Chapter 3: Old Friends

            New Gotham was a different place than the bustling rebuilding city Selina Kyle remembered. It seemed darker more war torn somehow. She had visited a couple of times, since she had given up her career as a thief for something a lot more giving, but now she was moving back here to stay at least for a while. There would be issues. He was still roaming the night and she wasn't sure how he would react, if he learned the truth about Helena.

Her young daughter knew nothing of this as she walked at her side as carefree as ever. She had only visited New Gotham once before and was excited about moving to the city. "Would you look at the buildings around here? It is like the stone gargoyles have been spawning out of control," Helena said with a chuckle and looked around so fast that her thick braid swung in the air.

Selina just chuckled and looked up at the apartment building they were approaching. "Helena, do you think that an old friend would mind giving a pair of weary travelers a warm welcome?" She asked rhetorically.

"Are we visiting Barbara like last time?" Helena asked with excitement. She liked the red headed woman, who had been so nice to her mother unlike so many other people had been when they had last been here.

"Yeah," Selina said as they entered the building.

Selina Kyle dressed the doorbell for the second time and began to wonder if Barbara was out gallivanting through the night as Batgirl already. "I'll be right there," a familiar voice called. There was a hearty laughter inside that sounded very unlike Barbara. Two sets of feet were running around. Selina's very fine hearing picked up a "gotcha" and the sound of a kiss. Soon after the lock was turned and opened to reveal a disheveled looking Barbara Gordon. Selina was about to apologize for catching Barbara in some intimate moment, when she noted Barbara's strange style in clothes. The usually very conservative Barbara was wearing jeans and a t-shirt, her feet were bare and she had obviously been doing something involving water and foam. "Hi Barbara," she said in greeting expecting an annoyed grumble as a welcome.

But Barbara just erupted into a wide smile and threw her door open. "Come on in. Hi Helena," she said as the very fashionably dressed woman and her equally fashionable daughter slipped inside and took of their coats off.

"Did we catch you at a bad time?" Selina asked.

"No, I think all my trouble for tonight is over," Barbara raised her voice as the last words crossed her lips. Barbara indicated that they should go into the living room.

Selina noticed the huge amount of changes in the living room as she walked inside. The formerly uniform white apartment with its steel and glass tables and closets was replaced with pleasant yellowish walls, cherry wooden furniture and big comfortable reddish couches. Selina also sensed that there was someone else in the guest bedroom moving things around. "Have a seat," Barbara suggested and walked halfway to the kitchen before stopping to ask, "You'll stay for dinner right."

"Sure," Selina said after Helena nodded vigorously. Her daughter had also noticed the changes in Barbara's apartment. Selina's eyes fell upon a picture of a smiling Barbara and a small longhaired blonde girl of no more than five or six year's old standing atop some mountain with very beautiful green and mountainous scenery in the background. Her brow wrinkled in confusion.

"What do you want to drink?" She called out, "I have milk, apple juice, pineapple juice, carrot juice, cocoa and coffee."

"Coffee for me and." Selina cast a look at her daughter.

"Cocoa for me," Helena called out.

Suddenly a child's voice answered from the former guest bedroom, "I would like pineapple, please."

"Got it," Barbara answered back and got busy in the kitchen. A little bit later she returned with a tray and what they had ordered. As if on queue the girl from the picture appeared from the room and walked calmly over to collect her juice. She looked like she was nearly six years old. Her hair was long pale blonde with a couple of strands intricately woven together. Her eyes were blue and her face held a strange mix of innocence and intelligence. She looked nothing like Barbara and Selina was rather sure that Barbara didn't have had a child two years ago when she had last visited with Helena.

"Oh, I forgot. Dinah, this is Selina and her daughter Helena. Selina, Helena this is Dinah," Barbara said with a bit of mischief in her voice.

"Hello," Dinah said and looked a bit shy.

"Hi I am Helena," Helena said and offered Dinah her hand. Dinah looked at her strangely for a moment, and then shook her hand.

"Well if we're going to have dinner I better get started," Barbara said and waltzed back towards her kitchen. The girl remained in the living room looking at them with a curious expression.

"So how do you know my mom?" She asked and looked from one astounded face to another.

"I've known Barbara for a long time. I didn't know she had a daughter," Selina said and once again tried to find a single feature that reminded her of Barbara Gordon.

"Oh, she got me almost two years ago. My first mom was shot, but she knew that Barbara would be my guardian, so she sent me here," the girl explained matter-of-factly as if she had done that speech several times before.

"Really," Selina said and wondered how the perfectionist and driven crime fighter had come to the decision of taking care of this little girl.

"I told her we would have guests today, but she wouldn't believe me," Dinah claimed and looked very smug.

"Do you want to see my room," Dinah asked Helena. Helena looked at her mother, who nodded and got up as well. Dinah dragged the resisting thirteen year old into her room, while Selina headed for the kitchen.

Selina leaned against the threshold and watched as Barbara with great expertise worked up a dinner in her kitchen. It looked like they were getting some kind of pasta salad. "I thought you couldn't cook. Your own words," Selina said and stepped inside the kitchen.

Barbara didn't seem startled as she continued to chop the salad and speaking, "A lot can change in a few years."

"I noticed," Selina said. "You have a child around now, that is a rather big change."

Barbara looked at her with a smile of someone remembering something pleasant. "It is funny you know. At first I didn't know what to do or even if I wanted Dinah here. I was afraid both of having a child and it not being my own. But she is under my skin now. I think she has slowly turned me into a mother. Just last week she had a note back from her teachers that they wanted to move her up to a more advanced class in both math and English because she was doing so well. I was so proud I almost burst," she explained.

Selina smiled, "Ah, I know the feeling. Well, let me be the one to welcome you into the ranks of mothers."

Barbara looked up from her work again and some worry or hurt was reflected in her eyes. "I am not her mother even if Dinah has begun referring to me as such. She knows of course that Carolyn is her biological mother and I am only her guardian, but she doesn't care," she said.

"Ah, so you wish, you were her mother," Selina commented.

Barbara's eyes seemed clouded by emotions for a few moments. "I am not sure you know. I am her mother in every way but the biological one. Legally I am only her guardian, but to me, to her, to my friends even to my dad she is family now. Dinah has a big heart Selina and she is good at worming her way into other people's as well," she explained.

"So who was her mother?" Selina picked up the stump of a carrot and ate it.

"Carolyn Lance. Black Canary," Barbara admitted and heard Selina almost choke on the carrot.

"You're telling me that the bird not only had a daughter but that she is dead," Selina asked and almost couldn't stop from sounding gleeful.

Barbara just gave Selina a reproachful look. "Dinah doesn't know about her mother's true occupation or about my nighttime job," Barbara explained.

Selina was silent for a while as Barbara mixed the cooling pasta with the vegetables and a dressing. "Do you think that is fair to Dinah?" Selina added and gave Barbara a questioning look.

"Maybe not, but she is still fragile. It took her over a year to accept the loss of her mother and I won't worry her by telling her that the only person she has come to depend on is out there fighting every night so that all people in this city can sleep safely," Barbara said maybe a little too hard.

"Maybe you shouldn't be out there. Why don't you give up this fool crusade of yours Barbara? In the end new criminals will just rise to replace the ones you take down," Selina answered.

Barbara fell silent for a moment and she looked like she almost deflated, "because the police aren't good enough, because sometimes there needs to be someone above the petty limitations put on the law enforcers, someone who can do what it takes. I love Dinah, but I won't deny my nature because of her."

"It will avenge itself in the end," Selina warned.

Barbara put the large bowl of pasta salad into her hands and trotted over to get the fresh-baked bread. "I don't think so," she said mostly to herself and followed Selina into the living room.

Selina could hear Helena's chuckle from Dinah's room. "Dinner," Barbara called and soon the teen and the child came running.

"Yum," Helena said and grabbed the bowl. Selina reminded herself to give Helena a few courses in proper behavior soon. Dinah waited her turn and clumsily poured the salad from the bowl onto her plate. Selina raised an eyebrow at the girl's early independence, but noted from Barbara's watchfulness that this was quite planned by the redheaded guardian. She took some salad herself and they settled in for a comfortable meal.

Later Dinah was off to bed and Helena was watching a movie, while Barbara and Selina sat at the dinner table talking privately. "Dinah is a nice kid. You know she said something funny, when I talked to her earlier. She told me that she had known you'd have guests today," Selina said.

Barbara blinked twice as if she had forgotten about something. "She did say something like that this morning, but I had completely forgotten," Barbara said and her brow wrinkled in thought.

"Is something wrong?" Selina asked.

"I got to keep a better eye out for things like that," Barbara mumbled. "You remember the canary cry I am sure. Well, according to Carolyn Dinah's father was also a metahuman. So there is a big chance she'll develop some kind of metahuman abilities. Carolyn warned me to keep an eye out for it, but I had forgotten," Barbara explained.

Selina wrestled for a moment if she should tell Barbara the truth or not. "Helena has inherited metahuman powers from me as well. Hers are slightly different from mine, but they are there," she admitted.

"You think it runs in families," Barbara sighed.

"I am sure it does," Selina explained and asked, "So was this the first hint?"

Barbara thought a little about it, "I think so." They sat in silence for a moment.

"Not to sound like a broken record I honestly think you should be more honest to Dinah. Either stop going out risking your life or tell her and make some kind of arrangement for her safety. You're taking chances with that girl's future and well being," Selina said.

Barbara didn't explode with anger instead she just looked at Selina then cast a glance at Helena then back at Selina. "I don't want to talk about that here and now. Selina you made a decision, when you got Helena. I made a different one. I love Dinah and she's my child, but I just won't give up who I am because of her. If I am dreadfully unhappy how does that help Dinah? How does slacking off my duties and letting this city become unsafe to live in help my daughter. my charge," she explained in a low tone to avoid having Helena overhear.

Selina shook her head; she hadn't come here to start a fight. Barbara was her only friend in New Gotham that knew the truth about her, well except maybe one important thing. "I am sorry Barbara. Please forgive me I didn't want to insult you, I just say it like I see it," she said.

Barbara looked at her for a while. Selina fought with her conscience for a while and decided that maybe it would be a good idea if Helena had some one other than her to talk to, who knew the truth that not even Helena knew. "Do you mind if we take this conversation out on the Balcony, there is something I want to talk to you about," she asked. Barbara nodded and they quietly got up and headed for the balcony.

"What did you want to talk about?" Barbara asked wary of another confrontation.

"Barbara, if I would ask you to keep a personal secret of mine from Bruce would you do it?" She asked.

"It depends if it would endanger him," Barbara answered.

"It wouldn't. Alright Helena is his daughter. I moved away so that I could bring her up out of sight of all my former allies and enemies. I stopped doing crime the moment I heard I was pregnant you know that, but I also didn't want Bruce to know," she explained.

"Does Helena know?" Barbara immediately asked.

"No, and I don't want either her or Bruce to know until he stops his insane crusade," Selina answered.

Barbara looked out over the city then turned to face her again wearing a wry smile on her lips. "I guess we're both lying to the children we care for," she said and Selina knew deep into the core of her being that it was true.