Stuck in a Cabin (with you)
Written by: JuliaFC
Betas: Khanofallorcs, Agrestebug, Etoile-Lead-Sama and genxha. Thank you all so much!
Cover Art credit: Rosehealer02 on Deviantart
Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by (c) Thomas Astruc, TS1 Bouygues, Disney Channel, Zagtoon, Toei Animation. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.
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Reply to Reviews:
MiraculousLover2: To be fair in Adrien, Tikki had said "a girl in danger at the lake" she hadn't said that she was drowning or that she had fallen in the water. there could have been a million and one reasons why a girl could be in danger at the lake during a snowstorm, so when Adrien asked if she was drowning it was a legitimate question. he does transform and rush off as soon as he finds out, so we can let him get away with it, can't we? Thank you for your comment, hope you will like this new chapter!
abusemrsdevil13: Thank you!
CaulderPine: yes, debating isn't the best idea when someone is in danger. Here's the update. Please read and let me know what you think :) Thank you for your comment!
Gianfranco Cembran: non ti spoilero nulla, lo scoprirai a tempo dovuto! Grazie per il commento!
dragonlily2002: here's next chapter. Than you for your comment, I won't hold you further :=)
browneyedgirl41: couldn't leave you on pins and needles! Hope you'll like this new chapter, please let me know what you think :) Thanks for your comment!
ClassicCartoon27: thank you! Here's chapter 3 :) Hope you'll like it!
Rose Tiger: Time to find out! Thanks for your comment!
xSapphirexRosesxFanx: yes, Lila IS a murderer. Won't keep you further, go read if Marinette gets saved.
Hunger games. hp n divergent: thank you for your comment!
Agiani: yes, that's attempted murder. I'm glad you're enjoying the story, hope you'll like chapter 3 x
LunaWolf44: first of all don't worry, nobody saw Adrien transform. But someone could have, because he had been really careless about it for once. Yes, this winter is the coldest winter that Paris has seen in a very, very long time. No, Lila doesn't prevent Marinette to find out about the blizzard, sometimes snowstorms can start without warning and the meteo hadn't preannounced any blizzards that evening. But it did happen. Won't keep you longer, go and read if Marinette's OK :=)
mirami03: thank you for your comment!
Kapel85: thank you!
crazi4muzik: here it is! Thanks for your comment x
Happy Easter everyone!
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Chapter 3 — Prince Chat-ming
"WHERE IS SHE, TIKKI?" cried Chat Noir when they reached the lake. The place was silent and not even the sound of the cars in the distance seemed to come to his ear, probably muffled by the billowing wind and the snow that had already wrapped the whole park in its white canopy. If he hadn't been this terrified, the view would have been breathtaking. But the adrenaline rush running through his body kept his concentration on the task. His eyes darted around, looking for the signs he had seen the evening before when he had come here after the first half of the photoshoot. But he couldn't find any, they were all vanished in thin air.
A really bad feeling started growing in his gut. This looked like a set up!
"I don't know…" admitted the kwami, breaking his thread of thought. "I had gotten a couple of landmarks but the new snow must have covered them." She zoomed away and started zipping around the whole length of the lake, appearing to be always more reckless and anxious. She zipped at the centre of the lake mostly, then she went on the other side, then back there again. Until she erupted in a scream.
"Here, Chat Noir, here!" She pointed at where she wanted him to be.
He ran as fast as he could, while he picked up the green slice of cheese and put it into his mouth shouting, "POWER UP!" he barely managed to transform into his aqua form before diving into the water. For a second he literally turned into ice. God, it was bloody freezing! The water seemed to be stabbing his skin everywhere even if he was wearing his suit. But he forced himself to get used to the temperature and to the dim light quickly, and his gaze started darting in the water trying to find his Lady.
And that's when he saw her. His heart stopped.
'No. It can't be. It can't be her. No, no, no, no, no… that's impossible!'
"MARINETTE!" he screamed, as he swam towards the motionless form and grabbed her with one hand in a manic frenzy, using his enhanced swimming capabilities to get to the surface quickly. It didn't seem to work, his limbs were too cold and the water felt almost thick against his arm. Shoot. He looked at Marinette's face and his heart skipped a beat.
His very good friend Marinette. The one whose smile always lit up his day. His everyday Ladybug. The cute, shy, awesome girl who was also one of the strongest people he knew and had been able to stand up to his dad when they had gone to New York. Creative, sweet, determined Marinette. She was his Lady. How did she manage to trick him that well? He clearly remembered having suspected her, but having changed his mind when Kwamibuster attacked because he saw her next to Ladybug! Did she use the Fox Miraculous? She was too clever for her own good.
'FOCUS! Don't think about it. Save her now. Freak out later!'
Suddenly, he thought back to the time they faced Evillustrator, when Marinette had shown him how to use his own baton. His lips curled into a small smile. Of course. He picked up his baton from the small of his back and extended it, while holding it tight. The baton reached the bottom of the lake and then started propelling them up and up, until they were out of the water. He waited until it reached a long enough length to have a panoramic view of the lake, and then used the baton to make himself and his Lady fall to the snow-covered grass on the shore. His eyes were full of tears as he held Marinette bridal style to his chest, his heart pounding inside his throat. Was he too late? She was so pale! And cold!
"S-SHE'S N-NOT B-B-BREAT-T-HING!" he said with his teeth chattering, in utter panic, as his ear pushed on her chest to see if she had a heartbeat. A new layer of snow was starting to dust her figure and her hair was already almost covered.
"She must have started to drown, Chat Noir! You need to help her breathe."
Chat Noir tried to think, although the shivers running through his body and the chattering of his own teeth were so distracting. "I-I n-need t-to… C-P-R…" he managed to say, but then he hesitated.
"What are you waiting for, Chat Noir? Please help her!" begged Tikki. "I can't do it."
Although the cold was still biting at him like a rabid dog and he felt his hands slowly turning into ice, he couldn't help blushing as he nodded warily at Tikki's plea. Luckily, his father had demanded that he take a first aid course when he had started modeling, as part of the health and safety regulations of the Gabriel brand, and there he had been explained what to do when performing CPR. He knew he had to do it, or she would die.
But it still felt so much like a kiss.
'Focus, Adrien. She's dying!' he thought and gave himself a firm slap in the face to shake himself up. With a determined frown, he moved her head up by pushing on her chin, to give her more room to breathe. Then he put his hands on her chest as he had been shown in the course and started compressing (why had that been such a long time ago? Shouldn't he have gotten refreshers from time to time, he wondered), trying to remember what to do and how long to count.
Thirty compressions.
Then he gulped and with a firm movement, he opened her mouth and started blowing air into it.
One. two.
Repeat. Chest.
Thirty compressions.
Repeat. Mouth.
One. two.
Repeat. Chest.
Thirty compressions.
Repeat. Mouth.
One. two.
His heart was racing madly in his chest, hoping that he was doing it correctly, as he remembered from the course that if it was performed the wrong way it could have been even more detrimental.
'Please, Marinette. Please breathe! Breathe for me!'
Hands on her chest. Thirty compressions.
Air in her mouth. One. T—
Marinette started coughing and a massive sigh of relief filled his lungs. He suddenly remembered something that his instructor had said and refrained from hugging her, paying attention to move her a little on the side so she wouldn't choke again on the water coming out of her mouth. The sound of her laborious breaths was the most beautiful sound he'd ever heard. Now that she had breathed a little, he dared picking her head up and gave her a hug, tears flowing down his eyes on his cheeks, almost getting frozen mid way.
"I need to take her to the hospital," he announced, picking her up bridal style. She had fallen unconscious again.
"She needs to be warmed up, Chat Noir, and quickly. Do you know where the closest hospital is?" asked Tikki, zipping in front of him and floating on his nose.
He sighed. "No idea. But," he picked up his baton from the ground, "we can easily check." He turned on his communicator and saw yet another news alert. He opened it up and saw Nadja Chamack already talking. "—ed. I highlight: Code Red. Stay in. Stay safe. More accidents have been reported on the road. The queue at the local hospitals has increased to three to four hours just to be registered, and even longer to be seen. If you don't need to go out, sta—" The screen of his baton flickered and turned black. Chat Noir blinked and gave it a shake, trying to get the screen to turn on again.
"What's going on?" he said to himself, not really expecting an answer.
"Either your phone has died in the cabin or there's a loss of GPS signal so big that the baton cannot function properly," said Tikki.
"Shoot!" cursed Chat Noir under his breath. "My phone was nearly dead earlier. What do I do now?"
Tikki sighed. "You heard Madame Chamack. Marinette doesn't have three to four hours to wait, she needs to be looked after now."
"Usually, emergencies are dealt with much faster," argued Chat.
"Can you take that chance?" Tikki looked at him with utter concern in her big blue eyes. Chat Noir lowered his gaze.
"No," he said in defeat. Then he looked at Tikki again. "I'll look after her. The cabin should have some blankets, and it's much warmer than outside." He saw the wee Goddess of Creation finally curl her lips into a smile and he held Marinette more safely in his arms, bridal style.
"S-so c-cold—" muttered Marinette in his arms, shivering like a leaf. That was the final incentive. Chat Noir grabbed his baton and used it to propel himself forward, trying to reach the cabin as quickly as possible.
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"Claws in," said Adrien as he placed Marinette carefully on the small sofa in the cabin. He made to look for a blanket into the cabinet near the heating system, but as he was walking towards it, Plagg zoomed in front of his face.
"CHEESE!" he demanded.
Adrien raised an eyebrow. "You've eaten it all earlier, Plagg. How big is your stomach exactly?"
"You have no idea!" whined the wee black furball, but Adrien didn't give him any more attention. He opened the press and started rummaging for a blanket, which he found almost immediately. He walked straight back to Marinette and made to wrap her under the blanket.
"That won't be enough, Adrien," said Tikki, flying in front of him and stopping him. "You will only make the blanket wet."
"What do you mean? She's cold, she needs to be covered up."
Tikki kept her tiny body between the blanket and Marinette. "You need to take her clothes off. She can't warm up wearing freezing wet clothes."
"WHAT?" Adrien's face flushed the color of Ladybug's suit. "Tikki, I-I c-can't undress her!"
Tikki gave him a scrutinous look and frowned. "Why? You have two perfectly functional arms and hands. You can certainly take her clothes off."
"I-I'M A BOY!"
"And she's a girl who could die of hypothermia!" Plagg appeared munching a crumb of cheese he must have found somewhere in the room, and floated next to Tikki, giving him an amused stare. He folded his tiny paws on his chest and added scornfully, "Who cares if you're a boy, a girl or even a dog?"
"B-B-B-B-U-T…" Adrien started breathing heavily. "She's going to kill me!"
"I don't think so," said Tikki and Plagg continued, "You need to do it or she will die. I'm sure she will be grateful, gamin."
"C-cold…" muttered Marinette from the couch. He dashed to her to check if she had woken up — but no, she was still unconscious, probably talking in her sleep. God, she was so pale, she was still shivering badly, her teeth were a constant chattering and her lips were blue. He touched her hands, and they were pieces of ice.
He took a big breath. "O-okay," he said and started taking her coat off, and then her black blazer, and put everything on the ground next to the small sofa. When she was left in her bra and underwear, he gulped and hesitated.
"Would this be enough?" he asked, looking at his two small companions with a fearful frown. To keep himself occupied he started drying her skin with a dry towel. She was still shivering.
"Would you like to sleep with freezing wet underwear on?" asked Plagg in response.
No, he wouldn't. But… he couldn't possibly justify. No, he couldn't. He ran a hand through his hair and thought carefully of the situation, scratching firmly the nape of his neck. He tried to gain some time by picking a towel and starting to dry her hair. He suddenly realised that she was still having her hair combed into her pigtails, so he put the towel down to take off the elastic bands that held them together.
Shoot. He'd never thought that it would be that hard to detangle elastic bands from wet hair. He felt her wincing as he gave the elastic a firm push and took it off. Quite a few strands of hair came off with it—he felt terrible, but he picked up the towel and carried on drying her hair for a few moments, trying to take away most of the wetness.
He still had the other problem, the wet underwear, which he didn't want to remove. At least not without her being covered. Wait, that's it! His face brightened and his lips curled in a triumphant smile, as he'd just had an idea and it could really work. He picked up the blanket and placed it on the now soaking wet leather sofa. Then he quickly dashed to the cabinet and got another blanket, which he wrapped around Marinette's body. Good, now that she was covered, he breathed easier. He moved her towards him and put his hands inside the blanket, starting to fiddle with the little hooks on her bra. Finally, after some effort he managed to open it up and take it off, with some struggle (he was trying to prevent the blanket from falling off as he did so). Then, he picked up a smaller towel and passed it blindly on her wet skin to dry it, making sure that he wasn't touching anything inappropriate with his bare hands. But as he proceeded to move to the other piece of lingerie that was left on her, he stared at his hands, literally shaking.
"Told you he was useless, Sugarcube," muttered Plagg from somewhere behind him, his voice full of mockery and mischief. Adrien turned his head to glare at this little friend.
"I'm not," he argued.
"You are," argued back Plagg. "Take that piece of fabric off already. You covered her, right? You won't see anything."
Adrien sucked his breath in. His heart was in his throat right now. He moved his hands underneath the blanket and had to run them on her body trying to find the border of her knickers. Oh God, she was so cold! When he found the underwear, he pulled it off, let it fall on the floor on top of the other clothes and gave even that part a blind and very quick drying.
When he let even the towel slip on the floor, he breathed better, his head resting against the blanket that wrapped Marinette. Thank God, that bit was done. He thought he was going to die! He carefully let go of Marinette and placed her on top of the blanket he had wrapped on the sofa.
"Good, about time," muttered Plagg. Again, the wee black furball zipped in front of his nose and looked at him, a gleam of mockery shining through his electric green eyes. "Now it's your turn."
Adrien gave Plagg the most confused look ever. "Huh?"
"Adrien," said Tikki moving next to Plagg, as her little paw touched Adrien's cheek. "Marinette needs body heat. You need to undress and get under that blanket with her, and hug her until she warms up."
His heart stopped. "I NEED TO DO WHAT?" he squealed, his eyes as big as saucers as he looked at Tikki in pure and utter terror. "She's naked, Tikki!"
"Come on, you've always wanted to do this. Take your clothes off and cuddle her already!" Plagg snorted.
Tikki blinked and then rolled her eyes. "Stinkysock! You've got no tact, at all."
"It's not a question of tact. I know him, Sugarcube. If we let him take his time, Pigtails is going to freeze to death." Plagg snorted again. "Gamin, come on. Man up and do your job. You want to protect her, right?"
"Adrien, please. The longer you wait the worse Marinette will get. Do it for me. Or for h—"
"—or for whomever. As long as you do it. Her lips are getting bluer than Duusu."
Adrien gave them a pleading look. Then he gulped, looked at Marinette's blue lips, shivering limbs and pale complexion and gave them another pleading look.
"Please, Adrien, we would do it ourselves if we could, but we're too small!"
Adrien whimpered, but his hands started working their way to his coat. He took his coat off and his skin was greeted with the cold temperature of the cabin. God, it was freezing! Did the heater even work? He hadn't turned it off before getting out of the cabin, it had been on all day! He proceeded to take off his overshirt, and then his black t-shirt. He shivered.
"Ugh!" he muttered and folded his arms around his chest, trying to warm up. The heater was at full heat, he noted, but the cabin was still freezing.
"Come on!" ordered Plagg. Adrien glared at him, but stood up and took his jeans off. Uh, bloody hell, he had goosebumps!
"What are you waiting for, Christmas?" asked Plagg when Adrien had been left with only his boxers to cover him. Adrien forced himself to get out of his self-induced panic and slipped into the blanket, shaky hands reaching the body of the girl of his dreams and pulling her close.
She. Was. A. Piece. Of. Ice! Oh God!
He gasped so loudly that Tikki flew near him and looked at him with a frown.
"Are you okay?" she asked worriedly.
"Just being spineless," spurted Plagg mockingly, gaining another glare from his chosen.
"She's so cold!" whimpered Adrien, but forced himself to embrace her firmly with his arms and squeezed her against his chest. He wrapped his body around her, trying to keep contact with as much of her skin as possible. His hands started rubbing her back and arms, trying to create heat from friction.
Slowly, very slowly, so slowly that for a while he thought that Tikki and Plagg had been mistaken and he really should have taken her to the hospital, Marinette began warming up. As she warmed up, the rigidity in her limbs faded and without waking up, she started hugging him back.
When he realised that Marinette was finally warm and out of danger of hypothermia, Adrien detangled himself from her hold and let himself fall off the front of the sofa.
"Are you hurt?" asked Plagg, looking at him with no real concern from the cushion he had placed himself.
"No," answered Adrien, "Marinette isn't frozen anymore. I want to find some clothes to change her into. You know, to prevent her from killing me when she wakes up." He shivered as the freezing cold of the cabin hit his bare skin, but he proceeded towards the wardrobe.
Plagg sighed and shook his head. "I told you way too many times that you worry too much, gamin. Sleep and when she wakes up she can dress herself!"
"At least a t-shirt, come on…" muttered Adrien chattering his teeth. He rummaged among the spare photoshoot clothes that were left in the cabin — sometimes a t-shirt or a pair of trousers didn't fit the ensemble and had to be changed. There was no lingerie (and if there had been, Adrien wouldn't even have touched it. Ew!), but after a quick scan, he finally emerged from the pile holding an XXL t-shirt that he would easily be able to put on Marinette. It was so oversized that he was sure it would cover enough of her minute figure to make it safe. It wasn't really nice to look at, but it was something.
He approached Marinette and lifted her head softly to put the neck hole of the t-shirt on. Then he proceeded to put one of her arms in the arm hole, and as he was doing that he noticed that Marinette had opened her eyes. Blood drained from his face.
"Mhhhhh," she murmured, and drifted off back to sleep instantly. Adrien breathed a sigh of relief. He finished to fit her arm on the t-shirt and then moved her slightly to put on her other arm, making sure that the blanket was covering Marinette's chest. When the t-shirt was on, he pulled it down and admired his work. Yes, it was reasonably okay, the t-shirt was covering her course she was still naked underneath it, but at least it was one layer to separate her from… him. With one firm movement, he buried himself again underneath the blanket, and as if she'd been there waiting for it, Marinette wrapped herself around him again subconsciously.
Soon after that, Adrien's adrenaline rush dissipated. Marinette was finally warm and soft against his body and the smell of coconut and wildflower coming from her hair hit his nostrils. Her regular breathing was tickling the crook of his neck, and he found himself gently stroking her hair, the only part of her body that was still a bit damp, and cold. Her hug had grown stronger as her temperature raised, and now she was holding him tightly.
It was becoming always more difficult for him to keep his eyes open. He hadn't thought about it as he panicked trying to rescue her, but the run and the manic CPR session, had really taken a toll on him, even if he'd been transformed. Add to that the long day in school and the even longer afternoon posing for the photoshoot—Adrien was exhausted. He placed a light kiss on her forehead.
"Mhhhhh, me and you against the world, mon Chaton," she murmured in his ear.
His heart started racing as a smile curled his lips. He grabbed one of her hands, tugged around his waist, and placed a kiss on her knuckles.
"Always, My Lady," he whispered before drifting off to sleep.
Author's Note:
Hi again! Here's chapter 3. Marinette is safe. Adrien… hum… don't know about that XD
In the next instalment of "Stuck in a cabin (with you)", "Trapped":
— "What can be more urgent than the ceiling risking to fall on our head?"
— "Look at me, I'm the IMAGE of calm."
— "Well, this gentlecat deserved a reward, right?"
So… I hope that you enjoyed the fluff at the end of the chapter. This isn't the end, though. Let me know what you thought about it and drop me a comment! I will continue soon :) can't promise I will publish every week, but let me know what you think and I'll publish as soon as I can. Please subscribe if you're interested in knowing what is going to happen, so you will know when the next update is!
And please check out my other WIPs, "When Magic Fails", "Caught in the Loop", "Errata Corrige" and "La Caverne du Papillon d'Or"!
Last but not least, as usual, if you read this and you're not part of our wonderful Discord server already, but you enjoy reading, writing and talking about Miraculous, please join our Discord server, Miraculous Fanworks (for people on FFN, discord dot gg slash mlfanworks). See you there soon. Not sure when I will update this story but it won't be too long! Promise!