PAST FORWARD
Chapter I: Does Red and Black even goes well with Gold?
tags: reader insert, she/her pronouns used, terry mcginnis, batman beyond fan fiction, multiple chapters, i used a nickname for reader (VIP) ‘cause I don’t want to be repetitive with using open close paranthesis lol, rewritten, final published chapter one
Summary:
Terry McGinnis thought he’d seen it all. Criminals with more tech than sense, high school drama he barely had time for, and Bruce Wayne’s endless cryptic advice. But nothing could’ve prepared him for what he found in that forgotten vault beneath Wayne Manor—a sleek black box, dusty and dormant. Old tech, he thought. A failed prototype, maybe.
What he didn’t expect was a ten inch tall woman that he almost mistook it for a doll.
No, not just any woman—a dazzling, golden, glitter-trailing holographic woman with attitude, style, and enough sass to make even Bruce Wayne blink. Her name? V.I.P.—Virtual Intelligence Protocol. Her mission? Classified. Her fashion sense? Killer.
Now Terry’s life just got a lot more complicated. Between mysterious tech that shouldn’t exist, enemies closing in, and a digital sassy AI who might know more about Bruce’s past than Bruce himself, Batman is about to learn Beyond secrets aren’t just dangerous…
And the worst part?
He still hasn’t called Dana back.
If someone told Terry McGinnis his life would change because of a small box. He would've laughed in their face. No, really, he would. The world is already in shambles and a box is going to change a trajectory of his life? Yeah, right…
Right?
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The Wayne Manor loomed over Terry this evening, the sight alone of this building made his spine shiver, it always does. he doesn't even know if he'd get used to this sight everyday, makes him wonder how did the pasts Robins did it facing this mansion everyday of their lives, but he gave the old building the benefit of the doubt, maybe it was actually a nice mansion back in the day. Maybe.
The thought was shattered when he heard the Mutt barking in the distant to announce his presence, making Terry groans almost in annoyance, "Yeah, yeah," he tossed a treat towards the dog's way, he didn't want to admit it, but he kind of liked having the dog around, makes him feel sane whenever he's two feet close to Bruce and his piercing gaze that he swore can look straight to his soul, he should lighten up, Terry thinks, but that was almost impossible to happen, given by the line of their work.
There was no break for him, when he became Batman, this is what he always do, Bruce calls, he goes, sometimes he think he's some kind of errand boy with this kind of treatment to the point he's getting incomplete grades from his subjects, but deep inside, it is what he wanted, he wanted to become Batman, not because he was obligated to, but because he chose to.
But having a partner would be nice. At least I won't get to do all this ass kicking alone. He could still feel that bruise by his ribs, damn Jokerz and their improvised weapons, they're the reason why he had to ditch another date with Dana, he was growing frustrated already, because how much is too much for her, that girl had patience of a saint… but occasionally he was thinking deep inside when will she grow tired of his excuses and dumps him this time.
Terry sighed and made the decision to handle it later, like… Usually, he does. He hopes.
"Bruce?" He calls out, descending down the secret cave, the occasional flapping of bats wings can be heard echoing around the expansive bat cave, but not from Bruce yet. _Weird, _but didn't question it at all. Hey, his house, his whereabouts, he learned not to poke around Bruce's personal time, Lord knows how much that man needed it, not that Bruce does the same for Terry. But leaving Terry alone in this cave would be the worst thing Bruce can do, mistake on his part, he tried to convince himself he would wait like he usually would do, until well, he didn't want to wait around, would I? I'm Batman, this cave has to do anything with me– might as well poke around and see what juicy secrets he can gather to entertain himself with.
He glanced at the previous outfits of the heroes Bruce had worked with, but he didn't say much about it because he knew that this family had some distant ties. Bruce didn't even want to discuss it, and Terry, curiously, didn't criticize him for it, he got to admit though, those costumes were schway. With one last glance, he went down further and saw some accomplishments, tokens from his adversaries, a dinosaur, and a vault. He immediately stopped.
Now how come I didn't poked around here?
Terry had never given this vault much thought, but now that he had, he gave himself a half-shrug and decided to take a look around. Bruce rarely visits this area, so he didn't think there would be anything special inside because he half expected it to contain a ton of valuable artifacts from the Wayne family's history or perhaps some antique classical paintings Bruce had purchased when he was younger. To Terry's dismay, however, there is only a single sleek black box lying in the center of the space. He was hoping to get Dana some pretty jewelry as a token of appreciation for yet another failed date that he had to cancel. When he picked up the box, it was light, almost weighed to nothing, he gave it a few shake and there's a small rattle inside it. "What the…" he mumbled, examining the old, dust covered, and sealed box with the Wayne-Tech insignia, it looked like it hasn't been picked up for years now.
"I thought you had learn your lesson by now not to stick your nose in my business." A gruff voice echoed, it didn't make Terry jump, as if, he was already used to Bruce's ways that he even adapted it, he just dusted off the boxes dust, treating it some kind of precious relic, after all, this one looked old as it is. "Why hide this?" Terry asked, examining the box with great interest. Bruce did not answer at first, he stood behind Terry, hand in his cane, more shadow than a man in light. "That wasn't meant for anyone," Bruce finally replied, his voice lower than usual. "It's a prototype. One of my… more unconventional projects.
Terry arched a brow, finally turning around to look at him, the box still light in his hands. "Unconventional how?"
Bruce walked away without another word. Typical, Terry thinks.
That should have been the warning.
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He should of have taken that as a warning.
The moment he laid in bed, all he can think was about sleep and his performance in school, how many nights have been lost and how many grades he had dropped this semester? And don't get him even started with all the mission he had to do every night, he was almost surprised his nerves behind his head hasn't popped yet, he didn't had any trainings like what Bruce had to keep him up so late, or he didn't had the money. Yet. Oh to be young and rich. He should probably ask Bruce he should put his name on his will, wait, no, that's too soon!
Enough with all that, he has history test tomorrow. With a groan, Terry reach for his alarm clock, already dreading to start the day in five hours. He is so fried he wasn't even sure he'd pass this one.
"Agh–" his arm hits something, it fell right on the carpet floor of his room with a gentle thud and realized that it was the little box he had previously grabbed from the cave. Now, a rational part of Batman says he shouldn't open it, but as Terry? He became interested in it, particularly if Bruce had given it the term "unconventional" because, since when did his projects become unconventional?
Terry sat up on his bed, tossing the covers away when he picked up the sleek black box. It looked like some kind of gift box, wrapped around in a thick silk red ribbon. "Alright, let's see this project." Terry cracked the box in the middle half expecting a mini-drone or some failed batarangs prototype he could use for the next mission, yet instead, inside revealed a silver capsule, like a cosmetic case designed by Pior meets Wayne with hint of intricate designs. He frowned at the sight, this is the project Bruce tossed aside? His disappointment was immeasurable, he finds the old artifacts more interesting than this gift you could give to a woman who's already a breath away saying the nastiest no in history.
The capsule light blinks to life, its red light illuminated his panicked features.
It pinged, it was powering on with a soft hum, and Terry moved his hand away in shock, what is it? A bomb? Some kind of gas? Oh he is so in trouble if its both, he can't even throw it out of the window! He began to panic, "wait, wait, no, no, stop, abort, abort!" he slapped the case with his palm repeatedly. He swore he lets out a scream of a girl when the top pops off.
Now, he expected everything that he is so sure he wouldn't live to see another day. Literally, anything.
He did not expect was… her?
There was a flash of gold and… glitters… he sniffed his nose when the glitters landed on his arm and lap, was that perfume? He was so confused, but the sight made him more confused than a monkey discovering a phone for the first time when there's a 10-inch-tall strutted out of the case like she was descending a red carpet gala. And one thing for sure, this golden holographic woman is a fashion nova. The dress was gold—a bold, unapologetic yellow that refused to whisper in a room built for murmurs. It was strapless, but not in the soft, delicate kind of way; no, this bodice was sculpted, intentional, twisting at the center like it was daring gravity to challenge her. The fabric was gathered just beneath the bust, folding into itself with a kind of chaos that somehow felt regal.
A striking cutout curved over the midriff, as if someone had carved the line of an overly drawn breath into silk. It demanded attention rather than pleading for it. The gown was weightless and floaty, as if it may turn to light if touched too soon, and it was knotted at the waist in a sunny piece of cloth before flowing down into a waterfall of gauzy layers.
One thing was sure, her face looked like it was sculpted by Pygmalion– that he almost mistook it for a doll targeted for collectors.
“Eugh.” The hologram wrinkled her nose, as if the decor of his room greatly offended her. “This room looks like a typical teenage boy’s habitat—oh," This thing floated right up to his face, her golden skin reflected lightly on the darkness of his room before she gave him a scrutinizing playful gaze. “Sweetheart, you look like you could use a serious makeover.” Her voice was akin to a purr, almost playfully flirty like she just got her jackpot in the casino.
Terry blinked, staring at her like he’d just discovered fire, this thing was sassy too? He shook his head, is this really a project Bruce worked on? and for what reason? God, this is too much for one night. “Wha…” No. That sounded rude. He knew better than to say that around women. He had a feeling this two soda can tall hologram won't be happy if she was referred as a what. Terry gave her a look, head tilted to the side, she's like a beaming sun, all happy and twirly (not to mention bright) as she dolled herself up with her holographic compact mirror while ignoring his presence as if she had much better time than to spare him a glance, he knows enough girls that threw him that kind of attention.
“Who… are you?”
The hologram smiled, casually fixing her hair before winking at him.
He had no idea why he got the chills in his spine when she did that.
“V.I.P.—Virtual Intelligence Protocol. And you and I? We’ve got a lot of work to do.”
