"A Hail Of Bullets, A Magic Formula..."

HAHAHA as a matter of fact I do!!

I talked about this a bit in the tags of my post, but my ideal WonderQuick relationship occurs post-WWPJQ (1997) up 'till some undefined time in Titans (1999) (if it matters, I imagine pre-Faerber era).

If you don't know, quick recap of WWPJQ: Jesse needs Diana's help in deciphering Hermes' scroll. Christina Alexandrova (back from the apparent dead) is using the scroll to try to reach the Speed Force so she can bring Savitar back and cheat him of his victory. The two don't actually succeed in stopping her, but Diana stops Jesse from killing Christina and then following her into the Speed Force, which at that point in time would've almost certainly meant death. Using the lasso, WW forces Jesse to confront the truth of her father's death (that being that Johnny was not precisely murdered but rather chose to join with the SF) as well as her relationship with Wally, which was extremely messy during that era due to Wally manipulating her to convince Bart to take up the mantle of the Flash.

Jesse in WWPJQ is an avoidant, lying, self-loathing wreck. The oneshot is from her POV, and Diana occupies a strange position in it. She is simultaneously an idol, a peer, a well-intentioned nuisance, and a sympathetic ear. She kind of plays a therapeutic, near-motherly role. That difference in wisdom and emotional maturity is necessary in my version of WonderQuick: Jesse "Mommy Issues" Quick meets an older woman who looks her in the eye, sees her at her lowest, and doesn't so much as flinch — just cradles her as she cries — and she's like Wow I Sure Hope This Doesn't Awaken Anything In Me (spoiler: it does).

I think they sleep together soon after the events of WWPJQ. Jesse is extremely weird about it at first; part of it is the fact that it's a woman, part of it is the fact that it's WONDER WOMAN. I think after their first time together Jesse takes off nearly immediately and spends the whole month Definitely Not Avoiding WW and freaking tf out about it. She's having a bit of a sexuality crisis; she's feeling pretty emotionally vulnerable; she's kinda confused that she's into her childhood hero Wonder Woman; she's VERY confused that Wonder Woman is into HER?? I think that for the first few years it's a pretty messy, "we fuck but we never talk about it" thing where Jesse shows up on Diana's doorstep when she needs someone to bring her out of her head for a while, and while eventually she starts to hang out afterwards, they DO NOT talk about the future of the relationship or the exact nature of it. Jesse doesnt bc she's like Life Hack: Your Lesbian Situationship Only Makes You Gay If You Talk About It; Diana doesnt bc she can read the room and doesn't wanna scare Jesse off lmao. (Im exaggerating somewhat - i dont think the sexuality thing is the biggest hangup Jesse has. It's more that it is Wonder Woman specifically, and generally the act of sleeping with someone who can see right fucking through her, which is very vulnerable)

They do become close, though. Their relationship to me is like putting the horse before the cart — they sleep together first and gradually become good friends. Jesse finds Diana to be a very calming and stable presence in an otherwise very turbulent period of her life. She admires her strength; her patience; her quiet confidence. Diana thinks Jesse's very smart and kind and witty. Hot-headed, yes, but intensely competent and practical and empathetic. They get along well when they actually talk. Jesse ran after their first night together, but she gets over herself eventually and starts staying over. It's hard to feel embarrassed or vulnerable for very long when Diana's already held her through a full-fledged mental breakdown.

They're both busy and their paths don't naturally cross very often, but they invite each other out and make time to meet up. That's where their relationship is at when Jesse joins the Titans, and that's where it stays for a while. I think I already mentioned it but IMO this is not a relationship that lasts. I don't see them getting married or anything. They're not even public about the exact nature of their relationship because neither of them could articulate what that "nature" is, and anyway Jesse does NOT want her mother finding out. They're physically very comfortable with each other. Diana is very vocal about her admiration of Jesse, which Jesse loves and hates in equal measure (Craving For External Validation vs Self-Esteem Issues, FIGHT). They're not overly protective of each other, though Diana pays close attention to Jesse's emotional state. Jesse, especially later on after they've defined the parameters of their relationship, likes to psychoanalyze Diana and try to trace how her upbringing on Themyscira affects her interpersonal relationships.

At the beginning, in their private moments, Jesse can be quite clingy; she likes to have Diana's attention on her and can get pretty jealous if Diana mentions someone Jesse perceives as competing for her affection — e.g Steve. She makes some passive-aggressive remarks and Diana eventually tells her that she cares very much about Steve as a friend, and if Jesse wants to establish their situation as an actual, exclusive Relationship, then Diana is more than willing to talk about it. Abashed, Jesse apologizes and they finally discuss what they are to each other. Jesse's possessiveness stemmed less from a desire to actually Date Diana and more out of her own self-loathing and emotional insecurity. She doesn't have many friends and Diana is so open about her appreciation for all her friends; Jesse felt like she didn't actually mean much to Diana because Diana talks so positively about so many people. Eventually she comes to see that there is not a lying bone in Diana's body, and she only says what she actually believes — and to her, most people ARE strong and beautiful and kind, INCLUDING Jesse. Caring about many people does not diminish her love for Jesse. Jesse's just not used to being around someone so genuine and loving. In the end there's not really any romantic attraction between them and they decide not to be exclusive, though they accidentally end up monogamous most of the time since they both aren't big on dating in general.

In public they keep it mostly professional, though they will frequently compliment each other in a way that borders on flirting and there is plenty of unnecessarily long eye contact. Even after they stop sleeping together they are just..... very comfortable with each other. I imagine they like to spar together (Jesse's geeking out the whole time at being taught hand-to-hand combat by an AMAZONIAN WARRIOR) and often eat lunch/dinner/etc together on rooftops or in their respective offices. Jesse develops a huge interest in Greek history and Wally finds himself being accosted by Wonder Woman who wants to know about "speedster biology"??? It's a fun time for everyone

do you have a minute to talk about our lord & saviour WonderQuick

b&w sketch under cut