This is so long over due. This was requested back in August. I know, super late. It's like a whole other year. There were some difficulties and some issues but I finally got this up.
Once I started writing this fic it had gotten so long that I actually had to trim it down so it wouldn't be so overwhelming and so that I would actually finish it, so I'm saying this is going to be at least a three-parter.
This is for KoalaTakingNotes. I hope you enjoy, and sorry again for the wait.
Artemis was absolutely livid! And it's all that stupid speedster's fault.
Crunch.
He hadn't been being such a dweep and actually listened to her for once she wouldn't be in this stinking situation!
Crunch.
If it wasn't for him she would be in her bed right now, curling up with a book or listening to music on her headphones after sharpening more arrows. She would actually be enjoying her one day break from school. But then this idiot-
Crunch.
"If you crunch on those chicken whizzes one more time, Baywatch!"
"What are you going to do about it, Arrowbreath?" He shoved another handful of the freeze dried snack into his mouth. "There's no law saying that I can eat snacks while walking down the street."
"There should be with how disgusting you are when you eat."
"Hey! What's wrong with my eating?" Crushed up chucks of chicken whizzes flew from his mouth as he was asking the question.
"Do you even hear yourself?" Fed up, she dropped the bags on the ground and turned on the speedster with her hands on her hips. "You can't even call that eating. It's more like throwing food at your mouth and hoping you catch it."
"Oh yeah? And you call what you do archery?" He ditched the snack bag and rose to the bait. "It's more like releasing an arrow and hoping it hits a target."
They went back and forwards with insults and rebuttals, They stood there in the middle of the street near the Happy Harbor pier arguing. Pedestrians walking past gave the arguing duo strange looks.
Some walked by without giving them any mind. Others gave them strange looks as they walked by.
"Hey you two! Get a room!" A grumpy fisherman was standing on the pier. A tin bucket was beside his feet. It's fish count was tiny compared to the other fishermen.
Must be why he's so grumpy.
"Let's just hurry up and get back to the Cave." The speedster walked past the archer, somehow producing another bag of chicken whizzes and making a show of crunching especially loud when he walked past her.
She scowled and ran to catch up to him. She socked him in his arm. "How about you say that a little louder. I don't think all of Happy Harbor heard you."
"Relax. It isn't like anyone is paying attention to us."
"You are such an idi- HEY!" A child had run past them and in his rush bumped into Artemis, sending her falling back into Wally.
"Hey! What's your problem kid!" The child completely ignored him and continued running into a crowd. They followed with their eyes as the crowd grew bigger and bigger until it was a whole audience. At the head of the crowd surrounded from all sides except from behind was a man. From the way he was dressed, there wasn't anything spectacular about him beside the crowd that was surrounding him. There was also a young woman standing beside him. His head was hung down low, and it looked like the man was whispering something to her. There was a pocket watch slowly swinging from his other hand.
Artemis nudged Wally's shoulder to get his attention, "'Ash Bash: The Dashing Hypnotist.'"
"Who?"
"When I snap my finger you believe you are a bird, flying high in the sky and enjoying the nice summer breeze blowing past your wings. When I snap my fingers again, you will come to and the hypnosis will end." He snapped his fingers.
"Caw!" The woman opened her eyes and extended her arm out wide to her side. She started running around the small semi-circle the crowd had made making bird sounds.
"I can't believe they're eating this up."
"Are you serious? You're still being so stubborn after everything that happened with Kent Nelson?"
"That was magic. This is psychology. Anyone can stand up there and make somebody do something."
"Caw! Caw! Hoot! Hoot!"
Ash snapped his fingers again. The woman stopped, blinked and looked at Ash. "Have you hypnotized me yet?
The audience then erupted into applause as Ash bowed and the woman walked back into the crowd highly confused. The audience dispersed loudly muttering and chatting between themselves about how amazing the show was.
"What a sham."
"You're such an idiot."
"How am I an idiot!"
"Do you want a-z or chronological order?"
"Excuse me," The two turned to see Ash standing beside them, his hands tucked into the pockets of his slacks and his head tilted with a small grin. "But I couldn't help but hear the conversation between you two. You don't believe in hypnotism, sir?"
"I believe someone can be hypnotized. I just don't believe you know how to do it."
"Wally!" Artemis hit him on his arm.
"That's all right, miss. I get this quite a lot." The casually dressed man then pulled one hand out of his pocket. In his hand was the watch he used in his hypnotist act.
"Would you like another demonstration?"
You wouldn't believe how many times I misspelled hypnotist and hypnotized while writing this. Smh.
