Bart gets an invitation to the Manchester high school reunion because Preston is on the organizing committee.

"Seriously, just come. Nobody will mind and I haven't seen you in forever."

Which is Bart's fault, really, because Vancouver is just a short run away only he's never been able to come up with a believable explanation for why he's in town, and it's that more than anything else that convinces him to go.

The invitation says "Bart and guest". As he's staring at the RSVP form, the cursor in the "guest's name" field blinking slowly, his cellphone rings.

--

Carol greets Bart with a kiss on the cheek and a giant hug, then turns to his companion with a quizzical expression.

"Cissie King-Jones," says Cissie. "You're Carol, right?"

"I remember," says Carol. "From the school dance. Bart lost his ring."

They grin at each other while Bart looks at the ceiling and fights off a blush. "That was forever ago."

"What do you do now, Cissie?" asks Carol.

"I'm an Olympic gold medalist in archery, but that doesn't pay the bills so by day I work as a school counsellor." Cissie smiles sweetly. "How about you?"

"I'm a professor at Princeton," says Carol. "Biophysics, primarily, although I'm multidisciplinary."

The two women stare at each other for a moment while Bart tries to decide if he needs to defuse this situation. He can't quite read the mood. Are they jealous of each other? He thinks he remembers some friction the first time they met but that was a long time ago and they seemed to get along fine after a while.

After another moment of staring, both women burst out laughing.

"I can't believe Bart dragged you to another Manchester High event," says Carol. "You know bringing a plus one isn't compulsory, right?"

Bart shrugs. "Cissie seemed like she needed a break." He can't really explain the impulse, except that Manchester was the best time of his life, and he knew Cissie hadn't had an easy time of it in high school and he wanted to share some of his fortune.

"So you brought me to another high school?" teases Cissie. She turns back to Carol. "He literally interrupted me ranting about the school board budget to ask me here."

Carol laughs again. "I know about boards and budgets." She sighs heavily. "Honestly, sometimes I wonder if they actually have a plan or if they're just being contrary."

"Oh, I know," says Cissie.

A waiter comes by with some glasses of sparkling wine, and Cissie plucks two off the tray. She offers one to Carol, then holds out the other for Bart. He shakes his head and makes a face. "I don't like the taste and I can't get drunk."

Preston pops up behind them. "Hey guys!" He extracts a high five from Bart. "Having fun?"

Carol tips her glass of champagne at him. "You did a great job. I hardly recognise this as the old gymnasium."

Preston beams. "You learn a lot about making places look like other places in the film industry. We can make a warehouse look like a mansion, a museum look like an office, a water treatment plant look like a top-secret laboratory..."

"Oh, that reminds me, I really liked your new show," Carol adds. She turns to Cissie. "Preston works on Edge."

"Thanks!" Preston nudges Bart. "Come say hi to Wade and Rolly, they didn't believe me when I said you were coming."

Bart hesitates and glances at Cissie.

"You go," says Cissie. "I can entertain myself here. With the alcohol. And Carol."

Carol laughs as Preston drags Bart off by the elbow.

All around him, Bart can hear people expressing amazement and dismay that it's been ten years already, and it confuses him because ten years is an eternity. Manchester High feels like going back to the Stone Age, only in a cool way, without the giant woolly mammoths and hunting with spears and so on.

Wade greets him with his own iteration of the statement, which Rolly echoes. He manages to get through the usual catching up topics - health, career, marital status - before someone else demands his attention, then someone else, and he ends up being passed around the room like a basketball.

"Sucks being the popular kid, huh," says Cissie.

"It didn't at the time," Bart complains.

Eventually, the organisers thank everyone for coming, apologise for the bar tab running out, and everybody starts to drift out of the room.

"Are you staying in town?" asks Carol.

Bart pauses guiltily. That wasn't a cover he'd thought to make. Should he say he's staying with Helen? But then where would Cissie--

Carol sighs. "Well, I am, so why don't we go back to my motel room?"

After a brief stop for more drinks, they settle in the room, Cissie in the desk chair, Bart and Carol on the end of the bed.

"Sorry it isn't anything classier. I thought it might be better to go somewhere we won't risk being overheard." Carol laughs suddenly and glances at Cissie. "Did he really carry you all the way here?"

"You don't say no when a speedster offers you a ride," says Cissie primly. "Although fixing my hair afterwards was a nightmare."

"I bet," says Carol. She pours them another drink. "Well, I'm glad that's over. Not that it wasn't great to catch up with everyone, but..."

"Am I a bad person for not missing it anymore?" Bart asks out loud.

"For not missing high school?" the girls ask simultaneously.

"So that's a no?"

"Bart, everybody hated high school."

"I didn't hate Manchester," Bart protests. "Keystone sucked though."

"You can love a thing - a period in your life - without wanting to go back there," says Carol.

"I loved being in Young Justice," Cissie adds. "But I don't miss it, because I'm not that person anymore."

"Anyway, you know you're old enough now to stop worrying about what 'normal' is, right?"

"Chronologically I'm not even eighteen yet," Bart points out.

The girls stare at him with twin expressions of horror.

"I'm going to change the subject now," says Carol firmly.

"Actually, we should probably head back," says Cissie. She gives Carol an apologetic smile. "I work alternate Saturdays."

"It was great to meet you again," says Carol. "Bart, are you going to the reunion basketball game tomorrow? Current vs. former students?"

"If something else doesn't come up," he says.

Carol hugs him. "You know you can drop by whenever, right?" she murmurs into his ear. "I'm lying when I seem annoyed."

"I know." He squeezes her tightly.

He delivers Cissie to the door of her apartment. "Thanks for coming," he says, ducking his head.

Cissie shakes her head. "You were right again." She kisses him on the cheek. "I had a great time and it was just what I needed."