« chapter xviii: FIRST KISS »
Tim had been meaning to talk to Dabria for a while, not just about the Council of Shadows but about what Damian had said to him. Could Dabria really like him? She wasn't just teasing him? Joking around? Tim knew Damian wasn't. Damian rarely jokes about anything.
But it was kind of hard to talk to Dabria now a days. All she does is eat, sleep, and train. Even out on patrol Dabria didn't say much. She used to talk all the time, sarcastic one liners to bad guys, general taunting and teasing of him and Damian and Bruce on occasion. But now she was laser focused, always looking for another fight, always one step ahead of them all in terms of going somewhere and she always hated when they returned to the mansion "too early". It didn't matter what time it was, for Dabria, it was always too early.
"Phantom, you need to take a breath." Bruce said one night.
"I am breathing." Dabria had said, glaring at him through her mask. "I'm fine."
"You're not."
"Don't tell me how I feel." Dabria would say before she would portal away to a different part of the city, looking for trouble.
Tim knew that it wasn't a good time to talk about feelings, especially since Dabria was so wired. A lot of things seemed to set her off recently and nobody could tell if it was just her nerves or because she was loosing control of herself. Could Malum really be trying to take her over as they sat around the dining table? As she slept down the hall from them? Nobody was sure. Tim at least wanted to let her know though, that he was here for her.
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"I knew I would find you here." Dabria pushed some of her hair out of her eyes as she looked over at Tim. He was shirtless and wearing a simple pair of workout shorts. His hands were already wrapped. He cracked his knuckles and stretched out his fingers, smiling lightly as Dabria held out her own hand to stop the punching bag from hitting her.
"Where else would I be at.." Dabria glanced at the clock on the wall. "Four in the morning."
"Asleep." Dabria tugged on her ponytail, tightening it and wiping at the sweat on her forehead.
"I don't sleep much anymore."
"Yeah, I know." Tim said, stepping onto the mat.
"Want to go a few rounds?" Tim asked. Dabria nodded and stepped forward and without even waiting to see if Tim was ready, she moved in to punch him in the gut. Tim blocked her move but didn't manage to block her left hand swing.
"You really need to take a break Dabria." Tim said as they danced around the mat, trying to figure out a way to take each other down.
"Not you too."
"All I'm saying is. You can relax. Nothing bad is going to happen. Not while we're around."
"It's because you're around that I'm afraid something is going to happen." Dabria said, disappearing from his view. Tim had gotten pretty good at fighting her when he couldn't see her though. He just had to rely on sound instead of sight. Dabria kicked him in the side and would have punched him in the face but Tim caught her arm and tried to lock it behind her back but Dabria elbowed him in the ribs and slammed her head into his chin.
"Why?" Tim asked, tasting blood in his mouth as Dabria reappeared in front of him, bouncing around on the balls of her feet.
"My nightmares. They've gotten worse." Tim lowered his hands.
"Worse how?"
"Keep your guard up." Dabria said with a frown. Tim didn't move to block her as she came in to attack. Tim blocked her first punch, wrapping his hand around her fist. When Dabria tried to punch him with her left hand, he just did the same thing with her left hand, staring at her earnestly.
"Dabria, how?" Tim said.
"I thought you wanted t fight." Dabria demanded.
"Not really. I just knew you wouldn't talk to me any other way." Dabria scoffed and pushed Tim back. He was shirtless and way too close for comfort at the moment. Not a good combination. Tim put some space between them as Dabria slowly began to unwrap her hands.
"I've killed you all multiple times in my dreams with a sword I don't even recognize and it get's bloodier and bloodier every time." Dabria finally admitted. Tim was quiet. "I don't even know how I kill Bruce. How can I take down a man who is literally..." Dabria shook her head. "You make sense and so does the shrimp but... Bruce?" Tim almost laughed.
"You can still barely beat me in a fight. Why do you think Malum would be able to defeat me?" Dabria arched an eyebrow at her.
"Bruce has taken down a brainwashed superman before and other people who are way stronger and way more powerful than him. He has plans from A through Z and then he goes down the number line." Tim nodded slowly. All of this was true. "He has contingency plans on top of contingency plans. He's probably the smartest guy on the planet so if he can't stop some demon from hell... Who the fuck can?" Dabria said, throwing her half unwrapped hands in the air.
"I know you're scared Dabria but... We can do this. This family has gone through a lot of shit together and this is just another bump in the road." Dabria scoffed.
"It's more like a mountain in the middle of a road but okay." Tim smiled softly and walked towards her.
"Then let's make a tunnel through the mountain." Dabria swallowed hard and refused to look up at him as she bundled up the bandages in her hands.Her knuckles were bruised and red. Tim grabbed her right hand running his thumb over the back of her hand lightly. Dabria winced.
"We should put your hands in ice." Dabria was going to pull back but part of her didn't want to.
"I'm fine."
"You're not. Stop saying that."
"I am though." Tim was just staring at her and Dabria didn't know what to do so she stuck her tongue out at him. Tim grinned.
"Come on, lets just go to the kitchen." Tim said, letting go of her hand lightly. Dabria sighed, knowing she wasn't going to win this argument. A portal opened next to them that showed the entrance for the kitchen. Tim stepped in and Dabria followed after him. Dabria sat at the stool for the island in the kitchen as Tim got a large ceramic bowl out and began to fill it with ice.
"You have to take better care of yourself."
"Says the boy who chugs coffee and red bull all the time." Tim laughed a little.
"I have insomnia."
"Well coffee and red bull don't exactly help with that do they?" Tim smirked a little and sat next to her, placing the bowl of icy water in front of her. Dabria sighed and put her hands down into it. It stung a little but soon she wouldn't feel anything at all.
"Have you seen Adelaide recently?" Tim asked, unsure of what else to talk about. Dabria nodded slowly, her hands going numb in the ice.
"Yeah. I didn't tell her about... Any of this." Dabria said. "I didn't want to scare her." Tim smiled lightly.
"She doesn't seem like a kid that scares easily." Dabria smiled.
"No, she isn't. I was always worried she would be afraid of the places we stayed at, or people, or the dark, anything really but... Adelaide spent a lot of nights comforting me from my own nightmares. We both sort of had to help each other out in different ways."
"Did you always want younger siblings?" Tim asked. Dabria shrugged.
"I don't know. I kind of liked being the only child." Tim laughed.
"So did I. If I knew this job would come with brothers and a couple of sisters, I never would have signed on." Dabria grinned.
"Yeah, Damian is a pain in the ass." Tim laughed.
"What about me? Do you think I'm a pain in the ass?" Tim asked. Dabria glanced over at him and shrugged.
"No, not really." Dabria admitted. "I thought you were at first."
"What am I now then?" Dabria said nothing. She wouldn't even look at him. She had seen Tim Drake, Damian Wayne, Dick Grayson and Jason Todd in the magazines a lot with Bruce. They were a powerhouse family and always proclaimed as being perpetual bachelors and heartbreakers. Adelaide used to tease Dabria because Tim was the same age as her and Dabria had once admitted out loud that he was a little cute but that was years ago. After getting to know him though and being around him 24/7 Dabria realized he was more than just cute. He was funny and kind and way out of her league.
"Just Tim." Dabria said, finally looking up at her and pulling her hands out of the ice a little. She was shaking, having lost all feeling from her fingertips to her wrists. She looked down at the bruises which were a little less prominent.
"Dabria." Tim said. She looked up at him and her breathe caught in her throat. He looked so cute right now with his hair hanging in his face a little, concern written all over his face.
"You know I'm here for you right? If you ever need anything? You don't have to go through any of this alone."
"I know." Dabria said, unable to look away from his captivating eyes. "You and your family... Everyone is... Great."
"You're a part of this family too now you know." Dabria tried to smile a little.
"You've got another little sister then." Tim pursed his lips.
"I don't really see you as my sister."
"Then... What do you see me as?" Dabria asked, confused. Tim eyed the confusion written on her features and involuntarily reached up and began to tuck a lock of her hair behind her ear so he could see her eyes better. "Oh." Dabria said, frozen in place as her mind finally caught up with what Tim was implying.
"Sorry." Tim said, pulling back. Dabria was blushing bright red. "Umm.. I'll see you in the morning." Tim said, wanting to get away from the situation as fast as possible. He knew that Dabria knew he felt something for her but it looked like she didn't feel the same way after all.
"Tim wait." Dabria said, getting off the stool and rushing after him as he walked away. Tim glanced behind him and before he could ask what was wrong, Dabria was kissing him, her cold hands cupping his face lightly. Tim was a little more than surprised. Dabria pulled back and saw how surprised Tim looked. She let go of him and took a step back. "Sorry was that... Bad?" Dabria asked, feeling breathless. "I've never... Kissed anyone before." Tim broke out into a small smile and closed the space between them, putting one hand on her cheek lightly.
"It wasn't bad." Tim said and Dabria's heart leapt to her throat as he leaned in and kissed her. When the two of them pulled back again they were smiling at one another.
"Well umm... Cool." Dabria said. Tim laughed, brushing some of her hair out of her face.
"I uhh... I'll see you in the morning." Tim said, slowly letting go of her. Dabria nodded.
"See you in the morning." Tim was smiling broadly as he walked away and Dabria felt like she was on the verge of squealing. She had never done that over a boy. She never thought she would feel this about anyone before. But, then again, she also never thought she would be a super powered vessel for a demon so... Anything was possible.
A/N: Awwwwww they kissseeddddd. Lol how does everyone feel about the ship name Tria?? Or how about just Dam lol