A/N: Hi everyone, hope you all had a great Thanksgiving. I finally managed to write this up, sorry for the delay. Thanks again for all of the support, I really appreciate it.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything

The Past and Present

"Different…" Diana watched Batgirl as they were on a stakeout with Batman and Robin. Dressed completely in black, face fully covered with symbolic stitches outlining where the opening for her mouth would be, a yellow outline of the bat symbol, and a cape that touched the floor. The yellow boots and gloves were replaced with black ones while the opening for the soft free flowing hair was no longer there. The movements and attitude were completely different as well… Cassandra Cain/Wayne, the new adoptive daughter of Bruce and Diana Wayne. The new Batgirl. This new Batgirl didn't resemble the original Batgirl at all. Barbra had the smile to lift the mood when things went bad. She had the technological know-how to find things that even Bruce couldn't see. Diana swore that Barbra was Bruce's partner of choice because she was the only one who possessed a skill is arguably better than his. Not to mention she worked with him just as much as Tim did – if not more. Bruce always counted on her to find pieces of information when he didn't have time to look or couldn't dig up.

But now Cassandra is Batgirl. She wasn't what Diana had in mind for an adopted daughter, but with her darkened mentality, she fitted perfectly within the batclan. Diana cared and watched out for Cassandra as she did with everyone else in the family, but what made it awkward in the beginning was just that Cassandra never spoke. Diana had a difficult time getting to know her because she didn't talk at all and mainly kept to herself. Cassandra was the least open person in the family, but over time Diana understood her way of thinking… to a certain extent. Diana easily embraced Cassandra's role as Batgirl because both Bruce and Barbra trusted her, and earning Bruce's trust was all one needed to do to be accepted by everyone else in the family. As the daughter of Lady Shiva, Cassandra grew up mastering the skills to become one of the world's greatest assassins. Her fighting ability was easily superior to Barbra's as she could take on both Dick and Tim at the same time without breaking a sweat. Cassandra was always on the mark, never missing a step, always doing what Batman told her without question. She was extremely loyal and always backed him up when he needed it. Cassandra's seriousness and deadly techniques also kept Tim in check during battles. Not that Tim messed around as much anymore – especially after that fateful night.

Nothing was the same after it happened. Just before both Diana and Bruce came back from their honeymoon two years ago, Barbra as herself was attacked by The Joker. He wanted to see if he could get her father, Commissioner Gordon, to go insane 'just for the fun of it'. The Joker shot Barbra through her spinal cord, paralyzing her from the waist down. Everyone took it hard. Tim became less witty and sarcastic when engaging enemies throughout the streets. If Diana didn't know any better, she would have thought that Tim was slowly developing Bruce's tendency to brood. He became extremely serious and almost obsessive in his own detective work to help Bruce figure things out faster. Tim was definitely giving Bruce a run for his money for the title of the World's Greatest Detective.

Dick was devastated, but did everything he could to take care of Barbra. He was the main reason why she recovered from her psychological trauma and depression. He even proposed to her and they planned to marry in a few months. He encouraged her to continue the fight and still be a part of the batclan. He helped her train her upper body to be strong enough to fight while still in the wheelchair, and perfecting her bat-a-rang accuracy to Bruce's level. With her technological intellect, she easily became the clan's base of operations with everything running through her. Barbra even organized a special team called 'The Birds of Prey' which included both The Huntress and The Black Canary. Batman easily approved the team's formation as it gave him a squad to help him do things his way instead of The Justice League's way.

Bruce took Barbra's incident the hardest. He blamed himself for what happened to her. No matter what anyone said or told him otherwise, Bruce believed he failed her. Batman was beyond pissed off, which scared the crap out of everyone. The night he found The Joker, Diana thought he was actually going to kill him. Batman had beaten The Joker like never before, practically breaking every single bone in his body while almost leaving him for dead. It took everything Diana had to bring Bruce out of his heavily brooding state afterwards. Diana had never seen the full extent of his brooding before as it finally made sense to her. Why he surrounds himself in nothing but darkness. Why he continues his brutal and intimidating ways. Gotham was like no other city. The villains here didn't scheme to take over the world or get rich quickly. No… they schemed to cause pain and chaos. They did it for the pure joy of watching the world burn. Batman was right when he told her a long time ago that she wasn't ready to see Gotham in its truest state. If she saw it then, she would have hated man's world and never come back.

No matter how much she tried to make him happy, to bring light into his life, something always happened to keep Bruce living in nothing but darkness and despair. He was right. As always… but she loved him, still loves him, and will always love him anyways. Even if it meant living in constant darkness with him and continue to see the world at its worst – the way he sees it. Her perfect world lasted the length of their honeymoon as she realized that being with Batman meant sharing the curse of darkness with him, but living with him was worth every bit of pain and suffering the curse produced. Diana wouldn't trade their love for anything and had no regrets about any of the decisions she made to be with him. Bruce warned her that being around him will eventually corrupt and darken her. She is Wonder Woman, pure of heart, nothing but light, the symbol of truth, honor, and all that is good within the world. He is Batman, cold, cruel, unforgiving, and surrounded in the darkness of all that is wrong with the world. He was right… again… she had changed over the years as well. Fighting alongside him made her mentally tougher, finally understanding that the ideals of truth, honor and justice didn't apply most of the time in Gotham, if at all. But Diana believed that her influence in the trade off was well worth it as she gave him some of her light and hopes that one day the virtues she symbolizes will triumph over everything else. The influence that she had on him could barely be seen, but it was there. Only those closest to him could actually see his happier, softer, more caring side. She made him happy even if he didn't want to admit it. They completed each other and couldn't live without the other. For better or worse, depending on whose opinion one would ask for, his influence on her was easily seen. Diana dressed differently because of him. She now wore a deep dark red top with golden trimmings and straps, long skin tight black pants, and black low heeled boots with golden straps. While still very noticeable, the golden Wonder Woman insignia on her chest and her symbolic golden tiara were both thinner and smaller than before. Diana also replaced her silver bracelets with golden ones that tie on the inside and over her hands. Only her golden lasso and belt were exactly the way they originally were.

She never thought she'd wear such dark colors, but she wore them mainly because it helped keep her hidden within the shadows during their nightly patrols. Diana also liked the fact that they provided more protection for her skin from getting annoying cuts here and there during battles. Not to mention that covering most of her skin stopped the hooting and hollering she always received from just about every guy on the planet – or universe. Of course it was less of a problem once the news of her marriage to Batman went public. Being married to the most feared man in the world did have its benefits. Diana didn't want to admit it, but having the title of Batman's wife gave her more power than she ever thought possible. She always had the supreme strength to crush anyone, the ability to fly, the magical bracelets, the golden lasso, and had always been the second most powerful member in the league before Batman got his powers. But all of that combined didn't even come close to intimidating anyone compared to the terrifying power of the new glare she gained with her title. It was one thing to piss off Wonder Woman as everyone knew there were limitations to her wrath because of who she is and what she stands for. But now, with a simple glare, she could easily make anyone crap in their pants because of who her husband is and what he stands for. No one dared to irritate or annoy her now that she could get her husband to show up with a snap of her fingers. Diana realized that the power of intimidation was by far, the most powerful weapon that anyone could possibly possess.

Batman rarely used his new abilities that were given to him by the Gods. The local criminals in Gotham already believed he had powers to begin with anyways. Batman made it a priority to use his brain and fighting skills just as he did before to defeat the main villains like The Joker, Penguin, Poison Ivy, Two Face, Mr. Freeze, and Catwoman… Diana hated her… the one woman she could never stand. Of course Diana knew Bruce vowed to be solely hers and hers alone. But that woman… Diana wanted to break Catwoman in half every time she came near her husband. She trusted Bruce. There was never any doubt about that, but she didn't trust her… not at all. Batman knew Diana didn't like Selina even though she's one of his few trusted allies. He made sure to only contact her, if it was absolutely necessary and a last resort. Only the members within the batclan and the league knew about Batman's powers as it unofficially made him the most powerful member of the league. Everyone in the league heard about the sparring match between Batman and Superman. Of course no one was surprised to hear that Superman won. But now, Batman had become more dangerous than Superman because of the fact that Batman would easily do what Superman simply refused to do. Everyone knows that Superman is the 'Boy Scout', that he only uses force when necessary. He lives on morals and compassion. Batman on the other hand, lives through fear, brutal tactics, and intimidation. Being taken down by Superman was healthier for criminals, just surrender and be taken to jail after a little lecture. But if they were to be taken down by Batman, they would be in the hospital for a month before going to jail. According to some members like Flash, Superman slipped to being the third most powerful member of the league. Flash told Diana that she was more powerful than Superman because she had the power to control Batman and everything he's capable of.

"Oracle… status update on the Birds." Diana turned her attention to Batman as he spoke into his earpiece. He was crouching, looking down at the factory as she stood inches behind him with her arms crossed while Batgirl and Robin were next to them waiting for Batman's orders.

"They are good. They swept through the eastside financial district and uncovered some information on what The Riddler may actually be after. I'll upload the info when you get back to the cave. Do you want me to send the Birds your way?" The three of them heard Oracle talk to Batman through their own earpieces.

Batman took a minute to think. "No. I'll come to you… this doesn't seem like The Riddler's M.O. Have N, and the Birds be there when I get there."

"Alright. But what do you think he's trying to do?" Oracle said.

"I have my theories… but I'll see what the Birds have to make sure. There's activity… talk later, Batman out." The four of them watch as twelve trucks rolled into the factory.

"Robin, Batgirl… Enter the factory from the nearside. We'll enter from the south. Engage them on my mark." Batman motioned as both Robin and Batgirl nodded and began to make their way to the roof of the factory. He and Wonder Woman flew to the far end of the building and silently entered it from there.

They made their way onto the catwalk and saw Robin and Batgirl on the opposite end. Looking down at the henchmen Batman tapped on his earpiece. "Forty-seven men, fifteen with automatic rifles. Three on the north end, five on the south, five in the center, and two at the entrance. Batgirl… take the ones in the north. Robin, the entrance. Wonder Woman will clear the south, and I'll cover the center. Take the rest down as you converge towards me." It always amazed Diana how fast Batman could analyze a situation and memorize exactly where everyone was at.

"On my mark" Batman took out three bat-a-rangs while Wonder Woman grabbed a smoke bomb out of his belt.

"NOW" Batman whispers loudly through the earpiece as he threw the three bat-a-rangs at three of the five thugs in the middle while jumping down towards the other two. The instant Batman left the catwalk, Wonder Woman threw the smoke bomb at the three gunners she was responsible for and knocked them all out before they could get a shot off.

Batman broke the first of the two remaining gunner's nose while taking his rifle and smashing it on the second's head. "D covered my back…R and BG finished with their gunners and are making their way to me… need more cover." He immediately took out five more smoke bombs and threw them around Robin, Batgirl, and Wonder Woman as the remaining henchmen ran towards them to fight. With the added cover the smoke provided, the four of them easily cleared out the factory.

Batman was interrogating the leader of the thugs while Robin, Batgirl, and Wonder Woman were gathering up all the broken, bloodied, and unconscious bodies that were lying in the factory. Diana couldn't help but feel very proud of herself as she watched Robin and Batgirl tie up the last two men. For one thing, everything went smoothly. It took her longer than she liked to be able to work with Batman the way the rest of the batclan did. To know what he would do in any given situation, what the others would do, what she would do, to know that Batman knew what she would do, when she would do it, to know which techniques to use to complement his or the others during different situations, to know when to help and how to help. Everything about teaming up with Batman during his patrols in Gotham meant being precise and accurate. No mistakes. It was all about team chemistry as everything was timed. The trust level between all of them was so high that each and every one of them knew approximately how long each one would take to complete their jobs while knowing exactly when and where the others would be at any given moment. They wouldn't even check to see how the others were doing until they finished their assignments. After working with the batclan, teaming up with Justice League members seemed boring. Teamwork within the league also seemed completely unorganized compared to how the batclan worked. Diana wondered just how good the league would be if they were this detailed oriented, but she knew, just as Batman knew, that the majority of the leaguers didn't have discipline to do this.

From out of the corner of her eye, she watched Batgirl and Robin take down their share of thugs. They worked perfectly together. Batgirl was quick and efficient, only hitting each thug no more than three times with a combination of her fists and feet to take them down. Robin was more of an environmental type of fighter, using whatever was around him to get the job done. Of course she always kept an eye on Batman as she made sure he was free from harm. Watching him work was always amazing to her. Now that he was back in his prime, she saw him at his best. Never missing a mark, always thinking three, four… or however many steps ahead and executing his plans flawlessly.

"Find anything useful?" Diana smirked, now seeing the unconscious leader being thrown into the pile of thugs.

"Depends…" Batman said flatly as he reached for his earpiece with his left hand while putting a computer hard drive in his belt. "Oracle… Be there in ten, I got something I need you to look at."

"Alright, N, H, and BC are here." Oracle said.

Before the police came, Batman and Diana picked up Robin and Batgirl and took off into the sky towards Oracle's base at the highest point in Gotham, the Gotham Clock Tower.