"I'VE GOT RESULTS!" Cecily's voice announced through the phone. "Paris Abney. Fake name, of course. Real name, or at least the name she's currently using, real name Rebecca Smith-Howard."

"Interesting name," Callie murmured.

"I know," Cecily snorted. "British, as you'd guessed, but married an American some years ago. Derek Smith-Howard. I searched him up. Born and raised in Minnesota, I think they must have met in university, but here's the interesting bit: he was arrested some years ago for working under the Black Mask. Sentenced to eight years in jail for involvement in various robberies in Gotham over the span of three years. Rebecca was working as a nurse until then, but quit her job shortly after her husband was imprisoned. Moved back to England for a few years—she's from the north, somewhere near York, I think, before coming back. And that's when she seemed to start using the name of Paris Abney."

"And she started scamming."

"A mix of scamming and thievery," Cecily hummed. "And I may have gotten a little nosy... You got hired to investigate, huh?"

Callie had expected Cecily to put two and two together fairly quickly. She laughed. "Yeah. I thought asking you for help might make things easier. Don't know if you're aware, but I'm busy busy these days."

"I know." Cecily sighed. "Jason just asked me to help book a two-room hotel suite in Star City for an entire week. Assuming you're occupying one of those rooms."

"Hotel? Thought he said he might try and get an apartment from Bruce instead?"

"No point. Just a week. Hotel's easier and more convenient. Not like the two of you are there on a case, so strange entry and exit times won't be a problem. But, I digress. Did you get hired by the Thornes?"

"Bingo." Callie paused. "I hope I'm not asking too much of you to not tell this to anyone else? Client anonymity and all."

"I know. I won't tell. You know the Thornes and Swintons do not get along?"

"Part of why I had to take this case."

"Well, I have good news for you. Everything I find indicates that Rebecca Smith-Howard is currently residing in Star City. She's working in a private clinic, and I've found security footage of her that matches the photo you sent me."

"Well, that's convenient," Callie remarked, laying her hand on the table. Now she just needed to somehow identify where she'd hidden it. This was where her powers might come in handy. But it also meant she'd have to be in physical contact with Ms Smith-Howard, and pray that the right memory comes to her. "What kind of clinic is she working at? Can you help me find when she works there?"

"Give me a bit and I'll send all the information over. Paris Abney worked as a caretaker for the Thornes some years back, I assume she stole something?"

"Yep."

"Have you been hired to simply find her, or locate the item?"

"One ought to be able to lead to the other. I'll do my best to locate it, but if I can't, then reporting back her current location ought to allow the Thornes to seek police help." Callie tilted her head. "They told me they'd already hired a bunch of private investigators before, but no one had been able to find anything. And look at you, less than twenty-four hours later. Tell you what, if I end up having to continue this career, how'd you like to help me out? I'll give you a cut of all the fees."

Cecily hummed on the other side of the phone. "I'm not really in need of money... but if it's not some morally dubious case, I'm always happy to help."

"What, so you don't want to get paid?"

"Well, no. I'm not about to turn away free money. It's a deal. But... if you don't want Jason to know about this, how on earth are you going to investigate while in Star City?"

—

IT WAS A five hour flight on a commercial plane back to Star City. She'd spent the first eighteen years of her life there, and she hadn't been back for four years. They were flying business, because, in Jason's words, Bruce had money and it was a shame not to use it.

She'd flown economy to and from England even though Oliver had given her more than enough. She hadn't seen the point in wasting money in some temporary comfort when it could be invested elsewhere more usefully.

He was across from her in the alley, next to a window. He said he wanted to keep an eye out, which she'd almost scoffed at until realising that he wasn't kidding. Though she wasn't sure, even with Jason's experience, if he could do anything should their flight be attacked by some rogue supervillain.

But she didn't argue, slipping into her seat and making herself comfortable. She'd brought with her a single small suitcase and a backpack. He hadn't carried much either, explaining that he kept a stash in Star that Roy helped maintain. But she was still certain he at least had some weapon concealed on him. She didn't ask how he'd smuggled it past airport security, and she wasn't sure she wanted to know either.

She was trying to formulate a plan in her head. It seemed like they would be in Star City for just around a week. One day would be reserved for visiting her sister's grave, and Callie was quite sure she'd be too much of an emotional wreck after that to do anything. But she could probably get Jason to agree to let her head out alone for one day. Or two, maybe. Just to see the city by herself, relive some old memories, visit some familiar spots.

And a few days would have to be reserved for Roy too.

Long flights didn't bother Callie. She'd brought a book with her to pass the time. Jason was staring out of the window, and she wasn't sure what he was thinking. And she decided not to distract him from his honorable duty of keeping alert against potential threats. Who might strike them out of the sky.

It just felt ridiculous. But his worldview would be different from his. It might be impossible for her to ask him to let down his guard. He simply didn't work that way, his brain was wired differently by his experiences.

Callie toyed with her gloves, quietly waiting for time to pass.

It was the afternoon when they arrived at Star City International Airport. They made it through security quickly, grabbing Callie's suitcase at baggage collection before heading out into the terminal.

"I've already booked a taxi," Jason was saying. "We don't have to do anything today just yet if you don't want to, we can chill in our suite or visit some spots you might want to go to—"

He was rudely cut off by screams at the other end of the terminal. He immediately snapped to alert, glancing at her.

"Go," she said without hesitation. How many times have I done this before? Out with Cyrene or Oliver or Dinah when an emergency happens. How many times have I watched them run off?

And despite her better instinct, she ran after him too.

It didn't take long for her to form a clear image of what was happening. Assassins. A team of them, all dressed in black, targeting someone heading down the escalator. A crowd had gathered there, for some reason, lines held up—someone important arriving?

A woman almost slammed into her while running away from the scene, Callie barely dodging as she tried to make sense of the situation, ducking behind a potted plant to avoid attracting attention to herself. Men with cameras, what on—oh, disguised weapons. For fuck's sake.

Her eyes locked onto the little girl on the escalator, looking terrified. She looked familiar. She'd definitely seen her on the news before. And with security detail like this...?

Princess Perdita. Damn, of course. And who'd want to murder her?

Count Vertigo.

Callie froze.

It was one nightmare after another.

She was about to let out a scream of warning as one of the men's cameras locked onto the girl, and Jason was too preoccupied with another assassin to notice. He'd ditched his red jacket and pulled out a mask from somewhere that covered the bottom half of his face. And he'd already been wearing gloves since boarding the plane, so prints weren't an issue either. But that was when an arrow landed on the floor, and smoke started emanating from it.

It was muscle memory, the way she immediately held her hand over her mouth and nose, avoiding breathing in the gas. Callie swallowed. She'd wanted to avoid running into Oliver and Dinah, but it seemed like she was running headfirst into them.

Well, Dinah didn't seem to be here yet.

A flash of emerald landed glided through the sky. She couldn't see where he landed through the smoke, and Jason was concealed too. But when the smoke began to clear, she saw Arrow standing in front of the Princess as the assassins emerged, cornering them against the escalator.

Jason was there at an instant. He'd wrestled a gun from one of the assassins, it seemed, though he didn't fire as he smashed it into one's head and tripped another onto the ground. "Get her out of here!" It wasn't aimed at her, he hadn't seemed to realise she was there too. It was at Green Arrow.

Arrow seemed shocked for a moment, but recognition dawned in his features. He gave a nod, deciding that this was not the time to ask questions, and began escorting the Princess up the escalator as Jason took over on the ground floor.

Neither of them had noticed that she was here. She could run, wait until Jason was done and meet him outside. Arrow didn't even have to know she was here.

But then she saw Jason getting thrown onto the ground. Three against one—she had full confidence Jason could handle himself in the end, but really, she'd like to minimise injuries. And...

One of the guns dropped by the assassins was within grabbing distance. She'd have to risk being exposed for a few seconds, but...

Callie didn't hesitate. She snatched it from the ground before tucking back behind the pot, continuing to observe. She knew how to use a gun. She had pretty decent aim. Everyone had made sure she was taught. As family to a superhero, she'd always be at some risk.

A bullet landed near her feet. She stifled a scream, scrambling to the other side of the pot, glancing upstairs at where the bullet had landed from. She wasn't the target of this assassination, but she was also one of the few people not clearly involved in the carnage who were sticking around.

And she had a gun.

She turned, aimed, and fired.

She heard a yelp, sneaking a peek behind her back as she continued to run, dodging behind pillars just in case. She'd hit him square in the arm. Well, he's not going to die.

He was also probably not going to shoot again for a while.

She was running for the door. She couldn't offer much help here. Jason was locked in too close for her to risk any kind of shot, and she didn't feel like murdering anyone just yet. Not when Batman was already threatening to toss her in jail shall she take a life. Not when she hadn't taken vengeance for her sister yet.

And from a safe distance, she watched Jason fight.

It was brutal, and it was beautiful. She'd seen him in action occasionally before, but it was different, somehow. He threw an assassin over his shoulder, and was immediately back on his feet to smash his elbow into the face of another. A kick to the groin, followed by the hilt of the gun he still held against the temple. The assassin dropped like a stone, and he immediately redirected his attention to the one on the floor, shooting a single shot at his leg.

The ground was clear. He glanced up and saw her standing there, gun in hand, behind the glass door of the terminal. She could hear sirens. Police and security were closing in on the spot, and soon she'd be evacuated.

She threw the gun back into the terminal. She didn't want to be seen holding it. That would cause questions to be asked. Cameras in the terminal had likely already been dealt with by the assassins beforehand.

"Go," she said, though he could have only seen the moving of her mouth. "Go help."

He stared at her for a moment, and then nodded. And then he sprinted up the escalator and disappeared from her view.

—

BY THE TIME Jason got to the second floor, Arrow was nowhere in sight. The Princess' corpse wasn't lying around somewhere either, so that was a good sign. And from the shattered glass windows, he had a good sense where they'd disappeared off to. The assassins had dispersed too, most likely heading to chase them down. One was knocked out on the ground. Another saw him and started sprinting, still clutching his arm. The one Callie had shot. Jason raised the gun he'd swiped off one of the other men and shot, hitting him in the leg.

He had not expected this. Really, he should have known Princess Perdita was travelling to Star City today, but still, he hadn't expected an assassination. And things were slightly trickier now. Oliver knew he was here. There would be questions asked. And Oliver might have already spotted Callie, because she'd just been hiding there instead of running away like she ought to.

And she'd also shot someone. He'd noticed that. Right in the arm. Why was he surprised she knew how to use a gun? It should have been rather obvious from the way she'd spoken about handling herself in those early days. And she'd had that miniscule pistol. Her aim surprised him, though—lucky shot, maybe, but he had a feeling she wouldn't have risked pulling that trigger if she'd known she'd missed.

Missing wasn't even the worrying part. With the way Bruce was breathing down their necks, if Callie had accidentally killed the guy, even in self defence... Oh boy.

He didn't have much with him. Two guns he'd taken from the crooks, not enough bullets, and the knife he'd snuck onto the flight with him. And he somehow needed to find a way to make it to wherever Green Arrow had disappeared off to with Princess Perdita.

"What on earth?" the voice was familiar, and he spun around with a sigh, tipping his head in greeting.

"Canary."

Dinah Lance, the Black Canary stared at him, blinking for a moment. "Red Hood? What on earth are you doing here?"

"Just visiting. I think Green Arrow jumped out of those windows with Princess Perdita, by the way." He pointed towards the shattered glass. "Nice to see you too, by the way."

"Are you here alone?" she asked, not looking too awfully worried about her partner or the Princess' safety. "Flying commercial?"

"It's a... interesting scenario. I think we should find Arrow and the Princess, by the way."

"Right." Dinah sighed. "I did not expect to be greeted with this after getting off my flight." But she'd already changed into costume somehow, while Jason was really looking like he'd just gotten off a flight. "Tell you what, you're not in the right attire for this. I think Green Arrow and I can handle it, why don't you... wait for us outside? It'll be nice to catch up with you, unless you already have plans tonight."

"I..." Jason pinched his nose. "I have a companion with me, and I'll have to check with them first. I'll text you later. You go help out Arrow, I'll find a way to sneak out of here."

—

"I'M NOT MEETING them," Callie hissed. "If they didn't see me, no thank you. I'll do it someday, but I am not mentally prepared for it right now."

"Then I'll tell them no," Jason said. They were in the cab, but the conversation sounded normal enough Jason wasn't particularly worried. "Don't worry about it. Roy won't tell them either."

"What a disaster," Callie moaned. "You're alright?"

He was a bit bruised and battered, but nothing bad. Stuff that would go away after a night. "Yeah, I'm good. Anywhere in mind for dinner tonight? Or would anything work?"

He turned to face her when she didn't immediately reply, and he realised she was staring out of the car into the city as they sped through the streets. She hadn't been back for years. No matter how many bad memories this city held for her, it was still her home for most of her life.

"Callie?"

"There's this one diner... I don't think it's too far away from the hotel either. We can go there, maybe."

"Just tell me the address later and I'll sort something out." He didn't want her to need to stress about anything. This would already be emotionally taxing enough for her, he didn't need to make things worse. He'd told her to do this because she needed it, needed to move on or at least try in that direction, but it didn't mean it had to be a terrible experience.

His phone buzzed and he glanced at the lit-up screen. And then he sat up a little straighter. "Umm, Callie?"

"Yes?"

"Oliver just texted. Says he spotted you. He wants to know what the fuck is going on." Really, the full text said that Oliver had spotted her after going through the footage he'd recorded, but he wasn't about to say that in the company of the cab driver.

He could swear he saw her expression freeze, her body turn tense. Like a cat ready to pounce. Hesitantly, he laid a hand on her arm. "I can tell him he saw wrong if you want."

After what felt like an eternity, she muttered, "No."

"No?"

She didn't face him, instead turning to stare out at the quickly darkening sky. "Damn it, we might as well just get it over with. Tell them... tell them to meet at the diner tonight. Elle's Diner. They'll know where it is. Hope it hasn't shut down."

That's when the cab driver decided to interrupt the conversation. "Don't mean to eavesdrop, but... ya. Elle's still standing strong. Not going anywhere, that place. Star City legend, I swear. You from round here, kid?"

"I am," she replied quietly. "He's not. I haven't been back for a few years, though."

"The mum's stopped running Elle's now. Half-retired, though she still pops in every once in a while to help. It's her two daughters now running the show. Other than that, nothing's changed."

"Damn." A bittersweet expression crossed into her face. "Nice to know that."

"You want me to tell them?" Jason confirmed, hand still on her arm. She lowered her head and stared at where their skin touched. It didn't seem like her powers worked when it wasn't her hands.

"Yeah. Seven at Elle's tonight." Her eyes fluttered shut. "I have to face them again eventually."

"If you feel uncomfortable with it, just tell me. I can think of an excuse to get us out of here."

She shook her head. "No excuses. No need for them. I owe them one, really. I've just been a coward about it all these years."

hiii this chapter was based off/inspired by the events of the green arrow showcase short (search it up on youtube it's so cute), which i recently learnt has actually been accepted as canon-adjacent to young justice????? vvvv cool. basically imagine that short but jason's also there to help & callie shoots a guy. 

this book is going down a bit of a different route than i thought...? ik the romance bit is SLOOOOOOW (nonexistent) rn but i promise you'll start seeing more of it soon. this book was initially meant to be a two-parter in a similar matter to no celestial, where the first half is about getting revenge on scarecrow & swinton, but i think this "half" is likely going to end up being around 3/4 of the book. the second part won't be much in the way of superhero plot and will be much more focused on their relationship in general!!!

ik there isn't much in the way of action for this book but it's a bit difficult to fit in lots of fight scenes for what's basically a near civilian fmc. obvs i can do some for jason but 1) i'm not really good at writing action and 2) it doesn't feel too relevant to the plot...? and i've been neglecting callie's powers but i swear. i'll try to do more with it.