Okay, so as a sort of Christmas gift, to myself among others, I edited and rewrote this oneshot. I realised that it was badly written (not surprising considering how young I was), and I didn't think that it did the film justice. So I'm putting this up again, rewritten and hopefully better, though you will have to tell me whether I am right.
Please review!
Max darted out from behind the black clad figure, nearly tripping over his feet in his haste to get away from the dangerous woman. He practically threw himself at Bruce. 'You're not just saving a life you're saving-'
Bruce shoved him in the face, disgusted at the man's slippery, simpering nature. 'Shut up, you're going to gaol'. Shreck staggered back and half fell against the crumbling wall, his expression shocked.
Selina jumped with cat-like grace in front of Shreck, preventing Bruce from getting any closer. She cracked her whip threateningly, yet her voice was strangely desperate. 'Don't be naive the law doesn't apply to people like him or us'.
Bruce stopped and swallowed; now that he knew that Catwoman was in fact Selina Kyle, the woman he was in love with, he could see that it was her. Though it might have helped that her mask had become so torn that he could see her wavy light brown hair sticking though it.
'Wrong on both accounts'. He took a small, tentative step forward, a little like he was approaching a wounded animal. From close by came the sounds of another explosion. 'Why are you doing this?', he asked quietly. Selina glanced over her shoulder at Shreck, who was observing the scene, his eyes bright and calculating. Bruce took another slow step forwards. 'Lets just take him to the police then we can go home…together'. His voice held a pleading note, and he knew that, but he didn't care if he appeared weak in front of her.
Selina flicked her whip, bringing it through the air with a sharp 'crack', but her body quivered noticeably. Her resolve was wavering. Her shoulders were heaving and her breathing was shallow.
'Selina', he whispered quietly, 'don't you see? We're the same…split right down the centre'. Selina sucked in a breath sharply and swallowed, the tears that had made her eyes so bright spilling over. Bruce raised a hand slowly and ripped his mask off. Selina's lips quirked in a slight smile. 'Selina…please'.
She swallowed past the lump in her throat. 'Bruce I would – I would love to live you in your castle'. She turned her head away, closing her eyes in pain. 'Forever just like in a fairytale'.
Hesitantly, he stretched out a hand and touched her head, intent on comforting her. She reacted automatically, her nails raking down his face as she spun and lashed out. 'I just couldn't live with my self', she hissed, 'so don't pretend this is a happy ending'.
'Selina'. Selina turned her head in a half growl and pulled off her mask, causing her hair to stick up everywhere as Shreck continued, 'Selina Kyle; your fired'. Shreck turned as Bruce moved forwards again. 'And Bruce Wayne. Why are you dressed up like Batman?'
Selina rolled her eyes. 'Because he is Batman you moron!'
Shreck withdrew his hand from inside his jacket. 'Was'. The shot went off before either of them could react, the bullet whistling through the air at a speed neither of them could dodge. Bruce fell with a grunt of pain as the bullet skimmed his shoulder. Selina turned on Shreck, her lips curled in a vicious snarl of anger. Shreck raised his gun again. 'Don't'.
Selina scoffed, but her heart was pounding erratically against her ribs. 'You killed me, the Penguin killed me, Batman killed me, that's three lives down you got enough in there to finish me off?'
Shreck shrugged. 'One way to find out'. He fired the two shots without hesitation.
No one could miss at that range. Selina staggered back as the bullets buried into her chest. 'Four, five', she gasped, bringing her whip around and down as she spoke. The tip of the whip curled around the barrel of Shreck's gun. Selina jerked the whip back, yanking it from his grip. It flew out of his hand and up into the air. Selina caught it, a dangerous snarl twisting her mouth. 'Still alive. And now it seems you're last defence is gone'.
Shreck blinked and swallowed. 'Now really Selina what good will it do?'
'You killed me you pompous monster!' growled Selina. She held her whip in one hand and the gun in the other; her eyes alight with a mad fire. Her body was shaking, though whether from pain or something else it was impossible to tell.
Shreck shrugged slightly, licking his lips nervously. 'Technically I didn't kill you seeing as your alive… in fact killing me has nothing to do with revenge'.
Selina snarled again and straightened from a half crouch. 'Your attempt on my life resulted in a woman who is completely insane! I can hear this voice in my head all the time, and it's telling me to kill you! I can't get it out, and until I do what it wants its going to keep torturing me!'
'Insane is a very strong word Selina. From what I've heard, you have two halves. I'm sure if you put your mind to it, you could find a way to silence that voice. I've heard that there is more than one way to find redemption'.
Selina's shoulders sagged in a gesture of helpless defeat. 'There is no other way for me. I have nothing else'.
'Selina?' A voice interrupted their conversation, a voice that she hadn't thought she would ever hear again.
Selina turned. Bruce was standing surprisingly close to her and she jumped back in surprise. She hadn't heard him approach.
'Bruce?' She gasped, shock suffusing her face. She had thought that Shreck had killed him.
He moved forward again so that she was forced to look up into his face. His voice was barely above a whisper. 'You have me, Selina, whether you want me or not. I can help you'.
Selina looked down, trying to avoid his intense gaze. 'I hate this'. The confession slipped past her lips against her will. 'Its not like you Bruce, your halves are not so different. You're an almost ridiculously good person. Mine…I can't…I can't tell what is right from wrong half the time. My head is full of these violent thoughts. Sometimes I want to hurt people. I just need to silence those thoughts, I need to find some way to stop them from being so different'.
Hesitantly, Bruce moved forwards again so that he was close enough to hear her ragged breathing and see the bullet holes in her suit. 'Both of you want Max punished don't you?' She nodded without hesitation. 'So don't you think that killing him isn't good enough for him? If we hand him over to the police then he will be sentenced to a life imprisonment, the entire city will see how corrupt he is, he will lose his respect, his money and his power… don't you think that's a better punishment?'
Selina looked up at him and nodded slowly. Just as slowly, Bruce reached out a hand to touch her face, ready to jerk it away at a moments warning, and very gently stroked her cheek. Instead of reacting as she had before, Selina leaned into his hand and closed her eyes. Pulling her to him, he gently pried her whip from her tightly clenched fingers and let it drop to the floor. Gently, he tilted her head up and kissed her tenderly. The gun slipped from her fingers and fell with an audible 'clang' to the floor. Her hands linked behind his neck as she pulled away. With a heavy sigh, she leaned into him, allowing him to wrap his arms around her body and hug her tightly. She pressed her face against his shoulder as his grip on her tightened, as if he could hold her together with that simple act.
Quite suddenly, Bruce remembered that they were not alone. He lifted his head to look for Shreck. He froze. Shreck had managed to cross to the island by wading through the only clean water without either of them noticing. He was standing next to the stand of Penguin's umbrellas and was in the act of opening a black one, its tip pointed at the entwined pair.
Bruce reacted instinctively. He turned sharply so that his body was in front of Selina's before. In the same movement, he ducked down, bringing them to the floor as his hand closed around the discarded gun.
Three shots rang though the air. Two were fired in quick succession from the umbrella point, both missing Bruce by less than an inch. The third was fired from the gun in Bruce's hand. And unlike Shreck, Bruce was a dead hit. Max Shreck fell, a bullet between his eyes, a frozen expression of triumph and glee on his face.
Bruce turned away and looked down at Selina. 'You alright?'
She nodded. 'What happened?'
Bruce smiled slightly. 'He's dead'
A shudder ran through Selina's body. Her eyes flickered, and Bruce watched as the mad light behind her eyes snuffed out. For the first time in a long time, the voices in her head went silent. A smile tugged at her lips, and this time it didn't feel fake.
Bruce bent his neck to bring his lips to hers again. Their moment was brief however, as an odd melody reached their ears.
Both turned in time to see a mortally injured Penguin drop an umbrella hanging with toys with a grunt. 'Crap; I picked the cute one'. Cuts littered his disfigured body and green liquid poured from his mouth. The two watched as Penguin muttered something to himself before saying, 'I'll murder you both momentarily. But first a glass of cool water…' He made a gurgling sound at the back of his throat before falling flat on his face. He was quite clearly dead.
Bruce turned away, slightly disgusted by the site. 'Come on, lets go home. We can leave this to the police'. He slipped an arm around Selina's shoulders and began to lead her towards the surface.
'What about evidence? I mean will they know what Max did?' Selina bent and picked up her whip as she passed.
Bruce nodded. 'The Penguin had all these documents he used to black mail Shreck and they're down there. Its so obvious that I doubt the police can stuff it up'.
'Hold still will you?' cried Bruce exasperatedly.
They were back at the mansion. Selina was lying on the couch and Bruce was sitting beside her, leaning over her with a pair of tweezers in his hand, trying to extract the bullets from her chest.
'Sorry! It hurts!' muttered Selina.
He smiled slightly. 'I know just hang on, there is only one more'. Selina sighed and nodded before bracing herself. Bruce lowered the tweezers, gripped the bullet and pulled it out quickly. He flung it into a bowl beside the couch. After that he had laid a poultice over both her wounds and insured that it was secure. He sat up. Selina pulled his borrowed shirt down over her chest and sat up, yawning.
The TV was on. Every channel was reporting the same thing; that the Shreck industry was corrupt and that the Penguin was dead. And of course, that Batman had saved the day once more, with the help of a certain Catwoman. There had also been reports of the disappearance of Chip Shreck, Max's son and right hand man. Many people believed that he had gone into hiding because he had been as deeply involved in the schemes as his father. The police had assured the public that they were looking for him.
Selina watched the report through half-lidded eyes. A soft chuckle of amusement slipped from her lips. 'They think I'm some sort of hero'. It was amazing how quickly everyone seemed to be forgetting about her past crimes.
Bruce smiled. 'You could be you know'. He shifted closer to her and looked into her deep blue eyes.
Selina arched an eyebrow. 'Really? You really think that I could be a hero. You never know, I might revert to an insane murderess at any minute'. Her tone was sarcastic, yet he could hear the worry behind it.
He placed his hand over hers and squeezed. 'You don't have to worry about that anymore, I promise. You're not a bad person, Selina. You're a good person in fact, bad things have just happened to you. I believe in you'. He smiled softly. 'I could use your help'.
'What? You want me as your sidekick?' The smirk had not left her lips.
'No, my partner'. He hesitated. 'Then you can stay here'.
'What forever?' she asked remembering her words down in the Penguins lair. The thought of spending the rest of her life with Bruce sent a thrill she didn't quite understand through her.
He leaned forwards and kissed her. Her hand slipped up and entwined in his hair as he pushed her back onto the couch gently. His rough hand cupped her cheek, his thumb smoothing over the soft skin. Warmth trickled down the back of his neck and settled in his chest, spreading throughout his entire body. Finally, with his lungs screaming for air, he pulled away. He kept his face close to hers, feeling as if he was being swallowed by her enchanting eyes. 'So what do you say? Do you want to live in my castle, forever just like in a fairytale?'
Her lips quirked in an amused smile. 'Oh, you definitely know how to persuade a girl don't you?' His eyes sparkled and he bent his head to bring his lips in contact with the marble column of her neck. Her eyes slipped closed as his mouth made a trail down her neck to her collarbone. A contented hum, very similar to a purr, vibrated in her chest.
He drew away reluctantly and gazed down at her. The firelight played over her, lending a fiery glow to her alabaster skin. The light caught in her curly hair and danced in her eyes. She was unbelievably beautiful.
Her eyes traced his strong features, lingering for a moment on the gash across his cheek. She had done that. In the midst of her anger and confusion, she had hurt the man she loved. Her long slender fingers traced the mark gently, her brow furrowed with guilt. She no longer felt how she had before, so angry and confused, that she was almost a different person. But one thing remained the same. Her love for the man leaning over her had not changed, and she had the suspicion that it never would. Carefully, she leaned up and kissed the mark on his cheek. 'I'll stay', she whispered against his skin.
He turned her head with his hand and kissed her passionately. Her lips parted beneath his when his tongue pressed against them and he wasted no time in deepening the kiss.
When they parted for air, he whispered against her lips, 'Merry Christmas, Selina.
She smiled as he brought his lips back to hers. 'Merry Christmas, Bruce'.
Perhaps they would get their happy endings after all.
Merry Christmas everyone! And please review!