A/N: I know I'm about a year late with this and I am very, very sorry about that. Real life has been very demanding, but I finally decided to post this story before it becomes completely AU because of the new Batman movie. ;) I hope you'll enjoy it. :)

If you haven't read the first two stories of this trilogy, I suggest you go back and read them or this story won't make much sense to you. ;)

1/3 Knight's Dawn

2/3 Testing Boundaries

3/3 Building Foundations

Building Foundations

by immertreu

May 27, 2010

Chapter 1

Not surprisingly, Bruce and Jim didn't make it to their appointment on Saturday without an incident. Instead, Friday night found Batman and his partner in a dark alley behind the second largest bank in Gotham (not the one where Bruce Wayne kept his money, of course), trying to figure out how many hostages were still inside the building with the three bank robbers.

When Jim spotted the shadow known as Batman on the wall of the bank, right after his own arrival at the scene, his first urge had been to throw a tantrum, but that would definitely not have helped in the current situation. There had also been the slight problem of the Police Commissioner standing in the middle of Gotham's Finest, which had prevented him from shouting at Gotham's most sought-after vigilante. So he'd settled for an angry glare that probably had no effect on Batman, suppressed a worried sigh, and turned back to the task at hand – managing a crisis.

The moment Jim deployed his men into their positions and the nerve-wracking waiting for the SWAT team began, he slipped into the nearest alley and wasn't disappointed when a few seconds later a familiar silhouette swooped down to land in front of him. Not daring to yell, he hissed angrily, "Are you nuts? The whole place will be swarming with police in a few minutes, even the alleys; and the roofs around the bank will be full of snipers!"

Batman only shrugged and moved to look around the opposite corner with a grace Jim was relieved to see. His partner seemed to have recovered pretty well since their last encounter.

"Then we better act quickly so I can get out of here," Batman whispered back to him. "Are you going to fulfill their demands?"

Jim looked at him questioningly and a second later mentally called himself an idiot when Batman tapped a finger to one pointy ear. Of course, he would hack into the police chatter. How else could he have known about the hostage situation in the first place?

Batman's grin made Jim shift uneasily. It was still weird to see the vigilante behave like a normal human being, but Jim was also relieved that his partner hadn't gone back to the still composure and disturbing silence for which he had become almost famous. Working with a shadow was all right, but knowing that there was a human being behind the shadow made it a hell of a lot easier – hopefully for both of them by now.

Jim shook his head in reply to Batman's question and said, "We can't give them a helicopter or allow them to take the hostages with them. You know that."

Batman growled, "I know. How about you guarantee them a getaway car, no pursuit, and one hostage? They must agree to release the hostage unharmed two minutes later for you to pick up. As soon as they've sent all the other hostages out, I'll go in from the back and take out the gangsters."

Jim opened his mouth, but Batman cut him off before he could say anything, "I can handle three guys. No one will see me – other than the single hostage perhaps, who will be too grateful to say anything, and the bank robbers, of course, but I bet they'll keep their mouths shut for fear I might come back and kill them."

Jim flinched, unconvinced, but he also knew that they didn't have much choice. They had to act now, before the criminals became too confident or even started killing people to emphasize their demands.

Reluctantly, he gave his agreement. "Okay, okay…Give my men three minutes to prepare a car and clear a path in front of the bank."

Batman nodded and pressed a little device into Jim's hand before taking out his grappling gun and aiming it at the nearest fire escape that led onto the roof of the bank.

"Put that into the car. It's a tracking device. Just in case…"

Jim grimaced and turned back to his men before someone from the newly arrived SWAT team came looking for him. A whoosh behind him confirmed Batman's departure. Obviously, the man was back on track. Jim allowed himself a small smile and took another second to observe the scene unfolding in front of him. Despite (or maybe because of) the mayhem the Joker had created in Gotham only two weeks ago, the force was as efficient as ever, busily securing a perimeter and surrounding the entrance to the bank. Snipers were already climbing the roofs of the adjacent buildings.

Jim spotted Detective Stephens in the crowd and waved him over. The two of them had been on their way to Jim's place for some urgently needed buddy-time when the call had come in, and now Jim was very glad to have the seasoned cop at his side. Although he trusted all the men and women in his units – the cleanout after the whole Joker affair had been quick and efficient – he still preferred to work with his old friend and colleague. Not that the younger officers on the scene weren't capable of carrying out Jim's orders, but what he needed right now was someone who could grasp the subtleties of the situation and wouldn't bother asking too many questions at the wrong time. Hopefully.

He still hadn't told Stephens about the lie he had created regarding Batman and Harvey Dent, and he probably wouldn't do so in the very near future; but if the worst happened and Batman was spotted, it was vital to know that Stephens wouldn't shoot without Jim giving the order. They were here to catch the bad guys, not to arrest a vigilante who was giving his best to save his city. Luckily, Stephens had never been a trigger-happy guy; it didn't seem likely that he'd start tonight.

Jim and Stephens met at the squad car closest to them, and Jim started spitting out orders. "Get my car down here immediately!" he shouted, tossing the keys to Stephens. "I can't give them a helicopter, but if they're smart, they'll accept the offer."

His colleague caught the key ring with a question in his eyes but followed the order nevertheless. Handing him the little device Batman had given him, Jim continued, "Put this into the glove compartment and make sure it's well hidden."

To his credit, Stephens didn't ask any questions but sped off to do as he was told. Jim turned to the officer next to him and said, "Get the hostage takers on the line."

The young cop almost dropped the radio but managed to hand it over to his boss with nervous hands. Jim smiled at him encouragingly and took the offered radio which was tuned in on the correct channel he had used before to communicate with the bank robbers. He made a mental note to put an end to this hero worship the younger police men were developing toward him, sooner rather than later. It wasn't just uncomfortable for him, but it also hindered the force from doing their job. He could only hope that he hadn't been similarly awed and nervous in the beginning of his partnership with Batman.

Mentally kicking himself, he shoved the unwelcome thought aside and pressed the call button. "Hello? This is Commissioner Gordon. I have an offer to make you…"

After that, everything happened very quickly. Stephens arrived with the required car and the hostages were sent out of the bank – all but one. The freed hostages reported that the manager had volunteered to stay behind. Brave but stupid man, Jim thought. He waited three more minutes to give Batman enough time to take care of his business and get out again.

Nothing happened for a few unsettling minutes. When neither the gangsters nor the remaining hostage appeared at the glass doors to claim his car, Jim finally gave the impatient members of the SWAT team the okay to move in.

Jim rushed in directly behind them, weapon in hand; but everything was clear, and he quickly stuffed the gun back into his holster. The bank robbers lay unconscious in a heap on the floor, and the bank manager cowered behind the nearest counter, trembling hands covering his head. Jim took pity on him; and while the SWAT team checked on the gangsters and cuffed their hands behind their back, he walked over to tell the man that everything was over. Jim tried his best to appear calm and in control, as if finding criminals knocked out cold and rescuing a hostage scared but unharmed in the corner was an every day occurrence. It once had been, yes, but that was before Batman was called a murderer and an outlaw. Well, more than usual, at least.

Jim sighed, his thoughts racing. How was he ever going to explain this to the mayor? There was no way he could use the timid bank manager as the hero who had saved the day.

The whispers reaching his ears from every side were full of hushed expressions like "Batman" and "vigilante." Oh, no. He should never have allowed Batman to do this. Anyway, what was the saying? What's done is done. It wasn't really helping in his current predicament, but it was true nonetheless. Oh, boy.

Then again, no one had gotten hurt – apart from the gangsters, of course. All the hostages were fine without a single shot fired. Maybe he could use the shoe lace excuse he had recently read about. Apparently, there was a right and a wrong way to tie your shoes. Using the wrong knot usually resulted in losing your shoes – and sure footing. There was even a website dedicated to such incidents. But all three gangsters at once…?

Stephens appeared at his shoulder, stopping Jim's ridiculous train of thought. He looked around and saw one of the medics carefully leading the bank manager out of the building. The man still looked a little shaken but was able to walk on his own. Stephens followed his gaze and said in a very quiet tone so as not to be overheard, "Any chance he's working with us…again?"

The last word was clearly meant to challenge his boss. Jim shot him a sharp glance but didn't reply.

"Come on," his colleague inquired. "I'm not an idiot, you know. Besides, I know that you know people."

That hit a nerve. Jim quietly hissed, "What the hell are you talking about?"

But he knew very well what the other man was saying. His friend had always trusted his judgment, and even when everybody had called Jim crazy to put his trust in a man who dressed up as a bat and fought criminals at night with his bare hands, he had still helped him install the spotlight on the roof of MCU.

"Stephens," he warned but was cut off by the officer who ran towards them, waving some kind of list in his hands, obviously waiting for his boss's approval for whatever he was doing.

"Beckett," Jim nodded.

"Commissioner," the kid replied breathlessly.

Stephens merely snorted, cast Jim a knowing look, and went back outside to help the other officers. Jim sighed for the umpteenth time that night while checking the hostages' names on the cop's list. He mentally put the idea of making Stephens head of the task force responsible for catching Batman at the top of his to-do-list. He would definitely need all his influence as Police Commissioner to prevent imminent disaster from happening after this stunt.

It had only been two weeks, and Jim had already screwed up. Why exactly had he agreed to the Bat's plan again? But he knew quite well why: because the lives of innocent people had been at stake. That was definitely worth a fight with the mayor and the huge amount of paperwork his required cover-up would demand.

There was only one conversation he was looking forward to less than the one with Mayor Garcia, and that was the talk he'd have to have with Bruce tomorrow. In the future, Batman had to stay out of such situations that almost screamed the vigilante's involvement. He most definitely knew that already, but somehow Jim doubted his partner would be able to let innocent citizens suffer for fear of his own safety. Yet he wasn't risking only his life; he also jeopardized uncovering the lies Jim had told the people of Gotham in order to avoid more chaos and prevent the city from losing hope and the belief in her white knight-turned-psychopath.

This was going to be a long weekend.