Disclaimer: I didn't own Justice League last time and that still hasn't changed.

As usual, I'd like to thank Rebel-Renegade-Fett for beta-reading.

One 'Hell' of a Birthday

Monday evening the next day, Hector returned home from work and the farm to find Cassandra standing very still in the middle of the room with a fly swatter in one hand. "I'm back. Now what are you up to?" Hector asked as he hung up his jacket.

"My card tower got ruined by a single pathetic fly, and I'm waiting for the chance to exact revenge," the young girl replied, motioning to the mess of cards on the table behind her while not taking her eyes off the offending insect buzzing around.

Hector smiled in amusement as he walked over to his sister and the offending insect in question, then his arm shot out with lightning speed, squishing the fly between his thumb and forefinger. "There, problem solved."

Cassandra merely rolled her eyes in response and put the fly swatter away, muttering under her breath: "Show off."

"If I was really showing off I would've flicked a thumb tack, hit it in mid-air and pinned it to the wall instead."

"Knowing the training you've had with Diana, I don't doubt you could've done it. Hey, can you just drop it on the floor for a second?" she asked, interrupting him as he was about to put the fly's remains in the garbage. "I just want to practice a little, and this seems like it should be easy enough."

"Alright then." Hector dropped the fly's flattened corpse and watched as Cassandra walked over, extended a hand towards it and recited a few words.

"Etativel eht ylf." The dead insect then rose up off the floor, floating in mid-air. "I'm feeling particularly vengeful. Do you mind if I 'fire' it too?"

"Just a second." Hector grabbed a fire extinguisher and held it at the ready. "Go ahead, but try not to 'fire' anything else, ok?"

"Got it." Carefully preparing herself, Cassandra aimed her other hand at the insect and cast her next spell. "Ecuder ti ot sehsa." A small fireball, only a few fingers' width in size, emerged from her palm, reducing the once bothersome fly to ashes.

"Not bad," Hector complimented her, putting the fire extinguisher away. "Small as that may have been, your control looks good." Cassandra perked up at this, a hopeful look on her face. "No, I'm still not ready to let her in on this secret."

"Okay, if you say so. By the way, Amaya gave me this at school today." Cassandra punctuated this statement by grabbing a very large bag filled with fabric, cloth, string and such, and placing it on the table, then passed a sheet of paper for him to read. "She said her mom has more than she can handle herself at the moment and needs your skill with a needle and thread. All the specs are on the list, along with when each piece is due." Amaya's mother, a Japanese immigrant and widow, owned a boutique that specialized in custom formalwear for both men and women, and on occasion she would solicit Hector's services to help her meet her clients' demands, most often in exchange for various goods or favors. The one fancy suit that he owned had in fact been a payment for helping her out before.

"In that case, I'd better get started," Hector said as he finished a cursory examination of the list, then set it aside and began to dig through the bag while Cassandra cleared the table for him. "So, how did things go for you yesterday?"

"It was fun. Kara and Courtney didn't come because they were grounded, but Sally, Mary and I spent the day at The Splash Zone. Incidentally, we did run into Percy and Sala when we arrived."

"Uh huh... and how did that go?"

"Well, he bragged about teaching you how to fish, swim and stuff, joked about getting off his throne, asked me to tell you he said 'hi', and he may have hinted at, you know... this," Cassandra said, wiggling her fingers for emphasis. Blue sparks erupted from her fingertips and went off like fire crackers, causing her to jump in surprise and let out an 'eep'.

"..."

"Umm, oops?"

"Your control may be good most of the time, but do remember to be careful."

"Yes sir!"

Tuesday after work, Hector decided to walk over to Cassandra's school and made his way to the gym where she and the rest of the cheerleading team were practicing their routine. There he quietly sat down on one of the bleachers and began working on a dress he was doing for Amaya's mother while watching the practice.

"Good job, ladies and gentlemen," the team's coach, a woman in her early 40's spoke up once they were finished. "Now, Saturday in three weeks we'll be duking it out with Bludhaven on their home turf, and as per school regulations we are going to need-"

"I'll go," Hector spoke up.

"Jesus!" she cried out, having not noticed him come up behind her. "M. Anderson, where did you come from?"

Hector merely pointed his thumb at the door through which he'd entered earlier, prompting the cheer team to laugh. "I apologize for startling you."

"I'll be fine," she reassured him. "And how can I help you?"

"Regulations stipulate that students going on a field trip, sporting event or other such activity outside of school premises must be accompanied by one staff member and at least one additional adult. Since I've already acted as such before, I'd like to volunteer myself as chaperon."

"You have proven responsible and trustworthy, so I don't see why not. You sure you want to come with?" Hector merely nodded in response. "Okay then, I'll just get you to follow me to my office and go over the necessary paperwork. The rest of you can hit the showers."

The next day after school, Cassandra was at home doing schoolwork by herself, since Hector was busy at Adolf and Frieda's, when someone came knocking at the door. 'Someone' turned out to be none other than Zatanna, whom she happily let in. "What brings you to this humble abode, dearest potential sister in-law?" the teenage girl said theatrically.

"Aren't you getting a little ahead of yourself?" Zatanna replied with a bit of a blush. "You're starting to remind me of my mother."

"Sorry about that, I'll try to control myself. Can I get you anything? Tea, coffee, juice, dihydrogen monoxide?"

"What?"

"Water. You know, two hydrogen, one oxygen?"

"Oh right. Just water would be fine." Cassandra then grabbed a glass from the cabinet, filled it from the tap and handed it to her. "Thanks. So, last Sunday your brother and I went to visit his friends' farm, and while we were there one of them mentioned that his birthday was coming up next Saturday. That said, I have something in mind and I was hoping to enlist your help."

"I'm all ears."

"Great. So..."

Come Saturday morning, Hector had found himself being woken up early by Cassandra. She had then urged him to quickly get dressed, and as soon as he was finished, she'd handed him a paper bag containing a simple breakfast she'd prepared and practically shoved him out the door, offering no explanation and insisting that he not return before suppertime. For his part, Hector had taken it all in stride and was currently taking a walk down the street, having polished off the two egg/bacon/cheese sandwiches Cassandra had made. Walking amidst a handful of other early morning risers, Hector came across a small crowd and decided to have a look. The crowd was gathered around a man and woman sitting at a table playing chess. The woman, who wore a shirt with an owl on the front, had a sparkle of great wisdom in her sharp, bespectacled eyes, whereas her opponent was sweating nervously as he tried to figure out his next move. He eventually moved his queen back away from her rooks, only for her to move her knight forward, thus ending the game. "Checkmate."

"Well played, Minerva," Hector spoke up.

"Hector, so nice to see you. Would you care to play a game?"

"I'd be happy to oblige," he said as he sat down, the two of them setting the pieces back in place, neither one making a sound as they began to play. The onlookers watched as he matched her, move for move, piece for piece, surprised that he could keep up with her, given how she'd demolished her last opponent. Eventually the game ended in Hector's favor by the tiniest margin, thanks to an improvised gambit with his queen.

"Nicely done," Minerva congratulated him, smiling proudly at his accomplishment.

"Thanks, it only took several hundred games. Or was it more like several thousand? I may have lost count."

"It has taken a long time, but you did earn this victory. Now why don't we go for a walk and catch up on what's happened since we last saw each other?"

"Certainly." The two of them then got up and walked away down the street. "Before you say anything, yes, I am seeing someone, her name is Zatanna, she's a magician, and no, I haven't asked her to help Cassandra with her 'special talents' yet."

Minerva smiled at this, apparently amused. "Anna has indeed advised me of this. In fact, she has told more than a few of 'us' already. Aside from that, I spoke with Mars recently, and I understand you had an interesting experience a few weeks ago."

"That's one way to put it. Phillipus told Polly what really happened, but Polly promised that neither of them would tell anyone else, even her daughter, so fortunately I shouldn't be getting any more attention than I already have."

"Speaking of... I have a birthday gift that I believe you'll appreciate." Minerva then reached into her pocket and pulled out what appeared to be an extravagantly colorful gift certificate. On it was written: *Good for one free trip to 'the land of down-under'. Enjoy a day of mining iron, then forging it into something totally awesome. Warning: Don't fall into the river of fire, but if you go for the other one you might 'stick'.* This she gave to Hector, along with two small stones, one white and one black. "Crush the black stone under your foot whenever you're ready to go, and crush the white one once you're finished."

"How did you get something like this?"

"I had Marc and Anna assist me in convincing Sadhe to grant you access, and his wife also put in a few words. Now, I know you don't like drawing excessive amounts of attention to yourself, but if you were to make something out of 'that' material, then you wouldn't have to worry about revealing your identity if you were forced to act out in the open. However, Sadhe stated that you need to come today, you are to do all the work yourself, and he wishes to speak with you before you begin."

"Then it's a good thing Cassandra kicked me out of the apartment for the day. So, I'm guessing Marc wrote this out?"

"Yes, but, childish as it may seem, it will still grant you entry where you need to go." The two of them then turned into a deserted alleyway to have a little privacy. "Before you run off, I just wanted to wish you a happy birthday."

"Thank you. I'm very grateful for this and everything else you've done for me."

"It's my pleasure." Giving her a respectful nod, Hector dropped the black stone on the ground and stepped on it. A portal suddenly appeared underneath him, causing him to fall through, after which it closed up again.

"Good, you're here," Cassandra stated as Zatanna walked in through the door. "I already kicked my brother out and told him not to come back until supper, so that should give us plenty of time to get ready.

"Great, so let's get started," Zatanna replied, hanging up her coat and setting aside her purse and the bag she'd brought with her.

"You've got the tickets to the show this evening, right?"

"Yeah, they're right here in my purse. I had to enlist my mother's help to snag these, fortunately she knows a few people."

"Just checking. Here, you might wanna wear this," Cassandra said, now wearing an apron and holding out another that Zatanna put on herself. "Now, let's try not to burn down the kitchen while my brother's gone."

Hector landed on his feet after falling through the portal, having been dropped into a huge underground cave permeated with the smell of sulfur. Not far from his position was a palace which Hector immediately headed towards, un-phased by its dark, ominous design. At the entrance he found his passage blocked by a Roman Soldier and a Samurai. Flashing the ticket Minerva had given him, they stepped aside to let him through. From there he walked in a straight line until he came to a grand room, where a pale skinned man dressed in a black toga was sitting on an ebony throne. The toga had wailing faces imprinted into it, while the throne was engraved with various scenes of death, yet Hector didn't even blink, putting a fist over his heart and bowing to the man. "Lord Hades."

"Welcome, Hector Anderson," the God of the Underworld greeted him, signaling for him to rise. "Before you begin your task, I wish to see the pass written for you by Hermes, as well as your medallion." Hector dug the ticket and medallion out of his pocket and gave them to a servant woman who brought the items to her master. Hades scoffed at the writing on the ticket and examined the medallion for a moment, giving the latter back to the servant woman to return to its owner. "Once you're finished, I expect you to return so that I may see the results of your work. For I have not allowed you into my domain so that you might produce something second rate."

"It shall be as you wish."

"Grab what tools you need, she will show you the way," Hades motioned to the same servant woman.

"Thank you, Lord Hades," Hector said, giving him another bow, then following the servant out of the throne room.

A few hours later (or what felt like a few hours in the Greek Underworld) Hector had collected enough Stygian Iron to suit his needs and was currently set up with a small forge near the rivers Phlegethon and Styx, wearing a heavy smith's apron, gloves and goggles. Grabbing the metal he was working on with a pair of tongs, he thrust it into the fires of Phlegethon, then removed it once it was sufficiently heated and set it on an anvil. As he was hammering away, progressively shaping it into the desired form, the servant woman happened to speak up. "So... Hector, is it?"

Hector paused for a second, having not expected the breach in her silence, since she hadn't made a sound until then. "Yes," he said, continuing his work.

"A fine name, like the hero of Troy."

"He is my namesake, or so I've been told."

"So what life does a man like yourself lead that you'd be given access to the underworld in such a manner?"

"Why do you want to know?"

"There are no great sources of entertainment in the underworld, and you seem to be an interesting young man. I'd like to know more about you if you'd be willing to oblige." Mulling over this in his mind for a moment, Hector could sense that the woman had a certain calming, motherly air about her that made him feel all warm and fuzzy, so he decided to tell her about himself. He spoke of his life on the streets of Gotham, how his step-parents had adopted him, the oath he'd sworn to protect Cassandra upon her birth, his combat training with Ares, the monsters he'd fought, his lessons with the other gods, how Aphrodite called him her little brother, his relationship with Zatanna and more.

"Sorry to go on like this," Hector apologized. "It's just... to be honest, I find it easy to talk to you. Would you mind if I asked you to tell me about yourself?"

"Where to begin...? A very long time ago I was married to a man to whom I bore many children, and yet he hated our youngest ones so much that he imprisoned them. In time, one of my sons rose up against his father, killed him and took his place as ruler. Unfortunately, I must confess that he was not a great parent himself, for with his dying breath my husband whispered that just as had been done to him, so to would my son's children turn against him. And in the end he feared this so much that it was his own fault that drove them to do just that." The woman's head drooped low, a look of longing on her face. "So few seem to escape the cruel fate reserved for those cursed with being my children."

"I'm sorry for what happened," Hector said sincerely. "I'm sure you tried your best for your family's sake."

The woman looked up at him and smiled. "You're a good man, Hector Anderson."

"Cassandra, how's the cake coming along?" Zatanna asked as she was peeling potatoes.

"It's okay, everything's just f-" *POOF!* "... Everything's mostly fine." Zatanna turned around to look at the teenager and saw what could only be described as the aftermath of an eruption of flour.

"How...? Never mind, I don't need to know. Naelc pu siht ssem." The mess of flour suddenly gathered itself up and floated back into the bag.

"Neat trick," Cassandra commented. "Wish I could do something like that. I'd totally be like Mary Poppins and clean my room with a snap of my fingers."

"Well, I'm afraid it's going to take more than just a spoonful of sugar to make all of this medicine go down, so we'd better keep at it."

"Yes ma'am!"

Finally finished with his work, Hector was now following the servant woman back to Hades' throne room. Arriving before the God of Death once more, Hector bowed to him again, while the servant returned to her place. "Show me the results of your efforts," Hades ordered. Hector then reached to his right ear, sporting a newly installed earring with a black stone which he tapped once-once-twice, at which it expanded over his head, transforming into a Greek hoplite helmet, black as night. And the parts of his face not covered by the helmet were blurred like muddy water, effectively making him unrecognizable to any who might see him. "Come closer." Hector did as asked, and turned around at Hades' command, that he might see the helmet in its entirety. "Hephaestus has taught you well. It would seem his praise for your talents is warranted."

"Thank you, Lord Hades," Hector said in a distorted voice, as unrecognizable as his face.

"You may leave now." Hector turned his helmet back into an earring, bowed to the God of Death once more, then dropped the white stone and crushed it underfoot. The stone burst into a cloud of white smoke that enveloped him and flew straight up, passing through the ceiling and beyond. With him gone, Hades turned to address the servant woman who'd accompanied Hector during his work. "I highly doubt 'he' would be overly happy about your contact with him."

The woman's image then rippled like a rock breaking the water's surface, changing from a servant dressed in commoner's robes to a tall woman dressed in a fabulous gown overshadowed by her own divine beauty. "That is of little concern to me," she replied, sounding every bit as regal as she appeared. "For one, the boy did not see me for whom or what I am, and unlike the girl's mother, there exists no agreement, no decree that requires me to stay away from him."

"True as that may be, recklessness would be... unwise."

"I am well aware of that. Now, if you don't mind, I shall take my leave. Good day, 'Lord' Hades." And with those words the woman disappeared.

Back with Cassandra and Zatanna, the two of them were putting the final touches on the birthday cake when Hector came knocking at the door. "Is it safe for me to come in?"

"Not yet, just give us a minute," Cassandra called out. She and Zatanna quickly finished with the cake and hid it away in the fridge. "Here, go change in my room and I'll take care of the rest," the teenage girl said, handing Zatanna the bag containing her dress and urging her towards her room. She then went to the door and opened it up to grant her brother entry. "You smell funny, and what's with the earring? Never mind, it doesn't matter. Just grab your suit, take a fast shower and get changed."

While her brother was busy ridding himself of the odor of brimstone, Cassandra took care of setting the table, draping a nice tablecloth over it, placing two sets cutlery and glasses, and lighting a pair of candles that gave off a pleasant aroma. "Nice job," Zatanna commented, walking out in a long, sleeveless black dress that showed a modest amount of cleavage and dipped down at the back.

"Looking good, girl," Cassandra said with a grin, wiggling her eyebrows.

"Thanks, and thank you for all your help."

"No problem, and here comes the man of the hour." Hector then walked out of the bathroom, dressed up in a suit and tie with his hair combed back, sitting down at the opposite Zatanna.

"You look beautiful, Zee," Hector complimented with a smile.

"You're looking pretty sharp yourself."

"Now, technically I'm not old enough to serve alcohol, so let's keep this between us," Cassandra butt in, pouring them both a glass of red wine. She then followed up by rushing to the oven and bringing back two plates of roast lamb with veggies that had been kept warm. "Bon appétit."

"Not bad at all," Hector said after the first bite. "You two did a pretty good job."

"Thanks. Admittedly there were some mishaps, but nothing we couldn't handle. So, I can see you got your ear pierced."

"Just today, as a matter of fact. I ran into my old teacher Minerva when I was out this morning and she sent me to a friend of hers."

"I think it makes you look more distinguished."

"Distinguished, eh? Is that what you see in me?"

"You're also smart, strong, witty, athletic and have a good sense of humor, among other things. And I'll admit, you do fill out the role of eye candy rather well."

"Please, stop, anymore of this and my ego will grow too large to contain." The two of them laughed a little at this, continuing to enjoy the food with little bouts of conversation here and there. Once the main meal was finished, Cassandra re-appeared to remove the plates from the table and brought the cake she and Zatanna had made, a delicious looking creation with icing on top that spelled out 'Happy Birthday', though not before lighting up the candles. Once Hector blew them out, she served them both a piece of the chocolate delight, making off with one for herself. "It's very good. Where did you get the recipe?"

"I have another friend who's an accomplished cook himself," Zatanna answered, making a mental note to thank Alfred later.

"And should I be expecting any other surprises this evening?"

"Just one," she said, digging into her purse and showing him a pair of tickets for Swan Lake. "Nimue got them for me, to make up for embarrassing me last week."

"Speaking of which," Cassandra jumped in again. "You guys might wanna hurry up if you're going to make it on time. Not to worry, I'll take care of cleaning up around here."

"Thank you."

"While you're at it, maybe you could also clean up that nuclear disaster zone otherwise known as your bedroom," Hector added, prompting his sister to stick her tongue out at him.

"Yeah, yeah, run along now, birthday boy." The two adults then got up, took each other's hand, and with a quick spell from Zatanna, disappeared from the apartment.

Flash, Black Canary, Vixen and Hawkgirl were once again gathered at a table in the Watchtower cafeteria. And again, they were discussing one of their favorite topics: Zatanna and her mystery boyfriend. "So... It's been almost three months since Zatanna's started seeing this guy," Dinah began.

"And yet we still aren't any closer to figuring out who this guy is," Mari stated.

"Too bad we can't get Kara, Mary or Courtney to give up anything more than that photo Kara showed us," Wally said. "I don't suppose any of you have an idea?"

"We could always let Batman in on the secret," Shayera suggested. "I mean, he could probably figure out who this guy is."

A moment of silence reigned among them as they contemplated this option. "You know, somehow that doesn't seem like a great idea," Dinah pointed out.

"Yeah, he'd probably get all over-protective and intimidate the guy until he stayed away from her or something," Mari pitched in.

"Good point," Shayera agreed. "I guess it's probably best we don't tell Batman."

"Don't tell Batman what?" The four Leaguers jumped in surprise as Gotham's Dark Knight suddenly appeared at their table.

"Nothing! Nothing at all!" Wally piped up, completely failing to convince Batman. "Would you look at the time? I have to go somewhere... that isn't here. Bye now!" And with that said he immediately took off at super-speed, prompting the others to mutter various lame excuses and flee as well, leaving Batman standing there feeling suspicious.

"Wow, these must be the best seats in the house," Hector commented as they sat down in New York's Metropolitan Opera House. "How did Nimue pull this off on such short notice?"

"When I asked, all she said was that she knows the right people," Zatanna answered. "Frankly, I'm relieved she spared me the details. If you don't mind me asking, why are you so interested in Swan Lake?"

"Cassandra and I lived in Russia for a time, back when our mother was taking us with her across the globe. One day I heard the music while skating outside, so I asked an old man about it and he told me the story. And since then I've always wanted to see the ballet."

"I know it's supposed to be famous, but I've never seen Swan Lake before. What's it like?"

"For that, you'll just have to wait and see," Hector said as the lights dimmed and the curtains rose. They, and the rest of the audience, remained quiet as the dancers fluttered across the stage, wordlessly weaving a tale of love, tragedy and magic, accompanied by an enchanting array of music. Zatanna observed with interest as it went on, leaning into Hector slightly when he linked his arm through hers. Finally, the performance came to an end and they found themselves joining the others in applauding the musicians and dancers.

After leaving the opera house, the happy couple was enjoying a peaceful stroll under the moonlight, having transported away with one of Zatanna's spells. "Have you enjoyed yourself today, M. Anderson?" Zatanna asked playfully.

"I most certainly have, Ms. Zatara," he replied, smiling back at her. "In no small part thanks to you."

"It's been my pleasure." They went on in silence, simply enjoying each other's presence as they walked arm in arm. Eventually they arrived at Zatanna's hotel and went up to her room.

"Well, this would appear to be the point where we say goodnight and part ways," Hector noted.

"Maybe..." Zatanna began, reaching up and gave him a long, lingering kiss. "Or maybe I have another surprise for you." Opening the door, she pulled him into her room where her lips crashed onto his once more, the two of them stumbling around until they fell onto the soft mattress. As they lay on her bed, Zatanna broke their embrace for but a moment to whisper two words: "Happy birthday."

Hope you all liked it, and reviews are always appreciated, whether you just want to comment or have suggestions (no guarantees that I'll put them into this story, but at the very least I will consider them).

Just a few things here:

I know it's obvious who 'Sadhe' is, since I outright said it, but who can guess how the name fits? Minerva's identity shouldn't be difficult either.

Aside from that, I'd like to hear any theories/opinions about the mystery character.