It was a little surprising when Catwoman sat beside her, but Isabella didn’t let that show on her face. She just shrugged. “No,” she said, simply. In truth, she could have sat anywhere that other people would have considered uncomfortable, for hours, without moving. She rarely sat on the steps of places, or on the sidewalk, but sometimes, when she wanted to sit by herself, she chose unorthodox places.
She watched the other woman pull out a nail file, and had to stop herself from smiling. She’d forgotten, during their time apart, how theatrical Catwoman could be. It was a little surprising to hear that the thief hadn’t been active, and Isabella let herself smile, wanly, in a hollow expression of sympathy. “I’m sorry to hear that things have been slow,” she said. “But congratulations on your heist. I wouldn’t have expected anything less.”
Being addressed as Query was a little odd, especially given what Isabella wanted to tell the other woman. She wasn’t sure why she wanted to tell her. They weren’t friends, or hardly acquaintances. Perhaps it was because they were so similar, and she wanted to know what Catwoman would make of her decision.
After a moment, she said, “Things have changed a lot for me, since we last met. I’m no longer going by Query. I’ve decided to retire.” She turned to Catwoman fully. “Of course, you understand why I won’t give you my real name. When we run into one another, you can still address me by my alias. But I won’t be active in the criminal underworld anymore. Circumstances have made me… re-evaluate my morals.”
Selina couldn’t stop the slightly smug smile that formed on her lips when Query congratulated her. It soon faltered, though, when the woman began to tell that she’d decided to retire. She had to admit that she never saw it coming, and was frankly a little disappointed that she wouldn’t get to work with the blonde more. It was rare that Selina ever took a liking to anyone outside of the Rogues enough to let them join her on her heists, but she’d enjoyed having Query around, even if they hadn’t worked together much.
Pursing her lips, she nodded at the woman. She could definitely understand the reasons behind her not wanting to give out her real name. Selina stopped filing her nails, putting the nail file back in her pocket in order to give Query her full attention, which was quite the rarity. “Well, I can’t say that I’m not disappointed to hear that,” she said honestly. “You were certainly skilled when it came to stealing. You were possibly one of the best thieves I’ve come across. It’s a shame that you feel it’s time to retire so early, but I won’t argue with your decision.”
In a way, Selina admired Query for being able to cut herself off from the criminal side of her life so easily. If it were her, she’d never be able to do it. The temptation to steal would always be there, and she’d never be able to curb it enough to retire completely. Her goal was always to take from the rich and give to the unfortunate, and maybe her lines had gotten a little blurred over the years, but that’d never change.
“Can I ask why you’ve decided to re-evaluate your morals?” Selina asked. “Did you do something particularly bad?” She didn’t really expect the woman to tell her the truth, or tell her anything at all, but she thought they were questions worth asking. “I know you don’t want to give me your real name, and that’s fine. But my name is Selina, just in case we cross paths in the future.”
Leaning back a little, she reached into her pants pocket, pulling out a diamond bracelet taken from the heist she’d been talking about. Standing up, she tossed it at Query with a smile. “Keep it. Let it serve as a reminder of what you’re missing,” she said with a half teasing tone. “Why don’t you get up from that cold sidewalk, and we’ll go and get something to drink.”
