Summary: (BM/WW Wedding-fic) When Batman finally gathers the courage to ask Wonder Woman to marry him, the Dark Knight gets more than he bargained for when the entire League decided to pitch in and help plan their impending nuptials – contains fluff, random humour, a temperamental Amazon princess, drunken bachelor-party escapades, and various attempts on Superman's life!
A/N: I'm gonna take a minute to be serious here. We're very slowly nearing the end... and my heart is breaking with every word I write as we are. I've been neglectful of this story, and I'm going to try and do something about that, though I should know better now than to make promises I might not keep. I'll be honest, when I first started this, I had no idea it would be as well received as it has been, and it still puts a smile on my face every time I see the stats. So, from the bottom of my heart, thank you, thank you, thank you.
OH! And I finally rewrote the last part of the previous chapter! I've added witnesses and a little more dialogue. I actually really like the rewrite, so please take a look at that.
Disclaimer: Oh but I wish I could say these heroes were mine... but they're not, so I'll have to make do with what I have... and that's still pretty awesome. DC Comics owns the Justice League.
Bridezillas & Kryptonite
~Chapter Seventeen~
Part Three
The Wedding:
Love, Marriage, Superheroes
Those who had stayed and weren't asleep in various corners of the Manor, loitered around in the reception area.
Clark, Lois, Shayera and John were standing near the doors, talking amongst themselves quietly while Wally, Jason, Tim and Barbara sat around the table nearby, staring at one another and twiddling their thumbs.
Wally would occasionally stare at the magnificent cake on the centre table longingly until he happened look up just as the doors opened.
The speedster blinked twice before he sat up and nudged Tim in the side. When the teenager followed his line of sight and saw who it was, he shook Jason's shoulder for him to do the same.
Clark and the others around the reception area noticed and turned to see Bruce and Diana standing at the door - next to them, Dick and Donna had matching grins on their faces while Alfred and Hippolyta stood just behind them, the butler's eyes suspiciously bright.
It was quiet as a few people got on their feet and looked on, expectant and yet unsure.
Bruce had Diana's hand in his and after the two of them shared a knowing kind of smile with one another, he turned to his best man. "Clark? Do you still have the rings with you?"
The Kryptonian blinked but dug into the side pocket of his tuxedo jacket. "Of course. After what almost happened the last time, I haven't let them out of my sight." He said, pulling out the small black box.
"Can we have them, please?" Diana asked. "We didn't get a chance to do this earlier."
"It's just symbolic anyway, Princess." Bruce said, taking the box from Clark and held it out for her.
Diana held up his hand and took out his platinum band. "That may be, but it's still an important gesture." She said slipping the ring over his finger.
"I'm sorry," Oliver said, speaking up from the back. "But what happened earlier?"
Bruce's lips tugged into a pleased smirk but softened into something else when he turned to Diana and slip her darker coloured band over her finger. His princess beamed at him and with an encouraging nod from her, he turned to look at the others who were staring at them slack-jawed.
"I'd like to introduce you all to Mrs Diana Wayne." He said proudly. "My wife."
Several pairs of eyes nearly bulged out of their skulls, and somewhere Bruce thought he heard someone swear.
It took a moment, but when the words sunk in and the shock passed, a slow round of clapping began before it morphed into full-fledged applause. The noise turned soon before long and carried on for a while after that.
"Of course!" Hal laughed over the commotion. "We should have known!"
"What happens now, Bruce?" Dinah asked, her arm around Oliver's waist.
"Yeah, isn't this usually the part where you tell us to get the hell out?" Oliver snarked.
Bruce snorted. "Usually. But since you're all here, we don't want to waste anything."
Diana squeezed his hand before looking at everyone else. "I think what my husband meant to say is we'd love it if you all would stay and celebrate with us."
Wally flashed her a grin. "Hey, if you're gonna insist." He said cheerfully and perked up. "Does this mean we can have cake now?"
Laughter rang out over another round of cheering, and Bruce just smiled.
"Well, what are you waiting for?"
Despite the events of the day and the fact that it was well past midnight at that point, the celebration was in full-swing. Those asleep had been wakened, Tim had taken over the music, food had been reheated, and the seating chart had been long since forgotten as everyone sat where they wanted and mingled freely.
The actual party, however, didn't officially kick off until Clark stood up and clinked his champagne glass with his fork. A hush fell over the tables and the music was turned low as everyone then turned to look at the Man of Steel.
"If I could have everyone's attention?" Clark began, and when Bruce, sitting across from him, gave the Kryptonian a look, he just flashed him a grin before turning back to look at the rest.
"I won't take a lot of time, but I would like to propose a toast." He said, "You know, today might not have turned out like any of us expected, but I think I can speak for us all when I say it couldn't have turned out better. Bruce, Diana - I couldn't think of better friends to have, and I couldn't be happier for you. I wish you the best. You both deserve it."
"Damn right." Dick piped in, much to the amusement of some of the guests.
Clark chuckled and when he raised his glass, the others did the same. "To Bruce and Diana."
"To Bruce and Diana." Everyone chorused back, and drank to them happily.
Clark looked back at the bride and groom, and while Diana beamed at him and mouthed a sincere 'thank you', there was no mistaking the slight upwards curve of Bruce's lips as he nodded at his friend.
When the music started up again, a slow jazzy number with a piano melody, Bruce offered Diana his hand, and when she took it, he lead them out onto the dance floor.
"You know..." Diana murmured, adjusting her grip on his shoulder as they fell into step effortlessly. "I think I can get used to this."
Bruce made a low humming sound in the back of his throat. "Mm? To what?"
"This - dancing, having the others here. It's nice."
"Is that what you want?"
She smiled a little. "It would be a shame to let all this space go to waste."
"We'll figure something out."
"Well, marriage is compromised."
"True, but if we're going to do this again, we have to talk about the attendance." He said and lowered her into a dip.
"Oh?" She said as he brought her back up again.
"Do we have to invite Queen and Jordan next time?"
"Bruce..."
"It's something to consider, anyway." He said smoothly when she looked at him pointedly but clearly amused. "Compromise, Princess."
Diana had to bite down on her lower lip to keep herself from laughing and just smiled wryly.
If they didn't have everyone's attention before, they did when Bruce took them through a series of intricate steps as the music went into full-swing.
Diana caught them out of the corner of her eye. "Everyone's watching..."
He hadn't looked away from her face for a minute. "Really? I haven't noticed."
"You always notice."
"Only the things that matter." He allowed.
"You always have an answer too."
"I am a detective."
"I'm serious."
"I didn't know how today was going to turn out." He admitted quietly.
"Neither did I." She agreed and cupped his face. "But for what it's worth, it's a new day, and I can't think of a better way to start it."
Once the song came to an end and her sister and new husband finished their first dance with a flourish, Donna watched as others started getting up from their seats and joined them on the dance floor.
She hummed along under her breath when the next song started playing, but was interrupted when she heard someone clear their throat. She wasn't too surprised when she turned her head and found Jason standing there with his hand in his pockets and his jacket slung over his shoulder too-casually.
She let out a sigh, expecting another come-on. "What?"
He seemed oddly tense at that very moment and didn't quite meet her eyes. "Wanna get up there?"
"I'm sorry?"
"Do you want to?"
"Want to what?"
"Do you want to go over there and dance?"
"By myself?"
He made an impatient grunting sound looking at her better. "With me."
"That's... surprisingly straightforward if not completely awkward."
He shrugged. "I'm switching up my game-plan."
"Huh..."
"Look... I saw you watching the old man and Diana, and it looked like you were into that sort of thing. Dancing, I mean."
She actually blinked. "You're not wrong about that, but I was expecting a cheesy pick-up line."
Jason smirked a little at this. "Hey, if that's what you want, I'm happy to deliver... in all sorts of ways."
Donna rolled her eyes. "And there he is..."
"Yeah, yeah - now do you want to dance with me or not?"
Donna hadn't expected that, and instead of answering outright, she looked him over carefully. He didn't show any signs of being possessed or probed by unfriendly aliens, but that still didn't mean she believed what she was witnessing.
He was rude, he was blunt to the point of being tactless, and he made her want to punch him more often than not... At the same time, however, Jason saw more than people gave him credit for, he actually cared for his brothers, and even Bruce, despite outward appearances, and it didn't hurt that he wasn't bad to look at either...
He waited, well, not patiently, exactly, but didn't say a thing until she stood up.
"I've got a better idea." She said, taking him around the wrist and lead him in the opposite direction of the dance floor and back into the house.
"You got my attention, but you haven't reeled me in just yet." Jason admitted but went along willingly enough as she lead him down a hallway. "Where are we going?"
Donna looked around until she saw a coat closet at the end.
Checking if the coast was clear, she opened the door and lead them into the dark, small space.
"Close the door."
Jason did what she asked, but just as he turned back and opened his mouth, he was taken by surprise when she suddenly grabbed him by his shirt and yanked him towards her, kissing him for all he was worth.
After several mind-numbing moments, Jason pulled back first.
"Wait- what-?" he started.
"I've decided to do that thing where I weigh your positive traits against your negative traits." She explained matter-of-factly, feeling surprisingly breathless.
"...And?"
Donna tightened her grip on his shirt. "You're damn lucky you're cute."
She could hear the smirk in his voice. "I knew you were into me."
She let out an unladylike snort. "Hardly, but if we do this, you leave me alone. No more come-on's, no more leering, no more anything - deal?"
"That's... I'm actually okay with that."
"So we're in agreement?"
He surprised her when one hand came just over her waist and the other cupped her jaw. "Whatever you want, babe."
"Don't call me 'babe'." She pulled him closer again. "And if that hand goes lower than my waist, I will break it off and feed it to you."
He was still smirking. "It would totally be worth it."
"Stop talking."
And he did.
After he witnessed his younger brother being pulled into a closet by one of his oldest friends, Dick blinked several times before he shook his head and walked on.
He happened to pass one of the balconies overlooking the garden when he noticed Barbara standing there.
She looked pretty in the lowlight, and for a long moment, he just stared until he straightened up and knocked against the glass pane of the door.
Barbara turned around and smiled slightly when she saw him.
"Hey."
"Hey..." He smiled back and went to stand next to her. "Why are you out here all alone? The party's back there."
"I guess I like the quiet - I'm going back in a minute, but... before that, I'm glad you're here."
Dick looked out over the garden, still smiling to hide the sudden unease he felt. "...We're going to have to talk... aren't we?"
"Yeah... " She said, clenching her fist over the rail. "It's not easy to say this, so I'm just going to get it out of the way - I think we should just be friends."
"That, uh... that's pretty straight to the point."
"I love you, Dick, but this... The more I thought about it - and I have, really - the more I think it's better that we keep things the way they are right now."
"Don't I get a say in this?" he asked, looking at her.
"Of course you do - can you honestly tell me that you see this going beyond what it is?"
"Honestly? I see this going all the way."
"But that's the thing, I don't."
It felt like a blow to the stomach, and Dick let out the breath he wasn't even aware he was holding.
"It's been so weird between us lately, Dick, and you're one of my best friends. I can't- I won't lose that."
"You won't. Ever." he said quietly. "...Is this what you want?"
She swallowed heavily and nodded. "Yes."
"Then I'll back off." He said, and when her grip tightened, he squeezed back. "You won't lose me, but I won't do anything that'll make you not want to be here or not be in my life. Whatever you need."
Barbara took his hand and squeezed it before she kissed his cheek.
Dick didn't look at her when she let go, but when heard her leave, he called afterwards. "Hey... Babs? Love you."
He heard her let out an unsteady breath. "Love you too, Dick."
When she stepped out of the closet, as she flattened her hair and straightened her dress, Donna didn't expect to see Barbara step into the hall, looking upset.
When Jason came out after her, he followed her line of sight and raised an eyebrow.
"Come on," she said, already heading towards the redhead.
He cringed his nose but went along with it anyway.
"Barbara..." Donna said, walking up to the other woman.
Barbara cleared her throat and shook her head. "It doesn't matter." She said before looking at Donna. "But... do me a favour? Look after him, please?"
The Amazon stared at her, confused, until she turned her head and saw Dick out on the balcony.
Jason noticed too. "Aw, crap... he's being mopey."
Donna gave him annoyed look. "I'll take care of it."
"You sure?"
She raised an eyebrow. "Do you want to talk to him?"
"Hell no," he snorted. "Besides, I've got Barbie over here."
Barbara glared at him. "Jason, not now-"
"Take it easy, you just look like you need a drink." He said and put his arm around her shoulders. "You might be surprised to know, but I'm a great drinking-buddy. If things weren't weird with you and Bird-Boy right now, he would have told you that much."
She punched him in the ribs but allowed his arm to stay where it was. "You're an ass, Jason Todd."
"Probably." He allowed, not denying anything as lead her back to the reception area. "But like anyone with eyes can tell you, I'm a damn fine one too."
Donna watched them off until she turned and walked up to Dick.
He turned his head when she came to stand next to him, and smiled weakly but didn't say anything immediately.
Donna snaked her arm around his waist and hugged him tightly. "You're okay."
He pressed his cheek against the side of her head. "Yeah?"
Her grip around him tightened. "You're going to be okay."
He sighed but nodded. "Okay..." He said and the two of them stayed, standing like that without speaking for a while.
After that passed, however...
"Hey... Donna?"
"Mmm?"
"I saw you with Jason earlier."
"And?"
"I'm not gonna lie, it's a little weird." He admitted.
"Yeah..."
"What made you decide to do it? Take the plunge, I mean."
She shrugged. "He's cute in a 'I-want-to-punch-him-in-his-stupid-face' kind of way."
Dick's mouth twitched. "He does have that kind of face, doesn't he?"
Donna opened her mouth to say something, but when she heard the music playing from the other side of the garden, she changed her mind and took a step back.
He looked at her curiously until she held out her hand. "Dance with me." When he didn't make a move, she went on. "I like this song - c'mon, dance with me."
He turned and looked at her for a long minute, but just as she was about to pull back and rethink her plan, he smiled, for real this time.
"Good idea." He said and laced his fingers through hers.
They fell into step easily enough, taking it slow as Dick would hum along to the song.
"Oh, well, it takes somebody special to knock me off my feet~" he sang under his breath, twirling her languidly as he did. "And, baby, you've got what it takes~"*
When he brought her back and held her closer, Donna bit down on her lower lip as she then put her arms around his neck and listened to him sing.
"Dick?"
"Mm?"
"This is a little weird too."
"But... good weird, right?"
There was something in the way he held her just then, and the way he smiled, that made Donna's heart beat just a little bit faster. "Yes." She smiled. "Good weird."
Meanwhile...
When the next song started, Bruce stepped back and stood on the sidelines and watched as Diana took a turn to dance with Alfred first and then with Clark. He heard her laugh at something the Kryptonian had said, and smiled a little before looking around the reception area.
He heard someone clear their throat behind him, and was surprised when he turned around and saw Queen Hippolyta standing there.
He gave her a curt nod. "Your Highness."
She gave him a curt nod of her own and went to stand next to him. "Mr. Wayne." She said before she held out her arm for him to take.
Bruce raised an eyebrow and the Queen stared back impassively until he did take it and the two of them went out onto the dance floor.
Hippolyta then turned to face him and he took her hand - he caught the look Diana gave him before he was forced to turn his attention back to his mother-in-law... And that sounded strange, even to his ears.
He was under no delusion as to who was actually leading in this dance, but it didn't mean that he didn't put up a damn good show of it.
Eventually, Hippolyta spoke first. "May I be blunt?"
"I'd be disappointed if you weren't." Bruce replied crisply.
"I'm still not entirely convinced that any of this is not a trick of some kind... And I still don't know what to make of you."
"Even after today?"
"Especially after today. You... are not what I expected."
"You sound disappointed."
"That's the truly strange thing - I'm not." She said, smiling slightly. "But if there is one thing you must know about me, Mr Wayne, is that I will never stop trying to protect my daughter."
"She's not defenceless."
"No, she's not. I've done my part to make sure of this, and now all that is left is to hope and pray that that is enough. But I am a mother, and there will always be that... instinct, and that fear... And I think you can understand that."
"I do." He said quietly.
"Then we are on the same page?"
He nodded once more. "For now... But I think it's time you started calling me Bruce."
Hippolyta looked at him evenly and nodded slowly. "Forgive me if I do not immediately extend the same courtesy to you... But, with that said, I appreciate the gesture... Bruce."
Several moments passed.
"...You're still serious about crushing me under the heel of your boot if I screw this up, aren't you?"
The Queen didn't miss a beat. "Very much so."
Bruce, however, was unfazed. "Yeah... Good luck with that."
She narrowed her eyes, head lifted up confidently. "It would happen faster than you could blink, mortal."
"Spectacular." The song then ended and the two of them stepped away from each other and Bruce kissed her hand.
Hippolyta's face was perfectly straight despite the slight quirk at the corner of her lips.
When he went back to the sidelines, Lois had a barely concealed smirk on her face, and when he went to stand next to her, she made a low humming sound.
"Well, that looked..."
"Terrifying?" he offered.
She grinned. "I was going to say 'fun', but I guess those two things are the same in this case."
"You're not wrong." He admitted. "Do you care to dance, Miss Lane?"
"I'm actually good, thanks." She said, and looked over to Clark. "Besides, I'm saving all my dances for someone else."
Bruce just shook his head and smiled, and it was also at that same moment that Zatanna walked up to them.
"Hey - I'm getting all the non-married ladies together. We need to throw the bouquet." The magician said excitedly.
Lois snorted. "We're not seriously doing that, are we?"
"It's traditional - also, non-optional." Zatanna said matter-of-factly and grabbed her around the wrist.
The reporter squawked in surprise, but her protests fell on deaf ears as she was dragged away, and glared when Bruce laughed at her.
Diana ran her fingers carefully over the bruised lily petals of her bouquet before looking up at the others.
"Are you sure this okay?" she asked.
Helena waved off her concern. "It's fine, Di - it was gonna get ruined one way or another."
"So now, I just... throw it?" the Amazon asked uncertainly.
"You got to turn around, and toss it over your shoulder." Dinah said patiently as she and the other women readied themselves.
Lois huffed and crossed her arms over her chest. "This is stupid..."
Zatanna nudged her in the side with her elbow. "Cheer up, it'll be over in a minute."
"I say this again - stupid."
"Oh shush and try to catch the damn thing."
Clark stood next to Bruce, Shayera and John as they watched the whole thing on the sidelines.
"Five bucks on the Canary." Shayera said confidently.
John nodded. "My money's on Lane."
His wife grinned at him and they shook on it. "You're on."
Bruce rolled his eyes at both of them before looking at Clark. He smirked when he noticed the way the Kryptonian was trying - and failing - to play it cool.
"Nervous, Boy Scout?"
Clark chose to ignore the way his friend was indirectly laughing at him. "Why would I be nervous?"
Bruce didn't get a chance to respond when, suddenly, the atmosphere surrounding the mob of women that flocked around Diana tensed, and he turned his attention back to the scene in front of him.
"Ready?" Diana called over her shoulder.
Out of fear for her life, Lois took a step back while the test of them women lunged forward just as Diana threw her bouquet.
There was a rush of air and a blur of colour - Lois caught sight of an incoming object and reacted on instinct-
-The last thing she expected was to find her arms full of flowers.
She blinked, too surprised to notice when the others turned to look at her and groaned in disappointment.
She did however choose that exact moment to look over at Clark and felt her cheeks heat up when she saw the stunned, star-struck look on his face.
...That, and for some reason, she saw Shayera digging a crisp five dollar bill out of the cleavage of her dress and slapped it into John's open hand.
Weird.
She could practically feel the smugness in Zatanna's stare.
"Not a word..."
Shayera was deciding where or not to kiss the smirk off John's face when Alfred approached her.
"Miss Shayera? If you have a moment?"
The Thanagarian turned to him. "Is something wrong?"
"Nothing exactly, but there is a young man with a camera at the front door that insists you can vouch for his and his crew's presence."
It took a moment, but when she realized what the butler was talking about, Shayera perked up. "Oh! Right... Damn, they're still here?"
"They are indeed. Should I let them in?"
"Why don't you let me handle it, Alfred?" she suggested. "I did make a promise, after all."
The older man smiled slightly and nodded. "Very good, ma'am."
John then looked at his wife curiously. "Do I want to know?"
She kissed his cheek as she passed him by. "This won't take long."
Patrick was tempted to pinch himself as he stood at the door of the largest, nicest house he'd ever seen. He also had the urge to start filming it all, just to get the proof that he'd actually been there.
Next to him, his boss, Linda, looked around, just as awed.
"Rick?" the news reporter asked.
He grinned. "Yeah?"
"Pinch me."
He was definitely getting that promotion.
Behind him, he felt Marko clasp his shoulder in approval. "Good going, kid."
The cameraman laughed until he heard the sound of heels clicking, echoing down the hall to his left, and turned his head to see Hawkgirl.
"Here she comes."
Linda perked up immediately. "Okay, yes, let's do this." She said before turning towards the approaching superhero. "Hawkgirl? Hi. I'm sorry we didn't get to meet before. My name is Linda - I think you talked with Patrick earlier?"
Patrick waved at her cheerfully. "Hey, Hawkgirl."
The Thanagarian smiled back sheepishly. "Um… hey." She began awkwardly. "So, listen, I'm going to be straight with you - I kinda forgot you were even here."
The smile on Patrick's face vanished in a heartbeat. "Oh." Crap. "Oh… uh, does that mean you want us to leave, or…?"
"No, no - I'm just saying I need to tell Bruce and Diana about you." She said, waving him down. "Just give me a minute and I'll get back to you, okay?"
When she turned and left again, Patrick felt less confident about his promotion as the minutes ticked on.
Linda looked at him uncertainly. "Rick…?" she asked after five minutes had passed and still no word.
Luckily, before Patrick could start hyperventilating, Hawkgirl came back… and, much to his relief and astonishment, she wasn't alone either.
He'd only ever heard of Bruce Wayne, or seen his picture on the cover of magazines, but even then, he didn't expect to feel nearly as intimidated by the man as he did at that moment.
But, whatever he thought was nothing compared to seeing Wonder Woman in person, and it took everything Patrick had not to start gaping like a fish.
Linda, however just as enthralled by the company as he was, recovered first, and with the smooth professionalism of the ace reporter she was, she walked up to both of them and shook their hands.
"Mr. Wayne, Wonder Woman, congratulations on the day, and I'm sorry it didn't work out like you expected. My name is Linda Park and I want the story of what happened today."
Despite the way he arched his brow, Wayne looked vaguely impressed, while Wonder Woman smiled at her.
"There's no need to apologize. Today worked out well enough." She said, and Patrick caught the flash and glitter of the ring on her finger, and wow-
Linda's curiosity was obviously piqued, but held back and smiled at the Amazon warmly. "Congratulations. I hope you'll both be very happy."
"We plan to be." Wayne said smoothly. "Now, Miss Park, what can we do for you?"
"Can I be honest?" Linda asked, and when he nodded, she got to the point. "I didn't stand outside for this long just to exchange pleasantries, Mr Wayne. I was promised a story, and with respect, I'm not leaving this city until I get one."
Wonder Woman gave her a small nod of approval. "I admire your tenacity, sister, but what exactly do you want from us?"
"I just want to ask a few questions about what really happened today - just to set the record straight." When she caught the look on Wayne's face, she added, "I won't take long, you have my word. I'll be five- maybe ten minutes."
The newlyweds - and wow, again, that was something to wrap your head around - turned to look at one another. Something unspoken passed between them, and as Wonder Woman tilted her head slightly, Wayne relented with a sigh.
"What would you like to know?"
Wally eyed the cake with an eagle-eyed intensity that would scare normal people, and nearly jumped out of his skin when he felt someone pinch his arm.
"Ow!" he winced, turning towards Kyle. "What you do that for?"
The Green Lantern scoffed. "You were drooling, literally."
"No way? I wasn't-"
"Drooling - look, you've got a little right... there."
He swatted his friend's hand away. "Dude-"
"I don't know why you're so jumped up on this. It's just cake."
Wally gasped in indignation. "It's not 'just' cake! It's a culinary work of art! It's heaven in a bite! It's-"
"Eggs, milk, flour, and sugar." Kyle said deadpan.
"Yes, but expensive eggs, milk, flours and sugar." Wally said adamantly. "Wondy almost went to jail for this cake. We'd be bad guests if we didn't-" he just happened to look up when he happened to see Shayera.
She wasn't alone, however, as walking after them, was a lanky man with a camera, a slightly older man with greying hair, and a pretty dark-haired woman.
Kyle raised an eyebrow. "Wally? You there, buddy?"
The speedster didn't seem to hear him. "-We... we didn't do... something. But never mind that right now - who's the hottie that just walked in?"
Kyle turned and followed his line of sight, and smirked. "Huh... I don't know, man. But isn't he a little old for you?"
Wally's cheeks turned pink. "Not him, the girl - the woman that just walked in after Shay."
"I'm just messing with you, but I wouldn't get my hopes up if I were you."
He frowned. "Why?"
"She's way out of your league."
"Okay, yeah, maybe you have a point, but aren't you supposed to, I don't know, be a bro and root on me or something? Tell me I have a shot?"
"So... lie?"
"Well, yeah!" But, after a moment. "...Hey!"
Kyle sighed. "Fine. You're going to sweep her off her feet with your wit and charm."
The redhead sniffed. "There. That wasn't so hard, was it?"
Kyle rolled his eyes. "Go get her, crazy."
"Thanks, I think I will." He said matter-of-factly, getting up before strolling over towards his friends and newcomers.
It didn't occur to him he had no idea how he was going to start a conversation.
Now, Wally being Wally, the thought didn't occur to him until he was practically standing in front of his friend and the newcomers.
Unfortunately, although he was indeed the fastest man alive, he had the tendency to speak before really thinking first when in the presence of a pretty girl.
A very familiar looking pretty girl.
It took less than a second, but when it struck him how, the words were out of his mouth before he could stop himself.
"Hey! You're that news lady!" he blurted out.
The dark haired woman blinked in surprise when she turned around at the sound of his voice. "What...? I'm sorry?"
Wally caught the amused look Shayera shot him and cleared his throat. "Sorry, I didn't mean to shout at you or anything."
"Wally's got a bit of motor mouth on him." Shayera explained.
"Wally?" the woman repeated.
He grinned sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head. "Yeah - Wally, Wally West. And you're Linda Park, right?"
"I'm surprised you know that. I haven't even been on air that long yet."
"Are you kidding? You're great, I try to watch you every night at seven... And that didn't come out right."
Shayera turned to look at the other woman. "Do you want me to ask the awkward man-child to leave you alone?"
Linda, much to the surprise of both of them, seemed to be suppressing a smile. "That's... okay. I take it you're from Central too, then?"
Wally perked up immediately. "Yeah, I work at the CCPD as a crime scene analyst... well, junior analyst anyway. I'm basically the higher-up's lab-monkey."
A small giggle escaped the news reported. "How awful."
"It's not that bad - they have me looking at bullets and glass slides all day long."
"The life of a police officer, right?"
He flashed her a grin. "Wouldn't be anywhere else." He agreed.
Linda's face softened as she smiled back at him until she seemed to notice something over his shoulder and gasped. "Is that Lois Lane?" she asked, sounding awed.
Wally looked over his shoulder. "Oh... yeah, it is."
"I've been reading her articles for years. I've been a fan of hers since I could remember."
"...Do you want to meet her?" he asked. "I could take you over there, if you want."
Her eyes widened. "Really? You... you don't think she'll mind?"
"It's nearly three in the morning. I don't think anyone here would really mind anything right now." He laughed.
Linda's eyebrows knitted together. "...Do you mind?"
The redhead offered his arm. "Nah, I don't mind."
She hesitated at first, but after a few moments, she took his arm and allowed him to take her to the other reporter's table.
Meanwhile, still standing in the door, Patrick and Marko stared after their boss, bewildered.
"What... just happened?" Patrick asked to no one in particular.
Shayera just shook her head. "Mystery of the ages. C'mon, let's get you both some punch and we'll talk about those autographs."
Diana glared at Bruce when the subject of yet another blessed wedding tradition was brought up after their interview.
"This is ridiculous." The Amazon grumbled as the remaining of their single and non-married male friends gathered in front of them.
"It's a tradition, Princess." Bruce said matter-of-factly, and Diana was torn between being annoyed and kissing the smug look off of her husband's handsome face.
She huffed. "Ridiculous."
Bruce chuckled under his breath before kneeling down in front of her. "It'll be over in a minute."
Diana narrowed her eyes but couldn't find it in herself to put too much heat in her stare when he winked at her before ducking his head under her dress.
Keeping her back straight and her face blank, she ignored the obnoxious wolf-whistling that followed.
The next moment, Diana felt her breath catch when Bruce started taking off her garter... with his mouth.
She heard someone laugh, but couldn't be bothered to care when she felt him tug at the scrap of material with his teeth, his hands leaving a trail of warmth down her leg as he slid it the rest of the way down.
"You're spending an awful lot of time down there, Bruce." Oliver quipped dryly from his table nearby, making Hal laugh.
Diana was tempted to tell the blond man off when she felt Bruce gently lift her foot and pressed a kiss to her upper leg before tucking back out again, garter in hand.
There was clapping and more whistling as Bruce stood up straight.
"I could have just taking it off and given it to you." She said as his arm snaked its way around her waist.
He pulled her closer to him. "Maybe, but it wouldn't have been nearly as fun."
Her mouth twitched. "Tread lightly, Mr Wayne."
"Always, Mrs Wayne." He said and kissed her cheek.
When he turned his head, Bruce's eyes lit up. Following his line of sight, Diana then realized what he intended to do.
"Bruce..."
"It'll be good for him."
Considering the person in question, Diana couldn't fault his logic. "...Do you think you can get to him?"
He smirked. "I don't think I could miss even if I tried."
Hal felt vaguely unease when he caught the smug look Bruce shot their table and turned back to look at Oliver and Dinah.
"Did you see that?" he asked.
"See what?" Dinah asked.
Hal opened his mouth but thought better of it. "Never mind..."
Oliver shrugged as he raised his wine glass. "It was probably nothing anyway, Hal."
Just as he was going to take a sip, however, there was a blur of something white and lacy, and the next thing Oliver knew, he had a garter hanging off of the stem of his glass.
The archer blinked as everything went very quiet at the table.
"...What is that?" he asked dumbly and Dinah burst out laughing.
"It's probably nothing, Ollie." Hal quipped, just barely keeping his face straight.
Oliver picked up the garter with his fingertips before looking between it and Dinah, and back again to the scrap of lace.
Dinah, taking pity on him, leaned over and kissed his cheek. "You can breathe now."
He laughed awkwardly. "Yeah? You sure?"
"Breathe." She said again and stood up, taking his hand. "We need to get one more dance in before they cut the cake."
He lets out a relieved laugh and followed her. "God, I love you."
"Right back at you. Besides, diamonds are overrated, anyway." She said matter-of-factly.
"I'll keep that in mind..."
"I prefer emeralds."
"Right, right..." Then, after a moment. "Wait. What?"
Hal was still sniggering when he noticed Tim walking past the table.
"Hey, kid, hold up for a second." He said as he dug into the inner pocket of his jacket. "John asked me to give you this if I saw you."
Tim hung back before turning towards him. "Mr Jordan?"
The Green Lantern snorted. "'Mr Jordan' was my dad - call me Hal." He said before taking out a napkin and handing it out for him to take. "I think you asked for this the other day, and we didn't really get around to giving it to you."
Despite the obvious confusion, the teenager took it. "Um... thank you?" he said until he took a better look at the black scribble on it and gasped. "Is that...?"
"You wanted our autographs, right?" Hal asked, amused by his reaction. "Sorry we didn't write it on something nicer."
"No! N-no, it's great." He said, star-struck. "Thank you Mr- Hal. Thank you Hal."
He laughed. "No problem." He said before he noticed movement behind Tim and grinned. "I won't keep you up - looks like you've got someone else that wants to talk with you."
Tim, still dazed, blinked at the space cop incomprehensibly until Hal gestured for him to turn around. When he does, he's further taken by surprise when he sees Cassie standing next to the table at the edge of the dance floor, waving him over.
Hal laughed and clasped him on the shoulder. "Good luck, kid."
Tim nodded and went over to the blond girl. "Hey! Cassie, you're still here."
She laughed. "And miss the wedding of the century?" she joked. "I haven't seen you around a lot."
"Yeah, I'm in charge of the music - no one could figure out how the equipment work, so I volunteered."
Her blue eyes lit up hopefully. "Are you just taking a break, or are you done for the night?"
"Actually, I need to-" he began, but when he saw her face fall, he caught himself. "You know what? I think they'll be fine without me for a while."
She smiled. "Good. That's a relief"
It took a minute before he realized he was staring and cleared his throat. "Uh...do you... do you want to dance?"
Cassie tilted her head slightly."With you?"
Tim nodded. "Y-yeah. With me."
She tapped her chin thoughtfully, hiding her smile as he started fidgeted when the silence went on.
"Or, you know, we could just-"
"I'd love to." She said, cutting him off before holding out her hand.
A broad smile stretched out over his face before he could stop himself, but just as he was about to take her hand, they both heard loud, obnoxious whooping at the table behind them.
When Tim turned around, he resisted the urge to crawl under a rock and stay there when he saw his brothers sitting at Hal's table.
"That's our boy!" Dick said, one arm around Jason's shoulders. "That's our boy right there! Oh, they grow up so fast!"
Jason raised his fist in the air. "Show her what you've got, buddy! We're rooting for ya!"
Hal looked at both of the younger men and seemed to be biting his lip to keep himself from laughing.
Cassie just looked confused. "Maybe we should...?"
Tim took her hand. "Oh, god, yes."
The party went on well into the early morning hours. Despite their obvious fatigue, most of the guests staying until the sky started brightening around the edges.
After the final song played, one for one, people started to leave, bidding the bride and groom congratulations one last time before stepping out of the door.
Clark, Lois, Shayera and John were the last to leave.
"We'll talk later, okay?" Shayera said as she hugged Diana tightly.
Diana smiled at her warmly. "I'll call you." She reassured and squeezed the Thanagarian's hand before hugging Lois. "Thank you for coming."
The reported laughed. "That was one hell of a party." She said, grinning. "I'm going to need to sleep for a week, but it was worth it."
"Are you sure you don't need any help cleaning up?" Clark asked as he and Bruce shook hands.
"Alfred wouldn't allow it." Bruce said and turned to John, shaking his hand as well.
"We don't mind." The marine said. "We could have everything the way it was in an hour."
"I know, but we'll get to it eventually."
"That's not going to be fun." Lois quipped as Clark then picked her up bridal style. "Anyway, Bruce, Diana, if we haven't said this a million times already, congratulations. Di, if you're in Metropolis we'll have coffee or tea or whatever you're allowed to have. We'll make a day out of it."
The Amazon laughed. "I'd love that, Lois."
Clark then looked between Bruce and Diana. "I'll see you at the Watchtower?"
"Maybe." Bruce allowed, earning himself a pointed, curious look from Diana.
The Kryptonian's eyes lit up knowingly and with a smile and a parting nod, he took off into the sky.
Shayera winked at Diana and waved before she and John flew off in the other direction, holding hands.
Once their friends were gone, Diana was taken by surprise when Bruce picked her up and carried her over the threshold.
"It's a tradition." Was all he said, and Diana rolled her eyes but couldn't keep herself from smiling anyway as her arms snaked around his neck.
Alfred, standing at the bottom of the stairs looking tired but still poised despite his rumpled state, smiled at both of them as they passed.
"I think you earned the day off, Alfred." Bruce said matter-of-factly.
"Oh, there's no doubt about that, sir." The butler said wryly. "But it's better we not risk it, lest the Manor itself collapses in my absence."
Bruce barked out a laugh as he started on the stairs.
"Good night, Alfred." Diana called over his shoulder.
"No, madam, good morning." He said warmly, watching them go. "Sleep well."
When they reached the master bedroom, Bruce set Diana down on the bed before moving around to close the curtains.
Kicking off his shoes, he laid down on his side, not bothering to get under the covers.
Once she removed her jewellery, Diana grabbed the duvet at the foot of the bed and pulled it up with her as she settled next to him.
His arms came around her shoulders as hers wrapped themselves around his waist.
She kissed his jaw before curling up against him as he buried his face in her hair.
Their breathing slowed, and after several minutes, just as a band of sunlight fell across the bed through the crack in the curtains, Bruce and Diana were asleep, exhausted, but too happy to care.
"Truth will change and time will fly/The party lasts until the wine is gone.
This time next week the radio will change its mind/And play a different song.
We stay in touch 'till we forget/And beauty fades, the kiss will end,
And fame will love and leave you just as fast.
You'll have it all until it's gone/The books get burnt and statues fall -
Sometimes feels like nothing will ever last."
"But you...(you...)
You last a lifetime/You last a lifetime."
"Hey, love, can we dance together?
Since I found you feels like time don't matter.
Hey, love, now I feel much better/You've shown me forever."
- Emili Sandé, 'Lifetime' Lyrics
A/N: Just two more chapters then... we're done.
...And, huh... I just depressed myself a little.
Anyhow, I watched Wonder Woman two days ago and my mind was blown. My friend and I had a bit of an argument about the clichés in the film (and yes, say what you will, there were one or two things that qualifies as cliché), but despite that, I still prefer DC over Marvel. Wondy was so badass!
*Song used: Michael Buble - Baby (You've Got What It Takes) - because, obviously, no wedding is complete without the dulcet, velvety tones of Michael Buble.
Oh, and in case you're wondering about why I chose Ollie as the one to catch the garter, I'll admit that I originally planned to have Wally be the one while he's chatting with Linda... buuut, then I changed my mind because the metal image was funnier. I'm a little sad about that too, because I had this choice line where someone comments that Dick was Wally's plus-one... but oh, well. Another time then.
Reviews:
yob3: And I can't believe I'm still writing on a fic I started after I left high school lol - I'm glad you're still reading, and I'm very glad you're still enjoying it. And, about the typos... I've learned to not freak out about them. One day I'll get to them... eventually... maybe... meh, we'll see ;)
Wonderwomanbatmanfan: Maybe 'piss off' is a strong word, but it sure came as a surprise. I'm glad you enjoyed
Purple Rose of Darkness: I wrote that 'special review' at five in the morning so that may have been mostly sleep-deprivation talking, but I'm glad you approved of my method :) extreme as it may have been - critique is one thing if it's helpful, but what trolls and flamers do is hurtful and unnecessary.
Jackalope89: I rewrote the last part to include witnesses - I hope it's a little better now :)
Animecatrooncomicgirl: They are now, and that's all that matters. Happy-happy happiness all around.
CrazyPhenom: I changed the end song too - I hope it meets your high standards? And although we discussed the rant... still not taking it down, though.
tommyginger: Thank you! I'm not making any promises about when the next chapter will be done but I'm pretty sure I'll be done by the end of the year :)
Reality Rejection Service: Oh well, at least I got a giggle out of seeing the reaction of everyone reading that... even in fear of my own life. Totally worth it.
Zoo Crew: Two words my friend: Next. Chapter. ;)
BruDia: I had a similar reaction too... which should be strange considering I wrote this and all... oh well! Thank you for reading!
LOTSlover: Thank you!
Faithless-Demon: Sorry for the wait! And yes, unfortunately it was another 6 months... I'm training to be a teacher now... and school (both giving it and still going to it) sucks.
gonn: Thank you! And yes, I'm glad I didn't scare too many people off from reading this with that - me no like people with their heads up their butts. Not nice.
Aramus13: Oh, you'll see me again - I'm not close to being finished with this paring or this site ;)
mbembet: Me too! But I really think the DC-Movie Verse will have plenty of WonderBats moments - or, I'm hopeful at least. The actors have such good chemistry, and if you read online and watch the interviews, you do get a hint of something potentially awesome :) Thank you for still sticking with this story!
WonderPickle: I'm sorry for making you wait so long! And trust me, if it wasn't for my readers, I wouldn't have gotten nearly as far as I am right now.
Sandmaster: I know - typos are my Kryptonite X( - I'll read what I wrote online and have the urge to bang my head against the nearest flat surface... Hopefully I'll get back to this story and start editing soon before long... I actually have started with the first few chapters... but, ugh. I'll see what I can do, promise. I may need to recruit a Beta at one point.
Guest: Oh, well, if you're gonna lose your mind, you might as well do it with flare, right? Thank you for calling me fierce anyway... even if you do mean that literally. Thank you for reading.
Revan3363: ;) Wait for it.
...And, on a side note... we're very near reaching 500 reviews... and that would be beautiful. I think I would be morally obligate to write something for the person who does review... mmm... we'll have to see ;)
Until next time,
GoddessofDawn out.