Gosh, this was too much fun.
Subject: Terra/Robin
Themes in Batch: Red, Big, Aim (all my own words)
Themes Completed: 30/30
Love
Robin knew everything. He just did. And whenever Terra would ask him a question, his face would scrunch up into what Cyborg called the "serious face".
So when Terra bounded over to help do the dishes, she had already come up with today's "challenging question". She was determined to stump him, and she knew she could.
"What did you come up with today?" he asked without even looking up.
She mustered up as serious a face as she could. "Robin, how do you know if you're in love?"
That was the first time Terra had ever seen his confused face.
Ring
She had sure been in there for along time. Why did they only have one bathroom?
When she finally came out, her hair wrapped in a towel, she didn't seem to feel any shame in having taken so long. That is, until she saw that he'd been waiting.
"I'm sorry," she squeaked, and he knew he had to work fast to keep her from being upset.
"I don't mind waiting," he said.
Then he saw it: a huge ring of dirt in the tub.
"I'm sorry!" she squeaked again.
"It's okay," he smiled, grabbing the cleanser after she had left.
Snow
She had traveled enough to know that it was absolutely required for there to be snow on Christmas Eve. Even if you didn't celebrate Christmas, it was at least supposed to snow sometime in December. Everyone knew that! Except Mother Nature.
So she got up early that morning to frost the windows so that she could at least pretend that it had snowed. It was insanely early, and she hadn't expected anyone else to be awake. But there he was.
"Robin?" she asked, peering at him.
He smiled sheepishly, holding up a present. "I'm Santa Clause this year," he explained.
Hate
The words tasted funny on her lips even as she said them. Out of all the others, his was the anger that hurt her most.
The others were nothing. She could turn her back on them all and feel no remorse. He was the only one who could make her wonder if she was right.
He had taken this path. But then he'd left it. Why? He was a mystery; he intrigued her. And so she had gotten attached. Drawn as a moth to flame.
She could attack him. She could even destroy him. But she just couldn't hate him.
Book
When they had told her that he was studying, she guessed analysis. Or statistics. Never Shakespeare.
And if it had to be Shakespeare, never Romeo and Juliet. A love story? No, not him. It went against everything she thought of him. It put him in a different category than she normally put him in. And she liked it much more when things made sense.
Then he looked up and saw her standing there in the doorway. She smiled; he blushed and slammed the book shut.
"How long have you been standing there?" he asked, returning to his "category" once more.
Rose
He knew. She shouldn't have been so surprised that he knew. He knew everything. But she had hoped that maybe she could fool him. Claim she didn't know who he was. It had worked on his friend. It just didn't work for him.
Because there it was. Sitting next to her bookbag. She hadn't even seen him come in the room. But he had, and there it was.
And it could only have been him. If it had been anyone else, it would have been a yellow rose. Only he remembered that her favorite color was red. Not yellow. Red.
Dead
"It's me. The others think I'm working in my room, so I won't be able to stay long. I don't like it when they follow me." He shined his flashlight around to make sure he really was alone. Because something about talking out loud when he wasn't even sure if anyone could hear him made him uncomfortable.
He fell into silence. And thought. Because he was good at thinking; no one could hear him then. He thought about everything he could have done to change things back then. Because he couldn't change the truth: the girl he knew was dead.
Picture
"I can't help you. Sorry."
"But, Terra, it's me! It's Robin! You don't have to lie to me!"
"Are you going to keep bothering me if I tell you I'm not lying?"
He stared at the computer screen, willing the words out of his head. Mere memories. She wanted to lie to him? Fine. He would move on.
Right. That was easier said than done. He couldn't bring himself to forget like she had. He's already tried to throw away her junk, too.
But the mind is peculiar, and his wouldn't let go of her picture. His dreams. Their secrets.
Music
Raven hated it. Starfire found it intriguing. Cyborg didn't mind. And Beast Boy sang along. But he had bought the stereo, and he decided what he wanted to listen to.
"I can't hear myself think," Raven protested.
Then Terra walked in. "I love this song!" she grinned, running over to join Beast Boy in karaoke. They weren't too bad, either.
Raven rolled her eyes. Starfire and Cyborg cheered. Beast Boy danced. And Terra winked at him.
"Doesn't Robin have good taste in music?" she asked when the song ended. The others agreed. Because they loved Terra. And Terra loved rock.
Luck
"No, really, I can't find one."
"Sure, whatever, Terra."
"Are you going to help me or not?"
He laughed and knelt down beside her, the grass prickling his skin and making him uncomfortable. He should really put his gloves back on.
"Did you find one yet?"
He flicked an ant off his knuckles. "Not yet. Why do you want one so badly?"
Her eyes darkened for a moment as she said, "Just in case I need some good luck."
He reached over and wrapped his hand around hers. "You've got us, Terra. Why do you need a four-leaf clover?"
Blue
"You're going to ruin the surprise."
"I swear I won't tell me. Scoot over," she laughed. He moved, and she tried to sit on the chair, but fell off.
"You okay?"
"Yeah. That was my bad," she said, brushing herself off. "Are you done yet? Will I like the surprise?"
He blushed; he wasn't good at this sort of thing. But he wanted to make her smile.... "I just need to figure out what to write in the card."
"How 'bout: 'Roses are red, violets are blue' or something?"
"Violet's aren't really blue, Terra."
"They are to me, so there!"
Rain
When his hair got wet, it lost its spike. At first he looked really weird, with his hair gel dripping down over his face and shoulders. But once the shower of hair gel stopped, he looked handsome. More relaxed. Human.
Which only made her feel worse about her own appearance. After an hour of toiling with Starfire to figure out the various jars, she had finally perfected her makeup. Now the rain had smeared her mascara.
But he didn't care. He was too worried about her. She'd slipped up, and now she didn't think she could fool him any longer.
Sleep
She could hear him even from where she sat in the living room, sipping her hot chocolate. She heard the definite 'tap, tap' of footsteps coming down the hallway towards her.
She didn't want him to know she was here. Because then he would start worrying about her again, and then he wouldn't get any sleep. Not that he ever really slept in the first place. He just sort of pretended to.
She ducked under the couch, hoping he hadn't seen her. He must have been really preoccupied, because he didn't. She wished she could make him better, but she couldn't.
Cold
He just lay there. He didn't move, and he didn't flinch when she tentatively kicked him. Part of her wanted to cry, to cradle his head in her arms and whisper "I'm sorry" a thousand times. Because he could have stopped her if he'd tried. But he hadn't. Because he loved her.
But she pushed that part of her aside and focused on the other part. The part that took pride in having defeated such a noteworthy opponenet. The part that bent down to pick up the proof, the insignia on his chest, and ignored how cold the metal felt.
Alive
It didn't matter that she knew she was doomed. It didn't matter that she could hear the anger, the hurt, laced in every word. At least she could hear him. And even if he probably hated her now, even if he got all obsessive and hunted her down or something, she would know he was there.
She hadn't forseen how much it would hurt. How badly she would miss them -him. But it had hurt. She didn't like how much it hurt.
So it didn't matter if he hated her. She didn't care. As long as he was still alive.
Emotion
He had never been good at it. He had never appreciated just how good it might feel to talk. To really talk to someone about the fear. The anger, frustration, hurt. And then covering it all up. He had never thought about it.
But with her, it was different. Somehow, she understood. She understood when he explained why he locked away all emotino. He wasn't sure whether to be happy about that or not, though. There was always that question in the back of his mind. That lurking suspicion. How? How could she know fear so well, especially his fear?
Smile
"I bet you can't."
"'Course I can."
"Not with him. He never laughed."
"I didn't say laugh. I said smile."
She'd stumped him. His mouth opened to say something, then closed again. He just stared at her, then crossed his arms over his chest. "I still think you can't."
"Watch me," she smirked, pulling her chin up over the edge of the couch. "Hey, Robin!" she shouted, waving at him.
"Hey, Terra," he said, briefly returning the smile before turning back to his work.
"I don't believe it," Beast Boy said, shaking his head.
"Believe it. I win the bet."
Stars
He stared up at the ceiling, lost in thought as he often was. She had come back. He had tried to keep his excitement down. It seemed too good to be true. She had gotten control of her powers. She was here to stay.
Maybe he could try again. Maybe she had forgotten her whirlwing romance with Beast Boy. Maybe they could start over. Maybe she could be his.
Right. He was kidding himself. Dreaming. He didn't like dreaming. He liked reality more.
But as long as he was dreaming, he'd also like the stars. Or a sports car.
Sky
He fell backwards onto the soft grass, breathing heavily. The game was over. His team had won. He put his hands behind his head and stared up at the clouds rolling past in the sky.
"Nothing like a game of football on a summer day, huh?" he chuckled when a shadow came over to sit by him.
"Yeah."
He sat up. He knew that tone. But he hadn't heard it for a long time. "Yo, Robin, what's up with you?"
"I'm just tired."
He frowned. He didn't like it when Robin lied.
"It's Terra," Robin admitted. "I'm worried about her."
Time
He was never late. Unless he was obsessing or something, and then he was always late to breakfast, lunch, and dinner. And bedtime. But he was never late for this kind of thing. He was never late for her.
She liked sneaking out on dates with him. It made her feel excited. Something about working to keep a secret was exciting. Only, this was a smaller secret, and she had one of the best secret keepers in the world to help her keep it. And she wouldn't mess this one up. This one wasn't bad. This one didn't hurt anybody. Her exciting secret wouldn't mess everything up. Not this time.
Beach
She didn't like the feel of dirt. That's why she wore gloves. She didn't like to be reminded of mud and dirt and messing up again.
But sand was different. At least, this sand was. It was all white, not dirty and brown. And it squished when she stepped in it. It got all in her toes, but it sort of tickles and felt good. And she really liked it when he held her hand and they just sat there on the beach, watching the sunset as she played in the sand with her feet without even moving much.
Holiday
"Look! There's me! And there's you guys!"
"Glorious!"
Beast Boy flipped the page in the magazine, and his long ears drooped. Raven looked over his shoulder, and her eyes widened. "Oh," was all she could manage to say.
Terra tried to look, but Beast Boy kept purposefully blocking her view. Robin looked up, sighed in annoyance, and grabbed the magazine out of Beast Boy's hands.
Terra gasped at the Halloween costume depicting her. The girl in the magazine looked like...someone she'd rather not be.
Robin put a hand on her shoulder. "It's okay. Halloween's a dumb holiday, anyway."
Angel
"Isn't it great?"
"Not really."
"Oh, come on! I've been dying to get 'The Phantom of the Opera' since it came out on video!"
"I'm not one for musicals," he shrugged.
"But it's so romantic! And when the phantom calls her his angel, and she doesn't love him, and he's all alone... You have to admit, it's an awesome movie."
He glanced over to where Starfire and Raven were making popcorn and talking. "I'm not one for love triangles. I get enough of that from the newspapers, you know?"
She nodded, her eyes wide and serious. "I know what you mean."
Forever
She banged on the door. Silence. Blowing out her breath in annoyance, she rolled her eyes and banged harder. "Come on! You can't stay in your room all your life!"
Robin stayed in his room for forever and a day. He stayed in there and worked on whatever new clue he could possibly find. He made sure to work every angle of his case.
And it wasn't like she wasn't grateful. It made her feel wanted when she saw how hard he worked to keep her safe. She just wanted to see his face once in a blue moon.
Fight
She was tired. She was scared. And she hurt. Lots.
She didn't want to hurt anyone anymore. She didn't want to pretend she enjoyed it. Because she really hated it.
And when he showed up, she saw that look. That something that lit up behind his mask every once in a while when she talked to him. When she really talked to him. About everything. But she hadn't decided whether that light was a good light or a bad light.
But it didn't matter right now. Because she had to fight him. And besides, right now, the light looked angry.
Movie
"Why isn't real life more like fairy tales?"
"I thought I already answered the Question of the Day."
"Yeah, but I just want to know. How come there's never a 'happily ever after'? How come there's sadness in the world? Why do the bad guys get away?"
He raised an eyebrow. "What got you so worked up?"
She sighed, "Movie night with Starfire. All the stories had happy endings, and I wondered why real life wasn't like that."
He thought for a moment, then said, "Terra?"
"Yeah?"
"Go watch a horror movie. I guarantee you'll like real life much better."
Animal
He is a cat with big eyes. He is a small rabbit that cuddles up next to her. He is a boy who tries to be inconspicuous as he puts his arm around her shoulders.
And , oh, he is so cute. Even in one of his animal forms, he is cute. And he is sweet. And he likes her.
But then Robin comes in, and he is good at being inconspicuous as he puts his hand around hers. And he gently brushes her arm with the tips of his fingers, and, oh, why does he have to be so nice?
Big *new
It hurt. It hurt liked nothing she had imagined, and it wasn't a hut like falling or being hit of anything. It was a hurt way down in the pit of her stomach when she knew that she had to lie to him. The hurt that came when he gave her that look that meant that he knew that she was lying.
And it was hard to act like she was really happy. It was wrong; she wasn't happy. She wanted to tell him everything, to break down and cry. But big girls don't cry, and she was big.
Red *new
She almost didn't see it. If it hadn't been her turn to wash the laundry, she might not have ever seen it at all.
And now she held the tiny hair in her hands, scrutinizing it. It could be nothing, she knew. Terra liked to help Robin train. It must have been nothing.
But Robin was, as they said, overly neat. He would have noticed. His shirt was red; her hair was blonde. He would have seen. He saw everything.
Unless he knew already. Unless he just didn't care. But why? It seemed she would have to talk to him.
Aim *new
He puts his hands on her shoulders, turning them slightly to the left as she takes a deep breath and tried to calm down.
"It's okay. You're getting better. This is a hard exercise," he whispers softly in her ear.
She wonders why she can't get it right. She already has control of her powers, so why couldn't she hit the target?
"Alright. Take your stance," he says, then moves her shoulders once more. "Let's try something. You keep going to the right, so aim a little to the left."
She nods, then shoot the rock towards the target.
"Perfect," he grins.
Themes in Batch: Red, Big, Aim (all my own words)
Themes Completed: 30/30
Love
Robin knew everything. He just did. And whenever Terra would ask him a question, his face would scrunch up into what Cyborg called the "serious face".
So when Terra bounded over to help do the dishes, she had already come up with today's "challenging question". She was determined to stump him, and she knew she could.
"What did you come up with today?" he asked without even looking up.
She mustered up as serious a face as she could. "Robin, how do you know if you're in love?"
That was the first time Terra had ever seen his confused face.
Ring
She had sure been in there for along time. Why did they only have one bathroom?
When she finally came out, her hair wrapped in a towel, she didn't seem to feel any shame in having taken so long. That is, until she saw that he'd been waiting.
"I'm sorry," she squeaked, and he knew he had to work fast to keep her from being upset.
"I don't mind waiting," he said.
Then he saw it: a huge ring of dirt in the tub.
"I'm sorry!" she squeaked again.
"It's okay," he smiled, grabbing the cleanser after she had left.
Snow
She had traveled enough to know that it was absolutely required for there to be snow on Christmas Eve. Even if you didn't celebrate Christmas, it was at least supposed to snow sometime in December. Everyone knew that! Except Mother Nature.
So she got up early that morning to frost the windows so that she could at least pretend that it had snowed. It was insanely early, and she hadn't expected anyone else to be awake. But there he was.
"Robin?" she asked, peering at him.
He smiled sheepishly, holding up a present. "I'm Santa Clause this year," he explained.
Hate
The words tasted funny on her lips even as she said them. Out of all the others, his was the anger that hurt her most.
The others were nothing. She could turn her back on them all and feel no remorse. He was the only one who could make her wonder if she was right.
He had taken this path. But then he'd left it. Why? He was a mystery; he intrigued her. And so she had gotten attached. Drawn as a moth to flame.
She could attack him. She could even destroy him. But she just couldn't hate him.
Book
When they had told her that he was studying, she guessed analysis. Or statistics. Never Shakespeare.
And if it had to be Shakespeare, never Romeo and Juliet. A love story? No, not him. It went against everything she thought of him. It put him in a different category than she normally put him in. And she liked it much more when things made sense.
Then he looked up and saw her standing there in the doorway. She smiled; he blushed and slammed the book shut.
"How long have you been standing there?" he asked, returning to his "category" once more.
Rose
He knew. She shouldn't have been so surprised that he knew. He knew everything. But she had hoped that maybe she could fool him. Claim she didn't know who he was. It had worked on his friend. It just didn't work for him.
Because there it was. Sitting next to her bookbag. She hadn't even seen him come in the room. But he had, and there it was.
And it could only have been him. If it had been anyone else, it would have been a yellow rose. Only he remembered that her favorite color was red. Not yellow. Red.
Dead
"It's me. The others think I'm working in my room, so I won't be able to stay long. I don't like it when they follow me." He shined his flashlight around to make sure he really was alone. Because something about talking out loud when he wasn't even sure if anyone could hear him made him uncomfortable.
He fell into silence. And thought. Because he was good at thinking; no one could hear him then. He thought about everything he could have done to change things back then. Because he couldn't change the truth: the girl he knew was dead.
Picture
"I can't help you. Sorry."
"But, Terra, it's me! It's Robin! You don't have to lie to me!"
"Are you going to keep bothering me if I tell you I'm not lying?"
He stared at the computer screen, willing the words out of his head. Mere memories. She wanted to lie to him? Fine. He would move on.
Right. That was easier said than done. He couldn't bring himself to forget like she had. He's already tried to throw away her junk, too.
But the mind is peculiar, and his wouldn't let go of her picture. His dreams. Their secrets.
Music
Raven hated it. Starfire found it intriguing. Cyborg didn't mind. And Beast Boy sang along. But he had bought the stereo, and he decided what he wanted to listen to.
"I can't hear myself think," Raven protested.
Then Terra walked in. "I love this song!" she grinned, running over to join Beast Boy in karaoke. They weren't too bad, either.
Raven rolled her eyes. Starfire and Cyborg cheered. Beast Boy danced. And Terra winked at him.
"Doesn't Robin have good taste in music?" she asked when the song ended. The others agreed. Because they loved Terra. And Terra loved rock.
Luck
"No, really, I can't find one."
"Sure, whatever, Terra."
"Are you going to help me or not?"
He laughed and knelt down beside her, the grass prickling his skin and making him uncomfortable. He should really put his gloves back on.
"Did you find one yet?"
He flicked an ant off his knuckles. "Not yet. Why do you want one so badly?"
Her eyes darkened for a moment as she said, "Just in case I need some good luck."
He reached over and wrapped his hand around hers. "You've got us, Terra. Why do you need a four-leaf clover?"
Blue
"You're going to ruin the surprise."
"I swear I won't tell me. Scoot over," she laughed. He moved, and she tried to sit on the chair, but fell off.
"You okay?"
"Yeah. That was my bad," she said, brushing herself off. "Are you done yet? Will I like the surprise?"
He blushed; he wasn't good at this sort of thing. But he wanted to make her smile.... "I just need to figure out what to write in the card."
"How 'bout: 'Roses are red, violets are blue' or something?"
"Violet's aren't really blue, Terra."
"They are to me, so there!"
Rain
When his hair got wet, it lost its spike. At first he looked really weird, with his hair gel dripping down over his face and shoulders. But once the shower of hair gel stopped, he looked handsome. More relaxed. Human.
Which only made her feel worse about her own appearance. After an hour of toiling with Starfire to figure out the various jars, she had finally perfected her makeup. Now the rain had smeared her mascara.
But he didn't care. He was too worried about her. She'd slipped up, and now she didn't think she could fool him any longer.
Sleep
She could hear him even from where she sat in the living room, sipping her hot chocolate. She heard the definite 'tap, tap' of footsteps coming down the hallway towards her.
She didn't want him to know she was here. Because then he would start worrying about her again, and then he wouldn't get any sleep. Not that he ever really slept in the first place. He just sort of pretended to.
She ducked under the couch, hoping he hadn't seen her. He must have been really preoccupied, because he didn't. She wished she could make him better, but she couldn't.
Cold
He just lay there. He didn't move, and he didn't flinch when she tentatively kicked him. Part of her wanted to cry, to cradle his head in her arms and whisper "I'm sorry" a thousand times. Because he could have stopped her if he'd tried. But he hadn't. Because he loved her.
But she pushed that part of her aside and focused on the other part. The part that took pride in having defeated such a noteworthy opponenet. The part that bent down to pick up the proof, the insignia on his chest, and ignored how cold the metal felt.
Alive
It didn't matter that she knew she was doomed. It didn't matter that she could hear the anger, the hurt, laced in every word. At least she could hear him. And even if he probably hated her now, even if he got all obsessive and hunted her down or something, she would know he was there.
She hadn't forseen how much it would hurt. How badly she would miss them -him. But it had hurt. She didn't like how much it hurt.
So it didn't matter if he hated her. She didn't care. As long as he was still alive.
Emotion
He had never been good at it. He had never appreciated just how good it might feel to talk. To really talk to someone about the fear. The anger, frustration, hurt. And then covering it all up. He had never thought about it.
But with her, it was different. Somehow, she understood. She understood when he explained why he locked away all emotino. He wasn't sure whether to be happy about that or not, though. There was always that question in the back of his mind. That lurking suspicion. How? How could she know fear so well, especially his fear?
Smile
"I bet you can't."
"'Course I can."
"Not with him. He never laughed."
"I didn't say laugh. I said smile."
She'd stumped him. His mouth opened to say something, then closed again. He just stared at her, then crossed his arms over his chest. "I still think you can't."
"Watch me," she smirked, pulling her chin up over the edge of the couch. "Hey, Robin!" she shouted, waving at him.
"Hey, Terra," he said, briefly returning the smile before turning back to his work.
"I don't believe it," Beast Boy said, shaking his head.
"Believe it. I win the bet."
Stars
He stared up at the ceiling, lost in thought as he often was. She had come back. He had tried to keep his excitement down. It seemed too good to be true. She had gotten control of her powers. She was here to stay.
Maybe he could try again. Maybe she had forgotten her whirlwing romance with Beast Boy. Maybe they could start over. Maybe she could be his.
Right. He was kidding himself. Dreaming. He didn't like dreaming. He liked reality more.
But as long as he was dreaming, he'd also like the stars. Or a sports car.
Sky
He fell backwards onto the soft grass, breathing heavily. The game was over. His team had won. He put his hands behind his head and stared up at the clouds rolling past in the sky.
"Nothing like a game of football on a summer day, huh?" he chuckled when a shadow came over to sit by him.
"Yeah."
He sat up. He knew that tone. But he hadn't heard it for a long time. "Yo, Robin, what's up with you?"
"I'm just tired."
He frowned. He didn't like it when Robin lied.
"It's Terra," Robin admitted. "I'm worried about her."
Time
He was never late. Unless he was obsessing or something, and then he was always late to breakfast, lunch, and dinner. And bedtime. But he was never late for this kind of thing. He was never late for her.
She liked sneaking out on dates with him. It made her feel excited. Something about working to keep a secret was exciting. Only, this was a smaller secret, and she had one of the best secret keepers in the world to help her keep it. And she wouldn't mess this one up. This one wasn't bad. This one didn't hurt anybody. Her exciting secret wouldn't mess everything up. Not this time.
Beach
She didn't like the feel of dirt. That's why she wore gloves. She didn't like to be reminded of mud and dirt and messing up again.
But sand was different. At least, this sand was. It was all white, not dirty and brown. And it squished when she stepped in it. It got all in her toes, but it sort of tickles and felt good. And she really liked it when he held her hand and they just sat there on the beach, watching the sunset as she played in the sand with her feet without even moving much.
Holiday
"Look! There's me! And there's you guys!"
"Glorious!"
Beast Boy flipped the page in the magazine, and his long ears drooped. Raven looked over his shoulder, and her eyes widened. "Oh," was all she could manage to say.
Terra tried to look, but Beast Boy kept purposefully blocking her view. Robin looked up, sighed in annoyance, and grabbed the magazine out of Beast Boy's hands.
Terra gasped at the Halloween costume depicting her. The girl in the magazine looked like...someone she'd rather not be.
Robin put a hand on her shoulder. "It's okay. Halloween's a dumb holiday, anyway."
Angel
"Isn't it great?"
"Not really."
"Oh, come on! I've been dying to get 'The Phantom of the Opera' since it came out on video!"
"I'm not one for musicals," he shrugged.
"But it's so romantic! And when the phantom calls her his angel, and she doesn't love him, and he's all alone... You have to admit, it's an awesome movie."
He glanced over to where Starfire and Raven were making popcorn and talking. "I'm not one for love triangles. I get enough of that from the newspapers, you know?"
She nodded, her eyes wide and serious. "I know what you mean."
Forever
She banged on the door. Silence. Blowing out her breath in annoyance, she rolled her eyes and banged harder. "Come on! You can't stay in your room all your life!"
Robin stayed in his room for forever and a day. He stayed in there and worked on whatever new clue he could possibly find. He made sure to work every angle of his case.
And it wasn't like she wasn't grateful. It made her feel wanted when she saw how hard he worked to keep her safe. She just wanted to see his face once in a blue moon.
Fight
She was tired. She was scared. And she hurt. Lots.
She didn't want to hurt anyone anymore. She didn't want to pretend she enjoyed it. Because she really hated it.
And when he showed up, she saw that look. That something that lit up behind his mask every once in a while when she talked to him. When she really talked to him. About everything. But she hadn't decided whether that light was a good light or a bad light.
But it didn't matter right now. Because she had to fight him. And besides, right now, the light looked angry.
Movie
"Why isn't real life more like fairy tales?"
"I thought I already answered the Question of the Day."
"Yeah, but I just want to know. How come there's never a 'happily ever after'? How come there's sadness in the world? Why do the bad guys get away?"
He raised an eyebrow. "What got you so worked up?"
She sighed, "Movie night with Starfire. All the stories had happy endings, and I wondered why real life wasn't like that."
He thought for a moment, then said, "Terra?"
"Yeah?"
"Go watch a horror movie. I guarantee you'll like real life much better."
Animal
He is a cat with big eyes. He is a small rabbit that cuddles up next to her. He is a boy who tries to be inconspicuous as he puts his arm around her shoulders.
And , oh, he is so cute. Even in one of his animal forms, he is cute. And he is sweet. And he likes her.
But then Robin comes in, and he is good at being inconspicuous as he puts his hand around hers. And he gently brushes her arm with the tips of his fingers, and, oh, why does he have to be so nice?
Big *new
It hurt. It hurt liked nothing she had imagined, and it wasn't a hut like falling or being hit of anything. It was a hurt way down in the pit of her stomach when she knew that she had to lie to him. The hurt that came when he gave her that look that meant that he knew that she was lying.
And it was hard to act like she was really happy. It was wrong; she wasn't happy. She wanted to tell him everything, to break down and cry. But big girls don't cry, and she was big.
Red *new
She almost didn't see it. If it hadn't been her turn to wash the laundry, she might not have ever seen it at all.
And now she held the tiny hair in her hands, scrutinizing it. It could be nothing, she knew. Terra liked to help Robin train. It must have been nothing.
But Robin was, as they said, overly neat. He would have noticed. His shirt was red; her hair was blonde. He would have seen. He saw everything.
Unless he knew already. Unless he just didn't care. But why? It seemed she would have to talk to him.
Aim *new
He puts his hands on her shoulders, turning them slightly to the left as she takes a deep breath and tried to calm down.
"It's okay. You're getting better. This is a hard exercise," he whispers softly in her ear.
She wonders why she can't get it right. She already has control of her powers, so why couldn't she hit the target?
"Alright. Take your stance," he says, then moves her shoulders once more. "Let's try something. You keep going to the right, so aim a little to the left."
She nods, then shoot the rock towards the target.
"Perfect," he grins.