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goggles-mcgee · 1 month ago

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Ashes of Rage: Act 1 - There's Something So Morbidly Beautiful About A Funeral

Chapter 8 of the story for @miner249er

AO3 Beginning Last Chapter

Summary: Wu Fei knew grief well, she wore it even better, but there was nothing in this world that she wouldn't give to put an end to it. It would be better even if it never happened, but life wasn't fair and that was something else she knew well.

There's Something So Morbidly Beautiful About A Funeral:

Death was inevitable. That was a stone cold, hard truth. One that Wu Fei knew well and had previously despised. Others feared Death, but Fei had hated it with an anger so vicious it scared her. It was like she skipped the first stage of grief altogether and just jumped straight into anger when her adopted father Shifu had passed. It had consumed her until she had met Marinette. That fateful meeting had been the catalyst of change she needed and the domino that started the chain of events that had occurred. At the end of it all, Fei had fully taken the responsibility that had been bestowed upon her and somehow found another family that wanted her. Wang was a wonderful pseudo great-uncle and Marinette had become something like a sister to her despite the distance between them.

Everyday they exchanged messages or funny pictures, sometimes they even had time to video call which was always a treat Fei looked forward to. Sometimes both girls were too busy with their day to day lives that the most they could do was send each other a simple message or picture, but even being busy didn’t stop them from letting each other know they were thinking of each other. The number of care packages they sent each other was a wonderful constant in Fei’s life. Living with Wang brought a new routine to Fei’s life, one she cherished as she knew how chaotic one’s life could be without routine, and she knew she was someone who thrived on a routine.

Therefore, she knew something was wrong when she had woken up and received no message from Marinette, not even a picture or meme. She tried to tell herself it was nothing and that the girl had probably been too busy but she just had this feeling in her gut that something was deeply wrong. Even with the time difference Marinette always messaged as she was as much a creature of habit as Fei was. Fei followed Paris news as well as numerous blogs that tracked Team Miraculous, though it had taken her some time, she had found out that Marinette was Ladybug. At first she had been hurt and confused as to why Marinette had never told her but over time she understood. It wasn’t that Marinette didn’t trust her, it was because her chosen sister loved her and was scared.

That was something that Fei knew all about as she worried about Uncle Wang constantly because of her responsibilities but over time she saw no need to hide it from the man. Also, Mei Shi trusted the man and advised Fei to be open with him which had surprised her greatly considering that the Prodigious had always been something that was heavily guarded. Something about Uncle Wang’s aura made Mei Shi sure about his advice and of course she followed it. Plus, Mei Shi pointed out that she had already transformed in front of who she thought was a civilian without much thought so overall, she thought it was a fair decision. One that had worked out greatly for her, not that she doubted Mei Shi or anything.

For a while, it felt like she was betraying her father whenever she felt happy with Uncle Wang and how he took care of her and it had definitely been a hurdle to overcome. For every smile and laugh her new Uncle brought out of her, it had always quickly been followed by a frown and tears. She was happy one moment and unbearably angry and heartbroken the next. It was like her emotions were on a constantly spinning wheel and her emotions flashed as fast as the wheel spun. It took Uncle Wang making them a picnic and taking her to her father’s gravesite for her to finally confess all her feelings through her sobbing. He helped her set up some flowers, incense, and the picnic.

She cried as Uncle Wang spoke to her father and promised him he would care for and love Fei as she deserved and as her father wished. Then he gave her time to talk to her father as well as she ate her share of the picnic Uncle Wang made for them. . She spoke for what felt like forever, she laughed, she cried, she screamed and when she was finally done Uncle Wang simply helped her pick up the picnic and helped her clean her father’s grave since it was something she hadn’t done before. Then he took her to a crafting store and had her pick out a frame for a photo of her father to go in their home, whether that be her room or the main hall, he told her she could choose. Fei may have cried once more as she picked out a frame and little things she knew her father liked or found funny to decorate it with.

In the end she decided to put her father’s picture in her room since she had a large window that she could see a beautiful sunrise and sunset through it. Her father had always been fond of sunrises and just as fond of sunsets. She even added a little incense dish that she placed in front of the picture. The whole process had brought her such relief and joy that she had given Uncle Wang the biggest hug she could manage and she could still recall his warm chuckles that followed. That moment had brought such warmth into her life and soul and it had continued for a long time until now. Now it felt like all that warmth was stolen from her by some sort of malevolent leech.

Her sister in all but blood was dead. Or that is what they told everyone, and despite the evidence Fei just could not believe it. She didn’t want to believe it. But standing there in the section of the church staring at the many photos and flowers that decorated the space, any hope she felt had shriveled. Auntie Sabine (or Auntie Xiu Mei as she also liked to be called) was weeping heavily not that anyone blamed her but Fei knew her grief was more than her daughter passing. It was also the fact there was no body to wash or dress or display in a coffin, nor was there a body to cremate if that was the chosen desire of the family. Though Fei knew from Uncle Wang that Auntie Sabine and Uncle Tom decided to cremate her signature pink flats that were found at the scene of the crime, some of her childhood toys and clothing and some recent though not many as they couldn’t bear to part with much of their daughter's things.

Instead of a coffin there was a beautifully painted urn with plum blossoms that adorned it placed on a pedestal. No one in France probably knew just how big the Cheng and Lǐ (Auntie Sabine’s mother’s family) families were before but now they did and Fei could practically taste the surprise. The family section of the church was basically a family reunion and it would have been amusing if not for the circumstances. Despite the overwhelming sadness that hung in the air, Fei couldn’t help but appreciate how beautiful the ceremony was overall. Auntie Sabine wore a beautiful but plain white dress while Uncle Tom wore a smart black suit with a white lily pinned to his left breast pocket as well as a white armband placed on his left sleeve. The Cheng and Lǐ side of the family all wore different shades of blue which made the section Fei was in look like waves in a stormy sea. There weren’t many people on the Dupain side, just Gina and Roland if you didn’t count Uncle Tom, and the two of them matched their son with the black clothing. They also copied their son with the white lily decoration.

The way the two stood firm in the sea of blues made Fei think of those immovable rocks that temperamental waters hit and who through it all refused to break. The way Gina still wore a black leather jacket had Fei feel enormous respect for the lady. Despite the solemn time, the woman was still effortlessly herself and the thought made Fei think that it was something that Marinette had also respected and admired. Fei herself had the privilege of wearing white and she was so grateful to Uncle Tom and Auntie Sabine for letting her wear white since both of them knew how the girls saw each other. They had actually requested she wear white before she could even work up the courage to ask the question herself. It had shocked her so much that she had promptly burst into tears while thanking the couple. She cried more when they simply hugged her and told her they knew it was something that Marinette would want.

Memories are what carried her through the ceremony and before she knew it, it was time to move venues to the reception. The reception was happening at Le Grand Paris since the hotel offered to host it in their biggest ballroom even though it was only open to family and friends. It turned out to be a blessing in disguise since no one really knew how big the Cheng and Lǐ families were until the funeral and because no one really knew the extent of Marinette’s friend circles. It was of course a solemn affair, but with the smell of what could only be described as a feast of Chinese and French cuisine and the mild chatter filled with stories of Marinette and the overall feeling of community had Fei think that though a funeral was a cause of grief and sadness, there was something simply beautiful about it all.

Mei Shi provided Fei with a quiet comfort as she could feel his slight weight in her small purse, one given to her by Marinette, as she had gotten ready for the day, the purse had seemed like the right thing to wear. It also aided in keeping her small friend and mentor close, as she felt like a pocket wasn’t enough space for the little guardian. She could also feel the Renlings around her in spirit and that gave her a feeling of strength she hadn’t felt in a long time since the news hit her. It carried her through dreadful small talk, memories shared as freely as tears, and more dreadful; heart-felt talks. She powered through it all even if she didn’t know everyone. Some she knew well as Uncle Wang was very open and proud of his ward/pseudo niece. So she was well acquainted or even friends with some of the Chengs. And others, like the Lǐ family who she knew purely through stories from Uncle Wang, Auntie Sabine and Marinette. Then lastly she had the French side who, well, she only knew Uncle Tom and his parents and then there were Marinette’s friends who she felt like she knew as well as she could if she had lived with Marinette.

It was a weird, new feeling, to know someone without ever actually meeting them. Yet, she could not make herself approach any of those said friends. She didn’t know if she could manage that. It was overwhelming every time she met one of their eyes and it took everything in her not to burst into tears because she knew, she knew, how loved they made Marinette feel and how fiercely she loved them in return. It was a childish fear that made her stay away, she felt like if she got close to them and felt the love they feel for Marinette or if she felt the lingering love Marinette felt for them it would awaken a jealousy in her. She had of course felt jealousy before and in some cases it was intense and it always brought her a feeling of shame. This time, it felt like a dangerous beast awaiting to be let out.

It was out of her love for Marinette she was staying away, or so she was trying to convince herself. She was just so convinced that if she talked to them she would say something so hurtful out of misplaced anger, jealousy and grief that Marinette’s friends would hate her forever. That was something she absolutely did not want. Though she admitted she was jealous of them, at least to herself, though she was sure Mei Shi suspected, that didn’t mean she wanted them to hate her. These people were important to Marinette and she knew that her sister had wanted them all to meet because she was convinced they would all be the best of friends. Fei had agreed at the time to meet them at some point since she and Marinette had been plotting a way to get Fei to visit come summer but now, now it felt…weird to even consider.

Introducing herself to Marinette’s friends and maybe even becoming friends with them felt so wrong on a monumental scale. Nothing about it would ever feel right because it would happen without Marinette. It felt sinful. Just thinking about it made her feel dirty in a way she could never put into words. On the other hand, by holding herself back she knew Marinette would be unhappy, but by following the wishes of ghosts had already misled her once. Fei didn’t want to make the same mistake. The Renlings and Mei Shi had already told her she was being silly as they were very in tune with her emotions and thoughts, the Renlings especially as they were always with her in a sort of spiritual way. No one could see them unless they wanted them too, though Fei could always see them, and apparently other beings like them could always see them and sense them. Apparently some people who were sensitive to their kind of energy could sense them but not see them.

“Fei, sweetheart,” Fei was cut from her thoughts by the soft voice of Auntie Sabine. “How are you doing?”

“I’m fi-”

“Sweetie.” Auntie Sabine gently reprimanded her almost answer and it made Fei wince with a sheepish smile.

“I’m doing better but still…not…not too great.” She answered truthfully.

Her auntie simply gave her a sad smile but took her hand in hers and gave it a soft pat. “I understand. I just wanted to thank you for being here.”

“Auntie…” Fei muttered in awe. She knows today could not be easy on Sabine and yet here the woman stood tall with a smile for Fei. The strength the woman had always left Fei in awe. “Of course I’d be here…I-I couldn’t miss it.”

“You’re a good girl.”

“You’re too kind Auntie.”

“It’s not kindness if it’s true.”

Fei couldn’t help the small chuckle that left her. “Well maybe it can be bot-”

“I WANT HER BACK!” Their conversation was cut short by a very loud and childish voice that seemed to have caught the attention of everyone. It was a little girl who was stomping away from who Fei assumed was her mother. It took only a moment for Fei to recognize them both.

“Manon…please!” The woman, who Fei realized was Nadja Chamack, a local reporter and Auntie Sabine’s good friend, begged the little girl. A little girl who Fei knew to be Manon Chamack. Marinette had shared a lot of photos of the little girl or selfies of them both since Manon seemed to love filters. She was one of the kids that Marinette babysat a lot.

“NO! I DON’T WANT MARIE! OR HUGO! OR JEAN! OR WHOEVER ELSE YOU THINK SHOULD BABYSIT ME!” Manon yelled out, her face turning an impressive shade of red. “I WANT MARINETTE BACK!”

There was a collective gasp and following silence that had Fei feeling like she was at the edge of a cliff.

“I just want Marinette…” Manon’s voice had gotten softer but her sobs had greatly increased in volume and it seemed to have affected everyone. There was not one dry eye at the little girl's confession because everyone felt the same. “I just want her back…”

“Oh baby…” Nadja choked out as she watched her daughter fall to her knees. Fei watched as Nada lowered herself to the ground next to her daughter and hugged her to her. It was at this point that Fei looked away so she could give the mother and daughter some privacy and was happy to see others do the same. Though not all attendants gave the two some privacy and Fei couldn’t help but scoff at the behavior. Pain was not supposed to be a spectacle. Though she knew this particular funeral was a spectacle despite Auntie Sabine and Uncle Tom’s best efforts, therefore everyone’s pain was part of said spectacle.

Being so close to the source of some people’s attention had Fei feeling more than a little uncomfortable so she quietly excused herself from her Aunt so she could go grab something to drink as she found herself suddenly parched. It was as she was on her way towards the dining tables that she felt a pull from Mei Shi and the Renlings. Though Mei Shi’s was more physical whilst the Renlings’ was more spiritual. Fei huffed softly to herself but diligently followed the pull which thankfully was still in the direction of the dining tables. So perhaps she could still get a drink while she investigated whatever Mei Shi and the Renlings were pulling her towards. As she walked she casually looked around her to see if anything was out of the normal but nothing jumped out at her until she actually reached the table full of drinks that had been her original destination.

There were two teens standing next to the water pitchers which had been her goal. She quickly identified the two as Luka Couffaine and Tsuguri Kagami as Marinette had shown her more than enough pictures and videos of her friends and these two featured most often. The two were talking in low voices to one another and Fei was confused as to what she was supposed to be seeing since they definitely were where she was being led to. It was right as she was about to reach them that she saw two small figures and instantly she felt this rush of energy. One was peeking out of the long sleeves of Kagami’s kimono and the other was peeking out of the inside of Luka’s now unbuttoned tux jacket. She didn’t know what they were but they looked and felt similar to Mei Shi and the Renlings. As soon as she made the connection she knew this is where she was being led.

With a deep breath in and a deep breath out, Fei squared her shoulders and approached the two with more confidence than she actually felt. “Hello. My name is Wu Fei. It is nice to officially meet you two.”

Next Chapter

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ghl-osty · 10 months ago

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Do you have any Lila + batfamily fic recs?? Ty!

Perfect Sense, by PurpleBooks58 on AO3!!! one of my favorites.

#lila salt #lila rossi #miraculous ladybug #miraculous fic rec #bio dad bruce wayne #maribat #mlb x dc #marinette dupain cheng #marinette wayne #bruce wayne #jason todd #dick grayson #tim drake #cassandra cain #damian wayne #stephanie brown #barbara gordon

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justrandomfanfictionskh · 2 years ago

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We Should have Stayed in Gotham pt6

(Almost every Maribat fic I read has the akuma class going to Gotham. But tell me which is more likely, a class touring the city of crime, or a class touring the city of lights? So here it is, the Daminette fic that only I asked for, where Gotham goes to Paris, and the poor students have to grapple with the fact that they have competition for the most dangerous city in the world. I wonder what will happen?)

ao3 Beginning Previous

Ladybug set Damian down on the deck of a rather messy houseboat, and began assigning positions to her team. Damian could see the value of this location. It was an open area that was easy to quickly isolate and defend should the shore be over run, with many hiding spot and easy escape routes should the boat be taken, provided they all could swim of course. There was only one problem. “Should we tell the inhabitants to evacuate?” Damian asked as the heroes cleared the space for fighting.

“The family’s out,” Viperion said as he stashed some instruments. “We often use their boat for traps, because it’s so versatile.”

“Besides,” Ryuko said moving Damian into position on the far side of the open deck. “The Government gave us acquisition rights. If, during an akuma fight, Ladybug or any of the heroes require something from the citizens, then they are all obligated to follow her orders.”

Damian furrowed his brow as Ladybug swung away with Chat Noir to draw Princess Fragrance to them. “Isn’t that rather dangerous? I can see many ways that can be taken advantage of.”

“Maybe in Gotham,” Viperion said with a sly smile. “But Ladybug knows what she’s doing. Besides, once the Lucky Charm is thrown it’s best to just roll with it and don’t ask questions.”

“Speaking of,” Ryuko said pointing. And sure enough there was Ladybug and Chat Noir running over the rooftops. There was no sign of the zombies or the akuma, but Damian knew they weren’t far behind. The plan was for Ladybug to trick them into following her, not to drag them kicking and screaming.

“That didn’t take long,” Damian said as Ladybug landed.

“Didn’t think it would,” Ladybug said with a huff. “She's turned half of the arrondissement at this point. You sure you’re ok with this? You will be in direct danger. And if we fail to protect you—”

“You have not failed Paris yet,” Damian said simply as a matter of fact, “And I have seen the lists. You will not fall to an enemy this weak. I have faith in your abilities.”

“Oh my kwami,” Viperion muttered, “He really is like Ryuko.”

Ryuko elbowed the snake, but Ladybug ignored them studying him curiously, “Even the meagerest foot soldiers can fell the mightiest General, Spikes, for a blade is a blade and cares nothing for whose flesh it mars.”

Damian blinked in surprise, “That’s an Amazonian saying.”

Ladybug’s brow raised under her red mask. “It’s rare to find a male well versed in Amazonian proverbs.”

“I have had a very thorough education,” Damian said with his usual coldness. And before anyone else could comment a shrill voice rang out through the streets.

“Come out! Come out! My sweet Ice Prince! Don’t you want to thaw that frozen heart! Please! Come on out now!”

With a quick nod from Ladybug, Ryuko and Viperion vanished as she and Chat Noir took up positions in front of Damian as if they had just been cornered. Damian could easily see over Ladybug’s head, but in some ways, he wish he couldn’t. The small blonde ball of pink that had yelled at him in the classroom had transformed into something inhumane. Her skin was a monster green while her hair had turned into the color of chewed up bubblegum. Almost her entire body was covered in a black body suit that was puffed in places to give the illusion of a ballgown. Damian wanted to throw up. She looked like some maniac had smashed the Wicked Witch of the West and Cinderella together and tried to make it “modern.” It was so disturbing how wrongly demented she looked, that he had to say,

“Is part of Hawkmoth’s plan to burn the eyes of all of Paris, and thus ruin the fashion industry forever?”

Ladybug actually snorted as she tried to stifle her giggles, “You got an eye for design, Spikes?”

Damian shrugged, “I’m a Wayne, and my mother was very particular that I always knew how to dress appropriately for every occasion.” He left out the part where “dressing for the occasion” meant being able to go undercover in any environment and culture, but he seemed to get the point across, as Ladybug smiled and said,

“I can see how that would be useful. And for the record, when we do find Hawkmoth, I plan to strap into a chair and force him to watch fashion tutorials twenty-four seven.”

“It’s the least he deserves for forcing us to look at that,” Damian sneered.

“Hey!” Chat Noir said, “I can’t believe I’m the one saying this. But shouldn’t we be focusing?”

“Right!” Ladybug said, “Thanks Chaton, sorry. Now, Princess Fragrance!” She cried as she sped up her yoyo until it was a blur or pink and red light forming a solid circle.

The akuma saw them and Damian, and she cried, “My Prince! Get him!” Easily three hundred people filed out from behind cars and building and onto the street. They were all smiling like they were on Joker venom, as the sang in unison, “As you wish, Princess Fragrance!”

The zombies surged, but clearly unlike the zombies of a more undead nature, these had not lost any of their physical abilities. They rushed the boat in a swarm, spurred by their now instinctual desire to serve their Princess.

Viperion pulled the boat out onto the river, even as the first brainwashed victim reached the dock. That didn’t stop the swarm however, as most of the creatures leapt into the river and attempted to swim to the boat. Damian winced as a young man hit his head on the railing, but panicked as he fell backwards into the river. The training of his father, screamed at him to save him. To stop him from drowning, but Ladybug caught his wrist.

Damian looked up and saw the pain in her powerful blue eyes as she shook her head. Even as she stopped him, Damian saw the reality. Trying to save that person was pointless when the greater enemy was still baring down on them. Not to mention the fact that the cure would revive him once the battle was done. It was cold logic, assassin’s logic, that his family had been trying to coax out of him for six years. But this was a war, for the very fabric of reality.

Ladybug had never spared the public on the necessity of keeping the Miraculous away from Hawkmoth. In her very first press conference which Damian had watched three times, she had explained explicitly why no individual, no matter how good a motive, could ever be allowed to make a wish. Her speech during those first interviews had gotten the inter country on her side as no one wanted to see what a mad man willing to brainwash children wanted to alter reality for.

In the grand scheme of the fight, a single individual who would eventually be resurrected, was a price they had to pay. And as Damian withdrew his hand he could see, that it was a choice that Ladybug had had to make too many times in her tenure as a hero. He returned to his place, and waited for the akuma to eventually catch up with them. He didn’t have to wait long.

As they came up on a bridge, a figure of black and pink dropped onto the deck. She rose in the shadow, cackling as she raised a twisted black gun, and pointed it straight at Damian. “Time to feel the love, my Ice Prince!”

Damian was glad that they had chosen such a messy house boat, because he was easily able to flip behind a stack of boxes as Chat Noir nocked off the Princess’s aim. A puff of pink smoke dissipated into the river, and the akuma shrieked as she fought with the Cat. Damian peeked out when Ladybug called on her Luck Charm.

He could only stare in confusion and disbelief as a deflated balloon fell into her hands. “What are we going to do with that m’lady?” Chat Noir called out in a teasing voice, “Throw a party.”

“Keep her distracted Chat, I’ll—”

“Ryuko!” Viperion yelled as he came out of the cabin, “Zombies are incoming. Ladybug that goes on the perfume. Spikes, you’ll need this.”

Damian blinked as he caught the long thing that the Snake hero tossed him. He had no idea why Viperion was suddenly taking charge, there was virtually nothing about him on any of the websites. But the heroes jumped to obey him, as within ten seconds of him speaking they came out from under the bridge and twenty zombies landed on the deck.

“Get my Prince!” the akuma shrieked. And they charged. Damian looked down and saw that he had caught a shinai, a bamboo sword used in kudo. Who was the family that owned this boat, that they just had this lying around?

He didn’t have time to ponder as Ryuko drew her own sword and stood side by side with Damian creating a wall between the zombies and the other heroes. Damian only took the time to be momentarily impressed with Ryuko’s skill as they swung in tandem against the zombies. Knocking them down, and throwing them into the river. Unfortunately it didn’t matter how skilled or in-sync they were, because the zombies were so single minded, that they stood with broken bones and bleeding heads, trying to catch Damian and help their Princess, and all with those demented smiles on their faces.

Damian thought the smiles were the worst part, because they weren’t like Laughing Gas smiles. No, you could see the pain in the eyes of the Joker’s victims, even as their mouths were twisted. But these zombies didn’t show any pain. Even as Damian cracked one’s knee with a sickening snap, it looked at Damian as if he were the happiest creature alive, not even a flicker of pain. They lunged for him with the strength only the unhinged possessed, even as their leg twisted the wrong way underneath them.

The only way to get rid of them was to throw them over board, which Viperion helped with even as he shouted out warnings. Damian didn’t dare look back to see how Ladybug and Chat Noir were doing, but the Cat’s unending chatter was beginning to grate on his nerves even as he tossed the last zombie overboard.

“No resting,” Ryuko called out, as she pointed to the second bridge coming close. Sure enough, another group of zombies were waiting to leap.

“Chat no!” Ladybug cried, and Damian spun to see Chat Noir get a face full of perfume as he pushed Ladybug out of the way. The perfume cloud dissipated, as the hero straightened and sang,

“At your servi—Mmph!” Viperion tackled Chat and wrestled him to the ground as Princess Fragrance swung her gun to Ladybug. Ladybug slid the balloon onto the end of the gun, right as she pulled the trigger. The balloon inflated into a impossible size, lifting the akuma into the sky.

“Ryuko!” Ladybug shouted. The dragon hero lunged with her sword and pierced the bottle shattering it. A black butterfly flew out as the akuma dropped back onto the deck. Ladybug caught it in her yoyo.

Damian sighed as the akuma was purified and the cure was released. He sat down on one of the many boxes as Viperion rolled off of Chat, and Ryuko went to comfort the small girl who was looking around dazed and confused. “Oh no!” she said, “I…I did it again! Oh Ladybug, I’m…I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to…I just…I just…”

“I know Rose,” Ladybug said gently kneeling beside the girl who was now crying into her hands. “I know.”

“I just want everyone to get along! And be nice!” she cried, “Why can’t we all just be friends?!”

“It’s not always that easy,” Ladybug said gently, as she rubbed the small girl’s back. “I wish it were. But it isn’t.”

“But what do I do!” Rose moaned staring up at Ladybug with pleading eyes.

“Find the people who are true,” Ladybug said gently, “And cling to them. They’re the only opinions that matter. Ryuko’s going to take you back to school now. Are you ok with that?”

Rose nodded, and the Dragon hero swept her up into her arms, like she was carrying a child and, with an inhumane leap, began carrying her back. Damian expected the same treatment since all of the other victims had been swept away by the magic ladybugs, when Chat Noir sauntered up and said with a cocky grin and a swishing tail, “Another successful mission m’lady! Pound it!” He held out his first in celebration. Ladybug scowled. Damian suddenly wanted to jump off the boat.

Damian had survived the Batglare. He had survived his mother’s stare, his grandfather’s sneer. He had only barely escaped Alfred’s frown. But nothing could have prepared him for Ladybug’s scowl. The unearthly power behind her eyes was fanned into a wildfire, as her lips curled into a growl. And Damian felt his skin curl as it did when Superman’s eyes turned red. She stared down her partner as she shoved a finger into his face. “How many times have I told you not to sacrifice yourself for me?”

“But m’lady!” Chat whimpered, his ears falling down in dejection, “You told me to take this more seriously.”

“Yes!” Ladybug cried, “As in follow my lead! Anticipate my movements! Not jump in front of every bast and get yourself brainwashed or killed!”

“Wait!” Chat Noir cried, “This was not my fault, Viperion said we wouldn’t need Second Chance if we used the brat’s ‘improvise’ plan, and that was clearly a lie!”

“I said that” Viperion said crossing his arms, “Because during one of the other times, when I told the truth, you refused to do anything he suggested, and it got you killed.”

There was a deep silence as Damian processed exactly what Viperion's role was. And suddenly, Ladybug's perfect record made sense. Every hero had an off day, where they just couldn't make it in time. But Ladybug couldn't have one. She couldn't fail, because of the importance of the war. So she didn't let it happen. She didn't let her self fail by controlling time itself. It was terrifying both in it's necessity and its effectiveness.

“How many times?” Ladybug asked quietly.

“Three,” Viperion said simply, “We tried your plan once, but we just ended up switching to this one in the end. Thought we’d save time and lives by just jumping to the chase.”

“And the other two times?” Ladybug asked her expression as guarded and as cloudy as the Batman’s.

“Zombies over ran the boat. Second time they killed Chat then you. Third time, Chat Noir tried to save you, got spritzed, killed you.” Damian hissed, as Chat Noir shrunk in on himself like a child trying to hide from his parents.

“What changed?” Ladybug asked.

“Spikes found the sword,” Viperion said simply, pointing at Damian. The heroes turned to him as if just realizing he was still there. Damian looked down at the shinai, and sighed. He stood and said, “My name isn’t Spikes, it’s Damian, Damian Wayne. And I was trained in many forms of combat from a young age…I am sorry this happened, I did not mean to cause that akuma. I have been told that, I should be more…guarded with my tongue. I’m just glad I could help fix the damage I did.”

Ladybug nodded at him consideringly, “Thank you, Damian. You were a great help today. I’ll take you back to the shore. But I don’t think I’ll be able to take you back to the school, my time’s almost up.” As if to prove her point her earrings beeped, as one of the dots disappeared.

Damian nodded his understanding, as Chat Noir stepped forward fiddling with his tail. “M’lady,” he said desperately, “Please I am trying! You know I am. And I’ve gotten better, right? Please, Chat Noir is the only thing I have anymore.”

Damian watched neutrally from the side, as Ladybug’s face contorted into pity as she looked at her partner. He was taller than her, and by all appearances stronger to. But from the way he dipped his head and slumped his shoulders you would have thought he was a child being chided by his parents. And like a doting mother Ladybug sighed and said gently,

“Chaton, I’m not taking your miraculous. You’re my partner, and I trust you more than anyone. But you need to trust me! You need to follow my lead. Pay attention to the others, and work with the team, instead of just throwing yourself in the way of danger. Can you do that?”

“Of course, I can!” Chat insisted.

“Ok,” Ladybug said with a nod. “We’ll talk about this more tonight. Now go home, you’re about to transform.”

As the Black Cat bounded away, Ladybug seemed to slump in defeat as she watched him leave. Viperion stepped forward laying a hand on her shoulder. “He is a good hero,” he said, “Always has been.”

“I know,” Ladybug said in a whisper Damian could only barely just hear. “But he’s not a good cat.”

“Perhaps a different miraculous would suit him better?”

“Not until I have a replacement. Have you talked to Fluff?”

Viperion shook his head, “Young and Old are being very cryptic on the matter. But I think Young is just doing it to be annoying.”

“Figures,” Ladybug muttered, but there was a small smile on her lips. She then clapped and turned back to Damian who was pretending that he hadn’t been listening, by putting the bamboo sword away. “Alright Spikes let’s get you back to shore. Viperion, can you take the boat back to the docks? Excellent. Spikes, once I’m gone you should contact your partner, but don’t expect them to answer immediately. It’s the crying hour after all.”

“The what?” Damian asked. But he never got his answer, as Ladybug caught him up by the waist, and used the nearby bridge to swing them back to shore.

@spicemallow @night-ngale @annastasha @ev-cupcake @hammalammadamdam @laydeekrayzee @itsemmylie @when-no-wings-do-broomsticks @doglover82 @raven-ette @atiredartistandacat @theamazingfox @griffinthing @toodaloo-kangaroo @depressed-bitchy-demon @stainedglassm @the-dumber-scaramouche @fangirlingfanatic

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theerurishipper · 1 year ago

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It’s so hard being an Adrien stan in this fandom. People are constantly nitpicking every little thing he does. He can never do right by them. It’s so frustrating. And that’s not even mentioning how he was treated in canon

I feel you anon. I wasn't actively posting for the fandom during the major salt periods, like right after the airing of Syren and then Chameleon, but I was around to see the ridiculous salt fests that would go on. People love to pick on Adrien for every single little thing that involves him making a decision that doesn't cater perfectly to Marinette's whims and needs, but woe be upon you if you say anything about Marinette that isn't praising her. It's not even like I have a problem with Marinette as a character. Some of her writing in Season 4 and 5? Yes. But in Seasons 1-3, I really loved her. She was such a breath of fresh air for me as a character. She was so full of charm and life and energy. But she got ruined for me by her stans who jumped to salt on every other character for not exactly agreeing with her every decision and for having minds of their own and having desires that weren't about her.

And another annoying part is their insistence that Marinette is treated oh so cruelly by the narrative and poor Marinette is always suffering and everyone is treating her so cruelly and she deserves better than people who aren't willing to be her faithful slaves. Then Seasons 4 and 5 brought this into canon, and then you saw people who were salting on Adrien for being upset about being neglected by his partner, and they were blaming him for "feeling entitled to her" despite never calling her out for her treatment of him. Lemme tell you, the chimney discourse was wild. And all that bullshit ass "discourse" about him harassing Ladybug, while ignoring all the stalking Marinette did and pretending it was nothing. I generally ignore anyone who says either of these things because they are clearly meant to be jokes, and I think calling Adrien a harasser is just as ludicrous as calling Marinette a stalker, but the double standard of taking the joke seriously for Adrien but not for Marinette is annoying, to say the least.

And ultimately they just want Adrien and everyone else to be Marinette's sidekicks/yes-men who will never disagree with her and will always do whatever she wants and will never think for themselves. And you unfortunately can see this attitude seeping into canon too, with how Adrien isn't allowed to have independent thoughts outside of how he can be of service to Marinette. Nothing matters for him, the only thing that matters is her and what he can do for her. She's allowed to yell at him and throw him into trashcans, but fuck him if he disagrees with her on something and isn't happy to just sit by and accept being replaced and ignored. And canon Adrienette is such a good example of this phenomenon.

But the salters will whine and rage about how Marinette is such a victim of the narrative and how she suffers so much that we should all excuse her less than perfect actions, while also raging at Adrien for any small slight and denying that he also suffers. I guess Marinette can be excused for being traumatized and stressed, but being a victim of horrific abuse is too less of a reason for Adrien to be excused, and I guess it means he isn't suffering. To them, only Marinette's feelings and suffering matters. And this has also become true for the show, because Adrien's feelings don't matter, only Marinette's feelings about him matter.

And the worst fucking thing I've seen from this fandom is the occasional post about how Adrien is "spineless" and "cowardly" and "doesn't have a backbone" because he is non-confrontational and doesn't get up in arms about everything. And, aside from the fact that there is absolutely nothing wrong with not flying into a righteous rage about everything, this is some fucking heavy victim blaming bullshit. Like, y'all know that Adrien is like that because he's a victim of abuse, right? That his actions are a trauma response, right? It's called fawning. How awful of Adrien to have been conditioned into being non-confrontational by an abusive father who wants him to be subservient to his every whim! How useless is he for being traumatized because of the abuse he suffers! What a loser!

Honestly, the deranged Marinette stans are the worst. If someone says that shit about Adrien, they can go fuck themselves honestly. The gall to accuse a character who is an abuse victim of being "a spineless worm who can't grow a backbone" (someone legit wrote this word for word). Acting like he's the scum of the earth for not agreeing with Marinette 24/7 and victim blaming him for not rising swords drawn the moment someone does something mean to her.

So yeah, I understand you anon. It's really annoying to see all these "hot takes" going around. But there are still many Marinette fans who are nice and don't say all this goofy shit about Adrien, and there are plenty of Adrien stans who love and defend our boy. My advice is to block the salt tags, follow the right blogs and curate your experience the best you can. Trust me, it took a while for me to learn to stop putting myself through the agony of looking through these salt posts and to start blocking tags and salters' blogs. But I'm better off for it now. It won't stop some of these posts from popping up here and there, but it'll massively improve your fandom experience.

Thank you for your ask!

#ML Salt #Marinette Salt #ML Fandom Salt #Meta #My meta #Asks #Also how could I forget the fucking Maribat fics lmaoo #Anyway it was nice to get an opportunity to vent about this #So thank you anon

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927roses-and-stuff · 8 months ago

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miraculous ladbybut class salt fics are so funny bc they'll be like

"everyone abandoned marinette. except [lists half the class]"

like im guilty of it too 👀👀 its just so funny when reading it and having a "hold up" and realize its only really the same 7 people out of a class of like 15 that dont talk to marinette anymore

#also it just reveals which characters the authors love #or thinks has braincells lmaooo #for me its chloe #its even funnier when its a maribat fic lolll #ml salt fics #maribat fics #marinette dupain cheng #miraculous ladybug fics

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bee-a-garbage-shipper · 2 years ago

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More Than One Secret

By: Tyshian

Ship: Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug/Damian Wayne, Chloé Bourgeois/Tim Drake

Minor Ships: Juleka Couffaine/Rose Lavillant, Ivan Bruel/Mylène Haprèle, Alya Césaire/Nino Lahiffe

Status: Complete

Salt: Chloé Bourgeois Sugar, Adrien Agreste Salt, Alya Césaire Salt, Lila Rossi Salt, Caline Bustier Salt, MiracuClass Salt

Summary:

Marinette Dupain-Cheng has Secrets. Damian Wayne has Secrets. The pair together have Secrets.

In which: Hawkmoth and Mayura are beaten but they don't know it. Adrien is an obsessive limp noodle. Alya is an oblivious attack dog and Lila is screwed one way or the other, she just doesn't know it yet. Chloe finds her soulmate in a caffeinated Wayne. Damian learned about emotions from Marinette so he isn't the emotionally stumped little ball of anger he used to be. Marinette and Damian reveal what could be considered a years long prank of epic nature and break a few brains along the way.

The Wayne family and Bustier's class aren't going to know what hit them by the time Marinette and Damian are done with them.

Opinion: Look, it’s a very Salty fic with a simple premise but it’s fun and well written. Not everything needs overly ploty and this is definitely one of those fun fics.

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editorofeverything · 2 years ago

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FIC SEARCH

I’m looking for a fic I read here on tumblr sometime in 2021 I believe. It was a daminette Lila/maybe class salt fic where Lila was lying about knowing the Waynes and got their names mixed up. The only part I distinctly remember was Lila calling Tim Drake “Tim Todd” and it cracked me up so much that I mentioned it in the notes of my fic and I’m still getting comments asking about it. I’m pretty sure it was a fic where Damian went to Paris and joined the class, but I read so many similar ones one after another at that time that I don’t remember any more concrete details. If anyone knows which fic I’m talking about please let me know!!

#daminette #fic search #lila salt #Lila Rossi salt #class salt #marinette x damian #damian x marinette #mlb x dc #dc x mlb #Lila calls tim #Tim Todd #and I still laugh about it to this day #maribat #batman #damian wayne #batfam #miraculous ladybug

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aliensunflower-fics · 2 years ago

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Dating ‘Prince Charming’ Part 2/3

[ Lila is finally starting to learn what its really like to be Adrien Agreste's girlfriend and finding out its not everything she hoped it would be. But while the liar struggles Marinette works toward her goals and meets someone new. ]

[ Prefer AO3? Link HERE! | Part 1 HERE! | Part 3 Coming Soon | Masterlist Link HERE! ]

Chloe made her grand return 3 weeks after Lila and Adrien’s big dating announcement. The bossy blonde had been away in New York with her mother and it was only in retrospect that Marinette briefly wondered if the entire timing of her and Adriens break up and Lila and Adriens announcement had been planned. After all Chloe had not taken well to Marinette dating Adrien and the class president was positive she would not take the news that Lila had swooped in right after their big breakup any better.

As it turns out Marinette had been right at least about Chloe not taking the news well. She’d walked into class early (for her) only to be met with chaos as Chloe and Lila stood opposed and yelling filled the classroom. Despite the fact that Marinette KNEW Chloe would hate whoever dated Adrien the sight was still enough to leave her mildly stunned after all Lila and Chloe had been tag team harassing Marinette since the second she and Adrien had started dating so to see the once allies now locked in a vicious match each using their unique brand of awful against each other… Well it was something.

Luckily Marinette knew she would not have to lift a finger to fix things. Because this? This was Adrien’s problem. And Marinette had no intention of helping or playing mediator. After all Adrien had let Lila and Chloe stomp all over their relationship when they’d still been dating, heck he’d even asked Marinette to simply deal with it so now he could deal with it and Marinette severely doubted that Lila would be even half as accepting or accommodating as she had been.

So while the two wannabe queens duked it out Lila with fake tears and Chloe with vicious mockery Marinette simply glided past the drama and up to her seat where she pulled out her sketchbook and started adding the finishing touches to a sketch of a brand new rock and roll suit for Uncle Jagged. Now that she wasn’t chasing after Adrien 24/7 and making him gifts and worrying about him or Lila or Chloe not to mention trying to keep up with her school work and grades all while also being Ladybug well Marinette had time on her hands and she’d been using it to study, track down Hawkmoth with Alya’s help, spend time with friends but most of all she’d been using that time on her career.

As she wrote in what materials she would need to get a certain sheen effect on the outfit, Marinette noticed the green eyes looking up at her desperately from the front of the class. Marinette glanced up noting how Adrien seemed to be trying to plead with her to help as he tried to reign in his dramatic new girlfriend and attack dog childhood friend; she only cocked her head to the side, smiled and offered him a little wave before continuing with her work. Yeah no way was she willingly throwing herself into THAT.

Sure enough before class could start Adrien managed to drag Lila out of the room and into the hallway no doubt to give her the same speech he had given Marinette when THEY were dating Lila bursting back into the classroom a few minutes later looking like she’d just swallowed a whole lemon only confirmed Marinette’s suspicions.

What Marinette had not expected was Lila openly complaining about ADRIEN at lunch, hours after the incidents of that morning. Marinette ate her steamed bun as she watched with mild surprise as the Italian wailed and threw a veritable tantrum as she told the girls all about how Adrien had put Chloe first and had asked Lila to simply deal with it. It was so painfully ironic that Marinette struggled not to roll her eyes. Honestly after the breakup Marinette had for a brief time contemplated revenge because truthfully. She was hurt and mad but Tikki had talked her out of it claiming that karma would have its way Marinette hadn’t believed the little god at the time too lost in her grief and her ice cream but now? Well now Marinette was starting to understand what Tikki meant. Because Lila wanted to be Adrien Agreste’s girlfriend no matter what it took, and she was only now starting to see what that really meant.

Sure enough in the weeks that followed Lila and Chloe kept each other busy allowing Marinette to for the first time in years relax at school. Of course Lila tried to redirect Chloe’s hatred back at Marinette by telling the blonde about how it had been Marinette who initiated the break up. But Marinette had easily overcome Chloe’s rage with honesty after all she had only broken up with Adrien because she knew they were incompatible and that Adrien would be happier with someone else, something Chloe agreed with though the way in which the blonde agreed made Marinette’s eye twitch just a little.

And then of course there was Adrien who was still trying to get Marinette to step in and help him handle his childhood friend and girlfriend but Marinette had been able to dodge him for weeks until they were having a class meetup at the park. Chloe was not attending due to wanting to avoid the ‘peasants’ as she so called them and Lila claimed she would be late due to an important meeting with some famous person. Honestly Marinette had not even bothered to pay attention. Adrien had noted the lack of ‘problem people’ and had decided to make a bold move calling Marinette out as they all hung out together to ‘talk to her in private’ yeah like THAT was going to happen.

Marinette knew Adrien’s modus operandi very well. He’d call you out, ask to talk to you privately and then lay on the guilt trip. No way was she doing that anymore she’d endured enough of them while they were dating to last a lifetime.

“Actually I would prefer not to talk to you alone, Adrien. You're publicly dating someone and we never know when your fans or the paparazzi might be around. Besides anything you can say to me in private you can say in front of OUR friends.”

Adrien looked like a kicked puppy at her words. But as their classmates quickly took her side and insisted he tell Marinette whatever he needed with them around the blonde was backed into a corner.

“Well the thing is… I was wondering if you could help? With the whole Lila, Chloe situation?”

Marinette wasn’t even given a chance to respond. The second the words left Adrien’s mouth the entire class bristled, many giving Adrien looks of confusion and shock as if he’d just spoken pure nonsense and honestly in a way he had. Nathaniel however was the one who said it best.

“Wait I’m sorry are you seriously asking Marinette to mediate between her long time bully and the girl you started dating not even an hour after your break up with her? Are you serious?!”

“W-Well I just thought-”

“Thought what Agreste? That Marinette should put herself in the worlds worst situation completely ignoring her own feelings just to make your life easier?”

Oof Kim going straight for the throat.

“B-But shes the class president!”

“So?! That doesn’t make her a genie! She can't just clap her hands and fix everything nor should she have to!”

Marinette had never heard Rose sound so upset in her life, which is when the young fashion designer knew it was her turn to say her piece and get things back under control.

“Adrien.” She ignored the hopeful look he shot her. “Not only do I not want to get involved but I don’t think it would help. Chloe doesn’t like me and Lila’s ‘disease’-” she said the word with barely concealed sarcasm “acts up when I’m around. So I’m sorry but no I will not help you with this.”

“But I’m sure if you just-”

The look the class shot him was enough to end the conversation and Marinette let out a relieved sigh as her heart filled with warmth she really loved her friends.

A month after the conversation in the park Lila Rossi got her second harsh wake up call to the ‘true joys’ of being Adrien Agreste’s girlfriend and it was a two for one deal.

Lila had seemingly been under the assumption that once she was dating Adrien her own popularity would rise to meet his but she was starting to learn that wasn’t the case. Adrien still got plenty more photo-shoots then she did and most were still solo and since they were fast approaching the spring fashion season Adrien was plenty busy with more and more shoots while Lila was left waiting for her turn in the spotlight.

Perhaps it was the frustration at not immediately sky rocketing her way up in fame or maybe it was the snide comments from Adrien Fangirls talking about the lack of couples shoots but Lila seemingly came up with the brilliant plan to force the spotlight onto herself by demanding, manipulating and forcing Adrien to take her on big flashy fancy dates where the paparazzi always conveniently found them Marinette had no doubt Lila was the one tipping them off but she kept her mouth shut. It wasn’t her problem.

However while Lila was enjoying her tabloid paparazzi fueled fame the class and more surprisingly Gabriel Agreste himself were beginning to notice the way it was wearing Adrien down. Between his photo-shoots and busy schedule all of Adrien’s precious free time was being filled up by Lila and her many needy antics and it was starting to show in the way Adrien carried himself and how exhausted he seemed.

Nino was the one who led the charge just as he had when Lila manipulated the class into thinking her ‘clingy’ but where Marinette had gotten some hurtful but well meaning lectures about her Adrien obsession which in retrospect DID help her realize her love was unhealthy. Lila was not given such a kind well meaning speech instead Nino got mad, something he rarely let himself become.

As it turns out Lila had worn Adrien down to the point where the blonde was too exhausted to function and he’d nearly passed out while standing and talking to Nino and that mixed with the fact that it had previously been Lila who painted the faux picture of Marinette as the clingy evil girlfriend isolating the boy from his friends was enough for Nino to harshly call her out. The liar did do her best to wriggle out of the situation trying to claim she only wanted ‘some’ private time with her oh so busy boyfriend but Nino was not having it and the class was too happy to back him up.

The more Lila tried to defend and excuse her actions the angrier Nino got and much to the liars annoyance the young musician had proof and plenty of it. Between his text correspondence with Adrien that revealed the model was constantly being forced to cancel relaxing friend days to take Lila out on flashy dates that always ended with paparazzi and fans swarming the location and forcing Adrien into high stress situations, and an extremely detailed schedule planner that Nino had made to keep track of his best buds work life balance (potential evidence to blackmail Gabriel Agreste if he ever threatened to pull Adrien out of school again apparently). The facts didn’t lie and they were showing that Lila was the real ‘clingy’ girlfriend.

Things eventually got so heated between Nino and Lila arguing that an akuma appeared to try and take advantage of the situation. Luckily for everyone Ladybug had been patrolling and stopped the naughty little butterfly from making things worse. In the end Lila was forced to grit her teeth and apologize to her darling boyfriend. Though perhaps what upset her more was the way the class proceeded to apologize to Marinette after the fact for ever accusing her of being clingy and taking up too much of Adrien’s free time.

However Lila still thought she had one last ace up her sleeve, and so after the class luncheon ended the liar proceeded to contact Gabriel hoping to get her new boyfriends dad to reign him in and do her bidding. Unluckily for Lila however Gabriel had been paying attention to the situation and that fact that it had ALMOST led to an akuma made him look even closer into things.

And he was not happy with what he found. The paparazzi pictures and articles that resulted from Lila and Adrien’s flashy dates had started positively enough with headlines and puff pieces about how cute the couple looked together, how it was nice to see the young Agreste in more casual settings with his girlfriend. But as the dates became more and more frequent and Lila’s constant demands and needs grew the articles slowly began to change soon they were discussing the concerning amount of money Adrien must be spending on his girlfriend, how exhausted and stressed the young Agreste heir looked under his strained smiles and was he eating and sleeping enough?

The akuma he’d sent had only further confirmed Gabriel’s negative feelings toward Lila though it did make him re-evaluate the young Lahiffe boy. Gabriel had originally thought the wannabe musician might just be interested in Adrien for money but seeing the lengths he went to defend his friend had the designer impressed and even a little grateful. So when Lila phoned to try and throw the boy under the bus and get Gabriel to side with her, well she had another thing coming.

Marinette heard later from Alya and the rest of the girls that Lila was ‘devastated’ how she’d wailed sobbed and thrown the tantrum of the century as she ranted and raved about Gabriel putting a 1 date a month maximum limit on Adrien and Lila. The two lovebirds could still hang out of course but it would be in the company of the rest of the class or other friends, or if they really wanted some privacy it would be strictly at the Agreste mansion for studying. Lila had told the girls that it was unfair and unjust that Gabriel was trying to get in the way of their love! Alya had relayed to Marinette that while the girls agreed that 1 date a month was a bit rough they all thought Lila’s tantrum was a bit childish especially when they all remembered how Marinette had rarely if ever got to enjoy 1 private date a month with Adrien and never in public.

Of course just because Lila had been told ‘no’ didn’t mean the liar was going to listen. And so she began trying to find ways to manipulate Adrien into ‘accidental’ dates, bugging the blonde to take her out instead of settling for lunch at school or trying to conveniently separate the two of them from the rest of the group during weekend and after school hang outs. But each time Lila tried Nino thwarted her eventually the Italian had gotten so angry at his meddling that she phoned Gabriel again this time to try and get the musician removed or banned or ANYTHING so that he’d back off, so when she instead learned that Nino had been asked by Gabriel to keep an eye out on for his son and that Adrien knew about it well the liar was furious.

Marinette learned later this time from Rose and Juleka that the Italian had tried to go on another tantrum tirade only to be stopped by Alya who would not tolerate anyone badmouthing her lovely boyfriend. Needless to say, Marinette was quick to notice the following Monday how Lila pouted and avoided the Ladyblogger like the plague. Luckily Marinette made sure Alya didn’t dwell on it too much by inviting the girl over to help her brainstorm some new ideas.

Because while Lila was focusing on leeching the fame and fortune off her boyfriend and being met with endless failures and a very hostile guard dog called Chloe. Marinette had been THRIVING. The suit she’d designed for Jagged had gone viral online and soon Jagged was passing on her contact information to a small selection of celebrities Marinette felt comfortable designing for. The fact that her identity was a secret and she had a very exclusive client list had only caused MDC to soar even higher in popularity with the public making it clear that they too wanted access to MDC fashion. And so Marinette had done her research and with the help of Uncle Jagged and Aunt Penny she’d set up an online store where she would sell ready made clothes.

Of course just because Marinette was seeing success didn’t mean she had forgotten about her friends. In fact the entire class minus Lila, Adrien and Chloe knew very well the true identity of the elusive MDC and that was because while Marinette was taking big steps toward her dreams she was helping her friends do just the same.

After all it didn’t take long for the internet to learn that the mysterious MDC designed Kitty Sections outfits causing the band to have a surge of free publicity that led to many people discovering their music and falling in love with the band.

Then there was Nathanial, Marc and Alya who Marinette or should she say MDC collaborated with while designing her ‘hero hoodie’ fashion collection all of them saw a boost in views with Marc and Nathanial’s comic picking up new readers though it was there brand new all original idea that had really flown off the shelves earning them an online cult following. Alya meanwhile got her blog spotted by Lois Lane herself who was impressed with the young future journalist and contacted Alya for a summer internship the scream Alya had made almost gave Marinette a heart attack.

And it didn’t end there. When Nino made a short film with Mylene and Kim of all people as his lead actors and uploaded it for free to YouTube MDC who was well known for supporting smaller creatives and signal boosting them on her social media was more than happy to make a tweet linking to the short film. Nino’s short film had been impactful and powerful despite being a comedy satire on Hawkmoth and it had quickly blown up earning Nino a summer internship at a film studio and Mylene and Kim several job offers. Kim had never been particularly interested in acting but after seeing the outpouring of love and support not to mention with the encouragement he got from his lovely girlfriend Ondine he decided to accept a few offers surprising everyone as he developed a new passion that he and Mylene bonded over.

Max, and Alix were also boosted in a similar way to Nino, Kim and Mylene when MDC retweeted some of their creative endeavors. Alix a video where she had used spray paint to recreate a few classical paintings though that had only acted as a signal boost that allowed the skater to be noticed for her real passion Extreme Sports! When a very exclusive extreme sports training summer camp contacted Alix about her attending she’d squealed almost as loud as Alya had. Max meanwhile had his demo for his work in progress video games retweeted by MDC and saw a huge surge in interest and a few interested investors and publishers even arrived with offers, though before he could agree to anything his popularity ballooned even further when a video of him showing off Markov surfaced. He had later joked to Marinette that while he appreciated the support he wasn’t sure how he felt about suddenly gaining a ‘nerd cult’ as Kim called it.

Of course all of Marinette’s friends knew she was largely responsible for their sudden surge of fame and good fortune and many of them tried to dismiss their own talents and give all the credit to Marinette. But the young designer simply threw it back at them. Yes she had signal boosted them and given them a helping hand but at the end of the day the only reason they had gotten so popular and stayed so popular after the brief burst from her influence passed and the internet moved on to the next big thing was because they were talented and amazing without Marinette.

The only problem with the classes' new found fame. Was that sooner or later Lila was bound to take notice. And take notice she did when Mylene appeared as an extra in one of Lila’s favorite daytime soaps. The liar had been so focused on Adrien and trying to leech her fame off him while beating Chloe back with a stick that she had somehow missed all the major developments. And she was livid.

She was supposed to be the most popular girl in school! She was meant to be the star, the one people admired and aspired to be like! The one they envied but loved too much to truly hate! And when she’d finally gotten Marinette and Adrien to break up she thought for sure that all her dreams would come true. But somehow while she’d been busy trying to reign in the pesky little blonde her classmates had all gone and gotten famous without her. Most of them wouldn’t even BE in Paris in the fast approaching summer since many of them either had internships, specialized camps, acting gigs, or in Kitty Sections case a whole music tour with Jagged Stone that for some reason Marinette was also a part of?!?

None of it made any sense and when Lila had gone looking for how exactly everything had happened she kept finding herself looking at MDC’s social media. The elusive and private designer was apparently a super sucker or something as every week they would highlight some small time random creator. Honestly it disgusted Lila who just handed out fame like that? Fame and popularity was meant to be exclusive! Earned! Something for only the most beautiful and talented of society. Not for chubby little idiots like Mylene or nerdy freaks like Max.

Of course Lila was nothing if not an opportunist. Sure in her opinion none of her talentless, average, classmates actually deserved their new found fame and popularity but the good thing was they were also a bunch of gullible idiots. And if she played her cards right they would surely carry her to the top. She already had the perfect lie, she would simply claim to be best friends with MDC and tell the class that she had been the one to recommend that the designer boost her classmates.

It was perfect. Genius really.

So then why did it fail immediately?

Lila stood in front of the class, her face frozen in shock as she was stared down by 10 pairs of angry glares. She had expected overwhelming thank you’s and the class bowing at her feet but the second the lie slipped out of her mouth the class instead turned on the liar like a close knit pack of wolves smelling a sheep. Honestly Lila could not understand where she’d gone wrong, and even if she had said something that was an obvious lie wouldn’t the class just normally brush it off as her disease? So why is it that they were acting this way?

It was Alya who broke the silence first.

“You want to run that by us again? Lila.”

The Italian girl swallowed the lump in her throat and ignored the obvious warning sign that was Alya’s sharp tone. Forcing a charming smile Lila brought out her sweetest voice determined that she could salvage whatever THIS was.

“I was just saying that I’m so happy for all of you! I didn’t want to say anything at the time BUT me and MDC are such good friends! So when he-”

“He?” Alix snorted and rolled her eyes. “Yeah that about confirms it.”

The entire class seemed to agree with Alix as they all shook their heads and shot Lila disappointed and annoyed looks before returning to their own conversations and or hobbies freezing her out. Ignoring her.

Oh that? That pissed Lila off like nothing else. Her cheeks grew hot as she stomped her foot angrily, regaining their attention.

“You guys think I’m telling lies again! You all promised that you wouldn’t judge me for my disease but you are!” For added effect she started to sniffle and sob expecting the class to do what they always did and feel guilty about their treatment of her and rush to comfort her.

Instead she was met with even harsher glares.

“Uhh yeah no duh we think you're lying because you ARE. We” Alix gestured to the people currently in class. “Have all met MDC and SHE not ‘he’ is a wonderful person who helped boost our careers because she thinks we're all super cool and talented not because you asked her too.”

Lila felt her face screw up like she’d just sucked a lemon but she quickly worked it to her advantage as she began to loudly sob.

“T-That’s not fair! You know I can't help my disease!”

“Uhh yeah no. I’m stopping you there.” Alya stood up looking down from her perch at Lila with her hands on her hips commanding the room, Lois had been training her well. “We can accept that MAYBE your lying disease makes you claim things when your nervous or scared like how you always accuse Marinette of stuff, and we can MAYBE believe that your disease makes you mix up names and words so you end up giving the wrong information out about charities and celebrities and yes MAYBE we can believe that you sometimes make false claims about yourself when your stressed out like that time with Clara Nightingale stealing your dance moves. Whatever! But Lila that right there? You were not having an ‘oops I lied’ moment you were actively trying to deceive us to make the false claim that YOU are the reason MDC noticed us when we know the truth. And when I gave you a chance to correct yourself you tried to double down. That was intentional. That was malicious.”

Lila felt her mouth fall open, her eyes blinking in shock. Too late she tried to recover. Tried to explain away the situation and make herself out to be innocent. But the class was done with her and they made it clear in how they iced her out. Eventually she had no choice but to suck it up and sit down at her seat. Not long later Marinette rushed into class followed by Chloe who was latched onto Adrien with Sabrina in tow.

Soon enough the school year came to an end and Lila watched bitterly through the all seeing eyes of the internet as her classmates left for their internships, job opportunities, highly specialized summer camps, and more. Meanwhile she was stuck at home. Oh sure she got to go on a few out of country photo-shoots with Adrien but her fame was still nothing compared to her boyfriends, and it was quickly becoming less than nothing as her classmates rose in influence and popularity. Come the new school year Lila would need to find some way to force the class back under her heel.

Marinette was having the best summer of her life! Jagged had taken Kitty Section on tour with him and insisted on Marinette coming with them as their designer. Marinette hadn’t been sure at first worried about the Hawkmoth situation and her own career. But in the end Tikki and her parents had convinced her. Her parents loved the idea of Marinette leaving Paris and going to see the world with her friends for a bit, and Tikki had reminded Marinette that she had the Horse Miraculous and could come home anytime, besides Hawkmoth had been getting lazier and lazier with both his akumas and the amount of them. So in the end Marinette agreed and it had been the BEST decision of her life.

They visited England before eventually traveling overseas to America. The sights and sounds and new foods were filling Marinette with inspiration and she’d never been so busy sketching. Then of course there was the great company. Uncle Jagged and Aunt Penny were wonderful and quickly ‘adopted’ all of Kitty Section + Marinette. They'd act like doting parents one second and then the next they’d be ordering way too much pizza for the teens to share.

Of course everyone missed their friends and family but video call existed and it was only for the summer anyway. Ivan was the one who was probably the worst off pouting over his beloved Mylene but the group was able to cheer him up encouraging him to write a song for his girlfriend, the piece he wrote became a new hit single the second they performed it on stage and Mylene had loved it.

The group stopped by Florida first where Jagged took them all to Disney World and then Universal Park, pictures of the rocker wearing mickey mouse ears and a hufflepuff scarf of all things while being followed by a gaggle of teenagers had soon gone viral, after that it was off to New York, and then Metropolis where they spent a bit of time so Alya could see them and hang out. Her internship with Lois Lane was going well but she’d still been relieved to see her friends and get some down time to just chill. After that they went to Gotham, which was Jagged’s home town. Now most parents might veto a place as dangerous as Gotham but seeing as how Paris was under siege by an emotional butterfly themed terrorist and they were from a class particularly used to dealing with deadly akumas on a regular basis well they were able to convince their parents to let it happen. And to Marinette’s surprise Gotham turned out to be her favorite place of the whole trip.

Sure the city was gloomy but the gothic architecture somehow inspired Marinette, and while the people were not outwardly all smiles and sunshine they were kind in their own way. But the thing Marinette ended up loving most about Gotham was its beautiful parks and famous greenhouses. Thanks to the influence of Poison Ivy and Bruce Wayne the city of Gotham had become the greenest city in all of America and it was a never ending source of inspiration for the young designer. Not to mention it was thanks to all the inspiring greenery that Marinette had met HIM.

She’d been walking through one of Gotham’s older parks admiring the beautiful blooming wisterias that had been shaped into a long hallway arch when she got bowled over by a massive terrifying but very friendly dog. Marinette had been terrified at first until she noticed the fast wagging tail and happy smile on the dog's face. Tikki had warned her that one side effect of holding the Ladybug miraculous would be extra friendly animals a rather ‘tame’ side effect compared to the super strength, increased speed, and occasional urge to hibernate when cold but still the designer had never expected to be attacked with friendly happy dog kisses, not like THIS anyway. As she squirmed and laughed she tried to gently push the dog off. That was when the dogs owner had come to her rescue. Yanking his dog off of her while admonishing it Marinette was finally able to sit up and begin wiping the dog drool off her cheek with a laugh.

“Don’t scold the cutie too much I’m okay I swear he didn’t hurt me.”

“Even if he didn’t hurt you he’s been trained better than that. I’m very sorry, please allow me to help you.”

The boy’s voice was cool, firmly polite and matter of fact leaving no room for argument. To an untrained ear he might even sound annoyed or angry but Marinette could tell that wasn’t the case. As Marinette accepted the hand the boy offered and let herself be pulled up she suddenly came face to face with the most beautiful pair of green eyes she’d ever seen.

Where Adrien’s eyes were bright like a blinding peridot green, these eyes were soft and warm like the green of a pine tree and Marinette could feel herself melt into them. It didn’t help that the rest of the boy's face was also incredibly handsome. The designer quickly shook herself out of her thoughts and glanced away not wanting to stare. Instead she directed her attention to her assailant, the dog was sitting now staring up at her with its tail still wagging wildly. Marinette smiled and reached her hand down letting the dog sniff her before she gave him some soft pets.

“Such a softy for a big guy. What's his name?”

“Titus. And I apologize again. He really is trained better than that. I don’t know what came over him.”

Marinette felt a little bad but she couldn’t exactly say that she was the chosen champion of a god and a side effect of that was very friendly animals so instead she shot the boy a smile.

“Don’t worry I just seem to have that effect on animals. Back home the pigeons and crows have started fighting for dominance of my roof and balcony because they both want my attention.”

The boy gave her a stunned look before he made a sound that Marinette believed might be a covered up laugh. She smiled even brighter and offered the boy her hand to shake.

“By the way my name is Marinette. And it's a pleasure to meet you.”

The boy looked at her hand for a moment before he eventually grabbed it and shook it awkwardly.

“Damian… It's nice to meet you too. Though I can tell by that introduction that you're not from here.”

Marinette snorted at that.

“Really the introduction was what gave it away but not my accent?”

The boy seemed to blush a little at that before he coughed awkwardly. Marinette took pity on him and giggled.

“You are correct in your deduction mr.detective. I’m visiting from Paris, France with some friends and my uncle.”

If Marinette hadn’t been too embarrassed to look him in the eyes she may have noticed the spark of curiosity when she mentioned Paris. And had she known who Damian truly was at the time she would have known that his curiosity came from the fact that Batman and the other supers had recently learned about the situation in Paris thanks to Lois Lane taking on a new intern who ran the Ladyblog. Mayor Bourgeois had been doing a good job hiding the situation but he’d overlooked the civilian journalist.

“Hm. We don’t get many tourists. What brought you all the way out here. If I may ask.”

Naturally without much thought the pair began to walk through the park together as their conversation flowed. Marinette avoided using Jagged's name not wanting her new very handsome friend to take an interest in her solely for her connections. Instead she told him that Gotham was her uncles hometown and that this was the last stop on what had already been a pretty busy summer vacation. That turned into her telling him a bit about her family in general which got him talking about his family, he complained about his adopted siblings of which there seemed to be many but Marinette could tell he loved them.

Talking about family made him admit he’d come to the park to get away from them for a little while which got Marinette talking about the park and all the beautiful nature in Gotham which got the two of them talking about the best parks in Gotham and then Marinette brought up her sketches and suddenly they were talking about art and other hobbies. Before they had even realized it they were sitting at a bench together hidden away in the trees and wisterias chatting away. Marinette didn’t know why but something about Damian made her feel comfortable. Maybe it was the way he gave her his full undivided attention, maybe it was the way he made sure not to invade her space without consent or how he didn’t interrupt her when she spoke. Either way she felt safe, felt warm, almost like she was home. And judging by the way he seemed to relax the longer they spoke, his stiff body unwinding and his gaze softening, she thought maybe he felt just as comfortable with her as she was with him.

Honestly Marinette could have sat there chatting with Damian all day in fact it had already been several hours when the pair were finally interrupted. Both of their phones began to ring, Marinette’s with the tell-tale alarm of an akuma attack in Paris and Damian’s with an emergency as the Riddler had broken out of Arkham. The teenagers regretfully had to go both citing emergencies before they departed. It wasn’t until later that they realized they had forgotten to exchange phone numbers.

The akuma back in Paris had turned out to be Lila Rossi, it seems that Adrien’s fangirls had never truly warmed up to the liar and they had been trying to dig up dirt on the girl for months before finally finding there evidence. Alya may have privated the videos of Lila’s lies after finding out about the ‘lying disease’ but apparently someone had copied and saved them beforehand. And those videos had finally made their way out into the public. Luckily no one criticized Alya seeing as how she’d already had the common sense to remove the videos from her blog it helped that Alya also made a post explaining the situation in more detail which led to the general public agreeing that it had not been Alya’s fault when she had a teacher and a principle telling her to believe in a fake ‘lying disease’ clearly it was the adults at fault here not the young girl who had believed in them.

Needless to say the public ripped Lila to shreds for being a serial liar with more of her lies coming to light each day now that she had been exposed. And obviously the Italian had not taken it well and gotten akumatized.

Marinette knew that she should be happy that Lila had been exposed. Her classmates certainly were, but instead Marinette could not help but mope. Damian had been SO kind she really had wanted to get to know him better. The fact she’d completely missed out on getting his number gnawed at her. Little did she know that Damian was across the city thinking the same thing as he sat on a Gargoyle statue.

But fate likes to play funny games. A few days later Jagged got a call from Bruce Wayne, a few of his sons namely Tim, Jason and Dick had heard about Jagged being in town and tjat the rocker had brought MDC the famous designer with him. Apparently they were huge fans and had bugged, pleaded, whined, and eventually threatened a hunger strike until Bruce would ask Jagged to pretty please introduce them. So Jagged got the go ahead from Marinette and the gaggle of teenagers plus Jagged and Penny piled into a big van and drove over to the Wayne mansion.

Seeing it from the outside, Marinette felt only intimidation and dread. It was so huge and they were so rich. What if they were unimpressed when they found out MDC was just some teenage girl? Letting Jagged guide her and her friends push her forward Marinette nervously knocked on the door and let herself be led inside by the kind old man who introduced himself as Alfred.

Walking through the halls in wonder Marinette slowly felt her fingers twitch with the urge to design. But she suppressed it and focused not wanting to be rude. As the group turned a corner into a large sitting room Marinette’s blue eyes somehow found a pair of familiar green. She gasped, he blinked wide eyed.

“Marinette?” - “Damian?”

They blinked again, shocked. Marinette eventually snorted and laughed. Damian found himself smiling as he approached the small girl. And everyone else? Well they were just confused. Except for Damian’s family they were confused and freaked out.

“Is the demon spawn, smiling Dicky bird? Or am I hallucinating?”

“No I see it too Jason. He looks genuinely happy.”

“So it's official.” Tim added “we're all hallucinating.”

After some introductions and explanations things settled down with Marinette happy to take the Wayne’s on as clients. And the Wayne’s in turn being suitably impressed and amazed by the young girls accomplishments though the part they found most amazing was how she interacted with not only them but Damian. She was genuine and kind, no fake smiles or hidden double meanings, nor did she let their money and fame impress or blind her in any way. Jason soon declared her a little sister and Jagged preened and puffed as he gloated about not only Marinette but Kitty Section as well.

The rest of the summer spent in Gotham was tons of fun with Jason teaching Juleka and Marinette how to shoot guns and ride motorcycles, Rose and Marinette learning some of Dick’s gymnastics moves, Ivan meanwhile got along well with the quiet Cass and level headed Duke. Eventually Stephanie and Bab’s returned home as well and they also took to the french teens with ease they organized girl nights where they taught the girls how to break and enter something Marinette had a natural affinity for go figure. The most surprising development however was Luka. The slightly older boy had seemingly set his sights on the awkward coffee addicted Tim and had spent the remainder of the summer wooing him.

But while Luka was wooing Tim there was one other couple slowly forming. Everyone had seen the spark between Damian and Marinette and soon enough everyone was shipping it. The pair were often ‘conveniently’ left alone or were sent on errands that somehow conveniently became accidental dates. Marinette had been guarding her heart after Adrien had shattered it but Damian made her want to take the risk and fall in love. He was charming, polite, kind, sarcastic, and as she’d learned after telling him about the entire Paris situation akuma’s and all he was protective but without going so far as to undermine Marinette’s strength. He trusted her to be fast and smart and strong enough to defend herself (especially after they did a bit of fight training for fun and she laid him flat on the ground) but he did worry and care about her.

But still there was something holding back both teens. Something that shattered near the end of the vacation. Marinette had been caught by a villain. Poison Ivy to be exact. The plant villainess had taken note of the new frequent visitor to her greenhouse but what had really gotten her attention was how the plant life reacted to her. And furthermore how the plant life SPOKE about her. Ivy’s curiosity eventually grew too large and so she snatched up the young designer and brought her home. Luckily Marinette wasn’t particularly scared of Ivy or Harley, sure she didn’t like being knocked out but she felt no real fear, in the end Ivy, Harley and Marinette ended up having an unprompted girls day complete with junk food, ranting, bad American tv and more. Ivy eventually figured that Marinette was some kind of Meta one who had a strong influence over plant and animal life and that was enough for her to adopt the small half Asian girl and inject her with her special blend the same one she’d given to Harley to keep her safe in a town full of crazies.

But while Marinette was perfectly fine hanging out with 2 of the 3 sirens Damian had not taken it so well. He had scoured the city trying to find the sirens newest abode all while he gnawed his lip until it bled. Maybe it was the stress that made him slip up or maybe it was just Marinette being too smart for her own good. But when the young Robin came bursting in through a window yelling Marinette’s name something had immediately clicked and she knew who he was. After she’d calmed the situation down and made sure no one fought anyone else, Marinette thanked Ivy and Harley for the nice day and let Robin carry her away. After talking with Tikki and deciding to be reckless and selfish for once in her life Marinette confronted Damian the next day, revealing her own identity in the process. There was some freaking out and a LOT of talking with Tikki and the rest of the bat clan but in the end it seemed to work out for the best. Ladybug was certainly happy to accept the help anyway even if Chat Noir wasn’t going to be.

A week later Damian finally asked Marinette out. Two days after that they shared their first kiss on the ferris wheel. And come the end of summer Marinette, Kitty Section and surprise guests Damian and Tim Wayne were all boarding a flight back to Paris.

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miraculus-dragon · 10 months ago

Text

Thoughts on Mlbat

In a couple, or maybe more, of the ml x batman fanfic, there's a common theme of batfam being suspicious of civilian Marinette with too many secrets. Or Adrien being bad simply for having a villain father. Often time following that theme is them thinking the worst, and usually have demands for secrets to be shared.

I just, I get it, paranoid detectives with large amounts of trauma, standing on the side of "good".

In their view, and in many's view, these are heroes yes, but, moral and ethic, good vs bad is too complex and nuance than simply black or white.

Not the point.

Many times fanfic write out their near-invasive ways of getting these answers while maintaining a level of suspicion and assumption of the absolute worst. And I find that dynamic really, really unfair, hypocritical, and potentially toxic. It's making me grow salty toward the bats just a little bit more each time, and I don't think that's fair or healthy either.

I don't know I just want to rant a bit because I'm about to explode into sodium chloride.

#maribat #ml x batman #rant #reading fics with unexpected salt-inducing element back to back probably wasn't a good idea either #I didn't even plan on it #it just sort of happened #and that's why it made me upset ig

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trainer-sean · 2 years ago

Note

I just had a thought about Diana. She most certainly was away on Amazon business when the news got out about the miraculous and Hawkmoths defeat, and when she comes back and learns about the leagues actions, she is utterly Livid with her teammates. To the point she quits the league out of spite, making the league lose one of its strongest leg ups in the supernatural world. She also immediately goes to Paris to apologize for never noticing.

aft hawkmoth is defeated, paris banned any outside superheroes from entering bc lb and cn said that they had asked the superheroes (e.g justice league, up to u) for help, but all they got was a message saying that they should not be faking this for attention. soon, said superheroes try to come into paris to help aft hawkmoth was alr defeated and theyre arent allowed in. lb and cn show up and the superheroes insult then abit bc they arent allowed in so paris and lb and cn go off at them

Here you go!! Hope you like the story! Let me know what you think!

Ladybug and Chat Noir were very worried when they first became heroes. They had no experience as heroes, nor any idea how to track down Hawkmoth. They knew that people could request aid from the Justice League for their cities if something was wrong. Of course, it was mainly used to ask for just humanitarian help, typically after some kind of natural disaster. But Ladybug and Chat Noir didn’t know what else to do. So, they sent in a request, asking for their help. They never received a response to their initial request. As time went by, they kept trying to reach out to the Justice League. After their fifth message, they received a response, but not the one they were hoping for. When the two young heroes saw a message from the Justice League help line, they felt excited. They thought they would finally get some help and maybe this nightmare would be over soon. But the message didn’t say that help was on the way. Instead all it said was:

This help line is for real emergencies only. You two should not be clogging the line with these ridiculous jokes. This is not the kind of thing to fake to get attention. Please do not contact this help line again. -Justice League Assistance Requests

Ladybug and Chat Noir were disheartened. They had truly hoped that these heroes would help them. How could they think this is fake? It is true that there is no apparent damage, but Ladybug had explained that was only due to her powers.

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Ladybug and Chat Noir did not listen to the message and kept sending messages that became more and more desperate as the akumas grew stronger. Eventually though, it became too dangerous to keep asking for help. Ladybug and Chat Noir both realized that if the Justice League came to Paris, they ran the risk of the League becoming akumatized. If any member of the League became akumatized, it would be disastrous. Ladybug realized that they couldn’t risk the heroes coming to Paris anymore. So, her and Chat Noir went to the mayor. After that day, foreign superheroes were banned from entering Paris.

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After three years of fighting, Ladybug and Chat Noir had finally defeated Hawkmoth. His capture was international news. Paris was finally telling the full story. The mayor finally told the world all about Hawkmoth and his reign of terror. The world was shocked that they hadn’t known what was happening. None were more shocked than Bruce Wayne. He remembered those messages from all those years ago in Paris. Those kids had been telling the truth? He could hardly believe it; their messages had seemed so ridiculous that they had to be fake. Magic jewelry that is powered by tiny gods did not sound real at all. Batman knew it was time for damage control. He called a meeting with the other founding members of the league and went straight to the Watchtower.

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When Bruce arrived, he saw that most of the other members were already present. Several of them were confused and were asking Bruce why they were there. Bruce just played the news clip from this morning. Several of the other leaguers were shocked. Green Lantern spoke up, “These kids again? They were actually telling the truth?” Bruce turned to him, “Yes it appears they were. This is going to look bad on us, that we didn’t help. Whether we believed them or not, it is important that we go to Paris now. Offer our apologies for not helping sooner and help them re-build. I imagine there is a lot left damaged after fighting such a powerful foe.” Bruce had clearly already forgotten that in the original messages Ladybug had said she could fix all the damage. Shows how much he actually listened to the original requests. With that settled, the different members prepared to leave for Paris. They tried using the zeta tube they had set up, but they got an error message saying the tube in Paris was too damaged. The leaguers assumed it had been damaged in one of the fights and decided to zeta to a different location in France and then fly the rest of the way to Paris. They had no idea about the cold greeting they would soon receive.

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Marinette had been at home for the day when the news was announced. She may not have revealed her identity to the public, but she did tell her parents finally about her being Ladybug. They were so proud, and had agreed that Marinette deserved the day off from school, considering she had just saved Paris. Marinette was just planning on spending a relaxing day at home when she got a message. She had set up a website with a way to message Ladybug back when Hawkmoth was still active. This was so citizens could inform her of akuma attacks quicker. She wasn’t expecting to get a message on it today, but around noon, there was a new message. This message came from the mayor’s office. It read:

Ladybug, we have spotted different members of the Justice League approaching the city. Since the ban on superheroes is still in effect, we will turn them away. However, we would feel more comfortable doing so if you and Chat Noir were there to help. Please hurry to the Western border of the city.

Marinette was shocked. The Justice League was coming now? Why the sudden interest in Paris? Regardless, she quickly pulled out her phone and called Adrien, who was also staying home for obvious reasons. They had revealed their identities to each other after the final battle, and were ecstatic to find out they had been that close to each other all along. The rest of the miraculous team also revealed their identities, and everyone was shocked to see that Ladybug and Chat Noir were Marinette and Adrien. Adrien picked up quickly, “Marinette? What’s up?” “Can you talk privately right now?” Adrien knew that meant that Marinette needed to talk about superhero stuff, so he made sure the door to his room was locked and then said, “Yeah, I’m good. What’s up?” Marinette replied quickly, “We have guests coming to the city. Apparently, someone spotted members of the Justice League heading this way and are worried they will try to enter the city. The mayor asked both of us to be there to help when they turn them all away. He asked us to meet at the western border of the city as quick as we can.” Adrien was shocked. Why was the League coming? They hadn’t cared before. “I’ll be right there milady. Let the rest of the team know, we may need the back up. See you soon.” With that, he hung up and transformed. Marinette quickly sent a message in the group chat for they had set up for the members of the miraculous team, telling everyone to meet at the western border quickly. She then transformed as well and went to join Chat. He quickly rushed to the border of the city where he saw the police force, the mayor, and Ladybug all waiting. He joined them and watched for the Justice League. They didn’t have to wait long before the Justice League members appeared on the horizon. Officer Raincomprix used a megaphone and ordered all of the heroes to land before they entered the city. Chat Noir got ready to face the Justice League and tell them to get lost.

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When the leaguers arrived, they were expecting the citizens of Paris to be glad to see them. But instead, they were glared at and ordered to stop at the border of the city. The leaguers were confused, this is a very different reception than they were expecting. They stopped and Batman stepped forward, “We heard about your defeat of Hawkmoth and have come to offer our help in rebuilding your city.” Then a younger girl in a ladybug themed outfit and a boy in a cat outfit stepped forward. Batman recognized them as the kids from the videos, what were their names again? Oh right, Ladybug and Chat Noir. Behind them he saw other kids in similar outfits, however he didn’t remember seeing any of them in the videos sent to the league. He was expecting them to thank him and the other heroes for the help, even if they were still upset from the earlier rejection. But that was not what happened at all. The two kids were very calm, but he could tell they were still angry. The girl called Ladybug took the lead, “Your help is not wanted, or even needed. The city is perfectly fine. Regardless, you are not welcome in Paris. None of you are. Foreign superheroes are banned in Paris. Only the miraculous team is allowed to reside in this city.” The Justice League were shocked, to say the least. Batman tried to argue with them, “The city can’t possibly already be prepared. Fights like what was discussed on the news cause massive amounts of damage. They couldn’t possibly be fixed overnight. And how could you ban superheroes?” Chat Noir rolled his eyes, “Shows how much you actually listened to our original request for help. We told you back then that the reason there was no damage to speak of is because Ladybug is able to reverse all damage caused by the akumas and other miraculous. In other words, the damage from the final fight was fixed immediately. And we banned heroes after you all refused to give us any aid. We needed to make sure that you didn’t just storm in later and try to take over or get akumatized. That would have been disastrous. You can’t just suddenly decide to come and help after ignoring us for three years.”

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Superman stepped forward at this point, “We didn’t mean to ignore the situation. But you have to admit it sounds pretty far-fetched. Magical jewelry that is powered by ancient gods and evil butterflies possessing people doesn’t sound reasonable.” Ladybug got angry hearing that, “Why doesn’t it? You have several magic users in the Justice League, like Zatanna. You even have Dr. Fate who is a sorcerer that inhabits a magic helmet and possesses people who wear the helmet. That isn’t much different from the miraculous. Are you all seriously so close-minded that you didn’t even consider the possibility?”

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That comment made several of the leaguers angry. They didn’t want to admit that they were in the wrong, but Ladybug was right. They had several magic users, and the Helmet of Fate is pretty similar to a miraculous. But these kids couldn’t possibly know what they are doing. The Justice League needed to step in and help get things back to normal. They were sure that they could get the city to listen. Batman turned to the mayor and said, “That ban is hardly necessary anymore. It wasn’t even necessary in the first place. These second-rate heroes just convinced you of it because their pride was hurt. Don’t you think it is time to lift it? I am sure we could help get your city back on track quicker than these children playing at heroes.” Ladybug and Chat Noir’s blood was boiling after hearing that. How dare Batman act all high and mighty and talk above them like he was superior. He had spent the last three years ignoring the problem and now wants to suddenly come in and take over. This is exactly why they put the ban in place. The mayor seemed just as angry as Ladybug and Chat Noir, “Sir, like Ladybug and Chat Noir said, you are not welcome here. They have done a fantastic job in not only dealing with Hawkmoth, but also helping the citizens return to normal.” Batman was furious, they were still going to deny them entry? The Flash stepped forward now, “Surely, with the focus being on Hawkmoth, crime rates have risen. That isn’t the fault of these kids, they wouldn’t know how to juggle dealing with Hawkmoth and also petty crime. But we can help you get that handled.” Mayor Bourgeois shook his head, “Actually, they handled both responsibilities well. Even though we told them not to worry about petty crime, and that the local police would handle it, they still patrolled every night to help. Crime rates are at an all time low here. Now I am not going to tell you again. You are not welcome here. Leave at once.”

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The Justice League couldn’t believe it, Batman exploded, “You would seriously leave the security of your city in the hands of these wannabe heroes?” Green Lantern added, “Yeah, they are just little kids with some fancy jewelry playing pretend. You need real heroes!” The mayor and police were furious. How dare these people belittle their heroes. The mayor was now yelling as well, “Do not speak about them so rudely. They are more heroic than you seem to be. Now get out of my city.”

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The Justice League still refused to leave. They hurled insults at the young heroes and demanded to be let in to the city. They even tried to force their way past the blockade of police officers. Ladybug turned around and gestured to Pegasus. The leaguers did not see any of this, they just heard someone call “Voyage!” They saw a giant blue portal open and then swallowed them up. When the light faded, they saw that they were in the middle of a field somewhere. Batman used his GPS and saw that they had been moved all the way to a corn field in the middle of Nebraska. He was furious, how dare they force him away through a teleport. Paris needed more competent heroes than a bunch of children playing pretend.

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Over the next several weeks, the league continued to try and enter the city. None of their attempts worked though. They tried just flying through, entering covertly as their civilian identities, and a bunch of other plans. Somehow, the leaguers kept getting teleported right back out of the city, in increasingly strange locations. Eventually, the leaguers just decided to abandon Paris completely. They would not help Paris with any situation. Their plan was to watch the city fall to pieces and not offer any help unless they lifted that ridiculous ban. But that never happened. It irritated Batman and the others to no end that those second-rate heroes were doing a good job and that the ban wasn’t lifted. So, the leaguers resumed their attempts to break into the city. They did not count on the young heroes putting their actions in the public eye.

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Ladybug and Chat Noir were still furious at how the leaguers behaved. They had thought that the Justice League was full of good and kind people, but the members they had met were certainly not good and kind. They were forceful and insulting. And even once they were told that they were not welcome in Paris, they kept trying to come into the city anyway. Poor Pegasus was exhausted from constantly having to teleport them away. Ladybug knew they had to do something or those leaguers would keep coming back. So, they made a video. This video told the whole world that the Justice League had ignored their calls for help all those years ago and had left young heroes to fend for themselves. It also talked about how the league had shown up after the fact and tried to bully their way into the city they had previously ignored, despite the fact they were told about the superhero ban. The video ended by talking about how they were fed up with the league members having no respect for the laws of Paris and still trying to sneak into the city. The miraculous team posted the video online and sent it to all the major news networks they could get a hold of. The public was outraged when they saw the video. The heroes they trusted were trying to break the laws in Paris? The video and public outcry seem to have worked. It had been several weeks since the video was posted, and no leaguer had tried to break into the city since. The miraculous team was ecstatic; they didn’t have to keep forcing the heroes out of the city. At last, the miraculous team and all of Paris could finally enjoy peace.

#ml fic #ml fanfic #ml salt #maribat #miraculous ladybug #miraculous ladybug x dc #miraculous fanfic #miraculous salt fanfic #miraculoustalesofladybugandcatnoir #miraculous salt #hawkmoth defeated

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goggles-mcgee · 1 year ago

Text

A Little Birdy Told Me 20

AO3

Beginning Last Chapter

Summary: Damian continues to try and get more information about the akuma class and Marinette while Dick is having an off day and just wants it to get better.

Only one brother gets what they want.

CH 20:

Damian may have jumped the gun on that one.

He admitted that, willingly, in the privacy of his own mind.

“To Dupain-Cheng? I mean sure but why would you like to know.” Chloe asked with narrowed sharp eyes.

Bourgeois was sharp, as were all his acquaintances so there was no point in lying, though he was confident he could do so flawlessly, his acquaintances had proved to be somewhat trustful. They all kept secrets if asked unless it was something trivial which confused him to no end. Allegra could ask they don’t tell anyone what she shared with them when it came to her having trouble mentally or her parents fighting but the group would tell almost everyone in the group how Claude had a crush on so-and-so from class-whatever. Richard said that is just how teenagers and friends are but it didn’t make sense to Damian and he tried many times to make it make sense. The only thing that made him feel better is the fact his father also didn’t understand. When he was in med school he told him how his study group kept his fear of bats to themselves but when he admitted to not being a fan of some musician that that information was shared and laughed at, but he stated clearly that the laughing wasn’t at him, just at the information as a study group member had explained. Again. It was strange, but Damian felt like this wasn’t one of those moments that they would share his information with others.

“It goes without saying that what I tell you does not leave this table,” he began, “I know I said that if I knew something I wouldn’t tell, but given Bourgeois’s forthcoming, I too can be a little forthcoming. Dupain-Cheng is now a ward of my Father for the rest of the exchange.”

Vogel nodded and glared at everyone at the table as if to ward them off even thinking of telling anyone what Damian was saying. It was…nice and appreciated. Vogul reminded him of Cassandra sometimes and it always left him feeling warm yet wrongfooted. The blonde wasn’t his sister but sometimes she felt like it and that also confused him. Nonetheless he gave Vogel a small nod of appreciation. “After the events at Wayne Tower and what followed, it was decided that my father take care of Dupain-Cheng for the remainder of the trip and actual chaperones are being flown in. The original plan of having the class merge with ours has been effectively thrown out the window and negotiations are being made where to place everyone as they will be separated. Dupain-Cheng and her friends will join our class but it hasn’t been decided where Rossi and her sycophants will go.”

Allaway pursed his lips together and looked deep in thought, it was like he was trying to organize everything that was said and unsaid. He was someone who liked puzzles and mysteries. “You guys are building a case?” It was posed as a question but Damian knew the other boy better. It was a statement. Damian simply leaned back in his chair to give Allaway his attention, it took the boy some time to voice his thoughts so Damian waited before responding. “The question is, who is the case against?”

“I would think that obvious by now Allaway.” Damian scoffed.

Allaway stared at Damian intensely until he let out a deep sigh, “Yeah, I know, I was saying it to be dramatic.”

“You’re always dramatic.” Damian countered.

“No. That’s Claude.” Allaway shot right back.

“Guilty!” Hardy sing-songed. Damian conceded. Hardy was always dramatic. Every announcement he made to the group or even the school was so rich in dramatics that Damian wondered if the boy practiced what he said every day to make sure it was the perfect amount of dramatic or if it was something instinctual. Damian felt like it was the latter. Sometimes Hardy’s dramatics confused him but Vogel was good at explaining what the dramatic boy was saying, she was basically the Hardy Translator.

“We are getting off topic.” Bourgeois sighed. “You really want to know everything that witch did to Dupain-Cheng, Wayne? Then you better buckle in and take notes.

Damian nodded and pressed the hidden button on his watch that Lucius Fox and his son Lucas upgraded at Bruce’s request, that would record the rest of the conversation. Though he did take out a notebook and pen, he never wrote in pencil, writing in pencil showed you were not confident in your writing or knowledge. He was trying to break out of the habit though as it was one Ra’s made sure ‘stuck’ with his heir. His grandfather would never settle for anything less than perfect and the one time Damian took a test in front of his grandfather and used a pencil, he was punished. Damian hid a wince at the memories of that particular lesson and instead stared at his watch, it was a replica of his Grandfather's watch , the one he wore when he was murdered. It was a bit morbid but it was the thought behind it that made it one of Damian’s most prized possessions.

It had been a little after he had been…introduced to his father and a little before his father’s seeming demise at Darkseid’s hand that Bruce had taken Damian aside into his study to talk to him. Damian thought it would be another reprimand of his methods but had been surprised when Bruce handed him a small box with a bow on it. He had been so hesitant, so wary, so suspicious that his father had gently taken the box from him and opened it to show a watch. A rather nice watch though Damian had noted its somewhat dated design. Like someone had purposefully made it look vintage. “ It’s made to look like my father’s watch, your grandfather, though I have no doubt you were…informed of my parents before you came here -”

“ I know everything about you, Father, and my grandparents .” Damian had interrupted, eager to prove his knowledge, his worth.

“ I don’t doubt that, Damian, but you were told about them by people who did not know them. That makes all the difference. There is time for stories so you get to know them like I knew them but this is the first one I will tell you. ” Bruce had looked sincere yet a bit uncomfortable, Damian had chalked it up to his father’s weakness of not getting over his parent’s death. Such a weakness was not allowed in the League, but Damian had said nothing of the fact even if he could. Richard had been teaching him just because you could doesn’t mean you should. It was confusing but his father seemed to agree with the sentiment so Damian was doing his best to learn it.

His father continued. “ When my father was ten, his father bought him his first watch. I never met my grandfather, but when I was young, my father told me grandfather wanted to start a new Wayne tradition. When the heir of the family turned ten, they would be gifted a watch. I’m afraid that the reason is lost in time and forgotten memories but my father wanted to continue this tradition. I got my watch on my birthday and 9 days later my parents died. My father had been wearing his birthday watch that night .”

Damian hadn’t wanted to interrupt but he did want to touch the watch and his father seemed to understand that so he passed back the gift and watched as Damian had caressed the face of the watch with his thumb.

“ I admit that I have bought your brother's watches as well but I know you are struggling to accept them. I won’t lie and say I understand but I want to feel connected to them, to me, to this family. I wasn’t able to give you a watch on your birthday but I am giving it to you now. I had this made for you in the image of your grandfather’s watch because I want to show you how important you are to this family and me. I could have easily given you a new watch as I had your brother’s but you deserve a connection to your roots. I hope you like it. ”

Damian had only nodded but the small smile his father gave in return had filled him with such warmth he hadn’t known what to do other than let his father put the watch on him. Later, Alfred would explain that Bruce had the watch built with many hidden features to keep Damian safe and to make sure his son wouldn’t be without a way out of a situation. The watch was made to resemble the Rolex Submariner that Damian had seen in a case along with a broken pearl necklace and some loose grimy pearls. He knows they were keepsakes of his grandparents that Bruce kept in a protected case in the Cave. He didn’t really believe it would make him feel any more connected to the Wayne name than him already being Bruce Wayne’s biological son but wearing the watch and seeing the original in its case when he was down in the Cave actually did make him feel connected in a way he couldn’t explain. Thus it became one of his most prized possessions much like his first straight double edged sword his mother gave him for the earliest birthdays he could remember.

Damian inhaled slowly then exhaled to bring himself out of his memory before he looked up at Bourgeois and gave her a short nod. “Proceed.”

___________________

Dick was doing all he could to relax and show Marinette the company’s botanical gardens as it was something she had wanted to do. It was good to see her smile and flit from plant to plant like a little honey bee or something, but Dick couldn’t get rid of his tension completely. He was always like that after dealing with Two-Face even if it wasn’t the usual confrontation between the two, i.e mask to two faces but it still left him feeling the same. Angry, restless and most annoyingly, scared. He wasn’t the same little scared Robin but dealing with Two-Face always made him feel like he was. He thought he worked past all that! But seeing Marinette in his arms with a gun pressed to her head brought uncomfortable flashbacks of a different tiny black-haired blue-eyed child. A child who got cocky in his skills as Robin and helper of Batman. He could still feel the long-since healed injuries throb in phantom pain. Dick couldn’t help the flash of another black-haired blue-eyed child, older than the first when he learned that being Robin wasn’t magical or whimsical. Thinking of that never did him any good, if anything it brought about an enormous amount of guilt and anger that Dick didn’t know what to do with.

“Mari-gold?” A very familiar voice pulled Dick out of his thoughts and he cursed himself for being so distracted.

“Ivy!” Marinette shouted out in glee as she ran to hug the woman she had seen fairly recently. It made Dick smile though, this kid loved with her whole heart and it was something he admired.

“Now what are you doing here, Sapling?”

“I came here with Mister Dick and Mister Tim. Though we lost Tim pretty early on.” Oh yeah, they did. Though Dick was willing to bet Tim just went to the coffee shop nearby, he seemed to have a built in radar for knowing where they were no matter what part of town they were in. It was kind of funny though since Tim wasn’t even a big fan of coffee, he more so just needed the caffeine. The guy preferred tea but he was really particular about which places made the best tea, specifically a good ol’ Dirty Chai.

“And what brings you to the Gardens today, Ive?” Dick asked, deciding to partake in the conversation.

“Oh just making sure they are doing okay and to give the workers a restock of my special fertilizer.” That made sense, Ivy was, on-the-down low helping the Wayne Botanical Studies team. While Harley helped them more with their night time business, Ivy was content to help in the more official business. With the occasional helping hand stopping a threat if they “got in over their heads.” Her words.

“You make your own fertilizer?” Marinette asked. Look, Dick was also curious about that but after finding Ivy and Jason talking one night with these big-ass smiles on their faces, all teeth, he was like 80% sure that fertilizer was some of Jason’s…problems. But there was no way in hell that Dick was going to try and confirm that, and he sure as hell would not be telling Bruce that little theory.

“Yes! It takes time but it-”

“My Passion Lily! I got your Matcha Lemonade and look! I found a wild Wayne.” They were interrupted by Harley, which was not a surprise, and she was dragging a resigned looking Tim with her.

Ivy merely huffed out a laugh at her wife before taking the offered drink with a kiss to Harley’s cheek. “Thank you, Peanut, I also found a wild Wayne and a little Sapling.”

“Mari-Doll!” Harley squeaked out before almost knocking the poor girl off her feet in her hurry to smother the girl in a hug. Surprisingly they didn’t fall over.

“Hi Harley!”

“You guys saw each other the other night?” Tim said, confused.

“And?” Marinette and Harley asked in unison. It made Dick giggle and helped relieve him of more of his pent up tension.

“Well since we're all here, why don’t we walk around together?” Dick offered. “Bruce wanted Tim to get some fresh air so try not to let him sneak off again.”

Tim gave an offended squawk which had Marinette laughing once more. “I’m fine!”

“Yeah, okay Timmy-Boy.” Harley said with a scoff as she laced her arms together with Ivy and Marinette. “And I’m the Queen of England.”

“You do need some time outside the Manor Tim. It’s not healthy to stay cooped up.” Ivy said as she happily walked with Harley and Marinette. Though she did grab Tim by the scruff of his shirt and manhandled him toward Dick. He looked very much like a cranky kitten.

“What is this? Pick on Tim day?”

“I believe Damian has that scheduled for next month.” Dick wished he was joking.

Marinette obviously noticed he wasn’t if her raised brow was anything to go off. “Oh?”

“He stepped on Titus’s tail three months ago, on accident.” Dick explained. “But Damian is very good at keeping grudges and he’s very good on cashing in on favors.”

Tim merely whined in response and Dick couldn’t help but pity his brother for a second before he remembered how Tim used him as a human meat shield when Condiment King randomly joined in on a fight against some robbers. Apparently he was also planning on robbing the jewelry store after keeping a low profile from his then-recent prison break. Needless to say it took Dick forever trying to get the mustard smell out of his costume once again and had to beg Alfred for help once again. Even though Alfred refused to help with cleaning anything CK contaminated, it spiked his blood pressure or something like that. Dick thinks it’s because of all the first times he helped clean them up when the rogue had been new on the scene. That had been a long month and Dick had seen how Alfred got more and more annoyed each time they came home covered in mustard, ketchup, you name it. It was awful. Truly. So Dick didn’t feel all that bad. Stephanie was already coming up with a list of things to tease Tim about. She specifically waits for the days Damian declares will be Pick-On Drake Days so she has lists on lists compiled for that very reason. She hoards them and never shares until the scheduled day. Duke surprisingly joined in too and started making his own list.

“He’s very dedicated.” Marinette giggled out.

“That’s one word for it.” Tim grumbled.

From there they had a good time touring the different gardens with Ivy acting as a somewhat tour guide and Dick could see it was really helping Marinette unwind as well. The interview with Jim and Harvey had really gotten her tense which was totally understandable, it would be intimidating for anyone. Tim tried to escape a couple times but after Dick teasingly asked if he should get Tim a child-leash and Ivy offered to make one out of vines he stopped. He even seemed to be relaxing a small bit. It was nice, really and it seemed to be something that Dick needed too without realizing it. Eventually they went out for lunch and after they went their separate ways. The drive back to the Manor had been nice too, normal traffic and a nice playlist helped. Tim and Marinette had even made some good conversation, though Dick got worried at the mention of PowerPoints. He hoped it was nothing serious, but the fact that Tim found someone as obsessed with planning and making PowerPoints was a little frightening. Maybe more than a little, Dick could only take so many Tim PowerPoints. He loved his brother, dearly, with his whole heart, but his PowerPoints were long and…thorough. He even tested people on the more important ones with a freaking Kahoot match. Cass and surprisingly Damian always won those.

As they made their way into the manor Dick was pretty much planning on taking a good, lengthy nap to catch up on the sleep he hadn't gotten last night. His brain felt fried and scrambled, like it couldn’t decide whether to sink into the depressing thoughts from before or just remember the good time at the gardens they all had, even Tim surprisingly had a good time. As he sunk into the couch in the family living room his mind seemed to settle on both. His eyes closed and he saw Marinette laughing and smiling at their afternoon activities, then it would flash to her being held against Two-Face. He could hear the rogue’s laugh deep in his bones, then it changed to the Joker’s unique cackle. Marinette changed from her to him to Jason at blinding speeds. He could hear Marinette’s voice firm and confident in contrast to the fear in her eyes when she told him there was no time and that she would lead Scarecrow away. He could hear her yelling and telling Alfred she and they weren’t safe. He heard his own cries and shouts mixed with Two-Face’s voice. He could hear what he imagined Jason sounded like when the Joker beat him to death. He could hear the accusations of others about his jealousy of Jason being adopted.

That unfortunately brought up memories of the talk he had had with Bruce once upon a time about Jason and adoption. It felt like he had had to fight not only tabloids but even Bruce about nonexistent hatred. Dick never hated Jason, but he had been so caught up in his anger with Bruce that he let it affect his and Jason’s relationship. He had just been so angry and it wasn’t an excuse but sometimes it seemed like he was even trying to justify his actions to himself. Though there was some jealousy and hurt there that he didn’t know what to do with, okay he did know what to do but the fact it would have to involve talking to Bruce and Jason was not something that sounded fun nor easy. He liked a good challenge but that idea sounded impossible. Like yes, he was Bruce’s son now but for so long he was just a ward, like Marinette was now, he called Bruce dad, they lived together, they fought crime together, they took care of each other, and yet it took years for Bruce to adopt him. But Jason? Dick knew Jason was Bruce’s son, his first son, his favorite son. Jason got the Bruce Dick had always wanted and it had hurt. Jason’s death had impacted Bruce more than his parents. That was a fact.

And…And Dick had no idea where this was all coming from. He knew he didn’t know Marinette well as her class’s tour guide but seeing her held against Two-Face, mere centimeters from danger had thrown him. She reminded him too much of himself and too much like Jason before his death. She wasn’t a Robin, she would never be a Robin, but she had been a hero like one. She saved her people as fiercely as a Robin protected Gotham and its people. She took the weight of her world on her shoulders, much like a Robin. She was a child turned soldier due to circumstance just like a Robin. Marinette was a Robin in soul with no Batman to guide her and maybe that was for the best but looking at how lost she looked when she spoke about the ‘akumatizations’ in Paris, Dick wished she had had her version of Batman. A mentor who could aid in the fight, who shared the knowledge and responsibility. Yes, there were other heroes, they were like her version of Teen Titans, but that’s just it she was just barely a teen, a child, when she took up the mantle of hero. And from the pictures Tim showed the family of the other heroes, it wasn’t hard to guess that the other ‘Holders’ were teens themselves. Seeing as Adrien was also a teen and a former hero.

Dick, in a weird, roundabout way, felt responsible for Marinette. As soon as she looked at him with hope, determination and fear in her eyes he was hit by a wave of protectiveness for her. She looked at him like Damian did when he first complimented and criticized his work as Robin, he and Marinette had also pulled off a plan as smooth and seamless as Dick and Damian had been when they were the Dynamic Duo. Or as Dick liked to call them, The More Dynamic Duo. He knew his family was kind of freaked out by how well Marinette and Damian seemed to get along, but not him, sure he teased a bit but he just had a feeling they would be friends. Damian had been trying to get himself out there and make friends and he did have some! He just called them acquaintances right now but Dick knew it wouldn’t be long till they were bumped up to friend status. Though Jon would always be Damian’s best friend even if they weren’t in the same school anymore. They still video or phone called every day and they played games with each other online. Which games? Dick could never remember but the point was, Damian had grown and was very capable of making friends, it just took him some time.

Speaking of time , Dick thought as his gaze lazily glanced at the clock on the wall. If he slept now, he knew he would not go to bed after patrol tonight. So with much reluctance he pushed himself up and off the couch. He figured he could see if Marinette wanted some company and maybe the two of them could get some tea and snacks from Alfred and tour more of the manor when they were done. It would help in the long term of Marinette’s stay so it was productive! When he got to her room he saw that the door was slightly open but it was still he knocked, if he could dodge a Pennyworth Lecture he would even knock his own bedroom door. As he did so though, the door opened more and with it came an overwhelming energy that left him feeling suppressed yet energized. He wasn’t around magic a lot anymore, but it always left him with the same feeling so he ditched being a gentleman and waiting for an answer and just barreled into the room to see what looked like a closing portal.

“Shit!” That would be a dollar in the Swear Jar, but that wasn’t important. What was important however was the fact Marinette was missing, a portal had seemingly opened in her room and closed, and…and there was a note on the bed?

‘Dear Any Wayne That Finds This,

Actually, are you all Waynes? I never asked, I should have asked. Anyways, please don’t freak out if you come to my room and I’m not here. Ladybug needed my help back in Paris and opened a portal to get me there. I shouldn’t be too long and hey! Maybe I’ll be back before anyone reads this but if I’m not then just don’t worry. Ladybug will return me once the akuma is dealt with.

-Marinette who is very sorry if someone does end up reading this and is pleading they don’t worry or get angry.’

“Double shit.” Dick said as he read over the letter.

That was another dollar for the Swear Jar.

_________________

Dick “Flying” Grayson @toflyistofall

Oops.

____

Bruce Wayne @therealbrucewayne

RE: Dick “Flying” Grayson @toflyistofall

Oops.

Richard John Grayson-Wayne. What did you do?

_____

JBIrd @sidesteppeddeath

RE: Bruce Wayne @therealbrucewayne

Richard John Grayson-Wayne. What did you do?

Ha! You got full government named Dickie! @toflyistofall

_____

Dick “Flying” Grayson @toflyistofall

RE: JBIrd @sidesteppeddeath

Ha! You got full government named Dickie! @toflyistofall

Oh come on! I didn’t even add tags! How did he respond so fast?

#hahaimindanger

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