[Comprehensive British and American] Family Matters

Other things may changeus, but we start and end with family --Anthony Brandt

"Other things may change us, but we begin and end in family - Anthony Blunt"

Gotham City is a famous city.Just like New York, Boston, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C., when it comes to the big cities on the east coast of the United States, people can always catch one of those few words.

Of course, it would be even better if she could become the focus of attention because of her rich historical atmosphere or an important economic and trade town.

It's a pity that so far, Gotham City is still "that Gotham".That "Gotham" of lunatics, gangsters, and mysterious vigilantes that makes people frown or click their tongues, as if the first syllable makes you think you've eaten something weird.

The strange thing is that no matter how desperate Gotham's crime rate is for the state government, and the escape rate of Arkham Asylum has hit a new high in the industry (or has never been surpassed), Gotham's population still maintains a steady growth. It seems that the inhabitants here do not want to escape from this terrible quagmire at all.

Or maybe they once thought this way, when they were still young and had boundless imaginations about life and the future.Even though their father is a punk who has nothing to do but steal chickens and dogs; his mother is a drug addict who is addicted to the beautiful illusion of needles and powder, the young child still has his imagination of the future:

Someday I will...

when i grow up i will...

In the future I will definitely...

Even in the lowest slums of Gotham, Jason Todd is still full of hope for life——

"Keep working hard, if you get this one done, you'll have a winter fund!"

The small body between a teenager and a child rolled tires thicker than ordinary cars and rushed into the shadow of the alley with a proficiency that did not match his age.Where he stopped, two tires of the same specification were neatly piled up and hidden under a piece of dirty plastic sheeting. If you don't look carefully, you won't find that there are valuable treasures hidden under that disgusting petrochemical product. nice one.

"Go up, hey!"

The boy—Jason struggled to jack up the tire at hand, his face flushed from exertion and tension, and after taking a few deep breaths, he finally relied on willpower (or adrenaline?) to pile up the third prize of the night over its partner.

Carefully pulling the plastic sheet to cover his gains, Jason didn't dare to let himself be immersed in the joy of victory. After all, this is Crime Alley. You never know if someone will stab you in the stomach next second, or Let you taste the hot taste of metal and gunpowder, not to mention the legend lurking in the night of Gotham - Batman.

Oh, to be honest, Jason isn't too worried about that last item, he's pretty sure Batman is busy fixing up this dying city somewhere else right now.If not, how could he have these three fruitful achievements?

"The tires of the Batmobile, at least a few hundred yuan can be replaced."

——If you can get all four tires, maybe you can double it into four figures!

There is a seductive voice calling from the bottom of my heart.

"No, no, it's too risky. Three tires are already an unimaginable harvest. Letting them go in several times will definitely ensure that you can survive the winter without any problem..." Shaking his head in the cold wind, Jason put on the most tireless tires in his life. Firm self-control suppressed the temptation, while rubbing his hands on his jeans to divert his attention, his mind quickly filtered the most suitable channel for selling stolen goods, instead of the majestic baby at the other end of the alley even with three broken wheels.

The Batmobile didn't show any sign of starting——for such a big guy, even a hard-of-hearing old man would be shocked to jump by the roar when starting up. There is something unsuitable for children in the building next to it... Ahem!In short, Batman is still busy somewhere, and Jason is a good hand at unloading tires, not because he is boasting, look at how long it took him to remove three tires, the technicians in the garage will all take off their hats to him— —

So the question is, the last Batmobile tire, shall we do it or not?

His eyes went back and forth several times between the alley where the Batmobile was parked and the three tires that had already fallen into his hands. The lower-class citizens of Gotham and their natural vigilance warned him that it is a virtue to accept as soon as it is good. Jason very much agrees with this point. Until the air vaguely wafts the unique old oily smell of spicy hot dog stalls mixed with the sinful taste of fragrant hot dogs.

"Damn, it's done!"

Pulling out an L-shaped wrench from the back of his trousers, Jason rushed back to the side of the Batmobile in a bang, squatted down next to the last remaining tire, and frantically twisted the screws that fixed the tire, as if he had just condensed with a slow beat. The courage to get up will be blown away in the cold wind of Gotham winter.

"Think chili dog! Fight for chili dog!"

The virtues of the ancestors and the stomach that was hungry for three days (or longer? He can't remember the last time he ate a real meal.), Jason solemnly begged the ancestors to excuse you to go back under six feet Hold on, how many hot dogs can you get for a full set of Batmobile tires!

Thinking of this, Jason seemed to have seen a wonderful winter surrounded by food, warm enough blankets, and a roof that wouldn't leak.

But don't forget, this is Gotham.

This city is designed to give you a glimmer of hope, and then cruelly take it away from you, and let you fall into the mud by the way.

Batman fell from the sky (or the roof? Anyway, when Jason looked up, the guy was already standing in front of him.) without warning, and landed beside his car, completely black as in the legend, The cloak was inflated like some kind of weirdly large wings.

Jason didn't speak.Neither does Batman.

Powerful people who have been caught by Batman reasoned like this: Batman is not as talkative as vigilantes in other cities. When he catches a criminal, he will be beaten up and tied up and sent to the police station because he has severe throat cancer. How painful it is to talk. .

Regarding this point, Jason, who has been in close contact with Gotham legend since today, said: Damn the gossip lied to me!Where can I find such a powerful patient with severe cancer!Or is he on steroids for every meal?

"You know that is the Batmobile, right?" Batman looked at the wrench in Jason's hand, and the last tire that was about to leave the car body. He rolled his eyes.

Anyone with eyes knows that it's a Batmobile. There's no other such flamboyant four-wheeled vehicle in Gotham, okay?

"You know this is Crime Alley, right?" Jason slapped himself hard in the heart as soon as the words came out, and he spoke quickly again.

Everyone in Gotham knows that when you face a stronger opponent than yourself, you will have a chance to see the sun of tomorrow by keeping your tail between your legs, no matter if the opponent is a gangster, a gangster, or a vigilante in the middle of the night.Those mean-spirited people who think they have great martial arts skills have either been sunk into Gotham Bay to feed the fish, or they have to order full dentures in Black Gate Prison.

Jason asked himself that he was a true Gotham boy, otherwise he wouldn't have gotten so big in Crime Alley. The people in Gotham all have this kind of survival instinct that outsiders can't match.Seriously, a dad who's always in jail and a mom who overdoses isn't really going to help him survive.He should already be familiar with the survival skills of adapting to the wind.

But he actually talked back... He was caught stealing Batman's tires, and he talked back in front of Batman.

The sweet dreams of spicy hot dogs and blankets suddenly turned into the grayness of the juvenile detention center.

If Jason is a smart person, he should obediently raise his hand and surrender at this time, and make up for it with soft words: "I'm sorry sir, I'm so sorry. I was infatuated for a while!" Or take advantage of his immaturity to play pity ( Not that he still needs to invest in acting to meet the "pathetic" standard) to gain sympathy.Maybe he'll get a spanking and talk to his parents or something, but at least it'll buy him a little time to figure out what to do next.

But fleeing without fighting is obviously not in line with Jason's style of doing things.

At least once he was old enough to swing a club and not bring himself down, Jason didn't go down without a fight, even if the drug he beat up his mother ended up breaking an arm; even if he ended up Still losing his favorite hangout, Jason still made sure that disgusting pedophile had no intentions for the rest of his life.

To sum up, Jason raised the only weapon in his hand - the wrench, and faced Batman's feces face... and then swung the big bat on his chest.

To be fair, he can't reach Batman's shoulders even if he stands on tiptoe, and being able to hit the chest is already extraordinary!

Although Batman didn't even change his standing posture, it's a bit frustrating to catch his wrench easily, but who made him Batman?If he had no real skills, he would have joined the seniors in Gotham Bay to enrich the recipes of marine life.But this does not mean that Jason will obediently let himself be lifted in the air by the collar like a puppy.

"Let go! You big tit!" Jason kicked his legs fiercely, but he could only watch in grief as his flying toes missed his target abruptly. "If you like beating children, why don't you apply for the police station?"

He tried his best to make his voice full of threats, and writhed restlessly, trying to make it more difficult for Batman to control himself, but all his efforts were wiped out when the masked face suddenly approached, Jay The only thing Mori could think of was staring wide-eyed, motionless, at the eyes that (supposedly) were hidden behind the white lenses.

He must now look like a frightened wild animal.Jason remembered the teaching documentary on wildlife conservation that had been shown in the school classroom.

Oh my God, how long has it been since he went to school?It's not that he loves those teachers who look at people with their noses and brats who are so rich, but he really misses the feeling of focusing on learning new knowledge, and staying in the library to complete homework. data time.

Being able to distract yourself under the threat of Batman, I wonder if this is an achievement exclusive to Gotham people?

"Boy," Batman's deep, hoarse voice rang in Jason's ear, calling his attention back from his wandering mind, "I'm only going to ask this question once, so you'd better think it through before answering..."

Jason swallowed, and nodded under Batman's gaze with his usual "I'm so serious and serious, you'd better not underestimate me because I'm young" face when he sold stolen goods.

"are you hungry?"

What?

Jason doesn't remember how he answered, he vaguely remembers leading Batman to where he hid the other three tires, and together they pushed the tires back next to the Batmobile, and Batman was there with his hands crossed over his chest Watching him put all the tires back on - probably a "clean up your own shit" kind of lesson?

But Jason clearly remembered one thing, and that was that Batman was "smiling" the whole time.Since he asked himself if he was hungry, to be exact, the late-night legends of Gotham have been smiling and watching him lay down on the ground loading tires, as if it was some kind of fun activity.And he thought Batman only had an expression of "blank face".

Then he was chased into the passenger seat of the Batmobile in a daze, and enjoyed a trip to Gotham; he admired the expressions of the fast food order lane clerk struggling to work seriously or ask for a group photo.In the end, Jason and Batman parked together on the hills outside Gotham (one of the lands where the Wayne family can't see the end, damn rich), the two of them sat on the hood of the Batmobile and held a hot The double cheeseburger was chompy.And Batman asks him this and that from time to time, and as a thank you for dinner, Jason answers all of them honestly—hey, isn't he an ungrateful little bastard?

A lot of things changed that night.

But at this moment, there is only one thing that Jason can be sure of with [-]% certainty. Standing on the Wayne Tower, he picks up a loudspeaker and announces to the whole of Gotham that it will be fine:

"Batman doesn't have throat cancer!"