Black Alley

Red Hood and Cass

Marinette went back to her room, ignoring the rest of the class including Adrien. She got the Miracle Box out and took out Trixx. She left a note telling Adrien she was going out and would be back later.

She quickly transformed and covered herself in an illusion before going out the window. There was a fire escape and she only had to jump down when she got to the second floor. Luckily there was a closed, green dumpster to land on.

She noticed some people peering through windows with cameras. It wasn't until she heard her name that she realized that they were trying to get a picture of her.

"They have this place on a fucking lockdown. I doubt the Queen of England could get in. They're only letting guests in. Rose said I need to get this picture or I'm fired," one man said.

She completely forgot about how the press would react to finding out that Bruce Wayne had a daughter. She quickly hid into another alley, one she didn't recognize but it was further away from the hotel.

And then she noticed it.

Marinette loved superheroes, maybe not more than Alya but she did. She and her maman would watch superhero movies together. Both their favorite being Batman. This alley looked like the infamous alley involved in every Batman movie.

Crime Alley.

Known for robberies, rapes, and murders. The most famous one being Thomas and Martha Wayne.

Marinette noticed a bench in the middle of the alley, backed up against the wall. Marinette quickly went to sit down. She noticed flowers there. Some were wilted and dead, the others bright and alive. She noticed a little plaque on the back rest, right in the middle.

'In loving memory of Martha and Thomas Wayne'

It was crazy to think that one of the most famous couples in history was her grandparents. Her grandparents who had their lives taken away from to early and left her father by himself with the butler.

'I wonder if they would've liked me? What would they think of me?' Marinette thought.

A sudden whoosh and a gust of wind caused her to turn her focus to something else. Red Hood stood in front of her.

"We have got to stop meeting like this," she said. "If once is an accident, and twice is a coincidence, then what would you call this?"

"A pattern... a choice... enemy action... at the end of the day, it's suspicious," Hood said, leaning against the wall opposite her. "Why do you always end up in alleyways?"

"Why do you lurk in alleyways?"

"It's part of my aesthetic. What's your excuse?"

Marinette snorted quietly, rolling her eyes and ignoring the question.

The silence that filled the alleyway was almost serene. Marinette appreciated it. She could still see Hood's boots and knew that he wasn't going anywhere any time soon. She sighed. This whole situation was a mess. It would have been messy if this hadn't gotten leaked to the public. Now it was just a huge fucking pile of shit.

Marinette didn't want this. She had wanted to think and plan and possibly even avoid the inevitable. She'd never wanted her secret to be exposed like this.

If the reaction was this bad when she'd been revealed as simply being related to a Wayne, then what would happen if somebody discovered she was Ladybug? God, she'd never be able to breathe.

To the silence, she admitted, "I don't even know where to go from here."

"You don't need to know anything just yet," Hood said. "You don't even need to go and see Wayne for now. But you do need to take care of yourself and establish your boundaries. Maybe go talk to that friend you fought with."