I've been waiting a long time to start releasing this story and I'm very excited about it.
P.S. Plagg is actually forthcoming with information in this chapter even though that's totally out of character because this AU is very different and needed the rules to be established and Plagg ended up being my handy-dandy mouthpiece. Tikki, who will appear soon, is always more forthcoming than Plagg, but she actually will be giving Marinette almost the same shpeel that she gave her in the show because the rules for Marinette have not changed at all. As far as Mari is concerned, she is normal old ladybug, except maybe with a costume upgrade because of her age.
Adrien knew that he was dead. It was obvious, really. The absence of a pounding in his chest was a clear indication of his lifeless state. He could feel his separation from the world, it manifested as a hollowness in his gut, a heavy hole where something he couldn't name used to be.
Now that he was dead, Adrien was acutely aware of the buzzing electricity that pulsed through every living thing- and how he didn't have it.
He watched from above his casket, a strange sense of deja vu overwhelming him. He saw his cold lifeless face, his friends, and even his father, who looked unusually shattered. It was like something had finally chipped away at his carefully created mask. Adrien decided not to dwell on his father's face, he didn't want that secondhand pain. What's done was done.
Adrien called the crowd his 'friends', but they were really just co-workers. People who had designed an outfit for him, people who had done his hair at some point. People who he did not remember well. A few cried, a few looked mildly amused at the whole affair, but most looked on with a glum expression. They were being reminded of their own mortality, the fact that the good die young, and someday they too, would be lowered into the ground.
Chloé cried, but Adrien paid little attention to her. Big, fat crocodile tears dripped down her face but Adrien could see through them. It was all self pity. Once upon a time Chloé had been his dearest and only friend. Even after her mother left her she had remained loyal to Adrien. But something had changed in her that Adrien hadn't understood. Little by little what was left of his childhood friend changed until he didn't recognize her at all. So now, as she cried, Adrien wanted to believe that maybe she felt badly, but he just didn't know if he could believe that anymore.
Other people looked kinda sad too, like his goto photographer and Nathalie. Even the Gorilla looked heartbroken. Adrien looked at them and his heart broke just a little. But he didn't want to dwell on this all- it was the past now. He was dead and there wasn't anything to be done.
But other than feeling bad for the pain a few people were in, his death didn't really matter to Adrien. If he was being honest with himself he wasn't too upset about dying, so he just waited numbly for something to happen. Surely any minute now someone would show up to guide him on… maybe... mom? Would he get to see her now? That wouldn't be terrible- that would be a blessing.
He wasn't exactly sure what to do. Shouldn't that someone be coming? Adrien frowned as the minutes ticked by. Eventually he gave up waiting and decided to try and go somewhere. Based on his knowledge of movies and media, he assumed that since he was thoroughly incorporeal he could leave with no problem. So, deciding to test his theory, Adrien walked straight through the crowd. It felt cold and unholy- but he was able to do it. He slipped out of the chapel, and wasn't really surprised that the heavy oak doors were no longer a physical barrier.
He looked up, green eyes taking in the gloomy sky and the drizzling rain. The drops flew down toward him, going straight through his body. He blinked a few times out of habit even though the water didn't touch him. He looked down to see the water collecting in the streets, and was distracted by what he wore. Blue jeans and a white button up shirt. Simple. He didn't have any shoes on, but he couldn't feel the concrete so it did it really matter?
Adrien felt only a small pang of grief for the loss of his life. He was 17. He had spent 17 years on homeschooling and modeling and not much else. 17 years wasted feeling alone. It wasn't hard to say goodbye to that. Adrien sat down on the stone steps of the church. He stared at the people walking by, and oddly enough the people walking in and out of the church avoided him. He was glad they didn't walk through him, it had been disconcerting enough early and he didn't want a repeat. But it was like something deterred them from walking through him, like a cold chill, or a creeping fear.
He could almost feel it too.
Adrien waited, sure that any moment now a warm smile and green eyes that matched his own would greet him. He wondered if this was some sort of test, some sort of entrance exam to wherever he was going.
"Nah, don't worry about that big stuff right now, kid." Said a raspy voice from beside him.
"What the-bugcat-!" Adrien jumped, practically flailing about with eyes as wide as saucers. A little black cat-like thing was floating in midair and he looked real smug about it too.
"Relax, I'm here to help you with your task." The black cat rolled its green eyes, and Adrien sat back down on the church steps.
"My task?" So it was like an entrance exam.
"You're taking this whole death thing remarkably well kiddo…" The thing seemed to be sizing him up."Alright, anyone ever tell you about soulmates?"
"I've heard of the idea."
"Great! Makes my job easier. Listen, Adrien, unlike most people your soulmate was right in front of you for most of your life. Now you have to wait until she is ready to move on too."
"Please tell me it isn't Chloé, because if so, I'm moving on without her," Adrien said quickly, no way was he going to be stuck with her or her bad attitude for eternity.
The cat rolled its eyes. "No, not her. Don't think too hard about it, Adrien, just feel. Close your eyes and follow that tugging in your chest. You know where she is, so go find her."
Adrien did as he was asked. He closed his eyes and pushed the remaining normal senses to the background, searching for this girl. Ah, there she was. Distantly, a warm feeling called for him. It was Christmas morning, bundled up with his Mother as they opened presents. It was a plate of hot and gooey chocolate chip cookies. It was a warm Summer's breeze. It was every positive vibe, each perfect moment, and every thing that had ever sent a thrill to his bones. It was her.
Adrien stood with his eyes still closed. He followed the tugging, stepping slowly at first. As the pleasant memories grew stronger, and his soul felt colder, he became more desperate to find her. It was like he had been starving his whole life, and now he was being led to a feast. It was like freezing to death, and being offered a fire right before the final breath left his lips.
He began to run, but his breathing held steady. His muscles did not ache, and his body felt nothing but free. Faster and faster he ran to her, until his feet weren't moving, they were flying- and then he saw her. She walked, coat draped around her shoulders. She looked down at the ground. Her black-blue hair was short but it concealed her face. She was walking towards a school, coincidentally a place Adrien had always looked at with longing in his heart.
He knew her instantly.
"Marinette," He whispered, pace increasing again. He felt tension ease out of him, and the breath that he had been holding was released. He followed her, walking through the streets. She looked troubled and tired and Adrien could she her eyes drooping. They were beautiful eyes, blue and dazzling. In that moment he knew that she was undoubtedly his other half, and that he would do anything for her, and wait eons to be with her.
He studied her, hoping to glean anything he could from how she walked and carried herself. But Marinette began to sway, her steps varying a little. She drifted towards the road, her feet nearing the edge of the sidewalk. Adrien felt horror as a car barreled toward them. He wasn't afraid for himself, the car would pass right through him. But Marinette's eyes closed lazily and she stumbled into the path of the car. Panic fired through him and Adrien rammed into her side, knocking her back onto the street.
Her eyes snapped open as the wind whipped around her, dragging her onto the far side of the pavement. Adrien was overwhelmed with relief, and he didn't even need to ask the black cat what his 'task' was.
"I have to protect her," he said wryly.
"That's right, kid. You and Marinette are referred to as reappearing souls. For centuries you have been reborn again and again, tangled in a mess of magic and powers you can't even understand. In another life she was a princess, and you were her knight. In another life you were a pirate, and she was a mermaid. But every time that you two appear it tips the spirits off that a battle is coming because you two are always crucial players in the fight."
Adrien's head spun. Multiple lives? Magic? Powers? What?
"You died too soon, kid. It wasn't… Well it wasn't planned for. A war is coming, and it's nothing like the world has ever seen before. That's why I'm here. Marinette will get her Miraculous like she usually does, but you have fallen into a unique predicament." The cat continued. It glanced down at Adrien's hand where a silver ring now glinted.
"I'm Plagg, your Kwami. Normally you're alive when this introduction happens. Anyways, when you wear this ring, and transform using me, you will become corporeal. The effect is short-lasting, but it's long enough for you to defeat anyone you need too." Plagg trailed off as they neared the school and Adrien's attention flicked back to Marinette. She seemed dazed.
Marinette rushed up the stairs in her school and Adrien followed her silently. He wondered what she was thinking right now, had she noticed what he had done? Marinette stumbled into her classroom right as the bell rang, wasting no time in finding a seat. Adrien chuckled.
So she was clumsy and potentially late all the time? But... It was cute, he decided.
Her cheeks were red but the rest of the class seemed accustomed to her tardy behavior. Adrien filed that away as evidence for his always-late-theory. He searched the room, finding an empty seat. He didn't really want to be sat on, or sit in anyone else- however the hell it worked. From back here he could watch and listen to her but it would be like all her classmates. He vowed then and there to try and not be more stalkery than the situation called for.
Absently Adrien wished that he didn't have to sit through a classes a year below his level. Almost immediately he frowned, here he was being given a chance to be around his other half, and even come back to life for brief amounts of time, all when he had thrown away his shot or something, and he was complaining. He was complaining about sitting through school. Hadn't he always wanted to go to a normal school and have normal friends? He wanted to scold himself for being stupid, but he focused back on Marinette to learn what he could about her. Currently, she was whispering to the girl who was sat beside her.
"Alya, I swear, it was like the wind pushed me from the street. It sounds stupid but it felt like hands touching me." Marinette insisted quietly, glancing nervously up at the teacher. The teacher was talking about a poem the class was reading, and despite his year's worth of edge Adrien was pleasantly surprised that he knew exactly what was being discussed. He had expected it all to be unfamiliar because his father would've wanted him taught with uncommonly high standards and material, but maybe his tutors had just used the classics.
Before the girl Adrien figured was called Alya could respond, the teacher turned her eyes on Marinette.
"Why do you think Edgar Allen Poe chose to utilize this somewhat common theme in gothic literature, Marinette?" The teacher smiled at the flustered girl, and Marinette searched desperately for an answer. Adrien quickly hopped up from his seat, deciding to try something.
"He is thought to have been obsessed with death, after many women in his life died from 'the red death'. He started diving into madness and consequently most of his characters do the same. He liked to write about personal hatred, perhaps because he felt it towards himself." Adrien whispered right into her ear, and the words seemed to reach her. They began to spill out of Marinette's mouth bit by bit, and the class' eyes were collectively wide.
The teacher nodded appreciatively, and Adrien let out his bated breath.
"I guess I don't have to tell you that you can actually guide her along," Plagg grumbled, as if he was annoyed that he wasn't being used.
Adrien smiled. Maybe this would be fun.
The rest of the day was uneventful. Adrien stopped the girl from tripping several times, and he got to know her pretty well- creative, lovely, and a little too easily startled. That was Marinette in a nutshell.
Adrien also discovered that just by thinking about things, he could make them appear. Adrien thought about drawing, and a paper and pencil materialized before him. He thought about cheese for Plagg(who wolfed it down), then imagining what he might like, before realizing that he didn't need to eat anymore.
As he walked behind Marinette, presumably towards her home, he thought about his new existence. He felt a little odd following her everywhere, but why should he feel guilty? That was his only purpose now. He was supposed to follow her and protect her in all that she did. He didn't want to invade her privacy, so where did he need to draw the line? He liked her already, and he knew that it wouldn't take long to love her. It would be as easy as falling down, easy as giving into gravity- something which was inevitable anyways. He didn't mind that his thoughts and existence were centered around her already, that was his purpose now.
Adrien stopped at the bottom of the stairs that led upwards. He decided that he would investigate her room before deciding where exactly to he needed to draw his boundary. He was sure he'd stay outside most of the time, for her privacy, but he was eager to see where she spent most of her time. And, he admitted, eager to see her. Perhaps he'd set himself a curfew. Maybe he could decide to retreat around 8 or so, find a quiet place somewhere else in the home where he wouldn't bother anyone. Of course, he couldn't really bother anyone anyways, but at least he would feel better about it this way.
Marinette just headed to her room without a knowledge of the ghost behind her, or of the life changing gift that waited on her computer desk.