A litter sadder than what I usually write. But please enjoy.
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He breathed steadily to keep himself together. He could barely comprehend what had happened. She had always seemed so strong, so indestructible. The fact that she was gone hit him hard, harder than almost anything he'd ever felt before. He had loved her with all his heart. And now she was gone. It seemed as if everyone he loved was predetermined to die.
As if on cue, a small voice uttered, "Daddy?"
Bruce tensed as he came face to face with big, blue eyes. "Yes, Celeste?" he managed to respond. It hurt to look into those eyes, they were the same shade and shape as Diana's sapphire pools.
Celeste looked around curiously. "Where's Mommy?" she asked.
Bruce felt his heartache increase with that question. How was he, a man who had never gotten over his own parents' death, supposed to explain to a five year old girl that her mother, a woman she loved and admired with all her heart, was never coming back? He quickly swallowed the pain, however, and placed his daughter on his lap.
"She had to go away for a little while," Bruce explained gently. "But she'll be back."
Celeste studied him and he mentally cursed the fact that she was so smart for her age. "Why are you sad?" she questioned innocently.
Bruce kissed the crown of her head. "I'm not sad," he assured her.
"Are you sure?"
"I'm sure."
Celeste seemed to consider this for a moment before kissing him on the cheek. "Okay, Daddy," she accepted, getting off his lap. "Goodnight."
Bruce, despite himself, smiled. "Goodnight, baby girl."
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He knew something was wrong the minute she stepped through the door. He looked on in shock; the eleven years old's eyes were red and puffy and her cheeks were stained with tears. "Baby girl," he said, walking towards her frantically. "What's wrong?"
Celeste stepped away from him, betrayal shining in her eyes. "Why?" she asked, her voice cracking.
Bruce knew what she was talking about almost immediately, but decided to humor her for her (and his) own sake. "Why what, Celeste?"
She was sobbing by now. "Y-You knew she was never coming back," she choked. "You knew she was dead!"
Bruce felt his heart break with that. He tried to step towards her. "Celeste-"
She moved away once again, her lip quivering. "Why didn't you tell me?" she demanded. "Why didn't you tell me Mom was gone? Why did you let me think that she would be coming home?"
Bruce kneed down to her level, his hands resting on her shoulders. "Celeste, listen to me," he said gently. "How did you find out?"
Celeste wiped her face. "W-well, I overheard U-uncle Clark a-and A-aunt Lois talking when I-I was at Jon's house t-today," she stuttered in between sobs. "I h-heard them talking about m-me and how they f-felt sorry that I-I didn't have my m-mom anymore. I asked t-them what they m-meant and Uncle C-Clark told me that M-mom died when I was f-five."
Bruce felt rage bubble in his stomach. He was going to kill Kent. "Honey, listen." He made sure his voice was as delicate as he could possibly be. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you, and I'm sorry you had to find out this way. But never think, even for a second, that I ever wanted to hurt you. I was just trying to protect you. You were so young when it happened and I had no idea how to explain it to a five year old."
Celeste sniffed. "I-I think I've always known she was dead," she confessed. "I just didn't want to admit it. I wanted to believe you, to believe that I would come home she would be sitting at the table or waiting for me in my room to surprise me." She chuckled humorlessly. She felt like an idiot. "Guess that was just wishful thinking."
Bruce almost flinched at how mature she sounded. His little girl had grown-up and he had hardly even noticed. Another part of him knew that she had known; she was too smart to believe that her own mother had up and left her without so much as a note. "Are you going to be alright?" he asked.
Celeste shrugged. "Probably." She hugged him. "Are you?"
Bruce wrapped his arms around her. "I think I'll manage." He buried his face into her long hair. "I love you, baby girl."
"I love you too, Daddy." Once she had gone upstairs, he turned to the man standing behind him. "Alfred, am I a bad father for not telling her?"
"No, sir," Alfred answered. "You were doing what you thought was best. You were protecting her, giving her the ignorance that you wish you could have as a child. She's strong, she will get though this."
Bruce looked up at the ceiling. "I hope so."
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Later that night, a woman was in Bruce's room while he was asleep. She was there, yet she wasn't as the moonlight shone through her. She leaned down and gave him a lingering kiss on the lips. "You're a wonderful father," she whispered, her tone adoring. "I love you, Bruce." Their daughter was such a sweet little girl, he was doing such a good job raising her.
Bruce smiled in his sleep. "Diana..." he uttered quietly, making the woman smile.
The woman then went into Celeste's room and bent down to her bed, kissing the girl on the cheek. "I love you, my Sun and Stars. Never forget that." With that, she was gone.
Celeste awoke with a start, her eyes attempting to scan the dark room. "Mommy?" she whispered, confusion etched across her face. Her fingers tentatively touched the place where Diana's lips had touched and smiled. "I love you too, Mom."
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Feels, man. Feels everywhere. Please review!