Just noticed Chapter Seven was titled 'Swithed' (without the 'c') and has been for eight to ten months now--oops.
I step out of the T-Ship, landing on the ground with a soft thud. I quickly wipe my index finger against the floor, a thick layer of dust coating it. As I stand up, I wipe it onto my uniform as a flame is ignited on the tip of the same finger.
"Looks like we've found out why communication relays from this space station have stopped," Robin states, well ahead of me. I hover in the air and fly towards him and Beast Boy.
"Everything has been destroyed." Starfire lands on my other side and looks around in clear dismay.
Cyborg walks over to some loose cables, leaning down to examine them. Eventually, an almost inaudible gasp leaves him and he stands up. "I knew it. We've got a malfunctioning bifurcating dilator."
"Yeah," Raven remarks. "That was my first guess."
"Can you fix it?"
"No problem." The mechanic teen flashes Robin a confident smile before cracking his knuckles. His hands retract and an extended array of tools replace them. When he notices my wide-eyed look, he shoots me the same flashy smirk that he gave Robin before turning around and getting to work.
"I've just gotta cross the conjoining wires with the transistor couplers, connect the oscillator to the main data port, and we're good to go."
I rub my chin, jaw essentially hitting the floor. "You lost me at 'transistor couplers', Cy," I remark.
"At least you know what they are," Beast Boy comments, turning to Robin and I. "Can't he ever just speak English?"
I open my mouth to reply, closing it once more as the lights flick on. "Hey, nice work!" I call out, looking around in awe.
Cyborg pats the nearest mechanism as it turns blue. "Thanks, Em." He turns around to face us, striding towards the exit. "She's purring like a kitten. Let's go."
The other Titans make for the exit as well, but I don't move. "Shouldn't we, you know... find out why it was wrecked in the first place?" I question slowly, still looking around attentively.
I watch the other Titans' steps falter, and one by one, they turn around and begin to walk back to me. "Starting with why somebody would trash the communications station, of all places," Robin says.
"Not somebody." Raven's words halt everyone's steps, including my own, and I spot the large glob of saliva on her hood. "Something."
I look up to find a large creature, at least triple my size, standing above Raven. The creature intakes a large amount of air before letting out a loud shriek, so ear-piercing that I feel as though my head will explode. Screaming myself, I muster as much focus and will as I can and create a bubble of water that surrounds me, softening the blow. Still, I clutch the back of my head and cover my ears, thinking it better safe than sorry.
I can tell when the shrieking stops, and open my currently screwed shut eyes. Pulling my hands away from my neck and ears, I look around at my friends, who look like they've just survived a bombing—I decide that I probably don't look much better.
"What was that thing?" Beast Boy's voice wavers as he speaks and I walk up beside him.
"The best I can give you is a banshee," I state. "But that would mean someone's—"
I cut myself off as the creature jumps down in front of us, towering over all of us. I involuntarily take a step back, wanting to escape the proximity of the wail it produces.
"Titans! Go!" At Robin's words, the six of us all charge as one—the way we always do. On two floating discs, Cyborg and Beast Boy prepare themselves to attack and jump off Raven's creation to strike. The discs turn themselves into large daggers and I throw small flames on them as she fires. The daggers dig into the creature's skin but it seems unaffected, the flames extinguishing themselves.
Cyborg throws Beast Boy by his kangaroo tail, swinging him into the creature. The changeling transforms into a triceratops mid-air before slamming down onto our enemy. Once on the ground, the shapeshifter changes again, this time into a dinosaur I'm not familiar with. His tail acts as a mace as he swings it, but the creature catches it before it can do any damage.
From beside me, Cyborg shoots his sonic cannon, and the creature releases Beast Boy with enough momentum to take out the both of us. My world goes black and I rub my eyes, reappearing on the other side of the room just as it clicks what happened.
"Thanks."
"No problem," Raven replies, zooming off to help the others.
Robin and Starfire both walk up to where I stand. "We've gotta stop it before it screams again!" Robin states.
Starfire wastes no time in charging, a starbolt already prepared. She throws it with deadly accuracy, and it explodes in the creature's mouth, providing momentary light in the room. I prepare bullets of water and continuously fire them as Starfire continues her array of starbolts.
Robin somehow finds a rope, tying it like a lasso before throwing it onto our opponent. It wraps around perfectly, catching on one of its limbs, but our attacks seem to have no effect as the creature takes to the air, Robin being forced to let go of the metal rope.
"Ember, Starfire, watch out!" Robin's warning registers too late, but fortunately Starfire has already grasped my hand in hers and pulled me out of the way. She lets go and I fall for a second before steadying myself, watching as she blasts the creature with her eyebeams, which seem to have no effect.
Robin jumps from a position I can't place onto the monster's head, bouncing off it before turning in the same motion as Starfire and throwing explosive discs. His attack has the same impact as the alien girl before him, and when the smoke subsides the creature resumes its charge towards the three of us.
Instantly, I turn on my heels and run, and I know from the sound of feet hitting metal that Robin and Starfire are doing the same. As we near the edge, an idea begins to formulate in my head and I don't jump off when the other two do. Instead, I turn around and face my enemy.
Its charge does not relent, but that's what I'm counting on. I hold my hand out and a small tidal wave chases after my pursuer. Since it can't see the imminent danger quickly catching up to it, it continues to run at me with all it has, snarling.
I watch as the monster's legs are suddenly swept from underneath and it soars over my head. When I hold out my other hand, it stops midair and I cock my head to the side as I take it in before letting it fall.
"Good job!" Cyborg, Beast Boy, and Raven run over, the former ruffling his hand through my hair.
"Sweet!"
"Nice!"
Robin lands on the other side of the balcony and runs over to me. "Great work, Ember."
"Thanks. You too." Robin holds his hand up for a high five and I slap his hand, pulling away as I realise first-hand how strong he is. "Ow!"
"Let's go," Cyborg says from the other side of the room, catching my attention, "unless you want to stay here flirting with your girlfriend."
I freeze in place, my back thankfully already to the others so that they can't see my flustered expression. How does he know? Did Robin—? No. He wouldn't. Right?
Slowly, my eye meets Robin's, the Boy Wonder sharing the same panicked expression as mine. It soon dawns on me that Cyborg doesn't know; he's just being Cyborg. I close my eyes silently and shake my head, partially in relief and partially to tell Robin that I didn't say anything either.
I stay focused on the purple liquid beyond the balcony as Robin turns around to address the others. I can see Cyborg's teasing smirk in my mind and remind myself that although it felt like time had paused, only mere seconds had passed.
"Let me make this clear," Robin says firmly. "She's NOT my girlfriend!"
"And he's NOT my boyfriend!"
When I turn around, my suspicions are confirmed. In the time I had taken to myself, Starfire has joined Cyborg, Beast Boy, and Raven, all of them beside the disinterested demon sharing the same smile or smirk.
"Sure," Cyborg teases. "Whatever you say."
Just then, the ground shakes, and Robin looks over the edge curiously. His eyes are wide as he turns to look at me, and when I take a glance I see the creature rebounding off the pole, digging its claws into the wall and causing the ground to quake beneath my feet.
"She's gonna blow!"
"Titans! Run!" At Robin's words, I waste no time in turning around. Before I can even think out the action, my legs begin to sprint, my breaths becoming shallow and ragged. When they tire themselves out, I fly into the air and rotate my body so that it is horizontal and more aerodynamic.
I zoom through the air, soon reaching a smaller room that I know to be the entrance. As Raven and Starfire appear in my peripheral vision, I can only hope that the three boys are right behind us—and that the mysterious creature is not.
I slowly look up and my gaze locks on the T-Ship as I lower myself to the ground, resuming my run. I don't make it far before I fall to the side, my body instinctively curling up into a ball. My hands come up to my ears and I scrunch my eyes shut, wrinkling my nose. I resist the urge to scream myself, which would provide an outlet for the immense pain that I feel.
"Robin!"
I open my eyes to see Robin staggering to his feet, and I slowly remove my hands from my head. Starfire moves to help him, and the instant he stands up he moves towards me.
"Ember! Come on, we gotta go!"
I do nothing but groan and I see Starfire run towards me. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine," I say through gritted teeth. Looking behind me, I notice the creature closing in. "Robin's right. We have to go!"
I break into a sprint, almost falling flat on my face multiple times. I look back and see Robin and Starfire behind me and clamber into the nearest cockpit. As I buckle in, I look around and realise who the compartment belongs to. "I'm sorry, Star! Just take my cockpit!" I shout as the lid seals shut over my head, buckling my seatbelt.
"Do not worry about it," she says, the screen in front of me picking it up as my voice. "We must make with the haste to get out of here."
I lift my hands into the air, so high that they touch the glass roof above me. The glass reflects the brown colour of my hands and eyes as I try my hardest to stop the impending avalanche. I even unbuckle my seatbelt and turn around so that more of the rocks appear in my vision.
"Brace yourselves!" There's a pause, before, "and sit down, Ember!"
With a disgruntled noise, I oblige, only just strapping myself in as the explosions sound. A few seconds pass before I feel the effects, shaking in my seat. My world spins—I mean that quite literally—and my vision fogs. I clamp my mouth shut to keep my breakfast internal, not wanting to spend my next week cleaning Starfire's cockpit for her.
"Is everyone okay?" Robin asks, and I can't help but notice the slight crackle in the speaker.
"Define 'okay.' "
I lean back in my seat, closing my eyes for only a few seconds before a thud jolts me back to life. I look up to see the same creature from the station, or rather, it's foot, as it steps on the glass separating me from it on its way to the front.
"This thing just won't take a hint!"
"How did it even get to us?" I wonder aloud, my microphone not muted.
"I think we can shake it," Robin says. "Don't separate! I repeat... don't separate!" The audio begins to break up, and I release one hand from the controls in front of me to push the headphone ear closer to my ear, straining to listen. "I repeat... separate! I repeat... separate!"
I nod in acknowledgement, even though the Boy Wonder can't see me. "You got it," I say, leaning forward and pushing a button that separates me from the rest of the T-Ship. Luckily for myself and the alien princess with whom I have swapped cockpits, our controls are identical.
"As you wish."
The communication cuts off as the creature smashes through the wiring on Robin's cockpit. I am forced to turn my gaze away as it heats up, my own compartment entering the atmosphere on a foreign planet.
I sit up, undo my seatbelt, and lean as close as I can to the control panel, squinting to see beyond the flames. My eyes turn red as the flames begin to part, revealing the ground just as the ship crashes into it. The cockpit rotates and my head jerks forward before my back slams against the window. My vision is blocked off; first by a waterfall of blood, then as I lose consciousness.
~~~
My head lags to the side and I curl and uncurl my fingers. Slowly, my eyelids flutter open and I hear a sigh as they do so. As my gaze ventures up, I am met with the Boy Wonder's face incredibly close to mine.
"You're all right," he says, the hint of a smile on his face.
Though immensely fatigued, I know I am frowning. "Why wouldn't I be?" My voice is more than laced with confusion as I speak, indicative of my feelings. What has happened?
Robin shakes his head. "It doesn't matter. You're all right. You're all right." He repeats the words like a mantra, as if trying to convince not just me, but himself.
I nod numbly, lips parting slightly. "I'm all right." My forehead feels warm and I lift my hand to meet it. Robin's eyes widen and he grabs my hand.
"I—uh... I wouldn't do that."
"And why not?"
Robin guiltily looks away. "Well, you hurt yourself pretty bad. I had to stitch you up with the emergency kit." I look down as he pats a red box next to him before looking back up at him.
"What happened?"
"Nothing. You said it yourself—you're all right."
"I still need to know what happened," I state calmly. I stand up as much as I can in the pod, gripping the sides so tightly my knuckles turn white. Robin moves out of the way and grabs my waist to help me jump down. I shut my eyes as I feel the sudden wave of pain passing through me, waiting impatiently for it to go away.
"You okay?"
As the pain leaves, I open my eyes and nod. "Yeah," I breathe.
Robin grabs my forearms gently with his hands, guiding me towards a rock. "Here." He sits me down by lowering himself slowly and bringing me with him. Once I'm steady, he slowly lets me go before rushing to the first aid kit and pulling out a cloth, clearly containing something.
Returning to me, Robin places the cloth in my hand. Instantly, I feel its cool touch, and Robin nods at me as I look at him for confirmation. He grabs the hand that holds it and softly guides it to my forehead, instantly soothing my pain.
I smile, as does the Boy Wonder. "Thank you," I say.
"You scared me," he simply replies, shuddering at the mere thought. "I couldn't find any of the others; I still can't." His hand shakes as he looks down and I lower the ice pack as he continues. "When I found you, I was so happy. But then I opened the pod and saw you... I don't think I can ever forget it. I thought you were—"
I cut the Boy Wonder off, bringing my lips to his. His muffled sounds of surprise soon fade as he returns the kiss. I cup his cheeks as he holds me by the waist, a move that I am now accustomed to. Before the kiss can get too heated, however, I pull away, our foreheads joining to make up for our separated lips.
"I'm right here," I mumble, my hands moving from Robin's cheeks to around his neck.
"I wouldn't have it any other way." I chuckle lightly, and my smile broadens but another strike of pain causes me to wince. Instantly, Robin lets go of me so that he can look me in the eye. "What's wrong?"
I shake my head, sitting back down on the rock behind me. "I'm fine. It just hurts, that's all." I close my eyes and huff, allowing them to turn blue before I open them. The pain slowly fades, but my eyes maintain the colour. "Are there any meds in the kit?"
"Maybe. It is a med kit after all." Robin laughs softly at his own joke before opening the zipper. I look inside the bag to see an assortment of tapes, bandages, packs, disinfectants, and more. My eyes glaze over to an array of tablets, and Robin grabs a capsule before putting it in my hand. "Take this."
I glance down at the meek tablet, looking back up at the leader timidly. "I can't swallow this by itself. I'd need water with it."
Robin shoots me an irked look, cocking his head as he looks at me. "Can't you create water at will?" he reminds me.
I don't say anything in response as I down the capsule, swallowing thickly as it goes down my digestive system.
"All right. Now that you're feeling better..." Robin trails off, looking at me. "You are feeling better, aren't you?"
"Yes, Robin. You can stop taking care of me like a baby now." I stand up once more, not feeling dizzy in the slightest. I smile at this. "I know what you were going to say, and you're right. We need to find the others."
~~~
"Cyborg?"
"Raven?"
"Beast Boy?"
"Starfire?"
I remove the hands that had been cupping my mouth from my face, sighing. "It's no use," I say, letting my pessimism show. "If they can't hear us now, and they haven't for the past hour or so... then I hate to say it, but I doubt they will."
"We can't just give up on them," Robin says. He continues on about teamwork and such, but I don't pay attention as I stop in my tracks. My hand ventures to my communicator, clipped to my self, and I pull it out, staring at it.
"Raven? Starfire?" I close my eyes before opening them once more and huffing in annoyance. "Beast Boy? Cy?" I listen intently, but hear nothing. "Anyone?" A spark of static makes my heart skip a beat but the line runs flat and I turn it off, disappointed.
"Nothing?" Robin asks.
I purse my lips. "No. They didn't answer. I don't think it's working." I take a step forward, Robin right behind me. "We should continue; we won't find them if we're—"
I'm cut off as Robin tackles me to the floor, panting quietly. We both look back just as a giant wall of lava shoots through a gap in the wall. "Didn't know if you were lava-resistant," Robin notes, still on top of me. I wait for him to move on his own accord, but he doesn't seem to realise that I want to get up.
"Can you—?"
Instantly, Robin gets the memo and rolls off of me, laying next to me instead. "Yeah. Sure. Of course." I roll my eyes but smile to myself as I prop my body up by my elbows, staring at the firewall. I stay there, transfixed, until the ground shakes.
I look down and my eyes widen. Cracks emerge from the sides of my vision, seemingly headed straight towards me. My hands instinctively lift and turn white, but the colour falters before fading, only causing my expression to deepen. The cracks reach me and I don't have time to lift myself onto a rock as I fall, Robin not far behind me.
I don't dare close my eyes and reach out for Robin's hand, shouting his name. As his hand reaches for mine, I will my body to inch closer in the air, but nothing happens. My fingers brush against his but that is as close as they get before I fall further down, Robin jumping between different rocks and landing on an alcove in the cliff.
I groan as my hands find a rock, but my grip slips. I find another and dig my nails into the soft soil slowly, so as not to break it and fall down once more, potentially losing Robin. I know I'm doomed if I lose him on a large planet of all places, especially since our communicators don't work.
"Ember! Fly!" I hear him call out from above me, but I don't dare look up.
I try again, squeezing my eyes shut as I focus. When my body doesn't lift into the air like it normally does, tears begin to fall from my shut eyes and travel down my cheeks. Slowly, I open my eyes and look up at the Boy Wonder. "Robin! I—I can't! It's not working!" My voice trembles as I speak; one would have to be deaf not to hear it.
"What?!"
I almost don't hear the Boy Wonder as my grip loosens, before breaking entirely. A shrill scream leaves my lips as I fall through the air, flailing madly. The sound of harsh winds whoosh by me, but for whatever reason, I can't join it and float into the air.
No, this can't be happening, I think as I plummet closer to the ground. Why isn't it working? Why can't I fly like I normally do, especially when I need to the most?
Just as I believe all hope is gone, a shadow looms over me and Robin grabs me by the biceps, his grip on me firm. His eyes look past me, scanning for a way out, and I realise that he has found one as his grappling hook pulls us into a larger alcove.
My tears now fly down my face, two waterfalls streaming freely. Robin gets up from on top of me and pulls me into a hug. My hands slowly wrap around him and it's not long before I can feel my warm tears already reaching them.
By now, I have welcomed Robin's embrace, and we stand there for what would well-and-truly be an hour or more. My hands freeze up and fall to my sides, completely at a loss for words, but Robin still holds me, doing his best to relieve me of my emotions.
~~~
Robin finally arrives, walking back with several logs in his hands. I'm immediately by his side, taking them out of his grip and into my own. I ignore the splinters, doing my very best to not wince at the sharp pricks in my forearms.
"I'm sorry! Oh, I'm so sorry!" I try lifting the wood out of my hands until I remember that I can't. They drop to the ground rather pathetically and I stare at them at a loss.
"Ember!" Robin's words snap me back to him. "It's okay. We're okay." He looks around, eyes landing back on me. I don't fail to notice he plays with his fingers, fiddling with them as he does sometimes when he's nervous. Why would he be nervous? "Why don't you tell me what happened back there? Why couldn't you fly?"
I frown, but not because I disapprove of the question. Robin deserves an answer, but I can't help him if I don't know it myself. "I don't know," I admit. "I-I guess this planet's atmosphere is different. Whether I can fly is—it's tied to the wind, and this planet must be different from Earth."
"How? On Tamaran, and on other planets, you've been fine."
"I already told you, I don't know." I bend down to pick up the wood and branches, throwing it onto the already-lit fireplace. "When I find out, you're the first person I'll tell. You deserve an answer as much as I do."
Robin throws the last few branches onto the fireplace, which spits in happiness, before turning to me. "We'll figure it out together, okay?" When I don't answer, he leans forward slightly to meet my eye. "Okay?"
I clear my throat, nodding unconvincingly. "Yeah, okay." I bite my tongue to stop myself from asking the one question that I actually want to: how are we getting out of here? I scowl as I push the thought back, something that Robin notices.
"Everything okay?"
"Yeah. Just thinking."
"About?"
I sigh, throwing everything I had just thought about out of the window. "How we're gonna get out of here. How we're gonna survive."
Robin doesn't hesitate as he answers, and for that I am grateful. "We'll find a way. We always do." I move to sit down, but he grabs my hand and whirls me around to face him. "Hey. Look at me," he says softly. "We'll be okay."
"You've said that too many times."
"That's because it's true."
I pull away and sit down, burying my face in my hands. I only remember to respond after a pause of around ten seconds, looking up as I mumble, "I know," rather unconvincingly.
My mind whirls at a million miles an hour, trying desperately to find a solution. Whilst I do so, I keep trying to lift even the smallest of objects, such as the neglected piece of wood that Robin forgot to put in the fire. Maybe I was wrong. Maybe I'm the problem. I shake the thought away, knowing that it won't get me anywhere in the direction of getting out of here.
As I close my eyes, I feel my power pushing to get out, and just to make sure it isn't me and that it is the air, I open my eyes and watch as the fire spins to form a cross, then a star, then a heart under my influence. I blink it away and the fire returns to its natural state, leaving me to stare after it longingly. A drop of water hovers over the fire, and when it drops the fire hisses loudly.
Seconds turn to minutes, which turn into hours. Robin wanders around, searching for an exit before sitting down beside me, and it's my turn to stand up. I sit at the edge, legs dangling over. Rocks fall at my feet, and I make no effort to stop them.
Two hands wrap themselves around my neck from above and I don't have to look up to know who it is. I stand up and turn around as Robin brings me into a hug, pressing a kiss to my forehead.
I don't have to be a genius to know he's almost given up.
Knowing it's my turn to comfort him, I instigate the hug, allowing Robin to fully relax into it. My mouth feels dry and I can't find the words to reassure him without sounding like a broken record. Eventually, I settle for, "We're doing everything we can."
"And it's still not working."
"Something will." I break out of the hug and kiss Robin, hopefully bringing his mind off the situation, if only for a moment. The Boy Wonder doesn't move at first, but I feel his muscles relax properly as I pull away and smile. "Trust me."
Robin's sad smile flashes for a second before he pulls me back in. My eyes flutter shut but my mind doesn't stop working, motives purely based on making Robin feel better. Eventually, my feelings get the better of me too and I focus on Robin's cool lips moving against mine, synchronised.
I try thinking of possible ways, any chance we have of getting out of this cliff. This planet, with walls of lava and slime-covered monsters and falling boulders and—boulders, rocks... that's it. We can get out of here. My eyes quickly snap open and I freeze at my thoughts. I stare behind me and grin against Robin's lips, breaking away in realisation.
"The rocks! Robin, we can get out of here!"
Robin stares at me, deadpanned. "That's what you're focusing on right now?" Despite this, his eyes depict intrigue and he follows me to the edge curiously, staring down in fatigued wonder.
I pull a rock from the edge and it lands into Robin's right hand, his left one intertwined with mine. "You ready?"
Robin nods, and I pull another rock into my left hand before flying it up, us along with it. The additional weight of both of us initially throws me off, but I grit my teeth and we gain speed as we near the top. With the last bit of strength that I can muster, I throw Robin over the edge and hear him land with a satisfying thud before he grabs my hand once more and pulls me up.
My hand is sweaty from being near a burning pit of lava for hours on end and the heat is killing me in a way I didn't know possible, the potential for my hand to slip plaguing my thoughts. My chin rests against Robin's shoulder as he brings me into him silently and my hands grab at the cloth on his back tightly, not wanting to let go.
The thought of the Titans being right there as we escaped haunts me through the sound of an engine running, but I unsuccessfully try to shake the thought away as I shake my head. When it doesn't disappear, I open my eyes and look up. Sure enough, above me is the T-Ship with Cyborg, Beast Boy, and Starfire all waving frantically.
I narrow my eyes at the sight of all six pods, including mine and Robin's. Cyborg must have enabled the trackers and found them all, leading him to us. Just as my brain travels to the Titan, he clears his throat loudly and Robin and I separate.
"Friends! It is glorious to see you!" Starfire calls through the speakers. Her eyes sparkle under the light with newfound joy that makes my heart skip a beat.
It skips another beat when Robin's grip on my hand tightens. Cyborg's eyes narrow slightly before he smirks. "I don't think 'friends' is the right word," he tells Starfire, before shouting, "Yo, Robin! Wanna fill in the gaps?"
Robin turns beet-red, and I'm sure I do too based on how much my cheeks burn. He glances at me as if debating something in his head before whispering something under his breath. The gap between us closes in mere seconds and Robin's lips are back on mine for what feels like the hundredth time.
I faintly register the other Titans' cheers and hollers, but I pay no thought to them as the kiss deepens. Robin breaks away after a short while and I smile at him happily, in a daze.
"Are we gonna be able to fly home in that?" Robin asks, clearing his throat before he speaks to catch the others' attention.
"Just missing a few pieces. Like me." Cyborg holds out his arms that have no hands attached to them.
A soft gasp leaves my lips before I ask, "Are you okay?"
"I'll survive."
"Somebody's waving at us," Beast Boy notes. I turn around to see, behind a horde of purple trees, a mechanic hand sticking out from behind and waving at us. "And it's you!"
"Well, all right!"
"You guys seen Raven?" Robin asks.
Cyborg frowns, staring back at us. "We thought she was with you."
"I hope she is not suffering the atrocities so abundant on this planet," Starfire notes, and I nod.
"I hope so, too. I'll call her, see if she answers." I pull out my communicator before remembering that they don't work, and I put it away reluctantly. "Never mind." Shrugging my shoulders, I bend down before jumping up, barely hanging onto the T-Ship.
"You coulda warned me, Em. I would've lowered the ship."
I wince at the volume on the speakers and shake my head obstinately. My foot finds a hold in the ship and I use it to push myself up, turning my body so that I slide into my own compartment as gracefully as I can manage. "I'm fine. See?" I adjust the headset so that it falls over my ears and put my seatbelt on—I'm not making that mistake again. "Also, Starfire, I'm sorry if I trashed your seat."
"It was not... trashed when I found Cyborg and Beast Boy."
"That's because I fixed it up! All of it!" the shapeshifter exclaims as Robin jumps in his cockpit, flashing me a smile that I return.
"Hey! If I wasn't there to help you, you wouldn't have been able to do any of it, so shut your hole!" Cyborg shoots back.
"Yeah, well if I wasn't there to help you, you'd still be just a head!!"
Cyborg growls in response and I giggle lightly. "We need to find Raven, remember?"
"Yeah, yeah, I know. All right, Beast Boy, if you're so smart... start the engine."
Static is all I hear for at least ten seconds. Just as I'm about to say something, the static stops and a timid voice speaks up. "How do I do that?"
"I'm sorry, what was that?"
"Don't make me say it again."
"Can you guys hurry up?" I ask, smiling through the tinted glass. Starfire looks at me and I roll my eyes jokingly, mouthing the word 'boys' at her. She laughs and I hear it through the headset.
"The engine's already on, stupid. See, this is why you need me."
"I don't need you."
"Tell that to the green boy who asked for my help starting the engine that was clearly already on."
After an annoyed grunt from Beast Boy, the ship lifts into action, headed towards the direction in which we saw Cyborg's hands. They still wave at us, making crude gestures no doubt aimed at the shapeshifter.
I glance at Cyborg and he winks at me, eyes flicking between me and the Boy Wonder. For the second time in five minutes—albeit with a different context—I roll my eyes and focus my gaze on the scenery in front of me, a smile playing on my lips the entire way home.
I'm losing my mind... 20K reads. That's insane. You guys are insane. I seriously cannot believe the support I'm receiving and I'm so incredibly grateful for all of you who vote, comment, send me messages, or even just read. That's how we get to these numbers and I know it's not all about that but it's so validating to see that people are enjoying what I'm writing... I could go on and on for days, or miles, or whatever, but this is an author's note, not an essay.
Thank you all! <3