Zatanna
Another Place, Same Arms

Life doesn't move in a straight line. Every decision, every moment, every twisting, turning day can divert your course. Lying in a hotel room in another dimension, Zatanna could feel the shift. It could have been a word or a thought...something remembered or something forgotten and left behind. She couldn't put her finger on it, but it was there...nagging in the back of her mind as she stared at the ceiling. Her future was different now.

"Why are you awake so early?" Bruce's low voice brought her out of her thoughts as she lay there. It was like he could hear her thinking.

"Too many thoughts in my head."

"It's 5:30. Go back to sleep," he said, burying his face in her neck. She closed her eyes and tried, but found herself drifting in and out for the next two hours until the phone rang.

"This place is buggered, Zee," Constantine's voice was on the other end of the line and he sounded as frustrated as she felt.

"I know."

"You found yourself?"

"Yes," she said as Bruce turned and pulled the covers over his head. "She's terrified. I don't know how much help we're going to find here, John. What have you found?"

"Xanadu and Mist, so we've got some help. I'm ready to go to New York...hoping to find Occult there. Is your other self not going to help?"

"I think she will, but it's complicated. She has a child."

"How the fuck?" John mumbled. "Well, if she wants that child to have a future, she'll need to step up."

Zee sighed and realized John probably wasn't likely to give a damn about the implications of Zanna fighting and possibly losing.

"Are you ready? I'll transport you."

"Let's get it over with."

"Nhoj ot Wen Kroy."

She hung up the phone and walked to the bathroom. Staring in the mirror, she continued to weigh her options. How do you ask someone you just met to risk everything? It wasn't a question she felt like she could answer, and maybe that was an answer in itself. Sighing, she washed her face and returned to the room to find Bruce sitting on the bed, holding an envelope.

"Whatcha got?" She smiled, hoping he wouldn't pick up on her mood.

"Something I stole off of your nightstand."

"Stealing, Batman? You've changed. I feel like I don't even know you anymore."

He rolled his eyes and held his hand out, beckoning her back to the bed. Smiling again, she got back under the covers and sat next to him. Once she was closer, she saw that he had her birthday card. After their argument, she didn't feel like she deserved to open it, so she had left it sitting next to the book she figured he would come back and claim at some point.

"It got a little wet when I landed ass-first in the snow the other night, but it should still be legible," he said, handing the slightly-warped card to her. "Open it."

With his eyes watching her intently, she opened the envelop and pulled the card out. It had a simple rose design on the front and only his hand-written words inside.

"Thank you for making me human again – Love, Bruce."

Simple words. To most people, they would seem strange or meaningless, but not to her...not from him. She bit her lip and kept her eyes down, trying to fight the onslaught of tears that were threatening to attack her. It wasn't fair of him to make her cry all the time. Not when she had spent two years of her life refusing to let her emotions out. When she had apparently stayed quiet for too long, she felt his warm, rough hand on her face as he forced her to turn and look at him. The tears were flowing now.

"I know I'm no romantic, but..."

"Thank you," she whispered. He smiled and leaned forward to gently kiss her.

"No, thank you." She leaned her head on his shoulder and let the tears flow silently for several minutes until he spoke again. "We should get ready and go soon."

Reluctantly, she stood and conjured them both new outfits for the day. They walked to the diner and ate a quiet breakfast, both looking in each other's eyes a little too often as they sat. When they returned to the room, he kissed her again before she transported them into Zanna's entryway.

"Welcome back," she said, greeting them as they arrived. "I hope you had a good night?"

"Yes, it was good," Zee said, understating it tremendously. They were led back to the living room where a man was standing by the fireplace, back to them. I'd know that hair anywhere.

"Honey, these are the people I was telling you about," Zanna said quietly. Her husband turned, arms crossed over his chest and brow furrowed. Zee gasped as she looked at him. His shoulders weren't as broad and his face was less weathered, but the eyes, mouth, nose...all the same as her Bruce.

"Hi, I'm..." Bruce started to speak, but Zanna's husband cut him off.

"I know who you are and what you're doing here. You're trying to get my wife to risk her life to help you. The answer is no."

"Honey, we talked about this. This isn't just someone asking a favor. This is life or death." Zanna stepped forward and stood between them.

"It is. That's exactly what it is. And I won't allow it." The look on her husband's face was one Zee had seen dozens of times.

"Oh, you won't allow it. Is that what we're doing now? You're making decisions for me? Because you know that won't fucking fly." That look might be a bit familiar, too.

"We have a son, goddammit! I'm not letting you do this!" For the first time, this dimension's Bruce truly looked at them, eyes blinking as he scanned between them and his wife. His breathing was quick and his arms stayed tightly crossed. Zanna walked over to him, gently laying her hand on his arm.

"I know. He's the reason I need to do this."

"I'm sorry. I know it isn't right to come here and ask for anything, especially something like this," Zee finally said, feeling the need to break the tension between them. "If there was any other way..."

"There has to be. And you have to find it, because I'm not letting you take her from us."

This isn't going to work.

Diana
Shadowcrest

"What do you mean they went to another dimension?" Everything June Moone was telling her was complete insanity. Could this really be what Zatanna was doing?

"There's a problem in another dimension that needed to be fixed. Zatanna and John Constantine were going there, but someone else stepped in as they were leaving. He went, too. I don't know who it was, but it's unlikely he survived."

"If it's the someone I think, he's far too stubborn to die that way." Please let me be right.

"They're coming back Friday night, if everything goes right."

"Why are you still here?"

"I...I was too afraid to leave. The others who were here...they don't like me. I was afraid they would try to capture me if I left. Zatanna said I was welcome here if I stayed in this room." She looked at the floor as she spoke, clearly spooked.

"Who are these others?"

"Tsaritsa, Effron, Zor, and Brother Night." Goddess, Zatanna. What have you done?

"Have you eaten?" June shook her head silently. "I'll bring you some food and water. Stay here and I'll return. And June? Please do not release your other self in this place."

With wide eyes, June looked up at her and nodded as Diana turned and headed back toward the entrance.

Bruce
Zanna's House

I've certainly never denied being stubborn.

Things weren't exactly going well and he had no idea how to make it go any better. How do you argue with someone you know is right? Zanna didn't deserve to be pulled into the middle of this. Their son didn't deserve to risk losing his mom. This dimension's Bruce was doing exactly what he would do...yelling and all.

"You know, it isn't exactly a ringing endorsement of my magical skill that you think I'm going to die. I'm fighting. I'm not throwing myself on a fucking grenade." Same mouth.

"Sounds like I came in at a moment of pure marital bliss," a familiar voice said from the entryway.

He heard Zee let out a loud, choking gasp, but couldn't grab her before she was up and running headlong at the man who entered.

"Daddy!" She flung her arms around the waist of Giovanni Zatara as he stood wide-eyed and staring at the insane gathering of people in the room.

"Did you forget to tell me something over the phone, daughter?" He asked, trying to look at Zee's face as she clung to him and wept loudly.

"No, but I'm sure you can see why it wasn't safe information to relay over a phone line, Dad."

Bruce stood and walked to Zee, taking her shoulders and trying to pry her arms away from him.

"It's alright, son. I get the sense she might have needed this," he said, putting his arms around her and hugging her tightly. His heart ached as she continued to weep in her father's arms. It was a pain he knew all too well. At the same time, it gave him a thought that he had been forcing out of his mind since they had arrived. If her father is still alive, what about my parents?

"Let me see your face, sweet child." Zatara said, pushing against her shoulders until she looked up. He smiled at her and brushed her hair away from her face. "I know those eyes."

"Daddy, I'm so sorry. Please..." She buried her face in his chest again as he looked around the room, confused. Zanna shrugged as the other Bruce continued to glare at them all.

"It'll take a while to explain," Bruce said. "Maybe uh...Bruce...and I could talk while you catch each other up. He looked at his counterpart, who stared at him for a long moment before turning and walking to another room. Unsure if it was an invitation to follow, he looked to Zanna, who nodded before looking back to Zee glued to her dad. He followed behind and found his other self standing in a sun room, looking out at the backyard.

"She'll do this, you know. She'll do this because you asked and she thinks she owes something to magic," he was speaking before he had fully entered the room. "And she'll get herself killed. You have no idea what you're asking."

"We wouldn't be doing this if it wasn't important."

"What exactly did you think you would find here? Some warrior who could go to battle with you?" He turned and faced him now, eyes still glaring and jaw set. I'm arguing with myself. How do I argue with myself?

"If there was any other way..."

"Would you let her? Your Zanna. Would you let her do this?"

"Letting her isn't really how it goes. She would do it no matter what, if she thought it was right. It's how we wound up here to start with. I didn't get a vote. But it's different. We're not married. We don't have a child."

"But you love her."

"Yes." He wasn't arguing with himself. He was arguing with a man who had a wife and son. A man who lived every day in fear that they would be taken from him. A man who had a regular job and no alter ego that fought evil alongside his lover and a dozen other superhuman beings. "Look, if I had my way, she would stay home and never be in danger, but I don't get my way. Not with her. She's fucking stubborn and determined as hell."

"And so is my wife. Which is why she won't turn you down," he said rubbing his forehead with his hand, eyes filling with tears. This isn't right.

"No! I'm not letting you do that!" One of the Zatannas was suddenly yelling in the other room, prompting them to make a quick return. Zee was standing next to the couch with her fists clinched at her sides, tears still flowing down her cheeks.

"You came here for help," Zanna said, looking at her furious counterpart.

"No. We don't need your help. Bruce, we're leaving." Zee grabbed his hand and tried to pull him toward the door.

"Daughter, stop." Zatara stood and grabbed her shoulders. "You don't have a choice and you know it."

"No! I'm not losing you again. This is over."

"Hey, just calm down. What's going on?" Bruce asked, wishing he had stayed in the room instead of having a pointless discussion with himself.

"She won't let us help," Zanna said, clearly frustrated. "And my father won't let me help." Zee was still pulling at his arm, trying to get him to leave with her.

"Good, finally someone else who agrees with me." Alternate Bruce felt the need to speak, earning a withering glare from his wife.

"Can we all just sit down and act like adults for a few minutes?" Zatara said, sitting back down on the couch. "And I thought one daughter was a handful."

Bruce led Zee back to sit down next to him, then leaned against the fireplace with his counterpart.

"You said you can't fight this without help, right?" Zatara asked Zee, who had grabbed his hand and was squeezing it between hers.

"Not from you."

"Because I died the last time?" Her eyes shut and she drew in a long breath. "How?"

"Because of me," her quiet voice said, ripping at Bruce's heart.

"I don't believe that. Was I there to help you?"

"You were there because I insisted on fighting." She shot a pointed look to Zanna. "But I'm stronger now. And I don't need your help."

No one in the room was going to believe her...not even herself. They had traveled across dimensions because they needed help. Zatara sighed as he looked between his daughters and son-in-law, who was still teary-eyed as he stared at his wife.

"Never in your life have I doubted your strength, daughter. But, this is our world. It's our job to defend it. It's my job," he said. "Let me talk with your mother and..."

"Mama?" Zee was breathing heavily suddenly and it looked like she was going to pass out. "Mama's alive?" Bruce saw Zatara's face twist with anguish as she hyperventilated. He quickly walked to kneel down in front of her. Putting his hand over her heart, he raised her head to look in his eyes.

"With me. Just breathe with me. In and out." Her shaking hand went to his chest and she blinked at him through her tears until her breathing slowed just enough to keep her from losing consciousness.

"You're the only family she has now?" Zatara asked, looking to him. It was the first time Bruce had considered the statement and he felt overwhelmed as the realization hit him. He nodded slightly and leaned his forehead against Zee's as she tried to recover. When she had been talking about J'onn's loneliness the night before, it was as if she understood on a deeper level. She did. So many in the League did.

"Dad, maybe you should give Mom a call," Zanna said, voice cracking.

"I'm not sure that's a good idea," Bruce said, earning a shocked look from Zee. "I know. But you're barely holding yourself together right now."

"If you knew...if they're here..." He quickly moved his fingers to her mouth to stop her words. It wasn't a fair question and she was speaking through her emotions.

"Don't. Please," he said quietly. She closed her eyes and dropped her head, nodding and sniffling.

"I'll call her," Zatara said. "It will be her decision if she wants to come over and if she wants to fight. As we've seen, husbands don't get to make decisions for their wives in this family."

Zatanna
Zanna and Bruce's House

Daddy. Mama. The words were rattling around in her head as if she were learning them for the first time. In all of her planning, she somehow hadn't let herself consider this possibility. Now she was here with her father and her mother was on her way over. Tears were continuing to flow down her face as Bruce held her, hand still over her heart.

"It's okay," he whispered in her ear. Zanna and her Bruce had gone to another room and left them alone on the couch.

"You have to ask," she said between sniffles. "You have to, Bruce." As afraid as he was, she knew he would regret it if he missed the chance to see his parents again.

"It's not the same. They won't understand any of this."

"You don't know that. Please, Bruce. You have to ask." He stayed quiet, pressing his lips to her forehead until they heard the front door open. Her body started to shake again and Bruce squeezed her tighter.

"Shhhh. It's okay."

"Zatanna?" Her father had reentered the room and her heart was racing in her chest. She turned her head and looked directly in the eyes of her mother.

"My god..." Sindella said, hand over her mouth and eyes wide with shock. "How is this possible?"

"Magic," her father said, smirking and leading her forward. "Your daughter happens to be quite powerful, my dear. In any dimension"

Sitting down on the couch next to her, she brushed a strand of hair from her eyes and looked to Bruce, who loosened his grip. Zee immediately turned and threw her arms around her mother's neck, sobbing again.

"Mama..." She didn't know what to say. How do you talk to someone you love with your whole heart, but hardly know? "I love you, Mama."

"I love you too, Zatanna. I'm so sorry you've been alone."

"She's not alone now, Mom," Zanna said, returning to the room. "We're going to help her. All of us."

Zee looked around at her family. They had each other. It was more than she had and she was going to find a way to protect it in this life. She wasn't going to let them sacrifice themselves for her mission, but she knew arguing would be pointless. And so, she lied.

"Okay. All of us," she said, holding her parents' hands. Bruce was sitting across from them, reading her like a damn book as she spoke. Instead of ratting her out, he stood and left the room. "I'm guessing none of you have tried fighting an inter-dimensional Hellbeast before?"

Gathered around her now, they all shook their heads and stared at her.

"Just tell us what we we need to do. Your father and I used to fight with magic quite often before things got really bad here," her mother said. "Hellbeast might not be on the list, but we know what we're doing."

"Good. Do you still live at Shadowcrest?" They nodded. "It's the best place to fight from. It's powerful and can help offer protection." And I know where it is.

They spent the next several hours discussing protection circles and what went wrong the first time they tried to fight the beast. Zanna's husband must have been argued into submission, because he stayed very quiet as he occasionally checked on them and brought them lunch when Zee's obnoxious stomach had started growling loud enough for everyone to hear. She assumed Bruce was with him, but he hadn't reappeared.

"So, Sunday at noon?" Zanna asked when the planning was winding down.

"Yes. Have everything ready a little early so the ritual can start at exactly noon in both dimensions."

"Do you think it's enough? The three of us and the others your friend is gathering?"

"I know Occult and Mist. If they're involved, that's a lot of firepower," her father said. "I think we've assembled more than this beast can handle."

She wondered if her father truly believed that or if he was just as comfortable lying as she was.

"I think you and your Bruce should stay here tonight. It's really not safe for you to be moving around Gotham City," Zanna said. "We have a guest room you'll be comfortable in."

"That's very kind, but we wouldn't want to impose. I can transport us back to the hotel."

"Please, I insist."

"And I'll cook us dinner. Maybe we can all just talk a while instead of planning for the potential end of the world," her mother said, smiling at both of her daughters. Zee wasn't going to refuse dinner with both of her parents, so she nodded and thanked them.

"Now, I wonder where our grumpy men have gone off to," Zanna said, standing and heading toward the kitchen. She returned with both grumps in tow, though Zee's Bruce immediately came to her and kissed her lips before smiling and hugging her tightly. It wasn't the greeting she was expecting, considering he knew she was lying to her family and likely disapproved. Perhaps he was saving the speech for bed when they were alone.

Dinner was bizarre and wonderful. They asked her all about her stage career and life touring with her father as a child. She and Bruce talked about the Justice League and how they came to know each other. Bruce had awkwardly tried to apologize for how they ended up together, but Zatara laughed and waved him off.

"Son, you would have my blessing in any dimension, I assure you." She had to fight to keep from laughing when Bruce sighed heavily in relief. "Seems you have more family than I thought. This League of yours."

"A few more so than others," she said, holding Bruce's hand. "I don't know what I would have done without them after I lost you." She asked her parents what their lives were like and they gushed about Zanna, Bruce, and Tommy. "Where is your son?" Remembering that he had to be watched closely, she assumed that not just anyone could be a babysitter.

"With my parents," Zanna's husband said. Zee quickly looked to Bruce, but he just smiled and put his arm over her shoulders. Yeah, plenty to talk about in bed.

When it was after 9:00pm, her parents excused themselves to return home. They were coming back in the morning to go over the plans one more time and meet Constantine. By the time she and Bruce retired to the guest room and got in the shower, she was emotionally exhausted.

"You're scheming," Bruce said as he washed her hair.

"Do you have to make it sound so dastardly? I'm trying to figure out how to make this work without everyone dying."

"Including you?" He paused and looked in her eyes, holding her head so she couldn't escape his gaze.

"Preferably, yes."

Bruce
Guest Room

Truth.

They finished their shower in silence and got ready for bed. When Zatanna's hair was dry and she crawled in next to him, he pulled her over to his chest and picked up a stack of photos he had placed on the nightstand.

"What are these?" She asked as he handed them to her with a grin.

"Memories," he said. He'd asked. His alter ego had told him all about his parents and their lives to that point. She looked at the first picture of his young self standing with his parents. "Middle School baseball. I guess I was a pretty good athlete."

With teary eyes, she turned and looked at him. "Not too surprising, Batman." She flipped to the next.

"High school graduation." She smiled. Her breath caught a bit when she looked at the next. "Wedding day."

The last was one of both sets of parents, Zanna, Bruce, and Tommy. Her hand gently traced the faces as she examined it, sniffling and wiping tears.

"Are they coming over tomorrow?" She asked in a quiet voice.

"No."

"But Bruce..." He leaned down and pressed his lips to hers for a moment.

"This is enough, Zee. Thank you." Taking the pictures back and putting them on the nightstand, he moved her so that she was lying on top of him, looking in his eyes as she propped herself on his chest. He knew she probably didn't understand...couldn't understand...why he couldn't agree to see his parents. It wasn't that he didn't want to. It was because of what he could already see in her eyes: if he saw them, he wouldn't want to leave this place. He had to go back. His family, Gotham, the League...he couldn't abandon them. And there was no way in hell he was leaving without her. "We have to go back tomorrow."

She nodded slowly, but he knew she was hiding something. Her eyes always gave her away.

"The mages in our dimension will be starting the ritual at 8:00. We have to be on time and everyone needs to stay close together. Hopefully you won't almost get ripped apart this time."

"That would be preferable." He brushed a strand of hair away from her face and leaned forward to kiss her. She quickly moved up his body to deepen the kiss, warm tongue entering his mouth with a sigh. "This is a little strange."

"Mmm...why?" She asked, still clinging to his lips.

"Because we might be down the hall doing the same thing right now."

"Ha! Not unless he's apologized," she said, pulling her head away.

"What the hell does he have to apologize for? Wanting to keep her alive?" He pulled her shirt up and over her head.

"How about yelling at her? This might come as a shock to you, Bruce, but women don't actually like being yelled at. Particularly Zatannas."

"Really?" He asked, pulling her panties down. "What do they like?"

"I don't know. Being told sweet things, like how beautiful they are..."

"God, you're beautiful," he said, kissing her neck.

"And that you love them..."

"I fucking love you." He flipped her and trapped her body under his. "I think she should be the one to apologize."

"For what, exactly? Wanting to save the world?" She pushed his pants down over his hips and helped him kick them off, stroking his cock gently.

"For going along with this harebrained scheme of yours." Kissing his way down her chest, he stopped at her breasts and gently sucked on her nipples as she started to moan.

"Oh, god...what were we arguing about?" Her hand was in his hair now, twisting as he continued to taste her soft skin.

"No idea." He gently thrust into her with a groan.

"I fucking love you, too." Her voice trailed off into another moan as he moved inside of her.

She loves me.

To be continued…