Ok, I know I said no updates for a few days. But I had a few hours to kill before I went home, so this is really the last update until next week.
Herald woke several hours later in a very groggy mood. He decided he needed a few more hours of sleep, so he tightened his arms around the boy next to him and closed his eyes. Wait, what? Who's sleeping...? Oh, Jericho. The events of early morning came crashing down on him and he was suddenly more awake. He stared at the back of Jericho's head, remembering how he had almost been too late. Herald tried to sit up, but as he shifted Jericho stirred and rolled over to face Herald. His eyes opened for a moment, and he smiled at Herald. Herald pulled him closer and wrapped his strong arms around his young boyfriend. Jericho closed his eyes and laid his head on Herald's chest where he fell asleep once more. Ah, screw productivity. Herald closed his eyes and fell alseep.
Two hours later, Kid Flash dodged a vase. Then a jar of peanut butter. "Jinx! Settle down!" The pink haired girl was on a rampage now that she had enough sleep to stay awake but not enough to make her happy.
"I'm gonna kill him! I'm going to rip apart the fabric of time and drop him in the Jurassic period!" A toaster exploded.
"Jinx! Stop taking it out on our stuff!" Kid Flash cowered as his girlfriend whirled on him with glowing purple eyes. "Um...I never liked that toaster anyways." Jinx took a deep breath and calmed herself.
"Make me some coffee." Kid Flash almost broke the sound barrier to make her some caffeine. Aqualad stumbled in and took in the mess Jinx had created. He opened his mouth to speak, saw the look on her face, and backed off. Jinx closed her eyes and used her powers to clean up the mess. Hotspot looked out from his hiding place behind the sofa, and judging the area to be safe, joined the others in the kitchen. The only two missing were Herald and Jericho.
As Jinx sipped her coffee, Aqualad built up the courage to talk to her. "What was that all about?" Jinx shrugged.
"I get a little upset when someone tries to hurt my friends. And I can be a real bitch in the morning." She silenced the smirking Kid Flash with a look. "Sorry, I'm just tired." She let Kid Flash fold her into an embrace as Aqualad went to check for mail. Everyone understood how she felt. Jericho was their friend, and he was always there for them even after the fighting was done. He watched comedies with Kid Flash, taught Aqualad to play guitar, took combat lessons from Hotspot, and was Herald's boyfriend. And no one was more fun to go shopping with for hours with than Jericho. With his bubbly personality, he could sit and watch Jinx model outfit after outfit long after everyone else had gone home.
"We'll get this guy. No one breaks into our tower twice." Hotspot put a hand on Jinx's shoulder. He was the cold logic of the team.
"But how do we fight someone who can hypnotize people? I mean, sure the name 'Hypnotic' is lame, but he poses a serious threat to the city." Kid Flash sounded unusually serious. Aqualad returned with a large box.
"Looks like Robin and his team have a few ideas." They opened the box and pulled out five pairs of black goggles as Jericho and Herald walked in. The blonde boy still looked tired, but he waved a cheerful good morning to his teammates. He accepted a tight hug from Jinx and laughed silently when she denied Kid Flash.
"Hey Jericho! Looks like Starfire added some...um...this for you." Hotspot held up a large plastic container full of gelatinous purple blobs. Jericho smiled and reached for it. He didn't know what they were, but he loved the little purple blobs Starfire made for him. "I don't know how you eat that stuff." Jericho shrugged as he took a bite out of one. The flavor was impossible to describe, unlike anything on Earth in every way. Suddenly the large screen flared to life as Robin appeared.
"I see you got the pack-argh!" Once more, Starfire pushed her leader/boyfriend out of the way.
"Friends! It is glorious to see you! Jericho, did you get my present?" Jericho smiled and waved, still holding the container. "Good! Those are the-" Cyborg appeared in the screen.
"The goggles I made for you should prevent Hypnotic from hypnotising you. I didn't make you any Jericho since you don't need them. Just put them on, and they should create a barrier between your eyes and the psychic energy he uses to take over minds."
"Thanks, Cyborg. We owe you one."
"You bet you do! I was the test subject!" Beastboy pushed Cyborg out of the way. "My brain still feels funny! Hey Jericho, if you ever want to talk, you know my number."
Jericho smiled and nodded. Robin finally managed to push his way back into the view of the camera. "If you need anything, give us a call." The screen went dark, and with the disappearance of the picture came the disappearence of Jericho's smile. He has tired, and still shaken from his encounter. Herald put an arm around his waist and Jericho leaned into him.
"I know we should be training and stuff, but I don't think anyone really feels up to it." Herald led Jericho to the breakfast table and sat him down. Then he went into the kitchen to make something to eat. It was late in the afternoon, but everyone decided to have breakfast anyways. It was Jericho's favorite. The silent boy felt both embarassed that his team was being so nice to him, but also touched that they cared so much. He had heard Jinx breaking things and heard her shouted threats. He just didn't have to the courage to step outside until she calmed down.
After their breakfast-for-dinner, the team wandered off to do their own things. Jericho went back to his room to get his guitar and brought it back to the living room. He walked up to Herald and pulled out a medallion from under his shirt. It was a small silver flower. Herald nodded and blew his horn. They stepped out into a meadow of beautiful yellow flowers. It was Jericho's mountain. He took Herald's hand and pulled him towards his favorite rock. They sat down and Jericho began to play. The soft chords were beautifully simple and melodic. But they were sadder than usual since Jericho's music reflected his inner state.
Suddenly their communicators went off. Jericho opened his to find Jinx on the screen. "Get your ass off that mountain and back to the tower!" She cut the transmission. Herald sighed and blew his horn. They stepped out of the portal into the living room. Everyone was standing around the table, looking at some pieces of paper. Jinx looked up as they walked over. "What took you so long?" Herald rolled his eyes.
"What is so important?" He was annoyed that his time with his boyfriend had been interupted. Jinx looked at Jericho.
"Let's just say we'll need to go shopping." Jericho raised an eyebrow. Jinx sighed. "Fine. The mayor is holding a ball at City Hall for the city next week. We're invited as the guests of honor!" Kid Flash was at her side in an instant.
"Hey, beautiful. Got a date to the dance?" He wiggled his eyebrows at her. She rolled her eyes then kissed him. "I'll take that as a yes."
"Only if you match your tie to my dress." She smiled sweetly at his wary face.
"I don't do pink." He ran a hand through his hair. "I'm too manly."
Jericho felt a hand on his shoulder and he turned to find Herald standing in front of him. He pulled out a yellow flower fom the mountain and gave it to Jericho. "Will you do me the honor of being my date to the ball?" He relished the look of shock on Jericho's face. They hadn't made their relationship public yet because they were worried about what the city's reaction when they first formed the team. But Steel City had turned out to be surprisingly liberal. After finding Jericho at the mercy of Hypnotic, Herald didn't really care what the city thought about him. He was still a hero no matter what, as was Jericho.
Jericho took the flower and pointed to Herald's chest and looked him in the eye with a questioning expression. "Yes, I'm sure. I don't care what they think." Jericho grinned and threw his arms around his boyfriend, forgetting for the time being about Hypnotic.
"Seriously, dude. How do you always understand him? I mean, no offense J, but I don't always know what you're trying to say." Herald put an arm around Jericho's shoulders.
"Same way I know what you're saying. I listen." Herald smiled sweetly, and Jericho laughed silently at the confused speedster.
"Maybe you should try it sometime, Kid." Hotspot laughed from the kitchen. The thought of Kid Flash slowing down long enough to listen was hilarious to him.
"Oh, ha ha. Very funny. I listen."
"There's a difference between hearing what people say and listening to them." Jinx tried to explain, but she ended up laughing harder at the increasingly confused boy. "Alright, everyone. We all need to go shopping. I will not be seen with you in you look like slobs." The boys groaned, all but Jericho. He just smiled sweetly at Jinx. He actually really enjoyed shopping with Jinx. He imagined it was what having a sister was like.
Hypnotic sat in his home, looking at the invitation he had swiped from the mail. A ball for the super-heroes. Thoughts raced through his mind.
I bet Jericho looks great in a tux. Almost as good as he looks in nothing at all. Hypnotic smiled. Soon.
Ok, that was interesting. Reading back over that, I have no idea what my original idea was, but it isn't this. Though I think it turned out rather well. Read and review! Thanks.