Summary: After he broke his apprentiship with Slade, Robin vowed to never leave the Teen Titans. But Starfire hasn't seen him for a week, and he's ignoring her. When she goes to his room, searching for an explanation, she finds something so horrible that she vows not to tell anyone else...
Disclaimer: I don't own the Teen Titans.
Chapter One: Discovery
"Tamaranean pancakes, anyone?" Starfire asked. "I must not make you sick, so I put lots of sugar on them."
Beast Boy and Cyborg knew about Starfire's unusual cooking, so they declined. (Beast Boy was just about to say he wanted one when Cyborg slapped a hand over his mouth.)
"No thanks, Star," Cyborg told her, while Beast Boy tried to open his mouth. "Beast Boy does like pancakes, but I'm pretty sure that Tamaranean ones would make him even more hyper than he already is."
Starfire nodded. "I understand."
Raven was meditating in a corner, fingers in an 'o' shape. "Raven, please take one of my pancakes for Blorthog." Starfire was suddenly sat next to her. Raven's forhead pulsed with anger.
"Huh?" Starfire asked. "Why is your forehead moving? I'm still not used to Earth habits. They seem very strange."
"I'll take one, but then would you please leave me alone?" Raven said, clenching her fists.
"You didn't answer my question," Starfire moaned, but left anyway. Robin would surely take a pancake and talk to her.
He had to talk to her.
She was getting stressed from all the bickering between the members of the team. There was one person left, the one person who had never argued with her. Maybe he loved her.
Starfire smiled at the thought. "Robin," she called. "Robin, will you come here? All the other Titans are busy and I want to talk to you. It's about the Tamaranean holiday – Blorthog."
No answer.
Starfire frowned. "Robin?"
Why was he not answering? This was really unusual. He spent nearly all of his time in the Evidence Room nowadays, but he still found a minute or two to come and talk to the other Titans.
Why not now?
Starfire climed the steps to the bedrooms, forehead hot. She knocked on Robin's door and waited for him to answer.
After ten minutes, her foot was tapping the ground and she was drumming her fingers on the wall.
"Robin, come out," she pleaded.
No answer.
Not again, she thought. This is the third time this week that Robin has refused to come out of his bedroom. I think he may be ignoring me. I need to go in and find out why he is choosing to be alone.
She swallowed.
As a matter of fact, I haven't seen Robin all week. He wasn't even there when Red X stole the money. We had to stop Red X without our leader. Now, is that fair? Maybe he is hiding something from us.
From me.
She pressed the button on Robin's door and went inside. A beam of light was coming from the ceiling, focusing on something in the room. Starfire moved closer, and to her horror she found Robin's communicator smashed to pieces. The spring was in a glass case, mounted on a velvet cushion.
"No, he can't do this to me," Starfire yelled, bringing her hand down on the glass case and causing it to smash.
She picked up the spring and held it between finger and thumb. A tear leaked out of her left eye.
"He promised to never leave us again."
But he has.