Summary: (BM/WW Wedding-fic) When Batman finally gathers the courage to ask Wonder Woman to marry him, the Dark Knight gets more than he bargained for when the entire League decided to pitch in and help plan their impending nuptials – contains fluff, random humour, a temperamental Amazon princess, drunken bachelor-party escapades, and various attempts on Superman's life!
A/N: Personally, this is one of my favourite chapters I've written thus far – I'll probably edit a few things over time where I see fit, but right now, my verdict still stands. There will be flashbacks in this – just to clear up, they're the parts written in italic. Also I'd like to point out something I forgot to mention that one of my reviewers asked about – the general public in this story is in fact aware that Diana Prince is Wonder Woman, sorry if there was any confusion about that.
And as always, I can't thank you all enough for reading this. The stats are looking awesome, people!
Also, again this is the un-beta-ed version of this chapter.
Disclaimer: I'm a first-year college student. What do you think?
Bridezillas & Kryptonite
08.
~Chapter Eight~
Truths & Misconceptions
The drive back to the Manor was… well, for lack of a better word, odd – not uncomfortable, not unpleasant… just, unusual. Neither Bruce nor Diana was speaking, not to each other or saying much or really anything the entire way as both seemed to be trapped by their own thoughts.
Looking out of the window absentmindedly, Diana lowered her hand over her stomach – it was an involuntary reaction she picked up after leaving Leslie's office and was on its way of becoming a habit.
Amazons didn't have children. She and her sister weren't born the 'conventional' way – they were the exceptions as they were created by the gods, moulded out of clay and quite literally had the life breathed into them.
Now, she was pregnant.
After an hour, the news was still only just sinking in.
Her mind was reeling with questions she didn't have answers for just yet, some about her and Bruce, about everyone else and how they were going to take the news, but mostly, she thought about the baby.
One thing was for certain, whenever Diana thought about being a mother, her stomach clenched, but in a good way. It was a funny sensation, a sense fear and eagerness, wonder and confusion all rolled into one.
Looking back, she probably should have asked Leslie if feeling like this was normal, but the truth was, she wasn't exactly thinking of any of that (or much of anything else) at the time…
"Congratulations – you're going to be parents."
Diana was too stunned to react on Leslie's words. At her side, Bruce was still for the most part frozen, his gaze, like hers, fixed on the monitor.
"How… how old is it?" Diana asked quietly after some of the initial shock had worn off and she was able to form whole sentences again.
"It's still very early to really tell for sure, but if I'm not wrong… I'd say about three, maybe four weeks?"
"It doesn't even look like a… a…" She couldn't finish her sentence.
"A baby?" Leslie said kindly. "No, not yet. But in time."
"It's so small…" she said, mostly to herself.
As she watched, the little shape on the screen moved, and Diana found a smile creeping up on her.
Diana snapped out of her reverie when she heard a car door slam shut. She hadn't even noticed that they were in the garage until Bruce had gotten out and walked around to open the door for her.
Once she got out, Bruce didn't linger and headed straight for the house. Diana trailed behind, wondering if she should say anything – Bruce had been quiet for the entire excursion, she wasn't sure if she should have been getting worried or not.
When they entered the entrance hall, Diana stood in the doorway and watched him. He looked like he was about to go upstairs, until he paused at the stairs and turned his head to look at the vase full of rose which had arrived the previous day.
"Where did those flowers come from?" he asked, not facing her.
She was relieved that he was finally talking again, but confused at the question. "They were delivered here yesterday."
He carefully took off the card. "Is this the card that came with it?"
"Yes, but Alfred said it was blank… I assumed they came from you."
Bruce then surprised her by swearing and went over to the flowers, taking them at the base of the vase and walked into the living room.
Diana followed him, and as she entered the room, she saw Bruce in front of the empty fireplace. He then kneeled in front of it.
"What are you doing?" she asked, watching as he began stacking firewood on top of each other.
"I didn't send these," he began, standing up again.
"Bruce?"
"I've been working on a case for the last few weeks. Seven people have died and I found out yesterday that Poison Ivy was responsible." He explained, taking out a handkerchief from his pocket and wrapped it around his hand, careful as he took a single rose from the lot.
"And the roses…" Diana began before she got it. She felt her throat go dry. "They were poisoned."
Bruce nodded curtly, wrapping his handkerchief around the stem of the rose. "The toxin was designed to cause panic like what you experienced last night. She was targeting people somehow involved with a construction company."
"But then why would she target me?"
Bruce's mouth set in a grim line as his eyes hardened. "She didn't," he said stiffly, unceremoniously tossing the flowers on top of the wooden pile and placed the empty vase on the mantelpiece. "They were delivered here – Ivy had a grudge against Wayne Enterprises… the fact that you got caught in the middle of it… coincidence." He practically growled out the last word.
"Bruce…" she said, frowning.
He didn't look at her. And without saying anything else, Bruce took a box of matches from the mantelpiece. Going on his knees again, and after a few minutes of coaxing, he managed to get a fire started.
When he stood up again, Diana walked up next to him.
They stood there like that for a few minutes, Bruce watching how the roses burned while Diana stared at him – he didn't show it, but she could tell that what happened the day before bothered him than what he would willing to say out loud… added to that, there was the unexpected news of her pregnancy…
She could only imagine what was going through his head right now, and he heart sank to her stomach at the thought.
Diana was about to reach over and take his hand – close the gap between them somehow – but before she could, Bruce withdrew, taking a step back and away from her.
"I'll be in the Cave." He said, turning around, taking the single rose he kept as he left the room.
As she watched him go, Diana had the disheartening feeling of déjà-vu – wasn't it in her dream that something similar to this happened?
It was the same scene, only in colour and in full sound and sunlight pouring in through the windows, but unlike in her dream those few nights, however, there was no heated confrontation between the two of them, no overly-dramatic exit on his part…
…And yet, why didn't any of that make her feel any better?
Several Hours Later…
Batman was a statue amongst the gargoyles that night – his mouth, the only visible part of his face, was set in a straight line as his eyes behind the white lenses scanned the surrounding streets below him, his body rigid and held at the ready.
The night was clear, the rain clouds had passed earlier that afternoon which meant the streets were ripe with petty criminals taking advantage of the good weather while it lasted – all he had to do was follow the sirens and keep an eye out for trouble.
And sure enough, he then heard the sound of a car alarm going off a mere block away.
Narrowing his eyes, the statue came alive again.
A Block Away…
"Shut that damn thing off!" Tony snapped, covering his ears with his one hand as the pickup's alarm wailed as the other held the crowbar he used to smash open the driver's side window.
Toby, who had half his body inside of the car hanging out of said window, scoffed. "Hey, hey! This ain't as easy as it looks, gimme a minute will ya!" he retorted as he attempted to hotwire the car.
"With all the racket it's makin', we won't have a minute!"
"Then shut-up and let me do my thing, okay!"
"Ladies, ladies," Tiny, the look-out, interjected, "why don't you both shut-up? Arguing's not gonna get us anywhere." He was leaning back against the streetlight with his arms crossed over his chest.
It was supposed to be a simple carjacking – they found the truck standing alone in an empty, dark street with the only source of light being the broken streetlight flickering above them. It was an easy picking.
Tony snorted. "Who are you, my mother?"
"Nah, but I'll kick your ass if you don't chill the hell out," Tiny said matter-of-factly. "What's got you on edge anyway?"
"Whadya think?" Tony said darkly.
"What, you're worried about Batman?" Toby asked, still struggling with the wires.
"No, Santa Claus." Tony deadpanned. "Of course I'm talkin' about Batman!"
Tiny rolled his eyes as he stepped away from the light. "Get real, man, we got a better chance of winning the lottery than runnin' into the Bat tonight."
Tony gave him a sceptical look before turning his back on him. "Maybe, but I still don't like it."
He failed to notice the pair of powerful, gloved hands that came from behind Tiny and gagged him before roughly yanking him into the darkness.
"Are you done yet?" he snapped again.
"Pal, if you ask me that again one more time, I'm gonna lose it!" Toby threatened.
"Just hurry it up!" Tony said and turned to where Tiny had been standing. "Huh? What the-? Tiny?"
He thought he heard something behind him.
He turned around, but when he did, before he could yell out, he felt a knee slam into his gut, cutting his air-supply short.
Toby, oblivious to what was going behind him, then finally managed to find the right wires and got the truck started. The alarm fell silent.
"There!" he said, satisfied and pulled himself out of the window. "I hope you're happy now, ya great big-" he stopped midsentence when he turned around.
He was all alone.
Toby stiffened. "Guys…?" he called out uncertainly.
Suddenly, a hook of sorts shot right out of the shadows. Before he could react, it hit and roped itself around one of his legs. There was a pull and Toby felt himself losing his balance and fell on his back.
The next thing he knew, Toby found his entire world had been flipped upside down – literally.
He looked down (or was it up?), and found that he was dangling by his ankle from the streetlight. And he wasn't the only one. Behind him, Tony and Tiny were in similar positions.
"W-what- what was that?" he stuttered as Tiny groaned.
Tony grimaced. "Well, it sure as hell wasn't Santa Claus!"
Batman watched the three idiots dangling from the nearby alleyway for a minute before taking out his grapnel gun and propelled himself onto the rooftops.
He'd leave them there, a patrol car was bound to pass by some time or another, and if not, morning wasn't that far of – he doubted they would be able to get free on their own before then anyway.
But, it was just as Batman pulled himself onto the roof when he heard it, a high-pitched wail of a completely different kind.
Looking around, he found that the source of the noise came from an apartment right next to the building he was currently standing on.
He hesitated for a moment – he should have just ignored it, but despite himself, he went in closer.
Batman crouched down at the edge of roof and into a dark room – the crying came from the crib that was right at the window. A light was then switched on and a haggard-looking man with stubble and tired-eyes came in.
From the floor below them, Batman heard a neighbour then another shouting up in protest against the noise.
The man reached into the cot, automatically cradling a screaming baby against his chest, looking half-asleep as he did.
Miraculously the infant's crying began to subside, and when the man yawned, the baby had stopped completely and fidgeted in his arms.
The corner of his eyes crinkled and he smiled down at the bundle, beginning to rock back and forth slightly.
All the while, Batman was still outside, watching. Looking away from the scene below, something on the other side of the street caught his eye.
After some time, the baby settled again. The man then kissed the infant on top of its head before laying it back down in its crib. But, just as he was about to draw the window's blinds shut, he looked up for a split second.
Blinking, when the man looked up at the roof again, there was nothing.
The Next Morning…
Just as Diana started waking up early that morning, she rolled over onto her back. But when she instinctively reached over to Bruce's side, she sat up, suddenly wide awake, when she felt it to be empty.
Diana gripped at the sheets in one hand – not only was it empty, it clearly hadn't been slept in either.
At the same time, she heard somebody in the bathroom. When he came out, Bruce was already fully dressed, busy buttoning up his shirt, his hair still wet – he looked surprised when he saw her.
"Morning," he said, his expression guarded.
"Morning… I didn't hear you come in." she said, gauging his reaction.
As predicted, his face gave nothing away. "I didn't want to wake you."
Diana frowned. "Where were you? When Alfred looked in the Cave last night, he said you weren't there."
"I was out. Patrol."
"All night?"
When he didn't answer, she noted very subtly how he shifted the weight off of his foot as he looked away, not meeting her eyes. He was hiding something.
It wouldn't be the first time, a small truthful voice in the back of her head reminded.
When most of the gel was wiped off of her with a paper towel and the machine turned off, Diana sat up and rolled her shirt down again before placing a hand over her stomach. She felt a smile creep over her face.
"Well, with all said and done, I'm expecting to see you back here in a few days if that's okay with you, Miss Prince. I'd like to check on yours and the baby's progress personally before we send you to the obstetrician downstairs." The doctor said with another smile. "In the meantime, I want you to call me if you have any questions, concerns, anything."
"I will."
She looked up at Bruce and he and Leslie seemed to be having a silent conversation on their own. A message of sorts must have passed between them before Leslie looked back at Diana.
"Oh, but before either of you go, may I have a quick word alone with Bruce, please?"
Diana looked up at Bruce questioningly. His face was still unreadable, but he gave her hand a quick squeeze and nod while his lips quirked into a small, reassuring smile.
"Alright." She said, getting up.
He moved over to his nightstand and put on his watch.
"Are you going again?" she asked eventually.
"There's something important I need to take care of."
"Bruce," she said firmly, sitting up straighter. "We are going to have to talk about what happened yesterday at some point. I understand how you must be feeling, but avoiding the subject isn't going to make it go away."
He still wasn't looking at her. "I know. I'm not trying to avoid anything."
"Really? Then what are you doing now?"
He didn't get a chance to answer as just then, his cell phone rang. Bruce dug it out of his jacket's pocket and pressed the red reject button, staring at it with a frown before finally looking up at her.
"I have to go." He said quietly.
Diana sighed and was the one to look away that time. "Of course you do…"
Before he went out, Bruce looked over his shoulder before he left. "I'm not avoiding this, Diana."
Biting her lower lip, Diana looked up again when the door closed behind him.
Bruce was making his way down the stairs in the front lobby when his phone rang again.
"What?" he snapped impatiently when he answered. He wasn't in the mood.
There was an immediate huff on the other side of the line. "Really now!" Elizabeth, his secretary, said disapprovingly. "I know it's early, Mr Wayne, but some manners wouldn't kill you."
He repressed the urge to cringe at the sound of her tone – in a lot of ways, Elizabeth reminded him of Alfred, and one of those qualities was her ability to remain unfazed no matter what mood Bruce found himself in.
"I'm sorry." he said quickly. "What is it, Elizabeth?"
"I called to confirm your meeting with those foreign investors from Japan this morning. Mr Yokomori wanted to know if you will be attending or not."
"Cancel it."
There was a slight pause at the other end.
"Excuse me?"
"I said, cancel the meeting – or get Lucius or somebody else to fill in for me, I won't be able to make it. In fact, cancel all my appointment for the next week."
"Mr Wayne, this is highly unprofessional… May I ask why?"
"Something… personal has come up."
"Then what should I tell your clients?"
"Make something up. Please." He said, adding the last part for good measure as he reached the bottom of the stairs.
Bruce heard a sigh in defeat.
"I'll see what I can do."
Bruce had hardly given Alfred a second glance when he passed him by. The butler would normally have called him out on this if he didn't happen to notice the preoccupied, slightly troubled look on his face.
As curious as he was, Alfred knew better than to ask too many questions some times.
When he came to the master bedroom, Alfred knocked first before entering, and when he came in, he found Diana standing at the window, her arms around herself. She turned around, meeting his concerned look with a weak smile.
"Alfred."
"Good morning, Miss," he answered, walking towards her slowly. "I… I wanted to check up on the state of things here… I just passed Master Bruce in the hallways."
Diana looked back to the window. "I think I scared him off."
"Miss?"
"Yesterday at the doctor, we received some unexpected news… I don't think he's handling it very well." She said and sighed. "He probably left to get as far away as possible."
Alfred frowned. "Miss Diana, you and I both know that Master Bruce doesn't scare that easily. He is big and ugly enough to face whatever problems he may have head-on, he's too hard-headed to do so otherwise… He may not have said it, and you may not think it at the moment, but he will come back. I assure you."
"I hope you're right." She said quietly, hugging herself tighter.
"I normally am… about these kinds of things anyway." Alfred said before changing the subject. "I've made some breakfast, would you like to join me and Master Tim in the kitchen?"
Diana nodded. "I'd love-" she said before she stopped midsentence and some of the colour drained of her face. "Oh no… e-excuse me, I have to… to go."
Without another word, she dashed for the bathroom as Alfred stared after her with a bemused expression and the door was yanked shut with a loud snap. He stood there, mystified, until he heard the tell-tale sound of heaving and a light went off in his head.
"Oh, Bruce…"
Downtown Gotham…
He dug into his pockets as he sat in his car, pulling out a single paper square and looked up at the bookstore he had parked in front of. Putting on his sunglasses, Bruce then climbed out and walked over the relatively quiet street.
A bell rang as he entered and a middle-aged saleswoman sitting behind the counter gave him the once-over with weary eyes before returning to her novel.
Grateful that the store was mostly still empty, Bruce walked in, scanning through rows of books until he found the section he was looking for.
The first book he took out, had a soft periwinkle blue slip cover and a picture of a stork on the front. Staring at it for a full, hard minute as if he could see right through it, he thought back on his conversation with Leslie.
He couldn't take his eyes off it. He didn't want to.
He could feel a strange feeling rising up in his chest – not quite astonishment, but something like it, and a sense of pride he couldn't quite explain.
When Leslie lifted the sonographer and turned off the machine, Diana sat up and rolled her shirt down again before placing a hand over her stomach. Bruce didn't miss the look on her face – it was so tender, her eyes were softer than he'd ever seen before and had a far-off, dreamy quality to them as whatever worries she had seemed to melt away.
She loved it already.
As he stood there, rooted, and captivated all the same, Bruce wasn't aware he was still smiling until Leslie caught him staring.
The doctor held his gaze for a minute before turning back to Diana.
"Oh, but before either of you go, may I have a quick word alone with Bruce, please?"
Diana looked at him curiously, and when he finally regained some sense of his surroundings, gave her hand a small squeeze.
"Alright." She said, standing up.
There was a brief pause and silence when she left.
"How did this happen, Leslie?" Bruce asked after some time.
"Bruce, I don't think I need to tell you about the birds and the bees…" Leslie said with a twinkle in her brown eyes. "I already had that conversation with you when you were a little boy. Besides, I sure you'll be able to shed more light on the details than I can."
"That's not what I-" he began before the doctor laughed.
"I know what you meant." Leslie teased. "You're surprised, and a little shocked, and probably feeling a whole variety of different feelings right about now. It's perfectly understandable, this is big news."
"To put it lightly…"
Leslie nodded understandingly. "That's why I asked to see you, I want to help." She said and walked to her desk. Pulling out a piece of paper from one of her drawers, she started writing.
When she handed him the paper, several names all written down in a row.
"Think of this as a research project," Leslie explained. "I want you to go and read these books, maybe study them a little. I think they'll be able to help with some of the questions you have that you aren't comfortable with asking me."
"They'll tell me everything?"
"They'll cover the basics." She admitted. "Now, along with this, I want you to promise me something. When you leave this office, you're really going to try your best to make the most of this – I want you to look after Diana, it might go without saying, but that means no life threatening situations that can't be avoided and no stress. Okay?"
Bruce could only nod. "I promise."
One by one, he went through the rest of the shelves, mentally checking off the list in his head, adding book after book under his arm. When he finally had what he needed, he went over to the register.
The woman reluctantly put her novel aside, but smiled slightly when she saw his selection.
"Are you expecting?" she asked, ringing up the items. While he didn't say anything immediately, the woman got her answer.
Bruce almost snorted. "Is it that obvious?"
"You got that look too…" She admitted with a small, well-meaning smile. "I take it, it's your first?"
Again, Bruce didn't immediately answer as he regarded the woman carefully before his eyes fell on a picture of two small boys that was half-wedged in between her book as a marker.
The register then flashed and he took out his wallet to pay.
"Just a little tip, though," she said, handing him a brown paper bag. "Don't pay too much attention to the things they say in there about what you should and should not do. There're more of… guidelines."
"I'll keep that in mind."
"Good luck, mister!" the woman called after him and the bell on the door rang again.
A Few Days Later…
Watchtower
Flash was in the Monitor Womb, his feet were hitched up on the console while he was simultaneously texting on his phone and munching on his third candy bar for the hour when he heard the doors slide open.
Looking up from his conversation, he was mildly surprised to see Diana come in and flashed (no pun intended) her a quick grin over his shoulder.
"Hey, Di," he greeted casually, sitting up and turned in the chair. "Long time no-" But, when he did, his smile faltered when he saw her up close – her hair was a mess and the area under her eyes were dark in contrast to her skin which was unusually pale.
"Have you seen Superman, Flash?" Diana asked rather abruptly.
Flash blinked before realizing he was staring and snapped out of it. "Um… Supes? Oh… sorry, Wondy, you just missed him – he and GL are on a mission in outer space somewhere. They said something about the Guardians wanted John to play peacemaker between two worlds and Clark tagged along to help with the negotiations."
"Do you have any idea when they'll be back?" she asked, he could hear the disappointment in her voice.
"A couple of days, I guess?" he said apologetically. "Uh… is there something wrong?"
Diana shook her head. "No, no, of course not, I just… I wanted to talk to Kal."
"Well, like I said, it might take a few days…" he said and smiled at her brightly in an attempt to cheer her up. "But, if you just want to talk, I'm not the worst listener ever." he offered.
"That's sweet of you to offer, but it's not necessary. It's not important, anyway." She said, looking away.
Flash wasn't buying it, and just as she was about to turn and walk out again, he was already up and stood in front of her. Ignoring his common sense, he put his hands on her shoulders.
"Hey," he said, frowning now. "C'mon, talk to me. What's wrong?"
Up close, he could see her eyes were puffy and more than just a little bloodshot. Had… had she been… crying?
Completely out of nowhere, her lip started trembling and her fist clenched – Flash's eyes widened, for a moment he thought he had imagined it, but he then panicked and quickly let go of her shoulders.
"Wally…" she said quietly.
Oh crap, oh crap, he thought, had he just overstepped some Amazon boundary or-
Before he could finish his train of thought, Diana took him completely by surprise and wrapped her arms around him.
For a second, as he stood there, rigid with surprise, he thought she was attacking him, before it dawned on him that she was, in fact, hugging him.
Wonder Woman… was hugging him.
There was no doubt in his mind that many a sane man would have traded his front teeth to be where he was at that moment in time, but right now, the circumstances were off and Flash instinctively knew something was indeed very wrong.
And, as luck would have it, the doors slid open again and Black Canary and Supergirl came in to relieve him of Monitor Duty, but, when both woman saw this, they stopped and stared. Diana didn't seem to hear anything and, if anything, hugged him a little closer.
Over Diana's shoulder, Flash gave them the most meaningful look he could manage. 'Get Shay', he mouthed.
Dinah nodded immediately and pulled Kara away by the wrist as the teenage Kryptonian continued to gawk and Flash awkwardly started patting Diana on the back.
Meanwhile…
Wayne Enterprises
Alfred didn't know what to expect as he stepped out of the lift and into an empty reception area of the topmost floor.
"Mister Pennyworth," Elizabeth said, sounding relieved as she stood up from behind her desk.
"I'm glad you called, Mrs Black – you said Master Bruce is here?" Alfred asked.
"I'm just glad you showed up. I think he's been sleeping in his office – he's had me cancel all his meeting for the next week and he's been living off nothing but coffee, and whenever I go in, he's busy reading."
Alfred looked at her curiously as if he didn't hear her right.
"Reading?"
"Yes. I… I couldn't be sure, but they looked like baby manuals. He's completely absorbed in them." She said. "It's not my place to ask, but is he…?"
"I'll talk to him." Alfred said quickly.
Elizabeth nodded. "Please. I'm getting worried."
"Don't be, I'll sort him out." He reassured.
Going inside, Alfred paused for a moment when he saw Bruce, asleep on the couch at the other side of the office, one of his arms draped over his eyes while the other held an open book to his chest.
As quietly as he could, Alfred walked over to the desk – the jacket Bruce wore last he saw him was slung over the back of the chair behind it as several books were stacked on top of each other on its surface and a computer still switched on and running.
Alfred then took the top book and examined the cover, smiling faintly when he paged through it and saw little side notes scrawled onto the margin in Bruce's handwriting. He took another book and found it to be the same inside.
Abruptly, Bruce woke up with a start. Sitting up, he looked around until he saw Alfred and relaxed.
"Alfred…" he said, setting the book aside.
"Good afternoon, Master Wayne." Alfred said lightly.
"What are you doing here?"
"Your secretary called me. I dare say you had us worried, I came as soon as what I could to see if I could try and persuade you to come home… though, being here now, I can see you have been quite busy." He said, holding up the book. "Interesting choice of subject." He remarked dryly.
"You know." It wasn't a question.
Alfred snorted delicately. "Of course I do, and before you ask, I found out myself – I phoned Leslie to make sure and she confirmed my suspicious."
"What happened to 'doctor-patient confidentiality'?"
"I wasn't aware that rule applied to me, sir. But right now, what I may or may not know is not up for discussion right now, what is, is the fact that you're here and not where you're supposed to be."
Bruce sighed after a short silence. "…I'm not ready, Alfred."
"Ready for what exactly, Master Bruce?"
"A baby, being a father, this… responsibility, whatever you call it."
"Why would you say that? What was the use of all of these books then?" he asked, walking over to the younger man.
"I've been through all of them and they pretty much say the same thing over and over again, and the more I think about it, the more I realize how incredibly selfish I am."
"Selfish?"
"There are just too many risks – do you understand the amount of danger we put ourselves in doing what we do? How dangerous the world really is?"
"I do… But isn't that the point? Of Batman, of Wonder Woman? The League? To take the risks nobody else is willing to, to do what is right?"
"That's not what I meant. What is going to happen to that baby if something goes wrong and something happens to us, Alfred? All it takes is that one maniac, a lunatic with a nuclear bomb, a knife or… or a gun. Diana isn't indestructible, and I'm not like Clark, I'm not bulletproof."
Alfred blue eyes softened. "Even Superman has his weaknesses, Bruce." He said gently.
"Exactly, and I'm only just a man."
"Aren't some things worth the risk?"
Bruce hunched over and rubbed his face. "This baby's going to need attention, it's going to need love and time, it's going to need somebody to look up to when it grows up and to teach it the difference between right and wrong in life. I'm not qualified to be a father."
"I'm sure young Masters Dick and Tim would wholeheartedly disagree with you there, sir."
"What about Jason, Alfred?" Bruce said quietly.
"What happened to Jason was a terrible, terrible tragedy, and, may I remind you, was not your fault."
"I still failed him, and I've let down Dick and Tim more times than I can count."
Alfred put his hand on the younger man's shoulder. "That may be, but you love those boys – Richard and Tim knows that, and somewhere deep down, I'm sure there must be some part of Jason that hasn't forgotten it either."
Bruce sighed again. "What do I do then?"
"For one, sir, you can start by getting out of this office." Alfred said matter-of-factly. "And then, once you've done that, go freshen yourself up and talk to the Princess about what's troubling you."
Bruce looked up at him. "How is she doing?"
"All things considered, I would assume she's fine."
"What do you mean?" Bruce asked, raising an eyebrow.
"She left this afternoon, Master Bruce. You have been absent for three days with no clue to your whereabouts. That's also why I came, so that you can set things right before there is any more confusion."
Bruce stared at him as his words started to set in.
Alfred then turned around and walked to the door. "Gather whatever you need, sir, I'll wait for you in the main lobby." He said over his shoulder.
When they eventually got back to the Manor, it was felt emptier than usual. Bruce was relieved when he saw that Diana's clothes were still in the closet but felt like the biggest fool on the face on the earth for letting her walk out in the first place.
After he'd taken Alfred's advice and took a shower and changed, he immediately went down to the Cave. Taking out a League communicator, he opened a link to the Watchtower.
"Watchtower, come in."
He didn't get an immediate response, but before he started getting impatient, somebody finally picked up.
"Hi, yeah, Batman, this is Green Arrow."
Bruce groaned on the inside – Oliver wasn't exactly who he had in mind, but he'd take it anyway.
"Requesting one for transport." He said stiffly.
"Uh, Bats, I don't want to tell you want to do or anything, and I'll totally deny having said this to you if anybody asks, but I would hold off on coming over here for a while if I were you." The archer responded.
Bruce ground his teeth together out of annoyance. "Why?"
"Well… let's just say it's not exactly the safest place for you to be at the moment."
"What?"
"Look, I'm not gonna mince words here, but you messed up, buddy, badly. There's a satellite full of powerful and let's not mention angry super women – I'm not joking, they're pissed, and they're all pissed at you."
Bruce did actually groan this time.
"So…" Green Arrow prompted. "What did you do, anyway?"
Bruce rubbed his temples. "Is Diana on-board?" he asked, ignoring the question.
"Yeah…?"
"Then bring me up."
"Okay, it's your funeral. You're a brave man, Bats."
"Just do it, Queen." He said it with a half-annoyed growl.
"Alright, alright – the coordinates are locking on to you now. Teleport in ten, Batman."
Bruce let out a defeated sigh. "Not Batman…" he said quietly, closing the link before Green Arrow could ask and the blinding light filled the Cave.
"Nothing in life is to be feared, it is only to be understood. Now is the time to understand more, so that we may fear less."
― Marie Curie
"Only you can be the aching in my heart –
My enemy, the only animal I couldn't fight,
You hold me in the dark when storms arrive,
Only you…
Only you…
Only you…"
"Only you can see the emptiness I feel,
When you're with me,
When everything you say I'm on my knees,
Baby I'm on my knees,
Baby I'm on my knees,
Baby I'm on my knees…"
- Ellie Goulding, 'Only You' Lyrics
A/N: Go on Bruce! Go get back thy lady! … … … *Ahem* This was a very, very long chappy… A little odd, I know, but I still like this for some reason. I'm definitely going to rewrite the last part with Alfred later… but for now, I'm gonna pass out - peace out!
Okay, so, the next chapter's going to pick up like, right the second after this one ends, also, I'm sorry for not including Hawkgirl like I said in the previous chapter, but don't worry, she's coming up next, along with more Green Arrow (I love Ollie), our favourite Big Blue Boy Scout and a crazy ex (I'll let your mind wander about that, but I'm telling ya, it's gonna be da bomb).
Oh, and on a side note, all you Catwoman haters can hate and all, but after the perchance of one Injustice PS3 game, and after getting my butt kicked several times, it is in fact a possibility that she can take Wonder Woman in a fight… if the circumstances were ever right, of course.
In response to the previous chapter's reviews:
Delta808th: How else my friend, how else? And there will be more kicking of such in the future!
Wonderwomanbatmanfan: I hope this lived up to your expectations.
mbembet: Why thank you :) Oh, also, you're gonna like the next chapter.
maculedes: Me siento honrado de que usted piensa que gran parte de mi historia, gracias (again, I hope I didn't get this wrong). And don't worry, I've got a chapter planned involving Tim and Diana… and then some Babs and Dick thrown in there as well – just so you've got a reason to keep reading.
LSZero: In fact, I do – heed my word, never, ever, EVER, take History or Philosophy for that matter (it's not worth it man, it's just not!) unless you're into that crap, in which case, go for it. Another thing, don't be too intimidated on your first day, everyone else is just as scared as you were when they began – don't trust a map of the campus (I speak of experience… long story…) –arrange your schedule that you have all your classes early, it's just better that way, trust me – and, as my last nugget of wisdom, just enjoy it for what it's worth, man :)
yob3: OMG! I love that Joker! He referred to Diana in one of the episodes of Brave and the Bold as 'the swimsuit model' – I still grin whenever I think about it. Also! About the being crazy – think about it like this, my whole family's crazy, the only difference is I've learned to accept it… while the other members of my family… not so much.
Ammaviel: She definitely took him by surprise, that's for sure!
Cajun Strong Man 2: He's up next! About the baby, I have, but that's for me to know, and you all to speculate about. I'll add the rest of the Batkids' reactions in time :)
pk6873: Who doesn't like baby-madness, I ask you? As to how the Queen will react… hehe…
Anonymous(Guest): They are quite righteous as a couple, aren't they? And I'm glad you liked what I've come up with thus far – I'm just getting started, so if this chapter disappointed, I'm more than gonna make up for it in the next one :)
imazebra: They are terrible, aren't they? Lol
Lloyd RPGFan: I took this specific review to heart – I had a different scenario in my mind at the very beginning, but when I thought about it, you're right. But, I think the reason why most writers make Bruce take the news badly is for added effect and tension – he usually comes around in the fourth, maybe tenth chapter anyway and all is well, good and so on again.
Anonymous(Guest): I read on a wiki somewhere that the public knows who Wonder Woman is, so I thought, why complicate things too much?
1Superman4Me: They are :D
Gabriel-TDO: I'm just glad you liked this story enough to review :)
I Am Not a Human Being: I liked the quote, it was so sweet I couldn't resist – I've never watched the actual movie though, is it any good? And I'm sorry for taking so long!
Fireminer: Lol – I liked this review, so many possibilities… yes, indeed… anyhow – regarding the Titans, is there anybody specifically you have in mind to see at the wedding, it's still a few chapters away, but I better get brainstorming now. AND, about John, I liked this idea particularly – can marines really marry people? I have a wicked idea if this is indeed the case.
Guest: I couldn't resist – the whole 'Daddy-Bats' scenario is a gold mine of potential
Masked-Maiden-of-Gotham: This is without a doubt, one of my favourite reviews, ever – short, but funny. It still easily makes my Top 10.
myrthil: I figured, why not write the whole shebang? Besides, the baby was in my original framework when I first planned this story. Also, like I normally say, all in due time – I love the whole Dick and Babs pairing, so don't worry, I haven't forgotten about them.
sabbath9997: As long as you keep on reading and I do a somewhat decent job keeping your interest, there's really no need to be thanking me, dude :) … but thanks anyway.
R-dude: I'm really not too sure how to respond to this one – buy me dinner first, then we'll see where that takes us, kay?
Alrighty then! Leave a review – I double dare you! Later babes!
Until next time,
GoddessofDawn out