Raven sat on her bed, back against the wall, book propped up on her knees. It was one of her favourite books, one that she was reading for the third time, but for the first time, she just couldn't concentrate. She would get to the bottom of a page and realise that she didn't remember what she had just read. Her eyes were reading, but her mind was somewhere very different...

"RAVEN!" Raven jumped as Starfire burst into her room.
"Star! Haven't I told you enough times that you have to knock?"
"Oh, forgive me, friend, but I have the most wondrous news that I simply had to tell you immediately!"
Stifling a sigh, Raven put her book aside. "What is it then?" she said resignedly.
"Robin has asked me to do the going out with him!" Starfire burst out. She grinned at Raven eagerly, her eyes alight. "Is it not wonderful? Apparently, I am now his 'girlfriend' and he is my 'boyfriend' but this makes no sense to me, as we were friends anyway, and I am a girl and he is a boy... Do you think...?"

Starfire's voice trailed off out of Raven's mind. This could not be happening. After last night... he went and did this?

The night before, Raven had been meditating on the roof of Titans Tower when Robin had come crashing through the door. "Damn it!" he muttered as he stumbled through. Then he looked up and saw Raven. "Oh, sorry Rae, I didn't know you were up here." He looked uncomfortable for a moment. "Sorry about the noise, the door got jammed."
"Its okay." said Raven, as she came out of her meditation pose. Robin came to stand next to her. He smiled at her and then looked out to the red and orange horizon. "Sunset." He said with a smile in his voice.
"Yes, it is." Raven said. He chuckled which made Raven smile. There was something in the air, a new feeling, a change, but she couldn't put her finger on it. Robin looked at her sideways, a lopsided grin on his face. Suddenly, Raven had the strangest longing to see him with his mask off, to see his eyes glint with the mischief that his face suggested.
"It's kind of romantic, isn't it?" he said gesturing to the sunset. He stepped closer to her and took her hand. "You're cold," he said, his brow furrowing slightly with concern. He rubbed her chilly fingers between his hands. Raven found that her heart was beating a little faster than usual. She swallowed, finding her mouth rather dry too. What was going on? And why did she get the feeling that some underlying emotions were about to come out from both of them?
Robin leaned closer, and Raven's breath stopped altogether. "Raven, I..."

"Roo-biin!" Starfire's voice came floating up the stairs. Robin looked around towards the door, then back at Raven, who suddenly realised that her hand had been dropped. "I gotta go." He said. "You coming down for dinner?"
Raven slowly shook her head. "Not right now."
With one last smile, he had turned and left.

This was what Raven had been thinking about until now. She had realised that she had feelings for Robin, and maybe he did too, considering the feel of the episode on the roof. She had been sure that something was in the air. Since then, Raven had been contemplating taking the chance of following her heart. She was so afraid that something like what happened with Malchior would happen again. But she had reasoned with herself that it was different with Robin. She'd known him a long time.

But now. Now this had happened. Was she doomed to have everything fall in her face if she decided to trust? Could she ever trust her emotions? Apparently not, since it always led her to despair.

"Raven? Raven, are you listening to me?" Starfire's voice broke into her thoughts. Raven gave herself a mental shake. "Yes," she replied vaguely.
"Well, I must go and tell Cyborg and Beastboy. We shall speak later, friend Raven!" With that, she dashed out of the room.

Raven sat still for a moment. What was she going to do now? She couldn't face Robin yet and pretend that she thought the news was great. She decided to leave the tower and go for a long walk to clear her chaotic head. She needed to gain some control.

A few minutes later, she found herself in the city park. She sat cross-legged on the bank of the lake. For hours she sat, unmoving, until the sun disappeared behind the horizon. The sky was shot with only a little red and orange when she got up. As she came back to herself, she was surprised to see how dark it was already. She sighed. Time to go back to reality.

But before she could even turn around, someone gripped her from behind, a foul-smelling piece of cotton held fast over her nose and mouth, stifling her cry of surprise. She struggled, trying to twist out of the iron grip. "Settle down, Raven." She froze; that deep, metallic voice was unmistakeable. Slade. Don't breathe in, she thought frantically, but her body betrayed her before the thought was finished. As soon as she inhaled, she felt her consciousness start slipping away. The last thing she was aware of was being dragged back against a hard body. No.