Chapter Text

art by madelinelime

My name is Marinette. A girl like any other. But when fate picked me to fight against the forces of evil, I became Miraculous Ladybug… and I failed.

The door to the police cruiser swung open, and Nicholas Wilde stepped out. Before him was a familiar sight: A young cat with a coat of white standing beside a support beam of the South Zootopia Bridge. Cars rumbled past overhead, but down here, the silence felt almost eerie.

“Well, well, well, what do we have here?” Nick said. “Marinette Dupain-Cheng. What is this, your fifth runaway attempt in eight months?”

Marinette’s blue eyes remained unreadable as he walked forward in the night. “Six months, actually.”

A bitter smile crossed Nick’s face. “And there you have it. You know the drill.”

Her left hand went to one of the red-and-black earrings she wore at the base of her pointy ears. “I guess I do.”

Nick strode over and led her to the back seat of the car. That he handcuffed her was practically a formality. She didn’t struggle or try to get away; she never did, not after the first time. The car’s door shut with a click, and Nick got into the front seat and began to drive.

This was routine by now. Marinette would violate her court-ordered curfew by sneaking out in the middle of the night and whichever foster parent she was with would notice and call the police, and Nick would be dispatched to bring her back. They weren’t really runaway attempts, these late-night escapades. All Marinette would do was come to the same spot underneath the same bridge, without fail. She insisted she was “looking for a way home,” but as far as Nick could tell, the girl was just nuts.

The next five minutes ticked by in silence. The occasional car rolled by as Nick drove, but at this time of night, the roads were all but deserted on the route he took. He could see Marinette in the back of the cruiser, staring blankly at her cuffed hands.

Nick sighed, and against his better judgement, began to speak. “You know, kid, it ain’t healthy, doing this. What do you hope to accomplish? Living under a bridge ain’t exactly ‘the good life,’ if you know what I’m saying.”

Marinette said nothing.

Nick’s paw tightened against the steering wheel. “But hey,” he said. “What do I know? Do what you want kid, but this is gonna catch up to you. You’re gonna end up in juvie.”

Marinette had already paid several fines and done a significant amount of community service. The fact that she always came to the same place and acted in the same distant, yet submissive manner when caught had nearly landed her in a mental institution, though when examined by a psychologist, she was found to be mostly healthy. She had a court-ordered therapist, but he couldn’t be too terribly competent given the complete lack of change in Marinette’s behavior.

It was just the same thing over and over again. Nick almost felt sorry for the kid.

Almost.

***

The front door to the Zootopia Police Department swung open.

“Hey, Clawhauser.”

The heavyset cheetah didn’t even look up from his smartphone, and it took Nick a moment to realize why – Clawhauser had his earbuds in. As Nick got closer, he heard Gazelle’s newest single blasting out of them.

Marinette looked down at her shoes and mumbled something Nick didn’t hear.

“Clawhauser,” Nick said, snapping his fingers in front of his friend’s face. “Clawhauser, hey Clawhauser!”

“What?” The cheetah took an earbud out. “Oh, Nick! I was just listening to Gazelle’s new song, and OMG it is so inspirational” Nick raised an eyebrow. “Oh… but I guess I shouldn’t be listening to it while working, huh?”

“Nope.”

Clawhauser apologized in his typical flamboyant fashion, bringing his hands to his chest in an exaggerated manner. Nick assured him it was fine, and then dragged Marinette through the building to the holding cells.

The metal bars automatically slid shut in front of Marinette, and the sound of Nick’s pawsteps echoed in the hall. “I’ll call your foster parents and have them come pick you up in the morning. Get comfortable; you’re spending the night here.”

Nick shut the door to the holding area, and sighed. “Crazy kid,” he muttered.

***

“Marinette!”

“What is it, Tikki?” Marinette’s voice was dull and impassive as she lay on the cell bench, staring up at the ceiling even as she spoke. She knew from her previous stays here that the cells’ security cameras didn’t pick up sound, only video, so as long as her friend stayed underneath the bench, she would go completely undetected. They’d see her mouth moving, but they already thought she was crazy, so what difference did it make?

Tikki’s sigh filled Marinette’s ears. “How can you be so calm, Marinette? You heard what Officer Wilde said: you could go to juvenile detention if you keep this up!”

Marinette bit her lip, and she could practically taste the bitter anger on her tongue. “What do you mean, ‘keep this up?’ What am I supposed to do, Tikki? Paris needs me. I have to get home!”

“Marinette… You’ve been searching for a way back for so long, but…”

“But what, Tikki?” the girl demanded. “Should I stop looking? Should I just give up and abandon everyone who needs me?”

Marinette imagined the little kwami was about to launch into a lecture of some sort. Yet, Tikki remained silent.

Thank God, Marinette thought, and immediately caught herself. Since when had she become so cold towards the kwami? Since everything went wrong, was the only answer she could think of.

Marinette exhaled and shifted onto her side. She might as well try and sleep now. Mr. White and his wife weren’t going to be happy.