Red Hood and the Outlaws #0 (2012)

Catherine Elizabeth and Willis Todd met just outside the campus of the Gotham Public Academy. She had always been attracted to bad boys, and Willis - definitely a bad boy - had a soft spot for gingers. One afternoon, they had sex in an alley, and Catherine got pregnant as a result. To be fair, Willis had little chance of being a good egg, having been brought up in an abusive household. One night, Willis was driving drunk and killed an old man. He managed to beat the rap by literally running away from his car. He found a place to stay with Catherine's family, but naturally, he didn't get on well with her parents, who were none too pleased that she was pregnant as it was. Jason Todd's life began happily enough, for a child. While his parents argued, he entertained himself. His father would work a lot, and he was often left to look after his mother, who had fallen into a drug habit that saw her losing consciousness for days at a time. As Jason got older, his father would try to teach him the ropes of thievery and conning, and those moments seemed like the only ones where Willis Todd was ever proud of his son. Before long, Willis was taken away by the police, and Jason never saw him again, as he died in prison. So, Jason was left to take care of his mother again, often keeping her dealers away with a baseball bat. His efforts though, were wasted. She died of an overdose before he could do anything for her. From that point, Jason got by on the skills his father taught him, thieving what he could to survive. Once, he was beaten rather severely as a result of his actions, and ended up in a clinic. Dr. Leslie Thompkins was kind to him, and spoke often about how he could have a second chance if he kept love in his heart, and realized that he wasn't alone in life. Jason paid back her kindness by trying to steal prescription drugs, but he was caught by the Batman. Dr. Thompkins pleaded with the vigilante to keep Jason from the police, So, Jason had been taken to Wayne Manor where he was placed under the care of Alfred Pennyworth - who was not at all impressed with the boy's attitude. Eventually, Bruce Wayne had confessed his alter ego, preaching his tale of having turned his pain and loss into something productive. In the Batcave, Bruce explained that there was an opening in his operation, and he suspected that Jason was ready to fulfill it. Six months of training later, Jason was the new Robin, fighting crime alongside the Batman. Despite his cavalier attitude, he was determined to do right by the role's legacy. The fighting came naturally to him, but Jason always had trouble holding back. It was as though he was trying to beat to death the ghost of his father, because he couldn't have a new one until the old one had been disposed of. As a result of his recklessness, Jason was placed on monitor duty. One night, while at the computer, Jason spotted a photo that was quite clearly his mother Catherine, still alive. Without telling Batman, he left for the middle east to find her. He used all of the skills her had learned with Batman to get to her, and before he knew it, she was standing in front of him. Of course, it was a set up. She had led him there in order to get him into the hands of the Joker. Batman had tried to save him, but he had trained Jason too well. The boy had hid his tracks well enough that Batman was just seconds too late to stop both the brutal beating that Jason took, and the explosive device that killed him. In his final moments, Jason regretted not being able to say goodbye, or thank you, or to apologize for letting this happen. The next thing Jason knew, he was awake and alive in the Lazarus Pit.