#manipulative marinette

[mochinek0]

The Al Ghul Family

Lila glared at the evidence in front of her. She quickly wet the papers she had in her hands and threw it in the trash.

'Dammit! If only I had never heard her say the name 'Al Ghul'.'

Lila gripped the sink in the girl's bathroom as hard as she could. She glared at her reflection in the mirror as if it could turn back time. It wasn't her fault that she heard Marinette talking on the phone to someone and calling herself an Al Ghul. Lila had searched up the Al Ghul's and learned they were tied to a dangerous lineage of killers in the past. There wasn't much about them; it was almost as if they were ninjas. The only thing she knew about Marinette was that had some type of Asian heritage. Sure, if she asked around she'd probably know, but she didn't really care.

She felt like she only closed her eyes for a second, as she sighed. When she opened them, Marinette was standing behind her, smiling.

'Speak of the devil.'

"I hope you enjoyed your little game, Layla." Marinette smiled.

"What are you talking about?" Lila questioned, peeved by hearing that name.

"You figured it out by now, right?" Mari continued, cornering Lila like she had done to her long ago, "You were never a threat to me. You do realize that don't you? Gabriel Agreste has always said yes to me. You have to manipulate people to get your way. I could have had you murdered at any moment, but I chose for you to live. I wanted to see what a toy could do when the thought they were in charge. Step out of line again and an accident will happen."

"I'll tell everyone!" Lila hissed.

Marinette stepped back and giggled, "You-You think they'll believe you!"

Lila smirked, "They already do."

"It wasn't hard to find out about you Layla Agetha Vincourt Rossario."

Lila froze and took a step back. She felt the color drain from her face.

"When I show everyone the mess you made at your last five schools. I mean, Audrey Bourgeois wants me as part of her staff. She may not love Chloe, but a national security risk? She'll make sure everyone knows." Mari ranted off, "Think of all the problems you would cause for Gabriel: stocks would plummet and all the recalls. Poor Adrien will be drowning in photoshoots to make up for the publicity. Not to mention, them blacklisting you. To a thief, a liar, and a murder in the eyes of the boy you want."

"I didn't-" Lila began.

"The evidence stands for itself." Marinette shrugged, "Maybe it was an accident that you poisoned the Minister's nephew, but all the people they talked to. All those people who heard you pull the same shit that you do to me? How you cried about being bullied and how his girlfriend was hurting you for just being friends? Do you really think the Minister of Italy won't catch the first flight over to arrest you when he hears you're doing the same thing to a poor baker's daughter. Imagine how much news it will make when people learn about you and your doing the exact same thing in Paris! It'll make international news! How a murder was trying to gain the attention of a famous model and lied her way into is father's graces."

Marinette smiled, "All it would take is one little phone call to the Minister of Italy for him to know where you are now. I don't even have to be the one to make the call. Your poor mother, losing you and her only source of income. Your father is in America with his new wife and new family. I hear his new daughter is everything he ever hoped for."

"Shut up!" growled Lila.

"She's a straight A student, popular, dating a musician that her father approves of."

"Shut up!" Lila repeated.

"You're just jealous of your little sister because she's everything you're not. Too think, she's only one year younger than you? I heard she took after her mother, but you took after your father. He cheated on your mother didn't he? He lost his job because he was employed by your mother's family. Then, he married into his mistress's family. Of course, none of it is his money; it belongs to his wife and daughter. If he doesn't behave, he doesn't get an allowance. Smart of her to make him sign a pre-nup. He cheats and he's back to being broke." Marinette laughed, "Your mother would hate you if she knew you were just like him. She has sole custody. Your father didn't even want you."

"Shut up!" Lila screamed, before charging after Marinette.

Marinette yawned and easily flipped her onto her back.

"You're nothing, but a disappointment." Mari hissed, "Weren't those his last words to you?"

Lila laid there and sobbed.

"You truly are disappointing; I expected more of my so-called bully." Mari sighed, "Make sure you behave from now on and if you decide to make me your bully again, well, Mommy will find out just how much of a Daddy's girl you really are. I'd be careful with my next move if I were you."

Marinette walked out of the school and smiled. I was great to see a familiar face

"So?" Damian questioned, as Marinette towards him.

Marinette smirked, "Mother always did say innocence was my best look."

"Think the liar will listen?" Damian asked.

"Eh." Mari shrugged, "I'll call you if she doesn't. Just forward everything to her mother and let me know. I don't want to miss the fall out."

"What about Gabriel?" he asked.

Marinette smiled, "He has two years to change. If not, I'll burn his company down or buy it out; I haven't decided yet."

"What about Junior?" her brother questioned.

"I've already convinced him to give up modeling and Agreste Senior agreed, but that bitch doesn't know that." his sister commented.

"Sometimes I wonder if I should be convinced how much you think like Mother, but look like Father." Damian stated.

"A female isn't needed on the throne." she shrugged.

"That was Grandfather's mistake." Damian growled, "Mother was just as deadly as him. What about coming to the manor?"

"Not yet. Father is still adjusting to you." Marinette declared, "He may know of me, but that doesn't mean he views me as his. I don't want his legacy and that's all he cares about. He thinks I'm 'safe' so we'll keep it that way."

Damian smirked, "Gotham would likely be destroyed in an instant if we both took it on."

"You know how to reach me if there is ever anything you need." Mari commented.

"I gave Todd your number for emergency use only." Damian declared, "If I can't call, he will."

"You better be dead if he calls me." Marinette frowned, glaring at her brother.

'Just as dramatic as Mother.'

Damian noticed someone walking towards them and changed his demeanor.

"Thank you." he spoke and began to walk away.

Marinette watched, confused, at least until she heard some footsteps.

"Who was that, Marinette?" Adrien questioned.

Marinette blushed at his sudden appearance by her side.

"T-Tourist." she smiled, "Um, lover. NO! I-I mean louve. He wanted to know about the louve! Where, um-"

Adrien chuckled and listened patiently, as she explained the stranger's presence.

"Think I can walk you home?" he asked, taking her hand.

Damian watched as Marinette turned red and looked away from the blonde.

'Adrien Agreste, hmmmm. I'll still never get over how scary like Mother she is. She always knows what she wants and how to get it. I doubt she'll slip anything into his drink, though.'

"Welcome to the Al-Ghul family, Agreste." Damian smirked.

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[bigfatbreak]

Birds of a Feather previous / next

[awakefor48hours]

Adult audiences watching a show made for children: This character is dumb and immature, I would've never done that if that were me.

Said character: *literally a teen or pre teen in a very stressful situation and has very limited information about what's happening*

[lostuntothisworld]

Okay so I think it's time for another spaghetti theory:

Lilamoth isn't collecting moms. She's collecting sisters (or siblings)

Let me explain my thought process here. So a big complaint the fandom has is that we don't have a proper rogue gallery for villains. It's just the butterfly, and nothing else. It worked for early seasons, but things might be getting stale for some folks.

Enter new characters connected to Lilamoth somehow.

So she has 3 moms so far (that we know about.) All but one have something in common: dark hair and blue eyes.

From left to right we have Mrs. Rossi (red), Mrs. Bianca (white), and her third mother who is deaf could possibly be Mrs. Verdi (green).

Then we have this fourth lady that we see Lilamoth watching on her phone in the season 5 finale. I would NOT be surprised if Odille is going to be her 4th mom. Dark hair and blue eyes, and she is also disabled, just like her third mom.

(And I would not be surprised if we find out her surname is Nero (black), or Viola (violet). More on that aspect of this crack theory in a bit...)

Anyway, back to the concept of a rogues gallery. In the finale we see Lila in a disguise that 's VERY reminiscent of one of her moms:

Certainly she can't expect to disguise herself as a woman in her 30's-40's, and especially not with glasses and bangs. But she can pass reasonably as a teenage girl with a dark bob and glasses. You know, a sister.

So we know a certain main character whose name is in the title and wears red with black polkadots has dark hair and blue eyes. We don't know Lilamoth's motivations and and end goal, but we can surmise that she wants to take the place of Marinette.

(And I KNOW I've seen at least one other person theorize this, and I cannot find the post(s) so if you can find it please let me know so I can link it here!)

The pictures we see is one of Marinette with her classmates on the Liberty where Zoe is accepted in the friend group, Marinette with her parents, 3 pictures of Marinette with Kagami, and one picture of Marinette with Luka.

It's interesting to note that there isn't a picture of Marinette and Adrien together shown to the audience. You'd think they'd emphasize that, but no, it's mostly Kagami. I know it's because it's because the episode focuses on Kagami, but still. Other than her, it's just Marinette's parents, Zoe and Luka (Luka! Marinette's ex!) showcased in the closeup screenshot.

I got sidetracked! Anyway, I think other than similar coloring (and color-themed surnames haha) Lilamoth is trying to find other teenagers who are willing to join forces with her. She probably will get her hands on some Miraculous for them, somehow. But I don't think the new jewels will be from the Chinese box.

Here's where things start REALLY going off the rails with this theory:

All of Lilamoth's rogue gallery of villains are her adopted sisters (or siblings) and they are all Luka's exes. He's got a type for Italians with dark hair and blue eyes...

Going back to the surnames, all the surnames have something in common: they share the colors of all of Adrien's various transformations over the course of the series so far:

Rossi: Mister Bug

Bianca: Chat Blanc

Verdi: Aspik

We're just missing Chat Noir (could possibly will be the surname Nero, as it's Italian)

and Ephemeral (it's interesting to note that the surname Lee in Chinese can mean plum, which of course, is purple)

So naturally, my crack theory circles back to Lukadrien is endgame.

Thank you for coming to my Ted Talk.

{{{{{{Edit as of April 3, 2024.}}}}}

I will NOT be surprised if this girl with black hair in an extremely recognizable style is a disguise of another sister.

Is Lilamoth collecting blackmail to manipulate them later? She's very obviously walking disguised in areas where there would be lots of cameras (The inside of the Agreste mansion, and the hotel).

[miraculousdeservesbetter2024]

It’s just so bizarre that Thomas really wants us to care more about a school bully traumatizing Marinette than a full grown gaslighting butterfly adult terrorist who basically FORCED her into the hero role, just because he was a sawd babu who wanted his wifiey back…by manipulating everybody’s emotions and taking an advantage of them. That especially included children and his OWN SON.

[lily-drake]

The Demon's Queen

Chapter Sixteen

First <> Previous

“You remember what you’re supposed to do,” Rajani asked stoically as she stared out the windshield.

“Yes,” Marinette responded, though she was in the trunk of the car with her hands cuffed behind her back.  The earpiece was masked to match her exact skin color so that no one would be able to see it when they brought her in.  She hated it in the humid trunk, the way she couldn’t control her body as the car rode on the bumpy gravel.  The way the shorts and tank top scratched uncomfortably at her skin.  The way the heat and darkness seemed to crush her with only its existence, sweat dripping off her like waves plastering her hair to her face and back.  

But it would only be for a little longer.  The first chance she got she’d be out of here.  She’d escape The League of Assassins grasp, or she’d die.

The car came to a sudden stop and that was Marinette’s cue to close her eyes and go limp as if she were unconscious.  The voices outside were muffled, and she had to hold back a flinch when the click of the trunk echoed around her and the blazing sun hit her directly.

Even though she could now clearly hear them, she still couldn’t understand a word they said.  They spoke in rapid Portuguese, and the only thing she knew was that they were talking about how much she’d cost them.  It made her sick.

Only a few minutes later she was hoisted onto someone’s shoulder, left to simply dangle there as the person moved her to the next location.  Left, 20 paces forward, right, 10 paces forward, left, left, 30 paces forwards, stop.

The dangle of keys echoed in the near silent room, the opposite of when she was first brought in where there were noises and voices echoed at every corner.  

The whir of something heavy sounded behind her before the loud scrape of a door screeched open menacingly.  The quiet cries of children whispered against her ears before she was dumped unceremoniously onto the cold concrete floor where she continued to lay limp.

The man now behind her scoffed, poking at her back with his foot until she was flat in her stomach.  A feeling of dread creeped through her system, but she forced down the shutter of fear, ignoring the feeling of bile climbing up her throat.  Finally the man’s footsteps retreated, and the sound of the door closing and the lock snapping back into place felt like the bells of Heaven.  She waited a few moments longer, counting down from one hundred like she’d been told.

Opening her eyes she was surprised to see just how many kids there were.  Many were in cages scattered all around the floor while some were chained to the wall.  Kids from all nationalities were scattered, all around the room in no specific order.  Some stared blankly at the wall, eyes glazed over and void.  Others kept their eyes closed, tears streaming down their cheeks.  Only a few looked over at her with eyes full of shame, pity, fear, and only a few with hope.

The need to vomit intensifies, but she swallowed it down the best she could.  She was going to save all of these kids before she left, nothing like this would ever happen to any of them again.  Taking a deep breath she whispered, “I’m in position.  I have eyes on all of the kids and am waiting for your signal.”

“Copy.”

Marinette took in the room once more.  Was this going on in Paris and she just hadn’t noticed?  How many of these children were kids that should have been under her protection?  Would she have been able to stop this with her miraculous alone?  

No.

She needed to focus, she couldn’t start spiraling now.  Reaching into her pocket she pulled out a pair of lockpicks from her secret pocket in her shirt and made quick work of her cuffs and slipped them into her hidden pocket.  Ruta had made d* sure that she would be able to get out nearly any restraint and use them as her own weapon.  

On silent feet she made her way to the front of the room where a young child who couldn’t be older than 7 sat in a small kennel with a padlock closed on the front.  The small girl stared at her with wide red-rimmed, hazel eyes.  Her dark brown hair was cut into a ruff pixie cut.  Her clothes were skimpy where she was only wearing short-shorts and a training bra.  Bruises were scattered all around her body and Marinette could see the small child’s ribs peaking out from her tanned skin.

Swallowing back her own sob, Marinette got to work unlocking the cage.  The small click echoed throughout the room and when the girl went to speak Marinette held a finger to her mouth.  The child quickly closed her mouth and nodded.  “I need you to stay in here for just a little longer, when you hear me shout I want you to follow me.  Can you do that?”  She asked the girl, praying she understood as she was speaking in English.  The girl gave another nod, the broken look in her eye being replaced with fiery defiance.  

Marinette quickly moved on to the next child repeating what she said and attempting to mime out her words when the kids didn’t understand her words.  

There were so many though, and she had only gotten a quarter of the way through when Rajani’s voice spoke through her earpiece.  “You almost done Khata?”

“There are more kids than anticipated, I may need an extra hand if available,” she asked as she removed yet another lock from a cage.  There was no noise over the comm, but she could almost feel the disdain they felt for her through it. 

“ETA 5 minutes,” Rajani finally responded.

“Why would the League of Assassins even care for the safety of kids anyways, this feels more like a Justice League scenario.”  Marinette grumbled to herself, narrowing her eyes as she failed to open a lock and had to restart.

“Our Demon’s Head had left an anonymous tip to the JLA.  They thought the prevention of Venom from reaching Star CIty’s shores was more important.”  Hossam answered bitterly, disdain dripping from his words like poison. 

“Yea right, they have hundreds of heroes, I’m sure if he really sent a tip someone would have come.”  She bit back, sighing when the lock finally snapped open.

“Believe what you want Khata, but we only speak the truth.”  Rajani whispered from behind her, causing Marinette to jump and throw a punch at her.  The woman gracefully ducked out of the way with practiced ease.  

“Good reflexes, but your spatial awareness needs to be improved.”  She reported as she looked around the room with narrowed eyes.  Marinette wanted to bite back, but she held her tongue and moved on after telling the child to stay in place until her signal.  

“All of the targets are in position,” Hosaam reported.

“All of the traps are laid,” Azrael confirmed immediately after.

“Nearly done here, only a few more kids left,” Rajani informed.  With her help they only had a fourth of the room left.  “Activate the sleeper gas and slowly mix in the Nitrogen.  We should be out of here by the time the first person falls.” 

“Roger.”

After another 20 minutes all of the cages were unlocked and all the kids cuffed to the walls were free, all anxiously waiting for the promised signal.  The air was electric with anticipation, and the fear of failing any of these kids now that they were so close weighed heavily on Marinette’s shoulders.

“Something’s wrong.”  Hosaam reported, tension thick in his voice.  

Marinette and Rajani looked at the other quickly before Rajani answered back, “Report.”

“More men are arriving, and they’re not buyers.  I think someone sensed that something was wrong and called in more security.  And I heard that the Leader of this whole operation will no longer be present.”

“Al’ama!”  Rajani cursed.  “I sealed every entrance and exit except for our escape route, so that should buy us some time.  Here’s the plan.  Azrael and Hosaam, put on your rebreathers.  I want both of you to start taking out any man or woman inside that you’re able to without causing a mass panic.  I’ll join you on the ground floor.  Khata, you are to take the children to the garage where a semi-truck will be waiting.  Load the kids into it and wait for us there.”  Rajani pulled out a dagger and shoved it into Marinette’s hands along with a spare rebreather.  Placing her own over her face before hopping onto the tops of cages and leaping into the ventilation system.

This was her chance!  But first she needed to get the kids to safety.  Placing two of her fingers in her mouth she let out a loud, high pitched whistle catching everyone’s attention.  “It’s time to follow me!”  She shouted pulling open one of the kids doors.  As soon as the words escaped her mouth the room was in chaos.  The sound of metal doors being thrown open, cages being tossed around, and the cries of children echoed through the room like a twisted orchestra.  She tried to gain the kids attention, to get them to follow her, but she was shorter than many of the kids and was almost lost in the sea of them as they moved.

“Follow me!”  She yelled as loudly as she could, running towards the entrance where Rajani had already unlocked the door.  Following the blueprints she had memorized in her mind she led them all toward the garage which was located only a few halls down from the room they were held in.  But she noticed many of the kids went down different halls and passages, determined to find their own escape.  She needed to get them back, but she needed to get the others to safety first.  

When they reached the truck the back was already open and she watched as many of the kids stared at it with hesitation and/or horror.  “I need all of you to get in.  I promise you that you will be safe!  I won’t let anything happen to you.”  The older kids scoffed at her looking back into the hall behind them and wondering if they too should have found their own way out.  The smaller kids listened to her without hesitation, loading into the large space despite their discomfort.  

“Please, I swear to you that I am only here to help you escape.”  Hesitantly, the others got in as well, going as far back as they could to hide in the shadows.  Once all of the kids that had followed her were all loaded in she looked back at the hall.  Then she looked behind her where the moon was shining just outside.  Fields of overgrown, yellowed grass littered the side road, and the call of the warm winter’s night begged her to run for it.  If she left now, she would be free, she could begin her escape.  The others were busy, they wouldn’t know until it’s too late.

She was about to take a step towards the tantalizing embrace of the outside when a child’s scream echoed through her.  She turned towards the doorway and without thinking she ran back into the corridors of the warehouse.  There were still others she needed to save first.

Turning a corner she saw a large burly man standing in front of a group of children, back to her.  “You filth of the Earth.”  He growled in rough accented English.  There was a gun strapped to his side, but he hadn’t pulled it out yet.  Marinette watched in horror as he picked up one of the girls by her hair, lifting her above the ground as she cried out in anguish.  

Marinette could only hear her blood pounding in her ears, the small girl's screams, man’s laughter and mocking jests.  She could only feel the burning in her gut, the roughness of the blade’s hilt digging into her palm, her feet platened and ready to strike.  She could only see red.  

The man began to reach for his pistol, leaving him entirely exposed for an attack, and that’s what she did.  Without another thought she jumped, bringing her knife down into the man’s spine, severing vertebrae until he collapsed, entirely paralyzed from the neck down.  

Marinette stared at the man as he screamed, phantom pain wracking his body as he began to bleed out.  Marinette stared at the limp body, red pooling at her feet and covering her hands.  Horror and sickness warred for control of her body, ripping the air out of her lungs as the metallic scent of blood reached her nose.  The man was still breathing, but for how long?  She hadn’t meant to kill him, but she needed to protect the kids.  

But part of her was relieved.  The kids were safe now.  Never again would he ever be able to harm any of these children again.  Looking up from the body she looked at the kids huddled together, eyes wide in fear, but safe.  Falling back into her old Ladybug mindset she put everything that wasn’t the kids on the back burner.  Nothing except removing them from this situation mattered.  She could fix this later.  She’d call on her lucky charm and fix all of this once she was done and sure that everyone was safe.

Scooping up the child the brute had been hurting—ignoring the red she smeared on the child’s clothes and face—she demanded that the others follow her, and they did without another word.  She quickly deposited them into the truck with the others before going back out to rescue the rest. 

The halls echoed with the screams of men and women, the banging of doors bounced off the walls as the reinforcements tried to find access into the warehouse.  Marintte’s heart reverberated through her body, making the rushing of blood sound like a river to her ears.  She needed to find the rest of the kids!

“There are loose kids running around the area, what is going on Khata,” Azrael growled through the earpiece.  Marinette was surprised she hadn’t heard any gunfire yet, but relieved knowing that even a single blast could set the whole building aflame.

“Rounding up the stragglers now.  Some ran while I was leading them to the escape vehicle.”  The only response she received was a low grunt.  

Turning a sharp corner, Marinette found another group of kids on their knees coughing.  The gas.  They were going to get themselves killed.  “Grab each other's wrists and follow me if you want to get out of here alive,” she ordered, grabbing the wrist of the kid closest to her first.  Once she made sure they were all secure she hefted the kids back onto their legs and ran back to the truck jumping over and ignoring the limp bodies of grown men in their path as she pulled them through the door and pointed toward the truck before going back out.

Marientte’s lungs were burning, but she ignored it.  She still had her mask securely in place, but there was only so much it could filter out after a certain amount of time.

Bang.

Marinette stood stock still, listening.  The sound of footsteps echoed around the building and Marinette knew that reinforcements had finally breached the building.  They didn’t have much time left, they needed to get out of here now if they wanted to make it out alive.

Marinette traversed the halls once more on silent feet, tension lining her shoulders as she peeked over corners, throwing her dagger at any unsuspecting man or woman who stood in her way.

“I found a group of kids and led them to the point.  From the sounds of it we were only missing two more then we can head out.  We’re not leaving any of them behind,” Rajani barked and received affirmatives from the others.  Marinette nearly tripped over herself, she truly hadn’t expected these assassins to care that much over the life of a few kids.  She believed that they would fight purely for their survival or the lives of the many over the few.  But to risk their lives for all of them, it just didn’t seem like a plausible belief to come from these kinds of people.

After another turn Marinette found herself in the middle of the warehouse.  The space was littered with bodies, gun pieces and ammunition littering floor as blood painted it red.  Marinette wished she could make herself feel sick, to at least mourn, but she had seen such similar situations before in Paris that she automatically compartmentalized it in search of the akumatized object the children.  A loud cry could be heard from the floor above and Marinette rushed up the steps, throwing open the doors to a room only to see Hosaam kneeling in front of one of the kids, holding his own gas mask against their faces.

“It’ll be alright.  Follow that woman and I promise that you will be safe.  No one will be able to harm you like this ever again,” he murmured, voice smoothed in a gentle timber.  It was another shock to her system.  She watched as Hosaam picked up one of the kids–the same girl she had rescued first–in his arms while pushing the second towards her.  But she didn’t have time to think about the sound of footsteps climbing up the stairs.  

“You two have tails, I can’t hold them all off, so get ready for a fight and make sure none of them open fire.  There’s too much gas in the air,” Azrael reported.

“I’ll be waiting inside the transport for all of you.  As soon as the last two kids are loaded we run,” Rajani confirmed.

“Copy,” Marinette breathed, hosting the weak child onto her back as she peaked out the door toward the railing.  Men had flooded the stair and were blocking any exit on all sides, and if she tried to run for it with a hop of the banister there was a high chance they would shoot and kill everyone.  Looking over at Hosaam she watched as he calmly removed a small device from a hidden pocket in his jacket and rolled towards the group before shutting the door completely.  Marinette couldn’t see what happened next, but the echoing of gunfire echoed off the walls with a sickening bang. 

Marinette felt the entire building shudder and Marinette wondered if this was how she died.  “We must hurry,” Hosaam ushered.  Marinette opened her eyes–when had she closed them–to see that they were completely fine.

“W-what happened?  How are we still alive?!”  Marinette gasped, her heart hammering in her chest.

“I’m what you may know as a meta-human.  I have the ability to create protective shields around those I choose.”  And without another word, Hosaam opened the door and ran out of the room with Marinette following only a few moments later.  The room was now in chaos, bodies scorching with the scent of burning flesh.  It reminded her of her battle with Vatra.  They had the ability to create volcanoes at will and cause whoever got in their way to combust into flames if he made eye contact with them (Marinette hadn’t been able to eat meat for nearly a year after that).

Bang.

The sound reverberates around her followed by the clatter of a gun onto the floor as another man dies.  But it’s not followed by some explosion.  Instead it’s followed by burning so intense that she can’t stop the scream of agony from escaping her lips.  Reality comes crashing down around her.  

She’s not Ladybug, she’s not a magical suit that can protect her from anything and everything, she can’t fix this once it's over.  But even with the burning, she’s still moving with the adrenaline coursing through her system.

“Alqarf!”  She hears from beside her.  Hosaam, was running beside her now, staring at the wound in her side as red flowed out of the wound like a waterfall.

“Agent wounded, prepare for on field surgery,” Hosaam reported stiffly, rounding a corner.  She looked down at the child she was holding, the child that was starting to feel far too heavy with how light they actually were.  Her blood was starting to soak into their clothes as well, but they stayed silent, tucking their head against her shoulder as she ran.

Marinette nearly collapsed when she saw the semi-truck.  Her head felt fuzzy and her body heavy.  Suddenly the weight was taken out of her hands, and her body was floating in the air.  Voices echoed around her, but she couldn’t make anything out.  Something was pushing her down, keeping her in place as burning liquid was poured onto her side.

“Oh don’t be so dramatic, it’s just a bullet wound,” she heard someone say from above her, but she couldn’t tell who.  The world was still blurry.

“How much longer until we get to the rendezvous point?”

“Another 15 minutes.”

“I knew I shouldn’t have released the shield.”

“Next time you know not to make the same mistake again.”

“Thankfu- ‘ust- ‘raze.”  

Marintte had pricked herself with a needle countless times before, but it was nothing compared to the feeling of whatever was poking at and pulling her side.  She was fairly certain that she blacked out from the pain, as the next thing she knew she was waking up in air surrounded by gray metal walls.

When she tried to sit up, she couldn’t stop the hiss that escaped her lips before falling back onto the seats she was laid against.

“Ah yes, the joy of one’s first bullet wound.  I remember mine like it was yesterday.”  Marinette looked over at the far too chipper voice to see Rajani without any face coverings.  She was a rather attractive woman, with caramel skin and close cropped curled black hair.  The only thing mauring her smooth skin being a four inch scar that trails straight down from her eyelid to her cheek.

“That was a close one Khata.  You did better than any of us were expecting though, so there’s that,” she continued casually, her hazel eyes boring into Marinette’s blue.  Marinette didn’t answer, her head still reeling.

Rajani didn’t continue the conversation, instead turning away to sharpen her knives.  The scraping of metal on metal only fed her pounding headache as her mind replayed everything that had happened.

She had killed people.  And she can’t bring them back.  She can’t bring them back.  She’s a murder.  Before she could even process it, she turned her body to the side, vomit spilling from her lips.  Rajani scrunched up her nose, but didn’t comment, just continued her chore.

What had she done?

It felt like only minutes had passed, but it must have been hours as the next thing she knew they had landed back into the mountain base they had first left from.  They were back, and Marinette hadn’t escaped and she hadn’t died.

Holding onto her side, Marinette limped off the plane, surprised when only Hossam stopped as Rajani and Azael continued forward–faces concealed once more.

“Hop on my back Khata, it would not be ideal for your stitches to tear now,” he said stoically.  Mariente looked at him as if he had just grown a second head.  It made no sense to her that he was treating her with any form of respect or human decency when all the three of them had ever been to her was cruel and mocking. It must have been some sort of sick joke.

But he just waited for her, eyes looking off into the distance.  The memory of him showing the child tenderness and compassion.  “Why’d you do it?”

“Why did I do what, Khata?  You can’t expect me to read your mind.”

“Why’d you give the girl your mask?  You could have died. I figured you would value your life more than some random kids.”

Hosaam was silent for a moment, his face impassive as he stared at the snowy mountain top.

“I was trafficked as a child once before.  One day, I was able to gain the advantage and kill my abuser.  It was Maha who had found me on the streets, hiding from the man’s friends.  She offered me power, the ability to make sure no one hurt me again, and to stop those who tried to hurt others the same way.  I took it.”  Finally he turned to look at her, the only thing she was able to make out was his amber eyes.

“We are not monsters here.  We are the shadows that haunt those who create injustice, and nothing more.  Now will you trust me?”  Marinette stared at him, biting her lip as she thought.  With a short sigh–and a sharp pain from her side–she agreed, allowing him to maneuver her so that she was straddling his back, her arms wrapped loosely around his neck.

When they arrived back at the base she almost expected to see the grounds covered in other ninja training, but it was empty save for Rajani, Azrael, Maha, and the boy.  She most definitely had not been expecting him to rush over to her and Hosaam when they entered the grounds.

“Set her down, now,” he ordered, eyes dark.  Hossam didn’t hesitate, setting Marinette back on her feet before joining the others.  “What happened,” he demanded, noticing the way she kept her weight off her right side.

Marinette bit her tongue not wanting to give anything away to him.  

“Show me where you’re hurt,” he barked, eyes scanning her body almost…worriedly, but that’s ridiculous.  He probably doesn’t actually care, he just wants to make sure his prize isn’t permanently broken.

Slowly Marinette lifted her shirt to show him her stitched up side where the bullet had grazed her.  “As you can see I’m fine.”

Damian glared at the wound, cursing the person who had hurt her.  If they weren’t already dead he would make sure that they paid dearly.  His stomach was boiling with rage and regret.  He had a feeling that something like this would happen if he wasn’t there, and he was right.  He should have listened to his gut, and now she was hurt.  

From the short report he had gotten from two of Maha’s Jackels she did well.  The wound wasn’t her fault, and she had not failed.  No one could look down on her–and thus him–for not being good enough. No one could question his decision at this moment, and for now that’s all that mattered.  But the longer he stared at the wound the more weight he felt in his chest.  

He felt responsible, which was stupid.  He hadn’t been the one to shoot the gun.  He wasn’t the direct reason she was hurt.  But for whatever reason, it weighed like he had all the same.

“Report to Tomoe at once.  Do whatever she prescribes.”  And with that he turned away, retreating back into his rooms.

Marinette watched his retreating back curiously.  While his face had remained impassive the entire encounter, his eyes seemed to be at war.  It made no sense.  She was simply imagining things, after all her head still felt fuzzy from the blood loss.  Sighing, she looked around to see that she was now the only one left on the grounds besides the guards in their respective watchtowers.  

With one last look at the outside world, she headed back into the base and down to where Tomoe was waiting for her in the infirmary.

Next

Taglist:

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[theluckiestlb]

something feels....off.

[spiderbae2319]

Why does this fit so well with so many pairs LOL

Obi-Wan: Guess we can’t mansplain, manipulate, or manspread our way out of this one

Anakin: Manslaughter it is

but like also

Flash and Captain Cold

Captain Cold and Heatwave

TBH anyone and Heatwave

Percy and Annabeth (honestly could be flipped either way lmao)

Ron and (book) Hermione

Crowley and Aziraphale (again could go either way)

Cat Noir and Ladybug

Kirishima and Bakugou

Honestly the comedic potential is limitless 😂

[stellarlex]

To the people who say that Lila hating Ladybug is Marinette’s fault, y’all forget that she started talking crap about her to Adrien before Marinette even showed up as Ladybug and exposed her.

You see Lila’s whole face change when Adrien talks wistfully about Ladybug in the school library, and then she starts talking about you don’t “have to be a hero to be amazing” and hatches that whole plot to lower his opinion of Ladybug by making herself look like the better hero.

Again, all before Ladybug said anything.

Lila is just mad because she got cleared in front of the boy she was trying to manipulate into dating her.

[beezonia]

Okay Félix’s huisian Zoruark is technically his dads

Colt’s family basically bred them for power and since Félix was the only heir it was his job to keep it up

This was only because the fathoms used the power for keeping themselves at the top and the ghost type scared the shit out of most of the subordinates

Felix decides to put a stop to that and make sure he and his zoruark have a good bond instead of hurting the pokèmon by overworking it

She’s really friendly once she gets used to you!

So she’s actually his closest pokèmon next to Molly (thievul)

[mochinek0]

Daminette December 2022: 21-Green

Marinette never expected her life to change so much due to one color: green.

Her first crush, Adrien Agreste, had light green eyes. The first time she truly spoke to him, they were filled with honesty. His eyes seemed to carry so much wonder and joy. Over time, they were clouded with uncertainty. There came a point where he averted his eyes away from her. Those green eyes she had loved, were now the eyes of a coward.

Lila Rossi was the net person with green eyes and would become her enemy. Lila's eyes were conniving and sharp. Her eyes seemed to shift between yellow-green and dark, when she was angry. Lila was a liar, who tried to ruin her life.

The last pair of green eyes that changed her life belonged to the love of her life, Damian Wayne. Damian had made her life so much better. She had been at her lowest, when he found her. He understood her artistic needs, when she was anxious, and how to calm her down. Damian and his family were her biggest supporters, after her own family.

"Please, welcome the Waynes!" the announcer cried out.

Marinette smiled and gripped her husband's arm, as they took the stage with the rest of the family. She kept a smile on her face, as she caught Lila's eyes from across the room. They were dark green; green with envy. She could see the hatred in her eyes. She spotted Adrien's eyes filled with shock and worry.

"I think we'll need a bigger stage soon." Bruce quipped, as he took the mic, "Some of you may know my family, but not everyone does. Let me introduce my sons: Richard Grayson-Wayne, Jason Todd-Wayne, Timothy Drake-Wayne, and Damian Wayne."

The boys waved.

"Many of you do not know the girl at the end. That is Marinette Wayne, my daughter-in-law and Damian's wife."

Marinette smiled as people clapped. Bruce was quick to had over the mic.

"Thank you, Bruce." she smiled, "We are so happy you are all here, today, to help us donate to the children! Every dollar you donate will help us bring a smile to a child's face. Not every parent can be there for them, twenty-four seven, and we want to help those families. They have bills, work, other children to look after. A sick child should never feel that they are a hinderance to their family. Many of you have already donated and we are very thankful. Prince Ali of the Kingdom of Achu is here tonight! We are most grateful to his generous donation through his charity for pediatric hospitals. I, personally, will be shutting down comissions to make clothes for the children in the hospital. The Wayne Foundation will also be donating a million dollars to the hospital, directly, to create a whole ward dedicated for pediatrics."

The crowd began to clap and cheer. As the number of donations began to skyrocket, the Waynes left the stage to mingle.

"Mrs. Wayne." Gabriel spoke, introducing his presence, as well as Adrien and Lila's.

"Ah, Mr. Agreste." Mari smiled, "I thought I spotted Adrien and....your model."

Gabriel cleared his throat, knowing her distaste for Lila.

"Are you still mad at me, Marinette?" Lila questioned, "I promise I'm not the same person I was back in college."

"Yes." He stated, ignoring his muse, "I'm shocked to hear you will be closing your comissions though."

Marinette smiled, "Aside for creating clothes for the sick children at the hospital, I want to create the perfect nursey for our child."

Adrien's jaw dropped, "You're pregnant?"

"Oh, did that news not reach Paris?" Mari asked, "It's been known for almost three months."

"You're so thin!" Lila shrieked, "You must see my doctor. You're practically killing your own child."

"My wife is perfectly healthy, you deranged pig." Damian growled.

"Damian!" Marinette called out, "It's okay. I'm sure you remember me telling you about Lila. She was the disabled model, who didn't know how to control her own mouth."

Lila snapped her mouth shut.

Marinette smiled, "I told my husband all about you disability, Lila. Don't worry, even my parents told him how much they appreciated Gabriel for that reason. I don't know how many times I heard them tell customers about the girl with the lying disease and how Gabriel was an inspiration for having you model for his brand. Myself and Rose already warned Prince Ali, so you don't have to worry about him. We made sure he wouldn't sue you for your false claims about working with him on an environmental project. I also made sure Jagged Stone wouldn't sue you either. I'd be careful who you speak to tonight, though. This is Gotham and if you speak to the wrong person, well, they might call GCPD on you. I'd hate for them to mistake you as someone in dire need and you end up in Arkham Asylum. You might find yourself at the mercy of the rouges. I'd hate if that happened and I could have stopped it."

"Marinete, you're scaring her." Adrien interrupted.

"Adrien." Marinette growled, "I'm only telling her what she needs to hear. If something were to happen to her under your father's watch, imagine the hit to the brand. Many people don't know she's disabled! Not to mention, she's an adult. She can't call her mother to get her out of the asylum, only the doctors can decide when she is fit to leave."

Lila kept her mouth shut and her head down.

"And you can't do anything?" Adrien asked.

"No." Damian sneered, "Are asking my pregnant wife to put herself in harm's way around the mentally ill? If you and your father cannot control your girlfriend, then take her back to the hotel until your scheduled flight. Angel, let us return to the manor. You don't need to stress yourself out tonight. You have already said what was needed."

"Mr. Agreste, you can always call Wayne Enterprise and they will patch you through to me to continue our conversation." Marinette declared.

"Of course, Mrs. Wayne." Gabriel stated, "I apologize for my guest. Her words were unnecessary and have caused you stress. I'll make sure Ms. Rossi returns swiftly to the hotel, on your good fortune."

Marinette nodded and was guided away to the rest of the Waynes. Gabriel watched as Marinette hugged her new family and left the hall.

"Ms. Rossi." he spoke.

"Yes, Mr. Agreste?" she questioned.

"I believe I stated for you to return to the hotel." he growled.

"But-" Lila countered.

"I will personally be speaking to Prince Ali and Mr. Stone about your disability. They will decide whether I should keep you as a model. I require perfection and from what I hear, you are far from perfect." Mr. Agreste sneered.

"I was a child!" Lila shouted.

"Then, lie and live in Arkham Asylum for the rest of your life." Gabriel declared, "Adrien, you will stay by my side. I don't want you associating with Ms. Rossi, until further notice."

"Yes, Father." Adrien spoke.

Marinette relaxed in the car as Damian drove them back to the manor.

"Habibiti, forget the words of the insufferable wench." Damian stated, "You handled her beautifully."

Marinette sighed and closed her eyes.

"I will prepare peppermint tea once we are inside. You should disrobe and get comfortable in the sleepwear your mother sent you. We can lay in bed and watch that show you prefer; the one with sewing and challenges." he continued to speak.

As Marinette relaxed, she felt herself drifting off to sleep. Only one thing was on her mind, as she rubbed her stomach.

'I hope you have your father's eyes.'

TAG LIST: @maribat-calendar-events @animeweebgirl @a-star-with-a-human-name @meme991001 @vixen-uchiha @abrx2002 @alysrose-starchild @fandom-trapped-03 @dood-space @moonlightstar64 @saltymiraculer @marveldcedits20 @09shell-sea09 @icerosecrystal @animegirlweeb @insane-fangirl-of-everything @blueblossombliss @nickristus-dreamer @megawhitleycalderonpaganus

[dragonwritersblog]

Okay, whether you like or dislike the S5 finale, if I see any of you fuckers blame Marinette for Gabriel's actions with making that wish, I will punt to the next fucking planet!!!!

[nothingtherefornow]

Why Marinette parents didn't make her change school when she was severely bullied by Chloé ?

Somoene answered this question on reddit, and I'm ashamed to say that even I didn't know those rules about school in my own country T_T :

"Idk about other countries, but in France unless you're moving out you can't change your school since you have to automatically attend the school of your neighborhood. (In Paris, you can attend some famous public schools with just taking the entrance exam, but as we know Marinette I dont think it's her case). So even if they wanted, they couldn't.

Let's continue and assume they could. The principal would have had to approve Marinette's transfer, and if he did the government would have had to approve right after. Meaning in Miraculous the mayor (since it's the only form of government we saw so far and probably will ever see), meaning Chloe.

See? It's not that simple.

Meanwhile Amelie is in London and very rich. It's simpler for her to defend her son, who's probably not even attending school. "

I guess that I can forgive Marinette's parents for being powerless against Chloé then, as long as they didn't made a fuss of all the times Marinette got punished because of Chloé's trick, and made sure to comfort theu daugther and tell her than they wer eon her side no matter what.

Can't forgive them for falling for Chloé's lies and false prooves during Adoration though, and hardly for not allowing Marinette time to try and proove her innocence during Ladybug and make work instead.

And I certainly can't forgive Sabine yet for allowing Lila to make passive agressive comments about Marinette without scolding her a bit for that, and for comfortably letting Lila hug her and say that Sabine is like a mother to her.

[iwasbored777]

I can't believe I read in the bible that Lila will have a lot of screentime and thought I won't like it. It's cool to see more villains attack this season. And they finally use her character a lot as they should. She used to appear in two-three episodes per season and disappear but now we finally see that she can raise hell all by herself and she's giving me American Psycho vibes when with her personality switch. Sucks that her stans can't love her for a crazy villain she is and they always try to make her look like a victim who's not that bad. Can't believe there are people who wanted Lila to get redemption. Bitch, the Parisian Psycho mode is the best Lila mode. As a woman I say we let women be unhinged and evil without Alexa play Despacito backstory. You don't have to stan her nor support her to like a good female villain. We already have at least four villains who are trying to get our sympathy and it's amazing that in a show where men are the most emotional and evil characters because they have rough past the only character who's evil just because she loves it is a woman. Which is also great because Marinette didn't need a tragic backstory to become a superhero either. This show stans women's rights and also women's wrongs.

[iammissfortune]

Evil triumphs when good people do nothing

A line quoted by the main protagonist and our titular heroine in season 1. Marinette aka Ladybug

And yet when evil was unmasked she chose to turn a blind eye to his actions.

She chose to turn a blind eye and turn of all sense of logic and sense of reason.

She chose to ignore her own conscious and all the cruel and psychopathic manipulative actions PAST AND PRESENT.

And she gave evil exactly what he wanted. She gave Hawkmoth/Monarch aka Gabriel Agreste what he wanted!

Did she forget how he emotional and psychologically terrorized her, her family and her friends. How he manipulated all of them. Did those events get erased from history?

No. She found someone else to blame.

She couldn't allow her love one's father name to be sullied so why not scapegoat the girl no one likes as the bad guy?

Why? Because she had so many chances to change and everyone around her has "tried" to "help" her. (Lies always make hypocrites feel better about their double standard morality.) But as her once close friend said "You'll never change."

Evil doesn't triumph when good people do nothing. It triumphs when "good" people play favorites on who deserves redemption and who is beyond it.

Marinette you are not a hero in my book. You are selfish, entitled, manipulative young girl who thinks because she's nice and people like you she can get away with bias behavior and playing favorites. You did nothing to help Chloe when she was suffering and instead you pushed her into the arms of her abuser. You knew Chloe was falling behind in class and you did nothing.

"Evil triumphs when good people do nothing" Without good people to hold us accountable or help us become better we fall victim to the sway of vices that we know.

That is exactly what happened. Evil triumphed because their were no good people to stop them.

Just complicit and blind eyed fools.

[lily-drake]

The Demon's Queen

Chapter Fifteen

First <> Previous

One month passed both far too soon and not soon enough.  She hadn’t received any information from anyone on what she would be doing, but her training was ramped up tenfold.  She hadn’t been this sore and bruised since her first few months of training.  

“What on Earth was that ?”  Maha bellowed from where she stood on the side of the mat.  Marinette grit her teeth as she ducked under another blow made by the bulkiest of her oh-so-precious Jackals.  

“I must agree with you Maha,” Hadid sighed, “and here I thought she had finally mastered the move.”  He sounded disappointed and it pulled at something inside Marinette.  For some reason, a part of her felt upset at the thought of upsetting Hadid.  She could care less about Maha, but failing Hadid made her want to fight even harder.  She felt like she needed to prove herself to him.

Feigning a punch she ducked before kicking out and pushing him off valence slightly.  But the second that it took for him to fall back into position was just enough for Marinette to get close and hit multiple of the central pressure points she learned about from Tomoe, paralyzing his arms, shoulders, and neck.  Then with one last well placed kick he was down with her on top of him squeezing his windpipe until he tapped out as best as he could with his paralyzed arm.

Marinette stood up.  She expected her legs to start shaking, for her breath to be staggered, to feel scared about what she had just done.  But no, she felt calm, her legs were steady, and she felt proud of herself.  She felt like she had finally accomplished something great.

She looked up, her face an emotionless mask.  Maha had her usual displeased frown, not giving away any emotions.  But when she looked up and saw the large Cheshire grin Hadid was giving her she felt a cold shiver of fear run down her spine.  His face was unnatural, but it showed just how proud he was of her.

“Still a long way to go with you, but it’s a good start,” Maha finally growled out, “at least you have proven ready for your mission.”

Marinette stared down at one of the men that had caused her so much pain and distress.  She should despise him for the pain he’s put her through, after all he chose this life.  He chooses to live a life that causes the pain and suffering of others.  She should just leave him to get back up on his own.  After all, it was just a training spar.

Hadid’s voice from so many months ago rang through her mind, “Your defiance against your allies could lead to your demise.  Be careful of who you make your enemies.”  Marinette didn’t like it, but she knew what she needed to do. 

She lifted her hand and was actually rather surprised when the man—she’d been sparring him for months now and still didn’t know his or the other’s names—took her hand.  Like usual he didn’t say a word and when dismissed by Maha, he disappeared.

__________ Damian was worried about sending her on this mission.  It was the strangest thing he’d ever felt before.  Never once had he worried over the safety of his servants.  If they died it was simply because they were not strong or skilled enough to over power their enemies and return.  But this, this was different.

He had chosen Marinette himself, had hand picked her to be part of his most elite.  If she died here it would not only mean that she was not strong enough, but that he had made a mistake in his beliefs.  He could not allow that to happen.

His mother was gone—something about a private affair she needed to see to—so she couldn’t tell him if he had indeed been mistaken in his decision or not.  He didn’t feel like he had made a mistake, he needed her to see exactly what they’re fighting and why.  Needs her to see that he is not the villain.  Of course he is no hero either, heroes are naive and can only bring themselves to carry out the barest sentence of justice. 

Take his father as an example.  He calls himself and his little Posey “the heroes of Gotham”, but nothing ever changes.  His enemies always escape their cages, always kill more innocents, always spread destruction and chaos, and then what happens to them?  They’re sent back to their broken cages only to reoffend again and again.  

Todd had the right idea when he broke the moral code and killed the monsters he found.  With them gone and the others controlled under Hood’s reign, the people under his protection are truly safe.

Damian stared out across his balcony overlooking the entire base.  He watched the silhouettes of Marinette and her team—The Jackals Maha liked to call them—headed towards the entrance where a helicopter was waiting to take them on their mission.

Something was pulling at his chest.  A strange dropping sensation in his gut telling him to follow her.  Telling him that something would go wrong and that he needed to be there to ensure her return.  He ignored it.  She would return, she is strong enough that she will live through this.  It’s not even that complicated of a mission.  The feeling of unease still remained.

__________ The helicopter ride to the “airport” was an interesting—unsettling—experience.  All four of them, plus the pilot—so five—sat in complete silence the whole way.  They were all dressed in their robes, faces covered and weapons strapped and hidden all along their bodies.  Once they made it to a secret bunker of sorts they switched to a messenger plain where the shortest of the Jackals took over and began to fly them to G* knows where.

“I should probably know your names while we are on this mission if we want to communicate effectively.”

“And you will need a code name so we do not blow your cover.”  The smallest of the group said tersely.  The voice was obviously female though she spoke with a slight accent, but it was still a shock to hear it after so many months of nothing but silence.  She had honestly wondered if all of them were actually mute or not.

“You may call me Rajani.  My brother,” she pointed to the most muscular of them, “is Azrael, and he,” she pointed to the second man, “is named Hosaam.  Now we must pick a name for you.”

“Khata sounds just fine to me,” the pilot—Azrael—grunted.  Marinette’s brows furrowed at that.  Through her studies of the Arabic language she had quickly found the name Maha had given to her as one of the biggest insults she had received.  Everyday she would call Marinette a mistake.  Everyday she would say that the name Khata was the only thing she had truly earned.  It burned her insides and made her push herself if only to prove her wrong.

“I agree,” Hosaam nodded, arms folded in front of him.  “It is a good name for this mission.  No one would suspect.”  The others nodded allowing the silence to fill the space once more.  Marinette but her lip.  She did not wish to be known in the field as “The Mistake”, but she knew arguing would only activate her supposed Allie’s, so she remained silent.  

It took nearly 11 hours for them to reach their destination.  11 hours were the only noise was the whirring of the plane’s engine.  It made her skin itch, but Marientte did her best to make as few movements as possible.  She didn’t trust that either of these three wouldn’t try something if she left herself vulnerable in any way.  Marinette was honestly surprised with how smooth the plane ride went.  She had assumed that–with her luck–something would have gone wrong.  But no, from the air to landing not a single misfortune moment had occurred–she wondered if that was because she no longer had any access to her miraculous.  

They had landed in a sort of bunker, away from the public and any cameras that could have picked them up.  She followed the Jackals to a sideroom where a large table sat in the middle of the room with a set of black blue construction manuals.  “Where are we?”  Marinette asked, breaking the tense silence.

“ Fortaleza, Brazil,” Rajani stated, shoving a flashlight into her hands.  The others gathered around the table and turned their flashlights on before shining it above the paper, revealing the structural design of a large warehouse with text written all around it in the League’s Dialect.  Marinette followed suit as she studied the design and read about their mission.

A large worldwide trafficking ring will be meeting in this city in two days.  The ring leader will be the last to arrive minutes before they begin auctioning off hundreds of children to the highest bidders.  Nearly everyone attending are people that oppose The League of Assassins and have been trying to destroy it.  Their job is to break into the event, free the children, and kill everyone in attendance ensuring the safety and secrecy of the League and its existence.

The warehouse was large, and located in a deserted part of the city.  It was far enough away from the Favelas to keep the public away while also close enough to not be a conspicuous meeting place.  In order to ensure a peaceful gathering, the gangs and cartels were all paid off as were many of the cops.  

“It will be best if we can get in and out.”  Rajani began to plot, “I will ensure that all of the exits are sealed off while Hosaam sets up a trap.  Khata and Azrael will be in the audience ensuring crowd control.  We have the guest list, so it is of utmost importance we ensure everyone on this list only enters the building.  I wonder if it would be best for one of us to go in as one of the children though,” everyone’s gaze turned to Marinette.

She felt a shiver up her spine from how intense everyone’s eyes were.  They were all cold, calculating, distant.  They were assessing in their minds whether or not she would actually fit in, and unfortunately for her, it was rather well.  Marinette was short, her full height only coming to 157.48 centimeters (5ft 2in).  She was petite, and was still covered in large bruises from her shoulders down from all of the sparing she has had to endure.

“It would make finding and freeing the children more manageable,” Azrael grumbled, tilting his head slightly as he studied her, “as long as she put up a convincing act.”

“And what if I’d rather not be the caged child,” Marinette snapped, meeting his gaze.  She couldn’t see it as he still wore his mask, but she could feel his smirk, his cold brown eyes boring into hers.

“You don’t get a choice.”  The coolness of his voice sent a shiver down her spine, but she didn’t let them see how much he frightened her.  

What if she became like that?  Cold, uncaring, cruel.  How would she ever be able to live with herself?

“Where are we supposed to take the kids once they’re free,” Marinette snarked, changing the subject, “we aren’t doing all of this just to let them wander off and get taken by someone else.”

“The Demon’s Head has a plan.  We take them to the rendezvous point four miles East of the warehouse–transport will be provided.  Once they are dropped off we leave,” Rajani reported calmly.  “We have our own rendezvous  a mile north from there.  If we do not arrive by twenty-two hundred hours we will be stranded here and forced to return in disgrace.”

This was a lot for Marinette to take in.  Here was a top secret ninja league that had kidnapped her rescuing a bunch of children while also killing the children's tormentors.  What was their goal here?  Like Rajani had started, there were going to be hundreds of people who planned against The League here, and their main purpose was to eliminate them–Marinette wanted to gag–but why save the children.  Why not just let them die as well in the collateral?  Why go through the trouble of ensuring they’re safe at all?

“What’s the most efficient way to kill the others?  There will be hundreds of people, and if even one person senses something off or dies too early, everything will be over.”  Hosaam spoke for the first time since the flight, nearly making her jump.  His voice was rough and deep, deeper than she imagined, though she didn’t know why.

“Poison is out of the question, too easy for something to be messed up in the interim,” Rajani muttered to herself as he brought her hand up to cup her covered chin.  “There are too many people for a frontal attack, explosions hold too much risk to the cargo,” Marinette bit her lip to keep her from lashing out at calling the kids “cargo”. 

“We could gas the place.  First we could gas the place.  Sleeping gas first, then nitrogen gas.  Kills them fast and is untraceable.  We get in, then we get out,” Hosaam supplied.  

“We’d have to get the kids out first, kill the guards and switch them places, but it should work.”  Rajani agreed with a firm nod.  Reaching across the table to grab a single match, lighting it against the table before tossing it onto the blueprints.  Marinette watched as the blue paper material burned black and red, turning to ash in front of her eyes.  She couldn't help but think of a dress that she’d like to make based on the burning paper flying around her.

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