LivingstoneBramble: THANKOU as always! And tell me about it, there might still be some wedding planning drama ahead lol
Guest reviewer: THANKOU! Yeah it's a tricky situation they're in, hehe. She has nothing to worry about, though xD
TheAlienHeart: so good to see you here XD
HUGE THANKOU for everyone who favorited/followed too, I truly appreciate each one!
So, just in case you lost track, she's 23 and he's 22 at this point.
Also, this story is now also up on AO3. I'll update both at the same time! I'll try posting again on Wednesday and then updates will probably come on Sundays and Wednesdays after that!
Happy reading! xD
Birds of a Feather
The Changeling cheerfully strutted into the ops room, singing I Won't Give Up and shooting Raven indiscreet winks every now and then, enjoying the way it made her blush.
"Is he always this happy in the morning?" Speedy asked tiredly.
Nightwing chuckled. "It depends."
"On what?"
"Mostly on Raven." Richard said teasingly while the empath sipped her tea, making her roll her eyes and Speedy and Kid Flash chuckle beside them.
Raven calmly put her mug down. "Don't be ridiculous. He's always been like that."
Garfield started making his breakfast, picking up colorful cereal and soy milk. "God knows I'm tough enough…"
Raven's lips curved up into a small smile, because that song really did warm her heart.
"You love it." Dick whispered happily to her.
Raven rolled her eyes again, but her smile got a little bigger. She whispered back to him. "I mean, it's sweet."
"Ugh, so much singing…" Aqualad grunted, approaching the breakfast table and rubbing his temples. "It's so early, dude."
Richard chuckled again. "You haven't even seen him with the ukulele."
"You play it, BB?" Kid Flash smiled.
The shapeshifter just nodded while chewing his cereal, because Raven was right there and she hated when he talked with his mouth full.
"He's actually not bad, he learned it really fast." Nightwing said casually as he went to do the dishes.
Garfield swallowed and beamed. "Really, man!?"
"Yeah." Dick shrugged. "Don't you think so, Rae?"
Raven mysteriously sipped her tea while the other four boys stared at her. Then she addressed Garfield directly. "You've gotten pretty good, actually."
The Changeling shot her a gigantic, goofy grin in return. "It's cause I'm inspired!"
Aqualad was rolling his eyes and Speedy seemed a little jealous of Beast Boy's happiness, but Dick and Wally both had friendly smiles on their faces. In any case Raven thought it was getting a bit too flirty and public, so she cleared her throat. "Yes, well, I'll go meditate to prepare for tonight. Unless you need me to patrol…"
"No, you're good." Dick nodded. "Go do your thing. I'll let you know if there's trouble."
She shot him a grateful smile and left to the roof at the same time Cyborg and Superboy came in for breakfast.
"So…" Conner pulled up a chair. "Who's allowed to have fun tonight? Speedy? Aqualad?"
"Count me in." Aqualad said quickly.
"Me too." Speedy nodded.
"Get Mas and Menos to have some fun." Dick said. "Maybe they'll fall in love and stop making googly eyes at my fiancé whenever they're around."
"Doubt it. But worth a shot." Aqualad chuckled along with the others.
Conner nudged Garfield lightly. "What about you, Changeling? What's your situation?"
The shapeshifter frowned. "I mean, technically undefined…"
"Great. That means technically allowed to have fun." Superboy stated.
Speedy and Aqualad nodded in agreement. Richard quietly ate some bacon as Cyborg placed it on the table and paid attention, listening intently.
"…BUT…I gotta talk to Raven about it." Garfield concluded with a smile.
Nightwing and Cyborg exhaled in relief. Krypto desperately asked them for bacon.
Superboy sighed. "Seriously?"
"What are you talking about?" Aqualad frowned. "If you're technically free then don't talk about it now. Talk about it after tonight."
Damian came in, rubbing his eyes. "Where are all the girls?"
"Raven's meditating on the roof. The others are discussing their plans for tonight in Kory's room." Cyborg said with a slightly worried undertone.
"What plans?" Kid Flash asked eagerly. "I mean, how crazy are they planning to get?"
"Honestly I prefer having no clue." Nightwing said before taking another bite of the bacon.
"Anyway we were discussing whether Garfield should talk to Raven about what he's allowed to do tonight or not." Conner told Damian.
"Oh." Robin said, taking a seat. "He should, right? I mean, I talked to Rose."
For some reason, that surprised them.
"See?" Garfield waved his hand in Damian's direction. "That's smart."
"And I know you're not officially together, but…" Robin added. "…if you do more than she's comfortable with you could lose whatever it is that you have now."
"Exactly!" Garfield practically squeaked. "Thank you, Damian."
"What do you have now?" Speedy asked. "Isn't it a casual fling? Isn't the whole point of a casual fling that you don't have to be faithful?"
"Leave him alone, none of you have ever had casual flings with Satan's daughter, the rules are different, okay?!" Cyborg decided to lighten the mood.
"Again, not Satan's daughter." The Changeling pointed out. "But also yeah."
There was a moment of silence and then they all shared loud, friendly laughter.
"Fair enough." Speedy nodded.
"Besides what if she does something? If they don't talk about it, technically she can. He might not be okay with that." Kid Flash turned to the Changeling for confirmation.
Garfield nodded quickly. "Yeah I mean she can, but…I'd rather she didn't."
They patrolled thoroughly, but there was no trouble in sight. It was almost as if the Universe wanted them to catch a break and have some fun for once. When they headed back to the tower to grab lunch and finish packing, Richard gave Galfore a T-communicator and told him to let them know if the alarm went off during the weekend. He also told him to make himself at home. That last part concerned him a little because Galfore wasn't the most careful person and had no idea how to handle most of their equipment, but he was basically his father-in-law now, so Dick decided to stop worrying and just deal with the consequences later. Besides, Krypto would be there to watch him.
"So are we travelling by jet or portal?" Wally asked excitedly. He usually just ran to places for obvious reasons.
"Portal." Raven said calmly, entering the room. "Kory? Jinx? Gar? Here, take these." She handed each of them a ring. "I found a way to channel my incognito spell into these. I got the idea from Cy." She shot Victor a half-smile and put on her own ring. "See?"
"Woah you look considerably less scary." Speedy chuckled.
Raven tilted her head to the side. "Uh…thank you?"
Garfield smiled at her. "Don't listen to him." Then he leaned in to whisper to her while the others talked amongst them. "I like scary. But you're still really pretty like this."
Raven shot him an amused look and whispered back. "Always with the flattery."
Garfield chuckled whole-heartedly, unknowingly making her heart flutter.
Jinx quickly slipped her ring on her finger. "I don't feel any different." She turned to stare at herself in the glass window and frowned. She still looked like her, but her skin wasn't ashen anymore, just pale. And she still had pink hair but her eyes looked normal. And brown. "I don't love this."
"Yeah, is it absolutely necessary?" Wally West didn't love it either.
"If we don't want tonight to be all over the news tomorrow…" Nightwing sighed.
"Good point." Cyborg said, his own incognito ring on his finger.
"I don't love it either but we're too recognizable." Raven gestured towards Starfire and Beast Boy. "I mean, these two are impossible to miss."
Starfire giggled at that, putting on her ring and going to admire herself beside Jinx, who was now getting used to her temporary new looks. Kory was still difficult to miss even in this toned down version, so it was a good thing that she looked slightly different.
Garfield, on the other hand, shot the empath a cheeky smile. "Why, thank you."
Raven rolled her eyes. "I didn't mean that…ugh, forget it. Here."
The Changeling chuckled and took the ring from her, putting it on. The others gasped slightly. His was the most radical change, of course. The pointy ears and fangs were gone. A slightly tanned, tall strawberry blond with freckles took the Changeling's place. The only green left was in his eyes. They had seen him like this in Control Freak's pocket world, but back then they had all been too preoccupied with the situation to pay close attention to it.
"Huh, look at that. You're actually not bad looking." Jinx smirked.
The others gathered around him in awe.
"You do look conventionally handsome, dude." Victor said friendly.
"Now he's as good looking as you." Speedy chuckled at Aqualad.
The aquatic Titan huffed and folded his arms. "I don't see it."
"Mmm…" Ravager looked between the two of them. "Yeah, Speedy's right."
Raven could sense the whole thing was actually hurting Garfield's feelings. She frowned. "Stop being jer-"
"You should sue whoever mutated your DNA, man." Conner said.
"It was my parents…to save my life…they're dead now." The shapeshifter mumbled miserably.
"Oh, uh…forget it, then." Superboy muttered awkwardly, avoiding Raven's eyes because he knew she was glaring daggers at him. "Sorry."
Kid Flash shook his head disapprovingly at Superboy. "Nice one."
"And I'm the one without people skills." Damian said under his breath. "Honestly…"
Conner Kent grimaced. "I said I'm sorry!"
"No problem…" The Changeling cleared his throat. "So, um…can we go now?"
"Yeah let's get this party started." Cyborg quickly agreed.
Everyone dispersed, but Raven held Garfield's hand so he didn't leave. "Don't listen to them."
Her eyes were so sincere and her voice was so kind he instantly felt better. "It's okay; I don't need to be as good looking as Aqualad in everyone's eyes. Only in yours."
She smiled slightly. "You're not."
He grimaced. "Ouch. You know, you don't need to always be so brutally hone-"
"You're way better looking than him." Raven said intently, watching his smile grow in size and confidence.
"Oh…" Garfield chuckled blissfully. "Okay, that was cute. You got me there."
She gave his hand a squeeze and then let go. "Have fun tonight. But…" She smirked. "…not too much."
He smiled sheepishly. They had discussed their boundaries already. "Gotcha."
Raven opened a portal to Vegas after that and the boys and girls separated to go settle in their own fancy casino hotel. Both of them got enormous rooms with indoor pools and fancy robes and a bunch of amenities that young adults are very keen on.
"Get ready, the limo is picking us up soon." Raven said blankly.
Terra squealed. "The what now!?"
Starfire tilted her head. "I believe I am not familiar with this Limo."
"Those fancy long cars we see in red carpet events, Kor." Bumblebee said excitedly, watching the alien's eyes sparkle.
As the pink limo picked them up, Jinx nodded approvingly and Kory squeaked, feeling absolutely ecstatic.
"It's even better on the inside!" Terra yelled, already taking a seat.
They gasped at the luxurious insides and the free booze. There was more champagne than they could drink, several fruits and snacks and an awesome sound system that Bumblebee was already playing with.
Rose Wilson took a glass of sparkling wine and leaned back on the comfortable cushioned seat. "Yeah. I could get used to this."
Dick's party on the other hand started at paintball, so they could blow off steam before they got drunk. Damian figured it was better to get all the rivalry out of their system before the alcohol got in.
Conner looked up while they put on equipment. He didn't need it, obviously, but they didn't want to reveal their identities. "So Aqualad, what's up with you and blondie?"
"Terra?" Aqualad smirked smugly. "You know, she's Earth, I'm Water. We have some fun. But she doesn't want anything serious and neither do I."
"You okay?" Garfield whispered to Speedy, who seemed slightly bothered.
"Yeah, I'm fine." The archer nodded. "It's just that, I know he's my friend, but…sometimes I hate that guy."
"I completely understand."
"Yo, Dick and BB." Cyborg called. "OG team up here."
Richard high-fived the half-robot and turned to Damian. "Best man, come join us!"
Damian smirked and joined them.
Garfield had excitedly jumped to their side already. He liked the idea of having two Robins on his team. "This is a no powers match, right?"
"I think it has to be." Kid Flash chuckled. "I mean, unless we want to reveal ourselves and then pay for damage."
"I'm joining you guys if that's okay." Speedy offered, rushing to the groom's side before anyone else could. Richard smiled and gave him a fist-bump.
"YES, man! Awesome!" Beast Boy was ecstatic. Speedy had really good aim, obviously. He looked at the other team. "You guys are going down!"
Superboy scoffed. "Please, we'll be wiping the floor with you."
The others went on with the trash-talk teasing and Roy leaned in to whisper next to Garfield. "Dude, to be honest I just really wanna beat Aqualad. Beating Conner wouldn't hurt either."
The Changeling turned to him with huge eyes. "Dude! I KNOW! I'm like, right there with you!"
"Let's finish them." Speedy said as they exchanged a mischievous grin.
Paintball was really fun. They got overly competitive and just as Damian predicted, it helped them take all the hostility out on each other while having fun at the same time. Conner's hearing was a challenge for the Robins' team, because since he couldn't turn it off it wasn't against the rules and it was a huge advantage. But the groom's team still managed to win in the end. They had the most strategic minds on their side and it paid off. Then they celebrated loudly and congratulated each other. Garfield and Roy even felt slightly warmer towards Aqualad afterwards, so Damian's plan definitely worked.
Raven realized most of the girls were slightly drunk already. Starfire and Terra were howling into the cool night air out the windows of the limo. In fact, Raven herself was getting light-headed, so she shook her head when Jinx offered her another drink. "I can't."
"Sure you can." Jinx insisted. "C'mon, remember when we were in Practical Magic and we got drunk? It was fun. And you're hardly ever fun. Here, take it!"
The empath bit her lip. She did want to take it. She wanted to have reckless fun and get so stupidly giddy she was howling out the window. "My powers might get out of hand…"
Starfire got back inside the car, with a huge drunken grin plastered on her face. "We'll help out if they do! You deserve to have fun too Rae!"
Terra also got back inside, with hair all over her face because of the wind. "WHAT?"
"I said Raven deserves to have fun too!" Kory yelled in Terra's ear.
The blonde giggled and nodded. "Ohhh true! I second that!"
Raven chuckled softly and took the glass from Jinx, who smiled approvingly. "I'm not getting drunk, but…I guess I can handle one more."
She downed the drink while Ravager clumsily tried to help Terra and Starfire fix their hair.
"So…BB looks kind of cute tonight, right?" Jinx poured herself another drink. "I mean, I'm just saying."
Kory nodded in agreement and giggled with Bumblebee. Terra excitedly nodded along with them, but she stopped and shrank in her seat as soon as she met Raven's eyes.
Raven was definitely light-headed now. She shot Terra an easy smile. "It's okay, Ter. You can find him cute."
The blonde beamed at her. "I kinda do! But, he's totally yours."
"No, that…he's not mine." Raven focused. It was difficult to express intelligently with alcohol in your system. Now they were all scoffing skeptically at her and she lacked the words to explain what she meant. "Ugh, you all suck."
They chuckled openly and she couldn't help a small, amused smile on her lips.
"But don't you think he looks cute?" Kory eagerly asked Raven.
The empath shrugged nonchalantly. "I mean, sure, but…not cuter than usual. I like the green, the ears…I prefer it, really."
That seemed to warm their hearts for some reason.
Kory squealed happily. "That is so sweet!"
"About that, actually." Jinx giggled before she even asked her question. "You two are freaky, right?"
Raven frowned slightly. "What do you mean? Are you just calling us freaks? Because you're not exactly a basic bitch either, Jinx."
Jinx rolled her eyes in annoyance when the others laughed. "No, jerk. I'm saying that you're wild. Like, kinky. I mean…you do weird stuff in bed, don't you?"
"Oh, that." Raven smirked and examined her fellow witch's face. Jinx's eyes were sparkling with curiosity. She looked at her other friends to see them acting giddy and agitated, waiting for her to say something. Even Rose was expectantly staring at her. Under normal circumstances, she wouldn't dream of openly discussing this, but she was feeling a little breezy at the moment. "We get creative, yes."
Ravager scowled drunkenly. "I'll say!"
The others stared at her quizzically. Raven raised an eyebrow. "Rose?"
Rose Wilson blushed. "Ah…Damian and I heard you once." There were gasps and giggles but she was mostly focused on Raven's glare. "Accidently, of course!" That's a lie. But it's a necessary lie. "But anyway, it still haunts me."
Raven pressed her lips together to fight back laughter at first, until she finally caved and chuckled softly. Once she did, the others felt free to laugh hysterically.
"What about you, Kor?" Terra suggestively raised her eyebrows at the Tamaranean.
"I do not believe Nightwing and I have done much of the kinky practices. What does it involve?"
"It depends, really." Jinx said through a mischievous smile. "Involving other people, costumes, dominance, fetishes, doing it in front of a mirror…that kinda thing."
"Oh, I see." A slightly flushed Starfire giggled at her demonic best friend. "What does it involve for you and friend Beast Boy, Rae?"
Bumblebee, Jinx and Terra leaned forward, grateful for Starfire's question. Ravager had a feeling she already knew at least part of the answer.
"Does it involve…" Terra whispered secretively. "…you know, the animals?"
"No animals, no shapeshifting." Raven stated quickly, before innocently sipping champagne. Normally she wouldn't even consider answering that kind of question, but this wasn't a regular night. "Nothing like that."
"So…what is it?" Jinx pressed.
"Okay nothing anyone says tonight can ever be used against them." Terra said excitedly. "Let's make a pact! We are in Vegas. Whatever is said here; stays here."
Everyone was more than ready to agree to that, so Raven sighed. "Fine. For us, it's mostly playing around with power dynamics. And sometimes a little roleplaying."
"I knew it!" Jinx chuckled hysterically.
Bumblebee noticed Starfire still seemed confused, so she whispered to her. "It means one of them submits to the other and gives them all the power. And that sometimes they pretend they're other people or in…different situations."
Kory's eyes widened in realization and her cheeks flushed even more.
"I feel like you guys think it's worse than it is." Raven chuckled slightly. "We just get a little possessive, that's all. But we've been romantic and soft too."
"What about bondage?" Terra blurted out, then covered her mouth giggling into her hands.
Raven felt her cheeks heat up. "Just a little bit."
More hysterical giggles followed.
"So who does the holding of the power?" Kory asked, fully interested.
"I mean, obviously Rae." Bumblebee stated easily. "Right?"
They all turned to see Raven shrug nonchalantly and sip her champagne again. "Mmhm. Most times."
There were loud gasps of shock at the implications of what she'd just said.
Terra squeaked. "Wait! Not every time!?"
"You don't mean to imply you let him dominate you, right?" Jinx narrowed her eyes.
"What? I trust him. Besides, it's fun." Raven chuckled cheekily. I might be a little too drunk.
Terra and Starfire were absolutely giddy.
"Doesn't it bother you? I mean, you're like, really proud. Aren't you literally Pride or whatever?" Rose had been quiet because she didn't have a whole lot to add to the conversation, but now she was genuinely curious. "Doesn't it feel…demeaning?"
"I know, I was worried about that at first. I wouldn't even let him be on top. But no, it doesn't. How could it? He, like, worships me." Raven shrugged confidently.
Another round of friendly giggles took place.
"That is the truth." Starfire nodded.
Ravager chuckled. "I gotta say I'm a little shocked. I mean…that's a lot of trust."
Raven rolled her eyes fondly. Just wait for it. You might get there.
"I mean, I can totally see him being possessive and all that." Bumblebee pondered. "I just can't see you being submissive." She giggled at Raven again.
"Well, I have been. It's been a while, though." The empath frowned slightly. "I think after everything he's fearful of suggesting it, so…I might have to. I kind of miss it."
"Well I'm kind of impressed." Jinx chuckled and ate some chips. Then she looked at Terra. "Was it like that with you?"
Terra awkwardly stared at Raven. "I mean…"
"It's okay, Ter." The empath gave her a reassuring smile.
The blonde relaxed. "I mean, it was fun and sweet, he's very…generous. But no, nothing like that."
Starfire sighed loudly. "Oh, I'm never on top…"
Terra frowned. "Oh, that's right. You could like, accidentally crush him."
Raven tilted her head. "Oh. I could probably help you with that if you want. Jinx and I could work on something to make him stronger or take your strength away temporarily."
Jinx nodded excitedly. "YES, we most definitely can! The top is fun, you should totally try it!"
Bumblebee nodded emphatically.
Starfire's eyes sparkled. "Oh what a marvelous wedding gift!"
Bumblebee chuckled merrily. "What do you think, Rose?"
Ravager shrugged unapologetically. "I don't have an opinion."
"You don't have an…oh." Jinx tilted her head.
Terra narrowed her eyes. "Wait, you haven't…?"
"I haven't." Rose answered. "I'm younger than you, you know? And I'm Deathstroke's daughter. I didn't have a lot of free time for dating growing up."
Starfire smiled sweetly. "What about Damian?"
Raven watched Rose's cheeks flush. "They're not there yet."
Ravager nodded silently.
"Well, don't rush it." Bumblebee smiled at her. "Make sure you're both ready."
They all gave her friendly nods and Rose rolled her eyes, secretly feeling grateful for this whole soppy interaction. She had never done girls night before. It wasn't bad.
After paintball, Damian announced they were starting the casino tour. Richard raised an eyebrow at him, because that obviously meant he got himself a fake ID for the night, but he let it go because it seemed silly to keep his little brother away from casinos with everything he had gone through at his young age – including taking lives. They drank, gambled and bonded their way through Vegas and Richard was having a really good time for a change. They went to all the major casinos, though they had to leave early once or twice because someone shouted is that Superboy or is that Aqualad in the crowd. But they seemed to remain unnoticed in the current one so far.
"Man, how does it feel? I mean, Starfire." Aqualad gave Nightwing a congratulatory tap on the back. "You're everyone's hero."
Speedy raised a glass to Richard in agreement. "Not sure how you pulled that off but…well done."
Dick chuckled. "Yeah I'm not sure either. But I'd rather we didn't discuss how desirable my fiancé is? Makes me feel a little awkward."
Damian raised an eyebrow at him while typing on his phone. "Well you might want to get used to it, bro." He tossed his phone to his older brother and smirked. "That's who you're marrying."
Nightwing caught it and glanced at it to see the current ranking of the most desirable women on the planet. He hadn't looked it up, because he thought the very concept of that list was problematic and much too shallow for his taste, but there she was in all her glory. He sighed tiredly.
"Well?" Cyborg asked expectantly. "What is it?"
"That stupid most desirables list." Dick explained. "Kory's number one this year."
"You hadn't seen that yet?" Conner smirked.
"Woah seriously? It's always Wonder Woman!" Garfield squeaked. "Kory has been number two for like three years."
"Diana came in second this time." Superboy said easily. "So did I in the male list. Again. It's always Superman up there in the number one spot."
Kid Flash rolled his eyes. "No one's going to feel sorry for you for being considered the second most desirable man on the planet, Conner."
They all laughed loudly at that; Conner included.
"But anyway, my point is you're marrying the most desired woman in the world. Good luck, bro!" Damian chuckled and raised his glass.
Cyborg laughed and raised his glass too. "Actually, let's toast to that!"
Nightwing stopped frowning and smiled breezily, drinking with his friends. Of course he was aware of all of it, but it didn't matter. What he and Starfire had was real. "Thanks. You're all very supportive."
"Hey, at least you're number five." Superboy shrugged. "That's not bad."
Richard Grayson shrugged again. He could not care less.
"Am I on it? I'm usually on it." Aqualad said smugly.
Damian, Speedy and Changeling all rolled their eyes.
"Yeah, you're on it. So is Speedy. And…" Superboy raised an eyebrow at Garfield.
The shapeshifter spit the beverage inside his mouth all over the table. "What!?" He squeaked while his friends laughed hysterically. Then he realized Conner was probably messing with him and rolled his eyes. "Yeah, right."
"No, he's telling the truth." Victor said, glancing at his own phone.
Garfield frowned. "But I'm never on it! Let me see!" He reached out to grab Cyborg's phone across the table.
"Dude, what the hell? You have a phone!" Cyborg protested when the shapeshifter snatched his phone from his hands. "It's right there on the table!"
He wasn't listening. He scrolled down the list intently and then suddenly he stopped. There he was, occupying a very respectable 14th place. His eyes widened. "I am on it!"
His friends chuckled breezily at his blissful, drunken grin.
"I guess all those scandals really did something for your reputation." Cyborg teased.
And then Garfield's smile disappeared, because he thought of something that gave him the bad kind of chills. He realized Victor had taken his phone back, so he reached out and hastily snatched it out of his hands a second time.
"Dude, seriously!?" Cyborg squeaked.
"What is it?" Dick was still smiling drunkenly, but he frowned a little at the Changeling's worried expression.
Once again, Garfield wasn't listening. He'd gone over to the female ranking. He saw Starfire's picture first, followed by Wonder Woman, then a supermodel, an actress and Poison Ivy. And then he took a deep breath and scrolled down, but not for long. Soon enough, he stopped scrolling and widened his eyes again. "EIGHTH place!?"
Nightwing shot Conner a questioning look.
Superboy smirked at the shapeshifter. "I'm guessing you found Raven?"
"Oh, Rae's on it this year?" Cyborg said merrily. "Good for her!"
"Yeah I don't think she gives a shit." Damian pointed out in an amused voice.
The Changeling was practically panting. Raven had never appeared on that list. Then all of a sudden she was up there in the top ten spots. And he was too drunk to be chill about it. "How did this happen? Why did everyone suddenly decide to notice she's hot!?"
Richard pulled him back to his seat and gave Cyborg his phone back. "Relax, man. It happens."
"Oh, it was definitely the Sirens thing." Speedy chuckled.
"Definitely." Aqualad nodded. "It became impossible not to notice."
"True. Also, that party we went to where she danced with me?" Superboy said. "She looked good in that dress." He quickly turned to the shapeshifter and chuckled, with defensive hands up in the air. "With all the respect, of course."
Richard shot Garfield a sympathetic look. "I think they might be right, actually."
Of course they're right. The Changeling grumbled miserably, burying his face in his hands and working on keeping his mind from spiraling and taming his territorial instincts. He realized he probably looked hilarious, because all his friends were laughing.
"Great. Awesome. Freaking fantastic." He mumbled sarcastically.
"It's okay, man. Damian is right, she doesn't care about any of that." Cyborg gestured towards Conner. "If she did, she would have made out with Superboy here."
"That's right." Superboy nodded and considered telling Garfield what Raven said when she rejected him.
The Changeling tiredly lifted his head. I trust her. It's all good. "I know. By the way, it's not a casual fling." They just looked confused, so he shrugged. "Me and Rae. It's just, you guys said it's a casual fling. It's not. We're not officially dating, but…we're kind of in love."
Aqualad scoffed. "Is Raven aware you two are in love?"
"No, he's right." Nightwing said before the Changeling could trip over his words trying to explain himself. "She's crazy about him."
Garfield beamed at him. Aqualad folded his arms and rolled his eyes, but stayed silent. Damian and Cyborg were mostly amused.
"I know that for a fact, too." Conner charmingly leaned back on his chair. "She told me when she turned me down."
Beast Boy turned his attention to him at once. "She did!? Why didn't you TELL me!?"
"She asked me not to. Chill, dude. You're like, really intense, you know that?"
Garfield took a deep breath. "Right. You're right. I'm sorry. Of course you couldn't tell me. Thanks for telling me now."
"She said she loves you so much it's physically painful." Superboy smirked at the shapeshifter's reaction. It was exactly as he imagined. His face turned red and his lips spread into a huge and idiotic grin. Then Conner turned to Nightwing. "Oh, and…Starfire called me Richard more than a few times." It was Dick's turn to widen his eyes and turn red. "You're both welcome."
With that, Superboy left to gamble some more and most of the others chuckled at the dreamy smiles plastered on Nightwing and Changeling's faces before following after Conner. The two boys stayed behind at the table, relishing in their luck.
Once he had composed himself, Beast Boy turned to Richard. "So…me and Rae. Do you still hate the idea?"
Dick smiled fondly at him. "I never hated it, BB. I was just worried. I didn't think you could handle it. You can now. I'm really happy for you."
Garfield shot him a gigantic, toothy, emotional grin. "I'm really happy for you too!"
Meanwhile Donna Troy, Kara Danvers and Barbara Gordon met the others as the girls also did a casino tour. Batgirl hadn't exactly been invited, but she wanted to try clearing the air with Kory and the alien was too drunk to be bitter, so she'd told Raven there was no need to kick her out. They gave each other an understandably awkward hug.
After a while, Koriand'r went looking for Raven. She found her by the poker room, taking money from several confused and aggravated men. Kory giggled. Raven could obviously tell when someone was bluffing with her empathic abilities. As soon as the empath saw her, she excused herself from the game, much to the men's relief.
"Let's go to the Roulette." Raven suggested, approaching her best friend.
Starfire lowered her voice to a cheeky whisper. "Are we doing the cheating on that too?"
Raven faked outrage. "Who says I cheated?"
Kory raised an eyebrow and they shared laughter.
The empath shrugged. "No, reading emotions is one thing, but I don't think I should use any other powers while I'm this…tipsy. Too risky."
Starfire quickly nodded in agreement and pulled Raven along towards the Roulette. They played for a while, celebrating when they won and cursing when they lost.
Kory beamed. "Friend, I am so full of joy right now!"
"Just wait until your wedding." Raven said in slightly slurred speech. "You know, I'm taking this seriously. The maid of honor thing." She placed their bets again and turned to her friend. Her expression became decisive past the dizziness. "I'll make sure you have your dream wedding even if it's the last thing I do."
Starfire's smile grew even wider. "I know it will be wonderful simply because you shall be there with me! But please don't let it be the last thing you do." She chuckled.
Raven smiled at her and nodded as they won their bet and cheered, collecting their chips.
"Hey! You're Raven and Starfire!"
The two heroines froze up. Now several people were narrowing their eyes at them, trying to figure out if they were indeed Raven and Starfire. The empath felt like maybe she should have completely changed their faces for this, but it was too late for that. She quickly took their casino chips and turned around to leave, pulling Kory along with her.
"Woow awesome!" The guy who had shouted before came up to them, excitedly – and not at all discreetly – pulling out his phone. "Can I get a picture!? You're even hotter in person!" His phone suddenly malfunctioned and he gasped before realizing both girls were glaring warningly at him and Raven was behind his phone's demise. "Ohhh, you're like, disguised." He whispered secretively, but still rather excitedly. "Sorry, are you on a mission or something? Did I blow your cover?"
Starfire opened her mouth to politely tell him to stop talking at once, but then he spotted someone else.
"And you! You're Terra!" He shouted again, pointing at the blonde as she approached the other two heroines. He was in ecstasy at this point as he looked around the casino. "That's Bumblebee! Wait, is that Wonder Girl?!"
"Would you shut up, please?" Raven hissed.
He chuckled regretfully and did shut up, but it was too late. Now everyone was once again staring at them and whispering to each other, and some of them were smiling and nodding and pulling out their phones already because they had realized he was right.
"Well that's our cue to go." Terra said quickly.
Starfire nodded. "Where are Jinx and Rose?"
They only took a few short minutes to gather up and leave. Batgirl found Jinx and Ravager in a poker room. Rose was playing while Jinx was watching and using her powers to give everyone else bad luck.
"Hey, you two. We need to go." Barbara Gordon said with urgency in her voice.
"Just a second…" Rose said as she won another round, feeling breezy from both all the winning and the alcohol.
Batgirl nervously shifted her weight between her feet. "Now, guys…"
"Hey, I heard there's a bunch of superhero chicks in here!" A guy told his friend as they passed by the table.
Jinx and Rose both stiffened at that. Their opponents would definitely connect the dots soon enough and know they cheated.
Jinx quickly collected the money they'd won. "Yep, you're right! Time to go."
"Wait a minute…" One of the men at the poker table began.
"Bye, guys!" Ravager said, getting up too.
They left in a hurry, with an exasperated Batgirl, before anyone could say anything else. Then they met the others by the limo and laughed hysterically at the whole thing.
"A strip club? Really?" Richard raised an eyebrow at his brother and best man as they took a seat.
"Oh, this wasn't me." Damian quickly clarified. "Someone made this reservation under your name and I couldn't get a refund."
"No, thank you." Nightwing turned down another lap dance. It was the fifth girl who came up to him to offer one and left without offering anyone else.
Kid Flash folded his arms and narrowed his eyes at the speedster twins giggling from afar. Being one of the few sober ones had its advantages. Basically the only ones sober at this point were those who couldn't get drunk for some reason – Wally himself, Cyborg, the twins in question and Conner. "I think I know who it was."
Cyborg and Beast Boy turned their necks and chuckled hysterically at the sight.
"Oh, that makes sense." Victor nodded. "They definitely want you to get in trouble with Star."
Dick sighed tiredly. He was with Cyborg, Garfield, Kid Flash and Damian at the most distant table from the stage available, while the others cheered loudly at the performers and got lap dances. At one point though, Speedy and Conner came up to their table.
"Are you really not joining us, man?" Speedy drunkenly elbowed Garfield.
"Did your demon lover lay down some ground rules?" Superboy chuckled.
The Changeling was extremely drunk at this point, so any filter his brain might have had at the beginning of the night was gone. He gave them a breezy grin. "I mean, she gave me two options. I can either do whatever I want now or get a lap dance from her later. And have you seen my demon lover? What would you do?"
They blinked at him in shock for several moments before bursting into friendly laughter. Even Nightwing and Cyborg chuckled along.
"No way Doomsday's giving you a lap dance!" Damian squeaked in a much higher voice than usual. "For real?!"
"Yup!" Garfield folded his arms behind his head and leaned his chair back slightly.
"You know what? You're right." Superboy shrugged. "Easy choice."
"Yup!"
"Oh-uh." Damian suddenly muttered.
They followed his gaze and gasped.
Aqualad was on stage, holding the microphone and pointing at their table. "HEEY everyone! That's NIGHTWING right there! And he's engaaaged this is his last night of freedom! So help him have some fuuun yeah!?"
Every dancer at the club turned to them with hungry eyes.
"Time to go." Kid Flash stated, pulling the others to their feet so they could run off.
Meanwhile, the girls had moved their own party to a nightclub. After dancing breezily for a while, they stumbled over to the bar. Raven sat down on a stool and closed her eyes, taking deep breaths.
"Whatcha doing?" Barbara Gordon asked her groggily.
"She making sure she doesn't explode the club!" Starfire giggled.
Batgirl's eyes widened slightly. "Ohhh, that's right. That's a good idea. She should do that. Raven you should do that!"
"I'm trying." Raven muttered under her breath. It wasn't easy to focus with so much noise around her and so much alcohol in her blood.
They all chuckled merrily at that, clearly much more confident in her skills than she was.
Barbara leaned on Starfire. "Hey Kory…I wanna apologize."
The Tamaranean smiled at her. "It's okay, Babs."
"It's not." She shook her head, speaking in a drunken, but sincere voice. "But you should know I'm over him. I want you both to be so, so happy. I mean it."
"She does mean it." Raven mumbled again in confirmation, still keeping her eyes closed and feeling reasonably centered again.
Starfire's smile widened and she hugged her fiancé's ex, remembering to exercise restraint so she didn't accidentally crush her. "Thanks, Babs!"
Batgirl chuckled and hugged her back.
"This is all very sweet, but how about some shots?" Donna Troy suggested, as she needed much more alcohol than most of them to get as light-headed.
Jinx grinned and ordered a round of tequila.
Kara Danvers sighed. "Being the only sober one sucks."
"Well that's what you get for being Supergirl!" Bumblebee said dramatically.
"Shhhhh." Kara shushed her as the others laughed. "Do you want to blow our cover again?"
"Let's do body shots!" Jinx suddenly yelled, picking up the small shot glass and grinning mischievously, then asking the bartender to just leave the bottle.
Terra and Starfire giggled.
"On who?" Rose raised an eyebrow, but it wasn't as menacing as she would like because she was also very drunk at this point. "None of you are licking me."
Jinx leaned forward and swiftly licked up the side of Ravager's face. Rose gasped in outrage and glared as everyone else laughed breezily.
"Best girls night ever." Bumblebee stated, still catching her breath.
"Fine, then we each say something about one of the guys that's a turn on." Jinx smirked. "And then everyone who can relate has to drink too."
"That I can do." Terra easily picked up a glass. "Conner does this thing with his fingers…it kinda does it for me."
Supergirl wrinkled her nose as that was basically her family she was talking about. But Starfire, Wonder Girl and Batgirl chuckled, looking a little guilty, and drank with Terra because they knew exactly what she was talking about. Bumblebee and Jinx just giggled. Ravager rolled her eyes.
"Hey prophecy child, wake up! You're playing too." Jinx shouted in Raven's ear.
The empath opened her eyes and frowned. "Do I have to?"
"YES!" Kory, Terra and Bumblebee answered in unison.
"If I have to, you have to." Rose muttered groggily.
Raven rolled her eyes, accepting her fate. "Okay, fine."
"You go, Rose." Jinx elbowed the white-haired girl. "Tell us something about Damian."
Ravager sighed. "Well, I…I like sparring with him. It's sort of exhilarating." She drank and smirked when no one else did. It was awfully specific so it wasn't really surprising, but she was still relieved. But then her mouth continued talking before her brain could stop it. That happens when you drink a lot. "I like his eyes. They're nice. And his stupid smile. I like kissing him, he tastes good. And I like...well, I like the whole thing, actually. I like everything."
"Someone's in loooove." Kory chanted.
Now Rose frowned because they were all suddenly smiling at her with overwhelming fondness in their eyes. Wait, I didn't mean to say that much.
"I think he loves you too." Raven whispered and then regretfully covered her mouth with both her hands. "Crap. I wasn't supposed to say that."
But Ravager had already heard it and her heart had already skipped a beat. She felt butterflies in her stomach and cursed internally for it. She tried not to smile at Raven's confession, but she failed miserably.
"How do you keep everyone's secrets?" Bumblebee nudged the empath friendly as the others chuckled. "Seriously, I'd go insane!"
Raven exhaled and dropped her hands to her lap. "I mean, I have to. They're not my feelings to tell." She realized they were all smiling kindly at her and she smiled back. Who knew I'd have these many girlfriends one day?
"Yeah, yeah, we get it. You're very noble and all that. Now get off that high horse and tell us something filthy about that shapeshifter." Jinx said while handing Raven a shot. "I mean, I'm assuming you'll talk about him. But feel free to shock us."
Raven rolled her eyes at their laughter. "No, I'll talk about him. Obviously. Well, I…oh, I know." A small, wicked smile found its way to her lips. "Those pointy ears are like, hypersensitive, you know? The sounds he makes when I mess with them. That."
Raven drank as they giggled and then Terra raised her glass with an apologetic look and downed her shot too.
"Sorry." The blonde muttered.
The empath smiled fondly at her. "I mean, it's just a fact, right?"
Terra grinned in relief. "Right!"
"I like the fangs, too." Raven continued, staring intently at her.
"I know, right!? When he nibbles the n-"
"Neck. Yup."
Raven's contained, but unstoppable chuckle resonated with Terra's hysterical laughter. They seemed to be in a moment of their own now and the other girls were absolutely entertained.
"But seriously, I think you're perfect together." Terra said drunkenly. "I see it now. Also I think you're really pretty."
Raven frowned and shook her head. "Wait, I think you're really pretty."
"I was so jealous of you for a while." The blonde continued in slurred speech.
"I was so jealous of you for a while!"
They giggled and hugged in blissful mutual understanding.
"You know what would blow his brains out!?" Jinx said excitedly, with that mischievous glint in her eyes again.
The boys had gone to a nice bar after they fled the strip club. It had a pool table and darts, so they became engaged in friendly competition again.
"I had a lot of fun tonight, guys. I love you all." Nightwing smiled in an unusually carefree way, taking a seat.
Damian rolled his eyes, but smiled back. "Yeah, okay, love you too, bro." He stood up and went to join Aqualad, Speedy, Superboy, Mas and Menos in their current darts competition before things got even mushier.
Cyborg chuckled. "Do you guys think the girls are drunk too?"
And then Garfield's phone suddenly rang and he glanced at it. And then he froze. His eyes widened enormously and his face instantly turned red.
"Dude, what is it?!" Victor asked him.
The shapeshifter looked up at his friends and helplessly stammered incomprehensible gibberish. "Whayatalkabut."
"Seriously man, you're as red as Wally's hair." Nightwing teased.
Garfield cleared his throat and waved a hand dismissively. "It's n-nothing."
Cyborg and Nightwing narrowed suspicious eyes at him. Then Kid Flash ran by him and snatched his phone from his hand. Wally stood there proudly, with the source of the shapeshifter's flustered reaction in his hand.
The Changeling gasped. "No, wait! Give that back!"
But then Wally glanced at it and so did Victor and Dick. Their light-hearted laughter soon turned into shock though, because Starfire had just sent Garfield a picture. And it was a picture of an uncharacteristically gleeful Raven chuckling while a clearly drunk Terra licked salt off her exposed chest, holding up a tequila shot. Their faces didn't turn as red as the Changeling's, but they were still flushed. Richard was the first to look away.
"Holy shit." Wally chuckled.
"What's this now?" Conner asked as he came up to the table with Aqualad and Speedy.
Garfield shot Kid Flash an urgent and desperate look that meant do NOT let them see that picture, which Wally immediately understood.
"Deleted." The speedster smiled breezily at the relieved shapeshifter before tossing him his phone back. "Hope you memorized it."
Garfield exhaled and allowed his body to relax in the chair again. He didn't need these three seeing her breasts up close like that, especially with another cute girl licking them.
"What? Memorized what?" Speedy asked.
"Yeah what's with all the secrecy?" Aqualad finished his beer.
"Why is BB all red and flustered?" Conner chuckled.
"Kory sent him a pic of Ter doing a body shot on Rae." Cyborg blurted out, feeling nearly giddy at this point.
The three boys gasped loudly.
"What!?"
"No fucking way!"
"And you deleted it!?" Superboy frowned disapprovingly at Wally.
Kid Flash just shrugged nonchalantly.
"Of course he deleted it." The Changeling leaned back on his chair in a smug and breezy manner once he recovered. "That picture was obviously just for me."
Superboy rolled his eyes, but smiled and gave the shapeshifter's arm a friendly punch anyway.
Aqualad wouldn't say it, but he was impressed. "Aren't you gonna answer it?"
"Oh! Yeah." Garfield picked up his phone to text them back. "What should I say?"
"I don't know man, but you're my new hero." Speedy chuckled.
Nightwing shook his head fondly. "Say you had to delete it because your friends suck."
"Say you couldn't get a proper look and would like to see it in person." Conner smirked.
"Ask if they're up for a threesome." Aqualad suggested.
Speedy shook his head. "That's too forward. Just say next time they'll have to invite you."
"No, be funny. Just text can I join you?" Cyborg waggled his eyebrows.
"Oh, and tell her to send me one of Jinx." Kid Flash grinned.
"Shhhh, shut up. I know what I'm gonna say." Garfield typed a single word on his phone and read it out loud as he did. "…hawt. And…sent!"
They rolled their eyes and laughed whole-heartedly again.
Nightwing turned to Cyborg. "Yeah, man. I think the girls are definitely drunk too."
I know this will disappoint SOME of you but there will be no threesome, ever, in this story LOL
Birds of a Feather (Billie Eilish)