Chapter Text
Marinette sighed as she walked towards the door out of her family’s apartment. Today was the first day of school, and she was dreading it.
“Cheer up Marinette! This year is fresh, new, it’s your first year of High School! Who knows what the future holds for you!” Mullo said giving her a big grin
“I dunno Mullo, I-i just know Chloe is going to be in my class again, and even if she isn’t she’ll just go out of her way to make my life horrible, just like always” Marinette said sadly
“Just don’t get all upset before you even get to your first class” Mullo said, giving her a reassuring hug
“Thanks, Mullo” Marinette said with a smile “I can’t imagine a better kawami by my side all these years”
“And I couldn’t imagine a better holder”
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Marinette stood in front of the door of her first class and breathed in deeply
‘I can do this’ she thought
She walked into the classroom and slipped quietly into a seat in the back corner, isolating herself from anyone who might give her a weird look or stare or say anything mean. Marinette had been an outcast, labeled as weird and shy and poor as soon as Chloe had the chance to gang her grade against her way back in first grade. Sure they were often new kids, but they quickly learned from others that talking with Marinette was bad news and sure to get a swarm of Chloe hate sent your way. Marinette had accepted this, the only solution that kept her from getting hurt was to stay away from everyone else and to not let them see her emotions.
“Can you BELIEVE it!” Chloe announced loudly for the whole class to her “My childhood friend, ADRIEN is going to be in our class”
‘Great’ Marinette thought ‘Just what we need, another rich brat’
“AND he’ll be sitting right HERE” Chloe said pointing to a spot in the front row next to Nino
“Right in front of ME” and sat in the spot right behind it
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BANG
Marinette fell as the whole ground shook. Something was wrong, something was very, very wrong. She looked at the security cameras displayed on TV’s in the library, a big, scary, rock monster was just outside the school
‘Oh no’ Marinette thought ‘I better tell Master Fu!’
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Marinette raced up the stairs to the apartment just across from theirs and entered the small apartment
“Master Fu!” She said, panting “There is a big rock monster, just outside the school!”
Master Fu looked up at her, concern in his eyes
“I hoped it would not be so soon” he said, thinking
“What? What would be so soon!?”
“Wayzz told me, just this morning he sensed a dark presence in control of the butterfly” he said
“So you're saying... Someone has been AKUMATIZED for EVIL AND IS NOW RUNNING
LOOSE!?” Marinette said, pulling her hair
“Do not worry, I have also chosen holders for the Ladybug and Black Cat Miraculous” he said
“I should help too” Marinette said “I have a Miraculous, I should help them”
“No”
“No?”
“Marinette, you know already that we must stay and protect the miracle box, it is our duty, it is the chosen duty to protect the city”
“But...” Marinette couldn’t come up with a good argument “Fine, I will stay here”
Marinette went into the living room and flipped the TV onto a news broadcast of that battle and watched in worried silence as the heroes learned their new powers
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Marinette came downstairs to her living room to find that people through Paris were being transformed into frozen stone monsters.
“They didn’t get the Akuma!” she practically yelled
“It’s going to be ok” her father said, hugging her “Everyone messes up, I am certain they will fix it as soon as they can”
Marinette was not convinced, if she had been there she would have made sure Ladybug got the Akuma, she didn’t blame the heroes, she blamed herself for not being there to make sure Paris was safe
“I hope so” she finally said “Or we are going to be in BIG trouble”
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Marinette did not like having to go to school when Ivan could be transformed back into Stoneheart at any moment and bring all the frozen monsters to life, but school was important, besides if she was in any direct danger she knew how to defend herself, with or without a miraculous
She walked into the classroom to find a blonde boy doing something with her seat
“Hey, what are you going!?” She said, not even trying to mask her anger
Chloe and Sabrina started laughing
“Oh, haha very funny you three” she said, glaring at the boy
“No I-i was just trying to take the gum off!” he said
“Oh, really” she said, keeping her glare on him as she covered the gum with a tissue
“So, your Chloe's friend then huh”
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Adrien sat down in the seat Chloe had saved for him in defeat, he hadn’t wanted to hurt the girl, but that’s what he had done, the opposite of what he had set out to do. Just his luck
“Why didn’t you tell her it was Chloe’s idea” the boy next to him asked
“I’ve known Chloe since I was little, I know she’s far from perfect but she’s my only friend”
The boy held out his hand for a shake “I’m Nino and it’s time you made some new friends”
Adrien smiled and shook his hand ‘Maybe this day won’t be the worst day ever’
“Ok everyone settle down!” The teacher said “It’s time for role”
“Agrest, Adrien” the teacher called
Adrien sat there for a moment, all eyes on him
“You say present” Nino whispered
“Uh, PRESENT!” Adrien said, nervously
“Bourgeois, Chloe”
“Present!”
“Brule, Ivan”
“PRESENT” the stone monster said, crashing through the door
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The chaos of the day had been dealt with and all was calm as Adrien walked out the school doors and spotted Marinette, standing at the top of the stairway, stretching her arm out into the rain
“Hey” he said, walking up behind her
She just turned her head away so he couldn’t see her face
He took a deep breath “I just wanted you to know, I was only trying to take the gum off your seat, I promise. I’ve never been to school, or had friends, it’s all sort of new to me” he held out his umbrella for her to take it
At first, she stood there for a moment staring at him before very cautiously, very gently, taking the umbrella
“See you at school tomorrow” he said with a smile
“Y-yeah” she said
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Adrien walked into the classroom the next day and sat down next to Nino
“Well you seem pretty upbeat today” Nino said
“I told Marinette the truth about the gum” Adrien said with a grin
“That’s really cool of you dude, I am assuming by your mood she accepted it” Nino said
“She did! I told her my side, and then how I’m not really good at social stuff, and then I gave her my umbrella” Adrien said “She did seem pretty nervous about it though, not sure what that’s all about but I’m glad she took it in the end”
“I bet she doesn’t get many gestures like that, she’s kinda like a social outcast so most people tend to ignore her” Nino said “She is also kinda Chloe’s personal punching bag”
“Chloe HITS her!?” Adrien said, very alarmed
“No, no, metaphorically, she just picks on her a lot, she’s kinda an easy target”
Adrien had known that Chloe wasn’t the kindest person but he had never thought that Chloe was a bully
The teacher walking into the classroom and calling lessons to a start snapped Adrien out of his pondering and bringing him back to Earth
‘I can talk to Marinette after class’ He thought ‘Maybe if I can reach out to her I can be her friend’
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After class had ended Adrien noted Marinette got out of class first so he quickly put his stuff in his bag and walked quickly out after her to catch up
“Hey!” He said with a warm smile
“Hi” she said, neither her voice nor her face giving away any obvious emotions
‘Ok Adrien, real smooth. Now what can I say to her, what do normal kids ask when they are walking together’ Adrien though
“How’s your day been” Adrien asked
“Same as usual” she replied, looking a little uncertain “Anny specific reason to ask?”
“Oh, no reason, just wanted to know” he said a bit awkwardly
Marinette sighed and closed her eyes for a moment
“I know your new to the whole school social structure thing so I’ll tell you straight out. I’m like… the school outcast, that’s like, the lowest you can get, talking to me means your subject to bullying, being ignored, stuff like that, I know your friends with Chloe and I wouldn’t want to ruin that for you” Marinette said, not looking at him in the eye and instead looking just where she was going “No one wants to be friends with me, no one dares speak to me unless it's a necessity and believe me when I say, I won’t be mad at you if you do the same”
Adrien thought for a moment of what to say
“Marinette...” he said, stoping, looking her straight in the eye “I want to be friends with you”
The way Marinette looked at him after that broke his heart, the way she looked like no one had said that to her in years, the way the hope just seemed to radiate off her, the way she looked so surprised
“I-i… are you serious, because if your joking that is the literal worst thing you could possibly joke about”
“I’m serious”
And then the bell rang, if they didn’t get to class within the next minute they would be late
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