Selina Kyle was a wealthy woman. She owned 15 cars, 7 homes in various countries, and owned a series of very successful companies that were animal friendly and made her millions of dollars a day.
She was not entirely satisfied. It had been nearly twenty years since she'd had a romantic relationship with Bruce Wayne and he continued to be the love of her life. When Richard Grayson had invited her to Christmas Eve dinner with he, Bruce, and what she only imagined were either their young lovers or wards, though she suspected more the former than the latter, she'd been more excited than she should have been.
When the evening finally came, Selina was alone on the doorstep of Bruce's home and extremely nervous. It had been nearly five years since she'd last laid eyes on Bruce though they spoke occasionally and sent each other gifts at appropriate holidays.
She was sixty-six and felt about twenty, ready to greet her Batman for the first time.
Instead what she saw when she opened the door was a young man with pale blue eyes and what she suspected was a reluctant smile. "Good evening, Miss Kyle," the young man said, his eyes betraying his emotions.
Selina smiled with her teeth, feeling genuine laughter threatening to emerge. "Hello there, boy, I don't believe I've had the pleasure."
"Terry McGinnis."
She grinned, "Terry."
Terry gestured her inside, shuffling his feet and looking at the floor.
She stepped inside and took it all in taking a deep breath, closing her eyes, and reliving the smell.
There was a chuckle from her left and she opened her eyes, bit her bottom lip, and smiled. Her eyes got a bit misty as she spoke. "Bruce."
The door closed somewhere behind her and she didn't even realize it, stepping closer and closer until there was only inches between them. Bruce leaned in and kissed her cheek, and she closed her eyes. "It's been a lifetime," he whispered, sending shivers down her spine.
"Yes, it has."
Bruce took a step back and made the same gesture that Terry had made before him. She stepped inside and took off her coat, which Terry begrudgingly accepted. Bruce passed the foyer and into the living room, where Dick Grayson and another young man sat across from one another in living chairs talking.
This boy was different from Terry, she could tell just by looking at him. They had similar features: black hair, average height, prominent chin; but this one had green eyes so dark that they were almost brown.
They seemed to become even blacker as they looked Dick Grayson over and his smile was warmer than the one she had seen from Terry McGinnis.
She liked him immediately.
"Richard!" she called, catching their attention.
Both men looked her way; the younger with wide eyes and Dick with warm ones. She walked over to them and greeted Dick, and then turned and realized that Bruce had left her side. Instead of letting that bother her, Selina looked at the young man expectantly.
He blushed.
Honest to God blushed.
"Oh, you are so adorable!" she exclaimed, reaching out and ruffling his head.
The young man turned redder and mumbled, "Thanks," not looking her in the eyes.
"Who is this adorable thing, Richard?"
"Why do you keep calling me that?" Dick asked, annoyed.
Selina grinned. "Because you have yet to offer me your seat, and I know that you dislike it so very much."
Dick laughed. "Oh Selina, I've missed you. Here," he offered his seat and she took it, then reached over and took the young man's hands.
"Your name," she whispered.
"Jason."
Selina looked up at Dick, clearly surprised. "Really."
Jason nodded.
She leaned in and kissed him on the cheek, whispering, "You are a bright spot in this very dull evening, darling Jason."
When she pulled away Jason was blushing still and she was satisfied.
Then the evening got more interesting as Bruce returned, with Terry in tow, looking quite disheveled.
Ah, so it was the former.
"Having fun, Bruce?"
Bruce's expression didn't even change and he said, "Always."
Selina sighed, her smile fading as she leaned back in her chair. "So…what are we having for dinner gentleman?"
"We're waiting for Barb," Dick announced.
Selina opened one eye. "Gordon?"
"Do you know another?"
She closed her eyes again. This was going to be a very interesting evening, no doubt about that. Barbara Gordon and she did not get along very well at all and she knew Barbara would not be coming to dinner with anything but ulterior motives. According to Bruce, she did not like the idea of the "New Batman" or this "New Robin", though she herself was enjoying watching their exploits on the satellite quite a bit.
"Well, what are we eating tonight?" she asked again.
"Jason's favorite food is turkey, so we're going traditional. It's his eighteenth birthday today," Dick said, again the only one answering.
Selina's eyes snapped open and she reached across for Jason, startling him. "It's your birthday, Jason?" she asked, genuinely saddened, "Oh, someone should have told me!"
Jason's face was getting redder by the minute and Terry actually laughed.
"You'd think you were old friends or something."
Selina looked over at Terry, who seemed somewhat more loosened and happier now that he and Bruce had "talked." "Well, I'm sure we were…in another life. Right, Jason?"
Jason mumbled, "I don't know."
Selina looked at Bruce, who seemed happier than she'd ever seen him.
"This was…"
She was interrupted abruptly when the doorbell rang.
Barbara Gordon was here.
Jason immediately sat up straighter and Dick as well, but he stood at Jason's side like a guard dog. Terry took off to answer the door and Bruce made his way towards the kitchen.
Selina just stared, taking in the scene.
"You'd think something was wrong, with the way everyone is acting," she surmised, clearly not fazed.
Dick looked at her, put his hand on Jason's shoulder and squeezed.
Selina's eyes became small slits as she looked towards the doorway.
When Barbara Gordon did show herself, she looked so much older than Selina herself the older woman had to smile immediately. Not that she was one of those people, but she felt very proud of herself for it.
"Hello everyone," Barb announced, walking towards them.
Dick stepped away from Jason to meet her, leaning in and kissing her cheek quickly making sure not to linger like Bruce had with her. When he pulled back Selina saw her blush still.
Exactly as she'd thought, but it hadn't been hard to guess.
One look at Dick, himself looking far too young in his old age, and she didn't blame the woman at all.
"Barbara," she said, leaning in and kissing Barb's cheeks.
"Selina, you look amazing."
Selina smiled. "You look wonderful yourself. Marriage must be better on the skin than I thought."
The mention of marriage caused the Commissioner's eyes to darken a bit and Selina instantly knew this was not going to end well.
Dick cleared his throat. "Barb, I'd like you to meet someone."
Jason stood at Dick's side; still looking scared out of his mind and holding out his hand. Barbara smiled at him warmly and took his hand. "Hello young man, and you must be Jason."
Jason looked up, startled. "Yeah, how'd you know?"
"Dick talks about you often."
He looked at Dick, still clearly surprised. "Oh. It's nice to meet you."
"You as well."
Barbara looked around and asked, "Where is Bruce? And Terry? He was just here."
"They must be finishing dinner preparations," Selina guessed, "Come and sit."
Barb shook her head. "I'm fine. I would like to know more about you though, Jason."
Jason, who had been looking down at his lap again, looked up. "Why?"
"Are you enjoying the nightlife?"
Jason's eyes widened a bit. "Um…yeah. It's…yeah."
Dick touched his shoulder again and looked at Barb. "He's a natural, Babs. You should see how the kid looks using the modifier I made that…"
"Dinner's done." Terry announced then, interrupting quickly and then disappearing again.
The foursome walked towards dinner, Barb chatting animatedly with Dick while Jason and Selina followed. She leaned over and took the boy's hand, smiling at his surprise when he looked at her. She leaned in and whispered into his ear, "Us quiet ones need to stick together, darling. Keep an eye on her."
Jason looked at Barbara Gordon and Dick Grayon's backs, frowning. "I will."
