Several months after Jason’s death and after accepting Tim as his disciple, one night Batman returned with a baby.
“Master Bruce, may I ask who your lovely company is?”
“Her name is Marinette. She’s my daughter.”
Alfred frowned. Then Batman thought it best to add that he didn’t want to talk about it.
“Don’t ask me about her origins. The most important thing is that she is my daughter and from now on she will live with me at the Manor.”
“Understood.”
Alfred respected his choice. Tim didn’t seem too surprised, and Dick joked that he was amazed that Bruce didn’t have more children than that (a joke that would be banned after Damian arrived).
No one asked any more questions. The baby had black hair and blue eyes. Who would question her parentage to Bruce in this case?
She grew up in the Manor as Marinette Wayne. A lot of things happened after that: Barbara’s paralysis, Spoiler, then came Jason’s return, then Damian’s arrival.
Jason was packing up his new apartment. After Bruce’s disappearance, Dick contacted him and asked him to attend an emergency family reunion in Gotham. He couldn’t refuse his brother this favor, although he would never admit it. Bruce had left behind two kids far too young to take care of themselves.
Damian was only 10 years old, having joined the family just under a year ago.
Marinette was only 8 years old. She and Damian did not get along at all. They both had the same problem: they were spoiled rotten.
Bruce had clearly destroyed the little girl by always giving her what she wanted and letting her every whim pass without consequence. Damian had the same problem; his mother had made him believe that he was some kind of prince and that the world should revolve around him.
A self-centered prince and a quirky little princess… An atrocious mix.
He didn’t want to leave Dick alone to face all this.
It was true that the two men had not always been on good terms, that his resurrection and his aggressive behavior had not helped. It had been a little over a year since he had calmed down and gradually started to get closer to Nightwing again. His relationship with Batman was still complicated. His relationship with Tim was… strange. The kid had forgiven him for his past mistakes, however, Jason on the other hand was having trouble forgetting what he had done. He didn’t know how to apologize for it either…
He knew that Tim was still with his friends, but that he was on his way to Gotham. They were going to have to decide what to do with the legacy Bruce had left them, and by legacy, he wasn’t just thinking about Batman. What to do with Wayne’s enterprise? Who was going to take care of it? Should it be announced that Batman was dead? Who would take over the burden?
Even dead, you’re still a pain in the ass, Bruce.
Suddenly, his phone started ringing. Jason was going to ignore it, but then he realized it was Dick.
Strange.
He picked up his phone.
“What?”
“Jason… Are you… Are you alone?”
Dick’s voice was hesitant. It alerted Jason immediately. Was there more bad news to add to the pile of crap Bruce’s disappearance had caused?
“Yeah, why?”
“I… Can I come over? I… I need to talk to you… It’s… It’s important. It concerns you directly.
"Hm.”
Jason chose not to argue or ask for more, if Dick wanted to see him in person then the problem was serious enough that he didn’t want anyone to know.
The man sighed.
He went to his kitchen and began to make coffee. He had a feeling he was going to need a huge dose of caffeine in his bloodstream to take in what Dick had to say.
*********
“I……. I’m not sure I got it all right, can you do it again?”
Dick sighed. This was the third time he’d repeated the same thing over and over.
“Marinette is Xia-Bing’s daughter, and yours by the same token.”
“ …. ”
“Yes, I did the tests again, over twenty times.”
“ … ”
“Yes, Leslie confirmed it.”
“ … ”
“No, Alfred didn’t know about it. He found out at the same time as Damian, and I did.”
“ … ”
“No Jay, I don’t know why Bruce lied to us all these years.”
“ … ”
“No, Damian won’t say anything right now. I managed to convince him to keep it a secret, I think Alfred talked to him too.”
“ ……… ”
“And… no, I don’t think Marinette knows. She calls Bruce ‘Daddy’. That’s why I came to you first. I want to know what you want to do… We tell her the truth… or…”
“ …… ”
Dick sighed.
“I’ll let you think about it. The family reunion is in a week. It would be nice if you knew what you wanted to do before then.”
Dick laid a hand on his shoulder.
“Whatever you decide, I’ll support you.”
Jason nodded vaguely.
It was impossible to tell how long he sat there on that couch, staring completely blankly. By the time he realized it, the sun had already set, it was night. Jason was completely in the dark.
He had a daughter.
With Xia-Bing.
The spoiled little girl he thought was his sister (and couldn’t stand) was actually his daughter.
Marinette-Jayna Wayne.
Bruce had given “Jayna” as her middle name.
Bruce…
Bruce had named this little girl “Jayna”.
Bruce…. Not only had he replaced him by giving the title of Robin to someone else… He had also…
He had dared….
He had transposed Jason onto Marinette…
Jason tried to calm himself by controlling his breathing, but he was finding it increasingly difficult.
A seething anger was consuming him. Xia-Bing had abandoned their child. She had abandoned the baby… She… WHY? Didn’t everything they had experienced together count for anything? If he hadn’t died, would she have had an abortion without telling him?
Just… WHY?!
How dare she?
WHY?
And that bastard ……………………….. HOW COULD HE KEEP SOMETHING LIKE THAT FROM HIM?
SHE WAS HIS DAUGHTER DAMN IT!
Was that bastard ever going to tell him the truth?!
Damn it…
Jason held his head with both hands. All he wanted to do was scream.
If he had known….
Hell, if he’d known Xia was pregnant, he never would have left.
He loved her.
Damn it.
He loved her so much.
That girl was everything to him.
She was a refuge.
She was his backbone, his strength.
Jason had plans…. For them.
He would do anything for her.
ANYTHING.
Even agreed to be a young parent. If she was the one giving him the child.
Xia… Why?
He had a daughter.
All these lost years….
All this time he thought he was alone, and now he found out he had someone who shared his flesh and blood.
Bruce had completely destroyed the girl. She was a little girl who had no sense of the value of the things around her. She was selfish, didn’t care what people thought as long as she got what she wanted. Hell… He had even heard from Tim that Bruce had given her an island as a birthday present… WHO GIVES AN ENTIRE ISLAND TO A 4-YEAR-OLD BABY?!
What to do?
Would Marinette accept it? She hardly knew him. They had hardly ever spoken together.
Did he want to take on the role of a father? After all this time… After all he had done?
Could he even judge Bruce? The man had given everything to Marinette. Would he have been able to give her that much affection?
Did he have the right to destroy a little girl’s life? Because it was bound to have an impact on her… From one day to the next, she would learn that the man she thought was her father was not…
Summary : What happened in Bruce’s head that made him decide to hide the existence of Jason’s daughter?
Chapter 3: Transposition
Leslie was in an awkward situation. She was looking at the baby in the crib. Normally, she would have reported that the mother had wanted to give birth anonymously and put the child up for adoption immediately. None of this had happened. Luckily, the staff in charge that night were close friends. None would ask questions about her actions.
What worried Leslie the most was what happened after the girl was delivered. The girl’s mother came back to her.
“ Can…I ask you something?”
“Certainly. Do you have any questions about your daughter’s recovery? Do you have anything you want to clarify?”
“It’s not that. The baby… It’s a little girl, right?
” Correct. “
"Marinette.”
“What?”
“Her name… Can you call her Marinette? That’s… The name I would have liked to give my daughter if I could have had one… Xia is my adopted daughter… So…”
“I see. Very well.”
“And… Just one more thing…”
“Yes?”
“You’re going to contact the family of my daughter’s ex-boyfriend I presume?”
Leslie remained silent.
“Once they get the baby back… Will you ask them if they’ll meet me? I’d like to… talk to them. The safety of this baby is at stake.”
“Mrs. Cheng, if there is anything I need to know about this child, it would be better-…”
“The less you know, the better it will be for you, believe me.”
The woman didn’t give Leslie time to respond, she quickly walked away and joined her family.
Leslie was no stranger to secrets. She was perfectly capable of keeping them. However, what this woman had just told her intrigued her to no end. She picked up her cell phone and dialed a number she knew by heart.
If there was anyone who could protect this baby, it was Bruce.
***********
Bruce was worried.
It was never a good sign when Leslie contacted him first. What worried him most was the fact that she had asked to speak with “Batman” and not “Bruce Wayne”. Plus, she had said “be careful, more than usual”. Was she in danger?
So it was on his guard that Batman slipped into the doctor’s residence.
“Bruce, is that you?”
“Doctor.”
Leslie turned on the light.
“Follow me. It will be easier to show you than to make a long speech.”
He followed her to a room he recognized as a bedroom. He immediately noticed the crib in the corner of it. Leslie approached the crib.
“Her name is Marinette.”
“Hmm.”
“Her mother’s name is Xia-Bing Cheng.”
“ ……………… ”
“Do I need to explain more?”
“Are you sure this baby.”
“I am the one who helped the girl give birth. Yes, I am sure that the baby is Xia-Bing’s.”
“That’s not what I-”
“I already performed a paternity test, Bruce.”
“ …………………….. ”
“I guess with all that time spent stopping crimes, it cut down your time to explain to your son that sex makes babies.”
Leslie was angry.
“ ………………………. ”
Bruce’s brain had stopped functioning. The only thing repeating on a loop in his mind was “Baby” and “Jason”. He stared at the baby who was sleeping peacefully in the crib. His son’s blood was flowing through this baby’s veins.
He was a grandfather.
Jason… would never know this baby.
What kind of father would Jason have been?
Probably a great one.
Bruce approached the crib. He took off his glove and brought his hand to the baby’s face. He stroked her cheek with one finger. Her skin was warm. A sign that the baby was alive.
Alive.
Not like Jason.
“I’m taking her with me.”
“Bruce…that’s not as-”
“Leslie. Starting today Bruce Wayne had a daughter with a woman who chose to leave him the child.”
“Bruce… There’s something you need to know first.”
He looked back at the speaker.
“The grandmother of the little girl is asking to see the parent who will adopt the baby. She has something important to say… Concerning…. Her safety.”
Bruce frowned further.
“I wanted to know more, but she told me that if I cared about life, it was better not to ask too much.”
“I see. Get in touch with the woman. I’ll talk to her. In the meantime, this baby is going back with me.”
“Very well. I’ll take care of everything else.”
“Leslie… Thanks for the heads-up.”
“Don’t make me regret this choice, Bruce.”
And so, little Marinette-Jayna Wayne came into his life.
Three days after Jayna arrived at the mansion, Leslie contacted him again. Mrs. Cheng was ready to meet him. She wanted the meeting to be as discreet as possible. Bruce agreed with these terms. It was better for Jayna’s safety that no one knew about his meeting with a married woman.
Of course, he didn’t wait for the woman to contact him to do his research. He had already begun his investigation when Jason had started dating Xia-Bing. At that point, it was just a simple inspection. He wanted to make sure that his son was safe by getting close to the Cheng family. Nothing had particularly drawn his attention to this family. Now that he was digging deeper into them, especially Mrs. Cheng, he realized that something was wrong. How come he hadn’t realized this detail before?
Oh yes… Jason had asked him not to “snoop” into his girlfriend’s life… He wanted to respect his son’s choice… It was a mistake.
Everything about Mrs. Cheng was actually fake. Her identity was purely fictitious, the people on her birth certificate did not exist. Her social security number was fake.
Mr. Cheng on the other hand was completely clean. There was no problem with his past. Everything was verifiable, the man obviously had nothing to hide. Which led to the most important question: did this man know that his wife simply did not exist? At least, administratively speaking, this woman was a ghost.
Bruce was going to have to be on his guard the day he met Madame Violeta Cheng. If Violeta was really her name…
On the day of the meeting, the woman was clearly not at ease. She sat nervously at the table of the restaurant that Bruce had previously reserved. He owned this restaurant, so he could have a room reserved if he wanted.
“Mr. Wayne, I was hoping you would be the one to receive me today.”
“Ms. Cheng, it’s a pleasure. I understand you have something to tell me?”
“ Exactly. But first, I’d like to be sure of one thing. Mrs. Thompkins told me that you would recognize Marinette as your daughter and not as your granddaughter?
"That’s right.”
“Perfect… Please don’t ever let anyone know that this little one is Xia-Bing’s daughter…”
“I understand your concern ma'am, but if I may ask, why are you so worried about a child you don’t want to be in charge of?”
“That’s precisely why I came to see you today. As I understand it… you have a connection with Batman, don’t you?”
“Hmm… Well…”
“That’s the only reason I left Marinette with you.”
“ … ”
“My birth name is Shan Sa Wu. I was abandoned at birth with my twin sister Fei at the gates of a temple. The master of the place adopted both of us. I was raised in the traditional art of Kung Fu for years. Things took a dramatic turn the day our adoptive father, An Chao Wu was murdered by a rival clan. They wanted something precious that my foster father was protecting. My sister and I had to separate to have the best chance of survival. I followed my father’s friends to Tibet, where I continued my training in a Shaolin temple. My sister kept the family jewel and joined another group of our father’s friends. I have never seen her since…”
“I’m sorry about that.”
“Thank you… But the reason I am telling you all this is because in that temple, I met my biological grandfather there. His name was Su-Han. He told me that the one I thought was my sister was not. He assured me that Fei wasn’t my biological sister. I was his one and only granddaughter. My father is said to be Tao-Han and my mother Bao Lee Fu.
Bruce was silent. Shan Sa was telling her story while twiddling her fingers. So far, she didn’t seem to have lied. At least her body language suggested she was telling the truth.
"My grandfather had never accepted the relationship between my parents, which was why both were expelled from the temple. There was a tradition that a family heirloom should be passed from grandchild to grandchild in the temple. My parents had been dishonored and had not received this family jewel. My grandfather decided that I was more worthy than my parents and gave me the item…”
Shan Sa then placed a small black box on the table. There was a red symbol on the lid. A kind of geometrical rosette. Bruce took the box and opened it. He took the object inside the box: it was a silver-colored ouroboros bracelet. He examined the jewel. It was a high-quality bracelet, obviously hand forged. Whoever had created this jewel was talented.
“This bracelet is supposed to bring good luck and good fortune to its wearer. Marinette being my first granddaughter, this bracelet is rightfully hers. Could you give it to her on her 6th birthday?”
“Why the 6th?”
“ It’ s the tradition… ”
“I see.”
“You don’t have to tell her the truth… Just… give it to her please?”
“Very well… Is there anything else?”
Shan Sa nervously began to bite her nail.
“Yes… This directly concerns my origins. My grandfather is a cruel man. If he finds out about Marinette, he will do anything to get her back.”
“Why would he do that? Isn’t Xia Bing your adopted daughter? I have a feeling that this Su-Han values blood above all.”
“Yes, you are right, and that is the problem.”
“You mean that…”
“Exactly. Xia Bing is actually my biological daughter. So that my grandfather wouldn’t find out about her, I asked my sister-in-law Mei Cheng to raise her as her own daughter. In reality, only Shu Yin is the biological daughter of my sister-in-law. I made everyone around me believe that I was sterile. No one ever knew the truth. And if you are wondering, no, my current husband is not the biological father of Xia Bing. But he doesn’t know that…”
This story was getting more and more complicated. Bruce felt like his head was going to explode due to the many questions he had.
“Let’s say so. In that case, why give this jewel to the child if it could put her in danger?”
“ Quite the opposite. As long as this jewel is with her, she will be protected. This jewel has been my guardian for all these years. I know Marinette will be safe.”
Bruce was skeptical. One thing was certain for him, Jayna would never have this jewel in her possession. There was no way his precious granddaughter could have a piece of jewelry that was the object of so much envy.
“Oh, one more thing, Mr. Wayne…”
Bruce then looked up at Shan Sa. He felt his eyelids grow heavy. What was that?
When Bruce came to his senses, he was in his car arriving at the Manor. This was very strange. He had to do some analysis on himself immediately.
Time passed. Jayna was now a very energetic and lively granddaughter. She filled his heart with joy. The more Bruce saw of her, the more he felt like he was seeing Jason.
It was apparently a problem.
It all started with Alfred.
“Master Bruce, I think it’s best that from now on you stop calling this child ‘Jayna’, but rather start calling her 'Marinette’.”
“I don’t follow you, Alfred. Jayna is also her name.”
“Bruce.Marinette is not Jason.”
“ …. ”
Then Dick too began to blame him for his behavior with HIS daughter.
“Bruce…you’re projecting Jason onto Marinette.”
“ … ”
“Can you believe it? She has very short hair for a little girl… She wears red clothes a lot… Her favorite dessert is Neapolitan ice cream… Doesn’t that remind you of someone?”
“ …. ”
Tim began to express concern.
“Bruce… I know you don’t like to talk about it but… I’m worried about Marinette.”
“Why?”
“That is… she… looks a lot like hmm… you know… Jason?”
“ ……… ”
Then came the date of Jayna’s sixth birthday. Bruce couldn’t remember much about that day. All he knew was that the next day, to his horror, Marinette was wearing the ouroboros bracelet he didn’t want her to wear. The problem was that he couldn’t take back from the child something he had obviously given himself. It would hurt her feelings. He would have to triple the vigilance around Jayna.
Two weeks later, Red Hood appeared in Gotham.
When Bruce discovered that behind Red Hood’s mask was his son Jason…
Summary: Dick and Damian discovered that Marinette Wayne should actually be called Marinette Todd. Let’s go back a few years and see what happened!
Jason Todd was the first boyfriend of a certain Xia-Bing. She sincerely loved him with all her heart. How did Jason and Xia-Bing meet? Why did they break up? Why didn’t Jason know he had a daughter?
Chapter 2: Crossing paths
Xia-Bing met Jason when he was still living on the streets of Gotham. She was sad after her parents died. With her sister, she had to live with her aunt and uncle. The couple owns several restaurants. She met Jason, while he was trying to escape from a group of men who were chasing him. Xia-Bing saved him.
She goes to give Jason her snack. At first, he refused. She insisted, saying, “Today it’s you, tomorrow it’s me”.
Jason accepted the gift, but he was still on his guard.
From that day on, Xia-Bing helped Jason as much as she could. Jason was grateful to her.
"Jay, are you sure just a sandwich is okay?”
“ Tell now that you think I’m a glutton!”
“Huh? No! Not at all! It’s just… I worry about you, Jay…”
“I told you Xia, I can take care of myself.”
“Hm…”
Then one day Jason disappeared.
Xia-Bing was worried, but she couldn’t say anything to anyone. Discreetly, several times she escaped from her aunt and uncle’s house to try to find Jason on the street, but she never succeeded.
Then, one morning…
“Hello everyone, today we have a new student. Please make him feel welcome. Introduce yourself.”
“Jason Todd.”
Xia-Bing thought she was going to fall out of her chair. Her eyes met Jason’s. He recognized her immediately. A slight smile formed on his lips. Xia-Bing felt her cheeks flush.
Jason is alive, Jason is fine…
After class, the first thing Xia-Bing did was to talk to Jason.
“Jay… How-”
“I’ve been adopted.”
“Really? That’s… Jay, that’s great!”
“Hm…
"I was… I was so worried about you.”
Her voice trembled slightly, but she still had a smile on her face. She didn’t want to cry in front of him, that would be extremely embarrassing for her. But seeing Jason again, knowing that he was okay, and best of all, that he finally had a place to spend the night, filled her with joy.
Jason looked at her for a moment in silence. He looked away and rose from his chair.
“I…you…should go join your friends.”
He got up and left the room in a hurry. Xia-Bing followed him with her eyes. She realized that her friends were waiting for her in front of the room, giving her curious looks. She joined them. Her friend Nadja was the first to speak.
“Do you know this guy?”
"Oh… Uh… Yeah… He… Used to live near my house before he moved out.”
“Uh-Uh… Close to your house, huh…”
“What’s up Nadja?”
It wasn’t Nadja who answered her though, but her second friend Amelie.
“Haven’t you heard Xia? This guy is Bruce Wayne’s new adopted son!”
“WHAT?!”
Xia-Bing was shocked. Jason had been adopted by the famous Bruce Wayne? That was strange, how could these two meets?
People can be so cruel sometimes.
Jason had a hard time fitting in with the class. The reason? He was from the poorest part of Gotham. The other students, all of whom were at least middle-class children, considered Jason to be inferior.
It was simply ridiculous!
Xia-Bing herself was the daughter of a famous Chinese chef and a famous pastry chef. She had been adopted by her uncle, but he was the owner of one of the largest restaurant chains in both America and China. She wasn’t what you would call “poor”. However, both her parents and her uncle refused to treat anyone differently because of their economic capital.
So, every day she came to talk with Jason. She went to eat with him. She would talk to him when he was in the library. Jason seemed embarrassed every time because of her behavior.
“Xia, you shouldn’t talk to me. You’ll get in trouble if you stay with me.”
“Jason… I’m not going to start ignoring you because of these jerks!”
“Look, I appreciate it but…”
“There’s no ‘but’, Jason. I care about you, we’re friends. A couple of rich kids aren’t going to change my mind.”
“ …. You know you’re a rich kid too, right?”
“You’re one too. Mr. Todd-Wayne.”
Jason smiled. He never said anything to her again after that exchange.
The beautiful thing about youth is that it’ s not afraid of anything.
“What did you just say?”
“A date… Could we… Go somewhere?”
Xia-Bing blinked several times. She was dreaming, wasn’t she?
“It’s…. You don’t have to accept Hmmm… You know what, forget it.”
“ H-HEY? What? NO! I mean YES!”
“Wait, what?”
“I… I’d like to go on a date with you Jason… I… it would be… cool.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah…”
“Cool.”
“Yeah…that’s…cool.”
They exchanged an awkward smile.
The two of them met at the entrance of the movie theater. Xia-Bing chose her outfit carefully. She wanted to be as pretty as possible to please Jason.
They went to the theater together. They held hands at the exit. Before leaving, Xia-Bing plucked up her courage and placed a kiss on Jason’s cheek before heading home, completely flustered.
Jason returned to the Manor; his face completely flushed. Bruce and Alfred teased him for several days.
Jason and Xia-Bing started dating officially.
He was her first boyfriend. She was happy with him.
It was an innocent, pure love. They often held hands. Kissing each other on the cheek.
Then came the school vacations.
Xia-Bing decided to make things official with her family. It was time to introduce Jason to her adoptive parents and her sister. Unfortunately, although her family was very courteous, she knew them well enough to know that her adoptive parents didn’t approve of her relationship. After Jason left, her doubts were confirmed.
“Xia-Bing, we are not going to stop you from seeing this boy. We will respect your choice but know that we do not approve. This boy has questionable origins and lives with an equally questionable man.”
“Uncle, it’s not Jason’s fault that his adoptive father has a bad reputation…”
“I don’t doubt that. That’s not the problem.”
“What is the problem then?”
“You’re not from the same world.”
Xia-Bing was more than a little annoyed by this. It was just like the students at his school. The ones who always told her to treat everyone as equals. What a bunch of hypocrites!
Yes, Jason was from a bad part of Gotham, so what? That’s not what defined him! Jason was Jason, no matter where he came from!
It was such a contrast to when she met Jason’s adopted family. She was welcomed with open arms.
“Xia-Bing I presume? It’s a pleasure to finally meet you, Jason talks about you all the time.”
“Really?”
“BRUCE!”
She watched with pleasure as her boyfriend was teased all evening by Bruce. Alfred was adorable. Jason also had an older brother who didn’t live in Gotham but in Blüdhaven. (She never met him).
They entered their first year of high school together. Luckily, they were in the same class.
Everything was going well, but Xia-Bing noticed that Jason sometimes had bruises. She was concerned. Jason told her that he was just in combat sports and that he sometimes got hurt. Xia-Bing was skeptical, but finally decided to trust him.
This wasn’t the main problem.
Xia-Bing couldn’t help but realize how handsome and hot her boyfriend was. Previously, their classmate had alluded to Jason’s background. Since they were in high school, things had changed.
Jason was attracting attention. Several girls in her grade were jealous of their relationship, especially after the first gym session. All the classes had sports at the same time the first year of high school. The sport of the day was soccer. Strangely, after seeing her boyfriend in his gym clothes, he became the center of attention.
“Did you see that boy with black hair? He’s super hot!”
“That’s Jason Todd, Bruce Wayne’s adopted son.”
“Seriously?”
“You think he’s single?”
“Nope, I think he’s dating a girl from 1-A.”
“Tss, why are the good-looking guys always taken?”
Xia-Bing couldn’t help but have a little satisfied chuckle. Yes, Jason was a good-looking guy. And more importantly, this handsome guy was 100% in love with her. He was HER lover. And she wouldn’t share him! EVER!
High school life brings with it many changes.
Xia-Bing wanted to take the next step in their relationship, but she didn’t dare tell Jason. She fantasized about him.
Completely.
But she finally got up the courage to tell him that she thought he was hot.
“Jay… you…you are super hot!”
“Uh, thanks?”
“ … ”
“ … ”
“ So… what are you reading these days?”
It was better to change her strategy.
Xia-Bing started to dress “sexier” on their date, hoping to get a reaction from him, but… Jason seemed…. Jason seemed completely unresponsive.
Finally, one day, as they were returning from a book signing by an author Jason loved, it started to rain. They took refuge together in the entrance of a building. The entrance was very wide and well covered. Xia-Bing was cold and hugged Jason. He wrapped his arms around her to keep her warm. She could hear Jason’s heart beating fast. Her heart was beating fast too. She could feel under Jason’s wet shirt, his strong body. Her cheeks were burning.
She then pulled away from Jason to look into his eyes.
She realized that he was looking at her intensely.
They kissed.
Things started to get out of hand when Jason put his hand under her skirt, and she pressed herself against him. They were forced to separate to catch their breath. Xia-Bing was blushing. It was the first time that she made this kind of thing with somebody. Jason also seemed embarrassed.
After this event, their kiss became more… intense. They began to touch each other. At first it was just petting. Things changed little by little.
Then Xia-Bing saw a golden opportunity when her uncle and aunt announced that they needed to go on a trip. Her older sister had decided to spend those three days at a friend’s house. Xia-Bing had the house to herself.
She invited Jason.
She had prepared herself psychologically.
He was her first boyfriend, she wanted to experience something special with him.
Jason agreed to come.
When he joined her, she realized she wasn’t the only one who was nervous. He seemed to understand why she had invited him.
They decided to watch a movie, to lighten the weird atmosphere between them.
Xia-Bing finally admitted to him that she had never done anything like this before…
“I love you… I love us… I want… to share something special with you. I… want… to have you… just for me… I’m… a bit selfish, aren’t I? But… You… You mean so much to me… If you want… and only if you want… I ”
Jason said nothing at first. He looked at her intensely. Then he gently ran his hand over her cheek and kissed her.
The two lost their virginity to each other.
Jason was supposed to stay only that night… He finally stayed the three days. He left the house shortly before the rest of her family arrived. But Xia-Bing was happy. It was the most intense and unforgettable three days of her life.
She and Jason grew closer after that. Afterwards, the two of them did it again two or three times… Sex was not a central part of their relationship. It was kind of a bonus.
Then one night, on the eve of the vacations, Jason told her that he had to go to Ethiopia for a while. He would come back to see her when he returned.
Jason never came back.
Xia-Bing was completely devastated. She cried for several weeks. Then things started to change. She felt tired and sad all the time.
She could already see herself spending her life with Jason…. She didn’t want to think about a world where he wasn’t there.
Some of the things she used to love made her want to throw up. She hated the sight of some books. She put it down to her sadness. Her family did the same.
Then one day, about nine months after Jason’s death, Xia-Bing was slowly getting over it. She felt a violent pain. At first she thought she had eaten something that she couldn’t digest. But as time passed, the pain became more and more unbearable. Her uncle decided to take her to the free clinic in Gotham, which was not far from their home.
Everything happened very quickly.
After a series of examinations, she was taken to a separate room where a woman, Dr. Thompkins, asked her a series of strange questions.
When was the last time she had a period? Had she ever had sex?
That was when the bombshell was dropped: Xia-Bing was pregnant and about to give birth.
She had gone into what was called denial of pregnancy.
She was terrified.
Without any preparation, without understanding what was happening to her, she gave birth to a baby girl.
This baby scared her. She didn’t even know she had one!
She felt humiliated.
Her adoptive parents were shocked, as was her sister.
This baby…. Came out of nowhere….
She didn’t want it!
Fortunately, her family agreed with her. Dr. Thompkins asked her if she could at least tell her who the father was, so she could make the necessary arrangements. Xia-Bing hesitated, but finally told the doctor that there was only one boy she had ever had sex with, and that boy’s name was Jason Todd, her now-deceased ex-boyfriend.
Dr. Thompkins suggested that the child be placed for adoption. That his family didn’t have to worry about it and that she would take care of everything. No one would ever know about it.
Her family thanked her and left the hospital, leaving the baby and the whole thing behind.
Everyone collectively decided that the incident never happened.
Three months later, the Cheng couple decided to move to Shanghai, her uncle’s hometown.
She left the United States.
Years later, she met her future husband, Thomas Dupain.
Xia-Bing became Sabine Cheng and later Sabine Dupain-Cheng.
Marinette is always the one who lives a great adventure with DC. And what if this time, it was Adrien’s turn?
Summary :
Adrien was happy at the beginning. One of the people who meant the most to him was also the person he loved the most in the world. He had made a promise to himself, no matter who was under the mask, he would love that person unconditionally… So, everything is fine, right?
Or Adrien is reincarnated when his life is at its lowest, to start a new life …….. EVEN WORSE THAN THE PREVIOUS ONE?
Adrien’s life had never been a fun one. He was a puppet in the hands of the adults around him. He lived to please others.
His father wanted him to be a model? He had become a model
His father wanted him to learn Chinese? He learned Chinese.
His father wanted him to study economics? He studied economics.
I just… want you to be proud of me… just once…
The only freedom he had was when he was chosen to become Cat Noir. He was free. No ties, no restrictions, no masters.
He could just be a cat.
Adrien met this wonderful girl who would become the love of his life. She was strong, she was beautiful, she was determined, she was confident. Everything he was not.
She was freedom.
Please save me.
So, clumsily, he tried to conquer this girl who made him daydream. He had only two references when it came to love. First, there were his parents. They had always done everything together, so naturally, he thought that was the most normal way to live a couple life. Always telling each other everything, never any secrets, showing love to each other. But…his mother was not there anymore. Her second reference was manga, more precisely Shojos. In the end, the girl always fell in love with the protagonist. Even if there was a first boy she fell in love with, with perseverance, the protagonist would get his way.
Adrian soon realized that real life wasn’t fiction. With time, he understood that he was just a bird locked in a diamond cage. Or rather a cat locked in a golden box.
The blond had noticed this especially when he saw his other friends interacting with their parents. The most striking was the parents of Marinette. These two loved each other to bits. They were complementary. Thomas Dupain respected and loved his wife. Sabine Cheng had a strong personality although she was a kind person. At home, it was different. Adrien remembered his parents together. His mother always did what his father told her to do. Her joy was her father’s joy. Emilie only listened to Gabriel. She had separated from her family to live with Gabriel. She had stolen the inheritance of the Graham de Vanily family for Gabriel…
Adrien knew it now, it wasn’t love… It was control.
Cat Noir allowed him to be away from it all… Away from the oppression… Away from the control… Away from the pain… Away from the sadness… Away from the loneliness.
Away from madness.
He clung to Ladybug like a lifeline. He needed her light, her smile, her strength.
Please… Somebody see me…
But heaven… He dropped from high… From so high.
Adrien discovered that his father was Hawkmoth.
After his father’s betrayal, Adrien felt completely helpless. He fought body and soul with Ladybug. He chose her. Together, they succeeded in defeating his father. Nathalie was in a serious state, her health had deteriorated in such a way, that she wasn’t in physical condition to be present at her trial. Nathalie died in the hospital. And his father ended up in jail. He was facing another trial for crimes against humanity, for having threatened world peace more than once.
Despite the pain of betrayal, the blond boy found that Ladybug was one of his best (and only) friends: Marinette Dupain-Cheng.
Adrien was happy at first. One of the people who meant the most to him was also the person he loved the most in the world. He had made a promise to himself, no matter who was under the mask, he would love this person unconditionally… So, everything was fine, right?
WHY DO I FEEL SO EMPTY?
Adrien got his answer about two years after his relationship with Marinette began. And Nino, who involuntarily gave him the answer he was looking for.
“It’s crazy when you think about it…”
“What, then?”
“You and Marinette, of course!”
“Marinette and me? What do you mean?”
“ Well… It’s funny, isn’t it? Marinette who was in love with you but not with Cat Noir and you in love with Ladybug, while seeing Marinette as just a friend.”
“ … ”
“In the end, you were in love with the same person. It’s still crazy when you think about it.”
Adrien went home that night with a very bitter taste in his mouth. Once installed in his bed, with his girlfriend at his side, he finally snapped and asked a simple question.
“Marinette, can I ask you a question?”
“Sure Honey, I’m listening.”
It’s funny but… This way of always listening to him, always doing what he asks… Always trying to please him was oddly annoying that night.
“When you were Ladybug, you pushed Cat Noir away because you had feelings for me, didn’t you?”
“Uh… Yes? But that was a long time ag-”
“What was Cat Noir to you?”
“My best friend, someone I could count on… A loyal partner… Why do you-”
“Cat Noir was a friend…”
“Yes?”
“Just a friend.”
“ Adrien… I don’t understand… ”
“I just wonder… If Cat Noir wasn’t me…”
He didn’t finish his question, because a memory came back to him: when Ladybug gave him the Miraculous of the snake as Adrien and the way the girl had behaved with Cat Noir… She had treated Cat Noir like a jerk but treated Adrien with kindness…
“…What are you implying Adrien?”
“I just thought of you as a friend, too.”
“Yes, I know.”
If Marinette hadn’t been Ladybug…… would he have had love feelings towards her? The answer was… probably not.
If Cat Noir wasn’t Adrien Agreste, would Ladybug have accepted his feelings? The answer was NO. Ladybug was with Cat Noir because he was Adrien Agreste. So… If Adrien had behaved in reverse… If… If he had been Cat Noir in his civilian life and had Adrien’s behavior when he was Cat Noir….
Adrien… The perfect creation of his father.
Adrien the model.
The nice Adrien…
Adrien the doll.
“Marinette… I… I’m going for a walk outside…”
“At this hour?”
He said nothing, changed quickly and left the apartment he shared with Marinette.
Marinette was Ladybug. But Marinette loved Adrien.
Marinette was Ladybug. Like him, she was one person, just one side of the same coin. Marinette was a friend. Ladybug was the love of his life.
He may have known that the two were the same… He may have known that Marinette had a crush on him for a long time… He may have been with his Lady… There was something that bothered him.
He was Adrian and he was Cat Noir. The two of them couldn’t be separated from each other. Marinette as Ladybug had been very clear: she was in love with a boy and only saw Cat Noir as a friend. That boy turned out to be him.
Well… “Him”.
That was the problem.
Who was this “him”? Who was this “Adrien” that Marinette was in love with?
Adrien himself didn’t know who he was. What he wanted, what he would do…. He had always let others choose for him. It was only natural that he let Marinette take “control” of their relationship. Wasn’t that normal? Kagami had done the same thing when they were dating.
Strangely, Ladybug had no problem with Cat Noir’s behavior. She didn’t hide anything from him anymore. He had had the right to receive several lessons about the role of a guardian.
For his part, Adrien no longer found Marinette’s behavior strange.
He was so obsessed by this question, that he even had nightmares about it! There was one nightmare in particular that had been recurring lately:
“Plagg…I…I don’t know why, but I feel so frustrated right now.”
“Hm-Hmm.You don’t know, or you don’t want to imagine it?”
“I… When I talked with Nino… I couldn’t help but wonder if…”
“If what Adrien? Go ahead and finish your sentence. You’ve been leaving your cheese half eaten lately. It would be nice if you started to finish the box.”
“I don’t know… I don’t know anymore… If…”
“If what, Adrien?”
“I don’t know where I stand anymore. I don’t know what I want… it’s been two years since my father went to prison and all I’m doing is continuing to do what he expected of me. I’m following the studies he chose for me… I’m not a model anymore, but I still model for Marinette from time to time… I… I… I don’t know what I want Plagg. I don’t know what I am… I…”
“ Adrien… I was wondering when you were going to realize it… Better late than never I guess.”
“Realize it? Realize what?”
Suddenly, Plagg turned into his father.
“That you are not free Adrian. You never were.”
Then someone whispered in his ear.
“Look at you… If we don’t tell you what to do, you’re as lost as a baby.
Adrien turned around to face Kagami. He was startled by her icy gaze and her Machiavellian smile. Someone grabbed him by the shoulder and turned him around. It was Chloe.
"Well then, Adrien, didn’t you hear?”
“W-What?”
“Your master is calling you.
"My… my what?”
When he turned back to the direction Chloe pointed, there was Marinette. She was holding a leash in her hand. Her smile was psychotic.
“Come on Adrien, after all I’ve done to get you, don’t think for a second that I’m going to let you get away.”
He was grabbed by two people he recognized as Alya and Nino.
Adrien screamed with all his might.
He woke up every time in his bed sweating.
What was his problem?
He had to be happy, right?
He had the girl he loved by his side.
Marinette’s family loved him.
He had friends.
WHY AM I SO ANGRY?!
The next few days were tense between Marinette and Adrian. He was not feeling well. Adrien suddenly felt like he was living someone else’s life. It was as if that conversation with Nino had given him a mental jolt and brought him back to reality.
One evening, as he was trying to get home as late as possible, something strange happened.
“Adrien Agreste?”
Adrien suddenly turned around and then, he felt a violent pain in his abdomen. The person who had called him had just stabbed him.
“Me alive, you or Marinette would never be happy, NEVER!”
He recognized the face of Lila Rossi.
Adrien felt himself fall to the ground. Lila took the opportunity to take the ring on his finger. It was his Miraculous.
Adrien closed his eyes.
*********
Adrien opened his eyes again. He was being carried. He couldn’t control anything.
"Congratulations Mr. Luthor, it’s a girl.”
“Hm.”
“Have you chosen a name?”
“Adrienne. She’s going to be called Adrienne Luthor.”
Several months after Jason’s death and after accepting Tim as his disciple, one night Batman returned with a baby.
“Master Bruce, may I ask who your lovely company is?”
“Her name is Marinette. She’s my daughter.”
Alfred frowned. Then Batman thought it best to add that he didn’t want to talk about it.
“Don’t ask me about her origins. The most important thing is that she is my daughter and from now on she will live with me at the Manor.”
“Understood.”
Alfred respected his choice. Tim didn’t seem too surprised, and Dick joked that he was amazed that Bruce didn’t have more children than that (a joke that would be banned after Damian arrived).
No one asked any more questions. The baby had black hair and blue eyes. Who would question her parentage to Bruce in this case?
She grew up in the Manor as Marinette Wayne. A lot of things happened after that: Barbara’s paralysis, Spoiler, then came Jason’s return, then Damian’s arrival.
The little girl knew many upheavals in her little life. However, Bruce had always made sure to protect her from outside dangers. Although she knew how to defend herself, she never put on a uniform and lived a “normal” civilian life (as normal as life could be in Gotham). Everyone knew that Bruce was extremely protective of Marinette. Including Damian. When he arrived at the house and tried to attack Marinette, Bruce was so angry that he managed to scare his son. Damian never tried anything in front of his father again (behind his back was another story).
The siblings all knew that Marinette was special. She was always treated differently from them. At first, since she was the only girl in the Manor, the boys thought it was probably the fact that she was Bruce’s only daughter.
Then Cass came along, and everyone just had to face the fact that Bruce just preferred Marinette. It was very annoying but understandable… After all, she was not a fighter (more like a puppy), she was a civilian (a cute one), so she was fragile (nobody can be afraid of that brat…).
Then came a day… A fateful day that changed absolutely everything in the life of the little girl, but also in the life of those around her.
Batman disappeared.
The little girl was orphaned. Wanting to get rid of the girl, Damian decided that the absence of his father was an opportunity to prove once and for all that he was the one and only son of Batman.
Dick, who was there at the time, told Damian that even if Marinette was adopted, it didn’t change the fact that she was their sister… until the test results came back.
At that very moment, only Damian and Dick were present in the Bat-cave.
“Damian… This is a very funny joke, I didn’t know you knew how to play pranks…”
“ … ”
“This is a prank, isn’t it?”
“ … ”
Dick then repeated the test, and the same result came out every time. But… It was impossible… How?! After his twentieth attempt, Dick had to accept the truth. If he could, he would resurrect Bruce and then kill him with his own hands. He didn’t understand… why?
Why had his adoptive father hidden such important information?
Then a sound of breaking glass was heard in the cave, almost startling Dick. Damian, who had seen the newcomer approaching, remained incredibly silent. Alfred was in the bat-cave, and by his completely horrified expression, he also ignored the truth.
The screen displayed the following DNA test result:
Biological father: Jason Todd
Biological mother: Sabine Cheng
***************
I don’t really plan to write a sequel, maybe if someone is interested I will. ^^
Summary:What would you do if you had the power of a god and could do anything you wanted? The answers are many. Marinette had one clear choice in mind: she wanted to live the life she never got to live as a Miraculous guardian. After sacrificing so much, she had a right to have a little fun, right?
She just didn’t plan on getting stuck in a time loop… Less now… She had her own harem…
Chapter 1: The genesis of a goddess
A young girl was sitting on the edge of a tall building. She was looking down at the city, while singing a song that had been in her head lately.
“You Know I love unicorns~”
Blüdhaven was a city that at first glance was not very charming. It was a very disparate city where extreme poverty and extreme wealth coexisted. It was also a city corrupted to the core.
And yet there she was, on that building, with her uniform ready to take action whenever the need arose.
“You know I love unicorns~ And that they make me feel better!”
Nightwing had left her alone tonight. He’ s her mentor in this life.
How many times had she played this little game? A dozen? A hundred? Thousands of times?
She couldn’t even remember why she was doing what she was doing… All this from being constantly ……..reincarnated.
3 million years ago.
Marinette had lived a life for others. She had sacrificed her teenage and adult life to be Ladybug. Her relationships had all ended in disaster, her life with her loved ones had become complicated. After all, having to lie all the time, not being able to have a stable job and not being able to keep promises didn’t help her to have a lasting social life.
“Master Marinette, have you decided who will be your successor?”
“ I…”
“Time is short. Have you even looked at the list that was sent to you?”
“Hmm.”
When she became ill and the Order of Guardians urged her to give the responsibility of the Miracle Box to someone… Marinette realized one thing: everything she had done had been for nothing.
Why did I sacrifice my whole life, only to have to forget everything in the end and die alone?
Why did I go to so much trouble to protect the Kwamis? How many masters have they already had? How many lives have they lived? I am only a thin breeze in their immortal life… I will soon be a memory that will disappear in an ocean of indifference.
Marinette closed her eyes for a moment. If only she had never met Master Fu, if only she had not accepted the responsibility of becoming Ladybug.
Who chooses children to become heroes?
In the end, after all those misadventures, all those nights of fighting, all those villains arrested, after all those accomplishments, all that was left was a huge void. Marinette regretted her choices; she regretted her life.
I wish I were free. Will I finally know freedom when I die?
Tears rolled down her cheeks.
If I could start over, if I could just erase everything… I wish my parents could have a child that would live up to their kindness. I wish I could live a real love story, meet the love of my life and have a beautiful wedding, a beautiful family… Not having to hide anymore. To live my life to the fullest as if every day was my last, to have no regrets…
Marinette closed her eyes again.
However, when she opened them again, she was no longer in a small room in the middle of Tibet. She was in a completely empty space. But really EMPTY. There was absolutely NOTHING.
Everything was white.
“What was going on? “
She looked around. Marinette couldn’t tell if there was a top or a bottom, if there was a right and a left. She didn’t know if she was floating or walking on something. How could she even move in this void?
Marinette started to move. No matter how hard she looked, there was absolutely nothing.
“HEYYYYY, is anyone here?!”
Unable to say how long she was in this place; she finally gave up the idea of finding another soul there.
So… Am I dead? What is this place, purgatory?! I spent my whole life saving people only to end up in nothingness?! SERIOUSLY?!
It wasn’t just these places that were strange. She didn’t recognize her body. She couldn’t see her face, but just by looking at her hands and feeling her body she could tell for sure: Marinette had gotten younger.
“I’m so bored… If only I had some snacks to pass the time…”
Suddenly, a reddish light emanated from her whole body. Then, a packet of cookies appeared in front of her. Marinette blinked several times.
“ … What the…”
She took the packet of cookies and opened it. It was a very ordinary package. How could this be possible? And that light emanating from her body… It was like Tikki’s power but without the magic ladybugs, just the red light. Did she have the same power as Tikki?
“Hmmm… I…. Want a soda.”
Nothing happens. Why didn’t anything happen? Was it a fluke? Worse yet, was she kidnapped and locked up somewhere?
“Hmm… Even a glass of water will do…”
The red light emanated from her body again and a glass of water appeared in front of her. Marinette understood that this strange phenomenon required one thing: she had to know exactly what she wanted. Marinette wanted to try something. It was risky but… She was dead anyway, or else locked in a crazy dream, so why not try?
Marinette closed her eyes and concentrated.
She began to imagine the universe, the stars, the planets… She remembered all the stories the Kwamis had told her about their trip into space. When she opened her eyes again, she was no longer in a completely empty white space. Or rather, it was still empty, but with colors this time. Marinette soon realized that she was probably in the middle of space… Just as she had imagined.
How come I can breathe in the void?
A little smile formed on her face. This dream was fun… She could create anything she wanted. Really?
So… Marinette could create a world just for her…
“Creating a whole universe is even tiring… Why would I bother creating everything? There must be somewhere a universe already formed, right?”
Marinette closed her eyes and concentrated hard. A powerful red light burst out of her body. When she opened her eyes, a huge portal had opened. A large smile appeared on her face. She entered the portal without the slightest hesitation.
marinette’s never met her soulmate but she has Superman’s symbol engraved on the small of her back
(having superhero’s symbols as a soulmark isn’t too uncommon. superhero fans’ soulmates might bare their mark if the hero is important enough to them so this wasn’t particularly suspicious or concerning to marinette)
damian, on the other hand, has no soul mark
when he was old enough to realize what this meant he thanked all the gods he could think of — that was one burden that he would never have to carry
(things never ended well for soulmates of league members. damian may have been a trained assassin (and a damn good one) but he wasn’t heartless)
now that he was older and out of his mothers clutches, his heart aches to think about his future
he has no desire for a romantic partner
(most soulmates were romantic. you were more likely to not have a soulmate than to have a platonic partner. (though damian was convinced those numbers were off — he thought the reason there were more romantic pairs than platonic pairs was because some soulmate pairs only dated due to societal pressure and not because of a true romantic interest. love can be so confusing sometimes))
long story short: damian and marinette meet when marinette moves to gotham for college
gotham is actually a great place for beginner designers to start out. the citizens absolutely love crazy and out-of-the-box fashion and will support just about any designer who’s not afraid to break the rules. and marinette loves breaking the rules
they slowly start to fall in love
*insert obligatory pining and heartache over falling in love with two people at the same time here
(marinette/ladybug (hawkmoth may be defeated but she’s still a hero, dammit and the JL asked for her help to patrol gotham while batman takes on a job out of town) and damian/robin)
and of course, the obligatory identity reveal where marinette’s friends/the batfam promptly freak out because they’ve been listening to their friend/brother pine over two different people WHO ARE ACTUALLY THE SAME PERSON for literal MONTHS now when they could have just been dating already
and of course (of course!) jon happens to be there and while the group is celebrating he gives damian and marinette a big celebratory hug (he just found out his best friend actually has a chance!! he’s excited okay)
when marinette and jon’s bare skin touch for the first time they realize they’re soulmates
(which honestly they should have realized sooner. jon’s soulmark is ladybug’s symbol. but they’re not that smart)
*insert obligatory freak out here
marinette and damian’s relationship gets rocky for a little bit
while their friends and family know that they have mutual feelings for one another, they never actually got the chance to confess
jon and marinette grow closer and eventually start to see each other as almost-siblings
damian, blinded by his feelings, sees them growing closer and thinks that they have romantic feelings for one another and slowly starts to attempt to withdraw from their lives
him being there was making things complicated. they were destined to be together. who was he to get in the way of that?
of course jon and marinette are having none of this
damian is an important figure in both of their lives and they are NOT letting him go. no matter what.
marinette eventually goes to confront him which leads to a very emotional conversation in damian’s room at the manor (he still lives there most of the time despite all of the times he’s threatened to move out, but if you bring it up he’ll legitimately throw a chair at you. ask jason. he’s found out the hard way a few too many times)
“Sometimes, I wish I had a soulmate,” he chuckles humorously, “I never used to think like that before I met you.” Marinette shifts in her seat, “Damian-” “I guess I didn’t really want a soulmate. I just wanted you. I wish it was you.” Marinette cups her hands around his cheeks, gently turning his head until she can gaze directly into his beautiful green eyes. She smiles softly, “Damian, you already have me.”
finally (finally), they get together (yayyyy!!) everyone celebrates!! a few years later damian and marinette get into a fight over who gets to have jon be their best man (marinette wins)
I’m working on, like, three different stories at once. But that’s fine!
Send me a one sentence prompt or line of dialogue, and a ship. It can be a romantic or platonic ship, just make sure to tell me which. I wanna do some drabblessssss
“I gotta say,” Jason’s voice was slightly tinny as Tim listened to him over their communicators. “This isn’t the plot twist that I expected when Harley asked for our help. I have so many mixed feelings right now.”
Tim just hummed. Adrien was behind him on his motorcycle, the extra helmet that Tim kept for Robin in the inevitable event that the menace stole his bike just for the hell of it being the only thing protecting the model’s identity as they zoomed through the Gotham streets. Marinette had been whisked away by Jason as soon as he had caught up to them, to only Marinette’s surprise.
It was her voice that Jason’s communicator picked up next, allowing Tim to hear a very muffled;
“Let’s wait to reveal it to you-know-who until after he dies, so that he can roll in his grave.”
That earned a snort from Tim, and a guffaw that nearly deafened everyone who was listening from Jason.
Tim muted his comms then, feeling how tense Adrien was behind him, and yet the boy was also… vibrating?
“You okay back there?” He called back. Adrien’s nod was so enthusiastic that he almost slammed his helmet into the back of Tim’s head.
“This is awesome!” He cheered back. That made Red Robin grin, taking the next sharp turn with just a little bit of extra lean to it for the younger boy’s sake. His effort was rewarded with a bright whoop of exhilaration as they tilted almost concerningly close to the pavement, making Tim chuckle fondly. At the end of the day, Adrien was still a very sheltered teenage boy who chased after freedom like a cat after a laser pointer.
And Tim, at least, was well equipped to deal with that.
Straightening them back up, Red Robin decided that they were definitely far enough away from the city to risk a little flair, and revved the motorcycle nice and loud as he raced through the last stretch of road and straight into the hidden cave entrance. Adrien’s entertained laughter was still echoing against the walls even as Tim skidded to a very flashy stop in the Batcave’s parking area.
Red Robin has a front row seat to seeing the oh so scary Red Hood pull in next to them in a very similar manner.
“Chicken!” Marinette cackled gleefully, playfully nudging Jason’s shoulder as they dismounted from the bike. “I would’ve done it!”
“I’m not doin’ a frontflip on a bike with a kid behind me,” Jason grumbled back, clearly amused as he crossed his arms. His helmet was probably hiding a goofy smirk. “Isn’t it enough that I went out of my way to catch a little air for you anyway? I let Replacement beat us back because you wanted me to show off.”
“And you disappointed me,” Marinette jokingly scolded, unable to keep a large smile off her face despite her words. “Chicken.”
“Okay,” Nightwing, clearly having barely been able to pull on his costume in time to meet them in the Cave, absently fixed his mask with one hand as he met them all halfway. “As adorable as you all are, there’s a reason we had to meet up.”
Marinette and Adrien didn’t recognize the redhead in a plain domino mask who was sitting behind a desk that looked like it had been moved to the cave very recently. The desk was almost like a short cubicle, the “legs” being one solid wall of wood that wrapped underneath it on three sides and even rose above the flat working area of the desk, blocking the entirety of the woman’s body below her shoulders. The domino mask obscured her eyes, but Marinette had the distinct feeling that she was looking right at her and Adrien.
“Wonderful segway, Nightwing,” she drawled sharply, never moving her gaze. “Magic, I’m used to. Villains? That’s normal life in Gotham. What I wanna know is how nobody’s connected the dots about you guys before us, because it doesn’t look like you knew how to do the whole secrecy thing in the beginning.”
“Way to ease them into the interrogation, Oracle,” Tim cut in before Marinette or Adrien had time to react, one brow visibly raised under his mask. Usually he was the one that had to be reigned in when it came to seeking information, but Oracle was always a very direct person where Tim preferred finding information from behind a screen or in physical records.
Adrien waved a hand dismissively as his eyes scanned the cavernous room before he grinned in satisfaction, leaping over a slightly unnatural amount of space to plop into the only rolling chair in the room, sending it sliding across the rock floor and spinning in sickening circles. Even as his entire image was blurred into streaks of color from the speed at which the chair was spinning him, he answered casually;
“That’s the thing about Miraculous magic. It uses you just as much as you use it.”
That wasn’t exactly the answer any of them were expecting. Even the lurking forms of Batman and Robin, who had yet to fully emerge from the shadows, looked visibly confused. Nightwing was the one who spoke up; “Uh, what?”
Marinette rolled her eyes at her partner’s usual antics, walking over and stopping his chair’s rapid rotation with one smooth stomp of her foot on one of its wheels. The sudden stop meant that momentum carried Adrien straight out of his perch, sending him flying forward and skidding to a stop at Nightwing’s feet. Luckily he had superb balance, and the only part of him to touch the concrete before he stopped skidding were his shoes… until his momentum came to an end and he let himself face plant into the ground with a groan. As if she had done nothing odd and their actions were completely normal, Marinette decided to translate.
“What he means is that Miraculous magic isn’t like other types of magic. It has its own very concrete checks and balances in place that we cannot change or break. One such rule is that nobody is able to figure out the identity of a Miraculous user unless they see that user transform right in front of them, or the Guardian, Ladybug, or Black Cat specifically want someone to connect the dots, and personally provide evidence for that person or people to do so. Which is one of many reasons behind us still having no idea who HawkMoth is.”
“And why we had to come here and deliver the USB of evidence in person,” Adrien added, peeling his face off the concrete and happily sitting cross-cross on the ground. “Shipping it over wouldn’t just have been risky, it wouldn’t have worked regardless of who ended up with it. You just would have seen what was going on in Paris, and probably would have headed straight over to the city with no way of knowing who we were or recognizing our civilian selves even if we said something like ‘hi, I’m not Chat Noir at all. Look away while I totally do not duck into this alleyway to transform into Chat Noir.’”
“Yeah, that’s the other thing,” Marinette agreed with a sigh. “We’re conditioned to not actually admit our identities to anyone who doesn’t already know. We haven’t figured out if that one’s actually magic or just our old mentor being really good at mind tricks and gaslighting.”
“That sounds… complicated,” Batman grumbled, pinching the bridge of his nose. He finally came out into the light, but the lack of reaction from Adrien or Marinette clued everyone into the fact that they had both known that he and Robin had been present the whole time.
They didn’t, however, notice Robin’s small grin at that observation. Only Oracle did, who had to suppress her own smirk as she made a mental note.
“And shitty,” Jason agreed, his stance taking on a new layer of rigidity that spoke of very carefully suppressed anger. “Your mentor gaslit you? As if choosing kids to fight a grown man without even providing any noticeable backup wasn’t enough,” the last few words tore themselves out of his throat in a guttural growl.
Marinette sat down in the rolling chair that Adrien had just taken for a joyride a minute ago, crossing her legs and nodding.
“He didn’t know what he was doing,” she agreed easily. “All he knew was what the organization in charge of protecting the Miraculous taught him, but that was almost two hundred years ago. The organization was all but destroyed while he was still in training, and he was only barely able to escape with his life and the box of Miraculous. Minus two, the Butterfly and the Peacock, which were lost during the destruction of the Order of the Miraculous and are now being used to hold Paris hostage.”
Batman’s eyebrows rose under his cowl. “Two hundred years ago? How did he live to be so old?” His tone was noticeably suspicious. Adrien was the one that answered that one, leaning back on his hands and looking as comfortable as could be.
“He was the only person left alive who could protect the Miraculous box,” he started. “So the magic of the box kept him alive, slowing his aging until he was able to train successors.”
“Those successors being you two, clearly,” Red Robin drawled, supremely unimpressed. Marinette and Adrien just nodded, wearing matching grimaces.
“I can fill you in on the details later, but HawkMoth and Mayura were able to bring back the thing that destroyed the old Order,” Marinette crosses her arms, frowning as she stared off into some third space nobody else could see. “We got rid of it, but not without our old mentor sustaining massive damage. Shortly after, he was forced to retire and passed his official Guardianship onto me. Unfortunately, destroying that Amok— the creature that destroyed the Order— brought that very same order back. Long story short, the Amok had trapped them in a pocket dimension where time was completely frozen. It took them a while to recover and adjust to the new time period, but their methods are very outdated—“
“They are a misogynistic pain in our ass,” Adrien cheerfully summed up. “They refuse to accept that Marinette and I are technically the leaders of the whole Order now, what with our official Guardianship over the box that the Order was formed to protect in the first place. Especially since Marinette is the Grand Guardian— the highest position you can get in the Order— since that’s the title our old mentor gave her. She’s both a kid and an ‘inferior,’” Adrien used very pointed finger quotations, “girl in their minds, so they always try to undermine her authority and have just slowed down our investigation and our whole fight in Paris. It’s ridiculous.”
Marinette nodded firmly. “Utterly ridiculous,” she and Adrien shared a brief smirk before focusing again. “But we can talk more about that later. Taking HawkMoth down is our priority, I can deal with the Order’s idiocy just fine in the meantime. So,” she leaned forward and braced her forearms on her knees. “What do you need to know to help with your investigation into Hawkmoth’s identity?”
The Bats, now fully in their element, took turns asking questions and occasionally bringing pictures or videos of the Paris situation up on the Batcomputer to aid in their discussions. They went over the areas that Marinette and Adrien were able to narrow down as Hawkmoth’s favorite areas to target (the fact that their own school was top of the list sent all of the Bat’s blood pressures skyrocketing), the times that he was most active, the evolution of his methods, and the escalation of severity as his reign went on. Eventually they arrived upon a video that showed Ladybug being tossed straight through several buildings, and then being slammed into the metal foundation of the Eiffel Tower by a particularly skilled and dangerous Akuma and Amok team.
Nightwing pointed up at that video, face grim. “I know you said that not every attack is capable of being documented,” he began carefully. “But how often does this sort of thing happen? Considering both you and Adrien’s high level of skill and experience with Akuma attacks…” he trailed off as the video showed Ladybug almost immediately getting back up and going back on the offensive, albeit with a little bit of a limp and favoring her right side.
“And that recovery time is…” Oracle added, mouth taut and body language (what little was visible) noticeably taut. “You already explained the abilities your suits give you, and I know it protects you from being shot or cut by normal means. But blunt trauma— please tell me your suits also dampen your pain.”
Robin and Red Hood nodded, both looking perturbed although they hid it pretty well. The video compilation that was currently playing showed the hardest hits that both heroes had taken; those that were able to be filmed, that is. There was noticeable difference, though, which Batman brought up before either of the Parisian heroes could answer Oracle’s question.
“I don’t find that likely,” he said as he crossed his arms. “Chat Noir takes considerably longer to get back up and recover from heavy hits, and Ladybug doesn’t show proper consideration for the injuries she receives. The way she tends to step too heavy on twisted or broken ankles, accidentally punch with a wounded arm— things that make her stumble or dramatically affect the strength of her attacks,” Batman’s eyes slid behind his cowl to land on Marinette. She did her best not to squirm, able to feel his heavy gaze on her easily. “Chat noir might take longer to recover, but he handles actual combat after a heavy hit noticeably better. That wouldn’t make sense if they had the same dulled reaction to pain.”
“And that kind of deduction, Ladies and Gents, is why we came to you for help,” Adrien quipped with cheerful finger guns. “Our suits don’t dampen any sensation, including pain,” he gestured over to his partner. “She just has a crazy level of natural pain tolerance,” Adrien explained with a shrug. “Like, ridiculous pain tolerance. She sometimes gets so focused on the fight that she is able to completely forget where she’s hurt, until she makes a misstep and is not-so-kindly reminded.”
Marinette felt like a bug under a microscope with how all of the Bats’ attention immediately turned on her again. She grimaced, having a pretty good idea of what was going through their heads.
“It’s not medical,” she explained, tapping her fingers on her knee in an attempt to drain out some of her nervous energy. “My parents noticed pretty early on and had me checked out for any issues with my nerves or pain receptors. They, understandably, thought that it might be something I inherited from you-know-who, or even from Mom. But after several tests, the doctors said that all of my nerves and pain receptors were functioning completely normally. I feel pain just as vividly and accurately as anyone else, a stubbed toe or broken bone for me feels exactly as it would for you. I just don’t… I guess it just doesn’t bother me as much, for some reason,” she ran a hand through her bangs, staring at the floor as she ran through her memories. “The doctors suggested that it might be something psychological. Maybe a chemical imbalance or something that prevents my brain from fully reacting to pain signals that it receives. But my parents decided that they didn’t want me to go through any psychological evaluations or anything, because it doesn’t affect my overall health and they didn’t want me to grow up thinking something was wrong with me or that I was crazy. Plus, we all have a pretty good idea where the trait comes from anyway so there was no need to look into it any further.”
Batman looked back to the video that was still playing on mute. That… made sense. If she still felt pain vividly then, regardless of her overall tolerance, suddenly putting weight on a broken ankle or dislocated shoulder was bound to shock her body and momentarily distract her or make her buckle, putting her in an understandably vulnerable position. Not to mention that ignoring her wounds made her forget not to use arms or legs that might be weak or unable to move well, impeding her flow in battle and damaging her attack strength.
“So, when you chugged steaming hot coffee before the tours,” Red Hood spoke up, arms crossed but somehow not looking that concerned. It was hard to read him with the helmet, but Marinette got the sense that he was just trying to sort things out in his head rather than being legitimately concerned about anything. “You felt the stuff burn your throat, but you just don’t care?”
“Basically, yeah,” Marinette agreed with a shrug. “It doesn’t bother me. Like, it hurts, yeah. But the scandalized look on Adrien’s face was worth it, and it’s easy to ignore that the pain’s even there as long as I have something else to focus on. Even just joking around with a friend is more than enough to take care of that.”
Batman’s thoughtful hum brought Adrien and Marinette’s attention over to him, where he had one hand gently cupping his chin in thought.
“That does seem to match up,” he admitted casually. “All in all, not the worst thing to inherit. But it does present an issue,” Batman lowered his hand, his mouth in a half-frown. “In and of itself, it’s not that big of a deal. You would benefit from some training so that you don’t hinder yourself as much when you’re fighting, but that’s not too hard for us to help teach you. We can help Adrien with his recovery time and ability to shake off shock too, so that he isn’t vulnerable for as long when he’s knocked down. But Harley doesn’t have that particular tolerance, ignoring pain is something she took a long time to learn and even then it’s mostly an act she’s perfected after years of building up her normal pain tolerance the hard way. But if That Man finds out that you share that trait of his,” he trailed off, allowing the teens to let their imagination fill the gaps. Marinette and Adrien shared a grimace.
“Point taken,” she admitted after a moment. “But I might need some help reacting more normally, since that’s probably a good idea if I want to be easily overlooked. I’ve never really had to hide my pain tolerance before and I… don’t really know how people normally react to different levels of pain,” she turned to Adrien, asking him; “I take it just saying ‘ouch’ doesn’t cover it?” She half-joked.
Adrien snorted, patting her head mock-condescendingly. “Not even close, bugaboo.”
The batboys all looked… oddly amused? They were trying to hide grins and swapping secretive looks with one another. It was actually Oracle, who had mostly been silent making notes on her laptop during the meeting, who snorted and commented;
“Your parents must be fucking saints to raise someone as ridiculously pure as you,” she said as she grinned. “It’s honestly refreshing. Most heroes, especially those to get an early start like most of us here, didn’t have the greatest home life outside of heroism.”
Adrien perked up at that, his usual grin widening into a huge grin. “You mean I actually fit in?!”
Marinette choked on air, turning and giving him a gentle wack over the back of his head. “That’s not something to be proud of!”
“Hey, that makes me normal in the hero circles,” Adrien was still ridiculously happy, laughing without seeming to acknowledge how fucked up the conversation had become. “I’m never normal, this is great!”
The batboys all shared groans, Batman was just staring at him blankly, and Red Robin looked like he was dying inside even as he laughed. Robin snapped over to his father, tugging on his cape insistently.
“I do not want any more brothers. Don’t you dare adopt him.”
“Father would never allow it anyway,” Adrien interrupted with a shrug. “So no worries. He’d never let his only son out of his iron control. That being said, I don’t want anyone else to have to deal with the same situation, so can we go ahead and switch to planning how we keep Mari’s identity secret and Joker in the dark?” He was glad for their help with the Paris situation, to be sure, but he felt like they had covered the most important parts already. They had plenty of time later to go over the fine details and set plans in motion for HawkMoth, now he felt it was time to focus on the more immediate threat.
The room went silent for a moment as everyone was, somewhat unnecessarily, reminded about Joker and the threat he currently posed to Marinette. Batman was the one to take a breath and open a drawer in the desk underneath the Batcomputer. He slid the two packets of paper he grabbed over the metal debriefing table that they were all gathered around, sending them gliding over the smooth surface to land neatly in front of both Marinette and Adrien.
“That is the list of procedures and protocols that we have created to assure your safety while in Gotham,” he explained simply. “We began developing that list since the day that Harley first asked for our help protecting you. Not all of our plans are written down—“
“Batman is chronically paranoid and passed that trait down to all of us,” Nightwing interrupted with a lopsided grin. “It wouldn’t be safe to write all of our plans down in one place, but those are the ones that you guys might want to familiarize yourselves with the most. The backup plans that we have stored elsewhere are not likely to be needed, but better off staying where we have them.”
Namely, Nightwing thought to himself, those backup plans were better off only being stored in their brains rather than anywhere that Joker could actually find them.
Marinette and Adrien seemed to understand this, nodding absently as they both began to flip through the packet of paper and glance over it. The room had descended into mostly silence as the Bats started to each to their own thing to unwind or just fill the downtime as the Parisians read. Every now and then they would ask Batman or Robin for clarification on a few items in the packet, but otherwise the room of heroes sank into a sort of half-break from their long session of debriefing.
Just as Marinette and Adrien flipped to the last page of the Anti Joker-Kidnapping packet, footsteps echoed off the metal stairs that led somewhere high up that Marinette and Adrien did their best not to think too hard about. The sudden sound and its implications made them both stiffen in unease. The Bats didn’t seem too concerned as a young man came down the stairs with his eyes firmly directed down at his phone, humming softly to whatever he was listening to on his headphones.
Until an important detail sank in that made the Bats realize that they had forgotten something, and they also tensed up, silently cursing their oversight.
Marinette and Adrien immediately noticed the newcomer’s lack of mask, trading glances as they grimaced. It wasn’t until the young man had finished descending the steps that he looked up and froze. His brown eyes instantly blew wide open.
“Uh. What’s going on? Who are the civvies?”
Damian, chaos gremlin that he was at heart, interrupted the ensuing silence with;
“Welcome back, Thomas. And you know that civilians are not allowed in the Batcave, these are heroes from Paris. Meet Ladybug and Chat Noir.”
—*—*—*—*—*
Author’sNote: This is the first time that I’m ever making an attempt to write Duke Thomas, tbh. I was hesitant on adding him to the story, since I don’t really know a lot about him, but reading him in a bunch of fanfic made me take the plunge. He’s so well written in a lot stories, and I already focus pretty heavily on the main four wayne boys, a little more diversity is probably needed in my writing anyway. I don’t even write the girls very often, because I just don’t have as good of a handle on their characters or how to write them— rip Steph, who has yet to really appear in any of my fics for this exact reason. But I’m trying to do more research and gradually add more characters in the Wayne family and adjacent, so we’ll see how I do! I think Duke is my first major attempt at adding a character I don’t really know much about, because from what I’ve seen so far, he has a pretty distinct personality and seems really fun to write. Plus, for some weird reason, I have a much easier time writing guy characters than girls. Which makes literally 0 sense, but whatever. If you have any suggestions for me to write Duke as well as possible, please tell me in the notes!
Marinette woke up, her eyes and throat burning as she rolled over blinking the sleep from her eyes, the haze not clearing as she did so. Instead her eyes only stung more.
That wasn’t right.
She sat up, the smell of smoke finally registering in her sleep-addled brain kicking her into high gear. She was on one of the top floors which made evacuating a bit more hazardous, not that she was concerned. First thing was getting the important things. The grimoires and Miracle Box.
Smoke inhalation. That was a bad thing. A bad thing she was currently doing. Great. She grabbed her messenger bag and a scrap of fabric, tying the second over her nose and mouth, ignoring the small part of her in the back of her head that wondered if it was supposed to be wet. She didn’t have the time or means to do that at the moment and something was better than nothing in any case.
She shoved her feet into the sneakers that lay next to her door, praying she wouldn’t trip over her shoe laces as she quickly hurried down the hall into the guest room, picking up her sewing kit holding the Miracle Box and shoving the grimoires and photo albums for her memories into her messenger bag, zipping it shut and heading back out, barely taking a step out when a beam fell crosswise into the hallway.
Merde.
This is fine. The building’s structure is weakening is all. It’s fine.
She held her breath, squinting her eyes against the harsh air, taking the fastest, softest steps she could as she gained speed, vaulting over the bean realizing halfway through that that was a bad idea, as the ground underneath her foot broke away from the pressure of her pushing off which only meant nothing good could come from her landing.
She grit her teeth, already moving when she landed, trying to keep her movement moving forward despite the ground breaking away underfoot a half step behind her as she burst out into the main hall where she was met with fallen beams and fallen floor. And flames. Large flames.
Perfect.
Just great.
She glanced around, all the doors appeared open which was good. Her neighbors had gotten out then. She was about to try to pick her way to the opposite side of the hall where both the staircases and fire escapes were, a great design job there, when the window behind her shattered and hanging there was one of the local vigilantes. Nightwing.
“Need a hand?”
“Please!”
“How comfortable are you with jumping out here?”
“How confident are you that you’ll catch me?”
“Without the box and bag. Extremely. Didn’t anyone ever tell you you should leave your belongings in case of a fire?”
“You can pry it from my charred body. It’s coming.”
“Okay then. When you’re ready.”
Marinette double checked her hold on the box and swung the messenger bag so it hung on the same side of her body as the box was held before leaping out of the window completely airborne for a moment before feeling a strong arm wrap around her, trying to halt her momentum, she helped wrapping her arm around him before locking her legs around his waist, and her arm around his neck freeing his hand up.
“Nice catch.”
“Nice reaction time.”
She held on as he unlocked the stop holding them in place just outside the window, the two beginning their descent as she pulled the makeshift mask off her face.
“How are you holding up?”
“My eyes and throat are burning, my apartments destroyed, probably slightly burned, so. I’m doing great. Thanks for the rescue.”
“I’m glad I could help save such a pretty lady.”
She laughed as he said that, a faint blush rising onto her cheeks as she let out a small cough.
They’d barely touched the ground, Marinette unwrapping herself from the vigilante, the dryness and cough in her throat getting worse, before her world faded to black.
I don’t know why, but this chapter was so hard to finish omfg. I’m sorry if the ending is a little awkward and not as well written as usual, I blanked hard.
—*—*—*—*—*
It was only six in the morning. Tim had already left the manor half an hour earlier, on his way to pick Marinette up from Ivy and Harley’s place and deliver her back to the hotel. Right as Bruce was about to call him, he got a text from Tim saying that Harley and Ivy’s apartment was empty but covered in very angry looking plants. Sending only a quick response ordering Tim to start a search with a Code Green, he closed his phone again and turned back to the two very wound-up ex-villains in his foyer.
“Put the bat down, Harley,” Bruce nodded to the weapon that she was still holding, ready to use at a moment’s notice. “Red Robin is already starting a search. But even though I have him on high alert, I doubt it’s Joker. Marinette and Adrien were both staying with you and Pamela, right?”
Heaving a sigh, Harley reluctantly lowered her bat and propped it up against a wall as Ivy fixed the doors that she had partially ripped off of their hinges. Luckily the door was all wood, so Ivy could actually work with it and get it back in its proper position and quality.
Truth be told, Ivy still had some issues equating her old nemesis Batman with her… actually fairly good image of Bruce Wayne. Sure, there was that one incident where she accidentally mistook the Wayne Enterprises tearing down rainforests thing as something Bruce had actually been a part of (spoiler, she later found out that it was done behind Bruce’s back and he had gotten some very tasty, if perfectly legal, justice against the people responsible) and almost killed his butler Alfred in the process of trying to get revenge for said rainforests…
But she made up for it later. That was all in the past, and Alfred… Well, he was never scared of her. But Ivy knew by now that if Alfred had truly held that old grievance against her, then she would likely be dead. The butler was not one to be underestimated.
Regardless, Harley was the one that figured out Batman’s identity first. In fact, Harley had figured it out even before fully separating from Joker. But Ivy’s fianceé was really good at keeping secrets when she wanted to be. Harley hadn’t even come clean and told Ivy about the Bat’s true identity until the week after they got engaged, a little over a year ago.
And Poison Ivy didn’t exactly have any legitimate reason to visit the Wayne Manor often, so she was still having problems seeing The Bat when she looked at the face of Bruce Wayne, the slightly airheaded but very well-meaning conservationist.
“That’s right,” Harley was answering Bruce as Ivy listened in. “We let her and Adrien sleep in the living room, we had tons of blankets and pillows laid out. Adrien said he’d never had a real sleepover before, and Frank was there to chaperone so we didn’t think much of it. But then this morning, Pam woke me up and said that Frank and the other plants in the house were sending up a silent alarm,” Harley looked back to Ivy, so she could explain better what the foliage had told her.
“I wasn’t panicked, at first,” she explained. “Frank and the flowers were all giggling, something about Marinette and Adrien sneaking off to the bathroom together. But that didn’t make sense to me, since they’re about as platonic as you can get. So I woke Harley up to investigate, and the bathroom was unlocked. No sign of the kids. Adrien’s bags are still at the apartment, but Marinette’s backpack and purse are gone.”
“Are ya sure this isn’t Joker, Bruce?” Harley asked softly, eyebrows pinched in worry. Theoretically, she should know best. After all, Harley spent more time alone with the joker than pretty much anyone else still alive. Hell, she used to be his fucking therapist. But Batman was the only one who could truly claim to know the guy, who actually had an idea how he behaved and how to predict his erratic actions to some degree. Harley trusted Bruce’s knowledge of Joker more than her own.
Bruce pursed his lips, but didn’t seem panicked. “I do have a theory,” he admitted slowly, briefly making eye contact with Damian. His youngest son quickly nodded, taking off at a brisk pace out of the room— probably to the Batcave. “But no, I don’t think this was Joker. Tim would have already texted Jason, though, so that’s two of them searching the city for her or any movements from Joker just in case. We do know that he’s more than capable of quick, silent kidnappings, but that was mostly when you helped him with them, Harley. With only himself and his usual thugs, he’s had to rely on brute strength more often than not when he wants to be intimidating. Sneaking into your apartment, or more specifically your bathroom, under not only you and Pamela’s nose, but also without any of the plants catching him first? Or your hyenas? Not a high possibility,” he shook his head.
“Then what’s your theory?” Ivy asked, eyes narrowed. Putting aside her old impressions about Bruce, she instead tried to focus on what she knew about Batman. And this was a pretty easy tell; Batman didn’t admit to having theories unless he was almost certain he was right. And even on the rare occasion that he’s wrong, he’s always at least close to the truth. Bruce frowned at her— and yeah, she recognized that frown even without the cowl. Ivy’s glare deepened. “Don’t get all stubborn on us now, Bats. This isn’t just anybody, if you have a theory about our daughter I wanna hear it.”
Harley straightened up a little, the confirmation that Bruce didn’t think this was related to Joker meant that she was able to relax a little. Enough for Ivy’s words to shoot straight through her heart, and she spun around to look at her fiancée while mouthing the words ‘our daughter’ silently. If Harley had a few happy tears in her eyes, nobody mentioned it.
Bruce’s frown stayed in place as he pulled his usual prolonged silence schtick. Harley (still a little starry eyed) and Ivy both waited him out patiently. They weren’t leaving his manor until they found out for sure where Marinette and Adrien were, so in their minds he could stall all he wanted. They weren’t moving an inch.
Eventually he seemed to realize this, and chose his words very, very carefully.
“… Marinette has actually been in contact with us, the Bat side of us,” he admitted evenly, drawing out the sentence almost too slowly. “Before you ask why, I’m getting there. According to her, there is a… situation, in France, that she is acting as a civilian aide for. Though upon closer investigation, it seems that Marinette is stepping slightly over the line of ‘civilian aide’ and into the territory of a more involved informant. She actually told us about an issue with the JLE that they were able to keep a secret from our main branch,” Bruce kept careful eye contact with both women as he spoke. “It seems that she had actually entered the WE scholastic competition as a plan to come here to Gotham behind your backs, for the primary purpose of requesting our aid with the situation in France. Again, we have done investigation into it over the past few days and have found everything to be legitimate. However—“ he held up a hand to stop Harley from saying whatever she was about to say. She looked angry, and Bruce didn’t want to hear it yet. “Before you accuse me of anything, let me make this very clear. She approached us for help, and we accepted. We are not involving her in our investigation beyond asking for whatever she already knows, and we are not putting her in the field in any way, shape, or form. We are still primarily focused on her safety while she is in Gotham, and anything we might do with the Paris situation will be handled from here on directly with the Parisian heroes that she has acted as an aide for up until now. And even though Marinette has not said anything about it, we do suspect that Adrien is also a civilian aide for the same heroes, if less involved because of his strict household.”
“…” Harley and Ivy shared a long look with each other, before Harley slowly let out a deep sigh. “I’ve said it once, I’ll say it again. I have no idea how I gave birth to such a goodie goodie,” she turned from her fiancée and back to Bruce. “But you swear she’s not fightin’? Even with her training, she’s not goin’ out there in a mask like your kids?”
“Harley,” Bruce said evenly, letting himself even give her a small grin. “If your daughter ever becomes a hero or vigilante, you have my word that I’ll buy you and Pamela your own condo— no, mansion if you want one. In the diamond district if you want.”
“Get us a good yard,” Ivy instantly piped up. She shrugged when Harley shot her a dirty look. “What? Even if it’s not likely, we might as well be prepared. At this point, I’m not gonna think of anything as impossible when it comes to Marigold. She snuck away from the both of us without a hitch.”
Harley grumbled a little, conceding to that being true. “Anyway, Brucie,” she once again locked eyes with the billionaire. “What does all that have to do with Mari and Adrien sneaking out? You think they were giving those French heroes you mentioned a report or something? Why not come right back inside if that’s the case?”
Bruce shrugged. “We know that one of the Parisian heroes is capable of teleportation. It could be that they felt it best to have their discussion somewhere more secure than an apartment complex in Gotham City. Regardless, I’ll head out on patrol right now with Red Robin and Red Hood if you want to be extra careful. Robin is already on the computer monitoring the internet feeds and cameras. The two of you should go back home immediately,” his face got very serious very quickly. “The thing that worries me more than Marinette and Adrien sneaking out, is Joker noticing that you guys left your house in such a hurry. If he starts asking questions about why you both came to visit me in such a frenzy, with weapons and powers on display…”
Harley and Ivy immediately grimaced. They’d have to come up with a cover story, the Gotham underground was full of dirty gossips that would spread word of their weird behavior in no time if they hadn’t already.
“We’ll tell Marinette and Adrien to steer clear of our apartment for a while, and to act as if they don’t know us if they see us,” Ivy assured Bruce. “Until we know for sure that things have cooled down, we’ll keep more distance.”
Bruce nodded. “That’s for the best, for now. No visits to her hotel, either. I shouldn’t have to tell you that any connection between you and where the class is staying is far too risky. If you have to, say that Damian tried to steal one of your pets again, Harley. It would hardly be the first time.”
“He’s not getting Joe, no matter how much he offers me!” Harley immediately yelled back, arms crossed.
“You’ve tried to steal his pets too, Harley. Don’t act innocent,” and suddenly Ivy was entirely disillusioned. Bruce looked exactly like every other tired dad all of a sudden, the bags under his eyes more obvious than ever and the long suffering look on his face provoking sympathy. This guy was Batman? This tired old dad who had way too many kids and not enough patience in the world for their shit?
Actually, wait, no. That description fit Batman perfectly nowadays.
Slowly, a large shit-eating smirk overtook Ivy’s lips as her eyes landed on Harley. Everything made sense now.
“I told you that Robin was your arch enemy.”
—*—*—*—*—*
“Your mother and Bonus Mom are totally gonna kill us,” Chat Noir hissed as he ducked behind a chimney. Ladybug joined him half a second later, swiping her yo-yo in a rush and snapping it open so that she could snatch the glasses stored inside. She sent him a frenzied glare.
“I know that! You don’t think I know that? We need a cover story!” She shot right back. She called on the transformation that merged the Horse and the Ladybug, biting her lip for a moment. “I’ll call the portal a short distance away, so we can plan on the walk back to the apartment.”
Chat Noir grimaced, reaching out to stop her before she could call on the horse’s ability.
“Hold on, is that a good idea?” He asked, eyebrows pulled low over his domino mask in concern. “This is— you know what it’s like there,” he barely stopped himself before he could say anything too telling about their destination. You never knew who was listening. “What if we accidentally go somewhere that lands us right in the lap of you-know-who?”
Ladybug cringed at the mere image of that. Not only the fact that it would mean ending up in Joker’s lap, exactly where she was trying to avoid ending up, but also the fact that Chat Noir’s scenario would mean Joker finding out about Ladybug’s abilities. Teleportation not being the least of them.
“… I’ll keep the location near the apartment,” she offered, still considering their options. “H— they control that area, and you-know-who holds pretty much no power there. If we stay within their territory, we stand a better chance of being okay.”
“But it’s not a guarantee,” Chat Noir pressed. “Why can’t we just teleport straight in and explain everything to them?”
Ladybug froze, and slowly turned her head so she could level her partner with the most deadpan glare possible.
“…Not even ten years ago they were both still wanted criminals.”
“Annnnd?”
“Neither of them control their emotions, and you know Mom is overprotective. There’s no way telling them the truth ends well, not before HawkMoth is dealt with. Even out of our costumes we can protect ourselves against most idiots who might try anything against us. I’ll double check that our landing spot is clear and within the boundaries of their territory, and it’ll be fine.”
Chat Noir ran a hand through his hair. He didn’t like it, but he knew that Ladybug had a point. Until HawkMoth was taken down, it was safest to keep their identities on a very strict need-to-know basis. Right now her moms didn’t need to know. If either of them came to Paris and became a target… he shuddered at the mere thought. They hadn’t needed Akumatization to become extremely dangerous terrorists before, the addition of an akuma to either of them would be nightmare fuel at best.
That settled, Ladybug focused so that she could create a portal that led somewhere safe. Leaping through it led to both heroes almost soundlessly landing in the shadowed space between a wall, a dumpster, and a pile of trash bags. After a quick glance around to assure that no windows had a view of them and nobody was around, they both allowed their transformations to slide off and adjusted back to the Gotham gloom.
“Alright,” Marinette whispered to Adrien. “I think I know the way back from here. Before we get going; any ideas for an alibi?”
The blond boy tilted his head, thinking. Either way they had to go back to the apartment, he had left his stuff there. Just as he opened his mouth to reply he was cut off by another voice in the alleyway.
“Those idiots’ll neva find me here!” The familiar knockoff-Boston accent drawled softly, followed by a faint chuckle. Someone snapped their fingers. “Ey, you’re supposed to be watchin’ for bats! Long as we stick ta Harley and Ivy’s neighborhood, we don’t gotta worry ‘bout other rogues. You! Help me find a place for us ta crash!”
Slowly, Marinette closed her eyes and tilted her head back so that it silently hit the wall behind them. Adrien looked like he was struggling to decide whether he wanted to laugh or cry.
Of course they’d end up in the same alleyway that Duella Dent decided to turn down before they could move out of it. The rogue-wannabe had lost the bats after her failed museum heist, but all of her loot had been confiscated and returned to the museum. She was broke and on the run. And, apparently, once again placed right in Marinette’s way.
Apparently the woman wasn’t in any hurry to find a new place to hide. Being in Harley and Ivy’s territory afforded some minor safety, enough for her to send two of her thugs out to find somewhere to hide and keep her last non-incarcerated thug on lookout. Meanwhile Duella herself plopped down on a slightly soggy crate and lit a cigarette, deciding that it was the perfect time for a smoke break.
Marinette and Adrien turned to each other, doing their best to communicate solely through facial expressions. Of course, being best friend and hero partners for several years allowed this to go… somewhat smoothly.
Marinette grimaced and flicked her eyes to where Duella was smoking, before looking back at Adrien and raising both her eyebrows. Adrien shrugged, glancing out at Duella and her lazy lookout before pointing to himself and then raising his eyebrows in return. A little more back and forth, and something approximating a plan was made.
Adrien jumped out of their hiding place. The little show off even did a front flip, landing right in a puddle that splashed all over Duella and soaked her now useless (and unhygienic) cigarette.
“Hey, didn’t see you guys here!” Adrien said chipperly, hands on his hips and a large smile on his face. Something not many people knew or seemed to talk about often was Adrien’s talent with languages. And not even just languages, but accents as well. He took to new languages and accents like a fish to water, so much so that he could fool even people that saw his billboards every day into thinking he wasn’t French.
And right then? The contrary little shit took full advantage of his talent and used a perfect Metropolis accent. His back was to Marinette so he couldn’t see her face palm at that.
“You know,” Adrien continued even as Duella stood up and her thug tried to approach him from behind threateningly. “You really should try to stay hidden better. A kid could just stumble on you like I did and tell the bats! Or the cops. Wouldn’t that just rain on your parade?” He held up his phone and wiggled it in the air to punctuate his point.
The thug took that moment to try and lunge for the phone, but Adrien had been keenly aware of the man behind him and easily danced out of the way. “Oh, are we playing tag? You’re it!” The thug lunged again, and Adrien just used the man’s broad shoulders as a platform to plant his hands and flip right over the guy’s head.
“Gotta be faster than that!” The only warning Adrien got was the sound of something flying through the air, but he heard it just in time to throw himself to the ground. Right above where he had just been, a bright yellow orb exploded in a fiery display of both flame and glitter. He winced at how he had almost been hit by that bomb, before another sound made him roll out of the way of Duella’s foot aimed at his head.
Marinette would give Duella only one good point. The woman knew how to fight acrobatically. Marinette even found herself begrudgingly making mental notes on some of the moves Duella pulled off, hating that the wannabe actually had skill.
Adrien was at a slight disadvantage considering he had to fight two criminals at once without any powers, and couldn’t even risk showing off his full skill since he didn’t want them to get too suspicious of him. And yet even with the metaphorical Training Wheels of Misdirection on, he was still able to slam a random piece of metal that was probably from an old AC unit on the back of the thug’s head and knock him out.
With the numbers now even, Marinette flew out of her hiding space to land on Duella’s back. The added unexpected weight sent the fledgling rogue face-first into a Gotham Alleyway puddle, filling Marinette with petty satisfaction even as she slammed her elbow into the back of Duella’s head. Of course, she immediately pulled Duella’s unconscious body out of the puddle afterwards— they didn’t wanna kill the idiot. But she didn’t make any moves to dry the woman off.
“Nice,” Adrien complimented as he dusted his hands off, faint French accent back in it’s rightful place in his voice. He held out his fist, earning an eye roll and a fist-bump from his friend before the two of them started to make their way out of the alley.
“There you are!” The new voice made both of them slide back into combat stances on reflex, before they could make out the very clear sight of Red Robin on a nearby rooftop and relaxed. He jumped down to join them on the ground, stopping for a second when he saw the two unconscious bodies also down there.
He blinked, then decided he had more important things to focus on.
“Ivy and Harley noticed you guys were gone,” he informed them both. The two teens instantly tensed, and Red Robin’s frown wasn’t helping. “They immediately ran to Batman in a panic. We’re pretty sure the gotham underground knows about their panic by now, everyone’s a secret gossip. Your orders are to lay low, pretend you don’t know them and not to return to the apartment.”
“But—“ Adrien started, only to be cut off by Red Robin again.
“Don’t worry, I already got your stuff and dropped it off in your hotel room. But neither of you are off the hook. Batman covered for you, so now he wants me to bring the both of you to the Batcave for a much needed Talk.”
Marinette and Adrien shared a glance, Marinette grimacing while Adrien looked… slightly excited?
“On one condition,” Adrien held up a finger. “Teach me how to do the disappearing trick?”
@timdrakeistotallycrash coffee shop au my BELOVED!!! put this one in the heart locket gif. I’m just going to start only writing things where the superhero/vigilante/danger/etc stuff just doesn’t matter and the characters only do normal people filled drama series stuff it’s so much FUN!! This one is just about 700 words!
The birthday bash continues! Drop a line, a prompt, a pairing, anything, and get yourself a gift from me for my birthday!! (disclaimer it is no longer my real birthday)
*****
“You know,” Alex drawled, a distinct tone in their voice that Marinette groaned at. It’s the one that came with unnecessary romantic advice. “Quad shot with the eyebags only comes in during your shifts.”
“Now, would that be quad shot with the muffin order and bangs or quad shot with the dark hair?” Marinette asked, reaching under the espresso machine and trying not to squeak as she reached the liquid puddle underneath. Brandi on morning shift had said it was leaking, but Marinette was fairly certain someone had spilled something and was too chicken to own it. “Also, has it occurred to you that my schedule is a student schedule and therefore it would make sense that they are also simply a student somewhere.”
Alex grinned as she started up double shots, like Marinette had just lost by answering and giving in. “Dark hair quad shot, and, no. I’ve seen him come in and leave without ordering when you aren’t here.”
Marinette couldn’t help the blush. Okay, so she knew who he was- he came in almost every day and sat in a corner, usually with large piles of paper and a laptop, and the most noise he’d ever made was when he got calls from his siblings while he worked- she assumed they were his siblings. Friends. Something. “He hasn’t even talked to me. If he likes me, he doesn’t exactly advertise the fact.” Unless she was right about the random guy in her coffee shop being Red Robin, a theory she’d been working on since the first time she’d run into the vigilante on her way home from work. Once, he had pre-empted a group of muggers working in her neighborhood. Twice now, he’d saved her from people in back alleys she could have taken down if he hadn’t interrupted. And a few nights ago, she’d seen someone on the rooftops as she walked, though she’d felt certain it wasn’t a danger to her.
“So if I bought out an ad space on the building across the street you’d go out with me?”
Marinette whirled back around, splattering her and Alex and the countertop with cold, gross coffee from the rag. Standing at the counter was dark haired quad shot himself.
“Excuse me?” She managed to sputter out, and Alex took the opportunity to swipe the cleaning supplies out of her hand and push her back towards the till.
“If I put out an ad that said I liked you.” Quad shot grinned. “Would that convince you?”
“I’d rather die, thanks,” Marinette said back, torn between sarcasm panic and confusion.
“That’s about the ad, not the date!” Alex yelled helpfully, and Marinette shot them a glare before taking a breath and turning back, fighting a smile.
“Sorry,” Quad shot was back-pedaling. “I wouldn’t have asked at all usually, just because I didn’t want to bother you at work, but you were talking about me when I came in-”
Which she would yell at Alex about later. “No to the ad, yes to the date.” She wasn’t sure this was a good idea but her mouth ran faster than her mind most days.
His mouth shut with a click. “Oh. Well, when do you get off work?”
If he was Red Robin, he already knew that. “Seven tonight.” She grinned at him, noting that he didn’t seem surprised. “Marinette. Though you probably know that from my nametag.”
“Tim. Though you probably know that from my order.”
She’d get her answers, one way or another. Alex handed her the prepared drink, and Marinette pulled out a pen before handing it over to him.
“Text me where we’re going, and I’ll meet you there,” She said, finishing writing her name and adding a heart before scrawling her phone number.
“I’ll see you tonight then,” He gave her another wide smile, and her heart did not flutter. It didn’t. She also didn’t watch him as he left instead of setting up in his usual corner.
Alex waggled their eyebrows suggestively, and if Marinette still had the gross rag she would have flicked them with it. “Nope! Shut up, I don’t want to hear it!”
In retaliation, Alex flicked her with a thankfully clean dish cloth.
Be warned that clicking links may replace your current browser window depending on the device or app you are using (make sure to click to open a new tab so you don’t lose your progress).
Only one entry will be permitted per person.
Only your first entry will count.
Nominations can be found here to view them in advance!
Be warned that clicking links may replace your current browser window depending on the device or app you are using (make sure to click to open a new tab so you don’t lose your progress).
Only one entry will be permitted per person.
Only your first entry will count.
Nominations can be found here to view them in advance!
