Chapter 46

It was another cold winter day for the occupants of Wayne Manor. The costume ball the previous night had gone well, despite the unexplained disappearance of its host and his son halfway through the night.

The temporary staff hired for the Christmas festivities were nearing the end of their employment as they busily cleaned up the ballroom. There were no more parties to be had, no more festivities until New Years. Christmas day in the Manor was always a quiet affair.

Upstairs in the guestrooms of the Manor, the curtains were shut tight as five teenagers still slumbered, exhausted from the previous night's activities.

Sunlight trickled into the darkened room through a small crack in the curtains. A girl lay asleep in the middle of a huge bed; the blankets tucked up around her.

On the bedside table a bowl of water sat, cradling a small, green and sleeping newt. A small heater sat beside the bowl, positioned so that it kept the water warm.

The trickling sunlight shifted as the sun rose higher into the sky, the small beam of light that penetrated the room moving its glowing beam along the bed before it shone directly on the bowl of water.

The newt blinked open his eyes before he poked his head out of the water. He opened his mouth and yawned tiredly before slipping from the bowl of water and dropping to the floor with a small plop.

Beast Boy shifted back to his natural form on the floor, wincing slightly at the dull ache in his back. His time as a newt and Raven's unyielding display of strength and power in healing him almost had him back to normal, but there was still an ache around the entry sites.

He blinked at his green skin before he stood up and stretched, glancing around the room as he did so. Raven lay fast asleep on the bed in her natural form; two hologram rings lay on the bedside table. Beast Boy yawned again and headed to the bathroom to freshen up.

He pulled off his uniform and dumped it on the cupboard before turning on the shower. He paused before the mirror, turning his back to it to inspect the damage. There were three small, red entry points in his back. One just above his shoulder blade, one in the middle and he knew it was that one that penetrated his lung, and one in the small of his back, missing his spine by barely an inch. He sighed and stepped into the shower ducking his head under the water immediately, allowing its warmth to flow through him.

He borrowed one of Raven's towels to dry himself before dressing in his uniform pants again. He picked up the rest of his stuff and made his way back into the bedroom.

Raven was still fast asleep in the bed and Beast Boy dumped his clothes and shoes on the sofa and crossed to the bed.

She was the loveliest thing he had even seen, even with the sunken eyes and hollow cheeks of exhaustion. She was curled up into a ball and Beast Boy knew she was cold, even with the blankets around her. She did seem to suffer the cold a lot more than he did, even if she rarely mentioned it and he wouldn't stop complaining when even the slightest bit cold. He smiled down at her lovingly, brushing his fingers over her hair gently before he lifted the covers and slipped in beside her. He quietly shifted closer before he draped an arm across her hip and pressed her back against his chest.

He yawned again and briefly wondered why he was still so tired before he snuggled down and slipped into sleep.

TTTTT

Raven was warm.

So lovely and warm, something she had not been in a while. And so tired. She did not want to rise from the peaceful slumber that she was encased in, especially after being unable fall asleep last night. She'd fretted and worried over Beast Boy and missed his presence beside her more than she had imagined she could. Somehow she'd turned into a romantic like Starfire while she wasn't looking.

So why was she so comfortable now?

Something filtered into her awareness, a small soft noise. She frowned in her sleep, she knew that noise. She had missed that noise.

She blinked opened her eyes, turning her head slightly. An arm was draped across her hip; a warm chest pressed up against her back, a body snored quietly beside her.

Raven breathed a sigh of relief to see Beast Boy there. He must have healed enough to wake up and join her in bed. She rolled over as gently and as quietly as she could, making sure his arm was still draped over her hip so she could splay the fingers of both hands on his bare chest and look at his sleeping face.

She reached up and gently brushed some of his damp green hair away from his face, watching him sleep, her fingers trailing lightly over his cheeks.

She'd nearly lost him. It had been such a close battle to keep him alive. He'd been coughing up volumes of blood when she'd arrived, his eyes rolling in pain, legs twitching. Starfire had been talking to him, singing to him, anything just to keep him awake, to keep him alive. And he'd still tried to rise when he saw her, still tried to get to her, and that broke her heart even more.

So she did something she never even thought she was able to do. She'd shifted them both slightly out of phase with the world, making time slower for him and faster for her, giving her more time to work on him.

He'd remained conscious the whole time she'd worked, pouring her powers into his body faster than she'd ever thought she could, carefully lifting the bullets out and healing the flesh as she'd worked. Bullet wounds were easier to heal than Nightwing's stab wound had been, simply because the bullets only ripped through a small about of flesh, while Nightwing had had the dagger twisted inside him. But there had three bullets in Beast Boy, one lodged in his lung and that had been the hardest one to fix. She was just lucky none of the bullets had hit bone, that could have made it so much worse.

When she was done, he shifted into his normal form and wrapped his arms around her, told her that he loved her so very much, gave her a message for Starfire, gave her the most incredible, sweetest kiss she'd ever had and shifted into a newt. And she sat on the floor, cradling the newt in her tired hands as he slept and cried.

Raven's hand drifted down from his cheek to his chest, running her fingers over the muscles on his chest. She hadn't seen him without a shirt on since last time they'd stayed at the Manor and they'd gone swimming. When did he develop a definite muscle mass? He wasn't bulging with muscle, just nicely toned and that uniform really didn't do him justice; it always made him look skinny and lanky.

"Finished ogling?" he asked cheekily as he opened his eyes and Raven felt a blush creep over her cheeks.

"Don't know what you talking about," she deadpanned.

He raised an eyebrow and gave her a mischievous smile that made her want to smack him. His hand slid from her hip to her lower back and pulled her closer. "Morning Rae, or is it afternoon?"

She shrugged. "Not sure I really care," she said tonelessly, before concern crept into her voice. "How are you feeling?"

It was his turn to shrug now. "Little bit achy. Coughed up a bit of blood in the shower."

Her eyes widened and she allowed her healing powers to flow through her hands as she checked on him. His lungs seemed clear to her, but she would get Victor to check on him anyway.

"I didn't mean for you to check on me. It's probably just leftover blood. You need to rest, Rae."

She shook her head. "I'm fine. I need to get up soon and heal Dick."

Beast Boy frowned. "Why? What happened to Dick?"

Raven dropped her eyes from his and chewed her lip. "Um…"

"Rae, what happened? Did it have something to do with that power release of yours?"

"How did you know about that?"

"I wasn't out of it you know, just in pain. Nightwing said you were a little upset, understatement of the century there as I could see things flying around the room."

"I let my emotions get away from me. I heard Starfire screaming your name and begging you not to be dead and I snapped." She looked up at him again. "Do you remember when you entered my meditation mirror?"

He nodded.

"Do you remember what happens if I allow Rage to get control of me?"

His face went pale and his hand clenched on her back. "Your father. Or a manifestation of him or something like that isn't it?"

"More of an echo, a shadow, tiny pieces that I'll never be able to be rid of. I allowed my Rage take control of me, and through my Rage my father was able to offer to bring you back to life if I gave my soul to him." She cleared her throat. "I think if I had of agreed then I would have allowed my father a back door into my soul… I… almost let him… And then Nightwing was standing in front of me, screaming at me and he told me that you weren't dead, but by then my Rage had its claws in too deep. I sucked Nightwing into my mind. He argued with me and irritated Rage and Rage basically tried to squish Nightwing. I… er…" She embarrassed herself by blushing. "Both Rage and Trigon can't stand love. So I admitted my love for Nightwing, Starfire and Cyborg, and told him I was in love with you and was able to control my emotions again. Nightwing has a few broken ribs and masses of bruises on his chest. He wouldn't let me heal him last night."

"Can your father get back in again?"

"Now that I know that he can get in through the Rage part of me, I can put things in place to stop him."

He lifted his hand from her back and brushed her hair behind her ear. "Don't ever give up your soul in exchange for me Rae. I wouldn't want that."

She ducked her head. "I know," she mumbled.

He placed his fingers under her chin and she lifted her eyes in time to see his face descending on hers. His hand almost instantly went from her chin to her back to pull her closer as his lips crashed against hers. He propped himself up on his elbow slightly to give himself more control over his head. She wrapped one hand around the back of his neck, the other splayed on his bare back as he licked her teeth with his tongue and she opened her mouth for him.

He shifted, pressing himself on her more firmly, gently pushing against her and she allowed him to roll her onto her back. He trailed the hand from her back over her waist and stomach and hesitantly up to cup her breast. His lips left hers as he kissed his way down her jaw line to nibble at her neck and she whimpered in delight, goose bumps spreading over her skin.

She still had so much to learn about expressing her emotions and allowing herself to feel, but when he kissed her like this and nibbled her neck it didn't seem such a hard thing to do.

There was always a hesitance and tenderness within him when he kissed or touched her; it was almost as though he constantly held something in check. Raven had an inkling of what that something was, he was part animal after all and she briefly wondered what would happen if he just let go and allowed that part of himself to take over.

He moved back up to her lips and kissed her eagerly, his tongue sliding back inside her mouth almost immediately and she responded with enthusiasm. The hand on her breast slipped back down and over her stomach, lifting up the shirt she'd worn to bed last night before his hand splayed across her bare stomach, his thumb rubbing against her skin. Her skin tingled against his touch, and she waited patiently to see if he dared try and cup her bare breast this time. He'd tried several times but always seemed to lose his nerve at the last moment.

His mouth left hers, his face hovering over hers and she opened her eyes to look at him. The look in his eyes was a mix of frenzy and uncertainty. "Can I?" he asked quietly, his thumb still rubbing against her stomach.

Right now, Raven felt like she could never deny Beast Boy anything. She'd almost lost him last night and now had insiders knowledge on what Nightwing must have felt like during that brief time when he'd believed Starfire was gone. She was fairly certain that if he wanted sex, she'd give it to him. But she found it strangely comforting that he'd asked.

She nodded and watched him swallow nervously before he kissed her again and slowly slid his hand up to cover her breast. His hands were warm and slightly rough as he touched her tenderly, his fingers slowly brushing against her as he explored. He let out a soft sigh of delight against her mouth.

She didn't have any right to feel like this. He made her feel things she shouldn't, excitement, happiness, contentment, and love. Emotions were supposed to be dangerous for her, but the ones he made her feel were fast becoming a drug. She could never go back to being the way she was, not with him around.

The kisses and the touches became more animalistic. His mouth bruised against hers, his fingers squeezing against her breast. He panted and whined between frenzied kisses and couldn't seem to stop moving, his breath hot against her lips and she found her own breath was becoming labored as she clutched at his shoulders.

The dish beside the bed that Beast Boy had slept in shattered with a sharp crack, water splashing to the ground, startling the pair.

Beast Boy broke away with a gasp, bolting upright, his hand slipping out from beneath her shirt. She saw him close his eyes as he struggled to rein in his instincts before he looked down at the floor. Raven looked up at him sheepishly.

"Still not entirely in control of your emotions, huh?" he asked with a grin.

"Not quite," she replied dryly.

He nodded, lying back down on his back beside her. She scooted over to him and he slipped his arm under her body so she could rest her head against his shoulder. "I love you, Rae," he whispered, giving her a kiss on the forehead, right where her jewel was.

"Love you too, Gar," she murmured in reply.

TTTTT

The bedside lamp flickered.

Kori looked up while Silkie warbled at her indignantly for daring to cease her stroking of its belly. She looked around curiously, wondering what was going on.

She glanced over at Dick, but he was still asleep in bed, a pained expression on his face. She frowned slightly, worried for him. He hadn't slept very well last night and his breathing seemed funny this morning. Strained.

She glanced at the lamp again as it suddenly stopped flickering, her brow furrowed in thought. It was almost reminiscent of Rachel's powers when she'd lost control over them, but it had been such a long time since that had happened, not counting the previous night's events.

Kori's heart stopped. Maybe it was Rachel. Maybe something had happened to Garfield. She slipped silently from the bed, grabbed her dressing gown and dashed from the room.

Victor was already hovering outside Rachel's door, his face etched with indecision.

Kori shoved her other arm into the sleeve of her dressing gown as she hurried over to him and he looked up at her with relief.

"It wasn't just me then," he said.

Kori shook her head.

"Glad you're here, you can knock and ask. She'll kill me."

Kori nodded and chewed her lip before she knocked hesitantly on the door. "Rachel?" she called. "It is Kori. Is everything the o and k?"

There was a muffled yelp on the other side of door and Kori and Victor exchanged a worried glance.

The door opened a crack and Rachel peered out at them. "Everything is fine," she said tiredly. "Why?"

"The lights were flickering and all my equipment went haywire," Victor said cautiously. "We… uh… thought it might be you. Maybe you were upset or something."

Rachel went red. "I… er…"

"Dude!" Garfield cried, still clad in his uniform as he appeared in the crack behind Rachel. He reached over Rachel to swing the door open before he stood by her side. "You felt that in your room?"

Victor raised an eyebrow while Kori's jaw dropped and her eyes filled with tears. He was all right. He was standing and smiling and whole.

"Er… Do I really want to know what you two were doing?" Victor asked, a look of distaste on his face.

"She was just happy to see me that's all," Garfield said, his eyes flicking to Kori. "Kori, you okay?"

She burst into tears and flung her arms around him.

"Woah!" he cried, his arms coming around her to hold on. "Ease up."

"She's been worried," Victor said softly. "Bruce ripped into her something shocking."

"He did?" Garfield asked, his hands tightening around her. "Why?"

"Why did you do that, Garfield?" Kori sobbed quietly. "You should not have done that. You could have been killed."

"Hey, it's okay, really. It was my turn to protect you, that's all. I couldn't stand there and watch you get hurt again." She felt him kiss her hair, his hands rubbing her back lightly as he rocked her comfortingly. "I love you, Star, you're my sister. I'd do it again in a heartbeat."

She nodded slightly and took a step back, wiping her face on the sleeve of her dressing gown as she tried to contain her sobs.

Garfield held her other hand in his, squeezing lightly. "You okay?"

She nodded feebly. "I was worried."

"We all were, grass stain," Victor said, placing a hand on Garfield's shoulder, before he surprised all of them and pulled Garfield in for a brief hug. "You gave us quite a scare."

Rachel looked around. "Where's Dick?"

Kori sucked in a breath, worry flooding her face again. "He is not so well this morning. His breathing is sounding strange."

Rachel frowned, heading back inside her room to pull on her dressing gown. "Let's go."

Alfred was standing beside the bed when the Titan's arrived, his hands checking Dick's pulse.

"Woah," Victor muttered as he saw the room and Garfield nodded in agreement, but Kori only had eyes for Dick.

"Miss Koriand'r," Alfred said, looking up at her. "Has Master Dick taken any painkillers this morning?"

Kori shook her head. "He has not yet woken up."

He pursed his lips. "I believe I should call for the doctor."

Rachel shook her head, closing the door behind her. "Let me have a look first. Vic?"

Victor nodded, raising his arm and removing his ring, activating his console as he walked.

Kori climbed on the bed, sitting on the other side of Dick and taking one of his hands as Rachel placed her glowing hands over him.

"Dick, you stubborn fool," Rachel muttered as she studied him with her powers. "You should have let me heal you a little at least."

"Not stubborn," he mumbled, his eyes blinking open and taking a shuddering breath. "You were exhausted."

"Still not reading any internal bleeding or anything," Victor said as he slipped the ring back on.

"Guys, I'm fine. Really. Just having trouble breathing that's all." He flicked his eyes around the room as he squeezed Kori's hand. "Hey Gar, how are you doing?"

"I'm fine," he replied. "Mostly all healed."

Dick winced, shifting slightly on the bed and clutched at Kori's hand as Rachel pressed her hands on his chest. "Mostly?"

"Still a little sore and itchy."

"Dick, sit up and take off that shirt and those cold packs. I need to look at your back now."

"You just want to see me without a shirt on," he muttered.

Rachel snorted. "Yeah," she said tonelessly. "I had this incredibly secret and intricate plan to take you into my mind and get you squished, just to get your shirt off. Smart ass."

Kori raised her eyebrows before she helped Dick sit up and pulled the beater he wore over his head, before removing the now warm cold packs she'd strapped to his chest the night before.

Garfield sucked in a startled gasp of breath. "Dude!"

Dick peered up at him. "What?"

"Rae, squished was an understatement. That looks like it hurts."

Kori peered at Dick's chest and had to agree. That really did look like it hurt. The bruise on his chest had darkened since the night before and she could see the strange movement of his ribs every time he breathed. Two of them on the front had indents in them.

Dick rolled his eyes. "I've had broken ribs before. Its not that bad."

Rachel placed her hand over his back, a small frown on her face before she nodded. "The bones moved in the night. I have to put them back in place before I start healing them. All right, brace yourself, this is going to tickle."

Dick's eyebrows shot up before he went gray and started to sweat, his hand tightly gripping Kori. He let out a sharp grunt of pain as Rachel moved her hand to the front of his chest.

She released him and he fell backward on the bed, sucking in a gasp of breath. "Tickle? God, I really don't want to know your idea of pain."

She looked at him blandly before placing her hand over his chest once more and Kori watched in amazement as the bruising gradually began to fade and Dick's breathing became easier. Kori reached out and ran her fingers through his hair and he gave her a tentative smile.

Rachel gave a small nod and removed her hand. "Okay, that should do it. They're still fractured slightly and will be tender for a while. Be careful, keep up the ice and painkillers."

"And no hanky panky," Victor said cheekily.

Dick rolled his eyes.

"What is this 'hanky panky' you continue to speak of?" Kori asked quietly.

Victor refused to look her in the eyes while Dick chuckled. "You started this, you tell her."

"Uh-uh, no way. She's your girl."

"That is a very interesting power you contain, Miss Rachel," Alfred said. "It would come in very handy."

Rachel nodded. "If you ever need it, just call me." She gave a tired yawn. "Now, if you all don't mind. I need to head back to bed."

"Thanks, Rachel," said Dick, sitting back up in bed. "Get some sleep."

Garfield slung his arm around her waist. "Come on, let's get you tucked in. See you guys later."

"Would you like some breakfast, Master Dick, Miss Koriand'r?" Alfred asked as he headed toward the door.

Dick nodded. "That would be nice."

"Dick, you have some seriously sweet stuff in this room. How come you never let us in here before?"

Dick sighed and rubbed his face with his hands. "There were more important things happening perhaps. Now, I think I want to take a shower. Wally is supposed to be coming today."

Victor held up his hands and headed for the door. "Yeah okay, I can take a hint. See you later."

"Richard," Kori said softly, still not understanding what Victor had been speaking of. "What is 'hanky panky'?"

He gave her a cheeky smile and waggled his eyebrows at her, holding out a hand to her. "Come and have a shower with me and I'll show you."

TTTTT

Dick lounged on the sofa on his back, his head on Kori's lap as they sat and watched a movie in his room. His ribs still ached a little, but at least he could move around and breathe without pain. He fought to suppress a sigh, once Kori had learnt what Victor had been speaking of; she'd refused to let him, no matter how much he insisted that he was fine. She'd even gone as far to say he wouldn't be getting any for a while if he continued insisting he was fine while she knew he was not.

Garfield and Rachel were curled up on the sofa beside them, with Rachel half-asleep beneath the blanket that covered them both, her head resting comfortably on Garfield's chest.

Victor was currently perusing the games on Dick's computer, claiming distaste at the snuggling couples. Dick had told him that it was his room and if he didn't like it, he could just leave.

"Man, do you actually have any games on this thing? All I can see is Titans stuff."

Dick gave him a small grunt. "There's probably Patience or something. You can connect to the Internet from there if you want."

Victor let out a sigh. "Are you seriously working while you're here? I thought we were on holidays."

"Richard does not like the work of papers to become overwhelming," Kori commented vaguely. "I am making sure he does not work too hard."

Victor snorted. "Yeah, I'm sure you are."

Dick rolled his eyes. "It's just basic stuff, Vic. I'm just keeping an eye on what's happening, keeping things running smoothly. I'll have to put in a lot of hours once we're back home again."

Kori sighed and absently brushed her fingers through Dick's hair, her eyes glazed as she watched the movie, not noticing as he watched her. She reached up to tuck her hair behind her ear and he saw the brief flash of her engagement ring, before her hand was running its fingers through his hair once more.

He chewed his lip in consideration. He'd asked her to marry him on Tamaran only a short while ago, and when they'd had that drug induced romp in the bathroom he remembered thinking that it might be nice to get married on their anniversary, but he'd never actually broached the subject with her. Too many things had happened since then. Plus there was still this thought swimming around in his mind that perhaps they were still a little young to be married.

He sighed and she glanced down at him and smiled. You do not wish to watch the movie?

I'd rather watch you.

She smiled sweetly down at him, before she traced her finger along his nose. I will pay several grubfar for your thoughts.

Having trouble reading them?

She scrunched her nose at him before her eyes flicked back up to the movie.

He frowned. He'd expected her to try a little harder than that. Hey Star?

Her eyes flicked back down to him. Yes Richard?

What would you say if-

There was a quiet rap on the door, interrupting him. He disengaged himself from Kori with a sigh before heading to the door. The door opened to reveal Alfred standing there, Wally standing hesitantly behind him. "Pardon the intrusion Master Dick, but your friend has arrived. Perhaps you would like me to serve refreshments soon?"

Dick gave a sharp nod. "That would be great, thanks Al. Wally, hi, come on in."

His friends were all looking at him curiously as he turned from the door to allow Wally to enter.

"Dude, hi," Garfield exclaimed, giving him a wave from his position on the sofa and paused the movie they were watching.

Kori smiled brightly. "Greetings," she exclaimed happily.

Victor stood from the computer. "Hey."

Rachel smirked, looking him up and down. "Can't you wear anything else but red and yellow?" she asked as she eyed his red pants and yellow jacket.

He pulled a face at her. "Nice to see you too, Rachel." He flicked his eyes up to Garfield. "How are you doing?"

Garfield beamed happily. "Good. Probably wont even have scars, but Rae kept the bullets for me as a keepsake." He frowned, glancing down at Rachel who still lay on his chest. "You did keep the bullets for me, didn't you?"

"I think I had more things to worry about that keeping your bullets, Gar," Rachel muttered.

"Aww Rae! You didn't keep them?"

She poked him in the chest before sitting up. "Of course I kept them. You would have whined about it forever if I hadn't."

Dick rolled his eyes.

"Wow," Wally said, looking around the room. "You're really rich, aren't you?"

Dick shrugged. "Not particularly. I have adequate funds of my own. Bruce is rich, I just stand to inherit it, that's all."

Wally glanced at him. "And Bruce Wayne is Batman. That's something I never would have figured out. Or you being Dick Grayson for that matter."

Dick rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah. That's one of the reasons why I asked you here today."

Wally nodded. "Figured as much."

"You know how big of a secret this is don't you?"

Wally nodded again. "Of course."

"And you know that you have the privilege of being one of the few people in the world that know Bruce's secret identity."

"Yes."

"And you know I will kick your ass if anyone ever finds out."

"Gotta catch me first," Wally retorted cheekily.

Rachel rolled her eyes and picked him up with her powers. "Not a problem."

Wally wriggled futilely. "Okay, on pain of death, I will not tell anyone about your secret identity or Bruce's."

Dick nodded. "Cool. Now, who's up for a swim?"

Wally blinked as Rachel dropped him back down to the ground. "That's it?"

Dick chuckled. "What'd you expect? Some big long lecture? You already know the importance of secrecy. Whats the point of people knowing who I am if I can't share with them the things I have? So, we can either swim or hit the games room. Your choice."

"You have a games room and you didn't tell us?" Victor exclaimed while Garfield brightened considerably.

Rachel rolled her eyes.

"What games have you got?" Wally asked curiously.

"Well, there's a few pool tables, an air hockey table, table tennis, a foosball-

"Foosball!" Victor exclaimed, leaping to his feet, stabbing a finger at Garfield. "BB, I so challenge you to a game of that!"

"Dude, you are so totally on. You're going down!"

"What is air hockey?" Kori asked curiously. "Is it a flying game?"

Dick grinned and held out his hand for her. "Come on, Star, I'll show you."

"Guess that just leaves us Rachel," Wally said cheekily. "So, table tennis or pool?"

She eyed him as she got to her feet. "Pool. You'll cheat at table tennis."

TTTTT

"So," Dick asked as he chalked up his pool cue, looking across the table at Wally. "How's Jinx's team doing?"

Wally blinked at him in surprise. "Jinx's team? I thought it was mine."

Dick raised an eyebrow. "Well, now. Let's see. You've filed a total of ten reports during your stay as the replacement team for Titans East, and nothing in the last two weeks. Jinx, on the other hand, has filed detail reports from the beginning. I've spoken to Hotspot and Argent and they both say that you're deferring toward her decisions most of the time, something that they agree with. She makes good on the spot decisions and leads well, and is also capable of following my lead without clashing with me. I did watch the five of you during the Citadel Battle you know, may not of looked like it but I did. So I think its safe to say it's her team. Am I right?"

Wally scuffed his shoe on the ground. "Yeah. You're right. Jinx is a good leader, and I'm not just saying that cause I'm dating her. She really thinks, you know? And she's actually enjoying it now that she has a team that will listen to her and do what she asks them to do, instead of the Hive Five bunch. And cause she used to be a criminal, she knows how they think. It's a real asset. And she really and truly has reformed. Its like she's finally found a place where she fits."

Dick nodded as he leant across the table, gently tapping the cue against the white ball. There was a satisfying thunk as it cascaded into a numbered ball and sunk it. "So, you don't mind being under her leadership?"

"Nope," Wally replied with a shake of his head. "I'd rather be a follower anyway. To much responsibility for me."

"And Argent, Wildebeest and Hotspot? How do you guys get along?"

"Argent's a quiet thing, most of the time, she gels nicely and she gets along really well with Jinx. Wildebeest barely says anything, but boy, I'd rather have him on my side than against me. Hotspot and I have clashed a few times, nothing serious though and never while we're taking criminals down."

There was another quiet thunk as Dick sunk another ball. "Can you see yourself teaming with them permanently?"

Wally raised his eyebrows. "Why? What did you have in mind?"

Dick shrugged as he moved around the table, studying the balls left. "Not entirely sure. Still working out the kinks and I have to speak to Bumblebee. If I place Herald on her team, she can get anywhere quickly, be a backup for those Titans we have stationed around the world. But she and her team might be happy in Steel City. She will always be my second after my own team and if she doesn't want to be part of it, my next option was you guys. If she does, then Jinx's team would replace Titans East permanently."

"Why don't you guys do the Titans global thing? You're the best team."

Dick gave a small smile before he sunk yet another ball. "We have enough responsibilities running the Titans Network and protecting Jump City. And we are already global when the need arises. It was just a thought I was tossing around. Besides, I get this feeling that Herald's already made himself welcome on Bumblebee's team." Another thunk as a ball dropped into a pocket.

"Stop doing that, I swear you're cheating."

Dick smirked. "It's called 'practice'." He lined up for another shot, the eight ball being the only one left. He winked at Wally cheekily before glancing back down at the ball. A hand trailed down his back and over his bottom and he yelped and shot upright, hitting the white ball at an odd angle and straight into the corner pocket.

Wally burst out laughing while Dick spun red faced to see Kori giggling at him gleefully.

"That wasn't fair!"

Kori blinked at him mildly. "What was not fair, Richard?"

"You distracted me."

"I believe you were doing the cheating."

"Ha! Told you!" Wally exclaimed triumphantly.

Dick scowled at him and leant against the edge of the pool table. "And exactly how was I cheating?"

She sidled up to him, pressing her body against him as she peered over his shoulder to study the table. "You went first, yes?"

"So?"

She looked back at him, shifting her hips slightly and he had to bite his lip to keep from reacting. "Then you did not give Wally a chance, did you?"

Dick grumbled.

"Yo!" Victor called from the other end of the room, where he was standing by the dartboard. "No makin' out in the game room! That's what you have a bedroom for. Kori, hurry up, it's your shot."

"We're not making out!" Dick yelled back.

Kori reached up and gave Dick's chin a shake, before she pulled herself off him. "No more cheating, Richard. I will be watching."

Dick turned around and grumbled some more before looking at Wally. "No laughing."

Wally grinned cheekily. "Whipped."

"Shuddup."