Note: All characters are the property of Warner Bros and DC Comics. Thanks to Obsessivebookdiva for betareading this. Oh, one other thing… any other material referenced here is copywritten to Disney, Pixar and Nickelodeon.

April 22nd-5:30pm, Eastern Time

For almost a week, it had been raining heavily in the city of Metropolis. On most days like this, everyone tried to stay indoors. Normally the weather around this time of year was pleasant, but for the most part there had been scattered thunderstorms and several inches of rain. As he headed back to H.Q., Impulse took a shortcut down a side street not far from Bibbo's diner. Before he took another step further, it started to rain again. Impulse groaned as he looked up at the sky.

"Great, looks like I'll have to wash my hair… again." He muttered.

The young hero was quickly alerted by a noise.

"Huh?"

He walked up to a bus stop bench and spotted someone sitting there.

The two yelled in fear when they made eye contact.

"Hey!" Impulse exclaimed, stepping back.

"Wait a second… I remember you, you're that kid." Said a female voice.

"Folks call me Impulse…" he corrected her.

It didn't take him long to recognize the person in front of him was the Scientist that worked for the Reach.

"Say, you don't look so good. Ya need help?" he asked.

"I'm fine," the Scientist replied. She held her hand on her side as if in pain.

"You sure?" Impulse said, raising an eyebrow.

"Save your pity, I just need some rest." she insisted.

"Oh please, I'm just trying to…" Impulse was cut off by her shouts.

"Get away from me!"

"Suit yourself," Impulse sighed. He knew he couldn't make her come with him.

He turned around when he heard her yelp in pain.

"You're hurt, why do you have to be so difficult?" he asked.

"Why do you want to help me?" the female Reach, answered.

Impulse shrugged his shoulders.

"Gee, I don't know. Maybe because it's my job? Superhero, remember? Look we can talk later, right now let's get out of this rain." He said.

"Yes," the Scientist agreed.

She stood up and grabbed her right side when she felt a sharp pain.

"Ooh, that's gotta hurt." Said Impulse noticing the rather large cut she was trying to cover up with her hand.

Just then, he had an idea.

"I know somebody who can take a look at that."

Later at the warehouse…

"Hey Bart, what took you so long?" Nightwing asked, when he saw the young hero walking up to him.

"Sorry, running in the rain is something you do not wanna do as a speedster." Impulse replied.

"I'll make a note of that," said Nightwing.

"Well, come on in and dry off." Batgirl told him.

She and Nightwing had been waiting outside and were glad that Bart was back since they were shorthanded.

"Listen guys, I have… an acquaintance who really needs some help. Is Black Canary in?" Impulse asked.

"Nope, but she and Green Arrow will be back in a while. I think they went to track down Roy." Batgirl answered.

"Oh, that's crash… hang on…" said Impulse, he looked away for a moment.

"It's ok, you can come in."

"And just who is this new friend of yours?" Nightwing asked curiously.

"You'll see," Impulse answered.

"Are you sure about this? People don't know how to react when they see me." Said a small voice.

"Hey, relax." Nightwing replied.

"Yeah, you can trust us." Batgirl added.

Just then, the Reach Scientist stepped out from behind some wooden crates A gasp could be heard the moment she stepped under a streetlight.

"Thank you… I'm Laila." She said, before following Impulse into the warehouse.

Batgirl and Nightwing stood there for a moment, staring in shock. Did they just see who they thought they saw?

After getting settled in and dried off, Impulse explained what happened.

"Impulse are you crazy?! What were you thinking bringing her back here?" Nightwing exclaimed.

"Guys, she's hurt and it was raining, I couldn't just leave her there." Said Impulse.

"I see, let me check her out." Batgirl offered.

She went into a room not far away. It had been set up for teammates who were sick or injured. There wasn't much to it, just a bed, side table with a lamp and a chair. The walls were a pale tan color and had a tiled floor. All together rather boring.

"You ok?" Batgirl asked.

"Just sore, my side hurts." Laila replied.

"I can look at it if you want." Said Batgirl.

She approached Laila but stopped when she heard a growl.

"Never mind," Batgirl sputtered.

She left the room as quickly as she could.

"Forget it," she said to her teammates.

"I got nothing to say," said Nightwing.

"Me either," Impulse sighed.

6:45 pm, Eastern Time

"So, let me get this straight you found her in the rain and brought her here?" Black Canary asked.

"Yeah," Impulse answered.

"She's hurt too," Batgirl added.

Once Black Canary and Green Arrow were back, Batgirl and Impulse told them what happened earlier that evening.

"All right, I'll have a look." Said Black Canary.

She got up from her seat and went to take a look at Laila.

"Careful, don't get too close to her mouth." Batgirl warned remembering what happened last time.

"Noted," Black Canary said before she went into the room.

"Hey," she greeted Laila.

The female Reach looked up. Her yellow eyes looking angrily at Canary's calm blue ones.

"Impulse and Batgirl told me you were hurt and you look like you could really use some help." Canary continued

"Well, I…" Laila stopped short when she felt another pain in her right side.

She yelped and clenched her teeth.

"Whoa, you're in bad shape." Said Black Canary, noticing the large cut.

"Listen, if you promise not to bite, we can patch you up." Batgirl offered.

Laila thought about it for a minute. She was in a lot of pain and didn't have any other options.

Letting out a loud sigh she glanced at the two heroines. "All right, I won't bite." She promised.

"Good." Canary said with a smile.

She stuck her head out of the doorway for a brief moment.

"Robin, Bumblebee, first aid." She called.

Two of them quickly came up with the first aid kit, ready to help. Both of them froze when they saw Laila, she let out a low warning growl. Her pearly white teeth fully exposed.

"Well, don't stand there, fix her up." Said Canary.

Bumblebee and Robin gulped and looked at Laila.

"Relax, I'm harmless." She assured them.

"Yeah, sure that's what Cat Grant said about her Dalmatian, Smokey." Said Robin.

For the next twenty minutes, Robin and Bumblebee worked on patching up the cut on Laila's side.

The Reach scientist yelled in pain.

"Sorry," Robin apologized.

The rubbing alcohol he used to clean the blood off burned.

"You ok?" Impulse asked. He dropped in moments ago to check on his teammates.

Laila shook her head in reply.

"Laila, you can do this." Said Black Canary.

Laila tried hard not to struggle or snap at Robin and Bumblebee. She growled at them for a minute.

"Hold it! You promised." Bumblebee reminded her.

"Sorry, reflex." Said Laila.

"Just relax," Black Canary told her.

"Easy for you to say," she answered, trying hard to keep still. "You're not the one struggling here."

A few minutes later, they were done.

"That ought to do it…better?" said Black Canary.

Laila glanced at her side which was now covered with bandage tape.

"Yes," she replied.

"How'd you get that cut anyway?" Black Canary asked.

"I fell, there was a shard of glass on the sidewalk" Laila explained.

"Ouch, listen I'll be back to check on you later." Said Black Canary.

"Come 'on you two," she told Robin and Bumblebee.

The three of them walked out, leaving Laila alone.

She sighed; being in a warehouse with a bunch of superheroes on a rainy day was the last place she wanted to be. Laila ended up removing the top half of her tunic and her gloves which were covered in blue-black blood stains. Having a black long sleeve shirt underneath, she wasn't concerned, except for one thing.

Laila looked down for a minute.

"At least you're ok." She said and started rubbing her stomach.

"I won't let anything happen to you, I promise."

Her tone wasn't harsh like it had been earlier.

Although she was cut pretty bad, Laila didn't have any internal injuries and didn't lose a large amount of blood. She stretched out and looked at her stomach once more. Laila purred briefly before closing her eyes.

7:15pm, Eastern Time…

"It's really coming down out there," said Impulse.

"I'll say," Virgil agreed as he walked in the warehouse and wrung out his jacket.

"I mean really it's raining cats and… doggone it! You guys caught that Scientist?"

He passed by the room where Laila was and was surprised to see her.

"Not exactly, I brought her here." Impulse answered.

"Say what?!" Virgil said in shock.

"She was hurt and it was pretty bad." Impulse explained.

"Yikes, so what are you gonna do with her?" Virgil asked.

"I don't know, Canary's letting her stay here until the rain stops. Right now all she's been doing is resting." Impulse replied.

"Oh… ya know she doesn't look so scary when she's asleep." Said Virgil.

"Yeah, actually she looks kinda peaceful." Impulse agreed.

At that moment, Laila turned over, her back now facing Virgil and Impulse.

"C'mon, we shouldn't disturb her." Said Impulse.

He started to walk away and noticed Virgil just standing there.

"Virgil?"

"Oh! Sorry I thought I saw something." Virgil said before following his friend.

Later that night…

Laila woke up after what seemed like a long time. She blinked twice and yawned.

"Welcome back," a voice greeted her.

"Wha…?" Laila sputtered; she looked up and spotted Black Canary sitting in a chair a few inches away from her.

"How long was I out?" Laila asked, as she tried to sit up.

"Two hours," Black Canary replied.

"Two hours? I've been asleep for two hours?" said Laila.

"Sure have, but you looked like you needed it, so nobody bothered you." Black Canary explained.

Laila tilted her head, obviously puzzled.

"Really?" she asked.

"Yeah, I think The Team's afraid of you, especially Impulse." Said Black Canary.

"I'm not surprised." Laila admitted.

"You need anything?" Black Canary asked.

"I'm fine, just thirsty." Laila answered.

"Say no more," said Black Canary.

She got up and left the room for a couple of minutes and came back with styrofoam cup of water.

"Here, this should help."

She handed Laila the cup and sat back down.

At that moment, Black Canary noticed something different about Laila.

She broke the silence after a moment.

"So, when are you due?"

Laila froze at hearing this.

She swallowed some water before answering.

"How'd you know?"

"Well, for one thing you're starting to show." Black Canary pointed out.

Laila looked at her stomach and saw what Black Canary meant.

"You're right,"

"You…uh… feeling better?" Black Canary asked.

"Somewhat, I'm still sore." Laila replied.

"Ok… now let me ask you something… since you're pregnant… why didn't you tell anyone?!" Black Canary exclaimed.

"You want to know why?" Laila asked.

"Yes," was Black Canary's reply.

"I… was afraid, all right? I didn't know how you'd react." Said Laila.

Although she knew she would have to say something eventually, Laila was nervous about how Black Canary and the others would react to finding out she was pregnant.

"I can understand that, by not telling me or anyone else you put your kid at risk. Suppose something was wrong? You could've lost him." Black Canary pointed out.

"Her," Laila corrected.

"Oh, it's a girl." Black Canary concluded.

Laila nodded.

"I get where you're going with this one, I was just… Ohh, how could I have been so stupid?"

"You're not stupid, Laila. That's your maternal side, you were just trying to protect your daughter. That's all." Said Black Canary.

"I have to tell you, ever since I found out I wasn't quite sure how to handle this whole motherhood thing." Laila confessed.

"Let me guess this is your first one?" Black Canary asked.

Laila nodded in reply.

"Ok, that explains a lot."

"Anyway, after a while I… suppose you could say I got attached." Said Laila.

Canary snickered.

"Sorry," she apologized.

"Was it something I said?" Laila asked.

"Kind of," Black Canary replied, still trying to keep from laughing.

Laila thought about it and realized what she meant by that.

"Oh! Now I get it."

"Until now, I had no idea your kind was…" Black Canary stopped short.

"We do have certain mammal-like characteristics." Laila answered.

"So I see… how far along are you, anyway?" Black Canary asked.

"Three weeks, I'm still nervous because at this point, there's a five percent chance something could go wrong." Laila explained.

"I understand, being three weeks along you're not quite out of the woods yet. But, you've got nine months, no big deal." Said Black Canary.

Laila looked at her and laughed.

"What's so funny?" Black Canary asked.

"You're way off," Laila answered.

Black Canary frowned.

"Like how? What is it, eight months?"

"No," Laila replied.

"Six?" Canary asked.

"Guess again," Laila answered.

"Four?"

Laila shook her head.

"Nine weeks,"

Black Canary nearly fell over.

"Nine weeks?! So…" she paused to count.

"Basically, two months."

"Right." Said Laila.

"Wow," was all Black Canary could say.

"My kind is known for having large families but first time mothers usually have small litters… so, I'm glad I'm only having one." Laila explained.

"You have any siblings?" Black Canary asked.

"Five sisters and three brothers. I'm the second oldest." Laila answered.

"Yikes! That must've been rough." Said Black Canary.

"It was sometimes, but actually I…" Laila stopped and looked away.

"You miss them?" Black Canary asked.

Laila looked for a minute and lowered her head.

"I understand," Black Canary said, placing her hand on Laila's shoulder.

"You mind if I tell you something personal?" Laila asked.

"Sure, go ahead." Black Canary answered.

"I'm not only the second oldest but… I'm also a runt." Laila admitted.

Black Canary raised an eyebrow.

"A runt? Really? 'cause looking at you, I can't tell."

"I get that a lot." Said Laila.

"What's so bad about that?" Black Canary asked.

"You have no idea. I mean, it's not like my siblings ignored me or anything but where I come from others outside my family were… you get the idea. Wasn't until I got older things changed." Laila explained.

"Huh… well, regardless of you being a runt, I gotta say you seem to hold your own." Said Black Canary.

Laila raised an eyebrow. Was Black Canary being serious?

"You think so?"

Black Canary nodded.

"Oy…" Laila groaned.

"What?" Black Canary asked.

"I just realized we've been talking for a while." Laila answered.

Black Canary gave her an odd look.

"So?"

"I've… never talked with a human for this long before." Laila confessed.

"Interesting… you do seem more relaxed than when you got here." Black Canary pointed out.

Laila sighed.

"That's true, but I still don't get it. Why are you being so nice to me?"

"Eh, maybe it's because I feel bad for you or that it's my job to help people." Said Black Canary.

"I've trained The Team and I'm also the psychologist around here."

"You haven't taken notes of this, have you?" Laila asked, looking at Black Canary suspiciously.

"No, not at all," Black Canary said, she grinned at Laila who still had a cynical look on her face.

"Sure," she said in a dull tone.

Laila tried to sit up again but stopped when she felt pain.

"Ok, that hurt."

"Maybe you shouldn't try that for a while. You were cut pretty bad." Black Canary suggested.

"Good call," Laila agreed.

The Reach Scientist yelped when she felt something else.

"What is it?" Black Canary asked.

"Oh it's nothing, she's just moving." Laila replied.

Black Canary went to place her hand on Laila's stomach but stopped.

"Sorry," she apologized.

"It's all right, go ahead." Said Laila.

Putting her hand on Laila's stomach, Black Canary could feel some faint movement.

"Wow, that's something."

"Isn't it?" said Laila.

"Yeah," Black Canary before pulling her hand back.

"How long has that been going on?" she asked.

"Started a few days ago, I wasn't sure what to make of it at first, but I got over that right away." Laila explained.

"Well, one thing's for sure. There's life inside you." Said Black Canary.

Laila glanced at her stomach for a minute and smiled. It was rather obvious she cared about her unborn daughter.

"Yes," Laila agreed.

Just then, she noticed Black Canary watching and smiling.

"What?" she asked.

"Nothing, nothing sheesh!" said Black Canary.

"Look, I have to go check on The Team, so if you need anything…"

"I'm good." Laila replied.

"Kay, see you." Said Black Canary and with that, she got up and left.

"Well, not exactly how I planned to spend my evening." She said to herself.

She went to see about Nightwing and the others who were all sitting around the area they had set up as a makeshift living room.

"Hey kids," she greeted them.

"Hi Canary, so… how's Laila?" Impulse asked, before picking up a slice of pizza.

The Team had ordered take-out some time ago due to the heavy rain outside.

"Yeah, you were gone for a while." Bumblebee added.

"We had a long talk, she's still sore but she's ok. In fact, both of them are fine." Black Canary answered.

Everyone stared at Black Canary; it was obvious they were confused.

Batgirl and Virgil looked at each other then at Canary.

"Both?" they said at the same time.

"She's pregnant." Black Canary announced.

Nightwing's jaw dropped.

"How far along are we talking here?" he asked.

"Three weeks," Black Canary replied.

"O…K. didn't see that coming. No sweat, she'll be out of our hair for the next nine months." Said Nightwing before taking a sip of a can of Pepsi.

"Actually dude, it's two months." Impulse corrected him.

Nightwing nearly choked on his soda.

"What?!"

"Yep, nine weeks." Said Impulse.

"And you know that, how?" Nightwing asked.

Impulse opened his mouth to reply but Nightwing cut him off.

"Never mind, don't answer that."

"So… what now?"

"Well, it looks like she's stuck here." Black Canary replied.

"I knew there was something different about her." Said Virgil.

"And you didn't say anything?" Impulse asked.

"Hey, it was none of my business." Virgil answered.

"Good point," Impulse agreed as he grabbed a second slice of pepperoni pizza.

At that moment, they were all startled by a loud thunder clap.

"Ya know, this could be worse." No sooner did Virgil finish his sentence he felt a drop of rain water on his head.

"You just had to say that." Said Impulse.

Meanwhile in Metropolis…

"The weather out there is unbelievable" said Mercy as she walked into Lex's office.

She removed her raincoat and folded up the umbrella she had been using.

"Did you find her?" The Reach Ambassador asked.

"No, I looked for almost an hour but there's no sign of her." Mercy replied.

The Ambassador, Lennox groaned.

"But I think I know where she is." Said Mercy.

Lennox and Lex looked at each other then back at Mercy.

"You do?" they said simultaneously.

Back in Blüdhaven, the Team had their hands full with another problem.

"We got a leak, huh?" Green Arrow asked, looking up at the ceiling.

"Sure do." said Black Canary.

"Where do you want this kiddie pool?" Batgirl asked.

"Over there," Black Canary replied.

"Got it," said Batgirl.

She moved the plastic pool over to the left hand side of the room under the spot where the leak was.

"Ok, that should help."

"I hope so," Black Canary said as she looked at the ceiling.

"Ya might want to get that fixed." Green Arrow suggested.

"Virgil and Robin are up there working on it right now. Nightwing's supervising." Black Canary explained.

"Oh… brilliant." Said Green Arrow, not sure how this was going to turn out.

Meanwhile, Green Arrow, Black Canary and the others weren't the only ones having a dull moment.

Laila was used to being alone and hardly had a problem with it. Black Canary had been gone for several minutes and nobody came to check on her.

"Well, seeing how I don't have anything better to do…" Laila said to herself.

She paused to lick the back of her right hand and wiped it on her cheek. After that, she started working on her eyebrows and the rest of her face. Once she was done grooming, she sighed and shook herself.

"That's better,"

She stretched out, allowing her limbs to relax.

"Great," she muttered, hearing her stomach growl. It had been a while since she had eaten something.

Laila perked up at hearing footsteps.

She saw Impulse and growled.

"Whoa, take it easy." He said.

Laila stopped and looked at him.

"So, how you doin'?" Impulse asked.

Laila simply stared at him, not saying a word.

"O…K" said Impulse.

Laila's stomach growled a second time.

It didn't take long for Impulse to get the hint.

"Here, I think you need this more than I do." he said leaving a protein bar in front of her.

"Later," he said and left the room.

Laila glanced at the bar and sniffed it, not sure how to react.

Using her razor sharp teeth, she ripped part of the wrapper and took a bite.

"Not something I'd normally try but… it's pretty good." She concluded.

Within moments all that remained of the protein bar was the wrapper.

Laila yawned, making it obvious she was somewhat bored.

She heard someone coming and glanced at the doorway.

"Uh…hi," Impulse greeted her.

The Scientist tilted her head, still looking at him. She wasn't sure why he came back.

"Please don't eat me," Impulse begged and shut his eyes.

Laila laughed.

Impulse opened his eyes and looked at her.

"What's so funny?" he asked.

"You," Laila replied.

"Me? Why me?" Impulse said, still confused.

"Well it's…" Laila stopped and shook her head.

"No, too easy… I won't bite, I mean it."

"Ok," said Impulse before he sat down.

"So, you feelin' any better?"

"Somewhat, my side still hurts but not as much as before." Laila answered.

"Oh… that's not crash at all." Said Impulse.

Exhaling loudly, Laila glanced at her side then at Impulse.

"No, it isn't… I just have one question, why did you help me?"

"You were hurt really bad and I couldn't leave you there… and… like I said, I was doing my job." Impulse explained.

"Wait, you mean that?" Laila asked.

"Course I do." Impulse answered.

Laila smiled at him.

"In that case…" she stopped and let out a couple of high pitched chirps.

"What?" Impulse asked, sounding confused.

"It's Reach for 'Thank You'" Laila explained.

"Ohhh…" said Impulse.

He noticed Laila moving closer to him.

"What are you doing? Hey! Down! Get off!" he yelled.

The next thing he knew, she was licking his face.

"Oh gross! Ok, stop!" he exclaimed.

Laila did as she was told and stopped; she nuzzled Impulse and let out a cat-like purr.

"You're welcome," said Impulse as he patted her on the back.

"I… uh… found out you're…"

"Pregnant? Yes… so it looks like you helped both of us." Said Laila.

"I… uh… guess I did." Impulse said sheepishly.

He was quickly alerted by Laila's yelp.

"Something wrong?"

"No. It's my daughter, she's kicking." Said Laila.

Impulse nearly jumped when Laila grabbed his hand and placed it on her stomach.

"Feel that?"

"Sure do… whoa! Got some strong legs, there. Where'd she get that from?" he asked.

"I have no idea," Laila replied.

"So… your kid's a girl? When did you find that out?" Impulse asked, pulling his hand back.

"Two days ago," Laila answered.

"'Kay…" was Impulse's reply.

There was an awkward silence that lasted for about five minutes.

"You're awfully quiet," he pointed out.

"I'm not one to talk." Laila confessed.

"Noted… but why?" Impulse continued.

"I've always been that way and... truth is, no one ever was around long enough for me to start a conversation if I wanted to. So…" Impulse cut Laila off.

"I see… anybody else like you?"

"Not that I know of," she answered.

"When I do speak up, nobody seems to hear me out."

"I hear you," said Impulse.

"Yes, you do." Laila agreed.

Impulse chuckled when she nuzzled him.

"Ok, ok enough." The young hero sputtered. He could tell she appreciated him helping her.

"A little bird told me you and your teammates are afraid of me." Said Laila.

"Uh… yeah, not too many of us are comfortable being around predators." Impulse replied nervously.

"You can relax, I already told you I won't bite and I can promise you that." Laila insisted, wanting Impulse to know she was being sincere.

"Oh good. Are you always this calm?" he asked.

"It depends, when you brought me here I would've said no… but now, I've mellowed out." Laila replied.

"I can tell, two hours ago you were ready to chew everyone out." Said Impulse.

"Yes, I was…" Laila sighed.

"You know what?"

"No, what?" Impulse asked.

"I really liked talking to you." Laila admitted.

Impulse looked at her in surprise.

"Seriously?"

"Yes, it's sort of nice having someone listen for a change." Said Laila.

"What about your boss?" Impulse asked, referring to the Ambassador.

"We do talk but not like this; it changed when I told him I was pregnant. He was happy for me." Laila answered.

Just then, Impulse thought of something.

"Wait a second, is he the Dad?"

Laila's eyes narrowed.

"We are getting off the subject." She replied.

Impulse gulped nervously.

"O…K, sorry I asked." He said.

Laila relaxed her shoulders, not feeling as tense as she was earlier.

"It's all right, I've got three siblings your age; so I'm used to it."

"For real?" Impulse asked.

"I'm the second oldest of nine." Laila answered.

Impulse nearly fell out of his seat, he knew having two or three siblings was common but eight brothers and sisters was a pretty big number, at least to him.

"Whoa," was all he could say.

"I have an… extended family," Laila said sheepishly.

"I'll say," Impulse continued.

At that moment, Laila yawned feeling somewhat bored and tired.

"Hey, don't do that. It's catchy." Impulse warned.

The Scientist chuckled, she couldn't help it, Impulse was pretty funny.

Just then, Batgirl entered the room.

"Impulse, we need you on the roof." She announced.

The young hero frowned.

"Now?" he asked.

"Yes, now." Batgirl replied.

"I'll be right there," said Impulse.

He got up and started to follow Batgirl.

"Meat… I mean… Impulse." Laila started to say.

Impulse turned around at hearing his name.

"You're… all right… for a hero." Said Laila.

Impulse smiled at the complement.

"Thanks," he replied and walked out.

Sometime later…

9:04 pm, Eastern Time

"I got to tell you, patching up that roof wasn't easy." Said Nightwing as he walked back into the warehouse, followed by Virgil, Robin and Impulse.

"You got that right, look at me. I feel like a wet dog." Virgil said as he took off his jacket.

"Me too," Impulse added.

At that moment, they heard a knock at the door.

"Who's that?" Impulse wandered.

"Don't know, I'll check." Green Arrow offered.

He put down the TV guide he was reading and went to answer the door.

His eyes bucked when he saw who it was.

"Can I help you?" the hero asked.

"Yes, is Laila here?" Lennox replied.

Green Arrow raised an eyebrow.

"Who?"

"It's ok, Arrow. I got it." Nightwing offered.

"Come on in."

"Thank you," said Lennox

Once he got in, he removed the hood of his slate gray rain coat.

Nightwing shut the door two seconds later.

"I was told Laila might be here." Lennox continued.

"She is, Impulse found her." Nightwing explained.

"Oh good, the weather out there is…" Lennox stopped short.

"I know, crazy." said Nightwing.

"Anywho… Laila and I were supposed to meet with Lex Luthor but she never showed up, Mercy looked for almost an hour but came up empty handed." Lennox explained.

"Ok, that explains why she was out in the rain." Nightwing answered.

"Where is she, anyway?" Lennox asked.

"Right over here," said Black Canary.

"How come you wanna know?" Impulse asked.

"Look here, young blood I've been worried about her, I have a right to check on my mate and offspring." Lennox answered.

"Whoa, whoa… back up… that's your wife and kid?" Virgil asked.

"Yes," Lennox replied.

"'Kay, that answers my question." said Virgil.

"Mine too," Impulse added.

Black Canary walked over to the room where Laila was, with Lennox not far behind her.

"Go on," she said, stepping aside allowing him to enter.

"Laila?" he said.

The Scientist looked up at hearing her name.

"It's you…" she replied.

"Am I glad to see you," Lennox said to her.

"Ouch! Ow, let go!" Laila exclaimed as the Ambassador hugged her.

"Sorry," he said, letting go.

He looked down and noticed her side wrapped in bandage tape.

"You're hurt!"

"I'll be ok. Honest." Laila assured him.

"And our d…?" Lennox was cut off.

"She's fine," said Laila.

"Phew! Good." Lennox sighed, as he placed his hand on Laila's stomach.

"I was so worried about you…"

"Well, that's over now." Laila told him.

"Yes, I… can't believe you were with these humans the whole time. That must've been… different." Said Lennox.

"To be honest, they were… nice." Laila admitted.

Lennox raised an eyebrow.

"Come again?"

"Everything we had heard about the Justice League and their sidekicks was wrong. They fixed me up and they take their job seriously." Laila answered.

"Are you sure you're feeling ok?" Lennox asked.

Laila snickered.

"I'll take that as a yes." Lennox concluded.

He nuzzled her affectionately and purred.

"I'm just glad you're all right."

Lennox paused and looked over his shoulder. Standing in the doorway were Virgil, Batgirl and Impulse, the three of them were just standing there, watching.

"Not a word from any of you. Got it?" He said.

"Wow, will you look at the time." Virgil said, glancing at his watch.

Impulse grinned nervously.

"I think I hear Black Canary calling me."

"Me too," Batgirl added.

"Later!" the trio said in unison before stepping out.

Lennox frowned for a minute.

"I'll be back." He said and got up.

He was about to say something but Nightwing spoke up first.

"You're welcome,"

"I didn't say thank you." Lennox replied.

"Well, you should." Impulse insisted.

"Yeah, we saved her life." Batgirl pointed out.

"Oh please, you heroes all use that 'save the day' line." Lennox said in a dull tone.

"Why do you have to be so… critical?" Impulse asked.

"Critical?! Listen you, I…" Lennox was cut off.

"All right, break it up." Said Black Canary who got between the two of them.

"About time, do you always let these sidekicks of yours talk to adults like this?" Lennox asked.

"No, in fact, they've been taught to respect their elders." Black Canary answered.

"Good," said Lennox

"But I have to agree with them … Robin, Bumblebee and I helped patch up Laila's cut. When she came here she was in bad shape. If it hadn't been for Impulse, she might've died from blood loss." Black Canary explained.

"Yeah and you would've lost your kid too." Bumblebee added.

Lennox looked at them in shock. They both brought up some valid points. He didn't want to lose Laila or their offspring.

"Can you excuse me for a moment?"

Before anyone could say anything he left.

He walked into the room and noticed Laila staring at him.

"What?" he asked.

"I heard it all and I think you do owe them a thank you. Impulse and his teammates didn't just help me but our daughter as well." Said Laila.

The male Reach sighed; he knew he couldn't get out of it.

"You're right… I'll have a word with them." And with that, he stepped out of the room.

"Look, uh… maybe we got off on the wrong foot." He started to say.

"And?" Nightwing asked.

"And… I was wrong about you. Anyway, you did save Laila's life and… I owe you one." Lennox finished.

"Eh, no sweat, we're heroes." Said Robin.

"It's what we do…" Bumblebee added.

Later…

"So it went like this, there was this blue jay and…" Impulse was in the middle of telling Green Arrow about something that happened to him and Wally in Central City when they both noticed something.

"Uh, Bart go check on Batgirl and Robin will you? One of the fuses blew, they're in the basement." Said Green Arrow.

"Sure thing," Bart replied and quickly made his exit.

Green Arrow watched Lennox for a minute before walking over to him.

Lennox glanced at Laila and sighed.

"You really love her don't you?" Green Arrow asked.

Lennox just looked at him for a moment before he spoke.

"Is it that obvious?" he replied.

"I'd say so." Said Green Arrow.

"In answer to your question, yes… she's my mate and… six weeks from now, we're going to be parents." Lennox explained.

"Anyhow…"

Just then a familiar voice rang out.

"The fuse is fixed!" Batgirl announced.

"That was fast." Said Green Arrow.

"It was pretty easy." Robin told him.

The two of them, followed by Impulse had walked back upstairs from the warehouse basement.

"Uh… did we interrupt something? Cause if we did…" Batgirl started to say.

"No, not really." Lennox replied.

Things got quiet for a few minutes until Virgil broke the silence.

"So, how about those Dodgers?"

Everyone just looked at him.

"Never mind," he said.

Impulse started to say something but stopped.

"Uh…"

"Go on, Impulse." Said Black Canary.

"Nah, it's no big deal." He replied.

"It's all right, really." Black Canary insisted.

"If you say so…" said Impulse.

He sat on the couch next to Batgirl, Bumblebee, Nightwing, Robin and Virgil.

Black Canary, Green Arrow and Lennox took a seat in some nearby chairs.

"I… overheard you and Green Arrow talking and… you really seem to care about Laila." Impulse continued.

"Yes, I do." said Lennox.

"Why is that?" the young hero asked.

Lennox shrugged his shoulders.

"I don't know, maybe it's because we grew up in the same town." He replied.

"Wow, small world." said Robin.

Lennox nodded.

"Well, I appreciate the hospitality and…awkwardness, but I think it's time Laila and I left."

"I don't think that's a good idea… it's pretty bad out there." said Green Arrow.

"Arrow please, I think I can handle a little rain." Lennox insisted.

Just then, there was a loud thunder clap.

"D-did you guys hear that?" Impulse stuttered.

"We all heard it, Impulse." Said Bumblebee.

Lennox looked out a nearby window and groaned. It was a downpour and there was no indication it was letting up.

"Great…" he muttered.

"Better grab a seat, looks like we're going to be here for a while." said Black Canary.

A short time later, Lennox went to check on Laila.

The female Reach perked up at hearing the sound of footsteps.

She let out a warning growl.

"Relax, Laila; it's me." Lennox assured her.

At that moment she stopped.

"Oh…"

"Anyway, the storm looks like it won't be letting up anytime soon…" Lennox continued.

Laila's eyes bucked.

"So that means we're stuck here?! That's just great." She said.

"Might as well make the best of it." Lennox sighed.

He sat down next to Laila. If it hadn't been raining outside, he would've left by now.

Placing the back of his right hand on her stomach, the only movement he felt was Laila breathing.

Withdrawing his hand, he looked rather puzzled.

"Not very active is she?" he asked.

Laila glanced at her stomach then at Lennox.

"She was earlier… it's only been three weeks." Said Laila.

She thought about what her own mother had explained to her about pregnancy. Around the third week, young reach became more active. It would be another two weeks before her daughter would really start moving around. Laila also thought about something else, at week five, her stomach would be more pronounced. One thing she looked forward to was that her daughter's hearing would be fully developed and she would be able to hear her mother's voice, her eyes would also open. Currently, she was blind, deaf and the size of a computer mouse.

After a moment of silence, Lennox spoke.

"You know… we really should think of a name for her."

"Think so? We've got a month and a half to come up with something." Laila replied.

"Good point," Lennox agreed. When he had found out Laila was pregnant three weeks ago, he was shocked at first but quickly got over it.

Laila was also taken aback and not sure about the whole thing. Gradually, she came around and now looked forward to being a mother.

Lennox looked at her right side most of which was covered with bandage tape.

"They actually did a good job." He admitted.

"Yes, they did. I told you the league and their sidekicks take their job seriously." said Laila.

She noticed Lennox move closer to her.

"What the…? Oh!" she sputtered.

The two of them were now face-to-face.

He then licked her cheek and nuzzled her.

Laila was alerted by a noise.

She looked up and saw Virgil, Impulse and Bumblebee standing in the doorway.

"What?" Impulse and Virgil asked.

"I thought you said something." Laila replied.

"Uh…" Impulse started to say.

"Nope," Virgil finished.

He leaned against the wall and looked over at the window not far away.

It was going to be a long night…

More to come?

And that's it for now… only reason why there's a question mark is because I'm not really sure where to go next so… for now this is far as the story goes… In the meantime feel free to check out Just Another Day in Neighborhood, Small Talk and Buses, Bikes & Subways.

Ciao for now!