The next morning comes around and Sam is taking the time she has alone to shower. It's barely four in the morning so no one else is awake and she's pretty grateful for that right now. Before going to bed the night before, Rachel stopped back by her room and offered her some clothes for the following day. So, Sam is the only one awake and figured it'd be really nice to have a proper shower for once. But the shower isn't the relaxing thing she expected.

This is the first time she's seen herself in a mirror since being put into a basement for several months. It's the first time she's seen herself at all but this is also the first time she's getting a look at how the tower is seeing her. Her right eye is still black and blue, only a small portion of it starting to turn a faint shade of yellow. It looks a little swollen still even though she feels like she can see fine out of it. The cut on her lip is still open and the cut on her cheek is bright red. Bruises in the shapes of fingers are a grayish blue on her biceps, right over the scar on her right bicep. There's a red and purple bruise in the shape of a shoe on her back. The more she looks the more bruises she finds and she winces, finally understanding all of the sympathetic looks she's gotten. Not that they know about the bruises across her back and stomach but they saw her arms.

She thought it was so weird Dick wanted to help but seeing herself in the mirror, she completely understands because if she saw herself on the street right now, she'd be livid and forcing that person to come with her. Her head hangs and it's kind of like she understands and a feeling of maybe wanting to tell them what happened comes over her.

If she tells them, maybe the looks will stop because she's healing and they'll know. It's just kind of an elephant in the room as much she wants to avoid it in her head, it's there. And every single time they look at her, they're just going to want the full story. The looks won't stop until they know. And all she can do is sigh because it's four in the morning and sleeping for an hour has her feeling a lot more feelings that she ever really liked. So, she swallows the lump her throat and goes for the shower.

After the shower, Sam finds herself in the kitchen looking for food. She finds some cereal, Cheerios, and otps for that. At this point, she's not going to complain but she always did like Cheerios. Once she has her bowl, she moves into the living room and turns the TV on, sitting on the floor at the small coffee table like she used to do when she was a kid. She finds Avatar: The Last Airbender on one of the many streaming services connected to the TV and calls herself content. She eats in peace watching a childhood favorite of hers and it fels easy. She feels at ease here and it feels like it could almost feel like home if she put in a real effort to give it a chance. If she could find a way in herself to really trust these strangers. It'll be hard but maybe it'll be worth it, early mornings alone in front of TV with some cereal.

By the time six rolls around, the lack of sleep and paranoia has started to catch up to her. This place feels safe but it also feels too good to be true. There's a little humming in the back of her head, telling her not to trust anyone because anyone can say they're one thing and be the opposite. Sam used to be so trusting of people, not naïve or anything like that, but trusting of people in general but now, it's hard to imagine people just being nice to be nice. What if she falls asleep, really gets some sleep, and they turn on her? What if they're working with him? And he comes to take her back? Maybe she'll get lucky and everyone will leave the tower so she can get some real peaceful sleep. She's gone longer without sleep, she'll be fine. She's always fine.

"Good morning." Dick's voice scares Sam from the sink, her dropping a dish into the water.

"Fuck," Sam groans, turning to look at him. "Do you always sneak up on people?"

Dick chuckles softly. "Sorry, it's a habit, I guess." Dick didn't think he had been all that quiet.

Sam rolls her eyes before going back to cleaning her dish she used for cereal. She hasn't had cereal since she was put into foster care. It wasn't the best cereal or anything, she's a Trix person but it was a lot better than the chicken noodle soup she's used to. It felt almost nostalgic and she got to just sit in the living area, watching old cartoons she used to love as a kid, in peace. Until now, with Dick awake anyway.

"Right." Sam says softly.

Dick watches her from the back as he stands at the kitchen island, taking notice in the coffee cup sitting on the counter behind her and the empty coffee pot off to the side. She seems jumpy, though that might just be her. This is a new place to her and after whatever she's been through, it's fair to be a little jumpy but it makes him wonder.

"Did you sleep last night?" He asks, walking over to the coffee pot to make himself a pot.

"'Course." Sam lies, not looking up from the dish that is definitely clean by now but it's something to do with her hands.

Dick uses the sink to fill up the pot, Sam glancing at him for just a second. "Hmm." He hums. "More than an hour?"

Sam pauses and lets out a sigh. How long has he been doing this? She isn't saying he's good at it but how does he just know shit?

"No." Her voice is filled of shame. "I-i-it's weird, being here."

"It's okay." Dick reassures her as he gets his coffee going. "I didn't sleep much when Bruce brought me home, either."

Sam starts drying her bowl, turning to face him. "What's he like? I mean....was he nice to you? You're here so..."

Dick nods and then shrugs. "He tried his best."

"That's a cop-out for saying he sucked." Sam raises her brows, resting the bowl to the side before grabbing the spoon and drying it. No one with good parental figures just says they tried their best. But, since Dick is here taking in strays that need help, maybe the Bruce guy didn't do a terrible job. Even if this whole thing is weird.

Dick chuckles. "It wasn't all bad." Dick leans against the counter, facing Sam as he waits for his coffee.

"Must be nice." Sam mutters, a sense of envy comes over her. But it just slipped out. Being jealous doesn't make a situation better. "Sorry." She apologizes.

"It's okay." Dick assures her. Dick knows he got lucky with Bruce even if Bruce wasn't the best. Dick still got lucky. "Where ya from?" He asks, trying to change the subject a little bit but still find something out about her.

"Gotham." Sam rolls her eyes. "Fit right in now with all the freaks Gotham breeds, huh?" Apparently, if people get to escape the hellscape of Gotham, they end up in San Francisco? Literally, across the country which, if Sam's being honest, completely makes sense.

"You're not a freak." Dick says calmly.

"Mhm, sPeCiAl." Sam mocks and then Dick catches the hit of a smirk on her face.

"You're a smartass, you know, that?"

Sam gives him a cornered grin. "It's the only thing not damaged about me so far. Gotta hold onto it." Sam snickers to herself. "What about you? San Fran?"

Dick shakes his head. "Gotham." Dick goes to grab his coffee that's finished brewing.

"Shut the fuck up." Sam scoffs.

"Honest, so is Jason." Dick says, pouring his coffee into a mug.

"Gar?" Sam raises, wondering if everyone is just fleeing Gotham.

"Ohio."

"Rachel?"

"Michigan."

Sam hopes finding out where everyone was from would make more sense. Maybe Dick found a bunch of kids who needed to get the hell of out Gotham and brought them across the country? Something? But, finding out it's just Jason, Sam is back to this being weird.

"How did you end up with Gar and Rachel then?" Sam asks.

"I was a detective in Detroit." Dick explains. "That's how Rachel found me and then we ended up in Ohio where she met Gar."

"That somehow clears very little up but okay." Sam nods her head. Why did he take Rachel to Ohio? And who the fuck leaves Gotham to go to Detroit? And how the hell did they end up here? Nothing makes sense but Sam's just gonna let it go for now. "So, did you and Jason know each other then? Both from Gotham and ended up here, seems like under better circumstances than us."

Dick shakes his head, taking a sip from his mug. "No, we just...know the same guy."

Sam narrows her eyes at him, grabbing her own mug and taking a sip. Bruce. It sounds stupid to her because she's just fishing for information now. But, Dick knows a Bruce from Gotham. Bruce Wayne lives in Gotham. Bruce Wayne adopted a Dick Grayson who, if rumor is right, became a detective. Jason can fight, assuming Dick can, too that's a bit weird. Gotham doesn't breed heroes usually.

"So....what? You both raised for Bruce Wayne or something?"

"What makes you think that?" Dick chuckles, wondering why she'd come to that conclusion.

"Your name is Dick and Bruce took in a kid named Dick Grayson like twenty years ago. Rumor is he left to become a detective" Sam states, taking another drink of her coffee. "Kind of public information."

"Yeah," Dick chuckles. "Yeah, Bruce Wayne took me in."

"Interesting." Sam hums, looking at her dark coffee.

She feels like she's having a fever dream. She cannot possibly be talking to a fucking Robin. That doesn't make any sense and at this point, she's completely convinced the sleep deprivation has kicked in. But she's done her share of research into Batman and Robin. It's always been this mystery. Who's behind the masks? Sam doesn't like mysteries and she could never figure out the motive behind them. Why start saving people if not to kill the real problems of Gotham? It's not like they were taking down petty thieves or something, they were dealing with real grade-A psychos. But, maybe Bruce Wayne makes sense. He has the money to pull it off.

"So...your thing is combat?" Sam questions, silently fact-checking herself.

"It is." Dick nods once.

"You're older than me...." Sam trails off and Dick watches her, waiting to see where exactly she's going with this. He doesn't mind her figuring it out, but he does think it's interesting that she's openly figuring it out in front of him. Maybe it'll help her trust him a little more.

There are tons of videos and pictures of Batman and Robin fighting thebad guys. One of Sam's past times was watching the Robin-centric ones, something about him being a sidekick seemed odd. He always seemed to hold himself just fine and Batman didn't seem like he needed some sidekick. It was weird but she watched because she was curious who they were and how they could fight. But now she's here with Dick Grayson who was raised by Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson is taking in kids with superpowers. And she always thought a new Robin came in at the end. Fighting style was different and there was a big height difference.

"Are you Robin and is Bruce Wayne Batman?" Sam asks, her voice is a little loud as if to not believe she's asking that question.

Dick laughs. "You got me." Dick smiles at her. "I'm not Robin anymore, though."

"Jason, right? He took over?" Sam verifies and if this were two years ago, she'd be freaking out. As much as she does not get the whole thing, it was still really cool to be in the same city as Robin and Batman. They're actual heroes. But, this is now.

"He did." Dick nods, almost impressed she figured it out after less than a day of being at the tower. "How'd you figure it out? Was it that obvious?" He asks.

"No," Sam lets out a mix of a huff and a laugh. "It was more of a shot in the dark. You shoot enough times, you're bound to hit something."

"Alright." Dick laughs softly. "Fair enough."

"Cool." She says, pushing off of the counter she was leaning against, choosing to leave with this new information.

"That it?" Dick asks, amused by her reaction.

Sam pauses with a shrug. "Yep." Her word is short and sharp as she goes to walk away before stopping. Actually, it bothers her. At the end of the day, Dick Grayson, the original Robin is standing in front of her and it bothers her. It's cool, of course because he was Robin but above everything, it doesn't sit right. "Actually, I got a fucking question." Sam turns to face him.

"Okay." Dick gives her a questionable expression, not sure where the change of tone came from.

"Why didn't you guys just kill the fucking Joker?"

Dick looks down, almost as if he's ashamed of the answer. "We're heroes, we don't kill people."

"Right, okay," Sam sucks in a breath, feeling the fire in her stomach boil and her hands growing warm. "So, as heroes, your response is to just keep letting that fucked up, psycho clown roam around Gotham and keep killing innocent people like some sort of sick Saw movie?" Sam snaps, her voice raising with every word.

In some sick and vengeful way, after her mom was killed, she got it. In a way, she understood how people become villains. Not villains to the actual villains, but villains to the heroes because it is their job to protect those who cannot protect themselves. It is their job and allowing people like The Joker to just keep escaping and killing more and more and more people, that's not heroism. It's cowardly.

"It's not like that." Dick sighs, realizing this has backfired greatly. "We can't go around being the judge, jury, and executioner. It's a dangerous road you don't want to go down. Trust me."

"Right, except he didn't kill your parents, right?" Sam asks, feeling the water brim behind her eyes and then the feeling of hot coffee stings her hands, the mug melting with her grip. The rest of the mug slips from her hands, shattering on the floor.

"Hey," Dick puts his mug down quickly, rushing over to her.

"It's fine." Sam looks at her hands, the glowing of green starts to fade. She walks over to the garbage, tossing the remainder of the mug into the trash. "I'll clean it up, sorry." Sam barely looks at Dick as she grabs paper towels, wetting them and ignoring the shaking of her hands.

Sam always thought she had a lot of control over it or that she would at least notice if she was using her powers but she didn't. It's shameful and embarrassing. It was an accident and accidents happen but the very idea of not being able to control her powers just because she's mad is terrifying. What if she gets mad at someone and uses her powers and hurt them? 

"It's okay." Dick takes them from her. "I got it. Are you okay?" There are no hints of anger across his face or in his voice. He just looks worried.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Sam shakes her hands, no burn or blood in sight, hands back to her normal skin tone. "It doesn't hurt."

"What happened?" Gar asks, strolling into the kitchen, seeing Sam and Dick look like they were in the middle of something serious, although they were kind of hard to ignore. It got a little loud at the end of their argument. That's why Gar is walking in.

"Dropped a mug." Sam keeps her stare on Dick, lying to Gar. She brushes past Dick and past Gar. Sam just wants to run away from it all. Sometimes, things are too much and she wants to run as fast as her legs will let her go.

"Sam." Dick calls.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean it, okay?" Sam stops just long enough to look back at Dick. "Just let me know when we're leaving." She mutters before walking back down the hallway and to her room.

Gar watches her and then looks back to Dick. He doesn't have any idea what he walked into and now he just feels awkward but he feels bad for her. She seemed really upset and she sounded upset when she was yelling at Dick. He heard her asking Dick if the Joker killed his parents. Of course, Gar knows what happened from last night but hearing that kind of reaction doesn't sit quite right. They're all just a bunch of kids. Kids who don't deserve to be in pain.

"You okay, Dick?" Gar asks walking over to him as Dick cleans up the spilled coffee.

"Yeah, it's okay, Gar." Dick assures him.

Gar nods. "What happened?"

"It was accident." Dick says.

"I mean...I heard you guys. I wouldn't be surprised if you woke up Rachel and Jason, too."

"Shit." Dick sighs, standing back up. "It'll be alright, she's just going through a lot. Just give her some time." Dick gives Gar a soft smile before throwing the paper towels away and grabbing a few more.

Gar nods, looking to the hallway that leads to the bedrooms. Gar knows what it's like to be alone in grief. It's hard and scary. Even having someone to just sit with him would have been easier but he was just thrown into a manor with a bunch of older people who didn't get him. He was only even there because he could suddenly turn into a tiger. Maybe he should leave it alone but he can't. He just wants Sam to know it's going to be okay.

Gar grabs himself a bowl of cereal and makes a plant-based drink for the morning. He waits in the kitchen, slowly eating as Dick eats his own breakfast. Dick told him to leave Sam alone and he's not going to do that but he doesn't want Dick to now. He doesn't really like going against what an authority figure says, even though he does it anyway. It's more the getting caught that he doesn't like. But what else is he supposed to do?

After Dick leaves, Gar waits a few more minutes then hops off his chair and heads down the hallway. Dick went the opposite way so Gar walks with ease down the hall and to Sam's room. The door is shut and he can hear the TV playing softly. He picks up his fist and knocks softly. He waits, shifting his weight from his toes to his heels, almost expecting Sam to either tell him to go away or open the door and slam it. But she doesn't.

"Hey." Gar gives her a kind smile as she opens the door.

"H-hey?" Sam says.

Gar sucks in a breath. "Are you okay?" He asks.

Sam deadpans. "I would be a hell of a lot better if I wasn't asked that again today." Sam snarks, watching the disappointment in Gar's face. "I'm sorry. I--I-do you wanna come in?" She asks, opening the door fully and Gar nods, leaving the door open as he follows her to the couch her and Rachel sat on the night before. "I've got some issues with Robin and Batman." She admits as she sits down.

Gar looks a little too concerned for Sam's liking so she talks. If she talks, maybe he won't be so concerned and a part of her wants to know if it's a her thing. Everyone always seems to love them both, Robin and Batman, and they can do no wrong, they even helped the GCPD. Sam has thought for a while that maybe her disdain isn't justified and maybe it's not. Maybe killing people, even people like the Joker is wrong but what else is there to do? Because Batman and Robin didn't do anything to fix Arkham. If they don't fix Arkham, what else is there to stop these people like the Joker who get out and they kill every single time without fail? It's like it's a sick little game. He's Jigsaw and Batman is the cop trying to find him, everyone else is stuck playing the Saw games.

Gar nods. "Because the Joker killed your parents?" Gar asks, pretending like he doesn't know anything. "I overheard."

Sam nods. "My mom. I-uh, I was...I was at the movies with a friend. I got the notification that Joker was out again...killing people....same place my mom was that night." Sam's chin wrinkles as she swallows the lump in her throat. 

That moment, she knew. She called her mom a hundred times but there's a pit that forms in your stomach when you just know someone didn't make it. Someone you care for. It's not anxiety or being pessimistic, there is a pit that grows and you just know. Sam knew but she called and called and called. The phone rang and rang until it died. Gotham PD showed up on her friend's house the next day and told her. They wanted to take her and do the whole foster care situation right away but her friend's mom convinced them to give her a day with them first. Sam fled that night. The night her mom died was the last night she ever felt safe. It was the night she felt something that wasn't sad or angry. It was the last night she wasn't haunted.

"I'm so sorry, Sam." Gar's brows wrinkle, the knot in his stomach growing.

Sam nods, looking away from him as she tries to breathe. "Had they just fucking killed him," Sam's voice breaks as she looks back at Gar and she hates it because this is a weakness. She can't seem vulnerable, not around these people because the second you show your vulnerability, it's so much easy to be used and manipulated. But she can't help it. "She would be alive but they just....called Arkham good enough." Sam pauses. "It's not fair." It's a choked whine that leaves her throat.

Sam gasps as tears start to flow down her cheeks, the tears burning a few of the cuts on her cheeks. Gar moves closer to her and he's hesitant at first because he doesn't know how she'll react but the only thing he knows how to maybe help is to hug her. So, he pulls her into him and wraps his arms around her tightly. Sam stiffens for a second and it stops her crying. She hasn't been hugged since the night her mom died. It's a weird feeling to have someone hug her but she'd be lying if it didn't feel comforting. And he's very warm and he smells like strawberries and that seems to be the most comforting.

Sam's favorite fruit is strawberries and every summer, her and her mom would make chocolate-covered strawberries. There isn't a time Sam can remember when they weren't completely stocked during the summer and it's something she cherishes now.  Gar smells like strawberries and that small little thing, is the most comforting thing in the world to Sam right now. So, she just caves into him, sobbing.

The thing about being held captive and tortured is that it's made Sam hard. Being captured and tortured changed a part of her. She was never so closed off and calloused, always a bit sarcastic and snarky but not like this. Being held stripped her away of the rawness of emotion. It's like it turned her into this fossilized version of herself. Hard and cold exterior that would just turn to dust if opened up. She is only a memory of the person she used to be, sitting here and crying to Gar is just the visual representation of who she was before the big bang. And it hurts, it is agonizing but something about the way he's just letting her cry into him feels cathartic. She is not in that basement anymore. Her wrists are free. She is free. And she can show all of her emotions without fear of repercussions from it. She is allowed to be scared and angry and sad and happy. She doesn't have to hide anymore.

"S-sorry." Sam pulls away, wiping her eye and wincing at the pain from the bruising of her right eye.

"It's okay." Gar assures her, still having his arms around her loosely. "I, uh, I get it." He looks away for a second, pulling his arms back as if realizing he doesn't need to hug her anymore. "My parents died, too."

Sam watches the normally cheery boy, square his jar and go distant with his stare. "I'm sorry." Sam sniffles. "What happened?"

Gar sucks in a breath, sitting back against the back of the couch. "Same mysterious disease I had but they didn't make it."

Sam nods, matching his position and tugging the sleeves over her hands. That explains part of how he ended here. He really doesn't have anyone, just like her. "I'm really sorry. That sucks."

Gar nods. "Yeah, but, uh, it's okay because I'm here and this is a family. It's not the same but," Gar tilts his head back and forth a few times, looking for the words. "It's really nice if you give it a chance. Dick isn't out to get you or any of us."

"I didn't mean what I said." Sam says honestly. "I mean, I want the Joker dead, he's a fucking piece of shit sad excuse of a human but...I mean just about Dick. He's been nice."

Gar offers her a side smile. "Yeah, he's a cool dude." Gar chuckles softly. Gar jokes a little. Dick sometimes comes off as cold but Gar has kind of figured that's just what being raised by Bruce gets you. Jason is like that, too and Gar doesn't think it's a coincidence.

"Thank you." Sam gives him a sad and small smile. "You're like...a really nice person."

Gar huffs with a chuckle, looking away from her and all he can think is that someone has to be nice around here. Dick is sometimes...well a dick. Jason is an asshole. Rachel sometimes can be a little bit of a bitch to Dick and Jason, usually deserved but a bitch nonetheless. He has to be the nice one even if he wanted to get nasty. That would just cause more tension and Gar doesn't like tension.

"Thanks." Gar sighs, looking around her room. "Are you gonna decorate today?" He asks looking back to her, changing the subject and hoping to make her feel better.

She shrugs a shoulder. "I dunno. Not sure if Dick really wants to take me shopping after that." She laughs softly. "I don't know how I feel about it, anyway. Feels....really fucking weird."

"Yeah," Gar nods in agreement. "But he just wants you to have a space of your own, that's what he told Rachel and me when he took us. He'll give you a spending limit in."

"Is this Annie or something?"

Gar tilts his head back with a laugh. "Well, it's a hard 'nough life for us." Gar says with a smile.

Sam lets out a genuine laugh and it makes Gar's face light up. Her laugh is bubbly and loud, almost booming. It's a bit contagious actually and it makes Gar have a little bit of a sigh of relief. If she's laughing, there's hope for her, especially after that whole talk they just had. She's funny.

"You're funny, ya know?" Sam asks once her laughter calms down.

"Oh..." Gar shifts his sheet, feeling the heat rise to his cheeks. "You, uh, you think so?" He gains a cheesy and awkward smile making Sam giggle a little.

"Yeah! Of course, I do." She smiles sweetly at him.

"Hey, do you wanna play Xbox?" Gar asks, enthusiasm in his voice. He likes talking to her and she seems like she's doing better talking. Plus, video games are what Gar always uses to escape from all the shit, maybe it'll help her.

"I have literally never played Xbox in my life." Sam blinks at him before gaining a smirk.

"Excuse me?" Gar's eyes widen. Who's never played Xbox? He's certain it's the best gaming system to exist.

"Always a big fan of PlayStation." Sam laughs, finding his shocked expression funny. He does wear his emotions on his sleeve. "But...I guess I could make an exception for you." Sam gives him a corned grin, watching him shift again. Something about certain things she says makes him nervous and she kind of likes the bubbles that form in her stomach when it happens.

"Okay, okay." Gar stands up quickly, gesturing for her to follow his lead. "I'll change your mind."

Sam does as he directs. "You have a lot of confidence." Sam pats his shoulder.

Gar's eyes narrow slightly. "I...can't tell if you're being serious."

Sam laughs once more. "Eh, half and half." She shrugs a shoulder.

"Right." Gar nods, keeping his eyes narrow but there's a smile tugging at his lips. "Come on." He nods his head in the direction of the door, reaching for her hand and she takes it without hesitation. He leads Sam to his room.

The day goes by, Dick looking for Sam, he finds her with Gar in his room a few hours later. They had left the door open so it wasn't too hard to find them. They were both yelling, very excitedly at the TV and when Dick found them, they were plopped in two chairs beside each other, a control in each hand. They were laughing and Dick never would have known Sam was new to the tower by how comfortable she looked and it gave him some hope. There's some type of hope for her. No one is ever just some lost cause. Dick hated to break it up but Jason and Rachel were already waiting for Gar in the training room.

While the other teens trained, Dick and Sam went on their shopping run. Dick took her to a few stores to pick out a few outfits, pajamas, training clothes, and just a few things for her room. It was weird for Sam to just be out in the open, shopping as if she wasn't just held captive the day before. But, something about Dick did feel safe. Maybe it was the fact he was Robin. He might have helped the Joker stay alive by simply not killing him, but he did put him away several times. And, now Sam has somewhere to run to if Jerry happens to show up.

But that's not all. It was just bizarre to have this stranger buy her things. She was never one that really liked accepting things from people like this. Presents, sure. Everyone likes presents but this just felt like charity and it took everything in her to refrain from snarky comments the whole time. But she did it and she had a good time. They got some take out and Sam got to actually have a burger. Dick didn't ask about how much she lit up at the thought of a burger and fries for lunch, he already had an idea why. He figured maybe it'd be better to leave all of that alone and just have a few hours to let her just be.

"So," Dick asks as he drives them back to the tower.

"So." Sam states, looking over at him. He just has this look like he wants to ask questions. "Okay." She sighs. "Ask the question you want and I will not give you a bullshit answer."

Dick chuckles. "Alright," He nods. "How much control do you have of your powers?"

Sam looks ahead of them as their light turns red. "This much." Sam opens the palms of her hands, the palms turning green. Then, she closes them, the green fading. She does this a few times with ease, ending with spirit fingers, her hands glowing a neon green. "Why?"

Dick's brows are furrowed. "Just curious, how do you do that?" He pauses. "What about the mug this morning?"

"Control or the whole acid thing?" Sam shrugs, looking in front of her. "And apparently, my mom and the Joker are major triggers, learn something new every day, I guess."

"Understandable. And both, I guess."

"Uh...control well. I was traumatized." Sam scoffs. "Control is easy when you're in a life or death situation. I mean...like learning it. Don't have a fucking choice if you wanna live. The acid though, uh-huh." She shrugs. "I think about it I guess and then it just happens."

Sam remembers when she found out she could produce acid. She was mad at Jerry for injecting her and then getting mad at her for it. It was about seven months after living with him and at that point, Sam was just so sick and tired of it all. All she wanted was to rip Jerry's throat out with her bare hands. And then, her hands starting glowing, acid leaking from her palms. It was a shock, for sure, but it was a bigger shock that Jerry didn't realize the chemical burn on the floor was from her. He just thought he spilled something and hadn't noticed it prior. Sam considered some kind of weird luck. From there, it was just making sure it never happened in front of him.

Dick hums to himself. "Think you could try and show Rachel how you control it?"

"Uh...sure?" Sam questions him. "Isn't that like...your job, Bat Boy?"

"I don't have powers like you guys." Dick states, the light turning green. "Rachel's powers are just really strong and she's had a lot happen recently."

"I have heard." Sam sighs. "I mean...I can try." There's a sense of empowerment Sam feels with Dick asking for help with Rachel. He trusts her, at least a little bit which is kind of nice. "I-it's just...I-I melted a mug today. I don't have that much control, apparently."

He nods with understanding. "You have enough to help."

"Well, alright then. Does that mean I get to learn to fight?" Sam gives him a hopeful smile.

"How are you feeling?"

"Great." Sam gives him a thumbs-up even though he's watching the road.

"Are you lying?"

"Yes, yes I am." Sam laughs softly. "Uh....my face is still pretty sore. Arms and legs still feel a bit weak...." Her eyes go distant as she stares in front of her, flashbacks of the torture clouding her vision and the endless cycle of either not being given food or given the bare minimum.

"You need to get better first." Dick states, his voice unwavering.

"Shouldn't I still be preparing though? Like...I don't know. Small stuff."

"Not yet."

Sam sighs but doesn't fight him. Jason owes her one for the bet. If Dick doesn't think she's strong enough to at least learn something, she'll just ask him. He doesn't seem like one to follow the rules anyway. It's just a precaution, to protect herself, just in case.

When they get back to the tower, Dick helps Sam bring her stuff to her room. It's not a lot by any means, just some clothes, a few vinyls, and some art for her walls. Dick leaves Sam to herself and Sam looks around her room, gaining a genuine, happy smile. This is her space to make hers so she gets to work. She digs out a Flyleaf vinyl from one of the bags and puts it on the record player that was already in her room. She turns it up as loud as it will go, the sound of music feeling almost riveting. Another thing she's missed more than she actually realized and then she starts getting her room together.

A few hours go by and Sam's room is coming along. She's moved a few things around and got her posters hung up. It doesn't feel quite like home yet but Dick said if she stays, they can get more stuff to make it more hers later. So, this is a start and it fills her chest with a sense of warmth as she looks around until there's a knock on her door. She turns the music down before opening the door and she's met by Gar in a green pullover and black joggers.

Gar's eyes glance behind her and then back to her. "Hey, uh." He scratches the back of his neck. "We do movie night in the living room sometimes, did you wanna join? Rachel and Jason are in there now."

"Uh..." Sam stutters. They do movie nights? Is this really some found family shit? The way everyone talks about Jason she finds it a little hard to believe he'd actually part-take in any group activity that didn't involve punching each other. But she doesn't have anything to lose. If she wants to stay, that also involves effort from her and Gar will be there. "Sure." Sam gives a soft smile before walking over to her bed and grabbing Gar's hoodie. "Thanks." She hands it back to him and he gives her a closed smile, raising the fabric to say she's welcome.

"Anytime." Gar smiles, jerking his head towards the living room. "I'm gonna put this away, meet you in here?"

"Okay." Sam says with ease before turning on her heels, heading down the hallway and Gar can't help but watch her with a goofy smile.

She just has on black sweatpants and a pink hoodie but she looks comfortable and she didn't look annoyed when she opened the door. That seems to be her general state of mind, annoyed. From what Gar has seen. Of course, she's loosened up when he's talked to her but she always looks very annoyed beforehand.

Sam walks into the living room seeing Rachel all the way to the left and Jason sitting all the way to the right, facing the fireplace. They truly could not be any more apart, eyes on the TV that's mounted above the fireplace and Sam finds it a little comedic. They must really hate each other. So, Sam takes a seat by Jason, mostly because she thinks it's funny to bug him and she could just tell sitting by him would irritate him. Plus, that leaves room for Gar to sit on the other side between her and Rachel.

"Can I fucking help you?" Jason snarks as he looks to Sam.

"What're we watching?" She asks, an innocent smile pulling at her lips.

"It's Jason's turn so probably something gory." Rachel remarks with wide eyes laced with annoyance.

Jason turns to face Sam, which moves a little too close to her. His eyes look her up and down, just once before landing on her eyes. "Don't worry, if you get scared, I'll protect you."

Rachel nearly rolls her eyes into the back of her head with Jason's comment, fake gagging while Sam sits with her mouth slightly ajar, nose scrunched and forehead wrinkled. She sits somewhere between appalled and grossed out. This kid surely has never dated a single human. There's just no fucking way with the lines he pulls. But Sam shuts her eyes for a second, choosing to not even play into that game. Instead, she's gonna play her own.

"What movies were you thinking?" Sam asks, matching Jason's position, knee bent and flat on the couch, Sam facing him as their knees touch.

Jason gains a smirk in just the left corner of his mouth. "We could watch Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Hostel, or Saw IV."

His stare is directly at Sam and it's a taunt. But Sam finds it funny, not even bothered by the distaste of his comment, in fact, he plays into her hand. He thinks she needs protecting from a horror movie and that of all people here, she'd go to him? When Gar is right there?

"Texas is a classic, assuming you don't mean the shitty ass remake from 2003. Hostel's alright if you're into Eli Roth. Saw series has always been good gore. Never quite cross that line into torture porn." Sam smiles at him, it's a sweet smile while she leans her elbow on the back of the couch and Rachel sits behind her completely entertained. All she can think is that they needed someone who can match Jason's energy.

Jason's face softens, just for a split second. Her response caught him off guard and he was so sure she'd be against watching any of those. He thought maybe he'd get a rise out of her for suggesting them or offering to protect her or maybe get something better than that out of it. But all he got was whatever that was. It was his turn and those were the three he was considering but Gar and Rachel don't really like the movies. He assumed she wouldn't either, especially if what they found on the computer the night before means what they think it means.

Gar comes in a few seconds later, seeing Sam and Jason facing each other in a way that almost seems like some weird face-off staring contest at this point. He glances at Rachel who shrugs but she has a smirk that's begging to be broken into a laugh. Just a tint of burning coats Gar's stomach as he sees the two of them and he knows what it is but he pushes it down. He shakes his head and walks up to them.

"Everything okay?" He asks, his voice cautious as he looks between the two of them before sitting on the opposite side of Sam.

"Fine," Jason mumbles, finally breaking the stare and sitting normally on the couch before grabbing the remote. "Saw it is."

"Ugh, why do you always pick gory movies, dude?" Gar groans, tilting his head back.

"Don't like gore?" Sam asks with a laugh.

"You do?!" Gar's head shoots back up, a grimace on his face. He doesn't mind it in older films, the effects weren't great then. But the newer ones tend to turn his stomach. Horror is great, but gore? Not Gar's favorite.

"Yeah, of course. They're fun." Sam shrugs, switching to sit forward, pulling her legs up under her and Gar keeps the grimace on his face. "What?"

"He doesn't know why anyone wants to volunteer to watch." Rachel snickers.

"Because you can shut the movie off whenever you get too scared and the effects are cool." Sam shrugs and it makes Gar give her a shy smile. "I can hold your hand if you want?" If she said it to Jason, it would have been sarcastic and rude but with Gar, it was a genuine and sincere offer.

Gar's cheeks burn with the offer and his stomach flips, unlike Sam and Rachel, he didn't find the offer a bit cringey or lame. Sam's smile is gentle and sweet like honey until she realizes that she just pulled what Jason did and it seems she realizes it the same time Jason does.

"Did you just take my fucking line?" Jason scoffs.

"No, yours was weird, mine was nice." Sam retorts, internally kicking herself for it.

"It's okay." Gar whispers, shifting in his seat a little. He was never really good about things that might be flirting or not flirting and just being nice. "Thanks."

"You're welcome." Sam smiles softly at him, her heart sinking a little.

"Okay, turn on the movie." Rachel looks between the three of them, not sure what the hell is going on there and not even wanting to know.

Jason turns the movie on without any further argument. The teens settle into their spots as the movie starts to play and despite the fact Sam has been at the tower for just over twenty-four hours now, she's feeling pretty comfortable around them. The three of them make it easy. None of them feel threatening, even with two of them having powers. They don't feel "special" as Dick put it. All three of them just feel normal and normalcy is something Sam has craved for two years.

And then there's Gar who can't keep his eyes on the moving, partially because he finds the gore a bit nauseating but also because he can feel Sam glance at him every now and then. He can't tell if the glances are because he doesn't like the movie so maybe she's checking on him which is a strange thought, that's kind of his job. Or maybe it's because he's sitting too close to her, he doesn't feel like he is. When Gar looks over, it looks like he's sitting just as far away as Jason is so maybe that isn't it. The one thing he does know is that he doesn't mind her glancing at him.

The lack of sleep for Sam, however, is definitely catching up to her. Her eyes are weighed down, heart rate is slowing down and she just feels like maybe she could rest her eyes for a few minutes. Saw IV isn't even one of her favorite Saw movies, she won't miss much. And the next thing Gar knows, Sam's head falls onto his shoulder. He straightens his back quickly when it happens, catching him off guard but then he looks at her, asleep and he doesn't have the heart to wake her up. A caring small comes to Gar's lips as he looks back to the TV and he kind of likes her head on his shoulder. Maybe it means she trusts him and after everything, he can only imagine what she's been through, that's kind of a big deal on day two.