Mar'i leaned her head against the shower wall and let the hot water pour over her. It had been a while since she had a decent workout so say her muscles were aching was an understatement. She continued to stare at her hands that had just a little while ago produced energy she had never experienced before. The session with Starfire had been surreal. Sure, it was only a small spark. (Literally) But at the same time, it was like a fire had been ignited in her. It was scary, but she was also curious to know what else, Starfire could teach her. She concluded that she really owed her mom and apology when she returned home.

If she ever made it home.

After washing her hair and face, she shut the water off, grabbed a towel on the rack and wrapped it around herself. It was when she entered the bedroom that she realized her clothes were missing. Wait.

The picture.

It was still in the back pocket of her jeans! She peeled back the bedsheets and frantically looked under the bed. She ran back to the bathroom. Nothing. Then it hit her... Starfire probably took them to wash!

"SHOOT!"

She hastily dressed in the unworn grey pajama t-shirt top and bottoms that were still laying on the bed from the previous evening and did her best to squeeze the remaining water out of her wet hair with the towel. She didn't know where the laundry room was, but she'd find it. She had to. She ran toward the bedroom door and pressed the button multiple times to open the sliding doors. When the doors opened, Raven was standing outside with a moderate expression of agitation

"Looking for this?" Raven held up the photo.

And just like that, Mar'i felt she could breathe again.

"Oh, Raven. Thank you." She reached for the photo, but Raven snatched it away out of reach.

"It'll be safer with me. You're lucky I stopped by to make sure you had your communicator before Starfire came though. You need to be more careful."

Mar'i wanted to argue with her but she knew Raven was right.

"Well, thank you..." Mar'i looked down. "Any other reason you're here other than to yell at me?"

Raven stowed the photo somewhere inside her cape and crossed her arms.

"I'm not-" Raven looked at the floor briefly then back to Mar'i. "I'm not... mad at you, ya know? I'm just as scared as you are about all of this."

"Could have fooled me." Mar'i gave a weak laugh. "I feel like I'm just constantly pissing you off. "

Mar'i noticed Raven's face softened. Raven unfurrowed her brow and leaned against the doorframe, arms still crossed.

"You know how Starfire's powers are controlled by her emotions? I'm assuming you learned that today."

"Sure, but what's that have to do with anything?"

"My powers are also controlled by emotion," Raven explained. "If I get overly emotional it could be fatal for my friends... for you. It's easier for me to stay neutral instead of getting worked up one way or another. But sometimes, the stress gets to me and... it's a little more difficult." Raven looked away but continued talking. "Whether you believe me or not, I do care about you."

Mar'i felt her own frustration leave her.

"Maybe you should stay stuff like that more often." Mar'i suggested.

Raven gave a small snort. "Sounds like something Starfire would say."

"Well, I do share her DNA." Mar'i shrugged. Okay, so Raven was a big softie. Maybe they could get along after all. "Seriously, you saved my tail. Can I hug you?"

"Don't push it." Raven's voice was level again. "However, I am here to give you an update," She changed the subject. "The bad news is, we still haven't found the clock. The three of us did a thorough search in the tower today. It's not in any of our secure rooms or Robin's room, I even had Beast Boy go underground and he found nothing. All that to say, we're certain it's hidden somewhere off-site."

"And you have no idea where?" Mar'i guessed.

"Zero."

Mar'i rubbed her forehead. "Please tell me there's good news."

"Surprisingly, yes." Raven asserted. "We got ahold of X"

Mar'i's eyes widened. She grabbed Raven by the shoulders causing Raven to let out an "aack!" and pulled her into the room. She shut the doors behind them.

"Tell me everything!" She pressed Raven.

"Calm down," Raven shook free from Mar'i's grip. "Cyborg tracked him down. Don't ask me how, but he did. The point is, he's willing to talk. He wants to meet with us."

Mar'i blinked.

"Talk? MEET?!" Mar'i yelled flabberghasted. "You didn't put him in jail?! Or wipe his memory or something?! You're telling me Cyborg doesn't have some sort of setting for that?!"

"Look, you've been here for 72 hours, but we've been trying to get this guy for the last four years. This is huge."

"Raven, he knows who I am! We gotta get rid of him!"

Raven stepped back and put her hands on her hips.

"We're heroes. Not hitmen."

Mar'i brought both her hands to her head that felt like it was spinning.

"I guess, help me understand then," Mari closed her eyes. "He broke into your house, kicked our butts, and now he wants to have a conversation?!"

"I know, he's not normal," Raven agreed. "But we have to take what we can get. Cyborg, Beast Boy and I are going to meet him at an undisclosed location tonight. He wants you to come too."

Mar'i shook her head in defiance and threw her hands down.

"What? There's no way, I'm talking to that son-of-a-"

"You're coming with us," Raven cut her off. "Meet us in my room at 1:00 am."

"He cut me with a shuriken!" Mar'i pointed to her face although the scar was barely visible. Raven was unvexed.

"You'll be fine. We've got you this far haven't we?"

Mar'i walked over to the bed and slumped over exasperated. She wanted to keep arguing but knew she had no other options at this point.

"Fine." She agreed begrudgingly. "But what about Robin and Starfire? Are they coming too?"

Raven shook her head. "Robin still thinks we got nothing. And they're off tonight."

"What do you mean 'off?'" Mar'i asked.

"We all get one night off a week from evening patrol unless there's a dire emergency. Unlike the rest of us, they sometimes take their one night off together."

"But what if they stop by my room? They'll freak if I'm not here!"

"Please." Raven rolled her eyes. "If I know them, they'll be in Robin's room all night."

"Ew." Mar'i shuddered in disgust.

"Get your head out of the gutter." Raven scolded her. "Robin always has a ton of paperwork to complete in the evenings. He usually takes it to his room with him and she likes to help with it. I have to imagine he likes the company too."

"That's not a night off at all." Mar'i said.

"Well, have you met your father?" Raven scoffed.

"My dad is a little more relaxed than that." Mar'i said quietly thinking about the last time she saw him. She was starting to miss him.

Raven raised an eyebrow. "Hm. Glad to know he's lightened up over the years. Anyway, 1:00 am. My room. Be there." Raven turned to leave but stopped and looked at Mar'i's attire. "Maybe you should consider getting a couple more outfits? Who knows how long you'll actually be here and those pajamas look ridiculous on you."

"You realize you're the one wearing a leotard, right?" Mar'i rested her head in her hands. Raven was unfazed by the remark.

"Maybe have your mom take you shopping sometime. She likes the mall." Mar'i could have sworn she saw a small smile on Raven's face but the empath left her before she could verify otherwise."

After her discussion with Raven, Mar'i made her way to the common room. Her stomach rumbled down the hall which made sense considering she hadn't eaten anything except Cyborg's eggs that morning. Upon entering the common room, she saw Beast Boy sitting at the kitchen island eating a bowl of cereal. Cyborg was sitting on the couch with his left cybernetic arm on the coffee table and a screwdriver in his other hand tightening some screws. Robin was on the other end of the sofa reading the newspaper seemingly oblivious to the noise going on around him. Mar'i wondered how many other teenagers his age read the paper. She assumed not very many.

"Hey, Mar'i!" Beast Boy called to her. "I ran into Starfire in the hallway and she told me about this morning. Apparently, you have a very sparkly personality! Beast Boy cackled at his own joke which only caused Cyborg to shake his head. Robin rolled his eyes and flipped the paper to the local crime section.

"Ha ha." Mar'i said. "Something tells me I shouldn't indulge your poor sense of humor." She walked over and sat down next to him at the counter and smirked.

"Quick learner!" Cyborg laughed as he finished up the last screw in his arm. He promptly reattached it and stood up. "I like you, Mar'i. Need some lunch?"

Mar'i's stomach growled on cue

"Desperately."

"Me too. You like chicken salad?"

"Love it." Mar'i smiled.

"I got you, girl. Coming right up!"

As Cyborg started to work his magic in the kitchen, Beast Boy scooted over to Mar'i and whispered, "So really, how was your morning? You doing okay?"

"Considering the situation," She answered. "I'm doing pretty good. But it's still weird."

"Dude, I can't even imagine." Beast Boy took a huge bite of his cereal. "Well, Starfire had a really good time with you. But Boy Wonder over here," Beast Boy signaled by jerking his head in Robin's direction. "He hasn't said a thing. How was it?"

"Honestly," Mar'i said as she thought back to the morning. "I had fun."

Beast Boy put his spoon down and gave her a sympathetic smile. "You know you don't have to say that just because he's your dad, right?"

"No, I'm serious!" She whispered back. "I mean, yeah, he totally kicked my butt, but I had a great time. And... I think he might have too."

"I don't know about that. Sometimes, I don't even know if Robin can do fun." Beast Boy continued chewing his food. "But he is a good teacher. He definitely whipped us into shape a few years ago."

"You guys needed it too," Robin said as he threw the newspaper down on the kitchen island and took a seat on the other side of Beast Boy. "You guys are terrible whisperers."

Mar'i and Beast Boy looked at each other in panic. Cyborg paused from his activities in the kitchen.

"Oh yeah," Beast Boy attempted to cover up. "If we're so bad at it, what else did you hear?"

Robin turned to the center of the newspaper over to read at the feature article. "That I hadn't said a thing about this morning's session and that I apparently can't have fun." He scanned the story in front of him.

"And that's it?" Beast Boy asked again.

"Unless there's something else about me you would rather gossip about behind my back." Robin continued to read.

"Well, shoot I guess you got us!" Beast Boy laughed. "You're right, Robin we totally suck."

Robin shook his head without lifting his eyes from the page. Beast Boy gave Mar'i a wink and offered her a fist bump to which she declined with a groan. Cyborg set a plate of chicken salad in front of her and gave Beast Boy a look that as if to say, "you got lucky this time." Mar'i had just taken a bite of her food when the doors to the common room opened and Starfire entered with Mar'i's clothes in hand. She approached the counter with a smile.

"Oh, is this the salad of chicken!" Starfire beamed when she saw Mar'i's plate.

"Sure is!" Cyborg put a plate in from of Starfire. "You want some?"

"I thank you, but no. I hade some glofnack and zorkaberries earlier and am quite full. Perhaps later?"

"I'll save you a plate." Cyborg wrapped the plate in cellophane and placed it in the fridge for her. Starfire placed Mar'is clothes on the counter for her.

"I was on my way to deliver these to your room, but I might as well give them you now."

Mar'i paused mid-bite and looked at the drab pajamas she forgot she was still wearing. Raven was right. She needed a few more outfits to cycle through and she had plenty of time to kill before meeting in Raven's room. She set down her fork and turned to Starfire.

"So, I don't know how long I'll be here. And as much as I love sporting grey on grey, would it be possible for me to get a couple of outfits? That way you don't have to wash my clothes every night. Maybe..." Mar'i closed her eyes. She couldn't believe she was about to ask. "Maybe we could go to the mall together?"

Beast Boy gulped down his cereal nervously, Robin looked up from his reading, and Cyborg dropped the mayonnaise jar in his hand. Starfire, on the other hand, beamed with pure joy.

"Oh, Mar'i ABSOLUTELY!" She grabbed Mar'i's arm. "We shall go immediately! And I saw that the mattress store was having a sale on twin beds. I have never slept on a twin bed. In fact, I had never slept on a bed until I came to this planet. Once I slept on a klob klob bush and-"

Starfire continued to recount her experiences with mattresses as Mar'i turned to the boys in panic.

"Raven just said she liked the mall. I didn't realize she was crazy!"

"Yes, Mar'i. I am afraid you have made a terrible error," Cyborg said giving her a somber look. "And it is one we cannot save you from."

"Good luck." Beast Boy whispered to her.

Mar'i then looked to Robin. Surely, he could help her, right? Maybe some father-daughter intuition that didn't realize he had? Anything?

"Please." She mouthed to him.

Robin merely looked to her and shrugged his shoulders.

Thanks a lot, Dad.

"Ya know, Starfire," Mar'i stopped her in the hopes she could save herself. "I was thinking about maybe about going in an hour or so?" Mar'i stared longingly at her plate of food.

"Of course not!" Starfire stood up. "You need clothing! Let us make with the haste!" Before Mar'i could protest again, Starfire grabbed her by the arm and flew out of the room with her."

"Wait, you can actually fly?!" Mar'i yelled as the door closed behind them.

The boys sat in silence for a brief moment until Robin flipped the newspaper over to the classified section.

"Hm. She was right. There is a mattress sale."

The trip to get to the mall was terrifying. Partially due to the surprise of learning Starfire could really fly and partially because she was being dangled several hundred feet in the air. Mar'i thought back to the night she first met them in the infirmary. She remembered seeing Starfire fly over to introduce herself, but since Raven had just healed a concussion Mar'i assumed that she was just seeing things. Apparently, she wasn't.

"Am I gonna die?!" Mar'i yelled up to her.

"Of course not!" Starfire replied. "This is much faster than taking the public transportation. We will work on the basics of flight soon in our training."

"Joy..." Mar'i said and she started to feel nauseous. Thankfully, Starfire descended carefully toward the ground and landed outside the entrance of the Jump City Mall. Mar'i ran to a nearby water fountain and drank some water to calm her stomach.

"I'm supposed to be able to do that too?" Mar'i asked her wiping some water from her mouth.

"I hope that you can," Starfire replied. "Like your starbolts, it will take some practice."

"Remind me to have some ginger ale on hand." Mar'i said between taking a couple of deep breaths to keep from puking. Starfire smiled sympathetically and the two entered the mall once Mar'i felt she hand her land legs again.

The mall was busy which was a bit of a shock to Mar'i. Where she was from, there were on a few malls still open, and the ones that were only had a few stores still in operation. There teenagers sitting in the food courts texting on flip phones. Parents were leading their small children by the hand assuring them there was no need to go to the toy store today. Everything was bright and lively. Everything the Gotham City Mall was not which only contained a single pretzel stand and a movie theater.

"Glorious isn't it?" Starfire said taking it all in. "My planet does not have such a place. I always find the most interesting things when I come here." Starfire pointed to the first clothing store on their left whose window was decked out with babydoll dresses and bellbottom jeans. "Do you wish to start here?"

Mar'i studied the clothes. Everything was incredibly dated, but she looked down at her pajamas and figured nothing could look as bad as what she was already wearing.

"I can probably find something."

Mar'i browsed through the t-shirts and was thankful she was able to find a few plain colored shirts that didn't have obnoxious graphics. Starfire walked casually around the store touching the material on each of the dresses and curiously holding up the high heels wondering how anyone could comfortably walk in them. Once Mar'i grabbed a couple of long sleeve tees and a couple of short-sleeved, she found herself in the jeans looking for her size which was always tricky. Being 5"5' was awkward sometimes. She was too tall to wear petite sizing, but too short for longer lengths, but sometimes the standard length didn't fit right either. She groaned inwardly knowing she would have to try a few pairs. Amidst digging through a pile of low rises and flared legs, she was able to find at least 3 pairs of skinny jeans to try.

In 2032, Mar'i and Kori never shopped together. Not because they disagreed on style, but because Mar'i hated shopping and only did so out of necessity. Kori, on the other hand, loved to window shop and could spend all day in a department store. Now she understood why after the events of that morning. And though 2032 Mar'i would never consider asking Kori to come to the dressing room with her, she assumed a second opinion from Starfire wouldn't hurt. She found Starfire by the purses on her way there

"I'm going to try these on. Want to help me make sure I don't look ridiculous?"

"I can certainly try." Starfire agreed as they started to walk toward the rooms. "Although, I may not be the best person to ask about Earth fashion. I have never worn civilian clothing."

Mar'i stopped in her tracks outside the dressing room door and looked at her in disbelief.

"You've never worn regular clothes?"

Starfire shook her head. "Aside from the proper undergarments, and on one other occasion, no."

Mar'i looked at the three pairs of jeans in her hands then looked back to Starfire, handing her the longer length pair of the three.

"I'd say we're about the same size. Give these a try."

Starfire looked stunned. "Truly? And how do you know they will fit?"

Mar'i knew they would. She and Kori shared multiple items of clothes over the years.

"I have a feeling. Also, try one of these for fun." She handed her one of the long-sleeved tees, a pale purple one, and walked into the dressing room. Starfire practically skipped into the adjacent room to try the clothes on. Mar'i found the regular length jeans fit her great and she tried on a maroon short-sleeved t-shirt. It was nice to look decent again. She stepped out of the fitting room and knocked on Starfire's door.

"Want to compare?" Mar'i called to her over the dressing door.

"Um... I suppose."

Starfire's door opened and she stepped out in the jeans and shirt Mar'i gave her. She was smiling, but she seemed uneasy. Mar'i couldn't understand why because she was stunning. The jeans hugged all the right parts of her hips and the shirt was form-fitting, but not too tight.

"What's up?" Mar'i asked her. "You look great."

"Thank you," Starfire said. She rubbed the front of her shirt with her hands and then turned to the mirror to her left to study her appearance. "It is just... different, but... I do like it." She smiled at Mar'i in the mirror. "I like that shirt you have chosen too."

"Thanks!" Mar'i joined her in front of the mirror. "It's my favorite color." She ran her fingers through her hair and the two looked at themselves in the mirror. In the few seconds, Mar'i realized the moment was unprecedented. She felt herself getting emotional looking at her young mom seeing herself in a new outfit for the first time. She wondered what it was like to have lived on a planet for six years and yet still feel completely out of place. Something about it made Mar'is heart sink and for some reason, her eyes started to get glossy. Starfire noticed too.

"Mar'i, are you alright?"

Mar'i cleared her throat and wiped away a tear that had not yet escaped. "Yeah, just too much perfume in this place." She lied and walked back towards her fitting room, took a couple of deep breaths, then started to change clothes. Starfire took one last glance in the mirror then returned to her room too. Mar'i changed out of the shirt and back into the pajama shirt she came in when something Starfire had said hit her.

"Starfire?"

"Yes?" Her voice traveled over the dressing room wall.

"You said, you wore regular clothes on one other occasion. When was that?" Mar'i asked as she put her left leg into the pajama pants.

"A few years ago." She answered. "I wore what you would call a prom dress."

Mar'i frowned, finished gathering herself and the clothes, and exited the fitting room. Starfire also exited with her clothes in hand.

"You wore a prom dress before you tried on pants?" Mar'i asked her.

"Indeed," Starfire affirmed. "Robin had to go. I went in case he required saving."

"What would you be saving him from? It's just a dance." Mar'i laughed.

"His evil, hideous date who's father was a moth man and her significant other who had an arachnid for a head," Starfire said casually looking at the price tag of the clothes in her hands.

Mar'i blinked. And she thought Gotham was messed up.

"We should pay for these," Starfire stated and started walking to the register. Oh right. Mar'i remembered. Money. She didn't even think about that.

"Jump City gives us a monthly stipend for our service," Starfire explained as if reading Mar'i mind. She took Mar'i's clothes from her and placed them in front of the cashier along with the jeans Mar'i let her try on. "However, Wayne Enterprises is our primary benefactor. Mr. Wayne has been quite generous to our team." Starfire reached in some hidden pocket of her skirt and pulled out a debit card and smiled as she handed it to the cashier.

"Bruce Wayne?" Mar'i thoughts flashed back to the photo in her Dad's desk drawer. "But he's in Gotham. On the complete opposite side of the country. I guess, I'm glad he's helping you guys but I don't get it."

"Me either," Starfire said nonchalantly as she took the receipt from the cashier. "But I am most thankful. Robin says Mr. Wayne had enough money to spare anyway."

"Do they know each other?" Mar'i asked trying to vie for answers

"Something like that." Starfire turned and started to walk out of the store as Mar'i continued to try and put two and two together. She shook her head and decided she would worry about that later. Before leaving the mall, Mar'i insisted Starfire purchase some anti-nausea medicine for the flight home which she agreed. Once Mar'i was medicated, Starfire grabbed her hand and flew them home mostly in silence which made Mar'i feel uneasy as Starfire had been quite bubbly the entire trip. When they landed on the room of the roof of the tower.

"I believe I will rest for a while," Starfire said once they landed on the tower roof. "I want to ensure I will be awake to assist Robin with paperwork tonight. It is quite tedious. Do you need assistance in finding your room from here?"

Mar'i shook her head. "No, I think I can I'll be okay."

Starfire who was still holding the bag of clothing reached in and pulled out the jeans she had tried on in the store and handed Mar'i the rest of her clothes. Mar'i took them but pulled out the purple long sleeve shirt she had let Starfire try. She looked at it briefly then handed it back to her to which Starfire gave her a puzzled look.

"You should keep this too. That way you can have a full outfit." Mar'i said.

"Thank you, Mar'i." Starfire said quietly, looking at the articles of clothing in her hand.

"Are you... okay?" Mar'i asked hesitantly.

Starfire looked up at her. "I hope your memories return to you soon, but I will be sad when you have to leave us. It was nice to feel... 'normal' with you today."

Mar'i felt her a lump rise in her throat which she forced down. "I had a good time with you too. We'll have to do it again."

"Absolutely!" Some of Starfire's signature joy seemed to surface again.

"One more thing," Mar'i said before Starfire could leave. How did Robin look in his suit?"

"Pardon?" Starfire looked at her confused.

"At prom. He must have worn a suit. How did he look?"

It took Starfire's a moment to comprehend the question but once she did, her face flushed. However, she answered with a small smile, "Most handsome."

Mar'i nodded knowingly. "I'm sure he thought you were beautiful."

Starfire gave her another small smile. "That is kind of you to say. I am going to go retire for a while. I will see you later."

Mar'i said goodbye and checked her communicator for the time which read 3:00 pm. Only 9 more hours of pseudo-normalcy until she had to meet in Raven and the boys. She made her way back to her room where she changed into her new jeans and the maroon shirt she had purchased and laid down on her bed. Her eyes started to feel heavy. Now she knew why the other Titans didn't go shopping with Starfire, it was an all-day affair. Before she knew it she was asleep.