A/N: *Coughs* Hi. It's been a while hasn't it? According to it has been exactly 126 days since I last posted here. So yeah! It's been done for a while I wasn't exactly happy with this chapter for a looong time. I think this is about as good as I can get it. Hope you guys enjoy!

Chapter 13: Flying High

As the day stretched on and the tour dwindled to an end, Marinette was searching for an out. Not because she was tired of Adrien's presence, in fact it was the opposite! It was just... There were only so many flirtatious comments and compliments that she could take without pinning him to a wall and kissing him senseless. Based on how she'd caught herself reaching for his hair to play with it, (Just one touch wouldn't hurt right? Merlin, it looks SO FLUFFY.) on three separate occasions, she decided the best course of action was to direct him to somewhere with more people, if only to restrain herself.

Fortunately, she was given the perfect excuse to do just that when they stumbled upon Brendan, who was pacing back and forth looking agitated. His expression immediately brightened when he saw the two.

"Marinette! Mr. Agreste!"

Marinette noticed how Adrien winced at the sound of his name.

"Brendan. Please call me Adrien. Please."

Brendan looked startled, as though he hadn't realized what he'd called the blonde. "Oh! Right, sorry. Anyways, Marinette would you be willing to come down to the Quidditch pitch right now?"

"Sure, what's up?" Marinette asked, starting to walk down the stairs, Adrien in tow.

"I overheard the Gryffindors planning to hide the equipment after they were done with it," Brendan grumbled, quickly joining them.

"That seems impolite," Adrien said with a frown.

Marinette shrugged. "Nothing too terrible. Just a friendly rivalry is all. They're still upset we got one up on them last year." A smirk began growing on her face.

"On the pitch or in a…" Adrien hesitated for a moment. "Oh l'enfer." He muttered. "What's the word for 'farce'?" He asked.

Marinette stared at him blankly. A glance to her left showed her that Brendan looked just as lost.

"You realize we have no way of answering that right?" Marinette asked, bemused.

"Oui," Adrien muttered. He began mumbling to himself in French, still trying to remember the word he had apparently forgotten.

"But we did beat them in the match last year!" Brendan said helpfully.

"And the prank war," Marinette added with a grin.

"PRANK!" Adrien exploded. Marinette and Brendan both jumped at the sudden shout. "That was it! 'Prank'!" he exclaimed, face lit up in victory.

Marinette laughed. "Good job."

"But there was a prank war?" Adrien asked.

"Oh yes!" Marinette said, grin becoming more sly. "And it was glorious."

"It started with them hiding our brooms," Brendan explained as they walked by the Great Hall, "We eventually tracked them down, but we retaliated the week after."

A grin was growing on Adrien's face and he turned towards Marinette. "What'd you do?" he asked excitedly.

"Oh you know," Marinette said blithely. "A simple Transfiguration spell that changed the Bludgers into snakes when they tried to release them."

"Ahhh, the screams..." Brendan said, looking wistful. "That was such a good day."

Marinette continued to tell Adrien about the teams endeavors of making the Gryffindor teams lives miserable as they walked towards the pitch, where the Gryffindor quidditch team was wrapping up practice. They had just finished putting all of the equipment away, and had picked up the chest containing the balls. A few of them were giggling and glancing around, making sure they weren't being observed.

"Oi! Duncan!" Brendan shouted at the Gryffindor captain from across the pitch.

"Come off it Gray!" Duncan retorted. The Gryffindor team looked visibly disappointed, and quickly put the chest back down. Adrien and Marinette chuckled as the Gryffindor team sulked off the field.

"We're going to get you back!" One of the Gryffindors shouted defiantly.

"Yeah yeah," Brendan muttered, dismissing them with a wave of his hand. He started walking towards the locker rooms and glanced at Marinette. "Come on, let's go get dressed."

"Coming!" Marinette said brightly, before turning back to Adrien. "Can you guard the trunk?" She asked hopefully.

Adrien chuckled and winked. "Avec ma vie, Princesse." He turned and walked off to the chest without another word.

Marinette stood rooted to the spot, heat rising in her cheeks. A sentence that she couldn't even understand had just sent her brain into lockdown.

"Marinette!" Brendan called. "Let's go!"

That snapped her out of her reverie and she ran across the field to change. As she approached the changing room however, her mind was far from Quidditch. One thought kept bouncing around her head, and it had nothing to do with Quaffles or brooms.

Screwed. I am so screwed.

XxXxXxXxXx

Marinette hummed to herself and drifted lazily in front of her goalposts. The Quaffle was currently on the other end of the pitch, where Brendan was holding it, speaking to the rest of the Chasers. The team Beaters, Albert Chambers and Josh Mason, were hitting a Bludger back and forth with increasing speed, trying to get the other to flinch first.

Marinette paused in her aimless drifting and chanced a glance towards Adrien, who she had still not completely gotten off of her mind. The Quidditch star was watching the practice with mild interest, though Marinette had a suspicion that he was vaguely bored, if only because he was twirling his wand in intricate patterns as he watched.

She marveled at his wand speed. His control was flawless, leaving a mixture of colors in the air in front of him, weaving a pattern that looked almost plant like as it spread through the air. Marinette reluctantly tore her gaze away at the sound of Brendan's whistle, and she shifted her attention towards her teammates, who had just started to fly towards her.

She took a deep breath and flew into position. It was a classic 2 on 1 drill. Amelia was the one on defense, while Brendan and Derrick Vaughn went on the attack. If Amelia got beat on a move, it would be Marinette against two, and it was hard enough to save the quaffle when it was just her against one attacker.

Amelia swooped over to pressure Derrick, forcing him to pass the quaffle to Brendan, who caught it smoothly. Marinette quickly maneuvered herself between the left and center rings, ensuring Brendan didn't have an easy shot at goal. Brendan noticed this, and immediately shot towards the middle of the pitch. Just when Marinette thought he was going to shoot, he lofted the ball up and to the side, neatly arcing it over Amelia's outstretched arm and directly into Derrick's hands.

Marinette was already flying when Derrick released a furious shot on the ring to her right. Marinette leaned desperately over her broom and got a fingertip to the Quaffle. The misshapen ball glanced off of her finger and clanged off the hoop before plummeting to the ground, eliciting a few choice words from Derrick, who quickly pursued the ball, snatching it before it could hit the ground.

Marinette grinned victoriously and fistbumped Amelia as she flew by.

"Great save," The blonde girl complimented, looking relieved. "Sorry I let them get the shot off."

Marinette waved her off. "Don't worry about it," she said reassuringly. "That was a great play by Brendan. Derrick just got unlucky."

"Have you considered letting us score once or twice?" Derrick pleaded, whizzing up next to them, "To give us just a tiny confidence boost?"

"Nope!" Marinette replied cheerfully. "Cause that way when you do beat me, you'll know it was for real."

"If we beat you," He replied moodily.

"When," Marinette said firmly. "You almost had me there. Seriously. I barely got to that shot."

Derrick perked up slightly. "Really?" he asked, looking hopeful.

"Really," Marinette confirmed with a chuckle. "You'll get me soon. I can feel it." She raised a fist, and he tapped it with his own.

Marinette then noticed that behind them, Brendan was grinning like a fool, and she had a suspicion he'd been listening to her and Derrick's conversation. He flashed her a thumbs up, before rising to join them.

"Alright," he began, looking around the field. "We're gonna try again, but this time it'll be the three of us against the beaters. Just one bludger will be in play, but we had issues against bludgers last year, and we need to be prepared for that. Marinette, you can sit out this drill, you've been in the last four. Get some water, take a break."

"You don't need to tell me twice," Marinette said with a grin. She quickly descended to the pitch and smoothly slid off of her broom, heading for the water jug at midfield. Humming happily, she poured herself a cup and took a long drink.

"Nice save."

Marinette shrieked and dropped her water. She whirled around, scowling.

"Don't do that!" she growled at Adrien, who had somehow made it down from the grandstands in an instant.

Adrien grinned unabashedly and winked. "I wanted to talk to you, and you weren't making eye contact. I had to come down here myself."

"Oh, sorry," Marinette apologized, bending down to pick up her cup so that he couldn't see the heat rising in her cheeks. She stood and began refilling her cup "How did you get down here anyways?"

"I jumped."

The cup fell to the ground again and spilled its contents all over Marinette's boots.

"You did what?" She screeched.

"I… jumped?" Adrien asked, looking bemused.

"From the sixty-foot grandstands?" Marinette asked in disbelief.

"Well you can't Apparate on the grounds."

It almost sounded to Marinette like Adrien was trying to rationalize jumping off of a structure. It wasn't working.

"There are stairs!" Marinette stressed, pointing at them, as though to prove her point.

"There's also gravity and 'arresto momentum'," He countered with a shrug. "It's faster, more fun, and more efficient."

Marinette was nearing hysterics as she replied. "Oh yes of course." she cried, arms flailing dramatically. "Let me just throw myself off of a sixty foot drop because I don't really feel like taking the stairs right now!"

"You should!" Adrien said cheerfully. "It's fun!"

Marinette stared at him slack jawed, before she turned on her heel and strode towards her broom.

"Where are you going?" Adrien called, laughing.

"Up!" Marinette growled. "I need to not be looking at your stupid face for at least five minutes."

"I'll have you know that several magazines have called me quite a catch."

Marinette stopped dead and whirled around. "Did you just pun?" She demanded, eyes blazing with indignation.

"Did it work?" Adrien asked, looking hopeful. "I'm much better with my puns in French."

"Merlin, I hate you right now," Marinette growled, climbing onto her broom.

"Marinette!" Adrien whined as she lifted off.

"What?" she asked dangerously, hovering fifteen feet up.

"I'm sorry I threw myself off of the grandstand," He apologized, his smirk still plastered on his face. "Will you come back down?"

Marinette contemplated, staring down at him. "Are you sorry for the pun?"

Adrien's smirk grew into a full blown grin. "If I said I was?"

Marinette steeled herself against his grin, which was suddenly very distracting. "I'd come back down."

A moments hesitation, and then, "I'm not sorry," Adrien confessed, a giggle escaping his mouth.

Marinette felt her heart lurch. "Then goodbye." She forced out, and then she shot off into the sky, leaving a laughing Adrien behind her.

She allowed a small smile of her own to cross her face when she was sure he couldn't make out her features anymore. She took a deep breath, trying to calm her racing heart. Merlin, it had been a giggle. A giggle.

"No one person should have that much cuteness," she muttered to herself, slowing down to a more reasonable speed. Eventually she halted altogether, stopping a few hundred feet above the pitch. She began surveying the practice, if only to take her mind off of a certain blonde, wincing as one of her teammates got hit in the stomach with a bludger.

A soft hoot interrupted her quidditch watching, and she turned to see Tikki, happily perched on the end of her broom.

"Hey girl, how are you today?" she asked, offering a hand.

Tikki took a step closer, allowing Marinette to stroke her feathers. The owl crooned happily, and Marinette smiled. Marinette remained silent for a few moments, merely watching the practice and letting the wind blow through her hair.

"You know, I think I understand why you like being up so high Tikki," She murmured, letting her eyes drift shut, enjoying the light touch of the diminishing sunlight. "It's calming."

"Isn't it?" a familiar voice asked.

A sigh escaped Marinette's lips, but her heart betrayed its true nature, fluttering in her chest.

"I said I wanted to be alone," she chided, not looking at him for fear of him seeing the smile on her face.

"No, you said you didn't want to see my face for five minutes, and by my count it's been at least that long."

"Mmm." She hummed noncommittally. "Fine. I can allow you to stay- OH MY GOD!" she shrieked as she finally turned to look at him.

Adrien gave her a lopsided grin. An upside-down grin. The blonde was hanging from his broom upside down. Marinette took a deep breath.

"What is with you and giving me heart attacks today?" she muttered, rubbing her forehead in a mixture of frustration and admiration.

"I'm not even using my arms!" he pointed out cheerfully, giving her a cheeky wave.

"Of course not," Marinette replied with an eye roll. "That would be safe and responsible."

Adrien laughed and righted himself in a fluid motion. He eyed her, still smiling until his gaze shifted past her and out over the horizon where the sun was setting, tinging the sky orange and pink. She floated over to join him, noticing how the mirth that had been ever present in his eyes had seemed to diminish.

"Hey Adrien?" Marinette inquired softly, breaking the silence as the sun continued its descent.

"Hmm?" He replied, snapping his eyes away the skyline.

"You know how I went to the World Cup?"

"I doubt I could forget," he laughed. "What about it?"

"It's… it's dumb, but I noticed you didn't sing the national anthem." she forced out. "Was there a reason for that?"

Adrien's smile slipped off his face, and he looked back at the sunset. Marinette could practically feel the tension radiating from him, and she opened her mouth to take back the question, only to snap it shut again when he opened his own to reply..

"When I was fourteen, I had a friend named Joel." Adrien sighed, and a small smile crossed his face. "He was a Muggleborn exchange student from America. He's the main reason I can speak English so well. We met through a dueling club I was enrolled in, and we hit it off. We started spending a lot of time together, and he was my best friend for about a year." Adrien took a deep breath and his smile vanished again.

"Then… On July eleventh, the anniversary," he bit out, "of the end of the war. 'the end of discrimination...'" he sneered, ",it all went to hell. We were leaving one of the parties around town. He'd snuck me out of my house because… well. Let's just say my dad is a tad overbearing. But we'd gone out and had fun. He dropped me off back at my house, and I told him to be safe, and he laughed." Adrien shook his head and stared out over the horizon, not really seeing what was in front of him.

"His picture was on the front page of the paper the next day. The report said that he'd been tortured, was nearly unrecognizable, and the words "Sang de Bourbe" had been branded on his forehead."

"Mudblood..." Marinette whispered.

"Yeah," Adrien murmured. "Turns out, some people wholeheartedly bought what Hawkmoth had been selling. Even eight years later."

He sighed again, looking down at his hands. "And then, at the world cup, when The Following actually showed up… I almost killed that last guy you know. I stunned him in the end but… I was tempted."

Adrien glanced back up at her, his face a mess of emotions, worry and guilt chief among them.

"Does that scare you?" He asked, voice weary. Marinette hesitated a moment before answering.

"Yes, it does," Marinette replied truthfully. "But I'm not scared of you." At Adrien's questioning look, she elaborated. "That decision you made… to stay your hand? That's the difference between people like them and people like us. If the other guy had had the chance he would have killed you in an instant, for no reason, and with no remorse. You had every reason, and you held back."

When Adrien didn't say reply, she drifted closer, and placed a hand on his. A weary but grateful smile flashed across his face, before he shook his head.

"I just… I want revenge, Marinette," he said blandly. "An eye for an eye, except I want to rip out both eyes and stomp them into dust."

Marinette didn't have an answer for him, but he didn't seem to need one. He was visibly relaxing, and he eventually let out a huff of derisive laughter.

"What?" Marinette asked, curious.

"Oh just something my mother used to say," he answered. "Le problème avec un œil pour œil est qu'il laisse tout le monde aveugle."

"What does that mean?" Marinette queried.

Adrien smirked. "The trouble with 'an eye for an eye', is it leaves everyone blind."

He hummed and drifted away from her, heading back down towards the ground below.

"Come on, we should head back. Big announcement tonight!"

Marinette blinked, before diving after him. Returning to the changing room, she quickly swapped out her Quidditch robes for her school robes and rushed out to meet Adrien. The pair walked in a comfortable silence, lost in their own worlds as they made their way up the hill to The Great Hall.

A/N: No I don't know when the next chapter will be, yes I have started it I promise. :) Hope you liked, have a lovely day everyone!

Until Next Time

~Nebilas~