#parental fluff

The day that Nana and Zane found out that they were going to have a child was the best day of their life, well, that's what Kc would always say to anyone who asked. Zane, on the other hand? He was a wreck. He was beyond happy to have a child with the woman he loved, but he could not shake the nerves that would take hold of him. His father was never the best father growing up; he always lived in his older brother Garroth's shadow. He couldn’t help but fear that he would end up the same as his own father. But he had Nana, and she would always find a way to cure his nerves. 

Zane believed that he would never top the nerves he felt. Well, that was until the couple for their 2nd trimester check-up. Zane was buzzing with nerves as Nana laid on the hospital bed. Her doctor came in, slipping on the blue latex gloves, then set up for the ultrasound. Zane watched in awe as the doctor swiped the wand over KC’s stomach, grey, somewhat blurry blobs appearing on the monitor in front of them. Everything was going smoothly, but Zane's nerves started slipping away the longer he watched, until the doctor let out a sound somewhere between an awe and a gasp. Zane jolted up, “What's wrong? Are they okay?” he started to ramble until KC placed her hand on top of his. The doctor leaned back away from the screen and turned it back towards the couple, “Congratulations, you two will be having twins.”

Zane swore the world stopped around him; he must have heard wrong. Twins? Two babies? No, that can’t be right… He was barely prepared for one child, but two of them? He glanced down at Nana. Nana’s honey colored eyes were wide as she stared in awe at the monitor. “Two babies,” she whispered, squeezing Zane's hand. “Zane, we are going to have twins.” Her voice was breathy and soft as tears filled her eyes. Zane swallowed, then smiled, “Looks like we are.”

The doctor gave them a few moments before quietly excusing herself to give them privacy, pulling the curtain closed with a soft swish. The room fell silent, except for the faint hum of the monitor and Nana’s soft, emotional breaths. “I…” Zane started, then stopped. His voice cracked in the middle of the syllable. “I thought I was nervous before. This is… something else.” Nana squeezed his hand again, gently tugging him closer so he’d sit beside her. “Scared?” He gave a shaky chuckle, brushing a hand over his face. “Terrified.” She turned to look at him, her cheeks still damp with tears, her expression full of gentle warmth. “Me too.”

Zane met her eyes. He knew how much scarier this must be for her. She was the one carrying the children, not him. He could only imagine the fear that brings her. Zane grabbed both of her hands, squeezing them tightly as he kissed her forehead.  “But,” Nana continued, leaning into her husband's touch, “I know we can do this. Because it’s us, Zane. We always find a way.” Zane looked down at her belly, then back up to her face. He leaned forward, pressing a soft kiss to her forehead once more. “I don’t know how to be a dad,” he admitted, voice low and raw. “I don’t want to mess them up.”

“You won’t,” Nana whispered, resting her head against his shoulder. “You already love them. That’s more than your father ever gave you. That’s already everything.” Zane closed his eyes, resting his hand gently on her stomach. He knew she had a point. Zane loved them just as much as he loved Nana. And somehow, despite the fear still curling in his stomach, he knew that everything would be okay. “We’re gonna need so many diapers,” he muttered into her pink hair.  Nana snorted through her tears, swatting at his arm. “One emotional moment and you already ruin it.” He grinned, the first real grin since walking into the hospital. Nana rolled her eyes, but her smile was wide. “Yeah, yeah. Come on, let’s go tell the others. Garroth is going to scream.” Zane groaned. “He’s going to cry and make it dramatic, I just know it.”

“And Laurance will probably start taking bets on who’s going to be the chaos twin.”

“Oh god. What if they’re both the chaos twin?” Zane groaned in false annoyance.

- - - 

Six months later, the twins, Isabella and Harper, were born. Zane held Isabella in his arms. She looked a lot like him. With inky colored hair and pale skin, however, her honey colored eyes mirrored her mother's eyes. He rocked the small infant in his arms. Six months ago, he felt all these nerves and fears about having not only one child but two. But as he held his small daughters in his arms for the first time, all those nerves disappeared. Kc sat in the plush chair in the nursery. In her arms, she held Harper, who was all bundled up in a pale purple blanket. Harper had chocolate colored hair and meifwa ears. The small girl babbled in her mother's arms. 

Her mouth opened slightly at the sound of his last name, giving a curt, but obviously uncomfortable, nod. “So, the son of Gabriel Agreste, huh?”

“Otherwise known as Hawkmoth? Yeah, that’s him,” Adrien stated flatly.

Marinette gave him a stiff smile, before turning her attention to the other villain kids. “And you?”

Alya placed a hand on her hip, “Alya Cesaire,” she said shaking the princess’ hand. There was a glint between the two of them, he noticed. Adrien glanced between the two girls who smiled at each other. What was that all about?

As Mylene and Nathaniel introduced themselves, Adrien already found himself growing bored with the situation. Honestly, he kinda wanted the princess’ attention back to himself. Which was odd… He’d never felt like that before. Adrien could help but feel a twinge of jealously when Marinette shook Nathaniel’s hand, and he looked simply in awe of her.

Nope. Stop it, Adrien. You didn’t come here for this. You’re here for the Miraculous. That’s what you’re here for.

The princess clasped her hands together cheerfully. “Well, now I think it’s time that you are shown your rooms. I have some matters to take care of, but I’ll be there to check on you all soon. Nino will be the one to tell you your room numbers, alright? He’s just inside that door.”

Marinette waved them goodbye as the four of them enter Auradon Prep. There is a boy with glasses standing there waiting on them to enter. He seemed pretty nervous. Good. He should be.

The guy grinned nervously at them. “H-Hello. I’m Nino. Welcome to Auradon.”

Waving him off, Adrien rolled his eyes. “Yeah, yeah. Can we just have the keys to our rooms?”

Nino seemed taken aback for a second, but handed them the keys and pointed up the left staircase. “Your rooms are 304 and 305.”

Alya snorted. “Oh, keeping us near each other in check, huh?”

He held his hands up in defense. “I-I didn’t…”

“Calm down, four eyes. It was a joke,” Alya said with a snort and flicked a finger to his chest.

Glancing around hesitantly, he nodded. “R-Right.”

Adrien motioned up the stairs with his head. “Let’s go. We’ll see you around…Nino, was it?”

“Yeah, that’s me! If you have any questions, let me know. If I can do anything to make you more comfortable, I’ll do the best I can.”

With a smarmy smirk, Adrien’s brow twitched. “I guess we’ll see about that, won’t we?”

Adrien and Nathaniel both walked into their room. Eyeing the bed, the mattress was much bigger than one he had slept on before. Maybe, the dorm rooms weren’t so bad, besides how—fancy they looked.

“Can you believe we’re stuck in this hell hole for a few weeks?” Adrien murmured as he plopped down on the mattress.

“With as much eye fucking as you’ve done to that bed in the last five minutes, I’d say you’re not actually complaining too much,” he responded with a snort as he sat on the bed opposite of Adrien’s.

Running a hand through his hair, Adrien groaned. “Whatever. The sooner we get the Ladybug and Black Cat Miraculouses the better. That way we can impress our parents and blow this popsicle stand.”

Nathaniel opened his sketch pad and began drawing a bit. “Can I at least get a girlfriend while I’m here? Girls on the Isle don’t even glance at me.”

Sitting up, Adrien leaned his weight back on his palms. “You think you’re going to get one here? We’re villain kids, Nath. We don’t fit in here. Everyone is going to be afraid of us.”

“Maybe, girls are into the bad boys,” he said with a shrug.

He stared at him flatly. “Nathaniel. You? A bad boy? Give me a break.”

“They don’t have to know that!”

“What? Seriously? You have a class with the princess? That’s crazy!” Mylene cried as she gaped at Alya.

Alya gave a shrug. “And? What’s the big deal?”

Crossing his arms, Adrien rubbed his chin while he hummed in thought. “That means you can find out where the Miraculouses are.”

She cocked her hip as she glowered at him. “Do you honestly think that Marinette would trust a villian’s kid enough to tell me where they have the Miraculouses hidden? Hell, no. She’s sweet, not stupid.”

“You could just get close to her,” Mylene chirped.

Wagging a finger at Mylene, Adrien nodded. “Yeah, she’s right. Get Marinette to trust you?”

Alya flopped her head back with a groan. “Why am I always the one with the dirty jobs? Adrien, you’re the one who desperately wants to impress your father,” she griped while gesturing an arm at him. “Why don’t you get off your ass and do something?”

Adrien barked out a laugh. Was she crazy!? He placed his hands on his chest, pointing at himself. “I am the son of Hawkmoth. The guy that tried to take over the world. Like hell, would Marinette ever trust me.”

Nathaniel hummed. “It’s not like you really tried. But, maybe, I could try to catch her interest?”

“No,” Adrien snapped, his pupils narrowing into slits for a moment. What the hell! No way was he going to sit here and watch the artist try to woo the princess. Disgusting.

Nathaniel held his hands up in defense. “Okay, yeesh. The princess is cute, okay? I was just trying to be a help.”

Mylene and Alya shared a brief glance, a smirk making its way on the latter’s lips. “Adrien, was that jealousy I just detected?”

What? Of course, not. He scoffed with a roll of his eyes. “No. Why would I care? I just don’t want to watch Nathaniel try to flirt.”

Alya clicked her tongue, a knowing glance directed his way. “Uh huh. Sure, pretty boy.” She paused and contemplated for a moment. “You know what? I’ll do it. I’ll find out where the Miraculouses are, okay? If it means I don’t have to watch poor mothy boy over here try to come up with excuses anymore.”

Face twitching, Adrien glared at her. “That’s enough of that, Alya.”

Alya and Mylene both hummed in a mocking tone, before exiting the boys’ dorm room. The pair sat in an awkward silence as Adrien then glanced up at Nathaniel. “I’m not jealous.”

“I didn’t say anything,” Nathaniel snipped back quickly with his eyes bulging.

Harrumphing, the blond picked up one of his school books, opened it, dropped it on his face, and proceeded to scream into it.

Nino flinched as Alya blew another bubble and popped loudly. Glancing over at her, he arched a brow. He leaned over to her and whispered, “You know, you’re not supposed to have gum in the science lab.”

She glanced at him sideways and popped it again between her teeth. “Oh, really? Why’s that?” she asked blowing another bubble with a smirk.

“Well, it could get stuck to something, or have a chemical reaction,” he explained, fiddling with his headphones nervously.

“My gum could blow something up? Now, that’s something I’d like to see,” Alya retorted with a snort.

Scratching idly at his forehead, Nino glanced down at his school work. “I’d rather not, honestly.” Alya twirled her gum around her finger, stretching it and smacking as she eyed his reaction with a grin. Nino just stared at her. “You’re doing this to annoy me, aren’t you?”

Cackling, she ran a hand through her hair. “What was your first clue, four eyes?”

“You really can’t call me that when you have glasses to,” he pointed out.

“Oh, really? What are you? The nickname police?”

“For a villian’s kid, that comeback was pretty weak.”

Gripping him by the shirt, Alya squinted at him. “Now, you listen here—“

“Heyyyy, how’s everything going over here?” a new voice sang.

The pair jerked their heads to see Princess Marinette standing in front of their desks. Alya quickly released his shirt and looked away. “It’s fine.”

Marinette clasped her hands in front of her with a smile. “Good! Oh—um, you’re not really supposed to have gum in class, Alya, I’m sorry. It’s just for safety reasons.”

Putting on her best smile and cheer, Alya took the gum out of her mouth. “Oh, of course. My bad,” she chucked into the trash can next to her.

Nino’s jaw fell open.

Alya’s lips twitched, hiding her smile as she shrugged giving him a “what?” gesture.

“So,” Marinette pulled and extra stool up to their lab and took a seat, “Alya, how are things going. Are you and the others getting adjusted?”

With an over exaggerated grin, Alya nodded. “Oh, yes. Things are going quite well. And,” she lowered her voice, “between you and me, I think Adrien has a little crush on you.” He was going to kill her. She knew that. But, this was too much fun to resist.

Especially when the princess flushed and reared back, almost falling out of her chair. “O-Oh! Um! I’m flattered, really!” one of her hands flew up to fiddle with one of her pigtails. “I-I don’t know if a boy has ever like—liked me before. That’s, um, new.” Marinette quickly hopped out of the seat. “Well! It was nice talking to you Alya! But I should really get going! Princess stuff to do, ahahaa…”

Alya’s brows furrowed. She was supposed to get to know the princess and gain her trust. This was the perfect opportunity to do that. “But, wait, you just got here.”

Chewing on her lip, Marinette glanced down at Alya’s notebook. Quickly, she snatched Nino’s pencil from his hand and wrote a phone number down on the corner of her paper. “There, my cell number. Text me, call me, uh, anything, if you need me. I’ll be around. See you, Alya. See you, Nino.”

And with that, the princess fled the science lab in a flustered mess.

Now, that was interesting.

Nino grimaced as he watched her retreat. “You really shouldn’t bring up boys to Marinette. It’s a touchy subject.”

Alya tilted her head with confusion. “What do you mean?”

As he began copying down more problems from the white board, he spoke, “Well, at the coronation, it’s traditional that the Ladybug earrings are bestowed upon the princess and the Black Cat ring is bestowed upon her boyfriend, or vice versa depending on the gender of the heir. Basically, it’s the engagement, before the engagement, before the engagement. The problem is, well, Marinette’s never had a boyfriend.”

She nearly choked as she blinked at him. “She’s the princess of Auradon, no one has ever dated her?”

Nino gave a half shrug. “She’s talked to a few, but never really committed to anyone. We’re kinda close, she basically explained to me that none of them felt right.”

“Oh, really?” Alya murmured darkly more to herself than Nino.

She couldn’t resist the twisted grin that spread across her face.

Alya busted open the door to the dorm, to find Mylene, Adrien, and Nathaniel already sitting in the room together. Closing the door behind her, she smirked as she winked at them. “Guess who knows how to get the Miraculouses.”

Adrien jumped from his seat at the desk. “What? Really? How’d you get Marinette to trust you that fast?”

“Wasn’t Marinette,” she replied with a shake of her head. “It was Nino. The kid with the glasses and headphones. He told me that the Miraculouses will be presented to Marinette and her boyfriend slash date, whatever at the coronation. That’s how we can get them!”

Mylene furrowed her brow. “How? Snatch them before they can put them on?”

Alya waggled her finger. “Not exactly. Guess who doesn’t have a date?”

“Marinette doesn’t have a date?” Nathaniel asked with curiosity.

She clicked her tongue, pointing at him. “Bingo. Nino said Marinette’s never really been interested in anybody. So, she’s basically scrambling to find someone right now. And, when I mentioned Adrien to her she went completely red and ran away.”

Adrien’s brows shot up. “You’re kidding.”

“Nope!” she responded with a pop of the ‘p.’

Mylene nudged his leg from her seat on the floor. “Look at you, pretty boy, wooing a princess.”

He scratched his head in thought. “Yeah, but, still. I don’t know if Marinette would actually go out with me because of who I am…” Wait… An idea popped into his head. “My dad’s manipulation spell. I bet I can do it.”

Nathaniel grimaced. “Mind controlling her? Isn’t that a little harsh?”

Rolling his eyes, Adrien glowered at him. “You got another plan, tomato head? We’re villains. Is there anything out of our moral code?”

Nathaniel still looked uneasy. “Are… Are we sure that this is what we want to do? I mean, our parents—“

“Are expecting us to pull this off,” Adrien interrupted. “If we don’t, who knows what they’ll do to us. Especially mine. We have to do this because we’re rotten…”

“…to the core.” They all chorused in agreement.

Adrien closed his locker, admiring his spray paint work of his father’s symbol on the door. He nearly jumped out of his skin seeing someone standing there behind it. She was blonde with blue eyes, heavy with eyeshadow.

“Hi~” she sang with a wave of her fingers.

Looking her up and down, he responded. “Hi.” Suddenly, she was running a finger down his arm. Who was this chick, and why on earth was she touching him? He jolted back slightly. “Um, can I help you?”

Fanning herself, she scoffed. “Oh, where are my manners? I’m Chloe. I was wondering if you wanted to go to the coronation with me?”

Adrien popped his lips. “Um, no, not really?”

Chloe flipped her hair over her shoulder. “What? I don’t think I heard you correctly?”

“No,” he stated again, this time a little harsher. “I have someone else in mind.”

She laughed. “Oh, really? I’m telling you we’re the perfect combination. I’m the prettiest girl in school, and you’re the hot bad boy. What more of a match do you need?”

This girl just wouldn’t go away would she? Taking all of his self-control, Adrien let out an irritated sigh. “Look, I’m planning on asking someone else to the coronation, alright? Go ask Nathaniel. He’s plenty of, um, hot bad boy.”

“Fine,” she spun on her heel, her pony tail whacking him in the face. He snarled as he watched her walk away. “Your loss,” she chimed.

Adrien wiped his hands down his face in aggravation. God, the things he did for his father’s approval. Ridiculous. Sighing, he glanced over at Alya, who had seen the exchange and gave him a sympathetic smile. This entire thing was going to be the death of him. Whether it was by the hand of his father or the Auradon police, he guessed he’d have to see.

Light tapping on his shoulder brought him out of his thoughts. He spun back around. “Look, Chloe, I—oh.” It was none other than the princess standing there behind him.

Smiling guiltily, she cringed a little. “Oh, so you’ve met Chloe, huh? She’s not the nicest girl around. Tends to make fun of anyone she can.”

Snorting, Adrien shook his head. “Even you? How could she? You’re the princess, aren’t you? Soon-to-be queen in a few days, right?”

Marinette fiddled with her side hairs, twirling them around her finger. “Yeah, well, I’m not the most graceful of princesses, that’s for sure. Or the prettiest,” she murmured the last bit and glanced away.

“What do you mean?” Adrien asked, his head tilting slightly. Cupping under her chin, he lifted her head up. “I think you’re the most beautiful girl in all of Auradon.”

Blinking up at him, her eyes widened as a flush spread across her cheeks. “O-Oh…”

This was it. This was his chance. He looked her straight in the eyes, focusing on controlling her thoughts. Eyes turning a light purple, his pupils narrowed into slits, as a symbol of a butterfly appeared over her face and her eyes glazed over. Adrien smirked. “Marinette, you love me, don’t you?”

“Mmhmm…” she hummed in a daze.

“That’s why I’m going to be your date to the coronation, right?”

“Of course…”

He stared intently into her eyes for another moment, before letting the symbol disappear and his eyes returning to normal. Marinette simply gazed at him, her face going blank. Moving his hand to her cheek, he bent down to look at her face more clearly. “Marinette? You okay?”

The princess blinked out of her trance. Leaning forward, she gave him a peck on the cheek. “Yup! I’m fine! I’ll see you at the dinner today, right?”

Puffing out his cheeks, Adrien gave a nod. “Oh, um, yeah. Totally. I’m excited for it.”

Marinette beamed at him. “Good! I love you! See you in a bit!” she chimed as she frolicked off into another hallway of the school.

“Yeah, see you then!” he called after her as she skipped away. Quickly, in a huff, he spun to face Alya who was just as stunned as he was.

“Woah,” she said with a gape. “You actually did it.”

Running a hand down the side of his face, Adrien nodded. “I-I did…”

“How… How did it feel?”

Grimacing, he shook his head. “Honestly? Not good…”

Alya was stunned when she opened the door to find the princess standing on the other side of it. Marinette smiled, with a small wave. “Um, hi Alya. I have a big dinner to attend this evening, but um, I need some help.”

Glancing back at Mylene, who was equally shocked and simply shrugged, Alya turned to the princess with a curious brow. “Help with what?”

Marinette stalked into the room, much to the pair’s dismay. Hopefully, they didn’t have anything out in the open that would shout “hey! we’re trying to steal the Miraculous!”

“So, I design all of my own dresses and outfits, but I can never seem to make my hair and make-up go with it. But, you two always have such pretty hair and make-up, so I was wondering if you could help me?” Marinette asked as she sat down on one of their small chairs.

What an innocent request, Alya reasoned. This princess was too sweet for her own good. “So, you basically want us to give you a make-over?” she asked.

Bobbing her head, Marinette agreed. “Yeah, exactly! I have the design of my dress. Would you like to see it?”

“Yeah, sure.” Alya replied as Marinette handed her the sketch pad, who then passed it along to Mylene. “That’s really pretty, Marinette. Who knew a princess could be so talented?”

Mylene nodded. “Yeah, that’s really gorgeous. You’re lucky there’s someone to make them for you.”

“Oh, well I can sew, myself,” Marinette explained. “I just never have time now with all of my responsibilities. Being queen is a lot tougher than I thought it would be… but luckily, thanks to my first decree as soon-to-be queen, I got to meet Adrien and you guys. And he’s great!” she chimed.

Ouch. There was a pang of guilt in her chest that was back. This poor, poor girl. What were they doing this for? Glancing sadly at Mylene, Alya sighed. “Yeah, we’re so happy to be here, Marinette. Of course, we’ll help you.”

The princess had a smile that could light up an entire room. “Thanks!”

Oh, goddammnit. Why was she so damn pretty? It was the first time he’d ever seen her hair down like that. It was beautiful. She was so beautiful. Her dress was red and spotted, just like the Ladybug Miraculous she would be receiving in just a few days. It was so frilly at the top and poofed out like a short ball gown at the bottom. God, she was adorable.

As she approached, he noticed how different her make-up looked this evening. There was red eye-shadow lining heavily mascara coated eyelashes. Her bluebell eyes seemed even brighter than they usually were. He held out an arm for her, which she hooked in with no hesitation. It seemed his spell was still in effect.

The pair joined everyone else in the large courtyard. Alya, Mylene, and Nathaniel were already there as they walked over to the balcony to wave at the guests. Marinette then guided him to where the king and queen stood.

“Mom, Dad, this is my boyfriend, Adrien.”

The king and queen gave each other uneasy glances at first, before turning to him with kindness. “It’s nice to meet you, Adrien.” The king said as he placed a hand on his shoulder.

Adrien bowed quickly. “N-Nice to meet you too, sir.”

He chuckled. “Tom is just fine, my boy. No need to be so nervous.”

“Yes,” the queen took Adrien’s hand as he stood straight. “You can just call me Sabine, as well.”

“I will admit, at first I was hesitant about Marinette’s decision to bring children over here from the Isle of the Lost, but after the way that Marinette talks about you, I think it was the right choice.”

The guilt that pitted in Adrien’s stomach almost made him vomit right on the spot.

Adrien paced in his dorm, as the fellow Isle children watched. “We can’t do this. How are we supposed to do this to these people? Marinette especially? All she has done has been nice to us, and we’re going to throw that away?”

“What about your dad, Adrien,” Alya pointed out. “If we don’t pull this off, he could toast us all easily.”

Groaning, Adrien sat down on his bed. “I know, I don’t know what to do. This isn’t right.”

“We’re not right. That’s why we’re not supposed to be here, isn’t that what you said?” Nathaniel grumbled.

Running his fingers through his hair, Adrien shook his head. “I don’t know what right and wrong is anymore…”

Knocking at the door made them all flinch. “C-Come in!” he called.

The door squeaked open to reveal Marinette on the other side. “O-Oh! I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to interrupt. If you’re all busy I can come back later…”

Shaking his head, Adrien reached at her. “No! Don’t go!” he quipped. Oh, shit. He glanced at his friends who were all staring at him knowingly. Well, that was embarrassing. “I mean, what do you need Marinette? You’re not a bother.”

Twiddling with her fingers nervously, Marinette stared at him. “Would you like… to come with me? Off campus? Like… a date?”

Now, Adrien could feel himself blushing. The son of Gabriel Agreste did not blush! Oh, hell no! What was happening to him!? Gulping, he nodded. “Yeah, sure. I’ll go with you.”

Her smile was blinding. “Okay! I’ll be back here in a little bit!” She shut the door behind her and the dorm room fell into silence.

That is, until Alya spoke up.

“You’re in love with her.”

Shooting a look in her direction, Adrien quickly denied the claim. “What? No, I’m not! That’s ridiculous.”

Alya glanced at the other two in the room who shared her look. “Bullshit, Adrien. You’ve completely changed since you’ve been pretend dating Marinette the past few days. She’s been on you like a leech, and you’ve been completely eating it up. Quit lying to us and yourself.” She gave a sigh. “Go on the date… then we have a pretty big decision to make.”

Adrien followed her outside the front doors of the school to see a motorcycle sitting there. Was that hers? Oh, shit. That’s hot as fuck.

Giving a snort, he placed his hands on his hips. “A princess on a motorcycle? Now, that’s a new one.”

She grinned at him as she clipped her helmet. “I mean, if you’d rather take the limo, we can. This is just more freeing if you ask me.”

“Isn’t the guy supposed to drive the girl on the motorcycle?”

Marinette laughed at that. “You got a license?”

He glanced away. “Well, no.”

The princess kicked her leg over the bike, and motioned for him to join her with a bob of her head. “Then who needs the stereotypes? Get on the bike.”

Adrien didn’t need to be told twice. He clipped the other helmet on, and took a seat behind her. The pair sped away, off the campus. Off to new places of Auradon he’d yet to see.

Being cramped on campus was a shame, he’d come to discover. There were so many beautiful places in this kingdom. It was nothing like the Isle. They reached the Enchanted Lake, and Marinette parked her bike. Taking her helmet off, her cute little pigtails had become messy and undone. He certainly didn’t mind it though. The bad girl look was good on her.

The pair lay underneath the gazebo. Adrien rested his head in Marinette’s lap as she played with his blonde locks. This was something he could get used to. He really wanted to. But everything was so confusing. Having to choose between his father and Marinette was becoming more and more difficult with each minute he spent with her.

“Adrien?”

“Hm?”

“What’s the Isle like?” she asked.

Thinking back of that dark and filthy place almost made him cringe. “It’s… nothing like here. People steal, cheat, and make a mess of everything all the time. No one has any remorse or guilt. It’s harsh.”

Still fiddling with his hair, Marinette hummed sadly. “I’m sorry. I’m glad you’re here now.”

“Yeah,” he croaked.

Moving his head from her lap, she stood and turned to gaze at the enchanted water. Unfortunately, she stepped to close to the edge, her heels catching, causing her to go flying into the water below. Adrien hopped up in a panic, jumping in after her.

“Marinette!?”

Her head popped up from the water as he made his way over to her. The water got deeper and he found himself panicking. “U-Um. I can’t exactly swim.”

Marinette simply stared at him a moment. She shook her head. “O-Oh! Right!” She pedaled herself over to him enough for him to lift her from the shallow water and back onto the floor of the gazebo. The princess blinked at him. “You… You can’t swim?”

Running a hand through his wet hair, he shook his head. “No. Not exactly swimming pools on the Isle.”

“But, you still jumped in to save me?”

Adrien pushed himself out of the water. “Yeah, I don’t know what I would have done if something happened to you.”

A blush spread across her cheeks. “I see…” she trailed off before making direct eye contact with him. “Adrien, I told you that I love you. Do you love me?”

Oh… shit. He glanced away and down into the water. “Well, I don’t really know what love feels like,” he said with half a shrug.

Marinette cupped under his chin, lifting his head back up to see her. “Maybe, I can teach you?” she leaned in and pressed her lips to his. Adrien felt himself melt against her. Fireworks exploded behind his eyes as his lips danced with hers. He was a goner. That was for sure.

“I’m going to undo the manipulation spell,” Adrien said to Alya.

She stared at him flatly. “The coronation is tomorrow. What are you thinking?”

“Having Marinette still be in love with me after we take the Miraculouses just seems too… cruel, you know?”

Alya glanced down at her hands. “We’re really going to do this, huh?”

Letting out a sigh, he nodded. “We don’t have a choice.”

“There’s always a choice, Adrien. I just don’t know if we’re making the right one,” she murmured as she headed towards the door. She paused and glanced back at him. “Nino asked me to the coronation. He’s really nice… you two would have probably been good friends if it weren’t for all of this.” Giving him a sad smile, she closed the door behind her.

Marinette walked up the stairs in her coronation gown. It was strapped around her neck, with a long train flailing out behind her at the bottom. This time, it was pink with white floral patterns covering it. He honestly preferred the sexy red Ladybug dress from the pre-coronation dinner, but he wasn’t really the one in charge here. After what was about to happen, he didn’t have the right to have a say.

The two stood arm in arm in front of the chapel doors. Clearing his throat, he turned to her. “Marinette.”

She gazed up at him. “Yes?”

He took a deep breath, eyes focusing on her. When his eyes narrowed into slits, Marinette held a hand up to him. “There’s no need for all of that.”

Adrien jolted, taken aback by her statement. “W-What?”

“There’s no need to undo a spell that isn’t there anymore, right?”

He stared at her blankly. “Oh, right.” Wait. What!? He processed her words. Blinking at her, he gaped. “You—You’re not under the spell anymore?”

She snorted. “Nope. It washed away in the Enchanted Lake when I fell.”

“You’re not mad?”

Shaking her head, she let out a breathy laugh. “No. I’m nervous asking someone out too. If I could have put a spell on you, I would have done the same.”

“So—So, what? You’ve just been faking it since the lake? Marinette, you made-out with me after that for Pete’s sake.”

The princess simply barked a laugh. “Calm down there, moth boy,” she raised his hand to her lips and pressed a gentle kiss there. “I haven’t faked anything.”

Gulping, he flushed. This was bad. This was so, so bad.

They walked together down the aisle. Other students and school faculty all lined the sides of the rug. Never in his life had Adrien just wanted to scream, cry, and run away. At the end of the aisle, stood an elder man with the box of the two Miraculouses sitting open, ready to be presented to them.

Marinette curtsied to him when they reached him. “Master Fu, good to make your acquaintance again.”

“As to you, my queen,” he said with a bow.

They both turned to the audience as the queen approached Marinette. She placed the new crown on top of her head, and the crowd went into a small applause. They then turned back around to Master Fu. Marinette bent down as he placed the earring within her ears. Adrien gulped when the man gestured for him to hold out his hand. The elder slipped the ring onto Adrien’s finger. The weight was almost too much to bear. The guilt was eating him alive.

He had to. He had to. He had to.

Adrien reached up, grabbing hold of Marinette’s ears. The ring and studs glowed at the contact with each other, shooting a beam of light up to the sky, and breaking the barrier to the Isle. The crowd let out a gasp.

“Adrien… What are you doing?” Marinette whimpered. Betrayal was clear in her eyes.

Alya, Mylene, and Nathaniel ran up to join him. Nathaniel eyed him. “Adrien, just take them. Let’s get out of here.”

“What?” Marinette gasped.

He gazed at her. “Marinette, I—I have to. We don’t have a choice!”

“There’s always a choice! Your parents made theirs now make yours, Adrien.”

The words shook him to the core. It may have been one thing coming from Alya… but coming from the girl that he’d found himself falling in love with. That was different. He glanced over at the others, before turning back to Marinette. “I-I think I want to be good.”

Marinette reached up, cupping his hands that her grasping her earrings. “You are good!”

“How do you know that!?” he cried.

“Be—Because I’m listening to my heart. I know that this isn’t you! You’re not your parents, Adrien, you are so much more than that,” she said gently as she took his hands off the earrings, both jewels returning to their normal color.

Intertwining his fingers with hers, he gazed into her eyes. “Marinette… I…”

“Oh, well isn’t this sweet?”

Adrien gasped at the voice. Oh, no. No, no, no! There was another roar from the crowd as Adrien turned to see his father standing in the middle of the Isle. “D-Dad. How did you get here?”

Chuckling darkly, Gabriel eyed his son. “Now, isn’t the time for questions. Give me the Miraculous.”

Adrien clutched the ring with both hands. “No.”

Gabriel cocked a brow. “No?”

“No, father! I won’t do it!”

“Now, this is a surprise. What’s gotten into you?”

Adrien shook his head. “I’m not you, father. I don’t want to be you. I’m not evil. This isn’t who I am.”

“Hand over the jewels, or else, son.”

Hardening his gaze, Adrien sneered. “No.”

Gabriel growled. “Fine. Have it your way then.” Butterflies surrounded him, transforming him into Hawkmoth. He lifted his scepter in his direction, firing it towards them. The crowd screamed in terror, only for him to manipulate the audience into silence and freeze them. Adrien jumped in front of Marinette, shielding her from the blast.

The ring on Adrien’s finger began to hum and glow, green light absorbed him as he too changed forms. He glanced down at his gloved hands in surprise.

Marinette clutched to him. “You can do it,” she whispered.  Hawkmoth then froze the rest of the counsel, including the princess. Adrien glowered, turning around slowly. His eyes glowing an unnatural green.

“Aw, now that’s a scary face. What happened to my powers, hm? I know you have them.”

“Don’t need them,” he growled.

Hawkmoth charged him, Adrien stopping him by clutching the staff with both hands to block him. His father’s eyes bored into his own, turning a bright lilac and his father’s eyes narrowed into slits just as Adrien’s had before.

Taking a step forward, Adrien forced him back. His own eyes a vibrant green as he tried to overpower his father’s abilities. Another step. Gabriel glanced between his staff and his son, losing focus on defeating him. With sheer determination, Adrien forced a symbol across his father’s face, however not a butterfly, but a shining cat. Hawkmoth reared back into a puff of smoke. A small creature emerging from it. Adrien caught him in his hands as the Black Cat glowed again, and instantly Adrien was back into his formal attire and the crowd was unfrozen.

Marinette charged him, wrapping her arms around his neck. “You did it. I can’t believe you did it.”

“I…I did…” Adrien sighed in relief as he scooped her up in his arms to spin her. “I really did it…”

Yae Miko

Most of her yokai friends are dead by this point, so finding one she actually loves, especially a fellow kitsune, will be a huge emotional boost for her.

Despite her teasing attitude and somewhat care-free nature, she is quite lonely and most likely struggling with depression. Being surrounded by people who can't really understand you, having only memories left of the people who could and being abandoned by her best friend for several centuries certainly affected Miko, regardless of her power level or status.

As such, the opportunity of having children is not one she is willing to sleep on.

Even if that means having 4 to 6 of them. It will require a huge amount of time and effort from the both of you, but it will all be worth it in the end for her.

Miko doesn't really have a say in how many children she wants to have - her biology doesn't really care about her opinion. She has no preference in their gender as well. Having 5 children of the same sex would be really unlikely. Even if that's the case, she would be more happy than not to get so lucky.

When your relationship will reach the point of you both being ready and willing to build a home for yourselves, she won't wait. Why would she? She is the Guuji, for Celestia's sake. It's as if anyone was bold enough to speak out against her, anyway.

She will, however, wait with the whole 'making of' for when her (and yours too, if you're a kitsune) heat comes in. Since she already got it back after centuries of repressing it on the account of lacking a partner, why not use it for all it's worth? Good luck getting out of your shared house for a month straight - Miko will make sure there is no way she won't be expecting children after that.

Miko will assign an acting Guuji for a whole year, most likely. A storm is coming, and it will surely use up all of her energy. Also, she doesn't care about her job enough to waste her time when a moment of this magnitude is just around the corner.

Honestly, seeing Yae Miko with her children would be the best thing ever.

The little ones will rely on their instincts to function at first - one of them being to snuggle with their mother at any opportunity given.

You'll just find a sleeping pile of kitsune in various spots around your house. When you join them, Miko will whisper in a sleepy tone about how it's the best place to be in. It's what gives her the strength to keep going.

When the kids get their walking privileges, they will be an absolute menace. They'll hang around the house, play fighting, staring out the windows at any birds flying by or just running around, destroying anything they come across in the process. Damage control will be hard with 5 little marauders to keep track of.

It will also be an opportunity to see Miko drop all of her acts. She will just be herself. No smug comments, no teasing, no sneaky plots to make you flustered. Just genuinely smiling, laughing and doing silly things.

When they grow up, Miko will join them in being a headache for you. Her mischievousness will grow exponentially, leading to a lot of small, but annoying consequences to deal with. She will never let it go too far, though. She values your patience greatly.

Pictures, pictures, pictures. Everywhere around the house. Pictures of her and her children sleeping, eating, playing, going on walks or at the beach will occupy every piece of wall you have in your house. She will never get tired of her litter. And her husband, of course.

Ei will be happy for Miko, very happy indeed. She saw Makoto interact with mortal children, and wishes to try it herself. But do not, for any reason whatsoever, leave her alone with the pink-eared creatures. She has zero babysitting skills to speak of, and her 'attempts' will most likely leave your house a smoking ruin. One child would be a lot for her to handle, but FIVE? Absolute nightmare for her.

Miko will not force her offspring into any positions or jobs. Life is meant to be fun, isn't it? She'll let them pursue whatever makes them happy, unless it involves the Shrine in any capacity.

Bullies? No. Just no.

Miko is the absolute best parent of Inazuma, and maybe even the whole Teyvat. 10/10.