Hey guys, was watching Dark Knight... I tend to watch it way to often -cough-... Anyway I got to thinking wouldn't James Gordon Junior be the perfect character to become Robin? He knows that Batman wasn't responsible for those deaths at the end of Dark Knight. Also he's an almost completely blank slate since he had so few scenes!
Also I decided to call Gordon's daughter Barbra because IMDb suggested that was her name (or their best guess). I'm also sorry if I make a mistake on how she looks I couldn't find an image anywhere or a scene where I could get a good enough look!
I do not own Batman
Chapter 1
When the man staggered, tired into the house at two am he didn't expect to see his teenage son sitting on the couch watching the television. He ran his hand though his wet thinning hair preparing to tell the boy to go to bed when he saw what the boy was watching the news. Outside the rain hit the roof hard.
"Hey dad your home huh?" The boy twisted around so his blue eyes met his father's as he shrugged the dyed black tangles out of his face. "Sorry missed the news earlier Mum and Barb wanted to watch some chick flick" The boy's father pulled off his trench coat and hat leaving them on the hooks by the door as he sat down with his son.
"Anything to report Junior?" Jay raised an eye brow, he preferred being called Jay but his parents saw it as a phase. That said he thought being called anything junior sucked.
"Dad it's Gotham... There is always something to report!" The boy threw his arms up in anger. Commissioner Gordon, the boy's father nodded feeling a rant about to come out of the boy's mouth. The boy sighed as the silence lengthened "you probably know anyway, Batman caught some more... you know... Bad guys! Why are you after him again?" Gordon gave his son a warning look both about the content of what he said and how he had said it.
Batman had been an enemy of the police for the last five years since Harvey Dent's stunt as Twoface had led to the vigilantly taking the blame for everything the madman had done. It was lucky for both the Dark Knight and Gordon that Batman was just so fantastic at evading the police. At every turn they just missed him.
"You planning on going to bed?" Gordon changed the subject, his son shrugged.
"Not really" Seeing the look his father threw him he raised his hands in defence "Hey I can't sleep okay! I was so worked up today about the grading that now I just can't" James Gordon Junior was a smart kid, he was smart enough that after what happened to him when he was ten he realized that some sort of self defence would be incredibly useful. Taking up karate he had just spent the day getting his black belt. "I also crashed earlier at Rich's" Gordon nodded "so... How was work?" the boy asked the question as he always did, like there was some hidden edge to it.
"The usual"
"Dad if it was usual your back by twelve and mum's there was a pot of coffee ready" Jim Gordon was surprised his son had taken notice of this behaviour. "She went to bed by the way, has a breakfast with the other mums from school tomorrow" The dark haired boy nodded towards the kitchen "I kept the pot hot though, in case you did want some" The boy stood up at that moment and stretched "well I better get to bed. Good night dad"
It stuck Jim Gordon then as he was pouring his coffee that his son must had been worried enough to stay up and wait for him.
/
It was the usual Saturday morning for the Gordon family Jay noted as he walked down the stairs in his baggy pyjama bottoms and equally baggy t-shirt. His black hair was a mess and he blinked glancing into the open planed living room kitchen to find that as usual his ten year old sister had woken up before him and was watching cartoons. She was sitting on the couch her quilt wrapped around her; the old brown teddy bear that used to be his in her arms.
"Hey Barb what are you watching?" The girl groggily glanced up at her brother
"Pokémon" He shook his head slightly, smiling.
"So you like Pokémon?" The girl nodded grinning back, "With the..." he stopped no one was going to get the reference and it would just make him a dork. That's when he saw as usual his dad coming down the stairs and putting on his trench coat.
As usual this Saturday was supposed to be a day off for him.
As usual it wasn't.
Their mother followed him still in her nightgown. As their father said his hurried goodbyes and was out the door just as fast. When the door shut the older woman sighed and turned around putting a smile on her face.
"Hey guys since you're up what about breakfast?" Barb peered over the top of the couch at her mother smiling. Her son remembered something as she was pulling the ingredients for pancakes out of the cupboards
"Don't you have that breakfast thing?" She nodded
"At nine but I have time to make you guys breakfast"
"Jay are you still going to take me to the park?" the girl's brother opened the fridge and located the orange juice. He poured two cups and gave one to his little sister.
"When did I say I wasn't?" he took a sip "we'll go at eleven okay?" she nodded furiously almost spilling her drink.
By eleven the two were dressed and ready to head out to the park with their big mutt of a brown dog, Duke. It was a warm sunny day after a storm the night before; large puddles had formed in all the dips and holes in the old foot path. Jay's sister admired the rainbow with a big grin plastered on her face.
Jay held her hand the whole way to the park in his other hand was Duke's lead. He admitted he was probably being to over protective but Batman didn't appear during the day… On the other hand criminals did.
The boy was always careful with his sister; there had been enough threats on their family for him to be protective of the girl. The local park, though not in the rich and there for clean part of town was pretty safe keeping her in his view was easy since for the most part it was just grass with some trees dotted about randomly. Jay sat down on of the benches Duke like a good dog sat beside him. Barbra started cart wheeling along the grass.
A few minutes later Barbra was board of cart wheeling and tumbling about and so sat next to her brother, staring at him in that "I'm board" way little siblings do. He took a piece of stale bread out from his bag and passed it to her so she could feed the birds. She grinned ripping the bread apart and throwing it out onto the ground. Quickly the birds descended and the girl giggled. Duke attempted to grab some before getting a warning from the teenager.
Jay pulled out his phone and began to text his friend Rich.
Doing anything interesting R?
U woke me up! Wat u doing? The boy smirked at his friend's reply
At park with sis he was about to press the send button when he felt something pull on his sleeve. He hadn't been paying any attention to Barbra so she had found her own way to entertain herself once the birds had eaten every crumb of the bread.
However now the girl was looking up at her big brother with sad eyes and in her cupped hands was a little robin, it looked frightened but didn't move. Jay could see it shaking in her hands.
"Where'd you get that?" He asked.
"It was by that tree" she tried to point without jostling the bird too much "it didn't move unlike the other birds it just sat there… Something's wrong with it right Jay?" the teenager wasn't sure what to say. He knew the bird was sick or something.
Barbra was staring up at him, pleading… Jay sighed untying the dog's lead from the bench.
"Come on then let's get it back to the house quickly" she nodded as they ran as quickly as possible back to the house without harming the bird further.
…
"You're kidding right?" Rich said as they walked down the street
"I'm not" Jay shook his head knocking the hood of his jumper slightly off his black hair. "We wrapped it up in blankets and everything… The Vet's not back till Tuesday so we have to care for it till then" the other dark haired boy laughed.
"I can't believe you the fearless Jay hero of the down trodden nerds!" Rich threw his friend a perfect grin "some call him the boy wounder and yet he can't handle a little girl with a sick little bird" Jay glared.
"Says the boy who lost his cool to the "Boy Wounder"" His companion smirked
Back when Jay had just started going to high school he had met Rich. The other boy had come from a pretty prominent and rich family so for the most part people were interested in him for money or the fame of being friends with someone like that.
Rich had reacted by being a quiet and angry kid.
Jay on the other hand had within the first term gotten a name for having zero tolerance for any bullying or fighting. If you pulled any of that shit you would be busted soon after.
Once when Rich had been 'coxing' a more sturdiest student to do an assignment for him Jay had appeared.
"You really think that will help you?" the boy observed "what does it matter until our last year passing is optional anyway" the other boy glared at him folding his arms
"Says the kid of the Commissioner my parents could have your dad fired in a second do you really want to mess with me?" Jay seemed to think about it
"Yes, yes I do mate" he saw Rich's lips twitch "dumb ass smile like hell it's gonna matter anyway! Do the rich have to be stone faced or something?" the boy cracked up
"You're alright Gordon"
"Sweet can my dad keep his job then?"
The two of them had become best friends since then.
"Oh check this out!" Rich pulled out his wallet which was now attached to his pants by a sturdy gold chain with an 'R' within a circle on it. "Because my parents are paranoid I'll lose it"
"I could see that happening" Jay said with a nod as they laughed, they didn't notice until too late the big men they were about to and did run into.
"Hey watch it!" One growled, Jay got a good look at them…
Big, leather jackets, tattoos… not what they wanted to mess with.
"Sorry!" He called out a little too loud not out of nerves but to catch passers by's attention, maybe one of them would come help.
Yeah and the Joker will reform and become an upstanding citizen!
One of them grabbed him by the arm.
"Listen here boy you messed up my man's jacket and he needs some… compensation for it…" Jay thought quickly about how much money was in his wallet not probably enough to make these guys leave them alone.
"Hey Mick don't these kids look familiar?" The man looking down at Jay to another look.
The boy was thankful he dyed his hair if crooks realized he was the commissioner's son it would be TwoFace all over again.
"Hang on! This kid's a Black!" one of the other men whispered excitedly. Rich foreseeing a worse scenario held up his hands.
"Hey… Look how much you want for you to leave us alone?" the men looked at each other and grinned.
"You don't get it kiddo" the one named Mick turned "we came to this street looking for you" in happened in a moment. The men restrained Rich as Jay made a grab for him. His hand took hold of the cold chain as he screamed.
One of the men grabbed Jay.
"Better take'im with us!" he growled, Rich's eyes grew alarmed as he kicked the man back forcing the chain to brake off in Jay's hand.
"Run for it!" He screamed. Jay eyes wide nodded sprinting off as fast as possible; one of the men followed him as he used the nearest objects as obstacles in his path. He was vaguely aware that the chain had harmed his hand and blood was running down it as he continued to run. Fortunately to keep his body in shape Jay ran a lot unlike the man who was lagging behind but the boy didn't turn around. It was only when he heard the loud "ouff!" that he did.
He skidded almost falling and turned. Panting he saw the man in the black cape rectify himself and turn to see him. Jay was panting as he ran up to the man showing none of the fear someone should when facing the Batman a wanted criminal.
"They… They took my friend! On third!" the man barely nodded as he headed off in the direction Jay told him. The boy pulled out his phone only now noticing what the chain had done to his hand. The chain was covered in red… He didn't believe in omens
He was not starting now damn it!
"What is your emergency?" the calm voice said
"On Third my friend and I got attacked by some shady looking guys. I got away but they were trying to kidnap my friend!"
"I will patch you into the police…" Jay wanted to scream at the woman to not act like this was normal.
But in Gotham it was.
Jay had to identify the men Batman caught them all but that Mick guy who disappeared along with Rich. It was also Batman who found Rich's body two days later the kidnappers not getting the ransom.
In was now Tuesday and Jay refused to go to school. His best friend was dead! He stared at the chain, his blood now dry a dark red. He had washed it but the blood had remained. He would not cry!
There was a knock at his door, he ignored it
Another knock and a sob.
He paused checking the clock… six… He opened the door of his bedroom to find a small crying girl.
"Barb?" He whispered, the girl almost caused him to fall over as she crash tackled him. She wrapped her arms around his chest and buried her face in it, her tears were soaking though his shirt.
"Taillow died" she sobbed, she had named the robin after a Pokémon "Mum sa… said the Vet told her it was for the best… He was too sick to pull though… Hi-his wing was broken and he couldn't go back to the wild anyway" the teenager placed a hand on her head.
"It's okay Barb…" he tried to smile "why don't we go get some hot chocolate or something?" the girl nodded as Jay took her by the hand and lead her into the kitchen. He made the hot drink from scratch just as his mother had done for him when he felt like shit.
He placed the first mug in his little sister's hands as the news reader caught his attention.
"News just in! The vigilantly known as Batman caught the killers of the young Richard Black…" he dropped the mug. His mother realized he was watching and quickly turned it off. Jay ran from the room and to his own. He locked the door behind himself.
He looked at the chain sitting on his desk, the R mocking him.
It wasn't at all strange was it? That Batman saved him that night not the police
That Batman caught the men not the police
Batman had… Had found the body not the police
Jay loved his father but… They were basically useless and he had known that for a long time.
Jay wasn't going to stand for it any longer. His eyes locked on the chain again.
He would not let another person die! If being a vigilantly like Batman was the only thing that worked…
Well then Jay would become one too!
Yeah… Honestly Robin is my favourite hero (shut up) and it disappoints me that the only times he seems to get on the big screen are when people fail to get the character even half right and I honestly don't believe that he's too light for the new films ether!
That said I did age up the starting age because I get how having a ten year old running around would seem odd but honestly if you just played him as an apprentice to batman doing apprentice type work it would make sense!
Till then I'll just join the group of people making these stories!
Note* I know this opening is very comic booky I kind of wanted it this way
And remember folks don't flame unless you have an extinguisher!