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“A trip to Paris” 5

Notes:

Chapter: 5/12 Previous Next (First). Versión en Español

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Chapter 5: “From Amity to Paris”

That evening, Sam offered to help the Fentons with their hotel reservations, or rather, insisted she help them with the hotel booking. She wanted only the best for her boyfriend after all, even if she didn’t say it out loud. After several searches and comparing prices here and there, they finally decided on the ‘Le Grand Paris’ hotel. It was a bit fancier than the Fentons were used to, and maybe a bit overpriced… or, well, very overpriced, but that didn’t bother Sam, it was the best option for the family.

The hotel had two boarding options: suits and apartment-style rooms. The suits slept four people, while the apartment-style rooms could have up to six. As a family of four, the suit sounded perfect to the Fentons, that is, until they read some reviews. Everyone said the suit’s first bedroom was fine, but the second was so small and cramped that you could barely open the dresser and there was no place to put your suitcase. The apartment-style option would be better for them, even though it was an odd choice for four. It consisted of a main bedroom with a king-size bed and two smaller rooms that each came with either a queen-sized bed or two twins. That way Jazz and Danny could have their own rooms, rather than them having to share like when they were very, very little.

Sam took this as an opportunity to once again suggest that she go with them since there would be more than enough space for her too. She proposed that she could share a room with Danny, one of the ones with two twins, rather than a queen.

Jack and Maddie were hesitant to say ‘yes,’ they obviously didn’t mind the two teens sharing a room since they had invited her to stay the night, but they had already bought their plane tickets. And even though they had accepted Sam’s help with their hotel –for her insistence rather than something else– they weren’t sure if they could get a ticket for her on the same plane.

At that, Sam whipped out her phone, asked the Fentons for the flight information, and managed to use the power that came with being a Manson to not only get a ticket on the same flight, but sitting right next to them. She offered to upgrade all of their tickets to first class while she was at it, but the Fentons declined, they had saved up enough money for their travel expenses and didn’t want her to spend more –or rather, much more– than necessary.

After that, the Fentons simply allowed Sam to finish booking their hotel for the two weeks they planned to be in Paris. She respected their wishes and did as requested, only buying herself the plane ticket and making sure the family and herself were comfortable in one of the nicest hotels in Paris. After all, the idea was for them to have a relaxing and worry-free vacation, and that included not stressing over details that she would be more than happy to help with.

The Fentons and Sam had everything arranged for their trip to Paris, and Dani and Valerie were prepared to stay behind and protect Amity Park. Everyone was excited for the start of summer vacation, everyone except Tucker.

He loved his job as the Mayor of Amity Park, he really did! It was like that time he’d run for class representative, only better! But he missed spending time with his friends. He understood why he had a private tutor instead of going to school, but seriously, he was still a teenager! He never thought he would miss Casper High, but he was working on a way to attend classes there again next year, even if it was just part time. He wasn’t planning on running for the position again, so as soon as someone else was elected, he would be free to go back to being a full time student.

It was way too hard to lead, or even live in, a town overrun with ghosts, so both Tucker and the citizens of Amity were more than relieved when the news spread that the Fentons’ portal would be closed for two weeks. They were even more relieved when they heard that Jack Fenton would be out of the country and they could take a break from constantly checking their rear-view mirrors for that monstrosity they called an RV. It would be nice to have a break from the daily chaos, even if it was just temporary. After all, closing the portal forever wouldn't do any good in the long run. Ghosts from natural portals would still need a way to get back into the Ghost Zone. That was a main part of the case the Fentons presented to the FBI for why they should be allowed to repair their portal.

Students would be out of school soon, but a Mayor’s job was never done. Tucker needed a break too. When he heard the news that his friends were planning a trip to Paris, he started thinking of a way to travel there too. If he could come up with a good enough reason, he could use money from the budget to pay for it… Even though it was mainly an excuse to have a vacation, he had thought of actually doing something official while there, so it wouldn’t be seen as a complete abuse of power. He did have responsibilities after all.

The rest of the school year came and went. Danny’s time management plan was in full swing, and, although there were plenty of things that needed to be improved, it seemed to be working. He had help fighting the ghosts, and with Mr. Lancer doing his part as well, Danny managed to pass all of his classes. Now all that was left was the packing.

The day of their departure finally came, and Mr. Gray and Dani drove the Fentons to the airport.

When Damon learned about the little girl and what she was exactly, he almost couldn’t believe it until he met her and saw just how much like Danny she was. He was invited over to FentonWorks a couple of days before so Jack and Maddie could explain what to do if the portal accidently got activated or something else happened, as well as to get to know Dani a bit more.

The Fentons made sure that the filter got changed before they left, so that wouldn’t be a risk, but Dani knew what to do if that was the case anyway. Everything was taken care of, now the adventure was about to begin.

They were at the airport, pulling their suitcases out of the car. Danny made sure he unloaded the heaviest ones, as his powers helped them more than the others were going to accept, at least out loud.

“I can’t believe we’re actually here,” he said. ”You guys really closed the portal… I– I don’t know what to say… ”

“Well, believe it little brother. You’re actually going to get some rest now, like you need to,” said Jazz. It was time for Danny to take a break from using his powers, even if it was just the super strength that he used almost without even realising it these days. Jazz had noticed how he had taken the heaviest suitcases himself.

The group of travellers said their goodbyes to Dani and Damon, waving until they drove out of sight, then they headed inside. Jack and Maddie followed closely behind the three teenagers. It was strange to see them wearing ‘normal’ clothes, having left their jumpsuits behind, but they had promised a nice, non-ghost-hunting holiday. And even though it was a big change for them, they were true to their word.

“Exactly Danny–boy! We’re here, and everything is taken care of! It’s time to relax!” boomed Jack.

“Your father is right, Danny.” Maddie paused, “Jack dear, did we remember to thank Mr. Gray for driving us here? ” she asked. Even though they had, she had the feeling that they were forgetting something.

“I hope they remembered that Dani and Valerie made him promise to pick us up from the airport when we get back, too...” said Sam knowing that they had kind of forced him to make the offer, even though they would be arriving very late in the evening.

“I feel kinda bad about asking him to do so much for us, Dani and Valerie shouldn’t have… I mean, I could've flown us to and from the airport at least,” said Danny. He knew well enough that he was more than capable of carrying the family and their luggage without much of a problem.

They quickly dropped their suitcases off at the check-in counter and headed for security.

Jazz pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration, “For the last time, Danny, this is a holiday. That means you shouldn't be exerting yourself, you shouldn't be doing any heavy lifting. And before you say anything, just because you can doesn't mean you should.” She kept her voice low and made sure not to mention Danny’s powers as they were in public, but her firm tone of voice let him know that she would brook no argument.

“Yeah, I know, I know,” said Danny with a wave of his hand, “but— ”

“No. No buts, Danny.” Sam interrupted. “We already talked about it, didn’t we?” She was just as tired of trying to get Danny to stop using his powers all the time as Jazz was.

“Yes, I know...” Danny sighed, “You’re right.” He looked around for the number of the gate that they needed to go. There weren’t that many gates, but it was their first time there.

“This way!” Jazz pointed out their gate. It hadn’t taken her long to find the number that matched her boarding pass, it was a small airport, after all. ‘Amity Park Airport’ was fairly new, and probably one of the only good things that Vlad had done as mayor.

“Good eye, Jazz, dear,” said Maddie, heading in the direction Jazz had pointed.

In the waiting area by their gate, there was a large window that looked out over the runway and they were amazed by how many planes they could see and how busy and bustling it all was. Even though the Amity Park airport was small, it was still big enough for there to be several planes flying at the same time to different parts of the country. It was their first time travelling like this. Yes, they had flown before, but never in planes this big, let alone internationally. The seating on their first plane was divided into two sections of three seat rows on each side of the walkway. Danny, Sam, and Jazz sat together on a row while Jack and Maddie sat behind them next to a nice, young businessman. It was a short flight to Chicago and an easy layover at O’Hare before they were off again. Their second plane, the international one, was much bigger than the first. This one was divided into three sections, two on the sides with three seats to a row, and one in the middle with four. Just as with their first flight, the three teens sat together with their parents in the row behind them.

A bit longer than ten hours later, the Fenton family, plus Sam, landed in Paris at the ‘Charles de Gaulle Airport.’ They picked up their suitcases and exchanged some of their dollars for euros, just in case, though they planned to use their credit cards mostly since it was easier. Luckily for them, the currency exchange post employee did speak English well enough. They were also grateful that they had booked transport from the airport to the hotel in advance, because French wasn’t easy, especially after such a long flight.

When they arrived at the hotel, they checked in and then were guided to their rooms by a helpful bellhop. Once inside, they quickly set about exploring their apartment style suite, admiring just how big and luxurious it really was. Then they claimed their rooms and their beds, and did some light unpacking to settle in. Jack and Maddie obviously took the master bedroom, while Danny and Sam got the room with two twin beds and Jazz took the one with the queen. Just as they had agreed back home.

“Alright kids, let’s try to get some sleep,” Maddie looked at her watch, it was well past midnight in Paris, even though it didn’t feel like it.

“But I’m not tired,” Danny complained. “Can’t we stay up a little longer?”

Maddie levelled a motherly glare at him. “You’ll wish you’d gone to bed when morning comes and the jet lag hits,” she reminded them.

“She’s right, you know,” Jazz said. “It feels like it’s only five or six in the afternoon because that’s what time it is in Amity Park. But we aren’t in Amity Park anymore, and if we want to enjoy all the things Paris has to offer, we need to adjust our sleep schedules as soon as possible.”

They moaned and groaned and dragged their feet, even the adults, but eventually everyone was in bed. It took them some time to actually fall asleep, but the night came and went and before they realised it, it was the next day.

They woke up bright and early, much to the dismay of the teenagers and the family made their yawning, shuffling way downstairs for breakfast. The restaurant part of the hotel was on the first floor, or ground floor, as it was called here. They didn’t have much planned for the day other than getting used to being here and getting used to hearing everything in French rather than English.

Once they were sitting at the breakfast table, Sam admitted to learning some French thanks to her parents' insistence on having a “well-rounded and cultured daughter.” Of course, Sam had never liked the image that her parents tried to force on her, she just wanted to be herself. But despite her best efforts, she had still picked up a little bit of the language.

“Well this is going to be interesting...” Danny said as he picked up the breakfast menu, it looked like it was written in Latin or something.

“Here, Danny, try this one,” Sam handed him the international menu. Even though this one was in English, it was still several pages of food he could not pronounce, because, of course, anyone who could afford it ate there and they needed a fancy menu full of fancy food to satisfy all their fancy tastes.

“I should have known,” Maddie muttered, mostly to herself, as she looked at the menu, “The price was decent for the room but not the food...” She and Jack were thinking about ordering some large breakfast platters for the family to share.

They had found a pretty good deal on the hotel, it was well within their budget, but Sam still insisted on paying for it and well, how could they refuse?

“Hey, Sam, do you think we got such a good deal because of the French–American Friendship Week that happened recently?” asked Jazz. She had heard somewhere that it was going on, maybe she had read something about it… It sounded fun, but her family was never one for celebrations. Not even Christmas was correctly celebrated at her house, sadly.

“What?” Danny asked in confusion. “The what–what, now?” He thought about it for a moment, and maybe it sounded a little familiar, but hey, holidays weren't his forte.

“I’m sure you learned about it in school, Danny. The French–American Friendship Week is a celebration of our shared history, going back to the Revolutionary War when France was one of our first allies as a young nation. It happened just a couple of weeks ago, if I remember correctly. Just before, well, everything…” said Jazz, thinking back to what she saw when booking the hotel with her parents. The website had said to ‘book now’ before the ‘offer’ ended. “I think that this pretty hotel offered special discounts for Americans only… or something, lasting for the rest of the month...” They got lucky that the booking allowed them to have the cheaper prices for that extended time.

“I think so,” replied Sam. “I completely forgot about Friendship Week, it's not like they said anything about it at Casper. We live in Amity Park, and if it’s not about ghosts, it’s like nobody cares. As if history doesn’t even matter! But everyone should learn from history so things like wars won’t repeat again, you know?” she ranted, but without any real anger. She knew that they all shared similar ideas about the education in Amity Park.

Jazz hummed her agreement. Education was important, but well they were from Amity… What can you do, right? That’s why she did her best to help teach them some of the important things that they didn’t learn in school. She also did her best to keep up with the latest technology. Nobody said that their education was bad, just that there were definitely gaps. At least it met the government standard, but not by much. “All right kids, I think I got it!” Jack exclaimed after he and Maddie had spent a while reading over the menu options in silence. The small explanations beside the names of each dish were very helpful. French names were a challenge, but that wasn’t going to stop Jack Fenton.

“Got what?” asked Danny. “Oh right, breakfast! Um, how about, uh, French toast?” He didn’t even know what to get yet, or why he suggested that when he doesn’t even like toast. He may have forgotten that they were supposed to be deciding what to get. It was breakfast time after all, and, for the first time in a very long time, he was actually going to get to eat something that wouldn’t attack him.

“Really, Danny?” Jazz crossed her arms, unimpressed. “French toast?”

Danny simply shrugged in response. It was the only thing that he could think of at that second.

“Your father and I have been looking over the menu… and, well, there’s a family special that includes a variety of food,” Maddie explained, tapping the menu for emphasis as she spoke. “We were thinking of getting that. It comes with toast, Danny, so everyone should…”

Sam turned to look at her, raising an eyebrow. So far she wasn’t sure that they offer vegan options, so not everyone would be able to eat that, or that was what Sam was thinking.

Maddie blinked a couple of times at that expression, “Don’t worry, Sam dear, from what I can see, we can order it with part of it vegan and the other part not, and this one includes vegan options,” she finished saying. She was pretty sure the ‘V’ symbols on the menu must be for vegan options, right?

“Oh...” said Sam, who checked that section of the menu for herself to find that Maddie was correct. Fancy restaurants did have a tendency to be like that anyway. Whether here or in Amity, fancy also means ‘do whatever the client asks for.’ She’d never had a problem with that back home, so why should she here? And it was clear that the ‘V’ symbol was indeed for vegan options, and also that the platter had the option to make half of it vegan.

After they looked over the menu for a few minutes, a butler that introduced himself as ‘Armand’ appeared to take their order.

Even though he was usually on call for Miss Chloe, attending to her every whim, being a butler for the Bourgeois family meant that he was basically an employee for everything. He worked for Le Grand Paris, checking people in at the front desk, delivering room service, and sometimes he stepped in to help out the waiters in the restaurant or the hotel bar.

The Fentons did end up getting the family special, as well as some other vegan options to accommodate Sam. After breakfast, Jack and Maddie announced that they were going to explore the hotel, just to make sure it wasn’t haunted. One can never be too careful, they always said. The kids quickly piped up that they would rather walk around and explore the city. And after Danny promised not to transform and fly them around, invisible or not, they let them go.

Danny understood why his parents asked that of him, it made sense. Even if he wasn’t supposed to be taking it easy, they couldn’t risk anybody seeing Phantom in Paris and connecting it to the Fenton Family’s trip. He understood it, but that didn’t make it an easy rule to follow. During the flight here, he had been very tempted to fly below the plane for a while, just because he was desperate for a little bit of time to himself. Being crammed together in close quarters for several hours with a bunch of strangers was stressful, especially when one of those strangers was a very unhappy baby. His ghost powers had never seemed so appealing.

The kids headed for the door, calling out that they would keep in touch as they waved goodbye.

The Fentons had never travelled out of the country, and so they hadn’t considered that they would be leaving their cell phone network behind. Luckily for them, Paris had a pretty good wifi grid. They also had their Fenton Phones as backup. Danny had sheepishly confessed to bringing his on the plane, and then one after the other, the rest of the team admitted to doing so as well. Although they were designed specifically to work inside the Ghost Zone, in the human world they technically worked as phones without the need for a network or data for basic communication. They did have the drawback of only being able to be used for calls, not texting; for that they would need wifi. This trip was going as unexpectedly as they thought it could be. But even though it hadn't been planned, at least with the Fenton Phones they could communicate with each other if something happened.

Not far from their hotel, the three teens found a small park. They were drawn in by the beautiful landscaping and curiosity about the statue they could see in the middle of it. As they followed one of the many winding paths to the centre of the park, they felt oddly at home. Their city wasn’t named Amity Park for nothing, and even though they had only been gone a day, they already missed it.

A short walk later and they were examining the statue up close. It was obviously important for the city or it wouldn’t be here, but looked fairly new. It seemed to depict a pair of superheroes, or at least that's what it looked like to the three of them, what with the costumes and all. As they were wondering who the mystery heroes could be, Jazz pointed out a plaque at the base of the statue. They moved closer to read the inscription on it, and with the help of Sam’s limited French, they learned the pair were local heroes called 'Ladybug' and 'Chat Noir.'

"Are they for real?" Danny asked with a laugh. “That’s a bit on the nose, isn't it?”

Their costumes did look like a ladybug and a black cat. At least, he was pretty sure ‘chat’ meant ‘cat’ and ‘noir’ meant ‘black’ but he couldn't remember where he'd learned that. And ‘Ladybug’ was obvious, that was just English.

"Hey, you can't say anything, Mister…” Jazz quickly looked to see if anyone was near them, “Mister I'm-a-ghost-named-Phantom,” she whispered with a teasing smile.

"And just what's wrong with my name?" he feigned offence. “It's way better than the one the media gave me, I could have been 'Inviso-Bill’ for crying out loud! Phantom is so much cooler!”

"You went from one shameless pun to another, Danny,” his sister replied with a deadpan expression. “I mean, you could have picked anything, but that’s what you went with?”

"Hey! That’s a great pun! Took me weeks to come up with!” He crossed his arms with a sniff, “Who knows, maybe I'll find someone around here who actually has good taste. That'll show you.”

He stuck his tongue out at her and, after a moment, all three teens burst into laughter.

Once they calmed down again, Danny wondered aloud if there was a statue of him in Paris. It was a capital city, after all.

"You better not be thinking what I think you’re thinking." Sam warned. It would be easy for Danny to explore the city as Phantom without anybody knowing, at least not any Parisian, and try to find out what the locals thought about him. "You know if you go off by yourself and get lost, you won't be able to just ask for directions. We can't even do that now, when we're together. Which is exactly why we're not going too far from the hotel." Even if she did speak some French, that didn’t mean she was fluent.

"That's why I brought a notebook,” said Jazz, pointing to what was, indeed, a notebook in her hand. “And I'm writing down the names of all the roads we see, so at least we could point and try to ask for directions if we need to."

Danny sighed, "No, I wasn't thinking about that, really. I promised Dani, and, well, you guys and my parents, too… and even Valerie. For this trip I'm just plain old Danny Fenton. No superheroing. No ghost powers at any time." It had been hard to accept their terms, but a real holiday was sounding more and more tempting each time someone mentioned it.

"Good,” Sam took Danny’s hand with a smile and a blush, “We’re here to relax, remember?" Even after all this time dating, they still gave each other butterflies.

"All right, now where?" said Jazz, clearing her throat. Even though she was happy for Danny, it was a bit awkward seeing her little brother still blushing over something so simple. It had taken them such a long time to finally admit their feelings for each other, and she was happy for them, she really was, but she was starting to feel a bit like a third wheel.

"I don't know… the river?" he suggested, looking around and noticing that they weren't that far from it. "Wait, is that a school? Across from that bakery?" he asked, confused. It was a bit odd, if you asked him, to have a school, a bakery, and a park so close to what he assumed was the tourist area, their hotel wasn't that far after all.

Sam shrugged after noticing the school he was referring to, "Who knows, maybe this whole area isn't as touristy as we thought. I mean we’re still pretty far away from the eiffel tower or any of the museums."

“She’s right, you know,” added Jazz. She had looked up all the big tourist attractions on a map before they left the hotel, and nothing was in walking distance.

“I guess… so, the river?” Danny asked. He wasn’t going to overthink it. He was here to be a tourist, and tourists visited the river.

“The Seine.” Jazz interjected automatically.

“Whatever.” Danny rolled his eyes.

"I suppose the river could be nice…" replied Sam, just happy to be spending time with Danny. She would have preferred if it was just the two of them, but she didn’t mind Jazz tagging along.

They bid farewell to the statue and crossed the park in the direction of the bakery. From there, they would make their way to the stairs that went down along the river.

Just as they reached the bakery, the main door flew open and a girl with blue-black hair pulled into twin pigtails ran out of it. She was carrying a tower of boxes so tall she couldn’t see where she was going and nearly ran into Jazz. Thankfully, Danny reacted quickly, pulling her out of the girl's way just in time.

The girl nearly tripped over thin air when she noticed the three of them, stuttering something in rapid French.

They simply stared at her with confused faces.

“Uh, sorry, we’re not French,” Danny offered as he helped her balance the boxes that she was carrying.

“Oh!” the girl’s face lit up as she recognized the language, repeating her apology in English. “And thank you for your help!”

Danny gave her a friendly smile. “It’s okay, happy to be of assistance.”

“I’m Marinette,” the girl introduced herself. “And my family owns this bakery. I’d love to stay and chat, but I’m running really late with this order, so, um, goodbye!” She turned to run in the direction of the park and immediately tripped over her own feet, almost falling again.

“Woah, careful!” Sam called, helping Marinette with the boxes this time. She hadn’t thought it was possible for anyone to be this clumsy.

“Would you, uh, like some help?” offered Danny. He caught the topmost boxes before they could slide off their precarious tower. That was the third time in as many minutes they had helped her with them and he wondered if this was something she could normally do by herself.

“Oh!” said Marinette, noticing how much easier it was to move now that she didn't have so many. “Thank you! I should have waited for my friend to help me with these… but she had to babysit and they really do need to be delivered right away...” She sighed, “I’m so sorry to trouble you, but I would appreciate it if you could…I mean, you are helping me already… so, thank you.”

Marinette smiled at the kind strangers. She really did need the help. Her friend had offered to help her the day before, but had to cancel at the last minute because her parents needed her to watch the twins.

“I'm Danny,” said Danny, smiling back at her. If Marinette had introduced herself to them, it was only polite that he return the gesture, right?

“Sam,” said the girl next to him, inclining her head when Marinette looked at her.

“And my name is Jasmine, but you can call me ‘Jazz,’” said Jazz, when it was her turn.

“Sorry again for all of this. I normally take turns to do this many boxes, or ask my friend Alya to help,” she started walking and the three Americans followed her, “but like I said… well, it’s my fault really. I got distracted, and, well, I didn’t leave when I should and well…”

They wouldn’t know as the attack had happened before they arrived, but Ladybug and Chat Noir were out until late last night fighting an akuma. Because she had stayed up so late, Marinette had overslept this morning.

“Hey, it’s all right, you don’t have to explain yourself to us, you know. And I’m sure that whoever is waiting for these will understand you taking a bit longer, won’t they?” Jazz said gently, trying to calm Marinette down. The poor girl obviously had a lot on her mind and her distraction certainly wasn’t helping her coordination. She was already very clumsy, and when she wasn’t paying attention, the boxes began to tilt and fall because she wasn’t holding them up straight.

“Yeah, it’s okay Marinette, we don’t mind lending a hand. It’s not like we had anything else to do,” said Danny, still following Marinette with the boxes. Their only plans for the day were to get used to Paris and adjust to the time difference. They weren’t planning to visit the Eiffel Tower or any museums until later in the week. So all good in that department.

“Oh god! I’m so, so sorry!” Marinette started again. “I didn’t even ask… I just assumed that–”

“No, no, you’re okay there! We don’t mind,” Sam interrupted. “Just like Danny said, we don’t really have anything planned for today. For now we’re just getting used to everything, you know?” She rushed to reassure the Parisian, she was not about to hear another rant of apologies from a girl that they just met. She knew that would get annoying fast.

“Ah!” said Marinette, realising that they had probably just arrived in Paris. “Where are you from? If you don’t mind me asking. Maybe after dropping these off,” she hefted the boxes as if to point out the favour they were doing her, “I could help you guys find a guide or something? It’s the least I can do to thank you for helping out a complete stranger during what I assume are your holidays.” She felt a bit guilty for bothering tourists.

“Well, it looked like you needed a hand, and we were right there, so why not pitch in, you know?” Danny shrugged, the boxes in his hands bobbing up and down. “We’re from Amity Park, Illinois. You probably haven’t heard of–”

“Oh! I know that place!” Marinette interrupted excitedly, recognizing the name, “You are from that ghost town, right?”

Danny had forgotten that even though Amity isn’t really considered big, it was big news now.

“Well, not a ‘ghost town’ ghost town, but that is where that new hero is from, isn’t it? Is he really a ghost? Sorry, probably a silly question to ask...” Marinette murmured, feeling a bit dumb now that she had said it out loud, but she and Chat Noir had been very curious about him since they had put up the new statue.

“Don't be so hard on yourself Marinette, it’s only natural that you would be curious. When the ghosts started appearing, a lot of people in Amity didn't believe they were real either. I told my little brother here, that now that Amity Park has been in the news, people all over the world would be wondering the same things we did in the beginning,” said Jazz. Although she hadn’t really expected to find someone actually asking… Or even anyone who recognized the name of Amity Park so quickly.

“Thank you,” said Marinette. Jazz's words made her feel a bit better, but her cheeks still burned in embarrassment. Thankfully they had just arrived at their destination. “Well, we are here!”

Noticing that they had walked all the way back to their hotel, Danny had a sudden realisation, “Wait, are the baked goods here from your family's bakery?” he asked.

“Are you staying here?” asked Marinette, making a face. Only very rich and famous people stayed at ‘Le Grand Paris,’ so Marinette was a bit surprised that her new friends were staying there. They were nice, but didn't look particularly rich or famous.

“They had a deal running for French–American Friendship Week, so…” Sam shrugged as if that was very obvious. She didn’t know what was with her attitude all of a sudden.

“Oh, right...” Marinette replied. She had forgotten that for a whole month the hotel booked anyone from the United States for very, very cheap prices. She had been surprised when she heard about it, as it didn’t seem like a very good business decision, but then when she saw the extra publicity it gave the hotel, she understood. “Wait, I thought that promotion ended before the summer break… ” she added.

“We made our reservations during the promotional period, and the deal carried over,” Jazz explained. She knew the normal prices, and it seemed like Marinette did, too, so her reaction was understandable. It was a very expensive hotel, after all.

“And even if it hadn’t, Sam would have paid anyway,” Danny shrugged, not giving it any further thought.

“Danny!” admonished Jazz. It was rude to assume that Sam would simply pay for everything. She had offered, but still.

“I mean, yeah, I would have anyway. But it was still good to get the offer, just so your parents wouldn’t feel so bad about me spending money on you guys, you know? Don’t think that I didn’t notice them looking for alternatives. And I don’t blame them, I mean the normal prices at this place are ridiculously expensive,” Sam rolled her eyes.

“Tell me about it,” murmured Marinette. Although she personally hadn't checked their usual prices, she knew that the Bourgeois family wouldn’t normally allow such cheap prices. That’s why only internationally famous people came here. People like Jagged Stone or her great-uncle.

“Ah, what did you just say?” asked Danny. He thought he heard her say something, but wasn’t sure.

“Oh!” she exclaimed, surprised at being heard. “Well we should get inside...” she quickly changed the topic and shifted the boxes in her arms. She ran inside and made a beeline for the reception area, it was a good thing she was expected.

“Oh, right,” said Danny, following her into the hotel. He shrugged, he must have just been imagining things. They were still getting used to it all.

Jazz and Sam shared a look, rolling their eyes at the antics of the other two.

After Marinette and Danny dropped off the boxes, they all headed back to the bakery. She thanked them again for their help, even though it had mostly been Danny, and he waved off her thanks saying that it was nothing and he was happy to do it.

On their way back Jazz began plying Marinette with questions about all the typical, and not so typical, places that they could visit while they were in Paris. Marinette was more than happy to help them get around and launched into a detailed explanation of lesser known attractions and also how there is a direct bus line that goes from their hotel to the Eiffel Tower if they were interested in it. She then even talked about Ladybug and Chat Noir, the two local heroes, as well as how her best friend probably knew more because she runs the ‘Ladyblog,’ an online blog totally dedicated to the local heroes.

Danny was surprised that he was right when they were guessing what the statue was about, especially the part about obvious names.

Marinette agreed that the names were pretty obvious if you thought about it, but those were the names that the heroes gave to the public. She personally never thought about it, she may ask Chat what he thought about when she saw him as Ladybug.

When they got back to the bakery, Marinette offered them some pastries as a thank you for helping her. The three teens declined her offer, saying that her advice about what to visit and how to navigate the city was more than enough. Jazz of course had written down everything that Marinette told them. She had made sure to note down every single detail, after all she was in charge of it since it was her idea.

Just when they were about to say their goodbyes, Marinette’s parents joined them in the front of the bakery. They introduced themselves as Sabine and Tom, and thanked them for their help as well. They had noticed that their daughter was struggling with all the boxes and were about to take turns helping her when they saw the three of them step in. Normally they would need to start preparing a second batch of baked goods just in case the first one didn’t make it to the hotel, but they seemed like a responsible group of young people with decent balance and so they had gone back to tending the shop, sure that their daughter was in good hands.

Marinette’s cheeks turned a bright shade of pink as her parents explained how clumsy she was. Now these nice people would never want to be her friends! She groaned and buried her burning face in her hands.

Jazz patted her comfortingly on the back and Danny said that they understood her pain all too well. After all, the Fenton parents were about as subtle as a flashing neon sign. Even Sam could relate, there was a reason she didn’t like her parents very much.

The Dupain–Chengs apologised to their daughter and repeated Marinette’s offer of baked goods as a thank you and wouldn’t take no for an answer. The family’s combined efforts finally convinced them to accept a box of treats, not like they had much of a choice. Mr. Dupain had just shoved the box of baked goods into Danny’s hands when a nearby explosion rattled the bakery.

To be continued :D :D

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