Rumors (DCAU)

"I think it would best if we put Green Lantern in charge of team two and J'onn in charge of team three," Batman decided as he studied the papers spread out before him on the table. He absentmindedly reached for his cup of coffee, downing the last of it before glancing up at his lunch companion. "I think you should take team four and I'll take team five."

"Agreed," Diana murmured, a distant look in her blue eyes.

"I think we should limit each training team to no more than three or four Leaguers," he continued, his gaze narrowing as he tightened his grip on his pencil. "I believe that will give each of them plenty of time to—"

Batman looked up at her again, noticing that she wasn't really paying attention to him. The corners of her lips were curved in amusement, her bright blue eyes gleaming with mischief. She was clearly listening in on other people's conversations in the commissary, ignoring him and the work they were supposed to be doing.

"I thought that maybe once we we're done with the annual team training sessions, you and I could join Joker's gang and go on a looting spree," Batman told her, his voice taking on a decidedly lighter tone. "We could be just like a modern-day Bonnie and Clyde."

"Sure," Diana muttered, her smile broadening.

Batman sat back in his chair, folding his arms against the Bat emblem on his chest. "Diana, will you marry me?"

"Sounds good," she replied, laughter escaping at the same moment as something clicked in her brain. She sat up straight in her chair as if she'd just been struck. "Wait…what?"

"Glad to see I've finally gotten your attention, princess," he deadpanned. "Who were you listening to?"

"Supergirl, Zatanna, and Stargirl," she revealed with a chuckle as she played with the straw of her iced mocha.

"What are they talking about?" he asked, his brow knitting beneath his cowl.

"Us," she told him. "They think we're in love with each other."

"Is that rumor circulating again?" he questioned with a huff of annoyance. "It's positively ludicrous."

"I know," she agreed with a laugh. "They must not have anything better to gossip about so they make up rumors that couldn't possibly true."

"Haven't they learned that we're just good friends?"

Diana shook her head in amusement. "I don't know," she uttered with a roll of her blue eyes. "I guess they think they notice something between us that we don't see."

"Just because we're close friends doesn't mean that we're romantically involved," he grumbled. "Men and women can be close without sex involved."

"It's just meaningless gossip, Bruce," she reminded him. "You don't take it seriously…do you?"

"No, I don't take it seriously," he stated a little too quickly as he studied her. "You don't…do you?"

"Of course not," she maintained with a frown. "There's nothing remotely romantic about us."

"Agreed," he said.

"Agreed," she said.

A long bout of silence filled the awkward gap that suddenly settled over them until Diana's eyes widened only to narrow into sheer deviousness. "Want to have a little fun?" she asked, wiggling her eyebrows at the Dark Knight.

The white lenses of Batman's cowl narrowed suspiciously as he scrutinized the Amazon princess sitting across the table from him. "What do you have in mind?"

"What do you say about adding a little ammunition to the rumors?" she suggested. "Let's give them something to talk about even though we both know it's not real."

"It would serve them right," he surmised as he considered her cunning plan. "Flash already has a running bet on the Watchtower about when we'll finally hook up."

"Still?" she questioned him, a look of annoyance passing over her face. "When will they get it through their thick heads that there's nothing going on between us?"

"I don't know, but it would definitely be worth it to see the looks on their faces when they realize that they were so wrong about us," he decided.

"You'd think they'd find people far more interesting to spread rumors about then a non-existent love life between us," she replied as she hooked a raven lock behind her ear.

"Probably because we're Founders," he conjectured. "Everyone watches our every move."

"Can't they spread rumors about John and Flash instead?"

"Because John's with Vixen," Bruce deadpanned. "Vixen would get jealous if she overheard rumors about John and Flash being together."

Diana stared at her lunch companion in stunned disbelief. "Did the anal Batman just make a joke?" she challenged him.

A slight smirk pulled at the corner of his mouth. "I've been known to at times, princess. I just try not to make a habit of it."

Diana stood to her feet as she shook her head in amusement, her expression growing warm and inviting as she leaned in close to Bruce. "Can I get you more coffee, Batman?" she asked with a sultry lilt to her voice.

Batman momentarily froze, taken aback by the sudden change in her demeanor. He swallowed hard as she lightly caressed his exposed jaw line. "Yes…black…please," he stated like a robot.

"Coming right up, handsome," she said with a smile, taking his empty coffee cup.

Batman watched as Diana sauntered away with a sultry sway of her hips as she cast a sexy leer over her shoulder at him. She walked past the table that held the three gossipers, giving them a wink. All three superheroes sat with their mouths hanging open in utter shock, their eyes wide as they tried to process what they had just witnessed.

A low whistle escaped the Batman's lips as he watched her every move. He told himself that it was purely for show, adding to the performance in order to stir up the rumors even more. He was quickly rewarded when all three superheroines immediately huddled close, their heads close together as they whispered excitedly and shared high-fives with each other.

Diana could barely suppress the laughter that threatened to erupt as she passed by them, returning to her table with a full cup of coffee for "her man". Setting it on the table before him, she lingered a moment longer, the tips of her fingers trailing down the length of his arm and over his gauntlet before finally slipping into her seat.

"I think we got the reaction we were going for," Diana murmured, her lips curling wickedly with barely contained pleasure. "This is more fun than I had anticipated."

"Just don't overdo it, princess," Bruce warned her. "We want them to think that we're dating not getting married."

A raven eyebrow quirked as her smile instantly fell away. "And that would be so bad?" she pointedly asked him.

"Yes…I mean, no…I mean I don't know," he responded with a scowl. "You know how I feel about marriage. I think it would be a complete and utter disaster."

"Wow, Bruce, how do you really feel about it?" she snapped as anger blazed in her piercing blue eyes.

Bruce's scowl deepened with his ever-growing frustration. "You know what I mean, princess," he ground out.

"No, please explain how being married to me would be a complete disaster," she growled. "I'd love to hear how you think I would totally ruin your life."

"That's not what I meant, and you know it," he angrily rasped in a low, gravelly voice. He couldn't for the life of him figure out how this little charade had turned into a rapidly heating argument between them.

"Do I really?" she spat out as she leaned closer to him, trying her best to keep their argument from reaching the ears of the superpowered Metas in the commissary. "You seem to be pretty clear about avoiding any romantic entanglement with anyone that isn't a criminal lest you be forced into making a real commitment."

"That's not true," he bit out as he closed the distance between them, each word punctuated with his fuming anger. "You know my mission and Gotham always comes first."

"Oh, Hera, please spare me the mission and Gotham comes first lecture," she shot back, his breath hot against her face, their noses almost touching. "You know you would make time for someone if you truly loved them. I'm sure you made time for Catwoman. Just admit you're too scared to let anyone get close to you, Bruce."

Without a second thought, Batman's lips engaged hers in a bruising kiss in an effort to silence her. After several long moments, Batman finally remembered where they were. He quickly pulled back; his breathing slightly exerted as he averted his eyes.

He crossed his arms against his chest, taking up what he hoped was an intimidating pose as Diana tried to regain a measure of composure once more. She couldn't figure out what had made him kiss her like that until she heard Zatanna's voice.

"Hey, Bats…Wondy," Zatanna greeted them with a knowing grin as she passed by their table with Supergirl and Stargirl.

"Hi, Zee," Diana responded with a forced smile, doing her best to calm her racing heart.

She understood now why he'd kissed her. He was keeping up the pretense that they were together in order to fuel the fire of rumors about them that were blazing through the Watchtower like a wildfire. She stood to her feet, indignation still simmering in her sapphire eyes.

"If you're done, I've got things that I need to do," she evenly stated.

Unfortunately, she didn't get too far before Batman's vice-like grip clamped down on her upper arm just above her elbow. He inclined his head towards her, his lips brushing against her ear. "Have you already forgotten you promised to help me fix a couple of the Javelins before sparring this afternoon?"

Diana ground her teeth, her anger with him still running in waves beneath her skin, but she wasn't about to appear as though his words mattered to her in the least. "No, I haven't forgotten," her clipped response came with a defiantly raised chin. "I was going to get started without you."

He didn't release his hold on her arm as they exited the commissary, appearing very cozy with one another. They didn't pause in their step as they noticed Green Arrow and Black Canary coming towards them, both of their faces adorned with grins.

"What?" Batman snapped as he leveled them with a glare.

"Oh, nothing," Arrow replied with a smirk, tightening his hold on Canary's hand. "Nothing at all."

"See? I told you," Diana heard Black Canary whisper to Green Arrow after they had passed by them causing Diana to snicker in response.

"Sold it again, didn't we?" Batman knowingly responded with a devilish smirk of his own.

"They're planning our wedding," Diana revealed. "Ollie's already calling dibs on being your best man."

Realizing he was still holding onto Diana's arm, Batman quickly released his hold on her, putting a little distance between them. "I wish I could see each and every one of their faces when they find out they were all wrong about us," he groused.

"I have a feeling money is already changing hands on all the bets that have been placed on us," she replied. "Too bad they'll have to give all that money back when they find it out it was a hoax."

"Serves them right for betting money on our so-called love life," Batman growled. "They should spend more time worrying about their own lives then wasting their time on a love that doesn't even exist."

"Well, I do love you, Bruce, but it's just as friends," she corrected.

"Yah…of course," he muttered with an undercurrent of awkward uneasiness.

"I mean could you really imagine us together as a couple?" she questioned him as they headed towards the Javelin bay.

"We'd be at each other's throats all the time."

"It's only because we're both very passionate people," she clarified.

Batman looked at her in disbelief. "Me? Passionate?" he inquired. "I don't think I've ever been described as passionate, princess."

Entering the Javelin bay, Diana thoughtfully considered his incredulity as she came to a stop before a Javelin. "Really? I think you're a very passionate person," she decided. "You're wholly committed in every way imaginable to your city and the people that you care about. You're the bravest, most selfless man that I've ever known. I believe that all of those admirable qualities stem from a very passionate heart that you try so hard to hide from everybody."

She looked up to find him staring at her with an expression that she couldn't quite put a name to despite the fact that his cowl covered the majority of his face. "What?" she asked with a frown. "Don't you believe me?"

"I…I don't think that I've ever been described that way before," he stoically confessed, his posture growing rigid as if visibly steeling himself against some unwanted emotion he was trying to tamp down on.

Diana's frown deepened as she closed the distance between them. "That's because people don't take the time to look beyond the Kevlar and the icy exterior," she surmised. "It's a shame. You're truly an amazing man, Bruce. I consider it a great honor to call you one my closest friends."

Bruce didn't know how to respond to such praise, a humbling sense of awe and amazement vying with an overwhelming desire to flee. He silently nodded his appreciation as he set aside the pile of paperwork that he'd brought along from the commissary to pick up a toolbox sitting on the floor.

Diana smiled to herself, knowing that was the extent of his acknowledgement of her praise. Batman wasn't someone who relished the limelight or basked in the praise and adoration of others. He preferred to be hidden in the shadows, a baffling mystery that could never truly be solved or unraveled.

"If you could hold these new panels in place, I'll weld them onto the Javelin," he instructed her.

"Let me guess," she ventured. "Flash tried his piloting skills again."

"Bingo," he revealed as he set to work, Diana's words playing over and over again in his mind.

He knew that she believed every single word that she had said to him. Diana was the embodiment of truth, pure and without guile. If she didn't truly believe what she had said about him, she wouldn't have said anything at all. It was just the way that she was. It was something that he greatly appreciated about her.

A muttered Greek curse invaded his thoughts, forcing him to look at his partner in crime. "What?"

"We didn't think this through very well," she informed him. "We should have made some secret bets of our own on us getting together. We could've made a killing with our fake relationship."

Bruce couldn't help but chuckle with her deviousness. She always appeared so compassionate and sweet, naïve and innocent in every way. He was quickly learning that the Amazon princess had a sneaky, devious streak that was as long as it was wide, and he was enjoying every single second of it.

"Have you already forgotten that I'm a billionaire, princess?" he asked. "I don't exactly need the money."

"No, but still it would have been hilarious to see the looks on their faces when we won the money," she pointed out.

"Yah, but we'd still have to give it back because it's not real," he reminded her. "We're not in love with each other."

"I know, but still…it would've been fun to mess with everyone," she replied with a sullen air.

"You really are mischievous, aren't you?" he questioned her. "It's a wonder you didn't give your mother gray hair growing up."

Diana frowned as she studied him, her eyebrows knitting in confusion. "My mother has blond hair."

Bruce shook his head as he finished welding the panel. "Never mind, princess."

Her lips curved into a smile as she thought about her childhood. "I was rather…how do you put it? Impish as child?"

A deep chuckle escaped as Bruce shook his head in amazement. "I have a feeling that's putting it mildly where you're concerned," he corrected her. "I have a strong belief that you never outgrew it."

"I'm sure Alfred has plenty of stories from your childhood that would make me look like a saint."

Bruce snorted in response as he thought back on his childhood. It was something that he rarely allowed himself to do. It typically stirred up too much pain and rage to dwell on, but Diana somehow managed to temper those darker emotions in him.

"I may have slid down the banister in the manor a time or too," he found himself confessing.

"Hera, Bruce," Diana uttered with a chuckle and a roll of her eyes. "It's a wonder you weren't court-martialed for such a heinous offense."

"Very funny," he retorted as they moved on to the next Javelin. "That was just the tip of the iceberg. If I told you half the things that I've done, you'd never want to be seen with me ever again. I'd tarnish your bright, shiny image."

"Oh, I highly doubt that," she countered with utter disbelief. "I'm pretty sure I could make the formidable Batman blush with the things that I've done."

"Please, do tell, princess," he flirted.

Diana opened her mouth to respond only to be interrupted by the opening of the Javelin bay doors. Bruce and Diana looked up to find Superman walking towards them with a sheepish expression on his face. Diana swore she caught a faint blush suffusing his cheeks.

"Hi, Kal," she said. "What are you doing up here?"

"Oh, uh, I had to write up some reports and you see I thought I'd just…uh, thought I'd see how the repairs on the Javelins were coming because I know how important they are…to us…on missions," he stammered and stuttered his way through an explanation that was rapidly becoming lamer by the moment.

Bruce and Diana looked at each other, both realizing what was going on. An unspoken agreement instantly passed between them, one that both of them were eager to continue with especially since it was Superman who had come to check up on them.

"Well, Kal, we were hoping for a little alone time while we worked on the repairs," Diana said with an air of disappointment. "I mean we get so little of it."

Clark's eyes immediately widened in shock, his mouth hanging open. "Oh…I'm sorry," he quickly apologized as he rubbed the back of his neck with an unexpected awkwardness. "I…I didn't realize…I didn't mean to intrude if you two…I mean not that you two would be doing anything inappropriate in here. I mean…that's not what I meant."

"What did you mean, Clark?" Bruce pointedly questioned him as he leaned his shoulder against Diana's, both standing with their arms crossed against their chests as they stared down the other one third of the trinity.

A fierce blush rapidly rose from his chest, peeking past the collar of his uniform as it travelled up his neck to his face. "I didn't mean anything…honest," he claimed with a growing wave of nervousness. "I just wanted to see—"

"What were you hoping to see, Kal?" Diana innocently asked him, trying to keep the smirk from rising to her lips.

His eyes widened once more as he adamantly shook his head. "Nothing…I swear!" he maintained. "I wasn't hoping to see anything. In fact, I don't think I even need to be in here. You guys are doing a great job. I gotta go."

Superman was nothing but a blue and red streak as he flew out of the Javelin bay at a Mach speed that would have made the Flash jealous. Bruce and Diana stood there a moment longer before Diana dissolved into a fit of laughter, Bruce's baritone chuckle mingling with hers.

"That was priceless," Diana exclaimed as she wiped a tear from her cheek.

"I don't think I've ever seen the boy scout so mortified in my entire life," he decided as he turned back to his work.

"His face matched his cape," Diana said, trying to stop laughing. "Please tell me you recorded it on the camera in your cowl."

"I'll send you a copy when I get back to the cave," he promised her.

"This has turned out to be the best day," she replied as she held up another panel, her entire aura bubbling with unbridled excitement.

"Any time spent with me is always a good day, princess," he quipped.

"Sweet Aphrodite," she muttered in exasperation. "What am I going to do with you?"

"Well, since we're supposedly dating, I can think of several things just off the top of my head," he flirted.

"You, Mister Wayne, are incorrigible," she readily decided.

Batman began to put away his welding equipment, a slight smirk playing on his lips. "That's what I've been trying to tell you for years and yet you still keep coming back for more. You're a glutton for punishment."

"Maybe I'll need to rethink my decision about categorizing you as my best friend then."

Bruce looked up at her in surprise. "Best friend? I thought that coveted role belonged solely to Superman."

"I can have two best friends, can't I?"

"I don't know, princess," he replied with a crooked smile that oozed arrogance. "Clark will be jealous if he finds out I'm your favorite."

"You know I think I need to take you down a few pegs…teach you a little humility," she told him.

"You can try if you want, but you won't succeed," he taunted her as they exited the Javelin bay, making their way towards the training room.

"We'll just see about that, Batman," she throatily responded as she pressed herself against his side, her lips ghosting over his jaw.

"I knew it! I knew it! I knew it!"

Diana pulled away from Bruce just as Flash inserted himself between them, one arm looped around Batman and the other around Wonder Woman. Wally pulled the pair in close to him, their heads pushed against each other's as he wrapped them up in a bear hug.

"It's about time!" Wally exuberantly exclaimed. "You have made me the happiest man on the planet and yet my heart is broken, Wondy. You choose dark and gloomy over me. What does he have that I don't? No…wait…I don't want to know. Might crush my self-esteem. You know how fragile it is."

"Let me go or I'll put you in a full body cast," Batman growled as he pushed himself out of Wally's embrace.

"Bats! Lighten up, bud!" Wally told him, cautiously giving him a congratulatory pat on the back. "You managed to snag the hottest chick in the galaxy. That alone should be enough to be dancing about and if it's not, I'm sure she'll have you singing a different tune later tonight if you know what I mean. I hope your quarters are sound proof. I don't need a play-by-play of the Wonderbat action."

"Wally…" Batman spat out through clenched teeth, his gauntleted hands balling into fists ready to do some damage.

"You two are so perfect for each other," Wally continued on, completely oblivious. "Everyone knows you two are in love. You can practically feel it in the air anytime you're anywhere near each other. It's electric…like little bolts of lightning and when you two look at each other, it's like you're having eye sex or something. It's actually a little uncomfortable, but I'm happy for you."

Batman growled low in his throat; his teeth clenched with anger as Wally elbowed him in the ribs. The more Wally talked the angrier he got. "Don't you have anything better to do than annoy us?"

"Not that I can think of," Flash said as he tilted his head to the side in thought.

"You could clean up the mess you made in Javelin Two," Batman pointedly stated, leveling the speediest with a deadly glare. "There are chips and cookie crumbs all over, not to mention the super-sized Slurpee cup you left in there."

"Oh…yah," Flash nervously replied. "Well, you see my blood sugar started to plummet after a very dangerous mission and I had to make sure I kept my strength up."

"Go," Batman growled. "Now!"

Wally swallowed hard, visibly trembling as he squeaked out, "bye!"

Diana chuckled as she watched Flash disappear around the corner, leaving them alone once more. "You didn't have to scare him like that," she commented, her hands on her hips.

"Yes, I did," he stated. "He was talking out of his head."

"Does everyone really think that we're in love?" she asked as they entered the training room to spar. "I mean it's crazy, right?"

Batman removed his utility, watching Diana as she began stretching. "Absolutely," he muttered, tossing his belt to the ground.

Diana slipped off her tiara and lasso, setting them aside before turning to face her opponent only to find him staring at her. It caused a heated shiver to race up her spine. "I mean we're just good friends…right?" she asked, her voice taking on a breathy tone as she watched him remove his cape, cowl, and gauntlets.

"Of course," he agreed as she removed her breastplate and silver bracers.

"No powers, no gadgets."

"Two out of three pins."

"Winner takes all."

"Always."

They stood there staring at each other, the events of the last few hours playing through both their minds and stirring up things that both had refused to admit was truly there. Blood began to heat as stomachs fluttered, and hearts started to beat a little harder…a little faster.

They slowly approached each other, circling one another as blue eyes dared blue eyes to make the first move…whatever that move may be. Diana shifted into a crouching stance as if ready to pounce on him like a sleek panther, Batman raising his arms and shifting his weight to the balls of his feet as if to defend himself.

Diana finally lunged at Bruce who caught her full force, twisting and pinning her to the ground with his body. She didn't make any move as she stared up into his handsome face, his piercing azure eyes peeling back all the layers as if to gaze directly into her soul in an effort to find the truth.

Her breathing grew ragged despite the fact that they hadn't even truly sparred yet, the feel of his weight shifting over her thrilling her to her core and taking her by surprise. His lips were suddenly on hers in the next heartbeat, a low moan escaping both throats and mingling with their shared breath.

All fears and doubts, all refusals to believe were thrown out the window as Bruce allowed the full weight of his body to press into her feminine curves. Her arms slipped around him, pulling him unbelievably closer as wanton passion took full control of them.

No more hiding behind pretenses, no more ignoring what was so obviously there between them though both had refused to admit it for far too long as his hands began a thorough exploration of her. No more pretending that friendship was all that there was between them as they lay their feeling bare before one another.

Diana quickly began to remove his uniform top as he kissed along her throat towards the tops of her breasts, each already losing themselves in one another. Both of them wondered what the rumor mill would say now as they began to remove each other's clothes, both readily deciding that they really didn't care at that moment as they began to make love.

A/N: So I'm still working away on Family Reunion. I was hoping to start posting by the end of the month, but it's looking more like May. Real life has been a killer lately, but hang in there. It is coming! :)