A\N: To all those who paid their regards about Mano, thank you so very much. It's really hard and painful to lose a pet. I know the last chapter was depressing and Life is feeling more like trash at the moment. I'm going through some tough times too. Maybe Life gave me a curse or something? :P If the following chapter comes out crappy, then please forgive me. I just got my braces fixed and because of it my lower jaw is aching like hell. It's even giving me a major headache :/
"The winners of the last chapter are; ZabuzasGirl, Helena Bellamuerte, Cheshire Kitty Jr, Anime hotty lover .18, Goofy smart and Blonde, IsaBean, Ibookster and SnowWolf22"
Congrats! You all win virtual sweets! =^_^=
DISCLAIMER: I don't own the show.
|STAR CITY
|16 DECEMBER
|5:06 EDT
The door slowly creaking open, Oliver poked his head out before stepping in the room. After a couple of knocks and waiting outside, he had finally decided to go in there himself. His eyes wandered around, meeting nothing but darkness. He took a step back, pulling the door completely open.
Dim light from outside filled in the room, chasing the darkness away, revealing clothes sprawled all over the carpeted floor. The blonde man skipped over them, eyes fixed on the figure lying over the king sized bed, cocooned in a mess of purple sheets.
He cleared his throat loudly, trying to show his presence. But he got nothing in answer.
Just silence.
Cold and miserable silence.
Oliver crouched down on the spring mattress, eyes filled with worry as they kept themselves fixed on the body wrapped in sheets that was slowly falling and raising with soft breaths.
He finally spoke up, "Life?" The archer rose his hand, hovering it near to her shoulder when she shook slightly and his hand froze in midair.
"Go away," She responded gruffly.
A frown graced his lips, gaze falling on a large empty bucket of ice-cream lying beside the foot of the bed. "Life," Oliver began again, his voice soft. "You've been in your room for two days. Is everything alright?"
He could still remember her walking in the manor two days ago, drowsy and exhausted. And when he chirped that if she'd like to join him and Dinah in movie night, she'd declined, making her way upstairs to her room. Dinah, being the motherly figure she was, quickly approached the magician and asked if she was okay.
Life cracked the two a smile, and both of them shared a look on seeing her forced and broken smile. "I'm okay," The magician had grinned faintly, clutching the door knob, turning around and he swore he saw her blinking back tears.
But before he could ask, the door had been quickly shut, leaving him and Dinah standing outside with their blonde eyebrows knitted together in worry.
Of course, Batman had to assign Black Canary an off world mission the same night, and she had to go, leaving Life in his care. He knew she went to a school in Gotham, and not in Star City because she had some very important friend there, so when he knocked at her door and told her to get ready for school, she answered by saying she wasn't feeling well.
He ate alone at the dining table, worriedly staring at her untouched food infront of the empty chair. Even when he took her plate to her room, she simply smiled weakly and told him that she wasn't hungry before quickly slamming the door shut.
So basically she hadn't eaten properly for two days, though he was relieved to see that empty ice-cream bucket. She also wasn't getting out of her room and was refusing to talk to her teammates.
Something was horribly going wrong with her and she wasn't telling him.
Now, he sat on her bed, Life's back facing him as she lay wrapped in purple sheets. "Everything's fine," She buried her face in her soft pillow, "Now please leave me alone."
Oliver frowned at her, wishing that Dinah was here because she knew how to deal with teenagers. "You're not telling me what's wrong," He persisted. "Come on, Life. Tell me."
"Nothing's wrong. Just go away!"
Oliver leaned towards her a little, "Did Roy say something?"
"No."
"Did Batman say something?"
"No."
"Are you sure Roy didn't say anythi—"
"Nobody said anything to me!" Life snapped, burying herself more in the mattress. "Just go away!"
A scowl graced the blonde's features, his gaze suddenly landing on the smartphone resting on her drawer, it's screen shining brightly. He reached forward, taking it in his own hands and finding that it was muted. He scanned the number blinking on its clear screen, the name 'Dick Grayson' shining in capital letters.
Casting her a glance, he slid his finger across the flickering screen, pressing the device to his ear.
"Hello? Life? Look, I'm really sorry—"
And he instantly recognized the voice.
"I was going to tell you! I swear, I was. But Bruce wouldn't let me—And I don't hate you. I just said it because you were getting on my nerves and all—Agh! Come on, Life. Talk to me! You're not coming to school or the Cave and you're not picking up my calls. I mean, if we just talk—"
Oliver cut the blabbering boy off, voice not hiding his astonishment. "Robin?" The blonde blinked, "Is this you?"
"Green Arrow?" Came the surprised reply.
The emerald archer scowled, eyes narrowing into a glare. "I don't know what you've done to Life, Robin." He started dangerously.
Upon hearing her name, Life's eyes snapped open as she bolted up right, heart missing a beat on seeing her phone in the man's hand.
"But whatever you did, you better apologize for it!" He growled, not noticing how Life's face turned pale. "She isn't eating anything, she isn't coming out of her room and most of all, she's been crying ever since she got back from the mountain!"
"Don't tell him that!" The dark magician cried out, throwing her arms forward to snatch the phone from his grasp, but the blonde man was already standing up, speeding away from her reach.
Life stared at him, hoping the earth would rip open and swallow her right there and then as he continued furiously, "You should start fixing things up or else even Batman can't save you from my arrows—"
Cutting him short, Life yelled out a spell. "Emoc ot em!"
Like soap had been rubbed over it, the phone slid out from Oliver's hands, dashing into the caster's lap. As soon as it came into her reach, Life had quickly slammed both of her thumbs down on it, hanging up. Clutching it tightly, she threw herself back on the spring mattress. "Great! Now he'll think I'm a cry baby!" She let out a frustrated groan, squeezing her eyes shut.
Pushing herself up again, the dark magician shot the archer a glare. "What did you do that for?!"
Oliver crossed his arms over his chest, glaring down at her. "What did Robin do?" He asked sternly.
"He did nothing!" Life snarled furiously, and Oliver was surprised to see tears welling up in her eyes. "N-nothing," Her voice broke, a sob escaping her lips as she buried her face in her hands, choking.
Blonde eyebrows furrowing, Oliver walked forward and seated himself beside the crying mess. "Life," He said softly, gaze steadied on her and his hand drifting to land on her knee. "Talk to me."
The light in the room was dim, though he could still manage to see her slightly puffy and red eyes as they met his, her skin paler and her curly locks wild. He offered a friendly smile as their gazes met.
"Why didn't you tell me?" She asked quietly.
Oliver raised an eyebrow, "Tell you wha—"
"Why didn't you tell me about Artemis and Jade!"
Blue eyes widened, staring down at her with surprise. Life was glaring, eyes twinkling with tears and nails digging into the purple sheets of the bed. The blonde man parted his lips to speak, but then pursed them, brows knitting together.
He gave out a sigh, "How did you find out?" Oliver asked solemnly, narrowing his eyes at her but the girl remained silent, not answering.
Thick tension filled silence descended upon them, and soon Oliver gave another sigh. "You and Artemis did not want anyone to know about your backgrounds," He looked her straight in the eye, "We promised you that your secrets will be safe with us."
"That still doesn't explain why didn't you tell us about each other!" Life hissed, fisting the bed sheet.
The blonde cocked his head to the side, "If we told any of you, we'd be breaking our promise, now wouldn't we? He explained, watching how her jaw clenched and she slowly swallowed. He gave her knee a slight squeeze, "We were going to tell you," His hand reached up, taking her chin in its palm and cocking it up.
Silver eyes peered up into his blue ones, filled with hurt, sorrow and more than anything, betrayal. It took him a lot not to pull her in a tight hug.
Oliver smiled warmly, "We were just waiting for the right time."
Her tensed muscles relaxed, gaze locked with his, almost like she was trying to find any traces of a lie in his statement. Several seconds passed, and then Life released a small sigh. "Okay," She said, the corners of her lips twicthing upwards as she dug the heels of her palms against her eyes, rubbing away the hot tears.
Smiling, Oliver patted her knee. "Now will you please tell me what Robin was talking about?" He laughed, remembering the boy's blabbering over the call.
Life bit her lip, looking up at him through her lashes. "Promise not to tell?" She inquired quietly, gaining up courage when he answered with a smile.
Sucking in a deep breath, Life began sheepishly. "Well..." She averted her gaze, nervously starting the whole incident on the previous mission.
Every word hitting him like a brick, Oliver's eyes stretched wide with shock and surprise. "So let me get this straight," He said incredulously, gawking at her. "You and Robin?!"
Life scowled, cheeks flushing slightly as she suddenly found the bed very interesting to look at at.
Oliver continued, his voice not hiding his shock. "But I thought you hated Robin."
"I do hate him," The dark magician squeaked, face flushing even more. The raven ran her hands through her hair, "But-but..." Life stammered for a second, absolutely hating the words that came out next. "Sometimes the person who you hate, is the person whom you most love."
She inwardly cringed, extremely embarrassed on what she'd just said and the dumb look the archer sent her way.
"That can't be true," Oliver cocked his head to the side, snorting. "You can't love someone you hate. It's common sense."
Life smiled meekly. "That was what I used to say." She muttered under her breath.
Giving out a sigh, Oliver fixed her with an unamused look. "You shouldn't have taken his mask off like that." He scolded, scowling on seeing her roll her eyes.
Life crossed her arms over her chest, lifting her chin upwards. "He wasn't going to tell me," She argued, grey eyes flickering with slight anger. "What I did was right." She sounded sure of herself, something that made the blonde man frown.
"What you did was wrong, Life." Oliver said harshly, glowering at her and then, gave out a sigh. "You should be happy he didn't knock you out, dragged you to the Batcave and had your memories erased." A small smile made its way to his lips, and he would've snickered at her surprised expressions if he wasn't trying to scold her.
"Robin wouldn't do that,"Life snorted, but then blinked, looking up at him with wide eyes. "Would he?"
Oliver grinned, scratching his blonde beard while pretending to be pondering on her question. "Robin? No." He paused, lips curling up into a smile. "Batman? Probably." Blue eyes danced with humor as Life's eyes widened, shuddering on thinking how Batman could wipe her memories away.
Tilting his head slightly, Oliver narrowed his eyes, his smile not fading the slightest. "Now," He said calmly, "What are we going to say to Robin?" He asked quietly, staring at her and Life rolled her grey orbs.
She sighed. "I'm sorry?" The raven offered cheekily, a grin tugging her lips as he stood up, ruffling her messy locks with his hand.
"Good girl," Oliver praised, smiling on hearing her give out a childish laugh.
He stalked towards the door, "Now get ready for school, alright?" Oliver called out, and Life chewed on her bottom lip, staring at his back. "Wait!" She yelled out, and he at once stopped in his tracks, turning around to look at her.
Dimples popped up on her cheeks as she tossed him a wide smile, "Thanks for the talk..." Life cocked her head upwards, allowing the word to slowly make its way to her tongue. "—Daddy."
His eyes suddenly brightening, Oliver grinned broadly, face beaming with happiness. "Hey," He chuckled, bouncing his shoulders. "Gotta take care of my daughter."
And she couldn't be much happier on hearing that.
|GOTHAM CITY
|7:30 EDT
She whizzed passed the number of walking bodies, some of them throwing her glares and scolds but it didn't have much influence on her. Kicking at the strong pavement beneath her, the dark magician boosted up the speed of her skateboard, avoiding the people walking around her.
"Watch it!"
Life rolled her grey eyes on hearing the old lady yell, the phone vibrating in the pocket of her blue blazer, obviously another message from Dick. The boy had a hobby of messaging actually. It was like his fingers worked faster than the speed of light, typing in numerous messages and then sending them in seconds.
She assumed it was because how much time he spent typing on his computer.
A woman gasped, holding onto the dear life of the groceries in her arms as Life nearly crashed into her. But the raven kept her balance, the wheels of her skateboard giving out a small shriek as they were halted for a second, and then pushed forward.
Life tightened the grip on the school bag slung over her shoulder, sliding easily through the crowd of people acting as obstacles in her way. Gotham Academy was a fifteen minute walk away from its zeta tubes, so when Oliver had asked whether she'd like him to walk her to school, she had politely declined.
Physically she was here; stopping, skating and dodging a bunch of people walking on the side walk, while mentally she was back in the bayou, seeing her father's sudden outburst of her having elder siblings. And now, she was thinking about Dick.
Her chest tightened and she bit her bottom lip, regretting the words she had said to him. She sucked in a breath, ducking a man carrying an enormous television. Dick Grayson was obnoxious. Stupid, irritating and obnoxious. Just like Robin.
And now if she pulled the pieces together, she thought about knocking her head and saying, 'Uh, hello, Life! Dick and Robin are the same person!' But no. She didn't use her brain. She was always leaped before she thought and now she was stuck in this stupid mess. All of this wasn't her fault, though. It was Dick's too. The idiot hadn't told her, leaving them both to face the consequences.
That moron.
Ring.
That stupid moron.
Ring.
That stupid adorable moron.
Ring.
That stupid adorable cute mo—
Suddenly, there was a jolt that sent the raven soaring for a second, and then she landed harshly on the pavement, right over her arm. There was a fluent curse of Italian coming from her mouth, teeth gritting slightly as her arm gave out a pang of pain in protest because of the weight of the upper torso on it.
Unfortunately, Life had missed the descent sized crack in the sidewalk which happened to catch the wheels of the skateboard, throwing her off of it and onto to the concrete. With a groan, she pushed herself up, dusting off her uniform and scowling on hearing her phone ring again.
In a flash, she had pulled it out, pressing it against her ear and was hissing furiously. "What the hell is your problem?!" Life threw her free hand up, fuming. "Can't you stop texting me?!" She inquired bitterly, stalking over to her skateboard that laid upside-down near the cracked concrete.
"If this keeps up, I'm gonna knock your teeth in!" She snarled, grabbing her skateboard. "I don't want to talk to you!"
Okay. That was a lie. She did want to talk to him.
"I swear to God if you don't stop, I'm gonna break the Joker out of Arkham and then I'll—"
"Life," A feminine voice called out, cutting her off. "It's me. Artemis."
The magician blinked, absorbing the blonde's voice. "Artemis?" Life echoed, feeling her face heat up with embarrassment, and Artemis started smugly. "Yeah. It's me." She sounded highly impressed.
"Who do you thought I was?"
Smacking her palm wide over her flushed face, Life tipped her head back, groaning slightly. "I'm so sorry." She apologized, ignoring the archer's question.
"I thought you were someone else."
Artemis laughed, a slight tease in it. "I can't imagine what that someone did to make you this angry."
Life found herself blushing, a scowl gracing her features on hearing how the blonde was enjoying herself. "Ahan." She replied, flipping her pony tail over her shoulder, deciding to walk to school from here.
"You haven't been coming to the cave. Everything alright?"
The raven resisted the urge to scoff. Everything was not alright.
"Yeah, just feeling a little traumatized after Dad's breaking news." Life joked, rounding a corner, Gotham Academy right infront of her. She entered through the open gates, shooting the watchman a warm smile which he responded by a gape toothed one.
Familiar faces began roaming around her, and Life nearly forgot about Artemis's long pause over the chitter chatter of students standing in groups in the green lawn. "Hey, Arts. You there?" Life asked, feeling a little tight in her chest on using the nickname. Artemis was technically her sister—not full but half—so she wasn't sure if she should call her sis or not.
"...yeah." Artemis said calmly, and Life started searching for a certain ebony with gel slicked hair. "We need to talk."
"You think?" The magician snapped sarcastically, eyes still roaming around in the crowds of students. It was hard to find someone when everyone was wearing the same clothes.
A frown touched her lips on hearing the elder girl growl on the other side, "Can I see you in Gotham park tonight?" She asked solemnly but before Life could respond, she slammed into someone.
"Aren't you going to come to school?" Life inquired, shoving the person aside with such a force that it sent him tumbling into a group of students. She shot him a murderous glare, and the boy flinched.
"I'm taking the day off."
"Kay. So I'll see you in Gotham park tonight?"
Life imagined Artemis nodding. "Be there at eight."
"Sure, thing." Life replied, ready to hang up when Artemis's voice stopped her. "Bring some kind of weapon with you." The archer added sternly.
Like blinked, perplexed. "Why?"
"Jade's gonna be there too."
The tightness in her chest grew and Life forced a small laugh. "Can't control your sister?" She inquired almost tauntingly but then she recoiled, repeating the words in her mind.
Jade was her sister too.
"Shut up," The pretty blonde growled, "I'm giving you friendly advice." She snapped, Life rolling her eyes as she walked ahead. "Take it or leave it."
The magician let out a sigh. "See you tonight then."
"Yeah," Artemis answered easily.
"Bye."
"Bye."
Life waited until she heard the final click, confirming that Artemis had hung up. A deep sigh escaped her lips, hand massaging the bridge of her nose as she stuffed the smartphone into the pocket of her blazer.
Her mind began to race, multiple questions popping up, all of them demanding answers. Lawrence was the only one who could satisfy them but since her father was somewhere she had no idea about, Artemis and Jade had to do. She wasn't sure if Jade was holding a grudge against her but, Life definitely holding a grudge against the assassin.
If Cheshire will attack, Death will not hesitate in defending herself or handing her over to the Justice League. But then the question arose; what will Artemis do? On which side will she be on? The feeling in her gut told Life that it wasn't going to be her. Artemis will choose Jade over her any other day.
The thought made her frown, and her stomach twist with uneasiness along with dread filling up her chest.
A hand brushed against hers, and the magician had to stop herself from shooting out a roundhouse kick to whoever had the guts to touch her skin. Silver eyes looked upwards, meeting sky blue ones, making her heart flutter.
Dick smiled, not a hint of gel in his hair this time, hair left shaggy and loose on his pale forehead. His raven bangs brushed against his brow as his blue eyes looked down at her with interest and a spark flickered in them.
Anger began boiling inside her, but she tried to conceal it, tilting her chin up with an arrogant huff. She saw him parting his lips to speak, but she interrupted him, spinning on her heel and feeling satisfied as her pony tail collided with his face.
Life stuttered off, making her way away from the students around her and near to a slightly isolated area. An old apple tree stood there, its branches dried and leaves nowhere to be seen. It was breathing its last breaths. She could feel the misery radiating off it.
A figure was soon infront of her, tutting and shaking its head while sending her a glare. "That was really low, you know?" Dick commented, looking highly unimpressed yet there was a smile in his voice.
Life glared up at him, anger flashing in her eyes as she sneered. "You should be happy I didn't break you nose." Her teeth gritted together as he cocked his head to the side, focusing his gaze on the fairly prominent scar on her nose.
She was about to give out insults when Dick's lips curled into a smirk and he rubbed his nose with the back of his hand. "Your hair smells like bayou water," He scrunched his face up in fake disgust, watching Life blink up at him and he tried very hard not to laugh as she grabbed the end of her ponytail, bringing it close to her nose and sniffed.
The fresh smell of shampoo greeted the magician and she glared murderously at him, jaw clenching on seeing him biting his bottom lip as he held back snickers. She grumbled some curses under her breath, glaring up. For a moment, she felt anger course through her veins, heating up her face and sending such sparks in her body that wanted her to lash out and beat him up till she could cool down.
Dick seemed to get her intension, his muscles tensing, readying him for any sudden attacks and movements. His hands seem to twitch, moving themselves closer to his hips and Life knew that he was wearing his utility belt beneath the school uniform.
Her magic against his utility belt. She was obviously going to win but then she thought about how he was trained by the Batman, and Bats were filled with surprises.
But still, punching her anger out on him seemed like such a good way to calm down.
Life could faintly hear Ollie talking in her ear, and it made her features grace a scowl. Might as well say what he told rather than creating an immense fighting scene.
Sucking in a deep breath, the dark magician started calmly, taking the boy by surprise. "I'm sorry." Life mumbled loud enough for him to hear, "I'm really sorry about taking your mask off like that. I shouldn't have done that but... curiosity just got to me, okay?" She admitted, folding her arms over her chest and glaring at her side.
"I should've waited until you told me but I just went ahead and found about your little secret," There was great sarcastic pressure on the word 'little', "And then, I started to go nuts about how you were lying to me and I'm sorry about that too. I can be really mean sometimes, and I act a lot like an idiot—" Life paused suddenly, feeling how he wasn't giving any response.
She turned her attention to him, grey met blue and she narrowed her eyes dangerously on seeing the enormous grin tugging his lips. Here she was giving a 'I'm-sorry' speech and he was enjoying himself. God, she really hated him sometimes.
"You can stop me anytime, you know?" Life offered hopefully, scowling on seeing him respond with his signature Robin smirk. "Keep going," Dick told her, grinning broadly as she sucked in a sharp breath through clenched teeth.
The dark magician released the heavy breath, allowing it to take away the bubbling anger inside her. Her shoulders slumped and she closed her eyes, frowning. "I don't hate you, Dick." Her voice broke slightly but she quickly balanced it, swallowing the sudden onslaught of hot tears. "I'm sorry about saying that... It's—it's just that I kinda felt hurt you didn't tell me about it sooner."
Clasping her hands behind him her back, Life sighed. "And I totally understand if you don't want us to be together anymore," She gave her shoulders a bounce, heart tying itself into a tight know in her chest. The raven gave a laugh, smiling weakly. "I've gotten use to heart breaks." She muttered under her breath, smiling at her own comment.
A brilliant smile quirked the corners of his lips as Dick relaxed his shoulders, "Apology accepted." He grinned faintly, then gave a tight smile. "I'm sorry too." He apologized good naturedly, taking a step closer to her.
Life raised an eyebrow questionably, staring up at him. "That's it?" She asked dumbly, Dick blinking before arching an eyebrow himself.
"What do you mean that's it?"
Her hands gravitated to her hips, eyes sharpening as she scowled. "That's all you're going to say? Nothing else?" The Romani gave a bubble of laughter, ignoring the glare he was receiving. He cocked his head to the side, raven locks nearly falling into his blue eyes as he grinned. "Well, what did you expect? A speech for you to forgive me?" He asked playfully, a smirk coming to his lips.
Her hands twitched slightly, fingers curling and uncurling, him grinning infront of her. Dick folded his arms over his chest, eyes sparkling. "You're a total drama queen."
"And you're an idiot," Life snapped, traces of all friendliness fading from her eyes.
He grinned, "Takes one to know one."
The dark magician scowled, a furious glare in her eyes as she watched him grin in response. Blue eyes were bright, staring down at her with interest, and lips pulled into a brilliant grin. Oddly, butterflies fluttered in her stomach and she tossed him a smile, the anger melting somewhere inside her.
She reached forward, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him into a hug. Dick blinked, lips curling up into a smile, arms snaking around her waist as he laughed. "Don't laugh, bird boy." Life mumbled, burying her face into his chest as she breathed in the heavenly scent of cologne.
The Romani grinned toothily, "Missed me?" He asked, Life's cheeks burning up as she felt him kiss her hair. She grabbed his arms, pushing him back a little, glaring at his bemused expression.
"No more secrets." Life growled, glaring visual daggers at him. Dick smirked, casting a glance at his surroundings, slightly relieved to know there was no one paying them any attention. He turned to her, nodding. "No more secrets." He promised.
A sigh of relief escaping her lips, she released him, the invisible weight on her shoulders disappearing. "Good," Life sighed, "Last thing I needed to know was that Barbara's gonna be a vigilante called Batgirl."
"There is no such thing as a Batgirl," Dick told her, smiling as she rewarded him with a smirk. "We never know what surprises the universe has for us," Life shrugged, placing a hand on her hip.
A sudden thought struck the boy's mind, his blue eyes brightening. "So we've come to an agreement, right?" He said casually, Life shooting him a suspicious look. "You don't hide any secrets, I don't hide any secrets. It's an agreement, correct?" Dick continued, smirking as she pursed her lips.
"Yeah..." The magician answered easily, pondering on what was going through his head at the moment.
"So..." Dick smirked, tilting his head to the side, the action making butterflies swarm in her belly. "We should seal it."
"Seal it?" Life echoed, perplexed. "How do we do that?"
Blood rushed up to her cheeks as he leaned in forward, the smirk firmly plastered on his face. "Like this," Dick whispered, pressing his lips against hers. The gears in her head stopped for a second, and then quickly pushed themselves in motion as she allowed her arms to wrap around his neck, shifting her weight on her toes to move her lips against his.
"Hey, guys! Nice to see Life finally—woah!"
The sudden exclamation made their eyes snap open, blue meeting grey as they blinked, quickly pulling apart, turning around and their gazes landing on a scarlet haired beauty.
Barbara's cheeks were flushed red, pretty blue eyes wide with surprise as she stared at them. A pink blush dusting her cheeks, Life took a step forward. "This is not what it looks like!" She tried to reason, taken off guard on feeling an arm slip around her waist, pulling her into a warm body.
"Oh, this is definitely what it looks like." Dick answered honestly, arm tight around the magician who was trying to jab her elbow in his ribs in an attempt to release herself. Life rolled her grey eyes, jaw clenched and face burning as Dick rested his cheek against her head, grinning broadly.
The redhead before them blew out a low whistle, an equal grin coming to her lips as her face began to regain its normal color. "Congrats!" She grinned happily.
Life smiled back, ready to reply but was interrupted as the Romani whispered. "Feeling the aster?" He asked, a smile in his voice.
"Oh, yeah." Life responded, eyes meeting Barbara's and smiling. "Feeling the aster."
|GOTHAM CITY
|20: 18 EDT
The December air was cool and crisp, Artemis shivering as it brushed past her, scaterring goosebumps all over her body. She gripped the front of her jacket tighter, pulling it closer to herself before folding her arms over her chest, leaning back into the wooden bench, looking upwards.
The moon was busy struggling to pass its light from between the clouded sky, small insects and animals hidden in the green grass softly singing their lullabies, giving her an eerie feeling as she sat there, the cold wind tickling her every now and then.
Maybe I should tell mom. Artemis's thoughts were wandering, silver eyes settled on the dimly litted moon peering down from the clouds. Maybe I shouldn't?
She pursed her lips in thought, getting on her guard as the bushes behind her rustled violently. Her hand slowly began to make its way inside her jacket to grasp the crossbow hidden underneath it but someone snorted loudly, and her muscles flexed as a body flipped from behind the bench and plopped down beside her.
"Did I scare you?" Jade inquired smugly, a smirk stretched across her lips as she threw her arms behind her head, relaxing into the wooden bench.
Artemis loosened her tensed muscles, but still kept her guard up. "Hardly," She growled, catching how the elder's lips quirked up into a smirk.
Fiddling with the collar of her jacket, the pretty blonde shivered again as the cold breeze danced around her. She pulled it closer to herself, Jade staring up at the clouds. "Are you taking care of mom?" The assassin asked quietly, reminding the blonde beside her how long it had been since Jade had paid Paula a visit.
"Yeah," Artemis admitted.
"That's what family does. They take care of each other."
Jade scowled, noticing the hints of sarcasm and jab in the archer's tone. "You didn't tell her about this, did you?" There was slight hope in her voice as she shifted to face Artemis.
The blonde grimaced, turning towards her. "No," She answered honestly, swallowing the small lump stuck in her throat as their eyes met.
They stared at each other, dark eyes meeting stormy grey ones, and Jade suddenly gave a bark of laughter. "It's funny, you know?" She grinned faintly, looking her sister in the eye. "How I tried to runaway from Dad but ended up working with him but you stayed with him and you're now free."
Artemis bit her lip, drawing in a deep breath. "You can still come back to us, Jade." Her hand connected with her sister's, a frown touching her lips as Jade pulled it back.
Jade's face darkened with longing, but in a split-second it was gone, and her confident smirk was back, "Nah..." She straightned up, cockiness kicking back in her attitude. She offered her a coy look, eyes dancing with humor. "Every girl for herself, remember?"
The words left a bitterness in Artemis's chest, just like they had done years ago. She looked away, a picture of a small frightened blonde girl clouding her mind, and she released a deep breath, shaking her head to get her thoughts cleared.
"She's here," Jade murmured to her, Artemis's head snapping up and gaze falling on a messy haired girl.
Life tugged at the front of her hoodie, looking at them while chewing on her bottom lip nervously. The wind whistled, sending chills down their spines, the only light present being the clouded moon or the dully lit street lamp.
The corners of her lips quirking into a smirk, Jade stood up, drawing out her sais as she stepped ahead. "Come on, sis." She twirled the sais in her hand, the smirk firmly plastered on her face. "Let's get this over with."
Artemis blinked, processing what the taller girl was saying, Life's muscles tensing as she buckled her knees slightly, parting her lips for a quick chant.
A scowl framing her features, the blonde clasped a hand around Jade's elbow. "We are not going to kill her, Jade." She growled, and pushed herself up as Jade shot her a surprised look before her eyes sharpened.
"We need to get rid of her, Artemis." The assassin hissed, and the dark magician before her shot her a menacing look. "We should—"
"We're here to talk," Artemis reminded grimly. Jade scowled, crossing her arms over her chest, shrugging Artemis's hand off. The pretty blonde turned towards Life, the raven staring at them with interest.
The archer ran her tongue over her bottom lip, staring slowly. "Okay, Life. Can you tell us about your mother?" She asked softly, not believing she was questioning about her step mother.
She seemed to catch the frown that made its way to the magician's lips, and she sucked in a deep breath, parting her lips to respond but Jade beat her to it.
"What's the point asking about her mom?" The Vietnamese snarled, propping her hands on her hips and tipping her head forward, a sly grin tugging her lips as she mused. "For all we know, she might be some dirty slu—"
A tight fist connected with her jaw, the force toppling her to the ground. Artemis stared as Jade pushed herself up on her knees, shocked before whipping her head to Life. The shorter teen was fuming, jaw clenched and hands balled into tight fists. "Don't you dare talk about mom like that!" She warned sullenly, a dark aura visible around her body.
Wiping the small trickle of blood from her lips with the back of her hand, Jade gritted her teeth together. "You shouldn't have done that." She growled, charging at the younger girl.
Life ducked a roundhouse kick, using her small height as an advantage when she slammed her knee into the assassin's stomach. She crouched low, sweeping at Jade's feet. Dark eyes snapped open, a burning look in them as they settled on the dark magician, ready to collide her foot against her temple. But before Life could, Artemis was between them, her hand shoving the magician backwards.
"Enough!" The blonde ground out, glowering at Jade, the woman dusting off her clothes as she helped herself on her feet and then shooting Life a fiery glare, her only panting in response.
Releasing a heavy sigh, Artemis rubbed her forehead, grumbling under her breath. She turned her attention to Life, glaring. "Just tell us about your mom!" She blurted out, almost yelling.
"You wanna know about my mom?" Life looked her in the eye, jaw clenched tightly and eyes ablaze. "Fine then! My mom's dead!" She snapped, breath getting somewhere stuck between her lungs on receiving two pairs of surprised eyes.
"How did she—"
"Dad killed her!"
Artemis blinked, Jade staring blankly behind her, the words echoing in their ears. Hot tears bubbled up in Life's eyes, and she clenched her head, struggling against the sobs demanding to be let out. "He killed her, okay?" She sucked in a deep breath, not knowing why a lump was suddenly stuck in her throat.
"He slit her throat just because she didn't help him in killing people!"
Artemis allowed the words to sink in, staring as Life dropped to her knees, whimpering and sobbing. Her mouth was so dry, and she had nothing to say. She faintly heard Jade's slow footsteps as she trudged forward, the sai's blade glimmering in the dull light of the street lamp.
"Jade," The blonde breathed, panicking from the inside. "What're you doing?"
The assassin twirled the sai, smirking cockily, unfazed by the weeping sounds around them. "Taking her out," She answered easily, raising the sai in the air to strike when Artemis caught her wrist, pulling her arm back down.
Artemis hissed, glaring. "You can't kill her!" Jade tilted her head, scowling as she jerked her wrist free from the archer's grasp. "Don't you get it?" She deadpanned, fingers tightening around the sai, her words dripping with poison.
"It's every girl for herself."
And a memory flooded in the blonde's mind.
"Please…" The small nine-year old whimpered, "Please don't go."
The teenager before her didn't bother to even spare her a glance as she continued placing different things in her bag, "Sorry, sis." Jade apologized calmly, her bag on her bed as she filled it in. "Mom's not getting out of prison anytime soon, and I refuse to live in this house with just Dad." She announced, placing some clothes inside her bag.
Artemis tried again, clutching the teddy bear closer to her small chest. "Dad and you and me! We have to keep this family from falling apart!" She cried, blinking back tears.
The teen gave her no response, and Artemis bit her lip. "Dad'll come after you," She warned softly, hoping Jade wouldn't leave her.
Jade packed her bag in silence, glancing at her sister from the corner of her eye. "I'd let you come with me," She admitted grimly, throwing the bag over her shoulder."But you'd slow me down."
Her heart began drowning in her chest, but Artemis kept her face straight. "Someone has to be here when mom gets out,"
"Haven't you learned anything?" Jade snapped, irritated as she stalked over to the door. She reached forward, clutching the door knob and turning around to face her sibling.
"In this family," She pulled open the door, stepping outside and all Artemis wanted to do was to beg for her not leave her alone. "It's every girl for herself." With that, the door clicked shut.
A hiccup was released from between her lips, quickly followed on by warm tears streaming down her olive cheeks. Artemis buried her face in the head of her old teddy bear, crying in the darkness.
Something sour pooled in her chest, and Artemis shot the taller girl a glare. "That might apply to you," She stepped infront of her, a fiery look in her eyes. "But it doesn't to me." The blonde bit out, crouching down to the weeping magician.
Jade raised an eyebrow, lowering her sais. "Artemis," She said harshly, eyes narrowing into slits as her sibling leaned over to Life. "What're you doing?" The dark haired girl growled, blood boiling.
"I'm doing what you should've done to me," Artemis responded grimly, shifting closer to the girl. She looked upwards, Jade staring back at her. "I'm not leaving my little sister alone."
Life blinked, the foreign words ringing in her ears as she whipped her head at Artemis, staring at her with wide clueless eyes. Jade scowled, "She is not our sister, Artemis." She spat, knuckles whitening.
An arm slipped around the magician's waist, Artemis pulling her into her side, smiling up at Jade. "She might not be to you," The blonde glanced at Life. "But she is to me."
Parting her lips for a snarky remark, Jade was cut off. "Do you really mean that?" Life asked incredulously, eyes wide and heart pounding in her chest as Artemis nodded in reply, smiling warmly.
The blonde nearly lost her balance, two arms wrapping around her neck as a face nuzzled into the crook of her neck. "Thank you," Life whispered, a warm feeling pooling in her chest when the archer pulled her into her embrace more tightly.
Jade deflated, a scowl gracing her features. With a growl, she spun on her heel, her pony tail swaying behind her as she walked off, jaw still clenched.
Artemis watched her, frowning. She heard the magician give out a hiccup, and she squeezed her more into herself. "H-he tried to s-sell me..." Life choked and Artemis swallowed on hearing that, rubbing soothing circles on her back.
"I hate him."
"I hate him too."
The cold wind blew, and the two girls shivered. "But you don't need to be afraid," The blonde rested her chin on top of the younger's head, looking upwards to the cloudy sky and her arms tightened around her.
"I'll never leave you alone."
A\N: Oh, the feels! :D Reviews are considered as love~