Fallen Angel

TW: Major Character Death, Onscreen Death, Death via Fall

—————————————————————————–

The air was uncomfortably still as he ran, the only breeze coming from him pushing himself to move as fast as he could without missing anything that could potentially lead him to where she went. 

Everything was taking too long.

Every step a second too long. Each leap from rooftop to rooftop an ever stretching moment.

The voices in his ear a steady reminder of how fast time was passing.

Robin had half a mind to rip the comm unit from his ear as he searched. The incessant chattering of Oracle and the rest of his family as they searched for her, spread across Gotham, on rooftops, in the sewers, on the street. Working it in precise gridlike methods. 

They didn’t seem to feel the frantic urgency he did.

He came to a stop. Eyes scanning over the rooftops for anything. Any sign of her. Any sign of the League, the Court, anybody. Anywhere they could have taken her.

A small flash of light in his periphery drew his attention.

He turned, quickly scanning for where it came from, blood freezing as he saw someone- Marinette- get thrown off the roof.

——————————-

The two of them had barely managed to make it three blocks from the Le Grand Paris, before a thin rope managed to wrap around both of them. Tightening and pulling them up, so they were hanging upside down. 

“Don’t bother trying to cut through the string. You won’t get anywhere,” a bright voice chimed.

As the duo slowly spinned around, Robin caught sight of the two Parisian heroes they’d come to talk to.

“Ladybug. Chat Noir.”

“Batman and Robin. To what do we owe the pleasure?” She asked, recalling her yo-yo, leaving the two vigilantes to catch themselves.

“Your situation has recently come to our attention. We came to offer you our assistance. Training, help, mentorship, and back up.”

“We don’t need your help. Thank you. But we’d prefer you stay out of Paris. Any of the Justice League to stay out. We have it handled-”

“Tt. You’re two children fighting a battle you can’t win.”

“You did not just call us children when you can not possibly be any older than either of us.”

“Bugaboo, calm down.”

“We have been doing this for three years now, and he is calling us incompetent.”

“It’s not my fault you two are inferior to me.”

“Robin,” Batman warned.

“It’s been a long week,” Chat Noir apologized for her. “While we appreciate your offer of assistance, it is unneeded and unwanted.”

“Consider it at least. We’ll be in Paris for the next 24 hours. Commissioner Gordan at Gotham PD can also get a hold of us if you can’t.”

Ladybug gave a smile and nodded. “Thank you. We’ll keep it in mind. Safe Travels. Batman. Robin.”

Robin scowled as he watched her leave, flinging her yo-yo out and using it to pull her across the city, her partner following behind rooftop to rooftop.

——————————-

He shot his grapple as he extended the line as far as it could go as he launched himself into the air, falling fast before the line when taught, pulling him towards her. 

He strained reaching, stretching, extending his arm as far as he could. Desperate. She reached out for him with a soft smile, fingertips brushing just barely as he swung.

No.

Nononono.

No.

Everything seemed to freeze around him as her smile turned bittersweet, drawing her hand back in, accepting her fate.

He hung, suspended in the air by his grapple as he watched her descent. It was almost beautiful. The way the colors painted themselves in an ever shifting pattern, dancing across her arms

She looked like an angel.

An angel without her wings.

She seemed to glow against the city lights, colors streaming by, trailing behind as she fell, before vanishing, a harsh white light left to illuminate where she lay.

——————————-

The soft zip of her yo-yo spinning, deflecting his birdarang, as she spun, coming to face him.

“Robin.”

“What are you doing here?” he demanded.

“I live here now. And before you say anything I had a nice chat with Batman last night. Gotham needs some good luck. We both decided that it’s best if I work my magic here.”

“And he gave you free reign?”

“I don’t plan on being babysat for my time in Gotham. Right now I’m just getting the lay of the land. You’re welcome to join me if you’d like. Since you don’t seem too keen on letting me go on my own.”

“Tt. I will.”

“I hope you can keep up,” she said before throwing her yo-yo, pulling herself up and over the Gotham skyline, Robin trailing close behind.

—-

Damian barely glanced up as the door opened, he noted the unfamiliar face coming in, before turning back to his painting. A soft, hurried conversation happening at the front of the classroom, before soft footsteps hurried across the room, slowing down at his table.

“Hi. I’m Marinette.”

He glanced over, not expecting the cheerful smile directed at him as she pulled out her sketchbook and pencils, flipping open to a new page. Catching glimpses of her sketches flipping by, mainly clothing designs. He would admit they were good.

“Damian.”

“Nice to meet you.”

“Tt.”

——————————-

It was cruel how beautiful she looked, hair splayed out, a dark halo framing her as she lay against concrete, silent tears falling from her eyes as she looked up at him. 

“Why? Why didn’t you transform? Why didn’t you catch yourself?” he demanded as he knelt next to her, brushing a stray strand out of her face.

“I couldn’t. They took Tikki.”

She coughed weakly looking up at him. 

“Damian-”

“Shhh. It’ll be alright. You’ll be fine. It’s okay, Marinette.”

She shook her head giving him a pained smile. “We both know that’s a lie.”

“Mari-”

“Damian,“ her breath was shaky as she winced in pain. "I love you, Damian. I want you to know that.”

He swallowed, ignoring the stinging behind his eyes as he tried to say something, anything, in reply , but she continued before he could find the words.

“I- Marinette Dupain-Cheng, hereby relinquish the Miracle Box and name- Damian al Ghul the new Guardian.” 

"No!”

The bright light that flashed as she said that was blinding, the tears finally beginning to flow as he held her.

——————————-

“No. Nonono. Merde,” she cursed under her breath glancing around.

“What?”

“I’m about to transform back.”

“Can you make it to the top of Wayne Tower in time?”

“I should.”

“You’ll be fine to detransform there. I’ll cover you. Go.”

“You sure you’ll be fine?”

“Tt. Of course. Now go.”

She threw her yo-yo one last time, nailing one of the thugs in the head, knocking them out before throwing it once more, pulling her up as she swung through and pulled herself up and over, disappearing over the lip of the Tower.

Robin dealt with the rest of the thugs as fast as he could, tying them up and leaving them in the alley before grappling up to Wayne Towers. He landed, nearly silent as he landed, looking around, pausing at the sight of a familiar figure, sitting against the bulkhead as she dug around in her purse.

“Marinette?”

She stood, turning around with a soft yelp. Holding her purse close as she looked at him, before relaxing, making sure her purse was shut before letting it drop to her side.

“Robin.”

“You’re Ladybug.”

“You know me,” she narrowed her eyes slightly as she studied him, before giving a small smile, recognition clear in her eyes. “Damian?”

He didn’t say anything, turning away slightly as she continued.

“I should have figured it out before.”

“How?”

“The way you subtly hide injuries, for one. Another, you speak and act almost the same exact way.”

“Tt.”

“Like that.”

He huffed, eliciting a bright laugh from her.

“Does this mean we can be friends on both sides of the mask now?” she asked.

“If you insist.”

“I do.”

“We should get back to patrol.”

“Let’s go then,” she replied, smiling before she moved, running towards the edge of the roof.

He lunged after her, catching her wrist as she passed him, pulling her to a stop.

“Are you insane?” he hissed. She simply laughed, yanking her hand free from his grip.

“Not at all. Trust me,” she backed away before he could stop her, sending herself off over the edge before calling her transformation, swinging away in a bright light, leaving him to catch up.

——————————-

“Marinette, why?”

The look she gave him felt like a burning knife to the heart. Pain. Confusion. Fear. Her eyes searching for anything she could recognize as he held her.

“What-” she cut off as a round of coughs wracked her body. “What happened? Who are you?”

“You fell. You fell but you’ll be okay. I promise. I’ll make sure of it.”

“I- I can’t feel my legs. Why can’t I feel them? I- I- i-” Panic leaked into her voice as her breath stuttered. Her heartbeat raced, skipping and jumping as she started hyperventilating.

“Breathe with me,” he said, trying to take deep slow breaths, pressing her hand to his heart. The two sat there in silence like that for a minute as he tried to get her breathing to slow. Hyperventilating would only make things worse. Shock. She was going to shock. No nonono.

“Thank you,” she muttered, between stilted breaths.

“Rest, It’ll be better when you wake up. Just close your eyes.:

Her breath rattled as she nodded, eyes drifting shut. Her heartbeat growing weaker as he held her.

In. Out.

In.

Out.

In.

Out.

Weaker each time. Slower. Shallow.

In. 

Out.

In.

Out.

In.

Out.

Nothing.

She was gone.

He felt it the moment her pulse stopped, the way her body relaxed, the rhythm of her heart coming to an end.

The sob that tore itself from his throat, the capstone on her life.

——————————-

"Are you sure it’s okay for us to be on here outside of class?”

“Of course. I often spend my free time outside of class here. Mrs. Dellebar has never had anything to say against the matter,” he reassured her. 

“If that’s the case, I’ll grab my watercolors.”

He nodded, heading up to their table while Marinette grabbed a clean cup to fill with water before joining him. 

The two worked in a comfortable silence,  content with the others company, for an long while before Marinette placed her brush down, giving the paint time to dry before laying on shadows and highlights.

She slid her stool closer, watching him work for a few minutes before finally speaking up.

“Is that me?”

He stopped at her sudden question, putting his paintbrush down as he took a quick breath to collect himself before looking at her. 

The tips of their noses nearly brushed against each other as they turned towards the other. 

Time seemed to freeze as neither one of them moved. A faint blush colored her cheeks as his heart raced.

“Dami-”

“I will see you tomorrow, Marinette,” he said, quickly standing up, turning away to hide how red his face felt.

He didn’t look back as he left the room, closing the door behind him before finally feeling as if he could breathe again. He leaned back, sliding down the door slightly as he ran a hand through his hair.

That was…. new. He was unaware when he had gained such feelings for Marinette. Surprised at how flustered he felt by that small interaction, kicking himself for running. 

“Tt,” he scoffed at himself as he picked himself up. He may have blown it today but tomorrow was a different matter. He would remedy his mistakes then.

——————————-

Tomorrow never came.

——————————-

“-obin? Robin what’s happening?”

“She’s gone,” he said, voice threatening to crack. “She’s gone, and I didn’t tell her that I loved her.“

He recognized the sudden clamor of voices, plans and tasks being made and assigned but he wasn’t listening. It was all static. A loud ringing in his ears drowning out everything around him. Time felt like it was moving through water. Slow and heavy. Pushing against him. Barely keeping from overflowing and coming crashing around him. It felt like the breath of anticipation right before the surface tension broke.

And broke it did.

The world that had shrunk down to just encompass him and her suddenly expanded, filling with the ever present sirens and city noises from blocks over. Not near them. No. They were in a construction zone. They wouldn’t be here, he noted in the back of his mind.

He barely registered whose arms were wrapped around him, gently pulling him away from her. Their grip tightening as he fought against them, pulling and twisting as tears fell, blurring the world around him into bright color and hazy images.

"Robin. D. Damian, shhh. It hurts. I know it does. It’s okay, let it out.”

He could barely make out the words Richard was telling him, soft reassurances and comforts as he held him.

He wanted to scream. It wasn’t okay. How could it be? Richard didn’t know. He didn’t know his pain. How could he? He could only guess from his own experience. He didn’t know. 

“Come on, just a short walk. A step away. Just to the end of the block and back. Just for a moment. Please,” Richard’s pleading voice broke through his thoughts. Damian shook his head, wrenching himself from the embrace.

“I’m not leaving her. Not unless it is to find who did this.”

“B and Hood are already going after them. Spoiler and Black Bat should be joining them soon. And Red’s coming with the Batmobile so we can take her home. He should be here any minute. Just to the corner there. We won’t go far. She’ll be right there when we get back.“

He relented, letting Richard guide him away reluctantly as a wave of heaviness seemed to finally sink in. Weariness hitting him. Grief and guilt etching themselves in his bones, as he spoke.

“I was so close,” he whispered.

“What?”

“I was so close. We touched. I was just too slow.”

“Damian-”

“If I hadn’t stood there trying to locate where she was exactly- If I had moved sooner- Left sooner- She was right there- I almost caught her- I-” his words caught in his throat as his mind raced, going over every little detail of the day. If he’d moved in the direction of the light instead of looking for it. If he’d left to look for her just a minute sooner. If he’d never left her alone in the art room.

It was his fault.

If he’d just done one tiny thing different she’d still be there.

It was all his fault

She was gone and it was all his fault.

“Don’t say that?”

“Why shouldn’t I?”

“Because it isn’t true. You did the best you could. That’s all you could have done.”

No. He could have done something different. Made a different choice. Not hesitated.

“It wasn’t good enough.”

“Yes. It was,” he said softly. “Damian. Don’t beat yourself up over her death. It’s not your fault.”

“Tt.”

“Damian-”

“You won’t sway me, Richard.”

His brother gave a soft sigh, tucking Damian under his arm in a small embrace. Like he was trying to protect him from the world. Far too late.

“I know I won’t. But it kills me seeing you like this.”

Damian didn’t say anything, simply turning back, Richard turning with him and began the short trek back. The Batmobile was waiting for them when they got there. Red Robin, leaning against its side as he waited for the pair.

“Hey,” Red Robin greeted the two of them, the one word was soft, heavy, bearing some of the weight of the event. “So, where is she?”

Damian’s blood ran cold at the question.

“What do you mean, ‘where is she’?” Richard asked as he pulled away from the side hug, darting to the other side of the Batmobile, the quick words flying back and forth between his brothers quickly disappearing, a deafening silence wrapping itself around him.

The sidewalk was empty.

The only sign of where she’d lain were the almost dry spots where his tears had landed.

Richard had promised she would be right there.

Another mistake of his.

He never should have left her. Not at the art studio, not at Richard’s pleading.

It was his fault.

She was gone.

He’d lost her again.

He hadn’t even finished saying goodbye.

The tears that fell were fast and hot and overwhelming as everything felt like too much. Pushing, shoving, forcing him down with the unbearable weight. Everything he’d done had been wrong. Every choice, every moment, every move. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong.

He crumpled, gently laying a hand where she had been, squeezing his eyes shut.

‘I’m sorry, Marinette. I’m so sorry. It’s all my fault. I should have been there. I should have been here. I love you. And I’m sorry I never told you. I will find who did this to you. I will get Tikki back for you. I will find you and give you the final rest you deserve.

I will make up for my failures.

I am sorry I was too late.

I will right my wrongs.

If only you were still here to see it.

I will make those who did this pay.

I’m sorry, Love.

I will fix this.

All of it.’

She was gone.

It was all his fault.

She was gone.

And he would fix everything.

Safe and Sound

“You used to be mine.”

The laugh she gave was broken as she shook her head. “I wish that were true. Gods, I do. But we both know that’s a lie. It was fun. An escape. We were both avoiding things we’d rather not face.”

“Mar-”

“You know I’m right.”

“We can make it work. Life’s a balancing act, just let the things in and juggle them. Together.”

She gave a small laugh as she shook her head. “I wish we could but I’ve been ignoring the signs for too long. There’s things that require my attention. It’s best if you forget about me. At least for a while.”

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing that concerns you.”

“You don’t know that. I can help. There are resources I have access to-”

“No. You can’t.”

“You don’t know that.”

“I do, Dick. I have to go.”

He grabbed her wrist, stopping her from leaving. “I don’t want to lose you, Mar. Please. Let me help. There has to be something I can do. You don’t know what-”

“You’re not listening to me! I have to go. There are things I’ve ignored for too long and- it’s best for everyone if I just disappear for a while. Thank you. For everything.”

“Marinette-”

She cut him off with a quick kiss, gently gripping his hand with her own, interlocking fingers and giving two tight squeezes before pulling away.

“Goodbye, Dick,” she whispered, before sweeping out the door, glancing back once with a bittersweet smile as she let the door fall shut. The soft click of the latch catching felt deafening.

He took a deep breath, thumb brushing against the cold metal as he played back what just happened in his head, squeezing his eyes shut, ignoring the faint stinging behind his eyes.

He sat down before finally looking at what she’d pressed into his hand. A simple braided leather bracelet. Simple except for the clasp. The clasp was…. odd to say the least. Nothing he’s seen before, though that wasn’t odd for Marinette’s designs. It looked like a decorative key had been inserted into the sheath of a sword, a small ruby ladybug resting on the key while a cat sat at the bottom of the sheath, tail wrapped around it, emerald eyes seeming to stare at him. 376 inscribed on the key head in a swirling script.

He frowned as the two pieces refused to budge in his response to tugging them apart. Unbudging, as he pulled and twisted and screwed, refusing to give way at any of his attempts. 

It was unmoving. He would have thought that it was supposed to be had it not been for the faint seam around the shank of the key and along the bottom of the sheath. He laughed, shaking his head as an idea came to mind.

He pressed the key in further, and twisted, the bottom of the sheath popping open, allowing him to pull the key out. He turned the key over as he examined it, the soft jangle of the open sheath pieces hitting each other as he moved, pulled his attention away. Moving to snap the pieces shut the words West Kane Street delicately inscribed on the piece that fell open caught his gaze. He gave a soft smile, snapping the pieces shut, before wrapping it around his wrist and sliding the key back in, the click locking the clasp shut once more.

—————————————

376 West Kane Street was unobtrusive. The type of building someone could walk past a million times without ever questioning its purpose or sparing it a second glance or thought. Dick was pretty sure he would have missed it completely if he was not looking for it. In fact, it was exactly the type of building he missed frequently, he realized, recognising the small deli across the street from his patrols.

He released the key from around his wrist, sliding it into the lock and opening the door, letting it fall shut behind him as he stepped inside. The set of soft clicks of locks automatically locking behind him startled him. More locks shutting than he’d unlocked automatically latching shut. He frowned, stepping closer, the soft releases of the locks undoing themselves as he got closer.

Technology or Magic. A layer of protection for what he was willing to guess off the bat was a safe house. Marinette’s safe house. A guess that was only proven further as he explored.

It was well stocked. Extremely well stocked. Dick had spotted the large first aid kit tucked away, plenty of canned goods and other non-perishables stocked the kitchen cabinets. Magazines, books, and dvds piled in bookshelves. Two cabinets dedicated to various medications and other specialties for medical treatment one wouldn’t typically find in a first aid kit. Toiletries stocked the bathrooms. Plenty of sheets and blankets in the linen closet. Anything and everything he could have thought about wanting seemed to be there, plus a few unusual items. A pair of sabers in the corner, a couple wheels of camembert in the fridge, crates of sketchbooks.

Picking one up and flipping through it revealed designs and sketches, her signature clear in the corner of any page would have erased any doubts that it was hers if he had any. 

“I’d be careful with that if I were you. Mari can be protective of her designs.”

He spun, getting slightly defensive as he spotted his new company. Nothing seemed to have moved, he hadn’t heard the doors or windows open or shut. It was like he’d just appeared, lounging against the wall, silently having snuck up on him in a way Marinette had only ever been able to. Most of his family had a hard time sneaking up on him, each having their own little tells, but Marinette had always just seemed to materialize, and it seemed he did as well.

“You must be Dick. I didn’t think you would show up so soon. It took me two weeks to figure the key out. Bugaboo was laughing at me the whole time.”

“I can’t say I have the pleasure of knowing your name as well.”

“Relax. I’m a friend of Mari’s.” The blonde man raised his hands in an appeasing manner, pushing off the wall he was leaning on with a grin as he held out his hand. “It’s great to finally meet you. I’m Adrien.”

He took his hand, the two shaking hands for a moment before heading into the kitchen to rummage through the fridge, pulling out a wheel of camembert along with several jars and containers. 

“How did you know who I am?”

“Only a handful of those got handed out, and since the last person she mentioned giving one was someone named Dick. And you wouldn’t be here if you weren’t. She doesn’t give those out lightly,” he explained, gesturing to his bracelet. “For another thing, I don’t think you realized how long she agonized whether or not to straight out tell you or hide it away in the key and leave you to figure it out on your own. That’s big. She didn’t even tell me and we’re partners. You mean a lot to her. Talks about you all the time. Sandwich?”

“I’m good. Thanks.”

“You sure? I make a very gouda sandwich if I do say so myself.”

“Yeah. I’m good. So. Partners?”

“Yep. Since lycee,” he told Dick. The small stab of jealousy wasn’t something Dick had been expecting at his words as Adrien continued.  “Been watching her back and by her side for ages. Haven’t always been the best at it. Rough patches here and there and all that. I’m sure you know what that’s like. Hard times in a partnership.”

Partnership. Not relationship. Partnership. Implying that he and Marinette weren’t-

Dick gave a small laugh, relaxing slightly. “Yeah. God, never a good time. But it worked out in the long run. Helped me get out of a rut of a sort.”

Adrien nodded. “Stay safe out there. I don’t want to think what’ll happen if- well- take care Dick.”

Adrien was gone as fast as he appeared, only poking his head back once with a cheerful, “Your sandwich is on the counter!” before the sound of the door opening and closing, unlocking and locking behind left Dick alone, puzzling over the encounter slightly as he stared at the sandwich.

Adrien was right about the sandwich though. It was grate.

—————————————

He grit his teeth as he landed on the safe house’s fire escape, stumbling slightly as the window slid open. A small hiss of pain escaped as he pulled himself in, landing on the floor in a lump before pushing to his feet, leaning against the kitchen counter catching his breath and taking stock of his injuries.

He’d barely managed to get the top of his suit off before Marinette came sweeping in, a faint blue light glowing from underneath her shirt illuminating how frantic she looked. She seemed more disheveled than he’d ever seen her. Giving him a quick once over as she passed, frowning, pulling the first aid kit out of it’s spot and opening it up, pulling out various things from alcohol to gauze to a needle and thread, wasting no time in getting to work, disinfecting his wounds as she spoke up.

“I leave for a month and you’ve already managed to seriously injure yourself- Adrien, goddammit. You spent time with him, didn’t you?” she asked, worry clear in her eyes, as she moved.

“I’m sorry-

“You spent time with Adrien, didn’t you Dick?” she clarified, staring him down.

“How long have you known?”

“Our third date. Though, in all fairness, I’m well aware of the signs of vigilantism, and after that it wasn’t hard to put together. You haven’t answered my question though.” 

“He showed up when I first visited, trying to figure out what you had just left me the key to.”

“Of course he did,” she muttered. “Meddling cat.”

He tensed watching her reaction, annoyance and exasperation clear. “What’s wrong with Adrien? He made it seem as if he belonged here and that you two were close.”

“We are. He does. There’s nothing wrong with him. I would- I have- trusted him with my life. Many times. He just tends to…. trail bad luck wherever he goes. And him being here while you were explains why you managed to get so injured so soon. He should have thought about what his presence would mean….” she trailed off, glancing at one of the clocks on the wall, biting her lip as she finished stitching him up. “How do you feel about cinnamon rolls?”

“What?”

“For you. To eat. Or throw at Adrien. Whichever you prefer. Cinnamon rolls?”

“Yours are my favorite.”

“Great,” She barely glanced at him as she pulled ingredients down and got to work, shooing him away when he tried to help. “We both know you are a disaster in the kitchen, Love. Besides I am not about to risk you pulling stitches after I stitched you up.”

“Love?” he asked with a grin, as she blushed, shaking her head.

“Forget I said that. I’m just…. a bit frazzled right now. That’s it”

“So you don’t miss me? I’ve missed you so much.”

“I never said that. I’m just- I don’t want you to get hurt.”

“A bit too late for that.”

“No thanks to that mangy alley cat.”

“Marinette, what’s going on?”

“Nothing. I have it handled. I just. The more distance between us the better. If you hadn’t been so severely injured I would have stayed away. And do not get any funny ideas about getting injured to draw me out,” she told him, flicking some dough at him as she rolled it out. “I’m just glad you found the safe house before this happened.”

“I would have been fine.”

She looked over at him, doubt in her eyes. She opened her mouth to speak before giving a small headshake, quickly finishing the rolls and putting them in the oven before moving into the living room and sitting on the couch, snuggling into Dick as he sat next to her.

“I have missed you,” she said softly, keeping her eyes fixed straight ahead. “Everything is just  a bit much. And I have it handled. I just can’t risk anything right now. I don’t want to risk you.”

“So you cut me off? Mar. I can help you.”

“I have help. Adrien is-”

“Your partner. I know.”

She laughed, looking up at him with a small smile. “Is someone a little jealous?”

“Me? Never.”

“No need to worry, Love. We figured out a long time ago things were better off platonic between us and both have since moved on.”

“I’m glad. I still want to help you though.”

“I know,” she told him, closing her eyes as she rested her head against his shoulder. “But this is the best path.”

“How do you know that though?” he asked. After not receiving an answer he glanced down with a small smile, finding that she;d fallen asleep on his shoulder. He pressed a small kiss to the top of her head before slowly letting the events of the night hit and drift off into unconsciousness as well.

—————————————

When he woke up she was gone. A container of cinnamon buns on the counter, his name scrawled on the sticky note on top of it. No note along with it or anything though, to his disappointment.

He gave a small huff as he opened the container pulling out a roll for a quick breakfast before he had to get a move on, taking a moment to glance over his wounds, surprised to see how far along they were in the healing process.

“How are you feeling?”

Dick jumped, launching the cinnamon roll in his hand straight at Adrien’s face. Hard. It stuck for a half a second before falling off, leaving a trail of icing on his cheek as he caught it.

“Did you just- Was I just- Assalted by a cinnamon roll? Marinette suggested it, didn’t she?”

“It’s the yeast I could do since you keep sneaking up on me.”

Adrien laughed. “A bunder on my part. I take it you’re feeling better.”

“Better than I imagined I would considering my injuries.”

He nodded. “Marinette is the best healer I know. She knows what her gifts are and she uses them. She’s the best for patch ups.”

“It was good to see her again, though Marinette didn’t seem too happy you popped by.”

“I know,” he grinned. “It’s for her benefit though.”

“Is there any particular reason you’re here with me instead of helping her?”

The grin he got in response to his question felt as if he had walked into a trap as Adrien came closer, taking a bite of the cinnamon roll before answering.

“She has everything handled at the moment. Taking a moment to herself. Glad you asked though. Brings me to what I wanted to say. If you hurt her in any way, no one will ever know what happened to you. No one will be able to revive you except at the grace of M’Lady. No one. Not Bruce Wayne, The Batman himself, nor any part of the Justice League. You’re entering a playing field with forces far beyond you. I’d love to see you take over as her partner and protector, but I won’t hesitate if you fail. Don’t think any of your caped friends can save you. Okay?” he asked, finishing as bright and cheerful as he usually was, taking another bite of the pastry.

“I don’t plan on hurting her.”

“Accidents happen.”

“Look, I just want to help-”

“But she won’t let you. She’s stubborn.”

“I know.”

“Marinette has a lot on her plate. You help her relax in a way I haven’t been able to in a long time. You’re good for her,” Adrien told him, picking up one of the books from the coffee table, as he moved towards the windows. “But the balance is delicate. If you aren’t careful you will be very bad for her,” he told him, tossing the book at Dick. Except the book never made it to him, crumbling into ash in the air, destroyed before it ever reached him. Adrien glanced back at him once more, looking like the cat that had caught the canary before giving a cheeky salute and disappearing out the window.

Dick stared at the trail of ash littering the carpet. Well that got rid of the possibility of technology. Adrien could be a meta, but with the other things he’d witnessed, the locks, the fast healing wounds, the dissolving book, magic seemed the more likely option.

Magic. 

Great.

Good to know.

Adrien was a magic user. And by that logic, Marinette as well.

—————————————

Dick woke up to a light, burning against his eye lids on his night off. The ladybug on his key seemed to be glowing, illuminating a small portion of the room in a faint ruby light, flickering every now and again. He frowned, the light getting brighter as he moved, his mind flitting back to the night he’d shown up at the safe house injured. The blue glow from Marinette’s necklace coming to the forefront.

“Meddling Cat.”

“M’Lady.”

“Bugaboo.”

Adrien was the Cat. Marinette the Ladybug. 

The magic, distancing, and threats made sense now. If Marientte was Ladybug and Adrien Chat Noir, a powerful duo with some very important artifacts to protect. Well the safe house and strange threats and aspects fit.

If her necklace glowed when he was injured then she-

He didn’t hesitate leaving his apartment and quickly making his way over to the safe house,the glow growing stronger as he moved, the door swinging open for him before he’d even had a chance to get his key out, locking shut as it swung closed. The lights were off as he moved through, playing a game of hot and cold with his bracelet before bothering with the lights.

His heart stopped as he spotted the figure, leaning against the wall hand pressed against their side.

“Adrien?”

“No, it’s-”

“Dick? What are you doing here?” she asked, voice sounding strained.

“The Key started glowing. I pieced two and two together and got here as fast as I could.”

“Not many would have figured it out that fast.”

“I wish I had sooner.”

She laughed, quickly stopping with a gasp of pain.

“You’re hurt.”

“I’ll be fine.”

“You’re lying.”

“I’m fine.”

“Marinette! Let me help you. Please. I just want to help you.”

“I promise-”

“Please. Please don’t lie to me. You stitched me up before. Let me return the favor. What’s hurt?”

She was silent for a minute before speaking up. “Few cuts, probably a broken rib or two, gash in my side,” she said softly. “Maybe a concussion.”

He nodded, quickly grabbing the first aid kit and getting to work. Joking and telling stories, careful not to make her laugh but just trying to distract her and get her to smile while he took care of her wounds.

“There we go,” he said, carefully picking her up and carrying her back into one of the bed rooms and setting her down on the bed.

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. What happened, Marinette? What’s been happening?”

“You know I’m Ladybug. You figured that out didn’t you? And Adrien’s-”

“Chat Noir.”

She grinned. “Clever birdy. I’m- we’re, I recently split Guardianship with him- the Guardians of the Miracle box. A couple of cults and League of Assassins all got a bit too close to figuring out where I’d hidden it. I shouldn’t have left it with Adrien for so long. Got him to take a break, gave it a healthy dose of my good luck to combat his bad. Managed to rehide it, but lingered at the old spot a bit too long. They got the jump on me a bit sooner than I’d have liked.”

“So when Adrien was helping you?”

“He was giving me time to rebalance and tip the scales to be a bit luckier for the box. And the skirmishes. He should be finishing up soon with them now.”

“You aren’t worried about him?”

“Oh I’m worried. But he knows if he dies again, he’ll get hell from me. And besides, the only trouble for him will be the League of Assassins, but he’s dealt with them several times before this. I’m pretty sure the cults are starting to worship him, which is concerning, but Plagg’s loving it and that’s a problem for another day,” she finished, her last couple words, dissolving into a yawn.

“Get some sleep.”

“Not yet.”

“Don’t worry about Adrien. Or the League for that matter. I’ll help get that sorted out. Or get Damian to. Just rest right now.”

“Dick. It’s not your job to take care of this.”

“And it doesn’t have to be solely yours. I meant it when I said we can make it work. We’ll just juggle life together. I don’t want to lose you.”

She gave a small huff. “Fine. Maybe you have a point.”

He smiled, pressing a soft kiss to her forehead. “Just close your eyes. It’ll be alright. I’ll be right here for you, Darling,” he told her, going to stand up, before being yanked down onto the bed.

“If I’m being forced to nap, I’m bringing you with me. Remember, Love, Together?”

He gave a soft chuckle as she snuggled into him, gently running his fingers through her hair as she drifted off.

“Together.”

Rafter Revelations

“I’m leaving.”

“What?”

“I’m leaving. I can’t deal with this any longer. I am sick and tired of all the secrets, all the tiptoeing around each other.”

“I’m not the only one with secrets, Marinette.”

“I know. And that’s part of the problem.”

“Can’t we talk about this?”

She raised a brow at that. “Are you going to come clean about what you do that leaves you so exhausted and overworked? And don’t give me that workaholic excuse again. We both know that isn’t the whole truth.”

Tim glanced away, the two sitting there in silence for a minute before Marinette’s soft, broken laugh cut through the silence.

“I thought so.”

“It’s complicated.”

“Everything is Tim. Every gods damned thing is in my life,” she muttered bitterly.

“What about you? What about your secrets?”

“I’d love nothing more than to tell you. Share this burden with someone else….”

“Then why don’t you?”

“Because you won’t share your secrets. And for all I know they could be the dangerous kind. I can’t share because I don’t know what you’ll do with them. As much as I want to fully trust you- I can’t. I can’t because you have a big secret and for all I know you’ll take my secret and run with it and I can’t risk that happening. Not again.”

“Marinette-” he whispered, moving to place a hand on her arm, trying to comfort her or build a bridge, an olive branch, anything. He swallowed, trying to ignore the growing lump in his throat as she pulled out of his reach with a small head shake.

“I’m sorry, Tim. I just- I need a break,” she said softly, shouldering her bags. “You have my number. Call if you change your mind or- No. Just. Nevermind. You know how to reach me if things change. I- Goodbye Tim.”

She didn’t give him time to say anything, quickly opening the door and pulling it lightly as she walked away, leaving the door to swing close. She left, leaving behind silence. Silence that felt too loud. No scritching at the lock. Nothing. He could barely hear her footsteps walk away on the carpeted hallway floor. The lock hadn’t turned. She didn’t lock the door. Why didn’t she lock the door? 

He took a deep breath as he glanced around their small apartment. She just forgot in the heat of the moment, right? Of course. She didn’t- She wouldn’t- 

Tim stopped, heart pounding as he stepped into the small kitchen. Sitting there, glaring at him, was her key. 

She did.

She left her key. 

She was gone.

Oh.

He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath, turning away, grabbing his computer and logging in as he sat down on the couch, leaving the door unlocked, a small part of him hoping she would walk in. That this would all undo itself as he pulled up some cold cases, throwing himself into them. Anything to distract from the pain.

————————————

It was two months before Tim saw or heard anything from Marinette and the circumstances were less than ideal. He caught sight of her on patrol being smuggled from one building to a different one, her gag loose around her neck. She had to have worked it off, he guessed by the irritation of the gaggle of goons’ faces as she talked, the picture of pure innocence.

He followed behind, not making his presence known until they’d shoved her into the lone chair in the corner, two of them hovering next to her, while the rest sat at the folding table and chairs, dealing out cards and drinks. He made quick work of two before the rest caught on to what was happening. All of them quickly forgetting about Marinette as they moved to take on Red Robin.

Marinette glanced over, a small smile on her face at the lack of guards as she quickly began working her way out of the zip tie cuffs, using his sudden appearance as a distraction, frowning as she heard the clanging of his staff being knocked away.

“Hey!”

She grabbed his bo staff from where it had fallen, giving it a quick, experimental twirl before smiling slightly, glancing over at him. 

“I think you may have chosen the wrong priority,” she called out, pulling the goons attention to her, tilting her head as they laughed.

“Put the stick down, girlie. Hate to see such a pretty little face hurt.”

“Make me.”

Red Robin tensed watching her take a few steps back, looking less confident as two of the goons broke off, heading towards her and she bumped into a stack of crates. Her demeanor changed as soon as she did though, quickly slamming the end of the staff into one of their insteps and snapping it promptly up into his face before swinging it around, landing a few several blows in quick succession. The first goon charged as she knocked his friend unconscious. She laughed as she jumped, pushing off the crates to flip over him, and ramming the staff into his back, pushing him through the crates. She turned back to the rest of the goons holding Red Robin as she planted the staff.

“Still think he’s your biggest threat?”

The grin she got when more goons left him was almost feral as she shifted her weight to the balls of her feet before launching forward, sliding into one goon, taking him out as she dealt a painful blow to his partner, swiftly standing and locking eyes with him giving a small head shake very much telling him to ‘Get on with it’ as she turned back to the fight.

He felt his face heat up as he wrenched his arm out of the goon’s grip, ramming his head back into the other goon’s quickly stepping away before ducking beneath a punch, grabbing the extended arm and using their momentum to throw them into their coworker.

“Took you long enough.”

He paused, surprised to find the other four goons who’d moved after Marinette unconscious, littered across the floor as she leaned on his staff. Since when had she been able to do that? Nothing indicated she knew how to fight. No record of martial arts training or anything. She’d never seemed interested in them either when he offered to pay for some when they’d first started dating, laughing it off saying she was a fashion designer, who’d be interested in her, and even if someone was it’d be handled then. That he didn’t need to worry about her. He didn’t quite believe her then, but could see why she’d dismissed it now. This was a whole other side to her he had no clue existed. A side that his background check didn’t reveal any hints to.

“How strong are you?” she asked, pulling him from his thoughts.

“What?”

“The next shift will be here any moment. I want to get the drop on them. You’re going to give me a boost up. You’ve done some gymnastics training right?”

His eyes widened slightly as he realized what she was thinking. Gymnastics? Yeah. Sure. A small handful of times and only ever with Dick at his insistence.

“Do you mind if I hold onto this for a minute?” she asked, holding onto his staff.

“You really shouldn’t do this, Miss. I can get you out-”

“With eight more goons on our tail making a fuss? No, take them out now. Don’t have to deal with them. Their boss isn’t even in town right now. Easy Peasy.”

“You don’t have any equipment or training,” he protested.

“Now who said that? There’s a reason I’m holding onto this for a minute. Ready?” she barely gave him any time before running at him. He locked his hands together, giving her the boost she wanted, watching as she pressed off the top of a stack of crates to get the extra air she needed, bringing his staff up and over the rafter beam and catching the other end of it so she hung beneath. She swung, catching the beam with her legs and pulling herself to crouch on top of it as the door opened.

“Where’s the girl?”

“Where do ya think? Tha Bird hid her away.”

“Let’s get ‘im.”

Red Robin didn’t move from his spot underneath the beam where Marinette crouched, allowing the eight goons to form a loose circle around him, leering at him while he tensed, preparing for a fight before she made her move.

Marinette dropped down, landing on top of one of the goons’ shoulders for a second before pressing off, the force driving the goon to the ground with a grunt while she flipped, planting the staff on the ground and landing delicately on top of it, balancing in a way he didn’t think was possible. 

“I think you fellas are forgetting something,” she greeted them with an innocent smile, while Red Robin tried to restart his brain after witnessing that.

Marinette however had no qualms about leaping straight into the fray, a whirlwind of motion as she leapt off his staff, snapping him out of his stupor and into motion, keeping an eye on her as they fought.

“Marinette! Behind you!”

Her head snapped to him, confusion clear in her eyes for a moment before she shook her head, ramming the staff back into the gut of the goon sneaking up on her, before pulling away and throwing the staff to Red Robin.

“Keep it.”

“You need it more than me,” she shot back, turning away from him.

“Care to share why you need eight guards by the way?”

“What? Did you expect me to make it easy for them?”

He didn’t answer as he got pulled away, comforted by the familiar weight of his staff, the two of them quickly handling the goons, Marinette taking care of the last three as she yelled at him to duck, using one’s momentum to throw him into the other two, grabbing his hand and pulling him along.

She led him through the warehouse, which was all fine with him as he was still trying to process what the hell was happening. And where the hell his girlfriend, ex-girlfriend?,had learned to fight. She led him up to the roof, the cold air hitting them like a wall.

“I assume you have a grapple or something?”

He nodded, pulling her close. “Hang on tight,” he warned before pulling them up, swinging roof to roof for a minute as his brain caught up to the night’s events.

“What did you do to get on Penguin’s bad side anyways?”

“Fooled around with a Wayne. Apparently he didn’t get the memo we were on a break and his goons thought I’d make a nice ‘Welcome Home’ hostage. Put me down here,” she directed, easily taking the shock of the landing as she stepped away from him.

“I’m sorry.”

She frowned for a second looking at him, tilting her head to the side. “Why are you sorry? You had-” she broke off with a laugh, shaking her head as she turned away from him. “Of course. Of fucking course, you’re Red Robin. That makes perfect sense. I’m just an idiot who couldn’t see it sooner.”

“Excuse me, Miss? Are you okay?”

“Drop the act, Tim. Gods. Of course you’re a vigilante.”

“How’d you figure it out?”

“You’re smart. Figure it out yourself.”

His heart leapt into his throat as she jumped, the soft clank of metal the only hint that she’d jumped onto the fire escape. He moved peering over the edge watching as she quickly made her way down and out onto the street, quickly heading in the direction of her apartment, the cheeky call of “No need to make sure I get home safe,” over her shoulder her only goodbye as she left him alone on the roof, desperate for answers.

————————————

Tim threw himself into research, trying to figure out what happened in Marinette’s past that gave her so much experience and confidence fighting like that, and how that allowed her to figure his identity out so easily from a small slip up. 

The most obvious place to look was Paris. At the Heroes and Hawkmoth, what went down for those ten years.

The Parisian Heroes were something he knew woefully little of, having been banned from going near it by several members of the Justice League, with special stress put on it from Wonder Woman, all news coming from inside of Paris had been stopped until two years ago when news detailing what happened in and the subsequent end of “Paris’ Emotional Reign of Terror” hit newstands. Bruce had even set up multiple firewalls to help keep the news segmented, as if it didn’t exist at Diana’s pleading. Tim was sure Bruce knew what was happening but kept it from the rest of them.

It was around this time the Parisian Heroes went dark around the same time Marinette moved to Gotham, he knew that much from conversations with her. Many posited they’d gone into retirement with the defeat of Hawkmoth, finally taking time to themselves after years of near nonstop battles with akumas. The already frequent attacks appeared to have picked up from once or twice a week to near daily at the end of his reign.

Looking closer at the timeline, Hawkmoth was defeated two weeks before Marinette moved to Gotham. Enough for her, had she been a hero, to settle her affairs and get out of there for a change of scenery. It would explain her comfort in fights and confidence if she’d been fighting magically powered Akumas everyday for years. Her certainty and calmness slid into place as well. 

She was calmer and more self assured in that fight with the goons than he thinks he’s ever seen her, handling herself with ease. She handled his staff as if it was second nature for her, as if it belonged, doing things he doesn’t even think he’d be able to. He was still trying to wrap his head around how she balanced, perched on the tip as if it was a fixed platform. It was almost cat-like.

That rang bells in his head. One of the heroes used a staff. 

Each hero had their own weapon, most very unconventional, but a staple, almost a signature for them. Some had instruments such as Viperion’s Lyre and Rena Rouge’s Flute. Many had everyday objects and toys like Multimouse’s Jump Rope, Queen Bee’s Top, and, most notably, Ladybug’s Yo-Yo. Only a couple weapons were found in the cases of Carapace’s Shield and Ryuko’s sword. The weapon of his interest fell into this last category as well. Chat Noir’s Baton.

The problem came when he could only find evidence of there only ever being one Cat. A decidedly male and blonde Cat at that. His weapon, perfect for the fighting and skills that Marinette showed, the baton extending to impossible lengths with him balancing on top of it like it was nothing, yet nothing to prove that there was a female Cat active in Paris for any length of time, outside of a speculated swap though surprisingly lacking images or videos to support it.

That was a dead end. 

Great.

————————————

One week later and he was struggling to come up with anything pointing him in any direction that might shed light on Marinette. It had gotten to the point where Dick had “lovingly” shoved him out onto an extra patrol saying the fresh air, did that even exist in Gotham?, would do him some good.

Which led him to now, tailing after glimpses of a cat thief. Last he’d heard Selina was in London, a new exhibit at the British Museum having caught her attention. Although it wasn’t unusual for her to show up out of the blue, eyes on a new prize closer to home.

Red Robin dropped down into the museum shortly after frowning slightly. They didn’t move with the same confident caution Selina did, seemingly not caring if they ran the risk of setting off an alarm or motion sensor.

He stopped.

That wasn’t Selina standing in front of the display case. The biggest give away was the unnaturally long braid that trailed along the figure, almost seeming like it had a life of its own, the tip flicking unpredictably as the braid swung. Upon closer look, he could see that the suit was all wrong, toxic green accents along the suit and low slung belt out of place. Ears perched in her hair that appeared as if they were moving. Scratch that. They were moving, flicking back in his direction.

“You can come out,” she called. “I know you’re there, Little Birdy.”

“You’re not the cat I was expecting to see here.”

“I’m sorry if I disappoint you. I don’t plan to be around long though so no need to worry your pretty little head,” she told him, turning to fix unnaturally green eyes on him, they seemed to glow as she took him in. “Of course you’re the bird that finds me,” she muttered, adding to his confusion.

“I thought there was only one Cat and that he was in Paris.”

“Chat retired.”

“Willingly or did you steal his Miraculous?”

“Are you calling me a thief?”

“Well-” he gave her a pointed look. “If the shoe fits.”

“By necessity not by choice. I’ll just take what I came for and we’ll never have to see each other again.”

“What requires you to steal?”

“And here I thought you were smarter than this. SUrely You can figure it out,” she said, before extending her baton, hitting him and pushing him back before turning her attention back to the case, leaving him to move, catching his breath and close the distance between them.

She laughed, ducking around the batarangs thrown her way, eyes flicking over to him briefly before she began tracing a circle on the glass, batting his staff to the side while throwing a well aimed kick at him, the sound of her claw cutting the glass grating against his eardrums, throwing him slightly off balance as she pulled a book from the display, tossing it up before it seemed to disappear as she swung her baton at it, extending it into a staff, twirling it around as she finally faced him again.

“Now that that’s been taken care of,” she started with a Cheshire grin. “Care for a game of Cat and Mouse?” she asked before promptly taking off, quickly managing to disappear into the shadows, light laughter trailing behind.

He took off after her, trying to follow her through the shadows but the silence of her movements was uncanny. She could give Batman a run for his money with the complete and utter vanishing act, shadows swallowing her up as if she’d never even existed.

He slowed to a stop, looking around as he tried to figure out where she might have disappeared to, not expecting the sudden weight from above, knocking him to the ground.

She dropped down, springing off his shoulders before landing on the tip of her staff, balancing perfectly at ease as she laughed.

Tim smiled as the pieces clicked into place. He didn’t have the full story but he’d only ever seen one other person do what she just did with such ease. The revelation felt almost nostalgic back to the times when Dick was Robin and he made that discovery.

“Well this has been fun, but I have to run. Maybe I’ll see you around, Birdy,” she told him, giving a small salute as she started to leave, pulling him from his thoughts.

“Wait! Marinette!”

She stopped, turning to look back at him with a soft laugh.

“Took you long enough, Tim.”

“This is your secret, isn’t it? You hold the Cat Miraculous.”

“Close.”

“Close?”

“I’m the Guardian for all of the Miraculi.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah….” she trailed off glancing away, the bravado and confidence draining a bit, leaving the Marinette he was more used to dealing with. “There was a reason I was so set on not sharing mine until I knew what you were hiding. The books a grimoire attached to them which-”

“Which you want under your protection,” he finished. She nodded. 

“I can’t risk it or the Miraculi falling into the wrong hands. I don’t want to repeat another decade of fighting.”

He laughed. “I don’t blame you. I- I know you weren’t Chat Noir. Which hero were you?”

“I’d make you guess but the magic confuses things so I’ll spare you this time. I was Ladybug. I did moonlight as Multimouse every now and again though as well. You should see the things I can do with a little bit of weight on the end of a rope.”

“Is that an offer?”

The two stood in silence, both thankful for the darkness as their faces turned bright red.

“I-I am so sorry that just slipped out-” he sputtered, as Marinette let out a small laugh, placing a hand on his arm in reassurance.

“I take it you missed me then?”

“You wouldn’t believe the amount of cold cases I’ve solved hoping you’d walk back through the door.”

“I left my key.”

“Did you think I locked the door?”

“Tim-”

“I know. I locked it when I was out or asleep,” he offered.

“Have you slept?”

“Have you?”

“Touche.”

Marinette snatched her hand away with a small blush, realizing it was still resting on his arm, letting out a breath. “I missed you too, you know. You can’t believe how stupid I felt not noticing the signs you were a vigilante. I mean the long nights, the hidden injuries, the caffeine sustaining life. I did all the same things for ten years. I should have figured it out.”

“I’ve been hiding it for ages now.”

“It still should have been obvious,” she replied, shaking her head. “Regardless, no more secrets between us. Promise?”

“Promise. Does this mean you’ll come home now?”

“I don’t know if you’re ready for the chaos the kwamii will bring. They’re going to want to meet you now that you know.”

“I think I can handle it if it brings you home.”

“You’re going to regret those words soon enough.”

He reached out, pulling her in for a hug. “I doubt that.”

“You haven’t met Plagg and Trixx yet,” she warned, resting her head on his shoulder.

“I can handle it.”

“You say that now. Race you home?”

“What?”

“Don’t tell me you’ve never raced over the city skyline before.”

“Oh you’re on, Mari. I have the home field advantage.”

“Let’s see how far that gets you then, hm?” she said, kissing his cheek before using her baton to carry her up through the skylight with a laugh, leaving him to kickstart his brain into motion before chasing after her, grinning.

Bruno with a s/o that doesn’t take anyone BS

G/n Reader

Aaaaah! I’m so sorry, I had a request from an anon but i’m dumb and instead of saving a draft for later I post it and now I can’t answer the request anymore ;-;

I’m so sorry anon! I’m new at this writing thing, but I hope that you read this!

The request was: What if a person was being rude with Bruno and Reader came and said something like *you mess with him, and I mess with your face*

This is gonna take place pre-canon, so Bruno and Reader are 25 or so in this!

Bruno hated going down to the village, he hated it with an intense passion. And it’s not even because he hated being outside. He loved being outside! To feel the sun on his face and all the views, different from Casita, from his dumb room with all those dumb stairs. Like seriously, why did he had so many stairs?

But that’s beyond the point, he didn’t hated being outside, he just hated the fact that once he was out of his tower, every person in the Encanto would watch him like some kind of freak, like they would die just if he looked back at them.

But he was a man on a mission, today Julieta was feeling under the weather and she wasn’t able to cook that day so, while Pepa and Mamá took care of her in Casita, Bruno was tasked to go to the market and get some medicine for her older sister. Easy peasy. So here he is, with his ruana’s hood covering his face and making his way between all the fearful stares.

He was looking down while he walked, trying to ignore everyone’s stares, when a different smell came to his senses. It smelled so nice, like fresh baked pie. Once he looked up, he could see that he was in front of the village’s bakery. He needed to get that medicine, but the bread smelled so nice! Maybe medicine can wait a little, after all he was a little hungry and he could even grab some merengón for July! That would make her feel better for sure, after all food is the way to the heart.

Without thinking, Bruno stepped inside, taking down his hood and noticing a few costumers looking at the different bread in the store. While not everyone noted his presence or simply didn’t cared, there was a few people that stared at him, causing him to look down again and making his way to the counter.

“¡Bienvenido! ¿En qué te puedo servir?” (Welcome! What can I do for you?) That made him look up from his feet and he stared at you. Man, he was out of words, you were so pretty, he even dare to say that the most beautiful person he has ever seen in his life “¿Are you looking for something in particular?”

“oh! Sorry, Uhm…” He glaced at the side, thinking about what to say “it’s just that you are really pretty… I MEAN- You smell pretty! NO! The bread smells pretty!… I-I’m not saying that you smell bad! You surely smell just as nice as you look! I-I-I” he then covers his face in embarrassment, without noticing your own red face and the smile that was now in your face “Ay papá, ayúdame” he said in a low voice.

“H-hey, it’s okay” you reassured him “You don’t smell bad yourself” he looked up again, now seeing your fond smile “Uhm, don’t get me wrong, I love the compliments, but are you gonna order something?” He then notice that more people is looking at them, so he just say in a high pitch voice.

“SI! I mean… Uhm… Do you… By any chance… Have any merengón? It’s for my sister because she isn’t feeling so well and I wanted to surprise her because, well, she loves desserts, and she isn’t feeling over the top right now but I already said that, and now I’m rambling, me voy a callar, si” he grabs his left arm, something that he always do when he is nervous, then you give him a reassuring smile.

“Que tierno, I wished someone did something like that for me” you comfort him “and aren’t you lucky, guapo? I have a fresh stack back in the kitchen, just wait here, I’ll be right back” You winked at him and left to grab some of the dessert while his face exploded once again with that scarlet color. Did you just called him handsome?

“Pfft, look at the rarito over there, he can’t even talk like a normal person” Bruno looked at the voice and could see a woman an her group of friends staring at him “I mean, I knew he was already a freak, with all those visions he has, it shouldn’t even surprise me” She laughed, while what look like her friends did the same in a lower tone.

Embarrassed, he covers his face once again with his hoodie and look away for them, but that only could do much about how they were talking about him. Gosh, he remembered again why he hated to be in the village so much.

“Yeah, you better hide you freak, no one wants to see your face” she laughs but it’s cut short with a loud cough and some gasps from her friends. Surprised, Bruno looked up again and the sight almost made him laugh. There was the same woman, but her face was now snow white covered in what looked like flour. She was coughing so loud and her friends were trying to clean up the mess.

“That was uncalled for, amiga” Bruno is surprised to see you with your arms crossed, your hands where snow white as well. Did you… Just threw flour at that woman? “Your face is not muy hermosa that we say, maybe you should be the one hiding it” you then get out of back the counter and stand in front of the group, the rude woman looking at you in disbelief. “And here we don’t want rude customers, so you and your friends better leave, cara de guanabana”

Fuming, the rude woman and her group leave. “Alguna gente Dios mío, tarados, eso son” (Some people I swear to God, morons, that’s what they are) You sigh and take your place back in the counter once again and looked at him as if nothing had happened with a wide smile in your face. “Aquí tienes guapo”.

“Why… Why did you?” He tries to ask, but the words seem to fail him again.

“¿Qué? That? Oh well, they were being assheads, and I don’t want that kind of people in my bakery, it makes the bread all fungy, you know, because of those parasites” you joke, getting a surprised look from him.

“B-but, now they are never gonna buy from you anymore and maybe tell a lot of people that you were defending me” he grabs his arm once again.

“And why would I want them near my shop again? Hm? Son unos babosos, I don’t want that kind of customers” you looked at him dead serious in the eye, making him stare at you in disbelief once again. “Besides, just because you can see the future, that doesn’t make it right for them to call you a freak, don’t you think Bruno?”

And he almost wanted to cry, it was the first time that someone besides his family ever stood up for him, and more surprisingly was that you knew him and surely all the rumours about him and you still did it.

“Well, I better leave you, I still have some work to do but uhmm…” You looked almost unsure, a soft red color taking place in your checks “I… I close the store at six… Maybe you could come here… And… we could drink some coffee?”

That makes him sweat a little. “Are you… Quieres… With me?” He said surprised, and you nodded “SI! I mean-” he clears his throat “I’ll be here at six”.

“Nice! I’ll see you then!” You then handed him a little container whith merengón “Is on the house, I wish your sister feels better” you wink at him.

“Gracias… You too… I MEAN! I’m gonna go now” before he leaves, he can hear a laugh coming out of you. What a beautiful sound.

He then gets out of the store and take a deep breath. He had a date!… Oh por dios, HE HAD A DATE! He had to tell Pepa an July! He needs to be ready! God, Pepa was gonna have a trip for sure.

It’s just when he got back at Casita when he notice that he forgot to buy the medicine.

~~~~~

And there you go! I’m really sorry again that I could reply you with this anon, but I hope you liked it!

I liked the idea of a baker s/o when I read The Seer and The Baker if you guys haven’t read it, you totally should!

Once again, if you see any grammar mistakes don’t be afraid to correct me!

Bruno with a S/O that loves plushies

g/n reader

• When you first started dating Bruno, you didn’t wanted him to know about your ‘childish’ obsession with plushies.

• You are a grown up person! Imagine the embarrassment that it would be if he knew about it, he would think that you were so immature, then he would laugh at you and then leave you!

• That’s what you thought and boy if you’ve never been so WRONG about him

• This is how he notice: It was the first time that you spend the night in Casita, and obviously you would share room with your boyfriend/fiance/amor de tu vida.

But you were just restless. Of course you love cuddling him and feeling him close to you, but you were feeling kind of ansious without one of your plush companions and the soft comfort that came with them.

So, Bruno noticing this and being the lovely human being that he is, decides to take you to the kitchen to give you a cup of hot coco, only to found little Antonio and Mirabel there as well with their own mugs.

Mirabel and Bruno start talking, but you can’t seem to be able to join the conversation, feeling so restless and ansious at the same time, eyeing your mug.

“Are you okay?” A little voice gets you out of your trance, and when you look down, you can see Antonio looking at you with his big eyes and with his jaguar plushie hanging from his arm.

“Oh yeah, don’t worry, I’m just feeling a little ansious but nothing a good cup of chocolate caliente can’t solve” you tried to assure him, but that just seems to make him worried.

“And why are you ansious?” He approach you, and without a second question, you leave your mug in the table and help him sit down in your lap, while he looks at you.

“Can I tell you a little secret Toñito?” You tell him in a whisper, hoping that the other two people in the room can’t hear you. He nods at you “Well, you see, I have a little friend just like your amigo here that I always hug to sleep since I was little just like you” you boop his nose, making him laugh “but I left it at my house, and that’s why I can’t seem to sleep”.

“Oh” He looks down at his stuffed jaguar and then at you again “You can sleep with him!” He says raising his voice and catching the attention of the other two people in the room “I can sleep with Parce tonight” he says referring to his real jaguar friend.

“Oh, Toñito, you don’t have to-” you started, only to be interrupted by him “But you said you miss your plushie! So you can have mine for tonight! Here!” He then puts his jaguar in your hand and get down of your lap, going to grab Mirabel’s hand and after them both wishing you a good night, you are left with Bruno in the Kitchen.

“What was that?” Bruno asked you, causing your face to turn red and avoiding his eyes while you bring Antonio’s plushie close to your chest “is everything okay mi vida?”

“Um, Antonio saw that I was tired and he decided to give me his plushie for tonight because…” You tried to come with an excuse as to why you needed a plushie. You can then feel Bruno’s hand lifting your face so that you can now look him in the eyes, a soft look directed at you, and that’s when you faltered “Uhm, because I have this plushie since I was a kid right? and I always hug it to sleep but I left it at my house because I don’t want you to think that I’m… childish”

“Oh ratoncita” he then cups your face in his hands “you should have told me, I would never think of you thay way” he then gives you a peck in your lips, making you smile.

“It’s just that” you sighed, resisting the urge to cry of embarrassment “I’m really happy with you Bruno, and I didn’t wanted you to leave me over this, I’m a grown up por Dios!” you said looking him straight in the eye.

“Mi amor, I would be el hombre más estúpido de la tierra (the stupidest man in earth) if I left you over something like this” he smiles at you lovingly “Besides, it’s kinda cute” that only makes you laugh.

• After that you both get back to his room and you are able to sleep cuddling both Antonio’s jaguar and the love of your life.

• A couple weeks later, he gives you a cute rat plushie that he made himself with a little help from Mirabel. Let’s just said that you cried. A lot.

.

AHA! I had this in my mind ALL FREAKING DAY. Again, I’m sorry for any grammar mistakes, english is not my mother language and if you have any correction they are always welcome!

Hope you liked this!