Diana awoke refreshed, her hectic schedule didn't always allow her much sleep. She didn't need nearly as much as a normal human did, but just as anyone, her body would tire out eventually. Getting her bearings, she realized she was in a bed, she was in her bed, in her apartment. The last thing she remembered was being with Clark, watching movies. She must have fallen asleep and he brought her here. How else could she have gotten in her own bed?

Diana got out of bed and looked around the apartment, maybe he was still here. Unfortunately she was alone, and immediately realized she missed him. They'd been away for a week, then spent most of the night together, but they hadn't been the focus of each other's attention. The baseball game and the movies were passive activities. While it was nice to share that time together, she wanted to be active. Moving towards the bathroom to take a shower, Diana tried to think. There had to be something they could do, dancing was an option, but she didn't exactly want to do that right now. Stepping into her tiny shower and relishing in the feel of the hot water Diana let her mind drift. Something about the water always calmed her, and almost immediately Diana thought of something fantastic for her and Clark to do.

Clark had been sleeping soundly since he took Diana home. Good, quality restful sleep, but now someone was yelling at him to get up.

"Wake up! Clark! Wake up!" Diana shouted, standing next to his bed. "How could you still be sleeping?"

"Oh it's you." Clark said groggily, finally opening his eyes. "What do you want?"

"I've been screaming at you for 10 minutes. You sleep like a rock!"

"Okay?" Clark still hadn't moved.

"I've got something for us to do. So get up. Come fly with me."

"Okay fine." Clark began to move, but instead of getting out of the bed, he just rolled over onto his stomach, further away from her.

"I said get up!" Diana grabbed his wrist and began pulling him out of the bed. Clark didn't appreciate being pulled around like that, so he yanked his hand back, trying to wrestle out of her grip. But Diana didn't let go, instead she was pulled roughly into the bed with him.

What started as Diana trying to get him out of bed, became a wrestling match. Clark had a clear advantage, he was stronger. She tried to get away, to create some distance, in order to use her superior fighting skill against him, but he didn't allow it. He kept her close, and kept her pinned. Her best bet was to try and fly them off of the bed, which didn't work either. He was able to maneuver her to the ground, hold her on her back, and keep her arms above her head. His body was draped across hers, pinning her to the ground, she couldn't get up, with Clark laying on top of her nose to nose. He had his smug smile on his face, Diana wanted more than ever to punch it off of him.

"You know one day, you're going to have to use force to win a fight. Technique isn't always going to help you." Clark said, bringing back her words from last night.

"That's what you're there for." She responded, bringing back his words.

Clark laughed, then he stole a kiss from her. Which made her really angry, she bucked and struggled, but couldn't get him off.

"So let me get this straight." Clark began. "You come in here, wake me up and try to pull me out of my own bed, and expect me to just go along with it?"

Instead of responding Diana just struggled more, the grin on Clark's face was bringing out her anger. "I may have won this battle, but I lost the war, because I'm awake now. So I'll let you go, and I'll fly with you. But. You must control your temper!"

"Fine." Diana stopped struggling and went slack. Clark finally let go of her wrists and stood up slowly. Diana got to her feet, and walked to the balcony with a sour look on her face.

"Ίσως η μητέρα μου είχε δίκιο για σένα. Kryptonian!" She muttered angrily.

Clark laughed, and followed her into the sky. She was flying west, across the country, moving rather quickly. It was nothing to keep up with her, staying about 50 feet behind, until she slowed and descended towards a small island in the middle of the ocean.

It was a beautiful little place, less than a mile across, had probably not even been touched by humans before. He followed Diana, who was strolling across the beach near the edge of the water, letting the tide wash across her feet. Clark removed his socks and began walking by her side.

"Beautiful place." Clark said.

"Yes. It was one of the first places I saw when I left Themyscira for the first time. I love it here."

"Are you still mad at me?"

Diana turned her head towards him and narrowed her eyes. Then in the blink of an eye spun around and punched him in the chest with both hands, sending him to the ground. "No. Not anymore." She smiled as she watched him get up rubbing his chest. "I forgive you."

"Good."

"Swim with me." She said, and grabbed the hem of her dress and lifted it over her head. Revealing a bright red two piece bathing suit. She tossed the dress aside and jumped high in the air, and then dove into the ocean. Clark took off his shirt and dove in after her.

30 minutes later, the swimming was forgotten. Instead they laid together on the beach hugging and kissing. Completely oblivious to the rest of the world.

Donna touched ground in the middle of an open field with Hippolyta in her arms. Looking around, there was nothing much to see, just an open field with a line of trees about 300 yards in the distance.

"This is the man's world?" Donna asked. "Where are we?"

"I cannot be sure." Hippolyta answered. "Take us past those trees. Perhaps we can find a city. And fly carefully, we do not want to be seen."

"Yes mother." Donna said, as she scooped Hippolyta into her arms and did as she was told.

They had no way of knowing it, but Hippolyta and Donna had landed in small town in Virginia. After passing over the trees they walked the rest of the way into town. Donna couldn't help but smile the entire time.

"It's just like Diana described. Tall buildings, machines that carry them from place to place. This is incredible!"

"Calm yourself Donna. We do not want to draw attention to ourselves. We only need to figure out where we are. Kara says that Clark lives in a city called Metropolis, and was raised in a place city called Smallville. These are the places we must visit."

"Yes mother. How do you think we should go about doing that?"

"We must acquire a map of some sort."

They headed down the street towards a more populated area. There were ground level retail outlets and a few outdoor cafes along the street. They were passed by several people walking in the opposite direction, and several of them were men. Hippolyta had to keep from cringing when one of them looked at her and smiled. Donna smiled back, but didn't say anything, she wouldn't know what to say, and doubted that her mother would either. Luckily for both of them, the man simply kept walking. His smile was just a friendly gesture of hello.

"The men here don't seem so bad." Donna whispered.

"What a man seems like is often quite different from the reality. Remember that Donna."

Hippolyta stopped as they came upon what looked like a women's clothing store, she was about to enter until Donna stopped her.

"Mother. Look."

Donna pointed across the street, where a man wearing army fatigues walked towards an outdoor cafe. When he got there two young girls, who looked to be sisters ages 5 and 10 ran excitedly towards the man and jumped into his arms. Looking closer, Hippolyta saw that the girls looked like the man. He must have been their father. They both hugged him happily, and he hugged back. The other patrons of the cafe began clapping at the scene, before a woman came behind the girls and embraced the man herself, holding him and the girls close.

For Hippolyta, it was a surreal moment, she could hardly believe her eyes. The woman and the young girls looked so happy to see the man, and he was happy to see them. It appeared that all four of them were in tears, tears of joy. How could they be so happy to see him? It was such a foreign thought, she had no idea how to process it. She was left wondering what kind of control did he have over them to garner that reaction.

Clark had been in the shower for the last 30 minutes. He had nothing else to do, Diana went to the foundation to settle some business and didn't know when she'd be able to return. He planned to stay there for another 30 minutes until he heard someone walking around in the apartment. Without bothering to look, he assumed it was Diana, he quickly shut off the water, threw on a towel and went out to meet her.

"Back again so soon?" He said walking into the living room.

"Oh my god Clark! Why are you naked every time I'm here?"

It was Lois.

"What are you even doing here?" Clark looked down at himself, dripping wet and wearing only a towel. "Hold on a minute, let me put on some pants."

"Please."

Clark came back several minutes later, wearing sweatpants and a tee shirt. "How did you get in here?"

"You weren't opening the door, so I picked the lock."

"Naturally breaking and entering was the thing to do."

"I needed to talk to someone. Specifically a guy, and you're the only choice I have."

"Ok? But listen before you go on, don't come into my house uninvited, ever again."

"Okay fine, sorry." Lois said, slightly taken aback at how serious Clark looked. "Anyway Clark, is there something wrong with me?"

"Wrong with you?"

"Yeah, why is it I can't meet a guy worth anything? I mean I'm young, I'm single, I'm attractive. I'm attractive right?"

"What?"

"You're an attractive man, I just want to know if you find me attractive?"

"Of course I do." Clark said matter of factly. At one point in time she was the most beautiful woman he'd ever laid his eyes on. "Wait a minute. You insult me every other conversation we have. Now I'm an attractive man?"

"You always were attractive. Wearing that towel just a minute ago, my heart skipped a beat. I'm sure you get your girlfriend revved up. But we were talking about me! Why is it I can't meet a decent guy?"

"Are you looking for a decent guy?"

"What does that mean? Of course I am!"

"A lot of women say that, but aren't really serious about it. I'm wondering if there is something specific? Is there a reason you're bringing this up."

Lois sighed, this was an embarrassing story. "A couple of weeks ago, I went out with this guy, who halfway through the date got up and walked off. Saying something about 'you don't need a man.' What does that even mean?"

"Lois, that's kind of true, you're the type of woman who is her own man."

Lois looked nonplussed, "My own man?"

"Yeah, you don't need a man to take care of you. Anything you want, you can get on your own. You are the definition of the phrase 'independent woman'. And the problem with that is every guy you meet has to meet standards that are so high that it's not even worth trying."

"My standards aren't that high."

"Really? If I were single, would you date me?"

Lois couldn't respond. She wanted to say yes, but was sure he'd know that she was lying. "Yes? Okay maybe not, but you're... you."

"Be honest with yourself Lois. Your standards are so high, they're not human. Maybe even... Kryptonian?"

"That's not true, and it's not like Superman is going to drop by my place anytime soon anyway. So what does it matter?" She pouted. "So let's say I wanted to lower my standards for a regular guy. Do you have any friends? You know, single friends, like you, but less farmy?"

"Less farmy? Lois I don't even know what that means."

"I'm tired of being alone Clark. I'll be 30 years old in a few months, I don't want to die an old maid."

Clark waited for a minute before responding, this apparently had been lingering with Lois for some time now, and she was having a tough time with it.

"Friendship and trust. The strongest relationships I've had are based on those two things. Even then it doesn't always work out. These things take work, and if somebody isn't worth working for, there's no point." Friendship and trust are the reasons he never pursued a relationship with Lois in the first place. They would have had none of that.

"Is Diana worth working for?" She asked.

"Yes."

Lois smiled wryly, Clark was always good for advice like this. She certainly trusted him, she briefly wondered if it had been a mistake to put him in the 'friend-zone'. Maybe she could deal with the Kansas farm boy, not that it mattered, he was with Diana now.

After Lois left, Clark flew around for a while. He didn't stop to help anyone, he didn't need to, just flying around seemed to be a deterrent to people who want to cause mayhem. He was now laying in bed, looking through the ceiling at the stars. He didn't know how long he stared before he fell asleep.

Clark awoke to a ringing phone, it was 1:54 AM, he couldn't have been asleep for very long. Looking at the caller ID it was Diana.

"Hello." He said warmly.

"Hello Clark?" Said an unfamiliar voice on the other line.

"Who is this?" He sat up in bed concerned.

"Listen, everything is alright, Diana is fine. It's all clear."

"Ok, but who is this?"

"I'm Shannon, Diana's friend. Um... something happened. Do you think you could get to her apartment?"

"Yeah?"

"Ok, good. I'll see you soon." Then she hung up. Leaving Clark thoroughly confused. What happened and why didn't she say what happened? And why wasn't Diana calling? Clark quickly threw on a pair of jeans and a tee shirt, then grabbed his glasses and car keys to head down to Diana's.

It only took a few minutes to drive to Diana's apartment. There was a small crowd outside of the building. He saw two police cars and a man being loaded into an ambulance. There were two officers in front of the building, one was inside a patrol car, and the other was standing just outside the door.

"The dude was out cold when I got up there." Said the officer in the car, as he searched something on his computer.

"And she said she punched him?"

"Did you see the woman? She's about my height, with man size hands. I believe her."

"Excuse me sir, do you live in this building? I'll need to verify your ID before I can let you in." The standing officer said to Clark as he approached the building.

"He's okay officer. I've seen him around a few times, he's that girls boyfriend." Said a woman who was standing near the scene. Clark had seen her before, she and Diana lived on the same floor.

The officer allowed him upstairs to Diana's apartment. When he got there, the landlord was kneeling at the open door working on the lock, while Diana was sitting on the sofa wrapped up in blanket next to another woman, who he assumed to be Shannon.

"Oh hey man, good to see you. I'm glad you're here." Said Marston, the landlord. Who didn't look particularly happy, to be replacing the lock.

"What happened?" Clark asked, noticing Diana had a bag of ice sitting on her right hand. He suspected she didn't need it, and only had it for appearances sake.

"Oh my goodness, Clark, I'm glad you're here." Said the woman next to Diana. She was a bit frantic and broken up.

"Shannon?" He asked.

"Yes."

"Diana what happened?" Clark asked again.

"Some maniac broke in here with a knife, and tried to hurt Diana." Shannon spoke up before Diana had a chance.

Diana looked rather calm about the situation, but Shannon didn't. Clark suddenly realized that for appearances sake he needed to act like the concerned boyfriend. So for the next few minutes Clark laid it on thick, sitting close and hugging her. Reassuring she was safe. Diana quickly guessed what he was doing and played along. Until the patrol officer who had been sitting in the car, returned to the apartment.

"Ma'am, we're going to take the guy to the hospital and get him checked out for a concussion. After that he's gonna be locked up, he's got a couple of priors, and had a warrant out for his arrest. We've got him now, I thank you for having the courage to stand up for yourself. I see that you've got friends here that'll take care of you tonight, so I'm gonna take off. You all take care, and be safe."

"Thank you officer." Diana said, as he left, stepping around Marston as he finished with the doorknob.

"So Diana, here's your new key." Marston said. "Are you two going to stay here tonight?"

"Yes" Shannon answered quickly.

"Sure." Clark answered after getting a subtle nod from Diana.

"Also take these, they may come in handy." Marston reached into his pocket and gave each of them a business card. "Call me if you need anything else."

The three of them each stared at the business card. Shannon was the first to speak.

"Defensive handgun training?" She asked.

"He mentioned it to me when I first moved in. It's not for me." Diana told her. Maybe if she didn't have her powers, she might carry one, but that didn't matter.

"Don't be a victim." Shannon said, reading from the card. "It's scary out there. Clark what do you think?"

"Like Diana said, it's not for me. My parents carry guns, not really for protection though. There are wild hogs that ruin the farmland where they live. Sometimes you've got to get rid of them."

"Do they eat the hogs?" Diana asked.

"Some people do, they're a little gamey for me."

"Hmm." Diana was interested. On Themyscira, wild boar made for a tasty meal, she wondered if the hogs here would be the same. She made a mental note to ask him about it later.

"So uh... What exactly happened here tonight?" Clark asked.

"Shannon and I were speaking on the phone. When I heard something in the other room, I got up to see what it was and a man came into my bedroom with a kitchen knife. He lunged at me, but I dodged him and punched him in the jaw. He went down immediately." Diana explained.

"I called the police, and I rushed over here right away." added Shannon.

"Oh wow." Clark was glad that Diana didn't knock the guy's head clean off his shoulders, there was little doubt what he wanted to do by entering her bedroom. Clark figured Diana would be furious. "I'm glad you're alright."

"Me too. I was so scared." Shannon said, who was now shivering, and hugging herself. "Diana do you have another blanket?" She was unable to stay warm, it was probably her nerves.

"Yes, in the closet outside my bedroom."

Shannon got up to get a blanket for herself. Giving Clark and Diana a few seconds to talk alone.

"Are you okay?"

"Yes I'm fine, he couldn't have done anything to me."

"Your friend is pretty shaken up."

"Yes, she's traumatized. Letting her stay here tonight is more for her sake than my own. Will you stay? I think it would make her feel safer."

"So this is what we've been reduced to. Protecting a woman just by sitting around. Some superheroes we are."

Diana couldn't help but laugh.

Shannon returned, surprised that the couple was now laughing. "Wow Diana, I'm glad to see you're in a better mood now. I'm definitely glad Clark is here."

Clark finally took notice of Shannon's build, she could easily pass as an Amazon. Except for the fact that she was so scared she couldn't keep herself warm, no Amazon would ever admit to that. Clark also took notice of her eyes, they were each a different color.

"Heterochromia iridum" Clark announced.

"What?" Shannon looked surprised.

"Your eyes are different colors. Those aren't contacts are they?"

"No, but most people think they are. How did you know about that?"

"I'm a reporter, I've researched all sorts of interesting things."

"Where do you work?"

"The Daily Planet."

"Clark... Clark Kent!" Shannon gasped excitedly. "You've met Wonder Woman and Superman!"

"Yes I have."

Diana quickly turned away from Shannon towards Clark. She was bringing them both up, while they were sitting in the room, Diana was a bit nervous. However Clark didn't bat an eye.

"Wonder Woman is so awesome, and Superman, oh my goodness! Do you know if he's single?"

"I've never actually talked to Superman, I've just seen him." In the mirror. "Lois Lane handles all the Superman stories. I cover Wonder Woman."

"Diana how do you feel about that? Your boyfriend spending quality time with the hottest girl on the planet?"

"I'm as beautiful as she is, right Clark?" Diana said with a sly smile.

Clark briefly wondered if she was trying to set him up. If she was, he wouldn't take the bait. "Every bit as beautiful, maybe even more. The only woman that matters is the one sitting right here." He took Diana's hand and held it, while staring into her eyes.

Shannon smiled wildly at them. "You two look so cute together. Clark you don't need Wonder Woman anyway, not when you've got Diana. As it is, she's probably dating Superman anyway, and if she isn't she should be. I know I would."

Clark and Diana shared a brief look that went unnoticed by Shannon. They both were amazed at the irony of this conversation. Shannon had it all figured out, but didn't know it. She didn't have the slightest idea, that while she was talking about the two superheroes, they were actually sitting in the same room as her.

After another hour or so of talking, and a trip by Clark to get some late night snacks, Shannon finally fell asleep. She had been on edge for much of the night, and talking helped calm her nerves very much. Clark followed Diana to her bedroom, leaving Shannon on the sofa by herself.

"Your friend is... something special." Clark observed.

"Yes. She sort of reminds me of Donna, I think that's why I took a liking to her so quickly. But there are some things that concern me."

"Like what?"

"Her obsession with her appearance. She eats sparingly in order to keep her figure, and underwent surgery to make her breasts larger. She said she wanted to look like Wonder Woman. That's not the way I wanted to inspire anyone."

"So that's what that was. I thought she sounded funny."

Diana stared at him awkwardly.

"Her implants, they sound different than... natural." Clark retreated when Diana just kept staring. "I can hear everything. There's nothing I can do about it. And no, I didn't look."

"Still I know she isn't the only one who's gone to such extreme measures because of me. I don't like that women do that to themselves, sometimes I think I'm doing more harm than good."

"You could blame the same type of stuff on me. Guys are taking all kinds of steroids and whatever to try to look like me, and ignoring the the toll all that unnatural stuff takes on their body. I learned a long time ago that you can't save everybody from everything. But stay on the path that you're on. You're making a difference."

"You know what I like about you? You're very good at picking me up when I doubt myself."

"I wouldn't be a good boyfriend if I didn't."

"No you wouldn't. Are you ready for bed?"

"Where am I going to sleep?"

"You can sleep here if you like." Diana said, indicating the bed, then spinning around, changing from sweatpants and a tee shirt into a blue silk camisole. "I've got toothbrushes here for you."

"You mean share the bed?" He asked, staring at her curvy rear as she walked nonchalantly into the bathroom.

"Yes."

"Okay." Clark said quietly to himself, while removing his shoes and pants, stripping down to a pair of basketball shorts and his undershirt, then following Diana.

In the bathroom she handed him a fresh toothbrush, the looked at him strangely.

"Were you wearing those shorts under your pants?"

Clark looked down at himself. "Yeah, you never know when a game of hoops is going to break out."

"What?"

"I stopped by my place and got them when I picked up the food."

"Oh."

Returning to Diana's bedroom Clark couldn't help but be nervous. He felt more awkward than he did the first time he and Lana slept together. He just stood at the foot of the bed and looked at it. Luckily, Diana was nervous too, her heart rate jumped up, and she stood next to him.

"Which side do you want?" She asked hesitantly.

"It's your bed. You choose."

"Ok." Diana climbed onto the left side of the bed, and Clark climbed into the right side. It was quiet, too quiet. Somebody had to break the tension.

"You know what's weird, Lois broke into my apartment earlier today."

"She did, why?" Diana was grateful for the conversation.

"She went on and on about not wanting to be alone. It was weird."

"I see." Diana hesitated before going on. "This isn't awkward is it? Us sleeping together?"

"No. At least it shouldn't be."

"Okay. We did spend our morning rolling around in the sand kissing each other. Just sleeping isn't a bad thing. Is it?"

"No."

They just laid there for the rest of the night. Eyes closed, not touching each other, minds in very different places.

Each was acutely aware that the other wasn't asleep. But neither was going to say anything about it.