Of Glitter and Gold

Chapter 17

Marinette walked into the school, her hand white-knuckled with how hard she's grabbing the strap to her book bag. People stared as she walked past- whispering but the girl couldn't be bothered, tonight she was finally starting patrol again! Yeah, focus on the bright side. It was the school's first day back and everyone did their best to get back to normal.

As she turned a corner, the Parisian bumped into someone.

"Oh hey, Steven, how are you? Are you alright?" The tall basketball player looked down at the girl and immediately hugged her.

"I'm so sorry. They said-" He sounds like he's done nothing but feel bad about what happened for the entire week. Marinette gives him a consoling pat to the arm, ignoring the way she can hear her heartbeat in her ears.

"It's alright, you did the right thing. I promise, I'm fine." Marinette consoled the boy until he finally understood that she didn't blame him. Marinette walked into her homeroom, everyone sat where they usually did and Marinette did too. Damian didn't even look up at her- just like normal. And it would have looked like you're everyday Monday morning, except for the massive purple bruise on his left cheek that seemed to have hardly healed over the weekend. The day went on as it usually would, except everything was far quieter- there were no whispering jokes in class, hardly any chatter in the halls, lunch was a deafeningly silent hour of picking at food. Everyone that had to walk down the hall walked around the only locker missing a door.

The food at lunch was hardly touched, nobody in the mood to stomach the grey burgers and suspicious hot dogs. Everyone's head snaps to a random sophomore who accidentally dropped his tray, a sigh of relief at the sight of his lunch splattered across the floor.

Marinette still found comfort in the quiet, everyone's reaction confirming that she wasn't the only one still feeling the effects of the kidnapping. Damian was the only one that seemed unfazed by the incident, he gave her a smirk when their chemistry teacher said he got the highest score on their long-forgotten quiz from the week before, but he got one back when she got the highest score on their math test.

After classes ended, Marinette walked home and grabbed what she needed too.

"Marinette, you're going to that new client of yours, right? Call us when you get there. Do you want one of us to go with you?" Sabine asked, she'd been, understandably, overprotective since the incident but Marinette soothed her parents before hailing a cab.

"Wayne Manor please." The woman looked over at the girl and shook her head as if she had dealt with this a thousand times before. The drive was quiet except for the soft radio playing an oldies channel. When the car pulled up to the immense manor, Marinette paid the woman before using the gates, speaking to let Alfred know she was there. Marinette was used to the taxi driver's stare as the gates opened for Marinette. Marinette had her jacket buttoned up all the way, her two garment bags in hand, by the time she was at the entrance Alfred was waiting for her as always. It was late January and still freezing, she shouldn't have forgotten her hot chocolate.

"Miss Marinette?"

"Good afternoon, Monsieur Alfred, how are you?"

"I am doing well, may I be so bold as to ask as to why you are paying us a visit?"

"Today is the twenty-seventh is it not? I thought I was supposed to have Jason and Richard's final fittings today." The man gave an understanding nod as she picked at her nails in embarrassment.

"Let's go retrieve the masters, then, shall we? This way, miss." Marinette followed Alfred as they walked to an unfamiliar part of the manor; there were more family photos and sentimental items as they walked further into the manor. Someone ran past the two with a "make a hole!" Marinette knew it was an expression that meant 'make a pathway' and so she obeyed, confused until she heard someone else yell.