Chapter 13
Diana sat in the sun room of the manor sipping her cup of tea as she reviewed the research on the experimental drug the Joker had stolen from Wayne Pharmaceuticals. She was relieved to be in another part of the house for a change, happy to be free from the confinements of her bedroom even if Bruce had insisted on carrying her down here himself.
She was beginning to think he only did it because he liked carrying her in his arms. He claimed that he was only being careful; she called it humiliating. He said that he refused to allow her to break another bone while living under his roof; she decided that he just wanted to take a real bath with her without a cast getting in the way. She had to admit, though, that she was more than anxious for that as well.
More than anything, though, she was relieved that Bruce had finally given her something to do, a project to get her mind off all that had happened. He had grudgingly agreed to let her do the research for him on the memory drug only after she had threatened to make him return to sleeping in the chair again at night instead of in bed with her.
Diana smirked to herself at the panic-stricken expression that had briefly flickered across his handsome face in that priceless moment. She loved how he'd already grown accustomed to sleeping in the same bed as her even though they hadn't done anything more than kiss and hold each other.
It was also in that all too brief revealing moment that she had caught a glimpse of the fearful little boy that lived inside of him, hidden way down deep beneath layer upon layer of steely resolve, cold deprecation and defense mechanisms meant to protect him from hurt.
Seeing it somehow made her love him all the more, made her want to protect him and to know that he was loved. Despite his inner fortitude and resolve, there was a very real fear that dwelt inside of him whether he admitted it or not, whether he even recognized it. It made her determined to help him get past his fears and help heal all the broken pieces inside of him, take every single one of his demons head on and banish them forever.
For him, she'd do anything.
Everyone who looked at him saw the ferocious Batman or whatever it was Bruce wanted them to see, but very few bothered to take the time to look at the man, the real man who had a heart bigger than even she had first realized as well as a great capacity to love and be loved in return if he'd only allow it.
"Miss Diana," Alfred called as he entered the sun room, interrupting her thoughts.
"Yes, Alfred," she replied with a smile at the kind man who had more patience than she thought one person could possibly possess.
"You have a guest, Miss," he announced. "Shall I show him in?"
"Yes, please," she said, excited about having a visitor.
She greatly missed her friends from the Justice League. J'onn and Shayera had stopped by to see her a couple of times since her arrival here at Wayne Manor and Clark visited a couple of times a week. She was excited to see who it could be this time.
She didn't have a long time to wait as the Flash suddenly zipped into the room at lightning speed, a huge silly grin on his face. "Di!" he excitedly greeted her. "It's so good to see you up and about."
"Wally!" Diana exclaimed, attempting to get up so she could hug him.
"Whoa there, Di," he cautioned her, forcing her to sit back down in her chair. Leaning down, he hugged her tightly, his voice suddenly thick with emotion. "I'm so happy you're going to be alright. When do the casts finally come off?"
"Not soon enough," she huffed, pulling a lock of raven hair behind her ear. "Four more days and counting."
"When do you think you'll be back full time again?" he asked, pulling up a chair to sit across from her.
Diana's smile quickly fell away, unwanted tears rising once more, but she swallowed them back, refusing to allow them to fully form. "I don't know," she softly admitted. "I hope to be able to come back to the Watchtower someday…in some capacity."
Wally immediately regretted his words. "I'm sure you'll get your powers back soon,," he cheerfully told her, trying to hide his own fear it may never happen. "You'll be back better than ever, kicking tail and bashing heads."
Diana couldn't help but smile at Wally's enthusiastic charm and optimism. It had always been very contagious. She knew he got on Bruce's nerves most of the time, his jovial attitude and quips falling flat in the face of the Batman's usual stoic dark mood. Diana, however, enjoyed his humor most of the time. He was like a little brother to her, always teasing her and making her laugh.
"I hope so, Wally," she smiled with a sigh, her blue eyes remaining sad. "I really miss everyone; miss being a part of the battle. It's not like me to be stuck inside not being able to do anything. It's not the way I was raised."
"It'll get better," he promised her. "You know Bats won't give up until he's found a way to get them back for you. Speaking of mister doom and gloom, how are you coping with being stuck here with the brooding flying rodent? Is it as depressing as I think it would be?"
Diana chuckled softly. Wally always had a way to cheer her up. "He's been wonderful, Wally," she admitted, her eyes dancing as she thought about the man who had managed to win an Amazon's heart.
Wally's mouth fell open in utter shock. "Oh no!" he cried, his eyebrows shooting up. "It's true! It really happened!"
"What really happened?" she asked, confused.
"You and Bats!" he exclaimed. "I guess I'm not surprised, though. Rumors about the two of you have been flying around the Watchtower for months. There's even a bet going around among some of the League members about whether the two of you will hook up or not."
"You're kidding?" she gasped, stunned by the revelation. Had her feelings for the Dark Knight been that obvious?
"Dang," he suddenly muttered in dismay. "Well, I'm out fifty bucks."
"You bet against us?"
Wally smirked, shame rising. "Well, not at first, but you know how Bats can be," he tried to explain. "He can be next to impossible to deal with and besides when's the last time you saw him actually let someone into his city let alone into his life?"
Diana sighed. "I guess you're right," she had to admit, her brow furrowing in thought. "But I'm no longer a Meta now so I guess it made it easier for him to accept me into his private sanctuary."
The thought suddenly struck her hard. She hoped that wasn't truly it, that her no longer being a Meta was the only reason he had finally admitted his feelings for her, allowed her to be here in Gotham, in his home. The thought suddenly made her feel ill.
"Hey, Di," Wally frowned, noticing her sudden bewilderment. "Are you all right? Did I say something wrong? If you want, I'll give you the fifty bucks for betting against you and Bats."
Diana shook her head with a laugh. "No, Wally," she replied with a grin. "I'm fine. I'm glad you finally came to see me. I was beginning to think you were avoiding me. Every time I tried to contact you on the Watchtower, J'onn told me that you were out or unavailable."
Wally hung his head, his eyes growing sad. "I know and I'm really sorry," he softly said, looking down at the ground in shame. "It's just I…I couldn't stand seeing you so banged up like that. It hurt too much to think of you being mortal and fighting to stay alive like that. It was easier to just avoid you and pretend that you were all right then to see you like this."
Diana's heart melted with his words, touched by his obvious heartache over what had happened. "Wally, it's alright," she gently told him, placing her hand on his knee. "I understand. Clark still gets a sad expression on his face every time he comes to see me and Bruce…he can finally look at me now without getting a guilty, pained look in his eyes.
"What happened to me was horrible, but it's over and I'm getting better now. And if I never get my powers back, I'll have to learn to live with it. It doesn't mean that you'll never see me anymore. It'll just be…different…that's all."
Wally shook his head in amazement. "Wow, Di," he sighed. "You have such a great attitude about it all. I'd be going crazy if I thought I might never be me again, never be able to run as fast as I can."
Diana rolled her eyes. "Don't be too amazed," she admitted with an exasperated huff. "It only works for a little while I'm afraid. There are times when I'm just doing my best not to cry or take someone's head off."
Out of the corner of his eye, Wally suddenly caught site of a dark shadow lurking around the corner. "So what's it like being in love with doom and gloom?" he asked with a mischievous smirk. "Does he growl when you try to kiss him?"
Diana couldn't stop the laughter that bubbled up inside of her as her hand covered her mouth. "No," she giggled with a shake of her head. "He's actually quite sweet and romantic under all that black and gray Kevlar."
Bruce cringed with Diana's words despite the warmth that permeated his heart with her words. Despite being madly in love with her, he still had an imposing image to maintain especially to his fellow League members. He didn't want their relationship to change things with the League or the way that he was perceived.
Despite his love for Diana, he wasn't about to let it affect the complex world that he'd worked so hard to create or hinder his mission in any way.
Standing in the shadows, Bruce knew he shouldn't be eavesdropping on Diana and Wally, but he had been curious to know what Diana would say to the Flash about their relationship. He hated to admit it, but he had never been happier in his entire life than he was now having her here with him, sharing the same bed even though they hadn't been intimate yet. He could only imagine how incredible it was going to be when they gave themselves to each other.
"So you're saying the gloomy rodent is actually just a big teddy bear running around in a bat suit?" Wally prodded a little more. He could never help himself from poking the proverbial bear or rattling his cage now and then. It was his way of showing he cared and respected him.
A low growl came from around the corner as Bruce finally showed himself, a scowl on his face. "You better watch it, Wally," he warned as he came to stand beside Diana. "Bears have been known to kill."
"Hey, Bats!" Wally greeted him with a grin. "How long have you been standing there listening to us?"
"Long enough," he bit out. "It's about time you came to see Diana. She's been asking where you've been for weeks now."
Wally didn't miss the reprimand in Bruce's voice. He knew he deserved it. "Well, if I had known you were so warm and welcoming, I would've come sooner," he joked.
Bruce snorted as he sat down next to Diana, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye. He never seemed to be able to keep from gazing at her any time she was near him. He'd lost count of the number times he'd caught himself staring at her during League meetings, checking on her during battles to make sure she was alright.
"I'm glad you came, Wally," Diana said. "I've really missed you."
"I'll come back again real soon," he said as he got to his feet. "I promise."
"You don't have to leave already," she frowned, disappointed.
"Actually, I do," he replied. "Supes wants me to check in on Lex Luthor. He caught wind of some suspicious happenings involving our favorite bald headed friend."
"What kind of activity?" Bruce asked, sitting up a little straighter.
"I'm not sure, but it has something to do with some new equipment Luthor acquired involving brain activity."
Diana and Bruce both looked at each other at the same moment. "So he is involved," Diana said.
"Involved in what?" Wally asked as he looked at his friends in bewilderment.
"I need to go contact Clark," Bruce said, leaping to his feet and racing from the room.
"Would someone please tell me what's going on?"
"The Joker may be working on something with Lex Luthor," she informed him, her mind already racing with the ramifications. "The Joker stole a couple of cases of an experimental drug that helps boost memory. Then a couple of days ago, Joker's men tried to steal some new brain wave monitoring equipment being delivered to Arkam."
"That is too big of a coincidence," Wally replied, running his fingers through his short red hair as the consequences of such an association between super villains crashed down upon him like a ton of bricks. "This is so not good."
"I know," Diana agreed. "Bruce has been working on this almost day and night for the last several weeks. Unfortunately, his leads have been turning out to be nothing but dead ends."
"Well, I'll let you two know what I find out," he told her.
"Sounds good," Diana agreed. "And please be careful, Wally. We don't need another League member incapacitated."
Wally grinned from ear to ear. "Always am," he beamed. "See you later, Di."
"Bye, Wally," Diana murmured, her stomach tightening with an overwhelming sense of dread with the thought of Luthor being involved.
XXX
"Hi, Batman," Clark greeted. "What can I do for you? Is Diana ok?"
"She's fine," he flatly stated. "I need to talk to you about Lex."
"Why? What have you heard?" Superman asked, his gaze narrowing at the mention of Luthor's name. He always managed to stir his ire.
"I just about to ask you the same thing," Batman rasped.
"Why are you suddenly so interested in Luthor?" Superman pressed.
"I think he may be working with the Joker," he told him, hating to divulge too much, but needing to find out what Clark knew.
"The Joker?" he exclaimed with a grim expression. "What makes you think that he and Luthor are working together?"
"They are both trying to gain brain monitoring technology," Batman informed him. "The Joker also stole an experimental drug used to enhance memory."
"That's too big of a coincidence," Clark agreed with a frown. "Any idea what they could want with it?"
"Not yet, but whatever it is, they're taking their time doing it," he explained. "They've been working on this for several weeks at least. They are definitely determined to make sure their plan doesn't fail this time whatever it is."
"I don't like the sound of that," Clark scowled. "When Luthor takes his time accumulating things, you know it's going to be big and dangerous."
"My thoughts exactly," Batman nodded. "What have you learned about Luthor so far?"
"I caught wind about Luthor acquiring some new technology from Europe that stimulates brain function," Clark informed him. "It sounded suspicious enough that I'm having Flash do a little digging around for me to see what he can find out."
"I don't like this," Batman groused angrily. "Something big is going down and we better figure out what it is before it's too late."
"Agreed," Superman replied. "I'll let you know what we find out about Luthor."
"I'll keep tabs on the Joker," he said. "Any more action from the Akusu?"
"Not a peep," he reassured him. "I guess they took your threat seriously."
"I hope so," Bruce snorted. "I'd hated to have to admit it was an empty threat."
Superman grinned with the admission. "Yah, I would hate to have to eat our words later."
"At least it worked," he shrugged.
"For now," Superman agreed.
Bruce's gaze immediately narrowed. "Do you think they still might be after Diana?" he asked, his anger flaring suddenly flaring hotly with the thought.
"I don't know for sure," Superman admitted. "I'd like to think that they've given up especially with how quiet they've been since their last attack on the Watchtower, but I'm not ruling out the possibility they may still strike again. They might just be biding their time, waiting for her to return to the Watchtower."
"Let me know if they make the slightest move," he stated, swallowing back his suddenly rising fear. He was not about to let anyone take Diana away from him…ever.
"You'll be the first to know," he replied. "Tell Diana I'll be by to see her tomorrow."
"I'll tell her," he said. "Batman out."
Sitting down in his chair, Bruce removed his cowl, throwing it down on the desk before running his fingers back through his short black hair. This was turning out to be a nightmare coming to life right before his very eyes.
His chest was tight with cold fear of what Lex and the Joker could be doing paired up together like this. And while thankful the Akusu had been silent these last few weeks, he had to agree with Clark that another attack was still a very real possibility despite his threat.
He hated the thought of Diana being targeted like this or what the Akusu could possibly do to her if they got their hands on her now that she no longer had her super powers. He needed to start her training the minute those casts were off and Dr. Leslie cleared her. Hopefully, her internal injuries were healed enough that she could begin to build her strength and endurance.
He had to make sure that she could defend herself no matter what. The thought of her being a target because of him made him ill to the very core of his being, but he knew that it was far too late. He was in way too deep, loved her too much now to try to ever live without her.