108 First Morning

Pam's voice came from behind Thorn, "You want to come out with us dear? Your sisters need to get some sun too."

 Thorn jumped when Pam spoke and just followed her with her eyes as Pam brought the other girls out. She placed Rose in Logan's lap and sat with Hazel getting her own dose of vitamin D. 

 "Have you ever thought of moving somewhere with less smog Pam? Someplace where the girls can see more than potted plants and asphalt?"

 Pam was leaning back in her chair and enjoying the sun, "I have done that a few times. But I always end up coming back here to Gotham, it's my home."

 "Not anymore dear, your home is now these three girls. Just something to think about, but you have to agree that a more… Natural environment will be beneficial to the girls."

 Pam gave Logan a serious look, "Could we talk up here for a moment?" She pointed at her head.

 {What's up beautiful? I must tell you that you look ravishing in the early morning light.}

 {I am worried about Thorn. What do you think of suppressing the memories of her time at the lab with your mental powers and we just treat her like she was born with Rose and Hazel?}

 {I don't think that would be a good idea, Pam. Repressed memories have a way of coming back at the worst possible times and in doing so, she may rightly lose her trust in us. Or worse she could lose trust in herself and all the happy times we will share with her in the future.}

 Logan smiled at Rose in his lap and tickled her neck. {It will be hard to help her overcome the trauma she endured at the hands of those men, but she will come out of it stronger with our help and understanding.}

 Smiling at Pam, {In this world, nothing good will ever come from suppressing bad memories.}

 Speaking out loud, "Ok my new moral compass, what do we have planned for today?"

 "I was thinking we should do some shopping. We need to get the girls some clothes and furniture for their own room. Plus, we need to think of some way to work on their education. Some educational TV would be a start but if their minds grow like their bodies then computers are going to be necessary."

 Pam smiled, "Yes... Having their own room is a must. My education needs increasing as well." She gave a suggestive look to Logan. 

 Logan smiled and winked at her, then continued. "I hate to go all scientist, but it may be of help to get a blood sample to Kent Nelson in the League. Our best bet to learn about the girl's growth will be comparing samples taken at separate times. Some brain scans could also help work up a learning plan optimized for their growth."

 "I can do any comparisons that need doing, don't forget that I am the best advanced botanical biochemistry scientist in Gotham if not the World. I can also make beds and dressers out of plants, so all we need are clothes and bedding."

 "I will leave that in your capable hands then." He debated on not telling Pam about the mission from the Avatars of The Red, but in the end decided to tell her. He knew if it was reversed, he would want to know.

 "Do you think it's the girls that they were talking about?" Pam asked as soon as I told her about it.

 "My first thought would be no. Thorn talked to you over The Green and there didn't seem to be any pushback when she did. I hope it is unrelated, but we can't bury our heads in the sand about the possibility either."

 The rest of the morning was about what you would expect of a family of five. Lots of running around and convincing the kids to wear clothes so they could go outside. They included Thorn as much as they could but at the same time, they didn't want to push her. It was a fine balance.

 Thorn seemed much more taken with her little sisters than with Pam or Logan. All the adults she had dealt with hurt her so maybe she felt safer with kids younger-looking than her. There was no real way to tell her age without tests and there was no way Logan or Pam were going to do anything like that to her.

 Pam proved her plant manipulation by making two strollers out of some random house plants. Then we walked to a nearby store that sold most of what we needed. Thorn was very nervous when I put her on my shoulders but soon calmed down and enjoyed looking around as we moved along.

On our way back from the store Logan was carrying a bunch of bags and Thorn was trying to help Pam push the stroller that held her sisters. As they waited at a crosswalk for the light to change, Logan noticed a distortion in the air in front of the oncoming traffic. 

 Suddenly, it appeared as though 7 identical men appeared in the road and then all of them started to collapse on themselves until only one was left. His outfit was an armor of gold and black mix with no helmet to cover his bald head and clean-shaven face. 

 He held a gun-looking object in his right hand that seemed to have one main barrel and three surrounding barrels. Logan saw the oncoming traffic about to hit him, so Logan quickly used his telekinesis to lift him out of the way.

 The man looked around and noticed that the only unsurprised face in the area was Logan's he spoke. "Thank you for the effort but the vehicles would not have hurt me."

 Logan continued to use his ability to draw the strange man to him. "With your armor, I figured as much, but no need to ruin the driver's day with you destroying their vehicles for no reason other than you're appearing in a terrible spot."

 "Forgive me, finetuning a destination is a troublesome thing. You seem to be an unflappable chap. Do you by chance know how I can get in touch with the Justice League or the nearest Police station?" 

 Pam stepped in front of the kids, "What's your game Luthor? Don't even think of starting some random brawl in this neighborhood."

 "Hold on sweetheart." Logan placed his hand on Pam's shoulder. "I don't think this is the Luthor we know. His mind is… out of tune, with everyone else."

 "Hello Amela, I didn't think I would run into you here."

 "Actually… Lex? If I may, this is my girlfriend, Pamela. I am Logan J'onzz. You are not from this dimension, are you?"

 "I do so love to deal with smart people, it makes things go so much smoother. I am Lex Luthor from what I call Earth 449, while this earth is 232." He looks at the device that looks like a gun in his hand. "Oh, looks like I added a number and arrived on Earth 1232. How embarrassing. Still, maybe it will work out. That is if the Justice League here is good by nature and not evil, like some others I have come across."

 "Yes, the heroes of this world are good by nature. Though, the you in this world is less than trustworthy so if you can't deal with their suspicion then maybe you should head to where you meant to go." 

 Logan finally managed to adjust his own mind frequency to this Luthor's and do a quick scan of his mind to see if he was on the level and it looked good at a glance. Though he planned to get a better insurance policy than this.

 Logan turned to Pam, "It's ok. He is not looking for trouble, he is here for help."

 Logan stooped and picked up half of the bags he had been carrying and handed them to Lex. "Help us get these home and then we can get you a meet and greet with the League." 

 Lex placed his gun-looking device in a compartment that opened on his leg and took the bags. Pam just looked at Logan like he was crazy. "Oh, look the light changed finally, let's get the kids home Pam. I will get a hold of J'onn as we walk." 

Logan sent out an 'ignore and forget us' signal to everyone in the area. It wasn't very strong and anyone that put effort into it could break it if they really wanted to or if anyone in the group did something too strange.

 Pam was pushing the stroller and looking suspiciously at the figure walking with them. "Why did you call me Amela?"

 "On my world, you were known as Amela Lovestone. You were romantically involved with Merry Andrew. I was your friend and a Godfather to Merry." Lex looked at her with sadness in his eyes.

 Logan was listening in on the conversation, "Marry Andrew? Isn't that a synonym for the Harlequin in a deck of cards?"

 "Yes, she was my friend, The Jester's daughter. So, you can imagine my surprise to see her with a man and children on this Earth my dear, please forgive me." Lex bowed his head toward Pamela.

 "Lovestone? Here that's a synonym for Ivy. What a strange thing." Pam said. She didn't find it too unbelievable, Logan and Pam had spoken about the Multiverse before, and her mind shuddered away from the enormity of it all.