Hope you like it, please review!
"Team, report to the mission room," Batman announced over the intercom. Mallory pushed off the counter and nearly ran into Robin on her way to her room to change.
"Sorry," she murmured, skirting around him.
"No problem," he muttered back, his eyes hidden behind dark glasses.
It was unnerving, how much he reminded her of her friend when he was younger. But the similarities stopped at their appearances. In the few days that they'd known the new birds, they'd come to find out that they were much more like Bruce than Dick, or, at least, that was what they wanted the team to think. They were as hard as nails, there was no denying that, but it went beyond their resilience and determination. They never joked around with anyone on the team, not even Gar or Peter, and during training they worked twice as hard at every exercise, almost as if they felt they had to prove something to the others.
Mallory put her mask on and went out to the training room. Wren, Zatanna, and Dick were already there, and Mallory wondered if Dick and Wren had even gotten out of their costumes from the night before. When the rest of the team arrived, Batman started his briefing.
"Star Labs is transferring some of its League-related studies to a new, higher security facility in Metropolis. I'm sending you to keep an eye on the shipment," he said.
"Why don't they just use the zeta tubes?" Dick asked.
"The new facility doesn't have them online yet, and they want to get all of the dangerous items locked away as soon as possible," Batman replied.
"And the League can't just store them in the watchtower until the new tubes are up and running?" Conner asked.
"Star Labs has requested a team to ride along, so I'm sending you in," Batman said, as if that explained it.
Mallory fought a smile and shrugged. "Sure. We on bikes or the bioship?" she asked.
"Split it up any way you want. No flying though, and that goes double for you, Inferno. You don't want to announce your presence any more than you have to."
Mallory nodded and the team started walking, Wren and Robin leading the way to the hangar. Megan linked the older members, and Mallory asked, "so, why is he giving us busywork?"
"He probably just wanted our first mission with two new members to be something small so we can get used to working together," Dick replied.
"Hey, that's fine by me. A quiet mission'll be good for all of us," Raquel said.
"I wouldn't count on it being quiet," Zatanna said. "You know our luck."
They reached the hangar and Dick turned around to face the team. "Who wants to go where?" he asked.
Mallory strode over to her bike and grabbed her helmet. "I call ground team," she said.
Donna sighed and put a hand on her hip. "You know, This is getting tiresome," she said.
"What?" Megan asked.
"We divide into groups for nearly all of our missions, but you do not have proper titles for the squads."
"What kind of titles are you talking about?" Dick asked.
"On Themyscira, we use the greek letters," she suggested.
"Ok, Alpha's on the bikes, Beta's in the bioship," Dick said. They divided up, with Robin, Wren, Inferno, and Rocket on the bikes and the remainder of the team piled onto the bioship, and they started to the beginning destination.
"Wow, that actually was a quiet mission," Mallory said with surprise as they came out of the hangar after putting the bikes and ship up. The team murmured in agreement, but they fell silent and came to a halt as one when they saw Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Red Tornado, Martian Manhunter, Icon, and Black Canary gathered in the training room, waiting for them.
"Is something wrong?" Dick asked, looking between the heroes, trying to read the expressions on their faces.
"No, but we would like to have a word with the senior members. The rest of you, hit the showers," Batman said.
Lagaan, Wren, Robin, Gar, and Donna turned to go, but Wonder Woman said, "Donna, please stay."
The Amazon returned to the group, but Lagaan wasn't going to leave it at that. "Why does she get to stay while the rest of us are sent away like we're kids or something?" he asked.
Gar kept going down the hall, but Mallory noticed that Wren and Robin hesitated at the doorway, waiting for the answer to his question. Batman narrowed his eyes at Lagaan, but Canary walked over and put an arm around his shoulder, guiding him out of the room before anything else could be said.
With the younger members out of the room, the group unconsciously relaxed a little, and Zatanna asked, "What's going on?"
Wonder Woman and Superman looked at Batman, seeing if he was going to talk, and when he didn't start, she took the lead.
"We want you to know that we have noticed how much you have improved over the years. You have grown not only as individuals, but as a team, and we do not want that to go unrewarded. We have put this off for as long as we could, but there is no denying you this privilege any longer. At the end of the year, there will be an induction ceremony for Blue Beetle. There are places for all of you, as well, if you would accept them."
The team stared at the heroes in front of them like they didn't understand what they were offering.
"Are you- are you saying that you want us to join the Justice League?" Rocket asked.
Superman nodded, a small smile on his face. Mallory could feel him looking at her, but she didn't return the look. Her mind was spinning, and she reached out for something to ground her, the nearest thing being Conner's hand. They exchanged a glance, not needing Megan's link to know what the other was thinking. Dick looked around at the others. Donna stepped forward, pursing her lips slightly as she thought about what she wanted to say.
"I am sorry, but I am going to decline your offer," she said.
Diana looked at her, disappointed, and she took a step forward to be closer to her protege. "Why, Donna?" she asked.
Donna shook her head. "It is not just your offer that I am turning down. I am no longer going to be Wonder Girl," she turned slightly to look at the team and added, "and I am no longer going to fight at your side." Everyone looked at her, waiting for her to explain, or at least give a reason. "I have been thinking about this for some time, and I think that I will be able to better serve, my people as well as yours, by being an ambassador for Themyscira. We have no one but Wonder Woman to speak out for us, and Wonder Woman cannot always be expected to be able to be at these political meetings."
Diana nodded slowly. "It is a noble thought, Donna. Just be sure that you know what you are doing. The political world of men is not the same as it is on Themyscira. I do not want you to be swallowed up by it."
Donna smiled a little. "I will be fine. I know what I am doing," she said.
Diana nodded. "Very well. I will introduce you to the world as Themyscira's ambassador. I must admit, I will not miss those world council meetings, Sister." The League looked at the others, the remaining original members, and Diana said, "and what of you?"
Dick looked at the others again and stepped forward. "We're good," he said. Rocket's face twitched, but she didn't say anything.
The Leaguers looked at each other, surprised at the answer. "Well," Superman said slowly, "The induction isn't for four weeks, you have some time to change your mind. The invitation stands." The team nodded, and the League started for the zeta tube. Clark paused beside Mallory, but she still wouldn't meet his eyes, so he kept going. She couldn't help wondering about the timing of the invitation. It seemed awfully coincidental that not two weeks after they'd had a fight about letting her grow up, they offered the old members to join the League.
The team looked at each other, and Donna tilted her head. "Why did you turn them down?" she asked.
"We're not like them," Dick replied, a little bitterness in his voice.
Mallory sighed and led the way to the kitchen. "I think we could use a drink," she said.
Megan's eyebrows shot up. "Mal, you're not old enough to drink," she said.
Mallory knelt at the cabinet and reached into the old gumbo pot, pulling out a bottle of Bourbon. "Megan, stop being the den mother for two hours and relax. We're not gonna drink the whole bottle."
The Martian sighed, but she found them some glasses and Mallory poured small drinks for the others and herself. She felt the burn as the liquid slid down her throat and she tilted the glass, staring at the contents. Dick took a drink of his own, then he smiled a little and said, "I told you, always check the gumbo pot."
Zatanna laughed softly, and Mallory rolled her eyes. "Well, I guess I have to find a new hiding spot now," she said.
"Ok, Mallory, seriously, why do you have whisky in the cave?" Raquel asked.
Mallory sighed. "Because I took it away from Jen the other day on my way out of the dorm, and I meant to get rid of it, but then Gar came in, so I stashed it in there," she explained.
"Honestly, I'm not complaining. I think we needed it. Did they really just ask us to be on the League?" Zatanna said.
"I have a better question. Did we really tell them no?" Raquel asked.
Dick looked at her. "Oh, come on, Raquel. We don't need to be on the League. Things wouldn't really be any different, anyway."
"Except that we'd get some gratitude from the public, and we could be seen together in public without making excuses about it," Raquel countered.
Megan tilted her head. "Do you want to join?" she asked.
Raquel sighed. "I don't know. I always thought I did, but I guess now that it's here, and with everything that's happened in the last few months, I'm not so sure," she said.
Mallory nodded. "Yeah, I know what you mean," she said, taking another sip of her drink.
Donna looked around, studying each of their faces. "You know, it is possible, probable, even, that the answer to this is not going to be the same for all of you. That is ok, you know. Warriors such as you are connected for life, but that does not mean that your paths will always be the same."
The original team looked at each other, the thought of splitting up after everything they'd been through together heavy on their minds. Dick shook his head. "We don't need to join the League to be recognized as a team," he said.
"No, but we can't start a team of our own in public. The League will still need a covert team, and that's what we've always done," Megan said.
The others silently agreed, and Donna shrugged. "It is your decision to make. I should begin packing. It has been an honor to fight amongst you, and I hope you make the right decision for each of you."
They nodded, and she finished her drink and went to her room. Dick poured another drink and knocked it back, and the others looked at him in surprise.
"You ok, Dick?" Zatanna asked gently.
He scoffed. "Yeah, fine. I'm sitting here talking about something that's been a major part of my life for the past four and a half years falling apart, but other than that, I'm just fine."
The others sighed. "Dick, the team's not going to fall apart if we leave. It'll keep going, Gar'll make sure of that. And if you're talking about our family, you should know better than to even think that," Mallory said.
Dick shrugged. "I guess." He looked at the others, searching their faces. "You aren't going to join, are you?" he asked. He'd taken his mask off when Donna left, and now it seemed that his blue eyes were piercing into their very souls.
Mallory sighed and shook her head. "This is where I belong," she said, looking around at the others.
"I'm staying," Conner said, and Megan nodded. "So am I."
All eyes settled on Zatanna and Rocket, and they exchanged a glance and nodded.
"We'll stay."
I don't know how y'all feel about them drinking when none of them are old enough and it's a little out of character for them, but I just thought that it was important for them to have something to show their unity and, to me at least, it's kind of one more milestone for them to get to together, even though it's not necessarily the first time they've had a drink. I wanted to work Wally and Artemis into it, too, but in the end I decided that it wouldn't really make sense. Anyway, hope you liked the chapter, please review!