"I'm late!"
Marinette Dupain-Cheng was like any other teenage girl… that is… if any other teenage girl could cast spells, had a bug-like familiar, and a talking cat. Yeah, that was pretty normal. The Cheng family had an ancient secret—a very spelltactular one. (Okay, you get it. They're witches.) As in potions, brooms, and pointy hats. However, the pointed hats are pretty dated these days. Not that great of a fashion statement since they became known for Halloween décor. Her family lives amongst mortals, and she goes to normal school like any other regular girl.
Which… she is late for once again.
Looking in the mirror, Marinette assessed her appearance. Awful. Just awful. Her face was flushed and dark circles bagged under her eyes. Nothing a little quick morning magic make-over couldn't fix! She tapped her wand to her make up kit. Her powder and blush floated up and applied themselves to her cheeks. As her make up started itself, Marinette tapped her wand to her hair, making the strands shine and fall into her casual pigtails she adored to wear. She watched as the red ribbons glowed and tied themselves into her raven locks. Her bangs smoothed out, strands no longer sticking out in unruly directions. Marinette opened her eyes to see all of her cosmetics applied. Pasty cheeks or eye bags in sight. Magic was truly a wonder tool.
She quickly sprinted down the stairs. Alya always complained when she was late for school.
"Marinette! Wait for me!" the little red familiar cried, flying behind her chosen.
"Ah," Marinette spun around, opening her purse for the creature to fly into. "Sorry, Tikki."
The black cat curled on the coach, stretched with an amused hum. "This girl would lose her head if it wasn't attached, Sabine."
"No one asked you, Plagg!" Marinette shot back.
Her mother let out a chuckle as she wiped down the kitchen table. "Say good morning to Alya for me!"
"I will!" She called as she rocketed out the door.
There was a beat of silence. Her mother waited and eyed Plagg for a moment—the two sharing a knowing glance. "Three… two…"
"I forgot my backpack!" Marinette screeched as she stormed quickly up the stairs. Sabine giggled into the back her hand at her daughter's antics, while Plagg just groaned shook his head. She swept back through the house like a tornado, basically leaping down the stairs to get out of the house.
Plagg glowered at her. "That's really the all-powerful witch the counsel dotes over?"
Lifting a finger to her lips, Sabine hushed her familiar. "Shush, Plagg. She has no idea of the power she holds."
"You can't protect her forever. The witch hunter already found her once, he'll do it again."
"I know, Plagg," Sabine stared thoughtfully, brows furrowed, at the door which her child had just left through. "I know."
"Marinette! There you are, girl!" Alya cheered as she clapped a hand onto her shoulder. "I was worried you had overslept again."
Hunching sheepishly, Marinette grumbled. "I did… but I made it out of the house on time."
Her best friend let out a snicker, leaning closer to her ear before murmuring. "Couldn't just show up on your broomstick?"
Marinette flailed at her, shushing Alya immediately. "Alya! You can't say stuff like that at school," she blurted in a harsh, quiet tone.
"It's called whispering, Marinette, you should try it sometime with your loud mouth," Alya teased.
"Har, har, you're hilarious."
"I like to think so."
"Hey ladies!" a voice chimed.
Marinette's heart sped up as she heard footsteps approach. Eyes widening, she frantically gazed at Alya. "Adrien's coming!" she squeaked.
"Well, yeah, Marinette… he's our friend, remember?" Alya deadpanned.
Running her hands quickly through her raven locks, she felt herself panicking. "Oh, my God. My hair probably looks awful." She hadn't washed it that morning! All she had done was put a magic wand to it!
Alya nudged her hard. "Shut up… they're here…" she grumbled.
"I think your hair looks fine, Marinette." Adrien said with a polite smile as the two boys reached them.
"A-Ah! Thank you!" she blurted. If there was one thing Marinette was good at… it was somehow making herself look like a fool in front of Adrien. Making coherent sentences in front of this boy was almost impossible. He was just so cute… he was amazing.
Nino strode over to Alya and wound an arm around her shoulder. "Hey, babe. How are you on this lovely morning?"
When Alya grinned with a giggle, Marinette's heart squeezed a little. Those two were suddenly in their own little world. It was like she and Adrien didn't even exist anymore when they looked at each other. She wanted that too… mostly with Adrien, but he didn't see her as anything more than a friend. Feeling her shoulders deflate slightly, she gazed down at her shoes, shuffling her feet. It was awkward being around them when they got so mushy. Of course, there was the jealously she had already thought about.
Adrien puffed out his cheeks with a sigh. "Don't they just make you sick?" he murmured in her ear.
Tingles shot up her spine at the closeness. Recovering her senses, Marinette blinked with wide eyes, tilting her head, she gazed at him curiously. "What do you mean?"
"They're always so into each other. Must be nice, right?" Adrien bumped her shoulder with his elbow.
Humming in response, Marinette gave a nod. "Yeah, it must be. But guys hardly even look at me, so I'll just be a cynic until otherwise... however girls are obsessed with you, you're an actual model." It hurt to admit that she was probably no better than his fangirls that constantly chased him. Being his friend made her a little higher on the totem pole, but not by much. He had no romantic feelings for her, and she knew that. Nino had already mentioned that there was another girl that Adrien was hung up on.
He gave a small, lopsided shrug with a smirk. "Yeah, but those girls aren't really the right ones, you know? They're all about look and superficial qualities. That isn't what I want."
Gulping, Marinette knew she shouldn't ask. But the desire to ask him was on the tip of her tongue. Unable to resist, the question escaped her lips. "What do you want, Adrien?"
Never in her life had she seen Adrien Agreste blush, but he certainly was. There was a tinge of red kissing his cheeks. She found it utterly adorable. Telling him that was out of the question, of course, but she could internally coo about it. "Well… There's a girl I encountered about a year ago. She was amazing and brave… I want to find her again." Laughing nervously, he rubbed the back of his neck. It was such a cute habit he had. She often wondered how many people noticed he did that. "A-Ah… I know that sounds stupid. She may have a boyfriend or not even like me, but I do want to just know. For closure reasons?"
Nodding, Marinette hummed, ignoring the painful ache in her chest. God, he was a hopeless romantic. It was the sweetest thing ever. If it could just be directed at her… that would be great? "I understand. How did you meet her?"
Adrien hissed, shoulders hunching. "I can't really disclose that information."
Shrinking back, she blinked at him in confusion. "Oh…" She didn't mean to sound as hurt as she did. Marinette knew she and Adrien weren't super close, but she did consider him to be a friend.
He seemed to realize how his words came across. Waving his hands in front of himself in defense, he grimaced apologetically. "Sorry, that came out wrong. I just actually can't talk about it. It's some business with my father."
Well, that made it a little less painful. It wasn't that he didn't trust her, it was just that he couldn't talk about his father's legal matters, she assumed. "Oh, I see. That's okay."
The bell let out a shrill ring. Alya and Nino seemed to leave their lovey-dovey trance world at the sound. The couple interlocked fingers as they headed up the stairs. Marinette grimaced and sent a repulsed look towards Adrien. She stuck out her tongue making a disgusted sound. Adrien sputtered out a laugh at her expression.
Him laughing at her made her heart swell. She made it seem like she was bitter, and maybe she was a little… but any interactions she could have with him was enough. Maybe, someday she would have to move on, but for right now, this was everything she wanted.
Marinette went to open her locker… only for it to not open. What the hell? Her brows furrowed as she started at the lock before her. Putting in her combination again, she tried for a second time to get it to open, but it didn't budge. Blinking in confusion, she tugged at the door—nothing. "What is going on?" she grumbled.
Placing one foot on the locker beside hers, she used both hands and all of her body weight to pry the metal door open. It only moved a tiny smidge. Marinette groaned in frustration, throwing her hands in the air. "Why won't you open!?"
Alya placed a hand on her best friend's shoulder. "What's up?"
"My locker literally will not open. I have put my combination in twice, and the door won't move. I got it to crack just a bit, but hardly at all." She leaned forward, banging her head on the door. "Why," bang "is," bang, "this," bang, "my life!?" Her faced smooshed against the door as she gave an irritated cry.
"Hold on, girl. Did you look in the crack of the door or anything? What if someone put something in there to prevent it from opening?" Alya reasoned while peeling Marinette's face from the door.
Cocking a brow in confusion, Marinette stared at her friend thoughtfully. "But who would—Chloe." The realization struck her like a ton of bricks. This was probably the work of her arch-rival. Ugh. That girl was ridiculous. Marinette stared at her locker before glancing around to check her surroundings. The locker room was entirely empty. She and Alya were the only two left.
Alya eyed her. "What are you thinking, missy?"
"No glue, tape, or whatever she put on here can stand a chance against magic~" Marinette grinned, singing the last part.
Crossing her arms, Alya shook her head. "Girl, that's a bad idea and you know it."
"I can't be late for gym with Adrien, okay? I want to see that boy in shorts any day I can."
She rolled her eyes with a laugh. "M, you're insane, you know that?"
With a smirk, the witch gave a nod. "Of course. You wouldn't be my friend if I wasn't."
"You've got me there."
Marinette looked throughout the locker room once more, just to check, before pulling the earrings out of her lobes. The two pieces of jewelry glowed, connecting together and extending into a wooden, red wand. The tip blazed, ready for spellcasting. Marinette simply tapped the object against the glued locker door. A bright shine outlined the metal, and she backed up quickly as the door popped open with ease. Letting out a giggle, Marinette stuck out her tongue and tapped her head with the wand. "Works every time."
Alya snorted. "Yes, because people do this stuff to you all the time."
"Chloe has her ways of torturing me in any way she can. If it weren't for this," she twirled the wand in her fingers, "I would be in a lot of trouble." Marinette willed the wand to transform back into the two spotted earrings. Clipping them back into her ears with practiced ease, she smiled proudly at her friend. Marinette quickly retrieved her gym clothes and shut the locker door. "Another crisis averted."
Giving an affectionate roll of her eyes, Alya wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "Come on, Wendy. We've got places to be."
Hey guys! So, obviously, I have a new Miraculous fic up! I'm really excited about this one. Sorry the first chapter is so short. The rest will be longer, promise!
Just a note: Tikki looks like Tikki as she normally does, however Plagg is a magical talking black cat.