A/N: (I know its been super long, and I'm fully aware that I'm a horrible excuse of a person. Forgive me?)

And I just want to tell you guys that each and every one of you are perfect human beings! Thank you for all the reviews and favourites (you too, Chalant-writer3 for adding me as a favourite author) I love you all!

Enjoy, my little pretties.

"Zee, I can explain-"

"Do you know the amount of bullshit I had to come up with tonight just to cover your sorry ass?" Zatanna asked, a hint of malicious intentions in her normally cheerful tone that Artemis wasn't accustomed to hearing. "I had to lie through my teeth and tell your little groupies that Apollo wasn't feeling well and got a ride home with a bunch of his friends, because I had your freakin' car keys!"

Artemis clicked her tongue with an eye roll. "They're not my groupies-"

Zatanna cut her off with a dark look, her right eye twitching. "I don't care who they are to you, A." She closed her eyes, those unbelievably long eyelashes Artemis had always been jealous of fanned her face, each individual lash separating as she squeezed tightly. Then she conveyed a deep calming and clearing breath in, patting the side of her bed.

Artemis hesitated for a split second, and cautiously sat herself on the edge, her hands playing awkwardly with the frayed hem of her shorts, not daring to make eye contact.

"Well, go on. Spill the beans."

"I-I,"Artemis looked up, puzzled. "...what?"

It was Zatanna's turn to roll her eyes and gave an exasperated sigh. "There must have been some reason as to why you've been out until-" she took a quick glance at her phone, "-almost two o'clock in the morning." Artemis averted her eyes knowing fully well just how good her friend was at reading her.

The magician's eyes bugged out comically as she gave a gleeful shriek, obviously not caring whether or not she woke up the rest of the dorm. "It was because of a boy!" She began bouncing on the bed, unable to contain her excitement, her voice growing louder than before. "Details! Who was it? What happened?!"

"Nothing happened, Zee. Sorry to disappoint you."

"I call bullshit. I'm you're best friend, A. plus, you owe me."

Shit. She was totally right.

Artemis ran a hand through her hair, untangling the knots as she told Zatanna about her fight with Cameron, in which the dark haired girl snorted or swore under her breath when she found out about what he had said and done, promising to inflict explicit amounts of pain on the older boy when she next saw his sorry ass.

"There's no need for that," Artemis laughed, resting her chin on top of her drawn-up knees. "Wally already took care of him."

Zatanna mouth dropped open in shock, then a slow and an extremely irritatingly smug grin replaced the look. "Wally, huh?" She crossed her arms and quirked a perfectly neat eyebrow. "Might I ask why that hunk beat me to it?"

"He and Cam kinda' got into a fight...a really bad fight," Artemis could feel her face heating with each word. Zatanna prompted her by nodding her head eagerly, those cerulean eyes twinkling with curiosity. "Because...he may have caught me and Wally kissing." Her teeth cutting into her bottim lip as she finished.

"You were doing what? Oh my gosh, A!" Zatanna said breathlessly. "Is he a good kisser?-Wait, why were you kissing?" She rambled, her whole body jerking spasmodically in elation. "What happened?!"

"I might have been a little tipsy and I ran into Wally somewhere along the beach..." Artemis played with her fingers in her lap as she lifted up a shoulder in a feeble shrug. "And, well, I just...kissed him."

"What was it like?"

Her teeth dug further into the supple flesh. "It...it was amazing, Zee."

"Uh-huh. And did you do the nasty?" Zatanna asked, waggling her dark eyebrows.

"Zee! Urgh, God no, we didn't get that far," Artemis whispered angrily, afraid her voice was growing far too loud. Luckily Megan wasn't here otherwise they'd pretty much be busted right now. "Besides, we were at the beach, anyone could have seen us! Not all of us live for the thrills of being caught in the act." She gave her friend a pointed look. Each side of Zatanna's blood red coated lips streched into a freakishly mischievous grin, eyebrows raised.

"So you're saying you would have ridden him like your bad little pony, if you guys were somewhere more secluded?"

"What? No! That's not what I'm saying."

"I'm sensing some pretty strong denial." Zatanna teased in a sing-song voice, tapping her forehead.

Artemis huffed. "I can't be dealing with this right now," Limping over to the dark wooden table dresser, she swiped her car keys off the side next to a goofy picture of her and Zatanna outside Zatara's World of Wonders. Artemis was in the middle of rolling her eyes, her mouth open in a laugh. Zatanna on the other hand was pressing her face up next to her rabbit, Rodney, who had shrunk pocket size from one of her spells. She had a gloved hand hovering in the air, a haze of dark purple mist surrounding the three of them.

"Look, I'll see you later, okay?" Artemis finally said, nearing the door that had a huge poster of some stupid (kinda hot) shirt-less guy out of True Blood who's name she couldn't remember (okay, that's a lie. She knew exactly who it was. Jason Stackhouse; A.K.A. Ryan Kwanten), that covered most of the front door, making her wonder how the hell she hadn't seen it before when she came in.

"Artemis, I think you're forgetting something..."

She spun around with an look of pure exasperation, tilting her head to the side and raised her hands in air. What more could she want? Artemis realized what it was as soon as Zatanna fake coughed into her hand, blinking up at the blonde expectantly.

"Thank you so much, Zee. You're my bestest best friend in the whole world. I don't know how I'll ever repay you." Artemis said slow and sarcastically.

Zatanna smirked, fluffing up her hair as she replied, "No need, sweetheart. Me and Dick may have christened the back of your jeep after those other guys left."

"You better not have done that in my car you dirty bitch," Artemis' lips turned downwards in total disgust, repulsed at the very thought. Her brow creased. "Best friend or not, I will end you."

"Make sure you don't touch the back seat, I think there's still some of Dick's funk on it!" Zatanna hollered, chuckling as Artemis hobbled out of the door and headed for her jeep to get changed into her brothers clothes.

"Hey, Wall-man." Artemis said as she slipped into their room, her limp becoming less obvious as she put all her weight on the injured ankle, hissing under her breath and silently shutting the door behind her. She discreetly used her index finger to lodge one of her contacts in place that was slipping around with each blink of her eyes. She swung around to face him.

"And just what time do you call this?" The redhead demanded, his lips crushied together, transforming into a thin line as he rhythmically tapped his foot against the red carpet.

Seriously? Couldn't she catch a break? First Zatanna, now Kid Idiot.

A corner of her mouth tipped up and her eyebrows sank into a disbelieving gaze. "Sorry mommy, I kinda' got carried away," She sassed, dumping her rucksack of clothes onto her bedspread. "It won't happen again."

Artemis watched Wally's lips twitch, looking as though he was desperately trying to control a bubble of laughter that was on the brink of escaping. He managed to compose himself and stared her down in what must have been his most intimidating face.

It wasn't very scary.

Not when those dusted freckles bunched together as his nose wrinkled. If anything, it was more cute and drew more attention to his incredibly bright green orbs, that where flecked with tiny smidges of gold surrounding his pupils. Something that she'd never noticed before.

"Dude, are you wearing mascara?" Wally unexpectedly asked, breaking her out of her trance-like state as he suddenly appeared right in front of her, his willowy frame towering over her as he leaned in closer to study her face, his expression changing drastically as those alluring eyes bugged, and his lips pinched together in disturbed uncertainty.

Shit. Artemis could've sworn she'd taken off every last inch of her make-up before she'd left her car. Clearly not since Wally was practically gawking at her like she'd just eaten his not-so-secret stash of Reece's Cupcakes.

She took a step back, defying her body's soul instinct to get closer and press herself against him. "I...uh," Artemis began, the gears turning inside her head as she thought of something that sounded believeable. "My sister and her friend put it on me...I was helpless." She shrugged, flashing a lopsided grin and secretly crossing her fingers behind her back.

Wally narrowed his eyes sceptically, then nodded in mute understanding. "You know, you kinda' look a lot like your sister right now." He mused, his brow furrowing as he continued to study her face. Artemis shifted in her stance nervously and her throat tightened, moisture dissipating from her mouth.

She certainly wasn't expecting that. Did he know? Had he already figured it out?

Despite what she was thinking, Artemis feigned confusion and made her eyes as wide as tennis balls, deciding to turn the tables and put him on the spotlight.

"Oh shit, are you turning gay on me?" She asked teasingly with a fake gasp, loving the way her room mate nearly choked on his own spit, his face turning an interesting shade of plum as he repeatedly thumped his chest. "Should I be worried at all?"

Wally's eyes were watering, the unsought tears virtually spilling down his face. "Shut up dude, I don't like your sister." He wheezed in between breaths, grabbing the nearest chair and throwing himself into it, drying his eyes.

At this, Artemis snorted in amazement. The idiot had a funny way of showing it otherwise. "So...what, you just shove your tongue down peoples throats when you don't like them?"

"How'd you know about that?!" He asked, practically shrieking.

"Dick told me." She instantly lied, her eyebrow rose as she stared at him perplexedly when he abruptly got to his feet, knocking over the computer chair and began pacing the room. Her eyes followed his movement lazily, loving how his shirt rode up and flaunted the bottom of his well defined abs, as he tangled his fingers in his messy red hair.

"And how the hell does he know?!"

Artemis shook her head and scoffed, occupying herself by rummaging through her draws until she found a clean pair of pyjamas. "Dick knows everything about everyone." She said pointedly. "I'm kinda' surprised that you're surprised about him knowing. This isn't exactly anything new about the little troll." She rushed past him into the on-suite bathroom-refusing to acknowledge his broody pout-and hastily tugged on her deep blue pyjamas before leaping onto the bed and casually tucked her arms behind her head.

"Whatever man," Wally said breathlessly as he leapt onto the bed opposite her, and folded his long legs beneath him comfortably. "Artemis was drunk, okay? She kissed me," He looked as though he was lost, and searching for the right words. "And I don't know if its because I was there and just convenient or..." He trailed off, unable to finish his sentence. Then sighed, dragging a hand down his face.

"She makes me feel...like no one else has ever before."

Artemis stiffened in place for a long moment. She had no idea how to respond to that. The cynical butterflies began barrelling around at the pit of her stomach without mercy at his confession.

No. They're the complete opposite; she's way too outspoken, and he's a total idiot, who just happens to have a knack for irritating the shit out of her. They would never work out. No matter how much she wanted him.

Take her and Cameron, for example. They'd been together for two years. Two whole years of lies. That asshole had somehow succeeded in luring her into a pointless relationship with all his sweet talk and endless amount of gifts. But now, now she knew that it was all an act, she knew the real Cameron Mahkent.

Boys cannot be trusted. No matter what type of packaging they come in.

That's why she had to push Wally away, as far away as possible to protect herself. She wasn't going to be careless enough to make the same blind mistake again.

"Dude, you and my sister are two totally different people," Artemis eventually said, not trusting herself to make eye contact with him. "Besides, how do you know you like her in that way? You flirt with anything that resembles a girl."

Wally closed his eyes and swallowed. "Yeah, but that was before I met Artemis."

Her world started rapidly spinning and she inhaled far too quickly, choking on her own breath. She sat up with a start, clutching her chest, her breathing slowly returning to normal as she calmed down, her face heating with incredible force.

"Woah, dude, you okay?" Wally asked with slight concern.

Artemis held up a finger. "I'm fine," She spoke, coughing as she blinked back the water slowly filling her eyes. Wally stared at her, shock written over his face.

"What the hell was that all about?"

"...I swallowed a Gummy Bear."

"You had Gummy Bears and you didn't even bother to share?!" Wally demanded incredulously. He crossed his arms and pouted. "Dude, there is a bro code, and in that bro code it clearly states 'sharing is caring'." He glared at her and tutted. "You violated that rule. Not cool, man."

"Hit the light, Wallace." Artemis yawned, hiding her face in her hands, simultaneously rubbing her tired eyes. "I'm spent, and you're boring me."

"I'm not your slave, Apollo."

"I think you'll find you are, Romeo. Unless you'd prefer to be my punch-bag?" She questioned, smirking when she heard him mutter "asshole" under his breath, and begrudgingly got out of bed to turn off the lights, then stumbled back into the warm confinement's, but not without stubbing his toe on the way.

Unfortunately, Artemis didn't get much sleep that night due to all the exaggerated dying whale noises Wally made about his swollen toe. Which then of course may have led to her giving him something worthy to cry about, when one of her soccer shoes unexpectedly collided with his jaw.

Her eyebrows met in the middle as she stared at the unknown number displayed on her mobile. No one ever dared to even call her on an unknown. The last prank caller (some jock from her old high school who called himself Tommy Terror, or some bullshit along those lines) learnt that the hard way after she'd kindly shown him all the ways she could redecorate his car using a just few sharp objects, and an armful of pink body paint.

She really couldn't understand why he didn't like the bright purple pansy's she'd painted on top of the fuchsia base coat. If anything, it made his pick-up truck look far more dashing.

Artemis slid a finger across the green arrow on the bottom of the touch screen and held the device up to her ear, deciding to bypass all the bullshit and just get straight to the point.

"Who the hell is this?"

There was a disappointed tut. Some asshole was tutting at her. "Forgotten me already, little sis?" The deep voice at the other end of the line chuckled in amusement. "My black heart bleeds in agony."

"Oh, ew. Its you." Artemis made a sour face, though there was an unmistakably fond tone to her voice.

"So, how's my favourite sister been without me?" Apollo asked genuinely. Well, as genuine as it could possibly get with Apollo. "I've missed seeing your frightfully ugly face in the mornings."

Ah. There was the sarcastic remark she'd been waiting for. "Charming," Artemis snorted as she chewed on her pencil, staring at a frustratingly difficult Math question. "Although it pains me to admit it, but, I'm actually missing you too, Jerk-Face."

"Well of course you're missing me! I'm practically the highlight of your life. Your little ray of sunshine on your forever clouded days!" He paused, sounding as though he'd ran out of breath. "The list could go on."

Artemis glared at the phone, wishing that her infuriating twin was right there in front of her so that she could shoot daggers at him in person.

"Your ego really knows no bounds."

As soon as the words left her lips, a certain green-eyed redhead popped into her mind. A smile lit up her face as she mused aloud, "You and Kid Idiot would get along perfectly."

"Care to explain who you're referring to, Artemis?"

"Oh," A hot flush crept across her neck and settled on her cheeks, leaving a blazing path in its rouse. "Its um, uh," She fidgeted nervously, crossing and un-crossing her legs on top of her single bed, wishing she hadn't been so stupid to let that slip.

"I'm waiting." Apollo pressed, dragging out his words.

Artemis sighed. "Its just some guy that I met," She chewed her lower lip with a chagrin expression. "That's all. No biggy."

"Uh-huh. Sure, 'no biggy'." His voice sounded completely unconvinced and unimpressed. Artemis knew without having to see him (call it creepy twin intuition) that he'd have a smirk plastered to his lips. "So does 'some guy' happen to have a name?"

"He might. But why in the world would I tell you?" She questioned bewilderedly. Artemis glanced at the clock hanging in the left hand corner on the wall. Wally said he'd be back before soccer practice started, and it was almost four o'clock now.

"Not that I'm totally not enjoying this lovely catch up session, but I gotta' go." She quickly interrupted, her gray eyes never straying from the scarlet door on her left.

"What? Wait a second, little sis. You can't just-"

"I'm sorry, but I really have to go now! I love you, Jerk-Face!" She said just as Wally stepped into the room, right on time.

Artemis grimaced when she caught eye of the dark maroon bruise streaked with violet marring the left side of his jaw. She drummed her pencil against her open calculus book, and gave him an awkward, half-hearted smile.

His eyes narrowed, and Artemis could've sworn she heard a hiss escape his lips. Wally stalked towards his bed, threw his bag on the floor beside his bedside dresser and picked up his soccer ball.

"Coach wanted me to tell you that the times have changed. Practice starts at 11 tomorrow." The redhead snarled, swinging open the door. He paused and glared at her from the corner of his eye. "Don't be late."

"Where are you going?" She asked as she saw a tall man looming in the doorway, trying to figure out who it was without crawling over her bed and coming across as some crazy stalker.

That perfectly shaped mouth twisted into a sneer. "Away from you."

"Oh come on, West!" Artemis shouted when she heard him stomp off down the corridor, probably heading towards the pitch to blow off steam. "I said I was sorry-and trust me, that doesn't happen often!"

"Don't worry, man," Dick poked his head around the half open door, grinning. "He'll get over it." He said reassuringly, pulling his dark shades down off the top of his dishevelled raven hair and covering his striking cerulean eyes.

"I've gotta' hand it to you; it was an excellent shot." He held a hand to his chin, rubbing it as if in deep thought. "And what beautiful colors its left on his face!"

The corners of her mouth turned up in a smile when he gave her a thumbs up, and she dropped her head in an attempt to hide it, not wanting to further encourage her best friend.

"Catch ya' later, Apollo!" Dick hollered.

Artemis blew out a weary breath and swung her legs off the side of her bed. "Could've shut the door," She grumbled. "Is that so hard?"

E/N: I know this chapter may not be as exciting as the others, but I do need other things to happen to lead onto the upcoming events.

Please review! *bats eyelashes longingly*

~Beautiful-Dark~