Yue

 5th February

21:53 GMT -5

"Why the long face, Orange?"

Mister Scott makes an expression of benevolent puzzlement, his arms held up in a gesture of appeal.

"The President's dead, and I made it happen."

He shrugs. "He might pull through. They haven't announced-."

I glare at him, and he has the decency to stop talking. "And I've managed to make an enemy of a Justice League variant I actually know."

He looks away from me for a moment. "The Don's probably going to want to go to the funeral."

"Oh yes, very respectful. The whole point of the Answer killing him like this was so that it can't be traced to Syndicate activity-. Actually, why didn't the Answer do that weeks ago? Why did he need me-?"

"Sometimes, violence isn't the Answer."

The.. man himself walks into the room, dressed in a more traditional anti-Question costume of white coat, hat and trousers, the Eye of Providence pin on his lapel. While I can see him in empathic vision, none of what I'm seeing really makes any sense. There's little emotion, and the tiny unreadable flecks there are don't appear to be connected to anything.

"Seems like it was here. I talked no one around. Luthor only agreed with you because I outfought everyone he had with him."

The Answer shakes his head. "Don't underestimate Luthor. If you hadn't undermined his belief in the absolute evil of the Syndicate by making peaceful overtures, he would have been quite prepared to die for his cause. He had to accept the Answer in order for these events to unfold."

"And you couldn't do this in some other way?"

"A math problem in an exam is written to have one correct Answer."

"Yes..?"

"If the problem is complex, a far smaller proportion of students will give that Answer than will give a different, incorrect Answer. Having you here allowed us to.. phrase the question in a way which would lead to the Vice President giving the correct Answer, rather than continuing with Slade Wilson's wrong Answer. You are still dissatisfied."

"Of course I am."

"If you were waiting for a certain Answer-."

"I could have removed him from office without killing him."

"Perhaps. But this will motivate the Made Men to accept the change in their working conditions more easily than they would if they believed that the President would pursue them."

"I don't-." Zatanna walks in, two books floating alongside her. One has runes stitched into the leather-bound cover, while the other is more mundane. "Ready to go?"

She looks at the Answer and Mister Scott, then nods. "More than ready."

The Answer nods, while Mister Scott smiles and waves. "You kids take care, now. Don't do anything I would!"

Zatanna traces a circle around me with the Staff, while-. Huh. "Mister Scott?"

He makes a dismissive motion with his right hand. "Ah, call me 'Al'."

"We're going home using a government-owned facility."

"Yeah?"

"You realise that that means that Luthor knows where we are. And how to contact me."

His face falls slightly-.

Zatanna taps the staff against the floor. "Teg su tuo fo ereh."

Mist coils around us, and when it falls again we're just outside Mount Justice. There's a military cordon, and the formerly concealed main entrance is wide open. Great, right, now we can go home-.

"How old are you?"

…

"Huh?"

Zatanna isn't quite looking at me. "I thought it was strange, how every other member of the team was the same age as the versions here and you weren't. And then I remembered that your ring lets you change how you look." She looks up, meeting my eyes. "You told us it was the first thing you did with it. I didn't really think anything of it, but… You're not younger, are you? You're the same age." Her eyes widen. "That's why-. Oh.. God, it all makes sense now. Who-? Who knows?"

"I told Jade. I'd be surprised if Diana and Batman aren't suspicious. That's it."

"Oh God, I was-. Why did you even..?"

"I honestly hadn't realised how young Diana and.. the rest of you thought I was. Not until she tried sending me to school. And then… I.. panicked, and said what I thought I needed to in order to stay on the team."

"I knew you acted older, but I just thought-. Thought you were being British, or.. it was because you thought you had to because everyone on the team was younger than you."

"No."

"Hehhah." She laughs nervously. "Artemis said she thought it was weird that you found her mom attractive. I didn't think-."

"There were women Paula's age I found attractive when I actually was-."

We… Don't look at each other for a moment.

"So. What now?"

I shrug. "We find Gubbins and go home. With regards to my age, I'd rather not tell people, but if you want to that's okay. Just give me a little warning."

"No, if you.. don't want to tell people, that's up to you." She doesn't say anything for a moment. "If you'd told me, I-." She cuts herself off. "I want to say I wouldn't have been so attracted to you, but.. Zorina.. married.. you. So… That's not true."

"I'm more similar to Blue than you are to her. But yes, I see where you're coming from, and you may well be right. I'm sorry."

"Hey." We look up at the man in the dull blue overalls. Gubbins, I assume. And the circle of soldiers with their weapons nearly raised. "The VeePee phoned ahead, but I don't really want a couple of Syndicate stooges in my new workshop. So get moving and get lost."

I nod. Doesn't really matter how much of that he heard if neither party ever wants to see the other again. "Certainly. If you'll show us the way?"

He floats up on some sort of gravity repulsor harness and heads towards the entrance-.

Dame Carol lands in front of us.

Gubbins grimaces. "Star, I wanna get them out of here. If you wanna have a duel or whatever-."

"No. This will take but a moment."

He drifts to the side and she approaches me.

"What can I do for you?"

"The war here is over, and my obligation to President Wilson discharged. But you freed me, rearmed me and spared me in combat, and so now I have an obligation to you."

"That's fine, don't worry."

She looks mildly offended. "My honor is not so light a matter."

"You can pay me back if I ever come back here?"

"You have been clear that you do not intend to come back. It would be inadequate repayment."

Oh… What can I-?

"You're aware that people who are villains here tend to be heroes on my own parallel? And the reverse?"

She nods. "Yes."

"How would you feel about a trip to Zamaron Sixteen?"