A/N: So, in my research (yes, I fact check [and yes, Felix is Latin and means happy or lucky]), I came across something regarding our favorite Marinette and Adrien's school; it is a collège, which in France, is the first level of secondary education. A lycée is the next level and would be where Felix would attend. So! For the purpose of this story, their school is now a combined collège et lycée.
Hitting it Off
Beeping. Horribly irritating, thoroughly annoying beeping.
"Ugh, make it stop," Marinette mumbled from under her pink comforter.
"Marinette! It's time to get up!" Tikki's dulcet voice called to her from above.
"Just five more minutes..."
"Marinette!" Two tiny paws shook her shoulder. "You said five more minutes twenty five minutes ago!"
A long moment of silence passed between them, and Tikki wondered if her charge had fallen back to sleep. Suddenly, a flurry of covers flew off the bed and landed on the floor with a thud. A tousled head popped out of the mass of bedding and stared up at Tikki. "Twenty five minutes ago?! I'm going to be late!"
Tikki sighed. "That's what I've been trying to tell you!"
Marinette wriggled out of the twisted bedsheets and scrambled about the room like a whirlwind. Once she was clothed and her dark hair tamed into their usual pigtails, she scooped up her schoolbooks and homework, dumped them unceremoniously into her backpack, and slung it and her purse over her shoulder. "Let's go, Tikki!" She popped the purse open and held it out for the kwami.
"Wait!" Tikki zipped down to her desk and landed on a thick, pink covered book. "You forgot your sketchbook!"
"Thanks, Tikki!" Marinette picked up the book and placed it in her backpack with much more reverence than her schoolbooks. Gabriel Agreste was holding another fashion competition at her school, and Marinette had been up into the wee hours of the night sketching designs. She was torn between a few ideas and wanted to get Alya's opinion before she started putting things together. With everything in order, Tikki zipped into the waiting purse, and they were on their way.
Marinette's dad was waiting for her in the kitchen, a box in one of his large hands. "Here you are, Marinette!" He beamed at his daughter and pressed the box into her hands. "Today's bread and cheese pairing."
Marinette returned his smile and peered down through the window in the lid. "What do we have today, Dad?"
"Garlic and herb chèvre with a rustic sourdough," he said.
"Sounds great! I'm sure my friends will all love it." Marinette glanced at the clock and blanched. "Oh, no! Time to go! Bye Dad!" She kissed his cheek and darted for the door. "Tell Mom I said bye. See you after school!" Tom Dupain just chuckled and waved her off.
The trip to school was uneventful and thankfully quick. As she raced up the stairs and through the front door of her school, Marinette pulled out her phone and checked. She was right on time! Second day in a row. Alya would be shocked. She smiled to herself and looked up just in time to run nose first into something solid. She fell onto her backside with all the grace of a baby learning to walk.
"Owww," she groaned and rubbed her nose. "What..." She glanced up to see what she'd run into.
A young man, dressed sharply in a light gray dress shirt, dark gray vest, and matching dark gray slacks, lay prone before her on his hands and knees. Pale blond hair, which had probably been combed back neatly before she'd knocked him over, hid his face from her view. With a gasp, she jumped up and held a hand out toward him. "I'm so so sorry! I didn't see you there. Are you ok?"
A hand shot out and smacked hers away. Marinette's eyes widened in surprise. Without a word, the well-dressed young man stood up, dusted himself off, and straightened the black tie that was tucked down the front of his vest. He smoothed back his hair, turning his steely blue-gray gaze on the clumsy girl. He stood a good head taller than her, so she had to look up to see his face. His defined features were handsome enough, but his eyes were cold and distant. There was something almost familiar about him (the perfectly shaped nose, the strong jaw, the high cheekbones), but Marinette couldn't quite place her finger on it.
"Are you ok?" she asked again, her face filled with concern.
"You should pay more attention to where you're going," he retorted sharply.
Something snapped inside Marinette. "That would be why I apologized. I even admitted it was my mistake and tried to help you up. You don't have to be so rude! Besides, who just stands in an entryway right in front of the door? Shouldn't you be more considerate about the other people who need to enter or exit the building?"
He opened his mouth to respond but was cut off by a gasp. "The cheese!" The box had flown out of Marinette's hand when she fell and skidded across the floor. A faint noise came from the young man's vest pocket, and he covered it with a hand. Marinette didn't notice. She was inspecting the box and its contents. "Phew," she breathed. "Well, that's lucky. Looks like it's ok." She turned back and was about to say something when the prominent form of her headmaster rounded the corner.
"I'm terribly sorry to keep you waiting," Mr Damocles addressed the young man. He turned his attention to Marinette with a slightly confused smile. "Ah, Miss Dupain-Cheng, the committee sent you to welcome Mr Agreste? I would have thought they'd send someone from his class..."
"Adrien's brother..." Marinette said in wonderment. His familiarity finally made sense. How had she not made the connection before?
"Ah, that's right. You're the class representative for his brother's class," the headmaster recalled. "I suppose that makes... some sense." He shook his head, not quite believing his own words but not about to question the decision of the committee. He noticed the box in her hand and smiled. "Ah, I see you even brought him a welcome gift. That's very thoughtful of you. Be sure to give Mr Agreste the full tour. I'll let your teachers know where you are, so you won't be marked absent." He turned back to the elder Agreste brother. "We are very happy to have you here, Mr Agreste. I do hope you'll pass the sentiment on to your father."
"Of course, Headmaster. I'm happy to be here," he said smoothly, a polite smile gracing his lips. Marinette snapped out of her daze and stared at him. He could be quite charming when he wasn't being rude. Mr Damocles nodded and took his leave.
"Ah, wait! Mr Damocles...?" Marinette called after him a little too late.
"Hmph, trying to get out of it, now that you know I'm not like my little brother?"
She whirled on him. "For your information, no, that is not the case!" She stopped, suddenly realizing that no matter how rude he may be, he was the son of her favorite designer, not to mention the brother of the love of her life. She continued a little more subdued, "Er, Mr Agr-"
"Felix," he cut her off, his voice thick with annoyance. "Do not call me Mr Agreste."
"Right. Sorry. Felix." She closed her eyes, took a breath, and let it out, trying to tamp down her own irritation. Once she felt back in control of herself, she flashed him a smile and held her hand out to him. "Marinette Dupain-Cheng. Like Mr Damocles said, I'm in your brother's class. Oh, but I'm actually not the person who was sent to welcome you. It seems there's been a misunderstanding."
Felix ignored her outstretched hand and stepped past her, glancing around the empty entryway. "Either way, the headmaster seems to think you are, and I don't see anyone else here. You may as well show me around, so we can get to our respective classes." Without even a backward glance to see if she agreed, he walked through the doorway into the main hall.
Marinette grit her teeth and let out a low growl. Her purse clicked open, and the little bug kwami poked her head out. "Are you ok, Marinette?"
"Yeah, Tikki. I just really hope Adrien won't hate me; I may end up strangling his brother!"
Adrien slid into his seat with a sigh and began preparing for class. Why did his family have to be so difficult? Was that what normal families were like? He didn't think so. He'd seen some of his classmates' families that Christmas, and they seemed to get along pretty well.
Nino heard him and leaned over. "Hey, Adrien, how'd things go with your brother?"
Adrien forced a small smile and shrugged. "As well as could be expected. He and I were never really that close." He hadn't even seen his brother when he'd gotten home from school and a photo shoot (a real one). Felix had locked himself away in his room. Adrien figured he was tired from a long day, but when morning came around, Felix stayed in his room till the last minute before they had to leave. He didn't even join Adrien for breakfast. The car ride had been almost painful. Adrien tried asking questions about his time abroad, but Felix simply responded with evasive, one-word answers. Only one question received a genuine response.
"Has Uncle Anton heard anything..." Adrien trailed off, uncertain how to continue.
Felix understood and turned his full attention to his brother. "No. Uncle Anton hasn't heard from mother. He promised he would let us know immediately if she contacts him."
They'd arrived at the school shortly after the exchange. It was for the best anyhow. Adrien hadn't been sure what else to say to him. Even the sentimentally oblivious Plagg recognized the apathetic demeanor Felix afforded his younger brother.
"Harsh. I'm sorry, dude," Nino sympathized. "Hey, you said it's been a while, yeah? Maybe he's just settling back in. You know, might take him a while to get back in the groove of things here."
Adrien highly doubted that but didn't want his friend to worry. Plus, there was always hope that things could change. After all, that year had already brought a lot of change for him. He smiled. "You're right, Nino. Thanks, man."
The teacher called the class to attention and began taking attendance. She had only gotten to the second name when a tap on the door interrupted her. Mr Damocles opened the door. "Sorry to interrupt, Miss Bustier. I just wanted to let you know that Miss Dupain-Cheng will be late today. She will be showing Mr Adrien Agreste's older brother around the school for me."
"Of course, Mr Damocles. Thank you for letting me know," Miss Bustier said with a smile. The headmaster nodded and ducked back out of the room, closing the door behind him.
As soon as the door latched, the students rushed to the inner classroom windows, hoping to catch a glimpse of the elder Agreste. While Miss Bustier sighed in exasperation, they all started asking questions excitedly. Adrien answered them as he could. Ivan, being the tallest, was the first to spot Marinette and Adrien's brother and pointed them out to the rest of the class. Out of curiosity, Adrien looked out the window as well. He blinked in surprise at what he saw.
Felix and Marinette appeared to be engaged in heated conversation as they walked through the hall. Marinette was gesturing wildly with her hands, and to Adrien's surprise, Felix responded with some rather animated (for him) body language of his own. He said something and kept walking, leaving Marinette behind him stomping a foot in irritation. Even though they were clearly arguing, Adrien had never seen his brother react so freely with anyone before. Felix was always guarded, like every word he spoke was calculated well in advance. With Marinette, he seemed unrestrained, almost at ease.
Adrien felt a pang of jealousy. How was it that his own brother appeared closer to a girl he'd just met than with him? And what about Marinette? She was Adrien's friend, but for some reason, she always seemed uncomfortable around him. With Felix, though clearly agitated, she wasn't awkward or uneasy.
The students finally settled and returned to their seats, much to their teacher's satisfaction. Class resumed, but Adrien failed to notice. He was lost in his thoughts about the interaction he'd just witnessed and the implications behind it.
The day dragged for Felix. After he had parted ways with the irksome, blue-eyed girl from that morning, he found his class to be far too interested in him for his liking. He understood that he was the new student, and his studies in Italy set him apart from most new students. Everyone wanted to know what it had been like, tried to practice Italian with him, asked why he'd returned to Paris for a single semester of school. He answered an occasional question, but for the most part, he ignored them, focusing on the classes and the schoolwork. Eventually, his classmates gave up and went back to their own studies, allowing Felix a few moments of peace.
When classes finished for the day, Felix made a beeline for the front door. His own class had been unavoidable. He did not want to end up being stopped and questioned by the rest of the school as well.
The car had just pulled up to the curb, and rather than wait for the bodyguard who doubled as chauffeur to get out and open the door for him, Felix reached for the door himself, anxious to be on his way. As his hand touched the handle, a loud revving caught his attention. A huge truck was stirring up a commotion just down the street. The bold red and purple and strange design of it stood out like a sore thumb on the city backdrop.
"What the...?" Felix murmured.
Someone ran past him from that direction and yelled, "Akuma!"
A what...?
The truck ran its tires up onto the sidewalk. Spikes shot out from the wheel hubs, and there was an unnatural glint from the windshield. The grill looked more like teeth caught up in a wicked smile. The peculiar vehicle began to pick up speed.
Felix saw the truck headed his direction, but his body just wouldn't move. Maybe it was fear or shock or some combination of the two, but whatever the reason, he just stood there dumbly as the thing gained on him. Before he knew it, the truck sped along the sidewalk mere feet in front of him.
Somewhere from the back of his mind, an impudent thought bubbled to the surface. My first day of school, and I'm about to be run over on the sidewalk. Just my luck...
A/N: Well, I missed my every other day update I'd been trying to maintain, but to be fair, daylight saving time is awful... Also, longer update! Anywho, thank you for reading!