This idea came to me on, well, on a bus one rainy Thursday night. Lol, can't get any more inspirational than that. But I'm really happy with how this turned out. I skipped out on sleep till 5am to write it so, now I'm dying thanks to an early 8:30 lecture I had this morning but I don't care! Haha well, for the sake of my peace and yours, enjoy! This is my first oneshot...

All right disclaimed. If I did own DC or Teen Titans, Raven and Robin would have been the glorious canon pairing. & not because I hate Starfire or anything - in fact, she's my gal. Well, continue on. Happy scrolling!

Seats

September 30, 2011

by: Her Head in the Clouds

Woosh-schk! Ch-khissssss.

And when the automatic doors folded themselves outward, Dick stepped onto the bus, cold and soaking wet. He fumbled for some spare change in his pocket as the passengers in line before him slipped their tokens noisily into bus driver's slot, silently cursing himself for always wanting to use credit instead of cash.

Growing up with a billionaire like Bruce always ensured him he had money in the bank, and thanks to a socialite like his stepdad, he learned that money on plastic was faster to check out. But since The Bat spent more time focused on fighting crime and he spent just as much time obsessing over it too, that meant simple things like remembering to fix their hot-off-the-assembly-line crime and luxury cruisers, always took a back seat. So with his cars left in Bludhaven, and the flat-tired sports car he was borrowing from Bruce during his stay in Gotham for the weekend, AND with Bruce and Alfred gone, doing god knows what, he had to take an alternate: trip by public transit.

And man, it had been a while since he'd been on one. Maybe it was even his very first time, since he couldn't remember a time as a kid, a Teen Titan, and now as a man when he ever had the excuse of not getting around with his own ride.

The bus smelled uncomfortably stinky. He wasn't sure if all buses smelled like wet dog but putting his detective skills to good use he figured that because it was a rainy day, the marriage of different people's body scents, heat, and wet clothes, must have accumulated the stench. Of course as Robin, and now as Nightwing, he'd smelled worse. But it was still all a surprise to him.

Fortunately enough though, after thankfully praying for finding some spare change deep inside the bottom of his jeans' pocket, he forgot about the bus smells and threw the driver a small, embarrassed smile and readied his journey inwards. The bus driver kind of reminded him of an older, grandpa-like version of Cyborg without the prosthetics - and in a way it made him sad. He hadn't seen Victor for some years.

As the line of people he was in began to shift and move around in their own directions for seats, the space opened up and Dick finally got a look of the bus.

'So this is one of the luxuries I'm protecting when I play hero,' he thought mildly as he shuffled slowly.

Dick realized the buses were kind of small, not at all big like they looked from the outside. But the amount of people who tried to occupy it was amazing! Everyone was cramming every available space they could; people were literally shoulder to shoulder, butt-to-butt, face-to-face! It messed up his thought processing - Dick liked being able to accurately photograph everyone's face in case the situation called for trouble and he needed to know where everyone was. Call it a, 'superhero's assurance'. But on a bus like this, he could forget even trying to find the face that belonged to the woman sitting with the wet orange skirt and blue flats! Dick sighed and made a scowl. His first ride by bus, and he already hated it.

He listened as the bus tokens kept clinking into the driver's slot as he continued to walk further into the bus. It was a tight shuffle where he kept muttering 'scuse me' and 'sorry' and getting glazed-over looks by teens and adults alike. It didn't help either that the leather jacket he was wearing, still wet from the rain, kept sticking, sliding and squeezing tightly to his built frame and to the occasional person he had to squish through. Dick found that he was using his stealth-maneuvering skills every once in a while to avoid knocking into someone; it was like being on a mission... then someone had to go and step fully on his foot and he couldn't even see their face to give them a well-deserved stare. He kept getting hit with weird smells from time to time, and his nose brushed a woman's wet afro at one point. He couldn't help it that he was 5'11, but at least it was better than being short like Beast Boy and not being able to see anyone in this mess.

Another familiar but long-missed friend. Dick sighed, his green-skinned buddy would probably fit in more with civilians on bus unlike how he felt right now - heck, even Starfire would probably strike up conversation with the shorter man beside him. But they'd broken up and moved on years ago.

Finally the sound of the bus' doors were closing and with a loud jump start from the hydraulics below, the driver slowly hit the gas and the bus began to move. With a small exhale, Richard wiped his forehead dry of rainwater. He stood awkwardly with his hand firm on a bus rod, moving easily to the bus' turns and lurches.

As Dick continued on with his observing, he wasn't surprised how everyone kept quiet and to themselves as they patiently (or impatiently) waited for the bus to reach their stops. Some muttering from conversations and the occasional laugh was heard but other than that, the music from angry headphones, and the bus were the only sounds. Dick was relieved though, it gave him the minutes he needed to relax himself and collect his thoughts.

It was all so strange to him, being among the people in such a mundane activity. Here he was, probably the most lethal man in the bus, at peak human athleticism, a master of several martial arts, a brilliant strategic and tactic specialist AND the freaking heir to a multi-billion dollar enterprise and vigilante protégé... and nobody even knew it. The businessman, the university graduate with a psyche-book in one hand, and the middle-aged woman with a large purse didn't even comprehend that maybe they were all touching shoulders with Robin, the boy wonder, Nightwing, protector of Bludhaven - it kind of made him amused. He smiled to himself through the window reflection. It was... nice.

Dick's next twenty minutes were spent thinking about what tools to bring back for Bruce's broken down car, what to eat when he got back to the manner, and several other cases he had to investigate with the police department. His crime-obsessed mind wouldn't really let him think of much else. When the twenty was up, the bus had stopped at a fairly large intersection. It was a street in Gotham that many people travelled on and that thankfully, a lot of people had to get off at. But Dick wasn't one of them. The Wayne Manor was practically on the edge of town - he didn't need to get off for a long time. Like animals, they filed out quickly and noisily through both the front and back doors, greatly relieving much of space the bus had. When it died down, Dick was amazed by how much bigger the bus felt. He quickly spotted many empty seats up in the back on the higher level and took the two stair-steps up to a comfortable seat in the back by a window. Once settled in, he sighed and relaxed himself into the stuffy seat. There was a small pile of garbage accumulating near his feet and someone had gone to writing profanity on the steamed window beside his head. Dick rolled his eyes. He would tolerate the public bus just this once, but never again. A couple more stops, and his mind turned into a tired slug.

And that's when he saw it... purple hair. Dick blinked and narrowed his eyes.

Gotham was a crazy city, he wouldn't deny it. There were many outgoing, independent people - which explained why so many people still lived in it despite its high crime rates. So when he saw the occasional rebellious/artistic/expressive teenager with a hair dye, it didn't faze him. But purple, he always had to take a double take with purple.

And this time, he wasn't stupid.

There was Raven; he hadn't seen her since he left and their team had broken up. It was group mutuality - everyone knew they had to move on and they did in the most respectful, loving way. He was glad to know, she hadn't really ever changed.

Dick stared at her as she sat on the lower level in a seat that was facing the front. To his disappointment, she hadn't seen him in the back. But hell, even if she did, she probably wouldn't even recognize him because really, who would? Nightwing taking public transit, when he had all of Bruce Wayne and Batman's technical resources at his hands? He was a bit surprised to find that sherode by bus. But Dick was like an elephant...

'What would you do...?'

'Not sure. But I wouldn't mind a quiet life, after living with a mess like you.'

Dick smiled softly at her unbeknownst figure. Then again, he'd think her skills with empathy would have picked up on his excited emotions right now. He liked having to spy on Raven now, when it was almost impossible to do so at one time.

She wore a dark purple turtleneck under light brown leather jacket but unlike him, still drying from the rain, she was holding a wet umbrella between her legs. She had on low-heeled boots, purple tights and a brown skirt that ended just before her knees. She'd grown out her hair and had French-braided it over her shoulder. In Dick's opinion, she was... cute. But then again, she always was.

Dick was swirling with warm emotions. Their mind meld had died years ago and he was dying to know how she was doing, what she was thinking. It didn't help him any better when he watched as she began eating from a bag of peach rings she'd taken out of her messenger bag. Since when did Raven eat... candy? Were peach rings her favourite? And had she been keeping it a secret all this time? Maybe that's why she never wanted anyone in her room - she probably had a freaking stash hiding in there.

Dick smirked, but it fell quickly into a small frown of sombre. Seeing this new Raven made every memory of being a Titan come rushing back. He didn't realise how much he missed her until she was sitting right in front of him nibbling on sweets. What surprised him even more was when she took out a music player and began listening to it with a small smile on her face.

She looked so content. It hurt him to think of how happy she might have pieced together a calm and normal life - how she'd finally moved on. But Dick couldn't stop staring. For such a quick and tactical mind, he was stumbling over his thoughts as to how he was going to approach her.

Should he pull a Beast boy and surprise her from behind? No, she might hate him for scaring her like that. Should he pull a Starfire and jump in, all smiles and ready with hugs? Nah, she hated that more. Maybe he should pull a Robin and just sit in front of her and stare at her with a calculating gaze until she told him to quit it. He laughed at the thought. He didn't do that anymore, he wasn't seventeen. Nowadays he just charmed the ladies... if there ever were any. And as he thought about it more, the more stressed he became because he knew he was being strapped for time. And Raven didn't even know it. She was too busy daydreaming out the wet window.

Then, Dick finally thought about what he would do.

Nothing.

Absolutely nothing.

Instead he took the precious time he had with Raven by simply watching her, watching her movements whilst she remain unaware of his presence. He watched the way she fiddled with her fingers, the umbrella handle, and the wires of her music player. He smiled when she rocked her head to a beat she liked that he couldn't hear. He rolled his eyes when a male passenger eyed her suggestively and she threw a passive glance as if to say, "When pigs fly." Typical Raven. And he frowned when a smile graced her face and she seemed lost in her thoughts.

He wondered why she was here in Gotham and where she was going. He also wondered why no one was flagging him as a stalker yet for staring so intently at her for such a long time. He would thank Gotham, just this once, for its fear of criminals. It meant people wouldn't try to mess with him.

And then, it was time.

With a heavy heart and a dry mouth, Dick watched as Raven lifted her arm and pulled the bus cable, indicating her request for a drop off.

But he wasn't ready! He was still trying to come up with a way to greet her! If... that was what he really wanted do. It just-! He inwardly sighed. He didn't want to disturb her normal, peaceful life! She just looked so calm and finally happy with herself. Who was he to just walk in on that and make her relive hard memories? Nobody would ever wish that on a blissful Raven. But seeing her so fresh and looking so cute in clothes Dick never thought he'd see her in... he wanted to be in her life again, even if for only a brief moment, just to see how she was and what she doing. Dick frowned. Batman may have taught him many skills, but approaching women was never one of them.

Raven made to stand up, the small heavy thunk of her ankle boots making their way to the front door as the bus was nearing her stop. Dick's heart was pounding. Raven's hand went to grasp a bus pole. She leaned against it nonchalantly. He frowned seemed to deepen, but his heart was in the right place. Then the brake sounded and the bus doors folded outwards.

Woosh-schk! Ch-khissssss.

And with light-hearted, "Thank you!" in a voice that Dick never thought he'd Raven had, she stepped out of the bus and pulled her umbrella up and over her head.

Dick snapped his head through the blurred window.

'Damn it, what's this street?' he thought frantically to himself. And after he found the street sign he brought his gaze back to Raven, her small form already walking quickly toward the sidewalk. Her back was the last he saw of her before it was almost impossible to stare at her without developing whiplash. He sighed. The bus had moved on. She had moved on.

Too bad for him, he wasn't ready to move on.

But at least he remembered the name of the street.

'Robinson Road.'

So Dick smiled.

Because maybe, sure, it was pretty mundane, but public transit wasn't so terrible after all.

End.

Well there you have it! If this has the potential to have a sequel, let me know! A part of me feels it does but I'm just so content with this as a oneshot I didn't think to plan any further. Robin still seemed to have his ego slightly inflated as he'd grown up but I liked how his character came out, especially around Miss Roth. Haha, I hoped it warmed your insides. More RxR oneshots to come! I love writing schort-scenes.

Much love, Abby~