Teen Titans Fan Fiction ❯ Falling ❯ Hints in the Dark ( Chapter 4 )

Starfire yawned and stretched happily, awaking from a most peaceful slumber. She snuggled her bedclothes around her, pretending for a moment they were Robin’s arms. She’d never had a bicuia before. She knew she was loved; that her friends cared for her was never in doubt. But to know that she was the most special someone for one special person made her heart swell.

The alarm clock went off. Training would begin in 15 minutes. Rolling over to deactivate it, Starfire found she was floating several feet off the bed. She floated in her sleep occasionally, especially when something wonderful had happened the day before, but in opening her eyes fully, she found herself within arm’s reach of the ceiling. She’d never floated that high before.

She took a deep breath and lowered herself back to the bed, turning off the alarm on the way through. Hopping out of bed, she quickly smoothed the covers and changed into her normal attire before heading out for the training field.

She was often there first; she could rarely sleep past sunrise. Robin was inevitably the next one to arrive; they had spent much time talking while waiting for the others to appear. She was a bit surprised to find Robin waiting for her.

“Good morning, dearest Robin. I trust you slept well?”

Robin favored her with a heartfelt smile. “Yeah, I did. How about you?”

“Most wonderfully, thank you. You are here early.”

Robin shrugged. “A little, I guess. Actually…I was hoping to get a minute or two alone with you.”

Starfire blinked expectantly. “Does it have something to do with the hand you have behind your back?”

Robin couldn’t help but laugh. “Yeah. I found these growing nearby. I thought you might like them.” He presented her with a small bouquet of wildflowers.

“Oh, Robin! They are most beautiful!” She pressed the blooms to her nose, floating up nearly a foot and spinning around. “It is unfortunate that we cannot preserve them in a vase of water, but perhaps they will serve well as ornaments,” she said as she tucked them into her hair.

Robin’s smile had not left his face. “You look very pretty, Star.”

“Perhaps you would like one for your hair as well?”

“Uh, no, that’s okay. Thanks anyway.”

Starfire set her feet on the ground again. “I regret I have nothing to give to you in return.”

“Well, um…a kiss would be a good thank-you.”

“Of course! That would be most enjoyable for me as well!” Starfire threw her arms around Robin’s neck, kissing him all over his face before landing on his lips, her feet once again leaving the ground. Robin’s arms were firmly around her back, so she didn’t go very far.

Their lips had barely left each other’s when the crunch of Cyborg’s boots sounded on the trail, accompanied by his cheerful whistle. Robin gave Starfire a gentle shove and stepped back. Starfire’s heart fell, but Robin gently squeezed her hand before stepping back again, and she realized it was simply Robin’s desire for discretion, and not any lack of affection, that caused his hasty retreat.

Cyborg’s whistle died. “What’s goin’ on, guys?”

Robin stammered, “Well, uh…”

“I was simply wishing Robin a glorious good morning,” Starfire broke in before throwing her arms around Cyborg’s neck. “A glorious good morning to you as well, Friend Cyborg!”

Cyborg patted Starfire’s back. “Yeah, good morning, Star.” Starfire drifted away just as Beast Boy and Raven arrived.

Before anything else could be said, Robin kicked things off. “Okay, Titans, here’s what I want to do for training today….”

--

Cyborg wasn’t so sure about Raven’s theories on Robin and Starfire. Sure, he thought he’d caught them holding hands yesterday, and Starfire had greeted Robin with a hug this morning, but that really wasn’t that unusual. Starfire was very touchy-feely. Still, something seemed changed. He kept an eye on them over the next few days. Robin spent just as much time working out and studying crime reports as he ever did. Cyborg still kicked Robin’s butt regularly in one-on-one. As leader of the team, Robin’s attention did not seem divided. But during quieter moments, like meals, movies, or games, Robin did seem to pay a bit more attention to Starfire, but Cyborg wasn’t sure that was so different than before he and Raven had caught them snuggled up under that blanket together.

Starfire always seemed to hover near Robin; nothing had changed about that. She still spent as much time playing games with Cyborg and Beast Boy and trying to get Raven to do “girly” things like going to the mall and painting their toenails. She’d always spent a lot of time alone with Robin, but here lately she seemed…happier after the two of them reappeared, if it was possible for Starfire to be happier.

Still, strange things were happening. Beast Boy had told him that he heard Robin stopping at Starfire’s door almost every night, and one night, a little over three weeks after the incident in the woods, Cyborg got up for a midnight snack and found Robin sitting on the couch in the common room with Starfire asleep with her head on Robin’s shoulder. Cyborg went around and raised his eyebrows at Robin.

“That movie you guys watched scared her,” Robin whispered.

Cyborg crossed his arms.

“I’m afraid she’ll wake up if I move.”

“You sure it ain’t more than that, man?” Cyborg challenged.

Robin’s brow furrowed. “That’s what happened. I calmed her down, and she fell asleep.”

“Well then, let’s just take her to bed.” Cyborg leaned over and scooped up the slumbering alien. Starfire’s eyes blinked open.

“Friend Cyborg? What is happening?”

“It’s okay, Star. I’m just taking you to bed.”

“Where is Robin?”

Robin came to his feet. “I’m here, Star. Everything’s fine.” He squeezed Starfire’s hand.

Starfire looked between to two boys, and finally said, “I thank you for your help, Cyborg, but I can take myself to bed.”

Cyborg set her on her feet. “Will you be okay, Star?” Robin asked.

“Yes, I am fine. I thank you for your comfort, Robin.” They were still holding hands, and, Cyborg thought, looking into each other’s eyes.

“Uh, I’m still in the room, guys.” Cyborg tapped his foot.

“Oh, yes, thank you for your kindness as well, Cyborg.” Starfire floated up a few inches and kissed Cyborg’s cheek. “Good night, friends.” She turned and floated off toward her bedroom.

Cyborg crossed his arms again and fixed his gaze on Robin.

“What?” Robin demanded.

“You have to admit, she’s pretty great.”

Robin’s expression softened. “Yeah, she is.”

“Any guy would be really lucky to have her.”

Robin’s mask arched. “Yeah, he would be.” The arch changed. “Why, you interested?”

Cyborg snorted. “Never thought about it, really.”

“Good.” Robin turned on his heel and headed off towards his room. “’Night, Cyborg.”

--

Robin had decided that he loved falling. It was a crazy combination of weightlessness, power, and danger. He had also decided that his feelings for Starfire had taken on much of the same characteristics. He longed for it, and yet knew there was something beyond his control in it. He wasn’t quite sure if that’s what attracted him, or kept him on his toes. Or both.

Oddly, his relationship with Starfire hadn’t really changed that much. He was a bit more willing to touch her, and wasn’t quite so nervous when she showed her affection for him. But their time together, save for some hand-holding and the occasional chaste kiss, was no different than before that first frenzied kiss had taken place around a month ago.

And yet, something had changed. It was the little things that Robin longed for: the touch of her hand, the tickle of her eyelashes when she embraced him, the taste of her lips. He remained firm in his desire to keep this new aspect of their relationship under wraps, and yet, he looked for moments to experience it. He stopped at her room every night to kiss her gently and put his arms around her, if only for a moment.

He was pondering all of these things one warm spring afternoon as he practiced Tai-Jitzu on the roof of the tower. The breeze was cool, and it kept him from being overheated. He spun through a high aerial kick and twisted himself around to land on his hands and toes, facing the roof. He was very near the edge, and just lifting his head a bit, he could peer over. To his surprise and delight, Starfire was lying in the grass below, idly sniffing and picking at a bloom of the Queen Ann’s Lace that grew wild on the island the tower stood upon.

An idea suddenly struck him, and a sly smile touched his lips. It was perfect: they’d be alone, and if this wasn’t romantic, he didn’t know what was.

Hopping to his feet, he backed up several steps and took a running dive off of the tower, calling her name as he fell.

Starfire’s eyes refocused above her, and the flower was suddenly on the ground and she was barreling toward him, catching him under his arms.

“Robin! Did you fall? Are you all right?”

Robin laughed with delight. “I’m fine. And no, I didn’t fall. I jumped.”

Starfire blinked. “That was very foolish. What if I had not been here to catch you?”

“But you were, and I knew you were.”

“Why did you do such a thing?”

He smiled. “So I could do this.” He kissed her firmly, gripping her shoulders to pull her close.

Starfire kissed him back happily, floating high above the tower.

--

Beast Boy was starving. Robin had really worked them hard that morning. He didn’t think he could morph that fast, but he had. He was still a bit dizzy.

But right now, all he could think about was tofu bacon for breakfast. He jogged toward the kitchen, his mouth watering.

“Oh, Robin!” Starfire’s delighted cry met his ears.

Beast Boy stopped in his tracks. Huh? Cyborg and Raven had said something about the two of them, but Beast Boy didn’t really buy it. They were best friends, and Starfire was very affectionate. That’s all it was. Right?

Beast Boy crept to the door of the kitchen to see a large bunch of Queen Ann’s Lace lying on the counter and Starfire kissing Robin all over his face.

“Hey, Beast Boy,” Robin called, gently pushing Starfire away.

“Hey guys. What’s going on?”

“Oh, I was just thanking Robin for presenting me with this lovely bunch of flowers,” Starfire replied, scooping them up and heading for the sink with them.

“They’re weeds,” Raven’s monotone sounded behind Beast Boy.

“Weeds?” Starfire looked at Robin.

“That just means they grow wild,” Robin explained, sounding a bit nervous. “It doesn’t make them any less pretty.”

“They are beautiful.” Starfire’s cheeriness had returned as she put the flowers into a large glass filled with water. “Do you not think so, Friend Raven?”

“If you like that sort of thing.” Raven had begun her morning tea.

Beast Boy was perplexed. Guys usually didn’t bring girls flowers unless something more than friendship was going on. “Dude, why’d you bring her flowers?”

Robin glowered at him. “Like I said, they were pretty. Starfire likes pretty things.”

“Yeah, but…”

Robin cut him off. “How about some tofu bacon, Beast Boy?”

Beast Boy’s stomach rumbled. “Dude, you’d like some?”

Robin smirked at him. “I’ll try anything once.”

--

It was a stormy day; the sky was almost black, the occasional lightening strike illuminated the sky, and the rain came down in sheets. Starfire had sat in front of her window for a long time watching the storm. Electrical storms on Tamaran were truly frightening, and were rarely accompanied by rain. She found this mixture of violent and peaceful to be most hypnotizing.

A loud crack of thunder caused her to shudder, and the lights went out. Suddenly afraid, Starfire went looking for her friends.

Upon leaving her room, she could hear Beast Boy and Cyborg complaining from the common room about how the video game they had been playing had been lost. She drifted in the direction of their voices and was startled by Cyborg’s spotlight as he appeared in the doorway. “I’m sure I can at least get the back-up generator started, BB. Cool your jets,” he called over his shoulder.

“I’m coming to help! I don’t like the dark!”

“Oh, for pity’s sake! Come on then…”

Cyborg clumped past her, followed closely by Beast Boy.

Starfire watched them go, thinking of following them for a moment. But she noticed there was still some sort of light coming from the common room, and went to see who was there.

Robin lay on his stomach near a window, poking at a laptop. His gloves lay beside him.

“Robin?”

“Hey Star.” He didn’t look up.

“Why are the lights off?”

“Power outage due to the storm. They’ll come back soon.”

Starfire seated herself in front of him, behind his laptop. “Where is Raven?”

“In her room, no doubt.” He shoved the laptop aside and looked up at her. “Are you afraid of the storm?”

“Oh no! I find it most exhilarating!”

“Really?”

“Oh yes! It is as if the very air is alive, and angry, and yet, it tries to calm itself at the same time.”

“Huh. I never thought of it like that.”

Starfire contemplated her biciua, looking up at her with a half-grin on his face. “Why do you not wear your gloves?”

Robin glanced at one of his hands. “Huh? Oh. It’s easier to type that way. Besides, statistics show that crime is considerably lower when it rains, so I’m not worried.”

“Then why do you still wear your mask?”

Robin visibly swallowed. “I…honestly can’t tell you the last time I took it off, at least when I wasn’t in the shower or something. I sleep with it half the time. I….I’m just used to wearing it.”

“On my world, bicuias spend much time gazing into each other’s eyes, yet I do not believe I have ever seen your eyes. May I see your eyes, bicuia Robin?”

Robin cleared his throat. “I…well…”

A flash of lightening lit the room as Starfire reached for the corner of his mask, fully realizing that taking it off would mean revealing more to her than simply his eyes. She gently removed it from his face, reverently placing it atop his gloves. She shifted position to lie on her stomach and lean on her elbows to gaze into her bicuia’s eyes by the light of the laptop.

“Robin! Your eyes are the most beautiful shade of blue!”

“I like your eyes too, Starfire.” Robin reached up to brush a wisp of hair from her face. Starfire’s weight lifted from the floor, and she drifted toward Robin to gently touch her lips to his and run her fingers over his unmasked face. She settled a few inches from him. “It is unfortunate that you must hide your eyes. I feel truly blessed that you have shown them to me.”

Robin’s smile extended to his eyes. “So…what else do biciuas do while gazing into each others’ eyes?”

“They contemplate their compatibility.”

Robin’s eyebrows, an unruly black like his hair, arched toward his hairline. “And how compatible do you think we are?”

“Well, we are the best of friends,” Starfire started, resting her chin in her hands and letting herself sink into the blue of Robin’s eyes, “and I can talk to you about almost anything, and…you are always most kind to me…” Starfire was floating again. Robin was smiling at her, and she was drowning in the pools of his eyes. Her lungs burned and her breath caught in her throat. Her eyes fluttered shut as she trailed off, her long lashes brushing against his skin as their lips met once again. She dug her fingers into his shoulders, gripping his shirt to hold herself close to him as she floated higher. Robin rose to his knees and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her back down and pressing his body to hers.

The kiss seemed to end of its own volition, but their faces stayed mere millimeters apart. Starfire could feel the caress of Robin’s breath on her cheek and the splay of his fingers across her bare back. It was only his strong arms that kept her from bumping against the ceiling. “Do bicuias spend much time doing that, too?” he asked, his lips brushing hers.

Before she could answer, the lights came back on, and the raucous noise of the game system caused Starfire to jump. In that instant, Robin’s hands had slipped from her back and were re-applying the mask to his face. Starfire drifted up several inches before sinking to the floor.

“You are uncomfortable, biciua Robin?”

“The lights are on, and I asked you not to call me that.”

“But we are alone.”

“We’re in a common area. You never know when someone might show up.”

Anger and frustration welled in Starfire. “We have been in the common area this entire time. Why do the lights suddenly returning make such a difference?” She crossed her arms over her chest.

“Because…because it does.” Robin yanked his gloves back on as a loud boom of thunder shook the tower, causing the lights to dim briefly.

“And would you have embraced me again had the lights been extinguished just now?”

“Star, I…You know it’s too dangerous for anyone to know about us.”

“Then we can only be together when the lights are off?”

The sound of Cyborg’s boots sounded from down the hall, followed closely by Beast Boy’s crow of, “You are such toast this time, Dude!”

“In your dreams, Little Green One.”

Robin grabbed Starfire’s upper arm, hauling her to her feet. “We’ll discuss this later,” he hissed in her ear.

Starfire shook herself free of his grasp and stomped off towards her room as the alarm began to sound.

Robin was instantly at the workstation, punching buttons and examining read-outs.

“What is it, man?” Cyborg queried.

“It’s that mysterious creature that disappeared in the woods. It’s tripped the sensors I set.”

“Aw, man, it’s raining!” Beast Boy whined.

“I don’t want that thing anywhere near town,” Robin replied. “Let’s go.”

--

The rain cascaded down in sheets. All of the Titans were soaked by the time they reached the forest.

Starfire’s hair stuck to her face and arms, and she seemed to be flying somewhat erratically. Robin was a little worried about her, and wanted desperately to smooth her ruffled feelings, but knew there were more important things at hand.

Cyborg motioned to a small clearing on the edge of the forest. They glimpsed the creature through the trees. Robin skidded the R-Cycle to a halt, spraying mud and hopping off. “Titans, go!” he shouted, ducking between the trees.

“Azarath, Metrion, Zynthos!” Raven attempted to encase the creature in a bubble of magic, but it didn’t seem to slow it down.

Beast Boy, morphed into an elephant, reared up on his hind legs and gave Cyborg a massive push, hurling him toward the creature as he fired his sonic cannon.

The creature held its ears and Robin saw his opening. He hurled himself at the creature, a heavy cord in his hand at the ready.

But Starfire saw the same opening and hurled several starbolts at the creature. One connected with it just as Robin landed on its back. Robin was thrown to the ground.

“Robin!” Starfire and Raven were both instantly at his side, with Cyborg and Beast Boy not far behind.

“We need to get him out of here,” Cyborg said, firing his sonic cannon at the creature again.

“It is my fault.” Starfire was shaking. “I was not paying attention…”

Beast Boy morphed into a pterosaur and Cyborg lifted Robin onto his back. “I’ll try to heal him as soon as we get back to the tower,” Raven said as she too climbed onto Beast Boy’s back. The green dinosaur flapped off toward the bay.

Starfire watched them go but was snapped out of her guilt by Cyborg. “C’mon, we need to at least drive the thing off.”

They turned to fight, but the creature was already gone.

Well, that took longer than I thought. Of course, they always do. This one was more difficult than the first three because nothing really happened…just a lot of rising action. We get to the real meat of the story next time…hopefully won’t take as long. Was this enough fluff for ya’ll?

Most of that chapter was an excuse to get out all of the little fluffy moments that were bouncing around in my head.  But, unfortunately, fluff can't last forever...

And am I a geek or what?  I wrote a love scene that takes place by the light of a laptop....

Soon: Chapter 5: Healing