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SHADOWCAT'S POV
"Well, I know I've got some questions," Jefferson says when no one else speaks up, causing me to smile a bit.
I stand up and walk to the window, looking down at the others as the exit out of the house.
Crossing my arms, my eyes follow Lily and Jake with Alex next to them before they fall onto Tara.
I don't take my eyes off of her as I say, "You guys know Tara is a mole, right?" I wait a second before I turn and look at them.
They look back in surprise before Artemis says, "We did... We wanted to let her chose what side she wanted to be on. How did you? You were barely with her."
"The Shadows taking a defenseless teen that doesn't know any better and turns them against the good guys," I say before flashing a smile, "Not really original."
"I have less questions than before," Jefferson chimes in, causing me to smile.
"It's a rollercoaster," I shrug before I add, "I'm just glad you guys are giving her a chance to pick."
A dig at how they treated me before they realized I wasn't crazy. I just have to remind them sometimes.
"Yeah, we learned from past mistakes," Conner rubs the back of his neck, "But, now to you." He says straightening up, "When did Jake turn?"
"And where did you find that Alex guy," Wally scrunches his nose as if he tasted something bad.
I roll my eyes at him but answer Conner first, "I found out about Jake when he went missing. His dad called me, and I found him but they had already activated his metagene. He chose to stay with me and help others instead of going back to Gotham," I explain before I shake my head, "His dad thinks he is touring. He visits him when we are close to Gotham."
Conner nods as well as the others, taking in the information before I lean against the wall, crossing my arms as I look to Wally.
"Alex just sort of crossed paths with us and stuck."
"Like a leech?" Wally supplies innocently.
"He isn't a bad guy," I say though even I am surprised that I am defending him. "He is annoying, but he hasn't given us a reason to kick him to the crib yet."
Artemis stops Wally from saying anything else by elbowing him in the gut. He mutters an 'ouch' and rubs his side.
"Do you trust him?" Jefferson asks, which causes me to freeze slightly.
He wouldn't have known how that phrase would make Dick or I feel. But I can feel Dick's eyes on me and it makes me want to say I fully trust him just to get some sort of reaction out of him. Maybe even to hurt him.
But even now I don't want to hurt him.
"I trust him enough," I say before I add, "Jake, I trust fully. And Jake would be able to control him if he were to betray us."
"The guy has a thing for you," Wally blurts, crossing his arms, "Does that make him maybe seem more trust worthy than he actually is?"
I scoff at that," Absolutely not."
"To him having a thing for you or the other thing?" M'gann asks before shrugging, "Because I sort of agree with Wally."
I can't help but glance to Dick before quickly looking out the window at Alex.
Dick is tense, not saying anything and his expression is completely blank. I want so desperately to shout no. To say that Alex and I are not and will not be a thing. But it would change anything. He made his decision.
"He flirts, yeah, but it's not reciprocated." I say looking back to Wally, looking him in the eyes so he knows it's true, "At all. Nothing,"
His eyes soften, and I know he knows I'm telling the truth. I know I'm also saying it for Dick. Hoping he believes it like Wally does.
I smirk," Sort of like how Wally flirted with M'gann until Conner and her started dating and Artemis knocked sense into him." I add, causing him to pout.
He only says he hates Alex because he thinks we are something and he is Dick's best friend. And I can't even be mad at him for that.
Wally groans and rubs his face, "I wish we hadn't told you those stories. You just use them to embarrass me."
"You make it too easy," I quip back, causing him to grin widely at me.
I know who they are going to ask about next so I change the subject.
"Forager?" I say and they all look to each other.
"He is being hunted on his home planet so he is staying with us," M'gann fills me in.
I nod, "He fits right in then. And I know a little about Tara and Brion..."
"Basically a huge political nightmare," Jeff says taking a seat closer to us. "But Helga, the scientist that turned them, she is helping us now. She really regrets what she did and she really cares about the kids."
I nod though I am not sold on her turning over a new leaf. I don't entirely trust scientists that work with the light after I was made a little experiment.
"And Halo? And that guy downstairs?" I ask, remembering the half robot we passed yet no one stopped to explain.
"Halo is a mother box." Artemis claps her hands together as if that explains it all. I blink back. "Basically she can do things based off of the color of her aura, like how she healed you."
"What?" M'gann asks, turning to me with a frown, "Healed-"
"I'm fine," I say my eyes falling to her for a moment before I feel her asking permission into my head. Before she says anything, I say, "And the boy?"
Artemis explains that the boy is Victor Stone, and he is half father box.
'I'm worried about you. Are you okay?' M'gann asks when Artemis pauses.
'I'm okay.'
"That's something," I shake my head as I respond to Artemis and effectively cut of M'gann, "And the engagement, and M'gann is leader of the Team. And Kaldur is leader of the Justice League."
"We grew up," Artemis smiles at me, and I smile back, though I don't feel it reach my eyes.
I look back out the window, watching as Lily picks flowers with Halo, and Forager hands her an apple.
Jake and Alex are watching, though Alex keeps looking back to the window. He sees me, but I look away and back to the others.
M'gann looks out the window, her face softening, "The little girl?"
I bite down, clenching my jaw for a moment before I cross my arms and say, "Well, first and foremost she isn't mine if that's what any of you were thinking."
No one says anything else. Not about the possibility that Artemis pointed out. And Dick isn't looking at me again, his eyes on the floor.
"I found her in a lab in Bialya. She is from Gotham. They... they kept her in the dark when trying to activate her gene," I shrug, "That's all I know about it." About how they tortured her.
Wally rubs the back of his neck before making eye contact with me, "Why-why keep her? Why involve her. Does she not have-"
"Her parents are actually saints," I cut him off. "I tried. I tried to take her home but her parents are out of the country in a small village with no wifi, trying to save sick kids while their own kid was lost by a crappy babysitter and tortured." I rush out before I can stop it.
Lily's involvement with all of this had upset me. It upset me that we even had to rescue kids from this. It made me sick.
"I wasn't going to hand her over to a babysitter who didn't watch her in the first place. And I tried to take her to Kaldur, to the young center." I reveal, causing Dick to finally look at me. For once, I'm glad he had his mask on and I couldn't see his eyes.
"Kaldur knew you were okay?" M'gann asks, hurt flashing on her face.
"I didn't want anyone to know. I made him promise not to say anything." I say but don't explain more as I move on. "She kept hiding in my shadow. She wouldn't leave me." I avoid Dick's gaze as I add, "Her parents come back in a few weeks, and I am going to bring her home. She just won't leave my side unless it's with someone I trust or she trusts."
"No wonder she won't talk," Conner mutters almost to himself, his face falling.
Jeff looks like he is ready to punch something.
"I don't like the idea of her with me either. She is too young and if I..." I sigh, "If it were my choice, I would have given her back to her parents where I knew she would be safe."
"The Light is using kids as weapons," Jeff rubs a hand over his face. "I'm sick of it."
"They tried to use Cat, Artemis, M'gann and Conner at different points." Wally says, though to no one in particular as he stares at his hands in his lap. "I, for one, am tired of it."
I shake my head, "I just don't understand why they took her so young. I knew they took teens but..." I trail off when I see M'gann face.
"Brooke... They have been using them-they turned them into monsters and send them off world." Conner says, placing a had on M'gann's shoulder.
Jefferson's body is taunt and tense as he stares at the floor. This topic struck a nerve.
"You mean-"
"They would have turned Lily into a monster just to be killed if you hadn't saved her." Dick speaks up for the first time, his eyes finally meeting mine.
I don't know why he decided now would be the time to talk. Maybe it was because everyone else seemed to upset to say anything. Maybe it was because he knew I was already blaming myself for keeping Lily with me and exposing her to this so he said it to make me feel better.
It was probably the former by the looks on everyone's faces. I wish it were both.
Suddenly, a familiar shadow appears, and Lily smiles up at me, holding out a flower for me.
I smile down at her, hoping it's as real as I can make it while all I truly feel is like I am going to sick.
She turns and passes out a flower to each person in the room before ending with Nightwing. He watches her with a soft expression as takes his mask off and smiles at her, taking the flower.
I try not to look, but I can't help it. I take in everything.
The familiar curve of his smile, the softness is his electric blue eyes, the way his hair falls over his face. I note the differences too. The way his cheek bones seem to be even more defined now, his face slightly grown up even in a year.
His body changed too. I suppose mine did too, but...
I look away, not wanting him to catch me studying him even though his full attention is on Lily.
Wally catches my eye though. I know he saw. And I know he knows I still care about Dick the same way I did a year ago.
"I'm going to go to the restroom," I say quietly, causing Dick and Lily to look at me. Lily starts to walk to me, but I shake my head, "It's okay. These guys are friends. They will take care of you."
She frowns slightly, and Dick looks between us before he says, "Do you think you could show me where you picked these? We can pick some more for all of your new friends."
Lily seems to think about it for a moment before she smiles at him and takes his hand.
I don't watch the rest. My chest feels too tight and I feel like the room is spinning.
I leave the room, despite not even knowing where the restroom is.
I hear foot steps behind me, but I do actually manage to find the restroom.
When I get there, I turn to look back into green eyes.
Wally frowns at me, his hands in his pockets.
"I don't know-"
"I still care about him Wally. Artemis told me he said I left, but-but I do care about him. I didn't want to come back and make it difficult for him. I just couldn't stay away, not even because he asked me too. Not when it involved Ra's al Ghul." I admit, it all rushing out before I can stop it, though I'm not sure why I did.
Maybe I just needed Wally to know I didn't just abandon his best friend. That I didn't just trade him in like a used car for another. That I wouldn't dare just leave him.
I wait for his response, but he just stares at me, his eyebrows draw together. At first I think it's confusion, but when he steps to me and wraps his arms around me, I realize it's concern.
He hugs me and after a few moments I hug him back, closing my eyes for a moment as he says, "I know. I didn't ever believe you would just up and leave because you didn't love him anymore, Brooke. None of us did. We know you." I grip him tighter and he rubs my back slightly, "I'm glad you are safe. We all are. Even if not all of us are say it."
I pull away, and he does too, keeping a hand on my shoulder for my comfort.
"Thank you, Wally. I needed that." I smile weakly at him.
My mind is still spinning at the thought of Lily being turned into a monster and killed, of Ra's al Ghul punishing me, of the fear I felt when I found out where Dick and his team had been, of Dick pushing me away and of it being my fault and something I deserve.
"Of course, Brookilicious."
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A/N:
the wally and brooke reunion you all deserved.
personally it's killing me that dick and her aren't talking like they used to
but you guys got some explanations? maybe?
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questions that are keeping you up at night about this?
thoughts on alex?
thoughts on everything that was revealed? any theories?
favorite part in this chapter?
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thanks for reading, don't forget to vote & comment !!
xoxo, author