John silently watched Shayera as she sat across from him in the cafeteria. The two had been sitting across from each other in an awkward silence for over a half hour. Shayera was looking everywhere except at him as she ate through the bagels that Alfred had sent her. Currently she was nursing her second bottle of ginger ale.

John cleared his throat as he finally decided to break the silence between them, "So that one hour nap became a three hour one in the end I see."

Shayera shrugged, "Yeah I was tired. I didn't get any sleep last night."

"I didn't either. I'm guessing your hearing is fine now."

"For the most part," she casually stated. "I got back probably 65% or 70% of it so for a human that would be 100%. I can at least clearly hear people when they talk."

"Well that's good at least. I was worried about you all night," he swallowed as he awkwardly scratched the back of his head. "So um how are you feeling? You know with the um...that um..."

"Morning sickness," Shayera gave him an unamused look. "I'm fine though. If I eat and manage to keep it down I normally feel better. Alfred has been a lifesaver so far with those bagels."

John silently nodded and the two sat in silence once again for a few minutes. He then sighed, "I don't really want to talk to you in the cafeteria Shay. I sort of had an idea where we could go. That way we can have privacy and you'll be able to relax."

Shayera raised an eyebrow, "So we're going home?"

"Not exactly," he offered her a small smile. "You trust me?"

She lightly smirked back, "I guess I still do."

Shayera closed her eyes and sighed contently as she felt the wind blow through her hair and over her skin. She had been rather surprised when John had them teleported down to the Canadian Rockies. He was right, she certainly did feel relaxed being up in the air. Flying always made her feel at ease. She again sighed as she opened her eyes and looked over to John, "So who's going to start?"

John looked towards the passing landscape below them. He suddenly didn't know how to start despite having planned everything out beforehand. The moments dragged on until he finally spoke, "If you're not going to say anything else then I've got a few things I need to. I want to start off by saying that I'm an idiot and part of this was my fault for how I overreacted." John hurriedly continued, afraid to lose his momentum, "I was just so angry. I was also afraid you'd hurt me again like back then."

Shayera just looked at him and didn't say a word. She wanted to hear what else he had to say. Shayera was being uncharacteristically silent as she watched him but she wasn't trying to deck him, which John took as a good sign.

John let out a sigh, "I'm sorry for how I overreacted. I know you are too; we both acted out of anger but I know that doesn't justify what I said or what I called you. Shayera I don't hate you for being a Thanagarian. I love you either way. You don't need to be a human or act more like a human for me to love you. I want you to be you Shayera, not who you think I want you to be. I love you the way you are." John then swallowed, "I was never fair to you when it came to just listening to you either. I've always talked about myself and my past but I never once asked you about yourself. I don't want you to think I don't care about your life on Thanagar and before you came to Earth. It made you who you are today." She still didn't say anything so he continued, "So I decided to think about it in your perceptive. I don't blame you for thinking you couldn't just come talk to me. When you want to talk to me about your life on Thanagar, I'll listen. I promise I will and I promise to try to be as understanding as possible."

The Thanagarian remained quiet. She was honestly dumbfounded by everything he had said so far. She hadn't expected him to be this sincere about things.

He lightly swallowed and asked, "Aren't you going to say anything?"

Shayera finally broke her silence and said, "So far you've had me since saying 'I'm an idiot' but we still have more to talk about. That's just the beginning."

John nodded, "I know. I also apologize from the very bottom of my heart for calling you a filthy hawk. I didn't mean it Shayera. I said it in anger. I know how much you hate that term. I knew that and I knew if I called you that it would hurt. I'll never be able to apologize enough for saying that to you."

"I know," she quietly replied. "We both said things in anger. I also want to clear the air about Rex and the whole destiny's puppet stuff. I want a clear understanding where we both stand in all of this and what both of us want in the end."

John lightly nodded and Shayera swallowed as she braced herself for the worst. He finally looked towards her and said, "Shayera I never once said that wasn't the future I wanted with you. Every time I thought of Rex, I saw you. I told you about his existence without even telling you his name. Bruce of all people had to tell you. It wasn't fair to you. You're his mother."

"John," Shayera softly started. "I don't want you to talk about Rex because you feel like you have to. There's nothing set in stone that he is going to exist. We both know that. What you saw was a possible future."

"I don't have to Shayera, I want to," he replied and stayed silent for a moment. "He had your eyes but at least not your height." Shayera lightly rolled her eyes and snorted back a laugh. "He was a decent mix between us. My facial features, my hair, your skin tone, your Thanagarian strength and endurance, but he didn't have wings like you. Well not exactly like you. He had this metal armor that had wings."

"Thanagarian genes are more dominant than humans ones for the most part," she stated. "Save for the wing genes obviously. They're recessive since Thanagarians genetically altered themselves a few generations back so that we could grow wings organically. That's why we can only breed with approved species only."

John raised an eyebrow, "What do you mean by approved species?"

"Thanagarians can only breed with other species that will result in winged offspring," Shayera then sighed as she looked away. "Even then winged, half-Thanagarians are not accepted on Thanagar. They are seen as nothing more than second-class citizens. In the eyes of the Thanagarian Empire, they hold no worth. The only purpose they serve is for cannon fodder on the frontlines. Wingless Thanagarians of any type are not tolerated at all. I'm sure you can imagine what Thanagar does with the wingless half-Thanagarians that get produced."

John grimaced at the thought, "Are you okay with the idea of your own kids not having wings like you?"

Shayera was silent for a moment as she bit her lip, "In the end, it'd be easier for them to grow up on Earth without the wings. No one would be able to associate them with me at least. They wouldn't have to face what I face every single day. No one would view them as Thanagarians or call them filthy hawks. They would look human and be treated like humans. That's all I want, for them to be happy and not go through what I have to."

"Shayera any kids we have are going to be just as much Thanagarian as they are human," John gave her a pointed look. "They're going to know where their mother came from. We're going to raise them like humans and Thanagarians."

"No we're not," Shayera frowned as she lightly glared at him. "You don't understand what it was like on Thanagar."

John lightly frowned back at her, "Then explain it to me so I can. I can't understand things if you don't tell me about them."

"We don't raise our kids on Thanagar. We dump them into military academies and never look back," she explained. "I grew up with absolutely no family, no friends, no one there for me. I don't even know what my own parents looked like John. I don't want that for my own child. We're raising this kid as a human from the very start. That doesn't mean I won't one day explain Thanagarian culture to them but I refuse to raise them as a Thanagarian."

"Shayera I don't want you to do that just because you feel like you have to because you're on Earth," he sincerely said to her.

Shayera shook her head, "I'm not doing it because of that. I'm doing it because it's the right thing to do and I have to think responsibly John. As terrifying as the thought is I'm going to be a mother, me of all people. I can't think about it like a soldier or a warrior or a Justice League member. I have to think like a parent now. I...I don't even know how to do that honestly."

He heard her tone falter and saw the nervousness in her eyes. John could tell that Shayera was terrified at the thought of being a mother and he knew she had valid concerns. From just the little he had so far heard, John could tell that she hadn't been raised in a loving or nurturing environment. She didn't have parents herself to have as an example for her to look back onto. The only family she had ever known was the Justice League. They were her first and only family up until now.

"You think I know either?" John asked her. "No one knows how to be a parent Shayera until they finally have their first kid. You can read every book that exists and talk to all of the parents in the world. Nothing will prepare either of us for what's going to happen over the years. That's what parenthood is. Shayera, I just want you to believe me when I tell you that you're going to be a good mother. I know how loving you are and how kind and gentle you can be. I have no doubts that you're going to love this kid with every fiber of your being. It's just who you are Shayera."

Shayera lightly smiled as she looked forward, "You seem rather sure about that. I wish I had as much faith in myself as you do but thank you."

"You just need some confidence in yourself Shayera. You'll be a natural at it; you'll see. Hell I'm nervous and I'm a regular human. It's just a natural reaction all new parents have."

Shayera raised an eyebrow, "It's natural to be raised on a warlike planet as well?"

John rolled his eyes, "Stop being a smartass Shay, I'm trying to be serious here."

"I know, sorry," she lightly smiled. "I appreciate you trying to make me feel better about all of this."

John smirked as he flew underneath her and kissed her cheek, "You're welcome Shay but back on a serious note. When you want to talk about when you lived on Thanagar, we'll talk."

Shayera lightly nodded, "I know and we will. I'd offer tonight but I told Wally we'd have dinner with him and that I'd play video games with him. He really wanted to hang out and I didn't have the heart to say no."

"I know how persistent Wally can be," John stated as he flew back to her side. "That and he looks like a wounded puppy if you tell him no."

"The exact reason I couldn't say no to him. Though Wally thought we were going to kill each other during our talk."

John smirked at her, "Well won't he be in for a surprise?"

Shayera chuckled, "Probably a little bit but at least we cleared the air between each other without arguing for once. We still have some things we have to talk about but the main issues are being taken care of. I think it's safe to say we shouldn't keep this kind of stuff bottled up anymore."

"That's very true, we have to be upfront and honest with each other. I do have one last question for you though."

Shayera tilted her head as she looked over at him, "And what would that be?"

"How do you honestly feel about having a baby?"

"I can't help but feel absolutely thrilled. That hasn't changed since I found out," Shayera quietly said with a soft smile. "You don't know how long I've wanted this."

He smirked once again, "Not nervous or anything?"

She took slight offense to that as she narrowed her eyes at him, "Me? Nervous? Of all the stupid-" John raised an eyebrow and gave her a dubious look. "Yeah I'm a nervous wreck," she admitted as she sheepishly grinned.