DISCLAIMER: I do not own DC or its characters, the only character I own is Athena.

One:

Rebirth

They often say, everybody dies in their nightmares and live in peace in their dreams. What they didn't know was, all dreams were just a facade. There is no such thing as peace or happiness in the unwaking world. Dreams were a sweet dystopia masked as the closest thing to heaven a living being could reach, and then once their guard is down, the only direction they are led to are their worst possible realities. And one day… waking up from it will be impossible.

"I think it's time to tell your father what's been happening." The way her clear eyes were fixed was unyielding. Alight with solemnity, while the wrinkles on her forehead sent her into old age.

Still, Athena sat on the white sofa, her head positioned to the floor. The milky carpet was a better sight than her mother at the moment. Her summer tanned feet, were bare, allowing her toes to freely grab small tufts of the feathery material.

Things weren't always like this- the royal pristine furnishings, the double bathrooms, the master bedroom with a guest room to go along with it. There was a time when this apartment would have just been a makeshift, only used for sleeping, eating, and making her income as a lady of the night. The time when, Selina Kyle was not a mother to anyone or anything, and hadn't planned on it in a million years, at that.

Then came the safehouses, those were never really homes. She would have to leave within the next week due to some criminal after Catwoman's tail. During those times, a sudden birth happened and that child certainly didn't live in that environment. That's how the stories usually went, anyway.

Eventually, she turned things around. She 'grew up.' She was no longer Catwoman or Selina Kyle, she let those parts of her go and became the woman inside of her that's been blooming since she met him. Just, Selina. She moved out of the most crime ridden part of Gotham-or in her words, the most opportunistic- and into a building on the nicer side of the city. She could have chosen any place to live, yet she still chose something decently affordable, yet large enough to be pined after. Not extravagant, and off in the hills, somewhere.

Athena shook her head. "No."

Mother had probably tilted her head in confusion, her eyebrows dropping, allowing a youthful appearance to return. Her lips would be fixed into a tight frown and her cheeks would slowly become a shade of cherry red, indicating her agitation. Athena kept her sight directed at her freshly polished, black toenails.

"Why not?" her mother let out a deep sigh, that of frustration and not of desperation, not yet. "I don't understand you sometimes."

Athena took in a breath, "I won't tell him. I'm not going to bother him with something that isn't even a big deal. He's a busy man, he doesn't want to hear about some stupid dream." Her voice was small, something despondent trailed behind her words.

It wasn't just some stupid dream. Deep within her, she knew that was the truth. Saying otherwise, made things easier. It made them clearer, it gave her a false hope that maybe, just maybe, it was just a stupid dream and not some nightmare prophecy of a dark future. "It's really not important. It's nothing."

There was light shuffling, back and forth, indicating that her mother was in fact getting irritated with her, it was a trait she learned herself. "Christ," she hissed, "he loves you! He loves you so much, Athena. Whatever you had to say, he would listen in a heartbeat, no matter what was going on at the company, no matter what was happening in the city." Her pacing stopped, she had most likely assumed her ever-so-motherly hand on hip position. "He would know as well as I do that it isn't 'nothing.' You wake up in the middle of the night screaming and in cold sweats, you're scared, and I know that isn't something you can admit, but I know that if it wasn't true, you wouldn't have been here for the past three weeks."

"Leave it alone, really-" before she could even think of finishing her sentence, a pair of hands grasped her shoulders, the grip wouldn't be easy to wriggle out of.

"Athena Mira Kyle W-" her mother began, putting a halt in her speech once Athena had finally brought her eyes away from her feet. "You're making eye contact, good." She narrowed her eyes, the slitted glare began to form, although forced, her tone was kept low and she spoke slowly, "listen to me, you're even more stubborn than the both of us because you get it from us, but if you don't tell him, I will."

Without saying a word, she shrugged her mother's hands off her shoulders and stood, "do what you want, doesn't mean I'll talk to him." She started toward the hallway which led to the front doors. "I'm taking a walk."

Outsiders will always claim that Gotham is a terrible place. It should be wiped from the face of the planet, they say. Damned to the worse circle of Hell, they say. Because those are the only solutions to helping this city. Right. Those people don't live in this city day in and day out, they will never truly understand the sins of this city, only what the news reporters tell them. Therefore, they will never be capable of fathoming its many beauties.

There was always the calm before the storm, the moments of sunset before nightfall. When twilight spread across the skies, as though a bucket of paint had been kicked over by the gods, leaking hues of violet smoke, fallen autumn leaves, and rose pink, an amalgamation from an artist's touch. When the traffic slowed, and the carlights were like flashlights in the dark. When the scents from the street vendors began to fade as they retired for the day, yet still lingered all the same making one wish they had come sooner.

Those outsiders would never understand that Gotham was as good as Metropolis, or Starling, or even Central City. If even better, as it was the closest to flesh and blood a city could get. Endlessly battling between virtue and sin. It was the most human, and like many humans, it had work to do.

The breeze picked up, tangling within the long, black locks she had neglected to comb through today. At least, the street she had been walking down was without glass windows, not wanting to feel worse by catching a glimpse of her crazed appearance- possibly resembling a wild banshee. Grimacing at the thought, she continued down the stony pavement.

It began to grow darker within seconds, which is why it was a surprise that her mom even allowed her this walk. Yes, she was nineteen years old, and yes neither of her parents let her grow up without learning 'self defense,' as they liked to call it, because regardless of the beauty Gotham had- it was still a dangerous place. Not only for a young woman, but a young woman of her current position. Athena's eyebrows had naturally risen, without her realization at first. Often pondering things that ought not to be pondered.

Within a few seconds of idle strolling, her brain switched its focus. A frown formed on her lips, as she averted her gaze to the light sparkling of the pavement. Stubbornness was a natural trait of hers, it came as natural as breathing or swallowing.

She brought her arms around her chest.

As much as she was reluctant to admit it, mom was right, the nightmare was something. She was still wrong too. Dad wouldn't be able to do anything, as much as people thought he was, he wasn't a god. He was just a man. He wouldn't be able to help her this time, not like he did all those years ago. What was the use in telling him? So he could worry and put all his energy into something he couldn't possibly fix?

"No." Athena closed her eyes, letting a sigh escape her lips and running her fingers through slightly tangled hair. If only all her worries could have faded away along with that single breath.

She would have continued down the path, to cross the street and begin making her way back to the apartment. Instead, her eyes snapped open, as she turned her head down an alleyway. The cover to a trash can tumbled to the ground, covered in rust and muck as it rolled in her direction before slowing into a spin at her feet.

In the distance were muffled sounds of screeching and guttural growling. Against her better judgement, Athena started to move her feet forward into the alley. The still quiet of the streets should have without a doubt been a sign that it was time to go home.

The deeper she went into the alley, the more intense the screeching became. High pitched and in quick bursts. The trash can had been knocked over, garbage spread all around the scene. Resisting the urge to hold her nose, she stepped in the center of the alley. Rotten fish and severed body parts, surely entangling with her fresh clothes.

"Hey!" she yelled, drawing power from the back of her throat, much like that of a growl. At the sound of her voice, the two cats that had been viciously rolling around the clearing, wielding teeth and claw, separated. Similar to soldiers responding to their commander. Each landed on their paws. The calico, mixed equally with colors of tan and black had her back hunched, teeth baring as she growled lowly, steadily raising the octave. The black cat seemed to hold a defensive position, but was not afraid to be offensive in the slightest.

The hiss came from Athena this time, "stop it!" Slowly bending down a few inches away. At the sudden motion, the calico sprinted off from the scene, like a murderer from their crime.

Athena sighed, "that's alright. You're not going to run away, are you?" Yes, she was talking to an animal that could supposedly not understand her. Except, it could.

The feline blended in with the night, its fur sleek for a stray, a shimmering trail along her pelt appeared as a strip of stars in the midnight sky. Its posture changed once the enemy left, sitting straight up with its tail curled around its paws. Pretty, cerulean eyes staring quizzically back at her.

She let out a soft chuckle, a smile forming across her lips. "You've got eyes like mine, girl," keeping her voice mellow, a tone that she didn't use with other people, for they wouldn't be able to understand the language she spoke. It was for her cats, only. She reached her palm outwards, nodding for the cat to come forward.

Seconds passed, after the cat tilted her head, seemingly contemplating whether or not she should trust her. But that wasn't true, she already did trust her, the cat was just being difficult. There was a twinkle in her eyes, a look of mischief, right before she started to pad over, a limp in her trot. The black cat rubbed its head against her palm.

Gently rubbing her fingers against her small ears, shaking her head in amusement. "Now what were you girls fighting about? Hopefully not a stupid tom cat, you're too pretty to be fighting over that."

The midnight cat plopped on the ground, laying sideways before flipping over onto her back.

There were several bleeding wounds on the cat's stomach, albeit small. Athena raised an eyebrow, "you trust me that much, huh? After that other girl got you like that?"

It didn't take her long to come to a final decision. It wasn't even something she had to think about, honestly. She sat down on the cold ground, crossing her legs. "How about this? You can come home with me on one condition-" The feline's ears perked up as she listened, she was a quiet one. "From here on out, you're my very own sidekick. Sage the Cat. Besides," she paused for a second, a smirk crossing her lips, "Athena does need her trusty owl."

The feline jumped to her paws. Athena nearly opened her mouth to speak, until a knot began to form in the pit of her stomach, the hairs on her arms and back erecting. Feelings not of her own, but of her new sidekick. Sage opened her mouth, baring long, sharp teeth, her nose wrinkling as a fierce hiss came from her. It was directed at someone or- something other than her.

"Behind you." The first words of the feline echoed inside of her head, Sage had been the perfect name choice, as she was older than her new owner by many years.

As she inhaled, the air stuck to her nostrils like a tangible blob, instead of going down into her lungs. This air had a certain taste. Awful, awful, things. Athena forced herself to stand, shrugging away the emotions of Sage. Whoever was behind her, wouldn't want to be soon enough.

"Look, dude, you might think i'm some little girl but you don't want to mess with me." Her eyes fixed into a narrowed glare, not once has she had to defend herself in her own city. She didn't want to start now. Her legs got into a natural position of defense, she spoke clear, but low, a warning. "So, I suggest-"

The words caught in her throat, much like the air in her nostrils. They would choke her before coming out. The sight before her was no man or woman, for that matter. Athena fought the dying inclination to scream. The… thing in front of her was wholly of black matter, crafted from the souls of the most deplorable people on this planet, and jammed into one being. Its face was outlined in the form of a humanoid, yet there were no features. The night was pitch and so was it, perhaps even darker, yet she could see it clearly, almost like there was a hidden night light built inside of its fibers. It wanted people to see it in all of its glory, it wanted people to know that it wasn't just another shadow. That this wasn't just the night playing tricks on its victims.

Time slowed, her heart seemed to take pause. In only a matter of seconds, the fear that Sage felt crept into her entire being. It would not let go. As she stared, frozen, into the void set of eyes the creature possessed, she nearly thought she felt them. The parasites. Seeping into the last part of her life that she was convinced they couldn't touch, they shouldn't be able to get her while she was awake!

"Child. If you presume yourself capable of challenging me, then you are utterly mistaken. For I am the nightmare you were never aware that you possessed." The voice was feminine, yet distorted. Echoing all around her, entrancing her to remain still before the thing that could very well kill her. It's mouth did not move.

The hairs on the back of her neck and arms stood erect, tingling a sensation never felt before. Her muscles screamed at her. Do something. Dread dawned over her shoulders, must move quickly. It was purely instinctual, almost like her very senses were communicating to her, like her and these inanimate functions had a bond.

"Now, be a good little mortal and stay still." Filled to the brim with depravity. Malicious ink wrote the words she spoke. The being stretched out her darker than midnight hand, claws protruding from her fingertips, on a smaller scale but shaped like that of a lion or tiger claw. As she reached for her face, Athena's eyes widened, she couldn't even conjure up a scream, let alone defend herself. The screeching of her muscles resembled the cats fighting, they desperately wished to move, kick, punch, something. Until, they were overridden by one thing.

Death.

The claws of the being latched onto her skin, like a hunter capturing its prey, like the parasites capturing her blood. The moment they made contact, everything became dark, as if the light had gotten sucked out of existence. An invisible hand had reached into her physical body, shifting through any and every plane until coming in contact with the correct one. The one where her soul resided. A tight grip, ripping away everything she knew she had- and everything she didn't. The need to retch, scream, and gasp for air flooded her at once. Every bone inside her body was getting plucked out one by one and snapped in half, sending waves of agony from her toes to her temples. Her lungs had collapsed into her abdomen, and her heart had imploded to only be dissected and carried away for safekeeping, the destruction of her vital organs was not enough, there had to be pain and suffering, everlasting.

It all happened in a matter of seconds, yet in a matter of hours. It all came to a pause. Her last moments.

The world faded to white.

"Hmm. It seems you are only just budding. I cannot do it yet. Not yet."

Collapsing to the ground and managing to catch her fall with her hands, all of the contents of breakfast and lunch rushed upwards, a reverse waterfall. Orange juice did not go well with PB&J. She lifted up her head, eyelids drooping slightly, mustering up a voice. The being of darkness had lifted herself into the air, towering over her insignificant figure, a hellish god born of malice.

"Who…" Athena coughed, flecks of blood splattered the pavement. "What are you?"

The creature tilted her head, to the left, while bringing her chin upwards, glowering down at her as if she were a piece of flesh and not a human being with a meaningful life, a loving family. So much to lose. But, this is what gods have become. Hiding away in their heavens, to dictate the lives of mortals, putting it beneath them to actually discover how much potential they have.

"Child, if you are dying to know. . ." she drew out her words, toying with her catch, as if she had some grand reveal that would shatter her psyche, break the broken.

A blink was a long time for a god. A blink was all it took to miss something important. Athena now knew why the sudden knowing self-satisfaction had overcome the being. Her breath caught in her throat, this time not from anyone elses doing, eyes widening, lips parting slightly. It couldn't be.

"I, am you." Her face, her face was perfectly attached to fit the black figure, with not a detail incorrect. From the tiny moles that sporadically appeared on parts of her face, to the length of her eyelashes which framed her eyes. It wasn't until then, that she did see it. She did have her father's eyes. She could never understand, looking into a mirror, but when someone else wearing her face, stared back at her… she did not see herself, she saw him.

Was this all a ruse? A mind trick to get into her head and eventually drive her insane? The nightmares, now this, it was all to make her insane. The hairs across her arms stood with an abruptness, and then dropped. Another attack? No. No. This was different. They said no. Her face, plastered onto that she-devil was not some simple illusion, it was-

The she-devil's head tilted back into a neutral position. Now that her facial features were more than depths of nothingness, her lips curved into a smirk. Even if she had her face, she looked nothing like her in that moment. Something dark, wicked. "But, you can call me Malice. The title you gave me."

She… was capable of reading her mind? Before Athena could speak, her phone buzzed in her back pocket. She swore she only took her attention off of that thing for a second, long enough to blink. And within the next second, she was gone. Faded into the night, and back to whichever Hell she came from.

Left alone once again, during the time where the nightmares would get her. Athena tilted her head toward the ground. The splatters of blood, her blood, had begun to dry into the pavement, like the blood of many others. It was all real. They were coming for her now in the dream that she called the waking world. All dreams were just a facade. Her body ached as she forced herself to sit upwards, back against the dumpster. Still, she pulled her knees into her chest. Alone. Mother can't help now. No one can. No one will. Her arms were wrapped around her knees, as she rocked slowly back and forth. Thrown into a cold and endless, torment. One that would not even allow her to cry.

A soft, small sound. It brought her back. Back into her body, let her reclaim it as her own and not some shell the darkness of her mind could manipulate. A meow. It was a meow. At the same time, it was a mother's coo, an 'everything will be alright.'

"Sage?" Athena turned her head, a single tear rolling her her cheek, after minutes of straining to be released, voice frail as she shuddered. She hated it.

The small cat leapt onto the dumpster within a single bound, climbing onto her shoulder. A slightly rough tongue swiped across her cheek, wiping the tear dry. A light purr emitted from her chest. "You will never be alone, Athena. What good would your owl be if not with you?"

A laugh came out in a scoff, all she could manage, it hurt to even do that. Although, she smiled, weak but yet it brought her strength.

"Let's go home."

R&R, at your leisure!