I'll just jump to it.
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The next morning, Artemis was escorted out of her room by Kaldur and Robin, Wally walking right beside her. Sensing her nerves, he squeezed her hand- the other two had wanted to handcuff Artemis to ensure she did not try anything and it had taken half an hour for Wally to persuade them otherwise. Her head whipped round and she looked at him with wary eyes.
"It's going to be alright." Wally reassured.
Artemis remained unconvinced. She had been tense the whole morning; the heaped plate of breakfast food Wally brought her had barely been touched, Artemis had resorted to shifting the food around with a fork and fidgeting.
The four stopped outside the interrogation room, tension heavy in the air.
"Inside." Said Kaldur, motioning for Artemis to enter. She hesitated and Wally caught her arm, turning her to face him, earning a glare from the Atlantean.
"Just tell them the truth, okay? You've got nothing to hide." Said Wally earnestly. He glanced at Kaldur's impatient expression and let go of Artemis' arm. "I'll be watching, don't worry."
Wally watched as Artemis was led through the door, then followed Rob further down the hall into the next room. A glass pane was set into one wall that looked into the bare, cell-like space Artemis had just walked into. In the centre of the room was a simple, metal framed chair. Artemis stared at it, then at the figure that had just materialised in the corner. Even on the other side of the glass, Wally felt Batman's presence. The man was intimidating when they were on the same side, he could not imagine what Artemis was feeling.
Instinctively, he raised one hand to the glass to try to get her attention.
"One-way. She can't see you."
Wally turned to see Kaldur close the door behind him, M'gann and Conner standing with Rob. M'gann opened her mouth, as if to say something, but Wally fixed his attention back on the room through the glass in time to hear the caped crusader's first words.
"Sit."
Artemis licked her lips.
"...I'd rather stand." Though her voice was deceptively calm, Wally could see the violent shaking of her hands. She wanted to run, he could tell, she wanted to run and run and never stop.
"And I'd rather you sat."
Artemis looked at Batman, then the chair, then back at Batman. She sat down.
"Your name is Artemis Crock, correct?"
"Y-yes."
"Daughter of Lawrence Crock and Paula Nguyen-Crock?"
"Yes."
"Also known as Sportsmaster and Huntress?"
"Yes, but-"
"And your sister is Jade Nguyen, or Cheshire?
"Yes, and I know what is must look like, but-"
Artemis faltered and fell silent after receiving a stern glance. Behind her, Batman began to pace.
"Do you know what the minimum prison sentence is, for a first degree murder count as high as yours?"
Nothing came out of Artemis mouth. Her shoulders hitched, then slumped as she stared at the concrete floor.
"Life."
Anger sparked in Wally and he spun round to address the others.
"What does he think he's doing?" He asked, directing the question towards Rob. The boy shuffled awkwardly on his feet, not replying. Wally grimaced and turned back to the glass.
"How long have you been working for the League of Shadows?"
"I... Well, since I was a kid- dad trained me to do all his dirty work."
"And you complied."
"Yes, I did, but I-"
"Were you ever coerced into committing a crime?"
"What do you mean?"
"Did your father ever use threats to get you to comply with what he wanted?"
Artemis paused, her eyes flitting across the floor.
"No."
"So everything you have done over the past five years was of your own free will?"
"No!" She cried, and Wally tensed; they were asking all the wrong questions, this was not how it was supposed to go-
"Did Lawrence Crock ever threaten you?" Batman sounded slightly irked.
"He never had to!"
Silence. Artemis took it as a sign to elaborate.
"After Jade left, he went a bit control-freak. Every time I messed up, no matter how small, he would let me know about it. First it was just extra training sessions, then these tests where he'd leave me in the middle of nowhere and see how long I could survive. Sometimes he'd just beat me. Threats were never a thing he did, all he had to do was punish me one time."
Wally heard M'gann gasp behind him, though he did not turn as his focus was on Artemis. She was holding back tears, but if she was hoping for sympathy, she did not receive any. Batman did not even break stride before firing the next question.
"Why didn't you leave, like your sister did?"
Artemis was quiet for a very long time. Her fingers scratched at her arm under a green sweater sleeve, her heel drummed against the floor. Then, with a softer than soft voice, she replied:
"Because I was afraid."
"Afraid of the consequences with your father?"
"No... I was afraid of becoming like my sister. She escaped my dad, but never the life. I was worried that if I left too, I'd have no choice but to carry on doing what I hated. I was afraid... I was afraid I would learn to enjoy it."
"When did you first come into contact with Kid Flash?"
"I was assigned to watch him, at the base."
"For what reason?"
"I mucked up a mission, I didn't fire at a target when I should have."
"You mean you spared someone?"
"Yeah..." This subject seemed to make Artemis happier, and she straightened up in her chair as she spoke. "I hadn't really planned it, I just... decided not to shoot. Dad was furious, so had me on prisoner duty for a while."
"And what did your duties with Kid Flash entail?"
"I had to bring him food and take him to the bathroom twice a day. Sometimes the guards took him to be... interrogated, and I would patch him up when he came back."
"You administered first aid to a prisoner of the Shadows, despite knowing that such behaviour could incur disciplinary action?"
Artemis' confidence grew with every question. She squared her shoulders and replied, proud. "Yes. I did."
"About how much time did you spend with Kid Flash during this period?"
"Maybe nine, ten hours a day."
"And you were always amicable?"
Wally deflated. This was it, this was when they all found out.
"...no." Artemis knew it too, she was back to staring at the floor. "At the beginning, we fought. A lot."
"Physically?"
"Some of the time, yeah." Her voice had ebbed, so quiet and full of shame that Wally had to strain to pick out the words.
"Were these episodes provoked, or did you attack Kid Flash without reason?"
"I never hit him for the sake of it, if that's what you mean. If he got hurt, it was because he tried to run, or he hit me first." Artemis was struggling to defend herself- any time she made an excuse, Batman would disarm her argument with ease.
"It is my understanding that Kid Flash was fitted with an inhibitor collar during his stay, correct?"
"...yes." Artemis' tone was guarded, she knew where this was going.
"And the collar was equipped with a remote that activated the shock capabilities of the collar, correct?"
"Yes."
"Were you given access to such a device?"
"Yes."
"Did you use it?"
The tension in the air was spread taut. Wally felt Rob and the others holding their breath as one. They would not like this, they would not like it at all.
"I did."
"On how many occasions did you use the shock remote on Kid Flash?"
Artemis bit her lower lip, then swallowed. Her eyes closed and she sighed, taking in the hopelessness of her situation, how little they would trust her after she admitted to repeatedly torturing their teammate, their friend.
"Twice," she mumbled. "I shocked him twice."
Wally heard murmuring behind him but he did not turn around, his hand creeping to his neck to trace the burn marks there. Through the glass, Artemis sat, defeated.
Batman continued.
"Do you feel that your actions were justified-"
"It was a mistake, I know."
Silence fell. Artemis seemed to realise her mistake in interrupting a member of the Justice League and wavered. She closed her eyes and breathed in, then out. Wally watched her scrape up the last of her courage and hold fast to it.
"Listen, I know what I've done, and if you don't think I feel fucking awful about all of it then you're wrong. But I'm not here for redemption, or sanctuary; I'm here because you brought me here, and if all you're gonna do is take me on a fucking guilt trip then you can just send me to Belle Reve and be done with me, alright? Because this was not my choice. None of this."
Her outburst over, Artemis slumped back down in her chair and crossed her arms. For a long while, nobody said anything. Then Batman spoke.
"That will be all."
He strode out of the door and disappeared. Wally let out a breath he did not know he had been holding, and without acknowledging the others, raced through the door to Artemis.
"Hey." He was not sure what else to say.
"I'm sorry." Mumbled Artemis, lifting her gaze to meet his. "I freaked out, I shouldn't have-"
"Artemis, don't worry, you did fine." Wally winced at the lie and hoped Artemis had not seen.
She raised an eyebrow at him, and he blabbed on.
"Bats is just one person and he doesn't really like anybody anyway. You're seeing Black Canary next, and she's usually much nicer."
Wally helped Artemis stand up, too long without moving her injured leg had made it stiff, and she had to lean on him as they walked to the room Black Canary had chosen for her assessment of Artemis. The rest of the team trailed behind.
"Here we are." Said Wally when they got to the door. "Are you gonna be okay walking in by yourself?"
"You're not coming with me?" Asked Artemis.
Wally shook his head. "She doesn't want me to pressure you to answer her questions differently. And you won't be alone, M'gann's going in with you."
"To scan my brain."
"To make sure you're telling the truth." Wally corrected. "Trust me, it'll be just fine."
Artemis muttered something under her breath, twisted the door handle and limped inside. M'gann followed her inside, and the door swung shut behind them. Wally stared at it for a long moment, then backed out into the team's sitting room. There, Wally sat and wondered what he would do to distract himself for the next hour.
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Okay. I'm sorry I wasn't able to update this sooner- usually I write half a chapter ahead and then I've got something to add to and it's easier but I completely lost all motivation this time round, I just stared at the page for hours and ugh it was so frustrating but here you go! Next chapter will probably be a long wait too, but I'll try to have something ready by the end of January. Again, thanks to all those lovely lovely cinnamon rolls who review, you helped me to get this chapter out and not give up, so thank you thank you thank you! And a HAPPY NEW YEAR to everyone!