A Miraculous Cafe

Chapter Nine - Lies, Truths, and Some Mysteries

No One's POV(in Paris with Marinette's ex-class, same time as the debriefing):

Everyone in the airport steered clear of the 'akuma' class because if they didn't they would be trampled by Lila's sheep and lovesick puppies (the class, Ayla, and Adrien), "Oh, my Damiboo, he knows he'll be seeing me during the summer, he must have wanted to see me earlier than that, and that's why he organized this for me," Lila gushed, all the sheep and puppies were 'awwing' and commenting on how amazing Lila's Damiboo is. 

They carry on like this all through getting their tickets, economy class, "Damiboo doesn't want me to be swamped by paparazzi, he's so thoughtful and kind," to security, "Damiboo is just so kind and thoughtful, last time we saw each other in person, last holidays, he wanted to propose, but said he wants me to graduate first, he even had a ring and everything," and when they finally got onto the plane, Ms. Bustier finally decided to tell the class, "Students, try to sleep right away, that way you won't get bad jetlag." At her announcement, the class decided to take a quick nap, afterwards all the girls, apart from Chloe, who knew Damien from social events, wanted all the details of Lila and Damien's 'relationship'.  The flight went on, and they reached the bus which was taking them to the hotel with no problems, but because fate decided to fuck with them, they were in for a surprise when the bus driver, whose name was Matty, realized that they were calling Gotham's sunshine, a whole vocabulary of mean names. 

"Are you by any chance talking about Marinette Dupain-Cheng Stone?" asks Matty, hoping he's wrong, and that Nettie didn't have to deal with these idiots, I mean, the girl was clearly a liar, because the 'ice prince of Gotham' certainly never had, or has a girlfriend, also he only moved in with Mr. Wayne when he was 11, so how could he have been friends with the liar at Wayne Manor when they were 7 and 8? As Matty thought all of this through, in under ten seconds, Ayla replied, "It's Marislut Dupain-Cheng, although how can she be a Dupain or Cheng when she's disowned," At this Matty makes up his mind to talk to Marinette tomorrow when he goes in for his morning coffee before he has to deal with these idiots.

While Matty was making his decision, Ayla was thinking about how weird it was that the bus driver knew of Maribrat, 'she must have caused some trouble in Gotham, so she was in the news or something.'

Marinette's POV(same time):

I'd been taking Uncle Ridd's order when I'd thought up a riddle that I wanted to ask him. So when he came up to get his coffee, I put it to him. When he looks up at me after I give him his coffee, 'Midnight Nightmare', in shock, I realize that I'd asked him a riddle while he was in his civilian form. 

"Look, I can explain," I say, and look around my cafe to make sure it was only the rogues in here with me. I walk calmly to the door and put the sign I'd made a couple of days ago, up, it read 'Diplomatic Meeting in session. The owner, Nettie.' Once I finish that, I motion for them to sit at the meeting table and everyone sits down. "Okay, I know all of your identities, as well as some of the supers and all of the vigilantes of Gotham City, I needed to know your identities otherwise I would probably end up in a panic attack, mainly because the last super/villain that I trusted to save me, tried to sexually assault me, and proceeded to beat me within an inch of my life when he was in his civilian form after I rejected him because I wasn't looking for a relationship after all my other ones had gone bad and they turned on me for a liar."

After my explanation I take a deep breath and open my eyes, seeing Tim standing in shock in the doorway holding a baby carrier with Damien inside. When I hear Damien start to cry I rush over to Tim and take him out of the carrier and proceed to hug him, tickle him, and coo at him in french. Behind my back, I hear murmurings from the rogues of Gotham. "She really is Sunshine incarnate," says Aunt Selina in a sad voice, "Even better, she's Gotham's Sunshine" "She truly is an Angel, imagine that an Angel that lives in Gotham, the 'city of crime'," this one, I'm pretty sure came from Uncle Ridd, or maybe Uncle Ed now.

I manage to avoid the questions about Lila and what happened to me before I moved to Gotham but I answer the questions they have about how I figured out who was who. After the whole ordeal, the rogues insist on my nickname, so I was now officially known as the 'Sunshine of Gotham' although many had already been calling me that because I apparently brightened up their days with my sunny personality. 

Before things got out of hand when Tim started asking about how they escaped Arkham again and again, Damien began to wail. I shushed the arguing group and told them that they would calm down, or I wouldn't give them their coffee orders next time, they shut up immediately. I giggled a bit at the power I had over the apparent villains of Gotham. While I had no doubt that they used to be villains, I definitely wouldn't call the group in front of me monsters, those people were on a whole another level, these people, my family, were just misunderstood, and because of that, they turned to violence. 

Once I'd effectively shut them up for the time being I walked back over to the door and put the open sign once again in the window, I turned back to face them and a realization came to mind, "Aunt Ivy, do you think that you could help me run my cafe?" I ask, seeing that I would need help to run Cafe Miraculous if I was to babysit Damien as well. "I would love to Mari-gold!" she exclaims, practically jumping for joy. I smile, one of my more genuine ones, and walk back to the counter, motioning for Aunt Ivy to join me so that I could explain how to run the till amongst other things. 

Before he could leave I spoke to Tim, "I'll see you at 4 o'clock so you can pick Dami up, I'll be down here, probably baking or something, don't worry about Damien, I'll take care of him, and Lady Luck has already seen me and told me about meeting you, she's explained the situation. Now," I say sweetly, "GO TO SLEEP ONCE YOU GET HOME TIMOTHY DRAKE!" The last part I yell at him and stare at him with Damien as he leaves, looking slightly shaken and scared, but I know he'll go to sleep, I know the look in his eyes, it was the same one I saw in the mirror when my Maman told me to go to sleep after not sleeping for a couple of days when she was still my Maman, that is, not my abuser. 

After that my day was peaceful apart from what happened at lunch, and I handed a sleeping Damien off to Tim, telling him not to wake him so that he wouldn't freak out after going to sleep in one place and waking up in another.