He's Acting Happy?
Author's Note- None of these characters belong to me- they belong to DC Comics. I am not writing this story for money.
This is only a prelude- something of an experiment, really. Don't flame me too badly! I may go on with this, or I may not.
Continuity: Pretty much whenever you want it, but after the 'World Without Young Justice' arc (YJ 44, Impulse 85, Robin 101, Superboy 99, YJ 45) because YJ now knows that Robin is Tim Drake in 'real' life.
The Justice Cave, Happy Harbour
"THE APOCALYPSE IS COMING!"
"Oh come on, Tim!"
"I'm telling you the world is coming to an end! Hell is freezing over- again!"
A heated debate was raging in the Justice Cave.
"I'm sure it's nothing," Cassie Sandsmark (Wonder Girl) told her friend.
"It is kinda freaky, Cass," Kon-El (Superboy) said, coming to his friend's defence.
"Thank you, Kon," Tim Drake (Robin) gratefully told his friend.
"Yeah!" Bart Allen (Impulse) added. "Batman acting happy has gotta be braking a few natural laws! Like, the law of gravity, or the law of-"
"We get it, Bart," Ray Terrill (the Ray) told him before he could keep going on. "And it's not that bad, is it?"
"He's usually kinda… really scary, Ray," Cissie King-Jones (Arrowette) told him. ""I certainly can't imagine him happy."
"Tim, mon," Anita Fite (Empress) said slowly, "It seems to me that you'd want him to be happy."
Titans Tower, New York City
"It's not that I'm upset that he's happy," Dick Grayson (Nightwing) told Donna Troy (Troia), "it's that I don't know why!"
"Does the reason really matter so much?"
"This is Bruce we're talking about! Yes, it- will you three please stop laughing?" he asked his other friends- Wally West (the Flash), Garth of Shayeris (Tempest), and Roy Harper (Arsenal).
"We're all sorry, I'm sure, Dick," Garth smirked, "but look at this from our perspective."
"Yeah," Roy laughed. "You've been bitching about how gloomy and doomy the big bad Bat is to us for years!"
"And when he finally starts to lighten up, you freak!" Wally finished. "He is acting a bit differently lately, though. The JLA's noticed it too, but J'onn says that it's definitely him."
"Is he sure?" Dick asked. "I mean, Tim said the he saw Bruce actually smiling- when he had the costume on!"
"He has smiled in costume before," Garth pointed out. "We've all seen him do it."
"Yeah, when he's reassuring some kids or when something funny happens to somebody like the Joker, but that's it! This was just in the cave, and for no apparent reason!"
"Why does this bother you, Dick?" Donna asked, in a tone of mixed amusement and exasperation. "And don't say it's because you don't know the reason. Anything that makes him lighten up is a good thing, isn't it? For all you know, he's finally just figured that out!"
"Because!" Dick responded "The Batman being happy without a clear reason is-"
JLA Watchtower, the Moon
"Unnatural," Clark Kent (Superman) told Kyle Rayner (Green Lantern). "The only word for it is unnatural."
"If you say so," Kyle dubiously replied.
"Kyle, I've known Bruce for a very long time. And all that time, he's been grim, and lately, he's just been getting worse."
"Maybe he's finally snapped out of it. And he's hasn't been acting that different. I mean, it's not like he's been breaking out into choruses of 'the Sound of Music.' Although, that would be funny to hear…" His face took on a melodramatically serious expression. "The hills are alive with the sound of music," he sang in a bass rumble that was supposed to be reminiscent of Bruce's Bat voice, and then he snickered.
Clark sighed. He both liked and respected Kyle, but Kyle just hadn't been around as long as most of their peers, and therefore didn't really get it. All the 'old timers' knew Bruce for quite a while. Bruce wasn't a happy person. He came in three flavours- Grim, Grimmer, and Batman. He rarely let his guard down and displayed genuine emotion- which usually only happened when something extraordinarily bad happened. Then of course, were the times when he was with Robin or Nightwing- he loved both Dick and Tim more than life itself, but he very rarely- too rarely, in Clark's (and everyone else's) opinion- showed it. In fact, Bruce's descent into constant grimness started when Jason Todd, the second Robin, died. For Bruce to display anything akin to happiness was major.
"Maybe," was all that Clark said. "But I would still like-"
The Clocktower, Gotham City
"But I would still like to know the reason why!" Barbara Gordon (Oracle) exclaimed.
"Don't complain," Dinah Lance (Black Canary) told her friend and partner. "If Bruce is lightening up, I say that we should all just sit back, and be happy."
"But don't you want to know-"
"Yes, I would, actually, but I'm certainly not gonna ask him!"
"I'm not about to, either."
Dinah sighed. "I think that if it was any of the Batclan's business, he would have sent a memo or something."
"So that just leaves us guessing."
They were silent for a moment.
"I can only think of one thing that might make him lighten up," Dinah said. Oracle just looked at her, a look of dawning horror on her face.
"I don't like to think about it," Dinah went on, "but without any other info, we can only assume that Bruce is-"
"Please, don't say it."
"So you agree?"
"I really don't want to think about Bruce and- I mean, the two things just DO NOT go together!"
"Maybe, but that doesn't change the fact that he's probably-"
Happy Harbour
"He's fraggin' like pack of horny rabbits," Slo-bo said firmly.
New York
"He's gotta be getting' some," Roy said.
The Moon
"He's finally getting laid," Kyle snorted.
Gotham
"Probably having hot sex on a regular basis, and almost definitely frequently," Dinah finished.
Happy Harbour, New York, the Moon, and Gotham
After a moment, everyone shuddered at the thought. Batman and sex were two things that did not normally mix.
Wayne Manor, Gotham City
"Everyone's noticed that you've been acting differently, you know."
"Oh?"
"Yes. Clark and Arthur were discussing it. I know that the others were, too."
"Let them talk."
"You, and your need for secrecy."
"You never seemed to mind."
"I don't mind. I probably should, but I don't."
"Our private lives are private. If it doesn't affect our work, the others don't need to know."
"If I didn't agree, everyone would probably be discussing our relationship instead of wondering why you're suddenly acting less grim."
"Was I grim?"
"Yes, and you know it, Bruce."
"I do."
"Do you think we should tell them?"
"No. Do you?"
"No- at least, not yet."
"I agree. You really do have Athena's wisdom, Diana."
"And you have the body of Adonis, Bruce."
"Really?"
"No."
"Tease."
"And what are you going to do about it?"
"Do you really want to find out?"
"Yes, actually. Shall we 'spar' now, or shall we 'spar' later?"
"Oh behave, baby."
They laughed, and… well, you can use your imagination.