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subacctformaribat · 10 months

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Most Magical Place on Earth

Marinette observed the people jostling around her and Emma in barely contained chaos. If this was the size of the crowd this early, then paying for early admission to the Magic Kingdom was definitely worth it. It might be a bit insane at the moment, but she couldn’t imagine now much worse the chaos was going to get in half an hour.

A joyous cheer rose up through the crowd when they finally opened the gates and started scanning cards. Marinette giggled at the loud whoop Emma let out, not really sure why everyone was cheering, but excited to join in the ruckus. She kept a tight grasp on Emma’s hand as they made their way through the gates and onto Mainstreet, which was rather unnecessary since Emma had a vice grip on her hand so she could drag them down the street toward Cinderella’s castle.

Marinette heaved a bemused sigh as she focused on keeping them from either tripping or bumping into anyone, but she almost fell when Emma suddenly stopped and yanked her hand toward herself to get Marinette’s attention. “Maman! Maman! Look! He has a Thomas O’Malley shirt, Maman. Maman, it matches ours!”

Marinette looked over in the direction Emma was pointing, toward the man leisurely strolling next to them, his hands resting casually in his pockets, clearly in no rush, unlike the people bustling around them. Her eyes caught on the shirt stretched across his chest. She had to force herself to focus on the cat design on the shirt rather than the way his arms and chest bulged under the fabric.

After an inappropriately long period of time, she lightly cleared her throat and turned back to Emma with a smile. “He does. Good observation, kitten,” she praised and tried to encourage her to move forward, but Emma had other ideas.

Instead, she pulled Marinette toward the man and slowed down to match his pace. “Hey Mister! I really like your shirt. It matches mine!” She held out her Marie shirt for him to see. “Do you like Aristocats too?”

He blinked in surprise but grinned down at her. “I do. It was the first Disney movie I ever saw. Did you know it’s based on a real family of cats in Paris that inherited a butt… uhh…” he shot a Marinette an apologetic grimace, “bunch of money?” he recovered quickly.

Emma gasped, her eyes wide in wonder, missing Marinette’s snort at his lapse. “It is? That’s so cool. What happened to them? Can we visit them when we go home, Maman?” She jumped up and down in front of Marinette as she begged.

Marinette raised an eyebrow at her, but her lips quirked up in amusement. “New York is our home now, kitten. Remember?”

Emma deflated instantly. “Oh, right.” She looked down with a dramatic pout for just a second before looking back up, eyes bright again. “But what about when we visit Grandma and Grandpa and Aunt Alya and Uncle Nino and…”

Marinette chuckled and ran her finger along her jaw affectionately before bopping her nose. “Sorry, kitten. I don’t think we can. That was a long time ago, before even Maman was born. I don’t think we can visit them anymore.”

“Oh,” Emma pouted to the ground for a few seconds but soon turned back to the man with wide eyes. “Do you watch it a lot? It’s my favorite movie. Who’s your favorite character?”

“Oh, that’s hard,” he crossed his arms over his chest and stroked his chin as he pretended to think about it. Marinette had to force her attention forward rather than the way that move accentuated his biceps. “…but I think I like Thomas O’Malley.”

“Abraham DeLacey Giuseppe Casey,” Emma sang as loud as she could. “Thomas O’Malley, O’Malley the alley cat.”

He chuckled and smiled warmly at her, keeping his focus entirely on her and Marinette even as he shoved another man with black hair and blue eyes, who had been drawn over by Emma’s singing, ahead of them. “Good memory. Who’s your favorite?”

“Marie,” she answered instantly as she motioned to her shirt again. “I want to get a Marie stuffie while I’m here. Maman likes the mommy cat, see?” She pulled at Marinette’s shirt.

The man looked Marinette up and down once, eyes lingering on the cat on her shirt before realizing he was staring at her chest. “Sorry,” he chuckled and looked away quickly, a blush just dusting his cheeks. “She’s a good character too. Strong and supportive. A good mom,” he looked over at her kindly.

She smiled back at him and opened her mouth but before she could respond she was cut off by someone calling toward them. “Jaybird! Where’d you go?”

The man groaned and shook his head. “Sorry. My family. Big kids, the lot of them, except the kid, which is a problem actually.” He flashed them a brilliant smile. “Have fun, yeah?”

“Come on, Jay! We have to get to the Seven Dwarfs Mine ride before it gets too long!” one of them called.

He threw his head back with a groan. “More than I’m going to have.”

Marinette giggled and squeezed Emma’s hand to get her to meet her eyes and laugh too. “Good luck. Maybe we’ll see you around.”

He smiled back with a nod but before he could answer, another man grabbed him by the shoulders and pushed him back toward the family with a small smile and nod to Marinette and Emma.

Marinette snorted out a laugh at the Aristocats fan’s expression but waved. She watched his back for just a moment before looking back at Emma with a grin. “Ready, kitten?”

“Yeah! Come on, Maman!” She had pulled Marinette just a few steps before she gasped loudly. “Maman! Maman! We need a picture in front of Cinderella’s castle!”

“Okay. Okay, slow down,” she laughed despite doing nothing to slow Emma down in the slightest. They wove through the crowd until they found the perfect spot. They just had to wait a few minutes for the people in front of them, who also agreed it was the perfect spot, to get their pictures as well. The wait passed by quickly, with no complaining from Emma, which was a good sign for the rest of the day because this was likely the shortest wait they would have for the rest of the day.

It wasn’t until the last people cleared the spot that she realized the error of her plan. She had nobody to take a picture of the two of them. She just started to look for someone when Emma solved the issue for them. “M. O’Malley! M. O’Malley! Can you take a picture of us?”

The man froze crossing in front of them like he’d been caught but relaxed when he saw who it was. “Hey! Long time no see.”

Marinette smiled shyly at him. “Would you mind taking a picture of us? With the castle in the background?” She motioned toward the castle with her phone as if there were any question which castle she was referring to.

He shrugged. “Sure.” He took her phone with a teasing grin. “Trust me with your phone? This relationship is progressing quickly.”

She snorted but grinned back as she got herself and Emma into position. “No offense, I think we should slow this down. Maybe take a break for a bit to reevaluate.”

He snickered but quickly schooled his face. “It’s not you it’s me,” he agreed with a sage nod.

“No, it’s definitely you,” Marinette chirped.

He barked out a laugh at the wicked grin she shot him and looked down with an exaggerated grimace. “Not the first time I’ve heard that.” He looked back up with a grin to let her know he was joking. “Okay, you two ready?”

Marinette and Emma met each other’s eyes and nodded to each other then to him. “Ready,” they said together.

“Okay. One, two, three. Smile!” He took several pictures. Some at different angles and different zooms. “There you go,” he said as he handed the phone back to her. “Let me know if you want more or those don’t work for you. I don’t have a great eye, but they looked pretty perfect to me.”

Marinette smiled shyly again, her cheeks darkening slightly, and had to look away as she pocketed the phone. “Thank you. Would you like a picture?”

He looks up at the castle as if considering it for the first time and turned back to meet her eyes. “Sure. I guess I probably should since I’m here,” he said with a shrug.

She looked at him expectantly for a few seconds, keeping eye contact as her eyebrows rose with each passing second until they were almost at her hairline. When he still hadn’t moved, she snorted inelegantly, her face split into a brilliant grin. “Did you want a picture? With your phone or…”

“Oh! Right.” He looked down longer than strictly necessary when he grabbed his phone to let his cheeks cool down. By the time he looked up again, his cheeks were back to normal, or at least he was desperately hoping they had. Whatever progress he made by taking a breath was lost when their fingers brushed as he handed her his phone, the contact sending tingles through his fingers and up his arm.

She smiled softly at him for a second before it turned into a smirk. “Now we’re exchanging phones. This doesn’t feel like it’s slowing down.”

He barked out another laugh at the comment, caught completely off-guard, throwing his head back as he laughed. She grinned up at him from his phone. “Perfect,” she said quietly. She started to hand back the phone but stopped and looked around instead. “Do you want your family with you for one?”

He grabbed the phone gently, careful not to brush their fingers this time, it wasn’t good for his concentration. “Nah. They’re already past the castle.”

“Oh! I’m so sorry,” she gasped.

His heart twinged at the guilty look in her eyes, which he obviously couldn’t allow to stand. “Oh, that has nothing to do with you,” he assured her. “I left them there. Now starts the hide and seek portion of the trip,” he grinned and waggled his eyebrows.

“Ooohhh, I love hide and seek,” Emma popped up, bouncing in excitement at the idea. “Can we play too?”

“No!” Marinette exclaimed loudly. She cleared her throat lightly and took a breath before pasting on a smile. “Sweetie, remember what I said about walking around here?”

“Stay close to you. Hold your hand if I can. And always stay in your line of sight,” Emma replied lifelessly, like it was a mantra she’d had to repeat often.

Marinette got down on her knees and softly brushed Emma’s hair over her shoulder before settling her hands on Emma’s shoulders. “That’s right. Great job remembering. There’s a lot of people here, kitten, and it’s easy to get lost for real.”

Emma pouted but nodded in understanding. “Maybe you can help me hide later if you see me,” the man offered with a sympathetic smile. “My family is really good at hide and seek and I might need some help.”

“Yeah!” Emma grinned. “That sounds great. I’m a great helper.”

He suddenly lurched toward them, just barely stopping himself from bowling them both over when someone bumped into him without bothering to apologize or even acknowledge the hit. “Wow,” he grumbled, but quickly turned on a smile for Emma. “Guess they’re in a rush,” he chuckled.

“Must be trying to get to one of the rides before the lines get too long,” Marinette agreed, her voice intentionally light. She pulled Emma a bit closer to herself as she watched the other man walk away.

“Yeah, I guess I don’t blame them. The lines can get pretty long,” Jason nodded with a sigh. “I should probably get going myself.”

Emma’s eyes widened in excitement. “Are you going to get in line now?”

“Yeah, I’m doing TRON first,” he motioned vaguely toward the Tomorrowland portion of the park. “Get it out of the way before the line gets too long. I’ve been told it is extremely popular.”

“I wanted to do TRON first,” Emma pouted, exasperation clear in her voice, “but I’m not tall enough.” She huffed and roughly shoved the hair out of her face then crossed her arms over her chest for good measure.

“But,” Marinette cut in brightly, “we can check out the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad before that line gets too long.”

“Ooohhh. Let me know how it is,” he asked, matching Marinette’s brightness. “That’s on my list. I’ll be counting on you to know if it’s worth it.”

Emma immediately brightened and nodded solemnly. “I will.”

Marinette smiled proudly at her as she took her hand. Her smile softened as she looked up to meet his eyes. “Enjoy your day and thank you again.”

“Anytime,” he said warmly with a slow nod. He watched them as they walked away but called out to them just before they got too far away. “See you around!”

Marinette turned around while still walking, now backwards. “That appears to be a dangerous thing to say,” she warned with a giggle then turned with a nod and a wave.

He grinned at her back. “Not so dangerous,” he said quietly to himself.

><><><><><><><

“Hey! It’s Thomas O’Malley!”

Jason froze and a grin spread instantly on his lips as he looked around for the bubbly little girl, finally spotting her running toward him. He raised his eyes to find her mom trailing a bit behind her and couldn’t help the pride in his chest when she relaxed at seeing him. “Hey, Marie,” he chuckled. “How was Thunder Mountain?”

“Amazing,” she gushed. “And we did the Jungle Cruise! It was so fun. The driver was so funny!”

Marinette smiled. “It really was worth it… Thunder Mountain, I mean. Actually, the Jungle Cruise was a lot of fun too, but in a different way.” She shrugged and looked away, with a far away look in her eyes. “But then again, I have a very soft spot for puns, so I enjoyed the captain a lot. If they’re not your thing, it might be a miss for you.”

He groaned dramatically but there was a sparkle in his eyes. “I don’t know if I’d be able to handle it. My brother is a pun master. We can’t get him to stop. It might give me flashbacks.” Jason shuddered for Emma then mussed her hair. “Thanks for the review, kiddo. I’m heading to Thunder Mountain now. I may have to stop by the Cruise too.”

“I’ll tell you how Tom Seer Island is!” Emma chirped. “That’s where we’re heading now.”

“Tom Sawyer Island,” Marinette corrected with a chuckle.

Emma nodded sheepishly. “I’ll tell you how Tom Sawyer Island is,” she corrected quietly.

His face shifted to a serious look, and he crouched down in front of her to meet her eyes. “I wasn’t sure if I should go there so I’m counting on your insight.”

Her face split into a brilliant grin and she nodded. “Will do.” They gave each other curt, determined nods.

Marinette chuckled and took Emma’s hand. “It was good to see you again. Enjoy the ride! We have to get back into line,” she rolled her eyes but smiled.

Jason met her eyes with a smile. “And you,” he nodded.

“See you around,” she called over her shoulder with a wink.

Jason stared at her back for a few seconds. Finally, he chuckled to himself and shook his head before heading to the Big Thunder Mountain.

><><><><><><><

Jason looked around intently. Stephanie and Duke had just walked by and if they were there, the rest of the family was probably close by, he just wasn’t sure if they were at the end of the line or in the middle of it. They couldn’t have been leading, that was definitely Dick and Damian; Damian purely because Dick would be keeping him there.

He cautiously stood up and walked out from behind the display barrels and was almost knocked down when something attacked him. He held in the squawk of surprise until he saw who it was, then let it out louder than was realistic and fell over dramatically with her on top of him and his drink safely held to the side. “Thomas O’Malley! Thomas Sawyer Island was amazing! You should definitely go!” Emma crowed.

Jason grinned as he sat up. “Well, now I have to go. I always did fancy myself a pirate. Seems like somewhere I’d fit in.”

Marinette rushed up to him and immediately offered her hand to help him up, which made Jason chuckle internally. There was no way he wouldn’t take her down if he actually let her take his full weight. He took the hand anyway but pushed himself up with his other arm, keeping his drink secured and straight. “I’m so sorry. Are you okay?” she asked as she dusted off his back stopping herself just in time to prevent getting the grass off his finely toned behind. She almost jumped back pulling her hands to herself.

Jason waved her off. “Don’t worry about it. That was the nicest tackle I’ve gotten in a while.” He froze for a second then sent her a disarming smile. “Brothers,” he explained, partially truthfully. “They’re all a lot bigger… well, except for Damian.” He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. “So, Tom Sawyer was fun?” he asked Emma.

She grimaced slightly. “It was fun with a kid, but speaking of fitting in, it might be a bit…” she motioned toward his shoulders and his height. “There’s some more confined areas.”

“Ah,” he nodded. “Got it.” He squatted down in front of Emma. “Well, you were right about Thunder Mountain. It was a lot of fun, so I trust you when you say it was great. For my part, I recommend these,” he held up a pineapple whip. “They are amazing!”

Emma gasped and looked up at Marinette with wide, hopeful eyes. “Can we, Maman?”

Marinette rolled her eyes but nodded with a smile. “We can get some before we wait in line for the princesses.”

“Yay!” Emma yelled as she fist pumped.

Marinette chuckled. “Thank you. And thank you for the…” she motioned to the ground where he’d fallen. “That was incredibly thoughtful. Actually, everything has been.”

He shoved his hands in his pockets and shrugged, his gaze drifting to the ground. “No problem. It’s been fun for me. It’s what this place is supposed to be about, right?”

She nodded with a pleased smile. “And family. Speaking of which, how goes your game?”

He whipped his head around, eyes wide with panic. “Fuuuu… Oh! Almost forgot,” he corrected quickly. Once assured they were not around, his shoulders relaxed, and he gave her an easy smile. “So far so good. I saw a few of them just before you guys came over. Think I’m safe as long as I head that way,” he motioned the direction they were going. “Actually, that’s where the whips were. I can show you where to get them before I move on,” he offered.

Marinette smiled sweetly at the offer and nodded. “That sounds nice. Thank you.”

“Come on!” Emma urged. She grabbed both their hands and pulled them down the walkway, all of them laughing as they moved.

><><><><><><><

Marinette and Emma had just made it into Fairytale Hall when something collided with the wall next to them. Marinette pulled Emma behind her and eased into a defensive stance before she recognized the intruder, instantly relaxing her body. “M. O’Malley!” Emma cheered and gave him a hug while he was on the ground and therefore her height.

Marinette instantly checked through the stained-glass window for the source of his fleeing and spotted another black-haired, blue-eyed man searching the area. “Marie!” Jason cheered back. He quirked head to the side. “You changed.”

Emma twirled for him, letting the skirt of her Cinderella dress flare up. “I’m a princess!”

He snickered. “You certainly are. Duchess,” he nodded to Marinette with a charming smile.

She snorted but nodded back. “Thomas.” She looked back through the glass and accidentally met the gaze of the man. She instantly shifted her focus to the mice in the stained-glass and pointed to them for Emma. “Hey kitten, do you remember the names of the mice?” She lifted Emma up and pointed to the mice again. The man continued to watch them for just a few more seconds before continuing on. She let out a breath as Emma named off Cinderella’s mice. “Good job, kitten. You have such a good memory,” she praised as she set her down. “He’s moved on.”

Jason stood cautiously, making sure to keep out of direct line of the clear portions of the windows as he checked for any more family. Seeing no signs of them, he breathed a sigh of relief and turned to Marinette, but his breath caught again. Her face was lit up by the light through the stained-glass, like the sun was shining just for her, like she was a prism, drawing in all the world’s magic and refracting it back out in a shimmering, mesmerizing beauty.

“Thanks for that,” he managed to get out breathlessly until a thought occurred to him. “Mind if I hang out with you guys for a bit? That was Dick, the pun-lover. He’ll be at the head of the line. The others won’t be far behind. It would be a good idea to lay low for a while.”

Marinette snorted and shrugged. “Suit yourself but it’s likely at least another half an hour before we get to see the princesses.”

Jason slowly looked around and took in the line for the first time. “Wow, that’s dedication.”

“That’s just for Cinderella. There’s another line that’s just as long for Rapunzel,” she said quietly.

Jason turned his wide eyes to the line on the other side of the hall, tracing it from the front, which he couldn’t see back to the opposite side from them. “At least it’s not the same line.” He met her eyes with a grimace. “I may not wait with you for that one.”

Marinette snickered and bumped shoulders with him. “Can’t say I blame you.”

He smiled sappily down at her until Emma bumped into his thigh with her shoulder to get his attention. “But, that explains the costume change,” he said brightly.

“I’m wearing Cinderella’s dress and she’s going to be wearing Cinderella’s dress, because she’s Cinderella, so we’ll match!” She spun again for him causing him to chuckle.

“That makes sense,” he agreed and mussed up her hair again. “Couldn’t get your mom into one too?” he asked, his eyes sliding to Marinette with a teasing gaze.

She narrowed her eyes at him. “No.”

He snickered as they shuffled forward by a few feet. “So, we have a bit of time…”

“Maman and I have been playing hand clapping games while we wait,” Emma cut in, jumping up in front of him. “I can teach you some! They’re in French though because that’s what I learned them in.”

Jason nodded and mirrored her position. “And I can teach you an American one. My best friend’s daughter taught me one called Lemonade.” He looked up just before they started and caught Marinette watching them, a soft look in her eyes, and shot her a warm, charming smile.

><><><><><><><

Jason did not appreciate being as exposed as he was currently, but there was no way around it. The line for It’s a Small World stretched along one of the main walkways and there was no hiding. He contented himself by shrinking down as low as he could without looking odd enough to attract attention. The downside was it made it harder for Marie and Duchess, he really needed to learn their names the next time they ran into each other, which he was fairly confident would be any time now… or at least hoped it would be.

As if on cue, he heard a small cry rapidly coming at him. “M. O’Malley!” This time, he braced himself obviously, as if the forty-pound girl could move him since there was no room to fall over. He gave a loud ‘oof’ when she tackled his leg in a hug. He looked around quickly to make sure Duchess, he groaned internally again, he really needed to learn their names, knew where they were and relaxed when he saw her slowly making her way to them, a bemused smile on her lips.

“Marie!” he exclaimed patting her back while she still clung to his leg. “I know I say it's a small world, here, but this is ridiculous.”

Marinette stopped just short of him, on the other side of the chain for the line, with a groan, but Emma giggled hysterically. “That’s such a dad joke,” she eked out between giggles.

“Yes, definitely one Papa would have loved,” Marinette agreed quietly. She took a breath and smiled sweetly at him. “I swear we’re not following you.”

He smiled back at her for a few seconds until Emma tapped his arm. “You okay?” she asked, looking over his face very seriously. “You didn’t answer. It’s rude not to answer someone.”

He had to fight the smirk at her chastisement. “Sorry. Got lost for a second. Thanks for checking on me.” He turned back to Marinette. “You know, I think I’d be okay with it if you were. Honestly, at this point, it seems like fate or magic or something.”

Marinette hummed and eyed her purse. “Right, or something,” she mumbled.

“You need sunblock?” Emma offered. “Maman was spraying me when I saw you. If you’re having trouble focusing, it could be too much sun,” she noted sagely.

He snorted. “I’m pretty good. Thank you so much for watching out for me.”

Marinette quirked her head to the side studying his face. She reached out like she was going to feel his head but redirected her hand to smooth down Emma’s hair instead. “She might be right. I think you might be getting some sun. We have plenty of sunblock if you want some, but at least take this,” she insisted holding out a bottle of water to him. “We haven’t drunk from it at all yet, so it’s clean.”

“I don’t want to take your water,” he objected weakly.

She waved him off. “It’s nothing. Can’t have my ex passing out from dehydration. It’s not a good look. The local vigilantes would come looking for me. It would ruin our entire vacation.”

He froze as he reached out for the water but covered it with an awkward chuckle. “Local vigilantes? Are there vigilantes around here?"

Marinette shrugged and looked around. ��Aren’t there in all the American east coast cities?”

He shook his head with a snort. “No, no there are not.” He opened his mouth to ask her about her assumption but was cut off by her sudden hiss “Get down!”

He ducked instantly, his eyes darting around. “That’s one of your brothers, isn’t it?” she asked quietly as she moved in front of him and started spraying Emma again. “The one from this morning?”

Jason moved just slightly to peek between the two of them and spotted Tim. “It is,” he confirmed and quickly ducked back out of sight, or at least as much as he could. He was far too exposed where he was and there was no wall to hide behind this time and he wouldn’t be able to dive through the people in line without disrupting them and attracting attention. He let out a light groan, just about ready to give it up, when he coughed instead.

The air was suddenly saturated with something making his eyes water and his lungs burn. He didn’t have to look far to find the source; Marinette. He half-snickered, half-coughed as she filled the air around them with aerosol sunblock, causing people to avoid their area, giving them a wide berth to avoid the burn.

He waited until Tim had moved on, coughing and waving his hand in front of his face as he passed them, before he stood up again. He looked back at Marinette impressed with her quick thinking. “That was brilliant!” he said in awe.

She grimaced and tucked the can away. “I don’t think the others agree with you,” she muttered, eyeing the people around them in line, who were also eyeing her disapprovingly.

He glowered at the people but softened his expression when he turned back to her. “Well then they would be wrong, because that was amazing.”

She smiled brightly at his praise. “I’m just glad we were able to help you hide.”

Emma gasped. “We helped you hide?”

“You did,” he confirmed. “You were terrific.” She beamed at his comment, looking up at her maman to make sure she heard and was proud too. Jason looked around to make sure there were no other family around then stared at the spot Tim had disappeared to. “Funny, I think that’s the third time I saw my, like ten, family members but I’m seeing you everywhere.”

Marinette blinked and looked down at her purse again. “Yeah… funny. Sorry about that.”

“Don’t be sorry!” he insisted. He waved his hands disarmingly and shot her a radiant smile. “It’s not a bad thing. I’ve looked forward to seeing you between rides.” He looked down at Emma. “And getting your recommendations.”

“Ooohhh,” Emma perked up instantly, “M. O’Malley! You HAVE to do the Little Mermaid ride! It was amazing! It was so much fun!” Marinette shook her head behind Emma and mouthed ‘No, it wasn’t’. “Wasn’t it great, Maman?”

“Yep,” Marinette chirped with a bright smile for Emma but as soon as she turned around, she shook her head for Jason again.

Jason snickered. “Well, that sounds like a ride a pirate should investigate.”

Emma gasped. “That’s perfect! Because she’s a mermaid and lives in the sea and pirates sail on the seas.” She quirked her head to the side. “But you look more like Price Eric, not a pirate.”

Jason scoffed but puffed his chest slightly at Marinette’s appraising look. “I’m no prince, I can assure you. I’m more of a street rat.”

Emma furrowed her brow and shook her head. “No, you definitely don’t look like Aladdin.”

Marinette snorted but tried to hide it with a cough and waved her hand in front of her face as though it was a delayed reaction to the sunblock. Jason gasped dramatically before narrowing his eyes playfully. “You know, for a very short period, I had red hair so…” he motioned toward his shirt, “maybe I should have said street cat.”

Emma giggled hysterically for a minute. When she calmed down, she eyed him critically. “I don’t know if that would be good for you.”

“Emma!” Marinette gasped. “That was rude. You need to apologize right now.”

Emma’s face immediately fell. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be rude.”

Jason knelt down in front of her with a soft smile. “It’s okay. You were right. Trust me, it wasn’t a good time for anyone.”

He looked up and met Marinette’s eyes, getting lost again until the sound of a throat clearing behind him interrupted. Marinette blinked and let out a breath. “Come on, kitten. M. O’Malley needs to get going. We’re holding up the line.”

Jason let them get a step away before he stopped them and let the family go ahead of him in line. “It’s Jason. Jason Todd.” She turned back slightly startled but quickly smiled tenderly at him. “I figured you should probably start calling me by my real name at this point.”

Her smile widened and she stepped closer again. “Marinette Agreste and this is Emma.”

“Nice to meet you,” Emma chirped. “Well, not meet you because we’ve been talking all day, but it feels like meeting.”

“It does, you’re right,” he agreed. He met Marinette’s eyes as he spoke. “Those are beautiful names. It’s nice to meet you both. You could… join me, if you wanted. I mean, if fate’s going to keep throwing us together, we might as well embrace it. No use fighting fate.”

Marinette smiled for a second before shaking her head. “No, we couldn’t impose like that. I’m sure there are rides you want to go on that we can’t.”

“No, not really,” he assured her. “I think Tron is the only one Emma couldn’t ride, and I’ve already done that one. And really, it’s more about the experience than anything else. Unless you don’t…”

“Can we please Maman?” Emma begged, her eyes wide with hope.

Marinette pulled her lower lip between her teeth and shyly brushed a strand of hair behind her ear. “I’d like that. I mean, we might as well. If you’re sure. We just had Space Mountain, the Buzz Lightyear ride, and visit Mickey and Minnie at the Town Square left on our list, then we were thinking about getting dinner somewhere, but if there were rides you wanted to go to or things you didn’t want to go to, we can adjust. The only things we definitely need to do are get dinner and buy a Marie stuffie,” she babbled.

“No, that sounds brilliant,” Jason interrupted with a smile and held up the chain for them. “I’d love to do all of that with you,” he continued as they stepped ahead of him in line.

Marinette smiled playfully and opened her mouth to respond but Emma bounced up between them. “Lemonade! Let’s do lemonade!” she cheered. Jason and Marinette chuckled at her enthusiasm, meeting eyes for a moment before he winked and got into position to play.

><><><><><><><

“There you are, Jaybird!” Dick exclaimed. He ran up to him and threw his arm over his shoulders. “We missed you all day! You missed so much fun.”

Jason grudgingly let Dick pull him closer but made a show of grumbling and scowling at him. “Yeah, yeah. I’m here. Just in time for the pool at the hotel or whatever.”

Dick grinned at him and clapped him on the back. “I’m going to hold you to that. We missed you all day. I’m going to keep you extra close tomorrow.”

Bruce patted him on the shoulder as he passed him. “We missed you today.” He looked around quickly and leaned in closer. “But I get it and am a bit jealous.” He patted him again before catching up to Dick and Damian.

“Soooo,” Tim drawled coming up next to him. “The woman go home then?” Jason froze, his eyes widened fractionally but he quickly schooled his expression. He opened his mouth but before he could ask what Tim was talking about, Tim continued. “I figure she must have if you’re back hanging out with us. The little girl did look pretty tired the last time I saw her. Adorable, but tired… which I assume is why you were carrying her,” he added. “Or so she could see the parade better. That spot on your shoulders was a pretty good vantage point.” His voice was smooth but his eyes were teasing and knowing, like he had something up on Jason.

Jason quickly eyed the other family members to see who else was giving them a knowing grin. “Don’t worry,” Tim chuckled. He looked around quickly as well to ensure the others’ attention was still elsewhere. “Nobody else saw. I managed to redirect them whenever we got close. Some easier than others. Hanging out right along the walkway was not the most helpful.”

Jason turned toward him, eyes wide in shock. That was not something he expected. He studied Tim closely as if he could see what he was up to. After a few moments he nodded to himself and turned back toward the exit. “Thank you,” he said quietly.

Tim nodded curtly, his eyes still on the shop windows around them. “You going to see her again?”

Jason nodded. “That’s the plan. Emma, that’s the little girl, she wants to see ‘Harry Potter World’ tomorrow,” Jason smiled proudly as he thought of Emma telling him about the stories and quizzing him on different elements about the books and which house they would all be in. “Marinette really hates 3D rides and there are a bunch at Universal so I volunteered to go with them since I’d be there tomorrow anyway.”

A bemused smile spread on his lips. “She’s really upset she can’t go on the Velocicoaster. Emma, that is, not Marinette. Though she is too. That kid LOVES rollercoasters. She made us go on Space Mountain three times.”

“Made you, huh?” Tim teased.

“You haven’t seen her eyes when she’s begging… or Marinette’s when she’s happy. It’s like a spell.”

“Emma sounds like a little daredevil,” Tim nodded.

Jason grinned proudly. “She is. So is her mom. And brilliant too.”

“Wow, you’ve got it bad,” Tim scoffed and shot him a knowing glance and teasing smile. “So, you’re going to completely rearrange your schedule so you can go with them tomorrow.” It was a statement rather than a question.

“Yep.” Jason’s voice was proud, refusing to be embarrassed by the teasing. “You’d understand if you’d spent time with her.”

“Well, she was definitely beautiful,” Tim offered.

“Beautiful, funny, kind, smart, thoughtful,” Jason continued for him.

“Wow. What are you going to do when she goes home?” Tim asked carefully. He watched Jason from the corner of his eye. Jason was a romantic. Everyone knew that about him. He let his heart lead him, sometimes into dangerous territory.

“I’ll visit New York a lot more,” Jason answered without missing a beat. “It’s a short trip. Lots of work there.” Tim turned slowly to look at him, his eyes wide in shock. Dangerous and unverified territory apparently. “Relax,” Jason snorted. “I’m not going to move there next week… although I do have a safe house there…” he added slyly.

He watched Tim’s eyes, which had just started to return to normal size, widen again. They rapidly narrowed upon hearing Jason’s chuckle. “I’m just replacing our chill day, which let’s be honest was really a Steph and Dick shopping day, with something that will be objectively more fun.” He rolled his eyes at Tim’s skeptical look. “It’s been one day. I’m not going to rearrange my whole life after one day.”

“Really?” Tim asked suspiciously.

Jason huffed and rolled his eyes. It was like his family had no faith in him. “I’m not stupid. No.” He shrugged after a few steps. “I don’t think she would let me even if I wanted to. She wouldn’t shift her daughter’s world that much without being absolutely certain and I wouldn’t want her to either.”

“But she’s okay with you rearranging your entire vacation schedule?” He fixed him with a pointed look.

“She doesn’t know, otherwise, yeah, she would have a problem with it,” Jason growled. He was used to getting questioned by his family, but he wasn’t about to let them question a completely innocent and sweet woman who had done nothing to deserve it.

Tim studied him for a few moments before nodding and returning his attention ahead of them. “Good. Just… be careful, okay. For both of you.”

“All three,” Jason corrected.

“All three,” he amended easily. They walked in silence until they were past the Main Street Station and Tim broke the silence with a sigh. “I swear I’m not trying to be an ass. I just don’t want you jumping in too quickly.”

Jason pursed his lips with a huff. Well that just made it impossible to be mad, didn’t it? “I’ll be careful, but she’s magic, Timmy.” Tim’s eyebrows jumped to his hairline. “Not like that!” Jason groaned quickly. “I just meant…”

“Yeah, yeah, I’ve done the whole love at first sight thing,” Tim waved him off, “I get it.”

Jason scoffed and pointedly refused to look at him, finding anything and everything else of interest. “Love,” he mocked. “Now who’s moving too fast.”

“Still you,” Tim teased. He patted Jason on the back before rushing up to walk with Duke.

Jason glowered at his back but then caught sight of a stuffed Marie in one of the stores and smiled softly. “Yeah,” he mused to himself. “Still me.”

#maribat #jason x marinette #jasonette

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