Gotham's Own Ladybug

Nine

The sound of Alfred placing down plates was the only noise in the dining room, where Bruce, Damian and Marinette were sat. The two teens were beside each other, with Bruce on their right at the head of the table.

"I'm so sorry for the mess in the kitchen, Monsieur Wayne," Marinette started. "I'll help clean it up."

"Call me Bruce, Marinette," the man requested. "And I assure you, you have no need to apologise. It isn't the first time one of the boys has created trouble in the kitchen."

"But it was my fault, not Dami's!"

"Nonsense, Angel. I was the one who got icing on you first, which caused the whole mess," Damian spoke, bringing the blame on himself.

"I asked to bake in the room though, so if I didn't, it wouldn't be as messy as we made it," she explained.

Bruce broke in with his calm voice. "It's okay, Marinette. I'm not putting the blame on anyone. Besides, the mess might have been worth it to eat these macaroons."

Marinette blushed. "You like them?" she asked.

"Definitely! Why, they might be on par with Alfred's baking."

That caused her to giggle, as she added in, "I might be on the fence about that. His were amazing as well!"

Damian watched her beam, feeling his lips twitch upwards.

"If I may ask, where did you learn how to bake like this?" Bruce questioned, to which Marinette slightly froze up.

However, she plastered a smile on her face and replied, "My parents - they loved baking," after around a second of deliberation.

"I thought you lived with your aunts?"

"Yeah, they look after me now, Dami. Even though they're a bit different from my Maman and Papa, they're still very nice to me!" Marinette revealed, now with a more genuine expression of joy.

She lost her parents? Oh, gosh. Don't tell me...

Damian snuck a glance at his father, and, sure enough, the man seemed to be looking at his friend in a way that was all too familiar.

Bruce, making out that the topic appeared to be sensitive, steered it away by quizzing, "Do you have any other hobbies, apart from baking?"

"Oh, yeah! I'm really into fashion design, actually!" the girl enthused, oblivious to Damian's inner suffering. "I was drawing on the way here, and mainly got inspiration from the stone statues everywhere."

"Really? Can I see your drawings?"

"O-Oh yeah. Of course," Marinette fumbled, reaching for the sketchbook within her backpack.

Holding out the pad, she glanced to the side whilst Bruce filed through the pages, nervous about his reaction.

The other teenager subtly reached his had out beneath the table, grabbing Marinette's in a soft hold. She let out a slight gasp, but relaxed when she realised who's it was.

"These are fantastic, Marinette," he praised. "I especially like the jacket that's design is based off of Robin."

"T-Thank you! My aunties told me what his costume looked like and I thought that the colour scheme would suit a piece of clothing."

Bruce side-eyed Damian faintly, his mouth upturning at the dark rouge blush displayed on his son's cheeks.

Before any more words could be exchanged, there was the clear sound of a door closing, followed by approaching footsteps.

"Good afternoon, Master Jason, Master Dick."

Damian, who's hand was now away from Marinette's, groaned internally, turning to face the door.

As he predicted, two men strolled into the room, both in casual attire. They both had startlingly blue eyes with jet black hair, though one male had a white streak contrasting with the rest of his fringe.

"Sup, Demon Spawn," Jason called, ruffling his brother's mop of hair.

He only grumbled, swatting away the hand as Richard said, "Manners, Jason."

The second-oldest brother suddenly seemed to take notice of Marinette, who was glancing back and forth between the people in the room with a thoughtful expression.

"Hello, you must be Damian's friend that we've heard about," Richard greeted. "My name is-"

"Richard, Dick for short. Dami told me about you," Marinette cut in, surprising him.

Jason sent a smug grin to Damian at the nickname that the girl had given him, prompting his cheeks to blush a pink hue whilst he levelled an ineffective glare.

"He has? I'm guessing he told you how 'annoying' I am," Dick guessed.

"Actually-"

"Angel, I think it's time we go and see Titus," Damian decided. "He should be in the garden, if I'm correct."

"Oooh, is he your dog?" Marinette asked, excitement laced in her tone.

"Yes, he is a Great Dane."

He pushed his chair back, the noise of scraping sounding in the manor. Taking her hand, he waited for her to stand before walking to the door.

"Wow, I'm hurt. Not introducing your friend?" Jason teased, taking Damian's shoulder.

He growled under his breath, maneuvering to get past the muscular male.

Marinette felt a strong hand lightly push her back, as a voice questioned, "Come on, Princess. Care to introduce yourself since Demon Spawn here won't?"

'Princess'?!

Damian's eyes widened, but he had no time to speak as his brother was now on the floor, having been flipped over Marinette's shoulder with ease.

Her breathing quickened, memories of a blond flooding her mind until she registered the quiet in the room. She glanced down, taking in the image, before sprinting out with Alfred taking note of the room she had gone to.

"Ooowww..."