Team (DCEU)
Bruce's eyes roamed over the room, more than pleased with how it had turned out. It was just as he had imagined it. Actually, he was excited with how everything in Wayne Manor had been carefully and meticulously restored to its prior beauty.
He couldn't remember the last time he had felt this positive and optimistic about something…and he knew it all to do with a certain person. It was more than difficult not to be affected by her passionate spirit. She was a constant spark of contagious enthusiasm and determination.
"I picture a round table…with six chairs seated around it," he revealed as he turned to look at her.
"With room for more," she suggested, her mahogany brown eyes sparkling with hope for what the future held for them.
"Room for more," he softly agreed with a nod and a lop-sided smile.
He could still picture the impish grin on the face of the man standing behind Diana, no doubt already hearing wedding bells with plans for a spring wedding on the grounds of Wayne Manor. He hated to break the old man's heart, but there wouldn't be a wedding anytime soon…if ever.
He and Diana were just teammates, good friends who enjoyed each other's company. Nothing more could come from that or would come from that friendship. If things were different…if he wasn't who he was…if she wasn't an immortal Amazon warrior…
The sound of a cart being wheeled down the hall caught Bruce's attention, causing him to poke his head out of the room to find Alfred coming towards him with a cart filled with food. "You really didn't have to go to all that trouble," Bruce reminded him as the older man pushed the food cart into the meeting room.
"I assure you it was no trouble at all," Alfred insisted. "I know you won't appreciate my efforts, but Master Barry certainly will."
"I always appreciate your effort, Alfred," Bruce said with a frown.
"And that is why you barely touch your meals or feel the need to consume your dinners in that dreary cave," Alfred countered as he began to place the various platters on the expansive, round table in the middle of the room.
"You know how busy I am," Bruce pointed out. "Between Gotham and Wayne Enterprises, it's a wonder I've been able to keep my sanity."
"That might be in question," Alfred quipped.
"Funny," Bruce drolly uttered with a roll of his eyes.
"Maybe you should cut back on Gotham some and focus on a certain Amazon warrior instead," Alfred suggested with a smirk as he set up a variety of drinks on a separate table.
"Alfred…" Bruce uttered with a groan as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "You know I don't have time for a relationship."
"Maybe you should make the time instead of pretending that you don't have feelings for the princess."
"I don't—" Bruce adamantly began to argue only to be brought to an abrupt stop when Alfred suddenly straightened up and raised his hand.
"Don't even try to deny it, Master Bruce," he interrupted him. "I have known you since the day you drew your very first breath. I know you better than you know yourself and there is absolutely nothing you can say to convince me that you do not have feelings for Miss Diana."
Bruce drew a deep breath, releasing it in a huff of pure annoyance. "All right…fine," he finally conceded. "I may have feelings for Diana, but they are irrelevant."
"How are they irrelevant?"
"You know that nothing can happen between us," Bruce argued, the words leaving a bitter taste in his mouth. "We're teammates and friends. A romantic relationship will only complicate things. Besides, Diana doesn't even feel anything for me past friendship."
Alfred chuckled as he shook his head in amusement, pushing the food cart towards the doorway. "You know, Master Bruce, sometimes you really are as blind as a bat."
"What's that supposed to mean?" he demanded to know as Alfred moved past him, exiting the room. "Alfred? Alfred!"
Bruce growled under his breath, scowling with Alfred's lack of response. There was no way that Diana had feelings for him. How could she possibly fall in love with him with how damaged he was? Did Alfred know something that he didn't? He was going to have to question him further to see what he knew.
Not that it mattered of course. Even if Diana did feel something for him, it was inconsequential. They had to focus on the formation of the Justice League and preparing for another alien attack. He knew in his heart that one was coming. It wasn't a matter of if but when.
The sound of the alarm alerted him to the fact that their first guest had just arrived. He didn't have to look to know who it was that had arrived. He felt his heart beat a little harder, his insides beginning to flutter in anticipation. He frowned to himself, trying to tamp down on his body's involuntary response to her every time she was around him.
He could hear her speaking with Alfred, her melodic laughter carrying down the hall from the kitchen. He reentered the meeting room, determined to keep his focus on their first meeting as the Justice League. They had a lot of important ground to cover this evening and he wanted to be able to do it in time that he could still start patrol at a decent time.
Bruce only got two steps into the room before the feel of a hand clapping him on his back stopped him in his tracks. "What's up, Wayne?"
Bruce turned a narrowed eyed glare on Arthur Curry. "How did you get in without the alarm sounding?"
"The alarm did sound," Arthur told him. "Didn't you hear it?"
"Yes, but I thought it was Diana."
"Diana got here before me," he confirmed as a grin spread across his face. "So, I take it things with Diana are going well. You're still alive and walking under your own power so she hasn't killed you yet."
"Diana and I are just friends…nothing more," he stated, wondering once again how Diana had been able to get inside without triggering the alarm.
Arthur laughed in response, wrapping his muscular arm around Bruce's shoulders and pulling him in tightly against him. "Still living in denial, I see. You know you could make things so much easier on yourself and her if you'd just kiss her."
"Did you complete the mission I gave you?"
"Fine, be that way," he said with a shrug. "Yes, I did, and I found nothing."
"Nothing at all?"
"Nada," Arthur confirmed, releasing his hold on Bruce to put his hands in his coat pockets.
"Are you sure that you used the coordinates I gave you?"
"Yes," he told him. "I checked the entire area for three days straight. I'm telling you, man, there's nothing there."
Bruce's eyes fell closed in disappointment, his hope dwindling even more. He had been keeping it a secret from Diana, not wanting her to get her hopes up with what he'd been able to discover so far about Themyscira, but now there was no reason to tell her anything. He'd been certain the coordinates had been correct.
"There's nothing where?" Diana asked as she walked into the room.
"Nothing," Bruce quickly responded as Arthur opened his mouth to answer her. Bruce frowned at Arthur, shaking his head minutely. "Just checking something out. Are we already to go?"
"Yes, I'm just setting out the IPad's now," she told him with a smile.
Arthur watched her as she walked towards the round table, releasing a low whistle. "I don't know how you can control yourself around that," he muttered.
Bruce leveled him with a withering Batglare. "Can we please focus on why we're here?"
"Sure, but just remember—all work and no play makes for a very boring, very lonely Bruce," Arthur replied. "So, did you renovate the place yourself?"
"No, Diana and I worked on it together," Bruce revealed, immediately realizing his mistake. Fortunately, Arthur didn't get a chance to respond as Superman arrived.
"Hey, the place looks great," Clark said as he looked around. "Diana told me that you two have been working non-stop on making sure the manor was properly restored."
"It was a lot of work, but it finally all came together," Bruce said, thankful for the interruption.
"It was really nice of you to give Diana a room here at the manor to use when she's in Gotham," Clark told him with an approving smile. "I know she really appreciates it."
Bruce and Arthur watched as Superman made his way towards Diana, Arthur beginning to snicker. "You might as well put a ring on that girl's finger," he told Bruce.
"Would you just stop," Bruce growled. "You know she has superior hearing."
"Hey, a buffet!" Barry excitedly exclaimed as he zipped into the room. "Have I told you lately how much I love Alfred?"
"Every time I see you," Bruce confirmed.
"Hey! Are those kabobs?" Barry yelled, taking off towards the table laden with food.
"You know you and Diana are like the mom and dad of this misfit team," Arthur told him. "You might as well just make it official."
"Don't you have a shark to hug or something?"
"That's just cold, man," Aquaman replied with a shake of his head, clapping Bruce on the shoulder. "You really need to get some Amazon loving soon…very, very soon."
Bruce ground his teeth as Arthur walked away, Victor arriving at that moment. "This looks amazing," he said, awe in his voice. "You and Diana did a great job with it."
"You were a great help with the electronics," he reminded him.
"It's good to see this all finally coming together."
"It took time, but I feel like we're finally up and running," Bruce agreed, his gaze on Diana.
He felt warmth bloom in his chest as Diana talked with Clark and Arthur, smiling brightly and laughing at something that Arthur had said. She looked so beautiful in a red wrap dress and heels, her brown eyes sparkling brightly as spoke animatedly.
Victor just looked at Bruce with an amused expression, wondering when the Caped Crusader would finally tell her that he was in love with her. It was obvious to anyone who spent any length of time with them. The feelings were mutual, each seemingly waiting on the other to finally act on it.
He couldn't help wondering what it was going to take for one of them to make the first move.
Bruce stood in the doorway as Victor joined the others, Alfred coming to stand beside him. "Do you think this was the right decision?" Bruce softly asked, doubts creeping up in his mind.
"Definitely," Alfred confirmed with utter confidence. "This is the team that the world needs."
"I know the world needs this team, but does it really need me?" he questioned him. "How much can Batman really offer?"
Diana met his gaze at that moment, giving him a special smile that she seemed to reserve only for him. It held some secret meaning, hidden sentiment that had yet to be given a voice. It held promises and hope and something more that he was afraid to give a name to…too afraid that he was wrong about it. It momentarily stole his breath away, making him feel a little lightheaded.
Alfred placed a hand on his shoulder, squeezing it gently before giving him a shove. "Go," he told him. "The team isn't the only one who needs you."
Bruce found his feet moving of their own accord as if he was walking on air. He attempted to regain his focus as he approached, clearing his throat. "All right, if everyone is ready, I'd like to get started," he announced.
"Where do we sit?" Barry asked. "Shouldn't you be at the head of the table?"
"There is no head," Bruce told him. "Diana and I chose a round table because this is a team. We are all equal, all having a vote and a voice."
Diana took a seat to Bruce's right, excited about the possibilities that lay ahead for this team of superheroes that were present now and those who would be joining in the future. Together, they could accomplish great things, making this world a better place…and there was no one else in the world that she wanted to do that with than Bruce.
"This is the first meeting of the Justice League," Bruce announced as Barry raised his hand.
"So, can we call this the Hall of Justice?" he asked with a grin.
"Sure…whatever you want," Bruce replied dismissively. "We're going to be handing out communicators to each of you so that we can contact each other in a second's notice."
"Cool!" Barry uttered as Alfred passed out the communicators. "So, I can call you whenever I want to?"
"No…please don't," Bruce stated with a frown. "These are preferably to be used in case of an emergency or on missions. You can still text or call on your cellphones for personal business."
"Hello? Testing…testing…one, two, three…testing," Barry said into his communicator in his hand.
"It goes in your ear, moron," Arthur told him.
"I know that," Barry replied. "I was just checking it out."
"I will be in charge of the commlinks," Victor announced. "If you have problems with yours, let me know and I will either fix or replace it."
"You are each getting your own personal tablets as well," Bruce told them.
"Wow, this is official," Clark said, picking up his tablet. "Do we need to take notes during the meeting?"
"I'll be uploading all meeting notes onto your tablets," Victor informed them.
"Are there games on here?" Arthur asked. "I prefer Battleship."
"No games," Bruce told him. "Protocols that have been written by Diana and me have already been uploaded on them. We'll be adding to them over time as they become necessary."
Arthur just smirked at him, giving him a knowing grin that Bruce promptly ignored. "What kind of protocols?" Arthur asked. "And when did you have time to write protocols?"
"We just started out with some simple rules that we felt were important to maintain order," Bruce replied.
"Rules like dating between teammates is strongly encouraged?" Arthur asked.
"I like that rule," Barry agreed.
"I call dibs on Diana!" Arthur called with a smug grin, knowing he was getting under Bruce's skin.
"No one is calling dibs on Diana," Bruce growled, refusing to make eye contact with Arthur.
"Thank you, Bruce, but you don't have to speak for me," Diana commented.
"I wasn't speaking for you," Bruce stated.
"I can take care myself," she reminded him.
"I know you can, but—"
"I hate it when mom and dad fight," Barry chimed in, capturing Bruce and Diana's attention.
"We're aren't arguing and we're not your parents," Bruce maintained.
Diana cleared her throat, wanting to change the subject. "Right now, we want to focus on this team to make sure we create a well-oiled machine before adding any other members. With that being said, if you have any suggestions for future membership in the League, we would definitely be interested in hearing them."
"We'll need to vet them of course, but we are going to have to eventually expand the team," Bruce added. "We've already gotten a taste of what is out there and what we could be up against when another attack comes."
"You think they're coming back?" Superman asked, frowning as the implications of another alien attack paraded through his mind.
"We believe that Steppenwolf answered to a being known as Darkseid," Diana revealed. "He's a very powerful rule of a place called Apokolips."
"How much do we know about this Darkseid?" Clark inquired.
"We have uncovered very little information so far," she replied. "Unfortunately, what I have been able to find has not been very good. He conquers worlds, subduing them into service."
"If Steppenwolf was here looking for the Mother Boxes then you can be sure Darkseid will have his sights set on Earth," Victor said.
"That is why we need to get this team up and running as soon as possible," Bruce added, urgency lacing his voice as he sat forward in his chair. "Dealing with Steppenwolf and his Parademons is nothing compared to what could still be coming."
"I found references to a group known as the Green Lantern Corps," Victor revealed. "They're like some intergalactic peacekeeping force. They could certainly be worth checking into."
"See what you can find out about them," Bruce told him. "We might need their help if Darkseid decides to attack."
"It wouldn't hurt to have a couple of the Green Lanterns as actual members of the Justice League to help with other missions," Superman added.
Bruce released a breath that revealed his worries about what the future held. "I have a bad feeling we're going to need far more than a couple of Green Lanterns if Darkseid does make a move," he confessed. "We're going to need the very best team that we can assemble."
XXX
Diana took a drink of her wine before setting it on the coffee table before her, leaning back against the couch cushions. "I think the meeting went very well," she said, elbow resting on the back of the leather couch as her hand supported her head. "Everyone provided ideas and valuable insight that will prove useful."
Bruce thoughtfully nodded his head in agreement, staring into his glass of wine as he considered the evening. "I think it's going to be tough to put aside all of our own conceptions for the League to come together to work as a team."
"We were able to do that when it came down to it," Diana pointed out. "Because of that, Steppenwolf was defeated."
"We were able to defeat Steppenwolf because of Superman," Bruce replied, pausing to take a drink of his wine. "Without him…"
"You don't think we could've won," she finished for him, somewhat irritated by his belief.
"I honestly don't know," he confessed with a sigh, shuddering to think of how it could've turned out had Superman not shown up.
"We would've found a way, Bruce," Diana told him, conviction in her voice. "We were all prepared to give our lives to stop him."
"I'm relieved it didn't come to that," he admitted. "But how many other lives would've been lost before we finally won?"
"But we did win," she reminded him, her hand coming to rest on his thigh to caress it gently. "Steppenwolf is no longer a threat."
"And what about Darkseid?" he questioned her, his gaze falling to her hand on his leg. "What will we do when he decides to make his move?"
"We will be there to stop him," she reassured him. "You need to have faith, Bruce…faith in yourself, in the team…faith in me."
His lips twitched with a sardonic smile, a rueful expression veiling his face as he set his glass on the coffee table next to hers. "I lost my faith a long time ago, Diana," he grimly revealed. "I've forgotten what it's like to have faith."
"Maybe you just need someone to help you remember," she softly said.
His hand moved to cover hers resting on his thigh. He meant to gently remove her hand from his leg, letting her know that he wasn't worth the effort or her time. He meant to let her down easy, to push her away for her own good and for her safety. He meant to get up and leave for patrol, leaving her there alone.
What he meant to do wasn't what he did.
His fingers shifted to lace with hers, holding her hand securely in his. He lifted his head to look at her, his breath hitching with the warmth and desire that permeated her brown-eyed gaze. It felt as if he was seeing everything knew for the first time, finally acknowledging the feelings that had been lingering there just beneath the surface waiting to be recognized. He'd tried to tell himself it wasn't there, but there was no denying it now.
Diana tilted her head as her other hand came to rest against his cheek. "Let me give you a reason to believe again, Bruce…let me in," she whispered, her lips grazing his in a tentative brush before kissing him fully. She shifted closer to him, leaning into the kiss as she silently pleaded with him to respond to her and not push her away.
Everything inside of him cried out for him to run away…to escape into the safety of his cave. Instead, his hands found her face as he returned her warm affection, his love for her roaring to the surface and permeating every single part of him.
He kissed her deeply…savoring the taste of her and the feel of her as she moved to straddle his hips. She softly gasped his name as his mouth sensually assaulted her throat, his hands sliding up her back to draw her closer to him. Letting her go now was an impossibility. Not even his iron-control could make his desire for this woman bend to his will.
He'd wanted this for so long, wanted her and everything that they could give and take from each other. Right now, he was prepared to give her everything that he had—all the broken pieces, all the uncertainties and fears, every ounce of the love that he felt for her. He knew it wasn't much, but he'd do everything in his power to make her happy.
Diana's fingers raked through his hair as her lips moved against his, finally expressing what had taken root inside of her. He'd captured her attention, her fascination, and then somehow her heart. She didn't want to go back to the way things had been. She had lived in anonymity for the last hundred years, shielding herself and her heart. Now, she wanted so much more for her life.
She wanted him.
His hands found her thighs, caressing her soft skin and pushing the skirt of her dress higher. He knew that he needed to slow this down. She hadn't been with anyone in a very long time but letting go of her was next to impossible to do. Now that she was in his arms, he'd finally found what he didn't know that he'd been looking for all along, what he needed most in his life.
Standing to his feet, he carried her to his bedroom, keeping her legs firmly wrapped around his waist. Diana cupped his face in her hands, a dazzling smile on her face as she gazed into his eyes. Her lips captured his again as Alfred's voice carried from down the hall, earning a muffled giggle from the princess.
"Well, it's about bloody time."