I tried to sleep. Then I gave up a half an hour after we all went to bed and left the lounge, where most of us had been sleeping, so I'd been doing things in my room. But I got bored with that too. (It was now 1:30 in the morning, gosh we'd fallen asleep really early when the movies were on) I was bored, and wasn't going back to sleep anytime soon, I never got this much sleep, between my patrols with huntress and schoolwork I never got any wear near any normal amount of sleep, so I guess I'd just do something productive. So I decided to go back to the workout area. I got ready to go and train, hoping I would be more likely to fall asleep after that.
I got dressed, filled up my water bottle and grabbed everything I needed; including my regular mask. I hadn't cleaned my sport mask again yet, but there was only a slight difference in them so it wouldn't have much of an effect on anything. I silently made my way out of my room.
I got there a few minutes later and walked halfway through the door before stopping mid-step. Conner was in there training with bob. I awkwardly stepped back with the foot that was just in the air and walked away from that room. Wasn't he the one who suggested they all go to bed? Well I guess I had to find a new plan. Not that I didn't like Conner, he was cool, I just get self conscious, and don't do as well when I train hard in front of other people I know or are friendly with. Plus, I think M'gann said there was a running track Wally used somewhere other than in the main training room. I had thought it was odd it wasn't in the workout/training room, but right now I didn't protest. It didn't have lanes or anything on it, and tones long part of the circle may have also been used as a runway, but I didn't mind. It was spongy like a track should be, I just needed a place to do something.
Thank god I liked running. I set my things to the side, and started running. When I was running I tried to forget about the nightmare, but to no success as images of my lparents flooded my mind. I never even got to say goodbye. They were most likely dead by now, it's been what now, five years? They've been missing for five years, and my last piece of them, was my fathers bloodstain on a carpet that's long sense been gone. They never found their bodies, I never got to say goodbye. I had no closure, no way to move on, or bring any kind of justice to who may have caused it. I had just finished practicing the 400 meter sprint (usually one lap), when I saw hurdles shoved messily in a corner near the track. No Way! I rushed over and set up the hurdles. I went through them a few times normally, but decided to have a little fun, and I spread them out further away from each other, and started doing flips and back handsprings over them. I was starting to get tired, so I decided to walk back to my room, hopefully accomplishing my goal of being able to fall asleep earlier. I took a quick shower before getting into bed. I think someone saw me while I was doing the flips and back handsprings and other stuff like that over the hurdles. I thought my time spent with huntress had finally made me crazy parinoid, but I couldn't shake the feeling someone was watching me. Then every time I looked around expecting to see someone any wear, there was no one there, so I just kept going. Someone must have walked in thinking no one was there, maybe they got intrigued and watched for a few, then left. Maybe, maybe not, like I said before I was probably just being paranoid, but I couldn't shake the feeling. I got out of the shower and put on clothes to go to sleep. I laid in my bed for a little bit, just thinking. Thinking about everything. Then I eventually drifted off to sleep.
~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~ Time Skip ~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~
Monday at noon, Black Canary walked out of the zeta beam and announced combat training would begin in three minutes. I wondered if I'd zoned out and maybe someone had called yesterday o even earlier today to announce Black Canary was coming for training, but as I walked back to the rooms with everyone else I saw they were just as surprised as I was. I got changed and headed out to meet the rest of them.
I got there and there were only six, including me. I looked around but Black Canary started talking.
"Ok, so today they're will be three pairs, or matches going at once, and I'll be mostly observing and giving feedback and suggestions. Although, there is an odd number so one of you will have to sit for the first round." She said.
Just them M'gann flew into the room and lowered silently next to me, trying to come in unnoticed. Black Canary looked at her a little, but dismissed it, and M'gann let out a breath.
"Ok, so first we'll have... Artemis and Kaldur, Conner and Wally, and Tempest and Nightwing." She finished. I guess M'gann would be the one sitting out. She didn't look upset about it though, which was good. She just looked relieved BC want mad.
We all walked onto the glowing floor and went to different parts of the area waiting for BC to tell us to start.
"I'll go easy on you, you know newbie and all." He said looking at me and smiling lightly, like he was afraid he'd break me. Did he just say he'd go easy on me? No. There will be no 'going easy on'. Not at all.
"You'll go easy on me? I flipped you over and you skidded five feet on the first day, and you're going to go easy?" I asked. His expression kind of gave a yeah, so?
"Well yeah, plus I wasn't expecting you to attack me yesterday, but yeah your new." I have been doing this since I was ten, was he trying to get hurt here?
"Ok, well if I'm so under your league, you wouldn't mind making a bet, would you?" A hint of nervousness phased through his expression, but he nodded taking the challenge.
"If I win, you tell me your real name, your secret identity. If you win, I'll give you mine." He nodded. He looked a little nervous, but he gave me a cocky look, so I raised the bar a tiny bit higher.
"The looser also has to do cartwheels around the cave in bright yellow singing 'I'm a star' repeatedly." He looked at me with a grin.
Just then Black Canary shouted "Go!"
And everyone started fighting. He took the offense and I dodged his first few attempts. I let one hit me lightly to bait him and trucking him, fake falling backwards towards the ground, but quickly making contact with my hands to the ground and kicking him in the chest without myself ever falling or ending up on the ground. I then proceeded and attacked taking the offense and he was overwhelmed and was backing up more and more on defense. This went on for a little while, we fought back and forth. He was really good. He wasn't too over predictable, and knew a lot in hand to hand combat. It went on for what seemed like forever, but I was focused, and I could tell so was he. He had underestimated me, and now he was trying, keeping his full attention on the fight and me. Whose going easy on who now?
A little longer went by and I saw an opportunity. I took it, and flipped over him and landing completely behind him, then kicking his legs out from under him before he fully turned around to face me, and I pushed the rest of him downwards. He hit the floor with a loud thud. The floor lit up with a red circle around him, and announced "Nightwing: status fail."
That took a while. I caught my breath, I felt just a little winded, and I looked around and saw that everyone else had finished their matches and they were all casually looking over, watching. A few of them had shocked expressions, but Canary's staid observant.
I looked down at him, and offered him a hand. He took it was stood up.
"Your good." He said looking a little winded and surprised himself. I felt like retorting some snide comment, still being a little miffed at the conversation before the fight, But instead decided against it and offered a humorous smile.
"Thanks, you too." I said. Black canary walked over and started talking to everyone who was just fighting, they had gravitated towards Nightwing and I once I'd helped him up.
"You all have improved very much, those were good matches, and good things I saw. You all however need some work on being in control of the situation. Always make sure your in control, never ending up at the mercy of your opponent." She said. She said a few more things and paired everyone up again for a few more matches. The rest of training went by fairly quickly, I lost to Wally though, he tricked me and I fell back trying to regain my balance after one of his attacks, but other than that I did pretty well. Afterwards we were all walking out after Black Canary dismissed us and almost everyone else had gone into the locker room and I was heading that way and Nightwing came up behind me as the last person other than he and I had left the hallway.
He whispered.
"Dick Greyson." He whispered quietly after I had turned and gave him a look of expectance.
"That's your secret identity?... interesting..." I said and he gave me a confused look. I gave a 'Ha, thanks' expression, for not backing out of telling me his real name. and walked to the girls locker room door.
"Don't forget, cartwheels mr. Star." I said, and I saw the look on his face, he was hoping I had forgotten. I laughed and walked inside.
~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~ Time Skip ~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~
The next day and a half went by much like the first few. I got closer with the team, and I could tell I was slowly earning their trust. M'gann had already entrusted me with her full secret identity, and so had Wally and Conner, I felt awkward not being able to return the gesture. Nightwing kind of not entirely willingly told me, but he could have refused to say it even though he lost the bet, so he at least must have trusted me a little. Nothing was really eventful, until Batman beamed to mount Justice on Tuesday. We heard someone using the zeta tube to the cave and we met up in the mission room. Batman radioed a few minutes before, that he was going to stop in. He hadn't come to the cave yet so we were all curious when he radioed in, and we all gathered in the 'mission room'. We waited for a minute and when he beamed in, he looked satisfied we were all hear, like he was thankful he didn't have to call us all in, we were already here. What we didn't anticipate was the zeta beam continuing to run, announcing the entrance of not only Batman, but also Green lantern. Then when he was in sight the zeta beam still didn't stop glowing, and Batman plugging in a code, probably allowing the passage of yet another person. The zeta beam announced 'Kid Lantern' after Batman had finished doing whatever he was doing with the zeta beam and someone new walked out. Well his alias sounded awfully close to Kid Flash. I looked over at Wally to see his reaction to the new comer, and his face showed confusion, and a different expression. Possibility maybe, or hope for a possible new friend, I couldn't quite put my finger on it. I looked around at everyone else's expressions, and they all looked like they had thoughts similar to mine, I guess they didn't know who he was either. Hmm...
"This is Kid Lantern. He just returned from Oa a few months ago, and Green Lantern would like him to join the team. I also think it will be beneficial for all of you. He will be joining the team." Batman said, almost monotone, like he usually talked. I looked over to 'Kid Lantern', he looked to be about my age, somewhere in the general vicinity, had chocolate brown hair, and the same mask as his mentor. His suit was nearly identical to his mentor's, most green lanterns had the same suits. I could tell without even looking around everyone else was glancing at him at separate times. He looked around the room. I couldn't tell exactly where he was looking at, because of the white openings on the mask where his eyes were on his mask, like Batman and Nightwing, so I didn't know exactly who he was looking at but I could tell he was taking in all the new faces.
Batman finished and started talking about something else, but barely anyone was listening. Most of us were thinking. I exited my thoughts right as he was finishing up.
"They've already brought everything Kid Lantern needs, I had told Green Lantern the sooner the better, so once Green Lantern and I leave, one of you give him a tour of the place." Batman said. That's when I noticed for the first time the few suitcases sitting on the ground (well now that I'm paying attention to them, they're levitating a little above the ground) that had a green glowing tinge around them. I was fine with the idea of adding another new member, but I didn't know what the others thought of it. They already had me to deal with and get used too, I wasn't sure how they would feel about another one, especially since I only joined two days ago. I almost saw Green Lantern start to say something, but he stopped, and he and batman walked back towards the zeta tubes.
We turned our attention to Kid Lantern. He looked at us and smiled. Not like an evil smile, a real, kind of humorous and chill, smile.
"Hey, so as you've heard I'm Kid Lantern." He said then paused waiting for us to do something.
"All of you are..." He said, urging us to begin further.
"Well if no one else is going to start, I'm Kid Flash, that's Artemis, Aqua lad, Miss Martian, Tempest, Super boy, and Nightwing." He said, pointing to each of us as he said our names. Just because I didn't want to be the first to talk doesn't mean I didn't want to talk at all. I don't really like it when other people introduce me, it makes me feel distant, stuck up, and unemotionally attached to anything. Not that I was mad or anything, Wally was Probably just trying to jump-start the dying conversation, so it wouldn't be too awkward, but I still could have introduce myself.
Kid lantern nodded at each of us as Wally said our names.
"Cool. Uh Batman said on the way here that he updated the room assignments with me in them..." He said and M'gann looked like she just embers something and face palmed saying,
"Hello Megan!" Then lifted off of the ground, and hurriedly flew in the direction the lounge, kitchen, and bed room areas. She came back about thirty seconds later flying through the air heading towards the group.
"The rooming assignments are on a digital screen tucked into a corner between the kitchen and the lounge. I checked and I know where your room is, so uh..." She handed him the thingy and Wally cut in.
"I'll show you where it is, come on, I'll give you the tour. You ok if Nightwing comes too?" Wally asked. Kid Lantern nodded.
"Sure, I guess." He said.
And they started walking away talking about God knows what.
Ooo-ooo Kid Lantern? New OC... ;)