Kori giggled at the long, button down shirt. The sleeves were too long, and the neck was a bit wide, though it didn't fall over her shoulder like Robin's did. Raven beamed as she clapped her hands, the sound muffled by the fabric.

"Glad you like it, Kori," Raven said, pulling a box of gum from her pocket. "What do you think, Robin?"

He covered his collarbone with a hand and blushed, the tiniest of smirks pulling at his lips.

"It's cute," he mumbled.

"We are matching!" Kori declared, picking the boy up in a hug.

They were delighted to find Robin in one of his rare moods where he didn't fight back. Instead, he giggled, too.

"Pretty close," he said. "Mine has lacy bits, though."

Kori set him down and danced in place. Then they grabbed Robin's hand with both of theirs.

"Come, come! We must join the others for the watching of movies!" they declared.

Also, they thought, to see what I got you! Kori was so proud of the gift bag and its tiny occupant. They had left it downstairs with Victor and Garfield so he didn't see it before they got their pajamas. And oh! Such soft cloth and cute little fish! This was the best part of being in America: the little things they were allowed to experience that were impossible at home. If they'd ever dared to wear pants then… They couldn't even consider it. And the cut of this shirt was just blasphemous at best. The hem barely covered their knees, and Kori had decided to keep their pants on when Raven showed it to them. They only wished the pants were soft enough to match.

"Is it too short?" Raven asked, as if reading Kori's mind.

"Just a bit. I will wear pants with them."

"I have more fabric," she offered. "It might be just enough to make a matching pair of pants."

Kori grabbed her arm tightly.

"Could you? I would be most grateful! They are so, so soft, Raven. I- Oh!"

They quickly released Raven, and she wobbled in place. Robin rushed to her side and took her hand gently, whispering in her ear as her eyes darted around. After a moment, Raven's breath steadied again, and she nodded.

"Okay. I'm okay," she muttered.

"I am so sor-!"

"It's okay, Kori. I just… I didn't expect that."

"If it helps," Robin said, "I can teach you some tricks I learned in therapy."

"Yeah. Yeah, I think I need that," Raven said with a forced chuckle. "And I need my hand back."

Robin muttered apologies and released her. "We should head down."

Kori nodded. Robin hesitated then started walking away. Raven sighed.

"Sorry," Kori said again.

"It happens," replied Raven. "I just wish it would stop."

Kori nodded and placed their hand on Raven's shoulder gently. She only continued to chomp on her gum.

"Raven?"

"Yeah?"

"What is holding his hand like?"

Raven shrugged. "It's nothing special. Not to me. I'm sure it'll be everything you want, though."

"Mm. Not everything."

Raven shifted in place and started away. Kori laced their fingers into hers, and Raven stared at them.

"Like this?" Kori asked.

"Y-yeah. It's just… friendly."

"Not special?"

Again, Raven only shrugged. Kori let her hand go. Together, they finally started walking towards the home theater.

"I guess," Raven said after a moment, "I'm over you."

"It is the trauma," Kori said simply.

"Maybe."

"You will recover. I know you will," said Kori. "You are strong and stubborn. One day, it will be easy."

"What are you talking about?"

This time, it was Kori who shrugged. "Last week, I was afraid. Then, I realized. I have not been afraid in a long while. At home, I was afraid all the time. Having friends… it becomes easy, in time."

Raven crossed her arms, or maybe she was hugging herself or clutching her stomach. It was hard for Kori to tell.

"Why is it so much?" asked Raven. Kori tilted their head, confused, and she said, "I'm angry and hurt and scared and just… tired. Why is it so much?"

"I do not know, but we will be here with you."

Raven nodded sadly and entered the theater with them.

Victor was taking pictures of Robin as he played with the fuzzy ears of a stuffed green bunny. The most genuine smile they'd ever seen graced his lips as he held it up to show.

"It's a bunbun!" he called in his falsetto.

Raven smirked, and Kori started laughing.

"Do you like it?" they asked.

"It's soooo cute!" Robin replied.

"Hey," called Garfield from the snack bar, "were we gonna start the movie sometime today, or just sit around?"

"Were you gonna get out of the food, or just eat everything?" Raven shot back.

"I'm bored, okay? Terra's training for something, so she's not texting me back."

"Who trains on a Friday?" asked Victor. "Most people play on Friday."

"Football is Friday." said Robin. "There are other sports, you know? What does she play?"

"I dunno. She won't tell me," said Garfield. "She says it's just a thing her dad makes her do. Her coach is a hard-ass, though. I know that. She's always sore after practice."

"'Always?' You've known her a week!" Victor snorted.

"Trust me," said Raven, holding up a hand, "they've spent that week texting almost nonstop. I've had to tell him to knock it off so I could sleep. He giggles."

"You keep me awake, too," Garfield said.

"Yeah, from nightmares. There's kind of a difference."

Garfield stuck his tongue out at her and brought a bucket of popcorn to the group. He snuggled into Victor's side.

"Dude."

Garfield pouted. "But it's comfy here."

"Fiiiiiine," Victor said, surrendering.

"What are we watching?" Robin asked, scooting into Victor's other side.

"Dude!"

"Gar's doing it."

Kori snickered at the growing pile of boys bickering over whether or not platonic cuddling was a thing. They sat down next to Robin and leaned into him.

"Um, okay," he said. "This is… something."

"It is warm," Kori cooed. "I like it."

His hair smelled like salt and coconuts. It made their heart flutter.

"You know what we need?" Raven said. "A giant blanket."

"Yes!" Garfield agreed. "One big snuggly sleepover."

He shifted to lay his head on Raven's thigh and stretched his legs over Victor's.

"Bro, watch it," said Victor. "Rob, switch with me, man."

"Don't wanna," Robin said.

He pressed his new bunny to his face and snuggled deeper into Kori's side. Kori giggled and stroked his hair.

"You're all weird," breathed Victor, picking up the remote. "Since you're all so comfy, we're watching my movie."

"Awesome, now you can stop bugging us about it," Garfield said.

"Shut up. You'll love it. You love animals."

"Dragons aren't real."

"Shut up and watch it, bonehead."

Kori hummed as the film started. Their fingers played with Robin's hair, twisting the locks gently at the flames on the screen. Dragons, axes, and, for some reason, sheep, flew across the wall.

Around the climax of the film, Robin pulled their fingers out of his hair and curled his into them.

Warm. Soft. Committed. Perfect.

Seconds later, he was out cold, hand still entwined with theirs. They giggled softly, glancing towards the others. Their friends. Their family.

Their lifeline.