The red alert lights had been dark for almost two hours now, and the Watchtower felt—almost—like a normal place.

Down in the main lounge (the one Cyborg insisted on calling “the rec deck” even though Batman still called it “secondary observation”), the air smelled like reheated pizza, fresh coffee, and the faint metallic tang of ozone from someone’s overcharged ring construct.

Holographic victory footage looped silently on one wall—Superman catching a falling skyscraper, Flash blurring through a collapsing bridge—while Cyborg’s speakers thumped a low, bass-heavy playlist that made the floor vibrate just enough to annoy Batman.

Flash was halfway through his third slice, vibrating in place so fast the pepperoni looked like it was having a seizure.

“Yo, I’m just saying—if I’d been two microseconds faster, that building would’ve landed on the bad guy instead of Superman having to play catch. Heroic, but unnecessary.”

Superman, leaning against the viewport with his arms crossed, gave a small, tired smile.

"Next time I’ll let it drop. See how heroic you feel explaining structural engineering to the news.” Wonder Woman sat cross-legged on the floor near the table, polishing her bracers with a cloth she’d brought from Themyscira. She looked up, amused.

“You two argue like brothers. It is comforting.”

Green Lantern floated upside-down near the ceiling, green ring glowing as he lazily constructed a tiny glowing basketball hoop. “Comforting? I’m bored. Someone race me. Or arm-wrestle. Or—hey, Aquaman, you in?”

Aquaman, sprawled in a chair with his boots on the table and a bottle of something that definitely wasn’t from Earth’s oceans, snorted.

“Only if the prize is you admitting the ocean is superior to space.” Batman stood at the edge of the room, half in shadow, tapping at a tablet. He didn’t look up.

“If you’re finished turning my station into a gymnasium, I have actual threat assessments to finish.”

Cyborg grinned from the kitchenette area, flipping a burger on a portable grill he’d bolted to the counter.

“Relax, Bats. We earned this. One night without the world ending? That’s basically a vacation.” The viewport showed Earth turning slowly below—blue and peaceful for once.

Then the lounge door hissed open. Everyone turned at once.

You stepped inside.