"What are you doing here?"  
	Roy Harper and Cecilia Jones stared at each other.  "It's New 
Year's Eve," Roy said. "Don't you have some party to be at?" 
	"I'm the babysitter," Cissie returned. "Don't YOU have some party 
to be at?" 
	"I figured I'd stay home so you could go out." 
	"I figured Lian's still too young to stay up and ring in the New 
Year, so you'd be going out." 
	"What about Young Justice?" 
	"We're not getting together. Rob's got civilian stuff to do. What 
about the Titans?" 
	"Dick's with his family, Donna and Kyle went out dancing...I 
dunno where everyone is. Times Square?" 
	It was 10pm on New Years Eve. Roy Harper and Cissie Jones were 
facing off in the television room of Titans Tower in jeans and sweaters. 
Dick Clark chirped happily from the flickering screen. 
	"Go get dressed," Roy ordered. 
	"I am dressed." 
	"Go put on something pretty," Roy clarified. 
 	Cissie looked down at her blue jeans and red	snowflake sweater 
and looked back at Roy as if she wanted to protest. 
	"Go dress up," he begged.  "I'm going out for a few minutes but 
I'll be back in half an hour or so."
	"Ok," Cissie started doubtfully, but Roy was already out the 
door. She shrugged and went up to her room. 
 
 
	Twenty minutes later, Roy dumped an armful of bags into the 
Titans' kitchen and bounded up the stairs to find his tux. It was somewhere 
in the back of the closet...he thought. 
 
 
	Cissie had taken one look at her neatly-ordered, color-coded closet 
and immediately realized she had nothing that qualified as party material. 
	That left one option.
	Toni's room. 
	Cissie gingerly picked her way through the clothes 
and make-up and magazines strewn about Argent's room. If she could get 
to the closet...Or maybe the bed would be better. It seemed to contain a 
wealth of party dresses Toni had discarded earlier in the evening. Cissie 
dove to the bed, landing in a heap of sequins and bows. She skimmed 
through dresses until she found one Toni had undoubtedly discarded as 
not flashy enough for New Year's Eve. It was a sparkly silver material, 
with a halter top and a flared skirt. Deciding that it was good enough, she 
pulled it on over her jeans and sweater and picked her way back to her 
room to finish getting ready. 
 
 
	Finding his tux not-*too*-wrinkled, Roy threw it on and galloped 
back downstairs to set up the rec room. 
	He blew the dust off a couple of old glasses and sat the semi-cheap 
bottle of champagne in ice. He poured the pork rinds in a bowl and found 
a knife that would slice down both the beef and cheese logs he'd picked 
up. There. They'd have a nice New Year's Eve, no matter what. 
 
 
	Somehow, in the back of her closet, Cissie actually found a pair of 
sparkly silver heels. Chucking her jeans, sweater and socks, she stepped 
into the heels and pulled her hair up in a ponytail, then swept it around to 
look like an elaborate twist rather than just a bundle of hair. She started to 
go back downstairs, then stopped and looked in the mirror. A little makeup 
wouldn't kill her and it only took two minutes to put on. There. Ready to 
go. 
 
 
	"Nice spread."  
	Roy whirled to see Cissie sticking her finger in the bean dip he had 
dug up from the fridge. 
	"Hey," he replied with a grin that covered the sudden flush he felt. 
"Thought we could have our own New Year's party right here." 
	"Cool." A wide grin spread across Cissie's face.  
	Roy's heart skipped a beat. "And is this...?" 
	"Ah ah ah! The beeflog and cheeselog are for later.  Wanna 
dance?"
	"How could I say no?" Cissie laughed as Roy grabbed her hand 
and spun her around in time with the music of the band shown on the 
television. 
	"Uh-oh, going to dip you!" Roy called as the song was ending.
	Holding the small of her back, he gently bent her backward, 
bracing her hips against his. He smiled to see her eyes dancing and her 
mouth laughing. 
	And then the door slammed. 
	"Uh-oh," he muttered, sliding his hand up to help her straighten. 
	Only one person could actually slam a door in the Tower and that 
was Toni Monetti. 
	"I don't believe it!" she exclaimed, bursting into the rec room. "He 
went back to his girlfriend! Right there!" 
	"Aw, Toni, I'm sorry," Roy managed to say in between rants. He 
knew better than to offer Toni a smart comment at a time like this. 
	"I mean, in the restaurant and during dessert of all things!" 
	"Um, I borrowed your dress," Cissie apologized. 
	"I just don't believe it! How could he do that to me? To ME!" 
	Cissie and Roy exchanged pained glances. 
	"What was I supposed to do then? Go on to the party alone and 
watch him MAKE UP with her? I think not!  So what am I supposed to do 
now? What?" 
	Cissie shrugged helplessly. 
	And then, to everyone's horror, Toni burst into tears. 
	"Oh...oh don't do that," Roy begged.  "You'll...you'll run your um, 
blush or something." 
	Cissie rolled her eyes. 
	"What's wrong?" a young voice asked. "What's wrong with Aunt 
Toni?" 
	"Lian, honey, what are you doing up?" Roy sighed. 
	"I heard the door slam," she explained. 
	"Men are scum," Toni sniffed out. "You remember that, kiddo." 
	"No, no, no," Roy rushed to his gender's defense.  
	"I'm not scum. Cissie, am I scum?" 
	"Um..."
	Frantically, Cissie looked for a way to defuse this situation. Two 
minutes before, she'd been cradled in Roy's embrace, for all intents and 
purposes alone in the Tower with a whole year of possibilities before them 
and now...now she was suddenly the Mommy.  
	"Lian, you should be in bed. Your daddy will tuck you in. Roy, 
you're only scum if you refuse to tuck in your daughter.  Go.  Toni, you 
really are running your makeup. Let's go upstairs and get you cleaned up.  
Oh, and um, I borrowed your dress. Sorry." 
	"C'mon, punkin," Roy said, scooping up his daughter and throwing 
her over his shoulder where she giggled helplessly. "Off to bed with you." 
He took off up the stairs, happy to be out of that undeniably girly 
situation. 
	The two girls looked at each other. Perhaps it was only a 
temporary truce that kept them from killing each other on normal days but 
nothing caused instant pax like the feeling of camaraderie two girls feel 
when one has been dissed by a member of the male gender. 
	"C'mon," Cissie sighed. "I've got a new moisturizing make-up 
remover that'll clean you up in no time." 
	"Really? Thanks." Toni smiled tearily at her. "You should keep the 
dress. It's a little too tame for me." 
	Cissie waited for Toni to turn her head before rolling her eyes. 
 
 
	Roy jogged back down the stairs, surprised to see Cissie sprawled 
on the couch, her feet, crossed at the ankles, resting on the arm. 
	"That was fast," he commented, lifting her feet so he could sit 
down and setting them on his legs.  "True that I had to run the gauntlet of 
sixteen cups of water, an explanation of why Toni thinks men are scum 
and a bedtime story, but you had...Toni." 
	"Toni had a voicemail from some guy telling her he was having a 
party in his penthouse and that she should stop by if she got the message." 
	"Go figure." 
	"Yeah." Cissie turned her head to the television.  
	"They're counting down, now." She brought her feet from Roy's 
lap around to the front and sat up. She reached to pop open the bottle of 
champagne. 
	"Hey, uh, Cis?" 
	"Yeah." Successfully popping the cork, Cissie splashed some 
champagne into each glass. 
	"I'm sorry this was such a bust. I was trying to make up for not 
telling you earlier that you had the night off." 
	Cissie turned to him with a smile and handed him a glass of 
champagne. 
	"I'll put it on your tab," she told him with a wink. 
	"Thanks," he replied with a grin. "And, um, you look...real nice 
tonight." 
	"I do?" 
	"You doubt me?" 
	"This is coming from the World's Greatest Charmer." 
	On the television, the Time Square crowd was cheering and "Auld 
Lang Syne" was playing in the background. 
	Roy moved his glass to tap Cissie's. "Happy New Year, Cecilia," 
he said, not taking his eyes from her face which was turned to the 
television. 
	"Happy New Year, Roy," she replied, sipping from her glass. She 
finally turned her head to him. "Oh, um, should we do the...kissing thing?" 
	"Um, do you want to?" 
	Their eyes held for an eternity.  
	"It's just a little kiss." 
	"I kiss people all the time." 
	"There's no reason for it to be weird." 
	"It's just a New Year's kiss." 
	"Right." 
	"Yeah." 
	Suddenly out of excuses, they were left to stare at each other again. 
Roy started to put his hand to her face but then thought better of it. It was 
just a New Year's kiss. Ever so gently, their lips met and grazed softly 
against each other. 
	"There. That didn't hurt." 
	"Nope," Cissie agreed immediately. "Not at all." 
	"Great." 
	"Yeah. Is that cheeselog?" 
	Roy leaned back against the sofa with a sigh. 
	Nope. Didn't hurt at all.

The End…or is it?