"Tikki, would you look at that," Marinette said walking up to a display with a long kimono style coat. "It's an original Paul Poiret." The gallery was mostly empty. Most of the guests were to busy hobnobbing upstairs to spend much time exploring the exhibit. Although she had run across one couple making use of one of the darkened hallways to get to know each other a little better. She had made a hasty retreat.
Tikki poked her head out of one of the pockets in Marinette's dress, "Who's Paul Poiret?" Tikki asked, floating up to hover beside Marinette.
"He's a designer from the early 1900's. He was revolutionary. He's hugely instrumental in leading fashion away from the corset. He started the practice of draping cloth directly on women, and pinning it, instead of relying on strict patterns." She read the information placard in front of the display. This is one of his first coats inspired by a kimono. Look, there's another one of his designs." She pointed to another display.
"It looks like a lamp shade," Tikki remarked.
"Exactly," Marinette said, "That's one of his iconic lampshade dresses, over a hobble skirt.
"Oh my goodness, it's the original little black dress," Marinette hurried over to a display containing a black dress, "Worn by Coco Chanel herself, and look, it's the original sketch too."
She looked toward another article of clothing on display, "That's the first pea coat designed by Yves St. Laurent."
Marinette flitted from display to display, excitedly taking notes and quick sketches. Pausing in front of a display of a voluminous dress so wide, it didn't look like it would fit through a door. Marinette stood gazing at it in awe. "This was made by Rose Bertin," she said, "the first person to bring Haut Couture to the popular culture," Marinette read the placard on the display, "This dress was created for Marie Antoinette." Marinette stood for several moments, gazing at the details of the dress. "It's so amazingly preserved," she marveled, "so few of Marie Antoinette's dresses survived," It's so exquisite. This was made before they had zippers or snaps or sewing machines. All the lace is hand tatted. It probably took a whole cloister of nuns years to complete it all. She narrowed in on the pattern in the lace, making swoops and crosses in her sketch pad capturing the complicated repeating patters.
Lost in her sketch pad, she wandered here and there, making quick sketches and marveling at all the amazing fashion. After a while she registered angry voices drifting from a side hall way, looking up she realized she had wandered down a deserted hall way. No one was around.
"Who ever that is, they don't sound happy," Tikki observed.
"Let's check it out," Marinette said, making her way down the hall, and ducking behind a pillar.
"What do you think you're doing?" A girl cried out.
"That's Chloe's voice," Tiki whispered into Marinette's ear.
A sharp sound like a slap followed by an angry squeal echoed through the hall way.
Marinette and Tikki exchanged a silent look, moving out from behind the pillar, her ballet flats making no noise on the marble floors.
Tikki nodded, "What do you think is going on?"
Marinette peaked around the corner. Chloe sat crumpled on the floor, her hand held her cheek. Lorelei stood over Chloe, and Marinette could see the red imprint of a hand on Chloe's face.
Lorelei reached down and grabbed a handful of Chloe's skirt, yanking. Marinette could hear sound of fabric ripping. "Oppsie," She said, her lips curling in a satisfied grin, "You really need to be more careful Lolo, Charmeuse rips so easily if you don't take care of it." Grinning, she reached out again.
Brie laughed, her gaze going hungry. "You think she's going to cry?"
"Hmmmm…. Normally ripping your dress would be punishment enough, but I think you deserve something special for embarrassing me like that," She grinned evilly, "Do you remember when we used to play 'hair dresser?' She said holding up a pair of scissors.
"No," Chloe cried out, her hands going up to her hair. Not my hair, not again.
"You two," Lorelei said, gesturing at Brit and Bree, "would you please hold my dear little sister, If she moves too much, I might make a mistake and accidentally cut more than her hair off."
Marinette watched in horror as Chloe struggled, then the fight went out of her and she went limp. Lorelei began to lower the scissors, enjoying the look of helplessness and panic on Chloe's face.
"Why are you doing this," Chloe managed to say, looking up at her tormentor.
"Because I can," Lorelei replied with relish, "and I'll never let a little dirt grubber like you ever upstage me."
Marinette saw red. Stepping out of the shadows she cried out, "Three against one, you should be ashamed of yourself. You need to stop!"
With the scissors poised over Chloe's head, Lorelei looked over her shoulder, "Who are you?" Looking Marinette up and down, "Wait, you're that little nobody Adrien Agreste brought. Thought you could get Gabriel's attention by dating his son did you? Pathetic."
"I'm not going to let you do this," Marinette said, walking toward the three girls and their victim.
Grabbing Chloe's face with her hand she pinched her cheeks together, "How endearing," Lorelei said, "You have a friend other than that little ginger fashion disaster. How cute. She thinks she's going to rescue you. This is going to be fun." Releasing Chloe's face she turned to Marinette. "I'll take care of your friend here, then I'm going to finish the lesson I started." She dropped the scissors into her handbag. "I don't need these to take care of you," she said, advancing on Marinette.
She snapped her fingers, and the Brit and Bree dropped Chloe, who crumpled in a heap on the floor.
Marinette signed. What was she getting herself into. Chloe had never been anything but mean to her. Alya's voice echoed in her head, All that is necessary for the triumph of evil, is that good people do nothing. Well, no matter what she thought of Chloe, she couldn't let that happen to her.
The three girls advanced slowly on her. Marinette moved in a wide circle, keeping all three of them from flanking her, circling closer to Chloe.
"She's your sister," Marinette said, not stopping her movement.
Lorelei laughed, "She's a parasite, who came in to my life and got in my way." She sneered looking Marinette up and down, "Who do you think you are? Some sort of superhero? Going to save the day for little miss wannabe over there. Gonna throw your lucky charm in the air, like Ladybug, and fix everything? Ha!" She forced out a bark of laughter.
Marinette ignored the girls taunts, focusing on circling until she had reached where Chloe sat crumpled on the floor. She glanced down, "Are you ok?" She looked so sad and lonely sitting there, her hair disheveled and her dress ripped. Marinette turned away from Lorelei and her cronies and reached a hand down to help Chloe up.
"No one ignores me!" Lorelei snarled, running at Marinette, her hand reaching back for a slap.
"Watch out!" Chloe cried out.
Marinette was expecting it. She knew the moment Lorelei thought her guard was down, she would attack. Villeins were always the same. Dropping to one knee, she pivoted, and catching Lorelei by her wrist, before her nails could land, and springing back up with the older girl in a secure wrist lock. She might not be transformed right now, but she hadn't spent all that time as Ladybug for nothing. She had a few moves as Marinette.
"Ow ow ow," she cried out "Let go. I'm going to destroy you."
Marinette hissed into Lorelei's ear, "I will not let you hurt people while I am around to stop you." She raised her voice, "I suggest you all leave. You won't find me so easy to gang up on." Marinette gave Lorelei a little push, as she released her.
Stumbling over her spike heals, Lorelei went sprawling on the floor. Face red with embarrassment and rage, Lorelei scrambled to her feet and, turning, tried to swing at Marinette, her fingernails clawing at her face. Marinette blocked with her left hand, pivoted to the right and using her attackers momentum, spun her back around sending her crashing into her two friends.
"I'm done being nice. One more stunt like that and I'm going to get angry." She took up a defensive stance in front of Chloe, shielding her.
"You! You!" The girls face was bright red, and her hair disheveled.
"Come on Lorelei, lets get out of here," Bree said.
"It's not worth it," Brit added.
"I'd listen to your friends, Lorelei" Marinette said cooly.
But Lorelei was beyond reasoning, she grouped in her bag, pulling out the scissors. Her eye's were wild and her hair disheveled.
Marinette prepared to block the enraged woman, but then a movement caught her attention and she watched in horror as a black butterfly materialized out of the wall and fluttered over to Lorelei, touching down on the scissors, clutched in her hand.
Marinette grabbed Chloe's hand dragging her to her feet.
"What, what's going on," Chloe stammered.
"No time," Marinette said, glancing back and watching black encompassing the girl on the floor, "We have to move. Go go go!" Marinette ran, pulling Chloe behind her as fast as she could.
The two girls ran pell mell down the darkened hallway. "We have to warn everyone," Marinette puffed, still clutching onto Chloe's hand.
"Why? What?" Chloe gasped, trying to catch her breath.
"Clo-Clo," A sing song voice echoed up the hallway, "Where are you?"
"Who," Chloe gasped, "Is that Lorelei?"
"She's Hawkmoth's newest Akuma victim," Marinette tightened her grip on Chloe, "Don't talk. Run!"