Selina stretched upon reaching the rooftops of Gotham, taking a deep breath as the cold wind rushed by her. She had a few places in mind to hit tonight but she couldn't decide whether she wanted to start with the rare diamonds or end on the rare diamonds. It might be a little risky since the place with the emeralds involved a lot of crawling around and she didn't want to scuff any of the jewels. She continued to ponder her predicament but her thoughts were interrupted by the soft sound of someone crying. It was barely noticeable with the howling winds and would be unheard by human ears but she was blessed with cat ones. Being a Neko had its perks. She looked around curiously and found that it was coming from below. She raised an eyebrow in intrigue and decided to check it out. The voice didn't sound very old which only urged her to find out where it was coming from exactly. Sure she was nowhere near a hero but she wouldn't let some crying child roam the streets of Gotham alone at night. She climbed down a fire escape and dropped down to the alley, scanning the small space for the cause of the cries. Her eyes fell on a pile of boxes that were wet from the rain that hammered down on the city the night before. She noticed something move underneath them, something black and slender. "Hello?" she called out into the night. The crying stopped, replaced by panicked breaths. Selina took a few steps forward and remained slow in her movements as not to cause a fright. "I'm not going to hurt you. Just come out for me," she added. 

Before she could reach the boxes, she stopped. Whoever was crying was obviously distraught and jumping on them wouldn't really help the situation. She'd wait for them to make the first move. There was some shuffling and she saw that slender silhouette curl up to hide in the shadows. She frowned to herself but her hopes were lifted when a head peeked out from beneath the cardboard. Bright blue eyes pierced through the darkness, glazed over with tiny fear-stricken pupils. She knelt to look less menacing since she got the feeling they were much smaller than she was. They had to be to fit under those boxes. "There you are. What's your name?" she asked softly.

"Not supposed to talk to strangers." The voice was shaky and croaky which only made her heart ache for them. They must've been crying for hours to sound like that. She hoped they were able to escape the storm last night otherwise they might be sick too.

"Rightly so. I'll introduce myself first, shall I?" There was no reply but she didn't really expect one. She held out her hand to show she wasn't going to hurt him and said, "My name is Selina Kyle. Who might you be?" The figure moved out from under the boxes and allowed her to get a good look at who she was talking with. A fellow Neko it seemed judging by the sleek cat ears and tail. A little Neko boy. Honestly, he didn't look very old. He was so small too. The clothes were an odd one. Bright flashy colours on a leotard weren't exactly the go-to streetwear and she couldn't see any parent dressing him up like that. There was mud all over him and stuck in his hair that was wonderfully curly yet clearly unkempt. He was quite adorable which made his appearance on the street all too sinister for her liking. "Richard but Dick for short." 

"Nice to meet you, Dick." He carefully reached out for her hand and shook it. She marvelled at those blue eyes. They were wide and such a brilliant colour. She'd never seen eyes like that but then again she hadn't seen many other Nekos. Most tended to keep out of Gotham. Too many rich people were all too happy to pay some less than trustworthy people for Nekos they could flaunt for their friends. She shivered at the thought. A small boy like this would be worth a good amount. Luckily she got to him before anyone else had. "Can you tell me what you're doing out here?" 

"I lost my parents," he whimpered. 

"I can help you find them." He shook his head solemnly as a new round of tears fell from his eyes.

"No, they're gone forever!" Selina stared at him in confusion before realizing what he meant. Gone forever. 

"Oh, little one I'm so sorry. Is there anyone you can stay with?" He shook his head again. She chewed on her lip as she thought about what to do next. There was something about this kid that she just had to protect him. He certainly wasn't going to any of those shelters. There was only one option she could think of and she could see it causing problems down the line. "How about you come with me? For the time being at least." He stared at her in disbelief. 

"O-okay." Thank God she picked this kid up before someone else did since he didn't need that much convincing. Maybe she could teach him a few things. No Selina stay on track. She stood up and Dick copied her but he still kept his distance. He took his tail in his hands and pulled at the fur. There bald patched on it so the action wasn't new. "Come here. I'll carry you there, you're far too young to get up there yourself."

"I might be heavy."

"You'll be as heavy as a pillow. C'mon."

It took some coaxing but she eventually managed to pick Dick up. He was light. Far too light. She'd have to get some food in him ASAP. He leaned into her, stealing her warmth for himself. He hid his face from the biting winds that only got stronger the higher they got. She tried to protect him from it by putting her back to it but it attacked them from all sides. Soon enough they were at her apartment and she crawled inside, putting him down before closing the window. He immediately relaxed now he was somewhere warm but she could tell he wasn't completely at ease yet. She didn't expect him to be though. The poor boy was still shaking like a leaf. "Are you sure there's no one that can take care of you?" she asked just to make sure. She'd hate to think someone was tirelessly looking for him and here she was inviting him into her home. He nodded. 

"The circus left without me," he answered.

"Circus?" she parroted.

"Yea. We perform all over the world." There was a spark in his eyes as he spoke about it and she decided to keep him on the topic. It seemed to keep him happy so she wouldn't mind hearing about it. Who knows when he last had a conversation with someone. 

"What was your act?"

"Trapeze. We're famous for the quadruple backflip," he explained. "I only started a few months ago. Now I can't." She frowned as she walked over to the kitchen. The mood needed to stay light.

"You said you went all over the world. Any favourites?" she asked. He thought for a moment.

"Maybe Brazil. We were there during Carnival and everything was so bright and colourful." He took his tail into his hands again. "My parents loved it." She found a leftover back of Hershey's Kisses and, although it wouldn't substitute a good hearty meal, it would do for now. Selina had some kind of idea of how to treat the younger. The first was getting him to wash, the second was to get him changed into something more appropriate, the third was to get him a good meal and the last would be to get him to sleep. He looked exhausted and crying like he had been couldn't have helped much. She tossed him the bag which he just about caught. "Nice catch."

"Thank you. How many should I have?"

"As many as you want. It'll keep you going whilst I make you something."

"Oh you don't have to," he replied quickly. She waved her hand dismissively. 

"I won't listen to any of that." He smiled timidly and began unwrapping some of the chocolates. She watched him guzzle them down and couldn't help but wonder when his last meal had been. It couldn't have been recently. Although she would love to let him continue to eat, there was mud on his hands and under his nails. It was far from sanitary and she'd rather not have a sick orphan on her hands. An orphan alone was already a lot. "There's a bathroom through the door on your left. Have a shower then we'll have something to eat. I'm afraid you'll have to wear one of my nighties." He giggled to himself which caught her off guard. He had such a cute little laugh. Who allowed such a person to go through something as horrid as this? She didn't know but she was sure whenever she met them they were going to receive a hard right hook. 

"That's alright."

"Good. Any food that might kill you? Wouldn't want to waste my amazing cooking skills making something that'll end in a hospital trip." He giggled again.

"No, I don't think so." 

"Aright then, go get washed up." He nodded and placed the now empty bag of chocolate down, glancing over to her for approval. "You're fine. Go on now."

After watching Dick disappear into the bathroom, she began warming up the soup she had yesterday. She hoped he liked soup but by the way he was eating she guessed whether he liked it or not he'd eat it either way. Maybe when she got to know him more. What was she saying? She'd just picked a kid up off the street and invited him into her home, what was she thinking? She was a thief! A lone wolf! Well, lone cat if you counted the Neko genes but that's not the point. She did things alone and it was so much safer that way. Now she had this little orphan in her hands who she had hardly any clue on how to deal with or how to raise. Where else would he go if he wasn't with her? He could go to one of the other shelters in the better cities where he could be cared for properly and wait for a family to come along to adopt him. That option was better than her keeping him especially with what she did at night but what if he truly was better with her? Sure her way of life was far from law-abiding but she didn't kill people, she just took shiny and pretty things. Once in a blue moon, she'd steal something for some villain or other but most of her work served a personal goal. She could- no she couldn't- but he might- no...it would be fun to teach someone her tips and tricks. No, he was far too young for that stuff. Maybe. She'll think about it. Selina with a kid? Now that was something she never thought about. She liked the thought though. The soup was warm by the time she was stirred from her thoughts so she went to fetch something the boy could wear. The best she could offer him as of now were oversized shirts or nighties. She'd take him shopping for clothes later. Well, her version of shopping. She searched through the clothes, excluding all of those with boobs on them because that would just be too funny before settling on one with a wine glass she'd gotten on a hen do. More like taken from a hen do but they weren't too bothered by it. They were too drunk to think about it she suspected. She collected the shirt and went to the bathroom where she could hear the water running inside. She knocked on the door lightly before announcing, "I'll leave a shirt outside the door for you. It should be long enough to cover you and then I can put those clothes in the wash." 

"Okay!" She smiled to herself and placed the shirt down before returning to the kitchen.

A few minutes later, Dick walked into the room wearing the shirt that went all the way down to his knees. In his hands, he held his muddy clothes and looked around for the best place to put them. "You can put those in the laundry basket. To your right," Selina told him. He turned and found the black basket, hesitantly putting his clothes on top. He then stood there. She appreciated his reluctance to get too comfy in his new abode, she would be too if she were in his position, but she hoped it wore off soon. She felt kind of bad for bossing him around her apartment. Perhaps once he was more relaxed he'd treat this place less like everything was made out of the most expensive and fragile material in the world. "You can sit down."

"Oh! Right okay." He chose a spot on the couch and pulled his legs up to sit cross-legged. He glanced at her almost expecting to be scolded but she let him be. He'd just had a shower after all. His tail swirled around him before resting on his lap where he pulled at the fur. His eyes studied her small apartment, drinking in every detail. His attention settled on a bowl of fine jewels that shined in the light. Selina smiled to herself, happy that he too seemed to share her love of the finer shiny things in life. She took a bowl of soup in each hand and walked over to the younger, handing his over to him before going to fetch some spoons. "I see you like jewels."

"Yeah, they're really pretty." He carefully held the bowl, relishing in its warmth, and downed it within a few moments. She barely had time to open the spoon drawer before his meal was gone. 

"I was going to give you a spoon," she chuckled. 

"Sorry, I just always drink soup like this."

"Drink would definitely be the right verb here." She took one from the drawer then returned to the couch where she took her own bowl in her hands. "Boys aren't usually so open about liking pretty things."

"Why?" he asked in confusion. She went to explain but thought better of it. He didn't need a reason to be more apprehensive about what he was doing. Instead, she just shrugged and he didn't press her on the subject. "Where did you get them?" 

"I took them. Their owner had far too many pretty things." He nodded slowly. "Are you alright with that?" She didn't really know why she asked. Any kid growing up with the same basic morals wouldn't be. There was no indication that he hadn't been raised with anything aside from those building block morals.

"A man like you worked with us. He said things aren't fair so we gotta make them fair. Right?"

"Right," she replied. "You didn't answer my question though."

"I don't know. Never really got that things arent fair until," he was interrupted by his breath hitching. He put his head in his hands as he whimpered. Selina put her bowl down and wrapped her arms around the poor boy. He needed it more than anything.  She pulled him onto her lap and let him cry into her chest. She ran her fingers through his damp hair and gently shushed him. "It'll be okay, kitten. We'll figure this out."

Eventually, the poor boy cried himself to sleep and Selina may have shed a tear or two herself. You couldn't listen to a child sobbing and begging for the presence of people that simply weren't going to be there. She stayed with him once his breath evened out and his crying was only evident through his tear-stained cheeks. As she sat there holding him, she thought about what she'd do next to help him. The first thing she could think of was laying low for a few days maybe a few weeks. She doubted he'd be able to handle her short stay in custody and she couldn't guarantee she'd be lucky enough to escape during a riot. Yet if Catwoman was going to lay low, she had to get another big score to last her. She'd have to go out tonight. Selina hummed to herself and carried the boy to her bed, tucking him in. He let out a little whine but when her presence was replaced with a pillow he settled back down quickly. She pressed a kiss against his forehead and made one last check to make sure he'd be warm enough. "I'll be back soon little one," she whispered before climbing out the window. It would be a quick in and out job. 

And it was. On her way back though, she ran into Batman. She could see him coming from a mile off and hid the diamond before he could catch sight of it. He greeted her with a nod as he usually did. She had to play it cool. "You're starting late," he commented.

"I'm cutting down my work hours for a bit. A little self-care is needed to maintain looking this good," she replied casually. He rolled his eyes at her but seemed to take her word for it. He was a smart man but she was a better liar. "You should do the same."

"There are criminals to catch. 'Self-care' doesn't prevail-"

"Yeah yeah yeah. I've heard you're the prince of darkness speech before." She began to walk in the direction of her apartment before Batman spoke up. 

"I saw you with that boy. Is he alright?" he asked. She paused. How was she going to play this? If she told him he'd tell her to get rid and put Dick in some shelter but he might just surprise her. He'd done it before though it wasn't common. If she didn't tell him, what was she going to say instead? "It's rude to spy."

"It's my job."

"Well you have a rude job," she responded. "He's not in the best place. All I know is he was recently orphaned and he was in a circus." He seemed happy with that and she took it as her cue to leave. She'd probably say she'd taken him in...eventually.