Chapter Twenty-five

Cannes

Dinner had been like a chess match with each player maneuvering for position. One moment this woman seemed capricious and flighty, but then the next she was razor sharp. Bruce knew she was playing with him, trying to manipulate him and keep him constantly off balance. Several times she had succeeded, but he had stayed focused on achieving his goal. Through little slips now and then, he gained information about her. He still didn't know who she was, but he knew who she wasn't. Thea wasn't human and she wasn't an alien either. She was too versed in human mannerisms and they came too naturally to her.

That left magic. As absurd as it sounded, Bruce had seen too many unbelievable things in his life to dismiss the idea. Magical beings were reported in all cultures for the beginning of human history. The League itself had more than one member rooted in magic. He had been taken over by Deadman, on several occasions, so he had personal experience with extraordinary beings.

As he looked at the stunning woman across from him, he wondered what her real form looked like? Was she some hideous hag or vile monster in her natural form? No being could be as near to perfection as Thea was; it had to be illusion she had taken on. Was Clark fooled as easily as Jonn and the others were?

It seemed one answer spawned ten more questions in Bruce's mind.

It was a relief to find out she posed no threat to the League. During their dinner he was frankly surprised by how little she seemed to care about the League or most of its members. The one thing she did care about and had made quite clear, was Clark. Most of her slips happened when he was the subject. The dynamic at play fascinated Bruce. When she spoke of Clark there was a possessive quality that was hard to miss. She spoke of Clark as a child would of a toy that wouldn't do what the child wanted. Bruce could tell in her mind, Clark was hers. This set off warning bells for Bruce. The thought of someone having power or control over Clark was a very dangerous notion.

Yet he had dealt with Clark several times recently and knew he wasn't under some spell or incantation. He seemed flustered and a little spineless, but that was normal for Clark with women. He was arguably the most powerful man on the planet, yet completely clueless when it came to dealing with women. Bruce had often wondered about when Clark was with Lois, why he put up with her more abrasive qualities. Yes, she was a beautiful and interesting woman, but she could also be a major pain in the ass. There must be something behind why Clark acted that way, but Bruce hadn't been able to figure it out.

Then again, there were many things about Clark that remained a mystery to Bruce. The public at large feared the Batman and he was only an ordinary man, yet somehow Clark had been able to get them to not only trust him, but to admire and like him. It was an amazing feat when you think about it. An all-powerful alien comes to Earth and becomes its symbol. Even the way his fellow heroes refer to him, Boy Scout, farm boy, were non-threatening, Bruce thought. He had to admit even he was sucked in by it, for here he was questioning Clark's girlfriend to make sure she was on the up and up. How did he do it, Bruce wondered.

Putting that set of questions aside, Bruce turned his focus back to Thea. From what he'd been able to gather, She wasn't a threat to anyone but Clark and Maxima. Bruce wasn't worried about Maxima. She could handle herself, and just about everyone that met her seemed to dislike her. Most of the time Thea reminded Bruce of the spoiled rich girls he use to date. Her only interests seemed to be shopping and pleasure. It would be easy to discount her for this, but Bruce sensed there was more, much more to her than she was letting on.

He would have to speak with Clark the next chance he got. If Clark knew who she really was, Bruce wanted to know, as well. He also wanted to warn Clark about her. As charming and beautiful as Thea seemed, Bruce sensed that she could be very dangerous if you made her unhappy. From everything he'd gleaned from dinner the one person that could make her very unhappy was Clark.

"Thank you for dinner, Bruce," Thea said, pulling him out of his inner reflections.

"It was my pleasure, Thea."

"I know you have to leave soon so you can do your little stroll around your city," she said with a smile.

"It's a patrol," he quickly corrected her.

"You're so defensive, Bruce, you really need to work on that. So, did I pass the test?"

"Excuse me," he said.

"You've been probing and watching my reactions all through dinner. It really wasn't that hard to figure out what you were doing. I found the whole idea of you testing me fun and cute, but I should warn you some women don't. Wait, you already knew that, didn't you?"

"What do you mean," Bruce said with a little more edge than usual. If she was referring to what he thought she was, it was still a sore point for him.

"Don't get mad, Bruce," she said with a little pout. "I found you very entertaining so far, don't ruin it."

"Certain subjects are off limits, Thea. I imagine you can understand that," Bruce replied.

"I was only going to tell you she wasn't the one, Bruce. It still hurts but I think you're starting to see that," Thea offered.

"You don't know what you're talking about," Bruce coldly said to her.

"If you say so," she absently replied, "Oh, but now I've made you angry. I was just trying to help you."

"Thanks, but no thanks."

"She's still out there, Bruce," Thea said to him.

"Who?"

"The one,' she replied as she turned her attention to her vibrating cell phone.

"The one?"

"The one you were meant to be with Bruce. Excuse me, I have to take this call," Thea said, answering her phone. "Hello? Oh, Marco, it's so good to hear from you! What's that? A party? Of course I'll come! I'll see you in a little while!"

Bruce just sat there not quite believing what had just happened. Thea seemed to jump from one subject to the next with no transitions. She hung up the phone and looked at him for a moment.

"I'm afraid I'm going to have to leave now, Bruce. Dinner was lovely. I hope I passed your test or whatever it was. You should try the strawberries before you go; they serve them with the most delicious handmade whipped cream. Have a safe flight back to Gotham," Thea rattled off, as she was gathering up her things and preparing to leave. As she stood up, the owner came over to see how her meal was. She told him it was delicious and the man beamed. He told her it was always a pleasure having her. Thea told him he was cute and he went away happy and blushing.

During all of his, Bruce just sat there stunned. Just as she was about to leave, Thea stopped and turned back to Bruce. "Oh, I almost forgot to tell you, the one you are meant to be with, you already know her. I thought that might make it a little easier for you. Good night, Bruce!'

With that she was gone, leaving Bruce to just sit and wonder.

The Watchtower

"So what is your favorite color, Kal-El?"

"Blue."

"Like your eyes. Favorite book?"

"The Great Gatsby."

"Never heard of it. Favorite meal?"

"I guess steak."

"Steak, I see, let me write that down. Favorite movie?"

"It's a Wonderful Life."

"Good, good, I don't know what a movie is just yet, but I will certainly keep that one in mind."

"Um, ah, Maxima, is that a list of questions you have,' Clark asked.

"Yes."

"Why do you have a list of questions and why are you asking me them?"

"To get to know you better, Kal-El. It was pointed out to me by Flash that if we are to be soul mates, I should know more about you. So I made a list of questions to ask you," she explained.

"You say Flash gave you this idea?"

"Yes, although making the list was my idea," she said proudly.

"I see. Well, this has been fun, but I should probably go report for duty."

"I have more questions, Kal-El," she said.

"I'll just bet you do and I'd love to answer all of them, but duty calls."

"Perhaps we could sit down again and I could ask you some more questions?"

"That sounds like a plan. We will have to do that soon. I should probably thank Wally personally for giving you the idea."

"I look forward to asking you more questions, Kal-El," she said with a big smile.

"Can't wait," he replied, already starting for the door.

"Do you feel like we are getting to know each other better, Kal-El," she called after him.

"That's one way of putting it," he said over his shoulder. As Maxima watched him leave, she smiled. The questions had been a success, she thought, I'm one step closer to my goal. Picking up her pen, Maxima began to write down more questions for the next time they spoke.

Themysciran Embassy

Diana had just finished sitting through the last of her official meetings for the day and her patience was near an end. With all the turmoil in her life recently she found herself depressed and tried immersing herself in her work. It hadn't helped. While it was good that Bruce and her found some closure to their relationship, it just reminded her that she was once again alone. She wanted to believe Bruce when he said there was someone out there for both of them, but she was having her doubts. For the last week she prayed to her Goddess, Aphrodite, asking her to send her a sign, but she received no answer. Even her Gods apparently had doubts about her finding that special someone. So here she was, continuing her mission alone, always alone. As she looked up from the pile of paperwork on her desk, she saw her assistant walking towards her.

"Ambassador, there's someone to see you. I showed him into the garden to wait for you."

"Very well, thank you," Diana managed to politely say, even as she was dreading seeing another representative wanting to do business with Themyscira. Seeing no point in delaying, Diana got up and headed for the garden.

She didn't see anyone as she entered the garden, so she announced her presence.

"Hello? I understand you wished to see me?"

"Hey, Diana," a familiar voice said behind her. Diana knew instantly who it was and a smile lit up her face as she turned around. Standing there in his usual suit and tie was Clark Kent.

"Kal!" she exclaimed, surprised and happy to see him. Before she could stop herself, she rushed up to him and pulled him into a hug.

"Wow! No wonder this embassy is so popular, if this is how you greet every guest," he playfully said.

"Oh, shut up! I'm just glad to see you," Diana told him.

"It's good to see you too, Diana," Clark truthfully said, returning her embrace. As he held her in his arms, the thought crossed Clark's mind of just how good she felt in is arms, how right it felt. As soon as the thought registered, Clark quickly pulled away from Diana and out of the embrace. She looked at him confused, but didn't question him. Clark took a few steps back before he looked at Diana again.

"So are they keeping you busy here," he offered, wanting to shift the topic from the one playing in his head.

"Yes, it seems my duties never end. One long meeting leads to another. If it's not meetings than its state dinners or fund raisers," Diana lamented.

"I see, meeting world leaders, having elegant dinners with the rich and famous, sounds like torture to me. How do you stand it, Diana," Clark teased. This earned him a slap on the arm from her.

"Hey," he said in mock outrage.

"I warned you about teasing an Amazon, Kal," Diana said with a smile.

"You know for someone who's suppose to be my friend, you seemed to hit me an awful lot, Diana. I thought diplomats were supposed to be nicer."

"Are you implying that I'm not nice, Kal," Diana asked, a mischievous warning behind it.

"Will you hit me again if I say yes?"

"Yes, I will."

"Then I would never imply such a thing, Madame Ambassador," he said with a smile.

"You're learning, Kal," Diana replied with a smile of her own.

"I guess if you hit me enough it sinks in."

"I'll remember that," she playfully said.

"I just bet you will," Clark said with a laugh. Diana smiled as she listened to his laugh. He always had a way of making her feel better. There was just something about him that lifted her spirits.

"So what brings you here today, Kal," she finally asked. He was still smiling as he turned to her, but there was a look of concern in his eyes.

"I wanted to see how you were doing," he said gently.

"Oh," was all she could think to say, understanding immediately what he meant.

"I imagine it's been a difficult time for you, Diana, but if you want to talk, I'm here and I'll listen," he offered, placing his hand over hers.

"Thank you, Kal," she said, blushing a little at the contact.

"I'm your friend, Diana, I'll always be here for you," he said to her.

"I appreciate that, Kal, I do, but I don't think there's anything to say," she admitted, pulling her hand away from his and standing up. "It just didn't work out. It never works out for me."

Clark heard the anguish in her voice and walked over to her. He turned Diana around to look at him. He could see the sadness in her eyes and he did the only thing he could think of. Putting is arms around her, Clark pulled her into a gently embrace. Diana hesitated for a moment, but then put her arms around him and let him comfort her.

"It will be okay, Diana, I promise," Clark whispered to her, holding her tight. They stood there, just holding each other for several minutes. Finally, Diana ended the embrace and walked slowly over to a bench and sat down. Clark followed and sat next to her. He waited for her to speak, not wanting to rush her.

"Why is it so hard, Kal? It should be so simple. You like someone and they like you, so you two get together," she said.

"I guess it's all the baggage each of us brings along. The mistakes we've made in the past and the fears we all bring to a new relationship can make it difficult."

"It seems so many let those fears stop them from pursuing what they really want," she replied, the sad note clear in her voice.

"Sometimes you don't realize a mistake until it's too late to correct it, Diana," Clark said, his mind drifting to his own past.

"It's never too late to correct a mistake, Kal," Diana said, looking him directly in the eye.

"You're probably right," he said, looking down at his hands, wishing that was true. Diana was watching him closely. She felt like she wanted to say something. It was just on the tip of her tongue, but she didn't know what it was. The moment was lost as Clark started speaking again.

"I'm probably not the best person to be giving advice on relationships," Clark admitted.

"You're still having problems with this woman, Thea, Kal?"

"Not at the moment, but Maxima is another subject. You wouldn't believe what she did just before I got here."

"What," Diana said with interest.

"She made a list of questions to ask me," he told her with a sad smile.

"A list of questions?"

"Yes, apparently Wally told her it would be a good idea if she got to know me better. I still have to thank him for that, by the way. She came to the conclusion that if we know each other better, I'll realize she's my soul mate. So she decided to write down a whole list of questions and quiz me on them."

"What sort of questions," Diana asked.

"Crazy stuff, almost like some internet dating questionnaire. What's my favorite color?"

"Blue," Diana instantly said.

"Yeah, it is. Another question was what's my favorite movie?"

"It's a Wonderful Life."

"Yes, how did you know that," he asked, surprised by her.

"It was the first movie you loaned me when I arrived in the Man's World, Kal," Diana replied.

"Okay, another was what's my favorite food?"

"Thai."

"No, steak," Clark corrected her.

"It's Thai, Kal," Diana insisted.

"I think I know what my favorite food is, Diana."

"Apparently not, if you think it's steak."

"I think you're confused, Princess, Thai is your favorite," Clark countered.

"Because you're the one that introduced me to it, Kal. I remember distinctly you saying I should try it because it was your favorite. And don't call me Princess or I'll hit you, Kal."

"I don't remember that."

"Obviously, but that's what happened," Diana said with a smug smile.

"You seemed to think you know me pretty well, don't you," Clark asked.

"Better then you know me,' Diana replied with a playful smile.

"Now you're just talking crazy talk, Diana. I know you better than you think I do. I know lots of little things, embarrassing things that no one else does," he said with mischievous smile of his own.

"I doubt that," Diana said in a mocking tone.

"All right, how's this for an example? I happen to know that you cried at Titanic."

"I did not!" Diana exclaimed.

"I'm afraid you did. I saw the tears myself, Diana."

"I told you, I had something in my eye," she protested.

"In both eyes, Diana?"

"It was a romantic movie," she reluctantly admitted

"See? I told you I know you pretty well," He said with a smile.

"That's one and I'm not admitting anything."

"How about you throw like a girl?" Clark joked and received a punch in the arm for his troubles.

"You don't hit like a girl," he added, rubbing his shoulder.

"I am a girl, if you haven't noticed, Kal," Diana said to him, folding her arms in front of her.

"I've noticed, Diana, hard not to. Not likely to miss that," he absently said, still rubbing his shoulder.

"Joke all you want, Kal, you're just proving my point," Diana said.

"All right, if you want me to be serious, I will. I know you think you're attractive, but you have trouble accept it when others call you beautiful. You are, by the way."

Diana blushed at this comment and Clark continued.

"When you read the paper, you always stop for a moment to see if any of the clues in the crossword puzzle are from Greek Mythology. When you try not to laugh, you always bite your lower lip. Lilies remind you of home. You eat your M& M's in the same order, every time, darkest to lightest. You actually know all the words to The Piña Colada Song, why I don't know."

"It's sweet," she explained.

"It's about a guy trying to cheat on his wife, Diana," Clark explained.

"It's catchy."

"It's terrible, Diana, a really bad song."

"That's your opinion," Diana countered.

"I think I made me point, or would you like me to go on? I know some really embarrassing stuff I haven't mention."

"If you do, there's a few things I could mention too," Diana warned.

"I give."

The two of them smiled. They sat there for a while, just sharing the moment.

"So, I imagine you probably have to get back to work," Clark finally said.

"No, I finished my last meeting just before you arrived," Diana replied

"Well, then, would you like to have dinner with me," Clark offered as he stood up.

"Only if it's your favorite," Diana smiled.

"Steak it is," Clark cheerfully said and started for the door. Diana was right behind him.

"It's Thai, Kal. You know that's what I meant," she protested.

"My favorite food is steak, Diana," Clark said, opening the door for her.

"It's Thai," Diana replied, walking past him and going inside.

"I think I know what my favorite food is, Princess," Clark said as he followed her, letting the garden door closed.

"Kal! I warned you!" Diana shouted, her voice mixing with Clark's laugh as they headed out of the Embassy.