3. Breakup
"Us ended the day you chose him over me."
'Him' it always came down to a choice between those two – Batman and Superman. Superman, the man of steel, earth's most famous hero and her best friend. Batman, an urban myth, a mortal man who overcame all odds to surpass all other meta-powered superheroes. He won the heart of a woman a Princess no less, a Princess from an island of immortal 'male hating' Amazons. Batman and Superman were on two extremes of the spectrum. Where one was light, the other lived in darkness. Where one reveled in the limelight of the people he protected and was a living legend, the other stayed in the shadows and was a myth. Superman was the League's body, but Batman was the brains. Superman might have thought of the League but it was Batman who made that 'vision' a reality.
Where did that leave her? Diana had always been at the center, the mid-path. She was a trained warrior like Batman, but while Batman didn't kill under any circumstances, Superman did when there was no other choice, and so did she. She was the heart and soul of the League. The whole world treated her and Superman like a couple, but as for her things couldn't be farther from the truth. 'Kal' was a friend, her best friend, but a friend and nothing more. Bruce on the other hand wasn't her friend. He was her…..what was he?...her lover….her heart…..her soul-mate. He was all that and more. Although they never expressed their feelings to each other, they were there, until the day she moved from the center to the side of the 'light'.
"I didn't choose him, I chose the league," she stated quietly.
"No" he barked. "Diana, Princess of Themiscyra chose the Justice League, but Wonder Woman chose Superman and his Justice Lords."
"Bruce…."
"Well, I hope you are happy with the choice you made." "You have succeeded in creating a paradise for mankind…..a living hell."
Diana lowered her head, tears starting to flow down her cheeks. The truth in his words hit her hard. She remembered that day clearly, as if it was yesterday.
----
/Flashback/
"You can't do this," yelled Batman at Superman.
"WHY" asked an equally heated Superman.
The rest of the core members looked on as the two giants went against each other. This confrontation had been a long time coming. Its seed was planted the day the League faced the Justice Lords. Since then the league had grown in size and power and so had the unrest.
"WHY? Do you even need to ask that" exploded Batman. "Because we are here to serve the law, bring the crooks and villains to justice, not take over it and become the final law ourselves."
"Maybe we should," answered Superman calmly, stunning everyone including Batman.
After a moment's silence, Batman spoke evenly to the other members, "Do the rest of you feel the same way?"
Green Lantern was the first to speak up, "I do and so does Shayera."
"I don't" interrupted Shayera.
"What?" exclaimed Lantern.
"Sorry John, but I betrayed the people of this planet once. I am not going to do it again."
"Do you think we are betraying the people, we are only trying to make their lives better," exclaimed John.
Shayera's silence conveyed her feelings clearly.
"J'onn" asked Batman.
The Martian, the last of his race was torn by what was occurring in front of his eyes. He wanted to support his friends, but couldn't decide which ones to support.
"J'onn" tried Superman.
After another moment's silence he somberly spoke, "I believe we should do our level best to serve the people we have sworn to protect."
"So you agree with Superman," Lantern offered.
"No. I don't agree or disagree with anyone. My vote is for the people of earth."
"That means you abstain," asked Batman.
"Yes"
"That makes it two for two and two more to go" counted Lantern. "Flash?" he asked turning to the youngest core member.
"Don't get me into this. I joined the League because I liked the idea of working together. If we are just going to fight amongst ourselves, I might as well leave," stated Flash, turning away.
"Diana yours' is the finally and deciding vote' spoke Superman.
Diana looked at both the men standing in front of her. Her heart told her to go in one direction while her mind pulled her towards the other. Squelching her heart, she looked straight away from both of them, "I vote for the League"
"What does that mean?" asked Lantern.
Before Diana could speak, she saw Batman turn around and walk out of the room. He understood her better than the others and had understood what she meant by her statement.
After a moment's silence, Shayera got up and followed in the direction Batman had gone.
"Well, that settles it, now we just need to break it to the rest of the league and let them decide how to act on it," said Lantern, sitting down.
"I'll do it," offered Diana.
"No" said Superman walking to the door. "As chairman it's my duty."
/End Flashback/
----
Diana's thoughts were interrupted by the rumble of the batmobile. He was leaving. Diana flew to the front of the vehicle, which immediately grinded to a halt.
"What do you want?" demanded Batman.
Diana opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out. All the time and effort she had spent rehearsing was lost in a single instant.
"I don't have time for this. I have work to do" he said impatiently.
"Let me help," she offered immediately, knowing that he liked to work alone.
"No" came the blunt reply.
"Why? Do you still work alone?" she asked.
"No. I only work with people I trust."
His words tore through her heart. "You trusted me."
"Once," he said, with the barest hint of emotions. "Not anymore" he added, losing any previous emotion he might have shown.
She had only thing she could do now. It was her last resort. If he turned her away, she wouldn't try again.
Diana fell to her knees, "I am sorry for all the hurt I caused you….forgive me." Tears were streaming down her face.
"GET UP" he spoke tightly.
Wonder Woman slowly rose to her feet.
"You are a champion of your gods, a superhero….What would your mother say if she saw you kneeling in defeat in front of a 'mere mortal man'?"
"It's good that she isn't alive to see me now?" Diana spoke trying to compose herself.
Batman was silent for a moment,
"Get in".