The Prince & Me

Goodbyes

Conner packed in the last of his new clothes and shut the lid down on his suitcase, flipping the latch closed.  He took one last look around his Watchtower bedroom and sighed before picking up his bags and dragging his feet towards the monitor room.

Waiting for him were Dexter and Raven, along with the other royal children, holding their bags and hanging their heads.  They were all back in their matching white shirts and blouses, their khakis and black skirts and fancy shoes.  Miles went up to Conner.  "Well, I do hope Your Highnesses enjoyed your stay, but I believe it is time to say goodbye."

Conner looked out at his friends, gathered to bid farewell to their Kryptonian friend, a chance they never had the first time he left. He went to Nightwing first. "Hey. Thanks for taking us in when we had nowhere else to go." Nightwing chuckled weakly. "Its the least we could do for our best friend." He went to Mal and Karen next. "Keep up the good work, you two. Maybe when you get married, you can send me an invite? I'll do my best to make it." They nodded. "Only if you send us one to yours." Conner shook his head. "There's not gonna be anything to celebrate that day."

Finally, he knelt down in front of Garfield. "Gar, I—" Before he could say another word, the green teen threw his arms around him and let out a few tears. "I'm going to miss you SO MUCH!" Conner hugged him back. "I'm going to miss you, too." He looked around. "Where's M'gann?" Gar sighed. "I tried to get her to come. I really did." Conner nodded as he pulled away.

He looked at the rest of his friends. "Again, I am really sorry I didn't tell you guys the truth." "Its okay.", Wally said. "I get it. You wanted to be a normal guy. Arty and I felt the same way when we retired." Raven put a hand on his shoulder. "Conner, honey? Its time to go." Conner nodded, his eyes cast downward. "Goodbye, everybody."

He walked towards the Zeta tubes, followed by his brothers and sisters, then their parents and Miles. As the tubes announced their departure, Helen took one final look at the friends she'd made. True friends who loved her for who she was, something she had only dreamed of back in Padaladia. A tear slipped down her cheek as they disappeared.
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Helen stared at her hands folded over her lap as she and the rest of her family, plus Miles, sat in the private Padaladian royal family jet, waiting for the aircraft to take off and bring them home. She looked over at Conner, who was staring out the window with a blank expression. "Conner?" He didn't respond. "Just so you know...I still think coming here was a good idea."

"Yeah!", Jason said, trying to be optimistic. "At least we got to be normal kids! Even if it was only for a few weeks." Next to him, Eliza nodded. "Yeah...the greatest few weeks of our lives." Conner still didn't react, continuing to stare out the window like a zombie. The others went back to twiddling their thumbs and such.

All the way in the front row, Raven and Dexter had heard every word. She felt an uneasy sensation in her lower stomach. "Dexter, are you sure that we did the right thing?" "Without a doubt.", he said sternly. "Whether they like it or not, they are part of a royal lineage. That position comes with important duties." Raven sighed. "I just want our children to be happy." "Its out of our hands. Besides, the girl turned him down."

Raven glared at Dexter as she folded her arms over her chest. "Who could blame her, after how rude you were towards her?" Dexter shook his head. "Even if she said yes, Conner still couldn't marry her. Its against tradition." "I thought you'd learned from Legacy Day that some traditions are worth breaking." "You were a kind, good-hearted individual with a vision for the future.", Dexter said. "Who am I?" Raven looked straight ahead. "I thought you were the King."

Dexter looked at her, a strange expression on his face. He looked over his shoulder at Conner, who was moping at the window. He could see the dull-glazed over look in his eyes. Dexter stared straight ahead, deep in thought, as the plane lifted off and began it's course to their homeland.
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Nightwing was practicing his hacking skills when M'gann entered the Watchtower via Zeta tubes. "Conner?" She looked around. "You're too late.", Nightwing told her. "He already left." M'gann sat on the steps and took out a piece of paper. Unfolding it, she looked at the words she planned to say to Conner. I'm sorry. I love you, too. Crumbling it up and tossing it over her shoulder, she buried her face in her hands, and cried and cried and cried.