Potter's Travels 1 - DC (Catwoman 1/3) (Patreon)

Selina Kyle was angry.

It was a rare state of being for her. Usually, she was the cool and confident party, one that drove the others to a state of fury, forcing them to make a mistake. She mocked the heroes, and played with the villains. She liked that feeling of being in control, watching others try to keep up with her. It was the way of life for her, always staying ahead while she focused on her career as a thief.

And, according to many people, the thief.

It was a fun and satisfying life, but it was not an easy one. It was a lonely life, with more enemies than friends, everyone caring more about what she could bring or take away. She only had one exception. Bruce. Batman. She had always thought that they shared something special, something they shared as they danced rooftops, sometimes collaborating, sometimes fighting, but somehow always on the same page.

Or, at least, she had thought so until this moment.

That belief was why she had sneaked into the gala in a dress she didn’t feel comfortable in. She looked incredible in a dress that wrapped around in tight red dress that showed her assets, of course, but not comfortable. Still, she had thought that it was an acceptable sacrifice to surprise Bruce during the gala.

Only to find that he was already with someone else. Diana Prince, better known in their circles as Wonder Woman. Bruce’s arm was around her as they moved among Gotham's elite with a practiced ease, like they had been a couple all along. Comfortable with themselves. Selina felt like a moron. Here she was, legendary Catwoman, being played to a fool.

Selina retreated back into the crowd, not wanting Bruce to notice her. Not that she needed to. Any other night, Bruce would have noticed her the moment she had stepped inside. But not tonight, not when his gaze was locked on fucking Wonder Woman like he had found a treasure.

He wasn’t the only one. Around them, the cameras flashed, immortalizing the view of Diana Prince in her sculpted physique, clad in a white gown that somehow managed to be both regal and breathtaking. Men fawned over her, and women died of jealousy.

She had to admit, it might not have hurt that much if Diana actually shared the same look. But no, her gaze carried nothing but friendship while Bruce sent lovesick looks toward her.

Jealousy burned. She wasn't unfamiliar with jealousy. It was a necessary tool in her line of work, a weapon honed to a fine edge that she wielded perfectly against others along with greed. But this felt different. She lost, to a woman that wasn’t even aware that she had been fighting, betrayed by the only man she had thought to share something.

It was hard.

“Maybe I should spend the night more efficiently,” she said even as she pulled out her phone and sent a message. ‘I changed my mind. I’m taking the job.’

‘Shouldn’t you ask if it’s still available? Unfortunately, you’re too late. I decided to take it myself.’ came the answer.

‘Doesn’t matter. I’m the best. Either you hire me, or you won’t see your precious relic,’ she wrote. ‘An amateur could never win over me.’ Even as she wrote that she was back to her thief identity. It didn’t matter what fucking Batman had thought of her as an inferior copy once he saw an opportunity to deal with a shiny new alternative.

‘Alright. It’s a bet. You’ll owe me one if I win,’ he wrote, which Selina ignored. It wasn’t like he would win. She was still the best thief ever.

She didn’t care whether the client actually accepted it. It wasn’t like she was afraid of losing to an arrogant asshole. She didn’t know who he was, but she didn’t care. No decent thief would have offered five million in pure gold just to rob a museum if they were any good.

Not even a good museum. That was why she refused the job. She wasn’t a monkey that could be sent around for money. She needed the challenge, and a terrible museum didn’t clear it. She might have made an exception for a cat-themed item, but not for an ugly Mayan artifact. Some kind of sacrificial dagger, only fitting for a second-rate museum.

But, the distraction was welcome. Especially, even as she had been trying to answer, a news article about Bruce popped up. An alert she had set earlier to keep an eye on him. But, right now, it felt like a painful stab to the heart.

The picture showed Bruce and Diana dancing. Diana had a soft smile on her face, while Bruce was filled with love. She was already warming up to him.

A painful betrayal.

She didn’t waste any time before stopping by her nearest safe house, one of sixteen that she had spread around the city. She liked living in Gotham, but not for a moment, she believed that it was a safe city. Options never hurt, especially since she could use those safe houses both as a hideout and a base of operations.

That meant, merely five minutes later, she was running across the rooftops, dressed in her skintight outfit, ignoring the rain that had just started. It fit her mood. She was already feeling safer despite the treacherous slippery surface of the roofs.

She didn’t need Batman. She didn’t need anybody.

Quickly, she moved toward the museum, not willing to waste any time. Ordinarily, she would never have stolen something without spending a long time staking the place, but tonight was the exception.

Not that she expected that second-rate museum to have any security that could keep her back. Staking the place from outside, she soon noticed an open window on the fourth floor, no doubt left by someone who thought it to be safe since they were on the fourth floor.

A mistake that she welcomed. Since there was no challenge in the job, she preferred it to be done as soon as possible.

Once she entered, she found herself in an office. No cameras, which was good. There were some cameras in the corridor, but passing them was not difficult either. However, just as she reached at the end of the corridor, which opened to the giant antechamber that housed the display area, the electricity went off.

Even without noticing the shadow at the entrance, Selina knew that it was the work of her prospective employers. “Amateur,” she chuckled. Only a true amateur would cut power, not considering that it would trigger every single alarm.

Though, at least he was good enough to take down the backup power as well.

Selina ignored the stairs as she jumped down. A swing from the chandelier, a sidestep to a column, a bounce against a nearby railing, and she landed on the floor with the grace of a prowling cat. She turned to wave toward the unlucky man who decided to anger the greatest thief in the world, still at the entrance. “Better luck next time, boss,” she called.

Only for her words to be cut off when a dagger passed near her face. For a moment, she tensed, thinking that it was an attack … but she managed to remember the target just in time. The dagger. Once she remembered that, recognizing the trick was easy. She was dealing with a meta.

Normally, she did her best to avoid tangling with the metas, knowing how badly things could go, but today was the exception. She needed a win. And, if that win required some physical effort on her part, even better.

“Not a bad attempt,” she called loudly even as her whip lashed, wrapping around the hilt. “What an ugly little toy,” she said. “Maybe I’ll throw it at a garbage truck. Do you think your little magic trick would work?”

She smiled even as she caught his gaze, knowing just how much metas hated their powers referred to as magic. Unless, of course, he was one of the mages, but they were usually dressed more distinctly than the simple shirt and jean combo he was sporting. However, even at a distance, she could see that there was no anger in his face, only amusement.

He must be pretty new to not to bother with a mask. Maybe he was from a rich family, to throw that kind of money around for a simple job.

“Oh, how scary, the little kitten is going to run away,” he called teasingly, and Selina caught the very distinctive British accent. Either a visitor, or he was rich enough to study on the other side of the ocean just for the prestige of it.

Considering the money he was throwing around, the second was more believable.

Normally, she would have ignored the playful taunt and escaped, but not tonight. Tonight, she was going to use him to work her frustrations. A few punches would teach him a lesson about who to taunt. So, she put her whip and the dagger both on her belt.

Since she preferred sneaking around and escaping, most people assumed she was bad at fighting. A bad assumption when she could easily fight against many of the crazies Gotham offered. “You have picked the wrong day to annoy me,” she growled as she moved forward, attacking him with a slash of her claws, ready to defend herself.

He dodged it with a grace that surprised her even as his gaze found hers. Only then, did she catch his gaze. His eyes were the brightest green she had ever seen, enough for her to wonder whether it was a part of his power.

Still, the way he dodged, along with his utter lack of panic, showed one thing. He was not an amateur. Any other day would have made her pull back and reassess. Tonight, she just attacked again, only to be parried. “Oh, the kitten has claws,” he chuckled. Not exactly original or clever, which annoyed her even more.

“Yes, this kitten does,” she said even as she put the dagger on her belt before she attacked him again. He dodged again. “How dare you,” she growled and launched a combo more heated than she remembered launching since … well, ever.

Normally, she fought defensively. Even when her life was in danger … or especially when her life was in danger. She had always been an evasive fighter, preferring ambushes. But, since her opponent was unable to counter-attack, she was more than happy to hold the offense. She punched, kicked, slashed, every attack draining her stress.

Soon, she was actually enjoying it, enough that, once she finished, she was actually thinking of giving him back the dagger — assuming he still paid the original price, of course; she wasn’t running a charity.

But, before she could do so, a familiar bat-shaped projectile hit the floor, filling the room with smoke.

Batman.

They must have been fighting longer than they had realized for him to arrive.

She threw herself back, more than aware of how he would attack. He would probably target the unknown first, which she would have ordinarily liked, but not tonight. Tonight, she would have loved an excuse to punch him in the face.

Before she could retreat, however, she felt herself wrapped in something. For a moment, she thought that it was one of Batman’s gadgets. Then, a sudden realization hit her along with a golden glow.

Wonder Woman. That bitch.

When the smoke disappeared, Selena was looking at the perfect couple, this time both in their costume. “I have Cat Woman,” Wonder Woman spoke casually, like she was nothing noteworthy. But then, compared to her, maybe she wasn’t wrong.

“The unknown is gone,” Batman answered. “It’s the fifth museum he hit this week, and always magical artifacts.”

“We’ll get him,” she said.

“Maybe. At least this time, we managed to prevent him from stealing,” Bruce replied.

“Really,” the reply came from behind her. Selina tensed as she felt a hand on her shoulder. “A man dressed as a bat. Have you no shame?”

Despite being caught, Selena couldn’t help but smirk viciously at Bruce’s scowl. Always so serious, he never knew how to handle when people didn’t treat him as an object of fear.

“Step away from the hostage and surrender obediently,” he warned.

Only for Selena’s temporary rival to chuckle. “Hostage, no. She has been an incredible dance partner, and I would have loathe to leave her with you,” he said. “See you at the next museum, Mister Bat.”

Just like that, Selina felt the world shift. The last thing she heard was the panicked cry of Wonder Woman. “My lasso!”