Thank you guys for reviewing. It means a lot. I am not finished with this series (I'm not sure I'll ever be) so don't worry.
As always, enjoy and review!
NJPNJPNJP
"Happy birthday, Star." Nightwing handed over a box.
Starfire ripped it open with childlike abandon. "It is a beret! I thank you very much, Fiancé Nightwing! Whatever is it for?"
"You said you wanted to go to Paris for the honeymoon so this is for that."
Bumble Bee, Jinx and Terra cooed while Raven smiled.
"Wait for it." Changeling whispered to Kid Flash Cyborg.
"If." Nightwing went on. "If we wait at least a year until the ceremony. Then we can go to Paris."
"Oh!" Kid Flash and Cyborg winced.
"Told you." Changeling snickered.
"What?!" Starfire frowned at Nightwing. "You are trying to bribe me?!"
"What?! No! You want to go to Paris, I want to wait a year. We both get what we want. What's the big deal?" Nightwing lifted his shoulders.
"If you cannot see the "big deal" then I am unable to go forward with this engagement!" Starfire stood.
"Are you giving the ring back?" Nightwing was stunned.
"No. It is mine and I will not return it to the likes of you." She stomped out.
"Nice going, Nightwing." Jinx rolled her eyes as the girls went after her.
"Did she really just call off the wedding because I didn't cave into her demands?!" Nightwing was livid.
Changeling shrugged. "Rae and I still don't have a date set."
"But she's not pushing you."
"If I didn't know better, I'd think she was stalling."
Cyborg facepalmed. "You're both idiots."
"Why come Mommy mad?" Christopher asked.
"Because your daddy is a bonehead."
"Hey!" Nightwing was offended. "She's the one who won't bend!"
The doorbell rang and the television turned to the security feed. Two people were standing with their backs to the camera.
"I'll get it." Kid Flash zipped out.
"I just don't get why she can't see my side." Nightwing sulked.
"Are you seeing hers?" Cyborg demanded.
"I don't get her side. Why does she want to get married so fast? It doesn't make sense!"
"Have you asked her why?"
"Of course!"
"And wanted to know the answer?"
Nightwing frowned. "Are you on her side?"
"I just want the two of you married. I don't care when."
"Do you think she's pregnant?" Changeling asked.
"Why would you say that?!" Nightwing was taken aback.
"I don't know. Now that I know what pregnancy smells like, I'm searching for it everywhere." He shrugged.
"And you think Star is pregnant?"
"I'm just throwing out suggestions for why she doesn't want to wait a million years." Changeling lifted his hands.
"It's not a million years! It's one! Just one flippin year!" Nightwing felt like cursing.
The common room doors opened and the girls came back in.
"We're just here for the kids. It's their nap time." Bumble Bee raised her hands to show peace.
"Hey, Rae?" Changeling looked at his fiancée. "Are we going to set a date?"
"A date for what?" Raven uncharacteristically spaced.
"For our wedding. I know we're talking and all but I don't want to wait too long."
"I don't have an exact date in mind but let's say def. before this year is up?"
"Cool." He handed Sebastian over.
"Why can you not behave as such?" Starfire glared at Nightwing.
"I'm not the one being difficult!" He bit off.
"So now I am the difficult?!"
Kid Flash whistled sharply. "We have company."
Everyone turned to the doors and saw a black haired male with white shocks and brown eyes and a black haired woman with purple eyes with Kid Flash.
"Blackfire?" Starfire was in shock.
"X?!" So was Nightwing.
Kid Flash looked at Red-X. "So that's what you look like without the mask."
"Call me Jason, brother." Red-X (Jason Todd) smirked.
"What are you doing here? And without the suit? You know I'm going to take you down." Nightwing stood up slowly.
"We're not here for all that. Right, babe?" Jason looked to Blackfire.
Blackfire smiled goofily at him. "Right, Jay."
Raven wrinkled her nose and in unison, she and Changeling said, "Ew."
"Surprised to see me, baby sister?" Blackfire ignored them.
"Yes. I am. I thought you were carrying out a sentence?" Starfire was totally confused.
"How about we sit and spill tea?"
"Whyever would we purposely spill the tea?"
"She means talk." Raven explained. "What I don't understand is why they want to."
"We've got some things to work out. And we wanted to visit our nephew." Jason said.
Nightwing put Christopher behind him. "That will never happen."
"You don't trust me?" He grinned before clicking his tongue. "Not very familial."
"Okay, this is straight up weird!" Cyborg threw out a hand.
"We only want to talk and if you still want us gone, we'll go." Blackfire promised.
"Friend Raven, will you put Christopher down for his nap?" Starfire asked.
Raven glared at Blackfire. "Sure."
"What's the word, BossMan?" Changeling had his arms crossed.
"We can handle them." Nightwing never took his eyes off Jason. "You go be with the kids."
Changeling, Raven and Cyborg eyeballed Jason and Blackfire to death with hostility while the others were wildly curious. But they all left, Christopher asking his Aunt Raven why that dark haired lady looked so much like his mommy.
Nightwing pointed to the couch. "Have a seat."
Jason and Blackfire sat down and held hands. Nightwing and Starfire looked at each other, dumbfounded. It was really quiet for a long time before Nightwing got impatient.
"Well this has been fun. Get out."
Blackfire chuckled. "Still to the point, Robin?"
"It's Nightwing. And I find it cuts through all the manure."
"Relax, Dick." Jason sat back. "We come in peace."
"Then why don't you speak your piece and we go back to hating each other?"
"I don't hate you."
Nightwing refused to let that sway him. "When did this happen? Why are you together?"
"We're in love." Blackfire cooed.
Starfire was gobsmacked. Her sister did not coo! "You are? How did you ever meet?"
"At a nightclub. It was love at first sight."
Jason smiled at her warmly. "When it's right, why wait?"
Nightwing's lips made a straight line. "When was this? Why haven't we heard anything about it?"
"It was about nine months ago." Jason shrugged. "Not too many people know. We want to keep it private. Just between us."
Starfire was conflicted. She loved love and seeing the obvious love between the two made her float in happiness but she'd been burned too many times by her sister to believe this was an olive branch. "I see."
"Why are you here?" Nightwing demanded.
"We wanted to see you two." Jason wrapped an arm around his girlfriend. "Can't siblings visit?"
"No. And why now?"
Blackfire sighed. "That's my fault. Jay wanted to come sooner but I was afraid."
"You have never been afraid of anything, Blackfire." Starfire gasped.
"I was afraid of facing you. I was a horrible big sister to you and I didn't know if you'd want to see me."
Starfire could see that. "Why did you wish to visit?"
"Honestly, it was Jay."
Starfire's heart sank, thinking that her sister didn't really want to see her, just like all those other times.
Blackfire could see where her mind was headed. "I wanted to come but it was Jay who put the idea in my head."
"Why?" Nightwing demanded as he stared down Jason.
Jason grinned. "You know I wasn't meant to be a thief. It wasn't what I was taught. It was never my plan A. I just… fell into it. But I like it. It's been freeing for me. But liking it isn't the same as loving it. Have you noticed that you haven't seen me in a while?"
Nightwing narrowed his eyes. "So you're giving up being X?"
"It's a slow process but yeah. It really clicked in my mind that I wanted something different. Something better. I saw your news conference where you announced that you were dating Star.
I wanted that. I wanted what I could clearly see you had for each other. So I started going out, trying to find a woman who could put up with me. And I found my Komi.
Then we heard about you having a son. It was my sign that I needed to get my act together. If the original boy wonder could make a go at a family, so could I.
So I told Komi who I was and asked her to move in. On our six month anniversary, I asked her to come with me to see you two. She finally agreed and here we are."
"How did you escape your imprisonment?" Starfire asked her sister.
"The hard way." Blackfire gulped. "Then I faked my death. I came to Earth because you seemed to have such good luck here. I've only ever been to California so I settled here. I wasn't here more than two days when I found my Jay-bird."
"Your love seems splendid."
Nightwing made a face. "It took you three months to come visit?"
"I thought it'd be a good birthday present." Blackfire shrugged.
"We heard you were engaged and bought you a present." Jason took a box out of his jacket.
Nightwing listened for a bomb unwrapped it carefully. He opened it and saw it was just a picture. "What is this?"
"Your present. We were going to bring it with us but we didn't want you to throw it out after us."
Nightwing showed Starfire. It was a picture of two champagne flutes with their given names writ in gold. "You really think we believe you? You admitted to liking stealing and you are a power crazed dictator."
"I'm in community college." Blackfire said proudly. "Jay helped me realize I don't have to take the things I want by force. I can get into Earth politics and win honestly. I want to be the next mayor. And I won't even be corrupt."
Starfire smiled. "You wish to meet our bumgorf?"
"Starfire!" Nightwing's jaw dropped dramatically.
"I'd love to. But he's down for a nap, isn't he?" Blackfire ignored Nightwing.
"He is. I suppose that means you will have to come another time." Starfire's smile widened.
Blackfire squealed. "I'd love that!"
"I don't think so!" Nightwing shouted.
"He is the four years of age and he likes the juice of oranges. He loves playing with the Silky and he shares his toys." Starfire gushed.
"He sounds amazing!" Blackfire's eyes lit up harmlessly.
"I heard he's meta." Jason cut in. "Are you training him yet?"
"Yes but very little. He has the super strength, the ability to shoot the heat from the eyes and the frost from his mouth and the ability to fly. He has gotten quite good at it in the last year." Starfire explained.
Nightwing threw up his hands.
"You know? we want to visit Dad." Jason said. "See how Tim's doing. Alfred."
Nightwing snorted. "You don't want to see him?"
"I don't know. The past is the past but there is a reason I left."
"Well I have news for you. He got Selina pregnant."
"What?!" Jason's mouth fell open.
"Yup."
"He can't raise a child!"
Nightwing threw up a hand, agreeing.
"He ruined three lives already! Now he's adding two more?! Does Selina know he's Batman or did he do her as Batman?"
"Bruce. He lied to her and told her he didn't know she was Catwoman. She fell for it hook, line and sinker."
"Someone's gotta tell her the truth!"
"I told her to open up her eyes. To find out more about him. If she's smart, she'll take my warning."
"And Selina's never been stupid." Jason nodded twice. "I didn't even know they were serious."
"Apparently so." Nightwing shrugged.
"I really gotta get in touch with him." Jason cocked his head. "Are we cool?"
"No."
"You'll see. We'll make you trust us." Jason stood up.
Everyone else did, too. Nightwing glanced between the two lovebirds. "You know she's seven years older than you."
"I like older women." Jason took his girlfriend's hand.
"This is weird."
Jason shrugged. "Have faith, big brother."
Nightwing rolled his eyes and waved a hand, indicating he wanted them to walk ahead of him.
Blackfire and Jason made small talk with Starfire about Christopher all the way down to the front door.
Nightwing punched open the door and threw out a hand. "Alright, get out."
"Fiancé Nightwing!" Starfire admonished.
He set his lips.
"That's okay." Jason said. "We do have to go. We're going antiquing. It's boring as hell but sometimes you find some good stuff."
"I would love to go with you!" Starfire's eyes shone.
"Except you made plans to help Chris with his homework." Nightwing growled.
"I did." She pursed her lips.
"Another time then." Blackfire hugged Starfire. "I love and value you."
Starfire was shocked. Blackfire never hugged! "I love you as well."
Blackfire smiled and took Jason's hand. They stepped through the portal and walked to a ford focus and climbed inside. Jason honked the horn twice and sped off.
Starfire turned to Nightwing. "You were rude!"
Nightwing grunted. "You know? I changed my mind. We can get married this fall."
Starfire threw herself into his arms and kissed his face. "Yes! Splendid!"
He shut the door and pried her arms from around his neck. "You should get to planning."
"I cannot wait! Whatever changed your mind?"
Nightwing smirked. "Seeing their love reminded me of our love. We shouldn't wait. Let's do it."
Starfire floated. "I love you so much, Fiancé Nightwing! I will go to tell our friends!" She flew out. "This is my favorite day of birth!"
Nightwing rubbed his hands together. His three second plan was coming together.