Disclaimer- Do not own Young Justice or any of it's characters.

Well, this is it. The last chapter besides the epilogue! It's been a long, harrowing adventure writing this; super big thanks to both IronicVeghead and Lizzieonawhim for helping keep me motivated, hash out story details, and beta. If it weren't for those two this wouldn't exist at all.

And a big thanks to those that have read and reviewed this, every review is appreciated.

Thanks for sticking around!

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Chapter Length: 5,378 words

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Tommy delivered Wally to the cell with a harsh kick to his back, knocking the breath out of him as he stumbled through the open door. The harsh, echoing sound of the heavy metal slamming back into place rang in the redhead's ears as he managed to catch himself on his palms; a regrettable decision as they were now scraped raw, this newest pain adding to his growing list. Wally was disoriented from the rough handling, stunned for a moment as he held himself up on his hands and knees, nostrils flared wide to pull oxygen into his depleted lungs. And that was when the smell hit him.

A rancid odor that reminded him of an open septic tank in the hot summer sun, and triggered him to gag and hold his breath despite his shortness of it.

Before he could bring himself to try and investigate his dim new surroundings for the source, he became aware of a sudden commotion next to him. As the shock of suddenly being dumped into a foul smelling, nearly pitch black room wore off, he pulled himself painstakingly to his feet and turned his face to the sound.

His gaze was drawn to the door he had tripped through mere seconds before, and what he saw made his mouth gape open.

The source of all the noise was his werewolf girlfriend pounding wildly on the metal door. There could be no mistaking that it was Artemis Crock, even with his eyes still struggling to adjust to the darkness; the golden fur, despite it's notably ragged appearance, was like a dim light in the room.

Wally felt his heart swell with about fifty emotions; relief and happiness were at the forefront, in spite of the dangerous situation they were still in. Artemis was alive. She was alive and she was right there in front of him, and he wanted to throw his arms around her and hug her for as long as she would permit. He wanted to stuff his face in her neck and smell her familiar scent. He wanted to let her know how much he'd missed her and how much he loved her. But most of all he just wanted to take her home.

She didn't seem to have noticed him yet, though.

"Artemis?" he rasped to get her attention. His words gave her flailing limbs pause, those pointed ears of hers moving into an upright position instead of the flat-against-her-skull look they'd sported a moment ago. She turned to face him as if in slow motion, her eyes glowing silver, the pupils in them large and blown like they had been that night on the full moon so many weeks ago.

She stared at him blankly, then blinked. Her mouth opened, nostrils flaring.

"Wally?" she murmured in that husky voice he loved. Einstein, he had missed her so much it hurt. Eyes stinging a bit, he moved forward to touch her, to hug her, to convince himself on the physical level that she really was there, that this wasn't just some trick of the light or an elaborate hoax by the werewolves to break him.

However, as soon as the redhead took a step in her direction with a grin plastered across his face and tears of relief pricking his eyes, she stopped him.

"Wally, don't!" Artemis warned him, backing herself along the far wall.

His smile fell.

"What?" he asked, his voice cracking on the word. He felt like he'd just been kicked in the gut again. "Artemis, I-I don't understand. I missed you, I've been looking all over the place for-"

"I don't doubt that, Wally, I missed you, too. So much. I just… don't…" She trailed off in a painful sounding whisper. She quelled her heavy pants to press her lips together very tightly, and the faint glow cast off by her eyes disappeared beneath closed lids.

"Artemis…" he murmured, but she didn't react, just kept the entire length of her body plastered to the bricks on the farthest side of the room from him. He felt a twinge of hurt in his heart, physically pained by the distance she seemed intent on keeping, not understanding her choice. But then, as his vision at long last adjusted to the dim cell, he took a moment to assess her condition more thoroughly.

"God," he breathed.

Artemis was emaciated. Everything about her was smaller than it should have been, and her ratty fur did little to hide it. The muscles in her arms and legs were a mere shadow of the powerful things he remembered launching her across roof tops, and zig zag through trees at impossible speeds. He could just make out the faint outlines of her ribs, and guessed he could have easily wrapped his arms fully around her middle and held his own hand; a feat that should not have been possible with a healthy, eight foot werewolf.

Wally clenched his fists, not caring that his blunt nails were digging into the places he had scraped open during his fall. Something akin to roiling magma boiled over in his gut, and in that instant his hatred for Lawrence Crock shot through the roof; he was more than a sad bastard who needed control to feel like a real man.

He was twisted, and Wally wanted to strangle him for what he'd done to the woman trying so hard to sink into the wall across from him.

And yet her clear starvation was only half of the horror; the scientist forcefully tore his eyes away from her underweight body to scope out the quarters she had no doubt been forced to live in. She had, in essence, been living out her days in the filthiest conditions he had ever seen. A small, cold room with grime covered bricks and no source of light. There was no bedding for her to sleep on, no sink, no toilet; which he realized, with a jolt of fresh ire, was the source of the smell he'd caught when he had first stumbled in.

Artemis had been afforded none of the pleasantries of basic human decency, just four square walls and a rusted pipe spewing a steady supply of dirty water.

How nice of them.

In that moment, Wally West felt like he was the one with a wolf living inside of him, attempting to claw out of his chest in a vicious rage he'd never experienced before.

"Artemis!" the scientist said, much louder than before, because the words rose out of him on a wave of anger. The harsh bark of his voice caught Artemis's attention; two silver pinpricks found him, searching his eyes out easily with superior vision. "Have you been living like this the whole time? Did Lawrence fucking throw you in here like some… some animal?" He was nearly yelling.

Worse than an animal! They'd had her living in her own filth.

Artemis surprised him by letting out a hoarse laugh that held no humor in it.

"Maybe that isn't so far off from what I am," she rasped solemnly, before her soft red tongue appeared and ran a track from one end of her lips to the other. "How disturbed would you be if I told you that you look really good right now?"

Something about that fearful inquiry made him deflate a bit. He had already been able to tell she was in bad condition physically, but there was nothing more telling than the look of desperation in her eyes as she continued to stare at him across the room. The abuse she had suffered went far deeper than her superficial afflictions.

She needed him, right now, and yelling at her about her piece of shit father was not what she needed.

"Christ, Artemis," Wally breathed out, rubbing one of his hands across his face in a bout of frustration. He was itching to curl his fingers around the alpha's neck, but he knew now that raging at her wasn't going to help their situation. So he clenched and unclenched his fists several times by his sides, trying to calm himself with a series of deep breaths that just weren't helping. He combed his fingers rapidly through his sweaty hair and let out a laugh similar to her own, but it sounded more hysterical than hers had. "Just… god. This is beyond fucked up, babe. I never thought…" He shook his head, still trying to get a hold of himself. "I've never so seriously considered murdering someone."

He heard his love let out a soft sound, maybe amusement or just an agreement. It was too hushed to tell, but it helped quell his anger more, for the moment anyway. Wally sighed and rubbed at the back of his neck, putting his fury on the backburner.

"And to answer your question… I would tell you I always look good," he murmured more calmly, and took a cautious step toward her. He was aware of her tense body language, and thought it best not to come rushing at her too fast. Still, she flinched noticeably at the muffled tap of his shoe against the floor, like it had physically hurt her.

"Wally, please," she whispered. "I don't know if I can control myself…you should keep your distance."

"You haven't said that to me since that first night I found you," Wally mused, his pace slow as he continued to cross the gap between them. It seemed like years ago that she'd been bleeding on his couch, begrudgingly letting him take care of her while fighting him every step of the way. And he could remember, clearly, her tired, rasping voice warning him away much like she was now.

Well, Wally hadn't heeded her warning the first time, and he wasn't about to now.

Artemis watched him warily; a way she hadn't looked at him in a long time, and he smiled sadly as he got close enough to reach out with one hand and cup her snout. Her eyes closed at the contact, the first contact she'd probably had in weeks, and Wally's throat felt tight.

"Babe," he murmured. "It's okay.You're okay," he soothed, running his hand from the base of her muzzle all the way to her nose, repeating the motion until she opened her eyes to look down at him. He caught the movement of her dark nose twitching in his direction, before she lowered her face close, investigating his skin until he felt the leathery brush of it on his cheek.

Wally could feel the little bursts of air as she sniffed him. When Artemis pulled away, her pupils had swallowed up her irises, and it was only then that he remember the dried blood caking his upper lip and chin. He had forgotten it was there until she was looking at him like that; feral and with a hint of drool dangling from her mouth from the loud smell he was sure had driven her against the wall.

"Ah, forgot," Wally said, not in the least bit phased by her actions. He grabbed the hem of his shirt and brought it up to scrub vigorously at the places his blood had dried, hissing a little when he prodded his tender nose a bit too hard. He missed the tilt of the blonde's head in response, the way his discomfort had her pupils shrinking a margin.

"Are you okay?" she asked him, concerned. Wally looked up at her, a large grin sneaking its way onto his lips.

"Would a vicious werewolf who wanted to eat me take the time to ask if I was okay?" Wally asked rhetorically, grabbing both sides of her face in his hands and pulling her close to his level; he pressed his cheek against hers, nuzzling her fur until he felt her physically relax a bit under his attentions. "Nah, I know you better than that, babe, you're a fighter," he whispered, pulling back to lock his eyes with her seriously. "You're fighting it right now and you're winning. I'm not the least bit scared, I trust you."

She blinked and sighed against his shoulder.

"Even after I just looked at you like that? Like... food?" she shuddered violently, shutting her eyes tight for a moment before gazing at him with normal pupils. More human than feral. "Even after getting you thrown in here with your crazy girlfriend? You're very forgiving." She let out a laugh that lacked any real humor in it.

"You're not crazy," Wally berated firmly, his hands moving away from her face to prod gently at her abdomen; he could feel her ribs easily, just as he had expected. Anger twisted like a knife in his gut once more. "You're hungry and traumatized, and Lawrence is going to fucking pay for this."

The scientist had never been prone to violent tendencies, but he sure as hell wasn't going to stand for his friends or family being hurt. One of the most important, amazing people in his life had been treated worse than dirt, and now he couldn't help the vile thought of shoving powdered wolfsbane so far down the alpha's throat that he would asphyxiate on it before it could burn him. But that would be too good for him, he deserved to feel the pain first...

"Wally, don't-" Artemis started with heat in her voice, but Wally plowed on, not intent on hearing her warn him not to mess with Lawrence. She didn't need to worry about him, right now he was worried about her.

"But first things first, I am going to get you the biggest, bloodiest steak from The Devil's Food when we get out of here."

Artemis let out a low groan at the very idea, and became sufficiently distracted from his jab about Lawrence. He felt something warm seep into his shirt close to the collar, but didn't berate her for the excessive drool she was getting on him; it was his fault for the imagery, after all.

"Sorry," Wally murmured, smiling wanly as he used the sleeve of his shirt to wipe her mouth off, and he knew if she weren't so out of it she would have been glaring daggers at him for the gesture. He shrugged at her, sleeve damp. "I guess now wasn't the best time for me to mention that."

"No… but I'm going to hold you to it, Wallman. And I'll need way more than one," Artemis said, managing a small smile for him.

"I'll buy you a truck load," he promised. And really, he would, if that's what it took to make her better. He would buy her a hundred truck loads and spend the rest of his life working to pay it off if she would just be okay. He knew food was only half of the therapy she would probably need after this was over, but he would contribute whatever he could into her recovery.

Artemis hummed and Wally wrapped his arms around her neck, hugging her tight. The room smelled awful and they were trapped, and Artemis was still trembling with hunger in his arms, but they were together. And some how, that made Wally's heart feel whole again; he sighed into her fur, stuffing his face in deep, oblivious to the grit and dirt that caked every inch of it.

He'd found her at long last.

"I missed you so much," Wally confessed muffledly against her. "Einstein, I was going out of my mind…"

"I'm sorry," Artemis spoke up abruptly, not acknowledging his words. Wally stiffened in confusion, moving away from her to stare at her with brows furrowed.

"For… what?"

"Fenrir, where do I even start?" Artemis said, looking away from him with an angry expression twisting her lupine features. "For ever coming back to your house after you saved me? For thinking I could just use you for your lab at first? For falling in love with you and taking you out into those woods. I should have known better." She sounded livid with herself.

"Artemis…" Wally whispered in disbelief at the words. She gave him her attention again, something like defeat hiding behind the sharp glow of her eyes. He grabbed her face between his palms, drawing her close until her nose brushed his as she gazed at him sadly along the length of her muzzle. Wally shook his head; her words had stung him in a way he couldn't explain. "Don't say that, babe, don't say you regret that. I don't. And the last thing I want is an apology. Einstein, Artemis, I could never regret any of it; finding you in that alley, taking care of you… if I hadn't…" Wally trailed off, the thought too painful. He tilted her head forward and touched his forehead to hers. "Just… I would do it all again without any hesitation."

"Why?" Artemis breathed, her voice catching on the word. And he could tell by the tone that her question was completely sincere; she really couldn't understand the conviction of his words, and it made him ache inside. "Wally, you do realize you wouldn't be about to die with me if I had just stayed away from you?"

"I don't care," Wally stated flatly. He didn't care; if he was going to die here with her, then so be it. No force on earth could ever convince Wally that his connection with Artemis Crock was a mistake, something to be regretted. He would be just fine, dying here in this hellhole with her, certain that a few odd months with her was better than a thousand lifetimes in which he hadn't decided to follow that gunshot. "None of this is your fault. Your dad, what he is and what he's done, to you and to everyone else... that's not on you. You don't deserve to be alone forever because of him."

"I want to believe that, Wally," Artemis rasped, and he could feel her body sink on him, her heavy weight relying partially on his strength to stay upright. Her body trembled and shuddered with a heavy breath, and he thought he caught something like a dry sob. "But with the way I feel right now..."

She trailed off, and Wally felt her head press against his shoulder, another sound escaping her. He just held her there, laying his cheek against her fur, the heavy exhales from his nose parting the hairs. He closed his eyes.

Without warning, there was a loud screech of metal against stone; the sound was like a gun being fired, startling them both out of their trance.

Light poured in, spilling across their faces and blinding them with its brilliance.

"You're more pathetic than I thought, girl!" came the vicious voice of Lawrence Crock. He stood framed in a halo of light, his face livid, his body quaking with the threat of imminent attack.

"You!" Wally snarled when he got his bearings, but before he could act he was being pulled roughly aside by Artemis. He stumbled behind her back, shielded from the alpha's view by the width of it. He heard a deep, guttural sound rising up from Artemis's chest.

Lawrence gave a harsh, barking laugh. "You can't protect him forever, baby girl. You're a liability I can't afford anymore; I see that now. Your mother was right and I've been wasting my time. You're too weak to kill even at your most vulnerable. Worthless!"

Everything after that happened so quickly that Wally felt if he blinked he would miss it.

Lawrence burst out of his own skin, a massive and sleek pale yellow werewolf that lunged at Artemis at the exact moment she moved to attack. The two forms slammed together in a tangle of limbs, snarling, and snapping; tufts of fur came loose and and floated with a contradicting softness to the floor. For a moment Wally could only watch in horror as the fighting escalated.

Lawrence had the clear advantage, he was bigger and stronger because of his health. Artemis put up one hell of a fight, though, and fought with the strength a half-starved wolf shouldn't have possessed. She got in a deep slash on his bicep, and tore one of his ears off down to a bloody nub. Her feet lashed out, catching him hard in the stomach before he could do any real damage to her.

For a wild moment, it looked like she was winning.

"Enough!" Lawrence roared. He used his forearm to poleaxe Artemis across the stomach. A strange, awful sound somewhere between a retch and a yelp burst from her throat, and he took her stunned vulnerability to his advantage. The alpha picked her up as if she were a sack of flour and threw her against the nearest wall. She slammed into the bricks with such force that several came loose and followed her crumpled form to the floor, where they piled on top of her.

"Artemis!" Wally yelled, his voice strained. His heart was thumping in his chest, and Artemis wasn't moving, and Lawrence was advancing on her with his mouth open, his black lips pulled back from razor-sharp canines.

Wally didn't even think.

One moment he was standing there, stunned and afraid for his girlfriend, the next he was racing across the length of the room with his blood pounding through his ears. His sights were set on Lawrence, on getting him away from the alarmingly prone form of Artemis, and with little thought about the consequences Wally launched himself onto the werewolf's broad back.

Lawrence howled in rage at the unexpected attack, stumbling forward with the force of the redhead's weight. Wally struggled to get a grip, fingers scrabbling momentarily before they latched onto great tufts of the washed blond fur. Yelling with his efforts, the scientist managed to heave himself further up and tried to hook one of his forearms across the massive, straining neck, but he never got the chance to. A great, padded hand closed around the entire length of Wally's bicep, the tips of the sharp claws nicking into skin as he was ripped off the wolf's back. He was swung around violently, then lost all the breath in his lungs when he was pinned against the wall next to Artemis.

Wally gasped for air, struggling to inhale when the furry hand wrapped around his throat and held him still. The piercing, half-mad golden eyes of his adversary filled his vision.

"Your days are over, boy!" Lawrence snarled, spittle flecking the redhead's face. Wally glared defiantly at him, wishing he could've at least gotten in one good hit on the bastard before he'd been subdued; that was his only regret as he stared into the eyes of the beast. "You should have crawled back home that night in the slums; you might have lived longer. Now you know too much, and you get to die with her!"

Lawrence drew his head back, his mouth yawning wide open like a snake ready to strike at it's prey. Wally closed his eyes in preparation for the blow, the tear of fangs into his face.

Artemis was there before Lawrence's strike made it halfway to Wally.

She was there suddenly, leaping onto her dad's back and sinking her teeth into his thick neck. Her claws dug into his shoulder blades, grounding herself while Lawrence struggled in vain, and Wally could see her death grip tightened with each of his attempts to get at her. Blood welled up around the places her teeth punctured, oozing into his fur as he struggled and bucked, trying to get his hands around to grab her.

But it was fruitless.

Lawrence's screams of rage turned into bloody gurgles. The man staggered backwards, away from Wally, and used the last vestiges of his strength to ram Artemis against the wall twice in an attempt to save himself. Wally watched the gruesome spectacle hopelessly with wide eyes rubbing at his sore throat and knowing things had spiraled beyond his help.

Artemis never let go, even as her dad finally sank down to his knees with blood dribbling out of his mouth in a thin, glinting strand. With a heavy thud Lawrence fell prone, his chin pressing against the floor as he opened his mouth in one last, wet gasp for air.

Then everything went silent.

"Artemis…" Wally whispered, holding his throbbing shoulder. The blonde werewolf was still latched onto her father's neck, eyes shut tight against everything else. She didn't move a muscle, in fact the only indication she was alive at all was the fast rising and falling her chest.

"Artemis," he tried again as he made his way to her. He got on his knees beside her and placed a steady palm on her back. The touch made her jerk in surprise, her mouth finally releasing from the flesh of her dead father; Wally could see the deep scarlet punctures wounds.

Blood stained the fur around Artemis's lips, and she stared in shock at what she'd done, her silver eyes wide and uncomprehending.

"Wally… I killed him…" Artemis breathed out, her breaths picking up speed. She subconsciously lapped the blood from around her mouth with her tongue, before she realized just what she was doing. She coughed in disgust, trying to scour the red off with the back of her forearms vigorously.

"Artemis, look at me," Wally said softly, but firmly. She did, eyes still wide. "You saved us."The words sounded certain falling from his lips, but he was shaking just as badly as she was. "He would have killed us both if you hadn't…"

"I know…" she said somberly, looking down at the limp body. She lifted one hand up slowly to place it on her dad's shoulder, next to the deep gouges her claws had left behind.

Wally remained silent, giving her the time she needed but keeping his hand on her back for support. He couldn't imagine what conflicting emotions were running through her head; it was obvious she'd never had any sort of healthy relationship with the man, but he could imagine it would be hard to feel relish over taking the life of a family member. The thought of being forced to kill one of his parents, even if they suddenly attacked him with intent to kill… he shuddered and pressed his side against her, frowning deeply.

Wally hated the man for all that he'd done to her, but there was absolutely nothing satisfying about having to watch Artemis stare at his body in a trance of despair and rage. He wished things had happened differently.

For a long time Artemis was quiet beside him, darker tracks in the fur underneath her eyes giving away the fact that she had been crying in silence. Her lips pressed together, her fist clenching and unclenching in a large handful of Lawrence's dull yellow fur; the only indication her emotions were battling fiercely inside of her. After a time, she forced herself onto her feet with a grunt, wiping roughly at her eyes and looking toward the door, away from Wally and the corpse that lay at her feet.

"Let's get out of here."

"Are you going to be okay?" Wally asked tentatively, wishing he could do more to comfort her.

"I'll be fine. This whole fucking town is going to be just fine without him," she said stiffly, walking out of the prison door without another backward glance. Wally followed her, sending the corpse one last look.

Artemis moved disjointedly in front of him, her body language tense. They met no resistance on their way out of the old storage area; Cameron and the twins had clearly gone back to their own business after dropping Wally off. The two of them made it safely above ground, with Artemis in the lead. The redhead caught her up quickly in the vast stretch of cool night that greeted them outside the parking garage, grabbing her arm and whirling her around to face him.

Without explanation, he pulled her into a tight hug, pressing his cheek into matted fur that gave way softly under his freckled cheek. She didn't respond at first to the action, but he persisted until he felt her relent and wrap her arms around him, resting her head against his. She squeezed back so tight it hurt.

Wally didn't know of anything he could say to take away what had happened, but he did know the best thing he could do for her right then was show her that she was still loved and needed and trusted. A reassurance she needed desperately.

He felt tears fall on the back of his shirt.

Then there was a shift in his arms. Slow and gradual. Bone shifted and popped, but no utterance of pain left her, only a sound of relief as her height shrank in his arms, and the fur became smooth skin. Wally let the pads of his fingers spread across the bare skin of her back as the last vestiges of her werewolf form left her all at once in a great sigh that was directed into his neck, ruffling the curled hairs at his nape.

Artemis pulled away, her hands on his shoulders while he held her hips. She gazed at him for a long time, her eyes wet. Wally reached up and used his thumbs to remove the tear tracks from her cheeks, and she sniffed lightly, at last giving him the smallest of smiles; he could still see the sadness swimming in her gray irises, but there was a faint light in them, one that hadn't been there in the bleak darkness of the dungeon that contained Lawrence's body.

Artemis Crock would need him more than ever in the days to come, and Wally would be there for her every step of the way.

"Artemis?" Wally whispered, closing his eyes when she brought her hand up, laying her palm on his scalp. She pressed their foreheads together, the warmth of her hand seeping into his skin.

"Yeah?"

"I need to know. What will happen to the werewolves now?" he asked quietly, closing his eyes to enjoy the breeze that ghosted over their faces, ruffling hair and drying sweat and blood. The sound of car alarms and dogs and werewolves howling somewhere in the distance soothed him after that pressing silence.

"They'll scatter," she said wearily. "Some will probably stay. Maybe one of them will try and claim themselves alpha."

"Why not you?" Wally asked, pulling away from her forehead, pressing his lips to her nose. "That would be perfect, you could-"

Artemis stopped him, pressing her fingers over his mouth. "Wally, do you know what I really want to do?" she asked with a rough, tired voice, interrupting his thought about her taking the place over. He raised his eyebrows at her.

"What?" he asked. Absently, he reached out and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

"I want to go eat," she said, closing her eyes. "I want to eat until I get fucking sick. I want my dad's corpse to rot here under this hospital forever, because regardless of what I might feel it's all he deserves. I want to be human for a long, long time. I want to never, ever come back to the slums for the rest of my life." She swallowed, gave a shuddering breath as her eyes took in the surrounding buildings of the place that had been her home for years. Then she looked at him once more, expression subdued as she brushed her thumb along his lips with sad eyes. "And I want to kiss you. I want to kiss you until our lips bleed, and then I really, really want to eat some more."

Wally smiled at her, sharing the sadness behind her eyes, and nodded slowly at her. He took his hands off her waist and gripped one of hers, lacing their fingers tightly between them. He lifted her hand to his lips and pressed them there firmly in several meaningful kisses.

"You got it, beautiful. Whatever you need for the next week, whatever you need for the rest of your life; I promise I'm here for you."

o.o.o.o

The end for our precious babies. :)