Hey everyone, sorry for the false update, but I rushed it earlier and just wanted to say thanks so much for reading and reviewing. I'm glad you guys like whats going on so far, I promise it will get much better. I've got a lot of twists and character development planned, so bear with me and I'll try to make it as fun a ride as possible.
A few notes on chapter 2: Fixed some of the spacing problems, sorry about that...its those damn italics. But i love em. Secondly, I totally brain-farted and forgot to put in the soundtrack to this chapter, also i realize maybe I didn't explain it good enough before.
How the soundtrack works: each chapter has a song or two that helps carry the story along in its own way, when it says Soundtrack: followed by a title and artist, that's where the song is meant to start playing. Sometimes it plays behind dialogue, other times it will play at the end or begining of a chapter before the narration. If you're interested in the songs, message me with your email and i'll send the mp3s via YouSendIt. I promise this isn't spam, or spyware or anything like that. And of course it won't cost you a thing. I'm just trying to enhance the story to it's fullest.
Anyway, thanks as always for reading. Like what I'm doing? Hate it? Leave me a review, it makes me smile.
-SOM
"Whoa, whoa Rob, slow your roll, man. What are you talking about? What does this mean?" Cyborg was worried. The half of his face that was still flesh and blood wracked itself with concern. His friend had returned home in an explosion of emotion, he stormed through the door like a whirlwind, but once he made eye contact with the others, the dervish subsided and only Dick Grayson remained. Cyborg watched as a defeated Robin trudged over to the common room and sat down.
He was sitting now, on the couch with both feet spread apart, elbows on his thighs and face in his hands. Robin looked up slowly, his hands stretching and pulling his face downward as he raised it. "It means it's over, Cyborg. This is the end of the Titans."
"Dude…your mask." By now the rest of the Titans currently calling the Tower their home had gathered around their leader to hear his news and try to console him. Starfire, Raven, Kid Flash, Jinx, and Beast Boy.
"It was his mask, Beast Boy."
"You mean…he actually took it?" Beast Boy felt his ears droop at the thought.
"I left it."
"Dude…" Beast Boy's gaze drifts from his sullen friend to the floor.
"It can not be true, Robin! I refuse to believe it!" Two flowing river bends of tears were traversing down the Tameranian princess' cheeks. Starfire clasped her hands together and held them tightly to her chest. "The Titans can not end!"
Standing just to the side of the others, distanced ever so slightly, Jinx turns to Kid Flash. "Talk about showing up late for the party, huh?"
"Is there anything we can do to help, Robin?"
The teen hero shook his head. "There isn't anything anyone can do, Kid."
Kid Flash knew his name was awkward to say in casual conversation, so he had no qualms when everyone started calling him "Kid" for short. No one said it in a condescending manner, and he knew it was his own fault for picking such a clunky code-name. Perhaps it would have been easier if the rest of the Titans knew his real name, but Kid Flash was a mystery. He and Jinx were the newest members of the Titans, joining only a few weeks prior. They had shown up at the last minute to turn the tide against the Brain and Monsieur Mallah's Brotherhood and stayed on ever since. They were the outsiders. Jinx, a former member of the Hive Five, was one of the Titans first enemies, yet now here she stood with them in perhaps their final hour. It was still difficult for her to try to coexist with these people whom she tried to hurt on so many occasions, but as long as Kid Flash was with her, Jinx felt at ease. Kid Flash was an enigma unto himself. No one had heard of him or knew anything about him until he just showed up one day and defeated the Hive Five on his own (and swayed Jinx over to the side of angels). All anyone knew about him was that he was the second person to bear the name Kid Flash since the current Flash, Wally West and he seemed to share all the powers of his predecessor. The only people who knew who he really was; who knew his story were Jinx and Robin.
Robin now leaned back in his seat, his hands face down on his knees, his head pointed straight up, staring off into the ceiling. Raven sat next to him and gently placed a hand on his. She spoke for the first time since Robin returned from Gotham. "So…what's going to happen to us?"
Like a machine, Robin slowly lowered his head and as he looked into Raven's eyes, he knew she had just asked him more than one question. What would happen to the team? And what would happen to the fresh, new relationship that had just sprung up between the two young heroes? Robin decided to answer the former question first. "We aren't left with many options. Batman's made up his mind. He's taking over the entire worldwide Titans operation and I, for one, am not going to stick around to see that. He said that those of us who are leaving have a week to clear out of the tower. Everyone's free to stay, if you feel like signing up for the Justice League Junior. Not me. He's perverting our team, taking away our foundation, what made our team work the way it did. The Titans was by us, for us. What he's turning it into is-"
"An army." Cyborg answers coldly.
"Exactly. And they'll have to take their orders from the worst drill-instructor on the planet."
"Man, you can count me out of that," Beast Boy's voice almost sounds like a whimper, "That is not what I call a good time."
"You know, Robin, we don't need his money." Raven's voice was stern and controlled.
"You're damn right we don't!" Cyborg slammed his fists down. "Screw the funding! We'll break off, form our own underground Titans! You know, counter-culture."
A wild grin appeared on Beast Boy's face. "Yeah dude! We'll show him, it's not the gear; it's the heroes that use em! Uh… no offense, bro."
Robin smiled. "None taken, BB. The thought had crossed my mind. I've got some money saved away, in an account accessible only to me. I could probably keep us going for a little while…"
"I'm sure the city wouldn't mind donating a little cash flow our way," Cyborg added, "Lord knows they owe us one."
Robin just shook his head. "I know, I know, but see, I got to thinking…"
"Why do I know I'm not going to like what comes next?" The whimper in Beast Boy's voice returned.
Soundtrack: "Out of Gas" - Modest Mouse
"Maybe…" Robin's voice seemed to trail off in thought. "Maybe it's time we just called it quits. Now wait, hear me out, alright? We've spent the last six years or so working and fighting. We gave some of the best years of our lives to make sure that this city and the whole world stayed safe. Well, I think we accomplished that. We saved the world how many times, now? And our city…look at our city! There's no crime anymore. The bad guys are scared of us. They know how much power we have now. No villain wants to come to Jump."
"Yeah, I can vouch for that one," Jinx says with an almost apologetic smile.
"So listen," Robin continued. "The Titans will go on, they'll keep saving lives; it just won't be our team anymore. He may be an asshole, but if there's one thing about Batman it's that he knows how to protect the people that need protecting. He does his job better than most people do theirs. We can at least rest easy knowing that. We've given everything we have for so long…I feel like maybe we've done enough. We've done our time, we've paid our dues. Maybe it's finally time for us to think about our lives. Take some time for ourselves. I don't mean permanently, you know, just for now. Wouldn't it be nice to…I don't know, see what its like to live a normal life? Even just for a little?"
"Hnh. Normal, huh?" Cyborg's voice was low and cold. It sounded almost hurt…
"Yeah," Beast Boy chimed in, "That's easy for you to say. You aren't green."
"Or half machine."
"Or half demon."
"Or from Tamaran."
Robin stood silent after his friends sounded off their insecurities one by one like a roll call. The silence was broken by Kid Flash.
"Well, I'm pretty normal. Except, you know, I move faster than a hummingbird and eat three times my own weight every day."
Jinx beamed. "I'm abnormally cute." She shrugged and smiled a sheepish grin as the others turned to look at her questioningly. "What?"
Robin laughed a sad sort of half-laugh and pulled himself up off the couch. "Look, I get it, alright? You guys don't have to follow my lead anymore anyway. But that's what I'm going to do. The closest thing to a normal live I've ever had was being raised in a circus. All I want now is a fresh start. Either way, we all have a week to figure out what we want to do. Good luck."
With that he walked out of the common room down the hallway towards his quarters. They all watched him leave in silence.
"So seriously," Cyborg said, "What're we gonna do?"
"I guess I could go back to the Doom Patrol…"
Starfire looked puzzled. "But when last we spoke of the Doom Patrol, you said you would rather have dental surgery performed on your oral cavities than rejoin them."
Jinx looked vacantly from Starfire to Beast Boy. "Uh…what?"
The green titan grinned. "I said I'd rather have a root canal." He sighs, "I guess you're right. I don't want to go back to the Doom Patrol. It'd be just the same as staying here and taking orders from Batman. You know…maybe Robin didn't have such a bad idea after all. I have always wanted to live by the beach…yeah…no stress, no worries, plenty of surf and sun…"
Starfire nodded. "I have been feeling a bit of the homesickness lately. It has been a long time since we went to Tamaran… I wonder how Galfor is doing. I hope the crown wasn't too much of a burden. It would be nice to see him again…"
"Yeah, well, I was never really cut out for this whole 'hero' thing anyway." Jinx waved her hand casually in the air as she talked. "I'll be fine as long as I'm with W-...er…cough, (excuse me!) Kid Flash." She blushed and looked at her boyfriend sheepishly.
"Jeez…," Kid Flash gave Cyborg a look that said 'I'm sorry.' "I just wish there was something we could do…but if it's really come to this, me and Jinx will probably just hit the road. See the country, or something." Jinx's eyes sparkled at the thought of a romantic road trip with her lover.
"Man! I don't believe this!" Frustration covered Cyborg's words in a thick coat. "Am I the only one who isn't ready to sit back and give up?!" He looked to Raven, who had remained silent since Robin left. "What about you? You got anything to say?"
She did not.
"Well," Cyborg said, "Then ain't you at least gonna go talk to him?"
Raven sighed. "Eventually. But what do I say? What can I say?" She shot Cyborg a look that told him she wasn't comfortable talking about it in front of the others.
Taking the hint, Cyborg rolled his eyes. "Alright. Let's go."
Using her powers to lift herself off the couch, Raven took to her feet and walked silently out of the room with Cyborg in tow. Once they were out of reach from prying ears, she said, "This sucks."
Cyborg nods yet keeps his gaze away from her. "So…we finally gonna talk about you two? You gonna tell me what's up?"
Raven nodded, continuing to walk as they conversed. "Neither of us really meant for it to happen…"
"Are you glad that it did?"
Raven shot him a look, making eye contact for the first time since they left the common room. "Of course I am! You knew how I felt about Robin all these years…"
Cyborg frowned. "I did?"
"Well, you should have."
"Alright, so how did it happen?"
She was having the dreams again. It was only a couple days after the Titans returned home from their final battle with the Brotherhood and the last of their visiting friends had finally taken their leave. Raven thought it was nice to have the common room to herself again and ventured out there late at night to get some reading done. It wasn't long before she fell asleep and the dream came back.
It was always the same. It starts off as a nightmare and then slowly turns into one of those dreams you always regret to wake up from. Raven was reliving the battle with her father, Trigon. The dream would always start with her giving in and submitting herself to her father. Then Robin comes along and saves her from herself. He gives her the courage she needs to defeat Trigon and the dream always ends the same way. With the embrace.
"Raven, that wasunbelievable!"
"No...someone believed in me." She hugs Robin and in her dream that moment seems to go on forever. But this time something was different. It felt…real. Raven could swear she could almost smell his scent as they hugged…But this is where it ends, always the same. As soon as she subconsciously decides to go in for a kiss…fade to reality.
She sits up suddenly.
"Yah! Jeez!"
Raven looked unbelievingly over to a startled Robin, sitting next to her on the sofa with TV remote in hand. Without a word, or even a thought she closes her fist around the collar of his uniform and pulls him in for a kiss. Seconds melt into eternity as the two close their eyes and join their souls at the lips. After what seemed like forever and not nearly long enough, the heroes part and reality slowly begins to snap back into focus.
"Raven…"
Now the dream was gone and she was planted firmly back in the real world. "Oh sh-!" Raven quickly pulls her hood up over her head in shame and jumps up to leave. Robin reaches out for her arm and gently pulls her back.
Soundtrack: "The Stay" - Ghesoul and Omega Cix
"Raven wait…"
"Robin, no, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to-"
"But you did, Raven. That's why you were having the dream, wasn't it?"
Raven just looked at him in shock. "How did you…"
"Because every time you have the dream, I can feel it. I suddenly have these memories, your memories of our fight with your father and I can…" He pauses, "I can feel your emotions. Our bond, I guess."
Arms crossed over her chest Raven sits and pouts. "Well that isn't fair."
"I know it works both ways, Rave. You must be able to know my emotions too. Don't you know how I feel about you?"
Raven shook her head slightly. "Not really. I know you care about me…"
Robin was unconvinced. "C'mon Raven. You know it's stronger than that."
"You're my friend, Robin. Closer to me than anyone else…my best friend."
"I could be more than that…if you wanted me to. Do you want me to?" He softly places his hand on top of hers.
"I…of course I do, I just…" She sighs, "I'm scared. I don't want to lose you. I don't want to screw things up. Look at you and Star, things didn't work out and you two were perfect for each other."
Robin let out a tiny scoff. "Perfect for each other? Why? Because we liked each other? Other than our attraction we didn't have anything in common. Not like you and I do." He reaches out and with his index finger lifts her chin up so their eyes meet. "Raven, what you and I have is special. It would be a crime if we didn't at least try to see what we can make out of it. Besides, Star and I are still friends. Nothing's changed."
Raven said nothing but moved herself closer to Robin. She cradled in to his outstretched arm and rested her head against his chest. Neither of them said a word for what seemed like hours. Finally, "Do you really know what you're getting yourself into, Dick? I think…I think I love you."
Robin smiles. "I know." He pulls his arm in so he's holding her close.
"And you're ok with that?"
A chuckle. "You mean am I ok with having the most incredible, amazing person I've ever met in my life in love with me? Yeah, I think I can handle that." He turns to look at her. "You know Raven…I'm still not sure I even know what love feels like…but if there's anyone in the world I could ever truly love, I know with all my heart that it's you."
Raven smiled softly to herself.
Fade out…
More author's notes? Is this guy for real? So only a couple more chapters of "Teen" Titans and then we jump 5 years ahead to the future. To quote 'It's a Wonderful Life', "You might not like what you're about to see..." Nah, it won't be that bad. You can trust me...
Lots of questions to answer. It sounds like some of the Titans know what they want their lives to be, but what's Cyborg going to do? And Raven? What ever happened to Star and Robin? And seriously, if this story is taking place in the same world as JLU, then who the heck is Kid Flash?! And for that matter, who the heck is Red X? Wait, is he even in this story? Well, either way, I'll tell you exactly who KF is (I've already hinted at it), and hey, if Red X happens to poke his nose into this tale, I guess I'll be forced to unmask him too. Fun!
