Disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice.

A/N: Pretty much inspired by the last lines in Marvel's Captain America movie.

Till Death Do Us Part

Wally finally returns post-Endgame, but 70 years later.

Wally had his marriage proposal to Artemis rehearsed perfectly in his head.

It would, of course, be spontaneous, like their first kiss. He wasn't going to go around planning some wild and intricate event featuring a basketball game or a mob of dancers; that just wasn't their style. He would do it when the time felt right—maybe after a mission again. He'll get down on one knee, and by then Artemis would know what was happening, but he wouldn't ask her, not yet anyway. First, he'd launch into a speech, and it would be a speech to trump all proposal speeches of the past. He'll make her laugh, he'll make her cry, and when he would finally pop the question and slip on the ring, he'll make her his wife for the rest of eternity.

It was the only thought swirling through the darkness, and it was his first thought when he finally woke.

When he was ten, he had his appendix surgically removed. He remembered the anesthesiologist telling him that things were going to be a little funny now because the medicine's gone in, but he thought how weird that was because he couldn't feel a thing. Then the next thing he knew, a nurse was waking him up in a different hospital bed. He didn't even remember falling asleep, but there he was, trying to pry himself from the strangest groggy feeling while desperately remembering what had happened.

Wally felt like he was repeating that same experience when his mind began registering his surroundings. He first heard the strange duet of hums and whirls to his left, and then somewhere the bubbly sounds of electronic tapping. He inhaled and breathed in the rubbery clean scent of a hospital. Wally frowned. That's odd.

He finally opened his eyes and blinked several times before the view of Conner sitting across from him reading from a holographic screen came into focus. He opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out but a dry cough.

Conner looked up, and the glowing screen minimized away. "You're awake," he said. He stood up and handed Wally some water.

Wally took the cup but his eyes stayed on his teammate's face while the water washed down his parched throat. The Kryptonian seemed different: sad, almost, with no sign of relief anywhere.

"What happened?" Wally asked. "Why am I here?"

Conner's expression didn't change. "Do you remember the Reach's drones? The ones that tried to disrupt Earth's magnetic field?"

Wally inhaled and looked away, concentrating hard. "Vaguely…" he finally answered.

"Well the Team stopped them," Conner continued, "but you—" he paused "—you, uh, disappeared. The League just found you a few days ago."

Disappeared? Wally frowned. He leaned his head back down and closed his eyes. He remembered running… running through a magnetic storm, with Barry and Bart by his side… but they were faster than him, and with each painful spark from the storm, he felt something pulling him away from the world. Finally, he recalled telling Barry to let them know… to let his parents and—

He opened his eyes propped himself up with his elbows. "Where's Artemis?"

"Um…" Conner scratched the back of his neck and searched carefully for words. "She's… not here. Look, Wally, I have… a lot of things to explain to you, and it might take a while for you to understand—"

"Understand what?" Wally frowned and his breathing quickened. He took in Conner's mysterious words, as well as his crestfallen expression, and he suddenly felt suffocated. "Conner, what's going on? Where's Artemis?" he repeated.

"I'll explain everything," Conner repeated slowly. "Wally, just—"

Wally didn't let him finish. Something didn't feel right. Conner was never someone to dance around the truth, and seeing him trying to pick at the topic of Artemis made his stomach churn into his heart. He swung his legs over the side of the bed and fumbled with the IV needles, and within a second he was half-stumbling, half-racing out the door. He heard Conner call out to him, but kept running. He crashed into a hospital cart, staggered upright amid confused yelling, and continued towards the exit. He burst through the front doors and kept going, unsure of what exactly he needed to be running towards. All he knew was something had happened to Artemis and he needed to save her.

Suddenly a large intersection came into view and he skidded to a stop right before a rush of cars whirled by. To his surprise, they were all driverless, with every occupant busy drinking coffee or scanning holographic screens identical to the one Conner had. Eyes wide, he turned around and was shoved aside by a glowering teenager wearing an abundance of glistening metal. She adjusted her glasses and snickered at him. Wally turned again and his eyes soared upwards towards silver skyscrapers with gardens sprawling from patios and rooftops. A rain of sparks caught his attention and he saw two floating drones repairing a holographic display board.

A hand grabbed his shoulder and he whipped around to find Conner staring apologetically at him.

"There's not going to be an easy way to say this," Conner explained in the gentlest tone he could manage, "but, um… it's 2086. Wally, you've been gone for 70 years."

The world seemed to spin around him and Wally felt his legs weaken. He stumbled but Conner grabbed his elbow.

"I'm sorry," said the Kryptonian.

Wally ran his fingers through his hair and a ragged sigh escaped. "It's just..." his words trailed off and he pulled something from his pocket. It was an engagement ring. "I had a date."

Wally saved visiting her for last.

He first sat with Bart in his hospital bed as the wizened man joked about still being the best looking speedster.

"I'd tell you how I built that time-traveling machine," said Bart morosely, "but they've since outlawed time—" A fit of coughs engulfed his last word, and he couldn't finish.

Wally took his cousin's hand and squeezed it. "It's okay."

He went to the memorials next. It was filled with holographic statues of each deceased, much like the memorial Mount Justice once held. He knelt at the foot of his parents' images and shut his eyes. There were a million things he wanted to say but nothing came out. Above all else, he regretted that they died not knowing their only son was alive. Next to them were Barry and Iris, as well as Jay and Joan Garrick. He touched their headstones, and left them flowers and unfinished sentences.

And then he visited all his friends: Roy, Kaldur, Zatanna, Raquel, Dick… Each of them silently stared past Wally as he stood with his hands in his pockets. Beloved hero… teammate… friend… daughter… son… father… mother… leader… Wally managed a small grin. Dick must have been one hell of an amazing father. I'm just sorry I wasn't there to be their godfather like we had always joked…

He turned around, and there was Artemis. She was clad in her orange and black Tigress uniform, blonde hair cascading over her shoulders, and she stood with one hand on her hip and the other holding a crossbow. Her lips almost formed a smile, and her eyes were a shimmering grey. She stood motionless as Wally walked up to her.

He would never be able to fathom a more beautiful woman, not even if he became a poet of colors or a painter of words. He could stare into her eyes for the rest of his life, and it would feel like a voyage through a billion stars. One caress of her skin and he could fly; one kiss from her lips and his heart would turn into a galaxy of burning suns.

He had wanted to spend the rest of eternity with her—build a home, raise a family, grow old together…He wanted to close his eyes each night with her in his arms, and open them each morning to her love. He wanted to never stop hearing her laughter and jokes, and that husky voice call out his name. And above all else he wanted her to be happy—wanted them to be happy, together, forever, till death do us part.

With tears sliding down his face, Wally dropped to one knee and opened the small velvet box in his hand. Then, his voice cracking with emotion, he started the speech he should have given 70 years ago:

"Hey Babe," he began, "you probably figured this was coming. It is, after all, your fault for making me fall so much in love with you. Ever since the first time we met, I knew—" his face contorted with emotion and he inhaled a broken breath "—I knew…" He squeezed his eyes shut and both hands dropped to the ground as his shoulders shook.

He couldn't go on. His tears were coming in waves of anguish he never experienced before—loud sobs that released all the sadness and shock from the past few days. He wrapped his arms tightly around Artemis's headstone as his tears rolled down the marble inscription of her name. Despite his speed, he was never on time, and now he knew he was always going to be too late.

In one smooth motion, Wally scooped Artemis into his arms.

"I should have done this a long time ago," he said, smiling.

Artemis smiled back. Her eyes glowed, and she moved her lips closer to his. "No kidding."

T_T

A/N: I know it would've made more sense to put Wally at some League headquarters but Wally exploding out of the Watchtower just didn't seem to have the right effect… Also, I like to think every major city has memorials for fallen heroes, even if they aren't physically buried there. It also made for a simpler story, so yep. Lastly, I couldn't find a way to fit M'gann in, but she's alive. I was planning on her being back on Mars, which would explain a bit of Conner's moroseness.