Dick should have gone straight to using one of the disarming techniques Selina taught him, but his nerves got to him. So instead, he tried to reason with the man. "H-hey, could we talk about this?"
He squinted at Dick as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing. "The heck? You think we're negotiating? Nah, kid. You give me whatever ya got."
Dick didn't move.
To frighten him, the man cocked the gun and shot at the floor causing the woman and her children to scream in surprise and fear. "I said NOW!" He barked.
Dick began to realize that he might actually get shot if he didn't do something anytime. He forced himself to quickly preform the exact moves that he did to Selina on the mugger. The man hit the floor with a thud.
Before he could grab the gun again, Dick snatched it.
The family took advantage of the situation and hastily took back their belongings. The children, who were only a few years younger than him, looked at Dick in awe. One of them, a girl, said, "my hero!"
Dick felt his heart beat. Hero? He inquired.
"Thank you so much." The woman genuinely said.
Dick smiled. "You're welcome. You should go back home now before anything else happens." He suggested kindly.
The lady nodded and held onto her children tightly. They ran off.
Dick sighed in relief. He turned to Selina and who was walking towards him and gave a thumbs up.
"You were right! I did it!" He exclaimed happily. He was smiling from ear to ear.
"You brat!" The familiar voice groaned. The mugger got a hold of Dick's foot and tugged, causing him to stumble onto the floor.
"Dick!" Selina shouted.
The man grabbed the gun that had fallen out of Dick's hands. He aimed it towards Dick and was about to pull the trigger. Selina would've gone to Dick's aid but she was beaten to it.
A large, muscular man in a black suit jumped down from who knows where. He had a long cape, a mask, and bat ears.
Is this who I think it is? Dick wondered. Also, why do so many people wear costumes? Especially with animal ears?
Batman smacked the gun out of smuggler's hands and punched him unconscious. That's it. It was that quick.
Selina ran up to Dick and helped him up. She put her hands on his shoulders and squeezed. "Are you okay?" She asked tensely. Dick nodded and looked up at Batman.
"Selina." Batman acknowledged in his gruff voice.
"Br-Batman." Selina said in return.
They know each other?
Batman turned to Dick. "Don't worry about this man. I'll have him locked in jail. He won't be bothering anyone anymore."
"Okay." Dick replied.
Batman inspected the boy. "You look familiar. Have I seen you somewhere?" He questioned.
Dick panicked. Does he recognized me from the bank footage? Or have I been on the news because I escaped juvie?
"Uh, nope! I think I would remember meeting you." Dick retorted.
"Are you su-" Batman tried to asked.
"He said no. And thanks for the help that we didn't need. I could have handled it." Selina stated, clearly annoyed.
"He could have gotten killed. Why are you hanging around with a kid anyways?" Batman further interrogated.
Selina crossed her arms and smirked. "None of your business, Batsy."
Dick decided he should back her up so he also crossed his arms. "Yeah, Batsy."
Batman looked at Dick again, trying to remember where he recognized him. He sighed. "Fine. I don't know why you're with Selina, but make sure you don't get in fights. I get that you were doing the right thing, but next time, you might not be so lucky." And with that he got his graveling hook and swung away.
Dick exhaled. "That was a close one."
"Yeah. It seemed like he recognized you. You think it's because of the bank robbery?" Selina asked.
Dick thought for a moment. "Maybe. I just get the feelings that it's not, though." He shrugged. "I don't know."
"Well, always trust your gut." Selina advised.
Dick nodded. "Hey, Selina. Why do you and Batman know each other?" He pondered.
Selina smiled mischievously. "We fight a lot when I'm Catwoman, but we also work together when we have a common goal."
She put her hands on her hips. "Lately, I've been on his good side since I haven't been doing anything 'too illegal'. She snickered. "That's what he thinks."
"Oh, I see." Dick said. "Do you know his name, too?"
"Oh, yeah, of course. There's no way he knows mine, yet I wouldn't know his." She informed. "We kinda just... found out, I guess. It's complicated.
Dick couldn't help but give a lenny smile.
Selina stepped back. "What?"
He raised his eyebrows up and down.
"No, no, NO! Don't you go thinking perverted things. There is nothing going on between us." She warned.
Dick raised his hands up defensively. "I'm not! It's just that... It seems that you guys have chemistry..." He said with a slight smile.
Selina facepalmed. Dick laughed. "Okay, okay, I'm sorry. I'll stop."
Selina chuckled along with him. Her smiled dropped as she remembered how Dick could have gotten hurt.
"Maybe I shouldn't have pushed you to go against him." She muttered as she lightly kicked the unconscious man below her.
"I mean, I could have handled it, but, yeah, you could have gotten seriously injured. I should have
waited until you were completely ready." She revealed.
Dick widened his eyes. "No way! Im glad I did it! I wouldn't have known that I could really do it if I didn't try."
That made selina smile slightly.
"Besides, if I avoided doing things just because it's risky, I wouldn't be here now." He explained.
Selina tilted her head. "What do you mean by that?" She asked.
Dick realized that he had never told her about him breaking out of Juvie.
"Oh, I never mentioned it before to you. Uh, well, because the orphanages were full, I was brought to a juvenile detention center. I... Broke out." He slowly said.
"Oh my god." She muttered in disbelief and pity. "How long ago?"
"The day before I met you." He answered.
She could tell that Dick was sad from mentioning it, so she cheered herself up for his sake.
"Look at you. Breaking out and into places. You're already becoming skilled. Who knows, maybe one day you'll be as good as me." She hyped.
Dick shrugged modestly.
"I still have a question." Dick stated.
Selina looked at him expectantly. "Ask away."
"Why didn't you want to help the family when they were being threatened?" He questioned, slightly sad.
Selina knitted his eyebrows. "Muggings like that happen all the time. If we helped everytime we saw one in trouble, it would never end. Besides, I'm no 'hero', I don't usually tend to help others unless it benefits me."
Dick huffed. "That's not true. You helped me learn how to do that fighting move, and you're not benefitting from that."
Selina scratched her head. "I suppose. The thing is, I actually care about you. So, that doesn't count."
This flattered and hurt him at the same time.
You can't just walk away, though... He thought.
He didn't want to start an argument so he stayed quiet.
"We ought to leave now. Batman should have informed the police by now. " She gestured towards the mugger lying on the ground. "They'll probably be on their way here."
"Okay." Dick said. "Wanna go to the club? Penguin has been giving me free food. I can sneak some for you." He offered.
Selina shook her head. "Nah."
"Come on! You'll like it, trust me. Rich people food is good~" He insisted.
"Ah, fine. You've convinced me. Wait a second... Didn't you use that same line on Ninja? When we first met?"
Dick made an 'o' shape with his mouth. "You're right! Oops!" He laughed.
Selina smiled. Then she looked around. "Speaking of the cat, where is she?"
Ninja was nowhere in sight.
"I guess she got scared off by all the action." Dick assumed.
"Probably." Selina agreed. "Now, am I going to get a taste of this rich food you speak so highly of or are you all talk?"
He grinned. "I don't know. You'll have to try it for yourself."
- - - - - - - - - - - -
Selina closed her eyes as she took a bite out the meal. She scrunch her eyebrows and nodded. "Mmmm." She groaned.
"This is good, escpecially for a club." She admitted as she finished chewing. "Mostly because im getting it for free. I can't even imagine how expensive this must be."
"Yeah." Dick said through the loud music.
They proceeded to eat and watch the performers on stage.
"So, where are you going after your deal with penguin is complete? I mean, I doubt he'll let you stay with him forever." Selina concernly asked.
Oh yeah, I forgot about that.
"I don't know, to be honest. I guess I'll hang on the streets again." Dick stated honestly.
"If you can avoid that from happening, then do so. But, of course, if you ever need any help with that sort of stuff, you can come to me." She offered.
"Thank you." Dick warmly thanked.
"No problem. After all, I used to be homeless, too." Selina commented.
Dick widened his eyes. "W-wait, really?"
Selina looked at the stage. "Yeah. I was like you, I guess. Except, instead of being clever and making deals, I stole from people on the streets. It was how I survived." She explained seriously.
This was the first time Dick had gotten an insight of Selina's past. He decided to find out more.
"Is that why you became Catwoman?" He questioned.
She smiled. "Yep. I moved up a step. Rather than merely pickpocketing, I started breaking into small businesses. Then I moved onto museums. Well, I still do break into those."
She remained quiet for a moment. Then she sighed frustratedly and turned her gaze to the black haired boy. "Dick?"
He looked at her curiously. "Hmm?"
"Do you want to join a life of crime with me?"
What do you think Dick will say??
Also, Batman has finally been introduced! Yay!