Another collab between myself and Redbat132, who owns Midnight Hope. :)

Batman The Brave And The Bold and Green Lantern Animated Series belong to DC Comics. I own nothing.


Good Friends Can Raise Hope

Things had been quiet at the Watchtower as of late and even with villains trying to put their plans in action. There had been a few petty attempts by Penguin and Catwoman, but those had been handled swiftly.

The peace was welcomed by the other heroes, who were glad to have a bit of a break, but one heroine didn't feel at peace at all. Ever since Super Hero Helpers Day, she had been at unease.

Lea stood by one of the many windows, gazing out into outer space, her mind in turmoil as she couldn't stop thinking about her random encounter with Mongul. Something was bugging her about it.

Was there something big going on somewhere else or was it just a random coincidence that just worked out in the end. And it seemed very fortunate that Bat-Mite showed up to help her and Batman around the last minute.

Hal Jordan, the Green Lantern and uncle to Lea, came up to her. "Hey, kiddo, you've been pretty quiet today," he said. "Something on your mind?"

"I'm worried about something," she admitted, her worried look matching her tone of voice.

"Okay, I can tell this is pretty serious," he said. "Come on, let's go into one of the meeting rooms."

Lea was grateful that he suggested that because she was worried the other heroes would just think she was being paranoid, which she wondered a bit herself, but in the time she had been a Blue Lantern, she had learned that not everything was just a coincidence.

When they arrived, Hal closed the door and soundproofed the room before turning to his niece. "Alright, what's up, kiddo?" He asked.

"I keep going back to the day that Batman and I faced Mongul," she said.

"Oh," he said, but nodded understandingly. "It's odd how you two encountered him just like that."

"It just doesn't make any sense, Hal," Lea stated, pacing around in thought. "Mongul is this war alien barbarian looking for champions to kidnap and play for deadly sport. Why would he bother stepping foot in one of the most near peaceful home planets of the Lantern Corps just for me?"

"Good question," Hal said. "Maybe you've had a run in with him before?"

"That's just it. I've never even heard of nor met him until that day," she replied in reason. "And it's not like I'm the only Blue Lantern around. There were others in that planet yet they never detected nor fought Mongul. So, why would he want me specifically?"

"Mongul is known to be picky about who he selects for his world, but he usually looks for the ones that are the most powerful or the most determined, like Batman," said Green Lantern.

The blonde teen stopped and looked at her mentor/uncle when mentioning a certain powerful being showing up in the end to help.

"Huh...Actually, Hal, there is one other theory that we haven't considered," Lea stated. "But I'm not sure if you'll believe me or call me crazy at how it sounds."

"I'd never do that, kiddo," he said. "Whatcha got?"

"Okay...This might be a little off, but do you think that maybe...just maybe...Bat-Mite set the whole Mongul situation up just to help both Batman and me on Super Hero Helpers day? Mostly Batman?"

Hal fell into thought. "I don't know, kiddo," he said. "That does seem a bit out in left field. Why do you think that?"

"Think about it. Bat-Mite is a powerful little guy who is a major Batman fan," Lea stated, pointing at the facts. "Why would he waste time on any other heroes to help out? Let alone a random Lantern not many heroes or villains know about?"

"Okay, that is a good point," Green Lantern admitted.

"Not only that but Bat-Mite was the one who helped me figure out the best present for Batman with that digital drawing pad of his," Lea admitted. "And since he does watch from afar on what Batman is doing, it's possible that he wanted to see who got his name for the event and verify that the said hero would get something great for his first year on it."

"Okay, that could have been just him wanting to help you with that," he said. "And who knows Batman better than Bat-Mite?"

"Still, though...I wonder if Bat-Mite really does care about other heroes besides Batman," she admitted, sounding unsure. "Or if he was only using me to give something nice to Batman. I just don't know."

"I don't think Bat-Mite was using you, Lea," Hal said. "That's not at all like him. Maybe he was inspired by you and wanted to meet you. And he can pop in at any time he wants. No need to make a villain appear. I'm sure it was just a coincidence."

"Maybe..." The blonde teen sighed, sitting down. "Do you really think someone like Bat-Mite sees me as a good enough hero? I don't necessarily have natural nor magical powers. I'm just a regular girl with an alien ring who likes Winter activities and drawing. It's not necessarily as impressive as Batman, but that's part of who I am."

"Hey, you are a good enough hero, Lea," her uncle said reassuringly. "The rings don't just choose anyone to wield them, especially the rings of hope. And you've impressed a lot of people with what you've done so far. Even Razer, who is really picky about who he talks to."

She looked up at him. "Really?" She asked.

"You bet," he said. "You're doing good as a Blue Lantern, kid. Stop being so hard on yourself and try not to think too much on the whole Mongul thing."

Lea smiled before noticing that her curfew was coming up. "I better call it a night. We can continue our next patrol around Coast City tomorrow," she said.

"Okay," he said. "See you tomorrow, kiddo."

Little did either of them know that something would happen, something that would test the Blue Lantern herself and the heroes around her.


The next night, Lea left for the Watchtower as her shift was up for patrol and she met up with Batman. "Ah, Hope, good timing," he said. "I'm headed with you to Coast City for patrol."

"Okay," she said before looking around. "Where's GL?"

"He had to go to Oa on Honor Guard Duty," Batman said. "The guardians will randomly pick Lanterns for it and it looks like it was his turn this time."

"Oh, okay," she said with a nod, not minding that she was teaming up with the Dark Knight.

But it wasn't a simple patrol as she had hoped.

While Batman was handling Gentleman Ghost robbing a bank, Hope had been keeping a lookout for any other villains, finding Penguin and Clock King coming up fast. "Batman, incoming!" She cried out, quickly forming a shield.

"Can you keep that shield up until the others arrive?" He asked her.

"I'll do my best!" She promised.

Thankfully, moments later, she saw Wonder Woman, Flash, and Fire arrive. "Perfect timing, guys!" She called out.

"Flash, stop Clock King! Fire, stop Penguin!" Wonder Woman said.

The two quickly moved into action while Wonder Woman used her lasso to take care of the goons that the three villains had hired. Hope was about to help her when she was suddenly tackled and was thrown back into an alleyway. She quickly got back up before blinking in shock at realizing she was facing someone who looked familiar, but not completely. "Who are you?" She asked.

"Someone who's going to make you regret what you did to Jonathan Crane," the person said in a growl as he came into the light. He looked a bit like the Scarecrow, but with a slightly-different color scheme.

"You work for Scarecrow?" Lea asked.

"In a way," the boy said before coming at her with an attack. She quickly tried to dodge it, but he was fast and she felt something hit her arm and she cried out in surprise before it happened again, making her cry out more.

Finally, she fell to her knees and the boy stepped back. "Have fun," he said before heading away to a hiding spot to watch the Blue Lantern as she struggled weakly to get up, not realizing she was in worse danger than just a few scratches.

After the villains had been taken care of, Batman looked around. "Where's Hope?" He asked.

They looked around before Wonder Woman spotted the girl on the ground in the alley nearby. "There!" She said, flying over to the girl and kneeling down, gasping as she saw the Lantern was badly hurt. "Batman! Hope's injured!"

Flash came up fast and he gasped too, helping Wonder Woman to help the Blue Lantern to her feet. "Easy, Hope. We got you," he said.

Batman and Fire came up and the green-haired heroine gasped. "What could have done that to her?" She asked in horror.

Batman called the Watchtower with an alert to have sick bay ready. "Let's get her to the Watchtower," he said. "The sooner we treat her injuries, the better."

No one argued as they headed back for the Watchtower, not seeing someone watching them and smiling deviously that everything had gone according to plan. He then lifted his hand to his face.

"Hey, Hatty. It's Scarecrow," The gray-scaled Scarecrow replied with his communicator. "I finished my mentor's request and bought you less than thirty minutes. Whatever you got planned before the Dark Knight shows up, I suggest doing it now."

"Thank you, Scarecrow. I appreciate the help," Hatty replied from the other line. "Meet back with the others immediately."

"Copy that."

The new Scarecrow smirked before going to meet with his friends, happy to have completed his mentor's request.


Uh-oh! Looks like something worse is happening. Stay tuned for the next chapter.

And please leave Redbat132 and myself a review, but no flames!

GoldGuardian2418