Hi everyone, this is my first story so I hope everyone reads and enjoys. Helpful criticism or encouragement is appreciated. :)
I do not own DC universe or the Justice League or any of it's characters and chances are I never will...even if I wish it really hard.
Diana Prince pounded angrily on the doors of Wayne Manor. Her normal smile was replaced by a frown and her warm blue eyes were cold and piercing. She was a princess of the Amazons! How dare she stand outside a man's door, begging to be let in like a dog left out in the rain! She could hear the door splintering under her heavy hand and feel it begin to bend to her will. Tomorrow she would probably regret breaking the door, but today she felt no pity. "Open the door, Bruce! I know you are in there!"The door creaked open slowly and Diana snatched her hand away, ashamed of the way she had almost beaten Alfred Pennyworth's face in. "Oh, Alfred, I'm sorry. Are you alright? I would never forgive myself if I had caused you any-" The old butler gently guided her inside the monstrous home, a welcoming smile gracing his wrinkled features."I am perfectly well, Miss Diana. I assume you are here because of my master's...interloping?" Diana nodded, her ire returning, though not quite as strongly."He changed Watchtower rotation! He took me off all active duty and even kept me off the Womb's monitor duty! I am perfectly capable of managing my own life, Alfred. Why would he deliberately interfere with my job?! I came here to save Man's world, not to be a slave to it." He gently placed a reassuring hand on the young woman's shoulder. "I am sure that that is not Master Bruce's intentions. I am quite sure he is merely looking out for you. He came home in such a tizzy from the last mission. Something about you being injured?" The older man instantly knew he said the wrong thing, as Diana grew upset once more.
"That's the other thing, Alfred. He thinks he needs to save me all the time! I am an Amazon, we are almost impossible to kill. I obtained one silly little scratch from Cheetah last week and he thinks I need to be rushed to the infirmary. The infirmary! I'm surprised he did not have Mr. Terrific start up the transporter and have me evacuated. Kal may see me as a sister, but even he treats me as a warrior first! Bruce does not think I can handle myself!" Alfred grew silent, pondering his words for a moment. "Miss Diana, may I step outside my bounds for a moment?" The dark haired girl nodded. "Have you ever stopped to think that, just perhaps, the reason Master Bruce treats you differently is that his feelings for you are different than Mr. Kent's?"
Diana's features were puzzled. "I am not sure I understand." Alfred led her to the study, sitting her down in a leather wingback chair opposite of Bruce's grand oak desk. "Perhaps Master Bruce sees you as something too precious to lose. He has lost much in his lifetime, too much for a young man his age. Maybe he thinks that he is the only thing protecting you, the only thing protecting himself, from losing someone else he loves." Her jaw dropped open and her blue eyes grew wide. "Are you saying that Bruce loves me?" Alfred smiled gently. "I always knew you were a bright girl. If anyone asks you came to that conclusion by yourself."
Diana's cheeks grew rosy. "But he has refused me so often, Alfred. He puts up so many walls that sometimes they seem hopelessly impenetrable. I take one step forward only to be shoved seven steps back. He does not seem to want me to be his ally, let alone a friend or lover."
"I know, Miss Diana, that some days it may feel tiresome to coax him out of his shell, even a little bit, but there is a man of gold behind that terrible bat mask. He drives all emotion out of his life, afraid that he may feel something important other than hate and the need for revenge and vengeance. It may seem like he will go on ignoring those around him who love him, but I must show you my perspective, the view of a man who was been with him since his birth, who has seen the young, troubled boy turn into a lonely, troubled man. Ever since the day you first came into his life you have brightened it immensely. Some days he even has a smile on his face. A real smile, not a billionaire Bruce Wayne smile. He needs you, whether he wants to admit it or not."
Diana grew quiet for a moment. His speech had shocked her, for an old butler he usually wasn't one to pry, so surely the words he spoke held some truth. "Are you sure, Alfred? Is it really worth it? My feelings grow day by day, and no matter what choice I choose I will risk sacrificing something important to me. If I decide to keep trying to win him over and fail I will lose my heart. I may have already. If I succeed I will lose not only my immortality, but my sisters and my home as well. And the worst option, if I do not try at all I might lose Bruce, himself. I do not know if I can live with myself if we lose Bruce to his darkness. He has been held captive there for too long already. He deserves light, joy, and happiness in his life."
Alfred smiled. "Whatever you do, follow your heart, Lady Diana." The blue eyed woman returned the grin. "To the Batcave it is." With that she stood and walked over to the old grandfather clock and turned the hands to the appropriate time, causing a passageway to emerge from the wall. "Wish me luck." The old man nodded, knowing she would need all the help she could get, even with an old butler playing matchmaker.
Diana strode down the coarse stone steps purposefully, her black pumps clicking softly as she went. Bruce would not escape this conversation unscathed. In her mind he had two options. He could either admit he loved her and push aside all his pointless excuses or he would have to look her in the eye and tell her truthfully that he did not care for her at all. She had almost reached the last step when nerves seized her. What would her mother say if she went through with this? Or her sisters? If she gave herself to Bruce she would no longer belong to them, but to Man. Would she lose her powers?
Would the goddesses still answer her pleas? Or would they disown her as well?
Bruce's weary voice drifted through her thoughts. "Alfred, can you come stitch me up?" Her hand flew to her mouth as she hurried into the room, afraid of what she might find in the large cavern She had been inside the Cave before, but it never ceased to amaze her how Bruce had completed construction and filled it with technology. The bat-computer itself was a modern marvel, let alone the Batmobile or the Batcopter. Even the passageways were masterpieces! Her gaze however searched for the small medical area that Bruce had installed quite early on in his mission. Once she found it she quickly flew across the Cave, landing beside her injured had stripped out of his normal gear and was in merely black boxer shorts and a tight white T-shirt. What concerned her most was the red stain that covered most of his left side and the puddle that contaminated the metal operation table. "What happened, Bruce?" His intense blue eyes fluttered open, surprise filling them. She had finally done it, surprised the Batman. "Diana, what are you doing here? Where's Alfred?"
The tall, shapely woman reached toward the bloody white fabric. "Let me help."
"No."
"Why not?"
"Alfred! Alfred!"
Silence came from the upper levels. Apparently Alfred was not going to answer. "Just let me look, you stubborn man!" His hand continued to tug on his hem, resisting her efforts to remove it while Diana pulled all the harder. Finally the white fabric ripped at the seams. "Diana! You owe me a new shirt!" Bruce's glare had yet to rolled her eyes as she tossed the scraps aside. "You can afford a new one. You cannot, however, afford to bleed to death. You have too many people counting on you. You have Dick, Barbara, Commissioner Gordon, Alfred, all of Gotham...me." His icy eyes latched on to hers. "You?" Diana nodded slowly as she reached for a towel and pressed it firmly to his wound, causing him to wince. "I care about you, Bruce. I-I don't know what I'd do if you were seriously injured. Today is a perfect example of that. I came here tonight royally angry at you for taking me off duty, but the minute that I seen that you were injured everything I was going to say flew out the window. Every time you return from a mission I find myself studying you, dying to make sure you are perfectly fine. Every scratch you have feels like a gouging wound." His body grew rigid underneath her soft touch.
"You don't have to respond, Bruce. I already know how you feel about me. I understand not getting attached to anyone in our line of work, but I want you to know that I'm your friend, even if you don't want me to be. I've hesitated to tell you this before, I know we already discussed this. I won't mention it again, but I just needed to tell you because one day it might be too late and I'll regret it for eternity." Her breath caught as Bruce's lips slammed against hers. His hands encased her face tenderly as she dropped the bloody rag and wrapped her arms around his , Bruce released a groan and pressed a hand to his side before pulling away from her. "Now do you understand why I removed you from active duty today?! Can't you understand I feel the same way about you? I've been trying to hide my feelings under a mask for years now. Anger, hatred, the need to seek revenge, and now my feelings for you. I couldn't bear seeing you injured."
Diana chuckled as she reached for a sterilized needle and some thread. "This is going to hurt." Bruce shrugged. "I know. Not the first time. I have some anesthesia over there."
"I'm immortal, Bruce. Those scratches faded within minutes after you seen them." Diana grabbed the medicine off the shelf before turning back to him. His eyes narrowed. "One day that might just fail you and then what?" He winced as she stitched. They remained in silence until Diana finished. "I'm sorry, Bruce. I came over tonight upset with you, but now I understand. We need to come to an agreement...I will try not to worry over you if you quit changing my Watchtower duties." Bruce nodded, a smirk in place. "I suppose that will suffice. Thank you, Princess. Now I think it is time for me to head to bed. Getting stabbed takes a lot out of you."
Diana hid her surprise when Bruce accepted her help upstairs after his wound had been taken care of. He must have been in more pain then he had let on. He leaned on her arm heavily, and she had a feeling of belonging strike through her. Even this little glimpse of Bruce's need filled her with she knew it they had already reached the bedroom. Pulling back the blue silk comforter and the Egyptian cotton over sheet, she maneuvered him onto the mattress. "I want to...thank you, Diana." She shrugged it off, not letting him see how shocked she really was. "It's nothing. I'm sure Alfred is an expert with a needle by now." Bruce laughed, clutching his wound as he did so. "That's not what I meant, Princess. I'm thanking you for being my friend, even when I make it hard. I've pushed you away so many times, giving so many desperate excuses. Truth is I didn't want to face the possibility of losing someone else that I love."
Diana could tell that anesthetic was quickly taking over as his words became slurred, not to mention the fact that he was letting her see his true emotions. He would never let down his guard so easily if he wasn't drugged. After she settled him in bed she made her way from the room, a small smile lighting up her face. Bruce cared about her and now she was going to do something about it.