A/N: I own nothing you recognize.
I know, I know, I'm a week late. I do apologize for that; I got so busy last weekend. But maybe I'll post another one tomorrow?
Thank you for all the comments, favorites, and follows.
As for what happened last chapter: Lilith was truly just congratulating Wally on a job well done. THERE'S NOTHING BETWEEN THEM! And Robin, she just likes to push his buttons.
Mount Justice
November 22, 0950 EST
Lilith glanced up when she heard Batman call her name.
"Robin, Lilith, Kid Flash, Superboy, Miss Martian, report for mission briefing."
Lilith stood and hurried to the mission room.
Once everyone was there, Batman explained the situation. "Rumann Harjavti is the democratically-elected president of Qurac." Above Batman, two images appeared, one of a man with dark hair and tan skin and the country of Qurac on the another. Another screen superseded the first two, and a video footage of Harjavti and Bruce Wayne were shaking hands. "Harjavit has been praised as a fair, wise leader, a humanitarian."
"Su-ure," Kid Flash drawled. "Any friend of Bruce Wayne's." Lilith gave Kid Flash a hard look, and she noticed Robin doing the same.
"But five days ago, Harjavti allied himself with the dictator of the neighboring nation of Bialya, Queen Bee," Batman continued, and the map expanded to include Bialya in the shot, and an image of Queen Bee appeared.
Superboy scoffed. "Not a fan," he said.
"Few are," Batman agreed. "But Harjavti's suddenly backs Queen Bee's baseless claim that Qurac and Bialya were one nation in ancient times, and has announced the countries will reunify in two days in a ceremony in Qurac."
A video of GBS News appeared, and according to the location stamp, it was in Dhabar, Qurac at the Democratic Palace. Harjavti was at the podium, announcing, "After the ceremony I will step down as president, so that our rightful monarch, Queen Bee, may rule." The crowd murmured below them. As the camera panned out, Lilith shook her head at the mosaic of Queen Bee with the white dove of peace appearing to take flight off her finger.
Because everyone knows that's completely true, Lilith thought to herself.
The next video was at the Royal Palace in Al-Qawiyah, Bialya, and Queen Bee was saying, "I laud President Harjavti for unifying out peoples, and I will gladly come to Qurac to be crowned sole leader of our nation."
"And the Quracis are okay with this?" Kid Flash demanded.
"Hardly," Batman said, and another screen appeared, showing a peaceful march in Dhabar, Qurac. "They're well aware of the brutality of Queen Bee's regime, but Harjavti has censored the press, silenced all legitimate protest, and invited the Bialyan military into his country to enforce martial law."
"Queen Bee has to be controlling Harjavti," Robin said. "Doesn't she have the power to enthrall most men?" he asked.
"And some woman," Batman added. "But not long distance, and we have confirmation she hasn't left Bialya. Something else is at work here. Find out what."
"Or someone else," Lilith mumbled. Batman looked at her and she sighed. "Well, the last time we were in Bialya, someone wiped out six months of our memories. There's no way a psychic was not involved."
"Very well," Batman nodded. "Keep that in mind. Robin," he added, turning to the Wonder Boy. "You're team leader."
"Promotion," Kid Flash sang. "Sweet," he said, holding up his hand for a high-five, but Lilith caught the look of surprise and horror on his face.
"Me?" Robin asked, quickly schooling his features. "What about Aqualad?" he asked.
"Busy helping Aquaman," Batman said. "You're the next logical choice."
"Not even Lilith?" Robin tried, and she could hear the anxiety creeping into his voice.
"Sorry, Wonder Boy," she said with a grimace. "I'm not cut out to lead."
"Great," Robin grumbled, glaring at the floor.
"Dude," Kid Flash said. "You totally left me hanging." Lilith knocked Kid Flash in the back of the head. "Ow!" he exclaimed.
"Let's just go," Robin said, squaring his shoulders. Everyone headed to the Hanger, but Lilith hesitated.
"Hey," she said softly. Robin glanced up in surprise. "I know you're worried about leading—"
"What?" Robin said quickly. "What makes you say that?"
"Robin," Lilith said gently but firmly. "No one else is here. You can admit how you're feeling."
Robin sighed. "How did you know?" he mumbled.
Lilith reached out and touched his arm. "I can read people pretty well," she said, "and I read your face when Batman told you." Robin glanced up at her and she gave him a small smile. "I don't know where your fear of leading came from," she continued, "but be confident in what you can do. You are, by far, the most qualified."
Robin laughed a little. "Not even you, with your six years with Batman?" he asked.
Lilith grabbed his wrist and gently pulled him along. She laughed a little, but it sounded slightly bitter to Robin. "No, Robin," she said softly. "Not even with my…years of experience. The Team thing…" she said, glancing at him, "it's all new to me."
"Will you ever tell the Team what your life was before Batman?" Robin inquired.
Lilith gave him a wry smile. "Maybe someday, Bird Brain."
"Will you stop calling me that?" Robin grumbled, but Lilith could tell it was to lighten the mood.
"Now that I know it bothers you this much…" Lilith sighed heavily, pretending to consider it. "Nope," she said with a grin. "Now let's go!"
Qurac
November 22, 2356 UTC+2
"We're right above the Quraci-Bialyan border," Robin announced as they flew lower in the sky.
"A border the Bialyans are in the process of ignoring," Kid Flash said, looking below them. Lilith followed his gaze and saw two tanks and a couple dozen foot soldiers stomping past a wood-and-wire fence. A herd of wildebeest turned and stampeded away.
"No opposition," Superboy noticed. "Guess Harjavti really is in bed with Bialya."
"I wouldn't expect opposition here," Robin spoke up, looking up from his holograph. "It's an animal sanctuary."
"The Logan Animal Sanctuary?" Miss Martian asked, sitting up straighter in her seat.
"You've heard of it?" Lilith asked, turning in her seat to look at Miss Martian.
Before Miss Martian could respond, Kid Flash spoke up again. "Guys, the tanks have caused a stampede. With civilians in harm's way!"
"I see them," Superboy said. "Woman and a small boy."
"We have to help them," Miss Martian declared.
"We're way off mission here," Robin argued. He stared out the window, deep in thought. "Deploy," he said finally, turning to look at them. "But stealth mode. If the Bialyans know we hit them, this becomes an international incident."
"If we want to avoid the Bialyans, we should just move the civilians," Lilith said, standing up from her seat.
"That won't help anything," Superboy said angrily.
"It keeps us from being targeted," Lilith said firmly. Everyone stared at her. She sighed in defeat. "Fine, fine."
As the Team got ready, Robin said, "See? Natural leader."
Lilith bit her lip. "Perhaps," she admitted slowly. "But I still think you're the one supposed to lead."
Miss Martian aimed the Bioship at the first tank and fired. It moved off course and ran into the second, rendering both unusable. Troops poured out of both, and the ones already on the ground searched wildly for the source.
Lilith dropped from the Bioship and landed lightly on the top of one of the soldiers. Two more ran toward her and Lilith simply ducked and the two skidded to a stop to keep from colliding with each other. Using this time, Lilith stood and caught both with an uppercut. Rapid firing broke out and Lilith gracefully wove her way through the bullets. She pulled out her own guns and started firing stunners, rendering several unconscious.
"Superboy!" she suddenly exclaimed, whirling around as she saw Superboy wrestle a wildebeest to the ground. She cringed at the animal's pain, and one soldier took the opportunity to knock her gun out of her hand. She whipped her head around and quickly knocked the soldier out. "Baguhan," she muttered.
She regrouped with Robin behind the mother and son. "Are you both alright?" he asked. Kid Flash skidded to a stop and dropped the guns he had collected before tossing them aside carelessly. Lilith rolled her eyes and went to remove the ammunition.
"Mom," the boy said. "Mom. Mom!" His mother shook her head and turned to her son. "We were just saved by Robin and Kid Flash!"
"Lilith, Superboy, and Miss Martian helped too," Kid Flash included.
"Oryx!" the boy said happily as Miss Martina lowered an animal to the ground.
"We diverted the Bialyans around the sanctuary," Robin said. "You should be safe now."
"Uh, yeah, coast is clear, Miss M," Kid Flash said, glancing behind him to look at Miss Martian. "You can de-camo now."
Miss Martian lowered her hood. "H-hi," she said, sounding nervous. Lilith tilted her head and glanced between the mother and Miss Martian; they looked remarkably similar.
"You may have made things worse," the woman said grimly. "Bialyan border crossings are a way of life here. Usually they wreck a few fences and move on. Engaging them might have made us a target." She crossed her arms and stared at the Team.
Lilith rolled her eyes. "Will no one ever listen to me?" she mumbled to herself.
"Mom," the boy said. "Uncool."
The woman sighed. "I'm sorry," she said. "I should thank you. This is my son Garfield. I'm—"
"Marie Logan!" Miss Martian interrupted. "I can't believe I'm actually meeting you in person," she said, stepping forward and sounding like a girl meeting her idol. "Uh, I've-I've admired your stance on animal rights for years," she quickly explained.
The wildebeest snorted and limped over. Marie turned to it. "The Oryx is sick," she said, "and I think you injured this wildebeest." She threw a look over her shoulder at Superboy.
"Uh, sorry?" he asked hesitantly.
"I suppose it was unavoidable," Marie said with a sigh. "But both need to go to our clinic."
"They can do that!" Miss Martian quickly volunteered. "You and I can…fix your fence!" she suggested.
"That's not exactly our—" Robin started to say, but he was cut off when Miss Martian turned around and said, "Robin," clasping her hands in front of her.
Behind her, Garfield ran up to Marie. "Please, Mom," he asked.
Marie and Robin simultaneously sighed and said, "Fine."
"Yes!" Miss Martian and Garfield exclaimed.
"We should set up camp," Robin said, glancing around. "Miss Martian, can you reconfigure the Bioship with cots?"
"Of course," Miss Martian said. The Bioship appeared above them and landed. Lilith glanced up at the sky and decided on some quiet time outside. She headed to a tree and climbed to the highest branch before settling in the joint where the branch met the trunk.
A minute later, the leaves rustled and Lilith turned around to see Robin join her. "You okay?" he asked.
Lilith laughed. "I'm fine," she said. "Are you?"
"I suppose," Robin said. He perched on a branch just below Lilith.
"So how's first mission as leader going?" Lilith inquired
"So far, so good," Robin said with a small chuckle. "Hope it stays that way."
"We're Junior Justice," Lilith said with a smile and a shrug. "There's nothing that we can't handle."
"When did you become an optimist?" Robin asked, glancing up at her and raising an eyebrow.
"Who said I was?" Lilith asked, raising an eyebrow. "There are just some things I know as fact."
For a while, the pair sat in comfortable silence. Lilith watched the stars twinkle above and she sighed contently.
"You happy?" Robin asked softly.
"Yeah," she said with a slight smile. "I guess I am." After a moment, Lilith asked, "Do you ever look at yourself and think, 'How in the world did I end up here?'"
"Not in a while," Robin answered. "Probably not since I became Robin. You?"
"Every day," Lilith said.
"Are you ever going to tell anyone your story?" Robin inquired again, looking up at Lilith.
"You know my answer, Bird Brain," Lilith said with a light laugh. "I'll tell everyone eventually. Now get to sleep," she admonished playfully. "We have a long day ahead of us."
Robin mock saluted before making his way down the tree. Lilith stayed a few moments longer before heading to the Bioship.
In the back of the ship, portioned aside were two small cots, and M'gann was already fast asleep in one. Lilith settled in the other and curled on her side. Lilith resisted sleep for the longest time, fearing one of her dreams.
When she finally awoke, she sighed in relief; apparently, she had been too tired to actively dream. Lilith stretched in the cot and stood.
"We ready?" Robin asked, sounding tense.
"Yeah," Kid Flash nodded. Lilith approached Robin and gave him a little nudge and a small smile. He managed a tiny smile back before he went back to looking tense.
"Let's get this show on the road," Lilith said with a sigh. With nothing else to do, the others nodded and set off: Miss Martian and Marie to repair the fences and Garfield, Robin, Lilith, Kid Flash, and Superboy to the Logan house.
The sun was rising as they reached a low one-story home and barn. As they passed under a tree, a small monkey screeched and landed on Superboy's shoulder before leaping onto Kid Flash and running around his shoulders.
"Hey!" Kid Flash exclaimed. "Get it off!" The monkey swiped Kid Flash's energy bar and jumped to Garfield.
Garfield laughed. "It's okay," he said. "Meet Monkey."
"Good name," Superboy glowered. "But I hate monkeys." The monkey threw the energy bar and glared at Superboy.
"Looks like Monkey hates Superboys," Robin joked, and Lilith was happy to see that for the moment, he wasn't feeling stressed about his role as leader.
"Dude," Kid Flash said to Superboy with a grin, "be glad he only threw a protein bar." Lilith snickered and Superboy scowled at her.
"So," Garfield said once they were in the house. "Pretty weird about Miss Martian and my mom, huh?" he asked.
Kid Flash and Robin each took a chair, and Lilith sat on the couch across from Robin. Superboy stood and crossed his arms. "What do you mean?" he asked.
"I mean, she looks exactly like Marie," Garfield explained. "You know, except greener."
"She does?" Kid Flash asked.
"You didn't see it?" Lilith asked, glancing at the boys and they shook their heads.
"Well, duh," Garfield said. "Especially back when Mom was a T.V. star on Hello, Megan."
Lilith gasped. "I always thought Miss Martian looked familiar!" she exclaimed.
"You've heard to Hello, Megan?" Garfield asked.
Lilith nodded. "They used to play reruns of old shows like that in the common rooms," she said.
"Common rooms?" Robin asked and Lilith ducked her head.
"Wait, Hello, Megan is a T.V. show?" Kid Flash asked, brining everyone's focus back on the topic at hand.
"I just thought it was something she said all the time," Robin said, turning to Kid Flash.
"Yeah," Garfield said, looking at them like they were crazy. "On the T.V. show. Way before we were born. Only one season," he said. "You can't even find it online." He glanced back at the T.V. set and the countless tapes beneath it. "I know Mom has a tape somewhere."
After several minutes of searching, Garfield finally came up. "Hello, Megan, the pilot episode." When he blew on it, a cloud of dust appeared. He went to insert it into the VHS machine.
"Whoa," Kid Flash said. "You still have VHS? Where's your eight-track?" he joked.
"Wait," Sueprboy said, and Lilith glanced at him. "Aircraft headed this way." He ran for the door and Kid Flash followed.
"Gar," Robin said as he stood, "stay put."
"Please," Lilith added when she saw Garfield begin to protest. "It's the only way to keep you safe."
"But the animals in the barn!" Garfield exclaimed.
"I'll get them out," Lilith said. "I promise. But you have to promise me to stay here!" Once Garfield nodded, she sighed in relief and dashed out the door.
Lilith ran out onto the deck just as Marie and Miss Martian arrived.
"What is it?" Miss Martian asked. The sound of engines roaring turned their attention to the sky. The planes started shooting, and Miss Martian pushed Marie in front of her, and Superboy ran to cover them both.
"Where's my son?" Marie demanded.
"I ordered him to stay inside," Robin said from the porch.
"I promised him I'd get the animals," Lilith gasped, and she dashed across the yard toward the barn.
"He's eight!" she heard Marie exclaim as she reached the doors. "He doesn't do orders."
Just as Lilith was reaching for the doors, they slid open.
"Mom!" Garfield yelled. "It's okay, I got the animals out!"
"Garfield!" Lilith yelled, grabbing his arm and pulling him away from the barn. "I promised you I would get the animals!"
"I'm sorry," Garfield said, coming to a stop. "I was worried.
"We can't discuss this now," Lilith insisted, tugging him forward. "Right now, we need to—"
Lilith was cut off when the popping of bullets got closer, and she quickly shielded Garfield's body with her own. She yelled out as an explosion rang behind her and a large piece of wood caught her in the back.
"Garfield!" she heard Marie yell.
Miss Martian flew forward and held out her hands to stop the flying pieces of wood from hitting Lilith. Beneath her, Lilith heard Garfield groan, and she looked down and gasped. He was unconscious and it looked as though he had taken a blow to the head. "H-how?" Lilith whispered to herself. She quickly scooped him up and ran as smoothly as she could back to the others.
"I'm so sorry," Lilith gasped as Marie took her son in her arms. "I thought I had him covered, but a piece must have gone over my shoulder." Her hands trembled as they fell to her sides. "I should have stayed with him in the house. I'm sorry."
The planes came back and Superboy and Miss Martian ran to meet them.
"I told you there'd be consequences," Marie said tightly, turning to Robin who had gone to Lilith's side as her shoulders began to shake.
"Always," Robin said grimly. "Let's get him inside," he said and he put an arm around Lilith to get her to walk forward.
They rushed to Garfield's room, and Marie quickly wrapped his head and started an I.V.
"He's in shock," she said, going from mother to doctor in a second. "He needs a blood transfusion, now. Are any of you O negative?" she asked.
Robin pulled up his hologram and said, "No."
"Sorry," Kid Flash said from the doorway. Lilith opened her mouth to speak but her words got caught in her throat.
"Neither am I," Marie said with a sigh. "It's the hardest to match. I kept a supply in the clinic."
"I can run him to the nearest hospital," Kid Flash offered.
"The nearest hospital with a guaranteed blood supply's half an hour away at your top speed," Robin said, consulting his hologram again. "Longer by Bioship."
"He doesn't have that much time," Marie said. "What's Superboy's blood type?" she asked, sounding desperate.
"He's Kryptonian,"Robin said.
"I—" Lilith gasped, finally finding her voice. She cleared her throat and tried again. "I'm a match," she said. "I'm sorry I didn't say anything before, I wasn't—"
"No, it's fine," Marie said, sighing in relief. "We can start right away."
"Wait," Robin said. "I'm afraid with your size, taking the amount of blood Garfield needs will be too much. You can't regenerate your cells that quickly."
"We have to try," Lilith said. "It's my fault, I should pay the consequences."
"You may not have to," a quiet voice said. Lilith snapped her head up and found Miss Martian standing in the doorway. "My shapeshifting occurs on the cellular level," she explained. "I think I can morph my blood to match his," she said, walking to stand at his side.
"You can regenerate your cells that quickly?" Robin asked. Miss Martian nodded.
"Please, try," Marie said, becoming a mother again.
"I'll need to concentrate," Miss Martian said, closing her eyes and putting her fingers to her temple. "No distractions," she added, glancing back at Marie. Marie nodded.
"Out," she said, glaring at them. "All of you, out." Robin grabbed Lilith's arm and tugged her along. Once they were over the threshold, Marie slammed the door closed.
Lilith jumped at the loud sound and began shaking again. She winced and placed a hand on her back where the wood had struck her.
"Do you need someone to look at that?' Robin offered.
"No, I'm okay," Lilith replied shakily. Robin just nodded and helped her to the sofa, where she leaned forward so her forehead was touching her knees.
Robin sat next to her and leaned his elbows on his knees and gripped his hair. "And on top of all this, Harjavti steps down tomorrow, subjecting all of Qurac to this danger," he said, sitting up again and covering his face with his hands. "K-K.F., can you find the news station?" Robin asked, running his hands through his hair.
"Sure," Kid Flash said, standing and clutching three remotes. "Which remote is it?" he asked, and pointed one at random at the T.V.
It fizzled on and Lilith jumped again at the sound of a bell ringing. She looked up and watched as the opening credits of Hello, Megan began to play on the screen.
"Do we have to watch this now?" Lilith asked, leaning forward again and clutching her head like she had a bad headache. The theme song kept playing and no one responded. She glanced up and saw the three boys were staring at the T.V. Well, at Megan. Lilith stood and joined them and watched as they shared shocked looks.
"Maybe it's a coincidence," Superboy said, though he didn't look too convinced himself.
The opening scene began playing, and Lilith watched as a teenaged Marie Logan came hurrying down the stairs. A doorbell rang on the show and "Megan" smacked her forehead with the heel of her hand. "Hello, Megan!" she declared and the laugh track rolled.
Megan opened the door and exclaimed, "Conner!" Lilith raised an eyebrow and glanced at Superboy; he wasn't looking at the T.V. and was glaring at the ground.
"Oh, yeah," Kid Flash whispered, leaning over to Robin. "Pure coincidence."
"It's done." Lilith's eyes widened and she whirled around to see Miss Martian, who was staring at the floor. "All we can do now is wait." Beside Lilith, Robin stared at the T.V. while Kid Flash hurriedly punched buttons on the remote until the T.V. went to static.
"My fellow Quracis." Lilith turned back to the T.V. to see Harjavti on screen.
"Is that Harjavti?" Miss Martian asked, walking forward.
"Queen Bees rule is a gist to Qurac," Harjavti continued.
"Hey, that guy in the back," Superboy pointed out. "I know him." Robin pulled up a hologram and zoomed in on the image.
"Psimon," Lilith whispered, bringing her hand to her mouth.
"The psychic we fought last time we were in Bialya," Miss Martian said. "He was working for Queen Bee then, he must be controlling Harjavit for her now."
"I knew it," Lilith muttered, shaking her head.
Miss Martian gave her a questioning. "I didn't think anyone besides myself and Superboy saw him," she said.
Lilith tensed slightly. "I've heard of him," she said simply. "Not a fan."
"And you didn't say anything?" Superboy demanded loudly.
Lilith turned to glare at him. "Like that would have changed anything on this mission," she snapped.
Kid Flash groaned and slapped his hand over his face. "I still remember the headache from when he brain blasted us."
"We have to get Harjavti away from him," Robin said.
"I think it worked," Marie said from behind them, and Lilith turned to face her. "Garfield's stable."
"Good," Robin said, "because we have our mission."
The Team took off for the Bioship, Lilith with a slight limp.
"Are you sure you're okay?" Robin asked once they were on the ship.
"I'm fine," Lilith said, giving him what was supposed to be a reassuring smile but turned out to be a slight grimace.
"You're limping," Robin pointed out.
"We don't have time to worry about that," Lilith said firmly. "Besides, I've been hurt worse before."
"True," Robin laughed, thinking back to their raid on Cadmus.
Lilith rolled her eyes. "I don't remember you thinking it was so funny at the time," she said.
"Look, I will be checking that when we get back," Robin insisted.
Lilith sighed. "Fine, Doctor," she said, but she couldn't stop her lip from quirking.
Dhabar
November 23, 2210 UTC+2
When they finally reached the Presidential Palace, Miss Martian set the Bioship down softly and they headed off. After doing a quick scan of the rooms, Robin located Harjavti, and they crawled through the air vents to reach him.
Robin dropped a thin, flexible camera down the grate. "Harjavti's alone," he whispered to the others. He kicked open the cover and dropped down, Lilith right behind him. Once they were all in the room, Robin walked to Harjavti, who was sitting in a chair and looking out the window, an empty look on his face.
Harjavti glanced up once Robin was close. "Where's my daughter?" he asked unemotionally. "Where's Psimon?"
"Forget him," Robin told Harjavti. "Let's get you out of here."
Suddenly, doors burst open and uniformed men rushed in, each equipped with strange weapons that glowed red. The leader finally stepped into the room.
"Well, well," he said in accented English. "American heroes. Here to assassinate the President. Such a shame we arrived too late to stop them."
Those are Apokoliptan weapons, Superboy informed them through the psychic link.
Which they'll use to kill Harjavti, we get blamed, and Queen Bee gets to rule Qurac, Robin deduced. Form up around the president, he commanded.
I found Psimon, Miss Martian declared and she took off for him.
Miss Martian! Lilith exclaimed.
Wait! Robin called.
I'll get her, Superboy offered, stepping forward.
No, Robin thought. The mission is Harjavti. Superboy hesitated before nodding.
Lilith backed up so she was standing directly in front of the desk, her legs shoulder width apart and her hands on her hips, ready. She glanced back and saw Robin, Kid Flash, and Superboy had formed a circle around the president.
Now! Robin directed, and Lilith jumped into action.
She reached the men before they had even moved and with quick slashing movements, she had cut the straps of the weapons with her knifes. With nothing left to defend themselves, the four she had disarmed turned to run.
"I don't think so," Lilith smirked. She stashed her knives and did a flip over the four, landing lightly in front of them. She stood and raised an eyebrow as the men glanced at each other uncertainly. When they didn't move, Lilith sighed and in quick succession, knocked them out.
Lilith turned back and saw the others had made quick work of the soldiers.
"I think the bad guys are getting worse at fighting," Lilith said, shaking her head in disappointment. "Where's the challenge?"
Robin laughed quietly and nodded. From another door, a young woman peeked out and then rushed to Harjavti.
"Thank you for saving my father," she said, turning to them. "We will take care of him now." The Team nodded their heads and then took off to find Miss Martian.
M'gann, we're coming, Superboy thought, pulling ahead of the group. Just as Lilith crossed the threshold of another room, the room began to spin, a throbbing ache started in her temple, and she groaned internally and thought, Again?
Lilith slowly came to and groaned. "Another mission, another knock out," she mumbled, getting to her feet unsteadily and stumbled slightly into Robin. He reached out to steady her and then kept his hand on her arm.
"And there's the headache," Kid Flash moaned.
"Psimon?" Robin asked, rubbing his head and Lilith glanced up to see Miss Martian kneeling beside Superboy.
"He brain blasted you," Miss Martian said. "I stopped him." She glanced over her shoulder and Lilith gasped when she saw what Miss Martian's gaze was settled on.
Psimon lay on top of broken chairs and glass, completely immobile and gazing ahead blankly. Lilith rushed to his side.
"M'gann," Lilith whispered, sounding horrified. "What did you do?"
"Does it matter?" Superboy asked roughly. "He's taken care of."
"There are other ways to do that," Lilith exclaimed, turning around. "He's catatonic! He might never recover."
"Why do you care?" Superboy yelled at her. "He's the enemy!"
Lilith's throat tightened. "Nobody deserves this," she managed to get out, her voice shaky. She walked away, shivering. Robin couldn't see her eyes, but he had a feeling she was reliving a memory she would have rather kept buried.
The next morning, Lilith looked down over the front porch of the Presidential Palace. Below them, Queen Bee was glaring at the guards.
"What do you mean the President won't see me?" she demanded. "He invited me."
"Not of my free will," Harjavti called from the balcony. "No! But now that I am free of your minion thrall, the Quraci people will never suffer your tyrannical rule!" he declared. Below him, his people cheered.
"Mark me, Harjavti," Queen Bee said, pointing a finger at him as guards approached her to escort her away, "you will suffer for this. Quarc will be mine."
Lilith stepped away from the window and joined Robin, Kid Flash, and Superboy with Harjavti and his daughter. The door opened and Queen Bee entered.
"Sorry you had to lie to everyone like that," Robin said, stepping forward. "But I couldn't think of any other way to convince the public Queen Bee was behind this." Behind him, Lilith stared at Miss Martian, tapping her lip absentmindedly in thought.
"Dude," Kid Flash said, lightly punching Robin's shoulder. "Saving a country. Pretty big win for your first turn as leader," he said.
"Yeah, thanks," Robin said, though Lilith could tell he was still uncomfortable with the role.
That afternoon, they went back to the Logan's before they left.
On the T.V., they saw Bruce Wayne shaking Harjavit's hand. "And I assure you," Wayne was saying, "the Wayne Foundation is here to do whatever it can to help you and your people rebuild Qurac."
"Gee," Kid Flash said as Marie turned off the T.V. "Bruce Wayne sure got here fast," he said. Lilith and Robin stared at him in disbelief. "Almost like he kknew—"
Robin elbowed him in the gut and disguised it as he put his arms behind his head.
"Don't you have a souvenir to collect or something?" Lilith asked, looking at him pointedly.
"Hello, Megan!" Kid Flash exclaimed, hitting his forehead with the heel of his hand. He walked to the T.V. and picked up a tape. "Something you'd like to tell us?" Kid Flash asked, waving the tape in front of Miss Martian's face.
"Kid Flash!" Lilith hissed, leaning forward in her chair and slapping his side.
Miss Martian sighed. "Growing up on Mars was not a happy time for me," she started. "But I started watching the broadcast my uncle sent from Earth to teach us about our sister planet. And when I saw Hello, Megan, something just clicked," she said. "Maybe it was similarities in our names. Maybe it was the way all of Megan's problems could be solved in twenty-two minutes. All I know for sure is Megan helped me smile through a lonely childhood." Lilith furrowed her eyebrows at that but didn't say anything. "So when I came to Earth and had to adopt a human form, I chose you. Well, Megan," she said.
Lilith saw Kid Flash and Robin glanced at each other. "Which begs the question," Robin started, sitting up from his lounging position against the back of the chair and leaning forward on his knees, "what do you really look like?"
"Robin," Lilith said sharply under her breath.
"It's okay, Lilith," Miss Martian assured. "I've got nothing to hide anymore." Lilith looked up startled at that but nodded.
Miss Martian stood and Lilith watched as her hair receded and her freckles disappeared.
"Bald M'gann," Kid Flash said slowly. "Still hot," he whispered to the others and Lilith shoved him off his perch on the arm of her chair.
Superboy stood and walked to her, taking her hands. "You know you don't have to put on a mask for me," he said.
"I do it for me," Miss Martian argued, pulling away and going back to Megan. "This is who I am inside," she said. "Please don't be mad," she said quietly, turning to Marie.
"Mad?" Marie said softly. "I'm honored," she said. "M'gann, you saved my son. He says he's your blood brother now," she added with a small smile. "And I agree. You're family."
Miss Martian rushed forward and wrapped her arms around Marie. "Thank you," Miss Martian said softly. "You can't know what that means to me."
"Why don't you say goodbye to Garfield before you leave," Marie suggested as she pulled away. Miss Martian nodded and walked down the hall.
"We do feel awful for everything we've put you through," Lilith said once Miss Martian had disappeared.
Marie smiled softly. "The good you did for us, this country, far outweighs any inconvenience."
When Miss Martian came back, she looked like she had seen a ghost.
"M'gann?" Superboy asked. "Are you okay?"
"Fine, fine," Miss Martian said. "Let's just go."
Lilith glanced back at the boys and they nodded and stood. Lilith followed behind Miss Martian and bit the inside of her cheek; something was up.
A/N: I hope you enjoyed. Let me know what you think! And I might just post another chapter tomorrow. You know, to make up for last week.