"I still can't believe you're here. For real."
The room was filled with the glowing light of the early afternoon, and Steve, baffled beyond belief himself, couldn't help but notice how the bright light made the contrast between the stark white sheets and her bronze skin even more prominent. "Don't tell me, a few hours ago I was ready to die and now… what year is it again?"
"2017. November. We're just outside Gotham City."
"And those guys downstairs were your friends?"
Diana raised her head from his chest and held herself up on her elbow. "Well, yes. Friends and colleagues. The guy that brought you back is Barry Allen, also known as The Flash. The big man with long hair and beard is Arthur Curry, King of Atlantis and also called Aquaman. The man that gave you coffee and brought us here is Alfred Pennyworth, he's the butler of the last one, with the black and gray costume. He's Bruce Wayne, also known as Batman."
"Wait, Bruce Wayne of the Wayne family?"
She shrugged. "I guess so. Why?"
"Nothing… I think I knew of his… grandfather I guess. And you all do… what? You looked pretty battered."
She chuckled then set her head back on his chest, wrapping her arm tight around his torso. Ever since Barry had reappeared in Bruce's kitchen, in a literal flash of static energy and electric lights, she had barely managed to take her hands off him just to leave him room and time to get his clothes off before they showered. It seemed like she feared he would disappear, if she stopped touching him.
"It's nothing, really. Anyway, yes we sort of work together. You see… When I killed Ares, things didn't get better. The last one hundred years were torn by wars even worse than what you saw. Then things from other worlds came to Earth and… that's what we do. We protect people, and they call us superheroes."
"And I thought I was going to end the war," he murmured.
"Oh but you did! The armistice was signed not a week after…" She stumbled a little bit over the words. "After you died. Well, after the plane exploded now, because it's quite clear to me that you didn't die!"
"I guess not." He smiled and ran his fingers through her hair. "So, they call you Wonder Woman now."
"Yes. It was actually a friend that gave me that name, last year after I… came out of retirement. Things were bad, last year. Not that they weren't these last few days but… last year it was worse. One of us died."
"Sorry to hear. Was he a friend?"
"Not exactly. He was someone I admired from afar, for a while. Then things got really, really bad and to stop a creature from his world from destroying Metropolis and Gotham alike, he sacrificed himself to save us all. I tried to… to help him but…"
"He had to do it on his own. Yes, I know the feeling. All too well."
Diana stretched against his side and groaned. "He didn't stay dead for long. He's a resilient alien. We thought we had buried him for good, and he popped up alive. He's got a lot of explaining to do, but he disappeared before we could ask questions. Bruce thinks he's home with his fiancèe."
He sneaked an arm behind her back and held her tight. "Well, coming from a similar experience, I can't say I blame him." He kissed the crown of her head and lost himself in the sweet scent of her hair. "What now?"
"Now… I don't know? I mean… you're here now and that means, Gods that means… What does that mean? I haven't thought about it."
"That we have more time, and it's more than I could have ever wished for."
He cupped her cheek and kissed her, like the first time in that room above the tavern in Veld, after that crazy, marvelous, terrifying day where she had singlehandedly held the fire of the whole German line and helped them cross No Man's Land by sheer force of will, determination and selflessness. God, it felt so good… she felt so good, naked and warm against his body, real and alive, not one last thought crossing his mind before he pulled the trigger, but the most… wonderful woman on the planet.
And of course, when things were about to get heated once again, someone knocked on the door.
Diana startled back away from him. "Yes?"
"Miss Prince, Captain Trevor," called Alfred. "Master Bruce has come down, wants to know if he can do something to help you insert Captain Trevor in this time."
Diana shook her head, then turned around and hurried out of bed. Swift and graceful, she grabbed the bathroom Alfred had gently provided earlier that morning, secured it around her and opened the door. "You mean documents and such?" she asked, bluntly.
"Exactly, Miss Prince. With what happened in the past few days, it's highly probable that the government will tighten security measures. He can't go anywhere without valid means of identification."
She gave him a curt nod. "Yes, you're right. Let us get dressed, we'll be down in a minute."
"Of course, Miss Prince. Oh, by the way. I was taking a look at the Batmobile to see if it was salvageable and I found this. You have a lot of missed calls from work." He handed her a sleek rectangular object. She seemed to press a button and it suddenly lit up in her hand.
"Thank you again. Give us a moment."
"Good. Join him in the kitchen, I'll be there to prepare lunch in fifteen minutes or so."
When the butler left, she closed the door behind her and looked down at that thing. "What's that?" he asked.
"This?" She showed him the device. "This my dear, is a phone."
"What?" He was astonished. "So small? And wireless?"
"Oh yes, they have been around for more than twenty years. But this one makes so much more than just phone calls!" The phone emitted a bright light and he heard a strange click. "Here, look."
She handed him that thing and it showed him… him! Right then, in the bed, head propped on the pillow and messy hair. "Wait, is this…"
"A photograph. Yes, even photos have evolved. You don't have to wait minutes to take them and you can see immediately."
He gave that thing back as she sat on the bed. "I have some catching up to do."
The smile that bloomed on her face made his heart burst with happiness. "Wait until you see a computer! No, better, wait until you see the magical world of the internet!"
"Alright, that sounds like a bad word."
She threw him a pair of jeans from the neat pile of clothes set on a chair beside the bed. "Get dressed, I'll teach you." She gave him a quick peck on his lips. "Like you taught me."
Earlier that morning, Steve was so stunned by everything that had just happened that he hadn't really noticed where he was, but now as they headed towards the kitchen he took a moment to look around. Wayne Manor, that was how Diana had called the place, looked like a place filled with history, a place that had been built around his own time and hadn't been changed too much through the years. "Wow, this place is huge!"
"You should see the space beneath. Bruce's a little bit of a maniac, when it comes to the vigilante thing, he has a gadget for everything. And those take a lot of room."
"How about you?"
"Oh, I don't need that much space. Lasso, shield, sword and armor. Nothing else."
"No, I mean… where do you live?"
"Paris, most of the time. I have an apartment in Metropolis too, though."
"Paris?" he asked her, baffled. "Wow! You got a job there or something?"
"Yes," she replied, candid as she opened the door. "I'm one of the curators at the Louvre."
She didn't give him the time to react that they entered in the kitchen and found Bruce sitting at the table, a glass of water in his hand and what looked like Diana's phone in the other. "Hey, good afternoon," he exclaimed when he saw them. "Slept well?"
Diana chuckled, because his tone didn't really imply they had slept. "Yes, Bruce. You?"
"Like a rock. Arthur and Barry have gone home, but they say hi. Please, sit down."
Steve felt completely out of place, like the proverbial fish out of water. That room was so different, with all the sleek, shiny furniture so different from anything he was used to consider a kitchen. Even the table and the chairs, they were… strange. Suddenly he had a very good idea of how Diana had felt, when he had brought her to London.
"So…" the man extended his hand. "Nice to meet you, Steve. I'm Bruce Wayne and welcome to the twenty first century."
"Steve Trevor. And thank you."
They sat down and Bruce resumed speaking. "Now, pleasantries done, I suppose Diana told you about our little… group and what we do."
"Not much, but enough to understand that you guys are way out of my league. I understand you are a bunch of people with extraordinary abilities and you do extraordinary things."
Bruce made a puzzled face and looked at Diana. "Never heard anyone accept anything like it this fast."
She shrugged. "He didn't question anything about an island full of immortal women, I guess he's pretty open minded."
"Do I need to remind you that up to eight hours ago I thought I was going to die in an explosion and now I've traveled ahead of time, landing almost a century later than the last time I saw you?" He pointed at Diana. "Aliens looking like humans? Extraordinary people with extraordinary powers? Pfff, please. Did she tell you when she crossed No Man's Land, in Belgium? Hell, I remember it as if it was yesterday." He paused. "Wait, it was yesterday!"
"Sure, if you don't count the ninety nine years in between for her, yes, it was. Anyway, she told us, but I guess she was downplaying it a bit. She tends to be overly modest, about what she's capable of doing. I owe her my life, she saved me on multiple accounts, in the past year."
"Know the feeling, all too well."
"Oh come on boys, you're talking like I'm not even here!"
Alfred burst in the room right in that moment. "Oh Miss Prince, you should hear how Master Bruce talks about you when you're not present! It's like everything you touch turns into gold, like Earth turns because you say so. Diana did this, Diana did that, Diana's the best hand to hand fighter I've ever seen, I wouldn't want to go against her for all the money in the world… if I didn't know better, I'd say he has a crush on you!"
She laughed, that sincere laughter that made his heart swell with love. "Come on Alfred, you can't be serious!"
"I am. Dead serious. Anyway, is pasta alright for everyone?"
A couple of hours later, Bruce had pulled enough strings to have all of Steve's bureaucratic needs settled and a pony express delivered a full set of brand new documents right at the Manor door. Alfred was kind enough to drive them to Diana's apartment and at the last minute, Bruce decided to join them as he wanted to see how the salvage operation after the past few days' disaster were going.
Half of the car ride was spent with Steve stuck in a nearly constant state of stupor as he witnessed so many things that were alien to him. From the massive growth of the city in the past century to the technological advancements that were unthinkable in his time, Steve was like a child in a candy shop, wide eyed and mouth gaping as he took it all in.
Diana had a hard time trying to keep a straight face, because now she understood how it was for him, dealing with her, grown stuck in a world that lived like it was still 1000 BC, suddenly thrown in the Man's World during wartime.
It was now her time to struggle with explanations, especially when it came to how women dressed. His face was as red as a tomato.
Then, the other half of the ride, as they got closer to Metropolis and the destruction that had wrecked a city that still had to recover from Doomsday last year, struck him like a kick in the balls. He suddenly became very somber, quiet, still wide-eyed but not in childlike fashion, more like a soldier witnessing the destruction of a battle he had just missed, like he had arrived too late.
"What happened?"
"A shitton of crap," said Bruce. "Aliens have started falling from the sky, and they're bad. That's what happened."
"I'll explain better, just… don't worry about it now. There's not much we can do about this. Bruce, are you going out tonight?"
He nodded. "Yes, I'm going to keep an eye out for scavengers and anyone desperate enough to attack rescuers and firefighters, in case anything like this happens. Stay home and rest, they did a number on you yesterday."
"You sure?" she asked, just as Steve asked her what had happened to her.
"It's nothing Steve, I'm fine."
"Diana, please, I thought you had broke your back. I had it easy, you stay home. It's an order."
Reluctantly, she nodded. Yes, she was a little sore here and there, but nothing that could keep her from going to work and help with clearing rubble and stuff. Bruce was cutting her some slack because of Steve and while she understood the intent, she didn't exactly agree with it. She took a quick look at him and saw the spark of worry in his eyes, so she grasped his hand and held it tightly in hers. "Really, I'm fine Steve. Just a little sore. Nothing that a good, full night of sleep can't cure."
"That is an excellent idea Miss Prince," added Alfred. "And here we are." He parked the car right in front of her apartment building.
"Thanks Alfred. Bruce, call if you need help. I mean it."
"Don't worry about me, I can handle myself. Steve on the other hand, he's going through some major readjustments. Help him. I'll be fine."
Steve and Diana stepped off the car, but before they could head upstairs to her apartment, Bruce stopped them for one last thing. "Could you check in with Lois? She wrote a quick piece on today's Planet, but I'd like to see if Clark made it back safe and sound."
"Why don't you do it yourself?"
"Eh, since last year, she doesn't exactly like me. She'll be more inclined to listen to you, I'm sure of it. Say hi from me!"
Then Alfred speeded away, and they were left alone on the curb. "Come, I need to change and then we have to get you some clothes."
He nodded. "Seems a little bit of a deja vù."
She elbowed him in the ribs then pushed the call button of the elevator. "Yes, only difference is that men's fashion hasn't changed that radically. Pants, shirts, jackets… it's all there. Our clothes? Now they're comfortable!"
He shrugged. "Neat."
She was fumbling with her phone when they arrived at the correct floor. She didn't even have a key for her apartment, she just swiped some kind of card near a black box close to the door and it unlocked. "Make yourself comfortable, I'm just going to make this call, get changed, then we can go. Bruce's clothes don't really fit you so well."
He looked down at the saggy ends of his jeans. "Yeah, he's taller than me."
With a quick kiss on his cheek, she left him at his own devices as she made her way towards her bedroom. Lois picked up quickly. "Hey Diana, everything alright?"
She punched the loudspeaker button on and placed the phone on the bed. For a brief moment, she thought about the very first phone call she had ever witnessed. "Hi Lois, yes, everything's fine. I just wanted to check on you," she lied. Tried to, at least.
The journalist laughed on the other side of the line. "You sure you didn't want to check on Clark too?"
She sighed. "Yes, that too." She heard him talk in the background. "I guess he's fine."
"Well, finer than the last time I saw him. Don't worry, tell Bruce we're okay."
Diana opened her wardrobe and pulled the closests pieces of clothing she could find which colors wouldn't clash. "Will do. Uhm… Lois, can I steal you for a night, next week? Just, quick drinks. Nothing fancy."
"Yeah, sure. You're staying in Metropolis that long?"
"Let's say I have… reasons to stay. At least a while longer."
Lois paused for a moment. "Oh. Alright. You didn't hook up with Bruce in a moment of desperation, did you?"
Diana was halfway through pulling up a pair of skin tight jeans and she laughed so hard she fell on the bed. "No, please… No," she gasped. "As much as I admire him, he's not my type. Too serious for my tastes. Anyway, call me when you know you're free."
"Sure thing. Hav… Clark what are you doing?" she shrieked. Diana heard some rustling on the line, before Clark's deep voice thundered through the loudspeaker. "Sorry Wonder Woman, this reporter's gotta go!"
The call was closed just as she donned a white shirt over the black bra. She was buttoning it quickly when she noticed Steve watching her from the doorway. It took her a moment to realize she wasn't hallucinating, like all the times it had happened in the previous ninety nine years.
"Even this Amazon has got to go," he said, calm.
She quickly brushed her hair and tied them in a quick but neat ponytail. "Yes. And the time traveling spy will come with her. Just let me get my coat and purse, time to get you a whole wardrobe."
Guess what? This story just got out of my control, as usual. It's not a two-shot. It's more. Still don't know how long, but more than two chapters.