***Note from the Author*** We're back! I cannot apologize enough for what has probably felt like the world's longest hiatus but you know how life goes. As many of you know, I only began writing fanfics in frustration at the unfinished gems online. Know that no matter how long I go without posting, my thoughts are always with the stories even if my muse sometimes isn't. Which is another thing altogether, I really want to do right by these stories and by you all, so if it's not good enough to post than I don't but trust me when I say, all of my stories will be completed! Hopefully before I turn a quarter century in a year and a half. So here's to hanging in there and doing the damn thing! Thanks to all the amazing readers, you guys make it worth it! ***End Note***
"No! You always do that Wyette! Dad!" John whined as Dick walked through the door and hung up his jacket.
Wyette and John ran up to Dick, faces flushed and features clearly frustrated before launching into their tales of sibling injustice.
"I didn't even do anything to him," Wyette defended as she crossed her arms over her abdomen, "I got to the door first."
Dick couldn't help but notice how much she resembled her mother both in mischief and in innocence, it was almost like looking at a miniature Zatanna, as she rolled her cyan blue eyes and tapped her foot in agitation. Her full cheeks held a rosy flush that failed to camouflage her almost indiscernible freckles, while her long obsidian hair, personified the quiet mischief that had become her personality in the past year or two, escaping in loose wavy tendrils around her face and shoulders.
He watched as John's eyes widened in disbelief at his sister's statement. His blue eyes were darker and shone furiously with untold rectitude. He smothered his laugh as he recalled Wally and Zatanna's constant jibing at just how much his son resembled him, in size and features at that age. Although he had to admit that much was true, he was certain he got his expressions and flare for the dramatic from his mother without a doubt. John never went down quietly, there was always a last word with him and until he turned seven the trait had been adorable. Now that he was seven, it made him a handful and a wise guy according to Zatanna.
He threw his hands over his head in an exaggerated motion as he launched into his own defense.
"Nu-uh! She cheated; she's always cheating!" He exclaimed. "Mom and dad said you can't use magic without permission but Wyette always does and that's why she's faster."
Dick laughed, "Guys, we've talked about this, you don't have to race to open the door for me. I live here, I'll be here all night."
"Until someone needs you again." John corrected grudgingly, his face pinched as he scowled.
Wyette looked from her brother to her father, her expression torn as she echoed her brothers' sentiments and yet celebrated any moment her dad was home.
"Hey," Dick started, "I thought we talked about this."
John's eyes shot up, "I know, I'm not sad I promise. I just….I just, why can't you take a break or why can't we come with you?"
"Are you saying you don't want to go see your Grandpa Bruce and Alfred?" Zatanna asked as she rounded the corner with a small basket of laundry.
"No." John said quickly, terrified of missing out on seeing his favorite family members. "That's not what I said. I just want dad to come with us. He never comes."
"He came last time when we went to Amsterdam, remember? Grandpa Bruce and Alfred came too." Wyette reminded him.
"I know but it wasn't the same." The small acrobat groaned, throwing his arms above his head as he rounded on his sister. "I wasn't even talking to you Wyette."
"You know daddy can't always be with us John, he has his job." Zatanna explained gently.
"You have your job and we always go with you." John pointed out.
"Because mommy's job is fun and safe." Dick reminded them. "My job isn't."
"I thought you liked coming to work with me." Zatanna pouted.
"I do." John promised.
"Then what's the problem?" Zatanna asked softly, holding the laundry on her hip. She could see it now; it was less than a mile away. A full-blown tantrum; John was having them more often than usual, though she didn't know if tantrum was really the word. He just seemed to be craving attention, a specific person's attention.
Her eyes quickly flashed up to Dick and as he met her gaze with a steeled understanding and acceptance, she couldn't help but feel bad. He tried, he really did, he came home every night to tuck them in even if he had to leave right after. He was at breakfast every morning and drove them to school without fail, the only exception being if he was truly needed to save a life. Yet there just wasn't enough hours in the day to be saving the world one case at a time and being super dad.
"I just….I just want to be with dad too." John finished.
Dick knelt down to speak to him before Wyette who had been watching the small interaction between her parents furrowed her brows and brought her hands to her hips.
"You're always complaining John. That's why we aren't twins anymore, we aren't the same." She said frankly.
"What?" Zatanna and Dick said incredulously.
"Wyette." Dick cautioned.
"It's true! It's true! Everyone says it, me and John aren't twins, he's just my brother. He's not even a girl!" Wyette explained.
"Mom and dad said we're fat-ern-al!" John shouted. "That means we are different people twins. Do you ever listen?!"
"Okay!" Dick boomed, "That's enough. Couch. Fifteen minutes, both of you."
The twins lamented immediately. "That's not fair!" "You see what you did?!"
Wyette disappeared before them and reappeared on the couch sulking.
John looked at her and then at his parents incredulously. "YOU SEE?!"
"Wyette, I said no magic in the house. That's an extra five minutes for you." Zatanna told her.
"HA!" John retorted.
"And that's your extra five big guy." Dick told him.
John's mouth dropped open in a small "O". Before he turned and prepared to stomp away.
"I wouldn't," Dick warned him. "You don't want to make it an extra ten."
John muttered sullenly under his breath as he went and sat on the opposite side of the couch for his punishment.
Zatanna sighed and walked over to Dick, pecking him on the cheek. "Welcome home baby. Dinner in 20."
"There better be dessert after that welcome." He told her jokingly.
Zatanna shrugged, "Maybe there is, maybe there isn't."
He chuckled and made his way to office to put his things away and ready for dinner.
"So Michael's birthday party is this weekend." Zatanna said trying to break the angry silence between her kids. "Maybe you guys can stay here, with daddy, while I go do my show."
Dick gave Zatanna a complicit look before swallowing his pasta and nodding.
"Yeah, it'll be fun. You can even come into the precinct with me." Dick volunteered.
"No thanks." John responded.
"I want to go to Gotham." Wyette agreed.
"I thought you wanted to come to work with me." Dick clarified.
John rolled his eyes, "You don't work at the precinct, it's boring there. I want to solve cases with you." he explained as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
"A lot of case solving work is done in the precinct." Zatanna told him.
"Not the fun part." John argued.
"Well I don't want to go to the party because Lou-Ann is going and I'm not her friend anymore." Wyette stated.
"Oh really?" Dick replied.
"Mmm-hmm." She nodded. "She wouldn't let Mickey play with us at recess and I said if Mickey can't play then I wouldn't play and she said fine and I said fine. Then she said we aren't friends anymore and then I said she can't do that and Carly said she could, but I wasn't even talking to her. Then she said Carly was her new best friend so I said Mickey was my new best friend and Mickey can't go to the party because she goes to church on Saturdays and I said its okay because I'm not even gonna be here."
"Lou-Ann is the worst." John said shaking his head as if exasperated.
Zatanna and Dick laughed as the twins continued to tell them of their classroom drama over dinner.
Long after they were tucked in, Zatanna found herself sitting on their waiting for Dick to join her.
The twins were in the third grade now and as John and Wyette hung around more kids their age, they realized they didn't share the same lifestyle their classmates did. Sure, they had known at a young age that they differed from other kids. Most of the kids they knew didn't have superpowers, minus their adopted cousins (the Wests, Kents, and the Durhams) but what seem to dawn on them later was the fact that they didn't have a normal family dynamic.
Their parents didn't work normal hours or jobs, no day was exactly like the last, they were always traveling from one state, country, world, or realm to the next and though they lived on a timely schedule there just never seemed to be enough time for all of them together. It didn't matter where they were, homework, gymnastics, martial arts and mystic arts were at the same time every day. Family time wasn't as organized; Dick was either on the move or Zatanna on a stage.
They had sat down as a family and talked about it at length and when they were home, they were fully present as mom and dad; husband and wife. Zatanna had even limited her shows to weekends and her other ventures to school hours in order to be with present. Now, Zatanna wondered if that was enough. Wyette seemed to be fine but John clearly wasn't thrilled.
Dick exited the bathroom and a billow of steam followed him.
"Do you think we're doing enough for them?" she asked him outright.
Dick walked over to the bed unhurriedly and peered over her. "Hello lover, my day was fine, thanks for asking. After you accosted me in my office and gave me a case of blue balls, I spent the whole day chasing butterflies and unicorns."
Zatanna laughed freely now. "Okay, okay." She said taking his hint and moving to sit on her knees and wrap her arms around him.
"How was your day?" she asked.
"You don't care." He sulked teasingly.
"I do." she promised. "I really do. Tell me."
"Well if you must know, I was going over all the evidence in that case I was telling you about. I got nowhere, me and the new guy-"
"Ramirez?" she clarified.
"Yeah him." Dick said shaking his head. "I can't get a read on him just yet. The guy seems genuinely, I don't know committed."
"Is that a bad thing?" Zatanna asked. "Being committed?"
"No." Dick huffed.
"It's just…"
"Just what?" Zatanna asked as she trailed, soft kisses up his muscle lined chest.
"Just, just..." He tried to finish.
"I've missed you." Zatanna breathed into the dimly lit room. Kissing the underside of his jaw, a weakness of his, she tended to exploit.
Dick groaned and threaded his fingers into her hair, bringing her lips to his. Zatanna smirked into the kiss and in a move too quick to follow; had Dick pinned beneath her.
Dick looked up at her in earnest surprise.
"I've been practicing." She told him, bringing her lips to the shell of his ear. "I'm worried about John. I don't know what else I can do." She admitted.
Dick sighed. "You know it's not you, he wants." He told her reassuringly.
"Dick-" she began.
"Maybe I need to go on sabbatical. Or consult from outside the department for a year or two, just until they need less attention." He offered. "I want to be here for him, for them, for you."
"I know." Zatanna told him, hugging him tightly. "I just wish there were other options but I feel like between their powers, family secrets, and our schedules; there's no other choice. I just don't want you to give up your dreams for ours, you know?"
Dick pulled away from her then, bring his hands to either side of her face. "You guys are my dream." He reminded her. "I can find something else to do."
"I just thought, well I just thought that they would be able to handle it more with age." Zatanna confessed, her eyes locking with his.
Dick looked at her solemnly.
"They're growing up Zee, I want to be here to see it. I want them to have fond memories of me, of us as a family, not of how busy we were. We've talked about this, if it's time then it's time. No ifs, ands, or buts."
"Okay." Zatanna conceded. "Let's give it a little more time though, we'll think it over, see how the year goes. I mean everything is still so new for them, plus you can't just leave the department like that."
Dick nodded in agreement.
"We'll give it the year. Wrap everything up in a nice bow." He echoed.
Zatanna tucked in her limbs around him in a bodily hug.
"I love you." she whispered as Dick pressed his lips to her hair.
"Mmm, prove it." he challenged her. She brought her face up and away from his as she wriggled her brows and accepted his challenge for what it was. She brought her lips to his in a searing kiss and began the night precisely where she had started it at the precinct.