Dick was now eleven and quite the criminal protege. He'd successfully robbed over half the jewellery stores in Gotham with only a few failures here and there. He'd also evaded Batman enough times to never meet the guy although he suspected that Selina had a thing for him. She always seemed either happier or angrier after encountering him and from the soap operas he was raised on, that seemed to be the hallmarks for liking someone. 

Speaking of untraditional teaching methods, Dick was homeschooled. He'd spoken to Selina about schooling since he had liked when his mother taught him things with a deep love for any tech lesson and a deep hatred for English lessons. He didn't want to be without the necessary things so Selina gave him the best computer she could get her hands on and directed him to a few websites to teach himself. Turns out, Dick was a whizz kid. He picked things up quickly and found the work easy so when he finished his lessons early, he'd work on coding and upgrades for himself. On one of these days where he was planning on installing a sort of hologram computer into his suit when an idea popped into his head. He could spend months developing this technology or he could do what his mentor did. Steal it. Yet who could he steal it from? A big business was above his skill set admittedly and he doubted any stores sold what he was looking for. There was one person he knew that left his car abandoned every single night and returned hours later. In that car was everything he needed to conduct some major upgrades. That person was none other than Batman. Stealing from The Dark Knight? Now how could he resist?

The Batmobile was usually parked in the same place every night so he knew where to look when he went out. He was planning it all day so it could be a quick in and out. He'd bring a USB and download everything he could from the car. He knew inside there was a computer that connected to the network Batman used to keep track of cases. Presumably, he used the same network for coding as well which meant after some messing around, Dick could get the information he needed. He'd download what he wanted, maybe set up a prank for the hero and then get the hell out of there. He didn't want to tempt Batman with an arrest. He'd been to jail a few times but always broke out. Still, it was annoying to be sat there with all those idiots pulling his tail and grabbing his ears. More of an inconvenience than anything else and that was an inconvenience he couldn't be bothered with. "What're you scheming?" Selina asked, noticing him writing something as she gave him his dinner. They always made sure to eat together and she couldn't help but be fascinated with all the things he could learn in a day. Usually, she was busy during the day so this was the best time to catch up on everything. "I'm robbing your boyfriend," he answered. She gave him a dig for the boyfriend comment. 

"He's not my boyfriend. What are you taking from him?"

"Some codes to upgrade my suit with. I'm not gonna leak anything if that's what you're worried about," he replied, finishing up the plans so he could eat.

"I can get it," she offered but he shook his head. 

"I wanna do it myself. Besides, it'll be fun doing it myself. We're not always gonna work together." Selina tutted and pushed some of his hair out of his face lovingly. 

"You've grown up far too quickly, Kitten. You'll be leaving me next," she commented. He laughed and rolled his eyes at her. Always one for the dramatics. He didn't even have anywhere to go! 

"It's only a job! I'm not leaving for college!" 

"I know, I know. Soon enough, you'll be roaming around Gotham without me nearby," she continued. She wore a smile as she talked about it, almost excited about the prospect of him gaining more independence. He wouldn't mind being able to roam further than the small radius she gave him. He'd love to visit the parts of Gotham he didn't see as often or maybe even further than the city. Maybe another city entirely. "Is this plan for tonight?"

"Yep. I figured I'd do it quickly then spend the rest of the night working on things. I can make you something too!" 

"Thank you. Now eat up. I don't want you going out on an empty stomach."

After receiving a tight hug and a kiss on the forehead, Kitten set out to collect his information. He scaled the buildings of Gotham and ran to the alley where Batman always parked his Batmobile. He arrived a few minutes earlier so he could hide and get in as soon as he could. He stopped on a rooftop then sat down with his eyes trained on the entrance to the alley. Adrenaline was rushing through him as his tail twitched excitedly. He'd be robbing Batman! Batman! Most criminals wouldn't dare but he would dare. Whether his confidence here was wrong or not, he didn't know. Selina had always told him to be confident in himself and his abilities because no one else would be. Well no one else but her. She was always confident in him but she was his mother figure so that wasn't too surprising. He wondered if it would always be just her and him confident in themselves. He'd like for other people to be there but he didn't know. That was okay though. Selina and him would be there for one another and that's all that mattered. His waiting paid off as soon enough he was roused from his thoughts by the sound of an engine. The Batmobile pulled into the spot then hummed until it came to a stop. The lights turned off and out came the one and only Batman. Seeing the hero so close was surreal. He'd only ever seen Batman on TV or clips from YouTube. Admittedly, he did find the man rather cool. He was this elusive figure on a one-man mission to save Gotham from itself. If he wasn't part of the problem Gotham faced, he'd probably look up to him. Yet they were on the wrong sides so he couldn't really do that. He could only show respect for the job. Batman closed the car door behind him then stormed off to presumably punch some criminals in the face. He waited until he faded into the shadows before climbing down to the ground. He dropped down without a sound then went over to the car. It was truly amazing. A sleek paint job, thick tires that were half the size of him and a perfect aerodynamic design. It would be worth a pretty penny. This Batman had to be rich to have one of these custom things. He quickly found the lock to the door then pulled out his pick locking kit. He got to work, his ears listening out for the soft clicks that would bring him closer to his prize.

It took some working but it was all worth it when the car door clicked open. Kitten grinned and opened the door, climbing inside. Immediately he was overwhelmed with choice. Inside were hundreds of different buttons that probably did really badass things that unfortunately he didn't have time to try out. He'd have to let his imagination take over for that one. His eyes set on a small computer screen that had lit up and come to life. He tilted his head as he looked for a USB port. He spotted one and plugged in his USB at which a pop up appeared with a loading bar. When it was complete, he began looking through the files available to him. Murders, robberies, assaults, abductions. None of these was interesting so he went on the network connected to the computer. Now he was getting somewhere. Instantly there were more files than he began with and one was perfect. Coding. He quickly opened it and started downloading them. As he worked, a thought popped into his head. He held a lot of power here. Power that could give him some standing in the criminal world. With this access to every case the hero was working on, Kitten could ruin everything he worked for. Was it worth it? He narrowed his eyes and lingered on the thought. On the pros side, he'd gain standing and this could be the beginning of making his own name in the world. On the cons side, these were bad people. Some of the tip-offs could get someone killed. He didn't know if he could live with that yet there were such great rewards on offer. A little information leak couldn't be horrible and it didn't mean that a case would never be solved. He already recognised the names of the murders, he knew some intimate details too, so it wasn't like the information he would leak was brand new. He just had the added information of Batman looking into the case. He chewed his bottom lip as he went back onto some of the files. Kitten decided to only look at the robberies and add them to the download list. He robbed places and as long as what they stole was the usual money/jewellery from your regular rich Gothamites then he'd let them know. Yeah, that felt right. There was a small beep when everything was done downloading at which he removed the USB and deleted the history of looking through the files. He didn't want the hero to be suspicious of searches he didn't remember doing. Kitten pocketed the device and was about to leave when his mischievous mind got the better of him with one simple thought. What if he changed the car's honk to something silly? It would be really funny to hear this cool car make a stupid sound. It would take a few minutes though and could he really spare those? Of course, he could! There was no way he was passing up a prank like this.

Unfortunately, as he worked, he forgot to listen out for the owner of the car coming back. You can imagine the fright he got when the door opened and a very angry looking Batman glared at him. He laughed awkwardly and tried to spy a way out. The only way out was the door on the other side of the car which he made a run for. Batman grabbed him before he could get very far and he put his hands up in defence. "I don't punch kids," Batman said, his voice gruff. Kitten hesitantly brought his arms down and gulped. "Who are you?"

"Who cares? You'll be carting me off to jail or the same," he responded sassily.

"I didn't say I'd do that now did I?"

"History says enough Batsy," he replied. The older hummed and brought out a pair of handcuffs. He attached one side to the boy's wrist then the other to the grab handle on the passenger side. Kitten moved over to the passenger seat with a confused expression as Batman got in the car. He locked the doors and glanced at the computer to see what had been done. He squinted his eyes when he saw the horn settings were on. "Why would you mess with this?"

"I thought it would be funny," Kitten responded matter of factly. 

"What's with the get-up?"

"You're dressed as a bat and you're calling me out for my fashion?" 

"You've got an answer for everything don't you?"

"Pretty much. If you're not taking me to jail then where are you taking me?" he inquired. Batman started to change the horn back to its usual sound. 

"Wherever you're staying. I doubt your parents will be very happy with your behaviour." That touched a nerve. Kitten went silent with a horrible glare on his features.

"They're dead," he stated. The hero paused and spared him a sympathetic glance which was ignored. No one got to talk about his parents. Not even Selina and she was his mother figure. The topic was off-limits permanently. 

"I'm sorry to hear that. Do you have any other family?" He shook his head. "Are you living with anyone else?" He nodded. "Who?"

"I would've thought the suit would make it obvious. If not that then the ears and the tail," he responded bluntly. 

"Selina?"

"Bingo Batsy."

The car hummed to life and Batman began the drive to Catwoman's apartment. "How old are you?" he asked. 

"Eleven," Kitten answered, directing his gaze out of the window. At least he got a ride home. He didn't know how his mentor would like him being caught but it could be worse. He could be sitting in a cell or something. 

"Awfully young to be out this late," the older commented. He shrugged in response. This was Gotham, worse things were happening than a kid strolling the streets at night. "Look, this is a bad place for kids like you. You shouldn't be staying with a known criminal either nor should you be getting in on the business."

"I didn't have much of a choice. Besides, I've never been one for being normal." 

"Is that so?"

"You're unusually talkative. To what do I owe the pleasure?" Batman rolled his eyes and dropped the conversation but Kitten wasn't one for silence. He didn't like being quiet nor did he like the quiet. It was all so lonely and he wasn't a fan of that feeling. "You should really add a security code to your computer," he stated. The hero glanced at him. "I'm just saying. Anyone can pick a lock but it takes a lot more effort to guess a password. I could get onto your horn but I'm guessing there's more sensitive stuff there." 

"I'll take note."

"I'm taking a few courses in coding and computers. Just seemed obvious considering all the stuff you work with," he continued. "I suggest three strikes you're out system. Given the number of fights you get into you're probably gonna get a concussion at some point or something that'll make you get it wrong the first time around. Maybe you could have a mandatory lock-in if it's wrong after three times. Oh! You could have voice recognition instead. Much harder to crack given you hardly talk."

"What's your GPA?"

"Don't know. I don't go to regular school. I just kinda do lessons online. Currently on high school courses." Batman hummed. "Pretty good right? If I was in regular school I bet I'd graduate early. Ah but then again English sucks so that would probably hold me back. It's so annoying. Dis is always added to mean the opposite except when it doesn't. It's always dislike and like but it's never distraught and traught."

"Do you want normal schooling?"

"Something tells me a Neko in an all-human school in Gotham won't end well."

"Perhaps."

Kitten rambled the entire drive to the apartment partly to avoid the silence and partly to annoy the man that had cut his evening short. Eventually, they pulled up outside of the apartment block and Batman got out. He went to the passenger side only to find Kitten had unlocked the cuffs that trapped him inside. The younger passed the cuffs over with a smile and got out, attempting to make a run for it. Batman grabbed him by the tail, making his eyes widen and a yelp rip from his throat. The hero let go of him in surprise. "So much for not hurting kids," Kitten hissed, cradling his tail. His ears were stuck straight up in anger and went along with his glare. It was pretty easy to break a tail so even grabbing it and tugging could put him in pain for weeks. Luckily, he'd just yelped from the shock rather than pain. 

"I didn't mean to," Batman grumbled. He grabbed the younger's forearm and led him inside. He kept a tight hold of him as they went up the stairs, getting odd stares from some of the other inhabitants. They went to Selina's apartment where Batman knocked on the door. His knocks sounded more like punching though which explained why Selina had answered the door with a bat rather than a happy greeting. "What the hell- Kitten! Are you okay?" she exclaimed, dropping the bat in favour of grabbing her young protege. She pulled him away from Batman and cupped his face as she checked for anything wrong. 

"I found him in my car. Why are you letting a kid run around like this?" Batman snapped.

"Oh lay off. You know I started around his age," she retorted. "Who are you to say anything anyway? Not everyone is born with a silver spoon in their mouth."

"Don't act like you don't have any funds of your own."

"Money wasn't what I was talking about." 

"We need to talk about this. You can't have him-" The door was slammed in his face before he could say anything more. "Selina! Be mature about this!" She ignored his calls and did another check of her little one. She patted his head when she found there was nothing wrong. If she had found something well, his next lesson might be on how to hide a body.

"Get it?" she asked, referring to the codes. He nodded with a proud smile that mirrored Selina's. "That's my boy." He cackled happily. Tonight was a success.