Summary: Takes place a few days after the Bats meet Cassandra Cain, so mid to late May of 2017. Also, I modified the last chapter a bit after posting it initially because I felt like I could have added a few things to it upon reading, so if you missed it, just wanted to let you know. Suggestion from SunkissAngel added into this chapter, sorry if it's not what you were expecting, I can write a full-fledged chapter on the suggestion if you'd prefer.

Disclaimer: I don't own DC

Dick was honestly a bit confused with what to do. He had heard through Kaldur that Conner and M'gann had broken up. Apparently, it was a nasty argument between the two of them that neither wished to fully disclose, and it ended up with them splitting. Grayson honestly didn't believe Kaldur the first time he heard him say it. Conner and M'gann? Split up? Impossible.

And yet, it was true. Looking back on it now, he did think that M'gann had been acting…different ever since Jason's demise. She had stopped pulling her punches in fights as much. She had gotten almost rageful on missions, though she did her best to keep it hidden. Maybe if he had paid more attention, instead of cutting himself off from everyone, he could have seen it, and even done something about it. But he hadn't. He was too caught up in his own problems that he never stopped to even think how others might have taken it. First Zatanna, and now this. I…there's no excuse for this. I've been pushing my friends away for too long now. I can't keep doing this, I…I can't keep being Batman. I couldn't save Jason, a-and I'm never gonna be able to forgive myself for that, b-but maybe…maybe I could move forward regardless, instead of running in circles.

He still didn't fully believe it, if he was being honest. Conner and Megan were the power couple of the year, ripped straight out of an 80s sitcom, literally! Man, what's happening to us. 5 years ago we were all so happy. Conner and M'gann, Wally and Arty, Kaldur and Raquel, me and Zee. We were having the time of our lives. And now, all that's gone. Hell, even Wally and Arty are having…whatever they're having, right now. I miss the good old days, the days where we could just throw a whole afternoon away on a beach together or stay up all night watching bad movies with each other. Before all this…adulthood kicked in.

Grayson found his thoughts shifting from Conner and M'gann to the person he just couldn't get out of his mind lately. He and Zatanna had made some fantastic memories together, and a part of him hoped they could go on to make more with each other, somehow. Though that hope was being smushed to nearly nothing by his own denial and the situation they were both shoved in.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the Mistress of Magic, the one and only, Zatanna Zatara!" The curtains drew back to show the stunning Italian magician on stage, smiling for the crowd as they all clapped for her. She bowed dramatically for them, smirking. Today, she had decided to mix things up a bit.

"Thank you all for coming out tonight! I've got a bit of a different show planned this time around, I'm gonna have a co-star!" Her boyfriend stepped out from behind the second layer of curtains behind her, dressed in a matching tuxedo and with his hair gelled back. He still could not believe he had lost this bet to Zee. If any of his co-workers caught him here…let's just say things would be very interesting at the precinct for a while. "I present to you all, my loving boyfriend, Richard John Grayson!" The crowd exploded once again as she introduced the famous adopted son of fortune 500 CEO Bruce Wayne. He may not have been as exposed to paparazzi since moving to Blüdhaven, but that didn't mean anyone forgot who he was. A few sighs of disappointment could be heard at the word 'boyfriend', however, both from guys and girls, and Dick couldn't help but smirk at that. He had to admit, the stage was one hell of a scene. Maybe playing magician's assistant for a night wasn't all bad. Plus, he got an up-close view of his beautiful girlfriend's magic skills, so there certainly were perks to the job.

They say the magician themself does the trick while the assistant is there to capture attention, but Zatanna has never needed that. Not with her unique gifts on the stage, magic powers aside. To be honest, she had never really had an assistant before, nor did she need one, so it was a bit strange figuring out what to do. Back when she used to shadow on her father's shows, they both split the act up, using their coordinated magic to work in sync. Sadly, Dick didn't have the same gifts her family did, so they opted for a different route. He was the guinea pig.

Grayson was less than turbed by the ordeal, but a bet's a bet. He would play along if he must. But Zee seemed to be having way too much fun with cutting him in half or making him literally disappear before pulling him out of her hat, only for him to be miniscule before she sized him up. The crowd was LOVING it. He had to admit, he missed performing in front of a live audience. It brought back fond memories, but with a sweet twist. Maybe it wasn't exactly like when he got to do it with his parents, but it was still fun to entertain, especially with someone he loved. In a way, it was like he was up there performing his heart out with family, just a different act and a different family. Maybe he enjoyed it more than he let on…

After the show, Zatanna laughed in the dressing room as Dick hastily took off his blazer and bow-tie, ruffling his hair to get it back to his normally messy style. He looked to her grumpily and she fake pouted, taking off her own blazer and undoing her earrings and cufflinks. "I liked that look on you. Well, maybe the hair's an improvement, but the tux was nice." She wrapped her arms around his neck, an amused look very present on her face.

"You enjoyed that a little too much for my liking." She laughed again, and as if her giggles were voice commands, his lips twitched a bit upwards at the sound of them.

"Maybe I did." She saw he was still a bit grumpy, and giggled. "Sore loser." Their lips met in the middle and broke off a few seconds later, both smiling.

Dick smiled at the memory. He hadn't been to one of Zee's breathtaking shows in a while now. Maybe I should…no, that'd be creepy. Don't wanna make myself look like some kind of stalker or something. Still, those were some good times…Dick sighed, frowning as a more bittersweet memory filled his thoughts.

"What is wrong with you?! I saved everyone's lives and you're grounding me?!"

"Zatanna, you almost died! I'm not joking, I don't want you going on missions for at least a week, not until you've recovered!" She laughed, but it was clear the laugh was one of anger. Had M'gann been here, she probably would have passed out from the emotions they were emanating.

"You are ridiculous! If it weren't for me, you'd all be gone! Me sapping the energy from the generator is the only reason you're still alive to complain!"

"And you almost died from your carelessness! That was one of the most reckless things you've ever done! You literally flatlined!" That may have been a bit too cruel.

"For a few seconds! And how many times have you almost died on the job?! I've literally seen you flatline, like, a hundred different times!" Dick huffed, clearly not understanding her nonchalance at near-death. "I'm 14, I'm not a baby! I don't need you looking over my shoulder 24/7, acting like I'm gonna get myself killed!" Zatanna despised being babied. Practically her whole life, her dad shielded her as if even something as small as stepping on a Lego would end her. He couldn't help it, not after her mother had died. If anything good came out of her losing him to Nabu, it was that he wasn't around to do that anymore. It was probably the only reason she was even able to get together with Dick, because there was no way her father would have ever let her go out with anyone, least of all the son of Batman himself. But to hell with it all if her own boyfriend, the person who supported her through everything, would do the same. "I'm not made out of glass!"

"Except you were a few seconds away from dying! And this isn't the first time either! I'm not gonna let you get killed like this, Zee, not if I can help it!" Zatanna let out a deep huff before stomping off to her room, leaving an almost equally annoyed Boy Wonder in the medbay.

Less than 30 minutes later, Zatanna heard a light knocking on the door. She could tell her boyfriend was a bit hesitant, almost worried. 'Good. He should be.' Zee simply snuggled further into her pillow, drawing the blanket over her head to drown out the sound. After a few more knocks, she heard a sigh from the other room. Suddenly, her door lock was overridden by a hack. 'Timmad. Kcuf ffo, Kcid.' He slowly approached her bed before sitting down behind her, placing an arm on her shoulder. She scooted away from him, huffing into her bed, and he frowned, taking off his shades and trying to hug her from behind. After enough protesting, she sat up. "Can you go away?! I get it, you think I'm careless! If you don't trust me, then maybe we should just-" Dick shut her up quickly by pressing his lips rather forcefully to Zee's. She squirmed for a bit, trying to get out of his grasp, but he was really giving it his all, and, damn it felt pretty good, even if she was mad at him. Kissing him always felt good, but man, if this wasn't one of their best ones ever…

They shifted positions so that Dick had more or less pinned her to the bed, and they didn't break off for a while, taking the occasional breath before going back into it. Zee knew she should probably not have given in, no, she definitely shouldn't have given in, but she had to give him points for really trying, and this was more or less how most of their interactions went nowadays. They spoke more with their bodies than they did with their voices, and it worked pretty damn well for the most part.

Eventually, the pair broke off, gasping for air and staring into each other's eyes, both silent but knowing what the other was thinking. Dick spoke first. "I'm sorry, Zee. I know you can take care of yourself, you're one of the strongest people I've ever met, and I really don't mean to baby you. It's just…I've already lost a lot from this job. I can't lose you, ever." Zatanna placed a hand on his cheek.

"I know, I feel the same about you. But I don't need anyone's protection, I can handle the risks on my own."

"I know you can, it's not you, it's me. But I'm sorry either way. I'll back off a bit." The magician smiled before pecking him on the lips again, causing him to grin goofily. She giggled at his reaction before he dragged her into his lap for another makeout session. And in that moment they knew they were all good, probably better than ever before.

Dick smiled once again as he reminisced on how the story ended. It was their first really big fight, and they managed to pull through fantastically. Sure, they'd had a few small disagreements here and there, but that was the first and one of the only times they came close to breaking up. Looking back on it now, he really hated himself. He knew Zee could take care of herself, and she hated being helicoptered, he should have known better. But a part of him was also a little proud of how well they managed to patch things up after that. If anything, the argument brought them closer to one another. Guess in the long run, it doesn't really matter, does it? He was lying to himself. He thought thinking back to these memories would help him move on, but really they were just reminding him of how much he missed her.

"Recognized, Robin, B-01, Zatanna, B-08." Dick stepped out first, crossing his fingers and praying that Bruce wouldn't rip his head off for this. So maybe he didn't ask permission before bringing her here, that's okay, right? They'd been dating a few weeks now, she deserved to see more of his life, right? He felt bad as it was not being able to tell her too much about him beyond the basics, even though she knew his identity. Bruce could be so ridiculous sometimes. But if she already knew who he was, no reason to get mad over this, right? 'Oh, man, Batman's gonna kill me…'

Zatanna stepped out of the Zeta tube and into the famous lair of the Caped Crusader. It took her eyes a while to adjust after the golden flash from the teleporter, but once they did, she let out a sharp gasp. Of course she'd imagined seeing the Batcave in her head like every other kid on Earth. But seeing it here, in person, she was blown away. 'A-are those real bats? Oh, jeez, I really hope they're friendly.' Her eyes drifted from the sleeping 'pets' on the ceiling to the glass display cases, each housing a different suit Batman and Robin had worn over the years. She smirked upon seeing the first costume Dick had worn. "Cute onesie." Dick blushed a scarlet red.

"Shut up!" Zee giggled before looking around more.

"So that's the world-famous Batmobile? Kinda pictured it to be a bit bigger."

"Well, it is a car, y'know? G-gotta be fast a-and all." Dick didn't know why he was so nervous. She was just his girlfriend! His beautiful, funny, adorable magician girlfriend…from the team…who he already got grounded for telling his ID without permission to…and got lectured at for being distracted by during mission briefings twice this week…Batman couldn't possibly get too mad over this, right? Right?

Dick brought her up to his room unnoticed. It was a wonder Bruce or Al hadn't seen them yet, or Diana for that matter. Though Diana was probably the reason Bruce wasn't around at the moment…

The Boy Wonder blushed a deep red as he noticed Al had changed his bedsheets to Uncle Clark's last Christmas present. Zatanna burst into laughter at the sight of it. "Superman bed sheets?!"

"They were a gift!" Zee smirked before looking at his desk. 'AP Calculus, AP Physics, APCS, just about what I expected, I guess. They don't call him the Boy Wonder for nothing…' Her eyes then shifted up to the Flying Graysons poster hung on his wall, and her curious expression made way for a slightly somber smile. She knew all about the accident, Dick hadn't really gone into specifics but she'd done her fair bit of research/internet stalking on him. He watched her explore the poster with her eyes and smiled a bit. "They'd have loved you, ya know?" She didn't know why that made her blush so much.

"I saw them, you, back when I was 6. M-my dad took me. It was…amazing. I-I didn't think anything could really amaze me after seeing my dad's magic, but your act was really just…something else." Hearing that made his heart flutter a bit, but he hid it well, pecking her on the cheek. He opened his mouth to say something, but the door was gently opened and a familiar, well-dressed face stepped out.

"Master Dick, would you-" Alfred was cut off upon noticing the young master's company. "Hello, madam." Zee sheepishly tucked hair behind her ear.

"H-hi." Dick winced at the awkwardness of the situation and stepped in.

"Uh, Alfred, this is Zatanna. Sh-she's my girlfriend. Zee, this is Alfred, my…" He struggled to find a proper explanation. "Butl…grandfa…m-my friend. He's my friend." Zee shook the old man's hand, smiling.

"I-it's a pleasure to meet you, sir."

"Likewise, Miss Zatanna, and please, call me Alfred."

"Oh, okay, Alfred." Both of them smiled before Alfred turned back to Dick.

"Master Dick, would you like me to prepare dinner?"

"Y-yeah, sure, we'll be down in a few."

"Very well. I would recommend checking in with Master Bruce first." Dick nodded. "A pleasure to meet you, Miss Zatanna."

"Oh, y-you can just call me Zatanna, n-no need for 'Miss'." Alfred raised an eyebrow as Dick snickered.

"I've been trying to get him to do that for years, good luck." Zee elbowed him as the butler chuckled and left.

Long story short, Dick did not tell Bruce prior to dinner, and looking back in hindsight, he thinks that was probably the right choice. It was much harder for the World's Greatest Detective to glare at and lecture his adopted son in front of a house guest. Bruce was actually impressively cordial to Zatanna, in part because she was his son's girlfriend and he most certainly approved of her for him, and in part because of the promise he made to her father. Zatanna initially was beyond intimidated, it was Batman for crying out loud, but as dinner progressed, she felt much more at ease with the Dark Knight. Diana stopped by halfway through dinner and hit it off with Zatanna as well. And Alfred made Italian specifically for her, which was a bonus since his Italian was stellar. All in all, it was incredibly asterous. Nonetheless, Dick was 99% sure he was about to receive the grounding of his life. Buuuut…seeing his fingers intertwined with Zee's at the dinner table made it almost worth it.

After dinner, Zatanna met Dick on a balcony overlooking Gotham city. "Thanks for setting this up, it was great."

"Y-yeah, yeah, of course. I've k-kinda been waiting to introduce you to them for a long time, now." Zee placed a hand on his chest, causing him to blush deeply.

"Oh, yeah?"

"Y-yeah…?" Zatanna giggled before leaning in to plant her lips on his, easing his awkwardness a bit.

"Well, I had fun. So, thanks, Boy Wonder." Dick smiled like an absolute buffoon, making her laugh even more before kissing him again.

Yeah, totally worth it.

Nightwing's smile grew more and more. But at the same time, he felt…conflicted. He was dating Starfire, he shouldn't be thinking about this! But…it just felt wrong to be with someone else. Especially when Zatanna Zatara had made some of his happiest memories by his side. He had never felt that way about anyone else, and it wasn't really right for him to date someone when his heart wasn't in the relationship, especially a friend like Kory. Bruce was right. Dammit, I hate it when he's right. I miss her. I should try fixing things with her. I mean, she's seeing someone else, but maybe one day I'll get my chance. A-and I'm willing to wait. She's worth waiting for.

Maybe he wasn't so conflicted after all…

Feel free to leave comments or suggestions for chapters you wanna see. Next chapter up soon.