Rོiོsོiོnོgོ

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        Stephanie shrugged at her adoptive sister. It was a good question but she didn’t actually know the answer. “Good question.” Pulling her phone from her pocket, she typed the question into google and searched the results for an answer. “Uh, so it looks like no one really knows. Some people think North Africa and some people think China.” Putting her phone away, she turned her attention back to Cass. “If you want to.” Steph was always willing to do things that would give her a reason to spend more time with the other woman. 

“Interesting...” It was, to Cass. Learning about the world and the smaller things she was never able to give thought to before in the past. Now she had the opportunity for open discussion, to learn all that had been neglected from being taught, to sate any curiosities. “I do.” Cass nodded firmly, a smile clear upon her lips. “We learn. We teach.” A twinkle of mischief her eyes occurred. “Could braid the boys hair. Make them haircuts.” They needed a push for haircuts sometimes, it was convenient and also fun. 

-

A faint smile crossed Barbara’s face as the young woman spoke. She wasn’t easily touched emotionally, but from the beginning, Cass had tugged at her heartstrings. Maybe something about Cass’s staunch defense of this city, her kind heart, reminded Barbara of her own daughter. Or maybe Babs was just getting soft, which wasn’t a prospect she particularly enjoyed considering. “Thank you,” she said softly. “That means a lot to me. I think of you as family, too.” She smiled. “I’m sure he’s going to like you very much,” she said. She laughed as Cass went on. “Yes, we could braid each other’s hair,” she agreed. “And we can watch whatever movies you want.”

She loved Barbara. Cass didn’t know when it happened either. Perhaps it was something that came from spending so much time with her. Just like with Bruce, Stephanie, her brothers and Barbara’s own daughter, her heart swelled with affection at the thought of them. One day, Barbara senior joined in that crowd of people she loved so dearly without containment. “Badass family,” She exclaimed proudly. “We are.” More to say, Barbara was a badass. A strong woman, a kind woman, and a woman that Cass loved more then she knew what to do with. Her grin only furthered at the promise of movies. “Disney?” She beckoned. There were still many she hadn’t seen, it seemed like a good time to fill in some blanks (she had a whole list of them). 

-

Lucius didn’t mind having Cass watch him work. She was sweet, and – important to this particular line of work – she was quiet and content to simply watch, without asking an overabundance of questions. It allowed him to keep his mind on what he was doing. He glanced up at her question, following the direction of her finger. “In an engine, wires are bundled together, and the way they’re bundled dictates how much current and heat it generates,” he said. “It’s better for a wire to be bundled with just one or two others, so it can carry more current.”

Her hands rested behind her back, squeezing eachother everytime she felt the desire to poke or prod something she knew that shouldn’t be touched. Mr Fox worked on very important gadgets and items, both for Bruce and for other things. If she truly struggled to resist she would ask him for permission, but as it stood, she held herself back and watched in fascination. “How...” She thought hard on how to phrase her question. “They... contain?” Wires were so small and tiny, fragile. The idea of them having such power gave Cass pause. She was curious how it worked, and only hoped she didn’t overload Mr. Fox with too many obtuse questions. 

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Rose couldn’t really believe she’d been allowed back after her sabbatical but she was welcome back to the team. It was strange how different her father had been with some one-on-one time, she’d seen his flaws and what made him dangerous but she trained and learned from him to become better and stronger. “That is very sweet Cass, I have missed…plenty of people here as well.” She replied thinking of wonderful it was seeing Jason once again and many of the people she counted as her friends.

Cassandra understood how Rose felt. It was a strange kind of empathy. It was probably why Jason and Rose got along so well too, she would guess, because of the strong understanding between them. “That is... nice.” She responded softly. It was, truly, the fact that Rose had missed many as well meant a whole lot. More then Cass knew how to explain. “You’re...” She paused, considering her own question and if it was one she wanted to ask. Then, she did it. “Happy?”

-

Babs let out a weak little laugh as Cass took her hand. “Don’t you have to ask your father if you can have a sleepover?” she said. Although she doubted that Bruce would care, especially not considering they had known each other for so long. It was hard for her to accept kindness or generosity. It made her feel weak, like she was exposed and someone would take advantage of it. She knew Cass wasn’t like that, but still. “We can go back to my place,” she murmured, swallowing. “Peter would like to meet you when he gets home in the morning, I’m sure.”

“No.” It was Cassandra’s instant answer. Barbara was practically family in her eyes, the same as Jim, Barbara Jr, and Alfred. Plus Bruce would be happy for her having a proper sleepover and bringing friends home. At worst case scenario Cass could pull out what Dick dubbed ‘the puppy eyes’. She never needed them before but he once promised her they were very helpful. “You’re family.” She meant it in earnest, even if she knew Barbara wouldn’t be so sure to believe her. Cass nodded and smiled at the suggestion. “I’d like to meet him.” she had never met him properly, and the idea sounded fun. “We could braid.” Thats what Stephanie said happened at sleepovers, wasn’t it? “And movies!” She was getting excited. 

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Rose had always liked Cass; she was quiet yet efficient to the point where she could handle almost anything thrown at her. Not many people dared to approach her with a sword in her hand but Cass wasn’t one to fear her unless they were meeting on the battlefield. “Yes I believe so, given that I have nowhere else to get off too. Are you okay with me being around?” she questioned.

Rose was well liked. Cass saw it in Jason and others. She herself liked Rose a lot, and she understood her feelings very well. Only instead of being born a weapon upbring like Cassandra, Rose sought it out. Sometimes she wondered if Rose regretted it, or if she was satisfied with who she had become. Cass liked the girl, and hoped she had no regrets. “I am.” She nodded. “You’ve been missed.” Jason would be happy for her being back, and so was Cassandra herself. 

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         “There’s like at least forty types of braids but I can show you how to do maybe ten,” Steph said, eye looking up at the ceiling as she searched her brain for the types of braids she knew how to actually do. “I can show you how to do a French braid next since you’ve mastered the classic three-strand.” She offered, more than excited to spend some time with Cass. It had been too long since the pair had gotten a little alone time. Cass was her best friend, the one person in the world that she felt at peace around. She didn’t have to be anything but herself with Cass. 

“Impressive.” Both the fact that there were among 40 different braiding types and Stephanie 1/4th of the many techniques. “Made by french?” She inquired curiously wondering what other braid types there were. British? Irish? Russian? Stephanie said there was at least forty, that was a lot of ground to cover and types. “Like that.” She responded grinning. She was enjoying herself alongside Stephanie. “We can learn all.” Cass suggested. “together?” It’d be a fun project, she and Stephanie learning all among the forty something types. 

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     “I’m never too busy for you, Cass” he was quick to assure her, shaking his head. It didn’t matter what he was in the middle of, he hoped that his family knew that they could always call him if they needed his help and that he would always be there. He’d rather waste his time showing up for something that turned out to be not so serious than carry the weight of his regret on his shoulders for the rest of his life were something to happen to somebody he loved. “I got you…It looks like it’ll probably be pretty dark in there so I can make use of the shadows” he smirked gently. Duke didn’t get as many opportunities to practice with his umbrakinesis as he did his photokinesis so admittedly he was a little excited. Duke was stronger in the light, renowned as Gotham City’s daylight hero, but his powers weren’t as one dimensional as the public likely assumed. “I’m right behind you”

Cass smiled at such kind words. Her little brother. He may be taller then her but he was smaller in her heart. She would protect him just as he did her. Though if a gun came their way she’d throw herself into the line of fire before she let it touch him. “Thank you.” She grinned with affection. There was nothing she wouldn’t for Duke, for any of her brothers. It made her heart feel a special kind of love when she was reminded they felt the same way about her. She nodded firmly. “Good plan.” Manipulating the cover of shadows was the motto of their family, and she felt pride for Duke thinking it up before she had. “Got it.” It was a good plan, and Cass felt confident in that he had her back. She went in, keeping a wary look for her surroundings and knowing that if anything happened Duke would be right with her. She wasn’t alone. 

“ i thought you were gone. for good. ” / @cforphan​

Rose looked up from cleaning her sword at Cass’s words and she supposed she could understand where this came from. She’d disappeared with her Father only to return without him still trying her hand at playing hero. “You aren’t the only one to have thought such a thing, but I’m afraid you guys are stuck with me.” She mused looking at the other.

A different hero who knew Rose far less then Cass did would have said something about her approaching the other girl when she was cleaning her sword. That it was a foolish idea and she was being a fool. Except Cassandra knew Rose, and for that fact alone she worried not. “I’m glad.” She spoke softly. She eyed Rose, trying to gain an understanding of what had occurred in their absence from eachother’s lives. “Are you?”

“broke my promise once. never again.” // @cforphan​

“Sometimes we have to break promises. People aren’t perfect – not even heroes,” Helena replied, sitting down with her bottle of vodka. Throughout her life, plenty of people had let her down, and she’d let people down in return. “None of us will ever be perfect and keep every promise we keep. Don’t worry about it, Cass.” Helena unscrewed the cap on the bottle, then swallowed down a mouthful of the booze. “Want some?” she asked, holding her fist out towards Cass for a fist bump. It was their way of greeting each other.

It’d been quite a while since she’d had a chance to privately be with Bruce. He was her father in all but blood, had saved her from a life that would have drown in her in it’s horribleness. A life she had never asked for. In it’s place he offered her a life of heroism, something that gave her purpose and made her happy. More then, that he gave her a family. She loved him for that, and she’d never be able to thank him enough for it. Especially in the little words she usually gave. So instead she showed it in her actions, such as her grand smile. “Spar?” She asked him, breaming with excitement at the prospect. 

It was so very interesting to see a genius at work. Not that Mr Fox would allow Cassandra to call him one, he was too modest for that. In her eyes however that was just what he was, a genius. Watching him at work was fascinating and it made her want to learn all he knew. So perhaps she could help him in the future, help them all in anyway she could. She pointed to a piece of connecting wires. “Why?” She asked, wanting to understand why they intersected like they did.  

“Dummy.” It wasn’t a word that Cassandra used often but it felt fitting for this occasion. Kon had been smacked in the head harshly by what could be equated to a crater. If it was anyone else their whole head would have been smashed off. It wasn’t even in a showdown with a villain, just a casual incident. His forehead bled only a little and Cass was tending to it, he would probably heal soon enough but just in case- ah, there it was. He healed. Now that he was fully healed Cass clamped her fist and ticked it upon his head in a way she knew wouldn’t hurt him at all (it wouldn’t even hurt a normal person, too light, even knowing his invincibility she struggled to be harsh on him). “Big dummy.” She said, choosing to be harsh with her words instead. ‘Harsh’.

“Used to be so tiny...” Cass couldn’t help but fawn. With her hang she gestured, lowering it to the smaller Lian’s height before raising it to the height of her future self. Now Lian was almost at her own height, still technically short but so terribly tall compared to her younger self. Cassandra couldn’t help but smile brightly. “Grew up so beautiful.” It wasn’t really her place but she couldn’t stop herself from being proud of the young woman Roy’s daughter had become. 

Stephanie. There had been a time when Cass thought she’d been gone forever. That she would never again feel her friends arms around her in a hug, sharing a bed and watching old movies that Stephanie deemed ‘classics’ or even the bad movies that made her laugh. Learn from Stephanie more of all she’d missed in her childhood, spar with her, just being happy with her. It had felt like a vacant misguided dream for too long of a time, and now here she was. Stephanie by her side, teaching her how to braid of all things. It was something Cass had been eager to know for a while now and they finally found a time for it. She was happy. “Pretty.” She breathed, a grand smile upon her face as she succeeded in the technique Stephanie showed her. “More types?” She inquired curiously, wanting to learn each one. Though she was unsure if Stephanie knew each of them, and if not then they’d learn them together.