I know! I know! I promised this wasn't going to take forever and it still did. But fret no longer, I shall be updating quite frequently from here on out. So thank you to all of you who have wonderfully tagged along and stayed with this story. You're the best. :)

Meekus BMWW Fan- Woot! I know Bruce is being a weenie, but it was for the best cause. Thank you for the ultra beta. You deserve a WFCRO. :D

Disclaimer: Not mine!


Chapter Seven: Love Will Tear Us Apart

"Love, love will tear us apart. Again..." - Joy Divison

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Terry felt bad for Matt. Technically, Matt didn't need to know any of this. It was Terry's own prolonged anger and frustration at his estranged relationship with Bruce that made him desire to see his mentor in an even more uncomfortable situation.

But from the looks of it, Bruce was too sidetracked by Diana. And any uncomfortable situation, no matter how small, wouldn't have much of a lasting effect.

While back on the cave's computer, Terry rummaged through old Justice League files. Bruce had quite an assorted picture file on the Amazonian Princess. More than any other Leaguer. What astounded Terry, the photos were more than forty years old, and yet, Diana hardly looked different. It was fascinating.

Terry found another picture where Diana had been sipping some caffeinated beverage with Shayera Hol and the Flash. He smirked. Life certainly seemed easier then.

The next picture jarred him momentarily. A sly look decorated Diana's face. Terry caught his breath. It looked almost as if it was the female version of Matt.

Terry just realized that Matt was awfully quiet.

"Are you..." Terry looked down at his brother. "Ok?"

Matt was lying on his back, staring at the cave's expansive ceiling.

Terry swiveled in his chair and poked Matt with his foot. "You alright?"

"Everything is so messed up." Matt hadn't diverted his gaze. "Dude, my entire life has been a lie."

"Actually, our entire lives have been a lie. If that makes you feel any better."

Matt didn't answer him back. The room, once again, became eerily silent.

Terry sighed. "Does that make you feel any better?"

"No. You're a jerk."

Terry pursed his lips in thought. And he turned back to the screen. "I thought you wanted to see pictures of the old Justice League. I found a picture of Diana that you might find interesting."

His younger brother stirred for a moment and then he sat up. Matt focused his eyes onto the large computer screen.

"Oh my God." Matt looked up at Terry. "How did THIS happen, Terry?!" Matt jumped up from the cave floor and started frantically pacing. "You know how long I've known you were Batman?! Do you know? A long time. Too long. I'm not exactly dumb..."

Terry thought it over. It was probably a good thing Bruce never had siblings. Intelligent siblings at that. And considering who Matt's biological parents were... "Yeah, I don't think it's possible for you to be dumb at all."

Matt merely ignored him. "And now this?" He shook his head, but then stopped pacing. He looked back at his brother in the computer chair. "I never really had a dad. He was killed when I was too young. And before that, he and mom were separated. And now you tell me that I had an entirely different family all along? How come I never knew this?"

"Even I have only known for a short period of time. In fact, I wasn't even sure if you were Diana's. But you were definitely Bruce's..."

It was almost as if Matt wasn't listening to anything Terry was saying. "And I don't really even know who Wonder Woman is. Or was, rather. Hell, I don't even know why she's immortal to begin with."

"She's an Amazon."

Matt's eyes widened. "I thought Amazons were fictional."

"No, there are very real."

"So, now we are half Amazon?? What does that even mean? I'm a freak?"

Matt was always more expressive than Terry. Everything floating through Matt's mind, Terry had felt the same way while visiting Amanda Waller. Only Terry had been much more evasive and distant about the information he had received. How Batman would and should be. Matt, on the other hand, was entirely different. It was scary.

"Knock it off. I can tell you anything you want to know."

"Ok. Enlighten me. How is this at all possible?"

Terry had his own question before he fed Matt's desired information.

"You know, it's not like you to believe something so easily like this out of blue. And why is that, Matt? Is it perhaps because..." Terry paused to narrow his eyes. And smile. "You see it? You see the eye color, the hair color... the height...It's enough physical evidence. You've been around them long enough to feel some sort of connection, haven't you? I felt the same way. I know what's going through your mind."

Matt was too stubborn to admit anything. He only clenched his jaw and shook his head. "Just tell me what I want to know, ok?"

"It was something referred to as Cadmus. Amanda Waller headed the Camdus project and she had been at odds with the Justice League for quite awhile. After a power struggle, she soon helped the League take down Lex Luthor. And she was reluctantly helped by the League numerous times. In that time period, she came to admire Batman. And she knew he was mortal. He would die eventually. And she knew the world couldn't be without the Batman. She found a way to take his DNA and inject it into Warren and Mary McGinnis, since Bruce didn't know."

Terry paused for a moment, Matt seemed to be attentive. He continued.

"Thus a child was born. Just not of their DNA. At first I was under the assumption it was just Bruce. But I found out about Diana as well. Turns out she couldn't pass up an opportunity to create a child of both the Bat's DNA and the Amazon's DNA. She wasn't sure if the injection in our mom would last long enough for you. Whether the embryo and chromosome material was Diana's or mom's. From the look of it... it remained Diana's." Terry sighed and gave his brother a reassuring smile. "That's the reader's digest version. I can be more detailed if you'd like."

Matt crossed his arms in front of his chest. "It sounds like you made it up."

Terry rolled his eyes.

But Matt continued before Terry could retort. "You'd think we'd be more ... oh I don't know... 'special' if our mother was full-blooded Amazon."

"Well, we certainly don't have super strength, if that's what you mean. I have a theory. I suppose we could ask Diana..."

"What is it?"

"I have a feeling her 'abilities' would only pass on to female offspring, since Amazons are strictly female to begin with."

"Makes sense. Sounds cool. Could we talk them into giving us a sister?"

Terry raised a brow and looked up at the door leading to the main house. "If you factor in how Bruce has been looking at her... I suppose it's going to happen whether we want it to or not."

Matt made a face. "Ew."

"So, are you going to be ok?" Terry asked lightly, hoping to change the subject. Fast.

"My mom is a female warrior and my dad is an eccentric billionaire who liked to dress up at night. Yeah, I need to digest for awhile, " Matt sighed. He forced a smile. "I think I'm going to go see mom. Want to come?"

Terry shook his head while he checked his watch. "I need to call Dana. I also need to go on patrol in about soon. I was hoping to take Diana with me..."

Matt sighed. "Ok. Have a good time."

"Don't worry, I promise we can have a family dinner soon."


Bruce and Diana stayed in their chairs at the dining room table. Neither of them knew what to say, but what needed to be discussed seemed to be piling up around them. Especially since Bruce was at least sixty years younger than he was when he woke up that morning. He had so many questions and very few answers.

And the fact that Diana was as beautiful as she ever was and that she was within arms reach was starting to cloud his mind.

One step at a time.

"So…" "So..." Each person said at the exact same time.

They both stopped and smiled at each other only to remain quiet for a few extra seconds.

"I'm younger," he commented finally while cracking a small grin.

"Yes. You're right about that." She really was too beautiful.

As much as Bruce needed answers, he really only wanted to grab her and kiss her. They could start over from where they had been interrupted by Terry.

However, he needed to stayed focused.

The one question that had been nagging him finally came to the forefront.

"Why?"

"I'm sorry?"

Bruce looked her directly in the eyes, and neither diverted their gaze. "Why, Diana? Why all of this? Why keep me around?"

Diana finally looked away and sighed. "I couldn't do it, Bruce." She shook her head and bit her lower lip. "I'm sorry I'm so selfish. But I couldn't see you like that…" At that, something happened that could have almost made Bruce's insides melt. She started to cry. "I couldn't take it. And then Athena gave me the opportunity…" Her voice trailed off as she wiped away a stray tear.

That explained many things. Athena had been in Gotham, and in his home of all places. That was interesting...

He nodded slowly as he took in her words. He was having a hard time figuring out how to address the situation. A typical reaction from him wouldn't have been welcome. Bruce would have been angry and almost irrational, since he hadn't asked for any of this and especially since he had never given her permission to give him a do-over.

A do-over. That's really what it was. And uncharacteristically, Bruce didn't mind. Well, sort of. He did mind and he had to tell her.

But before he could make his concerns known, he caught himself getting onto the table to only pull her over to him.

And that's when his lips met hers, and his mind turned off. It had happened before, it was bound to happen again.

To his utter surprise, Diana pulled away and simply stared at him. "We need to talk about this."

"It's all your fault," Bruce said after giving her a frustrated sigh. "So maybe we can talk about it later..."

Before his mouth met hers, she started speaking again. "We're on your dining room table ."

Giving up hope on her lips, he reached for her neck and successfully made contact.

"Bruce..."

She was still talking. He could feel the vibrations in her throat against his lips.

"Hmm?" He muttered against her neck.

She placed a hand on either side of his head and pulled his face up to her eye level.

"You need to control yourself," she said half-seriously. "You're acting on a twenty-something year-old's hormones."

He grinned ear to ear. "So?"

Diana gave him a look. "I show up after not seeing you for more than thirty years, a goddess visits your home and I give up my immortality for you so that we can finally be together. Shouldn't we discuss this?"

Bruce frowned and said nothing. He really did need to think this over.

She continued. "I mean, do you want to be together...?" Her eyes shone with concern. "I wasn't sure if that's what you wanted. Besides, ...you're no longer Batman and the entire world knows Bruce Wayne as a crotchety old man on the verge of ... kicking the bucket. Or so they say. And now you look... slightly younger than me."

That's when it finally hit him. His drive for her finally subsided as he realized what had occurred.

"Oh." Bruce's arm around her waist loosened, and he pulled away to sit back down in the chair he had left empty. His senses had returned to him, and for the first time in awhile he could think clearly.

What was he going to do? She was right. About everything.

He had no control over what had happened. And she had just taken over his life without a word. He had never even told her what he really wanted. As much as he wished he could have spent his life with her, it wasn't supposed to be. Messing with his fate was the last thing he wanted.

Within seconds, Bruce went from being more than elated around Diana, to being almost livid.

He covered his face with his hands and while he half-seethed, he enjoyed the loose feeling in his joints. Nothing creaked, nothing ached. That was a good thing, he supposed.

Bruce sighed slowly. And Diana finally caught on.

"I'm sorry. I should have asked you first."

And then he removed his hands and glared over at her. His blue eyes flashed. "Yeah, but you didn't..."

Diana didn't seem to know what to say.

Bruce continued, "So... can Athena reverse it?"

"What?" But she could sense he was serious."Why would you want to...?"

"You didn't answer me. Can she reverse it?"

Diana simply shook her head in disbelief, but then she gave a stiff nod. "I suppose she can."

"Good." He leaned into his chair and tried not to focus on her crest-fallen features. He did want it. But he didn't like anyone messing with what was supposed to happen. He was meant to spend the rest of his life alone. And he was meant to die alone.

As much as he loved Diana, this wasn't right.

"Why?"

At least he could answer her that. "It wasn't supposed to be like this, Diana... You and I both know it. We had our fun. Even back then, we knew it wasn't supposed to be like this. We weren't meant to be. I'm sorry." His apology, if he meant one at all, was forced.

And she saw through it.

"You're sorry? ..." The sadness that captured her before was slowly fading. Now nothing but pure anger set in. She narrowed her eyes and set her jaw. "Yeah, I'm sorry too. I'm sorry that I love you. That's for certain. I'm sorry that I went out of my way to make it work out. You're right, it wasn't meant to be..."

Bruce suddenly felt like he had been punched in the gut.

Diana stood up, retaining a regal posture. She looked down her nose at Bruce. "I will find a way to contact Athena. I should be returning to Themyscira soon."

"But what about Terry and Matt? You're just going to leave them?"

He hadn't meant for this to happen. Suddenly, Bruce wished he could take his words back and reiterate what he meant to say.

"I'm not their real mother, or rather the mother they know. You and I both know that. I didn't come here to upset their family dynamic."

As if he had heard his own name, Terry, donning the black and red accented suit, walked up behind Diana. He didn't make any visual contact with Bruce.

She looked over at him, and he nodded at her. "Would you like to come with me? On patrol?"

Diana, who was now ignoring Bruce, complied. "Alright. I also need to return to my jet. At some point."

"I'll escort you," Batman said as they walked down to the cave together and disappeared from sight.

Just like that, the one thing Bruce wanted walked away from him and his life.

What did he want? Did he want this?

He sure as hell did. But he wasn't going to admit it.

Bruce sighed in sheer frustration and lowered his head to the table's cool surface.

"You ok?"

Bruce looked up to see Matt standing there.

"Why are you still here?" Bruce asked, though it was more like a demand.

Matt held his hands up defensively. "Whoa, ok... I'm almost gone."

Bruce stood up from his chair. "Wait. Let's talk."

Matt looked over at Bruce, all while seeming slightly frightened by the idea.

Bruce searched the floor as if he would find the right words to say.

Biting his lower lip, Matt finally asked the one question that Bruce dreaded. "Did you let her go?"

"I...- What?"

"She didn't seem too happy leaving." Matt shrugged, but seemed a little smug that he had hit a nerve, which Bruce hated. The little bastard...

"Yes." Then he shook his head. "I guess I don't know what I want. It wasn't meant to be... It shouldn't have happened this way."

Matt crossed his arms in front of his chest and pondered that for a moment. "You mean... you didn't want it to be like this."

Bruce must have been transparent. Or rather, in his now young age, his ability to hide certain emotions was sorely lacking.

"She shouldn't have given up anything for me. I should have given everything for her. She deserved everything good that I had to offer. I couldn't even accomplish the simplest task. I avoided her like she was some sort of plague. When really she would have only brought happiness into my life and now that she's sacrificed so much for me..." He stopped and clenched his jaw.

"Bruce..." Matt muttered softly, making the man in question look up at his youngest son and wait for Matt to say more. "You had two kids without trying,... without being together in the slightest. Doesn't that say something to you? Dude, I think it's meant to be. You need to go get her, before she forgets about you forever."

Bruce suddenly liked Matt. A lot.

"You're right," Bruce whispered. He gave a firm nod. "You really are right about that... What have I done?"

"Go get her, Bruce."

Suddenly, he felt lost. Being young again opened so many opportunities that had been closed off before. He just needed to remember what those were.

Matt held up a set of keys. "Uh... I've got a car outside."

And then Bruce grinned slowly. "I've got something better... Oh, and don't call me dude."


If you are so inclined to leave a review, I'd love it! Thanks again!

Brutal2003- Thank you! And I shall update again very soon... ;)

LJP- Heh, thanks! I know... laid back Bruce is always nice. :D