An alarm went off in the lower part of the Royal Hotel Grand Lobby which made Joker one unhappy clown when it was reported jewels were missing from his stash. Money was expendable to him but jewels he loved, probably because he could see his own reflection in them if anything. It took several minutes for anyone to report though because there was an unusual case of radio silence and one person began to speak when he was cut off. Some feared it was the Bat but taking jewels, or more specifically stealing in general, wasn't his style.
"Go! I hired you to be a guard AND an assassin! So do your job!" The clown screamed angrily.
Bane grunted unamused but complied, not wanting to get on the bad side of the Joker before Christmas as that would ruin his plans. True, Joker hired his mercenaries for extra protection and such alongside Black Mask's former henchmen but he had his own schemes in the making. The inhumane man was unsufferable when angry so it was best just to go along with the clown's demands for the time being for everyone's sake instead of listening to him bitch all night.
What poor fool would rob the Royal Hotel at this time and who would be skillful enough to get past several armed guards as well as bypass a whole security system that wasn't alerted until after the robbery was a complete mystery. It was suggested through the reports of his mercenaries afterwards that they were dealing with a cat burglar who came up from the exterior which was surprising given the storm outside would make the building hard to navigate upwards...but this was Gotham. There was weird way one of his men said "cat" and he couldn't explain why there was emphasis on it.
Into the Grand Lobby, he found men restrained and gagged, all were knocked out but not dead. The few mercenaries with him slowly spread out across the large room and Bane kept watch in the upper story overlooking the center. He eyed the gargoyles posing across the room with no black masses on top, the stairwell across the way was clear as he spotted one guy. A whooshing noise behind him made him turn quickly but he saw nothing. With a scowl of annoyance, he walked over and looked in every hidable crevice and space finding nothing.
When he went back to overlooking the stairwell, the same man crossing it was down and his weapon lay next to him. Whoever this was seemed to be as quick as the Bat. A sudden cry was heard on the lower level in the far corner and he sprinted to the edge overlooking that part. Another man was down.
"Stay together! Están siendo eliminados uno por uno! Sea más inteligente que eso!"
His remaining henchmen tried to find one another but one made a cry of startlement before going silent while another found a partner but they both let out a grunt as their heads were mashed together, knocking them out. Bane only saw a blur of black in the corner of his view when that happened. If this was the Bat, why was he suddenly a thief?
Only one mercenary remained beside himself and the man was shaking, turning frantically watching all directions. Bane moved towards him to see if this "burglar" was brave enough to take on him and an armed assailant at once. Before he reached him however, someone got to him first.
He saw a feminine form leap from the far balcony overlooking the both of them and twisted herself around the mercenary before doing a backflip and slamming him down hard on the ground to where he bounced. That had to leave a few fractures from how hard he hit but he was out just as quick.
Then turning towards Bane, a whip rang out taking a piece of red rug with it right in front of him daring him to take a step forward. He paused and noticed they didn't flee from him, not like the others. A woman with a very tight black suit that left little to the imagination, red goggles sitting above her eyes, and cat ears on her black leather helmet had her whip at the ready and she smirked at him tauntingly. When that report of cat burglar came in, he didn't expect it would be an actual cat burglar.
"You have something that belongs to my employer. I would hate to hurt that pretty face to get it back," he frowned.
"Oh please, hurt little old me? You wouldn't be that rude to a lady, would you?" The cat woman purred, one silver claw on her cheek pretending to be concerned.
Bane couldn't help but eye her. He had to admit this woman was gorgeous, one of the fairest he had ever seen. And the suit...well, it was indeed rude to be staring at what the low zipper revealed but he wasn't disliking the view. Now there was the question of why this cat woman was here. Surely, she seemed smart enough to realize a good thief would have taken out the men, got the loot then left. But she was still here, waiting for them and decided to take extra time to knock out more and leave him alone. He couldn't decide if she was a fool or a thrill-seeker doing such a bold thing.
"I will not ask again, gatito," Bane pressed, his patience wearing thin.
This female feline fatale cracked her whip again when he finally moved forward impatiently almost hitting his leg. Third time she did it, as soon as it made its mark on the floor, he timed it and ran at her on the pull back. She barely had enough time to hit him if she tried but if she did, she would be open to being caught. Not surprising, she turned out to be clever and instead hopped over him which he had to slide in order to turn around.
"I guess this means no talking it out over a date? Pity, I so would have liked to meet the brains behind the bruiser," she laughed.
She rounded a decorative pillar and used it to swing around to hit Bane in the face with her heels as he charged her. He doubled back in shock before pursuing again. She got close and slid under his legs before using her whip to restrain one arm, pulling him forward which he did an unwanted flip and landed on his back on the floor.
He growled when she used his brief pause to tie his wrists together with loose cabling and tinsel. Knowing if he played weak, she would possibly get close enough for him to grab her as he could easily break his bonds. He didn't want to draw out the fight longer than it should be but letting her think she won would open her up to attack.
As he predicted, Catwoman perched on his stomach before straddling him with her whip out just in case. "Well, brawn doesn't triumph after all. Maybe I'm just that good."
"Keep believing that, gata. It may get you into trouble."
"Mmm, I'm curious as to what type of trouble you can dish out."
"Qué? No entiendo...oh, tu gatito travieso," he said, inwardly flustered.
So, she was flirting. Okay, now his attention was piqued. If she wanted to be hard to get but taunt him, he could play along too. He wasn't exactly opposed to the situation being caressed by a cat burglar in leather while bound up. Maybe he could do without the bondage but everything else was more than fine with him, not that he would let her know that.
He could feel her mapping his upper chest and she was in awe, "Do you have any layer a fat on you?"
Playing to her flirting competition, he simply replied, "Only in certain places, querida."
Maybe not the best response. The side glance and realization from her were hilarious though, but he kept a straight face. She asked, he gave her an answer. That was on her. Her claws touched his lips before tracing up his cheek to his eye. Little did she know she had scraped across one of his scars and he twitched slightly in warning. She caught that and smirked.
"I take it this mask of yours holds many remnants of your past. What would happen if I took it off?"
"That would be most...regrettable."
"But would you stop me?"
Bane didn't say anything as he felt her shift her weight against him. He peered down to the best of his ability and saw her chest resting on his with an even better view of her breasts. He breathed slowly and saw her body rise with him like she weighed nothing. When the claws were touching around his mouth again, he snapped back to gaze into her predatory eyes.
He muttered low, "I wish to have those gems back. You are not leaving here until you give them up."
"You certainly know how to spoil the mood, big boy. You're lucky your attractive. But seeing as I'm the one on top, I think I get to decide that," she winked.
Breaking his bonds on cue, she tried to leap away but he caught her and pulled her back down holding her arms in place. She tried scratching at him but his grip only tightened to dissuade her. He managed to take her whip away and toss it past his head so she didn't get the idea to use it against him.
He rolled her to where he was sitting on his calves to prevent crushing her legs but she was pinned regardless. With his hands by both side of her head, he stared down at her with slight annoyance but otherwise found some enjoyment in their fight. She gave him a pouty face in mockery and he returned it with a rare smirk. It had been a long while since he actually played along with his enemies' shenanigans like this.
"What do you know, the cat has run out of luck. Now if you would be so kind, the jewels?"
Catwoman clicked her tongue and carefully reached down, pulling out a large ruby which he kind of got curious how she managed to hide such a gem on her person...and where. She held it out to him with a scowl.
He took it with no response, but he knew there had to be another she took because there were two jewels of high value in there with lesser priced and she wouldn't have left one. The other was a Jadeite necklace. He also knew there was no way it would fit into a pocket which left only one other place she could store it quickly. She seemed to have read his mind and tried to play innocent.
"That's the only jewel I have. I never took the other one," she said.
Bane wasn't stupid. She had the other so he sat up and crossed his arms, this time staring directly down at her breasts that were pushed together by the suit rather nicely. He rotated between looking at them and looking into her eyes, wordlessly getting the point across that he knew the location but he was being nice enough not to reach in himself to get the necklace.
She rolled her eyes and gave a noise of disappointment. "You're no fun at all."
She reached into the crevice between her breasts and pulled out a portion of the necklace before waiting for Bane to take the initiative and pull the rest of it out himself. Reluctantly, he did and gave her a look of sarcasm as the beads slipped out. When he got all of it, he clutched it in his hand fiddling with the necklace curiously.
"Thank you, cariño mío," he said with a hint of amusement.
"So, now what, handsome?"
"Normally, I would kill intruders..."
Catwoman stretched her arms across the floor and flirted back, "But let me guess, I caught your heart? Don't worry, I have that effect on people. Like all cats though, I go where I want and I don't stick around no matter how much they plead. It's in my nature."
Bane held some consideration to that banter before adding his own, "And if I caged you for myself, would you be tame?"
She reached up and grabbed a part of his coat, dragging him back down straight in for a kiss. He didn't respond much to it knowing it was more like a distraction but he appreciated the gesture. He still held the jewels secure in his hand just in case she tried to grab them from him. He couldn't describe the perfume she wore which was all but intoxicating and her lips tasted like fine Domaine Etienne Guigal wine giving him the impression she was either wealthy by family or this was hardly her first robbery.
Just then, Catwoman twisted out from under Bane and did a flip back upright, retrieving her whip in the process and holstering it. She laughed, "Honey, I don't do well in cages and I don't think you could ever tame me. I'm far too feral."
Bane stood up, a little sour from the sudden break up. "I wouldn't dare make that a challenge. You'll find I will win in the end."
"Well, hope you can find me then. This kitty loves the chase and I would love to see you try and cage me. Doesn't fare well for most who try, you know."
"I am not like most people. In fact, if you keep begging me to come after you, I just might."
Approaching her, he didn't even notice he was standing less than a foot away when he paused as he was entranced by her emerald eyes. He was almost desperate to touch her cheek if anything but refrained when he saw in those same beautiful eyes that she wasn't lying. She is untamable and he liked that. The perfect challenge. For a second, he thought she was going to kiss him again but instead tapped his shoulder with those deadly claws of hers.
She said, "You're relentless. I find that quality often overbearing in men, but I kind of like it in you. Maybe we'll cross paths another day or maybe I'll be back later to steal those gems again and this time, you better catch me or I'll be gone as quick as you can blink."
She pushed off him and walked toward an open window but not before giving him a wink. With the cat-like finesse like she boasted, she leapt up to the open window and jumped out. He was impressed to say the least. As he continued to fondle the jewels in his hand, he had a small smile creep up on his features.
Maybe they would meet again one day after the Bat was gone and Gotham was his to rule. He would offer her a place by his side as he knew her skills would come in handy for what his men couldn't do including himself.
The remainder of the night into morning, he kept the jewels in his room in the hotel just in case she tried again as she claimed. She never returned and he found himself a bit disappointed.
AN: Although Catwoman only appears in Arkham Origins: Blackgate, it's implied in-game of Origins that Catwoman is around by this time, she just hasn't been discovered by Batman yet. So, just a play on Bane running into her first which sets her up to know who Bane was in the Blackgate edition.