Pairing: Martian Manhunter/Superboy (a spin on Supermartian)
Disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice
Warnings: There be slash in these parts! (There is nothing graphic, not even kissing). I'm making Conner physiologically 18 in this fic. He is an adult :p
Conner shifted slowly in his bed, not disturbing his partner. He carefully slid over his lover, focusing his super-hearing on his own movements to avoid making loud, sudden noises. Conner sat at the bed's edge, not covered by the Superman logo-adorned bed sheets and no longer entranced by the warmth of his lover's body.
His lover was a different hero than Superman, perhaps a better hero, who deserved to be idolized. That fact defined Conner's new life, but still astounded him.
Everything had been confusing to Conner. After leaving Cadmus, every taste and touch no matter how revolting or uncomfortable still felt enticing. Living in the real world without having to learn it from the memories and knowledge the G-Gnomes provided was thrilling – experiencing it mattered more to him than Superman's approval, especially now.
Despite how wrong and disgusting new experiences could be, Conner pursued them. Maybe that was what had led him to his current situation: basking in the warm, fuzzy glow of feelings that the Martian Manhunter sparked within him. Lust wasn't always a morally right feeling, but it was alluringly new to him.
J'onn was 135 in Martian years, dwarfing the clone's actual age of two, but the physiological age of 18. Superboy knew that such an age difference, even if the Martian was only 45 in human years, was looked down upon by modern culture. It would never find approval from the Justice League. It might have been approved of in ancient warrior cultures, but the Justice League were shoddy in comparison in terms of valor and morals.
J'onn stirred in his sleep, unconsciously grasping the sheets in search of Superboy's missing body heat. Conner turned his head towards the Martian, slowly grinning. J'onn had become more than what a lover had been defined by the G-Gnomes as. The Martian Manhunter was both a father figure and a lover, a friend and a mentor. The alien defined Superboy; helped nurturing, dominating, and caring for him beyond what the other Young Justice team could ever do.
Their relationship was wrong by modern human standards, but Superboy took comfort in their alien heritages. They were above human concerns. If Conner had wanted to follow human norms, he would have dated J'onn's niece.
"Conner…" J'onn mumbled in a husky, alluring voice that sounded soothing to Conner's super-hearing.
But Megan was everything J'onn was not. J'onn was calm, yet tactile and cunning. Megan's voice was shrill and obnoxious. Conner didn't respect her beyond being cordial towards a fellow team member. Megan would mature with age and maybe someday become like J'onn, but something in Conner could still not be interested in her. Megan did not inspire primal lust.
"Come back to bed," J'onn turned his head to the side, looking at Conner. Conner smiled, repositioning himself so that he was wrapped within the embrace of the Martian, hearing the comforting sound of his heartbeat as he fell to sleep.
Black Canary had unknowingly started their relationship, undoing a thread in the Justice League that might unravel the organization…
Dinah became a mother figure to Conner, training him and roping him into interactions with her on-again/off-again boyfriend the Green Arrow and his former sidekick Red Arrow. It started as an attempt to bring the two Arrows closer together and give Conner a chance to experience a semi-family, but had became a constant in the clone's life. The four acted like a family even when Dinah was not dating Ollie. Red Arrow had stopped pitying the clone and began enjoying teaching him how to live and experience the life of a typical human teenager. Roy Harper grew into liking being an older brother.
But that family life was ultimately unfulfilling for the clone – he still felt something missing. Green Arrow was human, not even a meta-human who could somewhat sympathize with Conner's powers. Conner craved interaction with those who could match him in terms of powers, which Dinah sensed and accepted. Acting like a human teenager was interesting, but left the clone dreaming of more.
Dinah had been the one to contact the Martian Manhunter, reckoning their shared powerful abilities and alien backgrounds could make the two have a better mentor/student relationship than she could provide. She could train, toughen, and push the clone in combat far beyond Superman's training, but she belonged to the human world that Conner, in his awkwardness, had not entered.
She had not known of the Martian Manhunter's interest in both men and women, nor of his budding desire for her son. She still did not know, but Conner expected her to grudgingly accept it and defend him if she would ever find out. Green Arrow already led a morally questionable life with his string of women before Dinah and Roy would probably grab his arrows and use it as an excuse to get revenge on the Justice League.
Only one superhero had the capabilities to discover J'onn and Conner's romance: Batman. As long as Conner could fool the Boy Wonder and J'onn could read and erase Batman's thoughts and memories, the couple felt secure in their relationship.
Although they were secure, their relationship still felt passionate, raw, and overpowering. J'onn saw the clone as endearing and innocently beautiful, deepened by the forbidden lust and power he felt over him. Conner felt accepted and ensnared by a Martian, who he respected, longed for, and inspired to be like.
Superman brought their relationship crashing down by finally taking an interest in his clone's life. Conner had once craved the Man of Steel's attention and used it to define his existence, but it felt annoying. Conner was still not in control of his temper like J'onn was – Superman needed to leave his life and return to his pattern of ignoring Conner unless he wanted to truly test Conner's hardened mentality and extensive training.
Conner's protectiveness for his Young Justice friends was nothing compared to feelings for J'onn.
AN: This is more summary for an intro chapter than I usually write, but should I detail more about Conner's interactions with his family (Black Canary, Green Arrow, Red Arrow)? I was thinking about only writing about them when they're involved in the actual plot and not try to write any flashbacks, but there will be flashbacks for how J'onn first started "training" Conner.