TITLE: Family Tree

AUTHOR: Lotsy

CHARACTERS: Batman / Wonder Woman

RATING: M

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: Final full-length story in the Family Series. A deadly curse threatens to take Diana away from the family forever. Will they be able to do what is needed to save her or be forced to find a way to go on without her?

Chapter 1

Location Unknown; One Thousand Years Ago

Cronus tilted his head slightly as he continued to work the clay in his hands, a vindictive gleam in his dark eyes. He carefully took his time to form the head before moving down to the torso. The perfect image of a baby taken from his mind was taking flawless shape in his hands.

Next, he began to fashion the arms and then the legs, taking his time and working diligently to form each finger and toe. The malevolent glint in his eye had gradually found its way to the quirk of his mouth, the corners twisting with a hatred he felt bone deep. This was going to be the perfect revenge on the Amazons, one that they would never see coming.

He took a long moment to admire his handiwork, knowing excellence when he saw it. He had been shown the future. He knew what was to come and he wasn't about to sit back without creating something to oppose the Amazons and their newly created warrior.

This was his answer…his revenge.

This was his…Devastation.

Themyscira; One Thousand Years Ago

The halls of the royal palace were quiet tonight, almost eerily so much to Phillipus's dismay. It was an unsettling feeling that had drifted over her, one that she couldn't begin to shake. Flickering torches held in wrought iron sconces attached to the walls generated shadows that seemed to morph and almost dance as she continued to make her nightly rounds before finally turning in.

She stopped to check with the guards at the main entrance, knowing they would not falter in their duty, but feeling as though she needed to remind them, nonetheless. "Keep alert," she softly instructed with an air of urgency as she glanced to her left.

"Is there trouble?" Asteria asked with a frown.

Melina tightened her grip on her spear. "Did you see something?"

Phillipus shook her head curtly, her lips a thin grim line as she ran the tips of her fingers over the cool steel of the hilt of her sword. "No…just an unsettling feeling," she simply murmured.

Asteria and Melina both straightened their stance, knowing that Phillipus was rarely if ever wrong. If she had a bad feeling, then they needed to be ready for anything. "I hope this isn't about the princess," Asteria whispered.

Phillipus looked sharply at her, questioning her words. "Why would it be?" she demanded to know. "The princess is only a couple of days old."

"I know, but I heard a rumor that some of our sisters aren't happy about the baby," Asteria continued.

"She's right," Melina concurred with a nod. "I heard it too. They're questioning how the queen was able to create the princess and bring her to life. It's stirred up a lot of suspicion."

"It is not our place to question the queen or her desire to have a child," Phillipus angrily hissed, her jaw set like a steel trap. "The gods in their graciousness decided to instill the breath of life into this baby and we will celebrate it. She is the next queen of the Amazons and will be treated as such."

"We agree with you," Asteria quickly replied defensively. "We don't agree with the rumblings, but we felt you needed to be aware of it."

Phillipus sighed heavily, knowing Asteria and Melina were speaking the truth. The whisperings had even reached her ears. "It's the will of the gods that Princess Diana has been given life. Who are we to question it?"

"We will keep our eyes and ears open," Melina assured her.

"Thank you," Phillipus said, turning on her heel and walking away.

Her mind began to churn with worry that maybe there could be an attack on the princess. Her hand unconsciously fell to the hilt of her sword once more, feeling a surge of strength knowing her weapon was at hand if needed. She couldn't imagine any of their sisters being so bold as to plan an assassination attempt on the queen's daughter.

Still, they could never be too careful.

Deciding that she needed to check on the baby, Phillipus strode purposefully towards the queen's quarters, checking the handle to the nursery next door and finding it locked. Moving to the door to the queen's quarters, she tested the handle to find it unlocked.

Entering, she peered into the darkness of the sitting area, finding nothing amiss. She went to the queen's bedroom door that was cracked open, listening intently, and hearing a soft snore that gave her comfort. Turning, she headed to the door that connected the queen's quarters with the nursery, opening it silently.

Phillipus immediately drew her sword, an Amazonian cry escaping her lips at the sight that greeted her. It caused her blood to flow like icy needles through her veins. "Stop!" she ordered.

A black-cloaked figure stood over Princess Diana's crib; a hand extended out over the infant who was sleeping soundly. A charm dangled from thin fingers stretched out over the baby. A soft chanting sound was emanating from the cloaked figure, the hood of which was pulled far over the face to disguise their identity.

The figure didn't seem to acknowledge that anyone else was in the room, continuing the mystic chant as Diana slept. Phillipus growled furiously, racing towards the mysterious visitor. She yelled as she swung her sword, the individual forced to finally turn around and respond to the threat.

A dark shadow cut across the face, concealing it from view. "How dare you intrude!" the woman screamed in rage. "You have no idea what you have done by interrupting me!"

Phillipus didn't care as she attacked the woman who managed to block each swing with the powerful magic she possessed. Hippolyta had entered the room by now, running straight towards the crib. She quickly scooped her daughter up into her arms, holding her close against her breast.

Diana began to cry as her mother patted her back in an effort to soothe her, more than relieved when the intruder suddenly vanished from sight without a word. Breathing heavily, Phillipus scanned the nursery for any signs of more danger and found nothing.

"Who was that?" Queen Hippolyta asked.

"I have no idea," Phillipus replied, shaking her head in bewilderment. "I didn't get a good look at her. Is the princess all right?"

"She seems to be," Hippolyta relayed, looking over her daughter. "Just upset."

"Thank Hera," Phillipus murmured as she sheathed her sword. "I'm stationing guards at your door."

"I'm moving Diana's crib into my room," the queen decided. "Whoever the intruder, she was may try again."

Phillipus began to wander the room, checking every corner. "She was chanting some spell. I couldn't make out what she was saying. She had some sort of charm that began to glow. Whatever it was, I don't think she was able to complete it."

"I wonder what kind of magical spell it could be. Who would want to hurt a harmless baby?"

"I have no idea," she replied. "It might not hurt to consult Hera to see what she can tell us."

"First thing in the morning," the queen agreed, tightening her hold on her daughter as she kissed the top of her baby's head.

Themyscira; August 29th, 16:36 EST

"That's the only thing I can think of that happened right after Diana drew her first breath," Hippolyta told Bruce and Diana, a distant haunting reflecting in her eyes.

"Mother, why didn't you ever tell me about this?" Diana asked.

"I didn't think it was necessary," she replied. "You weren't hurt, and the intruder never returned. Life went on as normal. Nothing more ever occurred that caused concern. There were no signs that a magical spell had been placed on your life. You never exhibited any problems."

"What did the woman say when Phillipus interrupted her chant?" Bruce asked, remembering for the hundredth time why he hated magic.

"She said 'You have no idea what you have done by interrupting me'," Hippolyta repeated. "What are you thinking, Bruce?"

Bruce thought about it as he began to pace, the anger and fear that had gripped him earlier still crackling through him like a hot livewire. "Whoever was performing that chant was putting some sort of magical spell on Diana…possibly a curse of some kind," he responded, turning to look at the two women. "I wonder if Phillipus's interruption didn't delay the effects of it somehow…altered it in some way."

"A thousand years?" Diana questioned him.

"Could be," he suggested. "I'll need to talk to Zatanna to see what she thinks. Is there anything else about that incident that you can remember?"

Hippolyta rubbed her forehead as she moved to sit on her throne. "The woman had some sort of charm in her hand that she was holding over Diana, but I didn't get a good look at it. It all happened so fast. Phillipus began fighting the intruder and I immediately ran for Diana."

"And Phillipus couldn't see her face?" Bruce asked again.

"No, like I said before, her hood was pulled down over her face and the room was dark," the queen replied. "It was difficult to make out much of anything at that point."

Diana unconsciously rubbed her arms as if warding off a chill. It was unsettling to think that someone had tried to end her life before it had even really begun. Thankfully, Phillipus had the presence of mind to check on her when she did, or Diana possibly wouldn't be here today.

Bruce looked at Diana, noticing her troubled countenance. What they had just learned from her mother had upset her greatly. He could hardly blame her. He wasn't taking any of this very well himself. "We need to get back to Gotham," he decided.

"Wait," Diana said, suddenly remembering something her mother had said. "You said that you were going to petition Hera for answers. Did you ever find out anything from her?"

Queen Hippolyta frowned as she pulled a blond lock behind her ear. "Unfortunately, no," she informed them. "Hera never responded to my pleas for answers on the matter. I gave up after a few weeks of no response."

"I wouldn't mind having a few words with Hera myself," Bruce groused, his arms folding against his chest.

"You would only manage to get yourself into trouble or worse, Bruce," Diana pointed out with a grimace.

"And then, we'd have two problems on our hands instead of just one," Hippolyta added.

"Try to petition Hera again," Bruce told her. "Keep it up until she answers if you have to. I need to talk to Zatanna. She might be able to help us figure out something. If I have to, I'll go to Mount Olympus myself to get the answers we need in order to save Diana's life."

"Bruce…" Diana began to protest, the image of Batman standing before the gods of Olympus causing her stomach to churn with dread. All she could picture was Zeus's lightning bolt piercing Bruce's chest. It caused her to visibly shutter.

"I don't care what it takes, Diana," he stated with steel-like resolve. "I'll go to the ends of the Earth if I have to in order to spare your life."

Diana gave him a heartfelt smile. "Do you think that the intruder could have been one of the gods?"

Hippolyta considered it a moment before responding. "I just don't know," she replied, sitting back on her throne. "I've wracked my brain trying to figure out who would have wanted to hurt you. The Amazons have had many enemies over the years, but only a person of magic could have gotten onto the island like that."

"It couldn't have been Circe, could it?" Bruce asked.

"No, I would've recognized that witch even in a black cloak," Hippolyta claimed with great disdain. "I'd know her voice anywhere."

"We're going to have to treat this like an investigation," Bruce decided. "We won't stop until we've ruled out everyone who could be involved."

"We will work on things on our end," Hippolyta promised them. "I'll talk to Phillipus to see if there is any more that she might remember about that night."

"We need to stop this before it happens," Bruce stated.

"I just wish we knew what to look for," Diana softly said, feeling uneasy about the horror that was possibly coming for her.

"Just be careful, Diana," Hippolyta told her. "You're carrying a precious life within you. Remember that."

Wayne Manor;August 30th, 17:05 EST

Bruce entered the entertainment room to find Diana sitting on the couch writing in a notebook. He couldn't help but notice how tired she seemed to look to him. He knew it could be attributed to her pregnancy, but he also knew it could have something to do with whatever this curse was that had been placed on her.

Diana looked up as Bruce approached her with a cup of tea in hand. "Thank you," she replied, taking the cup from him. "You didn't have to do that."

"What are you doing?"

"I'm working on a list of people that could be behind the curse or whatever it is that was done to me when I was a baby," she revealed. "I'm afraid the list of enemies is pretty long. Maybe it was some sort of blessing or spell of protection instead of a curse."

"I doubt it was a blessing," he sarcastically groused.

Diana grimaced in agreement. "That doesn't seem to happen much, does it?" she said with a weak smile. "It's almost always something bad."

"Especially when it comes to your family."

"I guess my family tree isn't exactly normal…or blameless," she agreed.

"Or respectable, moral, innocent, benevolent, compassionate, generous…"

"Alright," she said with a chuckle. "I get it. They're not perfect, but who has a family that is?"

"I'm sure there are skeletons in the closet in my family tree too," he relented.

Diana took a sip of her tea before setting it down on the coffee table. "I have to admit the list is rather long," she admitted, rubbing the back of her neck. "I never realized how many people hold a grudge against my mother or the Amazons. I mean I had an idea, but once you see it written down in a list…we have a lot of work to do."

"Are you sure you're feeling up to it?"

"Why not?" she asked, tilting her head as she looked at him in question.

"You look tired," he pointed out. "Maybe you should rest before the kids get home."

"I'm fine," she promised him, snuggling up against him, and tucking her head into the crook of his neck. "You worry too much."

"Diana, I think I have very good reason to," he reminded her. "There's an unknown curse on you. We have no idea the extent or the depths of it. It could end up taking you away from us. That gives me a very good cause for worry and paranoia."

"You aren't exactly free from danger," she told him.

"I'm not the one who keeps getting into trouble."

Diana sat up to stare at him in shock only to be pulled back into his protective embrace. "I believe it was you who dragged himself home from patrol beaten and battered not that long ago."

"I wasn't beaten," he corrected her. "I was blown up."

"There's a difference?"

"A big one," he adamantly stated. "Beaten makes it sound like I can't handle myself."

"Still, you nearly gave me a heart attack," she reminded him. "You're not supposed to cause undo stress on your pregnant wife."

"You weren't pregnant at the time," he replied, "and you promised to stay with me forever."

"I'm sorry this is happening to us," she softly said, her head resting in the crook of his neck. "I promise I'll do whatever it takes to break this curse."

"If anything ever happened to you…"

His voice broke off as he swallowed hard, Diana leaning in to kiss his jaw. "It's going to be all right," she murmured as her lips continued their journey along his neck, nipping and kissing.

Bruce groaned as his head tilted to the side. "Diana…" he uttered her name with a drawn-out breath. "We can't right now. The kids will be home any minute."

She sighed heavily in resignation, sitting up and giving him a look that he knew all too well. He chuckled as he inclined his head to capture her lips in what was supposed to be a pacifying kiss, but that turned out to be anything but for either of them.

"I know that look," he told her.

"What look?" she innocently asked.

"That look that says you want to tear my clothes off and ride me until you break me."

"Ahhh, that look," she flirted with a sexy grin, connecting their lips in another kiss. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Right," he muttered, sitting back on the couch to review the list she had started. "You are far from innocent, princess."

"I can't wait until the baby comes," she said, her hand moving to her still-flat stomach.

Bruce put his hand on her belly too, worry creeping into his eyes. "I hope the baby will be all right with whatever curse was placed on you."

"Do you remember how worried you were to make love with me when I was first pregnant with Nicholas?" she asked him, looking up into his cobalt blue eyes. "You were afraid to even touch me. It took Leslie convincing you that you weren't going to hurt our baby."

"It's a wonder we didn't break the bed that first night," he said with a laugh. "Here I was afraid of hurting you or the baby when I should've been afraid for my own life."

"I didn't know pregnancy hormones were going to affect me like that," she claimed. "You certainly didn't mind accommodating me."

"It's my favorite part of you being pregnant," he murmured, kissing her. "You know if this baby is anything like Kaia, we're going to be in so much trouble."

Diana couldn't help but giggle at the very real fear in his eyes. "Kaia has no match, Bruce," she reminded him. "She's her own bundle of energy and trouble."

"Kaia is a mini you," he decided.

"You and my mother think that," she corrected him. "I just don't see it."

"You don't want to see it."

"We're home!"

"Tonight," she told him in no uncertain terms. "I get you tonight to do whatever I want."

Bruce just shook his head. "You are not making this easy for me, you know," he said before calling, "in here!"

Kaia and Nicholas ran into the entertainment room, their faces painted. "Daddy!" Kaia cried, running and leaping into his arms from an amazing distance.

Bruce easily caught her in midair, surprised at her painted face. "What are you supposed to be?"

"I'm a tiger!" she exclaimed in exasperation, clearly annoyed that he didn't know it.

"I'm a bear," Nicholas said with a growl.

"How was the circus?" Bruce asked.

"Exhausting," Dick said as he entered with Claire in his arms.

"It was fun," Donna insisted with Conner.

"Are you a giraffe?" Bruce asked his grandson.

Connor nodded, babbling as he sucked on his thumb. Claire wiggled out of Dick's arms, toddling over to Bruce and tapping his legs. "Me…me," Claire repeated, wanting him to notice her too.

"And you're a monkey?"

Claire excitedly nodded her head, turning to see Diana. She went over to her, Diana sweeping her up into her arms. "You look like a little monkey," she decided, kissing the spot on her face where the paint had already rubbed off before tickling her side.

"Okay, you four need to get washed up," Donna announced, Nicholas and Kaia helping the little ones. "We ordered pizza. It should be here soon."

"Sounds wonderful," Diana decided, her hand falling to her belly. "I'm starving."

Dick laughed as he plopped down on the couch. "You eat more than Tim now."

"I'm eating for two," she reminded him, playfully swatting him on the back of the head. "How quickly you forgot our call from Themyscira with the news."

"So, what's Tim's excuse?" Dick asked.

Donna sat down next to her husband on the couch, her hand coming to rest on his thigh in a caress. "You know…maybe we should think about having another baby, Dick," she told him.

Dick immediately stiffened, his eyes widening. "Are you crazy?" he demanded to know. "We have our hands full as it is with the twins, and they haven't even hit the terrible twos yet."

"I don't know," Donna said with a shrug. "I think another baby would be nice."

"Thanks a lot, you two," Dick growled at Bruce and Diana. "Look what you started by wanting to have another baby."

"Blame Dinah," Bruce told him. "She got Diana going on the whole baby thing."

"We'll discuss this later at home," Dick told his wife, hoping she would get over the idea of another baby by the time they arrived home. "Let's let Jason and Artemis catch up a little with the rest of us."

Donna frowned as she folded her arms against her chest. "I don't see Artemis wanting to have a baby anytime soon."

"I know Jason wants to start a family at some point," Dick told her. "Kaia and Nicholas have warmed him up to the idea since he rejoined the family."

"Have you thought about baby names yet?" Donna asked them, excitement glowing in her eyes.

"We just found out we're having a baby," Diana replied. "I'm still trying to get used to the idea of being pregnant again."

Kaia ran into the room, jumping onto the couch beside Dick. "Mama, when is Pappoús coming home?"

"He'll be home later tonight," she told her.

Kaia frowned with a furrowed brow. "I don't like it when he's gone. He needs to be home to tuck me into bed tonight."

"He went to Leslie's clinic to help her for a few hours," Diana reminded her. "She was overrun with patients."

"I could have gone with him," she pouted with a tilt of her head.

"I don't think you'd be much help, little princess," Bruce informed her. "You'd just end up creating more chaos."

Kaia scowled at Bruce, a Batglare that could rival Bruce's directed straight at him. "I'm a very good helper!"

"Yes, you are," Diana agreed, picking her up. "This kind of help is very difficult and complicated. You have to know how to fix broken bones and sew up wounds."

"Oh," she muttered, her glare fading. "Maybe I can learn."

"In a few years," Bruce told her, getting up with the sound of the doorbell.

"Pizza's here!" Dick exclaimed, jumping up as well to wrangle his children. "I'll get the plates."

"I'll pay for the pizza," Bruce grumbled.

"Go get dinner," Diana told Kaia, setting her down and gently patting her bottom.

Donna approached her sister, keeping her from leaving the entertainment room once they were alone. "When are you going to tell me what's really going on?" she asked.

Diana gave her a curious look. "What are you talking about?"

"Have you forgotten we share the same soul?" she reminded her, arms crossing against her chest showing that she was going to get answers one way or another. "I can feel what you're feeling, and you're seriously worried about something big."

"To be honest, I'm not even sure," she replied, raking her fingers back through her hair. "All we learned on Themyscira was that something is going to happen to me or I'm going to have to do something or maybe go somewhere. I don't know. It's all so mysterious right now."

"And?"

"And that's it," she insisted with a shrug. "Aphrodite can't tell us anything because Hera forbade it. Whatever it is, it was set in motion a thousand years ago."

"When you were formed from clay by Mother and Hades," Donna continued.

"Yes," Diana confirmed. "A sorceress or someone tried to put a curse or a spell of some sort on me right after that. Phillipus interrupted it, changing it somehow. That's all we know."

Donna thought about it for a moment, not liking what she was hearing. It caused a sinking sensation in her gut. "So, how soon is this going to happen…whatever it is?"

"Sometime before the baby is born," Diana replied. "Aphrodite promised to protect our baby."

"This isn't right," Donna groused with an angry huff. "You deserve to know more about whatever is going to happen."

"Evidently, Hera disagrees."

"How is Bruce handling this?"

Diana snorted sarcastically, moving to sit on the edge of the couch. "What do you think?" she retorted. "He's like a trapped animal. You know how he feels about magic. Add to that the fact that the gods may have had some sort of hand in this only makes him even more furious."

"So, what's the plan?" she asked, sitting down beside Diana.

"We're going to talk to Zatanna…see what she might be able to find out for us. There's magic involved. We're just not sure who is behind it or what it entails."

"Well, that's a start," Donna agreed, wrapping an arm around her sister's shoulder. "You know we'll help you guys through this any way we can."

"Thanks," Diana softly murmured, tears suddenly stinging her eyes. "Why can't we just be left alone to live our lives and have our baby in peace? Sometimes I think Bruce would've been better off marrying someone other than me."

"Never say that again," Bruce heatedly stated from the doorway, a fierce scowl on his face.

"I'm going to get something to eat," Donna wisely decided, standing to her feet to allow Bruce to take over.

Bruce made his way to his wife, sitting down beside her and taking her hand in his. "Diana, don't ever think that I'd be better off without you. Nothing could be further from the truth."

She leaned her head on his shoulder, tears slipping down her cheeks. "I feel as though I've caused you nothing but trouble over the years…especially my family," she confessed.

"You have done nothing but set my world right," he assured her. "There's no other place I'd rather be than with you and the family we've made."

She lifted her head to look at him through tear-filled eyes. "I don't know if we're going to make it this time."

"I do," he reassured her, "because I believe in you. I believe in us."

She slowly nodded her head, kissing him softly. He brushed the tears from her cheeks, before kissing her once more. "Let's go eat," he told her. "You've hardly eaten anything all day. You need to keep up your strength. You're carrying my baby."

Diana smiled softly as she took his hand, standing to her feet with him. She knew she was emotional from the hormones, but she still couldn't shake the feeling that this could be one complication in their lives that they weren't going to be able to escape.

Detroit; August 31st, 02:36

John woke to find himself all alone in his bed. With a frown, he got up, pulling on his boxer shorts before making his way out to the living room. He found his wife sitting on the couch with a container of ice cream, the only light coming from the television.

He silently made his way to her, sitting down on the couch next to her. He leaned over to see that the container of ice cream was almost empty. Taking the spoon resting in the container, he scooped up the last bit of ice cream, eating it with a hum of delight.

"At least you left me one spoonful," he lightly teased, wrapping his arm around her shoulders.

"What do you think of this workout equipment?" she asked without looking at him. "It might be nice to have."

"Shayera…"

"I mean we don't always have time to go to the Metro Tower or the Watchtower to use the training room," she continued, staring at the television screen. "It wouldn't hurt to have our own equipment. We could set up a training room in the basement."

"Shay…"

"It's only fifteen easy payments of…"

With a click, the television screen went black. She turned an angry scowl on him, reaching over to grab the remote from him which he held out of reach. "Talk to me, Shay," he gently said.

She sighed heavily, her head falling back to rest against the couch. She stared at the ceiling for a long moment before finally speaking. "I have to go back, John, but I'm not going to be welcomed."

"It's going to be hard, but a lot of time has passed since then," he reminded her, pulling her closer to him. "Maybe it won't be as bad as you think it will be."

Shayera snorted softly, lifting her head to look at him. "It's going to be a disaster, but I have to go," she replied. "I have to find out what happened to Samara."

"You never told me you had a sister," he commented with a furrowed brow. "I guess you never really told me that much about your family on Thanagar."

"There's really not much to tell," she told him. "My parents died when we were young. My sister and I pretty much took care of each other after that, but she soon ended up going down a very dark path. I lost track of her after that. It was just me for a long time."

"And Hro Talak," John stated with an edge of bitterness.

"John, that was long before I met you," she reminded him.

"I know…I'm sorry," he apologized. "So, you never saw your sister again after she left?"

"I heard rumors from friends and others in the Thanagarian military here and there about what she was up to or where she was staying," she relayed. "I tried to find her a couple of times, but every time I arrived at her last known location, she was already gone."

"I can't imagine how difficult that must have been for you," he softly said. "I wish I could have been there for you so you wouldn't have been alone."

"I saw Samara from a distance just before I was given orders to go to Earth," she confessed. "She must have heard somehow that I was being sent on a mission and would not be back. I haven't seen or heard from her since then…not until now."

"And the message didn't say anything about how Samara died?"

Shayera shook her head, tears filling her eyes. "I have to go," she told him. "I have to find out what happened to her. I owe her that."

"We'll go then," he confidently replied.

Shay gave him a confused look. "You would go with me?"

"You're not going alone," he adamantly stated. "Someone needs to be there to watch your back."

"What about the kids?"

"My mother can watch them, or we can see if Wally and Linda are up to the challenge," he suggested.

Shay groaned at the thought. "Really? Wally and Linda?" she questioned him.

"I think it would be good for them," he decided. "Give them a chance to see what it's like to have children."

"It could scar them for life," she pointed out.

"Or Linda could get pregnant while we're gone."

Shay couldn't help but laugh at his prediction. "I'm going to suggest Linda take birth control while we're gone," she said with a chuckle. "She has her hands full as it is with Wally. Having a child would give her two to take care of."

"I'll talk to Wally today," John told her. "We'll leave as soon as I can get a babysitter arranged."

"Thank you, John," she replied, kissing him softly. "It means a lot to me that you want to come with me. It could get very ugly. They might try to put me on trial for betraying Thanagar."

"I'd like to see them try to get past me first," he stated. "No one touches my wife but me."

She responded with a kiss that grew more intense, more persistent. The ice cream container was set aside as something far better took its place.

UP NEXT: The Founders find out about Diana's pregnancy and Gotham has more trouble brewing.

A/N: We're finally here! So sad this will be the last one in the series, but I'll keep them alive in The Wayne Family Chronicles. I can't guarantee that I'll be able to update this fic on a weekly basis but I'll update as often as I can so hang with me. :)