Disclaimer: I don't own. Fluff is best served warm and toasty. Enjoy!

✳✦⋇...chapter thirteen...⋇✦✳

With the lights back on, the artificial brightness ended up illuminating dirty, scraped, and bruised faces with a too-bright intensity, making people squint as they looked around. Robin, Toph, and Zuko seemed to be the worst off, tracking water and mud across their disaster of a living room. The group of tired teenagers had tried to start cleaning the room, but it was too big of a job, even for all of them, so instead some ended up huddling on the one couch that Starfire and Cyborg had managed to re-right while others flittered in and out like unsettled dragonflies.

"We're going to move you all into the guest room," Robin told them, surveying the mess with an unmeasurable look, his arms crossed. There was mud smudged across his cheek, dry and flacking off into little pieces whenever he scratched at the pink slashes on his face.

Sokka mumbled his thanks, and the rest of his group chorused their exhausted agreement.

Five minutes later, Cyborg returned, nodding in response to Robin's questioning look. "Follow me," he told them and moved down the hallway with a purpose. The five other-worlders trekked after him, sore and bent out of whack from the too-stormy day. Stopping at a nondescript door, Cyborg opened it for them, his smile kind. "Welcome to your new room at Titans Tower!"

Wrapped in her cloak, Raven stepped around them as they tumbled inside, on her own journey down the hallway to her room. Cyborg frowned as he watched her go, but faithfully turned back to their guests, wondering, "So... what do you guys think?"

It was a spacious area, with the far left side decorated with a nighttime desert mural, a cactus and orange-toned, jagged-toothed mountains lining the foreground. Dashes of white paint meant to look like stars sparkled overhead, glowing somewhat in the semi-dark. In the hollowed-out space, a large, luxurious bed was perched center stage, with the rest of the room being left open and otherwise empty. The entire side opposite the door was made to be a window, stretching from the floor to the ceiling. There were only a few raindrops left stuck to the glass, trickling down ever so slowly.

"Wow," Katara breathed, looking out at the city, misty lights starting to emerge in the distance. She put a hand on the glass, her unkempt reflection staring back at her. When another purple-tinted reflection joined Cyborg's side, she politely turned back around.

"Here, try these on," Starfire offered, standing in the doorway and holding out a folded pile of clothes. Cyborg gave her shoulder a squeeze and then disappeared from sight, tossing well-wishes over his shoulder.

The assortment in Starfire's hands consisted of various colors, shapes, and textures for the taking, stacked high enough that her alien, moss-green eyes were just barely visible, peeking out over the top. Even so, she didn't seem too bothered by the mountain of fabric in her hands.

"Oh, me me me," Sokka answered, accepting the collection with a lopsided grin. He immediately carried half of the burden inside the room, depositing the clothes onto the bed into a random but more easily visible order. Starfire giggled and breezily glided the rest of the way inside, setting the rest of the folded outfits near their pillows. She cast the painting along the walls an unreadable look before turning back to them, her eyes glittering affectionately.

"We warmly welcome you into our home. Please," she told them, her face full and bright, "make yourself comfortable."

Sokka was already pulling pieces away to try on before the rest had even had the chance to join him. Starfire closed the door behind her, leaving the five to their privacy.

"I cannot wait to be out of these dirty clothes," Katara agreed with a yawning sigh, giving her scuffed up outfit a sour look as she skimmed a hand through the new clothes. With a small smile, she selected a knitted top and a long, silken skirt the color of the nightly sea. The fabric was gentle, warm, and clean; clearly not to be worn into battle, but used for times of peace and comfort. It was beautiful.

"Even I don't disagree with you there," Toph mumbled, crossing her arms, "And that's saying something, 'cause dirt is usually an improvement."

Katara laughed under breath. "Want any help picking something out?"

Toph shook her head and approached the bed, running her fingers over the different clothes laid out before her. She picked up a slimming shirt and pair of shorts, frowning in thought, her thumb rubbing at the threads. "Feels good enough to me." She paused, turning away to speak mostly to the bed, mumbling, "But you'll tell me if I look dumb, right?"

"Of course," Katara answered at once, already starting to shimmy out her stinky, days-old clothes.

Zuko made a choked noise, grabbing the set nearest him (a set of black pants and a baggy, red hoodie) and booked it out of the room, saying mostly to the door and then the open hallway, "I'm going to get changed in the bathroom."

Sokka smothered a snicker. Katara hesitatingly stopped undressing, though she was already in only her undergarments. Aang was the one to explain, his face bright pink as he avoided looking at her, "The Fire Nation has more, uh, conservative customs. When I visited the Isles, Kuzon was never allowed to be undressed near me unless we were going to go swimming. I think it got even more strict after, well..."

"It's not like I'm naked," Katara grumbled, and Toph cackled. Katara threw her a glare, and oh, it was so nice to have her back with them, even if she was being her usual, obnoxious self.

"He is a prince," Sokka reasoned, waving a hand, "It's also probably weird for him to be seen in a state of undress too. What with us peasants around and all that."

Katara chucked her robe and sash into the laundry basket, seeing Sokka do the same from the corner of her eye. By the time she had finished getting dressed in the soft, foreign fabric, so too had the rest of the rag-tag group. She surveyed them with a smile in the corner of her mouth.

"How do I look?" Aang asked, his face broken by the wide, toothy grin on his face. He did a happy, airy spin through the air, fitted in a very loose, silvery-grey long-sleeved shirt and russet shorts. He looked good, Katara thought, and she told him so. His blush darkened tellingly.

"What is this, modeling day?" Sokka grouched teasingly. He smoothed a hand down the wrinkles of his navy-blue shirt peppered with pale, blooming flowers. "Because we all know who the prettiest one around here is."

"Very manly," Katara nudged, dancing away before he could throw her an unimpressed glare. Her voice was glib, "I like the daisies."

"Hey," Sokka argued without offense, "What's so wrong with a boy wearing flowers? I like flowers."

"Me too," Aang agreed. He looked up at Sokka with a twinkle in his eyes, "Can we trade?"

"No!"

"Please?"

"No," Sokka refused, dodging away until he was basically hiding behind an amused Toph. "Stay away," he threatened, pointing a finger over the top of the earthbender's head and wagging it warningly at the Avatar. "Or I might be forced to use drastic measures."

"Pssh," Katara scoffed, but her expression was delighted. She hadn't felt like free and light since she had arrived in this unknown, insane world. "And just what are these drastic measures, Oh Manly One?"

The door sheecked! open, revealing their newest group member. Zuko stood in the entryway stiffly, dressed in an oversized jacket, the red a more vibrant color on him than his usual scarlet and gold look. "What are you doing?" he asked, and his voice did nothing to hide the way his expression jumbled between lost, confused, and concerned.

"Zuko!" Sokka greeted, and then he turned to Katara with a smirk, "Zuko," he repeated, and Katara blinked back, understanding just a second too late, "Zuko is my secret weapon! The ultimate drastic measure!"

"What?"

"Zuko, buddy," Sokka then said to the firebender in question, "Do I look good in this? Honest answers only."

Aang let out a loud, gusty sigh. Sokka shushed him. Zuko blinked very slowly, looking even more confused. "Uh, what?"

"Does Snoozles look good in flowers," Toph answered for him, her chaos-loving smile sharper than glass. "Personally, I think he'd look better if it was in pink. It would go better with his eyes."

Both Zuko and Sokka seemed to be considering her seriously, with the Water Tribe boy pulling the fabric taut to hum thoughtfully, "I don't know, blue is my usual color, but maybe...?"

Katara groaned, stomping over to slap his shoulder. "You can't seriously have fallen for that," she complained, and then she poked Toph for good measure. "And you."

"Me?" Toph echoed innocently.

"You," Katara agreed.

"I think you look good," Zuko finally answered, his voice full of patient consideration. It was surprising enough that the rest of them went quiet. At the shift, Zuko's face turned a dangerous shade of lava-red, and he seemed to flounder for something to say next to get them all to stop looking at him like that, "I mean, it doesn't look bad? The blue probably goes with your eyes better than pink would because you're more warm-toned than cool-toned and, and, and—"

"Someone save him," Toph ordered, laughing too hard to do so herself.

"Okay, I suppose you can keep the shirt, Sokka," Aang's smile was blown wide as he surrendered with a dramatic, hand-waving bow, "since it's now Zuko-approved!"

Zuko groaned and hid his face in his hands, the puffy sleeves doing a good job of blending in with the red smeared over his cheeks. Aang went over and gave him a heartening pat on the back for good measure, offering kind platitudes about his own outfit and how he looked good in dry, not-muddy clothes. When Sokka shared an amused, secretive smile with Katara, she had no problem returning it just as sincerely. Sokka turned back, nudging Zuko with his foot, his smile sly as he made another joke at the other teen's expense.

While the boys were otherwise occupied, Katara approached Toph. The earthbender had picked out a tight-fitted black shirt and green shorts, but there was still dirt and mud flaked on her knees and in her hair. Katara smiled at her, "You look nice, dirt and all."

Toph's smirk softened into something a touch more shy. "Thanks, Sweetness. I'd say the same to you, but..." She shrugged noncommittedly, wiggling her fingers next to her milky eyes.

Katara didn't take it personally, laughing freely. "I have something for you," she told her, carefully taking off the bracelet on her wrist. She gently placed it into Toph's open palm, closing her fingers around it. She shared quietly, "I spent an entire afternoon tracking it down. It was the first thing I saw when I got here that gave me hope. It let me know that I wasn't entirely lost and alone, and I'm so grateful for that reminder."

Toph dropped her chin, her messy bangs falling over her eyes. Her voice was feathery-soft when she said, "Thanks, Katara."

Katara beamed as bright as the sun.

After a quiet, companionable moment, Toph mumbled, "I guess I should tell you that Zuko and I found Aang's staff." Katara's expression morphed into unbridled joy, and she threw a look around the room like Toph had hidden it somewhere. Toph scuffed the heel of her foot on the floor. "We don't have it anymore."

"What? Why, what happened?"

"Wait, you had my staff?" Aang asked, throwing himself onto the bed belly-first. He rolled over onto his back to stare at the upside-down images of his two bending masters, "Where is it?"

Toph sighed miserably, fiddling with Katara's gift. The meteor bracelet easily bent to her will, shifting into sharp edges and then wavy bumps before being bent back into its simple, curled form.

"I can answer that," Zuko said, and when three sets of eyes looked back at him, he straightened, raising his chin. He moved a step closer to Toph, and it almost looked protective. His voice was stoic and overly formal when he reported, his fingers finding the round piece in his pocket to fiddle with, "The H.I.V.E. Five have it."

"Them again?" Sokka noted wryly, stepping around the firebender to throw himself onto the bed next to Aang. He didn't miss the way the ex-prince flinched when he had seemed to approach him; Sokka covered up his troubled expression by squishing his face into one of the fluffy pillows, mumbling incomprehensibly into the cushion.

Zuko quickly masked his weakness by adding, "They said Slade gave it to them for safekeeping. We tried to get it back."

"Yeah, sorry, Twinkletoes," Toph said, somehow sounding both disinterested and yet still somewhat contrite anyway.

Aang made a sad, keening noise into the mattress, having already flopped back onto his stomach to look at them properly. Zuko cringed, glumly looking down at his shoes, but Toph only rolled her eyes. "We'll get it back for you. Don't you worry your lil' lily butt over it."

Katara perched on the bed, leaning back. She sank into the foam a little, and startled in surprise. "All of us," she reminded them, tossing an all-encompassing glance around the room. Zuko avoided her gaze, and Katara frowned but still tried to finish strong, "Together."

"Yeah, yeah, go team," Toph snarked, stomping over to the bed. She crossed her arms, raising an eyebrow when neither Sokka nor Aang made any move to get off. "I've basically been sleeping on the floor for the last couple of days, so if anyone has earned a bed, it's me and Zuko."

"Oh, no, I'm okay, you can have the bed," Zuko rapidly threw out, speaking before Toph had even finished. The earthbender's lips thinned, and she tilted her head in his direction, her foggy eyes dark.

With an assessing look, Katara decided for them, "It's big enough for all of us. Make room, you two."

Sokka grumbled when Aang's elbow dug into his side, but soon enough, the four were lying comfortably on the smooth bedding. There was easily space for one more, but it would make it so that some would be touching back-to-back, closer together than usual. "You coming, Sifu Hotman?" Aang asked sleepily, snuggling deeper into the velvety comfort. He covered his yawn by turning his face into the pillow, absently patting the empty space next to him.

Toph reached over Sokka to poke the airbender. "Zuko gets to be next to me. He's warm."

Sokka jerked upright to survey Zuko, who was still standing in the middle of the room and looking more and more adrift. Sokka turned to the pre-teen stretched out next to him. "Wait, Toph, what do you mean by he's warm?"

"Oh," Aang answered for them, his voice light, "Zuko radiates heat like a campfire."

Sokka turned to the teenager, his eyes flashing with understanding. Zuko wasn't sure he liked where this was going. "Is this why you were always trying to get him to join us?"

Katara chuckled, curled up on the other side of Toph, her hair in loose waves around her, "Yes, of course, that's the only reason."

"The only good one," Sokka joked back. Zuko winced, and Sokka seemed to realize he'd messed up because he rushed to continue, speaking only to Zuko this time, "That's what you should have started with, man. We would have let you join in a heartbeat if it meant no more cold nights!"

"Stop harassing my Sifu," Aang muttered, before adding, "Besides, he was my friend first, so he should sleep next to me."

"Wow," Toph returned, and Katara was laughing so hard into her hands that the bed was shaking under all of them, "Zuko is a person, Aang. Not your personal heater. How dare you." Never mind that that was nearly exactly what Toph had told Zuko back at the H.I.V.E. Tower. He sent her a peeved look that she wasn't able to see, but it made him feel better anyway.

Loud knocking on the door saved Zuko from trying to figure out what to say or where to sleep, and then Beast Boy was poking his head inside curiously, his pointy ears flat. "Hey, dudes! Looking comfy," he observed, shooting them twin finger guns. After a brief moment of confusion, Sokka returned the gesture with one hand, still squished between his friends on the bed. Beast Boy grinned encouragingly back at him. "I'm just here to grab your dirty laundry to finish off the load."

"Oh, let me help," Zuko volunteered, briskly striding over to where they had left the basket, his own clothes now added to the sad collection.

At his indirect invitation, Beast Boy entered the room fully and swept a look around. His expression drooped for a moment, skimming over the desert landscape, before he turned back to Zuko and forced a smile, waving a hand through the air, "That's okay dude, I totally got this covered. And, actually, I think you're needed over there more."

Zuko followed the direction he had pointed, and the four stared (or in Toph's case, waved) back at him with various degrees of sleepiness on their faces. "Um."

"Zukooooooo."

"Yeah, c'mon Zuko, get over here so we can all get some sleep."

"Get movin', Sparky."

Beast Boy laughed, pulling the basket free from Zuko's unnecessarily tight grip. "You heard 'em, chief! You have your orders, and I have mine."

With a loud sigh, the firebender stomped over to the bed. He loomed over Aang for a hot second, and if the Avatar had been a touch slower, they were sure Zuko would have grabbed the excuse with both hands and looked for another place to sleep without hesitation. But as it was, the airbender quickly scooched further into Sokka's personal space, leaving an empty spot for the other boy to slip into.

"Kept it warm for you," Aang quipped, his eyes barely open more than a sliver.

Zuko sighed again, but dutifully joined him on the mattress. He laid on his back with his arms crossed, glaring at the roughly painted dots of starlight and looking deeply uncomfortable with everyone and everything.

To Beast Boy, the five of them still looked pretty happy for being so squished together on the king-sized bed with little to no wiggle room. Clearly, to each their own. "Sweet dreams," he wished for them, and closed the door behind himself.

Beast Boy shut the door behind himself with a quiet sheek. He breathed out, looking out into the empty hallway, the basket of dirty clothes held in both of his grey-gloved hands. He shook his head to rid his mind of the unwanted, dusty cobwebs, and marched down the empty corridor humming an off-beat tune under his breath. "Losing all control.. something, something, hmm hmm hm, uh... one, two, three, four, go!"

When he made it over to the hallway with Robin, Starfire, and Cyborg's rooms, their leader's door was already being pulled open with startling force. "Beast Boy," Robin stated, blinking at the pile of clothes in his hands like he wasn't sure what he was seeing. His hair was freshly wet, the usual spikes sad and droopy looking, and steam was wafting up in billowing waves behind him.

"Dude, did you use up all the hot water?" Beast Boy asked, dismayed. Robin's face gave nothing away; Beast Boy had a sinking feeling in his gut that it was true.

At the noise, Starfire looked over the top of Robin's head, her own door held ajar behind her. She appeared similarly surprised by his basket as she said, "But I thought it was friend Raven's turn this week?"

Beast Boy shrugged, "I thought we could trade off today actually, since she has a headache and all that."

"Weren't you on cooking duty?" Robin asked, and there was thread of horror in his voice as the realization took root.

"Oh, thank you, my kind friend," Starfire told him, bursting into the air to fly back into her room, throwing the door wide open and then, in a blink, returning with a pile of her own various pink, purple, and flower-petaled clothes. She dropped them into the basket with a cheerful flourish.

"Uh huh," Robin said, still looking slowly between the clothes and Beast Boy.

"Do I have something on my face?" Beast Boy asked after a second, his eyebrows scrunching together. He peeked at the shiny surface of the hallway wall, but his warped reflection looked like it always did: colorfully green and dashingly handsome.

"Er, no," Robin answered, scratching at his hair. He sighed, looking back into his room with a grumble. His own dirty clothes were clumped in a messy pile on his floor, dark and a little bloody. When he glanced back at the green changeling, his expression was suddenly sharp and evaluating, "Are you okay? Did See-More or... the other-me... hurt you at all?"

Beast Boy laughed. "No way, dude. Besides, you already made all of us do a health check up, and I was fine, remember?"

"Right," Robin answered. He was still staring at Beast Boy. "Right."

"Okaaaay," the younger boy finally said, "I'm going to go check in on Raven then, if you're all set?"

"To collect her laundry?" Starfire asked, stating the obvious for no reason.

"Uh, yeah," Beast Boy answered, shaking the basket for their benefit. Clearly the fight had sent some screws loose to rattle around in their heads. Or however the saying went. "Why else?"

"Oh," Robin mouthed, and he relaxed back on his heels. "You're worried," he said, like it was a big reveal. He left them alone for a second before returning with his own dirty clothes draped over his arm. His voice was warm and layered when he said, "Thanks, Beast Boy."

"I mean, yeah," Beast Boy agreed, shaking the basket so the clothes settled down a little more firmly. "And I also wanna hear about where she went, 'cause clearly it wasn't a quick chat with Prince Fire back there if your stories are supposed to match up."

"Yeah, Zuko was with me when I was fighting Jinx," he repeated.

Beast Boy hummed and avoided looking at the torn red and green fabric in his basket. "Looking forward to hearing more about it," he hinted and threw a smile at Starfire to bring her in on the conversation. She attempted to smile back, adding with far less enthusiasm than he had expected, her voice just slightly wooden, "Yes, I am also excited to hear about your daring escape."

"In time," Robin allowed, and then didn't offer up anything else. Probably waiting for them to say or do something, Beast Boy guessed.

"Okay, well, you know where to find me," he told them, and turned back the way he had come.

He had already passed Cyborg earlier on his way to the breaker room, and his friend had given him a few select shirts and pants, which were probably already at the bottom of the growing pile. Beast Boy made his way back over to the other side of the building, the basket propped on his hip as he walked through the hallway. He had saved his own room for last since he wasn't sure if he would need to get another basket. But first, his feet stopped in front of Raven's room.

"Laundry!" he hollered, knowing her special-made, steel-enforced door would muffle the sound well enough to not disturb her migraine much. He set the basket on the floor so he could use both hands to knock.

Within seconds, she pulled it open with a burst of air, and Beast Boy pulled his fists back before he ended up hitting her in the face. He grinned impishly up at her. Her glare didn't lessen in the slightest, even when he pointed to his appealing treasure made of dirty clothes. She looked back him flatly, dark smudges under her eyes. "What are you doing here?"

"Getting laundry," he repeated easily.

Raven stared at him for so long Beast Boy wondered if Robin had lied to him and there actually was something on his face. But then she looked away, her gaze flitting over to rest on the pale smoothness of the hallway wall instead of his face, "It was my turn. I was going to do it later."

Beast Boy shrugged for a second time, reasoning, "You had a headache."

Raven blinked and turned to look back at him. She tilted her head a fraction. "...Do you want company?"

"You don't want to rest?"

"No," Raven stated simply. When Beast Boy still looked concerned, she sighed and explained through gritted teeth, "I guess I wouldn't mind being with a friend right now."

The teen's confused smile blossomed into a wide, toothy grin.

"Don't push it," she warned. But it was enough of an answer for her. Raven bent down to pick up the basket, using the movement to hide her own smile. "Let's go."

"Sure," Beast Boy agreed, keeping pace with her. He kept his voice low and soft, and it was so nice, Raven didn't bother telling him that she didn't have a headache anymore. Despite herself, she didn't seem to mind his endless chattering, the heavy, anxious feelings in her chest easing slightly as they made it to the laundry room together.

After Beast Boy disappeared from view, carrying away the bloody and sliced clothing, Starfire turned back to Robin. He looked back at her evenly, dressed in his usual, cleanly pressed outfit like nothing had ever happened. His hair was wet from a recent shower, and the freshness on his face made the little cuts more brightly pink on his pale face. She felt her stomach give an upsetting twist at the sight.

"You do not look too hurt," she observed pointlessly, before cringing at herself. She hurried to continue before Robin could say anything, his mouth already opening, "And for that, I am heartened greatly."

Robin closed his mouth. He nodded, giving her his full, oh so patient attention. Starfire tried not to think about the darkly lit reminder of him being sliced open by a teenager who had looked to be his identical match. She was forever thankful for Katara's quick thinking and healing touch. She would have to make them all a celebratory glorfat pudding as thanks.

"You okay?" Robin asked gently, giving her an assessing once-over. Starfire let him, returning the look with one of her own.

"I am well," she tried to soothe, pulling her hair over her shoulder so she had something to fiddle with.

Robin slanted his head. After a silent moment, he smiled back at her. "...Want to do something fun?"

Starfire perked up. "And what might this fun look like?"

Robin darted a look around. Starfire wondered with amusement if he hadn't thought that far ahead. "We could... dance?" he proposed, his voice pitched a little higher than usual. He looked back at her with wide eyes.

Her laugh felt like bells in the wind. "Oh!" she clapped, a sudden thought springing to mind, "I have a better idea, friend Robin. Please, follow me."

Cyborg huffed, wiping sweat off his brow as he grunted, elbow-deep in the guts of an electric switchboard. The Tower wasn't supposed to lose power due to a measly thunderstorm, and especially not twice in one night. No one else had seemed too worried about the coincidence, but the electrical grid was like Cyborg's baby, and he knew when his child was acting up. Okay, maybe that was a weird metaphor, but it tracked. Something was up.

He pulled a few wires free to study them more closely. His scan didn't pick up anything unusual, but that wasn't surprising. He needed to go deeper.

In what felt like hours but was probably only half an hour later, Cyborg found what he was looking for. It was mechanical cicada, beady black eyes staring back at him hatefully, the thin, golden wings folded back. He had half a mind to squish the insurrectionary spy in his hands right then and there, deeply unsettled but not really knowing entirely why. He put it in one of his storing pockets instead. The H.I.V.E. was really branching out to other insects, huh. He couldn't say he was a fan.

"Hey, Cyborg," someone said, shadowed in the doorway. He looked over at the words, and Robin was standing tall, looking entirely unbothered by the necklace of jingling bells around his neck.

"Uh, what are you wearing? And why?"

Starfire answered for him, smiling just as wide as their short leader as she announced excitedly, "We are going to play the earthling game the floor is lava! On Tamaran, we played a similar game, but with actual lava." She seemed a little disappointed by their safer adaptation of the game. "Flying will not be allowed."

"And the jewelry?" he directed back, leaning back on his heels to give the two an amused look.

Starfire shined like a sunray. "Robin will be the grisnek. Like your earth cats, these creatures are very fast and graceful, but grisneks are about five times the size and thrive off of a hunt."

"And Robin is a... grisnek... why?"

The Tamaranean cocked her head. "To chase the warrior heroes as they avoid being burned alive by the lava, of course! The bells are both a warning and a threat."

"Of course," Cyborg echoed. Robin hadn't stopped grinning. He looked like a dog with a bone. Cyborg glanced between the two of them, one staring back at him with doe-eyed, imploring green eyes and the other with a cut-up face sharpened by a challenging smirk. Oh what the hell, why not. He was feeling a little tense and letting loose in a silly game that made these two happy wouldn't be the end of the world.

"Alright, fine," he relinquished and smiled against his will at their cheers and whoops. "Where is the lava supposed to be?"

"The living room," Robin told him with a shark-like smile, "We're going to be cleaning up at the same time. If the room is reset before I catch you all, you win. If not, well."

Cyborg swallowed his instinctive grumbling at that. Cleaning control freak, he thought, with love.

"Worry not," Star told him, flying out of the electrical room, shouting back, "You will understand once the game begins!"

With just the two of them left, Cyborg turned to Robin curiously. "Do you really want to be an alien cat?"

"Sure, why not? There's an itch I need to scratch."

Cyborg groaned. "That was terrible, man. Don't speak to me ever again until you can come up with a better pun."

"Purr-fect," Robin told him.

"Dude."

Starfire burst into the laundry room with a green at her back and a dazzling smile breaking her face. Robin and Cyborg followed after her. "Join us," she welcomed with wide arms. Raven and Beast Boy blinked back, the machine whirring happily behind them.

And then there were five.

✳✦⋇...⋇✦✳

Author's Note: "And there was only one bed!" Jkjk, but I do love me some fun tropes that I can spin into #foundfamily vibes at the same time.

Also idk what the Titans were doing, because I had planned to have them clean up the space and just talk, like a normal team, but instead it evolved into some weird made-up game instead because they're children and ✳traumatized✳ (jazz hands). I dunno, if you hate it, feel free to yell at me in a review.

Thanks for reading! Happy new years eve y'all! Posted 12/31/23.