Time for fanfictiiiooonnnn!
Title: Starcrossed
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: Brainiac 5 x Robin
Summary: Brainiac 5 works for Brainiac, and Robin works for Slade. When their bosses decide to work together, the young apprentices form an unexpected bond.
Warnings: Slash, DCU crossover, dark AU.
This fic was inspired by my good friend's video on youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJl3Jpc385Q. Go watch it and read the full description! :) I'm actually extremely proud of this story, I think it's one of the best I've ever written... I ought to write dark themes more often.
He hated him.
He hated his pretty lips and smug intelligence, the way he looked at people like he was infinitely superior to them in every way. He hated his cunning magenta eyes and deceptively innocent smile.
It was with moody reluctance that he accepted Slade's decision to work together with Brainiac and his protigee. He understood Slade's reasoning for the partnership and did not question his judgement.
Robin just really hated Brainiac 5.
He forced a calm facade as he entered the lab, knowing that, more likely than not, that was where Brainiac 5 would be. Sure enough, the alien was seated at a table, scrutinizing a mess of wires like they held all the answers to the universe.
"Hey," Robin barked, stalking up to him.
"Robin," Brainy calmly greeted, not taking his eyes off his work. For some reason, that really ticked Robin off.
"Listen," he continued, placing a hand on the table and leaning in close to the Coluan. "Let me make this clear. I don't like you."
Brainy focused his unnerving, robotic eyes on him.
"I noticed."
The anger continued to boil in Robin's stomach, making him grind his teeth. He longed to take a shuriken and mar that smooth, green skin.
"Yeah, well, don't forget your place," he spat, narrowing his eyes dangerously. "Like it or not, you're under my roof now, which means you follow my rules."
Brainy blinked.
"I was under the impression that we were working together as equals," he said without inflection, but his purple eyes wandered down to Robin's chest appreciatively. The anger in Robin's stomach was joined by a new, powerful urge.
"Well," Robin spoke mockingly, leaning further in until he was a scant few inches away from the infuriating genius. "You were under the wrong impression."
Brainy took him by surprise and closed the space between them, grabbing the front of his shirt and smashing their lips together for a few shocking seconds. Fire coursed through Robin's veins.
"Is that so?" Brainy said, his mouth curving up to one side mischeviously.
Robin hated him more than ever in that moment, for snatching control away from him and making his body magnetize to him. He wanted to crush those smirking lips beneath his and make him beg; whether it was for release or for more, he was not entirely certain, but he wanted him to beg.
He grabbed Brainy by the back of his head and slammed his mouth violently down on his, showing him clearly who the dominant one was. Brainy willingly relented, giving in to the bruising force of Robin's lips with a small whimper.
Somehow they ended up on the cold, hard floor, the sound of shallow gasps and impassioned moans filling the pristine lab. Teeth scraped against flushed skin and fingers gripped and scratched. Every time Brainy attempted to shift against him or pull him down, Robin relentlessly pushed him back down and quieted him with a bite to the neck or too-tight press to the abdomen, not allowing him to take control even for a moment. The pleading noises he made as he writhed beneathe his touch made Robin's blood boil.
Yet somewhere along the line, it became less about teaching Brainy a lesson and more about identifying the taste of his surprisingly soft skin. He bit and sucked every inch he could reach, not bothering to hold back--he was never one for being gentle, anyway. Judging from the way Brainy arched needily against him, he had a feeling the Coluan did not really mind anyway.
Afterwards, when the two lay against each other, every inch of their bodies touching, Robin abruptly realized that he wanted this to happen again.
So began their dangerous game.
Their daily routines did not change much, unless one was paying close attention to detail. Robin found himself passing by the lab more than was necessary during the day, and sometimes, during training, he caught a glimpse of blond hair and green skin in the doorway to the dojo. At the end of the day, they would meet in private--sometimes in the lab, sometimes in each other's rooms--and in the dark, their lips would mold together and the heat from their bodies would blend and encompass them.
If Slade knew anything, he did not mention it, and it never really struck Robin as necessary to bring up in conversation. Hell, if the goal was to work seamlessly together, he was certain his and Brainy's activities only aided the endeavor. They fit together rather perfectly.
It became more and more difficult to only see Brainy at night. Robin's impatience to get the day over with showed in his training and temper; he was quicker to snap and more easily frustrated than usual, and remained angry until after dark, when he unleashed his pent-up need on Brainy. Of course, the intelligent bastard noticed, and made it a point to run into him frequently during the day, brushing against him in the halls or pulling him into a secluded room between missions. It helped and made things worse all at once.
Robin was confused on a constant basis, stuck between hating Brainy for the effect he had on his mind and body, and loving him for it, too. He knew Brainy controlled him mentally, so he sought to gain the upper hand physically whenever possible. He swelled with possessive pride whenever he caught a glimpse of a bruise on the young Coluan's slim neck, and felt triumphant when the smaller body bent to his will in the late hours of the night. When he held Brainy against him afterward and brushed the fair hair from his eyes, he made sure his even gaze conveyed the message: 'Mine, mine, you're mine.'
Then one day, Slade called him into his private quarters, and Robin felt something sink ominously in his stomach.
His footsteps echoed loudly as he approached his boss. Slade was turned away from him, observing reports on the screens that made up the entire South-facing wall. Robin came to a halt at his side, fighting back the urge to speak. Instead, he waited with forced patience for Slade to address him, knowing he'd get a lecture otherwise.
"Robin," Slade finally said quietly, tilting his head in his direction. "Do you know why I've called you here?"
The sinking feeling in his stomach persisted, but Robin shook his head, muttering a gruff "No" in response.
"Oh, I think you do," Came the knowing reply, and Robin met his gaze, uncertain. "Brainiac's apprentice has his... charms, I'm sure. I understand if you hold a certain level of attraction toward him."
Robin looked swiftly away, narrowing his eyes. Of course he knew. He always knew.
"You must put an end to it."
His head snapped up at that, shocked.
"What? Why?" The level of distress in his voice shamed and surprised him, but he stood his ground, waiting for the answer.
"I have been overlooking it up until now because I thought it wouldn't matter in the long run," Slade explained. "That it would maybe help relieve some of the tension you've been feeling from the missions. But your reaction is exactly why I cannot allow it to continue."
Robin could only listen in hopeless despair, feeling the weight of the words settle in his bones and cast a chill over his body. For the first time in his life, he questioned Slade's decision, and the betrayal was awful and unclean and he hated himself for it; yet it was still there, settling in the pit of his stomach, refusing to leave.
"Your activities with Brainiac 5 are compromising your ability to work," Slade persisted mercilessly. "Your behavior and training are only suffering from it. End it."
With that being said, Slade turned his attention back to the monitors, dismissing him.
Robin left feeling like his insides had been torn out and stomped all over. Too many emotions cluttered his mind; he was angry at himself for getting so careless, angry at Slade for making him break it off with Brainy, angry at Brainy for being so alluring and addicting. A small, terrifying part of him wanted to go against Slade's orders, and guilt tore at his gut for it.
Mostly, he felt the most crippling anguish he had ever experienced at the prospect of never feeling Brainy's lips slide against his again.
A headache made itself painfully aware at the front of his forehead, and Robin pinched the bridge of his nose, squinting his eyes shut. What he needed to do was work off some steam, stop thinking for a while.
Determined, Robin veered off into another hallway, heading toward the training room. He would find Brainy later, once he had a more level head and the resolve to do what had to be done.
In the end, it wound up being Brainy who found him, attacking a standing punching bag with a force that left his knuckles aching. The Coluan placed his hands on Robin's hips and kissed his shoulder, peering up at him with clever eyes. Robin nearly succumbed to his desires, but the unbending loyalty snapped back to him, and he turned around and firmly placed his hands on Brainy's shoulders, distancing himself.
Brainy tilted his head to the side in perplexion, eyes roaming Robin's face for answers.
"What's wrong?" he inquired, a note of confusion entering his voice.
"Slade forbade me from seeing you again," Robin said coldly. If he allowed his emotions to leak through even the tiniest bit, he would give in and do one of two things: wrap Brainy in his arms and take him until all he knew was his skin and lips and breathy sighs; or punch a wall and break one or both hands.
"I see..." Brainy said, lowering his gaze to the floor. Robin turned away from him, hoping he would just leave and never enter his life again. That would make everything so much easier...
"Couldn't you talk to him? Convince him otherwise?" Brainy asked unyieldingly. Robin clenched his fists at his sides.
"It wouldn't do any good," Robin said through gritted teeth. "Besides, Slade makes the orders, I follow them."
Why couldn't he understand what Robin was telling him? What happened to that so-called twelfth-level intellect? It was better to go their separate ways. Forget each other and all the passionate moments shared between them.
"But, surely we could do something," Brainy said, sounding like he was calculating the possibilities in his head.
"It's over, Brainy," Robin snapped, hating the harsh way his words came out. He could no longer control the anger and feeling of helpless desperation clawing at his insides.
"You don't mean that," Brainy stated with the upmost certainty.
The fuse had run out a long time ago, and without thinking, Robin turned swiftly and slammed his fist into the side of Brainy's face.
Brainy stumbled back, his hand reaching up to his face, which was already beginning to swell and mar the pretty green skin. Just like that, everything shattered between them, falling away to tiny, unmendable pieces. Already, Robin thought of them in the past tense, something to be remembered but never relived.
Their eyes met briefly in the still silence of the aftershock, and the thought hit Robin that he had probably loved him. The knowledge of something broken beyond repair hung in the air and suffocated him, squeezing the air from his lungs.
When he could no longer bring himself to look at the engrossing magenta of Brainy's eyes, he turned on his heel and left, never looking back.
He really hated him.