Chapter Ten- Judgment

Hey! Sorry for how late this update is! Rachy poked me into writing a chapter. I have to thank her for this chapter, she helped me a lot. XD Thankies! Italics= Flashback. Enjoy!

Artemis picked up an old rag from nearby and rubbed her hands clean from any leftover oil. It was definitely strange being back home. A part of her had always known she would come back. You always belong where your home is. Your family will always welcome you back. They'll always love you. Well your true family will. They might not be flesh and blood but you share a bond with them that is unbreakable. Every student there felt the same.

The radio played some old seventies music. Ring my bell played loudly from the corner. She couldn't help but hum along, when she was growing up a nearby apartment played this song on repeat.

She distantly heard the door click shut and she got back to working on her injured jeep. She didn't pay attention to whoever it was but could hear them walking around, checking on things, moving stuff around.

Eventually she had to turn around and look at the person. With an oily and grimy wrench in one hand and the other holding the rag she faced them with curiosity written all over her face.

She saw Scott staring down at the place where the motorcycle had been. All the sheets covering the surround vehicles had been moved or rather thrown onto the floor. He had made a mess.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

He turned around to face her and held his hands up, "I don't know. I was meant to be fixing my bike but its not here"

"Tough break" she muttered under her breath and turned back to fixing her own ride.

A few moments later he appeared next to her. She felt his presence even though her head was half way into the engine and she could only see oil covered metal. He was to her left and hovering very close. He was almost touching her arm.

She heaved herself out of the pit and glared at him, "yes?"

He asked, "Did you know who took my bike?"

Artemis knew this conversation was going to be a long one. She turned around and leaned back on the car folding her arms, "well…"

"What?" he asked agitated.

"I can tell you who didn't take it" she smiled at him purposely trying to wind him up.

His chin jutted out just a little in frustration and he pursed his lips, "thanks, I knew not to ask you"

He started to walk off.

Her mouth opened in shock, she hadn't expected that response and called after him, "what's that meant to mean?!"

He didn't even bother turning around, "doesn't matter, I'll find someone who isn't such an asshole"

She laughed.

Scott stopped at the door and looked back at her. She was grinning to herself.

"What's so funny?" he asked, his anger was disappearing.

She shook her head, "nothing. Just for an old student of Xavier you're a little judgmental"

"Things change" he commented.

"So does oil but the car still works the same" she said honestly and lifted her hand up to her forehead and scratched it.

Scott noticed the ring sitting on the ring finger of her right hand. It was silver and detailed two leaves curling around her finger and meeting at the tips. After a few seconds she saw him staring and promptly stuffed her hands into the pockets of her jeans hiding the ring.

"Unless of course, its plane oil…" she rambled, "then you're in trouble"

He chuckled, "I guess your right, and I shouldn't judge you. Did you see who took my bike?"

Artemis shrugged casually and twitched the side of her mouth into a sort of half smile before letting it drop and turning back to the jeep. She stuck her hands in again and worked on removing a major part of the engine so she could see the damage. She heard footsteps move closer and felt the weight of another person leaning on the side of the car. She kept her eyes down and carried on working.

He watched her work for a few minutes before deciding to talk, "sorry, I shouldn't assume that just because you're in the garage that you saw who took it." She didn't respond and asked the question that had been in his mind for a while, "where'd you get that ring?"

She glanced up at him from under her hair yet remained silent.

"I mean, what's it mean to you..." he wondered out loud, "did someone give it to you?"

She straightened up and looked him fully in the eye. There was no sense of sarcasm or mockery in them only sadness. She gulped once and took a deep breath before talking, "I got it a long time ago, just before I decided to leave the school. A guy, Charlie, he got it me as a going away present. We were involved and he was the only person who knew and a couple of weeks later he tracks me down to a motel in Philly. Said he couldn't bare me not being there, that he needed to be near me..."

There was a knock on the door. More of a fist slamming into the cheap wood, trying to get my attention, it was working. I was sat on the motel bed reading up on the recent events here in Philadelphia. The Fresh Prince Of Bel Air was playing quietly in the background. I glanced up quickly and saw that Carlton was doing his dance, the alarm clock was placed on top of the TV. It told me that it was nine p.m. they knocked again. No one was meant to know I was here. I picked up my 8 mil from under the pillow and took off the safety keeping it in my left hand. I approached the door hesitantly. I opened it an inch.

"Yeah?" I asked not looking to see who it was.

"Arti? That you?" came the Cali accent of Charles Barker, "let me in, it's freezing out here"

"Charlie?" I asked dumbstruck opening the door wider. It was indeed him. He was a little taller than me and only dressed in tattered jeans and a thin jacket in a northern winter. This guy was an idiot sometimes, "what the hell are you doing here?"

He smiled, "wonderful to see you too" he stepped past me and into the room. He saw my gun, "jeez, Arti. You don't need that, come home!"

"I cant" I repeated and set the gun down on the bedside table, "I don't want to be stuck in that place my whole life"

He ignored me and got something out of his pocket, "here, take this" he handed a silver ring to me. It was beautiful, "will you be mine? Forever?"

"Where'd you get this?" I demanded, "You can't afford this!"

He shrugged, "I've got savings" he shook his head, "if you're not coming back then I'm going with you"

"No you're not" I told him, "you wanna be a teacher, not a travelling freak"

"so?" he laughed, "it's not as if time's going to run out for me is it?" he referred back to his healing abilities, "you are my light Diana Leto, without you there is nothing for me"

"Oh shut it" I blushed, "don't call me that"

"Hey lets go for a walk in the snow" he said after glancing out the window, "let's have a snowball fight or something"

He walked out of the door laughing and I had to run to catch up with him. There was screaming ahead of me further down the hall. I sprinted the rest of the way and when I got there I saw Charlie lying motionless on the floor with an angry red mark in the middle of his back.

"WMHG! Stay still! Do not move!" shouted several ski masked criminals.

I gulped and scrunched my hand up tight. The ring was still my palm and the pain helped me. It made me focus. All I could see was rage. I clenched my jaw and let myself lose control. I didn't care if I got shot or if I died. I was too damn angry and upset. The room filled with light so quickly that the windows were shattered. I heard the cries of pain from the men. A moment later my light died and the men were crouched clutching their eyes. I had blinded them. I placed the ring on my finger and walked away.

"Whoa" was all Scott could say.

"Yeah" Artemis agreed, "that's the story of my ring anyway"

He nodded silently and she felt it was her turn to ask a question. She realized that he hadn't ever taken his glasses off. He couldn't.

"Do you miss seeing colours?" she asked suddenly and caught him off guard.

"What? Oh…Erm" he paused, "yeah, yeah I do"

"Why do they need to be ruby anyway?" she wondered.

He shrugged, "Xavier says that it's the only colour that stops my power"

"Huh" she said to herself, "I thought that maybe he could do contact lenses or something or just ordinary coloured glasses"

"I was captured by the WMHG at one point...they gave me the protection fluid and I could see for a while" he murmured.

She smiled, "Xavier could be able to refine it then"

He nodded, "I hope so"

She then went back to working on the engine and Scott hung around for a few seconds before walking away and briefly stopping at the place where his phantom bike should've been.

Artemis called to him while her head was still in the engine cavity, "It was Logan by the way"

He chuckled softly, "I should've known"

Then he left her all alone in the garage. She fumbled with the ring feeling a little worse for wear. There was a reason she didn't think of the past.