A Little Fall of Rain

An Assassin Targets Adrien

Marinette climbed up the base of a lamppost. With her phone in one hand, she scanned over the sea of people looking for Alya and Nino. Even with the added height, it still took a minute for her to see Alya waving.

"Okay, I see you guys now," Marinette spoke into her phone. "I'll be right there. Don't move." She jumped down from the lamppost and started weaving in and out of the crowd toward the direction of her friends.

It was Heroes' Day in Paris. But unlike previous years, the holiday was now a week-long celebration. Currently, the Trocadéro was in full festival mode. There were multiple stages for musical performances, dozens of street vendors, and food carts all over the place.

"Sometimes, I hate being short," Marinette whined as she grabbed onto Alya's arm. "I couldn't see you guys at all. So, where are we going first?"

"We're waiting for one more." Alya winked.

"Oh! Who?"

"Adrien's on his way." Nino grinned.

"Really?" That surprised Marinette. Lately, Adrien's father had been forbidding any activities outside school. And for once, he wasn't just overprotective. The Gabriel brand had recently closed its factories overseas. A surprise tour by Nathalie had revealed child labor violations, as well as wage thief from the supervisors. Gabriel had immediately dissolved their contract. The factory owner had retaliated with threats of violence toward anyone associated with Gabriel Agreste.

And so, poor Adrien was barely able to leave his house.

Marinette looked at the crowd in front of her. Many children chose to dress up for Heroes' Day. Tiny Ladybugs and Chat Noirs were running all over the place. To Marinette's delight, there was even an occasional Carapace or Rena Rouge. Many of the children had also created their own hero costumes. Marinette loved seeing the creativity of a child's imagination.

One child, however, made Marinette do a double-take. The little girl's skin was blue, bluer than any bodypaint. Also, the little girl was floating instead of walking. Marinette frowned; she hated it when Hawkmoth Akumatized children.

"Sorry, Alya. I suddenly remembered something I needed to do." Marinette glanced down at her nonexistent watch. "I'll meet back with you later."

"Seriously, girl?" Alya raised an eyebrow. "You're not avoiding Adrien, are you?"

"It's not that," Marinette looked away, trying to see where the girl went. Crap, the girl disappeared. At least this Akuma wasn't causing panic, but she was definitely up to something. "I really need to go; I'll explain later."

Marinette quickly headed in the direction of the Akumatized child. Hmm, finding a place to transform was going to be a problem. There were people everywhere. Marinette spotted a t-shirt vendor with an opaque tablecloth. She waited until no one was looking and ducked under the table.

A few seconds later, Ladybug emerged. Using her yo-yo, she launched herself to the top of a lamppost and looked down at the crowd. Within seconds, she spotted the floating, blue-skinned girl.

The child had a scowl on her face as she pointed to the adults all around her. Every time she pointed, the phones that were in the adult's hand sparked and smoked. The little girl was destroying phones? Ladybug shrugged; seemed like an odd power. Perhaps she could destroy anything and, for some reason, was only using it on phones.

Though, as Ladybug scanned the crowd, she noticed quite a few parents staring at the tiny screens in their hands. Maybe this girl was frustrated at being ignored? Ladybug studied the girl further. Other than her clothes, she didn't seem to have any objects on her. Perhaps the Akuma was in her headband?