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Barbara had once suggested that Stephanie might learn more during their sparring sessions if Cass went easy on her.
Explained more.
Ran drills.
Less bruises.
Cass had spent the afternoon leading up to their scheduled session dreading it, expecting to be bored, but unlike when they first started, willing to put up with the boredom.
They were barely three strikes in before Stephanie interrupted to session to yell at her, all righteous fury and insulted that Cass was holding back.
Cass always held back.
Cass still held back.
But she swept Stephanie's legs out from under her without hesitation, and Stephanie hit the floor grinning.
Stephanie was more stubborn than Barbara gave her credit for, grit and determination radiating from her every pore.
And she always got back up.
After their sparring session, when Cass had explained why, Stephanie laughed, and offered to get Barbara off of her back.
Next sparring session she had brought nail polish. Purple for herself, and black for Cass.
For their 'cool down' and 'gossip sesh'.
"Even with the gloves this won't hold up to patrol, but toenails hold up fairly well, and we can always reapply it next time."
Next time.
Cass didn't keep up the nail polish otherwise, but she liked Stephanie painting hers for her, and painting Stephanie's in turn.
And Barbara grinned and stopped commenting about their sparring when she saw them.
Cassandra sidestepped Stephanie's right hook easily.
In return Cass jabbed— lightly, by her standards— into Steph's side.
"Stop leaving yourself open."
Cass smiled at Steph's near growl in response.
They 'exchanged' blows, Cass more dancing around Stephanie than fighting.
Stephanie kicked— a risky gambit— lot's of power behind it, if the person she was fighting didn't see it coming a mile away, and oh so risky for her balance.
Cass grabbed her ankle and twisted, sending Stephanie to the floor.
Cass saw the moment Stephanie moved to roll before she was consciously doing it, to turn the fall into her momentum to jump back up, and was smiling broadly at her as she landed back on her feet.
Cass didn't let her get comfortable, lunging forward and putting Steph on the back foot.
"I saw you, you know." Cass started conversationally, a nonsequitor from the rest of their activity to Steph. "When you were gone."
Stephanie really was getting better.
Unfortunately for her, her opponent was the best.
"No, I don't know." Steph hissed out, striving to dodge but struggling to keep up. "You gonna explain, or planning to make me guess? Bet Babs has a ton of photos I don't know about."
"No. Anytime I almost died."
Steph stumbled, Cass' next blow landing hard and driving the breath out of her.
"You could have dodged that." Cass said, disappointed but not surprised.
"You hallucinated me on your deathbed?" Stephanie asked incredulously through gasping wheezes as she tried to catch her breath.
Cass was starting to doubt if this was a good idea to bring up. "No." She backtracked. "It was a joke."
"Like hell it was-"
"Forget I said anything."
"Fat chance!"
"Hmm."
"Do not knock me out to try and convince me this was a concussion dream, I swear to god!"
Cass had been considering that. It was a little annoying that Steph had predicted it. Oh well.
"I've seen you too!"
Cass froze, not even breathing, as Stephanie continued.
"Technically it wasn't when I was dying, you were… kinda in a coma? But one of those Shiva cultists was pissy that you had beaten her. Or, wanted to die by your hands as well? Either way he was going to start killing people if 'you' didn't show up. I just, let him assume I was you. 'You' inspired me when I second guessed myself, and told me I did a good job."
"You were… Like an angel. Inspiring me to keep fighting, to keep living."
"You were a bit of an ass." Stephanie said, absolutely glowing with affection and sweat.
"You probably deserved it."
She laughed, "What can I say, spite is an excellent motivator, and I love proving people wrong."
"For once, I'm glad to have been wrong."
"Oh? About what?"
"About you being dead. I'd rather have you than a dream. Although dream you was better at motivational speeches than you are."
Stephanie blushed.
Cass liked making her blush.
"Gee. Thanks. Um. "Stephanie's gaze dropped from Cass' eyes to her midsection. She reached out, hesitatingly, reverently, "I'm glad you're here too."
Cass wasn't ashamed of any of her scars.
Not the bullet wound in her shoulder that Tim had asked about when they had first teamed up.
Nor any of the other scars from her training.
She was even less ashamed of the scars she got as Batgirl, as a defender, as a hero.
But Stephanie's gaze made her more aware of the— new, from Stephanie's perspective— scar from where Mad Dog had stabbed her through the chest.
It should have killed her.
It had killed her.
It poked out clearly from under the sports bra Cass was wearing for training.
And Stephanie's tank top did nothing to hide the exit wound from when she had been shot. When Black Mask had shot her. When Cass thought he had killed her.
Cass placed a hand over the wound, feeling the rough texture contrasted by the soft skin surrounding it.
Stephanie shivered under her hand.
Like a prayer, Cass said, "I want you to be safe."
It was the wrong thing to say.
Cass didn't understand why, but Stephanie stepped back sharply, "Safe? Do you think after everything we've been through, everything we've done, that being safe is my highest priority?"
Cass reached out to her, but didn't touch her again, the words were leaving her, like smoke in the wind. "I don't want to lose you again."
Selfish.
But true.
And Stephanie could see that.
Stephanie stepped closer and placed her hands on her waist, electric against her bare skin. She trailed her thumb softly towards the center of her stomach, lightly thumbing the edge of her scar.
Her voice was soft, but her eyes were hard as she asked, "Do you think dying is the only way to lose me?"
Cassandra shuddered. She grabbed Stephanie firmly by the shoulders, as if she could ground her there forever.
Stephanie laughed in response, "Cass. You are never going to talk me into retiring. Not after everything, all the people we've helped. I wasn't safe before I put on the mask either. And you aren't either. But we…" Steph's gaze dropped from her eyes to her lips.
The movement, the attention, from Stephanie felt so much warmer, left Cass feeling so much lighter, than it ever had in the past.
Cass closed what little distance there was between them.
Their chests pressed together, sharing the same air.
Cass wanted to.
She could tell Stephanie wanted to.
But Cass was terrified to lose Stephanie again.
"We don't have to live wondering." Steph breathed out.
Stephanie wrapped her arms firmly around Cass' waist. Cass couldn't take her eyes off of her, every sense alight and full of Steph, Steph, Steph, Stephanie leaning forward so slowly, projecting her intentions so clearly, even if Cass weren't her. But she is, and she sees every flicker of doubt in Stephanie, always smothered out with determination. And Cass doesn't want to deny either of their desire.
She closes the last inch between them in a rush, accidentally clinking their teeth together, and Stephanie smiles into the kiss, relief and joy flooding through them both.
Cass didn't know this, not like she knew other types of body language. But she allowed Stephanie to deepen the kiss and twined her fingers in Steph's hair, tugging the ponytail lose.
And she looked forward to learning.
"Is there something you want to tell me?" Barbara asked pointedly.
Cass narrowed her eyes. It wasn't like Barbara to interrupt their reading lessons, even if Cass was more distracted than normal. "'C's are stupid. Sometimes they're an 's' sound, and sometimes a 'k'."
"Not about the reading. About you."
"No. There isn't."
Barbara nodded. "In that case you might want to remember to wear gloves next time you see Bruce. Or rotate between themed vigilantes, less obvious."
Cass looked down at her purple nails, and smiled.
