Skycrystal23

           Artemis rolled her eyes just as Lian giggled. She turned her head to look at the child who looked so much like Will and sighed. How could she say no to an adorable face like that? “Fine, but you owe me.” She said scoffing down the rest of her breakfast and standing up. Before leaving she fixed herself up in the washroom and grabbed her workbag from the living room. Will had Lian at the front door with her little backpack strapped onto her back. Artemis placed her hands on her hips and looked down at her niece, “Ready to go little missy?” She asked with a smile.

“Yes!” Lian exclaimed reaching for her Aunt’s hand.

           As they left the house Artemis saw Will mouth ‘thank you’ to her from the front door as she strapped Lian into her car seat. There were many things Artemis had to do today so she was in super-Aunt mode. She dropped Lian off at daycare early and sped off to work in the heart of Star City. Hours past by as she slowly dealt with the piles of cases left on her desk and check-ups on children in their placements. She clocked out at six o’clock and headed straight over to the daycare to pick up Lian. “Alright we have 10 minutes to be at Megan’s house before we are considered late, do you think we can do that?” She asked as she headed to the car with Lian.

“Yes!” Lian exclaimed.

           They went through a nearby Zeta-tube and exited through the Zeta-tube in Megan and Connor’s garage. There was an array of motorcycles in the process of being fixed, tools messily thrown around the floor as she dodged them with Lian in her arms. The last thing she wanted was Lian to grab a greasy tool and get the grease all over her clothes. Everyone was already there confirming to her that she was indeed late to the annual dinner. Megan thought it was a good idea to have the old crew come over for dinner at least once a month, the dinner placement switching every month. Last month Dick took them all out to a fancy restaurant in Gotham, he said he didn’t know how to cook and that his apartment was embarrassing.

           She knew that was a fat lie because unlike everyone else she knew that Dick and Barbara were living together, and he just hasn’t told anyone yet that they were dating. Next month dinner would be hosted by Artemis, she was nervous because she only knew how to cook one meal and with Lian running around the house was bound to be a mess. “Artemis! Lian!” Megan shouted as she flew down from the deck and across the lawn to embrace her best friend.

“Hey Megan.” Artemis said, slightly stiff from the sudden hug.

           Dinner went by swimmingly, Lian being thoroughly entertained by her friends who cooed over her. She had to leave by eight o’clock which was earlier than she would’ve liked but Lian needed rest. She bid her friends farewell, probably seeing them another time this week for a mission anyways, and Zetaed back to Star City. When she reached her car and put Lian, who was fast asleep in her car seat she then remembered that she needed to go shopping. It was a relief to know that most stores were open until ten o’clock nowadays.

           The grocery store was practically dead when she arrived, carrying Lian with her. The three-year old was passed out in the car as Artemis leisurely strolled through the store grabbing the items, she had written down earlier in the week on her list. She hummed along to the music playing quietly through the store, a yawn escaping her lips as she stood at the cash register watching her items be scanned and bagged. She pulled into the driveway of her and Will’s home at nine-thirty. The sky had long gone dark as she carried Lian as well as the bags of groceries inside the house in one trip.

           Will was home in the kitchen making a sandwich, he was dressed in his work uniform. It looked like he had only arrived home a few minutes ago. “Good, you can put all these away.” She said dropping the bags on the floor in front of him with a smirk. He gaped at all of the different items she had brought home. “And when you’re putting them away put the eggs in the egg container in the fridge, don’t just slide the carton in.” She instructed while walking down the hallway. God, when had she become such a mom? Egg containers? She felt older than she actually was sometimes.

           Lian started to wake up while she was being dressed in her Wonder Woman pyjamas. She was a huge fan of Diana; she would always jump up and down when she saw her on television. “Can I have a story?” Lian asked when Artemis placed her underneath her blankets. Artemis glanced over at the clock on the bedside table and nodded kicking off her heels and climbing into the child’s bed. She sat on top of the blankets, ankles crossed, with Lian snuggling into her side. “This is a story about a stubborn archer and a foolish speedster…” she said softly.

           By the time she finished her story Lian was fast asleep next to her. Artemis smiled down at the little girl and brushed a stray strand of hair behind her ear. A shadow past by the door, the figure backing up and peering into the room. Will’s smile was warm and endearing when he saw the two curled up together. Artemis was glad for her soft mattress when she landed face first into it when she dragged herself into her bedroom at the opposite end of the hallway. She set her alarm again for seven am to begin her day once again. Before closing her eyes, she stared at the picture of her and Wally again. “Goodnight Wally.” She whispered as she closed her eyes.

           Her phone buzzed around three in the morning. Both of her eyes popped open as she quickly sat up and looked at her phone. The bright screen was blinding as she read the messages from Dick. There was a mission and she needed to report to the WatchTower immediately. Her day had yet to end as she was beamed up to the WatchTower via the nearby Zeta-tube. “Tigress, B07.” The robotic voice announced. She stretched her arms and rolled her shoulders as she walked over to the group of heroes awaiting their debriefing. “I really am the best single Aunt around.” She mumbled to herself as she stood with the group.

           Wally was somewhat of a funny yet annoying little brother to her. This team was her family, her home away from home. She always felt like she fit in better here than on Mars. Connor tried to speak to her when they got back to the WatchTower, he was struggling with this information as well. Wally being…dead. That thought was hard to swallow and fell heavy on her tongue. M’gann moved through the tower quickly, in a daze. She was overwhelmed by such grief that she didn’t know what to do with herself. The WatchTower had a kitchen, so she went and started cooking. The Zeta-tube was announcing everyone’s designations as they arrived back to the tower. For some reason she was waiting to hear Wally’s too.

           It hit her like a wave, everyone’s grief. She could feel their minds crying out to her and that alone shocked her enough that she dropped the pans she was holding. They clattered to the floor and she stood there frozen, tears welled in her amber eyes. Connor rushed into the kitchen; he heard the clattering noise all the way from the Zeta-tubes. He frowned and slowly approached her. “M’gann…” He said softly, taking her hands in his. Her hands were smaller and softer, her dainty fingers that used to slip so easily between his own. Connor’s heart ached to see the fearful look in her eyes.

           He noted a long time ago how easily affected M’gann was to strong negative emotions. Artemis ‘dying’ left a crack in her but Wally actually being gone seemed like it had broken her completely. He wasn’t there for her before, but he was damn sure that he was going to be there for her now. Her gaze refocused and her tear-filled eyes flickered up to his face. “Connor?” She said, voice cracking as she spoke. The oven behind her suddenly dinged and she looked down, dropping to her knees to collect the pans she had dropped a minute prior. “No, no, no, no.” She said quietly to herself as she tried to clean up the mess she made.

           Connor kneeled down in front of her and rested his hand on top of hers. She finally stopped what she was doing and looked up at him. There were tears streaking down her face and an absolute grief stricken look in her eyes. He noticed that she was making snickerdoodles before she dropped the trays. She used to make them all the time for Wally. “Connor he’s gone, and I-” She stopped mid-sentence and began sobbing. Connor was saddened too by his friend’s death, after all Wally was one of his liberators from Cadmus. He decided to focus all of his energy into making M’gann feel less terrible.

           The trays of broken snickerdoodles were pushed to the side as he pulled her close to his side. M’gann was sobbing loudly, her body shaking as she cried into his shoulder. Connor sat there quietly on the floor with her, his back pressed uncomfortably up against the cupboards. He carded his hand through her short red hair, his other hand at her side holding her close. M’gann continued to cry as she would for the next few days. How could someone she cares about cease?