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“Marinette! Marinette!” Tikki called out. “It’s time to stop working.”
Ignoring her Kwami, Marinette pushed the pedal of her sewing machine down to the floor. She wasn’t going to look up. Not now. If she looked up, she might mess up this seam. Nope. She had to do it perfectly the first time. It was the first time she was making her father-in-law a gift. And she knew he would inspect her craftsmanship.
“Marinette! Adrien will be back any minute,” Tikki reminded. “You have to get ready.”
“There’s too much to do, Tikki,” Marinette whined. “Maybe I could push back our date night until after Christmas.”
“That would be missing the point. Adrien can see you’re stressed; he just wants to help. You need to let him. Plus,” Tikki playfully nudged her shoulder. “Adrien has been planning this for days.”
Marinette made a sad face at her friend.
“Hurry up and get changed, Marinette!”
With a groan, Marinette pushed herself away from her sewing machine and walked over to her clothes chest. Adrien was keeping the details of their date a secret, yet he had given her clear instructions on what to wear. Marinette dug through her summer clothes until she found what she was looking for. She quickly took off her clothes and slid on the garment. Then, Marinette rummaged through her winter clothes to find her warmest boots, thickest pants, and heaviest jacket.
The mix of summer and winter clothes confused her, but perhaps that was the point. To keep her guessing? Marinette smiled at the thought. Adrien was going through a lot of effort for their date night. She quickly put on the pants and boots.
Suddenly, Marinette heard a knock on her trap door. “Come in,” she called sweetly, slipping on her heavy coat.
Adrien climbed up the stairs looking straight out of a snow expedition photograph, complete with a large pack on his back. Marinette giggled at the sight. Paris was cold in December, but not that cold. He definitely had something more than a date planned for tonight. With a big on his face, he brought out a hand from behind his back, handing Marinette a clumsily wrapped gift.
“Is that for me?” Marinette squinted back at him. “It’s too early for a Christmas gift.”
“It’s not a Christmas gift.” Both of their eyes fell to the shiny Christmas paper. “Okay, maybe it is,” Adrien admitted. “But it isn’t your only gift. This one you can open early.”
Marinette took it from her hands and excitedly tore at the paper. Inside was… was a kwami blanket? No. Maybe a knitted washcloth. A slow smile spread over Marinette’s face. It was a hat. The stitches were uneven, and it was painfully lopsided. No store would ever sell something like this. The hat was painfully handmade by an obvious novice. A slow realization washed over her as she met Adrien’s eyes. “Did you... make this?”
Adrien giggled as he nodded.
Marinette was speechless for a moment. “Who taught you? When did you have time to learn this? ”
“Rose showed me how. Two nights ago, when I went to play with Kitty Section, we worked on this after. Sorry, it isn’t very good.” Adrien shyly scratched the back of his neck.
“Don’t say that; I love it! This is now my favorite hat in the world.” Marinette proudly placed it on her head. “There, I’m ready for our date.”
“A date? Hmm… Seems a bit too ordinary for the heroes of Paris.” Adrien reached into his pocket, then dramatically put on a pair of sunglasses. Kaalki suddenly appeared next to his shoulders. “But, why have a date when we could have… a vacation.”
Marinette raised her eyebrows. “A vacation?”
Kaalki flew in front of her. “I know the best spots on the planet. It will be glorious!”
“A very short vacation,” Adrien added. “Two hours, four tops.”
Marinette sighed. She saw her sad reflection in the lenses of Adrien’s sunglasses. “But we can’t leave Paris now. An Akuma can strike anytime. If I’m not here, it could be like when we were in New York all over again.”
“There’s no need to worry, Milady. I got Paris two very capable babysitters.” Adrien winked. “Carapace and Rena Rouge will be patrolling Paris tonight.” He held up a tiny green turtle alarm. “But, they have instructions to signal if an Akuma strikes.”
“Well, it seems you thought of everything. What a responsible Guardian you are.” Marinette purred as she wrapped her arms around Adrien’s neck.
“So,” Adrien whispered in her ear. “What are you wearing under that jacket?”
“Exactly, what you asked me to, but I don’t know why.”
“Perfect. I wouldn’t want to ruin the surprise.” Adrien gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. “Close your eyes.”
Marinette giggled as she lowered her eyelids.
“Kaalki! Full gallop.”
Even with her eyes closed, Marinette could see the bright light of the transformation. Her arms fell ever so slightly as Adrien’s heavy coat was replaced with the sleek suit of horse Miraculous. She then felt herself being lifted high into Adrien’s arms.
“Voyage!” he shouted.
As soon as Adrien took a few steps, a bitter cold breeze blasted Marinette in the face. The shock of the icy air made it hard to breathe. When she was able to inhale again, her face twisted at a sharp sulfur smell. She struggled to keep her eyes shut with all the strange sensations. When Adrien set her down, she heard the soft crunch of snow under her feet. “Where did you bring us?”
“Not yet. Kaalki, full stop.” A moment later, Marinette felt Adrien’s arms wrap around her from behind.
“Lean your head back,” he instructed.
Marinette melted into his embrace, covering his arms with her own. She tilted her face up, resting her cheek against his neck. Adrien must have recently shaved; she could still smell the shaving cream.
“Now, look,” Adrien whispered.
Marinette slowly opened her eyes. As she focused, a gasp escaped her throat. In the sky above her, she could see thousands upon thousands of stars. Her jaw dropped as she felt her heart rate quicken. There were so many, and they seemed so close. It didn’t seem real. She never imagined the sky could look like this.
“Are we still on Earth?” she asked, breathlessly.
Adrien chuckled. “Not sure Kaalki’s up for interplanetary travel. We are in Iceland. Don’t ask me where, though. I can’t pronounce any of the names.”
Marinette continued to gaze up at the sky. Even the spots between the stars were filled with hundreds of tiny sparkles. A long, murky patch of purples, greys, and whites divided the sky. Marinette had seen pictures of the Milky Way before in books, but the photographs couldn’t compare to seeing it in person.
“It’s so beautiful,” she sighed. “Wow! I never knew.”
“The night sky always used to be like this,” Kaalki complained. “Until the humans went crazy with electricity.”
“Stop it, Kaalki,” Tikki scolded. “They are having a moment.”
“Did you bring the cheese?” Plagg piped up.
“There are snacks for all three of you in the bag,” Adrien called out, setting his pack on the ground.
Soon, Marinette heard the happy munching sound of the three tiny gods. Were they always such noisy eaters? She suddenly released how eerily silent it was. Aside from her and Adrien’s breath, there was nothing. No traffic, no buzz from electronics. Just… stillness.
“It’s so quiet here.” Marinette wasn’t sure why, but she felt the need to whisper. “It is so different from Paris.”
“Mmhmm,” Adrien agreed as he started to sway her gently. For several minutes, they stood in silence, gazing at the night sky.
“But, why does it smell like eggs?”
“Oh, that’s the second part of your surprise. You brought your bathing suit, right?”
“Yes.”
“Well, then, Milady. Up for a soak under the stars?”
Marinette’s eyes grew wide. “But it’s freezing!”
Adrien released her from his grasp. “Come, follow me,” he eagerly said as he grabbed her hand. Marinette followed him down a soft incline to something that looked like a foggy pond. When she got closer, Marinette realized what it was.
“It’s a hot spring!” she announced excitedly. “I’ve never been to one before.”
“I know how tight those shoulder muscles of yours are.” Adrien flashed her a brilliant smile. “And sure, there are many lovely hot springs in the Pyrénées, but here we can have our privacy.”
“Yes. It’s very private.” Marinette smirked back at him. “But, if it’s only us, why did we bring the suits?”
“Plagg insisted.”
Marinette glared over to the Kwamis. Plagg had already finished the cheese Adrien had packed. Tikki was still nibbling on a cookie, and Kaalki was halfway through an apple.
“Hey,” Adrien shrugged. “At least I talked him out of the fermented shark he wanted to bring back.”
They soon made it to the steamy edge of the water. Adrien set down his backpack and started removing his jacket and shirt. Marinette bit her lip as she watched him undress. I’ll never get tired of this, she thought sinfully.
Marinette hesitated as she reached for the zipper of her jacket. It was just so cold! She took a deep breath of icy air, then removed her jacket, shoes, and pants as fast as possible. A hiss escaped her throat as her naked toes touched the frozen, rocky ground. Shivering, Marinette looked over to Adrien.
“Ready?” he asked through chattering teeth. Marinette nodded as she took his hand. Together they slowly stepped into the hot spring.
At first, Marinette squirmed at the hot, silty soil under her toes. But the desire to get warm overpowered any squeamishness. As quickly as she could, Marinette waded deeper and deeper into the spring. When the water reached their knees, Adrien found a large rock peaking out of the water. He slowly lowered himself down into the water, leaning against the rock. He then motioned for Marinette to sit in front of him.
Marinette couldn’t help moaning as she lowered herself into the shallow water. For a moment, her skin protested against the sudden heat. But soon, the sensation was replaced by pure ecstasy as the warmth engulfed her body. Settling herself between Adrien’s legs, Marinette looked up at the sky and exhaled with contentment.
Adrien wrapped his arms around her and pulled her against his bare chest. “Feeling relaxed yet?” he asked as he kissed her temple.
“Mmmm… very,” Marinette replied as she laced her fingers through his.
Adrien kissed her temple again as the teens gazed up at the sky. A bubbly, happy contentment filled Marinette’s chest. But after a few minutes, Adrien’s lips started to wander. At first, it was just her cheek, then her jaw. Soon, Adrien was peppering her neck with soft kisses.
“Careful not to leave marks,” Marinette cautioned. “We have the Christmas Gala tomorrow night.”
Marinette heard Adrien growl under his breath. Suddenly, he blew a giant raspberry against her neck. Marinette clamped her head down as a big belly laugh escaped her throat. Never one to back away from a challenge, Marinette reached under Adrien’s legs and tickled the back of his thighs. With a few splashes, Adrien twisted away from her reach.
“Careful, Milady,” he teased. “You don’t wanna start something you’re not willing to finish.”
“Who says I’m not willing to finish?” Marinette leaped forward to continue her tickle assault, but her feet slipped on the silty soil. With a giant splash, she fell face-first into the water. Sputtering, she quickly found her footing and rose to a stand.
“Are you alright?” Adrien asked with concern, resting a hand on her shoulder.
Marinette narrowed her eyes at him, then pounced, attempting to dunk Adrien into the water.
“Are you trying to dunk me?” Adrien grabbed her wrists and held them high above her head.
“Seems only fair,” Marinette tried to circle her leg to the back of his knee. With the right leverage, she could easily knock him off-balance.
“But you dunked yourself,” Adrien laughed as he backed away from her attack.
“I was provoked,” Marinette retorted, still trying to take out his knees.
Adrien kept backing away and circling around. Soon, Marinette noticed that they were in a much deeper area of the natural pool. The water was now well above her waist.
“What a cruel world. My princess thinks I need to be dunked,” Adrien called out dramatically. All of a sudden, he reached down and scooped her up in his arms. “I will save you the trouble, fair maiden. I will dunk myself.”
“What?! Wait!” Marinette tried to twist out of his grip, but his hold was too tight. Then, with great flourish, Adrien held his body straight and fell backward into the water, pulling Marinette under with him.
Once under the warm water, Marinette quickly wiggled out of his grasp. Holding her breath, she blindly reached out to tickle Adrien’s stomach. He instantly tried to swim away, but Marinette persisted. After a few seconds, they both came up for air, sputtering and laughing.
“If we smell like eggs tomorrow. I’ll be your fault,” Marinette said as she wiped water out of her eyes.
“I’ll just tell everyone you can’t get enough of my omelettes,” Adrien teased back as he pushed his damp locks away from his face. Then, he walked toward her and lifted her out of the water once again. Marinette wrapped her legs around his waist and held on to his shoulders.
“I do like your omelettes,” she told him softly as she rested her forehead against his.
“And I like making them for you,” Adrien whispered against her lips. Marinette lowered her mouth to his, kissing him deeply. She could taste the slightly bitter notes of the spring water, but she didn’t care. Kissing her husband here, under the canopy of millions of stars and the biting cold air, felt exhilarating.
Adrien lowered her into the water, still continuing to kiss her. Marinette hummed in delight as she started to comb her fingers through his hair. She pulled away as soon as she felt her husband's hands begin to wander.
“None of that now,” Marinette warned. “The Kwamis could be watching.”
Adrien pouted back at her.
Marinette giggled as she wrapped her arms around him, burying her face in his neck. Adrien kissed her forehead in return, rubbing small circles in her back. Sighing into his touch, Marinette wondered how it was possible to love someone so much. After several minutes of contented silence, Adrien suddenly pulled away.
“I have an idea!” Adrien proclaimed excitedly. “Do you know how to float?”
Marinette hesitated. “Umm… yes?”
“Try it with me.”
Marinette watched as Adrien stretched his body back into the water. Soon, he was floating happily beside her. Puffing out her chest, Marinette leaned backward and was soon suspended in the spring water.
Once again, Marinette gazed up at the sky, losing herself in the millions of stars. Somehow, floating in the warm water, looking up at the night sky, it was almost as if she could feel the stress leave her body. And suddenly, her problems didn’t seem as big.
“I don’t think I realized how much I needed this.” Marinette reached over and grabbed Adrien’s fingers. “Thank you, Adrien. For taking care of me.”
“You’re welcome, Marinette.”