Disclaimer: I don't own Young Justice or its characters. I only own Kenna and any other character I added

One step at a time

One foot in front of the other

I'm gonna get through this one way or another

Cause I know it's warmer where you are

Cause no matter how far the view

I still always look up to you

-One Step At A Time-

Four Years Strong

There was always something so serene about gazing up at the stars on a clear night. It's peaceful and quiet, easy for one to get lost in thought when staring at the illuminated sky. Kenna couldn't help but gaze above, a soft sigh leaving her lips. Her current thoughts focused on anything but the reason she was perched on top of this building in the cold February air. She was supposed to be on recon duty, but instead her brain was nowhere to be found. The past four months of her life had flown by in the blink of an eye. Thanksgiving and Christmas were nothing but a blur. She couldn't even remember the last time she could coherently put the events of a day together. A series of one unfortunate event after another had happened in such a short amount of time. Firstly, due to her double life and the stress that came with it, Kenna had failed some of her fall courses. Next came the situation with the chemistry guy or better known as Xavier. Xavier was a handsome blond with green eyes that decided to sit next to Kenna. Being the social butterfly that he was, Kenna was caught off guard by his charm. She had even convinced herself that he was decent to talk to. What she did not expect was for him to ask her on a date only to stand her up at the italian restaurant they had planned to meet at. It was safe to say that she was a bit more bitter when it came to her love life.

Nothing would compare to the shittiness that was the secret she was currently keeping from her brother. Around the second week of January, Kenna had gotten a panicked call from Melanie. It took a couple of minutes to calm down the sobbing girl before finding out that Mel was hurt. Her brother had been out of town at that time and Kenna knew that Mel was dealing with something on her own. Dropping what she had been doing, the blonde hastily made her way to her brother's apartment. When she got there, Kenna found Mel crumpled on the white tile of the bathroom floor. The once pristine tile had become stained with red and brown. After quickly taking her to the hospital, the two females had found out that Mel had been in the early stages of pregnancy but had miscarried the embryo. Her niece or nephew would never get a chance to see the world. The news had hit both of them hard, Mel more than anyone. She had made Kenna promise not to tell Tommy what had occurred until she figured out the best way to deliver the news.

The icing on the cake then came when Kenna learned that Kaldur had turned to the light to mask the pain of losing his beloved. He had betrayed his loved ones and had become an enemy of the league. It just seemed like Kenna couldn't get a break.

"Siren." A hand on her shoulder made Kenna snap her head back down and turned her gaze towards her mentor. Dinah had been analysing the dead expression on her protege's face. Kenna had been lost in thought for over fifteen minutes now. Her eyes glossed over as she stared at the stars. Once her eyes met Dinah's, Kenna felt a gentle squeeze to her shoulder.

"You okay sweetheart? You seem really out of it." Kenna could only blink, her eyes now focusing on the worried expression of her mentor. Kenna gave a nod once the question registered. She then turned her attention towards the rundown building across the dimly lit street. Shifting in her crouched position, Kenna peered over the concrete ledge.

"Yeah, sorry. It won't happen again." Came her mechanical answer. She then felt Dinah's fingers slowly leave her shoulder.

"Not that I'm complaining, but why isn't GL here doing the recon? I thought the drug smuggling case was his?" Kenna commented, moving her fingers to pick up the grey binoculars at her feet. She brought them to her eyes to peer into the cracked windows across the street. So far, the gang had yet to show up for distribution.

" He is doing something more important." Dinah stated. Furrowing her eyebrows in curiosity, Kenna removed the binoculars from her face. She turned to face her mother figure, her french braid swinging with the movement of her neck.

"What's more important?" The woman inquired. Dinah could only sigh. She knew her significant others' whereabouts, but that didn't necessarily mean that she wanted Kenna to know. She knew that this information would just add to the stress that was already weighing on her adoptive daughter. Dinah was considering not relaying the information but then paused. McKenna was not a little girl anymore, she was an adult that didn't need to be shielded from the hardships in life anymore.

"He's out looking for Roy. We pinpointed his location and we are going to go talk to him later tonight. You can come if you wish, but I doubt it will be pretty sweetheart. I know how much it hurt you when he left." Dinah spoke, her baby blue orbs searching Kennas face for any sign of how she was feeling. At her words, Kenna closed her eyes in a grimace as she took a moment to let her feelings wash over her. The mention of Roy scrounged up painful memories from a rather dark part of her life. For a good part of a year, Kenna had been convinced to live with her adoptive parents. They had been worried about the way her mental state had been deteriorating. They never said it to her face but they were afraid of what she would do to herself if left alone. She had never felt like more of a burden then she did during that time. At the same time they were combating Roy's heroin addiction. In the time spent in the Queen residence, Roy and Kenna had developed a dependant friendship with one another. It was an unexpected event that had occurred, but it seemed to be a life line for both parties. That being said until Roy disappeared one night. That had been over a year and a half ago and nobody had been able to get in contact with him since.

Opening her eyes once more, Kenna focused her attention on anything but Dinah. She knew her mentor had a knack for reading her in her vulnerable moments.

"How bad is he?" She asked.

"Not good sweetheart. He's run down, strung out and I don't think he has taken proper care of himself in a long while." Her mother figures words hit a chord in her heart. She hadn't been able to see the signs back then, for she was too caught up in her own self depreciation. He had needed someone in his corner and she at one thought it had been her but she was wrong. She couldn't be what he needed in a dark part of his life and it always made her feel guilty. At one point she had learned to accept that Roy was never going to come back. In all honesty, she hadn't properly thought about Roy in a year. Kenna had gotten good at distracting herself from the guilt, but every now again she would find herself thinking about how she had basically abandoned someone close to her by not looking for him. Making her decision, Kenna shifted her eyes to meet the calm blue of her mother figure.

"I'll go." Dinah couldn't help but raise her eyebrows in surprise at the young girl's response.

"Are you sure? Kenna you don't have to force yourself into a situation that you are uncomfortable with."

"I have to Dinah. He must feel like he was abandoned and he needs to know that I'm one of the people who care about him. It's the least I can do for him now."

"Kenna? What are you doing here?" It seemed like she wasn't the only one who wanted to talk some sense into the rough archer. Kenna took a moment to glance at the company she had just stumbled upon. She knew that Dianh and Ollie would be there to talk to Roy but she was not expecting Jim, Dick or Wally. Her eyes shifted between each person before giving Jim a small smile and moving towards her boys. The elder redhead gave her a smile in return before making his way toward Dinah to catch up.

"You guys aren't the only ones who give a shit about him you know." Came her soft reply as she stepped into the waiting arms of her favorite ginger. Wally hugged the girl tightly, making sure to give her temple a small kiss. Kenna relished in the hug, for she had not seen Wally in ages. Granted she hadn't seen any of them in ages. She had gotten very good at isolating herself over the past couple of months.

"Missed you cupcake. You need to get hold of Artemis, she gets worried when she doesn't hear from you. We both do." Wally spoke fondly to the blonde. He could feel her hug him tighter as she sighed.

"I know, I'm sorry. Life has been so overwhelming recently that I haven't been able to be responsible for myself let alone other people. I know I have been ghosting you guys but I just needed to take sometime to myself. It wasn't my intention to make any of you guys worry." Kenna spoke, pulling away from Wally to turn her attention to the male beside him. Most of all she had lost contact with Dick. She hadn't seen him properly since his birthday seeing as she had been trying to distance herself from him and her feelings. Kenna looked into his masked eyes to silently ask him a question. Truth be told, the distancing she had done from him had only made her miss him even more. Dick took one look into her eyes to understand what she was asking. Without giving it much thought, Dick's hand shot out and grabbed her dainty fingers to pull her body towards him. Kenna couldn't help but let herself melt into the boy's arms as she buried her nose into the crook of his neck. He always managed to dissolve all of her anxieties and worries whenever he held her close.

"I'm glad you're okay Blondie." He spoke softly, making sure that only she could hear the low timber of his voice. She couldn't help but let out a small sniffle at his words. At that moment, she couldn't help but feel many emotions crash on her all at once. Everything Kenna had been holding in for a while had hit her like a freight train as she tried to keep them from gushing out in waves.

"I'm sorry." The blonde meekly replied, trying to bury herself deeper into Dicks arms. Kenna didn't have to say anything but that for him to know what she meant. She was sorry for being emotional, for worrying him and for not coming to him when she felt like she was sinking. Dick gave her one last squeeze to let her know he was there for her.

Unknown to both adults, Wally watched the way his best friends interacted. The connection between them had not faded since they were teenagers. They remained pillars in each other's lives and still had yet to express their love for one another. Kenna's feelings were obvious, she wore her heart on her sleeves. Dick on the other hand did not. To strangers, the two seemed like they were nothing but very close friends, but to someone who had seen the experiences they had struggled through together, there was no doubt that Dick loved the short blonde. She meant more to him then he would ever admit to anyone. Wally couldn't help but look upon his friends with a somber look. No matter how hard they tried, neither person could get out of their own way. One day, Wally hoped that they would finally give themselves the chance to be happy with one another.

Kenna gave Dick one last squeeze before slowly separating from the embrace. Although they were no longer embraced, Kenna stuck close to black haired male. He made her feel less anxious about the situation they were all in. She brought her right hand up to rub her left arm to generate some friction to keep her warm. The new design for her winter uniform kept her warm when she was fighting but on this particular night, the air nipped at her cold flesh.

"Be honest guys, is this actually going to work?" The female inquired, taking a moment to glance at the city life around her. Both males shrugged at her question.

"I don't know Ken. Roy's always been stubborn. Who really knows if he's going to listen to us?" Wally responded, his gloved hands buried deep into his jacket pockets once more.

"He's a lot like you in that sense." Dick cut in, earning a small glare from the woman next to him. She didn't want to admit it but Dick was right, he's always right when it came to her. It was one of the characteristics she shared with the archer that gave them both common ground and arguments at the same time. Kenna crossed her arms over her chest with a sigh. She didn't want to be the bearer of bad news but she wanted to go into this situation with a realistic view. The chances of Roy taking their words to heart and making a step towards change was slim at best.

"I don't want to be that person but is this really our place? The only people who could possibly connect with how he's feeling is Jim and Connor. We don't know what it feels like to think you are an imposter living someone else's life." Her words hun in the air for a few moments. No one spoke as they recollected their thoughts.

"McKenna don't take this personally but if you feel that way, why did you come? What do you expect to achieve here?" Dick softly asked, eyes flickering below his mask to gage her reaction. He was met with wide eyes and a shocked expression. That was not the response she was expecting. Did she really belong here? What did she think she could achieve by being here? To see if he was okay? Help him? Or was it a selfish wish to relieve her guilt? Kenna had never asked herself that question before and in turn began to doubt the nature of her feelings for the red headed archer.

Before she could ever remotely come to an answer, the figures on the roof were quickly motioned to hide. It was time. Hidden in the shadows, the group caught sight of Roy on the next building. A quick look out of her peripherals, Kenna caught a glimpse of her adoptive father. He hid himself like the others, waiting for his moment. A loud thud noise was soon heard and then was quickly followed by the high pitched screech of the string of a bow against the cable lines. Kenna grimaced as she watched Roy lose his foot the second he touched the roof. The red clad hero tumbled across the cement of the roof before coming to a stop with a pained groan.. He then focused his masked eyes on the green boots before him.

Oliver could only stare down at his former partner before offering to help him up.

"Hey Roy, need a hand?" He asked. Roy gritted his teeth as he smacked Oliver's hand away. He struggled a bit but was able to make his way to his feet.

"No." He grumbled out but was soon cut off by another voice.

"We think you do." Roy quickly snapped his head to see Dick emerge from the shadows only to be trailed by Wally and then Kenna. Dinah and Jim also took this as the moment to show themselves. Kenna came to stand between her adoptive mother and best friend. Her eyes couldn't help observe every detail of the person before her. Roy looked worse than she had ever seen him. Sunken skin around his masked eyes proved the lack of sleep. His greasy locks of hair and patchy facial hair showed the lack of hygiene. The worst of it was his body. He looked emaciated with pale, sickly skin. All he did was remind her of a wounded animal. This was not the Roy she had come to know and care about.

"I have nothing to say to any of you. Nothing to explain and nothing to justify." Roy spat, bedding down to pick up his bow before rapidly turning to run away. What he did not expect was for everyone to catch a glimpse of the stack of money strapped to his belt. For this point forward, Kenna could feel the rage radiant of her father figure from where she stood. This was not something Oliver would take lightly. In one quick motion, the green archer reached out and pulled the money from its place.

"Nothing?" Oliver accused with disappointment. He held the money up to Roy's face as if to throw his lie back. Roy spun around when he felt the cash slip from its restraint against the small of his back.

"It's not what it looks like. I mean that store owner won't miss it. He offered me a reward anyway." The archer defended. He soon took an aggressive approach.

"Besides I deserve it. That guy wouldn't have any money if I didn't step in." He all but snarled. His attention was soon directed towards the speedster.

"Dude, are you even listening to yourself?" Wally chastised, appalled that his former friend would sink so low. Roy gritted his teeth before abruptly snatching the money from Oliver's hand.

"Look I need it. I need to find Speedy, the original Roy Harper. A search like that is expensive. Especially when the rest of you have all given up." He growled, gripping the green paper in his clenched hand. And that was it. That was why he was falling apart. The guilt of not finding the original Roy Harper was eating at him and probably had been for years.

Letting out a sigh, Dinah soft steps moved towards the male. She gently put her gloved hand on his shoulder.

"Roy I know you feel lost, but that doesn't mean you are alone." Roy took one glance at the hand before glaring at the older woman.

"I'm not the one who's lost." He said, steeping away and turning around. Kenna could tell Dinah was getting frustrated with the clones' lack of cooperation.

"When was the last time you trained? The last time you slept?" She asked, placing her hands on her hips.

"Don't even start. I am in the best shape of my life." Kenna normally would have snorted but didn't find it in herself to.

"Oh really?" Dinah sneered, quickly bringing her leg up for a roundhouse kick to Roy's face. The archer was sluggish to respond but still managed to avoid getting hit. He then took a step back to avoid the punches she threw at him next. Each punch sent him closer to the edge of the building. When his heels hit the roof edge, Roys body tipped back at the loss of his center of gravity. Dinah was quick to grab the fabric of his uniform and bring their faces close together.

"Best shape of my life my ass. That was me holding back, way back." She snarled before letting him stumble back. Her demeanor soon shifted to a soft, more empathetic approach.

"Roy you used to treat your body like a temple but now…" She watched him fall to his knees before he interrupted her.

"My body's no temple. It's a complete knock off, a clone." He spat, his eyes focused on the rough texture below him. The sound of footsteps caused him to look up towards the green archer once again.

"Roy come back to Star City. It will be just like old times. You and me training, fighting crime, just hanging out." Oliver was not expecting for Roy to get into his face.

"You are confused. Probably thinking of the other guy. The original guy you stopped looking for. I'm just…" It was Roy's turn to be interrupted as he pushed past his former mentor.

"We get it, you're a clone! But you are not the only clone on this rooftop. I personally get what it's like to come to terms with being a copy of someone else. That's why I gave up my identity as Guardian, so that I could figure out who Jim Harper is supposed to be." Jim said, moving closer to the other clone. So far this whole intervention thing was not panning out. Kenna hoped that Jim would be able to talk some sense into the other male.

"That's not the only thing you gave up." Somehow everything came back to the original Roy Harper.

"You know we both spent years looking for the original speedy aswell as everyone else. We never found him because the Light didn't keep him alive. It was Cadmus policy to delete the source material. He's dead brother, which is more of a reason that you have to live, to honor him." Roy took a moment to let his speech sink in. His resolve was slowly but surely crumbling. Sighing in defeat, Roy took a seat on an air conditioning unit.

"I'm whelmed by all the attention." He lightly sassed, his shoulder saging towards the ground. Glancing up, he focused his glare on the remaining group on the roof. Dick and Wally hadn't really said anything while Kenna had said nothing at all.

"What are you doing here anyway West? I thought you ditched the hero game." He snipped, trying to get a jab in towards the speedster. Wally took his tone with a grain of salt.

"Ditching the game doesn't mean ditching my friends. And before you round back to the 'original Roy' again, let's face the facts, he was never our friend." Wally pointed out, his hands gesturing as he spoke. Dick took this opportunity to add his two cents.

"We've all done the math, speedy was abducted before any of us met." Dick sober tone caught Kenna off guard. She turned her attention to the two boys next to her. In the midst of all this arguing, Kenna had forgotten that her boys had grown up with him. They had spent a good part of their childhood and early teens experiencing hero life together.

"You are the one we trained beside, fought besides. You are the only 'you' we know." Her eyes then shifted back to look at the clone. He seemed to actually be listening to others. Maybe this was a sign they were all looking for.

"Just because you are a clone with anger management issues doesn't change that." Dick added.

"Seriously, have you met Superboy?" Wally snorted, placing his hands on his hips. Just when Kenna thought things were heading in a positive direction, that got flipped on his head.

"Are you done yet. You wanna save someone's soul? Go make Kaldur see the light. What I hear, he needs course correcting but leave me out. Write me off or don't." Roy's eerily calm voice pierced through the air as Roy shoved his way through Dick and Wally. He had delivered a low blow and was about to leave with the last words. Seconds away from escaping, Kenna finally found her voice.

"Red." She called, causing the archer to halt his movements. They stood in silence for what felt like hours before Roy let out a dry chuckle.

"I'm honestly surprised you went that long without adding in. Got something to say short stuff?" He taunted, looking over his shoulder to glance at the quiet female.

"Is it really so hard to understand that people care about you, regardless if you are a clone or not." She asked softly, digging her nails into the palm of her hand. At her words, Roy slowly turned around to face her.

"Care about me? Is that what you're claiming? Are you sure you aren't just here to unload your baggage on me Kenna? You can't possibly be here because you think that you can get rid of that guilt that's eating you alive every time you think about me?" Everyone watched her flinch at his words, for it cut her deep. Dick clenched his teeth together, moving a step closer to the blonde as Wally let out an outburst.

"Dude that is low and uncalled for, even for you." He yelled, taking a step towards the archer with rage.

"Wally stop." She spoke, her hand coming out to grab his arm in an attempt to make him stop. Wally looked at her in confusion, not understanding why she would just let him say things about her like that. Kenna slowly let her grasp go and took a few steps towards her former friend.

"You're right. You are right about it all. I did unload my baggage onto you when you were in the same fragile state I was in." She paused in her step to stare intently at the male as she spoke. He held a shocked expression for he was not anticipating her agreement. He fully expected for her to deny his claims and defend herself but then the thought crossed his mind. That may have been what fourteen year old Kenna but the girl he had come to know had grown into someone who accepted her faults, almost to an extreme.

"Red I honestly thought you were getting better, and I thought that if you could get better then I could get better. I thought that if someone who felt as low as me could see the light then maybe, I had a chance." Her somber words matched the glassy look in her eyes as she glanced over her shoulder to look at the people who had seen her struggles, the people who spent so much time worrying about her.

"But that was selfish and naive of me. You needed someone to be there for you. I thought I was that person, but then you left." Her lavender orbs shifted back to meet his masked ones.

"I'm sorry Roy. I'm so sorry for not being the pillar you needed. I know that won't make things better but you need to know that I would choose you. If getting the original Roy back meant losing you in the process, I wouldn't bat an eye. I would pick you everytime. I just wanted you to know that." Her words stunned them all. Kenna waited for a response, any kind of response but all she got was silence. Without saying a word, Roy turned and leaped off the building. Once he was gone, Kenna felt the air escape her lungs. She willed herself not to cry, as her bottom lip trembled. She could feel the sob in her chest, wanting to escape and she quickly turned around to try and escape the situation. She was met with a strong chest and arms clutching her to a body. Dick hugged her trembling form, well aware that if he let go, she would crumble under the weight of the situation. Kenna hid herself in Dicks chest, trying desperately to not let her emotions consume her. She soon felt another hand rub the upper part of her back with a soothing motion.

"I'm so sorry cupcake." Wally's somber words did nothing dull the guilt and sadness she was feeling.

"Come on Kenna, I'll take you home." Dick soothed, placing a lingering kiss on the top of her head. She could only nod, for she was afraid of making a sound. This was not how it was supposed to go.