A/N: Hey guys! Long time no see! I'm sorry that it's taken me so long to get this chapter up. Life can be crazy sometimes.

Anyway! Here we go!

Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I DON'T OWN THE DAMN TEEN TITANS.

WARNING: Mostly T, some M. DON'T SAY I DIDN'T WARN YOU.

Chapter 9

Starfire

"Absolutely not."

"Richard..."

"No."

"Please, Richard, let me exp-"

"You don't have to. It's not happening."

"Richard, it is only a matter of time before..."

"Starfire."

I sighed and ran a hand through my hair. I stared intently at the setting sun in the horizon. We were on a roof top somewhere in the center of Bludhaven, getting ready to officially start our patrol.

I stole a glance in his direction.

"She is old enough to handle it," I said.

He shook his head, a look of utter disapproval on his masked face.

"She's six, Star. She's just a kid."

"On my planet, I was fighting ferocious swamp monsters at the age of five. Trust me, Richard, I know she can handle this."

He shook his head.

"It's too dangerous."

"I shall be with her the entire time."

"Star..."

"You know I will not allow anything to happen to her."

He stared at me for a moment, thinking.

"She is growing up, Richard. She has to learn how to use her powers in a real-life situation."

"These criminals will kill her if they're given the opportunity, Starfire," he spat. "Do you really want to take that chance?"

"They will not get the chance," I said simply. "We have taught her well. She is strong. She has been through countless hours of training. The only way she is going to learn how to fully embrace her skills is if she is actually using them on real criminals. You know that as well as I do."

"She's too young. Maybe in a couple of years..."

"She is ready now, my love. Please, believe in our daughter."

He sighed heavily, walking over to me and wrapping his arms around my waist.

"I do believe in her," he said softly. "I'm just not ready for her to grow up. I mean Jesus, I still worry about you when we fight. Having my wife and my kid fighting along side me..."

I smiled and put a hand on his cheek.

"Would that not make us the perfect family?" I asked. "We will be doing what we love together."

He gently pressed his lips against my forehead.

"I'm scared she'll get hurt," he said, fear in his voice.

"We will not allow her to get hurt."

"I know," he whispered.

I looked up into his masked eyes.

"She is a little warrior, Richard. She really is."

He kissed me then, softly on the lips. When he pulled away, he smiled.

"Just like her mother," he chuckled.

I had to laugh, too.

...

Nightwing

I stood on the roof of one of the hundreds of abandoned warehouses in Bludhaven, letting the warm summer breeze soothe me. It was just before sunset, the sky littered with different shades of reds, oranges, and pinks.

I took a deep breath and let the city air enter my lungs.

How was I actually going through with this?

Somehow, my gorgeous wife convinced me that letting our daughter come with us on patrol was a good idea.

She was right, of course. She was always right. Our daughter was ready. She was so powerful, so strong. She was more than ready for this.

But I wasn't.

I wasn't ready to watch her grow up.

She was still so small. She was just a kid. She was still my baby.

She wasn't a normal human child. I knew that. She was her mother, too. A warrior. A princess.

She knew how to fight.

Still, I was her father. I still saw the chunky cheeks and the tiny hands and feet.

I still saw her as my baby.

I would worry about her forever, I knew. I was worried about her now, and I'd be worried about her when she was 30.

Jesus, I still worried about Starfire.

Starfire worried, too. She just presented it in a different way.

I closed my eyes and sighed.

I wouldn't let anything happen to her.

I would die first.

Suddenly, there were two distinct thuds behind me.

I turned around to see my wife and daughter standing there with matching uniforms, both showing off their gorgeous smiles. Starfire's showed nothing but smugness and pure pride, where Mar'i's was glowing with excitement and anticipation.

They both looked absolutely gorgeous.

"Wow," I breathed.

"One more thing," Starfire said, kneeling down to Mar'i's level. "This is the most important part of your uniform, alright? You must never leave for patrol without it."

She pulled out a tiny black object from her belt. She smiled at Mar'i before carefully moving her hair to place a little mask over her eyes.

Just like mine.

Mar'i turned to face me, her smile growing.

"Now I'm just like you, Daddy!"

I kneeled down, placing my hand on her cheek. I was so thankful that Starfire had thought to include a mask in our daughter's uniform. Not only did it protect her identity, it reminded me that my daughter was so much like me in so many ways, too.

"You make it look a lot better than I do," I said, laughing. She giggled.

I looked up at Starfire, who was smiling too.

"Raven, Beast Boy, and Cy will be watching out for us from a distance," I told her. She gave me a disapproving look and I held up my hands in surrender. "Just in case."

She sighed.

"I suppose that is a good idea," she agreed.

I smiled.

"Alright," I said, standing and taking Mar'i's hand in mine. "You ready?"

She nodded, her smile lighting up the entire damn world. There wasn't a hint of fear in those eyes of hers.

She was just like her mother.

Fearless. Gorgeous. Took no shit from anyone. She was only six. Six. And still, I swear to God she was tougher than me.

She had some of my qualities, too. She was stubborn, smart, dedicated. Determined.

She was the best of both of us.

I felt Starfire's hand wrap around mine and suddenly every doubt or fear that I had running around in my head went away.

Here I was.

I was about to go on patrol with my wife and daughter. I was going to watch them kick serious ass together.

Here we are.

We were a team. A unit. A fucking non-stoppable force.

We were family.

I was so fucking proud.

I gave each of them a smile.

"Okay," I said, turning to look into the raging sunset. "Let's go."

A/N: Okay, there you go! I'm so sorry it's taken so long to upload. Life has been NUTS (lol) lately. Thank you for all the awesome reviews! Stay tuned for chapter 10!

Love you all!

Love,

Sierra