Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans.

The Healer

Chapter 12: The Confrontation I

Raven sat on her bed staring at the wall. In her head was a problem she failed to solve―in reality, she did not understand it at all. She crossed her arms and her foot began to tap. She was becoming impatient. After a few more minutes of silence, she threw in the towel; she flung her arms into the air as she fell back onto the bed. Her two hands covered her face while she inhaled deeply then exhaled. She peeked at the ceiling through her fingers, her expression not changing. It was clear that she was still in the middle of her search. An agitated look started to reveal itself upon her face.

"Ugh!" she grumbled. "This is so frustrating!"

Raven stood up and proceeded to walk over to her bookshelf. She grabbed a book on psychology. But her interest quickly faded. Before ten seconds could even pass, she closed the book and returned it to its spot.

"What can a book tell me when the person himself could just―no. He won't listen. And he won't talk."

She paced back and forth in front of the bookshelf, her hand on her chin. Then she stopped and looked at her door.

"But I can try," she resolved.

All the while, her mind was filled with uncertainty. On her way to Robin's room, she tried to imagine how their interaction would play out. Similar to a drama, well-rehearsed and ready to be performed, the script rolled through her head. The scene was set and the characters were in their spots: her standing outside the door and him standing before her. Their mouths would move and then they would talk. But Raven, even in her intricate preparation, could not foretell the words that would be exchanged. There were so many possible outcomes: some would be good and others would be bad; but one will be the best and another will be the worst. What would be the worst? she thought. At the onset of that question, the answer was already there. She knew that the worst that could happen involves Robin shutting the door in front of her. The Robin that had been dwelling inside the rooms and roaming the halls of the tower was one that was filled with so much anger. He is so angry.

"Why is he angry? And at what?" Raven thought to herself.

She almost screamed in frustration due to the unanswerable nature of that question. To be more exact, the question was impossible to answer because she has yet to find the solution. She hoped (probably more than she realized) that she would be able to talk to Robin and figure out what was troubling him. Raven's footsteps quickened as she became more optimistic; her hope was definitely strong because now she was determined more than ever to find the answers she so needed―the team needed. Her confidence grew in the possibility that Robin would open up to her.

"Because we have a connection," she declared. "After everything we have been through, we might as well be siblings."

Upon her arrival at Robin's door, the great tower she has built with bricks of pure certainty crumbled, slipping through her fingers. She could feel a type of aura that clung to the door―one that communicated sadness and resentment. Her knock was weak, but loud enough (hopefully) to reach the ears of the one inside. To be honest, she was confused at herself because her confidence left her body in this dire situation. The momentum she needed to talk to Robin disappeared and she suddenly experienced a state of vulnerability. She was now a lone leaf that fell on the pavement waiting for the wind to toss her whichever way and do with her whatever it pleased.

"What am I so worried about?" she thought. "This is Robin: our teammate, our friend, our leader!"

The door made a sound that mimicked air escaping from a balloon. As she watched the metallic door slide open, the world around her slowed down. From the birds that flew just outside the windows to the very door in front of her―everything was in slow-motion.

"This is Robin: our teammate, our friend, our leader."

She saw a silhouette emerging.

"This is Robin: our teammate, our friend, our leader."

Robin was now standing in front of her.

"This is Robin…my teammate, my friend, my leader…my―"

"What is it?" Crow said agitated.

A tear ran down Raven's cheek. She looked at this Robin that stood before her and she could no longer bear the sight of him. She shut her eyes and turned away. She wanted to cry and at this point it was clear that she was about to breakdown. Nonetheless, Raven wanted to put on a strong front. Besides, more important than feeling embarrassed, she needed to keep her emotions in check. Who knows how her powers would translate the turmoil taking place inside of her right now. If those feelings were to manifest, they would surely hurt those she cared about and destroy everything around her―just as they were destroying her from the inside. The sadness she was feeling quickly dissipated. However, it was transferred in another form that she knew well―one that she struggled with all her life. Anger tempted her to let her feelings out. In the end, it won.

"No matter what happens, I need him to listen. Maybe my powers won't be as bad," she told herself.

"Raven? What are you doing here?"

But Raven still could not find the words.

"What do you need?"

His voice lacked warmth; it was so unfriendly compared to the old Robin that it angered Raven even more. It sounded like his voice was naturally as sharp as a knife always eager to cut. Raven gritted her teeth and her hands tightened to a fist. She could no longer hold back.

"Who are you?" she muttered, almost inaudible.

Crow leaned in.

"What? I can't hear you."

Raven's head was lowered and only her hair was visible to Crow. Her expression darkened, and still, the man who calls himself Robin was ignorant of it. Crow retreated into the room, reaching for the door switch.

"If you have nothing to say, then leave. You can't waste my time, Raven."

When at last he received a response from the girl, immediately, he felt his doom. The entire hallway became black: no walls, no floors nor ceilings; no doors and no switches—only darkness. Raven's voice caused a tremor, as though the voice boomed from the very core of the earth. It was low and, simply, monstrous. As Crow stared at the girl, she slowly raised her head revealing four, crimson eyes; and her mouth, when it did open, showed razor-sharp teeth.

"I said: WHO ARE YOU?"

From the black surroundings, two shadow-like arms with claws shot forward and grabbed Crow. They squeezed with a strength that he could not endure for too long. Crow let out a blood-curdling scream as he felt his body being crushed. As the arms raised him into the air, their grip began to stop tightening. But the nightmare was not over. The penetrating talons started to bury themselves deep into Crow's body and then he felt the arms pull in opposite directions. Indeed, when he thought things could not get any worse, they just did. He let out another round of shrieking.

Raven floated towards her victim and when she spoke, her voice was still menacing.

"INTRUDER! YOU SHALL SUFFER IN MY HANDS!"

"Raven!" Crow managed to yell in the midst of the agony. "Snap out of it! It's me! Robin!"

"LIAR!"

He only succeeded in having the hands tug harder.

"YOU ARE NOT ROBIN!"

But Crow refused to give in. He knew very well that his only escape was through him convincing her that he is, in fact, Robin. But he had great difficulty in focusing on this task. The pain far exceeded the threshold: his muscles jerk violently, yet his body froze, paralyzed by the overwhelming torture.

With the strength he did have, he struggled to summon his words.

"Why…" The claws again intensified the pressure. "Won't… you believe… me?"

Crow screamed again after his question.

"BECAUSE I KNOW YOU AREN'T! YOU ARE NOT ROBIN!"

Crow tried to talk once more.

"How! How… do you… know?"

The space around them began to shake. There were places inside the black expanse that began to crack. All this signified Raven's emotions growing more unstable.

"I KNOW THAT YOU AREN'T ROBIN!"

"How!"

"BECAUSE ROBIN IS NOTHING LIKE YOU! ROBIN IS NOT COLD LIKE YOU! HE IS… HE IS…!"

Crow's eyes stared at Raven. He noticed something in her that he was sure was never there before. But his thoughts became jumbled for he was quickly distracted when he noticed the arms no longer threatening to worsen their hold. Raven spoke, but her words softened. The vicious voice that dominated her speech was replaced by her regular tone, but this time, it was much more soothing. Her eyes also returned but they did not look at Crow or anything as they stared blankly at the floor.

"He is kind and caring… A great leader who is always there for his friends—for anyone because he is just that kind of person. He has a great sense of justice… He has so many admirable qualities… And most of all, his voice is warm and comforting. He would never hurt anyone—not Beast Boy, not Cyborg, not Starfire… and not me."

Then she looked up and met Crow's eyes.

"And you are… NOTHING LIKE THAT!"

She roared, causing the same heavy atmosphere to return. Immediately, Crow felt the arms pull again. This time, however, everything was much worse: the claws dug deeper into his body and they pulled with more force than ever, and there were no signs of them wavering. The pain became so extreme that screaming was not enough to express the extent to which he was suffering. Yet, he still tried. Screaming was like a drug that allowed him to feel a little less; a way to fool himself that by shouting as much and as loud as he could he would alleviate the pain. And it should, he reasoned. But in reality, the pain only grew.

"Raven!" he pleaded.

"DON'T TALK!" she thundered.

As Raven hovered, from within her cloak, black tentacles started to ooze down branching out into multiple directions. Some of the tentacles went straight into where the floor should be and rooted themselves in place. Raven went closer to Crow and as she did so, some of the tentacles honed in on him to a fine point ready to pierce through him.

"R-Raven, you have to… believe me! I-I am… Robin!"

"NO. YOU AREN'T."

The tentacles stiffened and then they shot forward. But the attack was intercepted by a blue beam, causing the black tentacles to disintegrate. The blast startled Raven causing her to move back.

"Raven!" a voice cried, causing the enraged girl to turn to its direction. What she saw was a green gorilla charging at her. Before she could defend herself, she was taken out of the air and slammed onto the ground. The beast held her firmly, successfully halting her movements and surely preventing any attempts at escape. Green bolts of energy struck the grisly arms that held Crow. Once they were destroyed, Crow started to fall to the floor. Luckily, he was caught by a man with one glowing, red eye.

Cyborg gently lowered him to the floor, propping him in a sitting position. The man-machine hybrid knelt beside the battered individual.

"Robin, are you all right?"

Crow was heavily panting. Never has talking been such a difficult task for him until now. One word was hard—anymore was a struggle. But in order to respond, he endured.

"Y-Yes… I'm fine."

Starfire descended and joined her teammates, kneeling next to Crow and opposite to Cyborg. She first looked at Cyborg then at Crow. Her face was filled with so much worry. She was terrified; scared for her friend's wellbeing and horrified at the damage inflicted by her other friend. This confused the poor alien girl terribly.

"Why?" she whispered.

"Star," Cyborg started trying to comfort her, "don't worry, okay? Look, he's fine. Don't think about anything else. Just focus on getting him immediate attention."

But Starfire did not respond. It was clear to Cyborg that she was very much emotionally affected. Seeing her friend in this state—on the border line between life and death—must be overwhelming for her. Starfire's eyes were firmly shut trying to hold back tears. Nonetheless, the tears were still falling, following the soft outline of her cheeks, and then onto Crow's chest. He felt each and every drop. And with each drop, he felt the weight of sadness that this girl was trying to bear. Surprisingly, to him, he felt sympathy for this helpless alien before him. With enormous effort, he moved his hand over Starfire's. The sensation of his hand holding hers made her open her eyes. Those green eyes are especially shiny right now, Crow thought. The gesture made something click inside of Starfire.

From the far side of the hall, Beast Boy called out to his comrades.

"Guys! A little help here!"

With all the strength he could muster, he was trying to restrain Raven, but she was beginning to overpower him. She was losing control—and in a way, she was behaving more like a beast than Beast Boy at this very moment.

"LET ME GO!" she roared. "NOW!"

"Hurry!" Beast Boy yelled.

However, before anyone could come to his aid, an arm resembling the ones from earlier emerged from the floor and grabbed Beast Boy, lifting him and then smashing him into the ground. When the arm let go of him, he had reverted back and he was spread out on the floor unconscious.

"Beast Boy!" cried Cyborg.

He was about to leave his spot to help Beast Boy when an arm stretched in front of him, halting his movements. He turned to Starfire agitated.

"Hey! Why'd you—"

As soon as he saw her expression, he was silenced. Her eyes flared in an intense emerald glow and her eyebrows furrowed; she tightened her hands into a fist and she gritted her teeth.

"Leave this to me," her voice was ominous.

A rare sight it was for who could have guessed that such a sweet girl like Starfire had such a threatening side. It was official: she was angry. Cyborg knew very well that it was best for him to stay out of her way. On the other hand, unknown to the rest of them, Crow found enjoyment in watching Starfire become like this.

Starfire's muscles tensed as she got into her ready position. Then, in the blink of an eye, she disappeared. Like a rocket, she launched herself forward, leaving the spot where she started devastated by the immense output of energy.

"Raven!" she yelled.

Raven could not even react for Starfire was too fast. Starfire grabbed Raven's collar and pushed her against the wall. It was a powerful move, but the metal-plated wall held and the attack was translated into a giant dent. Raven exclaimed from the impact.

"I will not let you hurt anymore of our friends!"

She pulled back her right fist which became enclosed in a green orb of energy.

"Whatever may be the cost!"

But Starfire could not even land her punch. Her arm was held in place by a tentacle that snuck right through her defenses. The tentacle constricted her arm to the point that Starfire's fist was forced to open causing the green energy to dissipate.

Raven glared at Starfire. Then she answered:

"I'D LIKE TO SEE YOU TRY!"

And with that, another shadow-arm gripped Starfire's abdomen. The clawed hand held her tightly in front of Raven. Yet, thanks to her enormous strength, Starfire was beginning to loosen that which binds her. Raven, however, saw that and hastily acted.

"FLY!"

The arm threw Starfire across the hall. Upon impact, not only did the wall have a giant crater, but also the very space where they all stood shook. Starfire got back to her feet, unharmed. Her countenance was still as intense as before.

"Why Raven? Why?"

Raven straightened.

"Why what?"

"Why are you doing this?"

But Raven was silent. So Starfire cried:

"Answer me!"

And like a missile, Starfire charged at Raven, bringing with her her thunderous might.

Chapter end