*le gasp* Can it be? Another chapter so soon? YES! IT IS! Tell ya what. This is starting to get interesting again. No guarentees on regularness but I am working on this. I felt like pulling teeth for a bit because I just can't get a handle on this one character (still too boring for my tastes) but I love how the chapter ends. The chapter title makes sense later. Enjoy!

Ch. 24 - Teenage Drama

Barry Allen was not someone easily scared, but that night he was nearly petrified. Wally was ill and hurting. Iris was going to kill him. His in-laws were going to kill him. He was going to be dead twice over all because of some nut who didn't ventilate his lab very well. He would just give all of them Bat's address so they could kill him instead, but he knew he was an easier target.

Thankfully Batman went back to the place afterwards and got a record of all the chemicals so they knew where to start counteracting the vapors. The speedster metabolism burned through a few of them, but there were several he didn't recognize and had to be treated for. The plus side of dealing with a theme criminal though was the repeating chemicals used and how easy it was to get antitoxins for their concoctions. It took over half the night to get the cocktail right, and the rest to make certain it worked. By the time Conner and M'gann were headed to school, Wally was fine. Better than fine. He was eating them out of house and home.

"Slow down buddy!" Flash told the teen with a giggle. "We're running out of eggs."

"I'll stop eating eggs when the hash browns are ready." Wally never knew that fighting several different toxins could make him that hungry, but he was. Unbelievably so. He and his uncle were cooking and eating as fast as they could, but not everything out there could be cooked quickly and be edible. It was almost too sickening to watch.

"Wow... you two are just... wow..." Green Arrow shook his head as he watched them in sick fascination. "Hal wasn't kidding. You two are pigs."

"We're not pigs!" the teen objected loudly. "We're just hungry."

"I take it half your paycheck goes to groceries?" the millionaire inferred, looking at the older one.

"Two-thirds," Barry admitted, smiling at the potatoes he was almost done frying. Hopefully the starch inside these would get both of their stomachs to calm down. "The rest goes to the mortgage. My wife takes care of the rest of the bills, and savings."

"Your suit must be really easy to make then," Ollie concluded, smirking to himself as his friend pushed the dish onto two large plates. Everyone learned long ago to just let the speedster eat everything in one kitchen, and have a second kitchen for themselves. Norms just plain did not eat with them. Cooked sometimes but... "Say kid! Wanna try my famous chili later?"

"You bet!" Wally grinned from ear to ear at the idea. "Roy told me it was amazing!"

"And incredibly spicy." The archer in question slipped in right then, stretching out the kinks. He stayed in the mountain this time, but only to make sure his friends were alright. "You'll love it."

"Have to admit," Barry added as he remembered, "it was pretty dang good. One of these days I have to get the recipe."

"Not likely." Ollie grinned at his former partner. Roy rolled his eyes and headed to the coffee pot, ignoring them all. "Royboy here's been sworn to secrecy and I love a good secret. Family recipes are not meant to be shared."

"Yeah right." The older speedster dumped ketchup on his potatoes while Wally put on whorshishore sauce and mustard. "My mom put hundreds in local cookbooks. Spreading the word of food's goodness was a duty according to her."

"Well my mom-"

"Good, you are all here." They all jerked around to see a very serious Kaldur stalking into the room with a tablet under his arm. "There are matters I wish to discuss before we head out today for Gotham. To ensure we catch Scarecrow and Joker today."

Everyone there looked at him blankly for a moment before looking at each other. This was... unexpected. Wally pointed at him with his fork. "Um... Shouldn't we talk this over with Batman first? I mean it is his-"

"Quiet." The glare on the Atlantian's face took them all for a spin. They knew the guy ever since he joined Aquaman, and they never saw him so aggressive before. Roy frowned openly while Wally's jaw dropped. The adults were a bit more subtle in their surprise. "You should focus on resting, as that is all you have been able to do since Robin's misplacement."

"Is that what you're calling it now?" Oliver raised an eyebrow at him curiously. He hadn't been part of any of this fiasco until now, barely getting the details from Dinah and Roy the previous day. Since he couldn't do anything, he just stayed back and let the others handle things. "His misplacement?"

"Is there another way to see it?" Kaldur's annoyed glare fell on the older archer, gaining a scowl from Roy. Despite every issue they had, only a handful could insult his former guardian and get away with it. He set the pad on the counter between them all. "As for tonight, I suggest we start at the laboratory from last night and spiral outwards. Scarecrow would need a new lab, so focusing on abandoned facilities or those with lower security would be best."

"That's a given," GA murmured, not really looking at the plans. Both he and Flash were watching the young leader curiously, occasionally looking at Roy who seemed to see what they did. Something was off. They couldn't quite places it, but maybe watching the young man for a while would reveal what was bugging him. He wasn't acting like the Aqualad they knew.

Megan rolled her shoulders tiredly as she made it back to the mountain alone. Conner said he had to run an errand before getting home so he didn't stay to watch her practice like usual. It was a bit disheartening that he didn't beg to be back with her all the time, but she convinced herself she didn't care. He had lied to her after all.

Still it'd been nearly a week. Maybe it was time to try and talk to him again. How did Earth relationships handle things like this? She needed to do more research on the subject. Maybe watching Dawson's Creek would give her ideas. She didn't feel much like socializing with the others anyway, not until it was time to head back to Gotham again. Wally was okay that morning after all, no need to see how he was doing. Probably back home anyway. Bypassing everyone and heading straight to her room seemed like a great plan.

Running a hand through her hair, M'gann dropped the human guise and tried to think of what to do next. She did have that series... right? Maybe, maybe not...

Her thoughts were interrupted when she spotted her bedroom door. It took all the Martian's strength not to burst out in relieved laughter. A large heart made entirely of Oreos was attached to her door, with a pan filled with the cookie sides not used earlier outlining the words 'I'm sorry' sitting as a doormat before it. She had never seen anything quite so sweet or tasty her entire life.

"Oh Conner..." she giggled, shaking her head endearingly. How she loved that boy. Still trying to contain herself, M'gann took out her phone and started taking snapshots. She'd have to show Artemis later. "You silly boy..."

"Does that mean you forgive me?" The girl snapped around as she heard her boyfriend's slightly timid voice. He really wanted her forgiveness for his reckless actions.

"Conner..."

"I didn't mean to upset you when I ran off," the clone explained earnestly. "I just couldn't stay still a moment longer. You know how I get into those kinds of moods... I just... I needed to do something. I should have talked to you about it before going. I'm sorry."

M'gann smiled sadly to herself. She had dragged this on too long. "No Conner... I'm the one who should be sorry. I overreacted. With Robin gone, I was just not able to let anyone go where I couldn't find them. I should have known better than try to keep you in the cave."

The sweet, innocent, disbelieving look Conner had on his face was so cute as she continued. "You were right to go to Gotham and see what you could do to help. I don't think Batman would have been able to handle the bombs without help. It felt good to have something to do. I wouldn't have stopped you, but I'm pretty sure I would have gone with you if you had told me what you were planning."

"You would have?" She nodded, gaining a smile from the lad. A considerable weight seemed to lift from his shoulders as she stepped closer to him.

"Yes Conner. I just didn't like being left in the dark." The Martian wrapped her arms around her boyfriend at last, looking lovingly in his eyes. "It makes me worry when I don't' know what's going on. It's not easy pulling the wool over a psychic's mind you know. And I promised not to read your mind unless it was necessary."

That gained a chuckle from Conner as he wrapped his arms around her waist. "Next time I decide to run off and save the world, I'll tell you first."

"You better." They leaned into each other, lips brushing each other playfully. All was forgiven and there was quite a bit to catch up on. But just before they made contact, the kryptonian jerked his head down the hallway.

"What was that?"

"Conner?" Uneasiness started within her as his hands started to slide away. "What's wrong?"

"Someone's shouting in pain..." Their eyes connected, worry and dread growing. Determination grew between them and they nodded to each other with a unified thought: find out what's wrong and take care of it. They darted forward towards the main hall, primed to fight. "Come on!"

All too soon they came into view of the zeta tubes and the fight taking place before them. They could not believe their eyes. Flash and Kid Flash were on the ground unconscious. Red Tornado was sparking on the far side of the cave wall. Green and Red Arrow were nursing wounds and rearming themselves as Black Canary continued to go toe to toe with their clear attacker. The one causing the mayhem's eyes were bloodshot and foaming at the mouth. No sanity in sight.

"Kaldur?"

A/N: anyone see this coming? I hope you did. Instead of Bats getting sprayed by that time bomb berzerker toxin from Without Me, Kal did! He's been holding in a lot of his temper lately and it just exploded. Bats had the early stages while Kal's advanced further. Why? Because even though Aqualad is largely immune to toxins, he's never dealt with scarecrow before. Plus more exposure than what Bats got. Planning on the next chapter being called Fear Itself, but I can't guarantee that.

Anywho, one part of the plot is resolved! Conner and M'gann are back together again. Kon took Steph's advice and I thought it was cute. I've seen heart attacks and the like on cars, doors, and houses, and the fact that someone's thinking about me like this is something I'd cherish. That he personalized it to her interests makes it that much more special. So every guy out there, if you want to get a girl happy, do something like this. They'll love you for it. Too bad they didn't get their kiss, but I like to break up intimate scenes. *evil laugh*

As for me... *shrugs* on to the next chapter! Just need to remember everything Bats went through before getting Robin back so I don't mess up. Worried about screwing up dates and facts too. Nearly had Hal in this chapter. XP bad girl. TTFN!