Needless to say, it had taken Raven quite a bit longer than usual to regain her composure. She had stared at him after he let go, mind still processing what had just happened. Then he'd gone off and…done that. She tried to call back for him, to sit down and try to make sense of themselves. He took her paralysis for disapproval and ran off, mortified. She sighed as she walked back down the stairs. Boys.

Raven reached Robin's door and knocked, knowing he was brooding in there.

"Robin," she stated. No response. She knocked again after a few moments and waited. "Robin," she repeated, a little more forcefully this time. Still no response. She knew he was in there, but also knew it'd be a bad idea to force the issue now. Trying for a final time, she knocked loudly on the door. She waited another minute before giving up and retreating to her own room. Raven decided to approach him first thing in the morning.

As the empath restlessly flipped around on her own bed, she tried to make sense of the night. For once, she was lacking in answers. Truthfully, it hadn't been his fault to act on his feelings and kiss her. It was probably hers for giving the wrong signal. I shouldn't have asked him that, she thought. Just because it's what I want doesn't mean it's what's best. However, as she thought about their night, her mind kept drifting back to how much she had wanted more of those moments.

Raven couldn't deny her emotions at this point. She loved him. She had felt something new as they were huddling at the dock. It was a joyous, warming feeling. She felt safe curled up in his arms, felt like she wasn't…lonely anymore. The Boy Wonder cared about her a lot, but not just like any friend; he went above and beyond for her. The question was, now, whether he reciprocated those feelings. She'd spent the entire ride back contemplating how to get the answer out of him. Now, she regretted being so impatient. She'd set the ball rolling and it was very difficult to stop now. But, the kiss had been nice. She'd felt her entire body tingle with pleasure and she missed the feeling already. Stop it! She told herself. This mess is nowhere close to being fixed. Worry about that stuff later. Regrouping, she thought about how to best approach everything. She should probably start by acknowledging both of their volatile current emotional states. She'd be careful not to send the wrong impression again or upset him further. She suspected that even though he had already been through the whole Starfire saga, he still wasn't used to dealing with this type of stuff either. Sighing, Raven pulled the sheets closer. Feelings are messy. Of course I'm the one getting hit with them the most.

Raven got very little sleep, not remembering when she finally closed her eyes but definitely waking up at her usual time. Not bothering with any other little things, she quickly threw on her cloak and headed for Robin's room.

"Okay, let's try this again," she muttered to herself. She knocked on the door gently, not wanting to cause too much of a racket. She waited a few minutes, and still no response. Somehow she doubted that he would be anywhere else in the tower at this moment. She knocked again and waited, folding her arms. Still no response. She sighed exasperatedly. I didn't wanna have to do this. She opened a portal, crossing through the door and straight into his room.

"Robin," she said sternly. He was sitting on the bed, clearly sleep-deprived by the looks of it. He glanced up at her in surprise, seeing her in his room.

"Raven…" he began. "I—"

"Robin," she cut him off, sitting down next to him.

"I'm sorry," he said simply. "I did something I shouldn't have. I fucked up."

"That's not why I'm here," she replied quietly, tilting his chin up. "And," she added with a bitter chuckle, "If you hadn't run away…we could've talked about this earlier."

"My bad," he responded, cracking a small, sad smile. "The look on your face…I thought I got carried away."

"No. I did," she corrected. He looked at her in confusion. She took his hand, removing the glove and cupping it with both of hers. "Last night…was a special moment for me, Robin."

"It was for both of us. But I acted on that moment and that was stupid, and—"

"No. I forced your hand," Raven said quietly. She absentmindedly traced her fingers in his palm, contemplating how to explain it to him. "Robin. How do you think I feel love?"

"Uh, well…" he murmured, trying to think of an answer. "I'd say it probably feels a lot more intense to you, being an empath and all."

"Not my own qualities," she said, shaking her head. "More like who I am." She gazed outside his window. "My whole life, I haven't been able to love. Love has been my greatest guilt. I've taken it from those who care about me, knowing that I'd be destined to hurt them eventually. I couldn't bear opening up too much to anyone. It all seemed inevitable that they'd be ripped from my life, and I'd be back to where I started."

"It's different now," Robin reminded her. "And it's new to you knowing that's not the case anymore."

"I told myself nobody could or would ever fall in love with me," Raven said sadly. "Could, because this will always be a part of me," she said, tapping on her forehead gem. "No matter how much I try, there will always be this evil that's a part of me. Would, because I wouldn't let them. I couldn't let anyone in that closely. They'd eventually get burned. And that would be another thing that I'd have to hold onto."

"The closest I ever got was Malchior," she continued. "It seemed like he could solve all my problems. He taught me lots of things, not just spells and incantations. He gave me belief that I could shift my path, even if just a little bit. He believed in me. And then it all turned out to be a lie." Robin wove his fingers in between hers and clenched her hand, trying to provide comfort. "Last night, I kind of felt that…again. The feeling of soaring. Of being free. Free to experience what it's like to get to share everything with someone you care about deeply. And I realized that you are special, Robin. And…I was afraid."

"Afraid of what?" Robin asked.

"Afraid of losing you. It sounds stupid, I know. But when that's all you've known your whole life, it's hard to shake," she said, smiling sadly.

"Raven," Robin murmured. "You won't lose me. I promise. I'll take care of you."

"I forced your hand, Robin," she said. "When I asked you about what we were…I was panicking. I didn't want my feelings to lead me to nowhere, but I also didn't want to let go of them…I had to have an answer."

"I understand," he replied. "I absolutely get it. What I did was still…too sudden. And then I probably confused you further."

"It was definitely a restless night," she admitted.

"For both of us," he agreed.

"Robin…when we hugged. When you kept me warm. It kind of sent all my feelings rolling. And now we're here."

"Raven," he said softly. He looked into her eyes, the storm of emotions showing through her vulnerable look.

"I think…" Raven began. "I think we need to take a step back. And take small steps forward. See if it's right for us."

"Raven. I…I feel like you're the one."

"I feel the same way about you. But that's now. Feelings change, Robin," she reminded him. "You felt Starfire was the one too."

"You're right," he agreed. "We can take it slow. Go on a few dates, see how we feel. Then we can decide if we want this to be more…permanent."

"Sounds like a plan," she said with a small smile.

"We're still friends?" he asked. "I mean, this won't change anything between us?"

"Robin, we have a bond," she said, a little teasingly. "Even if I never wanted to think about you again it's kind of impossible."

"I don't want to lose our friendship. If anything goes wrong," he said worriedly.

"Our bond is too strong," she said quietly. "Not just the one we created, but our friendship as well. We've been through a lot, Robin. It won't just disappear." He looked up at her soft, yet determined eyes, and felt a sense of hope course through him.

"You promise?"

"I do."

"Good. Because I'm making the same promise to you too," he said determinedly. They embraced, the sorceress wrapping her arms tightly around him. She felt surprisingly warm in his arms, and he closed his eyes, letting the relief, even if temporary, wash over him. After a minute or so, they let go, and turned to face the window in his room. Robin wrapped his arm around her as they watched the morning sun in the distance wake Jump City to another day. After a while, Raven got up to go back to her room, and Robin sat alone, still taking everything in. Raven had pure, raw feelings for him. And as he sat, he realized that his own were bubbling to the surface as well. Raven might have been hit with her feelings, but she still wasn't unreasonable. We should take it slow, he agreed in his mind. See how it goes. He remembered quickly falling out of interest with Starfire after a few weeks, and hoped this time would be different. No…it felt different. Not just because of the bond, but because they already connected on a deep, complex level. The road ahead was unclear, but he was convinced it was worth it.