"Take the day off tomorrow, Shayera. It's my ceremony and I want you there." said Hektar as he watched his sister remove her body armor and mask. Shayera smiled down at her little brother and said, "If I take the day off, then who will be there to stop criminals? I promise you, it's a simple patrolling routine. I'll be back before father can break out the flasks and the Plume Nectar." Hektar gave Shayera a toothy grin and flew up towards his room. Shayera smiled warmly as she watched her brother retire to bed. It was a long day and Shayera wanted to rest properly tonight so she wouldn't be tired for her brother's ceremony. She rested against the recliner in front of the fireplace and listened to the fire. She heard her mother and father fly by the window and she turned to see them walk in their home, finished with their work.
"My little fledgling." said her mother with warmth in her voice. Shayera hugged her mother and father and they rested in front of the fire.
"Will you be taking the day off tomorrow Shayera?" asked her mother. Shayera shook her head and said, "Too many captains are taking the day off tomorrow, I volunteered to take the morning shifts."
"Shayera," scolded her father. "Look, I promise I'll be back home before the ceremony. It's only a patrol." said Shayera, wanting to appease her father. He still held a scowl on his face but nodded his head. Shayera felt her spirit fall a bit after seeing the obvious disappointed in her father's face. She looked at her mother, who nodded her head towards him. Shayera stood up and walked over to her father. With his mask on, her father made a very intimidating figure. Even her own superiors hesitate when they meet with the Head Engineer of the Ulkar Engineering Department, where they design and modify space travel. Without his mask, Shayera can see every wrinkle and the grey hairs that decorate his face. His once burning red hair, much like her own hair, is dulling down as the years pass by. Shayera knelt down in front of her father and urged him to look at her.
"I promise. This will be the last time I'll take over shifts during my days off. I will be there tomorrow." said Shayera. Her father smiled at her and hugged her, his large wings enveloping them both. Shayera smiled and heard, "Hawkgirl?"
What?
Shayera blinked in surprise and looked to her left to see Kendra look at her with worry. "Are you ok? You kind of blanked out for a minute." she asked, watching as Shayera shifted a bit. "Yes, just remembering things." said Shayera. Kendra nodded and decided not to prod further. Even with her mask on, Kendra could tell that she didn't want to talk about it. It has been three months since Shayera had talked to the Press. Shayera kept to her word and served as an officer, patrolling the city and stopping criminals left and right. Shayera quickly gained public favor and many people would often smile and wave at her from their apartment windows if they see her fly by.
Shayera had gotten used to having people walking up to her and wanting to talk. She thanked the Seven Heavens that Kendra was paired up with her, otherwise Shayera would have struggled trying to answer questions and give small talk. The Midway City Police Department were kind enough to work with her, but officers such as Lt. Grubs felt that she will bring out the worst of the city. Commissioner Emmett will defend her though by stating that if she did bring out the worst of Midway, the Police Department will be able to identify and catch the crooks faster. Shayera still hasn't figured out if she should take it as a compliment or not, but she smiled gratefully to Emmett anyways for his intervention.
When she is not patrolling Midway City and was with Kendra, they researched many news articles and interrogated many science departments about the whereabouts of the Unconfirmed Artifact #52 and the Hyper Bypass Blueprints. When that failed, Shayera and Kendra would often investigate many blogs, websites, and even companies in case someone just happened to pick up the items. Interrogating Byth was out of the question when Shayera received news from Bruce about his death. It seemed that Byth had attempted to steal the heart of a prisoner named Bane, who promptly tore Byth to pieces… or at least that's the initial report. So far, no pieces have been found of Byth except the Life-Enhancer which made Shayera believe that Byth is either alive and on the run or Bane had disposed of the pieces before bragging about it.
Today Shayera and Kendra were taking a break from their search. Three months of endless searching could really tire anyone out. Shayera and Kendra were currently on top of the Police Headquarters, just watching the city landscape.
Kendra sighed as she took in the sight of Midway. It was a small big city and many maps often overlook it. Even Google forgot to add the city in at one point. Kendra would guess that it's because the city is the most isolated from the other cities in Illinois. Separating Midway from the rest of the world is the Midway National Park that stretches for about 1200 square miles. Then comes Gotham and then Coast City who bring in tourism like no other. The arrival of Hawkgirl and becoming an official member of the Midway Police Department has actually brought in more tourism than ever before. Kendra was even bombarded by friends and acquaintances that knew her, asking questions about her partnership with her. It got to the point where her Uncle Emmett had to install more security alarms around the house and even instructed Shayera to protect Kendra from reporters.
Tourism though was the big deal at the moment. People from Gotham and Coast City would come to see the daylight hero that often contrasted with the current Earthly Heroes such as Batman and the Flash. The mysteriousness of Batman is enough to bring people from all over the world who want to get at least a glimpse of the Dark Knight while everybody knows the Flash as the friendliest and most talkative of heroes. When tourism began to come in Mavis Trent, Curator of the Midway City Museum offered the attic of the museum as a home to Hawkgirl. The museum has been filled with people going in and out daily, hoping to catch a glimpse of the new hero who was always seen flying around and helping stop crime and keep the city safe.
Kendra was feeling frustrated that they were never getting any leads as to where the items may be. When Shayera had informed her that four of the six had been discovered and located then it should have been easy looking for the last two. She was wrong however when their searches proved fruitless. Kendra doubted that even Batman, the World's Greatest Detective, could find the items. Kendra looked over to see her partner just glancing at the sky. Even with her mask on, Kendra can sense the melancholy spirit in her. Kendra began to throw ideas around and said, "Hey! Since we're taking the time off, how about we explore Midway?"
"But we already know Midway." said Shayera, not quite understanding. It was true though that they both now know the city very well during their time searching through the city. Kendra discovered new bars and restaurants that she was sure Aunt Alice will love and Shayera had mapped out possible locations to criminal activities, informing Commissioner Emmett of the locations. So far they had managed to expose a human trafficking ring and stop a delivery of over $100,000 worth of cocaine from being smuggled into the city.
"No, I mean like... you know actually see the city. Like, let's go to the museum! Have you seen the exhibits?" asked Kendra. When Shayera shook her head, Kendra smiled and said, "See? You can experience human culture first hand today instead of having to rely on that mini computer under the helmet." Shayera had to admit that it was a good idea and she really was interested in experiencing the human culture rather than obtaining knowledge about it. Shayera flared her wings a bit and said, "Ok. Lead the way." It didn't take long for them to reach the museum, as it was only about four blocks away from the police department. Shayera easily flew above the buildings and kept her vision on Kendra and her surroundings, keeping an eye out for any form of trouble. Emmett had given Shayera her own walkie-talkie to communicate with any active duty officers. If Shayera deems it worthy to interfere then she will strike first before calling for reinforcement.
At the entrance to the museum, people leaving and entering were suddenly snapping pictures at the sight of Hawkgirl landing on the front steps of the museum. Shayera would have made a bee-line straight into the museum to avoid the flashes when a small girl stood in front of her and asked, "Excuse me! Are you an angel?"
Shayera blinked in confusion until the Absorbascon provided her images and information about angels and archangels. She looked at the little girl in front of her and said, "Do you think I'm an angel?" The little girl nodded her head and reached her hand out towards her wings. Shayera knelt down and flared her wings a bit and allowed the little girl to run her hand over the feathers. Shayera smiled at the little girl and she smiled back, running back to her mother excitedly. The mother gave Shayera a warm smile and they left the museum, leaving Shayera behind smiling and following Kendra into the museum.
"Ok, so what's the basic history of the Earth that you know of so far?" asked Kendra as they made their way to Mavis's office. "A basic timeline is all I know. I know of important events that have defined your planet's history and your country's history. I don't know it all though, if I tried to absorb all the information at once you'd have to be visiting me in the hospital." said Shayera. Kendra gave her an appraised look and knocked on the door. A muffled "hold on" responded on the other side and they waited until Mavis opened the door and smiled and asked, "Oh! Are you done for the day, ladies?"
"Yes, Miss Trent. I was actually going to help Shayera get integrated with our Earthly customs." said Kendra as they walked towards the main lobby. "That's a brilliant idea! Let's go downstairs and get started." said Mavis as she went back inside her office and grabbed coat before leaving and locking the door. Shayera hung back a little and allowed them to lead the way, wondering about what they were going to do for the day. Kendra and Mavis led the way to the fast food restaurant, Big Belly Burgers, and Shayera had to endure another session of people muttering around her and taking pictures. Shayera wished she had her Absorbascon on her head, but she promised Kendra that she will experience the moment and receive it as a surprise. Shayera honestly would be irritated with the amount of pictures and proximity people make to get closer to her, but her promise to Commissioner Emmett and Bruce to reign in any emotion that might be considered threatening to the people of Earth. Shayera is pretty sure that her level of hotheadedness might cause problems instead of resolving them, so she would bottle it up until it was her time off and fly towards the National Park where she will beat a couple of boulders to dust. Shayera followed her two friends to a booth large enough for her wings and waited for them as they left to order the food. The smell of grease and sodium filled her nose and she almost sneezed at the strong smell of burning oil passing by her. She looked to see an overweight man with a tray full of greasy looking sandwiches and yellow sticks. Shayera felt nervous and almost had the urge to bolt when she saw Kendra and Mavis make their way towards her. Shayera calmed her nerves and accepted the sandwich and yellow sticks ("This is called a cheeseburger and fries," explained Mavis) from Kendra.
She watched Mavis and Kendra begin to eat their food and reached out to grab her sandwich. Shayera was intrigued at how the food tastes once it is prepared. For the last three months, she had been hunting for her food and would often consume them raw, as she wanted to respect the laws that were installed in the National Park. She could have used the fire pits that were provided for visiting campers, but Shayera has had enough of enduring conversations with strangers and having to answer an endless amount of questions. She watched Kendra and Mavis watching her and she felt a little shy. She took a tentative bite out of the burger and immediately wanted to spit it out. The amount of grease and oil was enough for Shayera to feel her gag reflex react very violently. She pushed the feeling away though and swallowed the food and said, "Delicious." The three continued eating with Kendra and Mavis often talking about the different types of food that (at least in American terms) is available for Shayera to try. Shayera swallowed down the whole burger and fries, ignoring the feelings to regurgitate the whole meal. It didn't help that when Kendra offered the soda to Shayera that the carbon dioxide immediately went up Shayera's nose, causing her to choke on the drink. After many apologies from Kendra, they left the restaurant and made their way to the park. Shayera continued to ignore her upset stomach and flew ahead of the two as they leisurely took the scenic route.
Once at the park, Shayera searched for a private place and promptly threw up. She was thankful that the park was half-empty as she tumbled to the pond and quickly scooped up some water to rinse her mouth and clean her face. She was thankful that none of her vomit had hit her mask or armor as cleaning those would be frustrating. She might have been fine having Bruce and his family to see her without her mask (they saved her life after all) but she was uncomfortable with having her mask off near her new human friends, as they are not family. When Kendra and Mavis arrived at the park, Shayera was feeling better at no longer having the greasy foods in her stomach. These humans may be fragile outwardly but they must hold incredible immune systems to be able to hold such greasy and oily substances in their stomachs.
"Alright Shayera, here is the perk about parks. People would often spend their time just hanging out and sometimes we have the community play-offs," explained Kendra as they walked alongside the pond. Shayera asked many questions regarding sports and competitions, how humans would spend their leisure time, more questions on foods, and finally by the end of the day Kendra and Mavis took Shayera to a Chinese restaurant. Once again the smell of oil and grease filled Shayera's nose but this time it was toned down by a more exotic smell. Many people of the restaurant stopped in their routine to stare at Shayera, who meekly waved her hand in greeting.
Once again, Shayera wished she had her Absorbascon on when exotic foods were on display and Shayera desperately wanted to avoid another vomiting episode. "What would you like to eat Shayera?" asked Mavis. Shayera looked up at the menu and said, "Eel heads?"
"Ew, why would you want that? Why not Orange Chicken." suggested Kendra. Shayera took one look at the Orange Chicken and after seeing and smelling the similarities between the burger and the fries said, "Perhaps next time." Mavis ordered the food and the three ladies sat down in another booth, waiting for their order.
"How did you enjoy the park Shayera?" asked Mavis.
"It was pleasant. I only ever flew above it during my patrols but I have yet to experience it fully the way I did today. It was… relaxing." said Shayera, recalling her memory. Shayera regretted not taking her days off back in Thanagar and fully relaxing with her family. When she returns home, it is going to be the first thing she will be doing. "So how'd you like the burger and fries? I never asked about it when we left and you flew away before I could ask." asked Kendra.
Shayera almost grimaced at the memory of her vomiting episode and smiled gratefully when their food was served. Three plates full of strange foods stirred Shayera's curiosity and she began asking about each and every one about them. Mavis passed out plates and Shayera took a small amount from each serving. "Here, Shayera. These are your eel heads." said Kendra, passing a small bowl filled with fried skinny heads towards Shayera. Shayera smelled a good amount of grease and oil in the heads and regretted asking for it, as she was enjoying the taste of the mandarin chicken and the chow mien. Shayera took a tentative bite out of the eel and was soon eating them at a rapid pace. The fried part was not so great, but it was what was underneath the friend skin that made it even tastier. Kendra and Mavis watched in a mixture of fascination and amusement as Shayera finished eating all of the eel heads. When Shayera learned she had an audience, she meekly said, "I'm sorry, did you wanted some?"
"No, girl. It was all yours." said Kendra as she finished eating her food. By nighttime, Kendra left for home and Mavis and Shayera made their way to the museum. "I hope you enjoyed your day Shayera. I don't remember having this much playing host." said Mavis.
"I had a wonderful time Mavis. It has been a long time since I could actually take a break. My mother often said I should have joined Thanagar's Military Program instead of the Law Enforcement Program." said Shayera, again feeling the pang of loneliness hit her. "Well I am glad to have spent it with you. God only knows how much hours I put into the museum and with the increase of attendance I could feel myself getting pushed over the edge. I have you to thank though, the museum was running out of money and we needed attendance to increase if we were to keep it open." said Mavis. Shayera gave her a warm smile and said, "Thank you for providing a home for me. I honestly would have spent my days sleeping in the trees like an actual hawk." They both laughed and bade each other goodnight.
Shayera flew up to the balcony that was provided for her to land and enter into her home. She was told that for an attic, it was honestly a spacious room. The old artifacts that used to clutter around the room were moved to storage and it gave Shayera the wing room she needed to not feel claustrophobic. She had a hammock in the middle of the room along with several bookcases filled with random books ranging from cookbooks to children books. Shayera made sure to check that the doors were locked and that her walkie-talkie was still on. She can hear many officers reporting in petty crime that doesn't need her attention and she began to remove her body armor. Shayera had on her tracksuit that had been gifted to her by Barbara Gordon, who insisted that she have comfortable clothing underneath her armor. Shayera had many clothes in a chest that was kept to the back of the room, and she often visited the river to clean them when she had the time. Once Shayera was comfortable, she laid down on the hammock and used her wings as a blanket. She could hear cars rushing by as the city continued to remain awake, and she rocked herself to sleep, using her mace, which was always kept at her side for any possible danger. She closed her eyes and thoughts of her family flooded her mind, hoping that somehow she will be able to return home. It seemed unlikely however as the evolution of human technology seemed to stand at a standstill. She hoped that Bruce would be able to provide help with his company's technological branch. As Shayera drifted to sleep, her last thought was of the stories she was going to tell to her family when she gets back home.
Hello readers, this is the last chapter of Shayera's integration as Hawkgirl and the next chapter will be a time skip of five years where (YAY) she joins the Justice League. At this point, I would like to hear from you guys if there is anything that you would like to read and I will do my best to incorporate it into the story. Thanks so much for the support and leave reviews/opinions of the chapter. I know it's short but I have a family outing so until next week, have fun J