Two months had passed since Bruce had unveiled the batsuit intended for Harley to use. Bruce had been training her extensively, but Harley wondered if exhaustingly wasn't a better descriptor. He showed her new techniques for fighting, both with his supply of specialized equipment and hand-to-hand.

A new habit had formed over the last few months of training. Bruce would take Harley on long walks through Gotham, instructing her how to notice little details other people missed. Although she managed to pass his observation tests, she was frequently paying more attention to Bruce than to her surroundings. She didn't care as much for the random civilians walking past as she did for the man whose arm she held.

When Bruce thought she was ready, he took her back to the Batcave to suit up. Tonight would be their first mission together.

"Whatcha think?" Harley asked as she walked out into the main area of the cave and performed a slow spin in front of Bruce.

From the neck down, she was clad in the black armored suit with red accents. Her crimson lined cape swirled around her as she turned in place. Having been trained to notice details, she saw Bruce swallow hard and the muscles in his jaw tightened for a minuscule amount of time.

"Very nice," he praised. Tearing his lingering gaze away from the armored curves of her form, Bruce picked up a box from the nearby workbench and offered it to her. "This wasn't ready when you were at Wayne Enterprises, but you'll need it for tonight."

Harley took the box and flipped open the latches. When she lifted the lid, the sides, no longer held by the open latches, folded down like opening flower petals. Housed inside was a black helmet with an opening for the lower half of her face, and the upper portion flared out on either side like a decorative party mask. The flares turned up to point skyward in the shape of bat ears. What Harley noticed most was the practically fluorescent red hair installed into the scalp of the helmet. She looked toward Bruce for an answer.

"You have such lovely blonde hair," Bruce said, passing his fingers through her golden strands. "But, we can't have anyone noticing. The design of the helmet will make everyone think you're a redhead wearing a mask. It's an added precaution against discovery, and the helmet will keep you from getting your skull cracked."

"You always say the sweetest things," Harley said with an easy smile. "What's the job tonight?"

"Some of the wealthy residents of Gotham are being robbed by an elite thief who seems able to bypass any security," Bruce explained while tightening his gloves.

"How do we know who the next target is going to be?" Harley asked.

"A businesswoman from out of town came to Gotham for a charity event," Bruce told her. "She's reserved a seat on a plane out tomorrow morning, so if the thief is going to make a try for her valuables, tonight is the only chance available."

"Going in with no prep is reckless," Harley pointed out, holstering batarangs on her belt. "Mr. J. blew several heists because of it."

"Greed frequently overrides common sense," Bruce countered. "Our thief will be there, and so will we."

***

The figure slipped out the window and onto the fire escape. Moving silently, the living silhouette glided up the rusty steps to the roof with fluid grace. Upon reaching the roof, the figure paused to examine a belt mounted pouch and the glittering gems contained within.

Satisfied and turning to leave, the thief was startled by Batman dropping out of the sky to land a few feet away. Spinning around to escape in a different direction also proved useless, as Haley landed on the roof in a crouch, red lined cape spread out behind her, and blocked the secondary escape route.

No longer watching with binoculars from their perch on the neighboring building, Batman and Harley got a better look at the thief close up, and they noticed additional details. The black attire worn by the criminal absorbed all light, making the person seem to be a hole in the night air. The only exception to the total coverage of the dark material was the face where the headpiece was cut away from the lower half of the head, revealing the black lipstick on the woman's mouth and pale white skin, enhanced by makeup to the color of a moonbeam. A pair of triangular shapes resembling ears poked up from the top of the head covering, giving the impression of a cat.

Harley wanted to say something intimidating to the thief, but Bruce had explained earlier how silence could be far more menacing than any words. So, Harley remained motionless, staring at her prey. It worked because the thief was so heavily concentrating on Harley, she didn't see Batman moving in for the capture.

The cat burglar finally noticed Batman when he secured one part of a set of batcuffs around her wrist. In response, the thief bent forward and placed her free hand against the roof while swinging up behind her with her boot to kick Batman away from her.

Harley closed in, but the thief dived head first off the roof before Harley could stop her.

Leaping between fire escapes on the two neighboring buildings, the thief safely cleared the distance to the ground in mere seconds. Turning to look back at Harley and Batman, the thief smiled and blew them a kiss before vanishing into the night.

"She got away awfully easily," Harley complained. She still wasn't used to the distorter sitting against her throat responsible for camouflaging her voice and making it sound robotic.

"Who says she got away?" Batman asked, holding up a small device in one hand. A display screen resided above several controls, and every few seconds a ripple would cross the screen and illuminate a singular red dot with a corresponding ping from the speaker on the side.

"You tagged her," Harley said, clearly impressed.

"It's always good to have multiple contingencies," Batman explained. "Besides, we need to know who she is and where she lives in case we have to deal with her again."

"Let's go get her," Harley suggested and Batman nodded.

Firing pressurized grappling hooks toward gargoyles perched on the building beside them, Harley and Batman soared away to follow the tracker and catch their thief.

***

The cat burglar stopped near a rundown tenement building and looked up toward a window on the second level. Jumping from the alley floor, she gripped the wall long enough to propel her up the last distance needed to grab the windowsill. Hanging on with one hand, she pushed the window open and slipped inside.

"Shall we go say hello?" Harley asked.

"Not yet," Batman cautioned. He guided the way down from their roof observation point to the street. Keeping to the shadows, Batman and Harley moved unseen to the front of the building and checked the mailboxes. The number for the apartment they'd seen the thief enter was listed for Selina Kyle.

"Now, we can visit," Batman confirmed. He imparted the plan to her in a quick whisper, and the two of them split up, Harley going inside while Batman returned to the roof.

Ascending the stairs swiftly, Harley reached the door to the apartment and waited for the time Batman had set for getting into position. Harley knocked twice when the time elapsed.

"Who is it?" asked a feminine voice on the other side of the door.

"Lois Lane from the Daily Planet," Harley answered after switching off the voice distorter.

The lock clicked open, and the door started to pull back when Batman crashed through the window and into the apartment. Harley shouldered the door, knocking the thief to the ground.

Batman quickly pounced on the thief and finished locking the batcuffs around her wrists.

"Selina Kyle," Batman growled. "You'll be handed over to the police, along with everything you've stolen."

"Are you sure you wouldn't want to keep me in your hands a little while longer?" Selina asked in return when Batman hauled her up off the floor. Before anyone else could react, she leaned forward and kissed Batman on the mouth. When Batman pushed her away, she smiled playfully at him. "Call me Catwoman."

At her sides, Harley's hands clenched into fists.