A/N: A self-induced challenge. Here are the rules:
One: I cannot use the same pairing twice.
Two: I can only drop one song on the album. I must use all the others.
Three: I have to use at least one of the six main characters.
Four: I cannot use an OC and I cannot gender-bend.
Five: I stick to my usual style for songfics. First Person POV and in present tense.
Why am I doing this? I like challenging myself! Writing is what I do. I'm stretching my limits and expanding my horizons. Because with this show, I know there are a lot of slash shippers. I am not one of them due to my hardcore canon-ness and because of a scarring issue a few years back with a Bevin fic… Anyways, I have to write slash due to these rules and I need to get out of my comfort zone.
Sorry for the long opening A/N. They won't be too long after this. The album I chose for this challenge is "Fashionably Late" by Honor Society.
First up: RobinxArtemis- "Nobody Has To Know" Robin's POV.
Nobody Has To Know
Blue eyes.
Why do I have to love it so much?
I feel guilty all the time. About just being near her. About wanting her. About needing her. About everything.
I'll be in the kitchen just watching everyone mill around in their respective ways, Superboy watching his static-filled tv, watching Megan bustle around me and trying to remember that I like redheads like Babs and Meg, but then Artemis'll walk past and I can't help myself but want to go to her and show her some cool move or something so she'll be all "Oh Robin, you're so awesome" in that girly voice that all those stupid shows portray wrong. Because Artemis would never talk like that.
Wally's noticed the difference in me. He's always harassing me about it. "Who is she?" He always jabs me in the side or prods me with a finger. "C'mon, Rob, tell me, you're totally lovestruck, you little sucker."
He's so annoying.
And then there's Artemis. She's oblivious. She's insanely smart; I'm wondering why she hasn't noticed.
Of course, I don't want her to know. Nobody has to know about this as far as I'm concerned. Just me, myself, and I.
Then she'll walk by again to yell at Wally for something and-
Crap, I totally want her.
Three years ago, I wouldn't have cared. You know, back when I was thirteen and only cared about being the greatest fighter Gotham had ever seen. Not now. Now I care about girls and how good my abs look and how Wally is still taller than me. But I mostly care about girls.
"You ready to beam back to Gotham?" Her arrows are slung over one shoulder and she's got her mask pulled back for the moment, but she's fingering the hood so we can get out of there without looking like Artemis Crock and Dick Grayson. We have to be superheroes until we get home. Then we can ditch the costumes and crawl back into our civvies.
"Yeah." Don't show fear, don't show emotions. That's Batman's rule of thumb. But it's a lot harder with girls. Which is probably why Bruce is way too relaxed at parties. "Just give me a sec. I have to find my helmet." No I don't. It's right over by the door. I can see it from here. But I really just need a minute to compose myself.
So I push myself off the counter and take a cookie from Megan as she passes with a fresh sheet of them. Then I head towards the couch where Conner is still watching his static. I don't know why he likes it, but there are always days where I'd rather not ask questions.
Then there's the skidding of feet in red shoes and Wally at my side with the helmet to my cycle in his hands. He's got that grin plastered on his face and he's waiting for me to leave, figuring that Artemis is staying behind.
Just recently, he's found that he cares about her. Pretty deeply. That he wants to get to know her. That he loves her. Personally, I don't believe a word of it, but Wally won't know what he wants until he's finally makes his decision of whether he wants to go for it or not. He's had a few issues recently with his ex, Linda, but I think he's dealing pretty well. While trying to find himself attracted to Artemis to get over it.
But that's just Wally for you. He's never been one to keep his mind on something for very long.
"Found it." And he hands it to me, shoving it against my chest a little roughly. He's watching me with those intent green eyes, like I have to prove something to him before walking home with his little love interest. Not like it matters. Not like I'll ever do anything wrong.
That's the problem with being the son of a rich man. You're not allowed to do anything wrong. Or else you disgrace your father. And with my scenario, that's not something I plan on doing any time soon.
"Let's get moving," she says, fixing the quiver's strap over her shoulder. "I have to pick my mom up from work in a couple hours and I've still got a lot of homework to do tonight."
"It's almost midnight," comments Meg from the kitchen, putting away the dishes for the night so she and Conner can cuddle up with a movie for a few hours before drifting off to sleep. Since I'm usually the first one in, I almost always walk in on them in the mornings, asleep on the couch, out cold, oblivious to the world.
It's so awkward…
Artemis shrugs. "It's not that late."
There's this quiet in the air as I tuck my helmet under one arm and focus on pulling my mask back over my eyes so I can get back into Gotham as Robin instead of Richard. "Alright, let's head out." I wait for Artemis to come over to the zeta-beam before waving to everyone, only three sets of eyes watching us leave. Kaldur hasn't been up from Atlantis in a while (he's always visiting Tula) so it's usually just us five hanging around and beating up on each other for no reason other than the pure joy of beating up on each other because we can. "See you guys in the morning."
Two quiet "Night"s come from Meg and Conner while Wally's loud, obnoxious "Adios!" echoes through the caverns like a cry of pain in the night. Out of place, never truly heard.
I step in. She steps in. I hit the button. Blue light swells around us, a cocoon of white and cobalt. Then the streets of Gotham are racing by just outside the alley, hundreds of ominous black cars darting by, the stench of gasoline and grime in the thick, smoky air. "Good to be home," she says, stepping out and stretching towards the smog-filled sky. "Sort of."
The little things she does… Just the little things… It doesn't take much.
"Are you heading right home?" she asks, adjusting the quiver over her shoulder once again, bow hanging off of two fingers at her side. She's watching me intently, but I almost feel like she's watching past me instead of watching me. She's stepping towards the alley's opening, the mouth of it glaring with yellow lights and the white headlights of passing cars.
I shrug. "Probably not. I'll do a quick scope of the area before heading back." The R-Cycle is parked behind her apartment building behind some trash cans and covered with a tarp. It's the safest place to put it as far as I'm concerned. That, and if I lose it, I'm pretty sure Bruce would have my head for being careless. Being Robin is not a job for carelessness.
"Mind if I join you?" she asks, now holding the bow up to show it to me, to demonstrate the taut string and how willing she is to use it. She cocks her head to one side in that quiet, questioning way. Usually, she's pretty loud like Wally is, but then in Gotham, she goes softer and quieter. I know the deal with her mom and such, but it's a drastic change from one place to the next.
"Don't you have to pick up your mom?" That's why we always head back around midnight. So she can get back for her mom and so I can head off to patrol with Batman. We're almost always working when we're not at school. It's a tense life, but we manage it.
Maybe that's why I'm so attracted to her. Human, just like me. Strong-willed, beautiful, powerful, headstrong. She's all I could ever really ask for.
She flips her hand. "I usually have to do my homework before I pick her up and there isn't much to do for tomorrow." Her blue eyes flare for a moment. "The night's young. There's time."
We Gothamites don't sleep much. Maybe it's a good thing.
I don't waste time. If I only get to spend a few moments with her, that's all I really want, all I could ever need. A few minutes with her, to stand by her side, to feel her presence near, to know that she is there, that she won't go away. Until the area is cleared. I pull out the grappling hook and aim for a nearby building. She's quick to draw her arrow, line attached to the end of it, and fire for a lower rooftop. I'm pulled across, she slides down with her bow to the lower building next to mine.
I watch the skyline for a moment to look for any goons or any explosions in the distance. I'm glad there isn't anything for once. Any other day, I'd want to find something I could hit.
I jump down to her level again, tumbling to reduce the force of the blow. I messed up my knee once pretty bad and learned my lesson from there. "Nothing that I can see." I watch her as her blue eyes scan the horizon of city lights and wafting smoke. I pull my cape away from my feet. Because I totally need to fall off a building today.
Superboy sometimes has a point about ditching the cape.
"It's a boring night," she says with a sigh, head lolling to one side with the sheer boredom of it all. Her blue eyes close for a long moment as her head tilts up again to watch the night stars in the deep, dark sky.
"Yup."
Why do I want her so badly? Why? Why do I wish I could take her on my grappling hook with me up to a place where we could never be found? Why do I want to keep her so close? It's nights like these where I don't want her to leave, where I think she should always stay beside me until the breaking of golden dawn.
Wow, that sounds poetic. If Wally could hear that… Yeah… Bad things.
A/N: I couldn't figure where I wanted this to go! I mean, I've written this pairing before, but sheesh! Such a roadblock. More one-sided than I wanted, but… Yeah. I debated a line at the end where Dick Grayson would notice that Artemis Crock hadn't done her homework, a slight note of her side, but that seemed to be… droning.
I promise you the next one will most definitely be better. I've already got the opening bit written, just need to pack the love onto it. Next up: KFxRA. Oh yeah. My first attempt at slash. Wish me luck. Should be posted… in an hour or so? Maybe tomorrow?
Review?
~Sky
