[1]

A quiet evening in the Bay found Raven phasing from her meditation.

Abnormally replenished from a minor fast of her powers, the Cambion basked in the calm of her candlelit sanctuary. When she landed on her feet, she discharged a cast that blew every last candle.

A sliver of sunbeam cut across the darkness from her window, and Raven lifted its curtain to find the sun sinking behind a protruding horizon.

A muffled voice called her name behind her door, and Raven pulled back both curtains to let soft light flood the room just before Koriand'r appeared from the hallway, her smile as bright as the sun itself.

"I am sorry if I have disturbed the meditation."

"You didn't," Raven pulled back her hood, "you look nice, Star."

"Oh, you are very kind," she blushed while tugging on the hem of her top bashfully, almost as if she wasn't used to her midriff showing. "Dick is taking me out for the for frozen yogurt."

"Lucky girl," Raven attempted sincerity, though her deadpan manner always betrayed her. Fortunately, the alien rarely picked up on the "tone of sarcasm."

"I hope your time of the deep introspection was successful," Raven offered a friendly nod as she hung up her cloak and threw a juniper slip dress over on her bodysuit. "I am gladdened by this," Kori sat gracefully on the end of the bed, while Raven pulled black knitted socks over her knees. "I am less gladdened by the current activities occurring in the-oh, Raven," Kori paused when she saw Raven tying her hair. "Would it be, I thought I might…may I practice braiding again?"

Raven cringed subtly, cursing herself for ever agreeing the first time she was asked. "Why not."

Koriand'r relished in this permission and beckoned Raven to sit before her.

"Uh," Raven cringed subtly, cursing herself for ever agreeing the first time she was asked, "Why not?"

Koriand'r relished in this permission and beckoned Raven to sit before her.

"And so, Victor kept with the 'boo yahs,' which made Dick angry and insistent on the rematches."

As she listened, Raven muffled her discomfort, even as Kori clumsily tore at her scalp.

"Then it was Gar who was the victor, and so the fighting," Kori paused when a few books bolted from the shelf across the room, "is something the matter Raven?"

"Just be a bit more gentle, maybe?" Raven asked docilely to hide the irritation that gurgled in her throat.

"I am sorry. I am still not used to doing the braiding on another's head, but I am glad to have the practice now." Kori smiled, placing a hand on Raven's shoulder.

"It's okay, Star. Happy to help." She lied and reshelved rogue books.

"Anyways, I just am hopeful that Dick does not bring his negativity with him tonight."

"Yeah," Raven smirked to herself, "nothing kills the mood like an adult man pouting over a toddler-approved video game."

Kori bubbled her signature brand and tied the end of the braid before throwing over her friend's shoulder. Raven relished in that sweet relief that was short-lived when they heard a great crash from outside, followed by the angry voices of their teammates.

Without a word, the girls hurried from Raven's room and tracked the shouting through the corridors towards the common-room.

They turned the corner in time to see the back of an enormous green gorilla before it grappled Dick Grayson to the ground, taking the coffee table down with them. Raven reached out with dark wings to pull them apart, suspending their bodies momentarily. When she released them from her soul-self, Victor quickly restrained Garfield as he shifted back into himself, and Koriand'r warned Dick with angrily glowing fists.

"What the fuck?" Raven gestured around the razed room that was scattered with dismantled furniture and broken ceramic.

"For real?" Vic yelled, as Dick and Gar glared at each other through sharp panting, "it's a game, chill out."

"Tell that to Boy Wonder's god damn ego!" Garfield growled, gently wiping the blood from his lip.

"Kiss my ass, Logan," Dick shook his head bitterly and stretched his strained shoulder. Kori tried to help him, but he waved her away.

"You're really fighting over a video game?" Raven glowered, fending off the enraged tension strewed about the room. Dick gave her a strange look before storming from the room, and exasperated Kori not far behind.

Stillness unsettled the room as Vic slowly let go of Garfield. "You good, B?"

The Changeling said nothing as grabbed the remnants of his torn shirt from the ground, crossed the room, and went out onto the balcony.

Vic and Raven exchanged distressed looks before assessing the surrounding damage. As he lifted the cough back upright and gathered scattered things from the floor, Raven's dark energy mended the coffee table.

When they were finished, Raven looked to Vic for an explanation.

"I don't really know," Victor told her as he fell back against the couch. "It got nasty real quick."

Raven scoffed as headed to the kitchen to make tea. "It's not exactly unlike Garfield to gloat."

"It wasn't like that. Something's up with Grayson. He wouldn't freak out on Gar like that over a game."

She rejoined him and perched on the arm of the lazy boy. "I'm missing something."

"He just went off, calling him dumb…brought up Terra out of nowhere, and," Raven caught his eyes dart away from hers, "you know, it just got heated."

"Perhaps there was a little too much unchecked testosterone in one room?" Raven said dryly, barely raising a reaction.

The kettle began hissing sharply, and she stood to silence it. Victor followed suit, only to walk past her towards the elevators.

"I'll see you later, Rae." She let him leave without a response, dropping a teabag in her mug before glancing towards the glass doors.

When she didn't spot him on the balcony, Raven felt around the Tower for Gar. She wasn't surprised to find him on the roof, knowing it was his preferred place of refuge.

She briefly considered returning to her room to save herself the drain of attentive human interaction but ultimately reached in the cupboard for a second mug.

[2]

The elevator gates opened to reveal a darkening sky, as twilight laid a shadowy blanket across the skyline.

Raven found Garfield sitting on the Tower's edge, looking down at the reflection of a twinkling city. He used the torn cloth that used to be his shirt to clean the last of the blood from his face and knuckles.

"Hey," she said softly as her feet touched the roof.

When she lowered herself to sit beside him, carefully swinging her legs over the edge as he did, Raven braced his angst like a stale bout of wind. She managed to divert his emotion from her with a focused breath and offered him the steaming cup of peppermint tea. Gar thanked her with a small nod and took the mug with the less swollen hand.

Raven surveyed the Tower's grounds while sipping her tea, keeping the brim close to her lips. As much as she wanted to ease the uncomfortable strain in the air, she found herself unable to find the words.

Raven eyed him flexing his free hand, which barred inflated cuts along his knuckles. "Here," she said and cautiously reached over.

After a small pause, Garfield allowed her to carefully wrap both softly glowing hands around his. He regarded her thoughtfully, bearing a weak but grateful smile when she was finished.

"Thanks." He spoke hoarsely. "I'm sorry, for…whatever that was."

"Hey, intergalactic go-kart will do that to the best of us," Raven said, spying a small smile on his lips. "Though, Vic said it got personal."

Garfield remained quiet, his face twisting into something resembling anger and shame.

Raven sighed and set her mug down on the roof. "You know Dick can be a sore loser-"

"It wasn't the game," Garfield interjected. "He just, he's been so uptight. I mean, more than usual. I couldn't believe some of the things that were coming out of his mouth."

"A few weeks without the taste of justice can take its toll on someone like Dick. But you guys will get over it."

"Yeah," Garfield mumbled, his ears softly wilting.

"He just knew what to say to rile you up, and Terra," Raven faced him more directly and spoke firmly, "it's been long enough…maybe for your own sake," Raven paused as she discerned a shift in his demeanor. "What?"

Garfield studied her with a furrowed brow, quickly realizing her fragmented side of the story.

His eyes fell on the ungainly braid of black hair that clumsily fell over her shoulder. He smiled. "Nice hair."

Raven relaxed and braved an awkward smirk. "Kori."

"Aw," he teased, gently tugging the messy rope of hair, and with narrowed, glowing eyes, Raven propelled him over the Tower's edge.

Garfield dove towards the bay before morphing into a falcon, veering back up towards the sky. Raven didn't flinch when he soared passed her like a bullet, small green feathers dancing wildly in his wake.

Raven was reassured to watch him sail across the stars; he never stayed down for long. His enlivened spirit is too strong for his own mind's discontent. She has always envied him for this, for having the freedom to free himself.

Even with all of the Earth's beasts inside him, his humanity always seems to emerge boldly, reminding her of what it is they fight to protect.

Over the years, there have been many times when Raven felt inspired by him to trust her own humanity, as Garfield did, but the consequences of losing control to her darker self would always be too grave to risk.

As her eyes tracked his distant wings across the sky, Raven knew he'd return to her in better spirits. He once told her there was no therapy like flying, something she never entirely understood, for she could also fly, but still believed in the potential value of seeking professional help. As the Titans were bonded by all their relative traumas, crime-fighting had definitely become an outlet of sorts. Still, Raven was not convinced that that in itself was not grounds for some psychological evaluations.

But Garfield's resilience was strong, she could not dismiss that, and he hardly ever needed the same kind of uplifting that she did. If and when he does, she's probably not the best suited for the task, even as she seemed to have done alright this time.

Abruptly, she thought of his dumb grin as he tugged her hair just before she pushed him off the roof. This made her smile.

Her fifteen-year-old self would have cackled at the idea of being as close to Beast Boy as she is these days. Yeah, they bickered like always, for he still seemed determined to rile her up needlessly, but they've all grown together so much over the years. The same boy who once gave her a semi-permanent protruding vein on her forehead was now growing into a man she trusted wholeheartedly. And for that, she counted herself lucky.

The night air picked up a slight chill that breezed across Raven, sending a wave of goosebumps down her body. She drew in a chilled breath and softly leaped from her perch. As she hovered a few feet from the roof, she took in the city and its flickering impression across the bay.

When Gar sensed her movement a few dozen feet below, he dove and morphed back before landing on the roof.

Rebel strands of black hair swam through the winds that carried trails of lavender and sage down to him, and Garfield embraced the scent warmly.

His eyes sketched the elegant curve of her back before falling to the bit of bare skin exposed between her skirt and socks.

Raven peeked over her shoulder. "What?" Embarrassed by his gaze, she cocked her brow and asked him again.

Garfield blandly gestured toward the cityscape. "Just enjoying the view in quiet contemplation…same as you."

"Well, when you're finished," Raven rolled her eyes and lifted the tea mugs, "Maybe go find a shirt and check on Cy? After putting these away, of course."

She avoided looking at him directly when he took the cups from her hands, and didn't wait for a response before engulfing herself in black.

Standing alone on the roof, Garfield faintly smiled down at the empty mugs in his hands. All the self-loathing he had carried up there with him had been eased by her subtle gesture.

As he descended in the elevator, Garfield twirled the mug handles around his fingers, remembering Raven's silhouette against the night sky.

Though he knew she's always been kind, he couldn't help but feel special when her kindness found him.

A couple years ago, he'd believe she wouldn't give him the time of day, let alone bring him tea with a pep talk. Then again, she was much more reclusive before her father's most recent crack at the end of days.

That almost devoured her, but Raven came back stronger and evolved, and ever since, Garfield's regarded her with a growing fascination. Where he once felt confusion and fear, he now experienced curiosity and admiration.

He awkwardly desired her respect, more so than from the rest of the Titans. But he also desired her delicious scent and the cool touch of her skin against his.

"You cannot be serious! Surely he has others–" Koriand'r's shouting shook Garfield from his thoughts as the elevator doors reopened to the main floor.

"I have to, Kori, I won't explain again," Dick's voice invited dread back into Garfield's gut, even more so when he caught sight of Gar from the kitchen. "Gar, there you are, can we talk?"

Suppressing his immediate reaction, Gar crossed into the kitchen and set the mugs in the sink. When he faced them, Koriand'r gave them both a disgruntled scowl before leaving them alone.

Dick cleared his throat, fighting the awkwardness that threatened to suffocate them both. Gar was pleased to see the slight swelling across his face.

"Listen, I'm sorry about earlier. It was unwarranted, and you didn't deserve that kind of criticism. But, sometimes Gar, I swear you forget that we're not fifteen anymore. You need to take things more seriously. You need to-"

"Is this an apology or a lecture?" Garfield folded his arms across his chest.

Dick's manner softened as he released an exasperated sigh. "Apology, I'm apologizing, alright? I have to go to Gotham for a little bit, but I don't want to leave with you pissed at me."

Garfield scoffed and looked at him a moment longer before crossing the kitchen to grab a banana.

"Hey," Dick called when Garfield walked towards the hall, "are we cool?"

"Sure, whatever dude," he said coolly and continued walking away.

"I didn't mean all that stuff about Raven, you know that."

Garfield grunted a skeptical acknowledged through a mouthful of banana and disappeared around the corner.