A Little Bit of Bad Luck

Ch 31: The Proverbial Dinner

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Nathalie's eyes shot open. Her heart hammered in her chest. She couldn't believe what she had just seen. Did Emilie really use the Peacock miraculous to save Félix when he was a baby? She could feel tears stinging her eyes.

If that was true, then all they were doing, and everything they worked for, was the exact opposite of what Emilie would have wanted. Her thoughts lingered on Emilie's final words. 

Please, give Félix a good life.

Gabriel hadn't ever mentioned that to her. She had missed the passing of her sister due to work that he had assigned her. She was still able to say goodbye, but she would have liked to be there. What would Emilie say if she knew they were actively trying to destroy this reality with the Félix she loved so dearly?

What a fool I have been. Now Gabriel had planned to lure Marinette to the house by pretending to be the perfect host. She couldn't let him do that.

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Marinette narrowed her eyes. "Dinner?" 

Félix shrugged. "Yeah, I don't know what to think about it either." They were sitting at the cafe again after class. It was the only place they could act like a real couple. Félix had just revealed that he told his father the truth about their relationship.

Marinette's thoughts drifted over to her nightmare. If Félix's mother used the Peacock miraculous, didn't that mean it was likely his father was Hawk Moth? That could also explain why he would suspect her to be Ladybug in the first place. He would have seen the couple of times Ladybug showed up quickly when Marinette was in the building of an akuma attack. Then this dinner-

"Marinette?" Félix's voice broke up her thoughts.

Marinette inhaled sharply. "Sorry, Félix. I'm a little worried about making a bad impression. I thought he didn't like me." It wasn't a total lie, but how was she going to tell Félix about his mother, and her suspicions of his father? He had already been through so much.

Félix smiled. "Whatever happens, we'll be there for each other."

Marinette nodded, returning his smile. Who would have thought he could be this gentle? He used to be so cold and distant from everyone. She scooted closer to him and wrapped her hands around his arm, leaning her head in. She frowned. How could your father do something like this to you?

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Tikki lectured Marinette, flying above her head. "Marinette! I really think we should have told Félix." 

Marinette picked through her clothes as she got ready for the awkward dinner. "I didn't know how to tell him. He would have been distraught, then Hawk, I mean, his dad would know something was wrong. I'm not equipped to deal with this. And we aren't even positive it's the truth." She was starting to ramble.

All the other kwamis were listening intently. They moved their eyes back and forth between the two of them like they were watching a conversational tennis match.

Tikki crossed her arms. "Well, what's your plan?" 

Marinette touched her earrings. "I think I should leave you and the earrings here, just in case this is a trap. I can't let him have both of the miraculous. If anything happens, I'll leave my cell phone here and we will contact you on that. And, I don't believe I'm saying this, but I'm going to let Queen Bee know what's going on so she knows to check for messages from Chat Noir. Then we have two modes of communication if one fails." She caught her breath.