Author's Notes: So as I was working on Untamable and finishing the next chapter of Arkham Rising (will be posted tomorrow) I got the idea of this small little one-shot that I had to get out of my head one way or another. It's a small fluffy one-shot of Jake and Artemis that takes place after his training with Shiva and before he meets up with Starfire. Enjoy.
Disclaimer: AuDC Productions does not own any rights to Young Justice or Teen Titans or any related material to the DC Comics franchise.
Warnings: This one-shot contains some nudity and sexual situations. Viewer discretion is advised.
Don't Call Them Red Arrow
"Jerk!"
The taunt was completely jovial as Artemis Crock attempted to get her exposed sides away from the tickling machine that had her pinned to her bed. They were supposed to be studying but that went out of the window as soon as she decided to remind him of his secret nerdy side. None of the other football players would believe that the Jake Cross was pretty adept in almost every subject in school and was completely into computers and such. The boy seriously knew his ways around a computer to the point that Artemis knew that he could give Dick a run for his money. Jake had mentioned to her before that he wanted to keep his "nerdy nature" away from the guys on the team as he would lose some respect and Artemis agreed. But when they were alone like this, his nerdy nature was something she could tease him about freely.
"Say it." His voice sent shivers down her spine, momentarily overriding the tickling sensation surging through her body.
"No." Artemis said defiantly. His lips press against her neck in a butterfly neck. "Jake…"
It wasn't fair in her mind. It was as if all of Black Canary's training went out of the window when he did things like this. She was strong-willed and had a determination that rivaled Superman's physical strength. Yet when it came to Jake Cross, she reverted to something akin to that weak little girl who watched her sister leave while she was too afraid to say or do anything about it.
"Say it." Jake repeated, this time his lips near her ear where he whispers his words.
Artemis lies in silence before moving her head so they could eye one another. It was odd to Artemis how two shades of darkness (Jake's dark brown and her coal grey) could shine so brightly when put together. There was an undeniable attraction between the two pairs of eyes but she would not just outright say it. She blamed her father for that but Artemis was not an over-the-top gushing girl like Bette was.
"Do you have to be so stubborn? I'd really hate to do what I have to do to you." Jake says quietly.
It was then that Artemis registers his right hand resting above her bellow button, his pinky grazing the top of her jeans. Her eyes snap back up to meet his mischievous stare. They have never had sex but dear God his fingers more than made up for it and he knew it. Artemis always wondered how his hands could be next to him one moment and then somehow sneaking up her shirt without her noticing it. She swore he would be an amazing thief if he put his mind to it.
"Artemis," And like that his hand retracts as the two teens look towards her opening door where her mother was at. "Are you two studying in here or fooling around?"
Artemis blushes at the words "fooling around" for unknown reasons and sent her mother an annoyed glance.
"Homework is done Mom." Jake smiles at Artemis's response. "We're just lying here talking."
Paula hardly bought the lie. She remembers how it once felt to be young and in love. She knew the adrenaline that one received when love, lust, and happiness coursed through one's veins at the same time. It clouded better judgment for the most part and things learned through books were no longer computable. Instincts took over and then…
"Mom!" Artemis broke Paula out of her thoughts, her blonde daughter now sitting up with Jake. The two were staring at her with strange looks as Paula brushed her thoughts away.
"Keep it down." And with that, the woman wheeled herself away in order to look at Artemis's baby pictures some more. At least there her baby girl was still a baby.
"I'll be back." Artemis said before giving Jake a soft tap on his forehead. "And that's for being such an asshole!"
"You slay me with your words Goddess." Jake replies as he watches Artemis exit her room.
The thief then takes in a deep breath as he lies in Artemis's bed, taking in her scent. It was so much different than her sister's. Better even. His mind momentarily went back to Shiva's training and what she told him. Did he really want to drag Artemis through the entire League of Assassins? Did he really want to make her into a villain like he and Jade were? No, he couldn't. Artemis was and will always be who Jake Cross needed to be Jake Cross, not Red X. There was no way that he could allow Ra's to get his hands on Artemis.
And then there was Artemis the heroine…
Jake grimaces a bit as he rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling. He wondered if Artemis had another bug in her room that allowed the Justice League to monitor her at all times. He doubted that everyone was alright with her being the daughter of Sportsmaster and the sister of Cheshire. Heaven forbid they find out that he was Red X. Artemis would be on constant watch in order to make sure that none of their priceless secrets got out. Though unfair in several ways, Jake understood how strict heroes were about maintaining a code of honor. They could not take risks. Maybe that's what made him do what he did. He liked taking risks and knew he would never be able to under the employment of the boy scout in blue and red.
Maybe he should tell her? Maybe he should just reveal to Artemis that he was indeed Red X and that he knew that she was the green-clad archer who he had battled times before? She would be pissed but it would probably be better than what the ultimatum was. He could leave out the part that he had actually had sex with Jade and- of course- how he obtained her Christmas gift. Artemis was a smart and understanding girl. She would eventually understand that he was more than Red X and she was more than a mission to him…
Or she would tell him to fuck off and go runaway with that damn speedster. That was also a possibility.
A soft click made Jake turn his head to see Artemis in her room again, this time shutting and locking her door. Normally when she did this it turned into a rather loud pillow fight, some kissing and touching, and then the two of them being scolded by her mother. His training told him to instantly grab a pillow and prepare for such. But it was Artemis. Even with a sixth sense of jovial danger blaring in his head, he could only lie there as she walked towards her bed…
And pounced onto him like a tigress on an unsuspecting gazelle.
"Now," Artemis said as she straddled him. "Where were we?"
"I think you were about to apologize for calling me a nerd." Jake remarked calmly.
"Or," Artemis stated. "I could make you to say that…" She pauses to think of something before smirking. "That I am the best girlfriend you ever had."
"Wow. Talk about an ego." laughs Jake. "What if I won't say it?"
"Like I said," Artemis replies as she lowers her face to his, her hair becoming a golden curtain that he had to remove from getting between them. "I. Will. Make. You."
Wally was a great guy- Artemis would never deny it- once one got past his nearly fruitless flirting and his immaturity. Then again, said immaturity could be pinned on Dick. But there was something about Jake that made her feel free. She could be with him and nothing else in the world mattered. Gotham was a city where someone was breaking the law somewhere within city limits at all times and she, as a hero, had sworn to stop as many crimes as she possibly could. But that was just one half of who she was. The other side did not have to worry about petty thieves- or Red X- and assassins like Jade. In fact, the only thing Jake made her worry about is if he got tackled too hard in a game.
The quarterback was always the one that got hit the hardest, Jake would tell her.
"You're cheating." Jake's voice rasps out as Artemis nips and kisses his jaw line.
She giggles. She hated the sound of her laughter at some points but knew he was adamant to hear it. So she never stopped it. He would just get her to laugh one way or another.
Jake slid his hands under her shirt only for her to remove them and pin them above his head. He laughs quietly while going through several ways to get out of the hold. Jade had him in a similar position before but it was all out of lust. This was a game. He knew Artemis would eventually stop herself before she got carried away, and if she didn't, he would. No way in hell would he allow himself to make Artemis another name on a list unless he knew for sure that she would be the last name to said list.
"Say it." Artemis tells him as the warmth in her body forces her hips to grind.
"Fine," Artemis sits up, glad that he had relented to easily. She releases his wrists and stares down at him. "You are…"
Artemis squeals when he quickly reverses their position. There was some fear that came with the maneuver as she did not have the largest bed and could have wound up on the floor or hitting her head against the headboard. But Jake was quite careful with how her head met her pillow while taking her hands into his own and stares down as her golden her spreads out beneath her head.
If only they had more moments like this one…
"You are so easily fooled Goddess." Jake grins before giving her a chaste kiss. "And I am the best boyfriend that you ever had."
"Wow. Talk about an ego." Artemis jokes as he releases her hands, much to her dismay.
"Oh, it's no ego. It's a fact." Once more his hand, this time his left, trails down her body until it rests above her pants. "Just like it's a fact that I always win in this little game of ours, Goddess. So the next words better be your terms of surrender or…"
Artemis smiles and allows him to kiss her though she was mentally shouting at him to just get it over with. Again, they had not had sex so his touches were really the only physical pleasure her mind knew. Kissing was great and all, but it failed to compare to what he had done in early January. At sixteen, Artemis knew full well what an orgasm was but to experience it…
It really made her want to kill him for teasing her so much.
Jake only smiles as he felt the urgency in her hips. He did not break from their current kissing simply because it was innocent (well almost innocent without their tongues clashing) and what he was about to do was not. Somewhere in the back of his mind he knew how wrong it was to even touch Artemis let alone in the presence of her mother. She deserved better than the guy who was secretly one of the few people that she loathe the most. She deserved better than him. Now, in Jake's mind, Wally did not constitute as "better than him" but Wally did keep her safe from the League's plans. So maybe it was for the best.
"Do it." Artemis growls when her pants become undone. Now Jake laughs as he feels her hand on his wrist. "Damn it Jake…"
"Naughty, naughty," Jake chides. "You are always so impatient. Take your time Goddess. You don't have to speed through life all the time."
"Speeches later. Finger now." Artemis demands quietly. "Hurry before my mother comes in an- Ahaha!"
Jake's smile returns as he resumes tickling her. She squirms beneath him as much as his body would allow while his hands strummed her sides repeatedly. Her laughs soon fill the room while Jake allows a chuckle or two to escape his own lips.
He was becoming too much like his father. Even without trying, he had studied all of Artemis's strengths and weaknesses and used them- like now- for his personal gain. Despite the action being something so small it was still very Slade-like.
"Okay!" Artemis finally pants out. "Okay you win! You're not a nerd!"
Finally Jake stops. "See? That wasn't so bad after all, now was it?"
Artemis attempted to still her breathing but failed miserably. Between her ticklish sides registering every movement he made and her libido screaming at Jake to return to what he was about to do, she could not calm down. And then their eyes reunited and she was reminded of her inner battles. How she wanted to protect Jake from her father and sister and how she badly wanted to tell him about her being a hero. She would probably exclude her relationship with Wally until after his reaction. If he turned out to be a douche, she would leave him without a second thought. If he proved to be understanding and accepting then she would have to explain to Wally that Jake is where she belonged. Who knows? Maybe she could talk Batman in to letting Jake join after some training?
"What's on your mind beautiful?" Artemis grins at his cheesy attempt to woo her but failed to stop her cheeks from reddening.
"You are." Her response was probably twice as cheesy.
"Oh really? Tell me." Jake said.
"Trying to rank you up against Ryan Reynolds and The Rock," Artemis jokes. Jake laughs, rolling onto his side next to her while carefully moving her hair so he wouldn't accidently lie on it. "If you're wondering, you're somewhere in my top five."
"Am I?" he hasn't stopped laughing yet, but that damn mischievous tone had returned tenfold. "Tell me where I rank now."
Artemis sucks in a deep breath when she feels his fingers come into contact with her panties. How did she not see his fingers slipping into her pants? How did she not feel them? How was he, the quarterback with a secret technology fetish, so good at sneaking feels on her? And why did she enjoy it some freaking much?
"Close your eyes Goddess." Artemis does as she was told. "Relax. It'll be over as soon as you give in."
This was how this game went. Artemis was defiant and wouldn't just bend over (no sex puns intended) for anyone. And Jake was just as stubborn, finding different ways to get her to yield to him. While he has always found a way to break her will and forced her to give in to his touch, she was ultimately the winner each and every time.
"I hate you…" she hisses as she rocks her hips against his circling fingers.
"Do you?" Artemis shivers when his warm breath comes in contact with her exposed stomach. She bites her bottom lip and nods. "Tell me to stop Goddess and I will. You know that."
"I hate you so much." Artemis said as she feels his right hand slide beneath her body to unclasp her bra. "So freaking much…"
"Then I should stop?" The thief questions with a smile. "Those are the conditions of the game Artemis. You either tell me to quit, which will result in my forfeit. Or you continue to fight a losing fight. Your choice."
"I'm going to kick your ass when this is done." Artemis threatens lightly. "And then I'm going to tell everyone in school that Jake Cross is a nerd who gets owned by his girlfriend."
Jake clicks his tongue. "Oh really? Well in that case," Artemis releases a long dry moan as she feels his middle finger toy with her entrance. "Maybe I should make the game harder?"
She glared at him. "Do your worst."
Jake smiles. Maybe he did love her. It was a question he had been wondering about for months now. He hated Wally because they were in love with the same girl and only Wally could be with both Artemis the student and Artemis the archer. He hated Roy because Roy had attempted to kill Artemis twice. Maybe love was the only reason he allowed his finger to give her the pleasure she wanted without gaining anything in return.
"Jake…"
He then had another thought. Artemis would probably be alright with him being Red X so long as he never revealed to her what happened between him and her sister. Then again he doubts she would ever forgive him if he killed someone just to be with her. And she would downright hate him if he became the leader of the organization. But what choice did he really have? It was clear that death was the only way out his predicament.
"Oh God."
As for Artemis, she was somewhere far away. There were no bows and arrows or guys trying to blow up the planet where she was. There were no Martian friends, Kryptonian clones, or teens moving at high speeds with lame (but somehow funny) jokes. Just a warm light and nothing else. She had gotten there when Jake's mouth and tongue began to work on her breasts now that her bra had been removed and her shirt was raised enough to do so. Jake had probably suckled on her exposed nipple to purposely send her to this place. Though she was not mad. In fact, she was happy. He made her happy and she wanted to return the favor to him someday. Maybe after he accepted her as the green archer of Gotham City?
"Do you still hate me, Goddess?" Jake said in-between kissing her breasts. He added a second finger inside of her and curled them. "All you have to do is tell me to-"
"Don't stop!" Artemis commanded in a voice almost too loud for comfort. They had to remember that her mother was still in the apartment.
"But you hate me?" Jake teased as his fingers still worked her but nowhere near the speeds and pressure that she longed for.
"Please don't ever stop." Artemis begged. Jake smiles knowing that he had once more won this round. "Please go faster."
"As you wish."
If anyone were to peer inside of her room right now, Artemis would have to wait until Jake was finished to do something about it. There was nowhere in the world she wanted to be except for right here in her bed with Jake. She didn't even care if they were doing the things that they were doing just as long as they were there together.
"A bit more." Artemis croaks out.
Jake's lips find her neck where he gives her a few more kisses. He never marked Artemis like he did Jade. In ways that he can never explain, but he found Jade to be used. Not necessarily damaged but not pure in the least. Artemis was the opposite. She was pure and clean and had never been marked before. Ergo he didn't disturb the perfection that was her olive skin.
All too soon Artemis could feel her body reaching its boiling point. She arches like her bow, ready to spill his name to the heavens, but somehow gained the strength to quiet the scream to a rather loud moan. In her mind, had her mother been elsewhere the entire complex would know the name Jake Cross.
Seconds flew before Artemis felt his fingers leaving her. She felt dirty and somehow right and pleased at the same time. Jake was seventeen and she was sixteen. Teenagers her age would have given into the lust on the first meeting. But this was not just some wild rut in her home. This was how he made love to her. This was how they loved each other.
"Let me go wash my hands." Jake said before giving her one final kiss. Artemis just accepted the kiss while he fixed her shirt, her bra removed and somewhere in her room. "Be back Goddess."
Artemis lied in her bed while her discombobulated mind returned to her. She thought about a recent girls' night with Zatanna, M'gann, Racquel, Barbara, and Bette. It was one of the few times that Artemis allowed her heroine friends (Zatanna, Miss Martian, and Rocket) and her civilian friends to meet. The six would chat about this or that until Bette brought about Artemis's "lover boy" Jake. Artemis had to endure her friends taunting her, collectively calling her and Jake things like "Jartie". Barbara suggested that they should be call the "Goddess" pairing seeing as Jake was the only one that called her that. When the group separated and Artemis returned back to the Cave, Zatanna went a bit farther by calling the "Crossbow" considering Jake's last name. M'gann and Racquel immediately agreed that Crossbow was now the codename to refer to Artemis and Jake.
Her face then transforms to a scowl for a brief moment. She recalled Jake telling her that his favorite color was red and she briefly thought about putting that to her hero nickname. But that came out to be Red Arrow and she despised Roy Harper too much to allow that. She was okay with Goddess and actually liked Crossbow but there was no way that she would allow herself and Jake to be called Red Arrow. Not after Roy had attempted to shoot her with an arrow twice.
When Jake returns, he closes her door like she had it and locks it quietly so that Paula did not hear it. He sees Artemis staring in thought at the ceiling and realizes that their version of pillow talk was about to ensue. He didn't have a problem with it though it sometimes amazed and startled him where her thoughts went to post-orgasm. There were no limits to the mind of Artemis Lian Crock, that was for sure.
"Miss me?" Artemis nods and slides over, allowing his body to occupy her left side. "Still thinking of me?"
"No," Artemis says while rolling her eyes. "Thinking about what they call us."
"Say what?"
Artemis sighs and turns on her side to eye him. She sees his eyes go down her body and realizes that her pants are still undone.
"Up here," Jake laughs but shifts his gaze from the black laced panties he saw and looked upwards to meet his girlfriend's gaze. "So I went out with some friends and they were mixing our names together to make us a pairing or whatever. Then they just came up with weird names to call us."
Jake brows rose. "Like?"
"Like Jartie because of our names and Goddess because you're the only one that calls me that." Artemis said. "Plus Crossbow…"
"Crossbow? What does that have to do with anything?" Jake asked though he was mentally applauding whoever came up with the idea. Very original and perfect for them.
"Apparently I'm the best archer amongst them. We went down to the amusement park and went to one of those little booths." Jake nods his head as if he bought the lie. Artemis shrugs. "Whenever my mom would call and I thought it was you, they kept saying that the 'Crossbow' was loading."
"Ah…" Jake said. "Well, I don't care what they call us. You're still Goddess to me."
"And you," Artemis said before sitting up. "Are my…" She kisses him passionately to the point that it was now Jake who lost all sense of his training. That is until a pillow met the side of his face. "Nerdy boyfriend!"
"Hey!" he retorts as they begin another round of pillow fights and tickling on her bed.
In the back of his mind he thought about the slightly girly and childish game of naming pairings. He never cared for it before but saw that Artemis was actually thinking about it. Jartie was just stupid. He would never agree to such a dumb name. Goddess would work if Jake did not already call Artemis that. Calling them Goddess was like erasing himself from the equation altogether. His favorite was Crossbow as it was a clever twist on his name and her profession. He then attempted to blend Red X and Artemis's archer side before dropping all thoughts about the subject.
There was no way that he was he ever going to refer to him and Artemis as Red Arrow.
No way in hell.