Inside Daniel's doctor office, the atmosphere was noticeably tense.
Daniel sat comfortably in his chair behind the desk while Catwoman sat across from him staring with enough hostility that most normal people would have already started writing their wills.
If looks alone could kill, Selina was fairly certain Daniel would have died at least two hundred times by now.
The problem was she still hadn't recovered from last night.
More specifically—
The fact she somehow ended up in cat form while Daniel casually spent half the evening touching and carrying her around knowing it was actually her.
He had scratched behind her ears.
Patted her head.
Rubbed her stomach.
At one point she even purred accidentally.
The memory alone made Selina want to jump out the window permanently.
Which was exactly why she was currently glaring at Daniel like a criminal preparing revenge.
Daniel, meanwhile, looked completely relaxed while drinking coffee.
"Anger makes even wise people irrational," he said calmly. "And I know you're a wise woman, so let's not ruin the excellent interview you gave yesterday."
Selina's eye twitched slightly.
"You turned me into a cat."
"Temporary cat," Daniel corrected casually. "Important difference."
"You were petting me."
Daniel paused thoughtfully before nodding once.
"In my defense," he said seriously, "you were an extremely soft cat."
Selina looked one second away from committing actual violence inside the office.
Daniel, meanwhile, looked entirely too relaxed for someone sitting across from Gotham's most dangerous thief.
"And you're saying all this like you didn't do anything," he said calmly. "You broke into my mansion, triggered the trap, and then fully embraced your inner thieving cat instincts afterward."
He leaned back slightly in the chair while looking at her with open amusement.
Selina grabbed the edge of the desk hard enough to crack the wood slightly.
"Whatever," she muttered while standing up abruptly. "I didn't even want to see you again."
She turned toward the office door ready to leave before this man damaged her remaining dignity permanently.
Then Daniel casually spoke from behind her.
"Oh pity," he said lazily. "I was thinking about giving you a salary of five million a month."
Selina stopped walking instantly.
The office became silent for several seconds.
Slowly, very slowly, Selina turned her head back toward him.
"...Repeat that."
Daniel looked completely calm sitting behind the desk, like casually offering absurd amounts of money to criminals was a normal business practice for him.
"Five million dollars a month," he repeated. "Plus bonuses depending on performance."
Selina stared at him suspiciously while crossing her arms.
"Nobody pays a receptionist five million a month."
"You're not really a receptionist though," Daniel replied. "You're more like an assistant with specialized talents."
"Specialized talents?"
"Breaking into places. Stealing impossible things. Escaping police. Looking attractive while committing crimes."
Selina narrowed her eyes immediately. "You say that like it's a résumé."
"It's a very impressive résumé."
Despite herself, Selina almost smiled before stopping it quickly.
That annoyed her more than anything else.
"And what exactly would I even be doing here for five million?" she asked carefully.
Daniel rested his chin against one hand thoughtfully.
"Managing the office. Scheduling appointments. Preventing idiots from annoying me unnecessarily."
Then his eyes shifted toward her with obvious meaning.
"And ideally stealing less from my property."
Selina clicked her tongue softly. "You keep bringing that up like I actually succeeded."
"The intent was there."
"You literally baited me with diamonds the size of baseballs."
"And you still failed the test."
"That wasn't a test. That was psychological warfare."
Daniel looked genuinely thoughtful for a moment before nodding slightly.
"That's fair."
Selina sighed and finally walked back toward the chair again before sitting down across from him.
"I can't believe I'm considering legitimate employment," she muttered.
Daniel immediately looked offended. "This is a highly respected medical establishment."
Selina slowly glanced around the office filled with cursed artifacts, impossible objects, and a man capable of turning people into cats.
"There is absolutely nothing legitimate about this place."
The office door suddenly burst open before Selina could respond.
Harley Quinn stepped inside carrying a stack of papers in one hand, her expression full of disbelief after seeing the giant advertisement outside the building.
"Daniel," Harleen said immediately, "when the hell did you become a doctor?"
Then she noticed Selina sitting across from him.
Harleen paused mid-step.
Selina looked back at her calmly.
For a brief moment, the atmosphere inside the office became strangely tense.
Mostly because Harleen instantly noticed one important detail.
The woman sitting beside Daniel was ridiculously attractive.
And for reasons she absolutely refused to examine psychologically, that realization annoyed her slightly.
"Wait," Selina suddenly said while looking back toward Daniel, "you're not actually a doctor?"
Daniel looked mildly offended by the accusation.
"I'm better than a doctor," he replied calmly.
*****
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