A/N: Hi Guys! Well after many requests for a sequel, here it is:) This story won't be as long as the previous Mar'i Grayson story and it will be a little different and it will be set when Mar'i is 16 turning 17. It's going to be more romance and less action (but it doesn't mean that time travel isn't needed:P). This will portray a weaker Mar'i who wasn't as powerful and strong as the previous Mar'i since, well, she's dying. It's just an experiment but I've pretty much written the whole thing and it's about 10 chapters altogether. I really hope that you like it and I hope that I don't ruin the previous story haha:3

Disclaimer: I don't own Teen Titans or DC. I just own the plot and my computer. Enjoy guys!

CHAPTER 1: This isn't living ( KOR'I POV)

"Mar'i get inside the house now!" I demand, walking into the garden towards the bench my daughter is sitting on.

I wanted what all mothers want; a nice home with a loving family, and a daughter that wasn't dying. But that wasn't us, to be quite honest, we didn't know any different. From the moment we came home from the hospital 16 years ago, we knew that things were going to be tough. But looking at how far my little girl has come is worth every moment. She has given both my husband and I the happiness that we could not even comprehend, if only we could give her the same.

She would never hide the fact that she wasn't well, and she would never deny her fate. But you could tell that her brave face was only there to put our minds at ease. Every time she was given knew medication in hope of finding a cure, she wouldn't nod and smile her dazzling smile saying that she felt an improvement. But of course we knew that wasn't the case. The fact is that there is no improvement, and we all know the situation.

She was dying.

And the worst part?

We didn't know how long she had left.

I place my hand on her small shoulder, "Mar'i ,did you hear me?".

"It's a nice day; I'm just enjoying the sun." She argued, closing her emerald eyes and tilting her head upwards towards the sun's rays.

"It is dangerous for you to be in the direct sunlight. The radiation could react badly with your condition." I stress, taking my hand from her shoulder and stroking a section of her beautifully dark hair.

She opened her eyes and looked at me. "You told me that Tamaranians get energy from the sun, it's only natural that it refreshes my alien side. I thought that you'd want my Tamaranian side to be stronger since it's the only thing keeping me alive at the moment!" she protested further, crossing her arms over her chest.

I try to reason further, "but you do not know how this will affect your progress. The sun mixed with the medication-"

"Screw the medication!" she exclaimed angrily, standing up from the bench.

"It is the medication that is keeping you alive!" I argue with an equal amount of frustration as I mimicked her actions. I was slowly starting to lose my temper as my eyes threatened to glow their wild green. Why can she not see that we are just trying to protect her?

"BUT THIS ISN'T LIVING!" she shouts back, taking me by surprise as I'm immediately silenced. Sighing she continues gently, "living and breathing isn't the same thing, mom." She looks sadly at me. "The truth is that there are things that I want to do that I haven't done yet, and I don't have much time. From the moment that I could understand English, I've been told that I'm ill, so I should be able to do normal things despite that, to give me a chance at being normal. Like school! I've never been to a real high school. I haven't had the chance to go meet new people and experience new things. And there's nothing physically stopping me" she paused, running a hand through her hair. "Mom." She addressed me as she took my hands in hers. She looked straight into my eyes before placing my hands on her chest over her heart. She held them there for a few moments before continuing to speak, her voice barely above a whisper. "I can feel my heart beating, but I just don't feel alive." She finished, tears threatening to spill from her eyes.

That is when my heart broke. Right there and then, I have never been so mortified in my whole life.

Before I had chance to console her, she dropped my hands and ran further into the garden, sobbing quietly to herself. I stood there with only the gentle breeze of the wind for company. Inhaling sharply, I turn and make my way back into the house, entering the kitchen.

Once inside, I stare out of the window at Mar'is distant form on the other bench at the far end of the yard.

"Kori?" I hear a soft voice from behind me.

"Richard." I breathe sadly, "How much of that did you hear?" I ask, still not turning to face him.

I hear him place his brief case onto the wooden floor and his heavy footsteps make their way towards me. "I saw enough from here." He replies, hugging me from behind as he kisses my cheek as a greeting.

I lean into his embrace slightly before turning around to face him.

"She has your spirit Kor." He gives me that same dazzling smirk that I had loved since we were teenagers.

I smile slightly at his comment before replaying what my daughter had said; 'Breathing and living are not the same'...

"We should never have told her about her illness" I whisper sadly, embracing Richard, resting my head on his strong chest as my gaze fixates itself on the kitchen wall.

"And what? Lie to her her whole life?" he asked, lifting my head up to meet his eyes. "Kori we would be tricking her into thinking that she's going to have a long future. We couldn't do that to our daughter. By telling her, she's been prepared for this in case, god forbid, we can't find a cure. She can do anything that she wants to and make the most of her years." He reasoned, his eyes beginning to glimmer slightly with tears that he wouldn't allow to spill, even in front of his wife.

"But can she?" I argue, lifting myself from his chest and stepping back. "It is true, we have trapped her. We think that we are protecting her by not letting her go outside, but all we have done is isolate her in her own pain. All this time we have prevented her from leaving the house, thinking that she's weakened and we could easily lose her, that anyone could take her from us prematurely. But we have stopped her from finding herself. Her only friends are her cousins. We've completely isolated her from the world!" I cry, the realisation quickly hitting me. Mar'i was right, she really isn't living. "We're holding her back. The only thing hurting her is us!"

"And the Sophthium..." Richard whispered in reason, walking towards me and grabbing my hand in comfort, brushing away the tear that had rolled down my cheek away with his thumb.

"She deserves a full childhood Richard."

"Childhood? Kori she turns 17 next week!" he stressed his voice growing in volume.

"All the more reason to make things right." I reply quietly, as his eyes soften.

Richard nodded before walking towards the phone that lay on the kitchen worktop. Picking it up, he pulled out a small notebook from his jacket and dialled a number.

I turned towards the window one again, trying to make out my daughter amongst the trees and plants. There is a moments silence as Richard waits for an answer on the phone.

"Hello." I hear him speak after a short moment.

Curious of who he'd called; I turn around to watch him on the phone as he continued to speak.

"This is Richard Grayson. I would like to request permission to enrol a new student into your Academy."

I catch Richard's eye and he gives me a reassuring smile. Hopefully we were doing the right thing.

I turn back towards the window and smile slightly to myself as I watch Mar'i try to talk to a bird in the garden. "We will not hide you away anymore." I whisper to myself as an unheard promise to my brave little girl.

A/N: So first chapter is a little slow but it's just to get a feel of what day to day life is like for Mar'i when she's ill and the strain it has on the family.
I'll update soon since I've prewritten the next chapter and I have 2 months off school this summer so I'm free to update whenever :) Please review, I always reply x