Chapter Text
At twenty-five, Dick Grayson had a colourful relationship history. He would never forget his first crush, from back at the circus: Raya Vestri. They spent most days together, with few options for friends their own age, but that was all innocent. Dick wouldn’t kiss a girl until he was 13, three years after moving in at Wayne Manor, after he fell for Bruce’s younger cousin Betty Kane, the first Batgirl. He remembered how intense things were, how it seemed that his other friends melted away. Betty was his world, his partner in crime fighting in a way Bruce never was. But that was still just a silly childhood romance. It didn’t last, ending abruptly after Betty’s kidnapping at the hands of the Mad Hatter, after Bruce sent her away.
Suddenly Betty, that focus for his adoration, was out of Dick’s life. But not long after he met Barbara Gordon, Commissioner Gordon’s daughter. Dick met Barbara first at the Track and Fitness Club at school, then again as Robin after she helped the Dynamic Duo take down the original Killer Moth. There was something about Barbara that attracted Dick to her right away, be it her boundless intelligence, her vivacious manner of being, or her dry but well-placed snark. It didn’t hurt that she was also gorgeous, but that wasn’t exactly what caught his eye.
As Barbara helped Batman and Robin more and more, lending her technological knowhow under her dad’s nose, Dick slowly worked up the courage to approach her again and start spending more time with her as Dick Grayson. It turned out they had a lot in common even if she wasn’t a masked crimefighter like Betty was. Babs loved video games, and true crime, and staying up til the sun was up talking about nothing: Everything that mattered. In fact, the pair spent so much time together, especially late at night, that Dick knew he was making Jim nervous. He knew why - he knew what most boys his age were getting up to with men’s daughters. But at 16 - Dick told himself - he wasn’t in any rush to grow up and, as far as he could tell, neither was Babs.
But soon after the pair were forced to grow up, and grow apart. Dick was accepted to study law at Hudson University in New York, leaving Gotham, Bruce, and Babs behind. And as much as they fought to stay in touch, while Dick was founding the Teen Titans in NYC, Barbara and her father fell victim to a sick attack by the Joker, and she was left paralysed. After that, the pair just… drifted apart just as they were ready to become adults, just as Dick met…
Koriand’r - princess of Tamaran - literally from beyond the stars. Despite his efforts to stay focused on training and the good of the team, Dick fell for the warrior princess, her ferocity commanding his attention. She fell for him as he introduced her to Earth and its culture. Perhaps out of their sheer proximity living together in Titans Tower, the two became best friends, then lovers. Dick bared his soul with Kory like he had done with none other, sharing his deepest fears. And, unlike with Babs, Dick could be wholly honest with her. No double identities. He got to know the whole Kory, and introduced her to the whole Dick Grayson. And it was only through that honesty, that wholeness of their connection, that Dick finally felt ready to share with her something else that he had never shared with anyone before.
Unfortunately, life seemed to put Dick and Kory on diverging paths in what was an emerging pattern, then for three long years Dick was single for the first time since he was 14. To an outside observer, Dick may have been thought of as promiscuous, foolhardy, loose, or other words normally reserved for women, especially as he was publicly known as the adopted son of playboy Bruce Wayne. But that was far from the truth. Dick Grayson was fortunate enough to love the women he had deeply, in their time they were each the centre of his world. Years later he still carried a torch for each of them, an irreversible bond forged. For three years he had been battling with a serious identity crisis, and only now was he ready to put himself back out there. That led him to a couple of dating apps, which - in turn - led him to Missy.
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After weeks of texting - talking about music, university, and how unbearable online dating was - Dick finally asked her to dinner at an Italian place in Gotham called Tommy’s. When they first met face to face, she was immediately striking. She was almost as tall as Dick, with soft, tan skin - likely half Vietnamese or Cambodian - and flowing blond hair. Her eyes were bright, kind, and soft. When she first spotted Dick in his formal wear she gave a wry smile.
“Dick Grayson,” she grinned, as she was taken to their table where he waited, wine already served. “You make a good first impression.”
“Missy,” Dick nodded back with a warm smile. “Glad you’re not pretending to know who I am.” He gestured for her to sit.
“What can I say? There’s a lotta dicks in Gotham City, but not many of them are called Dick,” she teased, pulling her chair out and sitting as he did the same. “Also, I just put Missy on my profile to avoid the guys trawling for something exotic. I’m Artemis.”
“Artemis, okay…” Dick nodded, knowing another Artemis. “So you don’t mind that I’m…?”
“A mega-billionaire?” Artemis smirked. “I mind as much as I’m definitely not going splitsies on the bill!”
What ensued was the night of Dick’s life. At every turn, Artemis kept him firmly on his toes. She was so smart, so witty and quick, and unwilling to be bested in their verbal exchange. She was as fearless as Betty, as smart as Babs, and as fierce as Kory. Then, after Dick shared about what it was like to lose his parents, and Bruce after them, and Artemis began to open up about her mother, Dick realised she was something equally special. Like him, she was willing to be vulnerable. She was real. It was like she was plucked out of his dreams.
They kept talking for hours, sharing stories and tripping up over each other, making each other laugh by making up inane neologisms and ‘unwords’ until the manager at Tommy’s was pushing them to leave. Nearing midnight, Dick was happy he’d had Luke and Steph take over his patrol for the night as he and Artemis relocated someplace that would take their custom no matter the hour.
Sure to not wake Alfred, Dick and Artemis pushed into the foyer of the Grayson townhouse, hurrying as the downpour began to intensify behind them. Dick shut the door behind them and Artemis marvelled at the decor.
“You live here!?” she exclaimed. “It’s so easy to forget you’re a billionaire when you’re so…”
“Human?” Dick smirked. “I know.”
“That rain!” Artemis replied with a huff, looking out the window then down at her green dress. “If we didn’t get here sooner, my dress would have been ruined. Would have been a total disaster.”
“Then it’s incredibly astrous that the owner of this joint happened to be so sympathetic to your plight, wasn’t it?” Dick teased with another of their unwords.
“Oh, it’s sympathy is it?” Artemis gritted her teeth with a grin and moved over to Dick. Throwing her arms over his shoulders, she pulled him close and they kissed. Immediately, warmth flooded through Dick’s body. A warmth he hadn’t felt for a long time. Gently, Dick wrapped his hand around Artemis’ waist and pulled her closer, pressing her body against his. It was like the rest of the world melted away, and the pair of them were floating out in the nothing, alone together.
Eventually, Artemis moved back, keeping her hand at the back of his neck and smiled with another teasing look. “So…” she purred, “Where’s your bedroom.”
“Um…”
Artemis blinked.
Dick shifted on the spot, his grip on her waist loosening ever so slightly.
“What’s wrong?” she asked. “Did I say something?”
“No, no, it’s not that,” he reassured her. Dick cursed himself. They were both adults, what was the problem!? It wasn’t like he was still waiting for the right person, or he was scared, or frigid. She was absolutely gorgeous but…
“We’ve only just met,” Artemis nodded. Was she a mind reader? Slowly, Artemis pulled away further, removing her hand from Dick’s neck and moving free of his embrace. She moved towards the kitchen door, her head down.
“I’m sorry, please don’t be mad…” Dick followed her.
To his surprise, as she reached behind the kitchen counter, Artemis turned back to face Dick with a serene look on her face. “I’m not, I promise.” She filled the brass kettle with water and placed it on the burner. “I’m basically a stranger, and…” she rolled her eyes, “Sex is a big thing.”
“Plenty of people had sex on the first date,” Dick replied, disappointed with himself. This girl before him was wonderful, like few he had ever met before. He didn’t want to miss the boat.
“Yeah, well…” Artemis searched the cupboards for a pair of mugs, finding them in the dishwasher. “Most people aren’t asexual.”
Dick scoffed. “I’m not asexual, I’ve had—”
“But not until you knew them really well, right?” Artemis replied. Definitely a mind reader. “Not until you knew they were really special; until you knew they knew you. Demisexuality is still on the ace spectrum.”
“What’s demisexuality?” Dick asked, almost embarrassed. “They never mentioned that in school.”
“They don’t tend to. But the school I work at had us do this training to make sure we all got woke,” Artemis explained. “Really opened my eyes to how much there is out there other than gay, straight, and bi.”
“So what is it?” Dick prodded, thinking of its etymology. “Demi-sexual - so partially sexual?”
Artemis laughed. “It’s not like it’s a part-time gig, no,” she shook her head. As she spoke, she prepared twin cups of cocoa. “If you’re demi, then you don’t feel sexually attracted to everyone, you don’t always want sex. Only if it's with someone you had a strong emotional connection with.”
That certainly rang true with Dick, but something didn’t make sense. “Isn’t that everyone? That’s why they call it making love.”
Artemis sniggered. “Dick, you said it yourself: Plenty of people are happy to make love on the first date, or less. Do you think people are that quick at getting emotionally attached? That we’re just slow?”
We. “So.. you’re demisexual too?” Dick cocked his head. “But a minute ago you were…”
“Jumping your bones?” Artemis raised an eyebrow. “I wanted to be a good date.” She paused for a second then took a deep breath. “I like you, Dick Grayson. You aren’t like other people in this city and, before I realised you were… like me… I didn’t want to disappoint you.”
“Well, consider me appointed,” Dick teased. “I like you too, Artemis…”
“Artemis Crock,” she replied.
“So, what now?” Dick asked, standing over two half-made mugs of hot cocoa, the kettle still boiling.
“I guess we… wait and try to get to know each other better.”
“I guess we do,” Dick nodded, thinking of the hundred things he was yet to tell her about himself, with one big thing chief on that list. “I don’t know where to start.”