Oh God, please don't hate me for my lateness! I know I'm a lazy arse and I don't deny it! I will try and be more productive! That lie being said, er... I mean that being said I hope you guys like this chapter. I made it especially long as an apology. There's one more fight scene in this and then I think I'll take a break with the monsters. I know that half the show is spent fighting monsters but if I had it my way the show would have less monsters and Robin and Red X would become an official couple, dammit!
Ahem, anyways summer vacation's going great. Hope this adds to the sunny brightness! (What am I talking about? It's pouring rain here...) Thank you all for your support! It means a lot to me!
~ Mademoiselle Silver
Chapter 4: Broken Reprieve
A few weeks had passed, and the Titans had been very busy. A strange new villain had emerged, destroying everything in its path. All that was left behind was a black trail of tar-like substance, which gave boils to anyone who had skin contact with it. Beast Boy insisted on naming their mystery criminal Tarman, which of course, was met with a collective groan.
Robin had been so preoccupied with "Tarman" that he had no time to dwell on other things. The little robin keychain was currently hanging over his desk; he hadn't thrown it away because… Well, he felt a little guilty after Starfire had found it underneath the covers, sitting on top of it and felt it poke her butt. He had to lie and say it had been a gift from Bruce, and she happily held it. He had thrown away only the box and the note. Starfire had indirectly made him feel guilty enough to keep the bird. So, the keychain currently out of his mind, Robin and the Titans continued to search for the elusive Tarman.
The last crime scene was downtown by a Chinese takeout. The gooey trail led them as usual down into a sewer hole. Whenever they descended, the trail would suddenly stop at the bottom of the railing. They suspected Tarman would dive into the waters to hide his trail. Cyborg had taken a sample of the strange substance to analyze. He had woken up in the middle of the night literally crying "eureka" after having realized something about the tar's components.
"So… How does this thing work again?" Beast Boy pointed at the small tracking device in Cyborg's hand. "And in English, please."
Cyborg sighed. "The tar leaves small particles behind that disappear after a few days. If I can track them from the water, we can follow the trail."
"Oh. That's cool."
"Come on," Robin said, walking in his giant boots. Cyborg had fabricated HAZMAT suits for all the members, which were meant to be "tar" resistant.
The tracking device beeped, and the Titans continued to walk down the sewers of Jump City. They seemed to be walking forever. The trail was still there, but Tarman had obviously gone farther than they thought.
"Dude!" Beast Boy whined, "I'm hot in this suit, it reeks, we're following a trail of water full of things I don't even want to think about and – whoa."
The Titans stopped dead in their tracks. They had found a side tunnel with walls and ceiling dripping with dangerous tar.
"He must be in there," Robin said.
"Be careful and don't touch the tar if you can help it," Cyborg said, "I don't know how effective these suits are yet."
They examined every corner of the tunnel, ready to strike; but it became obvious that no one was here.
"He must be out wreaking havoc," Robin said, "Maybe some part of the city's being attacked. I'll try to check on my locator."
"Uh, Robin?" Beast Boy squeaked, pointing at the ceiling.
"Not now, Beast Boy," Robin dismissed him, taking out his locator.
"Robin!" the changeling yelped in a higher-pitched voice.
Robin looked up to where he was pointing and froze. The dripping mass on the ceiling had suddenly gained two milky white eyes glaring down at them.
"LOOK OUT!"
The Titans dove out of the way as the goopy mass dropped to the floor and splattered its essence everywhere!
"Groooooossss…" Beast Boy whined, hastily shaking the tar off his boots.
Tarman was nothing but a black writhing mass with white slits for eyes. It slithered towards Starfire and lunged for her face. She quickly shot at it with her star bolts, temporarily incapacitating it.
Raven hovered above it and tried to contain it in her dark sphere, but it burst free. Cyborg and Robin worked together to bring it down by blasting it with lasers and slicing it with a bo staff. Nothing they did slowed the creature down in the slightest.
"A little help would be appreciated!" Cyborg yelled to Beast Boy who ducking from Tarman's extra limbs swiping at him.
"Dude! If my safety suit doesn't fit me the moment I turn into an animal, any contact with that jelly freak will fry me!" he yelled back.
Robin cursed inwardly. Beast Boy was right; they would have to do without his help in this one. He leaped forward and thrust his staff between Tarman's blank eyes. The creature let out a gurgle and opened its new gaping hole, absorbing the staff into it and sucking in Robin's legs in the process.
"Robin!" Starfire swooped down and pulled him out of their enemy's grasp.
Tarman seemingly had enough of being beaten on and quickly slid out of the tunnel, slipping into the waterway. His inky form was still visible as it floated away.
"Follow him!" Robin yelled, starting off. The others followed quickly, running down the dank sewers as fast as they could without slipping.
The black form in the water never left their sight, even as it picked up speed. They were nearing a shaft of light by a ladder; the manhole above was uncovered and workers were preparing to descend. Tarman suddenly leapt out of the waters and slithered up the ladder. As it emerged in downtown Jump City, the workers yelled and jumped back.
"What is it?" one of them screamed fearfully.
Raven and Starfire flew out of the manhole first so as not to lose sight of Tarman. They flew at it and attempted to slow it down with their combined powers. Robin, Cyborg and Beast Boy climbed out of the manhole one by one and ran to catch up. Tarman was visibly annoyed at their constant poking and swatted the girls out of the way. Robin ran to catch Starfire as she hurtled out of the sky and Cyborg did the same with Raven. They quickly recovered and were on their feet once more just as Tarman approached for another attack.
"He's got to have a weakness!" Robin cried as he dodged yet another flailing tar limb that quickly fused back into the creature's puddle of a body.
Cyborg was crouched behind a car, re-loading his plasma cannon. "Well then we'd better find it fast!" He leapt up to shoot three more bolts at Tarman and ran to stand next to Beast Boy, who felt quite useless.
"Robin! He's getting away!" Starfire called from above.
Tarman was indeed moving away from them and quickly sliding up the columns of an abandoned parking garage, moving from floor to floor. Robin grit his teeth and quickly followed, leaping from column to floor with acrobatic skill ingrained in him since childhood. Starfire and Raven followed Tarman closely. Cyborg, not being as agile nor possessing the power of flight, ran into the parking garage and went up the stairs.
"Oh, forget this!" Beast Boy morphed into a falcon, quickly digging himself out of his no-longer fitting suit and flew to join his friends.
Tarman stopped climbing at the fourth floor when it realized it was cornered from all sides. Robin ran towards him first, preparing to swipe him with his staff but his foot got caught unsuspected by Tarman's new limb that appeared out of nowhere. He fell on his hands and rebounded onto his feet, still ready to battle. A loud roar made him turn around in alarm. He saw Beast Boy, now turned into a green gorilla, throw a big dumpster at Tarman. The impact was enough to make the creature slide to the edge of the floor and fall off. In its panic, it whipped out a limb and grabbed onto the closest thing: Robin's leg. The Boy Wonder yelled as he was thrown onto his back and painfully dragged to the edge of the garage. He fell down with Tarman, but was quickly rescued by Starfire who threw a star bolt at the limb gripping onto his leg and flying him to safety. Tarman threw out a loud gurgle that could have been interpreted as fear before falling straight into a burning trash can lit by a homeless man, who yelped in surprise as the mysterious entity fell into his fire and sent a shower of sparks.
"Oooh, that's going to last the whole night now!" he said happily as his fire now grew brighter.
Starfire deposited Robin on the parking garage's floor and he took off his suit mask, needing some fresh air.
"Fire?" Beast Boy gesticulated wildly at the spot where Tarman had fallen. "We just needed fire all this time to cream him? Why? Why do we never find out the answers early?"
Cyborg chuckled behind his frustrated friend, which further infuriated Beast Boy. He would have turned around and started an argument, but Robin cut off any further remarks by saying, "Let's go home."
A man stared a giant screen showing the Titans leaving an abandoned parking garage downtown. His gloved hands drummed lightly on his armchairs and his visible eye focused on Robin.
An elderly man approached him, but did not speak nor did he acknowledge his own presence. His master knew he was right there.
"Wintergreen, we will have to tighten the security in my lab. I'm afraid one of our little experiments escaped before it had been perfected and annihilated of all weaknesses. It's apparently been on the run in Jump City for weeks."
Wintergreen's moustache twitched. If the creature had been loose for weeks then why had his master not retrieved it?
"I know what you're thinking. But really, I can easily restart my experiments and the Titans seemed so eager to catch it. Robin certainly has improved in combat… And what's this?"
He peered at the screen, still depicting the parking garage. The Titans were no longer there but a figure emerged from behind one of the columns. A young male, judging by the lean, muscled build hidden in black. A white mask covered his face with a red cross upon it. He looked left and right and when he was sure the coast was clear, ran from the scene.
"Interesting. I remember that suit. Robin wore it last time." Slade's one eye narrowed. He rested his chin on his hand and turned off the screen with his remote in the other. "I wonder who this new thief is."
"Man, I'm beat!" Beast Boy yawned and stretched his arms above his head. "It's almost one am! I'm going to surf the net a bit and then hit the sack!"
"I think we all deserve a good night's sleep," Robin said.
"Night y'all!" Cyborg called out before setting up the night security systems and turning off the lights.
While the other Titans may have been drifting off to bed, Robin did not despite his previous statement. He was a light sleeper, and wasn't feeling the least bit tired despite the evening's butt kicking. He felt like taking a night drive around the city, but… He shivered. What if he came to find him?
Get a grip. You're not going to be afraid to go out alone now, are you?
Robin made up his mind and left his room. Soon, he was speeding out of Titans Tower on his motorcycle. It felt good to drive around the streets without having to pay attention to where he was going, without having to think about anything.
Jump City was still alive as the nightlife surrounded him. The lights of the bars and nightclubs illuminated the sidewalks as people filtered in and out, drinking and laughing. Robin felt a longing tug at his heart. It had been a while since they had been able to go out and have fun. The last few weeks had been spent tracking down Tarman and designing those protective suits.
He stopped at a red light and turned to look at which nightclub he was next to this time. It was an apparently full dance club, with a lineup that continued around the corner of the sidewalk. Its walls were plastered with a flashy poster that caught Robin's attention.
In bright pink letters, it read 'Costume Bash Wednesday April 4th at 8:00 at the Jump City East District warehouse! With music by DJ Spazz!' It was complete with pictures of masks on either side of the announcement.
Robin lifted an eyebrow at the poster. Well that was certainly different. He looked up the street and saw that the posters were glued to the walls of every building in sight.
Just then, his communicator beeped. He quickly whipped it out and answered curtly, "Robin here. What's the problem?"
"ROBIN!" Beast Boy's excited voice blasted into his ears. "I went to your room to wake you up but you weren't there! Where are you?"
"I just went for a drive in the city," Robin said then urgently asked, "What happened?"
"DUDE! I was surfin' the net and I found out they're having this really cool costume party at the East District warehouse!"
Robin hit his head against the handles of his motorcycle. "Beast Boy," he said as calmly as he could, "Did you call me just for that?"
"Yeah dude! I had to wake everyone up to tell them!" Robin could hear Cyborg in the background going, "I'm gonna kill you!" and Raven muttering what sounded like a string of curses.
"Robin! We gotta go to this thing! It's tomorrow night and it's gonna be so sweet! PLEAAAAAAASE?" Robin could imagine the wide teary eyes Beast Boy was probably making right now.
Starfire's voice now took over: "Oh yes! I think it would be most amusing! It has been a long time since we have… how did Beast Boy put it? 'Gone out chilling'?"
Robin smirked despite himself. And here he had been thinking that they hadn't gone out in a while. "Alright, if you guys really want to. I think it'll be fun too."
Beast Boy let out a whoop. "Alright! This is gonna be AWESOME!"
"Good. Now that we've established that, I'm going to kill you!" Robin heard an 'eep!' and more yelling from Cyborg.
"I'm coming home now. I'll see you guys soon!" Robin turned off his communicator and drove away as the light finally turned green, heading back towards Titans Tower.
Once the motorcycle was out of sight, Red X dropped down from his hiding spot on the other side of the street across from the nightclub. He had seen the crazy tar creature explode from a manhole earlier that evening while he was downtown looking for a bite to eat (as in grabbing a pizza box from a passing delivery motorbike) and was certain the Titans couldn't be far. He had been right when he saw them emerge to fight the creature and damn, Robin was sexy when he was fighting with his staff. He had almost jumped to his rescue when he saw Robin fall but luckily the alien girl had saved him.
He most certainly hadn't expected to see Robin driving around at one in the morning while he was also out. Surely the kid couldn't have been looking for him again? And he accused him of following him around. Well, he didn't do it too often…
And then of course he had listened in on an interesting conversation… something about a costume party. Red X read the same poster that Robin had before and smirked underneath his mask. He had left Robin alone for a while, but now it was time for them to meet again. And maybe they'd get to dance.
The next evening, the Titans were all dressed up and ready to go to the party. Beast Boy and Cyborg decided to go as an infamous duo and had gotten Peter Pan and Captain Hook costumes. The green outfit blended well with Beast Boy's skin and Cyborg had attached a hook to his robotic arm. Starfire had dressed up as Cleopatra after having been discouraged from going disguised as a 'Snorfblat Digglebung', which sounded worrying. Raven had decided that putting a feather in her hair was costume enough and refused to listen to Beast Boy's complaints, finally threatening to singe his hat if he didn't shut up. Robin had opted for a musketeer costume, very much into the heroic dressing-up. Naturally, he kept his mask on.
The Titans headed to the East District and found the normally empty warehouse (disused due to its age and often used for parties) full of teens heading inside. The opened double doors revealed flashing spotlights from within and blaring music that sent irresistible waves of excitement through Beast Boy.
"I totally just saw some hot chicks dressed like Amazon warriors," he said grinning. He led the way inside and instantly headed for the dance floor. "Let's get down!"
Cyborg and Robin followed suit and the three began to dance. Raven went to a dark corner with other brooders who had evidently been dragged here by more enthusiastic friends.
Robin took Starfire's hand and led her in a spin before showing her some of his other dance moves. She laughed in delight and Robin smiled, happy to see her have so much fun.
A guy dressed as the Phantom of the Opera glided between the pair, complete with a hood that covered his hair. "Mind if I cut in?" he said smoothly.
Robin glared, thinking he was trying to whisk Starfire away from him but was surprised when the guy turned to him instead and took his hand. He heard Starfire gasp behind him as he was led away.
"I missed you, kid." Robin's eyes widened as the familiarity of the voice became clear to him. He looked at the other boy's face; the white mask covered all but the bottom half, revealing thin lips upturned in a smile.
"Red X! Mmmmph!" Robin's cry was muffled by the other's hand against his mouth.
"Sssh! We wouldn't want you to alert your friends. Besides, I'm not here to cause trouble. I'm just here to have a good time. You can't arrest me for that!"
Robin yanked his hand away and wiped his mouth to rid himself of the ghost of Red X's touch. "Then why do you have your utility belt on you?" he spat.
"Same reason as you do. I have to be prepared for anything."
Robin glared at him. He was ready to turn around and walk back to his friends, but Red X grabbed his wrists and held them firmly. He struggled to free himself but the other teen was strong, and he didn't want to make a scene by starting an acrobatic fight.
"Just when I thought this was going to be a fun night," he grumbled.
"Of course it's going to be fun," Red X said, "In fact, the fun's only starting. Now let's dance!"
Robin was trapped as he was held tightly around the waist and was being swayed to the music. He hated to admit it, but Red X was a good dancer; his hips moved suggestively and never hesitated to brush against Robin's midsection, which made him feel all the more homicidal towards the thief. Those thin lips were perpetually grinning and Robin had to resist the urge to punch him in the face. It was then he realized that the holes on Red X's mask where his eyes should have been visible were filmed over with white cloth.
"Why can't I see your eyes?" he demanded.
"Eyes for eyes, Robin," the thief replied, "I won't show you mine until you show me yours."
"Never!"
"We'll see about that. How can I kiss you properly if I don't know what your whole face looks like?"
At the thought of him and Red X kissing, Robin pushed hard against his chest and freed himself. His face was red with both anger and embarrassment and it took all of his willpower to keep calm.
"I've had enough of this!" he yelled over the music. "I'm going and don't you dare come near me for the rest of the night! In fact, why don't you just LEAVE!"
Red X shook his head, his smile still in place. "We're not done here, cutie." He grabbed Robin before he could escape and pulled him against his chest. And then, his hands roamed freely down the Boy Wonder's back, going lower and lower until they caressed his behind. "Wow, you sure do work out."
That was the last straw for Robin. He swung his fist at Red X who quickly ducked and released him in the process. Robin jumped backwards, willing the warmth of his face to disappear. He must have looked as red as a tomato just then.
"I knew it!" he pointed an accusatory finger at Red X, "You just want one thing from me, don't you? It's not love you're feeling, it's lust! You've been lying all along!" A tiny part inside of Robin couldn't help but feel hurt at the new revelation; he had been seen as nothing but a toy.
The smile was now gone from Red X's face. He crossed his arms and let out a frustrated sigh. "Listen kid, if all I wanted from you was sex I would've gotten a substitute. But as it turns out, I do want to do more than just sleep with you."
Robin opened his mouth but Red X quickly cut in, "Yes! I know! You don't believe me! Now just shut up and listen for a change. Geez, you never stop!"
Robin abruptly closed his mouth, too insulted to say anything just then.
"Look, I won't deny that I'm attracted to you but there's more to it than that. I already asked you out and I'm willing to do anything to get you to like me just a little bit more."
"Then how about you end your career as a thief?" Robin said.
Red X uncrossed his arms and let them fall at his sides. "You can't ask me to do that, kid."
"Why not? I thought you said you were willing to do anything."
"Stealing is what I do; what else is there for me?"
"You could always fight crime instead of committing it," Robin suggested.
Red X slapped his forehead in exasperation. "Why couldn't I fall for someone less pigheaded?" he said through clenched teeth, "Like that hot alien chick of yours?"
Robin grabbed him by the collar of his cape and growled threateningly. "You stay away from Starfire, do you hear me?"
Red X smirked, not only at Robin's newly flared temper, but also at their close proximity, which the Boy Wonder had unconsciously created.
"Wow kid, did I just touch a nerve?" he said in an amused tone, "Do you have a little crush or something?"
Robin flushed with embarrassment and pulled away, but Red X grabbed his wrists and dragged him back close to him.
"I've seen the way she hovers around you all the time. And you sure do hang out with her a lot."
Robin glared defiantly. "That's none of your business!"
"Hello, Earth to Robin! Of course it's my business. After all, she can't have you because you're mine."
Robin gaped at him indignantly. "What makes you think I'm – "
"I bet neither of you has ever made a move, huh? I'm pretty sure I've gotten physically closer to you than she has."
Robin grit his teeth, refusing to acknowledge the truth in those words. Sure, there was that one time when Starfire had kissed him, but she had only done that in order to acquire the ability to speak English.
"So, I'm guessing I have a chance, and a very good one too," Red X continued. He leaned in close, so close that their noses were touching. Robin's face went blank and thus he did not even think about struggling free.
They stayed like that for what seemed like hours, neither of them speaking. Robin was beginning to feel pinpricks of apprehension tickling his neck as all he did was stare right back at the thief. He finally gulped and parted his dry lips.
"What?" was all he managed to croak out.
Red X smiled at his boldness. "I won't kiss you until you want me to."
"And that's never going to happen!" Robin finally broke out of his trance and pulled away. He hated himself for falling once again into the thief's trap. He should know better than to go along with these mind games.
"We'll see about that." Red X gave him a two-fingered salute and weaved his way into the crowd, disappearing from sight.
Robin looked for his friends, still in a slight daze over what had happened. He finally spotted them sitting at a table with refreshments.
"Hey guys," he said as nonchalantly as he could. He sat next to Beast Boy and took a sip from his friend's lemonade.
"Dude, where've you been? And why's your face all red? And why are you drinking from my glass?" Beast Boy tugged the lemonade away and slurped on it possessively.
"Oh… I guess I've just been dancing too much," Robin said hurriedly.
"Or maybe you've just been dancing with someone!" Cyborg grinned and leaned across the table. Robin leaned away warily. "Come on, who was she?" Cyborg asked, an evil glint in his eye.
"It was not a girl," Starfire interjected, "I saw a boy take Robin by the arm and lead him away. I could not find them in the crowd."
Beast Boy made a face. "Ewwwww! You danced with a guy!?"
Now Cyborg was wiggling his eyebrows as well as grinning. The whole combination was just creepy. "Wow, Robin! Looks like you attract admirers from both fields!"
"No, I… I mean I wasn't…"
"I believe that what Robin is trying to say is that a boy may have asked him to dance but he kindly declined. Is that correct, Robin?" Starfire asked.
"Yeah," Robin said lamely. He spent the rest of the evening dancing with Starfire. Red X had just ruined the night for him, but damned if he was going to let his friends worry over him too!
He just hoped that this ridiculous episode would be over soon…
OK, I need to find some motivation to write up chapters faster! I can't take these half-year breaks in between chapters anymore! Thank you all for being so patient and I'm sorry for making you wait. Thanks all and have a great summer!