The first theft was printed in the bottom right hand corner of page 19 of the Gotham Gazette. It was considered a random act of theft in a very expensive part of town. Bruce himself glanced over it as he drank the Green smoothie Alfred prepared for him.
The story featuring the second crime was moved up to page 12 when a painting by the same artist disappeared in the same neighborhood. Bruce made a mental note to include the neighborhood in his nightly patrol.
By the fifth theft committed, the story, which included several sightings of a cat-burglar dressed like an actual cat, had been written by Vicki Vale and moved up to page one. The stolen item (a recently discovered original Picasso) had been on loan to the Gotham Museum of Art by the Wayne Foundation.
With the Riddler endangering civilian lives with his vast array of puzzles, Bruce had yet to see let alone apprehend the thieving criminal and it was beginning to frustrate him.
The newspapers had overly dramatized the eight thefts they had attributed to the so-called Cat-Woman and the whole city was abuzz with who would be burgled next. Among the richest circles, Bruce often overheard various mentions of the highest quality security systems being installed, but much to everyone's chagrin, nothing seemed able to stop the thief.
Two nights later, when Batman landed on top of Police Headquarters, Commissioner Gordon asked him if he had any information on this Catwoman. There wasn't much pressure to capture her when Riddler's apprehension had top priority, but Gordon knew that if the smaller crimes were ignored, there would be no way to ever save Gotham.
"She hasn't hurt anyone, yet," Gordon acknowledged, "But it's only a matter of time. She must be stopped."
~0O0~
Bruce decided to draw her out. He noticed a pattern after looking at the list of stolen items for the umpteenth time. It wasn't very obvious, perhaps not even important, but it was something. She never hit the same place twice; location didn't appear important. The objects taken on the other hand...
With that in mind, he made a few calls.
~0O0~
Batman hid near a corner and waited.
He didn't have to wait long. He saw an air duct in the ceiling swing open. Two pointy ears peaked out and within seconds two black boots took their place. Long, shapely legs were followed by a slim waist and a pair of full, round breasts. Though she was covered from head to toe in leather (only the lower half of her face and eyes visible to him) her suit seemed to reveal more than it hid. It felt wrong somehow to be staring at her, like he was spying on a lady that didn't deserve such disrespect.
But he didn't look away. His eyes were glued to her form. Because it didn't matter that she was a woman. She was a thief and that was the only reason he watched her movements so closely.
The steady, powerful stride of her legs, her perfect backside...
Curves that were quite pleasing threatened to cloud his thinking and it took the glimmer of her claws in the darkness to remind him that he was there to apprehend her and deliver her to Gordon. He waited until she moved towards the solid gold Bastet and her fingers curled around the statue.
"That does not belong to you," he growled.
She didn't panic like he anticipated she would, like eveyone else usually did. She didn't even appear startled and simply spun around in place, all grace and slow, calculated movements. Then, she smiled at him. Like she had been expecting him all along. Like they were old friends intimately acquainted.
"Oh, but I like it."
His throat felt dry and he would have cleared it or looked away, but he was determined not show any weakness in the thief's presence.
"It's not yours."
"And how would you know?" she challenged.
He couldn't state that he knew the statue was on loan and part of his own private collection. Instead, he remained silent.
"See? You don't know," she teased while she took a step back.
Batman kept his eyes on her.
"I didn't really want it, anyway," she shrugged, "You can keep it!"
She turned to run, but he moved much faster and blocked her attempted escape.
"I haven't done anything," she pouted, "So, you can't-"
"Breaking and entering is a crime," he stated flatly. He walked towards her with the intent to cuff her and turn her in to the police.
For every step he took towards her, she took two in reverse until her back bumped into a display case.
"Nowhere else to run," were the pleased words from the vigilante.
Catwoman smiled at him. Her eyes sparkled and he wondered if they were blue or green; he couldn't tell with the poor lighting.
He reached for her arm, but she moved just out of his reach, then she said, "There's always a way."
He didn't see her claws heading for his face until it was too late. She sliced his mask and part of his cheek. A kick from her heel swiftly followed and landed against his stomach. He stumbled back and barely managed to stay up without knocking over the various small statues of Isis, Anubis, and Sekhmet.
By the time he was upright again, she was gone. He cursed under his breath and ran towards the nearby exit. Out on the museum's rooftop, the cold air made the slashes on his face sting anew and he wondered if Alfred would be able to hide them well enough for his morning meeting.
~0O0~
Catwoman paced back and forth around her apartment. She hadn't been able to take the Bastet statue, but there was still a satisfied smile on her face. She replayed her encounter with Batman over in her mind and wondered if maybe, she had walked away with something better...
"A New Find" belongs to Savagewind.