She didnât frequent rooftops, exactlyâshe was more of a ground-level kind of hero, but she could climb. It was nice out, and Tippy had wanted some air, so Doreen had taken a walk, which had, of course, turned into a patrol, which had turned into more of a light chase across the Bay into Gotham, which had turned into her catching the car thief and turning him into the authorities. Not as Squirrel Girl, of course. Sheâd left the man safely tied up with a post-it note from a friendly concerned citizen; she wasnât crazy, not with the Enforcers out in full force.
Still, sheâd had to get away from the scene, and the streets of Gotham were kind of spooky, so sheâd sidled up the nearest fire escape, Tippy chattering something about how New Jersey squirrels, really? The air was calmer up here, peppered with sirens, but a breeze from the bay cut through the din. Maybe Gotham wasnât so bad, she thought. They could hang out here for a few minutes, catch their breath before heading home. And then she noticed, up ahead, there was already a man on this rooftop, tall and shadowy and caped, brooding. Was itâno. Doreen would cry, probably, if sheâd just accidentally interrupted Batmanâs private brooding session.Â
She walked closer, warning Tippy-Toe to please, please be quiet, sizing up her plan of attack. Just say hi? Introduce herself? Say she was a huge fan? Hope he didnât drop-kick her off the building? And then he threatened her, and she stopped, a few steps fromâyep, that was definitely Batman. âUh, hi,â she said. âIâm sorry, I didnât mean to interrupt.â
Something about the small woman that approached him seemed to...almost calm him. While her aura was intense, she didnât seem to be too big of a concern, despite her presence being a little inconvenient for him. There were very few people in Gotham that Bruce didnât know about -- whether it was from detailing files on most citizens versus those heâd seen through crime. And while lately Bruce was unable to spend as much time out on the streets as he would like ( no doubt, criminals would love to turn Batman into an enforcer ), he liked to see new faces.
âYou seemed to make your decision relatively quickly for wanting to avoid the âinterruptingâ thing,â Bruce teased, although to most he probably sounded overly serious. Alfred told him often that he needed to work on his delivery - the hero figured that most people probably expected that sort of approach from Batman. It was one thing while he was Bruce Wayne, and a another when he put on his alter ego. âThough you donât seem afraid. Most people would turn tail,â he murmured after a moment, giving her his attention completely, eyes dark and intense. âYou are?â