Intruder (DCEU)
He heard the faint click of her heels before he ever laid eyes on her perfect form or her beautiful face. She'd been on his mind almost constantly since Clark's funeral, always lingering in the back of his consciousness only to push to the forefront of his thoughts at any given moment.
It was something that he told himself was because of all of their recent communications, knowing they needed to build a team before the deadly fight arrived. It wasn't if it was coming. It was when. He knew that with every fiber of his being.
Still, how had the Amazon managed to work her way into his psyche, always there on the fringe of awareness? Was it one of her many gifts? Was it a secret power? It was something he was going to have to investigate. She was starting to invade his dreams now too.
He could hear her step quickening slightly, steadily growing louder. He always seemed to know when she was near although she was extremely skillful at concealing her presence…nearly as good as he was. It was one of the many things that he greatly admired about her. She was a true warrior in every way imaginable, something that he held with the highest esteem.
The corner of his lips curled slightly as he tightened his grip on the tool in his hand. He was pleased she was here. He had dared to hope that she would arrive soon. They had a seemingly impossible mountain of work that they needed to do if they were going to succeed in the battle that awaited them.
How long had it been since he'd last laid eyes on the Amazonian warrior? Three weeks? Maybe more? It felt like a nearly unbearable length of time and yet it hadn't even been a month. Both had been busy with their respective lives, their demanding jobs that consumed them at times.
Not to mention, there was protecting Gotham.
He wished that she lived closer to Gotham so he could see her more often. Of course, if things continued the way that they had been going, he was going to be seeing a lot more of her. Unfortunately, it wouldn't be anything pleasant by any stretch of the imagination.
Clark was dead and a very real threat was on the verge of knocking on their door any day now. They weren't anywhere near ready for whatever lay on the horizon. Right now, it was just him and her and they were not going to be nearly enough.
Bruce heard her come to a stop behind him, but he kept working, fighting the urge to immediately turn around. He didn't want to appear overly excited or happy to see her. He did have an image to maintain after all no matter how the pit of his stomach was suddenly fluttering.
The scent of her perfume was like a gentle caress against his face, awakening something more inside of him…something that he was hesitant to acknowledge. "You know I paid millions of dollars for this building's security," he uttered without turning around, tightening another screw.
"Yeah, it looked expensive," she replied, glancing around the cave.
He finally turned to face her, offering a soft smile. "Hi," he officially greeted her, deciding that black leather was definitely a good look on her.
"A new toy?" she asked, looking over the massive flying machine before her. She couldn't help wondering how Bruce was able to get his hands on something like this, but then again, she knew. This was Bruce Wayne.
"Troop carrier," he informed her.
"I once knew a man who would've loved to fly it," she softly replied with an air of regret that she quickly tucked back inside of her heart.
"Yeah, well, we're going to need more than a pilot," he stated matter-of-factly, not wanting to discuss Steve Trevor. He understood the magnitude of what lay ahead of them, and he was confident that they didn't have much time. "I think there's an attack coming."
"Not coming, Bruce," she clarified with a stoic expression that quickly put him on edge. "It's already here."
He had been afraid of that but feared giving into his paranoia.
Bruce lay aside his tools, grabbing a nearby cloth to wipe his hands. "What do you know?" he asked.
Diana unfolded her arms, allowing them to fall to her sides. "It's a long story," she replied.
"I just happen to have the time," he told her with a smile. "Let me grab my jacket. We'll take a walk and you can tell me everything."
Diana wandered around the troop carrier as she waited for him, greatly impressed by Bruce's preparedness. He had an acute awareness…a sixth sense…that was beyond anything that she'd ever seen in another person before. He never ceased to amaze her.
They had grown to know each other better since losing Kal-El, keeping in touch with each other as they worked to form some semblance of a team. Unfortunately, they hadn't made much progress as of yet, but a sudden sense of urgency was rapidly descending on them.
"Let's go for a walk," Bruce said as he adjusted the collar of his coat. "I could use some fresh air."
She smiled softly at him, a sudden awareness of her own settling over her as she drank in his handsome face. "I'm afraid that what I have to tell you is not going to be anything good," she cautioned him. "We're in very real trouble."
He sighed heavily as they made their way outside, following a small dirt path to the lake. "I had a feeling," he murmured, his mind already coursing with worries and contingencies that he would need to make.
He slipped his hands into his pockets as Diana began to tell him what she had learned. He could easily see the overt worry that consumed her, finding that it matched his own. They were all that stood in the way of this Darkseid and his army that was intent on invading Earth.
Bruce and Diana. Batman and Wonder Woman.
They weren't going to be nearly enough.
Bruce became lost in the lilt of her voice and her pronounced accent that seemed to grow more intense in unison with her fear of what lay ahead for them. He knew it was fear for the people of Earth and never for herself. He'd witnessed her selflessness firsthand when she had saved his life from Doomsday's attack. She had fought with remarkable courage and strength, an undaunting resilience that had left him in awe of her.
He glanced out over the serene lake to his right as Diana told the story of the boxes being hidden, a sense of hope rising within him. If humans, Atlanteans, and Amazonians could come together for the good of the world, then hopefully the two of them could form a team to stop Darkseid again.
Coming to a stop, Bruce turned his gaze on Diana, knowing there was someone out there watching them…intruding on his property. Two intruders in one day. He had a feeling he knew who it was; therefore, he refused to confront him. Bruce wanted him to be curious about them enough to check them out. It was a good sign in his mind.
With any luck, they'll be able to get him to join them, but it was a delicate situation, one probably best handled by Diana.
Diana shook her head, her lips pursing in anger and frustration. "With all the help they had, the gods themselves were barely able to stop Darkseid, Bruce," she said. "How are we going to be able to do the same this time?"
"We're going to have to track down these gifted people and convince them to join us," he told her, confidence filling his voice. "Come on…let's head back to the house. I'll show you what I've been able to find so far."
Diana cast a sidelong glance at him, her arms folding against her chest. "Is there anything else I need to know about besides the troop carrier?" she teasingly asked, the corner of her lips quirking in amazement at his ingenuity.
Bruce couldn't help but smile along with her. "I'm not sure you want to know the answer to that question," he replied with a snort of amusement. "I just want to make sure that we're ready for the fight that's coming."
"Is there anything that you can't do?" she questioned him. "You're a very successful businessman, a hero at night in Gotham righting wrongs, and you can repair your own vehicles. There has to be something that the great Bruce Wayne is not good at."
"Cooking," he simply stated.
"Excuse me?" she said with a laugh.
"I can't cook," he informed her with a mild wave of embarrassment.
"You can rebuild a troop carrier, but you can't cook," she responded with an air of disbelief. "Finally…I found a chink in your armor."
Bruce couldn't contain his laughter as they rounded the lake, a cool breeze greeting them. "I am far from perfect, Diana," he insisted, surprised by what she thought of him.
Did she actually think of him as flawless? It was inconceivable to think that this woman who was like pure light to the world would believe him to be without fault. It was not how he viewed himself. It made his heart sink. If she really knew him and the things he'd done over the years…his failures, she wouldn't want to have anything to do with him.
Wasn't the fact that he had failed Clark enough to keep her away from him?
Sensing his pensive mood, she bumped his shoulder with her own as they approached the house. "Bruce, I know you still harbor a great deal of guilt over Clark's death, but you—"
"Do you know how to cook?" he asked, interrupting her. He didn't want to discuss Clark or his guilt. It was his alone to bear.
"Bruce, I've been in this world for over a hundred years," she pointed out. "I've had to learn, or I would've been living on take-out my whole life."
"True," he agreed, opening the door for her to enter first.
She paused as she began to enter, the palm of her hand coming to rest on his chest. "You don't deserve to carry this guilt. You did everything you could to save him, but he chose to sacrifice his life for the world."
"Diana…"
"I'm here if you need to talk," she softly told him, her hand slipping away from his chest before continuing on.
He fought the overwhelming urge to reach out and grab her hand, feeling a sense of loss from the brief contact they had shared. There was so much that he wanted to tell her and yet he couldn't. It wasn't in his nature to let others in. Keeping them out had always proven to be much safer for both him and them.
Now, he wasn't so sure about that.
"Ah, I see you two have returned from your walk around the lake," Alfred greeted them. "I was just about to head upstairs to start preparations for dinner. I do hope Master Bruce remembered his manners and invited you to stay and eat with us."
Diana grinned at Bruce, deciding that she better save him. "I wouldn't miss your cooking for anything, Alfred."
Alfred cast a knowing look at Bruce, a single eyebrow rising minutely. "All right then," he replied. "I'll prepare enough for three."
Bruce looked at Diana. "I was going to ask if you wanted to stay," he told her. "I just hadn't gotten around to it yet."
"It's fine," she reassured him. "Now, show me what you've been able to find so far."
"Only on one condition," he replied as they made their way to his computer system.
Diana gave him a skeptical glance. "What is that?"
"Look at my security system to see what I can do to improve it," he said. "It obviously doesn't stop intruders very well."
Diana chuckled, her hand coming to rest on his shoulder. "I'm sure it's just fine," she assured him. "It just needs a little tweaking."
"How about I just give you a key to the house instead?"
Her smile grew as bright as the sun, warm and blinding. "That would work too, but it won't be near as fun."
"Consider it done then," he agreed.
"So, what are we calling our team?"
"There's just the two of us," he pointed out.
"The Dynamic Duo?"
"That's been done before," he informed her, internally cringing with the reminder of his dead partner.
"Ok, we'll have to work on that later."
"Let's form a team first and then we'll worry about a name."
"Will they get a key too?"
"We'll see," he replied, starting up his computer.
This partnership would prove to be quite an interesting adventure, one that he would thoroughly enjoy every moment of…even if she had intruded into his personal sanctuary.
A/N: I haven't forgotten my Wonderbat family. Still working on the Family Tree fic so hang with me! Real life keeps getting in the way. :)