Kind of a slowish chapter for tonight, but ya know, it has to happen sometimes

As requested, more paragraph breaks ;)

Light crept over the edge of the horizon far too soon for Robin's liking. Grumbling under his breath, he shoved ineffectually at the pile of papers under which he had fallen asleep. They cascaded to the floor, but he ignored the mess as he stood up and crossed to the window, blinking at the brightness. Vaguely, he heard morning sounds from the city; car horns, seagulls shrieking, construction beginning. He pressed both hands over his face, trying in vain to blink away the tiredness that had bled into him, fuelled by a combination of lack of sleep and constant stress.

He turned his head slightly as a cup of coffee floated into his periphery. Raven blinked slowly at him as he took the mug in both hands and turned to face her. She was wearing a baggy sweater over a pair of black jeans and her hair was pulled away from her face. He was suddenly reminded that he had fallen asleep in a mismatched combination of uniform and casual clothes; he was wearing his mask with jeans and an old flannel shirt, with one boot still on. Raven raised an eyebrow as he tugged his mask off, her way of showing amusement.

"Thanks."

"You're welcome. Did you sleep on the couch?"

He ran a hand through his hair.

"Not on purpose. I was trying to figure out some leads on our prison break and fell asleep in the middle of a forensics report."
She sipped the herbal tea to which she was partial and followed him into the kitchen, where they both perched on the stools that lined the counters.

"Any luck?"

He reached for an apple and shook his head.

"This guy is collecting technology from all over. Turns out this prison break wasn't the only one; just the only one we got called in on. The others were subdued so fast nobody thought to report them to us…every time, someone got in, interviewed some supergenuis or crazy person, and got out."

Raven frowned.

"Sounds like whoever it is is building up for something."

"And I have no idea what, or when, or how close he is to…to whatever he wants. But you know what the most frustrating thing is?"

She summoned a croissant in a nexus of black energy and dipped it in her tea.

"I have a feeling you're going to tell me."

"Everybody this guy has talked to has just agreed to work with him. He hasn't kidnapped, tortured, or bribed anyone. He just asks…or his groupies ask…and they hand it over…it doesn't make any sense."

Raven didn't look surprised by this information.

"Makes perfect sense."

"How?"

"Think about it, Robin. Every bad guy that we've actually had a problem with has been a psychopath. They may not feel empathy, but they're master manipulators. Do you really think Slade had to coerce people by force? He kidnapped and tortured and whatnot for fun, not because he wasn't persuasive enough on his own. With Terra, he was persuasive enough on his own."

Robin digested this. She was right. As usual. Almost as an afterthought, Raven added,

"And stop assuming it's a guy."

Again, she was right. It was starting to get a little annoying.

"Huh. Well that's a night wasted. Next time I'll just ask you."

She smiled slightly.

"I'm not the most reliable of helpers."

He hopped off of his stool and pulled some eggs out of the fridge.

"That's a convenient segway," he kept his tone too-intentionally light as he melted some butter over low heat. "I was just wondering why you busted your hand open on Cyborg's favorite punching bag."

She gave him a smile that didn't reach her eyes.

"I knew you weren't going to let that go."

He turned around to face her, leaning against the counter. Whatever the expression on his face was, it made her drop her gaze.

"Don't look at me like that. I wasn't going to do anything stupid."

"Right, because breaking your fingers intentionally is anything but."

"Look, Robin. I've been lax in my training. I'm not as strong as the rest of you. Without my powers, I'm useless. And that's a problem. Especially if our enemies have a weapon that takes them away."

He could see her point.

"Okay, fine, but why didn't you just tell me about it in the first place? Why do you always have to go off on your own and hurt yourself?"

Her face took on the shuttered quality that Robin, and everyone else for that matter, was familiar with. He had opened his mouth to say something (he wasn't quite sure what) when Starfire and Beast Boy wandered into the kitchen, Beast Boy resting on her shoulder in kitten form.

Raven glanced at them, then turned her back on Robin. He sighed heavily and turned back to his eggs, trying unsuccessfully to push their unfinished conversation from his mind. Kitten-Beast Boy leapt delicately from Star's shoulder and onto the top of the fridge, where he sat, grooming and waiting for the kettle to boil. Starfire, having pulled some sort of Tamaranian goop from the fridge, sat across from Raven, who gave her a ghost of a smile.

"And how are you this morning, friend Raven?"

Raven sipped at her tea, wondering how to answer truthfully.

"I'm fine Starfire. How are you?"

Star smiled brightly.

"I am well, thank you. I did have the night terrors last night, but today, the sun is shining."

She looked tired, Raven noticed, and there was something weary beneath her five hundred kilowatt smile.

"What did you dream about?"

Starfire tapped her fingers nervously against the counter, leaving indents about an inch deep.

"Nothing of importance. I am merely having the…bad memories from my time in captivity."

Raven didn't speak at first, but tried to communicate through her eyes that she understood all too well what that was like. Except that her memories were still fresh, new and painful in a way that she doubted she would get over any time soon.

"Maybe you should meditate with me today. It might help."

Star smiled brightly with teeth that looked almost airbrushed.

"Thank you very much for that offer. I would like to utilize your calming skills."

Raven dipped her head in acknowledgement as Beast Boy joined them in human form, eyes still sleep-clouded and puffy. Starfire greeted him cheerfully and the conversation moved into lighter waters. Raven slipped gratefully back into her usual silence, half-wishing she was in uniform and could use the protective covering of her hood. None of them wore their uniforms all the time; it was impractical, and they did need to do laundry. Besides, a lot of the tight latex, while streamlined and useful in battle, was uncomfortable during the day.

Today, Beast Boy was dressed in his usual combination of a graphic t-shirt, hoodie, and jeans and Starfire was wearing leggings under a large, galaxy print sweatshirt. Not that the casual attire made Star look like any less beautiful; her reddish hair was piled into a bun on top of her head, and her makeup-less face glowed healthily. Raven could not say the same about herself; she didn't wear make up almost ever, but she was prone to dark circles under her eyes and doubted she would ever achieve the swimwear-yoga-model look that Star managed so effortlessly.

Beast Boy yawned loudly and stretched.

"All right, I'm going to get back to my x-box. She misses me."

Raven raised an eyebrow.

"She..?"

Garfield stood up and crossed his arms over his chest.

"The only lady in my life. We haven't had any quality time together since Wednesday. I can't let my skills get rusty."

Starfire looked confused.

"But the x-box is not alive…Beast Boy I am concerned that your mind may have been damaged in the fight yesterday?"

Cyborg, who had been looking at some mysterious blueprints over breakfast, laughed.

"We're all concerned Star, but little dude's brain was always questionable, let's be honest."

Beast Boy made a disgusting face in response, stretching his arms out in front of him like a zombie.

"Must…eat…brains…"

Starfire laughed and shoved him playfully away, sending him flying into the couch. Robin sighed and left the room.

"I'll be in my office."

Thanks so much for reviewing and everything. Seriously. I appreciate it so so much.