A Loveliness of Ladybugs
Her friends would never believe her if she told them, but Marinette loved mornings. She hated waking up, of course – she didn't know which had been more cataclysmic for her sleeping habits, becoming Ladybug or becoming a teenager – but Marinette had fond memories of the mornings she'd spent with her parents before she slipped into a state of chronic sleep deprivation.
Marinette smiled as she settled onto a park bench. When she was little, one of her favorite things to do was to help her parents get the bakery ready for the day. They would rise before dawn; Papa would load the trays of dough into the big oven, Maman would frost the cupcakes, and Marinette would garnish the pastries with fruits and chocolates. An hour or two would go by, and then all three of the Dupain-Chengs would stop what they were doing. Together they would go out and sit in the park to watch the sunrise. Marinette would drink hot chocolate while her parents sipped coffee or tea, the birds would sing, the sky would brighten, and Paris would be golden and peaceful – just like it was today.
Marinette clutched at her hot chocolate and watched as the clouds turned pink and the silhouette of the Eiffel tower swam into view. It was just her and Tikki this morning – her parents were busy with an elaborate wedding cake order – but nothing, not even the creeping chill, could ruin her mood. It had been a great week for Marinette! There'd been a lull in homework and akuma attacks, and she'd finally gotten to catch up on her sleep and design work as a result. Poor Tikki, on the other hand, was already starting to feel the effects of the cold. She'd moved from Marinette's purse to a more insulated pocket inside Marinette's coat, where she spent most of her time napping. Marinette shivered a little and took another swig of hot cocoa, but it would be a little while more before the cold would affect her like it was affecting Tikki.
Said kwami was currently curled up in the space between her neck and her jacket hood, wrapped up in her pigtail like it was a blanket. Marinette raised a hand to shield her from a light breeze, and Tikki nuzzled her palm appreciatively. Marinette giggled. Sometimes, Tikki tickled. Suddenly she became aware of a second sensation tickling her hand.
"Huh?" She flipped her hand over. A familiar polka-dotted creature greeted her vision. "Look, Tikki – now there're three ladybugs here!" The tiny bug inched up her finger, only to stop when another breeze blew. The wind was enough to push up the lady's spotted elytra and rustle her sheer wings.
"You poor thing, you must be freezing too," Marinette said. "Here," she cupped the littlest ladybug between her hands. The ladybug puttered around her palm for a couple minutes. And then the ladybug flew away.
"Aw, it left," said Marinette. She'd known it would eventually, but she couldn't help feeling a bit sad.
"No, she didn't, silly," Tikki mumbled into her hair. "She's right here."
"Where? I can't see," Marinette said, trying to look at herself without moving too much.
"In your hair," said Tikki.
Marinette took out her phone and switched the camera over to selfie-mode. Angling it this way and that, she finally found the ladybug. Now she could see, it was just above her bangs, settling in with the other five ladybugs already huddled there.
Marinette blinked.
"Tikki, there are more. There are six ladybugs in my hair, Tikki. Six."
Tikki yawned and pulled Marinette's pigtail around her tighter. "Seven. Plus you makes eight. Quelle chance, that's a lucky number," she murmured with a sleepy laugh.
After a moment, Marinette shrugged and accepted that there was a small colony growing on her head. It was hardly the weirdest thing that had happened to her since becoming Ladybug. Over the next half hour, Marinette sat very still, only occasionally reaching for her phone, to see how many ladybugs there were. She could see from the corner of her eye as more and more came, until the top of her head was completely covered. They didn't move much once they landed; they just snuggled against each other and, as far as Marinette could tell, went to sleep. It made her very happy to be part of a loveliness of ladybugs.
Marinette was content to stay there on the park bench, counting ladybugs, but soon enough her dad was outside holding her school bag and reminding her that she needed to leave soon.
"Okay, Papa! Coming!" Marinette sent several desperate glances at the ladybugs still on her head, at her papa waiting outside the bakery, and at Tikki, who was fast asleep.
"Ummm… aha!" She flicked her jacket hood over her head, tugging it carefully so that everyone was covered. Perfect!
Marinette exchanged her empty mug for her bag, hugged her papa goodbye, and headed on her Mari-way. For the whole walk, she reflected on the wonders of hoods. They were so warm and convenient! Why didn't she wear them more often?
)o(
"Um, excuse me, Mme Bustier, but Marinette is totally breaking the dress code."
Marinette froze. Oh fudge, she thought.
Mme Bustier sighed at the interruption from Chloe, but sure enough, when she looked over, Marinette was wearing a hoodie, a clear violation of Francois-Dupont's school dress policy. Mme Bustier sighed.
"I'm sorry, Marinette, but I must ask you to put your hood down." Mme Bustier wasn't sure what reaction she expected from the class representative, but it was not the deer-in-the-headlights look she was getting.
"You heard her, Mari-Trash!" Chloe taunted, but she was cut off by her teacher.
"That's enough, Chloe," she scolded. She could safely say that much, though she wished she could say more.
Marinette was glaring akumas at Chloe. But, after a moment, she turned away and slowly lowered the hood…
"OMG!"
"Wicked!"
"Girl, how?!"
"That is totally sick, dude!"
"They're so kawaii!"
Everyone seemed to have something to say about Marinette's 300 closest (literally) new friends, except Max, who even with glasses couldn't see what everyone was talking about from the far side of the room. For the most part, though, everyone seemed excited by the ladybugs presence except-
"EEEWWWW! Marinette has bugs in her hair!" Chloe shrieked.
"Quiet!" Mme Bustier had to drop a textbook on the desk to get everyone's attention. "That's enough from everyone," she said calmly. "Marinette, why do you have a flock of ladybugs in your hair?"
"A loveliness," Alya, Adrien, and Marinette all corrected at once. They glanced at each other in surprise before Alya explained, "It's called a loveliness of ladybugs, Mme Bustier."
Their teacher was surprisingly willing to roll with that. "Very well; Marinette, why do you have a loveliness of ladybugs in your hair?"
Marinette shrugged awkwardly. "I guess they just liked me? And they seemed kind of cold, you know, so….I just… heh." She gestured vaguely, and Mme Bustier shook her head, though there was something fond in her expression. This was the second year she'd had Marinette in her class, and while the girl's confidence had grown tremendously over the last year, there were still moments like these where she devolved into nervous stutters and flailing hand motions.
"Please go outside and come back to class when you aren't covered in spots."
Marinette nodded, although privately she thought that as long as Chloe was a student, she would often be covered in spots on school grounds. "Yes, ma'am."
)o(
Marinette walked as smoothly and as quickly as she could home. Her parents were surprised to see her back so soon; Tom jumped in surprise when he saw them, while Sabine just rolled her eyes and giggled. They let her take the loveliness up to her balcony though, where she put an evergreen plant next to a warm vent. Then she coaxed the ladybugs out of her hair and onto its branches. Tikki helped nudged the last few off, and then Marinette was declared (more or less) ladybug free.
"Alright, time to go back to-" Marinette froze as a bright red dot drifted over her balcony railing. It flew towards her, hesitated in mid-air, then joined the rest of the ladybugs on the plant.
"Phew!" Marinette breathed a sigh of relief, then she held up a finger to Tikki.
"Pound it!" They chorused.
)o(
A/N: Where is Chat Noir in this story? He's narrating, paw-viously. Why else would I have written so many puns?
Also, Mme = Madame, the French equivalent of Mrs./Ms. or Sra.
In other news, I now have an Etsy shop where I sell my art! Currently, I offer a weird mash-up of fine art and fandom posters, including posters from Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Chat Noir/Las Aventuras de Ladybug y Chat Noir, Harry Potter, Halloweentown, and Moana. You can find those at Juniper Night Studios on Etsy and on Facebook! I'd really appreciate it if you checked them out :)