Road Trip – Arizona Pow Wow

A/N: And last but definitely not least on the family side, Lian meets up with her dad on the reservation.

It was still early in the morning in El Paso when Alberto, Bianca, Jaime, and Traci went outside to see off the Titans. "How much driving do you have today?" Alberto asked, as he hugged his daughter. Milagro was leaning on her father and smiling sadly.

"It's not even three hundred miles," Lian replied. "We'll be there by mid afternoon." She looked around when she heard a buzzing sound. Jaime and Traci both looked at their mobiles and checked the messages.

"Someone wanna explain why this is like the millionth text we've gotten saying congratulations?" Jaime chuckled, holding up his mobile to show off the text from Cassie Sandsmark.

"I might have remotely swapped out the computer's wallpaper at the Tower…again," Jai smirked.

"To what, dare I ask," Traci laughed. She'd seen the Yellow Butte picture. Jai whipped out his mobile and showed them a picture he'd taken of her and Jaime cutting their engagement cake. "They've made it official…finally!" Traci giggled as she read the caption Jai had put in the photo.

"Aw, how cute!" Bianca gushed. "May I have a copy of that?" she asked Jai.

"Sure," he replied. He fiddled with his mobile for a couple of seconds as he sent it to Milagro, Jaime, and Traci's email addresses. "All three of them have it in their inboxes…so no excuses."

"Gracias mi hijo," she replied, hugging Jai. Bianca sniffled as she went to hug the other Titans. She stepped up to her husband and daughter and wrapped her arms around the pair of them. "Be good and stay safe," she murmured, kissing Milagro's hair.

"We will," Milagro replied. She wriggled free of her parents arms and went to hug her brother and Traci. "I'm so happy for you two," she murmured.

"Thank you Sweetheart," Traci replied, kissing her cheek.

"You know the drill…any problems and give us a shout out. We'll be there," Jaime told his sister, hugging her tightly.

"I know. We better get going," she added with a small sigh.

"You'll be home soon enough," Jaime assured his sister.

"And your Abuela will be here when you get back," Bianca added. Milagro shared a look with her brother and started laughing. Traci sighed and hung her head a little.

"Have fun with that," Milagro grinned.

"We'll manage," Jaime smirked, placing an arm around Traci's shoulders. "Now go on, andale!"

Milagro gave him a small salute off of her brow and turned to get into the coach. Damian leaned on the steering wheel to allow Milagro to lean out the window and give a final wave to her family. "I love you! See you soon!" she called out. She sniffled and Chris gave her a hug and kissed her temple as they began to drive away.

"Did that boy just kiss my daughter?" Bianca growled.

"Ay Mami, a friendly kiss…nothing more. Trust me, I'd know," Jaime scolded his mother. Bianca glared at him for a moment, before the family turned to return to the house. "When does Abuela get here?" Jaime asked.

"Her plane lands this evening at five," Bianca smiled broadly.

"That was quick," Traci commented.

"She can move when she wants to," Jaime muttered. Traci suggested getting some liquid courage, to which he wholeheartedly agreed. "We'll need it when those two start making wedding plans." Bianca swatted the pair of them.

On the way out of town Lian convinced the team to go to with her to buy school supplies for the children on the reservation. "It's the one thing they can never get enough of," she said as they loaded the land rover with their haul.

Ten minutes after leaving El Paso, the Titans crossed into New Mexico. "Wow, ass end of Texas," Jai commented as the 'Welcome to New Mexico' sign blurred past the window. Milagro smacked him on the head and he growled. "What the hell is it with you and your Mom and smacking people upside the head?"

"Gets the point across," Milagro retorted.

"Smack him a little harder next time," Iris suggested from the shotgun seat of the land rover.

"She might rattle his pea brain a bit too much," Lian smirked.

"One for each of you," Jai scoffed, flashing both middle fingers at the video screen.

"Is today 'Abuse Jai Day'?" Chris grinned hopefully.

"Apparently so," Damian chuckled.

"Every day is 'Abuse Jai Day'," Iris replied. "Believe me; I've been celebrating it since before we even popped out!"

"You are all gonna get yours," Jai warned. "And you'll never see it coming. Just keep that in mind." Nefertiti leapt up onto the dashboard and attacked Jai's feet. He pulled them back and glared at the cat as she curled up where his feet had just been. "Furry, pint sized, little, punk," Jai muttered.

"Good girl," Damian cooed to his cat. She glanced over at him and meowed loudly.

"I'm hiding your treats, hairball," Jai muttered.

"We're off to a good start," Chris chuckled, before heading back to the kitchen to look for something to eat. "Jeeze, and I thought Smallville was out in the middle of nowhere," he commented a while later. "There's nothing out here."

"And it's going to be like this until we hit Cali," Milagro replied.

"Personally, I like it like this," Lian smiled. "The coasts are way too damn crowded for my tastes."

"How much time did you spend out here?" Jai asked.

"Dad and I lived out here for a couple of years. I kind of grew used to it," Lian replied. "To the point that I prefer wide open spaces to cities now."

"When you first…?" Iris asked, trying to think of a way to broach the subject of Lian's death and reanimation.

"Yup. Both of us struggled a bit with me suddenly being alive again. So Dad resorted to his tried and true method of coping," Lian said. "Head to the reservation and let shit work itself out."

"Not to be rude," Milagro asked. "But what did happen?" Lian shrugged.

"I honestly don't know. There's a gap…in my memory," she explained. "I remember feeling the concussion force and seeing and hearing the explosion that killed me. The immediate next memory after that is waking up and seeing Dad looking worse for wear and a few years older."

"Did you ever find out how you were resurrected?" Damian asked.

"Nope. And if Dad knows, he hasn't told me," Lian replied. "I just know that before everything I was a little older than you guys and now I'm the one of the youngest," she added.

"Wait?" Milagro said.

"You were older?" Chris asked.

"Yup. If nothing had happened and I hadn't been killed, I would have just celebrated my twentieth birthday in April," Lian replied.

"Does it bother you to think about this stuff?" Jai asked.

"Nope. It did when I first came back…Dad too," Lian said. "That's why he ultimately decided to just say 'fuck it' and we moved to the reservation for a couple of years," she added. "The simplicity of life there helped us both out. I mean we were both changed by everything, but it helped us get on with our lives. Dad and I eventually accepted that yeah, I'm no longer going to be Miss Sunshine and the fates really took pity on him and gave him a second chance." Lian paused and nibbled at the inside of her cheek for a moment. "It benefitted him more, because he really cleaned his shit up while were there."

"Did you just refer to yourself as Miss Sunshine? You?" Chris chuckled.

"At one time I could give Irey a run for her money in the perky department," Lian smirked. "Thankfully I've been cured of that." Damian, who was taking a sip of water, coughed and sputtered.

"Kindly wait until I am not driving, to bump me off," Damian playfully scolded once he recovered.

Near the border with Arizona, they pulled off into a small town to refuel. "Another two hours of driving and we should be there," Lian grinned once they hit the highway again. In Arizona they came upon another small town and Lian led them to a small two lane road that would take them to the reservation.

"Is that it up ahead," Chris asked, squinting to better see what he thought were buildings.

"We've been on the reservation for a while now, but yeah that's the main settlement," Lian replied. "And there's Dad and Aunt Carrie," she added. They pulled to a stop and piled out of the land rover and coach.

"Welcome to our home," Carrie Smiling Water greeted them warmly.

"Smiling Water, I bring a message from the Lakota," Lian smiled.

"Oh?"

"Hi!" she grinned.

"Hi back!" Carrie laughed. "Where did you run into the Lakota?"

Lian gave her father a look as she replied. "Crazy Horse."

"When you get done with your trip, get back here and we're dragging him up there…kicking and screaming if we have to," Carrie told her as she also shot Roy a look.

"You got it, Boss," Lian replied, giving a half salute.

"I'll go willingly, Jesus," Roy snorted at the pair of them. "God you're a pain in the ass," he added, reaching out and grabbing Lian in a fierce hug.

"That's me. Chip off the ol' Cheshire," Lian teased. Roy groaned.

"She's got you there Uncle Roy," Iris giggled.

"Tell me about it," he scoffed, hugging the twins and then the rest of the Titans in greeting.

"We brought you something," Lian told Carrie. Carrie followed Lian to the back of the land rover and gave a sigh of relief when she saw the mass of school supplies the Titans had picked up in El Paso.

"My headache's gone," Carrie said as she looked over the supplies. "Thank you, all of you," she told the teenagers.

"It was all Lian's idea," Chris admitted.

"You went along with it and that's good enough for me," Carrie grinned.

"Where do you want us to put them?" Lian asked. Carrie glanced around for a moment before nodding towards the community hall. "Mila?"

"Got it," Milagro replied and pointed her ring at the land rover. She lifted the entire load out and flew it over to the community hall. Inside she spied a small reading nook and placed the supplies there.

"That was quick," Carrie remarked. She turned back to the rest of the Titans and gestured at the coach. "I have hook ups and everything for that at my house," she informed them.

Damian went to the coach and waved a hand inside. "After you," he said.

"I like him," Carrie grinned as she got on the coach.

Roy snorted a laugh as he followed her inside, where he spotted the tequila bottle from Juárez and cocked an eyebrow. "Whooping it up in Mexico, huh?"

"Yeah and they got an idea of just how hardcore Aunt Dinah's eggnog is if I could chug that like nothing," Lian snorted.

"You were in Mexico too?" Carrie asked.

"They just drove in from El Paso," Roy supplied.

"Oh! That would explain it," she mused. Carrie directed Damian to her house and where to park the coach. Lian parked the land rover behind the house and ambled over to help Chris hook everything up. "Uh power…let me find the cord."

"Power is not an issue," Damian smirked. "We've been testing a miniature solar array on our trip," he added.

"One of your Dad's innovations?" Roy asked, eyeing the top of the coach.

Damian nodded. "And despite several attempts at draining it, we haven't been able to."

"You couldn't video game it to death?" Roy asked Jai.

"Not for lack of trying…several times," Jai replied.

"There was a full on party in this thing a few times and nothing," Chris chuckled.

"I saw the tequila bottle, I can imagine," Roy retorted.

"Not quite," Damian informed him. "Although the camping trip…" he muttered.

"It was a witching night that night, Ese. The only way Traci and the Posse were crashing was with a little help," Milagro chuckled.

"Witching night?" Carrie asked.

"We went camping with a bunch of magic users the other night," Lian explained. "They were all buzzing from the vibes."

"That reminds me," Roy smirked, placing an arm around Milagro's shoulders. "I hear congratulations are in order." Milagro grinned. "I didn't think your brother would have the cajones to propose until he was done with dental school."

"You and me both," Milagro laughed.

"Why don't you finish setting up whatever you need to do and then we'll show you around?" Carrie suggested. Damian went back into the coach for a moment as the others watched the coach expand out in places. "High tech," Carrie murmured, when Damian returned.

"It has served us well," he supplied. Damian turned back to the coach when he heard Nefertiti's bell as she bounded from the coach to sniff around her new surroundings. "You're not even going to wait this time?" Damian teased her.

"You might want to keep her in at night," Carrie informed him as she bent down to pet the cat. "There's been a coyote wandering around here and taking small animals…cats included."

"Thank you. I appreciate the warning," Damian told her as he watched his cat. Nefertiti gave him a look and meowed before jumping up to his shoulders.

"She's not a normal cat," Carrie murmured as she reached up to give her a scratch behind the ear.

"So we recently learned," Damian smiled, as they began to tour the village.

Carrie and Roy took turns explaining the history of the reservation as they walked through the village. Lian would supply information as well; as the teenagers were introduced to any of the locals they came across. "This is our pride and joy," Carrie proclaimed as they came to a large aviary on the edge of the village. "Federal laws make acquiring some kinds of feathers rather difficult," she explained. "But here, we can take care of wounded or sick birds and any feathers they shed are ours to use."

"What about feathers you just find out in the wild?" Iris asked.

"Eh," Carrie replied, shaking her hand. "That can be an iffy proposition."

"Whoa they're big!" Jai exclaimed when Carrie led them through to where the birds roosted. Damian set Nefertiti down outside the caged area of the aviary. She crept over to a sheltered corner and peeked out from behind a wall at the large eagles inside the massive cage.

"They can be," Carrie laughed. She wandered over to a large eagle perched on a branch. "This poor boy has been with us for a while. He'll live his entire life here," she murmured as she gently petted the bird's head.

"Why? What happened?" Chris asked.

"Poacher shot his wing off," Roy spat. "We get a lot of poachers out here unfortunately."

"You have to admit Daddy, the dudes that did this to Cloud were fun to round up," Lian smirked, as she let the eagle inspect her hand for a moment before petting him.

Roy's smirk matched his daughter's as he recalled the time. "That was a blast." He held his bionic arm out for the eagle to climb on. "Those bastards won't be getting out of jail anytime soon, will they bud?" The eagle leaned forward a bit and stared at Chris with an intense gaze. Roy, Carrie, and Lian all noticed and looked between the eagle and Chris. Chris instinctively reached out and gently brushed his hand against the lone wing.

"Cloud knows you're a flyer like him," Carrie told Chris.

"While accepting being a one armed bandit like me," Roy chuckled. Cloud had gently clawed at Roy's bionic arm and nuzzled the spot where it was attached.

Milagro let out a small yelp and stood stock still as another eagle combed through her hair with its beak from its perch. "You're the other flyer," Carrie chuckled.

"Si," Milagro muttered, terrified to move. Carrie went over to her and carefully shooed the eagle a bit so Milagro could move away from it.

"I don't think they'll hurt kindred spirits," Carrie assured her as Milagro looked back to the eagle that had just been inspecting her.

"What's that one's name?" Damian asked.

"We don't name the ones we can return to the wild," Carrie replied. "Cloud's the only full time resident, so he got a name."

"That makes sense," Iris said.

"Cloud acts like an ambassador for the tribe," Roy stated as he held his arm out for Cloud to return to his perch. "He assures the other birds that we mean them no harm."

"Hey Carrie? Where'd the cat come from?" a man asked as he wandered up to the cage.

"She's mine," Damian replied. "Her name's Nefertiti."

"It's okay Nefertiti," the man cooed down to her. "I won't let the birds eat you."

"Take a good look at her, David," Carrie suggested with a knowing smile.

David stooped down so he could get a good look at Nefertiti. She blinked up at him and meowed softly. "She's a magic cat," he chuckled. "You're very lucky that she picked you," he added to Damian. Damian acknowledged David's assessment as he stepped out of the cage to where Nefertiti was. She jumped up to his shoulders again and began to thoroughly inspect David from the safety of her new perch. "You guys are heading back to California right?" David asked.

"Yeah, after we leave here," Lian replied.

"I can give you a vet cert for her, so you can get her through the Ag department check point," he told Damian.

"That's right," he winced. "Thank you, I would definitely appreciate that." He'd forgotten that they would need a veterinarian's certificate for Nefertiti to get her back into California.

"Let me guess?" David smirked. "She goes directly to Titan's Island with you?" Damian nodded. "You'll legally enter the state this time," he chuckled, petting the cat. "You'll have to forgive me, but I'm gonna have to kick you guys out for a while," David informed them. "We have a rescue coming in and the less people, the less stress for the bird."

"Poachers?" Roy asked as he exited the cage. David shrugged.

"I don't know, I haven't assessed it yet," he replied.

"Call my place if it was," Carrie stated as she left the cage last. "We're heading back there and I can sic these guys on anyone who may be lurking around looking for their prize."

"I was hoping you'd say that," David grinned.

Back at Carrie's home, Lian opened the door and was greeted by Carrie's son, Dane. "You brought the supplies that I saw at the community hall?" he asked as he hugged her in greeting.

"Wiped out the back to school aisle of a Paper Depot in El Paso this morning," Lian replied. She turned and introduced her teammates to Dane. "He's the elementary school teacher here."

"Thanks. We have a lot of kids that'll be happy to see those," Dane offered to the Titans.

"It was our pleasure," Iris replied with a smile. "Lian told us how hard it is to get anything out here." Dane sighed and sagged dramatically.

"There's an understatement," he said. "It's like they forget that we do have school age kids out here."

The phone rang suddenly and Carrie answered it. "Hi David." Milagro powered up and the other Titans suddenly became alert. "Okay, I'll tell them…thanks," she replied before hanging up. "Relax, the bird is only sick," she chuckled. "So you can stand down."

Roy glanced at the time and shook his head. "It's only three in the afternoon," he stated. "Go get your hiking boots on. And any of you that carry sharp pointy things regularly; you might want to get those too." The teens took off to the coach to change their shoes.

"I think Dad's going to go drag us through the canyon," Lian said, as she checked her crossbow. "So I'd go with shorter blades better suited for throwing, if I were you two," she directed to Damian and Jai.

"Why would you need to bring along weapons?" Chris asked as he tied his boots up.

"Dad's probably gonna have us catch dinner," Lian shrugged.

"There's food out there?" Iris asked.

"Loads of it, if you know where to look," Lian smirked. A truck pulled in front of Carrie's house and Lian grinned. It was a police vehicle but she knew the officer. "Carrie's eldest Evan just pulled up. He's the local sheriff…kinda sorta."

"Kinda sorta?" Jai asked.

"Evan's also the local wildlife ranger," Lian explained. She opened the door to the coach and leapt into Evan's outstretched arms.

"Little Living Ghost!" Evan laughed as he caught Lian.

"Future Chief Smiling Water," Lian laughed back as Evan set her down. Lian turned and introduced the Titans to Evan.

"Welcome to our humble home," Evan smiled. He noticed that they were all wearing hiking boots and turned towards the house. "Hey Roy? Where you taking them out to?"

"Canyon," Roy replied, placing his bow on his back. Dane followed Roy outside and was adjusting the wrist brace on his bow arm.

"Keep an eye out," Evan warned. "One of the townie deputies spotted a coyote and thinks it's rabid. It was heading for the hills," he added, pointing away to the north.

"Will do," Carrie said as she stepped from the house. She had a hunting knife strapped to her hip.

"We'll be back around sunset," Roy added and Evan nodded. Evan watched them head south for the canyon, before getting back into his truck and leaving.

Damian stopped and turned when he heard a tinkling bell. Nefertiti was racing after them and he chuckled. "Coming with us are you?" he asked. She slowed before leaping up to his shoulder. "She comes with us when we go hiking or paintballing," he explained to Carrie, Dane, and Roy.

Roy laughed. "Dick's convinced that you deliberately bring her to flush him out."

"Jason takes advantage of that, not me," Damian smirked. "And it is Richard's own fault that she seeks him out. He essentially trained her to hunt him by playing hide and seek with her when she was a kitten."

"Dumb ass," Roy chuckled.

"Aren't you worried about her getting hit?" Dane asked.

Damian shook his head. "Because of her colouring, she vanishes in the woods. She's virtually impossible to spot unless she's right next to you."

"The only place we had no trouble spotting her was in Chihuahua, in the desert," Iris stated. "That grey coat of hers is like the perfect camouflage."

They made it to the mouth of the canyon and Dane took point. Lian scrambled up a rock face to take a higher path along with Milagro and Damian. Roy had Jai and Chris follow him up the opposite side of the canyon a little further in and suggested to Iris to follow Dane and Carrie. "That way if you need to cut loose Irey, you're on relatively flat ground." She grinned up at him as they walked along. The path Lian, Milagro, and Damian were on flattened out for a ways and Nefertiti jumped to the ground and wandered ahead of them a bit.

"Dad," Lian whispered loud enough for Roy to hear a little further in. She pointed to the cat that'd frozen on the spot and stared at something ahead.

On the canyon floor, Dane, Carrie, and Iris looked up towards Lian. Roy gave a small salute off his brow that he had gotten the message and crept forward a few paces. Roy froze when he spotted what Nefertiti had. A couple of large jackrabbits rooting around on the canyon floor. Roy gave a bird call to attract Dane's attention and signalled what was ahead. Dane nodded and notched an arrow as Roy did the same above. Dane moved until he could see the rabbits and took aim. Roy did the same above, indicating which one he was aiming for. Two arrows flew and the rabbits fell in an instant.

"She does know that she's a cat right? Not a hunting dog?" Roy teased Damian.

"Sometimes I wonder," Damian retorted.

"Okay, where are the rest of the bunny rabbits?" Carrie asked up towards Nefertiti, once she had lashed the two dead rabbits together and slung them over her shoulder.

"Nefertiti," Damian called out to her. She turned to look at him and he said something in Arabic. She meowed at him and he repeated the command. She slinked forward again, doing as she had been asked.

"What did you just tell her?" Roy asked.

"Hunt," Damian replied. "As I said, sometimes I wonder about her," he chuckled.

"You have her trained to follow commands?" Dane marvelled.

"Only when it's something that she enjoys," Damian replied.

Dane and Roy spotted the next jackrabbit about the same time Nefertiti did. Dane took the shot as Roy couldn't get to a better spot without possibly giving themselves away. Lian shrugged and slung her crossbow over her shoulder and just followed along when Damian commanded his cat to search for more. It started to become a competition between Dane and Roy to see if they could spot prey before Nefertiti. Sensing this, she scurried ahead of them a ways and began looking again.

"That cat's a punk," Roy muttered when she raced ahead of them on the opposite side of the canyon.

"Dude, I've been calling her that the whole trip," Jai snorted.

"Only because you're her primary victim," Chris chuckled. He heard a soft scratching sound near his shoulder and looked at the cliff face. A large tarantula was climbing the rocks and moving closer to him. He shot straight up into the air in sheer fright as the spider reared up.

"The hell?" Jai muttered, looking to where Chris had finally stopped about a thousand feet up in the air.

"Jai freeze," Roy commanded. Jai did so and watched as Roy notched an arrow and pointed it towards him. He didn't flinch when the arrow flew and bounced off the rocks next to him. "Dude's an arachnophobe?" Roy queried after letting Jai know that it was safe to move again. Jai looked at the arrow at his feet and grimaced. The largest spider he'd ever seen was twitching around the arrowhead that had impaled it.

"I'll never tease you about spiders again, Chris," Jai called out to the Kryptonian.

High above the canyon, Chris shuddered as the dark memories of his childhood muttered in the back of his mind. "They can't hurt you…not here," he murmured over and over again as he tried to get the shuddering under control. A gunshot rang out and Chris snapped his head up to see where it had come from. He heard a squawk as a large eagle flying on the other side of the canyon was hit. "No," he breathed, racing forward to try and catch the bird before it hit the ground.

On the ground, Lian was pointing towards the southeast to indicate where the shot had come from. Roy looked up and saw Chris fly overhead towards the settlement with the eagle. "Irey, get Dane and Carrie back to the village and alert Evan." Iris let Dane take point as she covered their rear and escorted them to safety after calling out to Nefertiti to follow her. The little grey cat scrambled down to Iris and ran ahead of the three humans. "You guys are with me," Roy told the remaining teenagers. "Mila?" Milagro grabbed Roy and Jai with her power ring and floated them across to her side of the canyon.

"Most likely came up the gully, Dad," Lian stated. Roy nodded and voiced a plan to the teenagers as they stealthily made their way to where the shot had sounded from.

"Power up Mila. If they shoot, I want them to have an invulnerable target," Roy commanded. Milagro nodded and let her costume flow over her form. A faint aura materialised around her and the others that she assured them was bulletproof.

Evan Smiling Water was slowing to a stop at the mouth of the canyon when he spied his mother, brother, and Iris coming out. "I was just visiting with David when your friend brought in a shot bird," he explained as he got out of his truck.

"Roy took the rest of the kids to try and catch the culprit," Carrie told her son.

"I can take you to Roy and the others," Chris stated, as he landed next to Evan in full costume. Evan nodded and held a hand up for a moment as he called over his radio.

"Okay, I have deputies coming in from town and they know to look for you here," he instructed his mother. Carrie gave him a wave as Chris lifted off with Evan.

Roy and Lian had both just launched arrows as Chris and Evan found them near the gully. "We disabled the tyres, but no sign of our shooter," Roy said as Chris set Evan down. Chris scanned the surrounding area and pointed to a curved cliff.

"There's two of them and they know they're had," he stated.

"Secure them, while we secure the truck," Roy told him. Chris tore off towards the two poachers as Milagro floated the others down to the disabled vehicle.

"Holy shit…don't touch anything," Evan commanded as he looked inside the truck. There were several dead birds in the back, all of them illegally poached. Two masculine screams alerted them that Chris had secured his targets. "You can move this truck without touching it, right?" he asked Milagro.

"Si," she replied and aimed her ring at the truck. A large platform materialised under the flattened tyres and clamps swung up to secure the truck to the platform. "Hop on," she said, as a second platform appeared out of thin air. Milagro flew them to the mouth of the canyon where the backup Evan had called in were just arriving. Chris gently drifted to the ground with his captives that the deputies quickly secured. Evan quickly identified that the truck belonged to one of the two men and had them arrested on suspicion of poaching. Once they'd been taken away, Roy had the kids head back to Carrie's house.

Night fell and they were gathered around a large fire. Roy studied Chris who had been in a sombre mood ever since the canyon. "Want to tell me why a Kryptonian is afraid of spiders?" he asked. Chris cringed. Roy almost began to think that he wasn't going to get his answer when Chris sighed and hung his head.

"In the Phantom Zone where I was born…" he murmured. "There are these creatures called dozhehlod, in Kryptonian. The word roughly translates to 'dark being'."

"Go on," Roy encouraged.

"Dozhehlod resemble your Earth spiders," Chris explained. "Only they're the size of a large delivery truck." Jai cringed at the thought as did several others. "The General and Ursa would…" Chris swallowed as he recalled the cruel threats his birth parents would use to keep him in line. "They would threaten to leave me for the dozhehlod to find if I misbehaved." Lian took his hand in hers and leaned on him as tears threatened to spill from Chris' eyes.

"That's a very valid reason to fear spiders," Damian murmured.

"No shit," Roy agreed. "I forget sometimes that you really aren't Clark and Lois' biological child," he added. Chris sniffled and looked up. "You're so much like the Kent's, that it is easy to forget," Roy stated.

"Ever since Mom and Dad took me in, I've been afraid of spiders," Chris admitted. "Despite the fact that I know they can't hurt me here. I just keep seeing…" Chris held his hand near his head and frowned. "I just keep seeing these shadowy monsters."

"Do you trust me?" Roy asked. Chris narrowed his eyes warily. "No I'm not going to force you into a locked room full of the things," Roy assured him. "I couldn't even if I tried anyway. But I think I can help you tolerate spiders better than you do now."

"How?"

"Let me talk to Raven. I think with her help, you can at least beat the abject fear you have," Roy said. Chris nodded.

"I'll try anything at this point," he murmured.

A coyote cried out into the night and Damian reached for Nefertiti. Roy and Lian both cocked their ears toward the sound as it rang out again. "It's not sick," Lian said.

Roy shook his head. "Nope. Just mom calling out to the kids." A second call rang out and Lian and Roy both turned to stare into the darkness where the new cry had come from. "That one is sick though," Roy murmured. "Chris, can you spot anything?" he asked, pointing towards where he was trying to spot movement.

Chris narrowed his eyes and scanned the edge of the village towards the north. "I see it," he said a moment later. "Rabies means they're all frothing and drooling foam all over the place, right?"

"Uh-huh," Roy said, standing up and reaching for his handgun.

"Half a mile out that way," Chris pointed. "And it's heading this way." Damian took Nefertiti into the coach as Roy tried to spot the coyote.

"I see it now," Roy muttered a moment later as he aimed for the sick animal.

"He's heading for the aviary," Chris added.

"You're positive that it's foaming bad?" Roy asked.

"Oh yeah. Poor guy has it bad," Chris replied.

Roy followed the coyote through the sight on his gun as it moved closer to the aviary. Once in the clear, he could see that it was indeed rabid. Murmuring a prayer in Diné Bizaad, Roy took his shot. The coyote fell without a sound.

"What are you shooting at?" Evan asked as he came outside from the house a moment later.

"Got your rabid coyote. Over by the aviary," Roy replied.

Evan pointed his flashlight and spotted the dead coyote. "I'll get David to check it out," he said as he headed for the aviary.

"Did you have to shoot it?" Iris grimaced from by the fire.

"It was dying, Irey. There's no cure for rabies," Roy replied, smoothing his hand over her hair.

"Is it possible that it was the one Carrie warned about?" Damian asked as he stepped from the coach. He was tending to a wound on his hand. "The one that's been snatching pets?"

"It's possible," Roy sighed. "Cat nailed you?" he asked when he saw Damian wince in pain as he finished wrapping his hand.

"She startled a bit when you fired," he replied sourly.

"She's hiding, isn't she?" Milagro piped up. Carrie and Dane were coming outside to join them just then.

"Yes. Under your bed."

"Poor kitty doesn't like gunfire, huh?" Carrie asked, taking a seat next to Milagro. Dane wandered over to where Lian was sitting and sat down beside her. Damian shook his head no, as he took his place beside Iris. Evan returned a while later and sat beside his mother. Night wore on and the team was treated to the traditional songs and stories of the Navajo. Lian and Roy took turns with Carrie and her sons, or sang along with them.

The following morning, Lian had gotten her teammates up and led them to the community centre, where they joined Dane. Dane had them separate out the school supplies they'd brought with them, into individual bags for each student on the reservation. "Mom and Roy are going around to each house and letting them know that there's stuff here for the kids," Dane said as he reached the bottom of the pile. "What the…?"

"We can return those if you want," Lian teased as Dane gaped at the teacher supplies.

"No. No…I'm sure I can find a use for them, Little Living Ghost," Dane chuckled as he reached over to hug Lian.

"Hello?" David called out from just outside the door. He stepped in and spied Dane and the Titans on the floor with the supplies. "Wow. You brought those with you?" he asked. Lian nodded.

"Here you go," Dane said, handing over two bags to David.

"Thank you. Lily and Nate will appreciate these when they get back," David replied.

"Where'd they go?" Lian asked.

"They went with Gabe to meet some friends of his up in Colorado," David smiled. "You guys are heading out tomorrow, right?" he asked.

"Yep. Death Valley here we come!" Jai grinned.

"Bring Nefertiti around at about five and I'll get that vet cert for her," David told Damian.

"Thank you," Damian nodded.

Chris went with Damian to take Nefertiti to David. Chris was holding her and smirked when she realised that she was in a veterinarian's office. "Claw all you like, Cat. It ain't happening," he teased as she struggled to get free. David spoke to her with a soothing voice in Diné Bizaad as he petted her, while Chris held her. Damian raised his eyebrows in surprise as Nefertiti seemed to calm down after a little bit. David continued talking to her as he took her from Chris and set her down on the table to begin her check up. "Cat whisperer?" Chris murmured to Damian.

"So it would seem," Damian replied softly as David quickly examined her.

"There you go. You're a good girl," David told Nefertiti as he wrapped up his exam. He gave her a few treats and she purred as she devoured them.

"How in the Hell did you get her to calm down?" Damian asked. "Her vet back home refers to her as Ms Grumpy…for obvious reasons," he added, holding up his wounded hand.

"Navajo secret," David winked. "And there you go," he added, scrawling his signature across the certificate.

"That's it. I'm bringing her here from now on," Damian muttered as Nefertiti hopped down from the table to curl around his ankles. "Thank you," he said as David handed him the vet certificate.

"Not a problem. You okay?" David asked Chris.

Chris smirked and held out his arms for David to see. "Not a dent. Good try though," he said looking down at the cat.

David held his up as Damian got out his wallet. "Nope. Fair trade. Vet cert for school supplies," he stated.

"You're certain?" Damian asked.

"You saved me a six hour round trip drive. I'm positive," David told him.

"Is that your family, there?" Chris asked, indicating a photo on the nearby desk.

"Yep," David beamed, picking up the photograph. "Their Mom passed shortly after Lily was born," he added.

"I'm so sorry," Damian murmured. Chris offered his condolences as well.

David thanked them and shook his head. "We don't question the Great Spirit when he brings one of us home," he explained. "Gabe's a lot like her," he added. David explained how his eldest son was a lecturer on Navajo culture. "Nate…who knows where his path will lead him? Lily's will most likely lead her here."

"In a moment," Damian said as Nefertiti squawked up at him. She tapped her tail on the floor for a few seconds before reaching out to swat him on the ankle. "Fine, come on," he told her. "Thank you again," Damian told David as he headed for the door. Nefertiti bounded outside and Damian followed, muttering under his breath.

"She's got him wrapped around her little paw," David chuckled.

"Mmhmm," Chris replied. "How's the eagle…from yesterday?" he asked, changing the subject. David sighed.

"Looks like Cloud's getting a roommate," he replied. "I had to take off most of his left wing, because the bones were obliterated. There was no saving it."

"Zhor," Chris stated suddenly. "It means 'heart' in Kryptonian. I think it would be a good name."

"I like it," David mused. He asked Chris to spell it and wrote it down on a chart on his desk. Chris asked if he could visit the birds in the aviary and David led him through to the massive cage. Chris spied a smaller cage that Zhor was recuperating in and wandered over.

"Zhor nim raogrhys," he murmured to the eagle. David cocked a curious eyebrow as Chris murmured to Zhor in Kryptonian for a few minutes longer.

"What did you tell them?" David asked after Chris rose and spoke to the other residents of the aviary briefly.

"Basically told them all to be strong and get better," Chris admitted. "I told Zhor that he was safe here and to live a good life."

David smirked. "Ah-sheh'heh," he thanked. "I'm sure they appreciated it from an atsáh-hasteen."

"I know what ah-sheh'heh means…what is the other one?" Chris asked.

"Atsáh-hasteen. It means eagle man," David supplied. "Consider it our name for you."

"Nah kluv," Chris thanked, bowing his head to David. Chris stayed for a while and helped David tend to the eagles.

"You're in a good mood," Lian noted when Chris returned to the others after the sun had set.

"Considering David just gave me a Navajo name," Chris chuckled. "Atsáh-hasteen," he added, when Lian cocked an eyebrow at him.

"Eagle man. Appropriate coming from the Atsáh-hah-tah'lih," she mused. "Eagle doctor," Lian translated a moment later.

The following morning the Titans were getting ready to leave and saying their farewells. "I'll be back next week," Lian said as she hugged her father.

"Goodie! We can head to Crazy Horse then," Carrie grinned. Roy just rolled his eyes.

"Drive safe. Behave. And any other responsible crap I'm supposed to say," Roy muttered as the teenagers got into the coach and land rover. Carrie waved and Roy flashed them a peace sign as they drove away, calling out their final farewells and thanks. "What?" Roy asked Carrie as she gave him a stern look.

"Don't even think about snaking away before Lian returns," she scolded. She laughed as Roy scoffed and turned away muttering under his breath.

A/N: I actually looked up Kryptonian and Diné Bizaad dictionaries for all the stuff Chris and David say in this near the end. Yes, I'm that sad.