Cinderella's First Dance

Super heroes do not live in their costumes. They have lives outside the spandex outfits. They do not sleep with their capes on, nor do they simply fly around, 24/7, personally writing the wrongs of the world.

Today will prove to be an interesting case against the norm.


**********************************


Dawn broke above the horizon, and shone down upon the scenic landscape. Rays of light pierced a once-abandoned structure. No longer is it abandoned, as it is now the secret dwelling of a group of teens with super powers, aptly dubbed by the media as `Young Justice'.
Following the sunrise was a familiar vehicle. A wheeled vehicle which seemed to defy the laws of physics by flying without wings. Named `The Super Cycle', it serves as the transportation for Young Justice. Specifically, today, TWO such members. Riding in the rear passenger seat were Impulse and Wonder Girl. The Super Cycle then hovered down for a vertical landing right beside a red car; the Red Bird.

Within the building Robin, the team leader, was hard at work at the computer consul. His fingers flew across the terminal, as he worked dilligently on some cases assigned to him by his partner, Batman.

At the meeting table were seated two other members; Red Tornado and Secret. They were going through family pictures of Traya, specifically of this Thanksgiving.

Secret was laughing to herself as she hovered over Tornado's shoulder. "I like that one," she said, as her and Tornado were looking at a candid shot of Traya, face stuffed full of turkey, startled by the camera.
"Oh, trust me. There's more like this one," Tornado said, a hint of humor in his voice. He flipped to the next picture, which was of him in a Pilgrim outfit.

"Uhhhh....let's just skip that one, shall we?" He said, his red face seeming to get redder as Secret burst out laughing.

At that moment a red streak shot through the doorway. That blur was Impulse.

"Hey guys," he said. "What's so funny?"

"Hey Bart. We're lookin' at some of Tornado's Thanksgiving photos."

"Kewl! Lemme see!" Before Tornado could object, the human blur grabbed the pictures and looked through them at high speed.

"IlikethatonedudenicepictureIdidn'tknowtheystillmadethosenicehairisthatsupposed tobestuffingcutecostume...."

"GIMME those!" Tornado scolded, snatching the pictures from his hands.

"What?" Impulse asked, confused and oblivious to his actions.

"Okay, what did Impulse do, and how much will it cost us?" Wonder Girl said, sarcastically, as she strode through the doorway.

"Nothing. Just being himself," Tornado said, holding his head as Impulse blurred in, wearing a pilgrim's costume.

"So you DID keep it!" Impulse said. "Nice fit."

"And what is fearless leader up to over there?" She asked.

"Cases for Batman," Secret said. "I don't know WHY he won't just let him have fun."

"`Cause he's Batman, Secret. That's all you need to know," Impulse said, grimly.

"Yeah, didn't you work with him once?" Cassie asked him.

"Unfortunately," he said, shuttering. "I don't understand how Rob can do it? It was, like, being in a grave yard past midnight and you knew there was a killer in the bushes but you were too stupid to care because you were stupid enough to go in the grave yard in the first place so you keep walking and walking and walking until..."

"Can it, Bart," Cassie said. "We get the picture."

"So, anything exciting going on here?" Impulse asked.

"Nope," Secret said. "It's been pretty dull here. You?"

"Nothing the JLA couldn't handle in their sleep," she retorted, yawning. "It's been pretty dull out there. What I wouldn't give for some kind of excitement..."

Just then, at the EXACT moment she finished the phrase, Super Boy burst into the room.

"MAN, DO I HOPE YOU GUYS ARE UP FOR SOME KIND OF EXCITEMENT TONIGHT!!!"

"Is it just me, or was that a little TOO convenient," she whispered to Impulse.

"I just got an invitation to the opening of a new club in Gotham; the `Night Crawler'." He handed the invitation to the group, who read it (save for Robin), in great anticipation.

It read:

`To Super Boy,

You are cordially invited to the grand opening of the
hippest hop-spot in Gotham.

The Night Crawler

Black tie unwanted. Bring anyone.

Starts at 9 p.m. sharp!


"KEWL!!" Impulse exclaimed.

"So, keep your plans open, guys!" He exclaimed. "We're gonna PARTY!!!"

"Everybody WANG CHUNG tonight!!!" Impulse chimed in, runnng in wearing a disco suit.

"THAT'S the spirit, Imp!" Superboy cried. "What about you, Cass? You in?"

"Sound GREAT!" she hollered gleefully. "I'll call Cissie. I'm sure they'll let a celebrity like her in with us without being suspicious."

"Great!" Secret said. Her mood quickly changed, though. Once extatic for her commrad's good fortune, she became distraught. She came to the realization that, although the invitation included her, SHE, because she could not keep herself solid long enough to enjoy the dance. Her displeasure was obvious, but no one noticed.

"What about YOU, mystery boy?" He asked to Robin. Robin did not look up from his monitor.

"I have work to do. You guys have fun." He stood up and, grabbing his cape from the back of his chair and turning off the monitor, he strode out of the room.

"...`Kay," Impulse said, shrugging.

"More women for us Bart, right?!?" Superboy took another look at Impulse, who was now wearing an afro wig and disco dancing, humming `Stayin' Alive'. "Then again, maybe not," he said, shaking his head.

**************************************************************

Later that night, in Gotham City. A star-studded turnout, as the city was all ablaze with media and celebrity gaggle. `Sly' Stallone, Arnold Shwartzeneggar, Ricky Martin, the works.

"....And here we have Jason Newsted of Metallice, ladies and gentlemen!" The female news broadcaster said with excitement. "And the stars just keep comming!" Just as she said this, a large limo pulled up. A VERY long limo. It pulled up the entrance, then stopped. An esteemed limo driver then opened the door, and out burst Young Justice. Dressed in their uniforms (save Impulse, who insisted wearing his disco uniform). Empress was with them, and Cissie, dressed to kill, had her arms under Superboys, making it seem as though she was his date, rather than his teammate.

"And here comes `Young Justice'! The young heroes who've caught the nation by storm. And it looks like they've got another American Hero with them. Yes...that's Cissie. The US gold winning Olympic star! Now Gotham can boast having seen everything. The only thing that would make this night perfect was to have a visit from Superman AND President Luthor...."

Watching the events on the monitor, Secret was slumped in the chair. How she longed to be there with them. To be normal. She tried to remember a time when she was normal. She recalled smiles, someone who she thought was her father....but then the bad memories came in. She shuddered, trying to hold back the tears, as she lept from the seat. She then ran into someone big and solid. It's hands caught her gently, and she felt instantly at ease. She looked up to see Robin staring down at her.

"What's up, Secret?" He asked, concerned.

"Nothing," she said, rather unconvicingly. "I just...well...I wish I could be with THEM right now." She pointed at the screen, which had the image of Superboy dancing with Wonder Girl, Impulse getting `jiggy' with it, and basically everyone having a good old time.

"Well, you'd better hurry up and get dressed then," he said, holding up a beautiful blue dress and scarf.

"Oh my God, Robin. It's beautiful!" She said, staring at it longingly. "But...but how can I wear it?" She asked, confused.

"You let me worry about that," he said. He then pulled out a gun, and sprayed her with an odd gass. She coughed, and then blacked out....

**********************************************************

At the Night Crawler, the group was having a good time. Cissie was having a discussion with Fred Durst, Impulse was trying to catch Selma Hiyak's eye, and Empress was simply on the dance floor, having a good old time.

Suddenly, the attention of the room shifted, and the music seemed to stop. Everyone had turned to gaze, as a beautiful young female walked through the doors. She wore a dazzling blue dress, platform shoes, and a see-through scarf. Her blond hair seemed to just fall over her shoulder, displaying the delicatness of her neck. She seemed nervous, although se refused to show it. Her skin was as fine as silk, and she seemed radiant, even in the pulsating dance lights.

Superboy took imediate notice of the late-commer, and took immediate action.

"Hey there. Come here often?" He asked, trying to be suave.

The pretty blonde laughed to herself. "Oh, Kon. You're such a tease!" Superboy was taken aback, stunned.

"Wha...how did you know...?" He stammered.

"What, you don't recognize me?" She asked, her head cocked in ammusement. Superboy looked more closely, then his eyes widened.

"SECRET?!?" He asked, shocked.

She laughed out loud. Impulse then rushed over to see who Superboy was talking to.

"Hey, Kon. Hey, Secret." He suddenly did a stunning double take, which nearly knocked him off his feet. "SECRET!!!" He exclaimed. "HOW? WHY? WHERE?...

"Chill, Bart," Superboy said, bopping him on the back of the head. "So, how DID you do this, Secret? I thought you could only stay solid for a few minutes."

"Robin," she said. "He, like, sprayed me with this wierd stuff. And when I woke up, I was solid." She smiled when she said this, like a child who's showing off her Christmas gifts to her friends.

"Leave it to `ol Rob," Superboy said in amazement. "So where is the Boy Wonder?"

Her head hung low, like she was reminded of a recent tragedy. "He said he couldn't come. Said he had business. But he told me to have fun." She smiled again, and, grabbing underneath Superboy and Impulse's arms, lead them to the dance floor. "So let's have fun."

However, if anyone of them had looked above, they would have seen a strange figure looking down from the sky light. The figure was perched between the light of the party and the darkness of the night. It was the figure of the Urban Legend...Robin.

A smile crept across his face, as he gazed down at the sight of Impulse, Superboy, and Secret doing the Macarena.

"Have fun, my little Cinderella," he said. His face grew dreadfull, as he had one piece of unfinished business to attend to. He lept off the building's edge, and into the night air.

*********************************



Away from the gitz and glam of the party scene, in a dark alley, a lone figure strode into the darkness. He was calm and confident, definitely the man in charge. He wore a fine business suit. After all, this WAS business. And he WAS, after all, the MOST powerful man in the world. He was, after all, President Luthor.

"Alright, I'm here," he said in a serious tone. The alleyway seemed vacant, void of ANY life. But he continued talking anyways. "My people delivered the hypodylexcologlion, capable of turning gasses into a more solid form for up to 24 hours. Although I HARDLY see how it could prove of use..."

"It's not your business to know, LUTHOR," a voice called out from the depths of the shadows. The voice was deep, but it seemed to be FORCED deep.

"Fine," Luthor retorted. "Do you have it?"

A green-gloved hand seemed to pierce the shadows. In it held a diskette.

"All the information on your little `dealings' with the Chinese two years ago. All the evidence, all the proof, right there. Per agreement."

Luthor grabbed the disk, and the hand darted back into the shadows.

"It's a pleasure doing business with you, stranger. By the way, I never did get your name...."

But it was pointless. A red and green figure seemed to fly from the shadow and into the air. Luthor watched the figure and, when he thought it was far enough away, he pulled out his cell phone.

"Yes, Mr. President?" The voice said on the other line.

"He's on the move. Follow him!"

"Yes, Mr. President."

"Call them off!" A voice called from the shadows. This one was a much darker voice. A voice that chilled Luthor's bones to the core. A voice he recognized.

"So, that WAS your partner," he said, trying to be coy. "Quite the capitalist, he is."

The voice wasn't ammused. "HE may have given you all his information, but NOT mine. And if ANYTHING happens to him, I will rain down a hailstorm of media helfire and brimstone the likes of which you've NEVER seen. Call...them...off!!!" The voice was even grimmer. So much so that the night itself seemed to quiver in fear. Luthor felt it's power, and was forced to succumb. He grabbed his cell phone form his breast pocket, and pressed a button.

"Cancel the move!" He barked upsettingly.

"Alright sir. We've already lost him as it is." The news shocked Luthor. He NEVER expected the person to evade government-trained men. Trying not too betray his feelings, he calmly put his phone back in his pocket.

"Happy now?" He waited for a response, but got none. "Batman?" He asked the shadows, but got no response. All he received was a cold winter wind to chill his already-frozen bones.

So he left the alleyway and got into his limo, to leave the night kingdom in defeat....