A/N

Alright, I have a warning:

There's that cliché fire-scene in this chapter.

But, I swear, it's different because she admits to things!

She tells him she loves him and they live happily ever after! :D

Just kidding, there's way too much drama and too many secrets for it to end that quickly.

Anyway, thanks to Kf-AxxMexx, Rikuhime, GrayAreas, chaneldancegrl, shesxsuperxfreaky, Jack V, Reader, crazyveve, Black Licorice Addict, Rochellu, Anna Marie xoxo, InstruMental, and ygirl87 for reviewing!

Enjoy the chapter! Beware the slight fluff!

Disclaimer: I did not create fire, nor did I create Young Justice.

Chapter 7

Central City Sunny Apartment Complex, December 12th, 8:34 PM

"Oh, thank you!" The younger woman all but cried, taking the crying toddler into her arms and enveloping her in a hug, wiping the ash and tears from her face, "Thank you so much, Speedy!"

Kid Flash tried not to roll his eyes. After all, they were supposed to be nice to these people while they saved them. (The word 'they' referred to himself, Miss Martian, Aqualad, Robin, and most of the time, Superboy. Not the female archer, for she had an attitude that was starting to become known among the public).

"It's Kid Flash, ma'am," He said kindly instead.

She responded with another thank you and he gave her a small smile and a salute before racing back inside of the burning building, senses alert for the next cry of distress.

Aqualad stood outside, using his powers to control and tame the huge fire as best as he could.

Superboy was currently holding up a collapsing outside wall, ushering a crabby older man through a crack in the wall and into the safety that was outside.

Megan was floating over the burning wreckage, hands to her temples as she tried to sense if anyone else was inside and kept up the mental link between her and the rest of her team.

Robin had exited just behind Kid Flash, a girl about his age in his arms. The boy was obviously stronger than he looked and had been an excellent help, but he was slower than the speedster, of course.

And, right now, Wally had absolutely no idea where Artemis was.

She had glared at him full-on when Batman had called them once again to the mission room earlier in the night. Wally hadn't had the energy to return it, wasting all of it on thinking about 'what was right under his nose.' He honestly hadn't been paying much attention to what the Dark Knight was saying until he had said the words, "Fire in downtown Central City."

The redhead had become instantly suspicious that it was the work of this mysterious criminal that Artemis was supposed to help him protect the city from, and he had been eager to help his city and the people in it and find the crook.

And, feeling really guilty, he still hadn't stopped thinking about Artemis' words.

In fact, he was thinking of them now. Which was why he had almost gotten smashed under a huge piece of burning timber that had fallen from the ceiling of the room he was racing through.

Skidding to a stop, Kid Flash managed to turn the other way, barely avoiding it as he dove through a nearby doorway and shielded his head with his hands.

The wood collapsed with a loud thud! And Wally was up again, continuing in his search through the building.

He stopped in his tracks again when he heard another cry for help, but this time accompanied by a, "Shut up and hold still, kid. I am the help!"

The redhead smiled to himself as he released a breath he hadn't known he'd been holding. He hadn't seen Artemis since the beginning of the mission and hearing her voice gave him a feeling of relief.

Adjusting his goggles, the speedster climbed the stairs to the second floor where he suspected the cry and irritated gasp had come from.

He deemed his suspicions correct as he turned into the right corridor and heard a bout of coughing inside one of the doors.

He poked his head in and squinted, trying to see through the smoke and flames.

"Artemis? Are you in here?" He called.

Another bout of coughing.

"Yeah, over here. He's stuck," She said, her voice tight, and he felt very alarmed as he realized that she'd been the one who had coughed. He needed to get her and the person she was helping out of here quickly before they completely collapsed from lack of clean air.

He saw them through the smoke. There was a wall that had collapsed, and under it was a small body. Artemis was kneeling beside it, trying to force it up so the person could crawl out.

Assessing the room, he noticed that half of it was enveloped in flames while the other was dark. They were in the dark part, but they were too close to the light for his liking.

"Don't go toward the light!" He called, voicing his thoughts, half-teasing, half-serious.

"Shut up and get over here, W—Dude!" The blonde archer hissed.

Doing as she said, completely humorless now, he hurried over to where they were.

It was a little boy that was under the wall. His face was covered in ash and his tears carved their way through the middle of his cheeks, leaving a clear path. His hair was so dark from the cinders, Wally couldn't tell what color it was, and his features were contorted into a painful grimaced.

At his sudden arrival, the child looked up at him.

"Hey," He coughed, "You're Kid Flash!"

Feeling momentary elation, Wally thrust his fists into the sky and turned his face upward. "Yes, finally someone gets me name right!"

"Kid, a little help over here," Artemis hissed.

"Right. Sorry."

The redhead leaned down, bracing his shoulder against the bottom of the wall and gripping the top with his free hand. Artemis did the same.

"Okay. On three," Wally said. Artemis nodded, and together, they counted and lifted.

With a giant heave, the wall was off of the top of the boy.

Artemis looked down and gasped.

"His leg's broken!"

"Then grab him. I'll hold this," Wally gasped out, still holding up the wall.

Artemis looked unsure, but quickly relinquished her hold and leaned down, carefully scooping the boy up in her arms.

As soon as the two were safely away from it, Wally let it go and it slammed back onto the ground, this time no obstacle keeping it from it's destined resting place.

"You two alright?" Wally panted.

Artemis nodded and Kid Flash looked around for the nearest exit.

While he had been going up the stairs, the foundation below him had wobbled. He knew that if it could barely take his weight, there was no way it would take his, the added weight of the kid's, and Artemis'.

"We need to find a window," He told her.

She nodded. "There's probably one in the room next door."

Carrying the boy, she quickly exited the room, and he followed her.

Turning into the room next door, her eyes quickly scanned it before finding a window that was almost dangerously close to a wall of flames.

Without a word or even consulting the other teen that had come up behind her, she hurried to the window and kicked out the glass with her foot. She made sure there was none left before looking out, praying for a fire escape or something of the like.

Of course, there was nothing but a ten-foot drop. Cursing under her breath, she turned back to Kid Flash who was behind her, eyeing the flames that were drawing nearer to them.

"Just a drop. There's nothing out there," She told him.

Kid Flash uttered a curse of his own. "I'll contact Megan. Maybe she can fly over and get us."

"All of us?" Artemis questioned, "Megan's got less body strength than either of us. She can't carry us all. And the heat will impede her mind powers so she probably wont be able to lift us with her powers, either."

"Then she can just come get him. I'll carry us out. The stairs I came up on were rickety, but I bet you there's another set of them somewhere in the building," Kid Flash responded.

At Artemis' nod, the redhead quickly called out a mental plea.

Megan, we're stuck. We've got a little boy with a broken leg. Second floor, east side. Artemis is leaning out a broken window with him.

He heard Miss Martian's reply at once, her sweet voice concerned. Alright, I'm on my way!

About ten seconds later, the green, blue-caped girl was levitating outside of the window.

Artemis wordlessly handed the child to her, which she took in her arms tenderly.

"What about you two?" The Martian asked, having to yell over the noise of the fire.

"We'll get out somehow, don't worry about it," Kid Flash reassured her.

Suddenly, Artemis yelped as her arm began to burn. She hadn't noticed that the fire had gotten closer until it touched her arm.

Wally grabbed her other arm and yanked her away, causing her to stumble into him.

She fell onto his chest, her hand struggling to find a hold as she tried to right herself.

She hadn't realized what exactly she had fallen into until she found that she wall holding the collar of his costume with one hand, the other one wrapped around his broad shoulders, while he had a hold of her waist.

They both stared at each other, and it was impossibly to tell if the other was blushing because both of their faces were red and sweaty from the heat.

They broke apart, but Kid Flash grabbed a hold of Artemis' arm, dragging her out of the room.

"To the end of the hall!" He yelled hoarsely, "There's got to be at least a fire escape down there!"

She followed him wordlessly, letting herself be towed along. However, they only got ten feet further from where they had been before a wall beside them started to collapse.

Wrapping his arms around her body, Wally hauled them both into the nearest room before it came down on top of them.

She landed on top of him, and he resisted the urge to look at her face. He grabbed a hold of her hand and forced her to her feet before trying to get to the door again.

Suddenly, the ceiling started to creak dangerously. It was the blonde this time that yanked the duo out of the way before a timber from the ceiling fell, blocking the door and one of their only way out.

"Shit!" Artemis shrieked, turning around and staring wildly around the room.

There wasn't a window in here that wasn't barred by flames.

They were trapped.

Megan! They both yelled in their heads, but the Martian's response was inaudible because of static, almost as if she was going through a tunnel and they were both on the phone with her.

Wally groaned and sank to the floor, tearing at his fiery hair with his hands.

"So this is it?" Artemis yelled over the flames to him, but mostly to herself, "We're just going to die here?"

Wally looked up from his crouch, hands now draped over his bent legs. "Unless there's some way we can Dumbledore ourselves out of this place," He grumbled.

Artemis hissed under her breath, looked up toward the ceiling and massaged her temples.

Blocked door and windows, unstable roof and floor, second story room…

Thinking quickly, the blonde peered around in the dimly lit area, looking for a ventilation shaft or laundry shoot.

She found nothing, but realized that probably wouldn't do even if she had come across what she was looking for. Metal places were bad in a fire.

Finally, she let herself admit it: There was absolutely no way they could get out of here by themselves.

"Come on," Wally sighed, standing up, "Let's at least get farther away from the fire. I'm burning up."

Artemis nodded, crossing her arms. Kid Flash grabbed her wrist and walked her over to a spot that wasn't close to the fire, but was a good ways away from the wall, just in case it fell over.

"Get down on the floor," He commanded, "There's less smoke."

She nodded and sat down, bringing her knees up to her chest. Wally followed suit, sitting down beside her.

They listened to the fire as it got closer, and sweat dripped down their faces. Wally's once-yellow suit was now grayish-black with ash.

"Well," The redhead sighed, "Uh… anything you wanna say before…"

He trailed off, not being able to say the rest of the sentence himself. He'd always thought he'd go down in action, just not like this… He'd always hoped to be some kind of martyr, a sacrifice of sorts for the sake of mankind or his mentor or team. Heroes had to accept the fact that it was easier for them to die than the normal human being, and he'd come to terms with this soon after he'd acquired his powers. He just didn't think death would come so soon.

Artemis, on the other hand, had been prepared to die since she was barely a little girl. She was trained to kill, and had killed before, and knew that after a while, she'd be tracked down and executed, too. She hadn't expected to go like this, either. It was almost a gentle death compared to what she had expected.

She took a shaky breath, commanding the tainted air to fill her lungs. "Can I tell you something?" She asked. She may as well reveal what Wally had pestered her about since she'd come to his hometown without much of an explanation. She just couldn't tell him everything at once. It was too…. Much. His death should feel satisfying, like he'd gone down fighting strongly. Not questionable. Because he'd be the only one on the team to know, but the secret would die with both of them.

Wally nodded. "Of course." He rested his green eyes on her, and the light from the fire played shadows under his eyes and above his nose.

She took another breath, like the one she had before. "I-I'm not here for your city, or for you."

Wally, at first, raised an eyebrow, confused. But as he let her statement sink in, he realized just what she was talking about.

"I'm here for me. For my protection." Her voice wavered on her last sentence, and Wally looked over at her, studying her face. Tears were threatening to spill from her usually intense eyes.

Instead of feeling a weight lifted from his shoulders about finally knowing what it was about, the speedster felt an even heavier weight take its place as he watched the first tear leak from her eyes and down her cheek, carving a trail through the ash on her skin.

"From what?" The redhead asked gently, scooting a little bit closer and holding his arms out in an offering of companionship and safety.

She obliged and leaned in to him as he wrapped his arms around her upper-body.

"What's after you, beautiful?" He murmured into her ear.

She shook her head, "It doesn't matter now."

He sighed softly, and his breath tickled her ear, sending shivers down her spine. "Why me? Why not Superboy or Aqualad for protection?"

She shook her head again, "Honestly, it wasn't my choice," Her voice was rough, partially from crying, but mostly from the smoke, "But I wouldn't have it any other way."

Confusion, anxiety, and anger filled the usually cool-headed speedster's veins, and he felt himself grip the archer tighter as her head collapsed against his shoulder.

Due to his metabolism, enhanced-healing abilities, and superhuman cardio, his lungs could take more smoke than hers. She would probably fall unconscious sooner than he, if they didn't burn first.

The start of the flames was about eight feet from them and drawing closer.

"What about you?" She suddenly said, pulling him out of his thoughts.

"Hmm?" He hummed.

"Is there anything you wanna say before…"

"Oh," He responded quietly, taking a deep breath before letting out a tiny cough. "My dad's a jerk."

"Mine is, too."

"And…"

"And?"

He put his head on the top of hers from where her head was resting.

"I, uh… I always thought you were gorgeous," He revealed.

He felt the muscles in her face shift, but then she suddenly felt heavy. Very heavy, like dead weight.

"Artemis?" He asked, almost wheezed. The smoke was really getting to him now.

He leaned around her, turning her face to his. Her eyes were shut, and she was breathing quickly.

"Damn it," He whispered, letting his head fall back.

The heat of the flames was drawing closer, starting to burn at the soles of his boots. And they were nearly heat-resistant, due to the speed of his running.

Lifting his head back up, he stared at the fire again. 5 feet away.

Wally turned his head, looking over at the wall. He scooted them both back about a foot.

He took a shaky deep breath, and coughed, feeling the smoke burn the back of his throat.

Well, this is it, Wally, He thought. You did your best. But you could've done better.

He closed his eyes, willing for unconsciousness to come.

The ground rumbled softly beneath him as sounds became a little distant. He breathed in heavily, coughing again.

He started to float through blackness as he let himself go, willing death to come. He felt something touch him, and he assumed it was fire.

It was warm, but not dangerously so. Maybe this was what it felt like to be in the middle of a flame, in that blue part that he had found so compelling.

The breath was suddenly knocked out of him, and he felt absolutely nothing as his surroundings and senses completely faded away.

Xxxxxxxx

Mount Justice Medical Ward, December 12th, 10:03 PM

Kid Flash gulped in air as he sat up in bed. His head throbbed and black dots swam in his vision.

"Whoa, easy," A gentle voice soothed him, placing a cool palm on his forehead and gently guiding him back down to his pillow.

A bright light, one that was too bright for his eyes at the moment, blared in his eyes.

"Am I in Heaven?" He muttered hoarsely.

"No, Wally, you're fine. You'll probably just feel a little out of breath for the next day or so," Came the voice.

"How do you know my name?"

A shadow blotted out part of the light, and Wally was able to see green skin and ginger hair.

"Megan," He said, "I'm alive?"

"Mm-hmm. Superboy jumped up there, nearly collapsed the building, but he managed to get you two out."

Two…

"Artemis!" He gasped, sitting up again, and looking around frantically, "Oh my God, where's Artemis?"

"Wally, lay down!" Megan commanded, but the other redhead didn't listen as he continued to search the room with his eyes. "She's in the other ward. She's fine."

The speedster heaved a deep breath and lay down again.

"Rest up, okay? You've still got school tomorrow."

Wally nodded, closing his eyes, as Megan shut off the light, darkening the insides of his eyelids as well.

As he drifted off again, Artemis' words bounced around in his mind.

I'm not here for your city, or for you. I'm here for me. For my protection.