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“And as the clock ticked closer and closer to midnight, Cinderella forgot little by little about her curfew as she danced the night away with the prince.” Marinette told her children, as their eyes were slowly but surely closing. She sat on one of the two twin beds as she tried to keep her voice as quiet as possible while telling the story.
“But the sudden chime of the clock had her halting in her steps as she remembered what she had forgotten. Saying a hurried goodbye to the prince she raced away, hoping to get to her carriage before the magic wore off. However when she was running down the steps-” She continued before she was cut off.
“She lost her shoe.” Damian interrupted from the doorway. His voice was the volume one would have in a normal conversation, but in this setting it ended up shattering the peaceful silence.
“Damian! I’m telling a story.” And just like that the children were no longer sleepy, but eager to watch the drama unfold before they’re very eyes.
“I don’t get why you’re telling them that story.” He entered the room and sat across from his wife on their other child’s bed.
“What’s wrong with Cinderella?” She questioned.
“I just don’t get why you would tell them such an overused story when you could be telling them ours. After all, they are almost the same.”
“Is that so?” Marinette raised an eyebrow at him. He nodded in challenge. “Well if you’re so sure then why not you tell them their bedtime story today?”
“Gladly.” Damian smirked.
“Daddy! Daddy! Make sure to use your storytelling voice!” One of their children piped up. The other eagerly agreeing with them.
“Of course, of course. It all started many years ago. When your mother and I were just teenagers.”
-
“DC.” Damian greeted the girl who had just walked in the classroom.
“Wayne.” She greeted back, taking her seat next to him. She began to take her stuff out in preparation for the lesson and he realized he should do the same.
“Are you going to the dance?” He asked, eyes fixed on a sheet of paper he was drawing on so that he wouldn’t stare at her.
“Probably, are you?” She asked back and he looked up at her to see her eyes on him, waiting for an answer.
“Maybe, I still have to see if I’m available.” He answered, making a mental note to ask his father when he returned home.
“Hey Marinette!” A call from the back of the classroom grabbed both of their attention and they turned their heads to see a blonde boy standing on his chair. “Wanna go to the dance with me?”
She rolled her eyes as she responded, “Fat chance Agreste.” Turning around Damian could hear her muttering under her breath about stupid boys.
Mr. Martin entered just in time to see Agreste with an annoyed expression on his face, but still standing on his desk. “Mr. Agreste sit down this instant!” Once he had sat down the lesson began and Damian wondered that if he were to try and ask Marinette, would she have the same reaction?
-
“Honestly I don’t get why you won’t just ask her!” Jon complained as they sat in Damian’s room, supposed to be completing a project for one of their classes.
“You weren’t there when Agreste asked her, you didn’t see how she reacted. There is no point in asking when I will just be rejected.” Damian replied.
“But-” Jon tried to protest.
“Besides, Father said I can’t go.” Damian uttered.
“Why?”
“I have patrol that night.”
“Seriously? And you didn’t ask that you could just have it another night?”
“Father wouldn’t change his mind. Now let’s finally get to work on this project.” Damian stated, hoping to end the conversation. Unfortunately for him, it was not that easy.
“Don’t tell me he’s not letting you go to your dance?” An unwelcome voice at the door asked.
“What happened to knocking Grayson?” Damian snapped.
“The door was open.” Dick responded as he walked into the room.
“So you’re gonna help?” Jon asked, eager to get Damian to go to the dance so he could ask Marinette out.
“Course, this isn’t the first time I’ve helped one of my brothers out.” Dick instantly replied but then paused.
“There’s a but isn’t there?” Damian spoke up in his brother’s silence.
“Yeah…you have till midnight. I can only stall B for so long.” Dick hesitantly said.
“Good enough!” Jon cheered as Damian sighed. “Also no wearing you’re Robin mask Damian that’s way too obvious.”
“Why would I wear a mask?” Damian questioned.
“Cause it’s a masquerade.” Jon said, looking at Damian in confusion, “Don’t tell me you didn’t know?”
This just caused Damian to let out another sigh, “I guess I’m gonna need help with my outfit as well.”
-
Damian walked into the room with a complete poker face, his hair was done and a mask over the bottom half of his face. Jon insisted he not use a mask that covered the top half of his face so he could see easier. Jon also insisted they not walk in together to make it less obvious who they were, he didn’t think his classmates were that dumb that they wouldn’t know who they were but apparently that was the case.
He surveyed the room and found Marinette sitting at a table with her friends, her mask doing nothing to conceal her identity. She was doing her best to ignore Agreste who kept asking her to dance by constantly making conversation with those around her. Eventually she got up to get a drink and Damian found his opening.
He made his way to the punch table as Marinette tried to get a drink as slowly as possible. Seeing Agreste approaching he quickly made his way to Marinette.
“Care to dance?” He asked.
“Who’s asking?” She eyed him warily.
“Not Agreste.” He stated, tilting his head in the direction Agreste was approaching.
One look over her shoulder had Marinette putting her drink down and accepting the hand Damian offered. He led her to the dance floor where the DJ had just started playing a slow song.
“So am I ever going to get your name?” Marinette questioned.
“Perhaps.” Damian smirked, although Marinette wasn’t able to see it beneath the mask.
“Why ask me to dance?”
“You could say that I have held a liking for you for a while now.”
“What’s with the fancy talk, you could just say you have a crush on me."
“Where’s the fun in that?”
Marinette studied for a moment more before smiling brightly. “Wanna talk more outside?”
“Sure.” Damian answered.
They made their way outside and found a bench to sit on. “So how do you know me, mystery man?” Marinette asked once they had sat down.
“We share some classes.” Damian answered.
“As if you couldn’t be more vague.” Marinette laughed, “How am I supposed to figure out who you are?”
“With your brain.” Damian stated.
“Okay, so vague and a smartass.” Marinette nudged him, only to grow confused when he took his jacket off, “What are you doing?”
“Being a gentleman and giving you my jacket.”
“Why?”
“You’re shivering, if you haven’t noticed, but I have.” He draped his jacket over her shoulders. She then slipped her arms through the sleeves and they could both see that the jacket was a little too big for her.
“I didn’t have the cold in mind when I was making this dress.” She muttered.
“Next time you should take the cold into account.” He laughed when she went to hit his arm.
“Duly noted.” She sarcastically remarked.
They stayed out there just talking about anything and everything that came to mind. The clock ticked and ticked closer to midnight, but Damian was too wrapped in their conversation to notice. Jon kept blowing up Damian’s phone that he had to leave soon but unfortunately it was silenced.
“So you’re still not gonna tell me who you are?” Marinette asked.
“You really wanna know?” Damian asked back.
“Course! If I didn’t wanna know I would’ve never made conversation with you.” Marinette pulled her phone out and Damian got a glance of the time, 11:54.
“Wait, is that the time?” He hurriedly asked, standing up and making his way back to where the dance was being held.
“Yeah…why? Wait where are you going?” Marinette called after him.
“I have to be home by midnight.” Damian replied.
“You have a curfew?” She rushed out as she tried to catch up with him.
“Yes and I’m sorry, I’ll tell you who I am another time.” With that he left, vanishing into a crowd of people and leaving Marinette alone and confused.
-
“So you just left?” Dick questioned once again.
“It was all I could do! You gave me till midnight and it was minutes till midnight!” Damian repeated. He was getting tired of this interrogation.
“Let’s hope she isn’t too upset about your sudden disappearance.” Jon piped up.
“Marinette isn’t like that.” Damian immediately protested.
“We’ll just have to see what she has to say about you on Monday.” Jon added.
“About that-”
“What did you do?” Dick cut him off.
“I didn’t tell her who I was.”
“And why not!” Jon shouted.
“Well I didn’t want to do it at first because if she rejected me then she wouldn’t know who she rejected and then when I was going to it was almost midnight and I had to go!” Damian responded.
“Best thing to do is just tell her on Monday that it was you she talked with all night and hope for the best.” Dick wisely advised.
“It’s a good thing you have first period with her so you can get it over and done with.” Jon commented. “Now we just have to wait for Monday.”
-
Damian sat in his first period with his head down and doodling in his notebook. He refused to glance at the door and was determined to ignore all his problems until something landed on his head.
Lifting his head up and taking it off he realized it was his suit jacket from the dance. The one he had given to Marinette. Looking to his left he saw her sitting with her arms crossed, eyes focused on him.
“You forgot that.” She stated, eyes never leaving him.
“How did you know?” He questioned.
“Took me five minutes to figure it out. Not exactly a good disguise.” She responded. “What confused me was why you had a curfew?”
“A question that I will answer another day.”
She rolled her eyes and started to get her stuff out when a thought occurred to Damian. “I told you I like you, if you knew it was me how come you didn’t address that?”
She paused before replying, “Part of me didn’t believe it, that the boy I had liked for so long liked me back.”
“You like me?” Damian asked in disbelief.
“Yes, and it was quite obvious if you ask me.”
“Well then, we should go on a date.”
“A date?” Marinette repeated, raising an eyebrow at him.
“Yes, are you free this Saturday?” Damian asked, undeterred by her questioning.
“I am.” Marinette let out a small smile.
“So will you go out with me?”
“I would love to.” Marinette leaned and placed a kiss on his cheek before the teacher walked in. And Damian focused his attention solely on what his teacher was saying, trying to ignore the way his ears burned.
-
“Aw, that’s so cute!” One of their children said, letting out a yawn immediately afterwards.
“Yes and it’s also time for you to fall asleep.” Marinette whispered, getting up and placing a kiss on both her children’s foreheads. Damian did the same before they left the room of snoring children and made their way to their room.
“I didn’t know you talked to Jon and Dick about me so much.” Marinette teased her husband.
“Well I wasn’t the only one, Alya tells me about your teenage rants about me all the time.” Damian smirked.
A faint blush spread on Marinette’s cheeks, “I have to talk to her about that.”
Damian made his way over to her and gave her a slow kiss, “Tomorrow, we need to get some rest.”
“Oh, is that so Cinderella? Need your beauty sleep?” Marinette smirked.
“Not really, but I know that Prince Charming gets grumpy when she doesn’t get enough sleep.” Damian countered.
“Yeah yeah, getting to bed.” Marinette replied as she pulled the blanket towards her.
Damian turned off the lights and climbed into bed with her, whispering in her ear, “I’m so glad I asked you to dance.”
Marinette turned to face him, whispering back, “I’m so glad I said yes.”