TITLE: Steps to the Alter

AUTHOR: LOTSlover

CHARACTERS: Batman / Wonder Woman

RATING: T

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: Bruce wanted to marry Diana, but will all the steps to the alter and after go as planned? A series of mishaps just might make them rethink their decision to get married. BMWW

Buying the Ring

"What do you think of this one?"

"It's very nice," Dick replied.

"Yes, but do you really think that she'll love it?" Bruce questioned him. "Do you think she'd prefer something else…something with rubies or maybe emeralds? What about this one with the diamonds around the entire band?"

"That would be nice too," Dick commented with a nod.

"But I want to find the perfect one," he said with a scowl of frustration as he picked up another ring. "What about this one?"

"Do you want to know what I think?" Dick asked with an impish grin, mischief dancing in his eyes.

"Yes!" Bruce exclaimed in exasperation. "That's why I brought you with me. I need your help."

"I think you should've brought Donna instead," he told him.

Bruce pinched the bridge of his nose as he huffed in frustration. "You're absolutely no help at all."

"I know," Dick agreed. "That's why you should've brought Troia instead."

"Your girlfriend may be Diana's sister, but she's the biggest gossip in the League next to Wally," Bruce retorted. "She'd tell Diana before I could get my credit card out of my wallet to pay for it and all this planning would be for naught."

"Yah…you're probably right, but it's not like she means any harm by it," Dick conceded with a chuckle, a dreamy expression forming on his face as he thought about his girlfriend. "She's so beautiful and adorable, though. You can't possibly be mad at her. She's too cute…and strong."

Bruce snapped his fingers in front of Dick's face, his annoyance unmistakable. "Focus on the task at hand and not your girlfriend," he told him. "I need your opinion. I want this to be perfect, remember?"

"You should've brought Barbara," Dick replied.

"I tried…she was busy," he informed him, his demeanor growing solemn. "I know we haven't always seen eye to eye, and we've had our differences, but I really need your help, Dick. Diana is the most amazing thing to happen to me in longer than I can begin to remember. She deserves the absolute best and I don't want to screw this up."

Dick put his hand on his father-figure's shoulder, squeezing it. "Don't worry," he reassured him with a lop-sided grin. "We'll find her the right one. Besides, it's Diana. You know she'll love anything that you picked out for her because it's from you."

"Thank you," he softly murmured, feeling somewhat vulnerable and awkward. He loathed that feeling more than anything. "Now, which one do you think Diana would pick?"

"Which one reminds you most of her?" Dick asked him.

"I think this one is too ostentatious," Bruce ultimately decided, setting the large diamond ring aside that had to be too heavy for most women to hold on their hand.

"I agree," Dick said. "Diana isn't flashy or flamboyant. She's sweet and unpretentious."

"About this one with the diamond and rubies?" Bruce asked.

"It's pretty, but does it remind you of Diana?"

"The red reminds me of Diana, but it also reminds me of Wonder Woman," he replied, setting it to the side as a possibility.

"Have you decided how you're going to propose?"

Bruce frowned as he glanced at Dick out of the corner of his eye. "Not completely," he confessed with a disheartened sigh. "I have some ideas, but I wanted to get past this hurdle before facing that one."

"I'm sure you'll come up with something romantic," Dick told him.

Bruce's shoulders sank as he leaned on the glass case with both forearms, his chin falling. "Dick, what am I doing?" he asked, shaking his head in dismay.

Dick frowned as he studied him. "What do you mean?"

"I love her more than I've ever loved anyone in my life," he admitted. "What makes me think that she'd want to marry me or that I'd even be a good husband?"

"Bruce, don't sell yourself short," he told him. "Diana loves you just as fiercely as you love her. Have you not noticed the way that she looks at you…the way her eyes sparkle or how her smile grows brighter whenever you're around? Maybe you haven't noticed it because the same thing happens to you when she's around."

Bruce smiled softly as he straightened up, drawing a deep breath. "I knew I brought you along for a reason," he told him.

"Hey, what about this one?" Dick questioned him, picking up a large princess cut diamond ring that the jeweler had set out for them to look at.

Bruce studied it for a long moment, his lips thinning as he considered it. "I really like it, but I want it to have a little something more to it."

"You know if you're having this much trouble picking out the right one, maybe you should have Donna do a little recon for you," Dick suggested.

"Recon…like what?"

"Have Donna ask her if she's ever thought about what kind of engagement ring she'd like to have someday," he told him. "You know…do a little snooping for you."

Bruce frowned as he crossed his arms against his chest. "I want this to be a complete surprise. If Donna starts talking to Diana about engagement rings, Diana will know something is up."

"You really think so?"

"Blessed by Athena, genius," he reminded him with a frown.

"Oh, right," he muttered, his eyes narrowing in thought. "That probably wouldn't work then…unless maybe you had Alfred ask her. He used to be in the British Secret Service. I'm sure he has ways of getting information."

Bruce rolled his eyes as he turned his attention back to the dozen engagement rings the jeweler had laid out for him to peruse. "Yah, that's not obvious," he grumbled. "Alfred saying, 'I'm just asking for a friend…' won't pique her curiosity. I might as well just bring Diana and ask her which ring she wants."

"Yah, but Diana is so unassuming, Bruce," Dick reminded him. "She wouldn't automatically think that you were going to get her a ring."

"Still, I don't want to take the chance," he replied. "Now, focus. I'm running out of time."

"What about this one?" Dick asked, holding up a ring that was laying off to the side.

Bruce took the ring, excitement beginning to build inside of him. "This is it…this is the one," he said as he stared at the princess cut diamond surrounded by small sapphires, his lips curling into a smile.

"What is it about this one that makes it the perfect ring?"

"It's the sapphires," he thoughtfully replied as he gazed at the ring. "They remind me of her blue eyes. It was one of the initial things that caught my attention when I saw her for the first time on that cliff."

"Finally!" Dick exclaimed. "Now, you can buy me dinner for all my hard work."

Bruce waved to the store owner who quickly came at his beckoning. "This is the one," Bruce confidently stated as he handed him the prized ring.

"Very lovely choice, Mister Wayne," he replied as he took the engagement ring from him. "I'm sure she'll love it."

"Everyone, freeze! This is a hold up!"

Bruce and Dick immediately grew rigid with the unexpected intrusion. Both were ready to do whatever was necessary to stop the crook while protecting the identity of their alter egos. They didn't need everyone finding out they were Batman and Robin because of a silly jewelry store robbery.

"Everyone put your hands up," the thief ordered. "Now, slowly turned around."

Bruce immediately recognized the voice. It was Benny—a low level crook who knocked off pawn shops and jewelry stores. He wasn't nearly as skilled as many of the other crooks in town, usually bungling a crime in one way or another.

He'd started out as a lacky in Two-Face's gang, but that relationship had quickly dissolved when he'd botched a job, getting himself and several of the other gang members captured by Batman. He was lucky to be alive after that fiasco. Two-Face had tried to shoot him when he'd returned after getting out of jail only to end up with a bullet in his calf that caused him to walk with a slight limp now. He definitely wasn't the brightest bulb in the box.

"What's Benny doing here?" Dick whispered.

"Blundering another job," Bruce muttered, hands help up in the air.

"Stop talking!" Benny yelled, waving his gun at Dick and Bruce. "Just give me all of your money."

"What about the jewelry?" Bruce asked as a man and woman held each other, the woman beginning to cry hysterically.

"Yah, yah," Benny said. "That too."

"Definitely not the sharpest tool in the shed, is he?" Dick murmured.

"No," Bruce agreed. "I'm going to distract him. You take him down."

"Got it," Dick whispered.

"Hey!" Benny yelled at Dick and Bruce. "You two over there with the others."

"We're moving," Bruce assured him. "Just stay calm."

"I am calm," Benny nervously insisted, noticing the ring in the jeweler's hand. "I want that ring. It'll look good on my wife's hand."

Bruce cursed under his breath. He was not about to let Benny get his grimy hands on Diana's engagement ring. "I…I feel lightheaded," Bruce complained, his hand coming to rest on his forehead. "And my chest hurts."

"Hey, what's going on?" Benny asked as he rushed towards Bruce.

"I'm not feeling well," Bruce told him. "I…I think it's my heart."

Dick easily slipped around behind a distracted Benny, wrenching the gun out of his hand before slamming the butt of the gun into his head. Benny dropped to the ground with a groan before passing out cold at Dick's feet.

"You're under arrest, Benny," Dick told the unconscious man, pulling out his badge and holding it in front of his face. "Officer Dick Grayson. You have the right to remain silent…which shouldn't be too hard for you right now."

"I've called the police, Mister Wayne," the jeweler announced. "I can't thank you and Mister Grayson enough."

"It was no problem," Bruce assured him. "I couldn't let him steal Diana's engagement ring."

"I will box it up for you right now."

"Well, you'll definitely have an exciting story to tell Diana when you propose," Dick pointed out.

"I hope the steps to the alter aren't going to be as big a disaster as this could've been," Bruce commented with a wince.

"Nah, this was just a little bump in the road," Dick assured him with a wave of his hand. "It'll be smooth sailing from here on out."

"I hope you're right," Bruce murmured with a frown as the police pulled up in front of the jewelry store.

A/N: Welcome to the new Wonderbat Event! Hope you will enjoy following Bruce and Diana's Steps to the Alter.

Sorry these chapters will be rather short. I have several other fics that I'm working on and my time is limited, but I definitely wanted to participate and promote our favorite duo. So, sit back, stay safe, and enjoy the ride! :)