The wind in her hair and the thrill in her veins.

Her heartbeat's comforting presence.

Who knew it was possible to miss vaulting over rooftops this much?

It was in time's like these she knew she'd never be able to give up the hero gig.

She was already addicted.

The darker colouring of her suit made it easier to blend into Gotham's darker atmosphere.

Bright red wouldn't be the best idea in this environment.

No the change was a good thing.

That it didn't look like a onesie anymore was a much appreciated bonus.

She had to take a double take and go back a rooftop.

Huh.

That was one big piece of vandalism alright.

Non descript office building.

Wouldn't even catch her attention if it wasn't for one thing.

The entire front side of the fasade had been spray painted.

Whoever had done it had made it look like the building was being destroyed by glowy, green goo.

Frighteningly realistic too.

Looked real catastrophic.

And bold letters under the company logo proclaimed "We dump chemical waste in the ocean".

If anything it was eye catching.

The two vigilantes over there seemed to agree.

Nightwing was shaking his head, but Robin looked furious.

Something told her it wasn't because someone had dared vandalize a company's building.

That same something told her that company might be getting a visit from a certain bird soon.

Good graffiti though.

The coast was clear and so she detransformed on the roof.

Tikki wasted no time in flying into her inner jacket pocket and starting to eat the prepared cookie. "I hope you know what you're doing."

"Don't worry. My plan will work." She hoped.

She knocked on the window.

The man within stilled and cautiously turned around.

She didn't blame him.

Getting a visitor in the middle of the night at a second story window probably was cause for some alarm.

Even if the window in question was right by the fire escape.

He held the scissors in his hand tightly. "Is this a robbery?

The sound carried through the tiny opening in the window.

Good thing he'd had it open a bit or she would never have heard him.

"Nope. I'm a designer in need of an after hours shopping trip. I have a commission with a dead line and I really need fabrics and a few other things fast."

His eyebrows reached new heights. "You really think I'm going to believe that?"

"I think you do. You're a designer too. There's no way you've never been in a similar situation."

He stared.

She stared.

He opened the window.

"Thank you so much. I can't tell you how much this means to me," she told him as she clambered through.

The man sighed. "Just don't make me regret this, kid."

He'd lead her down to the store and turned on the lights.

The task at hand was one she'd gone through several times in her head.

The kind of materials she needed to look for had been carefully thought upon.

She roamed around to find what she needed.

The owner stayed by the door, but watched her every move.

Didn't really bother her.

She found the perfect fabric for the outside of the jacket and moments after that a great material for the lining.

Those were easy.

She also found a some zippers, threads and buttons that she needed.

There was only one thing left and she couldn't decide.

After a few minutes she gave in to her indecision.

She grabbed the bolts she was considering and dragged them back to the second designer in the room that was watching.

The sketchbook in her purse came out.

The design in question was pulled out.

"Okay, this is what I'm doing. Black with grey on the inside. The pockets and the detailing are going to be red." She showed the bolts. "This one is nearly too light in colour, but it's a good fabric. I don't love it even though it would work. This one on the other hand is a bit darker, but I think it's a bit too thin. You can practically see through it. What do you think?"

He blinked, but took a closer look at both the design and the fabric.

"You like the darker one better, right?" She nodded. He grabbed said fabric and brought it over to the black one she'd chosen. "Then what about this?"

He'd only put the red over the black, but in that moment he could have invented the baguette and she'd be less impressed.

It was so simple that she never would have thought about it.

The black could kind of be seen through the red and it created this effect.

It would look incredible on the jacket.

"It's a good design. Simple and classy with a touch of personality. I'm a bit curious about how you're planning to do the pockets."

She was more than happy to tell him.

"That won't work."

"Why not?" She'd done pockets like that before.

"Your client lives in Gotham?" A nod. "Then it would be too easy to pickpocket if they only have a button."

Huh. "What if I do them like I was planning to, but add a hidden zipper under the flap?"

He smiled. "Now you're thinking like a Gothamite."

"You have any other designs in that sketchbook of yours?"

"That's very intricate."

They were looking at picture of a dress she'd made with some embroidery. "I embroidered it by hand."

He whistled.

"This was actually a mistake. I was trying to study for a history test while making it. I wasn't that good at multitasking back then. But I decided to make it a thing and well..."

"You've made a wedding dress before?" She shook her head. "Shame. Something tells me you'd be good at that. I've only done a couple. Don't really have the eye for dresses like that."

"Do you have any photos of the ones you have done?"

"I'm Marinette by the way."

"Lee."

"My oldest daughter just got her first job and I wanted to make her something. It'd not really done yet. I'm still trying to figure out a way to give it that wow factor."

"Have you considered..."

Her eye caught on the clock.

Three thirty.

She had to be up in a few hours.

Ops.

"Nice meeting you and don't be afraid to pop by again. Maybe even during day hours next time."

"Haha. Real funny. Thanks for letting me midnight shop."

He laughed as she left through the window.