Here we go...time for a reunion. How do you guys think it's going to go?

~/~/~/~

The Watchtower

May 30, 20:04 EDT

Even though she had made up her mind, Siren was nervous. Knowing that she was about to make the biggest decision since forming the team five years ago, she couldn't help but pace. "I know it's late, so I appreciate you giving us time to talk, Captain."

"What is this about, Siren?" Captain Atom asked the young woman.

Siren drew in a deep breath, closing her eyes to steady herself. She knew that the moment the words left her mouth, there was no going back. I need to do this.

She opened her eyes, looking directly at Captain Atom. "I'm tendering my resignation as team leader. Effective immediately."

"What?!" She didn't look Nightwing's way even after his outburst.

At the same time, the Captain's eyes went wide. "Jenna...are you sure?" he wondered after schooling his expression.

That time, Siren did look in Nightwing's direction but didn't linger. "With everything that's taken place in the last year, it's not a role that I can take on anymore without further damaging myself nor impacting the team with choices I may make," she explained.

She shoved her hands in her pockets with a frown. "That's not all though. Nightwing came to you recently about what he has been doing with Kaldur, yes?" She already knew the answer, but wanted to hear him confirm it anyway.

"Yes. About Aqualad's undercover mission for the last year."

Siren nodded. "Good," she said. "Because I want you to know that once it's all said and done...after the mission is complete, whether that be a success or a failure..."

She finally locked eyes with Nightwing. "I'm leaving the team."

~/~/~/~

Blüdhaven

June 13, 20:30 EDT

The next couple of weeks were a whirlwind. Since giving up her position as team leader, Jenna was hardly seen in the HQ. After all, she had been going out on team missions less and less so there wasn't much of a point anymore. But she kept to her word so when Nightwing called with a message from Kaldur, she didn't hesitate.

"Talk," Jenna said once she entered the warehouse.

Nightwing turned around in his chair, looking at her. "There's going to be a summit," he started. "Between the Light and the Reach. Kaldur has been given the responsibility of providing security."

Jenna realized what he was implying, crossing her arms in thought. "So it's now or never," she mused.

Nightwing nodded. "He and Artemis already have a plan in motion, but it's going to take the rest of us to ensure that it doesn't end badly."

Jenna leaned against the computer desk, running her hands down her face with a long sigh. This is it. "When's the summit?" she asked.

Her co-leader...former co-leader...was oddly quiet. "In a week."

A week until I'm done here. She knew that Nightwing was thinking the exact same thing judging by the look on his face. "Don't," she said weakly.

"Jen-"

"No!" Jenna immediately stood, covering her ears as if it would solve her problems. "I don't want to hear it, Dick. I've made up my mind."

She was then turned around against her will as Nightwing grabbed her wrists, immobilizing her.

He looked distraught. "But why? You said that it was going to be a break, but the way you made it sound, it could be a permanent one. Jenna, you love this team more than anything. Is it really that easy for you to walk away for good?"

Jenna scowled. "Of course it isn't!" she snapped. "I have put my entire life into this team! But maybe now I'm starting to see the repercussions."

She yanked her wrists away, glaring at Nightwing. "It's been almost six years of leading this team. Six years where I stayed," she reminded before starting to tick off points with her fingers. "Even when Jason died. Even when Tula died. Even when Kaldur up and left me without warning and never returned. Even when I believed that he had changed sides."

She placed a hand on her chest, feeling her rapid heartbeat under her fingertips. "I mourned him, Dick! No, he didn't die, but the man I was in love with might as well have."

Her eyes screwed shut when her voice cracked. Take it slow, Jen.

When her breathing slowed, she glanced up at Nightwing again with tired eyes. "And yet I stayed...even when my best friend was murdered a few feet in front of me a year later," she finished.

Tears that stemmed from a broken heart were flowing freely at that point. It took everything in her to not walk away right then and there. To not leave without so much as a goodbye. To not let Kaldur feel the exact same way she had a year and a half before.

"Jenna, please," Nightwing begged. "Let me make it up to you. Just don't leave."

The look on his face was an echo of a thirteen-year-old Boy Wonder Jenna once knew. And it hurt.

"I need to step away, Dick," she said, her voice becoming quiet. "Before this team...this life destroys me."

Then she did so physically, unable to look Nightwing in the eye any longer.

Before she left the warehouse completely, she paused and turned her head to speak over her shoulder. "Let me know as soon as you find out more about the summit. I'll be there," she promised.

Because she kept her promises.

~/~/~/~

Santa Prisca

June 19, 00:00 ECT

It's now or never. Siren let out a slow, steady breath.

Everything was about to change, whether that be for better or for worse. One wrong move and things would end in disaster. But if they played their cards right, they could end it then and there.

It had been in their favor so far. The Light now had immense trust in Kaldur after all he did to prove his place, so it was perfect that, as Nightwing had said, they entrusted him with the security needed for the summit.

After all, he had a whole team of covert heroes at his disposal.

"At least they never noticed the holographic cameras we placed in the room," Nightwing mumbled from his seat in front of her.

Siren relaxed a little at that, moving her hands away from the Bioship's controls as it idled in camouflage mode. In front of her–aside from the former Boy Wonder–sat Bumblebee, Guardian, Superboy, Batgirl, and even Kid Flash. He had been willing to don the suit once more as soon as he received the news from Nightwing.

For both viewing and recording purposes, cameras and microphones were placed around the room. Until it was their time to aid their friends, the team leaders–both former and current–wanted to ensure that they could be aware of everything at all times. Getting the equipment snuck in the night before hadn't been an easy task, but they managed.

"It's go time," Guardian spoke up, eyeing the projection that filled the center of the Bioship.

Siren leaned forward, propping her arms on her knees while she watched Black Beetle and Deathstroke enter the room, followed by members of the Light and the Reach. Then entered Kaldur and Tigress.

Siren swallowed past the lump in her throat. It was still shell-shocking to realize that the unrecognizable woman had been Artemis all along. Granted, they only interacted once since her 'death', but now knowing what she knew, Siren felt a little guilty about attacking her.

A faint subconscious smile crossed her face, realizing that it made sense why their fight felt so nostalgic even when she had no idea who she was at the time.

~8~8~8~

Jenna grunted in irritation after she slammed into the ground and something landed on her soon after. "Are you comfortable?" she said, lightly glaring up at the person pinning her down.

"Very," Artemis said with a laugh.

Jenna reached out to grab the lapels of her friend's jacket, but Artemis' reaction time was quick and she seized Jenna's wrists in a flash. She tugged, pulling her fellow blonde teammate into a crunching position while refusing to let go.

Jenna groaned. She glanced off to the side when someone walked past. "Hey, West, can't you control your girlfriend?" she called out.

Wally paused, staring at the two girls as he took another bite of his banana. "Have you met her?" he said, mumbling around the food in his mouth.

"Some friend you are," Jenna yelled as he proceeded to walk away.

She rolled her eyes, looking back up at the smug grin on Artemis' face. "Try again?" the archer asked, finally releasing Jenna and letting her fall back onto the floor.

Jenna eventually stood, rolling her shoulders as she dropped back into her previous fighting stance. "I'm not quitting until I get this right," she said determinedly.

~8~8~8~

I guess I did in the end. Siren's lips thinned as she finally looked away from Tigress to examine the rest of those present.

"Ambassador." Siren's top lip curled up.

"Savage." Her scowl deepened.

Black Beetle stepped forward. "As head of security for the Reach, I must insist no masks be worn at the summit."

"Simply because you insist is no guarantee," said Black Manta who was undoubtedly glaring at Black Beetle from under his helmet.

But Ra's al Ghul turned to him. "Manta, if you wouldn't mind. After all, we are among friends."

So Manta complied, looking perturbed. Siren realized with a slight jolt that she had never seen Black Manta's face. It irked her to see just how much Kaldur resembled his biological father.

She couldn't help but shudder when a chill passed through her. I can't believe the man I love- loved came from a man so evil.

Both Tigress and Deathstroke had also complied, the former messing with her necklace. Siren reached up subconsciously, brushing her fingertips along the chain of her own jewelry before she quickly dropped her hand as if she was burned. Her brow furrowed.

"Satisfied?" Ra's asked with a smirk.

Black Beetle only grunted, returning to the Ambassador's side. "Excellent," his boss said. "Then with these formalities out of the way..."

Vandal Savage's smile made Siren's stomach turn. "Let us begin."

The Ambassador looked around the room, seemingly taking account of who was present. "What of the rest of the Light? Won't they be joining us?"

"Our more public members are occupied," Ra's explained, "conducting damage control to mitigate your recent defeats."

"And in any case, we are sufficient," Savage assured.

"Fine," the Ambassador acquiesced, although it seemed that he wasn't very happy with their reminders. "I know you called this summit, but the Reach has come with grievances against the Light. Please explain how the young Earth champions were allowed access to the Bialyan scarab temple under your control."

Kaldur stepped forward. "If I may respond..."

"No, you may not," Black Beetle denied. "Manta, keep your whelp meat silent."

It was likely going to be the only time Black Manta and Siren agreed on something, but neither of them were pleased with Beetle's order. "Beetle, your insolence grows progressively less...charming," he sneered.

Savage lifted a hand, trying to diffuse the situation. "My friends, I think we can all agree that in recent days, no one has done more–sacrificed more–for both the Light and the Reach than Kaldur'ahm," he pointed out. "That is why he was entrusted with security for this summit. And why he's entitled to a voice here."

"Of course. He may speak," the Ambassador said, waving Black Beetle away.

"Thank you, Ambassador," Kaldur said appreciatively.

He stepped down, approaching the others. "We acknowledge your concerns over the actions of my former team. But you must acknowledge that the Light could not have known the significance of the temple, or that ancient Earth magic could overcome Reach technology to free Blue Beetle and Green Beetle from your thrall," he explained. "If the Reach had been more forthcoming about how long ago their scarab was sent to infiltrate Earth with a Beetle warrior, the Light have made the connection to the temple, and certainly would have provided better security for it."

Siren gave a small smirk. That's one way to piss them off. Which was precisely what they wanted to do to make their plan work.

"I told you I wanted to study how Blue Beetle scarab had crashed prior to putting it back on mode," the Reach woman who had been standing behind the Ambassador said. "If you had followed my advice, we would have known about the temple, and-"

Her voice caught in her throat when the Ambassador sent her a glare. "Apologies. I spoke out of turn."

"No, my dear," Manta interrupted. "You were quite correct to call your master's tactics into question. The Light has provided everything the Reach required, and you aliens have let it all slip away."

"I don't believe this is a productive direction for our discussion," the Ambassador quickly said, trying to change the subject.

"No?" Ra's inquired. "Your public approval ratings are at a record low. As are sales of the Reach drink, which you had hoped would enslave the populace."

Savage agreed. "You allowed the young heroes you kidnapped to be rescued by the very teenagers whose meta-genes you enhanced..."

"After allowing their escape as well," Manta added.

"Worst of all," Kaldur finished. "Blue Beetle and Green Beetle have slipped from your grasp and fallen into the hands of the enemy, the Justice League."

"Man, things are starting to heat up quickly," Bumblebee muttered.

Siren hummed. "We need to be ready. If it comes to plan B...which I hope it won't...we'll move in then."

Nightwing cleared his throat pointedly. "What she said," he agreed.

Siren held his gaze for a moment before turning away. It's not my place to give orders anymore.

"-so do not question us on that score or any other!" the Ambassador snapped, catching her attention. "Remember, the Earth is now the property of the Reach. And per our original agreement, the Light is merely our favored agents amongst the humans."

Siren made a face as Black Beetle continued, "Show the proper respect, or suffer the consequences."

Black Manta quickly moved forward. "No agreement exists that makes a slave of Black Manta," he countered.

Black Beetle stepped toward the center as well, staring down Kaldur's father. "No agreement exists that guarantees the life of Black Manta."

"Manta guarantees that himself." A rocket launcher extended out of his armor, aiming right at Beetle's face. At the same time, Beetle formed a cannon of his own on his chest.

"It seems we have a stand-off," Ra's mused.

"No, we don't." Black Beetle wasted no time in backhanding Manta across the face, sending him sprawling to the floor.

Both Deathstroke and Tigress leaped forward, using their respective bo-staff and sword to retaliate. They worked together well, being quick and efficient. Watching them and knowing that they were actually her two teammates–Artemis and M'gann–made Siren's chest swell with pride.

As per a silent order, the Reach soldiers joined the fight, firing their weapons. It made things significantly harder to manage when most of the Light was still just standing around. Tigress had spotted a specific blast being aimed at Ra's, so she went in to block it, but the force made her stumble back into the man she was protecting.

Over the laser fire, it was nearly impossible to hear what she said, but after Tigress had addressed Ra's, his demeanor suddenly changed. Siren frowned, wondering what had been said, but she didn't like the look on his face one bit. Tigress clearly hasn't noticed any change though as she rushed forward to fire arrows filled with polyurethane foam at a few Reach soldiers, immobilizing them.

But there were bigger things to worry about, and it had nothing to do with a petty squabble. Luckily, Kaldur also knew this, physically slotting himself in between Black Beetle and Black Manta.

"Enough! We are allies, not enemies," he scolded. "Any conflict between us only benefits our true opponents. The Justice League and their sidekicks."

"Kaldur'ahm is quite correct," Savage spoke up, having watched the whole ordeal without much of a reaction.

"Agreed. We must not allow petty disagreements to drive a wedge between us," the Ambassador said, turning to bow to Kaldur in thanks. "Gratitude, Kaldur'ahm."

He raised up, glaring at Black Beetle. "Stand down, warrior," he ordered.

"Ambassador!" Beetle said incredulously.

"Stand. Down!"

Beetle growled, but he obeyed, turning away to free the Reach soldiers and making Siren wonder just how much power the Ambassador held over Beetle and the other woman. It was unnerving.

With that much over, and once his father had disarmed as well, Kaldur continued, "Should we not be concerned that Superman, Batman, the Lanterns, and the rest will soon return to Earth and once again sway public opinion to their side?"

"Superman and those accused with him will never leave Rimbor," Savage said calmly. "The attack we forced them to make on that world, plus a few well-placed bribes, has guaranteed their convictions."

Siren scowled. She shouldn't have been surprised that Vandal Savage would pull something dirty like that. But she hoped they had time to prevent the Leaguers' convictions since they now had the truth. Recorded as well.

So they just let the Reach and the Light keep digging their own graves.

"And the Green Lanterns are forbidden by Guardian treaty from returning to Earth now that we've convinced U.N. Secretary Tseng to welcome us here," the Ambassador added. "As for public opinion, I wouldn't be concerned. Though the tide has turned to a certain degree, it will be a simple matter to build on the foundation of half-truths we have already used to discredit the League in order to...discredit them...again..."

Worry coursed through Siren when she saw what made the Ambassador trail off. Ra's, who had been distracted the whole time, approached Tigress with no warning.

"Great One?" she said warily.

Rather than speak to her outright, Ra's reached forward to grab her necklace–which made her gasp–and tear it off. Revealing her secret to everyone.

"Fuck," Siren cursed, moving to her feet and placing her hands back on the Bioship's controls.

The room was silent for a moment.

"Artemis," Savage said coldly once he had recovered from his shock.

"I don't understand. I thought Artemis was dead," the Ambassador said confusedly.

"So did we all," Savage answered him, "but it seems Tigress is Artemis."

"Great deduction, Savage," Siren drawled as the others stood up as well.

"Move out," Nightwing ordered. "It won't be long now."

Siren opened up the ramp located at the back of the ship, quickly following behind the others as they rushed out. They split off to enter on both sides of the cave with Superboy, Bumblebee, and Guardian taking one entrance, and Nightwing, Batgirl, Siren, and Kid Flash taking the other.

But once they did get in, they knew they couldn't charge in immediately. They still needed information and, if it was going to go like they assumed it would, Kaldur would get it.

Despite being aware of the plan, Siren still flinched when she heard the gunshots as she moved through the shadows. She was just beyond relieved that she didn't have to see it for herself. If she had to watch her best friend die again and watch her ex die...she didn't know how she'd react.

Nightwing's silent signal made Siren freeze. She flattened herself against the stone wall, straining to hear what was being said in the room just in front of them.

Kaldur's message to the Reach and the Light was already playing, unraveling every single secret the Light had in their partnership with the Reach. Effectively ruining their alliance by shattering the illusion.

"Kaldur...Kaldur, what have you done?" Black Manta asked in a strained tone, sounding both devastated and appalled.

"He has in death done more to damage my plans than any living creature has wrought in fifty thousand years," Savage answered him. "I'd be impressed if I wasn't so-"

An angry yell came from the Ambassador. "You Earthlings are a pestilence and a plague! You dare sabotage us? Dare betray us?!" he demanded. "Have you forgotten who controls the Warworld? The Light is fortunate we do not carve up your planet as we speak!"

"That would indeed impress," Savage said sarcastically, "as I have the Warworld's crystal key."

Siren's hand flew up to her mouth, stifling her gasp. Fucking bingo.

"That is all I needed to know." She smirked triumphantly as Kaldur interrupted the conversation, revealing that his and Artemis' deaths were indeed a ruse.

"Impossible. Deathstroke killed you both," Savage said in disbelief.

"Just for a little while," the mercenary admitted. "After all, I wouldn't want to do any permanent damage..."

The man's voice changed once Miss Martian revealed herself too. "...To my best friends. Not when a little misdirection and Hollywood special effects will do instead."

"For we value our true friends and, unlike you, we are not short on them," Kaldur declared.

I'll take that as a signal. Siren and her teammates made themselves known, surrounding the Reach and the Light and cutting off the exits at the same time.

"Hey there, Vandy!" Kid called out teasingly. "You miss me?"

At least Savage knew how to admit when he was fooled. "Well played. Well planned," he said. "But the Light always has contingencies."

The Brain began to glow and, in turn, the ceiling began to open up, allowing dozens of Shadows to then surround the team. Siren pulled out the garrote at her hip, looping it in her fist. She glared darkly at the enemies around her.

"I've had my fill of your interference. Do not expect to survive," Savage continued before addressing the Shadows. "Kill them all. Superboy may present a problem, but we'll deal with him when the other children lie bleeding on the ground."

Kaldur shook his head. "Still you refer to us as children," he said in a disapproving tone. "No wonder our successes mount. You consistently underestimate us."

One of the Shadows in front of Siren suddenly moved, swinging a foot around to roundhouse one of his buddies into another, sending both to the ground. He reached up, tugging off his mask to reveal who was underneath.

"Fancy seeing you here," Banshee said with a grin, quickly replacing one mask with another and powering it on.

Siren smirked as he joined her side, lifting both fists in defense against the rest of the Shadows that weren't the team in disguise. "Nice outfit."

"Thanks."

The moment that Kid Flash dashed away from Siren's side, she let out a scream.

She kept her distance, for the most part, allowing Banshee to do the physical work while she covered his six. The only problem was, that she wasn't paying enough attention to her own.

So when someone struck her in the back, she went tumbling to the ground with a grunt. She scowled up at the assassin above her, ready to sweep his legs out from under him, but something body checked him before she could.

Siren grinned at Banshee. "Good job," she praised.

She caught movement behind him so she thought quickly. "Remember that move I taught you last week?"

Banshee's eyes lit up and he glanced over his shoulder. "Hell yeah, let's do it."

He bent down, grabbing Siren's outstretched hand as if preparing to pull her to her feet. Except when he began to pull, Siren thrust her lower body weight the rest of the way, allowing Banshee's full strength to swing her around his shoulders and kick away the two Shadows that were rushing forward.

Siren caught a staff that had been arching in the air, bashing the flat end of it into another Shadow's skull to send him sprawling. She glanced over at Banshee, raising an eyebrow. "Have you thought of using a staff for your weapon?" she asked casually, tossing the weapon in the air which Banshee caught easily.

Spinning on her heel, Siren let out another scream to throw back some Reach soldiers that had strayed too close, and by the time she looked back, she saw Banshee loop the staff around the back of an assassin's head, using the extra leverage to bring it down into his knee. Banshee looked up at her and, even though half his face was covered, he looked like a kid who had just gotten candy.

Siren giggled. "Maybe?" she wondered.

"Maybe," Banshee said with a nod, making Siren shake her head fondly before moving ahead with her protégé.

It was long, and she should have felt some semblance of relief when the fighting finally ceased, but instead, she felt the exact opposite.

It was like things had been put on pause while she worked with Banshee, being one of the very few enjoyable moments in the past few months. And once it was over, all it took was one look around the room for everything to come rushing back in full force.

As her smile faded, Siren's feet began to move before her mind did, leading her straight to the man that had been keeping secrets from her for the past year. Her jaw tensed more and more as she drew closer.

But Nightwing had beat her to him so she remained silent and just watched.

"I had hoped to end this tonight," Kaldur had admitted. "But Savage escaped with Klarion, as did Black Beetle and the Reach's head scientist...Luther and Queen Bee never showed, and even Ra's al Ghul will no doubt-"

"Are you kidding me?" Nightwing said incredulously. "Kaldur, you won!"

"Won? Dude, you triumphed!" Kid cheered, his hand clinging to Artemis'.

"You've crippled the Reach and literally broken the Light in half," his girlfriend pointed out. "Even took down Deathstroke before the summit."

She knelt to retrieve her broken necklace, smiling broadly. "And since we holographically recorded the entire deal, we'll be able to use the bad guys' own words against them to clear the Justice League."

Suddenly, she was nearly bowled over by Beast Boy. Siren's heart ached to watch him embrace her with a look of pure relief.

"What was that?" Artemis asked with a giggle.

"I'm still just so glad you're alive!" the kid admitted. "And that Aqualad's not a traitor!"

He pointed a finger in Nightwing's face, looking stern. "No more faking anyone's death for at least a year, okay?"

Kid scoffed. "Seconded."

"Agreed," Kaldur said with a sigh.

"Kaldur, this has been a good night," Nightwing pointed out, resting a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Maybe the best we've had since the four of us first took off for Cadmus five-plus years ago."

Siren ducked her head, quickly swiping away the tear that fell before anyone could notice.

"Come on," Kid Flash urged, mirroring Nightwing's action on Kaldur's other shoulder. "Enjoy the moment, my friend. You've earned it."

Siren finally joined them. "He's right," she spoke up.

All of their smiles fell when they laid eyes on her. But she only kept her gaze on one.

The expression on Kaldur's face revealed that he had been expecting her to approach. Amidst the guilt though, his relief to see her again was still visible.

"Jenna, I am-" A single hand silenced him.

"I'm glad you're okay. I'm glad you succeeded. But I am not happy that you kept it all a secret from me," Siren said. "But this is what you wanted, right? This is what you strove to do for the past year. So..."

She shrugged nonchalantly. "Congratulations. You won," she praised before turning to acknowledge all four of them.

"Let's ignore for a moment the fact you decided to do something so dangerous that if you had actually been found out, you would have been killed immediately," Siren continued, placing her hands on her hips. "Never mind that because you decided to keep it a secret, M'gann hadleft you in a catatonic state and that it was a pure miracle that she was able to pull you out of it. What I'm most angry about is that you thought it was okay to leave me out of this."

The whole room had fallen silent. It was hard to ignore the team leader berating four of her closest friends in front of them all. Even though she never raised her voice, no dobut everything she said was easily heard.

Nightwing stepped forward, frowning. "Si..."

But she instantly stopped him, pointing a finger in his direction. "I already chewed you and Kid out about this, and if I have enough energy for it after, Artemis is going to get the same. You don't get to talk."

She turned back to Kaldur, crossing her arms. "I can't believe that after everything we had been through together from day one, you didn't trust me enough to help in this situation."

Kaldur looked wounded. "My love, it is more than that."

"No, Kaldur'ahm, it's not," Siren snapped, feeling angrier at hearing the pet name. "I don't care about how you try to justify it, you deliberately chose to keep this a secret from me from the very beginning.

"At least Kid and Artemis have the benefit of the doubt by not being told right away, even though they also chose to keep it from me"—she shot the two of them a glare—"but you and Nightwing? I expected more from the two of you."

Siren edged closer, keeping her focus on Kaldur and only Kaldur.

"You broke my trust, Kaldur. Other than that, you broke my heart." She then let out a disbelieving laugh. "I don't know if there's any coming back from this. But I certainly know I want nothing to do with you."

She grasped the chain around her neck, pulling it over her head and letting it dangle in her hand. She also ignored the few gasps around her while she examined the look of pure anguish on the face of the man in front of her.

Because they all saw the ring hanging off the end, not expecting Siren to have kept it after Kaldur betrayed her.

~8~8~8~

Four months before the death of Tula, things had felt so normal for once.

As the couple was cuddling on her couch, Jenna had been recounting something that happened in the class she was a teaching assistant for. It had taken a moment for her to realize that Kaldur wasn't fully paying attention to the story.

She rolled over, resting her arms on his chest and propping her chin up to look at him. "Hi."

"Hello."

Jenna smiled fondly. "What're you thinking about?"

Kaldur looked off to the side as if contemplating something. Then he looked down at her. "Would you like to get married?"

Jenna was rendered speechless for a moment.

Blinking, she then found the words to say. "Is- is this just a general question or is there a reason behind it?"

Rather than clarify, Kaldur reached behind him, grabbing something that Jenna somehow didn't see resting on the end table. It was a simple ring with a lone gem, unlike anything she had seen before.

"This is not a typical Atlantean custom, but I tried to incorporate both our cultures by having someone in Atlantis use materials found there," he explained.

Jenna had yet to speak after she had sat up on her knees, staring at the jewelry in awe and surprise. Kaldur sat up as well, their legs brushing against each other.

He eyed her, uncertain. "I know how much your education means to you, so it does not have to be official until you are ready," he assured. "But I wanted to give this to you to promise you that, no matter what, we will become husband and wife one day. If that is what you want."

Jenna finally looked up into the eyes she loved so much. "Are you sure you want to give this to me now? I mean, yes, I'd love to marry you, but why not wait?" she questioned. "I still have over a year of college left."

"I would wait millennia."

That forced a giggle out of Jenna. She lunged forward, barely giving Kaldur a chance to prepare before she was kissing him deeply. He was just as eager, reaching up with both hands to cradle her face. She followed him as he fell back into the couch cushions and then broke the kiss.

Kaldur stared lovingly up at her. "Is that a yes?"

"Pretty sure I already said that, babe," Jenna said, unable to stifle her laugh.

She gave him enough time to slide the ring on her finger before leaning back down to finish what she started.

~8~8~8~

Maybe it was foolish of her to keep the ring after everything. Maybe a part of her hoped that Kaldur hadn't actually betrayed them. That he hadn't actually killed Artemis.

She turned out to be right, obviously, but not in the way she was expecting. All because they didn't care to tell me a damn thing.

Siren reached out, grabbing Kaldur's wrist to turn his hand over and let the necklace pool in his palm. She closed his fingers over the item and pushed his hand back toward his body.

"We're done," she said with finality before she turned to address Nightwing. "And I'm done here."

She spun on her heel, striding toward the exit with no care about who watched her leave. Except for one person who quickly followed her out of the cave. "Jenna, wait."

Siren obliged, dropping her head with a heavy sigh. She glanced back at the person behind her.

"I'm sorry, Sam. I- I didn't really plan for this to happen the way it did," she admitted.

"But you're actually leaving the team?" he questioned, eyes wide.

Siren's eyes flickered down to stare at her feet for a second. "It's for the best. I can't be around them, much less lead the team with him, anymore," she explained, barely holding back her bite. "And I'm tired. Everything that's gone on this past year and a half..." She said nothing else.

Until she stepped forward with a softened expression, resting a hand on Banshee's shoulder. "Don't think this means I'm abandoning you. We still have our city to protect after all." The corner of her lip weakly turned up.

Banshee stared at her with a furrowed brow before he wrapped his arms around her in a hug. Siren's shoulders sagged ever so slightly as she returned it, resting her chin down on his shoulder. She squeezed him tightly before letting go.

"I gotta go. I don't want to stick around here much longer," Siren admitted, backing away. "But call me later, we can hang out if you want."

Banshee nodded, a sad frown plastered on his face until his brow furrowed. "How, uh, how are you going to leave without having to hitch a ride back with us?"

Siren smirked. "Too bad the League of Shadows will be missing a motorboat when they wake up," she said with a wink.

Banshee huffed out a laugh, shaking his head in amusement as she started walking off. Once her back was turned, her smile fell. Then so did a tear as she walked out with her head held high.

~/~/~/~

Damn. I'm not really sure what to say.

Thoughts? Did you expect Siren to quit being team leader and leave the team? Throughout the previous chapters, I wanted to try and find a good middle-ground for hints where it wouldn't feel so out-of-the-blue but also where it still had a bit of surprise factor. I felt that, with everything she went through this whole time, it was warranted. She needs that break, especially after being lied to for so long by the people she cared about the most.

And speaking of surprise factor...did you expect them to have been engaged? Even if you picked up on the fact that the necklace was special, did you guess what the significance was? Before anyone asks, Kenna (SeaSong? I don't know how to come up with ship names lol) is endgame. They will eventually find their way back to each other. As for when that will be and what happens before that...well...you'll just have to read the next fic.

Next week is the finale! Oh my god, I'm stoked but also a little scared and a LOT sad. I'm planning on posting it on the 1st (my birthday!) if not sooner, then give myself two or three months again to get as far into the fic as I can while I'm trying to simultaneously juggle grad school. So for now, my plan is to start posting the third fic in January no matter what.

I'll probably have a LOT to talk about next week so I'll just save it for then. See you then and bring tissues! You might need it.