I own nothing.
----
Batman ran as fast as he could, which was barely fast enough to escape the series of explosions. "This is your fault," he snarled.
"My fault?" Flash protested through the com-link. "How is it my fault?"
"You were supposed to be watching them, but you decided to go for a sandwich."
"I was only gone for a few seconds."
"It was long enough." An explosion sounded particularly close to his left shoulder, and something hit him in the back. "Can you get me out of here now?"
"Yeah, I see you."
"Do it," he said, and then disappeared in a haze of light, shortly before the building collapsed.
----
"You smell like a bonfire," said Bobby, wrinkling his nose at Gen. "And fish."
"Now, let's not get into who smells like what," she chided, folding her arms.
"I'm serious, though, Gen. You ought to shower before you meet up with them. You want to make a good impression, don't you?"
"They shouldn't trust impressions. Impressions were what led to the war."
"Nonetheless, they do. Not necessarily the Batman, but the rest of them. And from what you tell me, he's out of commission right now. So here's what we're going to do," he said, digging a leather-bound book out of his bag. He pulled out an envelope from between pages fifteen and sixteen. "Here are my life savings. It'll be more than enough for a motel room with a shower and two beds for a night."
"I couldn't take your money, Bobby."
"You're not, remember? You're the big, strong superhero. You're here to protect me, and I'm going to get a motel room with a shower. I can't make you come with me, nor will I try."
She ran her fingers through her hair. "Well, I suppose it wouldn't hurt to take off a layer of grime."
"And we can get something to eat, too. That is... do you eat?"
"Of course I eat," Gen said. "I'm as human as anybody else."
"Well then, if you don't mind me asking, how?"
"There's trust and then there's trust, Bobby."
-----
"What is that supposed to mean?" said Superman.
The most formidable man in Batman's acquaintance - Alfred - stared down the Man of Steel as though he were simply another recalcitrant child. "That I will be taking care of Master Bruce until such time as I declare him fit to return to his duties, social or otherwise. I have yet to meet a doctor in the League's hire who can be trusted-"
John interjected, "Every person we hire goes through a rigorous-"
"Who can be trusted," continued Alfred, "to withstand Master Bruce's whinging until he is completely well - nor have I met such a member of the League. Master Bruce has been pushing himself far too hard for far too long, and I cannot keep my eye on him sufficiently well if you keep bringing him with you as you go gallivanting around the universe. As I said, ladies, gentlemen," Alfred said with a somewhat helpless shrug. "There is trust, and then there is trust."
"But we need him," Diana said.
"You'll make do. I know that he considers that man with no face, the Question, to be nearly his equal as a detective. In any case I will allow him his computer - he won't be completely cut off." Alfred put on his hat and prepared to leave the conference room. "Oh, by the way, Miss Prince, I would ask that you not send flowers as a Get Well gift this time, as I expect to have young Miss Cain staying with us and they irritate her eyes. And Mr. Kent, after I call you to let you know Master Bruce's condition, you may inform Miss Lane that, being bedridden, he cannot escape her should she still wish for an interview."
Wally wanted to ask, does everyone in Gotham hold a degree in cruel and unusual punishment? What he asked instead was, "How do you know... everything?"
"I am butler to the world's greatest detective, Mr. West. It is in my job description."
----
"You seriously said that?"
"I seriously did. I think my exact words were - 'I'm Bobby Black-and-Blue, it's in my job description.' And then I just..." He mimed a right hook. "Punched his lights out." Gen laughed - a series of staccato 'Ha's, the laughter of someone accustomed to staying hidden. Bobby liked it anyway. He couldn't tell if she was happy or not unless she laughed, which reminded him of the time he'd met the Question. He wondered, but didn't ask, if there was a connection. He asked instead, "And what about you, Gen? Any funny stories you want to tell me from your past and our future?"
Gen's laughter stopped abruptly. "No," she said. "There wasn't much of anything to laugh at, then. We were at war."
"Do you want to talk about it?"
"It doesn't matter," she said, turning off her night table lamp. "If all goes well, it won't even exist anymore, anyway." She was silent for a few minutes, and Bobby thought she might have fallen asleep, until she said, "Bobby?"
"I'm here, Gen."
"Why have you been so nice to me?"
He smiled softly and thought of Melanie. "You remind me of a girl I once knew." He turned out the light
----
"Gentlemen, we have put this off for far too long."
"Agreed, but I am yet hesitant. Our agent in Metropolis reported a temporal anomaly."
"Come now. Hardly a week goes by without a temporal or spatial anomaly in Metropolis. I am more concerned that our reports are inaccurate about the Batman. We are surely aware of his location?"
"Surely. The witch has confirmed it."
"She still hopes that we will reveal the location of Luthor to her?"
"She is weak."
"We are not. Shall we stand by while this... legion, this army of fantastic creatures masquerading as men shifts the balance of power without our consent?"
"We are agreed, then. These meta-humans and those who ally themselves with them must die."
"So we will it, so it shall be."