Hey all!

So…yeah. Um it's T for a reason, ya dig? We definitely have some references up in here. But no lemons, kiddies. Don'tcha worry, Ol' Serena can't really do those yet. But give her time. Give her time.

Okay…sorry that I'm so creepy….

DISCLAIMER: I don't own anything. Seriously. My soul belongs to my cat. And Teen Titans belongs to people way cooler than I. So there.

Enjoy? Please?

:-)

A soft coo roused Dick from his sleep, and he looked around, startled. It took him a rattle of the head and few seconds to fully awaken, but once he did he eased himself upwards and saw a sight that, even two months since it had started to become a common one, took his breath away; the woman of his dreams breast feeding his baby girl.

A quiet euphoria radiated from within him as he eased out of bed, not bothering to glance at the clock, and walked over to the rocking chair where they sat. Kori, fluttered he eyes upwards and smiled softly at him. "We didn't mean to wake you," she murmured as he pecked her on the lips and stroked Mari's scalp with his thumb.

"I don't mind," he whispered, settling into kneeling so that he was at Mari's height; her eyes were blissfully closed as she suckled on her mother. The moonlight emanated from the window and coated the three of them, making Kori's hair even more iridescent. It crossed Dick's mind that there could not possibly be a moment in his life more perfect than this.

"Richard?" Kori interrupted Dick's musings as she stood up. "Have you noticed something….well….different, about my appearance since Mari arrived?" She was still smiling, but it was faltering. Dick felt that he was suddenly in dangerous territory, and frantically thought back over the past few weeks, desperately trying to think of any point that he may have unwittingly insulted her.

"Um, not that I've noticed?" He thought about adding something to the effect of "You're still as perfect as ever", but decided against it considering its cheese-factor, though it was the truth. He silently prepared for the worst; had he not noticed a new haircut, or necklace she'd been wearing often? Kori was not the type to become upset about things of that nature, and, to his knowledge, was much more likely to point them out immediately so that she would not have to wait for him to offer his opinion – had he really done something bad this time?

"Oh. Well in that case, are you just trying to be kind, Richard? You needn't think of my feelings; I promise to you I will not be so hurt if you were to speak openly about my decline in physical attraction over these past months." She looked down at her child, feigning nonchalance.

"….Kor?" Dick was stunned. Terrified he might say something stupid, as he was prone to do; but also completely shocked. Had he truly failed to notice something huge? Why was she acting like this? "Kor, I don't really understand. You're beautiful. You always have been. Why do you suddenly think so little of yourself?" He was trying to be sensitive, but his deep confusion was overwhelming him.

"Oh Richard!" Kori realized that Mari would easily become upset if she raised her voice, so she laid the now slumbering child in her cradle carefully, and then turned to face her husband. "I love you so, but truly, I know 'what is up'. I am not naïve to this world's nuances and expectations, having lived here for a decade. I knew far in advance that I would gain the weight once my pregnancy began, but I had presumed that I would return to my usual appearance soon after I had given birth. But Mari is eight weeks old, and I have yet to even mildly restore my body." Her awkwardness surrounding the situation, coupled with her sleepiness, made the speech rushed and hard to understand – so much so that Dick wished he could ask her to repeat it, if the subject were not such a touchy one. Kori stood an arms length away, staring at him, willing him to say something, but all that came out was a strangled, small babble. Dick breathed in and out once, slowly, to clear his thoughts, and then tried to find some semblance among his thoughts (made harder by the fact that it was past three in the morning).

"Kori, I'm sorry but…I haven't noticed anything. Truly. You are still-"

"Richard! Do not!" For the first time that night, Kori actually looked annoyed with him. She pulled her fluffy pink robe open to reveal her matching black bra and panties set and grimaced. "My stomach is round, my hips are fuller, my legs are…agh!" She poked her thigh and sighed wearily. "I look terrible, Richard. It is not fair that you are still in perfect physical condition, training daily and fighting crime most nights – while I sit with our child, becoming more and more hideous. Soon I am sure you will not be able to stand the sight of me –"She was quickly cut off as her husband's hand caught her wrists and his lips crashed onto hers. She replied in kind to his non-verbal soothing, but broke away after a few seconds. "Please, you are being too kind to me still-"

"KORI, stop." Dick was hardly ever this firm or demanding to his young wife, but he felt the situation called for it. "Please, stop saying, and believing, all of those things. How can you even contemplate saying that? You just had a child! Can you cut yourself some slack? You're breastfeeding, for Christ's sake!" Kori shot him a look, admonishing his swearing in front of Mari. He gave her an apologetic one in return, but continued on. "You have to make sure to eat lots of nutrients, so that Mari stays healthy. But even if that weren't true – even if it was five years since Mari was born – Kor, how can you think you're not still incredibly gorgeous in everyway?"

"Richard, I know how I looked a year ago, two years ago. I have pictures. I will never look that way again. Tell me you are not saddened by that fact?" She looked into his eyes, guiltily, as if she had something to apologize for.

Dick stared at her, incredulous. The entire time she'd had her robe off he'd been having an emotional interaction with her, but now that he gave himself a second to focus on her, he was still blown away. Her hair was vibrant, a shade that women across the nation would kill for; her eyes were the most dazzling, awe-inspiring sea glass green he'd ever seen. Her body still reminded him of a cross between a Victoria's Secret model and a Roman goddess, and he was as turned on seeing her now, at the age of 25, as he was when he saw her for the first time in lingerie when she was seventeen. His pajama bottoms felt all too tight and he had to look up at her face for fear of the next comment out of his mouth being lewd.

"Kor'iandr. Listen to me, please, and just hear me out on this, alright?" He waited for awhile until she figured out that he wanted a reply, and then she sharply nodded her head, and he began.

"Kor, when we first made love, I remember being amazed that someone as breathtaking as you would give themselves so fully to someone like me. But, even though seeing you without your clothes on was the greatest experience of my life at that point, and still ranks high even now – second, actually, only to May 14th-"he winked at her, just because he knew how much she loved thinking about the day that her first born came into the world "- it was definitely not the first time I'd envisioned making love to you."

He was blushing tremendously, but hoped that the relative darkness might save him some face. If he could see the fact that Kori's face was redder than his was, he might not have gone on, "I couldn't help it…I would see you in the halls, and no matter what you were wearing, you always made my jaw drop. You could wear ratty jeans and an old shirt and I'd still stop and stare at you." He laughed, and she giggled, if only to stop herself from bursting. "Even before we started dating, I would think of you naked. Sorry." He stepped closer to her and put his arms around her. "But can you blame me? I was in high school. You were more beautiful than a movie star. What's a guy to do?" He paused to peck her on the cheek, and he wrapped her arms around his neck.

"You've changed. It's true." She buried her head in his shoulder. "You know that your looks are not why I love you, so that's why I don't really notice when you do change minute details about your appearance. But now that I think about it, yes, you look different these days." He slid hid hand to her hip and massaged the area there. "Your hips are sexier than they were before." She raised her head slowly and peered at them, then waved a hand at his face as if she didn't believe him. "No, really, Star. They're curvier…I like it. So is," he moved the hand to grab hold of her rear, "this". She squeaked and moaned in the back of her throat, and chuckled lowly.

"Your stomach…" His hand was no tracing a circle around her belly button. "Your stomach is softer. Still flat, but with a liiitle cushioning, and it feels like velvet." He kissed her neck, and then brought the hand up to squeeze her breast. "My second favorite things about how you've changed since you've been pregnant are your breasts, my dear." She once again laughed low in her register, and Dick grinned. "They are just…really great." His brain wasn't letting him access any vocabulary beyond that at the moment, and somehow he was okay with it.

"But my favorite thing?" He put a hand under her chin and watched as her eyes looked up at him, remembering the years where he was looking up at her. "My favorite thing is the glow you have. You are such an amazing mother already, Kor. Mari loves you so much – I can tell in her laugh, and her little smile, and the way she holds your hand. Just like I do. And you are so unbelievably happy and perfect and wonderful all the time, and you are just giddy to hold her in your arms everyday." His smile could not be contained. "I'm so lucky it kills me."
Kori's mouth hung open.

Her husband, ever the manipulator, took the opportunity to crush his to hers.

Never again did she doubt her beauty.

Okay, maybe she did once or twice. But only because she really, really liked what happened afterwards.

Okay. It's 4 AM. I know, I know – the pacing is off. It's weirdly fast in some places, and awkwardly slow in others. So sue me. And the vocab is spotty. Eh. Pleeeease no flames; Star's insecurities about her bod parallel mine about my writing. Which isn't to say that I don't want constructive feedback. Just, you know, try to be nice-ish?

Ha.

Love you all,

STO