#tbt to when i realized those dick and sally kids books werent just insulting the boy the whole time

[squiddybeifong]

Secret Identity

Day 7 of RobRae Week 2019: 

--

He wanted to confess to her after a frustrating chase with Red X led to a worryingly intense fight with Control Freak and Cinderblock.

He wanted to confess to her the moment he’d seen that car-sized boulder of concrete slam into her side, unobstructed with all her attention on keeping the civilian-filled building from collapsing.

He wanted to confess to her the whole ride back to the Tower, but he didn’t want to confess to the rest of the team. So, aside from checking over injuries and going over the routine with the police, he stayed quiet. Part of it was his almost certainly broken ribs, but mostly he wanted the moment to be right. He had come to a decision that was admittedly long-coming and the last thing he needed was for them to be interrupted when the moment came.

And so he kept quiet until they were nearly alone in the medbay.

Raven had given him a curious, thoughtful look when he stalled near the cots. She raised a brow when he busied himself with refilling the first aid kits but ultimately she let him be, instead focusing on healing up the hairline fractures on Beast Boy’s leg. And not ten minutes later the shapeshifter hopped up and tested his weight on the leg, shooting his two favorite birds a grin as he immediately made a dash for the kitchen (hopefully before Starfire started cooking, for his sake).

Finally, Robin put his attention on her. The mystic crossed her arms over her chest, silently taking in the nervous flutter of his emotions. Amethyst eyes shut at the same time he spoke, “Raven.”

The empath immediately opened her eyes to look at him, softly biting the inside of her cheek as he walked up to her. The detective gave her a sheepish smile as he realized that she knew something was up and decided to just be impulsive.

“I wanted to--”

She touched him, cutting his words off before they could start. Robin went still with her finger against his lips and he let her calm wash over him, strong and oh-so-serene through their bond.

A tendril of magic tugged her hood down and Raven sighed, letting some emotion into her face. She watched as he noted the reservation and hope, the concern and elation, all the emotions shining through clear as day. It was a rare sight and he savored it. The demoness shuffled an inch closer. “We’ve been fighting for almost three hours straight. I know what you’re going to say and I am so unimaginably grateful for it,” Raven paused to lick her dry lips. His eyes --still shielded by his mask-- followed the move and she pulled her hand away. “But not when adrenaline is still clouding your mind. If you want to tell me--”

His fingers twitched and she amended, “--if you want to show me,” Amethyst eyes traced his mask. “Then do it tomorrow. When you’re of completely clear mind. But not before you get some rest.”

He slowly nodded, although her name slipped out of him, “Raven…”

“I don’t want you to have any regrets about this, Robin.” Pale hands brushed aside a lock of hair that brushed against her cheek and Robin nodded again. She had a point, but he didn’t want to wait too long, “Tomorrow then.”

The corner of her lips twitched up, “During the sunrise?”

Honestly, how much of their connection was a result of being so naturally in sync and how much of it was their bond, he didn’t know. His heart full Robin took a chance and leaned forward to grab her hand, pressing their palms together.

He closed his masked eyes as she squeezed his hand once, confirming her guess, “During the sunrise, then.”

--

Raven blinked at him. She didn’t know how to respond to the sight of Robin-- of Richard without his mask, his bright blue eyes shining down at her.

What with his hair shining with the rising sun behind him and the wide, sheepish smile that curled his lips, he looked like a goddamn angel in the morning air and Raven didn’t know what to do with herself. She merely stared at him, her wide eyes taking in the odd (but very attractive) way his cheekbones looked without the mask.

This was Robin, but it wasn’t. No, this was someone else. Someone the same but undeniably different.

“Richard…” His name was foreign on her lips and she repeated it over and over again, as if trying to figure out the way that she would pronounce it. “Richard. Richard. Rich-erd. Richard.”

Raven’s lips fell into a line as she narrowed her eyes at him, testing out his name until it stopped sounding like some stranger’s name and started sounding like him, “Richard.”

With every repeat she couldn’t help but think: did Richard happily don those traffic light colors? Did Richard stumble to the kitchen for his routine mug of coffee each and every morning? Did Richard wield a bo staff as effortlessly as she commanded her magic? Did Richard sit up with her, leaning their weight against each other as they watched out for crime throughout the night?

As odd as it was to put a new name to his presence, she knew that he did.

His sapphire eyes sparkled with amusement, a not-so-foreign part of him entranced at the way his name continuously fell from her lips. He watched as her eyes finally left his eyes and flicked to his mouth as he spoke, “That’s my name. You’re all set to wear it out.”

“But,” He leaned in closer, ready to tell another secret. Raven raised her face and inched closer, a breath hitching as their foreheads touched. She fiddled with his mask still in her hand, the material as smooth in her hands as his voice was in her ears, “Most people call me Dick.”

“Dick?” Her head tilted to the side and he brushed away some hair that flew into her face. Raven didn’t seem to notice the move, her eyes narrowing protectively as the mask crumpled in her fist, “Isn’t that an insult? Richard, are they insulting you?”

The mystic sounded so affronted at the idea that Dick couldn’t help himself. His eyes closed and his shoulders shook as he tried to hold back his laughter. Her indignation at the idea flowed through their bond, mingling with his mirth in an odd combination that thickened the air between them.

Dick shook his head, breathing out her name as their noses bumped, “Rae--” Blue eyes shot to her lips as they parted to say his name again and he let impulse drive him.

“Richard--oh!” Amethyst eyes went wide as he lowered his face, their lips brushing. Not quite a kiss, but close enough. The demoness froze in place, barely registering the popping crack! crack! crack! of the roof’s lightbulbs blowing out behind them. The noise seemed to bring the detective back into the present and he pulled back an inch, his eyes worried at the stunned look on her face.

“Raven, I--” Now she was the one to interrupt his apology before it could begin, surging forward to press her lips firmly against his.

Dick’s hands went to her waist, perching just above her belt for balance as her hands slid to his shoulders, curious. A wonderful, short moment later she pulled away, her pupils wide as they searched his face. He smiled at her as they just barely parted, affectionately bumping their noses together.

Her sigh was shaky, “Robin…”

He watched as her brows furrowed at how wrong the name sounded in their situation. Feeling bold, he rubbed a circle along her side, not able to keep his smile from growing into a grin as she floated an inch closer. Their lips brushed again and the mage gazed at him through half-lidded eyes, quietly admitting, “I think I prefer Richard.”

“Yeah,” His gloved hands cradled her face, pulling her in for another kiss. “I think so too.”