CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE:

THE WEDDING

The pipe organs nearly blew Nino's eardrums out as the procession began.

He stood along the starboard railing with the rest of the servants, including Alya. Like them, Nino wore a white, satin jacket with black pants, matching boots, and a long tie. It was making him sweat like a pig in summer time, and the collar was too tight. Apparently, Kim liked wearing slim fittings.

But nothing was more irritating than watching your best friend walk stone-faced down the red carpet along the deck of the ship, with his blonde bride close beside him.

Of course, Adrien looked royally handsome in that gold-and-white suit, complete with the dark green sash. But what bothered Nino the most was that Adrien wasn't the slightest bit thrilled, or calm, or even nervous. He was as blank as a sheet of paper: no emotions whatsoever.

The prince's bride, on the other hand, was the exact opposite: radiant, smiling, and grasping for the attention of the guests as they bowed to her. Her huge dress was frilly along the skirt, and the entire bodice was plastered with white feathers. It reminded Nino of an overweight swan, making his lip curl.

The bride caught Nino's narrowed gaze, and she looked away with a dismissive frown.

Alya made a soft choking sound, like she was regurgitating something. "What in all of Agreste does Adrien see in that vain bimbo?" she whispered to Nino. "Even a man with no decency at all would think twice about marrying her."

Nino nodded seriously, remembering that purplish glow he saw in Adrien's eyes earlier. It wasn't showing now, but that didn't ease the first mate's suspicion of the bride. For one thing, she was still wearing that dark pendant around her neck.

If she really is using magic, Nino thought, how am I going to convince everyone that she's manipulating Adrien? My only shot is to try and get through to him.

But he told himself to be patient; to wait for the right moment to intervene. Otherwise, he would get himself thrown into the brig.

The bride and groom approached the minister – a rather stout man whose pointed headdress was bigger than his entire body. He kept squinting through his glasses at the big book on the pedestal in front of him, as though he was trying to remember where to start.

Either he was the only one available or Nathalie just picked randomly out of desperation, Nino thought. He guessed it was the latter.

The cleric cleared his throat and croaked out, "Ahem... Dearly beloved...!"

Marinette gasped when she came up for air for the seventh time.

Bridgette held her up, panting from all that vigorous swimming.

They still had a long way to go. Though they were much closer to the ship now, it was floating further away by the minute.

Marinette stole a quick glance at the sinking sun. Time was running out!

"We're almost there, sis," Bridgette said, readjusting her arm around Marinette. "Just a little further. We're going to make it."

Marinette looked at her sister and nodded firmly. Being exhausted and out of breath was a discomfort she could live with, especially if it meant saving Adrien.

She took another deep breath, and Bridgette pulled her back under.

While her sister thrashed with her tail, Marinette used her free arm to cut through the water and kicked her feet out rapidly.

She would never give up. She was going to get to that ship if it was the last thing she did!

"... in everlasting love and happiness," the minister drawled. He looked over the watchful crowd. "If anyone here has a reason why these two should not be joined in marriage–"

Now's my chance, Nino thought. He shot his hand up like an arrow to the sky. "I object!" he called in his sailor's voice.

A wave of profound gasps washed over the deck, and all eyes turned to the first mate.

But Nino only had eyes for Adrien and the bride, the latter of whom spun around to face him with surprise.

Alya gripped her boyfriend's arm. "Nino, what are you doing?" she hissed with apprehension.

He inclined his head to her as he replied, "Getting to the bottom of this." He stepped forward and emerged onto the aisle.

Adrien didn't acknowledge his best friend at the slightest. He still faced the perplexed minister like a statue.

His bride snarled at Nino, baring her pretty little teeth like some kind of shark. "Filthy sea dog!" she spat. "How dare you interrupt my special moment! Who do you think you are?!"

Nino folded his arms, unfazed by her attitude or her insult. "My name is Nino," he declared for all to hear. "I'm the prince's first mate, and I say that this whole marriage is a huge sham!"

More gasps.

"Nino, that is enough!" Nathalie crowed somewhere from the back.

But the bride beat her to it. "Get back in line, peasant," she stated haughtily, "or I will have you thrown overboard!"

Not too far from her, the bride's redheaded handmaiden flinched.

Alya immediately rushed to her boyfriend's side, shooting daggers at the bride. "Back off him, Blondie," she said, "or you'll have to go through me."

Even Nathalie was appalled by this second act of defiance.

Nino felt a warm blush creep into his face. My hero, he thought as he clasped Alya's hand.

The girl gaped at Alya with frozen rage. "You... Did you just threaten me?!" She growled and pressed a hand to her necklace.

The prince finally turned around. This time, his face was drawn with hard, unfeeling malice. The greens of his eyes gleamed bright amethyst.

"Nino, Alya," Adrien said in a voice Nino never heard before, "I want you both off this ship. Now."

Nino's stomach plummeted. I was right – she is controlling him!

He held up a hand, his expression pleading. "Don't do this, bro. This isn't you! Think about Marinette! The Adrien I know never would have broken that innocent girl's heart!"

The anger in Adrien's eyes suddenly softened, replaced by something like confusion. "M... Marinette...?" he murmured, blinking several times as he looked away.

Nino beamed. "Yes – Marinette! You remember her, don't you? You called her Ladybug..."

"Silence!" the bride shrieked, her blue eyes glittering like cut glass. "You heard your prince. He wants you to go bye-bye. So go bye-bye!"

"Chloe, please," her redheaded maid insisted.

The bride snapped to her. "Do you want to go over as well, Sabrina?"

The guests and servants now chatted amongst each other in low, unimpressed voices. Apparently, they were starting to like their future queen less and less.

Nino lowered his hand, keeping his eyes on his best friend. "Adrien, remember what I told you, back on the Gabriel?" he asked hopefully. "You never realize how much you love someone until you miss them every minute of every day."

Adrien winced, grasping his head with both hands like he was having a serious migraine. "No... Stop... Get out..."

Nino glared at the bride. Chloe, he realized was her name. "What are you doing to him?" he demanded.

"This is ridiculous!" Chloe declared, pointing an accusatory finger at the first mate. "Guards! Remove this insolent barnacle-licker out of my sight! This is my wedding, and I will not have some low-life..."

Her voice drifted off when another sound broke out above them.

Nino blinked and honed his ears on the noise. It sounded like a swarm of birds. Out in the open ocean?

"What is that?" Alya said, pointing towards the darkening, blood-orange sky.

Everyone except Adrien turned to see what appeared to be an angry flock of black smudges shooting towards the ship.

A raspy voice shouted from the front of the swarm: "It's party-crashin' time!"

Nino's jaw dropped. "Plagg?"

Before he could fully grasp the unexpected surprise, the black-cat kwami led his charge down in to a dive... aiming straight for Chloe.

The bride let out a horrified scream as the flock of birds flew underneath her in a broad arc. The motion sent the skirt of Chloe's dress up into the air and caused her to collapse in a frilly heap on the ground.

Nino would have laughed if more cries of terror hadn't sounded behind him. He turned to see a whole horde of animals chasing the frightened guests around the ship. Seals flopped onboard, and flamingoes swooped in and forced several people to hit the deck.

Sabrina shrieked as a lobster landed on her head, and she desperately tried to shake it off.

Nathalie yelped and leapt aside when a seal bounced past her and knocked over one of the food stands.

Nino grabbed Alya and dragged her behind a pedestal of flowers, his brown eyes growing big behind his glasses as he observed the chaos.

Not as big as Alya's, though. "What the hell is going on?!" she cried.

Nino grinned, all things considered. "Looks like Plagg brought in the cavalry," he said.

Not far from him, he spotted a dishevelled Chloe, who was now back on her feet and raving, "My dress! My hair!"

The minister was trying to bat away a few birds that were flapping around his head.

Adrien didn't even flinch throughout the whole fiasco. He stood oblivious and expressionless at the head of the aisle, his eyes continuing to glow purple.

I have to get to him, Nino thought, glaring over at Chloe.

Suddenly, three pelicans dive-bombed the furious bride and pelted her with beak-fulls of seawater.

Drenched and dripping, Chloe looked up... only to scream again when more birds flew in and chucked a bunch of pink starfish at her. Her scream was cut off when a bigger one smacked her right in the face.

Nino and Alya chuckled silently.

Offside, Sabrina covered her mouth to hide her giggling.

Meanwhile, at the bottom of the ship...

A mermaid and her human sister popped out of the water, grabbing onto the gold-adorned hull exhaustedly.

Marinette looked up towards the top. It was a much shorter distance than it had been when she had climbed the Gabriel. Better yet, there were long poles sticking straight up from the side and holding up the white covering over the deck. Even better yet, Marinette had legs to climb with now.

Bridgette prepared to lift her sister up. "Go," she said. "I'll be right here if you need me."

Marinette paused when the single ruby earring on Bridgette's ear gleamed in the fading sunlight. She touched her own half of the Miraculous... and then looked her sister fiercely in the eye.

With both hands, Marinette unclasped her earring and held it out towards Bridgette.

The older princess glimpsed it confusedly. "But..." she began.

Marinette shook her head, taking Bridgette's hand and dropping the jewel into it.

If she failed, she could not – would not – let the Rubies of Water fall into Hawkmoth's hands. Thanks to his little sabotage, it was clear to Marinette what the Sea Wizard's true motive was.

Bridgette saw the message in her little sister's gaze, and she nodded solemnly. "I'll give them both back to you when this is over," she vowed with a grin. "You're still technically the official Guardian, you know."

Marinette smiled.

Then, she grabbed onto one of the long poles and pulled herself out of the water. Bridgette gave her a boost, and then Marinette climbed on her own the rest of the way, one foot after the other.

Nino saw the opening he was waiting for, and he ran out of his hiding spot towards Adrien.

He gripped the prince by the shoulders and shook him gently, angling his head in front of Adrien to try and get his attention. "Adrien," Nino said, "can you hear me? Snap out of it!"

"Get away from him!"

Nino whirled to see Chloe.

She heaved deep breaths through her gritted teeth as she stomped towards the first mate, wrenching off starfish as she did so. That purple necklace of hers started to glow.

Nino took a defensive stance in front of the prince. His boot nudged against something, and he looked to see a burnt-out candelabra lying sideways on the ground. Nino picked it up and pointed it at the raging bride. It wasn't a sword, but it would have to do.

"You get away from him, you crazy witch!" Nino snapped.

Chloe sneered at him, fingering her pendant again. "You clearly need a proper lesson in respecting your– AAHH!"

Nino reeled when the bride was suddenly hauled up into the air... by a seal.

The first mate watched with amusement as the playful creature bounced Chloe up and down on his nose like a ball. Well, a flailing, shrieking ball with feathers falling off her dress with each bop.

The seal passed the bride to one of his flubbery friends, who tossed her over to the table where the multi-tiered wedding cake sat.

Nino winced as Chloe came crashing down, sending cake, plates, and glasses flying everywhere.

Marinette heard the crash just before she reached the ship's railing and heaved herself over.

She fell to her knees on the deck with a relieved sigh, her arms and legs all numb and rubbery like a squid's tentacles.

But the moment she looked up and saw Adrien, Marinette's strength returned and she rose to her feet.

Her prince was staring blankly at seemingly nothing, while Nino was trying to snap him out of it. That dark, familiar shade of purple in Adrien's eyes made Marinette shiver.

She looked around, quickly taking in the disarray of the ceremony. Animals were either taking off into the sky of diving overboard. The humans gathered themselves up and helped each other back to their feet. Tables were overturned, with food and dishes spilled everywhere, and some parts of the white covering had been torn through.

Not exactly what Marinette imagined for a typical human wedding. But then again, the bride wasn't human.

Speaking of the bride, a lumpy white figure emerged from one of the broken tables on the other side of the ship. She was covered entirely with sticky frosting and bits of cake.

It was Chloe, her seething red face standing out underneath the crown of white icing.

Some people stared at her in silent horror, while others chuckled.

Just then, a cheerful clicking sound announced the arrival of three dolphins, who leapt out of the water just behind Chloe and squirted her with great gushes of water.

The bride gasped and looked overself. Her golden hair had flattened, and her gown was nothing but a drenched rag that sagged heavily against the floor. But at least she was clean now.

The amethyst pendant pulsed brightly at Chloe's throat, and Marinette's eyes widened at the sight of it. She does have it!

Before she could rush over and take it, Plagg swooped in and grabbed Chloe's soppy ponytail, giving it a couple of good yanks.

Chloe howled in pain. With contorted rage, she reached back and grabbed onto the kwami with both hands, squeezing him so tight that Plagg's eyes started bulging.

"I'll teach you, you annoyingly little urchin!" Chloe growled in Marinette's voice. Then, she threw the kwami away with all her might.

Plagg cried out as he flew across the deck. He smacked against the minister's book pedestal like a squeaky toy before sinking to the ground.

"Plagg!" Alya cried.

Marinette covered her mouth, her face paling.

Somewhere, she heard Sabrina's small intake of breath.

Luckily, to Marinette's great relief, Plagg groaned and lifted his head up, disoriented but very much in one piece.

Then, as though she had just swatted a measly flea away, Chloe drew herself up casually and smirked at the catatonic prince and his bodyguard. "Now then," she sighed, gripping her glowing pendant as she walked over, "where were we?"

Nino lifted his candelabra at her, shielding Adrien with his free hand. At the same time, Alya ran to her boyfriend's side, raising her fists.

Cold, oceanic fury flooded through Marinette's veins.

These were her friends, her family...

In the eyes of everyone onboard, Marinette charged forward and tackled Chloe from the side, sending them both rolling onto the deck.

Chloe screamed, and her hand ripped free as Marinette came down on top of her.

Something purple slipped from the bride's fingers and danced in the light of the setting sun.

Both Marinette and Chloe gasped as Hawkmoth's amethyst soared high into the air away from them.

It bounced hard against the wooden deck, creating a pale, glowing crack on the stone's smooth surface.

There was a small pulse of purple energy, which fanned out like a ripple across the ship.

The darkness finally cleared... and Adrien let out a sharp gasp before sinking to his knees.

"Adrien!"

The prince wasn't sure who it was that had spoken. His head was throbbing, and that mesmerizing voice echoed in his ears before fading away completely.

When the pain subsided and he opened his eyes, Adrien was relieved to see a friendly face.

"Nino..." he said.

The first mate sighed with a smile. "Welcome back, buddy." He stretched out a hand to help his friend up.

A tiny groan sounded from the minister's pedestal. "I'm fine too, thanks for asking," Plagg grumbled, rubbing his head as he hovered up.

Adrien took Nino's hand and stood, blinking at his surroundings. "What happened? Did I miss something?"

He was surprised to see the sun going down. Had a whole day passed without him knowing? So many people were here, and they were all standing in the middle of the ocean on a fancy, but messy, ship.

Wait a minute... This was the royal wedding ship! King Gabriel and Queen Emilie sailed on it when they had gotten married, and it hadn't touched the open sea since.

"What I am doing here?" Adrien asked openly. Curious, he looked down at himself and was flabbergasted to see the exceedingly sharp clothes. "And what am I wearing?"

Nino rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, you won't believe this, but..."

At that moment, a painful, high-pitched cry sounded from the centre of the deck: "Get off me!"

Adrien stepped around Nino to see what was going on, and he gasped.

A blonde girl in a torn, soaked wedding gown had just thrown her dark-haired attacker clean off her. Now she was struggling to readjust her haphazard dress.

The other girl rolled away before lifting herself onto her knees, her bluebell eyes scanning the deck of the ship fretfully.

"Marinette?" Adrien said.

She jerked her head up at him with surprise. Then, just like that, a deep warm smile bloomed across her face, like she hadn't seen the prince in years.

Adrien was surprised to see her too, but mostly he was glad she was here.

The blonde bride, however, wasn't. She shot a murderous glare at Marinette. "You're going to pay for that, you...!" She stopped and covered her mouth with wide eyes.

Alya forehead creased. "Call me crazy, but I'm pretty sure her voice did not sound like a whiny dolphin a minute ago," she said.

Adrien blinked suspiciously at the bride, his memories of the night before coming back to him. "Wait... I remember her," he said aloud. "She came to me last night, just after Nino left. The moment I heard her singing, everything went dark."

"I knew it!" Nino snarled, causing the bride to crawl away with terror. "She was bewitching you!"

"She was what?" Nathalie broke out, flustered and dishevelled. "Adrien, Nino, Miss Ladybug... What is the meaning of all this?"

The blonde girl ignored her and looked around frantically. "The necklace! Where is it?" she hollered.

At the same time, Marinette stood up and looked around again.

"I have it," called a soft but bold voice.

Adrien and all the other people on the ship looked to the other end of the aisle.

A dainty redhead in a purple bridesmaid dress stood with her hand clenched in front of her. Her cropped hair blew in the wind. Combined with her narrowed expression, it made her look like a sailor ready to face the might of a storm.

The girl uncurled her fingers, revealing a cracked, purple stone in her palm. It was glowing on and off like a lamp.

Adrien stiffened. That was the exact same glow from the mist that had attacked him last night. Nino said that other girl bewitched me, the prince thought. Was the mermaid's voice even real, or was it all just a ruse to trick me?

Before he could ask anyone any questions, the blonde girl stood up like a white phantom and jabbed her outstretched hand towards the redhead. "Sabrina!" she shouted like she was calling a dog. "Give it to me!"

Marinette glanced between the bride and the redhead, looking terrified for the first time since Adrien found her on the beach.

Sabrina gazed at Marinette with something that looked like realization and sympathy. Then, she turned to the bride with a frown of unadulterated pity.

"No," she said, the word hard and strong like a sail pulling taut against the wind.

A great hush fell over the ship, and everyone inched closer to get a good look at the dramatic scene before them.

The blonde girl's mouth hung open in exasperated shock. It was so erratic, Adrien was sure she would explode into lightning right then and there.

"What?!" the bride snapped, her face twisting with rage and betrayal.

Sabrina just shook her head. "This isn't the way, Chloe," she insisted. "You can't force other people to love you."

Adrien looked at Nino, his unspoken question showing in his green eyes. His first mate nodded with an apologetic shrug. Adrien looked back at Chloe, and shuddered. Man, I must have really been out of it.

Chloe stood there speechless in her ruined dress, pupil-less fury and appall written all over her face.

Then, Sabrina turned to Marinette, who was watching her with a mixture of reverence and gratitude.

The redhead smiled and held the purple jewel out to her. "Marinette, this belongs to you."

And with that, Sabrina compressed her hand into a crushing fist. There was a small grinding sound, and bits of purple dust burst between the girl's fingers.

"No!" Chloe shrieked, reaching out.

Too late. Sabrina opened her hand.

Suddenly, out of the pile of magical dust, a ball of shimmering, golden light appeared. It flew into the air towards Marinette, leaving a trail of mist behind it.

"Ah-ah-ahhh, Ah-ah-ahhh..."

Adrien's eyes widened with soul-stirring recognition.

The mermaid's song sounded from that golden ball – distant and faint, but pure and powerful.

Adrien wasn't alone in his shocked stupor. Nino, Alya, Nathalie... everyone onboard stared with gaping mouths at the magical light and the beautiful melody radiating from it.

The only two people who weren't surprised were Plagg, who was grinning proudly, and Marinette, who stood still with anticipation as the ball floated towards her.

Adrien looked over at the blunette just as the golden orb touched her throat.

Marinette lifted her face to the sky, eyes closed and smiling big, as she opened her mouth and finished the song with her own vocal chords:

"Ah-ah-ahh, Ah-ah-ah-ah-ahhh,

Ah-ah-ahhhhhh!"

The light diminished, the wisps of light vanishing into the air around Marinette.

She laid a tender hand on her neck, beaming with sheer delight and relief.

No one breathed a single sound. All that could be heard now was the soft lapping of water against the ship.

Even though it was dark out, Adrien's world suddenly seemed brighter.

"Deh... Did... Did you guys see...?" Alya squeaked, her amber eyes wide.

"Uh-huh," Nino nodded dumbly.

Adrien stepped forward, like he was in some kind of dream. Only it wasn't a dream. He saw what he had seen, and he heard what he had heard.

Suddenly, Adrien was jumping through time:

He saw the young mermaid smiling up at him after he set her free from the rock ten years ago. Then, after that terrible storm, he was waking up to see that dark-haired silhouette smiling as she sang to him. Finally, he saw Marinette smiling up at him after he found her unconscious outside his castle.

Adrien's heart raced with newfound joy as the truth finally hit him.

Marinette – his Ladybug, the girl he loved – was the mermaid who rescued him during that storm! She was the mysterious singer!

She had kept her promise after all.