Cyborg wired himself into a data port in the infirmary so he could directly monitor the security systems. He took the straight back visiting chair while Star had pulled a more comfortable one in from the common room. Altman was still unconscious and the doctor who had come from the hospital was catching some sleep. Harley watched every move the two Titans made with malice and a wide smile. "The constant stare of this insane woman is disconcerting." Star said.

"True," Cyborg said, getting up. "Also, we can't talk in front of her, so that means it's nighty-night time." He took an IV out of a cabinet and began preparing it, making sure that the demented woman couldn't see what it was. Harley rolled her eyes dramatically and neither of the Titans took any notice.

"It will not harm her?" Star asked. Cy turned to reply, which put his back to Harley. He winked briefly at Star.

"Maybe, but it's all we have. I really don't care if," he looked at the label and listed some side effects from another sedative entirely, "she suffers liver damage, kidney damage possibly requiring dialysis, and respiratory difficulty, possibly up to failure." He walked over. "Sleepy time, murderer," he said. She twisted her arm to avoid the needle but he gripped hard with his artificial arm. Her squeal of pain was clear even through the gag she still wore. Cy inserted the needle and hung the bag. Harley was out in seconds.

"It will not truly harm her?" Star asked.

"Nah," Cy said, "but if it put a second of fear in her heart, I'm good with that." He slumped in his chair and put his head in his hands. Star pulled her chair closer. "You remember," he said, "back when we fought used to fight the Hive kids and Mad Mod? Control Freak, for God's sake?"

"And Slade and Brother Blood and the Brotherhood. It was never just a game."

"It felt that way sometimes. It damn sure was never like this," he replied. Star was forced to nod agreement. "I wonder if that invitation to speak at UCLA was real or if Joker wanted me out of the way?" He shook his head. "The head of the Engineering dept. asked where I went to school. I named my high school before I thought. He laughed; assumed I was joking." Star tried to think of something to say but she was perplexed as to where he was going with this. "He told me that he could get me straight into the PhD engineering program. Mechanical or electrical… maybe both."

"Friend Cyborg, do you want to go?"

He sat back in his chair and shrugged. "I don't know," he said. "This whole thing came up. No time to think."

"You could pursue this education here," she said. He didn't answer. "It is not just that," she said sadly, almost whispering.

He grinned at here. She found it almost ghastly in its cynicism. "Not the time for this, Star," he said. "let's keep our minds on business."

"It is Dick and I," she went on regardless. "It is Raven and Garfield."

"Star," he said, his voice raw and choked, "Please, just let it go."

She came to her feet and embraced him tightly, cradling his head and stroking his face. "Victor," she said, "you are loved. Go and learn. Stay with us. It does not matter. You are not alone."

Starfire was beautiful. Of that there could be no argument. She was athletic yet still womanly; firm and soft. She had a physical openness that was undeniably sensuous. He could feel her hands on the skin of his face, strong yet still gentle. He could feel her face against his, her cheek wet with a tear he hadn't seen fall. Her hair smelled wonderfully of floral shampoo. His external sensors told him that her body was tight against his, her breasts firm against his chest. He knew that her thigh was pressed into his hip and pressure indicators told him exactly how smooth and curved and alive it should have felt but he could not really feel it. This was not sexual for her, it was comfort and compassion. It was also not sexual for him, no matter how much he wanted it to be, not even a little bit. "I know, Star" he said. "I know."

By the time Gar was finished with his shower and emerged wearing the boxers that were his typical sleepwear, Rae was curled up on her side, facing the wall. He lay down next to her. After a few minutes he said, "Are you really ready to go to sleep?' She shook her head. "I want to say it again," he said, "I'm sorry for acting like that last night. What I said was awful."

"You're forgiven. I'm sorry for acting like I did when I knew it was just..." she said. "I wasn't lying when I said we were OK. Really."

"No, we aren't," he said.

She turned to look at him. "What do you mean?"

"Oh, I mean… I know we aren't mad at each other. We're OK that way."

"Yes," she said, settling so that she could look at him comfortably. "We are, in every other way, no where close to OK."

"Can we stop saying OK?" He said with a half grin.

"OK." They both tried to laugh at that. Instead, Rae started to shake. "God, Gar, how do we do this?" She took a shuddering breath and all the light bulbs in the room exploded.

"I don't know," he said, ignoring the sudden noise. "Before you all got to the hospital, I was gagging that bitch and Cy had to pull me off her. I was throttling her… go look at her neck. Those marks are from me."

"Let me guess," she said, beginning to stroke his arm, "you're upset that you aren't feeling guilty for chocking her."

"No," he said. "It's still… you know. The school."

"Of course it is," she said. "Me too. I don't think we're going to be right for a long time." Raven leaned in slightly so that their foreheads touched. His hand moved up and went into her hair. They froze for an instant, eyes locked in a tight gaze. They needed to get out of their heads. They needed something good. She twisted awkwardly and tugged at her nightshirt, needing his help to pull it over her head and off. She rolled to her back and raised her knees; he settled between and lowered himself so he could kiss her, deep and wet and hot. Her hands moved over his bare torso, then down to tug at his shorts. Somehow, he got them off without loosing contact with her body. With reckless abandon, they fell into each other.

In silence and shadow, Batman crouched next to a fire escape. Across the street he could see Robin similarly situated. Bruce could see his protege only because he knew exactly where to look. On the street below, a man sat in a stolen van and waited, unaware of the attention he had brought on himself. They had been here about ten minutes before the van arrived. Now, they waited for the contact Joker had sent to buy what was in the van. Probably weapons or explosives but they weren't actually sure. A car turned the corner into the alley, moving slowly. A man got out of the van and stood in plain view, his hands visible. The car pulled up close and parked. Two men out of the car, two out of the van. They were going to simply exchange vehicles, payment apparently already having been made. On Robins hip, his communicator vibrated and they moved. For them, it was just another day on the job. Batman leaped from his vantage and slammed feet first into his first target. The man went down without a sound. Robin was typically more acrobatic, preforming a twisting aerial kick that was just as effective as his mentor's less theatrical attack. Then, each hurled a projectile that dropped the remaining two.

Robin turned to survey the surroundings for any possible threats while Batman went to the van, quickly inspecting it for traps. He found none. He opened the rear gate and quickly looked in the nearest few boxes. "Semtex," Batman said without turning. "About two tons of it."

Robin whistled. "Big damn boom," he said, "or a whole lot of middle sized ones." He called the find into the police and they waited. "We aren't any closer to figuring out why he came here."

Batman shrugged. "It could be anything. We just have to keep working the problem." Robin nodded and they waited in silence for a few more minutes. "You're involved with Starfire," he finally said. Robin glanced over and didn't answer. "How do you find having so many of your team seeing each other effects operations?"

That surprised Robin. It surprised him a lot. There was no condescension. There was no hint of correction or superior smugness. It was an honest question seeking an honest answer. "With Rae and Gar, it was easy. He needed to mature and she needed to be brought more into the world." Batman nodded, gesturing for the younger man to go on. "They did that for each other. I just have to remain conscious that in a fight, if one is in trouble, the other is always going to react to that first." He shrugged. "You plan for it."

Batman nodded. "With you and Starfire?"

"I try very hard to not let it effect the work. I actually run more things past Cyborg then I used to. It hasn't effected us much yet but we haven't had a bad one till now, either." He chuckled. "Just before you got here, I wanted to work but she bullied me into getting some sleep."

Batman nodded. "The League is having more and more people pair off. I'll remember what you've said." He looked at Robin squarely. "I might want to run some specific situations past you when we have more time."

Robin couldn't speak for just a second but he rallied quickly. "Sure, Bruce. Any time."