Good news, I'm back. Again, I'm sorry about the lack of update yesterday. I had meant to get this chapter up this afternoon when I returned from camping, but, well, stuff happens. So I'm uploading it now. I'll try to catch up over the next few days and get back on track. I'm hoping tomorrow's chapter (which should have been today's) will be easy to write as it's written up in detailed note-form.
This chapter frustrated my poor, English brain which wanted desperately to write candy floss instead of cotton candy, but alas. Technically it should be 'la barbe à papa' (or 'daddy's beard') as that's what they call it in France.
Thank you for all of your support. I hope you enjoy this chapter!
Day Fourteen: Cotton Candy
"Hey, you free today?"
"Uhh...yeah? I think so. I have some homework to finish but that can wait."
"There's a fair in town today. You want to go?"
"Ooh! Sure, that sounds fun!"
"Great. I'll pick you up in ten?"
"Okay! See you soon!"
Marinette ended the call and squealed. "Tikki! He's taking me to the fair!"
Tikki laughed, spinning in the air. "The weather's finally getting warmer," she said. "It's a great day for it!"
"Spring is finally here!" Marinette sighed happily. Spring was definitely her favourite season. Or one of her favourite seasons: Summer was great too, and autumn was beautiful, but winter was so inspiring...
But spring was great, and that's all that mattered.
Marinette ummed and ahhed over her outfit for a while before deciding to change into something a little nicer. A little more date-like. She knew Luka didn't really care for such things, but she liked making the effort. And even though he didn't mind what she wore, he always made sure to compliment her when he noticed.
Having settled on cropped jeans and a pink blouse embroidered with white birds, she quickly tugged on her shoes and grabbed her bag, holding it open for Tikki to fly inside, before hurtling downstairs. Her parents were in the bakery but looked up when she came barrelling in.
"You going out, sweetie pie?" Sabine asked. "You look very nice."
"Luka's taking me to the fair!"
"Oh, how lovely!" Her smile turned sly. "Things going well with him? You've been dating for how long now…?"
"Just over three months," Marinette replied, feeling a soppy smile spread across her cheeks. "It's going so well, maman. Everything just feels so right when I'm around him."
Sabine shared a look with Tom, prompting both parents to chuckle.
"You know, we still haven't had the chance to meet him properly," Tom commented. "As your boyfriend, I mean. After that mess with Chat Noir…" He trailed off, but Marinette knew what he meant. He was wary of coming on too strong and frightening Luka off. But Luka was so chill, she doubted anything could frighten him off, not even Tom trying to plan his future as his son-in-law.
"You will," Marinette assured. "Maybe we can invite him around for dinner or something?"
"That would be lovely, dear. You'll have to see when he's free; next Thursday or Friday would be good," Sabine said. Something outside the window caught her eye. "Looks like your young man's here…"
Indeed, mere seconds later, Luka walked through the door. As predicted, he looked as he always did: laid back in a slightly punk manner. Marinette didn't mind; it was an attractive look, after all. Especially when he flashed her a crooked grin and booped her nose with his finger.
"Hey, beautiful," he said. "You look great. Ready to go?"
Marinette nodded, grinning when he grabbed her hand. "Yeah, I'm ready. Bye, maman! Bye, papa!"
"Have a good time, dear!" Sabine called as the two made their way out the door. "Remember to find out about dinner!"
"I will!" With a final wave, Marinette shut the door behind her. She smiled down at her hand, intertwined with Luka's, and swung it slightly as they walked.
"So, what's this about dinner? Doing something special?" he asked. She felt him swing their hands too.
"Oh, my parents and I think it would be nice for you to join us for dinner one day, maybe next Thursday or Friday. They say they haven't met you as my boyfriend yet, so…"
"Ah," he said with what might have been a nervous chuckle, or a soft cough. "Friday isn't great for me. So, Thursday?"
"Perfect."
The fair wasn't far. It was held in a park a ten minute walk down the road, which had been filled overnight with tents and rides and stalls. A Ferris wheel reared above the crowds, the smell of warm doughnuts and caramel apples permeated the air, the sounds of shrieking and laughter swirled around them, all beneath the warm spring sun.
They ambled around for a bit to check out the stalls and try a few games. Luka, it turned out, was an awful shot, but Marinette managed to win him a small, cuddly snake on a key-ring by knocking over buckets with a rubber ball.
The rides were fun too, from the pendulum banana boats to the the high swings which span so fast you were almost parallel to the ground. They had decided to get the fast rides out of the way first so that they could then buy a snack from a food booth without worrying about throwing it up later.
With a little bag of warm doughnuts and powdered sugar between them, Luka and Marinette headed onto the Ferris wheel. Luka proved, yet again, that despite his almost edgy look, every bone in his body was romantic when, at the top of the wheel, he drew Marinette close and laid his chin on her head.
Apparently, when he'd found out Marinette liked physical affection in a relationship, he used every opportunity to pamper her with gentle touches and embraces, and Marinette loved it.
She was pretty sure she loved him too, but it was too early to say, right?
Instead, she commented, "It's so beautiful. I almost wish I could stay up here forever. Don't you?"
"Sure," he replied, head dipping slightly so his mouth was just behind her ear. "As long as I'm with you."
She nearly melted right then and there, but managed to hold herself together. "You're such a sap."
"You love it."
"Hmmm, yeah, I do."
He nuzzled her shoulder and kissed the back of her neck, then withdrew slightly. "What do you want to do next?"
Oh, right. Their capsule was slowly descending; their time on the Ferris wheel was coming to an end. Marinette wasn't sure what she wanted to do next. There were a few more rides, she supposed. The teacups, dodgems, a small, gentle roller coaster. And some games they had yet to check out. Her eyes alighted on a coconut shy, and she remembered with a smile the days when her father insisted on trying it every time they saw one. Unfortunately, his aim had been as bad as Luka's. It might be fun to try and win a coconut as a trophy in his honour…
But then, by the cotton candy stall next to the coconut shy, a child kneeling on the floor was suddenly enveloped in black and purple plasma.
Hawkmoth.
An akuma.
Now!?
"Marinette, time to get off," Luka said, nudging his girlfriend who seemed entranced by something else. Marinette turned to him, blinking hard, then grabbed his hand and all but yanked him out of the capsule, leaving their nearly-empty bag of doughnuts on the seat.
"There's an akuma," she yelped. "I just saw it."
"I didn't see any—" Luka began, then the screaming started. He and Marinette whirled around to see a large, pink mountain erupt from the crowd. "Oh, there it is."
Marinette bit her lip—fear, he guessed, but she wasn't the fearful type—and let go of him.
"Marinette?"
"I, uhh, have to go to the bathroom?"
He stared at her. "Now? No, we have to get out of here. What if the akuma knocks over the stalls and traps you inside?"
"But—"
The shrieks crescendo-ed as a throng of people charged towards, through, past them, chased by what could only be described as a giant piece of cotton candy. Luka dove forward, reaching for Marinette's hand before the crowd could separate them too much…
But she was already gone.
He cursed under his breath. Why now? Frantically, he tried to peer over the hordes of people, but they were moving too much, pushing and jostling, and soon he was dragged along with them. He could only hope that Marinette had been pushed along as well, and that he'd find her when the crowds thinned.
It didn't stop him from yelling her name every other second, hands cupped over his mouth, voice lost among the screams. "Marinette! Marinette!"
The space opened a little as they reached the edge of the fair where Luka spied the block of portable toilets. He broke away from the crowd and sprinted to the girl's bathroom, stopping just shy of the door.
"Marinette!?" he called, desperation drowning and awkwardness he felt. "Are you in there?"
No reply. He yelled again, but just then Chat Noir came flying through the air and slammed straight through the bathroom door. Luka ran up the metal stairs to help him, but paused in the doorway.
Chat Noir stumbled towards him, rubbing his head. "Looks like this cotton candy's got some bite to it," he said. "You might want to find somewhere safer. And, uh…" His green eyes flickered to the door, clearly displaying it was the girl's bathroom, then back to Luka with a raised eyebrow.
"I'm looking for someone," Luka explained hurriedly.
"There's no one in here," Chat Noir replied. "Now, if you'll excuse me...it's time for dessert."
With a two-fingered salute and a grin, he used his baton to catapult himself high into the air and back towards the cotton candy monster.
If Marinette hadn't slipped away to the bathroom, as she said she wanted to, then where had she gone? Why did she always go missing at the worst of times? Luka groaned, tenting his hands over his nose, trying to think, trying to keep calm.
Aha. Fingers suddenly feeling big and awkward, Luka fumbled his phone out of his pocket and brought up Marinette's contact info. He pressed call, held the phone to his ear, waited anxiously for her to pick up…
She didn't. The phone rang and rang. And rang.
He hung up, tried again.
His third attempt was interrupted by a glob of cotton candy flying past his face. The battle was drawing closer to him, the monster stamping and swiping a Ladybug and Chat Noir. The superheros flipped and vaulted, trying to land hits, but for every bit that managed to cut off, another growth of floss would sprout.
Luka began to run, trying to skirt around the battle as he phoned Marinette again. But Ladybug had managed to trip up the akuma with her yo-yo and send it flailing to the ground, its head landing near Luka's feet.
"AAAAUGHRRRR!" screeched the akuma eloquently. It was rather creepy up close; a large, pink cloud with empty sockets for eyes and a gaping hole for a mouth. Luka staggered backwards, nearly dropping his phone. The akuma made to grab at him, but its arms were stumpy, still missing a few chunks where it hadn't grown back yet. Its legs were two stumps, but feet were forming rapidly and soon enough the akuma was standing up again, yelling its garbled speech.
And still Marinette wouldn't pick up.
The akuma raised its hand, a bulb of cotton candy grew on its palm then suddenly shot forward. Luka barely had time to flinch, but before it reached him, Ladybug's yo-yo sprung out and punched it out of the air.
"You need to get out of here," Ladybug yelled, coming to stand in front of him, glaring down the akuma, spinning her yo-yo. "Now!"
"I can't," Luka exclaimed. "My girlfriend, I can't find her."
To his surprise, Ladybug looked over her shoulder at him with slightly flushed cheeks, opened her mouth to reply but couldn't quite manage any words.
Why did it seem so familiar?
"CATACLYSM!"
Chat Noir's yell snatched both of their attention as he pounced on the akuma, one hand crackling with black energy. He swiped at the cotton candy monster, but instead of disintegrating or dissolving, it shrank. The pale pink turned dark, shrivelled like raw wool. The empty face melted into a sugary skull.
"Huh," Chat Noir said, frowning. "I thought that would work…"
"If only you'd think more often," Ladybug muttered. She gingerly touched her ears. "Luka, get out of here," she snapped. "You have to go. I promise, your girlfriend will be okay. Find somewhere safe for yourself for now."
There was no use in arguing with Ladybug, especially as she seemed so irate, so Luka turned and ran. But he had no intention of finding a safe place.
He ducked behind a games stand, looked at his phone again. Marinette's contact photo grinned back, all flushed cheeks and warm eyes. He was used to seeing it every day when he texted her, but why did it feel more familiar today? Because he'd tried to phone her three times now?
Fourth time's the charm. Luka pressed call, waited. The phone rang once, twice…
Stopped.
He didn't even wait for her to speak, just opened his mouth to cry her name.
He barely got past the first syllable when something cold struck his back. Pink crawled up his arms, dissolving skin, flesh, bone. Writhed up his neck, into his face.
The world fell away.
