Over at Titans West, the atmosphere was a bit more tense. Robin was finding that working with Bumblebee was more difficult than he thought it would be. She was a strong fighter who knew her stuff. She was upbeat and very smart. In fact she was great at taking control…and that was the problem. She was used to taking control. At Titans East she was the leader and that is something that is difficult to give up. They would be half way through a fight or training, and she would fall into her leader role and it was becoming confusing for the team.

Everyone would look to Robin for a reaction. It wasn't that she was trying to take over the team, but after years as a leader it was an ingrained reaction. The big problem came when the order were contradicting. The rest of the team were used to following Robin with few, if any, questions asked. When Bumblebee made a slip up, Cyborg would be stuck in the middle. It made for a tense and awkward situation for the team.

On top of that Robin felt like things were off. He was used to Raven's calming silences. It was the way he had always started his days. It had been something he could always count on. Even after late nights and stressful cases, he could still feel a calm settle on him, even a brief one, after his mornings with her.

Now he felt like everything was tilted, thrown off. Bumblebee seemed to catch on that he preferred silence in the mornings, but it was not the same. Her silences seemed to hold energy. It was like everything she was thinking was straining to come out. She had ideas she wanted to share and her silence was strained and full of energy. Rather than calming him down, it grated on his nerves. The rest of the team seemed to thrive off the energy, but Robin felt jittery and he could feel that his temper was on a short fuse.

To make matters worse, they were not getting a break. Things apparently had settled down at Titans East, but it was still going strong in the west. It made for little sleep and even shorter tempers. The team had just returned from a fight with Plasmus. It had not been as quick without Raven. Everyone was sore and tired and all Robin wanted to do was curl up with a cup of hot coffee. Maybe even a cup of tea. It had always served to calm Raven.

Star and BB had gone into town to pick up some pizza for dinner. He didn't know what had happened to Cy and Bumblebee.

As he entered the tower's main room, he realized he had walked in on the two. He felt a surge of irritation. He didn't want to intrude on their private time, and yet he would have to in order to make his tea. With a sigh he turned to head to his room when he caught sight of the TV screen. There was Raven with a small scowl on her face. Surrounding her were the Titans East. They seemed to be relaxed and laughing. The same could be said of Cy and Bumblebee. Robin felt a small smile grace his face. He could feel his whole person relax.

He leaned casually against the wall. It was then that he started to listen to the conversation. Cyborg was laughing.

"You're doing what?"

Robin watched Raven's scowl deepen. "Team Night."

Bumblebee chimed in. "And what exactly is Team Night?"

Aqualad smiled from around Raven. "It's a little thing we do a few nights a week. It helps us get to know each other. Everyone participates."

Robin felt a frown. Team Nights? And Raven participated? Willingly? He felt himself straighten and walk into the room. He voiced his disbelief. "You mean Rae actually participates."

Every face turned to him. There were a chorus of greetings and Robin found himself smiling at Raven's scowl. "I repeat, Rae participates?"

She turned her scowl to him. He felt a small jump in his heart. What the hell was that? He frowned slightly until he heard Raven's response.

She stood with arms across her chest. "Not always willingly." Robin smiled at that. It was a classic Raven response. He met her eyes on screen and saw her scowl soften to a Raven smile. Just this little conversation was doing wonders. Hell, just seeing her was calming him. At least until Speedy leaned over and threw an arm around her shoulders. He felt irritation rise again. What did that…that…whatever think he was doing? Robin waited for Raven to scowl and shrug his arm off. He waited for her to make a scathing remark that would send him backing away quickly, but she did nothing. In fact she didn't seem to mind the touch at all.

He listen to the laughing archer. "That's why we have special Raven rules."

Cyborg laughed. "And what would those be?"

Speedy lifted his arm and began to tick off rules on his fingers. "No reading. There must be participation and conversation for most of the night. No sneaking off early. At least one story or fact about oneself must be shared during the night. And appropriate attire must be worn."

Bumblebee smiled at the last one. "What constitutes appropriate attire?"

"Well, we are going out to become a closer team, and we can't do that if we are in uniform. Makes it hard to go incognito. So civilian clothes are a must." With that Speedy glanced a the clock. "Speaking of which, we have to go."

Raven raised an eyebrow at him. "And why is that?"

"Cuz I'm picking your outfit for the night. We are going out and jeans and t-shirt just won't work. I need to make sure you are dressed appropriately."

"I can assure you I have been dressing myself for years. I don't need your help."

Speedy began tugging on her arm. "Sorry Rae, my night my rules. Let's go." He began dragging the protesting girl out of the room. A round of goodbyes was said and the screen went blank. Robin found himself staring at an empty screen, strangely quiet.

Cyborg smiled a bit sadly. Bumblebee leaned on his shoulder. "You miss her don't you?"

"Yeah…" Suddenly he grinned. "But can you just picture her in civilians?" The two laughed. He turned to his quiet leader. "Hey Rob, we are gonna watch a movie, do you want to join?"

Robin looked up startled. He felt funny, like something in a puzzle was just not fitting. He shook his head. "No thanks. I'm just going to make some tea and relax on the roof. Enjoy the movie." He walked slowly away to make tea with his brain going a thousand miles a minute. The other two exchanged looks.

Cyborg made his way to Robin. "Yo Rob, you sure you ok man? You look like someone just knocked you around some."

"I'm fine. Just tired, it's been a long week."

Cyborg nodded. "Yeah. But hey, you know if you need to talk, I'm here to listen."

Robin smiled at his friend. "I know. See you two later."

He sat on the roof for a long time. A stiff breeze blew indicating that colder weather was on its way. He could feel a chill, and yet he was not ready to go in. Talking to Raven had calmed him significantly, but something was off. His mind kept picturing Speedy, an arm slung around her pulling her close. The image would not go away nor would the irritation he felt. Just what was going on? It was a very long time before he went inside.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

Meanwhile at Titans East, Raven was beginning to dread the upcoming night. She stood on the escalator with arms crossed and a scowl on her face. Her head was upturned and staring at Speedy.

"And just why are we here?"

He smiled and laughed. "Because you wouldn't let me into your room to help you pick out an outfit. So you can't give me that look. I tried to make it easy on you. Now come on, we don't have much time to get you dressed."

Her scowl deepened. "I don't see why you have to dress me and yet you leave the boys to their own devices without further thought."

He chuckled as he pulled her into a nearby store. "That's because I trust them to wear something suitable to a club."

Raven shuddered. She couldn't believe he was dragging her to a club. The noise and crowds and loud music was enough to turn her off right there. She heaved a sigh and prepared for the worse.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Raven stared at her reflection in the mirror some time later. A small hand reached out to touch the face in the mirror. It was hers and yet it wasn't. Speedy had pulled her store from store and by the time he was done, she was dressed and had makeup as well.

That had been as close to a fight as they got during the little shopping trip. She didn't see the need for makeup. It wasn't like she was trying to impress anyone. He had been firm about this.

"Rae, remember its my night so my rules. I get to get you ready for the club."

"And you did. I will be all dressed up."

"I don't want you just dressed up, I want you dolled up."

"I am not a doll."

"No you are a girl, and trust me, there comes a time when every girl wants to look nice."

"Are you saying I don't look nice?"

He had rolled his eyes at that and heaved a long suffering sigh. "Nice try Rae. I won't fall into that trap." His eyes softened. "And I am not thinking a lot of makeup, just a touch. Trust me."

And now she stood looking at a girl that she was not sure she really recognized. Her hair had grown over the last few months. It was not much longer, but she could almost pull it back in a pony tail. Speedy and taken her to someone who did something with a bunch of bottles and a curling iron. It had soft waves and was slicked back a bit at the front so she could see. He had kept his promise. The makeup was not overdone. It was light and yet accentuated her eyes and gave her lips a slick look. The outfit he had chosen was simple, and yet something she would have never picked out. He had let her wear jeans, but the top was of his choosing. It was black and draped over her in a very flattering way. She had expected something showing off too much skin, but he had good taste. It was surprisingly conservative. It still had a bit of skin. One shoulder was left bare as the shirt was designed to fall off the left shoulder. It even had a bow of sorts on that shoulder, and yet she didn't mind it. She came off looking…really nice.

She came out of her room with slightly wide eyes. Speedy grinned and gave a wolf whistle. "You look good Rae. What's with the deer in the headlights look?"

She turned wide eyes back at him. "I look…pretty."

His grin widened. "No, you look gorgeous. Now let's get this party started."

He took her arm and headed down to meet the other boys. As the two headed to the upper deck to meet up with the boys, she watched their eyed widen. Soon she was surrounded by the boys, all ready to give compliments. She actually found herself blushing. She pushed them back a bit and smiled softly.

"You guys look really good too."

She meant that. The twins wore jeans and t-shirts. Over that were two matching button up shirts open all the way. The shirts were brightly colored. There was no way she could miss them in a crowd. Aqualad was a bit more conservative. He just had jeans and a dark blue t-shirt that hugged his body. It accentuated his muscles and looked really good. His dark hair was pulled back from his face and a gentle smile lit his face. Finally Raven turned to Speedy. The clubber was dressed similarly to Aqualad. He too had a tight t-shirt, but his was in a bright red. Something that was very Speedy. His hair was slicked back and his eyes smiled down on her. She found herself grinning at her team.

"All right. Let's get this night over with."

The friends hooked arms and headed for the door.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Ok, sorry it has been so long and it is so short. Hope you like anyway. Next chapter is the club.