A Little Fall of Rain

Marinette Wakes Up

Marinette was floating.

It was like a dream; a pleasant dream. Marinette felt totally at peace. Was this what happened to people after they die? Marinette had never thought much about it before. Why would she? She was young and healthy. Even the battles with Hawkmoth had never made her consider her mortality.

With her eyes closed, she squinted in the light. Part of her face felt warm, almost as if she were lying in the sun. It was peaceful here. The gentle sounds of traffic reminded her of home. Inhaling deeply, Marinette's face twisted at the smell of sawdust. She slowly raised her eyelids. Somehow, the simple act seemed to take far more effort than it should.

Marinette's eyes were slow to focus on the sight in front of her. A blond-haired angel lay at her side, with the tips of his golden hair glowing in the sunlight. Oh, how soft it looked. Marinette wanted to touch those silken locks, but her arms felt too weak to move. How fitting. Her angel looked just like Adrien, the sweet boy she had given her heart to years ago. The boy she gave her life to protect. Marinette smiled at her angel, closely watching the rise and fall of his chest.

After a minute, the angel moved in his sleep, turning his face toward hers. Marinette blinked in confusion. Why did her angel have a nose ring? And... hair clips? The more she looked at her angel, the more he didn't make any sense.

Suddenly, Tikki flew in front of her face. "Marinette!" she shouted. "You're awake."

She cringed at the sharp voice of her Kwami. Was Tikki always this loud? And why was she here? Marinette attempted to speak, but her tongue sat uselessly in her mouth. She tried to swallow, but her body was slow to react. Gradually, Marinette willed her numb body to respond.

By now, a dozen Kwamis hovered around her, all looking at her with faces of joy and relief. Huh? Why would the Kwamis be here? Marinette closed her eyes again, suddenly feeling quite queasy. A moment later, she felt something wet against her lips.

"Here, drink this, Marinette," it was Tikki's voice again. "It'll help."

She took a few tiny swallows and started coughing.

"Marinette?" a familiar male voice called out.

Huh? Her angel even sounded like Adrien.

Slowly, Marinette opened her eyes again. The Adrien-angel was staring back at her with a look of astonishment. But even bathed in the golden light of evening, his skin looked too yellow.

With a wince, Adrien propped himself up on his elbows. He immediately hissed. "Owww! My head."

A moment later, Tikki was offering him a bottle of water.

Marinette blinked at the scene in front of her, confused at the sight. This... this wasn't an angel at all. But why were Adrien and Tikki together? No. None of this made sense.

"Adrien?" she whispered; her raspy voice sounded foreign to her ears.

"Marinette?" A gleeful smile spread over Adrien's face. "You're... you're pink, again."

"You're... not." Marinette continued to stare at him. He really didn't look good. Even the sclera of his eyes had a sickly green color. "What happened to you?"

Adrien pushed himself into a sitting position and winced again, grabbing his forehead.

"Easy, easy," Wayzz spoke soothingly. "Perhaps it's best not to sit up so fast."

Marinette's mind struggled to understand what was going on in front of her. The Kwamis were talking to Adrien. But... Why were the Kwamis out? Her eyes fell to the mismatched jewelry adorning Adrien's body. Huh? What?! Adrien was wearing the Miraculouses. Like, all of them! Did Tikki bring them to him? But that still wouldn't explain the color of his skin.