Disclaimer: I don't own Teen Titans. This chapter is a bit longer than the usual, so enjoy.

HEX

"You're getting new roommates." The guard says as he walks over, keys in hand. "Play nice, ya hear?"

I grimace, having expected this. Hopefully we don't get someone too awful.

"You're joking, right?" Gizmo snarks, sitting up on her bunk. "There's only four beds here. At most we can take one more."

"Tough." The guard sneers. "This place got trashed by your thorny little friend, so we're gonna be packed for a while. Deal with it."

Gizmo just scoffs and slumps back onto her bed.

"Thorny friend?" I mutter, scratching my head.

"Rose." Mammoth grunts, flipping through a magazine. "Wordplay."

"Ah, right."

"Alright, get in there." A different guard said from just out of view, sounding tired. "I need a break…"

"Too bad; half of us are out for a good month, remember? We need to do extra." The first guard grunts, unlocking the cell. "Broken limbs all around."

"Stupid supervillains." The second groans. "Alright kids, move along."

"Kids?" A familiar voice protests. "We are not kids!"

"You still have peach fuzz, you're still a snot-nosed brat." The first guard says surlily.

Finally our new cellmates are shoved inside the room (well, one of them is shoved, the other is too big to knock around). My earlier worries are promptly shoved out the window, I couldn't have asked for better company.

Of course, that means that they got caught for something, but at least we can hang with them now.

Conan and Arachne (or 'Ara' for short) are manhandled into the cell. As soon as the last of Ara's legs are through, the door is closed and locked once more. The two guards leave immediately, wanting to get back to their posts (probably because they have doughnuts).

"Kids?" Conan grumbles, glaring at the door. "Do kids rob banks? Do kids steal priceless gems? I don't think so."

"Hey guys." Mammoth says distractedly. She waves without taking her eyes of her magazine. "So, what'd you do?"

"I attacked the Titans." Ara says, folding her legs and settling onto the floor.

"Went on a date." Conan grumbles, stalking over to a bunk bed and climbing up onto the free bunk.

I perk up. "Come again? Did you say you went on a date?" I grin. "Geez, it's about time you and Ara made up, she's been worried for a while now."

"What? I went on one with Robyn." Conan says, sounding surprised. "Had a deal with Rose and all. What do you mean Ara was worried?"

"Right here you know." Ara says looking at both of us with an annoyed expression.

"Fine, fine." Conan grumbles, lying down and crossing his arms. "Never mind."

"I mean you could just ask me." Ara clarified.

"I said never mind." Conan growls, turning to face the wall.

"Moody as always." I think, sighing. Turning to Ara, I ask "why were you there? Did Conan invite you along for protection?"

"No." Ara said curtly. "Killer Moth told me about it."

"What!?" Conan snaps up, staring angrily at Ara. "She did- But-" He snarls, now facing up at the ceiling. "What the hell mom?!" He shouts.

"Be quiet." Gizmo sighs, indifferent to Conan's rage. "Last thing we need is that guard coming back."

The blond-haired boy seethes silently, his teeth gritted and his nostrils flared.

"I don't see the problem." Mammoth says after a moment, still not looking away from the magazine. "Not like Ara's gonna ruin anything for you. She knows when to stay out of things. If anything you should be happy your girlfriend had your back."

"She's n-" Whatever Conan was going to say, he immediately cuts himself off. A grimace crosses his face. He looks like he just punched his own grandma or something; he looks guilty. "Look, I'm just annoyed that mom did something I wanted her not to. It's not her place to go around telling my friends stuff. If I wanted Ara to be a part of this, I would have told her, and this is exactly why. Now we're both in jail instead of just me."

"I'm sure that's the reason." Gizmo murmurs. One eye of her's is closed, while the other is half-closed but fixed on Conan. "Not because you're too 'manly' to ask for help or anything, right? Mr. I-can-do-everything-myself?"

"Yeah." Mammoth actually puts down her magazine to look up at the boy. "When's the last time you let us help you with one of your heists? We even said we didn't care if we got a cut or not, and you still said you didn't want us."

"None of your business!" Conan snaps, going from (what I assume is) guilt-ridden to defensive in a heartbeat. He rolls back over to face the wall. "I'm done talking with you guys!"

The room is silent as we all stare at Conan. After a good minute of hims not turning back around, we reluctantly return to our former states of (in)activity.

"I don't know what his deal has been these last few months, but it's starting to get worrisome." I grimace, leaning up against the wall and glancing back up at out friend. "If he would just talk to us, this would be so much easier…"

ROBYN

Dinner is smaller than normal. Crow didn't have enough time to make anything big after we got home, so we don't get a buffet. Instead we settle for some quickly-made potato wedges topped with multiple types of cheese, some sort of pasta with red peppers and light spicing, simple vegetable soup, and refreshing apple juice to chase it all down.

Despite the fact that he makes entire buffets on a daily basis, I'm pretty sure this meal shows off Crow's skill and versatility as a cook far better than anything he's prepared before. The potato wedges taste like something you would get at a bar: greasy and warm. The pasta tastes like gourmet food, and the soup reminds me of a home-made meal; Amelia made soups at home quite frequently as a side-dish.

The apple juice is apple juice: clean, pure, apple juice. There's not much to say about it.

I do have to admit it makes for an odd mish-mash of a meal. It's unique, and not in a bad way, though I don't think I'd take well to eating like this all the time.

"What sort of cooking school teaches you to make bar food though?" I ponder, putting a wedge into my mouth. "I thought they focused on the gourmet stuff."

Cyborg seems a bit disappointed by the lack of meat, but otherwise enjoys the meal with no particular preference. Changeling, as one would expect, is delighted by the all-vegetarian meal, and takes a special liking to the soup. Starfire is mostly indifferent, but notably takes a second helping of the pasta. I myself enjoy the soup just like Changeling. Crow eats relatively little compared to the rest of us, but judging by how some of the potato wedges seem to disappear whenever conversation happens that doesn't involve him, I'd guess he enjoys them.

When the meal ends me and Star turn in early. Despite sleeping in until 2 o'clock in the afternoon, we're dead tired from all the fighting today. There's one thing I need to do before I go to bed though. I really, really need a to-do list. There are so many things I need to remember now it's not even funny.

I pull up a notepad on my computer and quickly type out as many things as I can remember:

-Investigate Rose, break in, escaped criminals, HIVE connection, etc... (see files) (Max priority)

-Organize meeting with Mayor (High priority)

-See about Boom Tube for Starfire, Contact JL (Medium priority)

-Check for mail from Amelia (Low priority)

-Keep in touch with Niu (civilian perspective on recent events?) (Low priority)

-Tower renovations plans (High priority)

"Is that all?" I question, frowning at the screen. "Am I missing something…?"

Sighing, I shut off the laptop.

"I'm too tired for this shit." I groan. "I just want a good night's sleep right now. I'll look over it again in the morning."

I drop onto my mattress and fall asleep almost instantly.

RUBAN

Dishes aren't hard. Not when you have magic to do it for you. Neither is cooking really. The cinnamon rolls are the only thing I really prepare myself, the rest is my magic. Granted, I do need to consciously control the magic, so it's not it doesn't take quite a bit of effort, but when you've been doing this for at least half your life, multitasking is a breeze. That, and I use my gems as an alarm system. They each flash a different color depending on what I need to do, so they make things a lot easier. I love ritual spells, they're so versatile.

It's not the most entertaining work though, so I sing to myself to pass the time. I have to admit I'm partial to the songs from the movies Maria showed me back at the apartment. Maybe I was scared stiff most of the time (not of the movies, of Maria), but I did pay attention. Sometimes I would put them in the VHS and play them again when Maria was out during the day to make the waiting or the cleaning more bearable.

"-our service to the test." I sing softly, scrubbing away some of the oil from the potato wedges. I'd doing it myself rather than with magic so that I feel like I'm at least doing something. "Tie your napkin 'round your neck, cherie, and we'll provide the rest."

"Ruban?"

"Eeep!" The plate in my hand slips, falling harmlessly into the sudsy water as I flinch and spin about in surprise.

"Sorry." Maria murmurs, standing up properly from where she was leaning against the door. "I knocked, but you didn't hear."

"I-It's f-fine." I stammer, still startled.

"I ne- No, we need to ask you something." Maria says, looking a bit apprehensive.

Fear floods my veins. Maria is rarely nervous, so it must be something bad. Something really, really, bad. "What did I do?" I panic internally. "Is this about yesterday and my emoticlones when I knocked everyone away? Was accidentally shooting Robyn actually serious? Did I seriously hurt someone?" All the color leaves my face as a horrible possibility occurs to me. "Did she figure out that I'm half-demon?" Another thing occurs to me immediately after. "Oh Azar, she said 'we'! That means she told someone else! Or someone else figured it out and told her! Is that other person just outside the door? Did she tell them my actual name too? I'm going to get kicked out, or thrown in jail, or killed! But I like her, I like it here, I don't wanna leave!"

"Ruban…?" Maria's voice is low with concern. I must look as panicked as I feel.

"Keep under control Ruban." I think. "Stay calm, there's always a chance she doesn't know." I take a deep breath, trying to keep myself under control and prevent a panic attack. "It's fine." I reiterate, taking great care not to stutter so as to keep up the illusion of calm.

Maria's widening eyes make it clear that she doesn't buy my act. She knows me too well to be fooled by it. She knows that I'm lying through my teeth, that I'm panicking. Nonetheless, she allows me my facade and asks the question. "Me and Rob have noticed some inconsistencies in your power. We want to know why, if you don't mind."

"What is…? Oh, when I shot Robyn and it was more powerful than usual. They must also be remembering when I blew up the Gordanian battlecruiser." I begin to calm slightly; I prepared for this. It's a flat-out lie, but it's better than saying nothing. Saying nothing would be sus-

"You don't have to answer." She says gently, gazing at me with an expression so soft and concerned I feel bad about even considering a lie. She's always respected my privacy before, so she probably wouldn't stop now unless my secrets threaten to be dangerous (and they definitely do, but she doesn't know that).

…

"I hate secrets, but they keep me safe. She'd surely throw me out if she knew about mom…"

Maria clears her throat. "Should I tell Robyn you didn't feel comfortable answering?" She asks hesitantly.

"We-Well…" I really do feel bad about withholding information, but how am I supposed to explain that I'm scared of people thinking I'm dangerous without sounding egotistical or absurd? Being dangerous means that more people will hurt you to make sure you don't use your power, so you need to pretend you don't have much at all… "It's a surprise for my enemies." I say simply. I'm not exactly lying, just not telling the whole truth.

"I see." She is clearly suspicious, and still concerned. "I won't push any further on the matter."

I sag visibly in relief; a giant weight taken off my shoulders. I'm only half aware that I had cut out my magic at some point and the dishes stopped washing themselves.

"Ruban…" Maria makes her way over to me, standing a few feet away so as to respect my space. She crouches slightly so that we're at eye-level. "You know you can trust me, right?"

That question hits me hard. Mostly because I don't trust her, no matter how much I want to. Maybe I trust her more than others, but she still doesn't know some very important things about me. The question is then 'can I reveal those important things to her without negative backlash?'

"What was making you so nervous?" She asks in a whisper.

I shake my head immediately, not wanting to answer.

"Is it about the whole half-human thing?" Maria enquires.

I nod.

"You thought we'd figured it out?" She asks.

I nod again.

"What could be so supposedly horrible that you'd panic over it?" Maria murmurs to herself.

I was tempted to say, 'it is horrible!' But I didn't want to incriminate myself. I cannot, under any circumstances (save pain of death), tell her of my mother or the blood I carry. There's no conceivable way she'd react positively to knowing I was the son of an interdimensional demon.

Right? I mean, ignoring that she's put up with me all this time, and she didn't get angry when I broke down before, and she's even had to pay lots of extra money to keep me, and that she's had to work overtime... or that she went job hunting all day with little… food…

Am I being irrational? Too fearful? I'm scared; very, very, very scared of what will happen should I reveal my heritage, but wouldn't it be better if she heard it from me and not figure it out herself?

Or am I being stupid to think I can trust her after only knowing her a few months?

I wish I knew the answer, is it the right choice to take a chance and reveal my secret...? "If I don't know, it's probably better not to take the risk." I conclude, grimacing. "Just stay quiet."

"I guess it's not for me to know." Maria sighs after a minute. "If you wanted me to know, you would have told me after all."

We both stand there in silence. I'm still looking at the floor and I'm fairly sure Maria is staring at my head. I fidget uncomfortably, unable to look at her.

"So, um…" I hear her shuffling around a bit. "Need help washing stuff?"

"N-No." I murmur. "I c-can do it."

"Okay then…" She doesn't move. "Do you mind if I sit around then?"

"No." I shake my head. I turn back to the sink and let my magic flow out again; it starts to clean the other dishes as I pick up mine. Maria walks over to one of the chairs in the corner and sits. I can see her out of the corner of my eye as I work. "I-If you d-don't mind m-me asking… Wh-Why?"

"Why what?"

"Wh-Why are you st-staying?"

"Because I like being around you."

I nearly drop my plate again, but I catch it before it can fall. "O-Oh."

I work in relative silence for a few minutes with Maria watching me intently from the corner of the room. It's actually somewhat nerve-wracking; like I'm being judged. I try to keep my eyes off her and on my work, which is rather difficult. It's not that she's moving much or creating a distraction, it's just her presence that makes me nervous. I'm almost always nervous around her; I can't relax when she's around, and I don't know why. She's nicer to me than anyone but Dad has ever been, so why can't I calm down?

I bad at dealing with people…

"M-Maria?" I say softly, trying to start conversation, "did you enjoy the food?"

"Of course." She nods, giving a small smile. "You're yet to disappoint."

"What happens when I do disappoint?" I worry. "G-Good. I kept it v-vegetarian, because I know you like it…"

I think that was the right thing to say, because her smile grows very wide. I like her smile, it's pretty… Well, she's always pretty, but more so right now.

Wait, is 'pretty' the right word? Doesn't that usually imply delicacy too? She's certainly not delicate, so maybe I need a better word… Beautiful maybe? I think that would work, but it still seems a bit off. Too prim and proper. I know others call her things like 'hot' or 'sexy' (which is certainly true), but that seems to only catch part of her.

Augh, why is this so hard? I wish I knew more words. I see the allure of a thesaurus now... Wait, that's it! Allure! Alluring! That's perfect! Yes, she's alluring; that fits her well.

"As much as I appreciate it, you do realize we have other teammates, yes?" She says, referring most likely to Cyborg's love of meat.

It takes me a moment to realize she's actually making a sort of joke. It's a slight nod at how I put her before the others. She's not mad or annoyed, but flattered (I think, I hope).

I take a smaller risk in saying, "w-well when I don't have much t-time I'd prefer to put my b-best f-friend first…" I remember how she said I was her best friend before, and I want to let her know I feel the same. I'm almost positive that my face is red when I say that though, I'm bad at this friendship stuff...

I'm not sure her smile can get any wider. She's absolutely beaming, though I don't think I said anything warranting that powerful a reaction. She already knew I liked her…

"If you wanted another, you could have just said so." She purrs happily, standing up and slinking over.

"Wh-What?" I'm totally confused, I don't remember asking for anything! My hands freeze on the plate I'm washing. I'm looking up at her as she approaches, "I-I didn't ask for- Eeeh!"

I squeak in surprise as she lifts me slightly up into the air, forcing me to quickly place down my plate lest I drop it. For the second time today, for just as random a reason as the first, I get a hug. I'm not complaining of course; I just don't think I did anything to deserve it.

"I knew what you were implying." She says jokingly, pressing her forehead to mine as her squeezes me against her. "You were buttering me up, weren't you?"

"N-NO!" I protest instantly, not catching the sarcasm this time. "I w-was serious! I d-do think you're my best f-friend! I l-like you! I'm not l-l-lying!" I stammer out in a frantic voice.

"I'm joking Ru~" She coos. Maria twirls slightly, causing her hair to flare out slightly behind her. "I just really wanted to hug you after that."

"B-But I didn't say a-anything that special!" I protest, still feeling like I don't deserve this.

"Wrong~!" She sings. "You said I was your best friend!" She emphasizes the word 'best'. I feel a warm tingle knowing that it's as significant for her as it was for me.

"E-Even so, I d-didn't hug you when y-you told me." I stammer out, flushing as I try to make an excuse to get out of this. It's not that I don't enjoy it, but I just feel unworthy.

"Well you can fix that now!" She encourages, giving a perky smile. "Come on, don't let me do all the hugging!"

"Ah- Well- Uh-" That's not at all what I expected, and I'm not sure how to respond. Where is it safe to touch? I don't wanna be like her customers, so my arms just flail awkwardly out to the side as I try to find a way to hug her that doesn't end with me pushed up against her chest. Right now she's grabbing me more or less by the lower waist, so I can keep up upper body a bit away, but I can't do the same to her without getting dangerously close to somewhere I shouldn't touch.

Being polite is hard! What in Azar's name am I supposed to do?

"Ruban?" Maria asks, raising an amused eyebrow.

"I d-don't know!" I whine.

"Don't know how to hug?" She smirks.

"N-Not exactly." I say, my eyes flicking down over her body. "Where…?" I let my question trail off, hoping she picks up on my problem.

"Oh please." She laughs softly. "I'm anything but straight-laced, don't worry about what you touch. Unlimited credit, remember?"

"R-Right." I stammer. "I thought she was joking about that." Hesitantly, I put my arms around her upper waist. I tighten my grip only slightly, still playing cautious.

Maria snorts lightly and grins at me, amused by my timidity. If I wasn't red before, I sure am now. I can actually feel the heat burning in my cheeks and ears. I'm sorely tempted to look away in embarrassment, but I keep my eyes on hers, even if I do lower my head a bit. Despite my embarrassment and confusion, I can say with no uncertainty that I am extremely happy right now. I've never gotten this close with anyone but my father, physically or emotionally, so this little moment of bonding is very important to me.

I wonder if she thinks the same? I doubt it, I'm probably overreacting again, but I'm enjoying this, so shush!

MARIA

Words cannot describe how giddy I am right now. I really can't help it either, he's just too cute!

Just, those big innocent eyes, the way he's looking up at me with his head tilted down, his shyness and how careful he's being… So adorable. It sends tingles up my spine. I feel so lucky to be the one who gets to see this, the one he chooses to trust. I know how scared he is of physical contact most of the time, so this feels extra special.

I was half expecting him to panic to the point I would need to put him down, and I was, and still am, delighted that it didn't happen.

And better yet, he said I was his best friend! Not mistress, not teammate, not just a friend, but best friend (I mean, realistically I'm his only friend, but I don't think he'd say say 'best friend' if we were just casual friends).

Please don't let this feeling go away for a while. I am very much enjoying this. I am feeling quite ecstatic, and I don't want to stop any time soon. I have this crazy smile on my face right now, I'm sure of it.

I would never have figured that something so simple as a hug could get this kind of reaction out of me. Maybe it's because of all the effort it took to get to this point. Three months might not seem like a lot, but when those months were spent constantly worrying about the person at home when you're out, and focusing all your attention on them when you are at home, moments like this, where your effort and worry actually pay off, become very special.

Unfortunately, I know that he still has cleaning to do, and we both need sleep after today, so it's with great reluctance that I release him; letting his feet touch down on the floor after my lift. Ruban fidgets upon being freed, sneaking looks up at me as he nervously plays with his hands.

"I'll let you get back to cleaning." I say after a moment, trying to put away my smile. "I'm going to bed, you should too when you're finished. A lot happened today."

"O-Okay." He nods. "After I c-clean the top floors again."

I frown. "No way, that'll take hours."

"I don't n-need a lot of sleep." He murmurs, looking away. "I o-only need four hours. It's a de- a half-human thing."

I blink. "Wait, but this morning after we took down Plasmus you came back to bed and you already got four hours."

"I-I didn't want you to worry…" He murmured, sounding guilty. "A-And you seemed tired, so I didn't e-explain it at the time…"

"Wait." I frown. "So all those times back at the apartment when I was worried about you not getting enough sleep, you were just fine?"

"Uh…" He shrinks back. "Y-Yes? I t-tried to h-hide it from you, I d-didn't think you noticed… Sometimes I a-actually did sleep for l-longer when there was n-not much to do in the morning, j-just so that I appeared n-normal."

"I have good hearing." I say, still frowning. "I thought you were forcing yourself to get up early except those times you slept in. You have no idea how many times you woke me up worrying about you."

"S-Sorry!" He squeaks, shrinking into his cloak a bit.

"It's fine." I sigh. I wipe away the frown and put on a small smile again. "I'm just glad to know you were okay."

He gets slightly red in the face at this. "Th-Thank y-you." He stammers nervously. "For c-caring I mean…"

"Like I've said before Ru; 'anything for you'." I say in a soft whisper. "I'll leave you to it. 'Night."

"Goodnight Maria." He says, looking up at me one last time before I leave the room.

Well, that was a long one (by my standards at least), 4000 words rather than my usual 2000-3000. By the way, doesn't Robyn seem sort of out of place here? Hex's segment is all about the drama, and Ruban and Maria's is all 'bout that emotion, but Rob? She's just… Recapping plot threads? Yay?

Whoops, it's been, like, five chapters since Ruban and Maria had a touching moment, better fix that! :P

I live for these moments between Ruban and Maria. They're easily my favourite moments in the story, and the most fun to write. They also define the characters rather well, as each big moment seems to reveal something about one or both of them. I probably need more for the other characters though, like Robyn. You know, the main character of the arc?

A person: Yeah… Though as this chapter pointed out, Crow could do a lot more if he wanted to. He's just too nervous to actually use that power. He doesn't want to make others, especially Changeling or the other Titans, scared of him. That, in his his mind, would lead to abandonment or imprisonment.

I'm glad you liked Ara. I wasn't too sure how she'd turn out. Her curt way of speaking was actually rather difficult to write, and I was mostly unsure how to write her thoughts.

I never considered that Conan might be jealous, nice one. He's either be jealous, or he'd consider years and years of martial arts training to be the equivalent of a superpower. Remember, most of the others needed to put in basically zero effort to get their powers. Some of them are natural, and others just have lots of money or are total geniuses. Conan feel cheated.

Yeah, Crow definitely shakes her confidence sometimes. That's one of the effects of caring about someone so much, for better or for worse.

razgriz108: I know, right? Definitely healthier (though they certainly have issues). I like making the younger characters sympathetic. I just makes sense, especially when they're part of a team or family. They genuinely care about each other.

Jail time will be packed, but not that harsh. They're with friends (even if Conan won't admit it).

mayvicbot: Crow be smol, and therefore is best character!

Bad grammar aside, thanks. I'm glad he has the desired effect!