It took a few blinks to clear away the foggy lens sleep had set over his eyes. Once his eyelashes had unstuck, Damian tried to move his arms as if to stretch. An odd warmth blocked his limbs. He frowned down, inhaling a lungful of lavender.

Damian's vision was a purple mess. It took a moment for the vibrant mass to discern itself strand from strand.

He started. Jolting upright.

The demoness resting against his chest grumbled, turning her head in to his shoulder. He eased himself back down: those gently lowered lids and slightly parted lips painted an image Damian couldn't bear to destroy.

Inching his right arm from where Billy had squashed it in to the sofa, Damian shook his numb fingers. Whispery sleeping breaths around him were overwhelmed by the shouts and beeps of the great Metropolis waiting outside the flat's door.

Damian's eyes traces over the slumbering faces of Raven, Kon, and Billy, scattered over the sofas; Mr and Mrs Kent must've already been up, or in their room.

What time was it? Damian scanned the walls for a clock.

His eyes widened. Eight o'clock. He'd wasted valuable hours of training.

Lifting his other arm, Raven murmured incoherently again, frowning. Damian followed the lines that had appeared on her forehead. He lay back once more, placing the blanket they'd been given more securely around her.

He wouldn't be getting up soon. Not until she started stirring, at least. Resigning to the temptation of the void, Damian's head rested against hers, his eyes falling shut. Within a few seconds, his chest raised and fell with the steady, light snores of sleep.

Having fried some eggs and made toast, Lois poked her head around the corner, checking if any of the kids were up.

On the process of frying sausages, Clark called, "They still sleeping honey?" And reached across the counter to turn of the whistling kettle.

A hand over her mouth, Lois whispered back, "You've got to see this Clark."

Turning off the stove, her husband (apron loosely tied around his waist) stood next to her, "What is-oh.". Hand on his wife's shoulder, he enthused, "Well isn't that the most gosh darned sweetest thing!"

"Careful Smallville," Lois chuckled, "soon you'll be backing apples pie and offering me sweet tea."

Billy sighed dreamily, tucking the blanket under his chin and snuggling in to the pillow besides him.

"No actually," Lois swallowed a rising 'awwww', "that is the most gosh darned sweetest thing." She rested against Clark's side, looking up at him with a sly grin, "I think I get why Bruce has so many kids. Even if they are a handful, they're worth it for these moments."

Of course, she immediately redacted that statement when they all awoke and Billy and Damian began fighting for the best slice of toast and Raven ended up stuffing it for herself, but the sentiment still stood in the back of her mind.

In a similarly disheveled abode, Diana slurped up a marshmallow floating in her hot chocolate.

"Surely not Anubis himself?" Her roommate grunted, stabbing a training sword in to the unsuspecting dummy, spraying its guts of hay across the surrounding area.

Picking one of the golden straws out of her drink, Diana replied, "The very same." She retracted another one from her hair. "I hadn't expected it. Of course, I'd considered the presence of other gods but..."

"It is seeing for one's self that makes it difficult to bear." Her fellow warrior finished.

Re-hanging the sword upon the wall, Artemis surveyed the Amazon with a chuckle, "What a mighty sight to behold, the great WonderWoman, hero to mankind, facing a (what's the word?) mid-life crisis." She brushed off Diana's glare and angry gulp of hot chocolate. "Princess, your gods are some of many- as are my patrons. But see how you make your place on the Earth amongst new gods themselves," Artemis slumped in to the seat opposite Diana, reaching for her lukewarm mug (the ill-placed training dummy had chucked a few of its hay strands in to the coffee), "you're lover, for example." She raised a sharp red eyebrow.

Diana barked a laugh, "Clark and I? That ended long ago."

"No," Artemis sipped the coffee, grimacing before returning to her, "the new one. Some "Jonz" fellow or other, you mentioned him in your recollection of the battle in Tijuana."

The noble Amazon hid her face behind her cup, "He isn't- J'onn's not...we aren't romantically involved."

Snorting, the redhead leaned forwards, slamming her mug on the table, "Timidity is unbecoming on a warrior. Accept your emotions and act upon them, or take out the root," Artemis grinned wickedly, "slice his head off."

"Bah!" Diana waved her hand dismissively, rising to scour the refrigerator for something good to eat.

"Oh certainly! Continue to deny it."

What would oh-so-coincidentally interrupt their conversation but a ringing of the doorbell?

Hand half-way in the fridge, Diana froze, frowning. Artemis grabbed her scythe, which had been awaiting her battle-ready grasp for many a night. Shoving her ponytail off of her shoulder, Artemis unbolted the door, jolting it open, weapon bared.

The man in front of her was boring. Knit sweater, shirt underneath, grey trousers and- oh... a bunch of flowers. Artemis understood them as 'orangey ones, some pale rose things, and more flowers but blue'. A florist might have gushed, ' Anemonies, roses, and orchids! What a token of love- perhaps not the most complementary but cute!'.

He didn't seem surprised to see a six-foot-something tall warrior with a scythe in hand barring the door.

"You have the wrong house." She stated, dropping the weapon to fold her arms, triceps bulging impressively. Diana peeked from over Artemis' shoulder, ducking immediately and seeking cover behind the wall.

"Artemis, I presume." The man greeted, refusing her dismissal. Before her eyes, the perfectly mundane human morphed in to a being that towered over even her (granted, by only a few centimetres), features melding, complexion transforming with them.

She picked up the scythe once more, palms securing it in an unrelenting grip.

Dark eyes took in her hostile stance and mighty blade. One hand holding the flowers, the being fell back, "I don't mean to alarm you, but I hoped to speak with Diana- of she's here."

Composure mustered to a strength that would've impressed Aries, Diana shoved Artemis out of the way, smiling graciously, "Hello J'onn..." she glanced down, alarmed to see a bouquet...in his hands...pointed out to her. "This is a pleasant surprise."

To the side of her and out of her vision, Artemis gawped, barely whispering 'So that's the boyfriend!' To which Diana subtlety kicked her away.

"Greetings Diana." J'onn dipped his head with a small smile, the flower bunch awkward in his hands.

She blinked.

"What are the flowers for?" Diana asked after a moment.

Artemis audible slapped her forehead, mouthing 'YOU!'.

He held them out to her, explaining, "They are for you."

Diana's brain froze, she didn't recognise her numb fingers accepting them.

Looking to occupy the silence, J'onn added, "Barry said that flowers are a good gesture for appreciation."

Artemis snorted at that. 'Appreciation' to her, that was male-code for sEx.

"Appreciation?" Diana's brain defrosted and she admired the delicate petals, raising the bouquet to her nose. "They are lovely, thank you J'onn." She placed a hand on his arm, smiling.

The redhead popped her head around the door in the silence for the sole purpose of providing a well-placed, "Oop!" Before jumping back.

"I was wonder-"

"Would you like to-"

Both stopped, having spoken over eachother. J'onn nodded his head that she should speak, screwing his lips shut.

Diana rested the flowers on her hip, asking, "I don't think you came all the way here just to give me flowers- was there something...else?"

The Martian invited her out for dinner.
As a date.

She'd been on dates before, certainly. Clark...Steve...Diana wasn't a stranger to men- or dates.

But these butterflies were different. They weren't the new, tingling sensation of her short-lived romance with Clark. It wasn't the steely solidity of her flirting with the soldier.

J'onn was fresh, unexpected, intuitive. More insightful than simply understanding. Her loves for the others had been fleeting in her inexperience- men had fascinated the Amazon. With the years came both the growth in her wisdom and sensibility as well as a sustained development of a shoot of admiration.

That bud within her chest threatened to bloom. As she hastily pulled on a flouncier top (a burgundy dress-shirt Artemis had once commented as suiting her complexion), Diana wondered whether she should water the eager blossom or not.

Emerging from the room a minute later (having rapidly applied some of the sparkly pink stuff to her cheeks and signature redness to her lips), the Amazon smiled, "Shall we go?"

J'onn opened the door for her, morphing back in to his human form.

In the background, Artemis switched the television on, a news station broadcasting an anti-alien protest in Washington.

"J'onn, you do not have to maintain your human form, if you would feel more comfortable naturally." Diana linked her arm with his.

He walked out with her, closing the door, "Perhaps. The times are indeed a-changing."

"My identity is known to the public. We would not have to worry about threatening one another through being connected- we're already part of the Justice League together." She mused.

J'onn pressed the round button for the lift, continuing her thoughts, "And you can certainly hold your own, against physical attacks as well as protests."

"As can you."she complimented. "So why not?"

With the lift doors sliding shit behind them, J'onn pondered , "Why not indeed." And his form stretched, colour palette switching dramatically. His red eyes smiled down at her.

"Much better." The doors pinged open and they stepped out.

"Much better." He agreed.

A.N:

Soooo we got a lil Damirae moment, a lil intro to Artemis, and some Diana/J'onn development! Altogether a very decent checklist!

Besides that, the wonderful devilinyoureye  has a new story out!!!! She's just *chef's kiss*. Sooo it's called "Pride and Prejudice" and it's everything I've ever wanted! The first chapter is out and there's purportedly more to come ;)

Cheers my darlings!!

-Bats :)