Headcanons for being Barbara Gordon’s sibling and a batkid
Barbara Gordon x sibling!reader
warnings: death/violence
a/n: this is all over the place n from memory oopies (i did like all timeline not just AK EEK)
prompt: anonymous: “Hey there can I request Arlyam Knight headcannons for being Barabera’s twin sibling who is a bat-person (think that's correct lol)?”
your sister's dream to become a vigilante was daunting
on one hand, a quest to become one of the greats—like the batman—was enticing
on the other hand, you were terrified where it'd lead you and barbara
she was stubborn and so very determined to succeed, and you knew she'd need you by her side despite her assurances you didn't have to do this for her
but the first time you two put on those suits...you knew it was meant for you
"do i look good?" -you, striking a pose
"room for improvement" -barbara
"oh come on!" -you
"why don't you ask dad?" -barbara
"hahah, very funny. with my luck he'd lock me up and throw away the key just so i wouldn't have the option to put myself in danger" -you
"yeah, but i'd break you out" -barbara
"i'll hold you to that when this inevitably goes sideways" -you
after a lot of effort to better your city the way GCPD could not, and even more effort trying to get batman to accept that you guys were going to be a thorn in his side or great partners, he accepted you as apart of his mission
"thank you, mr. wayne" -you
"thank your sister for hacking into my computers" -bruce
"you what?" -you
"you heard him" -barbara
"you'll need better gear if you're going to be fighting by my side" -bruce
you and your sister geeked out at the idea that you'd been accepted by the batman who you'd just discovered was bruce wayne
the masks were heavy, but you could handle it. this was all you and babs dreamed of, making gotham a better place.
your dad would never approve of this, so every late night you came home and lied about where you were chipped away at your heart a little—but to take some of the bad guys off the board to make his life easier...it was worth it
"you two got in late last night, where'd you go off to? not to those nightclubs, i hope" -jim
"no, dad, we went to a movie" -you
"pretty late movie" -jim
"we got food after" - babs
"really? where's the receipt?" -jim
"come on, dad. you're gonna go all detective on us?" -you
you and barbara felt bad lying to him, but was it wrong if it was fro the right reasons?
sure felt wrong
missions with the batman were anxiety inducing for you, but your sister always put on a brave face
"i still can't get over the fact he's bruce wayne" -you
"wasn't my first guess, that's for sure" -barbara
"i can hear you both on the comms, you know" -bruce
"hi batman" -you
"sorry batman" -babs
"can i trust you both to focus on this mission?" -bruce
"yes batman" -both of u
"you sure about that?" -dick
"shut up, robin" -you
"don't be mean" -babs
"that wasn't mean" -you
it took some adjustment being in the "big leagues" (better suits, teamwork, communication, getting paid) but it made the job better
your dad would have had a heart attack knowing what you were up to, but now that you were out there seeing what your dad put up with, you might have one yourself
"maybe we should convince dad to change career paths" -you
"hah! he'd never give up being a cop" -babs
"i just don't like seeing him at these crime scenes, so close to danger" -you
"you sound like him" -babs
"oh my god, babs! don't say that!" -you, giggling
you didn't like doing missions separately from your sister, you wanted to be there for her—protect her
but she was all for splitting up for efficiency
as the years went by and the missions went on, you both gained your confidence
even if you lost some battles
dick went to blüdhaven, your dad became the police commissioner, jason got recruited, jason...died.
things were hard, but that's what you signed up for. to help others no matter how hard it got
there were lighter days. days you could joke and smile
"so, what's going on between you and tim?" -you
"um, nothing!" -babs
"not nothing! i see the way you look at each other" -you, teasing
"we just work together, y/n! and study together sometimes...but nothing is happening!" -babs
"right, right. so him winking at you on patrol the other night was...nothing?" -you
"i'm not answering anymore of your questions" -babs
borrowing each other's bat-gadgets and bat-suits
"have you seen my cowl?" -babs
"no" -you, wearing it "have you seen my batarangs?"
"no" -babs, hiding them in her pocket
then one day you got a call—jim gordon had been kidnapped by the joker and harley quinn
you, babs, and tim suited up and went to the amusement park, it gave you the creeps
you knew you wouldn't be able to forgive yourself if joker hurt your dad
but barbara...she was so balanced
and tim was...tim
"it's nothing we can't handle, y/n. calm down" -tim
"calm down? don't tell me to calm down. you calm down!" -you
"neither of you are helping" -babs
maybe you didn't like tim because your sister was spending more time with him than you
you never really regained your bearings after jason. there was a short period you felt immortal—it was after dick left and you realized you had made it pretty far. you thought the good guys always won and none of you would ever die. and then the tape of jason was played for you and that fallacy shattered.
calm just wasn't an option anymore
you often called dick to complain when you couldn't complain to babs
"there's always room for another vigilante in blüdhaven" -dick
"don't tempt me" -you
and maybe you would have gone if tragedy didn't strike again
not long after the amusement park incident where you rescued your dad and joker got away, joker showed up at the apartment
you came home first, finding your sister bleeding out on the floor
"barbara! barbara, can you hear me?! it's y/n, i'm here!" -you
after a long few nights in the hospital and some extensive surgeries, it was official. barbara couldn't walk. the bullet hit her spine and paralyzed her from the waist down.
you felt guilty. like you should have been home.
"if i was there, i could have saved her! or it would have been me and she would be okay!" -you
"honey, there's nothing you could have done. i thought the same thing, i know what you're feeling. he was there for me, i put her in that situation" -jim
but he didn't, not really.
you didn't handle it super well at first, trying to do everything for her and she hated it
"stop babying me! i'm going to have to figure out how to do it on my own, so stop trying to do it for me" -babs
you turned to bruce for guidance
"it's not ideal, but it's what we're dealing with now. she needs to find a new purpose and she can't do that when you and your father are standing by waiting to fulfill her every need. drop the guilty act, drop the pity, just be her family" -bruce
you took some time off the vigilantism and stayed with babs—giving her the space she needed
tim came by almost every day to check on her, winning you over a bit with his caring side
maybe he wasn't so bad
barbara started to feel guilty you weren't going "out" anymore, though
so she made you through the power of persuasion
"maybe i would feel better knowing you were out there doing some good" -babs (master manipulator)
you just wanted to see her happy again
and soon she was—once she became oracle
she moved out, took back her independence, and you decided it was time to do the same (despite ur dad freaking out about the empty nest)
"i just miss my kids is all. you two are my world" -jim
"we know, dad. but we wont be far" -jim
"you say that, but don't act like i don't know you've been talking about moving to blüdhaven" -jim
"that's not far, dad" -you
"i would prefer you within my legal jurisdiction" -jim
"noted" -you
you liked your sister as oracle—even if her nagging in your ear became apart of her job
seriously, she could get a little micromanage-y on you sometimes
now that she wasn't fighting with you, turns out she is very worried for your safety out there
and she'd often assign tim to check on you or team with you "just in case"
during the arkham asylum incident, you were in blüdhaven (sorry dad) helping dick with a case—but the moment you heard what happened at the asylum, you were ready to drop everything and run to assist
"no, y/n, stay where you are. nightwing needs you. we'll be fine" -batman
nIgHtWiNg NeEdS yOu he says as he's trapped on arkham island with gotham's most dangerous criminals
you decided that you needed to finish what you started in blüdhaven, and it was a pretty enticing place. more mob stuff, less criminally insane.
"i wouldn't mind a roommate, especially one that can help with the bills" -dick
"i know, i know. it's a big change, dickie" -you
"well, do you prefer the prison breaks at arkham?" -dick
"i'd still help in that situation, i just had plans" -you, looking over a drug den "we gonna take care of these guys or what?"
"i'm gathering intel" -dick
"intel: they have guns and drugs. let's kick their asses" -you
fast forward to the arkham city incident, where you were ready and willing to help there
"babs, can you get me in?" -you
"i'll break the firewalls if you break the actual walls" -babs
"just tell me when" -you
"now's good" -babs
u blew up a service tunnel and with her help, no one was alerted
"oh my god, babs...this place is so eerie. the police department is still standing somehow" -you
"i remember when we had to do our homework there after school. weird that this side of gotham is just ruins now" -barbara
"mr. freeze is in there?" -you
"seems that way" -babs (is literally 50 degrees colder than the rest of gotham)
you acted as bruce's shadow, following up on the things he couldn't tend to as strange's plans continued to develop
this place is a shithole
there were places in the city you didn't have signal, and after several minutes of radio silence, babs would start panicking. you'd been caught, you were hurt, you were trapped, you were killed
all these things went through her head until you popped back up in the comms
"y/n to oracle, come in oracle" -you
"i thought you were dead! where were you?!" -babs
"they have signal jammers everywhere, i hit a deadzone" -you
"don't ever do that again" -babs
"realistically it will probably happen many more times tonight" -you
this night dragged on and on, arkham city was large and full of the worst people in the world
and god forbid you touch a riddler trophy, they electrocute you!!!
"ah ah ah, for the batman and the catwoman only" -riddler over random speakers
"oh, my god. babs can you track him at least so i can kick his ass?" -you
"i would if i could, but he thinks ahead" -babs
"if you loved me you'd try harder" -you
"don't even go there" -babs
"i'm just saying, if i could beat him up it would make my night and you wont even try" -you
you liked to tease her over the comms now that she wasn't within arms reach (she couldn't hit u when u annoyed her too much)
the wrap up of arkham city was...satisfying. rest in hell joker
lowkey wish u paralyzed him first
you would dance on his grave if given the chance
oh you were making jokes about him dying all night u didnt care who got mad u were being "insensitive" u were glad that clown was gone!!!!
that brings us to the arkham knight incident!
you were told you would have halloween off -_- nope!
you and babs called your dad together to convince him you'd evacuated, but in reality you were suited up doing crowd control and babs was at the clocktower overseeing it all
"let me know if something more pressing comes up" -you
"you mean less boring?" -babs
"don't put words in my mouth" -you (she was right)
gotham was a big city to cover, but you were just glas to get a break from panessa studios. being cooped up doing experiments was excruciating
bruce took the heavy duty mission of tracking down scarecrow and arkham knight, but you were trying to make sure gang wars and other crazies didn't burn the city down
everyone underestimates you until you start kicking everyone's asses
while you were busy on a different island, barbara was being kidnapped by the militia
"we have to find her! we have to save her!" -you
"i'm trying, y/n! you're too close to this, go to the clocktower, help me find her by being oracle for now" -bruce
"no, i need to be out there looking for her" -you
"y/n, you have the skills needed to operate the oracle systems. i need an oracle. i need you to get in your right mind and help the way i need, or you are benched." -bruce
"why cant alfred do it?" -you
"because i asked you" -bruce "and don't tell tim, do you understand?"
you were going stir crazy in the clocktower and all you wanted was to call your dad and break down into tears about how he was right and you and her should have listened to him
but now you had to focus and assist batman in his search for your sister
and as you scrubbed through security footage and pieced things together, you started to feel hopeless. there wasn't any word from her captors yet. what did they want?
and then bruce's broken voice came over the comms
"she's gone, y/n. i failed her" -bruce
you jumped from your seat
"where are you?! where is she?!" -you
"i'm sorry. it's too late" -bruce
you said to hell with being oracle and left the tower—it was compromised anyways
you went back in the field and bashed some heads trying to figure out where the knight is, who he is, what he wants, why he would do this
and scarecrow would pay. everyone would
"don't tell tim yet, please. i need him focused" -bruce
"and i need my sister back" -you
for once, bruce asked you to stay by his side—worried by what you could do without his supervision
you reluctantly agreed, figuring that the arkham knight was so obsessed with him, you may have a better chance finding him at his side
and hell, was it miserable with him
he seemed distracted, but not about barbara. about something else
and you saw a glint of green in his blue eyes
it didn't take a genius to realize what was happening to him
"the other jokers get that look in their eyes, bruce. tell me it's not happening to you too" -you
"no, it's just a symptom from the fear toxin i was exposed to. it should wear off soon" -bruce
something told you he wasn't being fully honest, but you didn't quite care at that moment
"we need to tell your father about barbara" -bruce
"no! no...it'll kill him. he's already under so much pressure right now with everything going on. we can't hurt him right now" -you
"he has a right to know" -bruce
when bruce told jim, it was chaos. and then he paused for a moment and realized you were out there too
"y/n? y/n, you've been lying to me this whole time and now your sister is gone because you two couldn't just listen to your old man for once! get out of gotham like you promised me you would!" -jim, in tears
he hugged you and bruce watched as you broke down. he would have dismissed you right away for jim's sake, but you had unfinished business.
"i'm sorry dad, i have to bring these men down for her" -you
angry with bruce for what he just did to your father, you spli off to do some detective work, trying to calm yourself down from the interaction
bruce went to panessa studios to handle the joker situation, but while you were investigating the AK, he showed up
"long time no see" -arkham knight
"screw you, freak. you here to kill me?" -you
"kill you? no, i'm here to save you. from him" -arkham knight
"you killed barbara gordon, why?" -you
"i didn't kill your sister, y/n. she's alive and well in a safehouse" -AK
"how do you know my name?" -you "and batman saw her die, don't play with me"
"batman's under the influence of a nasty dose of fear toxin, he's not seeing clearly" -ak "and as for how i know you, well, we'll save that for later"
"to hell with that and to hell with you, if my sister is still alive then prove it!" -you
arkham knight pulled up live feed of barbara sitting in a cell, activating the microphone so you could talk
"babs? babs, it's me! are you okay?" -you
"jason! it's jason, he's the arkham knight!" -babs
as you tried to understand what she said, arkham knight knocked you out and took you to her
when you came back to, you were in the cell with babs stripped of all of your bat-gear
captive or not, you were just glad to see your sister was alive. you rushed to hug her tightly
"dad thinks you're dead, he knows who i am" -you "bruce was having a pity party"
you stopped for a moment and turned on your detective mode scanner on your cowl, checking to make sure babs was real
"well, at least i know you aren't a clayface. you have bones" -you, pausing again "how is jason alive?"
"i don't know, but he's different. mad, confused, he's not making any sense" -babs
"i think i'm making perfect sense" -jason, throwing some snacks into the cell "thought you might be hungry"
"jason, you know this isn't right. let me out so i can keep protecting gotham" -you
"nah, i need all you pawns off the board. just me and batman remaining" -jason "well, i guess i can't compare you two to pawns, you're much more useful. knights, maybe"
it was hours of captivity trying to figure jason out, wishing you could feel relief knowing it was him under that mask but unable to find that silver lining
and then bruce and jim arrived, and there you were in the middle of a family affair
you, dad, babs, bruce, and jason 20 stories below. what had brought you all here to this moment
then babs was thrown off the building. was this all just a cruel joke? you finally had hope she'd be okay just to watch her fall to her death
no, bruce would save her
but you couldn't save your dad
"go, y/n! get out of here!" -jim
you managed to escape through the underground system, hoping you'd be able to find jason
you regrouped at gcpd, hugging your sister as tight as you possibly could
"we're not out of the woods yet, y/n" -babs
"can we just pretend for a minute that we are?" -you
"is tim okay?" -babs
"...yeah...he's been at panessa all night" -you, hiding the fact he was definitely still locked up and had no idea barbara was alive
as the night went on and bruce fought to get gordon back and save the city, dick called you
"heard about the mishap at blüdhaven pd" -you "harley didn't kick your ass too hard, did she?"
"didn't you get held captive by the arkham knight for several hours?" -dick
"oh, so you're not gonna believe who that guy is. like, it's really bad" -you
tonight was the night dick convinced you to leave gotham
after your confession and recounting what happened tonight while you brought down penguin's weapons caches
"gotham needs me...my dad and my sister need me" -you
"it's not like you're moving across the country and won't ever see them again, you're just getting some distance, y/n/n. this city will be just fine with one less vigilante" -dick
"after tonight, i don't know how i'll leave babs' side" - you
"you know you want to" -dick
you did. you just couldnt admit it while bruce was still working to save jim
and soon e would, as you saw his face broadcasted all over gotham
"y/n to oracle, you seeing this?" -you
"yeah and i forgot how to breathe for a minute" -babs
"didn't know you could forget anything" -you
"y/n...he's going to take his mask off" -babs
and that bruce did
and the world learned who the batman was
and you all felt...compromised
jim gordon made it out alive and bruce, with all lose ends tied up, blew up wayne manor
fuck it, you're moving to blüdhaven
when the dust finally settled, you started packing
"i'm happy to see you do something for yourself, y/n" -babs
"really? i thought you'd be mad i was leaving..." -you
"no! never, y/n. i want you to be happy, wherever that may be" -babs
"think dad will see it the same way?" -you
"give it time" -babs, chuckling "he's definitely still in shock finding out about our...alter egos"
"what's all this talk about him running fro mayor now?" -you
"he's broadening his horizons" -babs
"and how are things with tim?" -you
"i think he's going to propose" -babs
"no way! already?? oh, my god. i'm gonna be in your wedding right??" -you
"well, duh!" -babs, pausing "i think blüdhaven is going to be good for you. and if it's not...try metropolis? or central city. oh! star city! i bet green arrow could use a vigilante partner"
"i'm sure nightwing will be a fine vigilante partner, just like old times" -you
taglist: @summersimmerus // @deanzboyfriend // @volturi-stuff // @stilestotherescue //
