Author's note: Hi guys, sorry about the long break. For the past how long it was I've had tendonitis in my wrist from drumming, which is very painful. It's been in a brace so it's been a bit of a pain to type :/ Sorry but I hope this chapter is worth it, my wrist is still in the brace but I thought I owed it to you guys because of how awesome you all are in leaving reviews and alerting my story :D

Disclaimer: I don't own Young Justice (no duh) :P

Chapter 3:

Sunlight slowly crept through the blinds of Wally's room, highlighting the Flash posters that adorned his walls. The young speedster quickly flung his blanket to the floor and, in a matter of seconds, changed from his pyjamas into his jeans and t-shirt. The events from the previous day flooded Wally's memory, and he felt his stomach drop.

"Artemis," he murmured to himself, guilt washing over him.

He quickly glanced around his room and stretched. Wally remembered the promise he made to himself about making everything better and ran from his room. Once downstairs, he was greeted by the scent of food wafting from the kitchen. Wally peeked through the doorway and spotted his mother busying herself around the stove.

"Wally dear, is that you?" she asked, having sensed someone watching her.

"Yeah it's me. Good morning."

"Come, sit down; breakfast is almost ready," Mary replied cheerily.

"Umm, would you mind if I skipped out on breakfast this morning?" Wally asked quietly.

"You need your breakfast sweetheart," she told him with surprise, without taking her eyes from the stove.

"I know… I mean, they have food at the Cave, I'll just grab something there."

Mary turned to face her son and sighed.

"If you must."

Wally grinned at his mother and then dashed away, but not before he had called a quick thanks over his shoulder.

He burst through the door and raced down the street, speeding up as he went. Wally enjoyed the feeling of the wind rushing through his hair as he ran; he found it rather soothing. Running also gave him time to think in peace, which allowed him try and come up with something he could say to Artemis at when he arrived at the Cave. He knew he had to apologise and that he was going to repeat what his Aunt Iris had told him; the only problem was that he didn't know how to go about it. Many different scenarios played out in his mind as to how everything would turn out, some of which made his spine tingle or made him doubt himself. He arrived at the Zeta tube and took a deep breath. This was it. It was now or never. He just had to make amends with Artemis.

He stepped forward; there was a bright flash as he was beamed into the Cave. A robotic voice announced his arrival when he appeared, and he strode silently towards the kitchen. Robin watched him; usually Wally would have greeted him in some way before he went to the kitchen, but this time he didn't say a word. Concerned, Robin made his way over to his best friend.

"Hey KF."

Wally turned his attention from the fridge to Robin, he flashed a quick smile.

"Hey, have you seen Artemis? I need to talk to her."

The question surprised Robin. That Wally wanted to have what sounded like a civilised conversation with her was one thing, but the fact that he wanted to have what sounded like a civilised conversation with her AFTER what had happened the day before surprised was something else completely. Something was definitely going on here.

"Ah, no, she's the only one that hasn't arrived yet." he answered in a puzzled tone.

"Oh." was all Wally said before turning back to the fridge to find something good to eat.

Robin turned away from his friend and shrugged as he made his way to the couch. Something was very wrong.

The Zeta tube announced the arrival of Green Arrow, and Wally felt his stomach drop. He awaited the imminent announcement of Artemis's arrival, but it didn't come. Green Arrow stood with crossed arms and surveyed the room. Kaldur, who had been sitting on the couch reading a book, looked up expectantly.

"Has anyone seen my niece?" he asked casually.

A snort sounded as Conner and M'Gann walked into the room, coming from the hallway that led to the bedrooms. Wally also entered, instead coming from the kitchen; he scratched the back of his head nervously.

Green Arrow shot Conner a confused look, who in turn, glared back at him. This surprized the archer.

"I'll take that as a no then?"

"Green Arrow," Wally said quietly, his stomach now somersaulting within him.

Green Arrow turned away from Conner to face the young speedster.

"We… we know she's not your niece…"

Green Arrow stared at Wally in shock; he was speechless.

"She told us yesterday… then, um, she got upset and left. She hasn't come in this morning." was all Wally managed to say before Green Arrow's gaze caused him to fall silent.

Green Arrow took a deep breath and then rubbed his chin.

"I see… well then, I should probably go and inform Black Canary that Artemis won't be in training today…"

Allowing his gaze to linger on Wally for a moment, Green Arrow turned away from the teenagers and exited through the Zeta tube. Wally continued to stare into the space where Green Arrow previously stood, his guilt beginning to gnaw at his stomach once again.

Conner grunted and then led M'Gann to the kitchen. He was obviously still mad at Artemis, along with Green Arrow for lying to them.

"Hey Rob?" Wally murmured.

"Yeah?"

"Can I talk to you in private for a moment?"

Kaldur glanced over at Wally, he had a feeling he knew what he wanted to talk about, the subject being that of Artemis.

"Sure," he answered a little suspiciously, shrugging as he followed Wally who was making his way down to his bedroom.

The two walked in silence until they arrived at Wally's bedroom door. Wally opened it slowly and entered, followed by Robin who made his way over to the swivel chair at Wally's computer desk. He swung it around to face Wally who had taken a seat at the end of his bed.

"What's the problem?" he asked, even though he already knew the answer.

"It's… it's about Artemis," Wally answered, running his hand through his hair nervously.

"Go on," Robin prompted.

"I… I want to see if she's okay and I want to apologise for yesterday."

There was a pause.

"And you want me to tell you where she lives?" Robin asked casually.

Wally was slightly taken aback that was exactly what he wanted.

"Yeah."

"Wally, maybe you should give her some time-"

"NO! I need to talk to her; I need to tell her I'm sorry… I need to fix this," Wally cried out suddenly.

Robin was surprised with Wally's sudden outburst and looked at him through narrow eyes.

"Wally."

"Please Robin, I need to do this," Wally said, sounding a lot calmer than before.

"What makes you think I know where she lives, anyway?"

Wally raised an eyebrow and Robin laughed.

"Okay Wally, I'll tell you," Robin said, grinning.

Wally paced out the front of an apartment door. He was dressed as Kid Flash and was trying extremely hard not to vibrate due to his nervousness. Artemis was on the other side of this door, the very person he longed to see. His mind raced as it had done right before he entered to Zeta tube earlier that day, except this time his stomach felt as if it were in a tight knot.

He knocked on the door three times and stood perfectly still, which felt odd for him. He stood for what felt like hours to him, before a woman in a wheelchair answered the door. Wally stood rigidly, his arms stiff at his side. The woman raised an eyebrow in surprise at the arrival of the teenager.

The two stared at each other for a long moment before woman's expression changed to one of confusion.

"Yes?" she asked, puzzled.

Wally cleared his throat and brought his left hand up to the back of his neck. He found it difficult to look the woman in the eye.

"Hi Mrs Crock, is Artemis available?" Wally asked politely.

Paula Crock's eyes opened wide as she stared at the boy.

"I thought she was with you and the team…"

Wally's heart began to race. Her mother thought she was with the team? So did that mean she hadn't been home? Or had she left that morning, lying about where she was going?

"When she didn't come home last night, I assumed she was on a mission," Paula whispered to herself.

Wally went cold. She hadn't gone home after the incident had occurred? Where could she have gone then?

He stared at Artemis' mother for a moment in shock before he realised he had begun to vibrate on the spot. Quickly he stopped himself and gripped the doorway. Paula looked at him expectantly but he couldn't think of anything to say or do, so he just stood there, trying to keep calm.

Wally's mind began a war with itself. It was all his fault! If only he had stood up for her against Conner… Conner… it was just as much his fault as it was his own, if not more! He was the one that had driven her away in the first place; he was the one that had called her the mole! Wally's muscles tensed, the thoughts made him angry and the anger was slowly bubbling up into rage.

"Sorry for disturbing you," Wally said quietly before dashing away, leaving Paula alone in the doorway.

Wally ran and mentally cursed as he went, why had he been so stupid? Why didn't he stand up for Artemis when he had the chance? Wally wanted to punch something, but running was just as good for the time being. Conner… his vision blurred when he thought of the clone, the one that had driven her away. Clenching his fists, Wally decided that he was going to confront him.

The steady sound of water dripping echoed around the room. The puddle that had formed on the ground glowed slightly from the fragments of light that shone from a rectangular window in the door. Artemis' eyes flew open as she became aware of her surroundings. The air was damp and musky, making her feel uncomfortable, along with her inability to see clearly due to the lack of light. She was lying on an old mattress on the floor in the corner of the dark room. The mattress felt tattered and grimy underneath her.

Artemis sat up slowly, which made her feel dizzy and her head ache. She brought her right hand up to a particularly painful spot on the back of her head. There she found a lump, suggesting she had been hit hard. She felt around for her bow but after a few moments, she realised it was not with her. With a groan she got to her feet, her legs shaking.

Carefully she made her way to the window in the door and peered through it. Nothing was out there but a white hallway with bright lights illuminate it from one end to the other.

She leant against the door in confusion. Had she been captured on a mission? No, that wasn't it. Suddenly it all came back to her; how she had told the team about her past, their reaction and then her leaving… something was missing though… something important. Scrunching up her features, she tried desperately to remember, and then it came to her.

She had exited the Zeta tube into the alley where her father had confronted her. She had begun to make her way home before she was ambushed… ambushed by her father and some of his men. As hard as she tried to fight them off, there were just too many. The last thing she remembered was her father coming at her with some sort of a bat.

Artemis groaned in response to the memory. Slowly she edged her way back over to the tattered mattress on the floor and sat down. Was anyone on their way to find her? No. Not after what had happened with the team. Why would they come looking for her after that? Conner certainly didn't want her back; he had accused her of being the mole! M'Gann just didn't want to hear anything she had to say after she had admitted the truth and Kaldur seemed disappointed in her. The only person that seemed unfazed was Robin, and as for Wally… she had no idea what he was thinking.

With a loud sigh, Artemis leaned against the back wall. She ignored how damp it was and closed her eyes in thought. What was Wally thinking? Was he angry with her? She hoped not, but knew he probably was… would he want her back on the team? Quickly she shook her head, what did she care what Wally thought anyway? She was nothing but a replacement to him. It wasn't important what he thought about her…

A loud bang brought Artemis back to reality. She opened her eyes, squinting in the light, and was greeted by the silhouette of a large man standing in the doorway.

"Awake I see," he said, humour in his voice. "Nice place, isn't it?"

Artemis scowled at the man but didn't reply.

"Spirited as always," the man grunted, "I told you that you wouldn't have a choice."

Avoiding his gaze, Artemis' eyes dropped from her father to the floor.

"So my dear, do tell me, how did your little team react?"

There was once again no reply from his daughter. Sportsmaster laughed.

"Just as I thought, they wanted nothing to do with you. Well I hope you've started to realise that there is no escaping me or who you are."

Artemis tried her best to ignore the man standing before her. The man who was supposed to be her father. Artemis inwardly snorted. He had sure never acted like one.

With another laugh, Sportsmaster turned away to face the hallway.

"You'll come around my dear," he said with a grin before closing the door and locking it from the outside.

Artemis stared at the door for a long time, hoping that somehow, it would swing open and she would be free. As much as she hoped it would, it never did, so she lay down on the mattress and closed her eyes. Her thoughts went from her father to the team. She remembered all the good times she had with them and how much she was already beginning to miss them. Slowly, without realising it, her mind went from the team as a whole to one teammate in particular… Wally. For the first time in a long time, a tear rolled down her cheek. She felt as if she had ruined everything. She felt as if she had just lost the one thing that made her feel good about herself. With a sigh, she drifted off to sleep.