A/N: Thought I better put this up before I finish the next chapter of Hunters... this takes place *before* Jade and Artemis return to Gotham, but *after* the events in Metropolis. If you haven't read Hunters... you probably should, but you shouldn't have to.
Speedy hit the floor hard, his bow spinning out of his grip as his face met its appointment with the not-very-friendly cement. He pushed himself up on his elbows, eyes scanning furiously for a way out.
"Freeze!" one of the guards yelled at Speedy. Twelve guns were aimed directly at him, the little laser sights (that Ollie always insisted were purely for show) dancing on his torso, head, and arms. Speedy gritted his teeth, freezing himself in place as he eyed his bow, twenty feet too far away to do any good, and with a broken string to boot.
"Any moment now…" Speedy muttered, slowly raising himself, and then his hands into the air.
"Orders from Mr. Luthor," another guard, this one probably the squad leader, said to the others, "We're supposed to take this one into custody and prepare for transport-".
"C'mon, GA," Speedy muttered, hoping his communicator was picking up his voice. "I need help. Now."
"Mr. Luthor wants the intruder—" the guy continued, but he never got to finish that sentence.
Three arrows soared through the air, slamming into the ground with a small explosion, a bright light, and a huge noise. Two guards were sent flying, and the attention on Roy shattered.
Two more arrows soared through the air, releasing smoke as they went. A girl in a green robe and a mask with a freaky grin somersaulted into view, slamming into a large, bulky man with a very large gun. Another girl, this one in black and carrying a bow, followed the other, loosing a bola arrow before slamming her bow into a man's hand, forcing him to drop his gun to the ground.
"A little help would be appreciated!" Mask-Girl called, throwing a handful of shuriken at the nearest enemy.
Roy blinked. "Right." He lunged low, slamming into a man's legs, causing him to topple.
"Here!" Archery-Girl threw something, which he caught purely on instinct. A bowstring. He grabbed his bow, looping the string appropriately, hoping desperately that they were the good guys, and this wasn't some sort of elaborate trap.
One guard slammed the butt of his gun against Mask-Girl's face, sending it flying through the air. But she just smirked, (the smile beneath the mask was a surprisingly similar to the one on the mask), slamming her foot into the guy's solar plexus.
"All down!" Archery-Girl said, scooping up the mask and tossing it to the other. (Mask-Girl, Roy noticed as he drew an arrow, was surprisingly young. She couldn't be that much older than him.) "But there's more coming!"
Mask-Girl pressed her mask back onto her face, growling when it fell back off. It must have been damaged when the mook had hit it off her face. "Fantastic."
"Where's Green Arrow?" Speedy demanded, bow half-drawn.
"Funny, was going to ask you the same question," the girl said, tossing her mask to the ground. "We need to get out of here. Artemis, get high!"
"Got it!" Archery-Girl dashed away, fading into the dark warehouse.
"Red, you're with me," she smirked at him, dark eyes gleaming. "See if you can keep up." She turned around and ran.
"Do I at least get a name?" He yelled, following her, despite the fact that it might be a trap.
"Cheshire!" She called over her shoulder, smirking in an infuriating way.
The two of them wove between the metal crates. Roy tried to figure out who the hell this girl and her partner were. He'd never heard of anyone his own age (Robin being the exception of course) doing this kind of work. Yet here they were, and they'd just saved his ass.
Cheshire turned a corner, her hair flaring out behind her. Roy tried not to notice that. Cheshire was very pretty…
He turned the corner, but she wasn't there. He paused, eyes scanning for her in the darkness.
Something was behind him. He spun, mouth opening to shout for Cheshire, but a hand clamped over his mouth, effectively muffling any noise he might have made. He was pulled in between two of the crates, and slammed against the side of one of them, pinned into place. He looked into Cheshire's eyes, breathing heavily, and tried to get his heart to slow down. The hand over his mouth turned into a single finger against his lips. She leaned in close, whispering in his ear. "Guards coming."
Sure enough, he could hear the heavy stomping of boots coming their way. He mouthed a thank you at Cheshire, fully expecting her to back away.
She didn't.
The crevice between the crates was very narrow, and Cheshire, either on purpose or because of the tightness of the crack, was pressed against him, one hand on his abdomen and the other by her side. Speedy felt the heat rush to his face as he realized just how close their faces were. Cheshire's dark eyes, framed by long lashes, seemed to gleam, as if she somehow knew what he was thinking about. She raised an eyebrow, a smirk playing across her face. Roy's blush intensified.
Suddenly, there was a series of thuds that sounded like arrows embedding themselves into the ground. Roy slumped with relief. "That'll be GA," he said.
"I'm thinking Artemis," Cheshire said, pulling away from him, the smirk still on her face. Roy tried very hard not to think about that.
"Maybe both?" He offered, straightening his quiver strap.
"Oh, Artemis would love that," Cheshire said, striding out into the open confidently. She turned around, raising a single eyebrow. "Aren't you coming?"
Roy hurried after her.
Artemis perched amongst the rafters of the warehouse, her bow fully drawn and knocked. Her eyes darted back and forth as she watched Speedy and Jade dart between the crates. Her eyes narrowed as she spotted guards coming their way. She tapped her communicator twice, their signal for approaching hostiles in radio-silence situations, and waited. Jade vanished almost instantly, darting between two crates. Speedy was grabbed unceremoniously a few seconds later, which made Artemis snicker, although it probably shouldn't have.
There was a small noise—a landing—behind her, and she pivoted instantly, careful to maintain her balance on the narrow rafter.
"Easy, kiddo!" Artemis bit back a squeak. She had a Taser-arrow aimed at Green Arrow's chest. "I'm one of the good guys!"
Artemis knew her eyes were huge, and that she was staring, but she didn't really care. "I know," she squeaked, feeling horribly embarrassed as soon as she said it. She sounded ridiculous, like a little kid.
Green Arrow didn't seem to notice. He smiled at her as she lowered her bow. "What's your name, kiddo?"
"Artemis," she responded, smiling tentatively up at him.
"Nice to meet you, Artemis," Green Arrow said. "So," he drew his own bow and reached up for an arrow. "How good are you with that thing?"
"Wanna see?" Artemis grinned.
Green Arrow loosed a grappling arrow. "You ever zip-lined before?"
"Yep!" Artemis said, hooking her bow over the rope.
"Let's go then!" Green Arrow grinned. The two of them landed on the floor, firing off bola and Taser arrows to catch the three remaining guards. Artemis checked that they were unconscious and then straightened up, collapsing her bow and tucking it into the holster on her belt.
"Good job kiddo," Green Arrow said, placing a hand on her shoulder. "You're a good shot!"
Artemis's face lit up, feeling ridiculously giddy at the compliment. "Thanks!"
"I could've told you that," Speedy said, emerging from a very narrow place between crates, face slightly flushed.
"Speedy!" There was clear relief in Green Arrow's face. "You okay?"
"Fine," Speedy said, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. "Thanks to Cheshire and Artemis."
Jade smirked, crossing her arms. "It's always nice to be appreciated."
"What's not to appreciate?" Speedy asked. "You fight pretty." He paused, realizing what he just said. A blush overtook his cheeks. "Pretty good, that is!" Artemis and Green Arrow looked at each other and stifled laughter.
Cheshire smiled. "Good to know," she pecked him on the cheek. "See you around, Red. C'mon Sis."
"See you!" Artemis said to Green Arrow, before she chased her sister off into the shadows.
"So…" Ollie said, standing beside Roy. "Cheshire, huh?"
"Shut up," Roy felt his ears turn red.
"I'm just saying, you two seemed pretty friendly…"
"Shut. Up."
"Pretty small space you two were in…"
"Shut up!"
"Have we had that talk yet?"
"I'm not listening!" Roy sang, clasping his hands over his ears, expression horrified..
A/N: And yes, in case you were wondering, this *is* when, in canon, Roy is abducted and replaced by his clone. Ooops. Guess the Light might be having some troubles now.