Lucky Arrow

The inspirations for this were: Warriors, Pocahontas, and How to Train Your Dragon. (LIONBLAZE AND HEATHERTAIL SHOULD FALL IN LOVE AGAIN, POCAHONTAS SHOULD'VE STAYED WITH JOHN SMITH, AND TOOTHLESS NEEDS A GIRL!)

Chapter One

Luck Lost

Roy grasped for another arrow, his quiver almost empty. Cheshire grinned at him evilly."C'mon, Speedy. Don't tell me you're losing your edge."

The archer snarled, and in an instant had his last shot notched and aimed at the assassin. "Don't move."

Cheshire straightened from her attack pose. "Looks like you've got me. But you know what they say about appearances..." Like lightning her hand flashed to her belt and grey smoke enveloped the two fighters. Roy let his arrow fly in rage. "They're always so deceiving!"

The redhead growled in frustration, the smoke causing his eyes to water. He pushed through it quickly, waving as much as he could away, hoping to catch a glimpse of his enemy.

Nothing.

Roy gripped his bow tighter, grinding his teeth. She'd escaped again. This was the third time this month he'd caught her doing some kind of damage in the forest near Mt. Justice. The archer groaned, realization hitting him as he facepalmed.

Perfect.

He'd just used his lucky arrow.

Artemis leapt nimbly from a rocky boulder to a small ledge. Mt. Justice was perfect for night climbing. The archeress was born to discover, and if there was one thing she loved more than exploring during the day, it was exploring during the night.

She stopped to rest for a minute, dangling her legs. Artemis took her lucky arrow out of her belt. She alway carried it with her, along with her collapsable bow, just in case. This arrow had first saved Wally from A.M.A.Z.O., then the whole Team from the Reds. Heck, it'd gotten her on the Team.

It meant a lot.

Artemis breathed in deeply, letting the night air invade her lungs. It was so spine-chilling being up here sometimes. After all she was three feet away from plummeting to her death. The blurry lights of Happy Harbor were very different from Gotham's, and she could hear buoys and foghorns down on the beach. The ocean below was composed of so many different shades of black and dark blue and silver, the moon above a sneering crescent.

Like the Cheshire cat.

A deep shudder ran underneath her. The ledge shook, and Artemis felt it begin to give way. She scrambled to her feet, gripping a small outcropping of granite nearby as insurance. Her seat crumbled into pebbles and rocks as it tumbled down the mountain and into the trees.

Her insurance paid off. She hadn't been fast enough to get her feet to prop her up safely, but she'd managed to hang on to the granite. Artemis sighed in relief, thanking God that she hadn't fallen.

Wait a second. If my hand's keeping me from falling, then what's keeping...

She stared in dismay at her lucky arrow, plummeting into the dark forest right behind the mini avalanche she'd accidently created.

The last thing Roy wanted to do in the middle of Friday night was go looking in the forest for his missing arrow. Had it been any other shot, he would've forgotten about it and gone home. But this had been one of his father's arrows.

I don't have anything else from him.

It was slightly different from his other arrows. It had the red shaft of feathers, but the arrowhead was carved obsidian, so he couldn't track it. It meant a lot to him, and he always saved the obsidian arrow for last.

A rumble drew his attention away from his thoughts. Against the light of the moon, he saw shadowed circles and lumps scrambling down the mountain.

Cheshire? Is she trying to get into the Cave?

Roy, without any more arrows and only a modest amount of combat skills, took off running to warn his friends.

Artemis heaved a huge sigh, blowing strands of wayward hair out of her face. She didn't always get a chance to spend a night at the Cave, and the archer had planned on getting a real tour of the mountain. Instead she'd have to go after her lucky arrow. This sucks.

She looked around from where she was hanging. There! A tiny pathway down to the forest. From there, she could head over to her arrow.

Artemis breathed in deeply through her nose, and began to swing. Back and forth, until she'd gained enough momentum, and then she let go of the granite.

The hero landed perfectly on the star-stained rock, crouching in an automatic attack position. She straightened warily, testing her weight in case of another weak spot. Although she found it able to hold herself, Artemis sprinted down the pathway, just in case.

Roy crouched down near the fallen rubble. Lightly, two fingers skirted the rocks and dirt around them. There was no oily feel of poison. Cheshire, although she wore gloves, carried weapons that oozed chemicals, and upon touching something would leave a telltale smear of venom.

Roy's eyes narrowed behind his domino mask. Reaching past the uninformative stones, he picked up a slender object.

An arrow.

For a moment his heart raced until he realized it was too thin and light to be his obsidian shot. He held it up to the moonlight, trying to identify it. The shaft was drenched in too much silver to see clearly, and the arrow felt grainy, yet smooth, as if it was made of wood.

Roy tucked into his quiver. It was so much shorter than his arrows, that the lone shot fell beneath the rim.

"Augh!"

In an instant the archer was in an attack position. It had sounded like a cry of pain, but you could never be too sure.

Northeast. It came from the northeast.

Artemis skirted to the end of the pathway, dread creeping as the stone underneath her trembled hazardously.

She would have to leap to the ground. There was a small knob of rock she could grab onto, and then she could simply swing like before.

The archeress' feet left the pathway, and she stretched her hand out to grip the rock.

Too late, Artemis realized with wide eyes that the rock was sharp quartz. "Augh!"

She fell on her feet shakily, her right hand in a fist. The hero carefully opened it, wincing. Several small cuts ran across her palm, her archery glove torn. Blood oozed out rapidly.

Come on! Seriously?

She shook her head in frustration.

Huh?

A tiny glint caught her eye. Ignoring her wound, she tried to see it again. If I tilt my head like this - there!

A shiny black something was snuggled in a wild fern. Softly, Artemis walked over and bent down to try and see what it was.

An arrow.

Review please! I'll give you a virtual lucky arrow!