AN: Not an AU; just a little fun with time. The first chapter is confusing, but if you read the summary, it should make sense... sort of. I'll explain later, but basically, when they arrived in the middle ages, the team got split up and Artemis lost her memory.
Wallace walked; this was nothing new. The villagers thought he was odd for not taking a horse. They also thought the way he dressed was strange: a yellowish tunic with red breeches. On the tunic, he'd drawn a lightning bolt with finger paints. He was certainly a stranger among them, though they kept their gossip to themselves. Wally didn't care, anyway.
He was on a mission: a mission of great importance, to find Vert Reine*. He had heard the recent legends; Vert Reine*, scourge of the Boulogne forests, stealing from the rich with her pack of wild women known as the Vixens. Wally was strolling down the path through the Boulogne forest now, absentmindedly pulling out a glittering necklace strung with a ruby in the shape of a heart. He hoped she'd like it.
They said la Vert Reine could use a bow better than any warrior; Wally believed that. Some of the peasants claimed she was the Greek goddess Artemis herself.
A twig snapped nearby. Wally mentally pinpointed the sound, but pretended to not hear. He stopped, holding the ruby necklace up to the light, as if examining it. An arrow whizzed by, pinning the necklace to the trunk of a nearby tree. Wally grinned to himself and turned.
There she was, in all her glory. La Vert Reine, with long blond hair pulled into a thick braid. A green mask concealed her cheekbones, contrasting her charcoal eyes. She wore a corset, dyed green, with a skirt above her evergreen breeches. The girl aimed another arrow at him, notched in a bow too advanced for the time.
Wally smirked. "Bonjour. I was beginning to think you wouldn't show up."
The girl seemed caught off guard. "Who are you?" she snarled.
"You mean you don't remember me?" Wally sighed. "I was afraid of this; well, prepare to have your mind blown by the Wallman."
The girl stared at him, confused. "Wallman? What do you mean I don't remember you? I've never seen you before in my life!"
"Oh, but you have, Artemis." She stared, alarmed that he knew her real name. Wally grinned, darting to the tree and retrieving the necklace. Before she could protest, he latched it around her neck, standing back to survey the scene. "Red's a good color for you, beautiful. By the way, does your little harem have a food court? I haven't eaten all day!"
-Breakline-
The stone tower was anything but inviting; the cold stone walls, the brown, ugly cot, and the iron bars over the windows were anything but comforting. Zatanna sat in an old chair, staring out at the courtyard below. She had been running all week, and they had finally caught her.
She recalled the trial, glancing at the sky. The sun would set in one hour, and then her future would be decided. Of course, she already knew the outcome.
Zatanna wondered briefly if she would be burned at the stake or executed. It would be better to be burned, because she could keep putting out the fire. They'd find a way to kill her anyway, but that didn't matter.
After the trial, they had brought her in the prison. They gave her a bath, making her change into a dark blue dress. It wasn't too uncomfortable, but it was warm in the tower.
The witch sighed, turning around. She had already tried to escape, so now they had one guard posted outside the door and one keeping an eye on her inside. "So," Zatanna said, trying to make conversation. "You get many witches around here?"
The guard was silent, merciless black eyes staring straight at her. Zatanna sighed, turning around and laying her head on the windowsill. "I'm not a bad witch, you know. You probably won't believe me, but I'm actually from the future. A thousand years in the future. The world's a lot different, then. Some of the witches protect the world, and others are evil. I'm one of the good ones, but you don't believe me."
Zatanna went on, talking about her father and her teammates.
"What about the last one? You said there were six others on your team." Zatanna stared at the guard, smiling at his response.
"Robin… He's the last one. He's the youngest, but he's the most experienced. Robin acts happy, but he has the darkest past." She gazed at the wall, lost in thought. "Also… he has beautiful eyes, like the ocean. Usually, he wears a mask, so you can't see his eyes, but I walked in on him working out once, when his eyes weren't covered…"
The guard looked as if he were about to say something, when there came a knock on the door. Zatanna glanced anxiously at the sunset; she still had forty-five minutes.
The door opened slightly, and a small page stepped inside. He wore a red tunic with black breeches, black hair smoothed on his head. He cowered before the guard, holding a small wooden box. "The Count of Blois has a gift for the witch."
"What is it?" The page opened the box, showing a small black ball. The guard picked it up, frowning.
"The Count said something's supposed to happen when you squeeze it."
The guard frowned, gently closing his hand over the ball and pressing it against his palm with his fingers. A small fissure exploded in the ball, releasing smoke around them. The guard dropped the ball, coughing as the other guard was about to call for help. The page punched the other guard, who was also coughing now. Both guards fell to their knees, struggling to rise, but the force of their coughing soon had them passed out.
Zatanna watched as the page grabbed one of the guard's rapiers, smiling devilishly at her. She shook her head, arms crossed. "Whelming."
"What? Two guards; one gas capsule."
"You're late," she remarked as he pulled his cape out of a knapsack and attached it to his shoulders. "I sent a distress signal from Boulogne two days ago."
"You're not exactly easy to find," he smirked. Before she could retort, he took her hand and pulled her with him, running down the stairs of the tower. They froze at the sound of a guard approaching.
Quickly, they retreated to the room again, where Robin locked the door and pulled the cot in front of it. Zatanna watched from the other side of the room, looking around anxiously. "Now what are we supposed to do?"
"I'm thinking; give me a minute."
"Oh, you're thinking? Well, let's just tell the guard that he can't capture us now, because Robin's thinking! I don't know if you've noticed, but we're trapped!"
"Not trapped," he muttered, darting to the window and pulling out a miniature blowtorch and working away at the iron bars. "Just… delayed."
"Well, you better have a plan to get us lay-" Zatanna stopped, crossing her arms as Robin snickered. "I hate you."
"No you don't." The first bar broke off, and Robin snatched it, tossing it over his shoulder. Zatanna watched as he worked away, and he glanced back at her. "Don't suppose you could help?"
"tlem srab nori," she answered, and the iron bars melted and slid down the side of the tower. Robin turned to face her, annoyed.
Zatanna grinned as Robin took her hand, leaping upon the window sill. Her smile faded as she looked down on the courtyard, terrified as she clung to Robin. "Please don't tell me we're about to jump."
Robin grinned viciously, blue eyes twinkling as he replied, "Zatanna, there's a reason they call me the boy wonder." Before she could retort, he fired a grappling hook at the building across from them.
Without warning, he jumped, and Zatanna screamed as they plummeted through the air. Within a few moments, they swung forward and landed on the courtyard, courtiers staring at them in alarm. The witch stumbled back, stunned, as guards saw them and came running towards them. Robin turned to Zatanna. "You ride horses?"
"S-Sure," she stumbled, trotting towards the stables.
Robin turned and found the guards rushing him. He pulled out the last of his gadgets, tossing them at the guards and fighting hand-to-hand those who got too close. When he ran out of devices, he grabbed a fallen sword and began fencing, parrying and leaping with ease.
There was a sudden scream of horses from the stables, and Zatanna burst through the doors on a black Friesian. Robin ran after her, grabbing her hand as she pulled him into the saddle in front of her. He took the reins expertly, galloping towards the gates. Zatanna wrapped her arms around his waist, muttering, "Is there anything you can't do?"
"No. Can you open the gates?"
"Nepo eht setag!"
The wooden doors shuddered before they snapped back on their hinges, knocking aside the gatekeepers. The guards above struggled to raise the drawbridge, and Robin shouted, "Can you keep the drawbridge down?"
Zatanna paused, thinking. They were past the gates and nearly at the foot of the drawbridge, which was slowly steepening. "Any minute now," he called.
"Have you ever tried to say 'drawbridge' backwards?" Zatanna yelled, annoyed.
It was too late for a spell now, so the Friesian climbed the wooden overpass, heaving as it leaped from the edge to the cobbles of the road. They landed heavily, and the horse panted as he struggled to regain his footing.
The guards, unable to pursue them, cursed them from the parapets as the Friesian carried Robin and Zatanna through Paris, down the cobbled road and into the dark forest of Boulogne. The Friesian began to gasp for air, and Robin slowed him down, reining the horse beside a stream.
Robin dismounted, helping Zatanna down. She landed with a huff, stretching as the black horse dug thirstily into the stream. Robin patted the horse, reaching up to remove the saddle.
Within moments, the Friesian was splashing in the stream and Zatanna had taken off her overdress, relaxing in the white undergarments. She watched lazily as Robin plopped down beside her, dipping his feet in the stream. He glanced at her, saying, "Egdirbward."
She stared at him, surprised. "What?"
"Drawbridge backwards."
"Oh," she said, looking away. They were silent for a few moments, until Robin spoke.
"So, I have beautiful eyes, huh?"
Zatanna blushed. "You heard that?"
"Your voice carried through the tower."
"So you were eavesdropping."
"I call it investigating."
"Sure," she said, rolling her eyes. "So how are we getting home?"
He was silent for a moment. "I don't know."
Zatanna cried out, alarmed, "What do you mean you don't know? Didn't you hack into Warp's system or something?"
He glared at her. "He's from the future, Zatanna; the security on his tech was way beyond my level."
"So we're stuck?"
"Until the Justice League accomplishes time travel or they catch Warp."
Zatanna sighed, leaning back on the grass. "So where's Wally and Artemis and Conner?"
"Wally and I split up to find you guys." He stood up. "We should get going; Conner and Artemis are still out there."
Now for pronounciations!
Vert Reine means 'Green Queen' and is pronounced Ver-wren
Boulogne is a forest in France and is pronounced Boo-lohn
There you go! Hope that helps