Inside the Star Labs medical room, Starfire and Nightwing were present.
Tamarans had strong self-healing abilities, and there were no visible wounds left on Starfire's body. Nightwing had also awakened from his hospital bed.
"You should have come back. We all missed you," Starfire said as she sat down beside Nightwing.
"I do miss the old times, Kori, but our era has passed. It's their time now. Besides, if I went back to the Titans, Tim would be the first to object," Nightwing replied with a smile. Then he changed the subject, saying, "However, I can occasionally come to see how your training is going. Managing teenagers in their rebellious phase isn't easy."
"I know, but I often doubt if I can lead this team well. I hope I can do as well as you did back then, but I can't," Starfire sighed. "Maybe rebuilding the Teen Titans was a mistake. I didn't think it through; it was just a momentary decision."
"That's the problem. You don't need to lead them," Nightwing said seriously, holding Starfire's hand.
"Superman and Batman have already taught them what they need to know. So why did they agree to rebuild the Titans? There's only one reason: they want Tim and the others to become a real team."
"Tim inherited Batman's intellect, Connor is filled with Superman's compassion, and Cassie knows the ways of the Amazons... They don't need you to tell them what to do. What you need to do is show them how to work together, how to resolve conflicts, and provide them with a relatively free environment."
Suddenly, the medical room's door swung open, and Yuri and his team entered.
"I have to admit, I agree with what you're saying, Nightwing, although it annoys me a bit," Tim was the first to speak, his arms crossed as he stared expressionlessly at Nightwing.
"You have a way with words, Tim, especially considering I saved your life," Nightwing said with a helpless shrug.
"..." Tim fell silent for a moment, then spoke with a complicated expression, "Sorry, it was my fault back then. I didn't close my eyes in time, and Jericho took control of my body."
While the words sounded sincere, a look at Tim's face revealed that his features were nearly twisted together, as if "reluctant" was written across his forehead.
"Has Tim always been like this?"
Yuri curiously asked Conner and the others about Tim's current behavior, which seemed quite different from his usual demeanor.
Conner, Cassie, and Bart all nodded in unison. "Tim is usually calm, but whenever it involves Batman, Nightwing, or the previous Robin, he becomes like this."
"Okay," Yuri nodded in understanding, then looked around and asked, "Where's Gar?"
"Gar has already returned to the Titans Tower. I came to check on Dick," Starfire answered Yuri's question. Her gaze then shifted to Bart, and she exclaimed, "Bart, you've grown!"
"Well, it's like this..." Bart proceeded to explain his sudden growth.
"By the way, we have a new member," Cassie chimed in, pulling Raven from the back and introducing her to Starfire and Nightwing. "This is Raven. She's the one who defeated Jericho and saved Conner."
"She also saved me and Gar," Starfire added. "I remember her. When Gar and I were struggling, Raven entered Conner's body."
"Thank you for saving us, Raven," Starfire expressed her gratitude.
"You don't need to thank me; I only did what I had to do," Raven replied calmly.
"Conner."
While everyone was engaged in conversation, Yuri suddenly approached Conner, patted his shoulder, and whispered softly, "Hey?"
"Hmm?" Conner turned to Yuri, puzzled.
"You really should learn from Nightwing. Both of you have ex-girlfriends, but look at their progress and then look at yours."
Yuri gestured toward the tightly clasped hands of Nightwing and Starfire.
"Look at their seating posture. Starfire's butt is completely pressed against Nightwing's thigh; that's what you call intimacy. And from what I gather, it's probably Starfire who initiated it..."
Conner followed Yuri's guidance and indeed noticed what Yuri had pointed out. His face immediately blushed slightly.
"How did you even notice these things?" he asked.
"Oh my, you're all grown-up, yet you still get shy so easily. Are you sure you're a grown up man?" Yuri draped his arm over Conner's shoulder and said solemnly, "I'm just advising you as a friend. If you really want to patch things up with Cassie, you need to learn from good experiences. I can tell that Cassie is interested in you too, but she's not as forward as Starfire. Be bold, and things might just work out."
"Be bold and forward, huh?" Conner thought for a moment and found Yuri's words quite reasonable.
He glanced at Cassie, making a silent decision.
"That's all I can say. The rest is up to you, Conner. I wish you good luck."
With that, Yuri remained silent.
"Let's head back. Since Gar has returned, Nightwing is okay, and we've finished discussing Raven's situation, there's no need for us to stay here any longer," Starfire suggested.
At that moment, Tim suddenly called out to Yuri and the others and headed towards the door.
"He's still that proud, huh? Doesn't he want to say a proper thank you to me?" Nightwing scratched the back of his head, feeling somewhat frustrated.
"Um... Should we not disturb you?" Conner awkwardly touched his head and then followed Tim out.
"Nightwing, Starfire, we'll be heading back as well," Cassie and Bart said as they left.
Raven prepared to leave with the group, but she noticed that Yuri didn't seem to have any intention of leaving.
She turned back, her eyes filled with curiosity as she looked at Yuri.
"I won't be going back for now. I still have some research to do at the Star Labs," Yuri explained when she noticed Raven's puzzled expression.
Raven nodded, turned around, and walked out of the medical room.
However, just a few seconds later, she returned.
°°°
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