Adrien gets a little more information than he bargained for in this chapter. After all life finds it really funny to throw you curve balls. In other news... Still alive and another year older! Teaching really takes it out of you though. I don't think I've ever been happier for Thanksgiving break to arrive!
SunshineMLB... I am not a math person at all. My worst subject in school was probably Algebra and that's what they have me teaching. Lol i'm having to relearn a good quarter of it before I teach it the next day...
kitty... Hope you got your homework done!
(Slow Burn Detective AU!) Marinette is used to working alone on the streets of Paris as she strives to take down the Hawkmoth gang. When the thief Chat Noir comes crashing into her life things are bound to get magical, especially when co-detective Adrien returns to Paris and seems to want to be her new partner. Will their fated partnership end in a capture or a kiss?
Old Wounds
Adrien wasn't sure what exactly Marinette was about to confide in him. When his father had mentioned the name while berating Marinette he had simply made a mental note to ask her about him later. When they started fighting it was the only thing that had popped into his head and now he was sort of regretting asking. So far he hadn't come across the name Theo in any records and as of yet he hadn't met anyone named Theo either. The fact that she had referred to him in the past tense and sounded so sad while doing so… Adrien had a feeling that whatever Marinette was preparing to tell him, he wasn't going to like it. It seemed to take an age for her to collect her thoughts and Adrien jumped slightly when she finally began to speak.
"I met Theo in college." Marinette began her voice laden with mixed emotions. "He was like an older brother initially although after hanging out with him for a while he made it clear he was interested in something more."
Adrien gritted his teeth and refused to say a word even as jealousy bubbled through his veins as the sheer affection Marinette seemed to have for this boy.
"I never was interested since I wasn't the best student, I was foolishly doing two different internships and honestly… I just never had any time to date. I had also met you by then and since I was trying to work up my courage to ask you out, I made sure he understood that I was simply his friend. The idiot was accepting of that fact even if he did push my buttons at times but we remained fairly close even as I started working with Tiki. By that time we had been friends for a few years and I was trying to help him settle down but Theo… he just didn't mesh well with any job or degree. He was so good at so many things but Theo just couldn't settle with one. He would get bored and drop whatever he was doing on a whim so he couldn't even really hold down a job for long. He just… he was like a copycat. Then one day he walked into Tikis office with big news. He never really explained himself so I don't know what all his motives were but he started working in different gangs." Marinette's voice grew darker and Adrien didn't have to wonder why. "One thing I knew from the start was Theo had a taste for dangerous exciting things, from parkour or sky diving, to more dangerous things, like becoming a spy within the gangs world. It started off innocently enough, before I realized what he was up to. He would have a tip or a location leading to a breakthrough in a case or sometimes the tip allowed us to prevent something bad from happening. It was a game to him, an exciting, dangerous game and being as naïve as I was towards him I just didn't see it at first until he came into the office with his news that day. Tiki had realized what he was doing right off the bat and she tried her best to get him to join the Whisperers since they would train him, help him if needed, but he always refused. He always said that I was the only person he would gather information for and he really thought nothing could touch him. By that time I understood what he was doing and since I couldn't stop him, I thought that if I gave him easy tasks to keep him busy it would keep him safe too. It worked for a while, it wasn't until he joined the Hawkmoth gang that things started to spiral out of control."
"What?" Adrien asked the words slipping from him in breathless horror.
Marinette nodded from her prone position, dropping the arm over her eyes to the floor. "You heard me right. He joined the Hawkmoth gang, saying that he would be my inside man and I… I was terrified for him. I ordered him to back off, to get out. I even refused to follow the leads he brought me because I didn't want him in that cesspit. I-I don't know what I could have done differently to try and get him to get out but at that point, I don't think there was anything I could have done barring arresting him myself. It was like, the more I asked him to stop the more determined he was to prove he could be the best spy ever. It was Tiki's decision to start using his tips because in all honesty they were great tips. We were able to break up several illegal rings the Hawkmoth gang had involved themselves in and made arrests for high profile members we never would have seen without his help. Little by little Tiki and I were pruning back the Hawkmoth gang. Making their far reaching tendrils collapse back on themselves. It was… fantastic. Everything that I had ever wanted to do was falling into place. With Tiki at my side, Theo on the inside and the Whisperers at our back I truly thought we could end the Hawkmoth gang. Their influence was shrinking and that's what started the skirmishes."
"Skirmishes?" Adrien wondered aloud as Marinette took a deep breath.
"It's the easiest way to describe them." She confirmed "Other gangs saw how the Hawkmoth gang was weakening and they all wanted their pound of flesh so to speak. The Hakmoth gang had grown quite strong and vicious towards others since your father had brought them to their knees the last time so the more Tiki and I got in the gangs way the more we realized just how big and sneaky the gang had become. It wasn't a pretty picture but as we forced the Hawkmoth gang back it created a power vacuum. The Whisperers tried to help but they don't want to become a gang in charge of a city, they weren't ready for that kind of power, they still aren't according to them, so other people started making their own bids to fill the hole. Hawkmoth members started to get attacked and their leader, whoever they are, set several plans in motion that led to the deaths of dozens of other gang members across the city in retaliation. It incited a multi gang war and Tiki and I were held to blame. Gabriel ordered us to back off since our lives were being threatened but then Theo came through with some information that could end it all. There had been rumors that the leader of the Hawkmoth gang's leader was going to meet with the heads of the other gangs. No one knew when or where except Theo had overheard a conversation he wasn't meant to. Hawkmoth was supposedly picking a location to host the other leaders and he was going to check it out first. Then if the location was good he was inviting the other gang leaders there for the chat. We still don't know for sure if the person behind Hawkmoth is a man or a woman so at the time it was exactly the news we desperately needed in order to take the gang down completely."
Adrien flinched and suddenly things started clicking into place. "Hawkmoth knew they had a leak and it was a trap wasn't it?"
Marinette sat up the look in her eyes bleak. "Yes, it was a trap. A rather good one too since he had allowed news of this meeting to be circulated long before Theo came to us with this piece of information. They must have had a list of suspects and given them each a different location. Once that was done all they had to do was wait for one of them to spill the beans so the trap could be sprung. Tiki and I cased the place first and that's what must have tipped them off to Theo being the informant. Tiki and I were being careful of course, we treated this tip the same as any other and cross checked it. It came back solid and the chance to take the person leading the Hawkmoth gang out was too tempting of an offer. We brought the information to Gabriel and he was worried about it being a trap so he gave his approval but we were only to do recon. We were told to prioritize figuring out who Hawkmoth was since any man or woman could show up claiming to be Hawkmoth. If we could get a meeting time for the gang leaders, names, or anything like that it would be better than just arresting the person that showed up and hoping it truly was Hawkmoth."
"My father didn't want you to arrest Hawkmoth?" Adrien asked sounding shocked.
"I know…" Marinette sighed "I was shocked too but your father is a tactical genius. His plans and ideas almost always end up with the best results. Tiki and I decided to go with his plan and only make an arrest if we were 100% sure it was Hawkmoth. Unfortunately, things didn't go the way they were supposed to."
Seeing the tension in Marinette's body Adrien scooted closer reaching one arm out in invitation.
Marinette took his invitation and leaned against him allowing his arm to fall around her shoulders. When she spoke again her voice was softer, more somber, "The day we moved in for our recon I got an emergency call from Theo. I didn't catch it in time to answer and the message he left was panicked. He had been ousted as a spy and he needed my help. Tiki… Tiki told me to go. I didn't want to leave her alone on the recon but she reminded me that the people we connect with are the ones we have to protect the most."
"You guys split up." Adrien whispered the realization of what Marinette was telling him blind siding him. Her words from their raid, her fear and anger when he suggested they split up suddenly made sense in the worst possible way.
Marinette had to force the words past the lump in her throat. "Yes, we did. I went to Theo's apartment since he said he was there while Tiki remained to do the recon. I was going to join up with her once I had Theo in a safe place."
Falling silent Marinette shivered slightly and Adrien pulled her closer. "If you don't want to tell me right now what happened, its ok Marinette. I can tell it still hurts you to talk about it."
To his surprise Marinette shoulders relaxed and she blew out a breath. "No, you need to know and very little of what actually happened is in the report. Either I tell you or you won't know. I'm just glad that I know you will believe me is all."
"I'll always believe in you Marinette." Adrien murmured rubbing a hand down her back, giving her the encouragement she needed to keep telling her story.
"I went to Theo's apartment and when I arrived his door was unlocked and open. His apartment was dark inside and I had this awful feeling that I was going to turn the corner and find his body at any second." Marinette shook her head sadly, "I should have been more careful but I was worried for Tiki and scared for Theo and I wasn't being rational. I should have suspected something when I called his phone and it led me to a room in the very back. His phone was sitting on the ledge in front of the one open window in the room." Marinette looked up at Adrien her eyes full of unshed tears. "Theo wasn't there but someone from the Hawkmoth gang was. I didn't even have a chance to fight back and dumb luck is the only thing that saved my life that day. There were two shooters waiting in the closet for someone to walk into the light of the open window and create the perfect target. They shot me. I got hit once in the chest right over my heart while the other shooter aimed for my head. I had the vest on though so when the first bullet caught me it knocked me back and sideways. The movement was just enough that the other bullet slashed past the side of my skull instead of blowing my brains out as planned. They used silencers but they made the mistake of leaving the window open since it was a cool day. I don't actually remember any of this but we assume I fell backwards out the window and landed on the persons balcony below. Again, luckily they had padded patio furniture, which I broke, so I wasn't killed upon impact. I just… bounced."
"You were unconscious?" Adrien asked his heart squeezing painfully at the thought of someone shooting her in cold blood.
Marinette nodded tapping the side of her head. "The bullet graze gave me an instant concussion and knocked me out. It also saved my life because head wounds bleed so horrifically. Since the Hawkmoth gang members couldn't climb down to the balcony to check whether I was actually still breathing, they could only do a visual and apparently I looked very dead to them with all the blood coming out of my head wound. They left and the poor homeowner was the one that found me almost 30 minutes later. They called for an ambulance and I finally came around as the EMT's showed up. Dislocated shoulder, bullet graze, concussion, cracked ribs, plus who knows how much blood I had lost by then. The EMTs were reasonably panicked when I demanded they sew me up and let me go before they had even popped my shoulder back in. I knew though, I knew that the Hawkmoth gang had set this plan in motion and I knew that their next target was Tiki. Tiki would have been there with me had she not stayed to do the recon instead and she would have been shot right alongside me. There were two shooters in that closet for a reason after all and the second shooter only missed because I was knocked back and they delayed shooting since they had been expecting two people. I needed to warn her but my phone had broken in the fall and the EMTs were reluctant to let me use one of their phones because in all honesty I probably sounded half nuts."
"And of course you didn't let them take you to the hospital." Adrien sighed shaking his head. He understood though and knew that in the same situation he would be reacting the same way.
Marinette took a deep breath, "No I didn't. When I realized that they were planning on tying me to the gurney to get me to the hospital I slipped from their grasp and went over the balcony using my Manriki. I probably took a dozen years off their lives with that move but I didn't want to hurt them for simply trying to do their jobs. I stole a car and rushed back to Tiki after doing some quick first aid on the scrape on my head but… I was too late. I could hear shots being fired as I rushed the building and the only reason I got the drop on the two men at the door was because they thought I was already dead. I don't know what happened in the hour or so that Tiki was left alone but I heard her scream as I rushed inside. I came around the corner and this… thing was standing there on all fours. It was a monster, an Akuma, and if I had known then what I knew now, I might not have been able to kill it."
"What do you mean?" Adrien asked
Marinettes eyes closed as her fists balled in her lap. "Akuma are transformed people. I don't know how they are transformed into these creatures in the first place but they were people."
"You found that out the hard way didn't you?" Adrien murmured unable to keep the surprise and admiration from his voice as the horrible pieces clicked into place. "You managed to kill the Akuma alone..."
A tear fell from Marinette's eyes splashing on her closed fist. "The Akuma had tossed Tiki into the wall. All I saw was her blood and when it turned to attack her again I just moved without thinking. I smashed it in the face with my manriki and the thing turned on me. I ran knowing instinctively that it was going to be too strong for me to kill alone. I had a half a mind to head back to the two men I'd knocked out and steal their guns but all I wanted at that moment was to lead it away from Tiki, give her a chance to run. Unfortunately, the Akuma was far faster then I bargained for. It slammed into me as I made it onto an open room and I fell onto some discarded pipes. It slashed me across the back and reared so it could bite my neck or maybe it was going to snap my spine… I really don't know, either way it was going to kill me. It gave me an opening though, when it reared, and somehow in that split instant I managed to twist around and bring one of the jagged pipes on the floor up into a spear position. The Akuma impaled itself on the pipe as it came down and instead of killing me it screamed before lurching off completely. It made it two steps tops before it died and this ooze started sloughing off of it before it even stopped twitching. The ooze left behind a very human shape and it was one I recognized. It was Theo. They had taken Theo, then turned him into an Akuma just so they could release him in time to attack and kill Tiki and I. I'm sure they were framing Theo for our deaths and were just going to kill him off as soon as we were dead. An inside man gone rogue or some garbage. In any case they had us both ways. Theo's apartment was one trap while the Akuma was the other. No matter which avenue we chose that night at least one of us were going to be killed."
Adrien lifted Marinette's chin and wiped at the tears that slid in silence down her cheeks. He didn't want to ask but he had to know. "Tiki?"
Fresh tears spilled down Marinette cheeks while her voice held a hint of a sob. "She was alive when I got back to her although she had lost far too much blood. Somehow I managed to get her up and carried her to the car then proceeded to break just about every automobile law I know in an attempt to get her to the hospital in time. I carried her in and collapsed. I gave them as much information as I could but the doctors all thought I was delusional and rambling, I probably was at that point, I remember seeing double as they loaded me onto a gurney. Either way I lost consciousness and when I woke up it was to the news that Theo and Tiki were dead and Hawkmoth had had his meeting with the other gang leaders. They were all found dead in a shipping container with a bow and note on the door for the police saying 'You're Welcome.'"
"Oh, Marinette." Adrien murmured wrapping his arms round her fully as she buried her face into his chest and sobbed.
Marinette couldn't tell him everything, what she had told him was painful enough and she didn't know exactly how much she should reveal about the Akuma. Mentioning the bloody key Tiki had given Marinette, the one that led to the file that had opened her eyes to the miraculous was an off limits topic even for Adrien. Since getting her own Marinette couldn't help but wonder if maybe Tiki had been in possession of a miraculous stone when she had died. It hadn't been anything extreme but Marinette had noted more than once that Tiki had been getting faster, stronger than she had before. If she'd had a stone, it would have been lost in the hospital and Marinette had no way of tracking something like that now.
For a while Marinette's muffled sobs were the only sound in the room as Adrien just held Marinette and let her cry. She wasn't telling him absolutely everything he knew but what she had told him gave all of her actions so far new meaning. First and foremost, his Father was a bastard. Marinette had probably told Gabriel the whole story even if it had made her seem insane. The Hawkmoth case was a personal thing for Marinette now, as personal as it had been for Gabriel before her. The fact that he was forcing her to give it up to Roger was more than just punishment; it was a kind of torture. The only silver lining was that the file transfer was temporary and that he would be able to make sure Roger didn't tamper with any information in the file or add a bunch of nonsense. Marinette had quieted in the circle of Adrien's arms and he didn't have to ask if she was ok. He knew the answer already and it wasn't a good one. She was half curled into his lap her face pressed halfway into to his chest her ear now over his heart.
Softly her voice filtered up to him one last time, "The only good thing that came out of the whole mess was all the precincts came together and came down hard on the Hawkmoth gang. The other gangs had been thrown a nasty blow with the deaths of their leaders so for the past year or so gang activity has been at an all time low."
"But now the activity has spiked again." Adrien noted allowing Marinette to shift as she sat back upright wiping at her face. He wanted to wrap her in his arms again, pull her into his lap and give her the comfort she desperately needed but he couldn't really comfort her the way he wanted to here since there was a chance that someone might come upon them.
Taking a shuddering breath Marinette nodded. "It has, and Akuma have been popping up as well. If Roger takes you out on any crazed ventures make sure you are armed with something more than those black jacks you carry. My Manriki barely distracts Akuma long enough for me to haul butt away from them. Getting up close and personal is really not advised."
"I'll make sure I'm armed Marinette. Although I might be tempted to shoot Roger if he continues to act the same way he has. If I do kill him will you help me hide the body?" Adrien asked and was relieved when Marinette laughed, the pain of her story fading to the background once again.
They stood and since Marinette was feeling calmer and was far less liable to rip someone's head off they cleaned up the mess Marinette's rage had created before leaving the gym. Unfortunately, they had only made it halfway down the hall when Roger stepped out of the stairwell a scowl on his face.
"What are you doing down here?" Marinette hissed the sheer venom in her voice making Roger pause mid-step.
Swallowing Roger forced himself to relax, "I came to collect the Hawkmoth case so I can actually get some real work done."
"The only person I will relinquish the Hawkmoth case to is Adrien. You will only screw things up. I remember the atrocious way you tried to organize things when you were my partner. Adrien will keep you from doing the same to my case. And don't try explaining how things will be any different now, just look at how you handled Chloe's kidnapping." Marinette snapped starting to head for the staircase since she was in no mood to have any sort of pleasant conversation.
Adrien followed in her wake determined to ignore Roger completely. In another time they might have gotten away without an altercation but Roger had been snubbed one too many times that day and all at once Roger hit his limit. Adrien was already past but Marinette was just barely within arm's reach when Roger's hand shot out and grabbed her.
"Listen here you insignificant-" Roger started hauling Marinette back towards him.
Adrien barely turned in time to see Marinette strike. One punch took Roger to his knees gasping for air since she'd hit him right in the solar plexus but before he could fall totally forward Marinette's hand tangled in his shirt front. With a terrifying ease she hauled him up so he was nose to nose with her, while supporting his entire weight with one arm. Even gasping for air Roger recognized the strength in her movements and paled considerably.
"I am going to tell you one last time Roger." Marinette stated coldly shaking him slightly for emphasis. "If you dare touch me again without my explicit permission, I will break your arm. I am infuriated by your stupidity and if Adrien wasn't a witness I swear I would beat you black and blue right here."
"Y-you wouldn't dare!" Roger whined trying to catch Adrien's gaze and plead for assistance.
"Marinette I think I will meet you in your office." Adrien commented lightly heading for the stairs.
It ranked him more than a little to actually leave Marinette in Rogers presence alone but Roger had been warned and since he was still making it his mission to piss Marinette off to the point of violence Adrien was more than ready to let her kick his ass. After all he had already taken his licks from her once today and that was more than enough. Beside Adrien knew Marinette wouldn't actually kill Roger. At least he hoped she wouldn't.
Roger looked horrified going limp in Marinette's grip and even as Adrien disappeared into the stairwell, Marinette hissed in disappointment. It would be too easy to absolutely beat Roger to a pulp here and now but she knew that while it would make her feel better the little snake would go tattle the second he came back to consciousness. She really would be fired then since touching someone against their will didn't allow for the other to beat them mercilessly. Still… she could dream. Tossing Roger back away from her in case he tried to do something stupid like kick her, Marinette glared down at him. "I don't have time to deal with you but if you do anything that gets Adrien hurt in the next two weeks I will find you and personally double whatever damage has been done to him on you. Understand?!"
Roger scrambled back away from Marinette all bravado gone from him as he nodded. He hadn't seen Marinettes punch, had barely seen her move, and the power behind that blow could have cracked a rib if she had hit him higher. At the moment he felt as if he'd been hit by a sledgehammer and was still trying to catch his breath as Marinette gazed at him with barely contained rage. All the threats she had made were suddenly very possible and Roger hated that he was actually a little afraid of Marinette.
"I understand." Roger panted out through gritted teeth mentally vowing revenge for this slight.
"Good." Marinette stated shortly turning away and heading for the stairs. Her hands were balled into fists as she forced herself to walk away. Gabriel would not forgive her if she beat the living tar out of Roger at the precinct. But so help her if she found Roger slinking around some dark alley Marinette was fairly certain he wouldn't make it out with all of his teeth. Adrien was waiting for her in her office and the first thing he did was look over her knuckles for any blood.
"Should I send a medic down there to scrape what's left of Roger off the ground?" Adrien asked
Marinette dropped into her chair with a growl. "No your father really would toss me out if I beat his prized pig to a pulp."
Adrien snorted at her words and even though she shot a glare at him he couldn't keep his sniggers contained. It was such a colorful, apt description that Adrien simply couldn't help himself. With a bit of a sigh Marinette let him get his giggles out even as she tried to force herself to relax. Her dual with Adrien had left her badly bruised but it had curbed her fury. Rogers appearance had rekindled that fury but she nor Adrien could handle another bout. They were both bruised from the raid and the bout, plus Marinette had a feeling that she'd probably reopened the wound on her thigh too.
"I need to head home. If I stay any longer there is a real good chance that I will actually injure Roger rather than just threatening him." Marinette sighed letting her eyes close.
"If you have anything that has to come in I'll bring it for you tomorrow." Adrien offered
"Sounds good." Marinette said forcing herself up out of her chair. Reaching into her pocket Marinette pulled out her keys and removed the ones for her office. "These will be returned to me as soon as I come back although at this point I should probably just give you Tiki's old set. You're probably going to need a place to hide from Roger. Just make sure to lock up anything when you leave. There are terrible pen thieves in this place."
Adrien knew that pen thieves weren't what Marinette was actually concerned about but he nodded sagely and accepted the keys before dropping his voice to a whisper. "How much do you want me to let Roger see of the Hawkmoth case?"
"The one that's open for everyone to see. I don't want him snooping in here or through my Hawkmoth file. I didn't trust him with the full version when he was my partner and I certainly don't trust him now. I'm sorry by the way, that your father put you with him." Marinette murmured keeping her voice just as low since her office door was open. People were less curious about the two of them these days since Adrien had spent so much time in here but there was always a chance for someone getting a little too nosey.
Adrien shrugged "My father wanted to punish me in some way without it being obvious so this was his way of doing so. I'm sorry you were suspended. I pushed you into doing the run, I should have taken the blame and punishment. Instead I got a slap on the wrist."
"No Adrien." Marinette sighed cupping his cheek long enough to force his attention on her. "Don't think that this could have turned out any other way. We saved lives and there was no way in hell I was letting Roger do that warehouse raid with so little information. This would have been the end result no matter what. I think he went a little easy on me because you were there actually."
Adrien frowned in disbelief but it wasn't a point he was willing to argue with Marinette about. "I want to leave with you."
"You can't. Try not to kill Roger. No maiming either." Marinette added as an afterthought. "Roger will report anything he can to Gabriel to try and get you further in hot water. He seems like one of those people who will hold onto a grudge so pretend to be cordial."
Adrien grimaced but at Marinette's insistent stare he sighed "Fine, fine, I'll do my best to behave. In return however you are not allowed to get involved in anything dangerous without me."
Marinette snorted. "I plan to bake cookies, catch up on my sewing, and help some of the kids at the running zone. Oh and have dinner with my parents since Alya guilt tripped me into it. You are invited by the way."
That invitation made Adrien jolt to attention. "Invited? To dinner with your parents? W-what do I wear?!"
Marinette laughed at his panicked look. "Wear whatever you want. I mean we eat in the living room and play mecha strike as we catch up on each other's lives. It's not a big deal."
Adrien did not look mollified in the least but he didn't look quite as panicked as he uttered, "Oh… Ok then… so like business casual?"
Marinette face palmed but his nervousness was catching on to her because she suddenly realized that Adrien would be the first boy she had ever brought home to meet her parents properly. "J-just do jeans and a nice shirt. No tie, no stone face, but bring your best game face if you want to play mecha strike. A-anyway, I need to go down to Archives and tell Rose about our new rearrangements. I'll head out after so don't forget to lock the doors and turn off the lights when you finally get to leave today ok?"
Adrien grabbed her hand as she passed and pressed a kiss to her knuckles. "I promise to hold down the fort Princess."
A blush swept across her cheeks making Adrien smile even as she pulled her hand away. "You and your damn nick names. Behave."
Snagging her jacket on the way out Marinette paused at the door. "I'll see you tonight ok? Text me when you get out if you feel up to it."
Adrien smiled and nodded "I will although I should go check on Chloe in the hospital."
Marinette grimaced "I'll let you do that alone. I'm pretty sure she will want to see you alone and not have me hanging in the wings."
Adrien frowned but realized she was probably right. "I'll just tell her you send your regards and hope she feels better."
"Sounds good Adrien, see you later." Marinette said and vanished around the door frame.
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