Woo! First chapter was a success! At least, for my first story, haha. After I published it, I went back and read it, and found tons of mistakes; sheesh, FF really likes to not leave spaces after an italicized word, doesn't it? So I edited it, but it took me a good half hour to figure out how to edit the content of the chapter, because, well, I'm blond- it takes me a while to figure these things out lol. But now it's all nice and (hopefully) mistake-free.
I went to Hawaii for a week! And I have this thing where I like to include my own experiences in the story, haha. So expect some volcanoes in the future!
Thank you, everyone who reviewed! I love ze feedback! ^__^ Your reviews make me all warm and fuzzy inside. Now, onto chapter the second!
Disclaimer: Owning even a tiny fragment of Legion of Superheroes would cause my head to explode from the exposure to pure awesome.
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I am once again in my lab, hanging upside-down from a bar and tinkering with the parts of a Legion rocket. I am most at calm here, "in my zone", as Bouncing Boy would say. A blue glow illuminates my face as I carefully weld two bolts together to fit a compartment. A tiny drop of liquid metal forms at the end of the bolt and drips off, but it lands in a small bowl placed on the ground.
Calmly, I scan the room, inverted because of my position, before going back to work.
"It is not courteous to spy upon others, Invisible Kid," I say tonelessly.
Lyle appears crouching before me, pouting like a child whose toy got taken away.
"Okay, seriously, how do you do that?" he demands, handing me a wrench when I hold out my hand for it. "And don't give me that instinct crap, no one else can ever sense me there."
"Well, besides the fact that objects don't mysteriously appear where they weren't before," I glance pointedly at the bowl below me, where a tiny pool of liquid metal is forming. "I do have a twelfth level intelligence, while everyone else does not. So that might contribute to it."
Lyle sighs dramatically and watches as I weld the bolt into place. For the past few days, it has been a common occurrence for him to come to the lab, sometimes lending aid when it is needed. The others were surprised when I allowed him inside, although I have told them innumerable times that I did not allow anything. He simply sneaks in and is impossible to kick out. Eventually, I learned to tolerate his presence, which, while being shocking to the others, surprises me most of all. I have never allowed anyone into my lab before, so why do I exempt Lyle Norg from this rule? Perhaps it is because of his intelligence level that I trust him to some degree with the equipment, or his terrific charisma... or his "puppy dog" eyes. But I refuse to think of that last one as a possibility.
I try my best to ignore the brown eyes gazing steadily at me and begin to unscrew four tiny bolts that hold a square sheet of metal in place over the computer compartment. I then sigh and turn an irritable glare on him.
"Yes?" I snap, narrowing my eyes slightly.
Lyle's lips twitch up into a cheeky smile.
"Need help with anything?" he offers, leaning his head into his palm as he regards me with misplaced amusement.
I stare silently at him for a few seconds, and when he does not look away, I huff out a breath of annoyance and flip myself up and over the bar, narrowly avoiding kicking Lyle in the head (I suspect he had already calculated the distance just as I have, for he does not even flinch), and land easily on my feet.
"If you must help," I say, implying with my tone that I need anything but. "You can start working on the next rocket. We have five in disrepair at the moment, but the damage is easy enough to fix."
Pleased, Lyle swivels on his heel and immediately begins to unscrew various, specific bolts on the rocket sitting next to mine, humming tunelessly to himself. I find myself glancing over every now and then at his method of work, once again perplexed and miffed by the imaginative approach he takes with his tasks.
Before long, though, we are immersed in our work, and few words pass between us in a comfortable atmosphere. I would never admit it out loud, but I actually somewhat enjoy the company, and Lyle's animated expressions when he comes across an obstacle or achieves something do not cease to amuse me.
I do not know how much time has passed, for I often lose track of time when working in the lab, but I know it must have been quite a while, for we have already fixed the rockets and a glitch in Computo's system, and are now leaning over a smooth, cold table, inspecting and picking apart a nanite from the Legion hospital wing. We are attempting to get it to move in a certain way that would enable it to secrete a virus from a person's body more efficiently.
"Maybe if we move this point zero two four centimeters to the left," Lyle mumbles to himself, intensely bent over his work.
I almost smile as I look up at him, so intent upon his work, before going back to my own. Occasionally, our hands brush when we reach for a certain tool, but neither of us says anything as we continue to work.
Eventually, there comes a knock at the door. Lyle and I glance up at each other momentarily before getting up and heading to the door. When it whooshes open, Saturn girl is revealed, a smile on her face and a floating, silver platter at her side. There are two glasses filled with lemonade and a pile of sandwiches placed upon it.
"I thought you guys could use a break," she says, her pink eyes flickering back and forth between the two of us. "I brought you food."
I am about to object, but when I look at the sandwiches lying temptingly on the dish, my stomach gives an involuntary growl. I silently curse this human need for regular sustenance. Lyle thanks her and pops a sandwich into his mouth, grinning in content.
"How long have we been working?" he inquires between giant bites.
"Chew your food, Lyle," I instruct, observing him with a combination of disgust and humor as he inhales his third sandwich.
"Eight hours," Saturn girl replies to Lyle's question. He chokes on his food and I slap him on the back several times as he hacks.
"Eight hours?" he repeats incredulously, looking back at our progress. "I didn't even notice..."
"Lemonade?" Saturn Girl offers, handing him a glass.
"Thanks, Imra," he smiles appreciatively, taking it from her.
"I'll leave you to your work, then," she says, excusing herself. "Oh, Brainy, don't stay up too long, okay?"
The metal doors shut closed behind her and we are left alone again. I lead the platter of snacks and refreshments to an empty table and take a sandwich, hungrier than I realized.
"Eight hours," Lyle mutters to himself again, shaking his head in disbelief. "That would make it nine p.m. right now."
"It's good to know you can do simple math," I say, sipping my lemonade as I inspect our work. We did get a lot done... why does it not feel like so much time has elapsed?
Lyle ignores my insult good-naturedly and finishes off his fifth sandwich (I have absolutely no idea where he fits all that food), gulping down his drink afterwards.
"Well, I have to go, then," he tells me, brushing past me and walking back to the door.
"Why?" I blurt, then instantly flush when I hear the disappointment in my own voice.
He turns back and gives me a quizzical look, and I hope my expression does not betray me as I meet his gaze.
"Well," he says slowly, still giving me that odd look. "It's getting late... I need a shower, and I promised to watch movies with Phantom Girl."
What is this sudden anger toward Phantom Girl I am feeling? I make an appropriate "Hm" sound in response, rearranging the tools on the desk to avoid looking at him.
"Yeah, watching ancient movies on Saturdays is like our thing," he explains. "Timber Wolf joins us sometimes, but he doesn't really get it." He chuckles to himself.
My legs carry me, without my consent, to the door, where he is standing, about to leave.
"Um... have fun," I mumble, unsure of why I approached him. He stares at me for a moment before breaking out into a grin.
"What?" he teases. "Jealous?"
Shocked, I gape at his audacity and he bursts out laughing.
"Uh, no, Lyle," I bite sharply, agitated. "I am not jea-"
"You can come too, if you want," he interrupts, all smiles and carefree attitude. "We're having a Star Wars marathon."
I consider, to my surprise, accepting, but soon come to my senses. I have work to do, and besides, ancient movies only frustrate me to no end. Plus, I do not think Phantom Girl would appreciate my intrusion upon "their thing".
"No, thank you," I refuse blankly, finding myself feeling disappointed again for some incomprehensible reason.
He raises his eyebrows expectantly, and I realize he must be waiting for me to say something; understandable, as I did just march up to him for no apparent reason.
"You can come here and help anytime," I say before I can stop myself. Feeling my face heat up in embarrassment, I quickly add, "If you want. I can use the help, I suppose. It does get things done faster."
Lyle looks as surprised as I am at my words, but he is soon smiling again, his chocolate eyes twinkling.
"Tomorrow, then?" he asks eagerly.
"Yes, fine," I sigh, well aware that I am keeping him from his plans.
"It's a date, then," Lyle confirms, and is out the door before I can process the implication behind his words.
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Three hours and seventeen minutes later, I wipe my hands off on a towel as I look over my work. I must admit, I got a lot more done with Lyle's assistance than I could have alone. Remembering Saturn Girl's words of concern for my health, I run one last glance around the lab before walking to the exit, stretching my arms up over my head as I go, missing the feeling of extending my limbs as far as they would go. When the doors slide open, a surprised Lightning Lad is standing at the entrance, his fist poised in the air as though he was about to knock.
"Oh, uh..." he says, dropping his arm limply back to his side. "Is... is Lyle there?"
I raise an eyebrow at his uncharacteristic behavior as he shifts nervously from foot to foot.
"No, Invisible Kid is not here," I say, waiting for the doors to shut behind me before quickly typing in the security code to lock up the lab.
"Oh, okay, I'll go find him," he says hurriedly, spinning around and walking off in the opposite direction.
"He is watching ancient movies with Phantom Girl," I call, rolling my eyes. Star Wars, how ridiculous.
Lightning Lad freezes mid-step and groans.
"Sprock, Phantom Girl?" he grimaces, running a hand through his russet hair. "I can't talk to him with her there..."
"Might I inquire as to what you wish to speak with Invisible Kid about?" I interrupt the pointless rant he is having with himself.
He jumps as though he has forgotten I am there and turns to face me unwillingly. I can tell the topic of discussion is not something he wishes me to know about. He also does not want Phantom Girl to know, so then...
"Is this about Saturn Girl?" I guess, folding my arms across my chest.
I know I have hit the nail on the head when his shoulders tense up and color floods to his cheeks. He twitches his head both ways, checking to see if we are alone, then rushes up to me, stopping less than a foot away. The term "personal bubble" comes to mind as I look up at him, trying to be patient.
"I was going to talk about this with Lyle," he says in a rush, the words overflowing one on top of the other as his eyes shift from left to right, looking anywhere but at me. "But since he's busy, and everyone else is either asleep or a girl, well..."
His eyes finally land on me, a lost, pleading light blue. Ignoring the fact that I am apparently his last resort, I reply, "Yes, I have some time, Garth."
Relief washes over his features and he smiles thankfully at me. Then, he grabs my arm and begins to drag me away, toward his room. I want to tell him I am perfectly capable of walking on my own, but I keep my mouth shut, not wanting to set off his nerves while he is in such an agitated state.
We make it to his room and he shoves me inside, locking the doors behind us. Annoyed, I brush myself off and take a look around; the room's walls, floor and ceiling are a dark, midnight blue, and a fair portion of the ceiling is covered with a large, yellow, lightning bolt. There is a bed with white and dark blue bedding in the corner, various posters of heroes and sport stars clutter the walls, and a bookshelf on the opposite wall hosts an impressive collection of novels and comic books. Various papers and articles of clothing are scattered across the floor and upon the bed. I am not surprised.
Lightning Lad ambles to the desk beside the bookshelf and disposes himself onto the chair in front of it. He then promptly drops his arms onto the desk, followed by his head, scattering more paper onto the floor. Taking that as a cue to make myself comfortable, I walk to the armchair that sits angled towards the bookshelf and position myself on it, grimacing at how overly-soft it is. It practically swallows me whole as I sink into it. Nonetheless, I turn my attention to Lightning Lad, who is staring at his hands with his chin resting on the table.
"Imra, she..." he begins, clearing his throat uncomfortably. "She means a lot to me."
I nod, being well aware of the relationship between the two.
"And, well..." he takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly. It is obviously difficult for him to be so openly sentimental; that, at least, is one thing the two of us have in common. "I really can't imagine life without her, and..."
I wait patiently while he collects himself. There are several ways this could go, some more uncomfortable to discuss than others, but Garth needs somebody to listen to him, so I will stay and hear him through. No matter how much I wish to return to my own room and sleep.
"I... I want to ask her to marry me!" he blurts, sitting up and clenching his fists on the table.
I blink. Well, that is... unexpected.
Married... they are old enough, I suppose. I should not be so surprised; I know Garth loves Imra very much, and she reciprocates those feelings. I imagine it: Saturn Girl walking down the isle in a long, white dress, with Lightning Lad waiting proudly for her in a groom's tuxedo, with every Legionnaire watching happily. I smile, a pleasant warmth and happiness for my friends seeping into me.
Lightning Lad looks shocked at my reaction, and he gets up so fast he nearly knocks the chair over.
"Why is that funny?" he demands, the panic clear in his voice. Clearly, he mistook my expression of congratulations for one of contempt. "Would she see me as a joke? Is the idea totally stupid? Should I wait?"
He begins to pace back and forth, oblivious to my eyerolls directed at his comments.
"What if she says no? Maybe she wants to wait a few years and I'm rushing it..."
"Lightning Lad..." I say, standing.
"Does she even feel the same way? Maybe she's just settling for me or..." he continues.
"Lightning Lad," I repeat slightly louder, approaching him cautiously. Great stars, but he's giving me a headache.
"I'm so stupid for even considering it! Forget I said any-"
"Garth!" I exclaim, grabbing a fistful of his uniform and yanking him down to my eye-level. "Shut. Up."
He blinks slowly at me and nods obediantly. Not letting go, I say, articulating every word perfectly to get it through his head, "She will definitely accept the proposal. I am sure Imra would love to be married to you."
A wide grin spreads across Lightning Lad's features, and he looks absolutely elated at the though. Satisfied, I release him and step back.
"Now, is that all you needed?" I ask, glancing subtly at my watch. It is half past midnight, and I am beginning to feel the exhaustion of the day's work taking it's toll on me.
"Uh, no," he replies, rushing to his desk again.
Repressing a sigh, I go to stand beside him as he rummages through the top desk drawer.
"I kind of have no idea how to propose to her," Garth admits grudgingly as he searches. "I'm not good at that kind of stuff, you know, being romantic and all that... Aha! Here it is!"
He withdraws his hand from the drawer and hands me the small, velvet box. I crack it open and peer at the ring inside; the band is silver, with a circular, multi-faceted diamond in the center. On either side of the diamond are two smaller gems, one pink and one the same clear-white as the main diamond. It truly is something I can envision Saturn Girl wearing.
Smiling as I hand it back to him, I say, "It's beautiful. She will love it."
He grins again in relief. "Oh, good. But, um, yeah, that thing I need help on..." He trails off, looking embarrassed.
"Sorry, Lightning Lad," I look up at him apologetically. "You know I'm not good at that either. Besides, I am not very creative with these things."
"Yeah, I know..." He looks disappointed as he places the box back in the drawer. "That's why I wanted to talk to Lyle about it..."
"He will be helping me in the lab again tomorrow," I tell him, hoping to lift his mood despite feeling a tiny bit inferior to Lyle Norg's imagination. "I will mention it to him."
He smiles with unspoken gratitude and follows me to the exit; I suppress a yawn as I step out of the room, wondering how people get anything done when they need to eat and sleep so often.
"Hey, thanks, Brainy," Lightning Lad says as I am about to leave. "I feel a lot more..." he pauses to find the right word. "At ease about the whole thing now."
I smile in response and walk away, barely conscious as I struggle to keep my eyes open long enough to make it to my room. To my dismay, I find myself unable to recall the way back to said room. I suppose the fatigue, combined with the fact that I spend most of my time either in my lab or on a mission, have made me rather confused as to the correct direction to take. Too tired to bother to search for the chamber, I simply allow my flight ring to guide me, floating along, to my lab. I manage to disengage the security on my third try and enter the large room, where I settle down at a desk and continue to tinker with the blasted nanite.
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I dream of walking down a peaceful, gravel path surrounded by tall sycamore trees. Butter-yellow sunshine filters through the green foliage and warms my skin, and I smile as two butterflies, one green and one blue, flutter by playfully. As I travel further down the path, the ground becomes littered with thousands of grains of white rice, until I am no longer walking on gravel, but on rice. When I glance behind me, the road I have left behind is dark and shadowed. I shudder, glad to be out of there and into the warmth.
I stop as I come across a fork in the road. Observing both paths, I find myself unable to choose one to take.
To the right, the forest clears and the path leads to a room. It is my lab, comforting and familiar, but tall windows are added, letting in shimmering, inviting sunshine. On the counter sit two cups of what I recognize to be hot chocolate, complete with marshmallows and wafer tubes. I can smell the rich milk-chocolate from where I stand.
On the left, the forest continues, the path difficult to discern. I am unsure, if I take that path, that I will make it to the correct destination- or if the destination is somewhere I would even want to be. And yet it tugs at my heart just at the clear, comforting path does. There are dozens of butterflies, each the most familiar shade of blue, yet I cannot recall what it is they remind me of.
Somehow, I know that, even if I did know which path to take, I would not be able to move to it. My feet are rooted in place, unwilling to move when I tell them to. Something is keeping me from the paths, and I cannot go back the way I came- nor do I want to. I am stuck in place. I stand there, unable to do anything, until the scenery blurs and fades, and I am feeling cool metal pressed to my cheek.
"Braaaiiiiinyyyyy," a voice calls softly, tingling pleasantly in my ear. "Braaaaaiiiiiinyyyyyyy... time to wake up..."
I grunt quietly, clinging vainly onto sleep as it slips from reach, wishing to go back to the comfort of wandering dreams. I am growing increasingly uncomfortable as my level of consciousness rises.
I crack open an eye, wincing as light enters my vision. I blink several times before everything comes into focus.
I am startled to the point of nearly falling out of my seat when I am greeted with a pair of curious, brown eyes. I catch myself and stumble once before regaining my composure and glaring through half-lidded eyes at Lyle, who is seated opposite of where I was, his chin propped up by his hands.
"Morning!" he greets cheerfully.
I grumble irritably in response and walk around the table, flicking Lyle on the head when I pass him. I exit the lab and walk to an elevator, yawning into my fist. Lyle follows, whistling to himself.
"Did you spend the night in there?" he asks out of nowhere.
I am too tired to come up with a sarcastic response, so I settle on nodding as we enter the elevator. I check my watch and find it to be a little past eight in the morning, acceptable for a Sunday, I suppose. The elevator stops on the ground floor, and Lyle trails after me into the kitchen. Coffee pours itself into a mug for me, and I grab it and sit at the table.
"Why didn't you go back to your room after I left?" Lyle asks again, his expression turning disapproving. "You didn't work all night, did you? That's not good for you."
I sigh and rub my temples. It is too early in the morning for this.
"I did leave," I retort, unable to find the strength to put as much bite into the statement as I want to. "But Lightning Lad wanted to talk... actually, he wished to speak with you, but I told him you were busy, so he settled on me."
Lyle purses his lips in an obvious attempt to keep from smiling.
"And why didn't you go to your room after that?" he questions, unable to let it go.
"I was tired, okay?" I snap, genuinely annoyed now. "Grife, can I continue now?"
Lyle chortles to himself and nods.
"He wants to propose to Saturn Girl," I continue, feeling satisfied when Lyle's eyes widen and his jaw drops. "And wanted my opinion."
"What did you say?" he asks excitedly.
"I said it was a good idea, and I am sure she would love to marry him," I reply, sipping my coffee gingerly. "He also wanted help in finding a way to propose to her, which is where you come in."
Lyle's expression brightens continuously until I wish I had sunglasses to look at him.
"Awesome! I love that sort of thing!" he exclaims, bouncing in his seat.
To my pleasant surprise, he stops talking and looks down in concentration, his brow furrowing above his milk chocolate eyes, and the sunlight that is streaming through the floor-to-ceiling windows entwines itself into his brown hair. I am hit with an odd sense of déjà-vu, but I shake it off and finish off my coffee, content with the precious silence that is so rare when Lyle is around.
He is just as silent as we make our way back to the lab, as well as when we get inside and begin our work. I soon forget he is even there as I focus on the toaster before me, which is, once again, broken. I do not know why we even have such an out-dated contraption, we are funded well enough to afford a new toaster.
"Got it!" Lyle shouts out of nowhere, causing me to jump and drop my screw-driver.
Glaring pointedly at him, I bend down to pick it up and set it on the table before turning to him, arms crossed and eyebrow raised.
"The proposal," he clarifies, eyes twinkling like they always do when he gets excited. "I have the perfect idea for it!"
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Chapter two is finished! Yay! Without Reviews I am an emo child! You don't want to see me curled up in an emo corner, do you?
-paintupurple