Blackfire Betrayal

Once upon a time, a spaceship came down from the sky.

It was a dark ship, sleek and quiet, and it landed in the courtyard of Titans Tower just as the sun was setting over the bay. The Teen Titans gathered together — Robin, Cyborg, Raven, Beast Boy, and Starfire — and watched the hatch slide open.

Out stepped a tall woman with dark hair and dark armor, and a smile that looked, at first glance, exactly like Starfire's.

"Koriand'r," she said warmly. "Little sister. I have searched so many galaxies to find you."

Koriand'r stood very still for a moment. This was Komand'r. Blackfire. The sister who had handed her over to the Citadel years ago. The sister whose betrayal had set in motion all those long, cold years of captivity.

But here is the thing about Starfire's heart: it does not close easily. It stays open like a window in summer, letting the light in. She took a slow breath, and she thought: maybe she has changed. Maybe this is real. She stepped forward and hugged her sister.

Blackfire was wonderful at being charming. She beat Cyborg at every game he suggested. She flew races with Beast Boy and won by a mile and laughed about it in a way that made everyone else laugh too. She told old stories about the palace on Tamaran, the silver-leafed trees and the twin suns, and she used Koriand'r's secret childhood nickname — the one only family would know. The Tower felt, for a few days, like a very happy place.

Except for Robin.

Robin had grown up training with Batman, who had no equal on Earth as a detective. Robin had learned that the most important information was often the information someone was trying not to show you. And when he watched Blackfire, he saw things that made him uneasy. Her eyes moved to the security panels when she thought no one was watching. Her questions about Starfire's powers were too sharp, too focused — not the questions of a curious sister, but the questions of someone building a plan.

He sat down with Koriand'r and told her what he had seen. He was gentle about it, because he knew it hurt. Koriand'r was quiet for a long time. The old wound ached. She had wanted so much for this to be real.

And then Blackfire told them herself.

She had been in contact with a Gordanian warlord, part of the same empire that had once held Koriand'r prisoner. She had made a deal: deliver Starfire in exchange for a Centauri Moon Diamond, a jewel worth a small star system and enough power to buy her own territory in the outer galaxy. She had never intended to stay. She had come to collect.

The same cold calculation. The same sister.

Koriand'r did not rage. She felt the sadness move through her like a cloud crossing Tamaran's twin suns — present for a moment, and then the suns kept shining. She raised her hands, and emerald starbolts blazed to life.

What followed was a battle that lit up the sky above Jump City. Blackfire was fast and fierce and experienced, with violet energy crackling from her fingers. They flew higher and higher, the city spreading below them like a field of lights, and each of them fought with everything they had. CRACK! BOOM! The bay flashed green and purple.

But there was a difference between the two sisters that went deeper than power.

Blackfire fought for the Diamond, for territory, for the things she wanted to own. Starfire fought for Robin, who had sat beside her on a rooftop and said nothing and been exactly enough. She fought for Cyborg, who taught her every Earth game she had ever learned. She fought for Raven, who was quiet and strange and understood loneliness perfectly. She fought for Beast Boy, who turned into a puppy when she was sad. She fought for all of them.

That kind of love is very, very hard to beat.

Starfire drove Blackfire back. She did not destroy her. She did not humiliate her. She simply held her ground and made it perfectly, calmly clear: you will not take me. Not again. Not ever again.

She let Blackfire go. She said: "If you ever truly change, the door is open."

Blackfire left without a word.

Robin found Koriand'r on the roof of Titans Tower, sitting with her knees pulled up and her eyes on the stars. He climbed up and sat beside her. They stayed there for a long time, not saying much of anything, watching the stars come out one by one above Jump City.

Sometimes the people who stay beside you quietly are the ones who matter most.

Sleep well, little one. The Titans are together, and Starfire's heart is still open.

That is the kind of brave that lasts.