concoursec | So wipe that smile off your face

Entry tags:

So wipe that smile off your face

Character(s): Damian Razem (Robin), Zuko
Location: A108, Zuko's room
Rating: PG to PG-13 for Damian's language and... Damian being Damian.
Open/Closed/Finished: Closed!
Summary: When Aang's feelings are hurt thanks to two certain people dating, Damian decides to take the matter into his own hands. Of course, death threats don't always work out exactly like they're planned.

It had honestly been too long since he'd done this. Robin couldn't help smirking as he placed a hand over his heart and listened to his heart race faster and faster. School was so different from Neo-Gotham; for instance? Sneaking into someone's house in the middle of the night to give him the smackdown was completely and totally normal. (Except apparently in Garden, people respected each other's privacy. What was this? Metropolis?)

In this case, though, privacy be damned. Aang had been a total and complete recluse ever since he'd found out that Katara was dating some Zuko kid... and although Damian personally didn't care for dating and romantic relationships, the revelation had clearly bothered Aang. His normally all-too-cheerful (and quite frankly, hyperactive) best friend had retreated into an invisible shell and seemed to refuse to talk to the outside world. Thank god Hope had understood completely, or else Damian wouldn't have known what to do with his best friend being in his room 24/7. There had to be something to make Aang feel better and to get his best friend back to the person he used to be. How could he do it? The normal methods of baking him food and teasing him about his waterbending hadn't worked. Neither had promises of homework help and being nicer than normal. When all else failed... Damian figured he'd better resort to the good old-fashioned death threat.

He had set the scene perfectly: during his patrols two nights ago, he'd cleverly left a batarang outside Zuko's door with a vague but definitely menacing threat: "Cease what you're doing or you'll be in a world of hurt. - R." It was perfect! Not only was it printed on computer paper in-between classes, so people wouldn't know it was Robin, but it was a threat that would ensure that Zuko would have to stop sucking face with that weird lifeguard chick.

Still, a good vigilante's work was never done. In order to ensure that Zuko'd start acting nice to Aang again, Damian decided to sneak into Zuko's room through the window before the wake-up call rang. Dressed to the nines in his Robin gear, he adjusted his hood so that it concealed his face and carefully knelt at the foot of Zuko's bed. The minute the kid woke up, he'd get a good whack to the head with a batarang! ... That is, if those incessant cats would stop meowing. And getting in his hood. And generally making a threatening vigilante look positively, absolutely harmless. Dammit all. How was he supposed to look threatening with kittens all over him?

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Those cats were in fact trying to get all over Damian like they wanted a piece of him. They didn't care who he was, or what; they were just naturally drawn to him, giving out loud and quiet mews and meows, nudging him anywhere they could with their heads. They were affectionate, probably the first time ever to a complete stranger. It was too bad their owner was a light sleeper, awake within minutes of Damian's arrival and twisting around in his bed to see what the hell they were making so much noise over.

"--what?" Who could it be?

It wouldn't be Katara, she would have let him know ahead of time if she was coming to his dorm.

Seeing the shadowed figure had him tensing and then immediately sitting up, a ball of fire igniting in the palm of his hand to give him some decent bit of lighting to see exactly who the trespasser was.

And yet ... the cats continued with their sounds of affection, purring and still nudging at the hooded figure.

Why wouldn't they just get off him already? Robin gritted his teeth, gently lifting one out of his hood and setting it down at the foot of Zuko's bed. Jeez, had he known that this guy had a ton of cats, he would've picked somewhere else for the inevitable ambush. Someplace with a lot less noise... like the Training Centre.

Even so, a death threat was a death threat, so Robin pulled out a batarang and aimed it squarely at the wall--just enough to miss Zuko's head by mere inches. Kitties be damned; he was going to look schway when he did this! It had to be just like Batman. Even if he was absolutely, positively sure Batman would've put the kitties to sleep through the power of being the slagging Batman.

"Not a bad security system, zift," He growled, trying to make his voice as deep and raspy as he possibly could. "But I think you could've done a lot better."

Zuko had managed to jerk off to the side away from the flying object just seconds before it was embedded in the wall. "What is your problem?!" he shouted, completely ignoring what Robin had had to say.

A controlled thin stream of fire came to life at a single thought then, launched at the intruder, coiling forward through the air. Fine. If this guy wanted a fight then that's what they were going to get, death threats be damned (although Zuko had yet to actually hear one).

Well frag. Robin jumped back, shielding himself from the flame with his cape before cautiously lowering it again. One of these days, he'd seriously have to thank Mr. Wayne for making the suit fire-proof.

"You didn't get my note? From two days ago?" Robin groaned, gripping his cape with his hand - just in case! - as he eyed Zuko. "I thought I made my intentions obvious."

"Note? Uh..." Zuko has had the worst habit ever of not keeping up to date with the BBS that Garden had set up as a messaging forum. It was obvious that he had not received it.

Fire came to life again in his palm, mostly to give them light. "Were your intentions to break into my dorm room and try to assassinate me in my sleep? Because that uh- that didn't work out so well."

He nearly punched the wall for that remark. Nearly being the keyword, since he was subconsciously stroking one of the kitten's ears as if he were an evil overlord with his own pet cat. "Kill you in your sleep?" Robin looked almost insulted at the thought. "No, if I wanted to kill you, I'd wait until you were awake so that you'd give me a decent show."

Honestly! What happened to people's code of honor? "I meant, I came here to check that you got my warning. You're hurting people with your callous actions... and unless you stop? I will make sure you're in a world of pain."

"Give you a decent show? Tch-- you might have your work cut out for you then. I'm stubborn, I won't go down as easily as you think." It was the truth; his entire life, Zuko had been a fighter. He fought his way forward and never gave up, not once with the Avatar or proving to his father that he was just as good as Azula or to try at making him even the slightest proud of him, so what was to say that he'd not fight with this guy in spandex and a cape?

If dealing with his father had taught him anything...

Zuko narrowed his eyes, the flames brightening as they grew. "Callous actions? What are you even talking about?"

Did he really have no idea what he'd done? Robin groaned, more out of exasperation than anything else, "You ziiiiiiift. Did you really not think things through before you started courting your girlfriend?"

It wasn't often that Robin had to spell everything out, and judging by his suddenly grumpy expression, he really didn't feel like explaining it either. Still stroking one of the kittens, he reluctantly explained, "If you haven't noticed who you've hurt by that, there's seriously no hope for you."

Zuko wasn't stupid, he and Katara were just waiting for the 'right' moment to tell Aang about how they were dating. But from the sounds of it... Aang already knew and this guy was coming in to play hero to the damsel in distress. No wonder Aang had taken to avoiding them for all this time.

"I don't think he needs you to speak for him." He slid over to the edge of the bed, sitting on it, still glaring over at where Damian was with the cat.

"On the contrary," Robin huffed, somehow managing to sound angrier than ever, "You two didn't have the courage to say anything to him? And he had to find out through someone else? I'll be damned if he doesn't need me right now."

Gently kneeling down to set the kitten on the ground, Robin then took out his bo staff and waved it in Zuko's direction. "Fire prince or not, I could really care less for you right now."

"If he needs you so bad then why are you wasting your time with me?"

Golden eyes narrowed at the sight of that staff being waved in his direction. Zuko was immediately on the defense, rising slowly from the edge of his bed, prepared for anything this kid might throw at him. If he wanted to fight then Zuko wasn't going to step down; this guy was the one coming in here, breaking in, threatening him.

He knew Aang was hurting and he felt like a dick for it, but what else was there for him to do? This was just something Aang would have to face and accept. Zuko understood it that it would probably take time, one of the reasons for why he hadn't actively sought out the young monk, to give him time alone.

It was probably better either way to only see Aang when and if he wanted to see him, leave it up to him.

Zuko remembered the time Aang had come to his dorm with tea and snacks, how Zuko had been avoiding him since his hook up with Katara, how Aang had been sad over Toph's disappearance and chose to seek him out for some small company and talk... how somehow Zuko had failed to tell Aang about his and Katara's relationship...

"Then get. Lost." There was a strong emphasis on the last word.

After tonight, Zuko was going to make sure to lock his windows and doors extra tight.

He may not be the world's greatest detective just yet, but even Damian could tell when he wasn't wanted. Still holding his bo staff before this excuse for a prince, Robin pressed his lips and watched Zuko with all the attention he could spare.

Of all the things he wanted right now, a fight was number one on that list. It'd been way too long since he'd been able to get rough and dirty with someone - not those zidgit excuses for monsters in the Center! - and actually think about the next move, the next counterattack. He missed that adrenaline rush.... if he struck first, then he could get that fight he so badly wanted.

Aang wouldn't approve. He staggered back the moment that thought popped into his head. Ugh, of all the times his best friend had to rub off on him, it had to be now? Robin took a breath and then slowly folded his bo staff back into his utility belt.

"Fine," He gritted through his teeth. "Let's hope there's never a next time, zift." With that, he exited exactly the way he came.... the showing off of his rocket boots? Completely unnecessary, but fitting for Robin, considering he broke off his first fight in forever.

Seeing the rocket boots come to life was a bit of a surprise, it seemed that kid was full of them. Zuko would have never expected anything out of a kid that seemed almost younger than Aang. The cats all hid the moment they heard the boots go off and then curiously went to the window to explore as Zuko rose to furiously snap his window shut and lock it, grumbling to himself the entire time.

Who did that kid think he was? Augh. The only person he knew to creep on him in such a way while sleeping had been Azula. Like the one time, when they were both very young, she had been waiting for him to awaken only to tell him that their father was ready to kill him off any day.

On a heavy sigh Zuko plopped back down onto his bed. It was Boots who hopped up and made a little sound, nudging Zuko's side before climbing up onto his lap. What had just happened only reminded him that he needed to talk to Aang, that he needed to explain or try to make him see reason or... There was another sigh; who was he kidding? Better off just trying to get some rest and dealing with it in the morning.

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So wipe that smile off your face

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