Chapter 4

Down the line, Dick traded the Porsche in for a dark colored minivan, that way we could all fit. Dick still drove and I was still in the passenger seat. Rachel and Gar were in the middle, while Kory lay down in the far back. We drove until we reached a quiet motel off the main roads.

"I can't believe you traded in the Porsche for a minivan," Gar lamented as we pulled into the parking lot.

"At least we can all fit in," Dick sighed in response.

I chuckled at him. "I like the van."

Dick looked over at me with a small smile. During the drive, while the others were asleep, the two of us would talk. He caught me up on what had been going on while he was in Detroit and when Rachel came to him. I told him about what I had been doing the past four years. It almost felt like we had never been apart. We used to stay up late talking about everything and nothing at the same time.

"We're not actually stay here, are we?" Rachel asked, slightly disturbed.

"You know, there's probably down the road," Kory tried to reason.

"We're being hunted by sociopaths," Dick reminded her. "Nicer places draw attention."

"Yeah, well, they also make it easier to sleep," Kory droned.

"One road in, same road out," Dick explained, pointing to the road. "Only one point of access we have to watch. And also, it's quiet."

"If trouble comes our way, we should hear it first," I finished for him with a smirk. Dick just raised an eyebrow at me. "You drilled stuff like this into my head. Did you really think I was gonna forget?"

"Touché," Dick conceded. He then addressed the others. "And who said anything about sleeping?" He then went out go get our rooms.

Rachel then decided to get curious. "Emma?"

"Yeah?"

"How do you and Dick know each other?"

I sighed. We never did explain it to her. "I met Dick when I was in San Francisco for school. Do you remember the boyfriend that I had back then?" I turned around to see her nod. "Well, Dick was my boyfriend."

Rachel looked almost disgusted. "You mean that he was the one who broke your hear?"

I nodded with a sigh. "There were other circumstances to the whole thing, but we're getting better."

Rachel looked almost thoughtful. "Do you think you'll get back together?"

Before I could answer her, Dick opened my door. I turned to him as he held out a room key. Taking it, I got out of the van once Dick moved, as well as everyone else. Dick handed everyone their keys before motioning to go inside.

"I'm gonna go get some pizza," he told us. "Get settled in and we'll meet back in Emma's room."

I nodded as he got into the van and then ushered the others inside. Everyone put their stuff down in their rooms before coming into my room. Before they did, I placed my case on the bed. I ran my fingers over the top of the case. I was feeling rather overwhelmed, but I knew I would have to be what I was before in order to protect Rachel.

Deciding to deal with it later, I put the case on the nightstand next to the bed, right before everyone, including Dick, came in with Gar holding an armful of pizza. Gar and Rachel both dug into the pizza, Rachel plopping down on the bed. That's when Dick started getting into what I called his "Robin Mode." He always got super focused and almost seemed like a general.

"All right guys, listen up," Dick commanded. "We're all in one piece, more or less. We need to figure out where we stand and determine what's mission critical."

I smirked at him as I ate a piece of pizza and the others looked at him confused shock. "Mission critical?" Rachel echoed.

"Is that a cop thing?" Gar asked. "Sounds like a cop thing."

"I had some combat training when I was younger," Dick covered quickly.

"And he's a cop," Rachel added towards Gar.

"I'm sorry, you were referring to 'we'?" Kory wondered, with a slight smirk.

"'We' as of right now are a group of people who share a common enemy," Dick explained.

"Which makes us what?" I asked as I sat down on the bed. I smirked as Dick gave me an unamused look.

"Let's call it an alliance," he said. "One born of mutual need."

"And what is that?" Kory asked with a full smirk, playing the game I started.

Dick looked between the two of us in disbelief. "To stay alive," he answered with a definite tone. "We have no idea how long we have until they find us."

"You just said 'they'," Gar cut it, confused. "Who are they? What do they want?"

"We don't know who they are, but they want me," Rachel explained.

"It's because of her…" Dick started but struggled to find the right word.

"Abilities," I finished for him, and Dick nodded to me.

"They made violence look like an art form," Kory tacked on.

"The people that attacked us fought in unison," Dick described. "They were perfectly coordinated, we're not. We can't fight like that unless we learn each other's moves."

"Inspiring," Kory droned. "And how do you suggest we do that?"

"We stick together," Dick declared. "And we train."

*Angel With a Shotgun*

We all moved to an old, abandoned barn in the countryside near the motel. Rachel, Kory, and Gar stood in a semi-circle around Dick and I. "Okay, in order to work together, fight and defend yourselves like a coordinated team, we gotta see what each other can do," Dick directed. "Any volunteers?"

When no one said anything, I decided to take control. "Kory," I called, and she looked aggravated that I would start with her. "Rachel said you can create light. Heat. Is that right?"

"Honestly, I'm still trying to figure it out," she said with a shrug.

"Okay, so let's figure it out together," I replied with a slight smile. "How exactly does it work?"

"I think it comes from the sun," Kory explained, still looking unsure. "I can absorb it's power and direct it. I'm weaker at night, though. I'm sometimes empty, and it takes a while for me to recharge."

"How long?" Dick asked.

"A few hours, a day, I don't know," she replied with a wave of her arms.

"Can you control it?" I asked with a little concern. Not just for the rest of us, but for her as well. I knew what it was like to have powers you couldn't control.

"Of course," she said confidently.

"Okay, could you hit that tractor?" Dick asked pointing to an old tractor behind us.

Kory almost looked insulted, but smirker instead. "Watch." She walked confidently forward and stood a few feet away from Dick and me. I watched as her hair lit up before she fired a stream of fire. However, instead of hitting the tractor, she hit an empty tank that was further back. When she stopped, Kory was panting as she turned back to us. "I supposed I could use a bit of practice."

She walked back towards her original spot and high fived Gar when he held his hand up. Gar was smiling, but it faltered slightly when he saw Dick smiling at him. "Your turn."

"Okay," he said, hopping in place. "I just, uh… Give me a second." He walked out to where Kory had stood before, and cracked his neck, shaking out his body as he did so. "Okay," he whispered to himself.

"Any time today," Dick said, getting impatient.

Gar turned back to us with a sheepish expression. "It's, uh… I can't… It's a little weird with you guys watching and all. The first time I transformed, I tore through my clothes and, uh…" He chuckled and Rachel giggled a little. "Oh, and, like this is my favorite jacket."

"Hold on," Dick said, looking like he couldn't process this new information. "You have to be naked to…"

"Yeah, but it'll be worth it," Gar interrupted him with a smile. "I promise."

"Heard that one before," Kory and I chorused. We looked at each other with smiles and snickered at each other. Dick just gave me an unimpressed look.

"Just, uh, turn around," Gar insisted.

I chuckled but turned around anyway. We waited for a few seconds in silence, but Kory was the one who was the most impatient. "If this wasn't a drill, we'd all be dead by now."

Suddenly, there was a giant roar that had all of us jumping and turning around in shock. There was a large green tiger walking around some bales of hay. "Oh, shit!" Dick whispered as he pulled me back to stand next to Kory.

Kory was chuckling. "What do you know, it was worth it."

I chuckled with her in disbelief. "That's him?"

"I know, right?" Rachel chuckled.

"How?" Dick breathed.

"Got sick or something," Rachel explained vaguely.

"The flu turned him into a tiger?" Kory asked incredulously. Gar groaned again causing all of us to jump.

"Okay, you can turn back now," Dick urged him. "Into Gar."

The tiger groaned and we all heard the sound of bones cracking and popping. We watched as the tiger shrank and changed back into the Gar we knew. He stood up, completely naked, and spread his arms with a wide smile. "Ta-da!" he exclaimed.

"Gar!" Rachel scolded, turning her head.

Kory started laughing as I tried to stifle my laughter. Gar's cheeks turned red and covered himself quickly. "I, uh…" he muttered and quickly ran behind the stacks of hay to put his clothes on.

Dick walked forward to meet Gar as he stepped out, zipping up his jacket. "So have you eaten anyone before?" Dick asked curiously.

"'Eaten'?" Gar repeated and then scoffed as he walked back to his spot. "No. Dude, I haven't even bitten anyone before. 'Eaten anyone'."

"Be a lot scarier if he wasn't green," Kory commented. "Or vegan."

"Okay, so we have sun woman and tiger boy," Dick simplified. "There's definitely potential here."

"Rachel, you're next," Gar said.

"No," she shook her head and hunched a little, trying to curl into herself. "No, I could hurt someone."

"Hurting people is kind of the idea here," Kory mentioned.

"I could hurt one of you," she argued.

I walked over to her and gently took her hand. "It's a part of you, Rach," I told her gently. "You gotta stop being afraid of it."

Rachel sighed but squeezed my hand. "If something goes wrong…"

I squeezed her hand back and smiled at her. "Then I'll be right here, okay? I told you; I'm not going anywhere."

"You can do this," Dick encouraged.

Rachel sighed again, and after one last squeeze, let go of my hand to walk to the middle of the semi-circle, as Dick came to stand next to me. We could hear her take a deep breath before I felt a slight pinch in my chest as her power surfaced. I wasn't sure if anyone else could hear it, but I could hear whispers that sounded like chanting. Rachel summoned a giant cloud of what looked like liquid darkness. There was a moment that it just hovered in the air, and I started to get worried.

Apparently, I wasn't the only one. "Rachel?" Kory called.

"Okay, bring it back in," Dick instructed. "Rachel."

There was a distorted growl that came from Rachel and the cloud started to move towards Dick. I quickly stepped around him and held out my hand, sending out a medium sized blast of pure light at it. There was a large explosion that pushed both Dick and I to the ground. There was a shrill screaming from Rachel and the whole cloud flew back to her. The force caused her to grunt and fall to her knees. "Rachel!" Dick and I called out simultaneously.

"Stay back," Rachel's distorted voice ordered. There was a moment of silence and the pinch in my chest went away. She slowly turned around to face us. "I'm fine."

"You sure?" Dick checked in a concerned tone.

"Did I hurt you?" I asked, stepping forward, and she shook her head to tell me that I didn't.

"I just… I just need a little more practice, that's all," she tried to reassure us.

There was some silence that was broken by Kory. "So, that light thing, is that what you can do?" she asked me.

"Something like that," I muttered, then I traded places with Rachel. I stood facing them and sighed. "My powers are the opposite of Rachel's. My powers revolve around light as well as healing. But the biggest thing are my wings."

"Wings?" Rachel and Gar chorused.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Opening my eyes, they were glowing white and my large glowing gold, feathered wings were at my back. Everyone, besides Dick, had their eyes wide and mouths open. I had shown Dick and our friends my powers before, and they had had the same reaction. Blinking, my eyes faded to their normal ice blue and my wings disappeared.

"My wings only really come out when I need them to," I explained. "I try not to rely on my powers too much. I have a lot of martial arts training that I use more often."

"So, uh… we all did our thing," Gar remarked, turning to Dick. "What's your thing, man?"

"I can keep you alive," Dick stated with finality in his tone. "Let's head back to the motel. That's enough for today."

He walked away and the other three turned to me for an explanation. I only shook my head. "You will have to give him time," I told them. "I can't say anything. It's not my place." I walked over to Rachel and gave her a side hug. "Let's head back and get some rest."

*Angel With a Shotgun*

Dick, Kory and I were standing on the balcony of the hotel, looking down at Rachel and Gar sitting on one of the benches together. Dick then turned to Kory and I. "Think they're, okay?"

"They're cute together," Kory said with a smile.

"Still not sure how I feel about that," I muttered, but I know they both heard me. Dick smirked at me, and Kory giggled. "But they both are figuring out their powers, so at least there's that. And it's good to see her look like a normal kid again, you know."

Growing up, it was always hard for Rachel to make friends. I always thought that I was one of her only friends. Everyone, but Melissa and I, thought that she was some kind of freak. But maybe, she just didn't meet the right people. Now, she didn't just have me, she had Dick, Kory, and Gar.

Kory sucked her teeth in slight disagreement. "What I saw back there was not normal."

"Why do you think they're after her?" Dick asked us.

"I think it has something to do with that prophecy that I found on my wall," Kory answered.

Dick then looked to me, and I just shrugged, only knowing that she needed to be protected. He then turned back to Kory. "She's gonna bring about the end of the world?"

"Or stop it."

"That's bullshit," Dick said forcefully. "People make up stories about things they don't understand."

"Maybe," I spoke up. "That's doesn't mean the people after her won't kill to get her. People do crazy and extreme things in the name of their beliefs."

Something that I knew all too well. One person's belief can make all the difference in the whole group and can make others do crazy things.

"Those two are gonna have to learn to fight for themselves," Kory told us.

"She's just a kid," Dick argued.

"They both are, Dick," I told him. "But Kory it right. We can't be there all the time. They will have to fight."

Dick sighed, seeing my point. "Part of me feels bad for turning them into weapons. Once you learn to see the world that way, you can't unsee it. Not ever."

Dick gave me a pointed look, and I sighed, putting my hand on his arm. "I wish we didn't have to, but it's not our choice. I don't want my baby sister to fight, but they forced this on us by coming after her. It's about survival now Dick."

He sighed again, and Kory looked between us with a raised eyebrow. "That combat training you were talking about," Kory asked Dick. "Was it military?"

"More of a civilian contractor-type thing," Dick answered somewhat reluctantly, as I removed my hand from his arm.

"And you walked away form that?" Kory wondered.

"I had to," Dick replied, then looked at me. His eyes were begging for me to understand. "When you hide behind a mask for so long… it starts to give you a license to do things. It was getting out of hand."

"You said you trusted the wrong person, but… what happened?"

That got my attention. Had he been talking about Bruce?

Dick turned away. "I'd rather not talk about it."

"What about you Emma?" Kory asked me. "How do you know all this stuff?"

I sighed. "I learned most of it from Dick, but I also had training when I was younger. But I don't like to get into details."

"Gosh, you both are so secretive," Kory whined.

"You're not exactly an open book yourself," Dick chuckled at her.

"I don't know who I am," she defended. "You both are afraid to let people know who you are. There's a difference. But, Emma's a little more open."

"I'm still trying to figure it out, that's all," he defended himself.

"Well, maybe we can figure it all out together," I suggested.

Dick looked at me with an unknown emotion for a moment, but then it was gone, and his wall was back up. "You both should get some rest. We'll leave first thing in the morning."

He then walked away, and Kory turned to me. "You both need to be honest with us," she tried to reason with me. "You're a little bit more open, granted, like with your powers, but I feel like there's more that you haven't told us. And Dick is a total mystery, and he won't open up."

"I've told you that I can't say anything about his side," I told her with a sigh. "But, as for me, the less you know the safer you'll be. Even with these psychopaths after us."

Kory just huffed. "Well, at least talk to him about being honest with us. You're closer to him, so he'll listen to you."

I looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "What makes you say that?"

Kory gave me an exasperated look and rolled her eyes. "I'm not an empath like your sister, but even I can see that he loves you."

With that, she left me alone with my thoughts as she walked back inside.

*Angel With a Shotgun*

I found myself at the convenience store across the road from the motel. I was staring at the alcohol section in indecision. I had never really participated in drinking with my friends in the past, so I had no idea what to pick. The store worker came up with a smile. "What's your poison?"

"Hmm, not sure," I said honestly with a frown, and then looked at her with a smile. "Any suggestions?"

"Well, folks who wanna party usually buy beer," she explained. "Folks who wanna think, they buy whiskey. You kinda gotta line it up with your intended activity."

I hummed as I thought about it. Partying wasn't a good idea at the moment, and I didn't wanna think right now either. "Tequila," I finally answered.

The woman hummed with raised eyebrows and a smirk. I paid for a bottle and went back to the motel. I skipped going to my room and went to Dick's room. I knocked at the door and called out to Dick. "It's me. Emma."

"What's wrong?" he called through the door.

I rolled my eyes. "We need to talk," I called back. He opened the door, and I walked right in to see him only wearing a towel. Walking passed him, I held up the bottle of tequila and put it on the vanity.

"Um, can I get dressed?" he asked awkwardly.

"It's not like I haven't seen it before," I reasoned. "Plus, I've seen Gar naked, nothing else could surprise me." I opened the bottle and poured some tequila into two plastic cups. "I was thinking about earlier and Kory was right."

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"We do need to tell the others," I explained as I held out the cup for him to take. "But, you most of all. You can't keep those walls up all the time."

He chuckled at me as he took the cup. "So, this is you plan, get me drunk and I'll spill all my secrets to them?"

"Yup," I confirmed with a smile. "It's brilliant, right?"

Dick leaned against the vanity as I stood in front of him. I tapped our cups against each other. "Cheers," we both said.

Throwing back our drinks, the burn caused me to shudder. I was more of a wine girl, and I only drank like this in moderation. "What about you?" he asked me.

"What about me?" I shot back.

"Come on Em," Dick huffed. "We've known each other how long? There had to be something you can tell me."

"I've told you before, it's safer if you know nothing," I told him. "Besides, you still need to earn back a lot of trust from me. Finding Rachel got back a lot, but telling the others would help you more."

I went to refill my cup, but Dick took it from me. We both stared at each other. My ice blue looking into his honey brown. Dick reached up to brush his thumb across my cheek and cupped my face with his hand. We started to lean in, but a frantic knocking sounded at the door. "Dick!" Rachel's voice sounded.

We pulled away from each other as Dick went to the door. When he opened it, Rachel went to speak, but looked at me over his shoulder. "Did I interrupt something?" she asked.

I shook my head, trying to get what happened out of my head and telling her no. "What's wrong?"

"The mirror in my room," she started nervously. "Can you remove it from the wall?"

"Sure," Dick answered immediately. "Let me get dressed."

"I'll wait with you in the hall," I told her, moving towards her. I led her out and gave her a side hug. She was shaking slightly, and I tried to give her something to ground her.

"Aren't you gonna ask why?" she asked me.

I shook my head. "I'm always here if you want to talk, but I won't pressure you."

Dick came out of the room, fully dressed, and led Rachel down to her room. But not before giving me a look that said that our talk was not done. As they disappeared, I walked back down to my room and closed the door.

*Angel With a Shotgun*

NO ONE'S POV

Dick took down the mirror from the wall and placed it down in front of the dresser. He then turned back around to Rachel, who was sitting on the bed. "Can you turn it around, please?" she asked softly.

Dick immediately turn the mirror around.

"Thank you," she said quietly. "Aren't you gonna ask me why? Emma won't ask either."

"It's enough that it bothers you," Dick told her reassuringly.

"You really think I can learn to control my powers?" she asked skeptically.

"I do," he said immediately. "Your sister learned to do it, and she'll be there to help along with the rest of us."

"You still have feelings for her, don't you?"

Dick sighed, scratching the back of his neck. He had never been able to move on from her and still held deep feelings for her. "Yeah, I do," he answered honestly. "But, I'm not sure she'll be receptive towards them now. We kind of confessed before we found you, but we were emotionally distraught."

"You need to tell her," Rachel responded immediately. "She needs to know how you feel. You also need to show us."

"Show you what?" he asked with raised shoulders.

"What you can do," Rachel elaborated. "You need to show us. Them. Me."

Dick only sighed. "You should get some rest."

As he was leaving, Rachel stopped him again. "Will you tell her?"

It got Dick to stop and sigh again. "It's complicated Rachel, and right now it's not the right time. Now, try to get some rest."

*Angel With a Shotgun*

EMMA'S POV

I woke up to the sounds of fighting in the hallway. Quickly getting up, I opened the door to see Rachel and Gar running towards me. "Where's Kory?"

"Back there," Rachel said pointing behind her. "Fighting. They found us."

"Get Rachel out," I ordered, and moved passed them towards Kory. I found her fighting against two teenagers, one girl with red hair and a boy with dark hair. I ran and kicked the girl in the back as she was dragging Kory with a rope around her neck. Kory kicked the boy in the knee as I smashed the girl into the fire hose.

Kory turned to me and we both nodded to each other. We went to walk away, but stopped as we heard movement behind us. Turning around, the boy ran at us with a bat, and I dodged it while Kory caught it. I quickly caught the end of the whip thrown by the girl. She tried to spin me around and pull me towards her, but I was stronger. I pulled her and whipped her into the boy, both of them slamming into the wall and down the stairs.

Kory and I made our way outside quickly, finding Gar and Rachel in the parking lot. "Where's Dick?" Rachel asked in worry.

"I don't know," Kory replied.

I turned with Kory as a door closed behind us and spotted a man with dark hair and a woman with dark brown hair closing in on us. The boy and girl were back and closed in on the other side. Rachel clung to my arm as we all looked around.

"Fuck," Kory cursed. "Stand back and get behind me. Time to burn, assholes." She then tried to call her power, her hair lighting up, but then fizzled as she cursed the sky. "Fucking night!"

She tried to rush the man, but he ripped the door off a car and slammed her with it. I moved to stand in front of Gar and Rachel. With my powers and skill, I could take them, but not while having to protect these two. I wasn't sure how that would go. Suddenly, a familiar cannister of smoke came rolling over. A grappling hook was shot into the man's shoulder, and he was pulled back. There was another smoke cannister that rolled in as a familiar figure flipped over a car. There stood Dick in his Robin suit and I smiled at him.

"Dick?" Rachel asked in shock.

"That's Robin," Gar breathed in awe.

Dick started to take on the family by himself, and I jumped in to fight with him. Even after four years, we were still able to fight in sync with each other. After a moment, Kory, Rachel, and Gar jumped in as well. Together we were able to take them and down and stood together as the woman was the last one standing.

She looked around, and then dropped her weapon. "Well," she said, while moving her hair out of her face. "Look at the mess we've made."

*Angel With a Shotgun*

We soon had the four of them tied up and in separate rooms for questioning. The two teens with Rachel and Gar, and the two adults with Dick, Kory, and I. Kory and I were standing by the wall facing the two, while Dick stood behind them. "Who are you people?" Dick questioned. "And why are you looking for Rachel?"

"Oh, dear, your right," the woman said in a jovial tone. "How rude of us to not introduce ourselves."

"I'm Dad," the man, Dad, said in the same tone. "This is Mom. We're pleased to meet you, Detective Grayson."

"And what a nice bird suit that you have, if I do say so myself," Mom complimented. "That was quite unexpected."

"Quite."

"He asked her a question," I growled.

"Yes, he did," she responded. "My apologies. All the fighting… to deliver her, of course."

"To who?" Dick pushed.

"Why, our employer, dear," she replied in a condescending tone.

"Who's you're employer?" I asked, stepping forward.

"I can't answer that," Mom snapped at me, but then smiled creepily. "Loose lips sink ships."

"That's true," Dad backed her up. "Nobody likes a tattletale."

"Okay, it's my turn," Kory interjected stepping forward toward the man.

"Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait," Dick said, grabbing Kory and pulling her away and I followed. "Wait! Come here. The way they're reacting, I've seen this behavior before back in Gotham. They're brainwashed. Beating the shit out of them isn't gonna make a difference."

"Okay, so if we can't get answers from them, what can we do?" I asked him in aggravation.

"Help yourselves," Mom said, getting us to look at her. "Give us the girl. And we'll be on our way, lickety-split."

Dick sighed. "I'm gonna check their car, see what I can find."

"I'm surprised to find you here protecting the girl, Emma Roth," Mom said.

We all looked at them in surprise. "What are you talking about?" Dick asked in confusion. I just gave them a blank look.

"Well, considering the Nephlim was sent here to kill the girl, it's surprising that she's protecting her," Dad explained.

Dick and Kory turned to me as I stared at the couple. How did they know all that? No one but Melissa and my birth mother knew about that.

"Emma?" Dick's voice brought me out of my head as I looked to him. He looked confused and his eyes were begging for an explanation. "What are they talking about?"

I didn't answer and walked out the door. I didn't stop until I made it outside, even though Dick was calling for me and following. The cold air filled my lungs and calmed my racing heart. I turned around to Dick and Kory as they came out of the door.

"Originally, I was born to kill Rachel," I started. "But I ran away from my birth mother when I was fourteen, and I was taken to the Convent by one of my uncles. A year later, Melissa showed up with Rachel as a baby. She was put in my arms so the sisters could help Melissa." The tears started to well up and a few spilled out. Both Kory and Dick looked at my in surprise and slight sympathy.

"She looked up at me in my arms and just smiled at me," I sobbed as I tried to keep myself from crying. "I was fifteen and she was just an innocent little baby. I just couldn't do it!"

Dick and Kory looked shocked at my outburst at the end, but Dick stepped up and pulled me in a hug. I clung to him as I cried softly. When we pulled back, Kory stepped up to squeeze my shoulder. "I've seen how protective you are over Rachel," Kory said in sympathy. "I don't believe you would hurt her in any way. But I want to know, what they called you, what is that?"

I took a deep breath of cold air and wiped away some tears. "A Nephlim is half human and half angel," I told them. "And they shouldn't know that. The only people who know about that are Melissa and my birth mother."

"You're half angel?" Dick repeated. "Angel's are real?"

I couldn't help but huff at him. "That's what you took away from that."

"Sorry," Dick apologized, looking sheepish. "It's just a lot to take in."

"I know," I told him. "But I swore to protect Rachel after I met her and Melissa. Protect her from her father and anyone who would try to hurt her. I don't care about what anyone says, I am not gonna let anyone hurt her."

"We believe you," Dick told me sincerely. "I'm gonna check their car, come with me. Kory, go watch the family."

She nodded and walked back inside. Dick led me over to the family's car and started to go through it. I looked around as I tried to calm down. That was the first time that I told anyone that. I'm sure that I would have to have a conversation with Rachel as well, if the teenagers said anything.

"So," Dick started getting out of the car with a device in his hands. "Who's your birth mother?"

I chuckled at him, and he smiled. "It's not gonna be that easy Bird Boy."

Dick chuckled as a voice was cleared. We both looked up to see Rachel standing there with her arms folded in front of her. "So, your Robin, huh?" she questioned skeptically. "That's your big secret?"

"I was gonna tell you," Dick told her, and Rachel raised her eyebrow at him. "Look, when I was in Detroit, I was planning on leaving Robin behind."

"When I put on that mask…" Dick started, but trailed off, trying to gather his thoughts. "When I put it on, I become someone…someone I can't control. Someone who likes hurting people."

"I know the feeling," she muttered.

Dick chuckled softly and I smiled sadly at her. "I know you do," he said.

Gar then walked over with his hands in his pockets. "So, uh, Batman…" he trailed off as he chuckled. "You know him?"

"Of course, he knows Batman," Rachel scoffed.

"Are we gonna see him?" Gar asked with an excited smile. "Uh… I'd really like to meet Batman."

"No, you're not," Dick responded, and Gar's smile dropped.

Gar then turned to me, and his smile returned. "And I figured out who you are."

"Excuse me?" I asked offended.

Gar's smile widened. "The wings, the light powers, and knowing Robin," he listed. "You're Seraph."

Dick laughed and I just smiled. "You really know your heroes," I commented.

"You're a hero too?" Rachel asked in disbelief. "Why didn't you tell me?"

I smiled at her. "That's the point of a secret identity, baby girl."

At that moment, Kory walked over to us. "Any luck?"

"I'm gonna find out who's running this freak show," Dick responded, handing me the device he found. It was a GPS that lead to Doctor Adamson in Chicago, Illinois. That's where they came from.

"Yeah, I'll come with you," Kory declared.

"They'll kill any cops who try to handle them," Dick reasoned. "Besides, you're gonna stay here. Emma's coming with me."

I looked at him in surprise and he gave me a look not to argue. I just nodded to him, and shrugged when Kory gave me a curious look. Kory then turned to Dick. "Oh, I know what to do with them, all right."

"Kory, no killing," I pleaded, and she gave me a look. "Please. There's been enough."

"I thought we weren't splitting up," Rachel said worriedly.

"We're coming back," Dick told her as I went around the car and gave her a hug. I smiled at her and then got in the car. "I promise. Keep them safe."

"Of course," Kory assured.

Dick then got in the car and pulled out of the parking lot.

AN: Hello! Sorry for being so late with this one. Busy with family and work. Please, someone review to tell me how I'm doing with this one. I appreciate everyone that has favoited and followed this story, but I need a review! Until next time!