspicious and a little disappointed, and she coughed nervously.

"Okay," he said finally, looking away.

"One thing," she added. He looked back in her direction, and Raven resisted the urge to giggle.

"I've been wasting a lot of energy, so it might take awhile. And…I might be out of it. So, if you can't wake me up or anything for a bit…don't worry," she finished lamely.

"No problem," he said, beaming. "I could probably use some rest myself."

Raven chuckled, and, closing her eyes, began slipping into her subconscious, struggling to focus on her breathing instead of the fact that Robin was sitting only a foot or two away, and that she could feel him watching her.

R-R-R

Robin hadn't been this nervous since he'd accidentally tripped over a stool and broken one of Bruce's favorite vases a little after his first month in Wayne Manor. Back then, it hadn't been so bad, and Bruce had actually even laughed about it when Robin explained the fall in detail.

This, however, was entirely different manner. Just earlier today—he was pretty sure it was the same day that he'd slipped into the coma, but he couldn't be sure, it felt like so much longer—he'd been sitting with his head under the faucet with a splitting headache, half-wondering if Raven would ever find out that he liked her, much less like him in return. Everything that was happening felt amazing, but also surreal, and he was afraid that at any moment he'd wake up and find himself back in his room, all of this nothing more than an unpleasant, but also beautiful, dream.

He could tell that Raven had already slipped into focus from her breathing, and from the way that her body barely moved, even when she inhaled. He sat, watching her serene expression tenderly.

She had come all this way to save him from Slade's clutches; she had stayed, even after he'd yelled at her and hit her, and had hugged him and empathized with him when they'd stumbled into his memories. He'd kissed her, for crying out loud. And she had kissed back. These actions, these shared moments, meant so much to him. But what about Raven's thoughts on the whole matter. She liked him, he knew that much, but that did mean she wanted to be together like he hoped they could? And even if she did, would it even be possible for her, considering her circumstances?

On that matter, what about his own problems? Slade was still afoot, he was pretty sure, and he knew that Slade would try to strike at him in any possible manner, not to mention all the other enemies they had created during all these years fighting crime in Jump City. Or what about Batman, even? If they knew that Robin cared about Raven, they could use her as bait, and then, once he was lured, he would be used as bait in turn to target Bruce.

He liked Raven, liked her more than any other girl he had ever met. Heck, he probably loved her. But there were too many risks, too many chances that he wasn't willing to take, or gamble.

For once in his life, he wanted to be selfish, and not care about the consequences, or how it might affect other people, but simply focus on the fact that he cared about her. Yet still he knew that, as a hero, and as Bruce had calmly stated it many times before, they couldn't afford to have relationships.

Love was a luxury that he was never supposed to have.

"What a pity," someone drawled behind him. Robin straightened and jumped to his feet, looking around in the darkness.

"Where are you?" He hissed, anger rising in his throat like bile. "Where are you, Slade?"

As if summoned by his name, Slade stepped out of the shadows, arms crossed, eye glinting with malice.

"She saw into your memories," Slade said simply. Robin gritted his teeth and nodded.

"So what?"

"She certainly seems to care about your well-being," he observed, voice laden with a level of intrigue that made the hair on the back of Robin's neck stand up. He paused, glaring.

"Can you read my thoughts?"

"Only too easily," Slade gloated. Robin winced, and looked over his shoulder at Raven.

"You love her," Slade stated smugly. "How…wonderful."

It was like he'd been punched in the gut. Robin found it difficult to breathe through his panic.

"Don't. You. Dare."

Slade watched him with interest. Robin, growing more worked up, crouched into a fighting stance, hands clenching into fists.

"I won't let you hurt her. I won't let you use her against me."

"It's too late for that, my boy."

"I WON'T!" Robin roared.

Slade shook his head, laughing quietly to himself. Robin's rage dwindled into doubt, his mouth going very dry as he choked out the next question.

"Did you know?"

Slade's satisfied silence was enough of an answer.

"She's not involved in any of this," Robin said, the words spilling out of his mouth in his state of anxiety. "She's not a part of our fight."

"She is indeed," Slade corrected him. "She became a part the minute she came to rescue you from the dust."

"No…"

Slade walked closer, and Robin's fists shot up again, although he felt weaker, and less confident.

"How can you possibly protect her from me?" Slade asked mockingly. "Your little encounter with your inner demons should have taught you that."

"X and Terra," Robin whispered.

"Indeed."

"Was this part of your plan?" Robin murmured.

"No. Rather, an unplanned, but profitable bonus."

"You're sick," Robin growled.

"I prefer to be known as a businessman," Slade replied smoothly, not missing a beat. "I know what I need in order to benefit, and I make a point of acquiring it, at whatever means necessary."

Robin was ill at the realization that Slade was referring to him.

By this point, Slade was standing only a foot or two away, and he reached out—Robin tried not to flinch—to tap one finger against the plate that circled Robin's shoulder.

"I'd be more worried about what you'll do to her, though."

"Why?" Robin demanded, defensive, knocking Slade's hand away. "I'm not going to attack her!"

"You already have."

"That's not the same!" Robin protested, face flushing with renewed fury. "That was your fault! I would never—!"

"Not now," Slade interrupted. "But the longer you stay here, the more danger you put her in, from me, and from yourself." He gestured at the armor.

Robin paled a little, but his voice didn't quake once as he retorted:

"That's not going to happen."

Slade chuckled, and stepped back, returning to the shadows.

"We'll see."

There was a roar in the distance, and he was gone.

Robin stood there a moment longer, glaring into the darkness fruitlessly, before glancing about in the direction that the sound had come. Another monster—just what he needed at the moment.

He raced over to where Raven was still sitting peacefully, and touched her shoulder, shaking her gently from side to side.

"Raven? Can you hear me? Please, let her hear me…please, please…"

The solemn expression on her face never flickered for an instant, and Robin felt his heart sink. She hadn't been kidding when she'd said she would be totally out of it.

Okay: So there was a minor problem.

The growl came again, a little closer this time, and Robin listened hard, trying to figure out what he was up against. As far as he could tell, there was only one enemy, but there might be others following, for all he knew. Odds were it was another trick of Slade's, to add a piece of armor.

Great; just what he needed.

Robin flicked out his bo-staff, and took a fighting stance in front of Raven, preparing himself. It was up to him to protect Raven.

He only hoped he was up to it.

There was an increasingly familiar tightening sensation around his other, free wrist, and he nearly screamed a wristband matching the one on his left appeared.

Fantastic.

There was a nearly deafening screech, and the creature was upon him.

To be Continued…