Gotham's New Bird | T. Drake

Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Robyn suddenly woke. Her eyes snapped open to a brightly lit room. She squinted and blinked a few times to get used to the light and realized she wasn't at her home. Where was she?

Something red and black in the corner of her eye shifted and her eyes snapped to it. Oh, Red Robin. He looked at her, knowing exactly what she was going to ask.

"You're in the Batcave infirmary," he said. His face was impassive, angry-looking, almost. He had a box in his hands. She looked at it. He caught her eyes and walked to the side of the bed. The box was dropped into her lap.

She bolted upright when she saw her familiar mask on top of her leather jacket. Red crossed his arms.

"It was actually pretty easy finding out who you were," his tone was dark and menacing, "As soon as we found out you were a carnie, we knew who you really were."

"You- you lied just so you could get me here? So you could keep me captive against my will?" She cried out.

"It was for the better-" Red started, but Robyn cut him off.

"Better? Better? Do you know what I even do? You think that giving money to people who need it is bad?" Robyn raised her voice.

"You know what I mean!" Red shouted, "You can't just steal for fun! You can't steal for you!"

"I'm not, dammit!" She shouted back and shoved the box off her lap and onto the ground, where it landed with a surprisingly loud bang.

"Then what are you doing?" Red asked, his voice quieter this time. Robyn looked down at the overturned box and pile of clothing. What was she doing? She didn't even know anymore. She was confused.

"I- I don't know," she whispered.

"That's what I thought," Red Robin said bitterly, turning from her and walking out of the room. Robyn sat by her own sour thoughts for a few minutes before Nightwing walked in.

"What the fuck do you want?" Robyn growled. Nightwing raised his hands defensively.

"Woah. Calm down. I don't know what Red Robin said to you, but just hear me out." Robyn took a deep breath and held it for a few seconds before letting it go and nodding.

"Gerimone is part of something bigger than the other criminals are. You know him better than anyone else. You can help us on this case-" he was cut off by a deep, gruff voice.

"You will help us on this case," the Caped Crusader said, walking in. Robyn had never seen him so close up. Or in the light. He wasn't as scary as they said. He always seemed taller and bigger and all-out more terrifying when he was out fighting baddies.

"You're shorter than you seem," Robyn dared to snark. She could feel his eye roll.

"Gerimone is working for Scarecrow," Batman said, "You were kicked out of the circus for fighting with him-"

"I was raped by him. Multiple times. He ruined my life," Robyn interjected. Batman paused for a moment, his expression indifferent. Nightwing, however, wore a mask of pity for Robyn.

"We could use you as bait to lure him to us," he finished. Robyn's face went pale and she suddenly felt sick.

"You can't be serious. I can't do that. No," she said in disbelief, "You don't understand, this man-"

"Is a bad man. Look. You're going to have to tough up and face him. We need to know what Scarecrow is doing before one of his schemes kills hundreds of innocent people," Batman said. Robyn knew she was defeated. Batman's decisions final, even though Robyn thought his plan sucked.

"Fine. I'll do it," she began, "but only if you guys stop chasing me around." Nightwing sighed and face-palmed.

"I can't promise you anything," Batman said, "My butler is designing a new suit for you, by the way. I expect it back when the case is done." And with that, Batman left. Robyn looked at Nightwing with uncertainty.

"Don't worry. He always does that," he said, "You hungry? You were out for a while." Robyn felt the sudden pang of hunger in her belly and she nodded.

"Cool, follow me," Nightwing turned and began to walk out of the room. Robyn hopped out of the bed and onto the gray tiled floor. She didn't fail to notice the multiple bloodstains on the floor. When she stepped out of the infirmary, cool, misty air greeted her nose. The sound of a distant waterfall sounded somewhere. She saw Nightwing and caught up to him.

"Never expected the Batcave to be an actual cave," she said and Nightwing chuckled.

"Then you're in for a big surprise," he said. Once they neared the end of the short hallway, Robyn gasped.

The hall opened up into something spectacular. Stalactites hung from the top of the cave, which seemed never-ending. A t-rex and giant penny made Robyn smile. She noted she would have to ask about those later. A strange blue-green glow came from in front of her and she saw an intricate system of computers, one giant screen behind them all. On another side of the cave, she saw many tubes of costumes, most of them different versions of the Robin suit and a few Batman suits as well.

Nightwing led her into another short hallway which opened into a massive family kitchen. A familiar masked man sat at the bar, a bottle of beer in front of him and a sandwich in both of his hands. Red Hood saw them and waved and smiled with a mouthful of food.

"Who's your girlfriend, pretty boy?" He said. Nightwing smiled tightly and shook his head.

"She's gonna help us on the Scarecrow case and you're going to try to not scare her away," he threatened.

Ξ

¡Hola, mis amigos!

Sorry for being so late. My summer has been kinda crazy so far.

I went to Puerto Rico with my youth group and did missionary stuff and oh my God it was so fun.

Anyway, how is your summer going so far? I'd like to hear!

Peace out girl/boyscouts.

Follow, comment, vote!

Your Unikorn Kat
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