Happy birthday Dick! Yeah so I'm pretty sure Dick's real birthday is on the first day of spring, so here's an update celebrating our special spring robin!
Fun Fact: If you rearrange Linda Redehnson in the right order, it spells Dilan Henderson.
Santa Prisca
June 19TH 12:00 a.m.
Scarlet Tanager's Pov
I watched quietly as the feud between the Reach and the Light was increasing dramatically. Miss Martian was already disguised as Deathstroke, but now one knew that. I couldn't help but stress and worry about how this could play out. The whole team was here, even the retired K.F. and Kitsune.
Suddenly a full-out fight started between the two sides, but the head members of the Light let Tigress and Deathstroke protect them, while the Reach had their guards and Black Beetle guard them. Kaldur quickly broke it up once his father started for Black Beetle.
"Enough! We are allies, not enemies. Any conflict between us only benefits our true opponents, the Justice League and their sidekicks," Kaldur said, proving a good point.
The tension ceased, but the tension of the team grew. I was pretty sure Kitsune would've started complaining about all the voices in her head, but I was helping with the link since there were so many people.
"Come on, come on, when's our cue?" Impulse said impatiently. "This helmet smells like old sweat and bad cheese."
"Impulse, stop complaining, we can't jump right into this, it could ruin the plan," Nightwing told him, his voice completely serious.
Everything went silent as we watched Ra's Al Ghul rip Tigress' necklace from her. In a flash, Tigress disappeared and Artemis had taken her place. Savage's eyes narrowed in frustration. "Artemis."
"I don't understand, I though Artemis was dead," the Ambassador said.
"So did we all, but it seems Tigress is Artemis," Savage said.
"This is a Glamour Charm, created by Zatanna or Doctor Fate to hide Artemis' true identity," Ra's Al Ghul explained, staring at the Glamour Charm in hs hand.
"But Kaldur'ahm killed Artemis, and if she lives that means—"
"That means, Aqualad duked them all, including his own father," Black Beetle cut the Ambassador off, before letting out a dark laugh.
The Ambassador let out a sigh. "Kill them both."
Black Beetle smiled sadistically, starting with Kaldur first. Black Manta stood in front of his son protectively. "No, I will not let you kill my son."
"He's right," said Deathstroke, promptly shooting Kaldur in the chest, before he shot Artemis. "The Light takes care of its own."
A hologram of Kaldur appeared above everyone. "If you are watching this, then your summit is truly over. The Light and the Reach deserve each other; both sides play at being partners, but the Reach believe the Light to be their naïve tools for conquest, when in fact, the Light has manipulated the Reach from day one."
Another hologram appeared beside Kaldur, showing pictures of the six Leaguers that were sent to Rimbor. "It was the Light that brought Earth to the Reach's attention, by sending the Justice League to Rimbor. The Light had set their trap, and the Reach snapped at their bait. Fulfilling the Light's desire to thrust the whole world into the galactic spotlight. Part of their complex survival of the fittest scheme for the planet. Which they believe will transform the Earth and the Light into the eventual rulers of the milky way."
"Everybody in position, prepare to execute," came Nightwing. "Alpha Squad in position."
"Beta Squad in position," said Superboy.
"Gamma Squad in position," came Robin's voice.
"Delta Squad in position and ready to kick some tushies!" exclaimed Impulse.
I could feel his heartbeat quicken, and his legs revving to go. Once Savage admitted that the Light had a hold of the Crystal Key, Kaldur and Artemis both stood, while Miss Martian held Deathstroke's sword at Savage's throat.
I ran in with Nightwing, Batgirl and K.F., jumping down to a lower ledge. I glared at Savage, but I was smirking because it was finally time to get a little revenge on him.
"Hey there Vandy, you miss me?" K.F. said, toying around with the Light.
Superboy, Guardian, Bumblebee and Kitsune appeared from the opposite entrance where the Reach had gotten, while Gamma and Delta Squad were still waiting.
"Well play, well planned, but the Light always has back-up plan," said Savage.
The mouths of the caves were blocked by a wall of rock, while the ceiling above us opened up, revealing a beautiful full moon and the War World. What appeared to be trained guards of the Light fell into the cavern, each wielding a weapon. They surround us and the Beta Squad, and out numbered us.
"I've had my fill of your interference. Do not expect to survive," said Savage, shooting a glare directly at me. "Kill them all, Superboy may present a problem but we'll deal with him when all the other children are bleeding on the ground."
"Still you refer to us as children, no wonder our successes mount," Kaldur smiled. "You consistently underestimate us."
One of the guards ripped off his masks, revealing Blue Beetle under the uniform. The uniform fell to shreds as Blue Beetle flew into the air, blasting sound waves at the Reach goons. Gamma Squad and Delta Squad quickly broke out of their disguises, or threw their masks off. A full on battle between the team and any goon raged, Klarion and Savage quickly escaping.
I bit the inside of my cheek in frustration, but quickly tore apart the fire that choked Miss Martian. Lagoon Boy managed to catch her before she hit the ground. I quickly ran at a few goons, knocking them easily with my bo-staff. I was up against the wall of the cave when a few of them had me surrounded. I smiled.
"Attack the Reach guards!" I barked the order at them, seeing them run off to fight with the Reach.
I felt someone from behind and quickly spun around, smashing my bo-staff in their temple. They were unconscious in a second. Of course, the other goons surrounding me were about to meet the same fate. I blocked a few swords, sai's and lasers here and there, before I quickly rushed to hit weak points. Thigh, collar-bone, temple, that was the rhythm I kept at. Looking around after a while I noticed the Ambassador still pinned to the wall by Blue, but the scientist and Black Beetle were already gone. Letting out a breath, I was suddenly tackled by Kitsune.
"Good to have you back, Dilan," Kitsune laughed.
I shook her off of me, tucking my bo-staff away. "You too."
I quickly picked up Deathstroke's sword, spinning it around in my hand. Too heavy for my liking but the perfect souvenir. Walking up to Artemis with Kitsune, I couldn't believe that Kaldur still felt like this mission was a lost.
"Are you kidding me? Kaldur, you've won!" exclaimed Nightwing.
"Won? Dude, dude you triumphed!" KF.. added.
"You've crippled the Reach, and literally have broken the Light in half, even took down Deathstroke before the summit," Artemis smiled. She bent down to pick up her Glamour Charm. "And since we've holographically recorded the entire deal, we'll be able to use the bad guys own words against the Justice League."
"Kaldur, there is no way you could still think this entire mission was a lost," Kitsune said, looking at Kaldur to see if he was really serious.
"It's like you said five years back," I spoke, the happy memory flashing through my mind. "Today was a good day."
Kaldur's lips curved upwards, forming a smile. I smiled back, glad to be able to cheer him up and convince him that this was definitely a win. Beast Boy suddenly tackled Artemis with a hug from behind.
"What was that?" Artemis laughed, smiling down at Beast Boy.
He looked up at her, a wide smile on his own face as well. "I'm just so glad you're alive, and that Aqualad's not a traitor." He paused, letting go of Artemis and taking a minute to look at Nightwing. His happy expression soon turned into a serious one, as he pointed a finger at Nightwing. "No more faking anyone's death for at least a year, okay?"
"Ha, second it," K.F. agreed.
I laughed at Nightwing for getting reprimanded by Beast Boy. "Sounds like you've got a deal to uphold, am I right Beast Boy?"
He nodded, waiting for Nightwing to agree to the deal. He stared at me, like he wanted me to get help him. I smiled sadly, letting him know that he was on his own. "Deal."
"Agreed," Kaldur said as well.
Nightwing promptly put a hand on his old pal's shoulder. "Kaldur, this has been a good night, maybe the first one since the three of us first took off for Cadmus five plus years ago."
Kid walked around to the other side of Kaldur, also placing a hand on his shoulder. "Come on my friend, enjoy the moment."
"We even managed to get a souvenir," I said, holding Deathstroke's sword. "First one since Mount Justice blew up, and first one to be placed in the new trophy room, you know when we get a new one."
Kaldur let out a long-held in breath, before he looked up at all of us. "Today has indeed been a good day."
Blüdhaven, Dockingside Warehouse
June 19TH 11:24 p.m.
Scarlet Tanager's Pov
"Alright team, gather around, it's time for a mission briefing," Nightwing said, walking up the stairs to the living room with Aqualad. He leaned on the wall beside the couch Beast Boy and I sat on, shooting me a quick smile.
Aqualad stood in the middle of the small living room, looking at the familiar faces of his team. "Tomorrow we will finish this conflict between the Earth and the Reach. The War World has taken a leave, to where, we are unsure, but this leaves us with an advantage. The Reach is weak now that the Light has turned on them, and foiled their plans."
"This is going to be so crash!" Impulse grinned. He sat on the left side of the couch opposite of me, while Robin and Wonder Girl sat to his side.
"So what's the plan?" Batgirl asked, waiting patiently beside Guardian and Bumblebee.
"Green Beetle, Blue Beetle and I will be Alpha Squad. We will take down Black Beetle and the scientist," started Aqualad. "The rest of you will be divided into squads of two or three. Nightwing, Tanager, and Wolf will be Beta. Batgirl, Beast Boy and Impulse, you will be Gamma. Robin, Lagoon Boy and Wonder Girl, you are Delta, while Guardian and Bumblebee are Epsilon. Superboy and Miss Martian, you'll be sent on a separate mission."
"Where are we going?" Miss Martian asked, looking surprised that Aqualad assigned her and Superboy on a mission together.
Nightwing pushed off the wall and stood, tossing her a flash drive. "Rimbor. The flash drive contains everything the Light and the Reach admitted to doing. It should be enough to clear the Leaguers."
I turned to catch a quick glance at La'gann, who was gritting his teeth in Superboy's direction. The only reason I noticed was that his blood was just pumping through his head. I sighed, sorry for him, but at a time like this, you shouldn't let your personal feelings get in the way of the mission.
"Leave as soon as you can," Aqualad added, sending them a trusting nod. "We will execute this mission early tomorrow morning, and will meet here at dawn. Be prepared, alert, and aware that things might not go our way. Rest up as much as you can for now."
The briefing was dismissed, and every quickly went their separate ways, heading home, or getting ready for a few hours of sleep. Miss Martian and Superboy took the zeta to Rimbor, Nightwing quickly calling to them to take with them, saying he could lead them to the court. I returned to Gotham with Robin, Batgirl and Nightwing. Batgirl went her seperate ways, saying that she'd see us in the morning, while we found our way back to the Bat Cave.
Gotham City, Wayne Manor
June 20TH 12:01 a.m.
Alexis' Pov
Now here I am, sitting out on my balcony relaxing for the first time today. Of course, it didn't last long when I heard a small knock on my door. "Come in."
"Hey, just wanted to say good night, but you're obviously not going to bed any time soon," Dick smiled, leaning against the door frame.
I craned my neck to look up at him, smiling when he looked down at me. "There's been a lot of things on my mind."
"Like what? Other than me, of course," Dick joked, laughing lightly.
"Like why Gar can't go to school like normal kids," I named, quickly sending Dick a 'not finished look'. "After the use of Glamour Charms recently, why can't Zatanna or Doctor Fate make one for Gar? He deserves to have a childhood, interact with people and make friends."
"I never thought about that," Dick said, staring out at Gotham. "The Glamour Charm idea, not that he doesn't deserve all of those other things."
"He's a good kid, and he's been so strong," I said, my eyes softening. Connor had told me about what happened to his mom. "I know what it feels like, and I know you do too."
Dick was silent, probably thinking over my idea for Gar, but more likely remembering his mother. Letting out a long-held in sigh, he finally spoke. "We'll talk to him and M'gann about it after we finish this whole Reach dilemma."
"That brings me to my next thought. I can't believe that tomorrow everything could be over. The League could come back, Savage fled with the War World, the Light's been quiet, and if we can really get over with the Reach, then maybe life will finally relax," I said. "You know, until some super villan decides to conquer the Earth and all its citizens again."
I could tell Dick was smiling, even without looking at him. "You should be getting some sleep you know?"
I didn't even have time to respond when Dick suddenly picked me up in his arms, literally sweeping me off my feet. My hands wrapped around his neck tightly, afraid to let go. I let out a laugh, before quickly forcing myself to hold it in. It was twelve in the morning. "Dick, put me down!"
He gently let me fall on to my bed, but what I wasn't expecting was for him to fall with me. His hands were wrapped tightly around me, and his face was inches away from mine. It didn't take long for him to lean down and place his lips on mine. My face heated up as we kissed. I realized that we were both lying here together on my bed kissing. Pulling away, I caught the confused expression that spread across his face. Looking to my left, I couldn't help but feel embarrassed about what I was about to say.
"Alexis?" Dick called softly. I closed my eyes, my heart fluttering. He couldn't have said my name any softer. He lifted his head a little higher, trying to figure out what upset me. "Listen, if you're uncomfortable I'll just—"
"It's not that," I said quickly. My voice had come out more nervous than I expected. I knew that he was waiting for an answer, staring at me intently. Finally giving in to him, I turned my head to look at him. The corners of my lips curved just enough to notice, but my heated cheeks were what probably caught his attention first. "I-I'm sorta waiting until I'm married."
The situation turned from confusing to drop-dead awkward. I watched as Dick thought, his eyes twitching over me. When he let out a smile, a part of me relaxed immediately. "Then I'll just have to wait until we're married."
His answer caught me off guard. My brain was about to go crazy with the million thoughts that were going through my head. He wants to marry me? He'd wait for me? This time I initiated the kiss, trying to contain my joy. Dick was officially the sweetest person I've ever met. He pulled away first, grinning from ear to ear. "Why are you smiling?"
"I love you," he said, staring at me deeply with those misty-blue eyes that I've grown to love.
It was the first time in five plus years since I've heard Dick say those words to me, but the feeling of happiness I had felt when he said it the first time hasn't changed. I shifted my right hand so that I could place it on his cheek, his hair bristling against my fingers. I smiled, unable to describe how grateful I was for Dick. Well, there were a few specific words that came into mind. "I love you, too."
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