Blamed for Murder | finished

Ch. 2: The Way Home

I had 3 Minutes before my transformation was going to wear off. I decided to get as far away as possible, but I couldn't run home immediately as the risk of revealing my true identity now was greater than ever before. I moved a few blocks into the opposite direction and noticed that I still held Rogers gun in my hand, so I tossed it into the Seine. I noticed an old and probably abandoned warehouse near a dark alley, so I swung in there through a broken window and detransformed behind some cover.

Tikki flew out of my earrings as my transformation wore off. "Marinette, are you okay?"

I sat down on the ground, not making much effort to move. It took only a few minutes to turn my life and probably all of Paris upside down. I still tried to realize what happened. Chloé's father was killed and the police thought I was his murderer. They didn't even bother listening to me. Why did they do that? I always helped them out. I was so lost in my own thoughts that I did not notice that I started crying. Tears were running down my face like a waterfall, matching the heavy rain outside. Being a wanted killer was a huge problem, but what really haunted me was the thought of not being good enough. I felt like it was my fault that somebody died.

Tikki hugged me tightly in an effort to calm me down. She was small, but I still felt her warm embrace during that cold night. "I promise you, everything will turn back to being okay. I'm here for you."

It took me a while before I calmed down enough to reply. "I don't know. Right now Ladybug is a wanted criminal and Chloé lost her father. She can really be a nuisance, but nobody deserves that. She looked up to me and now she must think I took what was left of her family away from her. I couldn't do anything against it. She must have an even more horrible night than I do. I should have stopped this." My words were interrupted by heavy sobs, as my thoughts still haunted me.

It took me a moment to recover enough, so I could walk home. I forgot to bring some cookies for Tikki, so I couldn't transform again. It wouldn't be the smartest idea anyway. I heard the sound of distant sirens and it felt like every officer was on the street, looking out to arrest Ladybug. The strong rain soaked my clothing, but this was at least my tears got covered. The heavy rain and cold wind made me shiver, as I left my jacket at home since the magic suit would keep me warm while I was transformed into Ladybug. I've never been to this part of Paris as Marinette before, but it definitely looked like a girl wasn't supposed to be here during nighttime. Suddenly a dark figure jumped right in front of me. Expecting the worst, I jumped back and screamed.

I was about to make a run, as a pair of warm green eyes looked at me. That was the moment I saw the cat ears and the belt tail. I took a deep breath of relief. "Chat Noir! Don't scare me like that!"

"I'm sorry Marinette. I was on patrol and saw you walking down the street. What brings you to this area in the middle of the night, especially with all this poor weather? You aren't even wearing a raincoat." Chat teased me with his charming voice. I didn't know what to answer and he made a point. He wasn't wasting much time: "I know it's a long walk for you. Do you mind if I take you home? I don't want you to get sick."

I nodded as he picked me up. I held tightly to his chest, as I noticed a mixture of the perfume Adrien was advertising for and camembert. We were traveling over the Parisian rooftops, as I remembered that my parents thought I was lying in my bed right now. I didn't have any explanation for them why I was out this late. A sudden idea hit me. "Chat, can you please drop me off at my balcony? I will be grounded for the next month if my parents find out about this."

A few minutes later and Chat did what I asked him for. He was about to leave, as I wanted to make sure my cover wouldn't blow. "Thanks a lot, Chat Noir. You really saved me, but please don't tell anyone about this." I was trying to make up a reason. I didn't want people to come to conclusions if Marinette was walking around run-down parts of the town the same moment Ladybug disappeared after killing the mayor. Chat gave me a confused look, as I explained: "It's not like I don't like you. That was nice...I mean you are nice...I mean....look, Alya, the girl running the Ladyblog, is my best friend. If she finds out about this, she will kill me first and ask thousands of questions later."

Chat grinned at me with the sassiest smile I have ever seen: "Okay, I won't tell anyone. But you have to make a box of macarons for me. And please, make a few of them with camembert. I heard they taste pawsome." I don't know how, but he made me smile with that annoying pun. "Okay, we have a deal.", I replied. "See you tomorrow night then, Marinette. I need to check on some rumours." Chat left and headed towards Le Hotel Grand Paris.

Tikki flew out of my purse, as I dropped into my room: "Hey, look who starts stuttering around Chat Noir. And I thought you only love Adrien." I have Tikki never seen so cocky, but that cheered me up. I took a shower and went to bed, hoping to get at least a few hours of sleep.