Disclaimer: Mary and Marshall belong to David Maples. If they hadn't been misused by others I wouldn't be writing this.

Provoked Too – Chapter 24 – Epilogue

"Be careful, some of those floor boards won't support your weight. Stick to the middle," Mary yells up to the attic as she climbs the ladder. Her soon to be college student is sliding boxes around and coughing from the dust he's stirring up. "What are you looking for?" Her head pokes up surveying the forgotten remnants of their life.

"My glove, my baseball glove. I want to give it to Cary at the Youth Center. He needs one but he told me his mom couldn't afford it."

Mary is proud of her son's volunteer tutoring. He takes care of more than their academics.

"Wouldn't it be in the garage with the sports gear? Why would it be in the attic?"

"I put it in with my oboe. After hearing Dad's story about being forced to choose between baseball and music I thought it belonged there. My two passions, side by side." He looks at his mother, gratefully. "Thank you for never making me choose."

"Oh," she gets it. Now the location of his baseball glove makes perfect sense. Their son had gotten every bit of his father's romantic sentimentality.

"Hey! What's this?"

"What?" She climbs the final rungs carefully setting foot on the flimsy floor.

Nathan is using his sleeve to wipe the dust off a large padded leather folio. He opens it. "Isn't this your maiden name Mom?" He holds the folio open so she can see the gilded calligraphy certificate. "It looks like some sort of award. What does it mean?"

Mary sighs. "It's nothing."

"It's not nothing." Marshall's voice rumbles into the opening. He's started climbing up the ladder to see why dust is raining out of the ceiling.

"I'll say. It's pretty awesome. I doubt you got this for nothing, Mom. Why don't you have it framed and hang it with Dad's awards?"

Mary dusts off a box and sits, taking the long hidden folio from her son. "That's not a good idea Nate."

Excited by this revelation of previously unknown family history he asks his parents, "Is it from some sort of secret government program?"

Mary coughs, the dust getting to her. "Something like that."

"Then why would they give you this?"

Marshall's head pops into the attic opening and his booming voice replies. "Because the idiocy of bureaucracy knows no bounds. Uncle Lucas and your sisters are here and dinner's ready. Stop this archeological dig and get cleaned up so we can eat."

"Leave that and c'mere son. Give your old mom a hand."

A/N: Stay tuned for a new series of one shots – Miraculous Mary. All Mary POV, all the time starting next Saturday. Thanks to everyone who reviewed or read this story, especially Meg and Jojo78.