Sequel to IRONY

13

"Sometimes I'm terrified of my heart; of its constant hunger for whatever it is it wants. The way it stops and starts."

-Edgar Allan Poe

Marinette's wand started to emit red sparks after Wayne had departed to god-knows-where.

It was nothing big, really. It only meant that it was time to add another ingredient to the Denovorum.

A maid had entered the room and told her that her clothes had just arrived to the Manor, along with a few 'extras.' When she had asked what the extras were, the girl had just smiled at her and said it would be best if she took a look herself. Her name was Jacqueline and by the time Marinette had finished talking to her.

Fighting the blush that was ebbing up her cheeks, she opened Damian's enormous closet once again. Her eyes almost popped out of their sockets. A few 'extras' apparently meant a whole closet full of colorful frocks and gowns. She would never have guessed that these clothes were all meant for her, until she saw that they were, in fact, her size... She tried a couple of them on and they all fit her perfectly... like they were especially made for her... even the shoes.

Trust him to do something as random as this.

Her wand emitted red sparks again, alerting her that she had one hour to get to the office. Now was the perfect time to find out if she could escape the evil clutches of the infamous Wayne Manor. She wasn't going to permanently leave, of course. She would just visit her office for a while, then head back before anyone noticed.

She had read about the Wayne Manor once. It had a art that could detect any person who wanted to leave it. She had tested this by walking down the hallway, just to look around. The creeper hadn't attacked her and no other traps came at her.

But it was different now because she wanted to leave. The art will definitely detect her no matter how hard she pretends. She had no other choice but to run as fast as she can. Hopefully, she'll get out of this alive. Easy enough. She was already used to life-threatening situations after all.

Her mission was simple: get to the door in the sitting room undetected, take a car to her office, add the next ingredient to the Denovorum, and come back in time for dinner.

Dinner, if she remembered correctly, was sometime around 7. She rolled her eyes.

She decided to wear an all black get-up: black long sleeved shirt, black jeans, black combat boots and a matching black cap (the most appropriate attire for her dangerous mission). She even contemplated on putting two strips of face paint on her cheeks but that would be thoroughly overdoing it. Gazing at her reflection in the mirror, she gave a satisfied nod at her reflection and tied her long locks into a messy bun. Her hair had always been a dead giveaway.

She looked like she was about to break into someone's house rather than attempt to escape one.

"Right," she told herself. "Constant Vigilance. Don't be stupid. You can do this, Marinette."

She sneaked out of the room and headed towards the right again, successfully avoiding the creeper she had encountered the first time. She was right, the charm had detected her wanting to escape. She ran to the end of the hall until she came across a fork.

Remembering what Jacqueline had told her, about the grand staircases located at the east side of the Manor, she headed to her right. At the end of the hall, she saw the staircases. This is going to be easier than I thought.

"Lady Wayne!"

She cringed at the name and glanced back.

On her left she found maids carrying cleaning equipment, five of them. Her breath caught in her throat. They stared at her in confusion, that is, until they realized she was trying to escape. They dropped the things they were carrying, took their shoes off, and made a break for her.