Chapter Text
After defeating Hawkmoth, Marinette didn't know who to blame for what had happened to her.
She could blame the mad fashion designer who kept his wife's body in his basement, traumatized a city, and probably had his best moment of the day by fighting two teenagers.
She could blame the weird Hawaiian-shirted old man whose best idea to save the world was to give two 13-year-old kids miraculouses of godly power.
She could blame some of her classmates, who bullied her and made her days miserable.
She could blame her friends and family for abandoning her for a liar.
She could blame her partner, who should have been there for her.
But Marinette could also blame herself. If she hadn't been so stupid, she could have ended Hawkmoth's reign much sooner. If she didn't keep screwing things up, Master Fu would still remember. If she had been a little more convincing, her parents might have believed her.
Any way you look at it, Marinette's life hasn't been the best so far.
Then things changed, and exactly three weeks after Hawkmoth's defeat, Marinette left Paris and didn't stop until Gotham. And, let's face it, Gotham is not the best place for healing and optimism.
Fortunately, Marinette's neighbour took her under his wing (literally).
...
She met her neighbour a few days after she moved in.
He was quite tall and had a kind smile. His name was Richard, but he said he wanted her to call him Dick. She couldn't imagine why would anyone be happy to be called that, but Richard, or Dick said she'd get used to it later (she did).
...
The avalanche started with little things.
Dick said hello to her. Sometimes he asked her how her day was. He would start little conversations. Maybe to others it wouldn't have been a big deal, but to Marinette, who was not used to any positive contact with the outside world, it meant the world. She absorbed kindness like a sponge. And Dick, a parent by nature, kept giving her more. He never asked why she lived alone or if she had anything at home. Sure, he was curious, but he left space for Marinette to stay comfortable. And that was all she needed. She began to grow inside, pushing away the old emptiness and sadness.
A month passed and they started to get used to each other. You could say that they developed some kind of routine. They talked, helped each other, sometimes they even went out for cookies together.
As autumn approached, school started for Marinette. She went to some kind of regular high school. She didn't really attend any social activities or make friends, not like anyone cared about it (except Dick).
Life was quiet, but calmer than it had ever been.
...
Until a rainy evening in the early October.
The day actually went well. Dick started reading some romance book that Jason had already read, and being the good brother he was, he started reading it too. Well, it quickly became clear that classic romance books were not his thing. He thought it was really cheesy, but he'd rather die than tell Jason. Still, he really wanted to have a chat with him about it, so he looked for another solution. So, like all not-so-bookish people, he pulled out the movie version and sat down on the couch to watch it with a plate of cookies he and Marinette had bought. Unfortunately, it hasn’t got any better. In fact, the film was worse. It was just torture.
Watch out fear toxin, this movie is more terrifying.
Suddenly, he heard a knock on the door. Normally he wouldn't open the door to random people knocking in the middle of the night (seriously, kids, don't do that!), especially since he was in Gotham, but he quickly got up 'couse all of a sudden he heard a familiar voice.
"Dick," the voice cried, "please open the door! " It was Marinette's voice. It didn't sound good at all. He saw her freak out a few times and hoped she wasn't having another attack on her own.
He rushed to the door, opened it and saw Marinette soaking wet. But what really turned on the sense of danger was the panic in Marinette's eyes. He looked over Marinette's shoulder to make sure no one else was there, then gently put his arm around her and pulled her into his apartment.
"Hey, are you okay? What happened?" he asked. But she just kept sobbing. Dick tried to calm her by rubbing small circles on her back and regulating her breathing. Marinette was shaking from the cold. Why was she out in the rain? Why didn't she dry off before she came here?
"T-They followed me," she finally started to talk, "I didn't know what to do, and I-I just," she took a small pause, "I just came here, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. Please, I just-" Dick felt his heart break as Marinette looked at him. Who would hurt her?
That evening he heard a knock on the door for the second time. This time, however, he had no doubt that it was they were who followed Marinette. She grabbed him, hoping he’ll ignore the noise. She didn't want Dick to get hurt. "Open the door, girl!" shouted a deep male voice outside. "You can't keep running forever! "
Dick saw red. He knew exactly what they wanted. Not wanting to scare Marinette, he carefully put his hand on her shoulder. "I'll take care of it," he whispered comfortingly, "Don't worry, kid." Then he headed for the door.
He opened it calmly and stared at the two men in front of him. Dick was a little taller, but they were about one and a half times older. The best way to describe the men in front of him is by their appearance. The man on the left had a big belly on their body, Dick suggested that he lived a good lifestyle. His face was also slightly deformed by it. The other one had a rat's face.
Gross.
"Is there a problem?" asked Dick calmly. He knew they will lie.
The rat-faced one smiled oddly and began to speak, "Well, there was a girl here, about this high, " he pointed to his chest with his hand, "She was alone, and we just wanted to talk to her. You know, make sure everything was okay. "
Stay calm.
"Yeah, that's right! " agreed the obese one "Have you seen her?"
How dare he ask him!
Dick's silence made his eyes light up "You know how it is, man," the rat-faced continued, "maybe we should call the cops that you're harboring a young girl, huh?"
"Well," Dick began in a low voice, "lucky for her I'm a cop." And sure enough, he pulled his badge out of his pocket. He could see the realization in their eyes. He saw the fear growing in them. It didn't help that Dick pulled himself up to show his muscles and height. He knew he could take them in a fight. But now he had to stay calm for Marinette.
"And she's not just a girl. She's my kid."
At his words, the rat-faced tried to get away quickly, but Dick grabbed him by the neck of his shirt and lifted him inches from the ground.
"If I ever see you again near her, you won't end up in jail, you'll end up in a fucking graveyard," he promised. "Now get out of my sight."
They didn't have to be told twice.
...
Dick took a deep breath to calm himself and walked back into the apartment, to Marinette. He really hoped she had not heard them. He hated to think how little it all depended on. If she wasn't fast enough, much worse could have happened. If he didn't have his badge in his pocket, they might not have believed him. The possibilities scared him.
As he entered his thoughts were interrupted by a quick movement. Something hit him and almost knocked him over. It took him a moment to realize that Marinette was hugging him.
She hugged him.
Dick hugged a lot. He gave his family many hugs. Even if they told him they don’t need it, he hugged them. He knew that if they didn't interact physically in a positive way outside of the fight, none of them would hold up. Bruce wasn't much of a hugger and unfortunately neither was Alfred. Then who will give the family hugs? Well, Dick did. That was his job.
He hugged Damian when he showed him a drawing of his, Tim so he won’t feel depressed again, he put his arm around Jason every time he was involved in a family activity, he gave the girls welcoming hug whenever they enetered the manor, and he even hugged Bruce and Alfred when he felt they needed it.
But since he always initiated the hugs, he never got the feeling of being hugged randomly.
That was new for him.
He felt her tears wet his shirt but he just stayed there and slowly rubbed circles in her back as before.
"Thank you! " she cried. She kept thanking him. Dick wasn't sure what else to do, so he just gave her the comforting words he could think of. "It's okay," he whispered, "you're safe."
She's safe.
A strange feeling crept up his chest, similar to the one he felt for his brother.
"Come on," he said, "you're soaking wet. Let's find you a towel, okay?" Marinette blushed slightly in embarrassment, but he just smiled at her.
She's safe.