I KNOW it’s been a hot second, and I’m sorry. Personal stuff has been kicking me in the butt and I haven’t been able to write something for myself in literally 3 weeks. I hope this makes up for it. Requested from my Ao3 here is part 2 of, Why Can’t Bats Rest in Peace?

Sorry. I missed the part where you said to post requests here. This is an idea to follow up your resurrected Marinette story.

What about Marinette struggling with her time as ladybug but also the fear and anxiety from her resurrection. Like having flashback from the worst akumas and her having new fears like being underground or in small spaces. The bat family helps her with the akuma trauma and Jason helps with the trauma from her resurrection. Does this work? I’m good at brainstorming ideas but am really bad at writing my ideas out as a story.

Ground me, Not Bury Me

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Falling, she was falling!  The air had left her lungs and all she could feel was wind whipping around her.  She screamed and reached for the hand of an unknown man with blonde hair and bright green eyes.  She could feel a strong pull to him, but she couldn’t remember what for.  She gasped for air, but everything was still blurred around her as she came crashing down, down, down!  She screamed and screamed and screamed as she was suddenly stabbed by an unknown person with a blurred face.  She wasn’t falling anymore, instead she was on her knees holding her side where warm liquid dripped down around her.  Someone was speaking, but she couldn’t make out a word.  She looked around and saw people with black hair wearing strange clothing around her.  She felt the strongest urge that she knew them. She wanted to crawl towards them to make sure that they were alright, but suddenly something cold and hard was clasped tightly around her wrists.  She looked up at the blurred figure as they laughed manickly.  She didn’t feel afraid of them, but for some reason she was afraid of what they would do to her and the other people.  She could glimpse bits of white and green from the blurry figure, and then they hit her and she fell over.  When she tried to get back up, she found that she couldn’t even sit up.  She felt soft material surrounding her, and something flowing at her legs.  She screamed again as there wasn’t a single speck of light.  It was dark, it was so dark, and something was trickling down her face!  She couldn’t breathe, she couldn’t breathe, why can’t she breathe?!  She banged her fists against the plush material, but it did nothing.  She scratched and clawed, shredding her skin to bits, but she ignored the pain.  Her panic only increased as the more she struggled the faster the unknown substance came down into whatever was holding her.  She sobbed, she couldn’t even remember the last time she had cried.  She couldn’t take it anymore, why was all this happening?!  Why couldn’t she be free?!  She was going to die, she was going to disgrace her family and die because she was to incompitent to escape!  She just wanted this to be over.

***

Bruce, Damian, Dick, Jason, and Alfred hurried to the room Marinette was in.  They had heard her screaming and needed to make sure she was okay.  Marinette had been getting better as of recent months, but it was still a long way to go for her recovery.  Nobody knew what had brought her back, not even the Flashes, but she was here, and they weren’t going to lose her again.  She had on and off days where she was able to be fully awake and conscious for a few hours at a time, her record was currently 6, before fading back into a cloudy sort-of daze.  These hours were often few and far between, often happening only once or twice a month at random.

As they neared the door the horrid screams were replaced by heart-wrenching sobs and muffled pleading.

“Let ‘e out!”

She gasped out as they slowly opened her door.  Marinette wasn’t moving, but her body was tense in a way that showed her fear of being trapped.  

“Too small!  Dark!  Help!”

She cried out causing Jason to instantly run to her side.  Gently he picked his baby sister up so that he could sit on her bed and have her lean against his chest as he caressed her head.

“Shh.  It’s okay Pixie.  You’re not there, you’re out.  You won’t ever go back there again.”

Jason whispered soothingly into her ear as his eyes began to water with unshed tears.  Slowly Marinette’s erratic breathing began to slow as Jason continued to whisper sweet nothings into her ears while rocking her slightly.  Her eyes began to open, tears still falling down her oh so pale cheeks.  Her eyes were still clouded over and not a word escaped her as she stared into nothingness.  She simply leaned closer into her big brother’s chest seeking out the warmth she desperately wanted.  

The others watched from the doorway hesitant to ruin the moment.  But Jason simply looked up at them with a sad smile and with a quick movement of his head invited them to join them.  Jason moved to the center of the bed and let everyone surround the two.  Damian was the first one, moving to hug his sister’s right while wishing he could do anything to relieve her of this pain.  Tim came on their left, resting his head against Jason’s shoulder as he stared worriedly at his baby sister.  Dick plopped on next to Damian and wrapped all of them into a hug as he looked into Marinette’s clouded eyes.  Bruce simply sat on the edge of the bed staring lovingly at all of his children promising himself that he’d keep watch.  He’d keep them all safe.  Alfred smiled at his family while wrapping the large duvet around all of the members cuddled together in the center of the bed.  He gave Bruce a small squeeze on the shoulder before he silently left the room keeping the door open just a crack.  All would be well, not now, but one day.

***

Marinette leaned her head against Dick’s shoulder.  She was conscious today, and she didn’t know how to feel about it.  She had died, she knew she had died, she rememberedtheway she had died.  She wished she didn’t because it always made her finicky and it made her feel like she wanted to claw off her own skin at times.  Besides, if she began to actually think about it, she would go back to the mazy mist that clouded her brain.  That was almost worse because every time she came back she lost once again and didn’t know how long it had been, where she was, what had happened to her, it was a truly awful and disorienting feeling to exist.  The worst part was because she was trained to never let herself be that adrift in the first place, so the fact that it happened so often and for so long made everything even worse.  It was always the worst when she came to when she was alone.  Nobody was there to ground her and all she could do was panic until the haze overtook her senses once more.  She glanced around the den feeling the heat from the flames caress her unnaturally cold skin.  It was nice, that was until a flash of a burning city came into her mind.  It was so hot, the scent of charred skin hung heavy in the air and she couldn’t breathe!  Screams resounded in her head and despite her attempts to cover her ears to quiet the sound, it only made the cries of agony grow lounder, and louder, and LOUDER!  

“Marinette, it’s okay.  You’re not in Paris anymore.  It’s all over.  Please Mari, I need you to breathe.”

Someone was holding her wrists in a firm yet gentle grasp as her head was gently against something firm yet comfortable.  The first thing she noticed was the slow rise and fall of object she could now decipher as her older brother’s chest.  Then she heard the constant ba-dump of a heartbeat.  She tried her best to match her breathing to the rhythm, taking her time and trying her best not to fall back into the cloud.  She didn’t want to go back, she wanted to stay here in this moment, able to comprehend the world and people around her.  She didn’t want to miss anything else.

“You’re not in Paris.  You never have to go back there again.  You did such a good job, and we’re so proud of you.”

She tuned into the sound of her brother’s voice and took in the scent of his aftershave.  She was okay, it would be okay.

“Th-thank you.”

She murmured.  Because of how long she went in her hazes unable to properly speak her voice had been quiet and almost inaudible due to disuse.  She hated it.

Dick gave her a gentle smile and placed a gentle kiss to the crown of her head.  

“I’ve got you Mare.  You’ll be okay.”

Marinette leaned into her brother’s gentle touch and was so very thankful that the void hadn’t taken her right then.  In fact, she was able to stay like that for another good hour before the haze washed over her once more.

***

She wasn’t going to kie, this was the worst time to come out of haze, no doubt about it.  It was slow, but she knew what was going on.  There was warm water rushing down her body and somebody was scrubbing her hair.  She nearly screamed when she realized what was going on.  Her head snapped to the side in full awareness and the person bathing her almost fell from shock.  It was Selina, she internally sighed with relief.  They stared at each other for a few moments before Selina smiled at her and whispered,

“Is it alright if I finish, I was just about to rinse the conditioner out.”

Marientte stared at her for a bit longer contemplating whether or not she was actually okay with that.  When she was unable to move her arms from her side and unable to stand up from the stool she was situated on she reluctantly agreed.  

Of course she trusted Selina, but this was just so embarrassing and goodness this was awkward.  Why of all times did she have to come to know.  She tried to sit still and not think of the water trickling past her face and how it reminded her of the attacks made by Stormy Weather.  The rain that fell down her face as cries from civilians resounded as some were killed in tornadoes and twisters, others in collateral damage, and how many froze to death trapped in giant blocks of ice.  The sound of mourning parents and children as the rain continued to beat down upon her.  Once the water was off she was glad to be wrapped in the warm and fuzzy towel.  She was shivering though, more so than a normal person would after getting out of a warm shower and attacked by cold air.  No, she assumed this was the consequence she got for pulling a Jason, a broken internal heating system.

“It’s going to be alright dear.  Let’s get you dressed then I’ll bring you down for dinner.”

Marinette didn’t bother asking for the date at this point, it was worthless until she was fully healed and able to stay continuous for more than a few hours a day.  She let Selina dry her hair, brush and braid it, dress her into a warm pair of sweats, a thick cozy sweater and warm fuzzy socks with the grippies on the soles.  It was nice really, and the chill wasn’t as bad now.  She let Selina pick her up, as her legs just would not hold her, and bring her down stairs to the dining room.  She leaned into all of her touches, nearly basking in it in hopes that she could bring the feelings back with her when she went back to the void.

There was loud chatter from the dining room and when they entered everyone glanced up.  She was glad that instead of falling silent their smiles simply got brighter when they saw her eyes were indeed cognizant. 

“Angel, tell these hooligans that it is acceptable to hit someone when they offer it!”

Damian said as he crossed his arms and puffed out his chest.  Marinette smirked as she was carefully deposited in her seat next to her brother.

“That depends, how was the offer phrased?”

She asked playfully.

“I think it is okay to follow through when the imbecile askes, ‘what are you going to do, hit me?’”

Marientte giggled a little and nodded as if she were in thought.

“I agree with Damian, at that point they are asking for it.”

Dick pouted,

“Blueberry, we’re trying to not encourage him to hit his fellow students.”

Marinette raised a brow at that and shrugged.

“Not like I knew he hurt anyone because of that line.”

Jason nodded at that and pointed at her with his fork.

“She has a point.  Can’t blame her when she was asked a question with no background knowledge.”

Dick nodded with fake seriousness.

“True, true.  But now that you know it, do you still stand by that statement?”

He asked with an obvious fake serious voice.

Marinette mirrored him and set her face into one of full concentration before she gave a curt nod.

“Yes, I do.  They asked for it, thus it is still okay.”

Damian smiled triumphantly while Jason gave her a subtle thumbs up while Dick pouted and Bruce just gave a TiredDad™ sigh.  Marinette was so happy while she ate that she completely forgot about any thoughts of Paris or her gruesome demise.  She was even able to watch a full movie with her family in the Den.  Unfortunately, she was still consumed by the haze once again, but she was getting better.  Soon, maybe she would never be forced into a haze again, but until then she would take as much as she could get with her short bouts of consciousness. 

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