And now you will see what kind of idea I've had for Marlena's backstory. In this chapter I've covered some of my headcanons about her.
To be fair, while writing this thing I felt like I was making Wild Knuckles and Nefario a bit misogynistic. Tell me if that's the case.
Please review!
Who is Marlena Gru?
For a moment Marlena was silent; she was only observing her interlocutor intensively. After such a confession, Nefario expected for her to be nervous and alert. He, for sure, felt tense, after all, now he either obtain some useful information or get killed (or worse yet – fired). Everything depended on what will be Marlena's next move.
She chuckled lightly, leaned her back comfortably on the sofa and gave doctor a smile.
"And should I believe that all those questions are born from a simple curiosity? Or maybe you're fascinated with me after all, doctor Nefario? No, I don't think so." She gave a soft sigh. "I guess my foolish son isn't a good judge of character. He hired a secret agent. He will be so devastated when he finds out, but, oh well…"
Nefario clenched his fists. He tried not to show how much the idea of betraying Gru or the boy thinking the mad scientist betrayed him, made him angry and uncomfortable.
"Maybe he will learn something from it." Marlena went on. "Like that only those brainless corn abominations will find his ideas even remotely interesting."
Nefario clenched his fists even tighter and tried to regain some composure. However it was hard with every passing moment.
"Honestly, he wants to be a supervillain? He has as much chance to become one as to become an astronaut."
"What did she just say?!" Wild Knuckles screamed, making Nefario flinch from the noise. "I'm going to throw hands!"
Normally Nefario would say something about hitting defenseless, middle-aged women, but this time he didn't say anything. Partly because he didn't want to reveal that he was talking to somebody, and partly because he was wondering how can a mother say such things about her child.
"How would you know, Mrs. Gru?" He asked barely masking his irritation. "Have you even looked at his projects lately? Or at his grades, for that matter? Or were you busy doing nothing, while your own son is doing all the work?"
"Fuck yeah! Tell the bitch how it is!" Wild Knuckles exclaimed, but this time the inventor didn't flinch at the loudness in his earpiece.
Meanwhile Marlena's eyes widened with shock and right after that she frowned.
"I beg your pardon, doctor Nefario? You dare to judge me in my own house?"
"I see how it is, Mrs. Gru. Your underage son is working while you're not. Giving that there is no Mr. Gru or any other adult relative, the responsibility for financial support falls on you. And yet I don't see you working."
"You have a lot of nerve, doctor. Then again, you are a man. First you, men, make it hard for a woman to get a job, then you complain that she's unemployed."
"So you just gave up?"
"Maybe my job is a bit different. Maybe just because you don't see me going to the office every day, it doesn't mean I don't earn my own money. Have you thought about it, doctor Nefario?"
"Is she implying she works in the world's oldest profession?" Wild Knuckles asked.
"The mere thought that I would be financially dependent on this twelve year old loser makes me sick." Marlena explained. "No, doctor Nefario, I have my own income. In fact, I've got us this little house and myself a nice car only with my wits."
Nefario started to think about what he just heard. Was Marlena Gru really working in the world's oldest profession? All those men coming to Marlena would certainly indicate it. However, they didn't seem like the types that would seek such entertainment. And it mostly looked like they were the ones providing services to Marlena and not the other way around (of course, some people had weird tastes when it comes to sex, but in this case the men were really doing the jobs they were claiming to do; they weren't just playing out a scene). No, they weren't her clients. If anything there was something more to it. He already had some theories about it.
Suddenly Marlena took pack of cigarettes out of her pocket a and put one of the cigarettes in her mouth.
"Well, one thing is for sure." She found the lighter in her other pocket and lighted the cigarette. Only then she said: "If you really are a spy, doctor Nefario, then you're a really lousy one."
"How so?" He asked a bit curious.
"How long are you with us, doctor? Three, four weeks? And you've already compromised your mission by getting emotionally attached to one of your targets." A puff of smoke escaped her mouth and then she used the ashtray. "A real rookie mistake if I say so myself. But it can happen even to the best."
Nefario smiled to his own thoughts.
"Did it happen to you too?" He asked suddenly, gaining raised eyebrows from Mrs. Gru.
He was expecting her to deny it. Instead she released another puff of smoke and smiled too.
"Ah, so you figured that out, after all? You really are a smart man." She gave a soft sigh and looked at him coldly. "The question now, doctor, is what you're going to do with that information. I'm still deliberating whenever you are a spy or not. You may not work for AVL, but you could be sent here by someone who doesn't wish me or my family well." She eyed him from up to down and said: "Then again, if you plan to kill me now or in near future, showing your hand so early was a bad move. And what did you even want to accomplish by approaching me so openly in the first place? Do you seriously think I will now tell you everything?"
"Come to think of it, yeah. It wasn't your best move." Wild Knuckles agreed.
"Well," He began, giving her a crooked smile. "I did learn something today, didn't I?" He got serious and added: "In truth, I just wanted to understand you better, Mrs. Gru. Believe it or not, I work only for your son and I'm loyal only to him."
Once again her eyes examined him.
"Yes, of that I'm certain. As I said earlier, you're compromised, doctor." She used the ashtray again. "As you probably realize, my son has no father. So maybe some male presence will do him some good."
Doctor Nefario raised his eyebrows. Probably for the first time she said something indicating that she cared about her son.
"At least he won't be so whiny."
Aaaand the good impression was gone.
"There is one last thing I need to know, Mrs. Gru." Nefario began. "Why are you so mean to your son? Is it because of his father?"
"Ha!" She chuckled loudly. "Are you also a psychiatrist, doctor?"
"I just want to know where this disdain for your own child comes from." He replied.
"Well, you've figured out so much already… What fun it would be if I just tell you everything? Besides," She got serious. "the relationship with my son is none of your business, doctor."
"This is a really mixed message, to be honest." The inventor said.
Even though her cigarette wasn't completely finished yet, she put it out on the ashtray a little more forceful than it was necessary. Then she gave doctor Nefario cold gaze.
"Well then, doctor, just focus on Gru and your work, and leave me alone."
Someone rang the doorbell and Marlena immediately froze.
"Oh, I forgot." She said. "Paul, my fitness instructor comes today." She turned to Nefario. "You better hide someone until we go upstairs."
"I have some work to do either way." The scientist raised from his seat and directed to the basement door in the hall.
"Just so you know," Marlena said after Nefario, making him stop. "I don't trust you. From now on I will have my eyes on you, doctor."
He didn't say anything, he just gave her one last look and went to the basement. As he was going down, he heard the front door opening and Marlena greeting another of her hopeless suitors.
"Well, that was a disaster." Wild Knuckles said, as Nefario entered the lab.
"Not necessarily." The scientist approached the blackboard and picked up the chalk. "I actually have some theory."
"Theory?" Wild Knuckles raised his eyebrows.
"This is what we know so far. We know that she uses pheromones to seduce men." Nefario wrote pheromones on the blackboard and then turned to his interlocutor. "She was quick to assume that I'm a secret agent and some of the things she said indicate that she was one once too." He wrote spy? and went on: "She mentioned that if I'm a spy, then I compromised the mission, because I started to care for Gru. That it happens even to great spies. Now, given that she has those pheromones, I guess that seduction was her Modus Operandi. So my theory is that when she was a spy in her youth, she fell in love with someone that she was supposed to infiltrate or even kill." He wrote word love and circled it. Then he connected pheromones, spy? and love with arrows, turned back to Wild Knuckles and asked: "What do you think?"
"Well, I figured the same thing when you were talking with her upstairs." The old villain replied, unimpressed. "How is your theory going to help us?"
Nefario didn't reply right away, but when Wild Knuckles looked at the blackboard again, something in his mind clicked. The scientist noticed that his friend had a revelation and smiled. Then he wrote with big letters the last word: FATHER.
"That one might be tough." Wild Knuckles commented. "He's either dead, or in hiding. Some guys go into great lengths to avoid fatherhood. And since he was a target of some secret agency, then he probably is someone important or dangerous."
"Do you think he might be a supervillain?" Nefario asked.
"Maybe." The old man rubbed his chin. "But we need something to go on."
"We can try with genetics. We need to exclude those traits that Gru shares with Marlena and what will be left we can use to identify as his father's traits. Then we would be able to know what to look for. Is there some kind of database for supervillains?"
"AVL for sure, but we don't have enough resources to break into them." Wild Knuckles said and added: "There is also a guy who deals with information. I can try to arrange a meeting with him."
"Perfect!" Nefario exclaimed. "So you will do that and I will try to determine what we are looking for exactly." Suddenly enthusiasm left him and he seemed worried. "But should we even try to do all of this behind Gru's back? This is his biological father we are talking about."
Wild Knuckles thought about it for a moment. He assumed that they won't tell Gru that they were going to talk with his mother. Given that the original plan was for Nefario to seduce Marlena, the kid would have never allowed it to happen. Hell, it would probably be for the best, if he didn't know.
Maybe my job is a bit different. Maybe just because you don't see me going to the office every day, it doesn't mean I don't earn my own money. Have you thought about it, doctor Nefario?
Gru really tried to keep his mad scientist as far from his mother as possible. Hell, he even told Wild Knuckles to be wary of Marlena and the old villain could understand that. Gru didn't want for the two adult men he grew to like to become Marlena's new partners.
And frankly, Wild Knuckles wasn't interested in the boy's mother in any way. Not only because she was past her prime, but mostly because she had a really nasty character. He couldn't stand her even when he was listening to her in the safety of the lair. There was no way he would stand her, being in the same room as her.
But he was more than happy to send Nefario to her. What it was saying about him then?
Maybe they really should tell the kid about what they were planning to do? Then again, how they were going to explain why they went to her mother? "We've tried to find out why your mother is such a bitch to you.", may not fly. Besides…
"If we tell him we will look for his father, he might get his hopes up." Wild Knuckles started. "And then, if the man is a dick and don't want to have anything to do with his own kid, Gru will get hurt. No, we should keep it from him, at least for now."
"Yes, you're right." Nefario admitted. "We will tell him, when we clear few things up."
The older man nodded. Yes, that was a good plan.
The conversation with doctor Nefario completely ruined Marlena's mood, so she sent Paul off earlier. Now she was lying on her bed, thinking about this whole incident.
Before today she thought that her son's resident mad scientist was hot… in his own nerdy way. She actually wanted to get a taste of him for quite some and maybe he could prove to be useful around here. The fact that he turned out to be immune to her perfume ruined her plans. Moreover – even though she rejected the idea that he might be a spy, he still could be dangerous in the long run. She didn't like it when she couldn't control men around her.
What will you do now, my dear? Those pheromones of yours are useless now.
Well, I can still kick your ass…
She bit his lip at the memory. Great, she only need him here. She hated thinking about that damn bastard, especially because she put so much effort to get a new life. They both agreed it would be for the best to forget about each other, but sometimes it proved to be harder than she thought. It was bad enough that her firstborn was getting more and more similar to him…
I don't think you're really what you seem either, Mrs. Gru…
She gave a soft sigh. This was probably the first real conversation she had with a man (who wasn't her son) over a really long time. On the one hand, it confirmed to her, once again, that she preferred her men obedient and hopelessly in love with her, but on the other hand it was kind of refreshing to once again engage in a battle of wits.
Have you even looked at his projects lately? Or at his grades, for that matter?
She didn't know just yet if she liked Nefario being so protective of Gru. On the one hand, the man was asking too many uncomfortable questions, on the other… maybe now, that her son had some actual male role model, he will stop being so similar to certain bastard from her past. Either way, it would be better to keep an eye on Nefario.
The sound of the built-in secret elevator being used signalized the return of Gru. Nefario quickly erased the words from the blackboard and came back to one of his projects, while Wild Knuckles pretended he was doing push-ups. Minions on the other hand, gathered around the elevator's entrance to greet their Mini-Boss. However, when the elevator doors opened there was a sudden commotion among the little critters. A commotion indicating that something happened. Wild Knuckles and Nefario looked in Gru's direction and quickly realized what was going on.
Gru was crying.
Dun-dun-dun!
The next chapter will probably have some scenes between Wild Knuckles and Gru, because there's not enough of those.
Also, tell me, if you want Robert Gru in this fic. I have some idea of how I can handle him so the continuity can be left intact (it suffered enough), but, honestly, I don't like it the idea of him showing up all that much.