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This Chapter will contain Minor Cursing and suggestions of sinful acts by the characters.
It's also slightly shorter than my usual chapters for this story!
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Marinette wandered around the Louvre for a school project, there was currently an exhibition on fashion throughout history, and after her experience at the thrift store she searched every antique store and museum for any sign of her long lost love, the man she'd only met in distant memories, the one she was meant to be with, sometimes even questioning whether he would even exist in this lifetime, but deep in her heart, she knew he had to be somewhere.
"Look at that dress..." She heard people talking in a distant corner, walking over to view the dress that the girls were talking about, Marinette fought through a crowd to get to the front, standing next to a Japanese girl around the same age, both navy haired girls stared at the dress in a stunned state, they looked at each other, then at the dress that was displayed in front of them, it was a gown that had been meticulously preserved, and right next to it was a similar looking gown, one from Japan, the other from China. Though the one from China truly caught Marinette's eye, stepping up to the display she reached out to touch it, only to be met with a slight wistle, a security officer now keeping a close eye on her, the dress was very much not Chinese, more so French inspired from the time period.
Looking back over for the Japanese girl who had seemed to vanish into thin air, she then turned her gaze back to the dress, wondering why she felt such a connection, her eyes shifting around as she then thought about the painting that was displayed in her apartment one name came to mind, Adrien...
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1627
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Princess Marinette stood in her chambers, staring at herself in an elegant gown that was meant to bring in a suitor, as the princess of a small kingdom within the chinese domain, she didn't have much power, but she was connected distantly to the highest royal family on the continent, but that didn't matter when all people seemed to want in this age was power, or explanding their kingdoms, which was going to be the most likely situation for Marinette, her kingdom would become another once she was married, her voice long forgotten in the shadow of whoever would become her husband. Thankfully she wasn't alone in the search for a future suitor, the main jewel of the evening was Princess Kagami, the daughter of the Emporor of Japan, the two princess's were quite close, therefore, the engagement balls were combined into one and set to be thrown in the Japanese Emporor's main Palace, where Marinette was staying.
Stepping outside her room she walked towards the main ballroom, though she fought with her uncomfortable dress quite a bit as to not trip over her own feet, stepping even closer to the ballroom her nose filled with the wonderful scent of baked goods, a cuisine she hadn't tasted, turning her body she headed towards the scent, losing all train of thought as she suddenly stumbled over the fabric of her dress, closing her eyes as she awaited the impact of the marble floors she felt warm arms instead. "Are you alright?" A gentle, yet charming voice asked Marinette's eyes slowly beginning to open, her sky blue eyes meeting with the most lovely Emerald green eyes she'd ever seen.
"I am just fine." Marinette responded, her voice shaking ever so slightly as she tried to overcome the shock of her fall, though it wasn't the fall she expected. Looking at the young man who stood straight in front of her she looked into his eyes still. They both seemed slightly entranced for a few moments before she heard fast footsteps heading their way.
"I should go, I have to finish the food for the party." The young man spoke, he was the most lovely thing she had ever seen, and she didn't know if she could ever find someone that would capture her attention the same way he did.
Marinette nodded turning to go back to the ballroom, had she not seen his slightly torn clothing, and the fact that he was covered in flour and wearing an apron Marinette would've been convinced he was a prince, he had the looks to charm just about any girl who crossed his path, though Marinette couldn't allow herself to be charmed, she was to be married if any gentleman should decide to take her as his bride, and she felt bad cause her friend Kagami also suffered the same fate as her, married to someone she barely knew, someone who would more than likely never cherish her.
Stepping into the ballroom she quickly found her parents greeting them with a bow, her father was not of royal blood, though the marriage was granted due to there being no other suitors for her mother, and they loved each other, Marinette could only hope for the same fate. A love filled marriage, someone she would be happy to run a kingdom with, even if there was no gain for the kingdom. An hour into the party Marinette was approached by a prince, though her thoughts were clouded with thoughts of the boy from the kitchens, though her thoughts were interuppted as she heard the same voice.
"Dance with me Princess?" The blonde asked, it was the same boy from the kitchens, though he sounded slightly different, his voice was slightly deeper than before, and his request was more so a demand than a question, which automatically sent her into a tizzy of thoughts, he'd been so gentle earlier, yet he seemed so rough now.
"I suppose." Marinette took his hand, the man leading her out and onto the dancefloor where people were staring at them, including her friend, who was still seated on her smaller throne compared to her mothers and fathers. Marinette gave her a look stating the fact that she disliked this man, causing the Japanese princess to laugh ever so slightly.
"Are you and Princess Kagami close?" The boy dancing with her asked, catching Marinette slightly off guard as he asked about her relationship with Kagami.
"Yes, our mothers were friends when they were young, so the relationship just carried over I suppose, hence why our engagement balls were just turned into one." Marinette offered that small amount of information, it also was a good explaination of why she and Kagami made faces at each other from across the room, something they'd done since they were young.
Marinette couldn't tell why he seemed so different now, and if he worked in the kitchens, there was no way he should be on the dance floor with her, his hand on her waist. The french style gown forming to her perfectly, Marinette had designed the clothing herself, having had a secret facination with design, especially that of french clothing from her fathers homeland. The boy's hand in which hers was placed in was smooth, she was studying every inch of him, she hadn't touched his hands earlier when he caught her in the hall, but she didn't remember much from the short glance she'd caught earlier, all she could remember was the color of his hair that could rival only the sun, his chiselled jawline, and his forest green eyes that she could get lost in, and the boy in front of her held all those same features, except his eyes were far more distant, as though he had more on his mind than just dancing with her.
"What is your name if you don't mind me asking." Marinette asked looking at the taller boy, she had never met him at any of her kingdoms functions, which meant he was here as a suitor for Kagami, yet he was dancing with her, she watched his features as a smirk seemed to flash on his lips, before he looked into her eyes.
"Adrien, my name is Adrien." His voice almost sounded sinister, as though he were taking revenge on someone, Marinette began to not like the look in his eyes as they continued dancing, moving them back towards her parents, hoping they might notice her distress and pull her out of there, them or Kagami.
"If you don't mind young man, my daughter has a few guests she needs to greet." Marinette could hear her fathers voice behind her, she visibly relaxed as she was pulled away, knowing her father was only lying becasue of how uncomfortable she seemed and how forward he was even though they had never met before.
"Of course your majesty." Adrien spoke, giving her father a sweet smile, Marinette had never heard of a Prince or Lord named Adrien, which only perplexed her further as she tried to think of where he might've been from.
Returning to her seat she quietly thanked her father before rushing off to socialize with Kagami, the Japanese girl welcoming her to the small group with a smile as she chatted with some of the children of the other countries ambassadors, Marinette kept her eyes pealed for the blonde who somehow managed to give her 2 completely different impressions, one gentle, and so incredibly present in the moment, the other rough, and so distant that he seemed almost scary. After chatting for a bit with Kagami and the others she started to leave the room, not feeling up to being around people for a little while, upon leaving the ballroom she bumped into someone, sending her almost to the floor once again, though she felt a familiar pair of warm arms around her waist, though she noticed something different, his hands seemed to snag ever so slightly on the fabric of her dress, opening her eyes, she was met with the same green eyes she'd seen only twice before, though this time the skin around them were covered by a mask.
"We've got to stop meeting like this." His laughter was infectious as he looked into her eyes pulling his mask gently away from his face. Marinette looked at his clothing, expecting to see the same regal attire she'd seen before, but her eyes were met with a Knight's formal attire. Not to grand, not to common.
"I would agree had I not been in such a rush." Marinette spoke as she stood and stepped away from him, knowing if they were spotted one would assume the worst. "By chance do you have a twin brother?" She asked thinking the idea of it was preposterous but when he visibly stiffened she could tell her assumptions were close, if not correct.
"I have a cousin, we look very very similar, sometimes he pretends to be me if he wants something enough." He spoke as he looked into Marinette's eyes, Marinette could tell he was entirely present, now knowing his cousin must've been the one she was dancing with.
"So which one of you is Adrien then if he likes to pretend he's you?" Marinette asked, and the blonde seemed to laugh ever so slightly at her question.
"I'm Adrien, my cousin is Felix." Adrien spoke, and Marinette smiled at his laugh, it was infectious and soon enough she began laughing as well.
Eventually they both settled down, and began walking together through the palace gardens, things felt right instantly with Adrien, he was so incredibly kind, and his smile only made Marinette want to smile even more, they continued in circles around the garden until Marinette's feet began feeling sore from the heels she was wearing, sitting on a bench they'd passed a few times Adrien crouching on the ground in front of her.
"May I?" He asked gently as he reached to pull her shoes off her feet for her, Marinette blushed, nodding as she lifted her dress her feet were quite red and sore as he gently removed the heels. "I never did understand why women wear such painful shoes, my mother says it's for the beauty of it, but I never believed her." He spoke as he looked up at Marinette, who just smiled at him.
"It certainly seems like that's the only reason women wear them, I can't stand them myself, I'm quite jealous of Princess Kagami's Geta sandals at these events." Marinette smiled as she placed her feet flat on the ground, happy to finally be rid of the high heels she'd somehow walked around in for hours.
"Well, these heels look lovely on you, but I would much rather a woman be comfortable than fashionable." Adrien spoke as he gently helped her to her feet, not letting her hand go as they continued to walk, the pair eventually settling beneath a cherry blossom tree as the petals drifted around them.
"Are you a knight?" Marinette asked as she looked at Adrien, the blonde only nodding his head as he squeezed her hand gently. Looking into his eyes Marinette placed a gentle hand on his cheek, she could see in his eyes that something seemed wrong. "But you were supposed to be the one in the ballroom weren't you?" She asked softly as she looked into his eyes, he just nodded his head once more.
"My mother was older than Felix's mother, but she married a commoner, so my title is only that of pity from my grandparents." Adrien spoke softly as he looked into Marinette's eyes. They shared an intense gaze before their lips met, the kiss was soft, and filled with far more emotion than filled the entire ballroom.
They sat there for only a few moments, but it felt like eternity as they finally pulled apart, staring into each other's eyes, their lips quickly returned to each other, the kiss quickly growing heated as they moved to lay on the grass Adrien shifting on top of Marinette as things between them continued to heat up, their emotions rampaging through both of them, they were both only 18, and had yet to have any experiences with their actual emotions, which meant they were convinced from the moment they began to get to know each other that this was love, this was how romance was supposed to be, falling for each other hard and fast, leaving no regrets as they kissed each other.
Their thoughts were quickly interrupted as they finally realized just exactly what they were doing, pulling back and staring into each other's eyes, their hearts racing in unison as they each waited for the other to say something, in Marinettes mind she knew this was wrong, she knew acting on pure emotion was wrong, but the feeling to kiss him was far to strong for her to deny, especially now that she'd gotten a taste of it, now that they were laying on the ground together, still fully clothed yet the heat between them entirely undeniable. Out of the corner of her eye she spotted one of her mothers guards entering the garden, quickly yet gently pushing Adrien up off her and standing to brush the grass and dirt off her dress as she hoped the guard wouldn't assume the worst once they were spotted together in their disheveled state.
"Princess!" The guard rushed over looking her up and down for any injuries as she had been gone for quite a while, though there wasn't a single wound on her. "Thank the gods you're not hurt, your mother is searching for you, a suitor has asked for your hand." The guard explained and Marinette's gentle smile dropped as she glanced to Adrien then back to the guard, nodding slowly as she realized she had to accept whoever it was, since there was no other suitor for her.
"I'll be in the ballroom in a moment, this young man is a guard, he'll escort me back inside." Marinette made up an excuse just to get her a few more moments alone with Adrien, the guard nodding then heading back inside to tell her mother she would be there shortly. Marinette turned to face Adrien placing a gentle hand on his cheek.
"Will I ever see you again?" He asked softly, Marinette shook her head no, considering that if her suitor wasn't his cousin, they would never come face to face ever again, their eyes would never meet again in their lifetimes.
"More than likely no, your cousin wasn't at this ball for my hand, which means its likely I will never see you again." Marinette spoke softly, watching as Adrien's features dropped in sadness, she couldn't stand to see him sad, pressing her lips back against his once more, they shared one last kiss before walking back into the ballroom. Marinette glanced one more time at Adrien, he looked heartbroken at the final glance, and Marinette knew her expression was probably similar before she had to turn and enter the ballroom.
Upon entering the ballroom she went to her seat, seeing a young man standing with her parents, he had dark hair, and teal eyes, in typical standards he was nice looking, however no one could compare in her eyes to Adrien, she knew that this must be her suitor, her mother and father were rather friendly with him, however Marinette had no interest in getting to know him, in her mind she would have the rest of her life to do so since she didn't think her parents would give her any choice in the matter, despite them having the choice of who they married years before.
Marinette couldn't take her mind off Adrien, as she saw him enter the ballroom, his mask back over his eyes, Marinette watched him from the distance, her eyes full of silent admiration for the young man she had just exchanged a heated moment with in the garden, her mind kept drifting back to the way his lips felt against hers, the way they just molded into each other as though they were made for each other.
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2023
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Adrien stood in the Louvre having heard about an exhibit they were having on fashion history, seeing the dresses on display he walked up, to them, his eyes meeting with those of a very familiar looking girl, blue eyes that charmed him immediately, navy hair that rivaled only the night sky, someone who he'd only seen once, yet he was entirely frozen, he couldn't move his body in her direction, looking at the dress he saw familiar images popping in his head, the off white gown in front of him drawing out memories of a life from long ago, his life from long ago.
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1627
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Adrien entered the ballroom his mask covering his eyes as he glanced around, after his encounter with the princess in the garden he intended to keep his silence, but he couldn't help but glance at the 18 year old princess who had within just a few minutes together had stolen his heart and kept it captive in her ever so perfect hands, spotting his cousin out of the corner of his eye he walked up to him grabbing him by the collar of his shirt, glaring at him with all the hatred he could muster for his family attempting to take his only possible chance at happiness from him, only to have it ripped away anyways, Adrien glared into Felix's eyes, he was sure that the fellow blonde could see the hatred, and then Adrien only just smirked slightly.
"If you think taking her from me will be so easy I'm sure you're mistaken, because one of us just got to kiss a princess in the courtyard while the other was in here kissing the emperor and empresses of japan's ass." Adrien whispered to Felix, his cousin's eyes widening as they looked at each other. Adriens smirk only grew larger as Felix's eyes glanced towards Marinette then back at Adrien who only nodded then turning to walk towards Marinette's parents, bowing on one knee to the royals. "Your majesties, I would be honored if you could take me on as a knight in your kingdom, I already know your language as I was raised in a noble family and have been utterly charmed by your lovely princess and would love to be under her service if you would allow me." Adrien spoke looking up at the king and queen who seemed confused by the sudden declaration of him wanting to ally with their kingdom rather than the one he was born into.
"Are you sure you wish to change your alliance to our kingdom? Should we ever go to war with your kingdom you will be forced to fight against your own people." Thomas spoke looking at Adrien, who only nodded, understanding the full weight of his decision and how he knew in his heart he would do anything for Marinette, looking up at the king and queen then to Marinette, he could see the blush on her face, her breathing had quickened, and she looked beautiful even in the candle light of the ballroom, he knew he would do anything for her, he would take any hit she needed him to.
"I am aware, and I would like you to know that I would die for your daughter, the princess, I would happily serve her until my very last breath." Adrien spoke softly as though he were declaring his own love for the girl who placed a hand to her heart, as though she felt the words in her own heart.
With that Adrien made the move from his English family home in the countryside to china, where he would serve as a personal guard to Princess Marinette and her future husband Luka Couffaine of France, a Baron from France who inherited his families fortune and land with the disappearance of his father, A year passed before the wedding was to take place, however that was also thanks to Marinette pushing it out, which Adrien was grateful for, in the year between their meeting and the wedding they grew quite close, suspiciously close in some eyes, they would spend time together late into the evening hours, and often times disappear entirely from the property for many hours at a time. In their private time Adrien was teaching Marinette to defend herself with a sword, if ever a situation came where he was not there to protect her.
"You're getting good." Adrien panted, he now had trouble keeping up with the princess who was standing in front of him with a wide grin offering a hand out to him for a moment before their swords were discarded and they were on the grass with Marinette in his lap, the couple had taken on a more romantic role when their training was done.
"I have an excellent teacher, he's quite handsome as well I'll have you know." Marinette flirted as she looked into his eyes. Adrien smiled wide then quickly pressed his lips to hers, they sat in the empty field for a few minutes, enjoying each other's company and the feel of their lips pressed tightly together, they weren't afraid to get caught, especially if it meant they could truly be together, they would risk everything in order for that ending. "Thank you Adrien." Marinette whispered against his lips, though he was entirely unsure of what she was talking about.
"What are you thanking me for my love?" He asked softly as he traced his hands down her corseted waist gently, looking into her eyes.
"For loving me, for taking time to teach me how to fight, to teach me to finally take what I want." She whispered as she ran her hands through his sunshine blonde hair, the couple lost in a trance of love for each other. "I know you've received letters requesting your hand in marriage, and I know why you deny them all, therefore, I hope to give you something that you can treasure for eternity." Marinette whispered as she looked into his eyes.
"Are you saying..." He asked in a soft whisper.
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2023
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The memory went black as he saw her nod ever so briefly, but when his eyes finally came back into focus Marinette was gone, she had disappeared into the crowd of people admiring the gowns in front of them, running through the Louvre clutching the velvet box in his pocket Adrien looked for Marinette, squeezing it as he looked around the plaza for her, but she was gone, but he knew he would see her again, he just had to keep looking for a little longer, she was his and he knew this had to be his chance, his final life where he would be with her, forever.
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