Tim’s had a long month. First, the stupid article that started a press storm. He had spent almost three weeks ducking out of the public view. After that, he had to deal with the chaos that came with not being in class for three weeks.
During that first month, Tim had barely looked up. However, two weeks into the chaos, Bruce had gone from supportive and distressed to supportive, distressed, and distant. Around that time, Tim had shown up at Jason’s apartment again, hoping to hide away from the pitying looks from his family. When he had climbed the stairs, the teen had been holding onto hope that his brother would let him crash there for a couple of days. Since he had shown up midday, Tim had assumed that his brother would be at work. So, it hadn’t been a surprise when he had picked his way into an empty apartment. Since Jason had taken over security at WE, the older Robin had reimagined the entire system. However, it had led to him spending more of his time in the office. What had surprised him was the layer of dust.
That discovery had led to Tim darting back to the Manor and sequestering himself in the cave, intent to find out what had happened to his brother. While he ran a search for any of Jason’s preferred forms of SOS calls, Tim pulled out his phone.
Timbo + Todddd
Timbo: Jason?
Todddd: Replacement. Do you need anything?
Timbo: when did you leave town?
Todddd: uh…two, maybe three? Weeks ago?
Todddd: why?
Timbo: showed up to your apartment. Didn’t expect to see you, but there was dust. And rotten fruit.
Todddd: fuck
Todddd: I’m sorry kid. I kind of just up and left. Are you ok?
Timbo: yeah. I think. I just…tired of being smothered.
Todddd: yeah B does that when he gets worried
Todddd: also, my bananas spoiled?
Timbo: Jason what the fuck.
Todddd: what?! I don’t want my apartment smelling like spoiled bananas! I like that apartment!
Todddd: shit replacement. Will you put the bananas in the freezer? I want to make banana bread when I get back.
Timbo: sure. When are you getting back?
Todddd: I think next week. Depends on some shit here
Timbo: where even are you?
Todddd: not in the country
Timbo: what country are you in?
Todddd: Europe
Timbo: that’s not a country, asshat
Todddd: well fuck you too replacement
Timbo: is everything ok?
Todddd: yeah. Just following up on something
Timbo:?
Todddd: it's about Chrys. I'll tell you more once I get back.
Timbo: ok. See you soon. Stay safe.
Todddd: omfg timbo. It's almost like you don’t trust me to stay out of trouble
Tim sighed as he stared down at his phone. He knew that Jason, out of all his brothers, was likely to not only get into trouble, but he was also liable to cause trouble.
Todddd: also im with Gina.
Timbo: fucking hell that's even worse.
Todddd: what are you talking about? Gina is fantastic!
Timbo: yes. However, she would fight anyone. ANYONE. Ive met the woman.
Todddd: i. yeah I cant argue that. But she does to protect the innocent.
Todddd: which is the same thing we do. But she uses different methods.
Timbo: aka biker gangs?
Todddd: yes
Timbo: Badass
A ping from the batcomputer alerted Tim that none of Jason’s usual distress signals were active. He relaxed with the double verification that his brother was as safe as any of them could be in the kind of work that they were in.
When his brother left the chat empty, Tim leaned back in his chair and let his thoughts run free. Even before this whole press debacle had started, he had been scouting apartments. With his family’s reactions, Tim was beginning to think that the only way to truly avoid being smothered would be to move out. Tim signed out and left the cave. He moved up the stairs and closeted himself in his room. The teen pulled his computer out of his work bag and curled up on his bed.
He logged in, and first did a cursory check of his firewalls, before opening a window for his browser. A few keystrokes later Tim was once again looking at the listing for the apartment. It was near the business district and was close enough to the usual place that he ends his patrol before returning to the manor. He hesitated, before pulling out his phone and dialing the number on the screen.
“Hello? Yes. I was reaching out to inquire about the new building downtown? Yes, on Winters Av. Would a tour be available? Yes, I understand. Of course. No, I wouldn’t want to change the Zoning. Yes. Thank you. The name will be Tim Drake. Yes. The same. Tomorrow at 9? That should work. Thank you.”
A smile fought its way onto Tim’s face. The building was new. If he could swing this…this was something he had been thinking of for a long time.
-
Damian didn’t see anything wrong with Todd being gone. It was quieter around the Manor, and it meant that the 13-year-old was allowed to patrol through Crime Alley by himself. Of course, he wasn’t sure that anyone else had noticed yet. Surprisingly, Damian’s patrol overlapped the most with Todd’s. he still wasn’t sure why, but the current Robin was not interested in investigating. Todd let him do what he wanted and didn’t babysit him like Grayson did.
As the young teen flew over the city, his mind raced. He found this the most relaxing part of his time with his father. At the manor, there was always something going on and there was always someone looking over his shoulder. Here, as he went rooftop to rooftop, arching over this city, the boy was able to finally find some peace. A sound over his earpiece broke Robin from his quiet elation. “Robin, how are you doing? Is everything clear?” Oracle’s voice filtered through, bringing him to relax. Oracle he could handle.
“it’s a regular night, Oracle. A few of the regulars. Nothing out of the ordinary.”
“perfect. Finish up and head back, B wants you back before 2 because you have school tomorrow.”
The annoyed “Tch” that came down the line made the redhead laugh from where she sat at the computer.
-
That evening, as he made his way to his room, having showered and gotten himself ready for the next day, Tim paused by his desk. He had taken the time to compile a file on the girl from a few weeks ago but hadn’t read it yet. For some reason, every time he went to read the file, his stomach dropped. Logically, the only difference was that this girl wasn’t someone to watch or take in. She was just a normal girl with a normal life. she couldn’t have any secrets, right? She was just a person who had run into him for a split second. It wasn’t like he was going to meet her, right?
The teen shook his head and flopped onto his bed. It wasn’t worth it tonight. He could have the moral debate with himself when he was properly rested.
A/N
what do we think? i love writing Tim!
as always, if you want the newest chapters sooner, check out my AO3!
After dinner and Gina and Jason had reluctantly left for the night, the Dupain-Cheng family sat and talked together a while more before separating to move towards bed. After all, they did have a bakery to open in the morning.
When Marinette was sure that her parents were asleep, she opened her chaise. There, buried under piles of blankets and spare fabric and next to one of her specialized embroidery machines that had been packed away to save space was a black rectangular box with a red chrysanthemum carved into it. Breathing a sigh of relief, the teen pulled out the box and settled her hand on top of it, letting her magic seep into the wood.
A moment later, the box was expanding, opening, and giving her access to the box of the Miraculous of the Chinese Zodiac. Plagg zipped to join her as she studied the jewels in front of her before settling her hand on the Bee Miraculous that she had been puzzling over for weeks.
The Kwamii looked at her before he finally sighed. “kid you know what you need to do. As much as we don’t like it, the girl is a good match for Pollen. Plus, you and the Bug need a rest. Without the Bee, you know that the rest of your team won’t fall into place.” She smiled at the Kwamii before looking down again.
“I know Plagg, but…what if she says no? Lady Tyche and I can only do so much, and I don’t want to open our group to someone who is going to pull an Alya. Ty spent months training her she even let her come to an attack, and she still had the audacity to believe Lila. If she had gotten her hands on the miraculous full-time, it would have been catastrophic. I don’t want to bring someone else into the fold and have them flake. Or worse, betray us.” The miniature cat god nodded at his chosen as she drifted for a moment, thinking about days gone by.
Eventually, she shook herself and smiled at her kwamii. “ok Plagg, Let’s Make Mischief!” As her transformation fell over her, Apate stretched, preparing to wander into the night.
Her luminous blue eyes, catlike and glowing in the night, narrowed as she made the first jump, up to the balcony. Her black boots landed on the balcony, the Parisian night going quiet. As she moved across the rooftops, the animal and natural sounds quieted down, acknowledging the power in her presence.
As she came to a stop near a streetlight, Apate breathed in the crisp night air. A grey cat brushed against her leg, and she smiled down. The small cat purred, before it slipped away, off to explore the rest of the city. Apate looked out over the city and smiled. Down below, someone called out, and she looked down. Nino Lahiffe stood there, looking up at her with a smile. The Vigilante waved down at her friend, and one of the few people who knows about Apate. He smiled up at her, waved a piece of plastic at her, put it down, and strolled down the street.
Apate grinned. Nino was smart. He was the only one who was even close to her identity. Apate had a theory about it but had decided to take the small amount of good luck that had come her way in the form of her friend and not question it. She jumped down and landed in the street. Nino, while smart, was also sneaky. He had laid the CD in the middle of a circle of light. Nino must still be close by. Apate smiled to herself and stepped into the light, giving her old friend a glimpse of her appearance.
The black suit resembled a black track jacket, with the bottom half resembling close-cropped cargo pants. Her boots, while silent, had a heel, giving the petit girl a very well-needed few inches. Her black hair, while long and free-flowing in daily life, was now held back in a French braid. The gauntlets on her forearms glinted silver, and the bracers on her shins reflected the light above. Apate’s hands flexed as she approached, the reinforced gloves flashing as her claws extended. A small smile crawled over the Vigilante’s face as she reattached her baton to her hip and let herself approach the small case holding Nino’s latest mix. Her luminous blue eyes found his shape in the shadows, and she sent him a smile and a wave. Then, her staff was in her hands, and she was rising quickly into the air. As her boots touched the rooftop, she turned towards the tower and took off.
When she landed at the Tower, the cat-like Vigilante settled herself on one of the beams looking out over the night.
Her eyes focused on a figure in the distance and followed it as it made its way closer. When the figure landed next to her, Apate grinned up at Lady Tyche. The Blonde smiled back at her more violent companion. Her braided ponytail shifted in the wind, and the dark mask made the smaller girl roll her eyes. After almost four years, the two were pretty good at reading each other. As Lady Tyche settled next to Apate, the red hero smiled. Her garnet suit shifted in the moonlight. The black reinforced areas along her shins and arms seemed to disappear into the night to the naked eye.
The older miraculous wielder had been apprehensive to let Apate redesign her suit from the bright red that had black spots everywhere. Apparently, it was a “Tikki staple”. When Apate had shown Tyche the simple garnet suit with the black shading on her sides, and the reinforcement on her arms, the hero had changed her tune. That had been three years ago, and since then the girls had grown closer. During that time, they had realized that they must be in the same grade because they had chosen names that mirrored the Greek goddesses they had been learning about.
What Apate later learned was that only her school used that specific curriculum. However, by that point, she and Tyche had long moved past it. Discussion about Lady Tyche’s name had been circulating since the duo had gotten their miraculi. However, since Apate kept to the shadows, not enough people had confirmation that she existed to have a debate, or in many cases, even a confirmed name.
When Apate had found out the box was based on the Chinese zodiac, she had laughed to herself. The irony had been too much. If only they had been in a different section of their mythological studies. But by then, it had been too late to change her name to honor the origin of the box.
That evening, as the two rested near the top of the Eifel tower, the city of Paris glowed beneath them. Over the past few months, these meetings had become more regular. That night, the two had gotten together to once again debate the idea of adding a certain Bee to their ranks. This had been a topic for almost a year and the duo were apprehensive at the thought of adding an unknown this far into their battle.
“What did Tikki say?” When Apate broke their silence, Tyche sent her a small smile. They both knew that Apate was the more anxious of the duo. There was a reason she worked better in the shadows. The idea of adding the Bee, well it was keeping her up at night. She didn’t want to lose more miraculous
“She was all for it. After she heard what Wayzz had said, she agreed with him. Adding another holder and setting up our team is the right move.” The girls exchanged looks. Tyche went on; “she even suggested that if we found someone else, beyond the bee, we should follow instinct. I think she can feel the end approaching.” Apate took a deep breath before nodding.
“Plagg and I have been talking. With our final year in Lycée ending in less than six months, he agreed that we need to try and wrap this up.” Tyche snorted. “the both of us have been feeling like a change is coming. However, it doesn’t seem all bad. Something is coming, and I’m not sure what.”
“I don’t know about you, but I am ready to leave Paris. If I can leave for University, it would be amazing.” Apate nodded in agreement. Both she and Tyche had been stuck in the city for four years. Tyche wrinkled her nose as she looked across the city. “if all three of you can feel the shift, that means the situation is more dire than we realized. We are closer to catching hawkmoth though. Every time we check on a lead, I get excited. But now that we have exhausted all the options, I’m starting to wonder if we will ever take him down.” Tyche turned to Apate her blue eyes watery. “if there is any chance of taking this asshole down and reclaiming our lives I think we have to take it.”
“Does that mean we should go visit Chloé?” Tyche hesitated.
“Actually, I was thinking. I know that we have been careful, for years now, but now we both know that we’re getting closer to the end. Would, would it be ok if we-” understanding settled on Apate’s face. She thought for a moment before nodding.
“well, there isn’t a Guardian to tell us no anymore. Plus, it might be good for us.” Both girls laughed as they stood. “how about this. I have to go get the Bee anyways, so come with me, and we can do the reveal nearby. That way we can be sure it’s in a secluded place.” Tyche nodded as she readied her yoyo.
“which way, Kit-Cat?” Apate laughed and jumped off the tower, letting herself start the trek back to the quaint Bakery that currently was housing miniature gods.
When Apate and Lady Tyche landed on the roof of the Beauréal home, Tyche glanced over at her companion in confusion. The other teen smiled at her and launched herself into the sky once again. As Tyche followed, she realized that they were sticking closer to the ground. Whoever Apate was, she lived nearby. When they landed on a very familiar bakery, the blonde blinked. Apate had settled herself against the chimney, balancing on the ridge. Quickly skirting the roof to settle opposite her partner, Tyche couldn’t help but glance over the cat’s shoulder. If Marinette decided that she wanted to sit outside late at night, they were in trouble.
“Tyche, we are safe here. The roof is at the right height that no one will be able to see us.” Apate’s words soothed the hero, and she studied the girl. Now that they weren’t moving, Tyche could see the slight tremor in her hands. “ready?” they shared a smile, and the girls called out the phrases that so many would never know. “Plagg, Mischief Managed!”
“Tikki, let's land!” as the roof lit up with their detransformations, the girls closed their eyes. When they hear Tikki call an excited “Plagg!” two sets of blue eyes snapped open. Aurore froze for a second, before squealing.
“Marinette! Oh my god!” the two hugged, smiles lighting up their faces before navigating to the balcony that the teen had furnished with enough plants to hide them from late-night pedestrians. For the next half hour, they sat talking. Aurore and Marinette traded stories and put together the events of the past four years. They only stopped when Tikki pointedly reminded them that they still needed to go talk to a certain heiress. Marinette let herself slide into her room before hopping off of her bed and scurrying to the box she had hidden away. When the girl reappeared on the balcony, the long-time partners traded smiles and transformed before taking off across the rooftops towards the Grand Paris Hotel.
When Chloé was woken up, she thought she was dreaming. Standing on the other side of the glass, standing on her balcony, were Lady Tyche and Apate. The shock that ran through the teen’s mind would have frozen many of her classmates, but the blonde had always prided herself on being made of sterner stuff. As she slid her feet into slippers and pulled on a robe, Chloé let her mind run over the last year. Although most Parisians didn’t think that Apate was more than an urban legend, Chloe had run into the vigilante on several occasions. Most of them had been when the smaller girl had swooped in to save her, but as time had gone on, the two had become friendly. However, both the hero and vigilante had no problems calling her out for things she had done wrong. Off the top of her head, she couldn’t think of anything that could have gotten her in trouble with the duo. With a fortifying breath, Chloé opened the doors leading to the balcony. “Lady Tyche, Apate. To, uh, what do I owe the pleasure? I…haven’t done anything wrong, have I?” Lady Tyche smiled at the girl’s concern.
“No, Chloé. You have done nothing wrong. In fact,” here, the Hero turned to the vigilante who was leaning against the railing. “we came because of the exact opposite reason.” Chloé felt some tension release from her shoulders at her idol’s statement. Then, what she had said caught up to her.
“I, um. What did you come here for?” The nerves that could be heard at the end of her question made Apate smile softly.
“do you have somewhere we can talk? There’s an opportunity that you might be interested in.” Chloé nodded quickly and lead the two into her suit before pausing and closing the drapes. Then, she gestured towards what Tyche obviously assumed was a closet. Oh, that sweet summer child. What they entered instead was a room with a desk and a small sitting room. Of course, the heiress had her own office.
“We shouldn’t be bothered in here. Is everything ok? Are,” she hesitated. “are you in legal trouble?” the other girls paused and shared a glance, shocked.
“No!” Lady Tyche’s quick response made the other blonde giggle in relief.
“oh good. Ok. My- my friend has this habit of thinking of the worst scenario first, and I guess I might have picked up on it.” The girl now looked more than slightly sheepish which made the other two laugh with her. Apate held back a complaint. She wasn’t always that bad.
“we may not be in trouble, Chloé, but we did come here for your help.” Apate’s quiet voice brought the rest of the laughter to a stop. “this is an opportunity to do good in the City of Paris. If, of course, you are willing.” Chloé’s eyes widened as she listened to the soft explanation.
“what would you have me do?” she breathed, excitement dancing across her face.
“Join us?” Lady Tyche’s reply had the girl whipping her head around to stare at the hero.
“what? Really? You. You. The protectors of Paris want. Me. To help?” the shock on her features made the hero smile and the vigilante fight back laughs.
“yes, we trust you.” the seriousness in Apate’s voice had her looking back in the quieter girl’s direction. If she kept this up she was going to give herself whiplash. “Chloé Bourgeoise this is the Miraculous of the Bee. Can we trust you?” the girl’s blue eyes were suddenly more intense than Chloé had ever seen them. In Apate’s hand was a small octagonal box that had a glowing yellow carving on it. The Heiress nodded mutely. “can we trust you to protect both the City of Paris and her people. Can we trust you to protect not only your own miraculous but any others you may come in contact with? Even at the cost of your own life?” The heaviness in the vigilante’s voice reminded her why these girls were seen as infallible. It reminded her why they fought day and night to protect their city. And they were asking her to join them. Letting her mind fully catch up with what they were asking of her, Chloé studied the two who were standing in her small study. The girls who were asking her to do more than anyone else ever had.
“yes, Apate. You and Lady Tyche can trust me.” The girl nodded before handing over the small box.
“then welcome to Team Miraculous, Chloé”
A/N
what do we think? chlo has joined the miraculous team! what do you think of that little Nino moment?
At dinner, Gina regaled them with stories of her adventures with Jason. When Tom expressed his surprise at some of the things Jason had tagged along on the Gotamite laughed.
“you do know the only reason Bruce got me was because I was caught stealing the tires off the Batmobile, right?” Marinette choked, snapping to lock eyes with her mother.
“I told you he did something stupid.” The woman laughed in agreement, while Tom studied the young man in front of him.
“who did you say adopted you Bruce Something?” Jason rolled his eyes.
“Bruce Wayne. Gotham’s resident billionaire, and the collector of lost children.” Marinette narrowed her eyes.
“This wouldn’t be the same Bruce Wayne that the entirety of the media has decided I’m either dating the son of or am the newest child of, would it?” Jason laughed.
“yup defiantly the same Bruce. To be fair, he’s been on a quiet kick with the adopting thing. We think he’s planning something. And, in my defense, the only reason I knew what was going on was Tim came into my apartment simmering in anger that the press was stalking him again[Jd1] .” He paused, “oh and I went to pick up one of the tabloids so that I could immortalize his shame and was met with your face.” Here he turned to Marinette. “if they hadn’t run that story, I may never have seen you again.” The watery smile that he was met with made him smile. Gina spluttered.
“Bambino! Do you really think I would have let you go without meeting my family! Honestly!” Marinette giggled, while her mother rolled her eyes.
“let’s go back to the Batmobile for a moment. What were you going to do, just leave a note after taking the tires? Write a quick thanks and leave?” Sabine’s humor quickly lightened the atmosphere as everyone laughed.
“no, actually. I was going to leave a red chrysanthemum.” Jason’s response made Marinette break into giggles.
“you were going to leave my sign? Jason!” the rest of the table looked around, clearly lost. Taking pity on them, Marinette went on to explain. “the red chrysanthemum is my favorite flower. It’s also one that we were able to get ahold of easily in Gotham. Jason always called me his Chrysanthemum because it means hope. He called my Chrys when we were with other kids so that I was harder to track. He literally called me his hope for years. It’s also why,” here she looked her grandmother dead in the eye, “they are the symbol for my brand.” The older woman tossed her head back in a laugh.
“Only you, Marinetta. Only you.” Here, her Nona focused her attention to Jason. “although I’m surprised I didn’t put it together sooner. After all, that is Jason’s favorite flower.” The young adult turned red. “he even has it on his keychain.”
The entire family all turned to smile at Jason.
After dinner, Jason and His sister climbed the ladder to the attic. Jason glanced around as his sister closed the trap door. The grey walls were covered with pictures of who he assumed were her friends. There were designs interspersed, and above the desk, a corkboard was filled with designs. A dress form was next to the desk, a grey dress pinned onto it, partially done. A chaise lounge and a collection of bean bags were over in the corner, and there were lights strung along the walls. His sister moved to lean against a ladder that led to a loft.
Now that they weren’t with the others, Jason could see her mask slipping. Tears started to tumble down her cheeks again, and Jason strode over to the small girl. “I gotcha. I’m here.” His sister clutched his jacket and buried her face in his shirt. Jason simply held his sister as she cried once again. Eventually, she looked up at him, her blue eyes still watery.
“Can we go to the balcony? I…” he squeezed her shoulders.“of course. You lead, and I will follow you. Anywhere.” A small smile was sent over his sister’s shoulder at that, and the girl climbed up the ladder. At the top, she fiddled with something in the roof. Then, there was a shift, and a small hatch above her bed flipped open. She lifted herself out of the hatch and gestured for Jason to follow.
When he poked his head out onto the roof, Jason was met with a sea of lights and the city around them. A moment later, he was leaning against the rail, while his sister curled up on the lounge chair. “I’m sorry.” Jason’s head whipped around to look at her, shocked.
“Why are you sorry, sis? You have nothing to be sorry for.” The small girl shook her head, staring out over the city.
“I…I left you though. I should have tried more to get back. I should have-”
“No. hey, kid.” she continued to stare over the city, fear obvious on her face. It hit Jason like a truck, as he studied her. His sister was scared that he would blame her. She was scared that he would leave her. She was resigning herself to taking the blame for a situation that she had no control. “you were FIVE. You couldn’t control what happened. Hell, even when I was older, I wasn’t able to do anything.” Jason pushed off the railing and squatted in front of his sister. “we were given the short end of the of the fucking stick as kids. Our lives are a mess, but in the end…” the small girl shook her head, blue meeting blue as they locked eyes.
“but…Jason. I don’t. I don’t deserve this. I-I’m just me. I just have…I’ve been given chances and opportunities. But I-” Jason reached out and laid a hand over her clenched hands. She looked down in surprise before releasing her hold on her hands.
“you have always been smart, creative, and kind. Life dealt you a shitty hand, and you have blossomed under the care of Tom and Sabine. You are becoming a strong, beautiful, talented young woman.” She narrowed her eyes, objection clear on her face, when Jason shook his head. “don’t think I didn’t notice the designs in your room. Those aren’t amateur.” His sister shook her head.
“but I left you. I left you and you were all alone. And I know that there’s a police report with your death on it! It was later revised, but it was there! for years. And- and- you were hurt. And I know that if you know Nona, then you weren’t safe when you two met. And it’s all my fault because I wasn’t there.”
Guilt hit Jason like a brick, settling in the pit of his stomach. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. His sister blamed herself for something that she shouldn’t even know about.
“how did you know about that?” his sister’s hands started to shake, and she gripped her forearms.
“Are you mad?”
“no…sis, I…that file is buried deep in the GCPD database. The only person who can really access it are the bats. Bruce asked them to literally burry that information.”
“I hacked the GCPD years ago. I wanted to know if you got brought in. And then…one day, that…that file came up. It was horrible. I didn’t tell anyone what happened, and when they asked me later…I just told them that you were dead. I didn’t…didn’t explain.” Jason wrapped his sister in a hug and held her tight.
“you hacked the GCPD?” she tensed.“yes. I promise I-”
“that’s fucking badass, kid. I have a friend who hacks, all the time. She would probably love to see what you’ve done.” She glanced up, surprised.
“really?”
“of course.” She smiled and fidgeted happily for a minute. Then, the smile slid off her face, and she stared down at her hands.
“it’ll never happen though.”
“what? Why do you say that?”
“you hate me.” Jason jolted, staring down at his sister.
“what.”
“you hate me.”
“yeah no. I heard ya, kid. I just don’t know where the fuck you are getting this idea from.”
“Jason. You won’t even say my name! downstairs you did, but now…you won’t even say my name.”
“fucking hell kid. I- that’s not- that is not- of course I don’t hate you.” She snorted her disbelief obvious on her face.
“you don’t have to pretend Jason. There’s only the two of us up here. You don’t need to spare my feelings.”
“no, kid. You don’t- That’s not it. I just…you. Your name changed. I didn’t want to…it’s your name, whichever you choose but. I- I don’t want …I don’t want to call you Chrys if you don’t feel comfortable with it anymore. I don’t want to call you Marinette if that’s not who you are. I just-”
“oh” suddenly, Jason was knocked backward, his arms suddenly full of his sister. “I didn’t. I. thank you.” He held her close, and stayed there, knocked back on his ass, his sister in his arms, and the Paris skyline surrounding them.
His sister shifted eventually, turning her blue eyes on him. “I don’t care what you call me. As long as you don’t leave.” Jason smiled, relief flooding his system.
“never. Never again. I promise.” She smiled and leaned against him. the siblings stayed in their hug, blocking out the outside world for just one more minute. Eventually, Jason could hear Sabine call for them down below. Resignedly, he separated himself from his little sister. As they approached the trap door to return to the house, she turned to him and smiled;
“I do like the name Marinette. It’s given me a new start.” Jason smiled at her.
“of course, M. I think it’s a very pretty name too.”
His sister, Marinette, lit up.
A/N hey! how are we? questions? comments? concerns?
we are catching up with my AO3, so updates may not be as long soon. if you've read the companion pieces, do they make sense with the story?
Jason cradled his little sister. The small girl was trembling. The couple that she had been working behind the counter with were giving him concerned glances, and Gina was fulling staring at him in surprise. He steadied himself, before clutching her even tighter. It had been years, but he would know those eyes anywhere. He glanced down at the small girl and was met with the far too familiar sight the sight of Chrys clinging to him, hiding her face in his clothes while trying to not cry. With hesitant hands, he began to rub her back. She let out a small, involuntary, sob and clung tighter to his jacket.
The woman who had also been working behind the counter was frowning at him. “how the hell do you know my daughter, young man?” Jason hesitated before answering quietly, “we grew up together. Before…before.” Gina’s eyes narrowed as she registered what Jason trying to say.
“But, Jason, Bambino. You said that your little sister was dead.” He glanced down at her again. Sometime during their conversation, the teen had given up and started to actually cry.
“that’s because as far as I was aware, she was dead.” The woman’s sharp eyes narrowed at him across the counter.
“what” Jason tensed before looking down at his little sister and meeting her wide blue eyes.
“Look, do you have somewhere we can talk?” when his sister shot him a dazed, confused glance he smiled down at her before responding in a whisper. “I’ll take care of it, Chrys”
The small woman nodded and led them past the counter and to a door. Once in there, she opened another door and led them over to a stairwell. Gina began climbing while the man stayed down, and supposedly (?) close the bakery. He didn’t just get the new girl, Kiera, back and tell her that they had a family thing and will be back asap.
Jason guided his little sister up the stairs, her small steps clearly proving that she wasn’t aware of what was going on. Her hand clutched his jacket again, before the young adult simply picked the girl up, and carried her up.
The man that followed the rest up gave him an appraising glance at his action. “so young man,” he began, “why don’t you start explaining how you know my daughter.” Jason winced, before looking down at his sister.
“Chrys and I met when we were little. What do you know about her background? I don’t want to talk about things that she doesn’t want you to know.” Gina pursed her lips at his response.
“Jason, it’s ok to tell them anything. Tom and Sabine, they just want what’s best for Marinetta” Jason considered her words and nodded at his mentor while the other woman, Sabine, narrowed her eyes at him.
“Why do you call my daughter Chrys? That has never been a name she has used here.” He snorted at her question before shaking his head.
“It’s short for Chrysanthemum.” A gasp could be heard from where Gina was sitting off to the side. “I called her that when we were younger. When,” here Jason hesitated, before glancing over at Gina. She gave him a small nod, having connected the name to the stories he had told while they had traveled. “when we were on the streets.” The sharp intake of breath that he heard from Sabine and Tom confirmed his suspicions. Whichever agency that brought her over to France hadn’t known or bothered to include her history in her adoption file. “look, the kid is tough, but when she was small, Chrys didn’t know her birth parents. She ended up in an orphanage and ran away from it. Often. By the time she was four, she spent all of her time on the streets. Neither of us knew when her birthday was, but I know that she got snatched by the wrong people when I was gone. I tried to find her, but I didn’t have the resources I do now. By the time I got adopted, and could do more, every source in Gotham listed her as dead.” Tom hesitated, before clearing his throat.
“We didn’t adopt Marinette until she was seven. She was so small when we first met her. But as long as she’s been with us, Marinette has always been scrappy. But…she’s so creative and has always acted so happy.” Here, he glanced sideways at Sabine, “at least, until lately. She’s been really stressed recently and shut us out. But even when she was younger, Marinette never talked about…any of that. All we knew was that she was from a troubled home in the United States, and she needed a new start. When she was first with us, Marinette was really scared. We thought that there was an abusive home in her past. But she never…she never mentioned it.”
Jason frowned at the description of his sister. Yes, the kid had always been creative, and so smart. She hadn’t trusted strangers easily. That was because she had spent time on the streets. Everyone knew that if you spoke to the wrong person, you would go missing. The problem lay in what her adopted parents weren’t saying.
Jason knew the kid too well, and he knew that although she was way too smart brilliant and scrappy, the real danger lay in the scathing sarcasm the small girl had learned to weaponize. She had been one of the snarkiest kids in Gotham when they were little. Although that portion of her personality may have faded, it shouldn’t have disappeared. Something happened to his little sister, and he needed to know what.
“When you adopted her, how, what-”
“She tried to get back to Gotham.” Jason’s head whipped up.“what.”
“When we first adopted her, Marinette tried to run away. We think that’s why she was sent to us. Before, there were files of three other families that tried to adopt her. All three of them had trouble with her trying to run away.” Jason nodded as he processed what the couple were telling him. His sister tried to run away. Tried to come home. She hadn’t forgotten him.
Sabine gave him a sad smile. “Jason, right?” he nodded. “did something happen six years ago? We came to an agreement. To keep Marinette here. We let her watch the news from Gotham. She was always on the Gotham Gazette and watched the news channel there. Something happened, and we can’t figure it out. we can’t find anything that would have stood out from that time, but Marinette shut down. She wouldn’t come out of her room for a week. After, well,” Tom laid his hand onto of Sabine’s. The duo were wearing the same look of concern and confusion.
“she refused to look at anything about Gotham. If we even mentioned the city, she would leave the room.” Jason took a shaky breath. He had hoped that she wouldn’t pay attention to what was going on in the city. He did the math squinting slightly. Fuck.
“six years ago, I was kidnapped by the Joker.” The couple froze, and Gina snapped to look at him. “there was an explosion in Ethiopia, and I was presumed dead.” All three of the people listening to him were staring, wide-eyed. “I spent a year in a coma. One of Bruce’s exes, a very malicious one, ended up taking care of me after. Bruce didn’t know I was alive.” Jason focused on his hands in an effort to keep his composure. “Gina found me after I ran away from Talia, actually. We got separated, and I went back to Gotham.” Gina was staring at him, her eyes narrowed.
“Jason, Bambino. When I found you, we were in the middle of a desert. In the middle east. You were starving.” The look on Gina’s face was full of concern. “you mean to tell me that you were in that state while living with your father's ex?” Jason cringed. He had forgotten that Gina had wanted to hunt down Talia when she had found him.
“Gina, Talia is a bitch. I hated her, Dick hated her, everyone hated her. She wanted one thing, and she was going to kid it. You haven’t met him, but her kid has had to deal with her machinations for his entire life. No, she isn’t a nice person. She sure as hell isn’t a good person. Yes, she saved my life, but she isn’t worth the effort to respond to.” The elder biker narrowed her eyes before nodding.
“fine. But! If you ever change your mind…”
“no! Gina. I am not hunting her down.” The woman nodded. Before the four could continue, Marinette shifted, and reached up to rub her eyes. “I…. what did I miss?”
A/N hey! so...a few notes. Jason and Mari are Bio Siblings. HOWEVER. they are only half-siblings. and because of that, the poor woman who Willis Todd got pregnant gave her up for adoption in hopes to give her kid a life that wasn't hell. was it a slim chance? yes. did it work? eventually. Jason at this time does not know that M is his half-sibling. if she takes a DNA test though...
While Gina dragged Jason through Paris, the kidnappee thought through what he knew about the city. Although Gina Dupain was from the city, they never had the time to stop by while he was traveling with her.
While they were traveling, he had heard the stories of how Roland had charmed her on the banks of the Sein, and how they had gone dancing before her son was born. The stories of the little bakery, of the idyllic life Gina had led before one of her former contacts had threatened her family. The heartbreak that followed was something Gina refused to talk about as a rule.
However, one night after a few too many drinks in Madrid, Jason’s mentor had come undone. The tale that had followed, the heartbreak on both sides of the little family, reminded Jason a little too much of his own family’s tales.
Gina’s stories, though entertaining and educational, did not give one a firm basis to go on in a city. Jason had learned that lesson firsthand and did not wish to relive that week. Really, recon is always the best option when going to a new city. He had learned that after Beijing.
Soon, the duo were standing in the elderly woman’s home. Sitting there in the garage was- “oh Gina you didn’t.” the Biker laughed.
“what, Jason. Did you really think I was going to just leave your bike at the miserable safe house in Shanghai? Please. You know me better than that.” She threw her head back in a laugh at the boy’s stupefied face. “well?” she gestured to a row of hooks by the door, where his familiar keys were hanging.
The chrysanthemum was still hooked onto the key. Jason’s breath caught as he saw the keychain. The leather flower was still shining with the red polish he had used when he had last cleaned it. His hand shook as he stared at the flower. The small piece of his sister that he had carried with him. even in the pit madness.
“Are you going to get your keys or are you going to make this old lady do it for you?” he jumped, rushing to clutch the old key chain once again. The flower. His hand clenched reflexively, running over the smooth, thin petals. He took a deep breath before he turned and looked over his bike.
The bike (K 1600 Grand America esq. think a really badass cruiser, because I say so lmao) sat there, the black sides dark against the concrete of Gina’s garage. He ran his hand over the matte sides and breathed a sigh of happiness at the bike that he and Gina had ordered four years earlier.
A smile broke over his face as Jason turned to Gina breathing “Thank you” She smiled at him before opening her arm in a silent answer in form of a hug.
“now, Bambino, we are going to surprise my son. He has no idea what’s going to hit him.” Jason hesitated, debating if it was worth it for him to argue with her. His goal when coming to Paris, after all, was to find Chrys. His sister was somewhere in the same city as him, and he hadn’t been able to get to her yet. Jason looked down at the short, spry biker who he had learned so much from and pursed his lips. Surely, going with Gina wouldn’t harm anything in the long run, right?
--
Marinette had gotten off the phone with her lawyers again an hour ago. After the phone call, she had downed the last of her lunchtime coffee, and gone off in search of food. While she had been haunting the kitchen in the small apartment, her mother had gotten ahold of her, and coerced her into manning the register to cover their new hire’s (Kelly? Keira? Kismet? Who knows) break.
Now, she was standing at the counter arguing with one of her regulars. Again. After all, a monster may not NEED to go in coffee, but who was going to stop her?
Mark was, apparently. He kept going on about him being a doctor and it being bad for her health?
Whatever. She was Apate. She had enough bad luck around her anyways that it didn’t really matter what she did.
When she had finally convinced the doctor to sit down and accept that she was well aware how close to an emergency room visit she was, the teen sighed in relief. When the line cleared out, the noirette wandered over to the coffee maker, and dumped the water out. When no one was looking, she took the Red Bull (GIVES YOU WINGZ) and dumped it in. One sleight of hand later, the coffee used for customers had been switched out to Marinette’s preferred, much stronger, brand of coffee. A few minutes later, the teen was cradling her caffeinated monstrosity close to her chest and avoiding the supposed doctor’s evil eye as she rested against the register. In front of her was a textbook, and next to it was a notebook, where Mariette was scribbling her thoughts. She needed to get the homework done now, so she could go out tonight.
Her parents were starting to worry about how much stress she was under, and the 16-year-old was doing her best to convince them that it wasn’t nearly as bad as they thought it was. Her hope was that if she could get them off her back, Marinette would be able to actually start translating the grimoire that she had hidden in her diary box. Realistically, the grimoire needed to be moved to the top of her priority list. With the way Hawkmoth had been acting before the guardian had The problem was that the two bakers were incredibly close to realizing that she was under much more stress than they originally thought.
The ongoing lawsuits, added to her classwork, working at the bakery, her commissions, and the constant hunt to find Paris’ resident supervillain meant that the girl was feeling crushed under her responsibilities. Add to that her parents hovering, and Marinette was very likely to explode soon. The bell rang over the door, and the noirette sighed before putting back on her customer service face.
She had another 30 minutes before she could go upstairs and take a nap.
.
.
.
And there goes her nap.
The smiling face of her grandmother made Marinette smile ruely to herself before she was crushed in the loving arms of Gina Dupain. “Marinetta! Darling! How is my favorite Leetle Fairy?” The girl giggled as she extracted herself from the bone-crushing hug. Every time that Gina appeared, chaos would follow. The last time she had arrived, Marinette had to hide herself away on the rooftops to find some peace and quiet. Even then, it had only been a half-hour at a time.
“Hey Nona, how are you?”
“My Fairy! You look so tired! So dragged down! Tell me, what is going on in that sharp mind of yours?”After extracting herself from her grandmother’s hug, she giggled and turned to make sure her parents were ok with her leaving the counter. After getting the approving nod from her mother who moved to fill her spot, Marinette skipped around to guide her Nona upstairs.
“there’s been lots going on, Nona.” The teen grimaced, “have you seen the news lately?”
The elderly woman laughed before tugging on her granddaughter’s arm to stop the over-excited teen. “before we go and talk, my Fairy, I want you to meet someone. He was just going to put up-” the bell rang again as Gina spoke, and when the duo looked over, Marinette froze.
The smile that had been floating on her face slid off in shock as a face came into view she hadn’t seen in 11 years.
“Jason?”
The room seemed to freeze at Marinette’s question, the crack in her voice pulling her parent’s attention. The man entering the building zeroed in on her, his eyes widening as he looked to where his name had been called. “Chrys.” He breathed her name before striding towards the small girl and pulling her into a tight hug.
The teen clung to him in return, shaking as she was enveloped in her older brother’s arms for the first time in years. “Are- Are you. This isn’t.”
“No, Chrys, this isn’t a dream. I’m right here. I’m not going anywhere.” A sob crawled its way up the teen’s throat as she buried her face in her brother’s shirt. The soft fabric smelled of the familiar smog that covered Gotham. His arms were wrapped around her, and his hands were gripping her arms, anchoring Marinette to him. Her fists gripped the sides of his jacket, clinging to the first person who had claimed her as family. She could feel the tension in his arms as her brother held her. Jason shifted, and his jacket brushed her arms. The soft leather held the same worn feeling that all of the clothes that they’d owned had when they were younger. Back then, Jason had made sure that she was never left behind, never forgotten. Tears were traitorously escaping, and the teen buried herself further into her brother’s shirt.
Marinette could hear the rumble of his voice in his chest, Jason answering a question that she must have missed. A moment later, her brother tensed. Marinette looked up, her eyes meeting her brother’s, widening when she realized that there were tears there. He gave her a small smile, before turning back to the others in the bakery. “Look, do you have somewhere we can talk?”From somewhere outside of their little world, the girl could hear someone responding to his question. When she looked up at him confused, her older brother smiled down at her again. “I’ll take care of it, Chrys.
A/N HAHA! as of right now, Jason is 20 (ish). assuming he lost a year after dying and all of...that, he is now 4 years older than Mari. however, when they were younger, he would have been 5 years older.Tim is 18, and so is Steph, which places them at approximately 13 when they became friends. right around the time Tim would have become Robin, if not shortly after. because I refuse to acknowledge cannon, don't expect most of the usual age consistency to hold here unless I specifically say so.for reference, Mari is 16, and Chlo is 17. HOWEVER, I hc that Lila is older and was held back. the older kid coolness holds big sway with the class. in that sense, she's either a really old 18 or 19. my timeline isn't clear right now, but they're in the last stretch of schooling in my head. i have to go back and check, but that is what I'm running with.for other notable ages: Dick is 26, Bruce is 48, Damian is 13, Kagami is 18, and Max is 16.ok. Max. so. again, a head cannon. he's a kid genius, yeah? cool. run with that. Mari is really smart. she may not act like it, but she skipped like...2 grades? ok cool. so has max. from personal experience, not a lot of teachers can handle the super-smart kids. that means they get paired up a LOT in classes. which means Max has been in the same class with Mari probably since they were 10. YAY. but look, that also means that MAX KNOWS WHAT HER CAFFEINE CONSUMPTION LOOKS LIKE. the only other really smart kid drinking her coffee like it's a shot? yeah. that's going to scare him. he may not be besties with Mari, but they are definitely friends, and they're the type of friends who watch out for the other's bad habits. that means that he knows an intervention is going to happen soon.
the class have kind of...made assholes of themselves. Mari does not give a flying fuck about them, because they proved that they don't care about her at all. of course, there are some exceptions. generally, that'll come down to Max, Nino, Alix (my fave), Adrien, and Chlo. outside of the class, there are more, like the group of Aurore's, and Kagami. but the class...? Marinette wouldn't what happened, as long as they let her do her own thing.
ok, so this was an A/N from AO3. it has some context. have a good week!
Originally, Jason had found Tim’s predicament hilarious. Of course, the kid had to have the worst run-ins with the press. Every time the kid had to run around doing damage control and hoping that it would blow over sooner rather than later.
The entire house would watch him, partially in pity, partially in humor. Each time the press got ahold of something; Bruce would sit there with a pained expression. It was obvious that he wanted to crush the press and their (usually) baseless gossip.
Instead, Bruce, like the rest of the family, was met with a gag order from PR who would tell the rest of the family to step back. Even though it was hardest on Bruce, Jason had seen each of his the family members struggling over the years. Stephanie especially would bristle when Tim went into damage control mode, even if she had gotten used to it over the past five years of friendship she had with the kid.
At first, Jason had thought that the kid did it because he wanted to, now, however, he was convinced that the younger vigilante was the only one that PR trusted with damage control. His theory was backed up when he had been exposed by Vikki Vale, and Tim was the only one who had done an interview without a PR babysitter. The same thing had happened a few years back before Jason had reunited with his family when Damian had been caught on camera attacking Tim.
Now, Jason meandered down the road, hands stuffed into his pockets. Crime Alley was buzzing with activity as people rushed home, and others pushed past on their way to work. The hubbub of the evening rush soothed the tension in Jason’s shoulders. As he sidestepped a mother and son who were clearly trying to book it home before it got dark, a magazine in one of the corner stores windows caught his eye. The young adult stepped back into the flow of bodies and crossed the street.
As he stepped into the small store, he nodded to the cashier who was behind the till. Then, he picked up one of the many tabloids with the story. As he flipped through the tabloid, he snickered at his brother’s plight. It would be hilarious if he made a collection to give to the kid for Christmas.
When he started to collect the tabloids being sold that had run the story, Jason paused on the pictures. All mirth left the resurrected vigilante as he studied the clearest of the photos.
The noirette that was looking up at him from the page? Yeah. He knew her. Better than anyone else, actually. He had spent years with her, back when he was younger. When they both were young, and just trying to make it through the week. He had been off, trying to get enough money to get them through the month, and the kid had tried to help someone new. She had been trying to pass along the expertise that he had taught her. She had been caught up in a clash between gangs. As far as he knew, she had died. And yet…there was little Chrys. Jason took a deep breath and clutched the magazine he was holding, as tears fought their way out.
As the young man paged to the story, he steadied himself. She was alive.
What he found was…illuminating. Even as his hands trembled and he accidentally ripped the thin pages, Jason devoured the article. When he was done, the young adult scrambled for his phone. A few moments later, he was opening his Instagram account and looking up the account the article had listed. There. yes…that was Chrys alright. So. She had been adopted. In France. In Paris. After forcing his lungs to draw breath, Jason pulled out his phone. He had arrangements to make. He had to go see his little sister.
The Monday after Jagged had sent her the gossip rags that were considered journalism, Marinette strode into school with a scowl so ingrained into her features that anyone who didn’t know her would think the expression was permanent. She had been up late the night before and had spent a good portion of the weekend on the phone with her lawyer’s office. When they hadn’t been talking, she had been talking with Penny Rolling. The two were trying to figure out the best approach for the 16-year-old to use. Honestly, she shouldn’t have to deal with the situation in the first place, but the press were notoriously bad at making educated guesses. With any luck, Chloé would be able to get on the next phone call with Penny, and the three would have something that would present well on as many fronts as possible all fronts. There was a reason that Chloé was her official publicist, after all.
When she strode into the Lycée classroom, Chloé grinned at her from where she had settled in the front row. Marinette nodded at her friend as she slid in next to her. The younger girl had absolutely no doubt that her best friend had heard about the media debacle. Not only that, but Chloé had probably already come up with at least five different drafts of a statement to post on all her social media.
When she had slumped into the seat next to the blonde, Marinette groaned in thanks as her friend passed her a coffee. The noirette cradled the cup in her hands, mumbling a quiet thanks. The duo clinked their coffee, and Marinette began to chug the drink. As she plopped the now empty coffee cup down on the desk, she looked up to meet the horrified gazed of one Max Kanté. Oops.
Lila came skipping in moments later, a cruel smile playing on her lips, before falling when she saw the bone quaking scowl still resting on her the younger teen’s face. “oh Marinette! Did something happen? Did…did you anger your parents? Did they find out about all those men?” the other girl huffed before turning to her. Lila froze as she was met with the iciest glare that she had seen in years.
“oh, Lila. That’s so cute. It almost sounds like you are still going on about your little stories. That’s…adorable.” The Italian girl shrunk under the younger girl’s stare.
The sharp words were a reminder that she had been sued by Marinette before, and the younger girl was not afraid to do so again. Last time, the teen had taken the Italian to court over slander and misinformation, next time, she was going to ask for a restraining order. And Lila knew it. This girl, she was brutal, and she didn’t pull any punches when it really mattered.
“Lucky for you, you’re not the one I’m after, this time. My lawyers have bigger fish to fry.”
The newer addition to the classroom gulped, her throat suddenly very dry. Not for the first time, it occurred to her that maybe Marinette had let her take control of the class. After all, if they turn that easily, why would she want them for friends. The smaller girl nodded as she watched the realization once again run over Lila’s face. Raising her eyebrows, the designer motioned her classmate along, sending a cruel smile after her.
Chloé waited until the little liar was gone before giggling at her friend’s reaction to the girl who had become their daily annoyance. “I’m guessing you saw what’s been running in the American news? I thought it wouldn’t take long for you to respond. Are a plethora of lawsuits on the way?” Marinette giggled slightly as her severe demeanor giving way to the internal glee that was consuming the teen over the sheer chaos that was to come.
“you know it, Chlo.”
When Jason touched down in Paris, he tensed. Something was wrong. As he made his way through the airport, he realized that the atmosphere in the city was less carefree than he remembered. There was an air that actually reminded him of Gotham. Tense. Waiting for the other shoe to drop. The expectation that your day was going to go wrong was set from the moment one woke up.
While waiting in line to go through Customs, Jason pulled out his phone. He putzed around for a moment, before glancing guiltily at his text app. Even though he and Bruce had been getting along better lately, he still wouldn’t let the old man put a tracker on him. Every time Bruce tried to activate the tracker; Jason would go to further lengths to disable it.
When he had made his plans, he had forgotten to alert his family. At the time, it hadn’t seemed like a problem. He dropped off the grid all the time. It was his thing. Red Hood wasn’t supposed to be patrolling for a few days, and Jason was in between projects in both his civilian life and as a mob boss. Bruce definitely didn’t approve of that part but oh well. What can ya do. Realistically, Jason had another three days before the family noticed he was gone. He was certain that Alfred already knew.
The line moved forward, and a voice giving instructions in French broke him from his thoughts.
When Jason had finally made it through the airport, he rolled his shoulders. He had a few hours before he would check into his hotel until then…The Gotamite looked up the address he had found earlier when digging online. If today went the way he was hoping it would, it would be his only stop for the day.
Of course, he didn’t count on Gina.
When she called him over from where she was standing by her bike, Jason had to smile. The woman was part of the reason that he wasn’t still camping out in Gotham, waiting to kill a certain billionaire. They had spent time together after he had left the League. The silver-haired woman had taught him how to channel his pit mad emotions into doing good. They had traveled across Asia, stopping gangs and busting drug operations.
The last he had seen of her; Gina Dupain had been in Shanghai. They had caught the attention of one of the more powerful League enemies. Jason had gotten injured and had separated from his mentor in a fruitless attempt to protect her. After, Jason had made his long-awaited return to Gotham, and Gina had focused her attention on Europe. Last Jason had heard, she had turned her attention to a family of Italian mobsters that were causing trouble in Paris. Well…maybe he shouldn’t be surprised that she was here.
Once the spry biker had latched onto his arm, the young man knew that his mission would have to wait just a bit. After all, he owed Gina almost everything he had, he owed it to her to spend time with her.
“Hey, Gina. How are ya? It’s been a while.”
A/N
Part 2! what do we think? the organization is a little chaotic right now...but check out my master post! it has all the links in order!
as always...AO3 gets updated first. have a good day!
Three years before A Moment in Time. One year after Hawkmoth appeared.
Marinette Dupain-Cheng is sitting at her desk. Second row back, left side. Making her way up the stairs is her friend Alya Césaire. The two girls have been practically inseparable for the last year. Fuming one row down on the other side of the aisle is Chloé Bourgeoise. Her eyes are glued to where Marinette is smiling at Alya. Nino Lahiffe is sitting in front of Marinette. His headphones are on, and his hand is moving over a sheet of paper that has a music staff on it. Adrien Agreste can be seen bounding up the stairs, his eyes alight with the joy of going to school, even a year after he started. Behind Marinette and Alya are Rose and Juleka. Across from them are Ivan and Nathaniel. Behind the boys are Alix and Kim, who are across form Mylene and Sabrina. Max is sitting behind the two girls by himself. In the empty seat next to him, the tech genius has a computer running through a code that he is trying to double check. As they classmates greet each other during the first day of school, Madam Bustier can be seen enter into the room, one Lila Rossi walking behind her curiously.
As Bustier called the class to attention, Marinette shared one more smile with Alya before spinning around. When she was facing the front, the teen blinked. Standing there was a girl who looked vaguely familiar. It took the teen a moment, before she realized that this was Lila Rossi. This was the girl who had been sued by both Jagged Stone and Clara Nightingale. This was a gold digger that they had warned her about. Chloé must have made the same connection because Marinette’s phone started to blow up.
Mariii + Chlo
Chlo- OH HELL NO
Chlo- M this chit cannot sit with me
Chlo- Dad sued her over the summer
Chlo- MARINETTE
Mariii- Chlo
Mariii- hey chill
Mariii- I got this. If you can sit with Alya.
Chlo- anything
Chlo- MY WONDERFUL NONCOFFEE DEALER KEEP ME AWAY FROM THE FUCKING DEVIL
Mariii- on it, queenie
Marinette looked up as the bell rang. Alya gave her a concerned look. With a smile, the younger girl bumped her friend’s shoulder. “Hey, Als, since I’m class president, I think it would be best if I welcome the new girl. Could you go sit with Chloé today? I promise that we can go back to normal once we get her settled.” Alya flashed her friend a smile before giving the girl a side hug.
“of course, Mari! You have such a big heart!” the girls traded smiles before Alya packed her stuff up and moved to sit with the haughty blonde. The noirette saw her teacher give her an approving smile for diffusing the situation so easily, without conflict. Inwardly, Marinette scoffed. Outwardly, the girl gave her teacher a glowing smile in return.
Marinette truly tried to be nice to Lila. Really, she did. Early on, the girl had learned that being nice was a better rout when interacting with people who she didn’t know. Even if it was just a small smile, the noirette had always found success from kindness.
Lila was a sweet girl who had batted her eyes at her and given Marinette a small smile. The two had spent the first period of school passing notes and getting to know each other. In all honesty, Marinette had no idea why the Italian girl next to her was branded a manipulative liar in her world. Then, during break, Marinette saw what was going on. When the rest of the class gathered to introduce themselves, Lila panicked. The fear that flashed in her eyes told of anxiety. And none of Marinette’s classmates had noticed. Then, Lila shifted her posture just slightly. She smiled a blinding smile that stood out to Marinette as obviously fake. She started interacting with the class, sickly sweet and subtly guiding them to beliefs. Shaking her head, Marinette turned away. She had time during her break to call a certain someone. She needed more answers.
“Clara! Hey… do you have a moment?” through the phone, Clara Nightingale, giggled.
“Of course, Marinette! What is going on with my favorite little cousin? Is everything ok?” the young teen hesitated, before shaking her head.
“I need you to tell me more about Lila Rossi” the dark look that crossed the singer’s face confirmed many of Marinette’s worries.
When she sat down next to Chloé in the hotel restaurant for lunch, a look of pure disgust was dancing on her face. “this girl is filled a level of malice that I have never heard of. Chloé, she has manipulated every person of interest under the sun who doesn’t have the common sense to not listen to her bullshit. Chlo…this girl is vile. Clara told me what they had to do to sue her. One of the requirements of Lila not going to prison for a long time was getting a psych eval. Chloé…this girl is only fifteen! This is insane...” Chloé raised an eyebrow, surprised.
“today it looked like you two were good friends. Or on the way there at least.” The noirette shook her head in disgust.
“she has some good traits, but as soon as she gets in front of the crowd…she abandons everything for power. I can’t trust her, but it seems that she is under multiple restraining orders. I get the feeling that as long as we stay out of her webs, we should be fine. Jagged texted though. He said that Lila can be viscous if she is provoked.” Here, Marinette looked Chloé dead in the eye. “do not cause trouble. I don’t want you to have to go toe to toe with her, Chloé.”
Six months later.
Marinette is settled at her desk, the swivel chair reclined as she looked at the Blonde who was in her room, grinning.
“did she really ask you out?” Chloé’s excitement paired with her nosiness was making Marinette steadily turn Lady Tyche red. Turning back to her desk, Marinette tried to hide her flaming face.
“she asked me if I wanted to go out…like a date…before my birthday.” The noirette tugged slightly on her hair. Her anxiety that had been manifesting more and more at school was not helping her now. “I told Aurore yes. We haven’t set a date yet, but it’ll be soon.” Chloé raised an eyebrow.
“are you two going on your first date on Valentine’s day? Because Mari…I refuse to be best friends with someone so cliché.” The girl flamed a darker red if that was possible.
“I really like her Chlo. But…no. she asked about the 14th. I told her that I was going to spend time with my parents that day. Plus,” here, Marinette turned back to her friend with a Cheshire cat grin. “We,” She gestured between her best friend and herself, “have a standing date. we have for the last three years. Why would I break a pact we made when we were ten, over a girl I haven’t gone on one date with yet?” Chloé’s face broke into a matching grin.
“oh, hell yea. Then, I guess I could help you get ready for that first date of yours…” the friends broke down into giggles and started debating the merits of each of the outfits the young designer had in mind.
That night on patrol, Lady Tyche alighted on the roof of one of the local lycées. Her blonde hair whipped in the wind that that had been howling all afternoon. Across the streets, the spotted hero was able to see a pair of blue luminous eyes. Using her yoyo to pull herself over the street, the girl smiled at the younger miraculous wielder. When her red boots hit the roof, Apate handed the girl an unmarked bag. Inside was a pastry and a hot chocolate. Both girls knew they were in for a long night.
Apate stood noiselessly and moved to the edge of the roof. As she stood there, profiled against the ridgeline, Lady Tyche smiled to herself. Her partner could be as vicious as she wanted when they were fighting Akumas, but the girl who stood in front of her was very kind.
The Cat vigilante, as she insisted she was no hero, had a pair of ears on her head. They were flicking to and from while she listened to the night below. Her hands were resting on her hips, one hand toying with the baton that was usually kept in a holster on her leg. The girl’s other hand was fiddling with a ring she had slid off her finger. The skintight black pants blended into the night. The black top she was wearing also seemed to disappear when Lady Tyche wasn’t looking for her partner. Even now, with Apate being backlit by the city lights around them, Tyche was the more visible of the two.
“She’s coming.” Apate’s voice broke her partner out of her thoughts. “Let’s hope tonight goes the way we want it to. Otherwise, we could be royally screwed.” The Hero nodded in agreement.
“I trust Alya. She has been a good fit for Trixx so far.” Apate hmmed in response.
“I fear that our…favorite Italian…may be too close to her. I don’t want our fox’s head full of lies and manipulations if I can help it at all.” Lady Tyche winced. She had heard all about Lila’s renewed attack on the allegiances of the class that her crush was in. The past few weeks had not been pretty.
“No! That’s…you told Lila that I was going to be your first partner! Why did you lie to both me and your best friend! Everyone knows that Lady Tyche can’t do this alone anymore! She NEEDS Miss Vixen!” Lady Tyche closed her eyes and Alya’s rant ended with a yell. The anger simmering on the reporter’s face was worrying the hero.
“Alya. I have not told anyone about you. A few people have seen you training and on patrols. You ran the ‘exclusive’,” the distain in Lady Tyche’s voice had Alya wincing. “but no one has confirmed anything. There is good reason. The hope,” here, the blonde teen’s voice turned cutting, “was that you could work in the shadows. There is only one visible member of this team, but I have never been alone. Tonight, and this attitude. Well, Alya, it has proven that you are not ready to be a holder of the miracle stones.” The ladybug holder looked over to the roof next to where she and the trainee had been standing. There, in the shadows, were a pair of blue eyes. “go ahead, Apate. Wipe her memory of all of this.”
Seven months after Alya’s Miraculous is taken away. Two years after Hawkmoth started. Two years before Tim and Marinette run into each other.
Aurore smiled at the girl holding her hand. The two were walking home from their first day of Lycée. Aurore’s blonde hair fell around her shoulders as she turned to look at Marinette. The 14-year-old, a certified genius, was glowing at the excitement that their first day of school had brought. Although she no longer was friends with Alya, there were no real hard feelings. The rift between the former classmates had made it easier to integrate Marinette and Aurore’s social circles. Claude, Allen, Chloé, Aurore, Mireille, Nino, Kim, Kagami, Felix. The group was full of laughter and life. They spent most of their weekends together, even over the summer. To everyone else, the group was the picture-perfect group of teens. Inseparable for life. Aurore had loved it for so long, had loved watching her girlfriend grow. Tonight, however, she had a feeling that the last half year was going to be left in the past.
She and Marinette needed to have a talk.
Chloé held her best friend as the girl cried. The two had been sitting on the floor of the heiress’s hotel suit for the last hour and a half. When the small girl had showed up, wearing an old pair of Chloé’s sweats that had disappeared years ago, sniffling into the sleeves of the hoodie she was swamped in, the older girl’s big sister senses had gone off.
Now, as her friend started to calm down, Chloé shoved a pile of clothes at her friend. “put these on, we are leaving.” Marinette glanced at her friend in confusion, before taking the clothes and slowly changing into the skinny jeans and loose grey top. A moment later, a green corduroy jacket was being flung at her by the blonde 16-year-old who had changed as well. Quickly catching the jacket and sliding on the matching Converse that Chloé had given her, Marinette stood to join her friend. Chloé picked up her purse and looked over the two. While she had given her best friend a simple outfit that be comfortable for the train ride that her friend didn’t know was coming, Chloé had taken a minute longer before deciding to match her friend. Her jeans were light wash opposed to dark, and she wore a fitted white t-shirt with a spider hiding in a red chrysanthemum. The red corduroy jacket was the same color as both the embroidery and her own red converse.
“Let’s go, Minette. We are going to the country house. Horses await.”
After Marinette and Aurore broke off, the friends drifted apart. Kagami, Felix, Nino, and Kim refused to let the others blame the split on Marinette. Mireille, Claude, and Allen claimed that Marinette was more likely to be the cause. They couldn’t imagine Aurore doing anything to hurt the teen. Chloé, Aurore, and Marinette kept their mouths shut over the whole debacle. Chloé hadn’t head the whole story, but she knew that Aurore had hurt her friend, and it had led to a discussion that led to the girls both walking away in tears. It would only be years later that the girls would reveal that they had broken up because of the confusion around their secret identities.
A week after the fateful break up, Adrien Agreste pulled Marinette off to the side after class. “Adrien are you ok?” while usually the two didn’t interact, Marinette had noticed that all day Adrien had been pale and shaking.
“I need help Marinette. Usually I would go to Chloé, but last time she almost got Akumatized and I just…I need help. Please.”
“what’s up?” he glanced over his shoulder, to where a group of their classmates stood gathered around Lila.
“Not here, she can’t know.” Marinette blinked in shock before grabbing the model lightly on the arm. After glancing at him with a raised eyebrow, silently asking if it was ok to hold onto his arm, she took off through the halls.
By the time the two had made it to the home of one Gina Dupain just outside of what Marinette knew to be Hawkmoth’s reach, the blonde was bewildered. “you know the city so well. How?” she giggled slightly at the older boy before leading him to the kitchen and dropping her bag on one of the breakfast seats.
“I get stir crazy and spend a lot of my time exploring the city. Alix and I go and do Graffiti on the weekends sometimes. That means I’m pretty good at evading sight when I don’t want to be seen.” While her statements were technically true, Marinette had also left out a great deal of information in her response. She had spent most of her time exploring the city as Apate. She grew up on the streets and would forever feel comfortable slipping into the shadows. She did go out with Alix to do graffiti, but the two also spent a good amount of time jumping into burrows to fix world ending events.
“now, Adrien, what is going on? If it’s bad enough that you don’t want Chloé upset, I expect it to be worth the trip out of the Akuma line.” Adrien nodded nervously, before going into an explanation of what had been happening in the Agreste family home.
Three years into Hawkmoth’s reign. Marinette’s 2nd year at Lycée
Adrien spent as much time as possible with Chloe and Marinette. He had shown up more than once during their girls’ nights. Now, he was expected to be there. When they had left for the weekend, Adrien had disappeared from the Agreste Manor. When he had reappeared in time to get in the car that Monday, he learned that the only person who had noticed he was gone was his bodyguard. The man had called him, before joining the teens on the outing.
While the friends were getting Adrien out from his father’s thumb, Marinette was launching her brand. She had many a discussion during the branding process because the symbol that she had chosen, a chrysanthemum, was incredibly complex. Her grandmother thought it was too much. Marinette had told the older woman that she was going to use the flower, because that was the one with meaning to her. She spent three weeks fending off the woman, who sent her a different flower every day, until the girl told the woman that she wasn’t going to change her mind. Her Grandmother, her Nona, had laughed and told her that she was very stubborn, but that this time it had worked in her favor. The teen had come home that evening to a leather Jacket lying on her bed, with her named arching over the back where a chrysanthemum was embroidered in full bloom.
At the same time Marinette was officially launching her brand and Adrien was embracing his teen rebellion, Chloé was becoming an influencer on social media. On any day that she wasn’t spending time with her friends, the blonde was working to cultivate her social media image. At 17, she started to model on the side. When she was gone, her friends would get calls during every free moment she had.
The three were friends with the other outcasts from their college class. Kim and Nino were often seen with Marinette when she was out on a shopping spree or seeking inspiration. Alix and Marinette were close, and after she became guardian at 14, Marinette had given the Pinkett a crash course on the miraculous, since she had inherited one. The two would always be fond of jumping though time and space to face world ending events. Kagami had insisted that Adrien and his cousin Felix make up, and now the three were a force to be reckoned with. As they entered their last year of Lycée, the friends felt like they were on top of the world.
There had been a project due that morning that Marinette had forgotten about until the night before. She had been up all night and had gone through three different super coffees. She had been running late when she burst out the door of the apartment. There was a mug of coffee that was clutched in her hands, and she wasn’t looking where she was going. The guy that she collided with looked how she felt. While he was in a suit, they were both clutching coffee mugs that they had moved out of the way on instinct before throwing apologies over their shoulder and going on with their days. Neither thought anything of it. They had other things to worry about. Tim Drake and Marinette Dupain Cheng had no idea that their lives had changed permanently
a rewrite, but expanded. this is the first section. I'm going to try to catch this up with my AO3, so if you head over there, it's up to speed.
my AO3
Marinette was running late to school when she met him. She ran into the boy and stumbled back, flailing to catch herself before she fell. He looked down at her owlishly, before looking around. By the time he had returned his gaze to her, the teen had pulled herself back together. He smiled and nodded at her, before moving to go around. When Marinette had pulled herself together enough to call a short “Sorry!”, He was already gone.
That was three weeks ago. Now, she was looking at a picture of their interaction where it glared at her on the front page of the newspaper that Jagged had sent her.
When Marinette had received the package, she had been confused. Jagged wasn’t supposed to send her another demo for a few weeks. They were still working on singles. When she had opened the box and found five different American publications with her on their front page, the teen designer had shrieked. With shaking hands, she had picked up the top one and studied the headline.
HAS BRUCE WAYNE’S WARD FOUND PARISIAN LOVE?
The bold text was catching, sure, but Marinette was caught on WHO it was placing her with. Someone she had never met. The second one had a picture of her next to Jagged at an event, and a picture of the boy next to a blonde girl. The headline wasn’t much better than the first.
TIMELINE OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN MDC AND THE HEIR TO WAYNE ENERPRISES.
The teen snorted. She was starting to see the pattern. Putting the tabloid down the girl moved onto the next one. This one had, once again, a zoomed in picture of the five second interaction between her and a stranger. The title, however, was different than the first two.
ALL OF BRUCE WAYNE’S CHILDREN, AND THE INSIDE SCOOP ON HIS NEWEST DAUGHTER
She squinted, laughter bubbling up a little as she observed the piece of fiction. Whoever the Bruce Wayne was, Marinette hopped that he was able to combat this, because she had no intention of letting this fly.
As she stood there, trying to hold back laughter at the absurdity of the headlines, the teen pulled out her phone and started an email to her lawyers. Sure, usually they would spend time helping her with contracts and NDAs, but they had encountered slander before. The last time, it had ended with Lila Rossi paying her quite a bit of money. This time, she was sure that her team would be able to go even further. After all, Lila was small potatoes compared to these tabloid companies, and although her pseudonym was well known, Marinette was a minor.
Just as she sent off the email, the young designer could hear her parents emerging from the bakery below.
Tim and Bruce were staring at the pile of papers in surprise. When Jared had reached out to them in a mild panic, they had been confused. His panic had been explained when the rocker had arrived carrying a stack of tabloid literature a foot thick.
When he had thunk’d the stack down on Bruce’s desk, the businessman’s shock had been more than notable. When Tim had picked up the first few publications the initial look on his face was mirth, but it quickly morphed into shock, then panic. When he handed the top item to Bruce, the older man frowned. When the second pamphlet made its way to his hands, Bruce paused. His next move was to call the Wayne family lawyers. When he turned back to his old friend, all the faces in the room told the same grim tale of what was to come.
When Tim found out that it was Jared’s niece that he had accidentally run into in the brief moment in Paris, he wasn’t sure whether he should be more stressed by it, or if it was by pure luck. When Bruce’s friend went on to explain that the girl would probably already suing the reporters and papers that had published the rumor, the young CEO was impressed. To have a lawyer on hand like that was…surprising, considering that she couldn’t be older than 18.
When he asked the rocker if he thought the girl would let anyone go after her, he laughed. Then, Jared Stone explained that the girl was known in Paris for squishing rumors with surprising efficiency.
That evening, Bruce invited his childhood friend home for dinner, and the star spent the evening telling stories of their capers as children, with Alfred grimacing in agreement with the stories. Partway through dinner, Jared’s phone went off. While the rest of the family tensed, glancing to Alfred, their guest frowned at his phone before rushing to answer. “Hey Little Rocker! How’s Pari- oh. So, Penny was more efficient then I thought she’d be. I- yes I figured that you may want to hear. Do- No! Marinette, what!” here, the man paused, his head cocked to the side, his eyes screwed up in thought. “No luv! Sue them within an inch of their lives! You more than have that right.” Here, the rocker paused before he laughed. “Tell that buzzing bee of yours that she’s a good friend. Alright, Miss Mari. I’ll ring you when I’m back on that side of the Atlantic.” He laughed again, “See you soon, Marinette.” The table stayed quiet, waiting for the man to give an indication on the status of the conversation. “Well, Brucie, expect to hear from my niece in the next few day, or at least, her team of lawyers.” the Wayne patriarch blinked before nodding in hidden surprise.
When the family was talking during patrol that evening, Red Robin grumbled. “I don’t see why we need to continue to talk about this. The press are vultures. Done.” Oracle laughed at him over the coms.
“Red, we love you. We do. But the situations you get yourself in are ridiculous. Your turning into B.”
“O, I hate you all. I really do.”
“No, you don’t.”
“How about we get back on track,” called Spoiler. “I want to hear, from the beginning, what exactly happened.”
“Spoiler, you just want to watch me tell the tale in all its horribleness” across the roof tops, Spoiler turned to Red Robin and smirked.
“You know it, Red.”
“fuck you, Spoiler.”
“hmmmm, no”
“wait what?” Red Hood’s voice broke through the channel. “what did the bird boy do this time?” Red Robin huffed as he used his grapple to move to the next rooftop.
“I’m not telling this again, Hood. Ask B.” Hood snickered over the line.
“aww. Little Red. Did you get into trouble?”
“Hood, can you NOT?” Red Robin landed closer to Spoiler, who was looking over the ledge, watching a collection of teens circle each other.
“O?” Spoiler called, interrupting the banter between the other vigilantes, “can you check into the area near Red and I? I think we have an issue.” Red Robin sighed in relief as his family dropped the topic, although he knew he wouldn’t live it down for quite a while.
