The funeral was a week later, Megan offered to accompany him. It was the least she could do during this hard time for him. The sky was dark and cold raindrops hit the ground as they walked into the grey cemetery. Conner had never met Wendy's parent's, in fact they were planning on driving out to her parent's house in the summer. Now the only way he was going to meet them would be next to her death bed.

There were a cluster of people holding black umbrellas as they crowded around a casket. It was closed, the smooth dark wood freckled with the drops of rain falling from the sky above. They both walked up, Megan lingering a short distance behind him. The corners of his blue eyes burned with tears as he stared at the closed casket a few feet in front of him.

He felt Megan reach down and grab onto his hand and give it a comforting squeeze. The funeral was quiet - save for a few broken sobs - and few words were said. Wendy's parent's were enveloped in a grim silence as they stared off into the distance. In the back of his mind he could hear her obnoxious laughter and see her mischievous smile.

Wendy Harris was special, she would never not be special to him. This exhilarating chapter of his life started with Megan and him separating only for it to end with the two of them to be drawn back together, oh the sweet taste of irony. Inside there was this painful longing that he felt that only grew the longer he stared at the casket.

All of the prayers said and eulogys spoken seemed to go over his head. His hair was damp, face painted with water, and he felt empty. Everyone who attended seemed to disperse after the last words were spoken and the funeral seemingly ended. The two lingered there for a couple minutes, Conner was stuck in a deep memory lapse.

The gentle squeeze that Megan gave his hand made the memories vanish instantaneously. He murmured something to the redhead before pulling his hand out from hers and walking up to the casket. Several things were already placed on top, a bouquet of roses, letters, pictures, and other personal items. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the necklace she had bought for him weeks ago. For a moment he stared at it trying to reminisce about the day he received it.

She never quite explained where she found it and how she decided to buy it but it seemed special to her somehow. Silently he said a few heartwarming words in his head before gently placing the necklace just under the cover of one of the roses. His hand stayed on the casket for a few seconds as he felt the rain drops and smoothness of the wood underneath his fingertips.

After that he promptly turned and shoved both hands into either pant pockets and headed off. Megan trailed after him and stayed silent the entire ride back, they took the bus. The rain didn't let up even when they got off and onto the university campus. His eyes were slightly red and there were tears blurring the corner of his vision. Conner didn't want to cry, not now. The door was closed behind him as he walked further into the dorm room and took a seat on her bed.

Megan quietly walked over and took a seat next to him. A low sound erupted in the back of his throat before a broken sob escaped his lips. He looked down as a few stray tears finally escaped his eyes and flowed freely down his cheeks. The young woman next to him simply wrapped her arms around his shoulders and pulled him to her side. They sat there for a long while as she let him cry into her shoulder.

Just hearing the strangled sobs made her want to cry herself. Conner was always so strong and emotionally devoid - it hurt her seeing him this distraught. Wendy was indeed someone special and she could see that. After all he used to look at her the same way he used to look at Wendy.

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Eventually after much convincing Zatanna managed to get Mar'i to tell her what had happened. The young girl spoke briefly about her encounter with John Constantine. For the week Zatanna milled over the story before deciding to tell Dick. After all Mar'i was his child and ultimately deserved to know as well. Her classes ended rather early today, well her professor didn't show up for her second class so they all got to leave early.

The school bell rang, the sound of that large brass bell ringing in that tower was unmistakable. A flood of kid's from kindergarten to high school level flooded out of the multiple doors of the academy. Most students stayed there in the dormitories but a lot also went home after school. She saw the familiar large blacked out sunglasses and blonde pigtails bobbing up and down. It seemed that the only one walking with Mar'i today was Melody.

It was strange not seeing the youngest Wayne with them, him and Mar'i were practically inseparable. Within minutes her daughter made a B-line straight for her and almost knocked Zatanna over when she jumped onto her. "Good afternoon" she said with a warm smile before she placed her back on her feet. Melody skipped over and grinned brightly up at her. "Hello, you look worried Mrs. Grayson" Melody said with her head tilted slightly to the side.

The young woman's face flushed a bright red when the kid addressed her with that name. However she didn't seem to correct her. "Well we're going to Bruce's house for dinner, we need to talk about some things" she said as Mar'i frowned and looked at her feet.

"Is this about what I told you last week?" she asked as Zatanna kneeled down to her level.

"Yes, but it's going to be for your own safety. You know your father, Kori, and I would never allow you to get hurt - so this is how we're going to do it. Bruce said he had some suggestions and we're all open to hear them" Zatanna reasoned as the girl finally nodded.

Wayne manor was breathtaking, she had never been here before. "Do you know what he wants to talk about?" she whispered as her boyfriend shrugged his shoulders. Without another thought she knew that he knew what Bruce was going to say. The door opened with Alfred standing there with a jolly smile. "It is so nice to see you Master Grayson" he said before pulling the young man in for a right hug.

They all settled in and waited, Mar'i went upstairs to try and speak to Damian. Apparently he was still quite angry at her for not telling him sooner. Kori arrived twenty minutes later, before she got there it had mostly been awkward small talk between Bruce, Dick, and herself. "Oh hello fellow parents" she said with her usual enthusiastic smile. She dragged both her and Dick into a tight hug, the heels she wore made her taller than even Bruce.

Then again the redhead was naturally tall and clearly got the possible genetics from her family lineage. The four took a seat in Bruce's grand office and sipped on the tea that Alfred left for them on a silver platter. "I think with the dangers of him still being free - he's already threatened her so I agree that we should send her to an all girl's school. I know one in England that would take her in" Bruce said as Zatanna shook her head.

"We're not sending her away" she said, Dick and Kori however had a different idea.

Dick turned his body to face her and took her hand in his before giving it a light squeeze. "Zee we've all met already and talked about this. We think this is the best option. She'll come to visit on Christmas and sometimes during the summer break. I looked into it and the place is great, just trust us okay?" he said as she stared blankly at him. What was Mar'i going to say about this? She was like a daughter to Zatanna and she worried. "We are not sending her away like some sort of uncaring parents. She'll be devastated" Zatanna said as he pulled her in for a hug.

"I don't want this for her either but it's the best option we have. We don't know where this lunatic is and he's threatened her once, the next time she may not be so lucky" he said softly as she drew in a deep breath.

"When will she be leaving?" she asked pulling away from the hug.

Her eyes were damp with tears as she tried to keep them at bay. The worst thing about this was that she didn't want Mar'i thinking they don't love her because they do. "In two day's, I'll be flying her over in the jet" Bruce said, his voice was emotionless as ever. They talked it over for twenty more minutes and Zatanna put as much input in as she could. If they were to send Mar'i away than she wanted to make sure she was as comfortable as possible.

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The phone rang in the middle of the night causing her dark eyes to open wide. The weight on the bed shifted as she gave a sideways glanced towards her husband. "Hello?" the greeting he gave was dreary and tired. She had been in class all day, even though she was pregnant it didn't stop her from studying to become a doctor.

That was her goal and she was sticking to it no matter what. The morning sickness was still terrible but she got rid of it with some medication prescribed by the hospital. After a minute of silence he stood up and stepped out of the room. She strained her ears to try and hear but he made sure his voice was low and quiet. He was out of the room for at least ten minutes and when the door opened her eyes snapped shut.

She rolled over and slowly opened her eyes to look up at him. "Baby why aren't you in bed?" she asked, her tired tone was purely fake. She had been awake the entire time but he didn't need to know that. The weight on the bed shifted once again as he got back under the covers and pulled her close. "Nothing my love, just a wrong number" he spoke softly before pressing a tired kiss to her forehead.

What he said didn't make her any less suspicious of the phone call. He wouldn't have left the room for ten minutes if it was just a wrong number. By morning she was lounging on the sofa as he made her breakfast - Kaldur insisted that she relax. What happened the night before was still fresh in her mind. He joined her on the sofa minutes later after passing her a plate of waffles and a cup of water.

The news was droning on in the background as her thoughts ran wild. She was famously known to take things way out of contex but she had a horrible feeling this time around. "Kal, who called you last night?" she asked as he turned to face her. He put the plate to the side and frowned at her. Kaldur hated lying to her, it stressed him out whenever he did. "It was nobody my lo -" she jumped up before he could finish his sentence.

"Don't you start with that bullshit again Kaldur. I will not raise our child in a house full of lies" her voice was getting dangerously low, almost threatening.

He stood up and tried to reach out to her only for her to hit his hand away. Everything he tried to do to protect her only made their relationship worse. "It was a wrong number Roquette I promise" she shook her head before turning and heading up the stairs. He followed close behind as she quickly made her way into their bedroom. There was so much anger and hatred burning inside of her, she knew it wasn't good for the baby.

The lies killed her the most. Their whole relationship was built on trust, after all she learned from her rocky past that he was the only person she could ever truly trust the most. He heard her yelling and the sound of something shattering as he pushed their bedroom door open. The look of distress written across her features made him sick, he hated seeing her like this.

A framed photo of them on their wedding day was shattered on the floor. She was across the room pulling at her hair and yelling. "How can you do this to me Kal? I've never lied, never done anything to wrong you - how can I you live with yourself?" the tears streaming down her face visibly pained him to see. He swiftly made his way over and despite the hard punches she sent towards him he wrapped his arms around her.

Roquette was pulled firmly to his chest as she tried to push herself away. "I hate you, I hate you so much!" she yelled whilst pounding a fist against his chest. He closed his eyes and tried to shush her, he wasn't going to let her go, not again. "You told me you weren't going to be like them Kal, we were going to be truthful with each other. How are we supposed to raise a baby if you won't be truthful with me?" she spoke in a quiet and scared tone, her voice shaking with every word.

Losing him meant losing her entire life. There were parts of her life that she wished would be deleted from her memories, she trusted him so much. He loved her so much that it physically hurt to see how much emotional pain she was in. "I'm sorry, I'll tell you, I'll tell you everything. But you cannot speak a word of what I tell you to anyone, do you understand?" he said as she finally looked up at him.

She drew in a shaky breath and nodded before they took a seat on the bed. That's when he proceeded to tell her the whole story.

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Once the bell chimed signalling that her class was over she was more than glad to head home. The air was crisp and cool as she headed through the dark streets of Gotham. Just because it was dark didn't make the city any less busy. As she arrived home - was this truly home - Brucely was sat on the floor with a green ribbon tied around his neck.

The pitbull was more than happy to see that she had arrived home safely. She bent down and picked up her beloved pet before proceeding to press many kisses into his beige fur. "Hey Wally?" she called out while slipping her boots off at the doorway. She put the dog back on his feet only to see him run off into the nearby living room. "Just a second!" Wally called back before she heard a banging noise and a string of curses.

As she approached the living room the lights were dimmed and a few candles were lit. The Netflix screen was up on the television followed by Wally exiting the kitchen holding a tray of food. The aroma coming from the food immediately brought her back home. It took her back to the lazy Sunday's when her mother could still walk, her father wasn't a crime boss, and Jade didn't tease her mercilessly.

Her mother would always make homemade spring rolls on Sunday's and pack extras for their school lunches the next day. Wally placed the tray down on the coffee table and nervously scratched the back of his head. "I realized I missed Valentine's day, two months too late right?" he asked with a nervous laugh when he saw the tears in her eyes.

"You're a jerk for making me cry Wallace West!" she yelled before walking over and pulling him in for a kiss.

"Where'd you get the recipe? My mom made those special, no one else but myself and," she paused for a moment. " - Jade knew how to make them" she said as realization dawned on her.

Wally and Jade practically despised one another for various reasons. Mostly because she didn't believe he was good for her little sister. "Okay so maybe I bothered your devil of a sister and she gave me the recipe. But we do have to babysit Lian sometime next month" he said as she smiled and nodded through her teary eyes. "And two months isn't too late for Valentine's day for your standards" she said with a light hearted laugh.

It was good to know that she wasn't furious with him. He remembered the first time when they started dating and he forgot - let's just say she was pretty angry with him. They sat down on the sofa wrapped in a big fuzzy blanket cuddled together as Artemis picked a television show to binge watch with him. Although he didn't like the show all that much he would watch it forever if it meant spending time with her. "You know I love you right?" he whispered while pressing his lips to the top of her head.

A light hearted laugh escaped her lips as she shoved him playfully in the shoulder. "You're such a dork" she commented, her cheeks now a lovely shade of crimson. She mumbled something that he could only guess as a 'love you too'. She was sweet even if she acted cold hearted most of the time. There was no doubt that she was the one for him. Wally West intended on marrying her no matter what.

Perhaps next Christmas? Maybe even her birthday? The summer break was in two months. It was the middle of April and these two foolishly in love kids were celebrating Valentine's day. Their dog jumped up on the couch and wriggled his way in between the two of them, they couldn't help but laugh. Usually people would be nervous when proposing but he - he was excited.

He wanted to marry her, make sure she was his forever. One of his worst fears was losing her forever. He vowed to himself silently that he would never leave her. No matter what.

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"Oh Red I'm here!" Harley yelled with a smile plastered to her face.

Pamela asked her out the week before over dinner at her house. It was one of the most romantic thing's anyone has ever done for her. Harley used to be a good person, she didn't believe she was anymore. Once she was a psychiatrist, then a health teacher for sometime at a high school. It was humorous actually, the woman she saved was one of her students. Of course they don't remember, she didn't think any of them would.

The large house always smelled like flowers, it was absolutely lovely. When she visited now she took the bus from work all the way out to the harbour and walked forty minutes up a hill to get here. Taxis were expensive and she didn't have much money to spare for any of those. The walking was good excersize, she didn't mind. She could hear laughter erupting from the back garden, it echoed throughout the large house.

Music was blaring from some speakers and Melody was learning how to plant certain flowers. "This one has to face the sun, it grows naturally towards the rays" Pamela explained as Melody buried the sunflower seed with soil. Harley smiled faintly to herself as she leaned against the door and watched the two of them. Pamela was always good with children, better than she ever was.

Her past was filled with so much shit that she kept buried deep down inside. All she did was keep swallowing and swallowing it until all she felt was guilt. It was eating at her soul, turning her into something she didn't wish to be. "Mom you're home!" Melody's face lit up with a bright smile as she jumped to her feet.

"Hey Harley" Pamela said as she batted her dark eyelashes at her.

She walked over and pressed a kiss to her cheek before leaning in so her lips were next to her ear. "I could've picked you up you know" she said before pulling away and resting her hands on Harley's hips. You could practically see the hearts taking shape in the blonde woman's eyes. "I'm going to wash up for dinner, we are having dinner right mom?" the young girl asked as she stared up at the two women.

Pamela answered quicker before her girlfriend could form a single word, "Hush now Melody, go wash up, dinner will be on the table in half an hour" she said as the girl smiled and hurried into the house. As soon as she disappeared inside Pamela took her hand in hers and guided her through the luscious garden. The grass was so green and the flowers so healthy and vibrant. They sat down on a wooden bench next to the small fish pond.

The atmosphere shifted into one full of seriousness and desire. "Harley I want you and Melody to move in" Pamela said, her hold on her hand was strong and tight. Harley turned her head and looked away, memories filled her mind - bad decisions she remembered making so long ago. Someone said those exact same words to her so many years ago. They turned into a horrible human being, treated her and her daughter awfully, and made her do so many things she didn't wish to do.

Of course Pamela only knew a small sliver of what had actually happened to her and Melody. Trusting people was something that Harley needed to learn again. "I'm sorry Pammy I can't, I just can't" she said with a frown.

"At least stay the night with me" Pamela said as she rested the palm of her hand against the blonde's cheek.

Later that night they were cuddled up in Pamela's bedroom. Melody was off in one of the three other bedrooms down the hallway. The young girl was quite excited to sleep in her own bedroom for once. Harley wasn't used to having anyone but her daughter sleeping next to her. The bed felt almost foreign, it was as soft as a cloud and the room smell like flowers. It was a drastic change in aromas when compared to the small room her and her daughter stayed in.

When she was shaken awake, the redheaded beauty hovering over her, she finally caught her breath. The nightmares were worst than anything. She sat up and clutched onto her girlfriend like she was a life line and for the first time in forever she started to cry. "Pammy I don't want him to hurt my daught'a, anyone but my baby" she cried out, her whole body was shaking by now. Pamela nodded and sat there, one arm wrapped around her while the other raked through her long blonde hair.

There was another scream that erupted from down the hallway around thirty minutes later. Quick and heavy footsteps came thumping down the corridor and into the room. Melody climbed onto the bed and wedged her way in between the two of them. She wasn't crying but the way her face was white with fear, eyes wide, and body shaking ever so slightly said it all. Pamela knew then and only then, how bad they had been affected. "Let's go stargazing" she said quietly before taking the two of them out to the back garden.

The sound of the crickets and crisp air as they lied on the grass wrapped up in blankets was calming. Up above the stars twinkled forming different constellations. They stayed there, the three of them wrapped up and warm as they stared up at the sky. "I love you mom, you too Ivy" Melody whispered tiredly before kissing both of their cheeks and snuggling in between the both of them.

The fond smile that made its way onto the redhead's face was a pleasant one, she could stay with them in this moment for the rest of her life.

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A knock on her doorway was what pulled her gaze away from her cellphone. Kori smiled and walked over to open the door, a pleasant smile spreading across her face when she saw Mar'i standing there. Yesterday night they had that meeting with Bruce. Her and Dick had discussed ahead of time of what they were to do in order to keep Mar'i safe. That vile man was still out there and had already threatened the kid, boarding school seemed like the next step for safety.

The girl's small arms wrapped around her legs as she began to cry. "Please don't let them send me away, they want to send me away to England!" she cried out, her face a mess of tears. Kori looked down the hallway surprised to see that no one had come with her. She shut the front door and led her daughter into the living room before patting the spot on the couch next to her.

Other people would've been scrambling to figure out what to say but Kori was a natural. Although she hadn't been around Mar'i for quite some time she had motherly instincts to help her through this. "Now what is the matter?" she asked as Mar'i shrugged her school bag off onto the floor. It was still early, she should've been at school by now. "Mom and dad want to send me away to England. Do they not love me anymore?" she asked as fresh tears formed in her peculiar green eyes.

She brought her hand up to the girl's face only to smile and wipe away her tears with her thumb. "I know for a fact that they love you a lot, so much that they're doing this to keep you safe my little bumgorf" Kori said with a small smile. It truly was for the girl's own safety. They knew how far John was willing to go with Zatanna, he left her for dead by a river, who knows what he would do to Mar'i.

That was a thought she didn't wish to think much more about. "I don't want to leave you, or mom, or dad. I can't leave Melody and Damian, they're my only friends" Mar'i said as she sniffled and wiped her nose with her sleeve. Kori had been in her position once before when she was her age. When her, Komi, and her parents left the island she had to leave everything she ever knew.

Being in another country, another place in general always felt threatening. "You'll make lot's of new friend's and you'll come back for Christmas and summer break to see Melody and Damian. Don't worry, smile!" Kori said with a bright smile, her voice getting louder and happier with every word. She was always a ray of sunshine. Her phone began to ring moments after that, it was Dick.

Mar'i frowned when she answered, the kid knew how much trouble she was in. "There is no need to be so angry Richard, she is sitting right in front of me do not worry" Kori spoke softly, quite a difference from his loud voice booming across the phone line. He was worried sick, when the school called asking why she was absent his heart dropped. After all he and Zatanna had dropped her off at school before he took Zatanna to her morning class at the University.

The conversation went on for some minutes before he finally had to hang up due to his work. "Am I in trouble?" Mar'i asked as she stared down at her lap, her fingers fidgeted with the bottom of her small navy tie. "Let us indulge in a joyful film before I take you back to school. Does that sound nice?" Kori asked whilst flashing her a perky smile. The girl nodded and quickly wiped away her tears before settling back into the sofa.

For the next hour and thirty minutes they watched the happiest movie they could find on the television at that point in time. It wasn't the greatest of movies in Kori's opinion but it made her daughter smile a great deal. "Are you ready for school?" she asked as they now stood in the elevator. Mar'i was silent, although she was quiet it seemed like there was a storm going on inside of her mind.

The drive over was quiet, the radio was low, and Kori ran out of things to talk about. She understanded that Mar'i wanted the time to think to herself. After all she had to tell her friends that she was leaving. The iconic trio was going to become a duo, one that Mar'i wasn't a part of. It reminded Kori of Raven, she hadn't talked to her in a long time. They were like sister's and after the accident they lost contact.

Before she let the young girl out of the car she smiled and gave her a hug. "Have a wondrous day my sweetie pie!" she exclaimed as she let her go from the embrace. Mar'i stepped out of the car and waved goodbye before heading inside through the main doors. This school was absolutely huge and marvellous all at the same time. Maybe one day she would have to check it out for herself.

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All eyes were on her when she stepped into the classroom. Nervously she handed over the late slip and quickly walked over to her seat. "You're late, what did Grayson keep you up all night with his whining?" Damian asked when she took a seat next to him. Miraculously the teacher let him move back to his desk seated next to her after much prodding and threats towards everyone he was placed next to.

It seemed that nobody in the class wanted to sit next to him but Mar'i. "No, I just ditched school this morning" she said with a cheeky smile, leaning down to grab her work and pencil case from her school bag. Damian crossed his arms and raised a suspicious eyebrow when he heard that. She was the last person he would expect to ditch class. "So what are we doing?" she asked, it was clear they had already been given work to do.

The textbook was pushed over towards her as well as his work he had already finished. Damian was absolutely brilliant, there was no mind like his. "I don't want your work, I would like to learn for myself please and thank you. I would just like to know the questions" she said as he rolled his eyes and snatched his finished work sheet away from her. After a moment of him sharply glaring at her he pointed to all of the questions in the textbook wordlessly.

She went at it, like a busy worker bee trying to please the queen, some of the questions were challenging but she figured most of them out. Perhaps it was because her mind was screaming at her, telling her that she had to tell Damian she was leaving eventually. Another part of her just wanted to stay quiet and just leave without having to tell anybody. There were two great decisions to make, to tell her friend's or not.

If she were to it would break her heart and theirs. Something that she didn't wish to do. Heartbreaking was for the girl's much older than her, and her father. Kori sure did talk about him, more like in a fond hazy memory but nonetheless it was still about him. She knew more about her father's past from her than from himself. The only thing she knew was that they were the only family she had.

Her friend's were some of her only family, she didn't want to break their hearts. It would probably be easier for them to find out once she stopped arriving at school. She would see them over summer break anyways, hopefully. "You look troubled" Damian commented as he threw her a sideways glance from the book he was currently indulged in. It didn't take a lot for him to see that she was bothered by something.

Mar'i stopped doing her work, her eyebrows knitted together in thought, and he just liked looking at her. Of course he wouldn't call it staring so much as observing his friend. There were plenty of things drilled into his head when he was younger than what he was now, thing's not meant for a child his age. "Oh I'm just stuck on this question, can you help me?" she asked with a small smile gracing her lips.

With a scoff and a reply of something along the lines of 'I guess I can spare some time for you' he helped her. Damian was quite the tutor, he went through every single detail of the equation needed perfectly. Everything made sense when he explained it to her. "Thanks Dami" she said with a giggle as he rolled his eyes and looked away.

"Do not call me such a ridiculous name" he retorted as she simply shook her head and smiled.

Lunch break was nice, the trio was sat under the large tree near the edge of the fence. There were plenty of places to sit but this was their place. When it would rain they would sit up in the tree and lounge along the large branches. Today was nice, chilly, the ground a little damp so they were up in the large tree. "Can you help me up?" Melody asked as she jumped up and down holding her arms out. She was still quite short and couldn't reach the branches needed to climb up.

Two hands outstretched towards her as Mar'i and Damian pulled her up into the tree next to them. "Thanks" Melody mumbled with an embarrassed smile on the girl's face. Mar'i smiled and nodded while Damian stayed silent like usual. They both took care of Melody as if she were their younger sibling. "Mrs. Eloise stinks, she keeps picking on me" Mar'i said as she opened her bag and took out two lunches. One was passed to Melody who gratefully took it.

Her mother made sure to pack two lunches so one would go to Melody. The woman was still quite grateful for what the girl and her mother did for her. After all they saved her life the least she could do was pack her child a lunch. "What's that?" Damian asked as the two took out their peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

"We don't all have a butler to prepare our food Damian" Mar'i teased as the two girl's giggled at him.

The boy did have a butler, who was a skilled chef, prepare all of his meals. "Want some?" Mar'i asked holding half of the sandwich out towards him. With a roll of his eyes he then mumbled something incoherent, most likely a string of curses. She shrugged her shoulders and continued to eat, the three of them sat silently and listened to the cars and kids around them. It was loud and quiet all at once.

Her stomach twisted with uncertainty as she tried to decide whether to tell them or not. Before she had decided not to but now she wasn't sure. "Can we take a picture?" she asked taking the cellphone out of her pocket. It wasn't her phone, it was her mom's and she gave it to her to borrow for the day. Mar'i was moping last night so Zatanna let her borrow her phone for the day to take pictures with her friends. "Why?" Damian asked as she looked down at the phone in her hands.

When it flickered to life a picture of Zatanna and Dick when they were younger was on the lock screen. She was smiling and kissing his cheek and he was grinning like he just won a million bucks. "Are those your parent's?" Melody asked leaning over to look down at the screen. Mar'i smiled and nodded, she loved her parents so much. She already knew how it felt to lose one parent, she didn't want to know what it felt like to lose both.

Now, however, she was to lose both of her closest friend's. Sometimes life was unfair, some people were dealt a poor hand while other's had the cards to win the jackpot. Her card's of life so far were fine, not quite the jackpot winner but it wasn't bad enough to get her shoved out of the game. "Come on let's take the picture" she said, holding the phone up and proceeding to smile. She reached over and wrung her arm around Damian's neck pulling him towards them and took her sunglasses off for a brief moment.

The flash went off nearly blinding the three of them. Damian removed her arm from around his neck moments after the picture was taken. "I do not need your grubby hands all over me" he said wiping the sleeves of his blazer off with the back of his hand. Mar'i rolled her eyes before slipping back on the dark sunglasses. "You know we'll always be friends, right?" Mar'i said, her eyes trained on her half eaten sandwich.

"Of course, why the hell wouldn't we be?" Damian replied with a witty smile.

"Yeah, we're like the three amigos!" Melody exclaimed throwing her hands into the air.

Damian reached out and grabbed the back of the girl's shirt collar and pulled her back. If his reflexes weren't as sharp as they were she would've fallen out of the tree. "Thanks" Melody mumbled as he let go of her shirt collar. Mar'i threw a sideways glance over to the boy and smiled fondly. He was the last person she wished to hurt out of everyone. Damian was such an interesting person, she admired him more than anyone.

Finally she made her decision, she was going to tell them. No matter how much it would hurt them she was going to tell them. "I'm being sent to a girl's school in England, I'm leaving next week" she said rather abruptly. Her heart was pounding in her ears and the silence that followed was absolutely nerve wrecking. Instead she watched as Damian jumped out of the tree and walked away.

Melody looked saddened and confused at the same time before she watched Mar'i jump down and follow Damian. "Hey wait for me!" the blonde yelled as she struggled to climb down the large tree. The boy was far ahead by now but Mar'i broke out into a brisk jog to catch up with him. As soon as she grabbed onto his arm he pulled away harshly, almost as if she burned at the touch. His hands were balled into tight fists at his sides and the anger and betrayal in his eyes burned brightly. "You promised" his voice was dangerously low as he spoke.

"You promised!" he yelled, his body turning as he raised his fist.

The blow never came, she didn't feel any pain. When she opened her eyes all she could see was the new found fear swallowing him whole. He lowered his fist back down to his side before drawing in a sharp breath. "I thought I could trust you but I was wrong. My mother was right, everyone I meet leaves me sooner or later" he said, eyes hardening into a sharp glare. If looks could kill she would be dead where she stood. Damian turned and before he walked away he looked back at her one last time.

"Don't talk to me ever again, I don't socialize with freaks" he spat and without another word he walked off.

That was the day the young girl experienced her first heartbreak. They were children yet she trusted him and cared for him in a way she cared for no other. Now he wanted nothing to do with her. She was just as much as the freak as everyone said she was.

Skycrystal23 ;)