Chapter Text
She glanced back behind her as she swam forward, gently teasing the small red and black crab that was next to her. “Come on Tikki! If we don’t find it soon the other mers will!” She pushed forward and continued swimming, eyes searching for the object she had seen. With a squeal, she darted downward out of sight.
Tikki panicked, not seeing Marinette anywhere. She turned to call out and Marinette popped up next to her grinning as a silver thing was pushed into her face. It had four little points on the top and a handle that was grasped tightly in Marinette’s hand.
Marinette clutched it to her chest and sighed, “How beautiful,” she looked closer and stroked it with a finger. “I wonder what it is? Oh! Maybe Alya would know?”
Tikki cleared her throat, “Marinette, maybe we should get back to the others, wasn’t there an event today?”
She paused, thinking, “No, I don’t think there- oh my gosh Tikki we were supposed to be with the girls!” She shoved the object in her little purse and hurriedly swam towards the castle. Tikki sighed as she rushed to keep up.
Marinette reached the castle and immediately noticed the line of annoyed mermaids watching her swim towards them. One was closer than the others, her arms crossed, while an almost angry expression was seen on her face. Her reddish-brown hair was braided in a crown around her head, pearls laced around much like Marinette’s hair.
Growing up, they had both loved pearls and, together, they learned how to do hairstyles with them. Being best friends, they had always done everything together, there being no difference as they grew older.
‘This is new though,’ Marinette thought, ‘she has never been angry with me for forgetting.’ Her eyes wandered over the other mers, none of them seemed angry, then she caught sight of Lila. She didn't mind the girl, she was new and Marinette was all for welcoming her in with open arms. Lila seemed nice, she just talked a lot about her travels and achievements. She was very happy for the girl, although Lila didn’t seem to like her as much as the others. When Marinette locked eyes with her, Lila smirked, which was a confusing response.
Marinette smiled at them all and went closer to Alya, ready to show her the - ‘spikey, shiny thing?’ she wondered - but stilled when Alya shot her a glare.
“Alya?” Marinette came closer, worried, “What happened? I’m really sorry I’m late... I found this thing and I thought you'd know what it was!”
“You’re always doing this Mari, being late. We’ve been planning this for a while,” With that, Alya waved her hand towards the rest of the girls, “We can’t be friends with you if you won’t let us. I know we grew up together, but if you can’t stop putting us below this stupid obsession, we won’t stand by to watch this anymore girl.” Alya turned and swam off, the others following.
Marinette stared after them, tears swimming in her eyes. She looked down at the thing in her hand and put it into her purse gently. She fled to her little cavern, where human trinkets littered the walls. In the center, there was a statue of a man. Marinette knew who he was, he was often on a ship around here. She pulled the thing out of her purse and looked at her reflection in one of the human things Alya had called a mir-ror. “Maybe it’s one of those dinglehoppers!” She exclaimed, a slight tremor to her words. She reached up and released her hair, releasing a string of pearls and setting them on a rock next to her.
She gently combed her hair with the dinglehopper and smiled to herself. “See Tikki? We figured out what it was!” She turned to look at Tikki but there was no response.
“Tikki?” She called, swimming to the opening of the little cave and glanced around, Tikki nowhere in sight. Mari shifts to face her stuff and begins to hum a song, believing Tikki would come back later.
She laid on the rock near the mir-ror she was just at and stared up through the hole above her, hair floating gently around her as it settled down.
“Look at this stuff
Isn't it neat?
Wouldn't you think my collection's complete?
Wouldn't you think I'm the girl
The girl who has everything?
She sits up, glancing around the small room. Eyes still full of wonder while they explored the objects around her.
“Look at this trove
Treasures untold
How many wonders can one cavern hold?
Looking around here you think
Sure, she's got everything
I've got gadgets and gizmos a-plenty
I've got whozits and whatzits galore
You want thingamabobs?
I've got twenty!
But who cares?
No big deal
I want more”
She swims up towards the light streaming through the hole she was looking through a second ago.
“I wanna be where the people are
I wanna see, wanna see them dancin'
Walking around on those - what do you call 'em?”
She pauses for a second, thinking as she taps her finger on her chin. Tikki sneaks in through the entrance but pauses before she's all the way inside so she can watch.
“Oh - feet!
Flippin' your fins, you don't get too far
Legs are required for jumping, dancing
Strolling along down a - what's that word again?
Street
Up where they walk, up where they run
Up where they stay all day in the sun
Wanderin' free - wish I could be
Part of that world”
She spins while holding her strings of pearls. They twirl around her and she giggles. Tikki smiles, glad the young girl is feeling slightly better. She knows that the girls’ being so harsh on her really hurt her.
“What would I give if I could live out of these waters?
What would I pay to spend a day warm on the sand?
Bet'cha on land they understand
That they don't reprimand their daughters
Bright young women, sick of swimmin'
Ready to stand”
She holds her hair up and looks around her collection until she sees a clip that Alya told her humans clip their hair up with.
“And ready to know what the people know
Ask 'em my questions and get some answers
What's a fire and why does it - what's the word?
Burn?
When's it my turn?
Wouldn't I love, love to explore that world up above?
Out of the sea
Wish I could be
Part of that world”
Marinette removes the clip from her hair as she stands back in front of the mirror, humming once again. She turns to grab the dinglehopper from the rock where she set it and notices Tikki.
“Tikki! Look! I figured out it was a dinglehopper!”
----
Adrien looks into the depth of the ocean, a grin pulling at his features. “Nino, do you ever wonder what lives down there?”
Nino glances over the side of the boat then gives Adrien a look, raising a single eyebrow, “fish?”
Adrien laughs, “I’d assume. But I bet there’s more down there. What about mermaids?” He turns towards Nino and hooks his arm around the other man’s shoulders. “Could you imagine? Mermaids!”
Nino ducks underneath his arm and crosses his own, “Mermaids. You think mermaids are living in the sea?”
Adrien glances at Nino, “Hey, you never know!”
The two young men continue bickering about mermaids while the wind picks up and the sky darkens with clouds. Nino and Adrien exchange looks before turning towards the ship crew yelling orders to prepare for the storm. Adrien takes one more look at the sea then goes to help.
Marinette swims up to the surface to see the man on the boat again. She sighs as she spots him pulling a line of some sort, she thinks it’s called a rope but she doesn’t stick to that thought for long. The rain begins to pour and the waves became more harsh, seemingly throwing the boat around. Fortunately, the boat had turned to head back to the shore.
Although, Adrien had thought something fell into the sea and was looking slightly overboard. As he’s searching, A wave crashed against the other side of the boat and he was shoved headfirst into the depths.
Marinette panicked and dived down after him. Tikki, who was sitting on a rock nearby, jumped in after her.
Her heart is pounding as she rushes after him. She grabs the now unconscious man and begins to pull him up towards the shore. Reaching land, she pushes him up and sits next to him in the sand where the seawater was still slightly covering her tail. “Tikki, I don’t know if he’s alive! Was I too late?”
Tikki comes up beside her and looks over the man, “I can’t really tell..” she trails off, watching for his breathing.
“Marinette! He’s breathing!” Tikki turns to the girl to see her staring down at him, gently brushing away water and sand on his face.
Tikki backs up and watches from a distance to give her some space but to make sure she still is careful.
Marinette finishes wiping away the sand and sets her hand on his cheek lightly. She begins to hum again as she comes to a realization: she’s in love with this man. She smiles down at him and brushes back his hair.
“What would I give
To live where you are?
What would I pay
To stay here beside you?
What would I do to see you
Smiling at me?
Where would we walk?
Where would we run?
If we could stay all day in the sun?
Just you and me
And I could be
Part of your world”
His eyes start to open and she rushes back deeper in the sea as she hears people calling. Once she’s determined shes safe, she watches as a boy around Adrien’s age helps him up
She smiles, love shining in her eyes.
“I don't know when
I don't how
But I know something's starting right now
Watch and you'll see
Someday I'll be
Part of your world!”