Aquagirl (Fem. Percy x YJ)

89

In the hours following Canary's departure, I floated about the Cave. I never lingered long in a room, sometimes I stepped in only to exit. Other rooms I'd walk the walls before moving on. It gave me something to focus on, or more aptly lose myself in.

Bad thoughts could not strangle my mind if I did not think.

And so, I continued my mindless wander. Mother glanced at me the first time through the living room. Father opened his mouth the second. I didn't make a third pass.

Deeper and deeper I went through the halls, slipping through the few secret passages I'd discovered. No good for hiding, not when the League had used this base, but Mother and Father would never think to look for them. My sandals hit the metal walkway with a loud clang, and I wandered through the generator room. The motors whirred and shook, a deep vibration that climbed up through my feet. Drab and dull, the same as my room, but here I could tolerate it. Here, it didn't serve as a cruel reminder of my room at home.

Percy and I's room at home.

Colorful stones and bright belongings spun in my head: the twin stuffed walruses, Percy's sashes thrown over chairs, my English tests tucked under a loose stone. Mother sitting with us and telling us stories. Percy clinging to Father while sick, and him singing her a lullaby (Mother would have to come keep me from crawling into bed with her those nights. Not that it mattered.)

I walked to the hanger and sat at the edge of the waterpool. Cool water lapped at my ankles. My fingers brushed over the surface. Ripples. Every action caused something else.

How much would things have changed if I choose to let Percy torture me?

(She'd have killed herself in her cell, but my gills might not have been injured. I avoided hers. Was that a good trade or a bad one?)

Footsteps, heavy and from boots, came behind me. For a moment, I pretended it was Robin. But the footsteps were too heavy. Canary made more sense. The jacket should have finished washing, and I'd be happy to have it back.

"How are you doing, kid?" Green Arrow asked. I shrugged. He sat. "Yeah, I can get that. I...I want to apologize. I didn't know Di– Canary had given you that jacket. If I had, I wouldn't have tried to take it. Now then,"--he placed his hand on my shoulder– "Is there anything you want to do?"

I looked at him.

"Kid. You're seventeen, and as much as torture fucks with you— you should be allowed to do things you want."

My shoulders, slumped as they were, dropped further. "I cannot swim. Not if I wish to have a chance of returning home." Natural water came with the risk of parasites, and it was bad enough to have them once. I grimaced and resisted the urge to rub at my gills. "It would risk more damage."

"Well, do you want to play a board game?"

"Did Canary send you?"

"Doesn't even know I'm here," he said with a grin. "Trust me, she gave me an earful when we went home. She's a real momma bird. Er, don't tell her I said that. So, what'll it be? You wanna go get ice cream? Make me bundle up so you can play basketball outside?"

I chuckled. "It is not that cold out."

"I'm from California. Anything below fifty and I'm layering up." Green Arrow stood up. He offered me a hand to pull me up. "Actually, I think I've got an idea that I think you'll like. Go wait for me by the Zetas, don't want your folks freaking out about you going missing."

I did as he said.

Ten minutes passed by on the clock. Mother followed him in, and I suppressed a sigh. She stood in front of me, lips pressed together and brow creased. So many years had piled onto her face. She lifted a hand, cupped my face, and kissed my cheek.