#felinette spooktacular

[mercurialrain]

Master Post of my Fics!

Updated as of 4/6/24! All links are for Ao3 and rated G/T unless noted otherwise. :)

Completed multi-chaptered Felinette fics:

Silver Lining

Ocelli (rated M)

Felinette Month 2021 (collection of unrelated oneshots)

Incomplete multi-chaptered Felinette fics:

The Royal Conundrum (permanent hiatus)

Felinette Spooktacular (discontinued)

Felinette Oneshots:

Fairy Circles

Spring in the Underworld

Blossom

History Lessons in Love

Quite A Life

And That's the Tea

Sand in the Eyes is a Beach

Stare

Delivery!

It Was in the Cards

Cat's Out of the Bag?

Guardian Angel

Kiss of Truth

Scaredy Cat

A Viper Means Trouble

On the Throne (rated M)

A Cup of Sugar

Heart Attack

A Curse Upon You

Gone Fishing

You Rock

I Couldn't Have, I Was Playing Hopscotch with Hawkmoth

Flower Crowns (rated M)

Counterparts

Most Eligible Bachelor (rated M)

Lukanette fics:

Scales and Tails (chaptered fic)

Bluebell Eyes (oneshot)

i can see the colors (when i'm with you) (oneshot)

Multi-Chaptered Lockwood & Co fics:

On the Fence (Locklyle, ongoing)

Lockwood & Co Oneshots:

if i see but one smile on your lips when we meet (Locklyle)

Lemon Glaze (Locklyle)

i'm an apostrophe; i'm just a symbol to remind you that there's more to see(Locklye)

simple as can be, i'm gonna be around (Trio bonding)

don't worry, I got you (Locklyle)

okay, show me (rated M) (Locklyle)

i'd draw you too (Locklyle)

you're the smartest person i know (George & Lucy bonding)

i can't wait for you (Minor Locklyle, mostly trio shenanigans)

do you recognize this? (Minor Locklyle, mostly trio shenanigans)

give me that, before anything happens (Trio shenanigans)

i wouldn't do that if i were you (Locklyle)

it's alright, i'm here (Locklyle)

tell me you feel it too (rated M) (Locklyle)

Use It to Fight For Your Life (TW for suicidal thoughts) (Minor Locklyle)

Hidden Knives (Locklyle)

Locklyle Week 2024:

Absolutely Floored (Day 1: Mission Gone Wrong)

Who Has the High Score? (Day 2: Arcade)

I Wasn't There to Protect You (Day 3: Don't go where I cannot follow)

Under the Umbrella (Day 4: Rain/Storm)

Paint your Heart (Day 5: High School AU)

Hear Me in the Quiet (Day 7: Free Day)

Star Wars:

You Cake My Day (Reylo, ongoing)

[mercurialrain]

Day 1: Haunted

Felix eyed the people moving in with all the distaste he could muster. It was an excitable couple with a few children, all going on about how the house had ‘character’ and how happy they would be here. 

He snorted. Right. How happy would they be when they discovered that their house was haunted? 

He heard a soft gasp from beside him and looked to see Marinette, who had her hands over her heart as she watched the children run around their parents’ feet, babbling utter nonsense. He knew that she had always had a soft spot for children and would have made a fantastic mother herself, had they not been taken by sickness long ago. 

“Try not to get attached. They likely will leave as soon as they discover that this house is haunted.” He didn’t want to see her hurt by their inevitable departure, as callous as his warning sounded. 

“But they have children… It has been so long since there have been children in this house.” Her voice was soft and gentle, though tinged with a deep sadness that she had long tried to hide from him with little success. 

“The parents had better not let them ruin the house.” He frowned, imagining the damage to their home. Drawn-on wallpaper, stained curtains, torn books… he shivered just to think of it. 

Marinette didn’t seem to mind the thought, if the small smile on her face was anything to judge by. When it disappeared as she turned to face him, he found he missed it. 

“Please, do not haunt them.”

Felix was conflicted. On the one hand, he valued his peace and quiet above almost all else, and he knew that the children would eventually wind up hurting Marinette when they inevitably left, this would stave off that hurt. On the other hand, her eyes were so full of hope and he had loved her for far too long to ignore her wishes. 

So, a compromise. 

“I will not haunt the children. But I make no promises for the adults.” He had expected a more negative reaction, so it surprised him when she threw her arms around him. 

“I know that you are not one to make a compromise. Thank you, Felix,” she whispered into his ear before pulling back and vanishing. She reappeared next to the children, watching them with a fond smile as Felix attempted to recover from the sudden hug. 

He had a feeling that this family would be different from the others, but whether that difference was good or not remained to be seen. 

- - - - - -

True to form, the next few times that he saw Marinette, she was with the children. She never explicitly made her presence known and mostly tried to stay out of the way, choosing to watch over them and protect them if their parents couldn’t. That is, until one of the children said something that shocked them both. 

The older of the two, a three year old girl, walked in front of Marinette and tilted her head back to look at the ghost with a smile. “Hello.” 

Marinette froze, then knelt to the girl’s level. “Hello.” 

Felix watched from afar, stunned. The child could see her? That had not happened in all the centuries that they had haunted this house together. Though he supposed if anyone was to see a ghost, it would be a small child, a being whose views of the world weren’t yet stubborn enough to entirely exclude the existence of ghosts.

“Play?” The girl asked, motioning to her toy animals that lay strewn about nearby. 

Marinette smiled, a thing full of such radiance and joy that Felix felt like he had stepped into a ray of sunshine. “Of course, little one.”

He knew that it took most of the energy she had, but she played horsies and dinos with the little girl until her eyelids began to droop and the mother came in, putting the girl and her sibling to bed. The girl happily (though sleepily) told her mother all about her new imaginary friend, to which the mother responded with several smiles, nods and ‘oh really?’s. 

Marinette came to stand next to him, looking just as tired as the child but glowing with happiness. 

“Are you happy?” He asked. He knew the answer, he just wanted to allow her to speak about it.

“Yes, I am. If I am to be but an imaginary friend, so be it. Simply seeing them happy makes it worth it. Thank you for keeping to your promise.” She leaned against his shoulder, going quiet in her exhaustion. 

“Anything for you,” he murmured, his arm automatically coming up to rest around her shoulder.

Truth be told, he hadn’t even haunted the parents at all since they’d moved in. They’d been much more respectful than he’d expected, working around the old architecture instead of attempting to renovate it, making sure that their kids respected it and generally seemed to be nice people. Besides, the family made Marinette happy in a way that he hadn’t seen for decades now. Could people that did that really be all that bad?

She made a sleepy noise and he straightened, picking her up. He wasn’t exactly sure how ghostly physics worked, but she had been smaller than him in life, so he could still easily pick her up in death. 

Marinette cuddled into his chest with a contented hum, her eyes already closed. Felix smiled down at her, carrying her as gently as he could to the room she had claimed for her own, somewhere in the forgotten parts of the estate. It was far, but when one could walk through walls, the route was much easier. 

He set her down on the bed and turned to leave, but a tug on the back of his shirt stopped him. 

“Please stay,” she pleaded, doing her best to keep her eyes open and on him. He stared back with wide eyes, certain that she’d gone loopy with exhaustion. 

“Are you sure?” 

“Yes. Please, don’t go.” She grabbed his hand and pulled him down, making him lose his balance and topple into her bed. He froze, but she knew what she wanted, seeming to gain an energy burst as she snuggled into his chest before pulling the covers over them both. He eventually hesitantly wrapped his arms around her and pulled her even closer, gaining confidence when he heard a small sigh. 

After a few minutes, he was sure that she was asleep and dared to vocalize what he could never say to her while she was awake. “I love you, Marinette,” he whispered, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. 

“I love you too, Felix,” her sleepy voice said, sounding on the cusp between the waking and sleeping worlds. 

For the second time, he froze, wondering if she was dreaming. “Tell me when you awaken,” he responded softly, closing his eyes to join her in rest. 

- - - - - -

Later that day, he would awaken to two blue eyes staring into his own, before promptly being pulled into a kiss, then berated about how stupid he was for thinking that she didn’t love him. 

He loved every second of it. 

[mercurialrain]

So, I made a Halloween themed calendar for Felinette! (Of course I had to put a pun in the title because that’s just how I operate) Hopefully this will make me actually write more and I’m going to learn to post on here as well as Ao3, so that’ll be fun. This is my first ever calendar so please be nice, but feel free to use it for your own writings! :)

[mercurialrain]

Day 12: Candy Corn

Usually, Marinette knew better than to agree to Alya’s schemes. She’d been embarrassed one too many times in front of Adrien back when she’d had her crush on him and those memories served as her warning enough to decline any involvement whatsoever. But she’d been tired the past week, staying up late to meet deadlines for her senior project. It would be her last project in college and she wanted it to be perfect. 

So while she didn’t remember agreeing to anything, apparently she had, and Alya even had a piece of paper with her signature on it agreeing to help out at the school’s annual Halloween Fest. She’d been expecting something like concessions or face painting, something that took advantage of her natural ability to handle people or her artistry and love for kids. Something in her comfort zone, basically. 

She should’ve known better. 

Marinette twisted around in front of the mirror, eyeing the costume they’d put her in. She was dressed as a fairy, which didn’t bother her. The craftsmanship of the dress did, as did the fact that she would have easily made a better one. Still, from a layman’s perspective, she could admit that the dress looked pretty. 

It was designed as flower petals, asymmetrical on the top with a skirt made of more petals. She had wings that shimmered in the lights as well as delicate pink shoes that reminded her of her old ballet flats. Her makeup was basic but glittery, and her hair was loose but twined with flowers. She felt beautiful. 

Not that it changed how she felt about being tricked into this, mind you. She’d only found out today that she was participating in a fundraiser for the local food banks in the form of auctioning off dates for the Halloween Fest with people. Her only consolation was that the money was for a good cause, and it was only a date. She could handle one night in exchange for helping people. 

“Marinette! You’re up in five!” Sabrina called, beckoning her forward. 

Marinette took her place behind a guy dressed like a classic vampire and a girl in a sexy cat costume, mentally thanking the universe that she hadn’t gotten that one. 

When it was her turn, she channeled her inner designer and walked confidently down the runway, going back up by the announcer to wait as the bids came in. She couldn’t help the incredulous laugh that came out of her mouth as the amount climbed, until someone calmly announced an amount that had everyone’s mouth hanging open. 

She squinted, but with the stage lights it was impossible to tell who it was. The announcer told the winning bidder to come get their date for the night, and Marinette’s heart dropped as she realized who it was. 

Of course, because the universe hated her, it was Felix. The boy she’d shared a passionate kiss with at a party, only for him to completely ignore her existence the next day. Of course!

Marinette pasted the fakest of fake smiles on her face as he walked up the stage, but she knew that her eyes held malice. He linked his arm through hers and guided her off the stage, taking them through the audience to the rest of the festival beyond. Thankfully, most of the people attending Halloween Fest were dressed up, so her attire didn’t stand out as much as she’d feared. 

She immediately yanked her arm away as soon as they were far enough away and they walked silently, occasionally stopping when she saw something she liked. She had no desire to make things easy on him, nor did she feel particularly communicative, so she weaved through the crowd on her own whims, stopping and starting whenever she felt like it. 

They reached the end of the festival and Marinette slipped into the space between two buildings, sighing as she was released from the crowd of people. Her feet were also starting to get sore from the shoes, which was irritating. 

“Candy corn?” She turned when he spoke to see an open bag of candy corn held out in her direction.

She scoffed and turned away, but Felix grabbed her arm and turned her back around. 

“Ok, I tried to be nice, but clearly that’s not going to work. Why do you hate me?”

Her mouth fell open in astonishment. “I hate you? You’re the one that hates me!”

This time, he scoffed. “What are you talking about? We’ve hardly interacted.”

She set her jaw, not surprised but still hurt that he didn’t remember. “Oh, we have certainly interacted. We made out at a party months ago, but after that you barely acknowledged my existence. Pro tip? Girls don’t like you when you do that.” She tried to pull away but his grip on her arm was unrelenting. It didn’t hurt, but it wasn’t releasing any time soon. 

He didn’t say anything, just stared. 

She rolled her eyes, trying to mask her hurt. “Guess it wasn’t as memorable for you as it was for me.” God, why did she say that? That sounded pathetic!

“It was,” he admitted quietly.

“So why did you ignore me the next day when I tried to talk to you?” The anger had drained from her tone. She was mostly just confused now. 

He cleared his throat and looked away, an adorable blush coating his cheeks. Wait, adorable?

“Feelings are awkward for me and talking to the person I have them for is even more so. Especially after the kiss looped through my head all night.”

“So you bid on a date with me, why?”

Felix exhaled forcefully. “To make myself talk to you? To get your attention? To kiss you again and see if it’s as good as I remember? To maybe finally get you out of my head? Take your pick, because I don’t know.”

Marinette stared at him for a moment, open-mouthed as she absorbed everything that he had just admitted. 

You know what? Screw her inhibitions. 

Their second kiss tasted like candy corn and was one neither would forget anytime soon.

[mercurialrain]

Day 7: Selkie

When Felix got the invitation from his younger brother telling him that he simply had to come to the beach house and meet Adrien’s new girlfriend, Felix was admittedly intrigued. While Adrien was now in his early 20s, he had yet to (in Felix’s opinion) emotionally mature into a person that could have a girlfriend. Maybe Felix was curious about the type of girl that would stay with Adrien even with these glaring issues, maybe he wanted to make sure that she wasn’t taking advantage of him. Whatever the reason he gave, he went to the beach house. 

The beach house was modest and didn’t speak to their family’s wealth, but Felix found that more comforting. The gray exterior walls were battered from years of standing up to the ocean and the roof was missing a few tiles, giving the house a well-lived in look. He made his way up the driveway, gravel crunching beneath his feet, and knocked. 

The door swung open almost immediately. “Felix! You came!” Adrien launched himself at his older brother, almost knocking Felix off of his feet. 

“Of course I did. I had to see this mysterious girl you were bragging about.”

Adrien’s eyes brightened. “Oh yeah! Marinette! Come meet Felix!”

The girl stepped around the corner, and Felix forgot how to breathe. She was small, but taut with muscle in a way that spoke to extensive exercise. Her pale skin perfectly complimented her dark hair that swayed at her lower back as she moved. She turned to look at him, and he swore he could see the ocean in her eyes. Those eyes seemed to hold so much in them, but he couldn’t decipher most of it in the time that he was looking. 

She held out a hand and he took it, silently wondering at the lack of a greeting. 

“She doesn’t talk much, or really at all, but she’s great company! We’re so lucky to have met, right, Marinette?” She gave him a measured look, then nodded once, sharply, like she couldn’t bring herself to nod any more. 

Something was strange here, Felix decided. Whether it was the girl herself or her relationship with Adrien, something was wrong with the situation. 

And he intended to find out what. 

- - - - - -

It proved to be more difficult than he thought. Adrien rarely let Marinette out of his sight and even if they had been apart, Felix wasn’t sure if she would talk to him. 

But one day, Adrien received a work call, one that he couldn’t put off until later. He left the room, his phone pressed to his ear, and Felix saw his chance. 

“Hey, did you want to go to the beach later?”

Marinette turned to look at him, studying him as she so often did. “I cannot.”

She could speak! “You can’t? Why?”

“My skin is here and so here I must stay.” Her tone was matter-of-fact, contrasting the bizarre sentence. 

“Your skin? What?” 

Before she could answer, Adrien came back into the room, all smiles and apologies for the call and immediately drew Marinette to his side. Felix only studied them, a plan forming in his head. He would get answers one way or another, even if Adrien was reluctant to give them. 

And Felix knew just how he’d do it. 

- - - - - -

Fortunately for Felix, Adrien still couldn’t hold his liquor and was already completely drunk after only a few drinks. Felix only felt a slight buzz, which meant that he could enact his plan with his judgment mostly unimpaired. Marinette was absent for once, though he was sure that she was in the house somewhere.

“So, Adrien, how’d you two meet?”

“What?”

“You and Marinette. How’d you meet her?”

Adrien suddenly got a shifty expression and held a finger up to his lips. “Secret.”

Felix resisted the urge to roll his eyes. “Come on, you can tell me, I’m your brother.”

Adrien seemed to consider this for a moment, then nodded. “Ok. But you can’t tell anyone, ok?” “Cross my heart.”

“So I was walking on the beach one day. It was nice, the sand was really warm and the water was cold, although I didn’t really like how the grains of sand stuck to my feet. And then the sand got under my nails and that was worse-”

“Adrien.”

“I look over and I see a seal! I thought it was weird because-because seals don’t come here, but then the seal turned into Marinette! She left the sealskin behind and went to go do something, so I picked up her coat to admire it and decided to keep it. She followed me back here and now we’re dating!” He punctuated the last sentence by thrusting out his glass, nearly smacking Felix in the forehead with it. 

He wasn’t paying attention. He was trying to digest what Adrien had told him. A seal that turned into a woman, who couldn’t leave without her skin? The fantasy stories he read long ago bubbled into his brain, whispering the word selkie over and over again. 

Felix stood up, leaving his brother talking to himself about seals and sand. He went straight to his cousin’s room, straight to the hiding place he’d had when they were kids. True to form, the sealskin was there. He pulled it out, feeling the softness and looked up to see Marinette in the doorway.

She tilted her head at him, as if expecting his questions. 

“Is this yours?”

“Yes.”

“And whoever has this has you?”

“Yes.”

Felix stared at it for a moment longer, his mind briefly picturing a life with Marinette beside him before shaking his head to get the image out. Before his brain could whisper more insidious thoughts, he crossed the room and thrust her coat into her arms. 

She stared at it, then him, and for the first time, emotion entered her expression. She wrapped the skin tightly around her shoulders.

“Why?”

“We know what it’s like to be held against our will. I don’t know if he realized that you were only here because of the sealskin, but you shouldn’t be a prisoner because of either his stupidity or stupid desires. You deserve to be free.”

Felix wasn’t expecting her to grab his face and kiss him soundly, but he wasn’t complaining until she pulled away all too soon. 

“Thank you,” she whispered. “I cannot repay this debt, but I have given you a blessing. The sea will never trouble you so long as you shall live.”

He touched his lips, wondering if she’d be willing to give him another blessing. “Um, thanks.”

She turned to leave, hesitated, then turned back. “If you should like to see me again, all you must do is go down to the beach and wish for me. I will hear you.”

Felix smiled. “Perhaps I will. But for now, go be free, before Adrien sobers up.”

Marinette nodded and with a genuine smile, sprinted out of the sliding glass door and down the beach, diving into the water. 

He watched, knowing that he’d have to deal with a heartbroken and pissed Adrien in the morning, but finding that he regretted nothing. She deserved her freedom and Adrien still needed to grow up a little bit more. He needed to focus on himself, not on a girlfriend that didn’t love him. 

Though, a small part of Felix whispered, perhaps she could come to love him.

[mercurialrain]

Day 2: Trick-or-treating

Marinette felt more than a little ridiculous. Here she was, a college student, dressed as a sexy devil (“It’s the complete opposite of your personality, Marinette! It’ll be funny!) going trick-or-treating. She had nothing against trick-or-treating, mind you, and it might have even been fun if she hadn’t been wearing this particular costume and going door to door in Adrien’s stuffy, rich neighborhood. She had no idea why he’d insisted on it, the judgy looks from some of the residents and the too-long looks of others made her extremely uncomfortable, but she was grinning and bearing it. 

It was Adrien’s first time trick-or-treating, after all, so she was feeling much more lenient towards him than she was towards Alya for this damn costume. It was going straight into the trash as soon as this night was done. 

Adrien bounced up to the group, beaming in his banana suit. “We’re only halfway done, guys! Let’s go!” 

Had she not been too busy giggling at his antics, she might have noticed the scheming look he and Alya shared for a moment. But she didn’t, so she followed them to the house, mentally cheering that it was halfway over. 

“Marinette has to be in front for this one!” Alya said, pushing her to the front of the trio despite Marinette’s protests. That angel costume is so misleading.

“What? Why?”

Alya ignored her, ringing the doorbell a few hundred times before stepping back. 

The door whipped open at the same time Marinette felt a hand on her back, pushing her forward. It wouldn’t have been a problem, except her foot caught on the doorframe as she fell, and she felt something twist in a painful way. The person caught her before she could hit the ground and she looked up to apologize, but the words died on her lips. 

It was Felix looking down on her, with an annoyed expression. 

Of course, the person she had a huge crush on would see her at her lowest moment. Thanks, universe. 

He went to set her on her feet, catching her again when she immediately collapsed.

“My ankle,” she managed, gesturing in the vague direction of her foot. 

“Marinette! Are you ok?” Adrien looked wracked with guilt and she got the impression that they had planned this, minus the twisted ankle. 

“I’ll be fine. It doesn’t hurt that badly. It’s mostly just the shock of the injury.” She was lying through her teeth. Her ankle felt like it was on fire and the thought of walking on it any more made her want to cry, but the thought of staying here with Felix was worse.

Felix scoffed. “Bullshit. It’s written all over your face that you’re in extreme pain.”

If he hadn’t been the only thing keeping her upright, she would’ve smacked him. As it was, she just glared. “Well maybe I don’t want to ruin my friends’ night. I’ll be fine with some Tylenol.”

Adrien chewed his lip nervously. “I don’t know Marinette, walking on it might make it worse. We can get you back to the car if you want.”

“I’ll be fine. Come on, let’s go finish up.” She went to pull away from Felix, but his grip was unrelenting. She tugged at his arms, looking up at him with a frustrated expression.

He stared back down with an unimpressed one, raising one eyebrow before he turned to address her friends. “Here’s the plan, since you are all seemingly incapable of making one. Marinette will stay here to rest, you two will finish up trick-or-treating and then bring the car here and take her home.”

Alya looked torn between concern for her friend and thrilled that her crush was going to take care of her, but the concern won out. “If you’re ok with that, Marinette.”

“It’s the best of both worlds. Go on, hit up the rest of the houses before they turn off their porch lights.” She smiled weakly, gesturing as best as she could.

Felix wasn’t nearly as nice. “You heard her, get out.” He herded them out of the door as best as he could while still holding Marinette, the door shutting behind her friends with a slam. 

He helped her to the couch and propped her leg up on a pillow, putting an ice pack on her ankle that was swelling more and more by the minute. Normally, she would’ve been elated by the fact that he was touching her, but she was too busy being mortified by the entire situation. 

“Here.” He tossed a water bottle at her and followed it up with two Tylenol pills.

She whispered a thanks and took the pills, hoping that they would kick in fast. 

He sat as far away from her as he could get on the couch and kept his attention firmly on the TV, where one of the Halloween movies was playing. Eventually, she just couldn’t take the awkward silence any longer. 

“Felix?” He hummed in response, still not looking in her direction. “Thanks for this. For helping me. I know that you’re not really a people person and that you don’t really like me, so it was really nice of you, so thanks.”

“What gave you the impression that I don’t like you?” He asked. She could’ve been wrong, but the casual tone seemed a little forced. 

“Um, you pick a fight with me every time we see each other, you’re always glaring at me and you seem to do your best to avoid me?”

Was that a little bit of pink on his cheeks? No, she had to be hallucinating. 

“I apologize, I never meant to give you that impression. I am… admittedly not the best with people.” No, his cheeks were definitely pink. 

Still, the revelation that her crush didn’t actively dislike her was a little surprising. “Wait, so you like me?”

For the first time, he looked her straight in the eyes. “Yes. I like you, Marinette.” 

The emphasis he’d placed on the ‘I like you’ was unusually heavy and it puzzled her for a moment until it clicked, and her eyes widened. 

“Like me? Like, like-like me?” God, could she have sounded any more childish?

The corners of his mouth twitched up. “If that is the term you’d like to use for me wanting to go on a date with you, then yes.”

Marinette stared at him, open-mouthed, before she remembered that she should probably say something back and closed her mouth. “I’m so sorry for my reaction, I’m just so surprised. I mean, I’ve liked you for such a long time and never in my wildest dreams, well, maybe in some of them but that’s beside the point, did I imagine that you’d like me back. I mean, you’re this totally put together pre-med student and I’m a basket case designer. I just-wow.” 

This time he laughed out loud. The sound was the happiest she’d ever heard coming from him and it made her smile despite all her rambling. 

“I’m sorry, it’s rude to laugh. But you’re just adorable.” All of his tension and cold exterior had melted away, leaving the person she’d only caught glimpses of before.

“So, um, since we both like each other, would you want to maybe go on a date sometime?” She fiddled with her fingers. He’d said he’d wanted to, but what if he just suddenly changed his mind?

“I’d love that.” He’d moved closer to her at some point while they were talking, and she hesitated for a moment before leaning her head on his shoulder. The pain meds were starting to kick in, so she felt much better already, not that the confession hurt. 

They sat like that for a while, watching as Michael Myers stalking the protagonists turned into commercials when Felix suddenly snorted. 

She craned her neck to look at him. “What’s so funny?”

“I was just wondering how I could convince you to wear this costume more often.”

Marinette jabbed her elbow into his side. “Good luck with that. I’m only in it because Alya made me.”

He pressed a quick kiss to the top of her head, making her blush. “Guess I’ll have to get tips from her. After we get revenge on her for pushing you, of course, even if it did wind up getting me a date.”

“I can get behind that. But this costume is going in the trash as soon as I get home.”

They continued to bicker back and forth as the movie went on, but eventually the combination of the eventful night and the pain got to her, and Marinette fell asleep, still snuggled up into Felix’s side. He absently rubbed circles on her arm with his thumb and mentally sent thanks to Alya and Adrien’s harebrained scheme. Not that he’d ever tell them that in person, of course. 

No, what he and Marinette had was of their own making. 

[mercurialrain]

Day 6: Couple’s Costume

Marinette stared despondently at her costume, smoothing down the skirt of her meticulously sewn Rapunzel dress so that it laid prettily around her as she sat on the floor. She’d been intending to take part in the Halloween costume contest, but she’d arrived too late to take part and the only other contest that was going on was the couple’s costume contest. She idly stroked the head of the stuffed Pascal she brought with her as she sulked, staring off in the middle distance at nothing. 

She zoned back in when she heard shouting, and watched an angry looking blond man stalking down the hall, hands in fists as he was followed by a small crowd of cooing girls. Coincidentally, he happened to be dressed as Flynn Rider, something that had her eyes narrowing as she wondered how much Tikki had interfered to get this to happen. No matter, she wasn’t about to let a perfectly good happenstance get away. 

Pasting on a bright smile, she ran up to him, linking her arm in his. “There you are, I’ve been looking for you everywhere! The couple’s costume contest is about to begin, you know.”

He stared down at her for a moment, his expression shifting from outright fury to understanding. “Ah, yes. My apologies, I lost track of the time.”

“It’s ok! Oh, who are your new friends?” Her expression was the picture of innocence, even as the other girls balked. 

He glared at them, pulling Marinette in closer to make a show of things. “They’re not friends, they’re fans. Of my cousin, who I’ve told you repeatedly isn’t here with me.”

Faced with the harsh rebuke of his words and the seemingly glaring fact that he was taken, the girls quietly dispersed, leaving the two of them behind. As soon as they were gone, he sighed in relief, immediately taking his arm off her shoulders as she let go of his arm. 

“I don’t know how to thank you,” he said, running his hand through his hair. “I told them to go away probably hundreds of times, but they just wouldn’t listen.”

“No problem! And I do have a way you can thank me, if you’re up for it.” She clasped her hands behind her back and bounced on her toes, trying very hard to contain her excited energy as the stranger raised an eyebrow at her. 

“I’m not putting you in contact with my cousin.”

“What? I don’t want to contact your cousin, that’s weird. I was gonna say that I want to enter the couple’s costume contest but I don’t have anyone to do it with and since we’re already matching, we should enter.” Who was his cousin if it was that big of a deal?

He looked surprised. “You don’t know who I am? Who he is?”

“Uh, I mean, you kinda look like that one magazine model, but I’ve always been the type to focus on the clothes and not the people, you know?”

He smiled at that and damn, that smile was hot. “My name is Felix.” He stuck out his hand and Marinette shook it. 

“I’m Marinette. Now let's crush that costume contest!” She grabbed his hand and ran towards the sign up table, missing the fond smile he sent her way. 

- - - - - -

They’d made it to the finals of the costume contest, Marinette’s eye for detail in her clothes and the sheer quality of Felix’s allowing them to breeze through easily. 

“And now, for the finale, we want each couple to give us a dramatic kiss in character!” 

Marinette froze, slowly turning her head to look at Felix, who looked similarly stunned. 

“Um, if you want us to drop out, that’s fine,” she murmured to Felix under the sound of the excited audience. 

He had a strangely determined look on his face when he looked back at her and shook his head decisively. “If you’re ok with it, I am too.”

Was she ok with it? He was a stranger; someone she’d never met before today. True, she would only be kissing him because of the costume contest, and she wanted to win, but was that reason enough? What if he thought the kiss was bad? What if-

She nodded before she could overthink anymore, cementing it. 

It took a bit for the announcers to get to them, as they were the last of five pairs. Once they announced their names, Marinette stared at Felix, her mind suddenly blank. 

Felix didn’t seem to have the same problem. 

He adopted a swagger befitting his character and swept her off her feet, dipping her close to the ground. She gripped his shoulders tightly, willing herself not to fall. He nudged her nose with his, silently asking if she was ok. In response, she tilted her head up and kissed him. The kiss wasn’t long (thankfully for all the blood rushing to Marinette’s head as she stayed in the dip) but something about it felt different to Marinette than her previous kisses. 

They didn’t win the contest, but that didn’t matter to Marinette. She couldn’t hear them anyway, too caught up in her whirling thoughts to be too disappointed. The couple that won was dressed as Tohru and Kyo from Fruits Basket and their obvious chemistry had won everyone over. They were an actual couple, after all, it made sense that they had more chemistry than Marinette and Felix. 

They left the stage and reached the end of the hallway, both lingering at the exit doors. 

“Um, if I wanted to uh, talk to you, how would I go about that?” She asked, staring determinedly at the floor. 

Felix gently tilted her head up until their eyes met, immediately making her blush. She barely registered the feeling of a small piece of paper being placed in her hand, too caught up in the moment. “Please feel free to call me. Or text me. Or just let down your hair and I’ll find you.” 

She giggled and nodded, clasping the piece of paper tightly in her hand. 

They parted then after another brief kiss, no longer strangers, but something more. 

[mercurialrain]

Day 10: Vampire

Felix crept through the dark forest, glancing left and right as he did, making sure that he wasn’t going to be snuck up on. He clutched his crossbow tighter, shifting the weight of the stakes in it. It was his personal reassurance to himself that any vampire brave enough to take him on would wind up a pile of ashes by the next high noon, which gave him comfort. 

He felt a gust of wind behind him and whirled, pointing his crossbow at the empty air. Every instinct was telling him that he wasn’t alone anymore, that there was a predator out there. And he was the prey. 

But he didn’t intend to go down without a fight. He was trained for this, he would complete this hunt as he had several others before it.

“A hunter?” a voice by his ear said. “Interesting.” He turned again, but there was only the remnants of a laugh in the air by the time he’d finished moving. 

A few minutes passed before he heard a dramatic sigh above him and looked up to see a girl sitting on a tree branch, swinging her legs like a small child might. 

“You are significantly more boring than I thought you would be,” she informed him.

Without saying a word, he shot a stake at her, expecting it to bury itself in her heart easily, as it had with the others. 

But that’s not what happened. In seconds, she’d sliced the stake in half and dropped from the tree with a fluid grace, using her supernatural speed to pin him to a tree with an arm across his shoulders. She plucked his crossbow from his hand like it was a toy, using one elongated nail to snap the strings, rendering the weapon useless before tossing it aside and fully focusing on him. 

Felix stared defiantly at her, unwilling to let his last moments be full of undignified blubbering and pleading. The force she was using to keep him pinned against the tree was significant, but it was almost as if she was taking care not to hurt him, which was odd. 

“So, what do they call you, hunter?”

He blinked. “Why do you want to know my name?”

“Humor me.”

He scoffed. “Humor you? A vampire? A killer?”

She narrowed her red eyes and the pressure on his shoulders increased to an almost painful level. “I have killed none that did not deserve it. I believe that you cannot say the same. Now, your name.” 

He had been trained to resist vampiric hypnotism, but hers was abnormally strong and overrode his usually impenetrable mental walls. “Felix.”

The pressure abated and she looked pleased. “Was that so hard? Now, Felix, I do not wish to kill you. However, you did attempt to kill me, so a price must be paid for that.”

Now, he was a trained vampire hunter and had significant practice in resisting vampiric wiles. However, this vampire was the most beautiful he’d ever seen and she was pressed against him, so his imagination started to run wild at the phrasing. It made his heart pound faster and the slight tilt of her head told him that she heard the increased pace. Several emotions flickered over her face, but they were all gone too fast for him to recognize them.

“Normally the price I ask is blood, as vampire hunter blood ironically tends to be more filling than regular blood. However, it seems like there is something else,” she trailed a hand dangerously low, “that you want?” 

She phrased it as a question and had given him the other option of what she had actually meant before his imagination took hold. She was giving him an out, allowing him to choose the price, which for any other vampire would have been his life. This was definitely strange and out of the ordinary, but so was she. 

“And if I did?” He dared ask, hardly believing that the words came out of his mouth. He almost felt like he’d been hypnotized again, but a quick mental scan came up with no magic. He was acting utterly on his own impulses. 

“Then I will destroy you,” she purred. “Utterly, wholly. But you will enjoy every moment of it.” 

Why did that make him more excited? Why was he letting this happen? Why did he want it so badly? Why-

No. No more thinking.

“Destroy me,” he whispered, giving her full permission to continue. 

She smiled then, her fangs gleaming, and she rolled her hips once, drawing a strangled groan from him. With the same dizzying speed she’d used earlier, she had both of his hands pinned behind his back and had pressed her mouth against his.

The kiss was rough and unforgiving, and she won the battle for dominance before it had even begun, using her tongue to explore every inch of his mouth. He gasped as her fangs sank into his lower lip, drawing blood that she quickly lapped away. She proceeded to kiss down his neck and to his collarbone, nipping and sucking and making a mess out of him while he strained against her hold to be able to feel her. 

She let him break her hold and he fisted his hands in her hair, yanking her head back and flipping them so he could return the favor, ruining the porcelain of her skin with hickeys. She hummed in appreciation, but he wanted to hear a different sound. He wanted to hear her lose control, to hear what she sounded like on the brink of absolute bliss. 

That became his one sole goal in their encounter, to coax all manner of sounds from her as she did him. 

He succeeded.

- - - - - -

When Felix woke up with the sun the following morning, he was curled up on the ground beneath the tree that had seen way too much, naked as the day he was born. His body ached in the best of ways from the unbelievable stamina that vampires had, as well as the bite marks and bruises that littered his body. He didn’t remember receiving them so much as the little shocks of pleasure that he’d gotten and he shivered as he remembered the feeling. 

He could feel her body against his back, the lack of breath a little eerie, but not unpleasant. He had no idea what he was going to tell his fellow vampire hunters, but at the moment, he didn’t care. He was more sated than he had ever been, deliciously sore and generally fairly content. 

Without warning, he was flipped onto his back, the vampire holding herself over him with a gleam in her eyes. 

“Again?” She asked, getting his permission like she had the day before. 

“Again,” he confirmed, pulling her head down towards his for a kiss. 

Again and again.

[mercurialrain]

Day 11: Omens

When the King and Queen announced that they were putting forth a competition to see what man was worthy of marrying their daughter, Felix had rolled his eyes. Sure, this girl was a princess and marrying her would greatly increase your social status and riches, but was it really worth going through whatever hellish ordeal the royals had in mind? While the King was notorious for being a huge softie, he was also incredibly protective of his daughter, and the Queen was well known for her strategic mind and fighting ability. Together, whatever they dreamed up was something Felix wanted no part in. 

Unfortunately, his mother thought otherwise. 

“Come on, Felix, hundreds of men have failed but I know that you can succeed. It’ll help our people!”

He crossed his arms. The villagers hated him, why would he do this for them? “I have no great love for suffering on behalf of people that hate me.”

Amelie gave him her best puppy eyes. “Please, Felix? At least try.” 

He groaned, knowing he couldn’t say no to his mother. “Fine.”

- - - - - -

That was how he found himself trudging through a forest on the edge of the country, with his hand firmly on the hilt of his sword. This forest had a reputation for swallowing people and never giving them back, and he refused to be its latest victim. He could see how easy it was to get lost, each tree looked like the next and there were little to no landmarks one could use to mark their spot. The canopy of the trees let only the slightest amount of light through, so navigating by the sun or stars was out too. 

He finally stumbled into a clearing sometime around nightfall, judging by how tired he was. The clearing looked well used, with many footprints and doused fires. Well, if others had safely used it, so could he, though he wouldn’t be letting his guard down. He propped himself against a tree after starting a fire and closed his eyes before the sound of a twig snapping had him leaping up, ready to defend himself. 

“Who’s there?” He asked, before mentally cursing himself for giving away his position. 

He saw eyes glinting in the light of the fire and prepared himself to fight before a black cat stepped into the clearing, tilting its head at him. 

“Oh.” His shoulders sagged in relief and he slid back down the tree. “You scared the hell out of me, little cat.” 

The cat meowed, as if to say sorry, and made its way over to him, sitting close enough for him to touch, still staring at him. 

“You know, they usually say that black cats are omens of bad luck,” Felix remarked, wondering why he was talking to the cat. The cat stiffened at his remark and he almost wondered if it understood him, before dismissing the thought as preposterous. “I’ve never believed in such stupid things as harbingers of good or bad luck though. To me, it always seemed like people trying to pass the buck for their own shortcomings.” 

The cat relaxed before climbing in his lap, purring up a storm. He hesitantly petted the cat between the ears, his pets becoming surer as the cat pushed its head into his hand. He didn’t remember drifting off, nor did he remember the cat staring at him with unusually knowing blue eyes before drifting off itself. 

- - - - - -

Day broke, and Felix was awakened by the cat headbutting him.

“I’m awake, I’m awake,” he grumbled at it, standing and stretching out his achy joints. 

The cat walked further into the forest, pausing when it realized he wasn’t following, before meowing at him insistently. 

Well, it can hardly lead him more astray than he would get just wandering around on his own. He shrugged and followed the cat. They walked along for several hours, the cat seemingly knowing every twist and turn of the forest before they came upon a cave, upon which the cat sat at the entrance, watching him again. 

“What, do I go in?” The cat bobbed its head once, surprising Felix. He’d really have to reconsider what he knew about this cat after he did whatever this was. He went into the cave and turned to see if the cat was following him, just in time to see arms grab the cat and the cave entrance slamming shut.

“Hey!” He pounded against the rock, but he knew it was useless. His only option was to go further in, which he did, coming across a girl with auburn hair standing in the middle of an open room. 

She smiled, but the smile held no warmth. “Another contender.”

Something in Felix told him not to draw his sword and he let his hands stay by his side, not actively belligerent but ready to defend himself. 

“If you have made it this far, I see you have found favor with Bluebell.”

“Who’s Bluebell?”

The girl waved her hand and the cat appeared, tied to a stake in the ground, yowling furiously. 

“Your feline friend, of course. I’m afraid she doesn’t quite like me at the moment.” 

If the gleam in the cat’s eyes was anything to go by, the cat was actively planning the girl’s murder, which wasn’t all that far out of the regular character of cats, so the girl couldn’t have hurt Bluebell all that much. 

“Not sure I’d be pleased with someone tying me to a stick underground either,” he responded drily, eliciting a laugh from the girl. 

“True.” She waved her hand again and a tunnel suddenly appeared, lined with gold and jewels. “Interested, contender? The others were as well. Tick tock, better find the way out.” With a snap, she disappeared and the walls began to shake, dust raining down on his head. All of his instincts told him to run towards the entrance and save himself, but he stalled and looked at the cat, who was frantically pulling at the stake with no success. 

“Damn it!” He ran to the cat and began to untie it. There were many intricate knots and even with his nimble fingers, he was having trouble. He finally undid it and picked the cat up, ignoring all the riches and just sprinting down the tunnel until they made it outside. The cave collapsed behind them, blanketing them in a fine dust. 

He lay on the ground coughing until everything settled. He took the offered hand and got up, looking at his surroundings. 

Wait. Offered hand?

He whirled around, ready to pull out his sword before seeing a woman there. She squeaked and put her hands out, immediately defusing his alarm. 

“Sorry! I just wanted to help you up, I promise.”

“Who are you?”

She looked confused for a moment. “You really don’t know? I’m Princess Marinette.”

“Have you been here the whole time?” His brain was whirling a hundred miles a minute, trying to fit together pieces of information that didn’t seem to click. 

“Um, sort of?” She started playing with her fingers, blushing. “You know me better as Bluebell?”

“You’re a cat?” He hadn’t meant for it to come out so blunt, but she laughed. 

“Sometimes. It’s a sort of familial thing. I’ve gotten better at controlling it.”

“Oh. That’s interesting. So wait, if you’re here, did I pass the trial or whatever?”

Marinette grinned, rocking back on her heels. “Yup! See, the test was to see if you’d save an innocent creature at the possible expense of your own life. The other contenders either never made it that far, only saved themselves, gave up after a few knots and left me, or stopped to grab riches on the way and wound up ‘dying.’” She made finger quotes around the word. “It was all an illusion made by Alya. She’s who you met in the cave, she’s a witch.”

“Is it rude to say that I hate magic?” He asked, only half joking. 

She laughed again, a sound that Felix quite enjoyed. “No, I get it. Unfortunately, if you choose this life, you’ll be stuck with it forever.”

Choose. He still had a choice. “Then I choose you.”

Her cheeks flushed bright red and she stared. “Really? That easily? Even with all my… oddities?”

“Yes.” He had a feeling that if he let her go now, it would be a mistake he’d regret for the rest of his life. He didn’t know her yet, but he fully intended on getting to know her.

Marinette held out her hand and Felix took it, noting how soft it was. “Then we shall go to the rest of our lives.”

- - - - - -

Six months later, Marinette and Felix were married. They had fallen deeply in love with each other and the kingdom considered their wedding to be the happiest day of the year, with every citizen celebrating their happiness. 

Felix still didn’t like magic, but it had gotten him his wife, so he supposed it was alright. 

Ish.

[mercurialrain]

Day 9: Banshee

You can’t change what you are. Marinette knows that. You are born as what you are and no intervention of fate will take the burden from your shoulders. At least, in the supernatural world. One of the things Marinette greatly envied about humans was that they were endlessly versatile, constantly changing who and what they were. 

She trudged the countryside, her bare feet stepping directly on the mud but not getting dirty. ‘Dirty’ was a human thing to be, after all, and she was not human. Her white dress would forever remain unblemished, with only the wind able to ruffle it. 

She finally reached the house that pulled her to it, the unseen force that frequently tugged at her instincts, forcing her to wander until she found what she was looking for. It was less of an exact science and more of a scavenger hunt, following the pull as it got stronger. 

As the person grew weaker. 

She could feel the life force of the person dwindling, could see it as if it were a tangible thing like the trees. The lifeforce of humans was a pretty thing, a sort of thread that bound their souls to themselves with a golden glow that strengthened and dimmed as they did. This man was not long for the world, she knew. The dulled and frayed rope did not, could not lie. 

Marinette opened her mouth and screamed, a ghastly sound that would echo across the fields and alert everyone what was about to happen. As soon as she did, she felt the pull weaken then release completely, leaving her to her aimless wandering once more. 

“Ah, I thought that I sensed you nearby.”

She didn’t even need to turn to see who it was, smiling softly to herself. “Felix.”

“It’s the old man, yes? It feels like his time is soon and if you screamed, it’s imminent.”

She turned to face him with an exasperated look. “Yes, the scream of a banshee usually does mean that the person is about to die. Well done. You’ve only been doing this job for centuries and just figured that out?”

Felix rolled his eyes, stepping out of his shadow and into the moonlight. The moon’s light glinted off of his blond hair and highlighted the bones of his face, making him look far more demure and harmless than he was. 

“You needn’t taunt, Marinette. It’s unbecoming.”

This time she rolled her eyes. “Because being an omen for people’s death is such a popular pastime.”

He leaned back against the tree, putting his hands in his pockets. “Better to only be the omen than the actual bringer of death. I’d wager to say that a death spirit is more unpopular than a banshee.”

This was a constant conversation between them, the discussion of who was the least popular. It was their version of camaraderie, of quietly reminding each other that they were in this together. She was the omen, he was the fulfillment. They were partners in this terrible job, stuck in an endless loop, but at least they had each other. 

“I wish it wouldn’t be him. He has such a gentle soul,” she mourned quietly, knowing he would hear. That he would understand. 

“He does. Much like yours.”

Well, that was new information. “You can see my soul? I have a soul?”

Felix chuckled for a moment, then realized she was serious. “Of course you do. It’s a beautiful thing, a luminescent white that gives off this radiant light… I’ve never seen anything else quite like it in all of my years.”

Without a second thought, Marinette sprinted at him, hurtling into him full force to hug him. He caught her with a surprised grunt, but was soon returning the bone-crushing hug with equal vigor. They were both touch starved, she knew, since nobody could touch the servants of death without being so themselves. Marinette didn’t know about death spirits, but the last time she had seen another of her kind had been centuries ago with the fall of the king, so she assumed his interaction with others of his kind was just as sparse. 

She suddenly remembered herself and half pulled away, giving him a sheepish look. “Sorry, that was just… good information.”

He was giving her a soft look she’d never seen before. “It’s alright, Marinette. I think I needed that hug just as much as you needed to know that you have a soul.”

“Sometimes it’s just hard to feel anything but sad, you know? When all we feel is their deaths. I pity them, but I don’t understand them, even though I want to. We’ll never die, after all.”

Felix pulled her in closer, resting his chin on her head. “I get it, I do. But if I have to spend eternity on this earth, I’m glad it’s with you.” 

In hindsight, she had no idea what got into her. It was an entirely platonic moment, a bonding moment between two friends, but something deep inside of her wanted more. She felt a pull towards Felix, different from her banshee pulls but just as strong. 

She backed away a little and grabbed his face, kissing him soundly, then pulled back, letting him react as he wanted. His eyes were almost comically wide and his mouth half-open, his arms frozen where they had been when she kissed him. 

It took him so long to unfreeze that she was about to fake a banshee pull and leave before he moved almost faster than she could follow. In the time it took her to blink, her back was up against a tree and his mouth was on hers, almost devouring her in his intensity. He pulled back and leaned his forehead against hers, his eyes darker than she’d ever seen them. 

“Now, little banshee, let’s see if I can make you scream.”

[mercurialrain]

Day 8: Myths

“So, darling, where do you have to be tonight?” A knight asked, suggestively putting his hand on the small of her back as she bent to refill his wine goblet. Marinette stilled, stifling the urge to break his hand. Thankfully, before she could reply with something likely to get her hanged, an authoritative voice beat her to it.

“Sir Agreste, unless you should like to be stripped of your knighthood, keep your hands off of women unless they explicitly express a desire to feel your touch.” Prince Felix’s eyes were burning with (attractive) anger and even Sir Agreste wasn’t fool enough to argue, quickly removing his hand and averting his eyes. Marinette dipped her head and gave a small smile in brief thanks to the prince before moving on, tending to her other duties. 

Alya slipped up to her when she had finally finished and was standing in the back of the room, watching the banquet.

“Girl, the prince totally wants you!”

Marinette sputtered. “What? No, he was simply keeping his knights’ behavior in check.”

“Is that why he hasn’t stopped staring at you all evening?” Her eyes automatically flicked to the prince and upon finding him indeed staring at her, quickly looked to the floor with her cheeks burning. Alya couldn’t know how right she was, how the kiss they had shared but a week ago was burned into her mind even as her reasonable self fought against it.

“And if he does? It cannot mean anything. I am a servant, he is a prince. I cannot do a simple royal fling, you know that.”

Alya sighed. “Fine, but I’m just saying, I think you’re missing out. He can be an asshole, but damn if he isn’t built.”

Marinette playfully elbowed her best friend. “I’m sure Nino would love to hear about that.”

“Tell him and you die.” They held eye contact for all of ten seconds before bursting into laughter. The rest of the banquet went predictably, fulfilling her duties or standing in the back with Alya, giggling about anything that they found funny in the moment. 

She was collecting plates from the tables to be taken to the kitchen and cleaned when another servant came up to her with a worried frown. 

“Marinette, you’ve been summoned to the Prince’s quarters.”

She nearly dropped the plate she was holding. Everyone knew that you were never summoned to the royal quarters unless you were a royal yourself or had done something very, very wrong. She gave the other servant a quick thanks and hurried to his quarters, knocking on the door with three quick, worried, raps. 

“Come in.”

She opened the door, slipping in and curtsying, before curiously staring at the royal that sat in a chair, facing her. 

“What is it that you want from me, sire?”

From the way his eyes darkened, she had said something wrong. “If I did something wrong, I apologize, I was unaware. I simply-” before she could finish, he had gotten up and strode across the room until he was inches away from her. 

“You did nothing wrong,” he said, his voice deeper than she was used to hearing it. “In fact, you did everything right. So right that I cannot get you out of my head, no matter how hard I try.”

Oh. “You mean the uh, the kiss?”

Felix got closer, making her back up until she hit the door, making him smile a predatory smile that told her he had been waiting for her to do that. “Your kiss, your smile, your body… everything about you.” He grabbed one of her hands and lifted it, lightly kissing her knuckles in a way that made her stomach turn. “Tell me to stop and I will. I will not use my status against you and you may leave if you wish. I will never touch you again if you do not desire me the way I desire you.”

She stared at him, her mind racing frantically to say something, anything. “Will you leave me then, after one night, sire?” She’d meant what she’d said to Alya, she couldn’t do a fling. Her heart wouldn’t let her. 

“No. If you would let me, I would like to make you my queen.”

If he hadn’t been practically holding her against the door, she might have collapsed in shock. “Your… queen?”

“You are gentle, kind, smart, everyone loves you and most importantly, I believe I may be falling in love with you. I understand if you don’t feel the same about me yet, but please give me the opportunity to prove myself to you.”

“But… I am a servant, my lord.”

He nudged her nose with his. “For you, I am Felix. I am to be crowned soon, I can marry whomever I wish.”

Part of Marinette wanted to argue further, insisting that this was a bad idea, that she wouldn’t cut it, but she believed in Felix. He was honest, straightforward and would make a great king. Why shouldn’t she be able to be by his side if she wanted to? And oh, she did want to. She’d had a crush on him for some time, she’d just tightly suppressed it, never believing that it could happen. 

She nodded once. She didn’t trust herself to use her words. 

He smiled, a heartachingly happy smile, then leaned in to kiss her sweetly. She sighed into the kiss, opening her mouth when he gently bit her lip, letting his tongue in. The kisses started to get more heated, more frantic, and he used his hips to pin her against the door while she fisted gripped his shoulders.

She felt his hands wander up and down her body, eventually finding both of her hands on his shoulders. He brought them above her head, using one hand to hold both of her wrists against the door while he continued to kiss her senseless. She couldn’t help the noises that were coming out of her mouth and would have felt embarrassed if the same sounds weren’t leaving him. 

When they broke off for air, she gasped, tilting her head back to gather her bearings. It didn’t last long, as she soon felt Felix’s mouth on her neck. He bit her earlobe, something she didn’t know could be attractive until now, then continued licking and biting down her neck. Her hands flexed in his grip, wanting desperately to grab onto him but unable to. 

Without warning, he stopped and let go of her wrists, picking her up and depositing her on the bed. He began to undress and Marinette did the same and they spent some time admiring each other’s bodies, learning territory entirely unfamiliar to them. It was gentle, yet passionate and they both found their highs quite quickly. Marinette curled into Felix afterwards, feeling blissfully light. 

He lightly ran his hand up and down her side, lulling her to sleep. Just as she was on the cusp of it, he kissed her forehead softly.

“Goodnight, my queen.”

- - - - - -

True to his word, Felix was crowned as king not a month later, with Marinette crowned as queen right by his side. The kingdom had been much more receptive to a servant turned queen than she had previously thought and she had been accepted with open arms, much to her shock. Alya had mercilessly teased her, telling her that she’d called it, that she knew Felix had been staring at her that night. Marinette had blushed, remembering what had happened that night. 

But this night, as they laid blissfully spent next to each other, Marinette was even happier than she had been that first night. She kissed his chest, snuggling in as she readied herself to go to sleep. 

“Goodnight, my husband,” she whispered, smiling to herself. 

She felt him kiss her head, much like he had. “Goodnight, my wife. My queen.”

[mercurialrain]

Day 4: Gorgon

CW: Mentions of someone being blinded and brief suicidal thoughts

Felix woke to hearing distant shouts, the kind that usually meant arrogant heroes or angry villagers, neither of which meant good things for his peaceful existence. He sighed, the sound coming out more of a hiss as he stretched to get ready to meet whatever fate had decreed he meet today.

He left his cavern warily, listening and watching for any archers or warriors lying in wait. Seeing and sensing none, he continued on until he reached the only clearing between the village and the forest that led to his cave. He paused, trying to figure out what he was looking at. 

A girl was tied to a pole that looked like it had been hurriedly installed in the ground, her eyes bound in red fabric. She wore a thin slip that was filthy from presumably being dragged through the forest, with tiny cuts and bruises all over what skin he could see. Still, she held a proud posture, her head angled towards him as he got closer. 

“Are they giving away girlssss now?” He asked, watching as her head turned quickly in his direction. 

“Not girls in general, just me.” Her response was level. Not terrified, not pleading, just… calm. Very odd. 

“And why have you been given to me?”

“They want you to kill me.”

“Oh?” He crouched next to her and hooked a finger under her blindfold. “Were they aware that thissss may have protected you?”

She jerked her head up so the blindfold fell, revealing two milky eyes that saw nothing. “Yes, they were aware. That is why they blinded me.”

It was all he could do not to recoil. Her fellow humans had done this to her and then sacrificed her to him? Though he was considered a monster by most people, being a Gorgon, even he would not stoop to this level of cruelty. 

She seemed annoyed by his silence, turning those eyes on him as if she could see him. “Well? Are you going to kill me or not?”

“I have not decided yet, but you are not helping your case.”

“Take your time,” she said sarcastically, making Felix’s eye twitch in annoyance. 

He continued to crouch over her, thinking over his options. He couldn’t turn her to stone, obviously, but he could kill her. Quickly, with a slash to the throat and her life would be over before she knew it. It would be humane, really. 

But there was something about this girl. Here she was, faced with imminent death by the claws of one of the most feared monsters in the land and she had the nerve to sass him. She had a fight in her that told him that she would have had a long, successful life had this not happened to her. 

He was taken out of his thoughts by a hand touching the top of his head, petting some of the snakes’ scales. He jerked away from her touch, hissing out of habit. 

“What are you doing?”

She shrugged. “If I am to die anyway, then I was curious to know what your head snakes felt like. Besides, they do not seem too opposed.”

It was true, he had to admit. Instead of biting like he had expected, they leaned towards her touch, hissing in a gentle way that had no malice behind it. 

“Just- do not do that again. That is a good way to get a bite.”

“What do I care? I am about to meet Death anyway.”

“No, you will not,” he said, making his decision. With one claw, he slashed through her bindings. She tried to stand, but collapsed on unsteady legs. He rolled his eyes and helped her up, leading her back to his cave before depositing her on one of the flat rocks. 

“Why are you helping me? Why not just kill me and be done with it?”

I wish I knew. “You will inform me of humansssss’ weaknessesssss and in return, I will allow you to live.”

She scoffed. “Their weaknesses are right above their neck. For you, that means their eyes, for me that means their brains, or lack thereof.”

He sneered at her, even though he knew she wouldn’t see it. “Try not to be that obvious.”

She got up suddenly, stumbling around until she found the cavern entrance. For some reason, that panicked him and he leapt up, grabbing her before she could topple over. 

“What are you doing, you sssstupid girl!” 

The panic increased when he saw she was crying, fat tears rolling down her cheeks onto his chest as she weakly smacked at him to let her go. 

“Just let me die. Please?”

“What happened?” He was not in the habit of playing therapist to humans, but something in him told him that this was the right move. She went limp in his arms, sobbing against him while he awkwardly held her. 

He hadn’t been this close to another living creature that wasn’t trying to kill him in ages.

She finally subsided and he moved them to sit down, with her leaning against him. “My village was in the middle of a famine,” she began, her voice breaking. “I prayed to all the gods to help. I asked for anything that could help. One of the gods blessed me and I found I was able to make plants grow with a single touch.”

“That doesssss not ssssound sssso bad.”

“My village is a superstitious kind, the kind that does not believe in miracles or gifts. They’re odd, outliers in the community. One of them saw me at night wandering the fields, bringing our crops back to life. And then….” she trailed off. She didn’t need to continue, Felix already knew the rest. “I just wanted to help.”

“You cannot fix what doessss not want to be fixed.”

She sat in silence for a moment, seemingly thinking over what he’d said. “Hey, can I stay here?”

Felix instantly straightened, stunned. Stay? With him?

“Sssstay? Here? With me?”

“Yes. You seem like a good person. Or Gorgon? Whichever you would prefer, really.” He could see the hope on her face and suddenly every trace of resistance left him and he, the fearsome monster, found himself caving to a fragile human.

“Fine. You may ssstay. But what issss your name?”

“Marinette! Yours?”

“I am Felix. Welcome to the cave, Marinette.”

[mercurialrain]

Day 3: Fears

Felix knew that something was bothering his girlfriend, but he couldn’t figure out exactly what it was. As they walked along the street for their weekly date, she kept looking behind her like she was afraid she was being followed. He was generally a very logical person, but when Marinette was involved, his mind went stupid, jumping to all sorts of conclusions that weren’t close to the truth at all. 

“Marinette, are you ok?”

She turned her head from where she’d been glancing behind them to look at him. “Of course I am. Why, what’s up?”

“You keep looking over your shoulder like someone’s chasing you or something’s wrong. I was really just wondering if I could help with whatever it is.”

She smiled and squeezed his hand. “I’m ok, really, Felix.”

Felix wasn’t convinced, but he dropped it for the time being. They neared her house and he looked up, noting the gray sky. 

“Wow, it looks like it’s going to storm soon.” 

Marinette’s grip on his hand tightened and her pace quickened. “I just remembered that I have a commission due soon that I really need to finish, so I’m gonna go finish that. Bye Felix!” She gave him a quick kiss before sprinting into the bakery, leaving him standing on the street, entirely confused. 

He went inside the bakery and went up to the counter. Sabine smiled warmly at him, though the smile faded when she saw the expression on his face. 

“Is something wrong, dear?”

“Marinette was acting… strange earlier. I asked her if something was wrong and she wouldn’t tell me.”

Her expression was sympathetic. “Unfortunately, that’s one of those things that just takes patience. In time, she’ll tell you.”

“Are you sure?” He hated sounding as pathetic as he knew he did, but his skills didn’t lie in human connections, so sometimes he had to ask other people. 

“Of course.” 

He nodded, turning to leave just as a huge clap of thunder sounded, making him jump.

“Oh dear. Felix, would you mind taking the counter for a minute? I need to go check on Marinette. She doesn’t do well with thunderstorms.”

That was it!

“Could I check on her?” He must have sounded desperate, because Sabine stopped untying her apron and gave him another motherly smile. 

“Of course. You know the way.”

He bolted up the stairs, opening the trapdoor to Marinette’s room just as the thunder clapped again. He heard a quiet whimper and climbed the ladder to see a shaking huddle of blankets. When he gently took the blanket off of her head, her eyes were screwed closed and her hands were tightly clasped over her ears. 

He gently grabbed one of her hands and intertwined their fingers, kissing her knuckles. Her brow furrowed before she opened an eye, then turned bright red as she saw Felix watching her with an amused expression. 

“F-Felix! What are you doing here?”

“Love, why didn’t you just tell me that you were afraid of thunderstorms? I wouldn’t have thought any less of you for it, if that’s what you were afraid of.”

Marinette averted her gaze, fiddling with their fingers. “I don’t know. It’s just silly. Something that I should’ve grown out of, but I didn’t. I can’t even function normally in a storm, one lightning bolt followed by thunder and I’m-” As if to prove her case, there was a flash of lightning and Marinette ducked back under her blanket with a whine. 

Felix shucked off his shoes and climbed into the bed with her, nestling in close to her so that her back was pressed to his front and wrapped his arms around her. She was trembling from the storm, but she still nuzzled into him, seeming to take some solace in his company, which made Felix glad. He’d be a useless boyfriend if he couldn’t comfort her when she was scared, after all. 

“You can tell me when you’re afraid, Marinette. I want to be able to comfort you when you need it.”

She rolled over to face him, pressing her forehead to his. “I know. I was just a little embarrassed about it.” More thunder and she cringed, but held him closer instead of hiding under her blankets, which Felix took as a win. 

“If it makes you feel any better, I have a bad fear of moths.”

She snorted. “Moths?”

“I don’t like their wings and legs, I can’t explain it, I just am. Hey, don’t laugh at my fear.” He began to tickle her, smiling at the giggles that came flooding out of her. 

“I wasn’t-” her giggling cut her off. “I wasn’t making fun of your fear, I promise.”

He pretended to think, then amped up the tickling. “I don’t know if I believe you.”

“I surrender! I surrender!” 

“Fine, I believe you.” He stopped and pulled her close, resting his chin on top of her head. They listened to the dwindling taps of rain against the roof and heard rumbles of distant thunder, but the immediate storm was over.

“Hey, Felix?”

“Yeah?”

“Thanks.”

“Any time.”

[mercurialrain]

Day 14: Pumpkin Patch

marinette_fashion : Can you believe he’d never tried apple cider?

“Ok, so I have a theory for how to find the best pumpkin. It has to be the right shade of orange, it has to be big enough to carve and not one of those ones that’s fine on the outside but rotting on the inside, you know?” Marinette rambled about pumpkins while Felix listened, nodding to the asked question. 

He genuinely couldn’t care less about the pumpkin they got, nor really about Halloween in general, but it made Marinette so happy that he found himself starting to like it. She’d already decorated their house within an inch of its life, stringing bats over every doorway and crowding their yard with inflatables. The only decoration he hadn’t allowed was the jack-in-the-box that operated with a motion sensor, because he knew she’d forget that she’d put it there. And when Marinette got scared, she punched. 

Hard.

“Felix! Look at how big this pumpkin is!” Marinette ran to the pumpkin in question, leaning down to pick it up. If he hadn’t known that she had superhuman strength from her stint as Ladybug back when they were high schoolers, he might have worried, but as it was, he simply smiled at her excitement. He fought back a snicker at the expressions of the other people around them watching this tiny woman pick up a pumpkin about half her size, especially the people that looked to be bitterly struggling with their much smaller pumpkins. 

“Is that the pumpkin for us, blossom?” He asked, carefully making his way over to her.

She beamed over the pumpkin. “Yup! I think that we could carve a really cool design onto this!”

“With your creative acumen, I don’t doubt it.”

They made their way out of the pumpkin patch, with Felix acting as Marinette’s eyes, given that she couldn’t see the ground over the massive pumpkin. She only tripped over two vines, but that likely would have happened anyway, so he counted it as an achievement. 

The cashier’s eyes had rounded comically when she beheld the pumpkin and who was holding it, but dutifully rang it up. The price was astronomical for the gourd and quite frankly, it felt like a scam to Felix, but he’d pay any amount of money to see the pure delight on his wife’s face. 

Once they’d loaded the pumpkin in the car, he went to the driver’s side of the car, assuming that they were leaving now that they’d gotten what they’d come for. He felt Marinette tug at his arm and turned, confused. 

“Where are you going? We still haven’t gotten any cider or food.” 

“I thought a pumpkin patch was just for picking a pumpkin?” He’d never done this before, but Marinette clearly had.

“Well, yes, but the rest of it is for after you’ve found your pumpkin and just want to enjoy your time in the fresh country air.”

“So there’s more to do?”

“Not that much more, I promise. Just one more thing you have to try, please?” She linked her arm through his and pulled him along, stopping once they reached what looked like a concessions stand. 

“Hi, can we have two apple ciders and two apple cider donuts, please?”

Once they got their apple ciders, they sat at a nearby bench and she started to drink hers, giving him a funny look when he didn’t drink his. Truthfully, he’d never had apple cider, so he was staring at it suspiciously, wondering how it would taste but not really fond of the idea of putting it in his mouth to find out. 

Marinette grinned as if she knew what he was thinking, then leaned over to kiss him. Her lips were cold from her drink and there was a strange taste in her mouth. It was sweet, but not overwhelmingly so, and it wasn’t a bad taste, in fact, he kind of liked it. 

“Wait, did you just kiss me so that I would taste the apple cider?” 

She put on a straight face, though her eyes twinkled with mirth. “I have no idea what you’re talking about. Can’t a girl just want to kiss her husband without any ulterior motive behind it?”

“If you were normal, maybe.” He hid his smile at her dramatic outraged gasp behind his cup, hesitantly sipping his drink. Even on its own without the inherent intoxication of Marinette’s kiss he still liked it and soon the entire cup was gone.

“Now try the donut!” She pushed it towards him on the little napkin and he had to admit, it looked good. Since he’d liked the apple cider, he figured it could only be better in donut form. Not that it would match the pastries made by Marinette or her parents, but it could still be good in its own way. 

He was right, it was good. The sweetness of the apple cider flavor combined with the fluffy texture of the donut and the crunch of the sugar crystals on the outside made his taste buds dance and he quickly devoured the rest of the donut. 

Marinette had her chin on her fists, watching him try the new things with a small smile on her face. “See? Wasn’t it worth staying just a little longer?”

Felix crossed his arms, pretending to be obstinate. “I’m not entirely sure if it was.”

She rolled her eyes and came over to him, plopping herself in his lap. She held out her phone and smiled, silently telling him to do the same for a picture. He begrudgingly smiled, though the smile turned into wide eyes that quickly closed when she kissed him. He could hear the sounds of her camera shutter in the background, but he couldn’t bring himself to care. 

All too soon, she slipped off his lap and he stuttered after her. “H-hey! Where are you going?”

She skipped backwards out of his reach, grinning. “To the car. You’re the one that wanted to leave, aren’t you?”

“Oh no you don’t!” He ran towards her and she squealed and turned the other way, dashing towards the car. The sounds of their laughter carried on the wind as other people turned to watch, smiles growing on their faces at the sight of the young couple blissfully in love. 

[mercurialrain]

Day 13: Witch

“Gah!” Felix lurched up, his hands frantically patting up and down his body. He didn’t feel any bandages, but he also didn’t feel the wounds that he was certain would spell his end. He breathed heavily for a few moments, relishing the feel of air in his lungs without struggle before he noticed someone in a chair at the foot of the bed. 

It was a woman that looked to be about his age, sound asleep with her feet propped up on the bed. Her expression looked peaceful and he could see from the dark circles under her eyes that she didn’t get nearly enough sleep. She was beautiful too and he stared at her for probably longer than what was normal, before he tore his eyes away. 

It didn’t matter if she was pretty. He didn’t know her and that made her dangerous. 

Carefully, he used his foot to prod at hers. She didn’t stir, so he used his foot to knock her legs off the bed and she woke with a start, her hand thrusting out. Some invisible force pinned him to the wall and he gasped, more out of shock than of actually being hurt by whatever this was. 

She cursed and dropped her hand, dropping him back on the bed with an unceremonious thump. 

“What the hell is wrong with you?” She snapped, running a hand through her hair. 

“Who are you? Or perhaps more accurately, what are you?” He couldn’t be sorry for the bluntness of his questions, but she didn’t look offended, just angry. 

“I’m Marinette. And I’m the witch that saved your sorry life, though I’m beginning to think that I should have just let the wolves eat you as they so desperately wanted to.” Marinette turned away from him, stalking over to some shelves that had various herbs in jars. 

“Wait, you saved me? That was real, not a dream?”

She glanced back at him as if to gauge if he was kidding. “Yeah, whatever you did to piss them off must’ve been good, because you were maybe two minutes away from death when I found you. You’re lucky I ran out of mugwort when I did and decided to go get some.”

Felix sank back against the pillow, wincing as he remembered what had happened. He’d admittedly not been nice in his rejection of the liar girl, but she was simply too unlikeable to be kind to, even if he was usually a nice person, which he wasn’t. Still, he didn’t think a rejection deserved several stab wounds to his vital organs, that was simply an overreaction. 

Instead of commenting on the sad state of his love life, he simply watched the witch. Her hands moved like she was a conductor, only she was dictating the route of several herbs, liquids and other ingredients into her cauldron instead of music. It was a strangely hypnotizing sight, something calming about watching everything come together. 

She must have felt him staring, because she turned and gave him a glare. “What do you want, pretty boy? I can feel your eyes boring into my back.”

“Pretty boy?”

Marinette rolled her eyes. “You look like you haven’t done a day of hard work in your life.”

“I have to! I’ll have you know that I am the son of the foremost clothing maker in the land.” He drew himself up out of habit, but Marinette’s eyes told him that she saw right through his bravado and wasn’t fooled at all by it. 

“Ah. Tell me, then, what were you doing out in the woods all alone, bleeding out? Were your clothes that poorly made?”

He couldn’t help it. He snapped. “I didn’t choose to be stabbed by a psycho over the fact that I didn’t love her back, ok?”

She looked taken aback and was quiet for a moment. “I apologize. That was out of line. Your wounds are completely healed and you may leave whenever you wish.” She turned back to her work, a clear dismissal and a clear indicator of what she thought he’d do next. 

“What are you making?” For some reason, he didn’t want to leave. 

Marinette turned again, looking surprised. “A potion to help with birth. It lessens the pain and eases the process.”

“How?”

She spread her hands helplessly. “I don’t know how my magic works, just that it does. You may as well ask the sun why it sets.”

Felix got up, coming to stand next to her and realized that he’d been put in different clothes at some point. 

Your clothes were torn to shreds and bloodstained. Of course she changed your clothes. She probably didn’t even touch you, just used magic. 

Still, it didn’t stop his cheeks from turning red. 

“Can magic be taught?”

“No. You must be born with it.”

“What about the herbs? Can you make potions without magic?”

“You can make concoctions and plasters if you have the medicinal knowhow, but you cannot make a potion that will do what mine can without magic.”

“How do you know how to make potions?”

She huffed out a laugh, giving him a side eye. “You sure ask a lot of questions, pretty boy.”

“Felix. My name is Felix.” For some reason, he wanted to hear her say his name. To hear the vowels and consonants on her tongue, shaped by her musical voice. 

“You sure ask a lot of questions, Felix.”

He shrugged. “It’s in my nature to be curious about that which I don’t understand. Is it really so strange?”

Marinette smiled to herself. “I suppose not. Would you like to learn how to make this potion?”

He leaned over the cauldron eagerly, ready to learn. She guided his hands as he measured out ingredients, showing him how to properly measure the stranger of the ingredients. He wasn’t half bad at potion making, something that Marinette admitted with a fair amount of surprise. 

“Like this?” He asked, measuring out some liquid into a spoon. 

She was about to respond when the potion burbled, startling Felix and making him drop the spoon. She lunged to catch it, crashing into Felix and knocking them both down. They landed on the ground in a tangled heap and she groaned, letting her head drop back onto the floor. 

“I’ve been a witch for how long and I still forget I have magic,” she grumbled. She looked up and realized that Felix was awkwardly hovering over her and smirked. “So, are we going to do anything fun in this position or are you gonna get off of me?”

His eyes widened and he stammered out an apology, quickly jumping away from her as she got up slowly. He hadn’t intended for that to happen, but he couldn’t deny that she was attractive. He glanced at her sideways as she continued making the potion as if nothing had happened, occasionally giving him instructions. 

Not yet, but maybe sometime in the future, he decided. In the future, he’d certainly make a move. 

- - - - - -

And a year later, the witch’s conducting hands would have a ring on the left ring finger, with a matching one on Felix’s.

[mercurialrain]

Day 5: Midnight

Marinette flung her arms out, spinning in a circle as she embraced the cool air and the raindrops that decorated her arms as dewdrops would decorate leaves in the early morning. Her eyes were closed and her mouth was spread into a wide smile, lighting up the dull air with her joy. She loved nothing more than rainy days, days where everyone hid inside and she went outside, reveling in the feel of it. 

And today, like the others, she felt eyes on her. And today, she would find the source of it. 

She pushed her wet hair out of her eyes, turning her head towards where she felt the stare coming from. It was at the edge of the forest, the one that locals had warned her to never go into alone. They said that it was foggy even on the sunniest days, that birds refused to sing, that people would vanish and never return. Even still, her curiosity won out. 

She walked towards the forest, the wet grass tickling her bare feet as she did. When she made it to the edge of the forest, she paused, searching her instincts for what she should do next. She had never been the most logical of people, more likely to trust her gut than her brain, which had resulted in many strange encounters, but none of them bad. 

Marinette followed her senses and the feeling of eyes on her, both of which acting as a sort of compass. She was paying more attention to her feelings than her surroundings, so it wasn’t much of a surprise to her when she ran into someone. 

“Oh! Sorry, my mind was elsewhere.” She smiled brightly up at the person, quietly noting how his ears tapered into points and his (beautiful rain-cloud colored) eyes seemed to look right through her. 

“You are about to enter the Fae world. Are you sure that you wish to do this, human?” His voice was quiet but strong, sure of itself. 

“Is that where I was going? I was really just following my instincts; they’ve never really led me astray before. Hey, were you the one watching me?”

A bit of pink painted the pointed tips of his ears. “Perhaps.”

She hooked her arm through his, much to his sputtered surprise. “Excellent! You can be my guide!” Without any more thought, she charged through the shimmer that dictated the Border between the two worlds. 

The Fae’s strangled cry followed them through the Border as he desperately tried to pull her back before she crossed. The Border was dangerous for humans if they weren’t properly prepared, some had even lost their minds just trying to see Fae lands. He had only meant to watch, not to lure. 

Marinette stopped just on the other side.

“Oh,” she breathed, her mind working overtime to grasp the beauty. 

It was nighttime for the Fae, and fireflies lit the night over a dance floor. The dance floor itself was flattened grass bordered by gorgeous flowers as Fae whirled through the air with almost unfair grace. Luscious trees with ripe fruits were planted everywhere and her fingers longed to pluck an apple just as much as her tongue longed to taste it. 

The Fae had other ideas. 

“You stupid human! What are you doing, barreling headfirst into the Fae world?” He scolded, now holding her by the arm like she was a misbehaving toddler. 

Marinette didn’t mind. It felt like a part of her mind, long distant, was sliding into place. Her Nonna had warned her of this, of the pull the Fae lands had to their family. She wasn’t called ‘little fairy’ for no reason. She didn’t know the full story, but she knew that her very being here was dangerous. So why was the danger so tantalizing?

Without answering, she pulled the Fae to the dance floor, ignoring all of his attempts to dig in his heels until suddenly her back was to a tree, a vine around her waist to keep her there as he caged her in with his arms. He almost looked panicked, which twinged a strange emotion in the back of her mind. 

“You must wake up. You cannot let the pull take you over.” His tone was verging on frantic. 

She blinked. “The pull?”

“The Fae world draws you. But you will be lost forever if you do not leave by midnight. You give your world so much joy, mine would only tear you apart until even your smiles would be empty mockeries of what once was. Please, leave.” He put his forehead against hers. 

What was she doing? She gasped, feeling like she was finally surfacing from a wave that had entirely submerged her. “What happened to me.”

He exhaled. “You broke the pull. Thank the Fates.”

The Fae was very close. Close enough so that she could smell the berry scent of his skin, that she wanted to touch his porcelain looking skin. Her mind was clear from the influence of the Fae world, yes, but not the influences of her own emotions. 

She was still secured to the tree, but her arms were free, so she lifted her hands to run through his golden hair. He stiffened at the touch but didn’t pull away. Marinette wanted to push, see what he would allow her to do. She lowered one hand to lift his chin so that their lips met in an unassuming touch. 

It seemed that the simple kiss reduced whatever control the Fae had over himself to ashes and he responded eagerly. One of his hands slid down her side slowly until he reached the small of her back, using it to pull her ever closer while the other hand tangled in her hair to keep her head close. When she tugged on his hair, he groaned and bit her lower lip with his slightly elongated canines, something Marinette found weirdly attractive. 

When they parted, she could see the impact she had in those gray, gray eyes, as fogged with desire as they were. He raised his hand, tracing a finger along her cheekbone, as if trying to memorize the shape of her face. With a snap of his fingers, flowers at their feet wove themselves into a crown that he placed on her head, giving an oddly smug look at it. 

“What does the crown signify?” She dared to ask, running a finger along some of the petals. 

“That you are mine,” he responded simply.

Before she could think, or blush, or stammer, he picked her up, swallowing her startled yelp with another kiss. “We must get you out before midnight. It would not do to allow my people to find you at such a dangerous time.” He carried her through the Border and gently set her on her feet at the edge of the forest, kissing her once more before turning to leave. 

“Wait! When can I see you again?” She was almost embarrassed to voice such a pathetic sounding question, but he only smiled. 

“Whisper my name to the flowers, and I will come.” 

“But I don’t know your name.” 

“Yes, you do. Search your heart, Marinette.” With that, he was gone, stepping through the Border before she could say another word. 

She stood there for a moment, frustrated and worked up, then focused on calming herself down. She knew his name. She did. Inhale, exhale. 

With a gasp, her eyes flew open. 

Felix.