Disclaimer: I don't own Young Justice, but I do own Andie Kyle. So keep away.
And in case it isn't obvious, italics are the mental conversations using M'gaan's mindlink.
Andie POV:
I raised my head when I felt the ship halt. Slowly standing, I swiped at my eyes with the palms of my hands.
As I made my way towards the open airlock, I could feel the team's eyes on me. I lowered my head towards the floor, wishing desperately for some sort of fringe to cover my face.
Wally zoomed over to me, placing a hand on my shoulder. "You alright? You were hiding back there for quite a while."
I gave him a bright smile. "Of course! I'm fine...just...just fine."
Then I quickly hopped off the ship, the others following behind. As I walked ahead of my teammates, my smile withered away.
Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
I balanced lightly on the tree branch, leaning forward to use my binoculars. I had opted to scout alone, but Wally had insisted on partnering with me. He lay on top of the factory roof, a few meters away, peering through the darkness of the chimneys. I was only able to see him by squinting.
"Anything?" I said through the mind link.
"No activity, no sound, no light. This place is a ghost town."
"Calm down Kid Idiot." The blonde archer was crouched at the side of the factory building, her eyes glued to the door. "It's not like the bad guys want to be discovered. They're laying low."
Wally kept silent, and continued to peer into the chimney. I was certain Kaldur had sent him there to get him out of the way; Wally wasn't exactly 'stealth' material. I turned 360 with my binoculars, scouting out the area.
A sudden movement caught my attention, and I watched as a pair of shining eyes popped out of the darkness. M'gaan. Way to be stealthy with those glowing green orbs.
"I can hear you." M'gaan thought.
I gave a sheepish smile to the darkness and turned back around.
A leaf fell onto my shoulder and I picked it up, glancing towards its source. Robin. He was seated on a branch above me, purposely kicking his legs to dislodge more leaves.
"How childish."
His kicking became faster, but he otherwise ignored me. His mind was a blank slate. I glanced away and folded my arms, the action caused me to lose my balance. I tilted backwards, my arms pin wheeling, before I fell towards the floor.
My jaw snapped shut as my head hit the ground, and I lay sprawled along the concrete.
"Way to be stealthy with a fall like that."
I looked up at the stoic face of Robin. His eyes flickered towards me for a second, before concentrating on the surrounding darkness.
I got to my feet, and silently climbed back onto the branch. It took all my willpower to avoid looking up.
"Andie fell?" Wally questioned with an insane amount of cheer. "Don't cat's always land on their fee-"
"Shut up!" Five voices echoed through my head.
"Told you the joke wasn't funny," I thought smugly.
"Focus." Kaldur instructed with an undertone of steel. "If we cannot gather sufficient Intel from outside, then we must infiltrate the premises. Kid Flash. Andie. You two will enter from above. Artemis and I shall take the front. Superboy and Ms. Martian will cover the west. Robin, I leave you with the east entry way."
I nodded, and climbed to the top of the tree as everyone else moved into position. With one last glance at Robin, I leapt the distance towards the roof, landing in a hard roll. The motion brought me directly beside the chimney. I knelt besides the small, rectangular, soot caked opening, and frowned. "We have to jump down that?"
Wally shrugged. "No one ever said the life of a superhero was glamorous."
I hesitated. "Why don't I just go through the east entry way with -"
"No." Kaldur's command cut through my mind. "You have been given your orders. Follow them."
I looked at the chimney again with unease, and clenched my fists. "Look, I know what you said, but… but the factory is empty, right? It doesn't really matter where I enter from."
"We have not yet established whether or not this is hostile territory. For this reason, we must be cautious. As our weakest fighter, it is essential you maintain the advantage of surprise; I did not place you in that position merely on a whim."
I wanted to crack under the pressure; Kaldur, albeit annoyed, had laid out a series of logical arguments, and – wait. I'm the 'weakest fighter'?! Had he completely forgotten the existence of a certain martial arts-challenged Martian?
I glared over the edge of the roof, hoping to catch his eye. "I am so not the weakest fighter." My eyes travelled back towards the chimney, and my anxiety grew, obliterating all annoyance. "Kaldur... I'm not going through the chimney."
"You must." His mental voice was firm. "Do not disobey a direct ord –"
"For the love of…" Robin's irritated voice pushed into the conversation. "You idiot; Andie's claustrophobic. It's not that she doesn't want to go down the roof, it's that she can't."
I blinked rapidly, warring between humiliation and gratitude. Now, on top of being the teams 'weakest fighter', I'm also the girl who's afraid of small spaces. I scowled.
That will definitely boost my reputation with the team.
"Afraid of confined places?" Wally questioned, incredulous. "You do realise you're a superhero, right? You face things that are way more deadly than a tiny room."
I looked away.
Kaldur remained silent for a few seconds, then re-assigned me to the East entryway, leaving Wally to enter the chimney alone. I leapt off the roof, latching onto a branch with one hand. As I dropped down, and sprinted towards the east entrance, I scouted out the area for potential threats. Nothing. Maybe this place is a ghost town.
I stood behind Robin, who was gazing through a smashed window. "I'm in position."
"Alright." Kaldur said. "Take precaution team. Go!"
With that, Robin jumped through the window, and I quickly followed, climbing in after him. The factory was dark, and empty. No 'hostile threats' greeted us. I walked beside Robin as he searched the east area for any form of information. "Thank you."
"Use the mental link. I won't get caught just because you can't shut up."
"This place is empty." I drew the word out, just to annoy him. "Besides, I don't want everyone listening to our conversation."
He said nothing, travelling up a dainty stairwell to a tiny room.
I followed, slowly. "…I don't believe I did anything wrong. Hiding my past – my secrets – shouldn't be an issue for you. I have a right to privacy Robin."
He paused in his examination of the room, and turned around to face me. "Are you trying to start an argument? Because I don't want to talk about this."
"Well I do." I crossed my arms. "I told you why I can't share my past; I admitted that I'm ashamed. So why are you still…?" I gestured towards him as though his anger was visible.
"Just because I understand your reluctance to share, it doesn't mean I can accept it. Humiliated or not, I should be the one person you're able to talk to. About anything." He turned towards the empty room, examining a spot on the wall.
I shook my head in annoyance. "I just don't understand you."
He shrugged. "Not surprising."
I turned to leave the room, pausing at the top of the stairs. "I'm going to search elsewhere."
Just as I took my first step, something hit me from above.
So, Andie and Robin are still arguing. Who's side are you on? Who's in the right and who's in the wrong?
