She stared at both of them in awe. She wasn't going to admit it, but... she was impressed by what Ace said.

The fact that he didn't even hesitate before saying he was willing to get hurt if it meant she would be safe.

Yet confusion creeped in the back of her mind; since didn't Bat-Hound know that she was more than capable of protecting herself? If anything, she would be able to protect him as well.

However something told her the villian standing in front, looking deranged, wasn't someone either of them could beat easily on their own. Especially with that strange glow on his blank eyes, and he was wearing a mask that really resembled Bat-Hound's.

She subtly turned around to face Ace, jumping next to him. "I'll help you. Let's face him head on," she whispered.

Ace didn't seem fully convinced, but he pushed away his hesitancy to nod at her.

"My my, planning something now? I thought you'd be more scared after I told you I planned on taking you away." Sean chuckled darkly, then lowering into an attacking position. When he saw neither Bat-Hound nor Barker responded to his taunts, he angrily bore his teeth and leapt at them, claws extended.

Ace growled and shoved Rat-Hound off him, causing the German Shepherd mix to yelp slightly and jump at him again, this time managing to bite his throat.

Ace tried shaking him off immediately, but was unsuccessful. Brainy quickly ran toward the two and angrily bit Sean's back in retaliation, sinking her claws on his fur.

Though this succeeded, she wasn't used to physical attacks instead of magical ones, and Sean noticed, pushing her off him easily.

Brainy hit a wall of the spaceship, falling to the floor like a limp doll, and Bat-Hound stared at her direction with wide eyes. "Brainy!" he yelled, his extreme worry seeping into his voice.

Brainy slowly managed to get up, struggling but refusing to give up. "I-I'm fine," she reassured him, even though it was a lie. "Watch out! Behind you!" she warned him with concern as she saw Sean trying to attack him again.

Ace heard her warning in time, and luckily was able to avoid Sean, who growled at him furiously in return. Ace growled back; he really did not want to fight his brother.

He didn't want this to end the way it did.

"Why...? Why, Sean...?"

"Why what?" Sean spat, not a single ounce of remorse.

"Why do we have to fight?" Ace asked. His passive eyes were focused on Sean's angry ones. "We're brothers. We grew up together... I know I failed you, Sean... but I don't want to keep doing it. I don't want to keep hurting you!" he yelled the last part, his voice breaking as he looked down.

"You wouldn't keep hurting me if you gave me the girl." Sean said simply, glancing away with anger for a moment. "That way we would be even. And you wouldn't fail me for once. We could finally forget all about each other and live..."

When he saw Ace was about to talk again, he stopped him, speaking louder. "But the moment you abandoned me, Ace... that was the moment we stopped being brothers."

"I didn't mean to abandon you...!" Ace shouted in return, pouring out all his feelings in one sentence.

Sean's frown faltered for a second before returning, now even more enraged. "But you did! And there's nothing you can do about it now except giving me what I'm asking for, for once...!"

"All I want is justice..." Sean told himself before growling again and then his gaze turned towards Brainy, who was starting to recover.

She glared at him and he chuckled maliciously. "What? You want to fight me again?"

"This time I won't be shaken off." Was all she told him, before her purple ears elevated into the air and began glowing brightly. She invoked one of her most powerful spells, the same one she used to defeat Shadog at the Dessertia planet.

She wasn't sure if this spell would make Rat-Hound dissappear as well, since he wasn't made of shadows, but she still would give it a try as long as it would save Ace.

Both male dogs stared at her rise into the air, shining like a star. Then her normally lime green eyes opened all of the sudden, now completely white due to the magic building up inside her.

"B-Brainy..." Ace whispered. "She's so beautiful, yet so deadly..." He mused to himself.

Suddenly, her magic extended, and with Sean not knowing what to do in response, it easily threw him to the ground.

Now he was the limp one; covered in bruises as he slowly got up and glared at her. "Y-you... you little...!"

"I'm everything but little," Brainy told him with a smug smile, invoking her attack spell again.

The glowing light was about to hit Sean again but he was able to avoid it, now scurrying away from the spell in a panic.

Ace didn't know what to say, Brainy could end Sean exactly then and there... but... that wouldn't be right.

Yet if she let Sean go, he would attack them again and keep causing ruckus. He sighed deeply as he felt a headache coming in. What was he supposed to do...?

He wanted to protect Brainy, but he wouldn't let her kill Sean, either.

"Brainy! Stop!" he shouted, jumping in front of his brother as a mean of dissuading her from attacking.

"What are you doing?!" she immediately shouted worriedly as she halted the incoming attack. "Get out of the way! It's dangerous...!"

"This is enough! If you keep using this spell Sean will end up dead! He's already injured... Let's just leave him this way," he told her. He usually was the one shamelessly using violence (of course, no killing) to defeat evil; but when it came to those he cared about... it was different.

"But— he still is far from giving up, look at him!" Brainy rationalized, yet her magic slowly dissipated, escaping from her body and turning her back to normal. "He's dangerous, Ace!"

"I... I know... but—" Just as Ace was about to attempt to convince her, he heard a familiar squeaky voice behind them.

"Hey, you! Why aren't you fighting them?!" Mechanikat yelled furiously at Rat-Hound.

Sean snapped back to consciousness, immediately glaring at Ace and growling. His loud bark startled the grey Great Dane enough to move away. "I'm right back on it." Sean told his boss.

"Though you never told me that girl had magic, cat." he spat at the green feline cyborg, who became a little bit scared.

"Eh, well, hehe—" Mechanikat put his claws in front of him. "Actually, now that I think about it, I may have something that would help you."

Sean rose an eyebrow, and Ace and Brainy glanced at each other with concern.

Mechanikat quickly pulled something from a pocket in his suit, throwing it all over Sean as it were some kind of dust.

Sean coughed. "What is this...? Glitter?"

"Nope..." Mechanikat's yellow eyes narrowed malevolently. "An anti-wizardry seal."

"Huh...? What the heck is that?" Rat-Hound asked in confusion.

Mechanikat rolled his eyes at him. "It's a spell that protects you from all magic." Though only temporarily, he didn't mention that part. "And if Miss Wizard Hound touches it... her own magic will work against her."

Both Brainy's and Ace's eyes widened in shock.

"Oh really?" Sean laughed, leaning down to attack her again. "C'mon, Brainiac, use that spell on me again."

Brainy frowned further, glaring intently at him in anger.

"Brainy, don't listen to him—" Ace was going to warn her, but it was too late. She already launched the attack.

...And it immediately bounced off Sean, back to her.

She was thrown to the wall again, since the attack had been doubling after reaching Sean's anti-magic seal.

Now her whole body felt like it was being electrified; her own magic literally was working against her. She was wincing and in extreme pain, barely able to stand or open her eyes.

Ace shouted her name again, feeling his heart contorting, pained to see her like that.

Alright... now he no longer felt bad for Sean. In fact, he was livid as he glared at him. He almost killed Brainy...!

"Huh? You're finally going to fight me instead of running like a coward." Sean grinned derangedly.

Ace didn't say a word, only growling ferociously and leaping at him, biting his neck in an almost vicious manner. Now the two dogs were wrestling in the floor, trying to get the other off them.

"A-Ace! No..." Now it was Brainy's turn to yell as she saw him struggling in the ground. She wished she could do something. Anything.

The Great Dane heard her, and got up, gaining energy all thanks to hearing her voice. She was safe... but if Sean reached her she wouldn't be.

Mechanikat was already on it, though. He left Snooky to deal with the other superheroes, who were trying to get out of a kryptonite trap he caught them all in, but the green cyborg had no problem running towards Brainy and grabbing her by the collar; even if she growled at him, and weakly attempted to bite his claw.

He was trying to shove her inside a bag so he could kidnap her, but she stubbornly wouldn't let him, using all her remaining strength to resist.

Ace now had the advantage, and his paw was firmly placed above Sean's head, crashing it to the ground. Sean wouldn't give up trying to get up again, even if Ace was stronger than him. Really heavy, too... he was a mostly a Great Dane after all; he took after their father.

While Sean took after their mother, being more a German Shepherd. More slim and "dainty." Sean scoffed, turning his eyes towards Ace's.

"Aren't you gonna finish me now? If you do, you'll finally get rid of me, no...? Isn't that what you wanted?" Sean muttered in a barely audible voice.

"..." Ace was completely silent for a moment that seemed eternal. Yet he spoke again, softly. "...No. That's not what I want."

Sean's eyes widened in surprise.

"That's not what I ever wanted." Bat-Hound told him plainly. "Are you blind and deaf, Sean? Didn't you hear me all this time...? Didn't you see me crying...?"

Ace sounded bitter, angry, even. He was angry at Sean... or was it at himself?

"All this time... I've told you I didn't mean to abandon you. When I said I would escape to look for help, I meant it. I tried looking everywhere, but the world was so empty... Then a strange man found me and I wasn't able to leave in time to save you."

"What...? I—"

Ace still wasn't finished. "I always wanted to protect you. I made a promise, Sean. But... I shouldn't have..."

The words caught Sean's attention, and he angrily stared at Ace, but the dog explained himself.

"I wasn't strong enough to protect you. But I didn't know it... Do you remember what Mom said...?" Him saying that made bad memories rush through his brother's head. "Not to make ugly promises... because they tend to come true. And ours did."

"..." Sean became silent.

"...And I'm sorry, Sean. Because there's nothing I could have done to protect you..." Ace's frown deepened and he momentarily closed his eyes. "And there's nothing I could have done to protect Mom. But what happened, happened. There's nothing we can do about it now except move forward."

Sean slowly looked up at him.

"And you don't have to forgive me. You can keep hating me for the rest of our lives... but what will you gain from that, Sean? You're hurting, too, aren't you...?" Ace's eyes slowly met with his.

His whole body was covered in bruises, his fur was messy, and he could nearly see tears escaping his eyes... but Sean was in the exact same condition.

"It..." Sean scoffed for a second, letting the tears muddling his ruby eyes and making his vision blurry fall down his cheeks. "It does hurt... but when I hate you, I feel better. When I blame you for it..."

Ace understood the words, and he took his time before replying. "It does feel better blaming someone for our pain... but..." His sadness suddenly hardened into an aloof expression. "It's not our fault. What happened that day was those thugs' fault. And... I've learnt..." His gaze focused on Brainy, who was still fending off bravely from Mechanikat.

"...That I no longer need to hide my true feelings. Not all feelings are bad, and not everything we feel has to be painful. There are good feelings..." A very small smile appeared on his face. "And feeling pure hatred only prevents you from having them."

Sean couldn't believe it, but he had actually calmed down. Somehow, there was a nudge of peace he attempted to ignore in the back of his mind. "But... don't you hate them? Those thugs... they took everything away from us!"

"They did... and even though I'll never forget what they did, I... I'll forgive them."

"What?! Why?!" Sean yelled, now enraged and confused.

"Forgiving doesn't mean that what they did to us wasn't wrong and horrible, it means that I finally get to forget about them and move on... I get to live peacefully again. I'll finally let go of the pain, and accept everything that happened... as a part of me. That's what Mom would have wanted."

He wanted to live peacefully... with her. Brainy was the one who made him feel alive again, and he wanted to keep that feeling. He wanted to keep his smile, and hers.

"I..." Sean frowned; he wanted to be able to smile, too.

Brainy kept growling at Mechanikat unaware of the siblings' conversation, but after he saw Sean stop trying to attack him to ponder, Ace slowly moved away from him, smiling slightly, and ran towards Brainy.

"Brainy!" He barked irritatedly at Mechanikat, who immediately jumped away in fear. "Stay away from her!"

The violet Saluki turned around happily, smiling. "Ace!" However, she was extremely surprised when Ace tackled her in a hug.

Nuzzling her head warmly, and covering her in a sweet embrace. She blinked twice, and soon her heart began racing and her cheeks became red, but it was an unexpectedly wonderful feeling. She wished (as did he), that the hug would never stop.

Krypto, Streaky, and Kiara, followed by the rest of the gang suddenly ran towards them; they had managed to escape from the kryptonite trap, rushing to help their friends.

"Hey, guys—" Krypto shouted with worry, that is until he spotted Ace and Brainy, hugging so closely and happily.

He was speechless, as well as literally everyone else on the ship.

"They're a couple?!" Streaky shouted in amazement and pure shock.

Kiara chuckled. "I never would have guessed." she admitted. "But they're a really cute couple."

"Agreed!" Mammoth Mutt chirped cheerfully, glad to see her friend had finally admitted herself to her crush. "Though I did see it coming..." She chuckled mischievously.

The gang had a good laugh while Ace and Brainy only saw each other, smiling sincerely and staring deeply at each other's eyes.

They finally had each other, and they wouldn't let go.
.
.
.

Later that night, the Dog Star Patrol had managed to successfully send Mechanikat and his assistant Snooky to intergalactic jail once again (this time hopefully for good), while matters with Sean were way more complicated.

Ace realized that Sean was confused and needed someone to lean on and help him find the path he had lost so long ago. Ace smiled gently at him, and for once, Sean slowly returned the smile; even if it was almost unnoticeable.

Sean arrived to Wayne Mansion, where he was welcomed and taken care of, and where he'd stay. At least for a while, as he said.

Sadly, during all the fighting and magic spells, as well as Krypto causing the kryptonite net to explode to escape from it, the red spaceship was destroyed.

Brainy sadly saw it all unfold, it was as if all her nightmares became real.

The ship she worked so hard to build and protect... was gone.

Krypto apologized to her, as did everyone except Bat-Hound, who just stared at her with extreme worry, and she said she was fine. Though everyone knew she wasn't.

Since the spacecraft was now wrecked, the dogs in the patrol now needed another place to stay, so Krypto decided to take them all to the Whitney's house for an impromptu giant sleepover.

Luckily, Kevin's parents allowed their son to take in all these dogs he was "dogsitting" for the night.

But Brainy was the only one who declined the offer, preferring on staying behind to look over the ship... and just because she couldn't bear to stay away from it after everything she had gone through.

It was the same ship her mother banished her with.

The last part of familiarity she had left...

But Ace offered her to stay with him at Wayne Mansion instead, and seeing him look at her so warmly and so full of fondness, she couldn't refuse.

Now she had already been nursed to health and checked by Alfred, who had taken a liking to her. She wore bandages all over her, but honestly, she couldn't have felt better.

Not in so many years...

"Ace?" She had looked for the detective everywhere, but couldn't find him in the wide mansion, until now, when she looked for him in the balcony.

She was facing his back, but it was clear he had groomed himself since he arrived, wearing a white and black bow tie in his neck.

His ears perked up when he heard her, but he didn't turn around.

"...I thought I'd find you here." Brainy added, slowly walking towards him.

"Why...?" he muttered, and she could barely hear his deep voice. "Why would you want to find me after what I've done to you...?"

"What?" Brainy asked in pure confusion, she had no idea what he was talking about.

"I... I'm a—" he chuckled slightly at the irony of his next words. "A really bad dog if you think about it. Unlike Krypto, people fear me instead of liking me. I'm constantly utilizing intimidation to get what I want... I'm always pushing others away..."

"Maybe... I don't deserve to be a superhero." He stared longingly at the full moon above both of them. "Maybe I really don't deserve to be happy. And to be with you... even less."

"I feel so much happiness when I'm with you... I'm not used to it." He chuckled slightly again. "Is it bad feeling this happy...? I really don't want to hurt you... It's my fault your spaceship got destroyed, because if I had searched for Sean earlier and he wasn't targeting me none of this would have happened."

Brainy was staring at his back, not knowing what to say at all. Did he... did he just confess to her?

"And I put all your hard work to waste. All this time we've been arguing and fighting silently, and even when we became allies, we still didn't get along... Then how... how did I grow to like you so much?" Ace continued absentmindendly. "I don't deserve any of these amazing things..."

Then he turned around, and the world seemed to stop all around her. "His eyes... they're stunning," she said to herself. He wasn't wearing his black mask, for once, and she could see his real eyes. Bright and narrow, somehow elegantly beautiful.

His irises looked exactly the same color as the moon hovering over him. A silverish white or cloudy grey.

But those beautiful eyes were surrounded by tears that he refused to let fall. "...I guess I'm an idiot, too?" he said, facing her with a forced smile.

"...You... maybe you really are an idiot." Was all Brainy Barker said.

That wasn't the answer Ace expected, and he stared at her nervously.

Then Brainy raised her head at him, a growl escaping her mouth. "Ace."

"The only idiocy you've ever committed is thinking you don't deserve any of the things you've mentioned." she told him, angry.

She began stomping towards him, quickly. "You're a hero, because you're kind," she said.

"Because you're brave." Now she was facing him, their muzzles centimeters apart.

"Because you're selfless!" Her eyes shone as she spoke to him, with pure determination and belief in what she said.

"You don't even have natural powers like most of us—" She continued her rant, shocking him. "Yet you tire out yourself fighting and winning ever night in Gotham and Metropolis—"

"You're not perfect, in the least. But none of us are! You would sacrifice yourself for others' lives at any moment... why?"

She paused, glancing away from him as tears began forming on her own green eyes, but she was smiling. "...Because you're everyone's hero. And if anybody deserves happiness, it's you, Bat-Hound."

She gently laid her paw on his chest, under his black necktie.

Brainy never thought she would feel this. But then again, he didn't either, and she knew it.

"Ace..." She smiled at him. "You're my happiness, too."

--
A/N: Wow! This has to be the longest chapter I've ever written in my whole life...! (3635 words) I hope you guys enjoyed it, thank you for reading this far and for your support and love for this story always. <3

Sadly, next chapter is the last. But I'll make sure to give you a good epilogue! 🌟