Something collides roughly with him, causing his eyes to shoot open. He quickly recognizes just what it is and affectionately pushes them away. Giggles echo through his ears. Green eyes creak open to a pair of blue ones starring at him.
He's still not entirely awake but his brain is processing enough for him to know what exactly he's dealing with. Next to him, he hears Plagg groan less content at being so roughly awoken. Adrien however is rather more indulgent. He begins to stretch himself, doing so cautiously so as to check just what sort of state his body is in. It's been quite a while since he'd last found himself sleeping on a couch. The giggling starts back up as apparently he isn't waking up quite fast enough. The next thing that he knows, there's a cushion being slammed into him. He lets out an audible "ouf" suddenly wide awake.
This time, the laughter dies down abruptly. It doesn't take him long to figure out what or rather who must be the cause. Shifting, the young man turns himself over to look up at a nearby woman. He offers her a little smile, hoping to signal that he doesn't mind being woken up in such a manner. It's all in good fun after all. Truth be told, Adrien's still a little bit too sleepy to quite make out whether she took note of his gesture or not. The woman walks round the end of the couch and over to the little one responsible for disturbing him from his sleep:
"You said to wake up him." The child speaks before the woman has a chance.
"Yes. To wake him up gently. Not to beat him with a cushion!"
"It's fine Man..." Adrien yawns loudly. "I needed to be up anyhow."
He moves so that he's sitting on the edge of the couch. The girl smiles, realizing that she's out of the dog's house. Adrien can't bring himself to be upset with her even on the worst of days, so today? It's out of the question for him to have even the slightest bit of resentment within him. She gives him a hug. At her age, she struggles to wrap her arms around him, in fact, she can't even do that. It gets the message across though. A few moments later, he finds himself confronted with an overexcited dog. A few brief protestations later, some laughs and he's able to gently bat the dog away.
The young man gets to his feet. He hobbles somewhat, forcing himself to limp as he makes it over to the coffee table where he'd decided that it would be a good idea to discard his cane.
"It it bad?" The woman asks him after witnessing the spectacle.
"Not really…" He shakes his head reassuringly. "It's always cranky first thing in the morning. A nice warm shower and I'll be fine."
"How can a leg be cranky?" The child questions an equal mixture of curious and confused.
"Old war wound-" The young man responds with a slightly teasing smile. "-and it's my hip."
"Which is why you don't throw yourself into your brother."
The girl smiles a little bit sheepishly as both settle down for breakfast. Adrien wonders how long Nathalie has been up. He can sleep quite deeply. The fact that they're sitting round the breakfast table, the woman serves them some orange juice. It was about five minutes before a man, already dressed comes in with a bag full of viennoiseries. He greets them with a smile and to the woman, he gives a peck on the cheek. The meal is simple and relatively relaxed given the day that they have ahead of them.
"Are you nervous?" Jacques asks him after a short while.
"A little..." Adrien mutters rubbing the rim of the glass.
"Well it is a big day." Nathalie reminds him with a gentle smile.
"The biggest?" The girl pipes up curiously.
"One of them." The young man answers her kindly.
Truth be told, his heart is beating a little bit faster than it usually does. The doctors have told him to watch out for that sort of thing. He isn't worried though. He knows just why there's a fluttering. Why he's nervous. Ironically it causes him to smile a little bit.
It's probably a good thing that Nathalie's there to hurry him on his way and ensure that everything is running smoothly. He feels little bit guilty. This must be putting quite the strain on her. As if managing herself today wasn't enough. She's also got her husband, young daughter and adopted son to ensure are all ready and correct. Thankfully, the woman is a warrior. Years of working for Gabriel Agreste have made her somewhat unsinkable when it comes to this sort of thing. She manages to direct the whole little group. Ensuring that everyone is washed and dressed appropriately. She seems to take it in her stride, never letting any panic take hold.
With the short supply of bedrooms, Adrien finds himself getting ready in the bathroom. At one time, he'd been very used to putting on outfits and suits. These days, more often than not, he wears what's comfortable, not what his father's company is pushing forwards as the latest trend. It comes back to him for the most part. As he looks at himself in the mirror, he finds himself incapable of stopping himself from fidgeting, playing with his hair.
"Are you ready?" Nathalie comes in, her voice soft.
"Yeah..."
He turns around and looks to her like a child to their mother, looking for a mixture of reassurance and confirmation that he was doing something right. He wants to appear calm and in control, more dignified. Instead, he feels uncertain, nervous. All of that is drawn out, causing him to want to seek comfort and some reassurance from her. She seems to sense that he's uncertain, insecure and offers him a kind and encouraging smile. She steps forwards slowly, taking the time to help his fix one of his cuffs. The woman doesn't speak. She doesn't need to. Her mere presence is enough to comfort him. He's able to breathe once more.
"You'll do fine." The woman tells him quietly.
Adrien smiles but finds that he wants, needs something a little more. He gets his hug. It no longer feels quite so strange as it once had done although perhaps it is still reserved for special occasions. Nathalie returns the gesture, giving him a pat on the back as she does so. It's enough to give him the courage and reassurance that he needs: he won't mess this up. Everything is going to be fine.
They're ready to leave a moment later.
It's a beautiful summer's day. Warm but hopefully in early June it won't be excessively hot. This suit is unlikely to be all that friendly as far as scorching temperatures are concerned. Adrien's attention rests outside as they drive along whilst Nathalie attempts to answer all of her daughter's seemingly never-ending questions. They have a driver. There is one man who couldn't be dissuaded from accepting the task or at least that's what he's been told, the young man had yet to actually hear Gorilla articulate more than the occasional grunt.
The limo pulls up as close to an old church as it can get. The group exit the vehicle as quickly as possible. Already there are some familiar and friendly faces gathered up front before them. Nathalie and her family give him a little nod, encouraging him to go and say 'hi'. They can handle themselves for a while. It's not as if anyone's going anywhere. Not today…
Adrien approaches his old friends. Nino, Alya, Alix, Ivan, Kim… They've all made it. Even Chloe has been given an invitation. He receives warm greetings and a couple of hugs. There's a certain excitement in the air. One which he can't help but get caught up in. They're curious as to just where he was. He explains and informs them just why he'd chosen to stay over at the Sancoeurs as opposed to doing something perhaps a little bit more conventional. He does have an apartment after all. The response he gets to his reasoning is a certain amount of incredulity. Perhaps they hadn't taken him for the superstitious type:
"You're taking the whole "don't see the bride" to another level!"
The young man shrugs but doesn't deny it. If it brings them luck. It brings them luck. Besides, it means that it will be more of a surprise when he sees his bride for the first time… He's looking forwards to that.
They give him something of a warning. It's just a few words. They let him know that there's a couple already inside waiting for him. Adrien holds his breath but makes a decision in those few moments. He's going to face this sooner rather than later. Instead, he excuses himself and heads inside of the old building. There are a few individuals gathered already inside. Some are guests, others staff hired to ensure that everything runs smoothly. With a number of rich and famous people in attendance, it's imperative to have some decent security. Jagged Stone gives him a wave which he returns. His attention is elsewhere however.
The couple whom he approaches eye him uncertainly. There's a hint of nervousness as they consider him. Perhaps they think that he's about to chuck him out. They don't need to worry about that much. He's going to keep this civil but simple. There's no smile on the young man's face as he stands there but neither is he overtly hostile. The silence hangs heavily over the top of them. He's not inclined to drag it out any longer than it has to:
"Thanks for coming."
"It's your wedding..." The woman replies carefully.
"All the same."
He leaves it at that. He's acknowledged their presence. That will be enough he hopes.
There are other things on his mind. People begin to enter more quickly now. The ceremony will be starting shortly. Adrien knows where he's supposed to stand, this isn't his first wedding after all. Although it does take some effort to stop himself from trying to sit down with the other guests. Everyone has a designated place but his is one of the more important. Waiting there, strangely enough he feels the last of his nerves begin to die away, replaced instead with a sense of excitement and joy.
Adrien's gaze falls upon the woman in front row who's seen him through so much of this. His eyes soften as they rest on her. She offers him a gentle smile whilst her daughter gives him a wave. They had their fresh start a while ago. Today, he embarks on what will be the beginning of a new part of his own. Friends, family, blood and otherwise are gathered here together. In his pocket, he can feel the presence of his old partner. Plagg may be hiding but he's still there. A deep breath. He can't keep the grin from his face, he keeps it in control to avoid appearing like a fool.
A few minutes later, the door opens and a beautiful woman in a white dress appears, walking towards him.
Yes. He's very much looking forwards to the future.
/
Author's note: A big thanks to all of those who have reviewed this fic. I certainly had fun writing it!