Artemis

September 1st

10:17 pm EST

Life never goes as planned. When you are a kid you have an abundance of foolish thoughts and ideas. Your parents tell you that you can be anything you want to be; you can do anything you want to do. You are absolutely consumed with the thought that everything is going to be polished and perfect like porcelain. When those china plates are obliterated you are left with meaningless fragments of a flawless life. Naturally, such events could be traumatizing to one who doesn't know anything other than false hope, but to those who have known nothing else than to simply sweep away those cracked dreams, it's any other day.

I've come to wonder why I allow myself to hope anymore. Whenever I allow myself to feel comfortable, I should know that it won't last long, but I seem to have no learning curve. My life was just starting to feel alright.

I hadn't seen, or heard from, my criminal father in months. Summer was actually enjoyable, considering I didn't have to train in any sort of combat or archery. Of course, it was smashed by the person who caused my unhappiness, my father.

I'm not even interested in recalling events of the past. All I need to focus on now, is the future, my future. This future includes moving to entirely new city, going to an entirely new school, not knowing anyone but my mother and getting a job in this new city.

This is because of my father and his ruthless actions. he has become a version of a menace. Heck, he is the definition of menace. I'm not one to openly think, or speak about it. That recent memory is locked in the deepest part of my mind, never to be shared.

My mind was buzzing with all of the sudden events that were to happen as soon as I woke up this coming morning. I crawled under my grey bed sheets, pulling them over my head. Why did this happen to me? What did I do to deserve all of this? Do the wrong doings of the father pass to the daughter? Whatever it is, I'm determined to break this chain of bad luck.

I also have this school situation to deal with. New people in an new building located in an entirely new city. I'm not entirely worried about getting good grades, or keeping up with schoolwork. I'm troubled about the new set of people.

Soon enough, my negative thoughts exhausted my entire being, wrapping me into a warm blanket of sleep.

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September 2nd

6:15 am EST

The horrific sound of my dear alarm clock interrupted my peaceful slumber. It was the only thing keeping me from this very morning. My arm felt like led as I slammed my hand against the snooze button. An exhausted groan escaped my mouth as I rolled out of my covers. Walking through the many boxes contains all of my belongings, I noticed my mother was up and ready. She seemed unearthly excited. Confused by her amped actions, I began to speak.

"Hey mom..." I timidly walked up to her wheelchair to face her. Her face was plastered wight he widest grin I've seen from her. "Good morning Sweetheart!" she sang. My bewildered expression must have been enough for her to continue. She sighed and poked up at me with gleaming eyes. "This is a chance for us to have a new life! A better one!" She glanced to the side at a stack of boxes.

A small grin crept upon my face at my mothers excitement. Out of all the bad, I at least had my mother. "Well," I combed through my wild hair with my fingers as I spoke, "The moving company should be here soon, so I'll get ready and then help with the boxes."

She spun her wheelchair towards me with that some wide smile. "That sounds great, Artemis." With that, I swiveled around and went to get ready. There was something about seeing my mother so happy that made me feel a spark of excitement, one that I would never have had yesterday.

I yanked through my long, blonde hair and threw it up into a ponytail. The autumn air was crisp and cold so I slipped on a grey sweater and yoga pants. I went through my normal hygiene routine and packed my essentials in a backpack, separated from the boxes.

I threw that onto my bed and continued with the boxes. We didn't have many boxes, really. We weren't even taking our furniture, which made me question, what kind of place are we moving in to?

My mom insisted that it should be a secret. So basically it's either really good, or really bad. In order to spare my feelings, I assumed it would be a dump. When the movers arrived I handed them each of the boxes as they brought it down to our apartment building curb.

It wasn't long until all of the boxes were set into the moving truck. My mom smiled at me and nodded her head towards the door. I wheeled her into the elevator and brought her down to the musty lobby. I wouldn't miss this place much.

Sure, it was where I grew up, but the amount of splinters that I had gotten over the years because of the old, dry wooden floors probably cancel out the childhood memories. In fact, most of them weren't even worth remembering.

I set up the ramp and pushed her into one of the back seats. I shut the door and stared at the old building. The mossy bricks added a bit of color to the originally dull appearance. With one last glance, I hopped into the truck.

The seats of the truck gave off a slight smell of cat urine. Luckily, the drive from Gotham City to Central City wasn't an incredibly long one, 4 hours maximum. It's a new start. That's all have to think about. A new start. Due to awakening at early hours, my body told me that sleep was necessary. I tried to fight it off, but it overwhelmed my senses.

A particularly large pot hole disrupted my rest, jolting me awake. My mother looked over at me, still not lacking any excitement. "15 minutes until we get there." She nodded, containing her excitement. I groggily wiped the sleep from my eyes and peeked out the window at the pure looking city. It was a complete turn from Gotham.

In the heart of the city, skyscrapers towered over the citizens. Taxis swerved in and out of the usual traffic, people dressed in designer clothing hustled in and out of various shops while phone calls were being made. I couldn't believe my eyes. It's completely mesmerizing.

We kept driving to the outer parts of town, that's when I noticed S.T.A.R. Laboratories. The structure was curved and slick, giving off a futuristic feeling. Ever since the particle accelerator malfunctioned, people have been avoiding it. I still see hope in it. Dr.Wells has done some incredible things. I don't ever really keep up with todays science, but I know well enough the things that he can accomplish.

A few more minutes of driving into the outer regions and we would be there. I still have mixed feelings about moving, but a tiny dose of excitement is somewhere in the mix.

My mom rapidly tapped my hand as we pulled closer into a crisp looking building. The apartment complex was taller than the others that we had passed. At the base of the white marble building there were two glass double doors that towered over the sidewalk.

My mouth dropped open as I was no longer able to hold it up. To any regular citizen in the city it would be a mediocre plea to live, but coming from a crappy apartment in Gotham, this seemed like heaven. "Welcome home, Artemis." my mother beamed.

I couldn't say anything so I silently nodded, grabbed my backpack, and slid out of the truck. Walking around the front, I helped my mom into her wheelchair. The lady at the front dest greeted us with a warm smile. "Hello! You must be the Crocks! You must be so excited!" I nodded once again, still lost for words. "We are very excited to be here!" My mom piped up. "Thank you."

I hadn't even gotten the chance to look at the lobby. When my gaze shifted to the left, I noticed a lounge with a flatscreen TV and a few plush chairs. Just be young that was a pool. A freaking pool. To the right was a set of sleek elevators. This was mediocre?

We received two keys after a bunch of confirmation questions and paperwork. By the time we were done, all of our boxes were placed into our apartment that I haven't even been in. We are the 6th floor out of 7, just below the penthouse. I pushed my mom in her wheelchair into the silver elevator. My heart rate increased as I pushed the button labeled 6.

The pleasant music rang until the doors slid open and we headed out. Apartment 602 was what we were going to call home. We headed left as I counted each of the doors. 600...601...there was quite a distance from each door.

We approached 602 and my heart stopped. I pulled my key out of my pocket and shakily put it in the slot and turned it to the right. My mom gave me a reassuring look as I turned the handle.

As soon as I opened the door a fresh sent filled my nose. I pushed my mother in I looked upwards to see a living room with couch, love seat, and chair all in a position so you could watch television. A dark brown, wooden coffee table was placed in the center of the seating. To the sharp left of the door there was a kitchen. Tile floors were the base to chrome kitchen appliances. It was a wide enough space to have a kitchen island, and a bar area.

I walked down past the bar and to a door. It was kind of exciting, opening door and not knowing what would be behind it, but when I finally did open it, i was pleasantly surprised. A full sized bed was pared with a dresser across tom it. Doors, which I assumed is the closet, were to the left of the bed. The headboard was a simple white rectangle design.

To the right of the bed, however, was a window so large that it took up almost all of the wall. I walked up to the glass and gazed out at the scenery. There was a perfect view of S.T.A.R. Laboratories in the distance. The room, along with the rest of the apartment, was fairly small to an average person, but to me, it was the best thing in the world.

I walked out of the room, hoping it was to be mine. A small smile curved my lips upwards. I looked at my mom in awe, "Is that my room?" I asked with a tilted head. She simply nodded and and beamed at me. "Mine is similar, just not without the window." She stated with a look of pure amusement on her face.

"Now, I want you to busy yourself in this town! Let's look for a job near here." My mother took a deep breath and pursed her lips ever so slightly. "Then with school, friends, and possibly sports you should be plenty busy." She nodded, agreeing with herself.

Why she wanted me to be home was unclear, but I was in no position to argue. That still didn't keep me from wondering. Why would she possibly want me gone all day for? The entire situation left a sick feeling in my gut. I nodded silently and carried my boxes to my room. The only thing theta was clear was tomorrow, I look for a job.

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AN: Alas! The new spitfire story is finally up! I really really hope you will enjoy it! This chapter, I will admit, was a bit slow but I needed to set the story up. So, what do you think Artemis' mom is up to? Or is she up to anything at all?

Wally's POV is up next! It's gonna be a good one!

(Sorry for any typos! I will fix them later!)

Love and Arrows,
TheArcherArtemis