What's up guys! Just to clarify this takes place directly after "Coldhearted". Happy reading! Feel free to review, it makes my day!

I own nothing.


Dick walked through the halls with Wally, heading toward the main hangar. He had just congratulated his best friend for basically saving a whole country and the two were just catching up. They were laughing and joking together as they went.

Wally cleared his throat, "So, how are things back home?"

Dick glanced at him, "They're good. It's honestly not much different."

"Huh," Wally smirked at him, "I still can't believe your luck at having her actually live with you."

Dick coughed and quickly looked around, "I don't know what you're talking about."

Wally laughed again, "Yeah right, bro! I see the way you check her out!"
Dick rolled his eyes, "I don't check her out!"

"Whatever you say man." Wally put his hands up in a placating gesture.

They entered the hangar to see that most of the team were heading back home. Artemis had just stepped through a zeta tube. Conner and Megan were heading out of the hanger through the hall that would take them to their rooms. Kalder was talking to Zatanna but he left as the two boys approached.

Zatanna smiled at them, she looked tired. "Ready to go home?"

Her question was directed at Robin but Wally answered, "Heck yeah I am! I'm starved!"

With that he nudged Robin and headed through one of the portals. The two teens left rolled their eyes in unison and turned to leave as well.

When they appeared in the batcave they stepped off the platform and made their way to the stairs.

"How did it go on your end?" He asked the magician and she grinned at him.

"Really well! I'm so glad I'm on the team!" She sounded happy despite how tired she looked.

"Good."

"How was it for you?" She asked as they pushed open the clock and stepped into the study.

"Not too bad. We got it done pretty quickly. The guns weren't too hard to take out." He said.

"I could get used to this." Zatanna told him, "It feels...natural. Like I'm supposed to be doing it."

Dick beamed at her, "I know exactly what you mean."

They were at their rooms by now and they stopped in between their doors. It wasn't too late yet, it was only nine o'clock.

"So...I was thinking maybe we get some food and then watch another movie?" Zatanna asked him hesitantly.

He smiled at her again,"Yeah that sounds good. I'll meet you in fifteen minutes?"

Zatanna nodded before disappearing into her room.

He pushed open the door to his room and grabbed clothes before taking a quick shower. When he stepped out he dried off and pulled on some gray sweatpants. Then he brushed his teeth and stepped out of his bathroom while toweling his hair.

This time Zatanna was waiting on his bed. He almost jumped when he saw her. She blushed when she realized he wasn't wearing a shirt. He laughed lightly at her and grabbed a t-shirt from his dresser. He walked back into his bathroom to toss his towel into a hamper before crossing the room to join her. He pulled his shirt on and pretended not to see Zatanna look him over as he did.

She was wearing her usual shorts, but she was wearing a slightly cropped, thin strap tank top this time. Dick glanced at her barley showing midriff as he plopped down beside her.

"So, what's the plan?" Zatanna asked him.

He smirked, "I thought you were the one with the plan."

She laughed, "But you're the master strategist."

It was Dick's turn to laugh, "Okay, okay! Fine." He paused as he thought of a plan.

"How about this? You go grab some blankets and head down to the theatre? And I'll go get us some food and bring it in there."

Zatanna smiled at him and bounced off of the bed. He watched her land on her feet and gave her a quick once over. He hoped she didn't notice as he stood up beside her.

"Sounds good, bird boy!" With that she turned and darted out of his room. His eyes didn't move from her as she left. Then he shook his head and walked out of the room. She caught up quickly and he laughed again. She already had one blanket wrapped around her and the other was slung over her shoulder.

She swatted at him as he laughed but he dodged the harmless assault easily. They parted ways as they reached the bottom of the stairs. Dick reached the kitchen quickly. Bruce was talking to Alfred when he entered.

"Hello, young Sir." Alfred greeted him, Bruce did his typical nod.

"Hey, Alf." He said in return and elbows Bruce as he passed him. That resulted in him being swatted playfully upside the head. He didn't quite dodge that one tho. Alfred clicked his tongue at the rough housing.

"Where's the young lady?" Alfred asked him.

"We wanted to watch a movie, since we have some downtime. Could we eat in the theatre?" Dick asked, putting on his best puppy dog eyes.

He heard Bruce huff next to him, it was his version of a laugh. And Alfred's expresion took a humorous turn. He raised his eyebrow at the pair, "What?"

"Well, my boy, you seem quite taken with the young lady." Alfred's lips quirked.

Dick's mouth fell open and he turned to look at Bruce who gave him a knowing smirk. Dick crossed his arms, "I am not."

"Sure, Dickie, Sure." Bruce said, clearly not buying it.

Dick sighed and sat down as Alfred started to heat up some food. Bruce ruffled his hair and he slapped the hand away. It seemed to only encourage the billionaire.

"It's okay to have a crush, Dick." Bruce smirked again.

"Yeah, except I don't have one." He reminded his guardian.

"Deny all you want, son."

Dick sighed again as Alfred set a plate in front of Bruce and then handed two to Dick.

"Try not to make any messes please, sir." Alfred told him.

"Yes, Alfred."

He made his way quickly to the theatre where Zatanna was waiting. She was on the floor next to the shelf where the movies were kept. She turned around and smiled at him as he entered.

"I'm thinking comedy." Zatanna informed him.

"Sounds perfect, Zee." He told her, inwardly thinking that anything she wanted would sound perfect.

Ten minutes later they were sitting on the couch, covered in blankets, and eating their food while "Kicking and Screaming" played on the large screen. They set their plates on a nearby table when they finished and moved closer together.

Zatanna rested her head on his shoulder again, she had a habit of doing this whenever they were close. He didn't mind it in the least. He let his head rest on hers as they continued to watch the movie.

At some of the funniest parts they both leaned forward, gasping with laughter. When they leaned back Zatanna had pushed herself sideways so that her back was leaning against his chest. Her head was under his chin. She was being pretty forward tonight, maybe she did like him a bit.

Despite the fact that he had been denying his feelings to anyone that asked, he did really like her. And seeing how Bruce had teased him, he was also starting to think that maybe Bruce wouldn't have a problem with this. Maybe his guardian would be okay with him dating her.

So Dick decided maybe he should be a little more forward. He slid his hands up from their place on the couch and over her waist. He skimmed the bare skin of her midriff so that his arms could encircle her. He felt her shiver on top of him before she sighed relaxed against him again. He smiled into her still damp hair.

They continued to watch the movie for a few more minutes before Zatanna shifted. She pushed herself up before situating herself in his lap. He raised his eyebrows but, hey, he wasn't complaining. She leaned back against him again and secured his arms around her. They stayed like that until the movie was over. As the credits rolled Zatanna sat up enough to look back at him and he smiled.

"What?" She asked him.

"You." He replied.

She laughed, "What does that mean?"

He smiled wider and shrugged, "I like you, zee."

She raised her eyebrow, "I like you too, Dick."

Zatanna suddenly smirked and he looked at her curiously.

She twisted in his grasp and moved so that she was facing him. She was straddling him now and she moved her hands over his arms and around his neck. His mouth turned up into a slow smirk. He let his hands travel from her back to her hips. She leaned forward and that's where he got nervous. He swallowed hard as he looked at her pretty face.

He glanced down at her lips, he seemed to have a habit of doing that. God, he wanted to kiss her. He looked back up to her eyes, she looked nervous too, but also excited. He leaned forward a bit too and she smiled. He tightened his grip slightly on her hips and pushed his head forward until their lips met. They melded together and he felt her press herself against him.

The kiss was short and simple seeing as neither of them had done this before. They pulled apart and Dick was suddenly a bit worried that he may have overstepped. She had seemed pretty into it but he wanted to make sure.

Zatanna rested her forehead against his and let out a breathless laugh. He smiled at her and she bit her lip. He laughed this time and slid his arms back around her. She moved her head to his shoulder and relaxed against him.

They stayed like that for a minute, just content being with each other. Dick didn't really want to talk about what came next though. He wanted to just feel this out, he didn't want to label it yet. And seeing as she wasn't saying anything, he guessed she was thinking the same thing.

Dick sighed, "We should probably go to bed."

Zatanna pushed herself up so that she was facing him again, "You're right." She sighed.

"As usual." He joked.

She rolled her eyes and stepped backwards and off of him. He stood and stretched before they cleaned up their mess and headed up the stairs. He leaned on her door frame as she settled into bed.

She turned to him with a shy smile which he returned.

"Goodnight, Dick." She said.

"Goodnight, Zatanna."

Dick closed her door and then he crossed the space to his room. He closed the door and then ran and jumped onto his bed. He landed splayed out on his back and sighed happily. He had really kissed her!

He chuckled quietly to himself and rolled onto his side. Today had been a pretty good day.


Zatanna's alarm went off at seven thirty and she sighed and rolled over to turn it off. She stretched and smiled to herself. Dick had finally kissed her! She was genuinely happy about it. And it felt good to be happy.

But then she started thinking more, should she be allowed to be happy? After all she was the reason her father was-. No! No, she didn't wanna think about it! She just wanted to think about how happy Dick made her. But...then again, she didn't want to use Dick how she had used Andrew. She didn't want him to just be a distraction. He was worth a lot more than that, he deserved better.

She pushed her hair back and got off of her bed. She got ready and headed downstairs. Dick and Bruce were already sitting at the counter. Dick smiled at her and she returned it with as much brightness as she could manage. She sat next to him and pulled her phone out of her pocket while they waited to eat. She saw Dick glance at her in confusion. She felt bad, she cared about him but she needed time to figure everything out.

That didn't mean she didn't want to be around him anyway. He was one of the only people that could make her feel any better and she wasn't about to give that up. Alfred sat their food down and they started eating quietly. She found that she wasn't really that hungry but she ate as much as she could anyway, she didn't want to worry anyone.

When breakfast was over they headed down to the gym where they both did their morning workouts. It was over quickly and Zatanna headed back up to her room. Dick had stayed behind and she shot him a worried look when he wasn't looking. She hoped he wasn't upset, she was just a bit confused at the moment. She would make it up to him.

Zatanna changed then she walked the short distance between their rooms and knocked on his door.

"Come in"

She pushed the door open and smiled at him, he returned it gently. He was sitting at his desk doing something on his computer so she took a seat on his bed.

"What's up?" He asked her.

Zatanna shrugged, "Just wanted to see what you were up to."

"Just finishing up some stuff for school." He told her as he turned back to his work.

Zatanna sighed to herself, "Well, do you wanna do something together when you're done?"

He turned back and gave her a real smile, "If you want, yeah that sounds good. I'm almost done anyway."

Zatanna nodded and scooted back on his bed before tipping forward. She was now laying on her stomach facing him as he turned to his work again. She took a minute to study him, he was probably aware of what she was doing but he didn't say anything.

She didn't get to do this often so she just took him in. He had a defined jawline and a tan complexion. He was small but he had a muscular frame. His eyes, which she couldn't see right now were an amazing shade of blue. And she loved his black hair, whenever he didn't have it gelled it was always slightly messy. She dropped her head onto his mattress and sighed. He was pretty much perfect.

She didn't notice him get up until there was a weight on the bed next to her. She turned toward him and laughed. He raised his eyebrow at her, "What?"

"You're going to have to teach me some of your ninja tricks." She told him and he laughed.

"Alright, fine. I could teach you now if you want, unless you had something else in mind?" He smiled at her.

She sat up and then stood, taking his hand she tugged at him, "No, let's go now!"

"Okay, okay!" He laughed and followed after her.

They went down to the batcave together and Dick showed her a few tips. By the time his basic lesson was over she knew how to walk around a lot more quietly and she could blend into the darkness a bit better. Although she knew she would never be on the same level as Robin or Batman.

When they were done they just talked for a was happy that everything seemed back to normal before she heard Dick clear his throat nervously.

"So, we're...okay right?" He looked at her seriously, but she could see his nerves peeking through his face.'

She raised her eyebrow at him

"I just mean because of last night…" He trailed off and Zatanna inwardly sighed.

"I probably shouldn't have kissed you." He started and Zatanna cut him off by putting a hand on his shoulder.

"Don't apologize for that, Dick. Trust me I don't regret it." She blushed at her own words and he smiled briefly at her.

"But I'm just not sure that I would be the best thing for you right now." She confided in him.

Dick moved her over with him to a bench and they sat down, 'Don't say that Zee. If anything I'm the one who shouldn't be talking about dating," he glanced at her in mild panic, "Not that that's what this is!"

Zatanna laughed quickly before growing serious again, "What do you mean?"

He looked at the floor and shrugged, "Just know that you couldn't ever be bad for me." He looked up at her, "And if you'll let me, I want to help you."

Zatanna ignored the last bid and reached for his hand. "Why do you think I couldn't be bad for you? I mean...I only dated Andrew to dis-" She stopped and sighed, "It doesn't matter."

Dick squeezed her hand, "It doesn't matter." He echoed and looked down again.

"Why do you think you shouldn't be dating?" She asked him.

He shrugged and stood. "Come on, let's go upstairs."

She stood too, "Dick, answer me."

"How about this then," he began as they made their way back to the main house, "We take turns asking questions."

She wasn't sure if she liked that idea. He could ask her about things she wasn't ready to share just yet. She sighed, she would just have to be vague.

"Alright." she conceded.

They continued to their rooms in silence, and stopped at their doors.

"Meet in my room?" Dick asked her with a small smile. She nodded and let go of his hand. They parted and she made her way quickly to her dresser and then bathroom. She showered quickly and changed into sweatpants and a cropped t-shirt before heading over.

He was already laying on his bed with his hands behind his head, he was wearing sweatpants and a thin t-shirt. She hopped onto it and sat with her legs crossed. Her knees were brushing his sides and she propped her head in her hands.

"Soooo…" He began.

She laughed and he joined in. When they settled down Zatanna cleared her throat.

"Why don't you think you should date?" She prompted.

He sighed, "Well, besides the fact that I'm pretty young." they laughed again, "I've had a lot of things happen to me honestly, and that's a lot to bring into any relationship. Even just a friendship. I don't want to...weigh people down I guess."

Zatanna took that in for a moment, she didn't think he could ever weigh her down. He always seemed happy and upbeat. He had been helping her and she didn't even have to ask.

"Well...maybe I just don't know a lot about what you've been through, but you've always been helpful to me."

He smiled at her briefly.

"So, what about you? Why don't you think you should date."

Zatanna cleared her throat, she wasn't going to tell him everything. She knew she felt guilty and she didn't think she deserved to be happy. But she also didn't want to use him. "Well...when I was kind of going out with Andrew, the reason I wasn't too upset about him kissing someone else was because I didn't really care about him. I think he was more of a distraction for me than anything. If I could focus on that I didn't have to focus on the fact that my Dad is...gone.I wouldn't want to do that to anyone else." She decided not to say that she didn't want to do it to Dick, that was a bit too much.

Dick nodded, it almost seemed like he might understand. "I get it, I really do. But that's only going to get easier to handle if you let yourself come to terms with it."

Zatanna nodded quickly and he stopped talking. He seemed to sense that she still wasn't ready to hear this. She didn't want to come to terms with it yet. She couldn't.

"My turn." She reminded him. "What...have you been through? If you don't want to talk about it that's okay. I can ask something else."

She glanced at him and he was looking at the ceiling, "You want like every detail? Not to be melodramatic but that could take a while." She gave her a small smile that didn't reach his eyes.

"No, I just...I guess I want to know more about you." She told him.

He nodded and thought for a minute, "You know about my parents?"

"Yes." She said softly and he nodded.

"Well after a while Bruce brought me here and I found out about Batman and he eventually let me be Robin. But in between my parents and ending up here CPS had to find a place to put me that I couldn't be kidnapped from. The man that killed my parents...he put a hit out on me because he knew that I saw him. So, they put me in a juvenile detention center for a few weeks before Bruce found me and took me home."

Zatanna's eyes had widened during the story but she remained silent.
"And of course patrol in Gotham isn't the easiest thing in the world. Two-Face is one of the crazies we have to deal with and he nearly killed me when I was little. Batman almost didn't let me out again after that. And there's always things like fear gas and Joker gas around too." He paused and sighed, "Things just build up and I have to deal with them but it's hard to do it alone. I'm not alone. I mean I have Bruce and Selina and Alfred. But that's what I mean when I say I bring a lot of baggage into any relationship. I don't like people to see me when I'm...upset I guess."

He stopped talking although Zatanna had a feeling that he could have gone on. "I'm sorry." She whispered.

He sat up quickly, "No, no, don't be. It's okay...I guess." He let out a small laugh, "Okay, it's not okay. But, I'm okay."

Zatanna nodded as she looked at him intently. She pushed her hair back and sighed. She glanced up at him again and he looked concerned. She laughed and turned her body towards him then leaned forward to wrap her arms around him. She felt him return the hug, "See this is what I'm talking about. You told me all that but you look worried about me right now."

"Hmm."

She laughed again then turned her face into his neck. "I'm glad you're okay." She told him sincerely.

"Me too." He laughed.

She turned onto her side and extended her legs so that she was leaning on him completely. He tipped both of them back onto the pillows. She knew that they hadn't figured anything out about what they were, but she didn't care. This felt good. She loved how comforting it was to just lay there with him.