Bluejay: The Protégé of Black Canary

Investigating Dr. Linh

That next week was probably the longest one of my life. I was still recovering, so I wasn't allowed to participate in training. All I could do was sit on the picnic table and watch my friends spar with one another, but I didn't enjoy sitting out as much as Wally had when he broke his arm.

Other League members were frequently at the cave as well, keeping a close eye on us. It appeared we were on temporary probation again because Batman didn't assign us a mission that week either. (I wouldn't admit it, but I was secretly glad because I wouldn't have been able to go anyways.) Wally said I missed out on all the arguing and scolding we'd gotten from Batman and the other Leaguers about our impromptu mall spree, but I felt like what I had gotten from Dinah was worse.

Even on days we didn't have mandatory training, the Team still made an extra effort to visit me at the cave after school to see how I was doing. We played video games, watched movies, constructed the leaning tower ice cream, or picked up pizza from Happy Harbor. I played some cookie poker with Wally, after an hour of trying to explain the rules of Monopoly to M'gann, we gave up and decided to play Uno.

I admit, the break would have been a little more fun if I was able to properly walk. The fat brace that buckled all the way up to my thigh was not to be removed for at least the rest of the week. I had to get around with crutches, which didn't feel very dignified. However, on the bright side of things, my injury didn't faze my friends into treating me like a fragile piece of glass. They still teased me like they normally did, which I was secretly extremely grateful for.

I couldn't go to school either, as I was still struggling to walk. That meant I was basically I was a sitting duck if anyone attempted assassination or something crazy like that, so I was tragically stuck at the cave all day with only Wolf, Sphere, Red Tornado, and occasionally Kaldur for company throughout the day. Dinah came to visit me, which I was extremely shocked by. We hadn't exactly mended things between us yet. But I realized that even though she was still furious with me, she didn't want me to be alone.

Seriously, was this woman trying to drown me in guilt? Because it was working!

Anyways, Artemis was nice enough to bring me all the schoolwork I missed for the week. Her, Dick, and Barbra all insisted on sending me their notes so I wouldn't fall behind. I was on schedule to go back to school at the beginning of November, which was a relief, so hopefully I would be able to stay on top of things.

"You owe me big time." Artemis grumbled as she slapped a big stack of papers in front of me. "I had to come up with a good reason you were gone. Everyone's been asking why you've been absent."

I thumbed through the papers and laughed. "What did you come up with?"

"Flu." Artemis shrugged.

I frowned, letting the papers drop.

"The flu? That's the best you could come up with? Why couldn't you have told them something cool like I rescued a baby panda or something?" I complained.

"Well what was I supposed to say? Jackie actually fell out of the back of a moving vehicle and almost died? Give me a break." Artemis rolled her eyes. "Plus, Barbra wanted to visit you, so I had to tell her something that was contagious."

I sucked in a breath through my teeth. Yeah, contrary to my school records, my address wasn't actually to an apartment building in Gotham. I lived under a mountain in a whole different city, not to mention she'd need security clearance from a member of the Justice League to even get inside.

"Good call." I approved.

Thankfully, my leg was feeling much better as the week went on. I was even able to walk on it for a few hours at a time without my crutches. And while during the times I was alone at the Cave were nerve-wracking, it also gave me alone time to think.