A few words about this story: it will have some cusses, and maybe violence, blood or fight scenes and weapons, but I am not sure yet. I don't think I have ever written a fight scene before, so brace yourselves. Anyhoo, I hope my story isn't too confusing. But enjoy!
Marinette emerged from the office, which was filled to the brim completely with booming voices and argument alone, and into the disturbing silence filling the rest of the workplace. She slammed the door shut as hard as she could, her co-workers not wincing, but instead looking after her in disappointment as she carried a cardboard box to her desk and threw all that was hers into it.
She was red-faced and clenching the sides of the box so hard, chunks flew off. All of her possessions inside rattled around the container as she carelessly flung in more notebooks, some pens, and a picture frame.
The office door reopened, releasing a scowling Chief Damocles to storm from Head Bustier's office. Head Bustier, who quickly followed after Damocles, clearly not finished with their conversation, caught him by the shoulder, and promptly threw him around.
Chief Damocles didn't seem intent on going back to talk, so she settled on conversing with him in one of those hushed, stern tones, though those tones can often sound mildly threatening. Maybe it was what she was going for.
"What are you doing? She's the best investigator in all of Paris, you can't just throw her away, even if she did all that!"
They both continued to talk, despite no longer being in the privacy of the Head Office. Of course, Marinette's co-workers all tuned in, listening to their bickering and believing every word. Marinette raged on the inside, though she tried fiercely not to let it show.
Still, any one idiot could sense the pure disgust, hatred, and anger seeping from her at the moment. Her boss, and her boss's boss, discussing her, right in front of her, and all of her ex-friends.
Viciously, she ripped the box off the top of her desk and, while she didn't want any more attention drawn to herself, everyone witnessed a more dramatic exit than The Lorax.
Her heels clicked dangerously on the tiled floors of the workplace, a silent warning for anyone stupid enough to get close. Her eyes were hot with tears, but any outsider who looked into them would only see a fiery, unkempt rage, struggling to get loose, before they'd run off in fear of a twisted fate like one of Medusa's victims. Her icy blue irises did nothing to cool it's flame.
Her hair was no longer in it's tame bun, but rather flowing behind her in a waterfall of shiny black locks. They stayed afloat in the air with her fast pace and stompy feet, and seemed to flow with every angry step, like every part of her was rightfully furious, including her hair.
She reached the exit and didn't even bother using her hands, instead connecting her foot to the door and continuing to walk straight out of it.
Not even a second after her nosy departure did a frantic Adrien Agreste run through the workplace and threw the door open as well, leaving the disarray and chaos of his shocked co-workers and boss and boss's boss behind him.
Outside, Marinette let out a frustrated groan. Damnit, Agreste.
She didn't want him following her after she just got fired right in front of him, and gave up putting up any fight. He was the one who instead stood up for her, trying to convince everyone that she was innocent.
Of course, that didn't help at all.
"Mari! Wait!"
She walked faster, even though her heels had begun to tear up her toes and ankles. Every step was painful, and it could've made a good distraction if she hadn't become more irritated because of it. She was still somehow graceful in her anger, with her severe expression and her hair swishing around behind her, and the way she walked. It was as if the winds moved along with her every step. From afar, someone could misinterpret her for determined.
"Marinette, please!"
His footsteps got closer, and she wasn't content with running, so she opted to violently swivel around to look at him.
He stopped in front of her, panting, and his golden bangs stuck to his forehead with sweat.
"I-I'm sorry, Marinette. They were all s-so dense. I'm sorry."
"It's fine," she snapped. She tried to make it quick, but Adrien could talk up a storm. If she stayed any longer, she knew there was a chance she could say something that she'd regret, especially with her current mindset.
"No, it's not. I'm sorry. I-I could've tried harder."
"I said it's fine, this whole mess isn't even your fault." Marinette bit back a growl, not making eye contact with her ex-partner.
A sniffle sounded above her, and she suddenly felt very guilty. Realization crashed upon her shoulders in waves, weighing her down and making her look up at her partner's face, who she had tried to avoid. I was only thinking about myself. I know I would be upset if Adrien got fired, too.
"Adrien, I'm sorry."
He didn't say anything.
"And, this isn't your fault. You stood up for me when no one else did, and I will always be thankful for that."
As the pair sat in an awkward silence, it began to drizzle. Little droplets fell to the ground, starting to form puddles, and others fell on their noses, and in the box in Marinette's arms.
"Adrien, I know they know that you weren't fond of Lila either, but you have a better chance of not getting ripped to shreds by her, so please be careful. Good luck."
It was then that it poured harder, and Marinette found that now would be a good time to leave, as it was already pretty weird. The rain just seemed to make leaving simpler.
When she turned, Adrien grabbed her wrist. From behind him, he produced a black umbrella, opened it, and positioned it over their heads.
"Marinette, you were the best partner I will ever have. I already know. But, you were an even better friend to me. So, thank you."
He motioned for her to take the umbrella.
Hesitantly, Marinette reached a hand out to take it. Her eyebrows had crawled up her forehead a bit, and her mouth hung open a bit.
That was when time seemed to slow. The rain fell silent, the world felt bright, and suddenly, for her, there was only them. Them, here, in the middle of a storm, sharing an umbrella before they parted ways. They probably wouldn't see each other again, unless they were lucky.
Overhead, storm clouds rumbled with bouts of thunder, and the sky crackled with fiery blue electricity. The dull darkness of the sky seemed oddly backwards to Adrien's shiny blonde hair, and lively green eyes.
Just as Marinette took the umbrella from him, a clap of thunder could be heard right above their heads, and it seemed to fill the space all around them. The sound of the rain was back, and so was the lightless sky.
"Thanks, A-Adrien. You t-too."
Marinette turned before he could see any of the heat rising to her cheeks.
-:-
Back at her apartment, she sat on the couch, staring down at her hand in awe. Adrien's fingers brushed hers a bit just as she grabbed the umbrella from him, and she couldn't get it out of her head.
The umbrella currently resided on the rug on the floor, right next to her feet, despite all the rainwater it had brought in.
Outside, the rain had worsened. Heavy downpour created a waterfall that cascaded down her window. That wasn't much of a problem for her, though, as it helped her calm down. It felt peaceful, even in the midst of it's destruction.
She continued to sit there for a while, with the TV on even if she wasn't watching it.
She sat like that for a good hour or two, just sitting and thinking, because what was she supposed to do now? No one would want to hire a fired investigator. Looks like she'll have to go back to bakery shifts, for a while.
Mme Dupain-Cheng had been working tirelessly, even after the beginning of Hawkmoth and his minions. This was a never-seen-before problem for the mayor, and so the solution was quite unusual, but as it turned out, effective.
Investigators, who were voluntolled if you were of the age between eighteen and twenty-six, worked in teams. It's like being in a class, except your classmates are your teammates. Each investigator has a specific and important role, but all work together to get the job done, which is to purify the akumatized citizen. Police officers have instead been moved to surveillance posts, touring the city and notifying teams whenever a villain is found. It was definitely an unusual system, but Marinette could see the idea behind it. They wanted educated, relatively young peoples to take up the job of being investigators because they were seen as the most fit. Marinette was assigned a role that was arguably the most important, though she always believed every part was just as necessary in a team.
She remembered taking the test that day, to see which part of the team she would be qualified or most eligible for. She shocked many when they found that she excelled in almost everything, but her best points were off the charts compared to other students who'd taken the test.
Marinette sighed, and finally stood up. She hissed, remembering her achy feet and the cuts on her ankles. They had been sore for the entire time she sat, but the nagging thought of the pain goes away when you sit long enough. She sat back down, instead lazily dragging her dropping eyes around the room in exhaustion. Her eyes met her workplace, and an idea strike her brain like the rain's lightning.
There, in the corner, sat some of the leftover red fabric she had bought, and planned to make an amazing bag with. She hadn't had the time to even finish with her job, and so the designs she had sketched out fell to the bottom of her desk.
It was some of the coolest fabric she had ever owned, and she remembers dreaming about all day and night after seeing it at the store. When she had finally gained enough money, she bought it right away, figuring that she could make do with cheap food and no clothes shopping.
It was deep red in color, and, most importantly, it was waterproof. Waterproof. Marinette could go on all day thinking up what new designs she could make using just that.
But, with her idea, it'll have to be something a bit more… durable. The fabric would be perfect. The idea would not be perfect.
To put it frankly, it would be a rash decision to carry this plan out. Her idea was stupid, and dangerous, and stupid. And, did I mention that it's stupid?
Well, there was no way anybody could change Marinette's mind. She was going to make a sleuthing outfit, whether it was good for her health or not, whether Hawkmoth killed her or not.
I'm coming for you, Papa.
Hi! Glad you made it all the way down here. I know this chapter is longer than what I usually write, but of course I have more time than usual, and I'm looking to improve my writing. Feel free to give me suggestions, I'm listening, even if I don't reply. :-)
Also, I plan on just working on this sorry for a while, unless a new idea for a one-shot comes up. Stay safe!