Ariana Dzerchenko is the daughter of an ex-patriot member of the former Soviet Union. Having migrated to the U.S. her family started a new life as restarauteurs, until the Russian mob started to press Ari's dad for aid in a counterfeiting operation (for more details on this, see the section of Robin's bio in regards to the third miniseries "Cry of the Huntress").

Ari and Tim became fast friends, and quite speedily became more than friends. From there, their relationship, like all relationships, had its ups and downs. Tim wasn't necessarily the most attentive, or even conscious, boyfriend, and Ari was prone to quite a few bouts of teenaged jealousy. Angry at Tim, she's cheated on him twice (one of which ended with her near date rape), dyed her hair blonde in response to seeing him take notice of Stephanie Brown and becoming jealous of her, and perhaps the hardest hurdle of all -- needing to find a way to make Tim committed to her, she throws herself on him, in hopes that sex will make them a strong couple, only to be caught by her uncle (whom she lives with since her father's death) soon after Tim himself refuses to go that far yet. Ari's plan here backfired to the Nth degree in that it did everything BUT make them a closer couple. Ari's uncle transferred her to a different school, and the strain eventually proved too much for the two, who to this day are only friends.