Chapter Two: A Girl In Time
Diana danced with a few other men she new from the embassy before departing, Bruce's words about the unidentifiable blood on the stone echoing in her head.
At her apartment she attempted to forget about it. She took a long shower before changing into more comfortable clothes. With a heavy sigh, Diana collapsed in her bed, curling up in her blankets. It took her a few hours to finally fall asleep, her mind buzzing with thoughts and questions she knew couldn't be answered.
Diana's mental alarm woke her at 7 O'clock. She sat up, the sudden ring of her phone caused her jump. She rose to her feet, grudgingly approaching her clutch. But the effort to pick it up failed, causing it to slip from her grasp, its contents spilling about the floor. Now fully awake, Diana quickly picked up her phone and flipped it open.
"Hello?" she answered rubbing her eyes with her free hand./pp"Good morning, Princess," Etta's happy voice spoke.
"Morning, Etta."
"Good news! The mayor cancelled the charity event," she paused, "for personal reasons," she trailed off doubtfully.
"Oh?" Diana raised her eyebrows as she leaned against her desk, her phone tucked between her cheek and shoulder as she flipped through her schedule.
"So that means you are free for the day," Etta said, Diana could almost hear the smile in her voice.
Diana furrowed her brows. "Not quite, it says here that I have to report to the watchtower at three."
"Not anymore, Batman called down, he said he was taking your shift. Very generous of him."
"Yes indeed," Diana said softly.
"Looks like you have Saturday to yourself!" Etta said joyfully. Diana always admired Etta's positive attitude on everything.
"So it would seem. See you Monday, Etta"
Diana shut her phone after her pleasant secretary bid her goodbye. Diana let out a long sigh as she ran her hand through her black tangled hair, her gaze falling on the mess scattered upon the floor.
Crouching down, Diana began to gather the spilled items and placing them back in the clutch. Reaching out, her hand surrounded something cold and round. She brought her gaze to the object, only to be looking down at an elegant engraved brass pocket watch in her palm.
Perplexed, she turned it over in her hand, examining it at a closer perspective. The back had the same floral engraving bordering a protective glass case that revealed the small gears. However the gears remained still.
Shrugging it off, she slipped the pocket watch into her purse before straightening up and heading to the bathroom.
After a brief shower, Diana had changed into a white tank top and jeans. She pulled on her brown boots before shrugging into her leather jacket. Grabbing her purse and keys, she retired from the apartment, locking the door after her.
Diana pulled her sleek hair back into a tight ponytail as she made her way down the stairs. As she stepped outside, she slid on a pair of sunglasses as an attempt to hide her identity. It worked most of the time, although they only kept so many prying eyes away.
Diana spent most of the day shopping. However it was hard to find clothes for herself, she had to be modest about her apparel so not to draw too much attention to herself. She enjoyed simple attire, things that reminded her of her home on Themyscyra.
At dinner time, Diana hauled her bags to her apartment building where she dragged her various apparel items up the three flights of stairs. She set the bags down beside her feet as she stood before her paint-chipped door. She only rented the apartment to get a feel of what it was like to live as a normal human in a large city. She figured this was a good way to start.
She silently fished through her purse for her keys. But as Diana was unlocking the door, a peculiar ticking made her pause. She glanced around the hallway, seeing nothing out of the ordinary. It took her a moment to realize the ticking was projecting from her purse.
Diana slowly pulled out the brass pocket watch she had found earlier. Furrowing her brows she studied it closer. She could see the gears slowly moving behind it's protective glass case. Which was odd seeing that it wasn't working when she found it. She flipped it over to study the front. There was a single button protruding from the top of the watch. She slowly ran her thumb over the decorative button before giving it a gentle push.
To her utter surprise, the watch began to glow a iridescent blue. But even she, a woman of many abilities, was not quick enough to rid of it.
Suddenly, a blue flash blinded her and she felt as if she had been pushed off a skyscraper, tumbling through the air. She tried to use her flight to regain control, but the pull was too strong. After a brief, yet violent, moment of tumbling through midair, she finally hit a stable surface. The blinding light was gone, however her body continued to roll until she hit a wall. She heard a snap beside her before the shriek of breaking glass echoed in her ears.
After several seconds, the dizziness became too much for Diana, and darkness engulfed her.
Diana awoke to a pleasant ray of light beaming over her. She gradually blinked the sleep out of her eyes as she let her gaze wander. She was in an unfamiliar place, however she was to comfortable to care.
Diana started to sit up but immediately cringed in pain as her head began to throb causing her to submit back to the bed.
She let out a quiet moan of agony as she turned to her side, soft blankets coiled around her legs.
"I brought you some warm tea for the pain," said a voice behind her. Diana slowly turned and brought herself to sit up.
Finally, she looked up to see a tall, handsome man standing beside the bed. His eyes were a captivating cetacean blue, his hair was black and smoothed back, saving a stubborn strand that rested above his eyebrow.
It took a moment for her to respond, for she struggled to find her voice. "W-Who are you?" she finally asked, stumbling over her own words.
"I could ask you the same question," he replied as he placed a cup of tea on the nightstand before crossing the room to a desk with a tray of whiskey sitting atop.
"I..." she trailed off, furrowing her brows as she thought. When she didn't answer, the man turned to look at her with an eyebrow raised. Seeing the perplexed look on her face he too furrowed his brows.
"Well, don't you know your own name?" he inquired as he poured himself a drink and took a seat beside the desk.
Diana brought her azure gaze to his. "As a matter of fact, I do not. I can't seem remember a single thing before I awoke just now."
"That's unusual. Although I'm not surprised. You did hit your head fairly hard when I found you last night," he replied.
"Found me? Where?" Diana asked as she sat up straighter to sip her tea.
"Well, I heard a crash in the middle of the night, you where in my living room unconscious. The door was busted down and my glass coffee table was smashed. It is still a mystery as to how that happened. I was hoping you could tell me," he explained before taking a drink of whiskey.
Diana leaned back against the headboard. "I'm afraid I cannot tell you. I'm as clueless about it as you are."
The man stared at her for a long moment with a strange look on his face. "Surely you have a wallet or something in your pocket. Maybe you have some sort of ID?" he finally inquired. "You're definitely not from around here, I've never seen a woman wear clothes like that."
Diana glanced down at herself. She was wearing her white tank top and dark jeans. She spotted her brown leather jacket and purse hanging from the bed post at her feet. It may have seemed odd to him, but her clothes seemed completely normal to her. She checked her pockets, running her hands over her jeans, finding nothing. She looked up at her purse before swinging her legs over the side of the bed. The swift motion caused her to recoil, placing her head in the palms of her hands.
In less than a second the man was at her side, placing at hand on her back. "Maybe you ought to stay in bed," he said, a hint of concern in his voice.
"No, I can to it. I just need to move slower," she replied as she straightened up, taking his offered hand as he placed his other hand at her waist, guiding her to the desk where he sat her down.
She breathed deeply as she pointed a shaky hand to her purse. The man retrieved her bag and place it on the desk before sitting down.
Diana opened her purse and tipped it upside down, its contents diffused over the table. Lipstick, receipts, loose change, her wallet, a pack of mints, her phone, keys, and other unnecessary items lay in a scattered pile.
"Well, you got some keys and a wallet, but what is that?" he inquired as he picked up her phone.
Diana couldn't help but smile. "It's my cell phone, everyone has one," she replied. It was odd that she knew it and he didn't, it was common knowledge.
"I certainly don't, neither does anyone else around here." he placed the phone down.
Diana disregarded the oddity and moved on to her wallet. She opened it, spilling out cards and cash. Diana picked up her embassy card. "Diana Prince. Representative of the Themysciran embassy."
"Embassy? Well that explains the accent."
"I have an accent?" she looked up at him blankly.
"Yes, it's not very strong, though," he replied, an amused grin playing his lips.
Diana shrugged as she set the card down and turned to her phone. The man picked up the card. "So your name is Diana Prince," he looked up at her.
"Apparently," she replied, her blue gaze flickering to his.
"I'm Kent, Clark Kent." he flashed her a smile.
They held each other's gaze for a moment before he glanced back down at the card.
"Wait a minute," he said, his brows furrowing.
Diana looked up, setting her phone on the desk as she leaned forward. "What is it?"
"It says here that this embassy was formed in two-thousand thirteen."
Diana may have forgotten everything about herself, but she knew what century she was in. "And?" she raised an eyebrow.
"That just doesn't make any sense."
"Why not?" He slowly looked up at her, his eyes wide in astonishment. "Because it's nineteen forty-three."
She froze, her eyes wide as she stared into his. "What?"
Diana gazed at him in stupefaction for a moment. "That is impossible," she said as she leaned back in the chair. "That's impossible," she repeated.
"Do you have some sort of," he paused, raising his eyebrows. "time machine?" he asked.
Diana fell forward with a sigh, propping her elbows on the desktop before burying her face in her palms. "Not that I remember, but I highly doubt that I would."
After a moment of silence Diana lifted her head. She wanted to cry, to sob out her emotions. But a strange feeling inside of her told her it was cowardly to cry. It showed weakness.
Diana resisted the urge as she took a deep breath, her gaze on the desktop. "What will I do now?" She asked quietly, almost to herself.
There was a long pause before Clark replied. "Well, I suppose you should stay here until you figure things out."
Diana's wide gaze met his. "Clark, I couldn't. It could take weeks, months even. Really, this is your home. I don't want to intrude and drag you into my issues."
To her utter surprise, Clark laughed. "Nonsense, Diana. I wouldn't let a beautiful woman like you roam the streets of Metropolis alone. Especially in your condition."
Diana continued to stare at him blankly. "Beautiful?" she whispered. She didn't even know what she looked like. Was she beautiful?
"Diana, I'll be honest here, I have a hard time looking away," he said as he stared at her with an earnest expression.
Diana averted her gaze, messing with her phone as a distraction. "Thank you," she replied quietly.
Clark leaned back in his chair, an amused smile on his lips. "I'll let you sleep in my bed, I'll sleep on the couch."
Diana looked up immediately and began to protest, "No-"
"Don't, Diana. I insist that you sleep in the bed."
Knowing it was no use to object, Diana let out a sigh and leaned back.
"And you can't go around dressed like that, so we better get you some clothes to blend in," he paused, his eyes wandering her face. "Well, blend in more, at least."
Diana blinked, was she really that beautiful? The thought of strangers gaping at her made her feel uneasy. She slid down in the chair.
"I'll go ask my neighbor if you can borrow some clothes," Clark said as he began to stand. "I'll be right back."
Diana lurched out to grab his arm and pulled him back causing Clark to gaze down at her with a puzzled look that made her pause. "What is it?" she asked.
"You're strong," he said, his brows still furrowed in confusion.
"Oh, I am sorry," she said before immediately releasing his arm. "Erm, you're not going to tell your neighbor who I really am, are you?" she asked, holding his gaze.
Clark gave her a grin. "Of course not. If I told anyone you were from the future, the government would be at my door in seconds. I'll just make something up."
"Oh, right," she said quietly as she looked down at the floor.
Clark was hesitant to leave. "Will you be alright for a few minutes?" he asked, a hint of unease in his voice.
Diana looked up at him and cast him a reassuring smile. "I'll be fine."
Clark stared at her for a moment before he left the room, Diana waited until the door closed before she opened her phone again. She went through her media, eventually finding pictures. Most of them were of two beautiful black-haired women. She figured one was her and assumed the other was her sister, seeing how similar they looked.
Diana sighed and shut the phone, the screen was making her head spin. Her gaze fell to several shopping bags at the foot of the bed. She furrowed her brows, the bags looked familiar yet she couldn't seem to remember where they came from.
After a moment Diana heard the front door and turned to see Clark enter the room with a large brown paper bag in his hand.
"Where did those bags come from?" she asked, pointing to the colorful baggages.
Clark followed her finger with his gaze. "Oh, I found those next to you when you tumbled in. They're just clothes, probably from your time."
Diana slowly stood up, her head was still spinning, but it was not as bad as before. "They seem familiar to me," she said as she gripped the edge of the desk for balance as she began to sway.
Clark set down the bag as he supported her with an arm around her waist. He led her over to the bed.
Diana sunk down to her knees, Clark's hand slipping from her waist as she sat on the floor, going through the bags.
She pulled out a light blue sundress. She furrowed her brows as she ran her hand over the soft cotton material. An image of her standing at a cash register popped into her head, causing her to cringe and double over, her hands gripping her hair.
Clark placed a hand on her shoulder as he crouched beside her. "Diana, what's wrong?"
Diana took a deep breath before straightening up. "Nothing, I just got a memory of buying this dress. I must have went shopping before I was sent back. I guess I wasn't expecting it."
"I guess not," he said as he stood, helping her to her feet. "I don't have any food right now, I thought maybe we could go out. But if you're not feeling up to it, I can bring something back for you," he offered.
She looked up at him, a smile spreading across her face. "I would love to go."
Clark stared at her for a moment before turning away to pick up the bag. "Here are some clothes. They may be a bit too big, but we can buy some more."
She took the bag and thanked him, watching as he left the bedroom, shutting the door behind him.
After dumping its contents on the bed, Diana stripped to her undergarments. The yellow floral dress slid effortlessly over her body. The dress fit well around her chest, but it was awkwardly loose around her waist. She tied it with a matching floral strap that came with the dress. She slipped on a pair of brown 1-inch heels that came along in the bag. They were slightly smaller than her foot, but she managed to squeeze into them.
Glancing around the room she spotted a long mirror. Standing before it she looked herself over. The dress fell to her knees, revealing half of her long tan legs. It was wrinkled where she tied it tightly at her waist, however it still gave her body its perfect shape. It fit snugly at her chest area and the sleeves where short, exposing her toned arms and silver bracelets. Then her gaze reached her face. Clark had been right, she was beautiful. Diana took a step closer the mirror. Her skin was flawless and her features were perfect. Her fierce gaze was an azure blue. Her black hair was still pulled up into a tight high ponytail. She reached up and removed her hair tie, allowing her long hair to cascade around her shoulders.
There was a knock at the door, causing Diana to jump.
"Are you ready, Diana?" Clark's voice asked.
"Uh, yeah I'll be out in a moment," she replied as she stuffed her the scattered items on the desk back into her purse. She grabbed a straw hat that came in the bag and placed it on her head before rushing out the door. However as she sped out the door she ran straight into Clark, causing them both to stumble.
"Oh!" She said in surprise as Clark grabbed her waist to stable her. She had a hand on her hat to keep it on and the other on his chest. "Sorry," she said, letting out a breath as looked up at him.
He was smiling. "It's quite alright."
Diana replied with a slight smile as she step back, he reluctantly allowed his hand to drop from her waist.
"Well, the dress looks good on you," Clark said as he looked her over. His eyes fell on her wrists. "What are those?"
Diana lifted her arms, looking down at her bracelets. "I don't remember. Should I take them off?" she asked.
"Yeah, they're a bit unusual around here."
She nodded as she passed him into the living room where she snapped one open. She placed the bracelet on a small wooded stand beside the couch, however when she released it, the stand collapsed under its weight, causing the bracelet to dent the floor. Diana let out a gasp as she took a step back. She glanced at Clark who was now at her side. A puzzled look on his face as he bent down to pick it up.
"I am so sorry, Clark! I just seem to break everything," Diana apologized, letting out a soft sigh as she placed a hand on her forehead.
"It's fine, Diana. But these are pretty heavy for a normal human, how do you keep these on your wrists?" he looked down at her.
She took off the other one and set it carefully on the floor beside the other. "They are not heavy to me," she paused then looked up at him as she removed the thinner bracelet from her upper arm. "What do you mean by 'normal human'?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.
Suddenly Clark tensed. "I, er. Nothing. I just meant for anyone," he said quickly.
Diana looked at him suspiciously for a moment before shrugging the matter off. "Right then, shall we go?" she suggested already making her way to the door.
Wrapping her hand around the doorknob she twisted it, however a bit too hard causing the knob to snap off in her hand. She sighed as she turned to look at him. "I am not even going to comment on that."
She heard him chuckle behind her as she pulled the door open, stepping out into the hallway. Together they made their way down the stairs and out the apartment building. The soft summer breeze ruffled her dress and hair as she stepped outside.
Tall brick buildings decorated the city. War propaganda was plastered upon the structures. Men, women, and children roamed the streets. Old cars of all colors occupied the roads. It was odd for Diana, the atmosphere felt different, although a part of her enjoyed it.
Diana didn't take more than three steps before a man tripped over a trashcan looking at her. Heads turned as she walked by. Diana pulled her hat down more, trying to hide her face, however it didn't do much.
Clark paused by the road. "Maybe we should take a cab," he said as he glanced around, his expression was solemn as he cast glares at the men that tried to see more of her.
Diana turned to face him, her hand on his arm. "It's alright Clark, I want to see the city, I enjoy walking," she pleaded, looking up at him.
He clenched his jaw as he looked down at her. "Alright, but we may have to do something that you might not like so much," he said slowly.
"And what's that?"
Clark let out a sigh as he glanced around. "I think it's best if we behave as a couple, to keep these prying eyes away. If they see that you're with me, they'll probably leave you alone," he said.
Diana couldn't help but smile. Clark was a pleasant, handsome man that she didn't mind being around. "I think that is an excellent idea," she replied, beaming a smile.
Clark blinked several times, as if surprised by her reaction. After a hesitant moment, he wrapped a strong arm around her waist pulling her close to his side.
Clark and Diana continued down the street, there was the occasional man that stared at her with wide eyes. Sometimes there was even a woman that stared at Clark. But he had been right, pretending to be a couple definitely keep the greedy gazes away.
They spent the day going in and out of stores, Diana bought several dresses and shoes that were appropriate to the time. By evening, they found a decent restaurant. Diana set the shopping bags next to her on the booth as Clark sat opposite of her.
Diana ordered a large cheeseburger, in which she ate in less than two minutes.
"So have you remembered anything else?" Clark asked.
She shrugged. "No, not really. But I did find pictures of my sister. Maybe I can use my phone to contact her when we get back. Although I doubt it would work."
"Well, It's a start."
Diana took a sip from her soda. "And what about you Clark?" she asked.
"What about me?" he replied, slightly surprised by the question.
"Do you have any siblings?"
"No, I was raised in Smallville, Kansas by my parents," he said.
"Smallville?"
"Yeah, its... well its small. Kinda in the middle of nowhere. Although the few people that reside there are very kind," he said with a slight smile.
Diana grinned. "It sounds wonderful."
Clark flashed her a wide smile. "Maybe I'll take you there someday."
They held each others gaze for a moment before his flickered to her plate. "You finished?"
She nodded before Clark waved the waitress over, getting the check. After paying they stood up to leave. However, Clark froze at her side. Diana looked up at him before following his blue gaze to a tall man at the bar, several other men around him were staring at Clark.
"Clark," Diana said, wrapping her hands around his upper arm. "Clark, what's the matter?"
Clark continued to glare at the men as he wrapped an arm around Diana's shoulder, guiding her out without a word, all the while his fierce gaze never left the man's until they were outside.
"What was that about?" she asked as she shifted all the bags into one hand.
"It's nothing," he replied shortly. Clark now had a dark presence about him, his grip around her waist tightened as he led her down the street.
Diana furrowed her brows, now agitated, as she pulled him to a stop at the entrance of an alley. "It doesn't look like nothing. Clark, what's wrong?" she asked. He let out a long sigh as he ran a large hand through his dark hair. Suddenly he tensed, his gaze locked on something behind her. Diana noticed movement out of the corner of her eye and she turned to see about half a dozen men closing in on them.
Clark pulled her back into the alley, pushing her behind him.
One of them, the tall man, stepped forward. "Long time no see, eh Clark?" The man said as he stuffed his hands in the pockets of his suit, a wicked grin forming on his scrunched "What do you want, Mike?" Clark's harsh voice surprised "You know what I want, Clark," Mike replied, staring him down. "You owe me three-hundred bucks." his foul grin widening as he finally noticed Diana. "But I could make an exception," he said, giving a her a quick wink. Diana glared at the depraved felt Clark's hands curl into tight fists at her side. She wasn't surprised to feel her own hands let out a vile chuckle as he took a step closer. They too mocked his laugh and proceed towards them.
Diana knew they were picking a fight and she didn't hesitate at all when she reached around Clark, bringing her right arm back as far as it would go and back, connecting with Mike's detestable face. She hit him square in the nose, launching him back several yards and into the street beyond the alley. It felt completely normal to her, it was like someone else had taken over her body, moving her limbs for her. All of them stared in bewilderment, however the man nearest to Clark recovered faster and struck him right in the nose. Clark didn't even flinch and countered with a fist, sacking the man in across the face, the force threw the man straight to the ground, swung her leg up as far as her dress would allow and kicked the nearest man in his throat, sending him back into a dumpster, where his crumpled body dented the metal before collapsing limply to the everyone froze to the sound of a loaded gun. Diana turned to see Mike pointing the barrel of a handgun at her. His hand was shaking and his face was covered in blood.
"Give me my money or I'll shoot your broad, Clark," Mike threatened.
Clark slowly put his hands up, a look of alarm on his face. "Mike-," Clark started but Diana cut him off.
"Go ahead. Do it," she said, her eyes narrowed into a fierce gaze.
Mike blinked several times, he was perplexed.
"Diana, what are you thinking?" Clark hissed quietly from behind her.
She didn't know. She had no idea what she was doing, but for some odd reason, she wasn't afraid.
Mike then squeezed the trigger, the bullet shot off with a crack. From the corner of her eye she saw the grey of Clark's suit as he raced toward her, however he was too late, the bullet hit her. Diana close her eyes and waited for the pain, but it never came. She opened her eyes to a ping as the misshaped bullet hit the ground. She looked down at herself. There was a small hole in the dress at her chest, but her skin looked untouched.
Clark stood beside her, gaping. Mike and his men stared in absolute horror before he dropped his gun with a clatter and immediately stumbled off, his remaining crew retreating close "I-," Clark started, his brows furrowed in frustration as he ran a hand through his tousled hair before staring down at her. "What was that?" he finally asked.
Diana bent down to pick up her bags and straw hat that was knocked off. "Clark, do not ask me that because you know I don't know," she replied as she straightened up and stared at him through an agitated gaze.
"How would I know that? Its obvious you're not normal, Diana. Who are you?" he demanded.
"I don't know, Clark," she snapped. "What about you? I saw the way you moved. You have some unnatural abilities as well. Who are you?" she stabbed her finger at his chest as she spoke.
Clark sighed as he glanced around, they were beginning to draw some attention. "Come on, this is not the time nor place to talk about this." he grabbed her arm pulling her from the alley. Diana marched along reluctantly.
She pulled her arm away as she walked beside him. "You better tell me everything when we get back to the apartment."