A/N: First, know that angst is not my thing. Believe me, I can write it and do a satisfactory job, but I dislike writing it because it takes too long and can drag into a thousand different directions with literally no end. This story is taking place two years from where they left off. Two years for people to come to terms with things, so I will only spend so much energy on the angsty part. I don't want this story to be stuck in the shadow of the past.

Second, Spitfire was my OTP. But, you see, I have unsatisfiedis. A condition where you desperately want something to happen, and it does, but then you are disappointed. I wanted those two to hook up on the first episode, but then they did... and things weren't fun anymore... Anywho, I just always want the couples that don't belong together to be together (i.e. RobinxRaven, KataraxZuko, etc.)

This story is a 'what if' scenario. I promise to keep the characters IN character. I mean, with the way things have gone so far in the show, you have to admit there is potential for those two. And that's exactly what prompted me to write this story. It's a big challenge, but I promise I will try my hardest to bring this story to life for you , if you are looking for realistic romance mixed with adventure at every turn, well, you've come to the right place.

Cover art for this story -

This first chapter establishes the grounds for the story and gets things started, so of course, the past must be addressed. That is all. Please, enjoy.

Into Oblivion

Fall

Part 1

There was ice in the air, a bitter, chilling kind of ice. It was the kind of cold that was unrelenting, the kind that burrowed all the way down to the bone, not intending to leave. It was as if time itself was suspended in its frozen grip. Nothing was moving around it, it seemed as though all sound was trapped as well. One would probably believe it if not for a sudden disturbance in the air. Steam from multiple lungs filled the air with heat before it vanished a second later. Footsteps echoed across the gravel as a large band of men passed a small alley, too preoccupied with the cold to take a glance into it. They were big, dark, dangerous. You could almost smell the intimidation on them. However, they, with all their combined power, were no match for the small figure hiding in the shadows.

It would have been so easy to take them out, to knock them all to the cold ground without a hint of an effort, but that was not her objective. No, tonight was all about stealth. Once they disappeared out of sight, Artemis stepped into the light and pulled out her grapple. With a quick glance on either side of her, she shot it towards the roof of the three story building she had been heading for. Once it was secure, she made her way up the wall quickly. No sound, completely undetected.

Once she had the cover the roof offered, Artemis looked down at her belt to double check that she still had a signal. She did, and that meant she was ready to go. For a moment her steamy breath blocked her view from the details on the screen. She couldn't remember the last time she was this cold, the last time it was this unnaturally cold anywhere on the east coast. The best way to describe how she felt right now would be chilled to the bone. Of course, her suit had excellent insulation, but it could only keep her so warm.

She placed the device securely back into her belt and brushed the discomfort of the biting cold out of her mind and continued her silent trek across the building tops, undetected by the unsuspecting figures below her. A sudden different kind of cold rush coursed through her body, and she felt her muscles clench in anticipation for what was to come. This was dangerous, this was exhilarating. This night had been planned down to every detail. Of course, she didn't know it was going to be this night until a few hours ago, but she was ready. She knew exactly what she was doing and she couldn't help but feel that this bust was going to go down without a hitch.

Suddenly, the cold silence was interrupted by a faint, nearly inaudible beep that only she could hear. Her jaw instantly clenched as apprehension took over her. She had called for radio silence for a reason, the only reason they'd break that is if something had happened, something bad. She tapped the small communicator in her ear to signal to the person that she was on the line.

Artemis stopped moving and took cover by a cement block as a voice filled her ears, "Tigress, listen, are you sure you don't want anyone with you as back up?"

She couldn't place the voice to a face, but right then it didn't matter. She answered back quietly, "I told you not to break radio silence."

"I know, but things are getting pretty tight over here. There are at least triple the amount of mercs you said there would be, and that's just in our area."

"Is is something you can handle?" she deadpanned.

There was a pause before he answered, "Yeah, we can handle it, but there's a real bruiser headed in your direction. I don't know who he is, but I'm guessing he's trouble." She didn't answer back, they knew better than this. She could handle the 'bruiser' they were talking about. That last comment was bait, and she was not about to take it especially in the mood she was now in. Plus, If their link were to be hacked, their mission would be an instant failure, and to risk that to voice concerns they had already discussed? The voice continued, "Listen, all I'm saying is that one of us could go with you in case things go south."

"We've already discussed this. The more people that go in there, the more risk it is that one of us will be spotted. This is too important and too fragile to take that chance."

"I don't think-"

Artemis quickly cut him off, "My decision is final. Do not break radio silence again."

She reached up and tapped the link to close it. As she moved from her cover spot and continued on her silent pace, her mind did an instant replay on what was just said. The amount of spite in her voice was probably unnecessary, he was only watching out for her. She knew that, and she could understand it probably better than some, but it didn't make it okay to call her up after they had just been briefed on how important this mission was.

Harsh? Yes, but moments like these called for it.

For a moment, her mind drifted to what would happen after this operation goes down. That spout was no doubt listened to by all the others and maybe even more who were running ops back at base. She clenched her jaw as she considered it. Usually, it's considered normal for people to snap at each other. Normal for people to be grumpy regardless of their reasons. It was different when it came to her for some reason. Wait no, she knew the reason why.

This wasn't going to look good for her. She was already thought of as 'unstable' by some. Her techniques as of late were considered reckless, but by who's definition? It always seemed to come from those who were closest to her, or more often, those who were more powerful and more skilled than her. She wanted to roll her eyes every time someone gave her the 'danger' speech. She knew exactly what she was getting herself into each time she took on a case load. Some of them were dangerous for just her to handle alone, but she knew that. It's a small shame that she admits that is why she chose those cases sometimes.

She's been looking for every opportunity to challenge herself lately, she can't say why though. It's like every time she finishes one case, she can't seem to rest until another one comes up equally as challenging or more. She was aware this kind of behavior was exactly what was putting her in the lime light. Her friends are worried that she's burying herself in her work. Their worried what it's doing to her.

It bothers her to no end how they've suddenly taken it upon themselves to question her wellbeing every time she took on a case. Just because she didn't have super strength or couldn't read minds didn't mean she was incapable. She was a grown adult, she could handle herself. Backup, no, this wasn't a sudden thing. This had been going on for quite awhile now. Ever since that day two years ago. That day that changed everything for her, nearly everything about her…

She fought a sudden wave of emotion threatening to emerge. Her pace unintentionally slowed and her footsteps could suddenly be heard. She stopped short and took a long, chilled breath. She couldn't deal with this now, of all times and places. She pushed the invading pain back into a dull ache, right where it belonged, where it had been for the past year. Her quiet stride continued.

Without even looking for a memory, Black Canary's words filled her mind.

"Bottling things up is a treatment for right now, but it's not a cure. Sometime in the future it's going to come at you tenfold."

"Artemis, I'm worried…"

I'm worried. She couldn't tell you how often she hears those words these days. She's heard them from nearly everyone who's close enough to call her their friend; even some who don't even know her well tell her that. She'll bottle that pain up until the day she's ready to deal with it; if it even comes, no sooner and especially not on anyone else's terms but her own.

She wasn't in denial; she knew exactly why they were worried for her. She knew why she was being watched like a hawk on missions like these. Trying to find meager excuses for the way she's acted on missions lately was a fruitless waste of time in her eyes, and who was she kidding. Herself along with those closest to her know why she does the things she does, no matter how she tried to define it. The honest truth is that after Wally's death two years ago, she sunk herself into hero work, so much that it's become an obsession. Months of sitting on the couch with Dinah across from her has made her recognize it, and in some ways, come to terms with certain aspects.

She didn't become this just because she lost the one she loved most (though it played a vital part). The real reason is because she's always wanted to do this. A hero's life is something she's wanted to lead for awhile, before that it was to be in the League of Shadows. The only thing that truly stopped her was Wally and the 'life' they were going to have. The hard truth was that there was none of that life left so she turned to the only other thing she knew best.

Wally's death was the reason she turned to this, but it was just the first on a long line of things that suddenly went bad in her life. Not even a year after that, her mother had passed. It didn't stop there though, nearly everyone she considered family was disappearing before her eyes. She tried so very hard to turn to her sister, hoping that now that she had a child, she'd give up her escapades with that man they called father, but she didn't. Out of the blue, and for reasons she can only guess, Jade completely abandoned her daughter, and left her on Roy's doorstep without a word, quite literally. Last she heard, she was a full-fledged assassin. All ties from her past life she had severed and left to burn.

To say it was difficult to come to terms with the death of people around her, people she was so close to was an unbelievable understatement. She had succumbed to grief for awhile at first. Looking on the bright side, thinking about other possibilities that the future may hold; she tried to think positively like that. However, no matter how hard she tried, the pain slipped in and didn't leave. Months, that's how long she spent alone in despair. It sickens her to know she use to look down on people like that, people that couldn't find the strength to even get out of bed in the morning. She always saw it as weakness, until she went through it herself.

After a very short time of trying to be the hero Tigress, she had decided to go back into retirement, to try and hold to her and Wally's dead promise, hoping to find comfort in it. But she didn't. In fact, now that she looks back, it was probably what caused her the most pain. All it was was trying hard to hold onto something that didn't exist.

Friends would come by and try to coax her out of her pit, but nothing worked. No one was able to strike the cord that would make her care once again. She truly believes that she would have spent the rest of her life like that if not for one day. Nightwing had dropped by uninvited in civvies one morning just like many others had before, he had even come by a few times before. Expecting another plea for her to join the world again, she was surprised and slightly shocked when the usual care had left his covered eyes. She could tell something was different, he wasn't there to plea. He wasted no time on getting to his point, and told her about a case he needed her help with.

Almost without considering it, she told him no, emphasizing the fact that she was done with that life. For the first time out of anyone else he went a step further and told her she needed to do something with her life. Anger was all she could remember from that encounter; he was crossing a line no one had dared get close to before. And the ironic thing was, he was probably the only one that could say those words to her without forsaking their friendship. She was offended when he said that he understood her on some level. A flat no was his answer, and it was obvious there was a note in her tone that told him to get out.

He dropped a file on the table before disappearing through the door. At first, it had stayed there all day untouched. She tried to busy herself that day to keep from thinking about it, and kept on replaying reasons why she shouldn't even consider it. But it didn't leave her mind all day. After trying and failing to distract herself, she inadvertently ended up at her table with the black folder. She sat and stared at that file all night, with an internal battle playing out inside her. One side eventually won. She was exhausted, but at the break of dawn, she grabbed it and began going through it.

Sometimes, when she ponders the events that happened that day, she can't quite understand how quickly she got back into the system. She tries to tell herself that it was a hard choice, but it wasn't. Dinah had told her that maybe she was just waiting for someone to bring her back in, taking some of the choice from her. She was probably right.

Artemis called him up and said she was in. Nightwing had saved her that day. Saved her from wallowing in pity for the rest of her life. He had everything ready when she once again donned her costume and met up with him. They started on the case, and she was shocked how easy it was to slide back into the familiar pace. As she worked alongside him, she realized that anyone else was totally capable of helping him, heck, he could have done it himself.

She knew what he was doing, and it worked. Once the case was solved, she looked into another one on her own. She found a distraction, and that's what she did for a long time. The fierce pain had turned into a dull ache when she had something to do, had a goal, a purpose.

Things weren't exactly daisies and sunshine after that, but they were getting better. However, her life took another turn for the worst when her mother passed. She was finally free from the clutches of that horrible disease that stole her life from her. But her small joy for her mother only went so far. After those events, she completely dove into hero work, submersing herself into it all. The pain of losing her mother was different from the pain of losing her lover, but it was equally as damaging, if not worse in some areas.

She received a very large sum of money from her mother who had been saving it up for a very long time come to find out. It was easily enough to pay for the rest of her college and an entire year's worth of comfortable living. Artemis hadn't even touched it yet. She didn't know if she was ever going to.

She had consciously made the choice to have hero work become her priority. While it benefited for the job, it took a huge toll on the other side of her life. She had the choice to drop out of college and do league work, but that's not what her mother, or Wally, would have wanted. She transferred to a school that offered a good course for part time goers. It was across the country from where she had been, and a little closer to a home she use to know.

It wasn't as hard to pack up and leave the apartment her and Wally had shared, in fact, it was easy, refreshening. There were too many painful memories there; it felt good to relocate and try to start again, for the most part. She moved to a city only 30 miles from Gotham. She was attending part time college at Court Royal University in Bludhaven. While her attempt to start anew had looked promising in the beginning, it was clear that the pain had followed her all those miles away.

Jade disappeared after that, Artemis knew in her heart that it was because their mother had died. Jade had tried to express that she didn't care, but she did. When all contact ceased from her, it was like someone had blown a candle out for good in her life. She was alone after that, she had nobody.

Dinah and Oliver had stepped in almost immediately. They welcomed her into their family unconditionally. She was invited to spend every holiday with them; they even asked her to join them on some of their trips. It took a long time to accept this kind of gift they were offering. She was an adult, she could take care of herself. She tried to deal with things on her own, but almost without trying, she found herself confiding in Dinah more than anyone else. She couldn't understand where that level of care came from, and why she was so freely offering it to Artemis.

All those long nights of showing up at their door and talking with Dinah for hours on end, crying, and expressing things she tried to bury. It wasn't like her to do that and it wasn't easy to let it out, but sometimes it was and that's all the time she needed. Dinah's advice had saved her sanity on more occasions than she cared to count. Oliver acted as though she really was his niece and always had been.

Dinah and Oliver weren't the only ones that stepped in, in fact, Nightwing was the first. The weeks following Wally's death they had been together the most. She doesn't remember what happened exactly. They didn't have a massive heart to heart talk, and there wasn't a lot of crying. He was just there, offering silent support as they mourned Wally. She offered what support she could to him in return, he was his best friend after all.

The months following they stayed in contact. They would call each other up on occasion to see how the other was doing. It was hard for her to see him though for a long while. Every time she looked at him she saw Wally. They were so different, but the same in so many ways. It pained her that she pushed him back to a point, but the hurt was too much to bear whenever he was around.

In some ways, Nightwing tried to fill some areas that were left open when Wally was gone. They would see each other sometimes, and he'd be sure to bring his humor with him. He can't understand how much she appreciated that at times. He still had that boyish humor about him at times even though his age and stature would say different. In time, she came to accept his help, she even started to reach out to him.

Artemis's corner of her mouth twitched upwards as a thought crossed her mind. He had even given her a rose on Valentine's day for the past two years, he had said that a pretty girl like her shouldn't be alone on V-day. She had lightly laughed both times and accepted it, making that day at least somewhat bearable. It was a friendly gesture, but it meant a lot.

Her small smile faded. Though she appreciated the ways he reached out to her sometimes, other times she wished he would stop. She constantly questions what he really thinks whenever he spends time with her, or did little acts of kindness. Sometimes, when they were together whether alone or with their friends, he would stiffen up and his attention would wander far away from where they were; he would even shut her out on occasion when they spoke. It made her uncomfortable. There was a time when he went weeks without calling her. She got the impression that he felt that he was obligated to try and be there for her. As if he didn't want to, but he did for the sake of his passed friend. It made her feel like she was a burden he didn't want to bear sometimes. She would never question him about it, though. That drove a rift in their friendship.

Things were getting better to a point, but she was still stuck. To combat this she turned to caseloads to drown herself in them. Every waking moment of her life seemed to revolve around them. And she didn't mind it at all because any moment she started to come back to the real world, the loneliness and pain were too much to handle.

No, it was suffocating.

Escaping into that work was the only way she knew how to deal with the pain, and she was not about to give it up.

Of course, that very thing was what made her a concern for others once again. Her obsession was attracting attention. First, her friends had wanted her out and busying herself and once she was, they wanted her to stop. She worked closely alongside Kaldur for a time and Nightwing when he would join in. She even took control of the team whenever Kaldur had other business. After awhile, they told her that she needed to take a break, and that she was dedicating too much time to her cases. She didn't of course. How could she? What else was there besides heroics now?

After so much concern and attention she didn't want, she made the choice to go solo. A choice she made only recently in the past two months. She'd still pick up cases that the League came across, but she avoided partnering up whenever possible. Lately though her judgment was being questioned. Yes, she understood how they would be worried for her. She had been in many close calls lately. She's been in the hospital more times in six months then she has been in her whole life, but the worst it came to were only minor flesh wounds that usually healed up within a month.

The cases she's been taking on have been dangerous, but still enough for her to handle. The most bothering thing about it was the fact that people equal in her skill level weren't under the microscope. There was one night when Dinah had brought up the question everyone was avoiding. No, she wasn't suicidal regardless of what everyone believed. She just had more dedication than she use to.

The one thing that kept the League from grounding her was the fact that she kept bringing in results and good ones too. Her spout with whoever was on the other end of the line would be noted no doubt earning her a negative point or two, but after tonight it wouldn't matter.

Even now she was on a case that was classified as 'advanced' and high risk level. Only big Leaguers took those on, and even they had partners. However, the classifieds were usually only estimated. They could never actually guess what they were getting themselves into. This one though was different for her, she had an advantage in this one that no one else shared.

Artemis stopped by the building edge she was headed for. She kept her head low to avoid the prying eyes of those below. The building across the pathway was where she intended to go. It was heavily guarded, and on any other night it wouldn't be a problem. But tonight she had to sneak past them and get inside undetected. This was the very reason she wanted to go alone. It was far too risky to bring a group.

She quickly changed her gear to stealth mode and wasted no time as she shot a silent line across to the other building. Once it was securely attached, and attention was diverted away from her area, she jumped up onto it and quickly walked across.

The reason this case was different for her was because she was going after someone she use to work with. Tonight, she was going after Deathstroke. And she intended to bust a deal that he was operating.

He was trying to acquire a bomb that had miraculously found its way onto the black market. Intel said that he was meeting with the man who had the bomb to trade information and money. Of course, she knew the real assailant was who ever hired Slade to run ops. Information about that person was nonexistent, their only lead was the mercenary in charge. She would bet money that Slade hadn't even met his employer yet, or known his full identity.

That's the way things worked when it came to hiring practices like this. Especially when a WMD was involved, or rather a nuclear bomb.

Artemis quietly brushed behind one of the guards on the roof. Her heart began to pound. It was this point of the mission that she craved most, this sort of excitement that came with knowing that the climax was coming soon.

She quickly ducked down and placed her back against an unnaturally cold concrete wall as she heard approaching footsteps. Two large men holding their guns ready and pressed against their chests passed her without noticing. She patiently waited till they were out of sight before she continued on. When a door came into sight she headed straight for it, exactly where she knew it would be.

All that worrying people do for her. All that concern they throw at her, it was unnecessary. Her track record had been near perfect for the past year. She's gotten this far without any problem whatsoever. Everything was in place, ready to go.

Kneeling down near the doors edge, she gripped the lock and took out a pick from her belt. Still keeping her attention on her surroundings, she began her work.

She wasn't looking for respect from people, that's not why she shied away from their concern. Her reasons for pushing things to a limit were her own. There was no need to prove herself, after all, who would she prove herself to? Her aim, her 'motto' for when she went on a mission was to just get the job done. A faint click filled the cold air signaling the lock's surrender.

Artemis put the pick back into her belt and slid the lock off the door. Tonight was going to go down without a hitch.

A/N: Stay tuned for more. If you have a moment, don't hesitate to share your thoughts good, bad, or both.

Until next time.