TITLE: Two Minds

AUTHOR: LOTSlover

CHARACTERS: Batman / Wonder Woman

RATING: T

WARNINGS: Author Chooses Not to Use Warnings

DISCLAIMER: I love Justice League, but especially Batman and Wonder Woman. Unfortunately, I do not own the characters and, if I did, things would be much different for them.

SUMMARY: Bruce and Diana debate what to do about the newest dilemma in their lives. BMWW.

Two Minds

I've heard it said that when two minds think alike it's a beautiful thing…except when both minds are insane. Then, it's just terrifying. I've also heard that someone who is double-minded is unstable in all his ways. Also, in a very real sense, we have two minds, one that thinks and one that feels.

These words have never been truer. Unfortunately, we've seen it up close and personal the last couple of months. Actually, Bruce has been the one to witness it. I hate watching what it's doing to him and the family. I feel completely helpless to do anything about it. I hate that feeling more than anything. Helpless…it's not something that Amazons ever are, but I am now and I hate it with every fiber of my being.

"I'm beginning to think he would've been better off if Ra's hadn't gotten involved," Bruce bit out after downing the last of his glass of scotch. It's unusual to see him drinking alcohol.

"Bruce, you don't mean that," I tell him. "Just because things are difficult right now doesn't mean they always will be. We're going to have to be patient with him and try to earn his trust."

Setting his glass down, Bruce sinks onto the couch beside me with a weary sigh that I can tell he feels bone-deep. He rubs his eyes before leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees, clasping his hands before him. I can see the internal struggle playing out across his face. I lean forward as well, resting against his back as I wrap my arms around him as best as I can.

I open my mouth to speak but he beats me to it. "I know…you're right," he finally relents, shaking his head with a mixed bag of emotions he's wrestling with. "It's just the timing of it all couldn't be any worse and it doesn't help he's filled with so much rage. It worries me what he's capable of."

"It'll be alright," I reassure him. "We'll get through this together. You don't have to do this alone."

He moves to sit back, forcing me to sit up as well. He leans in for a kiss as his hand moves to caress my belly. "I'd be so lost without you," he softly murmurs. "You help keep me grounded…keep me sane."

I smile at him as I brush my nose against his. "You do the same for me. That's why we're such a great team."

He smiles in return, not an overly happy smile, but it's sincere as his eyes reflect his love for me. It feels as though he's lassoed the moon just for me alone. "Hera," I softly gasp.

Bruce chuckles in response. "She has a strong kick," he proudly says like only a father truly can. "It'll serve her well if the boys get too close to her."

"Bruce," I murmur as I sit back against the couch, savoring this time alone with him as well as his hand caressing our baby. "You're not going to be one of those controlling fathers that drives their daughter…and me…crazy, are you?"

"What makes you think that?" he asks as he tucks himself in close beside me, his hand trying to soothe our daughter who has recently become quite rambunctious as of late.

I give him an incredulous look as he wraps his free arm around my shoulders and pulls me closer. He kisses my temple in an effort to ease the worry lines that have formed on my face. "I know you, Bruce Wayne," I point out. "You're obsessive, paranoid, and overprotective…and that's one a good day."

"What's wrong with that?"

"Nothing," I tell him. "Just don't let it get out of hand and push our daughter away."

"I would never do that," he insists. "Remember how much self-control I possess?"

"You do have a lot of self-control," I agree with him, my head on his shoulder. "It's why it took me so long to break through your walls. Besides, I won't let you drive our daughter away."

We sit there together just holding each other close and savoring the solitude. It's rare anymore to have the manor to ourselves. The boys have all headed out to meet Dick for patrol, allowing us some alone time. Alfred went to the opera with Leslie, guaranteeing us an evening with no one to occupy us by ourselves.

"Can we just stay here like this forever?" he asks, breaking the silence.

"I'd love to but I'm pretty certain our daughter will have something to say about that in another four months," I remind him. "I have a feeling life is going to be a non-stop rollercoaster once she arrives."

"We still need to get the nursery put together," he suddenly remembers despite the fact I've reminded him for the last two months.

"And there's a little thing called a wedding coming up in less than six months."

"Let's elope," he suggests and I'm not sure just how serious he actually is about it. He can't be serious, can he?

"You suggested that before, remember? My mother threatened to dismember you if we did that," I point out. "She's very excited about the wedding. Besides, the invitations went out today."

"Maybe I can stop the mail," he mumbled more to himself than to me, thinking more like Batman at that moment than Bruce.

"Everyone would be hurt if we got married without them being there," I tell him. "We also need to come up with baby names. Baby girl isn't going to work very well after she's born."

"I've come up with plenty of ideas for names," he replies. "It's not my fault that you don't like any of them."

"Bruce, I'm not naming my daughter after any of your ex-girlfriends," I snap, not caring one bit if I sound jealous because I am at that moment. It's not my fault he's dated just about every woman in the state.

"Okay, that was just a joke," he attempts to defend himself. "I can't believe you took me seriously on that one."

I give him a heated glare that I'm sure he can feel, letting him know in no uncertain terms that I am not amused. "I was thinking about using Dick's last name," I suggest, deciding to move the topic along.

"Grayson?" he questioned me with a skeptical look that quickly disappears the longer he considers it. "Grayson Wayne. You know I kind of like it."

"We could call her Gracie for short."

"The more I think about it the more I like it."

"I hope it doesn't hurt Tim's feelings, though," I mention.

"We'll ask him how he feels about it," he decides.

"Maybe we can let him pick her middle name," she suggests.

"That's an idea…within reason of course," he agrees, returning to their original topic of conversation. "At least we won't have to worry about Jason. He still hates me and wants me dead."

"Bruce, he doesn't hate you," I try to tell him, taking his hand from my belly to lace my fingers with his. "He's just confused and angry. You said yourself that the Lazarus Pit affects the mind in unpredictable ways. It can make a person crazy."

"It's like he has two minds," he relays with a haunting tone. "I've never seen him like this before. He's not in his right mind. He's erratic and out of control. I don't want you anywhere near him until I can figure out how to handle him."

"He's not going to hurt me or the baby," I assure him. "Besides, with my gifts, this baby is better protected than anything inside of Fort Know."

"I just don't want to take any chances with either of your lives," he tells me with a flash of fear in his eyes. "He's not stable."

"Just because he tried to kill the Joker doesn't necessarily mean he's unstable," I try to reason with him. "The Joker took his life in a very brutal way. It's only natural that he'd want to take revenge on him."

Bruce's eyes narrowed in anger. "So, you're condoning the fact he blew the Joker and me up? That he wanted to kill us?" he demands to know.

"No, not at all," I clarify, tightening my hold on his hand to keep him from moving away from me. "I'm just saying that I understand why he wanted to do it, especially if he's not in his right mind. I didn't say his actions were right. He could've handled it in a much better way, but we have to remember that he's struggling to find himself again. He's lost, Bruce. He obviously needs help."

"I'm sorry," he says. "I guess I'm just on edge when it comes to Jason."

"I know it's been difficult for you to have him back in your life these last couple of months," I assure him. "First you find out about a son that you didn't even know existed. Then, we find out I'm pregnant. Now, your other son has come back from the dead. It's enough to put anyone on edge."

"I loved him like my own son," he softly utters the words that pierce my heart with hurt for him. "His death was my greatest failure. Knowing he hates me because I never killed the Joker tears me apart, but I can't kill the Joker to make up for the Joker killing Jason. Two wrongs don't make it right, Diana."

"You did the right thing, Bruce," I attempt to comfort him. "You held fast to your beliefs and stayed true to your conviction about killing. There is no fault to be found in that. Jason will eventually come to understand that. You just need to give him time."

"I hope you're right," he murmurs.

"Come on," I told him, standing to my feet and pulling him up with me. "You can tuck me into bed before you leave for patrol."

"Diana, it's only eight-thirty," he reminds me with a curious look as we head towards the hallway.

"I know," I reply with a sly grin. "That's plenty of time to thoroughly tuck me into bed before you have to leave for the night. Besides, we have the manor to ourselves for once. I want to enjoy every minute of it with my fiancée."

Bruce finally gets the hint and quickens his pace to keep up with me. "Oh, right…tuck you in," he repeats with a wicked grin. "I love how you think, princess."

The doorbell rings at that moment, interrupting our alone time and forcing us to stop in the foyer. Bruce releases my hand, going to the door to answer it. Opening it, we are both surprised to find Jason Todd standing on the front porch with a small gift bag in his hand.

"What do you want?" Bruce growls with a threatening tone, his arms crossing defensively against his chest in his show intimidation.

I move to stand beside him, pulling his arm free and taking his hand in mine to give him an anchor to hold on to. "Jason, it's good to see you," I greet him with a warm smile in hopes of easing the strain between the two men. "Please, come in."

Jason looks from me to Bruce and back again. "I'm sorry to drop by unexpectedly," he tentatively replies, taking a cautious step inside.

"Why are you here?" Bruce demands to know.

I tighten my hold on his hand, doing my best to calm him before this escalates into something that neither of them will be able to apologize for. "It's alright, Jason," I reassure him. "You're always welcome here."

Bruce grunts under his breath, but I don't let that deter me. "I'm Diana," I introduce myself, taking a step forward and extending my hand. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you."

He shakes my extended hand despite the fact that if Bruce could incinerate him with his glare alone, he would be nothing but a pile of ash right now. Bruce is warily watching his every move, ready to throw him out the second he sees the slightest misstep or says the wrong thing to me.

I can hardly blame him. Jason tried to kill him, made his life a living hell by tormenting him with what Joker had done to him. There is no telling how Jason is going to act now, but they need to take the first step at repairing the damage between them. I am more than determined to help bridge that painful chasm no matter how long it takes.

"I guess you already know who I am," he states with an edge to his voice, glancing at Bruce as if angry for airing all their dirty laundry.

The tension surrounding us is so thick that I would need a battle-ax to cut through it and that greatly worries me. I need to diffuse it now before it explodes. "I heard you were a pretty amazing Robin at one time," I reveal. "Dick, Tim, and Damian argue constantly about who the best Robin is. Your name comes up every time in that debate. You're pretty legendary around here."

"Really?" Jason asks, surprise clearly written on his face and with no little amount of pride.

"I'd tell you to ask them, but they're out on patrol already," I inform him.

"I'm surprised you're not," Jason states, looking at Bruce.

"I'm trying to give them a little more freedom," Bruce coolly replies. "It also allows me to spend more time with Diana."

Jason rubs the back of his neck, clearly uncomfortable being here. "Look, I don't want to keep you, but I heard you were having a baby, so I brought something for her."

Jason handed Diana the small gift bag, Bruce instantly tensing with the movement. He wasn't going to let him hurt Diana or their daughter. Diana took the offered bag, removing a small pink teddy bear. "Jason, this is adorable," I praise him. "She's going to love it."

He visibly relaxes somewhat, but the tension is still suffocating. Neither Jason nor Bruce appears willing to make any concessions just yet, but at least they were standing in the same space together without going for each other's jugular. In my mind, that was a major victory and no one was going to make me think otherwise.

"I better go," Jason mumbled, turning to run out the front door.

"Please, come back soon," I call after him. "You're still a part of this family too and my daughter is going to need her big brothers to look out for her. That includes you."

Jason stops dead in his tracks, his back still to us. "Really?" he murmurs, glancing back over his shoulder. "We'll see."

With that, he disappears into the night, leaving us alone once more. Bruce moves to close the door, locking it before turning to glare at me as if that is going to work. He should have known by now that the Batglare was an ineffective tool when it came to me.

"Why did you do that?" he demands to know, anger lacing his voice.

"I know he tried to take your life, Bruce, but he's family," I remind him, setting the present on a nearby library table. "He may not be the same Jason that you once knew, but he's still your son and deserves to be a part of our baby's life."

Bruce averts his eyes, not wanting to look at me. He knows that I'm right, but he doesn't want to admit it. I know that he's still afraid for his family's safety and I can hardly blame him, but an olive branch had to be extended if this rift was ever going to be mended. Jason had started it by coming here with a gift for the baby. We had to be the ones to continue it, to let it grow.

I close the distance between us, my hands coming to rest on either side of his face. I smile lovingly at him, and I feel him begin to relax a little. "You know I'm right even if you can't admit it," I patiently tell him, my lips grazing his. "He needs his family now more than ever. He needs his father."

He releases a breath as he rests the back of his head against the front door. "You're right," he grudgingly admits to me, "but if we're going to do this, we do this following my rules."

"What rules?" I ask, an eyebrow cocking in question.

"I make the rules about the time he spends here," he insists. "He's not to be left alone with anyone, not even Alfred."

I kiss his lips, soothing away the frown lines. "Anything else?" I murmur as I kiss the clenched muscles in his jaw that loosen slightly with my focused ministrations.

"He's not allowed to just wander around the manor until he can prove he's trustworthy again," he decides, losing the brusque tone of his voice as I kiss along his jaw to his ear.

"And?" I question him as I tease his earlobe with my teeth and tongue, reminding him of where we were heading before we were interrupted as my hands slip up under his t-shirt.

"He can't be in the Batcave either," he huskily replies, all traces of anger gone as his previous tension is replaced by a completely different kind…one that I hope to ease here very soon.

"Are there any other rules?" I whisper.

He suddenly bends down, sweeping me up into his arms, and begins to carry me towards the staircase. "You have to finish what you started," he growls, kissing me hard as he carries me towards our bedroom.

A/N: I think my writing muse is coming back! Hope to start posting Marked for Death the first week in February! :)