What could be so urgent that my sister needed to call me?

This was the thought that plagued Diana's mind her whole flight to Themyscira. She had considered briefly using the portal link that was at the embassy, but after that morning's incident with Black Adam and Mongul, not to mention the brief encounter with Kal and Bruce, she figured she could let off some steam by making the flight herself.

She momentarily cursed herself for thinking that right after the encounter was the best time to ask Kal out for a 'get-together'. None of her Amazon-training could have prepared her for the conversation that would have taken place if Bruce had not interfered.

"Thanks for helping out Kal, oh and by the way, did you want to maybe go on a date with your best friend that you did not make a move on when you had her alone for a thousand years".

She sighed out loud in frustration, glad that no one except the wind and the occasional bird could hear her in-sky rants about her love-life, or lack there-of. She also knew that she would have to talk to her sister Donna about the predicament she currently found herself in, which she was not looking forward to. Donna had for many years teased and harassed Diana almost as bad as Bruce had about the prospect of a relationship between her and Superman. Diana rolled her eyes, remembering that it seemed that every time Donna decided to get more explicit in imagining certain aspects of Kal's anatomy, their mother Hippolyta had walked into the room, only to catch Donna mid-sentence and Diana furiously red (either from embarrassment or anger depending on the situation).

While initially the Amazon Queen had been extremely against any potential relationship for Diana upon her first arrival in Man's World, she was now taking a greater interest when Diana chose to share exploits of her battles and encounters with her, especially when she mentioned some of her male-counterparts in both the Justice League and in her cover-identity as Diana Prince. Despite her initial pushings over the past few years and constant verbal sparring with Diana, not even her mother could force anything about Kal out of her, and that was the way she intended to keep it.

It is not the Amazon way to show weakness of any kind.

Diana almost found herself spitting out the taste of bitterness that was in her mouth at the recalling of Philippus' early teaching mantra, knowing damn well already that her frustrations surrounding her deep love for Kal were beginning to affect both her work with the Justice League and with the embassy. She mentally reminded herself that she would have to apologize to both Julia and to J'onn when she got the chance for causing so much property damage during her sparring sessions at both the embassy at the Watchtower.

She also was still upset that Bruce had drove her to nearly breaking his jaw the last time he had tried to confront her about her feelings for the Kryptonian. She was still very glad that Kal had not heard about that encounter and that for some odd reason Bruce had decided not to tell him about it.

She briefly recalled Kal's facial expression when she left him to head off to Themyscira, there was something unsettling that she had begun to notice just over the past few months, a small change in his micro-expressions that she had almost immediately picked up on. She had initially dismissed it as a private matter and something that he had to deal with on his own, but in the cases where Kal had kept something from her, he would always come around and tell her about what had been on his mind and why he had chosen not to tell her up until that point, but he still had not said anything to her.

"And I was about to make it worse by adding a prospective relationship to his burden, well I won't make that mistake again" Diana sighed again, making a brief peace with the prospect that maybe fate would continue to block her from discussing anything more than friendship with him.

She briefly had a thought that brought an evil grin to her face, as she considered going to the Fates and attempting to personally manipulate it so the signs would be in her favour when or if she tried to have that type of discussion with him again.

However, Diana quickly dismissed the thoughts as she noticed the Island coming into view and the dark brown specs on the horizon that were the approaching winged sentries that guarded the mystical world that was her home.

Diana allowed herself to stop in the air as the sentries came to greet her with much enthusiasm, their excited flight pattern making them seem like dogs in the sky running to greet their approaching mistress, glad that the Princess had chosen this route to come visit.

She briefly took in the marvel that was the collection of enchanted floating islands that made up Themyscira. The chiseled marble and golden trim on the buildings shone in the early afternoon sun, and the mystical haze that surrounded them made the entire area look like an Eden coming up out of the sky. She was able to finally push the morning's events and all thoughts relating to her dilemma regarding Kal out of her mind as one overarching thought found it's way through.

It's good to be home.

As she neared the beachhead on the main part of the island, she noticed a contingent of Amazons approaching to greet her. She was briefly caught off guard by who was leading the delegation, noting Donna and Philippus immediately, but finding it odd that Artemis of the Bana tribe was leading the way with them.

Diana briefly had a flashback of several battles the two of them had had in their youth and Artemis' particular distain for men, particularly Kal. However, despite many attempts to goad him into combat or into saying something that would affirm all her negative views regarding mankind, he had always remained steadfast and polite, which seemed to frustrate her even more.

Diana touched down and her sister ran to embrace her immediately, as the remaining Amazons behind them, sans Philippus and Artemis, saluted the Princess immediately.

"It is good to see you my Sister" Diana said, drawing her sister into a tight embrace.

"It is good to see you as well, I'm glad the Batman was able to get my message to you" Donna said, deliberately referring to Bruce by his mantle, as both Artemis and Philippus were unaware of his secret-identity. Both sisters knew that if Artemis found out that the 'Demon-Man' masqueraded as a womanizing creep for a portion of his life, they would never hear the end of it. It would be like pouring kerosene on an already lit fire.

"Yes he was, and he added that there was urgency associated with the message and that I should get here as soon as I could". As excited as Diana was to visit her island, she knew she had been asked here for a specific reason, and Amazons did not use the word 'urgent' lightly.

"Oh that? That will have to wait until we can discuss it with mother a bit later. She is in meetings right now with a Thanagarian delegation and we know how well that can go over" Donna said, causing Diana to visibly wince. A meeting with Shayera's people was not something she envied her mother having to go through, as some of the Thanagarian leaders had tempers that could put even Hawkgirl's to shame. She was actually considered quite mild-mannered amongst her people, which Diana did not believe until she had met a handful of them.

"In that case, we have some time to catch-up, but what is she doing here?" Diana said, glancing over at Artemis, who was tapping her right foot in the sand, almost with a certain degree of annoyance.

"I came here to see if Man's world had made you any softer. Please don't come any closer, I can smell the Super-Man's sweat on you. How hard did he have to work before you gave it up for him?" Artemis drew closer, deliberately poking at Diana regarding Kal.

Diana kept her outside expression calm, and inside she was slightly frustrated. It was Artemis' way that when she wanted to pick a fight with Diana, she deliberately referenced her and Kal and the possibility that they had been intimate together recently. Despite wanting to accept her challenge and let off some steam, she was hesitant as she was worried that she could seriously hurt Artemis with the mood she was in right now.

"As much as I would love to give you a lesson in why you need to focus less on your man-hating and more on your combat form, I've been away from my home for too long and have much to discuss with my sister" Diana nodded coldly at Artemis, causing the tall crimson-haired woman's face to turn a shade that matched her locks.

"I should imagine that you would be too much of a coward for a rematch. Philippus, I would be ashamed if I were you to have trained a daughter of Hippolyta to be afraid to engage in a bit of sparring with a lowly Bana" Artemis commented, turning to the darker-skinned Amazon General, whose mouth tightened slightly, but still remained silent, merely glancing to Diana and allowing a small smile to tug at the corner of her lips, and then proceeding to nod in Artemis' direction with a small grunt.

Diana conceded and nodded at Philippus. The two of them had trained together for so long that Diana considered the woman her godmother and had nothing but a tremendous amount of respect and love for the battle-hardened Amazon warrior. It had gotten to the point where they did not even need words to communicate when they trained together and Philippus' nod spoke volumes to Diana.

"Teach this disrespectful child a lesson Princess'.

"I will not have the honour of my people, my mother, or my General questioned. You have your challenge Artemis, and because you have chosen to make this personal, so will I. Drop your sword, we'll settle this with our bare hands in honourable combat" Diana said, taking off the small short sword and lasso from her waist, before also removing her tiara allowing her dark hair to cascade freely around her shoulders.

"I've been looking forward to this moment since the last time we fought Princess, and I've been training non-stop as well. You're going to lose" Artemis commented, beginning to circle Diana as she proceeded to remove the multitude of weaponry that she had been carrying.

"That's what you say every time Artemis" Diana said, pretending to yawn as she did not even bother to move to face her.

"Don't mock me Princess! Don't tell me the reason for your mood is your pathetic pining for that man. Oh look at me, I'm Diana, Princess of the Amazons, and I cry every time Superman rejects my..." Artemis' taunting was brought to a screeching halt as Diana shifted forward and caught her in the jaw with a brutal right hook. sending her flying into the sand ten feet away.

Philippus and Donna could only watch as Diana immediately ran forward and grabbed Artemis by her hair, yanking her to her feet before proceeding to throw her again, this time out into the ocean, where she landed on her back with a loud crash.

Diana took the air as Artemis broke the surface, coughing and sputtering, completely caught off guard by Diana's aggressive attack. She barely had a moment to catch her breath before Diana grabbed her around the waist and hurled her skyward into the clouds.

Before Artemis could even begin to regret that she had goaded her into fighting, Diana was in the sky next to her, clasping her hands together and bringing them down with all her strength violently into Artemis' back, causing her to rocket back towards the ground.

Diana was not finished yet as she streaked through the sky, catching up to the plummeting Bana, before clasping her head in a vice with both hands and driving her viciously into the sand on the beach with a loud crack that sent a massive shockwave into the nearby trees, causing several birds to take to the sky in fright and surprise.

Philippus was particularly concerned by the primal viciousness that Diana had attacked Artemis with, her Amazon protege having shown nothing but an extreme level of control anytime they had sparred prior to this moment. Something was wrong and she was going to find out what it was. Diana was off-balance and Artemis was the vicitm of it as she had poked the sleeping tiger. However at this moment, she could only observe as Diana moved over to where Artemis was struggling to lift herself from the crater she had been put in.

Diana cradled Artemis' head, where blood had begun to seep from her nose and mouth, and smacked the side of her head so the Bana would meet her gaze, despite how disoriented she was.

"Listen to me Artemis. I do not mind engaging in sparring with you as it is always an enjoyable and practical challenge. However, if you ever take it upon yourself to be unnecessarily mean-spirited towards either my family or my friends, whether they be woman or man, I will not be so gentle with you next time" She said, and upon saying the word 'man', Artemis still managed a brief look of anger before spitting blood on Diana's face.

"Superman lover" She responded acidly, but immediately regretted it as Diana slammed her head back into the sand, this time knocking her out cold.

"Philippus, call for Epione, Artemis is going to need some help extracting herself from the beach" Diana said with no emotion in her voice, before beginning to walk towards the palace, her delighted sister Donna following next to her.

"Yes Princess, it is good to have you home" Philippus responded before heading to the Healing Isle to fetch the chief healer, as the group of Amazons that had been accompanying them began the process of trying to extract Artemis' head from the pile of sand that Diana had drove it into.

Diana and Donna walked in silence for a while, only speaking to greet their fellow Amazon sisters as they walked through the marketplace on their way towards the palace. Donna looked up at her sister's face, but Diana's visage gave nothing away to why she was so brutal with Artemis or why she seemed particularly distracted and short-tempered as of late.

"Diana, sooner or later you're going to have to tell me what's bothering you. Artemis always pushes you into sparring. In fact, her latest attempt seemed quite tame compared to some of the other vulgarities she has used on you. I believe the term in Man's world is 'She was more PG-13 this time'?"

Donna watched as despite remaining silent, a small smile appeared on her sister's face upon hearing her use slang that she no doubt had picked up from spending so much time with her boyfriend, who happened to be the Green Latern Kyle Rayner.

While initially Diana had been happy that Donna had found someone that she loved and who loved her back, she now cursed that they got together, as it seemed that since Donna was spending time with her man, she figured that Diana needed one as well, and she mentioned Kal more than anyone else when discussing 'possible suitors for the Princess'.

"Nothing is bothering me Donna, I am just tired of having to start every visit to my home with a fight with Artemis" Diana said, allowing a loud sigh of frustration to escape her lips, which Donna immediately picked up on as being about more than just Artemis poking at her.

"You can fool your Justice League comrades, you can fool Philippus or Mother, you can even try to fool yourself, but you cannot fool your sister" Donna said, before deliberately putting her hand on Diana's shoulder, stopping her beside the sheltered balcony that overlooked the market and the ocean beyond.

"I have no idea what you are talking about Donna, I think you've been spending too much time with Kyle" Diana said, leaning against the stone edge and watching the waves crash on the beach in the distance.

"That's my point Diana, I'm spending time with someone I love, and if that fight was any indication, it seems you are bottling up some serious love-related frustrations, and while I certainly do not have to resort to fighting with you to get it out of you, I am worried that you will not admit it yourself" Donna responded, crossing her arms in front of her and taking on a look of defiance that made Diana smile.

"Just because you've been enamoured with that boy for a few months does not make you an authority on my love-life and what are you talking about any way? What does me teaching Artemis a lesson have to do with anything?"

Diana found herself becoming slightly annoyed with the direction this conversation was headed. She had hoped coming home would allow her to take her mind off her conflicted feelings regarding Kal, but it seemed Themyscira was just going to make the situation worse, as if that was possible.

"Everything Diana. You have been on edge for what seems like years. You used to be so much more controlled and…diplomatic, but now you have become slightly erratic and if I may say so, you have become something of a lousy Amazon". Donna decided it was best to not dance around the issue and just spell out her concerns for her sister. Diana appreciated the direct approach and Donna knew that, which is why Diana decided to respond to her, despite her better judgment.

"I am not supposed to feel this way".

Donna was surprised and left briefly speechless by the heavy emotion that laced Diana's voice as she watched her sister close her eyes and lean further on the balcony, causing it to begin to crack slightly, as if she was carrying a huge weight on her back.

"Not supposed to feel this way about what Diana? You can tell me what's bothering you" Donna said, reaching out and placing her hand on the middle of Diana's back, letting her sister feel her concern and the love that she had for her.

"I am not supposed to feel this way about him. I have been able to keep it together for over a thousand years and now I am feeling myself come apart at the seams. I nearly broke Bruce's jaw a few months ago when he confronted me about my feelings, and just now all Artemis had to do was briefly insult him and I almost killed her".

Diana finally opened her eyes to regard her sister's reaction to that admission, but was surprised when Donna smacked her in the side of her head, and responded with a great deal of annoyance in her voice.

"Of course you feel that way about him, and you don't have to say who him is, we both know you're talking about a certain man who likes to dress in red and blue. You say you've been able to keep it together up until now? Well guess what? You haven't! You've been off-balance ever since you met him and so has he. Gods you two are absolutely impossible! He's a walking-near divine Apollo-like sun-god and you're the fearless Amazon warrior who faced down Ares at the Gates of Tartarus and you behave like insecure pre-teens when you're around eachother!"

Diana's eyes widened in surprise at her sister's matter-of-fact response, and found herself left speechless.

"Was it really that obvious?" Diana thought she had maintained the perfect level of coolness and diplomatic presence anytime someone had brought up Kal around her, and even she herself had only recently within the past few weeks begun to even acknowledge the feelings that were inside her regarding the Man of Steel.

"Yes Diana it is that obvious" Donna interrupted her train of thought and reading her line of thinking in the same breath. "And it's obvious to Mother as well".

Diana did not like the sound of that last bit as she could only guess as to what her mother had planned for her, especially when she found out what she had done to Artemis after she had insulted Kal. In fact if Diana knew her mother, Hippolyta already knew about their skirmish and was already planning on how she would handle her daughter's latest outburst.

"That is not a conversation I am looking forward to" Diana groaned, moving away from the balcony and leaning her head against the wall.

"If I were you I wouldn't worry too much. As far as Mother is concerned, she most likely has been planning your wedding for the past ten years. After she heard that Superman had fought by your side for a thousand years and not once tried to take advantage of you, she pretty much gave him a free pass to court you" Donna commented, laughing when Diana jerked up at her comments.

"What are you talking about?! Mother gave Kal a 'free pass' to ask me out on a date?" Diana said, causing Donna to laugh even harder.

"Don't worry Diana, she has not spoken to him directly, so calm down before you break something, I believe her words to me upon learning about his restraint were 'Now there is a man who is worthy of my daughter' or something along those lines" Donna enjoyed the satisfaction of seeing Diana's face light up slightly upon learning that their mother had pretty much already approved of him.

"But remember, you know Mother, just because she would give him permission to court you if he asked does not mean he is not in for a world of hurt when he asks. No doubt mother has already planned an entire week-long event of fights and challenges for him, and is just waiting for him to ask".

The brief elation that Diana had experienced was quickly brought back down to earth, as she realized that Donna was correct. Hippolyta sure as hell was not going to make it easy for him, even if he was the only man that she would ever approve of her dating.

"This is all well and good but I am unsure how he feels. He has been so guarded lately and so on edge, he almost goes out of his way to engage in every battle he can" Diana said, briefly reminding herself how difficult Kal had been lately, and how hard it was to get any time alone with him before something or someone interrupted them.

"Guarded and on edge? Quick to confrontation? That sounds familiar sister. Give me a break, the guy went to Asgard with you for a thousand years just because you asked him to. He's practically crawled on his hands and knees for you. I'm willing to bet he's even given you flowers on one or two occasions and you're not even dating".

Diana couldn't help but laugh at that last bit, remembering that for her last birthday, Kal had used Kryptonian science to biologically engineer a new species of orchid that he had presented to her in a case that would preserve it in full bloom for a long period of time.

"Yeah that's what I thought. The man is head over heels in love with you Diana, but I think you may have to make the first move. He waited a thousand years and didn't want to 'risk the friendship', so I think you have to take the no-nonsense Amazon approach if you want him to admit to those feelings".

Diana was pleased to see that at least her sister agreed with her on that point, that it was about time she used her Amazon training for this situation, to just grab Kal and throw him over her shoulder, or just keep hitting him until he came around. She smiled briefly at the possibility, but then realized that a good straightforward heart-to-heart was what they needed. It was how they had dealt with so many other matters in the past.

"Besides Diana, it is better that he go through all of mother's trials and gain her approval that way. The last thing we need is for you to start dating in secret, and then she walks in when you're all hot and heavy going at it in the bathroom at the embassy".

Diana blushed furiously and responded immediately, deciding to tease her sister a little bit after she had been badgering her for last little while.

"Well she wouldn't catch us in the bathroom, now the closet on the other hand…" Diana led on, causing Donna to gasp, caught off guard slightly by Diana's small admission of one of her personal fantasies.

"What would I catch you doing in the closet Diana?"

Diana and Donna froze mid-conversation, before turning to see a rather bemused Queen of the Amazons watching them, dressed in a floor-length white tunic and blood-red Spartan-like cape, her simple golden crown adorning her head.

"How long have you been standing there Mother?" Donna spoke first, having been the first of the sisters to find her voice.

"Long enough to learn just how inappropriate princesses can be when left alone together" Hippolyta said, allowing a small smile to cross her features, amused at how her full-grown adult daughters could still be made to look like scared children when the opportunity presented itself.

"I apologize Mother, these feelings regarding Kal-El are newly revealed to both myself and Donna, and I am still dealing with them as such" Diana said, bowing her head in respect to the Queen.

"Do not worry Diana" Hippolyta said, waving her hand dismissively. "It is not you who needs be concerned about incurring my wrath, it is Kal-El. However, I leave it to you to get him here in the first place to answer to me. If my ears do not deceive me, you two have some things to sort out, yes?"

"Yes you are correct Mother, I am unsure if my feelings are reciprocated, despite what my sister or others may say to the contrary, but I will speak to him when the next moment presents itself" Diana replied, allowing the Amazon hardened-resolve to creep into her tone of voice.

"Now there's the Amazon I raised" Hippolyta said, leaning forward and embracing Diana.

"It is good to see you Mother" Diana said finally, returning her mother's embrace tightly.

"As it is for me to see you Daughter, but we have more important things to discuss now. Your love-life will have to take a backseat to what is about to come and I have a feeling that you are not going to like what my Amazon spies have found out…" Hippolyta responded, allowing a slight break to enter into her voice, a certain degree of apprehensiveness.

The Queen's comments and tone caused both Diana and Donna to look at eachother in concern. Amazons lived for combat, so the fact that Hippolyta seemed on edge was concerning for both of them. The last time Hippolyta had been on edge, they had almost lost the Amazon homeland to the undead hordes of Tartarus.

Diana had known her Mother since birth and couldn't help but feel a cold chill run up her spine.

What could be so concerning that it scared the Queen of the Amazons?

A/N: What's got Hippolyta worried? Next time it's finally time to reveal the big bads as the deadly alliance comes about, including one that I know you all won't see coming. Then it's off to Smallville as Kal stops off to visit his mother on the way to Themyscira.