"Well, I'm married now," Barry answered Shayera's previous question.
Shayera's eyebrows raised. "Wow, congratulations! Wait, was this the childhood friend?" Barry nodded enthusiastically. "Oh, my Ar Rehon! I know when we last spoke, you were grieving your place in the friend zone, making peace with- "
"Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes," Barry interrupted Shayera, "I remember. Iris and I have been happily married for almost seven months. It has been incredible," the speedster gushed. "No regrets on my part. Kids are definitely in our future." Shayera smiled.
(Meanwhile)
Bruce stood in the kitchen, working the blender. "Did I interrupt something, sir?"
"No, Alfred," Bruce said, rolling his eyes. "You didn't interrupt anything."
"It looked like I did."
"I don't know why I put so many cameras and screens up in this place," Bruce muttered as he grabbed a glass from the cabinet.
"Don't worry, sir, another opportunity will present itself. I'm sure of it."
"I – what – stop spying on them," he told Alfred.
(Back to Shayera and Barry)
"What about you?" Barry nudged Shayera.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, you were in the mountains. Was there a mountain man?"
Shayera chuckled as she shook her head. "No. No. I…there was no one-is no one." Her face then became pensive.
"You have a question."
"Who is…uh…who is Vixen?"
Barry bristled at the question. "Shay…"
"I'm not going to break, Barry. I can handle it."
Barry frowned. "She's…she's…." He sighed. "Honestly, Shay, she's not bad. I haven't spent much, or any, time with her; but from what I've heard, she's…cool." Shayera nodded. "Now, I wouldn't leave you two alone in the same room. Ever."
"Why not? I'm nice."
"As I said," Barry smiled, "I don't know Vixen on a personal level. But, from what I've heard…you two are too similar."
"I'm sure that's untrue."
"I don't know, Shay…."
"I'm sure Vixen never betrayed an entire planet…or two."
Barry studied his friend quietly with concern. "Shayera, how are you doing, really?"
Shayera sucked on her lower lip, briefly looking away. "It was tough in the beginning. It was excruciating. My entire body felt like it was on fire. Nothing seemed to make me better. My emotions were uncontrollable. At times, I was inconsolable. My wings…," her voice broke. Barry gave her folded hands a gentle, encouraging pat. "Bruce and Alfred kept giving me pain meds."
"The good kind, I hope," Barry interrupted.
"Yes," Shayera said with a small smile, "the good stuff. Things got better, mentally, once I began walking again. This week, I've spent my time getting back into shape."
Barry nodded before saying, "I am glad you're getting better. Bruce isn't being too much of a pain in the ass, is he?" he asked with a smirk.
"No," Shayera said with a small laugh. "He's been really nice. Extremely nice. Shockingly nice. He's the complete opposite of his Batman persona, and it's a bit disconcerting."
Barry joined in with laughter of his own. "Good," he said, "I'm glad you're getting better."
The two sat in silence for a few seconds before Shayera said, "Barry, I am really sorry about the part I played in the invasion. I honestly didn't know-"
"Shayera, no," Barry turned to face her. "I forgive you. Truthfully, I forgave you as soon as you fought for us." Barry pulled her into a hug when tears started to pool in her eyes. "I have no understanding of Thanagarian politics, but you were so distraught, I knew I couldn't hold you responsible for everything." He gently rubbed her back.
"I didn't know," Shayera whispered into his shoulder.
"I know," Barry said comfortingly. "I know." Once she pulled away, he asked, "So what's next for Hawkgirl?"
"I don't know," Shayera said, wiping away a few errant tears. "Am I worthy of the title 'Hawkgirl'? I have no wings."
"Your wings didn't make you Hawkgirl; you're fighting spirit made you Hawkgirl."
"No. I'm pretty sure the wings made me Hawkgirl," Shayera laughed. "Humans didn't know what to make of me." Barry laughed along with her. "Humans didn't know what to make of me," Shayera continued, "hence the name Hawkgirl. What are they going to call me now? Am I even a hero?"
"Well," Barry stood to his feet, "this is a conversation that definitely needs to be continued. But, unfortunately, I need to get back to Central City. My boss thinks I'm taking a bathroom break."
"Barry!" Shayera said, giving his shoulder a playful smack.
He gave her a quick kiss on the cheek before saying, "I'll be in touch. Promise you won't make any important decisions without telling me."
"I promise," Shayera reassured him. Barry gave her a grateful and encouraging smile before disappearing from the room in a flash.
Bruce found Shayera on her back, lifting weights on the bench press. "I'm assuming the red blur Alfred and I saw on the monitors was Flash leaving," he said, announcing his presence, a glass beverage in his hand.
Shayera set the dumbbells down before sitting up. "You were spying on us?" she asked incredulously.
"Alfred likes to keep an eye on things. Anyway, here," he said, handing her the blended beverage.
"Again," Shayera moaned, eyeing the concoction in disdain. "That stuff is nasty."
"Your appetite hasn't completely returned. You are beginning to burn more calories than you're taking in." Shayera muttered something unintelligible, taking the glass from Bruce's outstretched hand. "I'm making sure you remain healthy."
"You shouldn't," Shayera mumbled.
Bruce only shrugged and said, "How was your visit with Barry? What'd you guys talk about?"
"Stuff," Shayera shrugged. "Vixen." Bruce gave a subtle flinch, one Shayera caught. "What!" she demanded.
"I hope you two never get paired for a mission together." Shayera glared at him. "You two are too alike."
"I'm nice," Shayera said through clenched teeth.
"That's not the problem. If you two got along, it would be destructive; if you two don't get along, that's an apocalyptic disaster in the making."
"I will throw this drink at you," Shayera threatened.
Bruce smirked. "Drink up, Hawkgirl. Then, I'll walk you through your stretches."
Lobo smirked at the glaring Thanagarian. Her name was Chey-Ara Kol. She wasn't tall. She didn't even come up to his shoulders. Her skin was dark. (He had heard of dark-skinned Thanagarians, but this was his first time seeing one.) As much as he hated Thanagarians, he liked this one. She didn't have that air of arrogance surrounding her. "I haven't seen her. I've been stationed here for the past month. Wherever she is, she's keeping a low profile. I don't even think she's in the city," she growled. Obviously, she didn't appreciate Lobo's presence.
Well, tough, Lobo thought, sniffing the air again. "Naw, little hawk, she's definitely in the city. Her scent is weak but present."
"Meaning?"
"She hasn't been outside for a very long time. But she is definitely in the city. Where have you looked?"
"The sewers. The slums," the dark hawk shrugged, "she can't fly. I figured she'd be laying low. Real low. I was beginning to think maybe she was holed up in Metropolis. But if you say her scent is here, she must be here."
"Her scent is coming from the north."
"I didn't give the northside of Gotham a thorough search. Nothing but rich, pretentious culus that way. Security is top level. And that's saying something coming from a Thanagarian."
Lobo rolled his eyes. There was that Thanagarian arrogance.
"Even without my wings," she continued, glaring at Lobo, having caught the eye roll, "I still stand out too much. Not many humans with my coloring on that side. Last time I was there, I counted…maybe 50."
"You haven't been back."
"Too many eyes," Chey-Ara said, referring to the security.
"Well, the bird's scent is coming from the north. She's most definitely in that area."
"Fine. What do you want from me?"
"Nothing. Just stay out of my way and let the grownups work." The hawkgirl or hawkwoman scowled at him. And damn if she didn't look cute doing it. "Why don't you wear a mask?" Lobo asked suddenly, out of curiosity.
"I don't want to," Chey-Ara said before taking off into the night sky. Lobo laughed. Okay, maybe not all Thanagarians were terrible. But enough of that. He had a prey to catch.
Carter watched the meeting from his hiding place behind the gargoyle. He recognized Lobo instantly. How he managed to get into Earth's atmosphere without the knowledge of any of the leaguers was baffling and troubling. But he couldn't dwell on that thought now. He needed to warn someone. He needed to find Batman.
