A/N: Hello everyone, I have returned with more Titan goodness. Season 5 is coming along, I swear, but I needed a break. It's getting to a kind of dramatic point that not even a certain little someone (hint hint) can't fully solve.

Either way, enjoy the spiritual sequel to After the Beast, this time focusing on Robin and Starfire.

The new Jump City Jive had come in that morning, but this edition was special to Starfire. Every second Saturday of the month, they would publish the results of a poll they constantly had going: The Power Couple of the Month. As a hopeless romantic, Starfire eagerly awaited to see whom the citizens of Jump City had chosen to admire. Any celebrity couple was eligible, but for the last eight months, there seemed to be a stalemate over who got the top spot, usually by something as close as a two percent margin. It was either Raven and Beast Boy, who had been publicly outed on a date a few months prior, or…

Starfire looked over to where her partner in this month's Power Couple poll winner sat eating his cereal and reading through the Gotham Gazette. She and Robin had won. Again. This month had been one of the not-so-close ones - winning by ten percent over Beast Boy and Raven - and she understood why. Robin had returned from his month-long training expedition last week, and she had spent every waking moment she possibly could with him. The distance had been so hard for her, and dressing up in his costume had only lessened the ache slightly.

She watched as he flipped the paper over, mask never leaving the black and white print, and sighed wistfully, not touching her Frosted Flakes and sriracha sauce. Starfire had surrendered to her feelings for him a long time ago, even before the Red X incident, but it didn't make anything easier. In truth, it just hurt more. Jump City kept declaring them to be the best couple they knew of; why hadn't Robin noticed?

"Raven, add almond milk to the list, would ya?" Beast Boy called from the kitchen as he poured the last of the milk into his cereal bowl.

"I'll make a note of it, sir," the empath replied dully but without any venom from where she was perched on the couch. Starfire watched as Beast Boy dashed happily around the couch, steaming tea on a saucer in one hand and his bowl of Honey Nut Cheerios in the other, and sat himself beside his girlfriend with a peck on the cheek before handing her the tea. Starfire didn't need to see Raven's face to know she was smiling just a little as the couple ate and drank in silence. Cyborg had excused himself to use the restroom a minute before, so it was just the four of them in the room at the moment.

The rustling of paper caused her attention to shift back to her seatmate. Ever since the morning Beast Boy and Raven got together, Robin had been heeding her wish for him to stop avoiding her and scurrying away from her when someone entered the room during breakfast. He always sat right next to her, sharing his papers with her and talking to her about what his plans were for the day. But nothing else had changed. Even when he returned from his training, he'd simply returned her hug and told her he'd tell her everything later. No "I missed you." No "I'm so glad to see you again." Just… as much as he'd given the rest of their friends.

Perhaps I am missing something, Starfire reasoned, or perhaps I am deceiving myself…

Despondently, she rose from her seat and walked towards the door. Noticing the absence of body warmth next to him, Robin looked up.

"Starfire?" he asked, and she could hear Raven and Beast Boy look her way as well. She bit her lip away from him; she could hear his worry. She never left during breakfast, not before she'd even eaten and definitely not when Robin was still there. But this morning, the alien half of the Jump City Jive's Power Couple of the month could not take the not-so-solitary solitude anymore.

"If you will excuse me, friends," she said politely, not turning around, "I must be going." The door in front of her opened to show Cyborg, and inwardly she frowned. She didn't want anyone to see her face right then - no doubt twisted in sadness and self-loathing - but she couldn't avoid him as she brushed past him and into the hall. She heard Cyborg call her name but she didn't respond as she powerwalked to her room.

The second the doors opened, Cyborg knew there was a problem. Starfire wasn't even pretending to be cheery like she had when she was getting ready to get married on Tamaran. She was downright sad and frustrated, and he could see it as plain as day. And he knew why.

So when she didn't respond to his call, he looked to his leader. Robin was looking back at him with utter confusion and shock, his mouth hanging open. It was at moments like these when Cyborg was frustrated at Robin's infatuation with his mask; he couldn't see what else was going on behind it, whether it was hurt or just plain surprise.

Cyborg then snuck a glance over to the couch. Raven's face looked predictably impassive with a hint of sympathy while Beast Boy looked concerned and frustrated. The other resident couple and he were not as dense as their illustrious captain, so one look told him they knew exactly why Starfire had left.

Which is why when Cyborg said, "Hey, Rob, Raven wanted to do some sparring practice this afternoon," Raven and Beast Boy leaped into action.

Keeping up to date on current happenings is imperative for any crime fighter. Batman had drilled that into Robin from a young age, and he kept that in mind every morning as he combed through each of his five newspapers with studious furor. New crime trends, gang movements, notable criminals arrested and released - all were crucial to know to keep his city and his team safe.

But for the last few months, reading the paper had become more than just another menial duty. Ever since Starfire had told him it had hurt her feelings when he'd get embarrassed to sit so close to her, he had been attempting to engage her more and teach her vocabulary when she asked. They would share each paper, he'd point out an important bit of information and she'd point to a strangely-worded sentence. He noticed that she soaked up the information like a sponge; about two months ago, she had been the one to see the connection between missing cargo shipments at the docks that had been five months apart, and it led to a huge smuggling ring bust. It had made him proud to see her taking her responsibilities so seriously.

However, more than her progress in detective work, he had enjoyed her company. The warmth of her as she'd lean in to read something on the page he was holding, the smell of her hair when she leaned her head on his shoulder, her smile when she understood a new word or made similar connections he did, he really cherished their morning paper readings.

Which is why, when she rose from her seat without so much as a "Please excuse me," he could feel his chest tighten and his fingers go slack on the Gazette he was holding.

"Starfire?" he asked. Was something wrong? Was she sick? She hadn't touched her cereal, she hadn't even tried to read the Daily Star or the Gazette with him when normally he'd have to beat her off the Clark Kent articles with a stick. Once they'd finished the Jive, she'd just… stopped. Robin hadn't seen her act this strangely since her fake engagement.

"If you will excuse me, friends," she said politely, not turning around, "I must be going." Robin was stunned. She always told them everything that was on her mind. That was why he never worried about her. She was so open, so honest, that this one instance made a feeling of fear and… something else begin to bubble in the pit of his stomach. He watched in shocked silence as she brushed past Cyborg, his eyes fastened to the corner of the door she had last occupied.

His breathing became erratic; she couldn't be sick, could she? Is she all right? Did she get hurt? They hadn't fought anyone in three days, was she hiding an injury from him? Did she get bad news from Tamaran? He prayed she wasn't sick because there was nothing he could do for her when she was sick. They'd spent so much time together, maybe he got her sick with his earthly bacteria. Maybe she-

"Hey, Rob, Raven wanted to do some sparring practice this afternoon," Cyborg announced, and Robin's attention was jerked from his hidden panicked spiral. Robin blinked. Sparring. Raven. Afternoon.

"All right, sounds good," he said diplomatically, trying very hard to get himself back under his control. Beast Boy rose from the couch and took his and Raven's dishes to the sink, and Raven walked over to where Robin sat at the table.

"One on one sparring," she demanded quietly, "I don't want anyone watching me." Robin nodded; he was used to Raven asking for privacy when it came to more physical activity. She relied so much on her powers that she lacked a bit in hand-to-hand and she didn't enjoy looking like a fool in front of the others, and he understood that.

"Dude," Beast Boy called to Cyborg from the kitchen, "we still on today with Ross?" Robin's interest piqued at the name, but he tried his best to remain passive as he folded the Gazette and reached for the London Times.

"I think so, man, I'll ask," Cyborg replied, flipping open a panel on his arm as he headed to the couch. Robin was about to open his mouth to ask who Ross was when Raven saved him the trouble.

"Ross is their new gamer buddy. They met when they went to that midnight premiere of the new Kingdom Hearts game. Yes, I ran a background check, he's clean. Goes to the all-boys boarding school just south of Jump, gets good grades, has had no contact with law enforcement," she informed him as she sat across from him with her book, and Robin nodded. He was fine with his team having friends outside of their circle, but he always insisted that they be thoroughly checked first for security's sake, and they were never allowed in the tower. Not after a certain blonde geomancer.

"Have fun, you two. Give the kid my regards," Robin said, nodding. He thought the two of them spent too much time in the Tower, a little time with the public would be good for them.

"Should we invite Star? She looked like she could use a pick-me-up," Cyborg asked Beast Boy, but Robin's ears perked.

"Sure, Ross would love to meet her. Huge Starfire fan," Beast Boy answered as he dried his hands off on the towel by the sink.

"Sounds… great," Robin croaked gracelessly, "She could use some fun." The leader side of him knew he was right - she could use some more friends, and everyone would love Starfire if she got out more - but the human side of him didn't really like it. Robin's hands clenched involuntarily as he opened the Times, attempting to focus as worry and something...darker started to bloom in the back of his mind.

He completely missed the look the other three Titans shared, one that clearly meant, "Phase One: Complete."