Courtney Whitmore growled in annoyance. Why couldn't Linda and her stupid sister just get the hell off the roof? They might be two of her closest friends, but that didn't mean they weren't totally selfish about roof space sometimes. She'd wanted to go flying, and there weren't many rooftops as good for a takeoff as Metropolis High's basketball court. And besides, Stargirl had been out of sight for a few days. It was time for her to go on patrol again. Oh well.

She hurried out of the school and down the front steps onto the sidewalk, then made her way down the street. After glancing around hurriedly to make sure no one was watching, she ducked into an alley. A few minutes later, she shot upward out of the alley, dressed as Stargirl and clutching the Cosmic Staff tightly in her right hand.

--

Courtney heard sirens in the distance. Quickly she zoomed across Metropolis, searching for the source of the disturbance. She found it quickly, a large-scale heist at Metropolis National Bank gone wrong. There were almost three-dozen hostages on the fourth floor, and six half-crazed masked robbers with semi-automatics. Damn.

Stargirl hovered for a moment, strategizing. The hostages were lined up in front of the window, and two of the thugs had them covered, keeping them still. The other four appeared to be huddled in a corner, speaking in anxious whispers. Now would really be the time to have ears like Powergirl or something, she mused. Be nice to hear what they were saying.

She'd have to shield the hostages when she broke through the window. The goons down there were sure to start shooting, not to mention the flying glass. Her dark brown eyes narrowed. Alright. Time to go in. She put on a burst of speed, zooming straight for the window, simultaneously projecting a force field around the 35 hostages. She leveled her head so that the crown of her skull took the full blow of her impact with the glass.

As predicted, the air was full of bullets, which she dodged with precision. Hooking the crooked end of the Cosmic Staff around a light fixture on the ceiling, she swung in a circle, cracking two of the thieves in the face with sharply delivered jabs from her heels. A small smile spread across Courtney's face as the men dropped like stones, lying senseless on the floor.

She unhooked the Staff, dropping catlike to the floor, and straightened up, glancing around quickly. Courtney was about to make her next move when she suddenly felt something pressed into her back. She heard a click. "You capes," hissed a male voice. "Always interfering. Pisses me off."

"In case you hadn't noticed," Courtney said through gritted teeth, "I don't wear a cape. Now get off me so I can kick your butt!"

"Shut up, bitch!" The barrel of the gun pressed harder against her spine, and Courtney actually felt a thrill of fear. She squeezed her eyes shut as the voice continued in a desperate whisper against her ear. "You might be fast, but I doubt you're bulletproof."

"She's not... but I am!" came a voice from outside the window. Courtney's eyes popped open, and she saw Supergirl floating outside the window. "Oh shit," the man behind her muttered.

Supergirl disappeared, becoming nothing but a streak of blue through the room. The hostages disappeared, presumably carried down to street level. Three of the remaining thugs disappeared likewise. All at once, Powergirl was standing next to Courtney; she raised her fist and delivered a sharp jab to her captor's jaw.

The man collapsed, moaning. "Thanks for the save," Courtney said, rubbing the nape of her neck where the gun had been jabbed into her. "Long time, no see Kara!"

Powergirl grinned. "No prob. We were passing by, I heard him threatening you. Figured you could use a hand." Supergirl finally came to a stop beside them.

"I told her you could handle it by yourself," she said contemptuously. "After all, you're a big girl. Surely you can deal with six half-baked burglars." Courtney rolled her eyes. That was so Supergirl. Ignoring the jibes, she turned to Powergirl.

"So, where're you two off to?" she asked. Powergirl shrugged.

"Just around. You know, patrolling a little before we head home." She turned to glance at Supergirl, then back at Courtney. "So, do you want us to give the police the lowdown, or can you handle it?"

Stargirl shrugged. "You guys have places to be, it looks like. I'll deal with the cops." The two Kryptonians nodded, and blurred out in twin streaks of blue and white. Courtney seized the collar of the remaining still-unconscious thief, raised the Cosmic Staff, and leaped out the window. She touched down lightly in front of the nearest police officer.

"Here's the last of them," she said. "I assume Supergirl got all the hostages safely?" The policeman nodded curtly. Stargirl suspected that he was resentful that a trio of girls barely sixteen had bettered him at his job.

--

Courtney stumped up the front steps of the little house in the suburbs of Metropolis. Her stepdad, Pat Dugan, glanced up at her from where he was attempting to prepare a sub-catastrophic meal. "You're late. What happened?" he asked.

She sighed, dumping her backpack into one of the chairs surrounding the kitchen table. "Oh, I figured I'd go on patrol. There was a hostage situation up on First and Blackburn. I got in over my head, got a gun pulled on me." Pat looked at her again.

"You should really tell me when you're doing stuff like that. Your mother wouldn't like it if you got killed and I wasn't even there to help you out. That's what I built the suit for," he said disapprovingly.

"Pat, I'm a big girl," she said, then grimaced. She hated that she had to mimic anything Supergirl had said to make her point. Superman's cousin annoyed the hell out her, with her superior attitude and her stupid innate powers. "Look, I've had a really crazy day. I'm going to try and get a little bit of sleep. Let me know when you manage to get food on the table that won't give us stomach cancer." She touched the Cosmic Converter Belt and took the entire flight of stairs in a single leap.

Pat Dugan watched his stepdaughter take her leave of the kitchen and shook his head. Courtney Whitmore, Stargirl, it didn't matter. She had the heart of a true hero, but sometimes she could be so juvenile. Something had to change.

--

Chapter Three Featuring: Nightwing and Robin