#this is just so gabriel that it hurts | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

sairenharia · 2 months ago

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Fic Prompt: “It’s a wonderful life” plot where Marinette enters a world where “Miracle Queen” never happened because she asked Chloe for help, and it turns out to be a better world.

Another night where the effects of Ladybiquity have caused Marinette's dreams to show her another world, another life.

Its a sight Marinette recognizes from a distance. She sees herself go to Fu. However, instead of the hesitation Marinette had felt that day with thoughts of Kagami, she had instead picked up the Bee without hesitation. It was the plan she had. The first plan. The plan that made the most sense, and she was off.

Chloe would be Queen Bee for her parents.

Fu was still found, still captured.

Chat Noir arrived later, while Queen Bee and Ladybug were fighting Heart Hunter. Who was determined to go for Ladybug with the most love. What Marinette didn't understand was Heart Hunter's lack of interest in Chat Noir compared to her. Chat Noir was always such a romantic, but he had seemed distracted this time around.

But they win once Chloe gets close enough for a Venom. Ladybug dropped her off at home and this time, Chloe hands over the Bee without being asked. And thanked Ladybug for the chance, even if her identity was a problem. Ladybug admits if her parents were in danger, it did seem silly not to.

Marinette can see she's still worried about Kagami and Adrien.

Ladybug tells Chloe to check on her parents, even though Queen Bee looks uncertain at first, but she's off before Ladybug can decide to ask anything.

Of course, this time, Hawk Moth's plan is interrupted. He had been counting on Chloe, with her need for control to either get him paralysis of Paris, to potential mind control if he could push her. But Ladybug had decided to depend on her, which messed up his manipulation attempts.

Its not the total victory Hawk Moth wanted, but he has the box and the guardian and if he can break the shield, perhaps Ladybug and Chat Noir's identity.

And unfortunately without the show, Ladybug and Chat Noir aren't as quick to act.

Marinette breaks down on Luka, takes comfort in him for a while, but then her concern for Fu finally takes precedent and she asks to be alone. She tries for a Lucky Charm to find Fu. What she gets is a key.

She searches for him until she finds the locker and the note inside. To protect Marinette and Adrien, Fu gave up his memories. He lost the Miracle Box, but he trusted them to find a way to figure things out.

Marinette does find Fu eventually, wandering the park, since Gabriel didn't have a use for him without his memories and he's not quite cold blooded killer yet, just takes away the turtle.

Its a defeat before the heroes even knew it.

Hawk Moth makes his announcement of victory. The feeling of dread. Ladybug and Chat Noir are on their own...

And the Bee Miraculous.

Marinette goes to Alya at first, because of course she does. Unfortunately, while Alya is a fantastic fox, she's not as good with a Bee. The Bee needs someone who gets into the fray and fast, can make a decisive action. And while Alya is good, she isn't as decisive. She needs too much direction from Ladybug.

Ladybug needs another like Chat Noir. Chat Noir is great with orders, but the reason Chat Noir is her partner is because he is good at intuiting what she needs and can act longterm on his own. He doesn't need extensive explanation. He doesn't need handholding.

Marinette sees Chat Noir make the suggestion. Chloe is many things, but everytime they have fought with her, she's never needed much direction. Told the goal and she went.

But her compromised identity is too great a danger now.

Until Chat Noir points out that Plagg says its possible too change the outfit, the person just needs to decide on a new persona.

Ladybug has such doubts. Marinette gets why. Trusting Chloe once and a while was one thing, but trusting her bully longterm with something so precious?

Chat Noir points out she wasn't akumatized when another bee showed up.

Ladybug gives her a chance.

And much to Marinette's surprise, Chloe declares she knew Ladybug would come. She TOLD Hawk Moth she would, goes on about how of course Ladybug would trust her, and he really should have stopped trying to akumatize her after the third time.

Its the first time Ladybug in the timeline, and Marinette who was Ladybiquity learns Chloe is able to reject Akumas even before akumatization.

Marinette does see Chloe deflate a bit when Ladybug explains the changed identity, how Chloe HAD to keep it secret this time, there wouldn't be another chance after it. At first, Marinette figures of course. Of course Chloe would want the glory. She's going to refuse now that she can't claim it for herself-

"I understand," Chloe said. Then she sighs dramatically. "But Queen Bee was such a good name? What am I going to use now?"

They decide on Honey Bee.

And...and its such an odd thing to watch.

Because she knew Chloe was a competent hero, train incident aside, but seeing her work with Chat Noir and herself...

Its like a second Chat Noir. Honey Bee is decisive. She's active. There are some fights she pulls a Chat Noir, leading hordes on a merry chase through town. She is quick to defend. Quick get into the action. She doesn't get underfoot. She slots into place like a well oiled machine between their partnership. She is good at provocation, if in a different way than Chat Noir. She puts on a sweet persona, until she throws in a bite. The hero of honey and vinegar, apparently. Chloe's overly sweet persona back by her ruthlessness.

Things are dire for a while, because Hawk Moth became Monarch so fast, but with Chat Noir and Honey Bee, Ladybug is able to keep things together.

...okay, she also had to admit, seeing Honey Bee versus Su Han was kind of satisfying, though it had taken him weeks more to find their transformed selves without tracking the Miracle Box. She respected the man had a job to do, but while Chat Noir was willing to listen to Ladybug, Honey Bee was quick to point out they were experienced and they were fighting a villain with over a dozen Miraculous and the man wanted to send either inexperienced fighters, or people who had been out of time for a CENTURY? It was ridiculous. It clearly threw him off until an akumatized Fu showed up.

Unfortunately, Monarch had ditched the box itself. So they had found it, saw it changed and saw that Fu had intended Ladybug to be the new Guardian, but there were no Miraculous. Su Han wasn't really for this, but he did have to admit, sending the inexperienced or lost may prove more detrimental, so he will be watching them as he speaks with the other Guardians to figure out a plan.

The real change, however, was explaining things to Honey Bee. As she proved herself a capable teammate, they explained things about Fu, and about the power ups, and why they came later and Honey Bee wondered about where they got the book so suddenly.

"Actually, I'm curious about that too, My Lady," Chat Noir commented. "You were talking to the Master for weeks before that."

"Oh." Ladybug hesitated.

"Why are you so secretive about it? If its another guardian secret, you can just say that," Honey Bee said.

"I mean...not really," Ladybug said, rubbing the back of her neck. She never liked outright lying if she didn't have to, but she also knew Chloe would have a reaction about it. At least, Marinette imagines that's the conflict.

But things were different now. As Honey Bee was acting longer and longer, Marinette saw it. Chloe wasn't exactly nice, but she saw that Chloe's bite was less about attacking people to make them feel bad and more biting commentary about the situation. She would do things like help people up and get things for them as more mindless actions. The way she would act to help to save people seemed to effect her in her day to day life.

Chloe was feeling the effects of being a hero. And that was likely what made Ladybug finally speak.

(And perhaps a warning about the danger of Lila.)

"My kwami saw it when this girl, Lila I think her name was, throw it away after she apparently stole it from Adrien Agreste. That was why I thought Gabriel Agreste was Monarch," Ladybug said to Chat Noir. "If he had the book, it made him suspicious. Even if we know now that his wife was a collector, it seemed reasonable," she said.

"Oh!" Chat Noir said with surprise, before nodding. "I could see why you thought he might be Monarch then. I had wondered..." He said, scratching the back of his head.

Honey Bee gasped, offended. "She's the reason why Adrien was almost banned from school?!"

Ladybug had to play dumb. (Chat Noir also had to play dumb.) "What about Adrien getting banned?" She asked.

"She-oh, forget it! Don't worry about it," Honey Bee said. "I can deal with the thief later," she muttered under her breath.

"Honey Bee, please don't fight a student," Chat Noir asked.

"Honey Bee isn't fighting anyone," she said. "Chloe is another matter."

"How would you even explain learning abou-" Chat Noir started.

"Wait. How do you know Gabriel's not Monarch?" Honey Bee interrupted. "Just because Auntie Emilie found it doesn't mean it can't be where he got the Miraculous?"

"Because he got akumatized. He can't akumatize himself," Chat Noir said.

"Why not?" Honey Bee asked.

They both paused. "Why else wouldn't he do it all the time then?" Ladybug finally said.

Honey Bee snorted. "Because being an akuma messes with your head. I might not remember being a full akuma, but I can remember the process of his failed attempts. I said no, but I really wanted to say yes. It was like...like..." Honey Bee paused, rolling a hand in the air. "It was like if Adrien asked me for a hug," she said. "I'd do it in a heartbeat. I wanted to trust him. I wanted to believe him. Everything he said sounded so reasonable and easy to do. I was holding on by the idea alone that superheroes don't work for supervillains. The logic had to be ironclad."

She picked leaned back on her hands. "And with how out of control Akumas are? No way Gabriel would volunteer for losing THAT much control on a regular basis," she said with a scoff.

Silence stretched between them.

"I mean...there's still no proof the butterfly CAN akumatize themselves..." Chat Noir said.

Honey Bee shrugged. "There's also Mayura," she pointed out. "Why couldn't she use the Butterfly?"

And suddenly, the notion that had been dismissed months ago was back on the table.

Marinette watched as they investigated the possibility, knowing what was coming. That whatever way it happened, Honey Bee had been right. Gabriel had akumatized himself.

Marinette realizes that she hadn't told anyone all the things from before. Even showing Alya the grimoire, she hadn't told her how she found it, hadn't told her about the Collector, had never told Chat Noir where she got the book.

...and isn't that the problem of it?

Marinette didn't tell people things. Rarely everything. Even when she opens up, she keeps secrets. Edits so much of herself that no one else knows all she does. Not Chat Noir. Not Alya. Tikki is the only one.

Would they have revisited the idea of Gabriel being Monarch when they learned of Mayura, would they have learned the truth earlier? Would he had ever gotten the Miraculous? Would she have been able to spare Chat Noir killing the man by mistake?

Zoe arrived to a Chloe who was on speaking terms with the class. With Zoe's nicer attitude, she was able to help repair the bridge that Chloe had incidentally patched up. The two don't fall out, bond as sister's. Zoe is a little more sarcastic, but she's bolder. Chloe's edges turn to a harsh humor, but more often, she uses her fire to deal with other bullies.

Chloe is a terror to Lila. Namely by throwing a party and getting Jagged Stone and several other musicians Lila bragged about knowing to perform there and didn't tell anyone in advance. Lila was scrambling to recover when none of them knew Lila, a point Chloe made obvious, and once the lie was discovered once, more doubt was easy enough to sew.

Marinette sees her other self less isolated at school, with her friends having often chosen to hang out with Lila over her. But even more, she sees Zoe and Chloe step up when she's struggling to keep up with her class representative duties and help out, with Zoe's fondness for Marinette pulling Chloe in to use her own experience.

The other Marinette and Chloe aren't friends. But after Zoe arrived and bonded with Chloe...

Its clear how much less anger Chloe had for Marinette for reasons she didn't understand.

(Chloe had family who loved her unconditionally. A jealousy quelled.)

A week and a half before Monarch would steal the Miraculous in her time, Chat Noir asks for a meeting, looking haunted.

He says he found proof Monarch is Gabriel Agreste. He had found a secret lair in the house. Found a body of Emilie preserved. Nathalie had been weak for weeks, and Mayura had been suffering fainting spells before she vanished, and the timelines matched up.

Ladybug wants to go confront Gabriel right away.

Honey Bee is the one who noticed Chat Noir was unsteady. Chloe's emotional awareness wasn't great, but she was very good at judging her partner's abilities to handle a fight. She saw Chat Noir wasn't ready to fight.

And that's when Marinette realizes the grave mistake she has made in her world in trying to pain Gabriel as a hero.

Chat Noir didn't need much pushing. He had been on the edge of break down. He falls at Honey Bee's prodding.

"I can't do this," Chat Noir said, curled up on the rooftop below him. "I can't fight him."

"Wha-what the heck, alley cat?!" Honey Bee demanded. "We can finally take care of this guy!"

"Chat Noir?! Are you okay?" Ladybug asked, concerned.

Chat Noir sobs and he looks at Honey Bee. "Chloe, its my father."

"What?" Ladybug and Honey Bee said in unison.

"It's my father. Its my father and...and his wish has to be to bring back mom, what else would he wish for and its...its my parents!"

"Oh my god," Ladybug breathed.

"Adrien," Honey Bee said, voice small. "Oh....oh, Adrien."

And like a switch, the ready to fight Honey Bee was kneeling beside him and pulling him to her, hugging him tight. "Chloe, I can't-" Chat Noir gasped.

"Shhh," Honey Bee hushed, holding him close. "Cry. Scream. You let everything out," she said, with a familiarity of someone who has done this before.

Marinette watched as the dread grows in her chest. Chloe had been Adrien's only friend. Who was there for him after his mother, but Chloe?

"I'll be here. I'll stay. I won't leave you," Honey Bee said, voice softer than Marinette has ever heard her speak.

And Chat Noir?

Wails. He cries and clings onto Honey Bee as if it was the only thing he could to keep from falling apart.

Ladybug watches in silent horror. Marinette can understand because she's going through the same emotions. Adrien was Chat Noir. Hawk Moth was his father. He had catacalysmed his own father. His father had chosen villainy than being a father and he knew it. Everytime Chat Noir had almost died because of his own father.

It had taken a minute before Ladybug moved to join the hug, to offer Chat Noir was comfort he could.

Luckily they were high on the Eiffel tower, too far for anyone to hear them.

They don't fight Monarch that night.

Chloe makes up as many excuses as she can to get Adrien out of his house, gets her father to ask Gabriel for an assortment of advertisements for political things and his hotel, to get Adrien outside of the house and allow Chloe to pull him away to spend time together.

The other Marinette watches from the distance. For about a week and Marinette decides this was it.

Ladybug tells them who she is.

"I had a crush on Marinette Dupain-Cheng this whole time?!" Chloe had wailed.

Not the most shocking revelation for Marinette this trip.

But still certainly another thing to add to the list.

Then Risk happened.

Despite Lila's shaky grounds in the school, Gabriel still had her as a model and the world tour was announced. Marinette doesn't see Adrien relent to Gabriel's face and immediately run away. Didn't see Felix being surprised at Adrien's actions. Didn't see Felix follow him to Chloe's home to look normal. Doesn't see the confrontation where Felix sneaks up pretending to be Adrien who had to run back to the car. Doesn't see him eavesdrop and hear them talk about Monarch.

Marinette does see when her other self is called and asked that Ladybug meets at Chloe's place and learns there's a time limit.

Because Adrien is a Sentimonster and Gabriel still had half of his amok, split between two objects. Felix could give half to Adrien, but it would just give him the ability to resist, it meant he couldn't fight. They needed the other ring.

Adrien knows where it is, but Gabriel likely still had the peacock on him.

"If I could offer him something for the peacock, I can keep him distracted as you get the ring," Felix said.

"But we don't have anything to offer him," Ladybug said.

"You have the Miraculous," Felix said.

"Absolutely no-" Ladybug started.

"Pollen, do you trust me?" Chloe, who had been quiet for most of the discussion, finally spoke up, looking to the bee kwami.

"Of course, my Queen," Pollen said.

Chloe nodded, reaching up for her hair comb.

"Chloe, you can't be serious! I've only met Felix and as far as I could tell, he was trying to make things worse for Adrien!" Ladybug protested.

"Oh, I don't trust Felix to be a good person," Chloe said, pulling off her comb. "But he wants the peacock to protect himself," she said, giving him a hard look. "The best way to do that is to get the peacock. He won't let Gabriel leave his sight until he has it. And I'm going to guess Gabriel isn't going to give in easily. He is a stubborn man," she said.

Felix raised an eyebrow. "A fair assessment."

"You don't let Gabriel leave until you have the peacock. Adrien will go with Ladybug to get his Amok. And I'm going to do the back up plan in case Felix outs Plagg following Gabriel to wherever he's storing his Miraculous," she said. "Pollen, I renounce you."

"Wait, you don't trust him?!" Adrien asked.

"Absolutely not," Chloe said as she held out the comb to Felix.

Felix stared a moment, and then he chuckled. "You did always know what my dark thought was," he said. "Not that I was going to this time."

"Sure," Chloe said, heading for the door. "Call me when you have the plan going," she said.

Chloe left and Felix looked at Adrien and Ladybug. "Adrien, I understand, but I'm surprised you took her on," he said.

Ladybug stared after the door. "...Adrien had a good point about her," he said. Someone who could act without her.

So the plan was Adrien would get the ring back from Nathalie, first with seeming curiosity about the heirloom. If that didn't work, Ladybug could force the issue. Felix, meanwhile, would use the comb to get Gabriel in a dealing mood along with a fake ring as extra leverage. He would draw it out until Adrien texted him they were good, in hopes Gabriel would go to where the rest of the Miraculous were with Plagg following behind.

The plan...well, it isn't entirely on the rails because Adrien has Risk on him. He pushes too far too soon, and Nathalie puts together the goal and Adrien isn't careful when she tries to escape.

Nearly goes over the balcony and Adrien, in a Risk mindset, calls for Plagg anyway to save her. Outing his own identity to save Nathalie, but he was able to grab his amok. The leash was gone, but Gabriel was a free agent and while Adrien found his mother, he hadn't found the Miraculous.

The fight breaks out.

Marinette is terrified. Is this going to be another Chat Blanc? Will Gabriel break Adrien like Marinette's love had done?

Nathalie is Akumatized, and with a prototype alliance ring, given the power to multiple along with the tiger's power and bull's immunity. Nathalie outs Adrien and Chat Noir demands to face his father and Monarch decides that find. If his son wants to fight, then he'll need to take him down for his own good and he turns to get the rest of the kwami's power.

Only to see Chloe holding the comb from where he put it down, and Markov having opened and released the rest of the kwami. Without the kwami in the capsules, the modified Miraculous aren't strong enough to pull them in. The sacrifice for making the remote effect of granting power.

With an insult to his outfit, Chloe jumps down the elevator that leads to the lair, kwami flying off behind her as she transforms with Pollen to regroup with the others. Nathalie still has a lot of powers and Monarch as a few, but there is Ladybug, Chat Noir, and Honey Bee to fight.

Along with Argos. He wasn't going to say NO to fighting his uncle.

The fight wrecks Adrien's house, but with Argos granting sentimonster aids, they have the ability to fight back and bring Gabriel to his knees.

"I could bring her back. To us. To you." Gabriel said, looking to Adrien.

Because while Adrien wasn't being compelled, there was no doubt he wasn't fighting as hard as he wanted. There have been missteps that Honey Bee and Ladybug had to make up, along with the sentimonster aids. Adrien had his will, but that didn't mean he was without his love and his wanting to be a good son.

"This...father, you have to realize this is...this is..." Chat Noir starts, gripping his staff.

"I did this all for you. Don't you miss her?" Gabriel pleaded, his one avenue for success, and his desperate wish.

"Of course, but-"

"You think she wanted this?!" Honey Bee shouted, stepping up beside Chat Noir, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Auntie Emilie was protective, the both of you kept Adrien locked up way too long, but you think she would have EVER approved of you hurting Adrien?! How many Akumas attacked him?! Attacked him ON PURPOSE?!"

"I-I didn't want-"

"Bullshit!" Honey Bee shouted, to the shock of Ladybug and Chat Noir and even Gabriel a little bit.

Argos just looked amused.

"Who do you think was there for Adrien when you were locking yourself away?! Nathalie was more concerned for you, and Gorilla just wanted to keep him safe, but who was there when he cried?! Me! I was! I watched him mourn his mother! I watched him wish you would be there! I'm the one who blackmailed the principal to get him into school because he was withering away because you were too selfish to be there for him!" Honey Bee shouted.

"Honey Bee-" Ladybug started and Marinette understands. This can't be helping Adrien. He's already suffering.

Honey Bee squeezes Chat Noir's shoulder and she steps forward. "You say this is all for Adrien?! That you did all this for him! Don't make me laugh! He might not see it, but I know who you are Gabriel. You wanted a perfect son, one who acted just as you wanted, to the point he twisted and morphed himself into what YOU wanted! Do you know he likes puns? Do you know his favorite stories are the ones where the power of friendship is what saves the day? That his favorite flavor is passionfruit, that he actually really hates cheese, but of course no one bats an eye when he's asking for it by the truckload. Do you know how lonely he was? Do you know how many times he wiped his face clean because he thought he was going to meet you for dinner?!"

Honey Bee closes the distance between him, a fire in her eyes. "Do you know the reason why Adrien and I love each other is partly because we get it, we understand that even though our parents are terrible, awful, horrible people who make us feel small, who make us feel less than nothing, we still love them!" She shouted, tears in her own eyes. "That even as she want to rebel and scream and tell you enough, we can't because we love you too much. But guess what?! Adrien can call my mother a bitch because he can just hate her and I can call you out for your hypocrisy because I don't care what you think about me!"

That actually startles Chat Noir out of his curling, vulnerable state with a surprised laugh.

"You attacked Adrien! You sent the girl he wondered if he could date after him with a sword! You had his stalker show up at his party! You targeted all his new classmates! You can't even throw him a birthday party so you akumatize his new friend to do it, its fine, its just a little mass kidnapping! You attacked his best friend and almost killed me more times than I can count and you tried to groom me into your little minion! Not to mention whatever is going on with Lila the Liar! You talk about how you have to protect him from people who would use him, so yeah, go on a world tour with a girl who does NOTHING, but use people, you can read people's emotions and akumatized her, you had to know she was a little psycho!" Honey Bee reaches out, grabbing his scarf.

"This. Was never about Adrien. This is about what you wanted the world to be, and it didn't matter if Adrien was hurt or miserable. As long as you. Got. Your. Wish," Honey Bee snarled.

Before snatching away the Butterfly and letting him go and turning to Ladybug.

There was silence as everyone tried to think of the best way to move forward. The fight was done. The good guys had won. The villains were there, waiting for the other shoe to drop.

"And...it didn't have to be that way," Honey Bee finally said. She looked to Ladybug and then to Adrien. "When people hurt, when they are willing or...or want to hurt things because they can't deal with the pain...having other people around, to tell them its okay...it can make a world of difference."

Marinette sees the scene and she understand then, why Chloe is like this. Why Adrien had meant so much to her.

How lonely had Chloe been? How much had the pain of it made her the villain she had acted?

How much had Gabriel taken advantage of that and how much had Marinette enabled it?

Chat Noir met Honey Bee's gaze. Then he looked to Ladybug, face questioning. Looking for permission. Ladybug hesitates, before she nods.

Chat Noir takes a deep breath, and lets it out, looking to Gabriel. "We...we have to tell the police," he said, voice soft.

"Adrien-"

"Stop." Chat Noir's tone is firm, straightening his shoulders. "If you turn yourself in, then...then we can talk. We can talk and try to work things out. We can still be a family. Get some therapy. Let's be fair, we're...we're rich enough that you can probably get a cushy place in jail," Chat Noir said, some of his humor slipping in to try and deal.

Gabriel opens his mouth, closes it again.

"...please. Dad. I don't want to fight you anymore."

"But who will take care of you?" Gabriel finally asked.

"Nathalie and Gorilla. She's already sick. She won't be able to do any villainy on her own, and Mayura was only involved in a few incidents. She can keep our affairs in order. Gorilla will keep me safe," Adrien said. "To be honest, father, it wouldn't be very different."

Gabriel opens his mouth, looks like he wants to fight.

Before he deflates. He can't. He can't with Adrien looking at him like that.

The fight ends. Gabriel is arrested. Nathalie says she was coerced and given a sentencing as a mix of fines and community service.

The fight ended, Marinette was able to fix the Miraculous, and Su-Han congratulates them on solving the problem. Time passes.

Adrien mourns. He had bad days. But he has his friends. He has Marinette and Chloe. He has Plagg. He is given support, allowed to recover, and work with Felix to understand what it means to be a sentimonster.

But after a while, he is able to visit his father. The process is slow, but they start to talk.

Emilie is put to rest.

Marinette brings a cake to Chloe.

"What is this for?" Chloe demanded.

"To thank you. For everything," Marinette said. "You know, I wasn't sure if Honey Bee would really work out..."

"I guess it makes more sense why you were so stingy," Chloe muttered.

"But I'm glad Adrien talked me into it," she said, smiling at Chloe. "You had some rough patches, but...we wouldn't have gotten to the end without you," she said.

Chloe preened at that. "Well, of course! I knew I would be a fantastic hero!" She said. "Even if I...was...admittedly not so good at being a good person," she said. Something she wouldn't have admitted months ago. But she had grown a lot.

"No. But there was good there," Marinette said. "I also wanted to thank you, for letting me meet Adrien. For being there for him when no one else was. I think you always had the ability to be a hero. YOu just needed...a chance to shine."

Chloe blushes at that. "Well...I mean...it did make it easier. To shine. With you and alley cat," she said.

"You're really still going to call him that?" Marinette asked.

"You can't tell me the pout he does isn't cute!" Chloe shot back.

Marinette laughed. "Well...maybe a little."

A chance to shine.

Marinette sees the dream end and she wonders if maybe that's what she really needed to do.

Let people shine instead of trying to light up the world on her own.

#its a wonderful life #ladyibiquity allows for some trippy things to be honest #did i just want to write chloe ripping into Gabriel?#well that wasn't the start #but I absolutely did when I got going #seriously Gabriel #why are you grooming your son's childhood friend into villainy #calm down #no one decision makes everything better but with the bad comes the good #seriously Marinette just trust people #your life would be so much better #even if it hurts a little at first #chloe bourgeois #marinette dupain-cheng #adrien agreste

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blaisenova · 1 year ago

Text

(half) brothers

Miguel O'Hara finds out the rather unfortunate truth about his biological father and makes a decision to do something really stupid, but not without properly saying goodbye first.

Gabriel O'Hara does not think it's cool that Miguel suddenly wants to call him his "half-brother."

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a fun little exploration of gabriel and miguel's relationship that's inspired by this post by @/flipsidesfangs! needless to say, i was inspired.

because of sensitive content (suicidal thoughts/ideation as well as implied/referenced self-harm) the actual work will be beneath the cut, but, despite the angst, it does end happily!! gabriel and miguel brotherhood for the win!

i'd also like to apologise if any of the spanish is off at all. i've been learning it for years now, but some of the stuff i wanted to say was a bit beyond the stuff i can consistently get down just yet. i did my best to research the stuff i was unsure about, but the internet will never be as good as an actual speaker. if you speak spanish, please don't hesitate to correct me!! (thank you @/anneichigo for the correction already!)

anyways please enjoy <3

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Maybe, before, there was a time that Gabriel would have been grateful to find out that Miguel was technically his half-brother – namely, when he’d first found out about whatever was going on between Miguel and Dana before that, too, fell apart (which, really, just proved even more that they were family; they both had the shittiest luck with women, though Miguel’s misfortune was, admittedly, a bit of a self-fulfilling prophecy) – but, regardless of how much his asshole of a brother could piss him off and make him wish they weren’t related, Miguel was still one of the only good parts of Gabriel’s childhood and would always be the closest family he had.

So, when Miguel had dropped by in the middle of a nasty rainstorm (fortunately, during one of the rare occasions that their mother was out) looking an awful lot like he’d just been told his holographic dog got run over and he was ready to jump in front of the car, too, Gabriel hadn’t hesitated to bring him inside and lead him to his couch; even if the rainwater that had soaked Miguel to the bone jumped to Gabriel’s couch, as well.

There were very few times that Gabriel had seen this look on Miguel’s face – eyes distant, their red hues not hidden behind sunglasses for once, and even redder than usual, like he’d been crying – except for maybe when their parents would fight. Then, Miguel would go distant just like he was now, but, even then, he had never stopped holding Gabriel until the sound of shouts and shattering glass bottles settled back down to silence. It wasn’t often that Gabriel got to return the favour, and even less often that Miguel would let him, though he was, admittedly, kind of miffed that Miguel had chosen right now to finally take him up on the offer; getting beaten by cops didn’t exactly leave him feeling ready to take care of someone else.

It took Gabriel a few moments to collect himself and regain his bearings as he rooted through his still unfolded laundry for a towel in an attempt to save his brother from hypothermia, but, with a deep breath, he clenched the half-threadbare, yellowed fabric in his hands, and returned to the living room where he’d left his brother.

“Think fast,” he quipped, tossing the towel towards his brother in some attempt to bring him back to reality, only to flinch when the towel simply landed haphazardly on Miguel’s head without garnering a reaction.

Gingerly, Gabriel settled himself next to his brother, pausing and scooting a bit away when he felt a bit of water seeping through his pants. He fixed Miguel with a pointed look, though the look quickly turned to a frown when the older wouldn’t meet his eyes. A hand reached up, and he gently flicked one of the man’s cheekbones, mouth falling agape when even that didn’t earn a reaction.

“Dios mío, Miggy,” he mumbled, sitting up just enough to reach the towel that had landed on Miguel’s head to scrub it around enough to sop up the excess water, “And here I thought I was having a bad day.”

Gabriel removed the towel from his brother’s head, leaving behind a fluffy, tangled mop of hair that he couldn’t help but snicker at; strands of half-dry hair stuck up in the air in a gravity defying show. The short sound of laughter was enough to earn a glance from Miguel, though his eyes just as quickly darted away again, and Gabriel just caught the subtle way that his older brother’s brows furrowed even more.

With a frown, he rolled the towel up into a deadly weapon and skillfully snapped it against Miguel’s chest with soggy squelch.

That was enough to earn the older man’s attention in full as he bit out a yelp, sitting up stick straight before fixing Gabriel with a snarl, fangs bared. “¿¡Qué chingados?! What was that for?”

For all of Miguel’s ridiculous height and increasing amount of muscle that turned him into quite the intimidating figure, Gabriel just didn’t have it in him to be afraid of his own brother. Miguel may have been much bigger now, and, even without the super powers, he could have folded Gabriel easily, but that felt more like an older brother staple than just a S-Man thing.

“Mi, mi, mi,” he unabashedly mocked, towel held out threateningly in his hands. “It was for freaking me out, you dick! What the shock is wrong with you tonight?” He shrunk back a bit, a finger pointing at his brother’s fangs accusatorily. “Put those away… I’ve been beat up enough for one day.”

Cheeks reddening a bit, Miguel dropped the snarl, carefully situating his fangs back behind his lips. His voice turned more muffled, almost slurred, as he worked to keep his teeth hidden. “I shouldn’t have come here,” he bit out, venom in the words. “I should’ve just-”

“Ay, coño- Alright, Miguel, I get it,” Gabriel began, raising his hands, only to wince backwards when Miguel all but yelled,

“No, Gabriel, you don’t get it!”

Silence filled the room again, thick and tense like the humid, smog filled rain that pressed down on them outside. Gabriel’s eyes narrowed as Miguel’s widened, the light of the overhead lamp doing well to illuminate the bright red of the older brother’s eyes that had replaced the brown they used to share. In a way, it was almost poetic that the physical characteristics they shared would be ripped from them as their sense of blood bond was ripped away, too. After a few moments of tense eye contact, Miguel was the one to break it, eyes darting to the ground with a frown.

“Gabri, I’m-”

“No, no,” Gabriel cut in once more, waving what he hoped was an apology off. Bitter words rested right on the tip of his tongue, but he swallowed them down, forcing himself to remember the uncharacteristic distance that Miguel had entered the house with. “Help me understand, then.”

Suspicion flashed behind Miguel’s eyes as he forced himself to look at his brother again, though his expression softened as he didn’t seem to find the sarcastic vitriol he was searching for. His shoulders remained tense, muscles flexing and unflexing beneath his shirt in an unconscious, nervous rhythm that both impressed and worried Gabriel. Rain sounded from outside enough to make the onward stretching silence just a bit more bearable, though only for so long as seconds turned to minutes.

“Miguel?” Gabriel coaxed carefully, feeling an awful lot like he was talking to a wounded animal, a strange and novel experience with his brother who used to protect the both of them; though whatever had ended up with Miguel becoming 2099’s Spider-Man had seemed to shift something in the man he once knew, for better or for worse. “Talk to me, man. What’s going on?”

Talon tipped fingers came up to rake across Miguel’s face (which only momentarily scared the shit out of Gabriel before he realised that the claws seemed to retract when they came into contact with skin), and the older man sighed.

“I just… came to tell you that I loved you. In case something happens with the whole ‘Spider-Man’ thing,” he began, a nervous waver concealed behind monotony that might have fooled anyone else, but not Gabriel. “I know things haven’t always been great between us, considering everything with Ma and Dad, and…” a beat, “with Dana too, I guess. But you’re still my brother…”

The word trailed off, and he sighed again, his fingers pinching at the bridge of his nose.

“Coño, estoy jodiendo esto…” Miguel mumbled, so quiet that Gabriel almost didn’t hear it. “Look, what I’m trying to say is that I care about you. I wanted you to know just in case anything happened.”

If possible, Miguel only seemed to get even more tense once the words were out there, as if it pained him to say. Gabriel watched him with some semblance of disbelief, eyes narrow and mouth slightly agape. When it became clear that was all his brother was going to say on the matter, his eyes only narrowed even further.

“¿..En serio?” he squeaked out, only to backtrack as Miguel gave him an extremely pointed look. “I mean, you’re a little late on that, aren’t you? You’ve been doing the whole S-Man thing for a while now. Are you in trouble? What’s going on?”

“Nothing, Gabri,” came the response, bit out in the same way that things always were when Miguel was lying, “I just wanted to make sure you knew. That’s all.”

“No chingues, man,” he scolded, doing his best to sound angry and only succeeding in expressing his concern. “Seriously, what’s up with you? This sounds like a goodbye.” A nervous laugh fell from him and landed flat; Miguel wouldn’t even look at him, his hands wrapped so tightly around each other that his knuckles were white. Horror settled in Gabriel’s stomach, heavy and nauseating. “...Wait. Wait, Miguel-”

“Don’t be stupid,” Miguel hissed, too little and too late. There was a sort of desperation to the way he shot to his feet, eyes still anywhere but on his brother. “I have to go.”

Gabriel was quick to follow him off of the couch, grabbing onto his brother’s wrist and not letting go even when Miguel bared his fangs at him once more. “‘Go’?” he echoed. “Where are you going?”

“Let go of me,” came the hiss.

Gabriel didn’t deign to fulfil the request. “Answer my question first.”

“What are you, my mom? I don’t have to tell you anything.”

“Then you’re not going anywhere.”

That earned a bonafide laugh, dark and bitter, from the larger of the brothers, and Miguel stepped closer, shoulders squared and talons out. His fangs flashed noticeably in the light as his lip curled back in a snarl as he finally met his brother’s eyes, their red almost seeming to have a faint glow to them. “You’re going to stop me?”

To his credit, Gabriel didn’t flinch. “I sure as shock am. I’m not just going to let you leave and kill yourself, Miguel.”

“You can’t keep me here,” he seethed.

Gabriel’s grip on his brother’s arm only tightened, his brows furrowing into something pained. “So, you don’t deny it, then?”

At that, Miguel’s face fell again – eyes wide and terrified – and his shoulders went tense once more. “I…” Then, all at once, the rage was back, and Miguel pulled against his brother’s grasp again, enough to pull Gabriel forward with the force. “I shouldn’t have to deny something that stupid. Let me the shock go, Gabriel, I’m not kidding.”

“And I don’t believe you,” Gabriel retorted, undeterred.

“I didn’t come here to be mothered.”

“Yeah, you came here to say ‘goodbye,’ and I’m not letting you,” he said, grabbing Miguel’s arm with his other hand and practically wrapping himself around his brother. “So help me, Miguel, I’ll latch onto you like a shocking koala. The only way you’re killing yourself is with me attached to your arm.”

“What is wrong with you?” Miguel tried again to push Gabriel off, to no avail. “You’ve already been beaten all to hell once today, do you seriously want to make it a second?”

The thinly veiled threat drew a scoff from the younger, who looked up at him entirely unimpressed as he tightened his hold on the other’s arm. “What, you’re gonna beat me up if I don’t let you commit suicide? So much for ‘you’re my brother! I love you!’”

“Half-brother,” came the shout, and that was enough to get Gabriel to pause.

“...¿Cómo dices?”

Caught off guard, his grip loosened just enough for Miguel to successfully push him off, giving him a much better view of the anguished expression on his brother’s face.

“Half-brother,” Miguel repeated, the words spat out like they were something foul.

For a moment, Gabriel could only reel at the admission, and, when he finally managed to force something out of his mouth, his voice came out equally as strained. “I… ¿Te cae?”

“Me cae.” Then, again, quiet, until Miguel couldn’t seem to take it anymore. “I was… I was furious about what that bastard Tyler Stone did to you, and I… I was going to kill him, Gabriel. I really was.” He almost seemed horrified with himself at the admission, his hand coming up to his face once more. “I was at his house. I was going to break in, and I was going to kill him. It was going to be so easy. No one would’ve known it was me, and I wouldn’t have regretted it. Not one bit” His own pathetic whine cut him off, and Gabriel, with his own muted horror, could clearly see the way tears had sprung to his eyes once more.

After a moment, he quietly – half afraid, but not in the way Miguel had so desperately wanted him to be mere moments before – pushed, “...but?”

“But Ma was there,” Miguel answered immediately, sounding rather out of breath for how much he was breathing. “Ma was there, and she blackmailed him into letting Kasey go.” A laugh; short, breathless. “I thought she was talking crazy, or lying out of her ass, like always, and I thought I was going to have to break in to save her, but Stone just laughed and- and kissed her.” His expression screwed up into something equal parts disgusted and mortified, but he didn’t pause, even for a moment. “They argued, and he admitted that all the bullshit that led up to me becoming this monster was nothing but a lie, and, as if that wasn’t enough, Ma says he’s my father. Casually. As if it didn’t mean anything. And Stone didn’t deny it.”

Cautiously, Gabriel laid a hand on his shoulder, so gently he wasn’t sure it would catch his brother’s attention. “Miguel, breathe-”

Fortunately, the feeling was enough to knock Miguel out of the horrific retelling, but the agony didn’t leave his eyes as his head darted to look at Gabriel as tears finally spilled over. “I can’t live knowing I’m his son, Gabriel. I can’t live knowing all of this was for nothing – just a lie.” His breathing hitched, almost stopping completely, as he mumbled breathlessly, “necesito morir. No quiero vivir. No lo puedo hacer. No puedo más. No puedo más.”

It was, admittedly, extremely frightening to watch Miguel – Gabriel’s older brother, and the one that had, somehow, always managed to keep it together for the both of them, even if he’d become an asshole to do it – unravel before him, nails digging into his own skin as if it was the only thing keeping him from dying on the spot. His chest heaved dangerously fast, and Gabriel could feel the way his body trembled just from the minimal contact he had with Miguel’s shoulder.

“Miguel,” he called, gently.

The word earned him no response, and Gabriel frowned, concern spiking in his chest like a too firm grasp on his heart, and he rushed to try again, louder this time. “Miguel.”

When that, too, didn’t work, Gabriel was well and truly terrified, and, without thinking, latched onto Miguel’s hands, wrenching them from their grip on his own skin and leaving crescent marks in their wake.

“Miguel!” he cried, loud enough to make Miguel jump, but finally earning the man’s attention. “Mirame. Necesitas respirar, ¿vale? Respira, güey. Si no lo haces, morirás, si quieras o no, y yo no quiero eso, ¿entiendes?”

“No puedo,” Miguel wheezed desperately, voice trembling almost as violently as his hands. “No puedo.”

“Cállate,” his brother immediately shushed, squeezing Miguel’s hands tightly. “Sí, puedes. Hazlo conmigo.” It was a fairly straight forward demand that didn’t need much of an explanation, but, even then, as Gabriel took as exaggerated of a deep breath as he could managed, he was more than a little relieved to see that Miguel was attempting to follow along, albeit shakily.

The first few breaths Gabriel managed to coax out of his brother were still shallow at best, falling back off into wheezes the moment he finished exhaling, but, after a few minutes, Miguel had managed to bring his breathing back into some sort of regular rhythm. His shoulders still shook, and his hands still trembled, but he was, at the very least, no longer on the verge of passing out, or so Gabriel hoped. Once he was sure that Miguel could manage to breathe without his guidance, he allowed his hands to slip off of Miguel’s, brows furrowed in concern.

“You okay?” he asked, going right back to that gentle tone of before.

It took Miguel a moment to answer, heaving a sigh as his hands wrapped around one another again. “...Yeah. Lo siento.”

“Ay, don’t start with that shocking ‘lo siento’ nonsense,” Gabriel immediately huffed. He almost sounded offended, probably because, in a way, he was. The idea that Miguel would ever need to apologise to him of all people for something like that. “That was a heavy discovery,” he reconciled. “It’s not your fault you freaked out over it. In fact, I’d say you earned that panic attack.”

The wording earned Gabriel a glare, which he took as a sign that his brother really was feeling better, and he returned the look with his own shit eating grin.

“Gee, thanks, asshole,” Miguel drawled sarcastically, making Gabriel snicker.

“Hey, I’m your brother. I’m contractually obligated to be an asshole to you in your lowest moments,” came the retort, and there was a certain sort of pride to the words that only seemed to lighten the mood for a moment.

Visibly deflating again, Miguel mumbled, “half-brother.”

Whatever playfulness that had managed to find its way back into the atmosphere was immediately iced once more, and Gabriel couldn’t help but frown, his grin chased away by the sombre mood. For a moment, the two were quiet again as Gabriel considered and Miguel wallowed, before he not-so-gently pinched his brother’s bicep, drawing an ungraceful yelp from Miguel who immediately swatted away the offending hand with a snarl.

“¿¡Qué mierda?! ¡Pendejo!” he all but shouted. “Have I not suffered enough today? What’s your problem?”

“Don’t call me your half-brother, stupid,” Gabriel said instead of answering. His tone left no room for argument. “There is nothing half about us being brothers.”

Apparently not having the impact Gabriel had hoped for, Miguel gawked openly, blinking in disbelief. “Gabri, were you listening to none of what I just told you?”

“Oh, my god, Miguel-”

“No, I’m serious,” he said. “Did none of that mean anything to you?”

“Yeah, actually!” Gabriel answered bluntly. He fixed his brother with a look that said he was the one being weird here that Miguel clearly didn’t buy. “Who the shock cares who your biological dad is?”

“I do!” he hissed, clearly not getting the message as he gestured to himself furiously.

“Well, I don’t!” Gabriel hissed right back, shoving Miguel’s shoulder and trying not to be embarrassed by the fact that Miguel hardly moved. “We grew up together, man. I beat you when you’re already down. It literally does not get more brotherly than that.”

“Acting like you’re my brother does not make you my brother,” Miguel groaned back, and there was a beat as Gabriel just frowned up at him.

“I don’t care who your ‘real’ dad is,” he repeated, making his position clear and impossible to miss. “He’s clearly just as much of a dick as the one we grew up with, and that means he’s close enough for me.”

And there was that suspicious glare again, as if there was no possible way that what Gabriel was saying could be true, and that meant he must be lying. It would have been hurtful if Gabriel wasn’t acutely aware of the fact that it was more a reflection of Miguel’s shit mental state than of him. Red eyes searched brown and were once again left without finding whatever they were looking for. For the second time, Miguel’s face fell, and he leaned forward to hide his frown in his hands.

“I don’t get how this doesn’t bother you,” he mumbled.

“Miguel, how do you want me to react? I’m being honest with you, and I don’t care. Please tell me what you want from me,” Gabriel practically pleaded. “Do you want me to have a panic attack, too? Disown you? Tell you that if you’re not my full brother that you’re not my brother at all?”

There was a short huff of what was either a laugh or a sob; Gabriel couldn’t tell which with Miguel’s face hidden the way it was. “I don’t know,” he muttered. “Maybe.”

“You cannot be serious,” Gabriel deadpanned.

The tone made Miguel sit back up, frown clear as day. “I said maybe-”

Immediately, his brother cut him off, “Like that makes it any better?!”

“Wha- Doesn’t it?”

“No?!”

With a groan, Miguel raised his hands in surrender, though his expression more screamed frustration than defeat if the way his lips unconsciously twisted into a snarl said anything. “Ay, coño- Alright, alright. I didn’t mean it.”

And, for a moment, Gabriel simply studied his brother’s face again. They had the same eyes – or, at least, they used to, before brown turned to red – and the same nose. They shared their mother’s rich, caramel skin tone and prominent cheekbones, and the same deep brown hair colour that almost looked red in the right lighting. Really, they were the spitting image of one another, stress induced wrinkling included, though Gabriel, admittedly, hadn’t quite earned the few grey hairs that Miguel had already managed to grow despite only being in his late twenties. Nevertheless, Gabriel couldn’t understand how Miguel didn’t see their similarities; the things that screamed beyond a shadow of a doubt that they were related; that they were brothers.

His brows furrowed as he continued to stare, and Miguel’s furrowed in turn. He glanced between his brother’s eyes and anything else uncomfortably, hands shifting in his lap.

“...What-”

“Were you really going to kill yourself?” Gabriel interrupted instead, and Miguel immediately went tense again.

“I… was thinking about it,” he finally admitted; whisper quiet as if he was afraid what would happen if someone else heard.

Gabriel’s eyes narrowed once more, the glance of suspicion now on his brother. He could only hope his look was as effective as Miguel’s was; that Miguel’s skin was crawling just a little bit under the glare. “‘Thinking’ as in ‘the thought crossed your mind?’ Or ‘thinking’ as in ‘you actually had a plan?’”

“What difference does it make?” Miguel murmured, eyes boring holes into the floor. “I’m here. I’m not dead.”

“Miggy, I don’t think you realise how much a non-answer reveals,” Gabriel stressed a bit desperately, though he quickly cut himself off as his brother shifted.

With a growl, Miguel threw his hands up in frustrated defeat, turning his glare to Gabriel once more. It looked more tired than he probably meant for it to, and there was a pang of guilt that hit Gabriel at the realisation. “Alright, fine, yes, okay? I was going to do it,” he hissed. “I fought with Dana, and I said goodbye to you. All I needed was to see Xina, and then I was done. So what?”

“So what?” Gabriel echoed in disbelief, eyes wide.

“Yeah,” he confirmed, the high of frustration still pulling the words out of him with ease. “So what?”

All of the anger seemed to dissipate as Miguel caught sight of Gabriel’s face; he looked crushed, and, honestly, he felt it, too. Tears threatened to spill over onto his cheeks, and, honestly, Gabriel had half a mind to let them just to try and knock some sense into his brother. It was a bit of a petty thought, and maybe selfish, too, but if selfishness was what would keep Miguel around for another day, then so be it. He could have thrown the Spider-Man card – told Miguel that he was the only one that could save people – but it wasn’t Spider-Man that Gabriel was trying to save.

“‘Lito, eres muy estupido,” he nearly whispered, voice strained. “Me importas. Te quiero mucho. No puedes decir ‘so what’ como si no estuviera loco si estuvieras muerto. ¿A ti eso no te importa? No quiero que mueras. Te necesito.”

Miguel shook his head, brows furrowing again, though his voice didn’t have the same bite as it did before. “Eso no es justo. No es sobre ti.”

“Pero estaría herido,” Gabriel insisted, and Miguel grit his teeth, averting his gaze once more.

“Me vale verga,” he spat, the words intentionally harsh and biting.

But Gabriel didn’t believe them. “Mentiroso,” he shot back without hesitation. “If you didn’t care, you wouldn’t have bothered to say goodbye.”

“Yeah, well, maybe I shouldn’t have,” Miguel snapped.

Again, there was a brief moment that Gabriel really wanted to be hurt, but he’d seen enough textbook cases of Miguel lashing out because he was frustrated with himself that he didn’t believe for a second that his brother meant what he was saying. He could be upset later, when his brother’s life wasn’t on the line. They could have that conversation once they finished having the more important one.

“But you did,” he insisted once more. “No es neta que te vale verga.”

“God, you’re so shocking full of it,” Miguel bit back, face flushed a furious red that almost matched his eyes.

“Yeah, if ‘it’ is knowledge,” Gabriel huffed.

Talons flipped in and out of hiding in a frustrated rhythm that, admittedly, made Gabriel a bit nervous as Miguel continued his furious rant. “Por el amor de Dios, why the shock did I have to end up related to you? You’re the worst brother anyone could ever get the misfortune of being stuck with.”

And, really, this time Gabriel couldn’t even want to be offended because how could he do anything but grin at that? “Yeah,” he agreed, “brother.”

Anger was driven away once more – and, really when had Miguel ever been able to stay mad at Gabriel – replaced by some sort of actual defeat, and he sighed as he placed his head in his hands again, correcting himself. “Half-brother.”

“Brother,” Gabriel insisted.

As if he was too exhausted to even feign anger for the fourth time in quick succession, Miguel simply allowed a half-hearted scowl to peek out from his hands. There was a hurt behind his eyes that he didn’t seem willing to acknowledge, but Gabriel knew him plenty well enough to see it clear as day.

“What is it with you?” Miguel feebly sputtered. “I’m not worth it.”

With his own sigh, Gabriel carefully leaned against Miguel’s shoulder, peering down at him with an equally as tired look and allowing his own hurt to shine through, too. Thankfully, Miguel didn’t move to try and push him away. “Shouldn’t I be the one who gets to decide if you’re worth my effort?”

“Maybe you don’t know what’s good for you,” came the weak retort.

“Oh, yeah, bold words from you,” Gabriel shot back; a much better counter, he felt.

Apparently, Miguel felt the same, grumbling out a frustrated and almost inaudible, “touche.” He allowed his hand to slip back over his face and hide the way his eyes shut wearily. “Can I leave now?” he tried, though he certainly already knew the answer.

Nevertheless, Gabriel humoured him with a snicker, leaning even harder onto his brother as if to weigh him down. “After all this? Fat shocking chance.”

“You know I’m stronger than you, right?” Miguel hummed. “That I’ve got superhuman strength?”

Unfettered, Gabriel wrapped an arm around Miguel’s with an exaggerated yawn. “Yeah, yeah, and you’re gonna, what, beat me up?”

Miguel sat up, knocking Gabriel’s head off of his shoulder but not managing to get his brother to let go completely, much to his chagrin and, even moreso, to Gabriel’s delight. Miguel fixed him with the same suspicious look as before, though there was a certain lightheartedness to it that hadn’t been there before, something else that added to the intensity of Gabriel’s shit eating grin. It wasn’t much, but it was something.

“Maybe I will beat you up,” he threatened, but Gabriel was a brave man when it came to empty threats.

“You wouldn’t.”

At the very least, his unhesitant bluntness seemed to catch Miguel a bit off guard, his eyes widening for a moment before his face dropped back into a scowl. “Do you really wanna risk that?”

Again, Gabriel just yawned, being so daring as to release Miguel’s arm only to lay entirely across his lap. His eyes were half-lidded, as if he were mere moments away from falling asleep, and he made a show of settling into his position before meeting his brother’s eyes. “As a matter of fact, I think I do.”

An indignant choked sound was pulled from Miguel’s throat, though he didn’t move to stand up, which would have easily solved his problem and given Gabriel a few to deal with himself. The man crossed his arms over his chest, scowl deepening as he gave his brother the most overtly annoyed look he could possibly manage, complete with flared nostrils and a twitching vein in his forehead. Despite how many times Gabriel had drawn that exact look from the other, it still never managed to get old.

“I’m not feeling very beat up,” he teased. “Or, at least not any more than I already was.”

“Some half-brother you are,” Miguel mumbled, but he still didn’t move.

“Brother,” Gabriel corrected, allowing his eyes to slip shut.

And, a moment later, “brother,” Miguel agreed.

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