Chapter Text
Summertime afternoons had a certain charm to them. Be it the clear blue skies, the waning heat, or the clean smell of the air after a rain, there was a distinct charm. There weren’t as many people around on the streets. And there wasn’t as much pressure to be ready for the day. It also wasn’t as hot as it was back in Spain. Meaning it was more tolerable to be out and about this time of day. One particular redhead living next to a bakery took advantage of this to walk her dog today. And goodness was it needed.
Diego had been such a good boy today. So much so Amaia decided he deserved a treat when they got home.
“Aye, lobito,” she said, pausing to scratch him behind the ears. “What's got you on such good behavior today?”
Arf!
Amaia smiled, happy to see her little boy already learning such good habits. Did Marinette give him a treat or something? He’d been behaving ever since she visited this morning. If that was so, then she should promise visits from Marinette as a reward for behaving. That is if Marinette would allow it. She and the puppy got along so well, most would think Marinette was the owner rather than Amaia.
Not that she minded. She’d grown to enjoy being around the designer.
The owner and her dog walked at a leisurely pace, simply enjoying the sights Paris had to offer. It was different from Salomon’s hometown in Andalusia, she will admit. She couldn’t feel or smell the sea breeze blowing in from the south (it came from the north in this part of the world). And there were more people here than in Salomon’s town.
It wasn’t unwelcome, but it took some getting used to.
They paused in front of a bench on the sidewalk. Amaia pulled out her phone to check the time. Diego sat on his haunches and waved his front paws in the air. Amaia looked down at the puppy, a small smile tugging at her lips. Was Diego wanting to be held? He would always paw her knee if he wanted to be held. And he was. The husky puppy whined and pawed at her knee, giving her the big, fat eyes of begging. Amaia’s resolve was weakened. She put her phone away and knelt to the ground.
“Spoiled puppy,” she murmured while she scooped him up in her arms. Rising, she shifted enough so she could sit down comfortably on the bench. It was time to rest their feet, anyway. They would need it for the trek home.
Diego rested his little head on her arm. Smiling, and with a warm fondness, Amaia scratched him behind his ears. His eyes closed. His little tongue lolled out in content and happiness. His tail wagged subtly. He was the picture of perfect content while he lay resting in her arms. And just because she felt like it, Amaia gently rocked the little puppy to sleep.
What a nice feeling it was, bonding with a small animal. In the time she has had him, she certainly got a taste for what motherhood felt like. At least, what being a “mother” to a puppy was like. Feeding him. Taking him to the vet. Comforting him whenever he was unhappy or sad. Of course, it also included the unpleasant parts. Such as cleaning odorous yellow puddles or keeping him away from choking hazards. Not to mention, being woken up in the middle of the night to go potty. Or just a puppy barking at the pigeons.
Was this how Mireya felt about her, Amaia wondered. A faint part of her hoped it was the case. Mireya had been with her since she had been in diapers. And Mireya herself had been around for far longer than Amaia had been alive. It was a comforting thought, knowing Mireya would never turn her back on her even in dire times.
Perhaps that was why she had been persistent about Amaia charging her phone? Salomon’s phone battery finally died earlier this morning. To the point it no longer charged. Hence, he was at the electronics store getting a new one. Which left the other household members to their devices. Figuratively and literally.
Amaia checked the clock on her phone, which was at 99% charge. In time to hear her puppy snoring.
“Asleep already, lobito?”
One look at Diego confirmed it. The puppy was indeed fast asleep on her arm. Dreaming away while protected from harm. What did puppies dream about before they became dogs, Amaia ruminated. Did they dream about bones, toys, friends, owners? It was a mystery, the inner workings of a dog’s mind. Amaia wondered briefly if she should include dog psychology alongside her pursuit in music. But then again, as Mireya and Salomon say, she was still young. She had time to decide if she wanted to pursue anything besides music.
Besides, Diego had been a good boy. Let him sleep for now. She would wake him when it was time to head home.
Movement in her peripheral caught her attention. As did the sound of sniffling. She looked out of the corner of her eye. The sound was coming from down the sidewalk. And the source of it seemed… distressed.
She could see two young girls walking down. Both had their hair in pigtails, but one was a redhead while the other wore hers in tight braids. The red-haired girl had pink star earrings dangling from her ears, a purple scarf tucked fashionably around her neck. Her blouse was a soft baby blue (thanks, Marinette) and she wore brown pants complete with knee-high boots. Her companion, a dark-skinned girl, had a bright pink shirt coupled with long green pants and dark pink shoes.
The redhead of the duo, Amaia pinpointed, was the source of the crying.
Were they lost? It seemed like it. The dark-skinned girl kept repeatedly pressing buttons on her phone, to no avail. The redhead didn’t look like she had her phone on her person. And now that she was paying more attention, where were their parents? They couldn’t have been older than Andres, and she knew what he could get up to without adult supervision.
Perhaps… they had gotten separated? There was only one way to find out: by asking them directly. But she was no good at approaching people and being sociable, she knew. There had to be some way she could safely approach them without scaring them off.
She looked down at her dog. And a plan begin to form. She began by tickling her puppy awake. With a yawn, Diego awoke. And with a movement of her eyes, Amaia directed his attention to the two girls. Carefully, she set him down on the concrete. With a hand signal she knew he would recognize, she gave him the command to approach the girls. He obeyed, trotting happily to the duo.
Arf!
Diego barked, getting their attention. And like the attention-hungry little puppy he was, he pawed at their pantlegs. It seemed to work. The redhead no longer looked like she was on the verge of tears. Her attention was fixated on the puppy. Diego jumped, happy at the prospect of making a new friend or two.
The redhead knelt. “Who are you?” she asked. Diego barked a happy bark. And he spun in joy. He yipped and play bowed, his tail wagging on overdrive. Both girls giggled, their worries fading to the background.
Without warning, the other girl looked up. “Miss?” she called. “Is this your dog?” Amaia stepped up, approaching them.
“He is,” she said. “Sorry about that. I'm still getting him used to people.” Looking down, she was met with the sight of Diego still pawing at the girls’ pantlegs. “Though it seems there's not much issue with that.”
He certainly had their attention. And she could see it in their eyes the wish to play with him. The red-haired girl of the duo crouched to tickle him.
“Milly, wait!” the other girl cried. She reached out and pulled the girl’s hand back. “You can't just touch someone's dog. This isn't Kiwi.”
Milly, the red-haired girl, stopped. A guilty grin appeared on her face. Apparently, from what she’d just heard, it wasn’t uncommon to pet a certain dog named Kiwi without permission from the owner. Was he some sort of open secret or something? She didn’t know. While Amaia knew Diego was cute, it was nice to see they respected the part about asking before petting. As for Kiwi, she had a feeling she knew that name from somewhere…
Oh, it was the name of Odd’s dog. No wonder it sounded familiar. Still, she brushed that thought aside to address the two girls.
“It’s fine,” Amaia said. She knelt to meet Milly at eye level. “Do you want to pet him?”
Milly’s eyes brightened. “Yes, please.” Her companion stood off to the side, watching. Carefully, and gently, Amaia instructed Milly on how to gain Diego’s trust.
“Don't move too quickly. Do it like this.”
She demonstrated to Milly how to hold a hand out to a dog. Never a fist or they will perceive it as an attack. Amaia was still, her hand hovering close to Diego’s nose. He sniffed, already familiar with the scent. And Milly watched keenly as a hawk. So far so good. Once Diego was done sniffing Amaia’s hand, Milly held hers out in front of him. Just as she had seen Amaia do. Thus far, Milly’s attempt was going well. Until Amaia saw Diego opening his mouth.
“Ah! No!” She hurriedly pushed Milly’s hand away, surprising her. “No, lobito. No,” she scolded.
“Lobito?” the other girl questioned.
“It means ‘little wolf’. Just something I say,” Amaia explained. Standing, she turned to Milly again. “Sorry. I think pettings will have to wait.” Because, she belatedly remembered, Diego was teething. Milly’s shoulders slumped.
“Awww…”
It wasn’t fun having to relay the news. Doubly so when Milly was doing so well. She had remained still and let Diego sniff her hand. And she even listened to what she was being told. It wasn’t fair Milly wouldn’t get to pet him. But it would’ve been less fun if Diego’s teeth got a hold of her hand. What could be done…
An idea came when she remembered she had Diego’s bone in her bag.
“Just a moment…” she rummaged through her bag until she found the bone. “There.” She knelt again, this time holding it out to Diego.
Arf!
The puppy stood on his hind legs, eager to receive his bone. His little jaws opened wide, welcoming the bone. So happy was he, his teeth almost grazed his owner’s fingers. Amaia jerked her hand back as soon as Diego had his bone. She waved her hand, attempting to soothe the frayed feeling. Good grief, that was close. That was another thing she would need to work on. His biting habit.
“Serves me right for forgetting he's still teething,” she muttered under her breath. She blew on her hand, not minding the looks she was getting from Milly and her friend.
“Is he still safe to pet?” Milly asked.
“He is,” Amaia confirmed. “Just keep your fingers away from his mouth.” Milly breathed a sigh of relief. Looking to the side, Amaia observed the other girl. She hadn’t spoken much, aside from a question or two. And between her and Milly, she seemed to be the less impulsive one of the duo. She was eying the puppy, a question bubbling in the back of her mind. Did she want to pet Diego, too? It couldn’t hurt to ask.
“Do you want to pet him, too?” Amaia asked. The other girl hesitated. After a short pause, she nodded her head. Amaia smiled, gesturing for her to come join them. A wide grin graced the other girl’s face. She was more than happy to join in playing with Diego. Just like with Milly, she instructed her on how to gain Diego’s trust. An extra bit of caution was taken now that Amaia remembered he was teething. But soon, both girls were petting him. Safely, Amaia added.
She turned to the other girl. “What’s your name?” she asked.
“Tamiya.”
Amaia couldn’t stop the smile from creeping onto her face. “Hello, Tamiya. I'm Amaia.”
“That rhymes,” Milly quipped. All three laughed and were back to playing with Diego after. Minutes passed, and the girls were becoming well-acquainted with Diego. Talking with them, Amaia learned they went to Kadic. The same school Jeremie and his friends attended. The initial surprise passed, and Amaia was soon losing the awkwardness she usually felt around new people. They were a grade younger, around Andres’s age she confirmed. Though that still left the bigger question hanging in the air.
“What exactly were you two doing?” Amaia asked. Milly and Tamiya went dead silent, their eyes finding sudden interest in the ground beneath them. For a while, neither of them spoke, even with Diego barking for attention. Milly looked away, Tamiya hastily cobbled together a coherent sentence in between long pauses. Until finally:
“We’re… lost.” Amaia looked at her. “We can't find our parents, Milly doesn't have her phone, and mine is dead.”
“…oh.”
So that’s what was happening. A day with family and friends, she guessed, somehow resulted in these two getting lost to the point they couldn’t find their parents. And with Tamiya’s phone dead, Milly’s phone being who knows where, they had no way to contact their parents. And with Milly’s reaction bordering on tears just earlier…
… alright, that’s it.
Amaia stood up, much to Milly and Tamiya’s confusion. “Follow me,” she said. “We're heading to the Dupain-Cheng bakery.”
“What about our parents?” Milly asked. Amaia pulled out her phone. Checking the battery, it was still at 99% charge.
“Use my phone to call them,” she instructed. “Tell them to meet us at the bakery.”
She could’ve sworn their eyes brightened so much, it would rival Adrien’s status as Paris’s sunshine boy. Scratch that, it would put a light bulb out of its misery.
“Okay,” Milly said, reaching for the phone.
“Let me call them, Milly,” Tamiya said. “You mostly use your phone for the voice recorder.” At which, Milly blushed in embarrassment. The decision was made. Amaia lent Tamiya her phone to use. While Tamiya entered the number to call their parents, Amaia took out a small bottle from her bag.
“Need some hand sanitizer?” she asked Milly.
“Okay.” Milly held her hands out for the hand sanitizer. Amaia squirted some into her hand, then her own. The call to the parents in the meantime seemed to pick up. Tamiya was now speaking to some adults who sounded worried and frightened. Which melted away into relief upon hearing the girls were safe and being escorted to a place where they could be picked up. Amaia, meanwhile, readied Diego for the trek home.
“Come along, lobito.” She gently tugged on his leash. “We're going home now.”
Arf!
The puppy got to his feet and surrendered his bone to Amaia. Who then safely tucked it away into the bag.
“What kind of dog is he?” Milly asked.
“Siberian husky.”
“Those are big dogs.”
“And they're energetic little play machines.”
The best example in front of them: the husky puppy named Diego. Who was now ready to head home and lay in his new bed. And speaking of being ready to head home, Tamiya had finished the call. Smiling, she handed Amaia’s phone back to her.
“Thank you,” she said.
“You’re welcome.” Amaia put the phone back into her bag. “Hand sanitizer?”
“I’m good.”
Thus they started on the journey to the Dupain-Cheng bakery. Diego trotted ahead, his little tail high and wagging like a metronome. Along the way, Amaia made small talk with Milly and Tamiya. They were pleasant. They reminded her somewhat of Andres minus his mischief. That much she could appreciate.
“You're pretty,” Milly said suddenly. “Do you have a boyfriend?”
All of Amaia’s mental cognitions screeched to a halt. “… why do you ask?” She tugged on the collar of her turtleneck.
“We know someone at school who had a crush on this girl named Yumi, so we were making sure you're safe,” Tamiya said. Alarm bells started going off in Amaia’s head. Sirens warning her to stop or else she’ll trip into the great unknown that was teenage romance.
“That-that's appreciated.”
The color of her face was starting to match the color of her hair, thinking about Ben. Sure, he had strange thought processes and could weird out anyone who didn’t know him well. But he was kind and brave. He possessed a warmth that made one feel at home. And his smile…
“Is he cute?”
“Yes.”
Amaia cursed herself the minute that word left her mouth. Because, she now realized, she had confirmed to two younger girls she had feelings for a boy. A boy who, she had just admitted, was cute. Oh, crap.
“Do you kiss him a lot?”
“No!”
“Aww, does that mean you don't love him?”
What?!
“What? No, I do. I—”
Amaia shut her trap the minute she registered what she had just said. The wide grins on the faces of Milly and Tamiya told her everything she needed to know. And she knew, the sensible part of her brain was saying, she had walked straight into it like a dummy. Crap.
“Then that means you kiss him a lot.”
“She's in love, Tamiya. It's so sweet.”
On the surface, Amaia was the perfect picture of restraint. Inside, however, there was a great deal of internal screaming. Not helping matters was these two girls pressing about her love life. Compounded by the dang dog looking like he was laughing at her expense. Were their parents here yet? Seeing the bakery up ahead, there was no sign of them. And there was no sign of the questions ending, either. Double crap.
“Do either of you want some snacks?” Amaia asked, hoping the topic change would divert attention from her crush.
“Yes, please.”
Good, good. They weren’t asking about her crush. Keep it that way, please.
Walking up to the bakery, Amaia peeked inside. Marinette was helping at the front, putting the baked goods into their display cases and restocking the inventory. Perfect. Amaia drummed her fingers on the glass outside. Followed by a knock on the glass, catching Mr. Dupain’s attention. He tapped Marinette’s shoulder and gestured to the group outside. Marinette’s eyes widened. She mouthed something along the lines of “Just a sec”, before bolting like a lightning bolt to the outside of the store. She gaped seeing Amaia with two unfamiliar girls standing right outside.
“Amaia. What the heck?”
“Lost child situation. Said we'd meet the parents here,” Amaia reported. Marinette blinked, switching her focus from her neighbor to her companions. And back again. She straightened up, making eye contact with the girls.
“Hi,” she greeted.
“Hi,” Milly said.
“We were just asking Amaia about her boyfriend,” Tamiya added. Amaia cursed her nonexistent luck that very moment. Marinette’s confused expression said everything they needed to know. Or, at least she did.
“No, we just finished,” Milly interjected.
“Did we?”
“Boyfriend?…”
Marinette turned to Amaia, whose face was now an interesting shade of red.
“… what’s on sale today?”
Minutes later, the group of four girls and one puppy were sitting outside on the sidewalk. All enjoying freshly baked croissants Marinette had gotten for them. Who had paid would remain a secret between them till the ends of the earth. So, to lighten the mood, Marinette made small talk with Milly and Tamiya.
“So you're from Kadic?” Marinette asked.
“We are,” Tamiya confirmed. Milly puffed up her chest proudly.
“We're the school news reporters,” she said. “Your Ace Reporters, Milly and Tamiya.”
“Oh, how cool.”
Not so cool when they mention boyfriends, Amaia mused. She continued munching on her croissant while listening to the other three.
“The girls over at AIM would love you two,” Marinette cooed.
“Who?” Milly asked.
“My school has a news club. A trio,” Marinette explained. She proceeded to tell Milly and Tamiya all about the indie news channel the AIM Archives. Consisting of the anchors Aurore and Mireille. Filmed by their camerawoman Iris. All three of whom attended Marinette’s school. Milly and Tamiya’s eyes widened in admiration. Because holy cow! These three were accomplished journalists and news reporters! Meeting them would be a dream come true!
Amaia, meanwhile, kept an eye out for their parents. During a story Marinette was telling them, two cars pulled up.
“Are those your parents?”
Tamiya looked up. “That’s them!” she exclaimed.
Two couples exited the cars. Milly lept to her feet and ran to her parents. Tamiya followed not long after. The reunion was joyous, the parents happy to see their girls again. Hugs were had. Tears of joy were shed. Overall, it was a heartwarming reunion.
The parents thanked the two older girls. To which, Marinette chirped a “you’re welcome,” while Amaia kept a polite response. Diego sniffed the air, wondering where his new playmates were going. The adults led their daughters to the cars, where they were safely loaded up and buckled in. Milly and Tamiya rolled down the windows.
“Thank you, Amaia!” they called in unison. Amaia smiled, waving bye to them. Soon, the cars drove off, taking them home and away from the bakery. Diego whined, crying for the absence of his new playmates. Amaia scratched him behind the ears.
“Cheer up, lobito. We'll see them again.”
After today, she could use a nap. A long nap, with no dreams, and no way to embarrass her whatsoever. Judging by the look on Marinette’s face, that wasn’t going to happen anytime soon.
“So what was that they were saying about a boyfriend?”
“Nothing.”