GOTHAM: BEYOND EVIL || Damienette

46 - Secrets I Have Held In My Heart

Bruce rolled his eyes, sitting down. Everyone stared in worry at Bruce, who continued eating his abandoned breakfast. Of course- It was Bruce's secret from the start, and his son had spilt his life's work.

Would he not be angry? Worried? Upset?

As everyone held their breath in worry, the eldest Wayne looked up in confusion, furrowing his eyebrows. "Why are you still standing? Eat." he said, through a mouth full of food.

Selena smacked him in the head, whispering something like 'Manners'. Stephanie and Barbara giggled at this, to which they got a glare in return. And just like that, the atmosphere returned to how it was.

Although the tension never left the air.

.......

Breakfast got over not soon enough.

Oliver and Bruce had left the table first, with an excuse of discussing business, and that seemed normal. And it was normal- except for the fact that Bruce had turned back to glance at me once before he left.

A moment of hesitation overtook me, but I shook it off, excusing myself and following Bruce. The adults were long gone, but I knew where they would be- Bruce's office, of course. The second most secure place in the house, after the Batcave.

The hallways suddenly seemed longer.

Time passed slower.

Or in other words, it was my nerves acting up. It wouldn't take a genius to guess that Bruce's calm demeanor at breakfast was simply an act. Who knew what the man thought of the whole situation? Given not his family too could read him.

The door of Bruce's office seemed to loom over me ominously, but I chuckled it, trying to push the fear aside. I recognized the feeling; it was the same as when I went to visit Jason.

I knocked on the door, waiting for a reply.

"Come in."

A muffled voice beckoned me in as I opened the door with shaky hands. Bruce was seated in his chair behind his desk, as he should, and my father sat in front of him. They must have been engaged in a conversation, but it was long gone.

"Take a seat, Marinette."

Bruce's gruff voice filled the room, as I nodded, slowly sitting down next to Oliver. The adults stared at me for a second, before exchanging glances and collectively sighing. I was confused.

"Is something the matter?" I ask, eyes moving from one end of the table to another. Oliver stiffened, but Bruce sighed for the second time. "Did I do something wrong?" I ask again, to no avail.

"It was you, wasn't it?"

Bruce spoke in a soft voice, something out of character for him. "What was me?" I ask. I was growing more nervous by the second. What had they found out? I had a lot to lose, I realized.

"The Justice League Server and my Batcomputer. It was you who hacked it, am I right?" Bruce spoke. I was shell shocked. They weren't supposed to find out so soon. No, they weren't supposed to find out at all.

"How did you know?"

My voice came out as a whisper, somehow shaky.

"It was a bit hard to find any leads. Honestly, we couldn't find anything for years." Oliver spoke, for the first time since I stepped in. I was confused even more. "We? Bruce, Oliver knows?" I said.

"Yes?" Bruce replied questioningly. "You did hack into the JL Server, didn't you?" Oliver asked again. "Yes." "And you learnt the identities of the heroes." "Yes." "But you don't know who I am?"

"Who are you?"

My question was met with a chuckle from Bruce. "I-i'm Arrow? Green Arrow?" Oliver stuttered out, offended. "O-oh. Sorry dad, you weren't in the original members database. I didn't bother learning the identities of the weaker heroes."

Laughter burst from Bruce, who fell onto the table laughing. "S-she called you weak." he said, laughing more. Oliver's face was red with embarrassment. "I-i didn't mean it like that...." I said, trying to fix the situation.

"It's alright, kiddo." Oliver said, smiling. "I was just teasing. Bruce doesn't save much information on the server too." he said. I smiled back nervously. Bruce looked surprised at how fast Oliver gave up, but masked it with a blank look.

"Back to topic."

"Marinette, you hacked the servers and updated them." Bruce stated, and I nod in response. "It's a safety AI program I made. I just thought your security system needed an upgrade." I say.

Bruce nodded. "Marinette, I know you mean no harm, but I must ask. Did u approach Jason knowing this?" he asks. I shake my head. "Like I said, I only learnt the identities of the OG members. I didn't know your family was involved in it."

"If I knew, I would have come here sooner. And, if you watch the CCTV footage, it was Jason who recognized me first." I said. Bruce nodded in acceptance. "If I may ask, how did you end up being a vigilante-"

The conversation continued in a better note, as I spilled everything about my life to Bruce. Leaving out the obvious details, I told him about the situation in Paris and how we dealt with it, and so much more.

Hours had passed, and the conversation ended.

"Thank you for listening, Bruce." I say, standing up. "No problem." Oliver and Bruce both said, making me giggle. "Oh, and one more thing." I say, before I forget.

Bruce furrows his eyebrows, his way of showing curiosity. "I knew Damian's identity from before." I say, making the adults look shocked. "I read about Ra's Al Ghul and he came up, so I ended up reading about him." I say.

"Thank you for telling me." Bruce says with a blank face. "That's not why I'm telling you." I interrupt him. I look down, not able to face the man. "Damian doesn't know about all this. He thinks I know only because he told me who he was." I say.

I stare right into Bruce's eyes, hoping he understands what I mean. Bruce's eyes widen in realization and he nods. "Of course. We'll keep it a secret." he says, making Oliver confused.

I smile, walking out of the door and shutting it. Behind me, I could hear dad whining about how we communicated, and that I was more like Bruce's daughter than his. I giggled, walking down the stairs.

"Angel!"

A voice called, making me turn back. I look back to see Damian running toward me. Once he came closer, he pulled me into a hug. Once he let go, he smiled. "I was looking for you everywhere." he said.

"Really?"

"Of course, love."

And just like that, the secret I hid will remain buried forever.

.......

[Q.] Who is your favorite superhero? (Marvel or DC)