"Lian, Con Ơi, you look more beautiful every time I see you," Paula noted with a grin as they ate Bun cha. "Just like Jade."

Lian smiled back at her grandmother, but it didn't last long. It melted off her face as quick as it had come, and she busied herself by swirling the rice noodles around her plate. Paula didn't notice, but her dad did. He rested a hand atop her head, smoothing down her hair. "I like to think she gets the beauty from me. She has my hair."

"Barely," Artemis said with a smirk. "Save for the color, the hair is all Jade's. Wild and everything," she teased. Paula and Will laughed while Lian slumped in her seat.

Every time she saw her grandmother, it was the same conversation. Tears would come to Paula's eyes as she gushed over her eldest grandchild, always making a point to mention how much she looked like her absent mother. When she was younger, Lian treasured the compliment. Back then, her dad kept her mother's memory as active in her life as he could. He would tell her anything she wanted to know about Jade, they drew pictures for her. Every night as he'd put her to bed, he'd tell her how much Jade loved her, and missed her.

Back then, Lian had believed him.

Her mother didn't show up for any of her birthdays, but presents did. She didn't attend parent-teacher conferences, or rub her back when she was up all night with a stomach bug. Lian remembered the days where she missed her mother so much it would hurt. Days where she'd lost it and cried into her father's shoulder, begging him to tell her to come home, that she wanted her. Her dad could do nothing but hold her tight, saying she'd be home soon.

It had been years since she cried about her mother. Lian couldn't remember her if she tried. Her dad claimed that Jade had left when she was two, but it never helped. All she had to go by was a handful of pictures and a letter that came on her birthday. It was never enough.

"Where is she?" Lian blurted before she could stop herself.

The smile on Artemis' face transformed into a look of unease. Will cleared his throat before resuming to eat. "You know where she is, Lian. We've talked about it."

Lian pouted. "'Away on a mission' isn't a location. And what kind of mission takes six years?"

"Six already?" Artemis muttered. Will narrowed his eyes at her until she resumed eating.

"We can talk about this later, right now you're being a little rude to your Bà ngoại," Will pointed out, nodding to Paula who shook her head.

"If she wants to talk about Jade, we can. It isn't a problem, Will," she said, giving her only granddaughter a smile and squeezing her hand.

"Not at the dinner table," he insisted. "Could you pass the chili oil?"

"Why?" Artemis scoffed, holding the jar just out of reach. "We both know you have the spice tolerance of a toddler."

"Artemis," Paula warned before she grinned. "If he wants to choke on his food, we have to let him."

Lian did her best to keep from giggling, but she couldn't. She suppressed it quick as Will rolled his eyes and reached over, snatching the jar out of Artemis' hands. "Laugh all you want, but I like the heat. And Paula, I expected better out of you," he chided.

"Jade had to get it from somewhere, didn't she?" Paula said, winking at Lian before sipping from her glass of water. Lian dimmed again at the mention of her mother, which wiped the smile off Will's face. Before she could push her food away, her dad took her hand, squeezing tight. She glanced up at him, recognizing the apology in his eyes.

For now, she'd take it.

"Your birthday's next week."

Lian looked up from her cereal when her dad spoke, grinning a bit. "Yeah, it is. You remembered this year," she teased.

Will waved his spatula at her. "That was one time, Li. Are you ever going to let that go?"

"Nope," Lian chirped, shoveling another spoonful of Lucky Charms into her mouth. Two days before her seventh birthday, he'd been called in for a league emergency. Lian had been deposited into her aunt's care, and he hadn't made it until the day after. She wasn't really angry at her dad, she just liked to tease him every year.

"Your prerogative, I guess. I made up for it, didn't I?" he muttered as he flipped over his omelet.

"Mhm," Lian said with a mouthful of rainbow marshmallows. Once she swallowed, she pushed forward her near-empty bowl and puffed her chest with pride. "Still got the bow and arrows to prove it."

Will turned off the stove and poured his omelet out on a plate before sitting across from Lian. She stuck her tongue out at him before finishing off her orange juice. They sat in silence for a couple of minutes before her dad stopped eating and folded his hands on top of the table. "I got a call last night. From your mother."

Lian's eyes widened a bit, just like they did every time her mother called. Her calls were rare, only coming every few months or so. Jade usually called late, but her dad never missed a call. He would always tell Lian the details over breakfast.

"What did she say?" Lian asked, sitting on her knees and messing with a lock of hair that had fallen by her waist.

"The usual," Will said, scratching his beard. "And something… not the usual. She wants to come, for your birthday." Lian was sure she'd misheard him. When she was younger, Jade would promise to come as soon as she could. She never did.

"Right. She wants to come, but she can't. Something came up," Lian sighed, using the same excuse her father would tell her every time.

"Not this time, Li. She booked her ticket and everything. Told me she has a suitcase full of presents for you." The frown on Lian's face began transforming into a smile. Will did his best to keep his composure, but even she could tell he was excited. This was actually happening.

"You're serious?"

"I'd never joke about this, Sweetheart." Her dad reached out and cupped her face, squeezing gently. "She's coming."

"You're sure she's coming?" Lian asked for the sixth time that week. Will shot her a warning look from putting away Harry Potter on her bookshelf. She relented and flopped back onto her pillows, grinning ear to ear. "Sorry, sorry. I'm just…"

"Excited?" Will asked with a knowing grin.

"Yeah," Lian said. She pulled her cheshire cat into her arms and squeezed it tight. It had been a present for her third birthday, the first one spent without her mother. It was surreal to think that tomorrow, she'd finally be seeing her.

"Well, hone that in," her dad warned, sitting on the edge of her mattress. "Save some of it for when you actually see her."

"I know, I know. I just can't help it!"

"Well, you'll have to. She won't be here until tomorrow."

"On my birthday," Lian emphasized.

"Right, on your birthday. Your ninth birthday," he sighed, running a hand through his hair. "You grew up way too fast, Kiddo. You gotta cut it out."

"No can do, Mister." Will chuckled and kissed her forehead, pulling up the covers to tuck her in. Lian stopped him, grabbing his arm. "Not yet, please," she begged. "I'm not tired."

"It's past your bedtime."

"I'm too excited to sleep. I'm finally gonna see Mama." Her dad softened as she spoke, unable to argue with that logic. Not when it was true. "Will you tell me about her?"

Will shook his head, looking to the clock. "It's late, and you have school."

Lian pouted, using the special one she only reserved for when she really wanted something. "Please, Daddy?"

"Oh, so now I'm Daddy," he sighed. She'd outgrown calling him 'Daddy' a little while ago. Now she only used it when she really wanted to butter him up. Lian thought he'd turn her down, but to her surprise and utter delight, he got comfortable beside her. "Just this once. What do you want to know?"

"What don't I want to know?" Lian countered. "We never talk about her."

"Fair enough." Will hummed to himself before looking up to the ceiling. "She's funny. Like your Bà ngoại and Artemis. Maybe even more so," he began.

"So that's where I get it from."

Her dad raised a brow. "Hey, I'm plenty funny. You laugh at all my jokes."

"Sure, Dad. Go on, tell me more," Lian insisted.

"Fine, but I'll remember that. Let's see… oh, she can kick my ass. Really, really badly," Will admitted as Lian giggled. "And she's an awful cook. Seriously. When she lived here, I had to do all the cooking. Everything she cooks either tastes like cardboard, or is burnt to a crisp."

"I can cook," Lian said, toying with the tail of her cheshire plush.

"Good thing you got that from me," Will teased before he looked at his daughter. "She's beautiful, you know. I know everyone's said it before, but you really do look just like her. More and more as you get older," he said quietly, stroking her hair for a brief moment.

For once, Lian didn't feel bitter at the compliment. "You really think so?"

"Have you seen a picture of her, Li? It's like a mirror image. Besides, I know so. Would I ever lie to you?"

"You lied about finishing my Thin Mints two weeks ago."

"Hey," Will defended, holding up his hands. "As your dad, it is my God-given right to finish your Girl Scout cookies if you haven't touched them in months."

Lian scoffed. "I was saving them!"

"Months, Lian. Months," he emphasized before he tickled her. "Alright, now it's really bedtime. You can talk Jade's ear off tomorrow, she'll tell you everything." Lian didn't protest as he got up and tucked her in again. He kissed her forehead and she his cheek before he got up to turn the lights off.

"Daddy?"

Will paused by the door, hand on the knob. "Hm?"

"Do you think she missed me?" she asked, voice hardly above a squeak.

"More than anything, Lian. That I can promise you."

School had never been so nightmarishly long.

Lian had to keep from bouncing in her seat, but the day was taking forever. Her morning had started with her usual birthday breakfast, strawberry pancakes with lots of whipped cream and Nutella. Before she'd left for school, she'd already gotten six phone calls from all her various aunts and uncles. Normally, this would be enough to start off her birthday, but it all seemed like petty change compared to what was to come.

According to her dad, her mom's flight was landing at five. He would be taking a half day at work so he could cook a special birthday dinner before going to pick her up from the airport. Lian just couldn't believe that when she finally returned home today, she'd see her mother. It was agony to sit in class, to take a spelling test, even practice her roundhouse kicks when today was finally the day.

She couldn't contain her excitement when she met her dad in the waiting area of the Karate studio. Will had made it in time to watch her win a sparring match, and she was radiating with adrenaline when she ran up to him. "Dad!" she exclaimed, hugging him around the middle. "Did you see me win?"

"I did," he said, kissing her head. "You crushed it."

"Why didn't you bring Mama?" she asked, craning her neck in case she missed her. "Or are we meeting her at home?"

"Lian, Baby," her dad began, his brow furrowing. Lian knew what that meant before he said it.

"She didn't come," she finished, her excitement washing away. "Mama didn't come."

"No, she didn't. Something came up," he said, smoothing her bangs away from her face. "She says she's sorry."

"She's always sorry."

Will sighed and picked her backpack up for her. "I'm sorry, too. I know how much you were looking forward to it."

Lian didn't answer. What could she say? Her mom visiting was too good to be true. Instead of answering, she followed him into the car, trying her best to wipe away the tears as she stared out the window on the ride home.

"Did your dad say why?" Amistad asked, popping a Cheeto into his mouth. Lian sighed, shaking her head. When her mood hadn't picked up after a week, her dad enforced a mandatory playdate at their house. He'd gone to deal with a problem at Bowhunter and promised to bring back a pizza, so for the meantime they were alone.

Lian shrugged, pulling her knees to her chest and leaning her chin on top. "Just the same excuse. Something came up."

"What came up that's more important than your birthday?" Jennifer asked with a scoff. "Rude, if you ask me." Anissa nudged her younger sister in the ribs. "What she means to say is that we're sorry."

"Maybe she's on a mission," Dawn suggested, twirling a pigtail around her finger. Don nodded, stealing the Cheeto bag from Amistad and pulling out a handful. "Yeah, maybe it was a really good reason."

"She's been on a mission for almost seven years," Lian muttered.

"That's a good reason, then," Anissa said, squeezing her shoulder. "Is it top-secret?"

"I guess. My dad doesn't tell me anything about what she does," she said glumly.

Amistad licked his fingers free of Cheeto dust. "Why don't you find out?" When all he received was a confused look from the redhead, he rolled his eyes. "Look her up in the Justice League system. Duh."

"And how are we gonna do that, genius?" Jennifer asked, hands on her hips. "Do you see a database around here anywhere?"

"Will's laptop is in the kitchen," he answered as if it were the most obvious thing.

Lian glared at him. "Are you crazy? I can't hack my dad's laptop."

"No, but Jennifer can."

All eyes shifted onto Jennifer Pierce. She shook her head. "Uh uh. No way. I am not risking my butt just because you all want to break some rules."

Anissa frowned. "I'll tell Mom it was you who broke her favorite mug."

"Go ahead," Jennifer said, her lips curling up in amusement.

"I'll give you two cookies!" Dawn offered. "Three and a half!" Don followed up.

"Nope."

Lian scooted closer to her, taking her hand. "Please?" she asked. "Dad's not even here, he'll never know. I just want to know who my mom is. A quick look, that's all, and then we'll close it and never bring it up again. I promise," she swore, holding out her pinky.

The older girl looked it over before linking hers and sighing in defeat. "Fine. But just two minutes, and not a second more. Got it?" she warned. When everyone nodded in agreement, she lead them out to the kitchen, firing up Will's laptop. They all watched with bated breath as she cracked his passcode and began hacking her way into the Justice League system.

"How's you learn to do this?" Anissa asked in utter fascination.

"Oracle. She taught a crash course."

"How come Oracle's never taught me?" Lian asked.

"Because I'm older and I got an A in computer science," Jennifer boasted, clacking a few more keys before grinning. "Ha, we're in. She was right, that was way too easy. What's your mom's name so I can pull her up?"

"Jade. Jade Nguyen."

Jennifer typed away before entering the name into the database. Not even a minute later did her pictures and information pop up. All the kids fell silent, trying to piece together what they were seeing. Lian's stomach twisted in knots, staring at Cheshire's mask.

"You must have spelled it wrong," Amistad said. "Lian's mom can't be Cheshire."

Lian couldn't tear her eyes away from the pictures. The one where she was unmasked, that was her. She couldn't deny it even if she wanted to. The woman in the pictures, Cheshire, was the same beautiful woman that everyone compared her to. The same one who left them, who broke every one of her promises because she would rather be a villain. Her stomach twisted in knots and she felt sick.

"Close it," she demanded. "Now. It can't be her," she said, more for their sake than for hers. The others nodded and offered words of sympathy, of reassurance, but it didn't remove the bile from her throat. She knew the truth.

Lian couldn't look at her dad when he came home with the pizza. Luckily, he'd been too wrapped up in a business matter to notice. Something had gone wrong with a potential client; once her friends had gone home, he spent most of the evening on the phone trying to work things out.

While he did that, Lian sat on her bed, glaring at a picture of her mother. She hadn't touched the pizza, too sick to her stomach to even try. She was trying to wrap her head around the whole thing, but she couldn't. Her mom wasn't a hero, and she wasn't on a mission. She'd left them because she worked for the League of Shadows. Her mom was a villain.

It was a lot to come to terms with in the mind of a nine year old.

She wanted to tear the picture in half, to burn it. Rage bubbled inside her and she wanted to scream. People knew. Everyone knew, her whole family knew! But they all just pretended everything was okay and even had the audacity to say she looked like her. Lian could taste the bitterness on her tongue. She was nothing like her.

Before she could think twice, she chucked the picture to the side and went to her desk, grabbing her scissors. Lian stood in front of her mirror, glowering at the reflection that greeted her. Beautiful, her grandmother would call her. Just like Jade. Everyone always said she looked just like Jade. Tears welled in her eyes as it repeated over and over again in her head. Same hair, same eyes, same smile, everything was her mother and Lian didn't want it. She didn't want to be like her. She didn't want to be beautiful if it meant she would look like her.

In desperation she grabbed a large hunk of her waist-length hair, chopping it with reckless abandon. Tears streaked down her cheeks as she kept hacking it, trying to rid herself of the one thing she could. Lian couldn't change her face, her eyes, her mouth, but she could change this. If cutting her hair made her less beautiful, less like her mother, so be it. The reflection got worse the more she cut, and she kept grabbing more and more until she no longer resembled her mother's mirror image.

A knock came at her door and she jumped, scissors and a chunk of her hair still in hand.

"Lian, I finished my call. Do you want some ice cream?"

"No. Go away," she growled, tossing both the scissors and her hair to the floor, panting hard and trying not to break down into sobs.

The door opened, and Lian turned in time to see her father frozen in shock. They stood in silence for a few moments, his eyes looking between her to the hair and the scissors on the floor. She could see the gears working in his head, his anger building until he finally narrowed his eyes. "Lian Nguyen-Harper, what on earth have you done?"

"I cut my hair."

"Great, now what we've gotten the obvious out of the way, will you tell me what on earth was going through your head as to why?" Will demanded.

Lian glared right back at him. "I didn't want to look like her anymore."

"Like who? Your mother?"

"Like Cheshire." Her father's face immediately fell, and Lian took a step forward. "Were you ever planning on telling me? My mother is not on a mission, and she didn't leave because she had to. She left because she's a Shadow."

"Lian," Will warned. "Who told you?"

"What does it matter?" she almost laughed. "It's true , isn't it?" Lian watched as Will struggled for the right words to say, unable to come up with anything. He gave up and crouched down to her level.

"It's true. Your mother is Cheshire. We were going to tell you when you were older." Will tried to touch her hair but Lian quickly stepped away.

"Who's 'we'? I haven't talked to her in years. I know the truth now, Dad. You don't have to keep the game up anymore. She doesn't love me, or you, and she's never coming home."

"That's not true," he swore. "She loves you, Lian. The fact that she is who she is doesn't change that."

"No!" Lian insisted. "Don't you dare. She doesn't love me, she doesn't love anyone." She paused, angrily swiping away a few tears that rolled down her cheeks. "Why is it fair that I have to look like her? Why do I keep having to be reminded of the mom I'll never have, when all she cares about is hurting people? Why do I have to remember that she doesn't love me?"

"Oh, Lian… Lian, Honey-"

"No," she said, stepping away from him when he tried to comfort her. "You knew, and you lied to me."

Will pulled back his hand and straightened up. "I was trying to protect you. I know you're upset right now. I know that there's nothing I could say to make anything better for you. So I won't, not tonight. You can be angry tonight. Tomorrow, we'll talk. Okay?" he asked.

Lian sniffled before she nodded. Will watched her for a minute before resting a hand on her head. "I love you, Lian. Whatever you tell yourself tonight, let that be part of it," he said before he left her room. She didn't watch him go. Instead she sank to the floor, grasping at the remains of her hair.

She didn't know what she could believe anymore.