FW09: Hey folks! My handle's "fictionalwritings09"! I'm not new to fanfiction, I've been an avid reader and sometimes writer, but I decided to start a new account to get a fresh start.
And I've decided on Miraculous Ladybug because I was a little sad that there were so few stories between Tikki and Plagg! Yes, Adrien and Marinette, Ladybug and Chat Noir are the main pairing - and I love them for it - but I was always fascinated with Tikki and Plagg because of the mystery surrounding them. So! For anyone who wanted another TikkixPlagg romance fic, here you go!
Disclaimer: I don't own Miraculous: The Adventures of Ladybug and Chat Noir, and all characters (unless specified) belong to Miraculous.
Bedtime Stories: Tikki and Plagg
Prologue – Marinette's Bedroom and Petit Fours
"Ughhh…that Chat Noir!" Ladybug grunted, vaulting over roof after roof, until she landed atop a Parisian bakery. Her silhouette was outlined in moonlight as she huffed, stamping down any further frustration. She had to be careful, after all, since it had long since eclipsed into night, and Paris had quieted down – enough so that an outburst would definitely be noticed. The costumed superheroine peered over the edge, checking to see if the lights had gone out yet.
'…Aaaaannnd, out,' she timed the thought perfectly as she watched the yellow light dim. It was 9:00 PM, and the owners specialized in daytime pastries, preferring the safety of day to night. As if summoned by her thoughts, Tom Dupain emerged from the now-dark patisserie to collect the daily specials board, and Sabine Cheng worked a clean cloth over the glass on the doors, flipping the "open" sign to "closed".
Ladybug moved quickly, and quietly, to sneak herself into Marinette Dupain-Cheng's room. Or, more accurately, her room. A quick flash of red light and the miraculous heroine Ladybug transformed once again back into fashion-loving, Parisian teenager Marinette. She blinked once, twice, to clear her vision, just in time to see a tired Tikki float through the darkened room and onto Marinette's bed.
"Sorry Tikki, tonight must've been hard on you," the bluenette whispered softly, turning on her desk light to illuminate the bedroom dimly.
"That's OK, Marinette," the little Kwami replied in a sigh, her big blue eyes opening weakly before closing again, "I just need a little food and I'll be fine."
"And rest," Marinette walked over to Tikki and sat down next to her, rubbing her palm over the smooth maroon red, "You wait here, and I'll make sure you go to sleep with a full stomach." Tikki smiled warmly at her chosen one, always thankful for the teenager's kindness and thoughtfulness. Her eyes followed Marinette's form as it exited downstairs, and a conversation could be heard between the bluenette and her parents. For a few moments, Tikki let the softness of the comforter envelop her, as well as thoughts of someone she hadn't seen for some time.
Plagg. That cheese-loving rapscallion. Tonight, she'd caught a glimpse of him as Chat Noir raced around the corner of a chimney stack and de-stabilized prematurely. Ladybug had turned her back just as it had happened, out of respect. Tikki, however, was watching through Marinette spiritually, and managed to spy a tiny black blur shoot out forcefully from behind the chimney. It shook its head a couple times before its green eyes locked onto Ladybug, staring after them. And even as Tikki was carried further away by Ladybug, she could still feel his slit-pupils on her.
"…Tikki…Tikki?" Marinette rubbed Tikki's head gently with the tips of her fingers, massaging the black spot just between her antennae.
"Mmmm…Plagg?" Tikki murmured pleasantly, a cute smile forming on her face.
"Plagg?" Marinette asked quizzically, "No, Tikki, it's Marinette. C'mon, if you don't have your food, you'll be all groggy tomorrow." Tikki opened one blue eye and focused on the little dish of petit fours in Marinette's free hand, tarts and eclairs glazed in sugar and icing dazzling in the moonlight. She woke up a little more, the scent of passion fruit, blueberries, and maple syrup making her mouth water.
"Aaaahhhh," the red and black Kwami yawned adorably, and Marinette couldn't help but grin at the way Tikki's little arms stretched upwards, "That smells delicious, Marinette."
"Here, eat up Tikki," the bluenette scooped up her partner and placed the tiny creature on her lap, "They're all for you."
"No, you should eat a little, too," Tikki protested as the dish was lowered to her level, "You didn't eat anything before we left to defeat the Akuma." She took a chocolate-covered tart with fresh blueberries and raised it above her head, jiggling it below Marinette's chin. The bluenette giggled at Tikki's offering, and was tempted to just bite into it, but chose to take it from the Kwami with her hand instead.
"Thanks, Tikki," Marinette took a bite and hummed at the delicious baked treat, "By the way, why did you call me 'Plagg'?"
"Mmff?!" Tikki was in the middle of burying her face into a maple syrup éclair when Marinette asked her the question, "Mmmm…" The bluenette giggled when Tikki turned around to stare up at her, the Kwami's little red cheeks covered in maple glaze.
"Ummm," Tikki swallowed as best she could around the éclair, "Did I?" Marinette nodded and smiled, taking delight in seeing her Miraculous guardian embarrassed.
"Well…I saw him tonight," she cleaned her cheeks a bit like a squirrel, turning back to the petit fours dish, "Just a little bit of him. When Chat Noir returned to being a civilian."
"Wait, does that mean you saw who Chat Noir is?" Marinette asked in surprise, but Tikki closed her eyes and raised an arm at her.
"Ah-ah, Marinette," the Kwami waved her arm like she was shaking a finger, "We Kwami are sworn to not only protect our Miraculous holders, but their identities, too! You know that!"
"I know…but shouldn't it be OK between holders?" Marinette pouted slightly, before Tikki once again reprimanded her.
"If I revealed his identity to you, you should be fair and reveal your identity to him," the Kwami took another small bite of the éclair, "Are you really ready to do that?" Marinette leaned back on the bed, the dim light of her desk light reflecting the indecision on her face.
"Thought so," Tikki nodded affirmatively, licking her lips as she felt her energy come back, "Besides, even if you knew his identity, you were still pretty mad at him tonight." Again, the bluenette pouted and rolled her eyes, her mouth set in a frown.
"That's because he kept us way over time!" Marinette protested quietly, "It's like he's trying to make us run out of time so we would see our secret identities! Flirting, using cat puns, dragging out fights by teasing the villains! It's just…it gets so frustrating sometimes!"
"That just means he likes you and he wants to spend more time with you," Tikki explained sagely. She turned around with the last bit of éclair in her arms, looking at Marinette with a knowing smile.
"But I like Adrien," Marinette huffed, crossing her arms indignantly and turning her head to face the posters of Adrien above her headboard. Tikki sighed and noticed the half-bitten tart leaving crumbs on the comforter. With some effort, the Kwami shoved the rest of the éclair into her mouth and floated over to grab the tart.
"I know, but Chat Noir doesn't know that," Tikki drifted in front of Marinette's face, nudging the tart towards her, "And you never said you didn't like him." Marinette felt the frustration sizzle and die in Tikki's douse of cold logic, accepting the tart with another pout.
"Fine…enough talking about Chat Noir," Marinette grinned as she stared at Tikki, "What about Plagg?" The Luck Kwami stiffened and her big blue eyes grew wide, cursing herself inwardly at the direction of the conversation.
"C'mon Tikki," Marinette shifted the dish of petit fours to the stand next to her bed and flipped onto her stomach, "I always wanted to know how you and Plagg know each other." Shiny pearly teeth crunched into the baked tart, finishing it off as they faced Tikki next. She might not have wanted to eat Tikki, but it was clear that the bluenette was ravenous for information.
"Isn't it obvious? The Ladybug Miraculous and Chat Noir Miraculous are linked," Tikki tried to explain it with logic once more, "So, we've known each other through our holders."
"For over 5,000 years?" Marinette folded her arms under her chest, propping herself up to listen to the Kwami, "But I thought you were supposed to protect your holders' identities? Does that mean holders revealed their identities to each other before?"
"Mhmm," Tikki conceded, lowering herself so she could rest comfortably on the bed, "It might be hard to imagine, but there were lots of Ladybugs who were heads-over-heels in love with their generations' Chat Noirs." She gave a little giggle at Marinette's disgusted and annoyed face, like she'd just smelled something awful.
"It's true! And there were lots of Chat Noirs who loved their Ladybugs, like your Chat Noir," Tikki scooted closer to Marinette, "But guess what?"
"…What?" Marinette had a feeling about what Tikki was going to say, but it was too weird to even say it.
"There were lots, and lots, and LOTS of Ladybugs and Chat Noirs who ended up together, and got married when they stopped being super heroes!" Tikki gave a half-lidded, smart-aleck look and booped Marinette's nose, laughing when Marinette reared away and stuck her tongue out.
"Ew! No!" Marinette waved one hand like she was getting rid of flies from her face, "Uh-uh, no way! Not in a million years! If I'm getting married to anyone, it's Adrien, not Chat Noir!" Tikki rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, smirking.
"You never know, Marinette," the Kwami told her in a sing-song voice, "One day, you're dreaming of Adrien at your wedding, and the next thing you know, it's Chat Noir! Dressed in a tuxedo with his cat ears on, and using cat puns in your wedding vows." Marinette groaned and put her face into her comforter, crying on the inside. Tikki giggled and floated over to Marinette, patting her head.
"Don't worry, though. There were also some Ladybugs and Chat Noirs that married other people," Tikki watched Marinette slowly raise her head in hope.
"So…it's not fate?" Marinette asked, and Tikki nodded, "Yes! Then I can still marry Adrien…" The bluenette whispered Adrien's name dreamily, and Tikki giggled, shaking her head.
"Wait…you just distracted me again," Marinette frowned, and Tikki gulped at the sudden turn of events, "You still haven't told me anything about you and Plagg!"
"There's not much to tell! It's not like we visited each other often…" Tikki looked down bashfully, her antennae twitching downward, "We're sworn to guard the Miraculous and their holders. There's not many times we're together when we're not fused."
"…But there were times, right?" Marinette pushed further, anticipating Tikki's answers, "Like…how about the first time you met?" Tikki turned her head away, but the bluenette swore that there was a flustered look on Tikki's tiny face.
"C'mon…it'll be like…telling me a bedtime story," Marinette jumped off the bed and rushed to get her pajamas on, "I mean, I've had some sugar and I definitely want Chat Noir off my mind before I go to sleep." She returned to Tikki looking thoughtful and pensive, a furrow between her eyes.
"It's just…I don't know where to begin," Tikki admitted in exasperation, looking up at Marinette with a shrug, "It's over 5,000 years of history."
"Then, start at the beginning," Marinette smiled, glad that Tikki was giving in finally, "I'll get us comfortable and you can have another snack if you want." The red and black Kwami floated over to the petit fours dish to pick out another pasty as Marinette arranged the bed, laying down a few pieces of napkin next to her.
"Ready?" Marinette drew the comforter over her body, and curved it around the napkins. Tikki flew and dropped herself on the napkins, a puffed pastry with passion fruit custard nestled against her.
"Ready as I'll ever be," Tikki said unsurely, staring down at the pastry with nervous eyes. It had been a while since she thought about Plagg, and even longer since she thought about their beginnings. It brought old feelings as well as memories, and a sense of nostalgia that was more than friendship. Tikki took a deep breath, the smell of the passion fruit and sweet pastry easing her frayed nerves.
"Well, it all started much longer than 5,000 years ago…before we were the guardians of the Miraculous. Before even the Miraculous existed. Because back then, we were more than just Kwami. We were Gods."
FW09: I know that this chapter was short, but this is the prologue after all! Please, let me know how you guys like it, and if there's anything I can do to make it better! Also, if you have any questions, I'll try to answer them in the next chapter! See you guys real soon!
