A/N I like ice skating, and I figured that there was no reason Wally couldn't like it too...so, yeah. And I really like WallArt fluff. :) Enjoy!
Disclaimer If I owned Young Justice, this would happen. Just saying.
"Wally, I'm not going!" Artemis insisted, scowling at the persistent redhead.
"C'mon! I already promised Robin that I would take you. Besides, it was a dare. You can't back down from a dare!" Wally argued, moving in front of her and stopping her from walking further away. He looked at her, trying to make his green eyes as pitiful as possible. "Please?" he asked softly. Artemis punched his shoulder in a way that could be taken playfully. Wally winced anyway though, rubbing the spot. "No way, Baywatch," she scoffed. A mischievous grin suddenly formed on the speedster's freckled face, and Artemis's eyes narrowed. "What are you-?" She found herself unable to finish as Wally suddenly picked her up, slinging her over his shoulder and running out of the Cave.
Artemis struggled, protesting loudly. The only person she saw, however, was Robin, and the Boy Wonder was too busy cracking up to offer any help. So she was forced into a car, scowling the entire time as Wally locked the doors. "Do you even have a license?" Artemis asked. Wally gave her a withering look. "Did you miss my birthday? I'm sixteen, and I have a license," he responded.
"A legal one?" Artemis pushed, a skeptic look clear in her grey eyes. Wally glared at her again, passing over his license silently in response. As she examined it, he snapped, "There. That legal enough for you?" Artemis was forced to nod and hand it over.
"Yeah. It's legal…technically. But that doesn't mean I trust your attention span enough to let you drive me around. Which I didn't want you to do anyway in the first place." Artemis added the last part with a pointed look at Wally, who did nothing but shrug in response as he began to drive. "Wally, I swear, if you don't take me back right now…" Artemis left the threat hanging, but the redhead seemed unconcerned.
"You'll do what?" Wally asked, smirking. Artemis scowled again. "I don't know!" she finally shouted, punching Wally's arm again. "Hey! Driving here!" he said, indignation clear in his voice.
"You kidnapped me, you have to deal with me," Artemis responded. Wally gave out a heavy sigh, resisting the temptation to bang his head repeatedly on the steering wheel. This was going to be a long afternoon. A moody silence lingered in the car until they reached the small, friendly building. "Wally, I really don't want to go," Artemis repeated, crossing her arms stubbornly. Just as stubbornly, Wally practically dragged her out of the car. "I made a promise that I would. So you're going to do this, whether you want to or not, Arty!"
Artemis scowled at him, a dangerous look in her grey eyes. "Wally, I swear if you ever call me Arty again, you will find one of my arrows shoved down your throat." She didn't specifically mention which one, but she didn't have too, because Wally took a step back, swallowing hard as he raised his hands in mock defeat. "Fine," he responded. "But you're still going ice skating with me." He took the archer's hand and basically dragged her into the small rink.
The building was small, but friendly, and it was one of the only places where they could skate anyway. Wally handed over the money easily and picked up two pairs of skates, handing a pair to Artemis before pulling on his own and lacing them up. Artemis was surprised to notice he seemed comfortable with this routine, as if he had done this before. Judging by how he had greeted the cashier lady by name, she was guessing he had.
Artemis struggled to get the skates on, though eventually, she figured out the proper way to lace them, with little suggestions here and there from Wally. After a few minutes, they were standing at the edge of the rink, prepared to step onto the ice. Wally stepped on, keeping his balance easily, which surprised Artemis. This was the same guy who had managed to trip on sand in the Bialya desert. Apparently, this day was full of surprises. He held out his hand to Artemis, who refused to take it. "Wally, I don't care about any stupid promises you made. I'm not getting on that ice."
"You're scared, aren't you?" Wally teased, breath puffing out in front of him in a small cloud of steam as he laughed. "The mighty Artemis is scared of a little bit of ice." Anger immediately flashed in Artemis's grey eyes.
"I'm not scared!" she responded heatedly, giving him the death glare as she stepped onto the ice. She wobbled, but managed to stay upright, resting a tan hand against the wall lining the edge of the rink. "Good start. But it doesn't count unless you actually skate," Wally laughed.
"Let's see you try then!" Artemis scowled. Wally grinned, clearly delighted with the challenge, and was off in a moment, skating easily around the rink, even adding a small spin as he slowed next to Artemis. "See?" the redhead said, leaning nonchalantly against the wall. "Easy." Refusing to allow herself to be outdone by Wally, Artemis cautiously let go of the wall, and trying to imitate what Wally had done, moved her feet. A grin of childish delight formed on her face as she moved, skating across the ice, excited at the fact that she was actually ice skating.
Wally followed her at a rather close distant, glancing at her occasionally as if to reassure himself that she hadn't fallen yet. Artemis's expression morphed into a scowl again as she glared at Wally. "I don't need you following me around. I can do this!" she snapped. Of course, that's when she had to trip, her skate catching in a small line in the ice left by someone else's skates. She fell, hitting the ice. It didn't really hurt, but Artemis felt her cheeks burning with humiliation. Wally, without even bothering to ask for permission, grabbed her arm and helped her up. "Are you okay?" he asked, surprisingly gentle, not even making fun of her.
"I'm fine!" Artemis snapped, brushing a stray strand of blonde hair away from her face angrily.
"You don't seem okay," Wally responded. She yanked her arm out of his grasp, moving over to the safety the sturdy, unmoving wall offered. "I just fell onto some ice, Wally. It's not a big deal." It was a big deal, actually, but she wasn't about to let the speedster know that. "You aren't going to give up, are you?" he asked, noticing the way she was slowly heading towards the exit.
"Why should I keep trying?" Artemis asked. Even as she said the words, she hated them.
"Since when have you been one to give up?" The question lingered in the cold air for a minute before Artemis stopped.
"Fine. I'll keep skating," she mumbled. Wally grinned, freckled face lighting up as he took her hand. With the redhead as her guide, Artemis soon found herself skating around the rink easily, even laughing a little. Maybe she would actually enjoy this. Wally finally pulled Artemis to a stop, fighting their combined momentum with the help of a wall. "I'm hungry," he announced.
"You're always hungry," Artemis responded. Wally shrugged. "I have a fast metabolism," he responded. "I don't think you'd say no to a cup of hot chocolate either though." Wally did have a point there; Artemis certainly wouldn't say no to that. "Fine," Artemis sighed. "But you're buying," she added. Wally grinned.
"Can I be buying with your money?" he asked hopefully. Artemis punched him lightly on the arm. "You kidnap me, you pay for me," she responded, now leading him over to the nearby concessions stand. Grumbling something under his breath, Wally followed, actually looking a bit pleased with himself. Soon they were both sitting down on a bench, a cup of hot chocolate warming their hands. Artemis took a long sip, letting out a small sigh of satisfaction as she swallowed. Wally leaned back against the bench easily, giving her that lopsided grin of his. "Don't tell me you're actually enjoying yourself, Arty," he teased.
Artemis scowled even as she fought a grin, threatening to dump the remains of her cup over his head. "Call me Arty again…" she said, allowing the threat to trail off. Wally's eyes widened as he remembered her last threat, and hastily swallowed some hot chocolate, finishing what had to be his fifth cup in only a second or two. Immediately though, he started choking, coughing as too much went down his throat. Managing to clear his air passageway after a few seconds of intense coughing and retching, the redhead looked up to see Artemis laughing quietly, mirth shining in her grey eyes.
Face red, green eyes watering, Wally glared at her. "What's so funny?" he asked.
"You," Artemis laughed, not bothering to attempt to hide her amusement. A silly grin suddenly formed on Wally's face. "Finally, someone realizes it," he commented smugly. Artemis immediately scoffed and punched his arm lightly again. "C'mon, Artemis. You know you can't deny it," Wally grinned, putting his hands behind his head as he glanced at her, looking cocky. Artemis stood, though she was still laughing softly. "Whatever, Baywatch," she said, shaking her head. "Let's get back on the ice."
Wally took her proffered hand, using it to pull himself up. The two made their way back to the rink, and Wally slid onto the ice easily. Artemis hesitated, and the speedster simply grabbed her hand, giving her a smile as he pulled her onto the ice, a light in his green eyes that the archer had never seen before. Allowing him to lead her, the two skated around the rink. Finally, cheeks flushed pink from the cold, they came to a stop, laughing and grinning like little children. "Baywatch?" Artemis asked suddenly.
"Hmmm?" Wally responded, turning to face her.
The archer's cheeks flushed a deeper shade of pink as she awkwardly said. "Uh, thanks. I had a pretty good time, actually." Wally allowed a grin to form on his face, that new light shining in his eyes again.
"I had a really good time too, Artemis," he grinned. "Hey, it's getting kind of late…but there's one thing I wanted to show you before going home," he added quickly. "If that's okay."
"What if it isn't okay?" Artemis asked, raising an eyebrow. The speedster shrugged. "I could always kidnap you again." Artemis punched his arm lightly for what must have been the fiftieth time in the past hour, but let a small smile slip out as she did. "Well, I'm yours to kidnap, then." Wally's freckled face lit up, and he grabbed her arm, leading her out of the rink.
They were soon in the car, and Artemis felt curiosity grow inside of her. "Can you tell me where we're going?" she pestered. Wally grinned, turning his gaze away from the road for a moment to glance at her. "You're almost as impatient as I am," he laughed. "If I told you where we were going, it wouldn't be a surprise, would it?" Artemis frowned.
"Wally, I don't think anyone can be as impatient as you," she commented. Wally shrugged, not exactly denying it. Speedsters weren't known for their wonderful attention spans, after all. Finally, after a moment of silence, Artemis couldn't help but try asking again. "Can you at least tell me how long it'll take to get there?" she asked.
"Not too much longer now," Wally assured her, an interesting expression on his face. Artemis frowned at the look. "This isn't some kind of joke, is it?" she asked suspiciously. Wally just shook his head. "You'll see when we get there," he responded, a bit mysteriously, flashing her a grin just to irritate her further. Artemis let out an annoyed huff as she leaned back heavily into the seat, crossing her arms in defeat.
It wasn't long before they pulled to a stop in front of a tiny restaurant, one Artemis didn't really recognize. "Wally, are you taking me out to dinner?" she asked, a hint of disbelief edging her voice.
"It was part of the dare," Wally mumbled, his freckled cheeks flushing awkwardly. Artemis grinned, suddenly delighted. Whether it was his embarrassment, though, or the prospect of eating dinner with him, Wally wasn't sure. That didn't stop his heart from racing as her face lit up, and the speedster found himself smiling with her, and he slid out of the parked car, opening the door for her. Artemis slid out, a bit surprised by the gesture. Wally…being a gentleman? Somehow, that didn't add up. The archer shrugged it off as Wally led her inside.
A while later, the two were finishing up dessert, laughing as they sat at the table across from each other. "So how did you set the couch on fire again?" Artemis asked, laughing, her grey eyes sparkling.
"Experiment," Wally shrugged.
"And how did Barry react?" Artemis asked, grinning as she licked a stray drop of ice cream off of her spoon.
"He was pretty mad for a little bit…but then he probably realized it was his own fault, leaving an 11 year old home alone for that long," Wally laughed, eating a bit of ice cream of Artemis's plate as he spoke. Artemis swatted his hand away, still laughing softly. "Do I want to know what experiment you were trying?" she asked.
Wally seemed to think about it for a while before shaking his head. "Probably not," he responded. A waitress finally came over to their table, setting the receipt down on their table politely. "Will that be all?" she asked, already picking up the empty plates. There was quite a few of those, thanks to Wally's seemingly bottomless pit of a stomach. "Yes, thank you," Artemis smiled, struggling to be polite herself as Wally handed over the money. The two stood and left, Wally managing to grasp Artemis's hand and hold it gently.
Artemis's cheeks flushed at the small contact as Wally led her back to the car. Once inside, she glanced over at Wally. "That was…fun," she said softly. "Thanks, Baywatch." Wally gave her that lopsided grin again that made her heart race and her stomach feel tingly. It felt good, and Artemis held onto the unexpected feeling. "No problem, Arty," the redhead responded. Somehow, Artemis didn't mind the nickname as much now.
After a while of driving and a small bit of getting lost thanks to Wally's "ability" to follow Artemis's directions to her house, they finally made it, and Wally pulled up in front of the small apartment. Artemis slipped out of the car, but Wally glanced at her before the door closed. "Arty?"
"Yeah?" she asked.
"…It wasn't a dare," the speedster finally admitted, cheeks flushing as red as his freckles. Artemis stood frozen for a moment, before a small smile stole across her face, her grey eyes lighting up. "In that case, would you like to do this again Friday?" Artemis asked. Wally's green eyes lit up as well, and he nodded eagerly.
"Pick you up at 7?" he asked. Artemis nodded, laughing lightly, feeling light and bursting with what she assumed was happiness.
"Night, Baywatch," she said softly, a warm look in her grey eyes as she began to walk away.
"Night, Arty," Wally responded quietly, the same look in his green eyes. As Artemis walked into her house and as Wally drove off, she wondered how she could possibly feel this happy. One thing was for sure; this was just the start of the archer's and the speedster's relationship.
A/N Awwwww. :3 It wasn't a dare! And this should totally happen at some point...
Reviews are greatly appreciated!