Blanket Disclaimer: Poison Tonic LX does not own the Teen Titans or any characters therein. Don't sue her, please, because if you do I won't have a home anymore…-Ralph, the muse
Immediately, the Kid turned on him.
"You're Red X?" The Kid demanded angrily, a bo-staff appearing in his hands.
"So are you." He retorted, crossing his arms over his chest.
"That's different! I was doing it to catch a bad guy—you were doing it to be a bad guy! Besides, I'm not Red X anymore! I haven't been him in a long time!"
"Well there you have it, idiot. I'm not Red X now, am I?"
"You just told that Methuss guy you aren't sure about it yet!"
"At least that means I'm considering not being a thief anymore! Wouldn't you rather have a chance for me to become a 'good guy' instead of throwing me in jail where you know I'll get out again and come back to haunt you? Come on, kid, gimme some credit!"
"I won't give credit to someone who was once a thief! You're going to get locked up in jail where you belong!"
"You're going to put him where Methuss can get him?" The Original asked.
"Stay out of this, Max." He said, turning back to the Kid. "Look, kid, yeah I was once a thief, and I'm proud of that, 'cause I was—I am—the best. So what? I'm not a thief right now, am I?"
"Not right now, but you could turn on us at any minute! Once a thief always a thief!"
"The same could be applied to you—no matter what your intentions, you were a thief." He said, and the Kid's mouth snapped shut immediately. "If you're going to shun people because of stuff that's happened in their past, or stuff that could happen, you're going to be shunning everyone in this room, including yourself. Think about it, kid, and don't try to fool yourself about some people not having a dark side, 'cause that's bull. Starfire, Cyborg, and Beast Boy all fought against their dark sides when Raven's father showed up and released them, and if Starfire has a dark side, everyone does. For God's sake, she tried to kill you when you first met her! All you have to do is royally tick Raven off and you know she's got a dark side, and those super clones of Max are still just that—clones. That means he could easily be just like them. And don't get me started on you. Even if you don't take your little Red X and Slade's Apprentice episodes into account, no offense but no one who grows up in a place like Gotham can be without a dark side."
"It's still different. They've all…we've all been suppressing our dark sides. You've been letting yours out since you were a kid."
"Yeah, and? What happened to giving people a second chance? Or does that only apply when you want it to?" He asked. "Don't forget, kid, the last time you wanted to give someone a second chance, it was Terra and look how that turned out. And I'll bet if she'd lived, or if you guys find a way to get her loose, you'd be one of the first to welcome her back with open arms. How is my being a thief any different from that? I've never betrayed anyone's trust other than a few white lies much less done something like what she did. I might be a thief but even I have better morals than that, thank you very much."
"How am I supposed to believe you?"
"They don't seem to have a problem with it." He nodded his head at the other Titans. "If you feel you can't trust your friends, I have plenty of references from past jobs. They'll tell you what I'm telling you—my methods are questionable, but the result is the same. I do my job and that's it, no questions asked, no secrets told. I have enough dirt locked up in here," he tapped his skull, "to put away at least fifty different well-known and supposedly honest businessmen. Heck, all I'd have to do is turn myself in and tell the police about all the different jobs I've gotten and from who and that'd be the end of most of them. I even have proof. But I don't tell anyone, because I respect people's privacy, and more than that I respect myself. It's a matter of pride to be able to say I've never ratted anyone out when they give me secrets that could get them in trouble. I'm no rat, not for any price. If that's not good enough for you, the fact that I'm not going to betray you and the fact that I'm willing to try not to be a 'bad guy' anymore, then you seriously aren't the guy I thought you were."
"I just…don't know…"
"There isn't a distinct line between black and white, Robin." The Sorceress said. "There's a lot of gray matter in there, and you ought to know that better than anyone. Based on the time we've known Rush, has he ever given you any reason to doubt what he's telling you? It's not like all of us are perfect little heroes and always have been. There are times when we've doubted ourselves and each other. There's no guarantee that one day our doubts won't become realities. All we can do is try our best…and that's what Rush is trying to do."
The Kid frowned. "You knew about this the whole time, didn't you?" His gaze swept over the rest of the Titans. "You all knew!"
"Dude, I totally didn't." The Comic Relief said, waving his hands in front of himself defensively.
The Dolt dug her toe into the ground guiltily, not meeting his gaze. "Friend Robin…I overheard a conversation between Friend Rush and Friend Cyborg. Because Friend Cyborg and, from what I heard, Friend Raven were not opposed to it, I did not feel it was my place to say anything."
The Kid looked at Cyborg and the Sorceress expectantly.
"He means us no ill will, Robin." The Sorceress said. "I didn't see any harm in it, and I figured you would be the first of us to figure out who he was."
"Look, Rob, I've talked to him." Cyborg said. "He's not really such a bad guy…"
"That isn't the point!" The Kid snapped. "I can't believe you guys didn't tell me!"
"I apologize, Friend Robin." The Dolt said, looking ready to cry.
"Don't apologize, Starfire." He said, lips pursing into a thin line. "I'm sick of people getting into trouble for my sake." He tossed his communicator at the Kid. "I'm going home."
"Home?" Cyborg asked.
"Yeah." He said, turning. "The streets." He laughed bitterly. "Home sweet home."
"Wait…" The Kid began hesitantly.
"Don't start with that, kid. I don't want your pity, got me? I'm used to getting kicked out on the streets. This is nothing new." He smirked a little. "It's just been a while since it happened."
"So you're going to give up just like that?" The Original asked. "You know as well as I do you won't be able to outrun Methuss now that he knows at least relatively where you are. Don't you get it? This is what he was trying to do! He knew you'd end up running away from us, and then you're an easy target! I know you're a good fighter, Rush, but you know you need help just like I do. Take your own advice and stop running! Don't be such a hypocrite, you coward!"
He'd been heading towards the door, but froze mid-step, turning back around slowly. "I've made a living out of being a coward…and people like me never change, right, kid?" He looked at the Kid, and shrugged. "I guess that's life. And y'know what? Whatever. Being some self-righteous do-gooder can't be worth all this trouble. Being a thief is way easier—and way more of a rush."
"Why do you want to change?" The Kid asked.
"I don't really want to change." His voice dropped. "At least…I didn't. I guess…some people don't deserve a second chance."
The Kid winced. "Look, Rush…you're wrong. I was wrong, too. Everyone deserves a second chance. And…you haven't given me any reason not to give you one yet, so…" The Kid held his communicator out towards him. "How about you give me a second chance, too?"
He took the communicator and shook the Kid's hand, smirking. "Sure—just this once."
The Kid returned his smirk with one of his own. "So…friends?"
He laughed. "Us? Friends? Don't kid yourself, kid. It's like Cyborg said—we just rub each other the wrong way no matter which side we're on. If we're friendly anything, it's friendly rivals."
The Kid's smirk widened. "Right…friendly rivals."
"Alright then." He jerked the Kid forward and brought him into a headlock, rubbing his knuckles roughly against his 'leader's head. "Now then, I know you've heard me lecturing Maxie about making pretty girls cry, oh fearless leader! What the crap, dude? Now I'm gonna have to kick your butt. I mean seriously, kid, didn't Batman ever teach you any manners?"
The other Titans all exchanged a glance as the two boys raced towards the gym, throwing jibes at each other the whole way.
Fighting buffs…
Go figure!
(THE RUSH)