There was a man in all black in the living room. He hadn't seen her yet. But that wasn't the worst part. Poor Bart was lying on the carpet. A gun pointed at him and covered in blood. Artemis stayed quiet as best as she could. If anything she couldn't let the intruder know she was here. It looked like he had hit Bart in the face with the gun a couple of times.

Which was probably why she heard him scream. Adrenaline was flowing through her veins. Her mind planning out what she was going to do. "Little punk" the man spat kicking the teen in the stomach. Bart whimpered covering his head with his arm's. "Now where is she?" the man yelled. Artemis's heart nearly stopped as she ducked down behind the couch. "I don't know" Bart said before coughing.

It was clear that he was lying through his teeth. He knew exactly where Artemis was. She had to let Wally know somehow. If he walked in then he would be shot undoubtedly. The only thing she was armed with was a knife. The intruder had a gun and she didn't like those odds. Even with the training her father put her through all of those years ago.

Bart had caught sight of her as soon as she entered the room. He was making himself a sandwich when the man barged in unannounced. "If your going to hit me some more can you do it anywhere than my face? My boyfriend needs to kiss me there" he quipped with a smirk. The man let out a laugh before kicking him again. All he needed was to buy time for Artemis. Surely she had all of this handled.

She crawled over and grabbed one of the cordless phones. Thank god for a landline at the moment. She dialed 911 and waited. The dispatchers would send officer's when they would hear what's going on. "Just tell me where the lady is and I might just shoot you and be done with it" the man said grabbing Bart by the collar of his shirt. A cocky smile playing against the teen's lips.

He spit blood onto the man's face. A low growl escaped the intruders lips. He was thrown onto the ground before his arm was stomped on. A crack from his bone echoed around the room. Artemis winced at the sound of it. Peeking over the couch she saw that his back was still to her. Standing up she lunged over and onto his back. "Just the bitch I was looking for!" the man yelled throwing her to the floor and hitting her in the face.

A pained groan escaped her lips. The knife in her hand sliding across the floor. Shakily Bart stood up and grabbed the guy. Within seconds the man whipped around and hit him in the face with the gun. He fell to the ground unconscious as Artemis gasped. The door opened as Wally ran in. "Who the hell are you!" the man yelled furious at this point.

"I'm the guy who's about to kick your ass to the end of the universe and back" Wally said cracking his knuckles.

Luckily the cops soon arrived. Wally got the gun off of him and soon the officers helped subdue the intruder. "Is Bart going to be okay?" Wally asked the paramedics. Artemis sitting on the edge getting checked out. A gash and a bruise now on her face from being hit. "Yes Mr. West, but we're going to need you at the hospital" the paramedic said as he nodded.

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Its been two days since she's woken up. The pain was still there and Advil didn't provide much to take it away. She watched over the young girl while her mother was out. She reminded her so much of Mar'i that it was painful. "Do you have a family?" Melody asked curiously, head tilted to the side and a thoughtful smile on her face. "Yeah, I do. I have a step daughter. She's a year older than you and I miss her so much" Zatanna said honestly.

Even after what had happened she still would've done the same thing that night. If that meant protecting Mar'i then she would take the beatings all over again. "What's her name?" Melody asked.

"Mar'i. Her names Mar'i" she said as the girl smiled.

"When I see her again I'll introduce the two of you so you can play" she then said after a short pause.

Melody smiled like she had just been given a present for the first time. It confused Zatanna greatly. Had she not had a friend before? "Her and I can be friends right? I've never had a friend before" the girl sounded thrilled hearing about Mar'i. Zatanna told her stories about her family for what seemed like hours. "What did you do at home?" Zatanna asked curiously.

"Mommy and Daddy fight a lot. I remember that Daddy brought a boy home one time. He wasn't very nice to him and he hurt him really bad. Don't tell Daddy but I would sneak in and bring the boy food and some times play games with him" Melody said as Zatanna stared at her.

"What happened to the boy?" she asked uneasily.

"Daddy hurt him and hurt him and hurt him" the girl then giggled before leaning in.

"Daddy doesn't like it when the bad boys laugh at him. So he makes sure they never come back" she whispered before continuing to giggle.

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The setting was just as depressing as the day. There were a sea of people dressed in black. She stood there as still as a brick wall. Not a single emotion apparent on her face. A hand resting on her shoulder and the freezing rain falling around them. It was still cold resulting in the rain almost being hail. For once the Wayne Estate was open to the public.

For the memorial of course. There was no point in digging a grave if there was no body to put inside. People around them were whispering. The girl had made an emotional wall. She wasn't going to cry. She had to show her mother what a brave girl she had become. "Mar'i do you want to say anything?" her father looked down at her. His blue eyes glistening with fresh tears that he had yet to shed.

Surprisingly she nodded. However she wasn't going to go up alone. Walking through the crowd she approached her best friend. "Damian can you-" before she could finish he nodded. He knew exactly what she was asking him to do. The crowd of people hushed when the children walked onto the stage. They looked like children but they were far from it. "Hello" her voice rang out through the microphone.

It was devoid of any emotion. No one could even see her eyes. A pair of blacked out sunglasses sat on her face. Obstructing everyone to see what's underneath. That was until she took them off. "I am Mar'i Grayson and yes I look different. I've always been different and I always will be different. This is, was my mom and I loved her just like she loved me" she had to stop talking.

On the inside she could feel the emotional wall she built beginning to crumble. It was hard to be up here. To show everyone who she was as a person. All eyes were on her. Damian noticed and grabbed her hand. She took a deep breath. Remembering that in fact she wasn't alone up here. "I am a ten year old and I've lost a lot. But I have also have been given love and I, I miss her so much" her voice trembled and tears formed in her eyes. "I'm sorry" she whispered into the microphone.

As soon as she was off the stage she began to cry. How could she be so brave? Damian hugged her as she began to cry. "I want my mommy back" she sounded like a scared child. Which she was, the two of them were both children. Both with the weight and responsibilities of an adult on their shoulders.

A/N: I would like to say I finished writing it as soon as I posted it. But I had this already done when I posted the last chapter, I just wanted to make all of you wait XD

Skycrystal23 ;)