Legacy
By Misha

Disclaimer- I own nothing Birds of Prey-related, or related in any other way to the Batman universe or any of the other various creations of the wonderful folks at DC Comics.

Author's Notes- This was inspired by one line of dialogue in "Slick". I couldn't help but wonder what Helena was thinking when Barbara talked about Batman and his legacy. So, I wrote this. I take some liberties with the pasts of some characters, but, oh well. So does the show. That's all for now, enjoy!

Summery- Helena's thoughts on her father and his legacy.

Spoilers- "Slick".

Rating- PG

"Helena, think about how we learned. How we all learned. Dick Grayson, Tim Drake, Jason Todd. Even you. It's more than a tradition, it's a legacy. Take in those like us, mentor and train them. Never turn away someone with the hunger to become what we are. It's what your father would have done."

My father.

Barbara always does this to me. Tries to get me to see her vision, his vision and make it mine.

I can't. I don't want to.

Barbara and I, we disagree about a lot.

Most of it connected with Batman and his mission.

I have no use him or his legend. He wasn't my father. He was nothing more than a sperm donor. Nothing more than a myth.

But to Barbara he was real. He was her mentor and she wanted to be just like him.

Biologically, he was my father, but she had more of a connection with him than I ever did. Not that I wanted one. By the time I knew that he was my father, it was too later for father-daughter bonding.

But still, a tiny piece of me wishes that I had known him like Barbara was able to. But I didn't.

And I'm okay with that. I live my life and he has no part of it.

Yes, I guess I've followed in his footsteps, but I don't do it for him.

I do it for Mom and for Barbara. It means so much to her to continue his legacy. I can hear the passion in her voice as she speaks, see it in her face.

And I want to point out that it might be what Batman would have done, but it's not necessarily the best thing to do.

After all, look at the names she listed off. Not a large percentage of successes.

I mean, he drove Dick away. Jason's dead. Tim, well Tim, just went on his own way, growing tired of the mantle. And Barbara's crippled.

You gotta wonder if maybe his methods and ideas weren't the best.

I don't know. I guess I'll never see what we do the same way Barbara does. For her it's the center of her life. It's been her main focus for too many years.

But it's different now than it was when she was Batgirl. Now her passion is deeper and for different reasons. Now, not only is she still struggling with who she has become, but she also feels that she has to continue the legacy for him.

For Batman.

And that's not me.

I look at her.

"Batman was your role model, not mine." I point out, like I do every time she tries to do this to me.

"Yeah, you keep saying that." She agrees ruefully and I can see that she's disappointed.

Well, sorry, but it's the truth.

She might still feel loyalty and allegiance to the Bat, but I never did and never will.

To her, he was this dominant prescience in her life, who shaped her and helped her on this path.

To me, he was just a person. A man who caused my mother's death. Who screwed up those around him.

That's the biggest difference between Barbara and I.

She does all this because of Batman. I do it inspite of him.

The End