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In casual clothes, I wandered down to the kitchen. Bruce and Alfred were there, and discussing something. I smiled at them, and asked, "Bruce, you feel like a short patrol tonight? Once around the island?"

"Sounds good, Selina." He stood up, and motioned, "After you."

I stepped off the elevator with Bruce, and a klaxon started intoning, "Intruder alert. Unauthorized persons. Intruder alert." Bruce started, and said, "How do you turn it off?"

I moved to a keypad, and punched in a code. The alarm stopped, but the red warning lights continued to swirl. I told him, "Repeat what I tell you." He nodded, and I thought to him, ::Addition to authorized access list::

"Addition to authorized access list." Bruce repeated.

::Kyle, Selina. A.k.a. Catwoman::

"Kyle, Selina. A.k.a. Catwoman."

::Authorization Wayne, Bruce::

"Authorization Wayne, Bruce."

::Pass phrase Thomas, Martha, Alfred, Justice::

"Pass phrase Thomas, Martha, Alfred, Justice."

::All locations, all times::

"All locations, all times." Bruce finished.

The red lights stopped swirling, and the cave's normal dim illumination of high, widely spaced spotlights came back up. The computer intoned, "Access list modified. Full access granted."

"Great! Let's get to work, shall we? Your suit is over there, Bruce."

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I strolled over to where Bruce was standing. He was struggling with something, muttering curses to himself. He looked at me, and asked, "How do you get this blasted belt on? It won't latch!"

I smiled, and said, "Yes it will. Here's how it's done." I touched it, and it snapped together. I touched it again, and it came apart. I glanced at him, and he snapped it closed again. He stood, and regarded me. I twirled, and said, "You like? Bats confiscated them from one of my, err, Catwoman's hideouts a while ago. It still fits!" I struck a pose, hand brushing back the dark gray cape, my leg showing through the long slit in the side of the ankle length skirt, light gray legging showing through. I added, "It's warm, too. C'mon, let's go. Want me to drive?"

***---***---***---***---***---***---***---***---***

I fidgeted in the passenger seat. Batman was driving like an old lady tonight. I sighed and tried to relax, and listen to the police scanner. I looked at him, and said, "Let's start at Three Corners tonight. We can park and work our way back around to the car."

He shrugged, and said, "Fine with me. Feel like breaking some heads, Selina? Lots of petty crime down there."

"I just feel like taking it slow our first night back out. And call me Catwoman while we're out, all right?" I replied.

He nodded, and I settled back with the scanner's static.

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We were on a rooftop, quietly arguing about whose week had been worse, when Bats said quietly, "Bruce, I think you're getting very comfortable in my body. It worries me." It was something that made me think. I was about to reply, when I heard a scream, some shouts and laughter through the lightly falling snow. I stood and walked to the edge, then whispered, "Demon Boyz. Follow me." I backed up, and was about to jump off, when Bats said, "Be careful, Catwoman. Neither one of us is at the top of our form." I nodded, then carefully jumped off the roof toward the action below.

A mother had shoved her daughter behind her, while the father had his back to them, standing in a fighting stance in front of the dozen young gang members. I dropped down next to him, in the center of the rough circle. My skirt and cape settled into place, and I said, "Hello, boys. Mind if I drop in?"

"Who the fuck are you, bitch?" One of the younger gang members said.

I strolled over to him, and replied as I ran a razor sharp talon along his peach-fuzz laden cheeks, "I'm the Cat. Surely you've heard of me. You mean that I need to keep wearing that boring old bodysuit? Can't a girl change every now and then?"

"Hey, Cat!" Another one asked, "Why you here? You go for the bigger scores. We're just doin' some, like, Christmas shoppin', y'know?"

"Well, so am I, boys. I was just out shopping for my new boyfriend, and it looked like such fun here, I just invited myself." I strolled over to the leader, and ran the talon down his cheek, with a bit more force. He yelped, and slapped my hand away. His hand came away bloody, and he said, "Bitch, I don't give a fuck who you are, you're mine now."

I smiled at him, and said as I strolled back toward the darker end of the alleyway, "I'd check with my boyfriend about that, if I were you. I know that one thing he hates is a fair fight."

"Bitch, you're …" I never did find out what I was, as the leader suddenly flew through the air, crashing into and knocking out two of his buddies. A rough voice said, "I'm filling in for Santa. You boys are all on the 'naughty' list." Two more landed against the brick walls, and he added, "Coal in your stockings again, too."

One shouted, "Oh, fuck! It's the Bat!" I spun and snap-kicked him, following up with a right cross, then a judo throw of one that came at me with a spinning bicycle chain. The edge of a hand to the temple of another, then a leg sweep to duck a wild punch and knock the other's legs out from under him. He went down, and I popped up with a head butt, then a quick punch in the solar plexus for my last one. The father had been busy, taking care of two of them himself. I heard one running, but Bats beat me to it, with a quick throw, he fell and skidded in the slush. I stood up and smiled at Bats. "Merry Christmas, darling!" I said.

I saw the little girl peeking out from behind her mother's skirt. I smiled, and told her, "Merry Christmas! What's your name?"

The mother said, "Thank you, Miss! This is our little Mary, and I'm Josephine. This is my husband, Charles."

I crouched in the snow, and said, "Hello, Mary! Have you been a good girl?" She nodded, clutching an old, worn out doll, as I took in the fairly new, but clean clothes on the girl, and the older, threadbare and patched coats of the mother and father. Charles stood proudly by his wife, though, who hugged him. I glanced at her, then stood to whisper in his ear, "Merry Christmas, and thanks for the train ticket." He started, then glanced at me, and then his wife. I smiled at him, and put a finger to my lips.

***---***---***---***---***---***---***---***---***

"Well, that was fun." I said as I watched the GCPD paddy wagon pull away with a wail of sirens. The paramedics had already left, after stitching and bandaging the gang members.

"Yes, it was." He stood, and cracked his knuckles. He watched the small family as they moved through the snow, and added, "We have to do something to help them."

"I know, but they're proud. They won't accept a handout, no matter how much they need it. We can look them up when we get back to the cave." The church bell rang once, and I added, "I've got to be at work in a few hours. Shall we call it a night?"

### Chapter 14: Of Gangs and Girls