Riccardo: You will just have to keep reading to see.
Guest: Glad you like it!
Making the Best of It
Chapter 41
Wayne Manor
Twelve-year-old Elissa sat on the floor of the sunroom. Legs crossed pretzel style, a drawing pad in her lap, her pencil deftly sketching her subject diligently.
Ace was sleeping soundly before her in his little dog bed, curled up into a ball, snoring slightly that made Elissa chuckle as she worked.
She intended on submitting her drawing of Ace to the art show at her school at the end of the month. She had been very excited about it. Eager to demonstrate her skills that she had spent years honing.
Her pencil swiftly traced out the curve of the canine's body, getting as much detail as possible.
However, her concentration was disturbed by the sudden arrival of Dick.
"Hey, little lady," the dark-haired man greeted, before flopping on the couch.
His sudden presence roused Ace from his peaceful slumber, causing him to raise his head to see the cause of the disturbance.
"Dick, no!" Elissa complained at the sight of Ace moving about. She pouted at her older brother, then gazed at the great dane. "Ace, sit." she commanded.
The dog complied, however, no longer in the same position previously much to the girl's annoyance.
"Diiick!" She whined; her bright blue eyes filled with agitation.
The sheepish man gave a tiny smile. "Sorry," he apologized. Regretting disturbing her work.
The displeased expression on her face made it worse for the acrobat. Until she let out a sigh and relaxed her facial features.
"I'll just sketch from memory," she yielded.
Resuming her work rapidly, eyes darting occasionally back to the slumbering dog.
Dick on the other hand, simply watched her work, his hands behind his head. He marveled at how fast she was growing up. Hard to believe she was just a little thing not that long ago. It must have been worse for Bruce and Diana as they had been with her every day since she was born. No doubt wondering where all the time was going.
He remained silent as the only sound heard was the sound of Elissa's pencil scrapping against the paper.
When she was finished, she started to get up, blood finally flowing back into her slumbering legs. Dick asked her, "You wanna get some ice cream?"
"Sure," she beamed. She carefully held her artwork, "Let me just put this away," she reasoned and took off as fast as she could.
When she came back, she had her shoes on and wore an eager smile.
The two walked the park enjoying their frozen treat together. Elissa while enjoying her ice cream was curious by Dick's sudden arrival at the manor. As far as she knew, he was busy in Bludhaven.
"Why are you here?" Her curiosity had gotten the best of her.
Her question threw the man for a loop, chuckling in response. "What? You don't like me anymore?" He joked.
"Of course, I do," she quickly replied. "It's just sudden that's all."
The two took a seat on an empty bench. Elissa nursed her ice cream, her eyes glancing at her brother.
"Well, I just wanted to see you." he confessed. A faraway look in his eyes. He turned to her, "I haven't seen you in a while and I felt bad about it," he shrugged his shoulders. His ice cream was beginning to melt.
Elissa listened intently and started to realize that she had in fact seen very little of him in the last few months. She didn't hold a grudge; she knew he had his own life and that he was usually very busy. Besides, she saw him on holidays and birthdays.
Worried by his sudden explanation, she inquired. "Are you okay, Dick?"
He could see the worry in her eyes and instantly felt regret for giving her such an inkling.
"Yeah," he smiled reassuringly. "Just felt like I was being a lousy brother," he confessed.
Instantly, Elissa hugged him. Warmth flooding the man, surprising him.
"You're an awesome brother, Dick," she assured him. She loved him as much as she loved her other brothers. Sure, she didn't see them very often, but she would always love them.
"Thanks, Elissa." He smiled at her.
"Any time," she chirped.
Gotham Academy
It was the night of the art show, and to say Elissa was nervous was an understatement. Her heart wouldn't stop pounding in her chest, nor would her hands stop sweating.
It was a little embarrassing.
The judges were reviewing each applicant's work. And the winner would receive lessons from a professional artist for a week.
Elissa hoped she would win. She could use the lessons to improve her skills.
Some artworks were on podiums, walls, or tables depending on what was submitted.
Elissa had her long black hair loose and wore a simple black dress and matching shoes. A few bracelets, earrings and a gold necklace decorated her ensemble.
Her family was there. Her father, Alfred, Dick, Damian, Tim, Jason, Cassandra, Donna, Barbara. Everyone was there, except her mother.
She had been called in by the Justice League to fight some alien warlord off planet. She regretfully broke Elissa's heart by being forced to go.
Elissa understood and wasn't angry that her mother wasn't there, just disappointed.
Of course, to cheer herself up, Elissa had invited Cleo. It was fortunate that they both went to the same school.
Cleo was always so outgoing. The girl was fearless and always reassuring Elissa. And had the uncanny knack of dragging Elissa out of her shell.
While her family was surveying the other art pieces, Elissa and Cleo were stationary before her work.
Instead of the drawing of Ace, Elissa had gone with one of Wayne Manor instead. She was a bit distraught because she had accidentally spilled paint on the Ace drawing. Luckily, she had already started the one of her home and just had to work hard on finishing it for submission.
She remembered sitting on the front lawn, the sun's hot rays beaming down on her as her hands deftly went to work on the sketching pad in her lap. Under her grandfather's watchful gaze, she worked. Alfred had set up a lounge chair, a pot of tea and a novel, keeping him occupied while Elissa worked.
He was so proud of her when she finished the initial drawing. She certainly had talent in the arts for someone her age. Now, if only Damian would continue honing his talent as well. But alas, he had other pursuits.
"I hope I win," Elissa uttered nervously. Her eyes scanning where the judges were currently at.
"Of course, you'll win," Cleo assured her with a wave of her hand. She even patted the other girl's back in reassurance.
"I'm nervous," the dark-haired girl confessed. Her hands fidgeting with her fingers attempting to distract herself from the butterflies in her stomach.
"Relax," Cleo scoffed.
Eventually, the two girls sauntered away to examine the other contestants' works. Also, to get Elissa to calm down.
The two girls scanned the other art pieces and were surprised at how good some of them were and how different they all were. The sculptures were in various sizes and colors. The paintings were of simple pictures or a swirl of colors.
When it came down for the judges to announce the winner, Elissa felt a lump of nerves build up in her throat. Cleo squeezed her hand hoping to calm her down, while Elissa still held a face of anxiety.
It turned out that Elissa got second place, which the award was just a certificate. She was disappointed. Anyone would. While some of her classmates thought of her as a spoiled rich girl, considering how wealthy her family was they thought she would throw a rare tantrum at losing.
But no. That was not who she was. It was possible that they thought that of her because of how she kept her distance from people except for Cleo, but if they knew the real reason was that it was for their safety, they would be singing a different tune, except they could never know that.
Elissa was not that sort of spoiled princess. She was raised better than that. Raised with kindness and compassion.
She could feel her father pat her back in comfort. Understanding how disheartening it was to lose after working so hard. But this would just encourage her to work harder.
When they awards were handed out, Elissa had walked up to the winner, a boy named Tomas from France. She took one look at his painting. She looked at him and smiled, "I like the colors."
Tomas, a shy boy who had just transferred to Gotham Academy, smiled back at her. He thanked her for the compliment and went over to his family.
Bruce was proud of the humility and kindness that his daughter possessed. And he knew that he was doing the right thing for her, judging by her actions that night.
As the Wayne family trekked through the parking lot, Dick had proclaimed that they were getting pizza to celebrate. To which Elissa countered that she didn't win.
"Second place is still an accomplishment, Miss Elissa." Alfred had interjected. A twinkle in his eye that held pride toward the girl.
"I would have won if I entered the competition," Damian arrogantly proclaimed.
"But you didn't," Tim rebuked. "And they're middle-schoolers," he scoffed, chastising Damian.
The young man in turn bristled at Tim's words, glaring daggers at him.
Bruce and Elissa were slower than the others, bringing up the rear of the group. Cleo had already left with her parents.
The man put his arm around his daughter and pulled her close. "How are you doing?" he wondered.
"Okay, I guess," she answered, nestling her face into her father's chest. The certificate in her hands forgotten. "Disappointed," she admitted, feeling a bit bad at the feeling of jealousy that had struck her.
"Understandable," her father uttered, still holding her close as they walked to the limo.
"I wish mom was there," she confessed, disappointment highlighting her voice.
"You know she would have been there if she could," Bruce assured her.
Elissa pulled her head away from her father's chest to stare into his face. She frowned, "I know she's busy. And I know how important her work is." She held a somber expression, "I just wish she stopped promising to be there," she confessed with a hint of bitterness in her voice. "Sometimes I wonder where I am in her world," she hugged herself with her arms, trying to comfort herself.
Already regret welling up inside her for having said such a thing and hating herself for it. Knowing how ungrateful she sounded while her mother was undoubtedly saving hundreds if not thousands of lives.
Bruce pulled her close and kissed the top of her head. He surprised her, making her stop looking inward and instead look at him.
"At the very top of the pyramid, Elissa. Always," he affirmed undoubtedly. His words alleviated some of her regret and self-loathing that plagued the dark-haired girl.
"Come on," he beckoned. "They're going to leave us behind," he teased her. Which unconsciously brought a smile to her lips.
They framed her certificate and hung it on a wall in her bedroom.
When Diana came home a few days later, she made a beeline towards her daughter. After a few attempts, Elissa was found in her art room, carefully trying to fix her drawing of Ace.
"Elissa!" her mother said loudly, startling the young girl making her jolt in place.
Said girl turned to her approaching mother. She saw the regretful expression on the Amazon's face, still clad in her armor.
"Please forgive me for missing the show," she pleaded, taking her daughter's hands into her own.
"It's okay," the dark-haired girl said automatically.
"It's not," her mother protested. "I heard you got second place," she said with a sense of pride in her voice.
"Yeah," a bashful Elissa muttered, her face a bit red.
"Congratulations," her mother told her.
"Thanks," Elissa replied with a smile.
The simmering pleasant conversation turned sour as Diana couldn't let what happened go. "I am very sorry I missed it," she apologized once more.
An understanding Elissa shook her head. "Mom, I get it. Being in the Justice League is important." She was trying her best to be understanding. That what her mother does was for the benefit of the entire world. But a tiny part of her did feel a bit let down by her mother missing the art show.
However, she tried to hide those feelings from her mother. She didn't want to sound like she was a brat that didn't understand the importance of her mother's work.
Her mother's accepting heart believed her, although her own regret made it difficult for the matter to drop.
She crouched down to her seated daughter's level. Her blue eyes shining with love and trust, "I promise that the next art show you have I will be there," she vowed. To further assure Elissa of her promise and held the young girl's smaller hands in her own and gave it an affectionate squeeze.
Yet, Elissa had difficulty meeting her mother's gaze. In her heart she wanted to believe her, but in her mind, she knew an emergency was bound to happen.
All that could soothe her was the hopefulness of her mother being there.
The two Amazons reconvened in the gymnasium. With Elissa a bit older and showing an interest in her Amazonian heritage, Diana had begun teaching her Amazonian battle techniques as well as sword play.
Pride welled up in the woman's chest as her daughter was quick to pick up on the fighting techniques. She briefly wondered if this was what her own mother had felt when she was growing up. She pulled herself out of her revere and concentrated on Elissa who was just finishing up the warmup drills she was given to practice.
"Good," Diana complimented. "Now let's move on to grappling techniques. These are important putting distance between yourself and your opponent or getting your opponent on the ground and keeping them there," she explained.
Elissa merely listened, wiping some sweat off her brow.
Diana crouched, opened hands before her, ready to strike.
"Now try and grab me," she instructed.
Her command startled Elissa, who hesitated.
"Relax," her mother soothed. "We're just going through the motions, so you can understand what the technique should look like."
"Okay." Elissa came at her mother slowly, trying to grab her. Nevertheless, she was still reluctant to attack her mother. She was always afraid of her strength, fearing she would hurt someone if she wasn't too careful. She may have gotten the hang of her powers as the fluctuations seemed to have become rare.
Faster than she could blink, her mother had grabbed her wrists and hoisted her over her shoulder, twisting her body nearly dropped her onto the mat underfoot. She instead chose to keep her over her shoulder and then gently set her back on her feet.
"Let's try it again," Diana told her. "But try and come at me faster. You were slow," she mentioned expertly.
Her daughter merely nodded her head and got back into position as before. Going faster, she reached her mother grabbing her wrists. A sense of accomplishment surged through her at the feat. Unfortunately, it was short lived as her mother broke the hold and got her over her shoulder once more.
"You got too cocky that time," she chastised. "You allowed me to react and counter."
A pouting Elissa listened but didn't utter a word.
They moved on to swordplay. Of course, Elissa was more interested in playing with it than actual swordsmanship.
"I am Wonder Woman!" she roared; sword high in the air. She raced around swinging at the air and chopping imaginary enemies.
Oblivious to the scowl on her mother's face.
"Elissa Martha Wayne," she spoke in a stern tone, causing Elissa to freeze.
Worried, she turned and noticed the disappointed look on her mother's face.
"Come here," she called to her child.
Wordlessly and obediently, the girl did as she was told, stopping before the Amazon mother.
Diana gingerly plucked the sword from her daughter's grip.
"A sword is not a toy to play with. It is a dangerous weapon that can seriously injury someone or kill if used carelessly," she scolded. "Treat it like such, young lady."
Elissa seemed to shrink in on herself as her scolding. She honestly didn't mean any harm. She knew to stay away from people while she was swinging the sword around and she was careful about her footing.
"Sorry," she uttered sadly.
An understanding Diana placed a hand on her daughter's shoulder, causing her to look up at her. "You had the sense to stay away from people when your powers manifested. You knew you could hurt someone if you weren't careful. Treat the sword just like an extension of yourself, Elissa. Be true to yourself. A protector, not a destroyer," she tried to instill in the girl.
"Yes, mom," a determined Elissa replied.
"Good," she nodded. Handing the sword back to her to take, Diana began to instruct. "Now watch my stance and footing."
When it was time to swing the sword, Elissa had her eyes on her mother's ever graceful and fluid movements. It was then that she realized what she meant by and extension of oneself. It didn't look like she was swinging a sword around, it looked like she was the sword.
It was then that Elissa realized that she had a long way to go to be at her mother's level.
Wayne Manor
It was late at night, well past her bedtime, but she was thirsty and made her way downstairs. It was pitch black except for the illuminating beams of moonlight. She didn't bother turning on the lights when she came down. She liked to play a little game whenever she woke up for a drink of water, to see if she could remember where everything was and navigate around it. Good thing she put her shoes on before coming down.
But that night was different. Through the dark she could see a mass of darkness move about in the dark. Her heart started to pound in her chest, fear gripped her tightly. Believing an intruder had broken into the house she thought of running upstairs and waking Alfred or her father. Yet, she paused, rethinking the idea.
Instead, she chose to fight like her mother.
Steeling herself, she slipped out of her shoes, her blue eyes darting about looking for a weapon. Finding a lap, she quickly unplugged it and removed the shade. Relaxing her breathing, she slowly prowled towards the black mass that seemed to be wobbling.
As soon as she crossed the threshold into the living room, she attacked.
"AH!" she cried, swinging the lamp like a baseball bat striking the black mass's side.
"UH!"
She heard it grunt out in pain, stumbling before falling to the ground into a heap of ebony.
Her breathing became labored, her heart once more beating so fast that it could leap out of her chest. She stood over the mass, ready to strike again.
She heard the thing groan and shift. Deciding she needed a better look, she raced to the nearest light switch, flipping it, the dark room suddenly illuminated itself.
She raced back, lamp at the ready. When she got closer, she realized what or who she was standing over.
"You're… You're the…" she trailed off, too flabbergasted to speak, the lamp falling to her side.
The Batman laid on the ground before her. She had never seen him before. Sure, she heard about him, what kid in Gotham didn't? But to be in the same room as him, staring at him, it was all surreal.
And this was coming from the daughter of Wonder Woman.
Now what was he doing in her house?
She watched him turn his head to her, grimacing a pained grimace.
"Aren't you supposed to be at a sleepover?" He bit out. He slowly started to get to his feet, clutching his aching side.
There go the other two ribs.
He groused inwardly. His whole left side burned, several ribs broken or at least cracked. He had been calling for Alfred to come down to the cave, but he wasn't responding. He had come up to wake the older man or to see if he was alright. He could not anticipate that his daughter would do her best Derek Jeter impression on him.
"Ah," the dark-haired girl was stunned as Batman rose to his full height towering over her like a mighty skyscraper. The lamp slipped out of her grip and dropped to the ground with a dull thud.
How did he know about my sleepover?
A quizzical expression etched itself onto her face, trying to figure out what was happening.
"My friend got sick, so we cancelled the sleepover," she answered, not knowing why she found herself answering his absurd question. She suddenly found herself sick to her stomach as well. She doubled over clutching her stomach and erupting into a coughing fit. She feared she was about to vomit.
Surprisingly, Batman rubbed her back soothingly. "Easy. Take a breath and try to calm down," he advised.
Nothing came out of her, but a bit of spittle fell onto the floor.
She couldn't put her finger on it, but she felt like she knew him. His voice sounded coarse but familiar. She turned her head to him, a calmness in her eyes. She slowly reached up with her hands taking his masked face into her hands. Waiting for a response from him, she held back. She witnessed him give her an understanding nod and allowed her to proceed.
With minimal effort later, Elissa was face to face with her father.
"Dad?" A stunned Elissa exclaimed.
A solemn Bruce stared at his daughter dreading this conversation, however, it was time.
"We have much to talk about," he stated.
They found themselves in the kitchen sitting at the kitchen island. Bruce still clad in his batsuit, the cowl hanging off his shoulders.
A pensive Elissa sitting down with her head bowed like a scolded child, her eyes following her father's every move. Her mind was still processing the fact that her father was Batman.
When she saw him wince and clutch his injured side, guilt hit her like a tidal wave, recalling that she struck him thinking he was an intruder. Her worry for him became prominent.
"I'm sorry I hit you," she apologized quickly. She was ready to race to him, but he dismissed such action.
"You did the right thing," he grunted. "Where's Alfred?"
"Upstairs sleeping," she answered simply.
He stared at her pondering her words. The gaze he gave her made her dart her eyes away from him.
Finally, the silence died out and Bruce spoke again.
"It is obvious that you know my secret," he said rhetorically. He saw her nod her head.
"I'm Batman."
Elissa's lip quivered unconsciously.
"Does Mom know?" she couldn't help but ask. As soon as the words left her mouth, she cringed thinking she was stupid for asking such a thing.
"Since before you born," he answered wistfully.
"Does everyone else know?" the girl inquired curiously.
He nodded. "Yes. They share my mission."
Elissa folded her hands together, her legs unconsciously kicking back and forth, processing what she had learned.
"What?"
"Everyone that you know that isn't related to your mother wears a mask," her father bluntly put.
"Damian?"
"Robin."
"Dick?"
"Nightwing."
"Cassandra?"
"Batgirl."
"Barbara?"
"Also Batgirl."
"Huh."
Elissa blankly uttered, realizing that everyone in her family was a superhero. And they had been keeping this from her for her entire life. She felt a bit hurt and betrayed.
"You've been lying to me my whole life," she accused him.
Her father, however, was unfazed by his daughter's accusatory scorn. He sighed and resigned himself to finally having this conversation.
"You know the story of what happened to my parents, don't you?" He saw her nod her head sullenly. Knowing the sad story of her grandparents' murder. She always saw sadness in her father's eyes when he spoke of them or showed her pictures of them.
"I swore that I would dedicate my life to avenging their deaths," he explained, a dark tone in his voice that frightened the girl. "As time went on my crusade grew darker and then… more hopeful as Dick came to live here. It wasn't so bad back then," he mused, recalling some of the adventures he and Dick had when they were the Dynamic Duo.
"Then the others showed up and we continued to protect Gotham. And then… you showed up," she saw a hint of a smile on his face.
"I thought about it for long time when your mother was pregnant," his gaze was glued to the table in deep thought before looking back at her. "I decided it was best to protect you from my dark world if you never knew I was Batman," he explained. "I wanted to give you a happy childhood without any darkness to torment you like it had so many of the others," he reasoned.
Elissa listened intently as her father explained himself. And she reasoned that it was starting to make sense. Yet she still felt hurt by being left in the dark.
"This is a very serious secret, Elissa. It is not something you can ever discuss with anyone outside the family," he warned her.
Elissa in turn nodded her head frantically. She felt nervous as the conversation came to an end, but she still wanted to keep talking.
She saw him clutch his side in pain, swiftly recalling he had been injured by being Batman and by her own hands when he came stumbling home.
"Can't you stop?" she pleaded meekly.
"What?" A curious Bruce uttered.
"Stop being Batman. Please. I… I could do it for you. Be Batman," she volunteered foolishly.
Her father chuckled ruefully, amused by her declaration. He shook his head. "No. I'm done with partners. And including you now would defeat the purpose of keeping you out of Batman's world," he replied.
She was worried about him. Her father, a man she viewed as the greatest man in the world was injured and was fighting for his life every night since before she was born. Like any child she viewed her father as invincible. She feared his being Batman. And she was scared that he would get so hurt that he couldn't be put back together again.
"I can't stop, Elissa." He declared. "I have no choice but to press on and continue my work. Tragedy forged my path. What was once my vow for vengeance transformed into a mission of justice and salvation. The mission metamorphosed to now leave you a better Gotham," he clarified.
Suddenly, Alfred came racing into the kitchen, a frantic look on his face.
"Master Bruce, I am terribly sorry for not answering your calls," the man apologized. Before he could continue, he paled at seeing Elissa sitting with her father in the batsuit. "Oh, dear."
"It's alright, Alfred." Bruce assured him. "The secret's out," he said with mild fondness.
Elissa, on the other hand, appeared sheepish.
Alfred roused himself out of his stunned stupor and turned his gaze from the girl back to his master. "Forgive me, sir. Age has seemed to have taken its toll on me. These late nights are proving most difficult," he surmised.
"Yes, these nights are getting more and more difficult," the graying man concluded grimly.
"Allow me to check your wounds, sir." The butler quickly went to work.
"It's my ribs," Bruce told him, wincing as he removed his shirt.
Elissa's heart broke upon seeing her father's scarred torso. She was raked with guilt at the purple bruised side that she had a hand in. As Alfred wrapped a compression wrap around Bruce's ribs to ease some of the pain. Both men were oblivious to Elissa's focused gaze. She paid attention to how Alfred treated her father. Regretting the injury she inflicted upon her father, she silently vowed to never hurt anyone again. Watching Alfred bandage her father, she decided that she wanted to learn about medicine to see if she could help her father if he ever got injured again.
Later when the family was together for dinner, Elissa acted like the cat who ate the canary. She subtly alluded to the fact that she knew the big secret of their family.
Dick stammered before quickly trying to dissuade such ideas.
Tim choked on his water.
Damian didn't show a sign of caring.
Cassandra was silent, waiting for someone else to answer.
Disliking their denials, Elissa chose to flat out state that she knew with Bruce backing her up nonchalantly.
She did get a good laugh at the faces and reactions they all made when they let out a calming exhale.
Unfortunately, they neglected to tell Diana that the secret was out. And chose to inform her at the dinner table with everyone else.
Her face was one of shock and then turned stony. Her grip on her silverware tightened, crushing it.
With dinner over, Diana grabbed Bruce and escorted him to the study and shut the door. She was pissed. Angry that Bruce had told Elissa. Angry that she wasn't consulted about choosing to tell her. And most of all angry about what this would undoubtedly lead to.
A curious Elissa carefully waited outside the study. Her ear pressed against the door, trying hear what was being said. The vibrations of the voices caring on tickled her.
She could hear her mother's voice. She sounded angry. Oblivious to the child's eavesdropping.
"Don't you dare, Bruce! Don't you dare!" She yelled.
Elissa could barely hear her father's reply.
"Nothing is going to happen."
"Please," her mother rebuked in doubt. "We both know where this goes from here. And you promised it would never happen."
"Diana, I swear, she won't be involved," Bruce promised. "Besides, you're teaching her how to be an Amazon. You put a sword in her hand already," he argued.
"Teaching her heritage and control over her powers is one thing. Putting a child in a costume and patrolling the streets of Gotham is another," she retorted, fuming at the dig of her training their daughter.
"I won't put her in a costume. Besides, she has shown no interest in the cave," he told her.
Cave?!
Elissa perked up.
There was a cave! Her mind was working on where the 'cave' would be located. Was it in the house? Was under the house like an actual cave? Or was it more like a secret room? Her mind raced with numerous theories she almost didn't hear the rest of the conversation.
"I don't want a child talking a grown man into fighting crime. We both agreed when she was older and if she chose to partake in our mutual crusade for justice, we would welcome her. Not indoctrinate her. We both want her to have a happy life."
"I want that do," Bruce uttered softly.
"So do I, Bruce." Diana returned with similar tenderness. However, the atmosphere quickly turned dangerous. "But I swear Bruce if you try and bring her into Batman's world before she is old enough or without mutual consent from all three of us, I will take Elissa and you will never see either of us again," she threatened.
It was silent in the study, her father most likely choosing not to verbally respond or was at a loss for words upon hearing her mother's threat.
The dark-haired girl was stunned as well. She couldn't fathom not seeing her father again or hearing her mother sound so angry. Nor hear her parents argue so heatedly.
She panicked as she heard footsteps approaching the foot. She quickly darted away before the door opened, her heart pounded in her chest, blood pounded in her ears.
All she could think about was what would happen if she wanted to fight crime like her parents. That her mother would take her from her father and never see him again. But the truth was as much as she idolized her mother—Wonder Woman she didn't like fighting or hurting anyone.
She went along with the training because it was to help get a grip on her powers. The Amazon techniques and swordplay were a mere child's fad. It was cool for the moment but eventually all fads fade.
She just wished she knew how to tell her mother that.
NEXT: Last Case