Author's note: Hello my loves! I'm currently on spring break, so to celebrate, BAT FAMILY DRAMA! Fast updates. "I got you" has one chapter that I'm finishing, then will be on hiatus until further notice. I have IB exams coming up so I'll be busy studying, aka not writing. And Sophie's starbolt energy color has changed from white to purple because reasons. Ok, In all honesty the white was originally just because I thought it was a cool symbolism, but I like the purple a little better now. I'll go back through and edit the other stories so this fits. I check my messages regularly so don't be afraid to send me one. Ok. Love y'all.
Edits: So I added a few lines to this so it's open for future chapters. I make no promises to make it multichaptered, but I want to be open to the possiblity. Also I have a tumblr now! Secondgenerationnerd. Please follow me. You can ask me questions there and here.
Most people would find walking alone at night terrifying. Sophie Grayson is not most people. Her boots make a soft click as she moves down the sidewalk. Her eyes roam over pedestrians, noting from their posture who was armed, who was drunk, who was high, who was violent, etc. The warm July night's breeze lifts dark strands that had fallen from her braid. People on the sidewalk move out of her way, some in curtesy, some in fear, some in disgust. She meets the gaze of the latter's with one defiant message. What are you going to do about it? She hears the hisses of some as she passes by. Bitch, whore, vigilante, freak, halfbreed. The last two sting though her face won't show it. It isn't her fault that her mother is an alien.
Mar'i Sophie Grayson had been born 15 years earlier to heroes Nightwing and Starfire, Aka Richard "Dick" Grayson and Princess Koriand'r "Kor'i" of Tamaran. From the start, she'd been damned. While born on Earth, she had her mother's abilites. Flight, super strength, a concentrated form of invincibility, a destructive energy called Starbolts to name a few. The parents at the park pulled their precious babies away after she'd pushed a boy too hard and broke his wrist. But on her mother's planet, she's a mongrel. Neither planet cared her parents were married before she was even a thought. She's a bastard through and through. She didn't care. Better to be alone in the real world, than with people who hate her. At least at home, she felt accepted. Her parents had fought crime long before her birth and long after, working with a team that Sophie considered her family. Her uncle Victor Stone (aka Cyborg) had no biological children, but had adopted a friend of hers. Aunt Raven and Uncle Garfield (Raven and Beast Boy/ Changeling) had her cousins three months after she was born.
Sophie's hands curl into fists as she thinks about her family. Almost a year ago her parents, aunt, uncles, and many others were kidnapped. Since then, she and her friends had been working tirelessly to keep her brother and sisters at home. Her once rapid fire life had dissolved into paperwork and court appeals.
"Hey, baby," Some asshole in a group calls out," What time do those legs open?"
Sophie glances over at his group. They were punkish 18 year olds. At least one was armed, knife, no gun, all drunk, but not worth her time. She keeps walking, wrapped up in her thoughts to even think of a come back.
"Hey, we're talking to you." One of them reaches for her as she passes by. In one fluid motion, she has his arm locked behind his back, his wrist twisted at a painful angle.
"Listen to me very carefully," Sophie speaks softly,but her words are powerful," I'm going to let go of your arm, you're going to let me keep walking. When I'm gone, you're going to take your drunk asses home."
"You crazy bitch!" Sophie twists his arm a quarter of an inch. He screams.
"BITCH!" One of his friends charges her. She turns, yanking the guy on the ground in front of her. As Asshole #2 crashes into Asshole #1, Sophie jumps to the side. They tumble to the ground with an angry yell. Their two friends don't seem to be much brighter than them. One pulls a knife and stabs at her. Sophie uses the back of her hand to push the knife away, grabbing his wrist and twisting. Like always there is a split second where she considers twisting just a little more. Breaking his arm to send a message. Fuck with her and pay the consequences. Instead, she releases his arm and throws him into his friend. The original assholes have gotten up and one grabs her arms. The second punches her in the stomach twice and winds up for a third time. She swings her legs upward, wrapping them around his neck. She twists, using her super strength to throw them off balance. The boys yell as she slams in them into the concrete.
She jumps up and fires a starbolt at them other two boys. They jump back, one yelling," She's a fucking freak!"
"What's wrong?" Sophie keeps her hands blazing, the star bolt's purple energy burning hot against her skin," Don't like the ones that can fight back? Last chance to walk away now."
Finally getting the hint, the assholes stumble off, mumbling swears and promises to get her back. Sophie looks over her body. No cuts that haven't already healed. Her tights have a rip near the knee and her favorite shirt- a light blue tunic her mother had gotten her for her 14th birthday- is stained with blood. She swears aloud, pissed that a simple walk turned into a fight. Examining a bruise on her left arm, she hears footsteps. Spinning around, she summons another starbolt. A man stands just behind her, dressed smartly in a dark jacket, shirt and pants. She blinks in confusion.
"Damian?" Sophie lowers her starbolt," What the hell are you doing in Jump City?"
"That's an excellent question, Grayson. Perhaps you'd like to follow me and get your answer." Damian turns on his heel and starts walking down a dark alley. Sophie follows him, taking two steps for every one of his. He scales a fire escape two blocks down. Sophie flies to the top of the building, a memory of her and her parents at the beach floating through her mind. On top of the building, she finds an unexpected surprise.
"Uncle Tim? Uncle Jason?" She lands on the roof," What the hell did I do to get you three together?"
Jason Todd gives his niece a cocky grin," Hey, Baby Grayson. Guess I can't call you that anymore, can I? What with you being a big girl now."
"Jason, enough," Tim is the only one to hug Sophie. For a second, she doesn't know what to do. She hugs him back figuring it's the best option. Tim looks legitimately happy to see her. Damian regards her as he always had, like she was a long forgotten game of chess. Jason grins at her still, but it's off," We wanted to see you. It is your birthday afterall."
"Yeah, little Dickie's Nightstar is 15." Sophie tenses as Jason calls her Nightstar," Oh, sorry, didn't realize you outgrew that nickname."
"This is not just a social call. Let's proceed so we can leave this city." Damien has his normal disdainful look on his face. Sophie looks at her uncles.
"So what did I do wrong?" She crosses her arms," And where's Aunt Barbara?"
Tim rubs the back of his neck ,"Babs doesn't know we're here."
"Please, she knows everything. What does he mean not just a social call," She asks.
"Bruce needs you for an under cover mission. Something about a drug ring in the young upper class."
"That sounds more like Uncle Jason's area of expertise, but I'll give you all the benefit of the doubt. When does he need me?"
"Two days. You should also bring one of your friends. Preferably one of the guys." Sophie opens her mouth to argue but Daiman cuts her off," Father insisted. It makes your cover story more believeable."
"I'll ask tomorrow," She speaks through gritted teeth," Anything else? I doubt you'd all travel from Gotham to Jump City for something that could have been done over the phone."
"We were worried about you." Tim admits.
"Yeah, Baby Grayson, you've had one hell of a year. Became a big sister, formed your own team, lost your parents and most of your family, fighting the courts to not be placed in foster care without your baby siblings, can't say even Batman was capable of that at 15." Jason gives her a kind smile. She doesn't return it.
"They were worried about you," Damian corrects," I was roped into coming."
"Damian, be nice to your girlfriend." Sophie's face burns with embarrassment. When she had been five years old, she had had a massive crush on Damian. She would follow him around when he visited, babbling in English and Tamaranian. Damian, who was physically eleven years older, but was closer to 13 in age, found it incredibly annoying. She glares at Jason," Oh, come on, kid. That was a joke."
"Even Damian would know that joke isn't funny." She pulls her hair tie out, letting her long black hair fall free from its braid. For the first time, her uncles look uneasy," What?"
"You look just like your father," Tim says," But you have your mother's eyes."
"Great, I'm Harry Potter now." She sweeps her hair into a ponytail.
"Look, we haven't been there for you in a while, but we wanted you to know that we're still a family-"
"A family? We are not a family."
"Maybe not biologically, but your dad is our brother," TIm tells her. Damian makes no move to correct him.
"Then where were you after they were taken away? Where the hell were you?!" Heat builds behind her eyes," Where were you when I had to take my baby brother and sisters somewhere safe? Where were you when I had to listen to League radio feeds just to get some information? Where were you when I was fucking terrified that someone would take me away from my home? From my friends? From my family? WHERE WERE YOU?!"
"Mar'i-" She cuts Jason off.
"DON'T-" She takes a deep breath getting her emotions in check. Her uncles try not to think of how similar the action is to her father," Don't call me Mar'i. Mar'i died when she was six. I'm Sophie."
"Just because you go by another name doesn't mean you're not Mar'i Grayson." Damian informs her.
"Really, you're going to lecture me about names, Damian Wayne? You were Robin number, what, four, five? Just because you go by the same name, just because your father took in my dad, just because he made you all his sidekick, doesn't mean anything." She turns away as tears start to roll down her cheeks. She wipes her eyes discreetly. From the rooftop she can see Titan Tower. Her home. From so far away, she wonders what the civilians thought of the tower. She'd grown up running down the halls, flying up and down stairwells and elevator shafts. There were so many places to play with her friends. Or to be alone and think. She wants to fly away home.
She closes her eyes, imagining going home to find her parents. Sophie can practically feel her mother kissing her as she walks in, her fiery hair pulled away from dancing green eyes. Sophie can see her dad on the ground playing with Richie or Sapphire or Emerald, handing them blocks or rocking them while some movie plays on the tv. He looks up at her and he smiles. Like he's been waiting all day to see her. She hears them ask her about her day. She feels the weight lift off her shoulders as she tells her parents about what happened. Her mother nods in approval as she describes the fight and her father holds which ever baby up, joking that their big sister is never going to let anyone hurt them. Sophie feels her face crumple. They aren't there. They might never be there again. If she went home now, she'd find her friends doing homework or sleeping. No one would wait up for her. No one would take the time to check in. She's alone even with her team.
Tim places a comforting hand on his niece's shoulder," Sophie, you're balancing a lot right now. We needed you to know that you don't have to do this all by yourself, even if it feels that way."
"Yeah, kid," Sophie turns to Jason. He holds out his hand. She doesn't hesitate in taking it," We're here for you. All of us- Babs, Steph, Cass, Kate, Tim, Alfred-" Sophie smiles. It's small and sad, but Jason holds her hand tight," me. Hell Damian hasn't put up as massive as a fuss as he normally does so that's as close to an 'I love you' you'll get. You also have your grandfather-"
"I don't want him." She shakes her head violently," I can deal with everyone else, but not- not Bruce."
"For Godsake, why not?" Damian, for the first time, shows actual emotion. It's complete frustration, but it's something.
"Because I cannot name a single goddamn time that I have called him in 12 years. Not one. Until last year, after my parents-" She bites her lip," I called him thirty times. I counted. I begged him to pick up the phone. Begged him to please, please talk to me. All I got was my hopes dashed."
"You're pissed at him because he didn't call you back?"
"He told Dad that I was a burden," She blurts out," An unnecessary responsibility. He never gave me a chance."
"When did he say this?" Tim asks.
"I was little. Maybe three." Jason's grip on her arm becomes uncomfortable.
"Was this after the Joker-" She nods quickly. Damian and Tim exchange a look of concern. Damian had been fiftteen at the time of the incident, but he remembers the night well. Dick was bringing his daughter for a visit. They'd all met her before, but she was a baby. On the way to Wayne Manor, the train they were taking was attacked and Sophie had been kidnapped. Dick arrived not ten minutes after the incident, fueled by rage. He demanded that they help him find her. Damian wasn't sure why until Dick had said one sentence. He only gave them two hours to find her, then he starts cutting. Even though Damian had faced worse things at her age, seeing his older brother so distressed was too much even for him.
Jason had been visiting, trying to patch up relations. It was still unclear if the Lazarus pits still had control over him, but for some reason, seeing his niece help. She never looked at him like he was anything but goofy Uncle Jason. When he heard she was missing, he didn't even wait for orders. Jason found several gang bangers and known thugs, beating information out of them. It took them two hours and ten minutes to find her. They heard her screaming the second they crashed in. Dick had run to her while the other three fought off henchman. The Joker came out, and Jason held himself back from beating the demented clown to death. Dick came out with Sophie on his back, her arm wrapped tightly. She'd been in pretty bad shape. The Joker cackled so gleefully that Dick lost it. Tim had barely been able to get her off her father's back before he attacked Joker.
He'd nearly beaten Joker to death and was ready to slit his throat when Batman arrived. It took two minutes to convince Dick that his daughter needed help. Tim had had her wrapped up in his cape. The bandage on her arm was already soaked with blood. They tied up the Joker and crew for the police before hightailing it home. Dick held her to his chest, murmuring into her hair, telling her that she would be ok. Alfred was ready when they came in. The old butler was horrified when they pulled the bandage back. Joker had carved "Mar'i" into her left forearm. She'd refused to let go of her father. Dick had distracted her by asking her to sing a lullaby. They remember her soft voice as she stumbled over the words. Tim remembers how she screamed and cried when they had to sedate her. Dick and Bruce had had it out a little later, both figuring out the best thing for their family.
None of them knew she had woken up. Sophie remembers padding down from her father's old room. She remembers them yelling at each other and it had something to do with her. The yelling had hurt her ears, and seeing her dad yelling scared her. She remembers running away and her father calling for her. She locked herself in the bathroom and cried because she knew that's one place she was allowed to cry. Her father came in and promised her he would never leave her. She cried in his arms because she knew she was allowed to cry there too.
"Sophie, you were a toddler hearing a conversation out of context." Tim points out.
"I don't know, Drake. Even in context, the conversation wasn't much better." Damian reminds him. Tim glares at him. Sophie pulls away from Jason.
"Look," She fiddles with her necklace, a tiny silver star," I appreciate the concern, but I'm doing pretty well on my own. I'll help with the mission but nothing else. If you three want a reunion, cool. If any of the aunts want to visit, great. But not Bruce. He had his chance."
She begins to turn away when Jason jumps up. He grabs her left arm and rips in back. Sophie yells in pain. Tim yells," Let her go, Jason!"
"No, she needs to hear this," He growls," You blame Bruce because you think h-"
"Are you really going to lecture me on not hating him?" She asks through gritted teeth," Because that's pretty fucking rich coming from you, Red Hood."
"I'm living proof on why you need to fucking learn to move past shit." He yanks her arm forward. She stares at her arm. The scar Joker gave her glares down at her. The I is crooked. He'd slipped because of all the blood. The scar had stretched as she had grown and faded into thin, white letters," Joker hurt you. He killed me. Trust me when I say I know how you feel. You wanted Bruce to do something about it, to take the fucker out so he could never hurt anyone again. You're pissed because he didn't do anything. Joker got Arkham and that isn't enough. Trust me, Baby Grayson. Everything that he did, everything Bruce has chosen not to do, has been for one reason. He doesn't want us, any of us to turn out like he did. You can hate him all you want, but don't say he hasn't done anything for you."
He releases her arm. Sophie rubs her shoulder as she backs up," Why should I care what you say?"
"Because you do." Damian tells her," The one good trait you got from your father is you are compassionate. You care for other people even when you don't want to. You listen to them, to a degree. While I still regard him as weak-"
She doesn't let him finish. She flies at him, grabbing his throat. They fly to the other end of the roof, where she holds him over open air. The twenty six year old doesn't even blink as his niece growls," Don't you dare call my father weak, bastard. He is better than you."
"That's what I was trying to get at. I see him as weak willed, but he has cared for each one of us. No matter what we did or said, he viewed us as his brothers. He loved us and we him," Damian gestures at the other two. Sophie notices their hands are on their waists, like they were reaching for their utility belts. Her heart sinks but shome how she feels better. She's right. They're afraid of her. Of what she's capable of. She pulls Damian back on to the roof. After releasing his neck, she looks at her other uncles. They relax a bit. Damian places a hand on her shoulder. She tenses," I know that you feel that you must face the world on your own. Know that this is not true."
Sophie meets each of their eyes. They each look concerned for her in their own way, each of them wanting her to open up. She does what she's learned to do over so many years. She buries it deep down," It was nice seeing you all. I'll see you in a few days."
"Mar'i," She's already flying away. Towards her home. She screams in frustration as she crosses over the ocean, firing starbolts into the water. They had to come and mess with her head, didn't they? Fuck them, fuck them, fuck them, fuck them. She flies to her bedroom, pushing the window open. She pulls off her clothes, running cold water on her shirt in her bathroom. The blood filters down the drain. She looks at herself in the mirror.
She searches her face for something unique. Her hair falls to her shoulder blades, today in beautiful waves, but her father's color. Her eyes are otherworldly like her mother's, green irises, green pupil, green what would be the white of her eyes. Her nose is her father's nose. Shutting off the water, she steps back. She's anything but beautiful. She's muscular from her years of training,but still slim. Acrobatics meets an odd metabolism keeps her smaller than most girls her age. Her breasts aren't small, but not large. Most boys would lose their minds if they could see her like this, but then they would see her scars. Burns on her thigh from where her skirt caught fire. Cuts on her lower stomach, stab marks, a few bullet wounds. The scar on her wrist. Those were just the visible scars. No one would be able to look at her naked body and think that she's beautiful.
Unable to look at herself anymore, she throws her clothes into the hamper. She pulls on one of her father's old t-shirts. She sniffs the collar, the soothing smell of his mint after shave relaxing her. Crawling into bed she looks at a photo on her night stand. She's six years old, her hair pulled up into pigtails. Her father has her on his shoulders as her mother rolls her eyes. She looks so happy and carefree. Laughing with her parents like nothing was wrong in the world. A lump forms in her throat and her eyes burn. She slams the photo down, hearing the glass break. Rolling over in bed, she closes her eyes.
In her dream, she's walking into her father's office. He turns around, smiling at her," There's my Nightstar."
"Happy Father's day, Daddy," She holds up a construction paper card. She runs over to him. He pulls her into his lap. While he reads the carefully made, but still hard to read card, she notices his face is tense," Daddy?"
"Yes, Nightstar?"
"Do you talk to your mommy and daddy a lot?" He looks down at her sadly
"Your grandpa Bruce never got married-"
"No, your before Grandpa Bruce mommy and daddy." She clarifies. She knew her Grandpa Bruce was just his adopted father.
"Mar'i," He sighs," I have a story for you. This is about why Grandpa Bruce is my dad now. See when I was born, I was born into a family called the Flying Graysons."
"You could fly? Like me and Mommy?" She asks, green eyes wide with amazement. He laughs.
"No, Star, we were an acrobatic troupe. Like the flips I show you sometimes. See we were part of a circus called Halley's Circus."
"Like Halley's comet?"
"Do you want to hear my story or do you want to keep interrupting?" He teases.
"Can I do both?" She asks innocently.
"Seems like you will." He kisses her forehead," Yes, like Halley's Comet. My daddy was the manager for the circus. He worked with the ringleader, Jack Halley. We came to Gotham when I was nine." He sees her little face screw up as she tries to do the math," That's four years older than you. These men came during practice one day and demanded that my daddy pay them a lot of money to keep bad things from happening. And before you ask, nothing bad would have happened if they didn't show up. They made bad things happen. Your Grandpa John told them no and they threatened me. I'd called 911 a few minutes before when I first saw them. Batman intercepted it. He saved us."
"The story isn't over, is it?" She asks.
"No, I'm just trying to think of how to say this. That night, during the performance, something bad happened. You remember how our trapeze is set up?" She nods. He had recently shown her the trapeze in the gym. She had a distinct advantage on already being able to fly, but she loved gymnastics. She'd said it was the next best thing to actually flying," Well the two nuts that keep the wires in place were taken away. My mommy and daddy went on, and I was about to go too. I saw the ropes pretty much rip free. My mommy and daddy fell. They didn't get up."
Mar'i looks up at her father, completely heartbroken," You lost your mommy and daddy?"
"Yeah, I did." He hugs her tightly.
"I'm sorry, Daddy." She says," What was your mommy's name?"
"Mary."
"That's like my name!" She gasps. Dick chuckles.
"Kind of. Your name is pronnounced Muh-ree, not Mar-ree. And your name is Tamaranian for Star. That's one reason Mommy and I call you our Nightstar.
"Do you miss them?"
"When I was younger, just after it happened, I missed them every single day. Everytime the door opened, I thought that maybe it was them. They were going to thank Grandpa Bruce for taking care of me, but we had to be going. After a while, I was really angry. I thought if my daddy just paid them this never would have happened. I was angry at myself for not checking the trapeze before hand. I was angry at the people who took them away. But," He pushes a lock of hair behind her ear," As I got older, it hurt less and less. I still miss them like crazy."
"I wish they didn't die. Then you wouldn't have hurt." Dick laughs softly.
"Yeah, but think about it like this, Nightstar. If my parents hadn't died, Bruce never would have adopted me. I never would have found out he was Batman, and never would have become Robin. Never would have met Aunt M'gann, Aunt Zatanna, Uncle Kaldur, Uncle Connor or anyone else on my old team. I never would have formed this team with Uncle Victor, Uncle Gar, Aunt Raven, or Mommy. I never would have met your mommy. I never would have gotten the chance to fall in love with her, to marry her. And you know what all that adds up to?" Mar'i shakes her head. He turns her in his lap so she faces him completely. He smiles down at her with warmth and love. He takes a second and just looks at her. The fierceness in her eyes but also a kindness. Her little hands curl and uncurl in fists. Her wild hair and her attempt to tame it with a headband. Everything about her screams that she's his daughter. He kisses her forehead, staying there for a second," If none of that happened, Mommy and I never would have had you. You are one of the best things that has happened in my life. You have been and always will be worth every little bit of heartbreak I go through."
He gives his daughter a kind smile," Now I wish they were here to meet you. To see the first actually Flying Grayson."
"I don't want you or Mommy to die. I don't want you to leave me alone." He tilts her face up, wiping a few tears from her eyes.
"Baby, shh. It's ok. I'm right here. I know you don't want that to happen. But you're wrong about one thing. Even if Mommy and I have to leave, which we work really hard to make sure doesn't happen, you will never be alone. You might think that because we aren't there to hug you or to love you means you're alone. That's not true. You know why?" She shakes her head," Because you have so many people who love you. You have Aunt M'gann, Uncle Connor, Uncle Kaldur, and Aunt Zatanna, You have Uncle Gar and Aunt Raven and Uncle VIctor. You have Aunt Barbara, Aunt Cass, Aunt Stephanie, Aunt Kate, Uncle Tim, Uncle Jason, and Damian. You have Lukas and Delilah. You have as many people as you are willing to let be there for you. You have as many people as you're willing to let love you."
He meets her beautiful eyes," I'm going to tell you something you might not understand right now. The world is a really bad place. It is full of bad people who will hurt you. You're going to get hurt and it's going to feel like the world is against you. Sometimes it really will be. But there is one thing that the world can never, ever, ever, ever take away from you. The ability to feel. Don't let anyone- me, Mommy, any Auntie or Uncle, or anyone- tell you that you are wrong to feel what you feel. If you need to cry, cry. But make sure you never cry about the same thing again. If you need to scream, scream until you lose your voice. Then find a way to handle the situation. Never let anyone tell you that your feelings don't mean anything. You can feel however you feel. You never have to hold back. As long as you make damn sure that you don't hurt for the same reason every again. Does that make sense, Starshine?"
"Kinda." She shrugs. Dick chuckles and starts kissing her face everywhere he can reach. She giggles," Daddy, Daddy, stop it."
He places one more kiss on her cheek," I love you, Nightstar."
"I love you too," She hugs him. Safe and warm in his arms.
Sophie bolts up in her bed, sweating and mouth dry. She looks down at her body, she touches her face, swearing she can feel her father kissing her. She can feel him hugging her. She remembers that day. Remembers when her mother came in and found them hugging and demanded a picture. Sophie feels her father's warmth fading from her bones as she sits in bed. Her face crumples, her breath catches in her throat before releasing shakily. She sits on her knees, grasping her blanket. She tries to fight the tears, but the pain finally hits her. She rolls forward, covering her head as she sobs. She cries for her parents. She cries for her brother and sisters. Mostly she cries for herself. She cries because she knows it's her fault that she feels like this. She knows it's her fault that she's hurting so much.
If it were two years ago, she could find her mother or father. They would have talked her through what she was feeling. Now, no one is coming to help her. She got what she wanted. She's alone. And nothing could hurt more.
Author's note: Wow, I was not expecting that to get as sad as it did. My brain just kind of shrugged and said 'what the hell?' Most of this story. Like I said, no updates for a while. But I might delete the faults in our lives and repost it a new name and with updated chapters. Will decide more later. Ok, Love you all soooooooooooooooooooooooooooo much! 3
Edit: Again, not expecting it to get as sad as it did. So I have opened this up to new chapters and I might be working on one. Of course you'll have to wait and see what happens. ;)