A/N: I'M BACK! My goodness, it's been simply AGES - I am SO SORRY for not getting this up sooner. I can't believe it's been more than a year since I last posted a Diamond Earth fic - and I also can't believe that I promised you guys this one before the new year (facepalm). Well, that'll teach me not to make promises I can't keep. The only excuse I have is A-levels prep eating up all my time - which is a pretty good excuse, you have to admit. My final exam (urk!) starts in less than 3 weeks, but thankfully I had the whole week off for Easter and I finally managed to find time to finish this baby.

This story was a pain to write. I don't think I've had to stop and stall so many times on a story before...for some reason it just didn't want to come out right. It's probably my worst case of writer's block ever. But! I perservered, and I finished it! And not only is it the first new Diamond Earth Tale in over a year, but it's also my first story for 2014! Two birds with one stone! I am sooo back.

So, welcome again, readers, to Tales of Diamond Earth. By now you should all know what my DC universe is like, so I'm not going to summarize it here. For new readers, and for old readers who've forgotten, you can check my profile for the complete overview of Diamond Earth and of the current Tales in the archive.

Without further ado, let us begin...

TALES OF DIAMOND EARTH

The Witch's Brew

Chapter One: In Which A Clue Is Found

The young woman made her way steadily through the pouring rain, unheeding of the soaking her clothes were getting. In her hand she clutched a colorful poster; wrapped in some sort of water-repellent film, it was the only thing she was zealously guarding from the heavy raindrops.

When she reached her destination she forewent the doorbell in favor of rapping smartly on the door three times with her free hand. Precisely eight seconds later, the door was opened by the prim, astute butler.

"Good heavens, Miss Zatanna. You're thoroughly soaked!"

Zatanna shrugged impatiently – right now, her state of dryness – or lack thereof – was the least of her concerns.

"I need to see Bruce," she said.

Alfred Pennyworth opened the door wider to admit her entry. "I take it this is a matter of some urgency?"

"Yeah." Zatanna suddenly noticed, seemingly for the first time, that she was dripping water all over the immaculately polished floor. Immediately contrite, she apologized, "Sorry, Alfred…I'll clean it up in a jiffy. Yrd roolf." With a wave of her hand, the puddles vanished. She performed the same spell on herself and was perfectly dry in an instant.

"Thank you, Miss Zatanna. Master Bruce is in the library. You know the way, of course?"

Zatanna nodded; she was quite familiar with Wayne Manor.

"Go right ahead, then. I will be along shortly with a cup of hot tea."

"Oh, Alfred, that's not necessary…"

"As talented as you are, Miss Zatanna," Alfred cut in politely, "you were still walking through the rain and soaked to the bone. Your spell dried your clothes, and the tea will warm your insides so you don't catch your death of cold."

Zatanna smiled ruefully. "In that case, Alfred, I gladly accept your offer of tea."

After Alfred retreated to the kitchen to prepare the tea, Zatanna walked through the corridors, heading for the library. On the way she passed the game room, where twelve-year-old Jason Todd was playing some sort of sniper video game on the Playstation fixed to the 40-inch plasma screen.

So that's the new Robin, she noted.

When she reached the massive library in the west wing, she let herself in. Bruce Wayne was sitting in one of the armchairs by the unlit fireplace, leaning back comfortably as he balanced the book he was reading on his crossed legs.

"Afternoon, Zatanna." Only after he'd said this did he close his book and lay it on the table next to the chair. He looked up at her expectantly, knowing full well this wasn't a social visit.

"I found something." She sat down in the chair next to his and extended the poster. Wordlessly, Bruce took it and examined it.

It was a fairly ordinary-looking poster – colorful, yes, but otherwise unremarkable – advertising a circus act. Spattered in bold gold and black letters across the bottom of the glossy 8-by-12-inch page were the words, 'Mr. Z's Amazing Magic Show'. The illustration included all kinds of magic tricks – rabbits appearing from a top hat, a wand emitting sparks and stars, and a crystal ball filled with blue mist, among others – but there was no image of the magician himself.

Bruce glanced up from the poster to meet Zatanna's hopeful eyes.

"Mr. Z could be anyone," he pointed out.

"It's him." Zatanna's tone was adamant. "I know it's him."

"You can't be certain."

"Bruce, look at it!" Zatanna gestured at the poster. "Look at the caption."

He obliged her, his eyes finding the smaller print that read, 'Magic so impossible it could be real'.

"If that isn't his work, I don't know what is."

Alfred knocked politely on the door just then, entering the library with a tray. "Your tea, Miss Zatanna."

"Thank you, Alfred." She managed not to sound too distracted. He nodded in acknowledgment.

"Anything I can get for you, Master Bruce?"

The other man held up a palm to indicate the negative. "No, thank you, Alfred – I'm fine."

"As you wish, sir." Alfred backed out of the room.

As Zatanna sipped absent-mindedly at her tea, Bruce turned his gaze back to the poster, looking thoughtful. "Where did you find this?"

"Right here, in Gotham. It was pinned on a wall along 85th Street."

"It's also outdated." Bruce pointed to the dates listed at the top of the page, which proclaimed that the circus with Mr. Z's Magic Show was in town from 19th to 26th July – well over a month ago. 85th Street did tend to be filled with adverts announcing events from several months ago; no one really bothered to take down the posters there once they'd expired.

"I know," Zatanna admitted. "But it's the first clue I've found in five years. And you promised you would help me if anything new came up," she reminded him.

"Indeed," he agreed. He checked the luxurious Rolex watch on his left wrist. "I have an appointment this evening, but I'll get Batgirl and Robin to cover patrol tonight. We can start at ten."

She nodded. "Done. Where do you want to meet?"

"Monarch Theater. You're not working tonight, are you?"

"I have a show scheduled, but I'll cancel."

Bruce nodded. "Don't get your hopes up too high, Zatanna," he cautioned. "It might be another dead end."

Zatanna sighed. "I know." She looked him straight in the eye. "But it's the only thing I have right now."

"You want me to what?" Wally West leaned back, unsure if he was hearing this right.

"Cover my shift tonight," Batman repeated. "I'll take the one you have over the weekend."

"Are you sure you're okay?" Batman never asked anyone to help, whether it was to aid him on a difficult case or replace him on the duty roster.

Well, okay, he wasn't that bad, but he had never asked Wally for a favor before.

"Never better. Something important's come up, that's all."

Wally reached for the calendar on his wall and flipped several pages. For some reason, it was still on May, even though they were more than a week into September now. "What day is today?"

"Tuesday."

Shit, Wally thought as he noted the corresponding date on his calendar. "Can you find someone else?"

"Superman's busy, Hal's working, Canary's on maternity leave, and Diana, Fate, and Hawkgirl are on a mission."

"What about J'onn?"

"Who do you think is the second person on duty tonight?"

"Oh, yeah." Wally groaned. "Okay, fine, but you owe me, Bats – and I mean it! I had a hot date tonight."

"You can reschedule for the weekend. Since I'll be taking your shift, you've got the whole two days free."

"You mind telling me what exactly is so important it can't wait till tomorrow?"

"It's a personal matter."

Batman had personal matters?

"All right, then. Guess I'll be seeing you."

The click on the other end of the line told Wally the Dark Knight had hung up. Wally wondered if he would be hearing about some big event on Gotham TV tonight.

Since the incident with Zoom almost five months ago(1), everyone had opened up about their identities. Upon realizing how knowledge of each other's secret identities could be essential – especially when their hero work affected their personal lives – Superman had suggested that they all reveal who they were behind the mask. Batman, naturally, had held out the longest against this idea, but he eventually gave in after Superman, Wonder Woman, and Doctor Fate coaxed him into it through a combination of reasoning and metaphorically twisting his arm.

Thinking back, Wally realized that he should have deduced who Batman was. After all, he knew Dick had been Robin, and he also knew he'd been adopted by Bruce Wayne…putting two and two together shouldn't have been so hard, particularly considering that he worked in a police lab for a living. But that just proved how effective Batman was at maintaining his two identities – Bruce Wayne and the Dark Knight were so different, their personalities so irreconcilable, that even if they intersected it would be a huge, implausible leap for someone to make that the two were one and the same.

Sighing, Wally reached for the phone to cancel his date tonight. I hope Linda isn't too ticked…

(1) As detailed in Legacy.

A/N: A bit short, I know, but that gets fixed in later chapters. So, do tell me what you think by writing a few words in the box down below and clicking "review" - I always love hearing from you guys. I will be updating daily, as usual, so you may expect Chapter Two tomorrow. Oh, and for those of you who haven't yet, do feel free to check out the other Diamond Earth stories. I'm building a universe here, people ;)