She smelled something familiar as she prowled along the rooftops of Gotham. She felt she had been here before once, yet she recalled no crime. She would know of something heinous, or at least she hoped. Her nostrils flared at the familiar waft again which caused a rumble of confusion slip from her throat. She prowled along, claws scratching lightly at brick as her tail this way and that.

It seemed lately Cheetah had been on these rooftops and always wondered why that strange, teasing scent always faded.

She allowed a shaky sigh to slip from her as she leaned on her hands against the edge of the roof. Her research had been slow, slower then usual lately with her conflicting jumbled thoughts and even more skewered dreams. She felt as if a chunk of her knowledge was locked away and whenever she tried to recall it her head throbbed and she found herself back in Gotham. Here she stole some basic tech before, but there was no big score (yet anyway) that would make her come back time and again.

The sirens that wailed loudly as they passed made her ears flick and her body to turn towards the sound. Before she knew it she was running along the stone and leaping along several buildings before she saw a collection of police cars surrounding the alley. The GCPD block letters could be seen everywhere. Her ears pressed to her head as she crouched down, peering into the alley they cut off.

"God that can't be him…can it?"

That sounded like Commissioner Gordon. The graying redhead took off his glasses, pinching at his brow as he stared down at a corpse. She couldn't see it, but the familiar taunting scent was wafting about the alley. She felt a small pang of worry before she knew it she had gracefully leapt across to get a better angle. She saw the symbol of a bat, and her mind for one long moment went blank.

"I can't believe this the B-"

"Don't say it," Gordon snapped.

The officer looked over at him with a brow quirked. "Sir?"

"Don't say another damn word. No one is to say anything about this, understand? Nothing to no one until I give the order to. Do you understand me, officer?"

The officer clutched his notepad close and gave a quick nod. "Yes, sir."

Gordon then waved dismissively at him as he stared back at the corpse. "Then get this perimeter sealed off."

The shouted at officer and the few others that were gathered nodded and scampered away trying to stay away from the Commissioner's fury. Gordon stared around left and right before peering at an adjacent alley. "One of yours?" he asked the shadows.

"Yes." Came the short, curt reply.

From them a tall figure emerged, dressed all in black with his cape surrounding his tall, strong frame. The white lenses of his cowl hid his eyes, but Cheetah could smell the sadness on him, tasted the salt in the air from the tears hidden from the Commissioner.

"This looks like Joker. There is no damn doubt about it, the crowbar we found had one of his playing cards beside it. You found my daughter on the way here, and I am grateful but this? God if he did this to my little girl…"

"I know, Jim."

"Then why aren't you angry? Can you feel anything under that cowl of yours? He was your protégé and look what happened to him! You're going to sit there and do nothing about this?" Gordon was in a fury now as he stamped up to him and jabbed a finger into his covered chest. "You're just going to stand here and let him walk free again after doing this to him, and no doubt many others?"

For a long time the figure was silent. The scent was stronger now and she peered at him still. She could see his strong jaw and a hint of frosted air wafted from his lips from his steady breathes.

"No, Jim. I'll bring him in, but no matter what happens I do not kill."

"How? How do you not cross that line? It'd be so easy to."

She was surprised to see him shrug. "Too easy, actually," he replied, almost too quickly, "it's what makes this harder. Jon knew the risks when I took him in, but he fought on anyway. He was a good soldier and any mother would be proud of him."

"You and the orphans…"

A tug at his lip showed her that he was fighting back a smile.

"We'll give him a proper burial. No doubt Wayne will want his hands in this too. Anything for publicity that slick suit…"

The figure nodded and as he opened up his cape to shake hands with Gordon she caught a larger dose of the scent. It was him. The figure in the alleyway talking to the Comissioner was the source. She peered closely at him. He rolled his shoulders to open up his cape she saw the bat symbol again. Her heart was racing and her head was aching. She was fighting down her feral tendencies as she saw him grapple away right to the rooftop beside her.

She let her feral side win and she leapt across. She must have growled for he turned right towards her. Her claws swiped out and her kicks were well aimed. The Batman just blocked her blows though, but never returned them. Her history with the Batman was bitter, ever since the Injustice Gang she had been curious about him yes, but he stole her opportunity for a large payday. She couldn't remember the details though. She growled again in frustration as she swiped low and caught him along the knee. He toppled and she pounced on him, happily going in for the kill.

God why her? Why now?

He had mixed feelings when he heard Barbara's growl. He was happy to see her alive, but with her mind gone and tainted by her amnesia? It didn't settle well in him but he couldn't think about it. The pain was too raw and as much as he worked through physical pain, emotional turmoil always crippled him despite his usual grim façade. His own thoughts betrayed him though as he felt her claw bite into his knee and sent him down onto it. He felt something give but before he could cry out she leapt at him.

He fell flat onto his back and rolled onto his stomach as she sailed over his head with her claws leading. He got to his feet, stamping forward as he did and swinging low with his leg, scowling and biting back the throbbing pain in his knee. She rolled away from the kick and answered with one of her own. His shoulder took the blow and he leapt, capturing the leg and sending it sharply over her shoulder as his chest pressed in on her leg. She growled and tried to claw at him but his grip was iron on her wrists as he pinned them above her head. Flashes of their past pleasure echoed in his mind but he pushed them aside. It was only the Batman here now, but Bruce wanted to have a say still.

"Barbara, stop…"

Shock registered on her face in an instant and fear glowed in her enchanting eyes of hers. "How did y-?"

"When I was captured by Lex, you were my guard for the evening. I heard of you, was impressed with your work, envied it almost and so you and I talked."

She seemed to calm a bit, but his grip didn't relax. "…About?" she gritted out, his body still putting pressure on her leg to keep her pinned in an albeit awkward position.

"Your work mostly, some of mine… there was a bond there," he murmured, "however slight. I didn't know what was said, but before long you and I were kissing." He felt a smile tug at his lip. "It changed my perspective on things, just slightly."

"Why would I kiss you?" she growled, but a bit of confusion was heard in her tone.

"We were curious."

"And now?" she asked him.

He stared at her. Her bright eyes, athletic, trim frame pressed tight to him. He missed her, missed their talks, sparring, working. He missed having someone watching his back out there in the alleyways. If he was in Jon's position for all he knew he could have died. He wasn't immortal, or someone with powers to protect him. He was mortal, human and the thought of dying from one of Joker's sadistic assaults, his spine being broken by Bane, being mentally crippled by Mad Hatter or Scarecrow all started to worry him. Jon was his contingency plan and it failed, he failed. He just wanted comfort.

"I apologize."

Her brows furrowed adorably. "For?"

He pressed in and his lips captured the familiar pair that sparked their first meeting and his thoughts of retirement. He bit her lower lip in anger and with a surprised mewl she was responding to him in kind. He eased off of her leg and they quickly curled around his waist, tugging him in as his arms slid around his neck. The embrace was held for awhile and he ignored the chill of the air, not with the warm figure beneath him.

"Barbara?"

She stared at him bashfully now, her ears pressed against her head and a hand partially curled over her mouth. She was in thought and she turned her head, staring at him with innocent orbs as she pressed her lips to his again and pushed her tongue in, gently trailing along his. She pulled back, panting softly as he felt her claws dragging along his arms, partly over his chest and then up, tracing along the cowl. He nodded again. He should stop her in case this was a trick, a magical ruse or some sick twisted dream.

He felt the cool air tickle along his stubble covered jaw and he stared at her, even as her eyes narrowed and her ears pressed to her head again. He felt her claws drag along his face, neck and then back down over his chest. Her hips gave a small curl and his responded eagerly. She shivered at that before she leaned up, lips tracing over his once more as she spoke.

"I remember your scent… the way your body feels…it hurts to think about it all… but feels like it should be like this…"

He responded in kind and closed the gap a bit more. "I remember the contours of your form…how you pressed against me as we slept and the way we wake."

"What way is that?"

His hand cupped her cheek and his gloved thumb dragged along the fur. She purred quietly at him as he stole a soft kiss. "With that," he whispered, "do you remember me, anything, at all?"

She nodded slowly. "I remember bits and pieces of you and Gotham," she said to him quietly, even as she tugged the cowl back in place, "but I do remember one thing fondly and clearly ever since I caught your scent."

His brow quirked beneath his cowl and his head tilted to accommodate her as she tugged his head to the side. Even through the material the warmth of her breath was comforting. "I knew that you were my Bruce, and that I was happy thinking of your name."

He turned his head and kissed her again. He ignored the pain in his knee as he lifted her up, allowing her to stand as they kissed under the shade of a large sign. Not a soul to bother them, no Joker to taunt them, no skeletons in the closet to rattle them. To them it was just a cold night being warded off with a warm kiss.