Speedy's Room

[Bry]

Her room was a mess. Halfway put back together, but a mess anyway. Raven stared around at the place, some of her prized statues smashed beyond repair, and a few books shredded.

Oops.

She sighed, walked silently over to her bed, and laid down, staring with blank violet eyes at the ceiling. What to do, what to do....

Even now, she couldn't get him out of her head. Even now, after he'd broken her heart and let her take the blame, she couldn't quit wondering where the heck she went wrong. Too dark? Too boring? Too sardonic, creepy, freak-out prone?

Or maybe she hadn't gone wrong. Maybe he just had never loved her like she'd thought he did. Maybe it was all in her head, and she'd blown it all way out of proportion. He was a flirt, after all. It was in his nature. Perhaps she'd never meant anything to him? Nothing more than any of the other off-the-street-ditzes he always went for?

Or maybe it was just because it was Batgirl. They did have some history, after all....

Maybe she should just quit thinking. Thinking was too hard. It always led to feeling.

A soft knock sounded at the door.

She opened her mouth, prepared to shout for whoever it was to get the hell away from her, but it was Beast Boy's voice in the hall, and she couldn't bring herself to shout at him. Not when he had no idea.

She didn't bother saying anything at all actually, just flicked her wrist at the door and slid it silently open. She turned her head and looked at her green friend, raising an eyebrow, questioning his pressence.

"What's up?" she mumbled, a little indifferently.

[Kenni]

As Speedy listened to Robin deny his only real request right now, though not stated so much as a request but wheedled as a suggestion so that he could have time alone to think or do with as he would, he knew it would be a losing battle.
"Hey, great, fine. It's your call; sorry I even brought it up." Cheh.
Robin said no, basically. He thought as much.
This guy just wasn't going to give Speedy a break! What did Robin think Speedy was going to do if left unsupervised with the clean-up job; skip out on it and compromise the security of the rest of the core Titan team by skedaddling with Babs? Take her out on the town? Maybe jack his R-cycle while Speedy was at it, right?
Well. Everything except the last part was feasible; Batgirl had her own cycle and he wouldn't mind cruising around with her to detox from the tense air in here.
He stiffened when Batgirl's rhetoric turned to confessions. They should've just gotten this out earlier, if it was going to come out eventually! It was just one thing after another. But he softened immediately, allowing her to go on and cap the tale of deceit and betrayal, melting in her hand like chocolate at a slow boil.
"...already can't stand to be apart, huh? Well, can't say I'm complaining." If it was out there, it was out there. He might as well get back to his old self and play it up like he always did, even if it was going to hurt his friend Robin here. Maybe Babs really did care about him more than Robin! False hopes for the most part this early in the game they were both playing, but Speedy was becoming more and more convinced that they weren't playing around anymore.
"Call it bias but I don't think you did a thing. I should've either broken things off with Raven first, or refused you early on. It's really got nothing to do with you, all of this. So, I'm sorry to you first, Babs."
He knew what he had to say to Raven, the next time he saw her.
After there'd been some cool off time, of course. He wasn't about to foolishly run to her room right that second and say this.

It was slightly awkward, but he got down on bended knee, still holding Babs' hand.
"..and if you'll accept my apology, I'll try to make this--whatever we've started--I won't let it end in..flames."

Who knew? If it was to end, he might end it on terms of glowing embers instead. It seemed like Speedy wanted to try and work this out for as long as he could tell her feelings were real, even if his heart was being pulled several different ways. To get stable again he had to start somewhere. From the floor, he spoke to Robin, not looking at the team leader now, but at his new 'committment'.
"I'll work alone, or with you, or all three of us, it doesn't matter. I'm packing up whatever's not broken and moving back home after Titans Tower is baddie-proof, or, however far away you want me to go if you don't want me close enough to be tempted to call back. I'm not going to lose you too,.." He wasn't trying to guilt Robin or anything; he knew he deserved worse. He also knew just seeing Raven at this point would be the worst punishment.
He finally let go of her, tearing his eyes away from Batgirl and fixing Robin's gaze. He knew he could feel it, even with their masks back on. He was going to do whatever it took to salvage the pieces of ALL his relationships.
"..Dickie-bird."

[Silv]

When Barbara said she had found out about him and Starfire he felt like he'd gotten socked in the gut. His mouth slacked in surprise but he quickly tightened it into a frown. He and Starfire weren't together. There was sexual tension between the two but that hardly meant anything. Either Babs was reading too much into this or...no, Babs was reading too much into this. “I'm sorry, Babs.” he said softly. “I never meant to hurt you.”

But that didn't matter anymore? Did it? He felt as though both of them were withholding information from him and he didn't like it one bit. His scowl deepened as she reached out for Speedy's hand. This was just stupid. The first thing she does when she comes to the Tower is hook up with Speedy? It just made no sense to him. He'd spent years flirting with her when he was younger, and got turned down all the time. Give Speedy not even a fraction of that time and he'd gotten farther than Robin had, it seemed. And Speedy at this age was maybe only a little more mature than he'd been back when he'd fought crime with a gigantic grin on his face wearing pixie boots and spouting stupid puns. What the hell was Barbara thinking?

The expression on Robin's face was dangerous. He stood rigidly where they had been by the door and his hands stood at his sides, curled into fists and shaking like a leaf rattled by wind. The interaction between Speedy and Batgirl was enough to make him want to punch something, preferably Speedy. His jaw popped in protest when he ground his teeth together as the archer made a show of sinking to the floor on one knee. Robin might have been born to perform, but he didn't have half the flair for the over-dramatic that Roy Harper possessed. What was this? Because it looked like a freaking wedding proposal.

So, Roy was leaving. Something strange knotted in the pit of Robin's stomach. His child-like admiration of Roy had turned to the respect of equals long ago and Dick would never bring himself to hate the other sidekick. Robin really didn't want Speedy to leave. But just because he didn't want it didn't mean it wasn't what was best. And then Speedy called him Dickie-bird. Really? They were drudging up childhood nicknames? As if he didn't feel awful enough.

Robin shook his head. “You don't have to go, Roy.” he said. “And if you really feel you have to, at least take a day to think on it.” then the Boy Wonder turned towards the door, unclicking the lock and opening it. “But right now we've got work to do.” he reminded them pointedly, gesturing towards the hallway.

[Aly]

Robin hadn't said a word about her confession, but she could tell he was angry. Before, she would have reveled in his jealousy, but now it just made her sad. She was hurting a dear friend to be with another. Sighing, she loooked to Speedy, who had came closer. "It is my fault. Don't try telling me it's yours. I'm the one who came onto you, knowing fully well that you and Raven kind of had a thing."

She reached over and grabbed her own mask with her free hand, attempting to put it on over the bandages around her head. After a little fiddling, she got it on. If the rest of them were going to put on their masks, she was going to also. Especially if she was going out there with the two of them. She didn't know if she would be recognized as the daughter of Gotham's police commissioner in the tower, but she would take precautions.

As Speedy got down on one knee before her, she stifled a laugh. It almost looked like he was about to propose. She smiled at his words and lightly kissed the back of his hand. "As I'll try my hardest." She whispered down to him. Was she really playing a game with him, or was what she felt for him /real/? It seemed real enough. But perhaps when this was all over and done with, Robin would come back to her. Not likely, as he was probably furious with her, but a girl could hope.

When Speedy spoke again about leaving, her grip on his tightened. "You are not leaving." Her eyes narrowed, trying to seek out his eyes beneath his mask. Not after this. He wasn't going to leave her alone with all of them, would he? Raven and all of her close friends within the tower would be furious at her. Was he really going to leave her to face that all alone?

She slid down off the bed, still holding Roy's hand. They really did need to get the room picked up, and she would definitely stop Speedy from packing up any of his things to leave. She was /not/ going to let that happen. "Okay, let's go."

[Deleted]

Beast Boy blanched as Raven opened her door and stared at him, hopping from foot to foot in sudden anxiety. Although the two teased each other constantly, Raven still never failed to intimidate the little green guy at times. She seemed alright, considering what had happened; then again, when it came to Raven, looks were often deceiving.

"I, uh...well, I was kind of a fly on the wall," he admitted sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck and looking up at his friend nervously. "So I know a bit of what happened, and I just came to see if you were doing alright."

Although it wasn't something he wanted to bring up, Beast Boy had known heartbreak similar to Raven's. Even now, thinking of what had happened to a certain earth-manipulating blonde twisted his heart in ways few others could.

[Kenni]

"Alright alreadyyy. IF YOU INSIST, I relent. We both jumped the gun; let's be real about this, then. I messed up, you messed up; we messed up together so let's get a move on and pick up the pieces."
There she went again, coming to his aid, trying to take all the blame. If she was really just messing around, why wasn't it easy to tell? Was she just good at this game called manipulation? Speedy had no inkling of her intentions of course, just a suspended belief that Batgirl was actually taking his side like this. She had always been more likely to interact at all, whether positively or negatively, with Robin, leaving Speedy to the whims of her if not friendly then often indifferent attitude. Yes, he was an attention hog. He craved it. Now that he had it he was golden, and from who better than Babs? She was looking into his eyes; she was willing him not to leave; she wanted him to stay..she wanted him.
Robin's words tugged at something in his subconscious though. He'd never meant to hurt her? Roy knew that; hadn't he and Babs just established this was all their fault? Sure, Robin could be more intently focused on a business-level relationship with his team and even friends on a regular basis, but Speedy knew he cared more than was visible for those around him...especially for Babs. Did Robin really have to keep apologizing for something that happened years ago that he hadn't even chosen to do? Speedy thought that back then, were he in Robin's position, he would've done whatever he could if it meant staying at Batgirl's side, however Batman could be..super persuasive to say the least, so who was he to think himself to do better in that situation? Speedy hated it when his friend was faced with this unintentional betrayal rap; he quickly brought the subject back to the security breach where it belonged.
Both boys truly cared about the other and thought the world of the other; it just didn't always get mentioned, nor would it often be exposed explicitly or ever known fully. Certainly not at this rate.
"You'll be the first to know what I settle on, Dick. Right now, we've spent long enough on all this; I'll start us off."
With a last look at Robin, he set off down the hall to get a head start, hands balled up into fists, savouring the warmth of Babs' hand and the comforting, tantalizing after-essence of her kiss on his skin. He couldn't be too greedy now; walking down the hallway holding hands was a luxury that might set him off skipping rather than walking, and he was in no position to exude total joy yet even if Robin was seeming to be dealing with this in his own way; heaven forbid Raven wander out of her room and see that so close after the fact. Roy would rather jump out the nearest window to the crags below Titans Tower than meet her with a stupid smile on his face, skipping next to Barbara.
...
Was it horrible that he was still thinking so much about Raven that he was denying himself even the thoughts of special moments with Babs?
Nonetheless, Speedy was relieved when it appeared Robin didn't completely hate him for all of this. Perhaps Batgirl speaking up had saved him the hassle of the big defeated-looking retreat to Steel City, regular comrades wondering what had gotten him so down not to mention why Batgirl was in tow (as he assumed she'd make it a point to be, now that they were..sort-of-a-thing).
He reached his room, tensing, half expecting the scene he now took in, in shambles, to reveal Raven still on the floor, hurting more than physical wounds could speak for. He sank to his knees and cleared up the literally broken little Lego, some rent in more than three scraps, of his Princess model. Pausing again at the irony, now brushing it carefully, tenderly into a heap, now clearing debris into the middle of the room to dispose of altogether with a large broom, avoiding the exposed edge letting in the melancholy night air.

This long night had to be almost over if they were back to where it began.

[Silv]

Robin averted his gaze when Bab's kissed the back of Roy's hand. This was seriously awkward. He shifted in his position and instead thought of the supplies they'd need to fix the tower breech. Robin snapped back to attention when Roy said he would let Dick know what his decision was when he made it. The Boy Wonder nodded in understanding before heading the opposite way to get supplies. “I'll meet you there,” he told Roy over his shoulder.

He stopped in one of the supply closets in Cyborg's work station and pulled out an assortment of tools. He affixed some of these to his belt so he wouldn't have to carry them, and the rest he put in a tool box. Carrying the tool box back to Speedy's room, he stopped to dump it outside the door and pull the tools too big to fit in the box off of his belt. ”I'll need some help carrying the plywood and sheet metal,” he said, popping his head in a hole where he could see Speedy sweeping debris into a pile. ”It's faster with more people.”

And then he was gone again, moving down the hall to the basement storage where they stored extra building parts from the many times they'd had to repair the tower. The sheets of plywood were leaning against the wall in stacks and next to the sheets of metal. For now this would be a simple patch, and Robin would take his time to repair the interior wiring and windows before they filled the wall with insulation and made the inside look homey again. He pulled a couple sheets of plywood off the stack and started back to the elevator. A few trips to load it full of supplies and a few trips to unload it sounded like the best idea.

[Bry]

Raven stared at Beast Boy a moment longer from the bed, taking in everything he said, before she sat upright and pulled her legs up and crossed. She wasn't sure if she was irritated, or touched. Probably a little of both. Beast Boy's 'Fly On The Wall' routine, though useful at times, was also rather annoying at others. At the moment, Raven was having trouble figuring out which time this should be classified under.

Eventually though, she decided it couldn't be helped either way, and whether or not she was ticked that he'd eavesdropped, her joy at seeing him here and now exceeded that completely. He was her friend, and she was more than grateful that he'd decided to come find her.

She patted the bed beside her.

"Fly on the wall, huh?" she asked him, sliding her door closed with a rather solid thump behind him. "So what exactly do you know then? Everything? Half of it?"

Which would be worse? The fact that he'd witnessed? Or having to tell him??

[Deleted]

Beast Boy was more than a little shocked to see Raven so compliant. She was letting him into his room? Right after tearing it apart in a haze of anger and betrayal? Normally she kept these things bottled up nice and tight - it led the changeling to assume she had been hurt pretty bad. She obviously had to have been, if she was willing to confide to Beast Boy, of all people. Then again, it was possible he may have underestimated the strength of their friendship.

The corner of his mouth twitched in a smile as he entered the room, struggling not to flinch as the door slammed behind him. Despite having been in Raven's room before, more than once without her permission, the place still managed to creep him out a bit. The various scattered, broken artifacts and ruined books didn't help make the room any homier.

He hopped on the bed beside Raven, crossing his legs and placing his hands on his knees, hunkered over expectantly. His cheeks flushed with embarrassment as she mentioned his 'Fly on the Wall' routine.

"Um, yea," he muttered, momentarily averting his gaze from the Azarathian. "I arrived after the explosion. I was, uh, busy." Beast Boy didn't exactly want to mention he had been in the shower when Raven made Speedy's Room spontaneously combust.

"Robin was already there. I stayed long enough to understand what had happened, then I came here."

His green eyes looked up to meet Raven's violet ones.

"So, you saw Speedy and Batgirl kiss and that made you lose control?"

There was a pause. Then, "You must have been hurt real bad."

[Aly]

Barbara rolled her eyes at Speedy before hopping of the bed. She had to put her hand to her head to steady herself, but quickly removed it before anyone could point out that she probably shouldn't be helping remove the debris from Speedy's room. She followed Roy out the door and down the hallway. "So he's going to be the first one to know whether you decide to move or not?" She pouted, crossing her arms behind him. She spoke softly, as to not alert any of the other Titans to their presence as they walked to Speedy's mess of a room.

Would Speedy really move to avoid all of this and leave her behind? Unless he didn't care that she came... which would be great, except for the fact that it meant moving all of her things a second time. And she would leave Robin here... Somehow, she wanted them both to be there for her, but she knew that wouldn't happen. She was turning two best friends apart just to be with one of them. Of course, if she had chosen the other, more serious Titan, it seemed like Speedy would have been hurt. After all, he had confessed that he had liked her from when they were younger.

When they got to Speedy's room, she immediately started picking up some of the rubble and broken things around the room and tossing them into the middle, just as Speedy was doing. She liked the idea of having all of the mess in the middle of the room so it would be easier to remove everything. When Robin came in asking for Speedy's help with the plywood, she jumped up, eager to help. Of course, the plywood would probably be a little heavy for her, but she would manage. As Robin turned and left again, she followed him silently. Picking up a smaller sheet of plywood, she held it over her head, balancing it on her head once and a while to give her arms a rest. When she returned to the room, she set it up against one of the parts of the wall that was missing, propping it up right beside where it needed to go. "You got a hammer and nails, Robin? I'll nail these into place while you two boys get the plywood. They're a little heavy for me."

[Bry]

Raven watched as Beast Boy jumped onto her bed--something that would've driven her mad on another day--and blinked but once, trying to save face a little. She stared at Beast Boy for nearly a full minute, before a single tear fell down her cheek. It was all she felt she could manage, really, without blowing the entire Tower into tomorrow.

Never had she felt this.... Broken down, so.... vulnerable.... Before. And certainly not in front of her team! Heaven forbid! Yet here she was, crying in front of Beast Boy. It was strange. Open. She couldn't exactly say she liked it. But it was what it was.

Very softly, with her eyes never once leaving BB's, she mumbled, "You can't tell anyone else, okay? Not the details anyway.... Just say Babs and I got into an arguement or something, because obviously the explosion will have to be explained...." She looked down at her boots. What was this, embarrassment? She hated it. Hated it.

"I just don't want people to...." She trailed off. She didn't want people throwing sympathy at her around every corner. That's all she needed, honestly. The entire Tower giving her looks of "Poor Raven" or "Raven, I feel your pain!" No one felt her pain. Not even Raven herself.

And she wasn't exactly looking to bond with anyone else at the moment either, especially not over her problems.

No, she'd almost rather the others just be mad for a while over her losing her cool. It'd be better.... As for Speedy's sudden attachment to Babs. She'd let them explain that one....

[Deleted]

Beast Boy probably pulled the most comically shocked face in the universe upon seeing something he never thought was possible. He had debated, more than once, on whether Raven had even been born with tears ducts. Yet here she was, with what was obviously a tear rolling down her cheek.

He felt anger twisting his guts, dragging its fiery claws over his heart. His shocked expression melted under a frown of disapproval. He wasn't frowning at Raven, of course, but at what had been done to her. He didn't know Babs very well, since she was a rather new addition to the Tower. But he had worked with Speedy on multiple occasions, and had grown close to the equally mischievous archer. The fact that his friend would so badly hurt one of Beast Boy's original team members made him want to take a swipe at Speedy's "attractive" face. He wouldn't dare, but he could imagine the scenarios easily enough.

The changeling quickly shoved his anger in a figurative box and sat on it, not wanting to explode in front of someone who already had. He matched Raven's violet stare with his own and nodded compliantly. He had kept secrets before, even if he wasn't the smoothest of lairs.

Beast Boy dared to reach out a gloved hand and place it on Raven's shoulder. "I understand," he responded bluntly, knowing that Raven was smart enough to remember that he had faced a hurt similar to this before. It wasn't exactly the same, but the feeling of betrayal had felt just as sharp.

"Your secret's safe with me. I'm sure Robin's got your back, too," he added, releasing Raven's shoulder and crossing his arms.

[Bry]

Weakness was horrible. Sickening.

Empathy being one her fortes, Raven could feel the waves of different emotions radiating from Beast Boy. Shock first, at her tears, which only made her feel more like a childish wreck, and then anger. She glanced up at him then, surprised. Beast Boy so rarely got angry, most of them had forgotten he could. Raven cocked her head, looking at him a somewhat new light.

And then she felt his honest understanding.

Terra had betrayed them all. But for Beast Boy.... It'd been so much worse.... His heart had been broken then, just the same as hers had now, and Raven grabbed at the small hope that perhaps someone could relate....

When he put his hand on her shoulder, she put hers over his and gave it a gentle squeeze before letting him pull it away again. A small smile somehow found it's way to her face, a grateful smile, one that did a better job of saying what her words just couldn't seem to at the moment. She felt.... Well, 'happy' wasn't the word, by far, and 'better' was a stretch still.... But less.... Alone.

"Thank you," she whispered to him, and she genuinely meant it.

[Deleted]

A broad grin stretched its way across Beast Boy's face. It was an unbidden smile, brought on by the encouraging signs Raven had displayed. A genuine thank you and a smile, albeit a small one, were more than he had hoped for when he first approached her room.

The wise thing to do would have been to turn into something cuddly and simply enjoy the comforting silence with Raven. However, Beast Boy was not one for silence, nor was he particularly wise when it came to this sort of thing. In fact, he was rather infamous for ruining any moments he shared with the solemn Azarathian.

Leaping off the bed and spreading out his arms like he was promoting a product, Beast Boy asked, "Wanna make some tofu waffles? Ooh, or play a game of stankball! I could get Cyborg and you could be the referee!"

[Bry]

Raven offered Beast Boy a small smirk, snorting with a half-hearted chuckle as he leapt off the bed with energy she'd never once seen disipate. Sure, they had their little moments, but he would forever be Beast Boy, the Oblivious. She loved him for it.

Truly, she wouldn't have it any other way. Life in the Tower would be beyond different without the green changeling. Dreadful, quiet, and slightly better smelling in the absence of stankball.

Heaven forbid THAT should ever happen!

Raven slowly unfolded her pale legs, draping them off the side of the bed and leaning back onto her palms, gazing at Beast Boy.

"On any other day, BB, I'd comply. But...." She paused for a moment before continuing in a smaller and quieter voice. "I'm really not up for running into anyone tonight..." She blinked up at him, pretty sure he understood. He was oblivious, not stupid. "But thanks. For the invitation, and for.... Well. Being you."

What would she ever do without him?