Bug Bites

Chapter | Twenty-Seven

Nino Lahiffe had thought he'd seen everything he needed to see so far, hell even lived his worst fears but nothing truly prepared him for the storm that was Marinette Dupain-Cheng when she came back to the tower. Peter was trying to calm her down, but what scared Nino was the golden hue going off and on in her eyes as she tried to control the burst of anger she was feeling. Nino was going to guess that Peter spilled the beans, it was his best bet. 

Out of all the years he knew Marinette, she was always the sweetest girl. She would give the clothing off her back for someone if she had too out of the kindness of her heart. Then Ladybug and Chat Noir appeared and now that he understood, Nino realized that was when Marinette had started to change. She grew more quiet, less clumsy and more confident in things. She also became more secretive and held people away at a distance. Adrien had never been like that though, not that Nino knew him since they were kids like he knew Marinette. He just noted Adrien remained the same since they day they meet.

Nino wasn't scared to say it, out of everyone who got a miraculous it was Marinette left to bare the responsibilities of them on her shoulders. She was the one who was a true hero, and he knew this was her origin story they were living. Yes she had been ladybug, but that's only part of who she really was. She was so much more than Ladybug or the Guardian of the miraculous. Wayzz let him know that Master Fu always knew she was special, it was why she was sought out more often. These things that were happening always happened for a reason. 

Tony Stark was kidnapped and came back as Iron Man.

Bruce Banner was exposed to something in his lab and became the Hulk.

Natasha Romanoff was an unknown to Nino.

Steve Rogers was given a super solider serum and became Captain America. 

Marinette Dupain-Cheng was given the shortest end of the stick in life, but she was going to be one of the mightiest heroes this world had ever seen. Nino knew that, he knew Marinette's heart was pure and good.

"Why didn't you call me about it Tony?" Marinette asks, shaking Peter's hand off her shoulder. "God knows how long Luka has been missing, let alone in the hands of Lucas."

Tony gave her a look, "Because I knew this was exactly how you would react. You would get so upset you could loss control of these powers that you barely gotten use to having at your disposal." 

"That's not fair." Marinette mutters to him with a shake of her head, taking a deep breath. "That man can do anything he wants. He isn't mentally stable, so if he has Luka then who the hell even knows if he's alive!"

Tony could see her getting upset at this, and he could understand the reasonings. This was the same man that killed her parents, caused her to lose her kwami and turned her into a puppet to control. He could see the frustration in her eyes just wanting to be released into the world, but she was keeping the anger at bay. As much as he wanted to treat her like Peter, the fact was that she was dealing with a much more serious situation. She had been living this life of a hero since she was thirteen, and she was nearly eighteen now. It was five years of experience and maturity she had on everyone else besides Adrien, but even then Tony knew she dealt with more of the brutal repercussions. 

"That's not all." Adrien had to open his mouth, and Tony already knew exactly what the blonde was going to tell the spitfire waiting to burst, but then he hesitated looking unsure. Like he didn't have a death wish. Smart.

"Spit it out."

"He also purchased the property of your parent's bakery. He owns it now." Apparently Kagami had a death wish.

Marinette stared at her as she processed the words that came from Kagami's mouth, and for a moment Marinette swore she saw red. She felt the anger run through her veins and the invasion Lucas had just done on a whole new level. He had entered that bakery, where she grew up and where her parents used to wake up to lived their lives until they couldn't. He ended their lives in that very building, and changed hers forever. The audacity of buying the bakery, it was most definitely to get her there. She didn't care, this ended.