A Miraculous Tale: Storybook

Ch. 8

Cat Noir tapped his foot in time to the rhythm of the music. He blew into the pan flute, and the beautiful music joined the symphony orchestra. I really need to learn how to play this when we get back. He thought.

"Look who's comin' over." The drummer said. Another musician whistled.

"That's the princess. My, she's lookin' fine tonight."

"Wonder who's she's comin' for. Might be me, eh?" The drummer wiggled his eyebrows.

"Or the one who saved her life." A new voice suggested.

Cat Noir looked up to see the subject of their discussion. Kagami was walking over to them, and Cat Noir frowned, thinking of all the wrong she had done to Marinette. Kagami's back was tall, and she walked with confidence. She had on a knee length native american dress, and she wore soft boots. Her hair was in it's usual style, but she had a headband wrapped around her head. Two feathers stood up in the back.

She came over to them with a smile, an expression Cat Noir had never seen on the girl's face.

"Will you dance with me, Peter?" She asked. The guys around them whistled, and Cat Noir turned red. He really wanted to say no. How can I refuse her though? She is the Princess. Marinette would be a better Princess though. He sighed. A new thought struck him as he studied her. Maybe she isn't like the Kagami in our world. Maybe she's the Kagami I met and became friends with. I mean, the Carapace here isn't at all like the Carapace from our world. In a quick second he decided to find out if his theory was correct.

"Sure, Princess." The words felt wrong on his lips, and he grimaced once they came out. Tiger Lily didn't seem to notice, and she dragged him into the clearing. The music continued, and she started to dance.

"Come on, Peter!" She laughed. Cat Noir danced alongside her, but everything felt wrong. What's the matter with me? She's just like when I first met her, but a little more relaxed. Everything is fine. She isn't mean. Even if she was I should be enjoying myself. I mean, I'm at a party thrown for me. I was having fun before, but why did the fun leave? He couldn't figure out what was bothering him.

Tiger Lily didn't seem to notice anything was wrong. They continued to dance, but then Cat Noir saw Marinette leave the camp. Where's she going? He wondered.

Tiger Lily saw him looking off. "You okay?" She asked.

"Yeah, I just got to go... take care of something." He quickly turned and left, leaving Tiger Lily alone on the dance floor.

Cat Noir cut through the crowd and a few moments later he found himself in the outskirts of the camp. He made his way out quickly and found himself at the edge of a forest.

"Marinette?" He called, but he got no answer. He shrugged and decided to go in. He walked through the dark forest; the leaves crunched under his feet. He called her name a couple of times but he didn't get an answer. He saw a light up ahead after he'd traveled for a while, and decided to go to it. He walked to it and found that the light was coming from a large tree. There were many holes in it, and the light seemed to be radiating out of the holes. He looked through to see a small village. Pixie dust was everywhere, and fairies were dancing. It was magical. He heard a small rustle and looked up. A couple feet away from him was Marinette. Her smile was wide, and she looked fixedly upon the small fairy kingdom. He flew over to her and landed by her side. She didn't notice him however; her gaze was still on the fairies and the glowing tree. He peeked his head into another hole and looked at the dancing fairies, but his gaze kept wandering to Marinette. Eventually she noticed him.

"Cat Noir?" She whispered.

"The one and only." He whispered back. She rolled her eyes. "What are you doing out here?" He asked her.

"I was supposed to collect firewood for the camp, so I went because I didn't have much of a choice. I saw this tree glowing in the distance, so I abandoned the wood and came here to see what it was." Her gaze turned back to the tree, and her eyes glazed over. "It's so beautiful and magical." She whispered in awe. She lifted her hand onto the side of the trunk, and both of them noticed it was glowing with the yellow, sparkling dust of fairies.

"Pixie dust." She breathed. Her gaze turned back to the tree, and she studied it in wonder.

Cat Noir smiled at her. She seemed so real, yet at the same time she was a distant dream; she was there, but he couldn't reach her.

He turned and glanced at the magnificent forest behind them. The tall trees made a roof over their heads. The moon's beams broke through the canopy of green and shone down on the twigs and leaves below. It was breathtaking.

"Marinette?" Cat Noir called her name in a gentle whisper.

"Hmm?" She hummed, not really paying attention.

"Would you like to dance?" He asked the question somewhat quickly, and his heart beat loudly after he said the words.

She looked up at him, and an expression that he couldn't read crossed her face. After a moment she slowly nodded.

"Sure, but then we should go back."

He flew into the forest until they were a few feet away from the fairy tree. She followed him, somewhat hovering and walking at the same time. He bowed politely and offered her his hand. She curtsied and took it. They swayed back and forth for a moment, and then they started to fly. They flew and danced to their own, make believe, rhythm. They broke the canopy of trees and found themselves bathed in the luminescent moon. Cat Noir thought Marinette looked exquisitely beautiful in the serene light of the moon. Her blue bell eyes reflected the moon's glow in a spectacular way, and he was about to say something when Marinette spoke.

"We should get back, Cat Noir. They'll be looking for us."

Cat Noir's face fell somewhat. "Okay, but let's just stay another minute. The night is too beautiful to leave just yet."

Marinette danced with him for a few more moments before she pulled away. "We really need to be getting back. Come on, Kitty, I'll race ya." She flew off toward the camp, and Cat Noir followed.