Chapter eight: Tinsel.
Raven loathed tinsel, it was tacky and it fell apart leaving scraggly bits anywhere and everywhere that shined obnoxiously when they caught the light. She would never understand why people insisted on wrapping it around every banister, every door and picture frame and every branch of every tree. She didn't even know what it was made out of, her best guess was sheets of paper-thin plastic with a foil appearance that were somehow sewn together to resemble a shiny, hairy, headless snake. She detested the stuff.
Starfire, of course, loved it. It was 'glorious' and 'colourful', and reminded her of something unpronounceable from her home world. Hearing Starfire harping on about it nearly made Raven hate it more. And because of Starfire's enthusiasm for it, the stuff was everywhere. Raven groaned to herself as more and more of it started to appear, it was multiplying, as if it had a mind of its own and simply wrapped itself around their home as if it grew out from the walls. It was the weed in their Christmas garden.
Beast Boy had been having trouble sleeping, he always did around special occasions, in particular his birthday and Christmas, he'd told Raven once that it was because he missed his parents and he'd missed being able to celebrate the way that other kids did. Raven had never really had any parents to miss, and the other Titans, even though they hadn't had the most normal of childhoods, they'd at least had a stable parental figure and had, more likely than not, celebrated appropriately. Beast Boy got restless around the holiday season, and it was not uncommon for his team mates to find him in unexpected places, in various animal forms.
Raven had grown increasingly closer to the changeling, her feelings developing of their own accord, and so naturally she was becoming increasingly worried about his sleeping pattern. She resolved to get herself a quick cup of tea before going to see him, to ask how, and if, he'd slept. She had actually offered him some tea, it's soothing aroma and warmth often helped Raven sleep, herself. He'd politely declined however, having no taste for the beverage. Raven knew he appreciated her concern, but there was very little she could do to console him.
When Raven had rinsed out her finished cup and stored it away in its proper place she made her way towards Beast Boy's chamber. When she made it to the common room door, however, a glimmer in her peripheral caught her eye. A box of unused Christmas trimmings had been left aside, with a length of golden tinsel stuffed inside it, but as Raven looked closer she noticed a puff of green. She stepped closer, peering inside the box, only to find a tiny green kitten curled in a ball of fur, nestled within the decorations.
Raven smiled to herself, at least he was sleeping.