Welcome to a Romeo x Juliet AU. This is basically the anime BUT I will change stuff like dialogue and maybe cut some stuff out if I think they're irrelevant. I will also change a little bit of details but trust me that this won't go too far from the anime plot. I will recommend you at some points to watch the actual swordfights because I suck at describing action scenes. There will be character insights too which will change your perspective of the show in a small way so buckle up and enjoy.

•••

Alya woke up with a start, completely shocked by the sound of metal clashing with metal. There was something odd about the sound, not just it being weird to have been a practice match since it was the middle of the night. It was odd because of the fact that there were screams of bloody murder accompanying it. In fact, she was frightened for it.

She got up her bed and visited the Lady's room. The dark-haired Lady, aged one, turning two tomorrow, was sitting at her bed, awake. Alya approached the toddler, asking if everything was alright.

"Where's maman?" She asked

"She's sleeping in her room," Alya answered

"Can I go see her?" The toddler inquired

"Mhm." Alya nodded, helping her down the bed

She led the little girl to the halls leading to her mother's room. The sounds were still on going and, as they approached the room, the sound became louder. As if it was coming from there.

"A-Agreste," she could hear Prince Dupain-Cheng's voice, "this isn't what Escalus wants."

"To hell what it wants," Another voice, most likely from the Agreste character, spoke, aggravation evident in his voice

The two children peered at the doorway. Alya's eyes widened at the sight of a man with light hair holding a sword in his right hand. The sword dripped of blood, staining the tiled floors. He stalked closer to Prince Dupain-Cheng as the huge man walked backwards.

"Papa?"

Alya gasped when she saw what happened next. The man struck Prince Dupain-Cheng at the stomach, piercing his skin. Alya felt chills run down her back as she heard the blade exiting skin.

The man turned to them and Alya's first instinct was to run away. She pulled on the toddler's arm, bringing her as she ran to safety. They'd been caught and she was pretty sure both of the Lady's parents were dead, the same as the other people's fate.

Alya stopped when she saw two men blocking their way. They didn't wear the traditional uniform of the guards of the House of the Dupain-Cheng so Alya assumed they must be with the man who killed Prince Dupain-Cheng.

Alya put the toddler to her back, putting a comforting arm around her to at least save her a bit from the incoming attack. She shut her eyes tight, not wanting to see the end.

Alya heard blades clashing to skin. She waited for the pain to come.

But it never did.

She opened her eyes and saw the awaiting hand of Tikki, one of the faithful servants of the house. They followed the woman, running through halls and often times having to run to a soldier or two. They reached a window and started to climb out of it. They jumped off the roof, Tikki holding both of them, then landed on something furry and was levitating.

A dragonsteed. Alya guessed

The snow was howling that night. She barely saw anything through the white material. She shivered a bit then felt the toddler slip down the animal.

"Hang on tight, my Lady." Tikki said, holding the toddler by the arm

They fled the castle, the sound of swords clashing still evident.

And Alya thought of how they were going to be after this.

•••

14 years later

"Mama! Help!" The dark haired teenager yelled, trying to get away from the guards' grasp

"That's my daughter!" The mother of said child yelled back, "Let her go!"

"This girl is accused to be the remaining child that escaped from the House of Dupain-Cheng," a noble, standing up in front of everyone, announced

Everyone around the square were whispering to themselves. True, it was news that a Dupain-Cheng girl had escaped fourteen years ago and was the only one remaining in the bloodline.

The Agrestes had made it clear that the Dupain-Chengs have had their reign of terror and that they were saving them through renewing Neo Paris, reviving its former vigor, giving new hope to the Neo Parisians and everyone believed them.

Now, the Dupain-Cheng girl had been caught and she was most likely going to be publicly hanged at the square the day after tomorrow.

"Let her go!"

Everyone gasped then looked up at a statue where the sound was coming from. There stood Ladybug, the man clad in red and black. He wore a red hat covering his hair, a red and black polkadotted mask covering the upper half her face, a red cape on his back, and a red suit with a black mask and gold and white here and there.

Ladybug jumped down from the statue then walked closer to the girl who was being held up.

"Let her go," he repeated then pulled his sword out out of its sheath, slicing the rope tying the girl's wrists

The girl ran back to her mother, the two leaving the premises as quickly as they could.

Two soldiers ran from the sides, their swords up and ready to kill the vigilante. He smirked then readying his stance for battle. The soldiers went after him, swinging their swords to attack. Ladybug held his sword up in defense. He continued to defend himself, the sound of the swords clanging and swishing with every movement.

He started running away from the square, to the streets of the village. He could hear the faint popping and smiled to himself.

Manon. As usual.

He ran and ran, trying to avoid the civilians and causing distraction but still trying to get an edge from the soldiers. He saw a girl dressed in orange walking backwards slowly, being in his way.

"Alya!" He yelled, catching the girl's attention

He held her hand and started running with her.

"What? Why are we running?" Alya asked then turned around, seeing the soldiers behind them, "Marin, what did you do?"

He led her through some narrow ways, trying to keep her from being caught. He gasped when he saw some soldiers standing in front of them, blocking the way.

"Take the stairs at the right," He commanded to Alya, pushing her slightly to that direction

He used his sword to deflect the attacks and let the girl run there safely. Once she was through, he took her lead and ran away. They ran through some more streets, mostly evacuated, then stopped when he saw the dead end that was the edge of the way.

•••

Adrien and Nino were overlooking Neo Paris, enjoying the afternoon breeze with some tea. He looked at the common area then saw a red and black figure with an orange dressed woman running away from some of their guards. He raised a brow, curious as to what made the guards chase them. The guards were strict since there were too much rules for his taste but what, of all the hundreds of crimes, did that man run into?

"Look at them," he told Nino, pointing at the two

He saw the two figures stop at a cliff-like edge. Adrien stood up and walked over to his dragonsteed.

"Whoa, whoa, where are you going?" Nino asked

Adrien rode his steed, "They're going to fall to their death, I'm going to help."

"But your father's going to be-."

Nino sighed as he was cut off by his friend's sudden departure. He followed suit, checking and making sure that his friend would not in trouble.

•••

The soldiers were slowly building up at the only way besides the cliff. Marin was starting to get nervous. He had dragged Alya on this and now she was in trouble of either getting caught or falling to her doom. He took another step back which resulted to his fall. He heard Alya call his name but it was of no use.

He was about to accept the fall and make a plan on how to fall without splattering his body to the ground when she heard the sound of strong wings fluttering and felt a hand grasp his wrist.

"Your arm's thinner than I assumed it would," a blond guy about his age spoke, shooting a soft smile to him

He hoisted the vigilante up, placing him in front of the blond. He watched from behind as his friend caught the girl the vigilante was with. They brought them to the ground and the hero quickly jumped off the steed.

"What was that about?" Adrien asked

"Not your problem," Marin replied, starting to run away

"What? I don't even get a thank you for saving your life back there?"

It was kind of rude, Adrien thought, but he really did save the man's life and a thank you was a small thing to return.

"Th-Thank you," Marin stated then walked away

"Thank you," Alya spoke for the two of them then followed Marin, "They have white dragonsteeds, do you think they're nobles?"

Marin shrugged, "If they really were nobles, so what?"

"Just 'so what'? They're nobles of high rank," Alya explained

Marin shrugged as he met up with Manon, the child working with him. They all made their way to the theater house where they resided. There was an ongoing play and William, the playwright, was sitting at a balcony, feeling absolutely dreadful that only about three people came up to watch his play.

"These people don't appreciate art," he said to the three dramatically

Manon shrugged, "I don't know maybe your plays aren't that interesting?"

William sent him a sharp glare, "You two will help me with the dress rehearsals later."

The two sighed, knowing what their roles were–sheep. Alya called for them then they proceeded to walk to the back. Alya pulled a string suspended from high above, opening the door in front of them. They all entered, Manon and Marin creeping up slowly and quietly, knowing that they were going to pass through the dining area and that Tikki would be there and scold the-

"Where do you think you're going?" The old woman asked

The vigilante sighed then frowned as he was seen, exasperated that all of his efforts were for naught.

"I found out about what happened Marin," the woman continued, "Haven't I told you to stay away from official business?"

"But they were going to kill the kid!" Marin defended, "She was innocent."

Manon decided to creep up behind him and make a run for it but was caught too.

"Don't even think about it, Manon," Tikki stated, "You were helping Marin."

"But grandma, I was,"

As Manon defended herself, Marin took it as a chance to go upstairs to her room to follow Alya. He heard Tikki calling for him but didn't look back.

"I told you," Alya spoke as soon as he entered the room

Marin nodded in agreement, "But I can't just let her die like that. I mean, I was Ladybug for a reason."

He walked over to his side of the room then placed his cape, mask, and hat on a vacant chair. He sat down on his stool in front of the vanity and waited for Alya.

"True, but you know that you have to be safe too," Alya said

She walked over behind him then pulled on the blueish hair, removing it and draping down the real hair that ended to her shoulder blades.

Alya grabbed a brush then started brushing the ebony hair, "You're Marinette and we want to keep you and Manon safe too. We don't want to lose you."

Marinette slumped in her chair, feeling absolutely defeated, "It's not that I put myself in danger, it's just that I want to defend the people who can't do it to their selves."

She frowned, looking down at her hands in her lap, "I don't even get all of this secrecy. Why do I have to dress like a boy? I'm a girl, right? Why can't I be normal?"

Alya looked over at the girl's distraught expression, "You'll know when you turn sixteen."

"Well I turn sixteen tomorrow, is there any difference if you tell me now?" Marinette raised a brow, still not looking up

"Yes there is." Alya nodded, "I'll be downstairs to fix dinner and I don't want you to get any more trouble today."

Marinette sighed for what felt like the thousandth time that hour before agreeing to what Alya instructed.

•••

Marinette, back to her Marin form, was wearing a sheep costume next to Manon wearing a baby sheep costume. They watched as William shouted instructions to his lead stars who were being quite uncooperative.

Chloé, the lead star of the play, acted slightly uninterested of her role.

"Look, he is the one who's being difficult!" She nearly yelled then turned to sheep Marin with a sweet expression on her face, "Maybe Marin could fill his spot."

Marin furrowed his brows, shooting an apologetic smile at the blonde, "Sorry, Chloé, but I have a lot going on here."

Chloé 'hmph'ed and crossed her arms at the disagreement.

"Chloé, my darling, you're my lead," William said, "please act like it or we'll have four people at the opening."

"I will act greatly if you just finish the play!" Chloé replied before stomping out of the stage

William sighed, too used to the attitude of his main star. He didn't even know why he had her as the lead but he was stuck with her until he had something better. He called the practice over and Marin and Manon placed their costumes back in its proper room.

As she was walking back to their quarters, Chloé popped her head out the door of her room and called for her.

"Oh, Marin! Come over! Quick!"

Marin sighed then followed inside.

"Will you go with me to the ball? I don't want to be alone," Chloé asked, "but you have to dress up as a girl or else no one will come near me and I won't find the man of my dreams."

"But isn't that for the nobles only?" Marin pointed out

"Sweetheart, we'll all wear masks, nobody would know the difference between a commoner and a noble," Chloé explained, "Now get dressed."

Marin rolled her eyes but obeyed. Chloé left the room to Marin. She looked around at the long line of dresses. Sure, she had a lot of dresses up in her room but she never got to wear one all the time. She picked a light red gown and quickly dressed herself before Chloé was back. She removed her wig then placed it somewhere no one can see it. Marin sat down on the stool of the vanity and stared at herself.

She was a girl, definitely a girl, and there were no pants or dress shirts saying otherwise. She was wearing a dress with her hair down and Marinette had never felt so free. She was herself and this was probably better than being Ladybug.

It's for one night. She told herself

She looked down at the assortment of make-ups in front of her, You can have fun for one night.

She smiled then dabbed a bit of lipstick to her lips to give it more color and a bit of blush on her cheeks. She felt like it was too much but for this night, just for this last night of being fifteen, of being hidden to everyone's world of secrets, she would be herself, happy, free, and contented.

"You done the-." Chloé stopped in her tracks, "You look so pretty!"

Marinette blushed lightly, "Thanks, Chloé."

"Okay so what do you think of me? Should I wear a hat or not? Ooh, ooh, wait! I have a hat that will go so perfectly with my gown!" She went to the back of the room to scavenge for that hat

Marinette placed the mask over her face then the doors opened abruptly. She turned towards it and saw a man, who was definitely not sober, make his way over to her.

"You look so beautiful tonight, my peach! Come on, the ride awaits!" He dragged Marinette out of the room without her getting a word in

Once they exited the room and the theater house, Chloé came back to where Marinette formerly sat then gasped when she saw it unoccupied. She let out a piercing screech heard from the doors of the theater to the living quarters above.

•••

Alya was looking for Marinette everywhere. It was dinner time and she was sure that she left the fifteen year old back in their room.

She must've gotten into trouble again.

She was used to it. She had been taking good care of Marinette since she was two so every step and word the girl made, Alya knew about it.

She looked inside the dressing room of the leading lady then found her in a dress, almost tearing up her hat at the anger and frustration.

"They left without me!" She yelled

"Who left?" Alya asked

"Marin!"

•••

Marinette felt very awkward. She tried to tell this man that she wasn't Chloé to no avail; he wasn't listening to her one bit, too engaged in his wine and own chatter. They arrived at the castle the party was at then went down the carriage to enter.

She looked around the ballroom, completely amazed by its size. The ceilings arched gracefully, white and gold blending together so perfectly. The grand chandelier that hung at the middle of the room was enough to make Marinette bail out but she didn't. For one moment she would feel like she belonged.

She looked up at the balcony overseeing the ballroom and stopped in her tracks. She furrowed her brows at the slight familiarity of it despite having entered that castle the first time. Call it deja vu but she felt like she had a memory of being there, standing there. She could see a faint outline of a female child and a man who seemed to be the child's father. She didn't know how or why but she thought of that and made her remember something she couldn't quite put her mind on.

Too overwhelmed by everything that was happening, Marinette made her way to the garden she spotted once she got there. She didn't look back even through the desperate calls of her supposed date. She needed fresh air and she was going to get that.

She knelt down in front of the fountain. It wasn't working but there was water in it. The scent of irises filled her nose making her calm and a bit happy. She looked down at the reflection of a girl, nearly a woman, in the water then cupped her hand to grab an iris floating in the water.

She put it near her nose and smelled the fragrant flower. She was so indulged in her own little world that she didn't realize that someone was walking towards her.

"Can I help you?"

She turned around and saw blond hair and green eyes; the same man who had saved her just earlier that day but he didn't know that. He stared at her at the same time she stared at him and Marinette swore she felt time slow down in those thirty seconds the heavens met the earth.