Chapter Summary: Adrien has an interview with the Emperor. Marinette and Bridgette are reunited. Plagg has a complaint.
The pair woke from where they lay in dirty straw at the sound of a thick key in the rusty metal lock of their cell door. Marinette had somehow ended up wedged between Adrien and the wall. She sat up, stiff and cold, pulling scratchy bits of straw out of the neck of her tunic. Adrien rubbed his neck and circled one shoulder, trying to release the taut muscles there. She plucked straw off of him, too.
A small figure wearing a cloak stood in the doorway, barely visible in the still-dark prison. It came forward, hesitant, as the two watched. A small hand pulled back the hood of the cloak to reveal Bridgette, her mouth drawn in a small frown and her luminous eyes wide.
"Bridgette!" Marinette cried, standing quickly and starting toward the other woman. She hesitated at the last second, but Bridgette closed the distance between them and wrapped her sister in a tight hug.
"Marinette...my sister..." she breathed, clutching Marinette with an intensity that belied her small frame. Adrien watched, bemused, as the two clung to each other, tears of mingled sadness and joy flowing freely.
He inspected Bridgette's face in the little light available. It honestly was like having two Ladybugs in the room with him. He would never be fooled; he knew his Lady's features too well, but the pair could easily switch places. Bridgette wasn't quite as soft as his first impression of her had seemed. Whatever life she'd been living for the past six years, it hadn't been without its trials.
They finally released each other, but their hands remained linked as they sat on the cold floor in a circle with Adrien.
"Adrien Agreste," Bridgette greeted him with a nod.
"Guilty," he ventured with a smile.
The joke fell flat with both women. He sighed. No one appreciated the value of humor in a dire situation.
"How did you find us?" Marinette asked, rubbing her arms and legs to warm herself.
Bridgette jumped up and went back to the entrance of the cell, returning with two blankets in her arms. "Sorry, I forgot those for a moment. Ah. Felix told me where you were."
"Felix?" Marinette and Adrien chorused in surprise as they wrapped the generous blankets around themselves.
"Yes. He's been very kind to me since I arrived in Rome."
Marinette quirked an eyebrow. "That doesn't sound at all like Felix."
"I think there may be more to him than you know," Bridgette shot back. "When I found out you were the cause for all the commotion, he did everything he could to try and calm me down. I wouldn't rest until I knew where you were. I-" her voice cracked suddenly and she swallowed before continuing, "I grieved for you, Sister. You're - you were - dead. And now I come to Rome, and you're a celebrity? You couldn't tell your family? You couldn't tell me?" Bridgette's face flushed as words of anger and pain poured out.
Marinette shrugged helplessly. "I want to say I'm sorry, but it's not enough. I made the wrong choice. I've been paying for it for six years. I was afraid, Bridgette. I thought maybe... maybe if I bought my freedom, came back on my own terms, I would be able to make things right. I haven't seen you in so long. Please, please forgive me, Sister. I'm so sorry I hurt you."
Bridgette took a deep breath and expelled it in a gusty sigh. Her anger receded as quickly as it had surfaced.
"I think it's going to take more than one conversation, but I do want to forgive you. We need to make sure you live through this first, though."
Adrien cleared his throat. "I like where you put your priorities. Any ideas? We're fresh out."
Bridgette drew her legs up and pillowed her head on her knees. "I'll advocate for you to my betrothed, of course. I think it's fairly clear you weren't trying to kidnap me at this point, since you're my own family. You weren't, were you?"
"Not unless you wanted to be kidnapped," Marinette said carefully. "Mostly I just wanted to talk."
"I - no, Marinette. I'm here for our people. Did you think I wanted out of this marriage arrangement?"
"Sister, do you love him?"
"That's irrelevant," Bridgette sniffed. "I love Dupania. Marrying the Emperor ensures Dupania's autonomy and strengthens its position as a partner in trade."
"You sound like Father," groaned Marinette, rolling her eyes.
Bridgette opened her mouth to deliver a tart reply, but a new voice interrupted them.
"Princess Bridgette," said Felix, startling them all, "It's time for you to return to the palace."
"But I just arrived! I've barely said five words to her," Bridgette protested.
"He came with you?" asked Adrien, surprised.
"No, I'm here to recall her, and to bring you back as well. Father wants an interview with his favorite lowly gladiator."
Felix leaned casually against the gate, arms folded over his chest. His voice seemed familiar, but Adrien couldn't quite place it. He eyed Felix as he stood, but the taller man's know-it-all smirk never wavered.
"Do you need restraining, or can I trust you to come all the way to the palace?"
Adrien bristled at the implication that he was a common criminal. "I'll come willingly. You don't need to worry."
Marinette was nonplussed at the realization she'd be left alone in the dank cell. Adrien reached down and squeezed her hand tightly. "I'll be back as soon as I can. Just sit tight."
"I can't exactly do anything else, can I?" she murmured.
She watched the three of them go through the locked bars and felt truly alone. Tikki had been forced to abandon her during the night, her mystical protection exhausted after their acrobatic antics in the palace. She couldn't even bring food to the little goddess, since Tikki's effigy remained in Marinette's room.
Marinette jumped up and paced a bit, wrapping herself more tightly in the blanket. She stood on tiptoe to peer out of the tiny window, but wasn't able to see much. The cell had no furnishings, not even a chamber pot. She hoped it was an oversight and that she wouldn't have to squat over dirty straw in a corner when the time came. Eventually, she curled back up in the spot where she and Adrien had slept and tried to rest.
The better part of the day had passed when Adrien finally came back.
"He kept you a long time," Marinette commented. "Is Bridgette alright?"
"I think she's fine. Felix escorted her back to her rooms. I really don't like that guy."
"That makes two of us," agreed Marinette. She crossed the room and curled her fingers around the cold bars, noticing for the first time that Adrien was unaccompanied. "Are you... coming back in?"
Adrien frowned and Marinette's heart sank. His words confirmed her fears.
"Actually, the Emperor said I'm free to go," he admitted.
"What? What did you talk about?" Marinette could hardly believe her ears. Favorite gladiator, indeed!
"It was weird. I don't know; he asked me how my mother was. He said he'd met her on a trip to Gaul over twenty years ago, when Felix was still an infant. He said she'd been a gracious hostess and he'd never forgotten her kindness. He wasn't explicit, but I got the impression he was releasing me as a favor to her, or something like that. I... the details are a little fuzzy. I got pretty hungry and tired in there. I was standing up and waiting for a long time. Here, I grabbed you some food."
Marinette took the warm roll of meat and bread through the bars and tore into it eagerly. A bird called outside and Adrien raised his head sharply. As he did so, Marinette caught the little edge of a shadow, like an aura, behind him. She blinked a few times. She felt so tired, she was seeing things.
"They won't let me stay," Adrien continued. "You know I would. I think I probably better go back to the ludus, try to explain things to Nathalie and Alya."
Marinette nodded in agreement. "I know. You're right."
She sighed, looking at the cell. There was no way to know how long she would be in here. Would Emperor Hawkmoth summon her? Or would he just sentence her like the low-life she was? There were fates worse than death in the arena, after all.
He wouldn't be able to completely avoid notifying her parents. He was marrying her sister, after all, and Bridgette would surely send them word of their long-lost daughter. Any message was sure to take weeks, if not months, however. A lot could happen in that time, including a conviction for treason and an execution.
Adrien sighed as he watched Marinette's mouth settle in a half-moon frown. He reached through the bars and took her hands, gently tugging her close to the gate.
"We'll get you out of here. We'll figure out a way," he promised with conviction. Even if he had to use Plagg to physically rip the bars off the window, he'd see her free.
Marinette's lower lip trembled slightly. It was different, how she no longer hid her feelings behind a cool façade with him. If anything, he thought her stronger. He ran curled fingers along the line of her jaw and she arched her neck upward to him. He pressed his cheeks against cold metal and took her lower lip in his, kissing her with as much passion as he could muster until she drew away breathless.
"We'll find a way," he repeated, and then he had to force himself to turn away, to put one foot in front of the other, to not look back so that he could keep going.
Pacing became a regular activity for Marinette as she waited in her cell. Confinement to one small square room made life difficult for the active young woman. The situation improved slightly when Adrien, Alya, and Nino brought her a bed roll and a bucket, as well as the pitcher and cup from her room.
"The scandal is all over Rome," Alya informed her as they passed over her possessions. "The official line is that Emperor Hawkmoth is considering his options. With your royal heritage, there's a bit of a conundrum over whether you can actually be owned or not. Oh, and then there's the requirement in Dupania that the eldest royal children be married off first. You've basically busted up the wedding for now."
Alya, to her credit, was completely unfazed by the revelations regarding Marinette's true identity. Marinette was grateful for the small amount of normalcy.
"How do you know about Dupania's laws and policies? I don't know if they even apply inside the Empire."
Alya rolled her eyes. "Well, last week politics was all a blur to me, but now I have a vested interest. It's not hard to pick things up if you listen."
Marinette pulled the other woman into a tight hug.
"Thank you," she said, tears lightly shimmering in her eyes.
"For what?" Alya's eyes were also brimming, but she brushed at them, annoyed.
"Just for… being who you are. Being my friend. In case I don't get to say it again."
"Shut up. You're not allowed to talk like that. Everything's going to be fine." Alya forced conviction into her voice. "I'll be back to visit you tomorrow. Maybe I can finally run into your sister."
Marinette laughed. "I'd be delighted. You know where to find me."
The better part of a week passed with long hours of boredom broken up by visits from friends or Bridgette. Curiously, Adrien only made it by for a brief stop every day - but he did come each day. He always sought her hand or gave her a kiss, but the light in his eyes seemed diminished. She wondered if he was sleeping well. Hopefully better than she was, at any rate.
With her mask gone, Marinette began to worry about her appearance for the first time in six years. Maybe she wasn't as interesting without the alluring spell of the anonymous Ladybug. She felt a dazed kind of hurt at the end of his short visits, even though they were meant to be a comfort.
In the quiet darkness of the fourth night of Marinette's stay in prison, an odd clamor by her tiny window startled her out of her bedroll. With a clink and a hiss, something small dropped into her cell and landed gently in the dirt. She took cautious steps toward the object, then recognized Tikki's statue and ran forward.
"Tikki!" she cried, relieved. "Oh, Tikki, are you alright?"
The gentle spirit rose from its red enameled likeness and snuggled close to Marinette's cheek. "I'm fine, Marinette. I'm so sorry I couldn't come sooner."
"No, I'm sorry! I'm sorry I ever got the stupid idea in my head to break into the palace. Wait, how did you get here?" Marinette glanced up at the window to see two familiar luminous green eyes blinking down at her. "You?!" she exclaimed.
The talking black cat from Saturnalia dropped neatly into the cell next to her and strutted forward to inspect her empty dinner plate.
"Me," he confirmed over his shoulder.
Tikki giggled. "Marinette, this is Plagg. He's from upper Gaul."
"Um, salve, Plagg," Marinette said, nonplussed.
"Do you have anything to eat in here? That statue wasn't exactly easy to carry. I'm hungry." Plagg's feline nose twitched as he walked the perimeter of the cell, eyes open for scraps.
"Sorry, no," Marinette replied, giving Tikki a look.
"Plagg and I have been making friends in your absence. We met when you were poisoned. He's not really a cat, by the way." Tikki settled onto Marinette's pillow, relaxing back to look up at the young woman.
"You don't say. He certainly acts like a cat... except for the talking."
"Speaking of which," Plagg interjected, "Don't you have more than chit chat to go over with her, Tikki? I've got concerns too, you know."
"Concerns?" asked Marinette, her eyebrows dipping down.
"He's acting weird. I can't figure out what's up." Plagg finally gave up the search for food and flopped down on his haunches facing Marinette.
"Who's acting weird?" she asked, mystified.
"The kid. He's more withdrawn than usual. Not like we were best buds, but I know him better than anyone else and he's definitely off."
"He means Adrien," Tikki supplied.
"You know Adrien?" she asked Plagg, who gave an exasperated harrumph.
"Yes, I know Adrien," Plagg replied with exaggerated slowness, as though talking to a small child. "I'm his... what would you call it, Tikki?"
"Their relationship is similar to ours, Marinette," explained Tikki.
"Wait..."
"You didn't think he was just that acrobatic and that strong on his own, did you? The kid wouldn't have made it nearly as far in the arena without me watching his back. We had a good working relationship, with all the cheese I could want, until you came along and messed everything up." He spat the last words out with a hiss and jumped up suddenly, stalking away from Marinette.
"Ever so sorry," Marinette retorted, a sharp frown on her face. "Adrien never told me about you."
"Yeah, because I liked it that way. But now the kid's ignoring me, lost in his own world. I gotta do something different. So I brought Tikki to you."
Marinette reached under her bedroll for a bit of bread and cheese she'd been saving for later and tossed it toward Plagg. He pounced on it eagerly and devoured it in the space of one inhalation, emitting a satisfied burp after doing so.
"If that's your way of saying sorry, keep it coming," he sighed, laying back on his side.
"No, what I'm sorry about is that I trusted Adrien, but he apparently didn't trust me." Marinette found the quaver in her voice irritating. She took a steadying breath. "Tikki, so much has happened since the last time we talked."
The goddess floated up and patted Marinette's arm. "I'm here now. We'll sort it all out. Why don't you get some sleep, Marinette? Things always seem brighter in the morning."
Marinette nodded assent and slipped into her bedroll, Tikki snuggled close to her cheek.