Title: Start Spreading the News
Classification: PG
Genre: Friendship/Family
Category: Green Arrow/DC Comics
Main Character: Connor Hawke
Author: Me
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters mentioned in this non-profit work of fanfiction; they all belong to DC.
Author's Note: Written for and by Peppers-Pray request. Hope you enjoy it. Sequel to Dancing in the Quiet and set at the same time as Ladies who Lunch. Kindly take the time to review, I'd appreciate it.
Start Spreading the News
Dinah was packing her things to head out for her holiday with her friends. "A holiday?" asked his dad, Oliver Queen. "Pretty bird, we just got back from our honeymoon! Why am I not allowed to join you on this holiday?"
Dinah said, "Ollie, I love you, I married you – but if I have to clean up after you one more time, I will kill you. I need this time away from you as you clean up here. Besides, it's not just the girls and I on an actual holiday. Oracle's got a couple of cases for us to look into and by 'couple' I mean at least seventeen different things."
"So you're going off to work. You've never packed three suitcases for work before."
"This is just all the uniforms I own, Ollie. You spilt lemonade on my fishnets – I do not want my uniforms to be ruined if they're left with you."
"It was not lemonade but an eco-friendly lemon cleaner and I do clean! Why else would I have had the cleaner in my hand at the time?"
"I don't know, Ollie – why were you holding 'lemon cleaner' in my locked walk in uniform room that I clean every other day?" demanded Dinah, hands on her hips. "I came home to not only find my fishnets ruined but the lock kicked in and –"
A hand grabbed him by the back of his shirt and yanked him backwards and away from the couple. Mia said, "Feel free to say thank you for me saving your ears, Connor."
He said, "They aren't too loud, Mia."
"They aren't loud yet and by loud, I mean Dinah. I don't know how you weren't able to hear her yelling at Ollie a few days ago as you were shopping a few blocks away. I swear, the people of Toronto could hear her going at him for leaving his underwear on the floor where she couldn't see it." At his look, she explained, "Dinah was asleep when she was woken by an emergency alarm from Oracle. She got out of bed half asleep and in the dark, she made her way straight to the door. Only her feet got tangled in Ollie's underwear, she tripped and then she started screaming at Ollie."
Connor suggested, "Perhaps we should help tidy up?"
Mia said, "Your dad's cleaning methods are insane. It has to be eco-friendly and just so or he'll spend hours giving lectures. You know his lectures for getting the recycling scheme wrong? His cleaning lectures are worse and this is from a rather slob like man. Also, he'd welcome the help but he's got a habit of running off and leaving me on my own to clean up. If I use even one brand chemical cleaner to make the cleaning go faster, even if I hide the evidence – he knows! No, it's better to let him just get on with it himself and be far away or too busy to help out."
Roy came in just then. "Alright, Lian's spending some time with Donna and Kory. I'm free and ready to rumble!" he said, shadow boxing.
Mia said, "Our Wii boxing contest will have to wait."
"Why?" asked Roy.
Just then, there was a scream of rage from Dinah. "Why is there one of your dirty socks in my boots?"
"Now pretty bird –"
This time, Roy grabbed hold of him and yanked him out towards his car. "Run! Run for your life!"
Roy rather reluctantly took him to a bookshop he wanted to go to. "This is so lame and uncool! If I'm glad of anything, it's that no one who knows me is here," said Roy.
He pointed out, "I know you."
"Connor, I'm here because of you – you don't count."
"Funny, I'm also here because of you. I ordered this first edition book for you and came by just to pick it up."
Roy took the book from him. "Why would you get me a book on – how did you find this?" he exclaimed. "I've spent years trying to find a copy! I take back what I said about you earlier – you're not so lame. You're still not cool but at least you're not that lame."
"So you'll browse the shelves and find a book for yourself?"
"No."
"Lian will love her new colouring book sets," he said.
"Connor, stop talking and enjoy the view," said Roy. He easily grinned at a passing waitress. "I'll have two beers and your number."
If Roy had desperately hoped to not be seen in the bookshop, he hoped the exact same in the strip club Roy had dragged him to. Being around Roy in full Casanova mode or worse, when he was acting like his dad before marrying Dinah, was embarrassing and hugely awkward for him. With Roy distracted by twin blondes, he sneaked outside. Putting distance between himself and the strip club, he called Mia.
"Dinah got picked up by Huntress," said Mia. "They're on a case in town and I'm packing right now."
"Why are you packing?" he asked.
"I'm going with Dinah when she leaves town. I'm officially kind of like a back up but unofficially, Dinah said I'm welcome to join the girls only holiday. Between Ollie and Roy, I've been surrounded by too much testosterone."
"Where do I fit in?" he asked.
"Connor, you – ow!"
"Mia? Are you ok?" he asked.
"Just stubbed my toe on – oh gross!" came her disgusted gag. "Dinah's right, Ollie really needs to clean up here. Hey, what's this? Connor, why do you have a girl's necklace in your room?"
"Why are you in my room?" he asked.
"I'm taking extra arrows and nice try in changing the subject. This is Cassandra Cain's necklace, isn't it? From Ollie and Dinah's wedding? Connor, you never said you got lucky with her! I have got to tell Roy! He's going to be so proud!"
He could easily imagine the teasing and lewd innuendoes Roy would come up with. "No! Don't tell him!" he quickly said.
"You have got to tell me all the juicy gossip then – I insist!"
Connor said, "There is no gossip. What you saw was what happened."
"Yet I never saw you get the necklace."
He said, "You were busy at the wedding party. I heard that Booster Gold got knocked out by Huntress. Just because I didn't see it didn't mean that it didn't happen."
"It's Booster Gold, Connor. Of course it's believable. Besides, everyone knows that Helena has got one really mean punch."
"My point is that you know how I am like and you saw how I was like at the wedding. Would I really move so fast with someone? I'm not like dad or Roy."
"You're better than them, Connor – you're a real old fashioned gentleman. Did you want something more than just dancing with her? I mean, do you like her?"
"Of course I like her," he stated. "Why wouldn't I when there is so much to like about her?"
Mia sighed, "I didn't mean liking her in a fellow super martial artist hero admiring kind of way."
Just then there was a car beep behind him. He turned to see Roy driving up, window down. "What's this I hear about you and the bat ninja girl?" he asked out of his open window.
"Roy...?" How had Roy found out so fast?
"Mia sent me a crazy text saying you hooked up with Batchick at the wedding. Get in and tell me all about it!"
"Mia," he half growled, irritated as he got into Roy's car.
"Technically, I didn't tell him – I texted him," she said over the phone. He reached over and yanked Roy's phone from him before he texted everyone he knew. "Put me on speakerphone, I want to be a part of this boys' talk." Roy grabbed his phone from him and put Mia on speakerphone.
"Mia, what has he told you?" asked Roy, phone on his lap and driving.
"He said that nothing went on but I found her necklace in his room."
"You dog!" crowed Roy, punching him in the arm.
He said, "I can't believe you ran out of a strip club on a tiny hint of activity on my non-existent love life."
"Aha! So you admit it, you did hook up with the spooky and silent Batchick!" leered Roy.
"I knew it!" whooped Mia. "About time!"
Roy said, "We should have a party to celebrate!"
"Way ahead of you – already sent out the invites!"
"Our Connor is grown up at last! He's a man!"
"There will be no party, nothing happened and you both need to calm down," said Connor. "Also, stop calling Cassandra 'Batchick' – she can make you very sorry for calling her that."
A beeping noise and Mia's voice said, "Eddie has just sent confirmation he'll attend."
"I told you, nothing happened," he insisted.
"Then explain the necklace," said Mia.
Roy said, "Yes, explain the necklace."
"It broke and I found it on the ground after she'd left. I picked it up and that's it."
Mia said, "It is not broken – oh wait, there's a really tiny and delicate repair job on this. Connor, you fixed it up? Kind of stalker like to watch her so closely, see her drop her necklace, pick it up and spend what looks like days fixing it all so you have a reason to see her when you give it back to her. You could just pick the phone up and call her."
"That's much easier," said Roy. "Come on, call her right now. She'll be up by now."
In the ensuing silence, Mia asked, "Connor, you don't have her number, do you? Roy, you're tight with her oldest brother, you can get her number from him. Seeing as he set them both up in the first place, he won't mind. Sure, Batman didn't like it because he's super overprotective and Ollie objected on principle as she's Batman's daughter – the only reason Ollie would object more was if she was Carter Hall's daughter instead."
Roy said, "Or if it was his son. What? Don't look at me like that; I'm just saying that the guy only has a son, not a daughter. Pass my phone back, Connor," he said, car parked by the house.
Mia came out, two phones in hand. "Kyle just sent word that he'll be attending the party and that he can't wait to catch up with you, Connor. Hold on, I'm getting another text message from...Hal Jordan? How did he find out about the party?"
He got out of the car, saying, "We're not having a party."
"He thinks we are. Says he'll ask Guy Gardner to bring the beer for this guys only party as Dinah is away on her girls only trip."
Locking his car, Roy read a message on his phone. "What the...? Mia, did you tell the Boy Wonder about the now proven to be false hook up that never was?"
"Sure, I messaged my Boy Wonder in the first group message, same as the one I sent you."
"Well, he seems to have sent it to Shortpants and, hold on, I'm getting another text from him. Hide? Why would he tell me to hide?"
The front door opened and his dad came out into sight, phone in hand and looking angry. "That's a lie and you know it! My boy has better taste than to even touch your girl! He'd go after blondes – like I do. With big -"
Connor, Mia and Roy shared a horrified look. "Batman found out already?" asked Mia.
"He's Batman! Of course he knows!" said Roy. He looked around with growing paranoia. "He's here, isn't he?"
Connor said, "He can't get here from Gotham that fast."
Roy visibly relaxed, "Of course, what was I thinking? He's only human. Heh, it's not like he's Flash fast."
Looking at the skyline on the horizon, a blue dot was fast approaching and he started to retreat quickly. Connor said, "But he does know Superman, Roy!"