20. Down in the Pits

"Especially not me"

J'onn Batman called telepathically.

Yes Batman the Martian replied as he sensed 'who' he was talking to. It wasn't Bruce right now. It was Batman.

I have done it

Where is she? J'onn inquired evenly.

Downstairs, in the cave Batman replied as he brought the memory of the event to the front of his mind for the telepath to 'see'.

It needed to be done

And I have done it Batman said as he withdrew from the conversation.

"Who was it?" a sleepy voice asked from the bed. Having returned after the meeting, Zatanna had changed and gone off to sleep, catching up on what she had missed the previous night. She was still in the process of getting up and from the slight glow in her husband's eyes, she had known that he was telepathically liking with someone.

"Batman," J'onn turned to his wife.

"What did he want?" Zatanna sat up, scratching the itchy side of her face she been sleeping on. "We don't leave for another six hours."

"He talked with Diana," J'onn answered evenly. "She might need your help."

"On it," the flamboyant magician was up in an instant. Grabbing her robe, she visualized Diana and teleported to the cave.

----

"Alfred," Wally West trudged into the kitchen. "Can I talk to you?'

"Certainly master West," the kindly Butler turned to him. He noted the young man's somber tone and the fact that he had called him 'Alfred' and not Alfie or one of the other names he frequently used.

"Its…its about…" Wally flopped down in an empty chair. "Its about Cass."

"Miss Cassandra," Alfred arched an eyebrow, his voice retaining its calm.

"Yes," Flash nodded and lowered his head. "I…I want to talk to her."

"Talk to her? That shouldn't present a problem. You know where you can find her. If you require me to…"

"No," Wally shook his head and looked up with lost eyes. "I know where she is. I even talked to her. I want to talk to HER, to Cassandra, not to Batgirl. That's who I get whenever I go near her. Even without the cape and cowl on, that's all I get. I want to talk to the Cass I knew…the Cass I loved…love," he ended with a whisper.

"Master West," Alfred wanted to help him, to alleviate his pain. However, he couldn't say anything helpful, because he had seen the way his young ward, his surrogate granddaughter had suffered all those years ago, when Flash had left for parts unknown. Steeling his aging heart, he said the only thing he could. "Master Wallace. I can only tell you to give her time. She is her father's daughter. Neither of them can be forced to say or do anything they don't want to do."

"But…" Flash began.

"Give her time," Alfred repeated himself. "If its meant to be, so it will become."

"Thanks Alfred," Wally said dejectedly as he got up and headed for the door.

"You are welcome sir. Glad to be of assistance."

"Alfred," Wally turned back to him.

"Yes sir."

"Do you think things will…things will work out?" he asked hopefully. "I mean go back to the way they were. Before…" he trailed off.

"Things never go back to the way they were," the experienced man responded wisely. "Change is continuous and constant. However, I wish, for your sake and for the sake of Miss Cassandra, that they you two can work things out." He repeated Flash's own words.

"I hope so," Flash smiled sadly, as he walked away.

-----

That evening,

Dinner was a relatively silent affair as all six adults preoccupied in one way or another. The only person talking constantly was young Shaye, who was in her usual seat beside her father. Sitting opposite to her was Cassandra, with Zatanna and Diana beside her.

Zatanna had been with Diana for the last six hours and was still keeping her company as she ate in complete silence. Neither had spoken a word to each other….to be more specific, Diana hadn't spoken a single word.

Sitting opposite to Zatanna was her husband, J'onn and Wally, in what was her usual. Wally was just as quite as Diana, except unlike Diana who didn't look away from her plate, Wally kept on giving lost glances towards the unresponsive Cassandra.

The only other occupant, Bruce was busy eating and listening to his daughter recount the events of the day. 'That child brought light to the dark, dreary world of the Batman,' Zatanna thought as a smile came over her face.

It only lasted for a couple of seconds until her next thought hit her. '…..just like her mother did all those years ago.'

Glancing at Diana from the edge of her eyes, she lost herself in a memory from the long gone past. A time before she had joined Bruce, Shayera and J'onn permanently.

She had been contacted by J'onn on behalf of Shayera. Bruce had been severely injured in a battle and wasn't recovering properly. In fact, he was slowly fading away.

/Flashback/

"Zee I need you to do this?" Shayera looked up at Zatanna. "Its our last chance to save him."

"Shayera," Zatanna frustratingly ran a hand through her raven hair. "I can try. I mean I can get the ingredients you have listed and I know the chants usually used for such a process. Although I must tell you this. I haven't ever done it or even seen it being done. It might not work."

"We have to try it," neither Batman nor Hawkgirl were big believers of magic, but this was a crisis situation. "Everything else has failed. His body is shutting down. At this rate he might not even last forty-eight hours."

"Shayera," Zatanna was still hesitant. "Maybe J'onn can…."

"We have tried everything," tears had welled up in the eyes of the normally strong Thanegarian. "Please Zatanna…..please…."

"Ok."

"Please…I can't lose him," Shayera continued as her head fell to the edge of the bed on which a severely injured and unconscious Bruce Wayne lay. "Can't lose him…please do it."

"Shayera," Zatanna came over to her friend's side. She had never seen the red haired beauty like this. 'Something has happened between her and Bruce since my last visit here,' Zatanna's brow creased in thought.

"Can't…can't lose….love…." Shayera started to roll off the bed and fall out of her chair. She would have surely hit the ground if it hadn't been for the timely intervention of the stoic Martian.

"J'onn, what is happening to her?" Zatanna came and steadied Hawkgirl as her green-skinned teammate laid her on an adjoining bed.

"She hasn't been sleeping or eating properly," J'onn shook his head. "She rarely leaves his side. It's been a week like this. I am afraid her mind and body are starting to finally rebel against her will."

"…and her heart," Zatanna said softly as she looked up towards J'onn for some sort of confirmation, but got none. "She loves him," she said turning her eyes back to the unconscious duo.

"Yes," at least she got that much.

"And him," the magician pointed towards the prone form of Bruce Wayne.

"He cares deeply for her, that much I know," J'onn said softly. "I haven't sensed these sort of emotions from him in many years."

"Not since Diana," was more of a statement rather than a question from the raven haired beauty. "Isn't it?"

J'onn silence gave her all the answers she needed.

"Uhn…..uhn…" Shayera groaned as she regained consciousness. "Bru….ce….."

"Shayera keep lying down," Zatanna lay a hand on her shirt covered shoulder. "Everything is fine."

"Nnnn…no…" Shayera pushed her hand away and pulled herself into a seated position. "Have to stay with him….care…can't lose him…" her head lolled back as she tried to turn and get off the bed.

"Shayera please," Zatanna pleaded. "J'onn do something."

"Shayera please, get some sleep," J'onn requested for the hundredth time. "I will stay beside Bruce. You need the rest."

"No, can't sleep," Shayera shook her head, almost falling over in the process. "What is something happens to him. What if he….." she trailed off, unable to talk aloud about the possibility of Batman dying.

"Shayera, nothing is going to happen," Zatanna stated confidently. "I am going to get all the ingredients. We are going to get the pit ready and Bruce is going to recover completely."

"Good, lets go," Hawkgirl stated strongly, her body still betraying her.

"No," Zatanna shook her head. "I will go alone and that too on one condition."

"What?" Shayera turned her eyes from Bruce to face Zatanna.

"You will go to sleep now and not wake up until I get back."

"But Bruce," she flailed her hand towards the bed next to her. "He needs…someone…." She could't even complete the sentence as exhaustion finally and completed overtook her.

"Good," Zatanna stepped away from the bed. "I'll get started with the list. See you soon."

"Good luck Zatanna," J'onn wished with a slightest of curving of the lips.

"Don't worry, got all of my good luck charms with me," Zatanna made a parting joke as her worried eyes roved over Bruce and Shayera. The next instant she was gone.

----

Luckily for them, everything worked out just fine, without a single hitch. The only thing missing in the Bat-computer records were the spells needed to get the pit going, which Zatanna supplied easily.

Batman made a complete and prompt recovery, except for the time spent in recovering from temporary insanity caused by the pit.

The recovery was so complete that even his ever present sullen mood came back when he came to know the cause of his miraculous healing. He withdrew into the cave, plunging himself back into his work.

-----

It had been Zatanna who had finally confronted Bruce, but only after she tried to tried to get Shayera to admit her feelings towards him. Initially both Bruce and Shayera denied any such thing, saying that they were just teammates. Their main fear had been that the other didn't feel the same way about them and was still in love their previous partners…or non-partners in Batman's case.

Shayera had an additional hope-fear combination. She had kept her hope of Diana returning alive through the years. Now that she had fallen in love with the same man whom her ex-teammate loved, that hope had changed mutated into fear. What if Diana came back? Would Bruce leave her and go back to his Amazonian princess? Why wouldn't he? What would happen to her then? All those questions had been plaguing her mind, causing her to hold back her love back inside her.

There was another fear.

What would happen if she did profess her feelings? Would they be mirrored and shared by him? Would they be returned? What would happen?

/ End Flashback/

Zatanna Lost in her thoughts, Zatanna almost missed finishing her dinner, a fact which her husband gently brought to her notice.

Sorry J'onn she apologized. Got lost in my thoughts

J'onn merely mentally nodded his head, his physical form as somber as ever.

----

An hour later,

"I have activated the further most proximity alerts," Batman intimated to his butler. "Shaye is asleep, so that shouldn't be a problem."

"Very well sir," Alfred replied as he laid out his provisions for the night. A box of his favorite home baked cookies and a flash of hot Indian tea. He was dressed for a night of vigilance, complete with his robe and comfortable pajamas.

Stepping away from the main console, Batman joined his teammates, waiting for him besides the larger of the two latest incarnations of the batwing.

Moments later, the 'wing emerged from a secret opening in the mountain housing the new 'manor' and bat-cave.

Traveling at a leisurely pace of seven times the speed of sound, the bat-wing tore threw the night sky, carrying the six superheroes towards their secret destination.

About forty minutes later, the 'wing dropped out from orbit, plunging down towards yet another mountain range, albeit one with a lake. As the batwing emerged from the skies, its windows turned black.

"Hey. What gives?" Flash almost jumped out of his seat.

"Approaching destination," an electronic male voice answered as batman let go of the control, allowing the autopilot to take over for the final landing, which involved going through the lake.

----

"We are here," Batman announced as he removed his seatbelt.

'Where is here?' Wally wondered silently, still unable to see anything from within the confines of the parked plane.

Stepping out the plane the five passengers followed Batman towards a cave wall, a part of which slid open to reveal a security checkpoint. Giving his hand, eye and DNA prints, Batman unlocked the hidden door.

As the cave wall slid aside, Diana and Flash turned towards it, their mouths falling open at the sight of their welcoming committee.

"Great Hera," Diana gasped in disbelief.

"No way," Flash put in his two words.

The male female couple came forward into the light, the woman grinning and wiggling her eyes at Diana. "Hey Diana…." She greeted.

"Long time no see."