Chapter Text
If you asked Dick Grayson whether the life he has now is what he expected as a kid... well, he’d probably laugh. Then maybe bite your ankle for suggesting his parents would die doing what they loved. And finally, he’d call you crazy for even implying he'd get adopted by a billionaire with a bat obsession.
But here he was. He lost his parents. He got adopted by Bruce Wayne. He became Robin. Fought side by side with Batman for years. Formed his own team. Fought with Batman. Split from Batman. Stopped being Robin. Became Nightwing. Fell in love... then fell in love again... and again... and again. What can we say? The guy was a hopeless romantic.
Anyway. Moving on.
At this point in his life, Dick was in a really good place—and honestly, he was happy.
He had a decent apartment in Blüdhaven, an incredible Tamaranean girlfriend who loved him, a stable relationship with his family back in Gotham, and even a much healthier dynamic with Bruce.
For once, his life had more hugs than stitches.
Dick Grayson-Wayne already had a full and happy life.
He was at peace.
He was calm.
Until that one weird day when Kory said she’d be back in a couple of days… and then just didn’t answer any of his messages.
Which was weird.
Kory always replied. Always. But not this time. And now he was starting to worry.
Dick had spent a little time with Young Justice while Tim was away with Bruce in Malaysia. He’d been busy setting up a special training session for the team—Raven was supposed to help out, but surprise: she wasn’t available anymore. She had apparently left with Kory... and now she wasn’t replying either.
And ever since Dick got back home, he kept checking his phone.
No texts.
No emojis.
Not even a single cat gif.
That alone was a real red flag.
“I think you’re overreacting a little,” said Wally, just as Dick groaned and let himself fall backwards onto the couch. He dropped his phone on his chest and put the call on speaker. “Sometimes women just need time away from their men.”
“Speaking from experience?” Dick asked with a teasing tone.
“Do you want advice or not?” Wally snapped back. “Maybe you did something to piss her off.”
“I highly doubt that,” Dick said flatly.
“You sure?” the speedster asked. “Did you forget your anniversary?”
“It’s in October, and I’ve already got everything planned,” the acrobat replied.
“Birthday?”
“Four months ago. Got her a dress. She loved it,” Dick said—and swore he could hear Wally mocking him under his breath.
“Yeah, yeah, you’re the best boyfriend ever,” Wally groaned.
“And you know that firsthand.”
“We only dated for three months, Richard,” Wally shot back, louder this time—but at least it made Dick laugh.
“But seriously, I didn’t forget anything. Not even her Earth Arrival Day. And definitely not Silkie’s birthday… I got her a Kid Flash sweater,” Dick muttered, glancing at Silkie—currently curled up in her little bed in the living room, snoozing peacefully in a bright yellow sweater with a big lightning bolt on it.
“You bought my merch for your pet larva? That’s adorable,” Wally said—and this time, Dick could hear the massive grin in his voice.
“Back to the point,” Dick said. “I’m starting to freak out here. No texts, no calls—absolutely nothing. I have no idea what’s going on with Kory.”
“Well, man, I have zero idea how to help you,” Wally said, resigned. Then, after a short pause, his voice perked up. “Wait—we should call Roy! He’s got a partner and a kid. He definitely knows more than I do.”
“No, Wally, wait—” Dick tried to protest, but a few seconds later, a third voice joined the call.
“Hey, Wally,” Roy greeted casually, and Dick ran a hand down his face.
“Roy, you're on a group call with Dick. Say hi, Dick,” Wally said cheerfully.
“Hey, Roy,” Dick greeted, trying to keep his voice calm.
“What’s up, Dickie?” Roy asked. “Something going on?”
“Yeah. But first—Jason’s not with you, is he?” Dick asked cautiously.
“Well…”
“Are you talking to Dick?” a voice called out in the background. “Tell him to go fuck himself!”
“…Yeah, he’s here,” Roy said without missing a beat.
Dick bit back a curse and let out a long sigh, then brought the phone closer to his mouth.
“Any chance you could get him to leave the room for a few minutes?” Dick asked, trying to keep his tone as diplomatic as possible. “Listen, there’s something going on with Kory, and the last thing I need is Jason running to tell everyone at the manor. I really don’t want a Bruce lecture right now.”
“Give me a sec...” Roy replied, and there was a brief rustling noise on his end. “Jason! Did you finish the milk this morning?”
“Yeah!”
“Then get your damn ass up and go buy more!”
“Oh, come on, Roy!”
“You know the rule! You finish something, you replace it!”
“Ugh!”
“And take Lian with you!”
“Stop yelling at me!”
Silence.
“He’s gone.”
“…Are you sure you’re okay with Roy dating your brother?” Wally asked.
“Go to hell, Wally,” Roy groaned. “Anyway—what’s the issue, Dick?”
“That’s what I’d like to know,” Dick said. “She’s been acting strange for a while now, and then she left a few days ago and hasn’t answered anything since. And before you ask—no, I didn’t forget her birthday, or our anniversary, or her Earth Arrival Day, or anything like that. She just… left.”
Roy was quiet. Listening. Thinking. And for Dick, the silence felt endless.
“Wait for her to come back,” Roy finally said.
“…What?” Dick sat up on the couch. “That’s your advice? Wait?”
“I got nothing better,” Roy said with a shrug in his voice. “Did she leave alone?”
“She’s with Raven.”
“There you go. She didn’t go alone. She left with someone you trust almost blindly—and who also happens to be her best friend,” Roy reasoned. “So maybe it’s not something bad. Maybe she just needed to get away for a bit. And if all her stuff is still at your place, then she’s planning on coming back.”
Dick opened his mouth to argue, but no words came out. Because… honestly? That was solid logic.
“See?” Wally chimed in. “Told you Roy would be helpful.”
“I guess,” Dick said, glancing at the clock on the wall. “Thanks for the chat, guys, but I should get going.”
“Talk later,” Wally said.
“Take care, Dick,” Roy added. “Say hi to Kory for me. We should all go out to eat sometime—and bring Jason. Can you imagine? Two brothers and their partners.”
“I’m hanging up before I want to rip your balls off, Roy,” Dick said. “You damn degenerate, you corrupted my little brother.”
“Me corrupt him? Pfft, Dick, if you only saw how he is in be—”
Dick hung up before Roy could say something he’d regret hearing, and stood up. If he was going to spend time waiting for his girlfriend, he might as well eat something to fill his stomach.
He went to the kitchen to make a simple sandwich and ate at the kitchen bar, pouring himself a glass of milk. Lost in thought, he sat alone in the quiet kitchen.
He had no idea what could be going on with Kory. This wasn’t typical behavior for her.
Dick chewed slowly, distracted. The bread barely had any taste, and the milk felt more like a weight than a comfort. He couldn’t remember the last time Kory had gone days without saying anything. Even during her busy days as a Tamaranean princess or on missions with the Titans, she always found a way to send him something—a smiley face, a heart, an “I’m okay.”
But now… just silence.
He rested his elbows on the bar and dropped his head into his hands.
“Where are you, Kory?” he whispered to himself.
He had gone over it a hundred times. No recent fights, no harsh words, no important oversights. Quite the opposite. Kory and he had been good. Calm. Comfortable. The word happy even crossed his mind more often lately, though saying it out loud felt like tempting chaos. Nothing could stay good in his life for long, right?
Because that was his pattern.
Whenever things seemed stable, something broke.
First his parents. Then his childhood. Then his relationship with Bruce. Even with Barbara, who he thought he had figured out.
Something always threw him off the path right when he thought he could walk without fear.
And now… Kory.
The only constant that seemed to shine, even when everything else crumbled.
“What are you doing, Dick?” he asked himself, staring at his reflection on the toaster’s surface.
He realized the scariest part of all this wasn’t the lack of messages—or even the thought that something bad might have happened to Kory.
It was the fear of losing the one thing that really made him feel... whole.
Because no matter how hard he tried to be independent, strong, the perfect leader, the model son, the patient brother, the truth was that Kory was his home.
And being without her felt like drifting aimlessly.
The silence in the kitchen was broken by the sound of the apartment door opening. He didn’t even notice when he moved, but his legs reacted before the rest of his body, and he was already standing in front of the door.
There she was—Kory, with her huge, flawless hair instantly catching his eye. Dick smiled with relief, feeling a huge weight lift off his shoulders.
“Kory!” Dick didn’t hesitate to pull her into a tight hug, holding on to all the worry he’d been carrying. “You weren’t answering, you had me so worried.”
He felt even better when Kory hugged him back.
“I’m sorry for not replying to your messages, but I needed some time away from everything to think about something... something I needed to process,” Kory said—and the relief in Grayson vanished as he heard that.
“Is everything okay?” Dick asked, loosening the hug so he could see her face.
“Yes, but we need to talk,” Kory told him.
She led him to the couch, and they both sat down. Dick could tell Kory was calm, but there was also a nervousness about her.
The fleeting thought that she might be breaking up with him flashed through his mind for a second, but Kory’s demeanor and body language didn’t suggest anything truly bad... Unless, of course, she didn’t see it as bad. In that case, Dick was screwed—because if Kory left him right then, he’d probably jump out the window.
“Richard,” Kory began once she picked up Silkie and settled her on her lap, “a few days ago I found out something huge, and that’s why I went to Raven first—to talk it over with her before I could talk to you.”
Dick raised a hand, gently seeking Kory’s hand—the same one absentmindedly stroking Silkie. He intertwined his fingers with hers and squeezed lightly. Kory looked up immediately, and in her eyes was that unmistakable tenderness, that quiet love she always looked at him with.
“I’m pregnant.”
Time stopped.
Literally, Dick held his breath for a full second, and he swore the world did too.
The words bounced around his mind like a runaway boomerang, leaving a trail of smoke that wouldn’t fade.
“P-Pregnant?” Dick asked, still in complete shock.
“Yes, Richard,” Kory smiled. “We’re going to have a baby.”