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WHO: Wally and Robin; Wally and Superboy; Wally and Artemis; Wally and Jaime
WHERE: ALL OVER CREATION (De Chima, VA; Heropa, various locales)
WHEN: IMMEDIATELY
WHAT: Time to talk about destroyed futures and killer spine robots
WARNINGS: intense teen drama

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[Wally sits down on the steps with a sigh, glaring down at his hands.] Bart said for thirteen years he lived with the Blue Beetle that enslaved the entire world. But he still got really mad when he thought I was gonna blame him. [KF glances up at Jaime.] Blame you.

[When Wally raises his eyes to look at Jaime, he gets nothing but a nice view of the side of Jaime's head, because his own gaze is trained on the ground. The worst part of this, he thinks, is the fact that he's not surprised at Wally's words, not with the way Bart just shows up at his house, slinging around hermano and amigo like nothing, staring up at him with those big puppydog eyes.

What would Jaime have done if he went back in time to stop some dude from taking over the world? He's not so sure. He has the pieces of the puzzle, not the whole, but that's enough. He's barely scratched the surface, but he knows about the nukes, the crowd suppression, power strong enough to slice through a man's skull, enough to melt down a human body.

He wouldn't go back to being friends with that. And as much as he tells himself that this alternate universe didn't and would never come to pass, it still nags at him. It's a good thing, he tells himself. It's when it doesn't nag at him that he's got a problem on his hands.]

Yeah. Apparently... apparently that version of me ended up being his best friend. [He shakes his head.] I don't get it either. I'm gonna be honest with you, KF - if he told me that he came back in time to kill me after living through all that, I wouldn't blame him.

He wouldn't, though. [Kid looks back down at the steps, a little blank himself. He remembers the arguments when he first started out, Uncle Barry pounding it into his head like a railroad spike, be careful, you never want to fight to kill someone, a lot of these people are just desperate, be careful Kid, and thinks that Bart's an apple that didn't fall far from the tree.] He's not like that. He's the Flash's grandson.

Really? Huh. I didn't know that your guys' powers were passed down genetically.

[It's only natural to assume that Wally's genetically related to the first Flash too, in some way. He tilts his head back, head banging lightly against the wall of the library.]

Still, there's a big difference between deciding not to kill a guy and deciding to become friends with him. I dunno. Maybe he sees something special in him - that version of me. I haven't asked.

[And he must, right? Nobody would be friends with their own conqueror out of principle.]

[KF doesn't bother correcting Jaime.]

I dunno, it's not so much a stretch to me. I mean, if he really doesn't want to take over the world, why not be friends with him? [KF shrugs.] He doesn't seem to mind. And Batman would probably call the plan "strategic" or something. Being pals with a guy is a good motivator to keep him from snapping and taking over the world.

I guess. [He still doesn't get it, he really doesn't, but he's not about to push the matter, or how profoundly weird he finds it to Wally. If Bart wants to offer him his friendship, well... he's not about to deny it.

He rubs one hand across the back of his neck.] So is that it? Is there anything else you needed to know?

That's it. [Wally doesn't get up. He presses his hands together between his knees.] Everything else I don't know, you can't help with.

[He should probably apologize to Jaime for showing up unannounced and interrogating him like that, but he...doesn't. Okay then.]

[Jaime does get up, brushing his hands off on the sides of his legs.]

Okay. Then I got a question for you. Everything I told you about this, everything I'm going to say - am I right in thinking that it's going to get around to your team? Whoever's here now, and whoever's gonna show up in the future?

[KF stares up at Jaime, hands clasped between his knees.] Sorry. I have to tell them about the Reach. [It wasn't even a question.] I can...keep out the more personal stuff, if you want.

It's fine.

[Part of Jaime wants to tell KF that this is his life that they're swapping stories of, a part of him that he keeps purposely close to his chest. He doesn't want anyone to know how strong he is, or even the full extent of his involvement with taking down the Reach.

The Titans don't know. All they know is that the Reach was a threat, and somehow, Jaime dealt with it.

If he was out of uniform, maybe he would have said that, responding automatically to the odd vulnerability he feels when confronted with a team of his peers knowing him as a threat before they know him as a person, but in uniform? He thinks twice. Come on, Jaime, he tells himself. Don't be a dick about this.] I mean, I'd appreciate it if you kept the personal stuff out, but if you need to go full disclosure with this, I get it. This isn't really about me. [He sighs, long and slow and quiet.] Just do me a favour and let me know when your next teammate arrives. I want to know who knows, at least.

[Letting them all know is the right thing to do. The Reach only functions because of their secrets, and the only way to blow them out of the water is to keep those to a minimum, to expose the truth.]

Yeah, dude. I can do that. [Wally sighs, brow furrowing as he glares at the ground. He doesn't like this, going around and telling people something that obviously bothers Jaime, but those people are his teammates. And it sucks, but it's a unique situation; Jaime's alternate self's spine-robot is brainwashed into taking over the world. Even in their line of work, that's not exactly common.] Thanks, dude.

'Course. You need to know any more, how I took them down or anything, just let me know.

[His wings unfurl from his back and he pushes off the cement, rising hovering just above the library's doorway.

He's pretty sure he knows the answer to his next question, but he has to ask anyway. It's human nature to be a little wary, a little weirded out, all things considered.]

We cool?

Yeah dude, we're cool. [He should probably ask about how Jaime brought down the Reach, but...later. He's exhausted. And running on information overload, he needs to process.]

All right. [He feels as if he ought to say something else, wish Wally luck, or something, but he doesn't.]

Well. See you later, then.

[And with that, he takes off - not in the direction of his house, but it probably comes as no surprise to either of them that he'd rather have a fly around town instead, a luxury that Wally, given the conversations he has to have, doesn't have.]

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