Work Text:
It started when two beings of incredible power brushed hands as they attempted to grab the same coffee cup.
It was a normal day in Gotham, which was to say, not normal at all. Danny had spent the past week dodging multiple kidnappers who had thought he was a Wayne kid and multiple rogue attacks. He wanted nothing more than to get out of Gotham, but unfortunately the cult he was trying to purge had multiple cells, and Danny could feel a dozen of them trying to draw the summoning circles. It wasn’t because they were summoning him specifically, but because they used some nasty ectoplasm to color the lines, and the gathered ectoplasm was enough for his ghost senses to go off.
It was taking a lot longer than Danny thought to sweep over the city, and he hadn’t even managed to cover a quarter of the city. It would’ve been simple to allow himself to be summoned, but there was one problem with that: the cult wasn’t summoning him specifically. There were multitudes of entities the cult cells were capable of summoning, and Danny was just one of them. Clockwork made it clear that on no terms were those entities supposed to be released upon the mortal plane.
After three days of searching, Danny decided that he needed a break in order to focus and figure out a different game plan.
So that explained why he was sitting at a cafe a half-hour before it closed for the night, ordering a coffee with enough caffeine to incapacitate most mere mortals (just because he was the lord over an infinite dimension didn’t mean that he had infinite energy. It just meant that he was strong enough that ordinary caffeine barely gave him energy).
While waiting, Danny began writing on a map of Gotham where the cult cells he had already taken care of, while trying to figure out where the cult cells shouldn’t even be in. Tucker had tried to track the cult down with his algorithms, but that was also going slow, and Danny found that manual searches were making things go faster.
“Quad espresso for—!”
Danny jumped from his seat and reached for the counter, not waiting for the name.
At the same time, another hand reached for the cup.
Their hands brushed, and for a moment, Danny thought that he had accidentally reached for another person’s order.
Then a feeling of unease lodged itself in Danny’s stomach.
Danny looked over and met the bright blue eyes of a bluenette with short hair tied back in two tails. For a normal person, they no doubt appeared normal.
Danny on the other hand?
This woman had an incredible concentration of power within her. It was mostly focused around her ears, but there was no mistaking the energy she held. It had the scent of one of the fundamental forces of reality to it.
From the expression in her eyes, she seemed to recognize the power in Danny as well.
A belated moment passed while Danny was trying to think of what to do next.
Welp, when in doubt, commit to the bit. We should just be normal humans here. No need to blow up the city.
Danny retracted his hands, and gave his most normal smile (the one that didn’t stretch too far like the Cheshire Cat). “Sorry, was that your order?”
The woman glanced towards the barista, who sighed. “Coffee addicts.” He muttered to no one in particular. “It was for the one named Danny.”
The bluenette blushed, and jumped back, a light french accent touching her voice. “Goodness, I’m so sorry! I just heard my order, and I reacted—!” She continued to apologize, but Danny could see the calculations she was running in her head from how her eyes moved from him to the surrounding area. Casing the cafe in case a fight began. Danny would admit, she must’ve been well-trained in combat.
“It’s fine!” Danny said, keeping the smile plastered on his face, trying to not show any hint of fear in his face. “I’ve done it before. Embarrassing? Yes. I get it. Sleep deprivation does things to us. Don’t worry about it.”
Please take the cue. Just leave me alone. I don’t want any trouble.
Danny plucked the cup of coffee from the barista’s hand, and handed him a small tip, saying “Thanks for the drink, man.” before heading back to his seat.
He kept an eye on the woman, who was also watching him from the corner of her eye. When their eyes met, a small conversation seemed to play out with no words and subtle gestures.
What are you? She asked.
I could ask the same question. Danny retorted. Should we leave each other be, or are we going to debrief each other?
The woman considered Danny for a moment, and Danny was almost certain that she wasn’t going to push the issue. Then the barista came by and said “I’m guessing this is your quad-espresso, Marinette?”
“Oh! Yes! Thank you!” Marinette (if that was her real name) snatched the coffee cup, almost dropping it in the process. Through some very exaggerated flailing, she managed to get a secure grip on the cup before bowing awkwardly to the barista, then walking towards Danny’s table.
She has to be faking the ditzy bit. Danny thought to himself. There is no way that she would be that clumsy. If she were, then that power she holds would destroy the block!
“Mind if I sit here?” Marinette asked, giving Danny a tight smile.
Danny responded in kind, knowing that he was walking on eggshells. “Of course not.” He said through gritted teeth.
Marinette sat on the opposite side of the small table, and took a sip of her drink. Danny did the same, although he did gulp down a larger amount of it.
“So...you new to Gotham?” Marinette asked.
“Yes. You too, it appears.” Danny said.
“Tourism?” Marinette tried.
“No. I’ve got work here.” Danny said, which was technically true. He was working for the greater good. “You?”
“Work is work, I guess.” Marinette muttered. “I’ve got a couple freelance jobs, but I’ve also got a couple responsibilities that brought me here.”
Danny began mentally listing down the traits of some of the most powerful beings he knew in the universe. He had already discarded the idea that she was something ghostly or paranormal because his ghost sense hadn’t gone off. Because Marinette mentioned responsibilities, he narrowed it down to entities like Fae, Fiends, Divinities, Balance Keepers, Vampire Lords, Werewolf Alphas, and Gods.
“Freelance? What kind?” Danny asked. “Web design, writing, filming, trading?”
Marinette gave Danny a large smile, and for some reason, it appeared genuine. “None of the above. I’m a fashion designer.”
Danny blinked, finding it odd that a someone with that level of power would be a simple fashion designer of all people. Maybe she was Fae, just for the fact she was involved in fashion. Then again, she wasn’t doing as much activeinterrogation like Danny was doing to her. It could be she knew exactly what Danny was, and was simply enjoying Danny’s attempt to figure out what she was. Fiends that didn’t follow pride loved that sadistic torture. “Making clothes for the Wayne gala?” Danny asked.
“Yes.” Marinette said, without giving further explanation.
“Isn’t that a little...below your station?” Danny asked.
“Why, Daniel.” Marinette said, smiling sweetly. “This Wayne gala is one of the more expensive galas to get into. One would need a very important type of suit or dress to get in. I’d say it’s above my talents.”
“Don’t undersell your work.” Danny said, both meaning it as a normal piece of advice, and also to stop the entity in front of him from making cheeky comments. “From what I can see, you’ve done great things that the Wayne fortune couldn’t match.”
Marinette smiled. “How kind of you to stand up for me.”
A young man behind Danny let out a groan, and Danny swiveled in his seat to find a raven-haired guy with his hand clutched around a coffee cup, while his face was resting against his table. Danny gestured to the guy. “Was he always there?”
Marinette shrugged, and Danny went over the conversation in his head, making sure the guy hadn’t heard anything incriminating. Finding none from his memory (apart from what could be misinterpreted as flirting), Danny gave the guy a quick once-over, then a double-take when he saw the coffee cup’s contents. “Ancients, did we just hear him die?” Danny asked no one in particular. “He’s got a quad-espresso. No normal person should be having that!”
Marinette laughed. “You say that like you’re not normal.” she said.
Danny raised his brow. “Right back at you.” He said, then shouted to the barista. “Hey! I think this guy just had a heart-attack!”
The barista took one look at the guy, then laughed. “Don’t worry man, that’s just Tim! He crashed at that table before he could take a sip. Just check his pulse, but I’m sure he’s fine.”
Danny did check Tim’s pulse, and found it to be still going. “Alright, he’s fine.” Danny concluded, sitting back into his chair. “Shouldn’t be drinking that, though. Could kill someone, you know?” He said to Marinette.
“Sure. We can say that. Definitely.” Marinette said, making a toast gesture with her own quad-espresso.
“We don’t count.” Danny said. “I need this much to get the smallest kick. I don’t know what you do, but I’m pretty sure you can shrug it off.”
Danny internally winced, realizing that he was the one who first cracked the facade that he was really inhuman. Marinette grinned, but didn’t gloat over the fact. “I’ve got ways of negating the side effects. Granted, I’ll probably find a day in the year when I’ll crash so hard that I can’t function, but I’ve squirelled it away for later.”
Balance keeper it is. Danny thought. Who else would be that powerful, but still have consequences for magic? Danny gave the surrounding area a cursory look, finding only him, Marinette, and the unconscious Tim nearby. It was safe to break the charade. “Alright, what are you really doing in Gotham?”
Marinette blinked at the sudden bluntness, but took it in stride. “Officially, I’m designing Jagged Stone’s suit for the Wayne gala. Unofficially, I found multiple magical artifacts of importance that I am interested in. If you want to know what I want to do with said artifacts, you’re going to have to give me something.”
“Fair.” Danny said. “Though I’m afraid I don’t have an official reason for being here. I am here because a large cult recently gained access to a couple rituals. Rituals that directly involve me and a couple similar entities.”
“Oh, you poor thing.” Marinette mused. “Need help breaking free from their grip?”
Danny shook his head. “They haven’t managed to summon and bind me yet. I’m just taking precautionary measures.” Then Danny stopped, considering the possibilities. Could Marinette be here to get the artifacts involved in some of the rituals? “As much as I don’t like working with balance keepers, depending on your willingness, could we perhaps collaborate on our ventures?”
Marinetter gave Danny a grin that contested his own Cheshire’s. “I would love to do that.”
“Great.” Danny grabbed a napkin, and started writing. On the top, he wrote one of Tuck’s alternate emails that they hadn’t used in a while. In the center, he drew a quick glyph. “Email’s for exchanging information. The glyph’s for emergencies. It’ll burn up after it’s use, so keep it safe. I’m sure you know that we should keep this from the bats?”
“That won’t be an issue, and yes, I would also like to hide my presence from Batman.” Marinette said, picking up the glyph and scrutinizing it. “Huh, a realms entity. That’s rare. You seem a bit more powerful than the one I’ve encountered.”
“Comes with the territory of being the king.” Danny said. “And what entity are you talking about?”
Marinette’s eyes widened a fraction, but she brushed past that alarming information to answer the question. “Crazy old guy in the himalayas. Uses realms energy to sustain himself.”
Danny pinched the bridge of his nose. “Ancients I think I know that guy.”
Simultaneously, the two said “Ra’s.”
Danny let his head droop. “Hate that guy. He’s got a permanent fixture in my city. I’ve been going through multiple stages of metaphorical hell to weed it out. As someone who has been there, I can tell you, he's that annoying!"
“Yeah, last time we met, the old man comes by every couple months and nearly kills me for my miraculous.”
Danny froze, looking up at Marinette. “Come again? Miracu-what?”
“I guess it’s my turn to give out a title.” Marinette stood, putting the napkin in her pocket. “Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Guardian of the Miraculi.”
Danny simply stared. “Can I have that napkin back?” He muttered.
The woman with the power to restore things shook her head, patting the pocket where the napkin sat. “I won’t abuse it that much. It does pay to have the ghost king on speed-dial.”
Danny groaned, putting his head in his hands.
Marinette winked before turning around with her coffee in hand. “I’ll see you around, Your Majesty. Right now, I believe I have a suit to tailor, and you have multiple cult cells you need to find.”
Danny stared after her, then swore, standing up and cleaning the table. “Ancients, did clockwork know this would happen? Why did I think giving the keeper of the Miraculi my pager?”
After a moment of screaming and wiping the table off, Danny stood, and shook his head. “Best-case scenario, I get more information, and we don’t have to see each other again. Worst-case…?”
Danny decided to look on the bright side. At least it was a balance-keeper. They tended to give rewards for services provided.
Danny looked at the unconscious Tim, and checked the man’s pulse to double-check he was still alive. Satisfied, Danny let out a breath. “Well, Gotham’s in for a rough week. Sleep well, bud!”
Unbeknownst to Danny, Tim Drake’s mind was running at a hundred miles per second. He was just laying his head down when he had heard two newcomers to Gotham flirting. He had nearly given himself away, but it seemed to be luck that those two didn’t appear to notice.
To think they would start mentioning being more than human.
When he was certain Danny and Marinette were gone, he pulled out his phone and started texting the family.
This is a Batty House
Death-Wish:
guys, we have a problem.
Zombie-not-apocalypse:
What’s up replacement? Ra’s causing trouble again?
Death-Wish:
Maybe. I’m not sure.
Also why are you the only one up this time?
Zombie-not-apocalypse:
Agent A found out about the Ming Vase incident.
Everyone currently in the manor has been banned from electronics not
essential to patrol except for me (*cause I also didn’t know
about that incident*).
And Bab’s is currently tracking a robbery heading my way,
and I have time to kill.
That’s semantics, but what’s up?
Death-Wish:
Just keep an eye out.
I’ve heard from the grapevine that a pair of dangerous
individuals have appeared in Gotham.
Zombie-not-apocalypse:
Ah. Care to cite a source?
Death-Wish:
Heard it with my own ears.
Zombie-not-apocalypse:
Dunno. Not MLA formatted.
Death-wish:
Trust me, Jason. I was sitting at my favorite coffee shop,
when two people suddenly sit behind me, and start talking
about the cults we were dealing with. We need to keep our eyes peeled.
Zombie-not-apocalypse:
Alright, I’ll peel my eyes. gtg, the robbers are heading my way.
Tim let out a frustrated sigh. Out of all the days I stay out of the manor! This is the one where I nearly get murdered by two demigods!
At least Tim had their names and titles. Names meant a paper trail, titles meant he could possibly ask his JLA contacts about the two beings that had a conversation at his favorite coffee shop.