Chapter Text
The kingdom in which this fairy tale takes place has long been known for its aromatic cuisine, impeccable fashion, and romantic atmosphere. Its king, said to be a perfectionist and innovator, ruled the diamond age with a silver cane, his heart turned cold since the passing of his queen, the former first born princess. His only heir, the prince, was kept for the most part inside the palace gates but those who did see him swore that he was the most beautiful precious boy they had ever seen.
In the inner part of the palace there was a courtyard, its roses and herbs were pruned and well kept and the pond prosperous with fish and frogs.
Adrien, precious diamond that he was, was alone in one of the servants' dining quarters. It was smaller and held only a sturdy mahogany table and a cabinet with dishes, several jugs of wine and pickles, fresh carrots from the garden and cheeses. He looked out a window facing the quart yard and gazed at the violet twilight sky. The first stars hinted their presence by twinkling one by one.
The atmosphere was so calm, the aroma so pleasant. Flowers, moss, and… Camenbert? Adrien was startled out of his trance by a clattering behind him. He turned sharply, and saw the lid of a box of camembert roll to his feet. Further following the sound revealed a cat, lapping at the stinky cheese within. “What are you doing here?” Adrien muttered to himself more than the cat.
Adrein cautiously walked forward, and knelt on his toes to get closer to the cat. The feline disliked this and hissed at the hand as though it threatened to take away the cheese forever. So Adrien paused and stood only to get a plate. He very carefully took the cheese and put it on the plate which the black cat heavily protested. But once the plate was back in front of him, the feline stopped and began lapping at the cheese once more, purring with gratitude. Adrien's heart warmed at the sound and he couldn't help but reach out to touch the soft black fur, pleasantly surprised when the head chased his palm.
“No tag.” he noted. “I wonder if you already have a name or not.” The cat did not answer, cause of course it didn't, and kept eating.
“Pets are not practical, your highness.”
“Natalie!” Adrien jumped but since he was already precariously balanced on his toes, this resulted in a rather unelegant tumble to the floor. “Uhhhh- it wasn't a pet.”
Natalie had many jobs. Former handmaiden to princes Emilie, first advisor to the reigning king, and most beneath her, being Prince Adrien's keeper. Her closeness to the former queen made her the next best thing as a mother to Adrien and her dual position fed the Kings controlling habits. She rolled her eyes. “Feeding it and giving it a name makes it a pet.”
“Really?” Adrien's eyes widened, looking back at the plate to find the black cat gone. He was hopeful to have that cat as a pet, but he knew it probably wouldn't be allowed and the cat may already belong to someone else.
“You’re supposed to be doing your schoolwork.” She stood by the door, keeping it open, heavily suggesting Adrien begin to leave the room.
“I was. I did- I finished. I was hoping to get some alone time so I could clear my head and uhh-” he saw Natalie's face assume its resting position “-and it makes me work better next time. Heh.” He sped past her and started taking the route to his chambers.
“Did you do well in knight training? What did Monsieur D'Argencourt say?” Natalie began listing off his classes and duties which Adrian only responded to with nods and short responses. He was more distracted by some other people in the hallway, his friends.
Marinette Dupain-Cheng and Alya Cesair were both daughters of certain heads of kitchen staff. As such they were best friends and were always seen in the area working together and gossiping. Adrien ran up to them, startling them into shallow curtsies.
“Marinette! Alya! How are you doing today!” Alya took the surprise appearance gracefully but Marinette began to clumsily lose control of her limbs and words.
“Your hi-hi-hi–highn-”
“We're doing great, your highness, just finishing our work for today and gonna go hang out with the others.”
“Hi-hi-nes-aaaAA” Alya elbowed her friend in the arm.
Oblivious to the red on Marinette's cheeks, Adrien smiled, but Natalie saw. She always saw and made note of the girls who liked the prince in that way. “I told you guys, just call me Adrien.”
“Adrien!” Marinette squeaked, her cheeks big and red like a chipmunk.
“Yeah!” He said, happy to hear his name said so casually. Natalie coughed and he was startled back into reality. “I gotta go but it was nice seeing you two!” He resumed his route to his bedroom and Natalie followed with nothing more to say.
At the door to his chambers he stopped and turned to face Natalie. “Do you think I could ever hang out with people my age, like Alya and Marinette do?”
Natalie knew he would ask sooner or later, so she maintained a calm expression yet spoke softly. “It's too dangerous. His majesty would take some convincing.”
“Oh please Natalie. Sir Placide Gorille could body guard me. I’d be perfectly safe.” Adrien looked and looked for any change in her face, and found none. Until finally she lowered her head in a nod.
“I’ll see what I can do.” Adrien pumped his fist in success. Natalie smiled internally, glad to see him happy. “Goodnight Your Highness.”
“Goodnight, Natalie.”
—
The Cabin was dimly lit by oil lamps which doubled as sweet incense. The rest of the decor was simple, barely there. A worn down satchel, a clean mat used as bedding, a beautiful hand carved cane, and a circular box carved with ancient symbols.
The door opened and revealed the man sitting on the mat. He was old and wore inconspicuous clothing, but he emanated wisdom and power.
“Plagg.” he said with fondness. The black cat’s green eyes seemed to glow and he purred proudly. “Have you found someone?” The cat meowed in agreement and the man laughed. “It's not just because they fed you, right?” Plagg hissed.
“Alright alright, I trust you.” The man leaned over to the circular box and opened the top compartment. He reached in and grabbed a simple black ring. It held no jewel or carving and the man held it out to the black feline.
Plagg took the ring in his mouth and rubbed against the palm of the man. “Leave nothing out.” He chided as the cat began to leave. “Make sure they come here.”
—
Marinette woke when the sun was well established in the sky. She began to panic but a handwritten note perfectly placed in eyesight reminded her it was her day off. “Thank you mom.” she said to herself. (Sabine is the best, literally.)
She stretched and stood, looking around in ernest. Marinette was an excellent and passionate seamstress. On days like today she liked to work on her projects and experiment with new techniques and patterns. On most days she would apprentice for the castle seamstress in the mornings, do an hour or two of class with her age group, and help out her parents in the kitchens for the rest of the afternoon. She would always make time for her friends if able.
Marinette's family was fortunate and had a set of rooms to themselves. She even had her own room with a balcony. It was small, enough for a bed, a wardrobe and a chair. The semi-circle balcony she could even fully lay down on. It was often her own little world, walls so thick she could barely hear her fathers snores, and she decorated it with any pretty thing she found or made.
The view from her balcony was a semi private one, trees, sky, the other windows of other rooms. It's not like they would have any reason to look at her, just the trees and the sky. Taking a minute to breathe, she rested her hands on the ledge of her balcony and closed her eyes.
Suddenly something began to tickle her nose, she barely opened her eyes to see that it was a ladybug, small and delicate, tickling her nose. “Ahhh, AaAhH, AAAHH- CHOOOOOO!”
“Hehe, Hello Marinette!” Marinette looked around but saw nobody near except for the ladybug which landed on the hand she used to rub her nose. “Yes, it's me.”
“AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!”