Boostle Icons and Ficlet
In the end, sending back the Justice League of Earth-23 was as simple as finding the statue the Flash had inadvertently licked to open the trans-dimensional portal in the first place, using it - under more controlled circumstances this time - to re-open the passage, and herding everyone through. The two Batmans trying to glower each other down notwithstanding, all was proceeding without a hitch...until it came to the Blue Beetle.
"I don't want to go back," he said again, arms crossed stubbornly over his chest.
"Don't be ridiculous, Beetle," the Earth-23 Superman said, rolling his eyes. The coruscating lights of the portal threw distracting glints off his costume and disconcertingly shiny hair. "This isn't Paris, it's another universe. You don't belong here."
"Well, I sure don't belong back there in our universe," Beetle said, throwing his hands into the air. "And it's not like you even wanted me in the Justice League to begin with. You only let me in because you felt bad for me...and because you thought it might keep me out of trouble. I can't imagine anyone going mad with grief if I don't go home, so why shouldn't I stay?"
From the one corner's worth of shadows he had found to lurk in, Batman said, "The universe can only support one version of you at a time without extreme stress. It's why we've all been experiencing pain and tremors since we came here. If you stay, you'll die, at best. At worst, you'll take this entire universe with you."
"Nice try, but I haven't been having the wobbly quantum headaches like you guys. Which means either I never existed here, or I'm dead. And since every time I try to bring myself up people go weird and change the subject, I'm guessing it's the second. And if I'm dead, there'll only be one of me, so there's no problem."
Superman ran a hand wearily through his hair; a determined Beetle was more than anyone should have had to deal with after the week he'd had. "Ted, please, be reasonable about this. How do you think this is going to work? They look like us, but they aren't - their history, their memories, their personalities - none of that is the same. You don't know them. You can't be happy here."
"I can't be happy in our universe!" Ted shouted. "I hate it there! None of you respect me, I know you don't like me, the public thinks the Blue Beetle is a bad joke, I don't even have Kord Industries any more, ever since Max finally showed his cards. Why should I want to go back to that? And it's not so different here. I asked around, while you were trying to find that dumb statue. Our universes ran parallel until last year. Completely identical timelines - I could sit down with their Green Lantern and he'd remember the same fight we had five years ago about American versus Japanese cars that ended in me trying to shove him out the airlock on the Bug. Just... say what you want. It doesn't matter. I'm staying, and that's it."
"What makes you think they even want you here?" Batman asked.
"Booster Gold wants me here," Ted said softly. "Right, Booster?"
No one had seen Booster working his way through the small crowd of heroes, but now he took Ted's hand, the effect of his glare dampened somewhat by the fact he was directing it toward Batman's forehead.
"I know he's not my Ted," he said. "I'm not his Booster, either. I don't care. I'm keeping him anyway!"