Aero *Completed Story*

Chapter 5

"Cause I'm broken when I'm open
And I don't feel like I am strong enough
'Cause I'm broken when I'm lonesome
And I don't feel right when you're gone away"

"Ollie, where did she go? I haven't heard from her or seen her in over a week." Wally paced back and forth in the foyer of the Queen mansion.

Oliver Queen looked at the man in front of him with sadness. He could tell Wally was really frustrated and hurt. Oliver could feel as sorry for him as he wanted but he still couldn't give him the answer he was looking for. "Wally, come in and sit down, have some tea."

Wally could see a look of sympathy in Oliver's eyes, and he took that as a bad sign. "No. Just be honest with me."

Oliver sighed. "To be honest, I don't know where she is. She only left me a note saying she would be out of town for a while. That's all I know." He was mostly telling the truth.

About half an hour before she left, Preston had told him she had decided to go on Bruce's mission. He didn't know what to think. He was upset she hadn't told him sooner, but at the same time his heart was filled with pride that his little girl had the courage to do this. After a week of pondering over it, he decided he was glad he hadn't known sooner or he would have tried to talk her out of it. Because he didn't know how long she would be gone, he had to tell Dinah. The only thing he told her was that Preston was on a mission. Dinah understood and fully supported the idea. Oliver wished he could be as strong as that, but he hated not having Preston nearby. He realized in just the week she had been gone that he had become a very overprotective father.

Now standing before him was the man who he knew Preston was in love with and with whom she shared everything. But Oliver wasn't allowed to tell him anything. The decision to keep Wally in the dark, it sounded like something Bruce had stipulated when Preston had agreed to go on the mission. He wished he could do or say something to make the worry on Wally's face go away. Oliver had known the man long enough to know exactly how he was feeling.

Wally had a habit of jumping to conclusions and not thinking things through all the way. Oliver supposed that was because he was used to doing everything fast. The man couldn't help it, he was one of the fastest men alive. And from the moment Dinah had told him about Preston's true feelings for Wally, Oliver knew that Wally felt the same for Preston. Looking at him now, he knew that Wally assumed Preston's leaving was somehow because of him and nothing Oliver could tell him would change that.

"Look, Oliver, I know you are telling me the truth. I just need to know she is ok. I just need to know she didn't leave because of me." Wally put his head down in disappointment.

"I'm sure she is fine," even Oliver could hear the doubt in his own voice. He hoped Wally wouldn't pick up on it. "But I am positive she didn't leave because of you."

Wally looked up at him and nodded. "Well if you hear anything, please let me know." With that, Wally was gone. Oliver sighed loudly in frustration.

***

A red light blinked on the console in front of Batman. He pushed a few buttons and the big screen in front of him came on revealing a picture of a bald headed green man. After pushing a few more buttons, the man began to talk.

"Line secure on my end." Martian Manhunter said with confidence.

"My line is always secure." Batman smugly answered. He saw Martian Manhunter raise his eyebrow knowingly and that brought a slight smirk to his face. "Proceed."

"Have you received any communication from Aero yet?"

"Yes, it seems she will be sending the messages via postcard. Right before she left we agreed that she send intel every two weeks. I just finished deciphering the message. She found most everyone speaks English. Her apartment is small but satisfactory. Most of the vendors and others she has met and talked to mostly like to talk about their families, but she has heard that there is a new company in town that might be set up right outside the city. For now that is all the information she can give. Seems it takes a little while for the natives to warm up to strangers."

"Any information is good. It's more then we have. At least we know we have sent her to the right area." Martian Manhunter seemed to input something onto the keyboard in front of him. "I will log that in our findings. We will speak again soon."