Gotham City Concerto
A Teen Titans Fan Fiction by Jacob McDonald
Opening notes: This is the final part of the Starfire/Dick reunion story arch. It came out a little different than I thought it would, but it left some room for me to throw in some more suprises down the road this way.
Standard disclaimers apply. I don't own Teen Titans, but kind of wish I did.
Chapter 5 - Emerald Knight, Obsidian Dawn - Part Three
Starfire's eyes remained wide as Zsasz pulled himself from the splintered wood and got to his feet. Dick slowly circled, getting a better angle for attack as he eyed the madman with a half lidded gaze.
"Richard..." she whispered, "You are... not dead?"
"Save your strength Kori." he replied quietly, his eyes never leaving Zsasz, "We'll get you out of here as soon as I finish with him."
Zsasz charged, but not at Dick. His eyes were locked on his prey, and Starfire screamed and attempted to fire a starbolt at him, but Dick was faster.
With a shout the black haired young man shoulder blocked Zsasz into the wall Star was leaning against, then grabbed him about the neck and hurled him across the room, plowing him through more crates and dropping burning candles down on top of him.
With a wince, Dick put a hand to his side, "Damn." he muttered, "Ribs are still bruised." He frowned, but charged back in any way, knowing that as long as Zsasz was intent on killing Star, he'd be in very little danger.
But then, the insane blue gaze was on him, and he was staring death in the face. Zsasz's focus had shifted, quickly.
Much too quickly.
Dick let out a noise that sounded like a cross between a frog getting stepped on and a raw egg hitting a brick wall as Zsasz's hand struck him firmly in the throat. He was shoved from his feet and skidded along on his back in the direction he'd been running for several feet before coming to a stop against the far wall.
With less then a fraction of a second to spare, Dick recovered in time to lash out with a hard kick and slam the charging madman in the ribs, feeling a satisfying crack as his ribs gave. Spinning about and twirling to his feet even as he was still trying to draw a decent breath, he slugging Zsasz in the face with a haymaker, then followed with a quick spinning roundhouse kick to the chin, sending him flying to the side and into one of the pillars that held the ceiling up above them.
Dick staggered to one side as the fight met a sudden lull and gagged. Spitting a bit of blood, he shook his head, clearing the stars from his eyes. After a moment, he found he could breath easier, and turned back to face the madman that was trying to kill him.
Across the room, Star watched the violence with wide eyes. Richard wasn't dead. On top of that, he was fighting to save her life.
And by the looks of it, he was fighting a loosing battle.
He was obviously still injured from the explosion several months before, and Zsasz wasn't going to go down before he succumbed to his injuries and slipped up. He wasn't in top form, and that meant his time defending her was limited.
With a frown, she shook her head. She wouldn't loose him again, that much was sure. Looking down at where her hand was clamped over her still bleeding wrist, her eyes narrowed in determination.
Picking up a stray bit of wood from a smashed crate, she stuck it in her mouth and bit down on it. Powering a starbolt with her left hand, she took a deep breath and held the intensely burning energy to her own skin, slowly cauterizing the deep cut.
Blackfire groaned as she started to come to. She sat up slowly, the ringing in her head buzzing loudly.
"What a fucking hangover..." she looked around at her surroundings and found that she was back on the roof top of S.T.A.R. Labs. Black Canary sat a few yards away, watching her with a slight smile.
"I warned you." she said.
"If I didn't know it would upset my sister, I'd kill you right now." Blackfire responded with another moan, "That's one hell of a power."
"Not mine by choice, trust me." Canary sounded far too happy about it.
"Yeah. Listen, it's been great chatting with you, but Oracle mentioned something about Starfire being in trouble, and I think I really need to get back to her on that-"
"You're damn right you do!" Blackfire winced as Oracle screamed in her ear, "I lost audio contact with Star almost ten minutes ago! I can give you her last known location, but you'll have to haul ass to get there any time soon!"
"Alright! Give me directions, and I'm there!"
"Hey! What about me?" Canary stood up as Blackfire did, and frowned, "I helped out and now you're going to just ditch me here?"
"What do I do with the annoying bitch, Oracle?"
"Tell her I'll be in touch."
"Oracle says she'll be in touch." Blackfire waved, "Later, Black Canary."
Canary could do little more than fume as the alien lifted into the sky and shot off to the North.
Dick jumped back to avoid a punch, then ducked to avoid the follow up kick. Zsasz wasn't a martial artist by any means, but he knew his anatomy, and he knew how to hit where it hurt. He also knew how to hit harder than a mule could kick, making him a rather deadly foe.
Dick dodged to the side, letting the larger man stumbled past him as he overextended on another punch. He grinned and slammed a fist home in Zsasz's side, "Off." he said and kicked the man's feet out from under him.
Even as he hit the ground, the relentless killer grabbed hold of Dick's ankle and yanked his feet out from under him. Dick fell next to him with a grunt and tried to roll away. Zsasz would have none of that, however, and he was on top of Dick and choking him in a matter of seconds.
Dick struggled, but couldn't break the madman's grip. His legs were pinned, and his shoulders were being held to the floor much too firmly to be able to throw an effective punch.
"It looks as if number two hundred will be you... I'll have to make the girl number two hundred and one."
Dick chuckled out a throaty laugh and rasped through his restricted wind pipe, "Yeah, I don't think she likes that idea."
Zsasz went cross eyed as Star's fist slammed into the side of his head and threw him to the side. He landed in a heap, moaning and trying to get up. Star knelt down next to Dick and helped him to sit up.
"Richard... you are injured... let me finish him, then we can-"
"Kori, duck!" Dick grabbed her and pulled her down on top of him as Zsasz's knife whistled through the air where her head had just been, "His focus shifted again! Get away!"
"I will not loose you again, Richard!" she yelled back at him and turned her head to the side. Twin beams of green energy blasted Zsasz back, and he hit the wall with a solid thump.
Star rolled off of Dick and they both scrambled to their feet, breathing hard. Dick looked at her out of the corner of his eyes, "Alright then. Together?"
"Together." she nodded.
As Zsasz shook the cobwebs from his head and straightened up, he looked for his target. He barely had time to widen his eyes before two fists slammed into his face, blasting his head back into the wall with a loud crack! and knocking him out soundly.
Star took a step back and nodded, rolling her burned wrist to banish some of the pain from using that hand to punch her enemy. Dick stumbled back a little and breathed heavily.
"Guess... I pushed it too much." he said with a grin, then slumped over to the side, falling to the ground without so much as a grunt.
"Richard!" Star rushed to his side and checked his vitals. With a sigh, she found that he had simply passed out from the exertion. A smile crept up on her lips, and she hugged him close to herself, "Richard... I have so many questions, but we must treat our wounds first."
With that, she lifted him up and carried him to the door of the utility room. Walking out into the subway tunnel, she checked her connection with Oracle, "Barbara, can you hear me?"
"... Star? Yes! Where have you been? I have Blackfire on her way right now to help you out! Was is Zsasz? What happened?" Babs sounded frantic.
"Prepare a bed for a guest, please, Barbara. We are going to be keeping a visitor with us for a few days."
"What? Star, I just got you back on the radar here, and you're way out of the Hill. You'll have to head South, which will be to your right." there was a pause, "Who the hell did you pick up down there?"
"An old boyfriend." Star replied, looking down at Dick as he slept in her arms. He was smiling lightly, and unconsciously cuddled further into her embrace.
"Um... okay. I'll see you when you get back to the Tower. Just don't blow our cover, okay?"
"Affirmative, Oracle. I'll see you soon." and Starfire did what came naturally to her.
She lifted off the ground and flew to the South.
"Delay your flight path, Blackfire. I just got word from Kori that she's alright and headed home."
Blackfire sighed, letting out a flood of tension she hadn't even realized she'd been holding inside of herself, "Okay. Where's home? I need to talk with my little sister."
"Due West of your current location. Look for the clock tower."
Dick opened his eyes slowly, swimming out of the depths of unconscious and into the waking world with great difficultly. As the bedroom around him started to come into focus, his eyes rested on a familiar face.
"Babs..." he smiled slightly, "Hey."
"Hey yourself." she put a hand to his forehead, "How are you feeling?"
"Not as bad as I could be."
"Good." She smiled brightly, picked up a newspaper from the nearby bedside table, and rolled it up.
"Where's Kor-" Dick didn't get the rest of his question out as the newspaper smacked into his head with a whack!
"OW! Hey! The hell was that for?"
"THAT was for not telling anyone you were still alive!"
WHACK! "Cut that out!"
"THAT was for not telling your Goddamn girlfriend you were still alive!"
WHACK! "Babs!"
"THAT was for not telling me you were still alive!
WHACK! WHACK! WHACK! "Jesus Christ, Babs! Stop it!"
"And all of these," WHACK! "are for being such an insensitive PRICK!" her eyes were blazing with fury, "Who the hell do you think you are, Dick? Kori's been crying herself to sleep for three months, and you think you can just walk back into her life and everything will be all sex and kisses again?"
"NO! For the love of God, Babs, shut up and let me explain!" Dick was getting angry now too.
"Fuck you, Boy Wonder! If she hadn't insisted on giving you a bed, I would have left you down in that sewer tunnel to deal with Zsasz when he woke up!"
There was a ringing silence following her proclamation, and Dick stared at her with wide eyes. After a moment, she placed her hand over her mouth and looked away, "I didn't mean that."
"Yeah. Whatever." he kicked the sheets off of himself and stood up, "Where are my pants?"
"Dick, I-"
"Shut up, Babs. I just need to talk to Starfire for a few minutes, then I can be on my way."
Babs was silent as she watched him dress himself and stalk to the door. He turned with a look of confusion on his face once he reached it, "Where are we anyway?"
"The old Clock Tower in Tri-Corner. Bruce got it for me."
"Figures." he mumbled, "He could have told me."
"You've been talking to Bruce?" her eyes grew wide again.
"Yes. I asked him not to tell anyone else Tim and I were still alive for my own reasons. Reasons you don't appear to want to hear."
"Come on, Dick, you can't believe that I meant all that-"
"You've always meant everything you say, Babs." he glared at her, "Where's Starfire?"
"Stop calling her that. That's her code name, and you of all people shouldn't be using her code name."
"Where can I find Kori then, Barbara?"
She narrowed her eyes, "You know, you're starting to prove me right."
"It's what you wanted, isn't it?"
She looked away from him, "I just want my best friend back."
Dick sighed and sagged against the doorframe, "I'm sorry, Babs. I'd like to stay with you for a few days, if that's okay. Things have... changed now. I might have to relocate my plans here, to Gotham."
"What exactly are your plans?" she looked up at him and he looked back with a sparkle in his eye.
"Oh no. I know that look."
"What look?"
"That look that says, 'I have a cocky plan that will only work if everything goes off perfectly.' You and Bruce have that same look."
"Is that a bad thing?"
"Only for us mere mortals."
"You want to know?"
"Hell yes."
"Alright, here's the deal..."
Starfire sat on the edge of the observation platform at the top of the Clock Tower, staring off at the rising sun as it peaked through the clouds on Gotham's horizon. It lit up the sprawling cityscape, casting deep blue shadows across the river, and throwing every detail of the gothic architecture into sharp relief.
The gentle gliding sound that accompanied Tamaranian flight alerted her to Blackfire's presence before the older girl landed next to her, sitting down with her legs dangling over the edge of the platform.
"This planet has beautiful sunrises." the black haired girl murmured.
"Indeed. It is one of the many reasons I stay here."
"Did you think about going home, after you found out Robin had died?"
"I did, but Babs convinced me to stay and help her. It was going to be a temporary situation, just until she got on her feet, but I found that staying with her was quite enjoyable... the only joy I had left after Richard passed."
"But now... he's not dead."
"No, he is not."
"How does that make you feel?"
Star considered it for a moment, "Angry, yet joyful. Sad, and yet, at the same time, relived."
"We have some work to do on you, don't we?"
"Whatever do you mean?" Star looked sideways at her sister, "I am being truthful about my emotions-"
"But you thought about it." Blackfire pointed out, "Tamaranians don't think about what they are feeling, Koriand'r, we simply feel it."
Star was silent, knowing he sister was right. After a few moments of silence, she spoke again, very quietly this time, "Why are you helping me like this, sister?"
Blackfire shifted uncomfortably where she sat and stalled. After a minute of fidgeting, she responded, "I came here to Earth with the goal of scattering your little team of heroes, and beating you into the ground for banishing me from Tamaran." Star nodded, that sounded like Blackfire, "But the closer I got to the planet, the more I had this... nagging feeling that I shouldn't beat you up. That maybe I should try to... get along with you. Then, when Brian told me that Robin had died, my thoughts immediately turned to your well being... like I cared for you or something..."
"Most normal people call that a conscience."
"Thank you, sister, I realize that." Blackfire snipped, but then her tone softened again, "While I was banished, I went out to the outer rim worlds, and pouted about for a year or so. I entertained many thoughts of revenge, but they always led me back to the same thing... you, and why you had banished me in the first place." Star looked at her, slightly startled.
"YOU actually thought about something other than yourself?"
"Please let me do this right?" Blackfire sounded snippy again.
"Very well, continue." Star waved a hand and tried unsuccessfully to hide a slight grin.
Blackfire wasn't amused, but hid it well, "It just wasn't like you to not offer forgiveness... you've always been the best parts of our race, all rolled up into one wonderful person... but that day, you didn't hesitate to punish me. It made me think that, perhaps I had finally found your breaking point. That maybe you weren't such a goody goody after all..."
Star blushed, "No, I am in no way a goody goody now."
Blackfire arched an eyebrow, "What have you done, Little Sister?"
Star blushed furiously, "Have you ever heard the term, 'blow job' sister?"
Tim was holding a handstand on a set of parallel bars, and watching the sweat drip from his forehead and puddle on the mat below him.
Just like he had been for the past seven minutes.
His eyes darted to the stopwatch he'd set up before he started, and saw that he only had fifteen seconds before he broke his old record.
Concentrate.
Concentrate.
The phone rang, and with a yelp, he tumbled out of the hand stand and down to the ground. Sitting up and rubbing his sore backside, he glanced around. He hadn't even known that they had a phone in the gym.
After several seconds of searching, he found it under a few discarded towels. Lifting the receiver to his ear, he spoke nervously, "H-hello?"
"Tim? It's Dick."
"Hey, what's up?"
"Hey, I'm going to need you to start packing up. We're moving to Gotham."
"Um... okay. When?"
"I'll have someone there to drive you in to town in a few hours. She's tall, blond, drop dead gorgeous, and drives a green convertible. You'll know her when you see her."
"Sounds... just like something you would do actually, so I don't know why I'm surprised."
He could almost hear the grin in Dick's voice, "I'll see you soon, Little Brother."
"Yeah. See ya." and the line went dead.
Setting the phone back down and shaking his head, Tim went to take a shower before this drop dead gorgeous woman showed up.
Babs arched an eyebrow at Dick, "Little Brother?"
Dick smiled back bashfully, "We've gotten close since I started training him. He really is like a kid brother to me... more so even than Beast Boy was."
"They just call him Gar now." Babs noted as she wheeled over to the kitchen, "You hungry?"
"Yeah, famished. I bet they all use their civilian names now. Even Raven has probably busted out her old surname alias." he frowned, "She hated having to pretend she was someone she wasn't."
"Well," Babs plucked some eggs out of her refrigerator, "Kori says she seems to be getting on okay. She was out there for Raven's birthday."
"Whoa." Dick smirked, "Raven must have really changed if she was celebrating her birthday. She never wants to celebrate her birthday."
"She has a foster child now too. And I think she and Speedy might be contemplating marriage."
"Huh. All grown up aren't we?"
"Yep. Once Cyborg turns twenty he'll be the first of you to no longer be a Teen Titan."
"The Teen Titans were disbanded by the JLA." Dick shook his head, "Something I've argued with Bruce about already, but not something I can change."
"What are you going to do about it?"
"Not sure yet. I want to cement my plans here in Gotham before moving on to fix things in Jump."
Babs smiled fondly at him as she placed a frying pan on the stove and began cracking eggs into it, "Always out to save the world, 'eh Dick?"
"Yeah. A trait I picked up from 'Dad.'"
"You're also always out to help your friends though. That's not something you learned from Bruce."
"No, didn't." Dick walked up behind her and wrapped an arm around her shoulders in strong hug. He kissed the top of her head and mumbled into her hair, "That, I learned from you."
Starfire arched an amused eyebrow at her sister, "I cannot believe you actually slept with the Grand Phoomka of Grandlak Six. He was quite arrogant when we met him as children. I remember you hating him a great deal."
"I try not to let personal feelings get in the way of a good lay." Blackfire smirked back, "I can't believe my innocent little sister has been doing such naughty things with a common Earthling..."
"There is nothing 'common' about Richard." Star winked.
"Ooooh." Blackfire smirked wider, "You are one dirty little girl, Kori."
"And you are one promiscuous little girl, aren't you Komi?"
They grinned at each other, then Blackfire reached out and caught her sister's hand, "We should start soon. The Hymn of Purity should suffice, I think."
Star rolled her eyes, "All seventy versus?"
"All seventy. I know you know them."
Star smiled in a defeated sort of way, "Very well then." As they stood up she pulled Blackfire into a hug. The older girl was stiff for a moment, then fell into her sister with practiced ease. Memories came to her unbidden.
A soft bed, moist cheeks, and a curtain of red hair to block out the hurtful world. The soft lilting voice of her only sister soothing her pain.
"Don't cry, Komi. I still love you..."
"Do you remember when you were twelve and I was sixteen, and the Prince of Vega Seven broke up with me?"
Star smiled into her sister's hair, "You cried all night, and I came to your room and comforted you."
Blackfire suddenly felt herself over come with memories and emotions. Her eyes teared up, "You always give the best hugs, Kori."
Pulling away slightly, Starfire looked at her with wide eyes. Reaching out, she brushed the tears away from her smiling sister's eyes, "Komand'r... what is wrong?"
"I don't know what's going on with me... I'm just... emotional as hell right now." she shook her head, "Let's do the Hymn."
"Okay." Star nodded happily, and they walked to the center of the observation deck and faced each other. Taking deep breaths, they began to sing in unison.
Dick was jogging up the steps to the observation deck to get Starfire and Blackfire for breakfast when he heard it. Two voices, blending seamlessly with each other, making music so beautiful he was positive it had to be from some other world.
As he stepped through the doorway and out onto the deck, he saw that he was indeed right. The two alien girls were mere inches apart, holding both of their hands together and floating above the tower, several yards up in the air. Green light dance about them, mingling with the violet energies that pulsed out in waves.
The rising sun back dropped their mid-air dance of beauty, silhouetting their fanning hair, red and black, and mingling it's own light with theirs. He stared, transfixed on the sight before him, watching them continue for almost ten minutes.
After a time, they began to descend, and the song they were singing slowed until they both let out it's final, long, haunting note, a promise peace and tranquility for all who heard it. Dick felt like clapping, but knew somehow that it would disrupt the beautiful moment the two sisters were sharing.
When Starfire spoke, it sounded official and ceremonial, "Thank you, Komand'r, for helping to show me once again to the light of Xha'l's embrace. Thank you for showing me the path of a true Tamaranian."
Blackfire responded, "Thank you, Koriand'r, for letting me show you Xha'l's light, and for setting your feet once again on the path of a true Tamaranian."
They stood, hand's clasped, and head's bowed together with their forehead's touching, each one breathing in the other's essence. After a seemingly infinite moment, they pulled apart and faced Dick.
"Thank you for waiting, Richard. What can we do for you?" Starfire smiled brightly at him, and he saw that her glow was back. That she was the same Starfire she had been before he had left her.
"Breakfast." he choked out, "Babs cooked eggs."
"I'll go eat then." Blackfire glance at Star, "You two have some talking to do, don't you?"
"Yes." she nodded, "I will see you in a little while, sister."
Blackfire nodded and walked past Dick, who was still staring in wonder at Starfire. She paused at his shoulder and turned her head, "If you hurt her, Robin, I'll kill you."
He gulped and nodded, and she continued on her way. With a deep breath and a bolstering of his courage, Dick walked forward and stood in front of Star. They stared at each other for a long moment, then he spoke, "Okay, get it over with."
"What?" she blinked at him.
"Babs already assaulted me with a newspaper, and I know I deserve a good slap from you, so go ahead." he frowned.
"Oh, Richard." she smiled at him then and floated up. Wrapping her arms around his head, she pulled him into her and hugged him, "I am upset that you did not tell me you were still alive, but I am also so very glad that you are here now. I do not wish to harm you."
"That's a relief. You probably would have broken my jaw if you'd smacked me."
"That is true." she landed in front of him, "So what do we do now?"
"I don't know..." he looked away from her, "I love you, Kori... I just..."
"All is forgiven, Richard. You don't need to worry about my anger."
He sighed and sank down to the deck, sitting cross-legged. She followed suit and faced him, taking his hand as he started to explain, "I just... needed to get away from all of it. When the Joker blew us up... Tim and I, that is... we lived through it, but... I was broken, Kori. I was beaten, and broken." he closed his eyes and a scowl came to his face, "Robin died that night."
"But... you did not."
"No, I didn't. I felt like... maybe it was my second chance. A chance to get away from everything and start over... fresh, new... no hero work, no dodging bullets every day, no stress... just... new."
"It did not go as you had planed, did it?"
"No," he smiled up at her, "it didn't. You know me well enough to know what happened."
"You could not stop yourself from helping people. You could not stop yourself from saving lives."
"On the nose." he touched hers with a finger, and she giggled, "I thought getting away from everything meant staring over as a civilian, but it took two things to make me realize that I was wrong." he smiled again, that lopsided smile she loved, "A bank robbery, and the memory of you, Kori. I wouldn't be happy in a life where I wasn't saving people, and I didn't have you."
"So you made a plan."
"Raven's been teaching you how to read minds, hasn't she?"
"Of course not, silly."
"Well, I did make a plan." he grinned, "And it's a great one."
"Timothy is involved, isn't he?"
"By his own choice. He never gave up on me, you know. He kept pestering me about coming back here and facing everything. Guess he won."
"How does he figure into all of this?" she cocked her head to the side, and he smiled at her in a devilish way.
"Well, I'm never going to be Robin again. I wont be in Bruce's shadow any more. But that doesn't mean that Batman shouldn't have a sidekick."
Her eyes widened, "Are you saying...?"
"Robin might not be so dead after all."
She clapped her hands in front of her and beamed, "And the rest? What about you?" she leaned forward eagerly, ready to hear the rest of his plan.
"That depends largely on you, and what you can remember about Titan Case File 348..."
"Warp..." she smiled, "Oh... I see. I see it so clearly now..." she reached out and fingered his hair, which dropped down in long strands past his ears, "You need to keep growing it."
Tim looked up as the green convertible pulled up outside the building he and Dick had been living in for the past several months. He stood up and put a hand on one of the three bags next to him that contained the clothes and some of the equipment that Dick had acquired for them.
It was getting on towards noon, and it was a warm sunny day, so it wasn't a surprise at all that the blond woman who stepped out of the car was wearing sunglasses, short shorts, and a strappy tank top. What was a surprise was that Dick hadn't been exaggerating. She was tall, leggy, and had a beautiful face. She grinned at his slack jawed amazement.
"Never seen a JLA girl before, kid?" she walked up to him and pulled her sun glasses down, looking at him more closely as she bent down to his level, revealing ample amounts of cleavage in the process. "Hey, you're kind of cute."
"You're a JLA girl?" he stuttered. Shaking his head, he slapped himself, "Sorry... um... you're a member of the JLA?"
She grinned even wider, satisfied that she had flustered his teenage hormones, "Black Canary, at your service."
"Wow. So, you're my ride huh?" he looked past her, "Nice wheels."
"Comes with the turf." she winked, "Dick asked me to roll out here and get you." she rolled her eyes as she hefted one of the bags, "First it's 'Help me find my girlfriend!' Then it's 'Follow the evil sister and make sure she doesn't kill anyone!' And now I'm down to 'Go play taxi for my bratty little brother!'"
"Hey!" he grinned good naturedly, "He did not call me a brat."
"What if he did?"
"I'll kick his ass, that's what."
She laughed as he lifted the one of the bags himself and carried it to the back of the car. Fuming, but still grinning, he said, "Mock me at your own peril, Canary."
"Maybe Dick will let me help train you." she replied, catching him about the shoulder and giving him a one armed hug, "I kind of like you kid."
"Oh... I don't know..." he blushed a little, "I'm sure you're really good... I can tell by the way you move... and I'm not sure I'm up to fighting a girl just yet..."
She winked one last time as she walked around the car to the drivers side, "Who says I'd be training you to fight?"
As his jaw dropped, she laughed and waved him off, "Be a dear and get that last bag, would you?"
Babs and Blackfire were finishing off their breakfasts when Star and Dick came into the room. They were holding hands, and smiling, casting loving looks at one another, and gernally acting disgusting.
"I don't know if I can live with that." Blackfire commented to Babs as the two love birds walked closer.
"You know you're welcome to stay here as long as you're on Earth, right?" Babs asked, glancing at her, "I mean, you did prove last night that you're capable of helping out... why not hang around for a little while? Get to know your sister again?"
"Oh yes!" Starfire clapped her hands in front of herself, "Please stay, sister! While Richard is busy training Timothy, he will not be able to patrol the city with me, and Batman can use all the help he can get..."
Blackfire looked dubious, "I don't know... I've already caused enough trouble for you guys-"
"What trouble? You stopped a bank robbery, and a break in at S.T.A.R. labs!" Dick smiled at her, "I know we haven't always gotten along in the past, Blackfire, but we could use your help... at least until Batman gets back into town."
"Well... fine." she smiled slightly, "Until this Batman guy gets back, I'll hang around."
"Oh, glorious!" Starfire hugged Dick.
Babs grinned as well, "Wow... talk about a change. All it took was your sister liking you again, and your boyfriend coming back from the dead. Doesn't take much to please you at all, does it Kori?"
"Shut up, Barbara." she replied in a cheerful manner, "You are simply jelous, because once again, I have a boyfriend, and you do not."
"Oh, that was below the belt." Babs smiled and waggled a finger at Star, "You watch it, or I'll kick you out on the street."
"Oh no!" Star threw her hands to her cheeks in mock horror, "Whatever would we do then? Go live in the lavishness of Wayne Manor?"
Blackfire looked over at Dick with an arched eyebrow and a smile, "If they're this entertaining all the time, I might just hang around longer than I thought..."
It was early evening when Black Canary and Tim arrived at the Clock Tower. Tim was immediately rushed to the gym by Dick, who claimed that the younger teen wouldn't be going more than two days without some kind of combat training.
That left the girls free to sit around the living room and talk for a while before patrol time. Introductions were made for Canary and everyone except Blackfire, who she had met the night before, and they settled down with iced tea and cookies to talk about the situation at hand.
"So Dick will be using my gym to train Tim, and the two of them will be taking up residence here at my place." Babs rolled her eyes, "Not that I don't have enough rooms, but this place is getting more and more crowded by the second."
"What?" Canary laughed a little, "No room for me?"
"You already have a place, Dinah." Babs rolled her eyes.
"Um..." Starfire spoke up meekly, "I believe Richard and I will be sharing a room, so there is no need to worry about him..."
Blackfire arched an eyebrow at her, "I don't know if I approve little sister."
"I don't think you get much of a say in the matter, big sister." Star sneered at her, and the other two girls laughed.
"So Dick going to change his identity, huh?" Canary asked.
"Yes." Star nodded, "He is going to ask Timothy some time in the next few weeks, I believe. He says the young man is advancing at an incredible rate."
"And with five teachers now instead of just one..." Babs smiled, "He'll be ready for the streets in no time."
"I'm expected to teach as well?" Blackfire snorted, "Xha'l! This deal just keeps getting worse and worse!"
"What about you, Dinah? You willing to teach Tim a thing or two?" Babs asked the blond haired woman.
"I was thinking about it. Though, after the way I embarrassed him earlier today, I don't think he's going to be too willing to spar with me."
"He is still young." Star noted with a giggle, "I believe he will be unwilling to spar with anyone who has breasts."
"He'll have to get over that pretty quick." Babs smirked, "There's a lot of girls out there that could kick his ass to hell and back."
"He'll learn." Canary smiled, "He's sharp. The way he was talking on the way over here, you'd think he was already a super hero."
"With Richard training him, it is a small wonder." Star put in.
"No," Babs shook her head with a grin, "It makes him a Boy Wonder."
They all laughed at that, and as they calmed down, Canary spoke up again, "You two want help on patrol tonight? The JLA hasn't got anything for me right now, and I'm not working any other cases, so I'm pretty bored."
"We would be honored to have your assistence tonight!" Star bounced in her seat, "It would make things easier on Blackfire and myself."
"Let's get to it then." Babs said as she wheeled herself away form the living room and towards her computer area, "Everyone stop in for a com unit before you go."
"Rodger that." Canary jumped up.
"I need to get some new clothes tomarrow..." Blackfire sighed as she inspected her combat garb, "This stuff just isn't good for lounging around."
"You may borrow one of my outfits for tonight if you wish." Star told her as they walked to her room.
"Um..." Blackfire recalled Star's outfit from the night before, "No, I don't think so. I may not be that modest, but I don't want my boobs falling out all over the place."
Time passed, as it is wont to do, and the residents of the Clock Tower found their days taking on a semblance of routine. Dick would train Tim in gymnastics and grace in the morning, then take a break for his own training in the afternoon, at which time Babs would take over with his conditioning training. Combat training was usually with Dick after a late lunch, but sometimes Starfire or her sister would take over to give him a feel for fighting super strong enemies.
The times Tim really looked forward to though, were when Black Canary wasn't too busy to drop by and spar with him for a while. She was an expert martial artist, and she taught him a lot, but at the same time, he enjoyed her company for her wise cracks and smart remarks. Though he would never admit it, he also liked the way she filled out her training clothes.
Dick's training became more and more intense as the weeks flew by. He was starting to fill out, become more muscular, and his hair got long enough for him to have to tie it back while he was working out. Slowly, he was developing a unique fighting style all his own.
Starfire and Blackfire were out all night patrolling Gotham with Batman, and so they both slept most of the day. When they were awake, Star spent time with her boyfriend, and Blackfire spent time with Babs, learning about the Earth.
Babs' time was split between acting as the Oracle, and helping to train Tim and Blackfire. Dick had talked to her about working too much and not sleeping enough, but she had responded with a wave of her hand.
"This isn't a permanent thing, you know. You guys will move on out of here before too long, and I'll be left all alone to catch up on all the sleep I'm missing while you're here. Don't worry so much, Hunk Wonder."
It was mid-June when the routine was broken.
Blackfire was sitting in the living room with Babs, flipping channels on the TV (learning she called it) while the red haired Earthling was teaching herself to knit.
"You know, if you left it on Discovery, you'd learn a whole lot more than if you kept flipping to cartoons and music videos."
"I'm getting a feel for this planets pop culture." Blackfire sniffed, "What is that smell?"
"Dunno. Kori's in the kitchen."
"Barbara! Sister!" Starfire flew into the living room with a platter in her hands, "I have prepared for our lunch fried chicken!"
"You actually figured out how to use my deep fryer?" Babs arched an eyebrow, "And you didn't blow up the kitchen?"
"I am not so ignorant of Earthly cooking that I could not figure out how to... Komand'r, are you well?" Star turned to her sister, who was staring at the platter of fried chicken with a slightly green face. Her eyes crossed, and she made a sick noise before she flew up out of her seat and into the bathroom down the hall from the living room.
"What the hell was that about?" Babs eyed the chicken, "I mean... it doesn't smell that bad, if you like a lot of grease..."
"Usually Blackfire is more than happy to eat my cooking..." Star looked confused, "She says it reminds her of home."
"We all think that, Kori... I'm going to go check on her..."
Blackfire was heaving into the toilet when she felt gentle hands pull her hair back and hold it for her. She nodded a weak thanks as she was sick again.
After several minutes, she finally collapsed back against someone's legs, and looked up to see Babs smiling down at her, "Chicken not your favorite?"
"I don't know... it just... the smell made me sick."
"Weird." Babs looked at her eyes closely, then placed two fingers to her neck, "Your pulse is up a bit, but nothing unusual. Let's get you to my lab and I'll see if I can run a few tests to find out what's wrong with you."
"Tamaranian's are built slightly different than humans, Babs."
"Then Kori can help us." she smiled, "Let's go."
Dick and Tim stepped into the living room and looked around. Both were soaked in sweat, and tiered to the bone from a rather intense spar just moments before.
"Where are the girls?" Tim asked as he walked to the kitchen and grabbed a glass for some water.
"Don't know..." Dick walked over to the panal in the wall that was slid back to reveal the secret area Babs used for her Oracle work, "Hello?" he called into it.
"Richard!" Starfire flew out, pushing him back, "Eh... hehe... how was your workout?"
"Fine..." he looked suspicious, "What's going on?"
"Nothing!" Star replied, a little too quickly. She looked back and forth between him and Tim for a moment, then her face fell, "I am a horrible actress."
"This is what's up." Babs said with a slightly bemused expression as she wheeled out of the hidden area, followed by a frowning Blackfire. She tossed a small white stick at Dick, who caught it deftly and looked down to see what it was.
"First Response." he read, then glanced down at the indicator on the pregnancy test. It was a plus sign.
"Um..." he looked up at Starfire, who had a silly grin on her face, "Whoa... wait a second... I know we've been going at it pretty regular for the past few weeks, but I thought you said you were taking something for birth control!"
"Not her, stupid." Blackfire spoke up, "Me." There was shocked silence from the two boys as she looked at the ground with a frown.
"Wha..." Tim was confused, "I mean... who?"
"Good question... when was the last time you uh..." Dick scratched the back of his head.
"Had sex?" Blackfire snapped, "It was before I got to Gotham... back in jump."
"Who'd you sleep with in Jump City?" Starfire asked.
"Brian..." she whispered.
"Brian? You did not tell me that you had... oh, Blackfire! What were you thinking?"
"Wait a second!" Dick took a step forward, "Who the hell is Brian?"
"An old friend of yours." Blackfire responded, "I'm pregnant... with the child of Red-X."
Closing Notes: Holy shit! Who DIDN'T see that one coming for a mile and a half away?
Reviews make everyone happy!
Jaina 12 - Blackfire's back! Sort of! Well, that's the end, so I hoped you like it...
Heaven's Angel - Of course you were seeing shades of Steph's training as Robin. I based the Zsasz scenes heavily on "...and red all over" (writen by Andersen Gabrych) in which she and Batman confront the madman himself. Good eye. :)
catsux - I try. :)
Arezal - I'm telling you, Dick is the best Robin EVER. I HAD to have him save the day...
skweeks50 - Kind of mellow on the Dick and Tim being alive front. Though, the kids out in Jump still don't know...
WHOCARES? - I meant look for more Floyd in the STORY, not in real life, silly. :)
ravene - No way. Starfire is hot. I can't kill her off... :)
Stolen Valkyrie - Hope the studying has let up a little. It's been known to cause brain damage you know...
seattleitegirl - Three of four request taken care of. Look to the next chapter for Kylee's big moment.
Yeliak - I threw in the exact opposit of someone dying. Someone is have a baby. Yay!
StarryRavenFire - Back to Jump in the next chapter and we'll find out more about what's been going on there. Keep reading!
cyberclock - And Star didn't die! Yay! Hope you liked this one too.
Robinfan- Woo! More for you to read coming soon! I've been itching to write the next chapter, so... here's the preview!
Next Time: Kylee's Story - Magic and Mayhem
In which Kylee expierence's many, many firsts for her young life.