Multiverse Reborn: Batwoman

Chapter 5

"I'm surprised you aren't unpacking." Jacob said to his daughter the next morning.

"The reason why I haven't unpacked is because I'm planning on looking for my own place." Kate said.

"I can help you with that. We can find you a place safely in the Crows districts." Jacob said.

"I don't think so. I meant what I told you yesterday about the Crows. I want to help Gotham and that doesn't mean hiding in the crow's district, unless you want to expand it." Kate said, since she had two reasons for choosing to live outside the Crow's district. The first was that she knew her father would want to protect her, so she was forcing him to widen the Crows district to start protecting the people who really needed their protection. The second reason was because it would be easier for her to operate as Batwoman if she didn't have Crow's security watching her every move.

"Kate, I'm trying to keep you safe." Jacob said.

"You sent me away for five years to train. I can keep myself safe." Kate said.

"Kate, please." Jacob said.

"No. I'm planning on finding a place to live that won't come with a pocket crow." Kate said.

"Kate, why not live in a place that's protected by the crows?" Jacob asked.

"Because none of those areas are filled with people who actually need that kind of protection. You want me to live in the crows districts then widen it to include the parts of gotham that actually need it." Kate said.

"The crows are a business and a business needs revenue to function." Jacob said.

"So maybe you should consider using the money you get from protecting Gotham's elite and from your many benefactors like hamilton Dynamics to protect the rest of the city. Dad, I get that the crows are still a business, but can you honestly tell me that they're what you intended them to be. There's a reason that bat signal is still on after three years of no Batman. It's because the people of Gotham still have more faith in than they do the crows, since he helped people regardless of their tax bracket. Maybe if you did the same, they might consider being happy to turn the light off. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go find my own place to live." Kate said as she walked out of the apartment, leaving Jacob thinking about what she'd said.

"So, why exactly are you moving out of that penthouse." Luke asked Kate when she arrived at the office.

"My dad and I have several conflicting opinions and I'm not exactly the biggest fan of my stepmom right now. Honestly, the only member of my family I'm not annoyed with right now is my stepsister. I figured the best thing I can do is to find my own place. Only problem is that one of my requirements is that I want a place outside the Crow's district." Kate said.

"Which limits your options, since even though you're not a rich snob, you were still raised in a certain lifestyle." Luke said.

"Yeah. I try not to seem like a spoiled brat, but aside from the whole lifestyle thing, it would raise too much suspicion if Kate Kane moved into just a normal apartment, which could bring press or robbers who could find out my real identity." Kate said.

"Well, there might actually be a place that meets all your requirements." Luke said.

"Really where?" Kate asked.

"The only place in Gotham that even criminals don't go near anymore." Luke said.

"Where?" Kate asked again.

"Wayne Manor. It's been abandoned ever since Bruce left Gotham and I can't imagine him minding you ransacking his place like you did his office since it's not like he's using it anymore." Luke said and Kate sighed.

"Not a bad idea. I did love spending weekends there when I was a kid and if I know Bruce, I'm sure he's got it rigged with defenses to keep out unwanted guests. And if for some reason he didn't, then we will." Kate said.

"No need to worry about that. Even before he became Batman, Bruce had the manor upgraded with the best defense tech his company ever made." Luke said.

"Of course he'd hog the best toys for himself." Kate said fondly.

"True, but it's also to protect the cache of bat tech he kept stored underneath the manor to keep it safe. I'm authorized to be there and I'm guessing you still are, but we should probably make sure before you start moving in." Luke said.

"Yeah. Especially since I want to access this vault under the manor and see what kind of tech Bruce kept there." Kate said and Luke smiled.

"Speaking of, I finished making the upgrades to suit, so you want to take it out for a spin tonight." Luke asked.

"Absolutely. But first, I need to find the right target." Kate said.

"Yeah, I think I already it thanks to Vesper Fairchild." Luke said as he turned on Vesper's broadcast.

"Okay gotham, the crows strike out again in their pursuit of the mysterious new burglar, Magpie. Whoever this mystery bird is, she certainly seems to be several steps ahead of everyone else. So now the question remains, where will she strike next." Vesper's voice said.

"Okay then, Magpie. Time to make my debut in Gotham by doing something the Crows can't." Kate said.

"You are way too eager to make a fool out of your dad's company aren't you?" Luke asked, amused.

"Yep." Kate said, not even denying it, right as the windows behind her shattered and Magpie flew in.

"Shiny." she said, looking right at Martha Wayne's necklace.

"Not gonna happen bird breath." Kate said as she fought back against Magpie, stealing one of her grenades in the process.

"Kate." Luke warned as Magpie managed to get the better of her and stole the necklace before firing a grappling hook and zipping out of the building.

"No." Kate said, wondering how Magpie had gotten the drop on her, but decided to instead focus on finding her and the necklace.

"You okay?" Luke asked her.

"Better then Magpie will be. Let's get downstairs to analyze this." Kate said as she held up the grenade.

"Copy that." Luke agreed as they headed down to the Batcave.