"Give Me a Push If I Fall"
"You got everything you need? Your cupboards are all packed, right?"
Wally laughs and glances over his shoulder to find his Aunt Iris standing in the doorway to their spare room, which is more or less Wally's room. Some of his stuff is already there—comic books, games, spare clothes, posters—because he's really the only one who uses it: he's there almost every weekend because Barry likes keeping an eye on him, or he'll crash there if a mission runs late enough.
"There's not much else I need beside the suit, Aunt Iris," he reminds. "And Red Tornado keeps the kitchen stocked so I usually fill my cupboard right before we leave."
Iris bites her lower lip. "Alright."
"Hey," he says, expression softening, "We're just going to be patrolling. Really, it'll be terribly boring."
Iris exhales loudly. "I know, but you'll be in Gotham," she reminds, wrapping her arms a little tighter around herself, "And I've never liked that place. It's—"
"Doom-and-gloom and terribly creepy?" he offers in an attempt to lighten the atmosphere. Iris frowns. "Okay, so maybe that wasn't the best thing to say."
"It's crime-stricken and not some place I want my nephew running around in, especially at night," she tells him, sitting on the edge of the bed. "It's not that I don't believe in you, Walls, but your mother worries and so do I. I can barely keep it together whenever Barry goes off, and he sometimes goes all over the world, but having you leave, too?"
"Really?" He walks around the bed to sit beside her, "Because, you always seem so cool about it. Mom nearly has heart attacks. Remember how she was when I first became Kid Flash?"
She shrugs. "I've always been better at keeping calm than Mary."
"It freaks you out that much?"
"I get gray hair because of you two," she accuses.
"Don't say that, Aunt Iris! You don't look a day over thirty!"
"I am thirty." He flashes a smile and she rolls her eyes and laughs, pushing his cheek lightly away. "I'm being serious, Wally."
He laughs a little then lets it die out quickly, ducking his head to look his aunt in the eyes. He offers a smile and she returns it, though a lot smaller and full of worry. "I can't promise any outcomes, Aunt Iris," Wally sighs. "I'm sorry about that. But I can promise you that, if you really think it's for the better, I'll stay away from any mission you really don't like." Her eyes widen slightly, staring at him.
She's probably wondering if this is her same Wally; her nothing-will-stop-me-just-you-watch, I-will-blow-myself-up-and-gain-super-speed-you'll-see nephew. "Really?"
"The only reason Mom and Dad—and let's be honest, Uncle Barry, too—really let me become Kid Flash was because you told them that I would be able to handle it," he reminds. "So, yeah, I'd do it just for you. I'd rather not miss anything, but if it means that much…"
"Of course it means that much to me, Wally!" she exclaims, pulling him into a hug, squeezing. "Now, get out of here, or you'll be late."
His eyebrows shoot up his forehead in obvious surprise. "Wait, you're letting me go to Gotham?" She pulls away and nods. "Whoa, like—really?"
"Are you trying to get me to change my mind?"
"No, ma'am!" he laughs, and the two of them stand up. "Thanks, Aunt Iris! You won't regret it!"
He turns around and zips down the hallway. "Hey, wait!" Iris exclaims, running after him despite the fact he was already out the door. As she reaches the front steps, Wally blurs back into sight, just two steps below her. He's nearly bouncing on the balls of his feet and she laughs at that, ruffles his hair, and leans down to place a kiss on his forehead. "I love you, kiddo."
He laughs. "Love you, too, Auntie Iris!"
It was really hard to concentrate on anything when almost every muscle in his body constantly twitched with the urge to move. He could even keep track of things that much faster in his head. As he sat on the couch of his aunt and uncle's living room, he tapped his foot at a rapid pace and could count every time his heel hit the carpet, reaching the triple digits in seconds. It was a weird rush.
"Wally, stop it," a voice ordered, and he blinked and stood up before his mind really registered it. His Aunt iris stood there, an amused smile and a plate with enormous muffins piled onto it. "You're going to set the rug on fire or something."
He rubbed the back of his neck, looking down at his feet as he flexed his toes through his socks. "Sorry," he sighed.
"Don't worry about it," she assured, plopping herself onto couch. "I know you're hungry," she added, lifting the plate of muffins up a bit. He blinked again and found himself already on the couch beside her, shoving one into his mouth. She laughed again and took one for herself before setting the plate on his lap.
"Sorry," he repeated with a full mouth. He waited to swallow before continuing, "I'm hungry all the time now, and I move too fast. It's like, if my mind starts to think it, I blink and I'm already doing it."
"You have a hyper-accelerated metabolism and burn through your energy quickly," she supplied. "Barry eats all the time. As for your constant speed, my guess is that your super-charged brain sends commands to your nervous system on impulse. You'll probably learn how to slow down eventually. Even though it's been a few months, I imagine your body is still going through the… repercussions."
He laughed without humor, stuffing the other half of his muffin into his mouth. "I guess." Then he kind of looked at her. "You seem totally normal about this."
"I'm freaking out on the inside," she said, tone playful. "Plus, Flash is my husband."
"Yeah, well, he's also my uncle who's pretty much avoided me like the plague lately if it doesn't have to do with controlling myself," he muttered.
"What you pulled off was pretty stupid," she reminded. He glared at the floor and swiped another muffin. "It was also pretty ingenious and very impressive, if I do say so myself."
His eyes snapped on her. "Really?"
"Of course. Obviously, it worked. Even if you had to give us all a heart attack in the process," she mused. "They won't admit it, but we were all pretty blown away with the fact it had been successful."
His eyes shone with pride, though a frown quickly replaced his brief smile as he grumbled, "You're pretty much the only one who hasn't yelled at me."
"I'm waiting for the right time." His eyes widened and she laughed loudly. "I'm just joking. Calm down, kiddo," she chuckled. "Surprisingly enough, I'm on your side. What's done has been done, and the point is now you have these powers. You practically hero-worshipped Flash when you little, so the chance he turned out to be your uncle and the fact you came out in one piece must mean something."
He swallowed his third muffin down and beamed.
"Not any kid could've replicated something a grown man did with any degree of success. You have a gift, and you managed to cheat your way into getting another one just like your uncle."
He had his arms wrapped around her in seconds, and then gasped as the plate shifted on his lap, catching it before the muffins had a chance of tipping over. "Whoa," he muttered, setting the plate down on the safe, sturdy coffee table before turning to his aunt and sharing a laugh. "Woops."
"I'm choosing to trust you, even after that," she teased. "I'll do all I can to convince your uncle and your parents, alright? Don't make me regret it, kiddo."
He hugged her at a semi-slower speed this time, and let her squeeze him slightly and rub his back. "You won't regret it!"
He really kind of hates hospitals. He had never been a big fan of them, not even as a little kid, and he doesn't care that this place is private and in cahoots with the League; he still hates it.
For most people, it's the smell, or the fact that there's little to no color in the whole building, or the obvious associations you make with hospitals. For Wally West, it's the fact that he is trapped in a bad. One of the fastest men alive and he can't be caught moving without some nurse scolding him.
"Keep scowling like that and your face just might stay that way," a voice jokes from his bedside.
"Not in the mood," he grumbles.
Artemis lets out a sigh. "Sorry. Just trying to diffuse the tension," she says nonchalantly, and he can tell she doesn't mean it because there really is no tension; other than him, anyway. Dick and M'gann are dozed off on either side of Conner, both of their heads leaning against his arms as he flips through the channels. Though, the television is muted out of courtesy to Kaldur, who is meditating in his chair.
"No," he exhales, "I'm – I really hate hospitals. I hate having to stay still."
"You took a bullet to the back of your leg, Wally," she reminds as gently as possible, "It'd be risky to let you move them."
"I know, I know," he groans, "but it still sucks."
She presses her lips together. She's obviously seeing right through him as easily as he did her because the next thing she says is in this impossibly soft voice, "You're going to be fine, you know."
He shifts a bit uncomfortably, giving her this look and squeezing her hand to settle his nerves. He's had his number of stumbles in the past, so getting surgery done, bullets removed, wounds stitched and whatnot; those things aren't new to him. They aren't pleasant thoughts, but he doesn't panic anymore, either.
But never, ever, has anything happened to his legs before, even before his powers. He's never once sprained or twisted an ankle, pulled a muscle—his legs have always been invincible, or something.
"You shouldn't go around promising outcomes you have no power over," he grumbles, and then immediately feels bad when he looks at her face. She's trying to help and he's being an ass. "Artemis—"
But a knock at the door interrupts him.
Her head snaps back around to look at the door as Conner grunts, "It's unlocked," and M'gann and Dick stir beside him.
Uncle Barry comes in, but before Wally can question why he was still in costume with his mask pulled down, Aunt Iris nearly runs into him as she steps through the doorway. The look on her face has him spiraling back to their earlier conversation today, just before he left, and damn, he's kind of screwed. It's what he gets for being all comforting and whatnot; but he's not going to go back on his word.
Artemis stands from her seat, and he takes her wrist, only getting out "You don't have to—" before she melds her lips with his, her free hand placing itself on his cheek. It's cut short for their company, he can tell, but it pretty much says what he needs to hear: he's forgiven for being an ass (he swears there's a for now hanging somewhere), and she has to go but they won't be far, she promises.
"You'll be fine, Bay Watch," she whispers before pulling back.
Dick is semi-awake by now, enough to be pulled to his feet and guided out of the room by Kaldur, though M'gann is still passed out so Conner scoops her into his arms and follows. Wally watches in slight amusement, slight horror, and mostly curiosity when Iris grasps Artemis gently, whispers, and shares a soft laugh before Artemis leaves with Barry behind her.
Iris sits herself where Artemis had been and takes her time exhaling. "How are you feeling, kiddo?"
"Fine," he replies. She meets his eyes and he mumbles, "I've been better. I just really, really want to get up and do something!"
She smiles sympathetically. "What did the doctors say about your leg?"
"It should make a full recovery but they wouldn't specify how long," he mutters. "Do you think I'll need crutches? Gosh, I can already imagine Dick knocking them out from underneath me, and Artemis—"
"Why is it never just easy for you to come clean?" she semi-laughs. There's more concern and worry in her voice than humor, though. "You can't hide anything from me, kiddo. You can tell me."
"What are you talking about?" he questions. She arches an eyebrow and gives him a very Aunt Iris kind of look. He'll go ahead and admit that it startles him when he feels that first tear roll down his cheek. "I'm just – what if it won't be the same? What if, I don't know – if it doesn't heal properly, and it hurts whenever I speed up, and I won't be able to be Kid Flash again? Not that you'd let me, but still!"
"Oh, Wally," she murmurs, leaning over the guardrail to wrap her arms around him. "What makes you think I wouldn't let you be Kid Flash again?"
He blinks. "Because! Your fears were pretty much confirmed about Gotham, right? And earlier, I…"
"Gave me permission to tell you no?" She pulls back and shrugs her shoulders. "I'm not going to stop you over this. I wouldn't risk having you so upset, and because of something I caused, too."
"Okay. But what if—"
"A little bullet isn't going to stop you, kiddo, especially if an explosion couldn't put you out of commission."
"Everyone keeps saying that," he grumbles. "You guys can't keep promising things that you can't guarantee. It'll just get my hopes up."
"Well, good, maybe they need to be up," she huffs. "You're going to be fine," she says slowly, as if speaking to a Kindergartener. "But if you're that paranoid, you'll still be amazing with just one gift again. Your friends will still need you and that brain of yours, and your humor, and your company. You're still coming to visit your Uncle Barry and me even if I have to drive to drag you from my house yourself."
He sighs and lets her dab at his teary eyes with a tissue. "Why do you always know the right things to say?"
She shrugs her shoulder and they laugh. "You know, kiddo," she says after a few moments, "eventually, Barry and I'll have to call your parents."
"You guys will save me, right?"
"Don't we always?"
"Then I'm okay with that," he admits. "You know, Aunt Iris, you kind of gave birth to Kid Flash." At her confused expression, he adds, "He only came to be because of you, and you named him."
"I named him?" she asks, confused. "No, I think I would've remembered doing that."
"Well, I did, technically speaking," he corrects, "but I got the name from you – because you always call me kiddo. I thought it fit."
She smiles widely and warmly at him. "I loved that you told me," she says. "And you've always been more than just a nephew to me, kiddo. You should know that."
He grins. "I do. So, uh – what was that you said to Artemis before she left?"
"Oh, you know. Typical girl-to-girl, auntie-to-girlfriend talk."
"Aunt Iris!"
A/n: I wasn't sure how to end it, so sorry if the ending seems a little... abrupt, I guess. This was originally supposed to be about Iris and Wally and Barry, but I kind of liked the idea of focusing on Iris and Wally. I didn't want it to seem like Iris is replacing Mary (Wally's mom) because I think the entire Flash family is absolutely warm and loving, but I thought it'd be more interesting to write with Iris because she seems like she would be a little more involved with Flash and Kid Flash dynamic.
So you read it. Love it? Hate it? Please review it!