IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT AT THE END!

Shards Of Time:

Raven, Who Did This To You?

It wasn't the rush of the air that woke her, nor the flapping of her cape; rather, it was the magnificent crash that brought Raven back to consciousness. Groggy at first, her senses snapped back when she realized that she was falling. Quickly, she tried levitating, cursing her luck as she remembered the magic-suppressing shackles.

After all I've been through, dying from a fall would be anti-climatic, the Empath thought darkly, looking for anything to break her fall. She was plunging towards the roof of a building that she thought was familiar, but at that speed, she couldn't tell. A man-shaped hole was already marring the roof, a hole which Raven knew she would pass through in less than a moment. In a last, desperate effort to save herself, Raven flung out her arms to catch the edge. They slammed against them with a thud that she felt throughout her whole body, jolts of stabbing pain following immediately. Still, Raven clung desperately, knowing that only more pain could come from letting go.

"Help!" she called, not knowing if anyone could hear her, "Somebody! I'm on the roof! Anybody!"

She wasn't sure if it was her mind playing tricks on her, but Raven thought she heard something under her. Daring to hope, she yelled again, "Help! I'm up here! I don't know how much longer I can hold on!"

This time, Raven was sure she heard voices, snatches of phrases like "Hold on!" and "We'll get help!", and she almost shook with relief. Her arms felt like they were going to disintegrate, her shoulders like they were going to pop out of their sockets, her throat throbbed, and the rest of her body ached.

And then it started raining.

Raven stared, disbelieving, at the sky, which would have been dark even if it wasn't for the angry clouds unloading cold, slippery, rain drops. They oozed around her hands, under her fingers. The girl grasped at the roof with her nails, but it was no use. She was slipping.

With one last cry of "HELP!", Raven's last semblance of a grip vanished, and she plummeted. If she had been listening, she would have heard the sound of a door bursting open, as well as the startled cries of others, but Raven could hear nothing but the whistling of the air around her. She was going to die. Still, she braced herself for the collision with the ground, surprised when she instead crashed into something much softer.

"Ow," said the person under her, "Next time, I'm going with –Raven?"

"Robin?" Raven gaped at him, not even thinking to move from her position on his chest, "Is that really you?"

"It was, but after that crash, I'm not so sure," the masked Titan joked, sitting up so that the girl slid on the ground next to him, "Raven, what happened to you?"

The Empath said nothing, gazing at him as if she was trying to memorize him, from the spike of his hair to the curve of his smile. It was Robin, her Robin, and her heart beat faster at the thought. She had won, had gone back, and now he would never become that twisted version of himself. Not if she had anything to do about it.

A curious "Raven?" broke through her thoughts, and she focused on his emotions, his concern, his fear for her. Barely realizing what she was doing, she leaned forward.

"I'm fine," she smiled, then with a boldness she didn't know she had, closed the distance between them, gently capturing his lips. Robin's eyes widened comically, but then he returned the kiss with a force that thrilled Raven but left her in desperate need of air. Reluctantly, she pulled away, wincing as the endorphins wore off and the pain in her body returned with a vengeance.

"Raven, what – are you okay?" Robin said, seeing for the first time the extent of her injuries. Angry welts covered her throat, her palms were scratched and bleeding from her desperate attempt to keep from falling, and the way her arms were held looked strange. Raven attempted another smile.

"I-I just need to heal myself," she said, holding out her wrists awkwardly, "But I can't with these cuffs on."

Robin's eyes narrowed.

"Who did this to you?" he asked, working on the lock to the cuffs with a set of picks from his utility belt. After a few seconds, they snapped open, and Raven rubbed her wrists. "Was it Warp?"

"Warp?" Raven repeated, just now remembering who was the reason for the whole mess, "No, it wasn't. What happened to him? He was there one minute, and the next—"

"He fell before you did," Robin interrupted, standing up, "That's why I came back here. I was trying to trace where you might have been when I got a call from the police processing the scene. He was rushed to the hospital, but he didn't make it."

Raven was ashamed that the news made her relieved. With Warp dead, there would be no way for him to screw up the future again. Life could go back to normal. She attempted to stand too, but her legs wobbled. Robin saw her dilemma and picked her up, against her weak protests.

"I'm getting you back to the Tower so you can heal," he said firmly, "But after that, I want a full explanation. Okay?"

Raven nodded, and with that, the two birds headed back to the Tower.

It was two days after that they spoke again. Raven's arms had been hurt more seriously than she had thought, and the quickest and best way to fix them was through a healing trance. The other Titans kept a constant vigil by her bedside, but none as much as their leader. Robin was very confused by what had happened, by Raven's sudden disappearance and reappearance, by her injuries, and, more than he'd like to admit, her kiss. His lips burned just thinking about it. But Raven had never done anything like that before; what if it was a side-effect of what happened? His stomach sank at the thought. Although he'd never told anyone, he'd had a special fondness for his violet eyed teammate for ages, though he never had thought of it as love until she kissed him. And now it was all he could think about. Did she mean it? What did it mean for them?

His musings were cut short when he heard Raven stirring.

"Hey," he smiled, moving to her bedside, "How're you feeling?"

Raven groaned.

"Like I fell off a roof."

Robin laughed, and Raven cracked a grin. They looked at each other for a minute before Raven turned away, a faint tinge of pink on her cheeks.

"So, Raven, do you think you can tell me what happened now?" Robin asked, his tone carefully light. He didn't want to push too hard, but he needed to know, if only so he could hunt down whoever hurt her and kick their behind.

Raven sighed, but inside, her pulse was racing, as were her thoughts. She wanted nothing more than to pretend it hadn't happened, that she had never known a Robin other than this one, a Robin who was noble and good and pure. But she had to tell him something, and she knew he wouldn't rest until she did.

"When Warp hit me with the ray," she began slowly, "I shot forward in time."

Robin nodded.

"I thought as much, but what happened? Who hurt you?"

Raven's stomach twisted into tiny knots. What was she supposed to say? That Robin's future self was hiding Warp with Slade, and so she got hurt in the process? That would go over well.

Or would it? asked a sneaky voice in the back of her mind, Slade did hurt you. That's all he needs to know. It's not like Slade's the innocent victim here.

Raven mulled the idea over for a minute, not seeing Robin's expression grow anxious. She only noticed when he put a hand on her shoulder.

"Raven, you know you can tell me anything," he said, and her heart broke for him. She couldn't do it to him, not tell him he turned into someone he'd despise. Not now. Not ever.

Raven looked back at him, lacing her fingers through the fingers of his free hand, strengthening her resolve.

"It was Slade," she said, and felt his fingers tighten.

"I'm going to stop him," Robin said through clenched teeth, and Raven smiled sadly.

"I know," she whispered, turning her face so he couldn't see the tears welling in her eyes. But Robin sensed it, and he leaned down, brushing a hand gently against her cheek.

"It's going to be okay, Raven," he said, "I promise."

With a determined look, Robin turned away, but then, almost shyly, he came back, kissing her gently on the forehead.

"Get some rest," he half-smiled, "I'll take care of everything."

Raven watched him leave the room, then fell into a deep, dream-riddled sleep.

It was past closing time at the Titan's favorite pizza place and no one was around, or else someone would have called 911 when a dark clad man seemingly fell from the sky, landing gracefully on the awning. He leapt to the ground, catlike, and surveyed the scene. Nearby, there was a newspaper stand, and he walked by, staring at the date on the paper. It took him only a moment to do the math, and he grinned.

"Raven," he said, "I'm back. And I'm coming for you."

With that, Nightwing vanished into the dusk.

And that, boys and girls, is the end of Part One of our story. Which means there will be a Part Two, where all the questions, drama, and Raven's little white lies collide. The question I want you, dear reader, to answer for me is: would you prefer that I continue in a whole new story, or continue in Shards Of Time? I'd prefer making a sequel over continuing with this one forever, but if I get enough people for the other, I may change my mind. And no, neither would update faster. So zing some reviews with your opinions my way!