Harbored

Compromise

Compassing the forest was a brutally difficult task for Adrien, no matter how thankful he was for the mid morning sun. Twigs and fallen branches crunched under his ruddy work boots, the boy frantically searching high and low for his acquaintance. The way Adrien figured it, Marinette had no sense of direction in this tangled thicket and was hopelessly lost, or possibly worse.

He halted his thinking before he assumed the worst. Adrien swore if any one person distributed harm on one slender strand of her midnight hair, he would lose it.

From the nethermost corner of a small clearing, coated in a glimmering canopy of foliage, Adrien witnessed a girlish whimper. All of his attention flashed to where the noise resounded.

Pale complected limbs curled tightly, contrasting with the lush bush. Greenery sprung around her body, crafting a fallacious presentation of happiness. Her clothing was hardly protecting her frame, as she held her legs to her chest, and rested her head against her knees.

Adrien shouted her name, only to receive no response. His feet clomped the ground, crossing the distance between the two. Adrien wrapped his arms around the back of Marinette's head, gingerly hugging her into his chest. Her hands delicately ran along his torso, seeking solace. 

Glittering tears trickled down her grimy cheeks, thankful for her blonde savior.

Practically ripping open his backpack, Adrien's eyes performed a rapid once over of her condition. Spotting scattered cuts and bruises, he tended to her aid. He decided what Marinette's fragile frame needed, amply giving her medical attention. Bandages, supplements and ointments all applied and dosed, Marinette felt a wholistic love. 

One feeling so overwhelming and foreign, she weeped dramatically harder.

Gaining more strength, her fingers swirled Adrien's coat, bunching the fabric in handfuls. Continuously, he coddled her. Marinette lay on her back, now on the supple grass; Adrien crouched on his feet, one on each side of her, still clung to Marinette.

Feigning the pulsing ache from the weight distributed in his soles, Adrien softly rocked her side to side, willing her pain away. Salty tears splashed onto the crevice of his neck, not even minding so. 

They had yet to utter one word, but he knew something horrid had occurred, given Marinette's condition.

Once her sobbing reduced to infrequent hiccups, she pulled away gradually, giving room for fresh breath. Adrien withdrew himself as well, plopping next to Marinette. A kind hand remained on her back, tracing circles on her bared spine. Resting the burden weight of her head in his shoulder, Marinette sighed, preparing herself to explain previous events.

Adrien knew that dumbly asking Marinette what had happened would hurt her wounds even worse. Instead, he let her emotionally vent, Marinette blankly staring at the dirt below her afterwards. 

If she felt comfortable enough, Adrien trusted their instantaneous bond to overcome verbal expression of what could be potentially graphic memories.

She parted her chapped lips speaking, "We should never fight again." Adrien's mouth pulled a quaint smile as he hugged her into his rugged chest once more. 

Closed lipped tendrils of laughter ran from his sternum, pushing puffs of air out by his nose.

"Deal."

"And agree to answer every question honestly and not withhold any information, mainly for my sake and accountability, as I have been such an awful friend to you."

"Okay."

"If you have a question-"

"What happened to you, Marinette?"