Chapter Text
The rain in Gotham hadn’t let up, and the streets were clogged with accidents near the Whitecross and Crown Point bridges. Flashing lights illuminated Jason’s face in red and blue as they passed by. Jason couldn’t help but wonder. Did the batmobile ever get stuck in traffic? What a nightmare that would be. Especially if there was a bad guy in the trunk. Joker would probably start singing show tunes or whatever freaky stuff he did to taunt Batman. The harlequin lady would probably be a lot worse. He could picture her screaming at them.
Riddler would be the most annoying to be stuck in traffic with no doubt. Jason hated Riddler. Riddler was always trying to bore Jason to death with stuff that didn’t make sense. A woman shoots her husband, then holds him underwater for five minutes. Next, she hangs him. Right after, they enjoy a lovely dinner. How is that possible? Jason sighed. He still hadn’t figured that one out. He was thankful Bruce had known what it was. Bruce was good at that sort of thing. Jason was much better at distracting the bad guys, and he had gotten some joy out of hitting Riddler with his own stupid question mark shaped stick. That had been last week. Now there was a new bad guy and a new mission.
Jason kicked the back of the seat in front of him. Dick was in it. He was being a real dick if you asked Jason. Way more grouchy tonight than normal. Though in all fairness, Jason had been kicking the back of his seat sporadically throughout the night.
“Once we drop Robin off, we should go back and look at that office again,” Dick said. “There were a lot of documents there, and I’m sure he’s got more than one laptop.”
“Why can’t I go with you to find the bomb?” Jason asked.
“Oh my god, because we said so. For the hundredth time,” Dick replied through his teeth. “It’s like you don’t have ears.”
“I can help,” Jason said.
“No you can’t,” Dick said.
“I can!” Jason insisted.
If Bruce was listening to them argue he wasn’t reacting. The Batman remained stoic and silent as always as he drove through the city. He’d been like this for a while whilst Jason kicked at Dick’s chair from the backseat. Jason tried to meet his eyes in the rear view mirror, but Bruce concentrated on the road ahead. Fine then. He’d keep bothering Dick.
“How am I supposed to learn how to stop the bad guys when you two do everything yourselves?” Jason asked. “I’m Robin! I’m supposed to know this stuff.”
“Batman isn’t letting a kid defuse a bomb that could level half the city,” Dick said. “That’s stupid. And it’s dangerous.”
“I’m not a kid. I’m twelve,” Jason growled.
“Oh I’m so sorry,” Dick said, though it was riddled with sarcasm. “You’re right. I’m convinced.”
“I bet you defused bombs when you were Robin. It’s not fair,” Jason kicked his chair again, which seemed to get Dick to finally twist around and snap.
“Listen here, baby bird,” he hissed. “You’re staying at GCPD. Batman and I are going to defuse the bomb. That’s it. End of discussion.”
“But why can’t I go?” Jason asked.
“Boys,” Bruce said. “Enough.”
“Bruce,” Jason pleaded.
“Don’t use real names,” Dick said.
“Bruce, you said I could help,” Jason whined. “You promised.”
“I said you could help,” Bruce said. “You’re helping by escorting Black Mask into GCPD with Batgirl. And you will stay there until we find and defuse the device he’s planted in Gotham.”
“Why doesn’t Dick stay with Batgirl?” Jason asked.
“Stop using real names,” Dick said again.
“It’s his girlfriend,” Jason argued. “They can make out in front of Black Mask’s cell.”
“Hey!” Dick snapped.
“Robin, I’m not changing my mind.” Bruce said. “You’ll guard Black Mask. I don’t know what his people might do once he’s behind bars there.”
Jason frowned, and went back to staring out the window. He kicked Dick’s seat once more for good measure. The batmobile passed under a tunnel and the whole car went dark, save for the glowing display from the tiny batcomputer. Jason drew his knees up to his chest staring at his own reflection in the glass. He looked scared, which was ridiculous. He was definitely not scared. He scowled at his reflection and tried his best to look tough and convincing.
He’d never been on a mission without Batman before. This would be his first one and while he knew this meant that he could get more missions by himself in the future, he couldn’t help but feel he wasn’t ready. He’d never been left alone before. Well, not completely alone, but he thought Batman and Robin were supposed to be together all the time. Dick said they were a “dynamic duo” whatever that meant. He looked up again at the rearview mirror and noticed Bruce was looking at him. He looked away quickly, trying to appear more confident. He wasn’t sure he was a good actor yet.
GCPD was busy when they pulled up to the building, and Jason dragged himself from the car to watch the police moving around like ants. A lot of them paused to look at him. Of course they would. He was the new Robin after all. This wasn’t his first debut, but he’d only been Robin for three months. He needed to make a good impression. Dick had worked really hard to create Robin. He trusted Jason with the name. He had to make sure they knew he was ready for it. He squared his shoulders and followed Bruce, hopping over the concrete parking curbs.
The car in front of them was one of those big paddy wagons with little crosshatched windows on the sides. Dick called them “air holes” for the bad guys. Like they were a hamster in a box. He could see Black Mask being dragged out in handcuffs and leg cuffs. It seemed a lot for a guy with no powers like Poison Ivy or Clayface. But he’d seen them do that with Penguin last month. Maybe it was just a supervillain thing.
Black Mask moved slowly and tensed as the officers pulled at him. To Jason, he was one of the creepier bad guys, even compared to Scarecrow and Mad Hatter. Plus that pig masked guy. Of course those guys were super creeps, but to Jason this Black Mask was a whole different kind of weird. What surprised him most was that no one had even tried to take his mask off. Was it stuck on?
Jason flinched when Black Mask turned and looked at him. That stupid mask. The mask was what made Jason’s skin crawl the most. Matte black with skull details. He could only see the boney looking white teeth the mask had. He’d have to get closer to look at Black Mask’s eyes and he did not want to get closer right now. It was like looking at a ghost. Jason tried to hold his ground, but he stopped moving when Black Mask kept staring him down. Did he know he was going to be watching him tonight? No, there was no way. So why was he staring at him like that?
“Robin,” Dick- no it was Nightwing. They were on the job. “What’s wrong?”
“He’s looking at me,” Jason said.
Nightwing watched Black Mask and Jason heard him let out a huff of air. Like it was funny. Jason didn’t see what was funny about it. Black Mask was not only crazy, but he had a habit of plotting revenge. He was surprised when Nightwing put his hands on his hips and spoke loudly.
“Well, what do you think, Robin?” He asked. “Unibrow? Giant nose? Maybe he’s got a face tattoo under that thing. Probably one that says ‘mommy’ on it with a big heart.”
Jason looked from Nightwing to Black Mask. The man was glaring at them, he could tell. Jason realized there wasn’t much he could do to either of them all cuffed at the wrists and ankles. All he could do was glare at them. Jason crossed his arms over his chest. There was nothing he could do to anyone right now.
“I dunno,” Jason said loudly. “Maybe he’s even uglier than Two-Face.”
“Now that’s harsh,” Nightwing said. “Have a heart, Robin.”
“What if his face is smaller than his head?” Jason said. “It’s super tiny so the mask has to stay on.”
“Maybe,” Nightwing guided him away from the paddy wagon. “Who knows?”
Batgirl was waiting for them out front, wandering around the front steps. Jason always found her to be so tall for a girl, and he wasn’t sure how all that hair fit into her cowl. Or maybe that wasn’t her real hair? He wasn’t sure. Bruce hadn’t let him see her real face yet. Not like he’d seen Bruce’s and Dick’s. Maybe someday. Still, she was someone to be trusted. It was a little comforting to know he wasn’t completely alone with this babysitting job.
Batgirl stopped when she spotted them, and her smile was blinding as she jogged over. Nightwing stepped in front of Jason, his chest puffed out to make him seem more broad like Batman. Jason wanted to gag. He was surprised that she all but pushed Nightwing away to get to him.
“Robin!” Batgirl cooed like she’d just seen a cute dog. It lit up Jason’s face like Christmas. “Hi! How are you?”
“Oh,” Jason folded his hands behind his back, rocking on his heels. “Hi Batgirl. I’m fine.”
“I’m also fine,” Nightwing said. Batgirl patted him on the cheek.
“So this is your first time keeping watch, huh?” Batgirl said. “Are you excited?”
“I guess,” Jason frowned. “Batman gets to find a bomb.”
“Well yeah, that sounds interesting,” Batgirl said. “But this can be interesting too.”
“Do I get to talk to Black Mask?” Jason asked. “Ask him where the bomb is?”
“Uh…no,” Batgirl said. “Commissioner Gordon does the talking.”
“Do we punch him? Play bad cop?” Jason asked.
“No?” Batgirl says. “Not usually.”
“Then what’s interesting about it?” Jason asked.
“You’re not selling this,” Nightwing whispered.
“I’m trying,” Batgirl hissed.
“Robin,” Batman’s voice carried like no other. “Come here.”
Jason ran to his side, bouncing on his toes while Batman watched Black Mask enter the building. Jason was sure he was going to get some sort of pep talk. He always seemed to give Nightwing one. Batman leaned down towards him and Jason tried to give him his full attention.
“Do you know who that man is?” Batman asked.
“Mr. Sialosis.” Jason said. “He’s Black Mask.”
“ Sionis ,” Batman said, though he seemed to find that funny. “Roman Sionis. He heads the False Face Society. Do you know what that means?”
“He’s the leader,” Jason said.
“He is a leader,” Batman said. “And he has a lot of followers. Many who would do anything to make him happy.”
“Like a mob boss?” Jason asked.
“Yes.” Batman put his hand on Jason’s shoulder. “Which means there’s a chance that someone is going to try to free him while he’s here. That’s why you and Batgirl are keeping watch.”
Jason stared at him, his eyes wide.
Batman squeezed his shoulder, holding him there. “I am not asking you to stay here as a punishment. I’m not sidelining you. You and Batgirl are going to make sure that Black Mask stays in jail while Nightwing and I are gone. I don’t trust him to sit there quietly. He’s not a patient man.”
Jason looked toward the building. “What happens if he does try to escape?”
“That’s why you and Batgirl are staying behind. To make sure it doesn’t happen.”
Jason took a breath. “Okay… He’s going to have a very boring stay.”
“Good,” Batman gave him a rare smile. “That’s what I want.”
.o.O.O.o.
It had been an hour since Batman and Nightwing had left, and Jason was already struggling to not fall asleep. The office chair in Commissioner Gordon’s office was comfortable, and Jason spun in circles while he waited. He could see from the laptop in front of him that Gordon was talking to Black Mask. It was going about as well as he thought it would.
“Where’s the device?” Gordon asked.
Black Mask stared at him.
“You know you’re looking at 30 years to life for this,” Gordon said. “Talk.”
No response.
Jason spun around in Gordon’s chair. This was dumb. If Black Mask was going to break out, wouldn’t he have done it already? The most Jason had seen happen was that another bad guy had been brought in. Some random guy they’d arrested for robbery. He’d gotten his hopes up. Maybe this guy was going to break Black Mask out. It was an inside job! But Batgirl said there was no connection with Black Mask. God he was going to be stuck here forever.
“Batgirl to Robin,” Batgirl’s voice was in his ear. “The outside looks all clear.”
“Inside is clear,” Jason stifled a yawn. “And very boring.”
“You’re not falling asleep on me, are you?”
“No,” Jason said.
“Where are you right now?”
“I’m in Gordon’s office,” Jason said. “There’s a video of Black Mask on his computer. He didn’t want me near the interrogation room.”
“Oh yeah?” Batgirl sounded amused. “What’re they doing?”
“Staring at each other,” Jason said.
“Who’s winning?”
“I don’t know,” Jason said. “Batgirl, how much longer are we gonna be here?”
“I talked to Batman. They’re still looking,” Batgirl said. “Are you sure you’re not tired?”
“No,” Jason lied. “Not tired.”
“Just checking,” Batgirl said. “This stuff always used to bore me when I started. This and stakeouts. Hated stakeouts.”
“Really?” Jason spun in his chair again.
“Really really,” Batgirl said. “Just sitting there doing nothing makes me wanna fall asleep, you know?”
“Have you ever watched Black Mask before?” Jason asked.
“Not him,” she said. “He wasn’t around when I first started. I used to have to sit and watch Penguin a lot. Bored me to death.”
“Got any advice?” Jason asked.
“Well…” Batgirl hummed. “Snacks always helped me. Do you want something?”
“I don’t know,” Jason said.
“Oh come on. I won’t tell Batman. Whatever you want. It’s yours.”
Jason wished he had a different job. That’s what he really wanted. “I like Oreos.”
“You got it. Stay there, I’ll come get you.”
Jason watched the screen again. Gordon wasn’t very scary, no matter how much he leaned on Black Mask. People like that weren’t easily intimidated. Jason always found it was easier to just lie to them. Trick them into saying more. But he wasn't allowed in the room. He had to stay here.
“So it’s Boy Wonder 2.0.”
Jason looked up at the detective leaned against the doorway. Jason sat up. He knew this guy. Before he was Robin, Detective Bennett had always found Jason and told him off. Sometimes even put him in the back of the squad car. Thankfully they didn’t recognize Jason, but Detective Bennett was watching him and that was enough to get Jason's hackles raised.
“Hi,” Jason said, trying to make his voice not sound like his voice.
“Hi there,” Bennett said. “Did Gordon say you could be in here?”
“I’m allowed to be here,” Jason said.
“Yeah?” Bennett laughed. “Thought you’d be patrolling outside.”
Jason really didn’t want this conversation, but he wasn’t sure how to get out of it. He crossed his arms, hoping Batgirl would get here sooner.
“I’m staying inside,” Jason said. “I’m watching Black Mask.”
“From in here?” Bennett asked.
“Yeah? Do you want something?” Jason bristled, though immediately regretted it.
Bennett narrowed his eyes, his posture changed. That was the “you’re in trouble” pose. Jason had seen it enough running around on the streets to recognize it. Although…Bennett couldn’t actually do anything to him, right? Who would want to risk Batman coming after them? Besides Jason was Robin. He wasn't some ordinary kid.
“You know, kid,” Bennett said. “You’re still a vigilante. Which is illegal.”
Jason didn’t like being backed into a corner. “You don’t seem to mind when we do the hard work for you. I’d like to see you arrest Poison Ivy.”
“You know the old Robin wasn’t a smart mouth.”
Jason knew that was a lie. He’d met the old Robin. “And?”
“I respected him more. You sound like some punk trying to act big.”
Jason smiled, though inside he was boiling. “And you’re a cop trying to intimidate Batman’s partner. You can’t talk down to me like that.”
Bennett took a step forward, causing Jason’s heart to leap up into his throat, but Batgirl appeared behind him.
“Hi there. Everything’s clear outside, detective,” she said. “Montoya’s asking for you.”
“Huh?” Bennett jumped. “Right. Thanks.”
Jason felt like he could breathe again now that he was gone. Maybe he was breathing a little too loudly. Batgirl gave him a look and closed the door to Gordon’s office before setting down a small packet of cookies and a water bottle.
“Picking fights already?” She asked.
“He started it,” Jason huffed.
“I know,” Batgirl said.
“Then don’t act like I did something wrong,” Jason glared at her.
“I’m not saying you did,” Batgirl said, taking a seat on the desk. “But there are going to be a lot of jerks out there, and a lot of jerks in here. You can’t let them get to you like that. Don’t lose your cool.”
Jason kicked at Gordon’s desk, causing a cup of pens to jingle.
“You’re not in trouble,” Barbara said. “You’re not.” She repeated when Jason looked up at her.
Jason kicked the desk again.
“You wanna go for a walk around the building?” Batgirl offered. Jason didn’t answer her, so she chose for him. “Come on. Let’s go walk.”
.o.O.O.o.
“And that’s the records department,” Batgirl said. “That’s where all the old cases are. Stuff from the seventies, and the eighties.”
“Not the nineties?” Jason asked.
“Not really,” Batgirl said. “A lot of the stuff from the nineties is on a computer now.”
“Is any of it Commissioner Gordon’s cases?” Jason asked.
“Some of them, yeah,” Batgirl said.
“Any Batman cases?” Jason asked.
“Batman gets his own special filing cabinet,” Batgirl said. “There’s cases with me in them too. Also Nightwing when he was Robin.”
Probably nothing with Jason in it. Not yet anyway. Jason let Batgirl lead him up a set of stairs and followed behind her as she showed him more of the building. It was like she lived here. How could she possibly know every nook and cranny of this place? Jason peered out a window and stared at the parking lot. Nothing suspicious. Of course not. Batgirl was still talking about different areas and different floors, but Jason recognized this part of the building. He’d been here plenty of times before.
He recognized the colorful rooms and the pitiful attempts to make the space seem friendly and inviting. That’s where the kids went. The ones who ran away or got lost. Ones that the police had to ask questions to. Jason had been in those rooms several times. Answering questions. About his mom and her new boyfriends that weren't really her boyfriends. About her friends that weren’t really her friends. Batgirl stopped when he didn’t follow her, and she probably thought she was helping when she patted him on the shoulder.
“It’ll get easier, Robin,” Batgirl said.
“Yeah whatever,” Jason said. “Can we not talk about it?”
“Okay,” she said, opening another door. “But can I ask you something?”
She probably wanted to know about the room. Why did he stare at the room? “I guess.”
“Batman said you’re a bookworm,” Batgirl said. “Read anything good lately?”
Jason stiffened. “Batman talks about me?”
“You’re his Robin, of course he does,” she said like it was a sacred law. “He said you’re always reading stuff. Do you like fiction? Are you a Lord of The Rings kid? Maybe Harry Potter is more your style?”
“I like… Treasure Island ,” Jason shied away. “And Salem’s Lot.”
“Oh you like scary books?” Batgirl asked.
“Sometimes,” Jason said. “I like Shakespeare.”
“You’re probably the first kid I’ve met that’s said that,” Batgirl said. “What do you like? Julius Caesar? Maybe…” she squinted at him. “Hamlet?”
“I like King Lear, but Hamlet’s good,” Jason said.
“My kinda guy,” Batgirl said. “Finally, someone who likes to read.”
“Nightwing doesn’t like reading?” Jason asked.
“Robin, Nightwing is a lot of things but he’s not a book guy,” Batgirl said. “He’s more of a movie guy.”
“I figured,” Jason liked sitting with Dick for movie nights.
“Batgirl!” there was a shout from down the hall. “Need a hand over here!”
Batgirl turned to Jason and held up a hand at him. “Stay there for me, okay?”
“Okay,” Jason said.
He watched her run down the hallway and heard shouting between what had to be three people. Maybe someone new that had been arrested? Though he wondered why they’d need her help. Unless it was someone like…Calendar Man. Or maybe Condiment King. Hadn’t someone from Arkham escaped? The kite guy? Jason rocked on his heels, looking around before he spotted a sign on the wall.
The interrogation rooms were back the way they’d came, and that meant Gordon and Black Mask were close by. So, if Jason really wanted, he could take a peek up close. He was supposed to guard Black Mask, right? Make sure he wasn’t getting away. Jason knew guys like Black Mask pretty well. Maybe he could get a clue about the bomb before Gordon. Then Batman would come back faster. That felt like a Robin thing to do. What would Nightwing do? Jason stared in the direction of the interrogation rooms. Jason took a step and looked behind him. Then he took another step. Batgirl was still dealing with whatever that was down there. She did know this building crazy well. It wasn’t like he was getting lost. She could probably find him pretty quick.
Part of Jason knew it was better to stay put. To just wait for Batgirl and wait for Batman and Nightwing to get back. But at the same time, he was Robin. That meant he had to work too.
Batgirl would forgive him later. Jason turned quickly and ran down the hallway, towards the sounds of the Commissioner’s voice.