Miraculous-A Cinderella Story

Chapter Fifteen

Dread settled in the bottom of Marinette's stomach, but she forced a smile, making her way through the group of four jealous Princesses. She slowly walked up the winding staircase, feeling all eyes on her. Every lady wanted to be her, yet she'd give up everything to not be herself at that moment. 

When she reached the second level, Adrien looked away, knowing that Marinette couldn't possibly be happy with this arrangement. After all, it was he who had kissed her as Chat Noir, not once, but three times, and then proclaimed his love.

She dipped into a curtsy, letting locks of dark hair fall around her face. "Your Majesty, I'm honored." She said quietly.

Adrien nodded softly. "Princess Marinette Dupain-Cheng of Paris, France, will you accept my alliance and proposal and sit next to me as the future Queen of Lyon, France?" Despite the guilt that clouded her mind, she smiled.

"I accept your alliance and proposal."

Cheering erupted from every corner in the ballroom. Everyone was happy and even the four girls who had been rejected clapped. Marinette took Adrien's hand and waved to the nobles, plastering another, wide, fake smile on her face. It didn't matter, did it? She was going to marry Adrien Agreste, the Prince she'd been crushing on since Day 1. Her smile turned half-sincere with the knowledge that she'd both be marrying someone she loved and letting go of someone she loved.

*****

"You got engaged to Prince Adrien."

Marinette's whirled around. Her throat closed up as she spotted the leather-clad superhero standing in her balcony, looking down. "Chat-" She croaked miserably. "Chat, it isn't like that."

He smiled at her sympathetically. "I know, Princess. I know you can't fall in love with me, much less marry me. I'm not the amazing Prince of silk. I'm just a superhero."

Marinette hurried towards him in big strides, taking his face in her hands. "It's not that, kitty. You're so much more than just a superhero. You're Chat Noir, my partner, my friend, my love." She smiled, tilting her head to the side. "I really do love you, kitty, and I know you so much better than you think I do."

He stared at her, puzzled. "What do you mean by that?" She giggled, despite the pressure building in her chest.

"I'm Ladybug, chaton."

*****

"Do you, Prince Adrien Agreste of Lyon, France, take Princess Marinette Dupain-Cheng of Paris, France to be your lawfully wedded wife?" Adrien grinned, a little bit of his Chat Noir showing.

Though Marinette still didn't know about Adrien being Chat Noir, she'd agreed to a marriage between herself and Adrien in four weeks. The time had passed by so quickly-with regular wedding procedures to keep her busy-that she'd barely had time to say goodbye to her previous partner.

"I do."

"And do you, Princess Marinette Dupain-Cheng of Paris, France, take Prince Adrien Agreste of Lyon, France to be your lawfully wedded husband?" She shifted her weight uncomfortably.

"I do."

The priest smiled. "Then I now pronounce you husband and wife, man and woman, Prince and Princess, King and Queen. You may kiss the bride." Though Marinette was still very uncomfortable, she obliged.

She swung her arms around his neck and pulled him into a sweet kiss, one that meant she could love him. Fireworks screamed through the air and cheering erupted from the church. Adrien smiled into the kiss, pulling her closer to him and leaning down. They pulled away, joining their hands together.

Until Gabriel Agreste relinquished his throne or passed, Adrien and Marinette would rule over Paris as King and Queen. When Gabriel did give up his place as King, they would join kingdoms and rule over Lyon and Paris together. For now, they'd stay in the same room in Paris. Marinette moved her things from her old room to a much bigger room; one she'd never seen before. It was huge, almost triple the size of her old room. And that was a lot.

"Adrien, we need to talk." Marinette whisked him away from the servants unpacking the bags, directing him to the bathroom that was the size of Marinette's old room. "I... I don't know how to say this, Adrien, but I-" She bit her lip.

"Marinette," He took her hands in his, smiling to reassure her that he was fine with whatever she had to say. "I know that you don't know me at all and I know that you probably don't love me. In fact, I'm very surprised that you even accepted the alliance."

Her lips twitched upward. "You're my friend, Adrien. I can love you, maybe, if given time. Lot's of time. At one point in time, I did have a silly crush on you. However, my feelings for someone else developed into something uncontrollable-" she looked away, "-and I don't think I want to destroy what we had just yet. He was very special to me."

Adrien's heart swelled with joy. "An unrequited love?" He asked, even though he knew the answer.

"A forbidden love." She replied sadly. "A superhero and a Princess. Who would possibly accept that duo?" Suddenly, her eyes snapped up. "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean..." She trailed off, touching her lips.

"It's alright, Princess." Marinette shuddered at the nickname. "I'm glad that someone else understands where I stood before. And I'm glad that someone else is my-" He hesitated. "-wife." He stumbled on the word, concerned by how exactly it sounded.

"Right," She whispered. "We're married."

They sat in awkward silence while Marinette squeezed her eyes shut and gripped the counter so tightly that her knuckles turned white. Adrien's hand found one of her's and brought it to his lips. She glanced at him, smiling as memories of Chat Noir flashed through her mind. He was so much like her superhero partner.

"Marinette?"

Marinette hummed in response, closing her eyes again.

"Your lover was Chat Noir?" She flushed and she looked down so her hair would somewhat cover her red face. She nodded. "Did you ever find out who he was?" She slowly shook her head. "Did you ever imagine who he was?" Her blush faded and she turned to look at him, shaking her head again.

 The bluenette tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. "I told him one of my secrets, but I never asked him to tell me his. I guess I just trusted him enough to tell me at the right time."

The two heirs faded into a comfortable silence. Suddenly, Adrien spoke again. "You know, Marinette, I think we both have a reason to be happy with this arranged marriage." She glanced at him, pursing her lips and studying his expression.

"And why is that?"

"Because I found my Ladybug and you found your Chat Noir." She kept a straight face, questioning his statement.

"You think I'm like Ladybug?" She giggled. "I could never measure up to her. Why would you think that?"

He grinned that goofy grin that drove her wild. "You told me yourself. I believe your exact words were, 'I'm Ladybug, chaton.'" Marinette's eyes snapped to Adrien and suddenly she could see the charming flirtatiousness in his green eyes.

"Chat Noir?"