Chapter 1: February Seventh

It was an easy mission, and I had known it from the start. Get in, gain trust, slaughter the enemy (not literally of course; Batman would've killed me if I did), and get out. Of course, I had had easier missions, like stalking a few folks who Canary thought were abusive parents or the time that I had to seduce some horny CEO into cancelling an order of high-tech explosives. But don't get me wrong. The new mission was a piece of cake. For me, anyway. Who knew anything about Roy's opinion, and honestly, who cared?

All mission's had their...horror's you might say. Like the whole stalking thing came with a trip to the police station, which awkwardly enough Roy had gotten me out of. And that seducing shit that I put up with: yeah, it wasn't pleasant to have that bastard's thick, gripping hands all over me. Even though I felt as if this was the easiest mission, mission being "disintegrating" the target, the horror was probably the worst thing I had had to have faked in my entire career. And believe me. That's a long timeline.

We had gotten our mission info on February seventh. A week before Valentine's Day. The cave was covered in décor. Pinks and Reds and weirdly-tinted glitter were stuck in practically every corner and socket of the mountain. Heart shaped cards and wreathes were near almost every door. And don't even get me started on the piles of food and candy M'gann had stacked in the kitchen. I swear you could've made a life-size replica of the dug-out mountain we were working in with all those sugar-filled snacks.

I had just gotten out of a briefing that consisted of not only part of the Leagues thoughts about my previous mission, but also the information concerning the new mission they were sending Roy and I on. Some asshole in a small neighborhood in upstate New York thought it was funny to create a nuclear bomb out of old kitchen utilities. And when that happens you just have to send two fucked up teenagers to retrieve it.

But that wasn't all the intel Batman had given us. Not only did the bastard create a dangerous weapon, but he threatened his wife and thirteen-year-old son just to keep his "little" invention under radar. And just for references, I had no clue how Batman, or the rest of the Justice League for that matter, got any of this information, since by the look of it, the wife and son weren't going to talk.

Aside from that, I was told that Roy and I were going undercover as a couple. An engaged couple. An engaged couple that just bought a house. An engaged couple that just bought a house in the same neighborhood as a dangerous, physco, idiotic man who was having a mid-life crisis.

Engaged didn't just mean putting on smiles and walking around with a hint of lust in your eyes. It meant so much more according to Diana, whom I hadn't had very many chances of getting to know or meet. It meant that we'd both have to put all of our energy into appearances and actions. Since I was pulling off a twenty-two year old law student and Roy was pretending to be a twenty-four year old billionaire who just inherited his father's big-wig electronic merchandising company, we had to act on our best behavior, and we had to look like we were the most in-love, perfect, lust-worthy, and intelligent couple in the world. Which really made me nervous because Roy and I had nothing checked off on that list as enemies.

Roy being a "billionaire" as his alias, and us pretending to be engaged, Diana had borrowed a ring from her planet. Being that the Amazonians, or whatever the hell they were called, didn't do "men" or "marriages" they had some pretty damn expensive-looking rings. Shiny, silver base and a twenty-karat diamond - to say the least: a ring that I'd never trust myself to wear ever again.

Luckily Roy wasn't at the cave quite yet. He had gotten stuck in traffic and couldn't seem to find his way to the nearest zeta-tube, which gave me time to think of an alternative to playing "nice" with him. So far: not a single hint.

I walked into the kitchen to get hit with a strong scent of freshly baked cookies and cakes and sweets. I gagged.

"Oh my God. This is the one of the times that I wish the cave had windows. God! How much sugar have you gone through, M'gann?" Zatanna, looking more excited that ever, walked over to me with a plate of heart-shaped cookies. M'gann pulled out the fresh batch, which surprisingly wasn't as burnt as usual and smiled at me.

"Enough to make your head spin." Zatanna said, holding out the plate of cookies in hopes to tempt me. I shook my head and push the plate back a little which made Zatanna lower them and walk over to boys, Wally, Robin, Kaldur, and Conner, as they dug into the sugar-filled sweets.

"It's my first Valentine's Day. Last year nobody told me about the holiday, so this year I'm celebrating it." M'gann said, cutting some more dough into heart shapes.

"So you're basically celebrating Valentine's Day by giving us all diabetes? Nice. Well, in that case, does anyone want to go to lunch with me?" I asked, looking around the room. Wally's hand flew up and I couldn't help but roll my eyes.

"You grab your fanciest dress and I'll grab my tux and we can waltz all night long," Wally said, rushing to my side frantically as if I were about to be taken. I gawked at him.

"Yeah. For one, I'm too old for you. Two, in heels I'd be too tall for you. And three, I'm not interested in going on a date with a guy three years younger than me."

"She just told you!" I heard Artemis say as she walked into the room. Turning around I saw her smile slyly at Wally as he walked away clearly saddened. "I'll go to lunch with you. After all, I can't let Wally get away with ruining you're appetite when you actually have one."

"Sounds good. Anyone else want to go?" I looked around the room, not sure if I wanted more yes's or no's.

"I would, but I really need to help M'gann with these sweets. Because someone keeps eating them, we're running behind. We only have half of the amount that we need and I haven't even gotten started with the wrapping yet. And plus, there aren't many times that we have the opportunity to go to the Watch Tower, now is there?" Zatanna said, smiling aside with M'gann. I smiled back.

"Well then, I guess it's just you and me, huh, Artemis?"

"Yep. To-go and a non-awkward walk downtown?"

"Hell, yeah."

"So when's your mission?"

"Uh, our flight leaves at ten, so Roy and I will be leaving probably around seven-thirty. Gives us thirty minutes to drive and two hours to make our way through security and all that shit." I said. Artemis laughed.

"I wish I could say that I know that feeling, but honestly I haven't had much experience with planes and airports. What's your mission again? Some sort of kidnapping?" Artemis whispered the last part to me. I laughed and looked down at the ground and watched as the cracks in the concrete went by. I looked back up and glanced back at Artemis.

"Unfortunately not a kidnapping. Some idiotic bastard decided to make a nuke. Threatened his family when they found out. Supposedly going to use it to destroy the government. Either way I have to pretend to be engaged to Roy for about a week or even longer. To be honest, I never thought I'd find myself using the words "engaged," "to," and "Roy," in the same sentence."

"I totally hear you. Sometimes when I see you and Roy on missions, I think about Wally and I and how I'd react in your position. You seem to have life so hard, but you just breeze into it like nothing. You're like a role model for me."

I froze at the thought. Role model. No. That wasn't even close to what I wanted Artemis to become. I swallowed and looked at her.

"Artemis-"

"Yeah, I know, I know. Life is easy for you. I get it. You're awesome."

"No. That wasn't what I was going to say. I was going to say that you don't want to be like me. I'm eighteen years old and practically the whole world wants to either kill me or awkwardly hug me because of lies that have been put into their heads. And life is no where near easy. I have more enemies than the whole Justice League does combined. And I'm out here in the open, walking the streets like an innocent citizen. I don't breeze into anything either. I'm just a stuck up, cold-hearted bitch who can't show her true feelings no matter what's going on, on the outside. Don't look up to me. Just be yourself. For me, okay?"

"Okay, fine. You got me." We laughed. "But before I go back to being, you know, myself, wanna race back to the zeta tubes?"

"Oh. You're on."

I stood at the passenger side of car and looked over the dark blue Rolls-Royce Wraith. Roy's blue eyes just glared at me: a sign of putrid hatred. I smiled mockingly and Roy raised his brow.

"What?"

"Oh it's nothing. There's just something on your face."

"What? My appearance or my expressions?" I sighed.

"Neither. Just come here." He raised a brow. "God, you're so stubborn." He rolled he eyes and walked toward me and I smiled. The next thing he knew, my knuckles collided with his square jaw. He grunted.

"What the hell was that for!?" I laughed.

"That is what'll make you remember my hatred towards you."

"You little-"

"Uh, uh, uh." I said, wiggling my pointer finger. I smiled slyly. "You wouldn't hit your fiancé, now would you."

Roy shut up and I smiled, getting into the car and waiting for Roy. He slammed the door shut once he got in the driver's seat and sighed, turning on the engine.

"Nothing can be more hellish than this situation, can it?" It wasn't a question, but I just smiled. After all, if there was one thing that I loved to do, it was torture Roy mentally.

"If you cut yourself on your hairline again, like you did the last time we were at an airport, I swear I'll murder someone." Roy said as we sat down at the gate. Looking at my watch I saw that it was nearly nine o'clock. We had a little less than an hour before we were supposed to board and I had no clue what I would do while I was waiting.

"You should be thanking God right now that no one's close enough to hear you say that. The last thing we need is for you to get dragged off and padded town by TSA." I said, staring at my phone screen as I looked up the house that we were "buying."

"And I thought you weren't the religious one."

"I'm not. It's just a figure of speech." I clicked on a photo album and leaned toward Roy, showing him the pictures. "Look at this."

"What is it?"

"The house that we're supposedly buying. Thirty-six million dollars and it's still considered a house. You'd think that thirteen bedrooms, three kitchens, an indoor and outdoor spa and pool, and a personal bar would give it the title of 'mansion.' "

"Holy shit. Oliver's house is smaller than this. What the hell is with them? Buying a house that costs that much."

"Well first of all it's across the street from you-know-who. Second, you're supposed to be playing a billionaire, that's why, you know, we have first-class tickets. Third, I'm supposed to be a law student and when you add our invisible wages together you get more money that what it took to build the Empire State Building."

"Yeah, but why us. I mean the League has so many other people who could go undercover. And they're probably even better at this undercover billionaire shit."

"That, I don't know, so I can't exactly answer those questions, but whatever they're reasons are they better be damn good because I haven't exactly slaughtered anyone verbally for a while. Not even you, surprisingly."

"I'll take that as a compliment, dear." Roy said with a mocking smile.

"Only for you, darling."

I had to admit that we were getting pretty damn good at this exaggerated love stuff. And honestly, and sinfully, I might add, I actually found it fun. Which I wouldn't admit to Roy or anyone else for that matter. Over my dead body.

"Here you go, Miss." A young, male flight attendant said, setting down a cup of coffee in front of me. He smiled calmly.

"Thank you." Roy laughed as he walked away. I glared at him. "What?" I asked.

"I don't understand how you are so naïve when it comes to seeing the lust in other people's eyes."

"Well, I don't understand that with all this money flying out of your pockets you don't have the decency to buy a private jet. I mean, I'm not complaining or anything but I'm so not liking this whole presence thing we've got going on with our fellow first classers."

Roy just stared at me, dumbstruck at my comment. I laughed.

"God, why don't you stop being such a dick and lighten up a bit? If you don't start acting like you know something about you're position in society, then you're going to have more problems this week than just living with a stuck up bitch with a bad attitude and bunch of money flying out of her purse."

"I'll lighten up once I figure out how to get away from you."

"Good luck with that, 'cause it's not like you can just leave the house without the whole neighborhood seeing or go to a bar and have sex with some random bitch without people talkin'. There's eyes and ears all around the city. And once we end up in town, they'll sure as hell be coming to me with a little gossip. Since you know, that what rich women do when they have no life beyond pleasing their husband."

"Somehow I feel very disturbed by that comment."

"Oh don't worry. I don't exactly qualify in the 'pleasing' part."