There is a wash of defensiveness that rises in her chest and it’s like they are 15 all over again, where arguing was where they felt most comfortable and the most complicated thing was homework. She takes a step back when he catches up with her and immediately begins to berate her, and the sneer she wears has not been lost to time. She opens her mouth to cut him off and issue a scathing reply, but the wind is stolen from her throat, quite literally, when Wally briskly takes her into his arms and makes off in an unknown direction.
The colours blur faster than they once had. Artemis cannot make out what the familiar shapes are so she clings hard as she tries not to let the bile rise when she is stilled only a few moments later. She lets go as if he has burned her and takes a few unbalanced paces away from him, heaving in a few breaths as she tries to fend off the sensation of running at such a speed again. It wasn’t as though she hadn’t been carried at super-speed at all in the years he had been gone—Artemis and Bart were often paired together on missions because of their familiarity with each other. But this was different.
Especially when the woman was trying to keep her distance from him like he had asked. She doesn’t want to be close to him. But Wally wasn’t making it easy.
She only offers him her middle finger and she stubbornly refuses to look at anywhere but him. ❝ If you haven’t noticed, Sparky, ❞ Artemis starts, gesturing to him. She switches to the telepathic link with a wince when she realises how loud she had snarled the nickname, shaking her head. ❛ You’re a little faster nowadays. Keeping you on lookout wasn’t a punishment, as much as you’d like to think that. ❜ She finally lets her grey eyes meet his. His smile is boyish, and charming and infuriating all at once, and she only scowls behind her mask. She ignores the red that flushes her olive skin and instead, lets herself rest in the opposite corner to him to concentrate. The schematics are pulled into her vision, thankfully supplied by Oracle when requested. ❛ They already know you’re here. Guess you still don’t know the meaning of covert. ❜
Her spine grows frigid, and his words are like an icy dagger. Her contact lenses fade back to her normal eye colour so that she can watch him properly. He looks almost unbothered, but even after all this time, Artemis had learned to understand the man she once called hers. She knows there is an underlying layer of something deeper, and the proposition is to appease it. Her vision has blurred temporarily again, but this time it’s not because of the contacts.
She has to will herself to remain where she is. Her fingers flex and she has to clench her fist from outright punching him out, and she can feel her nails digging into her palms even through her gloves. The breaking of skin is familiar, as is the warm sensation of blood. What’s a little more?
Instead, however, Artemis waits to reply. All she hears is the rise and fall of their chests and the siren blaring in the background. Her voice drops when she opens up her mouth to speak. ❝ Figure your shit out. You don’t get to ask shit of me anymore, ❞ she hisses aloud instead, voice dripping with venom. She can hear M’gann trying to reach for her telepathically. Artemis resists the comforting touch, her anger making her friend’s attempts obsolete. Her voice is low and as she speaks, at least somewhat aware of the fact that they are trying to avoid detection for now. ❝ I’m not here to make you feel better or ease your guilt. Deal with your choices. I am. ❞
She brings up the schematics again, opening up the telepathic connection to her mind again and already planning once more with the others. No one says anything yet, though she is sure they can feel the irritation that undoubtedly floods it.
