By dinner time, Damian and Raven had gotten in a few hours of studying. The witch had been as enchanted with the Wayne Manor library as Damian had expected- her eyes positively glowed at the sight of thousands of books. Almost instantly, she had decided that she had to extend her stay at the Manor for the sole purpose of perusing the ink-heavy shelves. Whilst it would have been a great pleasure to scour the bookcases, Raven recognised that the two of them had more pressing matters to research.

The demoness had given him The Channelling of Deities to read over (he might find something that she hadn't) whilst she studied Godly Combat, by Lucia Diamondis. The text was in its original Greek form: it is widely acknowledged that magical information lost in translation was a dangerous thing- and spells lost in translation more often than not resulted in spontaneous combustion. One thing Raven could thank the monks of Azarath for was instilling in her the knowledge of godly languages (Ancient Greek, Norse, Gaelic and so on).

When the noble grandfather clock opposite them sounded the dinner-time bell, the pair left the library considerably more informed than when they'd entered.

As was yesterday evening's meal, dinner left Raven feeling like a stuffed turkey- though she didn't think Alfred intended on slaughtering her. Once smudged sauce was all that remained on their plates, the party took their respective hot chocolates and coffees: Alfred all-but forced a mug of cocoa in to Timothy's hand, all the while shooting subtle, coy glances at the youngest two at the table.

As they sipped their warm drinks and occasionally passed secretive glances between one another, Alfred had to suppress a smile. He didn't think it had occurred to Master Damian, but Alfred could see him and Raven in the garden, through the Manor's security system (and the third-floor, east wing, second guest bedroom's window). Alfred swore to himself he would say a word to either of the children, or Damian's father. He considered for a moment if he could trust Dick with the knowledge of the events that had transpired on that freshly trimmed grass. Alas, he wouldn't be able to contain his excitement, so Alfred would have to zip his mouth entirely.

The butler collected Stephanie, Dick and Bruce's mugs, but before he could reach the other side of the table, the witch had risen and taken the others.

She said simply, "I won't take no for an answer." and let Alfred lead the way in to the kitchen.

On their way to the kitchen, Alfred said, "You are quite the angel, Miss Raven."

She laughed politely "I'm quite the opposite, but thank you."

An hour later, Batman was set to go on patrol in the streets of Gotham. Bruce had popped his head in to the library earlier on, after dinner, in search of Raven and his son, and extended the offer for them to patrol with him. Before he had spoken Bruce, gave himself a few seconds to just appreciate the image of his son peacefully sitting in the company of a friend. Bruce had made a mental note to have Raven around the Manor more often, she seemed a godsend.

Thus, it was that night that Gotham welcomed a new hero to its streets (a certain half-demoness), fighting alongside Robin and Batman.

The three had left the Batmobile and made their way towards the Batsignal in the sky. Jim Gordon stood on the roof of the building, arms folded, a quivering new agent standing behind him. The chief police inspector jumped out of his skin as a dark voice from the shadows greeted him.

"Jim."

"Jeeesus tap-dancing Christ!" He held a hand to his heart. "Every time! You want me to get a heart attack!"

The officer behind him raised his gun, "B-batman..?"

"Put that thing down, before you hurt someone." Jim ordered him, then re-focused on the vigilante and switched off the Batsignal.

Batman had stepped in to the light, but the chief inspector jumped again as another one appeared, on the other side of the huge lamp. The yellow insides of his cape, bright 'R' emblazoned on his chest, and general arsehole energy identified him as Robin.

"Oh for-" Jim pushed up the glasses that had slipped down his nose, "Can't you just introduce yourself rather than mysteriously appearing?"

And as he said it, Jim was met with the sudden appearance of someone unknown to him. She seemed to melt in to the shadows as much as Batman, and had scared him so much that he cried out.

"For heaven's sake!"

The officer besides him was quaking in his department-issued boots.

Jim recovered some form of composure, enough to comment that he was unfamiliar with the girl. She removed her hood and, for some odd reason, Jim was relieved to find he wasn't met with glaring red eyes, but friendly bluish-purple ones that looked at him with cool surety.

His moustache bristled as he scowled at Batman, "Another one of yours then. The clan gets larger by the week." He snorted.

The new vigilante, who Jim Gordon would soon know as Raven, introduced, "I'm on loan from Jump City." with something of a humorous glint in her eyes.

"Huh," Jim placed his hands on his hips, "Well you enjoy your stay here- we've got quite a case for you." He addressed Batman, "I tell you, it's been a real tough one to crack, this here thing."

The young officer shakily handed a thick brown folder to Batman. The Dark Knight glanced at Robin, who snatched the folder in his place, and the officer shrank back.

As Batman's partner sifted through the contents of the case file, Jim said, "I reckon you'd have twice as much luck as us figuring it out."

Having concluded his business, the commissioner made a bid to get off the rooftop (via the stairs, thankfully) but was stopped short by another jump scare.

"Holy Mary Mother of-! For the love of sanity...the universe wants me to die of a heart attack!" He pointed a finger at Batman. "I assume she's with you?"

Catwoman purred, "I most certainly am." And smirked at the startled chief.

"D'you know what? I give up. I'll see you when I see you Batman." With that, Jim made his exit, followed by the new officer. It was safe to say that all the training in the world couldn't have prepared him to be a member of the GCPD.

Selina waited till the we're gone before saying, "So, what's in the binder kid?"

"TT." Robin stood face to face with her. "I'm not a child. Anyway, it's a simple enough case- a series of robberies and kidnappings with no suspects. It can wait." He narrowed his eyes, "more pressingly, what are you doing here?"

His father placed a rough, gloved hand on his shoulder, "She's here because I asked her to come. Selina can help us."

Damian shrugged his hand off, "Help is how? By providing you with a distraction? By dividing your priorities?."

"Hey now, just you wait a minute little mister, "Selina fired back, "I'm trying to help here. Besides, he'd be even more distracted trying to keep you safe seeing as your his son."

"You expect me to believe that you've actually changed now. That you're fighting for the side of 'good'?" He folded his arms. "TT. Please."

Growing increasingly vexed at his son's attitude, Batman growled, "That's enough Damian."

Seeing that the situation was dramatically going to escalate, Raven decided it was time to step out of the shadows and in to the conversation. While aware that Batman certainly wouldn't appreciate the use of her emotional manipulation abilities, Raven steeled herself against the oncoming backlash and examined their auras. She glanced her fingers and felt the churning emotions in the air. Fixing her energy on the more quiet, pensive tendrils, the witch sent a small current of calmness towards the three arguing individuals.

They instantly quieted and Raven took the opportunity to speak, "I think we can all appreciate that there's a lot of tension here, but this is counterproductive. Maybe we should put aside personal conflicts and focus our efforts elsewhere. Like on the streets, perhaps?"

She was met by a quiet consensus, then remembered she hadn't been introduced to the newcomer. Luckily for Raven (who was generally terrible at introductions) Selina spoke first.

"That's the most sense I've heard in a long time." She shook Raven's hand, "Catwoman- if you can't already tell."

"Raven." The witch greeted, wary of Catwoman's claws as they shook hands.

"I take it you're with these knuckleheads then?"

Raven politely laughed her assent, adding, "I'm just staying in Gotham for a short while though."

Selina snorted, "Trust me, you won't miss it." Then smiled at the cloaked girl, "You know, I think we're going to get along just fine Raven."

Damian, who'd been watching the two of them interact with a slightly slack jaw, cleared his throat before asking, "Where to now father?"

There was a beeping alert from Batman's suit- a crime alert. That was all the answer they needed.

A.N:

Hi-hello-hiya-salut-bonjour-coucou- my darlings et mes chéries!

I'm bored and tired and hungry and fed up with quarantine et je voudrais sortir mais je n'peux pas. Quel cauchemar!

Yes I'm writing half in French, mais ce n'est pas grave car je ne dit pas anything important.

This is what boredom does to my mind. Ça me rends fou. help.

Anyway, merci et thank you!

-Bats :/