By Megan.

Still for Jean. All of it's for her, because she deserves it so much.

Disclaimer: Still don't own 'em. Movies aren't mine either, in case anyone bothered to wonder. I haven't even seen half the ones mentioned, because I just don't go to movies anymore. However, the runaway on the ferry is currently in my possession. I might use her again somewhere…so…no stealing. Not that there's much to steal at this point. The song is still 'White Picket Fence', by Five for Fighting.

"So, how'd you like to travel?" Cyborg said with a wave toward the garage. Raven stood next to him in light civvies; a creamy blouse with red detailing, and burgundy capris. He knew she'd abandoned her usual style due to a recent heat wave, putting practicality before stereotype. It made her seem soft and pretty, until one noted the petulant look upon her face.

Slinging her travel-bag over one shoulder, she crossed her arms delicately, and sneered. "I'd like to walk, if it's alright with you." She was punishing him; mocking his authority by checking with him on each of her actions. "Should I begin with my left foot, or my right?"

Irritated, unmindful of his actions, Cyborg reached out and tousled her hair. He backed away afterwards, admiring its rich color, wondering what it felt like. "Once we leave, it's your trip; anything you want to do is good with me."

She arched one slim, violet brow. "Does that mean I can kill people?"

He couldn't gauge her sincerity, but declined anyway. "Anything legal that you want to do is good with me. We're the good guys, after all."

"That's laughable. Our enemies probably get along better than we do." Her face was turned away from him, framed by that thick hair. He noticed for the first time that her eyes weren't truly purple, but rather a terribly vivid shade of blue.

Again, he wished this girl was not so unattainable, so inconsolable. "It's just a bad time Raven-things are going to get better. I know no one's listening to me when I say it, but you've got to move on. Beastboy and Starfire seem so…fragile all of the sudden, and everyone's walking on landmines…" He tilted his head, and peered at her with his good eye.

"If you're looking for a new argument, don't come to me. I agree with everything you've said. I need to move on-need to get over Robin. But knowing what to do and doing it are two very different things." Raven turned away fully, heading toward an elevator that would take them deeper into the earth, to a tunnel beneath the bay. Cyborg followed dejectedly.

She stopped. "I am though. Over him, I mean." Her face was seen in profile, still not looking at him. "We had a relationship, and now it's over. We're not trying to get back together or anything, we're just…angry with one another. For a few reasons."

"If you were really over him, it wouldn't matter."

Sighing, Raven moved on, at a quicker pace. "I just don't want you thinking I'm pining away for the idiot, that's all." She knit her brows, and lengthened her stride. "I don't care anymore."

Cyborg set his jaw, kept quiet, and started after her.

They had reached the mainland by nightfall, and were searching for somewhere to eat. "So, what are you bringing with you?" Raven asked, nodding toward the large pack that Cyborg was carrying. "You don't wear clothes, so…"

He smiled. "Extra batteries, and a power cell. Don't want my body to give out when we get to Steel City. I don't think you'd know how to jump-start me."

"You mean, with a car? No, I suppose I wouldn't." She lapsed back into silence.

Cyborg's eye scanned the streets, trying to find a restaurant amidst the light and noise of inner-city traffic. "Anything specific you want for dinner? I took out a credit card for our funding and donations account, so we can go anywhere you'd like." He stopped looking at the signs around them, and focused on Raven.

"I'm not hungry," she replied out of habit.

"No, but you will be by the time we find a place. Come on…Chinese? Pizza? Burger joint? We can go anywhere without Beastboy and the 'meat police'. And we won't have to put ice cream and mustard on our pizza…we should take advantage of it while we can…"

She folded her arms across her chest, and hunched her shoulders. "You mean 'you' should take advantage of it. I never had any problem with what we ate at home."

"If you never had a problem with it, then why do you only drink your tea?" He wheedled lightly.

She finally graced him with a look, her heated glare having little effect on him. "That was how I avoided having a problem with it," she admitted gratingly. "I still don't want anything from you."

"Oh," Cyborg breathed, "Well then…I guess I don't need anything either. Got a…a battery, after all." Crestfallen, he lagged behind a bit, suddenly very, very tired. Kept trying, that's what he did. Just kept trying no matter how many times the girl threw it back in his face. "If you change your mind, just tell me," he offered, looking away, knowing she would not turn her gaze upon him, but wary of it all the same. 'At least she treats everyone like this. Can't imagine what I'd do if she were taking things out on me just 'cause I've got metal skin. Not all of me is circuitry and molybdenum.'

'Either way, still hurts. Got some soft skin left, after all.'

"Cyborg?" He didn't look up. "Cyborg!" Raven yelled, trying to catch his attention.

"What!" he snapped in return. He'd been getting himself into a right mood, and hated her, momentarily, for ruining it. From the flash in her eyes, he knew she'd seen his flaring anger, but suppressed her own hurt in an effort to ease his own.

"If it means so much to you, I guess we could grab something on the way. Don't want anything fancy, mind, just simple, filling food with no real value whatsoever. Y'know, whatever you guys eat on a daily basis." Her manner was offhanded and apathetic, though something in her tone alerted him to an irrational craving. Having had many of his own at times, he knew how to recognize them in others.

He wagged his finger at her turned face. "Ah ah ah…I know you've got t' have something in mind…come on…is it nachos? Sushi? Microwave burritos?" He raised his…eyebrow, resisting the urge to poke her shoulder incessantly. He didn't want to set her off too much, afraid she'd abandon her acquiescence.

She peered at him through her eyelashes, mouth set in a firm line, eyebrows drawn-the quintessence of exasperation. "I'd like a soft pretzel, if we can find one at this hour. I like them, but we never have them at the Tower."

He laughed, and patted her on the back, gently. "Well girl, why didn't you just ask for some? Grocery stores sell 'em by the box, stick 'em in the oven and enjoy!" She shrugged, more to get away from him than anything.

"Nevermind. Lets just keep moving," Raven said, as though they were on the run, trying to keep one step ahead of an unseen enemy. Cyborg fought the compulsion to look behind him, to catch a glimpse of the thing that followed. 'What's chasing you girl? What're you always running from, always carrying after you like a stench?'

He knew it was harder for Raven to pick up on his feelings and thoughts-it was for most people, because a metal body made body language just as hard to read as a computer-chip mind. His memories were stored in files that most computers couldn't open, much less the mental force of Raven's powers. Sometimes he thought dealing with her would be simpler if he didn't have to open his mouth and tell her what was going on, but he knew his 'silence' was why she put up with him a lot of the time. It was easier for her to control her emotions, when she wasn't also dealing with everyone else's.

Perhaps that was what she ran from. Perhaps taking her to Titans East wasn't the best idea.

He'd have to find lodging elsewhere, at least. She'd told him a bit of the protections she'd woven about her room, with the magic she'd learned from the dragon-turned-wizard. It would be better to find a place where she could be at peace without having to set wards about the space.

A beach-cottage would be nice, he decided. "Hey Rae, what do you think of renting a house on the beach? A small one, just for the week," he called to her, quickening his pace to catch up.

When she looked at him, he smiled, and mentioned her wards. She grasped his line of thinking, and nodded, approving. "At least you bother to remember these things," she praised. "The others would just try and stick me with Starfire, not realizing how hard it is to sleep with her emotions battering me each and every second. Her food isn't half as bad as her disposition." He listened to her grumbling, knowing full well that she liked Starfire just fine, so long as they weren't left together for too long, or if the Tamaranian were joining her to meditate. "If they have to room me with someone, it should be you. Sure you're a guy, but you plug into a wall and are completely out…" Cyborg almost commented on how much she'd said in the last few minutes, but didn't want to spoil his luck.

"Well, Beastboy just can't be expected to think that way, and Robin is…traditional?" He was unsure of the wording. "He grew up mingling with high society, didn't he? He's probably conditioned to think guys and girls shouldn't share bedrooms, especially teens." Cyborg didn't know as much as Raven about the boy wonder's past, but she'd told him that Robin's real identity was pretty well-off.

"I doubt he thinks that way," Raven argued. "He, more than anyone, should know about my 'conditioning', and plan things around it, at least a little bit. I don't want him to protect me constantly, but he could be more considerate."

Cyborg sighed. "Well, I think you blew that possibility out of the water, for the next…lifetime, or so. I doubt he'd use it against you, but he certainly won't be treating you like a queen anytime soon."

"He wouldn't dare use anything against me-I know too much about him. That's probably why he's letting you take me away to cool down-can't tell the others if I'm not around. He cares more about his secrets than I do, now that you guys know most of them anyway. Besides, it wouldn't be all that hard to find a spell to erase all of your memories…" She spoke without arrogance, despite flaunting her own abilities-with a sense that something deeper than benevolence kept her from manipulating them as she chose. Cyborg felt secretly grateful-not only that he was protected from her, but that he didn't have to be.

"Yes. We know you would never do that to us, but after today, I doubt Robin is as sure of that as the rest of us. He's so sure that he's got a firm grasp on people's motivations and personalities, and when we still surprise him, well…"

Raven nodded. "He doesn't believe we can change and adapt as well as he does, even though we've kept up with him for the last few years. We might not have cracked all of his masks yet, but that doesn't mean we don't have any of our own." Bitterness crept into her voice, the irritation of one who feels they are being treated like a child. "You know, I didn't come with you just to badmouth Robin the whole time…why don't we get back to finding those pretzels?" she asked, tone lighter, mood lifting slightly. It was good to get out of the Tower, to walk through the city and enjoy it, rather than protect it. Raven startled herself by realizing that she was almost happy to be out with Cyborg, who somehow made her feel comfortable by being hard to read.

Raven had learned to appreciate those who surprised her.

They found their meal at a bayside gas station. Raven was content to nibble at two plain, large pretzels, relishing the warm dough and salt. Beside her, Cyborg sucked in the steaming contents of a Ramen Noodle Cup-the owner had allowed him to heat it in an old microwave back at the station. He'd over-paid with the credit card, and handed the change to Raven, since he himself did not possess pockets. The wadded bills felt strange to her, for she'd never dealt with money before. Azarath had no need of currency. It felt stranger still to accept them from Cyborg-though not a gift, she felt that he intended for her to keep it beyond the trip.

To quell the feelings, she distracted herself with a gratuitous bite of pretzel, chewing slowly, not caring how her cheeks bulged around the mass of food. She swallowed too quickly, and the chunk slid down painfully to her stomach. She coughed, and Cyborg set down his noodles for a moment to offer her some water.

"Got to slow down," he said evenly, watching her take a long draught from the bottle. She resisted the urge to scowl, and set the water between them when she was finished.

Raven didn't bother to look at him. "I'm fine. Nothing to worry about." She went back to her remaining pretzel. "Damn it though, these are great," she added, trying to inject a bit of gratitude into her tone.

Cyborg beamed. "Yeah, and now that I know you like them, won't have to wait for impromptu vacations to get one."

She shook her head. "No, I prefer it this way. Once you start having something all of the time, you don't like it as much."

"I hope you don't use that same philosophy with people," he warned, quirking his eyebrow.

"Only in special cases," she answered lightly, though perfectly serious.

Several hours passed, and they continued walking. They passed many promising hotels, but Raven refused to stop, claiming that she was not tired. She had chosen to walk to the next city, and he knew he'd have to wait until her exhaustion outweighed her determination to do just that.

When the moon hung high above the city, and Raven began lagging behind him, Cyborg offered to carry her. She quelled his offer with a listless glare, and he gave up with a shrug, suggesting that they take the midnight ferry across the bay to Titans East, where they would surely be able to stay for the rest of the night. "It'll only take half an hour to get there, and it'll save us time and money if we stay there just for tonight," he told her, ignoring the fact that she was following him sedately toward the docks.

"Shut up," she groaned as they neared the dimly lit boat, filtering in with its other few passengers. "I'm trying to sleep."

He guided her to a bench near the front, facing the rail rather than against it-he was wary of sea-spray on his metal hide and her more sensitive flesh. "Oh really, not even going to wait 'till we sit down, are you?" he asked amusedly.

"Uh-huh," she muttered through a yawn, allowing her head to rest against the smooth, cool surface of his shoulder. Surprised, he stiffened, though the change was not physically noticeable. Knowing his body couldn't possibly be comfortable, he pulled her pack of clothing toward him, and slid it between her head and his body. She moved away and looked up at him, before deciding that there weren't any real consequences for resting against him, and leaning back down.

The night air wasn't quite cool, but the moisture from the bay helped keep it at a pleasant temperature. Recent storms caused the water to crawl further up the beaches, but that night the bay was calm, and the boat rocked gently beneath them. When he was sure she'd fallen into deeper sleep, Cyborg took the opportunity to run his large, gentle hands through Raven's hair, once more overcome by the wish to do more than look-more than assist.

He took heart when she moved closer to him, though he knew she had no idea what she was doing. She couldn't sense him there, couldn't know the difference between him and the walls of the ferry's cabin. It would be the same if he closed his eye-without looking at her, he had no way of noticing her presence. Where there once would've been warmth and weight, there was only a void. He moved the bag so that her hair brushed against the thin area of flesh left on his arm, and sighed, relieved that he was not completely lost.

'I know that I am here…'

Raven blinked slowly, moving away from him without haste. "Sorry," she muttered, rubbing at her crusted eyes. Her gaze swept across the deck, taking in the people whose emotions had been troubling her mind. A sense of anxiousness came, predictably, from a dirty teen positioned at the stern, a pack quite like Raven's own slung across her shoulders. Raven sighed, knowing a runaway when she felt one. 'I'm on vacation,' she thought, 'I've no reason to get involved. Can't go around caring about everyone with a problem.' She leaned back into the plastic bench, crossing her legs and hugging her pack to her chest. 'Just another stupid teenager making a bad choice, just another damn statistic.'

'They wouldn't listen to me anyway-after all, what do I know of pain?' Her thoughts were flavored with bitterness, and she saw her foul mood leaking into the passengers around her. 'Control,' she reminded herself, before she closed her eyes and pulled the feelings in.

"Remind me again why we're taking the ferry?"

"You were tired, and I didn't feel like carrying you there," Cyborg responded, knowing full well that he had been perfectly willing, and she'd refused. It would not do to remind her of that now.

"Well, I'm not tired now. Why don't we just fly there?" she suggested, wanting to distance herself from the people on board.

He shook his head in bemusement. "It's dark, you could get lost, we're surrounded by unsuspecting civilians, and I don't particularly want to be carried across the bay," he answered.

"I hardly think they're going to care if we take off-you don't exactly blend in, Mr. Roboto,"

The quip stung, but he didn't let it show. If she were trying to convince him to leap off the ferry, she certainly wasn't doing a very good job. "Either way, I'm staying right here until this boat docks. Unlike you and Starfire, I haven't been floating around all my life. The closest I've ever been to flying was running track," he reminded her.

Raven looked away, glad she couldn't read him-if she didn't know what kind of response he needed, she wouldn't have to give one. "I could just go ahead, you know."

A choked emotion wormed its way through them both, strong enough that she noticed it, but not profound enough to be recognized. "Yes," he said evenly, pursing his lips. "You could, if you want to. I mean, the whole point is for you to get away, so if you want to run now, be my guest." He wondered sullenly at how things shifted so quickly with Raven, as if, by ignoring her emotions, she allowed them to swing any which they chose. 'That or it's just me. Perhaps she thinks her moods only affect the people who feel her projecting. Maybe she truly believes that they don't change how she acts around others.'

Cyborg watched her face tighten-lips thinning, eyes narrowing, her nose scrunching a bit in surprise. Normally, people didn't call her on her attitude, but now she'd been told off thrice in a single day. "Go on," he pressed, "If you really want to…"

She huffed, and sat back, casting a glare at something behind him. "I'd like to, but I don't…" she sighed, "I don't feel like leaving you behind. Contrary to popular belief, I do posses a heart."

He gasped theatrically. "And all this time, I thought you saved the world out of spite!"

His comment pulled a slight smile out of her tight lips, and after a moment she allowed it to flow fully onto her face. "Well, after a…lavishly caring stunt like that, I think it's perfectly acceptable to be a bit callous. I mean, without me, there'd be no world-and yet, not a single parade in my honor. And what savior doesn't want a parade!"

"Hm…a savior named Raven?" he said coyly.

"Damn straight," she returned, snapping her fingers, letting the emotions swing up once more.

Cyborg just smiled, savoring the moment before gravity pulled them back down. He felt as though he were running again-wind cutting through them, the deck solid beneath him. He was caught in the joy of movement, of flight-everything was behind him, trying to catch up. For that moment, he understood why Raven seemed to be fleeing something-the only difference was that he knew there was a finish line, and she could see no end in sight.

"We're almost there," he murmured.

Titans East loomed above them, settled into the cliff side like the roots of a giant tree. Though his own home was sleeker, more majestic, Cyborg found that he favored this tower. The Titans original tower stood tall, a monument, something to put on display-Titans East was out of the way, solid, dependable, and blended naturally into the landscape. It was more secure-an island could be attacked from all sides, but a cliff was harder to access. Despite his choices long ago, Cyborg felt safer in this tower, happier.

Regret rode the electrons to his mind. 'It wasn't about my happiness though,' he reminded himself. 'It was about the team, and what was best for us all.'

"I hope we aren't interrupting anything," he told Raven, pulling out his communicator. A few moments later, Bumblebees surprised face flickered onto the screen.

"Hey Sparky, good to finally hear from you again," she said, beaming at him. "What are you doing, calling this late? And when are you going to come visit us, like you always promise?"

He grinned, and let the communicator pick up more of the area around him. "How does right now sound? I'm taking Rae on a vacation, and we need somewhere to crash tonight."

Bee looked slightly crestfallen, but nodded. "Sure, anything for you guys…but…are you only going to come see us when you need something?" He nearly smacked himself, realizing that Bumblebee was a girl, and therefore read into everything. Sighing, he managed to look properly apologetic when he spoke again.

"Nah-we were going to come see you anyway, as part of the vacation. Rae decided to try walking all the way across the city, and it didn't exactly work out…"

His friend laughed, and nodded, accepting the excuse as an apology. "Don't worry, you're always welcome here. Just make sure you drop in more often. We've kept your old room cleared out, we can set up an actual bed in there, for your friend." Raven quirked an eyebrow in the background, but thought it better to say nothing. Cyborg was grateful.

"Thanks Bee, and I promise not to stay away for too long. You know how I can't leave the kids alone for more than five minutes," he said jokingly, eliciting a chuckle from Bumblebee, and a smirk from Raven.

"Yeah, I know what you mean. I'll send Mas and Menos down to let you in, since these other two lumps," she yelled at someone behind her, "Can't seem to get off their butts."

Laughing, he thanked her again, and flipped the communicator closed.

Apparently, Aqualad was perfectly capable of movement. He joined the four of them at the main, throwing a "Hey guys" to Cyborg and Raven. They held back in the elevator, watching him scold the twins as they fought to light up each floor's button.

"Gee, I'm so glad we were here to witness that," Raven muttered as they arrived at the top floors. Cyborg nudged her with his hard, cold elbow, but kept her at ease with a chuckle. "At least you're happy," she said, returning the nudge with one of her own bony joints.

Looking around at his 'home away from home', watching the twins run circles around Aqualad, and seeing the faint curl of Raven's lips, Cyborg realized that, in that moment, he truly was.

"Come on Rae…try it, please?" Cyborg pleaded, pushing a plate of banana toast toward the half-awake empath. "It's great, you'll love it, I swear." He pushed the plate all the way across the table, so that it dug into her arm. She peered through tangled strands of hair, grimaced at the smashed banana spread, and glared at him. "It's all I could scrape together," he said apologetically. "It's not like you can keep butter in a beach house. I'm surprised I even found the bananas."

She shrugged. "I don't care if it's all we've got-I'm not eating it. Is there any tea?" she moaned, pushing her hands into her bleary eyes. "Why did you drag us here so early?"

"They guy said we had to jump on it now, otherwise another couple would take the offer."

Raven glared at him. "They say that to everyone. If they make it seem like you're lucky to find a house, you're more likely to rent without questioning price or conditions. And…wait, couple?" she said sharply. "So now everyone thinks we're crazy high-school lovers, trying to get away from our parents or something? Great, this is just great."

He chuckled, and pushed the plate into her arm again. "It's too early for you to be this paranoid," he muttered. "Now eat the toast, so we can go shopping. Unless of course, you find that you like it…then we could just live off the stuff for the week."

Her eyes, if possible, narrowed further. "If you push that plate at me one more time…"

Smirking, he pushed.

The other tenants never found out what made that peculiar stain, on the kitchen wall.

They spent the day exploring the city, finding out which shops and attractions were nearest to them. When Cyborg complained about not taking the car, now that they needed to carry everything, Raven had teleported back to the house, taking their bags with her.

"Aww, you take the fun out of everything," he said with a grin.

Her good humor had not returned. "Until I have my tea, no one gets their fun back."

Cyborg laughed. "Uh oh, looks like we've got a hostage situation."

"Damn right. I'm a big, black hole of fun-sucking fury. The only way to stop me is to throw in tea. That, or drive your ship into the sun."

"Well then, can't let that happen. Let's find you some tea!" He took off at a run, and was soon sprinting down the street, laughter ringing in his wake. Raven glared, sighed, and flew after him.

She rolled her eyes, wind pulling the moisture from them. "Boys."

"And God said, 'let there be movies'," Cyborg said with a flourish of his large arms, entering the video store. Grab what you want-we've got plenty of time to waste."

Raven grinned, several titles flashing through her mind. "Will do," she promised, beginning her search down the nearest aisle. Her fingers acted as though they'd been in the store countless times, plucking cases from the shelves with uncanny ease and familiarity. In reality, she just grabbed any title that caught her eye, whether she'd seen it or not. She had mixed feelings about 'The Pianist', but decided the superb acting and beautiful music made up for the sick feeling she always got when watching it. Other than that, she stayed away from the horror and drama sections, deciding she didn't care for the emotions such films put her through. Raven trusted that Cyborg would find enough B-rated Horror films to last them a lifetime, and didn't want to contribute anything to that list.

Psychological thrillers were something she'd recently gotten into, and she browsed the shelves with interest. 'Unbreakable' was supposed to be good, and about superheroes to boot. She was fond of M. Night. Shyamalan's works, if only for their originality. '21 Grams' had received good reviews, but Raven wasn't sure she trusted them. Still, it wouldn't kill her to find out.

When she met Cyborg at the counter, he held an armload of familiar and unfamiliar titles. She glimpsed sports movies, the predicted horror films, and a few sci-fi thrillers. 'The X-Files Movie' caught her eye, as did 'Remember the Titans'. The titles brought a smile to her face, simply because they reminded her how many sides there were to the other Titan.

Back at the Tower, Beastboy was just getting out of bed. "G'morning," he mumbled to the boy wonder, swaggering lazily into the kitchen.

"Afternoon," Robin corrected, tone and mood approaching 'the edge'. Rather than relaxing after Cyborg and Raven had left, he'd only become more irritable. Somehow, in his mind, Raven leaving had become her own idea, and she'd done it to spite him. Cyborg was only an accomplice-she was the criminal mastermind.

'She hasn't done anything to you though,' a more sensible part of him argued. 'She only went with Cyborg out of politeness to him. She wasn't thinking about you at all when she made that decision.'

Yet, that hurt more than spite. What was that saying? That the opposite of love isn't hate, but apathy? Something like that. It irked him, that Raven didn't love him, and wasn't here now to hate him. She was off with Cyborg, not giving him a second thought. He'd rather she was mocking him behind his back, slandering his name-if only so she'd say it.

Starfire had been avoiding him lately, which angered him further. It all came down to that, really. Robin was angry and hurt and confused, about so many things, and no one seemed to care. To them, he was the bad guy-he hurt Raven, he drove her away. He was pushing them all away from him, and that made it all his fault. No one ever seemed to think he pushed them away because of them, because of how they treated him.

'She was devastated when I chose Raven, so why isn't she happy that we're apart now?' he wondered with a huff of breath. 'Because she thinks I hurt Raven. Because she doesn't understand that Raven hurt me as well.'

"Dude?"

'Starfire takes Raven's side, Cyborg takes everyone's. And Beastboy just jokes about the whole thing…'

"Dude?"

'God, they make me sick. This whole thing makes me sick. The drama, the sides, the tiptoeing around me like I'm fragile, or too young to understand what the 'grownups' are going through. I hate that kind of superiority. I left Gotham to escape that, and here they are throwing it back into my face.'

"Dude!" Beastboy screamed, breaking Robin out of his thoughts.

"What the fuck is your problem?" he screamed back, swiping the dishes off the counter in frustration.

Instead of backing down, as he usually did when Robin yelled, Beastboy took a step toward the taller boy. "I've been talking to you for like, the last five minutes! Why can't you pay attention to anyone but yourself! And look what you did to the kitchen!"

Robin growled, defensively. "Maybe I just don't care to hear another 'why'd the chicken cross the road' joke from you! Maybe, I came out here to think. If you tried it sometime, we might not be having this conversation."

The other boy bristled, and moved closer, stabbing Robin in the chest with a pointed finger. His fangs glistened, and each hair of his body stood on end. "Oh, just because I'm not a trained detective, I don't have a brain? I know you think I'm just some idiot, some class-clown who can't put a real thought together to save his life. But I'm more than that Robin, I'm more of a human-being than you'll ever be, so suck it up and learn how to respect people." His breathing was labored, his eyes feral and angered. Robin backed down slightly.

Beastboy knew he had the upper hand, when Robin took a step back. He moved with him, pressing the advantage. "You think that just because Raven broke your heart, you get to make our lives hell?"

"She didn't…Raven never broke anything in me," Robin spluttered, his composure, what little he'd had, leaving him.

"Bullshit. You idiots broke each other, and now it's breaking the whole team, because neither of you will admit it. You don't think we know the whole story, you think the world is against you, because you pit yourself against it." His expression softened, and he finally stopped pushing Robin across the tile. "Y'know, I'm not just another pretty face Robin. I might be immature, but I still understand when bad things happen to my friends. You might be an ass, but we still care about you."

Robin wasn't sure what to say. He never thought any of the Titans, except perhaps Cyborg, would bother to call him on his behavior. A small part of him had been waiting, hoping, that someone would step in and stop the anger that had settled in him. The rest of him resented being told off by the scrawny changeling, but he didn't let it show. He'd been caught off guard, and was almost…proud of his team for managing it.

"What about…Starfire?" he asked, bracing himself for the answer. Beastboy, it seemed, could be brutally honest. "Isn't she glad that I broke up with Raven?"

The boy glared at him. "Does she seem glad, to you?" he asked rhetorically. "She really was happy for you both. I mean, she could handle losing you to her best friend, but seeing you both hurt by it really gets to her. I mean, how would you feel, watching two people you love falling apart, and thinking that, if only one of them had chosen you, it might be okay? I think she blames herself a bit for what happened."

"Why? It was all Raven's-" Beastboy cut him off.

"If I were you, I wouldn't finish that sentence"

For once, he didn't.

A/N: Well, the C/R begins in earnest next chapter. Don't worry, everything's outlined, each 'day' of the vacation planned out. No more flying by the seat of my pants-at least, not with this series. If the ending seems rushed…that's because it was. I'd planned to have a BB/Robin kick-Rob-in-the-pants conversation early in the fic, but had trouble approaching it. I truly believe that, if Robin was being stupid, and Raven or Cyborg weren't there to tell him, Beastboy would step up to the challenge, and set the little bundle-of-neurosis straight.

Don't worry about the loose ends with Robin, Starfire, and Beastboy. After this fic, there's a whole series pertaining to it, so everything will be dealt with eventually. Even the R/R.

Sorry this took so long, and thanks to all of the lovely reviewers.

And thanks to Jean, for not once pestering me about updates. You are a treasure, my dear. An absolute treasure. -hugs-