Author's Note:
Hanna: Thank you for the wonderfully long note. I agree with you in a lot of points. For the comics, after Wolfman and Perez stopped writing the Nightwing/Starfire relationship, Starfire did become the transitional girlfriend. They out grew each other. I wish more people would recognise that. To address the Dick characterisation point you mentioned, yes I do often paint Dick as kind of jerk, that has more to do with how he's represented in the cartoon and the Teen Titan Go comic where's he's very socially awkward towards Starfire and misses a lot of social clues from her. There's even one comic where he takes her on a 'date', knowing full well she thinks it's a date, and bombs out completely. If I was writing comic!Dick, he'd be a lot more confident and sensitive. Likewise, cartoon!Starfire is a lot more naive and prone to allowing it to happen because she's not as clued in to Earthen customs as comic!Starfire is. It's pretty hard to reconcile the cutesy cartoon with a more adultish relationship and include comic aspects and still have them feel like the characters from the cartoon. Anything more I have to say would be spoilers. I do believe Babs and Starfire would be friendly, especially the cartoon versions, if they'd been given a chance. As for fault… well… I'll just leave a spoilers sign there.
Regarding Red Hood and the Outlaws, it's not that I don't like it, I just feel it was written very poorly to begin with. Starfire's character was presented in the first issue completely in contrast with what appeared in later issues. I was soured almost immediately regarding both Jason and Roy's treatment of her, and her complete lack of any sort of empathy for anyone and her attitude toward sex. I've seen reader written dialogue to match the exact pictures used which reflect a much healthier attitude and allowing Starfire to shine without degrading her character. When added with the complete about face of her character issue 2 and the fact it took us fifteen issues and a new writer to touch on the questions we'd all been asking since issue 1 about her memories, I just couldn't stomach it. I feel it could have been done very, very differently, or used different characters rather than the ones it did. But a lot of people like that kind of Starfire and that's fine.
The third choice.
Somehow, inexplicably, they continued to be drawn together. He would fly to Jump for Network meetings rather than conducting them via video phone and they would linger afterward. Babs would have a party and invite her. Karen would have a party and invite him. Victor and Gar held many joint parties over the College years, and Dick attended every single one. And when Rachel decided to have a get-together (no one would mistake that for a party)… bad things would happen if one didn't attend.
Their eyes would meet. Her face would brighten. His heart would thump in his chest. They would sneak at times. Excuse themselves and then find a free room. Or an alleyway. Or a broom closet. Sometimes he'd cart her away to a hotel for the night so they could wake up together. Sometimes, though, he was completely and utterly human about the arrangement.
Sometimes they would hold off the liaison, flirtatious eyes across the room, teasing each other all night before one of them would break.
Sometimes when thing were bad he didn't need an excuse like a party or a get-together to see her. Like when Jason died, "I need you" was enough. She spent the entire week with him then, both as his lover and as his friend. If he wasn't so torn up with grief, he would have seen the difference between the two.
Being with her, it was like he was addicted to those first few feelings of new love. The rush of the kiss. Worry if she would accept his advances. Pride when he made her flush. The tangle of romance with no strings attached. Their liaisons could be months apart or single days, depending on what occurred, Dick supposed that was what kept things fresh.
It was fun for a while.
The middle of his final year at College it began to crumble. Dick knew the friends-with-benefits agreement was unhealthy. He continued to want strings attached and Starfire seemed happy with the status quo.
She seemed different in the bed. More flirtatious, less eager to speak of what was going on in their lives. If they met in a setting which was not conducive to sex, she was more like her old self, chatting and laughing and being friendly.
Dick didn't understand why she was so different. He began to dread the moments after. The knowledge they would go back to being distant. That for her, it was just sex.
He wanted romance. He wanted love. He wanted to appreciate her. Respect. Commitment. He wanted the in-between moments. What they had, it wasn't any of those. There were still emails and phone calls and laughter but often Dick felt like she was simply writing in a diary, her words were so clinical. They never talked about what was happening between them, not in the emails, not in the bed.
Once he'd begun to dread, he began to avoid. If, perhaps, she did want more, he was hopeful she would pursue him. Maybe question.
She didn't.
Oh, there were questioning looks whenever they saw each other, from Network meetings or in the social setting, but when he stopped responding to her flirtatious eyes, she stopped giving them. Her descriptive emails about her life and her course continued as though nothing was occurring. She still acted the same when they met or spoke in a friendship setting.
In his pain and her complete lack of remorse, he grew bitter. The sarcastic and deliberately hurtful comments started.
Starfire, being who she was, called him out on it via a starbolt to the face in the middle of the monthly Network meeting. Then grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and carted him out of Ops and into one of the adjoining rooms, leaving the rest of the Titans to gape.
"What is with you?" she snarled, glowing in her fury. "I have never heard such words from you!"
Fuming, his hair smoking from her blast, he clenched his hands into fists. "As if you didn't know."
"I do not have any idea!" she told him, throwing up her hands. "What have I done which deserves such cruel words?!"
"I never knew you were such a bitch, how dare you disrespect me. I am the leader of —"
She levelled a starbolt at him. "Names have no place," she snarled. "We are not children. Civil words for civil people. What is wrong?"
He scowled at her.
Her eyes narrowed. "My patience is wearing thin."
Nightwing paced up and down the small room, too angry to be civil.
Starfire lowered her starbolt. "My work within the Titans is, as always, exemplary. I do not understand the sudden animosity. What am I doing which is not satisfactory?"
"It has nothing to do with the Titans," he spat.
"Then what?" she asked, her voice rising and her eyes wet. "I do not understand. You have always been able to tell me anything, why are you holding back now?"
"You don't have a heart."
She jerked as though he'd struck her. "What?"
He scowled some more and headed for the door. "I don't want to do this."
"Dick, I truly do not understand—"
He spun. "It's all just sex for you, isn't it?"
"The friends with benefits?" she asked, finally breaching the topic. "That is what this is about?"
"What the hell did you think it was about?"
Her face twisted in pain. "You were the one who suggested it! I did not expect anything to continue after that! I thought you would— Do you truly think I wanted this?"
"I don't know what you wanted."
"I respected your decision to withdraw from me," she snapped. "You indicated it was over, I stepped back! I have been following the Earthen rules as much as I can. What more could I do?"
"A lot more than what you've been doing!"
"I do not understand!" she wailed.
"You didn't stop me! You wanted this to end!"
"Of course I did!" she yelled. "It hurt too much! I wanted—"
He laughed. "Yeah, right." He gestured between them. "This, whatever the fuck it is, is over. I don't want you in my life anymore."
Starfire closed her eyes. All the fight drained out of her. "Acknowledged," she murmured.
Nightwing turned and stalked from the room. He ignored the looks from everyone, ignored how Raven jumped up and dashed into the room he'd just vacated. He stalked to the N-Wing and took his anger out in the sky.
It didn't occur to him until much later to ask Starfire about these so-called rules she mentioned, and by the time he remembered that little nuance, she was nowhere to be found.
She stopped attending Titan meetings, submitting her reports via Raven. He supposed he couldn't blame her for that. She stopped attending parties, or at least attending them in her Kory persona. At times he saw a strange woman chatting with Rachel like they were old friends. If she had to hide from him, he'd respect that. Appreciate it even.
The emails stopped. Everything stopped. No more contact at all. He hadn't realised how much he'd looked forward to her words. How much he relied on her to keep up to date about what was occurring within the Titans socially. To be cut from her life so completely…
It hurt but he'd asked for it. She gave it. Really, what had he expected?
Dick graduated with honours and went straight to the police academy in Gotham. He rented an apartment not too far away from the Manor so he'd still have access to the Batcave. He even had a girlfriend.
Life was good. He was… he wouldn't call himself happy. Content at least. Enjoying life.
Then Starfire exploded into the modelling world. She was everywhere, everywhere Dick looked and everywhere he turned there'd be a billboard with her on it or a magazine she was in. Lingerie was her photography forte (how could it not be?), but she really excelled at the catwalk. She did. Designers loved her.
Seeing her made his heart ache. He'd thought he was over her.
While Starfire seemed to have everything going for her, Kory Anders, when Dick cared to look, had vanished. She'd completed her course with honours and then nothing. Not a pip of an appearance. No job. No bank account used. Nothing. She'd paid off her student loans in one fell swoop and disappeared.
He asked Raven one day and she gave him her patented 'you're a complete idiot' look. "Really, Dick?"
He shrugged and acted blasé, slowly stirring his coffee. "I'm curious."
She sighed and placed her tea cup back on the table in front of her. "Don't you think you should ask her?"
"We… don't talk."
"And whose fault is that?"
He chose not to answer. No one else knew the exact details of the friction between Dick and Starfire. He suspected Raven would have more information than others, but even then he doubted she knew what had occurred.
She stared at him for a long moment, then rose to her feet to leave. "Did you even consider who she created Kory Anders for?"
Raven's words troubled him for weeks.
It wasn't until his (available-to-non-superhero-friends) laptop got a virus (well, gee, what did Alvin use it for?) which forced him to go through his contacts to check no spam mail had been sent that he noticed.
Starfire had two email addresses and only one entry in his contact list. One email was registered to Kory, the other was Starfire.
It was the Starfire email address who sent the messages about her life. What was happening, how she was doing. The Kory email only ever sent details on the next party she was attending, whether or not she'd be in Gotham, or inquire as to whether or not he was attending the next Titan meeting. But because he'd listed both emails under the name of 'Star', his provider never separated the emails.
Looking over her emails as Starfire, he saw the heart and passion he always identified with her were still there in her words. The letters where much like they were when she'd visited Tamaran back before they were dating, just the right tone of friendship with a hint of more. It was only because they were mixed in with the Kory emails he never noticed how she'd separated herself. Lover and friend.
She'd split herself. He hadn't.
He'd been blind to a lot of things. He'd burnt the bridge between them. No going back.
His relationship with his girlfriend deteriorated, so he ended it. He hadn't really put his heart into it; he supposed that was one of the many reasons why it failed.
Instead, he concentrated on his police training, being Nightwing and fighting crime, and helping Bruce and Babs train up the new Robin, Tim.
Dick and Babs found good company in each other, sharing a meal at least once a week, more if they could. Babs was another reason his relationship failed, his ex didn't like the amount of time they spent together. She'd been convinced a lot of the 'sudden emergencies' where Dick ran off were because of Babs. Cheating claims had become the norm and Dick didn't have the investment in the relationship to try.
In a sense, the sudden emergencies involved Babs, but not because there was anything other than friendship between them.
Babs bustled into the café they were supposed to be having coffee at, late as usual.
"Busy day?" Dick asked, looking up from the newspaper.
"You'd think libraries would be a quiet place to work," she replied. "But nooooo, not in Gotham."
"Sudden rush on Twilight?" he teased.
She pulled a face at him. "Don't you have all four?"
"For winter," he replied, folding up the newspaper and placing it on the table. "Good starter fuel."
She laughed. Unhooking her bag, she threw the strap over the back of her seat, then draped her jacket over it. "How've you been?"
"Pretty good."
"How's…" Babs frowned and clicked her fingers. "Um…"
Dick rolled his eyes. "We broke up."
Babs looked surprised. "Really? I liked her."
"As evident by the lack of remembrance of her name."
"Oh, give me a break," she complained. "Did you order?"
"For me."
"Thanks so much," she said, tart as she lifted her finger to signal a waitress.
"I didn't know how much longer you'd be."
Babs rattled off her standing order for this particular café before giving her attention back to Dick. "Why'd you break up?"
He shrugged. "We wanted different things."
"Translation, she couldn't handle your double life."
"I'm beginning to doubt anyone really can."
"Except those who live it," Babs said with a nod.
He shrugged. "Pickings are pretty slim for those who live it too."
She kicked him under the table. "Thanks, Dick," she snarked, her tone clearly indicating the other meaning of the word.
"I didn't mean you," he protested, reaching under the table to rub his shin. "I only meant—"
"Like I'd date you anyway. Besides, I'm hanging up the cowl."
"So I heard. Why?"
"I figure between you, Tim and Bruce, you've got it covered."
"I'm not in Gotham much longer."
Babs leant forward and rested her elbows on the table, grabbing an opening Dick sensed she'd been waiting for. "Do you know who is in Gotham?"
Dick raised an eyebrow, since it was a very poorly played grab. "Who?"
"Starfire."
Dick stomach dropped. "Oh?" he asked, managing to keep his tone level.
"We're having dinner on Tuesday. She's here for the Fashion Week."
"That's nice," he said, keeping his tone as even as possible and hoping she'd pick on the message he didn't want to talk about this.
"Do you want to come? I scored two tickets to opening night, you can be my plus one."
"Not my thing," he said and took a mouthful of coffee.
"Don't you want to even see her?"
Dick sighed. "Babs. Leave it."
"You really haven't been reading the social pages, have you?" she asked, nodding at the paper.
He frowned, glancing at it. "It's the social pages."
"Uh-huh."
Curiosity got the better of him. "Why?"
"Apparently the odds are pretty high for Bruce to make a play on her."
"Like he would," Dick scoffed.
She fiddled with her napkin. "You and I both know there's a lot he would do to uphold that playboy image of his."
Dick paled. "He wouldn't."
Babs shrugged. "It wouldn't be the first time."
"You're evil, you know that."
She smiled. "That's been said."
Dick scrubbed a hand through his hair. "We haven't talked. Not since…"
"And whose fault is that? One of you needs to make the first move to fix this. And I don't think it'll be her."
"Why not? She started it."
She scowled at him. "Liar."
Dick had the decency to look ashamed.
"Do you want it fixed?" Babs asked.
Dick sighed. "I miss her friendship," he admitted.
"That's a good place to start then," Babs replied. "It's okay, I'll introduce you."
Dick laughed. "Like that's going to happen."
"All you have to do is show up. Bruce'll get the hint."
Dick puffed out a breath. "I don't even—"
"She asks after you," Babs said bluntly.
Surprise rocked through him. "She does?"
"'Course she does. This is Starfire. She's got one of the most forgiving nature's I know. You have to try. You'll never forgive yourself if you don't at least try. All you have to do is say hi and take it from there."
He nodded. "Alright fine. I'll be your plus one."