A/N: The idea for Tula's death being the spark for all of this is from onceuponaspitfire on tumblr. All cred goes to her. I just wrote this.
Disclaimer: Still claiming no ownership over YJ.
Chapter 3:
Artemis watches the scene unfold in slow motion.
Superboy is holding Mammoth back, his muscles taut and his mind elsewhere. A goon comes up behind him. It's just a random lackey but he's holding a knife. For a second Artemis sees the dim green glow that laces the blade. Her eyes widen and she wonders how they knew to use kryptonite.
"Conner!" M'gann screams, held at a psychic distance by a very distraught telepath. M'gann's powers are strong, if she only had a few more seconds she could have broken the other girls hold on her mind and driven the kryptonite away from Conner - as it is she's already putting up a fight and the other girl is flailing for control, screaming and cursing - but she doesn't have a few more seconds.
The goon raises the knife and it swoops downward, plunging toward Conner's unprotected back.
Wally screams, his arms tightening around Artemis' middle. For a beat Artemis had forgotten that she was hurt herself. She had forgotten that Wally was cradling her in his arms, as her hands pressed against the bullet wound.
Somewhere behind them Dick is preoccupied and Kaldur is barking orders and the new members of the team are running in circles trying to figure out what to do with themselves. Artemis feels terrible because Beast Boy shouldn't be there, but he is and he's cowering beside M'gann as she deals with the telepath. And there's Garth holding his own beside Kaldur, his dark hair shining wet in the dim warehouse lighting and Artemis fumbles, her eyes searching the room for Tula because out of all of them, except maybe Beast Boy, she's had the least experience on a mission.
But Artemis doesn't see Tula until it's too late. She doesn't see the girl until she's diving between Conner and the kryptonite, doesn't hear herself screaming until Tula is falling to the ground and Conner is spinning to knock the goon with the knife to the other side of the room, doesn't truly understand what is happening until both Garth and Kaldur are dropping to their knees at her side, and she certainly doesn't accept that Tula is gone until Kaldur has dropped her limp hand into a widening puddle of blood.
"Artemis," Wally says, but his voice is faint. Artemis isn't sure he's really talking until he's shaking her and screaming her name over and over, "Artemis, Artemis, Artemis!"
She turns and looks up at him and tears are dotting his eyelashes. She feels incredibly heavy as if instead of losing blood she is gaining it and it's filling her up all the way from her head to her toes, weighing her down.
Her eyes slip shut and the last thing she hears is a dim chorus of Artemis, Tula, Artemis, Tula, fading into nothing.
Artemis is fine.
Wally doesn't set her down the entire trip to the cave. He holds her close to him, nuzzling his chin in her hair as they set down at Mount Justice.
He runs to the med bay, laying her body on an empty cot. He doesn't look away from her face for the longest time. Not when they rush Tula in after him to try something, anything. Not when Kaldur chokes down a sob and starts wailing, cursing things in a foreign tongue, and smacking his fists weakly against Superboy's shoulders as the Kryptonian attempts to comfort him. Not when they finally set a sheet over Tula lifeless features and roll her out of the room.
Wally remains seated beside Artemis' cot, his back turned on his teammates until Artemis stirs, fumbling for his hand.
"Tula…" Artemis whispers, blinking the glaze from her eyes as she looks over at Wally.
Wally shakes his head.
Artemis chokes, her breath hitching in her throat as she pushes herself into a sitting position. Wally pushes her back down, gently, his fingers shaking where they touch her shoulders.
"Wally?" Artemis says her voice hoarse as she blinks up at him.
"You could've died," Wally says avoiding her eyes. "It could have been you and not… It could have been you."
"Wally cut the crap," Artemis says, shoving his hands away from her and sliding her feet over the side of the bed. She winces as she clutches the bandages wrapped carefully around her waist. "I want to see Kaldur."
"No you need to-"
"This isn't the time to be selfish," Artemis snaps, pushing her hair out of her face, "are you going to help me walk or am I supposed to stumble down the corridor on my lonesome?"
Wally sighs and watches her for a moment. She's not glaring like she would normally be, instead her eyes are tight, narrowed but not in anger. He can just see the tears rimming her eyelashes if he looks closely enough.
Before she can demand he help her walk again he places a chaste kiss on her forehead and scoops her into his arms. She wraps her arms around his neck and turns her head into the crook of his neck, it is a position that they're accustomed to. Their bodies are used to it and it's as if they were made to be this way. Her in his arms, her fingers tickling the base of his neck, his cheek pressing against her ponytail, they fit, like puzzle pieces. Wally can't even imagine what it would be like holding another girl anymore. He's not sure if he ever wants to.
"We're going to talk about this," Wally says, rubbing his thumb along the edge of her bandage as he starts walking down the hall.
"I know," Artemis says, and he almost thinks she says something else but whatever it was its lost as he breaks the sound barrier.
The day of Tula's funeral Artemis and Wally stand on the beach outside of Mount Justice.
Dick and Zatanna are there as well, sitting on a rock by the cave entrance whispering nothings. M'gann, Conner and Beast boy have gone to Atlantis with Kaldur and Garth for the Atlantean burial. Naturally, being only human, the four left on the beach had not been able to attend.
Artemis pulls the pins from her hair, letting the loose bun she'd made earlier cascade down her back. She hikes up her black skirt and slumps on to the sand, Wally following her lead. She leans into him and he loops an arm around her. They watch the ocean in silence, the only sound the lapping of the waves against the beach and the soft sea breeze that lulls both of them.
"I've been thinking," Wally says, twisting a strand of Artemis' hair around his index finger.
"That's new," Artemis says with a soft smile, "should I be afraid?"
"Aw, come on, just listen," Wally whines, pushing her off his shoulder in order to look her in the eye. "I say we quit."
"Quit what?"
"This. This whole 'superhero' thing," Wally says gesticulating toward the cave.
Artemis' eyes widen, she brushes Wally's hand from her arm as she glances between Mount Justice and her boyfriend, "You're serious? But I thought you loved being a superhero."
"I love you more," Wally says, his hand grasping her wrist.
"Oh come on Wally, that was just plain cheesy," Artemis teases, "not your best line."
"Artemis just listen for a second okay?" he says, his voice cracking on the last syllable and she stares at him because his voice hasn't cracked in the longest time and all the sudden she's reminded of the scrawny redhead from three years ago who'd demanded to know who she was.
"I'm listening."
"You almost died the other day. If it had been the other way around and it had been you instead of Tula… I don't know what I would do. I literally cannot imagine how I would have dealt with that situation. And it still could be you. You could still die because y'know- we haven't exactly been on our best game lately," Wally says and when Artemis opens her mouth to protest Wally only shushes her. "Don't try and deny it. We've both been busy applying for college and god knows Jade and Roy have been have been stressing us out more than usual and we're trying to imagine a future while simultaneously dealing with things in the present. Sooner or later something's gotta give."
Artemis gives Wally a withering look, "So we quit? What then Wally? Will you really be happy never being Kid Flash again?"
"I never said that," Wally says shaking his head, "I said we quit for now not for good. After college, after the…wedding," Wally shivers as he imagines Jade and Roy in holy matrimony; talk about stress, "then we can kick supervillain butt."
Artemis crosses her arms as she considers this. She'd always wanted to go to college, as much as she'd protested attending Gotham Academy that was simply because it was high school, college was a whole different scenario. It seemed fun and fulfilling and something a normal teenager would do. She'd always wanted normal.
"And don't you want to be pre-med? This would make things so much easier," Wally says almost excitedly.
"Okay, alright, enough convincing," Artemis says waving a hand in front of her boyfriends distracted face. "We'll quit. But not for good."
"Not for good," Wally echoes, leaning in to kiss her, but before he can reach her lips Artemis' phone rings. She places a finger suavely against Wally's pursed lips and raises her phone to her ear.
"Hell-" Artemis says before her expression darkens, "you did what? Why-? Oh."
Before Wally can say anything Artemis has snapped her phone closed and a grin is sliding across her face.
"What?" Wally says as she leans in closer, "What?"
She kisses him, her hands sliding along his shoulders and pressing into his neck and he kisses her back, being careful not to press his fingers into her hips where bandages are still wrapped around her hip bones.
Wally pulls away after a moment, whispering hazily as they touch foreheads, "What was that for babe?"
"I forgot to buy a present. Happy Valentine's Day Wally," Artemis says smiling knowingly.
"Dammit," Wally says, his eyes widening fully upon realizing that he's forgotten for the third year in a row. He tries to pull away but Artemis pulls his back down until their lips meet. When they part he groans, "How did you remember?"
"About that," Artemis says airily, "It seems we have to cancel the wedding. Our mutual acquaintances seem to have remembered this infernal holiday and eloped."
"Eloped?" Wally squeaks.
"Eloped," Artemis repeats.
Wally frowns quite dramatically, "but Ollie was paying for an all you can eat buffet."
Artemis rolls her eyes and pushes Wally backwards, he tumbles on to the sand and watches as she stands up and stares down at him in mild amusement.
"Come on Kid Stomach, let's go in," she says reaching a hand downward.
Wally subtly glances back at the ocean one last time and then takes Artemis' hand. He makes a show of letting her haul him to his feet before allowing her to lead him inside.
"I'm following you babe," he whispers, but he doesn't think she hears him.
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