Prompt 3: Crush
Notes: Familiarity with Shakespeare's "Much Ado About Nothing" isn't required, but it will help. Long version short, two of the characters, Beatrice and Benedick, spend all their time sniping at each other. In the end, they turn out to be in love. Sound familiar?
Also, for those who don't know, in the comics, Barbara Gordon is Batgirl. And I have no clue if I'm characterizing her correctly.
And Word of God is that Wally does know Robin's secret ID.
Another type of circuit is the OR gate. It will return a true as long as one of the inputs is also true, regardless of the second input.
Gotham Academy. September 4, 14:36 EDT
Artemis was the first out the door when the bell rang, ending her last class of the day. The teacher felt the best way to teach Shakespeare was to have the students read parts out loud. It would have been more amusing if that Grayson kid hadn't kept trying to volunteer her to read the part of Beatrice.
"Who's that?" Barbara Gordon emerged from the classroom half a step behind Artemis. They shared several classes and got along fairly well, leading Artemis to wonder if this new school wouldn't be so bad.
That Grayson kid though... Why did he have to be in her English class? There was no way he was old enough to be a sophomore, and he was almost as annoying as a certain red-haired speedster she could name.
Artemis froze as she realized that Barbara was pointing at that very speedster.
Why was Wally in Gotham? More urgently, why was he outside her classroom?
"He's kind cute, in a geeky way." Barbara observed. Ten feet away, Wally was reading a poster, oblivious to Babs' evaluation and Artemis' glares.
Artemis stormed over and cleared her throat. Wally looked up, startled. When he saw who it was, his expression darkened.
"What are you doing here?" he said. Artemis bristled at the accusatory tone.
"I go to school here. What's your excuse?"
His eyes followed the rest of the students behind her as they exited the classroom. Artemis turned. She could see Babs talking with Dick Grayson as the rest of the students wandered off. She didn't see anyone that Wally would know.
"Meeting a friend, but I don't see him. I guess thisisthewrongroom." He finished his sentence quickly and fled before she could stop him.
Barbara had wandered over again, speculative eyes following the retreating speedster.
"You know him?" she teased. Artemis rolled her eyes.
"Yeah, from a couple archery competitions. He's an idiot." Artemis felt a twinge of guilt, both for the lie and the insult. Saying it to Wally's face was a lot different than saying it to a stranger behind his back.
Babs didn't look like she believed her anyway.
"What did he want to say to you?"
"He wasn't here for me. He said he was meeting a friend."
"Dude, you didn't say Artemis went to your school!"
Dick rolled his eyes as Wally waved his arms dramatically and started listing unfavorable adjectives. When the speedster took a breath in between imprecations, Robin cut him off.
"And I suppose she has misused you past the endurance of a block, as well?"
A pause as Wally absorbed what he had said.
"What?" All of his previous ire had been replaced by bafflement.
"Nothing." Robin said quickly. Now just take the bait.
"Come on, tell me!"
"I'm just referencing a play we're reading in class. You wouldn't get it."
Robin didn't resist as Wally grabbed the booklet with the play in it.
"Wanna bet?"
Good fishy.
Mount Justice. September 4, 16:42 EDT
Artemis frowned as she surveyed the scene in front of her.
Robin was teaching M'gann and Superboy how to play rock-paper-scissors. Kaldur was reviewing reports from their last mission.
Wally was reading an all-too-familiar booklet. He looked up as Artemis walked into the main room of Mount Justice. He grinned.
"'What, my dear Lady Disdain! Are you yet living?'" Artemis rolled her eyes.
"How long have you been waiting to say that one?"
Wally glanced at the clock.
"About an hour…" Pages flipped. "And three scenes ago." He waved the booklet. "My friend suggested it."
Artemis smirked.
"You haven't finished reading it yet, have you?" She carefully noted that Robin was stifling giggles.
Wally was instantly suspicious.
"Why?"
"Act IV, scene 1. Near the end."
Wally flipped frantically through the booklet, then read in a monotone:
"'I do love nothing in the world so well as you, is that not strange.' What?" He turned a bright shade of red and dropped the booklet like it burned. Robin's giggles grew louder. Wally glared at him.
Artemis smirked and picked up the dropped book and flipping through it for a good passage. Before she could read it, Wally cut her off, hands making horizontal slicing motions through the air.
"This. Means. Nothing." A blur of red and yellow and he was gone.
Artemis turned to leave through the other door, making sure to hit Robin in the head with the booklet as she passed.
The room was uncomfortably silent. Conner broke it with a remark to Robin.
"You were right. He isn't a very good liar."
BENE: Suffer love—a good epithet! I do suffer love indeed, for I love thee against my will.
*puppy eyes* Please review?
