Gotham's Lucky Charm (Daminette)

Ch 22 - Marinette is MDC

"Is it just me, or does it feel like Catwoman isn't telling us something?" Red Robin asked.

"What do you mean?" Robin glanced at the apartment door that Catwoman, Red Hood, and Nightwing had left through only moments ago.

"I don't know." Red Robin shrugged his shoulders. "It's just a gut feeling."

"Why would she hide something from us?" Robin scoffed. "Your gut must be corroded from the unprecedented amount of black coffee you consume."

"What I drink is none of your business! If anything, caffeine helps me focus and makes my instincts sharper."

"Tt, but your reason for excessive caffeine consumption is due to a lack of proper sleep, correct? Do you deny that insufficient sleep prompts a decline in brain performance?"

"Uhhhh..." Red Robin touched the comm in his ear. "Hey! Oracle! How's that security camera review going?"

Robin rolled his eyes. "And so, he chooses denial."

"I'm not DENYING it, but I just... wait what, Oracle, say that again?" Red Robin focused his attention on the voice speaking in his comm.

The apartment was consumed by quietness as Red Robin listened and Robin waited.

Robin patiently stood while his head filled with a rush of questions. What security cameras was Red Robin referring to? The buildings in Paris? Had Robin's family already succeeded in hacking the Parisian security cameras so that they could observe the process of akumatization and akuma attacks? He was tempted to turn on his own comm and listen to the conversion, but then he would have to risk listening to the annoying voices of Nightwing and Red Hood if they also chose to join the family's shared comm-line.

"I guess that just confirms our suspicions." Red Robin grimaced. "Thanks, Oracle, we'll keep you updated on our end. Let us know if you find anything else."

Robin did not like the sound of his brother's worried voice. "What was that about?"

Red Robin turned off his comm. "Okay... don't freak out."

"Tt, those words do not bring me a sense of calmness."

"Yeah, okay, fair enough. So... uhhh... I'm serious, don't freak out—"

"OUT WITH IT ALREADY!"

"I asked Oracle to hack into the security cameras here in Marinette's apartment building," Red Robin spoke quickly, barely wasting time to breathe. "She reviewed the footage— specifically the hallway cameras outside Marinette's door— and the security footage shows that Harley and Pamela stopped by to visit Marinette. They talked for a while. And then Marinette fainted in the doorway? So they carried her inside and shut the door? But Oracle doesn't know what happened to them because there isn't any security camera footage of anyone leaving or entering the apartment after that?"

Robin stood frozen; his body stiffer than ice as a coldness spread through his veins.

"Logically, all three of them should still be here in Marinette's apartment," Red Robin continued. "But, obviously, they aren't. There's a chance that the old cameras are broken and we're just unlucky enough that they stopped working the moment we needed them the most. I'm honestly surprised that this apartment bothered setting up security cameras. That's probably the reason why Harley and Pamela decided to live here—"

"Drake."

"Uhhh." Red Robin stopped at the sound of Robin's low voice. "Hello? We're supposed to use codenames? Remember? Robin, it's not like you to forget."

When Robin didn't respond, Red Robin stepped closer to glance at the stoic face hidden beneath Robin's mask.

His eyes were damp with unshed tears.