It was a lazy Saturday afternoon that saw Robin and Wally escorting Kitty to Happy Harbor's ice cream parlor. The mutant girl had been helping Wally study all morning for their big exam on Monday while Robin worked frantically on an assignment and they felt the were due for a break. M'gann and Conner were away on a mission together, they'd left late the previous night as per Batman's directives. Artemis had opted to make use of the free training room to turn it into an archery field while Kaldur relaxed in the ocean.
The three friends shared a couple of sundaes at one of the booths and by shared they meant Kitty and Robin split a Sundae while Wally had his own. The two younger heroes giggled away as their friend's shoveling meant more ended up on his face then in his mouth. Of course, the real reason for the three of them getting away from the rest of the group was to give Kitty a chance to open up to them, but an hour of idle chatter later and they knew they couldn't put off their school work any longer so the trio trudged back to Mount Justice only to find Roy waiting for them when they arrived.
Their ex-team member had managed to track down a location on Ra's al Ghul and wanted a little back-up on the case. "I'll go," Artemis told him, earning her a sharp look from the older archer. He had a feeling Cheshire would be there and didn't want the blonde along for the ride. "No thanks," Roy sneered, eyeing her disdainfully, "I don't need any lead weight on my team." Wally and Robin were about to add their names to the list but Kaldur shot them down, reminding them of their school work.
"I'll do it," Kitty piped up bringing Roy's gaze to her for the first time. The archer's piercing gaze wandered over her small frame before smirking, she didn't look big enough to lift a book, let alone fight. "Sorry kid, heroes only," Roy told her shaking his head at the caliber of people the League were letting in these days. Kaldur silenced Wally and Robin's protests with a hand before stepping up to Kitty's side. "She is one of us," Kaldur told the archer firmly, "And if we cannot have Robin on the team, it would be wise to bring a hacker along with us. You let me worry about her skills."
The young girl nodded and raced to suit up, Artemis not far behind her. If Kitty was going there was no way she was being left behind. The moment th girls left Wally and Robin rounded on Roy. "You take care of her," they told him in no uncertain terms, much to Kaldur's surprise, "No matter what happens, you make sure you bring Kitty back unharmed." Roy raised an eyebrow, he left the team only to come back and find that not only had they welcomed another new team mate, but that she'd also earned herself a place of esteem in not only Wally's but Robin's eyes too, possibly even their hearts. "I don't leave people behind," Roy told them, attempting to soothe their ruffled feathers.
The moment Kitty returned Wally and Robin pulled her aside. 'Listen to Kaldur," the speedster told her, "Do everything he tells you, no matter what." Kitty nodded solemnly, this was her chance to make up for the last fiasco and there was no way she was going to blow it. Not this time. The mutant girl went to rejoin the group when Robin stopped her. "Wait," the raven teen called out, rushing over to take her belt off, replacing it with his own, "You're going to be the technical support on this, so you're going to need equipment." Four pairs of eyes bugged out at the sight of Robin's tact-belt on Kitty's waist, the hero was extremely possessive of his utility belt and only ever let Batman near it. "We'll stay near a computer," Robin continued, "So if you have any questions, just say the word." The small brunette hugged Robin tightly before collecting her katanas and leading the way to the hanger, it was time to take the Quin-jet out for a spin.
"She'll be fine, yeah?" Wally asked as they watched the Quin-jet leave with Kitty at it's helm, "I mean, she's like totally ninja and she'll phase at the first sing of trouble right?" Robin nodded, squinting through the moonlight to watch the team fly off without them. "She's smart," the raven teen replied, "She's a good fighter and she's got my utility belt. She'll be fine." The worried pair made their way to the lounge to set up a computer for communications. They knew they were supposed to be focusing on their school work, but both knew they wouldn't get much done until the team were back.
Roy sat at the controls beside Kitty, watching as the young girl piloted the craft effortlessly with Kaldur and Artemis sitting in the back with an arrangement of gear to choose from if required. The older archer had to admit he was impressed, both with her skills so far and her aircraft. Unlike the other League jets, this one seemed to have been set up for attack as well as defense. The controls in front of him were marked for various gun turrets and blasters distributed throughout the ship, while the rest of the craft boasted storage space for any armament required for a mission. "Cloaking on," Kitty told them, flicking a few switches to activate the camouflage feature before decreasing altitude and finding a landing space.
It seemed Ra's al Ghul favoured temples as the co-ordinates led them to a Taoist Monastery. Kaldur signaled for Kitty to get a better view, the mutant quickly scurrying up a tree for a better look around before scarpering down just as fast. "The trees are closer on the east side, but there's also more spotlights on that side," Kitty told them quietly, "but if I can slip in, I can re-direct them for a few moments, enough to give you a blind spot in." Roy's eyes widened, he hadn't expected the rookie to be willing to take such a risk, solo op's were usually his ploy.
"What do you need?" Kaldur asked, eyeing the situation as best he could. He didn't want the young girl taking unnecessary risks, especially since it seemed Wally and Robin were likely to launch their own war if she didn't make it back. "A boost," Kitty replied, pointing to the roof. The mutant girl unsheathed her katanas and braced her knees while Kaldur summoned water to catapult her into the air. The moment her feet touched the roof, the team ran to get into position and wait for her signal.
The older archer watched as the young girl raced across the roof, her feet and the hilts of her blades quickly silencing any who would raise the alarm. Shadowcat slid into a room, hacking the computer system and reorganising the spotlighting movements to allow for a small window before slipping back out the window and sliding to the ground to meet the team. Getting to work on the door, Kitty had the lock picked by the time the other three heroes reached her.
Once inside, Roy took point with Kitty right behind him, Artemis watching their backs and Kaldur bringing up the rear. "We split up," Roy told them knowing the temple would be too large to search as a group, "Kaldur, you take this floor, Artemis the courtyards, I'll take the upper level and Kitty, see what you can do about the surveillance system."
The small girl nodded, racing off as fast as she could to find a computer with the right connections. It didn't take the girl long to tap the feeds, looping tapes to make them practically invisible. From then, it was just a matter of watching the real surveillance, muttering quietly to give the team a heads-up on patrols coming their way, until she found something far more interesting.
Kitty was just removing the USB from the computer when a woman in green with a white cat's mask entered. "Well, well, well," the woman practically purred as she stalked closer to Kitty, "So you're the reason for the surveillance loop hmm?" Kitty slid her hand under the table, phasing the limb to pass through the computer tower. If they'd been found out, the best thing she could do for the team was to kill the motherboard.
Shadowcat slid to the other side of the table, keeping her eyes on the other woman before making a break for the door. Cheshire Cat took chase, needing to stop the girl from raising the alarm. Sporstmaster was currently closing in on Red Arrow while teams were converging on Artemis and Kaldur, all she needed to do was keep this one little brat from alerting the other heroes.
Cheshire Cat dived for the girl, only to have her flip out of the way one hand going for her comm. "Move, move, move," Kitty called into her microphone, knowing stealth was no longer an option, "We've been made." Cheshire Cat made one last lunge for the girl, colliding with her as they both went over the railing of the second floor.
Roy spun just in time to see Kitty and Cheshire Cat go flying over the railings. His heart leaped into his mouth as he remembered Wally and Robin's warning before Kitty somehow managed to disentangle herself from the other woman and fire one of Robin's safety lines up to the roof. The archer was filled with relief as the girl flew up past him to the roof. The woman in green pushed herself back up, scaling the walls after the young mutant just as Sportsmaster found Roy.
Drawing her katanas, Kitty waited for the masked woman to reach her before launching an attack. The mutant ducked and twirled, her twin blades matching the Cheshire Cat's sais blow for blow. The brunette's feet worked just as fast, kicks blocking and parrying in time with her blades. Cheshire Cat's eyes widened behind the mask, she'd thought the small girl an obstetrical as best, but it seemed she'd underestimated her because the small girl was putting up a fight that put most trained warriors to shame. She was trained and well, her unique fighting style keeping Cheshire Cat on her toes. The masked woman knew she'd have to end this fight soon if she wanted to win.
Smiling from behind Robin's domino mask, Kitty ducked into a sweeping pirouette, a feint at knocking Cheshire Cat's legs out from under her, but the ploy was just enough to finish the maneuver with a snap-kick to the woman's chin. The mutant girl was about to break out Robin's rope when Roy's cry alerted her to the others. Grabbing the woman's sais, she quickly stabbed them through Cheshire Cat's clothes and in to the roof to pin her in place until she could help Roy. Sliding down the support beam, Kitty spotted the masked man standing over Roy. Using her weight as a counter-balance, the girl spun around the wooden post to slam her feet into his chest, another round-house driving him away from Roy. The archer stood, giving her a nod of thanks before continuing the battle.
A solid blow to the back sent Kitty flying down to the ground level, Cheshire Cat not far behind her. The masked woman spun her blades before lunging, not giving Kitty a chance to recover. The brunette rolled away, springing back to her feet, her swords glinting in the moonlight. The pair clashed once more, blades screaming for blood as they dug deep, neither wanting to conceded a victory. Kitty spun, twisting her katanas to connect with the sais from the side.
Kitty grinned as the Adamantium did their work, shearing the blades off at the hilt. Cheshire Cat dropped the useless hilts, freezing as the deadly points of Kitty's katanas slid under her chin. The masked woman was about to admit defeat for the the first time in her life when a single arrow flew at Kitty, making the girl jump backwards to avoid it. Cheshire Cat took her moment of weakness to land a kick to the gut and run. Kitty slumped to the ground more than a little winded as the other three heroes joined her, their own battles either finished or escaped.
Roy knelt to check on the girl helping her to sit up as Kaldur scanned the area. He'd seen Kitty end the fight but when he turned back around she was on the floor. Something didn't sit right with him and he scanned the area until his eyes finally found a single gleam of silver. A lone arrow.
Roy lifted the mutant girl into his arms, carrying her as they ran back to the jet knowing they'd need her to catch her breath if they wanted her to pilot them back. Looking down at the girl in his arms he could see why she'd been added to the team. Her fierce bravery was only matched by her loyalty and skill with a blade. She'd left her own battle to aid him, a move that had cost her but had possibly saved his life, yet staring down at her Roy couldn't help thinking there was still more to her than first thought. In the end, he guessed only time would tell if she was ready to share those secrets.
Robin and Wally were already pacing the hanger with Lockheed perched anxiously on the red-head's shoulder by the time the Quin-jet came in to view. A very tired Roy stalked out, one arm around Kitty, supporting her as she made her way over to the nervous trio. The red-head and the raven didn't even let her get three steps off the jet before they'd shoved Roy aside and helped her over to a chair.
"What happened?" Robin asked, his voice icy and quiet as he viewed their tired, defeated faces. Artemis rolled her eyes, the blonde archer the more refreshed out of the lot, having had less physical interaction with the enemy. "Princess Kitty decided to take on Cheshire Cat and had her arse handed to her," Artemis told them snidely, "Oh and she failed to maintain the surveillance loop to keep us from being noticed."
"I'm sorry," Kitty told them all, hanging her head in shame, "I thought my security hack would last. I didn't realize they'd pick up on the loop." Robin patted the girl's shoulder knowing better then anyone that sometimes it didn't matter what you did, once someone noticed the loop it was all over. Roy surprised everyone by striding over to kneel before the depressed girl.
"It wasn't your fault," Red Arrow told her placing a gentle hand on her knee, "You did your best. Besides, very few can say they've fought the Cheshire Cat and lived. At the very least you can be proud of that." With one final nod, Roy stalked out of the hanger, turning around at the last minute to make eye contact with Kaldur. They would discuss the arrow at a later date, for now the team needed sleep.
"'Seriously Kitkat?" Wally asked incredulously, "You actually crossed blades with the Cheshire Cat?" Kitty nodded, feeling slightly better about how the evening had ended, she just wished she'd remembered there were more opponents than just the one she was facing. "Congratulations," Robin told her, beaming brightly, "I'm officially whelmed."
Kaldur and Artemis left as Kitty stood, giggling slightly as she removed Robin's belt. "Thank you," she told him smiling softly, "You're belt kind of saved me." Robin's grin widened, glad he'd been able to help even if he wasn't there to aid her himself. "Too bad it couldn't save this," the mutant girl pulled out a crushed USB stick, it must have broken when she'd fell, "I found the main computer and downloaded all the files I could, but I guess I shouldn't have bothered. At least I managed to fry the motherboard huh?"
Robin held the USB stick up to the light, it was badly damaged but maybe Batman could help him try to salvage some data off the stick. "Nicely done," Robin told her, "I doubt the others would've thought to steal files." Kitty grinned, feeling much better about the evening now Robin and Wally were going out of their way to make her smile. Robin stalked off to collect his books and take the USB to the Bat Cave, he just knew Batman would appreciate Kitty's initiative. Wally took the opportunity to carry her up to her room, telling her stories as she huddled under the covers until she drifted off, her head tucked under his chin. The red-head shifted the blankets, glad for the chance to sleep in a little the next day. His worry over the tiny brunette had left him far more exhausted then running at super speed all over Bialya had. Wally smiled as she shifted in her sleep, one arm moving to wrap around him as he finally fell asleep.
Well - the votes are in!
WITTY - a whopping 35 votes
WONDERCAT - 11
Looks like this fic is officially WITTY!
May your thoughts and creativity flow,
Lady Ami DragonHeart
