Rory twister a finger through her bangs, nibbling at the end of a pencil. She had expected the first day of junior high school to be just a little bit more entertaining than this. There were no back to school parties, no eating sweets during class, just plain old boring school.

She sighed, stretching her legs out beneath her desk and looking at the sheet of paper in front of her.

What kind of school starts you off with a test on things you don't know about yet? She thought to herself, reading through some of the questions. She was good at math and science; in fact she was good at most subjects in school, but this test was pointless.

She pulled a comic book out of her backpack, pulling her feet up onto the chair. A picture of the Justice League took up the comics cover. Based on real events, it said in large letters.

Her mother didn't discuss her heroic past with her, changing the topic whenever she brought it up. It was hard for her to imagine that her mom had worked with members of the League. That she had talked face to face with Superman and Batman. Yet she knew that Artemis's past was the reason she didn't let her use her powers. She had super speed, just like the Flash, and thanks to her mother she wasn't bad with a bow either.

She had tried asking in the past how many of the heroes she had met. She could introduce her to someone, she could become a sidekick. The next Kid Flash.

Yeah, right…

Artemis was protective; she would never introduce her to the League. Hell, if Rory hadn't discovered her mother's costume and old bow in the attic she never would have even told her about her past.

"You might have powers…" Artemis said, taking the hand of an eight-year-old Rory. Her eyes lit up, her hands shaking with both fear and joy. "I was a hero at one point, Rory. So was your father. I'm not sure how powers work in regards to being passed down but…" She paused for a moment, taking in a deep breath. "It's possible for you to be a metahuman…"

Seeing as she had developed super speed, the secret of Artemis's past wouldn't have been hidden for much longer anyway. She wouldn't tell her much about her father. He had been a hero as well apparently, but she gave her no name. She wouldn't even tell her if he was still alive. Given her power, she could have some relation to the Flash. That's if powers work that way. In regards to being born with them it could very well be completely random.

"Time." Her teacher yelled out, causing her to burst back into reality. It really didn't matter that she ignored the test. There would be no point to it in the long run. All that mattered to her right now was that her last class was finished with and she could go home. I could run home… She thought with a smirk. Her mom was smarter than that. She was old enough to know what she couldn't try without being caught. She wouldn't have any excuse for being home so early anyway, she realized. She wasn't very fast yet, but she would still beat her bus by a good ten minutes.

Maybe I'll try it when moms working… She thought. It was Artemis's day off today, which meant that it was the only time that she could get any peace and quiet. It wasn't easy trying to control a pre-teen, and it didn't help that Jade had been leaving the baby at their house a few nights a week.

"I love Lian to death…" She would groan to her sister. "But you can't just keep pawning her off on me. Have you considered rethinking your priorities in life? I gave up everything for my daughter, and it was the best lesson that I've ever learned."

Of course they all knew that she would never say no to babysitting, no matter how many times she had threatened to. The part of her that wanted Jade to change was also the part of her that understood. She had a child young too, and it wasn't easy. You had a new guideline to follow; it wasn't all about you anymore.

Rory slung her backpack over her shoulder and got on the bus. Even on the first day of school she had to make sure to get home fast enough to do her homework before Lian came over. A baby in the house was distracting, and she had a hard enough time paying attention as it was. ADD medication couldn't do anything because her metabolism would take about five minutes to flush it out of her system, so she dealt with it.

"I'm home." The red-head called out before walking in the door. She paused for a moment before closing the door behind her. Something felt different about the house… There was a tension in the air that struck her like a brick wall. "Mom?" She called out.

"Rufina, go to your room." Her mom shot back. She stood in the kitchen with an unknown figure, anger and worry set in her eyes.

"What's going on?" Rory asked anxiously as she walked closer to the kitchen.

"There's been a problem with your Aunt. Now go to your room."

The figure looked at her as she walked. His face was stern and serious and his red hair was well managed; styled to make him appear a bit younger than he actually was.

"I can't deal with this right now, Roy…" She heard her mother whisper. Little Lian sat on the carpet with a bag of toys. "Leave her here for now. We have everything that she needs… We can discuss it tomorrow."

Roy glanced at Lian silently before moving his eyes back to Artemis.

"She signed custody over to me." He said. "She's my daughter. Not yours. Jade isn't coming back and she needs someone who can watch her full time. I can do that. I'll get a job; have her in daycare during the day."

"What if you relapse?"

"I'm off of the drugs and you know it. If anything, she can help me to stay off. I'll actually have something worth fighting for."

Artemis laid her head on the counter, sighing in anger and sadness. Roy stood in silence before remembering the older child who had walked into the house.

"The other girl…" He said. "She called you mom? She's your daughter?"

It was then that he finally noticed the photos on the wall and mantle. A young red-head, ten or eleven… Artemis had vanished without a trace twelve years ago…

"You left because you were pregnant…" It came out a statement more than a question. He eyed the photos again, taking in the features of the young girl. Orange hair and freckles… and her facial features looked so familiar… She looked almost like…

Like…

Then it hit him.

"Oh my god…" He said flabbergasted, his eyes now locked on hers. He wore a mask of shock, which was hard to accomplish when he had learned about his fatherhood let than twelve hours ago.

"Does he know?" He asked.

"No." Artemis responded with a sigh. She couldn't make eye contact with him… This wasn't happening. "And you're not going to tell him."

With that she got up, walking into the living room and picking Lian off of the ground. "Lian will stay with me tonight." She repeated. "We'll talk about it tomorrow."

With that, Roy left. He could tell by her voice that this topic was not up for debate, especially when he had already hit such a hard spot in her life.

A baby… He thought. No, worse… A child.

Artemis's words continued to repeat in his head.

No… and you're not going to tell him.

Yesterday, that might have worked… But right now was different. Roy had not been told about his daughter at first either and he knew how angry he would be if he found out that somebody else had known. Worse… Known and not told him…

He had to tell him. He had no choice…