The Phoenix's Aerie

Michael is a SM/WW shipper!

2009-05-16T06:39:25Z

We have officially introduced Michael to the DCAU, and it seems to have taken root. He watched "Justice League" with us one night (he had a long, late nap, then woke up late when we happened to be watching it), and proceeded to sit motionless for the entire episode (pretty good for a 2.5-year-old). Then he grabbed the DVD case and asked for more. And more. And more!

His favorite hero so far is the Flash, maybe because he himself is fairly fast on his feet. One of the things he does most often with our set of JL plushies is to make Superman and Wonder Woman kiss. :-) We had to chuckle when we saw that.

I'm not sure what the long-term effects of early JL exposure are on toddlers. Anyone?

Drabble: Mixed Blessings

2007-05-13T05:15:45Z

Mixed Blessings

Fanfic 100 prompt: Dark

The phone rang in the early morning darkness.

"Wayne Manor."

"A boy? Congratulations, sir. How is Mrs. Wayne?"

"She's in critical condition? What –"

"I'm sorry, sir, there's a lot of background noise. Did you say she hemorrhaged? My heavens!"

"She had emergency surgery? How fortunate your friend Dr. Caldwell was on call."

"I'm so sorry, sir. I know that you both wanted a large family."

"Thank goodness he's healthy. Have you named the lad yet?"

"Bruce is a fine name. I'll stop by the hospital later today with some flowers."

"Good night, Dr. Wayne. Congratulations again on your son."

Fic: Splintered, Part Nine

2007-05-11T03:07:12Z

Part Eight

Part Nine: Visiting Hours

Alfred cleared his throat. "Mr. Kent is here to see you."

Bruce looked up from The Economist to see Clark entering the kitchen, his left hand covering his glasses, feeling his way blindly.

"Is it safe?"

He sighed. "Yes, Clark, it's safe. You don't have to worry about me falling in love with you. You couldn’t possibly compare to Zatanna."

Clark raised an eyebrow. "After all we've been to each other, Bruce? I'm hurt."

"Get over it. Zee's the only one for me." And he scribbled on the whiteboard that had never left his side since the previous day:

It never stops! Don't get me wrong, Zatanna's cute and all,
but this is completely nuts.

Clark laughed. "So I shouldn't put some of the Tears in Lois's coffee tomorrow?”

You’d drop her in the ocean after a day or two of this crap.

"By the way, Clark, have you seen Zatanna?"

"Um, no."

"I really miss her."

Clark slowly shook his head. “You’ve got it bad. I never thought I’d see you lose your head like this.”

I can’t control my speech or my feelings, but at least I can still think. Just pretend I've got Tourette's

"Okaaay then… But seriously, don't you think it's time to come up with a new cover story for the press? That Asiatic flu excuse is getting old."

"Tell them I'm with my sweetie Zatanna." He wrote, You come up with something. You're the writer.

"What about the League? People are starting to notice."

Just tell the League I'm being anti-social, he wrote. They'll believe it.

"No kidding."

"You know, Zatanna –"

"She really loves you, you know," Clark said quietly. "And I don't mean Zee."

Bruce paused, and then wrote, slowly,

Yeah, she really does. Can't figure out why.

"Must be your boyish charm."

It worked on Lois, he wrote.

Clark snorted. "You're never going to let me live that down, are you?"

He wrote:

Just paying you back for that little re-enactment
you and Wally-boy did the other night.

"I have no idea what you're talking about. Wally and I have something very special together."

Yeah, he wrote. Two functioning brain cells. Not sure how he gets along without any.

Clark laughed. "Same old Bruce. How are you holding up?"

"Aside from missing Zee terribly and being stuck at home for days on end, I'm doing swimmingly."

"Darn, I wish I could publish this." Clark opened his briefcase and pulled out two bottles of Czech beer. "These are good. Have one."

"Nice." Bruce reached over to get a bottle opener. "Alfred would be appalled I'm not pouring it into a glass. Zatanna wouldn't care, because she loves me."

"Yeah, well, I'll make you a member of the petite bourgeoisie any day now."

"No way am I going middle class. And if that were the case with you, that should be a Schlitz, not imported Czech beer, you poser. Zatanna? Not a poser."

Clark raised his bottle. "To women."

"To Zee-Zee." They clinked bottles, and he hastily scribbled, To Diana. And Zatanna is nice, too.

"Lois has been wondering how you've been doing. She was all ready to start researching a story about that mysterious Asiatic flu you supposedly contracted."

How'd you stop her? he wrote.

"I didn't. Perry did. He suggested she write an exposé on corruption in city government instead, especially on their procedures for awarding rebuilding contracts."

Bruce wrote, Saved by the boss. Guess you haven't told her your big secret, then.

"I was going to, but then…events interfered."

What's your excuse now? he wrote.

"I'm not sure whether Lois would be mortified that she hadn't figured it out, or insulted that I thought she hadn't." Clark's voice rose slightly. "And why are you so interested?"

Touched a nerve, did I? Bruce thought.

He wrote:

I said I'd look out for her. She needs to know. If she doesn't hear it from you, she'll be hurt. I won't stand for it.

"I don't suppose you've ever hidden something important. Of course not. The Batman's always right."

Bruce sipped his beer. I wish.

He picked up the dry-erase marker again, and wrote: Damn straight. And don't you forgit it.
Then he crossed out the word he'd deliberately misspelled, and rewrote it.

"A joke. That's new. You know, Bruce, you've changed since you joined the League –"

Bruce held up his hand to protest, not trusting himself to speak.

"– yes, I know you've always said you're just a part-timer. Then why are you around so much?"

Somebody has to keep you honest, he wrote.

"I presume that's a plural 'you'?"

Bruce nodded.

"All of us? Even Diana?" Clark looked at him closely. "How exactly are you keeping her honest?"

He wrote:

She keeps me honest.

* * *

Bruce grunted in annoyance. One of the wires in his speech synthesizer had slipped out of position again, and he couldn't quite fit it into place.

His hands could be put to better use, caressing Zatanna's lithe body, he found himself daydreaming. Even after twenty years, she didn't seem to have changed much physically, although he hadn't been in a position to examine her as closely as he had that one time –

Not going there, for so many reasons. Wonder what she really thinks of me. Probably good she's staying away until tonight.

And the daydreaming started again. Maybe tomorrow night he could invite Zatanna over. Alfred could make them a special dinner, and they could get reacquainted…

He heard the transporter hum and his heart skipped a beat, hoping it was Zee arriving early. Instead, Shayera stepped off the platform. He was surprised to realize that he wasn't disappointed.

"Clark said I should stop by. Something about how my mace would help you with a problem you're having." She handed it to him.

Right. The nth metal disrupts magic. Good one, Clark.

"I figured I owed you a favor for telling me about Rex."

Bruce finally felt free of the sweet haze that had been clouding his brain. As a test, he pictured Zatanna; a pretty woman, his friend, his colleague, his teenage crush, the first woman he'd deceived…but not his love. He released the breath he'd been holding.

"Bruce?" Shayera asked. "Hello? You with us?" She glanced around the Cave. "I don't see anything here that would be improved with a whack of my mace, unless you want me to demolish that structure you have in the middle. That wasn't there the last time I was here. Looks like it's in the way."

"Better leave it alone for now. I might need it again."

"Should I ask what you needed it for in the first place? You keeping someone prisoner down here?"

Only myself, he thought. "It's a magic thing."

"Oh. Okay… didn't think you did much with magic. But hey, suit yourself." She picked up one of the chairs scattered about, reversed it, and sat down. "You know, I haven't seen much of you lately since the whole Diana… thing. You've even been out of the tabloids."

"Don't tell me you read those things."

She shrugged. "Helps if I'm aware of the latest rumor about me when a reporter jams a microphone in my face."

"People are getting over it, Shayera. It'll take time, but they will trust you again. It happened with Superman."

She looked skeptical. "Says you. How do you know what people think?"

"I'm still monitoring anti-Hawkgirl websites and chatrooms. Trust me; there's improvement."

"I guess if someone as pessimistic as you sees improvement, it must exist." She shifted her wings. "I'd better go; I'm on the evening shift. Want me to leave my mace? I stopped carrying it in my patrol car; it interfered with the spell that hides my wings. One of the winos we busted was jabbering on about my being an angel and how he'd seen some light and was going to lay off the sauce." And she smiled, as if remembering something.

"I could use it, yes. Let me know when you need it back."

"Okay." She stood on the transporter pad, and put her hand to her ear to call the Tower.

"Shayera –"

"What?"

"Thanks."

She grinned. "Not a problem, Bruce. Let's get together sometime. I haven't kicked your ass in the training room for a while."

"Oh, is that what you remember? Guess my Batarang hit you harder last time than I thought."

* * *

The intercom crackled to life. "Princess Diana of Themyscira is here."

"Send her down," Bruce said, and he returned to programming the speech synthesizer.

At the sound of heels on the stairs, Bruce looked up from his workbench.

Diana stepped onto the Cave floor, her face resigned. "How are you doing?"

"Better, now that you're here." He smiled. "I've missed you."

"Bruce? Did Zatanna –"

He pointed to the mace sitting on the workbench. “God bless Thanagarian technology. It’s dampening the magic. We can't have it here when Zatanna arrives, but it's giving me a brief respite."

Bruce knew he'd never forget the look of sheer joy on Diana's face. "Oh, thank Hera!" she exclaimed, flying into his arms. Her momentum unbalanced the stool, and after a few wobbly moments, they fell unceremoniously on the cold, hard floor.

"You're slowing down, Princess. You should have had us in the air before we hit the ground."

"My brave warrior. You jump off rooftops, walk up walls, and yet you can't keep yourself from falling off a stool?"

He smirked. "Couldn't help it. You're too heavy."

"You," she said, poking his chest, "are being a pain. There are consequences for that."

"Really? I don't see enough of your sisters here to take me on."

"Oh, they're not needed." And she started to tickle him. "And I wouldn't let them near you, anyway."

"This isn't fair," he said, mightily resisting the urge to laugh. "I'm not wearing the Batsuit."

"That's the point. You're defenseless – just the way a man should be."

"I'll show you 'defenseless.'" And he gave as good as he got, tickling her mercilessly until their laughter echoed through the Cave.
He managed to roll on top of her, narrowly avoiding the fallen stool. "Now, who's defenseless?"

Her expression sobered. "I'd say we both are, against each other. Maybe that's a weakness." She sighed. "I've never met anyone like you."

"Not even Odysseus?" he said, raising an eyebrow.

She rolled her eyes. "I never met him, just read Homer's and other writers' accounts of him, heard rumors, the usual. You and he are both heroes, but he was just trying to survive whatever the gods decided to throw at him. You've dedicated your life to pursuing justice. I'd say you're the better man." She was looking calmly up at him, as if daring him to contradict her.

Bruce felt uncomfortable under her gaze, so he glanced away. Diana seized the opportunity and quickly gained the upper hand, pinning him down and laughing gaily. He tensed, half-expecting to feel the first symptoms of a panic attack.

“Are you – are you all right?” Diana started, her eyes wide.

“I – I think so. Just a false alarm, I guess.” He realized he was sweating.

“Great Hera’s crown - I am so sorry.” She looked stricken

He mopped his brow. “It’s okay. I think it was mostly fear that it might happen.”

“If you would rather I leave – “

“Absolutely not.” He smiled. “I think you were being very persuasive, in fact.”

“Was I now?”

“Well, you did have me pinned. Far be it for me to disagree with an Amazon who has me in a wrestling hold."

"I didn’t have you in a hold," she said, suddenly coy, her fingers tracing his chest. "You were just too lazy to toss me off you."

"Maybe I’m just too smart."

"If you're so smart, why are we still talk– mmph."

His lips stopped her teasing.

After a few heated minutes, Diana raised her head and smiled. "This is nice, but I can't wait until we can break Aphrodite's spell, and you'll be back to normal."

"If you want normal, you'd be better off with someone else."

"You know what I mean. I've missed your particular brand of abnormality. Not to mention, I’ve enjoyed helping you with your…problem."

As much as Bruce was enjoying the feel of Diana's body entwined with his, he couldn't help glancing at the clock. "Zatanna will be here soon. We need to return Shayera's mace before she arrives."

"Shayera must like you to let you borrow it without her being here," Diana said, a bit sulkily.

He noted her suddenly jealous tone with a certain satisfaction. "I asked first, unlike you. We men are more diplomatic. You Amazons could learn a lot from – umph."

She continued showing him how much Amazons had to teach him until Alfred's voice informed them of "Ms. Zatara's" imminent arrival.

* * *

With less than a minute to spare, Diana had hastily asked the Watchtower to teleport the mace into Shayera's quarters. It had been unnerving how quickly the fog had returned once Shayera's mace had been taken away.

Zatanna entered, looking very business-like. "I like your idea of a sacrifice, Diana, but I think there's something we need to do first."

Bruce noticed how cute Zee-Zee – Zatanna, you dolt! – was when she put on her "planning face".

"What could we possibly have to do first?" Diana asked, folding her arms and scowling.

Zatanna sighed. "We need to get all the Tears from Selina, or this whole thing you're planning will be for naught. I know you're chummy with the Olympian Powers, but I don’t think it wise to assume we could repeat the whole thing if Selina tried again."

"But he's already –"

"We don't know," Zatanna interrupted impatiently, "whether the effects are exclusionary or not. We've been calling it a potion out of convenience, but that's not technically what it is at all. Nobody 'cooked this up', so it's not bound by any of the rules of alchemy. For all we know, 'snoogums' here –"

Bruce beamed. Diana fumed.

"– could be induced to fall in love with every member of his rogues' gallery, if he kept getting splashed."

"No way! Zatanna's the only one for me." Still beaming, he scribbled on the whiteboard:

Are you serious?

"'Fraid so," Zatanna said, looking glum.

He wanted to embrace her and cheer her up. His marker worked furiously.

Did I mention that I want this fixed NOW YESTERDAY!

"Repeatedly," Diana said, sighing.

Bruce sat down again and resisted the urge to kick something, his thoughts in turmoil. I am not going to be Joker's boy toy! There has to be
a way to…

Wait a minute.

"Zee babe," he heard himself say, wincing, "was your plan to go get Selina? You’re so smart."

Zatanna blinked, clearly surprised to hear something other than nauseating claptrap come out of his mouth.

Bruce cleared his throat. "Come on, Zatanna, tell us more about this brilliant plan that came from that sexy brain of yours."

Diana looked exasperated.

Sorry.

Zatanna closed her eyes and rubbed her temples. "Having a man eating out of your metaphorical hand is not all it’s cracked up to be."

He wrote:

So what were you going to do?
Ask Selina politely to give you the rest of the Tears?

"Yes, minus the 'politely' bit," Zatanna said grimly. "And I thought Diana could use the lasso on her to get her to tell us where she's hidden them."

“Well, I’m going with you, hot stuff.”

"You're in no condition –" Diana began.

He held up a hand to interrupt her. "Zatanna, don't you think that Selina would love to see how happy we are together?" And he wrote:

There is no way she wants me to be like this. She values freedom too much to wish slavery on anyone.

Zatanna appeared thoughtful. "He's got a point, you know."

Diana just stared at her. "You can't be taking this seriously. Selina, value freedom? She chose to do this to him!"

“People do stupid things for love, Diana – or whatever they think of as love, anyway.” Zatanna tapped her foot impatiently. “Put your feelings
aside and think about it." she continued, as Diana drew breath again to protest. "You can always use the lasso, but it would be best if we could get her to help us willingly. I think she'll be more likely to cooperate if she sees what the Tears did to him."

"I am going to use the lasso whether she cooperates or not! How can we trust her otherwise?"

Brue cleared his throat, and they both looked at him. “Zatanna, darling, I'm going. Period. Diana, use your owl suit. I'm sure Zee can conjure up something covering for herself.”

"Owl suit?" Zatanna asked, a bit mystified.

"Alfred made her one, sweetheart. Would you like one, too?"

She rolled her eyes. "I'll pass."

"Let's go," Diana said. "Bruce, you need to keep quiet – for the sake of the Batman's reputation, if nothing else."

Bruce couldn’t help himself. "You don't tell me what to do! You're just some Amazonian also-ran. Zee-Zee –"

Zatanna sighed explosively and looked straight at him. "Bruce, do you love me?"

He felt a wave of adoration as he gazed into her eyes. "Of course, you sexy thing."

"Then shut the hell up!"

Unable to speak, he nodded vigorously, pleased that his smart girl had finally figured out how to spare them all. He wrote:

THANK YOU.

"You're welcome," Zatanna muttered under her breath.

* * *

"Nice get-up," Zatanna said, eyeing Diana's owl costume. "That's certainly… protective."

Zatanna was wearing her ordinary costume, yet it seemed to shimmer slightly, as if covered in diamond dust. The shimmering extended all the way to her face and hands and seemed to pulsate regularly, in time with her heartbeat.

Diana was clearly impressed. "A magical shield?"

"Not really. I conjured this, sure, but it's a solid, physical barrier, not a magical one. The handkerchief with the super-absorbent fibers gave me the idea. I conjured a translucent fluid-repellent material."

"Really? Then why does it sparkle like that?"

"It looks nice." Zatanna appeared mildly embarrassed, and looked away.

Bruce coughed impatiently and pointed at an imaginary watch on his wrist.

Zatanna raised her hands and intoned, "Tropsnart su ot saniles emoh."

The air swirled about them, and their field of view narrowed all around until it was but a slit of light; then, as if a giant spring had been released, the slit slammed open, and they appeared in Selina's living room. Not that different from a boom tube, he reflected idly, as he heard the dying echoes of the pop caused by the suddenly displaced air.

Selina didn't seem overly surprised to see them as she swept her hair back with her fingers. "How wonderful of you to stop by, Bruce! I've been trying so hard to drop off a written invitation in person, but you've become such a private person lately – and your protégés can be so overprotective." Selina looked them over, barely repressing a smirk when she eyed Diana's costume. "But I didn't mean for you to bring them along. This kitty doesn't like crowds, you know."

Zatanna stepped forward. "This isn't a social call. Where are the Tears?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Her smile did not reach her eyes, which were flinty and cold. "It was so nice of you to drop by, though. And is that Batgirl in the owl suit, or Huntress?"

Bruce noticed that though Selina's eyes appeared fixed on Zatanna and Diana, her attention was on him.

"Bruce? Why don't you tell Selina what's on your mind," Zatanna said.

With the spell released, the floodgates opened. "Selina, I can’t thank you enough for bringing Zee-Zee and me together. All these years, I never realized how much she meant to me." Out of the corner of his eye, he thought he could see Diana’s jaw tighten behind her owl mask.

"Now, Bruce, could you do me a favor?" Zatanna asked.

"Yes, lover? I'll do anything you want, you know."

"I want you to be quiet again."

Thanks, 'Zee-Zee', he thought.

Selina's face showed a bizarre combination of fury and panic. "What the – you witch! What the hell did you do to his mind?! "

Unable to follow the plan any longer, Diana exploded. "Porne! This is what you did to him, you –!" for a moment it looked like she was about to fly at Selina and tear her limb from limb – her eyes widening, Zatanna opened her mouth, as if to cast a spell – but it was Diana who stopped herself, taking a deep breath and floating back to the floor. Bruce could hear the fibers of the Kevlar-Nomex snapping as she clenched her fist, and he idly noted for future reference that it was indeed possible to disrupt the weave through sheer compression.
Selina went pale as she realized who was actually inside the owl costume. Now knowing that she faced the enraged princess of the Amazons, fully capable of giving Superman a black eye, she took a step back.

Now that's something you don't see every day, Bruce thought.

"Maybe –" Selina swallowed, her tone of voice betraying an almost completely dry mouth – "maybe we could all sit down and – discuss this like rational –" her eyes darted back to Diana's frame, trembling with fury, and Zatanna's unnerving calm "– hyper-powerful women and, uh, me?"

"Why, Ms. Kyle, we thought you would never ask." Zatanna smiled sweetly as she said it, and for some reason her tone of voice made
Bruce's blood run cold.

Selina sat down gingerly, never letting Diana out of her sight.

"So, Br– that is, you're um, you're all dressed…" despite the cowl, Diana's glare could be felt physically throughout the room, "…interestingly?" Selina finished lamely, biting her lip.

Bruce actually felt sorry for her.

"Yes, Ms. Kyle," Zatanna continued, "we all are dressed in a somewhat, oh, confining manner." Her gaze, her tone, were bizarrely kind, as if addressing a little girl. "It's been an interesting couple of weeks. You see, Bruce here got splashed with something a bit, well, overpowering. I’m sure he can explain better than I." She waved at him.

That’s my cue. Bruce flipped open a compartment of his utility belt and extracted a small, fold-out keyboard and digital display. He quickly typed the commands that would activate the message he'd previously recorded, and his synthesized voice spoke:

"Hello, Selina. That was some potent champagne you splashed me with."

She looked down at the synthesizer, then up to his face, bewildered. “But why – I don’t understand.”

Zatanna sighed, closing her eyes. "Go ahead. Explain, Bruce."

"Anything you say, snugglebunny," Bruce winced as he heard himself say. He keyed in another command, and the synthesizer said,
"Zatanna tried to free me from the Tears of Aphrodite with a spell. It worked partially. I can reason and write – but I can't imagine what it would be like without her spell. Otherwise…" he paused the synthesizer and spoke, his voice so submissive it gave him chills as he said it, "I would do anything my sweet Zatanna told me to."

He reactivated the synthesizer. "I wouldn't wish this on anyone. Unlike you, Zatanna refused to take advantage. But I guess you would have. Darling."

Selina rose shakily, her mouth wide open as if to protest.

"Sit down!" Diana shouted.

Selina sat.

Bruce typed again, cueing the last of his recorded messages, and the synthesizer spoke: "The effect is temporary. I will be fine eventually. But you’ve got to give us the Tears, Selina. I can't risk Joker or Penguin getting them."

"I would never–!"

"Prove it." Diana said.

All three looked at Diana in surprise.

"Selina," Diana said, her voice suddenly calm, "I can tell that you love him. But ask yourself – is this love? Do you really want a puppet for a lover? I think you should make amends. And that starts with telling us where you've hidden the rest of the Tears."

Selina looked down, then back up, her eyes moist.

"Selina." Zatanna's voice was sweet again. "Dear. I think you know by now that Diana has taken this rather personally. Bruce looked at me by accident, when I thought I had cured him through my counterspell. You see the result. I know this isn't what you want. Now, I'm sure you're familiar with Diana's Lasso of Truth."

At those words, Selina sucked air involuntarily and gripped the armchair.

Zatanna then motioned at Diana, whose body had tensed again. "We would really rather not use it on you, but mark my words: there is no way on earth that we will leave here tonight without the Tears. All of the Tears. One way or another."

Zatanna waved her hand and said, "Sierzah duolc fo hturt." The air around them suddenly became heavier, as if Something, massive and expectant, were just outside the door, breathing softly. When next she spoke, Zatanna's voice reminded Bruce, rather alarmingly, of Circe at her least playful.

"Selina Kyle, that we might spare you the Lasso, I have summoned Hazrei's Cloud of Truth. It will turn the air blue if you lie. Lie enough, and Diana and I will become very impatient." Her face was impassive.

The Thing Outside exhaled slowly, waiting.

Selina nodded, her eyes so wide they seemed round.

"Good." Zatanna's voice was businesslike. "I'm sure you noticed that we have the alabaster flask. Do you have the remaining Tears?"

"N–" the air turned slightly blue and the Thing Outside breathed in –"yes," she amended hastily.

"Good. Now, where did you put them?"

"In a squeeze bottle in the medicine cabinet. It's got a – a number nine on it." She tried to smile, but it looked more like a grimace. A bead of sweat trickled down her temple.

“Does this bottle contain all the remaining Tears?” Zatanna asked.

“Yes.”

And the air remained clear. Zatanna looked at Diana coolly. "I'll go get it. Guess we don't have to use the lasso."

"Too bad," Diana said, eyeing Selina darkly through narrowed eyes.

"Which bathroom?" Zatanna asked.

Selina wiped her brow. "The master bath. Down the hall, to your right."

Selina seemed to relax slightly in Zatanna's absence, but still kept sneaking glances at the door, and over at Diana, whose implacable gaze was fixed on her. "Bruce, you've got to believe me. I didn't mean for this to happen to you."

He typed quickly, and the synthesizer spoke. "Didn't you?"

"Circe just told me it would – it would make you fall in love with me. I didn't know it would –"

The air around Selina remained clear.

Bruce typed, and the synthesizer spoke. "You were willing to use magic to make me love you. I'm supposed to feel better just because you didn't know how powerful the Tears were? Selina, this is what you wanted. You just didn't know how well it would work."

Diana said, "Circe has no scruples. She could tell you wanted him, and used your desperation as a means to get what she wanted. She would have no qualms about enslaving a man with magic, and she may have assumed you wouldn't either. I guess she was right."

Selina's lower lip was quivering.

Zatanna returned, holding a small black bag; its sides seeming to shimmer much like Zatanna's technomagical shield. She turned her wrist, her fingers caressing the air as she spoke.

"Laever ruoy rewop."

The air around them smelled sweet suddenly – sweet and musky. A soft pink glow filled the room for a moment, then faded. The Thing Outside inhaled quickly, as if alarmed.

Zatanna's intense gaze went past them, to the door outside. When next she spoke, her voice sounded stern. "Sierzah duolc! Nruter ot eht diov." There was a rush of sound, like a waterfall; then a deep, oppressive silence that lingered for a few moments.

Selina’s face was buried in her hands.

Bruce's synthesized voice spoke, "We're done here."

Wordlessly, Diana and Zatanna got up and stood on either side. Zatanna raised her hands once more and began the incantation. "Tropsnart su kcab ot erehw ew erew." As the air swirled around them and the world again compressed into a slit of light, he thought he heard Selina's soft, whispered sobs, brittle as frozen wax.

Drabble: Ring and Totem - Future

2007-05-05T02:02:04Z

Future

Set two years after "Destroyer". Fanfic 100 prompt: When?

She walked into their bathroom, and stopped short when she saw him holding her pack of birth control pills.

"Don't start, Boo."

He took a step forward. "Mari –"

"It's not the right time."

He sighed, and she saw weariness in his face, the weariness of a man who had just been a pallbearer in his uncle's funeral.

"There may not be a right time. Did you ever think of that?"

She had. There was no answer she could give, save for a consoling hug.

He looked away, and she wondered if he was remembering a helmet and metal wings.

Drabble: Ring and Totem - Present

2007-05-05T01:59:52Z

Present

Set one week after "Destroyer". Fanfic 100 prompt: Writer's Choice – Time.

Mari watched herself on the screen as she fought her holographic opponents.

"You're still favoring that shoulder," John said from behind her. "You're not ready for full duty."

"Tell that to the Parademons I took out."

"That was an emergency. We needed everyone." He slipped his arm around her. "All I'm saying is, you still need time to heal."

Mari rested her hand on his. "Boo, you're the one who needs time – to stop feeling guilty. It wasn't your fault I got hurt." She smiled. "I'll show you tonight how much I've healed."

His grin matched hers. "I'll be waiting."

Drabble: Ring and Totem - Past

2007-05-05T01:55:47Z

The first of three moments in the lives of Green Lantern and Vixen.

Past

Set before "Initiation". Fanfic 100 prompt: School.

Though Mari had pushed herself to her limit in training, Green Lantern had only barked more orders. Her hand was on the doorknob when she heard his voice.

"Keep it up, Vixen, and you might survive your first mission."

She looked back to glare at him, then kept walking. "Thanks."

Supergirl approached her in the hallway. "That's a compliment. GL was a Marine. He's tough."

"I'm flattered."

"I think he likes you."

"Yeah. Right."

"I think you like him."

"That arrogant –" She paused, considering. "He does have a nice –"

"I'm flattered."

Mari turned, and saw his slight smile.

Ficlet: Intimacy (Rated PG-13)

2007-04-04T04:00:23Z

Author's Note: Set three years after "Destroyer". Spoilers: Far From Home, Destroyer. Fanfic 100 prompt: Christmas.

Her voice drifted down from the upstairs bedroom. "Kal, I'm waiting."

Clark looked up from his laptop and smiled. Only Diana could be both imperious and sultry in the same breath.

And only Diana still called him Kal, now that Kara was gone. His parents and friends called him Clark, Lois called him Smallville, Perry called him Kent, and the rest of the world called him Superman.

"Kal?" Diana's tone was slightly more imperious now.

Of course, she knew he'd heard her. She could have whispered his name, and he would have heard.

He decided to tweak her a little; no point in letting the princess get her way all the time. "I'm finishing a story." He quickly typed a sentence for verisimilitude.

"I can make you a better offer," Diana called, sounding unconvinced.

"I'm on deadline." This was also true, to an extent. His deadline was tomorrow. Assuming no crises required Superman's attention, he could easily finish up in the morning. He could even slip downstairs… afterwards…if necessary. He didn't need that much sleep.

He returned to the screen and scrolled down, counting the number of profiles he still had to write. All of them were survivors of the destruction of the Daily Planet building. There was a certain poetic justice, he thought, that Clark Kent should be assigned to revisit the stories of the people Superman had been too busy to help. He was certain that the interviews would have gone differently, had they realized his identity.

But none of them had known, not even Lois. As he'd expected, she had insisted on writing her profile herself. To her credit, he couldn't detect much of the previous emotion she'd felt that Superman hadn't prevented her injuries. He remembered their conversation three years ago in her hospital room.

"It's not like he wasn't busy saving the world," she'd told him, seeming almost embarrassed. "And I'm just one person. But he'd been there, every time I needed him – until he wasn't."

And that was why Clark had never shared his secret with her. He hadn't wanted to lose Lois as a friend, and he knew that Clark Kent would never be anything else to her. Lois would never call him Kal.

"Kal, can't you see what you're missing?" Diana's voice was teasing now, tantalizing.

He glanced up through the walls to the bedroom and saw her, stretched out languorously on the bed, wearing the negligee he'd bought her for Christmas. Clearly expecting his gaze, she slowly raised herself up on one elbow and yawned elaborately.

"Bored, are you?" he called out, trying hard not to smile. It's not like she can see me, but it's the principle of the thing.

She tossed her hair a bit, then leaned back in bed. "Don't tell me I'm distracting you. I thought you had this deadline." The last word she said with a throatiness that could have made any man blush. "What about what the dust jacket of your book says? Isn't Clark Kent supposed to be 'all about the story'?"

He realized he was failing miserably at keeping himself from smiling. He grinned, then chuckled. "I am all about the story. That's how –"

"– you got the Pulitzer. You're an Olympian with letters. The muses are kind to you. Only…" she was tracing nonsensical letters on the sheets "…only the muses are wondering why you won't come to bed." She had dropped her voice to a whisper.

He rolled his eyes. "What, you have them on speakerphone?"

She tossed her hair again, this time more defiantly. "Yes, as a matter of fact, I do."

He raised an eyebrow. "Then be a dear and tell them I have a deadline."

She folded her arms, tossed herself back in bed, and turned her back to his gaze. "Hmmph!" It would have been a convincing act, if he hadn't been able to tell from the way her facial muscles were arranged that she was smiling.

He closed his laptop and headed for the stairs.

You win, Princess.

For the Lee-lovin' BSG-ers out there

2006-12-15T18:39:00Z

Check out this article on scifi.com. It's all about Lee Adama and his motivations, and is written by Jamie Bamber.

I love smart, handsome men who can write. :-)

On an unrelated note, Michael giggled today for the first time!!!

2006: The Year in Review

2006-12-14T23:37:44Z

Tally: 26 stories

Stories longer than 100 words: 9, including "Splintered" and "Backwards in High Heels" (in progress).

Drabbles: 19, all listed under "The Trouble with Drabbles."

Filks: 3, Gotham Nights, You Belong to the City, and Caped Crusader.

Favorite story this year (of ours): Splintered I'm enjoying the challenge and just wish we had more time to finish it.

Runner-up: Gotham Morning. I like the way we address the complications of having a relationship with someone three thousand years old. Although, upon watching "Fury" again, I realized that unless Diana was lying to Batman, she really hadn't been off the island before. :-(

Our best story this year: Tough call. I actually prefer last year's Cold Confessions to much of what we've written this year. I guess I'd have to vote equally for She Drinks a Whiskey Drink... and Intimate Solitude.

Our worst story this year: Attitude Adjustment. I was never able to get it to work, and the lack of reviews underscored that.

Story most underappreciated by the universe, in my opinion:
Any Man's Death.

Most fun story: She Drinks a Whiskey Drink.... That one practically wrote itself.

Most sexy story: Sights and Sounds.

Story with single sexiest moment: That would have to be Sights and Sounds again, other than some moments in "Splintered." We didn't write much in the "sexy" vein this year.

Story with single sweetest moment: Coming Home, hands down.

Most unintentionally *telling* story: Guest of Honor, although it wasn't exactly unintentional.

"Holy crap, that's *wrong*, even for you" story: Definitely Awakenings. I'm still waiting to find an Alfred/Diana icon. :-D

Hardest story to write: "Splintered," again.

Easiest story to write: Cards on the Table.

This year's theme and the story that demonstrates it most: I don't think we had a theme this year.

That meme that's going around

2006-12-07T21:54:33Z

On-line journals are little filters that we each see every one else's lives through, the parts others choose to share with us. That said, we all think we are close, but really we seldom know *a lot* about each other. So I want you to ask me something you think you should know about me. Something that should be obvious, but you have no idea about. Ask away.

Then post this in your LJ and find out what people don't know about you.

Ficlet: Intimate Solitude (PG-13)

2006-12-07T03:48:25Z

Author's Note: Set in the DCAU, post JLU. Fanfic 100 prompt: Moon. Thanks to paulasj for the beta.

Selina rested her head on Bruce's chest. She felt his hand stroke her hair, and wondered if the gesture stemmed from affection, or mere habit.

It had been eight months since his first appearance on her balcony. She had thought he had come to interrogate, to threaten, or to warn.

His kiss had surprised her, as had his need. Later, in the moonlight, she had traced his many scars, nearly asking if any had been her doing.

He had left in silence from their first encounter, and she had concluded that it had been an aberration, a momentary weakening of his will. But he had returned another night, and another.

She never knew when to expect him, but she did know that he would eventually find his way into her arms. To her chagrin, she'd found herself staying home some evenings when a week had passed without his presence. Had that been part of his plan? She didn't like the implication, even though he'd always made it worth her while.

Selina raised her head and looked into Bruce's eyes, then followed his gaze to the window. No Bat-signal shone in the Gotham night, but that wouldn't prevent him from leaving her. It was difficult to fully enjoy the afterglow, knowing that at any moment he could decide to disappear into the night.

So it was almost a relief when he finally said, "I have to go." He eased her body away from his, and she watched him pick up his clothing from the chair.

She couldn't help letting out a sigh as he pulled his uniform pants up. He turned his head to glance at her, eyebrow raised.

"Pity," she said. "An ass that fine shouldn't be covered up."

He buckled his utility belt around his waist. There was no reply.

As always, he took the tiny bag containing the used condom, and put it into one of the belt's many compartments.

As always, she wanted to ask him when he'd ever trust her with his DNA. And as always, she decided against it. She didn't want to know the answer.

He stepped onto her balcony, cape billowing in the wind. He readied his grapple gun.

She leaned out the open door. "What's your hurry? I make a good omelet."

He fired, and the grappling hook caught on a cornice of the neighboring building. As he swung away, she could barely hear his response.

"Maybe next time."

In honor of the first week of Advent - Repost

2006-12-06T02:14:49Z

This is still one of Phoenix's favorite stories.

Waiting

Happy birthday atemptress

2006-11-14T23:20:06Z

Just what it says. :-D

It just so happens that P. and I are working on a Bruce/Selina ficlet. We'll see if we can get it done by this weekend(paulasj betaed it and noticed some parts that need to be explained better.)

Would love to respond to billa1's challenge to expand on nancybrown's "Role of a Lifetime" - maybe once our social worker has been and gone (Friday!), Michael has been baptized (Sunday!) and Thanksgiving is over.

Drabble: Guest of Honor

2006-11-02T22:21:44Z

The reporters surrounded Superman as he left the Adoption Awareness Month banquet.

Rebecca Winters grabbed his arm. "How does it feel to be Adoptee of the Year?"

"I'm honored." He tugged at his collar. "I'm just glad to help promote adoption. It's a choice that many people never consider."

Angela Chen stepped forward. "Do you consider yourself a role model for adopted children?"

"I never thought of myself that way. I've always tried to make my parents proud, that's all."

"Do you miss your real parents?" Angela asked.

"I sure do, especially on Sundays. Ma makes the best fried chicken."

Fanfic 100 Challenge prompt: Winter.

Drabble: Halloween Party

2006-10-31T21:18:34Z

Written for merfilly's Halloween challenge. Fanfic 100 prompt: Writer's Choice - Halloween.

A League costume party seemed redundant, but everyone knew how much Wally loved Halloween, and no one could resist his grin. With his red hair and white lab coat, he made a perfect Beaker from "The Muppet Show".

Shayera heard a few mutters when people saw her angel outfit. Tuxedo-clad Clark's imitation of Bruce Wayne had everyone in stitches. But John and Mari evoked the greatest reaction when they entered as Black Panther and Storm.

Wally zipped over to them. "Great costumes, dudes!" Then a thought struck him. "Hey – does this mean something?"

Mari gave him a sly smile. "Maybe."

WIP question

2006-09-07T21:35:31Z

When is it time to bury the plot bunny? I still think The Way of the Warrior could have potential, but I'm not sure if we will ever get back to working on it. Would it make sense to take it down?

Appreciation (taken from merfilly)

2006-09-05T21:48:09Z

If there is one or more people on your friends list who makes your world a better place just because they exist and who you would not have met (in real life or not) without the internet, then post this same sentence in your journal.

Enough said.

One wing down

2006-08-31T14:58:57Z

The surgery went pretty well yesterday; there were some delays due to a health issue and they didn't take him back until 1:30 PM (after we got there at 8:30 AM), but everything was resolved, and we were home with pizza by 7:30 PM. Thanks for your encouragement and concern; I shared your posts with P. and he was grateful. So am I. :-)

P's on the couch now, bored. He can't write by hand, and he can't type very well. Depending on how long his recovery is, we may get a voice recognition program. At least his splint is smaller now, so he can bend his elbow, and can get it through more shirts. I am going to mention that we do have Season 1 of JL, also S1 and S2 of Big O.

We're leaving town tomorrow for the long weekend - going to visit my family in Memphis. Fortunately, it's not a terribly long drive since I'll be the sole driver. It'll be good to get away, especially since my brother, sister-in-law, and nephew will be there, and we're lucky if we get to see them once a year.

Time to make breakfast. (I don't teach today, and only have the class I'm taking this afternoon, so we got to sleep in. :-) )</lj-cut)

A bad break

2006-08-29T21:19:21Z

When imploring Heaven for a favor, it's generally a good idea to be specific.

Last week wasn't our best. Phoenix had problems at work, and we found out that the birthmom we'd been matched with was a fraud. So I muttered a lot under my breath, including some variation of "It would be nice if we could get a break soon."

Well, we did, though it wasn't the kind of break either of us wanted. Last night, P. and I came home from work, and as he was walking around the front of the car, we think his messenger bag got caught on the fender, and he fell. (The fall is undisputed. The cause is unclear.) Anyway, he broke his arm quite badly. He'll have surgery tomorrow morning to get a plate and screws installed.

This reminds me of a short story I read when I was in high school. Also of this episode of The X-Files.

Weird.

Haiku, taken from fatherartist

2006-08-28T04:22:48Z

Haiku² for athena_phoenix
him not to pursue this but he was curious to see if we fall
@

Created by Grahame

Interesting.

Haiku² for athena_phoenix
clark's profile black hair blue eyes strong jaw like bruce yet so different
@

Created by Grahame

Questions

2006-08-26T19:41:13Z

Why would someone who admittedly has never seen a single episode of Justice League think that he or she should be able to write an (animated) JL fanfic?

Why would others leave positive reviews for the result?

*shakes head*

This is what too much emphasis on self-esteem in the schools leads to.

Pairing names

2006-08-25T22:46:45Z

I am so very, very glad that none of the pairings we've written (with the exception of Clois) have one of those annoying portmanteau names.

If you're into other fandoms, check out http://community.livejournal.com/fanthropology/263844.html for a list of pairing names and some great alternative definitions. (Let's see... if "Cliana" existed, I think it would be an aphrodisiac for women.)

And off the subject of fandom: I'm done with my third project for the research firm. (cheer, cheer). Maybe now my muse will return from her extended vacation in Vancouver.

Commentary meme

2006-08-22T20:40:50Z

I'm happy to provide commentary on any of our fics, if anyone so desires. Commentary on Annunciation can be found here.

Review: Brainiac Attacks

2006-08-22T20:36:51Z

We've had the DVD at home for two months, and finally got around to watching it last night.

When I bought it, I'd thought we'd watch it right away, but we later decided to finish watching S:TAS first for continuity's sake. As it turned out, that wasn't necessary. As far as I could tell, continuity with S:TAS was pretty good (except for the characterization of Lex Luthor, which I'll get to in a moment). There was no attempt at all to maintain continuity with JLU, which royally ticked me off.

Overall, I found it entertaining, though missing the Bruce Timm "magic", if you will. The story was pretty good, the dialogue okay, but it just couldn't compare to any of the S:TAS two-parters, like "Legacy" or "Apocalypse...Now!" Just before we watched "Brainiac Attacks", we saw the S:TAS episode "Superman's Pal" which, according to the commentary, Timm and co. thought was a clunker. However, I thought it was actually much more amusing than T & C intimated, and it was definitely better written than BA.

My biggest gripe with BA was characterization. Although the Lex character is drawn the same as in S:TAS, that's where any similarity ends. S:TAS Lex is cold. He enjoys the evil he does, but he expresses his enjoyment in a smirk and a snarky comment to Mercy. BA Lex is almost...giggly. It's as if he and the Joker mind-melded. I much prefer the more "grown-up" Lex of S:TAS and JLU, and don't like this Lex at all. I'm not sure how much of the portrayal is the script, how much is the drawing, and how much is the usage of Powers Boothe as the voice, but this was not a Lex I could fear.

Brainiac was also played by a different voice actor, who gave him more emotional range, as did the artist. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought that part of the creepiness of Brainiac is the very fact that he is a robot, and does not have the same emotional range as a human. He shouldn't have facial expressions! Argh!

Lois was generally okay, though one of her lines was (IMHO) a clunker. As she's climbing some kind of metal tower to get a better view of the mayhem, Jimmy asks her why she's doing that. We see Superman fly toward her, and she replies, with a lovesick look in her eye, "That's why." Maybe it's the lovesick look more than the line itself, but that just didn't sound like independent!Lois to me.

Other details:

Yay for: alluding to the comics - Clark being offered the job of foreign correspondent
Jimmy Olson losing the mullet
giving Lois and Clark different outfits
using Bruce Timm's character design (even if the rest of the Timmverse spirit was missing)
making a passing reference to the Green Lantern
not including Supergirl - about the only nod to JLU continuity
Clois screencappable scenes, including the one in my "Good Lovin'" icon, courtesy of unammablebeauty

Boo for:
New and deproved Lex with extra slashiness (Note: the characterization bothers me, not the slashiness)
Leading us on with regard to The Big Moment, then letting us down. Nice job, guys. /end sarcasm
Clark wimping out, with regard to The Big Moment.
Completely ignoring the Lex/Brainiac interaction in JLU
Not showing even a hint of Mala or Jax-Ur in the Phantom Zone
Lousy special features (just a bunch of trailers. Oh joy.)

Overall grade: B-

Let's talk about smut!

2006-08-22T00:39:16Z

I just read a fascinating post that I ran across in metafandom http://carenejeans.livejournal.com/79239.html . Basically, the author calls writers of het fanfiction to task for focusing much more on women than on men in sex scenes (descriptions are either from her POV, or his POV about her body. She gives this as a reason why she prefers slash.

So... for women who prefer to read about gorgeous caped men getting busy with other gorgeous caped men, is the reason the author gives also a reason for your preference?

For women or men who love to read about gorgeous caped men getting busy with gorgeous caped women, have you noticed a trend in the DC fandom like the author describes? (I believe her fandom is one of the Stargates.)

*off to skim our smut offerings and see if we fall into the Woman is Everything trap*