Alter Ego (An Adrien Agrest/Chat Noir X OC Fanfiction)

Chapter Five: Do That For Each Other

I jumped back through my bedroom window, pushed it closed and de-transformed, just as a knock sounded on my door.

"Come in!" I called, just as Maane flew to hide beneath my bed. The door opened and Nathalie stood there, looking as stern as ever with her iPad in her hand.

"I'm here to escort you to dinner," She said, "The longer you stay here, you will be able to come to dinner on your own, but for your first night, we thought it might be best if I show you were to go."

"Yes, that's probably best. Thank you, Nathalie." I said.  She nodded. "Also, do you happen to know where I can find Beef jerky here in Paris? Its a Estourian delicacy, and I'm absolutely dying for some."

"I'll see what I can do." I smiled, nodding in thanks as I left the room, giving one last glance back at the small Lion head poking out from beneath the bed before closing the door behind me. I followed Nathalie through various hallways and down the same grand staircase as before until I finally reached the ridiculously massive dining room. She opened the door for me, and I stepped inside to see that there were three place settings at the end of the long table, but thus far only one of them was claimed by Adrien.

I walked over to sit across from him, but he immediately stood up, walking around to pull my chair out for me. I smiled, sitting down as he pushed it closer to the table.

"Are all Parisian boys this chivalrous or are you a rare breed?" I asked, half joking as he sat back down in his seat. 

"My father has always taught me to be polite." He answered, glancing at the empty place setting. My smile faltered slightly as his green eyes flashed with something I could only describe as a mixture of sadness and disappointment. The fact that this was directed at the empty seat at the table, prompted by the mention fo his father told me that perhaps things in the Agreste household were not all sunshine and roses.

"Will your father be joining us?" I asked hesitantly. 

"He plans to," Nathalie answered, "But Mr. Agreste often gets held up with work. It is not out of the ordinary that he does not make it to the dinner table."

"Yeah, I wouldn't hold your breath," Adrien mumbled. I smiled sympathetically.

"I know the struggle," I said quietly, causing him to look up at me, "My parents are incredibly busy too. I spend a lot of time alone back home," I shrugged, "I just had to learn to keep myself occupied."

"How did you do that?" The blonde asked curiously. I smiled, glancing up at Nathalie and the Bodyguard, whose name I still didn't know. 

"Would you two potentially be interested in joining us for a game?" I asked. The two adults glanced at each other, clearly surprised at such a request.

"Yes!" Adrien agreed. "Please? If my father won't be making it again we can at least try to make it fun."

At this, they both nodded and sat down opposite us around the table.

"Ok, so this is a word game I like to play from time to time," I said, "You pair up with one other person, or I guess you could do more than that, but it makes it harder with more people. But basically, you and your partner count to three and then say the first word that pops into your head. After that, you have to try to find a word that connects you and your partners word, and you keep playing multiple rounds until eventually you land on the same word. Does that make sense?"

"Sure! Let's give it a try!"

~~~

By the time Adrien and I had finished eating, the four of us were laughing hysterically. We'd been playing the word game the entire time, and were highly amused, both by pairings such as Adrien and I, who I got the same word in only two rounds, as opposed to Nathalie and the Bodyguard, who just kept getting more and more off-topic every round that they played. We were having a good time, and everyone was smiling...until the door to Mr. Agreste's study was pulled open.

"What is going on in here?" He asked. Nathalie and the Bodyguard both quickly stood up, returning to their posts.

"We were just playing a game over dinner, Father." Adrien answered, looking up at him with sad eyes. Mr. Agreste turned his stern glance up to the adults.

"I am not paying the two of you to play with the children. Your duties do not go beyond protection and scheduling out their days, and if my calculations are correct, they should have retired to their rooms half an hour ago."

"Yes, sir. We're sorry, Mr. Agreste." Nathalie apologized. He turned his gaze back to us.

"To bed. Both of you. You have a busy day ahead of you tomorrow, it being Ms. Cartier's first photo-shoot, and I will not have the two of you looking tired and tarnishing the Agreste brand."

Adrien and I shared a look before nodding our heads.

"Yes sir."

"Yes, Father." 

The tall, greying man turned and walked back into his office without another word, and it seemed whatever happy atmosphere we'd managed to create had just been squashed. 

"Go off to bed, you two." Nathalie said quietly. We both stood up, walking out of the dining room side-by-side and heading up the stairs together.

"Even though my father came in and interrupted," Adrien whispered, glancing at me as we reached my bedroom door, "That was the most fun I've had with a meal in a long time." I smiled, turning around so that I could stand in front of him, facing him.

"Glad I could be of assistance." I replied, offering him a small curtsy. He laughed.

"Well listen, I don't know how fun tomorrow is going to be for you, since I don't know what your usual life is like," He continued, "But I have no doubt that having you around is going to make mine significantly less boring and..."

My mind travelled back to my conversation with Maane on the Eiffel Tower.

"Lonely?" I asked. He nodded.

"Yeah..." I nodded too.

"Yeah, well...maybe we can do that for each other." He smiled.

"I'll see you in the morning. My room is across the hall if you need anything." He jabbed a thumb at the large door behind him and I nodded.

"Goodnight, Adrien." 

"Goodnight, Eloise." 

I turned away from him, slipping into my room and shooting him one last smile before shutting the door behind me. Maybe this whole situation really wouldn't be so bad. 

As soon as the door shut, Maane flew out from his hiding spot. I smiled at him.

"Hey, I don't have access to beef jerky yet, but I managed to steal a piece of cheese for you." I said, holding up the small hunk of Camembert I'd grabbed from the table. 

"Beggers can't be choosers!" He said simply, taking the cheese and digging in. I smiled, walking over to my dresser and opening it to find several pairs of pajamas in my size. I grabbed a light pink, silky pajama set and changed in the closet before walking into the bathroom to brush my teeth. Maane flew after me as he finished off the cheese.

"Have you reached a verdict on the outcome of your first night in Paris?" I asked, settling onto the counter as I spit my toothpaste out. I nodded, looking at my reflection in the mirror as I tied my hair up into a ponytail. 

"Yes. I mean, its not ideal, obviously. I would much rather be home with my family, especially Dad, but...this whole thing might not be so bad. Adrien's nice, and he's my age, so that will be a new experience. Plus I start school tomorrow, which I'm pretty excited about."

"There you go! Stay positive, your majesty!" I smiled at his reflection. 

"Goodnight, Maane."

"Goodnight, Eloisa."