AN: Another installment of Epilogue. Had a lot of fun writing this one. Special thanks to GoldenSama and IllegalDayNightSnappingIguana for helping me out. Thanks to DC for writing this wonderful comic, and for whoever produced the show. It's not me, I don't own any of this stuff.

Also, thanks to everyone who reviewed for me. One thing a lot of you asked for were couplings. I will not be posting those, due to the fact that this fanfic will not have very cut and dry couples. If you are truly curious about the couples there will be, you can email me, and I'll email you the response. Thanks again for all the support.

Anyone who wants to help me out with proofreading and such, I wouldn't mind having another. More help the merrier. Contact me at
AIM SN: Kodra22

Email: Kodra22 (at symbol) gmail (dot) com

With out further delay, here's the chapter

Epilogue

Chapter 1: Day at the Mall

A week had passed since the fall of Trigon, and slowly things were moving back to normal. Robin spent much of his time in his room, trying to predict Slade's next move, or else he would disappear, presumably to follow up on his investigation.

Starfire enjoyed a relaxing week, spending much of her time with the others relaxing, watching TV with Cyborg and Beast Boy, and following Raven about, undergoing the "talk of girls", and surprisingly enough, finding Raven much more approachable.

Cyborg spent the days as he always did, working on the tower, playing his Gamestation, tuning up the vehicles, and grilling up something, be it pancakes, burgers, or steaks.

Beast Boy quickly fell back into his routine as well: Eating tofu, learning new tofu recipes, playing against Cyborg in Gamestation, and generally playing pranks on the rest of the team. However, it did not escape the notice of Cyborg and Starfire that their jovial green friend was not always around. He would disappear for hours at a time, and a full search of titans tower couldn't find him. He would always return though, and quickly dispelled any worries they had for him with his signature grin.

Raven had changed dramatically from the ordeal with her father. She seemed more relaxed than before, not quite as cold, though she still spoke with the same monotone voice, you could see her feelings play across her face. She didn't seem perpetually annoyed at the world, and much to the other titans surprise, they found her much more open to their activities. She was only seen meditating in the morning, rather than throughout the entire day, and it did not go unnoticed by Starfire just how the half-demon acted around Robin. Always a smile on her face as he passed by, always trying to distract him away from his hunt with a remark. Robin however didn't pay much attention to her advances, focusing himself on the task at hand.

It was about ten o'clock in the morning, and Cyborg was sitting down to a nice large helping of waffles when he spotted a flash of yellow and red make it's way down the hallway. He quickly placed his fork down and pressed a button on his arm. A nearby door could be heard shutting in the background. Robin poked his head around the corner and looked at Cyborg, speaking with an authoritative tone. "Cyborg, open the door!"

Cyborg took a bite of his breakfast before answering the Boy Wonder. He smirked lightly after he swallowed. "Why Robin? Where are ya off to in such a hurry?"

Robin growled at his friend, not feeling in the mood to play games with him. "There's a lead on Slade and I don't want it to go cold, now open the door!" He exclaimed impatiently.

Cyborg grinned mischievously as he spoke with a slick voice, "I'll open the door for you, but, first you're gonna have to promise me something."

Robin frowned. He didn't like the idea of being played with by Cyborg, but right now he didn't have time. He spoke venomously between his teeth. "And what would that

be?"

Cyborg leaned back in his chair. He had Robin right where he wanted him. "You can go off and look for Slade today, but tomorrow, we're all going to the beach, ya hear me? No investigating leads, no going over case files, no detective work. Got it?"

Robin was ready to jump at his friend. Didn't he know that he was just doing his duty? He couldn't afford to skip a day, but then again, he couldn't afford to lose this lead. Of course there was always the other reason he had been throwing himself so hard into the search for Slade, but at this point he didn't have time to worry about that. "Alright Cyborg, I'll play your little game, now open the door!"

Cyborg pressed the button on his arm again, the door sliding open for Robin. Cyborg went back to eating his waffles, with a grin on his face. A day off would be good for all of them, especially Robin. The boy simply put too much stress on himself for his own good. Starfire sleepily floated into the room, stretching her arms as she moved. "Cyborg, what was all the commotion for?" she asked as she sat down across from him at the table.

Cyborg smiled lightly, "I twisted Robin's arm into going to the beach with us tomorrow."

Starfire gasped in surprise before angrily glaring at Cyborg. "You attempted to harm Robin and break his arm merely so that he would accompany you to the beach?" She looked positively homicidal as she spoke, but the expression quickly changed to that of confusion as Cyborg burst out laughing.

"Nah Star, I didn't actually try and twist his arm, it's a figure of speech." Cyborg laughed as he spoke. Starfire however looked rather confused by the whole thing.

"A figure of speech?" She asked perplexed.

"Yeah, it's like when you call someone a Zlafian Gorblesplotch, you don't actually mean they're a Zlafian Gorblesplotch, you just mean that they're really clumsy. So when I say I twisted his arm, I didn't physically twist his arm, I just put him in a position where I could force him to do what I wanted, in this case, take a day off the Slade hunt." Cyborg explained. He found it much easier to explain earth customs by comparing it to the Tamaranian customs he learned about from Starfire, and apparently it had been successful as he saw a look of understanding cross Starfire's face.

"I see. So then what is it that you did to 'twist his arm'?" She asked curiously.

"He was running off to another one of his leads on Slade, and I overrode the tower's systems to lock the door out on him. Told him I wouldn't open it up unless he went to the beach with us." Cyborg explained with pride. It wasn't every day that someone could say they put one over on Robin. Starfire squealed with joy.

"So tomorrow we will all be going to the beach together? Glorious!" Starfire exclaimed.

At that moment Raven slowly made her way into the kitchen, a neutral expression on her face as she rummaged through the cabinets for some tea. She spoke in her normal detached voice. "What's going on exactly?"

Starfire beamed brightly as she spoke "Friend Cyborg has managed to twist the arm of Robin into going to the beach tomorrow."

Raven continued looking for her tea, thinking to herself. She used to dislike the beach, feeling that there was too many people, and too much noise for herself to meditate. The prospect of lying out in the sun wasn't thrilling either, since her complexion didn't change much from tanning. However, the thought of spending a day with Robin did appeal to her. Of course, their was always the issue of what to wear. She'd never really seen the point in getting a swimsuit, as most of the aquatic outings had been events she'd passed on before. Cyborg looked over to her with a raised eyebrow, breaking the silence. "So, ya gonna come or not Raven?"

"I've nothing to wear to the beach." She spoke calmly as she began to prepare her tea.

Starfire quickly exclaimed "That is very well because I am in need of a new suit of swimming as well. Together we can go shopping today!"

Normally Raven would've groaned or tried to worm her way out of shopping with Starfire, but today she actually had something she needed to get, and she could use Starfire's help deciding what looked good on her. "Alright Starfire, just let me finish my tea, and then we can head out." Raven said in her monotone voice.

Starfire squealed, loving the opportunity to go shopping, while Cyborg sat wide eyed. Raven had never simply agreed to go shopping, especially without following it up with some sort of sarcastic remark. He spoke curiously "You alright Raven? You never give in to shopping without a struggle? What's the deal?"

Raven's eye twitched lightly. "I need a swimsuit to wear tomorrow, therefore I need to go to the shopping mall." She took a sip of her herbal tea.

Cyborg gaped again. "Nothing against ya Raven, but usually you don't go for the whole outing thing. What's up?"

Raven's eye twitched again. "Listen Cyborg, I just went through a pretty miserable experience, and it wasn't until what I perceived as the end of the world that I took the time to spend with you guys. I don't plan to make that mistake again. With my father gone, I don't need to worry about controlling his influence, and hence, I don't need to spend as much time in meditation. I would appreciate it if you got off of my case." She ended the conversation venomously. She turned away from them, sipping her tea, trying to get the slight tinge of pink away from her cheeks, not wanting them to suspect her having an ulterior motive. She continued to sip at her tea, moving out of the room. "I'll be in my room Starfire, I'll come by when I'm ready."

Cyborg blinked at her outburst, watching her float out of the room. He glanced over to his Tamaranian friend who was standing there wide eyed as well. "You buying any of that?"

Starfire blinked at him in confusion. "Am I purchasing what?"

Cyborg sighed, "Another figure of speech Starfire, means do you believe what she is saying?"

Starfire frowned lightly. "I am not sure. Her explanation seems reasonable, but I cannot be sure if it should be 'bought' or not."

Cyborg nodded slowly, "Well you keep an eye on her while shopping. If ya figure anything out, I'd love to know."

"Figure what out?" Beast boy asked as he walked into the room.

Cyborg looked up from his now cold waffles. "BB! Where have you been?"

Beast Boy shrugged off the question and grinned brightly. "Dude, I was just out taking a walk y'know. Enjoying the fresh air and all. Why something important going down?"

Cyborg shook his head. "Nothing too important. Managed to convince Mr. Obsessive to take a day off tomorrow so we can all go to the beach."

Starfire narrowed her eyes, and quickly asserted. "Robin is not obsessive, he is merely worried about the Slade. Who could know what trouble that man could be plotting?"

Cyborg and Beast Boy both rolled their eyes. Of course Starfire would stick up for Robin, so they chose not to continue that argument. "Anyways, as I was saying the really weird thing about it is that Raven's actually going too, and she's willingly going shopping with Starfire. Talk about weird huh?"

Beast Boy shrugged lightly. He knew exactly why Raven was so excited about the beach, but he didn't feel in the mood to reveal why yet. Doing so would only create more problems for Raven, and he just couldn't bring himself to do that to her, no matter how he felt about the overall subject. He went to the refrigerator and opened the vegetable crisper, pulling out some baby carrots and a bottle of ranch. "I guess that's pretty strange alright. Anything else going on today?"

Cyborg smirked lightly "Well let's see, I gotta tune up the T-Car, check the Tower's securities, oh and utterly destroy you in Mecha Ninja 4!"

Beast Boy laughed as he took a bite of a carrot. "As if dude. Today you will know the power of the real Mecha Ninja master, and when you do it will be the most humbling experience of your life."

Cyborg grinned. "Big words grass stain. Prepare to be destroyed."

The two boys continued to playfully argue back and forth about who was going to beat who in Mecha Ninja. Starfire sat and thought about what Cyborg had said. Could Raven be lying about her reason to go to the beach? Why would she? Her story seemed to make sense, but there was something about the way she said it that caused her and Cyborg to become suspicious. Her thoughts were interrupted as Raven walked into the room. She was clad in her usual outfit, and stood there with her arms across her chest. "Are you ready Starfire?"

Starfire looked up at her and smiled. "I most certainly am! Come Raven, let us go!" She grabbed a hold of Raven and quickly made her way out the Tower.

(At the mall)

Raven's forehead was fraught with sweat as she passed through the mall. All of the people made her only a bit nervous and self conscious. She could feel their stares on her as she moved by. Perhaps wearing her cloak and leotard to the mall hadn't been the best idea. Of course, unknown by Raven was the fact that a lot of the stares were falling on her friend instead. A wolf whistle is heard from behind them, followed by an arrogant voice. "Hey babes, why don't you come on over here. Me and my buddy gonna show you a reeeaaal good time." The two girls turned to see two teen boys wearing smug grins.

Raven frowned with disgust at them, where as Starfire simply looked confused at their statement. "Sorry, we'll pass." Raven said harshly.

The two boys laughed to each other. The other one spoke up. "Ice queen eh? That's alright babe, your friend there looks like she's hot to trot. She'll be enough for both of us."

Starfire blushed brightly. She wasn't exactly sure what they were saying, but their tone bothered her. "Friend Raven, what do they mean?" She asked quizzically.

Raven growled, an angry scowl across her face. "Let's just say they've got plans that you don't want to be a part of Star, and if they're smart, they'll leave us alone before they cross the line."

The first boy walked up to Starfire running his hand up along the outside of her leg and resting it on her midriff. "So where's this line?"

Starfire let out a gasp as she felt his hand so boldly travel across her skin. Her eyes turned green with rage. She reached and gripped his hand, pulling it away from her stomach. She applied pressure to his wrist as he fell down to his knees, shouting out in pain as she tightened her grip. Raven smirked lightly as she spoke, "I believe you just crossed it. Let him go Starfire. Not worth our time." Raven grabbed her friend by the hand and quickly lead her away from the scene, the boy still nursing his wrist.

They made their way into the "Fun in the Sun" store, as Starfire squealed, quickly forgetting the two boys they encountered earlier, distracted by all the shopping. Raven began to browse through the swimsuits. After a few minutes she sighed in exasperation. Most of the swimsuits were so bright, and colorful, and designed to be worn by someone who didn't have gray skin. Starfire interrupted her thought as she held two suits in her hand. "Here Raven, I think this one would look most wonderful on you." She held out a all white two piece.

Raven took it and looked at it curiously. She held it against her skin and shrugged. It didn't look completely out of place like the others had. She smiled lightly and nodded her head to Starfire. "Thanks Star. I'm gonna go try this on." She made her way to the changing rooms. She passed through the door, locking it after closing it. She blushed lightly as she disrobed. Even though she knew nobody could see her through the door, the angled slits weren't giving her any piece of mind. She quickly donned the bathing suit. She turned to the mirrors behind her and her blush deepened. Her arm moved up and instinctively crossed her breasts. The suit certainly didn't leave much to the imagination, but if she wanted to turn his head, this certainly would do it. She bit her lower lip as she thought about the prospect of wearing this in public. She turned away from the mirrors and cautiously peeked her head out the door. "Starfire?"

"I will be with you soon Raven, I am trying on the suit of swimming." Starfire spoke from the next stall over. Raven peered back and forth, making sure there'd be no chance any would see her. She walked out of her stall, wondering to herself how Starfire managed to wear her normal outfit all the time without feeling self conscious. The door next to her opened, and out stepped her friend, clad in a yellow bikini. Raven looked away from her. "Oh Raven, you look glorious!"

Raven had only gotten a glimpse of Starfire, but it was enough to let her know this was a foolish idea. Trying to measure up against Starfire's naturally golden skin with her pale gray tone wasn't going to work, and it certainly wasn't worth it humiliating herself by wearing this suit. "Yeah...I think I'm going to pick out a different suit. I feel a bit too...exposed for my tastes." She moved back into the changing room and came out after a few minutes again clad in her black leotard and cloak. Starfire smiled brightly as Raven spoke to her. "I'd get the suit you're wearing. It looks good on you."

"Oh thank you Raven! Now, we must find a suit for you to wear." Starfire exclaimed. Raven frowned lightly, not sure this whole idea of going to the beach was a good one.

"I dunno Star, I'm beginning to have second thoughts about this whole trip. I'll see if there's anything I'd wear, otherwise I might just sit back and watch." She moved back into the shopping area, looking around half-heartedly. Her search for a bathing suit lead her to the back of the store where she found a rack of one pieces. She found one in all black, and noted that it looked similar to her leotard, only without any sleeves. She pulled it off the rack and turned it around. Unlike her leotard there was no back to it, and the neck line was lower, but not to the point where her cleavage was being exposed. She moved back to the changing rooms where Starfire was trying on another suit. She quickly floated into her stall, quickly changing into the black swimsuit. She looks at herself in the mirror, smiling lightly to herself. The suit looked good on her. The dark color seemed to draw attention away from her abnormal gray skin as he leotard did. With her cloak on you could barely tell the difference between the two. The suit showed off a bit more of her legs, the seam coming up to her hips. The back was very low, coming up midway on her lower back. There were some decorative strings running criss cross along her back. Much to pleasure, she noticed how the suit formed along with her curves, giving an enticing view of her figure. "Hopefully this would entice Robin into paying a bit more attention to me" she thought to herself. She frowned as the thought passed through her mind. Was this even a good idea? She knew Starfire had feelings for Robin. Was she willing to compete with Starfire for his affections? Her mind turned to all the times he'd held her in his arms, comforting her, speaking soft words to her to calm her. Throughout the entire ordeal he was the one to get close to her, to comfort her. Through the darkest of days her love for him had been tempered as he carried her. He was her strength when she had lost it all. She nodded to herself. He was worth it. He was worth so much to her than she could fathom. She smiled lightly as she looked herself over once again.

Meanwhile Starfire sitting in her changing room thinking along the same lines as Raven had been. She had harbored feelings for the Boy Wonder for a long time, but even after all this time, he was still a mystery to her. Occasionally he would give her a glimpse of a gentler side of him, but just when she had thought he would finally open up, he became even more distant than before. Now the situation was becoming even more complex. She had seen the way that Raven had watched Robin, blushing lightly when he would talk to her. Now with her eagerness in going with them to the beach, and her desire to look good, she was becoming more and more convinced that Raven was pining for Robin as well.

Tamarian powers are fueled by the emotions of passion, and so the ideals of love and anger are especially prevalent in Tamarian culture. Therefore it is quite common to have very violent disputes over lovers and mates. Starfire sat in the dressing room, a sad look on her face as she contemplated the depth of her love for Robin. How far was she willing to go to see that she became his love? It only took a few minutes for her to admit that she couldn't imagine herself with anyone but him, and as much as it pained her, she was willing to fight Raven tooth and nail if it came to it. She changed back into her normal clothes with a sad expression on her face. She moved out of the room, putting a smile on her face. "Hopefully I am merely over reacting to this." When she came out she saw Raven waiting for her with a look of pride on her face. Starfire blinked as she looked over Raven's selection.

"What do you think Star?" Raven asked, twirling about to let Starfire get a good look at the suit. Starfire smiled sadly.

"It is most wonderful on you Raven." Starfire knew just from the look on Raven's face, Robin's heart was not going to be easily won. She only hoped that she would have the wisdom to know what to do when the time came to fight for it.

To Be Continued

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