13. Feeling Good

"Oh, freedom is mine, and I know how I feel…"

Much as she had the day of her 16th birthday, the day after her 16th birthday found her greeting the sun on the Western side of the Titan Tower roof.

Much as he had on the day of her 16th birthday, Robin joined her, this time, before the sun had fully crested the horizon.

Unlike the day of her birthday, he approached, but didn't speak.

And after everything they'd gone through, after everything he'd done, after everything she'd experienced, she didn't feel even the tiniest bit hesitant to let her head loll back as the breeze picked up, letting her eyes close and letting the emotion wash over her - the warmth spreading inside her at the beauty of the dawn visible plainly in the lines of her face, the quirk of her lips. He watched her as her fingers splayed at her side, feeling something he took for granted - marveled at the openness of her expression as her eyes opened when the sun finally did peek over the edge of the horizon and she opened her eyes to stare at the world around her.

He'd never been so incredibly aware of what pure joy felt like as he did in that moment, watching Raven.

A gull appeared in the sky above them, shrieking as it dipped and rode the current of air, diving into the crash of the ocean and raising its wings again and Raven followed its movement, enthralled.

"This might be a stupid question," he finally spoke after a few moments. "But, how do you feel?"

She closed her eyes again, the soft smile still playing around her lips, her face dipped toward the warmth of the sun.

It took her a few moments to respond, and when she did, it wasn't with what he thought it'd be.

"Have you ever heard Nina Simone's music?"

He blinked a moment and thought. "Yeah, sure," he answered.

She turned her head toward him and opened her eyes. "This old world is a new world and a bold world for me," she quoted.

He wracked his brains for a moment to think of what song it was she was quoting, but it didn't come to her right away.

"It's a new dawn, it's a new day, it's a new life, for me," she quoted again, a warm smile slowly spreading across her lips the way the sun spread around them.

He smiled back, unable to do otherwise in the face of her joy.

"And I'm feelin' good."

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Original Upload Date: 10/30/17