*Barbara was sitting in her room looking into her mirror. She stared solemnly at her reflection thinking.* Tonight I will do it. Tonight I will finally get the nerve to do it.*She opened a drawer at the bottom of her dresser, from it she pulled a sleek black bodysuit and black robbers mask. She had heard enough of her dad at the dinner table talking about the "great batman". All she ever tried to do was impress her dad but it never seemed enough for the great commissioner Gordon. She got strait A's, she did gymnastics, and she had a black belt in Karate and Ju-jitsu, and was also a runner. Her dad never noticed her though. All he ever talked about was how this vigilante was doing so much good for the city. He never once looked at Barbara and said "good job on your math test, or how was your Karate lesson today?" No, she would finally do something to impress him. She glanced nervously over at the clock by her bed. The clock read 11:45; her dad should have been home 15 minuets ago. She heard the front door open and shut, and her dad's heavy footsteps walk through the hall. She quickly put on the body suit and shut her light off, jumping in bed. She pulled the covers up to her chin and shoved the mask under her pillow. She held the mask tightly in her hand as if to confirm that it was all real. She tried to even her breathing as her heart raced like a horse in her chest. She heard her door open and saw the glow of the hallway light from behind her closed eyelids. She heard her dad silently shuffle over to her bed and she felt him give her a soft kiss on her head.* Goodnight angel *He whispered as he walked back to the door and softly shut it. As soon as Barbara heard the door click shut her eyes flew open. She sat up in her bed and gathered her hair in a low bun. Then she pulled the mask over her face, peering nervously out of the two eyeholes. She grabbed her black converse and a black pair of gloves and slipped those on. After she finished getting ready she looked at her reflection in the dark.* I will finally make you proud of me daddy *She whispered to herself and silently slid open her window.*

*It was a lot colder outside than Barbara had prepared for. She crossed her arms and shivered as the icy wind penetrated her suit. She busied herself by wondering what crime she would come across first. Would it be a rape? Not this late at night. A burglary? Maybe. She kept her eyes opened and peeled for any movement in the dark city. She heard rats scuttling in the alleyway.* I can't see anything down here. I would have better luck from the rooftops. Thank goodness all the buildings in Gotham are close together.* She climbed up on top of a dumpster and leaped for the edge of the roof. Her hands caught it but her left hand slipped, and she was left dangling dangerously off the ledge. She knew if she fell she had a chance of breaking her leg and beads of sweat lined her forehead as she struggled to get her other hand to grasp the building. All of a sudden a strong hand grabbed her arm and hauled her up to the rooftop. She dropped into a defensive position and looked at the figure that had hauled her up. He was short and skinny, but she could see his muscles were well toned under his dark red suit. Then she allowed her eyes to drift up to his face. His eyes were covered by a dark mask but the rest of his face was left to the elements. A small smile played on his lips and he shook his head to flip back a lock of black hair that had fell over his eyes.* little girl, you need to go home. I've been following you this entire time and you are way too unguarded. Come on. What if I had been a kidnapper? *He said in a high voice that hadn't hit puberty quite yet. She glared at him* I'm fine on my own. Besides, you're no more than a boy yourself *He chuckled and started to say something else but stopped as soon as he opened his mouth he paused. He appeared to be listening to something but Barbara couldn't hear anything. He put his hand up to his ear and said * Right away sir *He looked Barbara up and down* Look here girl. Normally I would escort you home right away, but I just got called on something important. So if you know what's good for you, you will turn right around and trot back to where you came from. Take that silly suit off and that robbers mask that is way to big for you, climb in bed, and go to sleep. *He got up from his crouched position on the roof and Barbara saw his costume clearer now. It was red with a large R emblem on his chest. He had a black cape and awful green tights. That's when she realized who he was.* You're… you're Robin, Batman's sidekick. *He chuckled.* That I am little girl. Now, listen to Uncle Robin's advice and go home. *He turned and ran across the roof. In that quick moment Barbara decided she wasn't going to let this opportunity to get away from her and immediately ran after him. He didn't notice her following him and he kept going at a steady pace until he came to an abandoned warehouse. Robin didn't even pause before jumping in through the glass roof, and Barbara crept to the edge of the hole and peered in. Underneath Robin and Batman were fighting a slew of criminals. It looked like they had just discovered an illegal weapons deal going on. Batman and Robin were fighting bravely. They already had half of the criminals knocked out, but they were having trouble getting the other half. The other half had whipped out their guns and were firing at the crime fighting duo. Barbara watched in wonder and slipped in the hole, gently falling to a metal platform at the top of the building. She was intensely watching the scene unfold beneath her when she hear a gun click and felt a hard object being pressed to the back of her head.* Get up, and come with me if you want to live *The gravelly voice said behind her and rudely pulled her up and started shoving her down the stairs to the ground. When the reached the ground so much fighting was going on that no one noticed the small girl with a gun to her head. The man cleared his voice and yelled across the room* Yo Batsy. Lookie what I've got here. *All of the fighting stopped and the room was silent. Everyone watching what Batman and wondering what he was about to do. The Batman glanced darkly over at Robin, and robin's face was pale and his mouth was open, like he couldn't comprehend that she followed him. The dark figure put his hands up gently and said in a deep voice* Let the girl go. She's an innocent civilian. Let her go and Robin and I will leave to escort her home. And you guys can… continue *The man behind Barbara snickered.* You really think I'm gonna believe that? No way, if I let her go you and your boy will just continue to beat us up. No I'm keeping her right here, and you guys are going to leave so we can pack up. Now the girl may not like life on the road, but she will get used to being a hostage eventually. *He moved his gun to the side of Barbara's face and in a flash Barbara knew that she could get away from him. She took a deep breath and quickly grabbed the arm that held the gun. She twisted it down and made his shoot himself in the foot. As he jumped in pain she swung her elbow and hit him in the head knocking him out. This happened in a split second and as soon as his body hit the floor chaos erupted. Batman and Robin snapped into action and Barbara ran around the floor knocking criminals out as she went. The fighting was almost over and Barbara saw three guys coming up on Robin. Robin was facing all three with a grin but didn't notice a tall guy behind him with a sneer and a club raised high over his head. She realized what was about to happen and shouted to him* Robin! Behind you! *As she was yelling this a goon came up and hit her in the head, knocking her out cold. As her vision blacked out she saw batman come up and start grappling with the guy who had hit her. Then her vision went completely black and she passed out*

*When Barbara woke up she was lying on a comfortable couch in what looked like… a cave. She saw Batman and Robin over on the other wall discussing fervently. Her eyes fluttered open all the way and she coughed. Immediately Batman and Robin looked up and walked over to her. Batman offered her a cup of water and Robin smiled kindly at her* I think I underestimated you *He said to her gently, and she drank the water thankfully.* Wher… Where am I? *She croaked out once she had finished the glass. The tall dark figure answered this time* You're in the Batcave, and Robin and I were just discussing what we were going to do with you. Seeing you are the commissioner's daughter. *That's when Barbara realized her mask was gone. Her face fell and her shoulders slumped.* Well, you don't have to worry about my dad wondering where I've been. He leaves before I wake up in the morning; and he doesn't come in my room in the morning cause he doesn't want to wake me. *Robin grinned wider.* See, I told you we wouldn't have to worry about a cover story. This girl is smart. *He winked at her and looked back at Batman. Batman rubbed his chin thoughtfully.* She was an adequate helper… once she got out of being a hostage. *Robin chuckled and put his hands on his hips.* Does this mean we can keep her? *Batman looked back at Barbara.* No. But tell me if she sneaks out again. If she's intent on sneaking out we might as well use her. *He turned away and walked toward a big computer on the wall. Just then Barbara noticed her head felt a bit funny. She put her hand on her forehead and then swooned. Her vision blacked out once more and she heard Robin whisper.* Don't worry, this is just protocol Babs. *Babs? Where had she heard that before? He picked her up and placed her gently in the back of a large black luxury vehicle and called a name. She couldn't hear it very clearly because she was almost out completely; but she was almost positive the name was Alfred. Then she fell asleep and dreamed peacefully about a man in a black suit and a boy with green tights.