To Know and Be Known

Like everyone, Wally assumed Bruce's daemon was a bat. It fit the whole persona, the costume, and the creature of the night routine. Wally should have known Bruce would never be what people expected he was. Batman was not an idea you could wrap up and put in a box. He was a shadow – made of dark smoke that caught an unrecognizable breeze. He wasn't literally made of smoke and shadow (except when Wally thought he just might be) but the metaphorical implications were there.

As long as Wally had known Bruce (and that was a while when one counted his KF years) Wally had never met his daemon. Wally's own Altizachattered and joked with everyone. The meerkat daemon bounced to everyone from Superman's lab to Question's curious aye-aye. In particular she got along with Hal's mongoose. They were both so fearless they got into all sorts of trouble together. For the most part the Justice League's daemons allowed the boundless affection. Some of them even greeted Wally's daemon first with a quick hello and a friendly nudge. He was quite shocked when Hawkgirl dropped her attention from Wally to Altiza to say hello. Although having his daemon directly talked to was unnerving, Altiza took it in strides and chatted away. Thenegarians had no daemons. At first that frightened Wally until he learned their maces were something akin to the same.

Altiza delighted in any company and Wally was thankful she was so easy to grab and carry along. He couldn't imagine how difficult life would be if Altiza settled as a horse like she favored in their youth. No, travel size and able to be carried in a safe but small bag was very good for crime fighting, thank you very much. Unlike Superman's lab Krypto, Altiza wasn't graced the same abilities as Wally. Wally suspected this was because he hadn't been born with superspeed. At least he was better off than Hawk who was grounded by an ox while his brother Dove got a freckled version of his namesake.

Wally was anxious about finally seeing Bruce's daemon when he joined the Justice League. To be honest it was one of his few motivations and highlights he had, so close to Barry's death. Stepping into Barry's role felt wrong. It looked wrong, too. From the moment the public saw him they knew he wasn't the original Flash. Daithi, Barry's red squirrel was nowhere in sight, hadn't been since she burst into golden dust. Wearing her own flash cowl, Altiza grinned up at Wally and climbed up to his shoulder to stand proud. They may not be the original but they were going to honor Barry's name.

Almost a month later, Batman said, "He'd be proud, kid," in passing. Wally just about jumped with glee. Altiza was not as self controlled.

Since childhood, Wally wanted to know what Bruce's daemon was. He pestered Dick about it all the time but he and his swift played the 'Na na na, not listening' game and glided up on top of buildings where Wally couldn't follow. When Wally asked Barry if he knew what daemon the Batman had, Barry took him aside.

"Batman is a secretive man. He upholds his identity far more intensely than anyone else, and for good reason." Daithi flung herself from Barry's shoulder to Wally's then cheetah, grooming behind Altiza's ears. It let Wally know this was serious but not something he was in trouble for. Above all else, Wally hated disappointing Barry. "A long time ago, Batman lost the people closest to him. To protect himself he keeps others at an arm's distance; that includes daemons. Maybe one day you'll be close enough to learn what his daemon is but until then you need to respect that she wants to hide and Batman wants to keep her from the known. Do you understand?"

Wally didn't. It felt selfish and cowardly to hide your daemon from everyone else, to keep your demon from interacting with anyone else. He nodded anyway and ran with Altiza. It was only later that he started to understand why one would keep their daemon from crime fighting. Daemons were targets, especially in Gotham. Wally always thought that Gotham was damned but it must be true since their criminals grab daemons with their bare hands – a taboo beyond taboo. Between Penguin's massive leopard seal and Joker's mandrill, anything small enough to hide in Batman's clothes was in serious danger while on the job. Wally still wanted to meet her but he kept patient, especially when he learned that not everyone on the Justice League knew what she looked like.

Wally resigned himself to the fact that he might never be close enough to Bruce to know what his daemon was. He was still wildly curious but accepted that Bruce and his soul wanted to guard themselves away. It was to his utter shock when Bruce asked him aside after a mission and took off his cowl.

"She won't stop pestering me," was his only warning as a GIGANTIC BLACK THING flew from Bruce's cowl like a bat from Hell. Only, she wasn't a bat. Buzzing around Altiza like a miniature helicopter was the biggest bee Wally had ever seen. She hovered up and down in front of Altiza's nose, smelling of wood and nectar. So big was the bee she was almost as big as Altiza's face.

"My name is Yajaria. I'm pleased to meet you." Her voice was tiny and polite and hilarious because she sounded like she'd spoken into a wind turbine. Altiza giggled and stretched as far as she could from Wally's shoulder to reach out and touch the other daemon. Yajaria zipped back to Bruce and clung to his dark hair. However, the light caught her shinny hide so she stood out like glittering obsidian.

Wally felt the disappointment from Altiza and Bruce wouldn't look at them. Just as he moved to pull the cowl back up, Altiza jumped from superhero to superhero. Let it be known that meerkats are not good jumpers. Wally scrambled to grab her but Bruce was the one who caught the daemon, heat instantly pooling in Wally. He could feel Bruce against his heat; feel his palms even though he wore gauntlets. It wasn't weird or horrifying like the one time Grodd grabbed her. It was good. It felt right. Wally felt the fringes of perfection, of what he was supposed to be. He pressed his back against a wall as Bruce placed Altiza on the ground. She rolled over like she was drugged and made a move for Bruce again.

Yajaria dive bombed the meerkat, landing on her head with an audible thump as she started to need the fur. Altiza was in bliss and Wally reached out for Bruce to share some of the joy the daemons were experiencing. Bruce was reluctant, frightened even by the quick turn of events. He'd taken a huge risk just by showing Wally his daemon and now the two were against each other like separated lovers. It was all a little much.

"Hey, hey Bruce," Wally called, bringing him back. Wally pulled away his own cowl and didn't worry for once that his red hair stuck up at odd ends. He tried for a reassuring smile. "Thank you, she's beautiful." He squeezed Bruce's fingers and hoped that would be enough for the man to understand his affection. Wally had been in love with Bruce since he was a gangly teen.

Bruce didn't say anymore but Yajaria replied with a, "We like you." Then, directed at her partner, "Don't be an imbecile, Bruce."

Flustered, Bruce swore at his own daemon but pulled Wally over for a quick kiss. It was a simple gesture, could have been a platonic caress if not for the lingering seconds and brush of lips. Wally moaned all the same, and Altiza squawked with laughter.

Diligent, solitary, but in need of a close family, the carpenter bee was a perfect match for Bruce. Far better than any bat.

Daemons

Wally- Altiza (Hebrew, Joy) is a meerkat because they are social animals with who won't back down from a cobra if supported by its family. She's also carry-on size.

Superman – Krypto (shout out to Krypto the Superdog, Superman's pet in the comics) is a lab, friendly, intelligent, loyal, and an all American pet. Kryptonians have daemons like Earthlings and have the same skill set as their counterparts. Both were a handful for the Kents to look after.

Question – Aye-aye (not named). The aye-aye is a bizarre animal from Madagascar who is said to be cursed and bring death to all who it points at with its elongated middle finger. In spite of this fierce reputation, the aye-aye is a peaceful and quizzical insectivore.

Hal – Mongoose (not named) is an animal courageous to death that takes on cobras (note that the mongoose does not always win).

Hawk – Ox (not named) stubborn but hardworking. Protective of calves.

Dove- Speckled Dove (not named), symbol of peace

Barry – Daithi (Irish, beloved, quick, agile) is a Red squirrel. For their size and attention, squirrels are actually quite intelligent and have strong memory for where they store food. To that end they are also crafty, watching where others hide their food to steal and create decoy storage to throw others off their trail. They are quick and agile.

Dick – Swift (not named). Swifts often nest in the same caves as bats. They are quick birds.

Bruce – Yajaria (Hebrew, precious) is a black Carpenter Bee, the largest type of bee that is also docile. They are solitary workers who live in small clans and nest in wood.