A/N: Someone asked for more BMWW – so here's a chapter that's mostly BMWW! Enjoy!

Chapter Five – It's All Greek To Me

Diana stayed in the Cave for as long as she politely could, not wanting to leave it and get another headache as soon as she did. Besides, she and Bruce had fallen into their normal pattern of friendly, comfortable banter and discussion. She knew he only let her stay because she was feeling rather vulnerable at the moment, but it was times like this when she found herself questioning why it couldn't be this way all the time. They were good together. He knew everything about her, and she knew- Well, it would be a lie if she said she knew everything about him, but unfortunately she knew enough to understand that he'd never accept that it could be this easy. In a way she couldn't really blame him – if nothing else he'd been taught that nothing in life was easy. Particularly love.

Not that I'm in love with him, she thought firmly. Attracted to, yes, but not in love. That would be rather too difficult to deal with, especially with…whatever was happening to her now. To distract herself from that topic, she cleared her throat and pointed at the gem. "What are you scanning for?"

"The strength of its magnetic and gravitational fields, monitoring temperature and weight as well as kinetic energy."

"Kinetic energy?"

"It's vibrating slightly," he answered. "And the gravitational field is larger than it should be."

"You're not testing for magic?" she enquired.

He shot her a sceptical look. "I'll leave mysticism to Zatanna," he said flatly.

"But, Bruce, it's clearly magical in origin. Don't you think that-"

"It is not 'clearly magical'," he said. "It's origins are unknown – possibly extraterrestrial, possibly from a culture far more advanced than ours. Not magical."

"No? Glowing gem, mysteriously appearing cave, old woman who put a curse on me-" She smiled a little. "Sounds magical to me."

"Diana, you're used to magic being an established part of your culture. You were…" He frowned as if just accepting the idea was difficult, "created by magic." He turned back to scan through the police bands on the radio while glancing at the clock. 19:07. Alfred would be serving dinner soon. He really should invite her to stay for it. "Magic is not an accepted part of my life, Princess. It is simply something I have yet to understand."

She smiled in a slightly indulgent manner. "Are you planning on understanding everything?"

He rose to the bait and smirked. "Eventually."

"Knowledge is power."

"My philosophy exactly."

"But then ultimate knowledge – that would make you a god," she noted.

"I can think of worse fates," he said, unable to resist a grin.

"But you hate my gods," she reminded him, grateful that he was flirting back enough for her to let the last of her fear fade. She doubted it was accidental; Bruce never did or said anything without thinking of all possible consequences first. Still, as long as he wanted to play, Diana was more than happy to play along with him.

"Only because they seem to be utterly without compassion."

"I don't think Hera would like being compared to Ares," Diana said, a touch more sternly. "Even if he is her son."

"You mentioned nothing about goddesses," he replied. "And the gods are well known for their lack of morals."

"Touché," she smiled, somehow closer to him than she'd meant to be. "So kind of god would you be, I wonder? The god of working too hard? Of thinking too much?"

"More along the lines of protection. Vengeance. The night. Something cosy like that."

"Much as that would suit you, I doubt Nix would like it," she replied. "She's quite possessive of her domain you know."

"Something else then," he murmured, now not even trying to look as though he was working and simply taking in Diana. She really was extraordinarily beautiful, especially when backlit from the glow of the screen bank. The white light illuminated the almost blue highlights in her hair, silhouetted her figure and somehow made her look- Bruce mentally shook himself, though a tiny part of him lamented the fact that it just wasn't fair. How was any red-blooded man supposed to function around her? Thank God the Bat could be cold-blooded when he needed to be.

She grinned down on him, suddenly all her goddesses all at once. "Well, Eros already has-"

There was the soft clearing of a throat, and both their faces – now only a few inches apart – flicked to look up at the stairs. Alfred was standing there, face totally unreadable as always, his posture rigid. "Good evening, Your Highness."

Diana smiled and tried not to blush. "Hello, Alfred."

The Englishman looked at his employer. "Dinner is about to be served, sir."

Bruce smoothly moved away from Diana. "Thank you, Alfred; I'll be up in a minute."

His surrogate father did not move, only regarded him with a perfectly neutral expression. It changed to one of very slight annoyance when Bruce did not speak again. "Are you staying for dinner, Miss Diana?"

"I wouldn't want to intrude-" she began.

"Stay," Bruce said quietly.

She lifted and eyebrow and tilted her head in a way that let some hair fall over one shoulder in a ridiculously seductive way. More seductive because he knew it to be utterly uncontrived. He swallowed as surreptitiously as possible. "Stay?" he repeated, more a question this time.

She nodded. "I'd love to. As long as it's alright with you of course, Alfred?"

"Of course, Miss. Quite incidentally I happen to have made extra pasta tonight."

"Incidentally," Bruce stated flatly.

"Utterly by mistake," the older man said breezily. "For some reason I had the impression Master Dick was coming for dinner. The meal will be ready in approximately five minutes."

"Thank you," Bruce ground out.

Recognising the tone, Diana thought it best to get out of the situation, and moved toward Alfred, looping her arms through his. "Would you like some help serving up, Alfred?" she asked cheerily.

He smiled slightly. "That would be most welcome, Miss."

For some reason that Bruce could not fathom, Diana was the only person he'd ever seen Alfred accept help from. She claimed it was in payment for Alfred teaching her how to cook, but they'd become friends during her stay at the manor, and Bruce could see how delighted the Englishman was to have her back in the house. Tim would probably have the same reaction. Hell, he was finding it difficult not to be almost… Ok, I am not about to use the word 'giddy', he thought sourly. But even he had to admit that the manor had a more comfortable atmosphere when she was around. She wasn't a part of the family, but she had the potential to-

Letting out a growl, Bruce hit the power down button with more force than he meant to. She was not part of the family, and she never would be part of the family. The manor ran efficiently and extremely well as far as he could see – without the influence of a woman. It did not matter that Alfred and Tim liked having Diana around. It certainly did not matter – in fact it was dangerous – that he liked having her around. There were too many ways it could go wrong, too many opportunities for them to be alone and far too many tempting dark corners he could sweep her into in order to kiss her senseless. The growl was joined by a groan. He really didn't need to spend the entire evening imagining doing that.

Before going up the stairs, Bruce took a second to let some of the Bat come forward, feeling better when the cold steel of self-control settled over his senses. Calm now, he began to climb up to the manor, objectively coming to one conclusion.

Inviting her to stay for dinner had been a mistake.

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Diana tried to prevent her discomfort from showing on her face. Staying for dinner had been a mistake. It wasn't that she didn't enjoy spending time with Alfred, of course she did, but this was not all that pleasant – the prospect of spending hours watching Bruce pretend he hadn't been flirting for real.

As she and Bruce's surrogate father had entered the kitchen, Alfred smiled at her. "Now, how are you, my dear?"

"Well, thank you, Alfred." She sniffed the air, almost melting at the delicious smell. "What are you making? It smells wonderful."

"Linguine al salmone," he answered. "Your favourite, as I seem to recall."

She blinked. "Alfred, I think you might be my favourite man in the world!" she grinned, feeling contentment rise up in her. She surprised herself slightly by giggling. "How on earth did you know I'd be coming tonight?"

He sobered, but she could tell on the inside he was chuckling. "I had no idea, Miss. A happy accident, as I said. Now, if you wouldn't mind – could you chop some of that parsley over there for me? About two handfuls should do."

She smiled and did as directed, chopping with far less speed than she was sure Alfred could have managed, but glad to be of help anyway. Suddenly Tim's voice sounded just outside the door. "Hey, Alfred, what time's dinner?" he asked, coming into the room. "Because…Wonder Woman's in the kitchen…" he finished, staring wide-eyed at her.

"Hello, Tim," Diana smiled. "How are you?"

He blinked. "Umm…I'm fine," he said, in a voice still considerably higher than normal. "You?" he squeaked.

Inexplicably, she felt nervous now, as stupidly surprised as Tim looked. It was ridiculous. Tim lived here, why on earth should she be surprised to find him in his own home? "I'm fine as well." She cleared her throat, her sprits sinking. Whatever it was was apparently happening again. "How was school?"

"Boring," he answered immediately. "Not that I didn't pay attention," he added hastily in response to Alfred's stern look. "But c'mon, how interesting is it possible for ancient-" He stopped again, blushing a brilliant shade of scarlet.

Diana realised what he was about to say, and felt embarrassed for him, also colouring. Tim, however, seemed to be considering something, then perked up. "Hey, Wonder Woman?"

"Diana, please," she requested. "We had this conversation the last time I was here."

"Ok…um…Diana, you're Greek, right?"

She considered going into the ancient politics that had led the Amazons not, in fact, to be technically Greek, but decided against it, and shrugged. "Close enough."

"Well I have a project due in on the fall of Troy, and to be honest…well, it's all Greek to me," he said with a smile that could have come straight from Bruce's face. They may not be related by blood, but Tim had definitely been learning from the playboy.

"I do hope, Master Tim, that if you're going to quote the Bard you at least know which play that comes from," Alfred put in.

The grin went, replaced by a sheepish look. "Um…A Midsummer Night's Dream?" he asked hopefully.

Diana shook her head. "Julius Caesar. I'm right, aren't I?" she questioned Alfred.

He smiled. "Indeed you are, Miss."

"When have you been reading Shakespeare?" Bruce's voice asked from the doorway.

Tim and Diana both jumped. "Geez, Bruce! Do you have to do that when you're not in the suit?"

He nodded seriously at his son. "Never let your guard down."

Alfred handed Diana a loaf of warm ciabatta. "Would you put this on the table for me, Miss?"

She nodded. "Of course," taking the breadboard and carrying it through to the enormous dining room.

Bruce opened the refrigerator and took about a chilled bottle of chardonnay. Picking up two glasses, he followed Diana and repeated his earlier question. She set the bread down before answering with a shrug. "When I first arrived in Man's World I was curious to see if there was any real culture to speak of. Shakespeare seemed like a good place to start."

"And were you impressed?" he asked, sitting down.

She sat as well. "I suppose. It's better than Homer, at any rate."

Tim sat opposite her. "What's wrong with Homer?"

Diana's mouth tightened. "It's utter rubbish! The amount that he downplays the part the Amazons played is ridiculous! We were responsible for-"

"Much as I'd love to hear this tirade all over again," Bruce put in, "we haven't got ten years' free time."

She narrowed her eyes at him. "Just because the Iliad is one of Man's World's most revered texts does not mean that it is perfect, or at all accurate. You should just be glad my mother isn't here." Alfred came in with dinner, and they thanked him, Diana tucking in immediately, almost moaning with delight at the sublime taste that exploded in her mouth.

"This is exactly what I need!" Tim said excitedly. "Diana, could you maybe help me on my project? There's no way what you know is anywhere else-"

Diana and Bruce spoke at the same time.

"Sorry, Tim, I can't-"

"Not a good idea."

His face fell. "Why not?"

"Because you said it yourself," she said gently. "What I know you couldn't find anywhere else."

"But that would get me an A for sure!"

Bruce put his knife and fork down with a somewhat impatient sigh. "And how does Timothy Drake, a perfectly ordinary kid, know Wonder Woman?"

"Well-" His face fell. "Oh. Good point."

Diana took a sip of chilled white wine. "I really am sorry, Tim."

He tried to shrug it off. "Nah, it's ok. I'll just have to do research to get an A."

She smiled. "Ok then."

Alfred came into the room briefly. "A telephone call for you, Master Wayne."

Bruce got up. "Excuse me a minute."

Once he was gone, Diana realised how disappointed Tim really was. "Hey," she said, her own mouth pulling down at the corners. "If you like I could always tell you some things about Themyscirian history anyway – you don't have to use it, but it might be interesting."

He nodded and brightened. "Sounds great!"

"Well, where would you like me to start?"

Tim considered. "Well…I'm guessing the whole Heracles thing isn't a good place…"

"No," she said firmly, anger welling up. More than three thousand years and that was a wound still raw for all Amazons. "Really not." He coloured, and she got embarrassed too. It wasn't Tim's fault – he certainly wasn't to know about what had happened, and it wasn't fair of her to snap at him.

"Then…how about we go back to the fall of Troy?" he suggested.

She smiled and began. By the time Bruce re-entered the room, both Diana and Tim were in fits of laughter, mouths full of spaghetti and shoulders quaking. "What did I miss?" he asked, one eyebrow quirked.

"Oh, just something Antiope told me when I was growing up," Diana wheezed. "Apparently the best way to kill a Myrmidon is to seduce him first."

"How?" Tim asked.

"Sounds like an R rated conversation not suitable for ears under eighteen," Bruce said in a quelling fashion. Tim pouted and slouched in his seat, picking at his food. "And sit up."

He sat up. Continued to pick. Eventually Diana asked regenerated the conversation by asking him what exactly his history project entailed. Somehow that led eventually to him shyly discussing the girl he liked at school, and why he was afraid to ask her out – mostly because he was terrified she'd say no, but also because of the "whole secret identity thing. I mean it's tricky. I can't do the playboy thing yet," he added with a sly look at Bruce.

Though there had been no accusation in his tone, Bruce's jaw tightened ever so slightly, and only momentarily. It was enough for Diana to catch, and without thinking she sought his hand under the table, gave it a quick squeeze and then let go. His face flicked to hers for a fraction of a second, and for Diana time stopped. It had to have been the millionth time she'd felt the connection between them, but this time…she knew he felt it too. And a fraction of a second was enough for her to register all the different thoughts flickering across his face. Naked desire, then realisation he'd given himself away, then the resignation that it couldn't happen, then the determination that it wouldn't. She estimated that it took less than a quarter of a second, but she picked it up anyway.

Dinner was over by this time, and to escape Bruce and another circular conversation, Diana insisted on helping Alfred wash up – immediately feeling better once in the old man's friendly company, less…tense, since his cheerfulness was infectious. Once that was done, Diana knew she should leave – much as she'd missed being welcomed at the manor, being in a relaxing home environment, she knew staying any longer would try Bruce's patience, and they'd had a good evening, for them at least. As close to a date as they were ever going to get, and she wanted to end it on a positive note. She embraced Alfred (promising to come back soon), and then a very red faced Tim, before heading down to the Cave.

"I'll escort you," Bruce said.

She waited until they were alone before broaching the subject. "He didn't mean anything by it, Bruce."

"I know," he replied.

"He doesn't blame you."

"I know."

"So you shouldn't blame yourself either."

"I know."

She gave a wry smile. "So you know, but you're not going to let that stop you?"

"Pretty much."

"Bruce…"

He turned away, and she recognised that the discussion was over. After a few more stairs, she spoke again. "Thank you, by the way. I feel a lot better than when I came down here."

He nodded in silent acknowledgement. She put a hand to her ear. "Wonder Woman to Watchtower."

"Go ahead, Diana," Shayera's voice said back.

"Requesting a teleport back up."

"Locating your communicator now…" Her voice went up at the end in surprise when she found Diana's location. "Well…teleport initiating in twenty seconds. And I want everything when you get back, Princess."

"Thanks, Shayera." She put her arm down and turned around to see Bruce rebooting the computer, already flicking through the police bands on his radio. "Bruce, what-"

"So how exactly did Antiope seduce Myrmidons?" he asked, changing the subject with a flash of the grin. "They were the most highly trained soldiers in the Greek army," he said. "Unbeatable, even for Amazons."

"You have been reading far too much Homer," Diana shot back. "And besides, no one can resist an Amazon intent on seduction forever." With that, and strangely fearless, she kissed his cheek softly, then disappeared in a flash of light.

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A/N: Yay, I did it! Almost a whole chapter entirely with BMWW! Next chapter will be back to the storyline, I promise. Let me know how you liked this one!