"STAAARRFIIIRRE!"
Robin ran faster than he had ever run before. I'm going to save her. I know I will. But he was losing confidence. He felt guilt shoot through him, as painful as a dull blade. How could I let this happen?! It wasn't his fault.
And there she was…was this the beautiful Starfire he knew? Her body was covered in dirt and blood. "Star…" He picked her up delicately.
Her eyes opened slowly. "Robin…?"
Hold on to me, love
You know I can't stay long
All I wanted to say was I love you, and I'm not afraid
It had all been so simple. A bank was being robbed in the middle of the night; nothing compared to what the Titans had done before. In a last attempt to stop the crime, Starfire had released a starbolt. The bullets, unfortunately, had been faster.
Can you hear me?
Can you feel me in your arms?
Holding my last breath
Safe inside myself
Are all my thoughts of you
Sweet ruptured light
It ends here tonight
Starfire coughed. As she drew her hand away from her mouth, Robin saw blood splattered on her hand. He felt closer to tears than he'd ever been in his life. Starfire touched his face. That simple movement seemed to require all of her strength. "Robin, I am going to die soon. And I have something to tell you." Robin nodded.
"I love you. I have loved you for a long time. But I feared that you did not feel the same way about me, so I did not tell you. Until now."
A tear rolled silently down Robin's cheek. "I—I do, Star. I love you too."
I'll miss the winter
A world of fragile things
Look for me in a forest
Hiding in a hollow tree
Come find me
She stared up into the dark sky, stars scattered across it, the moon glowing like a pale mask of death. "I love this place. Earth. There are so many things to see." She turned to him slowly. "Now, I will not see anything more than I have already seen. I feel myself leaving."
Robin pulled her closer to himself. "No…Star…you can't go…not now…"
"I have no choice."
I know you hear me
I can taste it in your tears
Holding my last breath
Safe inside myself
Are all my thoughts of you
Sweet ruptured light
It ends here tonight
Her breathing was slow and heavy now. She winced in pain. "Goodbye." Her eyes closed. Her head fell back. And then she was gone.
Closing
your eyes to disappear
You pray your dreams will leave you
here
But still you wake and know the truth
No one's there
Say goodnight
Don't be afraid
Calling me, calling me
As you
fade to black
Robin stood up, still holding the body. He delicately touched the ruby hair, the angelic face. Her blood fell onto his fingers. "Star…I…" He choked on the words, but it didn't matter. She wasn't there to hear him. He felt a hand on his shoulders and turned to look at Raven's face. The first thing he noticed was her tears. "C'mon. Let's go."
Holding my last breath
Safe inside myself
Are all my thoughts of you
Sweet ruptured light
It ends here tonight