Gotham. A city corruption and those brave enough to try and face it. There was much more than that within the city. Tonight wasn't the case though. A family of four had decided to cut through an alley way to make it back to their car. As they stepped across the street it hit the daughter that the night was rather packed full of people. Of course, Gotham at night had people, but not always good people.

"Keep up Riley," Thomas yelled back to his daughter as he slung his arms around both his son and wife. Riley quickened her step-in response and stared at her family from the back. All of them wore black besides Martha. They all looked like a team besides Martha in her beige overcoat. "Come one we'll cut through the alley to catch a cab uptown. I gave Alfred the night off." Riley smiled to her father because Alfred had to deal with so much, he deserved a night off.

"Hopefully he caught up on sleep, I know Riley needed a lift last night," Bruce scolded his sister earning himself a soft hit to his side.

"Oh believe me I know she was brought home late last night," Martha added on to her scold.

"Come now Martha, she's a young adult. You remember how we were younger. Now were older and I can't believe you made us sit through almost two hours of that." Riley took the moment to stare at her father as he guided them to the other side of the alley.

"It wasn't too bad Thomas," Martha uttered under her breath. It wasn't long after that she let out a short chuckle, contradicting herself.

"Oh no? Childish drivel," Martha rolled her eyes in response to her husband. Riley laughed to herself and scrunched her nose towards Bruce who was holding his own laughter in.

"Movies these days, I don't know. Riley, your thoughts?" Her father turned towards her and nudged her with his elbow, meeting the brown eyes of his daughter. She shrugged and kicked a rock in response.

"The acting was fine dad. Didn't like how it ended though- too predictable."

"I saw your foot tap to the beat of the music," Martha looked to her daughter spotting her glare. They were not on speaking terms due to few recent arguments. Having moved out less than six months ago set a wave of fights among the two. Mainly about the daughter's way of living. Riley enjoyed her independence and it was obvious to her family because she was reluctant to even accompany them to the movie. Martha didn't like that her daughter was living by herself in Gotham for many reasons. One was her being a Wayne. She was an heiress to a wealthy company. Another being as an heiress to the company she and her baby brother were large targets for kidnapping.

Riley knew how to keep herself. Her father had insisted that Alfred taught her how to defend herself. It was an odd request and Riley hadn't questioned it.

One day Riley came home from Gotham City High with a split lip and sunglasses on. She had refused to take off the sunglasses and raced up to her room. She didn't open the door for either of her parents. Alfred knocked on her door late into the night and she confided in him that she got into a fight after school. Girls were calling her rotten names and she had shot a few back at them. That had seemed to set them off and they decided to teach her a lesson. From then on Alfred taught her how to defend herself, she didn't get any other split lips.

"What about you, Bruce?" Martha spoke quickly, diverting eye contact to her daughter over to her precious son. Bruce being put on the spot stuttered to find an answer. Riley flashed him a smile to reassure him on whatever his answer was.

"Sorry, Mom. I agree with dad and Ri," the two children shared in cheeky grins and Thomas ruffled his son's hair. "It was kinda lame."

"Kinda lame? No such word as kinda Bruce," Thomas kept his hand on his son's shoulder and the family moved deeper into the alley. Riley sighed heavily crossing her arms searching for any sense of warmth. She wished to be back in her nice warm loft uptown. Thomas had helped her pick it out and mother had helped decorate it. Bruce helped by eating the cookies her landlord had made her.

"You three, so judgmental. Just once I'd wish we could-" Martha stopped speaking. Causing the other three to look at what she was stopping for. A large man, at least six foot. Dressed in all black a ski mask covering his fact. Only showing his dark almost black eyes that seemed to pierce through any façade they could throw up.

"What's up, folks?" he said, the mask muffled his voice. Reaching into his waistband he pulled a gun from his coat. Aiming the gun at the family. All of them stopped breathing. Martha grabbed her son and forced him behind her and Thomas did the same to Riley.

"Stay calm Bruce, Riley..." As calm as Thomas could speak his children were still shaking with fear. Martha Wayne looked to her husband he seemed the calmest of them all. They searched each other's eyes for any direction.

"Gimmie all your money," the gun shifted from the center over to the father."

"No problem," Thomas spoke slowly and reached for his pocket, grabbing his wallet. "I'm cooperating." The man took the wallet and shoved it into his pocket. He turned the gun over from the father to the two women of the group.

"The necklaces, both of you." His eyes met Riley's onyx necklace on her neck. She wished she could move but she couldn't. Martha did as told but because Riley wasn't able to move the gun shifted from both the women to just the daughter. The man stepped towards Riley. Protective instincts of the father took over and he went to shield his daughter. The gun cocked when Thomas moved to shield Riley, so he stopped moving. The man pulled Riley our from behind her father and tore the necklace off her.

"It's okay," Thomas whispered under his breath, the pearls from the mothers necklace breaking and falling onto the cold ground. "Easy."

The next thing heard was one shot ringing out and blood spraying onto the girl's face. Thomas Wayne had been shot almost knocking his daughter to the ground when he fell. She stumbled to catch herself and gasped at the sight. Martha shook, and a hand went to her mouth to cover a gasp. Bruce's eyes never left his father's body that now lay on the ground.

Another shot. Martha's grip on her son's suit lightened and she fell as well, a last gasp of air leaving her lungs as her body hit the pavement. Bruce turned to the man. The gun seemed to move in slow motion as it went in front of her brother. Her baby brother. While Bruce stared down the man who had just shot his parents, his breath shaky. Riley took one step and forced her brother behind her, the gun now rising to her height. She stared death in the face, waiting for it to take her.

Every second that the gun was on her seemed like agonizing hours she waited for death.

He considered killing her, then the boy, but he lowered the gun, surprising the young woman. As he pushed past the two remaining, he jogged. Finally, able to move, Bruce turned to his mother and father trying to speak. He went to his mother shaking her body.

"Mom... Mom..." Afterwards, to his father. Blood covering both their faces. Bruce shook their bodies hoping that would make them stay. He hadn't known what to do. "Dad... Dad." Riley turned slowly, her vision began to grow dizzy. She saw her mother blood staining her coat. Seeping through and creating a pool underneath her.

Her mother was gone. Riley saw the life leave her eyes. To her father her eyes went next. He turned his head as much as he could, meeting both Riley and Bruce's gaze. When Bruce had shook their bodies, he had gotten their blood on his hands.

He looked to Riley, standing not for long. He started to sob and dropped to his knees, letting out an unearthly wail. Riley's eyes were not dizzy anymore. They rolled back into her head and she fell into the pool that drained from both her parents. Her eyes closed, Bruce had thought she had been shot and he had not known it. He was wrong; she had fainted.

The night had gone from quiet to loud in a matter of minutes. Sirens and flashing lights bounced off the towering buildings. Stepping out of a marked police car two men adjusted their coats to the cold. As soon as the younger stepped out onto the curb, he smelt the air. Rain mixed with gun powder and blood. Two weeks he had been in Gotham and on the job, already catching a murder. Sure, he expected this in Gotham City, but he hadn't expected to see so many people surrounding the alley.

The other thing that caught his eye was the ambulance that had been parked on the curb as well. The windows were blocked out form seeing who was being taken care of.

"You think it's odd to cover the windows of the ambulance?" One of the men asked slowing their stride.

"In Gotham Gordan? Nothing's odd. Come on, keep up," Harvey Bullock grumbled back to Gordan. They had been paired as partners and whatever Gordan had done seemed to make Bullock pissed off. Bullock nodded over to him, casual but professional. He was an old school officer who had been on the force for a while.

In Gotham, it didn't take long for officers to either know how the job is done, or to vanish suddenly. Eyeing his partner, he saw that he was alert. Being a solder James wasn't shocked with seeing death.

"The legendary Harvey Bullock," Harvey recognized the one who stood over the bodies. Tannenbaum. Big officer, double chin to match his gut. He held a notepad as he turned slowly to face the incoming detectives. "No rest for the wicked, eh?"

"Tannenbaum, looking crisp. This is my new partner, James Gordon," Tannenbaum and Gordon exchanged nods as to acknowledge each other. "What we got?" The three men looked to the covered bodies. Blood had seeped through the sheets, but still hid the bodies identities.

"Just got here myself. Male and a female, gunshot wounds. Their kids saw the whole thing. Poor little bastard hasn't spoken a word yet. The girl's in the Ambo. You must have seen on your way in," the Sergeant pointed out the young kid who was seated on the steps, wrapped in a police department blanket. His face read like a book. He had seen something horrifying that would stay with him for the rest of his life. The two homicide detectives saw the police woman standing near the kid. She didn't know what to do. "Girl sustained a hit to the head when she fainted and is being taken up to Gotham General."

As if drawn by a magnet, Gordon walks over to the kid, sitting beside him. There were no words said. What could he honestly say? Back at the bodies, Bullock lifted the sheet, recognizing the stares of both Thomas and Martha Wayne. Cursing under his breath, he put the sheet back over their bodies and looked over to Tannenbaum, pulling him aside for a word.

"Listen T, you didn't see me, okay?" Bullock pleaded with the man, hoping to catch a break.

"I see you right in front of me. What's your problem? Who are they?" Tannenbaum continued to smack his gum while looking at the bodies, before returning his gaze to Bullock.

"That's Thomas and Martha Wayne," Bullock pointed to the bodies. The Sergeant's eyes changed from seeming to not care, to alarm.

"Oh hell. For real?"

"Yeah. I don't need that kind of hassle. Call Major Crimes. They'd love to have this." Bullock looked to see his partner, hoping to grab him and go. The Wayne's murder was going to cause an uproar and would need to be handled quickly and delicately. Knowing how murder's go in Gotham didn't put the officer's mind at rest.

"But they're not here. You are here, and your partner's talking to the witness. That makes it your case." Bullock sighed, knowing Tannenbaum is right, and wouldn't budge.

"Will she be okay?" A stuttering voice brought James back to the young kid. He couldn't be older than twelve. "Where is she?"

"Hopefully. What can you tell me about her?" James spoke, kneeling down to the kid, to meet him at eye level. Bruce looked up, his eyes moving to the ambulance that was starting to roll out of the street.

"She's Riley Wayne. My sister... Bruce. My name's Bruce Wayne." Siblings that saw their parent's murder. They wouldn't be perfect witnesses, but they knew more than they probably thought they did.

"Can you tell me what happened Bruce?" It was then that Gordon saw the struggle in the kid. He couldn't speak. When he tried, all he got were sobs that turned to crying. Gordon moved to sit down next to Bruce, staring into a memory. "When I was about your age, a drunk driver hit our car. Killed my dad. I was right next to him," Gordon leaned closer to the young boy, whispering to him. "I know how you feel right now." Bruce looked up and over to the detective, meeting his eyes. Gordon had caught his attention. "And I promise you, however dark and scary the world might be right now, there will be light. There will be light, Bruce."

There was a strong bond created there, from strength and empathy. The two gentlemen shared a moment of silence before young Bruce Wayne spoke again.

"We- we just got out of the movies. We were walking through the alley to catch an uptown cab, and a man came out of the shadows. He was tall with a black mask, and a hat and gloves. His shoes were shiny. He said, 'give me your money', and he took my dad's wallet and my mom's and sister's necklaces, and then he shot my parents. For no reason..." Bruce stopped talking, his hands gripping the blanket tightly, frustrated with himself. "I should have done something. I was too scared," the youngest of the Wayne's looked down, feeling defeat and sadness wash over him. "Riley...she-" Bruce took a deep breath, rubbing his eyes. "When the man pointed the gun at me. Riley stepped in front of me, in front of the gun. She could have been killed. I would have been left alone, but she stepped in front of it for me. When the man left, she fainted. I should have done something like she did."

"There was nothing you could do to stop what happened. But there is something you can do now. You can be strong. Be strong. I promise you, Bruce, I'll do whatever it takes to find the man who did this," making the promise, Gordon realized what he had done: given himself a mission. An impossible one, but the kid needed to hear it.

A black Rolls Royce skidded to a stop drawing everyone's attention to the street. It had barely stopped when out raced a tall man, with light brown hair that started to grey. Wearing a dark suit with coat flaps that flapped in the wind as he walked quickly, he looked determined to get passed the officers.

"Hey," Tannenbaum, nudged Harvey, and the two looked over to see the man duck under the police tape with ease. "Who the hell is that?" Bruce gasped and took off the blanket quickly, running into the arms of the man. He lowered himself and picked the boy up for a brief moment, hugging him. Returning him to the ground a moment later. As Bruce cried into the man's suit, Gordon walked over to them.

"James Gordon."

"Alfred Pennyworth," Introductions were simple, but it seemed that was all that those men needed.

"We're gonna get the guy that did this, sir," Gordon spoke confidentiality but, truth be told, he was nervous about it.

"New guy, are ya?" Alfred knew how Gotham worked. It would be like trying to find a needle in a haystack to try and find this killer.

"You could say that," Gordon joked, he knew what he was doing case wise. His people skills could use some work.

"Good luck, mate...." Bruce had whispered something to Mr. Pennyworth before looking over to the detective. "Where's Lady Wayne?"

"She's on her way to Gotham General, they think she hit her head..." Bruce seemed to be a wreck. He was barely able to form sentences, but given the circumstances, it was lucky that he was able to. Gordon watched as the two gentlemen walked away, the older one telling young Bruce what to do in front of the press.

Stirring awake, she heard pounding inside her head. Slowly as she sat up her hands went to her eyes. Shielding them from the bright light. Peaking through her fingers she felt a calmness at the sight of the grey walls. Alfred and Bruce were sitting on a couch. Bruce had Alfred's jacket tucked under his head sleeping. Riley moved out from under the blankets she took out the IV from her arm. The IV told her she was at a hospital, why though she didn't remember.

"Lady Wayne," Alfred whispered catching her when she fell onto the tile. "Careful now, you shouldn't have tore that from your arm," the butler helped the young woman to sit on the uncomfortable bed. Nurses came to the door to see why the monitors signaled no pulse, but Alfred wove them off.

"What happened?" She felt sick, her head was throbbing and she didn't know why. Rubbing her eyes she tried her best to wipe away the dried tears and smudged makeup. Just the look on his face, grim. Something was wrong. "Alfred... What happened to me?"

Before Alfred could explain what happened Bruce stirred awake. The tears that swelled in his eyes spilt over. "Riley..."

"Bruce?" Riley's arms engulfed her younger brother and he sobbed into her dress. Her eyes finally saw the blood on her dress and it all hit her again. The shooting and Bruce's ear shattering scream. As she started to relive the shooting her eyes stung from her own tears. Her arms wrapped around her brother tighter hoping it really didn't happen. Forcing herself to reign in her own emotions to be the big sister she looked to Alfred. She knew he had seen death before as a soldier. Now he would have to deal with Bruce and Riley. Bruce backed away from his sister after composing himself the best he could.

"There's a detective who will need to talk to you, after you get cleared by the doctor. Apparently, you took a tumble," Riley understood why and she hoped to do what she could to help. "You two are going to need to lean on each other a lot now."

"Can I have a minute? I... I want to just take a second," Bruce backed away from his sister over to Alfred. Feeling a lump in her throat Riley walked to the bathroom in the room and closed the door behind her. Grabbing the edges of the sink she saw her face.

Her makeup smeared across her face from tears and just a long evening. She could still see specks of blood. Her parents blood. Two shots and in less than two minutes her parents are gone. Ripped from her and her brother. They only had each other, and Alfred...

A knock came to the door drawing Riley back to the present. Quickly Riley splashed cold water on her face calming her cheeks from getting any puffier. "Lady Wayne?"

"Come in," Alfred slipped in shutting the door behind him.

"Riley," staring back at the mirror Alfred met Riley's eyes. "I know you don't want to hear this, but I have to tell you how it is."

"How what is?"

"You're next in line for Wayne Enterprises," a sob escaped the young women's lips and she wrapped her arms around her. "I need you to pull from all your strength these upcoming weeks. It's going to be very difficult and there is going to be a lot of questions asked and a lot asked of you," as much as Alfred was talking Riley had started to panic. Her back hit the wall feeling the weight of the world crash down. The small room began to spin and Riley's knees began to fail her. "I've got you Riley." Alfred steadied the young women and the two lowered themselves to the floor. Opening the door with his other hand Alfred called for Bruce. "Grab a doctor Bruce, quickly." Bruce raced out the door and started yelling for help.

"Alfred... What happens now?"