Chapter Summary: Ladybug and Chat Noir are invited to stay at the palace for the Saturnalia festival. Ladybug receives gifts from a fan.


It took nearly a month for Marinette to regain her full strength, which was a miracle by Ivan's standards and a frustratingly long time by her own. She missed training. The physical exhaustion, the camaraderie with Alya and Adrien and Nino, the orderliness of her days, the resulting strength and confidence… She had been working toward freedom from gladiator life since the very start of her career. Her longing to return to it during her convalescence felt confusing.

Adrien checked on her constantly, almost as though he were afraid she might disappear if he were gone too long. Knowing that Tikki was with Marinette put his mind at ease, he said, but he remained nearby at all times of day and night.

The weather grew colder. Marinette grudgingly used Tikki's warm protection to ward off the chill as her strength returned.

"She's right," Adrien agreed one afternoon, pacing up and down Marinette's floor as she watched, curled up on her bed with a blanket, "Just getting healthy is the goal here."

"I know," Marinette grumbled. "I'm just tired of feeling like this. Like I need help all the time." She watched him cross the narrow space from door to table a few more times. "You're agitated. What's up?"

Adrien stopped abruptly in his tracks. "Huh? Oh, I um... I'm waiting for a letter. Sorry. Didn't notice what I was doing."

He forced himself to straighten and shook out his arms, interlacing his fingers to stretch up overhead.

"A letter from whom?" Marinette asked, her curiousity piqued.

"My mater, actually. She always sends a package for Saturnalia. I wrote her a couple months ago and I usually hear back in time for the festival."

Marinette rearranged herself to face Adrien as he took a seat in her chair, his fretting visibly lessening as he spoke. He put one heel against the side of her bed, tilting the chair back on two legs and folded his hands behind his head.

"Tell me about her," Marinette encouraged.

Adrien's lips twisted up in a wistful smile.

"She's the only person I miss from back home, except for my sisters. She's graceful, and smart... she's the most beautiful woman I've ever seen. She's where I get the blond hair from. Pater is much darker in coloring. And she's got eyes... actually, your eyes remind me of her." Adrien turned such an intense look on her that she felt her cheeks start to warm.

"Well, she sounds like a lovely woman. I wish I could meet her."

Adrien leaned his head back and closed his eyes.

"Me, too," he murmured. "She's got a knack for figuring out who's worth knowing and who just wants to be known. She'd like you."

Marinette smiled broadly, but her face fell at his next question.

"What about you? Do you miss anyone from home?"

"I... ah, I'm sorry Adrien, but I'd really rather not talk about it. I want to distance myself from my past. Nothing good can come of going back, even in my memories."

She could tell he was hurt, and she sighed. She did miss someone, very much. Someone she would never see again, so why bring herself pain by dwelling on it?

They both looked up as a knock sounded at the door. Marinette whipped her mask over her eyes with practiced ease as Adrien lowered her chair with a thunk and rose to answer the summons. A servant stood with two parchment letters and a wrapped package in his hands.

"Alright! Mater came through!" Adrien shouted, grabbing the package before the servant could even tell him what it was.

He held it up high in one hand and grinned back at Ladybug, who peered at the other two items.

"What are those?" she asked the young man.

"Miss Nathalie sent me to deliver them. She didn't tell me," he replied with a shrug.

Ladybug held out a hand curiously. They looked official. What was Nathalie sending them letters for? She cracked the seal on her parchment with a thumb and unfolded the letter. It was an invitation.

You are cordially invited to a five-day Saturnalia celebration at the royal palace of Emperor Hawkmoth to take place in three day's time…

Adrien's sober expression mirrored her own as she looked up.

"Are we seriously invited to party with the Emperor this year?" His words sounded shocked, hollow, but his eyes sparked with humor.

"Looks like we are."

"We're still gladiator scum, right? I didn't wake up re-enobled this morning?"

"Yep, we're still low class. Oh, no..."

"What, Marinette?"

"What in all the heavens am I going to wear?"

The next morning, Ladybug took her first journey out of the ludus since her near-death experience. She reluctantly allowed Adrien to bundle her into a waiting carpentum, their destination a mystery.

"Why won't you tell me where we're going?" she grumped, crossing her arms as the driver whipped the horses into motion.

"The person we're meeting wanted it to be a surprise," Adrien responded with a too-charming smile.

"I've had enough surprises," Ladybug muttered.

"You'll like this one. Oh, look, we're already here."

They exited and stood on the street in front of an imposing house, its ostium updated to the absolute latest fashion sweeping Rome. Four shop fronts stood stalwart on either side of the door and housed high-end merchants trading in expensive imports, furniture, and jewelry.

"Whose home is this?" asked Ladybug with a suspicious eyebrow.

Adrien didn't answer, instead knocking on the door. A servant in an impeccably white tunic answered and ushered them into a lush atrium filled with exotic plants in ceramic pots. Feeling out of place in her layers and layers of plain fabric, Ladybug seated herself on a decorative bench and studied a wall mosaic depicting pleasant pastoral scenes. Prominently featured were several honeybees perched upon brightly colored flowers in the shade of idealized trees. Dripping honeycombs were lovingly embellished with bright amber flecks upon an altar bearing the name of Mellonia, the goddess of bees. The volume of greenery warmed the room and kept the echoes of footfalls to a whisper. It was a delightful place. Adrien stood comfortably in the soft silence, as though he'd been to this house before.

"Laaaadybug!" A loud voice crashed incongruously through the gentle tinkle of the atrium's fountain.

"You didn't," Ladybug whispered. Adrien could only chuckle into one hand as a radiantly blond woman appeared around a line of potted plants. She rushed to Ladybug and grabbed both of her hands in hers, pulling her up into a bone-crushing hug.

"It's been so long!" Chloe exclaimed, oblivious to Ladybug's hesitation. "I heard about your poisoning ordeal - I saw the whole thing happen in the Flavian Amphitheatre! Just awful!" Her bright, blue doe eyes turned concerned and she rubbed Ladybug's arm sympathetically. "How are you?"

"Well, I'm not dead," Ladybug murmured, cracking a half smile.

Chloe Bourgeois, one of the most prominent socialites of Rome, was well known to both gladiators. Chloe's whip-smart intelligence and business acumen had ensured she stayed wealthy upon the death of her first husband. Widowed at a young age, she had suitors lined up around the block, but she'd been content to stay single for three years. She had no qualms about enjoying the company of whatever society she chose, even distasteful gladiators.

Ladybug didn't want to like Chloe, but the woman's genuine affection for all things Ladybug was endearing. "Um... Chloe? Adrien didn't tell me why we're visiting you today."

"Oh, my goodness, no. It's a surprise. Here, come with me."

Tucking Ladybug's hand under her arm, Chloe pulled Ladybug through the green interior garden toward the back of her house. "Now, a very handsome kitty told me you two will be visiting Emperor Hawkmoth in a couple of days."

Chloe turned and batted her eyes at Adrien. He had followed them out of the atrium. Ladybug felt an unaccountable irritation at hearing someone else call Adrien Kitty. She took a steadying breath. Chloe stopped as they came to the triclinium, which wasn't at all ready for dining. Three men stood waiting with their hands behind their backs. On the table, several rolls of fine fabric were piled haphazardly.

Ladybug shook her head. "Oh, Chloe, you didn't!"

"I did, and I am. You need to look your best for a visit to the Emperor, after all. Oh! And I almost forgot. This won't serve in a fight, but for a Saturnalia festival..." from the folds of her over-tunic, Chloe produced a glittering mask, set with red enamel and bright rubies. Two finely-wrought gold loops at the corners anchored generous black silk ties.

Ladybug gasped. "That must have taken weeks of work! How did you know?"

Chloe pressed it into Ladybug's palms with a giggle. "Tata helped with the guest list for this year. I knew who was on it ages ago. Simple!"

She snapped her fingers, a satisfied canary in yellow.

"Shall we all turn our backs while you try it on? I insist."

Chloe circled a finger at the men in the room, who turned around instantly. Checking to be sure no one peeked, Ladybug switched the masks quickly. Her cheeks were hot with embarrassment and excitement. There was a time when fancy custom-made clothing would have meant nothing to her. From the way her stomach was tied up with butterflies, she had apparently left that girl far behind.

"Alright, you can turn back," she said as she tugged at the bottom of the unyielding mask to settle it over her cheeks.

Chloe clapped her hands and hopped up and down in a surprisingly girlish gesture. "Perfect! Oh, I am so good. Let's get the rest of you done."

The three men took measurements as Chloe hovered. She interjected as they took notes and discussed options for the fine, longsleeved tunic they would apparently be making for Ladybug. Ladybug wouldn't have minded putting her opinion in too, but she suspected the only reason the tailors tolerated Chloe so well was that she was paying them large sums of money to do so. Chloe convinced Adrien that he needed a black tunic for Saturnalia and had him measured as well.

They all agreed that the partners would both present themselves to the Ageless Emperor in their gladiator personas, since their successes in the arena were clearly what had brought them to Emperor Hawkmoth's attention.

Chloe, despite already being dressed in a daytime tunic suitable for meeting heads of state, insisted on being measured for something new as well.

"Will you be there, too?" Ladybug asked from where she lounged on a dining couch, watching the tailors force Adrien to stand up tall so they could take his height. Chloe raised her arms imperiously as one of the men wrapped a tape around her waist.

"Like I said, Tata was there when Emperor Hawkmoth made the list. Besides, the Emperor and I go way back. He's known me since I was a child."

Ladybug and Adrien were ushered back to the front of the house once the sartorial cataloging was concluded.

"Here, this is for the mask," Chloe prompted, handing Ladybug a small wooden box with two iron hinges. She whispered conspiratorially, "I made it look ugly on purpose, so no one thinks something special is in there. Adrien told me you don't really have a safe place to keep things in your...dormitory."

She said the word like it was a synonym for latrine. Ladybug forced herself to keep a straight face and nodded solemnly.

"Chloe, I can't thank you enough for your hospitality."

"It was nothing! Salve sis! See you at Saturnalia!"

The first night of Saturnalia was warmer than expected, and Adrien welcomed the unseasonable weather for Marinette's sake. Their palace-worthy costumes had arrived before noon, about an hour before Nino let him knock off training to go get ready for the big event.

Alone in his room, he shook out the soft, new wool with a sigh.

He hadn't put his ears or mask on since the day of Ladybug's injury. What had started as a joke had become something else. He felt more revealed than hidden in Chat Noir's costume. He'd only ever put it on to amuse his Ladybug... Adrien stopped his train of thought. His Ladybug? Well, there was no point in denying it anymore, at least to himself. Watching her nearly die had changed everything for him.

Adrien could see a good life for them at the ludus. He'd come here looking to make a name he couldn't make back home, but he'd found so much more. A family. Nino, Alya, Kim, Mylene, even Lila... and most of all, Marinette. He knew she never intended it, but her confidence and intelligence drew him, like a moth to her light.

She'd made it clear she wanted out, though. Everything she did, every fight, every moment of training was in service to her dream of freedom from Ludus Magnus. He couldn't blame her. She hadn't come here voluntarily, an auctorati like him. And whatever life she'd led before this one, it had instilled in her stubbornness to rival a mule.

Plagg sauntered out from somewhere in the shadows to watch him get ready. "I don't know whether to be flattered or disgusted by those ears," he grouched, stretching his forelegs out in front of him.

"I've got enough on my mind without your input," Adrien replied as he adjusted the pins and tied on his mask.

"Oooh, what's eating you? Love of your life turn you down?" Plagg settled on his haunches and canted his head to start licking his own chest.

Adrien was silent for a few moments, fiddling with his clothes. He didn't feel like having Plagg for a confidant. He was a good companion, but single-minded.

"Sure," replied the young man, fully suited as Chat Noir. He turned to leave the room.

"Bring her a dead mouse! It works every time!" Plagg called to his back as he shut the door.

Chat Noir's first glimpse of Ladybug, with her hair intricately styled and her spotted red tunic flowing about her figure, should have brightened his evening. He worked to shake off his melancholy as he politely handed her up into the opulent imperial carriage that awaited them.

Chloe had sent on a few pieces of jewelry to go with the mask, he noticed. The young woman sparkled at her neck, wrists, and eyes. Despite the mask's impressive jeweled glitter, he wished Ladybug were barefaced Marinette this evening. He bit his tongue before he could let the errant comment slip past his lips.

"You look handsome this evening, Kitty," she said charitably.

Chat Noir evinced a broad smile, knowing she meant it kindly. "Thanks. You look… you're beautiful, Ladybug."

He watched her blush rise under the mask and his heartbeat sped up. They rode in silence, watching Rome's people celebrate the first night of the festival in the streets.

The Ageless Emperor's palace was elegant without being gaudy. The palace grounds stretched far beyond the actual structure, though Chat Noir could only see vague outlines of manicured topiary in the dark. The Emperor's carpentum disgorged them in front of a broad entryway and they were led through gilded halls decorated with mosaics and frescoes depicting scenes of the gods. Two massive doors were pulled open to reveal the throne room.

Emperor Hawkmoth sat eerily still at one end, as though he were a carved part of his ornate throne. His neatly trimmed gray-blonde hair shone more brightly than a crown. A formal toga picta, purple with gold embroidery, overlaid his short-sleeved tunic. The toga picta was embellished with a beautiful purple butterfly brooch, which the Emperor fingered absently as he watched them with intelligent gray eyes. Their servant guide announced them.

"If it please the Emperor, I present Gladiator Ladybug and Gladiator Chat Noir, the primi pali of Ludus Magnus," he bawled with a flourish.

The duo bowed gracefully before the emperor, faces pointed toward the floor. Chat Noir had removed his mask upon entering the throne room, but Ladybug's was firmly affixed over her nose and cheekbones.

"Welcome, Guests. We are honored to offer you our home this Saturnalia," the Emperor said.

"Your Majesty, we are grateful for your generous invitation," Chat Noir responded, head bowed.

"Quite. I usually like to see whom I am speaking with, however," the Emperor drawled coolly, his eyes boring into the top of Ladybug's head.

"If it please your Majesty, I prefer my anonymity," she replied to the tile in front of her face.

Chat Noir tensed, rolling his eyes to see her though his body stayed motionless. Her tone had remained utterly polite, even reverent, despite the content of her speech. Emperor Hawkmoth's eyebrows rose in surprise, but an unexpected smile crossed his lips.

"So it shall be, then, my little Ladybug. Chat Noir, however, is known by another name. Adrien Agreste, son of Governor Gabriel Agreste of Aquitania. How is it with your family?" Emperor Hawkmoth leaned forward slightly.

"Very well, your Majesty. I received a letter from my mater just last week. They are all in good health." Chat Noir resisted the urge to look up at the Emperor as he spoke.

"Wonderful. I'm glad to hear it. You may rise and join the party." He dismissed them with a wave of his hand and their attendant ushered them out.

In a noisy entertaining hall, Chloe was the first to see them and flag them down, bustling up with a cup of wine. She was resplendent in an expensive yellow stolla, deeply embroidered with striking black designs. Her wardrobe palette was mirrored with an onyx necklace set in gold. The black-and-white stone was carved to display, oddly, cameos of bees rather than people. Gold hair pins set with smaller bits of polished onyx glittered in her intricate updo.

"So, how did the interview go? Ladybug, you look sensational in the mask! Chat Noir, I don't know if the ears are really you...but they're kind of cute. Here, wave at my pater, he's talking to Senator Gaius -"

Ladybug and Chat Noir exchanged a glance as they let her run on. One or two other guests tried to greet them, but Chloe just stood in front and kept talking. Finally, Ladybug grabbed her arm.

"Let's continue this over by the buffet," she suggested, much to Chat Noir's relief.

"Sure!" Chloe agreed, trailing them to the lavish tables. Eventually the stream of words slowed enough for Ladybug to ask a question she'd been holding onto.

"Chloe, why does everyone call him the Ageless Emperor, anyway?"

"Oh! That's a brilliant nickname, isn't it? I guess it's because he's been ruling forever and is still like, going strong. And it suits him; he looks great for his age."

"He does," Ladybug agreed as Chat Noir frowned.

"How old is he?" Chat Noir asked, munching thoughtfully on finger foods.

"I'm not sure. Maybe his fifties? He was done expanding the borders when we were all small. He looks about the same age now as I remember from when I was little, but you know how childhood memories are."

"Mmmm. What about the butterfly brooch? It's unusual." Marinette had only noticed it because of the way the Emperor had kept a hand on it, as thought afraid it might disappear under his nose.

"Striking, isn't it? One of a kind. Rumor has it he never takes it off! At least, I've never seen the Emperor without it. Felix told me this story once…" Chloe trailed off as she waved to a couple wearing matching green outfits and sandals.

"Yes?" Marinette prodded.

"It's from before he was born. His tutor used to tell him stories about his father, swearing they were all true, and then when Emperor Hawkmoth found out, the tutor was replaced, if you know what I mean," Chloe dropped her voice to a whisper and hid her mouth behind one hand.

"Anyway, back when the Emperor was just a general, the story went that he was campaigning far out from Rome. There was a battle, and he was injured so badly he nearly died, but then he heard about this old man who had magic and he demanded the man be brought to him. The old man pinned that brooch on the Emperor - well, he was a general then, but you get it - and said to never, ever, ever take it off. So he never has, not in my lifetime, anyway.

"Some people say it's the reason he looks so young, but that's stupid. Clearly it's the salt scrubs, honey, and milk baths. Those will work wonders." Chloe smiled prettily, then turned as someone called her name.

"Sabrina! You made it! Excuse me, you two," she pressed the hands of both the gladiators, then swept away in a perfumed swirl of lemon yellow to welcome another friend.

With a mutual sigh of relief, the partners walked the other direction, into the crush of guests and notables to rub elbows with Emperor Hawkmoth's elite.


A/N:

Salve sis - may you be well
Auctorati - a volunteer gladiator who signs a school contract willingly, seeking fame, adventure, or money