The only person you are destined to become is the person you decide to be.-Ralph Waldo Emerson
It was on the anniversary that he met Bruce ironically enough, you could almost call it fate. After all the city had once again been saved from disaster and he now for the first time not at the center had found himself with this kid, she was homeless dressed in rags clearly terrified of the world and didn't know how to reach out or ask for help so like any frightened kid she would get angry and spiteful.
He learned this much about her in only an hour, he didn't understand why but she reminded him of Bruce that night so full of pain and hurt. It was the latest big bad in Gotham that caused this mess a guy called Joker he poisoned half the city made them crazy and in the chaos Gordon found himself not fighting but running that was when he found her she was afraid and hiding from the infected they both hid and to calm her down he talked with her.
She had dark skin and long black hair he didn't know why but something about her was familiar, she didn't have any memories prior to the previous year. Maybe it was a blessing for the kid not remembering her past all she said she remembered was waking up on a boat at the harbor. She went by Barb when asked why all she said was that it was short for the first and only word she could remember that connected to her past and it was even more eerie given it was short for Barbara.
Of all nights, to think he'd meet a girl with the same name as his dead ex of all nights he'd be in that same situation he was with Bruce comforting a frightened child as the world was collapsing around her. He didn't know if it was fate or if it was coincidence maybe it wasn't anything just random insanity like everything else in Gotham all he knew was the words to calm her down "Listen to me Barb, can you understand what I'm saying to you?"
She turned her head there was something eerily familiar about her Jim knew it but he couldn't place where so much had happened since he came to Gotham but somehow this girl reminded him of Lees letter and how she talked about saving Gotham so Gotham could save him or something like that. It was those words that compelled him to protect this little girl and he felt that was all that mattered it was weird how her soft voice was so innocent "Mr. Gordon are we going to die tonight?" Despite her innocent and soft voice the little girl seemed to know things no child should know no doubt from living on the streets in Gotham.
"No, we will survive this. Tell me do you have anywhere to go after this? You said your name is Barb?"
She shook her head "I said the name Barbara is all I remember I have no one, no parents, friends I just…" The little girl stopped talking it was clear not knowing anything about her past much less her real name was a deep wound for her "I don't think Barbara is my name but I think someone who I cared about was named Barbara. Someone I miss but at the same time don't miss. Does that make sense?"
Jim nodded "I use to be engaged to a woman named Barbara. I thought we'd get married and have kids and then one day things changed. Sometimes I miss her when I remember the better times and when I think about the bad times."
"Maybe it's the same with me." Barb replied trying to reassure herself.
"Maybe. Listen I know we haven't known each other long but if we get through this I promise you won't be alone anymore. I'll take care of you from here on out." Jim said relieved that he was starting to see some hope in her eyes.
"Just don't hurt me." She spoke with some fear in her voice "People always hurt me."
"How?" Jim didn't understand much about memory or really anything about what the last year of her life was like but it was clear she had been hurt.
"They or I think they would take me for granted. I know it may sound weird coming from a kid like me but I don't really trust easily. There was one person though I think she was younger then me I taught her a lot of cool things I can't remember what I taught her but I know we use to have lots of fun. People use to say bad things about her but even though I can't remember her name I know she's a sweet kid." Barb smiled clearly whoever she was talking about was someone she cared about even if her memory was fuzzy.
"You're a weird kid Barb."
"I don't feel like a kid." She replied she didn't say that though just to say it Jim could tell even if she couldn't that she was partly serious there was certainly something to her "I promise though Mr. Gordon that you won't regret this. I'll be good just…" the little girl started to cry "just don't leave me."
Twenty Years Later…
Jim struggled with his restraints as his adopted just stayed on the floor her hands tied behind her back "Are you going to say something Dad? I-" she choked up "I need you to say something."
"Does it even matter nothing was real every birthday, Christmas, Thanksgiving. I was all a lie, all of it wasn't it you saw someone you could manipulate and you-" Jim stopped to look at his daughter he wanted to believe that she cared about him. He wanted to believe some of it was real but how could he after learning her secret? "How did this happen exactly?"
At, first she didn't even say a word she couldn't even look him in the eye "It was after I died I'm sure you know the story. Oswald he filled Butch's head with a bunch of lies. Then Butch killed me even as I pleaded and cried trying to get him to remember me. I just sank to the bottom of the harbor and Penguin laughed the whole time. When I woke up I was on this island with this freaky plastic surgeon nicknamed Dollmaker. He was obsessed with me he wanted me to love him. Then when I politely and I'm not joking I politely refused his advances he through, me into his dungeon where he kept these people locked up. However most were children. I don't know if what Penguin made Butch do made me soft or truly broke me but I became protective of the children there."
"How did you become a kid again?"
"Well Dollmaker had captured Marv you remember him, right? He used to work for Fish and was like a fountain of you in reverse." She explained "Dollmaker was experimenting with Marv's blood. As well as testing a Lazarus Pit he discovered on his island. He was able to perfect a age reversing serum and he used it on me not because I defied him or anything but because he-" She started to look away from Jim and towards the floor "He likes children let's just leave it at that." She broke into tears "I was so helpless I tried telling people since he'd occasionally let me roam free I would even warn people he had planned to make disappear and make part of his collection but nobody believed me and then he started taking my memories using drugs that effect brain function."
"Why did he do this to you?"
"Because he likes to take people a part and remake them. That was the whole point of what he was doing to me he wanted to see how far he could push me until I was finally so broken that I'd become someone else looking back it's funny the only memory I had was the name of someone we both..." She stopped realizing it'd to inappropriate instead she finished with "When I tell you Dad that I never manipulated you that I love you, I hope you know that I'm telling the truth I became Batgirl because I couldn't become a cop. I didn't deserve to be a cop, it started when Falcone framed you as a dirty cop all those years ago I was only fifteen albeit for the second time around but I had to do something! So I figured since at the time Batman would be easy enough to impersonate but I got caught and nearly unmasked Batman and Robin whose now Nightwing they both saved me, Nightwing was open to mentoring me Batman he's… he has never really trusted me and even after all these years. I don't even know who they really are. Still Nightwing and I we are fairly close I get there's technically an age difference but I only remembered my past after I was shot by Joker and paralyzed so it's not too weird. I can't say I hate him for what he did to me what he did to you though that night is a different story."
Jim was in disbelief "What do you mean by that?"
"Don't I deserve everything that's happened to me? I killed, tortured, and maimed people as Tabitha Galavan I just thought that if I could do some good as Barbara Gordon no as Batgirl that maybe I could balance the scales." She cried bursting into tears "I'm sorry Dad I tried I tried so hard to be better this time around but someone started stalking me and throwing my past in my face and now we're both dead! I'm sorry I'm so sorry this is happening to you! It's my fault all my fault I don't blame you if you hate me I know I deserve it. I just wanted a do over you know? I thought that I could start over and now-"
The a steal door opened and to the old meat locker they looked at the face of the man who who walked "And now I'm guessing you feel like the biggest idiot Barbara or is it Tabitha? So, hard to keep track?"
Tabitha or Barbara as she now called herself was shocked and mortified at the sight of him the man who had been stalking and blackmailing her for weeks she couldn't believe it was him "You!" She saw her stalker approach the chained up Jim Gordon while taking out a knife or maybe dagger and her body went cold with fear upon recognizing the blade "No! Please don't I will do whatever you want just don't do it! You want to punish me for my sins is that it? Well kill me! Please take my life if that's what you but not his don't punish him for my crimes I'm the one who deserves to be punished not my dad so please kill me! Just let him go!"
Her stalker did not respond he just kept walking to Jim desperate Tabitha stood up but he took out a small remote of some kind and pressed a button the moment he did she dropped and couldn't feel anything beneath her waist "The nice thing about you having a chip on your spine is that it made crafting a deactivation device easy enough to construct. I do like seeing such a worthless wretch like you Tabitha on the ground crawling like a worm it's a fitting place for trash like you."
"Just let her go you, sick bastard." Jim said as the lunatic raised the edge of the blade to his throat.
"I'm surprised you care about her still I mean she deluded herself into thinking that all these years of playing house with you actually mattered that she actually cares about you it's a sad when people start believing their own lies but don't worry I have no intention of killing her. I am going to love watching her as she is completely and utterly pushed farther into the dark than anyone has ever been." The man with the blade smirked at Gordon then looked at the now crawling Tabitha who was desperately still trying to put up some kind of fight even though her legs were useless and her wrists were tied he stepped on the left side of her face pinning her down "Don't worry I'm not entirely cruel Barbara, Tabitha or whatever you call yourself because I am going to give you a choice in what happens next and that's the point now let's get started Tabitha because make no mistake the time for your penance has come."
