Batfleck Rising

True to Jennifer's words, their three kids were sound asleep when Ben arrived at each of their rooms. Violet, Seraphina, and Samuel were their names. They were ages seven, four, and twelve months, respectively. Violet and Seraphina each shared a room, while Samuel had a crib all to himself in his parent's room.

Ben visited all three of them.

At the moment, he was sitting on the edge of Seraphina's bed and was staring down at her. She appeared beautiful and vulnerable, without a care in the world, as if nothing could possibly go wrong. Across the room, Violet had a similar expression.

Ben sighed, as he sat there, and began to talk to himself, awkwardly at first, but with more confidence as he rallied on. He first opened with a query that he knew would not be answered, but that he felt like asking anyway: "You guys think I'll be a good Batman, right?"

Silence.

Ben looked down at the floor.

"I mean, you guys believe in your old man, don't you?" He sighed again, feeling stupid, but pressed on anyway. "Sure I've had my ups and downs, but I directed three great movies before this. I've changed. Heck, Argo got an Oscar for 'Best Picture'! That's gotta mean something, right?"

Ben looked at both of his children, who were still sound asleep.

"You know, Zack Snyder and the rest of them told me not to go on the internet for a couple of days. But I told myself I was tough. And I am tough. But I guess I'm not that tough. Or maybe I am and I just don't realize it yet. No, I know I am. I am tough. So why do I feel so bad?"

The 41-year old Oscar winner stood up, and headed to the window, where he parted the curtains and took a look outside. There wasn't much to see.

"I feel that I need to do something about this. Maybe get some real-life experience in. Train for the role. Be... different."

He went back to his daughter's bed and took a seat at his original spot.

"I think I know what I need to do," he murmured.

"Yeah, you need to come and talk to someone who can actually talk back," came the reply.

Ben's head jerked sideways as he turned to face his wife, who stood in the doorway. She had her arms folded beneath her chest, and wore a knowing expression on her face.

"How long have you been standing there?" Ben asked.

"Long enough," Jennifer replied mysteriously. "Come on, let's go downstairs. We can sort this out together."

Ben paused briefly before looking at his daughters. Then he smiled a little and got up. "Yes, your highness."

"That's more like it," said Jennifer with a grin, as Ben walked over to her and the two headed downstairs hand-in-hand.