The first thing Artemis said as they walked out of the exit to the cave was, "I want to see my mom." She turned to Wally and squeezed his hand. Another thing she wanted was days of alone time with him, but she knew she had a responsibility to see her mother. "I have to let her know I'm alive."

Wally gave her a tight smile, "she kind of already knows." He sighed and rubbed his arm where he felt a phantom ache from her punches the other day. He looked up and saw her confused expression, "your sister told her a few weeks ago."

"Now I really have to see her," she said, but she sounded less determined and excited, and a lot more terrified.

Dick came up behind them and put his hand on Wally's shoulder as Barbara fell into step next to Artemis, "We have to go to Gotham too, how about we take a break for a little bit- grab something to eat?"

No one commented on Artemis' grateful smile, but Wally squeezed her hand tighter. He'd felt Paula Crock's anger, and had been ashamed at himself; he didn't know how Artemis was going to stand it.

Once they'd all exited the zeta tube and changed into civvies, Wally slung his arm around Artemis and led the way out of the ally- despite being the only one with no clue where to go. As he slowed down to look back a little helplessly, Artemis chuckled and also glanced behind them at her fellow Gothamites. Seeing them standing close to each other, hands brushing, she turned back around quickly with a barely contained smirk.

Wally eyed her suspiciously before asking, "so where exactly are we going?"

Dick nodded his head at a diner just down the street from them, "Best devil's food in the city!"

Wally rolled his eyes and Artemis could feel him vibrating with the need to zoom closer to the food.

Within a few minutes, or ages in Wally's case, they were seated in a booth with their sodas on the way. While they looked down at their menus, glancing over all the details until something stuck out, Artemis, without glancing up, nonchalantly commented, "So when did that start happening?"

Wally pulled his menu closer to his face to hide his smirk and slightly shaking shoulders. Dick looked up puzzled, and Babs kept her eyes straight on the menu though their sudden bulge made it clear she fully understood what Artemis was talking about.

"When did wha-" But before Dick could finish, Barbara punched his leg. He turned to look at her with a smirk and a teasing remark but it quickly fell off his lips when he realized what Artemis was referring to.

He cleared his throat and they both shifted uncomfortably as Wally began to fail holding in his guffaws.

Artemis joined him and was actually leaning into him by the time she was able to catch her breath. Though at the site of their companions' bright red faces, she started laughing again.
When the waitress returned for their orders Wally sobered immediately and looked at the rest of the table as though nothing had happened, "I know what I want!" He the noticed the other three scramble for their menus, with Artemis wiping a tear from her eye. "Are you serious?"

"Oh just take his order, it'll take a while to cook it all anyway," Artemis said with an eye roll.

The waitress raised an eyebrow skeptically, which quickly descended into a scowl as Wally read her at least half the menu.

When she walked away, Dick spoke up, "I'm so not paying for your feast, Wally."
Wally leaned back and draped an arm around Artemis' shoulders, "being that I've been paying for my apartment and everything for the past three months without half the income we'd normally take in, I'd say: yea, you are."

Artemis leaned into him and decided on the blueberry pancakes. Wally kissed the crown of her head and she reached her left hand up to tangle with his left. "And you should probably pay for your date's too." She said in a teasing tone.

"She's not my date!" He hurried to supply. Though the way she picked her head up to glare at him, leaving him stuttering over an excuse, everyone knew there would only be one bill when they were done.

The waitress didn't return to their table for another half hour, no doubt scared the rest of them would order just as much. Not that they minded much.

They were listening adamantly to each other's stories about the last three months.

Artemis looked down at her hands as she explained in a low voice that it was she who had pressed the button to destroy the cave, that she was the one to blame. Wally put his forehead to her temple while Barbara explained that it wasn't at all her fault, prompting Dick to try to shoulder the blame, which enabled Barbara to retort with, "God, Dick, you can't take the credit for everything leave something for the rest of us to gloat about." Which prompted another round of laughter from the four of them, in turn prompting Wally's stomach to growl.

Through their chuckles they managed to call the waitress over. She was hesitant to return to the table of what she no doubt considered delinquents until they saw the cook point hastily at Dick. No doubt recognizing the heir from the social section of the gazette.

Wally's order arrives in waves, and he throws back pieces of whatever is on his plate at the time between snips of conversation. They were currently on the topic of Artemis' funeral. She felt the change in Wally and squeezed his knee under the table with the hand that wasn't stroking his wrist that lay across her shoulder when he spoke of how often he'd visit her grave and see her mother. She was shocked though when she learned of the massive tombstone, she turned to tell Dick he shouldn't have but he put up his hands. A look of trepidation coming into his eyes, "It was… it was your dad, Artemis."

She was shocked and she stared at him, waiting for him to crack a smile at his joke so she could punch him. She looked to Wally who glanced up at her, his eyes telling her that even he had been shocked but it didn't make it any less true. She shook her head, "No, you're wrong. My dad would never-" she broke off and closed her eyes, remembering him on the sub. "He didn't even care that I was alive." She grit through her teeth, turning away from them. She missed the look they shared as though trying to find a way to diffuse the situation before the two bat children stared at Wally.

"Artemis, he's your dad-"

"If you're about to give some speech about how he'll always love me I'd like to remind you of everything you know about me and then you can finish what you were going to say." She lowered her voice to a threatening, private, tone that had even Dick and Babs turning away from the couple. "He's the reason I have those scars, and the reason I wake up crying remembering how it feels to watch the life drain out of someone's eyes." Her eyes flashed between his in milliseconds, "he never. Cared. About. Me."

"So would you kids like another refill?" The waitress asks, unaware of what she had walked up to, and not caring enough to sense the mood at the table.

Babs shook her head for all of them and glanced at Dick. The both of them had long been aware of Artemis' history with the law, but never from her own admission. Dick had assumed that Wally had learned about her visits to Juvie and her sealed record- her admissions of guilt and her fifth degrees against her father and her lack of trust for the system that knew her father had prodded her to kill and did nothing to remove her from the home from Artemis' confidence.

"I'm not a fan of your father's, whatsoever, you know that. But I do think he has his way of showing he cares about his family." Wally shrugged his shoulder and mumbled, "in whatever capacity."

Artemis looked away, when she spoke again her voice got more passionate and frustrated with every word, "I just don't get why he'd care more about his rep than my death and still spend his precious money on something so stupid. When he found out I was alive he didn't even-" She broke off and sighed heavily, "I don't know why I'm surprised." She mumbled as she picked at the mushy remains of her pancakes before tossing her fork down to a loud clatter. "At least Jade gave a shit."

Wally rolled his eyes, "you always knew your sister gave a shit, please." He gave her a hesitant smile, hoping he was successful in coaxing out of her fowl mood. Tonight was for celebration, as would the next however many nights he could have. When she returned his smile with a small one of her own he continued, "I'd see them at your grave sometimes, you know. Jade would bring Lian," he stroked her hair lightly, "and your dad."
She didn't say anything but her eyes widened at the thought that her dad would visit her grave. She was learning all sorts of surprises tonight. Speaking of, "So Babs, was it grief that got you and lover boy together finally?"

Shocked at the sudden teasing turn in the conversation, Barbara choked on her water to Wally and Artemis chortles. "What? No not at- what do you mean finally?" Her eyes narrowed at the blonde who shrugged her shoulders noncommittally.

"Please, we know you spend the night over there sometimes, and I know he isn't sleeping on the couch when you do."

Barbara turned to look at Dick who floundered again and point looked to Wally for help. Barbara rolled her eyes before Wally could open his mouth, "it's not like that. I don't even- I wouldn't even say we're together."

Dick nodded, then stopped, "wait what?"

Artemis raised her eyebrow fully enticed as to where this conversation was about to turn. She turned to Wally whose mouth was agape with a slight smirk when he caught her eye.

Barbara shrugged, "I mean, we're not." She said resolutely and Dick rolled his eyes.

"Tell me why." He said with a straight face as he looked into her eyes. When she made a noncommittal wave in Wally's direction- to which Wally looked supremely confused about- he plowed through her non-answer "You tell me one real reason we're not together at this point. I haven't slept with anyone else in months, and I'm nearly positive you haven't either. We spend all of our free time together and being its not that much to begin with I'd say that's kind of a big deal in itself." Both Wally and Artemis' brows were as high as they would go, their grins as wide as possible with their jaws hanging open as they watched what was unfolding in front of them, "Babs, you have a toothbrush and a drawer at my apartment. In what way are we not dating?"

She huffed and looked to Artemis for support, but one look and she knew she'd be getting no support from the other side of the table, so she just looked to the dank hallway where the bathrooms were likely located- so long as it was the opposite direction of the insufferable man beside her. "I've already explained this to you at least a hundred times, Dick. You're not-"

"Ready for you. I get that that's why what we have has been what it's been. I get I wasn't mature enough, and I get why you decided this was best. But Barb-" he touched her shoulder and she turned to face him with an exaggerated turn, "I've told you before, I love you. And I'm not Bruce. This was a safety net for us, and we've been terrified to change it for too long now. I really don't think I can mess this up, and I know I don't want to." She was silent for a minute, her forehead scrunched as she scrutinized his face before letting a laugh slide past her lips and throwing her arms around him, kissing him loud enough and displayed enough for the waitress to trounce over and demand if they'd like their bill now.

Wally still had a number of plates to finish but Dick nodded and said it wouldn't be split and that he was covering it. He reached his arm out to hand her his credit card, and when he retracted it he hesitated a moment before mimicking his best friend's move and sliding his arm around Barbara's shoulders. She looked at his hand that at his face with a cocked eyebrow, "Too soon? Too soon." He made to pull away but she laughed and shook her head, so he left his hand where he'd stopped it at the small of her back.

Artemis and Wally then cooed at the couple across from them in sync before developing a fit of giggles. Dick interrupted them when he pointed out that their incessant giggling was probably making the staff think they were in that part of town so late at night for something other than a friendly double date. Wally and Artemis tried to stifle their laughs through bit lips and subdued shoulder shakes, Wally managed to actually form a sentence through the laughter though, "C'mon, Dick, you can't blame me for being euphoric." He turned to Artemis and squeezed her shoulder to him, "I got my lady love back and we're this much closer to bringing this whole thing down."

"Plus he got to put his suit on tonight," Artemis supplied.

"Plus I got to put the suit on," he agreed with a huge grin. "World say hello to Kid Flash again!"

"Yea for like, the next few months, maybe." Artemis smiled, "once this is done we're out, Babe, you know that."

"I know that, but c'mon. You love it too. It's nice to be back in the suit." He turned a lascivious smile to her, "reminds me of when we were younger."

Barbara laughed, "Where did you learn this habit of turning anything into a perverted comment?"

Dick laughed when Wally glared at her, "I'll have you know, my lady loves seeing me in my uniform."

Artemis started laughing but quickly sobered her face when he turned to her for support, "no, I do." She ran her fingers along his shoulder and whispered in an inviting voice loud enough for Dick and Babs to hear, "You fill it out so nicely now."

"Like I didn't before?"

"You were lanky before," Dick supplied.

"Shut up Dick," Wally turned to Artemis, "please you couldn't keep your hands off my when we were 16," he wiggled his eyes to accompany his suggestion. "Plus, you know you had a crush on me before you joined the team."

Artemis turned bright red and stole a fry from his plate, trying her hardest to ignore Barbara's titters "you had a crush on Kid Flash before you knew him?" She and Dick let lose all out guffaws at that notion.

"Oh shut up," she said folding her arms and slamming her self backwards in a huff, right into Wally's chest. He put both his hands on her arms, squeezed gently, and kissed the top of her with a loud SMAK! She giggled, "okay yes, fine, I'd seen him on the news, he was my age, I thought he was great." She smiled up at him, "until I met him and he turned into an insufferable ass."

Wally look offended in the most ridiculous way possible. He pretended to push her off, "I am Kid Flash, and I'm the fastest boy alive!" He said like it explained how wrong she was.

All it did was elicit, "that explains why you're always single."

Dick and Babs were practically rolling off their seats they were laughing so hard, "I've held onto you this long, haven't I?" He demanded with a smirk.

With a roll of her shoulders she said, "It's mainly out of pity," before plucking another fry from his plate.

He quickly snatched it out of her hand, "no, no snacks until you stop being so mean."

Artemis only raised an eyebrow, "We've had this conversation, Wally, and we both know I'm getting that fry."

With a blush as he remembered the first time she'd proven he wanted her more than he wanted food and handed the fry back, "cruel mistress," he mumbled.

Dick glanced at the clock and the impatient staff who no doubt wanted to leave so they could prepare for breakfast. It was already 4:30 in the morning.

He stretched his arms, "I don't think you're mom is going to be happy about you waking her up this early."

Wally nodded at the bag next to him on the seat, "we have a key to the apartment." His voice was wistful, "but we should probably go while she's too tired to beat me again."

Artemis snorted but she too felt she wasn't ready to leave.

Barbara noticed their looks, "I always thought double dates were cheesy, but this was fun."

Both Wally and Dick adamantly spoke in sync, "this wasn't a double date!"

But Artemis ignored them and smiled, "we should though. You two need to come out to California, we'll go to beach, make it a thing."

Wally pulled a face, "you need to stop planning to make things."

"Well that cancels my plans for you tonight." She said as she stood out of the booth, following the other couple's example as Dick reached down for his credit card and receipt.

Wally made to follow her but stopped, "wait what?" He sputtered.

The three standing heroes laughed loudly, and Wally gave a nervous chuckle like he wasn't so sure it was a joke based on his own thudding heart. When they walked out of the café, with a boisterous thank you to the staff, They stood in the dirty Gotham air for a moment before Barbara leapt at Artemis, "I'm just so glad you're home."

"How long did you know," Artemis asked.

"Please, I'd heard about the training exercise," the other three looked away while Artemis stepped closer to Wally, "Sorry, I just meant- Wally was a wreck and you two weren't even dating then. But after- well." She shrugged, "He kind of comforted all of us through it. I realized then there was no way you could really be dead, because Wally wouldn't be here either."

Artemis glanced up at Wally under her lashes, "which is also why I needed him to be in on the plan to go along with it." She nodded to Dick, "and I know he's in the dog house for a while."

"Oh absolutely," Barbara said with a harsh laugh while Dick looked to her imploringly. She rolled her eyes, "after tonight."

There was another group laugh and hugs were exchanged before they finally started the slow separation to different parts of town. They kept turning around to shout quips at each other, "Just remember you can't fight a woman in a wheelchair," and, "Make sure you're not too loud to wake your mom!" and so on until with one glance back, Artemis and Wally turned a corner.

The invasion wasn't over, but Artemis was home. And they were totally making this a thing.