#of being ladybug

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 1.5

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6

Part 7

Part 8

Part 9

Part 10

Part 11

Part 12

Part 13

Part 14 

Part 15

Part 16

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The cons of not believing

(- - )

Tim looked at his phone in surprise. He’d been in Paris for only a week to help train the Miracles, and already Bruce was calling him? Was hell freezing over? Did someone die?!

“B?” Tim whispers, not wanting to wake up Stephanie. There is silence on the other line. Tim frowns and moves to the other room so he can turn on the video.

“Bruce?” he asks again, now looking at the brooding older man. He looked like Joker just shat in his coffee.

“Tim… I… when you were younger… how… what could I have done to support you more?” Bruce finally bit out. His pauses long and his eyes drawn together. Bruce was looking to the side and was speaking quietly. Tim recognized the room as Steph’s before she moved into his room. A new sibling? AH! Bruce had been petitioning to have the previous Ladybug brought under his custody. He’d been blocked and turned away every time. It seemed Diana was extremely excited to be teaching a new Ladybug, had in fact claimed her as her sister. Bruce had been told that he had enough children and that he didn’t need to “corrupt” another one.

“Is the new sister having a hard time adjusting? Shouldn’t you be asking Dick?” Tim asked, relieved no one died…again.

“… Marinette is fourteen and about to graduate high school this Christmas. She was tossed to the side by her family for some unknown reason. She was torn from her friends and responsibilities. Since receiving the Miraculous at thirteen, she has hardly had a minute to breath, let alone figure herself out. And when, by all rights, she should have had the time, Diana takes her, shaves all her hair off and tells her “[W]ith every hair that falls, a part of Marinette must die. As your new hair grows, Maria will grow as well.” She wasn’t allowed to sew or draw or bake or cook. She wasn’t allowed to do anything that had any connection to her previous life,” Bruce’s hands and jaw were clenched.

Tim frowned again. What?!

“Marinette trained from dawn to dusk, but was never allowed out of the house, nor to shadow her on missions. She was to study, to train, and to sit quietly and behave herself.”

“You’re kidding?! No wonder her friends here are so worried! They’ve been trying to contact her!” Tim growled. He felt ready to go hunt an Amazonian.

“What would you suggest I do? She thinks further ahead than anyone I know, has strategies and back-up strategies and back-ups for the back-ups. She has social anxiety, with a history of being bullied. She skipped grades and then stopped for some reason. She had the same teacher for years, despite having been bullied by classmates. I just… I need to hear from someone who is closer to her age and had similar problems. What can I do?” Bruce wiped his hand down his face. He looked so tired.

Tim sighed and thought back to when he was fourteen. He’d been Robin for three years by then already. What could he have used? More time together? More friends? More sleep? Did any of this help his new sister?

Tim shook his head, “I don’t know, B. I was more interested in being Robin than being a teenager. Time with you was always good. Sibling time with as well. Maybe call Dick. He’s always been the best adjusted out of all of us.”

Bruce just nodded, gave his half smile and was about to sign off when a light went off over his head.

“Tim, one last thing. Please look into the school and classmates for me. Something tells me Marinette was being held back against her will.”

Tim frowned more. He nodded before signing off and sending a message to the Miracle Team that Marinette would be able to speak in the next week and would video chat with them soon. He was about to text Jason when Stephanie called for him. He put his phone down and walked back to bed.

( # , # )

Richard Grayson was used to getting calls at weird times. But two in the morning and from Bruce’s civilian phone? He sent a quick prayer up that no one died and answered.

“What’s up, B? Miss me already?” He asked cheerfully.

Bruce looked tiredly at the camera, “Dick. I need some advice to help your newest sister adjust.”

Dick’s eyes widened. Bruce finally got custody! That’s good. But he looked so exhausted. He wondered what happened.

“Adjust to what, specifically? The fighting? School? Is she moody? What’s going on?” Dick asked. When did he become the one to give PARENTING advice to his father?

As Bruce talked about what he’d learned from Marinette’s journal, Dick became more and more angry. He was a guy, but even her knew that you never cut a girl’s hair without permission!

“Sounds to me like she just needs to believe that this is real and permanent. Just be there when you can. Talk to her about decisions and let her work the way she is used to on missions. Thing’s will fall into place after that” Dick said pragmatically. There really wasn’t much to do but be there. He wished he could be there to help in person, but India had recently fallen prey to the mouse Miraculous. He and Starfire were there to capture the thief that was misusing the Miraculous.

Bruce sighed and nodded, before hanging up. Poor Bruce. Dick would do his best to get done here and head home. He was excited to meet his new sister! He sent a message to Jason and Tim, warning them of the new sister and to be nice if they caught her on the video chats.

< ( ^ ^ ) >

Bruce sighed, exhausted. He hadn’t meant to call the boys yet, but this was not something he wanted to go in blind to. Diana had made a lot of mistakes with Marinette, and she deserved better than that. Bruce had only glanced through the journal to get some insight, but it seemed Marinette suffered from Imposter Syndrome, social anxiety, abandonment issues… And Diana, who only exasperated the problems. Keeping her locked away, training her to exhaustion, taking her hobbies and passions, killing any and all aspects of her personality. Bruce had thought Marinette was just shy. This though. He frowned. Had he known about this he would have treated Marinette very differently. Maybe an hour of sleep would help him clear his head. He leaned back in the chair and closed his eyes.

< ( >< ) >

Alfred stared blankly at the ceiling. Something wasn’t adding up. For all that her parents were busy people, they seemed to love their daughter a great deal. He couldn’t imagine they had just randomly abandoned her for being a hero. Not when they hosted Chat Noir for dinner one night. Not when they seemed so proud of their daughter with every award she received. Something was off. Alfred wasn’t a detective, but he would find out what had truly happened if it killed him.

{ J }

Jason stared at his phone, re-reading the message from Dick. A new sister, huh?

‘Che, poor kid. Dealing with B all on her own. I’ll have to make this quick,’ he thought as he lifted the binoculars.

He was currently in Germany, following a suspected Miraculous user. The information about the Horse Miraculous stated that they could open portals anywhere. And recently a string of missing women from Cologne was becoming very concerning. Especially when companions and eyewitnesses all claim the same thing: a glowing yellow circle opening in the air and the woman vanishing through it. Jason watched silently as Cass walked down the street below. The tracker and her own training would hopefully keep her alive long enough for Jason to find her and the rest of the women. Nothing below. Maybe check the other side? Just as he was getting up, he felt a fist to his head. And then black.

*!!*

Luka looked at his phone. Marinette was finally in contact again? The day Black Canary had landed, they had bothered her from dawn to dusk to talk to their old leader, but were stonewalled, as her new guardian didn’t think it was a good idea to be constantly reminded of her failure. The team had shouted that it wasn’t Marinette’s failure alone, but the whole teams. And more over, the League’s, as they never took their calls for help seriously. Canary was pretty quickly chased away by them, and another trainer was sent. Green Lantern 1 and 2 were a great help for Kaefer, but the rest of the team didn’t see any real benefit from them. And they didn’t care in the least about Marinette. They didn’t last very long either. It went on like this for a year. Trainers came and went, all of them parroting the same thing. Luka had a new reputation now, as the trainer wrecker, on the team. And as a civilian? He became completely cold and closed off. Only his teammates saw any warmth from him. But even Juleka was being steadily pushed to arms length. Paris did this to Marinette. And none of them, not her friends or her family, even cared.

<(**)>

When Marinette woke up the next morning, she knew immediately that she wasn’t alone. Looking out through blurry eyes, she saw the figure of a man standing by her window. He was turned away, looking outside with the sun streaming in. She tried to remember how she got to her room.

A knock at her door had her quickly closing her eyes and pretending to be asleep. Bruce went to the door.

“Master Bruce. I thought you and Miss Marinette might enjoy some breakfast.”

“Thank you, Alfred. Will you be joining us for breakfast?”

“I’m afraid I have an errand to run in town this morning. But I will be sure to return for lunch. Do try not to burn the kitchen down.”

“You can sit up now, Marinette. I heard the change in your breathing earlier.”

Marinette cracked an eye open. Why? She sat up on her bed and looked up at her current guardian.

“Do you mind if I sit here?” Bruce gestured at the end of the bed, carrying a large tray filled with waffles, fruits, yogurt and coffee. Marinette shook her head mutely.

After Bruce set the tray on the middle of the bed, he sat down and looked her in they eye.

“Marinette, what I said last night still stands. I want you to feel at home here. This isn’t temporary. Two of the oldest boys are already calling you their newest sister. Marinette, most of my children are adopted. In fact, only one of my kids is related to me by blood. I wanted to bring you here from the beginning, but lost the custody battle to… Anyways, you’re here now. I want you to feel at home and remember yourself. To have a safe place to just be.”

Marinette felt her eyes watering again. Was this… was this real? But her parents had promised to always be there too, hadn’t they? Marinette nodded. Eventually everything would come to an end. But for now, for just this moment, she would allow herself to be comfortable.

“Okay? Okay. So, I wanted to talk to you about school and extra curriculars. Your work schedule… “ Bruce pulled a notebook out of his breast pocket. Her eyes widened. He… He wanted HER opinion?

“No school” her voice was barely above a whisper, her hands clenched in the blankets and her head bowed. She missed his nod of understanding.

“No school. Just distance education with tests and exams taken in the principle’s office. But I am more interested in what you might be interested in taking in University. Are there any particular courses that interest you? Is there a career path you’d like to follow? We will have to start the applications right away if you want to get in for the Spring term.  And what about extra curriculars? Dance? Ice dancing? Gymnastics? Parkour? Sewing? Singing? Music? Most of the kids all learned piano from me at some point…” He was looking in his notebook and tapping his pen against his pants.

Wah…? Marinette felt her jaw drop.

“Am I overwhelming you? It’s okay to take a few days to think things over and let me know…” Bruce looked at her face, jaw slack and eyes wide. Marinette just nodded.

“Breakfast?”

 Tag List

A short one this time. The one after this we will finally see some action. I wonder if any of you have guessed about the new villain? 

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The cons of falling for family

<(**)>

Marinette stared at the sewing machine on her desk. Alfred had bought it for her to welcome her home. Bruce had bought expensive sketch pads and pencils. One of Bruce’s other kids (not her brother, even if Bruce called him her brother Dick) had sent an expensive Indian fabric. Gifts to welcome her to their family.

Bruce had spent the entire day with her, giving her a proper tour, asking questions about what she liked, if she wanted a different colour for her walls, what she wanted to do with her life… It had been overwhelming to say the least. Marinette had made up her mind at a young age and always knew what she wanted to do. When Diana told her, she couldn’t be anything Marinette had been, she had been lost. And now Bruce was telling her to be herself. To be Marinette again. To do with her life as she pleased, and he promised to be there to help her pick up the pieces if it all fell apart.

Her brand new Wayne phone dinged with a message on her desk. Marinette stared. She hadn’t received a text in a year. Unlocking the screen, the pre-programmed number and name of Timothy Drake-Wayne lit up her screen.

‘Hey, little sister! I have some people that want to say hi!’

Attached was a picture of the Miracle Team. Oh!

She hit video call. With every unanswered ring her anxiety spiked. She was about to hit end when the call was answered by a pretty blonde woman with blue eyes.

“Tim! The new sister is calling!” the blonde turned and shouted off camera. Before Tim could move to get the phone Vipereon was there.

“Marinette?” his voice was calm, but inside he felt anything but. A year of radio silence. A year!

“Luka?” her voice is just above a whisper, cracking as she is filled with emotions again.

She cries silently as Luka takes in her face. She’d lost weight. Her was cut. And gone was the pink.

“My melody, are you okay?” Luka asked finally. Screw all of Paris. If she needed him, he would be there.

“I’m okay. I…” she couldn’t talk. She just took in the image of Vipereon on her screen, listened to the shouting happening off to the side of the other’s. Kwami how she missed them. Luka smiled in understanding.

“We’re not going anywhere, Marinette. Take your time.”

And so she broke down. She told Luka everything. Everything she couldn’t trust herself to tell Bruce.

And Luka listened, never interrupting. And when she was done, he told her how amazing she was. How after everything that had happened, she could still keep going. And that she would figure out what to do, but if she really needed time, to just ask for it. He promised to use the Zeta tubes as soon as possible to visit as well.

And for the first time in a year, Marinette truly smiled.

< ( ^ ^ ) >

Bruce woke up early the next morning, to see if he could convince Marinette to go to a fabric store with him. When he got to the kitchen however his whole body froze. Alfred as standing by the counter, relaxed and quiet as Marinette dashed around the kitchen in her pajamas. She had a big grin on her face as waffles and eggs and bacon and fruits all came to perfection under her practiced hands.

“Alfred…”

“She insisted that my pancakes were dry and bland. She challenged me. I did not have the heart to deny her” Alfred stated simply. A smile tugged at his lips, and Bruce knew. Alfred did this to help Marinette come back to the surface.

_ -  

After a delicious breakfast, Bruce was shocked when Marinette enthusiastically showed him her sketchpad. The page was filled with a super-hero costume, mostly white and pink, with black accents and a black hood. (Similar to Gwen Stacy from the Spider-Verse movie, but reverse colours.)

In the car, Marinette also asked about modern and contemporary dance. Bruce smiled. They made a stop at the Gotham Dance Studio. When Marinette watched the different styles of dancing, her face lit up. Bruce signed the check and promised to get her the proper footwear.

In the fabric store, you would have thought that Christmas and Easter happened all at once. Marinette’s eyes were filled with glee. She was picky with her fabrics. While her back was turned, Bruce ordered some Dress Forms and ribbons, and the fabrics she liked he got in every colour they had. When she looked at Bruce, happy with a single 2 yard roll of fabric, Bruce smiled back.

When they got her school uniform, only to be worn on exam days, Marinette also got a tour of the facility. The school was massive, with three buildings denoting the different school levels. The tech was also out of the world amazing, with teachers using holo-screens instead of whiteboards, or blackboards like in Europe. Kids walked around with school approved and funded pads. Marinette felt very backwater hill-Billy right then.

When they got back, Alfred showed them a new room, set up while they were out. Bruce rubbed the back of his neck when Marinette balked at the dress forms and fabric. It was next to Damien’s art room, filled to the brim with paints and brushes. It was above Dick’s gymnastic training room. Marinette could only stare.

-_

The rest of the week went by in a similar manner. Bruce took the time to personally show Marinette around Gotham, talking about the history of the city, and it’s criminals. He took her to the office, introduced himself to her boss. Lucius Fox showed her, her new costume.

And finally, on Friday night, Batman patrolled with Knave at his side.

Marinette went to bed that morning with a big smile on her face. In her hand was her phone, a guitar melody floating quietly through the room.

In Germany, Jason groggily opened his eyes.

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(I know, I suck. It’s been ages, and here I am. I also promised my husband not to post fanfictions after the new year because he wants me to “publish”. So I will finish this month with these and all my love to my followers!)

The cons of moving away

Diana sighed as she hung up the phone.

“Maria. Please come here.”

Maria --- not Marinette, never again Marinette --- came to stand in front of her. Her blue/black hair was shorn close in a messy pixie cut now and her once expressive blue eyes had turned icy. She was in a simple black training leotard, having been in the middle of a series of training exercises, to eventually take up a mantle in the Justice League. The past year had been extremely hard on Maria, and it showed in her closed off expression and hunched shoulders. After her identity as Ladybug had been revealed and Clark had gotten a tongue lashing reminiscent of the first days of Conner, Batman and Wonder Woman had moved to in on Paris. With the hacking skills of Red Robin and Oracle it had been almost too easy to find Hawkmoth and Mayura, and it was a matter of hours to find their lair and arrest them. However, with the landing of the caped crusader, Hawkmoth --- rather Gabriel Agreste --- had known he had no time left. The Miraculi were pawned off on an unknown third party. Mrs. Agreste was brought to the hospital, with magic users such as Zatanna to look her over but no cure could be found. Gabriel was spending life in a prison in Southern France, Adrien sent to live with his mother’s sister in London. Natalie tragically succumbed to whatever illness had caused Mrs. Agreste’s coma. But Paris’ struggle was far from over, and Marinette’s had only just begun. The Miraculi box, ravaged and emptied, Master Fu unable to be found, and no leads to follow, the League pulled back from Paris, only occasionally sending adult supervisors and trainers for the Miracle Team (similar to how they had run the original YJ and TT teams). Marinette could not continue her mantle as Ladybug, and instead handed it over to Marlene. Unknowingly to the Team, Adrien also chose to hand his Miraculous over to someone he thought could be trusted. It resulted in a bad match that caused corruption in the holder and now the Miracle team dealt with not only Akuma, but a rogue cat. It seemed everything that could go wrong did, as new villains rose and the Miraculi were being sold off worldwide, wreaking havoc everywhere they popped up.

Jagged Stone, better known as the Justice League’s civilian spy James, had taken Marinette to the airport to send her to her family, only to be told by them that they would not take her since they did not want to risk having to re-up root their lives or endanger their extended family. Jagged asked a favor from Batman and in the end, Diana volunteered to take Marinette in. While Jagged wished to do it, he was too obvious and constantly in the spotlight, and Marinette needed to disappear. With the help of Bruce and some questionable acquaintances of the league, Maria Fu came to be Diana’s adopted daughter in London.

After Marinette had heard her mother condemning her, having to give up her miraculous and her life, Marinette closed in on herself. She knew she was a charity case. And while she threw herself into her training and tried her hardest to be of use, she never could trust herself to connect to Diana. This was a temporary solution. Either until she was of age or until she died. Diana tried her hardest to reach out to her. She tried to help her heal. But while Diana knew the feeling of being torn from her family, she knew nothing of being discarded. So, she trained Maria, had her homeschooled to avoid running into Adrien, and kept her out of the spotlight, allowing for her to slowly take on her new persona.

Training was simple, consisting of martial arts, flexibility, and weapons. She was nothing special without a kwami to power up, so she needed to start at the basics. Diana taught her the best she could but being an Amazonian herself meant there wasn’t much she could teach her. So while she could teach Marinette to fight, to focus her emotions, Diana couldn’t help her to become her best self.

She sighed. “Maria, I have just been on the phone with Bruce. He’s asking for someone to help him out for the next year. Being a non-powered human, he thought you might benefit from his tutelage” Diana said. She saw the very moment Marinette decided that she was just no longer wanted by Diana. She had wanted cared about Marinette and had tried to convince her she was not just a charity case, but all the work had just gone down the drain.

“I understand. Thank you for your patience and tutelage” the words were detached and precise, in a London accent.

“You are not being pawned off or loaned around, Maria” Diana said again. She meant it.

“Thank you for your patience, Diana” Marinette whispered, turning on her heel to go to her room. She needed to pack.

Diana just sighed again. Dammit.

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The cons of having your identity revealed

Sitting in the apartment that Penny had taken her to, Lois was gobsmacked. She watched the footage taken by both the local news station and a blogger and an amateur "journalist". She watched it again just to be sure she'd seen it properly. She turned to Penny, Penny's client Jagged Stone and his fiancée, Clara Nightingale. Piled on the floor in a corner, on pillows and blankets, were a group of teenagers, all surrounding a single black haired girl.

"As soon as I saw the video I got her parents out of the country. They couldn't wait for her and we couldn't let Hawkmoth, whoever he may be, find her earrings" Jagged stated, looking over his shoulder to pile up.

"She's been under so much stress. She's only thirteen" Penny sighed. The three adults looked so tired.

Marinette stood by the broken window by the store when she heard the police sirens in the distance. Fear gripping her heart she turned and ran down a few side alleys to hide.

"What do I do, Tikki? Master Fu is… And everyone knows who I am!" her head clutched in her hands and her whole body shaking, Marinette had no idea what to do.

"You need to calm down. Nothing good will come of this if Hawkmoth Akumatizes you right now. First, call your parents. We'll go from there" Tikki whispered.

"Okay, okay… I can do this" Marinette whispered, pulling her phone out and dialing the bakery. When no one answered she tried their personal cells and the house phone. No answer. Marinette paled further with every call that wasn't answered. Finally pulling the phone from her ear she looked blankly at it.

"Now what?" her voice cracked, tears gathering in the corner of her eyes.

"Marinette! There you are!" her head snapped up, her body falling into a crouch. Standing at the entrance to the alley was Luka Coffaine.

"Marinette, listen to me. We need to get you to a safe place to make a plan. Please, you trusted me with Sass, now trust me with you!" he called, waving her over. What else could she do? With Tikki back in her purse she ran off to Luka's side. Three blocks later and a phone call to Juleka had Chloé, Juleka, Kagami and Marlene meeting up. Chloe dragged them into a backdoor of her hotel and into her room. While Chloe went into her closet to find a disguise for Marinette, and Luka and Marlene sat with her to keep her calm, Kagami went back down a few floors to find someone who might be able to help. Knocking on the door, she pulled herself upright. 'No weaknesses now Tsurugi' she thought as the door opened.

"No autographs, a woman in a dress suit and pink hair said, not looking at Kagami and going to close the door again. Kagami was quicker, slamming her hand on the door," Marinette needs help!" she said. Everything in the hall became still. The door opened and Penny Rolling finally looked at the girl before her. In a black skirt, red blouse and white cardigan, with black hair and brown eyes. If it weren't for the eyes, Penny might have thought she was Marinette's sister.

"Talk. You have 60 seconds before I call hotel security."

"Her identity was revealed today, and I know I saw the blogger and a news anchor close by. She can't reach her parents and we don't know who else to call. She trusts you and I know you're close with her family. She needs to get out of Paris. We know Hawkmoth is after her, and by the look on Chat's face, nobody is sure what he'll do. We brought her here, but we need help. Paris should never have been left in the hands of kids" Kagami spat out quickly. She'd been so proud when she'd been chosen, but right now? Now she hated whoever had given the Miraculi out to kids. What could any of them do? They had no idea where to start with a plan, and their leader, the one to make the plans usually, was too emotionally compromised to do anything but breathe right now. What to do? Who to trust?

"I already took care of Sabine and Tom. They're on a trip to visit family in Shanghai" Jagged Stone stood behind Penny now, a hand on her shoulder, "We will get dressed and take her to a safe place in Paris. Penny has a contact from the US on the way already. We will wait for her to land. If we can get the Bourgeois girl involved, we may be able to get Marinette out to safety until the heat dies down" his voice was strong, Soothing and Kagami felt the tension leave her for the first time.

"We're in Chloé's room now, so I think we can count on her cooperation. But you need special access to get in."

Nodding Jagged looked at her, "Wait inside the main room, but make sure Marinette doesn't answer her phone for anything. I mean it, no other people should talk to her until we get her and her parents to safety" Jagged said as he walked to his room. Kagami quickly pulled out her phone and let Luka know. Luka fired back with a picture of Marinette wearing a ripped pair of black jeans and converse and a grey off the shoulder t shirt saying "awkward is my specialty" and a pair of dark sunglasses that covered most of her face. A red wig finished the transformation into someone who wouldn't be recognized. Kagami chewed her lip as she wondered if Jagged Stone wouldn't ruin things. Just as she thought that, the door to Jagged's room opened and out stepped an unrecognizable business man, with long black hair freshly washed and tied at the nape of his neck and a simple black suit, his tie loosened and the top button undone. Kagami blinked, then blinked again just to make sure she wasn't seeing things. Out of the opposite door came Penny, fuzzy long brown hair, jeans and a tank top and a sleek leather jacket, Kagami could hardly believe these were the same people. She texted Luka to meet them in the lobby and led the way there herself. When Clara Nightingale opened the door to her apartment, Kagami didn't even pretend to be shocked. Of course Marinette knew them all.

Lois heaved a heavy sigh, before pulling out her Justice League phone.

"Bruce? We have a problem"...

To be Continued…

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The cons of separating a team

{ J }

Jason groaned. His whole body felt heavy, his head throbbed painfully to the beat of his heart, his eyes couldn’t focus, and his tongue felt like it was taking over his mouth. ‘What happened?’ he asked himself as he slowly regained function of his body. ‘Where am I?’

“Red?” the voice came from somewhere to his right. Groggily he turned his head. Nothing. He frowned, looking to the left. Also nothing. A room without windows and doors?

“Red, come in!”

His ear… right! He had an earpiece.

“Bat?” His voice was raspy, his throat sore.

“Finally! I have been checking in every 30 minutes for four hours! What happened?” Black Bat exclaimed.

“No idea. I was watching you walk down the street and then nothing.”

“I can’t lock onto your signal; you must be somewhere underground. Can you see or hear anything to give me a location?”

“I’m in a room. No door. No window. Soundproof too, I think. Definitely the Horse thief” Jason mumbled, trying to find a seam or stress point to take advantage of.

“I’m calling for backup. Maybe Raven can get to you” and she was gone.

Jason sighed and settled in for a long wait.

 ( - - )

Luka sat across from Tim; the staring contest that had started a week ago continuing. Tim had been ready to rip the phone out of Vipereon’s hand (and in fact, had managed it, but Vipereon had used second chance and managed to evade the second time) to greet his “little sister”. He had let it be when he heard what Marinette had to say. She was going through a lot. Unsure of herself and just wanting something normal and familiar. Tim had ushered the others out of the room but had listened in on the conversation himself. Marinette was so lost and out of her depth.

An unwilling hero at thirteen, outed secret identity, trouble making friends, no time to just be, and then her parents abandon her, Diana only wanted to train Ladybug and was always so disappointed in Marinette, forcing her to be Maria, and then sending her away and abandoning her to Bruce and Alfred, whom she couldn’t trust, because she was forever alone. She wanted her friends and old life back.

He had relayed to Bruce about their conversation, hoping he had done the best with the information. Now he sat in front of Luka, trying to convince him that, no, he could not drop his hero responsibilities and go galivanting through the Zeta Tubes, just to see his “she’s-not-your-sister” sister.

“You are the team leader, Luka. They depend on you, not only because your power gives you the leg up, but because you are the only one that can reign them all in. Please understand” Tim tried again.

“She is not okay, Drake. Screw Paris! I don’t give a crap about this stupid city anymore! Marinette needs me!” Luka lashed out. Tim sighed. He looked at Luka’s tense posture and hard eyes. This might be what Luka needed to push him to be a better leader to his team.

“Three hours. And then you will be back here” Tim stated, relenting because he knew his sister needed this, “tell my sister I say hello.”

“She’s NOT your sister!” Luka growled, standing up.

“And she’s NOT your girlfriend! Marinette needs some familiarity now, I understand. But do not mistake this as permission to use her emotional dependency on you as your ticket into her pants!” Tim shouted. He’d been a teenager, dammit. He wasn’t even all that much older than Luka. He wouldn’t put it past any teenaged boy, hero or not.

Luka recoiled, as if punched.

“Never” he turned and slammed the door shut behind him. Tim sighed. He hadn’t had enough coffee for this shit.

<(**)>

Knave swung over Penguin’s head, dropping quietly behind him and taking out three gunmen with a few kicks and a throat punch. She threw a smoke bomb and Batman materialized to finish the job. A pathetically easy take down. Knave smirked. Batman nodded to Commissioner Gordon, stepping aside to allow him to take Penguin into custody.

Had Knave not already known how helpful it was to have an experienced vigilante to work with, she would have been mighty impressed now. Their take down time generally was approximately thirty to forty-five minutes. Granted, so far she had only faced the Riddler and Penguin, along with some regular burglars and criminals.

She sent out her grappling hook and swung off. She had her first science lab in the morning. She arrived at the cave in short order, pulling her hood down, she walked past Alfred to the ‘bat-shower’.

“Not even going to say hello?” a familiar voice spoke in French. She spun around and squealed when she saw Luka leaning against the computer. He smiled and held his hands out to her. She ran into him. Feeling his arms close around her in a hug, smelling the distinctly ‘Luka Couffaine’ scent, and hearing him hum a familiar tune… Marinette felt herself melt into him.

“I’ve missed you. Merde, I’ve missed you!” Marinette cried. Tears sprang to life, and she just stood in Luka’s embrace. For the first time in a year, it felt like nothing could go wrong.

“I hate to interrupt, but Batman is calling for Knave” Alfred stated, turning to the teens.

She sighed. So much for that shower.

“I’m not going anywhere” Luka stated, looking her in the eye and giving her a nod.

(--) 

When Luka finally did return, five hours late, he was all smiles. He hugged his sister for the first time that Tim had seen. He pulled out a guitar that he hadn’t know the boy owned. And he played a soft melody, with strong under tones of...something. He looked at the still unanswered text he had sent to Marinette a week ago.

“Welcome to the crazy house.”

Finally a reply was written by her.

“Thank you. I still don’t think I will be here long, but it is nice to feel like I belong somewhere again”

{ V }

In Paris, a butterfly themed person smiled viciously. For Adrien!

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The Cons of Being a Charity

Marinette stepped off the plane in Gotham on a cold autumn day. She received her luggage and stepped to the reception area. An elderly man in a well tailored suit held a sign with “Maria Fu” printed neatly onto it. There was no sign of Bruce, but after looking up his civilian life, she understood why. Keeping steady, she walked towards him, her passport in hand.

“Good afternoon, sir. I am Maria” she showed her passport and looked at him expectantly.

“Good afternoon Ms. Maria. I am Alfred Pennyworth, the Wayne family butler. Master Bruce sends his apologies for not greeting you in person, however a board meeting kept him at the company” Alfred stated, holding his hand out to take her luggage.

“I understand. There is no need to carry my luggage. I packed lightly” Maria pulled her luggage tighter. She didn’t expect to be staying long.

“As you will. The car is this way.”

She thought she might have cabbed just as easily to get there. The car by the front of the airport was thankfully discreet, but she had seen enough people with their phones out. She wondered briefly about their fascination with her. She hoped this did not put her in the spotlight.

The drive through Gotham city was quiet in the car, but lively outside. People walked in a rush to their destinations, heads down and hands in pockets to protect their valuables. Children were running through the crowds, trying to find an unprotected pocket to pick. The homeless were scattered around the city, sitting, sleeping and walking aimlessly. Marinette looked out the window sadly. What a depressing sight.

As they pulled out of the city to the richer area, Marinette pulled her emotions tighter to her core. The fourteen year old in her wanted to squeal about the amazing houses and the architecture. The part of her that remained stubbornly “Marinette” wanted to pull a sketchbook out to design.

They pulled into the largest manor on the top of a large hill. Marinette almost scoffed. ‘Haunted House much?’ She hopped out of the car before Alfred could come to a stop and walked around the vehicle to take her luggage. Alfred merely opened the door to the manor and walked in “I will lead you to your room and allow you some time to settle in. I will retrieve you for supper and give you a tour of the facilities. Please allow me to be the first to say ‘Welcome to Gotham’” Alfred said with a calm smile.

“Thank you.”

 Five hours later found Marinette dressed simply, ignoring the dresses provided in her closet, and following Alfred to the dining room. “Master Bruce sends his apologies that he will not be able to join you for supper tonight, as an incident requiring his… expertise arose in downtown. He will begin your training in the morning”

“Of course. Thank you Mr. Alfred.”

< ( ^ ^ ) >

Bruce P. O. V.

He felt bad for not being there to greet the new member of his team. He really did. But experience with orphans had taught him that they needed time to settle in and get used to their new living space. She had a room in the family wing, between Damien and Cassandra. When he finally arrived back in the early hours of the morning it was to Alfred’s frown.

“With all due respect, Master Bruce, this is not a common orphan.”

“That does not mean her situation is unique. She needs time to adjust. Give it a week or two to get used to living with us. Besides, Diana had a close relationship with Maria from the way she spoke of her. I do not mean to insert myself into what may already be a stable parental situation and confuse her” Bruce said, changing from his Bat-suit.

“Diana was also the first to ask you to work your orphan magic on Maria as she doesn’t feel like she has a place now. Do not make the same mistake with her as you did with Jason.”

“Look, I understand the situation is a bit more difficult. But Cass took to us this way as well, how different can they all really be?”

<(**)>

Marinette’s POV

Marinette woke at 6 A. M. A year living under Diana’s strict schedule had lent to her being able to rouse early --- even if it did not fix her insomnia, at least now she was able to wake up. She dressed in an outfit meant to seem professional, printed a few sheets and went downstairs for breakfast.

“Good Morning Miss Marinette. Did you sleep well?” Alfred greeted her, offering a pile of pancakes to her.

“Good Morning Mr. Alfred. Thank you. I was wondering if there was a bus system to get to downtown from here?” Marinette asked as she forced a single drier-than-dust pancake down her gullet. Was all American food this… tasteless? Perhaps she just had high standards from… from before.

“I would be happy to drive you wherever you wish to go this morning. Master Bruce wishes to start training at 10 hundred hours this morning. A bus may not allow you the time to get back.”

Marinette frowned. She had gotten up early just to avoid needing a ride. “Perhaps you can pick me up at 9 then. To allow me time to change and stretch.”

Alfred frowned. What was she up to?

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Welcome to Gotham, Knave!