~Author's Note~

Hey guys! Long time, no see. I didn't think anything else would hit me, idea-wise, for Young Justice but yet here I am with a little spitfire one-shot. So, this is cannon-complaint, though I don't agree with cannon and ignore the ending of season two completely, this story follows the aftermath of that ending and grieving and such. But, I think the ending makes up for it. It also holds what I think really happened to Wally since we got no season three. Anyway, I hope you guys all enjoy and feedback means everything! :)

Rated Teen for barely there language, angst and suggestive scenes.

Notes: Takes place directly after 2x20; for the sake of this story, because I messed up, I wrote stuff about Artemis and Wally and schoolwork, so we're just gonna say the two were taking courses for college during the summer. Also for the sake of this story I'm saying Artemis knows all of the Flashes' (Barry, Bart, Jay, etc.) civilian IDs, but she still does not know Nightwing's.

don't you forget about me
i'll be alone, dancing you know it baby
going to take you apart
i'll put us back together at heart, baby . . .

don't you forget about me

x

x

She's the one to tell his family.

Barry had offered doing it for her, with a gentle hand on her shoulder and a kind smile, but Artemis had denied. As she's leaving, Bart zipped in front of her and asked if she was sure about doing this, and she had sent a reassuring nod his way, before ducking around him and exiting the Watchtower through the zeta beam.

She's holding herself together as best as she can as she makes the short trek from Palo Alto to Central City, trying her best to keep her composure as night falls around her. Stars twinkle in the sky above, and a few clouds hover over his parent's house when she gets there.

A breeze ruffles her blonde hair as she stands at the door for a long moment, before reaching forwards and knocking.

She keeps the tears at bay for a while, but then Wally's parents open the door and just one look their way causes the dam to break. The tears stream down her cheeks freely, and soon after Rudy and Mary are pulling her into a bone-crushing hug, understanding scribbled across their heartbroken faces.

The three of them stay locked in that hug for a long while, mourning the loss of one of their own.

Later on, the Wests offer her their guestroom for her to stay the night but she profusely declines, thanking them for their comfort and hospitality before leaving just as the clock strikes midnight.

She's back home in Palo Alto by twelve-twenty-two.

She unlocks the door and enters, slamming it shut behind her and not caring who she disrupts in the complex with the loud sound. Brucely comes barreling down the hallway, tail wagging rapidly and collar clattering. Artemis ignores him as she turns on the television and takes a seat on the couch in the living room, running a hand through her frizzy hair.

The dog seems appalled at her lack of attention and hops onto the couch next to her, laying down and resting his big, blocky head in her lap.

She sighs heavily, before looking down and scowling at the cream-colored Pitbull. Then she scratches behind his ears, the television a low hiss in the otherwise silent apartment. He lets out a low growl of approval that sounds nearly identical to a cat's purr as Artemis rubs the fur underneath his collar, removing the annoying thing and tossing it onto the coffee table in front of her.

Brucely's tail smacks against the fabric of the couch in happiness, before licking the inside of her other hand that's latent on her knee and crying softly. "What's the matter you big Blockhead?" She whispers, poking at his paw.

The nickname came from the blocky shape of his head, and Wally had always insisted she was just making it up but she kept the nickname just to annoy him . . . and also because it fit Brucely. The dog whines louder this time, and her heart breaks as she understands what Brucely is wondering.

"You want to know where Wally is, don't you boy?" Brucely barks in reply, tail wagging wildly. Artemis rubs his head, shaking her head and willing herself not to cry all over again. "I'm sorry, Brucely, but he's gone."

The dog grunts, and lifts a paw up to bat at her arm.

She simply shakes her head again, feeling her eyes go glossy with unshed tears. "It's just us now, you big idiot. He's not coming back." Brucely whimpers, readjusting himself so that nearly his entire body is in Artemis' lap.

She lets out a watery laugh that echoes against the hum of the television. Wally and her got Brucely together, but from the first minute the dog (merely a small puppy at the time) had laid eyes on Wally, they were inseparable. They just had one of those instant bonds, and though Brucely loved Artemis all the same, Wally was his favorite. Artemis knew this, from multiple occasions of finding the two snuggled up in the bed, the damn dog taking her spot next to Wally.

She also knew from the way the dog acted around her boyfriend; always following him around, always next to him, always listening to him, helping him out and . . . a—and the repercussions of Wally's death crash into Artemis mid-memory, and she can't help the tear that slips out in return.

She glances down at Brucely, and there's wet smudges underneath his eyes now, soaking his fur.

Dogs feel too, Artemis realizes with a heavy heart as Brucely closes his eyes and lets out a final dejected whine.

"We'll be alright, Blockhead, we'll just stick together through this, okay?" She leans down and hugs him, wrapping her arms around his furry body tightly, "We'll make it through this."

The television drones on in the background as Artemis and Brucely fall asleep like that, their snores tuning out the news report about remembering a fallen hero.

Artemis spends the next week alone.

She busies herself with cleaning the apartment to the best of her ability; mopping the floors, vacuuming the carpets, cleaning the silverware to a beautiful polish, changing the bedsheets, folding all of her clothes then Wally's, rearranging furniture and washing Brucely once, twice, three times before she feels like there's nothing left for her to fix.

She doesn't bother cleaning out any of Wally's things, she doesn't want to, and she's knows everyone on the team would suggest otherwise.

When she gets sick of one of the pictures by her beside, Brucely watches her lazily as she flips it over so she can't see Wally and her smiling faces as they dine with wine and shrimp in New York City (delayed twentieth birthday present from Wally) around three in the morning.

Another day she gets sick of all the pictures in the living room so she flips them all over.

That Wednesday she visits her mom.

They talk about nonsense and catch up on favorite television shows and favorite foods. They're sitting in the living room, Paula listening to her daughter talk about how her classes are going at college. The older woman has a smile on her face while she listens to Artemis talk about snotty classmates and bothersome science professors.

"I hate my math professor just about as much as I hate Professor Horton. They're both deadline addicts, and if you don't turn in what's due on the due dates they don't hesitate to give you a zero. There's also this one girl who's jealous of me because I'm dating Wally and she's always trying to flirt with him but Wally just ignores her and comes over to me and it's so fulfilling to see the horrified look that crosses her face . . . "

The conversation slows when Artemis realizes she had mentioned Wally.

Her sentence trails off mutely, and she directs her attention down to her shoes. Her mother notices her daughter's change in attitude and rolls her wheelchair over next to her. She places a hand on Artemis' shoulder, smiling softly. "I'm sorry, honey. I heard about it on the news."

Artemis sniffles, reaching a hand up and wiping roughly at her eyes because she's sick of crying.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner," Artemis mumbles quietly, sniffling again.

Paula shakes her head, moving her hand down to lift Artemis' head up by the chin. "He died a hero, honey." Her mother cups her cheek, stroking her skin with her thumb. She had lost her daughter once, and she didn't want to lose her again. Not to something like this either. "You also need to remember that life gets better."

"Mom," Artemis murmurs, "how is this going to get better? I lost Wally, Mom. I lost him."

"Oh, honey," Paula soothes, leaning forward and engulfing her daughter into a snug hug. Artemis' tears soak her shoulder, but Paula doesn't mind. She'll hold her daughter until she's okay again. Though that might be a long time, Paula would be around as long as Artemis needed her to.

It's almost ten minutes later before Artemis is calmed down enough to speak and her words break her mother's old heart. "I don't know if I'll be able to get past this, Mom." The woman in question shakes her head and pulls back, brushing some of Artemis' curled hair out of her face.

"You will get past this, honey. I'm sure of it. You're my brave Artemis, and my brave Artemis always wins. No matter what."

Friday starts out like any other day; Artemis awoken from nightmares by five, eating breakfast by eight and then school. The work is hard to keep up with, but her professors don't know about Wally and they were smart people—she didn't want to risk them making the connection with a known-hero dying right around the same time as her boyfriend did. She's taken five zeros in the past week alone because of the matter and her English teacher has given her a lot of odd looks because of it.

It's late afternoon and Artemis is busy trying understand the Laws of Physics (something Wally could've explained to her in a flash) when someone knocks at the door.

Artemis walks over and opens it, seeing Barry standing there with a crooked smile on his face.

"Hey Barry," Artemis greets, sticking a leg out to keep Brucely from running out the door to say hi to the older man, "what brings you here?"

Barry shrugs, but Artemis isn't blind to the nervous tick of his fingers (as Wally used to do the same thing). "Sorry for stopping by without telling you . . . I was just uh . . . in the neighborhood and was just . . . wondering um . . . "

Artemis smiles and opens the door wide, "Come in."

Barry grins and nods promptly, "Thanks."

It was always funny to Artemis, the similarities between Wally and Barry. They were so close they usually mimicked each other's nervous habits, or any kind of habit. Barry enters and heads towards the couch as Artemis shuts and locks the door, while Brucely nearly runs her down trying to get to Barry.

The speedster barely has his butt on the couch cushion for more than two seconds before Brucely is in his lap and sobering all over his dark red tee-shirt. Black sweatpants and a silver wedding ring on his left hand finishes off his look. Artemis takes a seat in the loveseat across from the couch, snapping her fingers at Brucely.

"Hey Blockhead! Leave him alone." Another snap and Brucely lets out a low grumble, hobbling over to Artemis and taking a seat next to her feet. Barry chuckles, running a hand through his short hair.

"I don't mind," he trails off, and Artemis knows he wasn't just in the neighborhood.

She crosses her legs, Brucely's tail thumping against the bottom of her chair like an aggravating drumbeat. Barry looks down at his hands, and his right leg is bobbing up and down. Artemis wonders how he deals with it, with Wally being gone.

He had been forced to watch his nephew vaporize right before his eyes. How scared Wally must've been, how painful it must've been; the thoughts plague her at night when she can't sleep. She still doesn't have an answer.

"I don't think . . . um . . . I ever said I'm sorry. I'm sorry for losing him, for not being fast enough to catch him before he left." He looks up at her, biting his bottom lip. Artemis smiles, trying to ease the older man before her.

"It's no one's fault, Barry. It was just Kid Mouth trying to be the hero. Always trying to help out and putting himself before everyone else . . . always trying to be something more." Barry laughs, but it's boggy and uneven.

"He was the best man I ever knew, you know. Witty, cocky, brave-hearted. The best sidekick a hero could have."

Artemis feels her heart clench, feels the blood racing through her veins. Feels the emotion clogging in her throat. She forces words past anyway. "I loved him. A lot."

Barry gazes at her for a long moment.

He wasn't blind to the turned-over photographs littering the tables, or nose-blind to the overwhelming smells of bleach and other various cleaners. Iris was a worried cleaner too. Whenever he went out on an extremely dangerous Justice League mission and came back, the house would be cleaned spotless. But this, what Artemis was doing, was like she was just stuck in the same place and required to do the same actions.

Like she knew Wally was gone but was still waiting for him to return home.

"I loved him too." Barry says after a while, and he's distraught because he doesn't know if he should tell her the real reason why he stopped by or not. He leaning towards the latter. The feeling was starting to overwhelm him, like being in the radius of Artemis had sparked it to increase.

He hadn't told anyone, not even Iris, of what he was feeling—what he thinking. He was coming here to tell Artemis, but he didn't want to say something and then be wrong.

But the feeling, it was burning. Yearning for something.

"He loved you a lot too. The last thing he wanted me to tell you was that he loved you, Artemis. He could've said anything in the world and he wanted me to tell you that."

A sad smile graces Artemis' face as she nods and Barry stands, walking towards the front door. Artemis follows him curiously, but he just pulls her into a fatherly hug. His body is warm, just like Wally's, Artemis thinks forlornly before pulling back. He reaches a hand out and smooths down her hair, beaming proudly.

"You'll always be a daughter to me, Artemis, and if you ever need anything, don't hesitate to call. I can be here in a flash. The same goes for Ollie, or Bats. All three of us are here for you." She nods, and hugs him one last time.

"Thank you Barry."

"Of course. I'll see you around kiddo." He unintentionally reverts back to what he used to always call Wally when he was younger, but doesn't notice and Artemis doesn't mind.

Then he zips away, leaving Artemis and Brucely alone once again.

What Barry doesn't tell Artemis is that the speed force has been trying to tell him something since Wally died. That the speed force knew something they didn't.

And Barry thought maybe it was trying to tell him that Wally was still alive.

On Sunday morning, Artemis is fuming.

She can't find her favorite pair of comfy underwear anywhere in her drawers, or anywhere in the house for that matter. With curse number ten waiting on the tip of her tongue, she decides to check Wally's top drawer in their bedroom to see if she had put it in there accidently (or if he had just decided to hide them one day long ago and forgot about it).

Ripping open the drawer, she furiously digs through stacks of multicolored boxers and white socks, but to no avail. There's still no sign of her underwear.

Anywhere.

She's seriously starting to think Brucely ate them, as she lets curse number ten, eleven and twelve slip from her mouth. Thirteen is following as she starts to propel back piles of boxers she moved out of the way and shove the drawer shut. "Son of a bit—"

She stops suddenly, however, when her knuckles knock against something hidden way underneath one pair of bright blue boxers. Artemis grabs whatever it is and pulls it out. It's a small black box, covered by fuzzy velvet. Her heart beats faster at the sight of it, because it looks awfully like a ring box and she really doesn't want to cry anymore.

With a slightly shaking hand she lightly pulls the lid of the box up, and gasps when resting inside is indeed a ring. It's refined to perfection, a brilliant bright gold color that reflects her face in it like a mirror.

Artemis feels like the air she's gathering isn't a enough as it seemingly gets stuck in her throat, and somewhere within she hears something (probably her heart) crack into a billion tiny pieces because she can't take much more anguish in such little time.

She pulls the ring out of the box and flips it around, freezing when she sees there's something engraved on the inside of the ring.

Don't you forget about me.

The words cause her knees to give out as she falls to the floor, holding a trembling hand to her mouth. It was a promise ring. The only reason Artemis knew that was because he had told her, a while ago.

One night, Wally was bored so he hooked up a radio (a 1950's one he found in Grandfather Jay's garage at that) to listen to. Artemis had amusedly watched him fiddle with it for about an hour before he got the old thing to work and the first song that had played was Don't You (Forget About Me) by Simple Minds.

He had sped over and pulled her into his arms, making her dance with him.

He spun her around and around, and then they had slow-danced for a while. While she was nestled into his sturdy chest, he had asked her if she would promise him forever. "Why would I need to do that?" She had questioned with a chuckle, moving a hand up to rest on his chest.

He had kissed her hairline, smiling. "Because I want you to be mine, forever."

Artemis had titled her head up and pressed a tender kiss to his jawline then, grey eyes glittering with affection. "Alright Wally," she had quipped, smile plastered on her lips, "I promise. Don't be forgetting about me in ten years now, either." Wally had laughed, the motion rocking his chest gently.

"I could never forget about you, beautiful." Then he had slanted his head downwards and their lips had met in a passionate kiss as the chorus flourished in the background.

Artemis can't help it.

As the memory resounds in her mind, the tears come, and then the sobs. She missed him so damn much and she just wanted him back.

She just wanted Kid Stupid back.

The Fourth of July rolls around faster than Artemis had wanted it to.

She hears the first firework go off as she's eating a dinner of microwaved pizza around nine o'clock.

Brucely jumps at the sound and yipes like he's been shot, stumbling off the couch and sitting next to Artemis' chair at the kitchen table. She rolls her eyes, taking another bite of pizza before reaching down and rubbing his ears. "You're okay, you big Blockhead. It's just fireworks." Brucely whines loudly, knocking her kneecap with his nose.

Artemis doesn't answer him, instead finishing her pizza.

By the fourth firework she's putting her plate in the sink and opening the shade to look out the kitchen window. The fireworks are exploding in the sky about two miles away from her house, at the nearby park if she had to guess, and the colors are igniting the nighttime atmosphere with beautiful colors.

Blue, red and white intertwine together to create a silhouette of the American flag, then shapes of stars and outlines of soldiers. Simmering fireworks follow, then some simple ones and after a while finally the ending. A bunch are thrown into the sky all at once, and it seems like nearly every color under the rainbow appears before Artemis.

She smiles and for a moment, all is peaceful.

For a moment.

A knock at the door startles her out of her amity. With a heavy sigh, Artemis closes the shade and walks over, opening up the door halfway and holding Brucely back with a barren foot. When she glances out the door, she sees no other than Nightwing standing there.

She opens the door up the rest of the way and focuses on holding Brucely back as Nightwing enters her apartment silently, and it isn't until Artemis locks the door again does he say something. "I didn't know the fireworks were so pretty here." He's sitting at the kitchen table petting Brucely, and she sits in the chair next to him with a shrug.

"Brucely's afraid of them."

Nightwing's lips twitch up in a small smile, and he doesn't say anything else. Artemis gazes at him for a moment, wondering why now of all times he's finally shown up there. He's wearing a black tee-shirt with some ripped jeans and a silver chained necklace is hanging low from his neck. His dark hair is messy on top of his head, while black sunglasses rest over his eyes.

Artemis knows he, at least, looks better out together than she does; as she's only wearing a thin grey tank top and pajama shorts. Artemis decides to just say it because there's no point in sitting in silence. "Why now?"

Nightwing shakes his head, not sure of the answer himself. "I-I don't know. I was going to come and visit a week ago and then I chickened out. Same goes for the weekend and yesterday." He exhales, reaching a hand up and rubbing at his eyes underneath the glasses. "It just doesn't feel real. And if I came here, that made it real."

Artemis almost wants to scoff. Of course it's real.

She's living the aftermath of it. But she stays emotionless, keeping her face bland because outbursts won't help her. "You can't avoid this. Or push it away like it didn't happen. It's selfish to even try."

She was mad at him. No, she was pissed, actually. Nightwing hadn't said two words to since Wally died, and now he's in her house saying he didn't want to believe it? She's known she's been a mess since his death, and seeing her mom and talking to Barry helped, but it would've been nice if Nightwing would've been there for her too.

Besides Wally, Nightwing was also one of her closest friends. M'gann, too. But, at least M'gann called her and checked in on her, and suggested girl's nights. Nightwing had dropped off the Earth.

Brucely hears the aggressive tone in Artemis' voice and whimpers quietly, before laying down underneath Nightwing's chair.

She feels his gaze burning a hole in the side of her head and turns to glare at him. "What?" She snaps, seeing his hands flinch on the table at her tone. He reaches over and grabs her hand.

"I'm sorry, Artemis."

She tugs her hand back, and she can feel it, it's like a second-sense now—the vast emotions, the heavy heart, the pure anguish of this whole freaking thing. It makes her feel like she's weak, you're weak baby girl, and it is driving her insane that she's feeling like this. All because of stupid, stupid, Kid Stupid. She knows Nightwing senses it too.

She wonders if the same thing happens to him when he's alone.

"Artemis," he whispers slowly; hesitant, regretful, "I'm so sorry. I'm sorry for not being here. I should've been helping you through this. But all I can think about is how this shouldn't have happened. I never thought Wally would die but it happened and I just can't wrap my head around it. I thought I was away from all the death and darkness that's followed me around my whole freaking life, but I guess not. But I always thought Wally . . . Wally would be able to outrun it."

Artemis stays silent. But she can feel herself breaking inside. Her façade is cracking and her walls are falling away. The sorrow, the this didn't happen, is choking her, wrapping it's cold hands around her throat and squeezing so hard that it hurts, it hurts like hell and—

"Hey."

His voice is a tone of soft she's never heard from him before, and it catches her so off guard she actually looks over at him. His hand is resting on her shoulder uncertainly, light enough so that she can push it away if she wants to. "Are you okay?" He knows it's a bum question to ask, but it's all that comes to mind between his own grieving.

Artemis nearly responds the same way she's had to for the past two weeks, whenever someone's asked her that. The same retort of, yeah I'm totally fine, when really she isn't. She's far from fine.

"Artemis?" His hand is still on her shoulder. His body is turned completely towards her, like as if it's shielding her from something she can't see. He's there. Artemis tilts her head down, looking at her hands.

"No," she mumbles after a minute, "I'm not okay. I'm far from okay."

His hand moves from her shoulder down to her hands, and he holds onto them tight.

"I'm not okay either." He replies, letting out a watery chuckle.

It causes Artemis to smile and Nightwing smiles too, and then stands up, bringing her with him. "Come here," he says, and she listens. He wraps his arms around her torso as hers link around his neck like he's her lifeline. They hug for as long as they need to feel okay again. "I'm here, 'Mis. I'm here."

And that whisper is enough to help Artemis, to help the both of them, start to heal.

It's storming the eve of Artemis' twenty-first birthday, and the past year has gone by faster than any years before. She's sleeping soundly in her bed, Brucely curled up at her side, when a loud roar of thunder startles her awake, followed by a splintering crash of lightning.

She sits up in bed with jolt, and then hears something, like one of the cabinets, clatter shut. Her first thought is intruder as she shambles out of bed and hurries to her closet, grabbing an arrow from the shelf above her clothes.

Checking to make sure the point is sharp by pricking one of her fingers, she nods to herself and makes her way to the kitchen. Thunder rumbles again, louder this time, then another flash of lightning outside. Artemis creeps down the hallway slowly, careful to make sure her footsteps are light, before making it to the living room.

It's pitch black and she can't see a thing, but she can hear someone moving in the kitchen area. She approaches the light switch, and she angles her arrow to be thrown. On the metal count of one, two, three she flicks the lights on and goes to throw her arrow but freezes in place instead.

Lightning flashes again, illuminating the window shades with obscure shadows, as Artemis' arrow falls to the titled floor.

The man in front of her hears the sound and turns around, leaving the candy bar he was grabbing on the counter next to the sink. Artemis' heart explodes at the sight of him. "Hey beautiful," he mumbles, wincing, "miss me?"

She's never been happier to see him, or hear his voice. She takes a step closer, tentative though, uncertain if he's real or if she's still dreaming. "Is that really you?" Artemis murmurs, tears clouding her eyes.

Wally West smiles his lopsided smile, nods, chuckles with his classic chuckle.

"It's me, babe."

Artemis doesn't need any other proof. She launches herself into his open arms, hugging him so tight she could have super strength. He hugs back, burying his face into the crook of her neck. "I've missed you, Artemis," Wally says after a moment, pulling her closer, "I've missed you so damn much."

Artemis laughs, pulling back so she can kiss him—and it's just like any other kiss they've shared, full of love and ecstasy and so purely them. She pulls back for air, and his smile is giddy as he stares at her, admiring the beauty of her that he's missed for so long. "I love you." She says, and his beam widens.

"I love you too, babe." Then she cups his face, running a hand down his jawline, a finger down his cheek.

"How are you here?" Wally shrugs, hiding the pain he feels inside from running so long. He's battered and bloody but he's not going to say anything that's going to make her let go of him. He would hold her forever if he could.

"I didn't die that day. I ceased, yeah, but I didn't die. I was going so fast I ended up in the Speed Force and it's just taken a while for me to get back out. I learned a lot, the Speed Force taught me a lot, and I think that's why I was there. To learn what it is to be a speedster, and to get back to those roots."

Artemis shakes her head and Wally reaches a hand up to wipe the tears falling down her cheeks. "I can't believe you left me to go talk to the Speed Force."

He grins, "Hey, the Speed Force is very knowledgeable you know. Taught me some new tricks to try out in the bedroom."

She raises an eyebrow, "Oh really?"

Wally leans in and presses a kiss to her lips in teasing, "Really."

Artemis rolls her eyes, "You haven't seen me in a year and the first thing to tell me about is that you want to sleep with me?"

Wally acts like he's thinking about it for a second, "Yup."

"God Wally, learn to keep it in your pants, will you?"

He looks shocked at her proposal, "I've kept it in my pants for a full year and then some. Cut me some slack, babe." She chuckles, shaking her head.

"Never, Kid Stupid." She pulls away from him, taking his hand in hers. "Come on. Let's go get you cleaned up." Wally obeys and follows her to the bathroom, but as she's pulling out the first aid kit he can't help himself.

"So," he says, dragging out the last letter, "after this you'll sleep with me?"

Artemis throws a box of Justice League styled Band-Aids at him in response.

(She tries to sleep with him, but Brucely interrupts at, several, very inconvenient times so in the end it doesn't happen—and Wally feels betrayed.)