I'll just leave you all to this now...

"You ready to put on a show?" Wally whispered, a bit of hesitation in his voice.

Artemis felt her muscles tense as she nodded, her sharp eyes glancing around the corner to see if there was any movement on the street. The two had snuck around the back road behind the buildings until they found their way to the end of the street, ensuring that the demons inside would have plenty of time to hear them coming down the street before they lured them into their trap.

"Channel your inner girly girl, Arty," The redhead teased as he grabbed her hand and pulled her out to the sidewalk. They were two buildings away from the hideout, so they had to be loud and obnoxious.

Artemis started it with a loud giggle, her arm wrapped securely around Wally's torso as they walked. The laughter that he belted out in response was entirely genuine and Artemis was glad he couldn't comment on how strange it sounded to hear from her. Instead he slung his arm around her shoulders and leaned in to kiss her on her temple with a loud smack.

"Oh, Babe," Artemis crooned, making Wally snicker in her ear, "Where are you taking me?"

"Somewhere Off-limits," The redhead play-whispered, tickling her sides so that she let out an exaggerated squeal that he really wished he'd gotten a recording off.

"Sounds exciting," Artemis grinned, pressing herself farther into his side.

Wally gave her a warning glance before he suddenly spinned her around and pressed her against the brick wall of the demon's hideout apartments, his arms locked around her and his head ducked into the crook of her neck.

Artemis froze momentarily before she settled into the situation, loosening her muscles and relaxing into his tentative touch. He was close enough to give the right impression, but his hands which had slid to her waist had a light enough grip to allow her freedom. She fought quickly with her mind to retain the mental focus on their mission, and not the way he was breathing against her neck, pressing overly-loud kisses that echoed around the empty street.

She curled her hands around his neck and let out a few giggles, hoping that their bait was working because she did not want to do this again.

"Babe, let's get out of here," Artemis said, making her voice loud enough to reach someone else's ears, "Where's that place?"

Wally let out a loud groan and for a second all of Artemis's nerves shook, her focus wavering and her hands unconsciously clenching into the curling red hair at his neck. But then, in the corner of her eye, she caught just a shadow of movement, "It's right next door, Babe," Wally spoke up, pulling away from the wall and tugging her along close to his side, "You're gonna love it; super creepy,"

Artemis let out a laugh and pretended to look around nervously before she followed him into the building, well aware of the sliver of movement that was slowly following them. Neither dared to break the act as they made their way to the apartment, however, so the affectionate touches and laughs continued.

"In here," Wally said, pushing open the door and leading Artemis to the ratty old bed across the apartment.

"This is creepy," Artemis giggled; the sound still strange to both of their ears. She let Wally scoop her up and dip her onto the bed, the two intertwining as best they could without any real contact.

Wally snuck a hand underneath the bed frame while Artemis began groaning to cover the clink of the iron as he pulled out two short handled shovels. The blonde reaching into Wally's jacket to grab a couple flasks of holy water.

The door banged against the far wall as the room was suddenly rushed. Three men enter and a moment later Wally and Artemis moved. The first demon ran right into the closest trap as the two hunters were leaping to their feet, shovels at the ready.

"Hunters!" The first demon snarled, furious that he'd been caught. The other two didn't pause for a second and continued on toward the hunters, their features turning to rage as they swerved around the devil's trap. The first demon, stuck, focused his limited telekinesis to try and find a way to break the trap on the ceiling.

Wally met the demon closest to him halfway across the room, his speed even greater than that of the creature. The demon looked shocked when the redhead revealed his trick, unable to dodge the swing of the shovel because of the unexpected speed. He snarled and rubbed at the bright red burn mark that the shovel left behind, leaping up almost instantly to attack him once more.

Artemis used her agility to dodge the attack, tipping her weight to the side and thrusting out her shovel to catch the demon's elbow as he ran. The move was effective enough and when the creature stumbled she swiveled the weapon around to ram it into his back, attempting to push him toward the devil's trap in the corner of the room.

The hand to hand combat continued with parries and blows as each tried to overpower the other. The demons attempting to maim while the two hunters worked to catch each of their charges in a trap. The push and pull was relatively even and the one player who could even the board was paused in concentration near the door. He had his energy pressing into the ceiling of the old apartment, though the energy was largely limited by the devil's trap itself. It would have been a simple task without the trap, but it was the only choice the demon had. All he needed was a small crack in the ceiling where the spray paint circle was, even that was enough to free him.

At first the ceiling only shook, a tremor of movement that caught no one's attention. But then the material gave way to the demon's force, creating a large crack across the distance that split the devil's trap in two. The demon was free and his first action brought him straight towards Artemis, the closest target.

The blonde shouted in surprise when the man rushed her, having already been engaged in battle with a different demon. The quick movement of the previously trapped demon caught her off guard and he ripped the shovel from her hands, holding onto the wooden shaft so that he didn't touch the iron spade and handle. He whipped the shovel around using his enhanced demonic speed and hit Artemis across the face, knocking her to the floor with a gasp.

"Artemis!" Wally screamed, the redhead stuck in combat with the third demon.

"Hold her down!" The first demon ordered brusquely.

"Get away from her!" Wally roared, losing his concentration and taking a hard hit to his torso.

A demon had pinned Artemis to the floor before she could regain her focus from the hit; the blonde thrashing and attempting to toss him off, "Watch yourself!" She hissed at the redhead across the room.

Her warning was in vain. With the first demon free-handed once more it became two against one, and Wally's mind was unfocused on his own safety.

"Got 'em," The demon chuckled, having trapped Wally in a choking hold; with his elbows constrained backwards by one arm and the other wrapped around his throat. The redhead struggled but the hold was too effective.

"Well, well, well," The first demon laughed, pausing between his two prisoners to survey their capture, "Looks like we've caught ourselves some hunters," He gave a lengthy pause, allowing the two hunters to glance at each other.

"What should we do with them?" The demon holding Artemis down asked, though the blonde could hear in his voice that it was a rhetorical question.

She locked her eyes with Wally's, reading the guilt in them that she knew he shouldn't have. They had prepared as best they could, but demons didn't often work in groups and given the time they'd had to perfect their act, she should have known they'd be overpowered. Artemis blamed herself for misreading the odds, for going down first, for dragging this wonderful man into such a dangerous life.

What had she been thinking?

"We can't possess them," The demon holding Wally spoke up with a frown, "They've got marks, I can feel it,"

Wally felt his heart drop at the demon's words, understanding immediately what they planned to do. Of course, he felt like he should have figured it out before. The demons had been terrorizing people by possessing one person and having them kill someone they loved. His throat constricted as he considered the options of what was going to occur. Yes, they had the anti-possession tattoos; Artemis had been adamant. But they weren't foolproof. His mind whirled; either he was going to be forced to kill Artemis, or she was going to be forced to kill him. Wally wasn't sure which was worse.

"We'll just have to find them and destroy them then," The demon in charge responded, stomping over to the redhead and scrutinizing him.

If he was forced to kill Artemis, Wally was sure he would never be able to live with himself. The idea of it made him feel queasy, and it was worse to think that the demons would let him survive afterwards. To live the rest of his life without her. He couldn't even imagine it.

But if Artemis was forced to kill him. He could never wish that sort of pain on her. Wally was well aware of her tough act, the way she attempted to keep everyone at a safe distance. Wally was also aware that whether she liked it or not, he was one of her closest friends. The guilt and shame of being unable to stop his death, he almost wished that she wouldn't have to deal with that.

However, the alternative would kill her.

The demon was roughing him up; searching his skin for the possession tattoo that he knew was there. Wally resisted as best he could but he already knew it was useless, he kept his eyes trained on Artemis's hoping he could best convey what he was feeling. That no matter what happened, it wasn't her fault. He could never blame her. Because Wally knew that if he died, it would be her first thoughts.

"Found it!" The demon cheered, holding up Wally's shirt sleeve to reveal the anti-possession tattoo on his upper arm, "Now, let's get that out of the way, shall we?" He declared, pulling a hunting knife out of his holster before turning to glance at Artemis, "Then we'll find yours and deal with you," He laughed.

"You son of a bitch!" Artemis growled, struggling underneath the weight of the man above her. All of her muscles strained themselves as she watched him bring the knife to Wally's skin, the redhead flinching. The demon cut him efficiently, one deep cut down the middle of the tattoo, splitting the skin so that the seal was no longer effective. Wally cussed loudly and Artemis felt her heart speed up in worry, the wound was deep and quite a bit of blood had begun running down his arm.

Abruptly, the little light in the room began flicker and the walls began to shake; pieces of the cracked ceiling began to crumble and Artemis closed her eyes on instinct to keep them out. She couldn't see, but she could hear the demons begin to panic, their voices raised in confusion. Wally yelled and she opened her eyes to search for him.

The lights returned and the demons tensed, retracting from Wally's form. She heard the demon above her mutter, "Neron..." before he let her go in order to try and run, but suddenly Wally's arm spread out and the door to the apartment shut loudly. The blonde shakily stood up, watching her partner with wide eyes.

Because she knew instantly that it wasn't Wally any longer.

Sooooo...Do you hate me? Do you know what has happened? I left a clue as to what just occurred but just in case you don't get it...Don't get your hopes up just yet that the action is all over.

Please review and let me know what you think!

This weekend: THE LAST CHAPTER.

Love, Veg