Love by Design - Adrienette

So Over (at) Adrien('s)

It was now Saturday, and Marinette ran through the streets of Paris sounding quite similar to a certain white rabbit. "I'm late! I'm late! For a very important date!"

"Slow down, Marinette! You're going to pass it!" Tikki warned her. Mari came to a halt at her destination.

Standing in front of the Agreste residence, Marinette looked up at the looming gate. Her parents weren't with her this time. Nobody was with her. She was alone. Well... sort of. Her best friend was virtually breathing down her neck. She received yet another text from Alya.

"If I know you you're having second thoughts right now and chickening out. Don't you think of it, just go! If you stand up Adrien you'll just be whining about it to me later!"

Marinette shook her head in amusement at her friend. Yes, she was nervous, but her mind was made up. There was no way she was going to turn away today! She rang the doorbell.

The security camera popped out of the wall, scaring Marinette into covering her face with her hands. It would take a while for her to get used to, or maybe she never would.

"Yes?" Nathalie's voice issued from the security system.

"Uh... Adrien's friend is a girl! I mean..." Marinette slapped her forehead in embarrassment; she was making an excellent start of it. What happened next left Mari blinking in surprise - the gate swung open.

"Come in, Marinette, Adrien awaits your presence."

Marinette entered up the front walk toward the door, now painfully aware that the waiting staff knew Adrien was having a girl over that day.

This place had ears coming out the walls compared to her home! She'd have to watch what came out her mouth. At the gate she'd been about to introduce herself as Adrien's girlfriend, and was almost glad she'd turned that one into incoherent blather. Technically she was, but they hadn't told anyone yet, and that seemed a bad way to let it slip.

As soon as she was inside, her boyfriend hugged her. His impulses nearly made him kiss her cheek, but he was wary of clueing his father in on the depth of their affection.

"It's good of you to come, Marinette." The regal presence on the stairwell descended, nearing the two young people. Adrien's father was void of expression - intimidating Marinette, but all-around less intimidating than she had seen him on previous occasions. According to Adrien, this formidable man actually considered her a prospect for his son. She couldn't imagine how she would manage not squandering that opportunity.

"Ah, you are thanked! I mean -" She felt Adrien's hand on her shoulder, signaling for her to stop - far more gently than Alya's elbow-to-side method.

"It's okay, he gets it. Just relax." Marinette assumed that Adrian was telling her she would make a better impression if she just kept her mouth shut. Meanwhile, he was more concerned that the one she would embarrass was herself. Her initial errors usually still got the point across. She worried more about them than anyone else did. It was when she kept trying to rephrase that she got truly incoherent.

Duly noted. Gabriel had just learned that Marinette was an unconfident communicator... perhaps he could use that. There were many disadvantages associated with lack of communication; on a positive note, people lacking in those skills were also more easily controlled.

"The purpose of today's visit is for you to become more comfortable with each other - so talk, or watch a film, or play videogames, I don't care. This is your task. Let the serving staff know whenever you get hungry. They'll have lunch standing by."

The two were eager to introduce each other to their kwamis, but couldn't do so as long as Gabriel was lingering around. Meanwhile, Gabriel had pressing business matters to attend to but did not want to leave until he was sure things were going in the direction he wanted.

"Uh well..." Adrian scratched the back of his head. "I've got 'Ultimate Mecha Strike III', want to play that?" Marinette nodded and followed him to the gaming console. It seemed like a fitting start to their date; that game had already helped them bond some as friends before they each understood who the other was to them.

Adrien had truly upped his game, perhaps not wanting to appear weak to Marinette. After all, from his point of view, their relationship was built on watching each other's backs in a fight. Mari struggled for the upper hand - which she eventually won, but for whatever reason chose to throw the match right at the end. He gave her a questioning look, and they both fell back in their seats laughing.

"I'll bet your kwami isn't as much of a pest as mine is."

Marinette seemed shocked. "Why would you even suggest that? Tikki is no trouble at all. Without her I'd never be able to be Ladybug!"

Marinette's purse shifted - seemingly of its own accord - as the red kwami popped out. "Thanks for defending me, Marinette, but I'm not offended - he's only ever met Plagg. I'm Tikki, by the way."

Adrien shook Tikki's hand-like appendage with thumb and forefinger. " A pleasure to meet you. Sounds like you know Plagg, all right!" He lifted the edge of his jacket. "Too lazy to even defend yourself?"

"I was sleeping!" The black kwami tumbled out, and to Adrien's horror, poked Marinette in the side of the head. "So you're the reason I've had to deal with a lovesick teen?"

Marinette's eyes widened in shock while Adrien whined, "Plagg!" The black cat paid neither one any heed.

"He'd get home after being rejected again, collapse against some piece of furniture and say some cheesy line like 'It will all be different next time' or 'If only I knew who she was under that mask.' Speaking of cheese, I'm hungry."

"You're not the only one dealing with that," Tikki, informed Plagg. "Marinette covered her room in pictures of him. That time Adrien came over to practice? We... had a quick clean-up. She's even got his schedule written out on a pull-down chart."

Marinette squealed in despair and shielded her head with her arms. Now Adrien was going to call her crazy, just like Alya had - but now it was 1,000 times worse because her behavior was targeted at him. Surely he would no longer feel comfortable around her and would... burst out laughing?

Adrien took one of her wrists in each of his hands and lowered them so she was forced out of hiding. "What is it with everyone and my schedule? I'm sure Father, Nathalie, and The Gorilla must have their own copies of it too."

"Cheese!"

"Plagg! They're having a moment."

"You're not upset with me?" Marinette questioned.

"No. I'm just relieved that you feel as strongly as I do." He leaned in with an intention to kiss her, but pulled back nervously. This wasn't something he'd done before. Her puzzled but non-objecting eyes gave him the courage; this time he landed a light peck on her nose before releasing her arms. "It's still a wonder to me how my dad picked you for that evening, M'Lady."

"I'm hungry!" The black kwami tugged Adrien's sleeve.

"Oh, that reminds me!" Marinette told the boy in front of her. "You were half right. Your father did offer to pay my parents, but they declined. They just wanted, ah, heehee ..."

"You can just ask them that?!" Either her family was exceptionally close, or he'd been unaware all his life that he lived in a dysfunctional family.

"I'm dying here and nobody cares!"

"Adrien, maybe you should feed your kwami. You'll need him if an akuma attacks."

"All right, sounds like it's time for lunch with a side of Camembert and...?"

"Are you asking me?" Tikki questioned. "I'm not as fussy as Plagg, but I do enjoy chocolate chip cookies."

A/n - The one who got me hooked on this fandom was comparing both Adrien and Marinette to Fairy Tail characters, but I personally can't stop comparing Adrien to Drew from Pokemon. I can identify a few small traits they have in common, but I have no idea why the overall impression is so strong. Then I keep thinking about how blue and yellow make green... Stop it Cristina! There are already three accepted children for Adrienette, they don't need another one.