"You should tell him however you think is best. I don't want to meddle, Shayera. I just want you to be happy."

...

Batman watched as John brought Shayera a cup of tea during the founders meeting. When she saw him looking at her, he raised an eyebrow.

"You didn't tell him." Batman said while they were standing in line at the commissary. It had been a week since they talked.

"I thought you said you weren't going to meddle." She said, subtly looking around to see if there was anyone around them.

"It's not going to get any easier the longer you wait."

"Thanks for the advice." She rolled her eyes. Suddenly an arm came around her shoulders.

"What advice?" It was John, who appeared territorial.

"Batman was just telling me to avoid the chicken. He overheard the crew saying they found some frozen meat at the bottom of a freezer that they never open."

"Yikes. Thanks for heads up, man." John said. Batman nodded his head and left the two.

"Hey, you up for a mission? Superman and I are heading to Taranis for a diplomatic treaty. And we've got an extra seat."

"You know, I haven't been there in a while. I'd love to join." She smiled.

"Great."

…

When Shayera got into the Javelin, she noticed Batman in the pilot seat. He too looked surprised.

"Oh, I didn't know Batman was coming too." She said, almost through gritted teeth.

"The people of Taranis are willing to trade some technology with us. Superman thought it would be a good idea for me to come." He said as a matter-of-factly.

"I didn't know babe, if you want to pull out…" John said quietly and suddenly Superman entered the ship.

"We ready to roll?" Superman said, taking the seat next to Batman.

"It's fine, John." She insisted and buckled in. Luckily the ship didn't have a rear-view mirror.

"What are we talking about?" Superman asked. Lantern shook his head.

…

While Superman, Green Lantern and Shayera took a stroll around the capital city and got to know their way of life, Batman spent most of the day trying to understand what the people of Taranis were offering them. After a while he began to think that Superman maybe should've brought Atom or Mr. Terrific instead. Not that he would ever admit it.

Although the chancellor offered to bring him back to the quarters with their hover car service, Batman insisted that he walk home. They gave him an interactive map and a communication device that could also answer any of his questions.

There were still tonnes of people walking around the city despite the late night. There was some kind of carnival happening. With so many different creatures from all over the galaxy, he didn't feel out of place in his cape and cowl.

"Fancy meeting you here." He heard a familiar voice.

"I see you've blended in well." He said, noting her clothes. She was wearing a Victorian style men's jacket over her usual crop top and shorts.

"It gets cold." Soon they were walking side by side in the streets.

"What's going on tonight?" He asked.

"Lunar festival. It's the biggest event of the solar cycle. The night time will be twice as long today."

"I sense you've been to one of these before."

"Back when I was a teenager. If only you could see how many fights we broke out."

"I can imagine." They passed by a packed establishment that looked like a bar and Shayera looked at it longingly.

"I could kill for a cold glass of blerb right now." She said. Batman furrowed his eyebrows. "But I won't."

The kept walking and ended up closer to the town centre. Shayera could hear the sound of children singing in the square.

"Did you ever want children?" She asked.

"I never thought my lifestyle would suit any conventional child rearing."

"But did you want them?"

"It doesn't matter what I want. It's not about me."

"Fine, be that way."

"Shayera, this child is yours. You are strong, smart and independent. You don't need me. But if you want me to be there, I will."

"I know." She said, looking at him straight in the eye. She had always admired his honesty, even when the truth hurt. She linked her arm in his and they walked closely for a while.

Perhaps it was guilt that came over Batman because suddenly he felt the urge to pull away.

"Where's John?" He asked.

"Asleep." She replied simply.

"I think we both should too."

"You go ahead, I want to enjoy the festivities a little longer." She said. She took a turn and disappeared in the crowd.

As he walked a little further, he took out the communication device and asked, "What is blerb?"

Suddenly, there was a loud explosion behind him. He instinctively ducked and heard hundreds of people screaming. He turned around and saw that it had detonated right where he last saw her.

"Shayera…"

…

The blast woke John up. When he saw that Shayera was not next to him, he started getting worried. She mentioned about the lunar festival that was going on. He cursed that he didn't go with her. When he opened his door, he saw that Superman was just about to call him too.

They flew to the scene and saw Batman evacuating civilians.

"Batman! What happened?" Superman asked as they descended to the ground.

"There was a series of explosions around the city. Time bombs." Batman said, his whole body covered in dirt.

"I thought the chancellor said there was no crime here." John said.

"I guess he was lying." Superman said. He heard screaming at one of the buildings. "Okay, let's rescue as many people as we can." And he flew away.

"Lantern." Batman called. "She was here."

…

Hours later when the fire fighters came and almost everyone was saved, they regrouped.

"Did you find her?" John asked. Superman shook his head. "How did you get here so fast, Batman? How did you know she was here?" He started to confront him but Batman stood his ground.

"Gentlemen, now is not the time. We need to work together."

"You got that right." A voice said above them. It was Shayera.

"You're okay." John said, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"Of course I am, why wouldn't I be?"

"Were you close to the blast?" Batman asked.

"Too close, got trapped under some rubble with a bunch of panicking Cypryns and it was not a good experience." She explained. John looked positively relieved.

"You should get yourself checked. There could be something in all this dust we're inhaling." Batman said.

"I think the hospitals are full of more critical patients, Batman." Shayera defended.

"No, he's right. The both of you should definitely get checked." John said.

"Green Lantern and I are going to have a chat with the chancellor." Superman said.

…

They sat in beds next to each other in the Taranis military base infirmary. Even though there weren't many people around, they didn't speak to each other. A nurse walked by Shayera's bed with an old school clipboard.

"May I know how far along are you?" The nurse asked.

"How did you…"

"We took a full body scan when you first came in. Were you not aware that you are expecting?"

"No, I know. It's been… almost 2 moons."

"Alright. Our scans show that the child is not pure Thanagarian. May I know the species of your mate?" Shayera glanced over at Batman. He wasn't looking at them but was definitely listening.

"Human."

"We'll do a more thorough check-up on the fetus but as far as I can tell, the both of you seem perfectly fine." The nurse smiled and left.

"I told you it would be okay." She said, crossing her arms.

"Can't be too careful." He said.

"Thanagarians go to battle even weeks before their due date."

"Like you said, it's half human. We're pretty fragile."

"It's half Batman, it's not."

…

"I wanted to ask you, why were you and Batman at the same place that night of the explosion?" John asked, once they arrived at his apartment.

"Can we not talk about this right now? We just got home." She felt more and more irritated by the day.

"I'm just curious. You know I trust you completely." There was that guilt again.

"I saw him walking back from the lab, we talked for 2 minutes and he left."

"I thought you hated his guts after… you know."

"It doesn't mean we can't be civil. Now can we please just relax." She sighed. He smiled and held her by the waist. They hugged for a brief moment and he kissed her forehead.

"I love you." He said. She pulled away and looked at him deeply.

"No matter what?" She asked.

"No mat…" Suddenly the doorbell rang. "That's the pizza." He said happily.

…

"Would it help if we told him together?" Batman said, surprising her.

"He'll definitely want to hit you."

She sat on his 1000 thread count sheets while he poured himself a glass of whiskey. She had caught him at an inopportune time. He was wearing only a pair of sweatpants. Even when she came in he made no effort to put on a shirt. She crossed her legs.

"No, I have to do it myself." She continued.

"We can do it in the morning, when he comes in. Rip it off like a band-aid." He still used the word we.

"Okay." She didn't make any moves to leave. "Can I stay here tonight?" She asked.

"I don't know if that's a good idea."

"Please? I... don't want to be alone."

Bruce looked at her and nodded. She made her way up the bed and buried herself under the covers. He joined her soon after. He smelled like alcohol but he was warm enough, even from a slight distance. Some time in the night, maybe it was the darkness or maybe because she thought he was asleep (not that he ever slept soundly), she laid her head on his chest. He surprised her by putting an arm around her and for the first time she felt like everything would turn out alright. That maybe she could grow to love him.

…

John slowly opened the door to Shayera's quarters to find nobody there. She wasn't on the mission roster and she wasn't on monitor duty either. His eyes travelled to the door at the far end of the hall. His stomach fell. His heart told him to trust her but his instincts pestered him with the what ifs. The door was curiously unlocked.

He looked at the two figures on the bed. The woman with red hair rested comfortably on the man's bare chest. The man had a protective arm around her abdomen. Suddenly, the man opened his eyes. His jerked movement caused the woman to wake up too. Her eyes widened in shock.

"John…" She said and stood up.

John's blank expression quickly turned into anger. "You son of a bitch!" He lunged at Batman but he was quick to roll off the bed. Using his ring, he swung a hammer at him but once again was evaded but destroyed the lamp on his side table.

"John, stop!" Shayera attempted. But couldn't be heard.

"It's not what it looks like, John." Batman tried but John's fury could not be contained. He threw a punch at Batman and was blocked. Batman swept his feet from underneath him, causing John to fall on his back. In anger, John shot a beam through his ring which sent Batman flying across the room, hitting a wall.

"I trusted you!" John yelled. He turned to Shayera. "Both of you."

Just as he was about to walk toward Batman, Shayera grabbed John from behind and put him in a headlock. "I can explain." But he lifted her over his head and slammed her to the ground.

Batman saw his grappler next to him. He picked it up and shot it at John. It missed him and but Batman came flying toward him, knocking him onto his back once again. He landed on top of John, pinning both his wrists on the floor before he could use his ring. Batman's grip was excruciatingly strong.

"That's enough, John." He growled.

"What is going on?!" Wonder Woman burst through the door in her sleeping clothes. Batman released John's arms and he pushed him off.

"It's none of your business." John said. Wonder Woman looked around the room and tried to connect the dots.

"You, step outside." John begrudgingly followed, unable to make eye contact with anyone. "The both of you, get dressed."

…

"Can I talk to him privately, please?" Shayera said. They had kept John in one of the board rooms to cool off. Wonder Woman allowed her to enter.

Batman, in his full suit, stood in the hall with Wonder Woman.

"You want to tell me what's going on?" When she was met with silence, she tried again. "How could you be so stupid, you knew they were together."

"Nothing happened."

"Even if that was true, happy couples don't sleep in other people's beds."

"What if she's not happy?" He said quietly. "What if she thinks she is because people told her she would be?"

Diana held his arm gently. "What's going on, Bruce?"

…

"I don't want to hear anything you have to say." John said when he saw Shayera.

"I'm pregnant." Like a band-aid, she remembered. John turned to her.

"And it's his."

"It happened before we got back together."

"Wait I… I hit you. Are you…" He said nervously.

"Don't worry, it's built like a tank."

"So, when were you going to tell me?"

"Today." John scoffed. "You don't understand, I didn't want to lose you." She walked closer to him.

"You should have talked to me. But instead you chose to keep me around while you continued to sleep with him."

"We weren't… it doesn't matter, okay? I screwed up. I should've told you before anyone else. I thought about all the possibilities a million times over. The chances that you'd stay. The chances that you would still accept me. Because I thought you were the one."

"Thought?"

"I don't know, John. I think about how many nights you stay awake thinking about our son in the future. I just wanted one more day of that possibility of happiness. And it kept happening."

…

"Where are you going to go?" Batman asked. She was packing her things.

"I don't know. Maybe look for Dr. Fate again."

"You're welcomed to stay with me."

"I know. I just need some time alone." She picked up her bag and put it over her shoulder. "Maybe I can come by for dinner sometime?"

"Yeah, Alfred would love to see you."

"Right, Alfred." She laid a hand on his face and looked at him in the eyes. She leaned in and gave him a chaste kiss on the lips. "I'll see you around, Batman." And with that, she was gone.

…

A/N: Send me ideas through reviews friends