A group chat called: Maidens of Mayhem with: A, A, M, J, R...
Sent Message: I mean this with all the kindness in my heart — you all better behave yourselves tonight (yes, I'm talking to you, Alya!)
Received Message from: Alya
Call me out, why don't you!
Received Message from: Rose
I promise we'll be on our best behaviour, you have no need to worry (plus we have the garden group ready to de-weed Alya if needed!)
Received Message from: Alya
Again, why is this aimed at me?
Received Message from: Juleka
Is it true the party's costing the same as a house?
Sent Message: I have no idea! I'm just turning up 😄
Received Message from: Mylène
Love that you're just living the dream. You really deserve everything, M! You're like the best person in the world!
Sent Message: Aww, Mylène! You're incredible too. We all are! Teamwork, remember!
Received Message from: Alix
I'm with Mylène on this, and remember I have the inside scoop. You and Adrien deserve the world. I know this is incredibly mushy for me, but you guys are the greatest!
Received Message from: Alya
I second Alix! Enjoy tonight, Marinette. I promise none of us will mess this up for you. It's your night, just go and enjoy it 🩷
Marinette closed the conversation with a wide, grateful smile on her face. Tonight was the engagement party of the century - at least, that's what 'E News' was calling it - and she was excited. Very, very excited. She'd spent the morning lazing around, watching movies, and trying to help her maman and papa in the bakery.
Unfortunately, as soon as Adrien Agreste's fiancée was seen on the shop floor, it had caused carnage and her mother had banished her back upstairs. The bakery had always been busy, but this was insane. It seemed news travelled quickly when you were the fiancée of an international superstar. Who would have thought?
But she was bored! So, so bored! She'd had a bath, which felt like several hours but happened to be only 40 minutes, played video games by herself and progressively annoyed Adrien with memes for most of the day. With Lana being over, he was spending the day strategy planning and then sorting out the party for the evening. Marinette had even messaged Nathalie to see if she had anything on. She just needed company!
...because when she didn't, her mind spiralled.
She and Adrien had become hot news all around Paris and what seemed like the world, everyone wanting to know every detail about them, which only made things worse in the long run...as it stopped her from going out on a run! She hadn't been able to transform since the almost kiss on the rooftop the other night. The kiss which replayed in her dreams over and over again, but with a different ending...a very different ending which had them in very different outfits, i.e. none!
WhatsApp chat with: My Kitty 😻
Sent Message: Leyton, Everlark and Percabeth, what do they all have in common?
Adrien: They all include a dashing blond? Just like two other famous couples: Adrinette and Ladynoir!
Sent Message: 😆 True! Anything else?
Adrien: The males are all saps and would die for their woman
Sent Message: Ding, ding, ding! We have a winner!
Adrien: How bored are you, honey?
Sent Message: Extremely! What time are you coming to get me?
Adrien: Not for another 5 hours.
Marinette looked at her watch and sighed — that was a lot of One Tree Hill episodes.
WhatsApp chat with: My Kitty 😻
Sent Message: Which famous ship do you think we're like?
Adrien: Ladynoir
Sent Message: Very funny!
Adrien: Marichat
Sent Message: Wait? What is that?
Adrien: Have you not seen? They're now shipping us with the heroes...apparently the number one and two couples in the world have quite a selection of stories on AO3
Sent Message: What is Ladybug and Adrien then?
Adrien: Ladrien! And they are the sweetest ship!
Sent Message: Sweeter than Adrinette? I can't believe that!
Adrien: Totally! But you know which is now my favourite out of our weird love square? Marichat!
Sent Message: And why is that?
Adrien: It has the most 😉😉
Sent Message: The most what?
Adrien: You know...😉😉
Sent Message: Hang on...
Adrien: Don't fall into the rabbit hole, M'Lady!
Marinette switched apps to her internet browser and typed in this specific ship...and oh my word! She was used to reading some rather intimate encounters between Ladybug and Chat Noir, along with Mister Bug and Lady Noire, and the 'newer' Adrinette fics...but this! She'd never blushed so much reading a story before...and she was known for binging anything written by Tessa Bailey and Carly Phillips.
Eyes trying to disconnect from her body, she changed apps again and returned to her conversation with Adrien.
WhatsApp chat with: My Kitty 😻
Sent Message: Well...shit!
Adrien: Do you think I could claw my suit?
Sent Message: It's not something I'd want you to try on yourself...
But you could try it on me! Heck, the image was nothing more than an aphrodisiac. Long claw marks in just the right...
Ding dong!
Saved by the bell — literally. Sending a quick talk later to Adrien, Marinette made her way out of the door and down to see who her unannounced guest was. She just prayed it wasn't any paparazzi...she felt too lazy at the moment to kick some butt. But if it was anyone else, she hoped they were up for a long, drawn out game of Monopoly.
"Éliott! Hey!"
Adrien's PA stood on the other side of the door, loaded with garment bags and boxes. He pushed them from one arm looking very uncomfortable–which was the exact moment she realised she should be letting him in.
"Sorry, come in! Come in!" Hurrying him in through the door, she double checked no paparazzi were standing outside and closed it. The last thing she needed was for them to get photos of her in Adrien's lacrosse t-shirt (yes, she was wearing it again like the weirdo she was) with wild drying hair.
"Adrien said you probably had something of your own design to wear, but he also wanted you to feel like a queen tonight, so I have been ordered to bring you these to try on–just in case."
Marinette helped relieve him of some of the bags, revealing a very smiley Éliott hidden behind them. "I suppose congratulations are in store?"
She couldn't help but chuckle as she led him up the stairs and to the apartment above the bakery. "You know as well as I do, this isn't real."
"I have no idea why everyone keeps saying that," Éliott scoffed, moving swiftly beyond her.
She placed the bags down on the table and then turned to look at the one person (apart from Adrien) she spent a lot of time with in London. He was the perfect choice for Adrien's PA. Always upbeat and didn't put up with any of his shit. He was almost a male version of her.
"So, what's the plan? Adrien said he won't be here for 5 hours."
Éliott nodded. "Yep! But that's okay, because you get to spend them all with me!"
"Now, that is a pleasure!"
Éliott tutted in response. "You're spending too much time with Adrien. The sarcasm doesn't look good on you...but Adrien's tee? Well, maybe you should go tonight wearing just this." He swung an arm around her shoulders and marched her to the breakfast bar. "Anyway, I have been given strict orders by my master to be your slave until her arrives. You know what these Hollywood stars are like. Prima-freaking-madonnas."
"And you say I'm sarcastic!"
He gave her a playful push before carrying on. "Well, if you must know, Adrien has booked for a hair stylist and make-up artist to come and help you get ready. He knows you'll be stressing out, so he wanted to take that away from you."
"Always my hero!"
"Yep. He's just a regular Chat Noir," he huffed, without realising the truth in the fact. "But before we do any of that, we need to find the dress. So –" He pulled her from the chair, grabbed the garment bags and threw them over her arms. With a little slap on the tush which made her squeal, he ordered her up into her bedroom to try on the dresses.
The many, many dresses. Slowly making her way up to her room, she stopped and looked back, Éliott giving her a wink and a very much needed encouraging smile. Together they'd make sure she was the belle of the ball.
One hour later, she'd finally found the dress. Tikki had been the worst help possible as she wanted Marinette to try on all of them — and possibly change her outfit multiple times through the evening. As beautiful as they were (thousands of pounds worth of beautiful) it became tedious pulling them on and off, each other tight fitting, and most with the most complex yet fabulous closures she'd ever seen. Worst of all, it was decided she would wear the first one she'd tried on. Woe was her life.
But right now, she had three people fawning around her and talking to her like she was the Princess of France.
A buzz on the table alerted her to the message creeping in on her phone...or should she say messages.
Carefully, as to not ruin her pearly nails, Marinette lifted her phone from the table and looked at the name. Anthony.
WhatsApp chat with: Ant
Ant: thanks again for the invite. Richard and I are buzzing with excitement
And: Not to be a bossy bitch, but I know you. Don't forget to shave for tonight, honey
Sent Message: Thanks for the reminder, but I remembered to shave my legs all on my own
Ant: I wasn't talking about your legs, darling 😊
Sent Message: Did you mean my pits?
Ant: Those too 🐈⬛😘😏
Sent Message: ASADFKJGSUISGH!
She placed the phone back down gently, hoping she didn't alert the presence to her newly heated cheeks. Thank goodness the make-up artist was on a toilet break.
She was being groomed to within an inch of her life and yet she'd never felt so stress free. Sitting there, chilling, every now and then sending Adrien another meme or photo of her nails — she really could get used to this.
Laughing caught her attention on the opposite side of the room, Éliott sauntering over to her parents with a vast array of leftover pastries.
"So, tell me, how did Adrien ask for Marinette's hand? I've always had a vision of it in my head - Adrien being a quivering mess and begging you to let him marry Marinette." Éliott took a sip from his glass of orange juice and popped a fifth macaron in his mouth, Marinette seeing the exact moment the taste hit his buds as his eyes vanished into the back of his head.
Her mother was sitting with her feet up on the coffee table, looking nothing less than royalty. Not only had the world's great fiancé booked for his wife-to-be to be pampered like a princess, but also the princess' mother. If he was trying to get her parents on his side, then it was definitely ten out of ten for effort. Seriously, if he kept doing things like this, she was going to have to come up with something undeniably amazing for Christmas this year, like a sports car, or a yacht, or...a blonde-haired blue-eyed granddaughter called Emma who would be clumsy like her mother and gorgeous like her father.
Off her imagination went again!
At this rate she'd be writing her own Marichat fic, complete with a 'whoopsie daisy, we forgot protection and are now dealing with a tiny human' tag.
She wondered how many hits that would get. It was a shame her hands were busy getting groomed, so she couldn't search the tag.
But all jokes aside...their children really would be adorable!
Her father laughed, which made the manicurist jump, a trail of peach going up her finger, followed by a frantically cleaning wipe. This was the fourth time it had happened and Marinette was certain the poor woman would leave with a nervous disposition. She'd make sure Adrien paid her addition in danger pay.
"Éliott, my boy, he was as white as a sheet," her father said. "I've never seen the kid so nervous."
Éliott smirked, obviously enjoying the fact his 'boss' could sometimes show something other than complete togetherness. Though Marinette had been with Adrien the first time he met Tom Cruise — if she hadn't been there, she was quite sure Tom would have thought Adrien was a mute! Since that day, she'd regularly been practising her English to help him out of sticky situations.
"Did he give a proper 'she's the love of my life and I would die for her' speech, or did he ask you through song?" Éliott asked.
Her mother chuckled in the most delightful way. Sabine Cheng was truly loving this. "It was actually really sweet. He explained how it must have seemed out of the blue, but the press had got hold of the story somehow and he wanted to make sure he got to us before it broke. We guessed they were together though, so there was no real shock to it — just a finally!"
"Maman!" Marinette squealed, trying her hardest not to cause too much disruption to the make-up artist and being blinded by a jab of mascara.
Of course, the mortification didn't end there, as Tom decided to come to join in the fun. "It's the way they tried to cover all their late night gatherings and sleepovers by 'watching American dramas'. But believe me when I say no one can get that excited over two kids playing basketball."
The sound of snickering echoed around her. The whole team was now probably thinking about how many late night rendezvous took place under the guise of American dramas — code name: Kinky. It was great for their little 'performance' but not too great at making them sound less than rampant rabbits.
She was quite sure, if she was...you know...as much as Adrien came over, she would be a hell of a lot less stressed than she actually was.
Tom stood and stretched his arms over his head before offering a hand out to his wife. "We best go and get ready, love."
Her parents made their way out of the room, hand in hand and as loved up as she'd ever seen them. She didn't know whether it was the excitement of the wedding, or just the way they were, but she was quite sure her parents were more in love than ever, and it made her heart swell with pride. She was so lucky!
Caught up in watching her parents, Marinette missed the fact that Éliott had continued the conversation. "Last time Marinette was over, I was 'excused' for two days so they could have a Nailed It! marathon." Éliott started to laugh in a way which made Marinette's insides quiver. "Seriously, they could have come up with a better code name."
"What? Like Sex and the City?" her hairstylist added to the conversation.
"Or The Big Bang Theory?" her manicurist piped up.
"Maybe Free Willy?" Éliott hollered, the whole room creasing up laughing...except her!
"I think you're having a reaction to the make-up, Marinette." The make-up artist moved away from her face and stood back with quite the worrisome look. Instinctively, Marinette slammed her hands on her cheeks and squealed. She was burning! But that was no reaction to the make-up.
"I-I'll be okay," she said, scrambling onto her feet. "I just need some fresh air and then to get changed. The make-up is great! Yep, wonderful! I'll just..." Standing up abruptly and taking out the salt shaker, a glass of water and her hair stylist, Marinette scrambled at speed on her hands and feet up the staircase, and into her room slamming the trapdoor shut behind her.
One hour later, her cheeks were finally back to a normal colour. Tikki had given her a good talking to, and she was ready to face the music...and hopefully dance...at her engagement party...with her gorgeous fiancé.
How the hell had they got to this point?
Doing dong!
A quick glance at Tikki gave her all the indication she needed to know who was at the door. Taking a deep breath, she looked over herself once more in the mirror.
She was ready.