New To The Family

Chapter 4: A Huntress In The Night

In the depths of the Batcave, Catwoman lay unconscious on a makeshift cot. Alfred was tending to her as the heart monitor hooked up to the computer kept track of her vitals. She was unharmed physically, but had not yet awoken from the hibernative state being frozen had put her in.

"All in all, Miss Kyle is unharmed," Alfred reported, as calm as ever. "It is just a matter of waiting for her to wake up."

"Thank you, Alfred," Batman replied. "Could you prepare a warm meal for her for when she wakes up."

"But of course, sir. And, if I may ask, how long will Miss Kyle be staying with us?"

Batman looked back at his old flame. "That depends on why she came back."

"Very good, sir," the butler replied, and made for the exit.

Leaning against the wall, Nightwing watched his old mentor with interest. "So you think she specifically came back looking for you?"

Turning his attention to his computer, the Dark Knight began going through his files. "I have little doubt."

"Any idea why?"

"There's no telling. When it comes to Catwoman, there's really no figuring out what her true motives are."

Robin was sitting on the railing, looking moodier than usual to have their "guest" in the Batcave. "Who cares what her reasons are? You should have just handed her over to the police."

"It's complicated," Batman replied simply.

"No, it's not," Robin snapped. "She's a criminal. We take down criminals. It's as simple as that."

"We're criminals too," Nightwing pointed out. "Vigilantism is against the law, as are a lot of other things we do. Assault, blackmail, threats, trespassing, taking police evidence. The list goes on."

The Boy Wonder hopped off the railing. "I wasn't talking to you, Grayson. And you know that she's not like us."

"It's true that Selina Kyle has violated the laws in ways we would not," Batman admitted, "but she's also been a valuable friend and ally on several occasions. She even saved our lives on more than one occasions."

Robin crossed his arms. "And how many times has she used and betrayed you?"

"Never with malicious intent. Catwoman may be a criminal, but she's not a threat to anyone. It's a game to her, a thrill, but she won't let anyone get hurt in the process."

But Robin wasn't convinced, and he wasn't ignorant to his father's relationship with the leather-clad woman. It was a well-known fact that Batman and Catwoman had been involved with each other for several years before her disappearance. The same could be said for Bruce Wayne and Selina Kyle. As far as he was concerned, his father's judgment was clouded when it came to her.

He walked over to their so-called guest, looking down at her with distrust. "As far as I'm concerned, we should have let her be taken in with the others."

"Dually noted," his father replied, not taking his eyes off the screen.

Dissatisfied with Batman's response, Robin's gaze traveled to Catwoman's face. Much like his father's mask, she too wore a similar one, only cat based rather than bat based, and a pair of orange goggles covered her eyes, leaving only her nose and mouth visible. He reached for her mask to remove it. He already knew what she looked like from the time he looked at her file on the computer, but he wanted to see how much she had changed in the 11 years since her disappearance.

Something whizzed through the air, flying between his hand and Catwoman's head, cutting him off. He pulled his hand back, and saw that it was a shuriken, the more traditional type of ninja star rather than the bat-based one they used.