[LN] Behold the Wonder

[amazing_amazon]

 She had been here...and then she'd been taken away in a flash of gold. Where she'd gone, what had happened to her, Diana couldn't say for certain. There had been permutations. Things about her she hadn't recognized. 

It was as though the universe had kept on trying to find a place for her. A reason for her to exist that made sense. 

It had kept on failing.

But she was back.

The familiar red, gold, and star-spangled blue. The lasso, glowing with warmth by her side. 

A familiar smile spread across her cheeks as she stood outside of Santa's workshop, the cold of the evening not having much of an effect on her at all.

The children had summoned her again.

She lifted herself up into the air, slowly turning around in a circle, wondering who else had been summoned. Was it the same group? Others? 

Hera, please let this time be smoother sailing.

Comments

[matchmadeinhell]

One of them had his breath catch as he saw her. He didn't know what he felt when he did, but it was a big giant mess of relief and misery and guilt. She was one of the best - the best of the best - like Kal and Bats. Everyone looked up to her, everyone loved her, and she loved everyone back.

And just like he would have crumbled after looking Kal in the eye or Bats, his psyche pretty much crumbled here.

Cassie forgave him, but of course she did. She loved him. She was relieved to have him back.

But the others - all of them - he knew they'd be ashamed. They'd be so ashamed.

Or at least he thought they would - it wasn't exactly like he could tackle the subject rationally, it wasn't like he could point out the logic to himself that his only two choices had been death - including the possible deaths of innocents if they tripped his teke and made him into a living bomb - or doing what they said.

She was Diana and she was good and kind and true and even the rare times she'd killed, there'd been very little other choice. It had been righteous, even if others had argued it wasn't. It had been out of love for the other heroes and the people she was protecting.

And that was why, when he saw her, when the reality of finally confronting the shame he knew was coming was suddenly upon him, he sank to his knees to the floor, covering his face with his hand.

His eyes were squeezed shut but tears started to drip down his cheeks under his hands.

He crumbled, his voice so choked he could barely speak.

"I'm - so - sorry. I'm - I'm - I know - everyone is - everyone is - gonna be - ashamed."

At least it was her. Not Kal, who he'd probably wither and die of misery on the spot when he faced him again, and not Bats, his eyes filled with judgement. Bats, who'd always worried he'd be some kind of fuckup.

[variabledensity]

Periodically, J'onn would do vague mental sweeps of the pole, looking for people he might recognize. Today, he gets a familiar, albeit strange ping-back, and in short order phases through several walls to make his way outside. He reforms solid once more, and gets within earshot of the Amazon, and looks about just a bit more surprised and pleased than he usually is.

"Diana. It is good to see a familiar face."