Imposing black spires rose up, reaching into a gray sky. The large wrought iron gate at the front of the property proved equally stark. All in contrast to the beautiful grounds that stretched between the gates and the manor.
The gate was easy enough to bypass, despite the rather… extensive security measures. Seriously? Cameras, proximity sensors, and what looked like a way for the gate to be electrocuted? A bit much. Unfortunately, technology had nothing on magic.
Gabriel's security came to mind. She forced the thought down.
Marinette stepped out of a portal and onto the front step of the manor. Another camera here and a proximity sensor. Plus whatever was under the doormat. She almost bent down to check. Paused. Shook herself. She was stalling.
Not for the first time, her heart ached for her teammates. What she would have given to have Adrien beside her through this. To have Kagami at her back. Hell, even Chloe. They'd stop her from thinking this through. She probably wouldn't have even noticed the doormat if those three were with her. And she'd definitely be in the door already.
Cold wind pressed at her back instead of Kagami's comforting warmth. Darkness swarmed her vision to her left and right.
A breath. A raised fist. She had already put this off far too long. Her phone chimed in her pocket. She checked it quickly. Sure enough… it was her alarm set to midnight, Paris time. Her eighteenth birthday. She was out of excuses.
Gripping her phone tight, she raised her fist once more. And knocked.
"Unauthorized guest."
The table fell silent. In unison, Jason, Damian, Steph, Barb, and Duke snapped to Tim. Waiting. Expectantly. Bruce followed suit with a sigh. Tim only managed a sheepish grin and pulled his backup phone from where it was hidden under the table. Dick could suck it. Phones at the table were useful. He pulled up the cameras at the front door. "Uh… it's just a girl? No alerts went off at the gate though."
"Aw, did someone outmaneuver your security?" Jason smirked, leaning back in his chair with his arms crossed. The picture of nonchalance. Tim knew better.
"Our security is top-notch," Barb said. She wheeled herself around the table to peer over Tim's shoulder. "Getting through without alerting anything is… almost impossible."
"Almost?" Damian growled. "It should be impossible. If our entire family is in danger because you failed to-"
Bruce stood. "Enough." Damian's mouth snapped shut. "I requested a singular blindspot to allow for our escape from the property in the event our security is taken over."
A scoff. Bruce's dark eyes turned to Jason. From the set of his jaw to the tension in his biceps, everyone knew what was coming. Another one of Bruce and Jason's explosive arguments. The aftermath of which could last from days to weeks.
"Ookayyyy." Steph clapped to get everyone's attention. "Leaving a girl out in the cold isn't very good manners is it?"
"Quite right, Miss Brown." Stepping from the hallway, Alfred came into view. "Master Tim, your assessment?"
"Uh… I mean. She doesn't look like a threat? But she bypassed all of our defenses and I can't find her on any other cameras other than when she first walks into frame on the door cam."
"She knocked." Now, the table swiveled to face Duke. He held up his hands in defense. "What? I'm just saying, if I was an assassin I wouldn't knock!"
Damian begrudgingly nodded his agreement.
"Alfred, let the girl in," Bruce sighed. "Tim, Barbara, run facial recognition. See what you can find. Stephanie, Damian, Duke, stand by in the foyer."
"And me?"
Bruce glanced at Jason from the corner of his eye. Without a word, he turned on his heel and swept from the dinner table. Jason roughly pushed out of his seat to follow a moment later.
The five of them left sat awkwardly. It wasn't unusual for dinner to end this way by any means. Both the argument and unexpected vigilante work. Or, he supposed this wouldn't necessarily be vigilante work. Did it count if it only happened because everyone in the house was a paranoid bastard? Probably not.
A soft tap on his arm pulled him from his thoughts. He met Barbara's expectant gaze and quickly stood to follow her as she rolled to the cave. By the time he collapsed into his usual chair by the supercomputer, Alfred was at the door. Barbara used the left monitor to pull up their facial recognition software while Tim simply analyzed the interaction before him.
The girl was tiny. Tim knew better than to assume that meant she was harmless. Her features were young. Maybe she hadn't hit her growth spurt yet? But steel reflected in her eyes, visible even through a screen. The same steel he saw in the eyes of his brothers.
Alfred didn't seem to recognize the girl, at first. He greeted her with the same polite disinterest he afforded all outsiders. "Good evening. What can I do for you, miss…?"
"Marinette," she answered simply. No hesitation or avoidance there. Probably a real name then. "I am looking for Monsieur Pennyworth? I was told he lives here."
He could feel Barb's gaze snap to the side of his head. He held up a single finger, not daring to move his eyes from the screen. Unwilling to miss a single reaction.
"It would appear you have found him."
That had the girl, Marinette, straightening. While her tone and stance before were friendly enough, now it radiated respect. She inclined her head. "It is an honor to finally meet you. Wang Fu spoke highly of you."
He stepped back to allow Marinette in. His face remained carefully impassive, but his voice was warm as he ushered her inside. The camera lost sight of them soon after.
Tim sunk back in his seat, steepling his fingers. Barb took that as her chance to send the results from facial recognition over to his monitor. He hummed. "Just a normal girl…"
"Sort of." Barb pulled up another page. "Except she's a designer for several French celebrities and collaborated with the Gabriel brand. Though she seems to have distanced herself from it after Gabriel's son took over."
"At only eighteen?"
"Fourteen, actually." She elaborated in response to Tim's questioning gaze. "Her first collaboration with Gabriel came from a school project she created when she was fourteen."
He whistled. That was impressive. Prodigy level. Bruce wore a few Gabriel suits in the past. He had to admit, the brand had good menswear. Their women's line… eh. But it still held weight. Then there was Jagged Stone and Clara Nightingale who Duke and Steph talked incessantly about. Tim wasn't really a fan but he let them think he was listening while he had his morning coffee.
"Oh no…" came a groan from his left. Tim raised an eyebrow. "Girl's adopted. And her adoptive parents went missing a year ago."
Now came Tim's turn to groan. "Let's.. leave that out of our report to Bruce."
Barb breathed a sigh of relief, already editing the profile. "Glad we're on the same page."
"What about Wang Fu? Is he a celebrity as well?" he asked.
"Don't think so. Looks like he lived a pretty quiet life." She sent another profile over. "A registered massage therapist. Owned one of those new-age medicine clinics. Bit a quack if you ask me. Wonder how Alfred knows him."
"I don't," Tim growled. He leaned forward, fingers flying across the keys until an old file appeared just beside Wang Fu's. The old man changed over the years. He had hair for one. And a goatee. The Hawaiin shirt was the most egregious. But there was no denying it with their profiles side by side. Wang Fu was Rahul Lama. Deceased.
