Teen Titans Fanfiction: "Our Darkest Day"
This is the companion piece to "The Chips are Down". The stories can be read independenly but they will probably make more sense when read together. This story, like "The Chips are Down" is set in the course of the Teen Titans 5th season 2 part finale. The episodes are "Calling All Titans" and "Titans Together".
I hope everyone lets me know what they think about this piece because it is longer than my poetry term paper and a lot of work went into this.
Title: "Our Darkest Day"
Author: Coldfiredragon
Summary: The relationship between Robin and Speedy is threatened when the Brotherhood of Evil launches a coordinated attack against the Teen Titans. Companion piece to "The Chips are Down". Mostly Speedy's POV. Dick/Roy (Robin/Speedy) slash, nothing heavy.
Word Count: 6147
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: I own no portion of Teen Titans or the comics that the show is based off of. I will make no money by publishing this piece.
AN: When you see a line of (********************)s it indicates that either the scene changes or the character's perspective changes. That's all I've got so I will let you guys get to the story.
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“Calling all Titans!” The chaos had started with that phrase. Speedy knew the situation was bad the second he heard Robin start barking orders over the communicator. The attacks were happening too quickly. It might not seem as obvious to the newest Titans, or even to the members of Robins' own team, but Robin was scared. The attacks were all too well planned out and somehow the Brotherhood of Evil had anticipated every move Robin had made so far.
With a sigh Speedy looked around the forest. He had picked the worst possible time to go off on his own. He should be with his team, helping them fight. He had heard Robin order his teammates to help Aqualad and the twins and he was mentally kicking himself for not being there when they needed him. It had been the team's idea to split up for the weekend and go their own ways. Aqualad was working on something down the coast of South America, Mas, Menos and Bumblebee were watching the Titans West Tower, and Speedy had taken his bow into the forested hills surrounding the outskirts of Jump City for a night of training and a little time to himself.
He and the other members of Titans East weren't the most closely knit team even under the best of circumstances. They had learned to live with each other and use each others skills to the fullest in combat but there were still days that they stepped on each other's toes. Things got the worst when one of them was in a bad mood. Since Robin had left to track the Brotherhood of Evil Speedy had done nothing but worry about his lover and his constant frustration was being taken out on his teammates.
The pressure of constantly worrying over his partner when the other boy was halfway across the globe was slowly eating at him. To make the situation worse he and Robin were keeping their relationship a secret so he could not explain to his fellow Titans what was bothering him. Aqualad had tried to talk to him but Speedy had told him nothing and with nothing to go on the other boy couldn't help him. Speedy knew that Aqualad had been hurt by his unwillingness to share but Speedy valued his relationship with Robin too much to risk it. There relationship was still relatively new and he didn't know if it would be able to sustain the strain of not being together for moths at a time.
The team always came before their relationship but Speedy had known that it would when he had signed on for it. The first months had been the most difficult for both of them as they had struggled to find ways to see each other without their respective teams finding out. It had been Speedy's suggestion that they periodically make excuses to meet and spend a couple of days together, as civilians, not as heroes. Training sessions with their former mentors had been the excuse they had come up with to explain their absences.
Speedy's frown deepened as his memory flashed back to the first trip they had arranged. Dick had refused to turn his communicator off and Roy had threatened to end it right then. Even if doing so was the last thing he had wanted to do. Dick had still refused and Roy had actually grabbed his bag and made it half way to the door before he had heard the sound of the communicator shutting down. They hadn't seen each other in months because Robin was so obsessed with making sure everyone was prepared for a fight with the Brotherhood.
He pushed his memories of Robin away. He had to stay focused and get back to Jump City so he could go where ever Robin needed him to go. Suddenly he didn't want to be alone. He broke into a sprint as he tried to get back to the area of the forest where he had left his bike. As he was running he heard a twig snap loudly from somewhere above him. Before he could even think about it his bow was in his hands and he had an arrow notched and ready to fire. He scanned the tree line as he tried to find whatever had made the noise. No one but the rest of his team and Robin knew he was out in the woods alone. There was no way the Brotherhood would know where to send someone to look for him. He could hear the constant sound of Robin's voice from the communicator and he could hear the panic growing in Robin's voice. If Robin was panicking this wasn't good.
Having seen no one on his first sweep of the forest Speedy started running again. He hadn't gone far when he heard another twig snap. This time the noise came from the opposite side of the forest path he was following. Speedy froze and looked around once again. As his gaze fell on the patch of trees where he had heard the second sound he froze and stared at the grinning mask which was leering back at him.
His mouth was suddenly dry and he began to run in the direction of his bike. The woman began moving through the trees on a course parallel to his own and Speedy allowed a string of curses which would have made Ollie blush to pass through his head. He had no idea how the Brotherhood had been able to track his movements. He considered reaching for his communicator to alert Robin but he knew that if he did that he would have to let go of either his bow or the arrow he had ready to fire and at the moment he was willing to do neither. Calling Robin would also put more stress on the young leader and he wanted to avoid that if at all possible.
He burst into a small clearing and slowed to a halt. Using his bow he started scanning the trees above him. He saw the mask before he saw the rest of her body but by that point it was too late. The woman, whoever she was, dodged his arrow with an agility that Robin would have trouble matching. He continued firing as fast as he could draw each arrow but the woman batted them away as if they were insects. Suddenly the sleeves of her kimono fell back and Speedy's eyes widened as he saw long claws that shone in the moonlight. He knew that it they hit him they would do some serious damage and as he reached for his next arrow he did a quick count of how many he had left.
Cursing he pulled out an explosive tipped arrow and took aim. Much to his dismay the arrow hit empty air where the woman had been standing. He fired a couple more times to similar effect. Whoever she was she was good. Suddenly she was too close and Speedy brought his bow up to protect his head. His breath caught in his throat as the woman's claws simply splinted the weapon. Knowing that he had to call Robin and try to get some aid he backed up, only to find that he had been maneuvered against a tree.
He pulled the communicator from his belt and pressed the call button. Before he could speak the woman had pinned his arm against the tree with her foot and his communicator went flying. He could hear Robin say something but all he could clearly make out was his name at the end of it. He kept his eyes focused on the woman and gasped when her hair came flying towards his head. He tried to duck out of the way but couldn't and was forced to take the full force of the unusual attack in the face. The world went dark seconds later as his head cracked against the tree.
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His head felt like it had been packed in cotton. That was his first observation as he slowly returned to consciousness. He had no idea how long he had been out or where he was. The steel floor underneath him was freezing and his thin costume did nothing to block out the chill. He sat up slowly and groaned when the world spun to the side. Guessing he had a small concussion he attempted to lift his hand to feel the back of his head and realized that his hands and wrists were shackled together.
He cursed as he realized that he couldn't get them off on his own. Robin was going to kill him for getting captured. He should have tried to call for back-up sooner, not that it would have done him any good. He had listened to the emergency traffic over the communicator, there had been no one to help him even if he had tried sooner.
The world had stopped spinning and the ache in his head had subsided so he sat up the rest of the way and leaned against the wall. The smooth wall was as cold as the floor and he could feel his body shivering slightly. He pulled his knees to his chin and settled in to wait, he had a feeling that they wouldn't leave him alone long when they realized he had awakened.
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Madame Rouge walked into the command center to find her leader and his first in command looking over a chessboard. As the operation to capture the Titans had progressed there operatives had slowly returned with their targets and they would soon begin freezing the annoying children. The Brain had been waiting to begin the operation and the moment he had insisted they wait for was finally here.
“The archer is awake leader.” Madame Rouge couldn't stop the hint of annoyance that slipped into her voice. She believed that it would have been safer to freeze each of the Titans as they had been brought in. However the Brain wanted to play mind games with Robin and the young archer played a role in those plans
“Patience Madame Rouge. We have the majority of the Titans and the ones who do not have were given to our enemies to do with as they please. We have won and soon the Titans will be no more.”
“I think it would have been wiser to freeze each Titan as they were delivered to us.”
“So you have said. Now I want you to take the archer to Professor Chang and have him prepared, then bring Robin to me. Robin will see first hand what happens to those who defy the Brotherhood of Evil.” The woman couldn't help but smile cruelly. .
“As you wish my leader.” She stated respectfully as she turned and left the room. She took long purposeful strides as she made her way to the cell block. She reached the cell and typed in the access code. The door slid open and she came face to face with the red-haired archer.
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“Madame Rouge.” Speedy watched the woman as she laughed quietly.
“I see you know who I am. Robin informed you much better than we thought he had.” His eyes widened for a moment then narrowed in suspicion.
“Your side won't win. Good always wins over evil.” This caused the woman to laugh harder and Speedy struggled to control his quickly rising temper.
“What's so funny?”
“Robin said the same thing to me earlier. He was wrong then, just as you are now.”
“Robin.” He couldn't stop himself from whispering his lover's codename. The mention of the other boy's name sent emotion rushing through him. He had been so concerned with his own predicament that he hadn't even thought about Dick's fate. Memories of their recently formed relationship crowded his mind and it occurred to him that one or both of them could die. Suddenly he felt the tip of Madame Rouge's finger brush along his chin and down his throat. He shivered in disgust and tried to pull away but the rest of her hand quickly extended and she none too gently raised his chin until his gaze met hers.
“You really are quite handsome. I can see why Robin is so attracted to you.” She smiled at him but all Speedy could do was stare back dumbly. His mind refusing to work as it tried to process how the Brotherhood had figured out what they had worked so hard to keep secret. Her next words were like a punch in the stomach.
“Robin never cared about you. He was so focused on making sure that his team was ready to fight that he ignored you. Then he went a step further and handed each and every one of you over to us.” Speedy's head snapped up in disbelief. All Robin cared about was his damn team. There was no way he would willingly hand any of them over to the Brotherhood. She had to be lying, Robin wouldn't do that to any of them especially not to him.
“You're lying.”
“How do you think we managed to track you then?” Speedy had no answer to that and he could feel his eyes burning as he tried to figure out why Robin would betray them.
“He gave me the communicator that we used to track you himself.” Speedy stared at her and gasped as all the pieces fell into place.
“You impersonated one of the team and then tracked us all through the communications system.”
“He was quite upset when he found out what he had done. I wonder how much of that concern was directed towards you and how much of it was directed towards the team.” Speedy knew that she was trying to bait him into reacting but he couldn't quell the anger or hurt that her words triggered. He knew Robin and as much as he hated to admit it Robin was probably more upset about the fact that the team had been put in danger. His eyes burned with tears at the idea but the team had always come before him.
“It won't matter soon.” Speedy's eyes narrowed as her grip on his chin tightened and she stepped aside. “General Immortus, take him to Professor Chang.” With that she slipped out of the cell and Speedy was left staring at the the elderly general and a dozen of his best troops.
They led him out of the cell block into a room with a conveyor belt and a number of raised platforms. He considered resisting and mentally counted the number of men he would have had to take down. He knew his chances were slim, especially with his bow ruined and his hands secured. The feeling of a rifle being jammed against the small of his lower back urged him to move forward until he found himself standing in the center of the raised disks. Almost immediately there was a loud rushing of air and a slender glass tube shot up, trapping him inside.
He could hear the loud hissing as the tube sealed and he felt panic welling inside of him. In desperation he slammed his shoulder with all his might against the glass. It didn't even shake and he knew that he wasn't going to be able to break out.
Suddenly the cuffs around his wrists released and fell to his feet. For the first time since waking up he could feel his fingers and he groaned in pain as the blood flow started to increase. The pins and needles feeling quickly escalated and every movement of his hands sent pain through his arms and body.
He didn't know how long he remained there before the tube suddenly started moving. As it did so he could feel the apprehension he had been feeling rise into full fledged panic. He had no idea what was going to happen to him. His holding unit emerged into a brightly lit room with an ominous looking device. The tube in which he was held prison shuddered to a stop and he looked around desperately. He could see Professor Chang waiting for a signal near the machine's control panel. Dread pooled in his chest as he looked upward, only to meet Robin's masked eyes.
His heart stopped for a moment as he took in Dick's stance and facial expression and he knew that being forced to watch this was tearing Dick apart. He pressed his hands to the side of his glass prison and held Robin's gaze. He knew in that moment that Dick would have done anything in his power to trade places with him. They held each other's gaze and Roy could see every emotion as it played across Dick's face. Any doubts that he had harbored about Robin not caring for him vanished. The other boy looked empty and helpless as he held Roy's gaze and Roy knew that they had no time.
“I love you Dick.” His words were not a moment too soon as the conveyor belt jerked forward and Roy was almost thrown to his knees, he could feel the panic returning full force but he refused to give into it. He glanced back at Robin just in time to see Robin turn and throw himself at whoever stood just out of his line of sight.
“Robin!” The shout rose from his throat before he could stop it and he stared in horror as the tube ground to a halt once again. Speedy turned his gaze towards Professor Chang. The elderly scientist was waiting for whatever was transpiring above them to end.
As Mallah dragged Robin back into view Speedy realized exactly what they were making Robin do and he felt nausea rise in his stomach. They were forcing Robin to watch. Robin looked miserable as their eyes met again and Speedy couldn't stop his tears from forming any longer as the tube slid into place and the hatch near the top hissed open. He could feel cold air radiating from the machine as it activated and his hands raised instinctively to protect his head. It would do no good and icy darkness claimed him.
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The Brain watched as Robin slumped in defeat against Mallah. He had won. He had brought the supposedly impervious white king to his knees with nothing more than a few theatrics. The boy would watch the other members of his team be frozen and soon enough he would join his lover in the freeze sleep that the Brain had developed years ago to immobilize the Doom Patrol.
When Madame Rouge had acquired the communicator from Robin The Brain had never thought that it would lead to a way for him to completely bring Robin to his knees. The discovery of the young man's relationship to the archer had been a surprise and it hadn't taken the Brain long to notice the subtle emotional cues the two dropped to each other when they spoke.
As each Titan was frozen he noticed that Robin seemed to give up more and more hope. The moment when the archer had been frozen had been a private one with only himself, Mallah, Rouge, Chang, and Robin present. Once the boy had been frozen however The Brain had allowed other villains to join them and as more and more Titans were either brought in or confirmed to be dead the crowd grew When all the other Titans had been frozen the Brain addressed the gathered crowd.
“Victory is at hand. And for your part, a gift. I give you Robin.” The conveyor belt shuddered to life and Robin, restrained in a glass tube as all the others had been came into view. If The Brain could have smiled he would have done so as the massive cheer rose from the crowd of villains who stood below him. The top of the tube had not been sealed. Even if Robin managed to escape through the narrow opening he would not get far. For his part however the boy was trying to be brave.
“This isn't over.”
“For you it most certainly is.” Robin's eyes widened as he took in the mass of villains that surrounded him. For the first time he felt true despair overtake him. How had he let this happen? How had he let all of his friends down? His gaze shifted to the shelves where his fellow Titans were being displayed like glass figurines. He found Speedy's frozen form and his throat tightened. He had let all this happen without ever really telling Roy just how much their time together meant to him. The team had always come first and they had kept their relationship a secret because he believed that they should. Roy had wanted to tell the members of Titans West and East but Robin had refused. He knew now that they should have told everyone. It would have given them more time together instead of forcing them into stealing little moments as they had been doing. If they got out of this he wasn't going to hide it anymore. It wasn't fair to either of them.
The conveyor belt came to a stop and Robin continued to stare at the frozen form of his best friend. //I love you Roy. I'm so sorry.// He didn't dare say the words allowed for fear that one of the villains might hear him. It was his last thought before the cold cut off all else.
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Speedy fell to his knees as the icy prison he had been held in dissolved. He was disoriented from the freeze ray and his mind was still trying to shake off the effects of being flash frozen. As his senses returned he could hear the sounds of battle and he glanced around to take in his surroundings. Sometime after freezing him the Brotherhood had moved him to one of the shelves that surrounded the room. His gaze shifted towards the machine that had been used to freeze them and the corners of his mouth quirked upward as he saw Mas and Menos randomly pushing buttons on the console.
Someone jumped from the shelf above him and he instinctively knew that it was Robin. He turned towards the other boy.
“Are you okay?” Speedy nodded..
“Robin?”
“Be careful.” Speedy nodded and moved towards the edge of the shelf to jump down. He might not have had his bow but he still had enough combat skills to hold his own. Much to his surprise Robin reached out and grabbed his wrist. Speedy looked up in confusion as Robin pulled him closer. “Please Roy.” The words were said in a voice barely above a whisper but Speedy heard them anyway.
“I promise.” He pulled his wrist free from Robin's loose grip and jumped down to the shelf below him without turning back. He could hear Robin call to Starfire for her help in getting down and a grin spread across his face. The other boy was a bigger showoff than himself when he got the chance. He saw Starfire fly overhead with Robin's spare bow staff and other equipment gripped in her hands and a moment later the two of them flew overhead to land with the other three Titans of their team. They conversed for a moment and then Speedy heard Robin shout out to everyone on their team.
“Let's Finish this!” Speedy dropped down to the floor and took a second to study the opponents around him. Seeing Cheshire he decided he wanted a little pay back from the woman for snapping his bow and ran after her.
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Madame Rouge watched the slowly unfolding chaos below her with a look of disdain. It had been bad enough when Beast Boy and his ragtag team had shown up. Their defeat would have been easy if the Brain hadn't insisted that they let their fellow villains take down the five Titans. However when the rest of the Titans West had arrived with their reinforcements chaos had completely broken loose. Now the Titans who they had captured and frozen had escaped and with Robin's release his friends had rallied around his leadership.
She heard Mallah speaking to the Brain.
“Perhaps now would be the time to take our leave.” She interjected in the argument before their leader could respond.
“I agree my leader. This has grown far beyond our ability to control, even with the help of our associates.”
“No. We will not retreat. Madame Rouge bring the archer to Mallah.” She wasted no time in moving to obey her leader's commands. She extended the upper half of her body downward and moved through the crowd of battling heroes and villains until she reached the archer. She found him battling with Cheshire and she gave the other woman a feral smile as she moved closer. The boy for his part realized too late that someone was behind him and Madame Rouge reacted quickly by wrapping her body around the archer and pulling him back to the platform where Mallah and the Brain waited.
She dropped the boy in front of them and Speedy barely had time to react before Mallah had grabbed him by the throat and dragged him to his feet. Almost immediately the Brain's voice boomed out over the command center.
“Stop Titans!” Several of the teens looked upward and Madame Rouge could see the looks of horror spreading across their faces as they realized exactly what was happening. Her gaze sought out Robin only to find him frozen in disbelief. She could not help but smirk as the Brain continued.
“Surrender or I will have him killed.”
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From the second Madame Rouge grabbed him Speedy felt panic gripping him and it only grew worse as she dropped him before Mallah. Now as he struggled against the ape's grip he tried to calm down. He could feel his lungs burning and tears forming in his eyes as he dug his nails into the gorilla's arm. He knew that his attempts to free himself weren't working and he forced his eyes open as he desperately sought Robin's gaze. The other boy was staring at him with a pained expression. They locked gazes and as the Brain spoke, Speedy could see the hand gripping Robin's bow staff shaking.
//Don't Dick, please don't listen to him.// He begged silently. His chest ached and he could feel his hands shaking as they dropped to his sides. The last thing he wanted was for Robin to give himself up to save him. He wouldn't be able to deal with that.
“Robin Don't!” He wasn't sure how loud the words were but he knew that he managed to actually speak them when he heard Robin call him name.
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“Speedy!” Robin could feel his hands shaking as stared up at the other boy. This couldn't be happening, he couldn't let him die. He also knew that if he gave up to save the other boy he would be handing all the other Titans over as well. Could he really do that though? Could he put the life of the person he loved over the life of all their friends? He realized that he couldn't let Roy die and the bow staff fell from his limp fingers. He didn't care what the others thought of him. He couldn't make that choice.
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“Very good Robin.” Speedy felt the pressure around his throat lessen slightly as the Brain spoke. He was still trapped and he knew that all the gorilla had to do was tighten his grip and he would be dead. His throat ached and chest hurt as he sucked in short desperate breaths. He couldn't believe what Robin was doing. He was sacrificing the whole team for him. It was the last thing that Robin should be doing, this wasn't the time for their relationship to weigh on Robin's mind. He drew in another shuddering breath and allowed his gaze to seek out the Titans he had become friends with. Most of them wore looks of defeat similar to Robin's while the Titans who didn't know him wore looks of confusion. None of them knew why Robin was doing this. Tears escaped his eyes as he squeezed them shut and he drew in another breath as Mallah's hand tightened around his throat once again.
“You should follow the example of your leader. Your teammate will die if you do not.” Mallah lifted him a little higher and Roy felt more tears running his down his face as he struggled. It hurt worse than he thought it would and he could almost see little black spots appear at the edges of his vision. Right when he was ready to give up a slight tingling engulfed his body and the pain around his throat was gone. Seconds later he realized that someone was supporting his barely upright frame. Blinking the tears from his eyes he raised his head to see who is savior had been only to find Kid Flash staring at him in concern.
“Titans Together!” Surprised he looked around to find that the two of them were high above the battle on one of the shelves and that Robin had just given the order to renew the attack against the Brotherhood. He gave the speedster a weak smile of appreciation as he slowly pushed himself away from the other boy. As he was doing so his strength gave out and he found himself kneeling on the floor. Each breath he took was torture and he knew that his throat was badly bruised. He placed one hand against the floor below him and desperately tried to undo the buttons of his collar with the other. He felt the shelf shudder as someone landed near them and Speedy prayed that it wasn't one of the Brotherhood. He couldn't fight them now.
He was more than a little surprised when he felt Robin's gloved fingers pushing his hand away and gently undoing the buttons for him. With the collar free he found it much easier to breathe and he managed to look up at his lover as the other boy gently ran the tips of his finger along the bruises on his throat. He winced as Robin hit a particularly tender spot
“Is he going to be okay? I'm sorry I'm late, I picked up Jinx on my way here. I figured we could use all the help we could get” Speedy could hear Kid Flash speaking but his mind was almost completely focused on the feeling of Robin's fingers as they slowly inspected his throat.
“Thank you.” Robin's voice sounded strained when he spoke and Speedy got the impression that Robin was struggling not to cry. He could feel Kid Flash's gaze on them as he took in their interactions. “You got here when it mattered.” Now Speedy knew that Robin was close to tears and he did his best to comfort the other boy.
“I'm okay.” His voice was scratchy and barely louder than a whisper which caused Robin to glare at him,
“Don't try to talk. I'll get Raven up here.” He turned to go but Speedy reached out and grabbed his wrist.
“I'll be okay just focus on the team. They are most important right now.”
“Speedy...”
“Don't argue with me Robin. The team has to win and they need you to help them do it.” The string of words left his aching throat and he started coughing. Robin looked ready to defy him but finally nodded in defeat and jumped back down to join the fray. Kid Flash also left and Speedy was able to watch the remainder of the fight from a good vantage point.
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Robin stared out over the bay as he stood in the common room of Titans Tower. The rest of their fight with the Brotherhood had gone in their favor and most of the villains present for the battle were currently on ice, literally. With Kid Flashes' help they had been able to move most of the villains under the freeze ray and freeze them until the Paris police could arrive to collect them. When the villains had been carted away Robin had invited all the Titans, old and new, for a celebration of sorts at the Tower.
He turned away from the window and looked out over the rest of the team. He could see the new members and honorary Titans mingling with the older Titans and everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. His eyes sought out Speedy and concern settled over him before he finally found the archer leaning in the entranceway to the common area.
He knew that he should go over and speak to his best friend but doing so would require that he make his way through the throngs of Titans who would no doubt want to thank him for his help or talk to him about something that was of minor importance. He wanted nothing more than to hold Roy and comfort him.
The felt a brush of air rush past him and he turned to find Kid Flash.
“Cool pad.” Robin nodded in acknowledgment of the other boy before his gaze returned to Speedy. The archer was watching someone off to his side and was either trying not to look at Robin or hadn't noticed that Robin was attempting to stare him down.
“You should be over there with him.” The unexpected words from Kid Flash caused Robin's gaze to settle on the other boy. “You love him don't you?.” Robin opened his mouth to speak but suddenly found himself with no words to say. Finally he spoke.
“I thought I had lost him.” Kid Flash smiled at him sadly.
“All the more reason you should be with him right now.” Before Robin could respond Kid Flash grabbed his hand and Robin found himself standing in the hallway that led to the common room. The two of them were standing behind Speedy and Kid Flash pushed him forward a step before disappearing. Robin watched his lover's back for a moment and made a decision.
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“Hey.” Speedy tensed as he felt Robin's arms wrap around his waist. The soft voice of his best friend was laced with overlapping emotions and Speedy allowed himself to relax against Robin's chest. He didn't want to talk. Right now he just wanted Dick to hold him. Robin pulled him closer and Speedy could feel the other boy's warm breath against his ear.
“Are you gonna be okay?” Speedy nodded and pulled the collar of his costume away from his throat. When they had gotten back to the tower Robin had insisted that he allow Raven to heal him and while she hadn't been able to completely heal all the bruising it no longer hurt to breathe. He knew that Robin could see the the dark bluish marks from where Mallah's fingers had dug into his skin. In a way he was ashamed of them. He had gotten careless and it had almost cost him his life.
“It's over.”
“I know it's just...”It all rushed back to him and he fell silent.
“I thought I was going to loose you.” Roy nodded, too overwhelmed to speak. He had always marveled at how Dick knew exactly what he needed to say. In this case what they both needed to say. Words had never been his strong suit. He turned and loosely wrapped his arms around Dick's neck. Dick surprised him by leaning in and capturing his lips. The kiss was short and exploratory. It reminded Roy of their first kiss except this time it was Dick who had taken the initiative and not him. They pulled apart slightly and Dick raised his hand and ran it through his hair. His hand traveled down Roy's temple and stopped at the edge of the archer's mask.
“I need to see you. We've hid this long enough.” Roy didn't trust himself to speak so he nodded. Despite being willing he couldn't help but close his eyes as Dick peeled his mask away. Old habits died hard. When he finally gathered enough courage to open them the first thing he saw was Dick's ice blue eyes watching him with concern. They softened as Roy gave him a weak smile.
“Batman is going to kill you.”
“I don't care.” The words were barely out of his mouth before he had captured Roy's lips once again and Roy shivered as Dick pressed him against the wall of the hallway. The months of frustration and worry that they had shared for each other dissipated as they melted against one another. When they pulled apart it was because they both needed to breathe and Roy couldn't help but grin at Dick. He could feel the other boy's warm breath as Dick moved in closer and he couldn't help but pull Dick into another kiss as the other boy spoke.
“I love you Roy.”
I hope everyone lets me know what they think about this piece because it is longer than my poetry term paper and a lot of work went into this.
Title: "Our Darkest Day"
Author: Coldfiredragon
Summary: The relationship between Robin and Speedy is threatened when the Brotherhood of Evil launches a coordinated attack against the Teen Titans. Companion piece to "The Chips are Down". Mostly Speedy's POV. Dick/Roy (Robin/Speedy) slash, nothing heavy.
Word Count: 6147
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: I own no portion of Teen Titans or the comics that the show is based off of. I will make no money by publishing this piece.
AN: When you see a line of (********************)s it indicates that either the scene changes or the character's perspective changes. That's all I've got so I will let you guys get to the story.
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“Calling all Titans!” The chaos had started with that phrase. Speedy knew the situation was bad the second he heard Robin start barking orders over the communicator. The attacks were happening too quickly. It might not seem as obvious to the newest Titans, or even to the members of Robins' own team, but Robin was scared. The attacks were all too well planned out and somehow the Brotherhood of Evil had anticipated every move Robin had made so far.
With a sigh Speedy looked around the forest. He had picked the worst possible time to go off on his own. He should be with his team, helping them fight. He had heard Robin order his teammates to help Aqualad and the twins and he was mentally kicking himself for not being there when they needed him. It had been the team's idea to split up for the weekend and go their own ways. Aqualad was working on something down the coast of South America, Mas, Menos and Bumblebee were watching the Titans West Tower, and Speedy had taken his bow into the forested hills surrounding the outskirts of Jump City for a night of training and a little time to himself.
He and the other members of Titans East weren't the most closely knit team even under the best of circumstances. They had learned to live with each other and use each others skills to the fullest in combat but there were still days that they stepped on each other's toes. Things got the worst when one of them was in a bad mood. Since Robin had left to track the Brotherhood of Evil Speedy had done nothing but worry about his lover and his constant frustration was being taken out on his teammates.
The pressure of constantly worrying over his partner when the other boy was halfway across the globe was slowly eating at him. To make the situation worse he and Robin were keeping their relationship a secret so he could not explain to his fellow Titans what was bothering him. Aqualad had tried to talk to him but Speedy had told him nothing and with nothing to go on the other boy couldn't help him. Speedy knew that Aqualad had been hurt by his unwillingness to share but Speedy valued his relationship with Robin too much to risk it. There relationship was still relatively new and he didn't know if it would be able to sustain the strain of not being together for moths at a time.
The team always came before their relationship but Speedy had known that it would when he had signed on for it. The first months had been the most difficult for both of them as they had struggled to find ways to see each other without their respective teams finding out. It had been Speedy's suggestion that they periodically make excuses to meet and spend a couple of days together, as civilians, not as heroes. Training sessions with their former mentors had been the excuse they had come up with to explain their absences.
Speedy's frown deepened as his memory flashed back to the first trip they had arranged. Dick had refused to turn his communicator off and Roy had threatened to end it right then. Even if doing so was the last thing he had wanted to do. Dick had still refused and Roy had actually grabbed his bag and made it half way to the door before he had heard the sound of the communicator shutting down. They hadn't seen each other in months because Robin was so obsessed with making sure everyone was prepared for a fight with the Brotherhood.
He pushed his memories of Robin away. He had to stay focused and get back to Jump City so he could go where ever Robin needed him to go. Suddenly he didn't want to be alone. He broke into a sprint as he tried to get back to the area of the forest where he had left his bike. As he was running he heard a twig snap loudly from somewhere above him. Before he could even think about it his bow was in his hands and he had an arrow notched and ready to fire. He scanned the tree line as he tried to find whatever had made the noise. No one but the rest of his team and Robin knew he was out in the woods alone. There was no way the Brotherhood would know where to send someone to look for him. He could hear the constant sound of Robin's voice from the communicator and he could hear the panic growing in Robin's voice. If Robin was panicking this wasn't good.
Having seen no one on his first sweep of the forest Speedy started running again. He hadn't gone far when he heard another twig snap. This time the noise came from the opposite side of the forest path he was following. Speedy froze and looked around once again. As his gaze fell on the patch of trees where he had heard the second sound he froze and stared at the grinning mask which was leering back at him.
His mouth was suddenly dry and he began to run in the direction of his bike. The woman began moving through the trees on a course parallel to his own and Speedy allowed a string of curses which would have made Ollie blush to pass through his head. He had no idea how the Brotherhood had been able to track his movements. He considered reaching for his communicator to alert Robin but he knew that if he did that he would have to let go of either his bow or the arrow he had ready to fire and at the moment he was willing to do neither. Calling Robin would also put more stress on the young leader and he wanted to avoid that if at all possible.
He burst into a small clearing and slowed to a halt. Using his bow he started scanning the trees above him. He saw the mask before he saw the rest of her body but by that point it was too late. The woman, whoever she was, dodged his arrow with an agility that Robin would have trouble matching. He continued firing as fast as he could draw each arrow but the woman batted them away as if they were insects. Suddenly the sleeves of her kimono fell back and Speedy's eyes widened as he saw long claws that shone in the moonlight. He knew that it they hit him they would do some serious damage and as he reached for his next arrow he did a quick count of how many he had left.
Cursing he pulled out an explosive tipped arrow and took aim. Much to his dismay the arrow hit empty air where the woman had been standing. He fired a couple more times to similar effect. Whoever she was she was good. Suddenly she was too close and Speedy brought his bow up to protect his head. His breath caught in his throat as the woman's claws simply splinted the weapon. Knowing that he had to call Robin and try to get some aid he backed up, only to find that he had been maneuvered against a tree.
He pulled the communicator from his belt and pressed the call button. Before he could speak the woman had pinned his arm against the tree with her foot and his communicator went flying. He could hear Robin say something but all he could clearly make out was his name at the end of it. He kept his eyes focused on the woman and gasped when her hair came flying towards his head. He tried to duck out of the way but couldn't and was forced to take the full force of the unusual attack in the face. The world went dark seconds later as his head cracked against the tree.
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His head felt like it had been packed in cotton. That was his first observation as he slowly returned to consciousness. He had no idea how long he had been out or where he was. The steel floor underneath him was freezing and his thin costume did nothing to block out the chill. He sat up slowly and groaned when the world spun to the side. Guessing he had a small concussion he attempted to lift his hand to feel the back of his head and realized that his hands and wrists were shackled together.
He cursed as he realized that he couldn't get them off on his own. Robin was going to kill him for getting captured. He should have tried to call for back-up sooner, not that it would have done him any good. He had listened to the emergency traffic over the communicator, there had been no one to help him even if he had tried sooner.
The world had stopped spinning and the ache in his head had subsided so he sat up the rest of the way and leaned against the wall. The smooth wall was as cold as the floor and he could feel his body shivering slightly. He pulled his knees to his chin and settled in to wait, he had a feeling that they wouldn't leave him alone long when they realized he had awakened.
*************************
Madame Rouge walked into the command center to find her leader and his first in command looking over a chessboard. As the operation to capture the Titans had progressed there operatives had slowly returned with their targets and they would soon begin freezing the annoying children. The Brain had been waiting to begin the operation and the moment he had insisted they wait for was finally here.
“The archer is awake leader.” Madame Rouge couldn't stop the hint of annoyance that slipped into her voice. She believed that it would have been safer to freeze each of the Titans as they had been brought in. However the Brain wanted to play mind games with Robin and the young archer played a role in those plans
“Patience Madame Rouge. We have the majority of the Titans and the ones who do not have were given to our enemies to do with as they please. We have won and soon the Titans will be no more.”
“I think it would have been wiser to freeze each Titan as they were delivered to us.”
“So you have said. Now I want you to take the archer to Professor Chang and have him prepared, then bring Robin to me. Robin will see first hand what happens to those who defy the Brotherhood of Evil.” The woman couldn't help but smile cruelly. .
“As you wish my leader.” She stated respectfully as she turned and left the room. She took long purposeful strides as she made her way to the cell block. She reached the cell and typed in the access code. The door slid open and she came face to face with the red-haired archer.
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“Madame Rouge.” Speedy watched the woman as she laughed quietly.
“I see you know who I am. Robin informed you much better than we thought he had.” His eyes widened for a moment then narrowed in suspicion.
“Your side won't win. Good always wins over evil.” This caused the woman to laugh harder and Speedy struggled to control his quickly rising temper.
“What's so funny?”
“Robin said the same thing to me earlier. He was wrong then, just as you are now.”
“Robin.” He couldn't stop himself from whispering his lover's codename. The mention of the other boy's name sent emotion rushing through him. He had been so concerned with his own predicament that he hadn't even thought about Dick's fate. Memories of their recently formed relationship crowded his mind and it occurred to him that one or both of them could die. Suddenly he felt the tip of Madame Rouge's finger brush along his chin and down his throat. He shivered in disgust and tried to pull away but the rest of her hand quickly extended and she none too gently raised his chin until his gaze met hers.
“You really are quite handsome. I can see why Robin is so attracted to you.” She smiled at him but all Speedy could do was stare back dumbly. His mind refusing to work as it tried to process how the Brotherhood had figured out what they had worked so hard to keep secret. Her next words were like a punch in the stomach.
“Robin never cared about you. He was so focused on making sure that his team was ready to fight that he ignored you. Then he went a step further and handed each and every one of you over to us.” Speedy's head snapped up in disbelief. All Robin cared about was his damn team. There was no way he would willingly hand any of them over to the Brotherhood. She had to be lying, Robin wouldn't do that to any of them especially not to him.
“You're lying.”
“How do you think we managed to track you then?” Speedy had no answer to that and he could feel his eyes burning as he tried to figure out why Robin would betray them.
“He gave me the communicator that we used to track you himself.” Speedy stared at her and gasped as all the pieces fell into place.
“You impersonated one of the team and then tracked us all through the communications system.”
“He was quite upset when he found out what he had done. I wonder how much of that concern was directed towards you and how much of it was directed towards the team.” Speedy knew that she was trying to bait him into reacting but he couldn't quell the anger or hurt that her words triggered. He knew Robin and as much as he hated to admit it Robin was probably more upset about the fact that the team had been put in danger. His eyes burned with tears at the idea but the team had always come before him.
“It won't matter soon.” Speedy's eyes narrowed as her grip on his chin tightened and she stepped aside. “General Immortus, take him to Professor Chang.” With that she slipped out of the cell and Speedy was left staring at the the elderly general and a dozen of his best troops.
They led him out of the cell block into a room with a conveyor belt and a number of raised platforms. He considered resisting and mentally counted the number of men he would have had to take down. He knew his chances were slim, especially with his bow ruined and his hands secured. The feeling of a rifle being jammed against the small of his lower back urged him to move forward until he found himself standing in the center of the raised disks. Almost immediately there was a loud rushing of air and a slender glass tube shot up, trapping him inside.
He could hear the loud hissing as the tube sealed and he felt panic welling inside of him. In desperation he slammed his shoulder with all his might against the glass. It didn't even shake and he knew that he wasn't going to be able to break out.
Suddenly the cuffs around his wrists released and fell to his feet. For the first time since waking up he could feel his fingers and he groaned in pain as the blood flow started to increase. The pins and needles feeling quickly escalated and every movement of his hands sent pain through his arms and body.
He didn't know how long he remained there before the tube suddenly started moving. As it did so he could feel the apprehension he had been feeling rise into full fledged panic. He had no idea what was going to happen to him. His holding unit emerged into a brightly lit room with an ominous looking device. The tube in which he was held prison shuddered to a stop and he looked around desperately. He could see Professor Chang waiting for a signal near the machine's control panel. Dread pooled in his chest as he looked upward, only to meet Robin's masked eyes.
His heart stopped for a moment as he took in Dick's stance and facial expression and he knew that being forced to watch this was tearing Dick apart. He pressed his hands to the side of his glass prison and held Robin's gaze. He knew in that moment that Dick would have done anything in his power to trade places with him. They held each other's gaze and Roy could see every emotion as it played across Dick's face. Any doubts that he had harbored about Robin not caring for him vanished. The other boy looked empty and helpless as he held Roy's gaze and Roy knew that they had no time.
“I love you Dick.” His words were not a moment too soon as the conveyor belt jerked forward and Roy was almost thrown to his knees, he could feel the panic returning full force but he refused to give into it. He glanced back at Robin just in time to see Robin turn and throw himself at whoever stood just out of his line of sight.
“Robin!” The shout rose from his throat before he could stop it and he stared in horror as the tube ground to a halt once again. Speedy turned his gaze towards Professor Chang. The elderly scientist was waiting for whatever was transpiring above them to end.
As Mallah dragged Robin back into view Speedy realized exactly what they were making Robin do and he felt nausea rise in his stomach. They were forcing Robin to watch. Robin looked miserable as their eyes met again and Speedy couldn't stop his tears from forming any longer as the tube slid into place and the hatch near the top hissed open. He could feel cold air radiating from the machine as it activated and his hands raised instinctively to protect his head. It would do no good and icy darkness claimed him.
*************************
The Brain watched as Robin slumped in defeat against Mallah. He had won. He had brought the supposedly impervious white king to his knees with nothing more than a few theatrics. The boy would watch the other members of his team be frozen and soon enough he would join his lover in the freeze sleep that the Brain had developed years ago to immobilize the Doom Patrol.
When Madame Rouge had acquired the communicator from Robin The Brain had never thought that it would lead to a way for him to completely bring Robin to his knees. The discovery of the young man's relationship to the archer had been a surprise and it hadn't taken the Brain long to notice the subtle emotional cues the two dropped to each other when they spoke.
As each Titan was frozen he noticed that Robin seemed to give up more and more hope. The moment when the archer had been frozen had been a private one with only himself, Mallah, Rouge, Chang, and Robin present. Once the boy had been frozen however The Brain had allowed other villains to join them and as more and more Titans were either brought in or confirmed to be dead the crowd grew When all the other Titans had been frozen the Brain addressed the gathered crowd.
“Victory is at hand. And for your part, a gift. I give you Robin.” The conveyor belt shuddered to life and Robin, restrained in a glass tube as all the others had been came into view. If The Brain could have smiled he would have done so as the massive cheer rose from the crowd of villains who stood below him. The top of the tube had not been sealed. Even if Robin managed to escape through the narrow opening he would not get far. For his part however the boy was trying to be brave.
“This isn't over.”
“For you it most certainly is.” Robin's eyes widened as he took in the mass of villains that surrounded him. For the first time he felt true despair overtake him. How had he let this happen? How had he let all of his friends down? His gaze shifted to the shelves where his fellow Titans were being displayed like glass figurines. He found Speedy's frozen form and his throat tightened. He had let all this happen without ever really telling Roy just how much their time together meant to him. The team had always come first and they had kept their relationship a secret because he believed that they should. Roy had wanted to tell the members of Titans West and East but Robin had refused. He knew now that they should have told everyone. It would have given them more time together instead of forcing them into stealing little moments as they had been doing. If they got out of this he wasn't going to hide it anymore. It wasn't fair to either of them.
The conveyor belt came to a stop and Robin continued to stare at the frozen form of his best friend. //I love you Roy. I'm so sorry.// He didn't dare say the words allowed for fear that one of the villains might hear him. It was his last thought before the cold cut off all else.
***********************
Speedy fell to his knees as the icy prison he had been held in dissolved. He was disoriented from the freeze ray and his mind was still trying to shake off the effects of being flash frozen. As his senses returned he could hear the sounds of battle and he glanced around to take in his surroundings. Sometime after freezing him the Brotherhood had moved him to one of the shelves that surrounded the room. His gaze shifted towards the machine that had been used to freeze them and the corners of his mouth quirked upward as he saw Mas and Menos randomly pushing buttons on the console.
Someone jumped from the shelf above him and he instinctively knew that it was Robin. He turned towards the other boy.
“Are you okay?” Speedy nodded..
“Robin?”
“Be careful.” Speedy nodded and moved towards the edge of the shelf to jump down. He might not have had his bow but he still had enough combat skills to hold his own. Much to his surprise Robin reached out and grabbed his wrist. Speedy looked up in confusion as Robin pulled him closer. “Please Roy.” The words were said in a voice barely above a whisper but Speedy heard them anyway.
“I promise.” He pulled his wrist free from Robin's loose grip and jumped down to the shelf below him without turning back. He could hear Robin call to Starfire for her help in getting down and a grin spread across his face. The other boy was a bigger showoff than himself when he got the chance. He saw Starfire fly overhead with Robin's spare bow staff and other equipment gripped in her hands and a moment later the two of them flew overhead to land with the other three Titans of their team. They conversed for a moment and then Speedy heard Robin shout out to everyone on their team.
“Let's Finish this!” Speedy dropped down to the floor and took a second to study the opponents around him. Seeing Cheshire he decided he wanted a little pay back from the woman for snapping his bow and ran after her.
***************************
Madame Rouge watched the slowly unfolding chaos below her with a look of disdain. It had been bad enough when Beast Boy and his ragtag team had shown up. Their defeat would have been easy if the Brain hadn't insisted that they let their fellow villains take down the five Titans. However when the rest of the Titans West had arrived with their reinforcements chaos had completely broken loose. Now the Titans who they had captured and frozen had escaped and with Robin's release his friends had rallied around his leadership.
She heard Mallah speaking to the Brain.
“Perhaps now would be the time to take our leave.” She interjected in the argument before their leader could respond.
“I agree my leader. This has grown far beyond our ability to control, even with the help of our associates.”
“No. We will not retreat. Madame Rouge bring the archer to Mallah.” She wasted no time in moving to obey her leader's commands. She extended the upper half of her body downward and moved through the crowd of battling heroes and villains until she reached the archer. She found him battling with Cheshire and she gave the other woman a feral smile as she moved closer. The boy for his part realized too late that someone was behind him and Madame Rouge reacted quickly by wrapping her body around the archer and pulling him back to the platform where Mallah and the Brain waited.
She dropped the boy in front of them and Speedy barely had time to react before Mallah had grabbed him by the throat and dragged him to his feet. Almost immediately the Brain's voice boomed out over the command center.
“Stop Titans!” Several of the teens looked upward and Madame Rouge could see the looks of horror spreading across their faces as they realized exactly what was happening. Her gaze sought out Robin only to find him frozen in disbelief. She could not help but smirk as the Brain continued.
“Surrender or I will have him killed.”
*************************
From the second Madame Rouge grabbed him Speedy felt panic gripping him and it only grew worse as she dropped him before Mallah. Now as he struggled against the ape's grip he tried to calm down. He could feel his lungs burning and tears forming in his eyes as he dug his nails into the gorilla's arm. He knew that his attempts to free himself weren't working and he forced his eyes open as he desperately sought Robin's gaze. The other boy was staring at him with a pained expression. They locked gazes and as the Brain spoke, Speedy could see the hand gripping Robin's bow staff shaking.
//Don't Dick, please don't listen to him.// He begged silently. His chest ached and he could feel his hands shaking as they dropped to his sides. The last thing he wanted was for Robin to give himself up to save him. He wouldn't be able to deal with that.
“Robin Don't!” He wasn't sure how loud the words were but he knew that he managed to actually speak them when he heard Robin call him name.
**********************
“Speedy!” Robin could feel his hands shaking as stared up at the other boy. This couldn't be happening, he couldn't let him die. He also knew that if he gave up to save the other boy he would be handing all the other Titans over as well. Could he really do that though? Could he put the life of the person he loved over the life of all their friends? He realized that he couldn't let Roy die and the bow staff fell from his limp fingers. He didn't care what the others thought of him. He couldn't make that choice.
**********************
“Very good Robin.” Speedy felt the pressure around his throat lessen slightly as the Brain spoke. He was still trapped and he knew that all the gorilla had to do was tighten his grip and he would be dead. His throat ached and chest hurt as he sucked in short desperate breaths. He couldn't believe what Robin was doing. He was sacrificing the whole team for him. It was the last thing that Robin should be doing, this wasn't the time for their relationship to weigh on Robin's mind. He drew in another shuddering breath and allowed his gaze to seek out the Titans he had become friends with. Most of them wore looks of defeat similar to Robin's while the Titans who didn't know him wore looks of confusion. None of them knew why Robin was doing this. Tears escaped his eyes as he squeezed them shut and he drew in another breath as Mallah's hand tightened around his throat once again.
“You should follow the example of your leader. Your teammate will die if you do not.” Mallah lifted him a little higher and Roy felt more tears running his down his face as he struggled. It hurt worse than he thought it would and he could almost see little black spots appear at the edges of his vision. Right when he was ready to give up a slight tingling engulfed his body and the pain around his throat was gone. Seconds later he realized that someone was supporting his barely upright frame. Blinking the tears from his eyes he raised his head to see who is savior had been only to find Kid Flash staring at him in concern.
“Titans Together!” Surprised he looked around to find that the two of them were high above the battle on one of the shelves and that Robin had just given the order to renew the attack against the Brotherhood. He gave the speedster a weak smile of appreciation as he slowly pushed himself away from the other boy. As he was doing so his strength gave out and he found himself kneeling on the floor. Each breath he took was torture and he knew that his throat was badly bruised. He placed one hand against the floor below him and desperately tried to undo the buttons of his collar with the other. He felt the shelf shudder as someone landed near them and Speedy prayed that it wasn't one of the Brotherhood. He couldn't fight them now.
He was more than a little surprised when he felt Robin's gloved fingers pushing his hand away and gently undoing the buttons for him. With the collar free he found it much easier to breathe and he managed to look up at his lover as the other boy gently ran the tips of his finger along the bruises on his throat. He winced as Robin hit a particularly tender spot
“Is he going to be okay? I'm sorry I'm late, I picked up Jinx on my way here. I figured we could use all the help we could get” Speedy could hear Kid Flash speaking but his mind was almost completely focused on the feeling of Robin's fingers as they slowly inspected his throat.
“Thank you.” Robin's voice sounded strained when he spoke and Speedy got the impression that Robin was struggling not to cry. He could feel Kid Flash's gaze on them as he took in their interactions. “You got here when it mattered.” Now Speedy knew that Robin was close to tears and he did his best to comfort the other boy.
“I'm okay.” His voice was scratchy and barely louder than a whisper which caused Robin to glare at him,
“Don't try to talk. I'll get Raven up here.” He turned to go but Speedy reached out and grabbed his wrist.
“I'll be okay just focus on the team. They are most important right now.”
“Speedy...”
“Don't argue with me Robin. The team has to win and they need you to help them do it.” The string of words left his aching throat and he started coughing. Robin looked ready to defy him but finally nodded in defeat and jumped back down to join the fray. Kid Flash also left and Speedy was able to watch the remainder of the fight from a good vantage point.
********************
Robin stared out over the bay as he stood in the common room of Titans Tower. The rest of their fight with the Brotherhood had gone in their favor and most of the villains present for the battle were currently on ice, literally. With Kid Flashes' help they had been able to move most of the villains under the freeze ray and freeze them until the Paris police could arrive to collect them. When the villains had been carted away Robin had invited all the Titans, old and new, for a celebration of sorts at the Tower.
He turned away from the window and looked out over the rest of the team. He could see the new members and honorary Titans mingling with the older Titans and everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. His eyes sought out Speedy and concern settled over him before he finally found the archer leaning in the entranceway to the common area.
He knew that he should go over and speak to his best friend but doing so would require that he make his way through the throngs of Titans who would no doubt want to thank him for his help or talk to him about something that was of minor importance. He wanted nothing more than to hold Roy and comfort him.
The felt a brush of air rush past him and he turned to find Kid Flash.
“Cool pad.” Robin nodded in acknowledgment of the other boy before his gaze returned to Speedy. The archer was watching someone off to his side and was either trying not to look at Robin or hadn't noticed that Robin was attempting to stare him down.
“You should be over there with him.” The unexpected words from Kid Flash caused Robin's gaze to settle on the other boy. “You love him don't you?.” Robin opened his mouth to speak but suddenly found himself with no words to say. Finally he spoke.
“I thought I had lost him.” Kid Flash smiled at him sadly.
“All the more reason you should be with him right now.” Before Robin could respond Kid Flash grabbed his hand and Robin found himself standing in the hallway that led to the common room. The two of them were standing behind Speedy and Kid Flash pushed him forward a step before disappearing. Robin watched his lover's back for a moment and made a decision.
********************
“Hey.” Speedy tensed as he felt Robin's arms wrap around his waist. The soft voice of his best friend was laced with overlapping emotions and Speedy allowed himself to relax against Robin's chest. He didn't want to talk. Right now he just wanted Dick to hold him. Robin pulled him closer and Speedy could feel the other boy's warm breath against his ear.
“Are you gonna be okay?” Speedy nodded and pulled the collar of his costume away from his throat. When they had gotten back to the tower Robin had insisted that he allow Raven to heal him and while she hadn't been able to completely heal all the bruising it no longer hurt to breathe. He knew that Robin could see the the dark bluish marks from where Mallah's fingers had dug into his skin. In a way he was ashamed of them. He had gotten careless and it had almost cost him his life.
“It's over.”
“I know it's just...”It all rushed back to him and he fell silent.
“I thought I was going to loose you.” Roy nodded, too overwhelmed to speak. He had always marveled at how Dick knew exactly what he needed to say. In this case what they both needed to say. Words had never been his strong suit. He turned and loosely wrapped his arms around Dick's neck. Dick surprised him by leaning in and capturing his lips. The kiss was short and exploratory. It reminded Roy of their first kiss except this time it was Dick who had taken the initiative and not him. They pulled apart slightly and Dick raised his hand and ran it through his hair. His hand traveled down Roy's temple and stopped at the edge of the archer's mask.
“I need to see you. We've hid this long enough.” Roy didn't trust himself to speak so he nodded. Despite being willing he couldn't help but close his eyes as Dick peeled his mask away. Old habits died hard. When he finally gathered enough courage to open them the first thing he saw was Dick's ice blue eyes watching him with concern. They softened as Roy gave him a weak smile.
“Batman is going to kill you.”
“I don't care.” The words were barely out of his mouth before he had captured Roy's lips once again and Roy shivered as Dick pressed him against the wall of the hallway. The months of frustration and worry that they had shared for each other dissipated as they melted against one another. When they pulled apart it was because they both needed to breathe and Roy couldn't help but grin at Dick. He could feel the other boy's warm breath as Dick moved in closer and he couldn't help but pull Dick into another kiss as the other boy spoke.
“I love you Roy.”