Chapter Text
Adrien held his mom’s hand as the two of them walked to the park together. His mom had convinced his dad to let them go to the park before he had to get back and meet his chinese tutor. Once they arrived his mom told him to go play with the other kids while she waited at the bench. Adrien nodded, before running off. He looked around, before spotting a little girl holding a small toy cat. She was looking around nervously, so Adrien went up to her.
“Hello,” He said, “What’s your name?”
The girl looked at him, clutching the toy close to her chest.
“Marinette,” She said shyly.
“Hi Marinette,” Adrien said, “I’m Adrien. Is this your first time here?”
Marinette nodded her head, and Adrien smiled.
“I’ve never been to a playground before,” He said, “Can you show me what to do?”
Marinette smiled and nodded again. She grabbed his hand and dragged him over to the fort. The two of them began to play together. Marinette became more confident after Adrien asked for her help, and began to explain everything to him. The two were crawling through one of the tunnels when Adrien heard his mother call for him.
“It’s my mommy,” He said. Marinette nodded, and Adrien quickly hurried off to see why his mom wanted to talk to him. He ran over to where she was standing.
“It’s time to go, Adrien,” She said. He wrapped his arms around her legs
“Can I say bye bye to my new friend?” He asked, and his mom smiled.
“Okay, but be quick,” She said, “We need to pick up Daddy from the office on the way.”
Adrien nodded, before running back to where he last saw Marinette. When he arrived, all he found was the toy cat she had been holding. He picked it up and walked back to his mom, a sad look on his face.
“She’s gone and she forgot her Kitty,” He said, and his mother bent down and hugged him.
“Oh, that’s a shame,” She said, “What was her name? Maybe we can return it.”
“Marinette,” He said, and his mom nodded.
“Okay,” She said, “Let’s go find Marinette.”
They began to walk around the park. Adrien was holding Marinette’s kitty and calling out her name. After a few moments she heard a voice calling out for a kitty. He turned, and saw his new friend racing around the playground.
“Marinette,” He yelled. She turned to look at him, and her eyes lit up when she saw the cat in his hands.
“Kitty,” She cried. She ran towards him, and he held the cat out for her to take. She grabbed it and cuddled it close to her chest.
“Thank you for looking after Kitty for me,” She said, and Adrien smiled.
“Sweetheart, we need to go,” A voice called out, “Papa is waiting with fresh cookies.”
Adrien turned and saw a short woman who looked like his friend was walking towards him.
“Yay cookies,” Marinette said. She turned to leave, before turning back and hugging Adrien. “Thank you for looking after Kitty,” She said. Adrien returned the hug.
“Hello,” his mom said, “I’m Emilie Agreste. What’s your name?”
“Oh hello,” the woman said, “My name is Sabine Cheng. And I see you’ve met my daughter Marinette.”
His mom nodded. “I have,” She said, “And this is my son Adrien. Say hello Adrien.”
Adrien waved shyly, and Sabine smiled down at him.
“Hello there,” She said, “Are you the new friend my daughter made?”
“Yes,” Marinette said excitedly, “He’s never been to a playground before, so he asked me to help him.”
“Is that so,” Sabine said, looking at his mom.
“My husband is very protective of both of us,” Emilie explained, “He doesn’t want anything bad to happen to either of us, so we don’t go out in public much.”
“I see,” Sabine said with a smile, “Well, it was nice to meet you.”
“It was nice to meet you too,” Emilie said, “By the way, do you by any chance have a connection to Tom and Sabine’s Boulangerie & Patisserie?”
Sabine smiled brightly. “Why yes I do,” She said, “My husband and I are the owners.”
“That’s wonderful,” Emilie said warmly, “I remember the time you catered to Andre’s election party. The food was delicious.”
“Thank you,” She said, “Always happy to hear we satisfied another customer.”
Emilie nodded, before checking her watch. “I’m afraid we have to go,” She said, “But can I get your number? Adrien needs more friends his age, and I would love to meet your husband sometime.”
“Of course,” Sabine agreed, “Marinette is very shy, so I was surprised to find that she had made a friend.”
The two of them exchanged numbers, before Emilie grabbed Adrien’s hand.
“It was nice meeting you,” She said, “I’ll call you later tonight to organize a playdate for Adrien and Marinette.”
“I’ll be waiting,” Sabine said. The four of them parted ways, and Emilie guided Adrien back to the car. The two of them got in, and they drove away.
“So Adrien,” Emilie asked, “Are you excited to see your new friend again sometime?”
“Yeah,” Adrien said excitedly, “She’s really fun, and so smart.”
Emilie laughed, and he looked out the window. As they turned a corner, he saw Marinette and her mom enter one of the shops. He smiled, glad that he made a new friend.
“Master,” Wayzz said quietly, “Master, did you see that?”
“I did Wayzz,” Fu replied quietly as he watched the young boy and girl part ways.
“Master,” Wayzz said, “Those two have resonating auras. They’d be the perfect match for the Ladybug and Black Cat.”
“Are you certain,” He asked, and Wayzz nodded.
“I’m certain,” He replied, “I haven’t felt such a strong match since the dawn of the miraculous.”
“Hhmmm,” was Fu’s only reply. He stroked his beard, lost in thought.
“Master,” Wayzz asked, “What are you going to do?”
“...Keep and eye on them for now,” He said, “If we do every need any help, those two could be quite valuable.”
Fu turned, and started walking away. While he hoped that he never had to call on the two of them to wield a miraculous in combat, he could not afford to let this opportunity pass. Even if neither of them ever fought with the Ladybug and the Black Cat, it was better safe than sorry.
“Alright Adrien,” Emilie said, “Go and wait in your room. Your Chinese tutor will be here shortly. I need to speak to daddy in the meantime.”
Adrien nodded before hurrying up the stairs to his room. He sat on the bed and waited. After a few minutes, the door opened, and a short old man in a Hawaiian shirt walked in.
“Hello,” He said, “My name is Wang Fu. What’s your name, young man?”
“Hello sir,” Adrien replied, “I’m Adrien Agreste. Are you my Chinese tutor?”
“Indeed I am,” Fu said, “Though there is no need to call me sir. Now, today we won’t be learning any Chinese. Instead, I want to spend some time getting to know you. Would you mind if I asked you some questions about yourself?”
Adrien shook his head. Fu began to ask him about his likes and dislikes, his favorite foods, and what he could do. Adrien enjoyed talking to him, he was fun.
Fu smiled as Adrien opened up to him. The boy was very kind and smart. He would make an excellent Black Cat if the situation ever arose. They talked for an hour, before Fu told him that he had to leave. Adrien nodded, and he left the young boy to see his parents. He spoke to Emilie and Gabriel, telling them that he would like permission to take Adrien out every now and then to talk with local native Chinese speakers, saying that it would help him learn. The two agreed, and he left the mansion. He had one more stop to make before he went home.
Sabine was just finishing up behind the counter when she heard the door open. Looking up, he saw an elderly man of Chinese disent entering.
“Hello,” She said, “Welcome to Tom and Sabine’s Boulangerie & Patisserie. How can I help you?”
“I’ll take a croissant please,” The man said. Sabine nodded as she reached down and pulled one out. She placed it in a bag with a napkin before handing it to him.
“Here you go,” She said, and the man accepted it.
“Thank you,” He said in Mandarin. Sabine smiled brightly.
“You speak Mandarin,” She asked, “How wonderful!”
“I’m a Chinese tutor in my spare time,” He said, “My name is Wang Fu. And I take it that you are Sabine?”
“That would be correct,” Sabine replied. The man smiled.
“I have a new student who I just started teaching,” He explained, “I was wondering if I could bring him over on occasion so he could practice his Chinese with more than just his teacher. Would that be okay?”
“That would be wonderful,” Sabine said warmly, “Who is your student?”
“His name is Adrien Agreste,” Fu replied, and Sabine lit up.
“Adrien Agreste,” Sabine said, “I met him earlier today. He became friends with my daughter.”
“Does your daughter speak Chinese?” Fu asked, and Sabine shook her head.
“I’m afraid not,” She told him. Fu smiled at her with a twinkle in his eye.
“Well,” He said, “Why don’t I help teach her when I come over with Adrien. It would be good for him to have a friend his age who is also learning. You could teach her when I’m not available.”
“That sounds like a wonderful idea,” Sabine agreed, “I’ve tried to teach her before, but she always got distracted. Maybe having a friend who is also learning will help keep her focused.”
“Thank you for being so kind,” Fu said, “I best be off now. I’ll see you again when I bring Adrien some time.”
“Goodbye,” Sabine said, and Fu turned and walked out the door. Sabine watched him go. Once he was out of sight she walked up to the front door and turned the sign around to show that they were closed. She then made her way upstairs. She couldn’t wait to tell her daughter the news.