Meaning: Growth, rebirth


On the first day, they left her to herself. Nobody dared to disturb her - they knew better than to pretend they could relate. She didn't leave her room once, not even for dinner. A small part of Dick was hoping that her hunger would win over in the end, but she was stronger than he gave her credit for.

He spent 15 minutes outside her door, trying to decide whether he should go in or not. The cave's walls were thin, something M'gann and Conner had come to learn the hard way, and he could hear her painful sobs clearly. It seemed like she would never run out of tears to shed. In the end, he decided not to disturb her. He didn't know how she'd react to his intrusion. So instead, he waited until he was sure she fell asleep and silently snuck a bit of dinner onto her bedside, hoping she'd wake up and eat it before it got too cold.

The second day was more of the same. The team left her to herself for the most part, the only exception being M'gann knocking on her door to ask if she wanted lunch. Of course she got no response.

He Zeta'd in towards dinnertime - it was a school night - and went straight to her room. His mind was made up when he knocked on the door, but the longer he went without a reply the more his doubts began to make themselves known to him. He pushed them to the side, hacking the lock to let himself in.

He expected her to yell, maybe even use her magic on him. When she turned around to see him in the doorway, she felt awkward, embarrassed. She watched him intently as he approached her bedside and sat at the edge, almost as if she were a lion defending her cubs from an invader.

They sat in silence for a short while before she spoke. "Why are you here?"

She did a good job at masking the tremors in her voice, he thought. He was almost impressed.

"You know in the movies when someone says 'I know what it's like', even if they don't really? And then they spin some kind of story to win over your sympathies to try and make you feel better about yourself?"

His words left Zatanna speechless. She knew Robin was a detective, but there was no way he could have read the air around them so well without some sort of telepathy.

He paused and looked her dead in the eye, and if she couldn't see the upward slant of worry in his eyebrows, she swears her heart would have jumped out of her chest in fear. "I know there's no reason for you to believe me when I say this, a-and I know how weird this sounds given what I just said, but…I know exactly what you're going through right now."

His voice cracked mid-sentence, and if she didn't know better she'd say he quivered. Something about the innocence…the vulnerability in his voice made her want to believe him, even if she shouldn't.

She always assumed Batman was his father. But if he wasn't…if he really was like her…

She wiped her eyes clean and sat up straight. "How did it happen…i-if you don't-?"

He chuckled softly and placed a hand over her palm. "It's okay. And if I could tell you, I would."

"Batman?"

"Batman."

She wiped a tear from her cheeks and nodded. He didn't have to say anything.

Dick looked away from her and let his eyes gaze off into nothingness. "I was mad at fate. At the world. There was this darkness inside of me and...and I didn't know what to do with it." He looked back at her and reached out to place a hand on her thigh. "But then I met this guy. He...he showed me how to fight back the darkness. How to make something better of myself. He gave me a home and...and I know today I'd be lost without him. I owe him the world, because he gave me everything when I didn't have anything."

Zatanna stared into his eyes, somehow almost able to see past the black lenses. "But you are so much stronger than I was. And I know you'll get through this...just like I did." He cleared his throat and sent her a weak smile. "A-and we don't know each other that well yet…", he leaned a bit closer to her, sending a wry smile as he rubbed her shoulder, "but if you ever wanna talk, or vent, or whatever to someone who gets it, I'll be there. Whatever, wherever, whenever."

Dick nodded at her and started getting up to his feet. "I-I-I don't wanna disturb you. I just really wanted to get that off my chest. You're not alone, Zatanna. You never will be." He started to walk to the door, but she let out a rather pathetic whimper to get him to stop. He turned around to see her, almost pleading him with her eyes, and he accepted her desperate invitation with pride.

They talked the whole night, and she fell asleep under his watch in bed. She let herself dream that night, a refreshing break from the nightmares that usually plagued her in her sleep.

On the third day, he came by once again. To his surprise, Artemis was already in her room. He couldn't do much without intruding on what he chalked up to a 'girl moment', so he just placed a cup of hot chocolate on her nightstand before leaving with a smile.

The fourth day was eventful. It was a Saturday, so he Zeta'd in early in the morning. She let him in this time, no hacks or bribery required. That was good. They'd made progress.

He sat with her for most of the day, not pushing her into a conversation unless she wanted to speak. She told him stories about her dad, about how she used to look up to him as a kid. On the stage, as a hero, and even just in life in general.

He learned things about her. Her favorite color was blue, her favorite flavor was strawberry, and she may or may not be allergic to cinnamon. Her mother was an astrologist and she used to love going out with her to watch the stars from their patio. She really liked Star Wars, something they had in common, and she really hated Harry Potter. She'd never had a boyfriend before because her dad scared everyone away.

He felt a little giddy when she mentioned that last one.

As the stories passed by, the tears flowed more freely. He couldn't do much without making it weird, so he just held her hand and gave her the occasional squeeze when she looked like she needed it. She clung to his hand for dear life most of the day, using his hoodie as a towel at his own request.

They watched a couple movies together, talking the whole time, and he only ever left to grab her some lunch and dinner. He took extra care in preparing her meals, and when she asked how he made them so well, all he said was "Miss M's a great cook".

Zatanna fell asleep next to him again that night. He adjusted the pillows and blankets to make sure she was comfortable before reluctantly leaving, but not without a small peck to her forehead.

All his hard work finally paid off on the fifth day. He Zeta'd to the cave after school, exhausted and tired. Truth be told, he didn't have the energy to play therapist again tonight, but if that's what she wanted, then that's what she'd get.

But what he wasn't expecting was to see her sitting on the couch watching TV in the rec room.

She spotted him staring at her in shock, eyes behind the shades blown open and jaw hanging like a trout, and almost chuckled. "M'gann and I made some sushi. And seeing as there's nobody else around to critique my cooking…"

She motioned for the seat next to her on the couch, and he smiled before hurrying towards it, almost a little too eagerly for his liking.

They spent the rest of the evening on that couch, and for the first time in a long time, he got to see her laugh. Her smile. He saw a fire in her eyes that had been missing for the past week.

A week.

It took her hardly a week to open back up again, far sooner than he remembered being able to. He was impressed, and most of all he was proud of her. These past few days proved to be the hardest of her life, but she pulled through. She was reborn, like a phoenix rising from the ashes, and he couldn't be happier to see it.

He knew her father would feel the same.