Hunter's Moon

By Serena

A/N: As always, thank you! :) I'm sorry for this late update - I just learned I have pretty severe anemia, and my energy has been zilch for the past several weeks. That plus really bad headaches... FUN TIMES.

But also... I've been working on my novel... :D ... Can't go into detail now, but hopefully very soon!

I think you'll enjoy the new character in this chapter. :) Just sayin. PS - Happy late Star Wars Day! May the 4th be with you! :) I think you'll all catch the SW reference in this chapter.

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In the early hours of the night, I came down to the Batcave to discover that Loeb had just returned from his extended vacation. Also, Bruce had found out something quite interesting... and unsettling.

"Look at this, Di," he said, pulling up a vid on screen. "Got it off a snitch last night while you were taking out that group of drug lords." The video started. It was a camera feed of a shipping dock. I watched as several men unloaded heavy boxes of cargo and placed them in an unidentified truck. It was too dark to see anything special about the truck. However, one of the men paused, then put one of the boxes down and opened it.

"Machine guns?" I said, startled. "That's what they're shipping in?"

"Weapons," said Bruce grimly. "They have some serious firepower."

"What dock is this?"

"I can't tell. I've tried enhancing this as much as possible, but not only does the computer need work, but this feed is low quality." He rubbed his chin. "I've been pouring through Loeb's files, everything he has... well, you know. But they're so hush hush about this. Something bigger's going on. Something maybe even Loeb is scared of."

Bruce then pulled up blueprints of Loeb's very nice house in the most expensive section of Gotham.

"Time to move in?" I said right away, ensuring my golden armbands were on firmly.

Bruce nodded. His hair had gotten even longer in the past few months. The longest strands just barely touched his shoulders, while some strands hung in front of his face. His face was hardened, a little haggard from lack of sleep, and covered in black scruff, but his eyes were burning with determination. He was beautiful.

I had never loved him so much.

"We'll find out what's going on," he said, interrupting my train of thought. "One way or another." He pulled his cowl over his face and headed toward the Tumbler. He leaped down into the open Tumbler; upon joining him, I said warily, "Bruce... we're playing this close to the vest."

"Since when have we done it any other way?" He pressed his foot down on the gas and took off out through the waterfall.

I smirked, but quickly grew serious again. "This isn't a good situation. If we go after Loeb... Well, we could be seen as terrorists. Public enemies."

"Right now I could care less about what people think," he said coldly. "Gotham is run by the mafia."

A pause, then, "Good," I said, satisfied. "Just wanted to know we're on the same page. You know, before we question him. Just in case... he ends up with a dislocated arm, or something like that."

Even through the cowl lenses, I knew he was giving me a look. "Right," he said. "I thought your lasso made people tell the truth?"

"Oh, it does." When I said nothing more, I saw him give a small, dark grin.

We were definitely on the same wavelength. But Gotham needed a wake-up call, and playing things safe wasn't going to get this city anywhere. Time for some more proactive work. Interrogation. Make Loeb and all of his mob cronies afraid. Because fear was the only thing that would work on them. Fear... and maybe a few good kicks.

Loeb's mansion was in one of Gotham's most extravagant areas. As we ditched the Tumbler and continued over rooftops, I realized that I recognized this place - but for an odd reason. One reason was that Helena had lived here, a long time ago, before her parents had died. But the other reason...

As we alighted on adjacent rooftops, I looked around and muttered, "Bruce... don't you own that house?" It was the townhouse right next to Loeb's.

"Yes. Another way to keep an eye on him," Batman muttered. "I bought it a few months ago."

I shook my head. "You are driven," I muttered back. Crouching low on the roof, I saw the good commissioner move in front of a large window. He was dressed in a ridiculously embroidered robe, and he held a thick cigar in one hand. He was smirking and talking to someone.

Bruce cursed under his breath. "I think it's a hooker."

"So... what, we wait for another night?"

"No. We'll keep her out of the way, but I want answers," Batman growled. "I need you to cut the power, Di. You see the lines?"

I scanned the area, then saw where the house connected to the electrical box. "Got it. Standby." And I carefully swooped down and sneaked up to the electrical box.

"On my mark."

I took hold of the wires.

"One. Two. Three." And simultaneously, I cut the power to Loeb's house as Bruce abruptly dropped from the rooftop and crashed right down through the opposite window, right into Loeb's bedroom. I heard a scream and flew up into the window, dropping onto the floor. Batman grabbed Loeb by his collar and shoved him against the wall. The hooker gasped when she saw me. She was young - probably only eighteen.

"It's all right," I assured her in my lower, aloof Wonder Woman voice. "Stay calm."

But the girl fainted. I caught her before she hit the ground and gently laid her on the floor. Sighing, I turned my attention back to Batman.

"Who are you working for?" the Batman growled viciously.

"Go to hell, Batfreak," Loeb spat, but he was shaking.

Batman glared down at him. "Keep this up, and smashing into another wall head-on will be the least painful experience of your night."

Loeb swallowed. "I... I don't know."

Batman's hand squeezed around his throat.

"I don't," gasped out Loeb.

I glared at the man. "You're lying," I said softly, dangerously. "Your first mistake. Batman," I said, taking my lasso off my belt. "Let's try a little different form of questioning, shall we?"

Bruce knocked his head back into the wall and released him long enough so I could slip the lasso over Loeb's fat head.

"What the hell?" gasped out Loeb just before I tightened the noose.

"Answer the question," snarled Batman. "Who are you working for?"

Loeb was sweating, and he winced as the lasso forced him to blurt out: "I don't know his real name! He calls himself Mr. Sera."

"And why are you having weapons shipped in to Gotham?" Batman snapped.

Loeb whimpered. "I... I don't know."

Batman leaned closer. "Wrong answer."

"I don't know!" yelped Loeb. "I was getting paid a lot of money to keep my mouth shut. But I don't know!"

"So some strange guy is having shipments of weapons into Gotham City, and you don't even know why?" I demanded, incredulous. "Even for you, Loeb... I'm a bit surprised. You sure there wasn't another reason you agreed to this?"

Loeb was sweating like a pig now. "When I met him... when I met Mr. Sera... He said he had a plan. A plan to remake Gotham. Said we had to start over first."

"That doesn't sound good," I said grimly. "And let me guess, you had a cut in this "remade Gotham"?"

Loeb nodded. "I don't know anything else, I swear!" he yelped. "This other guy's calling all the shots!"

"What other guy?" Batman demanded.

"I don't know," Loeb whispered. "But there was something... there's something different about him. He's strong. You don't mess with him if you want to live. That's all I know."

Batman and I exchanged glances. I shot Loeb a disgusted look. "You're pathetic," I said. "And you're going down. Just a warning." And I rammed my fist into his face. He was out cold. Then, I looked at Batman again. "Other guy? That doesn't sound good."

"He could be lying."

"The lasso doesn't lie," I said, pulling it off Loeb.

Bruce's jaw flexed. "Then there's more to this than we thought."

And needless to say, I didn't have a good feeling about this.

The next morning, I was surprised to find that Cass still hadn't left her room. Granted, it was still pretty early, but she'd been an early riser so far.

"Sweetie?" I knocked on her door. No answer. Panic gripped me: had she run away? I opened the door, ready to call out her name, when I saw her in her bed, asleep. I let out a long breath. However, my concern returned when I saw her features flinch. Her fingers gripped the cover tightly, and her breath hitched.

She was having a nightmare.

I hurried up to her, gently leaned over, and pressed a hand to her head, stroking her hair. "Cass," I started quietly -

Without warning, she bolted upright and struck out at me. It took my Amazon reflexes and extensive training to block her - and only barely. I held her arm as she froze, staring at me, unseeing.

"Cassie, it's me," I said softly. "It's okay."

It wasn't a nightmare - it was a memory.

Cass blinked, then seemed to realize where she was. Glancing at her arm still in my grip, she pulled away, her features becoming that emotionless mask I first saw on her; and she whirled around and curled up in her bed, facing away from me.

"Cass... honey..." I reached out, but she flinched and curled away. I pulled back with a small sigh. "Cass, it's okay," I tried to tell her. "It was just a dream. You're safe."

But I had a feeling that wasn't why she was upset. I gently placed a hand on her shoulder. She didn't move.

"It's not your fault, Cass," I told her. "It's not your fault."

But she wouldn't respond. I tried encouraging her, reassuring her, but nothing helped. She was unresponsive. Finally, I decided to do what I did with Bruce when he was completely unresponsive - give her some space. I kissed her on her head and left the room, quietly shutting the door behind me. Sighing, I rubbed my temples. Helena was coming over today... maybe she could get Cass's mind off things, at least for a bit. Helena had always been good with kids.

That afternoon, when Helena showed up, Cass was reluctant to meet her. She wasn't shy, but she didn't seem to care for new faces.

"She's a good friend," I told Cass gently, motioning to Helena. "It's okay." But Cass still hovered in the doorway several feet back, warily eyeing the newcomer.

"Hi, sweetie," Helena said with a wide, warm smile that I never saw on her, except around kids and babies. "I'm your Auntie El. Your mom and I are best friends."

Cass studied her for a moment, glanced at me, then slowly came up beside me. She then signed "Hi. Nice to meet you."

"You, too," Helena signed back, much to my surprise.

"You know ASL?" I said, startled.

"I'm trying to be a teacher," Helena said. "It's been rough, trying to scrape the money for a master's, but it's worth it. In any case, I've been teaching myself sign language, just in case. Didn't know it would come in handy this early on."

Standing in Bruce's extravagant mansion, I couldn't help but feel guilty. Only because of Bruce were my mom and I living like this... out of the Narrows. Because of him, Mom didn't have to work anymore. I owed him so much...

"Well," I said, "the kitchen's all set... Cass, Helena and I were going to make some cookies for Grammia and Grandpa Alfred. Want to help?"

Cass nodded after a moment and took off for the kitchen.

"Grammia?" echoed Helena with a small, bemused smile.

"What she calls Mom," I explained, starting after Cass. "She signed it like that, and it just stuck. Mom adores her."

"I can only imagine. That poor kid," muttered Helena, folding her arms across her chest. "And I thought I had it bad. How's she doing?"

I sighed. "Considering everything she's been through... not too bad. We have good days and bad days."

"Hopefully," said Helena, "We can make it a good day."

Helena certainly did have a way with kids. Cass was still stoic for the most part, but after spending a few hours with Helena, who was being uncharacteristically silly... She did crack a small smile once. It was a start. After we'd eaten most of we'd just baked, I told Helena I'd give her a proper tour of the house. Cass popped one last cookie into her mouth, jumped off her seat, and signed "Grandpa Alfred," and took off down the hall.

"Where's she going?" asked Helena startled.

I smiled and rose to my feet. "She helps Alfred organize things around the house. Even if there isn't anything to be done, it's a routine of theirs now. Cass likes things that are repetitive. Nothing new. She... doesn't like surprises."

Helena started out into the corridor with me. "You're doing a great job with her, Di... But what's Wayne's involvement? You two raising her together?"

I nodded slowly. "Yes."

"You two dating, engaged, what?"

"No! We're just... good friends." Nothing had sounded more awful coming out of my mouth.

"You're living in his house, Di."

"I know. It was more for Mom than anything. When we were both gone, Mom moved in after she got sick. It was... Well, it just kinda happened that I ended up here, too. Understood, I guess."

"So, what, he's your sugar daddy?"

I flushed and shoved her lightly. "No, of course he's not! Good grief, El."

"Then what is he?" she demanded, still grinning. "Girl, you'd better have a ring on your finger or at least tell me you've gone past the friendship stage, or I'll lock you both in a room overnight."

"Would you cut it out?" I hissed.

"Oh, come on," she scoffed. "He's crazy about you," she said. "I mean, really. What kinda guy would put up a girl and her mother and take care of them? Now you're raising a child together? Seriously? Have you gone past third base yet?"

"Helena!" I hissed, feeling very much like I was back in high school. "Shut up! Good grief!"

"Is that a yes or no?"

"NO. We're FRIENDS."

"With benefits?"

"NO. CUT IT OUT."

"But you do love him," she said, eying me shrewdly.

I shot her a sullen look. "Yes," I muttered between my teeth.

"Lucky duck," scoffed Helena. "The man is gorgeous and rich. If he weren't yours, I'd latch onto him in a heartbeat. Well.. maybe. He does have that whole.. Dark Knight thing going - which is sexy, but a little ... much."

"You should see my other outfit," I muttered.

As we came down the hall, we turned a corner and nearly bumped into Bruce and another man. I stopped, surprised, and quickly put on my glasses and pulled my hair into a loose bun. Crap. I didn't have my wig on. Oh, well. Hopefully the glasses would be enough. I came up behind Helena and smiled at Bruce and the stranger, who wore a navy suit, a long coat over that, and a fedora that covered his scarred, jagged face in shadow.

"Sorry about that," I said, coming up beside Helena. "I didn't realize you had company." I colored, wondering if Bruce had heard any of our conversation. But he was unreadable.

"No worries," said Bruce with an easy smile. "This is Detective Sage from the GCPD. Detective, I'd like you to meet a good friend of mine, Diana Prince."

"Pleasure to meet you," I said, then realized that the Detective's startlingly bright, clever green eyes were locked on Helena. He hadn't even noticed me yet. I held out a hand, but he didn't shake it. Bruce and I exchanged puzzled looks, and I retracted my hand. "Um, this is my friend," I said after an awkward pause, "Helena Bertinelli."

Helena, however, only casually glanced at Sage before looking away. She had that careless, airy look about her, like she owned the world and didn't give a crap about anyone.

"Can I get you anything to drink, Detective?" I said finally, confused by the detective's behavior.

Sage's eyes had never left Helena. "No," he said brusquely, after another pause. "Just know that while you're here playing, Wayne, people are suffering," he said abruptly, directed obviously at Bruce. "Not that you'd care." And he finally tore his gaze off Helena and turned away. "I'll show myself out." And ensuring his hat was placed firmly on his head, he strode out of the hall and out towards the front door.

When we heard the door slam, the three of us looked at each other.

"Well, THAT was interesting," I remarked.

"Who was that guy?" Helena demanded.

"Detective Victor Sage," said Bruce with narrowed eyes. "A little... odder than I'd expected."

"Gordon did say we could trust him," I reminded him. "We should keep an open mind."

"Yeah, well..." Bruce didn't look convinced. "He's certainly paranoid. And strange. Brilliant, though, and very observant... and a good detective from what I've seen. Have to watch him more closely."

"Weirdo," muttered Helena. "You may dress up like a bat, Wayne, but even you're not as crazy as that guy."

Bruce glared at her. And it was a very intimidating Bat-glare. "Thanks for your input, Helena."

To her credit, she wasn't phased. "No problem, Batboy," she said airily, brushing past him. "Di, you coming?"

I hid a smirk. "Yep." I squeezed Bruce's arm as I passed by.

"I don't like her," he muttered to me.

I grinned. "Oh, yes you do."

I stood in the Batcave, alone that night. Bruce was still at work. And honestly, it was good to have just a few moments to myself... Try to wrap my head around everything going on. Work - I still had to talk to Leo, tell him that I couldn't keep working. Other work - now we had to figure out who this "Mr. Sera" was, and the other guy that Loeb had been talking about. Family - Cass needed her space, but she also needed gentleness and patience. I was doing the best I could... I just hoped it was enough. And finally... Bruce...

My patience was running low. After that kiss... He still hadn't made another move. He'd still been pretty much avoiding me when he could. Things weren't the same. He'd crossed the line, but he wasn't following through. If he didn't straighten this out... I would have to bring it up at some point.

Slowly, with my eyes closed, I began to move fluidly through a mix of tai chi, yoga, and various martial arts poses. Focusing completely on my breath, I started lose myself into the movements...

A hand grabbed my arm. My eyes flew open: Bruce stood in front of me, wearing a wife-beater and a pair of sweats that hung low on his waist. I paused, regarding his stoic face, and then burst forward, my hand in a karate-chop up to his neck -

He ducked, twisted my arm around, and came up behind me. "You're telegraphing." His voice was low in my ear. I shivered.

"We'll see," I replied. And I twisted around, shoved him in the chest, and sent him stumbling back. But his hand was still on mine, and he pulled me down with him. I fell right on him with a grunt, but quickly rolled off him and jumped to my feet. He swung his foot around, trying to catch me off-guard, but I lunged forward on my hands, avoiding his foot, and somersaulted over, trying the same move on him as he leaped to his feet. He twisted around, barely evading my foot, and aimed a kick at my stomach. I blocked it, then drove my hand towards his face. Within mere seconds, were fighting at the speed of light: hands and feet moving, cutting, driving, bodies twisting, spinning around the room in an intricate dance.

Finally, I aimed a sharp jab at his side - one of his hands grabbed mine, locked it inside his strong grip. My other hand went to his pressure point in his shoulder, but he'd already wrapped his other hand on my arm, ready to twist it. We were interlocked, right up against one another. The only sounds in the cave were a few bats chirping, and our quiet, deep breathing.

I flushed, suddenly aware of how close I was to him. I looked up at him, hoping my eyes didn't betray my feelings...

There was an alarmed, fiery look in Bruce's eyes. Whoa. It was ... some look. It froze me, drew me in, and...

Then, he abruptly released me, turned, and stormed out of the Batcave, looking angrier and more frustrated than I'd ever see him. His jaw was flexing, and his eyes were steely.

I stood there, feeling more alone than I had in a long time.

Interlude: Helena Bertinelli

Helena Bertinelli had a fairly normal life. Aside from being the best friend of an Amazon warrior princess, and aside from the fact that her mafia parents had been brutally murdered, and aside from the fact that she was moonlighting as a vigilante... She considered herself to have a fairly normal life. Well... sort of.

She'd managed to put herself through online college and desperately wanted to be a teacher in Gotham... She loved kids. But with her funds low and her friends few, life in Gotham City was difficult. She had the city on her side, for the most part. She knew every inch of this town - knew who to trust, where to go for a hand, and where to avoid. However, times in Gotham were tough, and with the war between Maroni and the Russian heating up in the new presence of the Batman and Wonder Woman... Everyone was on edge. Criminals were running scared, even Maroni and the Russian. And scared criminals were twice as dangerous.

Helena was trying to get her master's degree, but right now, she was working two different jobs and struggling to pay the rent. Her cousin had died a few years ago. While she still had distant family, she didn't really trust them. Most of them were likely working for Maroni, for protection against the Russians.

But now... for the first time in a long time, Helena was feeling all right. For starters, she'd regained really the only true family she'd ever really had: Diana and Mrs. Prince, or her second mother, as she called her. Despite everything that had happened, despite the fact that Diana and Alkyone were, in fact, freaking AMAZONS... Helena would always consider them family. And she knew that they would always consider her family as well. It was understood.

So, for now... things were starting to look up. For the most part. But Gotham was still pretty bad, and Bruce and Diana had a long way to go. However, Helena had been working on her own here and there. But with them, she knew she had allies. Still, she was independent, and she could more than take care of herself.

On a cool night after a particularly late shift, she was returning her to apartment when she heard police sirens blaring. Curious, she continued up the street until she came to a crime scene in a back alley. Several cops were there observing a body. But it wasn't just any body: it was one of the local drug lords. Her first thought: had Diana been here? She honestly didn't care whether Diana killed a thug or not, but it didn't seem like Di's style.

Unless it was a gang war. Entirely possible. Either way, it didn't really matter to her. She watched the cops look over the body - but truth be told, it didn't look as though they cared, either.

"Lorenzo Vitali," said a rough, low, and very distinctly familiar voice from behind her. Helena turned sharply to find the detective from Wayne's house standing right beside her, staring at the body. "Drug lord of the Maroni crime family. Killed by two bullets in the back."

"I know who he is. My heart bleeds," she said coolly, sticking her hands in her pockets.

The detective gave her a sideways glance. While she was normally good at reading people, he was inscrutable. "Miss Bertinelli, isn't it?" he said after a pause.

How the hell did he remember her name?

Helena nodded shortly. "Yeah. Sage, right? Detective Sage?"

The man nodded. Why did he never take off that ridiculous fedora?

"What are you doing out here?" Sage demanded, inspecting her carefully with those bright green eyes. "A little late to be out alone."

"What are you, my father? It's a free country, isn't it?" Helena said. "I like walking at night. Alone."

"Dangerous."

She shrugged. "I can handle it."

"Famous last words."

"As long as I'm famous..." She threw him a quick, wry grin.

But he didn't smile. She didn't know if he even could smile. Despite the darkness, the few lights cast around the alley only enhanced his rather gruesome features: his jagged scars, his rough, unshaven cheeks. He reminded her of a few veterans she'd seen. Maybe he was a war veteran himself. Definitely intimidating and ugly to look at. Not the type of guy she would go for. He was also a few years older than she was. She was only twenty-two. He looked in his mid-thirties. Maybe even later thirties. Hard to tell. Hard to see really see him at all.

"I don't need you injecting yourself into police business, Ms. Bertinelli," Sage said shortly. "We already have enough people taking the law into their own hands as it is."

"Jealous much?" burst out Helena hotly, invoking a sharp glare from Sage. "If you're talking about the Batman and Wonder Woman, they've done more in a few months than the police have done in twenty years. You might want to rethink your attitude, Detective."

"If we're talking about super-powered beings running around doing whatever they like, then I think I'll keep my opinion of them as it is," snapped Sage.

Helena rolled her eyes. "I think you're overreacting."

"Am I? Or maybe I'm just thinking ahead. Maybe I'm wondering how long it will take before more super-humans show up... before they're taking over for the police. Before they're against us and have too much power. Few actually plan ahead. Few even think to ask the question," Sage said.

Helena gave him a strange, narrow-eyed look. "Yeah, well, unfortunately, Mr. Question, even fewer think to leave other people alone. Which is what I would like. So figure that out, baby-doll." And she brushed past him, her nose upturned, and her temper riled. What a jerk.

"I'll walk you home," said Sage, starting after her.

Helena shot him a deadly glare over her shoulder. "Thanks, but no thanks. I'm a big girl. I can tie my own shoes and everything. Giving him a mock salute and an arch smile, she added, "See you around, Q."

But even as she turned down the street... she still felt his eyes on her. Irritated, she picked up her pace and turned down the corner.

Weirdo.

Thoughts? :)

I've been thinking that the Bruce/Di relationship is similar to the Castle/Beckett relationship - from the TV show Castle. :) They're partners, buddies... but there's obvious tension and love between the two, even if they're both afraid to admit it. Stubborn people.

- Serena