Hello beautiful people! It means so much to me as a writer to have so many of you follow and favorite my story. Enjoy this chapter! :3
Chapter 7
"Marinette, you look absolutely beautiful," Tikki chirped, floating to the right of Marinette, who was standing in front of her full-length mirror and admiring her handiwork.
"Thanks, Tikki," the blue-haired girl blushed, "I still can't believe I pulled this off."
Marinette was wearing a pale pink, strapless dress with a white ribbon around her waist that came to her knees. It was fitted at the bodice with a swooping back and flared at the skirt, which was layered overtop with a covering of a sheer pink, shimmery fabric. She wore white ballet flats and a dainty silver chain around her neck with a simple cat head charm dangling from it. Marinette's pink, pouch-like purse hung at her hip and contained her homemade ladybug print mask and a pair of red gloves that would come up to her elbows.
"I still think your idea of turning your Ladybug dress into a reversible one was a genius," Tikki added.
Marinette had decided that instead of making a whole new dress to change in and out of, she would alter the dress she already made into one that both Marinette and Ladybug could wear. It would be much easier to simply turn her dress inside-out when she needed to be Ladybug rather than carry an extra article of clothing with her all night—people would question her and Marinette wouldn't be able to provide any answers as to why she would be lugging around a Ladybug dress with her.
"I suppose I can be a genius when I'm not being a total dorkasauraus," Marinette joked, smiling at Tikki in the reflection, "I just feel like I'm forgetting something…" Marinette studied her face, which she applied light makeup to. She added a touch of lip gloss and mascara as well as concealer to hide the dark circles under her eyes; patrolling as Ladybug left Marinette with a multitude of sleepless nights, and serious baggage under her blue eyes.
"Well, you have your makeup done and your hair, courtesy of moi," the red kwami had assisted Marinette with her midnight blue hair, which was all pulled back in a messy, yet elegant bun on top of her head. She had her fringe loosely curled to add body to her bangs and create a nice frame around her face. The bluenette began to feel somewhat vain for thinking she looked pretty in the reflection.
"Yes, and thank you, again, Tikki."
"It was nothing Marinette…oh! But what about your Ladybug accessories? You have them packed? And your change of shoes? You're positive your black heels are in your locker at school?" Tikki buzzed with questions as if she was reciting a check list. Marinette nodded in response, trying her hardest to hold back her giggle at how the bug-like kwami zipped around and made sure her charge had everything. "Oh, I know! Did you shave?"
"Tikki…"
"Well, did you?"
Marinette sheepishly nodded and fiddled with her curled tendrils. She glanced at her clock which read 7:30pm, meaning Adrien would be at her house in half an hour. So, Marinette had half an hour to plan and practice what she was going to say when being interviewed as Ladybug...it was always a good thing to prepare for these kinds of things, especially so she wouldn't get caught off guard by a question.
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"Plagg, how am I going to carry all of this to change?" Adrien worriedly asked, pacing back and forth in his bathroom. He looked up in the mirror only to see himself, red-faced and sweating, and Plagg munching on camembert in the reflection. "Ugh, I should just go transformed as Cat Noir, it'd be easier…but Marinette said I should wear something nice, so how will I carry around an extra outfit?"
"Bring your backpack," Plagg suggested, mouth full of stinky cheese. "After all, you will be at school."
"Do you know how ridiculous I'd look? Who brings a backpack to a dance?" Adrien buried his face in his hands and groaned. He peeped his eyes out from behind his fingers and let them wander to the mask and ears Marinette gave him resting on the counter and a thought popped into his head. "Hey, Plagg…"
"What's up, buttercup?" Plagg snickered to himself as he gobbled down the last bit of stinky cheese. "Get it? Buttercup? Cause you got blond hair and buttercups are like blond flowers...I crack myself up!" The kwami wiped a tear from his eye as he doubled over, laughing at his attempt at a joke.
"Yeah, yeah, you're hiss-terical," Adrien rolled his emerald eyes at the black cat creature. At least his puns were claw-some and didn't need explaining; yeah, Plagg should stick with his smelly camembert and leave the comedy to Adrien. "You said you had a plan to help me, right?"
"Duh, bring a backpack with a change of clothes," the kwami retorted dryly, his eyes staring blankly at the blond model. Adrien folded his arms and sighed at the black cat's attitude, or should he say, cat-titude. He thought long and hard about what to do…he knew what he needed to bring, just not how he would bring it.
"That's it!" Adrien squawked with delight and he rushed out of his bathroom, swiping the cat ears and mask on his way out.
"I told you my idea was genius," Plagg bragged before following the eager model back into his bedroom.
He zoomed over to Adrien, who was stuffing the replicated accessories in his shoulder bag, as well as a green tie, a black suit jacket, and a wheel of camembert. Plagg flew into Adrien's book bag excitedly as soon as he smelled the cheese, the camembert wafting it's stench throughout the model's room.
"Don't eat it all in one sitting. It's meant to keep you occupied at the celebration," Adrien scolded as he swung his backpack over his shoulder. Plagg poked his head out of the bag and cackled as Adrien began to walk out of his room. "What's so funny? Come on, we have to pick up Marinette soon and I need to make a quick stop on the way."
"Aren't you forgetting something, Lover Boy?" Plagg gestured to Adrien, a smirk forming at his mouth. The blond looked down to see his was still wearing his casual, everyday clothes he changed into after he took his Ladybug costume off. Adrien groaned before turning around and sulking to his desk, dropping his bag on the floor by his swivel chair. The black cat kwami couldn't help but to snicker at Adrien's absent-mindedness while gnawing on the camembert wheel.
"After I get changed, we go pick up Marinette," Adrien remarked as he strode off into his bathroom and closed the door behind him.
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"Just breathe, Marinette," Tikki, in a hushed tone, comforted the blue-haired Parisian currently hyperventilating and pacing around her room. Marinette mumbled to herself while thinking of multiple scenarios where things could go wrong. What if either Adrien figured out she was Ladybug, or Chat Noir found out, or literally all of Paris found out?
"I can't do this! I can't do this!" Marinette frantically yelped, "Why did I agree to do this? Is it too late to say 'no' to Adrien? Gah! What am I saying? Of course I want to go with Adrien! Tikki, help me!"
"Marinette, I-" the ladybug kwami was cut off and unable to deliver her advice because Marinette's trap door swung open and her mother popped her head into her daughter's room. Tikki quickly hid in the blue-haired girl's purse before Sabine had noticed her.
"Someone's here for you," she cooed as she smiled warmly and nodded knowingly at Marinette. Sabine ducked her head out of Marinette's room immediately following her announcement with an excited demeanor shining through her periwinkle blue eyes.
Marinette took a deep breath before making her way to the trap door, still left wide open, and placed her foot on the first step, gripping the handrail so tightly it probably looked deformed. Just breathe, she thought to herself, Tikki's words resonating with her. She shakily took the next step and the next, carefully making her descent down the staircase that lead to the living room. As soon as she was halfway to the main floor of her house, her heart skipped a beat at the sight of Adrien standing at the foot of the steps, waiting for her.
You know the drill: please leave a review about what you like, what don't like, what want to see happen in future chapters, and what you predict will happen next. Until next chapter, toodles! :D