A/N: I finished Ch. 2 sooner than I allowed. This is again not as long as I wanted it to be, but I didn't want to stretch it out. I could have combined this and the next chapter, but I want to keep the story moving. Nothing bad in this chapter, (very) slight hinting at Star/Rae, though it's more of a friendly mood.
The cruel world awoke Raven a few hours later; some stray beams of light had managed to leak past the curtains and land on the head of Raven's bed. She squinted her eyes and pulled her blankets over her head. Raven groaned and turned over away from the windows as she pulled the bedding from over her head, instead curling up into a tight ball and pulling as much of it as she could around her. I don't want to get out of bed, she thought quietly to herself. I don't want to go to the mall with Starfire. Feelings of guilt started to creep into her head, but soon were consumed by her desire to remain in bed. It was just too comfortable for Raven to leave.
She let out a contented sigh as the feeling of sleep began to return to her. Her whole body numbed from head to foot, from mind to soul. Raven's eyes dropped shut; darkness began to enclose her mind as sleep came closer and closer. A slight smile crossed her lips as she embraced the idea of ditching the mall for sleep.
A loud crash followed by the bending and scraping of metal followed soon after, causing all thoughts of sleep to fall away.
"Wake up, friend!" Starfire burst into the room and started happily floating around the room. Raven let out a scream and nearly jumped out of her skin. In a state of emergency, Raven quickly sat up and flung a hand out in the direction of Starfire with a ball of black energy surrounding it. When she realized who it was, the energy dissipated and she returned to normal.
"Starfire," Raven's mental training had allowed her to hide the anger in her voice. "What are you doing in my room? And why did you break down the door?"
Starfire stopped moving and levitated over Raven's bed, obviously unaware that her friend was upset. "I apologize, but it was locked and I was beginning to worry. You were not responding to my calls. I was hoping that we could do things together today, to help with your troubles." Starfire smiled brightly.
Raven couldn't stay mad at Starfire; she was too kind, too helpful. She let out a sigh and rubbed her temple momentarily. "Of course, Starfire. That sounds like fun." Not that she meant it. Whenever she and Starfire spent time together, Raven often ended up getting annoyed or uncomfortable. She always managed to hide it from Starfire though, and she was thankful that she could. Hurting Starfire was something Raven didn't like doing and often regretted in the end.
Starfire lunged forward and exuberantly hugged Raven's neck, nearly knocking Raven back into her headboard. "Thank you, friend! You are most kind!"
Raven pushed away and watch as Starfire sat cross-legged on the bed in front of her. "No problem, Star. I actually wanted to...ask you to do some stuff with me today anyway, because of how I acted last night." Raven stared into Starfire's bright green eyes; she watched as her expression went from overly happy to understanding.
"Raven, I know that things have been difficult for you. I know that you did not mean to be harsh with your words. I cannot be mad or judge you for it."
Raven was taken aback at her understanding and kindness. "You mean it, Star?"
Starfire nodded and hugged Raven again, this time with less enthusiasm. "You are my closest friend and I cherish that friendship deeply. Our people take such bonds very seriously."
As Starfire held her, Raven's heart throbbed in sadness. It had been a long time since someone told Raven they cared about her. It was almost enough to send her to tears. She instead averted her attention to the raven shaped clock hanging on the wall across from her; just past eight o' clock. Raven collected herself and gently pushed Starfire away. "Well, if we wanna do stuff, we might as well get started. It's past eight now."
Starfire's eyes lit up and she jumped from the bed, idly pulling Raven along with her. "You are correct, friend! There is much I wish to do with you today!"
Raven pulled her cloak from the floor (she had apparently kicked it off during the night) and wrapped it around her to hide her uniform. It was just then that she realized she had slept in it. "Star, if you don't mind, is it okay if I shower first?"
Starfire stopped at Raven's now demolished door and let Raven's hand go. Raven gave a shocked glance at it. "Forgive me, Raven. I had not yet thought about that. Perhaps I will go freshen up as well. We shall meet in the operations room?" Starfire smiled brightly; Raven couldn't help but let a smile cross her lips.
"Sure. See you there." Starfire gave Raven a quick hug and ran out of the room. Raven watched as her red hair splayed out behind her as she turned around the corner, then back to the door to inspect the damage; it was beyond a do-it-yourself repair. She made a mental note to ask Cyborg when he returned to replace the door. She turned and with a sigh headed for the bathroom adjoining her room.
Raven's shower was quick but refreshing. She searched through her closet as she continued to dry her hair; cloaks and spare uniforms, among some civilian's clothing. She stared at the civilians for a while, then to her normal attire. It is a special occasion, she thought to herself. It wouldn't hurt to dress in civilian clothing. She searched through them and finally settled on a black t-shirt with slashes, a pair of black jeans that she knew was snug, and a pair of canvas shoes. She wanted to wear her favorite pair of boots, a mid-calf high two inch platform boot with buckles, but she was afraid Starfire would say something. Maybe another time, she thought.
She dressed quickly in the bathroom and then checked herself over in the mirror. It had been a while since she wore civilian clothes, and she looked and felt different. She idly ran her comb through her hair as she continued to stare into the mirror, lost in thought. Finally she stopped, smoothed her shirt down, fixed the legs of her pants so they just went over her shoes, and exited the room to take Starfire up on their deal.
Raven was surprised that Starfire wasn't already in the operations room; Raven had taken a considerable amount of time in getting ready, or at least she thought she did. Suddenly her stomach growled and she looked almost instinctively at the nearest clock; half past eight. She might as well eat something while she waited for Starfire, so she headed to the small kitchen in the operations room and scrounged through the fridge.
Another half hour passed, and still there was no sign of Starfire. Raven had since finished eating some leftovers from last night's take-out order and cleaned up. She started to wonder if Starfire was even going to show up. Curious and a bit angered about her friend's absence, Raven decided to investigate. Wanting to get there quickly, she focused and teleported outside of Starfire's room. She sensed that Starfire wasn't inside; she tried the door to check Starfire's room for any sign of her. The door was locked, which was usually uncommon for the alien. Her polite manners thought it wasn't proper. Raven again focused, trying to find her. There was definitely no one but her inside the tower but her, but there was a faint sense that someone was on the roof. She headed that direction with an annoyed sigh.
Raven pondered on why Starfire would be there, when they agreed to meet in the operations room instead. With Starfire, one could almost never tell. Raven gritted her teeth but remained calm as she pushed open the door to the roof of the tower. "Starfire? You better be up here..." she muttered under her breath. She looked around, and, sure enough, there was Starfire, dressed in her normal uniform in contrast to Raven's attire. She was just standing there, staring out into space. Raven moved towards her. "Starfire, what are you doing up here? I thought we were going to-" She stopped as she came within a few feet from Starfire, following her line of sight of Jump City. "Uh...Starfire?"
"It is a wondrous sight, is it not?" Starfire's lips were crossed with her usual smile.
Raven raised a brow and looked at her. "I guess so. Aren't we supposed to be going?"
"Raven," Starfire looked at her. Their eyes connected, and Raven was taken aback by the depth and beauty of Starfire's eyes. "You and I have been close friends, especially since our bodies were switched. However, I feel..." Starfire broke her gaze for a moment, then looked back at Raven. "I feel as though we have grown apart because you stay in your room most of the time. I would love to go to the mall of shopping with you, Raven, but what I really want is to know how you are. I wish to know if you are okay."
All Raven could do was stare at Starfire's glowing face. Raven's eyes furrowed in sadness; she hadn't realized how much time she had been spending alone. More than that, she didn't think anyone else had noticed. "You...you missed me? Starfire..."
Starfire quickly pulled Raven into a hug. "Of course, dear friend! On my planet, companionship with another means a lot."
Raven passed through Starfire's arms and levitated away a few feet out of impulse. "I didn't think...No one said anything..."
Starfire went to Raven and again embraced her; this time Raven stayed, feeling as the hug was more gentle than the first. "We may not say anything, Raven, but the other Titans and I worry about you." Raven mulled over Starfire's words; could they really be true? She hesitated in Starfire's arms before wrapping her arms around her. The hug was warm and comforting, and Raven found herself to be enjoying it. Starfire giggled and hugged her a little tighter. She pulled away enough to look at Raven, with her hands still resting on Raven's arms.
"It would please me greatly to help you."
Raven felt a little awkward at the way they were standing, but couldn't help to smile at Starfire; her bright eyes wouldn't allow anything less. "I thought you wanted to go to the mall."
"Oh, but I do wish to go to the mall of shopping with you! Perhaps we can go another place to discuss your troubles afterwards?"
Raven nodded and pulled away completely. "Shall we?" Raven gestured back inside. "I'll let you pick the place you want to go after the mall."
"That sounds wondrous, Raven! I am so glad that you have decided to be social today!" Starfire clasped her hands together and swooned. Raven chewed on her lip.
"It's...nice to get out of the tower every now and then."
Starfire gave a simple nod of her head. "I would enjoy that. Allow me to dress more proper for the occasion, much like you have," Starfire pointed a slender finger to Raven's civilians, and Raven instinctively looked down to see if something where there.
She gave a quick brush of the hand and looked back at Starfire. "Take your time, I'll be waiting for you in the main room." Starfire smiled and quickly pulled her pale friend into a hug, and then dashed off. Raven watched after her, lost in thought. She was lost somewhere between regret and an analysis of things unnoticed of Starfire. Raven had never really paid attention to how bouncy and cheery Starfire was; and, not to say the alien wasn't intelligent, Raven hadn't noticed Starfire's perception of things going on around her, even without interaction. There was no way Starfire knew the depth of what was going on, of what Raven's dreams were about. All she knew was that she'd been anti-social.
Raven's mind finally settled on the idea that the girls' outing would be fun.
Fun.
It was nearly a foreign word to Raven. Raven's form of fun was much more out of the ordinary; staying in her room, reading her books and meditating. Everyone else, Starfire especially, had a very active life outside of the tower and took recreation seriously, and their social lives thrived. But Raven liked to be alone...didn't she? Her mind again mulled over this, but she caught herself and broke the process. "Dangerous thinking, Raven." Her voice had a dead tone to it, more so than usual. She concentrated and teleported to the operations room to take Starfire up on their outing.
A/N: I'm starting to wonder if anyone's reading this. o.o