WonderBat Week 2018: Day 4 - Holiday
Title: First of Many - Part III
Authors: MaidenOfTheWorld & trentran
Universe: DCAU
Rating: G / K+
Word Count: 1,913 words
J'onn was already comfortable in his handmade sweater from Mrs. Kent when he heard a knock at the door. Clark perked up in an evidently boyish way as Lois took one last sip of her festive eggnog and offered to greet their guests. "I'm glad they could make it." Admitted Superman, sounding as though their new guests warmed his heart more so than the fire that crackled in the hearth next to him. For the first time in all the years he had spent the holiday at the Kent's home in Smallville, the celebration was going to be extended beyond the immediate family and the one alien from Mars and it seemed as though the merriment would increase tenfold.
Although, one could consider Bruce Wayne and Diana Prince as family regardless of blood. Clark definitely did, as evident in the way he raced across the living room the moment he spotted his fellow Justice League founders and embraced the unsuspecting Batman with a bear hug only the Superman could give. Diana smiled behind them and wished them all well, "Merry Christmas, everyone."
"Oh my, Wonder Woman!" Mrs. Kent gasped with awe. From her seat in her favourite armchair, the one positioned right beside the gift-bearing tree, she arose onto weary feet while wearing a similar expression to that of her son's.
Stepping around her friends in their one-sided embrace, Diana raced over to drop of the bag of gifts she had carried in before bending down to Mrs. Kent and offering her a hug as well. "Thank you for having us, Mrs. Kent. Please, call me Diana. Clark was telling us all week about the fantastic party you throw at your home for Christmas every year and he made it sound too good to miss."
"That was the goal." admitted Superman to his evil plan.
Bruce, still trapped in his arms, looked to be absolutely displeased with the affection and the manipulation. He forced himself out of the arms of the Man of Steel and decided to also move onto their true host as well. "A very transparent goal, but we are happy to be here. Thank you." And from inside his jacket sprang a red wine bottle that had the mark of Wayne Enterprises on it. There was gold lines along the cap as well as the label, implying that he got their host the best money could buy.
As Bruce presented the gift, Diana made her way over to J'onn and kissed him on the cheek. "Merry Christmas, J'onn."
His cheeks became rosy, but he returned the gesture all the same. "Merry Christmas, Diana. I am so happy you could join us this year."
"No chauffeur tonight, Bruce?" Lois inquired as she reappeared from the kitchen with a tray of Christmas cookies and decorative cups.
Bruce handed off his jacket to Clark as he stared down the reporter, his facade slipping into something more guarded but prepared. "Dick and Tim wanted to spend the evening at one of those parks where they set up a huge lightshow for Christmas."
That explanation won Lois over immediately, as she had nagged Clark into lighting up his mother's entire home earlier that day in order to make it feel completely and irrefutably festive. "Oh, are they going to the one in Metropolis? Lex spent good money on one to help with his nomination for president, meaning it's clearly corrupt, but I hear there are fireworks."
"I don't know. I think he'll stay local with them, for Santa."
"Right, for Santa." Lois winked as she placed the tray down on the coffee table.
As the rest of the guests made pleasant conversation, J'onn couldn't help but to eye the glittering Christmas tree and admire the symbol of the entire holiday season.
He also couldn't help but to take notice of the arrangement of presents that sat beneath it.
Though he wasn't necessarily a material man, J'onn had learned a few years ago that it was customary to present gifts to loved ones during Christmas time. The notion had been rather confusing for him at first, until he understood how much thought and care went into the purchasing of each gift for each person on one's own Christmas list. Martha Kent always knit him a new sweater and he truly appreciated it every single year; his curiosity always seemed to rear its ugly head when he began to wonder what sorts of gifts the other people in attendance had bought just for him.
He was even curiouser when it came to what Bruce and Diana had brought, although it wasn't necessarily due to what they brought for him.
A heartful laugh drew his attention away from his own mind. "Well, J'onn is eyeing the Christmas presents, so you know what time it is." teased Mrs. Kent.
"Please," J'onn said quickly, shyly. "Don't feel as though you have to rush the celebration because of me."
"Naw, don't worry about it, J'onn. I don't think I can wait another moment to open presents either." Clark admitted as he made his way to the tree, ready to act as Santa's little helper to hand out the gifts. Santa, of course, being Mrs. Kent.
Everyone began to gather around the tree. Bruce chose to stand, as Diana took a seat on the couch next to J'onn. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail for the occasion, but it only showcased her face to him more clearly and the uncontrollable excitement in her eyes twinkled like the lights on the Christmas tree. The martian would never read any of his friends' minds without permission, so he was left with the desire to know just what it was she had brought that made her quite obviously restless.
"Okay," said Elf Clark as he glanced over the presents at his feet. "Let's see."
"I'll just do this now, before we start," Bruce interrupted the celebration as he once again reached into his coat. This time, he pulled out five envelopes and handed them out to the guests. All except Diana, that is. "I hope you all buy yourselves something you've always wanted."
No matter the sincerity behind his words, it was clear that he was flustered to have the whole room's attention focused on his thoughtless gift.
"Thanks, Mr. Wayne," Lois tapped the envelope in one hand as she smirked at the billionaire. That is, until a thought struck her and she looked down at her gift with renewed appreciation. "I can probably afford a new ergonomic desk chair now."
"Just wait before you start running through retailers in your head, Lo'," Clark asked politely as he chuckled at his girlfriend's quick thinking. "Let's focus on these gifts here first."
Lois smiled sheepishly and reached for one of the Christmas cookies she brought in to keep her quiet.
Mrs. Kent fixed her glasses as she read over the label of gift her son held up for her. "This one is for… Bruce, from Diana."
"Oh?" Bruce sounded shocked, but his face showed that he was more so startled by the fact that she had brought a gift for him. J'onn eyed Diana then, as she smiled knowingly at the Batman, who scowled back at her. Still, he took the catalog envelope that was given to him and untied the red string in order to open it. He pulled out something that looked to be thicker than paper - almost like a plaque of some kind - and red the words inscribed upon it at a speed similar to The Flash.
Then, he scowled. But it was so blatantly trying to cover up the emotions on his face due to how poor of a job it was doing.
With the silence seemingly stretching on forever, Mrs. Kent chimed in and politely questioned, "May we know what it says?"
"I work a government job when I am not with the Justice League," Diana explained to their hostess before acknowledging the rest of the room. "Agent Faraday and I have been trying to create ways to keep children out of risk from being in the streets when villains attack cities like Metropolis and Gotham. So we proposed the idea of making recreation centers in some of the more underprivileged parts of these places and were told yesterday that the first location will begin breaking ground in Gotham City in the new year.
"But I formally requested that one of the wings of the Gotham location be named after Bruce's mother, Martha Wayne, since she was passionate about protecting the children too." Near the end of her explanation, Diana grew emotional, yet she smiled throughout her entire speech.
"Wow." Lois gawked.
"Di'..." Clark whispered, clearly touched.
Marth and J'onn remained silent, with the martian in particular focused on Bruce Wayne himself. It was as if he was suddenly incapable of lifting his head, unwilling to show the room how her gift truly made him feel. He did, however, clear his throat and utter a few genuine words of gratitude. "This is...more than I expected. Thank you, Diana."
Needing nothing more from him, forever understanding of who Bruce was and how he functioned, Diana leaned back in her seat on the couch and cooed, "You're very welcome."
The shadowed look in Bruce's eyes as he suddenly lifted his head then was knowing, intentful. He focused on Diana and tried to imprint his feelings onto her through his stare, in the hopes of keeping his words silent and avoid letting the room hear any potential break in his voice as he communicated what her gift meant to him. For her to have known a detail about his mother that was only shared in the greatest confidence and to apply it to her gift was surely going to leave an intimate impression upon them…
Smiling, J'onn tapped into the mental channels he kept with the friends who were not with them - Barry, Shayera, Arthur, John, then he added in Clark to the mix in order to make sure that everyone was included. 'Well,' he mused, 'I think it's safe to say that Shayera has won the wager. If Bruce and Diana aren't together by now, they are doing a poor job at convincing me otherwise.'
'No way! They're together right now, right now!?' Barry shrieked.
'I'll be accepting everyone's money when John and I get back to the Watchtower.' Was Shayera's cheeky reply to her victory announcement.
Clark chuckled despite the silence in the room, drawing everyone's focus onto him. "Uh, let's carry on with the gifts now, shall we!?" He proclaimed unnaturally loudly in an attempt to cover up the fact that he was apart of a telepathic conversation.
'I noticed this first - this wager is ridiculous!' Aquaman raged on his end of the channel.
'Oh, hush. Shayera won, fair and square. At least you don't have to listen to her gloat for the rest of your holiday.' The willful, never prideful Green Lantern pointed out.
J'onn merely smiled as he listened to the heated discussion inside his mind, all while watching Bruce cross the room to sit on the armrest next to Diana. They cozied up next to one another naturally, and it only cemented the belief that they were indeed finally accepting their love of one another.
In all honesty, that was the greatest gift J'onn could have received that holiday season - knowing that Wonder Woman and Batman were finally allowing themselves to discover a future together.