Hippolyta

   About an hour after they'd first gotten there, Clark and Diana were still out talking on the bleachers.  School was out for the day, and the campus was mostly clear.  The sun was lowering in the sky, just touching the tops of the buildings that surrounded Metropolis High.
   Diana looked at her watch. "I should be getting home," she said with a sigh.
   "Yeah, I should to–" Clark had suddenly stopped in mid-sentence, his eyes focusing sharply on the field in front of him.  Still looking forward, he began his sentence again. "I should be going, too."  Standing up—and still not even giving Diana the courtesy of eye contact—he calmly gave out a "see you later, Diana," and walked away, towards the other side of the bleachers.  Diana, confused at Clark's apparent captivation, looked out at the field where Clark had been staring. It was empty.
   Diana was too confused to be insulted.  In just the short hour that they'd talked, she'd gotten to know Clark well enough to know that he wouldn't act so rudely unless he had a reason. Either that or he was an extremely quirky individual.  Diana sighed to herself. Nobody's perfect, I guess.
   Diana walked home in a mixed mood.  On one hand, she felt inspired in the fact that she had found two new friends whose mere existence seemed to prove that the world was not quite so corrupt as she had previously thought.  On the other hand, she was still not quite ready to flip her entire worldview based on the events of a single day, and Clark's awkward departure was perplexing.
   When Diana opened the door to her apartment, her mother, Helen, was waiting for her.  With a loving smile, Helen embraced her daughter.
   "You look a bit happier today, Diana," Helen said gently.  Her voice was soft, yet somehow regal.
   "I am happier, mother."  Diana's speech shifted somewhat in Helen's presence, as though she were a different person in a different time.
   "And why is this?" Helen asked.
   Diana sat down on the living room couch, and began to tell the story of her philosophy class, and how she had met two rather remarkable individuals.
   "Mother, after today... I think that this world might not be so beyond saving after all," she said with a hopeful smile.
   Helen's face was grim.  "Diana.. be careful.  You have been gifted with the sight of truth; please do not ignore it because of any feelings of friendship you may share with these people."
Diana was surprised at her mother's warning.  "But mother! How can I fulfill my duty to the people of this land if I simply ignore them?"
   Helen spoke firmly. "Diana, this world is seductive. On our home, we lived with our sisters in complete peace and safety.  Now that you and I have come to this land, we must take care not to fall into the traps of man."
   Diana was unconvinced. "Lois and Clark are not trying to 'trap' me."
   Helen smiled slightly. "No, I don't expect that they are. I am truly happy for you, daughter, that you have found two such people.  I only worry that you might become too enamored with the common culture here, and lose sight of your true calling."
   Diana returned a smile.
   "I won't, mother. I know my duty."