"The echoes are a little too loud, Mom."muttered a girl with blue eyes as she resisted putting her hands over her ears to help keep the noise out. "Couldn't I go home? Please!"

"What has that, Helena?"

"Nothing, Mom, nothing. Ugh, and there's the scent of so many different perfumes mixed in the air! I only came just because you wanted to come."she said.

Otherwise, I'd be at home, for certain, she thought to herself.

Helena sighed to herself, knowing complaining wasn't going to do her any good. It was going to be a long night, and probably a long couple of days afterward, as well. She never went out if she could help it. And especially not to a place like this, with so much noise, so many people, she found it all so wearisome. However, her mother said she was coming. Helena may have tried much harder to talk her out of it, and maybe been able to, but…she didn't really think she had really wanted to stay home.

"But it's for the animals."she said firmly to herself. "And that's always a good cause! And that's why I felt I wanted to come."

Helena nodded to herself, trying to convince herself that was the only reason she had come at all.

"Looks like it's going to be a nice party."Terry said. "I never thought you were interested in helping wildlife."

"Not really."Bruce answered shortly.

He knew it was useless to ask anymore. After all, Terry knew he kept a lot of things from anyone.

"I think that girl keeps staring this way."

Bruce was perfectly aware of the pair of eyes fixed on him. The eyes belonged to a girl. She looked as if she was the youngest person there. He knew she'd been staring at him since he'd walked through the door. Noticing him turning and looking her way, he saw turn rapidly and quickly the other way, looking as though she found the window, or rather something on the other side of the glass, fascinating.

Helena was furious with herself. Since when did she let her curiosity get the better of her? Well, she thought, since when didn't it get the better of her. Maybe she should have looked down, and seem to be studying her nails critically. But with her gloves that wasn't possible. She thought she'd better leave, but there was nowhere to go but the balcony.

"Hello,"she heard a voice speaking to her.

Turning, she saw whom she thought to herself as 'the uninvited guest'.

"Terry, I think. Um, an assistant to , who was guest number one on the list."Helena said.

She hesitated. She knew people here greeted by shaking hand, so she held out her hand, although she felt she didn't mind. Much. Maybe it was just because here they did not greet by a kiss. Still, she was grateful they didn't object to wearing gloves.

"You seem to have a good memory."

"I always remember useful information."she answered him. "Besides, why else would you be here, if not as someone's assistant, or the like? After all,"she gestured toward the room at large. "there's only older people here, at least older than me, and you look more or less my age, so you'd have to be accompanying one of them, and I certainly would have remembered him. He is, after all, the one person I was almost certain would not have arrived, from what I know. But then I don't know much."she added.

"I was pretty surprised myself. I've never seen him go anywhere, except maybe two or three times in the years I've known him. This really must something special to have gotten him out of that house. What about you? Are you working here? What's your name?"he asked.

"Certo! Mi dispiace! Mi chiamo Helena.'she answered.

"What?"

"Oh! I'm sorry. I lived in Italy last, so I grew used to Italian, and I have a tendency to switch between languages, anyway, and English isn't one of my best. Um, my name is Helena. My mother's the one in charge of the party. I don't usually go to parties. I don't like crowds, but I had to come to this one bec-She thinks that we might be able to raise quite a few funds here."she suddenly changed the subject.

He figured she must be a bit shy. She looked as if talking to him cost her a bit of effort. Helena knew normally she had trouble talking to people she didn't know, especially when she was so nervous, but the words seemed to come easier on this occasion, for some reason. She thought she even felt comfortable, speaking to a complete stranger, of whom she knew nothing of, except his name. And that he was 's assistant.

"And we might stay awhile. The weather here will be a change from the cold winters in some places of Europe. I liked the cold much better though."

"You lived in Europe? Schway. So, you've never been in Gotham before?"he asked her.

She shook her head.

"I imagined it a little different, but then I only know from my mother, who lived here years ago, and from pictures she's shown me. They look ancient, but ancient's nice."she told him. "Somehow I thought the city might be like that."

"And what was Europe like?"he asked.

"That depends on what city you're in. I've been to Paris, you should see some of those fashions over there, London, Madrid, Sevilla, Barcelona, Venice, the only problem there is, obviously, the canals, Monte Carlo, but that's too noisy, although you can find a lot of people willing to risk money on just about anything, St. Petersburg, those palaces are not just ancient, they're amazing. And gigantic. It's like a dream! And I've performed in some of the theaters. For the same reason my mother is giving this party, for the wildcats. I dance ballet."she told him. "But I'm glad to be here, in Gotham. Apart from the fact that my mother has told me about this place. It might be nice to stay a while"she said as her eyes scanned the city back and forth. "Or I may convince her that we leave."

"So you and your mother help wildlife."

"Yes."she said. "My mother has always been fond of animals, especially felines. But then who can help but love them? That's really the only reason I'm here."she said firmly.

She seemed intent on keeping anyone from thinking there was any other reason, he thought.

"And what about you?"she asked. "You're simply someone's personal assistant?"she asked.

Before he could answer, she suddenly said, "Oh, no, I have to go,"she could hear footsteps, which she recognized as her mother's. "My mother's coming this way."

Terry turned toward the crowd.

"I don't see or hear anyone."he told her, puzzled.

"I still have to go."

Without saying good bye she turned. Really, he thought, this had to be the strangest girl he'd ever met. If not the strangest person.

Selina walked out onto the balcony. She stopped in her tracks, then seized Helena's arm, and pulled her away.

"I'm sure Bruce wouldn't want the help hitting on his daughter."she said to Terry, as she pulled Helena inside.