Chapter twelve Placing the pieces.

Conner and Jaime just looked at the chaos that was occurring in one of the many corridors of the mountain. Both looked at one another as if to ask 'Are you seeing this too?' to each other before deciding that they were not crazy and what they were seeing was real. At the moment there was a pale boy hugging (smothering) a tan boy to death while Alpha team was trying to pry him off and Bart, Beast Boy and La'gann were trying to pull out the younger teen.

"What is going on here?" Conner asked with an apparent growl to his voice. Everyone stopped for a second as Night Wing looked in his direction avoiding the fray.

"New guy showed up early and "attacked" Impulse's friend," he explained. It was then that the two boys were separated. The smaller of the two was gasping for air. His hair seemed uncontrollably messy. He looked at the elder and then Bart.

"Dios mio Zak. I didn't think you'd cause so much trouble," Jaime said surprising the group. Zak gave Jaime a sheepish smile and detracted himself from La'gann's grip and walked over to Jaime with Bart trailing.

"Not my fault. Bart here took me to the room," he explained childishly pushing the blame on Bart.

"Nu-uh! You were the one who wanted to prank someone!" he said pointing at the elder teen who was for the most part now dry but oddly sparkly.

"Can you blame me? Besides. It's just glitter," he commented. The elder's nostril's flared.

"YOU COVERED ME IN THE HERPES OF THE CRAFT WORLD!?" he yelled boisterously so it would echo off the cavernous walls. This made everyone stare at the teen who was releasing waves of fury and mortiferous promises that guaranteed pain for the receiver. Zak blinked and leaned in toward Bart to ask, "Is that what they call it now?"

-.-

"Father. I must go to America. I feel as though something has happened," Wadi said looking toward the west. Her father sighed. It had been five years since Zak had vanished. Five years since she had truly "stolen" for fun. Five years and she had grown up. Still looking for the boy who had helped him see just how much of his daughter he did not know.

"I understand," he said handing her a small package. He knew that she would want to leave to find him. It seemed as though he was right.

She looked at the package for a moment, her eyes widening with revelation as to what was given to her. Her eyes softened as she looked back up at her father. She opened her arms and hugged her father giving a light squeeze.

"I do not know what I would do with this," she said referring to the package knowing what was inside. He put his hand on her shoulder, looked her dead in the eye and said, "You will know when the time comes Wadi."

She gave him a soft smile before turning toward her dwelling to pack her things and to call Francis. Lord only knows she would need his assistance in procuring a new location of operation to search for Zak and she was not familiar with America and the many customs or there, lack of that transpired there routinely.

-.-

"Why do I get the feeling that Komodo has done something inexplicably stupid?" Fiskerton muttered. Zon and Drew looked at him. Drew gave a comforting smile.

"I'm sure your brother is just being a sour puss," Drew said in a comforting motherly tone. She stood up from the chair she was sitting on and walked to the door, "I'll go see what's taking him."

"Maa. No mom I will," Fiskerton said standing up and stretching, "If he's pissed than better me than another "inexplicable" fire in the halls."

"Oh. Big words today? Or are you just inexplicitly smarter?" Zon joked. Fiskerton rolled his eyes and slid out into the halls of the mountain. He focused on what should have been either snoring or primal cursing. He did not expect to hear Komodo yelling like a banshee about herpes. He blinked in confusion and sighed. He was glad Zak was not here to see his brother spew such vile altercation with whoever the poor victim was.

His ear twitched slightly as he began to walk casually down the halls, his bare feet barely registering the frigid stone floor. It was at one particular turn he stopped in callus amusement with a smile gracing his face at the scene of oblivious people not registering the fact he was even there. He looked around and pieced together people by who he had seen (the girls) and who they had described and that of his own furious brother who was covered in glitter. That explained the herpes comment.

His eyes trailed over the girls who were all present and accounted for. A fish boy who reminded him of Ulraj that was most likely La'gann. A squirrelly green kid who looked oddly similar to a simian much like himself must have been Beast Boy. A taller and obviously older man dressed in black with a blue insignia on his chest was Night Wing. A boy with mousy brown hair was Impulse. The taller more muscular teen with the S insignia was Superboy and then there was the Latino who was talking too…

"Zak?" he said before the thought it through. Komodo looked at Fiskerton for a moment before snorting at his brother.

"Yeah. Who knew?" Komodo said louder than his brother. Zak turned to see Fiskerton. Thinner, shorter, less hairy, more clothed, but still had the same iridescent orange eyes. Komodo looked over the younger assessing for any injuries that he might have had since his disappearance.

"Uh, Night Wing. This is Fiskerton," Batgirl said trying to keep a level of normalcy. Fiskerton looked over at Night Wing and nodded his head in recognition that he was their leader before looking back at Zak. A spark of recognition ghosted his eyes.

"Fisk?"

"OH! So you recognize him but not me!?" Komodo growled stomping over to Zak. He grabbed him and pulled him into a head lock.

"HEY!" he squeaked, "Let go!"

"Ain't gonna happen White Star!"

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