"Who was the visitor?" Bruce asked as Alfred finally reentered the tunnel. He had been gone for a long while.

Bruce was standing on metal scaffolding that he had rigged over the cavern. Beneath him, the expansive space could now be traversed using a long ladder, beneath which was currently a mess of metal plates and wiring.

"The visitor was Miss Kyle, Sir."

Bruce froze.

"Rest assured, she found no evidence of your presence, though not for lack of effort. She clearly has her suspicions."

Bruce looked down at the ground far below. He wasn't ready.

He had acknowledged that she was the main reason that he was so eager to return. He could have stayed away for longer. There were always more skills to learn and develop. Gotham needed him, but the more he learned abroad, the better he could protect its people.

But he missed her. He had thought that the longing might fade over time, but it never did. He loved her, and there were no important motivations or noble intentions in the universe that would drive that from his heart.

So he came back, but now she was the one person he was scared to face.

He was ready to protect Gotham. He wasn't ready to face her.

He went out almost every night. It was easy to hack the GCPD radio frequencies, and he would reach the scenes of crimes before the police and ensure that the criminals were in no position to harm the officers when they arrived. Lucius had tons of ideas and was providing new technology at a remarkable pace, and Bruce already felt well-equipped for anything that the mob could throw at him.

He was listening in when the police learned that the alarm had gone off on the upper floor of the Museum of Antiquities, and moved quickly. He arrived on the roof and immediately saw the point of entry, a round hole cut into the skylight. Kneeling down, he didn't see any activity below or any sign of rappelling gear. The would-be thieves must have fled as soon as the alarm was tripped.

He ran a gauntlet-covered hand along the cut glass, wondering what had been used to make the opening. The curvature suggested that the blade had been very narrow, if it was even a blade at all.

"Nothing has been stolen tonight, Batman."

He immediately stood and turned towards the voice... and froze.

He had learned of the Catwoman prior to his arrival in Gotham. She was a protector of women in the East End, but her popularity had spread among women all over the city. He was impressed, and glad that someone was already there doing what needed to be done, although his own ambitions were far greater than just protecting women.

He decided to follow her model. He had already known that he needed a symbol, a reason for the criminals to be afraid even when he wasn't there. He had, at the insistence of one of his mentors, spent a week in a cave full of bats, demonstrating to himself that his childhood fear was unfounded and that they wouldn't hurt him. But bats were still a symbol of fear to him, so he planned to make use of that imagery.

Just as she had done, he designed his cowl with a pair of ears, although his had amplifiers inside that actually imitated the sensitive hearing of bats. He designed his cape accordingly as well, although the cut also assisted with swift maneuvering through the air when he glided. And, of course, he placed the symbol of the bat on his chest, and that had no additional utility but the fear that it would provoke among the city's criminals.

Still, he hadn't expected to encounter her, especially not this far from the East End.

But what really startled him was the black, leather jacket with the many zippered pockets. That jacket hadn't been in any of the representations of the Catwoman that he had seen. The media was under the impression that she wore a unitard.

And he knew that jacket.

"Bruce," she hissed.

"Selina?"

And then she was lunging. He quickly stepped back, raising his arm, and her claws glanced off his armor. She tried again, and he caught her hand, pulling it towards him, but she kicked off the ground and used his momentum against him, and then he was on his back, and she was standing over him.

She withdrew a whip that was attached to her belt, and he quickly got back to his feet and backed off. "Selina, stop." He raised his arm as the whip struck, and the shockwave ricocheted through the armor and into his bones. With the second strike, the whip wrapped around his arm, and he pulled, throwing her off-balance. But she recovered quickly and lashed out with her other hand. He dodged out of the way, and her claws just missed his face.

Now his back was to the skylight. He couldn't back up anymore. "Selina, please, stop. I'm sorry."

"Shut up!" She lunged again, landing a kick to his chest, and then he was falling.

He grunted as the skylight shattered beneath him, and then he was inside the museum, the ceiling quickly rising above as he sped towards the ground. The impact reverberated from his back to every other part of his body, and he groaned.

"What the...?" The security guards were in the room, tasers drawn, obviously having responded to the alarm. They turned towards him in shock, and despite the pain, he acted quickly, pulling the grapnel launcher off his belt and firing it at the ceiling. The hook caught on the edge of the broken skylight, and then he was soaring back upwards. The momentum carried him straight back through the window and onto the roof.

Selina was gone, but that was just as well. He was in no state to continue fighting her, and she was clearly in no state to forgive him. And the guards would be up here soon.

He fled, not stopping until he was back in the cave. When he arrived, he shed his armor and lay on the floor, letting the cold metal cool what was probably a network of bruising all along his back.

"Sir?" Alfred was hurrying over.

"Alfred," he groaned, looking up at his butler. "Did you know?"

"Did I know what, Sir?" Alfred knelt down beside him, examining the injuries.

"Did you know who the Catwoman is?"

Alfred stilled. "Yes, Sir, I did."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"I apologize, Sir. It is not my place to divulge her secrets."

Bruce sighed, shutting his eyes.

"I should have anticipated the possibility of you two crossing paths during your nightly activities."

"Yeah."

"Do you need me to call Dr. Thompkins urgently, or shall I call her first thing in the morning?"

"It can wait. I'll just stay here for a bit, if you don't mind."

"Very well, Sir." Alfred stood. "I suppose I'm very relieved that you were wearing your armor during your first encounter with her after all that time."

Bruce sighed again. "Maybe we should consider adding more padding."

As it happened, Leslie was already on her way over when Alfred called her. He was not the first to inform her of Bruce's injuries.

"She's not apologizing," the doctor clarified, a disapproving look on her face as she examined him. "She just wants to be sure that you're okay."

Bruce grimaced. By now, the pain was more internal than external.

His dreams replayed the fight over and again over the next few weeks. These dreams alternated with others where she replaced his opponents in his training sessions over the years, the grim determination of his mentors and colleagues replaced with her rage. The ensuing fights never went as well as he remembered. He always wound up at her mercy, and she never showed any.

The media drew an uncomfortable amount of attention to the event. One of the security guards at the museum was sure that she had seen the silhouette of the Catwoman on the roof after the Batman came crashing through the skylight, leading to rampant speculation about the reason for their quarrel. Many seemed to decide that the Batman had been the one to start the fight, which Bruce supposed made sense considering that the Catwoman was already known and respected in the city.

Vicki Vale of the Gotham Gazette decided to sensationalize the fight as a lovers' quarrel between Gotham's vigilantes. "She is known for being a particularly insightful journalist," Alfred remarked dryly after reading the byline.

"Maybe I should meet her before she develops any more insights."

"I was under the impression that we agreed that Bruce Wayne should not reappear in Gotham so soon after the arrival of the Batman, or there would be further speculation that we do not wish to provoke."

"I know, Alfred. I'm just thinking aloud."

"And I assume that you pondering a potential meeting with Miss Vale has nothing to do with her also being known for her attractiveness."

Bruce sighed as Selina immediately came to mind. He still couldn't contemplate romance with anyone else, even if she never forgave him. "No."

He grunted as a volley of bullets tested his kevlar. Charging his assailants on the ground, he quickly dealt with them. But the real problem was the men atop the crates at the center of the warehouse. No matter which angle he tried to use to reach them, they would have clear shots at his face.

Activating a smoke canister, he ducked down at the foot of the nearest crate, checking to see how high his smokescreen rose. It wasn't enough.

Then the shooting stopped, and instead there were grunts and cracks of a whip. Quickly pulling out his grapnel launcher, he fired up at the top of the crates and soared upwards, arriving just in time to see her take down the last of the thugs.

They stared at each other for a moment. "You alright?" she asked.

"Yeah, thanks."

She simply nodded, then turned and ran off.

"Catwoman, wait." But she didn't stop, and he didn't chase her. She clearly wasn't ready to talk.

The cave was fully functional by mid-October, if not quite picturesque yet, and Bruce was able to experience some of Gotham by daylight virtually through his research without setting foot there. He was amused to learn that Catwoman costumes were the best sellers for Halloween for the second straight year. At least Batman didn't have to worry about that yet, as most of the city was still undecided about whether or not to appreciate him.

Leslie visited on the Sunday before the holiday, joining them for tea in the garden. She informed them that the Falcones were traveling to Italy, where Mr. Falcone's wife and elder son lived.

"You make that sound like it's a bad thing," said Alfred. "I should think we would be glad that there will be less mob activity to worry about this week."

"It's not the mob that I'm worried about," Leslie replied. "When Falcone leaves town, the rogue criminals come out, and there's already enough chaos on Halloween."

"Do you want protection for your clinic?" Bruce asked.

"Not for me. Catwoman had a difficult night last year."

He stilled.

"I would much rather have someone out there watching her back than have to spend the following day taking care of her again."

He stared at his mug. The thought of her being hurt froze the blood in his veins. But he also knew that she wouldn't take kindly to him offering to protect her. "She won't appreciate that."

"Just talk to her. She doesn't have to forgive you to recognize that she's safer if she accepts your help, at least for one night."

The window was unlocked, and he slipped in, activating his night vision. As soon as he did, however, the light turned on, blinding him, and he quickly switched it back off.

"What the hell?" A teenage girl stood there, her golden-blonde hair just brushing the shoulders of her gray hoodie. Three cats stood at her feet, eyeing him.

Batman blinked at her. "I'm sorry. I was told that someone else lived here."

Just then, a pair of boots struck him squarely in the back, sending him stumbling. Catwoman swung nimbly through the window, whip in hand.

"Selina..."

"What are you doing here?"

"He knows?" the teenage girl asked, eyeing him suspiciously.

"Holly, give us a moment."

The girl frowned. "The Batman is in our apartment and I'm just supposed to leave?"

"Please."

The girl shot him a glare, then turned and went into the other room. Two of the cats followed her, but the third, a black one, went to Selina, then turned and hissed at Bruce.

"I didn't know that you have a roommate," he commented when the door was shut.

"What are you doing here, Batman?"

"Leslie told me that you had a difficult time last Halloween."

The only part of her expression that he could see was the clenching of her jaw, but he could guess the rest. "It's nothing I can't handle."

"I'm just asking to help you that night. Please."

"You should be elsewhere that night. The East End isn't the only place where things get crazy on Halloween."

"I can't let anything happen to you."

"That isn't your call to make."

"Leslie asked me to protect you."

"It isn't her call, either."

"Please, Selina."

"Get out."

The door to the other room opened. "Wait."

"Holly!"

"If Leslie wants him to help you, then—"

"What happened to not eavesdropping?"

"Special circumstances. I had to make sure he wouldn't hurt you."

"He couldn't if he tried."

"Yeah yeah, badass Catwoman, I know. But I don't want you winding up at the clinic again like last year. If Leslie thinks this is the best solution..."

Selina stared at her, then looked at Bruce. "Come with me. Holly, you stay here."

"Fine."

Bruce followed her out the window and shut it, and they climbed up to the roof. Once up there, Selina sat down on the ledge, pulling off her mask and staring at it. Bruce remained standing, feeling that she wasn't ready for him to sit with her.

"You really don't understand what you did, do you?" She didn't look at him as she said this. "You were all that I had, Bruce."

He fought the urge to look away from her, punishing himself by watching her anguish just like he did all those years ago.

"I know why you left, and why you felt that you had to do it alone. But you can't just show up here and expect forgiveness."

"I'm not asking for forgiveness. I just need to protect you."

"I don't need your protection. I never needed your protection, I just needed you."

Her words slammed into him, knocking all the breath from his body.

"And Leslie's been there for me. She knows how I feel. I can't believe that she..."

"She's worried about you."

Selina shut her eyes, looking down.

"Please, Selina, just for one night. I can't let you put yourself in danger."

"Again, that's not your call."

"I know."

She took a deep breath. "If we're going to do this, we can't be Bruce and Selina. We can't have any of the conversations that we would have had. We're just Batman and Catwoman, with no past beyond that."

He swallowed. "Understood."

She replaced her mask and stood. "Meet me here at eleven that night."

"Thank you, Catwoman."

She didn't say anything to that, and merely climbed back down and out of sight.

They worked very well together. He kept himself between her and any guns, while her agility and speed with her whip made close-quarters combat efficient and, all things considered, easy.

Between the fights, they stalked the rooftops. They talked very little at first, and exclusively about matters that were very far removed from their alter egos' shared history. He told her a little bit about his training, although he didn't mention any secret organizations or associated individuals. The last thing he wanted was for her to do some digging and make herself a target in the process.

Well, that was among the last things he wanted, alongside her getting hurt or shunning him again.

As the night waned, the conversation became easier. They still stayed well away from the boundaries of what they couldn't discuss, but they began to take some advantage of the fact that neither of their senses of humor had changed much over the years.

It was a little after five when they returned to her roof. "Well, this was..." she began.

"Nice?" he offered.

She gave a half-smile. "It was something. I'll see you around, Batman."

"Dr. Thompkins hosted a nice Thanksgiving dinner last year, with myself and Miss Kyle and Miss Holly. Given that we still don't wish for you to be seen by the public yet, I believe it would be prudent for us to offer to host the event this year, if that's alright with you, Sir."

"The teenager that you didn't warn me about?"

"I didn't think that I had to warn you about her, Sir."

"She doesn't know who I am, unless Selina told her."

"I assure you, Sir, she's quite aware of who you are."

"The other me."

"No, I don't believe she knows that. We will tailor our conversations accordingly."

"Considering that's the only thing Selina and I can talk to each other about, this should be fun."

Honestly, he was surprised that she accepted the invitation. But she had spent most holidays with Alfred and Leslie, which he had been hoping would happen when he left, so he supposed that she was just following through on her tradition.

He froze when he saw her. The Catwoman outfit did very little to reveal just how beautiful she was, but her off-white, flowered dress did her much more justice. His eyes drank her in.

When she noticed his stare, the smile that had been directed at Alfred vanished. She briefly looked him over, then turned back to the butler.

The teenager was the first to speak to him. "So, you're him." Her expression wasn't any kinder than it had been when he startled her at the apartment.

He swallowed, making sure that he didn't use the same voice he had used at their first encounter. "Yes, I'm him."

She scrutinized him for a few seconds, but then turned away, just as Selina had done.

That set the tone for the night. Selina and Holly steadfastly ignored him as they conversed with Alfred and Leslie, and they incorporated only Leslie into their shopping plans. Bruce listened silently, memorizing every detail that Selina mentioned about her life and fighting a difficult battle with himself not to stare at her the entire time.

Finally, however, she raised a pragmatic question. "So, when are you going to publicly reappear in Gotham?"

He cleared his throat. "We were thinking the Christmas Gala at Wayne Enterprises. It'll be far enough removed from the arrival of—" He caught himself and glanced at Holly.

"From the arrival of Batman?"

"You know?"

"From the way you two talked to each other, and her expression after you showed up, it was pretty obvious."

He cast an apologetic look at Selina, which she ignored.

"Don't worry, your secret is safe," Holly continued. "I understand the bigger picture."

"Good. Thank you."

"But don't think for a moment that means I'm cool with what you did to her."

Complete silence fell at that, until Selina broke it. "I work at the Christmas Gala. Catering."

"Oh, I didn't know. I can—"

"It's fine." She didn't look at him as she spoke. "It's a logical occasion for your debut, considering you'll technically be hosting the event. And you're right, it'll be far enough removed from Batman's arrival that people won't make the connection. You shouldn't keep hiding on my account."

The silence resumed. "Well said, Miss Kyle," Alfred said quietly.

He knocked on the window this time. Holly opened it, frowning. "Really?"

"Is she here?"

"Yes." The answer came in Selina's voice. She was there, standing in a black hoodie and matching sweatpants and reminding him of all the times she had lounged at the manor in similar attire.

"Catwoman."

"Batman," she replied. "You can come in."

He entered, careful not to strike the package he was carrying on the window frame. Holly swept his cape aside and shut the window.

"What's this?"

"Merry Christmas." He handed her the package, which was wrapped in black paper.

"Seriously? Isn't it a little early for Christmas gifts?"

"I wanted to get this to you as soon as it was ready."

That intrigued her, and she unwrapped the box and opened it. He held the box as she pulled out what was inside. "A unitard?"

"It's kevlar. Thick enough to protect you from the typical cheap ammunition on the streets, but thin enough to not impede your speed or agility."

"It looks like those damn Halloween costumes."

"It's a lot safer than those Halloween costumes." He picked up the cowl. "The goggles have infrared and thermal imaging modes, and the cat ears contain amplifiers that will enhance your hearing."

Holly let out a whistle. "You're like Q in the James Bond movies."

"I'm just his messenger." He gestured to the suit. "The claws are a titanium alloy, there isn't much they won't cut through. And they're retractable."

"Alright, I'm convinced," said Selina.

"We left space open on the utility belt. I wasn't sure what tools you would prefer."

"I'll think about it."

"You should try it on first," said Holly. "The size might be all wrong." Bruce looked at her. "Just saying."

"I have a very good memory," he said levelly.

"I don't know what memory you're referring to, Batman," Selina said with some acidity, and Bruce caught himself. He hadn't meant to cross the line.

She took the suit into the other room and shut the door, leaving Bruce and Holly.

"So..." said Holly.

"So..." said Bruce, searching for something to follow that up with.

She reached for his belt, pulling off the grapnel launcher. "This is the thing that you use to fly up into the air?"

"Yes." He quickly took it back from her and returned it to his belt. "It's best if you don't touch."

She sighed dramatically. "Fine." She plopped down on the couch, and the speckled cat promptly jumped up onto her lap. "This is Flitz, by the way." She stroked the cat. "The other two are Isis and Silk."

Bruce looked around for the other two cats, but they must have been in the other room.

"Cats are nicer than bats are. You've got a whole bunch of bats living beneath the manor, by the way, in that cave that you stay away from."

"I know. Alfred showed me the cavern."

"There are tunnels high up near the top of it. I think there's a secret entrance from somewhere in the manor, but Alfred was skeptical."

"There are two secret entrances, actually. He found them over the summer."

"Ha! I knew it."

"Knew what?" They both turned at Selina's voice, and Bruce's mouth went dry. The suit fit her like a glove.

Holly whistled again.

"It's a little stiff," Selina commented.

"You'll break it in," Bruce replied, telling himself that he was only staring to make sure that everything looked right.

"And it doesn't have enough pockets."

"What do you need so many pockets for?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?"

"Well, you've still got that same jacket that you've had since..." He caught himself again. "I mean, you've got that jacket. It isn't bulletproof, though."

Her expression had hardened at his slipup, and she otherwise ignored his comments as she picked up the cowl and put it on. Then she turned to Holly.

Holly applauded. "You look awesome.

"Thanks."

"Are you patrolling tonight?" Bruce asked.

"I've got a full day at work tomorrow, preparing for the gala."

"Oh, right. Of course."

"But you're right that I should break this in." After a moment of indecision, she made for the window. "Come on, Bats. Just for a little while."

He smiled, following her out and up to the roof.

Bruce and Selina couldn't coexist together yet, but Batman and Catwoman could. That was good enough for now.