Marinette and Adrien are happy and growing closer, but Alya's getting sus about what species Adrien is. Not wanting to rain on her bestie's parade, but still trying to sate her curiosity, how will she solve this problem?
The sound of laughing children filled the air. Marinette, as a young child, was throwing and catching a ball with a little boy covered in black fur, and had green eyes. They were laughing, running around the park, and just having a good time.
"Catch, Marinette!" The boy, whom she'd nicknamed Cat Noir, called as he threw the ball back at Marinette. She caught it, dribbled it, and then she kicked it back to him.
He started dribbling the ball and kicking it around before kicking it back to her. They kept this volleying going, enjoying their time together.
After a few more minutes, the two of them sat on the grass, the ball between them, and catching their breath. The sun was setting overhead, the colors of dusk just starting to appear in their surroundings.
"This is so much fun!" Cat Noir said after a few moments of breathing. "I don't think I've had this much fun before!"
"Really? I don't think I've had this much fun in a long time, either!" Marinette agreed.
"Hey, once we get our energy back, let's keep playing!" Cat Noir spoke.
"Okay, let's-" Marinette began, but...
"Marinette! It's almost dusk! Playtime's over for the day, sweetie!" A woman's voice called from a distance.
Marinette gave a childlike pout before looking at her new friend and saying, "Sorry, that's my mom. I have to go home."
"What? Already?" Cat Noir whined, sounding like, well, like a petulant child who wanted to keep playing.
"I know," Marinette sighed as she stood up. "But why don't we come back and play tomorrow?"
"I'd love that!" Cat Noir agreed, also standing.
Marinette looked at him with a smile, and said, "See you tomorrow?"
"Yes!" Cat Noir said with a firm nod.
But the following day came and went... Marinette never saw that black-furred friend of hers again.
Waking up, Marinette sat up in her bed, curious.
'That's weird... Why did I remember something from so long ago? And now of all times?' Marinette thought, more confused than disturbed or afraid.
She got out of bed to get dressed before going downstairs. Out of her peripheral, she saw the white ballroom gown she'd shown Adrien during her impromptu fashion show. She approached it, looking it over with wistful eyes.
'When Adrien saw this, he begged me to wear it in front of him. But back then, I just couldn't... I wonder, would he object if I wore it out to a more formal event with him?' Marinette thought.
She didn't attend her school's formal dance, which was what the dress was for. Fact was, the person she wanted to wear it in front of wasn't Adrien. But now that her handsome blonde beau was in the picture, she didn't have as many reservations about wearing it.
Rumbling came about, and she looked down at her stomach. She blushed, saying, "Breakfast time."
After eating and setting up shop, Marinette was doing the best she could to stop herself from falling down her rabbit hole of her memories of her school years, or that one time in her childhood. It wasn't worth it, not with Adrien in her life now.
'Maybe these memories are resurfacing now for a reason?' Marinette thought as she turned the sign to "Open" and got back to work. 'But what IS the reason?'
She was good at finding complex solutions to problems, but...
As if to cut into her thinking session, the door opened with the bell ringing, and in came Alya, who looked pretty serious.
"Morning, Alya." Marinette said, smiling at the sight of her best friend.
"Hey, girl, we gotta talk," Alya said, sounding like it was urgent. "Got any time?"
"Um, I just opened, but nobody's here yet, so sure. What's going on?" Marinette asked.
"It's about Adrien," Alya said, her tone leaving no room for debate. "The-"
"Isn't he the best?!" Marinette swooned. "We just made it official! We're a real couple now!"
"Y... You are?" Alya asked, looking both surprised and disturbed at the same time.
"Yeah! We ran into each other at the bakery the other day - apparently he's a regular there. We started talking in front of my parents, and they got the idea that he was my boyfriend." Marinette began to explain.
"Seriously?!" Alya asked, her distress evaporating. "He didn't tell them that wasn't your situation?"
"He didn't say or do anything to contradict it," Marinette said, blushing. "Once we were out of there and alone, we talked about it and... We kissed and now we're an item."
"Girl, that's awesome!" Alya said, her fox yipping and jumping with joy. The girls shared a high-five. "You and Adrien finally put the "official couple" label on it!"
"I know, I'm so happy!" Marinette said, about to cry tears of joy. But she collected herself and looked at Alya. "So, what is it about Adrien you wanted to talk about?"
"Well, it's just that..." Alya began. "I just think..."
But seeing Marinette's blissful state, Alya couldn't get the words out, thinking, 'Marinette looks so happy. And there are just too many green flags with Adrien to raise a fuss about the one red flag...'
Instead of voicing her fears and risking hurting her friend, Alya responded, "I think you two are made for each other."
"Really?!" Marinette squealed. "You think so?"
"Oh, I know so," Alya said, trying to keep her discomfort hidden. "You're like peaches and cream."
Marinette began laughing, even though Alya was saying on the inside, 'Sorry, girl. He's harmless, I know that... And yet something isn't right.'
"I'm glad to hear it, especially since I had a weird dream last night." Marinette spoke.
"Weird how?" Alya asked, blinking at Marinette in confusion.
"It was like a flashback." Marinette began.
"Was it about...?" Alya began, looking uncomfortable as the question died on her tongue.
"No, not about school, but when I was like, five years old," Marinette began. "I met this little boy in the park, one with black fur all over his face."
"Oh, you told me about this once before!" Alya said. "That kid you nicknamed Cat Noir and played ball with the whole day? The one you never saw again even, even though you promised to meet up the next day?"
"Right," Marinette explained. "I don't know why the memory is popping up now, but there has to be a reason."
Alya gave a light "hum" in curiosity, her concerns about Adrien's species going out the window.
Meanwhile, Adrien was in his en-suite bathroom at home, having stepped out of the shower, once again wearing a towel wrapped around his waist. He was blow-drying his hair when his phone's screen lit up with a notification. He put the dyer down and dried his hands off before picking up the device. He saw it was an alert for a social media page belonging to a event promoter that specialized in promoting events hosted by locales in Paris, including having local vendors for food, crafts, and arts. Tapping the banner on his phone, he opened the notification to reveal there was a small fireworks show scheduled that weekend.
"Fireworks, huh?" He purred, smiling at the image. "Sounds like a great idea."
He immediately opened the post for more information, then sent it to Marinette via a text message, accompanied by the question, "Wanna go?"
Almost immediately after sending the message, he heard a knock at his bedroom door.
"Adrien?" Nathalie asked.
"Coming!" Adrien said as he stepped out of the bathroom to get some clothes on.
Once dressed, he opened the door to Nathalie, who was giving him her usual cold expression.
"Your father wishes to speak to you about your... dalliance... with the witch." Nathalie informed him.
"You mean my relationship with Marinette?" Adrien responded, emphasizing a few points. He gave Nathalie a pointed, annoyed expression.
"Yes, that." Nathalie sighed.
"Can't he bother to show her some respect?" Adrien grumbled as he went to his father's atelier in the manor.
He knocked on the door, and he said, "Pére?"
"Come in." Gabriel spoke, and Adrien opened the door and walked inside.
Gabriel only passively looked up at his son, meanwhile Adrien had his arms crossed and was looking at his father in impatient annoyance.
"Adrien, I'd like to ask about your progress with your soulmate?" Gabriel asked. "Are you at an acceptable milestone?"
"Father, it's too soon!" Adrien said, red in the face at the implication. "We only just made it official the other day!"
"You've only made it official a few days ago?!" Gabriel roared. "Adrien, birth rates amongst werecats have been static for a long time, and your insistence on taking it slow with her isn't helping matters!"
"Pére, it's too early for marriage and kitten-making," Adrien said. "If I start talking about it now, it might turn her off - she's gonna think I'm crazy."
"Adrien, she's aware of our family's circumstances by now, isn't she? That you come from a family of wealthy werecats and you need to breed to maintain and increase our numbers?" Gabriel asked. "If so, then she shouldn't be so put off by the idea of-"
"That's just it, father! I haven't told her about any of that!" Adrien shouted.
Gabriel went silent for a second and turned to Adrien, asking, "You haven't told her about our family?"
"No! All I've told her is that you're in the fashion industry and that I used to model for you. I didn't use the family name in conversation with her." Adrien confirmed.
"So she's completely in the dark about us?" Gabriel asked to clarify.
"Right," Adrien responded. "I'm gonna tell her the truth at some point. But for now, I just want to enjoy being myself in her company."
"How are you supposed to start a family with her if you don't tell her the truth?" Gabriel questioned. "Especially since this whole thing started when you were only a child."
Adrien only turned his back to leave, having had enough of his father's preaching, and said, "Like it or not, I'm going to do this on my own timeline. You're just gonna have to accept that."
Adrien shut the door, once again remembering why he kept his interactions with his father to near-zero.
He trudged back to his room to decompress, only to hear his phone buzzing. He picked up the device to see that Marinette was calling.
He answered the call and said, "Bonjour, mon cœur."
"Morning, Adrien," Marinette giggled. "I saw that message about the fireworks festival."
Adrien chuckled in response before asking, his face red with affection and anxiety, "So, what do you think? Shall we go?"
"Absolutely!" Marinette squealed. "Nothing's more romantic than fireworks!"
"Not even the ones I feel when I'm with you, chérie?" Adrien purred.
Marinette giggled, bashful, before saying, "Oh, you..."
"Adrien," Nathalie called as she came closer to him. "It's time to get to work."
Adrien gave a petulant grunt.
"I'd love to talk your ear off all day, ma douce, but duty calls," Adrien sighed. "I'll see you soon."
"See you soon." Marinette responded before hanging up.
Adrien heaved another lovesick sigh before walking down the stairs to get to the car. He saw his driver out near the street where the car was. He gave a sad sigh before getting in the back seat. The car drove away.
What Adrien hadn't realized was Alya, who'd been walking to work, had seen Adrien leave the manor, and she was looking on in surprise.
"Isn't that the Agreste Manor? Why was he there?" Alya asked aloud. "The mystery deepens..."
That afternoon, Marinette was breaking for lunch when she heard the bell chime and the door open.
"Hi, Marinette!" Adrien said as he came in, carrying a bag from the same lunch place he'd ordered from last time.
"Adrien! Perfect timing!" Marinette squealed as she ran over to give him a hug. Adrien, using his free arm, hugged Marinette back and gave a gentle squeeze (using massive restraint) to her.
"Shall we eat?" Marinette said while snapping both of her fingers to set up place settings for their food.
"Let's." Adrien agreed, smiling at her with warmth and love.
Like before, they sat at the table with their respective sandwiches and sides on their paper plates (Adrien's being full compared to Marinette's), each with refillable water flasks at their sides.
"This festival sounds like it's gonna be fun! Games, craft and food vendors, the whole bit!" Adrien insisted.
"It does! So, this fireworks display was created by a phoenix family?" Marinette asked as she looked over the social media post.
"Yeah." Adrien spoke.
"I guess I shouldn't be surprised. Apparently phoenixes just have fireworks appear out of thin air whenever they get excited or happy. Sometimes they even sprout red bird wings on their back." Marinette commented.
"They do." Adrien laughed.
"And I've heard that the cycle of rebirth is both a literal and a metaphorical thing, too," Marinette spoke up. "I had a customer that happened to be a phoenix. She was trying her best to make a present for a friend of hers. But then it ended up getting ruined because of her own clumsiness, so she came to me. When she laid eyes on one of my pieces, she got so excited that fireworks were popping all around her."
Adrien chuckled at this as he chewed more of his food.
"The next day, she came back and said that the outcome was even better than she'd hoped! She told her friend about the ruined present, and even showed him a picture of it. Turns out the homemade present wouldn't have gone over well with him anyway! She used the opportunity to tell her friend she had feelings for him, and then they became a couple!" Marinette explained.
"Wow!" Adrien said, surprised. "That is amazing!"
Marinette laughed and said, "I know!"
Once that part of the conversation was over, they kept eating. And like before, Adrien seemed to be eating more than average. Marinette hadn't even gotten halfway through her first sandwich.
"Man, this place's food never gets old," Adrien said as he polished off a second sandwich. There was an apple core on his plate, too. "So much better than what I usually get at home."
"Really?" Marinette asked.
"Yeah, I usually just eat a paltry breakfast..." Adrien began, his eyes looking askance in dismay as he took a third one.
"You don't eat much at breakfast?" Marinette questioned, a little surprised as she watched Adrien tear into it. "I guess that explains why you eat so much at lunch."
"That and the food at home isn't that good... Or more accurately, the food made by the in-house chef is bland and unappetizing. And it's supposed to be high-end cooking." Adrien said, sounding embarrassed.
"That's right, you said your family's well-off because your father's a fashion designer," Marinette responded after swallowing her bite. "Must be a successful brand if he can hire a private chef."
"It is, but..." Adrien confessed before looking up. "Food just tastes better when you're in good company. It's never as delicious when you're eating alone."
Marinette gave him a sad look before quietly asking, "...Do you eat alone a lot when you're at home?"
"Almost all the time," Adrien admitted before giving Marinette a smile, accompanied by a blush. "Not even a meal from a Michelin-Star restaurant would taste good if I wasn't with you."
When Marinette met Adrien's eyes again, she saw the face of Cat Noir in front of him for some reason. Once her vision cleared, Marinette's face turned pink and she gave him a smile, saying, "You're so silly."
"I could never be anything but silly when I'm with you." Adrien purred, winking at her.
The pair gave each other giggles before they went back to eating their food. Once finished, Adrien helped Marinette clean up, insisting on it to spend more time together.
He threw some paper towels into the trash and he turned to Marinette, saying, "That was delicious as always."
"It was," Marinette laughed. "I'm excited for this weekend! I can't wait for the festival!"
"Neither can I!" Adrien agreed. He quickly looked at the time on his phone and grimaced before sighing. "Time flies when I'm with the woman I love."
Hearing "love," Marinette's face went completely red and she gave him a shy smile.
Adrien walked over and gave Marinette a quick goodbye peck on her lips before saying, "See you soon, mon cher."
"S-See you soon, Adrien." Marinette responded as Adrien left the shop. Marinette's magic infused with her swooning and once again, her shop lit up in joy. But then her thoughts put a stop to that.
'Why did I think of Cat Noir when I looked Adrien in the eyes just now?' Marinette thought. 'I need to look this memory in the eye and try to figure out what it's trying to tell me.'
Shrugging it off, Marinette sighed as she went to reopen for the rest of the day.
That weekend, dusk was coming upon the city and the pair went to the festival. They were walking around, taking in all of the sights.
"Check out all of these stalls," Marinette spoke as she looked around and saw many stands with different goods, from woodcraft to ceramics and even knit pieces. "So many of them!"
"Yeah, and these are all small businesses, too," Adrien pointed out. "This craft fair organizing company sticks to small businesses and only small businesses."
"Awesome!" Marinette squealed.
She heard a familiar, jolly voice out in the distance, and she looked up to see André the ice cream man (human).
"Hey, it's André! I didn't realize he'd be here!" Marinette spoke, pointing out the portly fellow.
"I've heard some great things about his ice cream," Adrien said as he took her hand. "Shall we check it out?"
"Yeah, let's go!" Marinette agreed as she looked him in the eyes.
They started walking to his cart, watching as other couples took their ice creams and walk away as André sang and laughed as the happy couples came and went.
"Ah, who do we have here?" André said as he saw Marinette and Adrien approach. "Two faces that are new to me! Is this your first time here?"
"It is," Marinette said. "I'm Marinette."
André gave Marinette a nod in greeting before looking to Adrien. He did a double-take before saying, "Ah, you two seem to be quite the pair. May I give you two a cone to share?"
"Yes, please!" Adrien and Marinette said in complete unison.
"Then let me whip up a wonderful cone for you," André said as he took out his scoop and a cone. "For her eyes and hair, blueberry will be fair! Mint for his eyes and vanilla bean for his skin! A touch of rosewater, Et viola!"
He gave the pair a finished sundae with two edible spoons - made of cookies - and Adrien took it in his hands. He handed André the money for the ice cream.
"Merci." Marinette said while the pair walked away from him.
Marinette started spooning the ice cream and eating it.
"This is so good!" Marinette said as she swallowed a bite. "I didn't think mint and blueberry would be such a good combination! I guess the vanilla bean just helps the two blend together."
"Let me try." Adrien said as he took Marinette's cookie spoon, scooped up some ice cream, and he ate a bite.
Marinette gawked at him, her face turning beet red at the indirect kiss.
"Wow! This is yummy! And you're right, the vanilla bean really does tie it all together. The rose isn't overwhelming, either. It's a nice subtle background note." Adrien agreed.
Marinette was still staring at him, wide-eyed and red-faced, her heart going as fast as a car in a NASCAR race.
"Have I melted your heart, ma douce?" He teased, winking at her. Marinette's face started getting steamier than before. "You might wanna eat more of this ice cream to cool down before it melts."
Marinette, trying to calm herself down, started stuffing more ice cream in her face, being careful not to overdo and get a brain freeze - to the point where she couldn't really taste the ice cream.
After they finished their cone and cookies, they kept walking around, hand-in-hand. Soon, the sun set and it had gotten dark - the darkness combined with the halo effect from the street lights gave a calming, ethereal effect to the festival. Some other magic users amongst the vendors and festival staff were adding to the ambiance by using their own magic.
"It's a beautiful night, isn't it?" Marinette said as she looked around, unaware that Adrien was staring at her.
Adrien looked at the time on his phone, saying, "Looks like the fireworks are about to start."
"Then we'd better find somewhere to watch! It's getting crowded!" Marinette spoke, noticing the throngs of people taking their spots to watch the show. "Man, there's nowhere to get a good view."
She felt Adrien squeeze her hand, and he whispered in her ear, "Don't worry. Just follow me."
Adrien started jogging, leading Marinette by the hand. After about ten minutes, Marinette saw that Adrien brought her to a set of "stairs" that were made from naturally-occurring geological depressions in the side of a nearby hill. At the top of it was a large, wooden bench.
"Let's go!" Adrien said as he led Marinette up the stairs to the bench. It was high enough that they could see over everyone else in the crowd, and get a veritable front-row seat to the pheonixes' work.
"This is an incredible view..." Marinette said, sounding awestruck as she took in the surroundings.
"Isn't this great? This is a secret amongst the locals within this part of Paris," Adrien said as he sat down on the bench. "We can be alone without the crowds and noise, and we get one of the best views of the fireworks."
Marinette, absolutely thrilled with Adrien's planning, thought, 'What a man! He really thought about how to make tonight enjoyable for us!'
"You're incredible, you know that?" Marinette laughed as she walked over and sat down next to Adrien.
"You honor me with your praise, ma princesse." He purred, before chuckling and putting his arm around her waist for a side-hug. He made sure there was as much contact between them as possible.
Marinette breathed a contented sigh in this embrace, taking in the scent of his cologne - rich, warm amber with notes of vanilla and spices, bringing her both arousal and comfort. Like sitting in front of a fireplace in fluffy pajamas and slippers, wrapped in a warm, knit blanket while drinking a cup of cocoa during a fall evening.
'Just being with Adrien makes me so happy,' Marinette thought, breathing slowly as she looked up at his profile. 'I don't think I ever had this much fun when I dated in school.'
On cue, an explosion of fleeting colors painted the black background in short-lived bursts of different colors - purples, gold - accompanied by the sounds of pops and cracks.
"Wow..." Marinette spoke aloud, awestruck at the sight. "This is beautiful."
"You are..." Adrien murmured.
Marinette looked at him and asked, "Say again?"
"Um, the fireworks are beautiful." Adrien commented, his face turning red as more pops of color appeared in the sky.
Marinette gave an agreeing giggle while she felt Adrien's arm on her get a little tighter, too. She felt herself relax in his presence. They kept watching the fireworks in comfortable silence, their eyes lighting up every time a different color, pattern or combination of the two decorated the sky.
A little bit of time passed, and Adrien took his arm away from her waist and put it around her shoulder. And his attention was on his date instead of the fireworks. In his eyes, Marinette was the most beautiful creature he'd ever seen. Even as an adult woman, her inner beauty hadn't changed, and that made his heart sing. His sharp were-cat senses detected that Marinette felt happy, and safe above all else.
Marinette felt her peaceful silence get a pleasant break when she heart Adrien clearing his throat, like he wanted to get her attention.
"Hey, Marinette..." Adrien began. "Did you ever imagine this?"
"Imagine what?" Marinette asked.
"That you... You would meet and fall for a guy like me?" Adrien asked, sounding shy.
Not turning away from the fireworks, Marinette gave a shrug.
"...Honestly, I had doubts I would meet and fall for a guy at all," Marinette confessed, sounding a bit wistful. "Especially not someone as incredible as you."
"Me, amazing? Come on, mon cœur, you're being too kind." Adrien said, blushing at Marinette's praise.
"I disagree." Marinette responded, putting her hand over his, looking down with red cheeks.
"And why do you say that?" Adrien chuckled.
Feeling his hand in hers, Marinette's sense of peace gave her courage to tell Adrien her true feelings.
"I always feel comfortable around you; I have fun with you; you make me laugh; you're patient with my clumsiness and stuttering; you treat me like royalty; you're not intimidated by my magic, even though you're human as far as I can tell." Marinette explained.
That caused Adrien to pause in shock, and hear a "bang" noise in his head, coinciding with a huge red firework exploding in the sky. Human...
"You respect and appreciate the fact I'm a witch. You see my magic as part of who I am, and you clearly like who I am - you're best friends with a protection wizard, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised," Marinette said, leaning her head against his shoulder. "And I feel like we can be really open with each other. I couldn't have imagined a better guy - paranormal, human, whatever, to meet."
She held his hand and squeezed it, which gave both herself and Adrien a rush of comfort and affection. Adrien, though flattered and happy that Marinette saw him that way, started feeling a little anxious.
'Open with each other... But that's just it. I haven't been completely open with her - I'm not human. Not entirely, anyway...' Adrien thought, wondering what Marinette had gone through to make her say something like that.
The rest of the night passed quietly, but not without a huge pit of anxiety and dread building up in Adrien's stomach.
Once the fireworks were over, Adrien escorted Marinette back home, like the night when they first met. They were holding hands, standing close to each other, both with blushing smiles on their faces.
Adrien's conversation with his father, combined with Marinette's earlier comment, was churning in his brain - he tried his best to keep those thoughts quiet. Enjoying Marinette's company was all he wanted right then.
When they got to the boutique and stopped in front of the door, Adrien gave Marinette's hand a squeeze.
Marinette turned to look up at him, and once again, they smiled at each other.
"Tonight was so much fun, Adrien." Marinette said to him.
"It was." Adrien agreed as he looked at her, his affection palpable in his expression.
Marinette kept looking at Adrien's smile, and his green eyes seemed cat-like for a brief moment. But she felt Adrien's hands move. She looked down and saw that he'd started holding her hand with both of his. She felt her blush get deeper. Looking back up at her boyfriend, she saw his timid, red-tinted face. She felt her heart flutter a little more at how shy he was acting.
'How cute!' Marinette thought, her face also a bit pink. She heard Adrien take a deep breath.
"Marinette... May I have the honor of kissing you?" He asked, looking her in the eyes.
"You may." Marinette spoke.
She stood on her tiptoes as Adrien leaned down and they shared a soft, tender kiss with each other. It lasted a few seconds, but it seemed like hours to them. Hours of pure, uninterrupted bliss.
When Adrien pulled away, he said to her in a rough, husky voice, "Bonne nuit, ma chérie."
"Bonne nuit, mon prince." Marinette responded, her voice a little rougher from their kiss as well.
Adrien, with great reluctance, turned around and began walking away, all while looking over his shoulder and waving "goodbye" to Marinette every so often.
Marinette gave a content sigh before heading inside and going up to her living space.
As she got ready for bed, she recalled the number of times her memory of her one-time childhood playmate popped up in her mind.
'I don't understand. I have a boyfriend now, so why do I keep thinking about that boy I met all that time ago?' Marinette asked herself as she brushed her teeth.
After changing into her nightgown, she laid on her back on the bed and looked up to the ceiling.
'Is it possible that this memory is trying to tell me Cat Noir is going to come back into my life?' Marinette thought as she drifted to sleep. 'And maybe it's a heads' up about something that will happen when he does?'
The next day, Alya was walking to the boutique with a few stapled stacks of paper in hand, most of which were for work. But the top of the stack was one on cryptozoology - which was nosediving out of practice due to the paranormal community becoming the authority on paranormal/cryptic/supernatural matters.
"Still nothing..." Alya murmured as she took the paper stack and threw it in a nearby recycling bin. "Maybe actually talking to Marinette would give me a few clues..."
Alya put her papers in her bag as she came upon the shop. She took a deep breath before approaching the door, only to see there was a "closed - owner is out on delivery" sign on the door and the lights were off. Alya was about to take her phone out to call Marinette when...
"Alya?" Marinette asked. Alya turned around and saw Marinette had come back, messenger bag and all, and she was giving the journalist a big smile.
"Hey, girl," Alya said, happy to see her best friend. "How are you doing?"
"I'm doing great," Marinette responded, sighing in content, her face looking peaceful. "I just dropped off an order, and now I'm about to get back to work."
"Oh, really now?" Alya asked, her face not changing.
"Yeah!" Marinette said as she opened the door and let Alya inside. "Today's been nothing but peaceful!"
"That's good," Alya laughed. "So, what's got you in such a good mood?"
"Well, I was on a date with Adrien last night," Marinette swooned, her face pink and smiling as she danced and spun to her counter. She heaved a lovesick sigh. "Just the two of us, enjoying walking around a fireworks festival, and we watched the show in a nice, secluded area. It was so relaxing."
Alya said, "Ooh, that does sound like a good time."
"It was," Marinette said, thinking about her boyfriend as she propped her face in her hand. "I can't believe my luck - Adrien's a real catch."
Alya watched Marinette swoon, but her fox was all but screaming at her to speak up about her worries.
"Hey Marinette, has Adrien... Told you about himself?" Alya asked, trying to broach the subject of her suspicions.
"What do you mean?" Marinette questioned, a dreamy voice.
"Do you know anything about him?" Alya elaborated. "Like his family?"
Breaking out of her reverie, Marinette blinked at Alya with a quizzical expression.
She tilted her head and put a thoughtful finger to her cheek before saying, "He did mention that he used to model for his father's fashion label during his teen years."
"Really? He used to model?" Alya asked, surprised.
"Yep," Marinette confirmed. "Which explains his eye for fashion."
"Girl, anyone who doesn't think you're a talented designer is full of crap." Alya laughed.
"Tell that to Chloé - Adrien was actually friends with her." Marinette revealed with a laughing scoff.
"Hold the smartphone!" Alya said, putting her hands up to signal "stop," while looking at Marinette like she was insane. "Adrien's friends with Chloé?"
"Was," Marinette clarified. "Childhood friendship. But Adrien didn't want to be friends with such a cruel girl, so he hasn't spoken to her in who knows how long."
"Ah," Alya spoke, a sigh of relief coming out of her mouth. She was silent for a few seconds before adding, "So, I guess that means Adrien comes from an affluent background."
"Well, yeah, he admitted his father is well-off," Marinette stated. "Which, now that you mention it, makes perfect sense - Chloé only bothers hanging out with other rich kids, especially for personal gain."
Alya gave Marinette a smile, but she went quiet, thinking about all this new insight.
'So, Adrien's from a rich family, I saw him leaving the Agreste manor, he was friends with Chloé Bourgeois in the past...' Alya thought.
"Why so curious?" Marinette asked, trying to keep a lighthearted, innocent tone in her voice. "I know it's probably your inner journalist talking, but you sound like you're getting sus about Adrien."
"I..." Alya began, not sure what to tell her bestie. "I... I just want you to be happy, but..."
"But..." Marinette began, trying to be patient with her foxy bestie.
Alya decided to just come clean, and after heaving a resigned sigh, she looked up and said, "Girl, something's off about him. He's a paranormal, I can literally smell it on him."
Marinette's heart stopped and her stomach knotted itself up, and she said, "He... He is?"
"Yeah, but the problem is that I'm not sure what," Alya confessed. "I can't tell, and I don't know why! And..."
Marinette watched Alya, who was normally so confident and self-assured about herself.
'If Alya's acting like this, it's gotta be serious...' Marinette thought, waiting for Alya to voice the rest of her thoughts.
Alya looked back at Marinette and confessed, "I know I'm probably stepping out of line, but I've kind of been looking into it."
Hearing this, Marinette felt a stab in her heart.
"Alya, are you for real?!" Marinette asked, angry, coming from behind the counter. "How could you?!"
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry! The mystery has been eating away at me!" Alya admitted.
"Seriously?!" Marinette scolded.
"I know, I know, there's no excuse! My curiosity aside, I wanna make sure you're safe and happy, especially after what happened in school. A-And so far, I haven't gotten any other information..." Alya confessed.
Seeing Alya's facial expression, guilt combined with genuine concern for her well-being, Marinette started to relax.
"...Why didn't you say anything about your worries earlier?" Marinette asked, her anger simmering down and trying to restrain herself.
"What was the point? He makes you happy and you've absolutely blossomed ever since you met him," Alya stated. "I didn't want to ruin it by raising an alarm for no reason."
Alya looked at Marinette, guilt in her eyes, meanwhile Marinette's expression softened.
Taking a deep breath, she stepped closer to Alya.
"I guess I shouldn't have gotten so upset... You're just trying to protect me, Alya. Thank you for telling me all of this." Marinette spoke.
"You're welcome, and..." Alya responded. "I'm sorry. I should've just asked him what he is."
"Like you said, paranormals are more open about who and what they are in today's world," Marinette said. "But if Adrien doesn't want to talk about it, then there has to be a good reason for it."
"That's my thinking, too. I'm just gonna let Adrien tell you the truth on his own time instead of digging around for more information." Alya promised.
"Good." Marinette said, sighing in relief.
The two girls hugged, even though Marinette's anxiety was still there.
There was a reference to this manga/anime called The Ice Guy and His Cool Female Colleague in this chapter. Hope you caught it!
And again, I don't want to hear/read/see any spoilers for S6 or beyond! Let me keep my sanity, please?
Anyway, coming up, Marinette's anxiety regarding what species Adrien is seems to subside. But when will Adrien let the wildcat out of the bag about who/what he is?