Morning came sooner than expected. Light shone through Marinette's window, waking up her and the boy in her bed.
"I'm glad that last night wasn't a dream, m'lady." Adrien mumbled.
"I'm glad too, Chaton." Marinette replied.
"Marinette! Wake up, you're gonna be late for school!" Sabine yelled from downstairs. "I'm going to go up there if you don't come down here in 5 minutes!"
"Oh shit," she mumbled underneath her breath. "I'm awake, mom! I'll be there in a minute!" She jumped out of bed, not even considering using the stairs.
"Oh shit to me too. I don't have any cheese for Plagg, so I can't transform and go back home." Adrien replied.
"Well, guess I'll just tell my parents that I was out kinda late, and I thought it was too dark out for you to walk home alone." Marinette shrugged. "They don't take me for that type of kid, you know."
"I'll text Nathalie and tell her that I am already on my way to school. Have you got any clothes that'll fit me?"
Marinette nodded and rummaged through her design wardrobe, coming out with a cute t-shirt and pair of jeans, both engraved with Marinette's signature and designs. "I may have designed these as a gift for you sometime.. I was just too nervous to ever give you them." she giggled. "Are we a thing then?"
"Maybe we should just keep to the more friendly attitude just for a bit. Don't want everyone on top of us, including the press." Adrien uttered.
"You should change now, there's a spot there where you can do your thing, I'll change on my bed.
"Too afraid you'll see something? Don't you remember last night?"
"S-shut up! Fine, have it your way. If my parents come barging to my room, at least you're hidden."
"Didn't you lock your door though?"
"Still hide. And go now, we're going to be late!"
"Or maybe I won't." Adrien walked over to her and grabbed her waist. He gave her a quick kiss before discarding his jeans and putting the new ones on. "You can also change in front of me, princess." Marinette blushed and started to undress.
"Only because we're going to be late, you hear me!!"
"How about a new outfit for today? For me, m'lady?" he purred. She sighed and walked over to her wardrobe again.
"Will this work?" She held out a red top with puffy sleeves. She also held out a belt with a bow on it and her signature embroidered on both of the clothes.
"That's purrfect, m'lady." he smiled.
"You should text Miss Nathalie to inform you father that you're safe and on your way to school."
"Already did it, but I didn't get a reply. She hasn't been feeling well lately, so she might be resting."
"Let's get downstairs so I can explain to them why you're in my room." She beckoned him to follow her downstairs. He followed behind her, staying a few steps back.
"Good morning, Mari-" She abruptly stopped when she saw Adrien. "-nette and Adrien."
"Ehe, hello Mrs. Cheng." he sheepishly greeted.
"Mom, I had Adrien stay the night since we were hanging out late, and I was afraid to have him walk home in the dark. I hope that's okay."
"That's alright for me, sweetie, but I don't know about your father."
"What about me?" Tom suddenly barged into the room.
Marinette and Sabine both went in front of Adrien to hide him from Marinette's overprotective dad.
"Nothing darling, we're just talking about, uhm, about a school project and she's asking me if she could bring someone here."
"So if she's asking then why is he already here?" Tom pointed to Adrien.
"Dad, it was late out, and I just didn't want to let him walk home alone in the dark."
"Look, I trust you Marinette with what you're doing. And he's a great guy and your crush.. or should I say, boyfriend?''
Both teens' faces were covered with a deep blush that caused them to be more obvious about their relationship.
"We don't want to officialize it yet, dad. The press would have a hayday if they found out."
"I see. I see. You two better hurry off to school then. Don't take up my daughter's bad habit of being late, young man!"
"Dad!"
"Just go, you both have five minutes until your classes start."
"Bye mom! Bye dad!" Marinette grabbed Adrien's hand and pulled him out the door with her.
---Meanwhile with Gabriel and Nathalie---
*During the akumatization*
Hawkmoth just stood there, waiting for the heroes to defeat his villain. While doing it, he got down his lair and headed towards Nathalie's room. He got in the glass elevator and glared at his late wife. Is it betraying Emile? Would he be loyal to the woman who's been loyal to him since the first day or would he be loyal to the woman he vowed for?
Gabriel sighed. There wasn't a reason for questions. He would move on with the woman and child he loved. Emilie was gone. He was upset that it took so long for him to accept that. Now being a villain had a new purpose. He was protecting his family. And he would do it for them. Without a doubt.
He exited the underground site and carefully not to catch any attention from the staff there then walked towards Nathalie's room. When he entered her room, he saw her peacefully sleeping with Duusu on her shoulder. He sat on the edge of the bed and admired her. He slowly moved closer to her and laid beside her. He tapped Duusu's head to alert her that he wants alone time with his peahen. Duusu didn't budge a bit and moved closer to her owner. Hawkmoth had no choice but to pick the kwami up, and place her on the nightstand with the miraculous.
He then pulled Nathalie close to him and wrapped his hands around her as they cuddled. Nathalie shifted a little, and that made Hawkmoth whisper something in her ear. "Don't worry, it's just me." When she heard his voice, she immediately went to face him. When she saw that he's still transformed, she just left a kiss on his nose, glad that he kept his promise.
"Mhm.. Hey, darling.." she murmured.
"Are you feeling any better?" he asked, softly brushing the hair out of her face. She nodded and her eyes widened.
She jumped out of the bed and ran straight to the bathroom. She was already hunched over the toilet by the time Gabriel came rushing in behind her.
"I'm okay. Just morning sickness." she sighed out, leaning her head against his chest.
"Let's get you cleaned up, darling." He picked her up and set her on top of the counter. He picked up a washcloth and ran some warm water on it. He carefully washed her face off, smiling the whole time.
"Could we go out tomorrow? I know you're busy and-"
"Of course. Anything to make you happy." He picked her up and carried her back to bed. "But only if you rest for the remainder of the day."
"Fine. But you stay with me." she stubbornly replied. He nodded, walking out of the room to grab his tablet.
He came back a few minutes later with his tablet and a few of her favorite treats. "Do you want to help pick out some designs for me?" She nodded, taking the tablet from his hands, scrolling through design after design.
"Really?" she asked, pointing to a very obviously inspired outfit.
"I may like your outfit as Mayura. So I may have designed a dress for you that looks similar." he chuckled, putting an arm around her shoulder. He reached his arm up, placing her hand around her chin. He turned her head to his, each staring deeply into each other's eyes. He leaned in slowly, softly pressing against her lips. She quickly reciprocated the kiss, pressing hard against him.
Without breaking the kiss, she set the tablet aside, straddling his lap with ease. "You know how much I want you right now, my hawkdaddy~"
"I know, darling, but I'm still waiting for the heroes to deal with the pigeon guy. Afterwards, we can have our fun."
"No fairrrrr." she whimpered, slowly climbing back down from him. "I think I'm going to sleep for now then."
"Alright, my peahen. Rest well. I'll be right here."
---With Adrien and Marinette---
"Don't rush me, bugaboo!! I'm gonna trip!" Adrien blurted out as Marinette pulled him through the streets.
"We're going to be late if we don't hurry, Adrien!" She yelled back at him. He smiled lovingly at his girl. He was glad that it was her.
They reached the school a few minutes later, both out of breath. They started laughing out loud.
"You have to admit that was fun, Mari!" She nodded and started walking up the stairs in front of the school. He quickly followed as they darted to their classroom.
"Sorry we're late, Miss. Bustier! We woke up late this morning."
"We?" the teacher questioned.
"Yeah. I stayed over at Marinette's house last night. Hope you can forgive us." Adrien stated, walking in behind her.
"Alright, go sit down you two. We're about to begin."
Marinette sat down next to Alya, while Adrien sat by Nino. "Gurl, Adrien stayed over at your house?!" Alya whispered to her. Marinette shrugged.
"Let's focus on lessons for now."
---Five Hours Later---
"Man, that felt like the longest day ever." Nino said to the friend group.
"You can say that again, Nino." Adrien replied. He stretched his arms above his head. "Hey Mari, you want to go to the park? If Andre is there, I'll buy us ice cream."
"Why not! My parents aren't expecting me home for a few hours."
"What happened to you stuttering around Adrien, gurl?" Alya said in shock.
"I guess I got over it. Let's go, Adrien!" she replied while grabbing his hand, pulling him towards the school exit.
"Bye guys!" Adrien yelled over to them.
"What happened to those guys? I've never seen them so close before." Nino observed. Alya nodded in agreement.
Marinette dragged Adrien out of the school, but abruptly stopped when she noticed Nathalie standing nearby.
"Hello, Miss Nathalie!" Marinette greeted, releasing Adrien's hand from her tight grasp.
"Nathalie? What are you doing here?" he asked his caretaker.
"I got your text earlier. Your father wasn't completely pleased with you, but I convinced him to let it go."
"Thank you, Nathalie!" He blurted out, giving her a tight hug. He let go once he heard her start coughing. "Are you alright?!"
"Yes, Adrien, I'm alright. I just have a slight cold. I'll be perfectly fine in no time. I came to see if you wanted to come home with me, or hang out with your.. friend today. If so, I've been instructed to accompany you. Your father's orders."
"Yeah, we were planning to go to the park and get ice cream. Can we have a lift over there?" Nathalie nodded and opened the door for both of the teens. They climbed in and sat close to each other. Nathalie shut the door and climbed into the front passenger side.
"You heard him. Take us to the park please, Gorilla." He grunted in response, stepping on the gas pedal.
Not even five minutes later, they arrived. Both the teens scrambled out of the limo, falling on top of each other. They started laughing. Nathalie gave a small smile.
Marinette got off of Adrien, allowing him to stand up. She offered her hand, which he graciously took. He brought her hand up to his lips, giving her a kiss. "Princess~"
"Adrien, what the heck!" she managed to get out while laughing.
She heard a cough behind them. "Sorry, Nathalie. I like messing around with Marinette." She raised an eyebrow, but soon gave them a smirk.
"Let's go get that ice cream you mentioned, Adrien." Adrien and Marinette ran towards the bridge, where Andre usually set up his little stand. Nathalie decided against sprinting and just walked at an average pace. She wasn't so young anymore, and with a baby on the way, it was tougher.
She arrived at the stand about half a minute after they had.
"What would you two like?" Andre asked them.
"The sweethearts special please!"
"Hmm. For the young girl.. Blueberry for her beautiful hair, mint for keeping her cool in stressful situations, and strawberry for her sweet smile. For you, young man. Lemon for your natural blonde locks, pistachio for your determined emerald eyes, and chocolate for your sweet tooth that is never satisfied. But a touch of cherry for both of you, representing your deep admiration for each other."
Marinette blushed at Andre's compliments while Adrien looked surprised. He couldn't have been much more accurate. Adrien took the ice cream and handed Andre some money.
"And for you, mademoiselle?" He leaned his head in Nathalie's direction.
"Oh, I'm fine-"
"Miss Nathalie, I insist you get something!" Marinette begged.
"Oh, alright then. Why not? Andre, go ahead and pick mine too."
"For you, you shall have a mix of blackberry and blueberry for your hair, that I have never seen down, apple for your addiction to red, and coconut for your rough exterior, but sweet interior."
"I have to admit that's pretty accurate, Nathalie!" Adrien chuckled. She just hummed in response. After she paid for her ice cream, they sat down near the water. Nathalie seemed to be distracted with something. "Hey, is everything alright?"
That pulled her back to reality. She hated lying to him, so she might as well spill some of the truth. "Honestly Adrien, no. I've just been in over my head for the longest time. Your father isn't the easiest to get along with either. There are a few more things I hope to talk to you about sometime, but not now."
"I'm glad you finally let me know. I've been worried for you. And just know I'll be here for you no matter what. You're basically my mom."
Nathalie nodded, a tear appearing in the corner of her eye. Maybe everything would be okay after all.
To be continued..
Editor's Note: I wrote most of this because I had time to kill during the ride up and back from the dentist. I want to focus a decent amount of the book on Adrienette's relationship and Nathalie's relationship with Adrien. There won't be as much focus on Gabenath as the first arc of the book. I think it's better this way anyways. ~Ellie
Author's Note: I haven't written much in this chapter because of school and other things so she decided that she will continue the whole thing. Also, I fell asleep last night while kinda talking to her. So once again, she said to vc to read this chapter -__- it is 7am. -Zoe
I rule the roost now! ~Ellie
Reminder: Zoe is still the main writer, I'm just taking a bigger role now.