#doingitanyway

She sighed in defeat and sat down on the nearest chair, staring at the carvings lining the staircase. Everything here was adored with gold, silver, and intricate details. It was beautiful, but all a little too fancy for her taste. Even the palaces of Tamaran were decorated only with weapons of war. Sometimes she forgot that Earth was not constantly under attack—well, at least not by merciless slavers from other planets.

She had been so excited when Dick had invited her to spend the Christmas holidays with him at the mansion. She had met Batman before, but Dick wanted her to get to know the rest of the family as well. However when they had arrived, the only person to greet them was an older gentlemen in a black suit.

What had been his name? Oh, he was ever so kind.

Oh yes, Alfred.

“Are you a member of the Wayne family?” she had asked him.

“Alfred’s our butler.” Dick corrected, which only made Kory more confused.

“And what exactly is a butler?”

“Hmm” Dick mused, looking at Alfred. “Well, I suppose the normal definition of a butler doesn’t really apply to you, does it?”

The gentlemen rolled his eyes. “I believe I am the one who assures that the residents of this house don’t end up in Arkham Asylum.”

Alfred had shown her room, but soon after Batman had called Dick to help him on a case that everyone else was helping on. After promising to be back soon, he kissed her and sped off as Nightwing into the twilight, leaving Kory alone in this giant, empty house.

 Alfred had left to prepare dinner, and Kory had gotten bored of watching clouds in the fading light. She found the rooms next door to be more guest bedrooms, and wandered off down the hall. Unfortunately, she didn’t realize how large the mansion really was until it too late. She couldn’t tell which hallways she had been through and which ones led back to the main floor. She was entirely, hopelessly lost.

She sighed again, her stomach growling. She lost track of the time a while ago, and her mind vaguely wondered if Dick and the others had returned home by now. Were they looking for her?

Eventually, her hunger motivated her to keep moving. Maybe some lost soul had left behind a little something in this maze of a house. She entered a new hallway (at least, she didn’t think she had entered that hallway before) and opened the nearest door on her right. The room opened up to reveal an enormous grand piano, nestled alongside a glass-stained window that reflected the moonlight in various patterns. Beautiful yes, but not where she wanted to be. The next room revealed a library that was filled top to bottom with books. Glass cases showcased books with yellowing pages and intricate hand-painted drawings that were probably centuries old. She could have stayed in that room for hours, but she continued her search for the main floor. The last door in the hallway stored canvases and paint for the wandering artist to create whatever they wanted. Oh yes, she would be coming back to that room later…if she could find it again.

Kory descended a long, winding staircase and wondered dully how many floors this house had. She knew the Batcave was down below, but had no idea where the entrance was. Knowing her luck she’d probably end up in some booby trap set up a hundred years ago.

She opened another door to find a small gym. The next room held a gallery of paintings. There was also a room of statues, three movie theatres, and about a dozen mini golf courses (seriously, did anyone actually use these rooms?)

The next three doors in the neighboring hallway were locked. The first had multiple and complicated lock systems complete with a note stating that visitors were not welcome (unless it was Starbucks). The second had a large, “Beware of Dog” poster above a set of double-bladed swords. The third only had a sign painted in blocky lettering: No Trespassing: Violators will be shot. Survivors will be shot again.

The last door in the hallway was surprisingly unlocked. Kory opened the door slowly and found a cozy room with a simple bed and large fireplace at the end. She was about to leave when something caught her eye. She entered and found herself drawn to a beautiful painting positioned above the fireplace. A man with jet-black hair that looked curiously like Dick had his arms wrapped around a thin woman with auburn hair. They looked very much in love. Kory examined the eyes of the woman with curiosity. She would recognize those eyes anywhere; she got lost in them every time her boyfriend looked at her. A sudden realization jolted through her. This was Dick’s old room.

She didn’t want to pry, but there were many things she recognized as she looked closer: old red bird-a-rangs from his days as Robin, newspaper clippings of mysterious characters, and an entire shelf dedicated to cereal boxes. Kory laughed quietly to herself as she pulled down an open box of Fruit Loops. As she did, she realized that a wall panel next to the cereal shelf was opened slightly. She reached in and found the contents to be pictures.

She sat down on the bed and went through each one of them. Pictures of Bruce (mostly brooding), of Wally doing dumb things, of Victor and Garfield doing even dumber things. There were pictures of a much younger Dick, younger than before she had met him. She had forgotten how short he was back then. And there were many more pictures with people she did not recognize: a red-headed woman in a wheelchair at the computer; Dick laughing with two other boys, both with dark hair and blue eyes; a young man asleep with a large, black dog at his side. She flipped to the last picture and recognized herself and Robin dancing together. Kory smiled. She remembered that night, at a Junior Prom on a cruise ship beneath the stars…

“Why am I not surprised to find you here?”

Kory jumped and saw Dick standing at the doorway, looking relieved.

“Next time I’m giving you a tracker.” He continued. “We’ve all been looking for you for the past hour.” He sat down next to her and kissed her forehead. “You alright?”

“Yes,” she replied. “I suppose I did get a little lost.”

“What’s this?” He plucked the photo from her hands. “Ah yes, our little prom date. I had never seen you quite so jealous, Princess.”

Kory scoffed. “Would you like me to repeat how you acted in response to my betrothal on Tamaran?”

Dick roared with laughter. “Alright, you win this round.”

Kory was silent for a moment as she looked again toward the picture of Dick’s parents.

“You have your mother’s eyes.” She stated simply.

“Hmm?” His gaze followed hers and his expression softened. “Oh. Yeah, everyone tells me that. You know, she’s the one who pegged the name ‘Robin’ in the first place.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.” He smiled to himself at the memory and continued. “My mother designed a costume for me so we would all match in our trapeze acts. I hated it at first, I felt like a walking green, red, and yellow target. But she told me that I reminded her of little robin, flying high in the air. So I guess it stuck in the end.”

Kory listened carefully. It was rare that he talked about his parents, and she wanted to memorize every single detail he revealed to her.

“I wish I could have met her.” She finally said.

“She would have liked you.” Dick replied. “Especially being that you can actually fly. Mom would have been ecstatic.”

“Well, I always feel like flying around when I am around you.” Kory blushed slightly as Dick fixed her with his clear, blue eyes. Grinning, he bent down to kiss her, but they were interrupted by the sound of Kory’s stomach growling.

“Oh my,” Kory held her stomach. “I believe I am ‘starved’ as you say.”

Dick laughed again. “Alright, Princess. Dinner first, and then I’ll introduce you to the rest of my crazy family.”

She took his hand as he led her out the door. Her love wasn’t exactly an open book, but she loved putting together the pieces of his life, little by little. And she fell more in love with him every single time.