CHAPTER EIGHT:

THE FAIRIES AND THE FALLEN PRINCE

Apparently, no room in this castle was exempt from being overly lavish. Marinette learned that when the intricate wooden door in the east wing opened up to reveal her own room.

The moment she stepped inside, Marinette couldn't hold back her amazement. This isn't a room, she thought as she took it all in, it's its own palace!

The main chamber was the bedroom, with pale carpets and white gossamer drapes that gave it a soft, ghostly look. A plush bed that could fit three fully-grown men lay against one wall, complete with ornate bedposts draped with velvet curtains. Across from the bed was a large vanity and mirror, a small wash basin, and a small seating area by the large, metal-framed window. A small alcove led to a bathing room, and another one appeared to be a walk-in wardrobe. Between them stood a small yet grand fireplace, where a strong fire was already crackling steadily. The entire room was adorned with golden laurels against a background of buttercream beige. High above in the center of the ceiling was an exquisite chandelier, which had been designed to look like golden branches sprouting leaves of rainbow crystal.

While Marinette ogled the scenery, Tikki and Plagg swept inside like they owned the place. The cat-like fairy plopped himself onto the bed and yawned very loudly. His partner watched Marinette with hopeful eyes.

"Well?" Tikki asked, beckoning to the accommodations. "What do you think?"

Marinette finally closed her mouth, just realizing that she was being impolite to these kindly creatures. "It's… lovely," she replied, "and not what I expected."

"What were you expecting?" Plagg snorted. "Rats, mold and a waste bucket?"

"Plagg!" Tikki snapped at him. "Behave yourself."

Marinette dared to touch one of the designs on the walls. Smooth, but dusty. Other than that, the space carried a warm air of hospitality. Comfort and luxury indeed. "I only meant… well… You didn't have to go through all the trouble to give me such a big room."

"Trouble?" Tikki giggled. "Nonsense. It's a room fit for a princess, just as Cat Noir promised. Heaven forbid we treat his lady as anything less."

Marinette's lips pressed together until they turned white. "I'm no one's lady," she said lowly. She felt as though she was talking to Theo Barbot all over again. She didn't belong to anyone, and Cat Noir would have to do well to remember that.

"But you are his guest," Tikki said, flying over to her. "Which reminds me, you must be hungry. When was the last time you ate? I can swoop down to the kitchen and fetch you a nice luncheon, if you'd like."

"Lunch?" Plagg perked up, his ears shooting to the ceiling. "I'm in!"

Marinette was about to answer when she heard different voices sounding outside the bedroom.

The first one was delicate and feather-soft, but the tone was stone-cold. "Get back here, tu petit démone!"

"Make me, Birdbrain!" snickered the second voice, which was more slurred and tomboyish.

Suddenly, two more fairies zoomed into the room. The one in blue was furiously in pursuit of the one in orange, who held something between her nubby paws as she avoided her pursuers futile grabs. Marinette watched open-eyed as they zipped around the walls and furniture like hummingbirds.

The blue fairy raged the entire time. "Je jure devant Dieu, Trixx! Give me back my feathers or I will cut your tail off! Non, attendez! I will pluck each of their hairs out one by one!"

The orange fairy – Trixx, she was called – seemed to find those words even more amusing. "Then I'll just stick these feathers onto me instead. The blue will definitely bring out the purple in my eyes, wouldn't you agree?"

She got an answer, but not from the fairy she was running from.

Marinette didn't notice that another fairy had entered the room until she saw it yank Trixx out of the air by her bushy tail. This new fairy was entirely green, with yellow eyes and a small green shell clapped onto his back like a turtle. He tsked at the squirming orange fairy he held and said in a calm, aged voice, "Up to your old tricks again, are we, Trixx? Why am I not surprised?"

"Lemme go, Wayzz! Come on, it's not my fault!" Trixx pleaded with annoyance as she hung upside-down from her tail. "Duusu was picking on me!" She hissed and snapped at him with her little snout, and only then did Marinette make out her fox-like features: orange with white strips, pointy tuffs for ears, and a big puffy tail that was now in the nubby green hands of the turtle fairy. In her paws, she held a small fan of sapphire-blue peacock feathers with bright pink eyes on the end.

The blue fairy huffed and snatched the feathers from Trixx before reattaching them onto the end of her miniature blue body. Her indigo eyes were orbited in pink sclera, and they narrowed on her little fox friend. "Honnêtement, Trixx. You are like a tiny little dog – begging for attention, taking things that are not yours."

Trixx twisted herself back upright and smirked. "Better a dog than a chicken. Buck-buck! Buck-buck-buck-bucka!" She put her paws into her armpits and starting strutting in mid-air like an actual chicken.

"Guys, that's enough!" Tikki bellowed as loud as a harmonica.

All three little heads in the air turned at the ladybug fairy's voice, and all was quiet again.

Plagg rose up from the bed and finally decided to chime in. "In case you bubble heads didn't get the memo, we have a guest." He swept a gentleman-like gesture towards Marinette. "Permit me the introductions. Trixx, Duusu, Wayzz? Marinette. Marinette? Trixx, Duusu, and Wayzz."

The three newcomers looked over at the human girl before them. As one, they beamed at her.

The turtle fairy crossed his hands together and bowed. "It's an honour to meet you, Mademoiselle Marinette. Truly, an honour. You have no idea…"

"Finally!" Trixx cheered as she zoomed over to Marinette's eye level. "A real girl in the castle! We have a girl in the castle, guys! Or, do you prefer woman? Ehn – tomayto, tomahto. The point is we finally have a girl! Whahoo!" She started doing spins, loops and somersaults. "It's happening, guys! It's finally happening!"

"Trixx. Manners." Tikki sighed before turning back to Marinette. "Sorry about that. She's a little hyperactive."

"Apparemment," Duusu agreed. She flew down to Marinette and smiled brightly. "Enchantée, mademoiselle. Oh, just look at you!" She then got really close and started messaging Marinette's cheeks and chin, much to the latter's discomfort. "Such pretty eyes, such a proud face… and such adorable freckles, too! A portrait of perfection, non?" She finally pulled away and curtsied. "I am Duusu, and might I say you are the most beautiful lady I have ever met?"

Marinette grinned awkwardly as she rubbed her cheeks. "Yeah, I… get that a lot."

She started when a flash of yellow light appeared in the center of the room. From the glowing ball, a tiny form emerged with a big, lady-like yawn. Another fairy, judging from the big head and miniscule body.

"Do you all mind keeping it down?" the new fairy asked in a buzzy voice as sweet as honey. "The queen needs her beauty re… ehhhhhhh…" She yawned again and started to nod off, her black antennae drooping over her yellow-and-black striped head.

Tikki giggled and whispered to Marinette, "That's not a queen, that's just Pollen. Don't mind her. She's a bit of a diva."

Pollen sniffed and mumbled sleepily, "The queen does not suffer such… ehhhh… disgraceful language from modest… ehhhh…"

Duusu smacked her head. "Oh, merveilleux."

Plagg rolled his eyes. "Rise and shine, Your Majesty. Come meet our new friend, Marinette."

"Hmm?" the fairy called Pollen turned around, her deep-blue eyes blinking as she refocused. She looked like a bumblebee, but it was clear that she was the same manner of fairy as all the others.

Marinette gave her a tiny wave. "Hello," she squeaked.

Pollen blinked again, rubbed her eyes, and gaped at the blunette. "Ahhhh… Is this a dream?" she asked no one in particular.

"Nope," Trixx replied proudly. "She's the real deal."

Instantaneously, Pollen's drowsiness vanished like a melted snowflake, and she straightened with a sunny disposition. "By my stars!" she exclaimed. "A human girl!" She cleared her throat and curtsied with a hand over her heart. "Greetings, my lady. You are most welcome in the presence of royalty."

"Seriously?" Plagg groaned.

"That's kind of you," Marinette broke in, seizing her chance to speak at last, "but I'm not a lady. I'm just a girl from the village."

"Oh, gobbledygook," Trixx said. "If His Furriness picked you, then I'd say you're more than just a "girl from the village". Why, if it weren't for the cur–"

"Ahem!" Tikki and Plagg both cleared their throats in unison.

Trixx gasped and covered her mouth with her paws. Then her tail, for good measure. "Never mind," she mumbled.

Marinette squinted at the fox fairy. This one seems to be quite the blabbermouth, she thought slyly. Maybe I can get her to tell me about the curse… and how to get out of my deal with Cat Noir.

"Say, aren't we missing someone?" Plagg spoke out, obviously trying to change the subject. "Where's Butterboy?"

"Butterboy?" Marinette asked.

"He means our friend Nooroo, the butterfly fairy," Wayzz corrected. "And to answer your question, Plagg, he's in the west wing."

Plagg's whiskers drooped a bit, and Marinette could tell that Wayzz's answer held more meaning. "Oh, well… no worries. He'll catch up later."

Trixx zoomed right into Marinette's face, making her step back. "Hey, wanna see me do a trick?" she asked. And without waiting for a yes or no, the fox fairy took a deep breath, plugged her nose, and blew. Her fears shot out diagonally and made a high-pitched, whistling noise that sounded like a baby elephant.

Marinette covered her mouth, chuckling silently through her fingers.

"Quit fooling around, Foxface, will ya?" Plagg came over and urged the fox fairy to back off. "She's not exactly thrilled to be here. You remember that human baker who took the rose?"

Marinette stiffened and lowered her hand. "You all know about that?" she asked, glancing between the colourful ensemble.

"Most of us saw it," Wayzz said, his yellow eyes filled with pity. "That was a very brave thing you did, by the way, Marinette. Offering yourself up in your father's place."

"We know it must have been really hard for you," Tikki added, and the other fairies nodded sullenly.

She didn't need their pity, but Marinette couldn't bring herself to scold them for it. After all, they weren't the ones who were practically holding her prisoner in a castle. "I never asked for any of this," she said, fighting back a lump forming in her throat, "and now I've lost my parents, my home, my dreams… everything."

All those places she would never go, the adventures she would never have, the dress shop she would never build and make her own… All of it had gone up in smoke. She was alone in the world now.

Tikki flew over and laid a tiny hand on the girl's shoulder. "Cheer up, Marinette," she encouraged. "You may not have your old life anymore, but now you have us. You're not alone."

Marinette blinked at the ladybug fairy, wondering if she could hear the sullen thoughts filling the blunette's head like a clogged dam. All the same, she offered a small smile as a way of appreciation, and that loosened the pressure a little.

"She's right," Trixx chimed in, swishing her tail back and forth. "Everything will turn out well and dandy in the end. You'll see."

"Speaking of well and dandy," Marinette rubbed the back of her neck. "I actually am a little hungry."

Duusu held up a hand. "Say no more, mademoiselle. We shall see you have the finest nourishment in the kingdom." She clapped her hands and moved towards the exit. "Pollen, Trixx – tout suite. Come along."

Pollen lifted her chin with a sigh worthy of Chloe Bourgeois. "The queen will move at her own pace, thank you very much," she said as she sauntered after the peacock fairy.

Trixx let out a bored groan. "Why me?"

"Because you owe Duusu for the tail incident," Wayzz said, tugging on his friend's ear. "And if you so much as think about pulling another prank while fetching our lady friend her meal, I'll have you shining every suit of armour in the castle until they gleam."

"You can't do that!"

"I'm the head of the household. So, technically, I can."

Plagg licked his paw and then touched it against his tail, making a sizzling noise. Tikki giggled.

Trixx's cheeks turned cheery-red. "Okay, okay," she sighed before zooming out of the room with a rambunctious "Sheesh!".

Wayzz winked at Tikki before following Trixx outside.

The ladybug fairy smiled at Marinette. "If you need anything, just ring the bell over by the bed. One of us will come over and help out with whatever you require." She bowed and then flew through the threshold.

"Except bathroom breaks," Plagg noted as he headed for the door. "You're on your own with those." He flashed his fangs and then scurried out. The door clicked shut behind him, as though on an invisible wind.

Now, Marinette was truly alone in this enormous, grandiose room. Despite the warm welcome from the fairies, she still felt a harrowing chill in her bones.

She glanced at the window. She hastened over to it, undid the latch, and pushed both glass doors open.

Freezing wind rushed in, sending snow into the room and onto Marinette's clothes. The sky was blotched with blue and grey, and the sun was arching down towards the horizon. When Marinette inched further and looked past the window pane, her breath hitched and her stomach dropped. The height of the tower was long and far, stretching at least several hundred feet to the rocky ground. Worse, there were no balconies or ledges for Marinette to lower herself down to.

There was no way out from here. No easy means of escape.

The hard reality of it all came crashing over her like a cold wave upon a rock.

Marinette couldn't hold it back any longer. With a haggard sigh, she pulled the glass doors shut. Just as tears blurred her vision, she went over to the oversized bed and lay down, not bothering to take off her cloak or boots.

The pillow was large enough for her to bury her head in, and thick enough to muffle her long, heavy sobs.

After his awkward introduction with the girl, Cat Noir's knees had almost given out by the time he made it to the west wing. He had to lean on the door just to steady himself, and his heart was pounding unusually fast.

Thankfully, Nooroo was there to pull him back together.

The butterfly fairy – with lavender skin and four tiny little wings jutting out of his back – knew what had happened the moment Cat Noir stumbled through the door. All the fairies had known. The others were now poking in on their lovely new guest. At least Nooroo had decided to take the time to check on their anxious friend.

Nooroo didn't say anything until after Cat Noir took a hot bath, slipped on a soft robe, and sat down on the edge of his king-sized bed, staring down at the floor with a great sigh. Even with the patches of fur along his arms, legs and chest, and the way his eyes gleamed like a predator watching for trouble, he still looked like the wounded boy Nooroo had met that very first day.

Finally, Cat Noir looked up at his fairy friend. "Three hundred and sixty five," he said.

Nooroo blinked. "What do you mean, Master?" he asked in a voice that was like a gentle breeze.

The princely beast sighed with a sad smile. He had asked the little guy many times to not call him "Master", since none of the fairies were his servants, but Nooroo had insisted anyway. No doubt out of respect for his social status. "That's how many days it's been," Cat Noir clarified, "since the curse began. That's a whole year, Nooroo."

Nooroo nodded solemnly, knowing the hidden message.

A whole year. That meant the boy would only have a few months left until the spring equinox. The enchantress had been very specific.

Cat Noir couldn't help but glance over at the balcony. The sealed glass doors were painted with beautiful fractals of frost that glistened in the sunlight. At the center of this marvelous picture stood the little glass cloche. The enchanted rose floated inside it, standing out like a drop of blood upon snow.

Cat Noir raised himself up from the bed and went over to it. The rose's head was dipping downward as though bowing to him. Some of its petals had already fallen, and now they were nothing more than dead purple leaves at the bottom. The rose had started wilting just a couple weeks ago, leaving Cat Noir more devastated than ever.

Now, today's new development was like a streak of sunlight shining through the frosted glass.

"A whole year passes," Cat Noir continued, scrapping his claws delicately along the cloche, "and now, against all odds, this girl shows up out of nowhere. Not only that, but she decides to take her father's place of her own volition."

This girl – Marinette, that was her name – was not what Cat Noir expected of a baker's daughter. Sure, he had met his share of pretty peasant girls in the past, before… everything happened. But never in his life had Cat Noir seen a girl as extraordinary as Marinette. She was brave as she was beautiful. Her hair was like the night sky under a glowing moon, and her eyes were like crystal fountains of sparkling water. Even when she had looked at him apprehensively in the entrance hall, Cat Noir saw that this girl had a spark of flame inside her; something he had not seen in a long time.

Nooroo flew over to him, his purple eyes gleaming with curiosity. "Are you thinking that this girl might be the one to break the spell?" he asked.

Cat Noir paced across his bedroom with his hands folded behind his back, his padded feet tapping softly against the floor with each step. "I don't know," he admitted. "I mean, she's the first girl I've met, and we didn't exactly get off to a good start." Just another streak of bad luck on my part, he thought.

"Well, falling in love does take time, you know," Nooroo said with a hopeful smile. "It's only the first day. Give her a chance to get to know you."

Cat Noir sighed and shook his head. "She doesn't want to get to know me, Nooroo," he stated grimly, looking over at his friend with hurtful eyes. "She made it pretty clear from the get-go that she didn't want anything to do with me." He sighed and ran a hand through his mop of golden hair. "And considering what I put her father through, I can't blame her."

To this day, he wished he could go back in time and stop the baker from trying to take one of the roses from his mother's garden. The binding magic that surrounded this castle had been another gift from the enchantress. It was a not-so-subtle way to ensure that no girl would ever bother to come here, and even if she did, she wouldn't bother getting close to Cat Noir simply because she would feel like a prisoner. What girl would ever learn to care for someone who kept them locked away from everything they knew and loved?

Cat Noir winced as he bit his lip, and licked the sore spot his fangs had dug into. He hated it when he did that. Even after a year, this body still took some getting used to. How can anyone stand me, he thought bitterly, when I can barely stand myself?

Nooroo saw that look and came over to sit on his shoulder. "You shouldn't be so hard on yourself, Master. What if this is your only chance? You can't just give up because your first encounter didn't turn out the way you hoped it would. Sooner or later, she'll see you for who you really are… but only if you let her in."

A stone-like lump rattled inside Cat Noir's stomach. And what will she see? He wondered to himself. A stupid boy who let his own mother and his people be turned to stone? A helpless prince who doesn't deserve to be a king?

Cat Noir looked over at the table with the rose again. Laying beside it was a large, hand-held mirror. The frame was made of intricate metal – definitely old and rusted, but still useful. It had been a special gift from the fairies. So, of course, it had a special kind of magic to it.

He really shouldn't… but what was the harm?

Cat Noir walked over and picked up the mirror. His ghastly reflection stared back at him, and the dark glass surface only made him more menacing. "Show me the girl," he spoke.

The mirror glowed with a warm blue light, and Cat Noir's face was replaced by Marinette's. She was sitting curled up on her new bed in her new room, her arms wrapped around her legs and her chin resting on her knees. She looked so miserable and pale, and shiny streaks of tears glistened on her cheeks. She kept glancing over to the window, as though waiting for something to come swooping in to rescue her. Cat Noir recognized the hollow agony in her expression. He had seen it on his own face every time he looked in the mirror.

When he could take no more, Cat Noir placed the mirror back down on the table a little harder than he intended. To his relief, Nooroo didn't say anything.

"Who am I kidding?" Cat Noir mumbled, his throat constricting as he held back tears of his own. "She'll never see me as anything but a…" He swallowed hard and barely managed to form the last word. "… a monster."

"Master…" Nooroo started.

But before Cat Noir could tell him to save his pity, he saw something shift inside the cloche. He looked up and watched with defeat as a rose petal broke off from the head of the flower and fluttered down onto the table. The moment it landed, it turned as dark and ugly as a bruise.

Cat Noir groaned when he felt the spell take hold of him, stretching a few inches further along his body like an ink stain. Normally, he was used to the transformations, but seeing Marinette in the mirror had left him unraveled and unprepared. He fell to one knee, almost knocking the table over as he struggled to stay upright.

"Master!" Nooroo was at his side instantly, using his magic to keep his friend from collapsing.

Cat Noir forced himself to breathe through his nose, a little bit at a time. The pain finally ebbed away, but he remained kneeling there on the floor, hunched over like a wounded animal. He was just glad that none of the other fairies were here to see this. He wouldn't want them to worry more than they already were.

Reaching up, Cat Noir pulled a part of his robe aside and glanced down at his left arm. A new layer of black fur had crawled its way up his upper arm, just barely grazing his shoulder. He checked his other arm – same thing. Then, he opened up the chest part and saw a new stripe on both sides of his torso, making that a grand total of six. Finally, he used the mirror to check his face. The furry mask over his eyes had extended a little further past his cheekbones, and his ears had grown bigger and more prominent.

Cat Noir found himself chuckling. "At least I'll be warmer for the rest of the winter," he said. That was stupid, Cat. Stupid, stupid, stupid. He put the mirror back and then sat down on the floor in his crumpled, unkempt form. This time, he didn't stop his tears from slipping out.

Nooroo simply returned to his perch on the boy's shoulder and nestled against his cheek.

The little guy could tolerate Cat Noir's appearance… but for how long? When each new petal that falls, I lose more of my humanity. If Nooroo doesn't notice that, Marinette certainly will, and she'll like me even less.

He glanced away from the cursed rose and looked up at the afternoon sky through the wintery windows.

He didn't want to give up. He couldn't give up. But he didn't know what to do anymore. He hated himself for being so weak. So… hopeless.

So, like many other times before, Cat Noir sent a prayer to the high heavens, begging whatever god was listening to – for once – give him something to hold on to. Preferably, before he would lose himself forever.