Chapter 8
Diana had asked Hawkgirl to come a few minutes earlier than the others, in order to give her further advance warning about what this meeting was about. Shayera had shared more than enough with Diana about her personal life, and it was the least Diana could do to make sure she was more prepared than the others would be.
When she arrived, however, Diana was dismayed to see that the Flash was already there, feet on the table. Trust the world's fastest man - Superman was himself extremely fast, one ability she envied not sharing with him, but most of the League agreed that the Flash would always be a few hairs quicker - to be first to arrive.
"Hey, Di," he said breezily.
"Hello, Flash," Diana replied, having wanted privacy to speak with Hawkgirl. Perhaps if there was enough time, she could take her into the hall. Everyone thought this meeting was about Diana moving her alternate self to Themiscyra. It was certainly a matter that needed to be discussed, considering there were still four others on the station, but it wasn't why she'd called them together.
"Stopped by Grundy's grave yesterday," the Flash continued, a look of puzzlement on his face. "I always figured that not even a nuclear bomb would do more than put him into a twelve-hour nap."
Diana nodded silently. This too made her think of Shayera. In yet another trip into a different world, the Thanagarian had an unexpected encounter with her people's old gods, a brush with her homeworld's ancient culture. Most of all, however, she'd somehow bonded with the ungentle giant in such a way that the heroine, so typically aggressive, had shed unabashed tears for his passing.
It had made Diana's mortification at losing a fight to Aquaman, and then being unceremoniously dragged back to Fate's home by the Atlantean, pale by comparison.
Hawkgirl did choose that moment to walk in, but John followed a moment later, and Diana had no choice but to let Shayera learn the complete story with everyone else. "Diana," Hawkgirl now said as she went over to her. "Was there something you wanted to tell me?"
"Not now," Diana sighed. "I had hoped for more privacy." She hesitated. "I never did get a chance to apologize for the remarks I made when you returned to the Watchtower the other day with my mother."
"It's all right," Hawkgirl responded. "Your relationship with your mother isn't exactly tension-free, Diana. Whereas I have at times been rightly accused of being without tact."
"Great Hera, give her politeness," Diana murmured.
Hawkgirl stared at her for a moment before laughing. "I guess Batman really is the only one of us without a sense of humor."
"Yes . . . wait, who said I didn't have a sense of humor?"
The other League members all appeared within a few seconds of each other then, and they took their seats. "Diana," Superman invited her. "Since this meeting was your idea, I suppose you should begin."
"Thank you," she said calmly. This would be somewhat similar to one of those radio shows people liked so much - or that appalling TV series that had been thankfully relegated to an hour when no one was awake. This was a chance for her fellow members to contribute to the topic of the day.
She supposed the matter of their alternates needed to be brought up, but not now. It had occurred to her that even if Thanagar could be located, the other Shayera might not want to go to her home planet without her Lantern. Bringing up the lovers was always a tricky subject. Bringing them up now, knowing what she did, seemed especially tricky.
"I apologize for not calling this meeting sooner," she continued, "but we all know how hard it can be to have the opportunity to sit down together. The incident with Aquaman created delays." She looked at Superman. "Have you spoken to the Egyptian government about how you managed to do more damage to the Great Pyramid than 3,000 years of erosion?"
He rubbed the back of his neck. "It wasn't exactly intentional, you know," he muttered.
"You're one to talk, Diana," the Flash pointed out, rising to the defense of the Blue Boy Scout (even if he didn't have any badges), "considering you knocked over a couple big, giant heads during that fight with Aquaman on Easter Island." He cocked his head. "Who won that fight, anyway?"
"It was an island," she said defensively, her cheeks pinking. "It would have been different if he'd placed us in, say, the Australian outback."
"Anyone in the mood for steak?" Flash asked.
"All right, that's enough," Batman said dourly. The Gotham hero was known for preferring his city to League meetings.
Diana nodded, sobering. "He's right. I called you here because I felt you needed to know." She stopped for a moment, because it seemed so ludicrous. She was in _love_, or a state close to it. Why was this a League matter? Because she was a foreign head of state, that was why. "You see, I've begun a relationship with someone. A romantic relationship."
They stared at her. Initial reaction appeared to range from "A relationship? You?" to "I came here for this?"
"I realize I must sound like ten kinds of egotist saying that," Diana quickly said before anyone could speak, "but there's a reason it's important not just for me. The other person is Kasnia's Princess Audrey."
Audrey had insisted that she not be called "Queen Audrey". It suggested her father would never recover. Now that it appeared he would to some degree, her hopes had not been false ones.
"The girl you rescued in Paris," Batman said flatly, although everyone in the room knew exactly who she was talking about.
"Yes."
"The girl who married Vandal Savage and allowed him to use her country's resources in an attempt to hold the governments of the world hostage."
"She didn't know!" Diana replied angrily, smacking the palm of her hand on the table. A couple people, Superman included, started backwards. "I have more reason to hate Vandal Savage and everything he stands for than everyone in this room, and there is no doubt in my mind that she was used by him."
"No one is saying she was, Diana," Superman said, always the soul of reason. "The United Nations haven't held her responsible, and neither have we." He looked around. "Still, we're surprised you haven't spoken about this sooner."
"It does explain a lot," Batman replied, "such as why you were willing to come to Gotham yourself for that antidote Poison Ivy had, instead of asking me. You wanted that personal touch."
"It's not something we've ever felt the need to bring up," Green Lantern said, "but I take it that on an island where men never set foot, many other Amazons choose to be with women rather than men?"
"Many do, yes," she said simply. "Some do not. My mother, for instance."
"Diana's relationship with a woman isn't the issue," J'onn said. "Although on Mars, while such a thing was uncommon, it was not frowned upon either."
"Nor on Thanagar," Hawkgirl said.
"But it is on Earth," Batman added quietly.
Diana glared at him. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"J'onn is half-right. Your being with a woman isn't the issue. There are other issues as well."
"Excuse me?" Diana asked, shocked.
"But that's getting ahead of myself," Batman went on. "First of all, there's the matter of you're being involved with the ruling figure of another country."
Diana's ire subsided, because she knew this would come up.
"We're the Justice League," Batman continued carefully. "Not the Justice League of the U.N., not the Justice League of America, not the Justice League of anything. We are a neutral group, except in the pursuit of justice. It grants us access to all countries. It means we aren't denounced as interlopers or criminals or tools of a foreign state when we intervene in the crises of the various nations of the world."
He turned his gaze to focus on Diana. "By associating yourself with the princess of Kasnia, you associate yourself, and by extension the rest of us, with Kasnia as well. You do remember there are sanctions against that republic, don't you?"
"Of course I remember," Diana retorted. "We helped stop a half-dozen incidents in the Balkans during the last war there."
"That's right," he said calmly. "We did. And we were welcomed. Would we have been welcomed by the Albanians, or the Serbians, or the Croatians if you had been involved with Audrey then?"
"First of all," she replied, "nobody knows about us except my mother and the people in this room. Both of us have been aware of this issue, which is part of the reason for the secrecy before now. And at this point, neither of us have any intentions of revealing it in the future."
"Just how long have you been seeing each other?" Green Lantern asked.
"Several weeks, although we were just friends. I was advising her during the first difficult days after the Savage incident . . ."
"Advising her?" Superman asked.
"She was trying to hold her country together," Diana said firmly. "She was trying to save it from the Americans. She had no one else for guidance. I did what I could to prevent more war, yes."
"So you've influenced her," Batman said. "Perhaps she might influence you too."
"What are you getting at?"
"Perhaps other countries - countries that are enemies of Kasnia - who will wonder what kind of pull Princess Audrey has with this League," Batman posited. "Perhaps they'll smell conspiracies."
Diana sniffed and looked away. "Perfectly outlandish," she said dismissively.
"Oh, I agree," he replied, "but conspiracy theorists are by definition a little out there."
"Look, Diana, I think what Batman is trying to say is that if your relationship with the Princess becomes public," Superman began.
"It will," Batman interrupted. "I don't think you realize, Diana, the cottage industries that have been created in Europe by the various aristocracies. You witnessed the paparazzi in Paris, but you have no idea how relentless those photographers can be. They make Lex Luthor look apathetic. Unless you and Audrey live your lives behind closed and locked doors without windows, they will sniff you out. Even then you might not be safe. If anyone has learned anything from England, it's that servants are still the most indiscreet people on the planet."
"_If_ it comes out," Superman continued doggedly, "it could create the impression that you, maybe even the League, is biased in favor of Kasnia and against Kasnia's traditional enemies. We've already seen once this year how public opinion can turn against even us."
"We've already seen how quickly it can swing back," J'onn observed.
"That was just because we were viewed as arrogant," John pointed out. "What if we're seen as political? What if the people who don't like Kasnia decide they don't want our help?"
"Lots of people in Kasnia don't like Kasnia," Diana murmured, quoting what Audrey had told her the first night they met.
"If you're about to tell us who we can and can't date," the Flash warned Batman, "I don't want to hear it. Just because you'll be making your own dinners for the next fifty years doesn't mean the rest of us have to."
Hawkgirl suppressed a chuckle as Batman's jaw tightened slightly.
"There is a point to this, Flash," J'onn said quietly. "If you called a meeting and announced that you had become romantically involved with Star Sapphire . . ."
"You say that like it's never going to happen," Flash interjected, grinning.
"Or some other criminal, we would have a right to question the wisdom of such an action," the Martian went on. "So too here."
Diana frowned. She'd counted on the Manhunter for more support.
Which he provided her now, in a way. "I trust Diana has considered this issue and feels it won't be a problem," he said. "What concerns me more is the danger this could put Kasnia in. Diana, you have made many enemies, both on your own and with the League. What if someone decides to get at you through Princess Audrey? Perhaps they feel the easiest way to hurt you is to hurt her, or her country. Or they could abduct her and force you to obey them?" He looked down at his hands. "For some of us, who have no families or loved ones, it's not a concern. And until now, save that one time with Hades, it hasn't been a concern for you either."
Diana sat there calmly. Batman worried about the League, that which he sometimes treated so lightly, and that was good. J'onn was thinking of herself and Audrey, and that was also good. "I would protect Audrey as much as anyone here would protect their parents or their loved ones," she replied softly. "But I cannot put Audrey away any more than the rest of you could put your families away, so I can only hide them and protect them. It is a choice we both bear."
"It's a choice that affects us too," Batman said flatly.
Her anger bubbled up again. "You're the main naysayer today, Batman. Is this something personal? Is this you just not liking her? You're the only one here who's met her, after all. _Twice_, in fact," she added, knowing only he would understand she spoke of the night Bruce Wayne and Audrey had attended the same party. That was another one of those little things for which it seemed the Leaguers never had time to talk about.
Batman's eyes narrowed even as his gloved hand made deceptively calm smoothing motions on the table. Probably to prevent him from making a fist. "Then, as I said, there is the issue we mentioned earlier. About your being a lesbian, I mean."
Hawkgirl rose slightly from her chair. "I don't know half of anyone's likes and dislikes here today," she said sternly, "but I never would have thought you were a bigot."
"I'm not," he growled. "I don't have a problem with it. But like I said before, Earth is not Mars or Thanagar. There are probably a few _billion_ people on this planet who think homosexuality is a sin, something twisted, something that gets passed from person to person like a contagion."
"There are probably a lot of people who don't think men and women of different races should mix, either," Diana said acidly, "but you don't see everyone keeping to their own. People make up their own minds about who they want to be with. They don't let others do it for them."
Men and women such as John and Shayera, she thought belatedly, and she glanced at them. The Lantern sat there stolidly, as if determined not to let personal feelings intrude. Hawkgirl also looked at him for a moment before turning uncomfortable eyes on Diana.
"That's true," Batman said, "but people will draw conclusions about your moral standards when they see this. You witnessed that idiot on the television doing the same thing based on what you wear. It will be much worse when people learn you're a lesbian. Like it or not, we're role models, among other things. We're looked up to. And just like a lot of parents don't want homosexuals teaching their children, a lot of people won't want one saving them either."
Diana cut him off with a wave of her hand. "I'm glad we talked about this," she said bluntly, standing up.
"Diana, we haven't . . ." Superman started to say.
"Haven't what? Given all the reasons you're opposed to this?" Diana asked, infuriated. "I didn't call this meeting so I could open up my personal choices to debate. I thought you should know. Now you know. And that's all that matters, because you don't get to decide what I do next." Sweeping the others with a glare, she pivoted on her heel and stormed out.
When she was gone, Flash turned on Batman. "If you had radiated waves of disapproval any stronger, I would have drowned, you know."
"Someone had to say it," Batman shot back. "I guess it had to be the dark and brooding one."
"Some of us aren't even from Earth," Hawkgirl protested, "and we're accepted. Why should her orientation be that different?"
"I've been to a lot of planets," John said thoughtfully, "and I've seen hatred over a lot of things. And I've seen too much hatred right here. You think I could have done what I do fifty years ago? Believe me, I know white people who would rather _die_ than be saved by a black man."
"Is that a voice of support, or opposition?" J'onn asked.
He scowled. "I don't know yet."
Hawkgirl made a noise of disgust and swept out of the room.
The Green Lantern watched her leave with a dismayed expression on his face that quickly vanished.
"We're not going to punish Diana for something ignorant people don't like," Superman finally said. "That's like not supporting democracy because some people live under tyranny."
"How could we punish her? She obviously doesn't care what we think," Batman said coldly. "I'm going back home."
The others looked at each other. Even the Flash seemed struck mute.
"I think we should pray their relationship never becomes public knowledge," Superman said. "It would save everyone a lot of grief."
"And what if they stay together?" Green Lantern asked. "They're not going to remain satisfied with kisses when no one else is in the room, you know."
"I think whether this comes out or not," J'onn pointed out, "this is not the last time it's spoken of in anger. I just hope it comes soon, even if in anger. A wound should never be allowed to fester."
As Hawkgirl walked down the corridor, she was surprised by Diana, who leaned against the wall, her arms folded. "You could share everything with me about John, but you couldn't give me a little more support in there?" Diana asked, irritated.
"What, so I give you everything, and I give you nothing?" Hawkgirl asked, her own temper flaring.
"I'm sorry I couldn't . . ."
"Do you know I was ready to share my feelings with John?" Hawkgirl asked.
Diana's eyes widened briefly. "Shayera, that's great - what do you mean 'was'?"
"You think I'm going to tell him _now_?" Hawkgirl asked incredulously. "Create more strain within the League? I can't add my feelings to the current situation, not after you lobbed that bombshell into the room!"
"It is _not_ my fault that some people in there can only see the negative, and not how I feel about this!" Diana shouted.
"Maybe," Hawkgirl said coolly, "and maybe it's not your fault that I feel like I'm back to square one with John. But you don't think too often of other people's feelings either, Diana. So I'm blaming you anyway." She brushed past Diana and didn't look back.
Diana pressed her fingertips to her forehead. It had gone badly, unbelievably badly. All she could do was think about tomorrow night, and the red dress Audrey loved that she would wear to their first date. That was why she was doing this. It was worth it. It would be.
To be continued . . .
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