Hello once again! Sorry this took so long; I've had a lot on my plate and there was a good bit of research that had to be done. Most of my source material will come from the Batman the Animated Series episode 'Old Wounds'. Along with the famous Alan Moore comic 'The Killing Joke'. This one is going to end kind of grimly, but everything needs to fall apart to build something greater from the rubble.
Also: Batman is a member of the original Justice League at this point. I couldn't find a point to cram that info in here.
Gotham was still for the night. The streets were dark, but just out of sight Robin could sense the ever-present scum and villainy that plagued the city. But for now, they were behaving themselves. And for that he was grateful.
In his nine years as Robin, the boy wonder had grown up. No longer was he the whelmed, naïve sidekick who had first fought beside the Bat. Now he was a serious crime fighter (while retaining his important contrasts to the Bat). He'd done so much in those eight years, fought so many battles and won most of them. He liked to believe that he was just as capable a hero as Batman. The two had grown distant in recent times, driven apart by Robins age and their conflicting viewpoints.
But there was always a teamwaiting for him on the east coast whenever he needed a break from being the lesser of a duo. A team formed exclusively of teenage superheroes who called themselves the Titans. He was a founding member, but never could tear himself away from Gotham for too long. One of the reasons was standing in front of him now.
Batgirl had continued to operate on and off since she was first inducted into the life of crime fighting. She had become a formidable force to be reckoned with and a key source of intelligence for Bat. Not to mention 'something more' to a specific bird. It had taken quite a bit of convincing and years of tension, but eventually Barbra caved for the masked vigilante. Their relationship had only recently blossomed and it was perfect. Except for the whole, no secret identities thing.
The one thing they constantly fought about was Robin's continued resistance to revealing his (and thus Batman's) secret identity. The two of them weren't kids anymore, and they should make their own decisions!
"It's not that simple Batgirl. I want to get out of his shadow, believe me! But the two of us have always been a team. It's just second nature now. And you know his word is law."
"I do. But really, Robin you can't live like this forever. And what about the Titans? Don't you want to lead them? We could leave Gotham and never look back."
"The Titans are a special case. Besides, I thought you said you never wanted to join up with a bunch of rambunctious teenage clowns." That got a smile out of her. The Titans did have a reputation for being a bit, well, juvenile.
"Not with that orange alien seductress around I'm not."
"Barb, it's not like that I swear!"
"I know birdbrain. I didn't mean join them. I meant just leave. Get away from the Bat and become our own individuals." The two of them sat on the edge of a rooftop overlooking the nighttime cityscape.
"Someday, when I can't stand him anymore, I promise. But there's still work to do around here. Besides, what would the big scary Bat do without us?"
Robin stood and shot a grappling line to an adjacent roof. Batgirl quickly followed.
Several nights later the Joker (story on him to come) would enact his scheme to drive Commissioner Gordon mad. The psychopathic clown wanted to prove that even the most stable of people could be driven to insanity under certain circumstances. His first order of business was to surprise the Gordons at their home and shoot Barbra through the abdomen. The bullet shattering her spine and leaving her bleeding to death. There was no indication that Joker knew Barbra was Batgirl, but rather that his only target was the daughter of the Commissioner.
The Joker would go on to strip the dying hero and take pictures of her fractured body while laughing and tormenting the Commissioner. He would then hold Gordon hostage and continually try and break his mind in an old amusement park. The torture the Commissioner endured is unimaginable.
Barbra would be found and rescued by the police just in time to save her life. At the hospital, she would be visited by the dynamic duo looking for answers to what had happened. She quickly informed Batman of the Joker's plan and told him this time was different. This time wasn't a game; it was serious to the clown prince of crime. He was going to go all the way. Then the embrace of sleep reclaimed the fractured hero.
As Batman flew off into the abyss looking for clues, Robin knelt by her bedside. "Barbra, this is it. I'm done. Done being his partner, done going after these lunatics, done risking my life for his cause." He removed his mask and tears fell down his face.
"After this is over, I'm going to leave Gotham. I swear it."
The Joker was inevitably defeated and detained. The former dynamic duo stood overlooking the amusement park that had been the scene of horrific acts. Robin stood to confront his mentor.
"This was the last straw Bruce. I'm not your pawn to order around like a dog. Barbra…you know what she means to me. Tonight, I learned that you don't care who gets hurt on your crusade, the Bat has taken hold of you. More than normal. I'm done risking my life for your damn ideals and missions. Count me out."
"Robin, what happened to Barbra was an atrocity, but we did good work here. We bring justice every night. But the fight never ends."
"Well maybe I don't want to be like you, ever think of that? I don't want to be some cold, heartless enforcer who will sacrifice everything for the sake of the mission! This endless mission!"
"I thought our goals were the same." The Bat stood patiently.
"Yeah well, things change." Robin tore off his cape and removed his mask. As he attempted to walk away Batman reached out to stop him. "Robin…" The boy wonder would have none of it, punching his former mentor squarely in the jaw. Then he walked away.
After that night, Dick Grayson would reveal himself to Barbra Gordon and the two would continue a strenuous relationship. Neither was truly prepared to deal with what had happened that night and both wanted to distance themselves from the lives they had lived. Robin was no more, but Dick found himself drawn out into the night once again in the city of Blüdhaven. He dawned a new persona, Nightwing. A name taken from Kryptonian mythology. The hero would not return to Gotham for many years even after Batman had taken on a new Robin (spoilers!). Finally, he was his own man.
Unbeknownst to both of her former partners, Barbra would user her incredible intellect to from a network of information sources and investigative methods to become Oracle. Though permanently paralyzed from the waist down, Barbra would act on behalf of many superheroes. Gathering intel and serving as a general central node for the community.
The two former side-kicks had progressed into the next stages of their lives. But at what cost? The team was decimated; it would never be the same again. Dick's relationship with Barbra became so strained that they eventually called it off. The Bat was left without a partner in a city desperate to kill him. Nightwing felt that he had lost his family for a second time.
Alright, a rather depressing end. But worthwhile believe me. From these ruins, will rise a true team. Eventually. Not in the next chapter. Or the one after that. Eventually alright?!
I wrote this all in one go due to a bout of creativity. If it's a bit inconsistent with traditional cannon, sorry. This is just the way I see things.
Also, I'm making plans to do a series of one-shots after this is done about the smaller interactions between members of the Bat Family. That will have a lot more fluff and feelings in it.
