Bruce
Watchtower

Zatanna refused to let Thomas out of her sight, so she sat in her old chair, watching as he ran around the room and climbed from lap to lap. The finger pointing started immediately, but Bruce put a quick stop to it.

"We all knew this was risky. We put our trust in someone untrustworthy and it came back to bite us. We need to do better."

"It's my fault," Shazam said, pacing along the wall. "I could feel him ramping his power higher than usual and didn't react fast enough. He lulled me to sleep with his 'cooperation'."

"I missed it too, Billy," J'onn said. "I'm sorry, Zatanna."

"It's my fault," she said. "She played me. She played me from the start and then they both played us all."

"Tsaritsa?" Clark asked.

"Yes. She's been working with Adam and I was the only one who could give him back his power."

"What about...uh...Kal?"

"Tsaritsa wanted a new Prince Charming and Adam needed powerful help. Doesn't get more powerful than Superman."

"You call him Superman?" Kal asked, a look of confusion stuck on his face with everything that was going on.

"Yes. One good thing – my promise to Tsaritsa has been fulfilled...more or less."

Bruce nodded. "You got him here, he's just not what they were expecting."

"And that, we can be grateful for," Diana said. "But we have some planning to do."

"We do. Adam won't let his grudge against Zatanna go, so protecting her is a priority."

"Why is he so fixated on her?" Clark asked.

"I took his power."

"Technically, but we all chose to do it. You were the weapon, but we all pulled the trigger."

"His idea of morality is pretty warped," Shazam said. "Zatanna wronged him, so he aims to make her pay. Someone who thinks they're a god isn't easily reasoned with."

"He also knows he can get to me. My magic alone isn't a match for his, if my wards are any indication."

"Do we think he has other help on the way from other dimensions?" Diana asked.

"I don't see how," Zatanna said. "It took pretty extraordinary circumstances for her to recruit me to help."

"But we probably shouldn't exclude it, just to be safe. We need to take care of him sooner than later."

"Any sign of him?" Bruce asked.

"No," J'onn said. "He didn't have any interest in taking on the three of us and moved further away from Earth. Victor is patrolling and monitoring all of the satellite feeds."

"I'll work with him to make sure we're monitoring everything we can," Barb said over coms.

"I'll see what I can find out about what Tsaritsa is doing now," Diana said, standing and picking Thomas up when he buzzed her way. "You're a whirlwind this evening."

"I'm exhausted just watching him," Dinah said.

"Where's Ollie?"

She shook her head and sighed. "I told him to simmer before he came here. There was a lot of 'I told them sos' and I didn't feel like we needed that right now."

"We all know," Bruce said. "Tell him we could use the help, if he's willing."

"I will."

"It's late. Let's meet again Monday night...sooner, if needed. Take it one day at a time. We're running a little blind here."

Everyone nodded and stood, gathering into groups and talking quietly. Zatanna reclaimed Thomas, walking around and letting him tell her the story of the lightning and thunder again. Kal and Clark were standing toe to toe, examining each other.

"Beard, huh?"

"Yeah. Why the glasses?"

"Oh, fake. Disguise."

"That's your disguise?"

"I...change my hair...act different, too."

"Hm. Superman?"

"It's something the people came up with. Nickname of sorts. You don't have another identity?"

"No. No one really cares too much. Things are a little different where I come from."

"Clark?" J'onn got the real Superman's attention. Kal came over and stood next to Bruce.

"This is quite a place."

"It's been useful for us," Bruce said, leaning against the wall. Kal was watching Zatanna and Thomas again. "Thank you for saving her."

"I couldn't have done it if her counterpart hadn't sent me here."

"Why do you think she did?"

"Tommy. She heard her son crying and reacted. And you're here."

"Me?"

Kal turned to face him. "She knew you were here and she wasn't going to lose you again."

"Again?"

"You were killed. Almost two years ago."

It was a jarring thing to hear about himself, even though it happened in another reality. "I left her alone?"

"I wouldn't say she's alone, but losing you while she was pregnant..."

"I never met my son?" He wasn't sure if it was possible to be mad at one's dead counterpart...or reasonable...but he had a visceral reaction to the knowledge. "How did it happen?"

"You were shot down on a mission to rescue hostages."

"Military?"

"Army, yes. That's how we met. Same unit. It's how you met Zatanna, too."

"She was in the army?"

"Oh, no. She was at our annual Christmas party and you honed in on her like a heat-seeking missile. We all told you to stay away from her, but you were determined."

"Why stay away?"

"Hitting on the CO's daughter? Suicide mission." He chuckled and shook his head, turning to watch Zatanna and Thomas again.

"Zatara was my CO? I never would have pictured that."

"Total hardass. You went from being his favorite recruit to his target, but you won him over, eventually. Did every crazy, nasty, horrible thing he asked and treated Tanna so well that he caved. Right back to favorite."

"Are you still in the army?"

"No. I was politely asked to leave before my first enlistment was up. I had trouble following the rules. It's hard to do what you're told when you can just fly over and fix the problem your way."

"I imagine. Now?"

"I'm a firefighter, mostly. No rules of engagement there, just life saving. It's more my style."

Bruce stepped in front of him. "And why is it you can't keep your eyes off of my wife?" Kal cringed and looked down at the floor. "You're with her?"

He nodded and kept his eyes down. "This whole Tsaritsa thing led to us spending a lot of time together. It didn't take much for me to fall for her. I'd had so many failed relationships along the way that I lost count, but she was the only woman who'd ever been comfortable around me and my power. She's good with unusual people. It started out as working together, until Tommy kept asking me to hang out and play or watch movies every night." He chuckled again, but still hadn't looked up. "We both felt so guilty the first time we kissed that we didn't talk for two weeks. You were my brother..." His voice faded out.

Bruce processed the idea of Zatanna being with someone else in another dimension. He couldn't decide if it was better or worse that the someone was Superman. "Is she happy?"

Kal finally looked at him. "Most of the time. There are still moments where I see the sadness in her eyes, though...the loss. She misses you. I can't fix that part."

Zatanna walked over with Thomas now laying on her shoulder. "I think he's finally getting worn out. Do you need to stay?"

"For a while. I'll finish up and meet you at home."

She nodded. "Kal, you're welcome to stay with us. Alfred is getting a room ready for you. The house is big enough for fifty families."

He smiled at her. "Thanks."

Bruce leaned forward and kissed her, maybe being a little more possessive than was necessary. "Be there soon. I love you."

Looking down again, Kal followed her to the Zeta tube. Having him there would at least be good security...even if he had a bit of a staring problem.

Black Adam
Off World

"Is it done? Are you free of them?" Tsaritsa asked, sitting in front of her mirror.

"You're a fool. Just like the others."

"You can't speak to me that..."

"Shut up! He was with them. You said he would help!"

"Who? What are you talking about?"

"Superman. The other one. I had Zatanna and he stopped me."

From the look on her face, it was clear she had no idea that the other Superman had arrived in their dimension. Should have known...no way does she have the power to do that.

"I swear...he told me..."

"And you believed him. You heard what you wanted to hear and believed what you wanted to believe." He wanted to cut the communication out of anger, but she was all the help he had left...and that was a depressing thought. "They'll be coming for both of us now. Be ready. I'll contact you soon."

"But..."

Bruce
Wayne Manor

He didn't bother looking for Zatanna in the bedroom. He knew where she'd be. Entering the nursery, he walked over and sat down next to her in the chair. She leaned her head over on his shoulder.

"I'm surprised you got him to sleep," he said, kissing her forehead and running his hand along her arm.

"He finally came down off of the magic high. It's addictive," she whispered.

"Seriously?"

"You've felt me when I'm healing...recharging."

"So you feel that whenever you use magic?"

She looked up at him and nodded. "That's part of why my father trained me so hard when I was little. It's why I should have been better at training Thomas."

"You're doing a great job training him. He just saved your life."

"He shouldn't have," said whispered, turning away again. "It's dangerous."

"Hey." He put his hand under her chin and lifted her head so he could look in her eyes. "Don't worry. He has your heart."

She frowned and shook her head. "Yours. He has your heart, Bruce."

He pulled her head back down to lay on his shoulder. They watched their sleeping healer until Bruce started to nod off. "Let's go to bed," he said, standing and taking her hand. There was an open suitcase on the bed when they walked into the room. "What is this?"

Zatanna was staring at her feet. "I'm going to Shadowcrest." She turned and started to empty one of the drawers, throwing the contents into the suitcase.

"You're leaving me? I know I yelled...I was scared, but..."

"Of course I'm not leaving you. How could you even think that? I'm trying to protect you. I'm trying to protect all of you."

"By packing all of your socks? And mine? Half of those are mine."

She kept taking socks out of the drawer, sniffling and shaking her head. "I can't stay here."

"You can't leave," he said, grabbing her hand to stop her. "I need you here."

"You need me to leave! He's after me! Not you and not Thomas and not Alfred! Me!"

"Breathe, please. Just...listen." He wrapped his arms around her, pinning hers to her side. Her eyes were wide and filled with panic. "How many Kryptonians are staying at Shadowcrest tonight?"

She blinked a few times. "What?"

"Kryptonians. How many do you have stored at Shadowcrest?"

"Bruce..."

"You're currently in the safest house in Gotham City. One of the safest in the world. Please, stay here with me."

She started to cry, her body shaking in his arms. "I don't want to die. I love this life, Bruce. I don't want to die."

His heart twisted in his chest. "You won't. I won't let you. Thomas won't, either."

"He's just a baby and he's having to save my life. That's what I've done to us."

"He's a little boy who loves his mother more than anything. That's not a crime and you haven't inflicted anything on him."

"Bruce, I..."

He lowered his mouth to hers. He wasn't going to let her punish herself. More than that, he needed to feel her. He pushed her against the dresser, keeping their lips locked, and took his shirt off.

"Touch me," he said against her lips. "Please."

She moaned and put her hands on his chest, tracing his scars – the same scars she'd been tracing since Vegas. Her "road map", she called them...unchanged since their first night together. Feeling her gentle fingers run along them still had the same effect, both soothing and arousing him. He broke the kiss long enough to pull her shirt over her head. His own fingers explored along her perfect skin. As soft as ever...perfectly healed, despite the horror inflicted by their enemy.

I can't lose her.

Lifting her up, he carried her over to the bed, lips still clinging to hers. He quickly ripped the rest of their clothes off and thrust himself into her, making her moan again. Her eyes drifted closed, but he shook his head.

"Look at me," he whispered. "Stay. You have to stay." Her eyes locked on his, but she didn't speak. He stopped moving and put his hand over her heart. "Say it."

"I love you."

"No. Tell me you'll stay."

She took a deep breath before nodding. "I'll stay."

"Promise."

"I promise." Truth.

He started to move his hips again, still holding her gaze. Every sigh and gasp seemed precious to him now. I almost lost her. He tried not to count how many times he had thought the same thing. Too many. He moved slowly, taking his time and never wanting to lose the feeling of being with her. When she started to moan and writhe underneath him, he reluctantly released into her, watching her face every moment while she came. She fell still, so he rolled them over and pulled her tight against his chest, stroking her hair until she fell asleep. He stayed awake. Every time he closed his eyes, all he could see was her burned body and all he could hear was her screaming. Instead, he let his mind roam to places it probably shouldn't. Be ready, Adam. I'm fucking coming for you.

Zatanna
Bruce's arms

She fell asleep so quickly that she didn't remember anything after Bruce had rolled them over. He woke her from a dream when he started to speak.

"...go to the room?"

"Mm...what? Did you say something?" She mumbled, still mostly asleep.

"Why didn't you go to the room?"

"What time is it?" The room was still dark and he was blocking the alarm clock.

"2:19. Why didn't you go to the room?"

"The room?"

"With Thomas. You said it's the safest place possible. Why didn't you go?"

She sighed and buried her face back against him. "It's the middle of the night."

"Why?"

"I didn't make it for me, I made it for him."

"That's not an answer."

"Yes, it is." She gritted her teeth and readied herself for the coming argument. "How long do you think it would take? How many hostages to draw me out? You know damn well it would only take one. I'm not letting anyone die for me and I didn't make the fucking room for anyone but Thomas. If you can't accept that, then I'm sorry."

He pushed her back slightly and looked down at her. His eyes were soft and warm. "I'm not mad, Zee. I just wanted to understand."

She swallowed and nodded. "Okay," she said, snuggling back up against him. "Sorry."

"Don't think I'm going to forget it."

"What?"

"What you said."

She looked up at him again and he was grinning. "About what?"

"You want another baby." The smile grew wider and she couldn't help but smile back.

"You can't hold me to that, I was dying."

"Oh, I can," he said, rolling back on top of her. "I can and I will. You want another baby." Laughing, she tried to push him away, but he pressed his lips to her neck. "Admit it."

She laughed again and looked in his eyes. "Baby girl."

"What if it's a boy?"

"Then I'll be happily outnumbered," she said, running her hands down his back and pulling his hips against hers. "More practice?"

"You read my mind."

Kal
Wayne House

Alfred was up and making breakfast. Tommy was still asleep. A construction crew was working on a building near the garage. There was an ambulance making its way across town to check on the occupants of a car crash. A man at the subway station near the airport was telling a joke about public transportation. And Bruce and Zatanna were awake and in the shower. Having sex. Again.

They do know I can hear them, right?

More likely, they didn't care. Bruce, especially. He'd seen the none-to-thrilled look he gave him every time he caught him staring at Zatanna. He knew he needed to be more careful, but she was the only thing that felt familiar to him. Hoping to block out the noise, he headed downstairs to talk to Alfred.

"Good morning, Master Kal."

"Morning."

"Did you rest? Do you rest? I guess I've never thought to ask Master Clark."

"I don't sleep, but I relax. I did well enough," he lied. Nothing about the last day had been relaxing. "What are they building out there?"

"Oh, an indoor pool for Master Thomas," Alfred said plainly, as if that was something that every kid had.

"I'm sure he'll enjoy that."

"He is quite excited about it. As are the others."

"Others?"

"The rest of the family. You met Tim, Kate, and Barbara."

"I didn't realize they were family."

"Well, not in the traditional sense. Nothing around here is terribly traditional."

"I've noticed. The costumes and all...what is that about?"

"Protecting identities. There are many unsavory characters in our Gotham City."

"Good morning," Bruce said, entering with Thomas.

"Morning."

"Cark!" Thomas reached for him.

"Kal," Bruce said, handing Thomas to him.

"Hey, kid. Guess the beard isn't enough to disguise me from you, huh?"

"Go fly!"

He laughed. "Dad?"

Bruce smiled. "That's up to you, but feel free."

"Just a quick one," Kal said, heading to the back door. He took off and circled around the property while Thomas giggled and made zooming noises. The estate was expansive, covering dozens of acres and surrounded by an imposing, wrought iron fence. He assumed Zatanna had repaired the damage done in the fight, because the missing walls were no longer missing. After several passes, he landed back at the house. Zatanna met him at the door and claimed her boy.

"Fair warning, if you don't learn to say no to him, he'll ask you to do that every few minutes. He's a fly-aholic."

"I'll keep that in mind," he said, trying not to stare at her.

He sat down at the table and watched while they enjoyed their meal, seeming as happy as they had been in his dimension.

"We have some people coming over for a meeting. You're welcome to join, but it isn't League business," Bruce said, gathering the plates when they had finished eating.

"Is it anything I can help with?"

"Not really. There are...weird things going on in Gotham City."

Yeah, I noticed.

Zatanna
Wayne Manor

Thomas sat on her lap in his Bat costume, listening intently as the meeting started.

"Thanks for coming. There's a lot going on, but we need to try a new tactic with Scarecrow. That's why I've asked Catwoman for help."

The others glanced at Zatanna awkwardly.

"It was my idea," she said.

"It was, and I think it's a good one. Thank you for being willing to help us, Selina."

"Oh, it's my pleasure," she said, though she sounded less than thrilled to be there. "Why is Superman here?"

"Why are you dressed like a cat?" Kal asked. He was a bit snarkier than their Kal.

"Touche', I guess."

"We can make introductions another time," Bruce said. "I have the antidote ready. I've given a dose to Mike. If it works, we'll have a way to infiltrate Scarecrow's group."

"By using Catwoman?" Kate asked.

"He knows we're onto him. I'm hoping he won't know that Selina is."

"I do so love being bait."

Bruce smirked. "She isn't being sarcastic. She's unreasonably excited about the plan."

"And for some reason, she wants to know what it feels like to be stabbed in the neck," Zee muttered.

"Well, at least I have someone with good experience to give me an idea of what it's like," she said, pretending to be nice, but not really pulling it off.

Bruce cleared his throat. "Right. If Mike improves, then we can dose Selina up before she goes and gets herself 'captured' by Scarecrow's men."

"Scarecrow?" Kal asked, understandably lost.

"He's a crazy psychologist who is drugging people and brainwashing them for his own sick pleasure," Zatanna said.

He nodded, but still looked pretty lost.

"You're dressed like Fuffy," Thomas said, pointing at Selina.

"Oh, so the cat does have a name," she said.

"A couple of them, yes." Zee looked down at Thomas. "You're dressed like your daddy."

"Batman!" He threw his hands over his head.

"If we're going to do this, we have to take some precautions to protect Selina," Bruce said, trying to regain everyone's attention. "We'll be tracking her movements as soon as we know she's going to engage with them."

"With magic?" Tim asked.

"No," Selina snapped. "None of that for me, thanks. Regular tracker under the skin."

Zatanna shrugged. "Your choice. My way is more effective and safer, but I'm not going to force you."

"What's the plan once she's in?" Tim asked.

"We'll need to move when they take her to Scarecrow. Not before. We can't let him get spooked," Bruce said.

"This is pretty high risk," Barb said. "Are you sure about this?"

"Don't you worry about me, Batgirl. I can take care of myself." Selina said, standing and walking toward the door. "Let me know how things go with the antidote, Bat. I do believe you still have my number."

"Charming as ever," Zatanna grumbled. Bruce was avoiding eye contact. "If things go wrong, I know her well enough now to get her home or get us to her. It's not any riskier than necessary."

"If you say so," Barb said.

"May we be excused, Batman? We have a play date. Don't worry, they're coming over here."

Bruce nodded, so she walked over and kissed him. Kal huffed and stared at the floor. He seemed weird about them, but she hadn't had a chance to ask why.

"I'll see you after work," Bruce said.

She took Thomas upstairs and changed him into his regular little boy disguise. His friends showed up shortly after and did a good job of taking her mind off of the day before. It wasn't easy to act normal, but she was grateful for the pre-planned distraction. After three hours of wrangling kids and laughing at their antics, she was ready for a nap. She headed to the library, where she found Kal looking over the bookshelves.

"Hey. Going stir crazy yet?" She asked, setting Thomas down. He ran over to Kal to be picked up.

"What's up, kid? Not going crazy. Too much to look at around here to be bored. This house is insane."

"I agree. I take it we live in a smaller one in your dimension?"

He looked away and nodded. "Yeah, smaller."

"Everything okay? I mean...I know it isn't, but you seem uncomfortable about more than just being in another dimension."

Nodding again, he turned away and resumed looking at the books. "Just disoriented."

"You know me well in the other dimension?"

"Pretty well," he said quietly.

"Good. Then you know I can tell you're lying."

He chuckled and turned back toward her. "That's just as annoying here as it is there."

"So I've heard. Come on. Out with it, big guy."

Turning away again, he paced along the wall and bounced Thomas, who was dozing off on his shoulder. "I miss my family."

Half truth.

"I imagine. Tell me about them."

The pacing continued. "They're great. Never thought I could be so happy as I am now...there, anyway."

"We'll get you back to them. I don't know how yet, but we will."

He looked up at her, eyes filled with more emotion than she was expecting. The phone rang when he was about to speak again. Bruce's name popped up on the screen, so she smiled and answered.

"Be ready, Batwife," he said before she could give him a "hello".

"Oh, god. What now?"

"Patrol tonight."

"No way! It's too soon."

"It wasn't a question. Patrol tonight, that's an order. I've already asked Kal to help Alfred babysit."

"You can't give me orders."

"I can and I did. Be ready." He hung up on her.

"Freaking lunatic," she said, tossing the phone down. "Sorry about that."

"Everything okay?"

"I married a lunatic, but yes, everything's okay."

"That brings up something I've been very curious about...the costumes...the bats...cats...alter egos. What in the world is all of that?"

She laughed and sat down on the couch. "I'm beginning to think you don't have a lot of vigilante crime fighters in your world."

"No, just the regular kind of crime fighters."

Yawning, she stretched out and reached for Thomas. Kal handed him back over and pulled a blanket down to cover them.

"Thanks. I have to be out all night, so I need a nap. I'd like to talk more about everything later."

"Of course," he said, kneeling down in front of her. He pushed a strand of hair behind her ear, which was weird. "Get some rest," he said quietly before getting up and leaving the room.

"Gonna have to figure that new uncle of yours out," she whispered to Thomas. After patrol. Ugh.