Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Before his eyes open, he feels a hand on his shoulder. Soft, familiar, and warm, Kori’s hand slides over the muscles in his arm and dips over his waist. Dick Grayson smiles softly, and a kiss is pressed to his back. It has been a long time since they’ve had a Saturday morning to themselves.

”Morning,” he muses, leaning into Kori’s touch. Sunlight has started to seep through their bedroom curtains, a haze of morning sun outlines the bright red of his wife’s hair.

”Hey,” she whispers back, propping herself onto her arm before running her fingers through his hair. Her touch is always gentle, always careful, and always makes him melt into complete relaxed peace. “You looked tense.” Her eyes meet his, her brow furrows in soft concern. “Is everything alright?”

Dick takes meets her hand lying on his stomach, callouses running over callouses, rings shining in the early morning light. He runs his thumb over the back of her hand slowly and nods. “Mhm,” he breathes out, and it’s true, because he hardly even recalls what he was dreaming about. “Likely the usual,” he adds. “Did I wake you?”

”No,” Kori says, lacing his fingers through Dick’s, her face softening into a smile. “Just worrying about you— as you say— ‘the usual.’” The waves in her hair fall over her shoulders as she leans down for a kiss.

”My apologies,” he grins between breaths, his hand sliding over the base of her neck. Kori laughs softly and starts to trail her lips from his to his jaw, then neck, then the sensitive spot along his collarbone. His breath hitches in a breathless moan, a hand in her hair and the other running over her hip.

There is nothing but the faint rustle of sheets and whispered amusement as the two tangle themselves with each other. Dick shifts the weight in his hips, and rolls over Kori, her nails lightly dancing over his back while their lips never break contact. He glances at the clock over on her nightstand, and his smile widens.

”7am and not a single call or text,” he remarks, his knee riding up between Kori’s thighs, the silk of her nightdress rising with every movement. “I say we make the most of it while we can.”

“I agree,” replies Kori, and she pulls him down for another kiss.
—————————————————————————————————
Kori hangs up the phone just as Dick comes out of the shower. He has a towel wrapped around his waist while he runs another through his hair. If he didn’t brush it soon, it would dry going all different directions.

His deep blue eyes follow the cell she tosses onto the kitchen table, and his brow quirks upwards. “Who was that?”

Kori sighs, leaning back against the table and crossing her arms, the large sleeves of Dick’s sweater bunches and pools against her. “Call from the mountain, Khaldur, specifically."

”Another Titans cross over with the team?”

”Likely,” she huffs, then tilts her head in a tight smile as Dick comes over, his hand sliding around her waist. “Though I’m not sure why, he wouldn’t say details over the phone.”

”He hasn’t changed a bit then,” he laughs softly, turning away to step into the kitchen where a fresh pot of coffee has finished brewing. He starts to pour a serving into his beloved Superman mug, then pours another into Kori’s Nightwing mug that she had bought on a whim a few weeks ago. She was thrilled that her husband finally had merch selling alongside other heroes, since according to her it was ‘about time.’

”When do you need to be there?” He asks, handing her her mug before sipping from his own.

”Later tonight, you’ll likely be out on patrol the whole time,” her impossibly green eyes slide over to his, and her nails tap against the ceramic mug in thought. “Unless…” she ponders aloud.

Dick snorts. “No,” he says, and Kori rolls her eyes. “I doubt that will go over well.”

”One day,” she teases, and her husband shakes his head with a soft laugh, heading to their bedroom to change. “One day!”

”But not today!” He calls back through the cracked bedroom door.

Years ago, the mere suggestion of him helping the Young Justice team or the Titans would have stirred a fight between the two— Dick with his reasons and Kori with hers, each constantly butting heads over why the other couldn’t see their logic. Now, it has settled into a boundary the size of a fine line.
No teams, Dick had told her a million times over. I can’t do that anymore. You know why. But— there was always a but— if it’s absolutely necessary…

That was their version of a compromise. Dick’s paranoia and avoidance of being part of a team ran deep within him, and Kori knows it’s because he cares. The problem that always came to a head was that his enemies know that he cares too. His anxiety began after the Failsafe training circuit when he was younger, going by Robin, with the Young Justice team. His fears only grew with time as villains came and went, and it came crashing down after the Reach’s attempted invasion of Earth. And then there was Slade… and more threats, more people targeting not only her husband, but the people he is desperate to keep safe.

No teams, but if she needed him, he would be there. No questions asked. And over the last six years, she honored his rule and he honored his promise. But deep down, she knows he misses his friends, the heroes he grew up with since he was a teenager. He’s social by nature, a glue that connects so many groups and teams together if he ever lets himself step out of the tight parameters he sets for himself.
At least she was able to convince him to let her in, and to allow Wally and Artemis to stay in life. At least Bruce had the capacity to out-stubborn his son and refused to be turned away. At least he has the other bats. At least he has her, and she has him. And she isn’t letting go.

Small wins, but a long way to go.
———————————————————————————————————————
The zeta announces her arrival to Mount Justice, and it doesn’t surprise her when Wally is the first to shout her name.

”Star!” The speedster is upon her within seconds, Artemis following closely behind. “It’s so good to see you, I was stoked when Khaldur said you’d be coming.”

”It’s good to see you, Flash,” Starfire answers, and Artemis goes for a hug. If Wally was Dick’s best friend, Artemis was hers.

“How is he?” Artemis says quietly so only the princess could hear.

”He is well,” Kori answers with a smile to the couple. “Busy, always busy. But well.”

”Does he know you’re here?” Wally asks.

”Of course,” she replies. “He’s out on patrol right now in the city.”

Wally makes a face as if he is about to say ‘ah,’ but Khaldur calls for them across the other end of the main room. Any discussion about Dick or his Nightwing activities are now over and sealed as the three make their way towards the large table before a set of holographic screens. Almost all the chairs arre taken up by members of the Titans or the YJ Team. Kori takes a seat between Artemis and M’gann, another good friend of hers since they are both from different planets.

”Thank you Titans for joining us,” the Atlantean started, a nod to Starfire and her team before pulling up maps and mission details on the screen.

“Tonight’s mission is rather complicated, so it is imperative we follow the plan to the precise detail…” There is a new powerhouse group moving from city to city, their operations hard to trace and their employers are even harder to find. Kori reads over the files and follows with the briefing, and soon the teams are discussing pairings and objectives. Currently, her nephews Robin and Red Robin are monitoring recon in the outskirts of Star City and Jump City, providing live scans of heat signatures and numbers. Once pairings are solidified, they go over the plan and soon everyone breaks off to gear up and load into the bio ship.

It’s a tight fit, but nothing they haven’t managed before. M’gann takes the ship's controls and they first head to Jump City, and the first half of the group splits off to meet with Robin at the nearby site. Superboy, Beastboy, Lagoon Boy, Aqualad and Cyborg are now deployed, and once they confirm location, their comms link to Robin’s and the ship makes way for Star City.

In the distance, Kori sees the outline of Gotham and Bludhaven. She just hopes Dick is having an easy night. A safe night.

Once they reach Star, the bio ship goes into camouflage mode before Starfire, Miss Martian, Artemis, Flash, Raven and Wondergirl drop into location.

Moments later they make contact with Red Robin, who flashes a smile to Starfire with a big smile. She winks hello before the team settles into positions, connecting to the others in Jump and solidifying their next moves.

Star City turned out to be an absolute bust— likely a distraction— at least that’s the feeling Kori has as they return to the bio ship. Khaldur contacts the other team, and the chaos of battle is crackling in the background as Robin replies.

“Hot spot here, heat signatures doubled from inside, likely reinforced underground operations.”

Superboy comes in next. “These guys don’t seem to be slowing down, how far out are you guys?”

M’gann pushes the ship to go as fast as it could manage. “ETA is 2 minutes,” she replies to her boyfriend, trying to curb any anxieties. Starfire was pulling up a screen to catch a visual of what Robin was talking about, and the warehouse they were holed up in looked like a wave of pure infrared, like the inside of a rumbling volcano.

“What the hell is that?” Artemis says, looking worriedly over at Starfire. “Either the place is on fire or—“

”Or it’s completely overrun,” Flash says grimly.

“Drop point inbound,” M’gann says, aiming to plant the ship directly above the action. Everyone stands and prepares for the ship to open its hatches, but just as they enter the perimeter of the location, shots ring out and the ship lurches.

“Under fire, drop now!” M’gann orders and the team doesn’t hesitate to jump when the opportunity opens. Just as Starfire feels the air she takes off flying for the warehouse with Raven and Wondergirl as the others make their landing. M’gann rears the ship away from the line of fire for the ship to heal, people are shouting over comms, and Starfire can see the warehouse come into view. With a blast of energy, she crashes through a top window, glass raining down as she aims for the first enemy she can see.

Within minutes, both teams have fully assembled, and with every goon dropped, more appear. Blasters, shots, smoke bombs are ignited in every direction as every hero tries to make a dent in the enemy’s forces.

“We need to fall back!” Khaldur calls as another wave of fighters break through. “We are outnumbered, this is a trap!”

Kori blasts three goons away from her nephews, placing herself between them and the incoming hoard. “Fall back!” She echoes the Atlantean, and as the fight rages on, the team one by one makes a break for the surrounding forests. Artemis takes aim and sends arrow after arrow, smoke and foam filling the warehouse to create distance and distraction to buy the team time. Flash begins picking out members one by one, evacuating members seamlessly from the fight while those who have flight or speed follow.

“M’gann! Call the bio ship!”

“Up ahead!”

”Red!” Kori calls, “Take it down!”

Her nephew nods, and with a knowing grin, he types into his wrist computer while sprinting for the bioship.

“Countdown at ten,” he sounds into the comms.

The bio ship door closes behind the last team member just before an explosion rings out, and the warehouse starts to whine as metal begins to crumble and implode in the distance.
—————————————————————————————
“So can we all agree that was the strangest trap we’ve encountered in a long time?” Artemis says later at the mountain. There were minimal injuries, thank God, but the mission wasn’t exactly a success either.

“Anybody catch what those guys were? I swear they were meta,” Superboy adds.

“If not meta, something of the mystical arts,” Raven suggests solemnly.

“But here’s what’s weird,” Wally starts, “Did anyone notice they didn’t seem to be protecting anything?” Everyone exchanges looks around the room. “They were just there.”

”Another distraction?” Cyborg suggests. Starfire and Khaldur make eye contact, both unsure as to what the hell just happened.

Robin and Red Robin are announced through the zeta moments later, they had left the mountain as soon as they arrived from the mission without much of an explanation, but Kori had a feeling she knew.

“Batman took a look at our combat footage,” Red Robin immediately says before the zeta finishes its robotic announcement. He types something on his wrist computer and sends up images and video onto the main holographic screen. Neither bat looks happy, which is never a good sign.

“Tonight’s mission was an ambush,” Red continues. “Batman has encountered these guys before, and it's never good news. And what is worse is that he noticed they weren’t exactly… fighting to their full potential.”

Kori turns to face the large screen, but before recognition hits her thoughts, Artemis beats her to the punch.

”Talons,” says the archer flatly. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

Kori’s veins turn to ice. The Court of Owls were active once more, and too close for comfort. And what unsettles her more is that they don’t know why yet. Her fingers itch for her phone, but she holds still, one thought racing through her mind. Dick.

“Who?” Lagoon Boy blurts, and everyone looks to Artemis for the answer. Starfire looks to Wally, and he looks like he’s going to be sick when he meets her eyes.

“Imagine if the League of Assassins were these weird meta-like beings that are also immortal,” Artemis answers, but then she looks to Kori. “They haven’t been around in ages.”

Now all eyes rest on Starfire. She really, really wants to call Dick.

“Have you dealt with these Talons before?” Khaldur asks her.

Kori takes a deep breath, and stares at the screen ahead. “I haven’t,” she starts. “But my husband has.”

Suddenly, the team’s eyes light up in thrilled curiosity. Beast Boy is the first to explode with excitement.

“Oh! Oh! Are you going to bring him in? Please say yes, I miss him. Please Star? Please?”

”Ughhhh it’s been forever!” Cyborg piles on.

M’gann suddenly doesn’t give a damn about the talons, or the mission, and is instead beaming with energy. “I’ve always wanted to meet him! Is he from your planet too? You never talk about him, only just a few months ago I learned you were married!”

”Yeah, he’s cool,” Raven says mildly, but a slight smile tugs at the corner of her mouth.

”He’s the best,” Red Robin says with a grin, and the smaller Robin gives a single approving nod.

”How come they’ve already met him?” Wondergirl whines. “Not fair, the Titans get to do all the fun stuff.”

Kori does her best to block out the chaos of chatter. Any other time and circumstance she’d be blushing and indulging on vague hints and details about Dick, but the worry growing in the pit of her stomach has her nauseous and dreading every passing second.

“Star?” Wally’s voice breaks through the noise, she didn’t realize the noise had died down.

She looks to the speedster, not sure what to say, but she knows that he knows what’s going through her mind. He’s one of the few who knows Dick as well as she does, and she bets he is just as nervous as she is to hear the Court is back in town.

“I’ll…I’ll call him,” she starts out slowly. Beast Boy whispers a victorious ‘yesss’ and high fives cyborg. M’gann smiles wide and silently celebrates with Wondergirl. “I’ll talk to him, see what he thinks but he….”

”He’s particular about working with others,” Red Robin chimes in, and Kori nods in agreement.

“Well,” Khaldur cuts in, his tone even and light as always. “If he is willing to come in and help us, we would be more than happy to have him.”

Kori gives a tight smile and thanks the YJ leader. “I‘ll talk to him,” she repeats quietly, then her eyes meet the images on the screen, and the knot within her insides tightens. Did he know they were out there? Were they in Bludhaven? Is he in trouble right now? If the bats knew, surely they would warn him, and would be on high alert. Anger starts to rise within her, anger and pure terror at the thought of ‘what if…’

The Court cannot and will not take him again.

”In fact,” she says, backing away from the table. “I think I’ll call him now.”

Chapter Text

Bruce called him first, and just as they were about to hang up, Kori’s name popped up on his screen. It’s well past midnight now, and Bludhaven has been rather busy, but Kori rarely calls him directly when either are working, and it’s been eating away at Dick since he heard the distant rumble of an explosion in the direction of Star City.

“Kor—“

”Nightwing,” Kori sounds breathless on the other end, she must be in company if she’s using his code name. “It’s the Court.”

Dick’s frown only deepens. “B told me, is everyone alright? Are you alright?”

”Yes, yes we are all fine— a few scrapes and bruises but we are all okay,” she answers quickly. “Where are you?”

”Bludhaven,” he states plainly, as it is plainly obvious. “You have my tracker Star.”

”I know, I just— I don’t like you being out there alone. Especially when they’re active again— and we don’t even know why.” Her voice lowers, the edge of her tone wavering. “Dick, what if they’re here for you—“

”Then I’ll deal with it,” he says firmly. “I’ve done it before, I can do it again.” He doesn’t need her to tell him that this time feels different, he’s already aware. In the past, attacks and warnings were direct, always targeted towards him. Now, if they’re truly trying to find a way to track him down and lure him in, they’re getting smarter, they’re catching up to his plan. Why involve the team? He distanced himself from them for a reason, so this exact situation wouldn’t happen— how was that now enough?

They’re learning, they’re understanding him more, and it’s only making him more nervous.

“Send me what the team has found so far, I’ll see what I can find,” he says after some time. “And send me the coordinates of where the ambush took place.”

”You are not going alone,” Kori immediately fired back. ”Especially not tonight.” It’s the kind of tone that Dick has learned not to push back against, no matter the topic or circumstance.

Nightwing just sighs in resignation. “Then we can go tomorrow, in the day, together.”

“Deal.” There’s chatter in the background of her call, and a tight laugh escapes under her breath. “The Robins say hello, by the way—they wanted me to say that.”

”Tell them I say hi back,” Dick rolls his eyes in amusement. “Despite the fact I literally saw them earlier today in the cave.”

”I will.” Kori pauses again, and suddenly the call feels much quieter, Dick assumes she has entered another room, away from the others. “This is making me really nervous Dick— I think, maybe—“

”Not yet,” he says softly. “Not until we know more. Then…” his eyes graze over the hazy skyline of Bludhaven, smoke from Star is starting to cloud the clear midnight skies. “Then maybe.”

He knows she’s not happy, but she doesn’t push anymore and he’s thankful for it. “I’ll see you back at home?”

“Of course, babe,” Dick answers, and after their I love you’s, the call ends.
—————————————————————————————————————————
Many are deflated when Starfire returns to the mountain the next evening alone. She doesn’t take it personally, as she knows Dick has become sort of a novelty amongst the Titans, given how rare he makes an appearance. And given how excited the Young Justice team still gets at the mention of meeting Starfire’s husband, Kori is sure that Wally and Artemis have kept their mouths shut about who precisely the team is dying to meet.

“He’s at least agreed to help,” Kori says, lifting a crate of files Dick kept on hand in the batcave. “But for now— he’s still at a distance.” The two of them had visited the blast site earlier that day, hitting the sweet spot between the police’s shift changes around the location. They didn’t find anything but rubble at first, but eventually Dick zeroed in on a broken piece of what used to be a knife.

”They typically lace these with poison,” he had told her, carefully bagging the piece of metal. “I’ll run tests and see if I can make an antidote. Most of the time it’s non-lethal, but the symptoms make you wish it were.”

“Is he shy?” M’gann asks earnestly, and Starfire can’t help but instantly laugh.

”Hardly,” she answers almost immediately. “He just likes to be careful.”

“What’s all that?” Connor asks, eyes on the crate stuffed full of files that Kori has started to take out in heaps, the center of the meeting table full of paper in minutes. She promised Dick she’d return it as neat as she found it, but right now she threw out all his particular filing out the window.

“This,” she gestures to the piles in front of them. “Is everything he has on the Court.” Kaldur approaches the table just in time to hear, and his brows raise in disbelief.

“You said he was familiar with them,” the Atlantean states simply. “This looks a lot more than familiar.”

“He’s thorough.”

”I bet Batman would love him,” Connor notes flatly. They truly have no idea, and for now, that works in the team’s favor.

The leads and senior members of the team— save for Wally and Artemis, who were coming later that night— spend the better part of the evening reading through Dick’s reports. There were very few files that he removed from the crate before giving it to Kori, so what they were left with was general information, sightings and histories of the secret society. Anything that directly involved Dick or Nightwing was left in the batcave, and part of Kori was relieved he did. She wasn’t in the mood to read through the details of what they did to him, or what they tried to do.

Wally and Artemis arrived much later into the night while some of the younger members were handling minor burglaries or training with each other in the other rooms. Just as they entered the meeting room, taking in the scattered reports and bleary eyed team members, Wally just shrugs sympathetically.

“Quite some party you have going here,” he says sarcastically, and Artemis punches his arm before taking a seat next to Kori.

M’gann just sighs and rubs at her face, her exhausted eyes blinking slowly. “It feels as if we’ve been reading since dawn,” she groans softly.

“But imagine how much time we have saved by having access to these reports,” Kaldur, always the voice of reason, stated. “Though it is a concerning amount of information,” he adds, eyeing Starfire.

“There’s no way you’re not married to a hero,” Connor says pointedly. “At least someone who has been exposed to the life.”

“Whatttt,” Wally chimes in with feigned shock, Artemis just rolls her eyes. “That’d be crazy…”

”You’re actually the worst sometimes, you know that?” His girlfriend says with a glare.

Kori looks to Wally, Wally shrugs to Artemis— who is looking to Kori, then to the others. M’gann glances to Connor, who is looking between Kaldur and Kori.

“You guys know?” Connor says abruptly.

“They do,” M’gann fakes a betrayed tone. “Oh look at his face, they both totally know.”

Kori slowly puts her head in her hands, she’s quite certain Dick would be doing the same if he could hear the conversation now. If circumstances were much better, she bet he would find it all amusing that they haven’t connected the dots yet. She sighs with a soft smile, and wishes Dick were here.

”Who is it?” M’gann presses Kori. “If he’s a hero, we don’t have to know his identity— maybe we’ve already met him.”

”Well—?” Wally starts and Artemis smacks her hand over her boyfriend’s face. Kori just laughs.

“Look, M’gann,” she starts gently. “It’s quite complicated, he—.”

Her phone starts to ring, and as if by fate it’s Dick. Kori is quick to conceal her screen as she stands from the table. “Sorry— um, I have to take this,” she says, making her way to the exit door.

”Is that him?” M’gann chirps excitedly, and the glass door shuts behind Kori before she can even care to answer. She accepts his call.

“Hey you,” she smiles into her phone, pacing outside the meeting room.

”Hey babe, still at the mountain?”

“We’ve been reading for hours, I think everyone’s brains are melting.”

Dick laughs, and her smile widens at the warmth in his voice. “I apologize for my incredible note taking and filing abilities.”

”Uh huh, sure you do,” she catches a glimpse of M’gann staring through the meeting room walls, yanking on Connor’s and whispering to him with a hand to his ear. Kori shakes her head and turns away. “How’s the research going?”

”That’s actually why I called, the antidote finished about thirty minutes ago, and I’ve been dispersing them into a collection of proper dosages for each member of the teams, you know, just in case.” Him and his bat-like preparedness striking once again. “If you have a moment, maybe you could come pick them up? Have a late dinner before heading back?” She could hear the grin growing on his face. “Or if you need a longer break I’m sure we could find something to do to kill time.”

”A break that doesn’t actually entail rest?”

”The best kind, I think.”

“Nice try, boy wonder,” she teases. “You know, most of the team is out right now if you wanted to bring them yourself,” she suggests carefully. “And Wally and Artemis are here, so you’d at least have back up.”

”Back up against who?”

”The other three, but on the bright side, M’gann really wants to meet you.”

There’s that easy laugh again, but there’s an air of sadness in his tone. “Oh I’m sure she thinks she does,” he says.

“Just a thought, you don’t have to,” Kori adds. As much as she wants to push him to reconnect with his old team, she knows it’s not that simple. Old wounds would inevitably come up and answers would be demanded of him, and she knows his hurt runs deep. Even a quick supply drop couldn’t be an easy hello. “But…” she lowers her voice in case the Kryptonian in the other room gets any ideas of eavesdropping. “If you do decide to come and be a good boy, I think I could use a nice long break later.”

Dick is quiet at first, and then he whistles low and breathless. “Oh this is a dangerous game you’re playing.” The laugh that follows has her knowing he’s blushing on the other end, and likely fighting to think with his head instead of his own self interests. Kori just giggles, loving the way his voice hitches when she’s got him good.

“How about this,” he breaks just slightly into a little laugh. “I’ll put the zeta in stealth mode, and you meet me by the entrance, on your own.”

”And then?”

”Then we can talk about my reward later.” In the background, Kori swears she can hear— who she assumes to be Tim judging by voice alone— yelling at Dick to stop flirting with his wife.

“Deal,” Kori says.

”I’ll text before I head out, but in the meantime, I should go before Jason finishes loading his gun.”

“To aim at you or himself?”

”A good question I don’t plan on finding out the answer to,” Dick says, and the two hang up moments later.

Kori pockets her cell phone and goes back to the meeting room, hesitating to resume her seat as the door closes softly behind her. All eyes are on her, all asking the same question, M’gann’s big smile being the most obvious.

”Yes,” Kori starts. “That was him.” She takes her seat again and pulls another stack of files towards herself. She gives a pointed look to Connor. “Did you hear anything?”

Superboy looks deflated. “I tried really hard not to, it’s sort of hard to tune out. But mostly just heard the antidote, and he’d come by to—“

”He’s coming here?” M’gang practically squeals.

“Wait what?” Artemis sits up straighter, Wally now is zeroing on the conversation too.

Kori closes her eyes again, and sighs. “I’m just meeting him at the entrance,” she looks around the room with a hard glare, landing specifically on M’gann. “Alone.” The Martian sinks more into her seat in disappointment.

”Does he need a guest pass for the zeta?” Kaldur offers kindly, and Kori shakes her head.

”He doesn’t need one,” she starts, and before M’gann can light up again she cuts her off. “Yes he is a hero, and no I’m not saying who. He has his reasons for avoiding the mountain as long as he has, and if he’s not ready then I’m not pushing him. Understood?” Her tone is a little harsher than she’d hoped, but she means every word. Of course she’d love for Dick to come back, to slowly heal that part of him and reconnect with his old friends, but if he’s not ready, then he’s not ready. It’s as simple as that. That last thing he needs is an ambush when he finally gives in a little.

Everyone nods solemnly, and M’gann holds out but when Kaldur gives her a look, she nods and mutters her agreement. “We’ll stay out of the way,” the Atlantean says. “You have my word.”

”Thank you,” Kori says, relieved. “Now let’s get back to this and hopefully we can all finish before the others come back from patrol.”

Chapter Text

The Court has been shockingly… quiet since the ambush in Star City, but that doesn’t make Dick feel any better about the situation. Part of him is relieved that the Team’s interaction with Talons seems to be a fluke, a one-shot coincidence of being at the wrong place at the wrong time, but he’d be stupid to think that was the end of it.

Because when it came to his grandfather, there was never an end in sight.

Dick just hopes that his continued investigation into the Court’s new activity drags their attention far from the team and Titans— far from his friends and family. He hopes the more he chases and knocks them down on his own, that more William Cobb will realize Dick has nothing to do with the other heroes— and that if his grandfather was looking for a showdown, it was only going to be him versus Nightwing.

That’s the plan, it’s always been the plan. Six years of effort to wipe his history of the team—of even interacting with other heroes— completely, all in the hopes they couldn’t be used as leverage. So they couldn’t be hurt just to bend Dick to his grandfather’s will. He didn’t want to abandon the team after the Reach’s failed invasion— he should have been there, should have made sure Kaldur had the support he needed as he resumed his position as team leader.

But then everything had gone wrong. So wrong.

He stares at the ceiling in his bedroom, Kori’s warmth radiating in gentle waves as she curls into his side more. Her head rests on his shoulder, the covers pulled up to her neck as she continues to indulge in a deep sleep. Despite the buzz dying down at Mount Justice, Kori is still working her ass off helping the team with other missions. The Titan’s help wasn’t necessarily needed, but the Court’s silence wasn’t only putting Dick on edge.

It seems like everyone else is also waiting for the second shoe to drop.

He exhales softly and closes his eyes, pressing his lips gently against Kori’s forehead as he pulls her closer. It’s a few hours before dawn, the storm outside continues to rack against their bedroom windows in a steady hum, almost turning into gentle white noise. Sleep has been harder lately, but he tries when he can. His body is exhausted from patrol, but his mind still buzzes with endless thoughts, plans, back up plans, work….

And besides, the more he can manage to keep his eyes open, the fewer nightmares he’ll have. Though Kori and Dick are no strangers to nightmares and terrors, he still tries to avoid them when he knows he can, especially when he can feel that they’ll be worse than usual. They start to feel more real, like memories being repeated, and the pain echoes in his body like the injuries are new and never ending. Instead of startling awake, he gasps, screams, writhes— and what bothers him most is that he scares Kori awake. Soon the fear shakes and dissolves into guilt as she wraps her arms around him, shushing him softly as he comes back to reality, like she’s done thousands of times for him, and he’s done for her just as much.

But still he can’t help but feel bad, especially if she’s been working more than usual. He wants to make her smile, to make her laugh and blush— and he hates whenever he’s the reason for her worry, for that look of concern weighing on her brow.

The lingering presence— or lack thereof—of the Court these past few weeks is only making him worse, making her worry more, making his anxiety about anything happening to her or the rest of his family hit an all time high.

Kori shifts in her sleep, her head nuzzling more onto his chest now, a hand sliding to rest over his stomach. The heat in her touch thaws his skin, and through her nightshirt he can feel her steady heartbeat against his. For now, everything is fine, he’s home with Kori, and they are both here and fine and safe. This is real, and this is now. He can feel his mind settling into her warm presence, her steady and calm flow of energy against him. Finally, his mind starts to quiet again, and he’s able to drift off to sleep.

Bludhaven is busy tonight, uncharacteristically busy, but hey— it at least gives Dick something to do.

Drug bust here, a new lead on a trafficking ring there, burglaries, hostages, the whole grand slam. One job after the next, pinging constantly on his radar and comms as if he were in his family group chat while his brothers and sisters were fighting over who gets to pick what’s for dinner at the manor that night. The last time he’d been this booked and busy was when he first came to the city, when criminals ran the place like a free-for-all because there was no one there to stop them.

It’s been years since he’s had a tireless night like tonight. He’d need to text Kori to just put dinner in the fridge if she beat him home, which was likely at this rate. She’s back at the mountain again, but this time it’s the Team helping the Titans, instead of the other way around. Kori and her team have been tracking down a need lead that looks to be the doings of H.I.V.E activity, and this time they are far from their usual grounds. Kaldur was happy to help, given the investigation is practically on the YJ’s home turf.

“Oracle to Nightwing,” Babs rings through his comms nearly the second he knocks another trafficker unconscious. “I’m sending you coordinates now, just on the outskirts of Blud. Suspected sightings of the Court.”

Dick nearly freezes, but the punch coming his way keeps him in fluid motion. “Sightings?” He shoots back. “Not just more bread crumbs?”

”B wouldn't be on his way to Haven for mere crumbs, Wing.”

Well shit, that’s as right as rain. Bruce keeps out of Blud territory like a meta keeps away from Gotham. There is the rare exception, and Court activity is always on that short list of allowances. “I’m on my way.”

He quickly finishes at the shipping docks and calls the cops before disappearing into the night, grappling and flying from rooftop to rooftop towards the beacon on his map. Surprisingly, it isn’t far, but what worries him is that he’s heading towards the city center, which means that he’s not looking for a warehouse, but like a standard building, possibly a government building. His mind screams at him that this isn’t just a sighting, but likely a confirmed suspected stronghold.

Nightwing feels his father’s presence before he sees him, but he keeps his eyes on the site below. Bludhaven’s library seems a bit too on the nose for a secret society to take a stake in, but then again, that might just be their precise thinking.

“What came up?” Wing turns his head towards Batman, and there stood the Dark Knight, the familiar shadow of the cowl and cape— and then Dick feels another movement to his other side. His eyes narrow to Bruce. ”And you brought Robin.” His hand is already reaching to ruffle his little brother’s hair, despite his glare trained on his dad remaining steady.

“I refused for Father to go on his own,” Damien bats away Dick’s hand annoyedly. “The Court is too dangerous for you two to be the only ones here.”

Bruce grunted in compliance with his blood son. “He also spent the last twenty minutes giving me the history of the League’s long standing rivalry with the Court,” the man frowns. “As if I already didn’t know,” he mutters.

”Besides,” Damien adds with a huff. “This is obviously a trap.”

Isn’t it always? Nightwing smiles down at his kid brother, who seems to be trying hard to not look up at Dick in return. Damien has a funny way of showing he cares, but he knows his brother, and he knows he’s here for more reasons than he lets on. This is obviously a trap, he had said, but what Dick hears is I don’t want to see you get hurt. Not on my watch.

”Well then, three’s a party,” Dick says, pulling Damien in by the shoulders despite his brother’s struggles. “I imagine you’ve got a plan, B?”

Batman nods, and soon the three heroes make their way underground, disappearing into the shadows of sewers and tunnels that wind beneath the library’s foundation. As tunnels branch and lead in different directions, the three refuse to move from each other’s sides. They know the other is capable on their own, but all three heroes are certain that if they break apart at any point, the trap will execute.

So they keep low, they keep hidden, and they keep quiet.

Soon the few lights in the sewer system disappear as they delve deeper, and in the next instant their masks switch to night vision. In the haze of green and white, Dick keeps Damien in his line of vision, Bruce just up ahead. The further they venture, the more uneasy Nightwing gets— if this truly is a trap, they’re making it harder for themselves to get out of it in a timely manner.

He exhales, and his breath comes out in a puff of white air. Dread courses through his body as memories come to the forefront of his mind when the sudden chill breezes through his hair. Storage cryos are nearby. Talons are nearby, waiting to be awakened to be used to Cobb’s will.

The air shifts, and suddenly the three of them are no longer alone. Within seconds, Damien’s katana is unsheathed, Bruce’s batarangs collide with armor, and Dick’s escrimas crackle to life just as a hoard of Talons appear from the shadows and close in on the three in a merciless wave of knives, blows and electricity. Flurries of shadows, bright colors and weapons ricochet off the concrete walls, old water splashing with every movement and every body dropped into cold unconsciousness. One by one, they take them down— Dick’s escrima slicing through the air and landing with a deafening crack against the head of the last foe, their body slumping to the ground with a hard thud. All that is left is the quiet panting of the three bats, surrounded by apprehended Talons.

“Any of you hurt?” Bruce is already looking over the two of them, despite their murmurs of “no’s” and “we’re fine’s.” When he’s certain enough, Batman nods and steps back.

“Coffins must be nearby,” Dick says between inhales of stale air, wading through water and still bodies as he regroups with his brother and dad. “There could be more, be ready.”

“Scans say there’s an opening around the corner,” Robin states, and Dick keeps him close— an old habit, but one he’s not planning on letting go anytime soon.

The two men follow Robin’s directions and as they turn down a final hall, there is an opening in the sewer wall. The jagged edges and loose stones on the ground looks like the doorway was made from an explosion, but the cavernous room on the other side looks far from the aftermath of an accidental bomb. The stones were firmly paved into the ground, some even colored in a design that creates a lump in Dick’s throat. He’d seen similar stonework in his grandfather’s stronghold. High on the surrounding walls of the rounded room, there are water way openings closed off by iron grates. Possible entry points for future attackers.

This room is colder, but there is nothing in the room except for a lone table in the center, and placed on top is a small toy carousel, the animals slowly rising and falling as the toy turns to the tune of soft carnival music. Nightwing swallows hard, his eyes zeroing in on the lone display. Batman is beside him, saying something along the lines of not a bomb, but hasn’t yet ruled out the possibility of it being the center of a trap.

“Be careful,” he hears his dad say. Nightwing nods absently and slowly approaches the toy carousel, Damien is close behind, his arm brushing against the Kevlar of his brother’s suit.

The tips of his gloved fingers come in contact with the musical toy, the music taunting him with its bright and cheery music, the kind they play in circuses. The kind that plays at Haley’s… his first home. He shudders subtly, before lifting the small object from the table, inspecting every inch as the music starts to whirl to a slow, deliberate stop.

The top of the carousel’s tent clicks, and one by one the striped canopy of the toy comes undone, opening like the mouth of a kraken. Inside, there is a small note with the familiar scribbles of Cobb’s handwriting. My Gray Son, it reads, and Dick sets the toy down and takes the note from the carved insides.

He opens the note, and a single small white feather drifts delicately through the air before landing silently on the table. Damien takes it immediately, inspecting the ridges closely. But Dick doesn’t care, his eyes are solely focusing on the writing inside the small parchment.

“What a bright star you’ve found.”

Dick breath falters— bright star. Star.

Kori.

His hand flies to his comms, trying desperately to radio Kori, Tim, Jason— anyone. They’re too far underground, all he gets is static in return.
“Batman,” Nightwing rasps, bracing himself against the table before his knees can give. Bruce is by his side in an instant, a hand on his back as if he were to catch him. “We need to get above ground.” He can’t breathe. He knows. He knows he knows he knows. Kori. “Now.”

The three take off to retrace where they came from, Dick pulling ahead through twists and turns. Talons try to slow them down, but Nightwing takes them down without missing a stride. Water sprays over his legs as the heroes sprint full speed, the tunnels are never ending, forever stretching. God, how far down were they? The air feels stiffer, the cold racks against Dick’s lungs with a heavy burn, but he doesn’t give a damn.

He slams himself against the pothole cover, arms reverberating in protest as he hauls the slab of metal up and over, the disc skittering sharply against pavement. He has one hand on comms as the other pulls Damien up, then Bruce.

“Nightwing to—“

”Mount Justice to Nightwing.” Wally’s voice cuts him off immediately.

“I’m here,” he replies immediately, he can’t hide the desperation in his voice as he follows Batman and Robin through alleyways as they navigate to the Batmobile. “Status.” He can see the Batmobile come into view. He tells Bruce to head for the closest zeta.

“It’s Star— there was another ambush— the team is on their way back—.”

Dick pulls the front door open to the Batmobile, all three haphazardly tossing themselves in as Bruce revs the engine. Nightwing lurches back as the Batmobile takes off. Damien curses and steadies himself with his legs against the back of the two front seats.

“I’m on my way. What happened?”

”The Court,” Wally’s voice is hoarse, Dick’s blood turns cold, his heartbeat in his head. “It’s like they were targeting— A Talon went for Red Robin, Starfire intercepted— the blade was poisoned."

”He should have an antidote—“

”It’s not working.”

No, no that’s wrong. This is all wrong—

He can’t breathe— his hands are trembling and for a moment he can’t speak. A panicked exhale escapes him.

“It’s not working,” he chokes on the words. Bruce looks over now, his face his grim but he doesn’t let up on the gas pedal. One minute until their destination. “What do you mean it’s not working, that’s not— that’s not—“

”The team is back— I need to go.”

”Wait—“

The Batmobile skids to a screeching halt next to an alleyway, Dick’s hands are already pulling on the handle, he nearly falls out of the car before sprinting to the hidden zeta is the alleyway. He doesn’t know if Bruce and Damien are behind him, he can’t think about that right now as he tears open the out of commission phone booth door. He’s pounding his access code in as his leg shuts the glass behind him. He shuts his eyes in the flash of light, and an old familiar robotic voice enters the phone booth.

B-01-Nightwing.

Chapter Text

B-01-Nightwing

The mountain’s main entrance materializes before him, and waiting at the center console is Wally. He doesn’t waste a second when he sees his best friend.

“Bio-ship,” the speedster says automatically, and Dick takes off running down the once-familiar halls, boots pounding on glass floors, skidding around corners, everything turning into streaks of white blurs until he sees the large glass doors that lead to the ship’s tarmac.

He charges through the doors, and a gust of wind breezes past as Wally beats him to the mouth of the bio ship. Titans and Young Justice members are scattered throughout the tarmac, all eyes on the ship until Dick enters the room.

”Nightwing?” Lagoon Boy nearly shouts, and Artemis is immediately trying to intervene, her fingers itching for her bow in case of a worst case scenario.
A chorus of objections and panic fills the room— fingers pointing at him, defensive stances and death glares stare him down. The Titans are in an uproar, but instead of anger they are simply confused at their fellow teammates’ reactions, immediately demanding the young justice members to stand down. This could get ugly fast, but Dick doesn’t care, he needs to see Kori.

M’gann’s eyes are narrowing and fierce, the familiar glow of her power locking in while Connor at the ready by her side, fists clenched as if he is ready for a fight. Wally appears in front of them, hands up and frantic to get their attention.

“Wait wait wait!” The speedster yelps desperately in an effort to keep his friends from attacking Nightwing on the spot.

Dick is within meters of the ship’s ramp when Kaldur steps in his way, a steady hand held out just in time to catch the vigilante by the waist before he can reach the ship. The sheer force of the impact nearly send the two men down, but Dick is quick to regain his balance, and Kaldur refuses to let go.

“Where is she?” Dick demands, struggling against the Atlantean’s obscene strength. “This is not the time.”

”Now hold on,” Kaldur keeps his voice calm, trying to rein the frantic hero in one moment, but then he pauses, and his furrowed brow softens within seconds, as if he’s piecing together the realization all at once. His grip falters slightly, and it’s enough to give Dick an opening.

“Wing,” Cyborg calls from inside the bio ship, voice shaking. Dick twists and shoves Kaldur off of him when he looks up to find the Titan holding Kori in his arms, her head slack and her skin a sickly yellow, her body shaking and convulsing. “The antidote— it—.”

“Give her to me,” Dick rasps, clearing the distance of the ramp to meet Cyborg half way. Carefully, so carefully, the large robot-hybrid transfers the princess to Nightwing, he’s careful to cradle her head, tucking her close to him as he gathers her in his arms. She’s still warm, but her temperature is lower than it should be. Dick tightens his arms around her to keep her still, but her convulsions struggle to be held back. Her breathing is harsh, almost like she’s choking, but barely— just barely, he hears her trying to speak. Sound is good. Sound means air is moving in and out.

“Raven,” he orders. “A table, now,” he dismounts the ramp with Kori. Raven summons a metal table just a few feet away, and Dick lifts his wife and slowly lays her down, his hand guiding her head to lay gently on the table.

“Kori,” he whispers softly, his hands lightly moving her head so he can look at her eyes. “You’re okay, it’s going to be okay,” he assures her in Tamaranian. “Everything is going to be just fine.” Her eyes are a faint green, but their color has a tinge of yellow, the kind of pale yellow he knows all too well, and her tan skin is becoming more sallow.

Cyborg appears on the other side of the table, his hand goes for Kori’s arm, where a deep gash is crusted with red and black.

Dick looks to him. “Any other injuries?”

“No, just this,” Cyborg starts to clean the wound gently, and that’s when Dick caught the hauntingly familiar traces of black running along the princess’s veins. “The poison—“

”Electrum,” Dick breathes, his hand finds a vial in his utility belt. “They hit her with electrum.” But it wasn’t working— Kori’s body is rejecting it, otherwise the wound would be gone— and she also wouldn’t be as conscious as she was now.

“Where’s Red Robin?” Nightwing’s hand prepares the vial to be transferred into a syringe, pushing out the excess air while looking around the room of heroes frantically. “Red?”

”Here.” Tim appears by his side. Thank God.

Dick’s eyes scan over his brother quickly. “Are you hurt? Scrapes, cuts, anything—“

”No,” Tim says quickly. “Promise.”

Dick pulls him in tightly and kisses his head quickly, a hand lingering on his shoulder while Cyborg prepares the injection site. “Good. Listen to me. Get to the cave. Tell B we need the Electrum cure concentrate. Star’s bio metrics are under our file. Get it going, we’re going to need it. B will know.” His eyes glance about the room— some heroes wide with worry, others sharp and angry. “Has anyone else been hit? I need to know now.” The room falls silent, the racking of Kori’s convulsions and pained gurgles echoing through the room. “Answer me,” he desperately demands— they don’t have to like him, hell they don’t need to trust him at all, but he needs to know—

Kaldur steps forward. “No one else was hit,” is all he says.

Dick nods and looks at Tim. “Go.”

Tim immediately takes off, and Dick turns back to Kori, handing Cyborg the syringe he’s prepared. Kori starts to cough, her limbs contracting tighter as she gasps for breath. Dick curses, and studies her face closely as Cyborg injects the contents from the syringe.

Dick closes his eyes, and counts down from one minute, the room is quiet except for the sound of Kori’s heaving and struggles against the metal table. He counts, listening to her breath, waiting for the first injection of the cure he keeps on standby to take its first steps in the course. He reaches the last ten seconds, and suddenly there is complete, painful silence.

3…2…

Black starts to bubble at the corner of Kori’s mouth, and her coughs become wet and heavy. Dick turns her on her side, arms wrapping around her tightly to keep her steady as she begins to vomit black. He buries his head in her hair, rocking her gently as she painfully gasps and heaves and continues to cough up black and more black.

”I’ve got you baby, it’s okay— I know, I’m sorry— just a little longer,” he soothes quietly in her language— something she will understand even through the mess of pain and confusion that Electrum inflicts on its victims. “You’re okay…” He tries his best to pull her hair back from her face as she vomits off the table and onto the floor— the black liquid coming in harsh, painful waves. Dick doesn’t let up, he refuses to let go, even as Kori starts to settle and the first purge from her system slows to a stop.

Her muscles begin to relax, and the table-rattling convulsions calm to weak twitches as Kori coughs and fights to regain even breathing. Dick slides his arm across her back, propping her up slightly in case more liquid trickles down her mouth. Her eyes crack open, glassy and exhausted and still tinged with a sickly yellow. Her head starts to fall back, but Dick is quite to shoulder her neck, keeping it upright just enough to keep her comfortable and steady.

Dick looks up to Cyborg. “She’ll need an IV to administer the cure. Her body is rejecting the Electrum, which is a good sign, but we need to keep an eye on her vitals.”

”The medbay has a bed ready when you think she’s good to move.”

Kori fidgets in his arms and coughs harshly, dribbles of black leaking from her mouth. Dick uses the back of his hand to wipe it from her face.
She blinks, eyes half lidded and tired as they slide to meet his. “Dick…?” her voice is a hoarse whisper, as if it hurts to speak.

He can’t help but smile, his fingers pushing her hair back from her face gently. “Hey baby, I’m here.” Kori shifts in his arms, and with a weak hand she pulls Dick’s from her hair to her chest, her breathing evenly to slow and controlled breaths once their hands rest over her heart.

“Tim—“

”Is absolutely fine, promise,” he finishes for her. “So is the rest of the team.” He’s making an effort to block out the fact that a few minutes ago, said team was ready to take him out and arrest him on sight. If it weren’t for Wally, Artemis and the Titans intervening, things could have easily taken a turn for the worst. Later, he’ll deal with the fallout later. He had more important things to concern himself with at the moment.

”I’m cold,” Kori whispers, her fingers twitching slightly in Dick’s hand. Despite her conscious state, the Tamaranian is still pale, and her temperature is nearly equivalent to a human’s. Dick suspects that once the cure takes its course, her temperature will spike in the complete opposite direction.

”Is it okay if I take you to the med bay? The heated blanket selection is top notch from what I remember.”

A ghost of a smile tugs appears on her lips, and she nods. Dick slips his hand free from hers, and adjusts his arm under her legs. Her head rests against his chest as he lifts her from the table with ease, rounding the table swiftly with a brief, wary glance towards Kaldur. He wasn’t waiting for permission, but he also wasn’t expecting such a lack of objection. The next second his attention is elsewhere, eyes on Kori, ears listening to her steadied breathing, and his body is following Cyborg out of the Bio Ship’s landing room and towards the med bay of Mount Justice.

Just before the glass doors close behind him, he can hear the distinct tenor of Beast Boy’s voice. “Guys, what the hell is your problem—?”

Everything else muffled the moment the doors clicked shut.

—————————————————————————————————

It’s been a few hours since Dick arrived at the mountain, a few hours since he got Kori settled in a bed in one of the med bay rooms. Tim had arrived just after Dick helped Kori get changed, and soon after the cure was administered into her system. The only other person who has entered the room besides the two bats is Cyborg, who has been in and out of the room to record the progress of Kori’s vitals.

About twenty minutes after the IV and cure started, the fever hit the Tamaranian, and a few minutes later she fell asleep. It is getting late anyways, likely hours past midnight, Dick guesses. His eyes never leave her, and his hand stays clasped over hers, his thumb gently rubbing circles over the back of her hand while he fights any temptation of sleep. The adrenaline crash hit him hard after Kori got settled, and his busy night on patrol has his limbs aching to the bone. If he were in the bat cave, he’d get himself some coffee, but the last thing he should be doing is wandering the mountain on his own when more than half of its inhabitants clearly were still pissed at him. So for now he just relies on good old fashioned willpower to keep himself awake.

There’s a knock at the door, and Tim enters again. He’s wearing civvies now, his hair damp and his dark circles from late nights look almost like bruises beneath the dimmed lights of Kori’s room. He has a travel mug in one hand, and a backpack slung around his other shoulder.

“Clothes, snacks, and computer,” he tells Dick, his foot catching the closing door behind him so that it wouldn’t slam shut. “Though Alfred told me to tell you that you should be asleep.”

Dick accepts the backpack with a weary smile and quiet thank you, setting the bag by his chair. Tim raises a brow, and looks from Dick to Kori, who hasn’t stirred in the slightest.

”Go shower, I’ll keep watch,” Tim says firmly, and Dick is about to protest when his little brother holds up a hand. “Dude, whatever she coughed up got all over your suit. Please for the love of God, shower and change.”

An objection dies in his throat when Dick looks down at himself. It’s hard to tell where the thrown up electrum starts against his black suit, but the realization suddenly has his suit feeling too tight and suffocating. He sighs in resignation, takes the backpack, and enters the en-suite bathroom to clean up.
————————————————————————

Nails gently running over his scalp stirs him awake. He hadn’t meant to fall asleep, he actually doesn’t remember setting his head down on the edge of Kori’s bed, but that is where finds himself now. The chair pulled close, knees against the bed frame, and arms folded to serve as a pillow for his head.

Dick blinks, eyes bleary as he comes to his senses slowly, then his gaze falls on Kori.

He straightens almost immediately, awareness sharp and vision focusing. “Hey…” he whispers, his hand finding Kori’s and he presses his lips to her palm. “How are you feeling?” Her skin still feels hot to the touch, but it’s nowhere near the burning temperature it was at a few hours ago.

”Awful,” Kori smiles sleepily, a breathy laugh escaping her. “But okay otherwise,” she gestures to the IV station next to her with her chin. “Cyborg says once the bag finishes, I should be on watch for 48 hours— just to make sure there’s no adverse reactions.”

Dick nods in acknowledgment and then pauses. “When was Cyborg here?”

“About a half hour ago.” Kori’s smile widens at his stunned bewilderment. He’s a notoriously light sleeper, and somehow he didn’t so much as stir when the hero entered the room and spoke to his wife. “You must’ve been pretty out of it,” she pulls her hand away to continue running her fingers through
his hair, and he leans into the heat of her touch. “Rough night?”

“One could say that,” he muses softly, his eyes closing slowly as Kori runs her nails in gentle circles. “What about you?”

”Eventful,” Kori huffs, amused. “To say the least.”

Within the hour, Dick breaks out the snacks Tim had packed in the backpack he brought for him, and he and Kori enjoyed a quiet breakfast of Zesti Colas, granola bars, and jerky. Empty wrappers were piled high between Kori and Dick when there was a short knock at the door.

Kori leans back against pillows and looks to the door. “Come in,” she says, and Wally nearly bursts through without a second’s delay.

”Hey! Cyborg said you were up,” the speedster greets brightly. “I know he said you’d be okay, but it’s good to see you up and talking.”

”Should be all clear in about two days,” Kori replies.

”Did you just get in?” Dick asks. “Or did you and Arty stay the night here?”

”We got here about ten minutes ago,” Wally shifts his weight back and forth and scratches the back of his head, all sure signs of his usual anxious ticks.

“Kaldur— he um— well everyone is also here too. He called a meeting and uhm— well I’m here to come and get you,” he explains, looking to Dick.
Kori and Dick share a brief, cautious look for a moment, and Dick sits up in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest while leaning back. “Define ‘everyone else?’”

”The founding members,” explains Wally. “Plus Zantana and Will.”

Dick sighs and runs a hand over his face. A sliver of him had hoped to somehow avoid—well— any of the aftermath of his arrival to the mountain. He
was planning on perhaps Tim telling him when the coast was clear so he could leave unnoticed once Kori was cleared and could go home. It was quite obvious now that any chance of that happening were completely destroyed.

“Dick…” Kori starts gently. His eyes dart over to find hers. She tilts her head with a soft, sympathetic smile. “You should talk to them, not make a run for it.”

He swears she has psychic abilities in moments like this.

Wally digs in his jacket pocket and pulls out a pair of sunglasses, holding them out for his best friend to take them. “If it makes you feel better, Kaldur said no physical fighting?”

Dick stares at the sunglasses and frowns, his leg bouncing and mind racing. They have questions— of course they do— if he were in his team’s position, he’d have a list himself. They won’t accept short answers, they’ll want to know everything. Could he do that? Should he? Where would he even start?

”And before you mention it— Raven is outside, she’ll keep Kori company while you’re out,” Wally adds, and waves the sunglasses back and forth, trying to encourage Dick to take them.

He sighs through his nose, and forces himself to stand, swiping the glasses from the speedster. “Fine,” he says, and leans over to give Kori a kiss on her cheek. “I won’t be long,” he tells her, hoping it’s true.

She smiles and lightly squeezes his arm encouragingly, as if she knows this meeting will be anything but short. “Take all the time you need.”

He doesn’t want to, but he can’t bring himself to say it out loud. Instead, he just nods, places the shades over his eyes, and follows Wally out of the med bay.