Hi?
Are you there?
Hello?
What aren't you replying??
Say something
.
.
.
Hello? *pokes you*
Hi??
You there??
It seems you aren't
*sighs*
Ok then you won't talk to me now? The one's who did talk, you are great! And the ones who didn't---
Well just read the story, talk to me later!!~
xxxxxxxxx
"Oh there are a lot of amazing healers, researchers and Unexhibitables here at the Department of medicine Research and Development, but none of them could ever be compared to healer Dupain Cheng. She's all that and so much more!" said the rather short, mousey haired boy in front of him. Dennis bougart, was it?
Damian continued to listen. "She can do almost everything! She discovered that Dragonscale leaves have more than 5 uses, then she found a cure for the black beetle stings which killed a lot of people centuries ago, she translated the runes of Ancient Mythology and had them rewritten and memorized and let's not forget the Denovorum! Sweet Merlin, I suppose you know about that one already, though—it's very hard to make!"
His brown eyes flashed excitement and admiration as he addressed Marinette as some kind of Demigoddess sent from the heavens. "She's also very compassionate too! Did you know she's fighting for the freedom of house-elves and squib rights as well? She's so amazing!"
"Glad to hear that, Dennis. I was a little worried that she wasn't capable of finishing the Denovorum," he said.
It was obviously a lie. Of course he had no doubts that Marinette could finish the medicine with her eyes closed, but he had to tell this boy something to get him to talk.
"Worry no more, Mr. Damian!" Dennis beamed at him, fondling the sthethoscope in his hands. "She could do it in a heartbeat! She's the best!"
I know.
"You seem to like her a lot," Damian stated plainly, trying his best to hide his irritation. He knew Bougart wasn't really a threat but he felt annoyed with him anyway.
"Yes, I'm her number one fan," the boy said, puffing his chest to show him how proud he was. "I took the internship here because of her."
"Really now?" He pretended to sound interested, and then he motioned for Bougart to follow him. "That's a nice sthethoscope you have there."
"Yeah... it's my brother's."
Damian didn't fail to see the sad, haunted look in his eyes. He smirked inwardly.
"So tell me more about healer Dupain Cheng..."
xxxxxx
Everyone was frantic at work today. They were on their best behavior, wearing their best suits, and doing their very best. Marinette openly stared, dumbfounded, as her co-workers rushed about, actually doing their work and being productive. On ordinary days they would just lounge around and gossip about this or that, but today it was completely different.
She felt like she was in an alternate universe.
"Did—did I miss something?" Marinette asked Mylene, who was standing beside her as she stared at the productive chaos. "Am I in heaven?"
"They've been like this all morning," said Mylene in an amused tone. "Damian Wayne is here, again. I guess they all want to impress him."
Marinette almost jumped at the sudden mention of his name. Then, she stared at Mylene in disbelief. "Are you telling me... that he got everyone to work hard just by his presence alone? Something I've been trying to do during my entire stay here?"
"Well, yes," said Mylene. Marinette cursed under her breath. "Oh come on Marinette, now that the Ministry has confirmed his innocence, he's back to being influential. A Wayne. He's rich and powerful, and he's handsome to boot. It's only natural to want to please him."
Then Mylene leaned on her and spoke in hushed tones. "He's been asking me about you."
Marinette flinched. "What did he—"
"If you want to know why Damian Wayne's here, he's checking to see if his money's being put to good use," said a person from behind them. They both turned around to find Lila walking towards them, wearing a very short black skirt and a green top that showed off a lot of cleavage.
"What do you want, Lila?" Mylene asked icily.
"Nothing that concerns you, Mylene," Lila told Mylene condescendingly. Then she turned to face Marinette and smirked. "You know he talked to me this morning, Damian Wayne. And guess what? He seemed to be really interested in me."
"Oh really?" Marinette said, while turning to walk away, determined to stay away from Lila.
But Lila grabbed her arm, "Oh yes. In fact with the way he was looking at me, I think it's only a matter of time before he makes a move."
Marinette rolled her eyes. "You know, I really don't care."
"For your information, Lila, Damian Wayne asked about Mari—" Mylene started to say, but Marinette cut her off. She stared back at Marinette. "What?"
Marinette didn't really want anyone to find out about her and Damian.
"Jealous, Dupain Cheng?" said Lila, completely ignoring Mylene. "Scared that I might convince him to reconsider his offer of funding your project? The Denovorum is a complicated medicine, what makes you think you can actually succeed in making one?"
"It's just a matter of patience and skill, Lila," Marinette said, her fists clenching in anger. "But you wouldn't know about that, would you? You don't have any."
"You little bitc—"
She walked away before Lila could finish, but not before relishing the sight of the cow's face flush red in anger.
The Department of Medical Research and Development was an old historical building beside the Ministry, built during the late 16th century. The outside was constructed in baroque style, with bold massing, twisted columns, a dome, and the bold play of volume and void. There were no doors for entry, but fireplaces stationed in the lobby instead. It was disguised as an old, abandoned building in the eyes of muggles.
The inside interior was amazing, more beautiful than even that of their school. The entrance lobby had a frescoed ceiling painted by a famous painter who had died some years ago.
It had twenty floors in total: six floors for the offices, conference halls and work related matters, two floors for the library, five floors for the laboratories and experiment conducting rooms. And the remaining floors were the seven floors of whimsical wonder.
At least that's how Marinette had classified them. She giggled inwardly as she descended from the staircases. It was quite silly actually, but she had deemed the title appropriate.
The Seven Floors of Whimsical Wonder (S.F.O.W.W) was the part of the building that was located underground. It was the place where they kept numerous magical artifacts and creatures from around the world. It was sort of like a museum. However, the items weren't for the public, they weren't even for display. They were there to be studied, contained and guarded.
The Unexhibitables were the only ones allowed to see them. They were a group of people who worked in the DMRD (their identities classified for security reasons). Unexhibitables of the Department of Medical Research and Development were forbidden from exhibiting the artifacts or disclosing any information about what they saw in their research, hence the title, "Unexhibitable."
As beautiful and historical they were, the artifacts they studied had one thing in common: they were all dangerous.
That's why her heart raced and her breath hitched when she found Damian himself standing in front of the entrance.
She made sure her earing was in her hand before she decided to approach him, tiptoeing as quietly as she could.
He looked amazing and impeccable as usual, no wonder they were all trying to please him. His white sleeves were rolled to his elbows and his hands disappeared into his pockets, making him look laid-back and relaxed. He was examining the vault-like door carefully, and he had a very calculating look in his crimson eyes.
She couldn't help but stare longer, trying to memorize the curvature of his shoulders and the different shades of silver that crowned his head, gleaming in the light.
She compared his exquisiteness as something similar to the frescoed ceiling in the lobby. It was fascinating, the way he looked so strong and gentle, so still and graceful at the same time, almost like a piece of living, breathing human art.
"Hello Princess," he said suddenly, eyes still focused on the door. The sound of his voice snapped her out of her thoughts.
"What are you doing?"
"I think it's quite obvious, isn't it?" he said mockingly. "I'm staring at this door intensely."
"Yes, but why?" Marinette asked as she neared him, her punching hand aimed at the back of his skull. He remained immobile. "You're not planning to go in there, are you?"
He shrugged. "Perhaps I am."
"Step back," she said warningly, her voice getting a bit louder. "Step back or I'll punch you."
This time he cocked his head to the side and looked at her. His gaze sent shivers down her spine. For a moment she felt her heart lose its beat again.
His lips curled upward into a smile, or a smirk, more appropriately. Damian never smiled, she reminded herself.
"Alright, as you wish," he said simply. He backed a few steps.
Marinette blocked his path from the door, told him to turn around and start walking. Surprisingly, he obeyed. Her hand was now aimed at his lower back as she walked closely behind him.
It scared her, the way he had looked at the vault-like door back there. She knew it was heavily guarded and protected, that no one was allowed in unless they were permitted to.
But this was Damian Waynne, chosen heir to Hawkmoth himself. He had stolen the Luteus stone from the Department of Mysteries at the ripe age of 16.
He was capable of many things.
"So tell me," he said casually, breaking the silence with his deep, alluring voice and snapping her out of her thoughts again. "Have you been enjoying your freedom so far, love?"
Marinette winced at his statement, feeling the hairs on the back of her neck stand.
It was infuriating; how he always knew the right words to say to get her riled her up, to get her to lose focus.
"I heard your bestfriend placed wards on your flat," he began again. How did he know that? "Ever the moron, isn't she? As if that's ever going to stop me."
That's what I told him.
"Don't be so full of yourself," she said icily while glaring at the back of his head, feeling the need to defend Alya. "Don't underestimate us or the law. That's what Hawkmoth did. And look where it got him."
Damian snorted.
"Have you forgotten that I outsmarted your precious law ministry twice already? That I almost killed Alyai five years ago?" He looked back once more, eyeing her condescendingly. "What makes you think I can't do it again?"
Marinette tightened the fists. His arrogance made her blood boil even more. She wanted to retaliate but didn't say anything. He was just trying to mess her up again. She continued to force him to walk.
They were almost near the staircases to the lobby now. Almost to an area populated with people ...where she'd be safe.
A few more minutes of endurance... She mustn't let him affect her.
"I don't know why you're so hung up about this anyway," he continued to taunt her. "We both know you're going to live at the Manor in the end."
"Not if I could help it, you bastard," she said, her voice shaking in anger. "You murdered my fiancé."
She knew he hadn't killed Luka directly but he might as well have.
Suddenly, Damian stopped his strides and faced her, catching her slightly off guard. He had an evil glint in his eyes, again, making him look like a deranged psychopath ready to kill, but still incredibly handsome all the same. She backed a few steps away from his towering form, trying hard not to look away. His smirk widened when he noticed the delicious fear imprinted in her eyes as he stepped forward.
"You don't even love him."
The way he said it, like he knew it all along, like it was the truth. She saw memories flash in her mind in an instant: of a blue-haired man with a strong build, of his beautiful face, his lips brushing against hers.
"I—I—" she stuttered.
The memories of Luka were coming back in full force. She had no idea how he'd done it. He wasn't supposed to have her memories. She groaned in pain. Her head felt like it was being hammered.
She clutched her head, felt her fist loosen. The pain was completely unbearable.
"What are you doing to me?"
Without having a chance to fight back, she felt his strong hands grip her waist, stopping her from an untimely collapse. She melted into his arms and let him support her body.
She didn't know why she felt so relieved, so safe... here, now, with him, when she was supposed to be feeling the complete opposite.
"Letting you remember your feelings for Couffaine..." He answered truthfully. "Or lack thereof. That's what you want, isn't it?" His face darkened and his grip on her tightened. "Don't worry, I won't give all your memories back to you, just enough to let you know how much you... felt about him."
He drawled the last words in obvious revulsion. Her vision blurred and she was forced to close her eyes for a long time. She tried to ignore the pain, to focus on Damian's voice instead. She refused to scream, to let him know how much pain she was feeling.
She remembered another moment she had with Luka, only bits and pieces. She knew she should feel something for him right about now, but she felt absolutely nothing.
"You'll be fine," he whispered gently in her ear. "I won't let anything bad happen to you."
Damn him for doing this.
"Damian—" she wanted to sound as though the burning ache wasn't affecting her, but she was sure her voice came out as a small crack. She had to distract herself from the pain. "Do you feel... different when you're around me?"
Damian laughed at her, as if she was being stupid. "Yes, always."
She ignored the little flutter on her stomach.
"How different?"
She moved her head to look up at him, or rather; she tried but felt the pain intensify when she did. Damian pulled her head to his chest. "Dupain Cheng," he scolded. "Don't move your head so much."
"Just answer the question, Damian," she groaned, feeling another shot of pain.
"Feisty, are we?" he said, while sighing deeply. "Well if you must know, I feel—" he paused, hesitating for a moment. "I feel warm."
She swallowed a lump in her throat.
"It's the bond, Princess," he said quietly, calmly brushing his fingers through her hair. "You can feel what I feel and vice versa."
So then, that empty feeling she felt every time she was near him, that was how he felt all the time?
"But—" Another memory of Luka flashed in her mind again, one where she'd watched and cheered for him during his musical concert. She chose to ignore it. "—how could that be, you... You feel so... so empty."
She took deep, calming breaths greedily and tried her best to stay conscious. The world was spinning and shaking. She had numerous flashes of memories come back to her, but her mind was solely focused on Damian and nothing else.
She couldn't help but feel sad for him. A part of her desperately wanted to help him. It was absolutely ridiculous. He didn't deserve her mercy, not when he wasn't capable of showing any himself in the first place.
"Feeling better?" Damian asked.
Finally, after a few more minutes of torture, the mental assault was gone.
She lifted her heavy lids carefully and found that her vision had finally returned to normal. Her gaze met his and they stayed like that for what seemed like hours, lost in each other's eyes. Until she finally snapped out of her trance and pulled away.
No one was in the lobby anymore as it was already very late. It was where he had supported her when she had been dizzy from the effects of receiving her memories.
She headed towards the door as quickly as she could, feeling uncomfortable, angry and confused.
"See, I told you Princess... you don't love him," Damian said before she could leave, his eyes a fierce shade of stormy grey. "You love me."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Oh Merlin, does she? :O
Novo – means refreshed in latin.
Dragon scale leaves – Invented
Black Beetle Stings – Invented
Department of Medical Research and Development – Invented. It's beside the Ministry one half is underground, the other half isn't.
Seven Floors of Whimsical Wonder. Like wtf? :)) Tell me I'm not going crazy.
The Wayne's are so manipulative. Yum.
I couldn't find the name of Nino's mother anywhere in the show, so I googled a new one :D
Yes, Nino married someone else. I tried to stick to non-cannon pairings as much as possible. I dunno why...
OI! READ & REVIEW. I failed my exams in Accounting because of this... *runs in a dark corner and cries*
Haha. Just kidding.I got rank 3. I hope I hear from you :)