Being back at the cave brought back memories of the simulation and all the lightness and joy that had filled her that weekend drained out of Ruby the moment she stepped away from the zeta beams. She greeted the Team cordially enough, but it would take a blind man not to see that something was wrong.

Ruby answered questions, but never spoke unless spoken to. She moved around only when she had to and rarely left her room. Training was, of course, an exception. She attacked Black Canary with a vengeance; giving no quarter and expecting none in return.

But perhaps the biggest problem was that she didn't eat. She trained harder than ever, but she couldn't stomach any food. She got sick if she tried and after a day or two of this she just stopped trying. She still drank water, but Robin caught her slipping salt into it. It didn't take a genius to know that salt water probably wasn't something she should be drinking.

The better part of a week went by before she finally collapsed.

She and Robin were sparring when she started getting dizzy. Ruby thought nothing of it and kept right on going, but it got progressively worse until she could barely stand.

Robin rushed to catch his friend when she fainted. He tried everything, but the others had left for the day and no matter what he did she wasn't waking up. He called Batman.

When Batman answered Robin saw that he was in civvies as well.

"Bruce, I need you back at the manor now. Ruby just fainted and I can't wake her up."

Bruce nodded. "Take her to the hospital," was what he said. But Richard knew he didn't mean it. What he really meant was, "I'll be there soon."

The call ended and Richard gathered the unnaturally light Ruby in his arms and beamed directly to the Bat-Cave.
He took her upstairs and lay her gently down on the bed in her room. Jason ran in and froze.

"Dick, what happened? Is she going to be okay?"

"I don't know, Jay. She won't wake up. We were sparring and she fainted. She hasn't been eating lately, and it finally caught up with her." He was almost shaking.

Jason was shocked by his older brother's behavior, but took charge of the situation. "You know where Bats keeps the medical equipment. We need an IV and a heart monitor up here pronto. Well? Get a move on!"

Grayson nodded and hurried off. Jason turned to the bed and grabbed Ruby's limp hand. "Hang in there, sis. Please."

Ruby's eyes were closed and her voice was so soft that Jason had to strain to hear it, but hear it he did. "It'll be okay, Jay. I promised I'd be there for you, didn't I? I can't do that if I'm dead."

"No, you can't. So please hang in there."

"I will."

Richard came back and hooked her up to the equipment with shaking hands. Jason plugged the heart monitor in as Bruce appeared in the doorway.

"Dick, what happened?" he asked.

"We were training and she collapsed. She hasn't been eating because she threw up the last few times she tried. We couldn't find anything wrong with her, though, so she just kept going with the rest of us. Since there was nothing wrong that we could find she saw no need to take time off. Not that it would have done much good."

"Has she been drinking water?"

"If you count salt water, then yes. She's been drinking lots of water lately and at first I thought that was a good thing but I caught her slipping salt into it yesterday. I'm pretty sure she's been doing it all week."

Ruby stirred on the bed. A small moan escaped her lips.

Robin looked so worried that Bruce agreed to let him spend the night in the chair beside her bed. He grabbed a blanket and kept a silent vigil through the night until exhaustion overwhelmed him and he sank into sleep.
In his dreams Richard found himself in the throne room that Ruby had stood in only a week ago.

In front of him stood Neptune. "Welcome, boy. You are a friend of my daughter's, are you not?"

"Yes, sir." Robin wasn't sure why, but he felt the need to be respectful.

"Good. She gave you her mark." It wasn't a question. "That means she trusts you. Even if she didn't do it on purpose. She trusts you with her heart and I want to make sure you don't break it."

"I'm not sure I could. To be frank, I'm a bit more worried she'll break mine."

"She won't. Do you know what she asked for for her birthday? A way to help you. I agreed to give you guidance; you and your little brother. The question is, do you want it?"

"Do I need it?"

Neptune shrugged. "I don't know. You're the only one who can answer that."

Robin contemplated this for a minute. "Can you tell me what's wrong with Ruby?" He described what had been happening.

"She tried to cut herself off from the mark and now she's paying the price for it. I warned her that it was a bad idea." He sounded mildly annoyed. "I'll talk to her."

Robin was hurt that Ruby had tried to sever their connection. Did she not like him? Had he done something wrong.
As if sensing his hurt and confusion Neptune laid a hand on Robin's shoulder. "She was trying to protect you, boy. She wrongly believes that the mark is compelling you to like her. It's not. The mark forges a connection, it does not remove free will. Being soul mates works both ways."

"I liked her long before I got this silly mark. Why can't she see that?"

"Ruby is... Not a trusting person. She grew up in the court in Solaria; a place that is full of lies and deception and backstabbing. She hasn't ever had any true friends, and she doesn't really know how to trust. She's trying, but... I am not sure if she will ever learn to open up." He seemed so bone weary.

"How can I help?"

"Jason brought her back from the brink. All you have to do is stay with her. And make sure she eats."

"If you don't mind my asking, why was she drinking salt water?"

He chuckled. "Because that's what she is used to. Ruby spent the first fourteen years of her life living in the ocean. She drinks salt water because she can't return to Solaria at this point in time. It reminds her of her home. Don't worry about it. It can't hurt her."

Robin blinked in surprise. Then he thanked Neptune, but turned down the offer of guidance; saying that he already had more than enough people giving him advice.

Neptune was pleased with this answer. Be he gave him one last piece of advice. "You should go swimming at least once a week. It'll make transforming hurt less."

"I don't know how to swim with a tail."

"Ruby will teach you. Just ask."

Neptune waved his hand and Robin fell into a deep, restful sleep.