Greetings and salutations!

Yup...that's my author's note...

Chapter 10:

"So...Truth...or dare?"

"Dare!"

"Go to Lagann's room and steal his underwear."

"Hell no!"

"Chicken!"

Zatanna rolled her eyes and reluctantly stood up.

"Fine." She huffed. The other girls giggled.

"You suck." The magician dead-panned. Artemis shrugged her shoulders.

"I know." She replied simply. Zatanna ran out of the room and down the hall. Barbara laughed and said, "Do you think she knows Lagann's in his room?"

M'gann shook her head and giggled. "No. I made sure of it."

"Speaking of Lagann...I heard you two had a big fight. You okay?" Raquel questioned.

The martian's face sobered. "I-I don't know. We've hit a few bumps...I don't know if he really loves me or not."

Raquel, Artemis, and Barbara nodded their heads sympathetically.

"I mean, he's never even seen my...'true form.' How do I know if he'll still love me after that?" M'gann asked helplessly.

"So...do you think you should break up with him?" Raquel asked.

"I don't know. Conner always loved me, in spite of..." M'gann trailed off. Artemis placed a comforting hand on the white martian's shoulder.

"If Lagann doesn't accept your white martian form, then it might be time to end it. But don't let your real appearance define who you are, okay?"

M'gann nodded and quickly wiped away a few tears. "Thanks, you guys. I feel a lot better."

"Anytime." Artemis smiled and Raquel nodded in agreement. Suddenly, they heard a scream and someone yell, "NEPTUNE'S BEARD! GET OUT OF MY ROOM!"

Startled at first, the girls glanced at each other then, after a pause, burst out laughing. Zatanna ran into the room, huffing and puffing.

"You-gasp-guys suck." She said, gulping in air.

"Did you get it?" Barbara questioned with a smirk.

Zatanna held up a pair of underwear, a triumphant grin plastered on her face.

"Yup!"

The other girls laughed.

"So, what was he doing when you found out he was in there?" M'gann giggled.

"Sleeping. It was dark so I didn't know he was in there. I kinda slammed his drawer a little loudly and he woke up." Zatanna said sheepishly.

"Neptune's Beard!" Raquel imitated the fish boy. Everyone laughed.

"Okay," Zatanna began scanning the room for her next target, "Artemis, truth or dare?"

Artemis smirked. "Truth."

Zatanna groaned. "But no one likes truths! I only have dares!"

"My point exactly." Artemis grinned smugly. Zatanna rolled her eyes and looked thoughtful for a moment.

"Okay, then Miss Smarty-pants, try this on for size...What's with you and Nightwing?"

Out of the corner of Artemis' eye she saw Barbara's face drop.

"Uh...W-what kind of question is that?" The archer chuckled nervously, trying to change the subject.

"Come on! Spill the dirt!" Raquel grinned. Barbara fiddled with her blanket.

"N-no dirt to spill!" Artemis sputtered.

"Chi-cken." M'gann said in a singsongy voice.

"He's been helping me get over Wally's death and that requires spending time together, good enough for you?" Artemis answered quickly.

"You had sex with him, didn't you?" Raquel asked, getting straight to the point.

"It's not your turn to ask!" Barbara burst out. All eyes turned to her. Her face reddened.

"Uh...S-sorry...I...-"

"It's okay!" Artemis intervened. "Okay, my turn."

"Wait! Just. A. Minute!" Zatanna held her hands up to grab everyone's attention. "Barbara, you still like him." She didn't need to ask, she knew. Barbara's head dropped.

"Maybe a little." She said timidly. "I guess I'm having a little trouble letting go of him."

"I know what you mean..." Artemis mumbled. Barbara caught this and turned to her.

"I'm sorry, Artemis! I know you've been through a lot lately and I guess I just got a little jealous."

"It's okay." Artemis shrugged.

"I'm sorry we made you feel uncomfortable, Barbara!" M'gann said sympathetically.

"It's fine. I think it helped to get it off my chest. And, Artemis? You deserve him." Barbara smiled. Artemis blushed.

"Okay! Who wants to watch a movie?" Raquel inquired.

"Totally!"

"Yes!"

"Let's do it!"

"I get to pick first!"

oOoOoOoOoOoOo

Nightwing walked through the halls of Mount Justice. His ears picked up a sound coming from the living room. He walked to the entry way and listened to the voices.

"Artemis, you've been avoiding it all night, you have to tell us about-"

"Shh! Be quiet! He might hear!"

"He's not even here! So, spill!"

"Fine. But first, I'm going to grab my blanket."

Dick heard a group of girls groan and then heard Barbara say, "She's stalling again."

"No, I'm not! I'll be right back!"

Nightwing heard footsteps coming his way and knew he needed to find a hiding spot fast. He ran down the hallway as quietly and as quickly as possible. He turned around to see if she noticed him. But much to his displeasure, he found himself face-to-face with the blonde.

"A-Artemis! What are you doing here?" He stuttered.

"Girl's night at the cave...What are you doing here?" She looked at him pointedly as if to say, 'You better have not been listening in on our conversation.'

"Well, I just got back from patrol and needed to check on some security footage at Gotham Bank. So...having a good time?"

"Yeah. It's nice, you know. To relax with the girls." The archer replied. Dick nodded.

"Well, I guess I'll see you around." He said with a sigh.

"Yeah, see ya." Artemis turned on her heels and headed to her room. Dick let out a sigh of relief and entered his room.

He sat in his chair, in front of all his computers. For twenty minutes, he just sat, staring blankly at the screens in front of him. He debated whether or not he should see what they were talking about. If they were talking about him. No. He couldn't spy on them. He heard the girls laughter traveling through the halls and sighed.

"This is gonna be a long night."

oOoOoOoOoOoOo

Artemis woke up to someone's footsteps in the hall. She looked at the clock. 4:13am.

"Why would anyone be up when we just went to bed an hour ago?" She questioned herself as she peered across the room to find that all the girls were still asleep. Artemis rose to her feet quietly and headed to the hallway. She followed the sound of footsteps to the debriefing room. She crept along the wall, then stopped when she heard voices. Two voices.

"It's not. Her. Fault." She heard Dick say.

"Then why is it that when she rejected you, all your training falls apart?" A deep voice said. Batman?

"She didn't reject me! We both agreed that it was too early." Nightwing contoured.

"But it's getting in the way of crime fighting. You're getting sloppy." Batman pointed out.

"I'm not getting sloppy."

Artemis peeked around the corner to see Dick in his Nightwing costume with his back facing her, arms crossed over his chest. Batman was facing him, a scowl set on his grim face.

"Then how is it that the Joker injured you so easily?" Batman asked in a stern voice.

"That wasn't her fault! You can't pin my mistakes on Artemis!"

The archer's eyes widened. "They're fighting about me?"

Dick continued, "That day was when my parents died! That's what was distracting me."

Batman stood as still as a statue.

"Why did you go to her when you were injured?" The Dark Knight's voice was monotone.

"Because I knew she wouldn't give me hell about it!" Dick's breathing was labored from his yelling. "I knew that she would take care of me." Dick said in a calmer tone. "I knew that she would help me through that day of regrets about my parents." The ebony haired man stood with his shoulders slumped and head hanging.

"I love her, Bruce."

Artemis' breath caught in her throat. Love?

Batman didn't respond for a few minutes, then, "Not Bruce. Batman."

Dick threw his hands in the air. "I'm telling you everything! And all you care about are secret identities?!"

Batman didn't even flinch.

"Did you not even hear what I was talking about?! Did you hear anything?!" Dick's voice sounded desperate.

Batman turned around to face the other way. Dick's hands dropped to his side in defeat.

"Fine." He huffed. "See if I tell you all my feelings again..." He started to walk away when he stopped and said over his shoulder, "See you at the charity banquet," he began as Batman turned to him, "Dad."

Artemis flinched at the pure venom in Dick's voice as he addressed Gotham's Guardian. Dick trudged along with heavy footsteps to the hallway opposite to her. She looked to Batman, who was watching his ward down the hall. He let out a heavy sigh and then backed away into the shadows.

Artemis shivered at the creepiness of him being swallowed into darkness. When the coast was clear, she got up from her crouching position and slowly, in shock about what she just heard, walked back to the living room. She looked to the clock. 4:59am.

She laid down, eyes still wide open. She tossed and turned but couldn't get to sleep.

"Then why is it that when she rejected you, all your training falls apart?" Batman's voice rang through her head.

Did she really reject him? No. It hurt too much to think about bringing so much pain to Dick. Artemis turned onto her back to stare at the ceiling.

He loved her.

Her heart felt like it was going to explode with joy, but then a sinking feeling set in.

Does she love him?

And how does she know she's making the right choice in loving him back?

oOoOoOoOoOoOo

Dick stepped out of the zeta-beam. He was exhausted. The fight with Bruce was weighing on his mind plus just finishing patrol... Well, needless to say, it was time for bed. He had the day off of work so that left a whole 10 hours to catch up on some sleep. He had to be at a charity dinner promptly at 7pm. And take Kitty. Again. But he was already burnt out and didn't need to think about that right now. Dick trudged up the stairs to his apartment, unlocked the door, and collapsed on the couch. Sleep over took him.

oOoOoOoOoOoOo

Artemis awoke to the smell of bacon and eggs. She sat up groggily and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes. Everyone had already woken up. Artemis got up and stepped into the kitchen. Zatanna was chopping fruit, M'gann was cooking bacon and eggs, and Barbara and Raquel were eating waffles.

"Good morning." Artemis said in a yawn.

Zatanna chuckled. "It's already 12:30pm."

"Well, good afternoon, then." The archer said with her nose pointed in the air. Everyone laughed.

"What'd you do last night?" Raquel questioned sarcastically. "Get up in the middle of the night for an adventure?"

Artemis' eyes widened for a split second as she remembered the conversation between Dick and Bruce. This did not go unnoticed by Barbara.

"Hey," The redhead spoke, grabbing the blonde's attention, "You okay?"

But before Artemis could make an excuse, Batman's voice came over the intercom.

"Artemis, come to the debriefing room in 5."

The room was silent as all eyes looked to Artemis for an explanation.

"I don't know!" She burst out to everyone giving her questionable looks.

"Ooooo! Artemis is in trouble!" Raquel jeered.

"Shut up." The archer muttered under her breath. She exited the room to change into some more...suitable..clothing.

As Artemis changed into jeans and a T-shirt, she interrogated herself as to why Batman would want to speak to her alone? Suddenly, it hit her.

Batman knew she was watching him and Dick have a fight.

Shit.

She looked to the clock nervously. It had already been 4 minutes. Dang nab it. She quickly brushed back her hair into a ponytail and jogged to the debriefing room.

As she entered, Batman turned to face her. She inwardly gulped. Her palms became sweaty and her pulse quickened.

"I've called you here for a mission." The Dark Knight said, breaking the intense silence. Artemis almost, outwardly, breathed a sigh of relief.

"Tonight is a charity dinner. It's being held at Wayne Manor. I'll need you to be there."

"Why?" She questioned with an eyebrow quirked.

"Contessa Erica Alexandra Del Portenza is going to be there." Batman informed her.

"Contessa Erica... Who?" Artemis looked confused.

"Lex Luthor's ex-wife." Batman replied. Artemis grit her teeth. Luthor...

"Since Luthor went to jail, Contessa took over Lex Corp. She also testified against Lex, so we believe Luthor will try and get revenge on her."

"But if he's in jail, then how could he get his hands on her?" The archer contoured.

"He has connections." Batman stated simply. Artemis shrugged in agreement.

"So, you want me to protect her in case Lex tries anything funny?" The blonde questioned. "So, will I just hide in the shadows or-"

"No. You'll blend in with the rest of the guests. I've already arranged your attire. You'll find what you're wearing in your apartment."

Artemis huffed. "I don't even want to know how you got into my apartment."

Batman glared.

Artemis shrunk back. "Sorry?"

"A limo will be by your apartment at 6:30pm. Be ready."

Artemis nodded and turned to leave.

"No more listening in on Dick and I's...private..conversation."

Artemis tensed. There was a pause as she turned around.

"Look. I didn't mean-"

But the Batman was gone.

Artemis shivered. "I'll never get used to that."

oOoOoOoOoOoOo

Beep. Beep. Beep.

Dick's alarm went off.

He woke up.

And hated it.

Not because he had to wake up, for the most part. No, it was because he had to take Kitty to a charity dinner. It was going to be a living hell.

Dick sat up and rubbed his eyes. He sighed and reluctantly got up from the couch. He took a quick shower, got into his tux, and left to attend a charity dinner/ball, full of stuffy, stuck up snobs, who hold their noses up high and prance around in thousand dollar dresses and suits. Yippee.

He left his apartment and hopped in his sports car. Hey, he's a playboy. He's supposed to have sweet rides. He picked up Kitty from her apartment and tried to block out most of her gabbing. Once he arrived, the paparazzi flooded him. Kitty hung on his shoulder, smiling her fake smile, giggling her fake giggle.

Then he saw her.

The angel of his dreams, walking gracefully down the stairs. She looked stunning. Her olive green, ball gown flowed from her shoulders. Her golden hair tied in an elegant, yet loose bun. She strode over to him and gave a slight head nod, a small smile embraced her face. He nodded back and stuttered,

"H-hi...Artemis."

oOoOoOoOoOoOo

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