Cold Days, Warm Hearts

Chapter 3 - Decoration

After sharing a lunch in Marientte's room with the kwamis, Adrien and Marinette made their way to the lounge room to start on the Christmas tree.

"The tree is still in the box?" Adrien asked when he saw the tree box on the floor. There were two other boxes next to it, no doubt decorations.

"We needed a new tree this year, that's why I'm a bit late getting it up. Can you pass me the scissors there?"

Adrien passed the scissors over and Marinette carefully opened the box, the tree's branches bursting out over the opening.

"It's pink!" Adrien said in surprise. "I didn't know you could even get pink trees."

"Actually Papa wanted the blue one, but I chose the pink. Our last tree was white, but they start to turn a strange yellow colour after a few years, so it was time for a new tree."

Adrien watched on as Marinette took the tree out and expertly connected the pieces together. The mansion had always had the same green tree with gold and silver decorations that it had every year. It always looked like one of those trees you would find in a store window, nothing personal or homely about it. When Adrien looked in the decorations box, there was an array of mismatched, mostly handmade decorations, each of which he was sure told a story.

Marinette grabbed a small step ladder and started trying to unravel the lights.

"Why do the lights always end up a mangled mess?" She lamented. "I swear I put them away neat and tidy."

"Here, let me hold it." Adrien offered, taking the top part of the lights from her and holding it near the top of the tree. She looked him up and down and he smirked at her. "What? It's not my fault you're vertically challenged."

"Show off." Marinette grumbled playfully. Really she loved how tall Adrien was.

Once they managed to unravel the lights, and Marinette congratulated herself for not falling off the ladder, they started adding the ornaments and baubles. In the second smaller box there were more baubles, but with names written on them.

"Are these all your family?" He asked.

"Yes." Marinette replied, picking a bauble up with her Grandfather's name, Rolland, written on it. Then an idea hit her. "Would you like me to make you one?"

Adrien's mouth fell open. "You want to make me one?" He said, his voice was full of amazement. Marinette felt her heart clench that he was clearly so touched by such a simple gesture.

"Of course I do Kitty." She said, stepping down off the ladder. "I told you last night, I consider you family. Come on, let's finish hanging these and I'll show you how I make them."

Once the rest of the decorations were hung, Marinette took Adrien up to her room and got out her craft box, setting some newspaper down on her table. There were several different coloured baubles and glitters left over. Adrien picked up an emerald green bauble and a sky blue one. "I like both of these."

"Well usually pale baubles like that are used for people who have passed away, like the one on the tree for my great-grandmother"

Adrien looked at the baubles in the box thoughtfully before picking out a pale yellow one. "Do you think I could maybe make one for my mum?"

Marinette patted his hand that was resting on the table. "Of course you can Kitty. I'll make yours and show you what to do and you can make the one for your mum. Would you like this emerald one for yours?"

Adrien nodded and pulled up a chair next to Marinette. Following her lead, he carefully wrote out the name Emilie on the bauble. Some of the kwamis had come to sit around the table and watch what they were doing. Plagg found some cheese Marinette had left out for him and sat on the desk to enjoy it while Tikki ate a cookie.