So I've had this idea shooting around my head for ages to do something with the old Batman crew, but try as I might the main idea would just be too long. Instead, I decided to pick one old character that really hasn't seen any attention in the BB world.
$4$
Shoulda known enough
Never grown enough
Alone enough
To know my way between
The path I want and the drive
And if there's to be good for me than I'd rather die
- "Old Enough," by Nickelback
Silver.
Terry sat outside of Commissioner Gordon's office, waiting for her to finish yet another meeting with somebody. Terry really did have a lot of respect for the Commish (and even more respect for Batgirl), but he could never understand how one woman could have so many meetings. And this was coming from the guy that was pretty sure he'd be spending the rest of his life in a suit and tie at Wayne-Powers.
Shudder.
The door slid open silently, but the person leaving was anything but. "I can't believe you tried to keep this from me, Barb! Yet again, you're siding with the old man over me!"
Terry stood up, pale blue eyes narrowing as he quickly assessed the situation. The man in front of him was hardly young- probably around the Commish's age, maybe a couple years older. He was a little soggy around the middle, but had broad, wide shoulders and his stance alone told Terry that not only had the guy had some history in law enforcement, but he'd also bet he was a former superhero, too.
Gordon stepped out of her office, her best do-not -screw-with-me Commissioner glare fully locked in place. "Dammit, Grayson," she snapped. "Keep your voice down."
Terry's dark eyebrows shot to his hairline when the guy actually threw back his head and laughed at Gordon. She could be a scary lady when she was pissed, and Terry had seen that glare enough firsthand to know to tread carefully.
"Why the hell should I?" he asked. Was this guy capable of doing anything but scowling? The man ran both hands through his short, salt-and-pepper hair, blue eyes blazing. "I have every damned right to be outraged right now."
As Gordon was shaking her head at him, something clicked in place to Terry. She had called the guy Grayson- as in Dick Grayson? No way…
"That's hardly my fault," Gordon replied, hands on her hips. "If you quit your damned sulking for ten minutes, you might have heard that there was something going on here."
"Sulking-!" Grayson's eyes bugged out, and if Terry wasn't so confused he might have laughed at how comical this guy looked angry. "I do not sulk!"
Gordon chuckled, rolling her eyes as she took off her glasses. "Oh, I'm so sorry, Dick," she said (so he was Dick Grayson!). "Not sulking- how about pouting? Moping? Huffy? Any of those better for you?"
Grayson looked like his head was about to explode, but Gordon forgot about him long enough to zero in on Terry. "What the hell are you doing here, McGinnis?" she snapped, lips pursed.
Terry's eyebrows rose again, but he managed to plaster on a hesitant yet (hopefully) charming smile. "Hey, Commish," he said. "How've ya been?"
"What?" Grayson turned his bitter glare over to Terry. "Who the hell are you? I thought you liked 'em older, Barb, not younger."
Alright, so if he vaulted over that desk, hop scotched over that fat cop eating a hoagie, and threw Fritz, the GCPD's drug-sniffing German Shepherd, in front of him, there was a decent chance he'd make it out of the police department (mostly) alive.
But instead of doing what Terry thought she would do (which was annihilate everything and everyone in a ten-foot radius), Gordon just sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Both of you, in my office, now," she snapped, stepping aside enough so they could walk in.
Terry shuffled in behind Grayson, and couldn't resist the urge to growl, "The hell is wrong with you? If you're gonna insist on being a jackass, at least give me the chance to get out of the line of fire."
Grayson turned around and opened his mouth, no doubt to spew something else asshole-ish and rude, but Gordon cut him off with a laugh.
"I think that's a sign," she said, pressing a button next to the door so it slid shut and locked with a click. "McGinnis is no doubt the mouthiest of all of Bruce's kids, and even he knows that you're acting like a prick."
Dick glared at Terry, but by that point Terry was so tired of this shit that he couldn't even work up the nerve to care. "You're the new Bat, aren't you, kid?" Dick asked, lip curling in disgust.
"I'm the new Batman," Terry said with a curt nod. "I guess you're the old Robin and Nightwing?"
He didn't respond, but Terry really didn't need an answer. "The Commish has mentioned that you're all kinds of screwed up from Bruce."
"Just give it time, kid," Dick instructed with an upturned lip. "Pretty soon you'll be itching to deck the old man like everybody else."
The Commish exhaled through her nose, her mouth set in a firm line. Terry had never seen anyone so bitter about Bruce, and that was including Tim Drake who had totally gone off the deep end. Gordon had her moments when it came to discussing her stint as Batgirl and later on her troubles as the Oracle, but all over she was pretty acceptant. She made her decisions with Wayne, and she wasn't going to waste time complaining about plans gone wrong.
He really did respect Commissioner Gordon.
"I picked this job," Terry said flatly, ignoring Dick's glare. "Not Bruce. I decided I wanted to become the new Batman, and no one else. I'm not going to blame him for me wearing the mask."
Gordon was grinning, but Dick hadn't stopped glaring (not that he really cared). Finally, after a long, tense moment of silence, Dick nodded once assuredly.
"I guess Gotham isn't as screwed as I thought it'd be."
$4$
SO SORRY I totally flaked on you guys for a couple months. I've been bitten by the crazy bug that is Covert Affairs and that's pretty much taken up all my writing. It's bad. O.o
But I was looking through my unfinished Word docs today and I realized this was already like 3/4s of the way done, so I figured I could slap on a quick ending between classes and homework. I know Dick seems pretty… (to excuse my horrible pun) dickish, but that was how he apparently wanted to be written. Sorry if any of you are disappointed in me and my utter lack of Max/Terry. :/
Hopefully, I'll have the next color, Gold, up much faster! :)
