Paris

43

{+}{+}{+}

Marinette's P.O.V

   I felt a yank on my arm, pulling me into a space.

   I had searched for over an hour for Alya and asked around for anyone who had seen her last. Yet, it had always come to a dead end. Nobody knew where my personal servant had gone.

   Could she have possibly gone home? She could not have during an Akuma attack. The streets had been too dangerous to be out. Alya is not dumb enough to leave the safety of the mansion...could she? I have not known her long enough to know.

   I was so deep in thought, I was not expecting to be grabbed.

   I fought back against whoever was trying to nab me.

   "Unhand me!" I growled.

   "Marinette! Calm yourself down! It is I, Rose!"

   I stopped my attack and spotted Rose shielding herself with her arms.

   "Oh my! I am so sorry!" I quickly apologized, realizing that we were in one of the secret passages.

   "It is alright. I had tried to grab your attention but you were so deeply lost in your mind, I could not reach your attention through the thicket of your thoughts," Rose explained until shaking her head, "Never mind that. We have some catching up to do. Follow me."

   "Have you found more information?" I questioned, trailing behind the witch.

   "Not quite," Rose answered, "I wanted to ask you about your fiancé, Lord Couffaine. He has caught my suspecting interest."

   "Luka? Why would you want to know about him?" I asked, "Does he have something to do with Hawkmoth too?"

   "I am not sure, to be honest. But what I do know is that it is impossible for him to be here," Rose told me. I was confused by her words. What did she mean by that? She noticed my curious stare. A stone-hard look crossed her face. I never thought I would bear witness to an icy look on such a sweet face.

   "Luka Couffaine should be dead," Rose stated, sounding haunted with each word coming off her tongue.

   This information left me flabbergasted.

   "E-Excuse me?" I stammered out, taken aback by this information. I tried to see if I heard her right or if she was joking. Her expression did not morph away from the serious one, leading me to believe that she was indeed telling the truth.

   "What do you mean he is supposed to be dead?" I frantically asked. My mind was abuzz, lit with burning questions needing to be answered.

   "Actually, how do you know he is supposed to be dead? Did you try to murder him?" I was practically interrogating Rose at this point.

   I could never imagine her harming anything...but she could have changed. It has been a few years since I last saw her. A lot could change during that time.

   "What?! Of course not! I would never harm anyone," Rose confirmed my suspicions not true, "He was supposed to be dead even before I knew of him."

   I let out a sigh, "You know what, please explain from the beginning."

   "Well, he was my mentor's brother," Rose explained, "She had told many stories about him—even showed me a picture of him. That was how I knew what he looked like.

   "Now, we are both investigating how he still walks this earth. Not only does my mentor want to figure out about her seemingly alive brother, he may also be the key to helping us in our search for Hawkmoth."