-Just some Billy Baston domestic team fluff-
"It's not all bad." Billy took out a pair of minecraft creeper themed headphones. "They said I can use my tablet." He dropped down on the couch next to Kaldur. "I was gonna anyways, but it's nice that they tried."
"Why don't they want you up there?"
"Ageism I guess." The preteen opened up jetpack joyride. "They said something about drugs in a strip club and Batman told me to come down here."
"at least he let you hear" Dick pouted.
"Yeah, I think he thinks I'm more grownup than you." He smiled up at the bird. "I'm sure You'll get there too."
"Okay, no need to push your luck." He shoved the younger boy into Kaldur's shoulder, playfully.
"Why aren't you, y'know..." M'gann didn't notice Kaldur's warning glance. "Like, old?"
"Oh, uh. Old people are annoying." He explained. "Like, uh, Okay Boomer"
Wally cringed, but he also laughed, which negates the cringe power of a ten year old saying 'ok boomer' unironically.
"So, what are we gonna do today?"
"Well, we're supposed to be researching a cold case... so we're probably just going to watch trash tv and binge eat." Artemis said, rejoining the group.
"Well you'll never join the league with that work ethic."
She rolled her eyes, appreciating the sassy preteen for his ability to convince the league that sleepovers were essential to increasing morale. Honestly, If you gave him a Capri sun, he'll be a mouthpiece to the league. Well, recently he'd been driving up his price; if you wanted him to endorse something to the league, you had to pay either $20 or a pack of Oreos. That being said, Artemis respected the hustle.
"Artemis." Conner said, gripping his case file with intent. "Are those my pretzels?"
"So what?"
"Those are mine!" He threw the papers them down before he could rip them.
"And?"
"Give them back!"
She sat, cross-legged, the carpet. "Uh, yeah, I'll puke 'em up for you when I'm done."
"I hate you! You're not my real friend!" She watched him storm out and offered pretzels to Billy and Kaldur. She'd make it up to Conner in a few hours when he was over his temper tantrum.
Wally leaned over and took some for himself. "Quit bullying my godson."
"Godson?" Billy asked.
"Yeah, cause me, Rob and Aqualad freed him, we're basically like his godparents."
"Wally," Dick remarked. "You realize that the godparents are supposed to raise the kid if the parents can't."
"Yeah?"
Dick sighed, gesturing around the mountain. "Where are the parents, Wally?"
"...Good point."
"Real parents are overrated, anyways." Billy said. "Caretakers and guardians are much better."
"Yeah! Uncles are always better than dads!" M'gann said. "Right Kaldur?"
Kaldur, still reading through telephone records, reached up to pat her head affectionately. "Yes, M'gann." M'gann leaned into the touch.
"Wait, I think I found the cctv video for the five hours around the Ambassador's assassination." Dick stopped on a terrible-quality, black-and-white camera feed, kicking back on his laptop.
"...So lately," Wally started, already bored from the first fourteen seconds of normal embassy activity. "So, I get injured a lot while running: twisted ankles, sprained ankles, blisters, runners toe, stress fracture, bruising, Plantar Fasciitis..."
"Cut it down for time!" Artemis heckled.
"Rude." The redhead huffed. "Anyways, I've been doing some research, asking the league physicians, and trying things out to lessen pain."
Billy pulled down his headphones. "What I'm getting here is that Kid Flash is really interested in feet."
"No, NO. Not like that!" The redhead spluttered.
"WALLY HAS A FOOT FET--ish" Artemis coughed up a desert of pretzel crumbs into her shirt
"FIRST OF ALL: That is OBVIOUSLY NOT what Billy meant when he said that! Second: I'm only interested in feet in a podiatric way--"
"HE SAID IT!" Dick interrupted. "He said he was interested in feet!" He cackled, also turning pink. "I can't believe you said that out loud..." He groaned. "OH MY GOD, WALLY."
"I DON'T HAVE A...." Wally stammered. "What would you say, Kaldur?"
"I don't think I would be in this situation." The atlantean replied, uncapping a highlighter and emphasizing a few calls on the date of assassination.
"I DON'T HAVE A... SEXUAL FASCINATION ON FEET." The speedster insisted.
"Keep denying." Artemis said. "God, that was a Freudian slip if ever I heard one!"
"What's a Freudian slip?" Billy asked.
"I don't know." M'gann replied. "Kaldur?"
Kaldur inhaled a breath sharply, and let it out. "I don't think I am the best person to explain that..."
"Oh." The martian and Billy shrugged. "But you do know?"
"I think we should perhaps refocus on the assassination case." Kaldur said, blushing slightly and rubbing his eyes. "As Superboy seems to be taking a break, would somebody else like to take over the coroner's report?"
"I'll do it." Billy said.
"Are you certain? because there are some disturbing images..."
"Please, I'm on the justice league." The rest of the team groaned from the reminder. "I mean... I'm ten years older than Superboy. and if you'd prefer, I can be twenty-five years older than him..."
"I suppose you still have the same brain." Kaldur relented, though he was still two uncomfortable to show a ten year old such images. He himself had been exposed to violence too early. This in mind, he decided to read it himself, giving Billy his telephone records, instructing him to highlight any activity on September 30th, 1987.
"So, does anyone have the suspect?" Wally asked, incapable of dealing with even a little silence.
"Mnm." Robin said. Watching a senator walk across screen talking on their phone. "I thought M'gann was on that."
"Nope." They replied. "I've got his emails leading up to the murder. I thought Artemis was going over suspects."
"I am!" She quickly grabbed a fist of crumpled papers. "But there's eighteen! It's not exactly easy to narrow down! Besides, all these middle-aged men in suits... they blend together in my mind: I can't remember who's a Senator and who's a treasurer!"
"Who has motive?"
"I don't know! I thought M'gann would find that in his emails."
M'gann shrugged. "I don't know what any of this means."
"Let me," Billy said. "I'm a level ten reader." He squinted over across her. "Megan, that's not in english."
"OH!" She exclaimed. "No wonder..."
"Jesus chirst, girl. get it together." Artemis laughed.
"I can't! Earth languages are SO HARD! why can't you talk through your brains like everyone else?!"
Artemis rolled her eyes. "CONNER? Do you want me to get you a new bag of pretzels?" She asked into dead air.
Conner's voice echoed through the mountain. "SHUT UP!"
She rolled her eyes, and elbowed Robin. "Lend me five bucks." He grunted and passed her his debit card. Artemis shoved the card at Wally. "Go get some pretzels for Conner."
"What? C'mon!"
"You aren't doing anything!" She pointed out. "Besides, you're his self-proclaimed godfather!"
Wally grumbled and pulled his shoes on. "Anyone want anything?"
"HEY!" Dick groaned. "DUDE!"
"I want a box of Chocos and, like, if you can get just a jug of syrup..."
"And nothing for me." Kaldur said. "No syrup for m'gann."
"Can I have syrup?" Billy asked.
"No."
"I'm not on your team!" Billy said. "I'm an adult, thanks."
"I can get you 7 up?" Wally offered
"Sure."