Stephanie felt her heart thudding in her chest as she stepped out of the safety that was Nightwing's shadow. It was kind of overwhelming, standing in front of them. Seeing all their eyes snap to her and take her in, her costume, her size. It felt like she was being stripped down to the bone for everyone to see. Even though around half of them were dressed in Civvies, they were still an impressive sight. Standing closest to her was a tall girl dressed in dark jeans and a t-shirt. Her deep red hair was pulled back in to a scruffy bun and covering her eyes was a pair of dark sun glasses. Next to her was a shorter boy. He too wore dark glasses. Steph could see the panels of his toned body through the grey jumper he wore. She found herself momentarily distracted and for once was glad of the dark mask that hid her face as she felt her blood rush to colour her cheeks. Moving on she told herself.
Standing a little further back was the rest of the team. The first person to catch her eye was a large muscular teen. He had icy blue eyes and on his black shirt was the S shield she would recognise anywhere. That must be Superboy. He was standing almost protectively in front of a green skinned red head. Whereas Superboy's gaze was suspicious and weary, the Martian's (what else could she be?) stare was out right hostile. Steph felt a chill work its way up her spine. She didn't know what it was, but having that girl stare at her was one of the most frightening experiences she had ever gone through. Steph found herself unable to look away. Finally, after what felt like years, the girl broke eye contact. Steph couldn't stop the small sigh of relief that escaped her lips. What's her problem?
Before Steph could analyse any of the other team members, Nightwing's voice broke the silence of the cavernous room.
"No, it's not like that." He said, staring down the Martian girl. Steph looked around and found she wasn't the only one that seemed confused by their leader's outburst.
"Then tell me what it is like, Nightwing?" The girl spoke back; her voice trembled a little bit but her eyes where steely. Were they having a physic conversation? Another look around at the assembled teenagers confirmed this suspicion. They no longer looked confused, just slightly uncomfortable. Like they were listening in on a private conversation.
"Nobody is getting replaced." Nightwing replied firmly.
"That's not what it looks like!" The girl brushed angry tears out of her eyes
"We are not going to stop looking for Lagoon Boy! But the fact remains-"
"I didn't know you could be so cold Nightwing. You're acting like..." the Martian paused.
"Like who?"
"Like Batman!" The girl finally shouted.
The cave went completely silent. Nightwing had frozen. He was staring at the green girl in front of him. Nobody moved. Then suddenly the girl turned on her heel and swept out of the room, her cape billowing out behind her.