Chapter 3

Midnight Hope started flying around and hitting everything she's got to take Kanjar Ro down.

He tried to shoot at her, but with the constant barrage of projectiles, it was hard to aim and fire. Blue Beetle got an idea and began taunting Kanjar Ro.

"Over here, wacko!" He said, grinning at the evil alien.

Kanjar Ro growled in frustration. "Hold still, you pests!"

"Not likely!" Midnight Hope said, keeping her opponent distracted long enough until finding the right moment for an element of surprise.

Blue Beetle seemed to think the same thing she was and began flying around, still taunting the alien. "Missed me!" He called out as a shot missed and another shot missed. "Missed me again! Man, Kanjar. You are slipping!"

The taunting was getting to the alien and he let out an angry glare, solely focused on the Blue Beetle and not giving the Blue Lantern another thought.

Which turned out to be a big mistake.

"And...gotcha!" Midnight Hope exclaimed, constructing a guitar plus a connected amp to strum a soundwave to push Kanjar Ro across the scene.

Blue Beetle saw what she was doing and quickly moved out of the way, recalling having seen this earlier before meeting Lea. "Bye-bye, wacko!" He said, flying away.

Kanjar Ro turned, only to get blasted by a powerful soundwave that he tried to fight against, but it was too strong.

Midnight Hope paused her strumming to see her opponent already flying to a wall and crashing to the floor. "WOOOO! And that...is how you 'rock' that battle," She remarked, ending her guitar construct. "You okay, Blue Beetle? Sorry for not giving the heads up sooner."

"It's okay," he said, giving her a thumbs up.

Just then, GL and the others arrived and quickly took Kanjar Ro into custody. "Good job, Hope," he said. "And you too, Beetle."

"I didn't do much," the scarab hero said, looking a bit bashful. "It was all Hope's doing. I just kept Kanjar Ro distracted."

"Oh, no! Blue Beetle is the one you should thank for standing his ground," Hope replied, her cheeks blushing pink white putting her hoodie up. "I only came just in time after getting the okay of helping out, GL."

Hal chuckled at this. "I think you both did great," he said. "You teamed up and watched each other's back and took down the enemy. Good work."

Batman showed up then. "Beetle! Are you okay?" He asked, sounding concerned.

"I'm all right, Bats," the young hero said. "Thanks to Hope. She really saved my skin."

"Batman! I wasn't expecting to see you again," Midnight Hope said in surprise, her back straight while keeping professional. Unfortunately, instead, she rambled a bit fast while saluting. "It was no problem at all. Blue Beetle is an excellent hero who has been trained very well and I look forward to working with him again any time."

Midnight Hope was glad her hoodie was up because her face was very hot red from embarrassing herself.

"Good to know you're a team player," Batman said with a nod. "And good job to you both."

He then headed out and Blue Beetle's jaw dropped. "Someone pinch me. I think I'm dreaming that Bats gave a compliment," he said.

"I know. That's the second time he's done that with me, despite acting like a complete idiot around him," Midnight Hope stated, bringing her hoodie forward more in embarrassment.

Blue Beetle looked at her. "What do you mean?" He asked. "I don't think you acted like an idiot around him. You just stopped a major alien threat and you got Batman to compliment you on it."

"And I still can't be chill around major heroes without rambling," Midnight Hope deadpanned, covering her face. "I bet you never acted weird around Batman or other heroes for the first time."

Blue Beetle chuckled sheepishly. "Actually, I had some awkward first meetings too," he admitted. "When I first got the scarab, I...I messed up big time on a mission and acted like a fool. Another time I did was when I fell for someone whom I thought was neat but...she didn't return my feelings."

This caused Midnight Hope to cringe on that in slight disappointment. As if she didn't like what she heard. "I...I should go now. Sorry for bringing up that unpleasant subject of that certain she-beast."

Just as she was about to fly away after walking forward, she stopped to slightly turn to Blue Beetle with a sigh. "For what it's worth...You deserved better. She doesn't deserve the satisfaction at all from you. Hot older women like her are just the same. Superficial and shallow."

He looked at her in surprise before smiling. "Thanks for that," he said. "Well, hope to see you again, Midnight Hope."

He turned to leave and then remembered something. "Oh, wait! One last thing," he said, making her turn to him. "My little sister's birthday is coming up and she really admires you and Green Lantern. Do you think...maybe you and he could show up to Milagro's party? It would totally make her day."

Midnight Hope blinked when hearing that in shock. Did he just say his sister...But that means...Oh, no way...

Blue Beetle looked at her pleadingly. "Please?" He asked, hoping she'd say yes. "For a little kid?"

"O-Of course! I mean...If it's okay with my partner," Midnight Hope said, looking at Green Lantern. "I actually ran into a civilian asking me about a little sister's party before flying off to stop that nasty bug. I was about to inform you after the mission."

Green Lantern smiled. "Why not?" He said. "It'll not only make the kid happy but also spread hope with the others too. It's good for us to mingle at times with the folks down here so they can see that they can always count on us."

"Great. We'll see you there, Jai-," Midnight Hope said, only to realize what she was just about to say. "Uh...just remembered I got to go!"

Not wasting time, Midnight Hope flew out of the area in a hurry.

Blue Beetle blinked in surprise before his eyes widened and he looked at Green Lantern. "Is that...Lea?" He asked. "The same girl I met earlier."

"Sorry, Beetle. Can't tell you my partner's identity," Green Lantern defended. "That's her call. But we'll see you at your little sister's birthday party to make it special. Promise."

After saying that, Green Lantern took his leave.

Blue Beetle nodded, respecting that GL wouldn't betray his partner. "Still, if that is Lea, then I'll keep her secret too," he decided to himself before heading out to find his sister.

Around flying back, Midnight Hope was panicking in her mind about the realization of the hero she used to have feelings for is the same guy she just met at the Rabbit Café.

I can't believe this...Jaime is Blue Beetle...And I agreed to be at his sister's party, Midnight Hope thought to herself, as she flew down and detransformed back into Lea Thompson in finding Milagro. I can't turn back my promise now. Even if it will be awkward when around Jaime. How can I act normal around him after that?! He clearly likes older women like Huntress and I don't think I can handle being rejected by him. That will prove Amanda's right about Blue Beetle. Prettier and deadlier bad girls always get all the good boys. And good hero girls don't.

Green Lantern landed next to her. "Lea, are you okay?" He asked, noticing she seemed to be panicking as he transformed to his human form.

"No...No, I'm not okay, Hal," Lea admitted, trying to stay calm. "I think I just found out Blue Beetle's secret identity as the same guy I just finished giving a tour around Coast City! And the timing of going to that party can't be any worse! It's too awkward!"

Hal looked curious. "What's so awkward about it?" He asked. "You can keep a secret. You know who I am after all and it's not awkward for me."

"This is different, Hal! There's something I learned about Blue Beetle and I don't want to know if it's true!" Lea explained, her frustration and small anger rising. "Because if it is true, then it will prove that SHE'S right! And it will break my heart to know that truth!"

Hal cocked an eyebrow before shaking his head with a chuckle. "You're talking about Huntress?" He asked. "Blue Beetle's over her, kiddo. I know. I was there when Batman helped Jaime realize that Huntress didn't care about him."

"That's beside the point! I don't want to know about the fact that Blue Beetle only has eyes for hotter and older bad women with shallow intentions!" Lea snapped at Hal, her face red in anger. "Pretty girls like Huntress and Amanda are all the same! Thinking they're better than everyone else and picking on random nobodies like yesterday's garbage! I don't need to stoop so low to be like them just to get a boys' attention! I prefer being myself! Even if I'm just a mousy nobody called Shutter Bug!"

Hal grabbed Lea's shoulders, holding her in place. "Lea, you need to calm down," he said firmly. "Take a few deep breaths slowly."

Lea followed Hal's instructions. They were a bit hard and fast at the beginning, but she slowed them down to let out gently.

"Good. Now, I think you've been letting what you've learned about Huntress and what happened with Amanda cloud your judgment and feelings," Hal said. "You like Blue Beetle and I know you'd never stoop low to get a boy's attention. You didn't for the boy you love and he fell in love with you for you. So, be yourself, continue to be friends with Jaime, and don't let the past worry you."

Lea sighed, knowing her partner is correct. "Okay..."

"Nope, not 'okay'," he said in a stern, yet gentle manner. "Come on, Lea. Show me that confidence you have in yourself. Be the confident girl I know you are."

"Well, it's not there!" Lea lightly argued, taking a step back away from Hal with her arms crossed. "The confidence comes and goes. It's just...not there, at the moment. Sorry."

"Okay, that's it," he said. "Time for some drastic measures."

Using his ring, Hal constructed some soft feathers and they were pointed at Lea.

"Hal, no! Can we not do this out in the open?!" Lea argued, taking another step back in fear with her hands raised up. "At least, wait until we're at either my place or yours?"

"Sorry, kiddo, but you need a confidence boost and a laugh on top of that," he said as the feathers flew towards her and 'attacked' her neck and ears.

Lea squealed in reaction, using one hand to cover her mouth with the other to swat away the feathers.

But the feathers followed her and Hal chuckled before catching Lea in his arms, his hands going for her stomach while the feathers continued tickling her ears and neck. "I'm not letting you up until you feel confident again, Lea," he said playfully. "It's my job as your uncle to make sure you never lose confidence in yourself."

"Hahahahal! Eeheeheeheeheeheeahahahahahaha, stop it!" Lea begged, her giggling getting louder. "We'll get exposed!"

Smirking, he put a shield up to hide them while he continued to tickle his niece, making her laugh more.

A bit away from them, Blue Beetle passed by a nearby dumpster, finding a girl looking at a drawing. "Pathetic. She thinks she's so good at drawing. Well, I'll prove she's not!" The girl was saying as she pulled out her makeup bag to use her makeup to ruin the drawing.

Quickly, Blue Beetle grabbed the drawing. "Hey!" Amanda said, glaring at him before she realized who it was.

"It's not nice to ruin other people's art," he said as he looked at it, realizing it was a drawing of himself and he noted the signature at the bottom, his eyes widening as he realized it was Lea's drawing. He folded it up and put it away in one of his armor pockets.

"Hey! That's mine!" The girl protested.

"Oh, really?" He asked, already knowing she was lying. "Aren't you supposed to sign your work?"

"I did!" Amanda said. "It says my name on it."

Blue Beetle smirked. "Then why ruin your own painting?" He asked.

She had nothing to say and he nodded. "That's what I thought," he said before shaking his head. "By the way, being a bully isn't cool."

With that, he flew away, planning to give the drawing back to Lea at the party. He got an idea and called up Batman. "Hey, Bats? I know we don't do this normally, but...do you think it would be okay to show up as Blue Beetle to my little sister's birthday party?"

Batman, who had heard about the party from Green Lantern, took a deep breath and nodded. "That should be fine," he said. "Is the party in a public setting?"

"My folks rented out the bowling alley nearby," Jamie said. "Their friend owns it and he agreed they could have the party there."

"Then go ahead," the Caped Crusader said. "Just keep your eyes peeled in case of trouble."

"You got it, Bats."

The day of Milagro's party came and Blue Beetle arrived just as Midnight Hope arrived too. "Oh, Hope," he said, smiling. "I'm glad you could make it."

"GL and I are more than happy to grant a child's wish," she said.

He smiled. "By the way, can I talk to you real quick in private?" He asked.

Curious, she nodded and he pulled her into the storage room nearby and he pulled something out from his pocket. "I think this belongs to you," he said, holding out a folded paper to her.

"What is it?" She asked.

"Something important...Lea," he said, making her look up at him. "Yeah, I know it's you, but don't worry. I'll keep quiet about your identity as Midnight Hope."

He let his mask fall and she gasped at seeing it was Jamie. "And...now you know my secret," he said.

She smiled and opened the paper, seeing it was her drawing of him. "Where did you find this?" She asked.

"I passed a girl about to ruin it and I stopped her. I saw the signature and realized it had to be yours, especially after I remembered you mentioned that you liked to draw," he admitted. "You're good at drawing."

"Thanks," she said softly before taking a deep breath. "If you don't spill my secret, then I won't spill yours."

"Deal," he said, holding his hand out for a handshake, which she accepted as his mask went back up. "Well, we've got a little girl waiting. Let's go grant her wish."

"I'm right behind you," Hope said.

They met Green Lantern outside and all three went inside. Milagro was delighted to see the three. "The Green Lantern, the Blue Lantern, and Blue Beetle?!" She exclaimed. "This is the best birthday in the whole world!"

The three heroes smiled, glad to make the little girl's day.

A few days later...

Blue Beetle and Batman had just stopped another villain and the bug-like hero noticed they were near a high school. "Hey, Bats? There's something I got to take care of real quick," he said. "I'll catch you later."

"Don't be too long," Batman said with a nod.

Inside the school, Lea was busy focusing on an assignment when a knock came to the door and the principal came in, announcing there was a visitor. To everyone's shock, Blue Beetle came in and smiled. "Hi, everyone," he said. "Can you all tell me if there is a Lea in this class?"

Stunned, Lea didn't move and some students looked at her, to which Blue Beetle smiled at her and then turned to Ms. Jillian. "Ma'am, I just wanted to say, your student Lea is an amazing girl, way nicer than some people I know," he said. He then walked up to Lea and smiled at her. "I watched this girl make a young child's dreams come true, something that caught my attention."

"How did she do that?" Ms. Jillian asked, not surprised as she knew Lea was a wonderful girl.

"She helped a little girl meet the heroes that she looked up to," Blue Beetle said before helping Lea to stand, noting the girl was blushing. "She's the nicest girl I've ever seen and I hope she never loses her kindness."

Most of Lea's classmates clapped while Blue Beetle hugged Lea. "Sorry if I embarrassed you a bit," he whispered to her. "I just wanted to say thank you for making my sister's wish come true. And to show that stuck up girl that you're a good enough gal, way nicer than Huntress."

She blushed and hugged him back. "Glad to help," she said. "Maybe we can team up again sometime?"

"Deal," he said as they pulled away from the hug and an alert came in. "Well, duty calls," he said aloud. "Thank you all for your time."

With that, Blue Beetle headed out and the class was in awe before everyone burst into excited chatter while Amanda huffed, not pleased.

Lea, on the other hand, was smiling and feeling happy as she pulled out her sketchbook and began a new drawing.

One of Midnight Hope and the Blue Beetle.

Please leave Redbat132, alvaxerox, and myself a review, but no flames!

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