Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Love isn’t something that just…happens.  At least, a majority of the time.  More often than not it’s something that is built, and even if there’s an instant connection, it must be maintained.  

It was Spring when they first met, a Spring Gala specifically.  Little six year old Tim Drake stood proudly next to his parents as they talked to an investor.  He was quiet unless he was spoken to, he didn’t yawn or fidget, and he didn’t move away when the old ladies went to pinch his cheeks (even if it was painful).  He did everything right, at least until she showed up.

“Mr. Stone!”  Someone from the crowd called out as none other than rockstar Jagged Stone walked through the gates of the garden they were in.  His parents scoffed and quickly turned back to the investor, they didn’t care much for him or his music; but Tim did.  “Oh, and who is this adorable little one with you?”  Mrs. White cooed as she approached the musician.  Tim followed her line of sight and noticed a small girl with raven black hair in a simple yet elegant floor length pink dress with a single white rose pinned at the left side of her waist.

“This is my sister’s daughter Marinette.  I don’t know how, but I was able to convince her to let me bring Marinette here since she’s always talking about fashion, but I did.  And I thought, what better place to see fashion around the world than in Gotham of all places!”  Mrs. White gave a polite smile and went to pinch the young girl’s cheeks in her cruel old woman way, but was stopped as Marinette quickly moved to hide behind Jagged.

Tim was shocked, if he dared to do that-, he shivered at what he thought his parents might do.  “Sorry about that, she doesn’t like other people touching her much without her permission.”  Jagged said, though he didn’t seem very apologetic.  

Tim watched as the small girl peaked from behind the man’s legs and met his eyes.  They stared at each other for a few moments before he turned away, a red flush of embarrassment coloring his cheeks.  How could he be caught staring, that was so rude!  Not to mention that he had been caught in the act which was even more embarrassing! 

He quickly tuned back into the conversation above him, trying to push the mortification he felt into the back of his mind.  A few moments later he felt someone tap at his shoulder, and it was only his extensive gala training that stopped him from jumping in shock.  He needed to work on his situational awareness.  

“Hello, I’m Marinette!”  The girl who arrived with Jagged said, her bright blue eyes filled with shy curiosity.  He glanced at his parents and when he received the almost nonexistent nod from his mother he turned back to Marinette with his best gala smile and held out his hand. 

“Timothy Drake, but you can call me Tim.”  The girl's smile brightened as she quickly shook his hand.  

“Let's go play in the gardens.”  She stated.  Tim felt uneasy at the idea, if he said no he might hurt her feelings, but if he said yes it might make his parents upset.  He glanced up at his mother, knowing that she must have been paying some attention to the conversation, and when he once again received the nod he felt something in him jump in excitement.  “Sure, sounds like fun.”  

“Good!”  She cheered as she began to walk backwards, her sweet smile turning into a chaotic smirk.  She held something long and silver out in front of her stating, “Let's play tag, and if you get me, I’ll give you your watch back.”  Tim glanced down at his right wrist, the one his watch was once on, the one he had used to shake her hand, and blanked.  How had she-, he hadn’t even felt-, how?!  

Needless to say, Tim quickly gave chase to the girl while she ran and giggled throughout the bustling gardens and maze.  And this marked the beginning of a long lasting friendship.  They rarely saw each other, they really only met and talked at galas.  Yet despite Tim’s best efforts, Marinette was always able to steal something of his, resulting in a game of some kind.  He would never admit it to her face, but he always looked forward to those games; even at the cost of his pride.  He felt like a child, felt like he got to understand for the briefest moments what it was like to be like everybody else.  

This went on for years, and even though Tim was now 13, and far too mature for these silly games, he couldn’t help but follow after her every time.  

Now that he was Robin, he checked through the Bat-Computer to see if she was related to Cat Woman in any way, shape, or form; but she wasn’t.  He didn’t think that they had even met before; and didn’t that just hurt his brain.  How was someone that good at being a thief at the age of 6 not be related to one of the most infamous thieves in the world?!  But it didn’t really matter, because she wasn’t stealing from anyone else or using her strange gift of sleight of hand against others.  At least not to his knowledge.

Now 14 years old Tim walked down the halls of Gotham Academy.  It was a good day, he had been able to sleep through physics without anyone noticing, he had gotten to drink his favorite brew of coffee, and he had gotten an ‘A’ on his world history report.  

As Tim walked he felt a soft pat on his right shoulder, but when he looked no one was there.  Then there was a pat on his left shoulder, again no one.  Then his right, and before the hand could pull away completely he was able to catch it.

“Wow, you’ve gotten faster and stronger.  Gotta say Tim-Tam, your grip used to be pretty weak.”  Tim knew that voice, but it didn’t make any sense.  What would she be doing here ?  

Tim quickly turned around and came face to face with none other than Marinette Dupain-Cheng.  “W-what are you doing here?”  Was the first thing that blurted out of his mouth in his shock.

“Ouch, and here I thought you’d be happy to see me again.”  Marinette said in a jokingly-hurt tone causing a flush of red to bloom across Tim’s cheeks.  But he couldn’t worry about that now, he had to figure out why she was here!

“It’s not that I’m not happy to see you, because I am.  But-I guess I’m just shocked to see you here.”  He said, giving her a soft smile.

“Ah yes, I suppose you would be curious over the fact that I’ll be attending your school this year.  Well, I guess if you want that answer, you’re going to have to catch me first.”  He watched as Marinette slung his backpack over her shoulder, and took off into the crowd.  Tim patted his shoulder, and yep, his backpack was gone.  He shouldn’t run after her, he shouldn’t play into her games.  He was 14, basically an adult!  He should handle this in a mature fashion.  But then he heard over the crowd of students, “You still have a robin plushie?!”  And all of his thoughts of being civil left his mind as he ran after Marientte.

Giggles escaped her lips as she ran through the halls.  Goodness he missed her laugh.

“Get back here Mari!”  Tim yelled as he made chase only causing her to laugh even harder as she ducked and weaved through the crowd.  This game of chasing, ducking, and weaving through the halls went on for about five minutes, much to the crowds dismay.  

She had made it to the court yard and was running through the field when she felt a weight crash into her, causing both of them to roll a few times across the grass.

“Wow, you really have gotten stronger, Tim-Tam.”  She mocked.  Tim gave her a playful glare as he leaned over her.

“And you’re still a petty thief.”  He taunted as he held up her beaded bracelet that he had snatched from her while they were talking in the hall.

She let a lazy smirk roll onto her lips while she stretched her limbs as she laid under him.   “Guilty as charged.  Trade?”  Tim rolled his eyes as he rolled off of her, holding his hand out expectantly.  She sighed as she sat up and handed over his bag.

“Everything.”  He stated, raising an amused brow as she huffed and handed him the robin plush.

“You’re no fun.”  She complained as she tightened the bracelet he had thrown at her around her wrist.

“Now that’s not true, in fact I was waiting to ask you this at the next gala, but now that you’re here…”  He drawled out.

“Now that I’m here, what, Timothy?!  You have that manic glint in your eye and I want in.”  She demanded, standing up and grabbing onto his shoulders.  Dramatic as always.  Tim looked her up and down, he needed to make sure that this idea would actually work after all.  Yep, they were still about the same height and body type.  She hadn’t done anything to her hair, and her eyes were still close enough to his that one would have to really look to see the differences.  Perfect

“Well, I’ve gotten closer to the Waynes and their friends.  I’ve gotten so close in fact that they invited me out for…an outing of sorts, and they said I could bring a friend.”  He watched as Marinette thought threw what he was saying, the gears visibly turning through her clear water blue eyes.  He could tell that she picked up on what he was saying when her eyes widened, and her mischievous smirk appeared on her lips.

“You want us to…”

“Yes, I want us to switch places and see how long it will take for them to figure it out.”  he nodded.

“That is if they figure it out at all.”  She cackled.  “You’re gonna have to teach me how to stare down people and how to reach your “cool” indifference though.”  She stated, only slightly mocking him and his gala persona.  

“But of course, My Lady.”  He cooed, taking her hand into his and kissing her knuckles.  Marinette simply rolled her eyes before poking him in the nose with her free hand and pushing his face away with.

“Dork.”

Only for you.

Chapter Text

The Justice League won’t know what hit them , Tim thought maniacally to himself.  It had been a year since he became Robin, and it was a hard year at that.  Honestly he had been feeling trapped and almost like he was suffocating with the expectations that came with filling the shoes of a dead boy.  But once Marinette had reappeared in his life, now for the long-term, he felt like he was able to breathe again.

He looked over at Marinette, her grin as mischievous as ever, if not more so.  They were dressed identically in the same magician costume, with a large top hat to cover their hair, and a silver mask that covered their faces from their foreheads down to the tip of their noses.  He had helped Marinette with her makeup—not that she needed much as they both had a similar bone and facial structure due to their Asian parentage—and mannerisms he used around the league members.  Especially with how he acted like Bruce.  He couldn’t help but think about when they had first started preparing for this ruse.

“You’re a wimp and a suck up.”  She said offhandedly one day while he was telling her to keep her head tilted down when she addresses someone.

“Am not!”  He argued back, eyes furrowed in annoyance.

“Yes you are, you’re telling me to let people walk all over me!  Do you really let people treat you like this?”

“They’re very important people.”  He shot back, turning his head so he was glaring at the floor.  He didn’t want to glare at Mari, she was one of his only friends after all.  He listened as she slowly walked towards him, stopping right in front of him.  He didn’t resist when she lightly cupped his cheek and moved his head so he was looking directly at her.  Her eyes were fierce and her lips were pulled down into a determined frown.

“You’re important too.”  She firmly stated.  She didn’t shout, she didn’t have to, but he still felt like he was about to be scolded.  “I know I’m not the best at being confident.”–wait, what?!–”But I know how to act like it.  So I’m going to teach you how to not be a doormat and you're going to teach me how to stare people into submission.  Do you understand?”  Tim gave a gentle nod, trying his best not to lean into the soft warmth that was her palm against his cheek.  She glared at that, “I saaaiiid, ‘do you understand’?”  

Tim rolled his eyes.  “Yes ma’am.”  He replied giving a half-hearted two-finger salute.  She gave a sharp nod, her smug smile returning as she turned to sit back on the couch, taking her warmth with her.  

“Good, now let's get to work.  That is if you want your watch back.”  She said as she looked at the watch attached to her wrist that really should have been on his own.  Gosh, she was going to be the death of him.

Tim stared at the crowd in front of him, the feeling of all of his heroes judging him feeling him with a sense of overwhelming anxiety.  Before his thoughts could spiral too far, the warmth of a hand in his own paused him in his thoughts.  “You’re thinking too loud again, Nerdy Bird.”

Taking a deep breath in and out he turned and smiled at the girl on his left.  “You’re just jealous I aced the last chemistry test and you got a ‘B’.”

“Chemistry is a stupid subject anyways.”  She grumbled, though she didn’t remove her hand.  Goodness he adored this woman.  The growing sound of the crowd filled their little alcove that was covered in shadows.  “Sounds like we should start getting in there.”  Marinette stated, and of course, she was right, though she still didn’t remove her hand from his and he was starting to wonder what it meant. 

“Alright, you remember the check points and signals?”  He asked, staking out where everyone was.

“Of course, you basically drilled it into my being.”  She said, knocking her shoulder against his lightly.  He gave her a small smirk knocking his back before he gave a sharp nod, removing his hand from her own.

“I’ll see you on the other side.”  And with that he left their space ready to spread the chaos that had been bubbling within him–chaos he had refused to let out in fear of rejection.  

“Robin!  It’s good to see you!”  Superman called out from the crowd dressed as some sort of zombie.  

“Hey Supes, nice costume.”  Tim replied nonchalantly, watching as Marinette fled from their alcove from the corner of his eye.  She was headed towards Wonder Woman first.  This would be fun.  

The plan was for him to talk to a few of the heroes at the same time Marinette talked to others on the opposite end of the room.  Then after about 15 minutes of that, they would switch sides and pretend that they hadn’t spoken to any of them since they were on the opposite end of the room, obviously.  From there they would gaslight the heroes into thinking that they were seeing things or going insane.

“So tell me, how are things on the Planet?”  Tim asked, trying his best to hold back the smirk that wanted to form across his lips.

“I’m sorry Diana, but I don’t know what you’re talking about.  I was just talking to Clark, you can ask him yourself.”

“You think I spilled my drink on John?!  How could I have possibly done that when I was with Artemis?”

“You were talking with Artemis?  But I could have sworn-”

“Well you’re obviously seeing things, maybe lay off the apple cider.  I understand that it’s non-alcoholic, but maybe you’ve had one too many.”  Oh gosh, he just said that.  Green Arrow was going to hate him now!  He waited for some sort of reprimand, but when all he received was a loud laugh, and a playfully ruff shove he nearly fell over in surprise.  He turned his head slightly and saw Marinette give him a small thumbs up and felt a gentle warmth blossom in his chest.  Huh, what were the odds?

“Dick I did not shove you into Kori!  I don’t care what you saw because I was at the punch bowl, on the opposite end of the room.  Go ask Kaldur!  He was literally standing right next to me!”

Two hours in, Tim went to one of their designated safe spaces, behind a curtain that was covering a window ledge.  There was a large grin spread across his face, and he had never felt so alive.  He hadn’t felt this way since he had first met Mari, or when he took the roofs for the first time to follow the bats, or when Bruce finally agreed to let him tail.  There was a slight russell from the curtains causing Tim to tense up slightly, but he was relieved to see that it was only Marinette with two bottles of water and a small plate of mini-brownies.

“Didn’t think you had it in you.”  Marinette said as she settled across from Tim, setting the small plate atop her legs.  She offered him one of the bottles, which he quickly accepted with a roll of his eyes.

“Have a little faith would you?”  He joked, not noticing the soft look on Marinette’s face when their hands brushed.  

“Hard to have it when I thought you were literally going to pass out from fear the first time you “insulted” the dude with the goatee.”  She grumbled, leaning back against the wall.  Tim watched her as he sipped at the water with a calm curiosity.  Though most of her features were obscured by the costume–just like they had planned–he could still make out some things that were just Marinette.  Granted, he was 14 and had no interest in finding a girlfriend yet, but that didn’t keep him from feeling the blossoming warmth in his chest that only she could seem to make him feel.  

Maybe one day when they were older, he would ask her out on a date.  Maybe one day when they were older, they could talk about what they wanted to be.  But until then, he could just enjoy her company, and let her presence make him feel like the child he was always told he couldn’t be.

Once the water was gone and the food finished he let Marinette exit the curtains first, but that was a mistake.  

“Tim, what were you doing there?  I was looking everywhere for you!”  Oh gosh, Bruce thought that Marinette was him.  He needed to reveal himself, keep her safe so that Bruce wouldn’t yell at her.

“I was simply taking a break.  Sometimes being in a room full of people can be draining.  I figured you would be glad I didn’t run off like Dick would and only took a few moments to myself.”  Tim was stunned, so stunned that he wasn’t able to move or make a noise.  He couldn’t see what was happening, but he could feel that Marinette was using the Drake stare that he had taught her, and from Bruce’s silence, she was using it well.

“I guess you’re right.  I understand that a crowd can be draining, so thank you for not running away.  Speaking of which, could you please check if Dick is still here, I need to talk to him.”  Bruce stated briskly before he turned away, the only tell that he left being how the air seemed to get warmer.

Oh. My. Gosh.  She actually did it.  World's Greatest Detective his A*.  Tim couldn’t help it, he laughed.  He tried to smother the sound by placing his hands over his mouth, but it didn’t work.  He felt almost hysterical, and whether or not it was in a good way or a bad way he didn’t know, nor did he want to.  There were many implications that could be taken from what just happened, half of them he didn’t even want to consider.

After his laughing fit was over he crept out from behind the curtains, a smug grin spread across his face as he continued his venture of gaslighting the entire Justice League with Marinette.  When he was able to peek at her, her shoulders were slightly tensed, her features a little more rigid than they were earlier in the night, and overall, it just looked like she was bothered by something.

Tim made one of their agreed upon signals to meet at one of their alcoves, and knew she had seen it as she responded back.  It only took a few minutes in order to get away from the guests and meet once more.

“Are you okay?”  He asked quickly, looking her up and down to make sure that no harm had come to her. 

“Yea, I’m fine.  Are you?”  Confusion shot through Tim like a bullet.  What did she mean by that?

“Yea, why wouldn’t I be?”  He asked, tilting his head slightly.  He watched as she bit her lip, trying to formulate her next sentence carefully.  She didn’t do that very often, which meant that this must be very important to her.

“He was so distant, it felt like he wasn’t even looking at me.  Like he couldn’t bear to look at me.  You said that he was a mentor of yours that’s supposed to be helping you learn how to run Drake Industries, but I think he’s the wrong mentor for you.”  She stated with a small nod, like she was agreeing with herself that she had said the right thing.

“Why do you think that?  I’ve already learned a lot from him!”  He pushed.  Of course it had nothing to do with actual business, but she didn’t need to know that.

“Because he didn’t care enough to actually look at me, and everything about him felt cold and closed off.  And Timothy I swear to G* that if you turn out like that I-I’ll…I’ll break your kneecaps!”  She whisper shouted, poking him harshly against his chest.  A fear filled desperation filled her eyes, and the only thing Tim could think of that would calm her was to pull her into a tight hug.

“Hey, it’s okay.  He’s a lot nicer than you think, he just has a hard time showing it.  Besides, as long as I have you around, there’s no way I’ll become some cold and distant man who broods in the shadows.”  He said, laughing a little at his own joke.

“You better not.”  She growled, holding onto him a little tighter for a moment before pulling away.  “If he ever does anything to make you think that you’re not important you tell me and I’ll tear him down.”

Tim let out a laugh filled with genuine joy.  The image of Marinette yelling at Bruce, and maybe even kicking him in the shin, filling him with endless mirth.  “Of course, Mari.”

“I’m holding you to that.”  She said haughty, tilting her chin into the air slightly.  She couldn’t hide the small smile that bloomed across her lips as she heard Tim laugh.  Goodness she missed that sound, it wasn’t one she got to hear often; so she savored it every time she was given the privilege to hear it.

“Let’s end this party off with a bang shall we?”  Tim asked, offering Marinette his hand while bowing slightly at the waist.  

“But of course good sir.”  She replied, upping her french accent.  They shared one last mischievous smile before they exited the small shadowed alcove together.  They split off one last time that night and Tim watched as she kept to the shadows as she traveled to where the entrance was.  

Tim talked to a few other heroes in the meantime until he heard,

“TIMOTHY!!!”  Shouted from the front of the ball room.  All eyes turned to the young girl dressed in a magician's costume, a black hat (now with a  red ribbon), and a gold mask.  A large grin spread across his face as he rushed across the room and quickly swept her off her feet with a twirl.

“I thought you said you wouldn’t be able to make it tonight!”  He cheered, gently setting her down.  Marinette giggled, wrapping him in a tight embrace–like they hadn’t just hugged each other not more than 10 minutes ago.  

“I was able to convince Uncle Jagged to let me last minute.  I know I’m like, way late, but I really wanted to see you at one of these things again!”  Tim was about to respond when someone cleared their throat.  

“And who is this Tim?”  Dick said with his best Grayson smile, though it was a little tenser than normal.  Good.

Tim turned to face the older boy and gestured to Marinette, “This is my friend Marinette.  We met at a gala when we were 6, and have mostly only seen each other at such events on occasion.  This year though she was able to convince her parents in France to let her stay as an exchange student with her uncle, Jagged Stone.”  Tim stated like everything he spoke was completely normal for everyone in the room.

Dick’s eyes glanced between the two of them suspiciously, picking up on both the subtle differences and similarities of the other.  “Are you sure she wasn’t here earlier?  She looks awfully familiar, and the two of you look scarily identical.”

“Pfft.  How would I have been here earlier?  Aunt Penny just dropped me off, if you want I can call her and you can ask her what time she dropped me off at.”  Marinette said innocently, averting her eyes to the ground..just like he had taught her–who was pushover now (still you) .  

Dick stared at Marinette, his smile softening and becoming more genuine as he believed her soft shy girl act.  “No, it's fine.  I believe you.”  (the word ‘idiot’ echoes through both of their minds at the same time).  

“Good, because we’re leaving.”  Tim said, grabbing at Marinette’s wrist and softly dragging her away.

“But I just got here Tim-Tam!”  She whined, letting him drag her out of the room.

“Pfft, like you actually liked these things anyways.”  He grumbled.

“True, but you know what I always love to do at these events?”  She asked innocently, too innocently.  He already knew what happened.  “Let's play a game.”  She said holding his phone between both of her fingers.  How she got that without his notice, he’d never know.  And before he could even ask what game she was running past all of the heroes and out into the gardens with him trailing right behind her.