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Marinette and Adrien shouldn’t have been surprised when their 6-year-old daughter woke them up before sunrise on Christmas.
“Maman! Papa! Wake up! It’s Christmas!” Emma exclaimed, leaping onto their king-sized bed and climbing on top of them. Adrien grunted as he felt the brunt of her weight on his ribs.
“Mmm,” Marinette groaned. “What time is it?”
“Time to open presents!” the little girl answered, hopping off of Adrien to lay across Marinette. Adrien chuckled as he rubbed his eyes, trying to rid the sleepiness from them.
“It’s definitely earlier than 7 considering the sun isn’t out, yet. Emma, what are you doing up so early?” he asked, brushing his daughter’s blonde hair with his fingers. She rolled off of Marinette and scooted back closer to him. Adrien tucked her into his side.
“It’s Christmas, papa! We always get up early on Christmas!” Emma said, looking up at her father. He couldn’t necessarily disagree with her. She was right; every year they’d get up early to make breakfast and open presents, watch a Christmas movie, then take an afternoon nap together.
Normally, though, waking up early didn’t mean while it was still dark outside.
“I can’t argue with you there, little one, but if the sun isn’t up and awake, then we shouldn’t be either,” Adrien poked his daughter’s nose and she giggled.
“That rule doesn’t apply today!”
“It doesn’t? And why not?” The man raised a playful brow.
“Because we should spend lots of time together on Christmas! If we wake up early, then we have more time,” Emma explained triumphantly. Adrien laughed and hugged her tighter.
“When did you get so smart?” he peered down at the girl.
Emma shrugged. “I don’t know. Grandpa Tom told me to say that if you and maman wouldn’t get up!”
Adrien eyed the girl conspicuously before plastering on a devious smile.
“Come here, you!” Adrien said through gritted teeth, pulling Emma on top of him and squeezing at her sides. She squealed and tried to wiggle away from her father’s tickly fingers, but was stuck in his grip.
“Papahaha!” Emma yelled through her laughter. Adrien ceased his attack and kissed her on the top of her head.
“Alright, sweetie, we’ll get up. Crêpe’s for breakfast?” he asked, pushing away the hair from Emma’s face. The little girl lit up and nodded. “Okay, why don’t you go brush your teeth and get ready in the living room.”
“But maman isn’t awake, yet!” Emma looked over to her resting mother and then back at Adrien.
“She’s awake, Emma, she’s just stubborn and hates getting out of bed. How should we help?” the father smiled, glancing in between his wife and daughter. Emma tapped her finger on her chin.
“Hmm, maybe we could bring her breakfast in bed!” she enthused. Adrien scrunched up his face.
“No, maman cooks the best crêpe’s. She wouldn’t like ours very much.”
“Yeah, I think you’re right.”
“Ooh! I know!” Adrien smirked. He pointed at Marinette and then wiggled his fingers in front of Emma, silently telling her his plan to tickle her out of bed. Emma gasped and nodded. She slid off of Adrien and crawled over to Marinette, pulling the comforter off of her body.
Marinette groaned again and shoved her face in the pillow.
“Maman! Please get up. Pretty pleeeaaassee!” Emma drawled out. Marinette huffed, but otherwise, ignored her very cute and distracting daughter. The girl looked back at her father who just shrugged and motioned his head towards his wife.
Emma wasted no time in digging her tiny fingers into Marinette’s sides. Even with small hands, Emma was very good at tickling. Marinette was sure she’d gotten lessons from Adrien.
Marinette squeezed her arms into her torso and giggled. “I thihihink this is a lihihihittle unfair.”
Sure, if she really wanted to, Marinette could quickly put a stop to it, but one of her favorite things about her family were their tickle fights. She loved how it put a smile on all of their faces.
“Well, if you would get up, maybe she’d stop,” Adrien spoke up. He rested his head in his hand, watching with a grin as his daughter tickled her. Marinette had moved so that she was laying flat on her stomach, turning her head towards Adrien.
“Dohohon’t act like this wasn’t your ideahahaha!” Marinette laughed as Emma moved her hands up to her mother’s ribs. “Yohohou taught her how to tihihihickle!”
Adrien fake gasped and placed his hand on his heart, feigning terror. “Why would you accuse me of such a thing? On Christmas of all days! I think you need to be punished.”
Marinette’s eyes widened, knowing that once Adrien started tickling, there would be no end until she either gave up or laughed until she cried.
“No! No, I don’t! I’m getting up!”
“Get her neck, Emma!” Adrien instructed. Emma moved to the top of the bed and darted her small fingers into the crook of her mother’s neck. Marinette continued to giggle, but those quickly turned into full laughs and cackles as Adrien pinched her sides with more deliberation. Emma’s hands were tickly and tingly, but Adrien’s were brutal.
Marinette scrunched up in every possible way. “AHAHA! WAHAHAIT!”
“No more waiting, my Lady! We want to open presents!” Adrien replied. Marinette shrieked as her husband’s hands darted under her arms. She clamped her arms down, effectively trapping his hands in the one spot she didn’t want them to be.
“I’LL GEHEHEHET UP. NOT THEHEHEHERE, ADRIEHEHEN!”
Emma laughed along with her mother. “Wow, maman! You’re really ticklish. Even more than me!”
Adrien halted his fingers, pulling his hands out from under her arms, which prompted Emma to stop, as well. Marinette panted and got through her lingering giggles before speaking again.
“I should have known that having a mini-Adrien was going to be trouble,” Marinette mumbled as she flipped over. Adrien chuckled and kissed her softly on the cheek. “You two are going to be the death of me!”
“We just love you so much, maman! We like seeing you happy!” Emma said with excitement. She snuggled closer to Marinette, who didn’t hesitate to hug her tightly.
“Thank you, kitten. Are you ready for breakfast?” Marinette asked. Emma smiled.
“Yeah! Papa said that we could have crêpe’s!”
“I think that’s a wonderful idea. Go brush your teeth and we can get started, okay?”
“’Kay!” Emma crawled out of bed and ran back to her bedroom. Marinette and Adrien snickered at their more-than-enthusiastic daughter.
“She acts more like you every single day, chaton,” Marinette uttered out before pressing a kiss onto her husband’s lips.
“Is that a bad thing?”
“No, it’s the best thing. The only thing better than one Adrien is two Adrien’s,” the dark-haired woman smiled. Adrien returned the favor and planted a sweet peck onto her forehead. He swiftly rolled out of bed and offered a hand to Marinette.
“Our princess awaits.”
Marinette took it and stood out of bed, walking hand in hand to the living room to start their day.
The family spent the entire morning smiling and laughing as they made breakfast and opened presents together. Christmas was Marinette and Adrien’s favorite holiday because of the unfiltered joy that loomed through their home.
After all the gifts had been opened, Adrien gathered all of the torn wrapping paper and placed it in the trash.
“I’ll be back! I’m going to take this out,” he gestured to the garbage. Marinette hummed as she sifted through their Christmas movie collection, deciding on The Polar Express.
“Psstt! Emma, come here,” Marinette loudly whispered once Adrien had shut the front door. Emma looked up from her brand-new dollhouse and sprinted over. “I want to get papa back for this morning. Will you help me?”
“You want to tickle papa?” Emma questioned her with a grin.
Marinette bobbed her head. “Yes, I think he deserves it after what he did to us. Will you help me, miss Kitty Noir?”
Emma nodded back.
“Okay, here’s the plan…”
Marinette whispered the course of action to her daughter in case Adrien came back and caught them. Emma and Marinette agreed on the plan and sat on the couch, waiting for him to return.
Adrien walked back into the house, cruising into the living room. “What did you two decide on?”
“The Polar Express!” Emma responded. “Come sit between us, papa!”
“You don’t have to tell me twice. You know I love spending time with my girls,” Adrien sauntered over to the couch, plopping directly in between his wife and daughter. He draped his arms over the back of the couch so he could wrap his arms around them.
Marinette leaned forward and gave Emma the signal; a big, exaggerated wink.
The two girls dove into their devilish plan, tickling Adrien without mercy.
“WOAHAHA! Whahahat are you twohohoho doing?”
“Getting you back for this morning, papa!”
Marinette reached down and squeezed the spot above his knee, causing Adrien to kick his leg out.
“AGH! MMH! Ma-Mahaharinehehette!” Adrien laughed. His wife smirked back at him.
“That’s what you get for tickling me this morning,” she voiced lowly. She extended her arm out to Emma, holding her hands. “Thank you for helping me, Emma. I think papa learned his lesson. Didn’t you, Adrien?”
The man looked at the two of them and sighed, chuckling despite himself. “I absolutely did. I apologize.”
“We accept your apology,” Emma stood up and planted a big, wet, sloppy kiss onto her father’s cheek. Adrien laughed and looked over to Marinette with a mischievous glint in his eyes.
“You know, my Lady, I think I want to take back my apology. Do you think I should?”
“Oh, I think you should,” Marinette caught on to his plan and grinned. She reached across him and pulled Emma into her lap, holding her still while Adrien tickled her tummy. The blonde girl giggled and squealed every time her father moved his hands to a new spot.
The three of them didn’t pay much attention to the movie after that. They were all tuckered out once the tickle fight came to an end and they slept soundly on the couch—tangled limbs and all.