Bruce goes under the knife in the hospital and Diana seeks out answers about some inner turmoil.
Chapter 8: Surgery And A Premonition
Thomas and Martha rushed into the emergency room of Gotham General Hospital. Alfred had dropped them off at the main Emergency Room doors so that they could get in right away while he parked the car before meeting back up with them. The nurse at the main desk inside the ER instructed them that there was no word yet on their son's condition, and pointed them over to a more private waiting area. Thomas waited where they were for Alfred to come in while Martha went ahead into the room. It was there that she saw Diana sitting on a chair in the room with a lost look on her face. Her clothes and hands were covered in blood, but it wasn't just blood; it was Bruce's blood. When the door closed behind her, the sound seemed to snap Diana out of a trance as she looked up to see tears streaming down Martha's face. "I'm so sorry Mrs. Wayne." She said as she stood up and faced Bruce's mother. She was surprised when Martha dove into her, wrapping her arms around Diana as she wept while asking anyone that would listen about her concerns over her son's wellbeing. She kept repeating my boy, my poor boy followed by why over and over again until Thomas and Alfred came into the room with them.
Thomas took his wife from Diana's hands and offered what comfort he could. That only lasted until his wife finally calmed enough to realize that her husband had more clearance than a standard patient's parent. She started off by asking for him to go and find out something, but it quickly escalated into pleading. Thomas was concerned himself, but he knew that the best thing they could do for their son was to not interfere. If he was still in surgery, that meant the doctors needed to be able to focus on what they were doing. Diana eventually returned to her seated position, cupping her face in her own hands. She was completely disheveled from the moments that had gone on as her mind continued to go over the scenario again and again. She felt completely responsible for Bruce's current condition. Perhaps if she'd just not acted then they would've both been fine, but her first instinct was to subdue the criminals and she'd never questioned that instinct until now. Now she almost felt an understanding for what Kal had been talking about. Every attempted move to stand up against the evils seemed to backfire.
Minutes felt like hours as Diana and the Wayne's were forced to wait. They were all remaining deadly quiet in the room until Alfred knelt down in front of Diana. He'd been watching her the whole time, and saw how utterly lost she appeared to be. It seemed like a piece of herself had been ripped away judging from the pained expression that was on her face as she stared at nothing in particular. He knelt down though because of something else that he'd seen, and knew that she needed someone at that moment. "Miss Diana." He gently said as he placed a comforting hand on her knee to gain her attention. "I'm quite sure that Master Bruce will pull through. The lad has always proven to be quite stubborn at times, and I'm sure this shall be no different. But perhaps while we wait, it would be appropriate to wash some of the Master's blood from your hands. While we can't do much for your clothes, I believe that Master Bruce would want you to seem prepared for when he is ready to take in visitors."
For the first time that night, Diana actually noticed the blood stains on her. She had Bruce's blood on her hands, and that realization was almost too much to take in. She shakily stood and allowed Alfred to escort her to the ladies room. Once inside, she walked up to the sinks, standing in front of a mirror and she noticed that she'd managed to smear some of his blood from her hands onto her face at some point. She began with her hands, lathering them and scrubbing furiously, never wanting the red tint to be off of her more so than at this particular time. She scrubbed continuously for several minutes until she began to feel pain on her hands. She glanced up and saw tears trailing down her cheeks, and at that moment she stopped herself. This wasn't like her at all. Why was she acting so irrationally? She'd stood beside and fought with friends that had fallen in the heat of battle before and not been affected like this. She began to question why until she remembered that in this world, in this timeline Bruce wasn't a warrior that she'd fought beside like all the others that she'd lost along the way with her mission. Bruce was just Bruce, an innocent man, a good man that didn't deserve to be gunned down. He wasn't a warrior that was prepared for the time that he might fall in battle, and he was her friend. To try and calm herself, she focused on her breathing until her emotions were back in control before wiping the tears away and rinsing the dried blood off of her cheeks. She grabbed a paper towel from the dispenser and wiped her face and hands dry before giving herself a once over in the mirror. Satisfied that she was ready to take on the emotions of waiting to find out her friend's condition, she silently offered a quick prayer to her gods and goddesses before she opened the bathroom door to find that Alfred was still there waiting for her. She couldn't help but to feel instantly better upon seeing him there. Even in this timeline Alfred was an incredible person. They both returned to the waiting room where Martha and Thomas had taken seats and Martha was resting her head on Thomas' shoulder. He was also holding her hand, and Diana knew then just what effect this loving couple had imprinted into Bruce, even in just eight short years. She bared witness to it herself in just two days time so there was no doubt in her mind that even as a child Bruce would've seen it clearly.
Alfred offered Diana a seat and when she accepted, he chose to sit down next to the young woman. She was still astounded by the calming effect that Alfred seemed to possess, and they stayed in that position for the next half hour until a doctor finally showed up. Thomas stood to face the doctor while Martha held her hands in front of her mouth as she remained seated. Diana and Alfred both joined Thomas in standing up as the doctor shut the door to the room and stood before the four of them. "You're son was really lucky tonight Mr. and Mrs. Wayne." The doctor began. "The bullet ended up piercing Bruce's gall bladder and damaging some of the hepatic arteries. There was some internal bleeding on top of the amount of blood he'd already lost before we got to him, and he was extremely lucky that this young lady acted as she did. If she hadn't been there to get him to us as quickly as she did, then it's very likely the news wouldn't have been so positive. He's passed the worst of it now, and we were able to stabilize him enough to place him into recovery. In a couple of weeks he should make a full recovery."
"Can we go see him?" Martha asked.
"For a short time, but Bruce is going to need to rest as he recovers." The doctor answered before leading them to Bruce's room in the recovery section.
Martha wasted no time at all in immediately moving over to the side of Bruce's bed, grabbing his hand in hers. Thomas approached next, but before he went up to the bedside, he grabbed Bruce's medical chart and flipped through all of the information it had. When he was satisfied, he stood next to his wife and gazed upon his sleeping son. Alfred and Diana approached the other bedside and looked upon Bruce as he seemed to be resting comfortably. Diana reached down and interlaced her fingers with Bruce's other hand, and soon after that she felt him slightly squeezing her hand. Bruce's eyes then began to flutter for a moment before finally opening up. Diana smiled brilliantly at him when his eyes found hers. "Are….you alright?" He asked.
"You gave us all a scare tonight son." Thomas stated as Martha was too emotional at the time for words.
"Sorry dad." Bruce apologized as he began to take in his surroundings and realized where he was. "What's the prognosis?"
"You'll make a full recovery." Thomas answered. "You were lucky that Diana was with you. According to the doctor, if she hadn't gotten you here as quickly as she did, then you might not have survived."
"You need to be more careful." Martha finally managed to get out, even though she was still choked up by the emotions running through her. "I don't know what we'd do if we lost you Bruce."
"Sorry…mom." Bruce rasped out before hissing when he attempted to adjust his position. The pain medication that he'd been given was helping, but it wasn't enough to completely mask all of the pain.
"You need to rest Bruce." Diana said as she released his hand and moved her hand up to gently glide the back of her knuckles down his cheek.
Bruce turned his head to look directly at Diana, and when his eyes locked onto hers once again Diana could see something in them change ever so slightly. What she could see in his eyes now, she'd seen before but from the Bruce of her timeline. It was a look of clarifying realization, and she knew what that likely meant. She took a step back away from his bedside as she knew that he was about to ask questions that she wasn't sure she wanted to answer, but before she could leave with the excuse of giving him and his family some privacy, he began to speak again. "Diana's right." He said. "Before that though, if it's alright with you mom and dad, I'd need a moment with Diana."
"Of….of course son." Martha said. "But we aren't leaving and we'll be right here when you wake up."
Bruce turned back to his parents as Martha kissed him on the forehead before joining Thomas and Alfred as they walked out of the room and closed the door behind them. Diana stayed in the room, knowing that she was going to have some answers to provide whether she wanted to or not, but the hard stare that was coming from Bruce wasn't helping. He wasn't supposed to have that stare, but perhaps the Bat still lived deep inside of this man, and was just waiting for a reason to come out. The silence in the room was also adding to the awkward feeling until Bruce eventually broke it. "You have powers." He stated. It wasn't a question at all.
"Yes." Diana answered as she wrapped her arms around herself, wondering if he'd turn her away now that he knew she was something that wasn't accepted as good in this world.
"I know how you got me here." Bruce continued.
"I had no choice Bruce." Diana countered quickly. "You were losing too much blood, and I was afraid that I'd lose you. I couldn't risk getting stuck in traffic or waiting for an ambulance to arrive."
Bruce sat there silently for a minute as he processed what she'd said to him before he replied. "Thank you." He grunted out. "But what I don't understand is why you went searching for the Gotham vigilante when you could've just taken over for him."
"It's…." Diana began before pausing. She was conflicted as she wanted to tell him the whole truth but didn't at the same time. She knew though that she was going to have to give him something at the least. "It's because my gods have ordered me to carry out a mission."
"What is this mission, and how is it more important than saving all the innocent lives in this city?" Bruce asked.
"Because indirectly it would save many lives in Gotham City as well." Diana offered. "But it's much larger than that."
"Tell me." Bruce ordered, sounding more and more like the Bat. Diana flinched slightly and Bruce knew that he was being harsh towards the woman that had in essence saved his life. He let go of a calming breath and his facial features softened as he tried to sit up. Diana was quick to move back to his side and gently press him back down, silently reprimanding him for trying something so foolish, but he'd anticipated her response and grabbed her wrists before she could back away. Diana looked down at Bruce's hands gripping her by the bracers, but to his surprise didn't fight to get away. He then used the hand that didn't have monitoring equipment attached to it and reached up. He winced as the movement brought him pain but he still didn't stop until his hand was on the back of her neck. He gently pulled her closer, and Diana didn't fight as she was confused by what was happening. He didn't stop pulling until their noses were about to touch. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to come off that way. You saved my life, and I wanted to say thank you." He said softly.
Diana knew what was happening at that moment as Bruce closed his eyes and began to pull gently again to close the last couple of inches that their lips were apart. She knew that she should stop this from happening, knew that it would only make things more difficult, but there was something inside of her that was fighting despite that knowledge. There was something inside of her that actually wanted this, and it was that something that won out in the end as she closed her eyes and gently pressed her lips to his. The kiss was slow yet intimate as Diana felt her knees becoming weak. Eventually though she ended the kiss, but followed it up with a much quicker kiss again before backing away enough to where they could look into each other's eyes. "Rest." She requested. "I give you my word that I'll be here in the morning when you wake. Then when the timing is right, I'll give you the answers that you seek."
Bruce smiled at her slightly before laying his head back down onto the pillows of his bed. Diana ran her fingers gently through his hair, and in a few minutes he fell asleep. She stayed there a minute longer just watching him while at the same time wondering just what it was that had been coming over her. She needed to get some answers of her own to better understand what was happening, and that meant she had to leave for a short time. Reluctantly she stood up from her previous position of leaning over the bedside rail and walked out of the room to find Bruce's parents standing out in the hallway. "He's asleep." She announced as she closed the door behind her.
Thomas and Martha quickly moved over to her and wrapped her in a group hug. "Thank you." Thomas said as Martha was letting tears of joy run down her face. "There's no way to show just how much we appreciate you saving our son."
"You love him." Diana responded. "That's more than enough." Diana stayed in the hug for a few seconds before she noticed the crestfallen feeling beginning to overtake her. She stepped back closer to Alfred than Bruce's parents, and then excused herself before making her way to the rooftop. It was thundering as though the sky were threatening a downpour at any moment. The air was moist and cool to the touch of her skin, and she embraced that cooling feeling as it gave off a sort of refreshing sense to her. She then peered over to the parking area and spotted Bruce's car, recalling that moment when she carried him inside the car through the air to the hospital. Bruce's words in his hospital room obviously meant that he regained his consciousness during the short flight. She'd taken the car as an attempt to maintain her cover. It was a risk flying through the Gotham airspace with a vehicle above her head, but Bruce's safety was the most concern to her at the time. She was fortunate in that she hadn't been spotted by anyone else when she set the car down and proceeded to pull Bruce out of it. After she had him out of the car, she no longer cared about being spotted when she saw how pale his complexion had become, screaming at the top of her lungs for someone to help.
Once the doctors had taken Bruce away was when she knew that his parents needed to know what had happened. She guessed correctly that the number to Wayne Manor was the same as it was in her own timeline. Yet another thing that Bruce hadn't allowed to be changed. She had the unfortunate experience of having to relay bad news to family members before, but this was different. Before there was no emotional connection aside from the disappointment at not being able to save everyone as a member of the Justice League. Three years had given all of the League members a hardened exterior over time that made it easier to do, and even that had failed Diana this time around. She knew the victim, and knew his parents this time. She liked Bruce very much and found that she liked his parents as well even though she'd only been around them for a few hours through the last two days. Calling Bruce's parents had been much more difficult than she recalled any other call being made. Thinking about that call only furthered her desire to have questions answered, and it was with that thought that she dropped down to Bruce's car when the coast was clear, and grabbed her duffle bag from the back seat before taking flight again. She flew around for a while until she found a quiet area in a park that would serve for what she needed to do. Reaching into her bag, she pulled out the idols she'd carried with her from Themyscira and set them with candles onto a park gazebo that she'd chosen to help in serving as an altar.
When everything was prepared, Diana kneeled before the makeshift altar and began to pray to her patron gods and goddesses. She remained knelt down as she'd requested guidance, and patiently was waiting in the hopes that her prayer would be answered. However after more than five minutes it became apparent that those answers would not be coming to her. Reluctantly she blew out the candles and returned the idols to her bag before gathering the candles once the wax had cooled and hardened enough. She then started walking through the park as she made her way back in the direction of the hospital. Before she got to the park exits though someone did decide to come before her, it just wasn't someone that she wanted to see. "What's a pretty girl like you doing out here this late at night?" A would be mugger said as he appeared from an unlit area in the park. "Why don't you make this easy and give me that bag of yours."
A fire began to burn brilliantly inside of Diana at that moment. Of course being out in Gotham at night on her own, she should've expected to cross paths with a mugger, and that person would choose this night of all nights to try and rob her. She snarled as she looked up to take in her attacker. He was holding a knife in his hand and when she took in the environment, Diana knew that he was alone. "I've already come close to losing a valued friend because of people like you." She seethed through clenched teeth. "Normally I'd be merciful of someone like you, but you picked a bad night to cross my path."
"Shut up and give me the bag." The mugger commanded as he lunged forward. With the speed of Hermes, Diana moved and grabbed hold of the mugger's wrist and twisted it to the point that the pain caused him to drop it to the ground. "Okay, okay." He pleaded. "I'm s…sorry. Just let…let me go."
Diana grabbed the mugger by the throat and brought him face to face with her. "That's. Not. Good enough." She seethed before making a sudden move that was followed immediately by the sound of bones breaking. The mugger screamed in pain as he dropped to his knees, but Diana wasn't done with him yet. She slammed a fist into the man's face instantly knocking him unconscious, and then she decided to alter her course with a short pit stop before returning to the hospital.
Some police officers were leaning against their cruiser as they enjoyed their fresh coffee just outside of the precinct. That was until they heard a thud directly behind them. They both turned around to see an unconscious man on top of their cruiser. They both looked at each other for a moment and then up into the sky, but found nothing. One of the officers then walked to the side of the car and started pulling the man off of its top as the other prepared to help hold the weight of the man when he came off the car. Once they'd settled the man onto the ground, they performed a search and discovered the knife as well as a few wallets on him.
Diana landed back on the hospital rooftop and made her way back inside. She had given her word that she was going to be there when Bruce woke up, and she was going to keep her promise to him. She checked on Bruce quickly to make sure he was still alright and then went into the waiting room she'd been in during his surgery and found that his parents and Alfred were all in there as well. Thomas and Alfred were still asleep, and Martha looked as though she'd just given in to sleep, using her husband as a pillow to rest her head on. Alfred began to stand until Diana gestured for him to stay seated. She found a place that would suffice and made herself as comfortable as she could, turning sideways in a chair, and using the armrests to prop her legs and head up. It was somewhat cramped, but she could get some rest at least. It took some time, but eventually she managed to fall asleep.
~~ Sometime later ~~
Diana was walking through a fog filled field. She had no idea where she was, but for some reason she knew that she had to continue moving in the direction that she was headed. Up over small hills and into beautiful valleys, she continued traipsing along until the fog cleared and revealed an ivory colored structure on top of the next hill. She attempted to fly up to the top of the hill, but found that her powers had left her in this place. Determined to get to the top, she marched up a worn path, and once she was at the top she immediately bowed down at the sight before her. "My Lady Athena, my Lady Aphrodite." She said from her bowed position.
"Rise Diana of Themyscira." Athena called out. "You have summoned us, and we've come to answer your calling. What troubles you so child?"
"I've found something that has changed from the cause of the mission I was set upon to correct." Diana explained. "I can see that some things are better off in the original timeline, but with one man in particular, after all the torment and torture, I find myself conflicted about what to do. He of all men has certainly earned this life without such tragedy around him."
"You care for this mortal." Athena surmised. "Do not question what the fates have in store for any mortals Diana. Some are predestined to greater things that require tragedy and what you call torture to achieve them. Do not question your mission. You need not reminding that if this is not corrected, even this world as you are coming to know it will cease to exist. These changes will in time lead to the end of this world if you do not complete your tasks."
"I…I understand." Diana despondently replied. She knew that Athena was correct, and she would complete her mission even knowing that she was now going to have to play a direct part in Bruce's parents being murdered. A bright blinding light began to emanate around the goddesses, and Diana had to shield her eyes with her arms due to the brightness of it.
As the light dissipated, Diana lowered her eyes to reveal a shock. "You love him." Aphrodite pointed out. "But which him?"
"I…hardly know this version of Bruce." Diana responded.
Aphrodite laughed at Diana's comment as she walked around the Amazon princess. "You may be able to hide from yourself child, but not from the goddess of love." She stated as she came to a stop in front of Diana, and placed a gentle hand on Diana's cheek. "I'm not surprised though with your choice. This mortal is nothing if not brave and selfless, and this version does seem to be much more willing to lead with his emotions. I can see why there is such conflict in you regarding him. You fear that he might resent you should he ever come to find out that you allowed his parents murder to occur in order to complete your mission. Love is such an interesting emotion for mortals. It's so powerful and yet so unpredictable at the same time."
Diana didn't want to question her goddess, but she didn't love Bruce. She couldn't. He was a man and Amazons did not entertain intimate relationships aside from long ago in the past when Amazons were permitted leaves of absence to propagate their race after times of war. With the island one of peace since before her time, there'd never been the need for procreation and thus men were deemed unnecessary. Aphrodite laughed again as she returned to the ivory structure. "Your thoughts are amusing Diana." She said. "Certainly misguided but amusing nonetheless. You are a good judge of character, but you must trust your heart at times."
Another flash of light appeared and then Diana found that she was left alone. Even the ivory structure had disappeared. She wasn't sure where to go from that point. She also didn't know what to do with the information that her goddesses had given her. She already knew that she'd follow her mission through to the end even if there were going to be some unpleasant results at the end of it. She was sure that Batman would never forgive her for not taking the chance of allowing his parents to be saved, but there was no point in trying to argue that point. Her mission held a larger importance than that of two mortals, even if they were the parents of the man that she…no. She didn't love Bruce. She respected him as a fellow warrior in arms, and now she had a deeper respect because of just how much of a difference that he'd make for his city as that warrior.
Regardless of what Bruce thought, one man was making a vast difference, but it wasn't just any man. Kal had tried to save Gotham from itself and had given up because of his involvement in the Joker's creation. Bruce had never let anyone stop him from making it a safer place to live, not even the Joker. She could never recall a time where she couldn't walk around the city without an attempted mugging taking place during the real timeline. And without Batman as the city's protector it seemed that she couldn't step into the city now without some criminal trying to do something in her presence. Gotham City needed Batman, but in order for there to be a Batman, Thomas and Martha Wayne had to be murdered. Even if Diana spent the time training him, by the time he'd even come close to the man that she knew in her timeline, he'd be far too old. Bruce had trained and educated himself for almost twenty years by the time she'd met him. He was a hardened warrior with an exterior protected by scarring from a tragic past. As much as she didn't want to be, she knew that she'd have to be directly involved with that happening to him again. She only hoped that should it come to that, this Bruce would understand and her Bruce would one day see fit to forgive her for what she had to do.
In order to get the mission over with though, Diana first had to get out of this realm that she was in. The only path she could see was the one that she'd taken to reach her goddesses, so she chose to return following that same path and hoped that it would provide the exit back into the real world. She walked down the hill and into and out of the wooded areas and clearings just as she had when she arrived. She was walking through a fog filled field where she could barely see in front of her face when she heard it. "Miss Diana." A voice from out of nowhere called out. She spun around looking for the man that had said it. It was definitely Alfred's voice. That much she was sure of. Then she felt something warm touch her on the shoulder and looked down to see nothing there. "Miss Diana." The voice said again. This time she closed her eyes tightly so that she could focus on the direction of the voice, and could then feel a kink beginning to grow in her neck. When she opened her eyes again to see if she could discover the cause, she was suddenly back in the hospital waiting room. Alfred was kneeling next to her with a hand on her shoulder and a pleasant smile on his face. "I apologize for waking you miss, but Master Thomas wanted me to inform you that Master Bruce has just woken up."
Diana sat up from her position in the chair she'd been laying in, and worked the kink out of her neck before following Alfred into Bruce's room. The first thing that she noticed was that the color had returned to his face. It was apparent that the doctors had successfully repaired all of the damage caused by the bullet and Bruce was well on his way to recovery. She was instantly curious as to how quickly he'd want to leave the hospital. Her Bruce would've been preparing to head back out on patrol that same night, and her question was answered by Bruce's mother. "Are you sure honey?" She asked.
"Yes." Bruce answered before turning to see Alfred and Diana. He smiled briefly and then faced his mother again. "As soon as dad gets permission, I'm ready to go home."