Wally can still feel it in his chest as he banged on Artemis' room at the Cave with such such stubbornness it was worthy of Sheldon Cooper.
Anger and the adrenaline from the fights from last night, that seem like minutes ago instead of hours, are still fueling him. Refusing to let go even after everything that happened.
Even his massive disappointment does nothing to deter these feelings. Was there ever time a time that Wally hated her it would be now (but at the same time he's in love with her despite everything and that makes him angrier).
His feet subconsciously ache to pace back and forth from stress but Wally has done enough of that in his room until he had decided to talk to...
His former bane of existence, current team mate, the team's female spit- no, Wally's spitfire.
She may be the spitfire that Kent had told him to find that wouldn't let him get away with anything but that doesn't mean he's going to let her get away with anything either, Wally thinks as suddenly the door he had been pounding on opens up.
Artemis stands there glaring daggers at him with all she's got despite the redness in her eyes that only come from tears.
The second sign of how distressed she truly was is her hair.
It's down Wally realizes before blinking owlishly, albeit a ginger owl, at the sight before him.
Despite his mentally practiced speech that should be coming out of his mouth any second now Wally can't help but take her hair in.
When she first joined the team Wally had hated her hair. First reason, her hair would get in her way during a battle even with it being in a ponytail. Wally had been ninety-eight percent sure of it and Artemis, being who she was, had showed him wrong. It had made Wally hate her hair even more.
Second reason, no one's hair should be that long and thick and somehow be managed (more like contained) into a ponytail. It just didn't make any logical sense but Artemis again, being who she was, had once again showed him wrong.
This was the first time in the months (soon to be year) he had known her that he's seen her hair down and it leaves him gawking like an idiot which he is not!
"What do you want?" Artemis, who's walls are once again up in defense (her natural state) from everything that happened, all but growls out at him and suddenly Wally's brain may or may not have been jumpstarted.
"You're an idiot," he tells her. His voice is soft despite everything that happened and the anger he feels in his stomach.
He does what he's been dying to do for the last two months. He leans forward and kisses her.
At first she unresponsive from shock but then she somehow sneaks (which really shouldn't shock him since she is a ninja girlfriend) a hand into his hair.
That's a good idea Wally realized before tangling his hand into some of her blonde strands of hair and maybe, just maybe, he's been wanting to do that longer than he's been daydreaming about kissing the archer that's in his arms.
They stay like this for several minutes. It's nice - no, it's more than just nice but Wally can't think of a word for the feeling - to finally have her in his arms and kissing her slowly. Gently and unhurried too.
Wally has always been a fast going guy but he savors this despite it's slow pace and he feels a pang in his chest when he finally ends it.
He lays his forehead against hers despite how much it feels like a move a guy would make in a romcon most girls (though Artemis isn't most girls) love.
He does it because he needs to be holding onto her. Be connected to her somehow. It's like she his life line and despite how angry he still is at her he knows instinctual that he'll drown without her.
(Magic may in fact exist but happy ever endings do not. Real relationships are like Artemis. Messy, heated, beautiful, painful,
and are complicated but brilliant and may just be worth it end.)
"I'm not an idiot however," Wally continues like nothing has happened even though he sort of, kind of unregrettably kissed Artemis for several minutes.
He probably - no, he did just brake the bro code with Roy but he can't find himself to care. It's taken forever for Wally to get it but he does get it now.
Roy choose to leave behind being Oliver's sidekick and then choose to leave them behind even though he didn't have to.
Artemis was offered to become Oliver's new sidekick and of course she said yes. Who wouldn't have said yes to become a hero's sidekick?
Roy came back and he was an ass to Artemis (Who, despite all her no shit attitude, was like any teenager. Insecure.)
which didn't help with the already complicated mission.
Should Artemis had done what she had?
There was a hell with that no but as stated earlier Wally isn't an idiot and he pretty sure he knows why his idiot of a ninja girlfriend did what she did. He pulls back from Artemis.
"Can I come in?" He asks her because he's pretty sure they shouldn't have this conversation in a hallway where anyone can listen in or walk in.
"Yeah baywatch," Artemis mumbles to him before opening the door further so he can come in. His eyes scan her room as he walks into it. It's pretty much barren if you didn't count the furniture in the room. There's no photos or posters. Wally hadn't excepted souvenirs but he had excepted something else besides just a bed.
In most situations Wally's mind would be in a gutter about being in the bedroom of girl he likes (Four words: teenage hormones and speedster.) but this isn't one of those times. It helps he's still pissed and disappointed at her from last night.
It isn't till the door behind him closes with a click that he starts talking again.
"I know your not Green Arrow's niece," Wally just blurts out and Artemis visibly tenses.
He wonders in the back of his mind how much more can she take after yesterday and now this.
"I figured that out a week of you joining the team," he tells her as he stares into her eyes because he wants Artemis to get how serious this, he is.
"Why?" Artemis asks him before shifting her weight to her other foot in nervousness. "You hate me."
Wally blinks. He once again wonders about what her life was like before the team cause she thinks he still hates her after kissing her.
"I didn't tell anyone even though I hated you at the time because it wasn't just you that lied. Green Arrow lied too. I didn't know why, I still don't know why but I've respected that decision. I just figured the reasons why you lied were because everyone on this time besides Kaldur is related to they're mentor and I just guessed you and GA lied to ease your transition to the team," Wally paused to give the blonde archer a moment to digest his speech.
"Even when the whole mole debacle came out I respected that decision because Batman let you on the team and let me tell you Daddybat is shit your suit scary when it comes to protecting Robin. He would never let you on the same team as Robin if he didn't truly believe in you intentions."
Artemis actually cracks a smile at the 'shit your suit scary' part.
"Now tell me if I'm wrong. When we lost our memories you said a lot of things that started to piece together a puzzle in my mind. Why you know stuff about the League of Shadows, why you're trained so well despite the limited time GA could have trained you after Roy left and you joined the team. Your dad is a villain. Someone with connections with the League of Shadows. Am I wrong?" Wally asked simply. The anger he had been holding onto had abandoned him and now he was just exhausted.
Artemis for the second time since he's known her is refusing to him in the eye. (Both these times have taken place less than twenty hours.)
"My dad is Sportsmaster," she confesses to him while still refusing to look him in eye.
Wally nods. He had excepted that. Process of elimination thank you very much.
"And Cheshire is your sister because Roy told me Cheshire was Sportsmaster's daughter. She's probably your older sister if I had to guess.
"Right on baywatch," Artemis' quip didn't have her normal attitude behind it.
"You need to tell the team," Wally instructs her. His voice was still soft. The soft one would sound to coax or comfort a hurt animal so not to scare it.
"I'm not going to tell them you're secret but you should tell them cause if you do Sportsmaster and Cheshire can't use it against you again. You won't have to let them escape in fear of us finding out or having to be an idiot and face them yourself," his voice is harsh sounding at the last bit of his speech.
"Why don't you think I'm the mole?" Artemis asks him. Her arms are crossed and her knuckles are white from how hard she's clamping onto her arms.
Wally stares at her because the reason is obvious but who is he to say what's obvious considering the whole Megan and Conner?
"You suck at lying ninja girlfriend," he tells her, teases her really instead of telling her that she isn't the only member of their team that has a villain in their family.
Despite what people may say blood wasn't thicker than water. Having a criminal in your family didn't condemn you. Kaldur had a criminal father and he sure as hell wasn't a the mole if there was one.
He starts to turn around, to walk out of here before he stops midway to the door.
"If you don't tell the team before we get another chance to take Sportsmaster or Cheshire in don't let them get away or face them yourself. We bring them as a team because they may be your family but they deserve to go to prison for the things they've done and the people they've killed. I'll have your back if they do go through with their threat of telling the team."
Wally opens the door and looks back at Artemis one more time.
"Good night," he tells her before he closes the door behind him. Maybe now he could finally gets some zzz.
A/N: I own nothing.
This wasn't suppose to be continued but I was inspired to write another chapter the other day and I just finished it today. Please tell me what you think. Where they ooc or in character just emotional since this takes place post Insecurity?
