A/N: Hello, everyone! I'm back with another story! This ship may be dead, but my imagination is NOT. So, here you go. I've been thinking over this story for over a year, and writing/outlining it for LITERALLY months, so I would appreciate it if you leave constructive criticism and no hate. Of course, I will make sure to thank everyone who reviews on the last chapter, so please remember to favorite, review, and leave some love!

DISCLAIMER: All public characters, settings, etc. are not mine and are property of DC comics. I am not making money off of this work. All my original characters/plot are property of me, the author, and I am not associated with DC comics in any way, shape or form.

Some of my personal decisions on this story (such as Jason being Latino, an original character being gay) are purely for my own fun. If you do not enjoy those type of really, really small adjustments (that I barely mention) then I suggest you don't read this story. I also know that the Damian/Mar'i ship has always been under heavy scrutiny, but I personally support it. AGAIN, if you don't like my personal decisions in this story, I completely respect that! This story is just not for you, and that is okay! I have another story that's just Tim/Steph if you would like to check it out.

ANYWAYS, back to fun times. Please enjoy the first chapter of this story! I love you all and hope you have an absolutely amazing day.

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Mar'i had absolutely begged to be a part of Dick's 'family' for years. She was six years old when she started asking about who her father grew up with.

At first, he was hesitant to say anything because Bruce Wayne was such a prominent figure in the public—she, or at least one of her school friends, would recognize the name—but he eventually gave into her pleas.

Mar'i was seven when she was told about the deaths of her grandparents.

When she asked why Dick still called John and Mary his parents, he informed her that Bruce was only a legal guardian, and that Dick was only his ward.

Dick had rejected the idea and legality of Bruce being his adoptive parent.

Bruce had been slightly upset over it, secluding himself for a week and getting lost in his own thoughts before Dick tumbled back into that isolation and assured him that it was not his fault. Dick had always appreciated what Bruce did for him—the manor, the parent-figure, giving him the Robin position, but Dick's heart would always lie with the circus and his parents.

Mar'i was eight years old when she met Dick's partner and grandfather-figure.

Damian, from her first sight of him, was very angry-looking. He had an ugly scowl on his face, his dark green eyes burning with something she could easily read as envy. Of course, Alfred was polite and gentlemanly; he made sure to open the door for the young girl and offered water and/or other beverages.

"No thanks," she replied with a blinding, charming smile. Damian stood behind Alfred, arms crossed and jaw clenched not-too-unlike his father. At least, that's what Mar'i's father told her of Bruce; he had informed him that Bruce was more familiar with seclusion than most. Mar'i inferred that that meant he was more stand-offish.

Alfred nodded once, then looked up above her to greet Mar'i's father. "Greetings, Master Dick. It's quite relieving to see you again," the old man said with a sad, distant look in his crinkled eyes.

Dick nodded, putting his hand on Alfred's shoulder. "It's great to see you too, Alf," he replied with a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. His smile lessened as he finally, truly looked at the man in front of him and began familiarizing himself with the manor, again. "How's Tim?"

Alfred just put his own hand over Dick's hand which still lying on his shoulder. Dick sighed and dropped his hand.

Jovial look back on, he looked down at Mar'i again. "Why don't you go meet Dami?" He suggested, although it left little room for argument due to his tone which was dripping exhaustion.

Mar'i peered back at the boy behind Alfred, then switched her sight to her father again. "Okay!" She feigned her excitement, but knew that it was time that her father needed to talk to an old friend. He seemed pretty serious. What's wrong? Did something happen?

Mar'i shook her head. No time for those thoughts. She had to meet a new friend! And maybe (even though he seemed super mean) he would be friendly when they started talking.

She floated up to him. Damian scrunched up his nose. "Hi!" Mar'i greeted. "My name's Mar'i!"

She waited for him to say something, her smile waning as more time passed.

Anything.

"What's yours?" Mar'i finally asked after what seemed like forever.

He narrowed his eyes, as though she was a suspect in a murder case. "Why do you ask?" He questioned back.

She blinked. What.

"That's...how you meet people," Mar'i answered, unsure. Maybe he was just messing with her?

She waited for him to say his name, but he didn't. Oh well, her dad already said his name was 'Dami'. Although she didn't exactly know if it was a nickname or a full name. Perhaps later he would tell her that. She could win him over...eventually. If he would stop being so stubborn.

"Do you wanna play outside?" Mar'i asked Damian with a bright smile back on her face. The sun was the source of her people's energy, so she has always played outside. Hating outdoors was simply not in her blood.

He (somehow) scowled harder. "I do not play. I am a trained warrior and am above those...activities," his eyes flashed haughtily.

Mar'i huffed. Eventually. "Well I'm just trying to be nice," she said, the frustration beginning to form in her chest.

He retracted slightly, then the arrogance washed over his face again. "I am now Robin. I have no intent to play with such an insolent girl!" Damian exclaimed, face now red.

Mar'i opened her mouth to retort, but was interrupted by a light hand on her shoulder. She looked up from the hand to see Alfred standing there, prim as ever with an amused smile quirking on his lips. "Miss Mar'i," he started, "I do hope we can take this to the living room. I have heard it's quite calming there," Alfred informed her.

Mar'i nodded, ashamed, then began following Alfred outside of the foyer and into the main living room. Damian huffed behind her, then she could faintly hear her father talking quietly to him. She had enhanced hearing, but didn't want to listen in on their conversation. She trusted her dad...plus, he seemed sad about something.

After Alfred finally led them to the main living room, Mar'i finally took in the grand decor around her. It seemed...homey. A fireplace was on the farthest wall from her, the walls a pumpkin orange. The couches were brown, earthy colors and lamps illuminated the room from the tops of end tables. The floor was a soft carpet beneath her, and the room smelled like lemon.

Alfred sighed after a moment. "I see you and Master Damian have not gone off on the right foot," Alfred said sadly. Mar'i opened her mouth to apologize, but Alfred beat her to it. "There's no need to apologize, Miss Mar'i," he continued, "I just wish Master Damian would connect with more people his age."

Mar'i flushed. She couldn't identify why, so she kept her mouth shut.

Alfred simply raised an eyebrow, but changed the subject. "Would you like any snacks, Miss Mar'i?" The old man offered.

"Yes, please," Mar'i replied, her head down and cheeks still red. She could feel her hair turning hot, so she tried to calm herself down. "Can you bring some strawberries please?"

Alfred nodded, then left the room with no word to her sudden mood change.

Mar'i looked back up at the comfy room, then began searching the bookcase near the corner. She skimmed the titles, looking for anything interesting, then she encountered a theoretical book based on space and time.

Mar'i tilted her head cutely. "Hm," she huffed out, interested. Her mother had told her various stories of the stars, the galaxies seemingly endless, and the worlds beautiful and run by all kinds of exotic peoples. Kori was one of those people. Mar'i smiled sweetly when she recounted a specific story her mother had told her; it had been about a group of travelers that found a new world and how they won a battle against one of the most deadly manipulators of the universe. Kori, by the end of her story, smiled and advised Mar'i to never lose herself to horrible men, women, and non-binary beings by forgetting her true roots. The story, for some reason, had always stuck out for Mar'i in a way that the others hadn't.

Damian finally entered the room after she put the book back in the case, a softer expression on his face now. Her dad was nowhere to be seen. A minute passed in which Mar'i was wondering what to say next. It seemed like her dad talked to Dami, but she was still unsure on what Dami did.

"Are you okay?" Mar'i blurted out. Her own eyes widened, then she changed her expression to look at Dami expectantly. She thought, at first, that this was random, but remembered the words of her mother: to always be kind, compassionate. The people who bully are always the ones who are hurting the most, Kori had told her once.

Damian narrowed his eyes. "Of course. Why would you ask that?" He questioned back.

Mar'i sighed. Sometimes Mom's advice is so hard. "I-"

Before she could say anything else, Alfred, with Dick behind him, appeared with a silver tray with her strawberries on it. The old man put the tray on the end table respectively. "Thank you, Mr. Alfred," Mar'i said with a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes.

"You're quite welcome, Miss Mar'i. If you'll excuse me, I need to attend to other matters," Alfred replied, then disappeared into the main hallway.

Mar'i continued to gaze at the doorway, not wanting Alfred to leave quite yet. She had felt comfortable with the old man in a way she hadn't felt comfortable with anyone else, including her mother.

Mar'i turned her gaze to her father. "What can we do here?" She asked. Dick looked down at her, which honestly wasn't much. Mar'i was already tall for her age, almost surpassing Damian's height.

Dick placed a smile on his face. "Well, we can go watch a movie in the movie theatre," her dad suggested. Mar'i shook her head and scrunched up her nose, so Dick continued, "Or we can check out the gym..."

Mar'i's eyes immediately lit up at the mention of a gym. "Really?" Dick nodded, obviously regretting his decision to say anything at all. A bright, genuine smile stretched across Mar'i's face, however, and Dick forgot about his regret. "Oh, please?!"

Dick chuckled good-naturedly, then said, "Okay. Just remember what I said about formal training?"

Mar'i rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, frustrated at the reminder. "No formal training 'til I'm fifteen," she recounted with a bland tone. Mom said twelve, though!

Dick nodded sadly, but approvingly. He kneeled over and kissed her hairline sweetly. "It's for your safety, dragă," he reminded her.

Mar'i pouted. "But why does Dami get to be a hero?" She pointed at the boy accusingly. "Is it because he's a boy?" Mar'i furrowed her brows and looked at her still-kneeling father.

Dick closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them again, the bright blue reflecting off her own alien green. "No, Mar'i," Dick said sadly. "It's because you're my daughter and I don't want anything to happen to you." His eyes glazed over. "Not like what happened with Damian's dad," he muttered quietly to her...only for her to hear.

Mar'i's eyes widened with sympathy and understanding. She seemed as though she wanted to say something, but didn't know what. The people who bully are always the ones who are hurting the most.

She turned her head to look at Damian, a frown on her face and her eyes lacking a fire behind them. Damian, seeing her expression, placed a scowl on his face. "What?" Damian asked bratily.

Mar'i looked taken aback for a moment. She scrunched her nose up again, but ignored his previous tone because of his current situation. "What was your dad like?" She inquired.

Damian's countenance darkened, his head bowing and his eyes narrowing. He clenched his jaw tightly, as though he refused to converse about the topic she had just asked about.

Dick winced when she had first asked the question, knowing Damian would have another blow-up. He could almost notice his bottom lip quivering the smallest amount, but he wouldn't say anything about it. That was the last thing Damian wanted.

Damian opened his mouth, then closed it, still refusing to look at the small girl. Mar'i had simply stood her ground and been more than welcome for a response about Damian's father. Damian, after another moment, growled, and replied, "It's none of your concern, you stupid girl!"

Mar'i sucked in a breath. She expected that answer yet hadn't expected how much it would hurt her. Be kind. Be compassionate, Mar'i. Like Mama said. She huffed out a short breath. "I was just asking a question-"

"Well you ask the wrong questions," Damian interrupted bluntly, his expression now as blank as a white canvas.

Mar'i blinked, the anger bubbling in her chest. Sorry, Mama, but I'm not putting up with this bull! "Sorry if I made you sad, but you're just mean now," she said angrily. Mar'i could hear her father sigh behind her, but she didn't pay it much attention.

"I am Damian Al Ghul Wayne! I feel nothing, you insolent girl!" Damian yelled.

Mar'i's red face twisted, whether that be with confusion or frustration, Dick couldn't tell. "You're so mean!" She yelled back, the fire behind her eyes returning.

"Guys!" Dick finally interrupted their quarrel, his arms raised and his eyes desperate. "C'mon. Try to get along!" The distress in his tone almost made Mar'i stop glaring at Damian. Never forget your roots, Mar'i.

"No, Grayson," Damian insisted. "Your absolutely horrid daughter does not deserve my respect. If anything, she should bow down to me!" Damian refused to look up at his partner, not wanting to face the disappointment on the man's face.

Mar'i, briefly forgetting about her father's presence, flashed her eyes dangerously. She could feel her hair beginning to turn hot. "I refuse to bow to you, you-" Mar'i fumbled on her words, unable to come up with any appropriate and original name, "you meanie!"

Her hair was now fully on fire.

Damian rolled his eyes and narrowed his eyes. "-tt-"

Mar'i immediately launched her body onto Damian's, making the elder boy topple over. Dick, who thought the fight would die down at one point, strode over to the two children and pulled them apart. The two attempted to claw at one another, but Dick pushed them apart more and more until they were on separate ends of the couch.

Dick looked down at Mar'i, whose shoulder he still had a hand on. "No!" He said firmly. "Don't do that again, Mar'i!" Dick disapproved. Mar'i pouted and looked down at the white carpet, her arms crossed.

Damian smirked arrogantly when his peer got the blame first, but it was wiped off his face when Dick turned to him. "And Dami, you can't antagonize everyone!" Dick reasserted.

Damian looked down with a scowl.

-CLANG-

The group of three looked up and into the hallway, where the source of the noise came from.

"What was that?" Mar'i inquired aloud. Damian somehow managed to scowl harder.

"I dunno," Dick muttered to himself. "Let me check up on it," he stated before walking over to the doorway.

"I will go with you," Damian added quickly.

"No," Dick replied firmly. "Stay. Please," His desperation leaked through his voice.

Damian stared at the man for a moment, then backed down.

Dick sighed, then went out into the hallway. He came upon some broken shard of a lightbulb, the lampshade rolled over to the other side of the hallway. Dick furrowed his brows and looked at the broken pieces.

No blood.

It looked as though someone just knocked it over. Dick peered up and down the hallway. Alfred was nowhere to be seen, so Dick jogged down the hallway away from the living room.

After reaching the library, Alfred appeared from what seemed like nowhere. "Hey, Alf," Dick greeted again. "Have you seen anyone else here? Someone knocked over the lamp and left it there," Dick told him.

Alfred nodded wisely, a subtle smirk on his face for some reason. "My apologies, Master Dick," Alfred replied regretfully. "My old age shines sometimes, and it was my fault. I was just on my way to find a broom and pan, sir," the old man assured Dick, lifting said supplies, which were in his wrinkled hands, to show Dick.

Dick's shoulder's sagged. "I'm sorry, Alf," he groaned. "I've been so paranoid since Bruce-" Dick paused, then huffed out a humorless breath. "Let me help you with picking that up," Dick stated, holding out his hands for the broom and pan.

Alfred shook his head slowly. "There's no need, Master Dick." Then he paused his movements, his eyes glazed over and not quite looking at Dick. His eyes turned amused, loving and it seemed as though they held a secret that only he himself knew. "You should attempt to get Master Damian and Miss Mar'i along better. Perhaps they have more common interests than you believe," Alfred told Dick.

Dick only nodded, confused as to what he was missing. Alfred will always be an enigma. Dick winced. Not very good wording. Puzzle? Challenge?-

Dick's thoughts were interrupted by Alfred walking past him.

Time passed—A year.

Mar'i's mother, Starfire, got killed in a battle. Died fighting for herself and her family. Mar'i had secluded herself for weeks, only allowing Dick to see her every once in a while.

Dick had felt like he was floating, lost in space with no air yet still able to breath and walk like any other person. He had to run with heavy legs and take deep breaths, fighting the urge within to give into his own thoughts. Had to fight for his own sake, so he could fight for his daughter.

Mar'i had told him that she wished she was with Kori. When she said that, his breath caught in his throat and he almost felt like he was completely lost in space forever. He couldn't let her out of his sight for weeks.

A part of him was broken because of Kori's death; as was a part of Mar'i. Those parts of them will always be.

Damian had slowly softened with Mar'i, Dick had noticed. He had softened in a way that he hadn't softened with anyone else his age. Not with Jon or Colin or Maps. That had started after Kori's death.

When Mar'i had reached age 13, Damian had a time where he stopped speaking to her completely. It had only lasted a couple of weeks, but it came out of nowhere and left Mar'i devastated. She had tried to talk to him, but he had just avoided her at all costs. The young preteen had felt more lonely than usual without a familiar constant in her life. At least, someone that was in her age range—Dick had attempted to fill that space, but those tries fell short by her insistence that he wasn't Dami.

She still didn't know why Dami ignored her for that period of time.

Those couple of weeks passed, though, and Damian had simply asked her to spar with him as a way of an apology. Mar'i had grinned so hard her cheeks hurt.

They sparred for almost four hours.

One more year passed, and Dick announced that he wanted to get married to Barbara Gordon. Mar'i cried when she first heard it. She didn't know if it was from happiness or sadness, but she was feeling something either way.

Mar'i knew her dad had a few flings over her lifetime: a few women and a couple of men. He's been dating Miss Gordon for a few months, and known her longer than Mar'i's been alive.

Barbara is not her mom, but she is a good woman. So Mar'i doesn't call her 'Mom' or 'Mama' and respects her father's happiness.

It's, really, the least she could do for him after all he's done for her.

A few more months pass, and Mar'i wants to learn Arabic. Damian just raised an eyebrow and asked why she wanted to know it. She had said that she wanted to know exactly what Damian was always muttering angrily to himself.

Damian rolled his eyes, but nodded. Mar'i, more than enthusiastic, pulled him into a lip-lock.

He immediately froze and his eyes widened; she herself had her eyes closed from her own experience. Mar'i pulled away after a few seconds, and tilted her head cutely when she saw Damian's shocked expression.

It was only after she had explained that she could learn languages by lip-contact, that she realized that that was probably Damian's first kiss.

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A/N: Hello! This is the officially updated/edited version of the chapter. Just wanted to clarify if you were re-reading, and were very confused lol.